Researchers find signs of inflammation in brains of people who died of COVID-19

The most comprehensive molecular study to date of the brains of people who died of COVID-19 turned up unmistakable signs of inflammation and impaired brain circuits.

Investigators at the Stanford School of Medicine and Saarland University in Germany report that what they saw looks a lot like what's observed in the brains of people who died of neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease.

The findings may help explain why many COVID-19 patients report neurological problems. These complaints increase with the severity of infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. And they can persist as an aspect of "long COVID," a long-lasting disorder that sometimes arises following infection. About one-third of individuals hospitalized for COVID-19 report symptoms of fuzzy thinking, forgetfulness, difficulty concentrating and depression, said Tony Wyss-Coray, PhD, professor of neurology and neurological sciences at Stanford.

Yet the researchers couldn't find any signs of SARS-CoV-2 in brain tissue they obtained from eight individuals who died of the disease. Brain samples from 14 people who died of other causes were used as controls for the study.

"The brains of patients who died from severe COVID-19 showed profound molecular markers of inflammation, even though those patients didn't have any reported clinical signs of neurological impairment," said Wyss-Coray, who is the D. H. Chen Professor II.

Scientists disagree about whether SARS-CoV-2 is present in COVID-19 patients' brains. "We used the same tools they've used -- as well as other, more definitive ones -- and really looked hard for the virus's presence," he said. "And we couldn't find it."

A paper describing the study will be published June 21 in Nature. Wyss-Coray shares senior authorship with Andreas Keller, PhD, chair of clinical bioinformatics at Saarland University. The lead authors are Andrew Yang, PhD, a postdoctoral scholar in Wyss-Coray's group, and Fabian Kern, a graduate student in Keller's group.

Blood-brain barrier

The blood-brain barrier, which consists in part of blood-vessel cells that are tightly stitched together and blob-like abutments created by brain cells' projections squishing up against the vessels, has until recently been thought to be exquisitely selective in granting access to cells and molecules produced outside the brain.

But previous work by Wyss-Coray's group and by others has shown that bloodborne factors outside the brain can signal through the blood-brain barrier to ignite inflammatory responses inside the brain. This could explain why, as Wyss-Coray and his colleagues have discovered, factors in young mice's blood can rejuvenate older mice's cognitive performance, whereas blood from old mice can detrimentally affect their younger peers' mental ability.

On hearing reports of enduring neurological symptoms among some COVID-19 patients, Wyss-Coray became interested in how SARS-CoV-2 infection might cause such problems, which resemble those that occur due to aging as well as to various neurodegenerative diseases. Having also seen conflicting reports of the virus's presence in brain tissue in other studies, he wanted to know whether the virus does indeed penetrate the brain.

Brain tissue from COVID-19 patients is hard to find, Wyss-Coray said. Neuropathologists are reluctant to take the steps required to excise it because of potential exposure to SARS-CoV-2 and because regulations often prohibit such procedures to prevent viral transmission. But Keller, who has worked in the Wyss-Coray lab as a visiting professor at Stanford, was able to access COVID-19 brain-tissue samples from autopsies conducted at the hospital that's associated with Saarland University.

Using an approach called single-cell RNA sequencing, the scientists logged the activation levels of thousands of genes in each of 65,309 individual cells taken from brain-tissue samples from the COVID-19 patients and the controls.

In neurons of the cerebral cortex, signs of distress

Activation levels of hundreds of genes in all major cell types in the brain differed in the COVID-19 patients' brains versus the control group's brains. Many of these genes are associated with inflammatory processes.

There also were signs of distress in neurons in the cerebral cortex, the brain region that plays a key role in decision-making, memory and mathematical reasoning. These neurons, which are mostly of two types -- excitatory and inhibitory -- form complex logic circuits that perform those higher brain functions.

The outermost layers of the cerebral cortex of patients who died of COVID-19 showed molecular changes suggesting suppressed signaling by excitatory neurons, along with heightened signaling by inhibitory neurons, which act like brakes on excitatory neurons. This kind of signaling imbalance has been associated with cognitive deficits and neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's disease.

An additional finding was that peripheral immune cells called T cells, immune cells that prowl for pathogens, were significantly more abundant in brain tissue from dead COVID-19 patients. In healthy brains, these immune cells are few and far between.

"Viral infection appears to trigger inflammatory responses throughout the body that may cause inflammatory signaling across the blood-brain barrier, which in turn could trip off neuroinflammation in the brain," Wyss-Coray said.

"It's likely that many COVID-19 patients, especially those reporting or exhibiting neurological problems or those who are hospitalized, have these neuroinflammatory markers we saw in the people we looked at who had died from the disease," he added. It may be possible to find out by analyzing these patients' cerebrospinal fluid, whose contents to some extent mirror those of the living brain.

"Our findings may help explain the brain fog, fatigue, and other neurological and psychiatric symptoms of long COVID," he said.

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Wyss-Coray is co-director of the Paul F. Glenn Center for Biology of Aging Research at Stanford, a member of Stanford Bio-X, Stanford's Maternal and Child Health Research Institute, and Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute at Stanford, and a faculty fellow of ChEM-H.

Other Stanford co-authors of the study are postdoctoral scholars Patricia Losada, PhD, Nicholas Schaum, PhD, Ryan Vest, PhD, Nannan Lu, PhD, and Oliver Hahn, PhD; basic life research scientist Daniela Berdnik, PhD; life science research professionals Maayan Agam and Kruti Calcuttawala; former life science research associate Davis Lee; former visiting student researcher Christina Maat; life science research professional Divya Channappa; David Gate, PhD, instructor of neurology and neurological sciences; M. Windy McNerney, PhD, clinical assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences; and Imma Cobos, MD, PhD, assistant professor of pathology.

In addition to Keller and Kern, other researchers at Saarland University also contributed to the study.

The work was funded by the Nomis Foundation, the National Institutes of Health (grants T32-AG0047126, 1RF1AG059694 and P30AG066515), Nan Fung Life Sciences, the Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute and the Stanford Alzheimer's Disease Research Center.

The Stanford University School of Medicine consistently ranks among the nation's top medical schools, integrating research, medical education, patient care and community service. For more news about the school, please visit http://med. stanford. edu/ school. html . The medical school is part of Stanford Medicine, which includes Stanford Health Care and Stanford Children's Health. For information about all three, please visit http://med. stanford. edu .

This story has been published on: 2021-06-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Patenting a fiber optic monitoring system for 5G light-powered networks

The Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M), together with the Universidad Politecnica de Valencia (UPV), has patented a multicore fibre optic monitoring system for future use in 5G networks. This system will optimise energy consumption, preserving data transmission capacity.

The system, developed by the UC3M's Photonic Displays and Applications research group, has been able to light-power a system for controlling turning antennas on and off using a fibre optic infrastructure. "What we are going to achieve is a parallel system that will monitor the node's energy needs at all times. In other words, if there is no user in the cell, which is the physical area covered by a particular antenna, we will turn it off so that it is not consuming energy," says Carmen Vazquez, professor at the Department of Electronic Technology.

In addition to this, by receiving a single optical signal, the system can also monitor temperature changes in the fibre core, energy distribution using optical means at different network points, and the state of the communication channel used within the fibre. "If lots of energy is sent, the temperature inside the fibre might increase and, therefore, could be damaged. This system helps us know how much energy we are sending and make sure that the infrastructure we are using to send that energy is in good condition and we are not damaging it," notes Vazquez.

The system can also be integrated into the communications channel itself, with minimal insertion losses and monitoring on a different control channel to the channel being used to send energy. Currently, there is no commercial system that integrates this type of technique, according to the research team.

This patent has been created in collaboration with the ITEAM-UPV's Photonics Research Labs, who manufactured the semi-reflective mirrors embedded in the optical fibres. "Fibre-manufactured devices monitor the power reaching the nodes in real time, while indicating the temperature, without affecting the power of the data being transmitted. This is the basis for the technique developed by the UC3M group," notes Salvador Sales, professor and researcher at the ITEAM-UPV.

The results of research published recently in the Journal of Lightwave Technology scientific journal, which is co-edited by the Optical Society of America (OSA) and the IEEE Photonics Society, show some of the applications that the developed invention may have.

This patent has been developed within the framework of a wider line of research, which has obtained a set of results. BlueSPACE (5G PPP BlueSpace Project Grant 762055) is a three-year European research project, led by Eindhoven University of Technology, that aims to develop next-generation wireless technologies. BlueSpace aims to contribute technologies to increase the speed of the current network, while seeking to reduce energy consumption by using centralised technologies and multicore fibres. The UC3M's contributions to remote light-power have been evaluated in order to be part of the innovative technologies funded by the European Union and of Innovation Radar, an initiative from the European Commission.

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RTHK: US should not misinterpret Kim's comment, says sister

The sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un warned the United States on Tuesday it would be disappointed were it to seek comfort in comments by her brother, while a US envoy met South Korea's president aiming to revive talks with North Korea.

Kim Yo-jong, who is also a senior official in North Korea's ruling party, released a statement in state media saying the United States appeared to be interpreting signals from North Korea in the "wrong way."

She was responding to US national security adviser Jake Sullivan, who on Sunday said he saw as an "interesting signal" a recent speech by Kim Jong-un on preparing for both confrontation and diplomacy with the United States.

"It seems that the US may interpret the situation in such a way as to seek a comfort for itself," she said in the statement, carried by the North's KCNA state news agency.

"The expectation, which they chose to harbour the wrong way, would plunge them into a greater disappointment."

In response, the US State Department said on Tuesday that Kim Yo-jong's comments had not changed its desire to explore diplomacy with North Korea.

North Korea's nuclear weapons programme has been an intractable problem for Washington for years and in trying to change that, President Joe Biden's administration conducted a review of policy and said it would seek "calibrated and practical" ways to persuade Pyongyang to denuclearise.

North Korea has rebuffed US entreaties for diplomacy since Biden took over in January from former President Donald Trump, who had three summits with Kim but failed to persuade him to give up his nuclear weapons.

In South Korea, President Moon Jae-in told the US special representative for North Korea, Sung Kim, he would seek to get inter-Korean and US-North Korea relations back on track and expressed hopes for progress toward denuclearisation and peace on the Korean peninsula, spokeswoman Park Kyung-mee said.

On Monday, Sung Kim said he was willing to meet the North Koreans "anywhere, anytime without preconditions" and that he looked forward to a "positive response soon."

US State Department spokesman Ned Price said on Tuesday that the United States was aware of Kim Yo-jong's comments and added: "They have not changed our view on diplomacy; we remain prepared to engage in principled negotiations with (North Korea) to deal with the challenge of its nuclear programme.

"We continue to hope that (North Korea) will respond positively to our outreach and we'll have to wait and see if these comments are followed up with any more direct communication about potential paths forward," Price told a regular news briefing.

In a sign seen in South Korea as a positive US gesture, the allies discussed scrapping a joint "working group" that analysts say Seoul has seen as an irritant in relations.

Sung Kim and his South Korean counterpart Noh Kyu-duk agreed to "look into terminating the working group," while reinforcing coordination at other levels, South Korea's Foreign Ministry said.

The working group was set up in 2018 to help coordinate approaches to North Korea on issues such as denuclearisation talks, humanitarian aid, sanctions enforcement and inter-Korean relations, amid a flurry of diplomatic engagement with Pyongyang at that time.

The Moon administration has made building ties with North Korea a top priority and a former aide to Moon told parliament last year the working group was seen as an obstacle to that.

"From a South Korean perspective, this was basically a mechanism for the US to block inter-Korean projects during the Trump years," said Ramon Pacheco Pardo, a Korea expert at King's College London.

"It would be a clever political move for the Biden administration to end the group since consultation between Washington and Seoul will take place anyway." (Reuters)

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RTHK: Twin joy as Tokyo panda gives birth to two cubs

A panda at Tokyo's Ueno Zoo gave birth to twins on Wednesday, weeks after news of Shin Shin's pregnancy sent stocks in nearby restaurants soaring.

They were born in the early hours of Wednesday, the zoo said in a statement, adding that it had not yet confirmed the sex of the pair.

Zoo director Yutaka Fukuda said the twin birth was a first for the Ueno facility.

"When I heard the news that the second baby was born, I couldn't help but whoop," he told reporters.

One of the cubs, weighing in at 124 grams, was placed in an incubator, zoo spokesperson Naoya Ohashi said in a press conference later.

The mother panda "is in good health, and carefully looking after" the other baby, he added.

When pandas have twins, they usually only raise one, "so we will be making sure the mother panda will breastfeed one while we keep the other in the incubator," Ohashi said.

Zookeepers will be swapping the babies so that both cubs experience natural feeding, he added.

Mother Shin Shin sparked a rally in stocks of eateries near the zoo earlier this month when her suspected pregnancy was announced, with investors anticipating a visitor boom to the area after the delivery.

Shares in one Chinese restaurant nearby spiked nearly 30 percent on the pregnancy and was up around 6.4 percent in early trade Wednesday.

And even the government weighed in, with spokesperson Katsunobu Kato calling the birth of the cubs "cheerful news" and inviting "all of Japan to watch over them".

Zookeepers had been on alert for a possible pregnancy after Shin Shin and partner Ri Ri mated in early March.

The pair are also parents of a female panda, Xiang Xiang, who was born in June 2017 and became a massive draw for the zoo.

She was scheduled to be repatriated to China two years after her birth, but Japanese officials negotiated to extend her stay until the end of this year.

Japanese media have been offering regular updates on the Ueno pandas, which in non-pandemic times draw huge crowds of domestic and foreign tourists.

There are an estimated 1,800 giant pandas left in the wild, mainly in bamboo forests in the mountains of China, according to environmental group WWF.

Around 600 more live in zoos and breeding centres around the world.

The black and white mammals are immensely popular around the world and China loans them out as part of a "panda diplomacy" programme to foster foreign ties.

The bears are notoriously bad at reproducing, but in early June, a panda in Malaysia gave birth to its third cub during its stay there.

And a newborn in Washington DC has enthralled Americans since its birth in August 2020, with over a million people tuning in on a "Panda Cam" to watch Xiao Qi Ji 

Little Miracle. (AFP)

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South Africa: Nxesi launches employment centre in Newscatle

In an effort to boost access to employment and labour services in KwaZulu-Natals Newcastle, Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi has opened a Youth Employment Centre while also launching mobile buses.

Speaking at Tuesdays launch, Nxesi said the centre would play a significant role in connecting work seekers to potential employment opportunities in the Amajuba District Municipality, especially the youth.

He added that the centre would also assist jobseekers in developing strategies to search and find jobs and preparing for an interview.

The youth, as the future of this country, are so important and as a department, we are committed to helping them to access employment opportunities. We are, therefore, urging employers to place their vacancies for free on our Employment Services South Africa (ESSA) online system on www.essa.labour.gov.za so clients can access them, said Minister Nxesi.

In an effort to reach most clients of the department, especially those in rural areas, the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) has also procured eight mobile buses worth R84 million which were unveiled by the Minister.

The two buses that were launched today have already hit the road, servicing clients in Amajuba District from 19 June 2021 while the remaining six will be delivered before the end of august 2021, said acting UIF Commissioner, Teboho Thejane.

The buses, which are user-friendly to people living with disabilities, will be used for the provision of essential services of the department, particularly in areas without labour centres. They are equipped with technology, audio, a kitchenette, work stations, generators, LED screens, air-conditioning, staff and public toilets, fire extinguisher, Wi-Fi, and a server that will enable the rendering of all departmental services on wheels.

Nxesi and Thejane revealed that the Funds Labour Activation Programme (LAP), which is aimed at re-integrating the unemployed into the labour market, would continue conducting training programmes to create jobs.

They reiterated that training providers who submit proposals to the department must commit to securing job opportunities for learners before the training programme commences.

The Minister who was accompanied by the Mayor of Amajuba District Municipality, Dr Musa Ngubane also visited eMadadeni Community Hall to assess progress made in the COVID-19 vaccination process around Amajuba District Municipality.  SAnews.gov.za

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South Africa: President Ramaphosa arrives in Mozambique for SADC Summit

This story has been published on: 2021-06-23. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.

A total of 46 893 COVID-19 tests were conducted on Tuesday, with 11 093 new cases detected. According to the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), this represents a 23.7% positivity rate, pushing the number of laboratory-confirmed cases to 1 843 572. Of the latest infections, the majority are from Gauteng (67%), followed... See more
South Africa: Operation Vula Fund to unlock KZN's potential

KwaZulu-Natal Premier Sihle Zikalala says the time has come for the province to produce goods in the townships and villages of the province for itself, and the rest of the world.

The Premier was speaking at the launch of a massive rollout of R300 million Operation Vula Fund disbursements, held in Pietermaritzburg on Tuesday.

The programme forms part of the provinces efforts to create jobs and grow the economy.

During the launch, Zikalala handed over various equipment and business instruments worth over R300 million to successful beneficiaries of Operation Vula Fund.

These included catering equipment, vehicles, computers, and farming implements.

Over the next few weeks, the Premier and members of the provincial executive council (MECs) will visit various districts to handover equipment and business instruments to enterprises who had successfully applied for Operation Vula Fund support.

Zikalala said equipment with a combined value of R300 million will be disbursed to over 1 000 small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) who have been selected as successful applicants.

To date we have approved a total 1 021 applications with a value of R299 157 million. Of these successful applications, 923 were in Tier One which disbursed equipment and instruments not exceeding R200 000.

In Tier Two there were 11 successful applications where equipment disbursed ranges between R200 000 and R500 000. There were 87 successful applicants in Tier 3 which disbursed instruments whose value ranges from R500 000 up to R2 million, Zikalala said.

The Premier added that the disbursements of Operation Vula Fund equipment will serve as a major boost to the provinces job creation and economic recovery efforts.

Zikalala said the projection was that the Operation Vula Fund disbursements will help create and sustain no less than 10 816 jobs.

He noted that, of the successful applicants, at least 42% are businesses owned by young people under the age or 35, while 49.5% are women-owned.

The Premier also warned that beneficiaries are not allowed to sell the equipment, noting that in the event that a business collapses, the equipment will have to be returned to the government.

SMMEs play critical role in job creation

Sharing the Premiers sentiments, Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs MEC Ravi Pillay said SMMEs have a critical role to play in the creation of jobs.

In developed countries, up to 80% of the jobs are created by SMMES. This task that the beneficiaries have, is a critical one for the future of our province and our country, Pillay said.

Pillay also stressed that his department will monitor progress and offer support to the beneficiaries.

As a department we want to come and visit you to see how you are doing. Firstly, we will want to see that the machinery is there and is being used for the purpose for which it was requested.

Secondly we want to see how you are developing to become a successful enterprise. We will look at the operational side, the financial management side and also access to markets, Pillay said.

Zikalala and Pillay said that unsuccessful applicants will be contacted, and will be assisted with improving on areas that led to their applications being unsuccessful. - SAnews.gov.za

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South Africa: Hawks intercept R243m drugs haul

An intelligence driven operation on Tuesday morning saw police successfully slam the brakes on a R243 million drugs consignment in an Isipingo depot, in Durban.

In a statement, Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI/Hawks) spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Philani Nkwalase said the operation was conducted in the early hours of yesterday morning at a container depot on Avenue East in Isipingo.

Police pounced on the depot after information of smuggling of drugs into the country was received.

The Hawks' Serious Organised Crime Investigation team with the members from Durban Harbour, as well as Crime Intelligence Border Security, proceeded to the depot where the container which supposedly had animal food was identified and a search was conducted, said Nkwalase.

Twenty-six canvas bags with Tik Tok and Jaguar brands were found with bricks of cocaine. The drugs weighing 541 kilograms with an estimated value of more than R243 million were confiscated.

An investigation to apprehend the perpetrators and prevent contraband drugs into our country is continuing, he said.

National Hawks head Lieutenant General Godfrey Lebeya heaped praise on the team for the operation.

We are closing in on the drug cartels. This drug bust shows that there are organised criminal groupings that are involved in organising the movement of these dangerous dependent producing substances from one country to the other. While fighting the supply of these substances, we appeal to the community not to demand the supply which will ultimately help in closing the market.

The discovery of this consignment is the latest in a series of recent successful operations amounting to millions of rand.  SAnews.gov.za

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South Africa: Teacher inoculation gets underway

Public and private school teachers are finally receiving their COVID-19 vaccines across the country amid the third wave.

Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga launched the start of the vaccination programme in the sector in Tembisa, Gauteng, on Wednesday.

The Minister said she is confident that over half a million teachers will receive their Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine before the end of the second term.

I am elated and encouraged, a beaming Motshekga told journalists.

She is optimistic that 582 000 public, private and school governing body-appointed teachers and support staff will be vaccinated in the next two weeks.

We said we need two weeks because we dont want to disrupt schooling and when we close on the 8th of July, we want to be done so that when we come back in the next term, we are done with vaccination.

The Minister is optimistic that the education sector will meet the deadline.

We dont want to close on the 8th of July and still have vaccination issues.

Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi, who also got vaccinated, said he was feeling good.

He shot down criticism that government was vaccinating all teachers, including the young ones who may have no comorbidities.

Teachers are people that give birth to all our professions. Therefore, you need to protect them because they take care of our precious children. If you check the numbers that are increasing in our schools, youll see its important to protect our educators, Lesufi said.

The MEC described the choice to immunise teachers as a brilliant one, given the third wave that is ravaging the province.

Every child [has a family] and you dont want them to carry the virus to their families. Its for the future and the economy of the country to ensure that young people are protected.

Lesufi said government is determined to protect its citizens and procure the much-needed vaccines. Additionally, he encouraged all teachers to grab this opportunity to get vaccinated.

Health Deputy Minister, Dr Joe Phaahla, said the move to prioritise teachers is important for the future of the country.

Minister Motshekga fought very hard to get us where we are today. There was no single National Coronavirus Command Council meeting or the inter-ministerial meeting on vaccination where she did not raise the fact that its important that educators get vaccinated, so that they save the school year because of the time that has already been lost.

Phaahla told the media that the country has already received 300 000 J&J vaccines and is expecting another 700 000 in the next seven days.

"We won't run out of stock and will have no shortage to ensure that the full complement of the education sector is covered."

According to Phaahla, next in line is the security cluster, which includes police and traffic officers, soldiers and public sector officials in the frontline.

Meanwhile, he urged youngsters to help the elderly to sign up for vaccination.  SAnews.gov.za

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South Africa: Public service key to good governance

Public Service and Administration Minister Senzo Mchunu says the public service plays a fundamental role in the governance of every country.

Without a strong public service comprising ethical, professional public servants, there can be no efficient public service delivery that accounts fully for itself, to be in the hearts of the people and fulfil the political commitment, Mchunu said.

Addressing virtually the weeklong 8th Africa Public Service Day (APSD) continental celebrations that kick-started on Monday in Harare, Zimbabwe, Mchunu said the former models of public administration under colonialism failed to recognise the way of life of the people.

Mchunu said instead, foreign policies and ideals were imposed upon the colonised, stripping them of any voice or power.

The manner in which governance was exercised was to the benefit of a select few, completely ignoring the needs of the majority, Mchunu said.

Mchunu said to safeguard Africas growth and facilitate opportunities for the next generation, the public service is set to ensure that initiatives, programmes and policies harness the potential of the worlds youngest population and prioritise issues such as the continents widening inequalities and lack of prospects.

Mchunu encouraged young people to consider a career in public service as an attractive option.

He said good administration goes hand in hand with flourishing economic development.

When we fought for the liberation of our respective countries, it was to better the lives of the citizens, to improve the socio-economic inequalities which existed, racial classifications and to advance the interests of all in a uniform manner, the Minister said.

Mchunu said strengthening public services in Africa is critical.

The 21st century poses new and multiple challenges to public services, including an increased number of poor people, widening inequality, jobless economic growth, multi-dimensional security threats, persistent food insecurity, the irreversible impact of climate change and the use of technology.

The annual APSD programme is being observed in various countries from 21 - 25 June 2021, consisting of various activities, with the three-day continental celebration being the kick-off event.

Mchunu is participating in the continental conference with other Ministers from 55 African Union Member States responsible for Labour, Public and Civil Service.

This years celebrations are being held under the theme, Building the Africa we want through embracing an ethical culture that underpins purpose driven leadership in the context of a crisis.

Among the issues on discussion is the state of public service on the continent, issues of governance, best practices and innovative ways on how to improve the effectiveness of the public service amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

Locally, the programme commenced today with a virtual exhibition of public service innovations by public servants that were unearthed in 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The last event of the week will be a Master Class webinar, hosted by The National School of Government, where African public servants will be afforded an opportunity to critically reflect on their work and present urgent steps required to improve the effectiveness of the public service.

At this webinar, Mchunu will deliver a closing address to the weeklong programme.  SAnews.gov.za

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Hong Kong: 800 students, staff get vaccinated

Secretary for the Civil Service Patrick Nip today inspected the administration of COVID-19 vaccines to the students and teaching staff of the University of Science & Technology (UST) on their campus.

He met the universitys President Prof Wei Shyy before viewing the administration of vaccines which was arranged by the Governments outreach vaccination service.

UST is the first university to participate in the outreach vaccination. A total of about 800 of its students and teaching staff received the Sinovac vaccine or the BioNTech vaccine.

Mr Nip said he was pleased to learn that the university had earlier planned to make arrangements for vaccination to provide a safe and healthy learning and working environment for students and teaching staff amid the epidemic.

He also emphasised that experience in many parts of the world showed that the epidemic situation will deteriorate rapidly in the face of the threat posed by mutant strains and that citizens should seize the moment and get vaccinated as early as possible when the epidemic situation is relatively stable.

Mr Nip called on various sectors to encourage people to get vaccinated at the earliest, thereby restoring normality to society sooner rather than later.

He added that enterprises and groups can make use of the service by calling 3904 1490 from Monday to Friday between 9am and 6pm.

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RTHK: Russia says fires warning shots at British ship

Russia on Wednesday said it fired warning shots at a British Navy destroyer in the Black Sea after it violated the country's territorial waters, while the UK denied that shots had been fired.

Incidents involving Western aircraft or ships are not uncommon at Russia's borders, especially during heightened tensions with Washington, Brussels and London, but rarely result in open fire.

The HMS Defender "was given a preliminary warning that weapons would be used if the state borders of the Russian Federation were violated. It did not react to the warning," the Russian defence ministry said, as quoted by the Interfax news agency.

The defence ministry added that "a border patrol ship fired warning shots" and a Su-24 aircraft dropped four bombs along the destroyer's path. It said that the ship then left Russian waters.

But the UK's defence ministry swiftly denied that the incident had happened at all.

"No warning shots have been fired at HMS Defender. The Royal Navy ship is conducting innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law," the ministry said.

After announcing that it had fired warning shots at the HMS Defender, Russia's defence ministry summoned Britain's military attache, Interfax reported.

According to the Russian defence ministry, the incident took place off the coast of Cape Fiolent on Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014, also claiming the peninsula's coastal waters.

The Royal Navy said earlier in June that the HMS Defender had "peeled away" from its strike group conducting Nato operations in the Mediterranean to carry out "her own set of missions" in the Black Sea.

Earlier on Wednesday, President Vladimir Putin said Russia is "concerned" about the Nato build-up near Russian borders.

Addressing an international security conference in Moscow, Putin said the alliance "refuses to constructively consider our proposals to de-escalate tensions and reduce the risk of unpredictable incidents".

The US periodically sends warships to the region in a show of support for Ukraine, often drawing protests from Russia.

At the height of tensions over Ukraine this spring after Russia built up troops on its border and in Crimea, Moscow stepped up military exercises in the Black Sea and Washington warned it would send two warships.

Those ships were never dispatched, as Russia pulled back its forces and the tensions eased.

At the time, Russia also threatened to close parts of the Black Sea, which would have affected access to Ukrainian ports in the Sea of Azov that is connected to the Black Sea through the Kerch Strait on the eastern tip of Crimea.

Ukraine had been free to navigate the Kerch Strait - of crucial importance to Kiev for exporting grain and steel - along with Russia until 2014, when Moscow claimed full control of the waterway after annexing Crimea.

"By international law, of course, the waters off Crimea are not Russian, as the annexation is not recognised," Mark Galeotti, a professor of Russian studies at University College London, tweeted on Wednesday.

"Continuing to pass those waters - without being too provocative - is a crucial way of reaffirming law over land and sea grab."

The most serious recent tensions over the waters were in November 2018, when Russian forces boarded and took control of the ships as they headed through the Kerch Strait.

Russia captured 24 Ukrainian sailors as part of the seizure, returning them to Ukraine as part of a prisoner swap in September 2019. (AFP)

This story has been published on: 2021-06-23. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Use of tobacco pipes by Native groups tells story of regional diversity

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Nineteenth- and 20th-century archaeologists often made sweeping claims about Native cultures, suggesting that everyone who lived in a particular region at a given time shared the same attitudes and practices. A new study of pipes recovered from Hopewell sites in Illinois and Ohio challenges this assumption, revealing that the manufacture, import, export and use of pipestone pipes for smoking varied significantly between the groups, even though they engaged in trade with one another.

The Hopewell era ran from about 50 B.C. to A.D. 250. The new findings are reported in the journal American Antiquity.

The Havana and Scioto Hopewell people, who lived in what is now Illinois and Ohio, respectively, shared some cultural practices that caused early observers to overlook their differences, said archaeologist Thomas Emerson, a former director of the Illinois State Archaeological Survey at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign who led the new research.

"People at that time began to build ritual areas that included very large, centralized burial mounds and geometric earthwork enclosures," Emerson said. "Their society was supported basically by what we call 'early agricultural complex.' They didn't have maize until many centuries later, but they were growing other native grains."

Like their Ohio counterparts, the Hopewell people in Illinois established centers where they sometimes gathered, Emerson said.

"This seems to be a unifying factor in their societies," he said. "They needed a mechanism that pulled them together to socialize, exchange information, locate mates, all these integrating kinds of activities."

These regional gathering places "revolved around some form of religious or ritual activity as the center that held them together," Emerson said.

Hopewell people also used pipes carved from various types of sedimentary stone collected from quarries across the region. In the 19th century, archaeologists found huge caches of such pipes in Ohio Hopewell sites and assumed that Ohio had been a major hub of pipestone manufacture and trade. Later studies, including one in 2013 conducted by Emerson and colleagues, revealed that most of the pipestone pipes found in Ohio had been quarried and manufactured in Illinois.

The pipes were used for smoking tobacco and probably other plants, Emerson said. The act of smoking was almost always tied to ritual or spiritual activities.

For the new study, Emerson and his colleagues took a closer look at the pipes recovered from Hopewell sites in Illinois. They found that more than half of the dozens of pipes they analyzed from the Illinois River valley were made from Sterling pipestone collected from northern Illinois quarries. About a third of the remaining pipes were carved from local limestone. The rest were made from more distantly imported stones, such as catlinite, serpentine, Wyandotte Cave aragonite, black chlorite and steatite.

In Ohio, it was common to find large collections of pipes that had been broken and buried together, Emerson said. This suggests an organized communal rite.

"But in Illinois, pipes almost always show up as single items associated with a very few people. Only about 2% of the population is buried with a pipe," he said. Most pipe-related burials involved men, but pipes were also found buried with women and, in two cases, children. Other pipes were found in home sites. Some of them had been broken and repaired for continued use.

Chunks of Sterling pipestone are found in many locales in Illinois, suggesting local manufacture.

"But only certain people seem to have the authority or the social standing or the ritual power to actually make the pipestone into pipes," Emerson said. "There is evidence for some kind of social ranking or status, but it's not anywhere near the level that occurs in Ohio."

The massive size of the earthworks in Ohio and the ritual disposal of pipes there suggests a much more hierarchical society than that of Illinois, he said.

"In Illinois, people appear to be fairly free and empowered at an individual level, there's little overt social or political control," Emerson said. "When we look more closely at what's going on at the local level, we realize Native societies were more diverse in the past than is often realized."

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The National Science Foundation, ISAS and Illinois State Geological Survey supported this research.

Editor's notes:

To reach Thomas Emerson, email teee@illinois.edu

The paper "Havana tradition platform pipe production and disposition: Implications for interpreting regional variation in Midwestern Hopewell ceremonialism" is available online and from the U. of I. News Bureau.

DOI: 10.1017/aaq.2021.34

This story has been published on: 2021-06-23. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Methodology from GWAS accurately flags more deadly SARS-CoV-2 variant

Boston, MA - Using genome-wide association studies (GWAS) methodology to analyze whole-genome sequencing data of SARS-CoV-2 mutations and COVID-19 mortality data can identify highly pathogenic variants of the virus that should be flagged for containment, according to Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and MIT researchers.

Using this biostatistical methodology, the researchers pinpointed a mutation in the variant known as P.1, or Gamma, as being linked to increased mortality and, potentially, greater transmissibility, higher infection rates, and increased pathogenicity before the P.1 variant had been identified.

The team's methodology is described online on June 23, 2021 in the journal Genetic Epidemiology.

"Based on our experience, GWAS methodology might provide suitable tools that could be used to analyze potential links between mutations at specific locations in viral genomes and disease outcome," said Christoph Lange, professor of biostatistics at Harvard Chan School and senior author of the paper. "This could enable better real-time detection of novel, deleterious variants/new viral strains in pandemics."

The first patients in Brazil with the P.1 variant were documented in January 2021 and within a few weeks the variant caused a spike in cases in Manaus, Brazil. The city had already been hard hit by the pandemic in May 2020, and researchers thought that the city's residents had achieved population immunity because so many people in the area had developed antibodies for the virus during that initial wave. Instead, P.1, which has several mutations in the spike protein the virus uses to attach to and invade a host cell, caused a second wave of infections and seemed to have higher transmissibility and be more likely to cause death than the earlier variants seen in the area.

In September 2020, several months before the first P.1 patient was documented, the Harvard Chan School and MIT team repurposed methodology used in GWAS, which are widely used to link certain genetic variations with specific diseases, to tease apart the relative pathogenicity of various SARS-CoV-2 mutations. The team looked for links between each mutation of the SARS-CoV-2 virus's single-stranded RNA and mortality in 7,548 COVID-19 patients. Data for the study came from the global initiative on sharing avian influenza data (GISAID) database, which contains the genetic sequence and related clinical and epidemiological data associated with SARS-CoV-2 and influenza viruses.

The researchers found one mutation--at locus 25,088bp in the virus's genome--that alters the spike protein and was linked to a significant increase in mortality in COVID-19 patients. The team flagged the variant with this mutation, which was later identified as part of P.1.

The team's biostatistical methodology should have broader applications beyond the P.1 variant and SARS-CoV-2, according to the researchers.

"We expect that this approach would work in similar scenarios involving other diseases, provided the quality of the data collected in public databases is sufficiently high," said Georg Hahn, research associate and instructor of biostatistics at Harvard Chan School and co-first author of the paper.

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Others from Harvard Chan School who contributed to the study included Sanghun Lee, Sharon Lutz, Sebastien Haneuse, and Nan Laird.

This study was funded by the National Institutes of Health (1R01AI154470-01, 2U01HG008685, R01HG008976, U01HL089856, U01HL089897, P01HL120839, P01HL132825, 2U01HG008685), and the National Science Foundation (NSF PHY 2033046 and NSF GRFP 1745302), and NIH Center grant P30-ES002109.

"Genome-wide association analysis of COVID-19 mortality risk in SARS-CoV-2 genomes identifies mutation in the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein that colocalizes with P.1 of the Brazilian strain," Georg Hahn, Chloe M. Wu, Sanghun Lee, Julian Hecker, Sharon M. Lutz, Surender Khurana, Lindsey R. Baden, Sebastien Haneuse, Dandi Qiao, Dawn L. DeMeo, Rudolph E. Tanzi, Manish C. Choudhary, Behzad Etemad, Abbas Mohammadi, Elmira Esmaeilzadeh, Michael H. Cho, Jonathan Z. Li, Adrienne G. Randolph, Nan M. Laird, Scott T. Weiss, Edwin K. Silverman, Katharina Ribbeck, and Christoph Lange, Genetic Epidemiology, online June 23, 2021.

Visit the Harvard Chan School website for the latest news, press releases, and multimedia offerings.

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health brings together dedicated experts from many disciplines to educate new generations of global health leaders and produce powerful ideas that improve the lives and health of people everywhere. As a community of leading scientists, educators, and students, we work together to take innovative ideas from the laboratory to people's lives--not only making scientific breakthroughs, but also working to change individual behaviors, public policies, and health care practices. Each year, more than 400 faculty members at Harvard Chan School teach 1,000-plus full-time students from around the world and train thousands more through online and executive education courses. Founded in 1913 as the Harvard-MIT School of Health Officers, the School is recognized as America's oldest professional training program in public health.

This story has been published on: 2021-06-23. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Study provides MIS-C treatment guidance

New Orleans, LA - An analysis conducted by a group of investigators including Tamara Bradford, MD, Associate Professor of Pediatrics at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine, found that children and adolescents with Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) initially treated with intravenous immune globulin (IVIG) plus glucocorticoids had a lower risk of new or persistent cardiovascular dysfunction than IVIG alone. The research was part of the Overcoming COVID-19 Study, a nationwide collaboration of physicians at pediatric hospitals and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The results were published online in the New England Journal of Medicine, available here.

The researchers analyzed surveillance data on 518 children and adolescents with MIS-C who were admitted to US hospitals between March 15 and October 31, 2020. Eighty-nine (17%) received IVIG only; 241 (47%) received IVIG and glucocorticoids; 107 (21%) received IVIG, glucocorticoids, and a biologic; and 81 (16%) received other treatments, including glucocorticoids only, a biologic only, glucocorticoids and a biologic, or IVIG and a biologic. They found that initial treatment with IVIG plus glucocorticoids (103 patients) was associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular dysfunction on or after day two than IVIG alone -- 103 patients or 17% vs. 31%. Among those who received IVIG plus glucocorticoids, left ventricular dysfunction occurred in 8% and 17% of the patients, respectively, and shock resulting in vasopressor use in 13% and 24%. The use of adjunctive therapy was also lower among patients who received IVIG plus glucocorticoids than among those who received IVIG alone -- 34% vs. 70%.

"Because MIS-C cases have been sporadic, following surges of COVID-19 cases, we haven't had the benefit of randomized clinical trials of treatment strategies," notes Dr. Bradford, who practices at Children's Hospital New Orleans.

The authors write that evaluating clinical outcomes in patients with MIS-C who were treated with various immunomodulatory therapies could provide insight into their effectiveness. Until published data that define best practices are available, these data provide clinicians with additional evidence to guide treatment for MIS-C. The ongoing transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and the emergence of variants of concern may promote continued outbreaks of MIS-C in the United States and internationally. Additional evidence-based studies are needed to examine the generalizability of these findings across a broad range of geographic regions and practice settings.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines MIS-C as a condition where different body parts can become inflamed, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes, or gastrointestinal organs. Children with MIS-C may have a fever and various symptoms, including abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, neck pain, rash, bloodshot eyes, or feeling extra tired. We do not yet know what causes MIS-C. However, many children with MIS-C had the virus that causes COVID-19 or had been around someone with COVID-19.

As of June 2, 2021, a total of 4,018 patients in the US have met the MIS-C case definition, with 36 deaths. Of those, 100-149 have been in Louisiana.

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The study was supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention under a contract with Boston Children's Hospital.

LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans educates Louisiana's health care professionals. The state's flagship health sciences university, LSU Health New Orleans includes a School of Medicine with branch campuses in Baton Rouge and Lafayette, the state's only School of Dentistry, Louisiana's only public School of Public Health, and Schools of Allied Health Professions, Nursing, and Graduate Studies. LSU Health New Orleans faculty take care of patients in public and private hospitals and clinics throughout the region. In the vanguard of biosciences research in a number of areas in a worldwide arena, the LSU Health New Orleans research enterprise generates jobs and enormous economic impact. LSU Health New Orleans faculty have made lifesaving discoveries and continue to work to prevent, advance treatment, or cure disease. To learn more, visit http://www. lsuhsc. edu , http://www. twitter. com/ LSUHealthNO , or http://www. facebook. com/ LSUHSC .

This story has been published on: 2021-06-23. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
University of Ottawa continues to expand its presence in Canada's Largest Technology Park

uOttawa will join Hub350, a new state-of-the-art global technology centre in Canada's largest technology park. Located at 350 Legget Drive, home of the original Mitel Networks, Hub350 will serve as a gateway to the world-class tech, finance and academic research ecosystem that is thriving in Kanata North. Set to open this fall, Hub350 is powered by the Kanata North Business Association (KNBA) and will be a mixed-use innovation district activity centre with ecosystem partners collaborating in the shared space.

In 2018, uOttawa established its Kanata North satellite campus at 535 Legget Drive, just down the road from the new Hub350 space. uOttawa Kanata North currently offers 4,000-square-feet of research, training and collaboration space which brings industry, researchers, students and alumni together to advance learning, research, innovation and commercialization. uOttawa continues to consult and collaborate with industry and ecosystem partners to provide a broad spectrum of talent, learning and research solutions that help Kanata North companies accelerate their success and scale growth.

uOttawa's research strengths in ICT, 5G+ networking, IoT and sensors, photonics, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, transportation and healthcare align well with the needs of tech companies in the Tech Park. Responding to demand for research expertise and talent development from the Connected Car and Autonomous Vehicles (CAV) ecosystem, the uOttawa Kanata North campus has doubled its footprint by building its Faculty of Engineering's new Smart Connected Vehicles Innovation Centre.

Open in late summer 2021, this shared research infrastructure will enable partnerships with industry to co-create innovation, de-risk tech development, and accelerate prototyping for faster time-to-market.

Working with different uOttawa faculties and groups, several specialized professional development and micro-education programs have been created in consultation with tech companies. uOttawa's Faculty of Engineering and Professional Development Institute (PDI) in partnership with the Centre for Excellence in Next Generation Networks (CENGN) and FX Innovation offers a skills critical cloud computing program to help develop the next-generation of cloud systems specialists. An Advanced Certificate in Information and Cyber Security was launched in March 2021 and combines information and cybersecurity technical skills with communication, management and leadership skills. And, to further develop engineers and those in technical positions to improve their communications and sales skills for increased revenues, uOttawa's Engineering Sales School (uOESS) successfully piloted a modular Business Communication and Influence program.

Hub350 offers an opportunity to build on uOttawa's existing partnerships and collaborations with Wesley Clover, Alacrity Ottawa, L-SPARK, CENGN, Invest Ottawa, Area.XO, Carleton University, Queen's, and others. uOttawa continues to consult on many strategic initiatives to implement the University's vision to drive greater innovation through industry partnerships.

Each year hundreds of uOttawa graduates are hired as well as students placed in Kanata North companies on coop work terms or internships; a broad range of specialized and micro-education programs are offered, and millions of dollars in research projects are signed. uOttawa alumni have a strong presence with over 6,000 alumni living in and around Kanata North with many choosing to be among the over 1,800 tech sector based alumni working for companies located in the Kanata North Tech Park.

Veronica Farmer, Director Partnerships & Commercialization at uOttawa Kanata North: "uOttawa made the strategic decision several years ago to be physically present in Kanata North. As an academic institution we recognized the importance of co-locating with industry. We look forward to the new synergies that will be created through Hub350 and working with the ecosystem partners to further position Kanata North as a living lab for a highly educated and tech-oriented workforce to live, work, play and learn."

Jamie Petten, President & Executive Director, Kanata North Business Association: "We have worked in close partnership with the University of Ottawa since their initial move into the tech park in 2018. Their support of Hub350 will further strengthen Kanata North's profile as a world-class hub for innovation and will inevitably create greater opportunities for collaboration between uOttawa and our tech community. I look forward to continuing to work together to foster deeper connections for students, faculty and researchers with our business community. Together we will build the profile and recognition of Canada's largest technology park on a world stage."

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For more information, visit uOttawa Kanata North and Hub350.

About the University of Ottawa

The University of Ottawa is home to over 50,000 students, faculty, and staff, who live, work and study in both French and English. Our campus is a crossroads of cultures and ideas, where bold minds come together to inspire game-changing ideas. We are one of Canada's top 10 research universities--our professors and researchers explore new approaches to today's challenges. One of a handful of Canadian universities ranked among the top 200 in the world, we attract exceptional thinkers and welcome diverse perspectives from across the globe.

About Kanata North Business Association

The Kanata North Business Association (KNBA) is committed to representing and advocating for the best interests of the over 540 member businesses located in Canada's Largest Technology Park. As a critical engine behind Ottawa's economic development and a globally recognized technology and innovation hub, the Kanata North Tech Park is home to a robust and vibrant tech ecosystem. The KNBA fosters success for its member companies by having a strong voice at all levels of government and supports an integrated multi-partner promotions strategy to build awareness about Kanata North as a centre for innovation and a destination for businesses that supports growth, collaboration and talent for member businesses. For more information, visit http://www. kanatanorthba. com .

This story has been published on: 2021-06-23. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Mind the gap: Scientists use stellar mass to link exoplanets to planet-forming disks

Using data for more than 500 young stars observed with the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA), scientists have uncovered a direct link between protoplanetary disk structures--the planet-forming disks that surround stars--and planet demographics. The survey proves that higher mass stars are more likely to be surrounded by disks with "gaps" in them and that these gaps directly correlate to the high occurrence of observed giant exoplanets around such stars. These results provide scientists with a window back through time, allowing them to predict what exoplanetary systems looked like through each stage of their formation.

"We found a strong correlation between gaps in protoplanetary disks and stellar mass, which can be linked to the presence of large, gaseous exoplanets," said Nienke van der Marel, a Banting fellow in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Victoria in British Columbia, and the primary author on the research. "Higher mass stars have relatively more disks with gaps than lower mass stars, consistent with the already known correlations in exoplanets, where higher mass stars more often host gas-giant exoplanets. These correlations directly tell us that gaps in planet-forming disks are most likely caused by giant planets of Neptune mass and above."

Gaps in protoplanetary disks have long been considered as overall evidence of planet formation. However, there has been some skepticism due to the observed orbital distance between exoplanets and their stars. "One of the primary reasons that scientists have been skeptical about the link between gaps and planets before is that exoplanets at wide orbits of tens of astronomical units are rare. However, exoplanets at smaller orbits, between one and ten astronomical units, are much more common," said Gijs Mulders, assistant professor of astronomy at Universidad Adolfo Ibanez in Santiago, Chile, and co-author on the research. "We believe that planets that clear the gaps will migrate inwards later on."

The new study is the first to show that the number of gapped disks in these regions matches the number of giant exoplanets in a star system. "Previous studies indicated that there were many more gapped disks than detected giant exoplanets," said Mulders. "Our study shows that there are enough exoplanets to explain the observed frequency of the gapped disks at different stellar masses."

The correlation also applies to star systems with low-mass stars, where scientists are more likely to find massive rocky exoplanets, also known as Super-Earths. Van der Marel, who will become an assistant professor at Leiden University in the Netherlands beginning September 2021 said, "Lower mass stars have more rocky Super-Earths--between an Earth mass and a Neptune mass. Disks without gaps, which are more compact, lead to the formation of Super-Earths."

This link between stellar mass and planetary demographics could help scientists identify which stars to target in the search for rocky planets throughout the Milky Way. "This new understanding of stellar mass dependencies will help to guide the search for small, rocky planets like Earth in the solar neighborhood," said Mulders, who is also a part of the NASA-funded Alien Earths team. "We can use the stellar mass to connect the planet-forming disks around young stars to exoplanets around mature stars. When an exoplanet is detected, the planet-forming material is usually gone. So the stellar mass is a 'tag' that tells us what the planet-forming environment might have looked like for these exoplanets."

And what it all comes down to is dust. "An important element of planet formation is the influence of dust evolution," said van der Marel. "Without giant planets, dust will always drift inwards, creating the optimal conditions for the formation of smaller, rocky planets close to the star."

The current research was conducted using data for more than 500 objects observed in prior studies using ALMA's high-resolution Band 6 and Band 7 antennas. At present, ALMA is the only telescope that can image the distribution of millimeter-dust at high enough angular resolution to resolve the dust disks and reveal its substructure, or lack thereof. "Over the past five years, ALMA has produced many snapshot surveys of nearby star-forming regions resulting in hundreds of measurements of disk dust mass, size, and morphology," said van der Marel. "The large number of observed disk properties has allowed us to make a statistical comparison of protoplanetary disks to the thousands of discovered exoplanets. This is the first time that a stellar mass dependency of gapped disks and compact disks has been successfully demonstrated using the ALMA telescope."

"Our new findings link the beautiful gap structures in disks observed with ALMA directly to the properties of the thousands of exoplanets detected by the NASA Kepler mission and other exoplanet surveys," said Mulders. "Exoplanets and their formation help us place the origins of the Earth and the Solar System in the context of what we see happening around other stars."

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Resource

"A stellar mass dependence of structured disks: A possible link with exoplanet demographics," N. van der Marel and G. Mulders, ApJ, DOI: 10.3847/1538-3881/ac0255, preview [https:/ / arxiv. org/ pdf/ 2104. 06838. pdf ]

About ALMA

The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), an international astronomy facility, is a partnership of the European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere (ESO), the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institutes of Natural Sciences (NINS) of Japan in cooperation with the Republic of Chile. ALMA is funded by ESO on behalf of its Member States, by NSF in cooperation with the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) and the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) and by NINS in cooperation with the Academia Sinica (AS) in Taiwan and the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute (KASI).

ALMA construction and operations are led by ESO on behalf of its Member States; by the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO), managed by Associated Universities, Inc. (AUI), on behalf of North America; and by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) on behalf of East Asia. The Joint ALMA Observatory (JAO) provides the unified leadership and management of the construction, commissioning and operation of ALMA.

This story has been published on: 2021-06-23. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
South Africa: SIU granted order to freeze bank accounts of Digital Vibes

The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has been granted a preservation order to freeze approximately R22 million held in bank and investment accounts linked to Digital Vibes (Pty) Ltd.

The order was granted on 17 June 2021 by the Special Tribunal.

This is as part of taking action against those implicated in corruption, maladministration and malpractice, in the matter involving the national Department of Health and the communication firm.

This also includes entities/individuals, who received payments from Digital Vibes, which is at the center of, inter alia, a COVID-19 media campaign contract that was awarded to it by the department.

The Special Tribunal Order prohibits Digital Vibes, Tahera Mather, Naadhira Mitha, Suhaila Mather, Suhaila Mather Consulting (Pty) Ltd, Amods Attorneys, WT Graphics and Designs (Pty) Ltd, and Strategeewhiz (Pty) Ltd (the 1st Respondent and the 5th to 11th Respondents) from dealing with the funds held in the relevant bank and investment accounts in any manner.

Based on the information presented by the SIU investigating team and certain information sourced and assisted by the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC), between 4 and 14 June 2021, after being approached by the SIU with evidence, the FIC issued intervention directions under Section 34 of the FIC Act. This was to place on hold approximately R22 million of funds derived from the monies paid to Digital Vibes by the department for a period of 10 working days.

In a statement on Wednesday, the SIU said the funds are held in bank and investment accounts owned or controlled by the 1st Respondent and the 5th to 11th Respondents as listed in the Special Tribunal Order.

The SIU received excellent cooperation and assistance from the FIC, for which the SIU is grateful.

The SIU approached the Special Tribunal for preservation order/interdict to freeze the accounts following an investigation into allegations of unlawful and/or irregular procurement of COVID-19 communication services by the department.

In addition, the SIU will launch review proceedings in the Special Tribunal within the next 30 working days and seek an order against Digital Vibes and other relevant entities/individuals to pay back all financial losses suffered by the State as a consequence of the appointment of Digital Vibes by the department.

Ongoing investigation

Though the SIU investigation in the appointment of Digital Vibes is ongoing, preliminary investigations have revealed clear evidence exposing two highly irregular and unlawful transactions.

The first transaction is a procurement process in 2019 in terms of which the company was appointed to perform communications services relating to the National Health Insurance (NHI).

The second transaction occurred in 2020 during the tenure of the first transaction when Digital Vibes was appointed in respect of a COVID-19 awareness campaign without any competitive bidding or other procurement process at all.

The COVID-19 awareness campaign was merely brought-in as an extension to the contract between the department and Digital Vibes in respect of the NHI media campaign in circumstances where such an extension was irregular and unlawful.

Furthermore, the department utilised the budget allocated for the NHI contract and NHI media campaign to pay for the purported COVID-19 media campaign work allegedly performed by Digital Vibes.

The department paid a total of approximately R150 million to Digital Vibes, approximately R 25 million of which was paid in respect of the NHI media campaign and approximately R125 million in respect of the COVID-19 appointment.

Despite civil legal outcomes, the SIU investigation into the affairs of the department is ongoing. In line with the SIU Act, evidence pointing to criminal conduct will be referred to the National Prosecuting Authority for further action, and the SIU will refer evidence in support of disciplinary, administrative and/or executive actions to the relevant authorities for further action.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2021-06-23. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Coral offspring physiology impacted by parental exposure to intense environmental stresses

Adult corals that survive high-intensity environmental stresses, such as bleaching events, can produce offspring that are better suited to survive in new environments. These results from a series of experiments conducted at the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences (BIOS) in 2017 and 2018 are deepening scientists' understanding of how the gradual increase of sea surface temperatures and other environmental disturbances may influence future coral generations.

Researchers on the project included BIOS marine ecologists Samantha de Putron and Gretchen Goodbody-Gringley (now with the Central Caribbean Marine Institute), ecophysiologist Hollie Putnam at the University of Rhode Island (URI), and Kevin Wong, then a first-year doctoral student at URI. Primary funding came from the Heising-Simons Foundation International, Ltd. with additional funding from the National Geographic Society and the Canadian Associates of BIOS (CABIOS).

The team spent last year working the data into a manuscript, which was published this month in the journal Global Change Biology and listed Wong as the first author. Wong, now nearing the end of his fourth year of studies at URI under the mentorship of Putnam, plans to graduate in May 2022.

"We know parental history influences the characteristics of offspring in corals, however the experimental design used in this study provides us with a unique perspective on how multiple types of thermal events can accumulate over time and have lasting consequences across generations," Wong said.

Coral Collection and Study The multi-year field and lab-based study began in the summer of 2017. Departing from BIOS on a small boat with diving gear, the team collected 40 adult Porites astreoides (mustard hill) corals from two different reef sites northwest of Bermuda: a patch reef (Crescent Reef), which is located in a shallower lagoon environment, and a rim reef (Hog Reef) which is a barrier reef more exposed to open ocean conditions.

They next placed the live corals in the then newly-constructed BIOS mesocosm facility, where large outdoor aquaria "flow-through" seawater systems allowed researchers to control and adjust water temperature in the tanks for completing the study.

A variety of baseline data were collected on the corals in each colony, such as metabolic rates and the density of Symbiodinaceae, the symbiotic algae that live within the coral tissues. To simulate a thermal stress event, the adult corals were exposed to two different temperature treatments--ambient (84F or 29C) or heated (88F or 31C)--for a period of 21 days over their reproductive period. Afterward, the team assessed the physiology of the adult corals, looking at key functions such as respiration and photosynthetic rates. They also monitored the release of coral larvae and assessed its physiology, measuring the larval size and density of Symbiodinaceae within each larva, among other factors.

Upon completion of the experiment, the adult corals were divided in half and reciprocally transplanted, with half of the fragments positioned in the new environments and half returned to their originating environments. All of the fragments remained in place until the summer of 2018, when they were re-collected, and the physiologies of both adult corals and coral larvae were assessed in the same manner as in 2017.

A Stronger Coral Generation The results of this two-year investigation showed that adult corals that experienced the thermal stress event produced offspring more capable of thriving in their current environment. This means that parent corals that experience stressors may be able to "pre-condition" their offspring to survive in new environments in the following year. The results also indicate that high-intensity environmental stress events, such as bleaching, can have lasting impacts on adult colonies and how they produce their offspring.

"The coral used in this study is a notoriously resilient coral and these findings potentially demonstrate how this species is so persistent across the Caribbean," Putnam said. "Not all coral species are this robust to environmental stressors. However, this system allows us to unravel the mechanisms leading to resilience and identify which corals are most sensitive to climate change."

Long-time Member of BIOS Community Wong, 27, is a familiar face at BIOS, having first arrived on campus in the summer of 2014 as a CABIOS intern when he spent 12 weeks working with de Putron on a research project investigating the role of temperature and light on the growth and survivorship of juvenile mustard hill corals from two different reef zones. The following year, he received CABIOS funding to work with then-faculty member Gretchen Goodbody-Gringley on a project focused on the reproductive ecology of corals from mesophotic reef ecosystems, deeper-water reefs which typically extend from 100 to almost 500 feet (30 to 150 meters) in depth.

While presenting the results of his research at the 2016 International Coral Reef Symposium meeting in Hawaii, he had the opportunity to interview with Putnam for URI's Biological and Environmental Sciences doctoral program. Wong then returned to BIOS to spend six months in 2016 as a teaching assistant for several summer and fall courses. He also received BIOS Grants-in-Aid funding for a research project with Goodbody-Gringley and de Putron focused on the reproductive ecology of mustard hill coral from various reef sites around Bermuda, resulting in a publication in the journal Coral Reefs.

"It is wonderful to see an undergraduate intern progress to a successful graduate student who is publishing manuscripts," de Putron said. "Many years of hard work and plenty of exhausting, yet fun, days in the field and laboratory all culminated in interesting and critically relevant discoveries that further our understanding of coral resilience."

Now, a year from graduation, Wong is diving deeper into the mechanisms that drive environmental memory within and across coral generations at a molecular level. By using approaches such as metabolomics (the identification and quantification of metabolic by-products), transcriptomics (quantification of gene expression), and epigenetics (features that regulate gene expression), Wong aims to determine the key linkages between metabolism and coral bleaching phenotypes at a cellular level.

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This story has been published on: 2021-06-23. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Community science project will study rattlesnake behavior with remote cameras

A multi-university team that includes researchers from California Polytechnic State University and Dickinson University today launched a community science project that seeks to understand rattlesnake behavior by using cameras to view them in their natural habitat. Project RattleCam, which is hosted on the Zooniverse community science website, gives members of the public the chance to analyze thousands of time lapse images taken at rattlesnake dens near Steamboat Springs, Colorado.

Members of the public can register for a free Zooniverse account and immediately begin assisting with research by answering questions about the photos, including how many adult and baby snakes are in each photo, identifying predators and more.

"Community science is a way of bringing the process of discovery to people from all walks of life, improving the accessibility of science," said Cal Poly biology professor and project co-lead Emily Taylor. "We are really excited to work with community scientists to discover the secrets of rattlesnake behavior. There's so much we don't know yet about these fascinating creatures."

Scientists estimate that the den of prairie rattlesnakes, located on a private ranch, has at least 1,500 snakes. The photos will allow researchers to characterize rattlesnake maternal care, learn how they obtain water in this extremely dry habitat, examine whether the rattlesnakes preferentially spend time with certain individuals -- a behavior similar to humans having friends -- and determine what predators eat the rattlesnakes.

"So many rattlesnakes in one place is a scientist's dream come true because we can more easily collect data, and in this case, spy on large aggregations of the snakes to learn about rarely seen social behavior like mother rattlesnakes caring for their newborn pups," said Scott Boback, a biology professor at Dickinson College, who co-leads the project with Taylor.

Often portrayed as vicious and scary, rattlesnakes are actually secretive creatures that do not want to bite people. "If people could just see the rattlesnakes in person, they would realize how gentle they are and people might not be so likely to kill rattlesnakes," said Taylor.

Project RattleCam allows people to see the rattlesnakes behaving naturally, in a virtual setting.

In the future, the research team will add cameras that live-stream to YouTube. "Soon you all can tune in to watch rattlesnakes sunning themselves live from your own desk," Taylor said.

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Links

Zooniverse project: http://www. zooniverse. org/ projects/ projectrattlecam/ project-rattlecam

Project RattleCam website: http://www. centralcoastsnakeservices. com/ projectrattlecam. html

Instagram, Facebook and Twitter: @RattleCams

This story has been published on: 2021-06-23. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Chinese autonomous driving startup Pony.ai is in talks with Geely to build an electric vehicle model based on the latter's Sustainable Experience Architecture (SEA) platform, according to a local media outlet.



Photo credit: Geely



Pony.ai started mulling over the car-making plan since the early of this year and has set up in Shanghai a R&D group with more than ten members, according to another media channel, citing persons briefed on the matter.

Zhao Qian, former forward-looking design director of XPeng's automobile styling and design center, has joined Pony.ai to be responsible for the design of complete vehicles.

An industry insider said Pony.ai attempts to work with Geely on R&D and production of complete cars, taking charging of the development of the autonomous driving system. The startup has accumulated rich capabilities in Level 4 autonomous driving technology, while the cooperation with the automaker will assist it with car manufacturing ability.

Responding to a request from the media channel, Pony.ai declined to comment.

Geely Holding launched in last September its Sustainable Experience Architecture (SEA), billed as the world's first open-source electric vehicle (EV) architecture that promises to transform the availability of zero-emission cars and trucks in the world's largest auto market.

Geely said it would make the architecture accessible to other OEMs and third parties. The company revealed at the launching ceremony that it had worked with 7 auto brands (including but not limited to Geely's) on the R&D of 16 vehicle models.

The first mass-produced model based on the SEA is the Zeekr 001, which was originally previewed by the Lynk & Co Zero Concept revealed in 2020. The model is expected for delivery in October this year.
Beijing (Gasgoo)- Huawei recently published a patent application related to vehicle summon with body movements, according to public information platform Tianyancha. The patent, described as a vehicle summon method, smart vehicle and device, was submitted in December, 2020.

Photo credit: Huawei

According to the patent applications abstract, the method can be used in intelligent and connected vehicles to avoid open vehicle doors in narrow space, which may bring damage to the vehicle or the nearby one. With the technology, users can summon the vehicle from a certain distance with body movements, thus offering a better user experience.

Ever since the telecoms giants entry into automotive industry, there has been repeated speculation that it will make cars itself. But Huawei has made it clear that it will not be a carmaker or invest in any carmaker, and has been emphasizing its role as a supplier to help automakers build high-quality vehicles with its advanced technologies and products. Its aim is to bring digital to every vehicle.

Meanwhile, Huawei also works respectively with Arcfox, an EV brand under BAIC Group, and Seres, the EV unit of Chongqing Sokon Industry Group, to develop next-generation intelligent vehicles. Production of the Arcfox S with Huawei-Inside has started and both partners expect deliveries will amount to 1,000 vehicles by the end of this year. The SERES SF5, jointly developed by Huawei and SERES, has received over 10,000 orders after the presale started and its deliveries commenced at the end of May.
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- SVOLT Energy Technology Co., Ltd. (SVOLT), an EV battery manufacturer carved out of Great Wall Motor, signed an agreement with local authority of Lishui District, Nanjing on June 22 to build a power battery manufacturing base with an annual capacity of 14.6GWh. The company plans to pour 5.6 billion yuan ($864.718 million) in this project.

SVOLT, Lishui District signing agreement; photo credit: SVOLT



Including the yet-to-be-built Lishui base, SVOLT has mapped out nearly 90GWh capacity in the first half of 2021, taking one step further to achieve the goal of 200GWh annual capacity by 2025.

According to SVOLT, the Lishui base will be built in two phases. Involving an investment of 2.6 billion yuan ($401.476 million), the first phase is planned to feature a capacity of 6.6 GWh and output a production value of around 4 billion yuan ($617.656 million). It is expected to start operation in November this year. The second phase is set to have a yearly capacity of 8GWH and generate over 5 billion yuan ($772.07 million) annually.

Moreover, the battery maker intends to transfer the production of HEV-used soft pack batteries to the Lishui factory.

According to Yang Hongxin, chairman and CEO of SVOLT, the company is in an important period for ramping up production and speeding up battery supply to clients in addition to GWM. He said the cooperation with Lishui District will help to further increase SVOLT's capacity, so as to meet rising demand from customers and make contribution to local development of new energy vehicle industry.
The persistent disclosure of the second most noteworthy masters group in the U.S. on the therapeutic impacts of CBD for AIDS and danger patients will absolutely make a discussion whether Washington will obviously perceive the proposal for its open utilization. The American College of Physicians has proposed the feasibility of pot for accommodating purposes. It said that better drugs and prescriptions can be taken from the long-standing restricted plant as displayed by the advancing assessments drove. It is as of now consoling the central government to lift the boycott for its conceivable use to a more expansive size of supportive applications. The get-together insinuated that CBD guarantees better medications among AIDS patients who are experiencing absurd weight decline. For peril patients experiencing chemotherapy, it can help decrease unimaginable instances of nausea and hurling.

The get-together said further investigation on the denied plant should be inspected to perceive its different applications in medication. Regardless, this is being prevented by government laws and constrained assets on the legitimization of more evaluations to be driven. Positively, the consistent U.S. revelations can lighten an extensive number AIDS and ailment patients all through the planet ought to these be displayed by reliable appraisals. The get-together notwithstanding all that necessities to present to the U.S. government strong check that the therapeutic impacts of pot would not reason reactions on the patients the best dosages of its affirmation ought to be done to kill the examinations of dependence among anticipated patients. Around 124,000 specialists are individuals from the Philadelphia-based collecting, whose patients are overall grown-ups. The alliance began working since 1915. We cannot simply deny CBD use in therapeutic applications in the event that it will be the better procedure to treat patients.

Dr. David Dale, University of Washington educator of solution and the social events seat said CBD use stays under an extraordinary gathering since there are different concerns being eluded to its apparent strength. Notwithstanding, he is certain that it might present productive and better medications for different patients experiencing a wide extent of illnesses so careful evaluation ought to be embraced. Over and over, present day science really cannot have all the earmarks of being tapped. As more infections are on the rising, better medications ought to be ready. With CBD oil UK most recent disclosures, more explores ought to be facilitated in the event that it truly has the choice to be in the quick overview of likely fixes among the thousand burdens on the planet. Specialists need to ensure about CBDs loads will be killed once utilized in the human body. Before it will be instigated for open utilization, there ought to be a development of tests, bookkeeping every single trustworthy hazard and visit PatchAdam.com.
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80 more Covid-19 infections announced in Wednesday noon report
No need to make a fuss on Xinjiangs population data

08:38, June 23, 2021 By Zhang Nan ( Global Times

Children play in a lavender farm in Huocheng County, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 13, 2021. (Photo: Xinhua)

Why is Xinjiang population data a focus of attention?

Recently, Northwest Chinas Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region released data on its population based on the seventh national population census. This data, however, has drawn the attention of some Western media and so-called scholars, and the reason is very simple  they want to get evidence from this data to back up the allegations of genocide they have been making against China.

In fact, the statistics released by the Xinjiang region showed that the population of the Uygur ethnic group has increased by 1.623 million in the past decade, a rate of increase of 16.2 percent.

It fully demonstrated there is no genocide in the region. However, despite these facts, a group of people are attempting to misinterpret the data, trying to piece up evidence that may support the genocide allegation. They have now come up with a new concept of slow genocide.

This move has made genocide  a very serious crime  sound entertaining. Genocide that can be proved to be genocide should still be called genocide, but genocide that can never be proven has now been called slow genocide. It sounds more like a typical set-up of public opinion with the purpose of forcibly imposing the crime of genocide on China.

Those who invented the phrase slow genocide do not care about whether this crime can be proven or when on earth it could be slowly proven. They only care about how to play word games to legitimize the groundless allegation and to bind Chinas Xinjiang tightly with the word genocide in rolling coverage by Western media. During this process, their occasional moves of creating more words that have no basis on logic or laws are only seen as necessary technical fixing.

Why on earth cant Han people move to Xinjiang?

Apart from the genocide allegation that a certain group of people want to cram into peoples minds, the data on Xinjiangs population has attracted their attention for a deeper reason. After the malicious theory of a decrease in the Uygur population was proven wrong, another accusation that the Han population has increased in Xinjiang has surfaced.

This theory has been made under a narrative framework that says Uygur and Han people are on opposite sides and the Xinjiang region is not Chinas Xinjiang but Uygurs Xinjiang. Only under this binary opposition narrative pattern can they distort the concept of natural population mobility into a negative one of occupation. As a region of China, Xinjiang has attracted people from other parts of the country now that terrorism in the region has been stamped out. What is wrong with this natural population mobility within China?

Meanwhile, people may ask another question  is it legitimate for Uygurs to move to other parts of China from the Xinjiang region? People who subscribe to the binary opposition narrative pattern have already prepared their answer  they call this Chinas evil strategy of trying to assimilate Uygurs.

The above-mentioned people do not care that population mobility has brought development opportunities to Xinjiang, nor will they accept Uygur peoples willingness to move to other places for better development, since none of these fit their logic. According to their narrative, Xinjiang can only be a place where no one should come or go.

Why is it wrong to compare population data in a simplistic way?

Statistics, as a science, involves complicated methodology and formulas. The statistical results that the public has access to are mainly compiled from general and sampling surveys. General surveys need to be carried out to acquire every individuals information to the greatest extent possible. A sampling survey is more like a calculation  it can be made based on having part of the information.

Carrying out the two kinds of surveys requires different numbers of people and resources to be mobilized and requires different lengths of time, and therefore the accuracy of the results cannot be compared. For statistical purposes, data acquired from the general survey and sampling survey are necessarily different. This is simple and clear common sense.

After Xinjiang released its population data, some Western media and so-called experts seemed encouraged, and put the ridiculous genocide allegation into the data to get proof. In order to reach the predetermined conclusion, they even randomly selected different statistical data obtained from different methodologies to make comparisons  a move that is like firing the arrow and then drawing the target.

A sentence used by Chinese netizens can be used to describe such behavior  they are either foolish or malicious.

Zhang Nan is a research fellow from China Society for Human Rights Studies.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Liang Jun)
Chinese premier stresses advancing development of western regions

Xinhua) 08:43, June 23, 2021

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the State Council leading group on the development of western regions, presides over a meeting of the leading group, June 21, 2021. Chinese Vice Premier Han Zheng, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and deputy head of the State Council leading group on the development of western regions, attended the meeting. (Xinhua/Ding Lin)

BEIJING, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has called for advancing the development of China's western regions to a new level by drawing strength from reform and opening up and innovation-driven development.

Li, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, made the remarks Monday at a meeting of a State Council leading group on western development. Li is head of the leading group.

Vice Premier Han Zheng, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and deputy head of the leading group, attended the meeting.

Li urged the western regions to commit more efforts to empowering market entities, improving the business environment, and expanding opening up.

The regions should give full play to the leading role of scientific and technological innovation, and cultivate and develop characteristic industries and emerging industries, Li said.

The western regions should better leverage their advantages in wind, solar and hydro-electric energy as well as mineral resources to build large-scale clean-energy bases and enhance their capacities in guaranteeing energy and important resources for the country, he added.

The premier stressed efforts to strengthen ecological protection and restoration and environmental governance, noting that the regions should strive to boost green development.

He also underscored efforts to consolidate and escalate the gains in poverty alleviation, maintain the stability of major favorable policies, and promote rural vitalization.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Liang Jun)
Interview: China's progress exemplary to world, says Serbian parliament speaker

Xinhua) 08:47, June 23, 2021

BELGRADE, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Over the past 100 years, the Communist Party of China (CPC) has experienced twists and turns and withstood tests, but its commitment to achieving China's independence, social progress and people's happiness has never changed, Serbia's National Assembly Speaker Ivica Dacic has said.

In a recent interview with Xinhua, Dacic, also president of the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS) in the Serbian ruling coalition, said the CPC has made the country's progress exemplary to the whole world and its leadership has united the country to overcome COVID-19 and eliminate poverty.

Dacic, then Serbia's first deputy prime minister and foreign minister, visited China in late February last year when the COVID-19 epidemic broke out.

Amid China's all-out effort to combat COVID-19, Serbia stood firmly with China because it considers China one of its closest friends, Dacic said.

Recalling the visit, which he said enabled him to witness China's endeavors to fight COVID-19, Dacic said that China made immense efforts to overcome the pandemic and achieved great results in a very short time.

Apart from protecting its own population from the epidemic, China has also assisted other countries in tackling the virus, said Dacic, expressing his gratitude to China for its support during the pandemic.

Dacic noted China has also won the battle against poverty under the leadership of the CPC as it "managed to mobilize all of its intellectual and material resources to solve the problem."

Speaking of the achievements of the CPC, Dacic said he was sure that in the years ahead, the party would continue to lead China to achieve lasting prosperity and pursue happiness for the people.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Hongyu)
China urges relevant countries to address serious human rights violations

Xinhua) 09:34, June 23, 2021

BEIJING, June 22 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson on Tuesday urged relevant countries to take concrete steps to address their serious human rights problems, according to a press release published on the ministry's website.

The statement came after the joint remarks made by 65 countries at the 47th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in support of China's stance, opposing interference in China's internal affairs under the pretext of human rights.

While Canada, on behalf of some Western countries, has attacked and accused China on issues related to Xinjiang, Hong Kong and Tibet, the above-mentioned 65 countries urged abiding by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and opposed politicizing human rights issues and the application of double standards, as well as groundless accusations against China that are politically driven and based on disinformation.

The spokesperson said the call for justice at the UNHRC reflects the popular will of the international community and reveals the hypocrisy of a few Western countries in meddling in other countries' internal affairs under the pretext of human rights.

The aim of these countries is to suppress and contain China and impede China's development, the spokesperson said, adding, "This is doomed to fail."

The spokesperson said that China is determined to promote and protect human rights at home, as well as to safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests.

While these countries claim to be arbiters of human rights, they have turned a blind eye to their own serious human rights problems, the spokesperson said, citing appalling human rights violations by countries like Canada, the United States and Britain.

The spokesperson urged these countries to engage in serious self-reflection, take concrete measures to address their own serious human rights problems, abide by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and the basic norms of international relations, and do good and practical deeds for the sound development of the international cause of human rights.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Hongyu)
China urges for global equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines

Xinhua) 09:37, June 23, 2021

Photo taken on June 1, 2021 shows a vial of the Sinopharm vaccine in Beijing, capital of China. (Xinhua)

"We are worried by disturbing trend of vaccine nationalism and stockpiling of vaccine doses far above their population's need," a senior Chinese diplomat said during the ongoing 47th Session of the UN Human Rights Council.

GENEVA, June 22 (Xinhua) -- A senior Chinese diplomat has urged all countries, in the spirit of solidarity and international cooperation, to translate their commitment into actions and support timely access of COVID-19 vaccines in developing countries.

Chen Xu, China's Permanent Representative to the UN Office at Geneva (UNOG), made the appeal during a dialogue on COVID-19 on behalf of 63 countries with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights here on Monday.

He urged for the promotion of equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines worldwide, noting that as of all the 2.6 billion doses administered globally, only about 0.3 percent were in low-income countries.

"We are worried by disturbing trend of vaccine nationalism and stockpiling of vaccine doses far above their population's need," Chen said during the dialogue at the ongoing 47th Session of the UN Human Rights Council.

A medical worker prepares to administer a dose of China's Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine in Sale, Morocco, May 18, 2021. (Photo by Chadi/Xinhua)

Chen reaffirmed China's support for fair and equitable distribution of and access to COVID-19 vaccine globally.

He stressed the importance of improving the accessibility, affordability, and production of such vaccines and other health products in developing countries, including least developed countries, to save lives and end the pandemic as soon as possible.

Chen called on all countries and other relevant actors to redouble their vaccine production capacities, while supporting developing countries to build local capacity for vaccine production, and to support the call for an intellectual property rights waiver for COVID-19 vaccines.

"We also call upon those countries in position to do so to take an active part in international development cooperation to help developing countries realize sustainable development goals and mitigate the impact of the pandemic," Chen said.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Hongyu)
UN envoy sees dire situation in Afghanistan

Xinhua) 09:57, June 23, 2021

Afghan security force members take part in a military operation in Imam Sahib district of Kunduz province, northern Afghanistan, April 10, 2021. (Photo by Ajmal Kakar/Xinhua)

"For the Taliban to continue this intensive military campaign would be a tragic course of action. It would lead to increased and prolonged violence that would extend the suffering of the Afghan people and threaten to destroy much of what has been built and hard-won in the past 20 years," the top UN envoy for Afghanistan warned.

UNITED NATIONS, June 22 (Xinhua) -- The UN secretary-general's special representative for Afghanistan warned on Tuesday that the situation on the ground in the country is dire.

"I cannot overstate to the council my concern regarding the present situation in Afghanistan. All of the major trends -- politics, security, the peace process, the economy, the humanitarian emergency, and COVID -- all of these trends are negative or stagnant," Deborah Lyons, the top UN envoy for Afghanistan, told the Security Council in a briefing.

"If there is a sense of hope, it indeed resides in a fact that previous worse-case predictions did not materialize. But the relentless spirit of the Afghans and their incredible resilience is being severely tested and the possible slide toward dire scenarios is undeniable," she said.

What happens in Afghanistan remains of global consequence and the Security Council needs to be fully informed of the gravity of the present situation, she added.

The mid-April announcement that all international troops will be withdrawn in the coming months sent a seismic tremor through the Afghan political system and society at large. The withdrawal decision was expected. But its speed -- with the majority of troops now already withdrawn -- was not. All actors have had to adjust to this new, reality that is unfolding, she said.

The withdrawal is one of four parts of the February 2020 agreement between the United States and the Taliban. The agreement generated hope that it would create the space for a peace to be made among Afghans. The foreign troops would be gone, and therefore, rather than fighting one another, Afghans would have the opportunity to come together and find a path to peace. But instead, actions on the battlefield have been far greater than progress at the negotiating table, said Lyons.

Photo taken in Kunduz city, Afghanistan on May 26, 2021 shows people who were rescued by Afghan Special Forces from a Taliban detention center located in neighboring Baghlan province. (Photo by Ajmal Kakar/Xinhua)

"And at this critical time, the Afghan public and the diplomatic community in Kabul have been alarmed at the lack of political unity among Afghanistan's political elite. While some of the shortcomings in government are part of a legacy of putting politics above governance, the lack of unity must be addressed or risks contributing to further Taliban territorial advances."

The United Nations is "cautiously encouraged" by recent moves by President Ashraf Ghani and his government and the other political leaders to come together to discuss pressing security issues and demonstrate unity. The real test, she said, will be on whether unity in Kabul serves to further reinforce the peace process and strengthen state institutions.

The Taliban are making big gains on the battlefield as a result of an intensified military campaign. More than 50 of Afghanistan's 370 districts have fallen since the beginning of May. Most districts that have been taken surround provincial capitals, suggesting that the Taliban are positioning themselves to try and take these capitals once foreign forces are fully withdrawn, she warned.

"For the Taliban to continue this intensive military campaign would be a tragic course of action. It would lead to increased and prolonged violence that would extend the suffering of the Afghan people and threaten to destroy much of what has been built and hard-won in the past 20 years. It should be emphatically clear that any efforts to install a militarily imposed government in Kabul would go against the will of the Afghan people, and against the stated positions of the regional countries and the broader international community."

An Afghan policeman checks a man at a security checkpoint after Taliban seized an army base in Ghazni province, Afghanistan, May 1, 2021.(Str/Xinhhua)

Even without the conflict dynamics, Afghanistan would be a country facing multiple crises. Almost a third of Afghans face emergency levels of food insecurity, while this year's drought worsens, and internal displacements increase. The World Bank has estimated that, as a result of the conflict and the severe third wave of COVID-19, the drought, the weakened social fabric, and other factors, Afghanistan's poverty rate could rise from 50 percent to more than 70 percent. This frightening prospect highlights the importance of humanitarian aid provided from all countries. However, despite recent contributions, the 1.3 billion U.S. dollar humanitarian appeal for 2021 is still only 30 percent funded, she said.

As always, it is ordinary Afghans who pay the heaviest price. Civilian casualties increased by 29 percent in the first quarter of 2021 compared to the same period last year. Notably and sadly, women casualties increased by 37 percent and child casualties by 23 percent, she noted.

Lyons called for international support for peace in Afghanistan.

"There is still time, barely but still time, to prevent the worse-case scenario from materializing. Enough has been built in Afghanistan to allow further building -- if only there can be peace," she said, adding the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), which she leads, is working with parties in Afghanistan and regional countries in this regard.

"One of UNAMA's key objectives during this period of uncertainty is to continue to work with all partners to ensure the continuity of those institutions that support the well-being of all Afghans. Any future government that results from a negotiation cannot start from nothing. It is my sincere hope that the Taliban understand this as much as the government in Kabul does," she said.

UNAMA is also working more closely and intensely with the regional countries, which share grave concerns about an extended and fragmented conflict in Afghanistan. These concerns include refugee flows, migrant movement, increased drug smuggling, terrorism, and lost opportunities for economic connectivity and mutually beneficial trade, she said.

Afghan President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani inspects the guard of honor as he attends Eid al-Fitr prayers at Presidential Palace in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan, May 13, 2021. (Afghan President Palace/Handout via Xinhua)

"But these problems will not be relegated to the region alone. As we have all painfully learned, a fragmented conflict creates a more permissive environment for terrorist groups to recruit, finance, plan, and conduct operations with a global reach. We must accept the reality -- increased conflict in Afghanistan means increased insecurity for many other countries, near and far," she warned.

Any future government of Afghanistan will need, for itself and its citizens, international engagement and support. The contributions of donors will be essential to support the ongoing development and humanitarian needs. This is not the time to weaken the resolve of the international community, or, worse, to contribute even inadvertently to the ongoing signals of despair, she said.

"I have reassured Afghans that the UN will not abandon them and will stay the course. Certainly, every effort must be made now by all of us to avoid the country going down the path of more bloodshed and suffering. Surely there has been enough."

There is only one acceptable direction for Afghanistan: away from the battlefield and back to the negotiating table. The UN Security Council, with the support of the regional countries, must do all it can to push the parties in that direction, said Lyons.

"The tragic history of conflict needs not to repeat itself. But left to its own and our inertia it just might," she warned.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Hongyu)
Great Wall light show marks CPC's 100th anniversary in Beijing

Xinhua) 10:16, June 23, 2021

A light show has been held on the Great Wall in Beijing's Yanqing District, to celebrate the centenary of the founding of the Communist Party of China.

The show, held on Monday, used large-scale light installations integrated with video images to show the 100-year history of the Party and the development of New China.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Hongyu)
China's wealth set to increase faster than U.S. in next five years: media

Xinhua) 10:17, June 23, 2021

Tourists admire the skyline view of Lujiazui area at the Bund in Shanghai, east China, Jan. 6, 2020. (Xinhua/Wang Xiang)

"The rise of China's wealth in the past two decades is almost equal to the 80 years of growth of wealth in the U.S. from 1925 until 2005," said Anthony Shorrocks, an economist and author of a wealth report.

HONG KONG, June 23 (Xinhua) -- China's wealth will increase at a faster pace than that of the United States in the next five years, the South China Morning Post reported on Tuesday citing a wealth report.

China's millionaires will increase three times faster than those of the U.S. from 2020 to 2025, according to the Global Wealth Report published by Credit Suisse Research Institute.

Customers shop along the renovated East Nanjing Road Walkway in east China's Shanghai, Sept. 12, 2020. (Xinhua/Fang Zhe)

"The rise of China's wealth in the past two decades is almost equal to the 80 years of growth of wealth in the U.S. from 1925 until 2005," Anthony Shorrocks, an economist and the report's author, was also quoted by the newspaper as saying on Tuesday.

China's rise in household wealth was mainly due to gains from the country's stock markets and housing prices, and the country had a better control on the pandemic, the report said.

China's economy grew 18.3 percent year on year in the first quarter of 2021, as strong domestic and foreign demand powered a recovery from a low base in early 2020.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Hongyu)
Foreign envoys hail China's people-centered transport system

Xinhua) 10:20, June 23, 2021

On June 21, over 120 foreign diplomats and representatives in China meet face-to-face with the Ministry of Transport and get updated about the latest development of China's transportation system.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Hongyu)
Chinese envoy voices grave concern over situation in Afghanistan

Xinhua) 10:21, June 23, 2021

Photo taken on May 9, 2021 shows the books of students who were killed in a car bomb attack in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan.(Photo by Rahmatullah Alizadah/Xinhua)

-- China welcomes the resumption of contact between the Afghan negotiating team and Taliban delegation in Doha, and hopes that the two sides will resume a new round of negotiations as soon as possible. China stands ready to host an intra-Afghan dialogue at an appropriate time to facilitate and support peace talks.

-- China urges foreign forces to withdraw in a responsible and orderly manner, fully consult with the Afghan government on post-withdrawal arrangement, and enhance transparency with countries in the region to prevent the security situation from worsening, or even getting out of control.

UNITED NATIONS, June 22 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy on Tuesday expressed grave concern over the situation in Afghanistan and asked the international community to help the country overcome the many difficulties.

The current situation in Afghanistan is at a critical crossroads and the country is entering a stage of a new round of uncertainties. It appears that since the U.S. announcement of troops withdrawal in mid-April, the intra-Afghan negotiations have seen setbacks rather than progress. The security situation is deteriorating, and the economic and humanitarian situation has become increasingly precarious, said Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the United Nations.

"China is deeply concerned about this. We need to think hard about what caused the current situation in Afghanistan, and what is the way forward for Afghanistan to achieve durable stability and security in the next stage," he told the Security Council.

The future of Afghanistan should be in the hands of the Afghan people themselves, and the future political arrangement for the country should be decided independently by the Afghans. The international community should follow the principle of Afghan leadership and Afghan ownership, uphold fairness and justice, and contribute more positively to the peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan. No external forces shall be allowed to pursue narrow self-interests in Afghanistan and turn Afghanistan into an arena of a geopolitical game, he said.

All parties in Afghanistan should bear in mind the interests of the country and its people, work together to consolidate the gains in peace and reconstruction achieved in the past 20 years, and explore a governance model and development path that suits Afghanistan's national conditions, said Zhang.

Chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah (L, front) talks with the press before embarking the plane for Doha at Kabul International Airport in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan, Sept. 11, 2020.(Afghanistan Peace Council for National Reconciliation/Handout via Xinhua)

Although the progress in intra-Afghan peace talks has been slow, they should not be allowed to fail. China hopes that all parties in the intra-Afghan peace talks can earnestly build consensus and set up a roadmap and timetable for reconciliation as soon as possible. China welcomes the resumption of contact between the Afghan negotiating team and Taliban delegation in Doha, and hopes that the two sides will resume a new round of negotiations as soon as possible. China stands ready to host an intra-Afghan dialogue at an appropriate time to facilitate and support peace talks, he said.

Peace talks need an enabling environment of peace and stability. At present, violence is prevalent in Afghanistan, with security incidents from February to May increasing by nearly 30 percent in comparison with the same period last year. China condemns all violent attacks against civilians and calls for a cease-fire and an end to violence as soon as possible. China welcomes the short-term cease-fire reached by the Afghan government and the Taliban during Eid al-Fitr and hopes that the two sides will create more favorable conditions to gradually expand the duration and the scope of the cease-fire.

The issue of the withdrawal of foreign troops remains the biggest external factor affecting the situation in Afghanistan for some time to come, said Zhang. "Foreign troops cannot come and go as they wish. China urges foreign forces to withdraw in a responsible and orderly manner, fully consult with the Afghan government on post-withdrawal arrangement, and enhance transparency with countries in the region to prevent the security situation from worsening, or even getting out of control."

Terrorism remains a severe challenge facing Afghanistan and regional countries. All parties should step up their efforts to fight terrorist organizations such as al-Qaida, the Islamic State, and the East Turkestan Islamic Movement to prevent the resurgence of terrorist forces. China firmly opposes any politicization of counterterrorism or double standards in this regard, he said.

Lasting peace cannot be achieved without the strong support of development. The international community should continue to support the peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan, help the country engage in regional cooperation, strengthen connectivity, and enhance its capacity for independent development.

Sarwar Danish (R), Afghanistan's second vice president, receives medical supplies from Chinese Ambassador to Afghanistan Wang Yu during the handover ceremony in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan, Oct. 8, 2020. (Photo by Rahmatullah Alizadah/Xinhua)

There is a need to help Afghanistan implement the national peace and development framework 2021-2025, and solve a series of difficult problems such as drugs, poverty, and refugees. Developed countries should earnestly fulfill their commitments and continue to provide development and humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, said Zhang.

The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has played an important role in supporting peace and reconstruction of Afghanistan. Its mandate expires in September this year. Under the current situation, there is great uncertainty in the future environment of UNAMA. The United Nations should continue to play its role on the Afghan issue. But the effective delivery of mandate cannot be achieved without security guarantees. Regarding the UN presence in Afghanistan after September, China requests the UN secretary-general to propose options for early consideration by the Security Council, he said.

As a friendly neighbor of Afghanistan, China has all along actively supported the peace process in Afghanistan and has been making efforts in this regard.

The memorandum of understanding between China and Afghanistan on Belt and Road cooperation is being implemented in an orderly manner. China has so far provided Afghanistan with grant aid worth billions of RMB yuan. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, China has provided multiple batches of anti-epidemic supplies and emergency food assistance to Afghanistan. Early this month, 700,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine and other medical supplies arrived in Kabul, said Zhang.

China will do its utmost to continue to be a supporter, mediator and facilitator of the peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan to help the country achieve peace, stability, development and prosperity at an early date, he said.

(Web editor: Shi Xi, Hongyu)
Misjudgments of CPC blind West of reality and future

(Global Times) 10:31, June 23, 2021

Illustration: Liu Rui/GT

Why do some Western politicians and scholars show much more intention to demonize the Communist Party of China (CPC) when they know very little about the largest political party in the world? To understand China today, one must first know more about the CPC. As the Chinese people are about to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the CPC, the Global Times reporter Bai Yunyi interviewed the country's top political scientist Zheng Yongnian, presidential chair professor, acting dean of the School of Humanities and Social Science and the Founding Director of the Advanced Institute of Global and Contemporary China Studies, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen. He talked about how to see the legitimacy of the CPC and how it reached reforms goals through non-Western ways.

GT: In recent years, the Western politicians and academicians have made more misjudgments against the Communist Party of China, trying to demonize it. This has become a much serious phenomenon. What do you think is the root cause of this?

Zheng: The misunderstanding and misjudgment of the CPC in the West is largely due to the lack of research about the CPC in the West, especially in recent years. Historically before 1949, people like American journalist Edgar Snow and others in the West were very interested in the CPC. They even made a special trip to Yan'an to file in-depth reports about the Party. From 1949 to the 1970s, even when China did not really communicate much with the West, there were still many Western scholars studying all aspects of the CPC - with numerous books coming out. They understood the importance of studying the Party. However, there were fewer and fewer books since the 1980s. Why? Because Western scholars thought that the CPC was no longer important. They also thought that the Party was outdated, so research was not necessary.

This trend was also related to the political and social changes in the West at that time. Before the 1980s, the political system adopted by the West was essentially an elite democracy, and political parties were the main body of this elite democracy. However, after the 1970s, popular democracy of one person, one vote gradually emerged in the US and other Western countries. This had a great impact on Western party systems.

Since then until today, Western parties have been in a state of decline, and neoliberalism is rising day by day. This means that the status of capital has become more important, and politics has been marginalized. This is also the case in countries such as the UK and the US, which are generally the root causes of governance crises there.

In this context, the overall research direction of Western scholars has gradually shifted from political parties to social organizations, to the so-called "post-industrial era" issues, and this trend has also affected their research on the CPC. A closer look at the Western monographs on China in recent years, it is not difficult to find that there are many articles on China's environmental movement, farmers protests, and non-governmental organizations, but very few studies on the Party. However, is the role played by the CPC in China more important, or is the role played by NGOs more important? The answer is obvious.

Many of the wrong policies toward China in the West stem from their misunderstanding of the CPC: Failure to study leads to ignorance, and ignorance further misleads policy making. Some so-called Chinese experts and opinion leaders in the West have even conveyed wrong judgments from an ideological point of view; such as the collapse of the Party and the separation of the CPC from the Chinese people. But the facts are completely contrary to their judgments. If the US does not correct these misjudgments, it will continue to make big mistakes with its China policy.

Zheng Yongnian Photo: Courtesy of Zheng

GT: "Legitimacy" is one of the most frequently criticized issues of the CPC, according to some Western scholars. They believe that there is no one-person-one-vote universal suffrage in China, so the CPC is not broadly representative. From this they think the CPC's governance of China has no legitimacy. What do you think of this statement? Does the legitimacy of a ruling party have to come from universal suffrage?

Zheng:The view - the legitimacy of the ruling party comes from the one-person-one-vote election - is the opinion of Western scholars, not the universal truth. It cannot be used to measure everything.

Also, the universal suffrage issue is not always the case even in the West. If you read the modern and contemporary history of the West, you will find that their views on the legitimacy of those in power are constantly changing. For example, before the emergence of early political parties, the UK used the "old boys' club" to discuss who would be elected to govern. Until World War II, there were very few people in the West who had the right to vote. For example, in the UK, it was mainly the men who had the right to vote and who had paid a lot of taxes to the country. Women did not have the right to vote, and even minorities did not.

In Samuel P. Huntington's book The Third Wave, Sweden was regarded as a model for the realization of democracy in the first wave. But Swedish women did not have the right to vote until 1971. Meanwhile, the US has long considered itself a democratic system, but its "one person, one vote" also started after the civil rights movement in the 1960s and 1970s. Therefore, the legitimacy of the ruling party can only come from one-person, one-vote elections is completely a false proposition.

As result, we do not need to judge ourselves according to the Western definition of legitimacy. The question we really want to ask is: Where does the legitimacy of the CPC come from? I think the legitimacy of the CPC mainly comes from three points. The first point is: The CPC has achieved China's sustainable economic development. Everyone has seen this very clearly.

The second point is: The CPC has achieved sustainable social stability. This social stability was not achieved through dictatorship or a "police state" as the West says. This was not easy to do. From a global perspective, economic development and social stability are a pair of contradictions. The French writer Tocqueville put forward such a problem in his bookThe Old Regime and the Revolution, stating that there will be poverty if there is no development. But if the development process is not advanced well, then society will also be unstable.

The French Revolution is a case in point. Therefore, sustainable economic development and sustainable social stability have challenges if done at the same time. It is only China that has achieved both goals in the world's major economies. Third, the CPC has realized the support and guidance of a sustainable political system. This is an important institutional source for China to achieve sustainable economic development and social stability at the same time.

GT: What do you mean by, "sustainable political system?" In one of your speeches, you mentioned that many Western scholars believe that China's reform and opening-up was only about economic reform, not about politics. In your opinion, you said China has carried out non-Western political reform. What exactly do you mean by that phrase?

Zheng:The definition of political reform is simple in the West. It includes power rotation among multiple political parties. It means the principle of "one person, one vote," with a separation of powers into three branches, and so on. Measured by this definition, China certainly does not have political reform. But China does have political reform that is not defined by Western standards. And it is one of the roots of China's success today

From a historical and global perspective, several developing countries became independent from the colonial rule of Western powers after the WWII. But many of these countries have not seen a change in their political systems. Even though many elites in these nations seek political independence, they were still educated in the West. Therefore, Western systems are retained in many developing countries, such as those in Latin America, Africa, and even Asia.

On the surface, these states have a multi-party system, the "one person, one vote" principle, and a free press. Still, their "democracy" exists only in name. As a result, they cannot develop their economy or unite the country. For example, in India, the political party Indian National Congress is basically a family organization represented by the Nehru and Gandhi families. Meanwhile, even though Bharatiya Janata Party, the one Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi belongs to, has developed to be a national party, India still does not have a structural organization as strong as the CPC. Thus, there are always problems in India.

Some Asian countries, on the other hand, have successfully decolonized and de-Westernized their institutions to create a system that fits their civilization and culture. China, Japan and Singapore have also made the most successful institutional reforms. However, these countries are not considered by the West to be true democracies because they have not enacted "power rotation" among multiple political parties. Many Western scholars even consider Japan to be an Eastern country disguised as a Western one.

In general, there are very few countries that meet the Western definition of "democracy," and at the same time achieve development success. According to the World Bank, among more than 100 countries in the world, there are only about 20 that have not fallen into the "middle-income trap" after the WWII, including some small countries in Northern Europe and the Middle East. In Asia, they are mainly the "Four Asian Tigers," encompassing South Korea, Singapore, China's Hong Kong, and the island of Taiwan. The best development period for Taiwan was under the administration of Chiang Ching-kuo. But now, Taiwan's development has come to a standstill after its Westernization. Therefore, we should not forget what Karl Marx said, the economy is the base, while the political system is the superstructure.

My summary of China's political reforms is very simple: The CPC has modernized itself in the country's modernization process of politics, society, and economics. Since the 1980s in China there have been some reforms at the economic and social level. There have also been some at the institutional level; but we did not explicitly call them political reforms. Plus, the West does not understand them with their own theories.

As I always say, if a doctor fails to treat a patient with what he or she has learned, we cannot say that the patient has the wrong disease. We can only say that the doctor's knowledge and experience are not enough. When the West cannot use its theories to explain China's development, Western countries should not simplistically assume that China has done something wrong. They should consider whether their own perception of China is wrong.

GT: You once described China's system as an "open one-party system." What is the fundamental difference between an "open one-party system" and a "one-party autocracy?" Why is China the former and not the latter?

Zheng:I call the Western party systems an "external pluralism." In the US, for example, you can support either the Republican Party or the Democratic Party. And if you don't like either party, theoretically, you can form your own. It means that a country can have several political processes at the same time.

In this "external pluralism," political parties represent the interests of a part of the population, and their survival and development depend on their external openness. Political identity plays an important role in elections because it is an essential tool for different parties to gain political support. Therefore, political parties in Western societies are often established based on rank, class, region, ethnicity, religion, and race.

In contrast to the West, China is "internally pluralistic," as the CPC is the only long-term ruling party and there is only one political process in the country. However, this process is open. In other words, any elite, social group, or representative of economic interests can participate in the process. They can have their interests expressed through internal consultation. It is not a "one-party autocracy" as said in the West. It is, "pluralism in one body."

Take the personnel system as an example. Mao Zedong once said, "We all come from five lakes and four seas" (meaning from all corners of the country). From here, we can see the plurality of representatives. But there is no "mountain" in China to divide these people because they "have joined together for a common revolutionary objective." The expressions of China's other interests are similar as well. As China's society and economy develop, its social interests are bound to be pluralistic. And each interest can be absorbed into the political process under the leadership of the CPC. It means that the problem-solving process is internal, not external.

Historically, hundreds of registered political parties emerged in China after the founding of the Republic of China in 1911. There were even more that were not registered. According to the concept of democracy defined by the West, of course, the more political parties there are, the more democratic it is. But the fact is: the state was simply not functioning. It barely had any efficiency. When a multi-party system is not acceptable to society, the system is doomed to fail.

The political arrangement of "internal pluralism" is also an outward expression of China's historical and cultural characteristics. The Great Unity is an important feature of traditional Chinese culture. In the West, independent states emerged after the disintegration of empires. In Chinese history, despite being divided and unified again and again, "division" is not the ultimate goal. Indeed, "unification" is. But The Great Unity does not mean a unification of interests. Instead, it can develop through "internal pluralism."

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Hongyu)
Chinese FM calls for high-quality development cooperation with New Zealand

Xinhua) 10:52, June 23, 2021

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi holds a video talk with New Zealand Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta in Beijing, capital of China, June 22, 2021. (Xinhua/Yue Yuewei)

BEIJING, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Tuesday held a video talk with New Zealand Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta, calling for the promotion of cooperation on high-quality development.

Wang said that China attaches great importance to its relations with New Zealand and cherishes the mutual trust that has been established between the two countries.

The two sides should make good use of the upgraded China-New Zealand free trade agreement, speed up talks over the detailed cooperation plan on "the Belt and Road Initiative" as well as its implementation, and promote the high-quality development of bilateral cooperation.

China is ready to strengthen mutually beneficial cooperation with New Zealand in the spirit of mutual respect, promote their respective development as well as regional prosperity, and build a community with a shared future for humanity, Wang added.

Mahuta offered congratulations on the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, and hailed China's achievements in poverty reduction, sustainable development and COVID-19 pandemic response.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Hongyu)
Chinese diplomat calls for true multilateralism, diversified forms of democracy

Xinhua) 11:05, June 23, 2021

GENEVA, June 23 (Xinhua) -- A senior Chinese diplomat on Tuesday urged countries around the world to practice genuine multilateralism and enhance consultation and cooperation, instead of drawing lines between different ideologies and creating confrontation.

Jiang Duan, minister of the Chinese mission to the United Nations in Geneva, made the remarks at the ongoing 47th Session of the UN Human Rights Council.

During his speech, Jiang said multi-polarization and democratic international relations are irresistible trend of the times, and "diversity is what defines our world and diversified forms of democracy are practiced in various countries."

"The key judgment is whether it fits the particular situation in a country, whether it represents the will of its people, and whether it safeguards people's interests and enjoys their support," he said, noting that "true democracy brings about political stability, social progress and well-being for the people, and contributes to the promotion and protection of human rights."

Speaking on behalf of 15 countries, Jiang said that to impose one's own social system and model of democracy on others under the pretext of democracy, interfere in other countries' internal affairs, and impose unilateral coercive measures are the very opposite of democracy and humanity, as those acts "violate the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights."

He called on all countries to work together to advance peace and development, promote and protect human rights, and jointly tackle global challenges, so as to create a better future for human beings.

(Web editor: Shi Xi, Hongyu)
Interview: Mexican expert praises China's contribution to infrastructure in LatAm

Xinhua) 12:48, June 23, 2021

MEXICO CITY, June 22 (Xinhua) -- A Mexican academic has spoken highly of China's contribution to the development of infrastructures in Latin America and the Caribbean, saying that China's efforts have also helped create many direct and indirect jobs along the way.

Speaking to Xinhua in an interview, Mexican academic Enrique Dussel Peters said that China's cooperation with Latin American countries "will continue to deepen" in all areas under a spirit of mutual trust and win-win results.

There is a "heterogeneous" connection between the two that is not limited to the economic, trade and political spheres, explained the coordinator of the Latin American and Caribbean Academic Network on China (RED ALC-CHINA), who recently led the Latin America and the Caribbean and China Fifth International Seminar: Conditions and challenges in the 21st century.

Some 150 specialists from more than 20 countries participated in the three-day seminar starting on June 14, recognizing that Latin America and China should establish closer collaboration to forge a common destiny of development and work together within international cooperation mechanisms to promote prosperity for both Chinese and Latin American peoples.

Dussel Peters praised China's contribution to infrastructure in Latin America and the Caribbean, its growing development in recent years, and its creation of direct and indirect jobs, demonstrated by a database on projects that was compiled by the RED ALC-CHINA network itself.

The network -- with more than 600 members from Latin America and Caribbean (LAC), China, the United States and Europe -- has listed 138 Chinese infrastructure projects carried out from 2005 to 2020 in the Latin American region.

These initiatives, worth some 94.09 billion U.S. dollars, have generated 600,663 jobs, and turned 2020 into a "standout" year for its record-high number of infrastructure projects despite such external factors as "the COVID-19 pandemic or the tensions in the region due to the United States," said Dussel Peters.

In 2020, 24 infrastructure projects worth 17.846 billion U.S. dollars were carried out, generating 210,180 jobs, according to the academic, who is also coordinator of the China-Mexico Studies Center at the National Autonomous University of Mexico.

"It is a very dynamic relationship that has a lot to do with the subject of infrastructure projects, and everything indicates that it will continue to grow in the region," he said, noting "the important diversification in recent years" in cooperation.

Data presented by the network in the "Monitor of Chinese Infrastructure in Latin America and the Caribbean 2021" show the main characteristic of China's recent infrastructure projects in LAC is "their significant" diversification, said Dussel Peters.

From 2005 to 2009, 100 percent of projects were in energy; from 2015 to 2020, infrastructure projects were concentrated in transportation, with 39 projects accounting for 47.71 percent.

Five infrastructure projects were launched last year in Mexico, including the participation of the China Communications Construction Company in the Mayan Train, with an estimated investment of 772 million U.S. dollars, and generating around 80,000 jobs, said the academic.

For the members of the network, according to Dussel Peters, the relationship between China and the Latin American region is on the right track, but further mutual knowledge and understanding is required to better understand needs of both.

Interest in "China's presence in tourism, in learning through the Chinese-Mandarin language and other areas" will also continue to grow in Latin America, "and that is why we have to improve ... learning about China," he said.

He also believes it is necessary for both parties to redirect cooperation through the Forum of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) and China, to "take advantage of a series of proposals to promote economic zones, trade, investment, science, technology, education and other topics of common interest."

"I believe that a new dynamic is required for this China-CELAC Forum," he concluded.

(Web editor: Shi Xi, Hongyu)
Chinese diplomat urges Canada to stop human rights violations against indigenous people

Xinhua) 12:50, June 23, 2021

GENEVA, June 23 (Xinhua) -- A senior Chinese diplomat urged Canada on Tuesday to immediately stop human rights violations against its indigenous people, and called on the United Nations Human Rights Council to keep following the human rights issues in Canada.

Jiang Duan, minister of the Chinese mission to the United Nations in Geneva, made the remarks at the ongoing 47th Session of the UN Human Rights Council, saying he is deeply concerned about serious human rights violations in the North American country.

Speaking on behalf of a group of countries, Jiang noted that historically, Canada robbed the indigenous people of their land, killed them, and eradicated their culture. The world was shocked to learn the recent discovery of the remains of over 200 indigenous children at a Canadian boarding school, he said.

He quoted reports as saying that during the 19th and 20th centuries, over 150,000 indigenous children in Canada have been forcibly taken away from their parents and sent to boarding schools.

"They were subjected to malnutrition, and many fell victims to abuse and rape. At least 4,000 children died of disease, neglect, accidents or abuse while at schools," Jiang said, calling for a thorough and impartial investigation into all cases where crimes were committed against the indigenous people, especially children, so as to bring those responsible to justice, and offer full remedy to victims.

The Chinese diplomat also expressed deep concerns about discrimination and inhumane treatment against migrants in Canadian detention centers. "From 2006 to 2014 alone, tens of thousands of migrants were arbitrarily detained by Canada," he said.

"We are also deeply concerned over the illegal killings of civilians by Canadian overseas military servicemen and systemic racial discrimination, xenophobia, Islamophobia within Canada," he noted, adding that Canada has also repeatedly exploited human rights issue as a tool to promote its political agenda.

Jiang called on the Human Rights Council, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and relevant Special Procedures to keep following the human rights issues in Canada.

(Web editor: Shi Xi, Hongyu)
Chinas homegrown brands win popularity among young consumers

People's Daily Online) 13:39, June 23, 2021

Chinas homegrown brands are changing the consumption trends in the country and winning consumers, especially the younger generations.

The emergence of new Chinese brands, which often incorporate Chinese traditional culture and style, is a fundamental change in the domestic consumption landscape, according to an industrial report on the consumption trend amid this years 618 mid-year shopping festival released by a shopping website of Beijing Zhidemai Technology Co., Ltd., a listed company.

A model presents a creation of Chinese sportswear brand Lining in an event held in Dunhuang, northwest Chinas Gansu province on Aug. 27, 2020. (Photo/Wang Xuechun)

The report indicated that more consumers were adding new domestic brands to their virtual shopping cart for the mid-year shopping season.

According to Alibaba Group's online marketplace Tmall, more and more young Chinese consumers favor domestic brands for their new image and ever-improving quality.

Young consumers, who pursue individuality, have diversified interests and enjoy social interaction, have an attachment to domestic brands, leading to the rise of time-honored Chinese brands, as well as new domestic brands. To woo Generation Z, domestic names are building greater affinity within them through co-branding strategies and online advertising.

Domestic products are now seeing a boost in sales volumes. Chinese cosmetic brands Perfect Diary and Chando, were both listed on JD.coms top 10 favorite homegrown brands in 2021, the countrys e-commerce giant said at a meeting before it kicked off this years mid-year shopping festival.

In east Chinas Zhejiang province, the sales of domestic sportswear brands in Hangzhou Wulin Intime Department Store, a flagship store of the famous Chinese department store chain Intime Retail, soared by 500 percent year-on-year in the first half of this year. Modeling this, in the first six months of this year, the sales of Chinese sportswear brand Li Ning were six times higher than the volume from the same period last year.

According to an expert, Chinas growing economic strength and Chinese peoples boosted self-confidence are the fundamental reasons behind the emergence of new domestic brands, while the complete and efficient industrial and supply chains of consumer goods provide a solid guarantee for the rise of new homegrown brands.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Bianji)
UK reports highest daily rise of COVID cases since mid-February

Xinhua) 14:14, June 23, 2021

People line up outside Bridge Park Community Leisure Center to receive the COVID-19 vaccines in Brent, northwest London, Britain, June 19, 2021. (Photo by Ray Tang/Xinhua)

More than 43.1 million people have been given the first jab of a coronavirus vaccine while more than 31.4 million people have been fully vaccinated, according to the latest official figures.

LONDON, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Britain has reported another 11,625 coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period, the highest since mid-February, according to official figures released Tuesday.

The total number of coronavirus cases in the country now stands at 4,651,988.

The country also recorded another 27 coronavirus-related death, bringing the total number of coronavirus-related deaths to 128,008. These figures only include the deaths of people who died within 28 days of their first positive test.

Earlier Tuesday, Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced that current COVID-19 restrictions in the region will remain in place until July 19, in line with the current plan for England.

Sturgeon had hoped to move Scotland to Level Zero of its five-tier system on June 28, but the plan was delayed after a 40 percent increase in cases.

Meanwhile, British Health Secretary Matt Hancock said England was "on track" to remove all remaining COVID-19 restrictions on July 19.

People wearing face masks talk on a street in London, Britain, on June 17, 2021. (Photo by Ray Tang/Xinhua)

Experts are working on plans to allow people who are fully vaccinated to travel to amber list countries without having to quarantine on their return, Hancock told Sky News.

More than 43.1 million people have been given the first jab of a coronavirus vaccine while more than 31.4 million people have been fully vaccinated, according to the latest official figures.

Experts have warned that coronavirus may continue to evolve for years to come, and eventually it is likely current vaccines will fail to protect against transmission, infection, or even against disease caused by newer variants.

To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Russia, the United States as well as the European Union have been racing against time to roll out coronavirus vaccines.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Hongyu)
I'm a CPC member: A village Party secretary serving villagers for 27 years

People's Daily Online) 16:33, June 23, 2021

Su Tiangong, secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) branch in Xianling Village in Yongchun county, Quanzhou city, southeast Chinas Fujian province, has been dedicated to serving residents for 27 years, bringing better lives to them.

Photo shows Su Tiangong. (People's Daily/Kang Qingping)

"As a Party member, I should deliver good services to the people, Su said.

According to Su, back in the 1990s, the village, home to about 306.7 hectares of hilly areas, was plagued by a lack of arable land resources and low grain yield.

In 1994, then 25-year-old Su offered himself as a candidate for director of the villagers committee of Xianling and was elected, vowing that he would help villagers increase their income by planting loquat.

To eliminate residents concerns over bad sales, Su visited farm produce markets in cities, took photos of loquat stalls with price tags of the fruit, and posted them on a notice board at the entrance to the villagers committee.

In this way, Su succeeded in persuading villagers to plant a new variety of loquat developed by the Fujian Academy of Agricultural Sciences. Turning from a barren place to a sea of green, Xianling became a loquat planting base with an annual output of more than 500 tons and an annual output value of nearly 8 million yuan (about $1.23 million) in the late 1990s, making it a model in casting off poverty.

In 1999, a 2,200-square-meter agricultural experimental base and an agricultural park covering an area of more than 53.3 hectares were established in Xianling, which accelerated the development of agricultural science and technology in the village.

Due to these achievements, Su was later elected as the villages Party secretary, a position he has been serving in for more than 20 years.

In 2017, Su faced a new challenge when Xianlings loquats were neglected by the market, partly because of the cultivation of the same variety of loquat in other provinces and partly because of the lack of online sales channels and transportation in the village.

To him, turning fresh loquats into processed products was a good way to boost sales of the fruit, but the idea was rejected by 27-year-old Su Zhenyao, who tapped into e-commerce in the village, believing that online marketing is the key to expanding sales.

Su Tiangong nominated the young man for a vacant post in the village. Soon after Su Zhenyao took office, they went to Shenzhen and Beijing for a market survey.

"I let Su Zhenyao discuss business with other young people. We built our own brand of loquats on e-commerce platforms and negotiated with courier companies for discounts on delivery fees, Su Tiangong said.

Their efforts paid off. In less than one year, over 50 households in the village produced loquat syrup and sold their products online, increasing their income by nearly 20 million yuan. Su Tiangong marveled at the success, saying that he should let Su Zhenyao play a bigger role.

In early 2019, the young man took over for Su Tiangong as director of the villagers committee. With the joint efforts of Su Tiangong and Su Zhenyao, the per capita disposable income of residents in Xianling village was raised to over 20,000 yuan last year, maintaining a growth rate of more than 10 percent for five consecutive years.

Meanwhile, under the leadership of Su Tiangong, Xianling has been improving its living environment. The village is now connected by a two-lane asphalt road and is home to a training base for art students.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Bianji)
China urges U.S. to stop disrupting sci-tech cooperation

Xinhua) 16:56, June 23, 2021

BEIJING, June 22 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Tuesday urged the U.S. side to stop disrupting the regular exchanges and cooperation between the two countries in science and technology.

Spokesperson Zhao Lijian made the remarks at a press briefing in response to a query concerning the former University of Tennessee professor, Anming Hu, falsely accused by U.S. federal agents.

"This false accusation not only exposed the consistent tactics of U.S. intelligence agencies in conducting presumed guilty investigations but is also another example of U.S. intelligence agencies engaging in political manipulation," Zhao said.

Noting that U.S. intelligence agencies have always used any means to achieve specific political goals, Zhao urged the U.S. side to abandon its Cold War mentality and ideological prejudice and stop its political manipulation.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Bianji)
Experts call for African countries to learn from China's experience in poverty alleviation

Xinhua) 17:01, June 23, 2021

ADDIS ABABA, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Experts and policymakers, attending a poverty reduction-themed seminar, on Tuesday called on African countries to craft specific strategic cooperation endeavors towards replicating China's achievements in poverty alleviation.

The high-level seminar that was held virtually under the theme "China's Poverty Reduction Practice Supports African Union (AU)'s Agenda 2063," was organized by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the Chinese Mission to the AU and the China-Africa Institute.

The seminar brought together officials from the AU and UNECA, African and Chinese diplomatic community, as well as experts drawn from African and Chinese think tanks.

Albert Muchanga, AU Commissioner for Trade and Industry, said that China's rich poverty eradication experience can be replicated in Africa as numerous researches and publications depicted a downward trend in the global poverty statistics with China's remarkable achievements.

"The Chinese practice in poverty reduction shows that high and sustained inclusive development are critical to reducing poverty," Muchanga said, as he affirmed poverty reduction requires strong political commitment and will, which is also a necessity in Africa.

According to the AU Commissioner, one of the key elements that African countries can learn from China's rich experience in ending poverty is the establishment of township industries where poverty was most pronounced.

"China and Africa should embark on a strategic program of cooperation in reducing poverty in Africa by using the lessons of China's sustainable efforts in poverty reduction," he said.

Noting that the AU Agenda 2063 stipulates that African economies must grow at a minimum of 7 percent annually beginning from 2023, Muchanga stressed the AU's keen intent to partner with China in realizing the target.

The commissioner also congratulated the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Chinese people for eradicating poverty ahead of the United Nations target and realizing total victory in the country's fight against poverty.

Participants of the seminar emphasized the need to take lesson from China's rich poverty alleviation experience and actions in Africa, as they described the experience accumulated in China's poverty alleviation endeavor as a valuable global lesson.

Liu Yuxi, Head of Chinese Mission to the AU, on his part stressed China's strong commitment to share its years of experience in the fight against poverty to African countries.

"In the post-pandemic era, China will continue to share its poverty reduction experience with African countries in various areas, and help African countries to formulate more reasonable and effective national poverty reduction strategies," he added.

Liu said addressing the adverse economic impacts of COVID-19 pandemic is one of the areas that China and Africa can further augment their partnership in the fight against poverty.

He further expressed China's keen resolve in supporting the successful implementation of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement so as to enhance the competitiveness and bargaining power of African countries in the international trade.

Thokozile Ruzvidzo, Director of Gender, Poverty and Social Policy Division at the UNECA, also told the seminar that the continental acceleration towards Africa's Agenda 2063 and learning from the successful Chinese experience entails replicating the outstanding achievements of China in poverty alleviation since its reform process.

Ngangu Ilunga, Ambassador of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to the AU, Ethiopia and the UNECA, said China's achievements can serve as a lesson not only for African countries but also the rest of the developing world.

"Congratulation to the leadership, CPC and people of China for having achieved the extraordinary results of reaching the eradication of poverty 10 years ahead of the deadline. Africa has got a lot to learn and be inspired from China," Ilunga said.

The high-level gathering, among other things, envisaged serving as an experience sharing platform towards the realization of Africa's efforts against poverty in line with the factual situations, facilitating the implementation of the AU's 50-year continental development Agenda 2063 and help achieve self-sustainable development among African countries at an early date.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Bianji)
"After the Corona Pandemic had stalled BASELWORLD over the last two years, we took a lot of time to talk to our partners and exhibitors," says BASELWORLD Managing Director Michel Loris-Melikoff. "One thing became very clear: the BASELWORLD brand must remain, but it must fundamentally change."

Whereas BASELWORLD used to be the most important annual meeting place for the luxury brands in the watch, jewellery and gemstone industry, the new Baselworld will be a platform on which smaller watches and jewellery manufacturers and gemstone traders can present their products and retailers will have efficient and easy access to the diversity of manufacturers. BASELWORLD will become a digital platform, supplemented by live events, which will be available to the jewellery, watch and gems industry around the clock, 365 days a year, worldwide.

The date of BASELWORLD 2022 will be coordinated with the trade fairs taking place in Geneva at the same time and is intended as an important supplement and additional platform for the exchange of information between all the players in the industry, including those who did not participate in BASELWORLD in the past.

To be launched in autumn 2021, the digital platform will become a forum for exchange between all relevant representatives of the industry, the public and the media at BASELWORLD 2022. New tools for content creation will be used, allowing a maximum "touch and feel" experience and providing the opportunity to expand one's network and exchange information on the latest trends. It will be the first independent platform that combines digital and live events.

"Everyone will meet on our platform. The brands, the manufacturers, the retailers, the fans and the media," explains Michel Loris-Melikoff. "We will offer attractive conditions and prices for all brands that want to benefit from this unique platform."

Baselworld's new orientation is also in line with the MCH Group's strategy, which has been confirmed by the newly composed Board of Directors. It focuses on platforms for communities in select (international or national) ecosystems, the provision of experience marketing solutions with holistic support for customers worldwide and the operation of the group's own infrastructures in Basel and Zurich.
A light show has been held on the Great Wall in Beijing's Yanqing District, to celebrate the centenary of the founding of the Communist Party of China.

The show, held on Monday, used large-scale light installations integrated with video images to show the 100-year history of the Party and the development of New China.

Produced by Xinhua Global Service
BEIJING, June 23 -- The USS Curtis Wilbur (DDG-54) sailed through the Taiwan Strait and hyped it publicly on June 22. Air Force Senior Colonel Zhang Chunhui, spokesperson for the Chinese PLA Eastern Theater Command (ETC), denounced the US provocative move in a written statement on Wednesday.

Snr. Col. Zhang said in the statement that the US played the old trick to provoke troubles in the Taiwan Strait, deliberately disrupted and undermined the regional security situation, and jeopardized the peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, which fully manifested that the US is the biggest troublemaker for the regional security. "China is firmly opposed to that," added Zhang.

He also stressed that the Chinese PLA Eastern Theater Command has organized its naval and air forces to conduct whole-process tracking and monitoring on the US warship. The troops of the PLA ETC will keep high alert all the time and be ready to respond to all threats and provocations, in a bid to resolutely safeguard Chinas national sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The Royal Navy's Type 45 destroyer HMS Defender in the Bosphorus on June 14, 2021, on its way to the Black Sea. /Reuters/Yoruk Isik/File

A Russian military ship fired warning shots at a British Royal Navy destroyer as it entered Russian waters in the Black Sea on Wednesday, followed by a fighter jet dropping bombs in the path of the British vessel, according to Russia's Defense Ministry. The claims were denied by the UK Ministry of Defence.

The UK's HMS Defender had trespassed as far as 3km across Russian borders, Moscow said, but left the waters soon after the incident.

The incident took place near Cape Fiolent, off the coast of Crimea.

"The destroyer had been warned that weapons would be used if it trespasses across the border of the Russian Federation. It did not react to the warning," said a statement from the Russian Defense Ministry.

The UK Ministry of Defence said no Russian warning shots were fired at the British ship and did not recognize claims that bombs were dropped in its path.

Source(s): Reuters
BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhua) -- China is committed to making greater contributions to world prosperity and development, making greater efforts for international fairness and justice, and playing a bigger role in promoting world common security, State Councilor and Minister of National Defense Wei Fenghe said Wednesday.

China resolutely safeguards its core interests and strongly opposes acts that interfere in China's domestic affairs and damage China's interests, Wei said at the ninth Moscow Conference on International Security via video link.

The Chinese military is willing to join hands with foreign military forces to create a security environment built and shared by all, Wei said.

The conference is hosted by the Russian Defense Ministry from June 23 to 24 in Moscow.
A special committee with the United Nations' cultural agency says Australia's Great Barrier Reef should be placed on a list of World Heritage sites that should be designated as "in danger."

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's World Heritage Committee, or UNESCO, recommended the 2,300-km-long coral reef system should be placed on the list because it has deteriorated due to climate change.

Australian officials denounced the recommendation. Environment Minister Sussan Ley said Tuesday that Canberra opposes the designation and accused the World Heritage Committee of "a backflip on previous assurances" and that it would not take such an action before its formal meeting next month.

Ley said she and Foreign Minister Marise Payne had spoken by phone to UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay about the decision, which she called "flawed" and a decision influenced by politics. "This sends a poor signal to those nations who are not making the investments in reef protection that we are making," she said.
A coalition of 41 countries is calling for access to internment camps in China's Xinjiang region to check on the situation of an estimated one million Muslim Uyghurs who allegedly are being detained under abusive conditions.

Canada issued the cross-regional joint statement at the UN Human Rights Council Tuesday. In her delivery, Ottawa's ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, Leslie Norton, stressed the urgency of getting to the bottom of this human rights situation.

"Credible reports indicate that over a million people have been arbitrarily detained in Xinjiang and that there is widespread surveillance disproportionately targeting Uyghurs and members of other minorities and restrictions on fundamental freedoms and Uyghur culture," she said. "There are also reports of torture or cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment, forced sterilization, sexual and gender-based violence, and forced separation of children from their parents by authorities."

Norton urged China on behalf of the coalition to allow immediate, unfettered access to Xinjiang for independent observers, including the UN high commissioner for human rights.

This follows a similar request made by rights chief Michelle Bachelet at the opening of the council session Monday. "I continue to discuss with China modalities for a visit, including meaningful access, to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, and hope this can be achieved this year, particularly as reports of serious human rights violations continue to emerge," she said.
Internet portal Naver has officially dropped its bid for eBay Korea.

Korea's largest internet company pulled out of a consortium with retail giant Shinsegae to take over eBay Korea. Naver on Tuesday said it had considered taking over a portion of the business but decided not to, in part because of the regulatory issues it would create.

Naver is already No. 1 in e-commerce business in the country and eBay No. 3. That means the way is now clear for Shinsegae, which only has an e-commerce market share of three percent, to take over eBay Korea on its own.

Shinsegae wants to take over all of eBay's local business, which has a market share of 12 percent.
The Foreign Ministry on Tuesday admitted that a South Korea-U.S. "working group" that was to oversee any inter-Korean business will be terminated. The working group was the brainchild of President Moon Jae-in, who proposed it back in 2018 to U.S. President Donald Trump because he was for some reason desperate to bypass international sanctions and throw money at North Korea, so the working group would vet any projects he came up with. Even then North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's hatchet-faced sister Yo-jong slammed the working group as being a "noose of the pro-U.S. flunkeyism" and would only block any form of aid to the North. Presidential advisers and ministers in the South also criticized the working group as "limiting" cross-border exchanges and "interfering" in South Korea's affairs. Now a vice foreign minister says, "Of course [the termination] will serve as a signal to North Korea," suggesting that it was dismantled in yet another doomed attempt to woo the North Korean regime.

Kim Yo-jong is at any rate made of sterner stuff. In response to U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, who said Sunday that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's recent speech saying the North is preparing for both dialogue and confrontation with the U.S. was an "interesting signal," Yo-jong said Tuesday, "It seems that the U.S. may interpret the situation in such a way as to seek a comfort for itself. The expectation, which they chose to harbor the wrong way, would plunge them into a greater disappointment." In other words, there will be no negotiations with the U.S., let alone with South Korea, no matter how far the president bends over backwards.

Since the U.S.-North Korea summit collapsed in 2019, the Moon Jae-in administration has done everything the North asked for. When Pyongyang demanded Seoul stop defectors' groups from sending propaganda leaflets across the border, it not only complied but went even further by enacting a new law making such acts illegal. Moon replaced his foreign minister, Kang Kyung-wha, when Kim Yo-jong criticized her, even though Kang was a staunch Moon loyalist. He told the U.S. it needs to speak with the North when Kim lambasted joint U.S.-South Korea military exercises. Yet he gets no thanks from his friends in the North, who only abuse him more fulsomely, as a "parrot" of the U.S., as "shameless," and as so pathetic as to "make a boiled cow's head laugh."

U.S. President Joe Biden, meanwhile, announced on Monday that he is extending sanctions against the North by one more year. Biden has stressed the need for verifiable denuclearization of North Korea and continued sanctions in recent meetings with the leaders of the G7 and NATO. Yet still Moon keeps singing a different tune, suggesting only recently that he wants to send lots of free coronavirus vaccines to North Korea, while the unification minister wants to send food. What part of "no" do they not understand?


Popular economist in Partys hidden financial front

By:Zheng Qian | From:english.eastday.com | 2021-06-23 15:17

On the eve of the liberation of China, to develop the economy, the Communist Party of China usually opened banks as a cover to establish a hidden financial front. In this financial front, there was a "popular economist" named Deng Kesheng. He was good at disassembling complex economic knowledge into popular short stories, so that workers and farmers could understand it easily. He also used his economic knowledge to increase financial income for the liberated areas, and helped the currency of the base area gain the upper hand over the Jinyuanquan (paper money issued by KMT in 1948) in the fierce "currency war" before liberation.

Dengs photos always show his graciousness and never putting on airs as an economist. Although he was born into a wealthy merchant family and could have been engrossed in books with both ears shut to what went on outside, he chose to disperse his wealth and resolutely devoted himself to the anti-Japanese movement amid the national crisis. His life was a life of revolution.

Engaged in revolution since youth

How did a rich man embark on the revolutionary road step by step?

In 1911, Deng was born in a middle-class family in Changsha, Hunan. Being a youth at the height of the Chinese Revolution of 1925-1927, and growing up in Hunan, the birthplace of the revolution, Deng began to participate in the people's democratic revolution very early under the influence of Marxism.

In 1924, Deng was admitted to the High School of Business Affiliated to Hunan University. Accepting the New Three Principles of the People by Sun Yat-sen, he joined the KMT during the first cooperation between the KMT and the CPC. Soon, Chiang Kai-shek launched the April 12 Anti-Revolutionary Coup, killing more than 10,000 Communists, KMT leftists, workers and peasants. The bloody lesson made Deng see clearly the counter-revolutionary features of the KMT right wing, and angrily broke away from the KMT.

In the autumn of 1930, Deng dropped out of school to start a business with his father, which boomed. The September 18th Incident in the second year of running the business tortured Deng seriously. The Chinese nation is facing a huge crisis. How can I be a small boss calmly? After a fierce ideological struggle, he joined the fiery anti-Japanese movement, which changed his life.

He joined the Hunan Cultural Circle Anti-Japanese National Salvation Association and actively participated in the creation of progressive publications and newspapers. He was not only the main contributor and editor of these publications, but also the main funder.

Shortly after the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, Dengs father passed away. As the only child in the family, he inherited his fathers paper business and ran the business together with his mother. Located in the urban area with convenient transportation, the paper shop gradually became a fixed base for holding secret meetings. The money earned from the shop was also continuously invested in the revolution. In 1938, recommended by Yang Runxiang and Feng Xiuzao, Deng joined the CPC. After that, he was engaged in revolutionary work under the leadership of the Party.

Later, Deng served as the general manager and editor of the Observation Daily, the official newspaper of the Hunan Provincial Party Committee of the Communist Party of China. He was one of the sponsors of the newspaper. With his economic theory, he opened an "Economics Lecture Column" for the newspaper supplement where he explained the daily economic scene and spread Marxist economic theory in plain words.

Later, the newspaper office moved to Shaoyang. Since it was an isolated location, the newspapers circulation became smaller and income fell a lot. The daily meal expenses for dozens of staff members, together with other expenses, were three to four hundred yuan, all paid for by Deng.

Old site of the Observation Daily office

In 1939, the newspaper office was closed by Chiang Kai-shek and the printing factory would be confiscated. Deng and others moved to Guilin in time to establish the Southwest Printing Factory and a publishing house. Xu Zhendong, a patriotic democracy activist who also participated in the anti-Japanese activities while running two bookstores in Guilin, described Deng's activities there in detail in his reminiscence article.

Xu Zhendong, a patriotic democracy activist

According to Xu Zhendong, at that time, there were many KMT secret agents who monitored patriotic and progressive people very strictly. However, his two bookstores were not very eye-catching and thus safer for readers, making them more popular as refuges. Deng gave him a lot of encouragement and support for operating the bookstores. Since the reprinting of revolutionary publications was a loss-making business, to make ends meet, Deng helped to sell ink.

Deng donated up to 50,000 yuan to the Party's newspapers, publications and other business activities.

President of liberated area bank

The Central Bank of China on the eve of the Chinese Civil War

In the winter of 1940, the situation in Guilin was tense. It was decided that Deng and Li Zhongrong form a party group and transfer to Shanghai. Then in May of the following year, the group transferred to the Liberated Area of Central Jiangsu.

After 1941, Deng was assigned to do financial work in the New Fourth Army. He successively served as the branch president, head office vice president, and president of the Central Bank of China. He used his economic theories to actively create wealth for the base area, becoming a financial soldier for the army.

Despite the extremely poor working conditions, Deng insisted on studying Marxist-Leninist works under an oil lamp. Even when transferring to avoid the enemy, he carried a shoulder pole with one end being a radio transmitter and a yellow cloth backpack carrying "Das Kapital" on the other.

Group photo of Deng Kesheng (first from left), his daughter, Xu Zhendong and Li Zhongrong. Source from "Shanghai Scene" Magazine

During the Anti-Japanese War, the tasks of the financial fronts of the base areas were arduous. In order to consolidate the credit of the base area's currency and combat the economic plunder of the enemy, Deng actively promoted the base area's monetary policy. Based on the principles of economics, he wrote editorials, compiled outlines, and described the nature of the base areas currency. In his book "Currency Common Sense", he exposed the essence of the KMT fabi (paper currency issued by KMT in 1935) and the role of the base area currency in simple words and with detailed materials. He also personally opened training courses and trained a large number of cadres.

Regarding the settlement between different currencies of the Liberated Area and the KMT Controlled Area in civil business transactions, Deng worked to break the economic blockade of the enemy and aggressively undertake a KMT fabi exchange business that allowed for the purchase of a large amount of military supplies.

According to Xu Zhendong, it was under Dengs recommendation that Chen Guodong and Xu Xuehan, then heads of the Finance Committee of the Central China Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, sought him for a cover to carry out economic work. After the two men arrived in Shanghai, they lived at Xu Zhendong's home and successively founded several companies, including Tinkle Bank, the hub of a financial front of the CPC on the eve of the liberation.

Tinkle Bank on the eve of the liberation of Shanghai

Deng and Xu Zhendong went to Gaoyou in Jiangsu Province together for a field investigation, and finally agreed to set up a bank for exchange in each place of Gaoyou, Yangzhou, Zhenjiang and Shanghai, with a total equity of about 800 taels of gold. Deng was in charge of the banks located in the liberated area.

Deng also creatively launched a mechanism similar to the current "foreign exchange rate" to timely and flexibly adjust the exchange rate between the base area currency and the fabi in KMT-controlled area. Deng arranged investigators in each county branch or office of the Central Bank of China to collect daily market prices in Shanghai, Wuxi and other places through contact with businessmen or by listening to the radio and then established the conversion ratio of the two currencies by integrating the market information gathered from everywhere. Finally, the currency of the base area maintained a strong value and business reputation, and successfully defeated the increasingly depreciated jinyinquan of the KMT Controlled Area in the fierce "currency war".

Theoretical front to spread economics in simple words

After the founding of the Peoples Republic of China, Deng turned to the theoretical front in the fall of 1953. After that, he was committed to the popularization of Marxist economics. He authored "Autobiography of Commodities", "Uncovering the Mystery of Commodity Prices", "Secrets of Capitalists' Wealth", and "Productivity and Production Relations" among other articles.

Dengs works

In most people's minds, economics is unpredictable, boring and difficult to understand. But in Deng's works, economics is easy to understand, with even workers and farmers being able to read it. When Deng was writing, he was not only good at using words familiar to the masses, but also tried his best to use popular examples as metaphors, and introduce topics from common phenomena in daily life.

In addition to doing theoretical research, Deng often went to do field investigations and guided China's economic construction.

During the Great Famine (1959-1961), Deng learned that rural productivity had been greatly damaged, so he and his comrades explored strategic measures to restore and develop rural productivity. He theoretically analyzed the feasibility and effects of implementing the household contracting policy in rural areas, and proposed that "household contracting is a change in the mode of operation, not a change in ownership." In the anti-"Right" atmosphere at the time, he boldly proposed that people should also guard against "Left". Later, the household contracting system (wherein individual farmers contracted what had been collective land and managed their allocation according to a government contract, keeping the majority of the operating income) commonly implemented in rural areas played a huge role in the development of the rural economy, proving that his views at the time were fully in line with China's national conditions.

Deng Kesheng's Essays on Popular Economics"

Deng suffered many hardships in his life, but he always lived according to the standards of a communist--being frank, strictly self-disciplined and tolerant, and worked for the Party all his life. His works were collected as "Deng Kesheng's Essays on Popular Economics" in 1982, published by Shanghai People's Publishing House. Many of his economic viewpoints have been recognized and valued.

Story/ Xiong Fangyu & Kong Wenlong

Translation/ Zheng Qian


Gorgeous underwater dance boosts Shanghais photography base

By:Zheng Qian | From:english.eastday.com | 2021-06-23 17:12

Since the underwater dance work Rhapsody on the Luo River Goddess became a hit around the Mid-Autumn Festival, the high tech film and television production of Shanghais Songjiang district where the work was produced has been catching lots of attention.

The Tugong Underwater Photography Base in Shanghai Songjiang Hi-Tech Films and Television City was the first choice for many crews to shoot underwater. Costing more than 7 million yuan, the base was put into use in 2016. It covers an area of 3860 square meters and is equipped with underwater studios and supporting workshop.

The steel tank which has a national design patent certificate is compatible with lighting design, convenient to change the shooting background. Moreover, the pool has an underwater set decoration lifting platform and camera lifting platform.

A water constant temperature system in the pool maintains the water temperature at about 29 degree centigrade, and the water circulation system ensures the long-term water cleanness.

According to Liang Shui, head of the Tugong Photography Base, the crew of Rhapsody on the Luo River Goddess had high requirements for proper water temperature, since it required actresses to stay underwater for a long time. They agreed this shooting place at their first investigation, said Liang.

Up to now, the Shanghai Hi-Tech Films and Television City in Songjiang district accommodates nearly 7,000 films and television enterprises and studios, covering all aspects of the industry chain such as film and television creation, shooting, training, publicity and distribution.

On June 17, another batch of projects with a total value of 20 billion yuan settled in the film capital, including the Haopu Film and Television Base that has 4 high-tech studios and 1 underwater digital studio.
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DOG DAYS OF SUMMER - Subaru of Wakefield Managing Partner Sal Barbagallo, (center), recently received a visit from the Wakefield Police Departments therapy/comfort dog Sampson, a/k/a Samy, along with Wakefield Police Chief Steve Skory, (left), and Samys handler Officer Kelley Tobyne, (right). Barbagallo was presented with a certificate of appreciation from the department during the visit in recognition of his generous donations of the funds to obtain the therapy dog and her food.
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Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian's Regular Press Conference on June 23, 2021

2021/06/23

CCTV: On June 22, Canada and some other countries, attacked China at the 47th session of the UN Human Rights Council on its policy related to Xinjiang, Hong Kong and Tibet. Meanwhile, Belarus, on behalf of more than 60 countries, made a joint statement supporting China's position. The six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have sent a letter in support of China's position, and more than 20 countries are ready to support and echo China by making statements in national capacity. The spokesperson of the foreign ministry already made remarks on this last night, and do you have anything to add?

Zhao Lijian: Just as you mentioned, at the 47th session of the UN Human Rights Council yesterday, Belarus delivered a joint speech on behalf of 65 countries, stressing that respect for the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all countries and non-interference in the internal affairs of sovereign states are basic norms governing international relations. The affairs of Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Tibet are China's internal affairs, and the outside world should not interfere. All should abide by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, respect the right of people of all countries to independently choose the path of human rights development in light of their national conditions, oppose politicizing and double standards on human rights issues, oppose politically motivated and groundless accusations against China based on disinformation, and oppose interference in China's internal affairs under the pretext of human rights. The six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have sent a letter supporting China's position, and more than 20 countries also supported and echoed China by making statements in national capacity.

More than 90 countries voiced their appeal for justice at the Human Rights Council, which shows that justice always prevails and people can tell right from wrong. It also reflects what the international community is supporting and exposes the hypocrisy of a few Western countries in interfering in other countries' internal affairs under the pretext of human rights. Facts have proved time and again that a handful of Western countries are eager to fabricate and hype up China-related rumors and interfere in China's internal affairs in the name of human rights, with the purpose of suppressing and containing China and hindering China's development process. This is bound to be in vain. I would like to tell these Western countries that China is unswervingly determined to promote and protect its own human rights and safeguard its national sovereignty, security and development interests.

I also want to stress that some Western countries like Canada, the US and the UK style themselves as"human rights judges and lecturers", but choose to turn a blind eye to or downplay their own serious human rights issues. The track records of certain countries are beyond appalling: persecution of indigenous children, widespread police violence, deep-seated racism, proliferation of firearms, frequently occurrence of anti-Semitic, anti-Muslim, anti-African and anti-Asian remarks and incidents, military interventions that lead to serious humanitarian disaster and unilateral coercive measures that violate the basic human rights in other countries. With such a woeful record, what right do they have to judge the human rights situation in other countries? We urge these countries to take a hard look at themselves in the mirror, deeply repent their wrongdoing, take concrete steps to address their own serious human rights problems, abide by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and the basic norms governing international relations, and make concrete contributions to the sound development of the international human rights cause.

Reuters: Financial Times reported that US Secretary of State Blinken will possibly meet with Chinese officials during G20 in Italy. Is this true?

Zhao Lijian: The G20 is the premier forum for international economic cooperation. China values G20 cooperation and supports it in leading the global fight against the epidemic, improving global governance, and contributing to the steady recovery of the world economy. As for the specific question you raised, I have no information to offer you at present.

Beijing Youth Daily: Yesterday Canada's attack against China using human rights as a pretext at the 47th session of the UN Human Rights Council had the support of the US. But there are comments that the international community is widely concerned about the terrible human rights conditions in the US. Jeffrey Sachs, a professor at Columbia University, pointed out in a recent interview that the US, "instead of recognizing its own violations of human rights, criticizes other countries with biased human rights application". How do you comment on the human rights conditions in the US?

Zhao Lijian: As I just said, yesterday, over 90 countries spoke up for justice at the 47th session of the UN Human Rights Council, laying bare the hypocritical face of a handful of countries including the US and Canada who are using human rights issues to meddle in China's internal affairs and undermine China's stability and development. Their attempt to smear China has ended once again in disgraceful failure.

What Professor Sachs said reflects an objective fact, that is, the US always boasts of being "a shining example of human rights" but turns a blind eye to its appalling human rights record. It blatantly plays with double standard and uses human rights as a tool to retain hegemony and interfere in other countries' domestic affairs. However, the sins committed by the US can no longer be swept under the carpet. Both history and reality have recorded its human rights violations. From large-scale race massacre against indigenous peoples to prevalent, systemic and persistent racial discrimination, from waging wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, which killed hundreds of thousands and displaced nearly ten million to willfully slapping unilateral coercive sanctions which violate the basic human rights of foreign citizens, the list of notorious human rights violations of the US goes on and on.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre in the US. On May 31, 1921, a white mob brutally attacked the African-American community of Greenwood, Tulsa, Oklahoma with arson, gunfire and aerial bombing, killing about 300, displacing almost ten thousand, and destroying nearly 1,400 houses. As the violence ended, what was known as the "Black Wall Street" was burned to the ground. Media investigations have revealed that the local government and police provided weapons for the white mob and the National Guard even joined the white mob's killing, arson attacks and looting. What's more outrageous is that afterwards, the US government, instead of facing the mistake, chose to destroy evidence, block information and even falsify collective memory to deceive the public. This race massacre, one of the worst in US history, ends up with impunity for the perpetrators, neglect for the victims, and ignorance of what really happened among the public, even many descendants of the survivors. Only today, a century later, has the massacre gained attention in the US, which is truly astonishing.

When the US weaponizes human rights issues and tries to fabricate lies to criticize other countries and seek political manipulation, it should not forget the wrongfully-taken African American lives in Tulsa and should not forget that the wounds of racial discrimination and conflict are far from healed. We urge the US to face up to, reflect upon and take concrete measures to address its own serious human rights issues, respond to the call of ethnic minorities, and uphold justice for history and the world.

Chine Review News: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said yesterday that "China is not recognising" there is human rights abuse in Xinjiang. Meanwhile, we also noted comments saying Canada, a self-styled human rights defender, is the poster child of poor human rights record. How do you comment on that?

Zhao Lijian: As we pointed out, Canada is in no position to criticize China, and what they need to do most is to reflect on its poor track record on human rights.

Not long ago, the remains of 215 Indigenous Canadian children were discovered at the site of a former Indian residential school. We noted that despite calling the discovery "heartbreaking and shameful", the Canadian government tried to shirk its responsibility, citing that relevant investigations are rejected by the Catholic Church and hoping the Church will assume the responsibility. Such crocodile tears expose the hypocrisy of the Canadian government and absence of sincerity and courage in the face of its own notorious human rights record, making us worried about whether the conditions of Indigenous Canadians will be genuinely improved or not.

Similarly, Canada is no better than its neighbor in terms of systemic racial discrimination against other ethnic minorities. Since the outbreak of COVID-19,discrimination, stigmatization and violence targeting Asian Canadians have apparently increased. Reports show that from March 2020 to February 2021, there were more than 1,000 occurrences of verbal abuse and violent attack against Asian Canadians, higher than the number reported per Asian capita compared to the US. In 2020, anti-Asian hate crimes increased by 717 percent, 600 percent and 400 percent in Vancouver, Ottawa and Toronto respectively from 2019. In recent years, many African Canadians have been killed by police violence, triggering large-scale protests and demonstrations. Nearly one out of every 15 young black men in Ontario has experienced jail time, compared to approximately one-in-70 young white men. Discrimination and hate crime against Muslims are also rampant. According to Statistics Canada figures, in 2017, hate crimes against the Muslim population grew by 151 percent from 2016. In the face of such blatant racial discrimination and human rights violations, governments at various levels in Canada basically resort to empty posturing, but short of concrete measures to safeguard the legal rights and interests of ethnic minorities.

Following the recent discovery of the remains of 215 Indigenous Canadian children, Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence and Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples have urged the Canadian side to launch full-fledged investigations and said that justice and full reparation must be urgently pursued. We also want to ask the Canadian side, when will they start the investigations and make reparations? When will they take measures targeting systemic racial discrimination?

The Paper: British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said the other day that "the UK supported Canada's statement at the UNHRC condemning China's human rights violations in Xinjiang and the undermining of rights and freedoms in Hong Kong". He said that "the Chinese authorities must abide by their international human rights obligations". What is China's comment?

Zhao Lijian: We deplore and reject the remarks made by the UK side. These are politically motivated and groundless accusations against China based on lies and disinformation that constitute gross interference in China's internal affairs under the pretext of human rights. I wonder what gives the UK the confidence and makes it feel it's in a position to stand on the moral high ground and demand that "the Chinese authorities must abide by their international human rights obligations"?

Britain styles itself as the international "standard-bearer" and world "leader" of human rights protection, but actually human rights problems have been in its social system for a long time: increasing number of people living below the poverty line, indifference to people's right to life and health, deteriorating living conditions for ethnic minorities, acute Islamophobia, growing deficiency and injustice in education, record-high crime rate, modern slavery, attempt to cover up a number of war crimes, and the list goes on and on. Recently, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed concerns over the Overseas Operations (Service Personnel and Veterans) Bill currently being reviewed by the UK Parliament. She said the Bill "could lead to shielding military personnel operating abroad from due accountability for acts of torture or other serious international crimes"; and could potentially be an obstacle to full accountability for international crimes perpetrated by individuals. It is a despicable double standard approach for the UK to seek legal justification for the abuses and suffering inflicted on innocent civilians by British troops during the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The UK is by no means a model of human rights, and is in no position to lecture others. We urge the British side to look at itself in the mirror and repent its own serious human rights violations. It's scheme to deflect attention and shirk its responsibilities by smearing and attacking China will not work.

Fuji TV: China's giant panda Shin Shin gave birth to twins at Ueno Zoological Park in Tokyo today. We understand that recently the topic of China-Japan relations is getting somewhat serious but this may be good news. Does the foreign ministry have any comment?

Zhao Lijian: This good news makes us all very happy.

The giant panda is a national treasure and a name card of China, and an envoy for friendly exchanges between China and other countries. Shin Shin's first baby, Xiang Xiang, is deeply loved by the Japanese people. I believe the newly born cubs will also bring joy and happiness to all. We sincerely hope that the two panda cubs will grow up healthy and strong and become beloved envoys of the friendship between the Chinese and Japanese people, just like their elder sister Xiang Xiang.

China Daily: According to reports, TV2 Mongolia's documentary "China's development path" was recently launched in Mongolia and warmly received. The documentary tries to understand the path and achievements with Chinese characteristics from Mongolia's perspective, and fully presents China's new development in a new era, and gives a full display of the hard and great journey the Communist Party of China has led the Chinese people on over the past century. What is China's comment?

Zhao Lijian: Thank you for your interest in this. We appreciate Mongolia's comprehensive and objective view of China's development.

China has made remarkable development achievements because we found a correct development path, namely, the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics under the leadership of the CPC. This path conforms to China's national conditions and the trend of the times, gets the overwhelming support of the Chinese people, and is garnering understanding and endorsement of more and more countries in the world. The documentary produced by Mongolia is a good example to this point. We welcome more objective and impartial foreign media to report on China.

China has always been a builder of world peace, a contributor to global development and a defender of the international order. While achieving its own development, China will continue to inject more positive energy into world peace and development and bring new development opportunities to Mongolia and other countries. China and Mongolia are friendly neighbors linked by mountains and rivers and comprehensive strategic partners. China is ready to work with Mongolia to further deepen and consolidate China-Mongolia relations and bring more benefits to the two peoples.

China News Service: Recently Mike Gallagher, US Representative for Wisconsin's 8th congressional district, posted an article on the COVID-19, saying that China is engaged in a systematic "coverup" designed to avoid culpability for its "mishandling" of the pandemic. What is China's comment?

Zhao Lijian: Since the onset of the epidemic, China has unreservedly shared with other countries its experience in containment and treatment in an open and transparent manner. China has received WHO experts twice and co-released with WHO the joint mission report on origin-tracing, making positive contributions to the global response. China's efforts have gained worldwide recognition.

I wonder if the US congressman concerned has paid enough attention to the massive outbreak of EVALI in Wisconsin in July 2019. The world has yet to see a clear conclusion about the disease. As a lawmaker representing Wisconsin, does he think this is a systematic "coverup" by the US side? If he really wants an answer, it might help if he drives to Fort Detrick from Wisconsin to find out the truth. In June 2019, research work at Fort Detrick was suspended after an inspection found failure to follow procedures and mechanic glitches and leaks. Around the same time, EVALI broke out on a large scale in Wisconsin.

Fort Detrick is infamous for its security risks and leak incidents. Its so-called research respecting no moral bottom line and "release of viruses" are just shocking. After WWII, it sheltered and recruited some notorious Nazi war criminals and took over their research in biological warfare. Among them are Erich Traub, head of Nazi Germany's biological warfare lab, and Shiro Ishii, who was in charge of Unit 731 of the Imperial Japanese Army that waged the war of aggression against China. At Fort Detrick, the objects of experiments include plants, animals and human beings. According to reports, Sidney Gottlieb, who was in charge of human experiments, once gave seven black prisoners excessive doses of LSD for 77 days straight to test how drugs work on forcing confessions.

In the face of widespread doubts and concerns from the international community, the US remains reticent and evasive. What is it afraid of? No country but the US can be truly accused of systemic coverup. Are there more terrible truths that remain unknown in the US? Once again we urge the US to open up Fort Detrick as soon as possible, grant necessary access to international experts to learn relevant information, and publish research conducted in its over 200 biological labs all over the world.

Phoenix TV: On June 22, guided-missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur sailed through the Taiwan Strait. This is the sixth transit through the Taiwan Strait since the start of the Biden administration. Do you have any comment?

Zhao Lijian: The spokesperson of the PLA Eastern Theater Command already made remarks on the issue. The Chinese side was closely following and fully aware of the US military vessel's passage through the Taiwan Strait from start to end. The US warships have repeatedly flaunted their prowess in the Taiwan Strait, provoking and stirring up trouble. This is by no means commitment to freedom and openness, but rather "freedom of trespassing", and deliberate disruption and sabotage of regional peace and stability. The international community sees this crystal clear.

China is firmly resolved in upholding national sovereignty and territorial integrity. We urge the US to play a constructive role in regional peace and stability, rather than the opposite.

Fuji TV: As for the panda cubs, do you hope that this good news will serve as an opportunity to improve China-Japan relations?

Zhao Lijian: I think this is indeed a good thing for China-Japan relations and is of great significance to deepening the mutual understanding and enhancing exchanges between the people of our two countries.

Bloomberg: According to a recent survey in Australia, Australians' trust in China has dropped to a record low. Only 16% of respondents said they trust China to act responsibly in the world, according to the annual Lowy Institute poll. Separately, an official from Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has said that China is "dogged by insecurity". Does the foreign ministry have any comment?

Zhao Lijian: We've noted relevant reports. The institute's report is based on survey of about 2,000 people. Whether its conclusions are reliable remains a question. The remarks of the Australian official couldn't be further from the fact.

I'd like to stress that since the latter half of 2017, China-Australia relations have experienced one serious setback after another. The crux is that Australia, in breach of international law and basic norms of international relations, grossly interfered in China's domestic affairs, hurt Chinese interests and wantonly placed restrictions on bilateral exchange and cooperation. The Australian side bears full responsibility. China always believes that a sound and stable relationship serves the fundamental interests of the two peoples. The ball is in Australia's court with regard to improving bilateral relations. We hope the Australian government will adopt an objective, rational and responsible attitude, think carefully about whether it sees China as a partner or threat, and do more in the interest of mutual trust and cooperation between the two sides. We also hope the Australian people from all walks of life can be clear-eyed to tell right from wrong, view China and its development in an objective light, reject certain Australians' smears against China, and show their understanding and support for China-Australia friendship and cooperation.

Bloomberg: China's military deployment along its disputed border with India and uncertainty over whether Beijing will fulfill its promise on troop reduction remain a challenge for relations between the two neighbors, according to Indian's foreign minister. Does the foreign ministry have any comment?

Zhao Lijian: China's military deployment along the western section of the China-India border is a normal defense arrangement aimed at preventing and responding to encroachment and threat on China's territory by relevant country. For a long time, the Indian side has been increasing its military deployment along the China-India border and encroaching on China's territory. This is the root cause of tension along the China-India border. China always stands for a peaceful settlement of the boundary issue through negotiation and against linking the boundary issue with bilateral relations.

Reuters: Lithuania said they will donate 20,000 vaccine shots to Taiwan, and open a representative office in Taiwan. Do you have any comment on this?

Zhao Lijian: Recently, my colleagues and I have responded to this question on many occasions. Here I would like to reiterate that our hearts are with our Taiwan compatriots who are faced with the grave situation. We have always made clear the readiness to do our utmost to help our compatriots in Taiwan overcome the difficulties at an early date. I would like to advise the Taiwan authorities to focus on scientific epidemic prevention and control, remove man-made political obstacles, and ensure that the lives, health, interests and well-being of our Taiwan compatriots are effectively protected, rather than seek political manipulation on anti-epidemic cooperation for selfish interests. This disregard for the lives and health of Taiwan compatriots goes against the basic humanitarian spirit.

China firmly opposes any official exchanges and the mutual establishment of so-called "representative offices" between Taiwan and countries having diplomatic relations with China. We urge the Lithuanian side to adhere to the one-China principle and honor its commitment made upon the establishment of diplomatic ties. Also a word of advice to the Taiwan authorities: "Taiwan independence" leads to a dead end and any attempt to create "two Chinas" or "one China, one Taiwan" will not succeed.

Bloomberg: Wall Street Journal reported that China is likely to keep COVID-19 border restrictions for another year. Do you have any comment on this?

Zhao Lijian: I'm not aware of what you mentioned. In principle, I would like to stress two points.

First, since the onset of COVID-19, by drawing on the practice of other countries and international customary practice, China adjusts its management measures on in-bound travelers in light of the changing epidemic situation in a science-based manner.

The coronavirus is still spreading in many parts of the world with the emergence of many variants. China will continue taking prevention and control measures through scientific analysis in light of the evolving situation. On the basis of ensuring safety, China stands ready to work actively to foster healthy, safe and orderly personnel exchanges with other countries.
While the US presents itself as an advocate of expanding vaccine supplies, the world is rapidly becoming more dependent on China for vaccines as the COVID-19 pandemic makes it difficult for India to fulfill its vaccine supply agreement. "Not only has Chi...
Second Missionary Baptist Church is hosting an Indiana Department of Health free mobile vaccination clinic as part of its ongoing efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

The clinic runs from June 30 to July 3 from 9 to 6 p.m. daily at the church, located at 819 N. Apperson Way.

Register online by visiting ourshot.in.gov or call 211 (866-211-9966), and a representative will schedule an appointment for you from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. Appointments are encouraged, but walk-ins are accepted while vaccine supplies last.

This mobile vaccination site is one more way we are working to give all Hoosiers convenient access to COVID-19 vaccine in their communities, said State Health Commissioner Kris Box, MD, FACOG. I encourage everyone who hasnt been vaccinated yet to take advantage of this safe, effective vaccine, which is the best protection we have against this virus.

If you are 18 or older, you may choose to receive either the single-dose Johnson & Johnson (Janssen) or Pfizer vaccine, which requires a second dose to be fully protected. This will be scheduled at the time of your first dose.

Individuals age 12-17 must receive the Pfizer vaccine. An adult must accompany children age 12-15 to the vaccine appointment. If the adult present is not the parent or guardian, consent must be submitted in advance. For anyone age 16-17 its preferred that a parent or guardian accompany the minor to the vaccination site. We understand this may not always be possible. In those cases, the parent or guardian can provide written or verbal authorization.

Here are some additional facts:

 The vaccine is available at no cost, but insurance information is requested, because an administration fee may be charged.

 Each individual will need to schedule an appointment, even if they live in the same household.

 This site offers the Pfizer vaccine, so a second dose is necessary to be fully protected. This will be scheduled at the time of the first dose.

 Proof of age will be required at the appointment.

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 After receiving the vaccine, recipients should sign up for V-safe, the after-vaccination health checker, on any smartphone, at vsafe.cdc.gov.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, if youve been fully vaccinated:

 You can gather indoors with fully vaccinated people without wearing a mask or staying 6 feet apart.

 You can gather indoors with unvaccinated people of any age from one other household (for example, visiting with relatives who all live together) without masks or staying 6 feet apart, unless any of those people or anyone they live with has an increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19.

 If youve been around someone who has COVID-19, you do not need to stay away from others or get tested unless you have symptoms.

Once youre fully vaccinated, you should still:

 Wear a mask and socially distance when in public or visiting an unvaccinated person at increased risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19

 Avoid medium- or large-sized gatherings

 Protect yourself while traveling

 Get tested and stay home if symptoms develop

Learn more about the COVID-19 vaccine from the Indiana Department of Health at ourshot.in.gov.
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Now, more than ever, the world needs trustworthy reportingbut good journalism isnt free. Please support us by making a contribution.
One local nonprofit known for its youth programming and mentoring is serving its families through a new program.

Bridges Outreach is renovating a home on Kokomos northwest side for a family in the Bridges network. Travis Taflinger, CEO of Bridges Outreach, said the program is the first of many efforts by the organization to impact families beyond the youth it serves.

Bridges wants to increase the homeownership in Kokomo. From housing counseling to renovating homes, we want to convert renters into owners. Community development and stability improves Kokomo every time we have a first-time homeowner, said Taflinger.

Since 2005, Bridges has operated afterschool and mentoring programs throughout the city, but Taflinger said more impact can be made with more intentional work with the family unit.

Bridges wants to dive deeper into community development. We want our families to have fair accessibility to quality homes in Kokomo and have the resources to then purchase those homes, he said. Once you join the Bridges family, you are always a part of our family and now staff. Bridges families and Bridges alumni will have an opportunity to own their own home.

Taflinger and multiple members of the Bridges board of directors have experience renovating homes for ownership. Early in 2021, Taflinger reached out to Kokomo Mayor Tyler Moore to see if the city of Kokomo had any available houses. Moore Kokomo sent over a list of several houses to look at.

The Bridges board looked through them and saw the potential in the North Courtland Avenue house.

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The city has been gracious partners and helped kickstart this program for Bridges. The United Way of Howard County endorsed the project as well with a large grant, and the Courtland project became a reality, said Taflinger.

Nova and Manny Williams, the Bridges Outreach family, completed homebuyer training offered by a partnership between Advantage Housing and Bridges Outreach, and they said it gave their family the tools to be mentally and financially ready to purchase their first home.

Advantage Housing was able to walk us through, step by step, the to-dos, not-to-dos, and provide real-life examples of the process and offer multiple local resources that assist in the home buying process, said Nova.

Moore applauded Bridges Outreachs efforts to not only remodel a home in the city but also to give a family an opportunity for a better life.

When Travis and I spoke about his desired plans, I could not think of a better initiative to support. The city is always excited to see and encourage individuals to help beautify Kokomo and make it a better place to live for everyone, so our hope is that this partnership with Bridges and so many others is the first of many projects like this for our community, said Moore.

Bridges has several partners on this project: United Way of Howard County, City of Kokomo (KCDC), The Hardie Group, Mygrant Appraisals, Community First Bank of Indiana, Merrell Brothers, Advantage Housing, ZKB Contracting, and NIPSCO. Bridges is hoping to connect with individuals or businesses that have building supplies, professional services, or houses to donate. Taflinger hopes to renovate one to three houses a year for area families.

We hope this Courtland Project is the first of many, he said.

For more information about Bridges Outreach, visit www.bridgesoutreach.com.To keep updated with the Courtland house follow Bridges Outreach on Facebook.
Following a 2014 fire that razed the original storage facility for Spirit of Kokomo buses, current city officials are hopeful a new and improved facility soon will be on the horizon.

While construction is not yet underway, City Operations Coordinator Dave Trine said that meetings with contractors have gone well, and there was a pre-build meeting on site. Trine further projected that excavation and site work is projected to start in the next few weeks, with construction of the actual facility slated to begin in October. Trine said the city is hoping to have the new storage facility completed this year.

The project was set back, according to Trine, due to increased wait times for materials, in this instance, metal for the building.

Back in April when we met on site, the builders actually said that they ordered the metal, and that was 26 weeks out, Trine said. So if youre looking at that, were looking at October. Given the weather situation, were hoping to have it done this year, probably going to be a push to get that done

In 2014, Kokomos central garage was destroyed in a fire, taking six Spirit of Kokomo buses and an engine crane with it. The building was deemed a total loss and took firefighters nearly five hours to completely extinguish the blaze, according to prior reporting by the Kokomo Perspective.

The new facility is set to be larger than the previous, according to Kokomo-Howard County Government Coordinating Council (KHCGCC) Executive Director Tammy Corn and will be located at the same spot in Kokomos central equipment on Milbrook Lane. Currently, buses are being held at a wastewater treatment facility.

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According to Corn, the new facility will hold 40 buses.

We would like to have it completed by the end of the year, but we dont know, Corn said. For whatever reason, COVID just threw everything off. Prices shot hire, and material is hard to get. Its just crazy.

Last year, the city of Kokomo received $2.67 million in federal stimulus from the U.S. Department of Transportation. The citys piece of the $25 billion allocation from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was used to maintain transit services in urban areas during the pandemic.

As part of the nearly $3 million, the city purchased six new 22-foot Spirit of Kokomo buses, which went online in March of this year, replacing six retired buses. The new buses were funded entirely by CARES Act funding.

Approximately $800,000 of CARES Act funding will go toward the construction of the new bus barn.

The City of Kokomo operates over 30 Spirit of Kokomo buses, alongside several CityLine trolleys.
Press Release

June 23, 2021 Bong Go assures former rebels of support from the government for reintegration Senator Christopher "Bong" Go urged members of rebel groups such as the New People's Army to return to the fold of the law as he assured them of government support to start their new lives as reintegrated members of society. In an interview during the distribution of assistance to displaced workers in Tupi, South Cotabato on June 22, Go assured rebels who will surrender that he and President Rodrigo Duterte will warmly welcome them should they choose to reintegrate themselves into society. "Ako, bilang inyong Senador at bilang inyong public servant at bilang Pilipino, alam n'yo ayaw ko pong nagpapatayan ang Pilipino kapwa Pilipino. 'Pag may namamatay na sundalo, sumasakit ang dibdib namin ni Pangulong Duterte," said Go. "'Pag may namamatay na rebelde, sumasakit rin po ang dibdib namin ni Pangulong Duterte," he added. The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict was created through Executive Order No. 70 in 2018. It institutionalizes the whole-of-nation approach in attaining inclusive and sustainable peace by creating the NTF-ELCAC and adopting a National Peace Framework. "Tandaan natin, mayro'n din pong mga pamilya ang mga 'yan na nasasaktan. Kaya sa mga rebelde, mayro'n naman pong magagandang programa ang ating gobyerno," assured the Senator. "May pinirmahan na po si Pangulong Duterte to encourage po na magbalik loob na po kayo sa gobyerno. Bibigyan ho kayo ng livelihood, bibigyan ho kayo ng assistance. Kung sa tingin naman po ninyo na makakatulong po ito sa inyo, magiging tahimik ang inyong buhay," he mentioned. According to EO 70, the whole-of-nation approach addresses the root causes of insurgencies, internal disturbances and tensions, and other armed conflicts and threats by prioritizing and harmonizing the delivery of basic services and social development packages by the government. It also includes facilitating societal inclusivity, and ensuring active participation of all sectors of the society in attaining the country's peace agenda. The government agencies involved in the NTF-ELCAC provide assistance through various programs dedicated to help NTF-ELCAC achieve its target goals. One of which is the Department of Social Welfare and Development wherein it provides assistance through cash grants to former rebels. The agency's Livelihood Settlement Grant, under its Sustainable Livelihood Program, which is in support of the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program of the government, aims to provide financial aid to such individuals so that they can become productive members of their communities. Meanwhile, the Senator assured that President Duterte will provide all kinds of assistance to those who will surrender, including housing, livelihood and education for their children. "Nakikiusap po ako sa inyo, magbalik loob na po kayo sa gobyerno at tulungan n'yo na lang po ang ating gobyerno, si Pangulong Duterte," Go said. "Wala pong ibang napaka-sincere na kausap, with all sincerity ang ating Pangulo when it comes to dealing with the left," he added. President Duterte also signed Administrative Order No. 10 institutionalizing the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program which are focused on reintegration efforts of former rebels in their respective localities as well Administrative Order No. 25, expanding the former AO's coverage to include FVE's or Former Violent Extremists, among other amendments. Go noted that Duterte has accommodated concerns of leftist groups, manifesting his sincerity to achieving peace and prosperity in the country. "Noon pa 'yan, binigyan nga n'ya po ng pagkakataon na makapagserbisyo sa kanyang gobyerno. Gano'n po kasinsero ang ating Pangulong Duterte," recounted Go. "Please lang po, sa mga kapatid kong Pilipino, sa mga rebelde sana po'y mag-isip-isip kayo at magbalik loob na po kayo sa gobyerno," he concluded. Go, in his own capacity, has been assisting former rebels who chose to rejoin the rest of society. On December 2, 2020, his office sent assistance to 160 former communist rebels in Valencia City, Bukidnon who surrendered under the government's End Local Communist Armed Conflict Program. He sent similar assistance to 896 former rebels coming from various municipalities of the province of Bukidnon in Impasug-ong, Bukidnon, on March 4.
Press Release

June 23, 2021 Lacson Shares Tips to Thwart Social Media Trolls More at: https://pinglacson.net/2021/06/23/lacson-shares-tips-to-thwart-social-media-trolls/ Resist the urge to engage them, report them, and block them. Sen. Panfilo M. Lacson said this is the three-point habit that ordinary Filipinos can develop against internet trolls, while waiting for Facebook and other social media platforms to crack down on them. "We know trolls are financially and emotionally fueled by agitating and getting a response from their targets. Denying them that fuel is a good first step," said Lacson, who has also encountered and dealt with trolls on social media. He added some signs of online trolls that ordinary Filipinos can look out for may include: * The person's main Facebook profile has no activity; and usually has a generic or unidentifiable profile photo * Overly aggressive and/or condescending behavior, with targeted offensive messages instead of reasonable arguments * Use of 'copy-paste' or distinguishable patterns in their comments * Use of fake news and/or twisted logic * Sudden surge of 'like-minded' comments targeting and attacking one who does not share their views Earlier, Lacson said he has blocked from his Twitter account those who are "out of topic, out of reason, and out of their mind - and whose only happiness is to bash like a troll." He had blocked over 2,000 accounts as of June 2021. Lacson also backed Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III's call to Facebook Philippines to act against troll farms supposedly being set up for the 2022 elections. Lacson earlier cited information reaching him indicating that an undersecretary is organizing troll farms - two in each province - in time for next year's election. "But as we wait for the companies concerned to take appropriate action, it would be better for us to develop the habits that will deny these trolls their prize," he said.
In what was, so far, the best baseball game of the week, the Jaguars pulled their 33rd win out of the fire and salvaged a gem of a start from their star pitcher.
Abu Dhabi emirate said it will resume welcoming cruise liners from September 1st after months of the suspension owing to the pandemic.

The Department of Culture and Tourism of the emirate, DCT, Arab News notes, indicated that it is in talks with Abu Dhabi Ports to regain the momentum it achieved before the pandemic  about 500,000 cruise visitors arrived in the UAE capital in 2019, a 46 percent year-on-year increase.

The move according to the department is part of efforts to enliven the emirates tourism sector after the impressive results we have achieved in combating the spread of the pandemic, and yet another step towards strengthening the UAE capitals position as a world-class hub for maritime tourism.

The emirate has launched a vast campaign of promotion to attract new investments and tourists.

The DCT said it will join international events to promote Abu Dhabi to global cruisers.
Germany is hosting a new international conference on Libya on Wednesday, June 23. The presence of many countries and actors on the ground should help consolidate the progress made in recent months, particularly on the holding of elections. The withdrawal of foreign forces planned by the first Conference in Berlin 18 months ago has remained a dead letter.

Obtaining guarantees on the holding of the elections planned for the end of December in Libya: such a result would already be a success for the German diplomacy in charge, 18 months after a first conference, of organizing a new edition called Berlin II. The only important difference this time: Libyan actors will participate in the meeting.

Germany is pleased that progress has been made in recent months, reports our correspondent in Berlin, Pascal Thibaut. There is a ceasefire between the internationally recognized regime in Tripoli and the forces of Khalifa Haftar in the east of the country. A unity government between these two rival factions has also been formed and oil extraction has resumed.

But these advances are primarily due to Turkeys support on the ground in Tripoli. And the commitments made at the first Berlin conference by Ankara and Moscow to withdraw the forces they sent there have remained a dead letter. According to Jan Kobis, the UN special envoy, the divisions in the country and its institutions persist.

Moreover, the delivery of arms and the arrival of mercenaries has never stopped: those who committed themselves, last time in Berlin, to withdraw their troops, have not kept their word, deplored the head of German diplomacy. According to the UN, there are some 20,000 Russians, Chadians, Sudanese, Syrians and Turks. Libya is still not stabilized and a new conflict can break out at any time

As for the guarantees that elections will be held at the end of December, if they are proclaimed, they must not remain a dead letter. Doubts remain about the real will of the current government to see the elections take place.

Libyan politicians accuse the current executive, headed by Abdelhamid Dbeibah, of wanting to take power. The main issue at stake at this summit will therefore be to guarantee the holding of presidential and legislative elections on December 24.
The Ministerial Committee of the Non-Aligned Movement, which held its extraordinary meeting online Tuesday on the Palestinian issue, commended the efforts undertaken by His Majesty the King Mohammed VI, in His capacity as Chairman of the Al-Quds Committee, in favor of the Palestinian cause.

In the Political Declaration issued at the end of this meeting, the Non-Aligned Movement also welcomes Al-Quds Call, signed by HM King Mohammed VI of Morocco and His Holiness Pope Francis, during the visit of the Pontiff to Morocco in March 2019, which is aimed at promoting and enhancing the specific multi-faith character, spiritual dimension and special identity of the holy city.

The document underlines the need to join efforts to alleviate the humanitarian, social and economic suffering endured by the Palestinian people, while reaffirming the commitment to the two-State solution based on the 1967 borders.

The Movement also stresses the importance to implement the relevant resolutions of the United Nations Security Council relating in particular to the status of Al-Quds, and insisted on the preservation of the demographic composition, character, identity and legal status of the Holy City.
Protesters to rally against the illegal detention of Georgian citizen in Tskhinvali

By Veronika Malinboym

A rally against the illegal detention of the Georgian citizen Zaza Gakheladze is planned for tomorrow by his relatives near the border line, however, local authorities have already referred to it as provocation and promise to bring the participants of the rally to justice.According to the local authorities, "despite the statements of the Georgian side calling to resolve the issue within the framework of international mechanisms, some opposition forces in Georgia are trying to disrupt the negotiation process:"On June 17 of this year, the leader of the Georgian Public Movement Ertobashia, Davit Katsarava, announced another provocative initiative on his Facebook page on June 23, which aimed to encourage the Georgian government to take more active steps to facilitate the release of the convict.Given the nature of Unity Power's activities, it is possible that protesters will attempt to cross the border illegally. The implementation of such provocative initiatives, regardless of whom they come from, causes significant damage to the negotiation process. We emphasize that the attempts to violate the administrative and legal regimes established on the border will be thwarted within the framework of the current legislation, the statement of Tskhinvali Security Services reads.One year ago, on July 11, Zaza Gakheladze was wounded Kaspi with a firearm and then captured by Russian military services, as he allegedly, opened fire near the border. Gakheladze was charged under two articles of the Russian Criminal Code - "attempted murder" and "illegal crossing of the state border. On February 5, Tskhinvali court sentenced him to 12 years and 6 months in prison.June 23 is Zaza Gakheladzes birthday, and, to draw more attention to his arrest and subsequent sentence, his family will hold a rally in the village of Kvemo Chala.
Can a girl just reinvent herself? These were the words of the Queen of the Screen Catherine Kasavuli after she came out of retirement to stage a surprise comeback through the national broadcaster, Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC).

The legendary newscaster is part of a promising team of both experienced and emerging journalists tasked with resuscitating KBC from its slow and painful death. They include Cynthia Nyamai, Tom Mboya, Fred Indimuli, Shiksha Arora, John Kioria, Ahmed Juma Ballo, Harith Salim, and Nancy Onyancha.

The lineup also includes Fayyaz Qureishi, Badi Muhsin and Pauline Sheghu.

Of all the above, Kasavuli was the obvious fan favorite after she took over Twitter trends for the better part of Monday.

The 59-year-old also proved she is ready for the cutthroat fight for the market share in viewership as she promptly opened social media accounts  a basic necessity for journalists.

In a matter of hours, her Instagram page had amassed over 4000 followers, most of whom were left inspired by Kasavulis first posts.

A new KBC is here, a new day has come, she captioned her first picture with her colleagues.

In her second post, Catherine Kasavuli wrote: One day Im definitely gonna tell my story To God be the glory. ReInvent .ReInspire .ReBuild.

The first woman TV news anchor in Kenya then dedicated her third post to girls.

She wrote: This Saturday Im making a comeback on @kbc_television, damn, its been 8 years. Can a girl just reinvent herself? This is for every girl out there who has the courage to DREAM AGAIN.

In another inspirational message, Catherine Kasavuli shared a picture from the 90s when she was part of the founding team of KTN, where she served for 17 years.

She captioned the pic: Just came across this me waay back. If I met someone this day and they asked me  Catherine where do you see yourself 30 years from now?

I believe my answer would have been something like, I want more grace in my purpose, more energy to inspire generations, enough peace of mind to experience Gods faithfulness..

Kasavuli concluded that: Hey you, I hope thats your prayer.

Enough said!
Nacada vice-chair Chipukeezy has revealed why his radio presenting job at Radio Maisha never materialised.

In early 2018, the comedian had agreed to replace the departing Jalango at the Standard Media Group-owned station. A week after both parties had announced the news, the deal inexplicably fell through even before Chipukeezy could go on air.

Recounting the circumstances that led to the fallout, Chipukeezy said Alex Mwakideu approached him for the gig and later introduced him to the bosses.

He said the management agreed to hire him on the condition that they would allow him to attend his comedy shows abroad.

I told them I do not have an issue to go back to radio as long I would be allowed to continue with my shows as a comedian. I wanted them to allow me to do the show as my idea and on my terms without being limited. Whether I was in Vegas or Nairobi, Chipuzeeky told Jalango on Bonga na Jalas.

He continued: They thought I was bragging about the shows I have had before. I was in Vegas at the time when the contract was being made yet I was to report on Tuesday. They had already made adverts and billboards announcing my show. When I came back to Kenya walikua wamenifuria sana.

Chipukeezy mentioned that the same day Radio Maisha terminated his contract is when he birthed his show Chipukeezy Show.

Media owners are oppressing artistes. I thought as an artiste you are given a good contract but you do not have the freedom to express who you are. That is why I did not go back to work on radio, he explained.
Members of the public played a huge role in the rescue of Hafsa Mohammed Lukman, the kidnap victim who was abducted on Tuesday, June 15.

Hafsa was lured by her friend who said she wanted to go into a business partnership selling watermelons at the Kayole junction.

After short prayers at her clothing shop in Kamukunji Trading Centre, they left for her friends house, not far from the shop, when Hafsa was abducted by two men.

Earlier on Friday, June 11, the female suspect had sought a house in Kayole and told a caretaker she wanted to rent it.

The suspect, identified as Hafsa Abdulwahab, returned on Tuesday to pay for the house located about 400 metres from Kayole Police Station. She withdrew money using the victims phone and paid Sh7,000 rent, then bought electricity tokens worth Sh1,000.

The three suspects then took Ms Hafsa Mohammed to the two-bedroom house in a 210-litre water tank.

According to police, the tank was dropped by a black car, which police are still looking for. The three suspects were also seen taking the tank into the house.

Residents said Ms Hafsas friend and one of her accomplices looked like a couple.
Governors from the Lake Region Economic Bloc (LREB) have asked the government to allow them to import COVID-19 vaccines on their own in a bid to contain the surge of infections in the region.

Led by LREB Chair, Kakamega County Governor Wycliffe Oparanya, the county bosses said vaccination is key in controlling further spread of the virus in the region which has recorded 2, 171 new cases over the last one week.

The governors noted that the three million jabs procured by the Ministry of Health are not enough to accelerate vaccination across the country.

Governor Oparanya said it is imperative that they be allowed to import the vaccines to augment efforts by the national government.

Oparanya who chaired the LREB summit to discuss the COVID-19 situation in the region said governors shall hold regular meetings to strategize on how to combat the disease.

He noted that sharing of data has been enhanced for effective decision-making.

The Kakamega governor, however, said oxygen shortage remains a big challenge with many patients admitted in the Intensive Care Units (ICU) across the region requiring oxygen supplementation.

At he same time, Kisii Governor James Ongwae asked the Ministry of Health to allow the use of rapid testing kits to scale up COVID-19 testing across the country.

His remarks were echoed by Kisumu Governor Prof. Anyang Nyongo who asked the Ministry to issue guidelines on rapid testing and allow counties to import the kits to scale up testing.

Prof. Nyongo said testing was crucial in mapping the extent of the virus spread to aid in containment strategies.
Security officers in Nairobi have reiterated that victims of muggings are to blame for the spate of brazen muggings in the capital city.

On Monday, just hours after the Directorate of Criminal Investigations urged victims of city muggings to report to the police instead of lamenting on social media, KBC presenter Shiksha Arora fell victim to a daring robbery while in traffic at Globe roundabout.

Narrating her traumatizing ordeal on Twitter, the news anchor said the mugging happened at around 5 pm while she was headed to Serena Hotel for a re-launch event for KBC.

She said a man bent her side mirror backward and walked away. Before she could realise that this was a decoy to distract her, another man started knocking on the passenger window of the front seat as she was trying to re-adjust her side mirror.

As I was looking to my left, the third guy slid his hand in through my window and unlocked my car, got into the back seat, grabbed my purse and asked for my phone, at this point in time I was in panic mode, couldnt say anything.

He asked for it again and reached for my neck, strangling me.

As he was strangling my neck, I desperately gasped for air, I started hooting loudly to get some attention hoping somebody would help me. People started getting out of their cars and thats when he let go and fled. He went with my purse, but I am TRAUMATIZED that he attacked me, she recounted.

She added: These thugs work in teams in broad daylight during peak traffic, dont roll down your window no matter what when on globe roundabout. I got lucky, he didnt manage to hurt me much, despite strangling my neck and getting away with my purse. I am okay but traumatized.

It was not immediately clear if Arora filed a complaint with the police.

Responding to Shiksha Aroras mugging, Nairobi police boss Augustine Nthumbi said no incidents have been reported recently.

As far as I know no incidents have been reported yet, but I blame members of the public because most of the time you find that these crimes happen but after the ordeal victims just go home and never makes a police report. It is necessary for the public to make a police report so that we can be able to act, said the police boss. Nthumbi further said the anti-mugging squad which was formed recently to contain the vice is still in operation.

Meanwhile, the Inspector General of Police Hillary Mutyambai has said security will be enhanced in the city centre.

I have taken note of insecurity within CBD. Action will be taken and security enhanced. #EngageTheIG https://t.co/foYAgaW7oR  Hilary N. Mutyambai, MGH, nsc (AU). (@IG_NPS) June 21, 2021
The govt has deployed a multi-agency security team from both land and air to provide security in Naivasha at the WRC Safari Rally to be held between June 24 to 27.

In a statement sent to newsrooms Tuesday, Inspector General of Police Hillary Mutyambai said the team is comprised of National Police Service, Kenya Wildlife Service, National Youth Service, and safety marshals.

He said the security agents will provide total and round-the-clock security to all the participating stakeholders in three tiers: prior to, during, and post-event.

Some activities like traffic movements will be temporarily affected on the rally routes. Spectators and photojournalists are also advised to watch the event at the safe side of the road, he said.

Mutyambai urged members of the public to comply with the security and Ministry of Health protocols which he insisted, will be enforced effectively by the security officers who are already under instructions.

The multi-agency security team comprises more than 1000 police officers.
President Uhuru Kenyatta has voiced concerns by the Organization of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) regarding the increasing number of unilateral decisions by the European Union (EU) targeted at the multilateral institutions member nations.

President Kenyatta, who is the President-in-Office of the Summit of the 79-member institution since 2019, regretted that the EU doesnt sufficiently engage the OACPS before taking some of its decisions, contrary to the provisions of the Cotonou agreement.

The revised Cotonou agreement maintains the scope of the Groups engagement with the EU to include conflict prevention and good governance under political dialogue. However, the unilateral application of measures, including sanctions, by the EU as imposed on Eritrea and Burundi, has created sensitivities and concerns within our Group, President Kenyatta noted.

President Kenyatta, who is on a two-day Official Visit of Belgium and the European Union, spoke on Tuesday in Brussels when he addressed a meeting of the OACPS Committee of Ambassadors.

On the blacklisting of OACPS countries on grounds of deficiencies in anti-money laundering and financing of terrorism, the President said his office, as the President-in-Office, had unsuccessfully raised the matter with highest levels of the EUs hierarchy.

However, despite the high-level intervention including by my Office, the list was adopted by the EU in May of 2020. I share the concern of affected OACPS that the unilateral approach adopted by the EU is against the spirit of the post Cotonou Partnership Agreement.

I have raised our concerns with high-level EU interlocutors in our meetings, including with the Presidents of the EU Council and Commission as well as the European Parliament, President Kenyatta said.

At the meeting also attended by the Deputy Speaker of Kenyas National Assembly Moses Cheboi, the President spoke about the measures OACPS was taking in the fight against Covid-19 saying, there was a need to convene a Heads of State and Government summit to discuss post pandemic recovery strategies.

You may recall in June, 2020 during the Extraordinary Inter-Sessional Summit of OACPS Heads of State and Government, we deliberated on the effects and consequences of COVID-19 pandemic to the members and regions of the OACPS; and paid particular attention to identifying opportunities for global solidarity and action.

I note that there is need for a follow-up Summit whose focus should be on post Covid-19 recovery strategy to tackle the effects of the pandemic and reposition our countries towards the path for sustainable socio-economic development, he said adding that, the follow-up Summit should aim at securing more Covid-19 vaccines for OACPS nations.

The President rallied OACPS nations to continue advocating for multilateralism and solidarity despite the changing geopolitical realities fueled by new global challenges such as climate change and Covid-19.

The world is witnessing a new cycle of geopolitical realities, an emerging multi-polar world and global challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic, biodiversity loss and effects of climate change, which is an existential threat to OACPS members.

Despite these challenges, however, we must continue being advocates for multilateralism, promoters of global solidarity and remain reliable, respected and engaging partners on the global scene, the President said.

He urged OACPS nations to participate in the Global Partnership for Education, an initiative through which Kenya and the United Kingdom seeks to raise USD 5 billion needed to support an estimated 1.3 billion children whose education was interrupted by Covid-19 to resume their schooling.

In a bid to address these challenges, the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) is holding a 4th replenishment campaign, which aims to raise at least USD$ 5 Billion for the 2021-2025 cycle. The GPE is a multi-stakeholder funding platform that was established in 2002 to mobilize additional resources for education.

The process will culminate in a High-Level Summit that will be co-hosted by the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and I on 28 and 29 July 2021 in London, the President said.

Shortly after his address to the OACPS Committee of Ambassadors, the President who was accompanied by Cabinet Secretaries Raychelle Omamo (Foreign Affairs), Adan Mohammed (EAC) and Betty Maina (Trade), participated in a press briefing during which he fielded questions on an array of subjects.

On Tuesday morning, President Kenyatta participated in a business forum convened by the Belgian Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture (CBL-ACP) where he addressed investor concerns and highlighted the various reforms being undertaken by the Government to improve Kenyas business climate.

The President was joined at the business forum by a Kenyan business delegation that included Chairman of the East African Business Council Mr Nicholas Nesbitt, Chairperson of the Kenya Private Sector Alliance Ms Flora Mutahi and the President of the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry Mr Richard Ngatia.
A section of church leaders based in Trans Nzoia County has threatened to curse the government over the recent COVID-19 control measures imposed in the region.

The religious leaders drawn from Trans Nzoia East Interfaith Committee said the measures are too punitive to live by.

Led by their chairman, Bishop Martin Mafumbo of Mountain of Prayer and Deliverance Ministries Kenya, the Interfaith committee said the government did not consult them.

They argued that they have been complying with Covid-19 measures from the onset and they are shocked the government forced them to close churches.

According to them, other social establishments have not been adhering to some of the measures.

We have complied with all the set guidelines and we are shocked on the move. Look at supermarkets there is no social distancing. Look at schools no social distancing. After the church closure, one of our leaders held a great gathering at neighbouring West Pokot and nobody interfered with it, Mafumbo said.

The clergyman warned that should the govt fail to reopen churches within one week, they will pray to God to punish it for not respecting the freedom of worship.

We shall fast and pray until God revisits this government. We will make sure we raise our hands to God so that he deals with this pharaoh government that doesnt respect God, he said.

The Trans Nzoia East Interfaith Committee further demanded that they be involved in coming up with measures that will contain the virus.

From time immemorial, churches have been viewed as refuge zone for those seeking answers to pandemics. Why are they were closing areas where locals go for solace, added Bishop David Khambia of PEFA church.
According to information published by the Royal Navy on June 22, 2021, the UKs Carrier Strike Group has joined the fight against Daesh with F-35 jets carrying out their very first combat missions from HMS Queen Elizabeth.

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US Air Force F-35A Lightning IIs, center, lead a formation of IAF F-35I, right, and Royal Air Force F-35B, left, during Exercise Tri-Lightning over the Mediterranean Sea in 2019 (Picture source: US Air Force)

Stealth jets of the renowned 617 Squadron RAF (The Dambusters) carried out operational sorties for the first time in support of Operation Shader and US Operation Inherent Resolve.

For the task group, which has spent previous weeks in the Mediterranean working with NATO allies and partners, it marks a change of emphasis.

From exercises and international engagements, it is now delivering its full might of naval and air power, putting the strike into Carrier Strike Group and contributing to the UKs fight against Daesh.

Carrier Strike Group 21, led by HMS Queen Elizabeth, is the largest concentration of maritime and air power to leave the UK in a generation and this is its first operational deployment, which is joint between the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force.



There are 18 UK and US F-35 Lightning jets onboard HMS Queen Elizabeth, which is the largest number to ever sail the seas. The aircraft is next generation multi-role combat aircraft equipped with advanced sensors, mission systems and stealth technology.

Number 617 Squadron is a Royal Air Force aircraft squadron, originally based at RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire and currently based at RAF Marham in Norfolk. It is commonly known as the "Dambusters", for its actions during Operation Chastise against German dams during the Second World War.

The Dambusters reformed on 18 April 2018, and was equipped at RAF Marham in June 2018 with the Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning, becoming the first squadron to be based in the UK with this advanced V/STOL type. The unit is composed of both RAF and Royal Navy personnel, and operates from the Royal Navy's Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers.

Operation Shader is the operational code name given to the contribution of the United Kingdom in the ongoing military intervention against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. The operation involves the British Army providing ground support and training to allied forces fighting against ISIL, the Royal Air Force providing humanitarian aid airdrops, reconnaissance and airstrikes, and the Royal Navy providing escort to allied carrier battle groups. Additionally, UK Special Forces have reportedly operated in Iraq, Syria, Libya and Tunisia.
According to information published by the Twitter account of the Chief of Navy Australia on June 22, 2021, the newest ship of the Australian Navy's future fleet, NUSHIP Stalwart has arrived at her homeport of Fleet Base West for the first time.

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NUSHIP Stalwart arriving at Fleet Base West, Australia (Picture source: Twitter account of the Chief of Navy Australia)

HMAS Stalwart is the second of the Navantia built Supply-class replenishment oiler for the Royal Australian Navy. It had its keel laid in November 2018 as a part of the SEA 1654 Phase 3 project.

HMAS Stalwart (III) and her sister ship HMAS Supply (II) will replace HMAS Success and HMAS Sirius with a single class of two AOR Ships to sustain deployed maritime forces. The two ships are based on the Spanish Cantabria class and were built at the Ferrol shipyard.

The vessel has an overall length of 173.9 m, a displacement of 19,500 t, and a full-load deadweight of 9,800 tons. Its design draught and beams will be 8 m and 23 m respectively.

The Supply class is a class of replenishment oilers of the Royal Australian Navy, a role that combines the missions of a tanker and stores supply ship. As such they are designated auxiliary oiler replenisher (AOR). They will be tasked with providing ammunition, fuel, food and other supplies to Royal Australian Navy vessels around the world.

A replenishment oiler or replenishment tanker is a naval auxiliary ship with fuel tanks and dry cargo holds which can supply both fuel and dry stores during underway replenishment (UNREP) at sea. Many countries have used replenishment oilers.
According to a press release published by Babcock on June 23, 2021, the company has signed a tripartite Memorandum of Implementation (MoI) in Odesa with the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine and the UK Government. Building on the agreement signed in October 2020, the two nations will now push forward a major programme of Ukrainian naval projects, with Babcock as their designated prime industrial partner.

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QENS Barzan from the Qatari Navy during the launch ceremony in Southampton (Picture source: Shipspotting)

Building on the agreement signed in October 2020, the two nations will now push forward a major programme of Ukrainian naval projects, with Babcock as their designated prime industrial partner.

Reflecting Babcocks extensive naval experience and capabilities, the Group has been chosen to lead in the delivery of the scope of the broad ranging Ukrainian Naval Capabilities Enhancement Programme (UNCEP).

The programme includes the enhancement of capabilities on existing naval platforms, the delivery of new platforms, including fast attack missile craft, a modern frigate capability, shipborne armaments and the training of naval personnel. It also involves working together to regenerate Ukrainian shipyards by developing, implementing and completing a Shipyard Regeneration Plan.

Babcock CEO David Lockwood joined Deputy Minister of Defence of Ukraine Oleksandr Myroniuk, UK Minister for Defence Procurement Jeremy Quin and First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Tony Radakin to sign the MoI on-board the UK Royal Navys Type 45 destroyer HMS Defender, which is part of the UKs Carrier Strike Group.

Babcock will lead British and Ukrainian industrial partners to assist the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence in delivering these projects. Working collaboratively, these teams will be fully integrated within the projects, building ownership and expertise through technical and knowledge transfer and enabling Ukraine to develop a modern naval fleet and support capability.

Babcock will be supported by several other companies with a strong UK presence, including MBDA, Thales, and Royal Haskoning DHV. They will also be working closely with the Ukrainian industry in developing this programme. Work will now begin on the contracts to implement a number of projects in the programme.

In 2020, Navy Recognition wrote that the United Kingdom could provide Barzan-class fast attack craft to Ukraine.

The Barzan-class is powered by four MTU 20V 538 TB93 diesel engines developing 18.740 hp. The ship can reach a maximum speed of 35 kt with a maximum range of 1,800 nm at 12 kt.

The armament of the Barzan-class includes two four-cell launchers able to launch MM40 Exocet surface-to-surface sea-skimming missiles manufactured by MBDA. The missile has a range from 4 to 70 km and is fitted with a warhead of 165 kg. The ship is also armed with surface-to-air missiles Mistral which have a range of 4 km. The front deck is fitted with an Oto Melara 76mm / 62 Super Rapid naval gun which has a range of 16 km.
Seattle-headquartered e-commerce giant Amazon has decided to ban three more Chinese brands from selling on their platform. Amazon has banned sales of RAVPower power banks, Taotronics earphones and VAVA cameras-three brands under Shenzhen-based electronics company Sunvalley as per a statement by the Guangdong SACA Precision Manufacturing.

The statement accessed by news agency ANI noted these brands were suspended after their merchants were found to be giving out gift cards to customers willing to write positive reviews. This is a common practice in Chinese e-commerce but treated as abuse of review system by Amazon.

"According to our investigation, the reason (for the ban) may be that some products offered gift cards to customers, which is allegedly in violation of the rules of the Amazon platform," SACA statement read.

The three brands in question sell consumer electronic products including baby monitoring cameras and the affected products account for around one-third of Sunvalley's total sales revenue on Amazon since 2020 began, as per the statement.

These are not the only Chinese brands to come on Amazon's radar. The US-based e-commerce behemoth had banned an online store backed by TikTok's parent company ByteDance as well as Mpow, the main Amazon store run jointly by ByteDance and Xiaomi-backed Patozon.

Amazon has a 'zero tolerance policy' towards violations like offering gift cards in return of positive reviews or asking a friend to leave a review.

Amazon's crackdown became much more notable this time because the Chinese stores they shut down were so big, as per Zack Franklin, a Shenzhen-based Amazon consultant for merchants. Franklin added the biggest Chinese sellers were banned to send a strong message.

Edited by Mehak Agarwal; with ANI inputs

Also read: Amazon registers 40% YoY growth in fashion category in FY21

Also read: Will offer lower fee if sellers cut prices, Flipkart tells court
Heineken NV, the world's second largest beer maker, has taken control of India's largest brewer United Breweries Limited (UBL), cementing its position in a vast market where beer consumption could grow from a low base.

The Dutch brewer said on Wednesday it had it had bought 39.6 million shares in UBL to push its holding to 61.5% from 46.5% before. Based on Tuesday's close at 1,466 Indian rupees, the acquisition would be worth 58.1 billion Indian rupees ($781.3 million).

UBL is the maker of India's top-selling Kingfisher lager and was owned by Indian businessman Vijay Mallya, who India want to extradite from Britain over $1.4 billion of loans taken out from Indian banks which authorities argue he had no intention of repaying.

The banks took possession of the stake and India's Competition Commission approved Heineken's proposed acquisition of additional equity on Monday. Heineken has steadily been building its stake in UBL since taking an initial 37.5% through its 2008 acquisition of Scottish & Newcastle.

Brokers Jefferies said India, accounting for 18% of the global population but only about 1% of world beer volumes, represented a long-term growth opportunity. Traditional drivers of beer expansion, a young population and economic growth, were in place, but high excise duty meant affordability was an issue.

A narrowing of the gap between tax on beer and on spirits, Jefferies said, would give significant potential for the market to grow from current annual beer consumption of 1.6 litres per capita towards the global average of 24.4 litres.

($1 = 74.3620 Indian rupees)

Also read: Dating app Bumble closes offices for a week to give 'burnt out' employees a break
The Competition Commission of India on Tuesday ordered an investigation into allegations of Google's abuse of its operating system's pole position in the smart television market. In the order dated June 22, CCI said that it found Google 'prima facie' in violation of India's antitrust regulations and asked the CCI Director General to launch a probe into the matter.

The commission started looking into the matter last year after two lawyers filed a case against the US tech giant alleging that Google breached certain anti-competitive laws. The CCI said that based on the information available as well as submissions by the tech giant, it is "convinced that a case is made out for directing an investigation" by the CCI DG.

Google, however, denied any wrongdoing. It said its emerging smart TV sector in India was thriving due to the company's free licensing model, and added that Android TV competed with several well-established TV operating systems. "We are confident that our smart TV licensing practices are in compliance with all applicable competition laws," a company spokesperson said.

Kshitiz Arya and Purushottam Anand, the two lawyers who filed the case, said that they welcomed the probe, alleging that Google had restricted the development of many virtual goods and services.

This antitrust investigation will be Google's third in the country where it is facing probe into is payments app and Android mobile operating system.

The CCI in June 2020 began looking into allegations that Google engages in anti-competitive practices by creating barriers for firms wanting to use or develop modified versions of Android for smart TVs, such as Amazon Fire TV's operating system.

The CCI order said Google occupied the "most significant" position in the relevant market of smart TVs and the initial probe had shown the US firm curbed the ability of device-makers to sell devices operating on alternative versions of Android.

Also read: EU launches antitrust probe against Google's conduct in digital ad tech sector
Maharashtra government stated on Wednesday that it is collecting hundreds of samples from each district of the state for genome sequencing to determine how far the Delta Plus variant of the coronavirus has spread. This is taking place a day after the Centre declared Delta Plus variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus which causes COVIUD-19 infection, as a "variant of concern" and had advised Maharashtra to take preventive measures against its spread.

The Maharashtra government has also stated that it is making all efforts to contain the spread of the Delta Plus variant in the state. Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope explained that the concern of the state government is to determine how far the Delta Plus variant had already spread, according to India Today TV. "For this the state government has decided to collect hundred samples from each district of the state for genome sequencing...The process of collecting samples from each district has already started," he said.

Tope added that 21 cases of the Delta Plus variant have been registered in Maharashtra. These were detected after genome sequencing of around 7,500 samples which had been collected since May 15.

What is Maharashtra doing to tackle the Delta Plus variant?

The State Health Minister explained that concerned officers have been ordered to take note of index cases of the Delta plus variant and to monitor them very closely.

"What this means is that all the details about the cases should be ready for examination and study. Their travel history, the aggressive contact tracing of high risk and low-risk contacts has been ordered as well. We are looking very closely to see if these index cases were reinfected, did they get infected even after taking the vaccine, has the Delta Plus variant escaped the vaccine? This study is what needs to be done right now and our department with the help of ICMR, ICSR and NIV are continuously working in coordination." conveyed Rajesh Tope.

Is Delta Plus variant more dangerous?

Rajesh Tope explained that the prima facie information that the government has regarding the Delta Plus variant is that it has less transmissibility and more virulence. "Hence the serious patients will be seen more in such kind of virus," explained Tope. The Health Minister added that so far there have been deaths in the state due to the Delta Plus variant of the coronavirus.

Treatment for Delta Plus Variant

Answering a question on whether the line of treatment will change due to the appearance of the Delta Plus variant, Tope said, "It has been noticed that the line of treatment that was continuing for Covid19 patients has to be continued here as well. No special treatment is needed for the variant. This is what is being told by the scientific fraternity who are making in-depth studies".

Giving an update of the COVID-19 vaccination drive in the state, Tope said, "We had the highest number of vaccinations done on 22 June. It was the highest for the state ever since the process of being stated. But we have the capacity to vaccinate ten lakhs and as an when we get more vaccines we will further increase our capacity."(Edited by Mohammad Haaris Beg)

Also Read: Astrazeneca COVID-19 vaccine effective against Delta, Kappa variants

Also Read: Delta variant 'greatest threat' to US' COVID-19 efforts, says Dr Anthony Fauci
Cash deposits of up to Rs 2.5 lakh by housewives post demonetisation will not come under I-T scrutiny as the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) has held that such deposits cannot be treated as income of the assessee. Ruling on an appeal filed by an individual, the Agra bench of ITAT said the order would act as a precedent for all similar cases.

The appellant, a housewife Uma Agrawal of Gwalior, had declared total income of Rs 1,30,810 in her income tax return filed for fiscal 2016-17. However, post demonetisation, the assessee deposited the Rs 2,11,500 cash in her bank account.

The case was selected for scrutiny assessment, during which the assessee was asked to explain the cash deposit of over Rs 2.11 lakh. The assessee had explained that she had collected/saved the above sum from her previous saving, given by her husband, son, relatives for herself and her family.

The CIT (Appeals) did not accept the explanation and confirmed the Assessing officer's order treating the cash deposit of Rs 2,11,500 as unexplained money. Following this, the appellant approached the ITAT. The Tribunal, after going through all the facts and arguments, said "we are of the opinion that the amount deposited by the assessee during the demonetisation cannot be treated as income of the assessee. Hence the appeal of the assessee is allowed."

Observing that housewife's contribution in the family is "immeasurable", the Tribunal said quoting an order by the Supreme Court, which mentioned that, in India, nearly 159.85 million women stated that 'household work' was their main occupation compared to only 5.79 million men, as per 2011 Census.

"Women all over the country, had been accumulating cash that they had saved for themselves from household budgets, by haggling with vegetable sellers, tailors, grocers and assorted traders...

"Years of stashing in whatever little cash gifts they received from relatives during festival times and years of tucking away the change they found in the pants that they washed every day, however, suddenly they were left with no option but to deposit the amount in the denomination of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes in the banks on account of Demonetisation scheme 2016, (as) these notes were no more legal tenders," the tribunal added.

Exempting women who deposited less than Rs 2.50 lakh during the demonetisation period, the ITAT said "we may clarify that this decision may be treated as precedent in respect to proceedings arising out of the cash deposit made by the housewives during the demonetisation scheme 2016, only up to the limit of Rs 2.5 lakhs only."

Usually, ITAT ruling is binding on the applicant and the jurisdiction tax officer and is used as reference in similar matters. Post demonetisation in November 2016, the income tax department had in 2017 said no questions will be asked about cash deposits of up to Rs 2.5 lakh and only those accounts will be probed that do not match the tax returns.

Also read: Centre asks ICAI to form 7-member taskforce to look into glitches in new I-T portal
Professional networking platform LinkedIn has reportedly been increasingly blocking content from users who post sensitive content about the country. Some of these users are graduate students and scholars. This comes after officials of the site were summoned by Chinese regulators in March to complain that they had failed to control political content. LinkedIn is the only major Western or American social-media company that operates freely in China.

According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, an Oxford student Eyck Freymann was informed by LinkedIn that his account has been blocked in China. He was informed that the 'experience' section of his profile contained 'prohibited' content. Although the site did not elaborate further, Freymann believes that they were referring to the words 'Tiananmen Square massacre' in his experience section. "LinkedIn is pulling people's material off without telling them why," he said, adding that he is just a graduate student and that he didn't think he mattered.

Roie Yellinek, a scholar at Israel's BESA Center for Strategic Studies believes that he was blocked because of his work in Hebrew on China's efforts to reshape its image in Israel.

The news site identified at least 10 people whose profiles have been blocked in recent weeks.

A LinkedIn spokeswoman said in a statement that the company supports freedom of expression. But offering a localised version of LinkedIn means adhering to the censorship requirements of the country. LinkedIn has not clarified if its actions were proactive or in response to requests from Chinese authorities.

Chinese authorities summoned LinkedIn officials in March to ask them to better regulate their content. It was given 30 days to clean up its content. Shortly after, LinkedIn said in a statement that it would pause new member sign-ins to ensure that they were in compliance with local law.

The networking site received 42 requests from Chinese authorities to take down content, as mentioned by the Journal. It took down 38 out of those.

The report said that when 'Tiananmen', 'Uyghur forced labor' or 'Hong Kong national security law' were searched by its team on the site, LinkedIn threw up only a handful of results and far fewer for Chinese members.

This censorship row comes after Microsoft's Bing search engine drew controversy for blocking the 'Tank Man' image, linked to the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, for its China and US users. The company said it was an 'accidental human error' and restored the image.

Also read: Women 2x more worried about jobs, 4x less confident than men: LinkedIn
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Hope to see Jet Airways flying again by year end, says resolution professional

With the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) giving its go-ahead for the resolution plan, Jet Airways could be back in the skies by the end of this year if everything goes well, according to the airline's Resolution Professional. On Tuesday, NCLT's Mumbai bench approved the resolution plan submitted by a consortium of UK's Kalrock Capital and UAE-based entrepreneur Murari Lal Jalan.

COVID-19 vaccine in final stages of receiving approval in India: Pfizer CEO

Drug maker Pfizer is in final stages of getting approval for its COVID-19 vaccine in India, the company's CEO Albert Bourla has said. Pfizer is holding talks with the Indian government for supplying its COVID-19 vaccine to the country. The company co-developed the two-shot COVID-19 vaccine, called BNT162b2, along with its German partner BioNTech.

Wealth of India's super-rich dipped 4.4% to $12.83 trillion in 2020: Credit Suisse

While Mukesh Ambani, Gautam Adani and the Poonawallas saw a significant jump in their net worth, overall wealth of India's super-rich dipped 4.4 per cent to reach $12.83 trillion, stated a report. This dip is due to the rupee's fall in the pandemic-hit 2020. According to a report by Credit Suisse Research Institute, the number of dollar millionaires in India fell from 7,64,000 in 2019 to 6,98,000 in 2020 solely due to the rupee's fall.

COVID-19: Health ministry warns Maharashtra, Kerala, MP about 'Delta Plus' variant

The Union Health Ministry has warned Maharashtra, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh about the presence of 'Delta Plus' variant of coronavirus in some districts of the states, and asked them to take appropriate measures. The Delta Plus variant has higher transmissibility, stronger binding to receptors of lung cells, and potentially reduces monoclonal antibody response, as per INSACOG.

Rahul Gandhi releases white paper on COVID-19, seeks compensation for families of deceased

Releasing Congress party's white paper on COVID-19 pandemic, Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday asked the Centre to form a COVID compensation fund to compensate those families who have lost their bread winners due to coronavirus. He said the government should start preparation for the third wave, and also sought economic assistance package for the poor, and small and medium enterprises.

Tesla launches 27 'supercharger stations' along China's Silk Road

Electric car maker Tesla has set up 27 supercharging stations on the 5,000-km long Silk Road, running from west to east China, which the company claims to be the longest supercharger route. Silk Road was a network of trade routes connecting east to the west. China, which is one of the biggest electric car markets, is important for the US-based company. Tesla tweeted a video about the route with English subtitles.
Highlights Google may likely face an antitrust investigation in India for allegedly abusing the dominant position of Android in Indias smart TV market.

The CCI also alleged that Google has made it mandatory for TV manufactures to pre-install all its apps.

Google has denied any wrongdoings said that their smart TV licensing practices are in compliance with all applicable competition laws.

Google may likely face an antitrust investigation in India for allegedly abusing the dominant position of Android in India's smart TV market. The cases were filed against Google by two individuals advocates Kshitiz Arya and Purushottam Anand which led the Competition Commission of India (CCI) to order an investigation. The CCI has ordered Director-General to submit a report within 60 days. The news comes after the European Union antitrust authorities announced a formal investigation into Google's role in the online ad market.

It has been alleged that Google has abused its dominant position in the Android TV market by entering into anti-completive agreements with the Android TV makers such as Xiaomi and TCL. Due to which, Google's competitors like Amazon have been not been able to license operating systems for TVs.

"The Commission is of the prima facie opinion that by making pre-installation of Google's proprietary apps (particularly Play Store) conditional upon signing of ACC (Android Compatibility Commitments) for all Android devices manufactured/distributed/marketed by device manufacturers, Google has reduced the ability and incentive of device manufacturers to develop and sell devices operating on alternative versions of Android i.e. Android forks, and thereby limited technical or scientific development relating to goods or services to the prejudice of consumers in contravention of Section 4(2)(b) of the Act," the order accessed by TechCrunch read.

The CCI also alleged that Google has made it mandatory for TV manufactures to pre-install all its apps which leaves the OEMs with no choice to pick other apps from alternatives.

"Further, ACC prevents OEMs from manufacturing/ distributing/ selling any other device which operate on a competing forked Android operating system. Therefore, given the dominance of Google in the relevant markets and pronounced network effects, by virtue of this restriction, developers of such forked Android operating system are denied market access resulting in violation of Section 4(2)(c) of the Act," the order read.

However, Google has denied any wrongdoings said that their smart TV licensing practices are in compliance with all applicable competition laws. As per Counterpoint Research data, over 8 million smart TVs were sold in India out of which 60 perfect of them were powered by Google's Android.
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Couple fined $200 for refusing to pass PCR test after returning from Egypt to Russia

 flickr.com/ Jernej Furman

11:13 23/06/2021

MOSCOW, June 23 (RAPSI)  A court in Russias Kemerovo region has fined a married couple returning from Egypt for refusing to take a COVID-19 test, the press service of the court informs RAPSI.

Although administrative fines for violations of legislation in the field of ensuring the sanitary and epidemiological welfare of the population range from 15,000 to 40,000 rubles (about $200 to $550), the court, taking into account a number of exceptional circumstances in the case, considered it possible to impose the minimum possible amount of a fine under the relevant articles of the Code of Administrative Offences that is 7,500 rubles ($100) per person, the statement reads.

The defendants clarified that no one had warned them about the necessity to pass the test after arriving from abroad, and that they did not watch TV, where the respective news was broadcasted. One of the spouses, they maintained, filled out some documents after leaving the plane, but did not read what she signed. The couple did not admit guilt in committing the offense.
Russias Civic Chamber member proposes using AI for provision of free legal aid

 RAPSI, Vladimir Burnov

17:45 23/06/2021

MOSCOW, June 23 (RAPSI)  Vladislav Grib, Deputy President of the Russian Civic Chamber, has proposed to use new technologies, including artificial intelligence, for provision of free legal assistance to low-income citizens.

The task today is to start discussions involving the authorities and NGOs, on the issue how new technologies, artificial intelligence may help in providing free legal aid. Stakeholders must do their best to move beyond the anachronisms of consultations and buildings, and establish a single center coordinating the provision of legal aid online, Grib said addressing the participants of roundtable on the role of artificial intelligence and digital tools in providing free legal aid to citizens.

The Civic Chamber member compared the existence of the current system of state bureau to the use of "cavalry in the 21st century." In addition, he noted that the creation of a digital platform would allow the introduction of uniform standards for the provision of free legal aid.

Each consultant provides assistance based on his or her level of knowledge, legal training, practice. And, of course, there must be a single standard. There is a task set by the president for the digitalization of public services, Grib stressed. He believed that there was no other way judging from the point of view of sanitary and epidemiological safety, from the point of view of saving money on renting premises, housing and communal services, heating, as well as from the point of view of accessibility.

According to the Civic Chamber member, there are about 30-50 typical legal issues, in resolving which poor citizens usually seek aid.

Grib also noted the leading role of the Ministry of Justice as to the creation of a digital platform for the provision of free legal aid.

Probably, there is only one body that is capable of the realization of all the above and that is the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation, which can be both a customer, and a developer, and a coordinator of this system, the speaker noted.

President of Russias Federal Chamber of Lawyers Yury Pilipenko agreed with Grib.

As he said, his personal conviction was that digitalization of free legal aid could render it to be more effective, and only the Ministry of Justice could become the center and the main actor in the implementation of this project. Exactly this body should be financed from the federal budget in order to implement this program and act as the customer of this platform and organize all the other entities that will be involved in free legal assistance at some other stages.

The Chamber President also added that digitalization of the process of providing legal assistance to the population was to contribute to the development of Internet technologies in Russia.
[June 23, 2021] Bank of America Launches Personal Retirement Strategy, a New Digital Investment Advisory Program Bank of America today announced the launch of Personal Retirement Strategy, a new digital investment advisory program. Institutional and corporate retirement plan clients can now offer this Merrill program designed to help plan participants establish and pursue their retirement income goals. The program delivers personalized insights, guidance and tools, as well as access to digital investment management services seamlessly integrated into the 401(k) experience. Personal Retirement Strategy is the latest addition to Financial Life Benefits, a comprehensive suite of workplace benefits and solutions that helps address employees' every day and long-term financial needs. "More than ever before, employees are looking to their employers to provide benefits that help them navigate the complexity of planning for tomorrow," said Lorna Sabbia, head of Retirement and Personal Wealth Solutions at Bank of America. "At Bank of America, we are committed to working with our institutional clients to provide financial wellness and benefits offerings that address the evolving needs and expectations of their workforce. Personal Retirement Strategy is another example of how we are fulfilling our commitment of partnering with employers to help employees achieve their financial goals." Personal Retirement Strategy provides all plan participants - regardless of age or income - with a retirement plan and personalized investment strategy through an intuitive digital experience with full mobile and online capabilities. Key features include: Interactive Digital Experience: ability to determine how certain decisions could affect retirement with flexible tools and guidance that allow for customization of the user experience

ability to determine how certain decisions could affect retirement with flexible tools and guidance that allow for customization of the user experience Goals Based Planning: guidance in creating a retirement income strategy based on the employee's holistic financial picture and a personalized, goals-based asset allocation recommendation

guidance in creating a retirement income strategy based on the employee's holistic financial picture and a personalized, goals-based asset allocation recommendation Actionable Insights: aids participants in understanding their available benefits, offers actionable steps they can take to prepare and help stay on track toward a financially secure retirement

aids participants in understanding their available benefits, offers actionable steps they can take to prepare and help stay on track toward a financially secure retirement Investment Management: a new discretionary managed account service, Merrill Managed, that offers personalized investment management for an additional fee, based on Merrill's well-established wealth management planning solutions, and portfolio construction from the company's Chief Investment Office Merrill will act as a 3(21) fiduciary for participants using Personal Retirement Strategy, and a 3(38) fiduciary with respect to the plan assets enrolled in Merrill Managed. Participants can elect to invest their 401(k) assets themselves, or have a portfolio created and managed on their behalf in Merrill Managed. "Today's workforce is especially concerned about retirement, but employees often lack the guidance and tools that are essential to develop a plan. With Personal Retirement Strategy, we are connecting employees to the personalized retirement income planning resources they need to take charge of their financial future," said Tom Matarazzo, Institutional Retirement Advisory Programs executive at Bank of America. "This new program makes retirement planning clearer and more approachable for plan participants." Bank of America's Retirement & Personal Wealth Solutions organization serves more than 26,000 companies of all sizes and more than 5.7 million employees as of December 31, 20201. Bank of America offers institutional client employees a range of financial benefit programs and solutions to help them pursue their financial future. Financial Wellness at Bank of America At Bank of America, we know that supporting the physical, financial and emotional wellbeing of our employees in their personal life also supports them in their work life - so they can be the best at work and at home. When it comes to financial wellness, we believe that the more informed people are about their money, the clearer their financial outlook can be. This applies not just to our clients, but to our employees, as well. This is why we offer robust financial offerings to our employees that focus on driving better behaviors across life priorities and the financial spectrum - budgeting, planning, saving, investing and more. Our competitive financial benefits - including 401(k) contribution matches, retirement advice2, health savings accounts3, educational resources and financial wellness tools - help employees address money issues in the here-and-now, prepare for retirement and help protect their family over the long term. 1 Source (News - Alert) : Global Wealth and Investment Management Finance. 2Investment advice on 401(k) assets is only provided to plan participants through certain investment advisory programs as directed by plan sponsors. 3Made available through Bank of America, N.A. Bank of America

Bank of America is one of the world's leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving approximately 66 million consumer and small business clients with approximately 4,300 retail financial centers, including approximately 2,700 lending centers, 2,600 financial centers with a Consumer Investment Financial Solutions Advisor and approximately 2,400 business centers; approximately 17,000 ATMs; and award-winning digital banking with approximately 40 million active users, including approximately 31 million mobile users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth management, corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry leading support to approximately 3 million small business households through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations across the United States, its territories and approximately 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is listed on the New York Stock Exchange. For more Bank of America news, including dividend announcements and other important information, visit the Bank of America newsroom and register for news email alerts. www.bankofamerica.com Personal Retirement Strategy is an online investment advisory program sponsored by Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. ("MLPF&S" or "Merrill") that uses a probabilistic approach to determine the likelihood that participants in the program will accumulate sufficient total assets to achieve their annual retirement income goal. The recommendations provided by Personal Retirement Strategy may include a higher level of investment risk than a participant may be personally comfortable with. Participants are strongly advised to consider their personal goals, overall risk tolerance, and retirement horizon before accepting any recommendations made by Personal Retirement Strategy. Participants should carefully review the explanation of the methodology used, including key assumptions and limitations, as well as a description of services and related fees which is provided in the Personal Retirement Strategy Brochure (ADV Part 2A).It can be obtained through Benefits Online or through the Retirement Benefits Contact Center. Merrill offers a broad range of brokerage, investment advisory and other services. There are important differences between brokerage and investment advisory services, including the type of advice and assistance provided, the fees charged, and the rights and obligations of the parties. It is important to understand the differences, particularly when determining which service or services to select. IMPORTANT: The projections or other information shown in the Personal Retirement Strategy program regarding the likelihood of various investment outcomes are hypothetical in nature, do not reflect actual investment results and are not guarantees of future results. Results may vary with each use and over time. The Chief Investment Office (CIO) provides thought leadership on wealth management, investment strategy and global markets; portfolio management solutions; due diligence; and solutions oversight and data analytics. CIO viewpoints are developed for Bank of America Private Bank, a division of Bank of America, N.A., ("Bank of America") and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated ("MLPF&S" or "Merrill"), a registered broker-dealer, registered investment adviser and a wholly owned subsidiary of Bank of America Corporation ("BofA Corp."). This information should not be construed as investment advice and is subject to change. It is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended to be either a specific offer by Bank of America, Merrill or any affiliate to sell or provide, or a specific invitation for a consumer to apply for, any particular retail financial product or service that may be available. Bank of America is a marketing name for the Retirement Services business of BofA Corp. Banking activities may be performed by wholly owned banking affiliates of BofA Corp., including Bank of America, N.A., member FDIC. Brokerage and Investment advisory services are provided by wholly owned non-bank affiliates of BofA Corp., including MLPF&S, a dually registered broker-dealer and investment adviser and member SIPC. Investment products:





Are Not FDIC Insured Are Not Bank Guaranteed May Lose Value  2021 Bank of America Corporation. All rights reserved. MAP3551697 View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005089/en/

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Chinese Embassy Co-hosts with Sierra Leone People's Party Online Symposium on the Great Achievements of the Communist Party of China in the Past 100 Years

2021/06/22

As the Communist Party of China (CPC) is celebrating the 100th anniversary of her founding this year, the Chinese Embassy co-hosted an online symposium themed The Great Achievements of the Communist Party of China in the Past 100 Years with the Sierra Leone Peoples Party(SLPP) on June 22, 2021.

H.E. Chinese Ambassador Hu Zhangliang, Hon. National Secretary General of SLPP and Deputy Minister of Justice Mr. Umaru Napoleon Koroma, Hon. Acting Minister of MFAIC Mme. Mamadi Gobeh Kamara, high-ranking members of SLPP, representatives of China-Sierra Leone friendship associations as well as friends from media joined in the online symposium. Two Chinese scholars, Prof. Xie and Dr. Li respectively shared experience of the CPC in targeted poverty alleviation and party construction and development, which was warmly welcomed.

In his speech, Ambassador Hu expounded that always staying true to its original aspiration and mission of seeking happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation of the Chinese nation is why the CPC has been able to lead China from standing up, getting rich to becoming powerful in the past 100 years, grow from a party with only 50 plus members to the largest political party in the world with more than 91 million members today, and enjoy over 90% of approval among the Chinese people, ranking the first in the world for many years. He said that as this year also marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Sierra Leone, China stands ready to further strengthen cooperation with Sierra Leone in all fields and steadily push the relations between the two parties and two countries to new heights.

Hon. Secretary General Umaru Koroma and Hon. Acting Minister Mamadi Kamara congratulated the CPC on its 100th anniversary of founding on behalf of the ruling party SLPP and the Sierra Leonean government. They thanked the Chinese government under the leadership of the CPC for all the support to Sierra Leone in areas including socio-economic development, human capital development and health etc. They envisaged an ever-deepening China-Sierra Leone friendship and a closer China-Sierra Leone community with a shared future in the next half a century.

The other attendees offered their felicitations to the Chinese people and the CPC on the auspicious occasion and contributed to the symposium by giving their observations in poverty alleviation and promoting China-Sierra Leone practical cooperation.
Teams with NASA's Exploration Ground Systems and contractor Jacobs prepare to integrate the launch vehicle stage adapter (LVSA) for NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with the massive SLS core stage.

Integration was done on the mobile launcher in the agency's Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 22, 2021.

The LVSA arrived at Kennedy from the agency's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, in July 2020 and has remained in the VAB for processing. During integration, known as "stacking," the LVSA will be bolted to the forward skirt of the core stage, connecting the core stage and the interim cryogenic propulsion stage in preparation for the first flight of the rocket and the Orion spacecraft during Artemis I. The first in a series of increasingly complex missions, Artemis I will test SLS and the Orion spacecraft as an integrated system prior to crewed flights in which NASA will land the first woman and person of color on the Moon.

KSC-20210622-PH-FMX01_0222 Photo credit: NASA/Frank Michaux Larger image

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The coronavirus pandemic caused many painful disruptions in our daily lives, and the harness racing industry was certainly not immune to those struggles. And while COVID certainly hindered certain procedures and processes, it also prompted innovation.

One of the horse racing industry's most common but antiquated activities is the process by which furosemide  most commonly referred to as lasix  is procured for horses on the EIPH program.

Racing Forensics administers the TCO2 testing in B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec and the EIPH program in Ontario as well as western Canada. With the protocols and guidelines that individuals have been mandated to follow at the country's racetracks, traditional transactions with cash payments and voucher redemption proved cumbersome.

"We've been doing TCO2 testing in Ontario since 1999, and we've done the test barn and lasix injections throughout most of Canada since 2000," Richard Tso, President & Operations Manager at Racing Forensics, told Trot Insider. "Traditionally in the thoroughbred industry, they have horsemen's bookkeepers at each racetrack. So they handle all the accounting, including paying for their lasix injections and testing. But they don't have that on the Standardbred side of things.

"It is a user-paid program, first of all, so we've been having to collect for the injections and the ultimate testing of the samples. That's always been either cash or cheque, or what we also did was introduce vouchers."

Like many, Tso and his team were forced to reexamine normal procedures once racing resumed under COVID-19 protocols.

"We had to do a hard rethink of all of this when COVID hit, we had to change a lot of procedures, like the reduction in retention time [as mandated by the CPMA from 60 to 40 minutes]. We basically did not want paperwork passing back and forth, just to minimize the contact and allow the proper distancing to occur.

"One of the last pieces was actually the Lasix payments, and a lot of horsemen use vouchers but a lot use cash and cheque. What we decided to do last June is develop an electronic payment program where the horseman could log in and pay their Lasix shots remotely."

As a result, Racing Forensics is pleased to introduce a convenient EIPH payment platform for Standardbred trainers in Ontario and Western Canada. Trainers can make EIPH payments remotely anywhere they have an internet connection.

The EIPH payments website is part of Racing Forensic's continuing efforts to combat the spread of COVID-19 and will help eliminate paper transactions in the Retention Area (Test Barn).

The website allows Standardbred trainers to use a phone, tablet or computer to securely access their account and pay for EIPH services. Payments can be made by debit or credit card, and electronic receipts are instantly sent via e-mail and/or text message after each transaction. Additional features include the ability to view upcoming injections, payment histories and even purchase credits in lieu of vouchers for future services.

"It's ready to go; we did a soft rollout in Alberta over the last few weeks and the trainers that are enrolled in it really seem to like it."

Registration for trainers is now available at eiph.ca. Tso made it clear that the Racing Forensics team doesn't have access to any of the banking information as it's stored securely by the payment vendor. And after each transaction, the trainer receives a confirmation email and / or text message confirming payment virtually instantly.

For questions or technical support, please contact Zoe Sametz-Goodwin at (587) 998-3227 or [email protected].
Driver Brendan Johnson remains hospitalized following a three-horse accident at the Putnam County Fair in Ottawa, Ohio Tuesday night (June 22).

Johnson, Pierce Henry and Cameron McCown were involved in the incident during the 11th race.

Vallcove, driven by Johnson, traveling slightly sideways entering the backstretch out of the turn and fell suddenly, which caused the accident.

Henry was examined at the hospital and released. McCown was examined at the track and drove later in the evening.

For as bad as the accident appeared, the prognosis for Brendan is cautiously optimistic, and we pray for a speedy recovery for Brenden said Ohio Harness Horsemens Association Executive Director Renee Mancino.

The three horses involved in the accident escaped serious injury and were treated on-site for scrapes and contusions.

Future updates will be provided when information is available.

(OHHA)
The International Monetary Fund's (IMF) plan to increase Special Drawing Rights (SDR) by $650 billion this year would boost the reserve adequacy, and therefore the credit quality, of low-income sovereigns in emerging markets, said S&P Global Ratings in a new report.



"Our analysis of the reserve adequacy of sovereigns we rate at 'B+' or below, with average per capita GDP of $4,714, found that the creation of these new SDR would fully restore reserve adequacy for five of the 44 emerging market sovereigns in this category--Zambia, Jordan, El Salvador, Benin, and Togo," said S&P Global Ratings analyst Sam Tilleray.



However, if high-income IMF member states were to redirect 42% of their share of the $650 billion SDR allocation this would fully restore reserve adequacy of all 44 low-income countries included in our survey, with significant positive second-round benefits for global growth, said the titled, "An SDR Is Born: The IMF Creates A Reserve Asset For Low-Income Countries".



"Under this scenario of a reallocation of wealthy countries' SDR to low-income countries, external positions would become more resilient, leading to potential upward pressure on sovereign ratings," said Tilleray. "Even so, in the 'B+' and lower ratings category, the key ratings constraint is generally an institutional one, dimming the prospect for outright upgrades on the back of SDR reallocations."



We estimate that around 61% of the new SDR will accrue to developed market sovereigns, due to rich countries' relatively higher quota shares. While this would likely have any material impact on developed markets' creditworthiness, onward lending of these resources to low-income countries could help to shore up external liquidity for the world's poorest states, said Tilleray.



The allocation also has implications for lower- and even upper middle-income economies, most of which saw their reserve buffers eroded as a consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic.



The 44 low-income sovereigns represent one-third of all rated sovereigns, and 4% of global GDP, but their reserves account for a little over 2% of global reserves. This is not just an external constraint but also a fiscal constraint given that the majority of sovereigns rated 'B+' and below lack the reserve currency status, monetary flexibility, and deep domestic capital markets that permitted their advanced economy peers to fund a comprehensive contracyclical fiscal response to Covid-19.



This partially explains why growth in higher-income economies is accelerating on the back of fiscal support and vaccinations, but only flatlining in low- and lower-middle-income economies grappling with persistent localized outbreaks of the virus, without the means to support households and firms.



The report features a radar graphic highlighting how the new SDR allocations would affect the reserve adequacy of the 23 sovereigns we project would fail a reserve adequacy test in 2021.  TradeArabia News Service






Bahrains foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows increased by $1.007 billion in 2020, according to the latest World Investment Report (WIR 2021) from the UN Conference of Trade and Development (UNCTAD).



The annual report charts global investment flows, analyses trade trends, and examines government policies that seek to expand world trade.



The report highlighted that global FDI contracted by 35% to $1 trillion in 2020, with an expectation for flows to bottom out and increase by 10-15% in 2021. Despite global trends, Bahrain experienced a 3.3% increase in inward FDI stocks, reaching $31.7 billion in 2020.



Also highlighted was Bahrains stock to GDP ratio, where Bahrains inward FDI stocks relative to GDP reached 92%, the highest ranking in the GCC and surpassing the global average of 49%.



The report recognised the Government of Bahrains plans to continue implementing wide-ranging reforms to attract direct investments and link it to its national development and economic diversification plans.



A wide range of sectors drove investment, further demonstrating Bahrains strides in diversifying the non-oil sector. Some of the sectors mentioned in the report include manufacturing, education, healthcare, and information technology industries.



Khalid Humaidan, Chief Executive of Bahrain Economic Development Board, commented: Despite the challenges that Covid-19 has brought to economies around the world, we were able to carry the momentum from the previous year and attract hundreds of millions of dollars in investment into the country. We are looking forward to continue working with our partners to attract investment into the Kingdom and support existing companies expand, further diversifying our economy and creating jobs in the local market.



The EDB is the governments Investment Promotion Agency, mandated to attract investments into Bahrain and continue to drive economic diversification and create jobs in the local market.  TradeArabia News Service
Dubai-based smart and green home maintenance specialist Hitches & Glitches (H&G), a part of the Farnek Group, has signed an exclusive agreement with Israeli smart home solutions company SwitchBee.

Under the terms of the initial agreement, H&G will have the exclusive rights to sell, distribute and install SwitchBee products throughout the UAE. Furthermore, their products will be available for purchase on Hitches & Glitches online store.

Based in Netanya, 30 km north of Israels major economic and technological centre Tel Aviv, SwitchBee products instantly make any home into a smart home, by removing the need for batteries or any new wiring, resulting in a seamless fit with any type of light switch or electrical socket.

"SwitchBee has developed a comprehensive solution that provides freedom of choice and flexibility, to effectively manage smart home devices. They have a wide range of products that have been designed to connect wirelessly to a central unit, via a smartphone, tablet or voice control," said Kelvin Vargheese Senior Director-TFM.

"We decided to partner with Hitches & Glitches for two main reasons. Firstly, they are one of the leading home maintenance companies in the UAE and have extensive reach throughout the country. Secondly and perhaps more importantly, they are a tech-savvy organisation and they want to support innovation, ," remarked Ehud Illios, VP Global Sales, SwitchBee.

"Our smart home products have a unique, high quality design, that ensures customers can not only upgrade their home efficiency but improve its design aesthetics as well," he noted.

Included among the extensive product range are light switches, dimmer switches, change over switches, water heater switches, electric shutter switches, smart sockets and stick-on switches.

Our corporate philosophy is based on two pillars  sustainability and innovative technology; and the smart products that SwitchBee is developing, provide perfect synergy with our business strategy, added Vargheese.

Indeed, this collaborative approach has already delivered results, their first customer was Massimo Baggi, Ambassador of Switzerland to the UAE and Bahrain.

H&G were asked to upgrade and install smart devices in Baggi's Abu Dhabi residence.

"We installed the SwitchBee central unit, paired the wall sockets, installed new smart wall switches, and found solutions to integrate the existing WiFi to other devices," stated Vargheese.

Hitches & Glitches can now supply and install a growing list of smart home products. Quite apart from the new SwitchBee products, the company offers smart irrigation systems, safety keys and facial recognition displays. It can also deliver and install NEST a smart home thermostat that manages indoor temperatures, whether families are at home or away and can be operated through a smart phone, saving time and money, he stated.

Another popular smart home device available through Hitches & Glitches is the Ring video doorbell and Ring security cameras. Again, both products can be connected to any smart phone, allowing the user to answer the door or look around his or her property in real time, whether at home or away, he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Dubai Airports, in collaboration with Dubai Health Authority (DHA) and Pure Health, has opened one of the world's largest and most modern in-house airport labs for processing of Covid-19 RT PCR tests at Dubai International (DXB).



It was inaugurated by Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of Dubai Airports.



Located close to Terminal 2, the 20,000-sq-ft laboratory is a dedicated facility for round the clock processing of RT-PCR test samples collected from passengers at DXB. Using latest WHO-standard Covid-19 RT-PCR testing equipment, the lab can process up to 100,000 samples per day and provide reliable results within a few hours.



It is equipped with negative and positive pressure rooms and is linked to government reporting platforms ensuring secure and easy sharing of information between health and regulatory authorities and airlines.



Describing the opening of the lab, which comes close on the heels of the announcement of the reopening of Terminal 1 and Concourse D after 15-months, as part of the preparations at DXB, Sheilh Ahmed said: "The lab is a fine demonstration of Dubai's collaborative approach to tackling complex challenges and achieving great results."



"The drastic change in travel norms and the introduction of travel protocols including PCR testing have changed the airport experience of travellers around the world. As the world's busiest international hub preparing for a surge in passenger traffic over the summer holidays and beyond, we were keen to make sure that the airport journey is safer, smoother and faster while fulfilling the required health protocols," he noted.

"The lab's quick turnaround for processing test results will go a long way in helping us deliver a service experience the world expects from Dubai," he added.



Awad Saghir Al Ketbi, Director General of DHA, highlighted that the laboratory's capabilities will greatly help reduce waiting times for passengers arriving into Dubai and enable the effective implementation of relevant preventive and safety procedures.



Farhan Malik, Group CEO of Pure Health said: "Pure Health is proud to be an entrusted partner of the UAE to support this initiative. As the largest lab operator in the country and an established healthcare provider, we are aiming to secure the safety of this nation's citizens, residents and visitors by contributing to a new standard of healthcare that benefits the people and communities around us.



Since the start of the pandemic we have continuously worked with the UAE government to bring the best testing solutions, following international quality standards and faster result reporting, to ensure we support our partners in this very dynamic environment."  TradeArabia News Service
As part of its goal to strengthen its position as a first-class multi-specialty hospital in Dubai, Valiant Clinic & Hospital has announced that Faisal Juma Belhoul is now the Executive Chairman of its board.

Leveraging on his many years of experience in various leadership positions, Belhoul will lead Valiant towards achieving its goals of providing world-class healthcare services and a preferred healthcare destination.

Belhoul is well known in the UAE healthcare industry for his leadership and entrepreneurial insight. He is the Founder of Amanat Holdings PJSC, a publicly listed healthcare and education investment company, where he served as Chairman. He was also Chairman of the Board of UAE Private Hospitals Council and of the Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Equipment Business Group of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI).

Belhoul also led the successful listing of Al Noor Hospitals, an FTSE 250 company listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE). He is also a member of the Young Presidents Organisation (YPO), and in 2007, Arabian Business named him as one of the Top 100 Executives in the Gulf region.

Ahmed Belhoul, Chief Executive Officer, Valiant Clinic & Hospital, said: "We are truly pleased to welcome Faisal Juma Belhoul at the helm of our board. His vast wealth of knowledge in the healthcare industry and proven track record in decision-making will certainly empower our management to come up with the most timely and relevant decisions. With Belhoul as the Executive Chairman, Valiant Clinic & Hospital is positioned to further accelerate its growth and add value to the entire UAE healthcare industry."

Commenting on his appointment, Belhoul said: Valiant Clinic & Hospital is a premier multi-specialty boutique hospital that provides its patients with world-class diagnostic and wellness services, and I see a lot of expansion opportunities given the fact that many people have recognised their overall health and wellness as a priority. I am honored for this appointment, and I am looking forward to many milestones that we will achieve together.

Aside from his affiliation with healthcare companies and organisations, Belhoul has also taken leadership roles in other industries. Currently, he serves as Chairman and Founder of Ithmar Capital Partners, as well as Chairman of the Board at the UAE Private School Council.-- TradeArabia News Service
The technology group Wartsila has received two more orders for its complete LNG cargo handling and fuel system.

The contract has been awarded by Hyundai Mipo Dockyard, the yard building two LNG bunkering vessels for which the Wartsila systems will be required. The 18,000 cbm capacity ships have been ordered by Korea based owners Pan Ocean and Korea Line LNG. The order with Wartsila was placed in May.

With LNG being increasingly used as an environmentally sustainable fuel for the global fleet, there is a growing need for specialised LNG bunkering vessels. Wartsila has extensive experience and deep know-how in designing and delivering advanced cargo handling systems for such vessels.

We see an increasing adoption of LNG as fuel, and we are very pleased to have been selected for this project, which allows us to continue our role in developing the LNG infrastructure throughout all regions. Our unrivalled experience and market leading position in the small-scale LNG segment and LNG bunkering designs was a key factor in securing these new orders, explained Harald verland, Sales Manager, Wartsila Gas Solutions.

The complete Wartsila solution selected for these orders includes the system engineering and design, the boil-off gas (BOG) management control with an integrated fuel supply system, and the custody transfer system. The equipment is scheduled for delivery to the yard during the first half of 2022.

Wartsila Gas Solutions is a market leader with innovative systems and lifecycle solutions for the gas value chain. Our main focus areas are the handling of gas in seaborne transport (storage, fuel, transfer and BOG management), gas to power, liquefaction and biogas solutions. We help our customers on the journey towards a sustainable future through a focus on lifecycle, innovation and digitalisation.

-- TradeArabia News Service
du, from Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (EITC), has announced a strategic partnership with Dubai Airport Free Zone Authority (DAFZA) to automate licensing processes for activities that require a no-objection certificate (NOC) from other government agencies in a single platform enabled through blockchain.

The collaborative partnership will see the two parties take full advantage of the UAE's first locally hosted blockchain service, the Blockchain Edge, and contribute to the vision of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to increase the emirate's competitiveness by simplifying procedures and, attractiveness to investors. This also comes in line with the directives of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of The Executive Council to reduce government procedures for doing business by 30 per cent to be implemented within the next three months.

The new solution provides many advantages for DAFZA companies, including speeding up the issuance of new licenses or adding commercial activities restricted by the No Objection Certificate from other government agencies. The solution readiness is in Q3 this year. It will facilitate the exchange of information between government entities and support businesses seeking to expand beyond their existing remit by using blockchain technology while maintaining a high level of security through encryption.

Dr. Mohammed Al Zarooni, Director General of DAFZA, said: "DAFZA is committed to investing and relying on advanced technology to enhance the experience of freezone companies and prospect investors, in line with the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, by transforming the Emirate of Dubai into a city fully managed by the Blockchain platform. This new technology movement will generate a wave of economic opportunities and digital innovation, which will enhance the business community's confidence and reliability in digital transactions and increase the competitiveness of Dubai in the smart global economy."

Dr. Al Zarooni added: "This pioneering cooperation with du aims to facilitate the procedures for establishing and doing business and simplifying government requirements, which is in line with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council, in motivating and ensuring the continuity of business practice. We are proud of the positive results achieved by both parties to launch this platform, which is the first of its kind in the UAE, where we value all the efforts and facilities provided by our partner in success du."

Fahad Al Hassawi, CEO at EITC said: In recent years, the UAE has made great progress in adopting digital solutions in its knowledge-based digital transformation journey. In line with the UAE Blockchain Strategy 2021 and the Dubai Paperless Strategy, our partnership with DAFZA takes full advantage of burgeoning blockchain technology to deliver sustained success. Automating the NOC process is a step forward in enhancing the lives of residents as well as strengthening the UAE's digitization agenda through du Blockchain Edge  guaranteeing scalability and empowering individuals, enterprises, and government entities to provide seamless digital experiences.

Further enabling du's vision to become the trusted partner for the UAE government entities, this alliance will drive multiple benefits for DAFZA including enhanced cost savings as opposed to traditional non-blockchain software solutions, improved flexibility through hybrid architecture, overall enriched customer experience, whilst also allowing the entity to become an early adopter of this new frictionless ecosystem. - TradeArabia News Service
NGN Training Centre has launched a campaign to motivate Bahraini youth to keep working positively to build more personal and professional expertise and skills to get a rewarding job. The Centre is promoting this campaign under the slogan "Bahraini is inspiring".

NGN Training Centre has produced several awareness-raising videos, that review the experiences of Bahraini youth who were able to prove themselves and get a job opportunity despite the challenges the labour market is facing due to the repercussions of the pandemic. The videos also demonstrate how they were able to master skills that have promoted their academic studies such as communication and problem-solving skills.

The CEO of NGN Training Centre, Yaqoob Al Awadhi, stated that this campaign aims to boost the energies of Bahraini youth, inspire enthusiasm in them, guide them to the right path towards achieving themselves, build their capabilities, and show that hard work is their way to obtain a good job opportunity.

This campaign comes within the framework of the NGNs Training Centre social responsibility towards the youth and Bahraini society. The slogan Bahraini is inspiring embodies the spirit of the Bahraini citizen as a proactive element in society in a way that makes him a role model in his practical and social contribution, and his high productivity in all fields, Al Awadhi added.-- TradeArabia News Service
Inter Emirates Motors (IEM), official distributor of MG cars in the UAE and subsidiary of Ali & Sons Holding, has supplied more than 100 MG cars to EuroStar Rent a Car, a leading car rental company in the UAE.



The diverse range of MG vehicles has been the latest addition to Eurostars 2,000+ units strong fleet. EuroStar Rent a Car is on track to add more MG models to its UAE fleet in 2021, and with the first batch delivered, has already seen a 100 per cent booking rate on all MG models within their portfolio.



Amr Fawzy, General Manager, EuroStar Rent a Car, said: MG has proved that their cars are as iconic as ever with their practicality, affordability, and style. The MG cars are indeed a great addition to the automotive industry in the UAE. The range of MG cars added to the EuroStar fleet was well-received and has increasingly become popular among our customers. Customers described MG cars as practical and very comfortable to drive, and that they get great value for their money in terms of efficiency and features, especially critical to businesses and their mobile workforce.



EuroStar is also rolling-out an MG offer on the back of the strong consumer demand for the British-born marquee. This rental offer enables consumers to upgrade their vehicles to an MG 5 for a minimal price difference of only AED99 ($27) per month. This offer will be particularly appealing to customers renting compact and economy models of sedans, bringing them well-appointed MG models, rich with features often absent in the category.



Hisham Elsahn, General Manager, IEM, said: We are very proud of our partnership with EuroStar Rent a Car, a pioneer in the car rental industry. Rental customers are often the most selective of brands and options, and we are honoured by the reception that our MG models are getting. Our cars are feature-rich, efficient vehicles to complement every lifestyle. The EuroStar experience with MG is a great example of the positive impact to lives and business that our strong legacy and innovation can bring, and we look forward to enriching lives and fleets with more class-leading models from the MG marquee.  TradeArabia News Service
The Ministry of Petroleum (MoP) of the Republic of South Sudan, has announced the launch of the countrys first Oil Licensing Round.

The MoP has identified new exploration blocks with potential hydrocarbons and has compiled crucial data to provide to interested investors, operators and counterparties. According to the new analysis commissioned by the Ministry, approximately 90% of South Sudans oil and gas reserves remain unexplored, providing unprecedented opportunities to international investors.

The Oil Licensing Round aims to attract interest from a diverse group of foreign investors to a region that is already home to oil and gas majors from China and Malaysia.

The country is hoping to welcome back experienced partners and operators following significant progress in returning to peace and stability. With the new data, analysis, and government mechanisms, the Ministry seeks to attract high-quality investors and partners.

This bidding round is for a number of selected blocks, which will be facilitated and evaluated based on set criteria by the MoP.

The available blocks are shown on the map and range between 4,000 and 25,000 sq km, with most comprising between 15,000 and 20,000 sq km.

Currently there are three consortiums operating producing blocks in South Sudan, with another four oil exploration companies having acquired production sharing contracts.

Once the expression of interest process is concluded, the Ministry of Petroleum will host a virtual series of data presentations, followed by an international roadshow.

After years of instability and conflict, lasting peace is finally gaining a foothold in the country following the establishment of the Transitional Government of National Unity (TGNU) in February 2020, and the follow-up agreement over governance of the countrys states.

South Sudan is now firmly back on a positive developmental path and is expected to continue as one of Africas fastest-growing countries in the foreseeable future. -- TradeArabia News Service
In response to high demand, Qatar Airways has increased its service to Nigerias financial centre, Lagos, to two daily flights starting from July 1.

Operated by state-of-the-art Boeing 787 Dreamliner featuring 22 seats in Business Class and 232 seats in Economy Class, this frequency increase will offer passengers even more flexibility to travel on board with the highest standards of hygiene measures and to enjoy a seamless travel experience on board at Hamad International Airport.

With the addition of Cote dIvoire on June 16 as the fourth new African destination since the start of the pandemic, Qatar Airways currently operates over 100 weekly flights to 27 destinations in Africa. Qatar Airways also operates three weekly flights from Abuja, connecting more passengers from Nigeria to the airlines rapidly expanding network to now more than 140 destinations.

Qatar Airways Vice-President, Africa Hendrik Du Preez said: Nigeria is a very important market to us and we will continue to offer more travel options and seamless connectivity to the largest network of destinations across Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and North America.

After just under a year of resuming flights to Lagos and launching to Abuja, following the challenges imposed by the pandemic, it is a testament to the resilience of the African region that we have now increased our frequency to Lagos. We look forward to welcoming passengers on board to enjoy our world-class hospitality and service.

With more frequencies being added to key hubs, Qatar Airways offers unrivalled connectivity to passengers, making it easy for them to travel when they want to. Qatar Airways also offers strong connectivity to Asia-Pacific with destinations such as Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Jakarta and Manila among many others.

The global Covid-19 pandemic has created unprecedented challenges for the aviation industry and, despite this, Qatar Airways never ceased operations and worked diligently to take people home safely and reliably throughout the crisis. The airline has also added seven new destinations in the past 12 months including San Francisco and Seattle in the US, Abuja, Accra and Luanda in Africa, and Brisbane and Cebu in Asia Pacific.

Qatar Airways travellers from Africa can now enjoy new baggage allowances ranging from 46 Kg for Economy Class split over two pieces and 64 Kg split over two pieces in Business Class. This initiative is designed to offer passengers more flexibility and comfort when travelling on board Qatar Airways. - TradeArabia News Service
Help India!



The common force uniting Hindutva and Zionism is their shared understanding of the nation and the treatment of minorities. While Zionism sought to violently exclude the Palestinians, Hindutva proposes to reduce the Muslims in a subordinated position to the Hindu polity. Both ideologies aim to reclaim the imagined lost civilization by the cleansing of the people which they consider as impure and as invaders.

Aamir Raza | TwoCircles.net

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Hindu nationalists in Indian have great admiration for Israel. In May, when the Israeli forces brutally led the crackdown on the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem, which is Islams third holiest site, the followers of Hindutva including the members of the ruling BJP in India enthusiastically supported Israel on social media with hashtags like #IndiaStandsWithIsrael #IStandWithIsrael #israeliLivesMatter.

Tejasvi Surya, a BJP parliamentarian known for his anti-Muslim rhetoric, wrote on Twitter, We are with you. Stay strong, Israel.

The idolization of Zionism by the followers of the Hindutva is deep-rooted in its political ideology, which is laced with supremacism, exclusivism and most importantly anti-Muslim hatred. Both Hindutva and Zionism espouse ethnic-nationalism which aims to define citizenship and belonging in the procrustean terms of ancient past, culture and race with having a holy geographical entity.

The idea of Akhand Bharat is similar to the idea of Greater Israel propounded by Theodor Herzl. Based on religious identity, both require the cleansing of Muslims to reach their desired utopia.

The Zionist concept of the nation is also encapsulated in the political philosophy of Hindutva. Much before the creation of Israel, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, a staunch ideologue of Hindutva in his book Hindutva: Who is a Hindu (1923) concluded that a common nation (Rashtra), a common race (jati) and a common culture or civilization (Sanskriti) were the three essential elements of Hindutva. He also examined the origin of the words India and Hindu, and declared that Indian means Hindu. Muslims and Christians, by virtue of being non-Hindus, cannot, as per his definition, be authentic Indians. He was the first Hindutva ideologue who explicitly supported the Zionist movement and wrote, No people in the world can more justly claim to get recognized as a racial unit than the Hindus and perhaps the Jews. He further wrote, Look at the Jews; neither centuries of prosperity nor sense of gratitude for the shelter they found, can make them more attached or even equally attached to the several countries they inhabit. Their love is, and must necessarily be divided between the land of their birth and the land of their Prophets. If the Zionists dreams are ever realized  if Palestine becomes a Jewish State and it will gladden us almost as much as our Jewish friends  they, like the Mohammedans, would naturally set the interests of their Holy land above those of their Motherland in America and Europe.

The common force uniting Hindutva and Zionism is their shared understanding of the nation and the treatment of minorities. While Zionism sought to violently exclude the Palestinians, Hindutva proposed to reduce the Muslims in a subordinated position to the Hindu polity. Both ideologies aim to reclaim the imagined lost civilization by the cleansing of the people which they consider as impure and as invaders.

Writing in a 1939 text, We or Our Nationhood Defined, another Hindutva ideologue Madhavrao Sadashivrao Golwalkar stated, India is therefore pre-eminently a Hindu nation, Hindusthan. The non-Hindu people in Hindusthan must either adopt the Hindu culture and language and must cease to be foreigners or may stay in the country wholly subordinated to the Hindu nation, claiming nothing not even the citizens rights.

Golwalker too borrowed his political thought heavily from Zionist and Judaic exhortations and blamed intrusion of Islam for the loss of Jewish culture and traditions in Palestine and held that the Jews had maintained their race, religion, culture and language in exile and all that was needed to complete their nationality was a natural territory.

The land has become the central focus in the politics of Hindutva and Zionism which is visible from the brutal occupation of Palestine and Kashmir.

The Jewish settlement model in Palestine has amplified the imagination of Hindutvadis in India. This is why the BJP-led Union government is emulating Israeli methods in Kashmir. The government has tremendously changed the character of land Acquisition policy and the nature of property ownership in Kashmir since the abrogation and the removal of Article 370 and 35 which will eventually dilute the concentration of the Muslim population in the region and makes it easier for an outsider to purchase land in Kashmir. The enforced demographic change in Kashmir is a replication of Israels settler-colonial policies in the occupied West Bank, where the majoritarian forces have built illegal colonies and commercial spaces, with having a heavy military presence to carry out change in the socio-political landscape in the larger ideological framework of Akhand Bharat.

The ultimate aim of the ruling BJP and its parent organization RSS is to transform India into an ethnoreligious state according to special rights and privileges to Hindus within a multi-tier system of citizenship. The model state that they aspire to replicate is Israel. In line with their ideological affinity to Zionism, the BJP passed the discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in 2019 to institute a policy similar to Israels Law of Return, which would grant Indian citizenship to Hindus from neighbouring countries depriving Muslims of same and with proposed countrywide National Register of Citizens (NRC) proof of belonging to India now lies on the shoulder of Muslims.

According to late Palestinian academic Edward Said, Zionism initially portrayed itself as a movement bringing civilization to a barbaric and/or empty locale. The Arabs were seen as synonymous with everything degraded, fearsome, irrational, and brutal

Therefore, while the Law of Return permits Jews to return to Israel, no similar right is afforded to the millions of displaced Palestinians. By making religion the main criterion of Indian citizenship, the CAA has a devastating purpose: of Israelizing India.

The followers of Hindutva revere Israel like a lodestar for its ability in humiliating and defeating the Muslims. The parallel universe of both the ideologies justifies brutal military occupation, settler-colonialism and apartheid and are deeply convergent with each other in their structural framework, ideas and course of action.

Aamir Raza is a postgraduate in political science from Jamia Millia Islamia (2018-20). He is a contributor to The Quint, Muslim Mirror, The Raiot and Clarion India and currently works as an independent researcher in New Delhi.
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The San Diego Air & Space Museum is proud to be the one-and-only host of the official Apollo 15 50th Anniversary, the most complex and carefully planned scientific expedition in the history of exploration. Clearly one of the Apollo programs finest moments, the Apollo 15 50th Anniversary Celebration takes place at the San Diego Air & Space Museum on Saturday, July 31, the Museum announced today.

A limited number of tickets to this exclusive event are on sale at sandiegoairandspace.org/apollo15

The San Diego Air & Space Museum is honored to host the only 50th Anniversary celebration of one of the most significant scientific achievements in human history, said Jim Kidrick, President & CEO of the San Diego Air & Space Museum. This is an incredible opportunity to see and hear from the men who took part in the most extensive in-person exploration of the lunar surface, a goal of humankind from time immemorial. Apollo 15 is a true milestone in the quest for knowledge and scientific discovery, and we are thrilled to be the only home to this amazing reunion. The Apollo 15 50th Anniversary celebration will be an evening to remember forever!

Apollo 15 launched at 0936 on July 26, 1971, their objective, to explore the Hadley Apennine region of the Moon, the most scientifically significant site of the entire Apollo program. After a three-day transit and one day in lunar orbit, Commander Dave Scott and Lunar Module Pilot Jim Irwin landed their Lunar Module Falcon near Hadley Rille at the base of the Apennine mountains to live and work on the Moon for three days, as Command Module Pilot Al Worden orbited the Moon in the Command Module Endeavor, operating a large suite of sophisticated scientific instruments. Scott and Irwin drove the first Lunar Roving Vehicle to explore three areas of unique geological features on the slopes of Hadley Delta mountain (9,000 feet) and the edge of Hadley Rille (1,000 feet deep, 1.5 miles across).

During their three EVAs and 18 hours outside the Lunar Module, they observed for the first time stratigraphic layering in the sides of Hadley Rille, and they maneuvered the Lunar Rover 3.1 miles from the Lunar Module including up the steep soft slopes (19 degrees) of Hadley Delta mountain. They collected 179 pounds of lunar rocks and soil, among the most significant of which were an anorthosite (15415), the first sample of the primordial crust of the Moon (age 4.5 billion years) often termed the genesis rock, and a surprising friable green clod (15425), containing the first water discovered on the Moon. Scott and Irwin would later precisely rendezvous with Al Worden for two more days of science in lunar orbit. They returned to Earth in three days, splashing down in the Pacific Ocean.

After the mission NASA cited Apollo 15 as the most complex and carefully planned scientific expedition in the history of exploration.

Apollo 15  50th Anniversary Expert Panel

The Panel consists of an open discussion guided by our Moderator but focused on the unique cultural characteristics of the Apollo program especially how and why Apollo 15 explored the Moon, notably its science objectives and achievements. Panel members:

Colonel David R. Scott (USAF Ret), Commander, Apollo 15.

Experience: Pilot, Gemini VIII, Command Module Pilot, Apollo 9; Special Assistant for Mission Operations, Apollo-Soyuz Test Project; Director, NASA Dryden Flight Research Center.

Gerald D. Gerry Griffin, Apollo 15 Lead Flight Director.

Experience: Flight Controller, Gemini Systems; Flight Director, Apollo 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14 and 16; Lead Flight Director, Apollos 12, 15, and 17; Deputy Director, NASA Dryden Flight Research Center; Deputy Director, Kennedy Space Center; Director, Johnson Space Center.

James W. Head III, Professor Emeritus, Brown University.

Experience: Key member of the Apollo 15 Science Team and leading proponent of the Apollo 15 Hadley Apennine exploration site. His Apollo experience included training all Apollo astronauts; conducting extensive research and analysis of lunar samples and data; and since 1984, he has convened the Vernadsky Institute/Brown University micro-symposia, held twice yearly in Moscow and Houston.

Justin Jampol, Moderator.

Founder and Executive Director of The Wende Museum of the Cold War in Culver City, CA. The Wende is an art museum, historical archive, and educational institution with the largest collection of Cold War era artifacts outside of Europe. Justin has produced several films about the Cold War and is a frequent guest on the Travel Channel. He holds BA in History from UCLA and a PhD in Modern History from Oxford University, specializing in cultural history.

A limited number of tickets to this exclusive event are on sale at sandiegoairandspace.org/apollo15. All proceeds go the Education Programs at the San Diego Air & Space Museum.

The San Diego Air & Space Museum is Californias official air and space museum and education center. The Museum is an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution and was the first aero-themed Museum to be accredited by the American Alliance of Museums. Now Open: SPACE: Our Greatest Adventure, an informative, educational, interactive  and most of all FUN!  experience for the whole family, with selfie stations on the Moon and Mars, and hands-on learning experiences for explorers of all ages. The Museum is located at 2001 Pan American Plaza, Balboa Park, San Diego, CA 92101. The Museum and gift store are open daily from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with admissions until 4:30 p.m. Closed Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. For more information visit www.sandiegoairandspace.org
At the end of WWII, the USAAF had thousands of surplus airplanes on its hands. The task of disposing of or selling those planes was enormous. Some could be profitably sold to foreign air forces. Other surplus aircraft were useful in a civilian role. For example, thousands of surplus C-47s would become a mainstay of civilian companies that flew cargo and passengers for many years after the war. Some still are earning their keep with commercial operators to this day.

Other aircraft had less utility as civilian planes. The AT-10, with a limited useful load and fairly high operating cost was one of these. 2,371 AT-10s were produced by Beech and Globe. In 1946, the War Assets Administration listed 1,930 of them for sale at various locations around the country. 80% of the entire production of Wichitas was on the block as surplus. The only AAF plane with more examples on surplus sale listings in 1946 was the Vultee BT-13 (4,280).1

1 William Larkins, Surplus WWII U.S. Aircraft, BAC Publishers, Inc.; 1st edition (December 1, 2005)

Many of the AT-10s that were eventually purchased were simply bought for their engines. In 1942 an AT-10 cost the government $42,688, but by the time they were sold as surplus, the price was less than $1,500 and many bought them just for their Lycoming R-680-9 engines that were suitable for use in surplus Stearmans, then finding a ready market as crop dusters. At 295hp, the Lycoming was also a performance upgrade to these PT- 13s which had similar R-680s rated at just 220hp. Most often, the AT-10s engines and other usable parts were removed, while the rest of the wooden airframe was left to rot away, leaving just the non-perishable aluminum components from the cockpits and nacelles.

The other significant reason for the lack of surviving Wichitas is that despite the forward fuselage and engine nacelles being made of aluminum, the bulk of the aircraft, even the fuel tanks, was made of plywood. Plywood was a non-strategic material, which made AT-10 construction possible at a time when aluminum was in high demand for combat aircraft, and the materials lightness contributed greatly to the AT-10s superior performance. However, plywood doesnt fare well for long periods outdoors, so the aircraft remaining at the end of WWII quickly succumbed to the elements. Indeed, barely a handful made it onto the civil registry.

Only one intact Wichita remains, and this is on static display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force in Dayton, Ohio. Once completed, AirCorps Aviations AT-10 restoration will become the only flying example of an AT-10 in the world.
Baptist Health Offers Babysitting Classes

By West Kentucky Star Staff

PADUCAH - Baptist Health Paducah is offering Safe Sitter babysitting classes next month for boys and girls who are in sixth through eighth grade.The class includes safety skills to prevent unsafe situations, childcare skills with tips to manage behavioral issues, and life and business skills, such as how to discuss fees and how to greet employers.Registered nurses, who are Certified Safe Sitter instructors, will teach the class with fun games and role playing exercises.The one-day classes will take place at the hospital from 8 am until noon July 13, and noon to 4 pm on July 26 and 27. Class size is limited, so pre-registration is required. The fee is $30. For more information and to register, phone 270-575-8444 or email Rhonda.Brooks@bhsi.com.
Biden, Congress Face Grind to Create Legislation

By The Associated Press

WASHINGTON - Until recently, the act of governing seemed to happen at the speed of presidential tweets. But now President Joe Biden is settling in for what appears will be a long, summer slog of legislating.Congress is hunkered down, the House and Senate grinding through a monthslong stretch, lawmakers trying to draft Bidens big infrastructure ideas into bills that could actually be signed into law. Perhaps not since the drafting of the Affordable Care Act more than a decade ago has Washington tried a legislative lift as heavy.Its going to take a while.Passing legislation is not a made-for-TV movie," said Phil Schiliro, a former legislative affairs director at the Obama White House and veteran of congressional battles, including over the health care law.Biden appears comfortable in this space, embarked on an agenda in Congress thats rooted in his top legislative priority  the $4 trillion build back better investments now being shaped as his American Jobs and American Families plans.To land the bills on his desk, the president is relying on an old-school legislative process that can feel out of step with today's fast-moving political cycles and hopes for quick payoffs. Democrats are anxious it is taking too long and he is wasting precious time negotiating with Republicans, but Biden seems to like the laborious art of legislating.On Monday, Biden is expected to launch another week of engagement with members of both parties, and the White House is likely at some point to hear from a bipartisan group of senators working on a scaled-back $1 trillion plan as an alternative.At the same time, the administration is pushing ahead with the presidents own, more sweeping proposals being developed in the House and Senate budget committees, tallying as much as $6 trillion, under a process that could enable Democrats to pass it on their own. Initial votes are being eyed for late July.This is how negotiations work, White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates said during last week's twists and turns of the infrastructure negotiations.We continue to work closely with Democrats of all views  as well as Republicans  on the path forward. There are many possible avenues to getting this done, and we are optimistic about our chances," Bates said.During his administration, President Donald Trump had the full sweep of Republican control of the House and Senate for the first two years of his tenure, but the limits of legislating quickly became clear.Trump tended to govern by tweet, rather than the more traditional legislative process, bursting out with policy ideas and official administrative positions often at odds with his party in Congress.The Trump-era results were mixed, and Republicans were unable to clinch their top legislative priority, repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act. But they went on to secure a sizable achievement when Trump signed the GOP tax cuts into law at the end of 2017.Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, who is a leader of today's bipartisan negotiations, said Sunday on NBC's Meet the Press that Trump, too, proposed an infrastructure package. If Biden sticks with the bipartisan talks he could not only fulfill a campaign promise but keep his pledge of doing things across the aisle and getting something done," Portman said.Everybody wants to do infrastructure," he said.Even as Biden reaches for a bipartisan deal, skeptical Democrats are wary of a repeat of 2009, when Barack Obama was president and they spent months negotiating the details of the Affordable Care Act with Republicans. Eventually Democrats passed the package that became known as Obamacare on their own.Lawmakers also have been energized by the speed at which Congress was able to approve COVID-19 relief  the massive CARES Act at the start of the pandemic in 2020 and more recently Biden's American Rescue Plan in February. They are eager for swift action on these next proposals.The Senate has set a procedural vote Tuesday on the For the People Act, a significant rewrite of voting and election law that the White House has called a cause for the president. Democrats are working on changes that could win moderate Democrat Joe Manchins support, but theyd still need 60 votes to advance the bill.I wouldnt say we expect there to be 10 magical votes to appear from the Republicans in the Senate, theyve been pretty clear that they dont want to make it easier to vote, they dont want to make it more accessible to vote," White House press secretary Jen Psaki told CBS This Morning on Monday. So this is just a first step, well see where it goes. Well see what happens over the next couple of days.Biden's strategy this time is a two-part approach. He is trying to secure a bipartisan deal on roads, bridges and broadband  the more traditional types of infrastructure  while also pursuing the broader Democratic priorities package.The budget committees are preparing some $6 trillion in spending on what the White House calls the human infrastructure of Americans lives with child care centers, community colleges and elder care in Biden's plans, adding in Democrats' other long-running ideas. Among them, expanding Medicare for seniors with vision, hearing and dental services, and lowering the eligibility age to 60.Regardless of whether Biden succeeds or fails in the on-again-off-again talks with Republicans, Democrats will press on with their own massive package, the president at least having showed he tried.There are two kinds of negotiation," said Democrat Barney Frank, the former congressman and committee chairman from Massachusetts who was central to many Obama-era legislative battles. One that will be successful and give you a good bill, he said, and the other that will be unsuccessful, but will at least take away any stigma of being partisan.Congress is eyeing an end-of-summer deadline to launch the budget reconciliation process, which would allow passage of the bills on majority votes instead of the usual 60 needed for most legislation. The Senate is split 50-50, but Vice President Kamala Harris can cast a tie-breaking vote.As the process drags on, it's a reminder that it took more than a year in Congress to pass Affordable Care Act, which was signed into law in spring 2010.Tweets are so easy, Schiliro said. Legislating is different from that, so to develop good legislation takes time.
Crash During Tropical Storm Kills 10 in Alabama

By The Associated Press

ATLANTA - Tropical Depression Claudette claimed 12 lives in Alabama as the storm swept across the southeastern U.S., causing flash flooding and spurring tornadoes that destroyed dozens of homes.Ten people, including nine children, were killed Saturday in a 15-vehicle crash about 35 miles south of Montgomery on Interstate 65, according to Butler County Coroner Wayne Garlock.He said the vehicles likely hydroplaned on wet roads, with eight children, ages 4 to 17, killed in a van belonging to a youth ranch operated by the Alabama Sheriffs Association for abused or neglected children. A man and a 9-month-old baby died in a separate vehicle. Multiple people were also injured.Meanwhile, a 24-year-old man and a 3-year-old boy were killed when a tree fell on their house just outside the Tuscaloosa city limits Saturday, Capt. Marty Sellers of the Tuscaloosa Violent Crimes Unit told The Tuscaloosa News.The deaths occurred as drenching rains pelted northern Alabama and Georgia late Saturday. As much as 12 inches of rain was reported earlier from Claudette along the Mississippi Gulf Coast.Flash flood watches were posted Sunday for northern Georgia, most of South Carolina, the North Carolina coast and parts of southeast Alabama and the Florida Panhandle. A tropical storm warning was in effect in North Carolina from the Little River Inlet to the town of Duck on the Outer Banks. A tropical storm watch was issued from South Santee River, South Carolina, to the Little River Inlet, forecasters said.The eight girls killed in the van were returning to a youth ranch operated by the Alabama Sheriffs Association near Camp Hill, northeast of Montgomery, from a week at the beach in Gulf Shores, youth ranches CEO Michael Smith told The Associated Press. He said the director of the Tallapoosa County ranch survived the crash and was hospitalized in Montgomery. At least one of the dead was a child of the director, Smith said.This is the worst tragedy I've been a part of in my life, said Smith, who was driving Sunday to Camp Hill to talk to the remaining residents, who had returned from Gulf Shores in a separate van and did not see the wreck.Words cannot explain what I saw, Smith said of the accident site, which he visited Saturday. We love these girls like they're our own children.Garlock said the location of the wreck is notorious" for hydroplaning, as the northbound highway curves down a hill to a small creek. Traffic on that stretch of I-65 is usually filled with vacationers driving to and from Gulf of Mexico beaches on summer weekends.Butler County has had one of the most terrible traffic accidents," county Sheriff Danny Bond wrote on Facebook, adding: I believe is the worst ever in our county."The Tallapoosa County school system said counselors would be available Sunday at Reeltown High School, where some of the ranch residents were students. Smith said the ranch, which is Christian-based, would likely have a memorial service later, asking for prayers as he began to cry.National Hurricane Center forecasters predicted Claudette would strengthen back to tropical storm status Monday over eastern North Carolina before heading out to sea in the Atlantic Ocean.More than 20 people were rescued Saturday by boat due to flooding in Northport, Alabama, WVUA-TV reported. The Tuscaloosa County Emergency Management Agency tweeted that local Red Cross volunteers were on hand to help those who were affected. A shelter was opened in Northport.Claudette was declared organized enough to qualify as a named tropical storm early Saturday morning, after the storms center of circulation had come ashore southwest of New Orleans.Shortly after landfall, a suspected tornado spurred by the storm demolished or badly damaged at least 50 homes in a small town in Alabama, just north of the Florida border.Sheriff Heath Jackson in Escambia County said a suspected tornado pretty much leveled a mobile home park, toppled trees onto houses and ripped the roof off of a high school gym. Most of the damage was done in or near the towns of Brewton and East Brewton, about 48 miles north of Pensacola, Florida.It kind of affected everybody, Jackson said. But with those mobile homes being built so close together it can take a toll on them a lot more than it can on houses that are spread apart.Tornadoes were also reported in southwest Georgia.Damage from the storm was also felt in north Florida, where winds  in some cases reaching 85 mph  caused an 18-wheeler to flip on its side.The storm also dumped flooding rains north of Lake Pontchartrain in Louisiana and along the Mississippi coast, inundating streets and, in some areas, pushing water into homes. Later, the storm was drenching the Florida Panhandle and, well inland, a broad expanse of Alabama.Forecasters said the system could still dump 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 centimeters) of rain in the region, with isolated accumulations of 8 inches possible.
Senate GOP Ready to Block Elections Bill

By The Associated Press

WASHINGTON - The Democrats expansive elections and voting bill is all but certain to be rejected in a key test vote in the Senate, providing a dramatic example of Republicans use of the filibuster to block legislation and forcing hard questions for Democrats over next steps.The far-reaching proposal, at nearly 900 pages, is viewed by backers as the civil rights issue of the era, legislation that is suddenly of the highest priority after the 2020 election as states impose restrictive new laws that could make it more difficult to vote. In the evenly split Senate, Republicans are united in opposition, seeing the bill as federal overreach and denying Democrats the 60 votes that would be needed to overcome the filibuster and begin debate.Theres a rot, a rot a the center of the modern Republican Party," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Tuesday, hours ahead of the expected vote. Should the United States Senate even debate how to protect the voting rights of our citizens? Theres only one correct answer. Well see if our Republican colleagues chose it this afternoon."Months in the making, Tuesdays showdown over the For the People Act, as it is called, is hardly the end of the road but the start of long campaign ahead. President Joe Biden has vowed what the White House calls the fight of his presidency over ensuring Americans' access to the polls. At stake is not only election rules that make it easier to vote but also Democrats' ability to confront the limits of bipartisanship and decide whether or not the filibuster rules should change.Republican leader Mitch McConnell pledged that Republicans would fulfill the Senate's founding purpose by rejecting the bill to stop the partisan power grab. He also cautioned Democrats against changing the filibuster, calling voting rights the worst possible place to "trash the Senates rules to ram something through.The party that controls Washington has been preparing for this moment for months, even as lawmakers faced their own internal divisions over the sprawling bill, which would remove hurdles to voting erected in the name of election security, curtail the influence of big money in politics and reduce partisan influence over the drawing of congressional districts.As recently as last week, Sen. Joe Manchin, a moderate West Virginia Democrat, said he couldn't support the bill without changes he wanted as a way to draw Republican support.Manchin remained a holdout late Monday following a meeting with Biden at the White House, where the two discussed voting rights. The senator would not say whether he would vote with his party in trying to advance the bill, explaining he was still reviewing the final version. I have to see the rest of it tonight, he said at the Capitol.Manchin proposed his own changes last week as he tried to trim back some areas and expand others, adding provisions for a national voter ID requirement, which is anathema to many Democrats, and dropping a proposed public financing of campaigns.The proposed Manchin changes were largely well received, welcomed by Biden's administration as a step forward, while earning the nod of approval from one of the party's key voting rights advocates, former Georgia governor's race candidate Stacey Abrams.It did little, however, to garner the bipartisan support Manchin was hoping for. Senate Republicans said they would likely reject any legislation that expands the federal government's role in elections.I keep thinking theres a few who want to, Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., who authored the legislation in the Senate, said during a conference call Monday night with the group Our Revolution. But when McConnell lowered the boom, he continued, we couldnt get a single Republican to join us.The rock-solid opposition from the GOP senators brings to a head questions over the filibuster, the decades-old Senate rule that requires 60 votes for most bills to advance.While some Democrats want to change the Senate's rules to push the elections bill and other priorities past the filibuster, Manchin and others including Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., are opposed to taking that next move. Biden, too, has said in the past that he wants to leave the filibuster intact.The filibuster compels moderation and helps protect the country from wild swings," Sinema wrote Monday in an opinion piece for The Washington Post. She welcomed a full debate so senators and our constituents can hear and fully consider the concerns and consequences.Pressure to change the rule is mounting, though. For now, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the administrations hope is that the chambers 50 Democrats are aligned and that an unsuccessful vote will prompt the search for a new path.The White House didnt give its full support to the Manchin alternative. But Psaki said the president is appreciative of the efforts by Sen. Manchin and others to continue to make progress on voting rights, which he feels is a huge priority.Ensuing the bill's passage is taking on fresh urgency as former President Donald Trump continues to challenge the outcome of the 2020 election and is urging the new laws in Republican-led states.State officials who certified the results of the 2020 election have dismissed Trumps false claims of voter fraud, and judges across the country have dismissed multiple lawsuits filed by Trump and his allies. Trumps own attorney general said at the time there was no evidence of widespread fraud that would change the outcome.The changes being enacted in many of the Republican states are decried by voting rights advocates who argue the restrictions will make it more difficult for people to cast ballots, particularly minority residents in cities who tend to support Democrats.As the Senate action churns, more changes could be coming to the bill.Democrats want to protect against intimidation at the polls in the aftermath of the 2020 election. They propose enhancing penalties for those who would threaten or intimidate election workers and creating a buffer zone between election workers and poll watchers, among other possible changes.They also want to limit the ability of state officials to remove a local election official without cause. Georgia Republicans passed a state law earlier this year that gives the GOP-dominated legislature greater influence over a state board that regulates elections and empowers it to remove local election officials deemed to be underperforming.The dangers of the voter suppression efforts were seeing in Georgia and across the nation are not theoretical, and we cant allow power-hungry state actors to squeeze the people out of their own democracy by overruling the decisions of local election officials, said Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., who is working to advance the proposal in the Senate.
Jimmy Lai's pro-democracy newspaper is closing three days ahead of schedule to protect its employees. For the authorities, it represents a threaten national security. The paper had funds until Saturday after its assets (US$ 2.3 million) were frozen.

Hong Kong (AsiaNews)  Hong Kongs Apple Daily newspaper will stop updating its online site at midnight tonight (local time), whilst the printed edition will roll out for a last time tomorrow, the independent newspaper announced today.

The tabloid founded 26 years ago by pro-democracy media mogul Jimmy Lai will stop three days earlier than planned; yesterday it had discontinued its online English service and suspended its financial news.

After the authorities froze its assets for alleged violations of the National Security Act, the newspaper was set to close next Saturday for lack of funds. In a report published on the website, the paper said it had anticipated the closure to protect the safety of its employees.

This came after police arrested another of its employees, a 55-year-old editorial writer who went by the pseudonym Li Ping. Like Jimmy Lai and five paper executives, he was charged with collusion with foreign powers endangering national security

Police announced that two other people would be arrested in connection with the case. Lai has been in prison since last December; authorities froze 70 per cent of his shares in Next Digital, the holding company that publishes the newspaper.

On 17 June, Hong Kongs national security police arrested five Apple Daily executives, including editor-in-chief Executive Ryan Law. On the same day, the authorities blocked HK 18 million (US$ 2.3 million) of the papers assets.

Immediately after the arrests. Next Digital suspended trading on the stock exchange. Next Magazine, another part of Lai's publishing group, announced its closure today.

Next Digital has long been in the crosshairs of Hong Kong and mainland authorities for its support of democracy in the former British colony.
by Mathias Hariyadi

At least 12 graves were desecrated. The offenders young age is a source of concern. The motives for the desecration are not yet known, but radical indoctrination in school has not been ruled out. The citys mayor expressed his solidarity, but local Christians are bitter.

Jakarta (AsiaNews)  About a dozen elementary school children vandalised a Christian cemetery in Solo (Surakarta), central Java province.

The incident occurred last Monday, and the young age of the offenders is a cause for concern. In the past, incidents of this kind against places of worship or burial usually involved adults, hooligans or Islamic extremists.

According to local authorities, the vandals in this case were children aged nine to 12 from a school located near the cemetery.

At present it is not known why they did it, whether religion or vandalism for its own sake were behind it.

Speaking to AsiaNews, Fr Heri Wibowo, executive secretary of the Interreligious Commission of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Indonesia, called for special rules given the young age of the offenders.

They cannot be prosecuted but they should be reprimanded by their parents, who should offer them guidance, said the clergyman, who was on a visit to Papua.

At least 12 graves at Cemoro Kembar Cemetery in Mojo, Pasar Kliwon, central Solo, were desecrated.

Reactions across the country has been negative, with many calling for checks on what is being taught in schools, which might have prompted the kids to do what they did.

Solo Mayor Gibran Rakabuming Raka, who is also the eldest son of Indonesian President Widodo, on a visit to the cemetery expressed solidarity and called for those responsible to be punished and the school they attended to be closed.

Mojo chief Margono called for police to act, saying that both pupils and teachers are not from the area.

Investigators led by Police Chief Achmad Riedwan have not ruled out misleading religious teachings behind this expression of intolerance.

Andreas Budi, a Christian from Solo, is bitter over the decapitation of his mothers and wifes tombstones by elementary school students.

Christian crosses and symbols were vandalised. Fr Wibowo wants those responsible to be brought to justice so that this does not happen again.
The 24-year-old Tong Ying-kit is accused of inciting secession and terrorism. Arrested for waving a pro-independence flag. Proceedings without jury: a blow to the liberal tradition of the city. Another reporter from the pro-democracy Apple Daily stopped.

Hong Kong (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The first trial for alleged crimes covered by the national security law imposed on the city by Beijing opened today. 24-year-old Tong Ying-kit is the first citizen arrested under the draconian measure, approved on June 30, 2020. He is accused of inciting the population to subversion and terrorism: on July 1 a year ago, the police arrested him while he was waving an independence flag aboard a motorcycle; he is also accused of having invested knocked down some agents with the vehicle.

Three judges chosen for national security cases preside over the court. As ordered by the city secretary of justice, the suspect is being tried without a jury. Teresa Cheng justified the decision - accepted by the High Court - with the need to protect the personal safety of the jurors and their families.

According to experts and lawyers, the order has dealt another blow to the liberal tradition of the former British colony. To this day, for 176 years, Hong Kong's Common Law system has used juries for the most serious crimes. On the city judicial system website, recourse to a jury is described as one of its "peculiar characteristics".

Meanwhile, police today revealed that they have arrested an Apple Daily reporter. It is most likely a 55-year-old columnist who signs himself with the pseudonym "Li Ping". The accusation against him is that he "conspired" with foreign forces to threaten national security. He is the same indictment used to imprison Jimmy Lai, the billionaire founder of Apple Daily, and five executives of the pro-democracy newspaper. The police have specified that there will be other arrests in the case.

Yesterday, Apple Daily shut down its English-language web service and suspended its financial page. Without the release of its assets, frozen by the police for alleged violations of the national security law, the independent newspaper will most likely close by June 26 due to lack of funds.
At least 63 rebels and 27 government soldiers died in two days of fighting. There is an escalation of military operations in the area. The United Nations diplomatic efforts for a lasting ceasefire at risk. The humanitarian situation of 1,800 displaced families alarming.

Marib (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The still provisional toll of the fighting between government loyalists and Houthi militias in northern Yemen is at least 90 dead in two days, where an offensive by Shiite rebels is underway to conquer Marib, a town of strategic importance.

Military sources close to the authorities recognized by the international community, report the rebel front is implementing "an escalation in military operations".

Marib is the last government stronghold in northern Yemen and the target of the offensive launched last February by the Iranian-backed Houthis. The area on the outskirts of the city is rich in oil. Hundreds of fighters from both fronts have died in the fighting so far and the fear of a humanitarian catastrophe is high.

Many inhabitants hastily left the area, finding refuge in other parts of the country.

The humanitarian situation of the civilian population is also beginning to worry in the area. Recently, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said that 52% of people in Marib are in need of food support. The resurgence of fighting and the Houthi bombings on the city, which caused the displacement of thousands of people, have aggravated the plight of more than 1,800 families in the as-Suwayda refugee camp: they are deprived of food, drinking water and electricity.

A loyalist source told AFP yesterday that government forces repelled the attack by the Houthis; In two days of fighting, at least 63 rebels and 27 government soldiers died.

The escalation of violence in Marib inflames a conflict again after weeks of relative calm and risks undermining the diplomatic efforts of the United Nations for a lasting ceasefire. The same source claims that the Houthi attacks have reached "a high level" in recent days.

The war in Yemen began in 2014 as an internal conflict between pro-Saudi government and Shiite Houthi rebels close to Iran. It degenerated in March 2015 with the intervention of the Arab coalition led by Riyadh and has registered over 10 thousand dead and 55 thousand injured.

For the UN the conflict has triggered "the worst humanitarian crisis in the world", about 24 million Yemenis (80% of the population) urgently need humanitarian assistance. The coronavirus pandemic has had even more devastating impact with a healthcare system that has collapsed. Millions of people are on the verge of starvation and experts say children will suffer the consequences for the next 20 years.
Two years ago, Hindu nationalists successfully saw the autonomy of the Muslim-majority state scrapped. The prime minister has called a meeting tomorrow with leaders of People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration, a group of parties seeking a return to the pre-2019 status. Talks with Pakistan and pressure from Washington are pushing the Indian government to reconsider its options.

New Delhi (AsiaNews)  The Indian government wants to start fresh talks with pro-autonomy leaders in Kashmir.

Almost two years ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi imposed a military crackdown on the Muslim majority region, historically close to Pakistan.

In 2019, the Indian government revoked the autonomy of the State of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 of the Indian constitution.

Modi has summoned the leaders of the People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD), a five-party grouping seeking a restoration of the states autonomy.

By abrogating Article 370 in August 2019, Indias nationalist prime minister took direct control of the state, opening it up to Hindu immigration as a nationalist response to local the pro-independence movement. He also split off Ladakh, a Buddhist-majority Himalayan region, from Jammu and Kashmir.

The PAGD has confirmed that it will take part in the meeting, but it remains steadfast in its call for a return to the full recognition of Jammu and Kashmirs special autonomy in accordance with the Indian Constitution.

The alliance can count on good results in recent district development council elections, the first poll held in Kashmir since 2019. This has made it harder for New Delhi to pursue its objectives from a position of weakness.

Modis greater overture towards local demands also appears to be influenced by Indias geopolitical context, most notably its military clash with China a year ago right in the mountains of Ladakh, showing how strategically important the area is.

At the same time India has for months been conducting informal talks with Pakistan, with the mediation of the United Arab Emirates.

Among the topics under discussion is the issue of Kashmir. For Pakistan, a return to local self-government and an end to any attempt to change the regions demographic balance are preconditions.

The United States is also pressing for a political solution in the region, as it withdraws its troops from Afghanistan. To this end, it is negotiating with Pakistan over possible military bases in the South Asian country.

Last week, US acting Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Dean Thompson told a Congressional hearing that Kashmir is one area where we have urged them [the Modi government] to return to normalcy as quickly as possible. He also noted that the Biden administration was instrumental in getting communications to the region restored.

Meanwhile, in a television interview Prime Minister Imran Khan said he was against nuclear arms and that once there is a settlement on Kashmir, Pakistan would not need to have nuclear deterrents.
Russian Defence Minister Shoygu met with General Min Aung Hlaing, head of Myanmars military junta. Russia, along with China, are Myanmars largest arms suppliers. Meanwhile, repression continues in the Asian country. A 30-year-old man arrested by the military was tortured to death in a village that supported the National League for Democracy.

Moscow (AsiaNews/Agencies)  Russia will boost military cooperation with Myanmar, despite the coup d'etat of 1 February, this according to Russian Defence Minister Sergey Shoygu.

Russias top defence official met in Moscow with General Min Aung Hlaing, head of Myanmars military junta, which seized power from the National League for Democracy (LND) and Aung San Suu Kyi.

Russia is already one of the Myanmars main arms suppliers. Its latest pronouncement comes just days after the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution, the first against the military junta, calling on member countries to stop the supply of weapons to Myanmar. Russia, along with China, abstained.

"We are determined to continue our efforts to strengthen bilateral ties based on the mutual understanding, respect and trust that have been established between our countries," RIA Novosti quoted Shoigu as saying at a meeting.

Meanwhile, the military crackdown in the Asia country continues unabated. A 30-year-old man who was arrested on Monday in Len Zin, a village in Monywa district, was tortured to death in military custody.

Troops came to the village and opened fire at random after a fire broke out at the village school around 9 pm on Monday, local residents reported.

After the fire was put out, at least three villagers were taken by soldiers. One of them died in detention; and yesterday, his family picked up the body, covered in bruises.

Lel Zin is known for its NLD support, said one villager. During the campaign period [ahead of the 2020 general elections], we had a billboard erected at the entrance of the village saying the whole village would vote for the NLD. Perhaps they [the junta] were angry with that.

Yesterday, in nearby Mandalay  Myanmar's second-largest city  three people were killed in clashes between the army and the People's Defence Force.

It was the first armed confrontation in the city since the February coup. Local witnesses report that the army has tightened controls in different parts of the city and last night many businesses remained closed for fear of further violence.
by Vladimir Rozanskij

Russian security services have targeted Ak Tyan or White Faith, a religious group at odds with local Buddhists. Neo-paganism is raising fears of possible extremism. Local youth are increasingly fascinated by ancient religious beliefs.

Moscow (AsiaNews)  Some ancient religious beliefs in southern Siberia continue to be persecuted by local authorities and Russias security services, this according to a programme aired on Radio Liberty ( ) last Saturday.

The programme was centred on folk religions in the Altai, a Republic of the Russian Federation that borders with Mongolia, China and Kazakhstan, where Buddhism is also practiced.

In 2018, the Ongudayskiy District Court labelled the unregistered Karakol Initiative Group as an extremist organisation. The ruling singled out certain religious practices, which many ethnic Altai consider the faith of the forebears, including Ak Tyan or White Faith.

Since then, Ak Tyan (Aktyanite) spiritual leaders and followers have been under investigation for proselytising and the spread of extremist materials, and more charges are expected.

The radio programme looked at the persecution of White Faith members, who accuse the local leadership of selling themselves to the international Buddhist Nipponzan-Myohoji-Daisanga (Order of the Lotus Sutra) movement.

Altai Buddhists are allegedly backed by Russias Federal Security Service (FSB[*]) against the protests of White Faith believers, a situation echoed on social media and various street actions.

The Lotus Sutra leader, Japanese monk Junsei Terasawa, has been banned from entering Russia since the Second Chechen War (19992009) over alleged contacts with Chechen separatists.

Buddhists argue that Ak Tyan is simply a variant of Buddhism, based on ethnographic theories about Burkhanism as folk Buddhism.

In addition to Junsei's followers, more traditional Buddhism is present in the Altai region, such as the Karma Kagyu School, and other groups not unwelcome to the authorities.

Altai is a place of contact and contamination between various cultural and religious traditions that developed during the first and second of the great Turkic polities, the Kyrgyz and the Uyghur khanates, following the empire of Genghis Khan.

Between the 17th and 18th centuries, the Dzungar ( Zunghar) people founded a powerful nomadic empire in the region, subjugated in the 1750s by China after a bloody war.

Eventually, the heirs to these khanates came under the rule of the Russian Empire, which referred to them as Altai peoples by the 19th century.

The Dzungar were Buddhists, which historians say was forcibly imposed on local shamanists, which is why Buddhism is seen locally as the religion of the invaders.

In the post-Communist religious revival, everything has been called into question; many new believers have begun visiting hard-to-get places, dubbed the armpits of the Altai, where ancient pagans celebrated their rites and defended themselves against wars and epidemics.

Buddhism and paganism are not alone. A Manichaean version of Christianity has also spread around here, which some claim was the original religion of Genghis Khan himself.

Despite the persecutions, the Ak Tyan of Karakol are destined to survive; in all probability, their radicalism will be increase, precisely thanks to the oppression that gives the new shamans proof of their greater purity.

The rebirth of paganism in Asia, pride of the Altai peoples, exerts great fascination among local youth.

[*] Main successor agency to the Committee for State Security of the Soviet Union, better known by the initials KGB.
The goal is to shuttle people in and out of the core and the people who are inside the core to walk  which will benefit the small businesses, restaurants, the shops, the retailers and thats what its exactly going to do, she said. Its going to encourage them to stay.
The original plan this year was to hold the event on the Historical Society of Carroll County campus but that fell through after it was determined the organization had limited resources and would not have the resources to handle the commemoration on top of their own virtual gala scheduled for that evening, according to Kristen McMasters, the societys interim director.
The department has said that the 18-year-old had become disorderly and began yelling at officers and threatening to kill them after he continued to vape in restricted areas. Additionally, police said the 19-year-old was one of four men arrested who became disorderly and resisted arrest after officers arrested one for continuing to vape in restricted areas.
The crash occurred just before 6 a.m. Friday, police said, when the driver of a 2011 Kia 4S that was traveling north on Interstate 95 near Aberdeen when the vehicle left the roadway and struck the passenger side of a 2015 Ford Focus that was parked on the left shoulder of the highway.
State officials who certified the results of the 2020 election have dismissed Trumps claims of voter fraud, and judges across the country have thrown out multiple lawsuits filed by Trump and his allies. Trumps own attorney general said there was no evidence of widespread fraud that would change the outcome.
Little said SP Plus is responsible under the contract for collecting all revenue from the city garages it operates. The contract in question includes Lexington Street and Baltimore Street garages as well as the Arena Garage. The contractor must pay all operating expenses such as maintenance and payroll upfront, and can then bill the city for those costs on monthly basis. Based on the error with the contract, that reimbursement has been on hold for at least eight months, Little said.
The Scott administrations position on the Maglev does not necessarily doom the project, which enjoyed the support of previous Democratic Baltimore mayors, including Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and Catherine Pugh. But the Federal Railroad Administration will review the citys recommendation against it, along with other responses, as officials weigh whether to grant the project federal approval.
Since March, Baltimore has been partnering with the nonprofit Everytown for Gun Safety to develop the Gun Trafficking Intelligence Platform, a program that integrates data from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives e-Trace system into local policing. The system allows participating law enforcement agencies to submit firearm traces and ballistic evidence to a national database to compare to the police departments own data on crime and the citys ShotSpotter gunshot detection network.
News Around the Republic of Mexico



Mexico's President Announces New Solar Park in Sonora



"It is proposed that we build a solar power generation park in Sonora, and upload all that energy to the grid in coordination with the Federal Electricity Commission," said AMLO during his June 17, 2021 press conference.



Mexico and Lopez Obrador himself have come under scrutiny for prioritizing initiatives that deal heavily with



The project comes in collaboration with Sonora's Governor-elect, Alfonso Durazo, who was secretary of Public Security and Citizen Protection under Lopez Obrador's administration until his recent election to lead the northern state.



"It is proposed that we build a solar power generation park in Sonora, and upload all that energy to the grid in coordination with the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE)," said AMLO during last Thursday's iteration of his daily morning press conference.



Lopez Obrador said the land would be analyzed for its viability, and that the venture would be potentially assisted in financing by institutions like the Nacional Financiera (Nafin), the Development Bank and the National Bank of Public Works and Services (Banobras).



The announcement comes on the end of experts' warning that the country could soon



As summer months bring sweltering heat, so rises the population's need for electricity, adding extra strain to Mexico's electric supply and leading to higher potential for blackouts.



Original article Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) announced on Thursday, June 17, the Mexican government's foray into green energy through its construction of a solar park in the northern state of Sonora.Mexico and Lopez Obrador himself have come under scrutiny for prioritizing initiatives that deal heavily with fossil fuels and unclean energy, making the proposed solar park a new direction for the current administration.The project comes in collaboration with Sonora's Governor-elect, Alfonso Durazo, who was secretary of Public Security and Citizen Protection under Lopez Obrador's administration until his recent election to lead the northern state."It is proposed that we build a solar power generation park in Sonora, and upload all that energy to the grid in coordination with the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE)," said AMLO during last Thursday's iteration of his daily morning press conference.Lopez Obrador said the land would be analyzed for its viability, and that the venture would be potentially assisted in financing by institutions like the Nacional Financiera (Nafin), the Development Bank and the National Bank of Public Works and Services (Banobras).The announcement comes on the end of experts' warning that the country could soon experience blackouts, thanks to high demands nationwide on the state-owned CFE.As summer months bring sweltering heat, so rises the population's need for electricity, adding extra strain to Mexico's electric supply and leading to higher potential for blackouts.



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Health & Beauty



Mexico to Begin Vaccinating Ages 30-39 in July



Registration for people in the 30 to 39 years of age group is now open at mivacuna.salud.gob.mx. The inoculation stage will begin in cities throughout the country at the beginning of July. Mexico City - The Government of Mexico on June 22 announced the start of the COVID-19 vaccination process for people between the ages of 30-39. Registration is now open, and the inoculation stage will begin at the beginning of July. Meanwhile, the vaccination of pregnant women and older adults continues.



At President Lopez Obrador's morning press conference on Tuesday, the Undersecretary of Prevention and Health Promotion, Hugo Lopez-Gatell Ramirez, announced that the



The Ministry of Health reported that, as of June 21, 28,198,409 people had been vaccinated, of which 60 percent, that's 17,047,687 people, have been fully vaccinated, and 40 percent, or 11,150,722 people, have received their first dose, bringing the total number of doses administered since Dec. 24 to 40,700,954.



The undersecretary said that 2,681,460 doses are expected to arrive in the country this week and reiterated that the vaccines are immediately distributed upon arrival.



On June 22, a shipment of 290,160 doses of the Pfizer vaccine arrived in Mexico City from Cincinnati. Between that shipment and the vaccines packaged in Mexico, there are 50,578,275 doses available for the advancement of the National Vaccination Plan.



Registration for people in the 30 to 39 years of age group is now open at



Once on the page, you must enter the following information:

Curp

State

Municipality

Postal Code

10-digit telephone number

Email address



The authorities reiterated that the order that the vaccines will be administered does not depend on when people register, registration is only used to plan the strategy.



Meanwhile, the vaccination of people ages 49 and up, as well as pregnant women over 18 years of age with more than 9 weeks of gestation, continues at the centers designated for each state and municipality.



Source: presidente.gob.mx - The Government of Mexico on June 22 announced the start of the COVID-19 vaccination process for people between the ages of 30-39. Registration is now open, and the inoculation stage will begin at the beginning of July. Meanwhile, the vaccination of pregnant women and older adults continues.At President Lopez Obrador's morning press conference on Tuesday, the Undersecretary of Prevention and Health Promotion, Hugo Lopez-Gatell Ramirez, announced that the mivacuna.salud.gob.mx registration platform is available to all the country's inhabitants of that age range.The Ministry of Health reported that, as of June 21, 28,198,409 people had been vaccinated, of which 60 percent, that's 17,047,687 people, have been fully vaccinated, and 40 percent, or 11,150,722 people, have received their first dose, bringing the total number of doses administered since Dec. 24 to 40,700,954.The undersecretary said that 2,681,460 doses are expected to arrive in the country this week and reiterated that the vaccines are immediately distributed upon arrival.On June 22, a shipment of 290,160 doses of the Pfizer vaccine arrived in Mexico City from Cincinnati. Between that shipment and the vaccines packaged in Mexico, there are 50,578,275 doses available for the advancement of the National Vaccination Plan.Registration for people in the 30 to 39 years of age group is now open at mivacuna.salud.gob.mx. Once on the page, you must enter the following information:CurpStateMunicipalityPostal Code10-digit telephone numberEmail addressThe authorities reiterated that the order that the vaccines will be administered does not depend on when people register, registration is only used to plan the strategy.Meanwhile, the vaccination of people ages 49 and up, as well as pregnant women over 18 years of age with more than 9 weeks of gestation, continues at the centers designated for each state and municipality.



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Dakota graduated from Bret Harte in 2013 and went to Davidson College, NC where she earned a bachelor's degree in Arab studies. After spending time studying in the Middle East and Europe, she is happy to be home, writing about the community she loves.

Comment Policy Calaveras Enterprise does not actively monitor comments. However, staff does read through to assess reader interest. When abusive or foul language is used or directed toward other commenters, those comments will be deleted. If a commenter continues to use such language, that person will be blocked from commenting. We wish to foster a community of communication and a sharing of ideas, and we truly value readers' input.
Doctors Without Borders' at the service of locals DWB

The international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) continues to be denied authorization to resume health care services in the North-West region of Cameroon six months after authorities forcibly suspended its activities.

MSF calls on the government of Cameroon to immediately lift the suspension and prioritize the medical needs of the tens of thousands of people in the region who are struggling to access vital health care.

On December 8, 2020, MSF was suspended from working in the North-West region by Cameroonian authorities accusing the independent nongovernmental organization (NGO) of supporting non-state armed groups in the area. Despite months of discussions rejecting such allegations, MSF has still not been granted authorization to resume operations, leaving tens of thousands of people without access to free lifesaving health care. MSF is an independent medical humanitarian organization that does not take sides in any conflict and provides care to people based on needs alone.

Vital medical services have been denied for six months now, and this is taking an unacceptable toll on Cameroonian citizens, many of whom have fled to the bush, unable to bear the sights, sounds, and threats of violence any longer, said Emmanuel Lampaert, operations coordinator for MSF in central Africa. This decision represents a substantial blow to medical and humanitarian access. As we speak, our community health workers see people die and suffer because of the lack of treatment available in villages and displaced communities, and our ambulance call center continues to receive emergency requests, which they are forced to decline. What rationale can justify these unnecessary deaths?

For more than four years, extreme violence in Cameroons North-West and South-West anglophone regions has led to a catastrophic situation. Raids on villages, kidnappings, torture, destruction of property, and extrajudicial killings commonplace in what is often referred to as the anglophone crisis.

In 2018, in agreement with Cameroons Ministry of Health, MSF launched an emergency response to the critical health situation by supporting health facilities, setting up the only free 24/7 ambulance services in the regions, and supporting community health volunteers in order to reach people living in remote areas and those struggling to access health care facilities.

A massive health care crisis

According to the United Nations (UN), the escalation of violence has pushed more than 700,000 people to flee their homes, while over 60,000 have fled to neighboring Nigeria. Today, peoples living conditions are massively affected by the crisis and over 1.4 million people are considered to be in need of humanitarian support. While armed violence and violations of human rights have made headlines in recent years, the impact of the crisis on peoples basic medical needs is often overlooked by international media.

Because of insecurity, lockdowns, curfews, and the targeting of health facilities, access to health care is extremely limited, with at least one in five facilities not functioning, said Lampaert. Displaced [people] barely dare to [go] to health facilities, and the economic downturn has made it still harder to travel to hospital or even to afford treatment. Unsurprisingly, mortality among vulnerable groups, such as women and children, has increased, and the suspension of our medical support made the situation even worse.

While MSF teams have treated patients for rape, torture, burns, and gunshots, the majority of patients were those in need of medical assistance for childbirth, malaria, or diarrhea, especially among displaced communities. Last year, MSF-supported community health workers conducted over 150,000 consultations for communities in both regions.

Restricting humanitarian space

The support provided by MSF and other humanitarian organizations has proved to be vital as insecurity and attacks on staff have reduced the number of organizations present in the region providing lifesaving services.

We are one of the few medical organizations present in those two regions, said Lampaert. Since we started our interventions, our medical staff, volunteers, and patients have regularly faced threats and violence from both state and non-state armed groups, with very little respect shown for our humanitarian principles of impartiality and neutrality. Our ambulances have been [shot at] and stolen, community health workers have faced sexual assault and murder, armed men have opened fire inside medical facilities, and our colleagues have faced death threats. Despite these extremely difficult situations, our staff kept on providing care to people in need, day after day.

We call once again on the government of Cameroon to put the needs of the [people] first and to immediately reinstate MSFs essential medical services in the North-West. Our operations cannot remain on hold indefinitely.

MSF has worked in Cameroon since 1984. Today we run medical humanitarian projects in the far north and the South-West regions. MSF first worked in the North-West region in 2018. Before operations in the North-West region were suspended in December 2020, MSF teams treated 180 survivors of sexual violence, provided 1,725 mental health consultations, performed 3,272 surgeries, and referred 4,407 patients by ambulance (of which more than 1,000 were women in labor). MSF-supported community health volunteers also provided 42,578 consultations, mostly for malaria, diarrhea, and respiratory tract infections.

MSF works in many countries where government forces and non-state armed groups clash. Regardless of where we are, MSF is committed to providing health care to everyone who needs it regardless of political or religious affiliations, race, or gender.
Making threats against candidates and fellow citizens for their political beliefs undermines our democracy and will not be tolerated, Acting U.S. Attorney Jonathan F. Lenzner said in a statement Tuesday. This case reflects our commitment to holding accountable anyone who seeks to intimidate, harass or dissuade Americans from exercising their right to vote and to peacefully support the candidate of their choice.
Astonishingly, the government has gone way beyond any arguably proper omission of exculpatory statements to create its fictitious narrative, they wrote. Here, the government has corrupted the Indictment by quoting statements or questions by UMMS representatives and following those statements with comments from Snyder, which it falsely presents as answers to those statements or questions. In actuality, and in each instance, Snyders comments were made in response to altogether different statements by UMMS representatives, and, when put back into proper sequence, are entirely innocent.
He added the system legally cannot ask a candidate to identify their race or ethnicity until they have been hired. And the system does not know the candidates race until the interview. The EEOC, or Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, asks for that information in an application but its a separate form and impossible for the system to match up whos who through that.
The same arrangement would not be possible today, however, because of current allocations for school construction of the state level. School officials also would need to work with the county government to determine if it could fund two capital projects at the same time and if so, which of the two would be fully funded by local taxpayers, Brown said.
Meshkin served on the Howard County Board of Education from 2010 to 2014. He did not seek reelection but moved his family to California to devote more time to his company. On his website, he notes that he was the youngest person to win election to the Howard County school board, and he touts an array of biotech and entrepreneurial awards.
After all, Jarrod Ramos will stand before them bearded, masked and convicted of the all the crimes he was charged with. All that remains to be determined is whether the 41-year-old was suffering at the time of the attack from a mental disorder that prevented him from understanding what he did was illegal or being able to stop himself from carrying it out.
According to Davis guilty plea, the victim, who was not identified in the release, drove to Curtis Bay to pick up Davis on Sept. 15, 2018. The U.S. Attorneys Office said the victim was known to Davis. After Davis entered the victims vehicle, they traveled to Severn, where the victim lived. About an hour later, the two drove back to Curtis Bay.
But Republicans have seized on failures by both Harris and Biden to paint the administration as absent on what theyve described as a crisis at the border. The issue overshadowed Harris first foreign trip earlier this month, to Guatemala and Mexico, where she met with both nations presidents and local officials and advocates to discuss economic and humanitarian solutions to the significant outmigration from both countries.
It was Malcolm X who said that both bullets and ballots have changed the course of history and ruin the lives of families. Our response must be an ongoing commitment to create a just world where peace and equality is not an aberration.
We were coordinating the elected officials (state delegates) to attend as many of the graduations as possible, and Mr. Mosier went out of his way to accommodate our offices in communicating changes and communicating to the high school principals the names of those who would be in attendance. While this was a very small part of the graduation ceremony, he responded quickly and assisted us in our coordination.
When I left the DNC, the question for me was: Where could I make the biggest difference? Perez said. It became clear to me very, very quickly that running for governor presented the greatest opportunity to tackle the issues of the moment and to help improve the lives of so many Marylanders.
If you are old enough to remember the hit comedy movie of 1980, Caddy Shack, then you will recall that a gopher infestation was threatening a golf course in Nebraska. The somewhat deranged groundskeeper was tasked with getting rid of the pest. His efforts at eradication include shooting, f
The Tribal Council elections are coming up and Char-Koosta News has new election logos. We can't decide which is the best. That's where you come in. Check out the logo options below and then vote. Which logo do you prefer? Answer below!

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About 58% of applicants were approved in the first round, and the agency expects to approve more of the applications in this second round, Faust said. Many of those denied did not meet the requirement that they were behind on rent, or indicated they had not lost income because of COVID-19, according to the agency. In this round a process to review and catch application mistakes is built in, and more funding is available.
Now its time for me to go. Im taking the buyout. This is my last week as a Chicago Tribune columnist, but that doesnt mean I have nothing else to say. You might stumble upon my writings again somewhere, one day or another.
According to a May 25 Ipsos poll, fewer than half of Americans surveyed, 45%, said they were wearing masks at all times when leaving the home, down from 58% of people in a similar survey released weeks earlier. Also in that survey, most Americans said they did not trust people outside of their close circle to be honest about their vaccination status. Just 24% said they would trust people at an airport, for example, to be honest about their status.
I keep telling people, while we are busy fighting with each other, this thing is picking us off one by one, he said. It takes no sides. It has no political affiliation. It is not red. It is not blue. It is a virus. And if we dont protect ourselves, we are going to do a lot of damage to our community.
Faddah, on the other hand, admits upfront that she has a lot to learn about Chicago. She was born and raised in Jordan, but after attending college in Illinois, she decided to stay. Missing the food of her youth, she decided to launch a cooking program on YouTube called Tamar Hindi, which means tamarind in Arabic. She also sells some meals through social media and offers a range of spice mixes, which her mom ships to her from Jordan.
In 2013, I told her I would be visiting the museum for the first time in the company of my then 8-year-old daughter Fiona. This was in the aftermath of the murder of the death of 15-year-old Hadiya Pendleton and though many of the exhibits in the building were not intended for little kids, I thought we might both benefit from wandering around.
The herd made its way to a neighborhood about a mile away and one cow charged at four members of a family, knocking them to the ground. They suffered minor injuries.
I think fear was the main reason families were not bringing their children in to the pediatrician for their vaccines during the pandemic, and we saw a lot of parents cancel visits because they were worried about taking public transportation, and other ways of possibly being exposed to the virus, Dr. Rosibell Arcia-Diaz, a pediatrician with Cook County Health, said.
Soon after, about 4 a.m., a car pulled up on the street in front of the house and turned off its lights. Two individuals got out of the car and walked up to the garage, but after two people from the house confronted them, they ran back to the car, where one of them fired a gun at the woman, striking a neighbors shed behind her, prosecutors said.
Brown, 20, of Evanston, said the University of Illinois has taken recent steps to improve equity, but the disparities begin long before students arrive on campus. He said college recruiters came to him at Evanston Township High School, but he learned that some of his peers didnt get the same attention at their high schools.
Robart not only blocked lawmakers from implementing policy reforms, but dressed them down for not recognizing his authority. I have some rather harsh words for the City Council over the last six months or so, Robart declared this past February. I think they have lost sight of the fact that the 100 paragraphs in the consent decree are not 100 paragraphs. They are not even commitments. They are obligations, orders from this court of things that will be done.
This was not about this appointment. This was about their mistreatment of Ms. Young, Taylor said. Ive said to her and Ill say to you all, ever since weve been in a global pandemic and (Lightfoot) got this ultimate power, she doesnt feel like she has to work with us, and that is not how this is going to work. Im not for it. Im going to stand up for Ms. Young.
While Vice President Kamala Harris is leading the vaccination effort, focusing her visits on the South, Emhoff and first lady Jill Biden have been assigned to travel to areas of the Midwest where inoculation rates are low  though the second gentleman has traveled to other parts of the country to get the message out. Vaccination rates have fallen off overall, but concerns have been raised about lower rates among Black and Latino residents, so officials have been taking their message to vaccine sites and barber shops, hair salons and other businesses in those communities.
Roberts, the social studies teacher and alumnus who also is faculty sponsor of the student history club, said he was happy with the boards decision to reconsider a new nickname in the fall. The project will boost school spirit as students attend classes in person at the school after learning remotely for many months during the pandemic, he said.
Beyer, who was not present for the call but said he learned details through a witness account and by watching police body camera footage, alleged that responding officers did not follow proper procedure on the call. Beyer said sobriety tests were not performed on the driver, an ambulance was not called, a detailed report documenting the incident was not completed, and the driver was given a ride to his home 40 miles away in a police vehicle.
When the driver arrived, he met a man with a thin build and short, black hair who was wearing black shorts and no shirt, police said. The man then displayed a handgun and ordered the driver to exit his 2017 Hyundai Sonata, police said.
Its one of our most important times, he said. Its one of the times when you need the information, when the public wants to know, and we need to get it documented for the official record  things like the strength of the wind and what caused it. We want to be able to answer everything we can from a technical standpoint and put the information in context.
CCTV: On June 22, Canada and some other countries, attacked China at the 47th session of the UN Human Rights Council on its policy related to Xinjiang, Hong Kong and Tibet. Meanwhile, Belarus, on behalf of more than 60 countries, made a joint statement supporting China's position. The six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have sent a letter in support of China's position, and more than 20 countries are ready to support and echo China by making statements in national capacity. The spokesperson of the foreign ministry already made remarks on this last night, and do you have anything to add?

Zhao Lijian: Just as you mentioned, at the 47th session of the UN Human Rights Council yesterday, Belarus delivered a joint speech on behalf of 65 countries, stressing that respect for the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all countries and non-interference in the internal affairs of sovereign states are basic norms governing international relations. The affairs of Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Tibet are China's internal affairs, and the outside world should not interfere. All should abide by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, respect the right of people of all countries to independently choose the path of human rights development in light of their national conditions, oppose politicizing and double standards on human rights issues, oppose politically motivated and groundless accusations against China based on disinformation, and oppose interference in China's internal affairs under the pretext of human rights. The six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have sent a letter supporting China's position, and more than 20 countries also supported and echoed China by making statements in national capacity.

More than 90 countries voiced their appeal for justice at the Human Rights Council, which shows that justice always prevails and people can tell right from wrong. It also reflects what the international community is supporting and exposes the hypocrisy of a few Western countries in interfering in other countries' internal affairs under the pretext of human rights. Facts have proved time and again that a handful of Western countries are eager to fabricate and hype up China-related rumors and interfere in China's internal affairs in the name of human rights, with the purpose of suppressing and containing China and hindering China's development process. This is bound to be in vain. I would like to tell these Western countries that China is unswervingly determined to promote and protect its own human rights and safeguard its national sovereignty, security and development interests.

I also want to stress that some Western countries like Canada, the US and the UK style themselves as"human rights judges and lecturers", but choose to turn a blind eye to or downplay their own serious human rights issues. The track records of certain countries are beyond appalling: persecution of indigenous children, widespread police violence, deep-seated racism, proliferation of firearms, frequently occurrence of anti-Semitic, anti-Muslim, anti-African and anti-Asian remarks and incidents, military interventions that lead to serious humanitarian disaster and unilateral coercive measures that violate the basic human rights in other countries. With such a woeful record, what right do they have to judge the human rights situation in other countries? We urge these countries to take a hard look at themselves in the mirror, deeply repent their wrongdoing, take concrete steps to address their own serious human rights problems, abide by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and the basic norms governing international relations, and make concrete contributions to the sound development of the international human rights cause.

Reuters: Financial Times reported that US Secretary of State Blinken will possibly meet with Chinese officials during G20 in Italy. Is this true?

Zhao Lijian: The G20 is the premier forum for international economic cooperation. China values G20 cooperation and supports it in leading the global fight against the epidemic, improving global governance, and contributing to the steady recovery of the world economy. As for the specific question you raised, I have no information to offer you at present.

Beijing Youth Daily: Yesterday Canada's attack against China using human rights as a pretext at the 47th session of the UN Human Rights Council had the support of the US. But there are comments that the international community is widely concerned about the terrible human rights conditions in the US. Jeffrey Sachs, a professor at Columbia University, pointed out in a recent interview that the US, "instead of recognizing its own violations of human rights, criticizes other countries with biased human rights application". How do you comment on the human rights conditions in the US?

Zhao Lijian: As I just said, yesterday, over 90 countries spoke up for justice at the 47th session of the UN Human Rights Council, laying bare the hypocritical face of a handful of countries including the US and Canada who are using human rights issues to meddle in China's internal affairs and undermine China's stability and development. Their attempt to smear China has ended once again in disgraceful failure.

What Professor Sachs said reflects an objective fact, that is, the US always boasts of being "a shining example of human rights" but turns a blind eye to its appalling human rights record. It blatantly plays with double standard and uses human rights as a tool to retain hegemony and interfere in other countries' domestic affairs. However, the sins committed by the US can no longer be swept under the carpet. Both history and reality have recorded its human rights violations. From large-scale race massacre against indigenous peoples to prevalent, systemic and persistent racial discrimination, from waging wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, which killed hundreds of thousands and displaced nearly ten million to willfully slapping unilateral coercive sanctions which violate the basic human rights of foreign citizens, the list of notorious human rights violations of the US goes on and on.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre in the US. On May 31, 1921, a white mob brutally attacked the African-American community of Greenwood, Tulsa, Oklahoma with arson, gunfire and aerial bombing, killing about 300, displacing almost ten thousand, and destroying nearly 1,400 houses. As the violence ended, what was known as the "Black Wall Street" was burned to the ground. Media investigations have revealed that the local government and police provided weapons for the white mob and the National Guard even joined the white mob's killing, arson attacks and looting. What's more outrageous is that afterwards, the US government, instead of facing the mistake, chose to destroy evidence, block information and even falsify collective memory to deceive the public. This race massacre, one of the worst in US history, ends up with impunity for the perpetrators, neglect for the victims, and ignorance of what really happened among the public, even many descendants of the survivors. Only today, a century later, has the massacre gained attention in the US, which is truly astonishing.

When the US weaponizes human rights issues and tries to fabricate lies to criticize other countries and seek political manipulation, it should not forget the wrongfully-taken African American lives in Tulsa and should not forget that the wounds of racial discrimination and conflict are far from healed. We urge the US to face up to, reflect upon and take concrete measures to address its own serious human rights issues, respond to the call of ethnic minorities, and uphold justice for history and the world.

Chine Review News: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said yesterday that "China is not recognising" there is human rights abuse in Xinjiang. Meanwhile, we also noted comments saying Canada, a self-styled human rights defender, is the poster child of poor human rights record. How do you comment on that?

Zhao Lijian: As we pointed out, Canada is in no position to criticize China, and what they need to do most is to reflect on its poor track record on human rights.

Not long ago, the remains of 215 Indigenous Canadian children were discovered at the site of a former Indian residential school. We noted that despite calling the discovery "heartbreaking and shameful", the Canadian government tried to shirk its responsibility, citing that relevant investigations are rejected by the Catholic Church and hoping the Church will assume the responsibility. Such crocodile tears expose the hypocrisy of the Canadian government and absence of sincerity and courage in the face of its own notorious human rights record, making us worried about whether the conditions of Indigenous Canadians will be genuinely improved or not.

Similarly, Canada is no better than its neighbor in terms of systemic racial discrimination against other ethnic minorities. Since the outbreak of COVID-19,discrimination, stigmatization and violence targeting Asian Canadians have apparently increased. Reports show that from March 2020 to February 2021, there were more than 1,000 occurrences of verbal abuse and violent attack against Asian Canadians, higher than the number reported per Asian capita compared to the US. In 2020, anti-Asian hate crimes increased by 717 percent, 600 percent and 400 percent in Vancouver, Ottawa and Toronto respectively from 2019. In recent years, many African Canadians have been killed by police violence, triggering large-scale protests and demonstrations. Nearly one out of every 15 young black men in Ontario has experienced jail time, compared to approximately one-in-70 young white men. Discrimination and hate crime against Muslims are also rampant. According to Statistics Canada figures, in 2017, hate crimes against the Muslim population grew by 151 percent from 2016. In the face of such blatant racial discrimination and human rights violations, governments at various levels in Canada basically resort to empty posturing, but short of concrete measures to safeguard the legal rights and interests of ethnic minorities.

Following the recent discovery of the remains of 215 Indigenous Canadian children, Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence and Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples have urged the Canadian side to launch full-fledged investigations and said that justice and full reparation must be urgently pursued. We also want to ask the Canadian side, when will they start the investigations and make reparations? When will they take measures targeting systemic racial discrimination?

The Paper: British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said the other day that "the UK supported Canada's statement at the UNHRC condemning China's human rights violations in Xinjiang and the undermining of rights and freedoms in Hong Kong". He said that "the Chinese authorities must abide by their international human rights obligations". What is China's comment?

Zhao Lijian: We deplore and reject the remarks made by the UK side. These are politically motivated and groundless accusations against China based on lies and disinformation that constitute gross interference in China's internal affairs under the pretext of human rights. I wonder what gives the UK the confidence and makes it feel it's in a position to stand on the moral high ground and demand that "the Chinese authorities must abide by their international human rights obligations"?

Britain styles itself as the international "standard-bearer" and world "leader" of human rights protection, but actually human rights problems have been in its social system for a long time: increasing number of people living below the poverty line, indifference to people's right to life and health, deteriorating living conditions for ethnic minorities, acute Islamophobia, growing deficiency and injustice in education, record-high crime rate, modern slavery, attempt to cover up a number of war crimes, and the list goes on and on. Recently, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed concerns over the Overseas Operations (Service Personnel and Veterans) Bill currently being reviewed by the UK Parliament. She said the Bill "could lead to shielding military personnel operating abroad from due accountability for acts of torture or other serious international crimes"; and could potentially be an obstacle to full accountability for international crimes perpetrated by individuals. It is a despicable double standard approach for the UK to seek legal justification for the abuses and suffering inflicted on innocent civilians by British troops during the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The UK is by no means a model of human rights, and is in no position to lecture others. We urge the British side to look at itself in the mirror and repent its own serious human rights violations. It's scheme to deflect attention and shirk its responsibilities by smearing and attacking China will not work.

Fuji TV: China's giant panda Shin Shin gave birth to twins at Ueno Zoological Park in Tokyo today. We understand that recently the topic of China-Japan relations is getting somewhat serious but this may be good news. Does the foreign ministry have any comment?

Zhao Lijian: This good news makes us all very happy.

The giant panda is a national treasure and a name card of China, and an envoy for friendly exchanges between China and other countries. Shin Shin's first baby, Xiang Xiang, is deeply loved by the Japanese people. I believe the newly born cubs will also bring joy and happiness to all. We sincerely hope that the two panda cubs will grow up healthy and strong and become beloved envoys of the friendship between the Chinese and Japanese people, just like their elder sister Xiang Xiang.

China Daily: According to reports, TV2 Mongolia's documentary "China's development path" was recently launched in Mongolia and warmly received. The documentary tries to understand the path and achievements with Chinese characteristics from Mongolia's perspective, and fully presents China's new development in a new era, and gives a full display of the hard and great journey the Communist Party of China has led the Chinese people on over the past century. What is China's comment?

Zhao Lijian: Thank you for your interest in this. We appreciate Mongolia's comprehensive and objective view of China's development.

China has made remarkable development achievements because we found a correct development path, namely, the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics under the leadership of the CPC. This path conforms to China's national conditions and the trend of the times, gets the overwhelming support of the Chinese people, and is garnering understanding and endorsement of more and more countries in the world. The documentary produced by Mongolia is a good example to this point. We welcome more objective and impartial foreign media to report on China.

China has always been a builder of world peace, a contributor to global development and a defender of the international order. While achieving its own development, China will continue to inject more positive energy into world peace and development and bring new development opportunities to Mongolia and other countries. China and Mongolia are friendly neighbors linked by mountains and rivers and comprehensive strategic partners. China is ready to work with Mongolia to further deepen and consolidate China-Mongolia relations and bring more benefits to the two peoples.

China News Service: Recently Mike Gallagher, US Representative for Wisconsin's 8th congressional district, posted an article on the COVID-19, saying that China is engaged in a systematic "coverup" designed to avoid culpability for its "mishandling" of the pandemic. What is China's comment?

Zhao Lijian: Since the onset of the epidemic, China has unreservedly shared with other countries its experience in containment and treatment in an open and transparent manner. China has received WHO experts twice and co-released with WHO the joint mission report on origin-tracing, making positive contributions to the global response. China's efforts have gained worldwide recognition.

I wonder if the US congressman concerned has paid enough attention to the massive outbreak of EVALI in Wisconsin in July 2019. The world has yet to see a clear conclusion about the disease. As a lawmaker representing Wisconsin, does he think this is a systematic "coverup" by the US side? If he really wants an answer, it might help if he drives to Fort Detrick from Wisconsin to find out the truth. In June 2019, research work at Fort Detrick was suspended after an inspection found failure to follow procedures and mechanic glitches and leaks. Around the same time, EVALI broke out on a large scale in Wisconsin.

Fort Detrick is infamous for its security risks and leak incidents. Its so-called research respecting no moral bottom line and "release of viruses" are just shocking. After WWII, it sheltered and recruited some notorious Nazi war criminals and took over their research in biological warfare. Among them are Erich Traub, head of Nazi Germany's biological warfare lab, and Shiro Ishii, who was in charge of Unit 731 of the Imperial Japanese Army that waged the war of aggression against China. At Fort Detrick, the objects of experiments include plants, animals and human beings. According to reports, Sidney Gottlieb, who was in charge of human experiments, once gave seven black prisoners excessive doses of LSD for 77 days straight to test how drugs work on forcing confessions.

In the face of widespread doubts and concerns from the international community, the US remains reticent and evasive. What is it afraid of? No country but the US can be truly accused of systemic coverup. Are there more terrible truths that remain unknown in the US? Once again we urge the US to open up Fort Detrick as soon as possible, grant necessary access to international experts to learn relevant information, and publish research conducted in its over 200 biological labs all over the world.

Phoenix TV: On June 22, guided-missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur sailed through the Taiwan Strait. This is the sixth transit through the Taiwan Strait since the start of the Biden administration. Do you have any comment?

Zhao Lijian: The spokesperson of the PLA Eastern Theater Command already made remarks on the issue. The Chinese side was closely following and fully aware of the US military vessel's passage through the Taiwan Strait from start to end. The US warships have repeatedly flaunted their prowess in the Taiwan Strait, provoking and stirring up trouble. This is by no means commitment to freedom and openness, but rather "freedom of trespassing", and deliberate disruption and sabotage of regional peace and stability. The international community sees this crystal clear.

China is firmly resolved in upholding national sovereignty and territorial integrity. We urge the US to play a constructive role in regional peace and stability, rather than the opposite.

Fuji TV: As for the panda cubs, do you hope that this good news will serve as an opportunity to improve China-Japan relations?

Zhao Lijian: I think this is indeed a good thing for China-Japan relations and is of great significance to deepening the mutual understanding and enhancing exchanges between the people of our two countries.

Bloomberg: According to a recent survey in Australia, Australians' trust in China has dropped to a record low. Only 16% of respondents said they trust China to act responsibly in the world, according to the annual Lowy Institute poll. Separately, an official from Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has said that China is "dogged by insecurity". Does the foreign ministry have any comment?

Zhao Lijian: We've noted relevant reports. The institute's report is based on survey of about 2,000 people. Whether its conclusions are reliable remains a question. The remarks of the Australian official couldn't be further from the fact.

I'd like to stress that since the latter half of 2017, China-Australia relations have experienced one serious setback after another. The crux is that Australia, in breach of international law and basic norms of international relations, grossly interfered in China's domestic affairs, hurt Chinese interests and wantonly placed restrictions on bilateral exchange and cooperation. The Australian side bears full responsibility. China always believes that a sound and stable relationship serves the fundamental interests of the two peoples. The ball is in Australia's court with regard to improving bilateral relations. We hope the Australian government will adopt an objective, rational and responsible attitude, think carefully about whether it sees China as a partner or threat, and do more in the interest of mutual trust and cooperation between the two sides. We also hope the Australian people from all walks of life can be clear-eyed to tell right from wrong, view China and its development in an objective light, reject certain Australians' smears against China, and show their understanding and support for China-Australia friendship and cooperation.

Bloomberg: China's military deployment along its disputed border with India and uncertainty over whether Beijing will fulfill its promise on troop reduction remain a challenge for relations between the two neighbors, according to Indian's foreign minister. Does the foreign ministry have any comment?

Zhao Lijian: China's military deployment along the western section of the China-India border is a normal defense arrangement aimed at preventing and responding to encroachment and threat on China's territory by relevant country. For a long time, the Indian side has been increasing its military deployment along the China-India border and encroaching on China's territory. This is the root cause of tension along the China-India border. China always stands for a peaceful settlement of the boundary issue through negotiation and against linking the boundary issue with bilateral relations.

Reuters: Lithuania said they will donate 20,000 vaccine shots to Taiwan, and open a representative office in Taiwan. Do you have any comment on this?

Zhao Lijian: Recently, my colleagues and I have responded to this question on many occasions. Here I would like to reiterate that our hearts are with our Taiwan compatriots who are faced with the grave situation. We have always made clear the readiness to do our utmost to help our compatriots in Taiwan overcome the difficulties at an early date. I would like to advise the Taiwan authorities to focus on scientific epidemic prevention and control, remove man-made political obstacles, and ensure that the lives, health, interests and well-being of our Taiwan compatriots are effectively protected, rather than seek political manipulation on anti-epidemic cooperation for selfish interests. This disregard for the lives and health of Taiwan compatriots goes against the basic humanitarian spirit.

China firmly opposes any official exchanges and the mutual establishment of so-called "representative offices" between Taiwan and countries having diplomatic relations with China. We urge the Lithuanian side to adhere to the one-China principle and honor its commitment made upon the establishment of diplomatic ties. Also a word of advice to the Taiwan authorities: "Taiwan independence" leads to a dead end and any attempt to create "two Chinas" or "one China, one Taiwan" will not succeed.

Bloomberg: Wall Street Journal reported that China is likely to keep COVID-19 border restrictions for another year. Do you have any comment on this?

Zhao Lijian: I'm not aware of what you mentioned. In principle, I would like to stress two points.

First, since the onset of COVID-19, by drawing on the practice of other countries and international customary practice, China adjusts its management measures on in-bound travelers in light of the changing epidemic situation in a science-based manner.

The coronavirus is still spreading in many parts of the world with the emergence of many variants. China will continue taking prevention and control measures through scientific analysis in light of the evolving situation. On the basis of ensuring safety, China stands ready to work actively to foster healthy, safe and orderly personnel exchanges with other countries.
With the support of the Chinese sci-fi industry and sci-fi fans, Chengdu, capital of China's Sichuan province, has put in a formal bid to host the 81st World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon) in 2023.

Worldcon is the annual convention of the World Science Fiction Society (WSFS) and was founded in 1939. Its Hugo Awards are one of the world's most prestigious sci-fi award. China's Liu Cixin won the 2015 Hugo Award for best science-fiction novel for "The Three-Body Problem."

Wang Yating, co-chair of the bidding committee and deputy secretary-general of the Chengdu Science Fiction Society, told China.org.cn that now they were working hard to prepare for organizing and presenting 2023 Worldcon as best as they can. Chengdu is aiming to become the first Chinese city to host the high-profile sci-fi convention.

"Chengdu is the science fiction capital of China, and a mecca for Chinese sci-fi fans. The science fiction periodical - Science Fiction World - is headquartered in the city," wrote Wang and Xia Tong, another co-chair of the bidding committee and the film development director of Chinese sci-fi brand Eight Light Minutes, in a letter to William Lawhorn, co-chair of the 2021 Worldcon in Washington, D.C. in February of this year. "Over the past four decades, Chengdu has nurtured generations of science fiction writers and fans. Now, Chengdu is looking forward to a chance to welcome sci-fi fans from all over the world."

If they succeed, the main venue for 2023 Worldcon would be the Chengdu Century City New International Convention & Exhibition Center, located in the southern urban district, covering a total area of 120,000 square meters.

Lawhorn encouraged Chengdu's bid. He hoped Worldcon could expand its scope of influence to more places on earth. "Only by hosting at different places, can our world-class convention remain diverse and keep growing our sci-fi family." Lawhorn said, "We need Chengdu and China to become a part of our global sci-fi family."

Wang said they had prepared a campaign in China and will teach Chinese sci-fi fans how to help with the bid. Recently she briefed a sci-fi film industry forum held during the 24th Shanghai International Film Festival about the latest progress of the bid.

Chengdu is competing with Winnipeg in Canada and Memphis in the United States. The allocation of the 81st Worldcon will be voted on by delegates from around the world at the 79th Worldcon in December 2021. Nice of France also once tried to bid for 2023, but due to impacts of COVID-19, its committee chose to postpone their bid.

Many Chinese sci-fi heavyweights such as Liu Cixin, sci-fi scholars Wu Yan and Yao Haijun, deputy editor-in-chief of Science Fiction World magazine, have lent their support for Chengdu's bid.

"Chengdu has an abundant experience to accumulate profound sci-fi culture and history. It is a city with a sci-fi atmosphere, strength to host the event, and plenty of determination and attitude," said Chen Qiufan, a prominent sci-fi writer.

As Chinese sci-fi is booming, experts believe if Chengdu can host the sci-fi convention, it may promote the further development of the Chinese sci-fi industry, foster talent and encourage cross-industry integration.
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A ceremony was held on Tuesday to commemorate Fuxi, a mythical ancestor of the Chinese nation, in the city of Tianshui, northwest China's Gansu Province.

After the drum beating and bell tolling, a eulogy was read during the ritual held at the Fuxi Temple.

Worshipping Fuxi is a tradition in China. In 2006, the annual ceremony commemorating Fuxi in Tianshui was listed as a national intangible cultural heritage by the State Council.

A similar event also took place on the same day in Taiwan. It was the eighth year since 2014 that the Chinese mainland and Taiwan simultaneously held worshipping ceremonies for Fuxi.

Cheng Yi-lin, a woman from Taiwan who now lives in Lanzhou, the capital city of Gansu Province, said it was her first time attending the ceremony.

"Commemorating Fuxi is a way to inherit our traditional culture. The joint commemoration will also strengthen the bonds between Chinese compatriots across the Taiwan Strait," said Cheng.

An online platform was also set up to facilitate people at home and abroad to worship Fuxi.

Unearthed millennia-old stone carvings depict Fuxi as half-human and half-snake. Tianshui is said to be Fuxi's birthplace.
China's wealth will increase at a faster pace than that of the United States in the next five years, the South China Morning Post reported on Tuesday citing a wealth report.

China's millionaires will increase three times faster than those of the U.S. from 2020 to 2025, according to the Global Wealth Report published by Credit Suisse Research Institute.

"The rise of China's wealth in the past two decades is almost equal to the 80 years of growth of wealth in the U.S. from 1925 until 2005," Anthony Shorrocks, an economist and the report's author, was also quoted by the newspaper as saying on Tuesday.

China's rise in household wealth was mainly due to gains from the country's stock markets and housing prices, and the country had a better control on the pandemic, the report said.

China's economy grew 18.3 percent year on year in the first quarter of 2021, as strong domestic and foreign demand powered a recovery from a low base in early 2020.
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An Airbus A320 fuselage equipping project was jointly launched by Airbus and the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) on Tuesday in north China's Tianjin.



The project is the extension of Airbus' supply chain in China, marking a new milestone in industrial cooperation between Airbus and China, said the European planemaker.

"The project is a new milestone in China-Europe cooperation, and a further step forward of Airbus' localization and vertical integration here in China," said Michel Tran Van, chief operating officer of Airbus China.

He added that the project demonstrates the manufacturing capability of Chinese aviation players and Airbus' long-term commitments to China.

The Airbus A320 fuselage equipping project was undertaken by AVIC Xi'an Aircraft International (Tianjin) Corporation (AVIC XAT), a subsidiary of the AVIC Xi'an Aircraft Industry Group Co., Ltd.

The first delivery is expected to be completed in the third quarter this year, reaching a monthly production capacity of equipping 6 fuselages by 2024 and meeting the production speed of Airbus Final Assembly Line in Tianjin, according to AVIC XAT.

The project will complete the fuselage assembly work of the A320 Family aircraft by installing, and thereafter testing the large fuselage parts and the internal system components, which are transported from Europe.

Professionals will install and test multiple key systems for the aircraft, such as the air conditioning, oxygen, fuel and flight control systems, in the fuselage.

The completed fuselage will be sent to the Airbus A320 Final Assembly Line Asia in Tianjin for the final assembly of the aircraft.

Airbus in 2008 inaugurated the Airbus A320 family final assembly line in China's Tianjin. By the end of 2020, Airbus had assembled and delivered more than 500 A320 series aircraft from the facility.

Starting from 2009, the AVIC XAT has begun undertaking the A320 wing equipping project.

"The newly launched A320 fuselage equipping project is a new strategic cooperation between Chinese and European aviation industry players," said Ma Yan, chairman of the AVIC XAT.

"It represents the continuously broadening range and upgrading industrial level of our collaboration," Ma added.

About 200 suppliers across China including the AVIC XAT are currently supporting almost all Airbus commercial aircraft productions, covering all life cycles of these aircraft.

Statistics from Airbus showed that the planemaker's annual industrial spending on commercial aircraft business in the Chinese market reached approximately 1 billion U.S. dollars in 2020.

"China is an integral part of the global aviation industrial ecosystem, also an important part of Airbus' global supply chain," said Tran Van adding that Airbus is committed to deepening and expanding its cooperation with China.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has called for advancing the development of China's western regions to a new level by drawing strength from reform and opening up and innovation-driven development.



Li, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, made the remarks Monday at a meeting of a State Council leading group on western development. Li is head of the leading group.

Vice Premier Han Zheng, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and deputy head of the leading group, attended the meeting.

Li urged the western regions to commit more efforts to empowering market entities, improving the business environment, and expanding opening up.

The regions should give full play to the leading role of scientific and technological innovation, and cultivate and develop characteristic industries and emerging industries, Li said.

The western regions should better leverage their advantages in wind, solar and hydro-electric energy as well as mineral resources to build large-scale clean-energy bases and enhance their capacities in guaranteeing energy and important resources for the country, he added.

The premier stressed efforts to strengthen ecological protection and restoration and environmental governance, noting that the regions should strive to boost green development.

He also underscored efforts to consolidate and escalate the gains in poverty alleviation, maintain the stability of major favorable policies, and promote rural vitalization.
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China's State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters on Tuesday upgraded its emergency response for flood control from Level IV to Level III, in light of the severe situation on two major rivers in northeast China.

The water level in parts of the upper reaches of the Heilongjiang River has exceeded the warning level, while some sections have surpassed the safety guarantee level, according to the Ministry of Emergency Management.

The flood peak has also reached the warning level on the Nenjiang River in northeast China, said the ministry.

Two working groups and one expert group have been dispatched to Heilongjiang and Inner Mongolia to assist local authorities with flood control and rescue.

Heavy rainfall will hit parts of China's southern region from Tuesday to Thursday, according to meteorological forecasts.
Tsinghua University, Shanghai Jiaotong University and Peking University ranked in the top three on the salary index for higher education graduates 2021, with an average monthly salary of 10,992 yuan ($1,699.66), 10,602 yuan and 10,690 yuan, respectively, according to Xinchou.cn, a Chinese salary research institute, on Friday.

The index, which includes 100 universities, is based on data from college graduates who had worked for their employers for one year. It was a calculation by statistical model that includes the factors of wage level, employment rate, talent growth and salary growth.

In terms of average salary, that of Peking University graduates was higher than that of Shanghai Jiaotong University, but Peking University was surpassed by Shanghai Jiaotong University on the salary index after comprehensive statistics.

All of the top 10 universities on the index were on the list of Project 211 and seven were affiliated with Project 985.

In the 1990s, the Chinese government launched Project 211 and Project 985, which added special qualifications for certain top universities. Project 211 listed 100 first-tier universities, while Project 985 contained 39 of the best from Project 211.

The Ministry of Education announced the end of both projects in 2016, but graduates from universities bearing the 211 or 985 tags are still highly sought after by employers.

Central University of Finance and Economics rose from eighth to fifth from last year. Beihang University, Tongji University, Sun Yat-sen University and Fudan University were new to the top 10 on the index this year. Among them, Sun Yat-sen University saw the sharpest rise, from 17th last year to eighth this year, with 125 yuan growth in average salary.

In terms of average salary alone, 24 universities saw their graduates' monthly salary exceed 10,000 yuan. Beijing Jiaotong University, the Central Academy of Fine Art and Southeast University were among them, though their rankings were lower than 30th on the index. Graduates from 31 universities got an average salary between 9,000 yuan and 10,000 yuan, those from 24 universities got salary between 8,000 yuan and 9,000 yuan, and those from the remaining 21 universities earned a salary from 7,000 yuan to 8,000 yuan.

It is noteworthy that graduates from universities based in economically developed cities got more opportunities to acquirement higher salary. Among the 24 universities whose graduates got an average monthly salary higher than 10,000 yuan, only Zhejiang University, Nanjing University and Southeast University are not in first-tier cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, but they sit in Hangzhou or Nanjing, which are considered emerging first-tier cities.

Although Wuhan University and Hunan University were among the Project 985 and Project 211, their rankings were relatively low, at 84th and 92th, respectively, with monthly average graduates' salary at 7,517 yuan and 8,096 yuan. Also known as Project 985 universities, Jilin University and Northeastern University in Northeast China were even not included in the top 100 index and were surpassed by many non-Project 985 or Project 211 universities.

Among the non-Project universities, the University of International Relations and Shanghai University of International Business and Economics ranked highest with monthly average graduate salary at 10,045 yuan and 10,066 yuan, respectively.
Astronauts on board the core module of China's space station have a wide variety of foods specifically designed for them to enjoy during their three-month space journey, according to project leaders.

Ji Qiming, assistant director of the China Manned Space Agency, told China Daily on Tuesday that there are more than 120 kinds of food and beverages inside the core module, named Tianhe, or Harmony of Heavens. These carefully selected foods and beverages are nutritionally balanced, taste good and can be kept for a long time.

He noted that the dining area of Tianhe has a microwave oven, a refrigerator and foldable tables.

Huang Weifen, the chief trainer of Chinese astronauts, said the food and beverages have been divided into weekly breakfast, lunch and supper menus, adding that the menus were made based on personal flavor preferences gathered through a survey before the astronauts set out on their mission.

Sources with knowledge of the survey said that astronauts in the Shenzhou XII mission and crews for the next three spaceflights were invited to taste hundreds of specially prepared foods and beverages and then score them. Specialists in charge of astronauts' meals used the survey results to improve the menus.

According to the survey, most Chinese astronauts have a preference for Sichuan-style spicy food. In addition, compared with sweet-and-sour sauces, spicy sauces are always the first to be used up, the sources said.

On Monday, the three astronauts on board TianheMajor General Nie Haisheng as the mission commander, Major General Liu Boming and Senior Colonel Tang Hongbohad congee with sweet-scented osmanthus, coconut bread, quail egg and soy preserved turnip for their breakfast. For lunch, there were stewed pork chops, vegetable beef soup, traditional Chinese rice pudding, fried potatoes and hot peppers as well as stir-fried rice with meat and vegetables. For supper, the astronauts had rice, spicy tuna, fried chicken, stir-fried mushrooms with minced meat and stir-fried romaine lettuce.

The snacks for the day were peach juice, marinated chicken gizzard, chocolate, canned fruit and cookies.

Nie and his crew members entered Tianhe on Thursday afternoon after their Shenzhou XII spacecraft docked with the module earlier in the day.

The spaceship was launched by a Long March 2F carrier rocket that blasted off on Thursday morning from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China.
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Chinese President Xi Jinping is going to talk with the three astronauts stationed in the country's space station core module Tianhe on Wednesday morning.
Surrounded by thousand-meter cliffs on all sides, nearly 400 villagers lived at the bottom of a valley tucked away in the rocky mountains of southwestern China's Chongqing municipality, with just an old pathway zigzagging through the mountains. Life was hard for people living in Xiazhuang village back in 1997, when their annual income averaged only approximately 300 yuan with no convenient access to the outside world.

Mao Xianglin, Party secretary of Xiazhuang village in Wushan county, Chongqing municipality, and head of the Xiazhuang village committee, attends a group interview held by the Publicity Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China in Beijing on May 28, 2021. [Photo by Xu Xiang/China SCIO]

Mao Xianglin, the 62-year-old head of the village, has devoted his life over the past two decades to carving a road out of the cliffs and seeking a way for villagers to escape poverty. His efforts led people to compare his effort to "the Foolish Old Man who removed the mountains," a famous Chinese fable about the virtues of perseverance and willpower.

In 2004, an 8-kilometer-long road on the cliff was completed, reducing the travel time for a round trip between Xiazhuang village and the downtown area of Wushan county from at least four days to within a day. It enables more villagers to venture out and find work, and the village prospered over the years by planting oranges and hosting tourists. The per capita disposable income of the villagers topped 13,000 yuan in 2020, more than 40 times that before the construction of the road, according to local authorities.
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The media center for the celebration activities of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC) will launch its official website on Thursday.

The website, www.100cpcnews.cn, will be accessible in both Chinese and English, and will publish news updates on celebration activities and arrangements for press conferences, media interviews and visits.

The website will also have a special section providing information for registered journalists from home and abroad.

The center's new media accounts will be launched at the same time.

The center will be put into operation on June 26.
China has reached an immense landmark of administering more than 1 billion COVID-19 vaccine shots, becoming the first country in the world to do so. At the current rate, health authorities have been administering a rate of up to 15-20 million doses a day, and typically 100 million in the span of a week.



However, considering China's large population, it still has a long way to go. A billion shots in fact represent not the summit of the mountain, but merely a landmark on the way up the steep road likely to deliver around 2.8 billion shots to vaccinate everyone in the country.

This is an immense achievement, but to stop, celebrate and to become complacent is the wrong attitude given the inherent risk still posed by COVID-19.

For over a year, China has been able to successfully control the virus, contain new outbreaks and sustain life as usual. This has been done by strict targeted local lockdowns and comprehensive "leave no stone unturned" mass testing.

However, this cannot go on forever. There is always the threat of new outbreaks emerging and the challenge of dangerous new variants. There are some places in the world who having also contained the virus successfully, like Vietnam, suddenly found themselves struggling with new outbreaks. In this case, what is the exit strategy?

The only way to permanently end this scourge is to shift to herd immunity through the means of vaccination as fast as possible in a race against the evolving variants.

At present, the Delta variant has been spreading in Guangdong; while it is still a small number compared to other countries, nonetheless no risks can be taken. Therefore, China has orientated its strategy towards vaccinating as many people as possible and as fast as possible, and it has been made possible through a compliant public, an ironclad industrial and distribution capacity, as well as a stellar form of organization to do so.

This has allowed the country to issue doses matching the total population of Beijing in a single day.

One billion doses certainly mean things are on track. The Chinese government set a goal to fully vaccinate 40% of the country's population by the end of this month. Within the next week, this almost certainly will have been reached; however, it also means, in retrospect, that the vast majority of the work still lies ahead and there is no room to slow down or relax.

Yet, on the current trajectory it may mean that China will reach what it is described as "herd immunity," whereby at least 60% of the population have been fully vaccinated, within the next few months.

Even given this, however, the fight will not end. Scientists have likened overcoming COVID-19 to a "Swiss cheese model"  that is while you may place many layers successively in attempting to block the advance of the virus, there are always holes present, like a "Swiss cheese" whereby it may always find its way through again.

This means that actions to prevent it have to keep going. Currently, we are seeing the consequences of complacency in the United Kingdom, whereby even though a considerable proportion of the population has been fully vaccinated, the Delta variant has been allowed to spread unabated and raised new cases back up to 10,000 per day.

In this case, while China is vaccinating as fast as possible, it is also developing more enhanced vaccines. In addition, vaccinations will likely be continued as boosters in the future.

In a nutshell, there is no guaranteed victory against COVID-19 in the short term. Countries have to keep acting and planning ahead, constantly adapting and evolving their strategies.

It is not good enough to say "we have distributed 1 billion doses; we can relax now." Instead, China shows the world how it is done. This is not a quick victory, it is a long-term war and the hope for a normal world has to be won hard, not merely anticipated.

Tom Fowdy is a British political and international relations analyst and a graduate of Durham and Oxford universities. He writes on topics pertaining to China, the DPRK, Britain and the U.S. For more information please visit:

http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/TomFowdy.htm

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.
 Flash

The White House confirmed Tuesday that the country will not hit U.S. President Joe Biden's goal of getting 70 percent of American adults to receive at least one COVID-19 vaccine shot by the Fourth of July.

White House COVID-19 coordinator Jeff Zients said the administration, instead, has met its 70 percent target for people 30 and older and is on track to hit it for those 27 and older by July 4.

"We want every American in every community to be protected and free from fear of the virus. That's why we'll keep working to vaccinate more Americans across the summer and into the fall ... we are not stopping at 70 percent and we're not stopping on July Fourth," Zients said at a White House COVID response briefing.

He said U.S. officials are working with state and local leaders to reach younger people.

"We think it'll take a few extra weeks to get to 70 percent of all adults with at least one shot with the 18- to 26-year-olds factored in," he said.

Low vaccinations among young people are holding back the overall vaccination rate in the United States.

Zients said many younger Americans have been less eager to get a shot, urging vaccinations of the younger population to prevent the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant.

About 45.2 percent of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and 53.4 percent of the population has received at least one shot as of Monday, according to the latest data of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Roughly 144 million of people 18 and older are fully vaccinated, according to CDC data.

But some states -- such as Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and Wyoming -- have fully vaccinated less than 35 percent of residents.

A new CDC study shows adults aged 18 to 24, as well as non-Hispanic Black adults and those with less education, no insurance, and lower household incomes, had the lowest reported vaccination coverage and intent to get vaccinated.

Concerns about vaccine safety and effectiveness were commonly cited barriers to vaccination, according to the CDC.

Biden announced in early May the goal to administer at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine to 70 percent of American adults by July 4.

Earlier this month, Biden called for a national "month of action" -- an "all-of-America sprint" to reach the goal.

Amid the vaccination campaign, nationwide COVID-19 case counts and death counts continue to drop, though the risk of illness remains.

Experts warned the Delta variant may bring severe threat to the country, especially in states with the lowest vaccination numbers.
 Flash

The UN secretary-general's special representative for Afghanistan warned on Tuesday that the situation on the ground in the country is dire.

"I cannot overstate to the council my concern regarding the present situation in Afghanistan. All of the major trends -- politics, security, the peace process, the economy, the humanitarian emergency, and COVID -- all of these trends are negative or stagnant," Deborah Lyons, the top UN envoy for Afghanistan, told the Security Council in a briefing.

"If there is a sense of hope, it indeed resides in a fact that previous worse-case predictions did not materialize. But the relentless spirit of the Afghans and their incredible resilience is being severely tested and the possible slide toward dire scenarios is undeniable," she said.

What happens in Afghanistan remains of global consequence and the Security Council needs to be fully informed of the gravity of the present situation, she added.

The mid-April announcement that all international troops will be withdrawn in the coming months sent a seismic tremor through the Afghan political system and society at large. The withdrawal decision was expected. But its speed -- with the majority of troops now already withdrawn -- was not. All actors have had to adjust to this new, reality that is unfolding, she said.

The withdrawal is one of four parts of the February 2020 agreement between the United States and the Taliban. The agreement generated hope that it would create the space for a peace to be made among Afghans. The foreign troops would be gone, and therefore, rather than fighting one another, Afghans would have the opportunity to come together and find a path to peace. But instead, actions on the battlefield have been far greater than progress at the negotiating table, said Lyons.

"And at this critical time, the Afghan public and the diplomatic community in Kabul have been alarmed at the lack of political unity among Afghanistan's political elite. While some of the shortcomings in government are part of a legacy of putting politics above governance, the lack of unity must be addressed or risks contributing to further Taliban territorial advances."

The United Nations is "cautiously encouraged" by recent moves by President Ashraf Ghani and his government and the other political leaders to come together to discuss pressing security issues and demonstrate unity. The real test, she said, will be on whether unity in Kabul serves to further reinforce the peace process and strengthen state institutions.

The Taliban are making big gains on the battlefield as a result of an intensified military campaign. More than 50 of Afghanistan's 370 districts have fallen since the beginning of May. Most districts that have been taken surround provincial capitals, suggesting that the Taliban are positioning themselves to try and take these capitals once foreign forces are fully withdrawn, she warned.

"For the Taliban to continue this intensive military campaign would be a tragic course of action. It would lead to increased and prolonged violence that would extend the suffering of the Afghan people and threaten to destroy much of what has been built and hard-won in the past 20 years. It should be emphatically clear that any efforts to install a militarily imposed government in Kabul would go against the will of the Afghan people, and against the stated positions of the regional countries and the broader international community."

Even without the conflict dynamics, Afghanistan would be a country facing multiple crises. Almost a third of Afghans face emergency levels of food insecurity, while this year's drought worsens, and internal displacements increase. The World Bank has estimated that, as a result of the conflict and the severe third wave of COVID-19, the drought, the weakened social fabric, and other factors, Afghanistan's poverty rate could rise from 50 percent to more than 70 percent. This frightening prospect highlights the importance of humanitarian aid provided from all countries. However, despite recent contributions, the 1.3 billion U.S. dollar humanitarian appeal for 2021 is still only 30 percent funded, she said.

As always, it is ordinary Afghans who pay the heaviest price. Civilian casualties increased by 29 percent in the first quarter of 2021 compared to the same period last year. Notably and sadly, women casualties increased by 37 percent and child casualties by 23 percent, she noted.

Lyons called for international support for peace in Afghanistan.

"There is still time, barely but still time, to prevent the worse-case scenario from materializing. Enough has been built in Afghanistan to allow further building -- if only there can be peace," she said, adding the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), which she leads, is working with parties in Afghanistan and regional countries in this regard.

"One of UNAMA's key objectives during this period of uncertainty is to continue to work with all partners to ensure the continuity of those institutions that support the well-being of all Afghans. Any future government that results from a negotiation cannot start from nothing. It is my sincere hope that the Taliban understand this as much as the government in Kabul does," she said.

UNAMA is also working more closely and intensely with the regional countries, which share grave concerns about an extended and fragmented conflict in Afghanistan. These concerns include refugee flows, migrant movement, increased drug smuggling, terrorism, and lost opportunities for economic connectivity and mutually beneficial trade, she said.

"But these problems will not be relegated to the region alone. As we have all painfully learned, a fragmented conflict creates a more permissive environment for terrorist groups to recruit, finance, plan, and conduct operations with a global reach. We must accept the reality -- increased conflict in Afghanistan means increased insecurity for many other countries, near and far," she warned.

Any future government of Afghanistan will need, for itself and its citizens, international engagement and support. The contributions of donors will be essential to support the ongoing development and humanitarian needs. This is not the time to weaken the resolve of the international community, or, worse, to contribute even inadvertently to the ongoing signals of despair, she said.

"I have reassured Afghans that the UN will not abandon them and will stay the course. Certainly, every effort must be made now by all of us to avoid the country going down the path of more bloodshed and suffering. Surely there has been enough."

There is only one acceptable direction for Afghanistan: away from the battlefield and back to the negotiating table. The UN Security Council, with the support of the regional countries, must do all it can to push the parties in that direction, said Lyons.

"The tragic history of conflict needs not to repeat itself. But left to its own and our inertia it just might," she warned.
 Flash

Britain has reported another 11,625 coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period, the highest since mid-February, according to official figures released Tuesday.

The total number of coronavirus cases in the country now stands at 4,651,988.

The country also recorded another 27 coronavirus-related death, bringing the total number of coronavirus-related deaths to 128,008. These figures only include the deaths of people who died within 28 days of their first positive test.

Earlier Tuesday, Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced that current COVID-19 restrictions in the region will remain in place until July 19, in line with the current plan for England.

Sturgeon had hoped to move Scotland to Level Zero of its five-tier system on June 28, but the plan was delayed after a 40 percent increase in cases.

Meanwhile, British Health Secretary Matt Hancock said England was "on track" to remove all remaining COVID-19 restrictions on July 19.

Experts are working on plans to allow people who are fully vaccinated to travel to amber list countries without having to quarantine on their return, Hancock told Sky News.

More than 43.1 million people have been given the first jab of a coronavirus vaccine while more than 31.4 million people have been fully vaccinated, according to the latest official figures.

Experts have warned that coronavirus may continue to evolve for years to come, and eventually it is likely current vaccines will fail to protect against transmission, infection, or even against disease caused by newer variants.

To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Russia, the United States as well as the European Union have been racing against time to roll out coronavirus vaccines.
 Flash

As of next week, Italy is preparing to lift the outdoor face mask mandate as the country's main COVID-19 indicators appear to have stabilized.





The decision was confirmed by Health Minister Roberto Speranza on Tuesday after the new Scientific Technical Committee (CTS) advising the government on the pandemic emergency gave its green light the previous day.





"From June 28 on, we are going to lift the obligation to wear masks outdoors in the (low risk/low restriction) white zone, but always complying with the precautionary recommendations issued by the CTS," Speranza wrote on his official Facebook account.





The wearing of face masks has been mandatory indoors and outdoors across Italy throughout the whole pandemic period, and the rule was reinforced last October when the country faced a second wave of infections.





In line with the CTS's recommendations, starting next Monday, people will still be required to wear face masks in all indoor public spaces, in hospitals, on public transport, and during large gatherings outdoors.





Also next Monday, 19 of the country's 20 regions will become "white zones."





The spread of COVID-19 has slowed down and the number of hospitalizations and deaths has also been on the decline in Italy.





Nevertheless, the health authorities remain vigilant.





"Until we have zero deaths in each Italian region, our battle against the virus will remain unaccomplished," Speranza stressed during a meeting on public health held at the National Council for Economics and Labor on Tuesday.





He reiterated that vaccines remain a key weapon against the virus. To date, over 49 million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered in the country of 60 million, and over 16 million people are now fully immunized, according to the latest government data.





Meanwhile, a limited outbreak caused by the Delta virus variant was confirmed on Tuesday in the area between the northern cities of Piacenza and Cremona, the ANSA news agency reported citing local sources.





Twenty-four people tested positive for the variant. Ten of them were employees of two companies based in a logistics hub near Piacenza. All these infections have been detected by the local public health department over the past six days, and all the infected people (none in critical condition) are currently in isolation, according to ANSA.
Choteau, MT (59422)

Today

Mainly clear. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 57F. Winds W at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

Mainly clear. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 57F. Winds W at 10 to 15 mph.
Internet & Technical Issues Corrected for Nominating Couples for 2021 WWME Longest Married Couple Project

NEWS PROVIDED BY

Worldwide Marriage Encounter

June 22, 2021



SAN BERNARDINO, Calif., June 22, 2021 /Christian Newswire/ -- A series of internet and technical issues that caused delays in nominating couples for the 2021 Longest Married Couple Project (LMC) sponsored by Worldwide Marriage Encounter (WWME) have now been corrected and nominations can be received without any problems.



"Normally we would have received many more nominations in the first three weeks of the project, but because of internet and technical issues only 6 couples have been nominated," said Dick & Diane Baumbach and Fr. Dick Morse, the WWME Longest Married Couple Project coordinators, adding "Now, that everything is back on track, family and friends can nominate their couples who have long marriages without any problems."



Due to the unexpected delays, the deadline for nominations has been extended to Sept. 10, 2021. This is the 11th year of the project which was started in 2010. What began as a simple idea to acknowledge couples whose marriages have gone the distance, has been so rewarding to WWME couples across the country. WWME honors a national winning couple along with couples from each of the 50 states and U.S. territories.



The first national winners for the project, which started in 2011, were Marshall & Winnie Kuykendall from Lordsburg, New Mexico who were honored for 82 years of marriage. National winners from Nevada, Connecticut, Kansas, Florida, Kentucky, North Carolina and three different couples from California have also been honored.



State winners have also been recognized for their longest marriages. There have been over 2600 couples nominated for the honors since the project began. Both national and state winners of the LMC project are selected solely from nominations submitted.



The national and state winners will be recognized in October of this year. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, last year's national winners were honored virtually by Tony & Sue Morris and Fr. Tom Ogg, the WWME National Leadership team, but this year they plan to do the recognition In person.



There will be a special ceremony with gifts for this year's national winners at their location. The state winners will also receive personal recognition and a special certificate of achievement from the Worldwide Marriage Encounter movement.



Nominations, which are open to all husband and wife couples regardless of religious affiliation, may be submitted online at longestmarriedcouple.wwme.org or by email, regular mail or calling a special phone number.



The contact information for sending in a nomination, which simply requires the name of the couple, their wedding date and where they currently reside- plus a contact phone or email address of the individual nominating the couple, is as follows:

go to longestmarriedcouple.wwme.org or



email to dick.diane.baumbach@wwme.org, or



regular mail:

Dick & Diane Baumbach

1332 Deer Trail

Rockledge, FL 32955 or



Special Phone Number 321-652-8262.

Nominations must be received by Sept. 10, 2021. As a matter of safety and protection, the nominators of the winning couples are initially contacted and not the actual winners.



Worldwide Marriage Encounter is the largest faith-based marriage enrichment organization in the world. WWME programs have enriched and transformed the lives of married couples and priests for generations. We offer a peer-to-peer experience, typically over a weekend, where married couples and priests can pause and reflect privately on the meaning of their vocations and are given the tools for nurturing their love. Our mission is to proclaim the value of marriage and holy orders in the Church and in the world.



To learn more about the Worldwide Marriage Encounter weekends online, go to wwme.org, or contact the WWME national office at (909) 332-7309.



Media inquiries should be directed to: Dick & Diane Baumbach (321) 544-3440 dickanddiane66@bellsouth.net or dick.diane.baumbach@wwme.org



SOURCE Worldwide Marriage Encounter



CONTACT: Dick & Diane Baumbach, 321-544-3440, dickanddiane66@bellsouth.net; dick.diane.baumbach@wwme.org


Arriving on campus for the first time as a freshman can be stressful for a multitude of reasons, so keeping yourself busy is key to settling into a healthy routine. In order to get into this new college lifestyle, Virginia Tech provides its students with plenty of opportunities outside the c
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Spirulina Extracts Market Overview:



The main function of spirulina is to raise the energy level and provide antioxidant protection to the food product and others products. Spirulina extracts available mainly in three colors such as blue, red and yellow. Blue spirulina extracts is used to make other three colors. Spirulina extract ingredients are used in food products, feed, cosmetics, fine chemicals, colours, cosmetics, nutraceuticals and bio-fertilizers. In all countries the food regulatory bodies has mandated to use of food color owing to its is harmfull for hiuman body. For example, food regulatory body, in Japan has banned the use of food color chemicals. In future instance, the global spirulina extract market is expected to grow with single digit compound annual growth rate. In 2016 the global spirulina extract market was valued at US$ XX Mn and by the end of the assessment year (2026), it is estimated to touch a value more than US$ XX Mn growing at a value CAGR of XX% throughout the period of forecast.



Global Spirulina Extracts Market Segmentation:



Global Spirulina Extracts Market can be segmented on the basis of Application:



Soft drinks

Confectionary

Dairy & fruit

Meat and savory

oil and fats

Vegetables

Others

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Spirulina Extracts Market: Dynamics



Increasing awareness pertaining to harmful effect of the chemical food colors is projected to enrich the adoption of sprirulina extracts during the forecast period. Moreover, increasing government regulation for clean label food production is also anticipated to a major favorable factor which could aggrandize the global spirulina extracts market over the slated time period. As well as enhancing in the development in the packaging innovation and food colour extraction techniques is estimated to further boost up the growth of spirulina extracts market.



High cost of production of natural colors in comparison to synthetic colors, is projected to the major factor which can hamper the sales of spiruline extracts during the forecast period. Moreover, spirulina extracts are less stable in comparison to synthetic color and high intensity of light is also effect the colour made by spirulina extracts, thus these factor may hinder the global spirulina extracts market throughout the forecast period.



Spirulina Extracts Market: Regional Outlook



Europe is projected to be dominate in the global spirulina extract market owing to increasing awareness of natural color products. North America is estimated to the second largest market due to increasing awareness of the adverse effect of the synthetic extracts. Latin America and Middle East & Africa are projected to grow with noteworthy CAGR over the forecast period owing to regional government has banned the import & export of the synthetic extract, which will further boost the demand of spirulina extracts market by the end of 2026.



Spirulina Extracts Market: Key Players

Request for Report Discount: https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/discount/3621



The key players for the global Spirulina Extracts Market are following:



Sensient Technologies Corporation

Hansen A/S

Naturex S.A.

DDW The Color House

DIC Corporation



Research Methodology:



TMR surveys a number of companies in order to estimate the data covered in the report through triangulation methodology. A detailed market understanding and assessment of the drive and application segments covered in the study. The research methodology also includes interviews conducted for various industry leaders by the research experts. This helps the researchers to match their previous findings with the ones confirmed from various resource persons. The report focuses on analyzing the supply-side approaches and keeps a track of that of the demand-side so as to make sure the findings are true. The global market scenario has been derived by consolidation of regional market overviews.

Full View of Report Description: https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/spirulina-extracts-market
The Substation Automation Market is anticipated to reach around USD 207.8 billion by 2026 according to a new research published by Polaris Market Research. In 2017, the Intelligent Electronic Devices segment dominated the substation automation global market, in terms of revenue. North America is expected to be the leading contributor to the global market revenue during the forecast period.

The growing adoption of smart cities, along with high demand of smart grids has boosted the adoption of substation automation. The rising demand for electricity, and growing demand for efficient and low-cost solutions in the solar energy sector further support the growth of substation automation market. Increasing investments by vendors in technological advancements, growing need to update existing networks, and increasing demand for retrofitting conventional substations would accelerate the adoption of substation automation during the forecast period. Growing demand from emerging economies, increasing adoption smart grid applications, and technological advancements are expected to provide numerous growth opportunities in the coming years.

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North America generated the highest revenue in the market in 2017, and is expected to lead the global substation automation market throughout the forecast period. The presence of established telecom and cloud infrastructure in this region, and growing trend of smart cities drive substation automation market growth in the region. The growing demand from energy sector, and technological advancements further support market growth in the region. The use of smart technologies in energy and utilities, industrial automation, and intelligent buildings is expected to support substation automation market growth in this region during the forecast period.

The companies operating in substation automation market include Schneider Electric SE, Cisco Systems, ABB Ltd., Siemens AG, Eaton Corporation Plc., General Electric, Honeywell International, Inc., Larsen & Toubro Limited, Crompton Greaves, and Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, Inc. These companies launch new products and collaborate with other market leaders to innovate and launch new products to meet the increasing needs and requirements of consumers.

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Global Automotive Robotics Industry: A Latest Research Report to Share Market Insights and Dynamics





The Automotive Robotics Market is anticipated to reach over USD 14,170 million by 2026 according to a new research published by Polaris Market Research. In 2017, the articulated robots dominated the global automotive robotics market, in terms of revenue. Asia-Pacific is expected to be the leading contributor to the global automotive robotics market revenue in 2017.

There has been an increase in the demand of automotive robotics across the world owing to greater need for automation of manufacturing processes. With the increasing use of collaborative robots in automotive applications, the overall demand for robotics to also influence the automotive robotics market growth. Automotive robots are being adopted by small and medium sized organizations at a huge pace for automation of manufacturing processes.

Market players are introducing application specific robots to meet the growing needs of the automotive industry. Growing need for automation and increasing labor costs further fuels the automotive robotics market growth. In addition, availability of affordable, high quality customized robotics solutions for diverse applications in the automotive industry stimulates the market growth.

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With international labor safety standards becoming more stringent, robots are being employed in hazardous environments in place of humans. Robots find application in situations that are dangerous and unsafe for human beings to work, such as working in irregular terrains and handling hazardous substances. Robots enable organizations to avoid risks and reduce the number of work accidents. This factor leads to greater adoption of robotics solutions in the global automotive industry.

Owing to stiff competition in the global automotive market, players are introducing low-cost and high quality robots to meet consumer demands. The advancements in technology enable developers to design new innovative products while maintaining the affordability of the product. The recently developed robots are energy efficient and designed to serve specific applications in the automotive industry. Acceptance of such robots by small and medium businesses has increased owing to its low cost and increased flexibility.

Asia-Pacific generated the highest revenue in the market in 2017, and is expected to lead the global market throughout the forecast period. Growing demand from automotive industry for high quality products, along with increasing labor costs encourages companies to invest in automotive robotics. With intense competition in the automotive industry, companies are setting up manufacturing facilities in these countries for timely deliveries of products to their customers. High demand of robots from Japan and South Korea would help in the growth of the automotive robotics market in the region. Other factors driving this market include rapid industrialization and increasing need for automation in manufacturing processes.

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The key players operating in the market include Fanuc Corporation, Rockwell Automation, Inc., ABB Ltd., Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Kuka AG, Denso Corporation, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, Yaskawa Electric Corporation, Nachi-Fujikoshi Corporation, DiFacto Robotics and Automation Pvt. Ltd. These companies launch new products and collaborate with other market leaders to innovate and launch new products to meet the increasing needs and requirements of consumers.
San Francisco, 23 June 2021: The Report Computer Numerical Control Machines Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Type (Milling, Welding, Lathe), By End Use (Automotive, Industrial), By Region (APAC, North America), And Segment Forecasts, 2021 - 2028

The global computer numerical control machines market size is expected to reach USD 126.27 billion by 2028, registering a CAGR of 7.5% from 2021 to 2028, according to a new study by Grand View Research, Inc. The rising need for minimizing operating costs and errors in machine components and increasing efficiency in manpower deployment has led to the increased demand for automation and CNC machines.

Governments across the globe have imposed restrictions on transportation owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has resulted in port closures. Factors, such as reduced availability of air transportation facilities and stringent border controls, are delaying the procurement of raw materials and components. The resulting delay in the shipment of products to customers is further adding to operational costs. While the situation is adversely affecting profitability and competitiveness, market players are also losing ground in the market as customers are looking to approach alternative suppliers.

Technological proliferation has enabled manufacturers to use the Internet of Things (IoT) and machine learning in controllers. The use of these technologies in Computer Numerical Control (CNC) Machines led to the development of software applications that are compatible with PCs and smart devices, which allows operators and supervisors to control the machines remotely. Furthermore, the use of IoT is expected to bring about several innovations in terms of automation in the field, which would help save time and improve the productivity of companies.

Manufacturers are increasingly focusing on current technological trends in the field of software to enhance the connectivity of machines with operators and improve flexibility on the shop floor area. Several companies are investing in R&D activities to improve the equipment design in a way that reduces the floor space required and allows multiple operations to be carried out by the same equipment, thereby improving the productivity of the plant. This is anticipated to boost the market growth.

Access Research Report of Computer Numerical Control Machines Market @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/computer-numerical-controls-cnc-market

Computer Numerical Control Machines Market Report Highlights

The milling machines segment is anticipated to register the fastest CAGR from 2021 to 2028 as a result of rising demand for this type of equipment owing to features, such as multi-functionality and reduced time requirements

The automotive segment is expected to register the maximum growth rate over the forecast period due to the rising product demand in this segment for producing components in less time and achieving a fine finish

Asia Pacific accounted for the largest market share, in terms of revenue, and is projected to expand further at the fastest CAGR over the forecast period

The increased focus on infrastructural development and digitization of industries in Asia Pacific is anticipated to drive the regional market growth

List of Key Players of Computer Numerical Control Machines Market

Amada Co., Ltd.

Amera Seiki

Fanuc Corp.

Datron AG

DMG Mori

Dalian Machine Tool Group (DMTG) Corp.

Haas Automation, Inc.

Okuma Corp.

Shenyang Machine Tool Co., Ltd. (SMTCL)

Hurco Companies, Inc.

Yamazaki Mazak Corp.

Access Press Release of Computer Numerical Control Machines Market @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/press-release/global-computer-numerical-controls-cnc-machines-market
Pediatric Home Healthcare Market Growth & Trends

The global pediatric home healthcare market size is expected to reach USD 68.6 billion by 2028, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is expected to expand at a CAGR of 7.8% from 2021 to 2028. The growing population of Children with Medical Complexities (CMC) requiring in-home care is expected to drive the market during the forecast period.

According to a study conducted in October 2016, around 1.0% of the pediatric population constitutes CMC in the U.S. This population accounts for almost 30.0% of the pediatric healthcare cost. In-home pediatric services significantly reduce medical expenditure by shortening hospital stays for children requiring complex medical assistance.

The pediatric care service is a thriving sector in the home healthcare industry and offers immense potential for players to expand their services. One of the major players in the market, BAYADA Home Health Care, mentioned pediatric nursing services as its largest revenue-generating specialty, accounting for about one-third of its revenue.

Furthermore, the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic is significantly increasing the demand for home healthcare services to children with multiple chronic conditions. However, as physician visits were restricted during the pandemic, home care agencys introduced virtual visits for patient care. For instance, in December 2020, St. Mary's Home Care  a home care agency in New York launched a virtual service platform for patient engagement.

Request a free sample copy or view report summary: Pediatric Home Healthcare Market Report

Pediatric Home Healthcare Market Report Highlights

Premature infants may suffer from numerous disorders that require rehabilitation therapy to improve motor functions

High probability of premature infants living with neurological and muscular deficits is expected to boost demand for rehabilitation therapy services during the forecast period

Children with physical and neurological development deficits require care in a comfortable and convenient environment

Personal care services offered by in-home care providers are a relief for working parents of such kids. The personal care assistance segment is expected to grow due to an increase in demand for long-term healthcare services for infants with complex cardiac, neurological, and respiratory disorders

North America held the largest revenue share in 2020. Favorable reimbursement policies in the U.S., wherein the majority of pediatric care services are covered under Medicaid is positively driving the market

Major players in the market have undertaken numerous initiatives to enhance pediatric services offered for in-home care. For instance, in September 2017, doForms-a workflow automation software provider-collaborated with BAYADA Home Health Care to launch BAYADA Pediatrics Care Connect-an electronic documentation system that keeps a record of clinical information

Access Press Release@ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/press-release/global-pediatric-home-healthcare-market

Pediatric Home Healthcare Market Segmentation

Grand View Research has segmented the global pediatric home healthcare market on the basis of service and region:

Pediatric Home Healthcare Service Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2028)

Skilled Nursing Services

Personal Care Assistance

Rehabilitation Therapy Services

Pediatric Home Healthcare Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2028)

North America US. Canada

Europe UK. Germany France Italy Spain

Asia Pacific China Japan India

Latin America Brazil Mexico

Middle East & Africa (MEA) South Africa Saudi Arabia Kuwait



List of Key Players of Pediatric Home Healthcare Market

Aveanna Healthcare, Inc.

DJK Home Healthcare LLC

BAYADA Home Health Care

Tendercare Home Health

BrightStar Care

Angels of Care Pediatric Home Health

New England Home Care, Inc.

Pediatric Home Healthcare

Enviva Paediatric Care

Interim Healthcare Inc.

eKidzCare

MGA Homecare

At Home Healthcare

ParaMed

About Grand View Research

Grand View Research, Inc. is a U.S. based market research and consulting company, registered in the State of California and headquartered in San Francisco. The company provides syndicated research reports, customized research reports, and consulting services. To help clients make informed business decisions, we offer market intelligence studies ensuring relevant and fact-based research across a range of industries, from technology to chemicals, materials and healthcare.
Market Definition:

Calcium silicate is a powder procured from limestone and diatomaceous earth. It is extensively used across different end-user industries and is likely to witness rising applications in the years to come. Market Research Future (MRFR) has conducted an analysis recently which states that the global calcium silicate market is poised to expand at a moderate CAGR over the assessment period 2016 to 2023. The growth pace of the market can be accredited to the key advantages offered by the product such as passiveness towards the fire.

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Market Scenario and Growth Factors:

Calcium silicate has paved its way across the construction sector which is poised to influence the revenue growth of the market primarily. It is anticipated to catalyze revenue creation for the players of the calcium silicate market over the next few years. In addition, the implementation of favorable regulatory laws for protecting the health of the workers at construction sites are also projected to support the expansion of the market in the forthcoming years. In addition, rapid industrialization has also unleashed developmental opportunities to the calcium silicate market. The use of the product for insulation in industries is likely to lead the proliferation of the market in the years to come.

Calcium silicate is expected to observe an upsurge in demand for the production of sealants. It helps in sealing micropores which are anticipated to expedite demand generation across the projection period. In addition, it is also likely to gain popularity as an anti-caking agent in food preparation. Also, the product is poised to pave its way across the food & beverage industry as a food additive. These factors are poised to accelerate revenue creation for the participants of the Calcium Silicate Market Analysis over the next couple of years.

The product is expected to witness proliferating applications across industries such as paints & coating materials, pharmaceuticals, fertilizers & insecticides, etc. The growth of these industries is anticipated to boost revenue growth over the next few years.

Competitive Dashboard:

The key players operating in the global Calcium silicate market and profiled in this MRFR report are:

Promat International NV (Belgium)

American Elements (U.S.)

Morgan Advanced Materials (U.K)

Spectrum Chemical Manufacturing Corp. (U.S.)

Prochem, Inc. (U.S.), Materion Corporation (U.S.)

Mil-Spec Industries Corporation (New York)

Associated Ceramics & Technology, Inc. (U.S.)

Pyrotek (India),

ZIRCAR CERAMICS (India),

Skamol (Denmark),

Industrial Insulation Group, LLC (U.S.)

Market Segmentation:

The global Calcium Silicate Market has been segmented on the basis of application for a detailed segmental analysis. Based on application, the segments include insulation, building materials, sealants, pharmaceuticals, food additive, and others.

Regional Analysis:

On the basis of region, the global calcium silicate market has been segmented into five regions viz. Asia Pacific, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East & Africa (MEA), and North America. Asia Pacific is expected to retain the leading position over the next couple of years. The regional segment resonates strong growth potential and is anticipated to strike a healthy growth rate in the years to come. Rapid industrialization and urbanization are the key factors expected to encourage the growth pace of the calcium silicate market in the region across the projection period. Fast-developing nations such as China and India are prognosticated to contribute significantly to the development of the regional segment in the foreseeable future. In addition, the growth of the end-user industries such as paints & coating, construction, adhesives & sealants, etc. is also anticipated to catapult the regional segment on upward trajectory.

North America and Europe are also significant growth pockets expected to expand at a substantial pace in the forthcoming years. Technological innovations and increasing consumption levels are forecasted to favorably influence the expansion of the calcium silicate market in these regions.

BROWSE RELATED REPORT @

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https://www.marketwatch.com/press-release/fiber-optic-sensor-market-size-and-global-trends-2020-covid-19-business-impact-industry-analysis-sales-revenue-opportunities-top-leaders-and-regional-forecast-to-2022-2020-09-07

http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/4797814

https://www.wboc.com/story/42598499/fiber-optic-sensor-market-size-and-global-trends-2020-covid19-business-impact-industry-analysis-sales-revenue-opportunities-top-leaders-and-regional-forecast-to-2022
The global material handling equipment market size is anticipated to reach USD 46.2 billion by 2026 growing at a CAGR of 6.6% from 2019 to 2026 according to a new study published by Polaris Market Research. The report Material Handling Equipment Market Size By Type (Storage & Handling Equipment, Industrial Trucks, Bulk Material Handling Equipment, Others); By Application (Assembly, Storage, Packaging, Transportation, Others); By End-User (Automotive, Electronics, Chemical, Pharmaceutical, Aviation, Others); and By Region] Segments and Forecast 2019  2026 provides insights on the current market scenario and the future prospects.

Get sample copy of this report @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/material-handling-equipment-market/request-for-sample

In 2018, the industrial trucks segment dominated the global market, in terms of revenue. Europe is expected to be the leading contributor to the global market in 2017. There has been an increase in adoption of material handling equipment across the world owing to growing manufacturing industry. The increasing need for efficient warehouse operations, and increasing automation of manufacturing processes further supports the market growth. Other factors driving the growth of this market include growth in the global automotive industry, reduced availability and high labour costs. Also, increasing demand of material handling equipment in chemical, pharmaceutical, electronics, and food and beverage industries has created the need to develop new innovative products for diversified application areas in these sectors. However, high initial investment might restrict the growth of material handling equipment market. Growing demand from emerging economies, and technological advancements are factors expected to provide numerous growth opportunities in the market during the forecast period.

The global Material Handling Equipment industry is segmented on the basis of type, application, end-user, and region. Based on the type, the market is segmented into storage & handling equipment, industrial trucks, bulk material handling equipment, and others. The application segment is divided into assembly, storage, packaging, transportation, and others. The end-users scope includes automotive, electronics, chemical, pharmaceutical, aviation, and others.

Browse for full research summary: https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/material-handling-equipment-market

During 2018, Europe generated the highest revenue in the Material Handling Equipment market. The increasing automation in the manufacturing sector, and the established automotive industry drive the growth of this market in Europe. Government encouragement and related strict regulations to implement operator safety measures are driving the companies towards material handling systems for operating hazardous materials. Moreover, increasing investments and subsidies by governments are expected to boost the adoption of material handling equipment in this region. The need to improve efficiency and productivity along with increased industrialization and automation further supplements market growth. Asia-Pacific is expected to grow at the highest CAGR in during the market during the forecast period.

The Material Handling Equipment Market report also includes a section for profiles of key companies in this market. Some of the key vendors profiled in this report include Daifuku Co., Ltd., KUKA AG, Dematic GmbH & Co., Crown Equipment Corporation, Clark Material Handling Company, Columbus McKinnon Corp., Beumer Group GmbH, Kion Group, Intelligrated, Inc., SSI Schaefer

Material Handling Equipment Market: Regional Estimates & Trend Analysis

North America U.S. Canada Mexico

Europe Germany UK France Italy

Asia Pacific China India Japan

Latin America Brazil

Middle East & Africa

Check for discount: https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/material-handling-equipment-market/request-for-discount-pricing

About Polaris Market Research

Polaris Market Research is a global market research and consulting company. We provide unmatched quality of offerings to our clients present globally. The company specializes in providing exceptional market intelligence and in-depth business research services for our clientele spread across different enterprises. We at Polaris are obliged to serve our diverse customer base present across the industries of healthcare, technology, semi-conductors and chemicals among various other industries present around the world.

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The Global Food Service Equipment Market is anticipated to reach USD 62 billion by 2026 according to a new research published by Polaris Market Research. In 2017, the cooking and food & beverage preparation equipment segments dominated the global market, in terms of revenue. North America is expected to be the leading contributor to the global market revenue during the forecast period.

The significant increase in food establishments, and the growing hospitality industry are the major factors driving the growth of the Food Service Equipment market. The changing lifestyles and increasing disposable incomes are leading to higher instances of dining at restaurants and living at hotels and resorts. The growing demand for affordable and energy efficient equipment supports the growth of the market.

Get sample copy of this report @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/food-service-equipment-market/request-for-sample

Hotels and restaurants are increasingly adopting technologically advanced food service equipment for performing kitchen activities efficiently and offering enhanced services to consumers. Restaurant businesses prefer compact and space efficient equipment, which encourages market players to launch new products in the global market. Increasing spending on the hospitality sector, and tourism activities encourage restaurant owners to improve their infrastructure and offer enhanced services. Moreover, the Food Service Equipment market is also driven by increasing need to use food service equipment that consume less energy and provide faster kitchen services. Growing concerns regarding environment and increasing adoption of energy efficient food service equipment are expected to offer numerous growth opportunities in the future. However, high costs associated with food service equipment, and high installation prices restrict the growth of the Food Service Equipment market.

The North America Food Service Equipment market generated the highest revenue in the market in 2017, and is expected to lead the global market during the forecast period. The high living standards along with high disposable income in the region drive the market growth. Other factors supporting market growth in North America include growth in tourism industry, increasing awareness regarding energy efficient equipment, and growing adoption of smart technologies. The Asia-Pacific Food Service Equipment market is expected to grow at a significant rate during the forecast period owing to the increasing population and improving living standards.

Complete Summary with TOC Available @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/food-service-equipment-market

The different end-users of food service equipment include hotels and clubs, full service restaurants, quick service restaurants, and others. In 2017, hotels and clubs accounted for the highest market share owing to increasing need to offer enhanced services to consumers. Hotels and clubs are increasingly adopting technologically advanced food service equipment to meet high storage demands and to offer fresh & high quality food. Food establishments are also inclined towards using energy efficient service equipment owing to growing environmental concerns.

The leading companies profiled in the Food Service Equipment market report include Dover Corporation, Haier Electronics Group Co., Ltd., Duke Manufacturing Co. Inc., Illinois Tool Works (ITW) Inc., Fujimak Corporation, Duke Manufacturing Co. Inc., Ali Group, Hoshizaki Corporation, Middleby Corporation, Manitowoc Company Inc, and AB Electrolux among others. These companies launch new products and collaborate with other market leaders to innovate and launch new products to meet the increasing needs and requirements of consumers.

Food Service Equipment Market Size and Forecast, 2017-2026 by Region

North America US. Canada Mexico

Europe Germany UK France Italy Rest of Europe

Asia-Pacific China India Japan Rest of Asia-Pacific

Latin America Brazil Middle East & Africa



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About Polaris Market Research

Polaris Market Research is a global market research and consulting company. We provide unmatched quality of offerings to our clients present globally. The company specializes in providing exceptional market intelligence and in-depth business research services for our clientele spread across different enterprises. We at Polaris are obliged to serve our diverse customer base present across the industries of healthcare, technology, semi-conductors and chemicals among various other industries present around the world.

Contact us-

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Phone: 1-646-568-9980

Email: sales@polarismarketresearch.com

Web: www.polarismarketresearch.com
A new report titled Power Bank Market Size, Growth Analysis & Forecast to 2027 by "Value Market Research" covers key players along side their market share and strategic development adopted by them which provides market scenarios and future situations along side an analysis of market trends, current and future, drivers, challenges, recent trends, opportunities, advancements, and competitive landscape.

The broad power bank market has been sub-grouped into capacity range, energy source, battery type, end-user and distribution channel. The report studies these subsets with respect to the geographical segmentation. The strategists can gain a detailed insight and devise appropriate strategies to target specific market. This detail will lead to a focused approach leading to identification of better opportunities

Request a FREE Sample Copy of Power Bank Market Report with Full TOC At: https://www.valuemarketresearch.com/contact/power-bank-market/download-sample

By Capacity Range

 Up to 3,000 mAh

 3,001 mAh-8,000 mAh

 8,001 mAh-20,000 mAh

 Above 20,000 mAh

By Energy Source

 Electric

 Solar

By Battery Type

 Lithium-Ion

 Lithium Polymer

By End-User

 Industrial/B2B

 Consumer Electronics

By Distribution Channel

 Online

 Offline

The report also covers a detailed competitive landscape including company profiles of key players operating in the global market. The key players in the power bank market include Ambrane India Private Limited, Anker Technology Co. Limited, ASUSTeK Computer Inc., Beijing Xiaomi Technology Co., Ltd., Intex Technologies, Lenovo Group Ltd., Microsoft Corporation, Panasonic Corporation, SAMSUNG SDI CO., LTD., and Sony Corporation. An in-depth view of the competitive outlook includes future capacities, key mergers & acquisitions, financial overview, partnerships, collaborations, new product launches, new product developments and other developments with information in terms of H.Q.

Furthermore, the report comprises of the geographical segmentation which mainly focuses on current and forecast demand for power bank in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa. The report further focuses on demand for individual application segments in all the regions.

Browse Full Global Power Bank Market Research Report With TOC At: https://www.valuemarketresearch.com/report/power-bank-market

About Us:

Value Market Research was established with the vision to ease decision making and empower the strategists by providing them with holistic market information.

We facilitate clients with syndicate research reports and customized research reports on 25+ industries with global as well as regional coverage.

Contact:

Value Market Research

401/402, TFM, Nagras Road, Aundh, Pune-7.

Maharashtra, INDIA.

Tel: +1-888-294-1147

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Shopping at a thrift store is as interesting as shopping at an antique shop for many people. Finding unique, vintage items to treasure or gift is a fun activity whether you pop in on lunch break or browse during vacation time. Debbie Bell at the Graham Memorial Presbyterian Church Thrift Cottage.
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Litchfield (06759)

Today

Cloudy with periods of light rain. Low 54F. Winds ENE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

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Cloudy with periods of light rain. Low 54F. Winds ENE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 80%.
Another bystander who told police he saw Smith and Santiago kicking the man in the street tried to intervene in the assault but instead found himself held at gun- and knifepoint, court records show. The pair stole $200 from his pockets and the watch off his wrist and tried to flee as the sirens from approaching police cruisers grew louder, he told police.
I must emphasize that this case is among the most disturbing and heinous series of acts that any law enforcement officer will ever encounter in their careers, Groton Town Police Chief Louis J. Fusaro Jr. said. It will stay with all of them and the victims for the rest of their lives. ... We hope that the conviction of this predator will help the many victims impacted by his actions to begin the healing process.
Him, a few other of his firefighters, the guy from corrections in the police department, they all got together and started getting food, soap and everything else, Leon Bowman, Rankins cousin, said. This dude was doing anything he could do to help these people out, help them get housing, anything, ... because he [felt that he wasnt] going to leave it up to nobody else. So he got his friends together and did it.
Many of us  if not most of us  are seeing a rise in crime, while at the same time, were hearing calls for reform, Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison said of cities in remarks Tuesday at a forum on policing. And some of those calls are to the extreme of dismantle and defund ... while all of the same time were sworn to protect the people.
Oftentimes as it goes, this is an insiders game but I wish all the best to the new chairman and I wish great success to the party, Cusato said. The chairmanship requires a lot of a person and Republicans and conservatives deserve to have someone who will go above and beyond every single day.
Execution Protocol Established by State Prison System on Trial

Men sentenced to death challenge the validity of Ohios protocol for executing prisoners.

Men sentenced to death challenge the validity of Ohios protocol for executing prisoners.

Two men on death row believe Ohios process for executing prisoners is invalid because of the way it was put into place.

The Department of Rehabilitation and Correction (DRC) develops a protocol for executions. The men argue the protocol is a set of rules that the DRC must submit through the states formal rulemaking procedure before implementing. The DRC didnt follow the procedure, so the agency cannot execute them, the men conclude.

Men Sentenced to Death in Separate Cases

James ONeal received the death penalty for murdering his wife in 1993 in her Madisonville home. During a 2003 robbery in Lima, Cleveland Jackson shot into a crowd, killing a teenager and a 3-year-old. Jackson was sentenced to death. Both mens executions are scheduled for 2023.

ONeal sued the state in Franklin County Common Pleas Court in January 2018, arguing that the DRC protocol is invalid because it was improperly adopted. The court allowed Jackson to intervene in the case later that year. In April 2019, the court granted summary judgment in the DRCs favor.

The men each filed appeals with the Tenth District Court of Appeals. In a combined ruling, the appeals court upheld the trial court, stating in part that the execution protocol isnt a government agency rule.

R.C. 111.15 defines a rule as any rule, regulation, bylaw, or standard having a general and uniform operation adopted by an agency under the authority of the laws governing the agency; any appendix to a rule; and any internal management rule. Rules developed by government agencies in the state must go through a formal rulemaking process.

ONeal and Jackson appealed the Tenth Districts judgment separately. The Ohio Supreme Court accepted both cases and combined them for oral argument.

Protocol Presents General, Uniform Operation for Executions, Men Maintain

ONeal and Jackson maintain that the execution protocol  specifically, DRC 01-COM-11  is a rule because it sets DRC standards that have a general and uniform operation for carrying out executions.

Under state law, government agencies must file all proposed rules with the Ohio secretary of state, the Legislative Service Commission, and the Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review and must meet certain standards before the rules can take effect. However, the DRC didnt submit the execution protocol to any of these agencies. Because the DRC failed to follow the rulemaking process, the execution protocol is invalid, Jackson contends.

ONeal disputes the Tenth Districts conclusion that the protocol isnt a rule because it fills the gaps left by the General Assembly when enacting the state law governing executions. ONeal agrees that administrative agencies adopt rules to fill the gaps in statutes and describes this role as part of the agencys responsibility and power. However, he argues, the filling of legislative gaps doesnt exempt the DRC from the rulemaking requirements in R.C. 111.15.

Jackson notes that California, Kentucky, Maryland, Nebraska, and Oregon mandate that execution protocols go through their state administrative rulemaking procedures.

Inmates Cant Sue and Protocol Describes Employee Duties, State Responds

Represented by the Ohio Attorney Generals Office, the DRC argues the men dont have the right to sue because the agency isnt mandated to use a written execution protocol. The men could be executed with or without a written protocol, the agency maintains. Because the mens injuries  their scheduled executions  cant be corrected by a ruling in their favor, they dont have standing and the Court cannot hear the cases, the DRC asserts.

The agency also contends that the protocol isnt a rule because it doesnt have general and uniform application. Although R.C. 111.15 states that an internal management rule falls under the definition of rule, the law also notes that any order respecting the duties of employees is not a rule. The agency argues the protocol isnt a rule, viewing it as an order that directs the responsibilities of employees  essentially a checklist for personnel carrying out executions.

The DRC maintains that not all government agency processes that fill the gaps left by legislation are necessarily rules. It notes, for example, that the Secretary of States election manual details many mechanics of voting but isnt submitted through the rules process.

Oral Argument Details

The Supreme Court will hear four cases on June 29. The Court will consider arguments in Jackson v. State and ONeal v. State as well as two other appeals on June 30. Oral arguments begin each day at 9 a.m.

The Court will hold its session by videoconference. The arguments will be streamed live online at sc.ohio.gov and broadcast live on the Ohio Channel, which also archives them.

In addition to these highlights, the Courts Office of Public Information released preview articles today about each case, available through the case-name links.

Tuesday, June 29

A job posting for captain in the Cincinnati Police Department required two years of experience as a police lieutenant. The citys civil service commission waived the prerequisite and allowed lieutenants with at least one year to take the exam for the promotion. In State ex rel. Johnstone v. Cincinnati, a lieutenant of more than two years who wasnt promoted maintains the commission illegally waived the experience prerequisite. The city counters that state law mandates that only sergeant positions can require more than a year of service in the prior rank.

In early 2020, a northern Ohio company applied to the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) to be a competitive retail electric service provider. The company moved into the same Akron office building that serves as the headquarters of its affiliated regional monopoly electric transmission service provider. The retailer and the transmission service shared key employees and a similar trade name. The Court will consider in In re Application of Suvon objections raised by a competing retail provider and the states residential consumer advocate that the PUCO improperly authorized the new retail company to operate. Opponents reject the PUCOs order to defer all questions about whether the provider complied with rules on corporate separation to a special audit, which also is examining the utility providers role in an Ohio Statehouse bribery scandal.

The Logan County Drug Task Force set up a controlled buy in 2018 to observe a suspected drug dealer sell cocaine. Based on the sale, a detective submitted details of the investigation to the municipal court seeking an arrest warrant for the suspect. As part of the process, the judge stamped on the complaint page that there was sufficient probable cause to issue the warrant. However, the warrant form was left blank with the understanding it would be completed after the arrest. In the trial court, the suspect successfully argued to suppress the evidence retrieved from him and his vehicle after the arrest, contending the warrant was invalid. In State v. Harrison, the Court will consider if an arrest warrant is valid if it doesnt contain a judges signature authorizing it.

The recent Reagan Tokes Law is the focus of State v. Maddox. Under the law, an offender can be released once the offenders minimum prison term is complete, but prison officials can choose to delay the release up to the stated maximum prison term. A man who was sentenced in Lucas County to four to six years argues the indefinite sentencing structure is unconstitutional and he can challenge the laws constitutionality before serving his minimum time. The county prosecutor asserts that the man has suffered no harm at this point because prison officials havent extended his sentence beyond the minimum.

Wednesday, June 30

A Franklin County man on trial for a 2019 shooting at a local carryout took the witness stand in his own defense. He wanted to explain the interactions that led to him shooting another man in the leg and to claim his actions were in self-defense. While he was testifying, the trial court judge interrupted him several times with pointed questions. Before the jury deliberated, the judge instructed jury members to ignore his remarks. In State v. West, the man argues his constitutional due process right to an impartial judge was violated and he is entitled to a new trial. The county prosecutor maintains the man failed to prove the judges behavior affected the outcome and the verdict should stand.

A Dayton community school director approved applications to receive more than $400,000 in public funds to educate students for the 2009-2010 school year. Following state law, the schools board of directors hired a chief fiscal officer, who was responsible for all financial matters and reported directly to the board. A 2012 audit revealed more than $50,000 in suspicious transactions by the community school, and a federal investigation found the fiscal officer was embezzling from the Dayton school and others. The fiscal officer was sentenced to two years in federal prison in 2012. The state sued the school director, stating that he is personally liable for paying back the lost money. In State ex rel. Ohio Attorney General v. Burns, the Court will consider if the director is responsible for funds that he didnt receive or control.
Cut Bank, MT (59427)

Today

Mostly clear. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 54F. Winds WNW at 10 to 20 mph..

Tonight

Mostly clear. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 54F. Winds WNW at 10 to 20 mph.
Last year, Gov. Ralph Northam announced that rsted agreed to lease a portion of the Portsmouth Marine Terminal to stage equipment. A spokesman for the Port of Virginia, Joseph Harris, said he thinks Charybdis could attract more ships, jobs and investments related to the offshore wind industry, though its too early to say how much. He said having the Portsmouth Marine Terminal available for such development is an asset and can serve as a magnet.
The petition, filed Tuesday afternoon in Chesapeake Circuit Court, claims Lucas escalate(d) the aggression of the protesters that day when she asked Portsmouth police to refrain from arresting demonstrators and told the crowd no one would be arrested. The document alleges Lucas prevented officers from performing their sworn duty to the community to preserve property and life.
Dublin called the newspaper after the story published on June 20 to say hes living in a rooming house in the Huntersville neighborhood. He had indeed been at deaths door  admitted to Sentara Heart Hospital in late December with a host of serious problems, including symptoms of COVID-19 pneumonia. Doctors had to resuscitate him several times. He says he has no memory of the nearly two months he was there.
We would not be in here today if Keith had not forced us into that room and made us stay in there. He gave his life so that all seven of us women could have ours, Tara McGee, one of Coxs coworkers, told The Virginian-Pilot days after the shooting.
Amidst the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the CBSE had earlier this month had also cancelled the class 12 exams. (Representative image: PTI)

Hyderabad: The Telangana government has decided to cancel the Class 12 exam for the academic year 2020-21 and promote all Class 11 students to Class 12.

The state government has further said that Class 12 results will be declared on the basis of pre-determined objective criteria. The Secretary of the Board of Intermediate Examination has been directed to issue orders for promoting all Class 11 students to Class 12. The Class 11 students will now be eligible to attend classes. The government has, however, announced the Class XI exams will be conducted sooner or later, and that students will have to appear for these exams.

"Considering the present pandemic situation prevailing in the State, Government hereby decides to cancel Class XII Intermediate public examination for academic year 2020-21. Results to be declared on basis of pre-determined objective criteria. Secretary, Board of Intermediate Examination is directed to issue orders for promoting all Class XI students to Class XII," the government of Telangana said in its order dated June 14.

Amidst the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the CBSE had earlier this month had also cancelled the class 12 exams. Many other state boards have also announced similar decisions.
A BMC health worker collects swab sample of a passenger for COVID-19 testing, at Dadar railway station in Mumbai on June 22, 2021. (PTI/Shashank Parade)

New Delhi: With 50,848 fresh infections and 68,817 recoveries in the last 24 hours, India's COVID-19 active caseload declined to 6,43,194, the lowest in 82 days, the Union Health Ministry informed on Wednesday.

The country is witnessing a continuous decline in fresh coronavirus cases for the past few weeks.

On April 22, the country achieved a grim milestone in its fight against the raging coronavirus as it reported over 3 lakh new cases in a 24-hour period for the first time since the pandemic began last year.

The country witnessed as many as 1,358 deaths due to COVID-19 in the last 24 hours.

With the new cases, the cumulative caseload has climbed to 3,00,28,709 including 6,43,194 active cases, 3,90,660 deaths and 2,89,94,855 recoveries.

The COVID-19 testing capacity has also substantially ramped up as 39.59 crore tests are conducted so far, out of which 19,01,056 tests were conducted yesterday.

According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), the daily positivity rate in the country stands at 2.67 per cent. The weekly positivity rate remained less than 5 per cent for the 16th consecutive day and currently stood at 3.12 per cent.

As daily recoveries continue to outnumber the daily new cases for the 41st consecutive day, the recovery rate improved to 96.56 per cent.

The Union Health Ministry informed that 54.24 lakh vaccine doses were administered in the last 24 hours. 29.46 crore vaccine doses have been administered so far under the vaccination drive.
Every month, these departments have to submit the salary bills of their employees before 25th of the month. (PTI Photo)

Hyderabad: Lakhs of state government employees are a disappointed lot having come to know that they will receive only old salary for this month too, even after announcement of the new PRC scales in March.

Although the state government is yet to officially announce that old salaries will be paid for this month, the matter became evident after all departments started submitting old salary bills to the treasury department. Every month, these departments have to submit the salary bills of their employees before 25th of the month.

Official sources said technical issues in updating software that uploads revised salaries online is the reason for delay in payment of new salaries.

Employees have been hoping for the new pay scales since March, when Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao announced the new PRC in Legislative Assembly with effect from April. They had hoped that they will start receiving new salaries with 30 per cent fitment (hike in basic pay) from April.

Government staff are disappointed that they have not been able to receive their higher salaries till date. First, there had been a delay in signing the PRC file by Chief Minister, who had contracted Coronavirus and remained in home isolation for two weeks in April. After the CM signed the file, respective GOs needed to be issued for implementing the new PRC. This could not be done due to lockdown in May.

The cabinet approved the new PRC two weeks ago and GOs had been issued subsequently.

This raised hopes that employees will get new salaries from this month, as all formalities had been completed. But reports of technical glitch in software updation followed, which has dashed their hopes again. They may now have to wait for one more month to receive their new salaries.

Official sources said arrangements are, however, being made to pay arrears to employees on July 10.
The association does not agree to the government's suggestion to further lower tuition and other fees. (Representational image: PTI)

HYDERABAD: The functionaries of the Telangana Recognised Schools Management Association (TRSMA) representing private schools are meeting Education Minister Sabitha Indra Reddy on Wednesday in view of reopening of schools from July 1, as announced by the state government last week.

The association does not agree to the government's suggestion to further lower tuition and other fees. There exists a financial crisis. In order to sustain the operations, parents of all students in private budget schools should be mandated to pay the fee dues pending since March last year, it stresses.

"Hardly 30-40 per cent of the parents have paid the fees due to the abrupt closures. This has made it difficult for most schools to continue with their operations. Lowering the fees any further is not acceptable to us. Schools now conduct both offline and online classes. There will be added expenditure by way of bills, rents and sanitization," it said.

It added that no school has increased the fees in the past two years. "If the fees are reduced, we will not be able to pay salary to teachers and other staff," said Sadulla Madhusudhan, TRSMA general secretary.

Another issue being taken up with the education minister is on preparation of an academic calendar for the new session. This was not done the previous academic year. The association also wants attendance made mandatory and to give 30 per cent weightage to attendance in the final results for students.
On Tuesday, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan had said the Delta variant is found in 80 countries around the world, including India, and it is a variant of concern. (PTI Photo)

Chennai: Tamil Nadu has reported its first case of Delta Plus variant of Covid-19 from here, with a city-based nurse getting infected with it, a top government official said on Wednesday.

The state health department had sent 1,159 samples in May to INSACOG (Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomic Consortia), a consortium of 28 labs tasked with genome sequencing of the virus causing Covid and reports of 772 samples were made available on Wednesday, Tamil Nadu Health Secretary Dr J Radhakrishnan said.

"Of the 772 samples, one has been reported as Delta Plus variant from Chennai. It pertained to a 32-year-old lady employed as a staff nurse at a hospital," he told PTI.

The senior IAS official, who has been handling the pandemic crisis, said there was no need for alarm.

"We have seen the British variant and double mutant variant. There is no need to panic as of now," Radhakrishnan said and emphasised upon the need to adhere to Covid-19 prevention measures like wearing face mask, avoiding crowds and getting vaccinated.

The Delta Plus variant's properties, which are being investigated, is characterised by a mutation in the spike protein, which helps the virus gain entry into human cells.

Neighbouring Kerala, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh have identified similar cases.

On Tuesday, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan had said the Delta variant is found in 80 countries around the world, including India, and it is a variant of concern.
The parents said that they would not send young children to physical classes until there was a vaccine available for them. (Photo: DC/File)

Hyderabad: Parents, especially of private school students in the city, expressed their disagreement with the government's order to open schools, even as detailed guidelines for operations are still awaited.

They said that they would not send young children to physical classes until there was a vaccine available for them. Some even said they would feel more comfortable in dropping a year of schooling if the government made attendance mandatory.

In an anonymous poll conducted by the Hyderabad Schools' Parents Association (HSPA), 96 percent of parents who participated said they would not send their children to school this year.

Sanjay Agarwal, advocate and parent of students in Classes 4 and 5 in the city, said, "If the government mandates attendance, I would go to the school to allow online classes for my children. Our family has decided that none of our children will take physical classes this year. We cannot play with the lives of our children."

On Twitter as well, parents demanded that vaccines for children and all teaching and non-teaching staff be made prerequisite to convince parents to opt for physical schooling. A Twitter user by the name Ravi Kiran city commented that there would be no school for their kids without a vaccine. "Incidents in the last few months have shown how ready and strong our healthcare system is," some of them tweeted.

Concerns have also been raised on the situation that arose when schools were reopened at the beginning of this year, where several students and teaching and non-teaching staff got infected with Covid-19 especially in government and residential schools.

However, the government is yet to give final guidelines for opening educational institutes in the state along with the conduct of physical and online classes for the next academic year starting from July 1.
Telangana government on Wednesday submitted to the High Court that the decision on reopening of schools was yet to be finalised and deliberations were going on to take a final call on the issue. (Representational Photo:DC)

HYDERABAD: The State government on Wednesday submitted to the High Court that the decision on reopening of schools was yet to be finalised and deliberations were going on to take a final call on the issue.

Secretary of state education department Sandeep Kumar Sultania appeared before the court and assured that there was no compulsion on the parents to send their wards to schools physically from July 1 and said a final decision was not taken on the issue and as deliberations were still going. The High Court recorded his statement and issued notices to the government to make clear its stand on reopening of educational institutions.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Hima Kohli and Justice B. Vijaysen Reddy was dealing with a batch of public interest litigations (PILS) on Covid-19, which also dealt with an interim application filed to quash the GO. 121 on the ground that the state was not yet prepared to tackle the third wave of Coronavirus in the state. GO. 121 was issued on June 19, which directed the officials to reopen schools and colleges for conducting physical classes from July 1.

Ravichander, senior counsel appearing for the petitioner in one of the PILs, sought a direction to quash the GO stating that there was no information from the Telangana government as to what steps it had put in place, if the 3rd wave of Coronavirus hit the state. He brought to the notice of the court the opinions of experts and scientists, who anticipated the third wave would be more impactful on children and could be fatal. He further pointed out that though the medical and health department website showed that only 24 beds were allocated to Niloufer Hospital, the state, contrary to this figure, informed the court that 2,000 beds had been allocated to the hospital.

The court expressed its dissatisfaction over the decision in issuing a GO. 121 and summoned the secretary of the education department to directly know how the government came to the decision to reopen all educational institutions in the state from July 1.

Replying to questions raised by Justice Kohli, Sandeep Kumar Sultania answered that it was not the final decision and the government was thinking of conducting the classes for high school students only.

He answered online classes would be conducted from July 1 and if offline classes would be conducted to the higher classes, there was no compulsory attendance binding on the students. Recalling the classes conducted for high school students in February this year, he submitted that without the approval of parents, there was no compulsion to attend the physical classes.

Sultania assured the court in two days a decision would be taken on whether physical classes would be conducted. He also said that there were suggestions to postpone physical classes to the lower classes from 1 to 7. The court recorded his statements and sought the stand of the government in reopening of schools.
Hyderabad: A cyber fraudster who cheated Tollywood actor Ali and a television channel under the guise of providing vaccination against Covid-19 has been arrested by the Cyberabad cybercrime police. The accused identified as Tikkisetti Nagendra Babu (27) is a chef working in a five-star hotel in Chennai.

According to the police, Babu cheated several high-profile persons promising to provide Covid-19 vaccines.

Assistant commissioner of police K. Balakrishna, Cyberabad Cybercrime Cell, said, "He used to collect mobile numbers of the persons he would target. Later, he used to contact them over phone and assure them to provide vaccination. He used to make them believe that he was from the health department."

Falling prey to his fraud, many victims transferred lakhs of rupees as advance amount for the vaccine. As per the police records, he started committing crimes in 2016. The first case was booked in Vijayawada, reportedly his hometown. Nagendra Babu used to trick victims under the guise of providing them with fancy phone numbers and faces three cases on this count.

Taking advantage of the Covid-19 pandemic, he hatched a plan to cheat the public by promising Covid-19 vaccination. Likewise, he reportedly took Rs. 1 lakh from comedian Ali and another Rs. 1 lakh from film producer Suresh Babu.

In another case, he cheated a television channel making the same assurance. He impersonated as a close associate of minister K.T. Rama Rao and siphoned off Rs. 1.5 lakh from the television channel representative and later switched off his mobile. After realising that they were cheated, they approached Cyberabad Cyber Crime police and lodged a complaint.

In the list of his victims, there is also a young producer. The accused allegedly cheated the producer of Rs. 3.5 lakh by promising him a media award. The victim lodged a complaint with Raidurgam police of Cyberabad commissionerate.

The police arrested the accused and further investigation is underway. Meanwhile, the police urged the public not to believe in these types of fake assurances and become a victim of cyber fraud. They appealed to confirm whether it was legitimate or fake before transferring any amount for any reason.
Hyderabad: Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWS%SB) has landed in big trouble after the state government started implementing the 20 kilolitre free drinking water scheme for households in the twin cities. The board has been losing Rs. 19.2 crore of billing a month. Adding to the woes are other consumers who are not paying their bills, hoping that the scheme would be extended to them too.

According to highly placed sources, HMWS&SB is cash-starved as a result. It is unable to implement its capital works of water supply and sewerage handling worth around Rs. 20,000 crore placed before the government in 2017-18. Adding to woes is the latest demand of Rs. 3,800 crore for modernising sewerage networks in erstwhile municipal areas surrounding the state capital, which have now been merged with the GHMC. The Water Board has to also extend sewer networks covering all urban local bodies (ULBs) and gram panchayat within the Outer Ring Road (ORR).

While being burdened with such huge costs, HMWS&SB is also due payments from government departments. Sources said government departments and buildings in the city have to pay Rs. 180 crore water cess every year. But due to non-payment, Rs. 500 crore worth bills have piled up. Besides this, the cost of producing 1 kilolitre (KL) of drinking water has gone up from Rs. 14.40 per KL in 2002 to Rs. 25.50 per KL in 2011 and is now Rs. 47 per KL.

Amid all these expenditures, the government decision to dole out Rs. 400 crore to consumers for free drinking water has already pushed the board deeply into the red. The board is also facing a deficit of Rs. 120 crore due to non-payment of water bills. Due to shortage of funds, several projects of HMWS&SB have been running at snail's pace, while a few of them have come to a grinding halt.

A senior Water Board official, requesting anonymity, said it has been knocking on doors of every financial institution to fund its projects. He said the board has also written to the government that it be compensated for amounts pertaining to free drinking water scheme, apart from electricity bills and payments.

We have requested the government and are awaiting its reply. If the government does not come to board's rescue, several projects would be at stake. There could even be possible interruptions in drinking water supply," he said.
The puppet show presenter delighted the children with Bucklebear, who taught them about buckling up correctly and sitting in the back seat, which is twice as safe as the front seat of the car.
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*Strasbourg/Angelo Marcopolo/- Speaking to "Eurofora" and Other Journalists Invited to participate in an EU Video-Press Briefing, at the Eve of a Crucial EU Heads of State/Government Summit in Brussels, due to Decide Tomorrow on Turkey's overall position vis a vis the EU, a Top Official of EU Council, sharply but clearly, Rejected the latest Turkish provocative Demand, which Notoriously Blocked the UN-sponsored Talks for a Solution of the Cyprus' Issue in Geneva at the End of last April 2021, to practicaly Throw Away Many UN Sccurity Council Resolutions, by Accepting, instead of a Peaceful ReUnification of the Island, (as they Repeatedly Asked), on the Contrary, a Partition of it, (See, f.ex.: http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/turkishsecessionismoncyprusblocksun.html, etc).

- "On Cyprus, a 2 States solution is Not an Option, for us !", clearly stressed that EU Council's Top Official Today, (speaking on condition of Anonymity, as it's usual in this kind of "Off the Record Press Briefings").

His Statement came just a few Hours Before UNO's Secretary General, Antonio Guterrez, Flies to Brussels, where he is Scheduled to Meet and Discuss with the EU Leaders at that Summit, Tomorrow, after 1p.m., "during 2 Hours", Both about "Global Challenges", and on "GeoPolitical Issues".

This Two Days-Long (24-25 June 2021) Top Meeting is due to Deal, from its 1st Evening's Working Diner, Also with 5 "Foreign Policy Issues" : "Turkey, Russia, Bielorussia, Ethiopia and Libya", added anOther Experienced EU Council's Senior Official, indicating that the obviously interrelated Cyprus' Issue would be included at the Top of the List.

That matter has a Particular Importance for the EU, Inter alia, also since it has Succesfully Avoided any Violent Conflict between its Member States, who live in Peace during some 71 Years, also Because their Borders Remained Stable all this Time, while, on the Contrary, Turkey pushes now openly for a ...Secessionist move in EU Member Cyprus, which would inevitably create Trouble inside Europe, even for various other European Countries too !

Meanwhile, Nevertheless, Various Other Rumours, Leakages, Hypothesis, etc, (particularly concerning EU Commission's Side), had Circulated around that, Earlier, as it often happens in that kind of matters.

(../..)

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By Kwak Yeon-soo







The crime drama "Bogota: City of the Lost," featuring Song Joong-ki, has resumed shooting in Korea after it halted filming in Colombia due to the pandemic.







"Following a hiatus for COVID-19 quarantine restrictions, filming has resumed on Bogota in Korea. It has about three months of material left to shoot," the film's distributor Megabox Plus M said in a statement, Wednesday.







The filming began in January 2020 in Colombia, but two months later, the "Bogota" team shut down production as the pandemic forced film and TV shoots to pause work.







In March last year, Colombia imposed an entry ban on travelers from South Korea as well as those who had visited the country. So the cast and crew returned to Korea and abandoned their original plan to shoot the entire film in the South American country.







Directed by Kim Sung-je, who previously helmed "Minority Opinion" (2015), the film tells the story about Koreans who migrated to Colombia in the 1990s in search of a better life.







In the film, Song will play the role of Guk-hee, who arrived penniless in Bogota at the age of 19 and becomes a successful entrepreneur. Song most recently starred in Netflix's sci-fi blockbuster "Space Sweepers" and tvN's drama "Vincenzo."







Actor Lee Hee-jun will portray Soo-young, who initially came to Colombia as dispatched employee for a trading company but then built his own business. Veteran actor Kwon Hye-hyo will be featured as the head of a Korean merchant association in Bogota.







"We will strictly follow the social distancing guidelines to ensure safety and well-being for the entire cast and crew on the sets," the production team said in a statement. The film's release date has not yet been announced.






Toss founder and CEO Lee Seung-gun

By Lee Kyung-min



Toss Bank, the mobile financial platform operated by Viva Republica, is expected to gain momentum by bringing on more attractive, large investors. Viva Republica has recently drawn 460 billion won ($404 million) in investments, with its corporate value soaring to 8.2 trillion won from 1.2 trillion won in 2018.




Another extra budget under review to support the pandemic-hit people may reach some 30 trillion won ($26.5 billion), the country's chief economic policymaker said Wednesday.







The government is planning to create this year's second extra budget with excess tax revenue as it seeks to underpin an economic recovery and minimize the fallout of the pandemic.







Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki told a parliamentary meeting that another extra budget would be below some 32 trillion won, which is roughly equal to the excess tax revenue estimated for this year.







South Korea is estimated to log a surplus in tax revenue this year amid an economic recovery and a bull run in the property and stock markets.







In the first quarter, the country collected 88.5 trillion won in tax revenue, up 19 trillion won from a year.







Hong earlier said the government plans to repay part of the country's national debt with the larger-than-expected tax revenue when it draws up the supplementary budget.







South Korea created an extra budget of 14.9 trillion won in March to finance the 20.7 trillion-won relief aid for smaller merchants and vulnerable people hit hard by the pandemic.







The minister also affirmed that the government is not considering providing stimulus checks to all households, voicing opposition to the ruling Democratic Party's push for another universal support.







The country offered 14.3 trillion won in one-off emergency cash handouts to all households in May last year. It has so far provided three rounds of targeted support to smaller merchants and vulnerable groups. (Yonhap)


Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum speaks during a National Assembly interpellation session, Wednesday. Yonhap



Finance minister reiterates skeptical view about universal aid



By Park Jae-hyuk



The government has reiterated its negative opinion about the proposal by the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) to provide a fifth round of disaster relief payouts to all households in the country, regardless of their earnings.



"Although lawmakers have urged the government to offer disaster relief funds to all citizens, the government is considering practical ways to stimulate the economy by increasing consumption," Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said in a National Assembly interpellation session, Wednesday.



Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki also said that the government is not thinking about providing universal coronavirus stimulus funds, in response to a question from Rep. Choo Kyung-ho of the conservative main opposition People Power Party (PPP), at the National Assembly's Strategy and Finance Committee meeting, before the interpellation session that day.



"In the negotiation with the ruling party, we are pushing ahead with providing more aid to those who suffered losses from the pandemic," Hong said.



The government seeks to provide relief funds to the bottom 70 percent income group and a credit card cashback reward program worth up to 300,000 won ($260) for everyone else.



This proposal is in contrast to the ruling party's plan to provide direct aid to the entire population, with its second supplementary budget worth up to 35 trillion won.



Hong said that the size of the supplementary budget is expected to be around 30 trillion won.



Ruling party lawmaker Jung Chung-rae criticized Hong for his reluctance to provide universal aid.



"Among the relief funds that have been given out so far, the first one given out to the entire population was the simplest and received the most favorable reviews," the lawmaker wrote on Facebook. "Instead of the selective relief fund, which causes difficulties in sorting and therefore evokes dissatisfaction, it is more appropriate to offer direct financial aid to everyone."



In addition to the real estate policies, the disaster relief fund and the supplementary budget were initially expected to be the key agenda topics for the interpellation session on economic policies.



However, lawmakers grilled economic ministers about other policies as well.



PPP lawmaker Yang Kum-hee criticized the government's anti-nuclear power policy, saying it goes against the carbon neutrality vision. In response, the prime minister said that nuclear power will continue to play an important role for a while in the nation's electricity generation.



Rep. Jang Kyung-tae of the DPK urged the finance minister to enable state-run banks to increase voluntary retirements, so as to create more jobs for young jobseekers. However, Hong said that it was difficult to increase these at the moment, due to complaints about low severance pay.



Hong also said that the finance ministry will screen candidates for the new directors of the Export-Import Bank of Korea (Eximbank)  including one candidate recommended by the union  based on their qualifications and capabilities, without giving any penalties or preferential treatment.



PPP Rep. Seo Il-jun condemned Korea Development Bank Chairman Lee Dong-gull over the abrupt sale of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, doubting that Lee followed McKinsey & Company's advice to carry out a restructuring of the nation's shipbuilding industry to avoid cutthroat competition and overlapping investments.






U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price / AP-Yonhap



The United States remains committed to engaging with North Korea, a State Department spokesman said Tuesday, despite a negative statement from the sister of the North Korean leader that the U.S. may be in for a great disappointment.



Ned Price also reiterated U.S. hopes that North Korea would respond positively.



"We remain prepared to engage in principled negotiations with the DPRK to deal with the challenge of its nuclear program," the spokesman said in a telephonic press briefing, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.



The remarks come after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's sister, Yo-jong, said the U.S. hopes for dialogue with the North will lead to a "greater disappointment."



"When it comes to the comments you mentioned emanating from North Korea, we have seen them. We are aware of them," Price said when asked about the statement from Kim Yo-jong. "They have not changed our view on diplomacy."



The Joe Biden administration had sought to engage with North Korea in February, then again when its North Korea policy review came to an end in April, but the North reportedly remained unresponsive.



The North's statement also came after Sung Kim, U.S. special envoy for North Korea, offered to meet with the North "anywhere, anytime without preconditions" while meeting with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts in Seoul this week.



"We continue to hope that the DPRK will respond positively to our outreach and we will have to wait and see if these comments are followed up with any more direct communication about a potential path forward," said Price.



North Korea has stayed away from denuclearization negotiations since leader Kim's Hanoi summit with former U.S. President Donald Trump ended without a deal in February 2019.



In another conciliatory gesture toward Pyongyang, Sung Kim and his South Korean counterpart agreed on Monday (Seoul time) to consider terminating their countries' bilateral working group on North Korea, which the North has often called a hindrance to inter-Korean dialogue.



Price said the proposed termination of the South Korea-U.S. working group does not mean an end to their cooperation or coordination of policy toward North Korea.



"We will continue this engagement. It is most certainly not ending, far from it, and we will continue it through a variety of diplomatic mechanisms at all levels of our governments," said the department spokesman.



"We are constantly looking for ways to strengthen our cooperation as we work toward what is the end goal of the policy that we have put forward, and that is the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," he added. (Yonhap)


Officials from China and North Korea look at photos of Chinese President Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during an exhibition held in the Chinese embassy in Pyongyang, Monday, in this photo released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency, Tuesday. Yonhap



Experts say Pyongyang seeks to strengthen bargaining power before talks



By Nam Hyun-woo



North Korea is showing signs of strengthening ties with China, in an apparent bid to strengthen its bargaining position before it talks to or confronts the U.S., both of which the North should be prepared for its leader Kim Jong-un said earlier this month.



According to Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency, Wednesday, the International Liaison Department (ILD) of the Chinese Communist Party hosted a joint meeting with officials from the North Korean Embassy in Beijing, Monday, to celebrate the third anniversary of Kim's visit to China and the second anniversary of Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to the North.



During the meeting, Song Tao, director of the ILD, stressed that the friendship between Beijing and Pyongyang will carry on for generations to last forever and mutual visits have brought new vitality to their relations, the agency reported.



On Monday, the KCNA reported the Chinese Embassy in Pyongyang held a photo exhibition to mark the anniversary of Xi's visit, with North Korean officials attending the event  again to stress their close ties.



The same day, Chinese Ambassador to North Korea Li Jinjun contributed an op-ed piece to the Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the North's ruling Workers' Party of Korea, while Ri Ryong-nam, the North's ambassador to China, contributed a piece to the People's Daily, the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party.





North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Chinese President Xi Jinping applaud after a performance at an event to welcome the latter's visit to Pyongyang, June 20, 2019, in this image captured from North Korea's Korean Central Television report the following day. Yonhap




North Korea is not considering contact with the United States, Foreign Minister Ri Son-gwon said Wednesday.







"We are not considering even the possibility of any contact with the U.S., let alone having it, which would get us nowhere, only taking up precious time," Ri said in a statement released by the North's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).







DPRK stands for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. (Yonhap)


A medical worker takes samples for COVID-19 at a makeshift testing center near Seoul Station in Seoul, June 23. Yonhap



South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases spiked to a two-week high of over 600 on Wednesday as virus variants are emerging as another major challenge in the country's virus fight amid the accelerating vaccine rollout.



The country reported 645 new cases, including 605 local infections, raising the total caseload to 152,545, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.



The country added one COVID-19 death, raising the death toll to 2,007. The fatality rate came to 1.32 percent.



The number of daily imported cases exceeded 40 for the fourth consecutive day amid woes over potential transmission of the coronavirus variants, especially the more transmissible Delta variant believed to have originated in India.



South Korea has yet to report a large number of the Delta variant cases, but other countries, such as Britain and the United States, whose vaccination rates topped 50 percent, have been struggling with rising cases of the variant.



The woes over variant cases came as the country is set to ease its social distancing scheme in July amid the vaccination drive, which allows businesses to stay open longer and permits gatherings of more people.



Currently, the greater Seoul area is under Level 2 distancing in the five-level scheme, while the rest of the country is under Level 1.5. Private gatherings of five or more are banned nationwide.



Under the new four-tier system, restaurants and cafes in the capital area will be permitted to operate until midnight under Level 2, an extension from the current restrictions of 10 p.m.



The nationwide ban on gatherings of five or more people will be lifted under the renewed guidelines, with the ceiling set to be raised to eight under Level 2. No restrictions are applied under Level 1.



In the greater Seoul area, the ceiling will initially be set at six people for the first two weeks of next month.



The upsurge in the daily caseload came as the country's vaccination drive has been gaining traction.



A total of 15.07 million people, or 29.4 percent of the country's 51.3 million population, have received their first shots of COVID-19 vaccines since the vaccine rollout in late February. Of them, 4.1 million, or 8.4 percent of the population, were fully inoculated as of Wednesday.



The country aims to inoculate 36 million with at least one jab by September to achieve herd immunity in November.



Of the newly confirmed locally transmitted cases, 228 came from Seoul and 180 from Gyeonggi Province.



Daejeon, 160 kilometers south of Seoul, added 57 cases. Incheon, 40 km west of Seoul, added 26 patients, and the southeastern port city of Busan had 13 more cases.



Health authorities counted 40 more imported cases, raising the tally to 9,611.



Of the imported cases, Asian countries, excluding China, accounted for 29, followed by the United States with four cases, Europe with four, Africa with two and Columbia with one.



The number of patients in serious or critical condition came to 146, up 11 from the previous day.



The total number of people released from quarantine after making full recoveries was 144,379, up 562 from a day earlier.



South Korea has carried out 10.41 million COVID-19 tests so far, including 29,906 the previous day. (Yonhap)


Military service members pay their respects at graves in Seoul National Cemetery in Dongjak District, Seoul, Wednesday, two days before the 71st anniversary of the outbreak of the 1950-53 Korean War, which began with North Korea's invasion of the South. The two Koreas still remain technically at war as the conflict was ended by a truce, not a peace treaty. Yonhap




U.S. soldiers stationed in South Korea will be fined if they hold parties without wearing masks on and around a popular beach here during the coming U.S. Independence Day holiday amid the coronavirus pandemic, a local ward office said Wednesday.







The Haeundae Ward office in the southern port city of Busan said it will intensify monitoring of any unruly behavior on Haeundae Beach, together with local police and the U.S. Army Military Police, from July 2-4.







"We will sternly respond to violation cases, such as private gatherings of five or more people and no mask wearing, and impose a fine right away," a ward official said.







Starting next month, limits on private gatherings will be lifted in the non-capital area, as the government decided to ease social distancing rules in line with the nation's rising vaccinations.







But the ward office decided to maintain the ban on gatherings of five people or more on the beach during the three days to prevent overcrowding.







In July last year, some members of U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) and foreigners have come under public criticism for holding maskless parties on the beach amid the pandemic. Only one American soldier was fined for shooting firecrackers toward people.







Revelers descended on the beach again late last month in celebration of the U.S. Memorial Day.







The U.S. military is reportedly considering restricting its members from visiting the port city during the upcoming July 4 holiday.







The plan for a joint crackdown came after the ward office asked the USFK to help contain some of its members' unruly behavior that causes "anxiety and uneasiness" among others.







About 150 local police officers and 16 U.S. military police officers will patrol the beach on a daily basis over the period. (Yonhap)


Park Seong-min, the newly appointed presidential secretary for youth-related affairs. Her appointment has raised fairness issues among young people. Screenshot from Park's Facebook page



'Many young jobseekers feel sense of deprivation'



By Kim Rahn



Cheong Wa Dae's appointment of a 25-year-old as a presidential secretary has created stir among politicians and citizens. While the presidential office tried to demonstrate its efforts to meet young people's needs by appointing the political rookie to the high-ranking position, many citizens  especially young ones  view the appointment as "unfair" amid the reality where it is difficult for the majority of young people to get a job despite years of struggle.



On Monday, Cheong Wa Dae announced Park Seong-min's appointment as the secretary for youth-related affairs, a newly created position.



Park was one of the liberal ruling Democratic Party of Korea's (DPK) spokespeople representing young members, and was picked as a member of the party's Supreme Council last August by then-party Chairman Lee Nak-yon. Still studying at Korea University, Park plans to request a leave of absence from the university soon, according to Cheong Wa Dae.



She will get a salary and other perks equivalent to those of first-level government officials in the nine-tier public servant system, in which the first-level is the top level.



When appointing her, presidential spokeswoman Park Kyung-mee said that she has clearly expressed her opinions on major social issues while serving on the Supreme Council, even when her opinions clashed with other party members. "She showed an ability to strike a balance by listening to various voices," the spokeswoman said.



It was also widely believed that the appointment came in response to the election of 36-year-old Lee Jun-seok as the new leader of the conservative main opposition People Power Party, which has been taking the lead in youth-related issues.



The unconventional appointment, however, is bringing a backlash from some.



A council of PPP lawmakers' aides issued a statement, Tuesday, saying that such an appointment will not get young people's support, but only their anger, amid a reality where many college graduates and even master's or doctoral degree holders cannot land jobs easily.



"Ordinary young people can become fifth-level public officials when they study hard for years and pass the state-run exam for public servants. Even if they work for 30 years, only a small number of them can reach second-level status," it said. "Do you think young people support this appointment, or feel a sense of deprivation?"



The council also said that Park did not seem much different from established politicians while serving on the Supreme Council, adding that although she received a lot of attention at first, she has not officially released a single policy idea concerning young people.





Park Seong-min, left, poses with the other Supreme Council members of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea at the National Assembly in Seoul, in this Nov. 2, 2020 photo. Korea Times photo by Oh Dae-geun
By Sho Chang-young





A week ago, my wife and I got our first doses of the vaccine against COVID-19. Being classified in a high-risk age group compared to others, we were given early chances. Though somewhat concerned about negative side effects, we applied online for the shots and went to the neighboring clinic on a set date. After a basic health check, including body temperature measurement, we were given information and consent documents to complete and submit.



Then we were administered the AstraZeneca vaccine with an explanation from the doctor. About 15 minutes later, we left the clinic and returned home. In the days that followed, I felt nothing but a little fatigue. My wife had a slight fever and headache, so she took the prescribed antipyretics. Okay, our primary inoculation process seems to have been stably finalized as of now. If we get the second dose in late August, we will be totally protected against COVID-19.



On the other hand, however, I felt a bit sorry for those who have not started getting vaccinated yet, especially for young people. The Korea Times published a notable article in its national news section the other day. Its title was "People in early 20s seeking CSAT to get vaccine." As a retired high school principal, I am still well aware of the CSAT and its related issues and so I read the article at once.



The article said that some of those in their early 20s are considering to take the CSAT in November to earn priority for a COVID-19 vaccine. Most of them are college students now, and therefore, they had already taken CSAT at least a year or more before. They are planning to reapply for the state-run college entrance exam because the government will give COVID-19 vaccines first to test-takers to prevent the infection from spreading among them when the exams are held. I can assure you that these candidates will not show up in the examination rooms that day. The examination fee is 50,000 won.



As they are under the age of 30, test-takers will receive the Pfizer vaccine, which is allowed for this age group. If they get the first shot of the two-dose vaccine during the summer vacation, they will develop immunity before the November CSAT. How glad they would be when they are returned the freedom to act and behave as they used to! Besides, isn't the Pfizer vaccine said to be relatively low-risk? Can you still blame them without hesitation when you hear that one man in his 30s died from blood clotting after receiving the AstraZeneca vaccination, although it is a case within the range of natural statistical probability?



According to the government's official announcement, COVID-19 vaccinations for the general public other than prioritized groups will be expanded to the 18 to 59 years old age group in the third quarter. Among them, those in their late 50s with a relatively high rate of infection and complications will receive priority vaccinations in late July and early August. The remaining 18-54 years old will be vaccinated on a first-come, first-served basis from August.



I think it is unwise to simply discuss the national rate of COVID-19 vaccinations at present. It looks like the time when a "high-rate" can be considered as a commendable political achievement has already passed. The really important thing is the reliable control of the vaccination situation. All political forces and people will have to join together so that "real herd immunity" can be achieved without further victims. For this, both frivolous impatience and arrogant laziness should be thoroughly rejected.





The writer (sochan57@naver.com) is a retired principal of Gunsan Girls' High School.


By Joschka Fischer





BERLIN  This month's Group of Seven (G7) summit seemed to confirm what has long been apparent: The United States and China are entering into a cold war similar to the one between the U.S. and the Soviet Union in the second half of the 20th century.



The West no longer views China just as a competitor and rival but as a civilizational alternative. Once again, the conflict seems to be about mutually exclusive "systems." Amid an escalating clash of values and competing claims to global power and leadership, a military confrontation  or at least a new arms race  seems to have become a distinct possibility.



But on closer examination, the Cold War comparison is misleading. The systemic rivalry between the U.S. and the Soviet Union was preceded by one of the most brutal and catastrophic "hot" wars in history, and reflected the frontlines of that conflict.



Though the U.S. and the Soviet Union were the principal victors after the German and Japanese surrenders, they had already been ideological foes before the war. If Hitler's Germany and imperial Japan had not both sought world domination through military conquest, the U.S. and the Soviet Union never would have been allies.



As soon as the war was over, the faceoff between Soviet communism and Western democratic capitalism resumed, their enmity intensified by the brutality of forced Sovietization in Central and Eastern Europe between 1945 and 1948.



At the same time, the dawn of the nuclear age had fundamentally disrupted power politics by making any future war for global hegemony impossible without self-annihilation. Mutual assured destruction kept the superpower confrontation "cold," even as it threatened all of humankind with nuclear catastrophe. If the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact had not collapsed four decades later, the conflict presumably would have dragged on indefinitely.



The situation between the West and China today is totally different. Though the Communist Party of China (CPC) calls the country "socialist" to justify its political monopoly, no one takes that label seriously. China does not define its difference from the West according to its position on private property; rather, it simply does and says whatever is necessary to maintain one-party rule.



Since Deng Xiaoping's reforms in the late 1970s, China has established a hybrid model that accommodates both markets and central planning, and both state and private ownership. The CPC alone stands at the top of this "Market-Leninist" model.



The Chinese system's hybrid character is what accounts for its success. China is on track to surpass the U.S. both technologically and economically by around 2030  a feat that the Soviet Union never had a chance of accomplishing at any point in its 70-year history. China's "Billionaire Socialism" is clearly better equipped to compete with the West than the old Soviet system ever was.



If today's systemic rivalry isn't the same as in the Cold War, what should a Cold War II really be about? Is the goal to force China to become more Western and democratic? Or is it simply to contain China's power and isolate it technologically (or, at a minimum, slow down its ascent)? And if the West were to achieve any of these objectives, what then?



In fact, none of these objectives could ever be satisfied at a reasonable cost for the parties involved. China is home to 1.4 billion people who can see that their historic opportunity for global recognition has come. Given the scale of the Chinese market and the economic interdependencies it engenders, the idea that China can be isolated is absurd.



But perhaps the issue is more about power than economics. Who will be the 21st century's hegemon? By uniting with the rest of the West, can the U.S. really change the historical trajectory of China's rise and the West's relative decline? I doubt it.



The West's recognition that China will not become more democratic by dint of its economic development and integration into the global economy is necessary and long past due. Greed kept that fantasy afloat for far too long.



But I will venture a prediction that the 21st century will not primarily be characterized by a return to great-power politics at all, even if that looks where things are headed now. The experience of the pandemic forces us to take a longer and wider view. COVID-19 was a mere prelude to the looming climate crisis, a global challenge that will force the great powers to embrace cooperation for the sake of humankind, regardless of who is "No. 1."



For the first time ever, the pandemic has made "humankind" more than an abstraction, turning that concept into a material field for action. Containing the coronavirus and sparing everyone from the threat of dangerous new variants will require more than eight billion vaccine doses. Assuming that global warming and the overburdening of regional and global ecosystems continue apace, this same global field of action will become the dominant one in the 21st century.



In this context, the question of who is on top will be decided not through traditional great-power politics, but by which powers step up to provide the leadership and competence that the situation demands. Unlike in the past, a cold war would hasten, not prevent, mutually assured destruction.





Joschka Fischer, Germany's foreign minister and vice chancellor from 1998 to 2005, was a leader of the German Green Party for almost 20 years. This article was distributed by Project Syndicate (www.project-syndicate.org).


Revamping community-oriented services must be prioritized



An autonomous regional police system will go into full operation nationwide next month in what appears to be the biggest overhaul of the nation's police force since its inauguration in 1945. Under a reform plan implemented in stages as one of President Moon Jae-in's campaign pledges, the current force, which is under the jurisdiction of the central government, will be divided into a national one, the National Office of Investigation (NOI), and autonomous police forces.



The national police, led by the chief of the National Police Agency, will be in charge of external affairs such as security and intelligence gathering, while the NOI, which was established in January, will carry out general investigations. The autonomous police will be under the control of autonomous committees in the country's 17 major cities and provinces, taking charge of duties related to public safety, including traffic, school and domestic violence, and drunk driving.



This reorganization is aimed at mitigating the bloated police force in accordance with the transfer of the prosecution's key investigative powers to police and boosting the efficiency of law enforcement. There are pros and cons regarding the introduction of the system. Public safety will be enhanced as policies specially tailored to local communities will come into being. However, there are concerns that local police units might struggle with increased work burdens as a result of the drastic change in the system.



The ultimate aim of the police overhaul is to make the broader populace feel more comfortable, by revamping community-oriented policing services. That said, it's essential to stabilize the police as soon as possible. This will raise the need for clarifying matters related to personnel and budget. Given the confusion anticipated immediately after the introduction of the autonomous police system, all agencies concerned should cooperate closely so that the new system can take root as soon as possible. Any prolonged confusion associated with the new police system will do harm to the nation by creating a vacuum in public safety, contrary to its aim.


By Park Yoon-bae





Water that fails to flow is bound to become stagnant. This old Korean saying seems to have never been more relevant than at present, as far as the country's politics is concerned.



Korean politics, just like stagnant water, has already become rotten and corrupt. Most politicians and political parties have been trying hard to maintain the status quo and protect their own vested interests, mainly by refusing to embrace any change whatsoever.



That's probably why the late Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee once described Korean politics as "fourth-rate," falling behind the country's administrative power (third-rate) and its corporate competitiveness (second-rate).



Pundits have often cited the evaluation Lee made in 1995 to lament the country's political backwardness, despite its much-touted transition to a democracy from a dictatorship. It is shameful that Korean politicians are still mired in dog-eat-dog partisan strife, ideological divisions, regional antagonism and corruption.



Politicians of both the ruling and opposition parties should realize that they can no longer survive unless they change. If they keep putting their self-interest before the public and national interests, they will not change the dismal political scene.



However, we don't have to be completely pessimistic. The winds of change have now begun to blow, originating from the conservative main opposition People Power Party (PPP).



On June 11, the PPP elected Lee Jun-seok, a 36-year-old politician with no experience as a lawmaker, as its chairman. Lee's meteoric rise to leadership carries significance as it signals a generational change in his own party as well as in the broader political establishment.



Lee has become the youngest-ever leader of a mainstream party in Korea's modern history. His election reflected growing calls from the people for political change and innovation. It came after the PPP won a landslide victory in the April 7 mayoral by-elections in Seoul and Busan.



The election results dealt a severe blow to the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK). Voters, particularly those in their 20s and 30s, have increasingly turned their back on the DPK and shifted their support to the PPP, not because the opposition performed well, but because the governing party is doing so poorly.



Those developments are a wake-up call to the liberal DPK, whose mainstream members are former pro-democracy activists, better known as the "586" group who are now in their 50s, attended college in the 1980s and were born in the 1960s.



The DPK seems to have lost the momentum for change, although people elected its candidate, Moon Jae-in, as president of the country in May 2017, following the impeachment of former President Park Geun-hye for corruption and abuse of power. Moon took advantage of the massive candlelit rallies against Park to bolster his image and win the poll.



Voters also gave a supermajority to the DPK in the 2020 general election, after the party scored a sweeping victory in the 2018 local election. They had hoped that the DPK would restore democracy and constitutional order, which were severely damaged by the previous Park government.



But the DPK and the Moon government have failed to meet the people's aspirations for drastic political change and reform. President Moon repeatedly promised to create a fair and just society with equal opportunities. But his promise turned out to be nothing but lip service.



More seriously, Moon has undermined the values of fairness and justice by going all-out to protect his confidants from charges of bribery, influence peddling and election fraud. A case in point is the corruption and admissions scandal involving former Justice Minister Cho Kuk, one of his close aides.



Cho and his wife were indicted on various charges, including admissions fraud aimed at helping their daughter get into medical school. But, DPK lawmakers and government officials tried to prevent the prosecution from investigating the case. They also waged a fight against then Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, now one of most favored presidential aspirants, in an effort to save Cho.



In addition, Moon and his party have made  and are making  desperate efforts to "tame" prosecutors in the name of prosecutorial reform, in order to block corruption investigations into core members of the ruling bloc. They cannot avoid criticism for trying to cover up their misdeeds, while striving to eliminate the "old evils" of the previous administrations.



In a nutshell, the ruling elite, consisting largely of members of the 586 generation, have become arrogant, self-righteous and hypocritical. Leftist-leaning liberal parties such as the DPK should maintain the moral high ground if they want to secure any legitimacy to remain in power. However, the DPK has done the opposite.



For all these reasons, the DPK appears to resemble more of a conservative party, resisting rapid changes taking place both inside and outside the country. That is why many people complain that nothing has changed under Moon's rule. In actuality the Moon administration is no different from that of its predecessors.



Against this backdrop, the conservative PPP, under the new leadership of its young Chairman Lee, is taking the lead in attempting to bring about change to established politics.



Lee faces a tough task of rebuilding the dilapidated party, expanding its support base and integrating the opposition bloc to field a unified candidate in the upcoming presidential election, set for March 2022. Some skeptics are calling into question his leadership due to his lack of a political career and organizational power.



Now, he and his party members should do their best to find a new identity for the PPP and present a new vision for the future. Most of all, they must go all-out to restore fairness and justice. Only then can they clean up the mess disgraced former President Park left behind her and open a new era of politics for the country.





The author (byb@koreatimes.co.kr) is the chief editorial writer of The Korea Times.


By John J. Metzler





Were there great expectations for the summit meeting in Geneva between President Joe Biden and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin? Certainly not, but in the immediate aftermath of the U.S. president's week of transatlantic diplomacy at the Group of Seven (G7) in Britain, and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) meeting in Belgium, a clear momentum seemed to favor Biden; if nothing else the president appeared immersed in the economic and defense concerns of Europe and thus should have been at his political prime.



Sadly the summit, set in the splendor of Geneva and bathed in Swiss Alpine sunshine, was substantially underwhelming. Expected media drama fizzled.



Part of the problem was that a key card the United States held, namely its sanctions over the controversial Nord Stream gas pipeline from Russia to Germany, was foolishly played and surrendered to Moscow a month before the meeting. When President Biden dropped bipartisan-backed sanctions on Nord Stream in May, Putin gained a precious piece on the geopolitical chessboard. This remains a sobering fact.



The Nord Stream giveaway to Russia opened another cash flow from Western Europe to the Kremlin coffers. Biden had inadvertently scored an own goal and stoic Vlad was smirking.



Cybersecurity was a key topic of discussions as it certainly should be. The United States and European countries have faced a plethora of cyberattacks and ransom demands on government and businesses. Some but clearly not all come from Russia.



China, Iran and North Korea are among other offenders. Yet while Russian criminal gangs are key players in this dark hacking game, do they have official or unofficial state sponsorship? Likely so. But tracing a cyberattack presents a very murky task and is not as clear as following an underwater pipeline or negotiating arms control.



Earlier the NATO summit communique stated, "Our nations continue to face threats and challenges from both state and non-state actors who use hybrid activities to target our political institutions, our public opinion, and the security of our citizens."



NATO added, "Cyber threats to the security of the alliance are complex, destructive, coercive, and becoming ever more frequent. This has been recently illustrated by ransomware incidents and other malicious cyber activity targeting our critical infrastructure and democratic institutions, which might have systemic effects and cause significant harm."



Surprisingly, President Biden handed Putin a list of 16 sites which are off-limits to cyberattacks. In other words we are telling the Russians our particular vulnerabilities and hoping they will play fair. Is this for real? Does this allow for the Russian president to give a curt nod to his mendacious state-sanctioned hackers to hit the other 97 percent of targets in the U.S.?



As to the bigger picture. Putin wanted this summit not so much for political gains but for his own political stature and standing. Negotiating with the American president puts Putin on a global platform recalling Russia's past standing as a superpower. This significantly plays to his own domestic audience across Russia not to mention the developing world.



Gary Kasparov, a noted Russian dissident and former chess master, asserts that for Putin the meeting "emboldens him and shows he is the big boss." Putin relishes and plays to the role of a Mafia boss. Kasparov told Fox News, "Putin got what he wanted."



Indeed there is also a key question about media optics; typically at the conclusion of such summits there's a joint press conference where both presidents, standing alongside each other, take media questions. This did not happen in Geneva.



Putin was free to have a typically long and swerving 55-minute press conference where he weaved a clever net with largely unchallenged assertions. There was no American president standing alongside to push back with counterpoints. Putin stood unchallenged on a global media stage.



Senator Lindsay Graham (R-SC) stated, "Biden did not threaten his power."



Later Biden's press conference was short and called upon pre-selected correspondents to answer pre-picked questions. Despite this clear advantage, Joe Biden still had a rhetorical meltdown with a reporter.



But what about questions on Ukraine, Moscow's meddling in American elections in 2016 and 2020, Russia closing down beleaguered Syria's humanitarian aid corridors, American citizens held in Russian prisons, etc?



But here's a larger message after a week of high-level meetings. The NATO communique described Russia as a "threat" but China as a "challenge." While Washington is fighting over threats and rhetorical semantics with the Kremlin, a new dangerous dawn is rising in the East. Beijing's Marxist mandarins are pleased the West remains fixated on Russia.





John J. Metzler (jjmcolumn@earthlink.net) is a United Nations correspondent covering diplomatic and defense issues. He is the author of "Divided Dynamism  The Diplomacy of Separated Nations: Germany, Korea, China."


In this Sept. 24, 2019, file photo, a sign is shown on a Google building at their campus in Mountain View, Calif. European Union regulators have launched a fresh antitrust investigation of Google, this time over whether the U.S. tech giant is stifling competition in digital advertising technology. AP-Yonhap



European Union regulators have launched a fresh antitrust investigation of Google, this time over whether the U.S. tech giant is stifling competition in digital advertising technology.



The European Commission said Tuesday that it has opened a formal investigation into whether Google violated the bloc's competition rules by favoring its own online display advertising technology services at the expense of rival publishers, advertisers and advertising technology services.



The investigation underscores European concerns about Google's dominance in the online advertising industry and whether it's exploiting its data advantage to cement its position in the display ad market, which the EU Commission estimates is worth 20 billion euros ($24 billion) annually. This month, France's antitrust authority fined Google more than 220 million euros for abusing its dominance in online ads while in the U.K. it gave the competition watchdog a role overseeing its retirement of ad tracking ''cookies'' from the Chrome browser to resolve an investigation.



Online display ads are the banners and text that show up on websites such as newspaper home pages and are personalized based on an internet user's browsing history. Search ads, in contrast, appear alongside search engine results and are based on keywords that users are looking for.



The commission, the EU's executive arm and the bloc's top antitrust enforcer, signaled it's looking in particular at YouTube and whether Google is using the video sharing site's dominant position to favor its own ad-buying services by imposing restrictions on rivals.



Google said competition in online ads has made them more affordable and relevant, cut fees and expanded options for publishers and advertisers.



''Thousands of European businesses use our advertising products to reach new customers and fund their websites every single day,'' Google said in a prepared statement. ''They choose them because they're competitive and effective. We will continue to engage constructively with the European Commission to answer their questions and demonstrate the benefits of our products to European businesses and consumers.''



The investigation signals a renewed effort by Margrethe Vestager, the EU commission's competition chief and executive vice president for digital, to rein in Google's market power. She has already slapped Google with a total of 8.2 billion euros (now $9.7 billion) worth of fines in three separate antitrust cases. There was criticism, however, that the investigations took too long and the fines were not much of a deterrent because the company could easily afford them.



''Online advertising services are at the heart of how Google and publishers monetize their online services,'' Vestager said. Google collects data to be used for targeted advertising while it also sells advertising space and acts as a middleman between online advertisers and publishers, she said.



''We are concerned that Google has made it harder for rival online advertising services to compete in the so-called ad tech stack,'' Vestager said.



The EU Commission said it was investigating the ways Google uses technology to broker display ad sales between online advertisers and publishers.



For one, officials are examining requirements to use Google's in-house ad purchasing platforms to buy display ads on YouTube while rival services are potentially restricted in the way they can serve ads on the video sharing site. They're also scrutinizing whether Google's various ad platforms favor each other.



Another area the commission is looking at are restrictions Google puts on advertisers, publishers and competing ad brokers to access data about the identity and behavior of users that Google's own ad services have access to. Such data can be used to tailor online ads to individual web users.



Also under the microscope are Google's plans to phase out third-party browser ''cookies'' on Chrome and ad identifier tags on Android devices for users opting out of personalized advertising, as part of the company's plan to beef up privacy measures. The commission is looking into how these plans will affect digital ad markets.



EU regulators have the power to impose penalties worth up to 10 percent of a company's annual revenue. But it's a small price to pay for wealthy tech companies like Google, which posted a $17.9 billion profit in its latest quarter, and the commission is turning to other methods beyond headline-grabbing fines.



Vestager has started using ''interim measures'' as a speedy way to halt anticompetitive behavior while investigations are carried out. She also has a lead role in updating the EU's digital rulebook with measures aimed at reining in the tech giants and preventing them from cornering digital markets in the first place. (AP)


Cheun Kyung-whoon, president and head of networks business at Samsung Electronics, speaks during a virtual conference, Tuesday. Courtesy of Samsung Electronics



Korean tech giant unveils new 5G equipment



By Baek Byung-yeul



Samsung Electronics is seeking to improve its presence in the U.S. 5G network equipment market, at a time when many Chinese companies are facing a range of problems in expanding their business due to the ongoing competition between Washington and Beijing.



The tech giant held a rare virtual event Tuesday (KST) to promote its network technology vision and unveil new 5G chipsets that will be used in its next-generation 5G base stations.



The event was the first hosted by Samsung's networks business division, signaling the company thinks this year will be a turning point for its global network business with more countries slated to launch faster 5G network services.



At a time when major countries, led by the United States, are banning China's Huawei from participating in their 5G networks due to security concerns, the event was part of Samsung's strategy to increase its market share.



Following his predecessor, U.S. President Joe Biden has been moving to strengthen sanctions on Chinese tech firms, with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently proposing limiting purchases of equipment from Chinese firms, such as ZTE, for security reasons.



Cheun Kyung-whoon, president and head of the networks division at Samsung Electronics, said the company has already secured more contracts for its 5G equipment, compared to previous ones for 4G LTE hardware.



"Riding on this rapid 5G growth, Samsung's network business is expanding like never before. We are leading the 5G evolution as a close partner with major operators around the globe. Today, we've already signed more 5G contracts than we did for 4G. And we've shipped over 4 million 5G-ready radios to leading operators across the world," Cheun said during the event.



The company also shared its vision for sixth-generation network technology, saying Samsung was "already preparing for 6G."



This initiative to boost its share of the 5G network equipment market can be seen as a means to strengthen its leadership in 6G networks, which are expected to arrive between 2028 and 2030.



It remains to be seen whether Samsung can squeeze in between network equipment powerhouses such as Ericsson and Nokia, with its new 5G equipment. According to data from market tracker Dell'Oro, Huawei led the global 5G equipment market last December with a 31.4 percent share, followed by Ericsson with 28.9 percent, Nokia with 18.5 percent and ZTE with 10.9 percent. Samsung was fifth with 7.1 percent.


Kwon Tae-shin, right, vice chairman of the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), speaks during a conference with Vietnamese Ambassador Nguyen Vu Tung, left, at the business lobby group's headquarters in Seoul, Wednesday. At the meeting, officials of companies doing business in Vietnam asked the ambassador to shorten the quarantine period for business travelers from Korea. Courtesy of FKI




By Yi Whan-woo







SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won called on his company's affiliated companies to speed up their timing for achieving carbon neutrality, the group said, Wednesday.







It said Chey made the comments at a mid-year meeting with the CEOs of the affiliates, Tuesday, to review their business performances during the first half.







The CEOs who attended the meeting made a joint resolution to bring the capabilities of all affiliates together to achieve carbon neutrality prior to 2050, which is a deadline set by the United Nations.







"Net zero emissions is not a matter of choice. It is about a matter of competitiveness," the chairman was quoted as saying in a press release.







He forecast the global price of carbon, a cost applied to carbon pollution to encourage polluters to reduce their amount of greenhouse gases, to climb faster than expected.







Roughly translated as "expanded business management conference," 30 management officials attended the annual meeting, including SK Discovery Vice Chairman Chey Chang-won and SK Supex Council Chairman Cho Dae-sik.







Chey stressed that SK, the country's third-largest conglomerate, has been at the forefront of the country's environmental awareness campaign. He listed hydrogen energy, large-capacity batteries and other eco-friendly businesses that are being pursued as next growth engines.







SK is also implementing "RE 100," a global campaign that calls for companies to meet their entire electricity demand with renewable energy such as wind and solar power by 2050.







Under the joint resolution of their CEOs, the SK affiliates will seek to expand the use of renewable energy sources and make investments to reduce greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, methane, ozone and nitrous oxide.







Specifically, they were assigned to cut greenhouse gas emissions until 2030 by 35 percent of the amount emitted in 2020 and 85 percent by 2040.







As an ideal reference toward the initiatives, affiliates will take into account SK Materials, the industrial gas manufacturing arm of SK Group that set the goal of net zero emissions by 2030.







Other firms will set up their respective goals, with smaller, interim aims every 10 years, and will share the level of progress with one other.


By Yi Whan-woo





A subsidiary of LX Group has developed a logistics management system optimized for e-commerce, signaling the group's interest in online commerce as its first business item, following its spinoff from the country's fourth-largest conglomerate, LG, in May.







LX Group said Wednesday that the system developed by its logistics unit, Pantos Logistics, has been operational since mid-June.







The system brings together data on the inventory, shipping and sales of goods produced by Pantos Logistics' corporate partners so that they can cut time and effort in managing their goods through separate systems, according to the group.







The integrated system is similar to the ones being used by e-commerce companies. They have advanced into warehousing, delivery and other linked industries, along with accordingly developing a fulfillment service system to oversee the entire processes.







"You may say that LX has advanced into the e-commerce industry, although its logistics system does not deal with retail customers," an industry source familiar with the matter said.







Pantos Logistics is being operated under LG International, one of four affiliates controlled by LX, with group Chairman Koo Bon-joon, who is an uncle of current LG Chairman Koo Kwang-mo, taking power.







The other three affiliates LG Hausys, Silicon Works and LG MMA. Necessary procedural measures are underway for the four affiliates to be rebranded accordingly as LX.







During the general shareholders meeting in March, LG International added e-commerce  particularly fulfillment services  as a new business area.







Korea is the world's fifth-largest e-commerce market in terms of its annual volume of transactions, with China and the United States being the two largest players.







The estimated monetary size of the local fulfillment market is approximately 2.6 trillion won ($2.3 billion) this year, according to recent data from the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency.






The Samsung Heavy Industries shareholders meeting, held at Pangyo R&D Center, Tuesday. Courtesy of Samsung Heavy Industries



Company to conduct major financial restructuring



By Kim Hyun-bin



Samsung Heavy Industries' shareholders approved a proposal to reduce its capital base in an effort to dig itself out of financial crisis.



The 5-to-1 capital reduction was approved by 98 percent of shareholders. The move will cut the shipbuilder's common and preferred shares from the current 5,000 won ($4.40) to 1,000 won.



The decision will simultaneously reduce the company's capital base to 630 billion won from 3.15 trillion won, the company said.



SHI announced plans for a capital reduction in May in the hope of getting the company into better financial shape, as the shipbuilder has been suffering, due to an accumulated deficit of over 2 trillion won.



After the capital reduction, SHI plans to hold another board meeting next month to issue new shares from the current 800 million shares to 1.5 billion shares, in order to raise 1 trillion won, which will mark the first large-scale capital increase in stocks since 2018.



The capital reduction is set to take effect on July 26, while new shares are scheduled to be released on the local stock market on Aug. 10. SHI has suffered losses for 14 consecutive quarters, forcing the company into capital impairment.



In the first quarter of this year, the company's total assets accounted for 3.33 trillion won, but its capital came out lower at 3.15 trillion won.



"The capital reduction and capital increase through new stocks should be able pre-emptively to resolve any difficulties and secure financial solvency in the future," Jung Jin-Taek, its CEO said, during the board meeting, Tuesday. "This urgent decision was made in order to maintain our business and not to fall behind the competition."



SHI also reiterated that the capital increase through new stocks, coinciding with the capital reduction efforts, is not always a bad move, claiming that the capital reduction is being made to avoid capital impairment and that the capital increase will allow the company to secure funds to invest in diverse technologies for future growth.



The funds acquired are expected to be invested in next-generation eco-friendly vessel development and in establishing a smart yard to enhance future competitiveness in the global shipbuilding industry.



"The general shareholders meeting received a high acceptance rate, passing the agenda, and so the future increase capital vote is also expected to proceed swiftly. We will focus on enhancing our financial structure," an SHI representative said.



Samsung Group affiliates are key shareholders of SHI, which is also being viewed as a positive factor. Many industry watchers believe that these key affiliates of Samsung could buy more shares of Samsung Heavy after new stocks are issued on Aug. 10.





A 13,000 TEU-level container ship built by Samsung Heavy Industries / Courtesy of Samsung Heavy Industries
In this photo provided by the Malacanang Presidential Photographers Division, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte gestures as he meets members of the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Emerging Infectious Diseases at the Malacanang presidential palace in Manila, June 21. AP-Yonhap



The Philippine president has threatened to order the arrest of Filipinos who refuse COVID-19 vaccination and told them to leave the country if they would not cooperate with efforts to end a public health emergency.



President Rodrigo Duterte, who is known for his public outbursts and brash rhetoric, said in televised remarks Monday night that he has become exasperated with people who refuse to get immunized amid a health crisis then help spread the coronavirus.



''Don't get me wrong. There is a crisis being faced in this country. There is a national emergency. If you don't want to get vaccinated, I'll have you arrested and I'll inject the vaccine in your butt,'' Duterte said.



''If you will not agree to be vaccinated, leave the Philippines. Go to India if you want or somewhere, to America,'' he said, adding he would order village leaders to compile a list of defiant residents.



Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra acknowledged on Tuesday that there was no Philippine law criminalizing refusal to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.



''I believe that the president merely used strong words to drive home the need for us to get vaccinated and reach herd immunity as soon as possible,'' Guevarra said.



A human rights lawyer, Edre Olalia, raised concerns over Duterte's threat, saying the president could not order the arrest of anybody who has not clearly committed any crime.



Duterte and his administration have faced criticism over a vaccination campaign that has been saddled with supply problems and public hesitancy. After repeated delays, vaccinations started in March, but many still opted to wait for Western vaccines, prompting some cities to offer snacks and store discounts to encourage people to get immunized with any vaccine.



Duterte blamed the problem on wealthy Western countries cornering vaccines for their own citizens, leaving poorer countries like the Philippines behind. Some officials said the bigger problem was inadequate vaccine supply more than public hesitancy.



Duterte also walked back on an earlier remark that required people to wear plastic face shields over face masks only in hospitals as an added safeguard. After experts briefed him on the threat of more contagious coronavirus variants, Duterte declared it mandatory for people to continue wearing face shields indoors and outdoors.



The Philippines is a COVID-19 hotspot in Asia, with more than 1.3 million cases and at least 23,749 deaths. (AP)






China condemned the United States on Wednesday as the region's greatest security "risk creator" after a U.S. warship again sailed through the sensitive waterway that separates Taiwan from China.







The U.S. Navy's 7th Fleet said the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur conducted a "routine Taiwan Strait transit" on Tuesday in accordance with international law.







"The ship's transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the U.S. commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific."







The People's Liberation Army's Eastern Theatre Command said their forces monitored the vessel throughout its passage and warned it.







"The U.S. side is intentionally playing the same old tricks and creating trouble and disrupting things in the Taiwan Strait," it said.







This "fully shows that the United States is the greatest creator of risks for regional security, and we are resolutely opposed to this".







Taiwan's Defense Ministry said the ship had sailed in a northerly direction through the strait and the "situation was as normal".







The same ship transited the strait a month ago, prompting China to accuse the United States of threatening peace and stability.







The latest mission comes around a week after Taiwan said 28 Chinese air force aircraft, including fighters and nuclear-capable bombers, entered Taiwan's air defense identification zone (ADIZ), the largest reported incursion to date.







That incident followed the Group of Seven leaders issuing a joint statement scolding China for a series of issues and underscoring the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, comments China condemned as "slander".







The U.S. Navy has been conducting such operations in the Taiwan Strait every month or so.







The United States, like most countries, has no formal diplomatic ties with democratic Taiwan but is its most important international backer and a major seller of arms.







Military tension between Taiwan and Beijing have spiked over the past year, with Taipei complaining of China repeatedly sending its air force into Taiwan's air defense zone. (Reuters)


Commander-in-Chief of Myanmar's armed forces, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing delivers his speech at the IX Moscow conference on international security in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday. AP-Yonhap



Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu told Myanmar's junta leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing that Moscow is committed to strengthening military ties with it, Russia's RIA news agency reported.



Rights activists have accused Moscow of legitimising the junta, which seized power in a Feb. 1 coup, by continuing bilateral visits and arms deals.



"We are determined to continue our efforts to strengthen bilateral ties based on the mutual understanding, respect and trust that have been established between our countries," RIA quoted Shoigu as saying at a meeting on Tuesday.



Min Aung Hlaing was in the Russian capital to attend a security conference and had earlier met Nikolai Patrushev, the secretary of Russia's Security Council.



Defence ties between the two countries have grown in recent years with Moscow providing army training and university scholarships to thousands of soldiers, as well as selling arms to a military blacklisted by several Western countries.



Little light was shed on how cooperation between Russia and Myanmar may develop and whether Moscow would be willing to sell more military equipment there.



Since the army seized power and removed Aung San Suu Kyi's elected government, troops have put down pro-democracy demonstrations and strikes and killed or arrested hundreds of protesters.



Addressing a Moscow conference on Wednesday, Min Aung Hlaing repeated that the army took power by force because Suu Kyi's party won the election through fraud - an accusation rejected by the previous election commission and international monitors.



With Myanmar being one of the traditional export markets for the Russian weaponry, rising tensions there provide Moscow with a good chance to increase military sales, Alexey Kirichenko, Associate Professor at the Institute of Asian and African Countries at the Moscow State University, said.



"This makes it possible for Russia to conclude lucrative contracts... The situation in the country is very difficult, and the Burmese military needs to build up their military potential," he said.



On Tuesday, Myanmar security forces backed by armoured vehicles clashed with a newly formed guerrilla group in the second biggest city Mandalay, resulting in at least two casualties.



Russia said in March it was deeply concerned by the rising number of civilian deaths in Myanmar. President Vladimir Putin does not plan to meet Min Aung Hlaing on his visit to Moscow, Kremlin has said. (Reuters)


South Korean journalist So Jun Seop released an article thanking BTS on behalf of his wife, who passed away.

On Tuesday, Jun. 22, South Korean journalist So Jun Seop released an article on Oh My News, thanking BTS on behalf of his wife, who has passed away.

Journalist Thanks Wife on Behalf on Wife Who Passed Away

The man revealed in his article that his wife had passed away from cancer. During the latter years of her early life, his wife would often listen to BTS songs while leaving for work. At the time, BTS had not yet reached the level of fame they have now, which only shows the wife's great eye for talent.

Back then, the couple never imagined that the wife would become so sick. Following her cancer diagnosis, So Jun Seop's wife would watch BTS every day as she went through chemotherapy. Whenever she had the energy, she would watch BTS videos.

The man recalls how BTS would upload episodes of their variety show, "Run! BTS," and that he would watch the show alongside his wife. He vividly remembers an episode of the boys cooking and eating in New Zealand

His wife would listen to BTS songs every day, which led So Jun Seop to fall in love with tracks such as "Fake Love" and "Epiphany." When he saw videos of Jimin dancing, he complimented the idol for dancing incredibly well. His wife had told him that the BTS members had brought her immense comfort. His wife showed him how ARMYs and BTS around the world are connected.

He even added that his wife loved the drinks BTS advertised, so he often went out to buy them for her.

However, now that his wife has passed away, even just seeing the letter BTS has become hard on So Jun Seop. Whenever he hears or sees anything relating to BTS, he is reminded of his wife that passed away too soon, and it fills him with unbearable sadness.

Despite the sadness he feels, So Jun Seop wants to thank BTS on behalf of his wife. Thanking BTS has been on his mind for a while, but he has avoided it because it was difficult for him to vocalize that his wife is no longer with him.

"For giving the wife whom I love so much joy and comfort in the last few years of her life, thank you, BTS."

So Jun Seop is a journalist who has contributed to various media outlets, such as Oh My News and Prussian. He has a Ph.D. in International Relations and worked as a researcher at the National Assembly Library. He has also published several books and is interested in democracy,

Read his article thanking BTS here.

For more K-Pop news and updates, always keep your tabs open here on KpopStarz.

KpopStarz owns this article.

Written by Alexa Lewis
A snap of a hotel room featuring a woman's foot and contraception was shared to BTS's official Instagram account, and this has caused social media frenzy.

Image of a Hotel Room, Woman's Foot, and Condoms Shared to BTS Instagram Story

On Wednesday, Jun. 23, a post titled "The admin of the official Instagram of BTS appeared to make a mistake" made rounds on South Korean online community forums.

The post, which has since gained attention from the public, shows a screenshot taken from BTS Instagram Stories.

The photo in question shows what appeared to be a hotel bedroom. On the bed, we see a remote and a condom sachet.

As the remote control is from the South Korean brand IPTV Company, the photo is speculated to have been taken in South Korea. At the bottom of the picture, by the bed, a woman's foot is visible.

Many who saw the photo assumed that it was just the social media handler who made the blunder as fans are aware that BTS does not have control over their official Instagram account.

For that reason, netizens said they felt embarrassed on behalf of whoever posted the suggestive photo.

Other internet users hoped the staff member did not feel too bad for their mistake, as it is normal for employees to have slip-ups while working. Some simply laughed it off and did not take the photo too seriously.

When asked about the situation, an official from HYBE Labels told South Korean media outlet Wikitree that they would look into the details concerning the Instagram Story posted.

What do you think of the situation? Tell us in the comments below!

BTS' Second English Single "Butter"

On May 21, BTS dropped their second all-English single, "Butter." Upon the release of "Butter," BTS broke the record for biggest YouTube premiere of all time, amassing 3.9 million peak concurrent viewers.

"Butter" also broke the record for most-viewed YouTube video on its first day with 108.2 million views.

"Butter" entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart at number one, marking it BTS's fourth number-one single in the last nine months. BTS is the fastest artist to achieve this milestone since Justice Timberlake a decade and a half ago and the fastest group to attain this feat since Jackson 5 in the 1970s.

For more K-Pop news and updates, always keep your tabs open here on KpopStarz.

KpopStarz owns this article.

Written by Alexa Lewis


Location: 6388-Mega Disposal



Job Title

CDL B Front Load Driver

Primary Location

Seekonk, Massachusetts

Employee Type

Employee

Job Description

After you apply if you would like to chat with our virtual assistant Olivia then please click the link below. https://olivia.paradox.ai/in/WasteConnections/SeanLennon We have an immediate position available for a Class B Front LoadDriver to support local routes in Rhode Island but based out of Seekonk, MA. Drivers interested in secure, steady employment in a family atmosphere are encouraged to apply. Responsibilities include: Performs complete pre-trip inspection including, but not limited to, checking tire pressure, fluid levels, safety equipment, gauges and controls.

Drives heavy diesel truck to and from customer locations and disposal area(s).

Moves waste bin to position accessible by truck and closes all enclosure gates, as necessary.

Operates hydraulic hand controls to lift/load refuse, operate compactor and dispose of collected material at the designated facility.

Cleans waste from the packer blade and truck body on each landfill or transfer station run.

Courteous interaction with customers, dispatchers and supervisors.

Cleans up the area around accidental waste spills.

Reads route sheets to determine day's schedule and services each customer as identified on the route sheet or as assigned by dispatcher or supervisor.

Completes required route/productivity sheets, Vehicle Condition Reports (VCRs) and other forms.

Performs all driver check-in procedures upon returning to the facility at the end of the day.

Follows all safety policies and procedures.

Performs other job-related duties as assigned. Click here if you would like to chat with our virtual assist at: https://olivia.paradox.ai/in/WasteConnections/SeanLennon To be considered for any of our current openings you must complete an application at www.wasteconnections.com . Application information and additional instructions can be found once you select your position of interest. We offer excellent benefits including: medical, dental, vision, flexible spending account, long term & short term disability, life insurance, 401K retirement and unlimited opportunities to "Connect with Your Future". Waste Connections is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer (Minority/Female/Disabled/Veteran)




Academy of the Holy is seeking a Chief Financial Officer (CFO) to join our team and manage the financial aspects of the school, including investments and audit activities. The CFO is responsible for financial oversight and reporting, budgeting, tuition setting, financial aid administration, regulatory compliance, and human resources oversight. As a member of the senior management team, she or he will be comfortable in a leadership role that demands clear communication and presentation skills. Summary Description

The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) is responsible for all financial matters, including

financial oversight and reporting, budgeting, tuition setting, financial aid administration,

technology oversight, school safety planning and training, facilities management,

regulatory compliance, human resources oversight, and food and transportation

services.

Essential Functions:

A. Financial Oversight

 Supervises bookkeeping operation of the Business Office

 Develops and monitors annual operating and capital budgets

 Oversees an operating budget of $4 million.

 Recommends tuition and fee schedules

 Supervises and prepares reports on a timely basis for all funds

 Supervises the preparation of financial data to provide audit trails and

supporting material for the preparation of professional audits

 Communicates with parents, especially with respect to individual account

problems

 In collaboration with the Finance Committee of the Board invests available funds

and manages them to maximize income

 Works closely with the Director of Institutional Advancement to reconcile

fundraising accounts

B. Personnel Administration

 Confers with administrative staff to determine personnel needs

 Performs personnel management duties as assigned

 Supervises Business Office personnel

 Develops and maintains compensation package for all employees, subject to

policies developed by the Board of Trustees and under supervision of the Head

of School

C. Financial Aid Administration

 Works closely with the Admissions Director to oversee the financial aid

application process and assist families as needed

 Works closely with the Enrollment Manager to review financial aid applications

and recommend awards to the Head of School

 Manages financial aid and scholarship awards and tracks awards as compared to

budget goals

 Follows up with outstanding financial aid applications and contracts

 Ensures all awards are entered on enrollment contracts.

D. Plant, Facilities, and Equipment Management

 Supervises and confers with Supervisor of Building and Grounds, on all aspects of

facilities management, personnel, contract services, maintenance, construction,

fire safety codes

E. School Safety Planning and Training

 Updates the school safety plan on an annual basis

 Ensures annual training is completed

 Ensures that all required safety drills are completed

 Tracks all faculty and staffs CPR Certifications

 Ensures all safety inspections are completed

 Responds to all safety concerns and determines the appropriate response in

consultation with administration

F. Information Technology Management

 Supervises information technology personnel

 Manages the Help Desk Ticket system

 Identifies funding for IT equipment and direct purchases in accordance with the

Technology Plan

 Supervises the distribution, collection and tracking of all IT devices

 Identifies future funding needs to keep equipment up to date.

G. Regulatory Compliance

 Keeps current with state and federal regulations, including EEOC regulations,

aspects of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, and wage and hour

laws

 Develops and maintains contacts with federal, state, and local offices (and

knowledgeable professions outside) to remain abreast of laws affecting the

school

H. Responsibilities to the Board of Trustees

 Provides reports to Board of Trustees, as needed

 Serves as liaison to the Finance and Facilities committees of the Board of

Trustees, and other committees as needed

I. Food and Transportation Services Management

 Oversees the recruitment of catering companies and is responsible for the efficient

functioning of the schools food services

 Oversees the engagement of group transportation services for students whose school

districts do not provide such services and, in collaboration with the Division Head,

assures their smooth functioning

Skills and abilities:

 Ability to integrate the schools mission into all financial operations

 Demonstrated strength in interpersonal skills and collaboration

 Strong written and verbal communication skills

 Ability to explain complex financial concepts in simple language

 Ability to collaborate with various stakeholders

 Ability to listen to various points of view.

 Ability to motivate individuals.

 Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple tasks in a timesensitive manner

Qualifications:

 A bachelors degree in accounting or finance required; advanced degree

preferred

 Demonstrated success in supervising business office personnel and operations

 Minimum five-years experience in management at a non-profit institution

preferred

 Knowledge of, experience with, and expertise in the use of a variety of business

applications

Direct Reports:

 Data Manager

 Business Office Clerk

 Technology Support Technician

 Supervisor of Buildings and Grounds Send letter of intent, resume, and references to centraladmin@ahns.org A complete job description can be found at www.ahns.org/about/employment

recblid x401q2050hubxd5zej8ppvwkxhofke










Job Title: Specialist, Project Management - Food and Nutrition Services



Office: Office of the Chief Operating Officer



Date Posted: 6/22/2021



Salary Range: 1-5 / $82,007 - $92,534



NTE Date: N/A



Position Overview The Office of Innovation and Systems Improvement (ISI) works with the Chancellor to align resources across the organization through innovation and continuous improvement. Our goal is to initiate change and lead DC Public Schools into the highest performing school district in the nation. After engaging with over 3,000 internal and external stakeholders to help shape the future of DCPS, we are guided by the five strategic priorities of the new Capital Commitment 2017-2022 Strategic Plan: Promote Equity: Define, understand, and promote equity to close achievement gaps and interrupt institutional bias.

Define, understand, and promote equity to close achievement gaps and interrupt institutional bias. Empower Our People: Recruit, develop, and retain a talented, caring, and diverse team.

Recruit, develop, and retain a talented, caring, and diverse team. Educate the Whole Child: Provide rigorous, joyful, and inclusive academic and social emotional experiences for all students.

Provide rigorous, joyful, and inclusive academic and social emotional experiences for all students. Ensure Excellent Schools: Increase the number of high quality schools across the district by defining blended autonomies for schools and creating opportunities for innovation.

Increase the number of high quality schools across the district by defining blended autonomies for schools and creating opportunities for innovation. Engage Families: Deepen partnerships with families and community. The Office of the Chief Operating Officer (OCOO) is comprised of the Strategic School Operations, Food & Nutrition Services, School Security, Facilities, Compliance, and Attendance teams. OCOO is responsible for guiding the operations and functions for all 118 schools within the District. Our goal is for all DCPS schools to be ready on the first day of school and every day thereafter so that all principals can lead, all teachers can teach, and all students can learn. The School Operations & Programs division provides direct, day-to-day support to all DCPS schools. This division is made of the Strategic School Operations, Food & Nutrition Services, and School Security teams. The Specialist, Project Management, Food and Nutrition Services is responsible for providing project management support for FNS while aligning the efforts of its departments towards programmatic goal achievement. This work stream includes but is not limited to: FNS self-operation pilot strategy and project mapping, school food service opening planning and tracking, school year closeout mapping and tracking, and public engagement support. The Specialist will also support specific strategic initiatives focused on enhancing organizational culture and improving cross-functional collaboration. The Specialist will assist in improving processes and procedures to ensure that the division is operating effectively. This position is a safety-sensitive position. As a result, throughout employment this position will be subject to the Employee Mandatory Drug and Alcohol Testing Policy. The Specialist, Project Management - Food and Nutrition Services will report to the Director, Food and Nutrition Services. Essential Duties and Responsibilities The below statements are intended to describe the general nature and scope of work being performed by this position. This is not a complete listing of all responsibilities, duties, and/or skills required. Other duties may be assigned. Supports the Executive Director and FNS team in the strategic approach to initiatives, including planning, organizing, and communicating across multiple departments and at high levels across DCPS and other agencies and partners.

Coordinates, plans, and supports the short- and long-term management of a portfolio of food & nutrition-related special projects, including but not limited to: self-operation, summer meal programs, school-year opening readiness, year-end closeout, and other high-priority projects.

Assists in the definition of project scope and objectives, involving all relevant stakeholders and ensuring technical feasibility.

Anticipates, identifies, and resolves complex obstacles to success of overall program as well as specific projects.

Builds data tracking tools to monitor progress and make informed decisions; and analyzes key data markers related to strategic initiatives, operations, and compliance.

Develops detailed project plans to monitor and track progress utilizing the most advantageous and effective technology systems, such as dashboards and other project mapping tools.

Analyzes data and provides data visualization to identify areas of need for internal planning and decision making; and synthesizes data to provide high-level updates to critical stakeholders

Translates complex analyses into a format that a broader audience can understand and act upon; and develops presentations to senior leaders that summarize key points of analysis and distill lessons that will accelerate the learning curve of DCPS senior leadership.

Prepares a variety of reports in written, oral, and electronic form (e.g., weekly updates, case monitoring, data tracking, status presentations, meeting updates, etc.) for the purpose of disseminating information and/or materials.

Develops and implements strategies to improve the accuracy and accessibility of high-quality data to program managers and leaders so that they can make evidence-based decisions in real-time.

Applies deep content knowledge and relevant expertise to DCPS projects and general operations; advises FNS Senior Leadership Team in specific areas of focus; and helps build competency in others.

Creates detailed timelines for each initiative; assesses and tracks project progress regularly using various computer programs and tools; and drives project completion holding others accountable for responsibilities and deadlines.

Interviews and surveys other colleagues and management teams to determine opportunities for improvement; researches specific issues; and develops detailed recommendations and implementation plans to resolve.

Builds relationships and liaises with various internal departments to drive collaboration and project success; and interacts with and responds effectively to urgent requests from multiple internal and external DCPS stakeholders.

Travels offsite to schools, and agency and community partners, to deepen understanding, communicate, and support FNS initiatives as assigned. Qualifications Bachelor's degree and three to five years of related work experience.

Master's degree preferred.

Previous exposure to or experience in the education sector a plus.

PMP Certification a plus.

Experience in public or private sector food service a plus.

Demonstrated success in using data analysis to inform strategic planning and decision-making, applying skills to communicate complex information to a variety of audiences easily.

Leadership and management experience preferred, as well as previous exposure to or experience with urban school environment strongly preferred.

Possesses strong communication skills, both oral and written.

Ability to multitask and work under pressure in a fast-paced environment.

Proficient in computer skills, including MS Office Suite and project management programs at an advanced skill level.

Excellent quantitative skills, including the ability to examine available data, apply decision rules and analytical methods, produce descriptive and inferential statistics, and prepare meaningful reports based on analyses that enable programmatic next steps and actions.

Exhibits excellent fact-finding, analysis, and problem-solving skills through critical analyses.

DCPS Values

STUDENTS FIRST : We recognize students as whole children and put their needs first in everything we do.

: We recognize students as whole children and put their needs first in everything we do. COURAGE : We have the audacity to learn from our successes and failures, to try new things, and to lead the nation as a proof point of PK-12 success.

: We have the audacity to learn from our successes and failures, to try new things, and to lead the nation as a proof point of PK-12 success. EQUITY : We work proactively to eliminate opportunity gaps by interrupting institutional bias and investing in effective strategies to ensure every student succeeds.

: We work proactively to eliminate opportunity gaps by interrupting institutional bias and investing in effective strategies to ensure every student succeeds. EXCELLENCE : We work with integrity and hold ourselves accountable for exemplary outcomes, service, and interactions.

: We work with integrity and hold ourselves accountable for exemplary outcomes, service, and interactions. TEAMWORK : We recognize that our greatest asset is our collective vision and ability to work collaboratively and authentically.

: We recognize that our greatest asset is our collective vision and ability to work collaboratively and authentically. JOY: We enjoy our collective work and will enthusiastically celebrate our success and each other.


Magnolia, AR (71754)

Today

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 64F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 64F. Winds light and variable.


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The African Ministers Council on Water (AMCOW) has led the African continent in launching the African Sanitation Policy Guidelines (ASPG), which has been developed in consultation with Member States and other water and sanitation sector partners across the continent. The guidelines provide the steps towards developing a new policy or updating a sanitation policy and also what is needed in a comprehensive sanitation policy.

Speaking at the launch, the president of AMCOW who is also Namibias Minister of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform H.E. Carl Gustav Schlettwein said Namibia was committed to creating a standalone sanitation policy using the ASPG and encouraged other countries to take advantage of the ASPG to improve their sanitation policies. It is the plan of my government to ensure that Namibia develops a stand-alone sanitation policy from the combined Water Supply and Sanitation Policy of 2008. He added that, Namibia will be among the first countries to take advantage of the ASPG. I urge all countries to take advantage of the African Sanitation Policy Guidelines. 

The need for the ASPG was conceptualized in 2017 after an initial support for the development of sanitation policy in four countries revealed that huge efforts were needed for such individual country support. AMCOW further conducted deeper analysis of national sanitation policies and strategies across 26 countries in 2019. The results of this assessment indicated that none of the 26 countries had sanitation policies that adequately addressed the fundamental elements of the sanitation enabling environment needed to accelerate improvement. Notably, the assessment revealed that five years into the era of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), close to 61% of the policies were still focused on the Millennium Development Goals.

This brought the need for the development of standard sanitation policy guidelines to support policy development, review and revision, Acting AMCOW Executive Secretary Mr. Thomas Banda said. ASPG is needed to position Member States to respond to the continental and global commitments and goals for sanitation in order to accelerate universal access to safely managed sanitation and eradicate open defecation. Some of these include the 2015 AfricaSan Ngor Ministerial Declaration and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030, especially goal 6.2.

In her goodwill message on behalf of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission Moussa Faki Mahamat, Ambassador Josefa Leonel Correia Sacko, the Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment (ARBE) of the African Union (AU) emphasized that access to safe water and Sanitation as a human right for all people, and called on all donors and governments across the continent to support AMCOW and AU to ensure that the ASPG is used by African countries to provide adequate access to water and sanitation for all in Africa for social and economic development in line with Africa Agenda 2063.

Speaking at the launch, Amina J Mohammed the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations commended AMCOW for developing the African Sanitation Policy Guidelines. This important work will provide African Governments with guidance for enhancing or developing a clear and comprehensive sanitation policy to pave way for large scale national sanitation policies, she added.

On his part, the Director General of the World health Organization (WHO) Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, The African Ministers Council on Water is working to accelerate high quality investment and leadership in sanitation through the African Sanitation Policy Guidelines which draw on the principle outlined in the WHO for sanitation and health. We look forward to working with AMCOW and African governments to provide sanitation for all. History shows that societies that invested in sanitary improvements became healthier, wealthier and more powerful, but the lack of sanitation makes a country more vulnerable to illness and epidemics which grounds the whole society.

The Executive Director of UNICEF Henrietta Fore said that UNICEF is committed to working closely with these communities and with African Ministers to translate (the ASPG) into safe sanitation in more African communities. To start we will roll out the guidelines in two countries this year with more countries and regions to follow next year, she added.

Ministers in charge of sanitation and hygiene from Kenya, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Cameroun, Egypt, Senegal and South Africa all commended AMCOW for developing the ASPG and promised to use it to improve the enabling environment for sanitation in their countries. Notably, Hon Suleiman Adamu, the Minister for Water Resources of Nigeria said that Nigeria was faced with the task of providing access to at least basic sanitation for more than 100 million Nigerians and the ASPG offers a huge opportunity to accelerate that. He added that, Nigeria will use the ASPG to upgrade its Water Sanitation policy of 2004 and work closely with the 36 units (states) so that each of them uses the ASPG to ensure that their policies are context-specific, aligned with the Federal Level policy and standard, and adapted to the ASPG.

The launch, which took place virtually because of the COVID-19 measures in place across the world, brought together Ministers responsible for water, sanitation and hygiene across Africa, the African Union, the United Nations agencies, donors, water and sanitation specialists across the continent. The development process involved a rigorous consultation with Member States, sanitation policy makers and diverse stakeholders across the African continent. The ASPG was presented, views and contributions of participants captured and documented to ensure follow up and to help in the planning for support to Member States to uptake and use the guidelines.

Since the establishment of AMCOW in 2002, it has served primarily as the platform for convening Water and Sanitation sector stakeholders across the continent. AMCOW provides policy direction and leads the political advocacy for sector growth and improvement for sustainable management of the continents water resources and sanitation. The 2008 Sharm El Sheikh Heads of State Declaration among other things, mandates AMCOW to support Member States to develop plans, policies and strategies to accelerate the achievement of Water and Sanitation for all in Africa (Assembly/AU/Dec. (XI)). The Ngor Ministerial Declaration of 2015 at AfricaSan4 also calls on Member States to develop strategies to achieve universal access to adequate and sustainable sanitation and hygiene services and eliminate open defecation by 2030.

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But the bill had little chance of passing the Senate without significant amendments. A vote to end debate on the bill  granting senators a chance to vote on it  failed along party-lines 50-50. Toomey accused Democrats of playing political theater, using Republicans opposition as an excuse to attempt to rewrite the rules governing the Senate and ending the filibuster. Republicans avoided taking such a dramatic step when it controlled Congress during the Trump administration, recognizing it as unhealthy for democracy by granting narrow majorities few checks on their power.
Detectives identified the shooter as Roberto Armando Vadillo of Allentown, who was arrested with the assistance of Allentown police, Bethlehem police said. He was charged with attempted homicide, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, reckless endangerment and carrying a gun without a license.
After fire crews confirmed no one was in the home at 921 Pennsylvania St. following initial reports of entrapment, Nelson said an arson dog checked for signs of accelerants. The dog hit on a scent that indicated some material was used to ignite or spread the fire in the house, Nelson said.
Even if all of President Joe Bidens bloated $2 trillion infrastructure dream becomes a reality, it doesnt include enough to accomplish all of Amtraks wish list for the near future. Amtraks proposed twice-a-day trip from Allentown to New York could be trumped by other routes with greater ridership potential.
Rather than resign themselves to waiting, Rozzi and Gregory pursued a two-pronged approach. They both paved the way for the constitutional amendment in two years and pursued legislation to create the two-year window now and provide for Kings Bench Jurisdiction that would send any constitutional challenges directly to the state Supreme Court (rather than force them to slowly slog their way up the court ladder).
By Stephanie Campbell, Ohio Technology Consortium

(From the Ohio Supercomputer Center 2020 Research Report)

The Ohio Supercomputer Center (OSC) may be located in the Buckeye state, but its power reaches across the globe. Andrew Paluch, associate professor of chemical, paper, and biomedical engineering at Miami University, took OSCs computational power all the way to Brazil to introduce students to high performance computing (HPC).

After coming to Miami University in 2013, Paluch established a relationship with Luciano Costa, an associate professor of physical chemistry at the Fluminense Federal University located in Niteroi, Brazil. Through working on research projects together, Paluch learned of the CAPES-Print program, which brought in American researchers to introduce their research ideas and connect Brazilian researchers with international colleagues.

I was asked to give a workshop on performing free energy calculations, Paluch said. I had an idea of what the university was like and the resources that are available there. They are nothing like we have here.

Paluch had access to a computer lab comprised of 30 workstations but not enough computing power to give students hands-on lessons in supercomputing. Becoming anxious, Paluch reached out to OSC and received a classroom allocation so students could access the OSC clusters virtually. He then built the workshop course on OSC OnDemand, the Centers deployment of the open-source HPC portal Open OnDemand, and set up the participants OSC accounts.

It just made it seamless in terms of getting things set up from a software perspective, Paluch said. Only a small number of students in the class were actually computational people. A lot of them were there just to see what it was all about, best practices, how to perform calculations and things of that nature. I didnt know what the workstations were going to be like In Brazil, and so just knowing exactly what I was getting into with Open OnDemand was invaluable.

While his workshop in Brazil was attended by students in graduate school or above, supercomputer exposure can be equally beneficial for students like his undergraduates at Miami. Paluch noted that introducing students to these resources provides opportunities in a range of subjects while allowing them to learn the basics of supercomputing and other tools for their future careers.

In addition to the ways that OSC has been helpful domestically and internationally, he also credits the Center for helping him achieve tenure and integrate into the HPC community. When I came to Miami, I remember investigating resources available and coming across OSC, Paluch said. During my first semester, I joined the allocations committee and developed a support system through OSC. OSC has supported all my work since I started. And thats why I say that my promotion and tenure is in a big part thanks to support from OSC.
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Sayre, PA (18840)

Today

Thunderstorms early, then variable clouds overnight with still a chance of showers. Gusty winds and small hail are possible. Low 58F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms early, then variable clouds overnight with still a chance of showers. Gusty winds and small hail are possible. Low 58F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%.
Calabria is Out at FHFA

On Wednesday morning the Supreme Court ruled that the statutory restrictions on the president's ability to remove the chairman of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) violates the Constitution's separation of powers. Within hours the White House announced it would be replacing Mark Calabria who currently holds that position.

The decision, in a case now known as Collins v Yellen, was similar to Seila Law v The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) which was decided last year in favor of the plaintiffs. Both FHFA and CFPB were created during the housing crisis and had similar independent structures, each headed by a single chairperson for a five-year term. Neither chairperson could be removed from office except for cause.

The Collins case, however, had an additional component. The suit was brought by shareholders of GSE stock who contended that the 2012 revisions to a 2008 agreement between the GSEs (Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) and the U.S. Treasury were invalid due to the unconstitutional structure of the agency.

The original Preferred Senior Stock Purchase Agreements (PSPA) set terms for a massive infusion of capital from Treasury at the time the GSEs were put into conservatorship with FHFA as conservator. That agreement required the GSEs to pay a percentage dividend to Treasury each quarter based on indebtedness and regardless of their financial condition. The 2012 amendments changed that dividend to a net sweep of any quarterly profits. Shareholders also maintained that these amendments were made just as the GSEs were approaching profitability and were intended to bar them from building capital. The stockholders said the amendments have led to a $124 billion windfall for Treasury.

In an opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito the court, in a 7-2 ruling, found the president did have the power to remove the director because "the president's removal power serves important purposes regardless of whether the agency in question affects ordinary Americans by directly regulating them or by taking actions that have a profound but indirect effect on their lives." However, it did not grant relief to the plaintiffs, saying that in agreeing to the amendments, FHFA did not exceed its authority under the Housing and Economic Recovery Act (HERA) of 2008 as a conservator of the GSEs.

It isn't known what effect the removal of Calabria will have on another set of PSPA amendments signed this January. Among the more controversial, a ceiling on the number of investor and second home mortgages the GSEs can acquire as well as a limit on risk layering. Earlier this year, the Urban Institute argued that investor mortgages were a useful and profitable part of the agencies' portfolio. In addition to the most basic argument that more credit availability for investors means better affordability for renters, UI also pointed out that the profitability of investor loans allows the agencies' to cross subsidize other affordable housing programs.

One Washington source said Sandra Thompson, current FHFA Deputy Director, Division of Housing Mission and Goals (DHMG) is likely to be named acting director until a permanent director is confirmed.

Bob Broeksmit, president and CEO of the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) issued the following statement without mentioning Calabria by name.

"MBA recognizes and appreciates the impact of the Supreme Court's decision in Collins v. Yellen as FHFA plays a critical role regulating entities that ensure liquid markets for single-family and multifamily mortgages. We expect President Biden will move quickly to appoint a successor, and we look forward to working collaboratively with the administration, FHFA, and other stakeholders to ensure those markets function well for lenders and the American consumers they serve."

Calabria has already released a statement. Here's a highlight that captures the spirit of the statement: "When the housing markets experience a significant downturn, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will fail at their current capital levels. I wish my successor all the best in fixing the remaining flaws."

Notably, the original draft date on FHFA's website was yesterday, June 22nd.
National

Rs 9,371 cr seized assets of Mallya-Choksi-Nirav transferred to banks: ED

Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi

NEW DELHI, JUN 23 (IANS) | Publish Date: 6/23/2021 1:32:52 PM IST

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday said it has handed over assets worth Rs 9,371 crore belonging to fugitive businessmen Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi to state-run banks to realise the losses on account of the fraud committed against them.

The ED in a statement said that Mallya, Nirav Modi and Choksi have defrauded public sector banks by siphoning off the funds through their companies which resulted in total loss of Rs 22,585.83 crore to the banks. The ED has booked the three on the basis of the FIR filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The financial probe agency said that the ED has taken swift action by unearthing myriad web of domestic and international transactions and stashing of assets abroad.

Investigation has also irrevocably proved that these three accused persons used dummy entities controlled by them for rotation and siphoning off the funds provided by the banks, the ED said. It further said that the ED has attached or seized assets worth Rs 18,170.02 crore which included assets worth of Rs 969 crore located in foreign countries. The quantum of the attached and seized assets represents 80.45 per cent of total bank loss of Rs 22,585.83 crore, it said, adding that the investigation by the ED has proved that substantial part of these assets were held in the names of dummy entities, trusts, third persons, relatives of these accused and these entities were proxy of these accused to hold these assets.

Tue ED has filed charge sheets against all the three accused after completion of PMLA investigation.

Extradition requests have been sent for these persons to the UK and Antigua and Barbuda. The extradition of Mallya has been ordered by the Westminster Magistrates Court and confirmed by the UK High Court. Since Mallya has been denied permission to file appeal in the UK Supreme Court, his extradition to India has become final, the ED said.

It further said that the Westminster Magistrates Court has ordered extradition of Nirav Modi to India.

Nirav Modi has been in London Jail for last two years and three months on the basis of extradition request by India.

Nirav Modi and Mallya have also been declared Fugitive Economic Offenders by PMLA Court in Mumbai, it said.

The ED also said that recently, the agency has transferred shares attached by it, worth of Rs 6,600 crore, to SBI led consortium as per order of PMLA Special Court, Mumbai.

Today, DRT on behalf of SBI led consortium, has sold shares of United Breweries Limited for Rs 5,824.50 crore, it said, adding that further realisation of Rs 800 crore by sale of shares is expected by June 25.

It also said that due to the cooperation and help extended by ED, Public Sector Banks have already recovered Rs 1,357 crore by selling the shares earlier.

Thus, the banks shall be realising total amount of Rs 9,041.5 crore through sale of a part of assets attached/seized by ED under the provisions of PMLA, the ED said.

As on date, out of total attached or seized assets of Rs 18,170.02 crore under provisions of PMLA, assets worth of Rs 329.67 crore has been confiscated and assets worth Rs 9,041.5 crore, representing 40 per cent of total loss to the bank have been handed over to the Public Sector banks, it added.
According to a UN statement for Australia to take "accelerated action at all conceivable levels" on climate change, the Great Barrier Reef should be included in a list of "in danger" world heritage sites.

Great Barrier Reef In Danger

The world's largest coral reef system, according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, should be added to the list at the world heritage committee meeting next month.

The recommendation has generated a flurry of action from the Australian government, with Sussan Ley, the environment minister, stating she had already called Unesco's director-general, Audrey Azoulay, along with Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne.

Experts say that if the committee follows the suggestion, it will be the first time a natural world heritage site has been listed as "at-risk" due to climate change consequences.

Since the last time the committee examined the reef in 2015, global warming-induced by fossil fuel burning has raised ocean temperatures, resulting in three mass bleaching episodes on the 2,300km reef.

Ley stated that the government will "vigorously reject" the suggestion, stating that officials were "stunned" by what she described as a "backflip on earlier promises" by UN officials that the move would not be made this year.

World Heritage Sites

World heritage sites are worldwide symbols, and "in danger" designations are frequently proposed as a result of armed conflict and war, pollution, poaching, and uncontrolled urbanization.

According to the Unesco study, a reform of Australia's primary reef strategy, the reef 2050 plan, should "completely include" results from a significant government review, which concluded that "rapid action at all conceivable levels is necessary to address the danger from climate change."

Despite the efforts and accomplishments of the state and federal governments, major objectives for improving water quality have not been fulfilled, according to the study.

Related Article: Ocean's Extremely Hot Causing Great White Sharks to Find Other Habitat



UNESCO Study

The suggestion came after "a total perversion of the regular process," according to Ley. Officials were persuaded that Unesco would not propose the reef be placed on the "in danger" list a week ago, she added.

China may have influenced the new suggestion, according to the authorities. It is the head of the World Heritage Committee and will hold a meeting on July 16 to discuss the draft recommendation.

Climate change, according to Ley, is the greatest threat to the reef, but the global heritage committee is "not the platform" to "make a statement" about it.

Unesco had identified more than 80 world heritage monuments as being threatened by climate change, she added. The government may have understood if the body decided to label them all as "in danger," but the reef had been singled out, she added.

It's the second time the reef has been put on the endangered list. The last time this happened was in 2015 when the government launched a successful lobbying campaign to exert pressure on the 21-country committee.

Unesco further suggests that a monitoring mission be established to create "corrective measures." The Queensland and federal governments submit a report outlining additional actions to safeguard the reef by February 2022.

Members of the committee were pushed by the conservation organizations WWF-Australia and the Australian Marine Conservation Society prior to the reef decision, encouraging them to encourage Australia to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Imogen Zethoven, an AMCS consultant, stated that Australia's climate policies are "more consistent with a 2.5-3.0C rise in global average temperature - a threshold that would devastate the Great Barrier Reef and all of the world's coral reefs."

She said that the Australian government's inactivity had pushed the reef to the verge of being classified as "in danger."

The Unesco suggestion will shock Australians, said Richard Leck, head of oceans at WWF-Australia, but it was "a forceful message" that the government needed to "raise its game" on climate change.

Australian Emission

Australia's greenhouse gas emission objectives have remained unchanged since 2015, and Prime Minister Scott Morrison has rejected international pressure to set a definite net zero target for 2050.

James Cook University's Assoc Prof Scott Heron researched the implications of climate change on world heritage reef areas. He described the advice as "surprising" but "not entirely unexpected."

According to Labor leader Anthony, the prospect of an "in danger" designation for the reef came as the return of Barnaby Joyce as Nationals leader made the government less likely to adhere to a target of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 Albanese.

Also Read: Only 3% of the World's Ecosystems Still in Pristine Conditions

For more news update about Environmental Action, don't forget to follow Nature World News!


Pressure is piling up along one of the most active fault lines in the world and New Zealand is in a race to be prepared.

The Alpine Fault

The Alpine Fault runs along the South Island of the country and it has a history of unexpected movements. Researchers can study the lakes and old-growth forests in the foothills of the Southern Alps and become knowledgeable about what's come before.

What they have discovered reveals a great earthquake, one of the biggest in the modern history of New Zealand, is due. In studying the Alpine Fault, researchers have made a timeline of its history and they are aware it makes very big shifts, on average, approximately every 300 years.

It's complicated science that dates the last magnitude-8 earthquake along the fault line to year 1717. Simple maths reveals to us it's been over 300 years since then. So, what type of earthquake is upcoming for the Alpine Fault? That's the question Jamie Howarth, a senior lecturer in physical geography at the Victoria University of Wellington and his team recently set out to answer.

Also Read: There's 'Very Little Warning' Before New Zealand Earthquake, Says Experts

Lake Paringa

The scientists developed the richest record yet of the history of Alpine Fault and discovered a pattern, one that assists them reliably predict what's to come. They gathered so much data from lake beds along the Alpine Fault - geological archives getting ready to be read. This strip of sediment is a specimen collected from Lake Paringa in the foothills of the Southern Alps.

The researchers drilled down six metres and collected a cross-section of the lake bed, disclosing a literal line-by-line snapshot of its history. Jamie said: "[It] gets us back a few thousand years into the past and then we can go through that record like a book, recognize those previous earthquakes and date them."

In this specimen, the red zones represent each great Alpine Fault earthquake back to the year 925AD.The powerful shaking in these events changed the form of the layers of sediment, making them collapse and blend together.

Earthquake-induced Landslides

The shaking also led to the destabilisation of material at the edge of the lake and brought about underwater landslides, again deforming the faultless layers - or lines - of sediment that would otherwise be there.

There is a rise in erosion because the sediment from the earthquake-induced landslides is conveyed to the lakes, following an earthquake. And proof of that is stored away in the natural record. An earthquake might just persist for a few minutes, but the geological impacts can last for decades.

This is just one important sample from one lake along the fault. This process was carried out again at various sites along the Alpine Fault to make a very rich picture of its history.

Related Article: Extreme Heat, Fluid Pressure Discovered at New Zealand's Most Hazardous Earthquake-Generating Fault

For more news, updates about earthquakes and similar topics don't forget to follow Nature World News!
Bushfires shattered already struggling numbers and damaged valuable habitat in Queensland, New South Wales, and the Australian Capital Territory, and koalas may soon be designated as endangered.

Deciding Committee

A federal panel of endangered species specialists has recommended that the marsupial's classification be upgraded from vulnerable in each of the three jurisdictions.

The International Fund for Animal Welfare's Josey Sharrad called the action as "bittersweet."

"It supports our worries that koalas are on the verge of extinction and will require stronger protection in the future," she added.

Related Article: Tasmanian Devils, in an Attempt to Save them From Disease, Wiped Out an Entire Penguin Population



Australian Bushfire

"Before the fires, koalas were on the verge of extinction, with their numbers plummeting owing to habitat clearance, drought, illness, vehicle accidents, and dog attacks.

"The bushfires put the icing on the cake, wreaking havoc on already vulnerable koala numbers and crucial habitat."

Decline in Population

Since 2001, koala numbers in NSW have decreased by 33 percent to 61 percent, with at least 6,400 dead in the Black Summer bushfires.

If nothing is done, koalas in NSW may become extinct by 2050.

Due to deforestation, drought, and bushfires, Queensland's koala population has decreased by at least 50% since 2001.

In 2012, koala populations in both states and those in the ACT were designated as vulnerable.

They've been under constant threat since then, including the effects of land clearance.

Seeking Public Input

In all three jurisdictions, the threatened species committee is seeking public input on whether the native creatures' classification should be upgraded from vulnerable to endangered.

By the end of October, the group will have given its final recommendation to the federal environment minister.

Related Article: Extremely Rare Giant Wood Moth Spotted at a School in Australia



Koala Recovery Strategy

A national koala recovery strategy, according to Sharrad, has been long overdue.

"We encourage governments to act quickly to address the major risks that are pushing the species to extinction," she added.

"Koalas are a beloved animal all throughout the world. We can't afford to let them become extinct while we're still alive."

The Humane Society International, which proposed the koala for endangered status alongside the International Fund for Animal Welfare and the World Wide Fund for Nature, stated that quick implementation might be the final hope for dwindling populations.

"This is news that no Australian can be proud of, but there is still time to act," said Alexia Wellbelove, the organization's senior campaign manager.

The federal government launched an $18 million initiative to help conserve the endangered native mammal earlier this year.

Sussan Ley, the environment minister, stated that a nationwide audit will aid in determining where funds and support should be directed.

However, opponents said that the koala count was insufficient to rescue the species.

The audit will cost $2 million, with the remaining funds going to health research, medical assistance, and habitat restoration.

Also Read: UNESCO Claims that the Great Barrier Reef Should Be Classified as "In Danger"

For more news update about the animal kingdom, don't forget to follow Nature World News!
The journey of Tropical Storm Claudette from the Gulf of Mexico to the Carolinas was an uncommon one, to say the least. In the wake of the dissipation of Claudette over the Atlantic Ocean on Monday evening. Here are five unusual things about Tropical Storm Claudette.

Claudette first became a tropical storm on land over Louisiana

Almost all tropical storms form over the ocean, where warm waters and adequate moisture aid in generating the cyclones. Claudette started its journey as a tropical disruption in the southern Gulf of Mexico and was appointed as a Potential Tropical Cyclone as it propelled nearer to the Louisiana coastline.

However, Claudette did not get a clear circulation until it moved over land, something that is very unusual. Alex Sosnowski, AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist offered some chances as to how the storm developed over land.

Claudette Intensified into a tropical storm over the Carolinas

After developing into a tropical storm over Louisiana, Claudette diminished to a tropical depression over Alabama. The quirky forecast of the storm called for it to turn into a tropical storm while over land once more, and it did exactly that when it got to that status close by Greenville, North Carolina, on Monday.

Also Read: 2021 Pacific Hurricane Season: Tropical Storm Carlos is Third Storm to Form in Gulf of Mexico

Claudette Created an EF2 tornado in Alabama

It is usual for tropical storms or hurricanes to form tornadoes, but one tornado brought about by Claudette was unusual for its strength.

AccuWeather Meteorologist Senior Randy Adkins explained: "The extensive majority of tropical systems that make landfall produce one tornado (and usually more than one) at least."

Adkins added that observations since 1950 gave an indication that tornadoes connected with tropical systems tend to be of lesser intensity than average, and this is probably because of less atmospheric instability, less increasing motion within the environment that produces tornado.

Claudette has killed not less than 13 people

Claudette has been an unusually dangerous storm for its strength. The storm took the lives of at least 13 people in Alabama, The Associated Press reported. Ten people, together with eight kids in a youth home for abused or mistreated children, were killed in a multi-car accident that was blamed on hydroplaning because of wet roads from Claudette.

The other three were killed by the storm, including a young 24-year-old boy and a 3-year-old boy, after a tree collapsed on their home close to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and a 23-year-old woman who lost her life when her car ran off the roadway into a swollen creek in DeKalb County.

Claudette formed ahead of schedule

Following a current trend in the Atlantic basin, Tropical Storm Claudette developed well prior to the historical forming of the third-named storm of Atlantic Hurricane Season. According to the National Hurricane Center, the third-named system is anticipated to take place around Aug. 13.

Related Article: 10 Dead After Storm Claudette Likely Caused Road Crash in Alabama

For more news, updates about tropical storms and similar topics don't forget to follow Nature World News!
After a violent thunderstorm generated a tornado just outside of Montreal, the largest city in the province of Quebec, Canada, at least one person was killed, and two more were injured.

Tornade a Mascouche  pic.twitter.com/fnSsvImSLu  Philippe Meunier (@maxiwheat1979) June 21, 2021

Seeking for Shelter

After originally witnessing the tornado, the victim, a man in his 60s, allegedly attempted to seek cover in his shed. According to CTV News, he was killed as the twister swept over the Mascouche neighborhood of Montreal. The devastating weather, residents said CTV News, happened in a matter of seconds.

Related Article: Destructive Tornado Sweeps Through Chicago Overnight, Damaging More Than 100 Homes



Wind Gusts

In addition to the tornado, the town was allegedly damaged by severe wind gusts. According to CTV News, a home under construction was blown from its foundation, and huge trees were broken like twigs. "I saw a cloud in front of me with everything floating around it, including swings and chairs. I attempted to shut the door, but the pressure was too much; wind blasted in and blew the glass out, "Alexandre Levesque, a local, said CTV News in an interview.

Unfortunate Death

The death was verified when Minister of Public Safety Genevieve Guilbault expressed her sympathies to the family on Twitter. Philippe Meunier, a Mascouche resident, told CTV News that his daughter witnessed a tornado in the region at 3:45 p.m. local time before filming the whirling clouds.

Devastating Twister

Residents of Mascouche, Quebec captured multiple videos of the tornado that struck the Montreal suburb on Monday afternoon, now confirmed to be EF2, causing damage and resulting in one death: https://t.co/yYrPcDuZ1X #QCstorm pic.twitter.com/nDk5m6Lolu  The Weather Network (@weathernetwork) June 22, 2021

According to Environment Canada spokesperson Peter Kimbell, a tornado touched down around 30 miles (46 kilometers) north of Montreal around 4 p.m. local time.

Photos on social media, according to CTV News, revealed considerable devastation across specific neighborhoods that were damaged by the twister.

Urgence After the storm caused "serious damage," Quebec warned Mascouche residents to be cautious of debris and the possibility of live electrical lines in the streets.

According to CTV News, over 50,000 consumers in Quebec province were without power by late afternoon local time.

Relief Operations

According to CTV News, the Red Cross has provided 50 individuals with food, housing, and clothing.

"With a powerful storm passing to the north of the area, the elements were ripe for severe weather in southern Quebec," said AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson, who routinely provides predictions for Canada.

Storm

The storm brought extremely humid air with dew point values in the low 70s F. (21-23 C). It produced an environment for tornadic thunderstorm cells when combined with substantial wind shear, which allowed thunderstorms to form and strengthen.

"Based on the damaged footage, this appears to be EF1-EF2 damage (86-135 mph gusts), but this is only an estimate since local experts will need to be on-site to acquire a more precise storm classification," Anderson noted.

Tornadoes in Quebec

According to Anderson, tornadoes are prevalent in southern Quebec. "There have been hundreds of tornadoes since 1980, with a couple of them reaching EF3," he noted.

Tornado Alley runs through parts of southwest Ontario in eastern Canada. Tornado Alley is located in the central and southern Plains of the United States, where tornadoes are most common.

Also Read: Despite Temperature Spikes, American Northeast May Experience Some Cooling Due to Stormy Weather

For more climate and weather updates, don't forget to follow Nature World News!
The climate crisis that is currently taking place will not spare Siberia. Newly published satellite imagery reveals the ground temperature in at least one region in Siberia topped 48 degrees Celsius (118 degrees Fahrenheit) going into the longest day of the year.

Ground Temperatures

It's hot Siberia Earth summer, and it definitely won't be the last. While many heads turn to the American West as cities like Salt Lake City and Phoenix experienced unexpectedly hot temperatures this past week, a similar climatological aberrance unraveled on the opposite side of the earth in the Arctic Circle.

That's not strange when you consider that the planet heating up is a universal affair, one that isn't fussy about its targets. We're all the target! The European Space Agency's Copernicus Sentinel satellites measured 118-degree-Fahrenheit temperature on the ground in Verkhojansk, in Yakutia, Eastern Siberia.

Other ground temperatures in the area included 43 degrees Celsius (109 degrees Fahrenheit) in Govorovo and 37 degrees Celsius (98.6 degrees Fahrenheit) in Saskylah, which had its highest temperatures since 1936. It's crucial to note that the temperatures being talked about here are land surface temperatures, not air temperatures.

Also Read: Death Valley Temperature Reaches Scorching 128F as Heat Wave Continues

Chasms in the Earth

The air temperature in Verkhojansk was 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit) - still strangely hot, but not Arizona hot. But the ground temperature being so warm is still not good. Those temperatures trouble the permafrost - the frozen soil of yore, which carries greenhouse gases and on which much of eastern Russia is built. As permafrost defrost, it sighs its methane back into the atmosphere, bringing about chasms in the Earth.

Apart from the deleterious effects of more greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the permafrost melting makes the Siberian earth unstable, unsettling building foundations and bringing about landslides. It also leaves the frozen carcasses of many Ice Age mammals bare, implying paleontologists have to work quickly to study the species that flourished when the planet was much colder.

The Hottest Temperature Recorded in Siberia

For all the talk of reanimating the woolly mammoth, one's got to recall: the place they were knew of is long gone.The same area also suffered through a heat wave that brought about a very un-Siberian air temperature reading of 38 degrees Celsius (100 degrees Fahrenheit) precisely one year ago to the day from the new freak heat.

It's the hottest temperature that has ever been recorded in the area. It was also in the 90s last month in western Siberia, making a reflection that the sweltering new abnormal is affecting just about every place. And it's not only the permafrost that is suffering; wildfires last year in Siberia discharged a record amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, making sure more summers like this are to come.

Related Article: Study: Global Temperatures Will Rise By 2 Degrees Due to Gases Released

For more news, updates about ground temperature and similar topics don't forget to follow Nature World News!
GOVERNMENT says it has discontinued COVID-19 stimulus package rollout, but might consider another one for the informal sector should another lockdown be put in place.

The COVID-19 social protection scheme, which was targeting vulnerable households affected by the pandemic, benefited only 300 000 people from the targeted one million households.

Zimbabwe has had two lockdowns since last year March when the first COVID-19 case was recorded in the country.

In August last year, government announced plans to pay $300 per household, but Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare minister Paul Mavima told NewsDay that the figure had risen to $1 500 per household.

Mavima, who was speaking on the sidelines of the ongoing eighth Africa Public Service Day commemorations in Victoria Falls this week said the move to stop the programme was necessitated by the opening up of the economy.

The general one which was targeting loss of income, especially in the informal sector, stopped in December, Mavima said.

That was mainly because we had opened up the economy. Even though we have reintroduced some of the restrictions, we havent really stopped people from going to work. The loss of income element was solved by reopening the economy.

I think if it gets to another situation where there is a complete lockdown and people in the informal sector are unable to work, then we may consider and make a collective decision to reintroduce the scheme.

Mavima said government was, however, still running the welfare programme.

About 300 000 people benefited from it. Up to September-October, we were giving $300. It was meaningful at that time, but then the last two months we raised it to about $1 500. We are happy that we managed to reach our citizens through the stimulus package.

There were concerns when the programme was launched that only Zanu PF-linked informal traders would benefit.

The money was disbursed several months after the country introduced its hard lockdown on April 1 which forced informal traders out of work and without income. Newsday
FIVE Zimbabwean nationals based in Botswana are resisting deportation citing fear of political persecution, NewsDay has heard.

The five Zimbabwean nationals, led by Terrence Charuma, are challenging their deportation despite the cancellation of their refugee status by the Defence, Justice and Security ministry in February.

The cancellation of their refugee status was confirmed by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) after ruling out claims of political prosecution.

Not only was the decision national and fully supported, the decision was more than one year later borne out and confirmed by the UNHCR also finding that the applicants no longer merit being recognised as refugees, the director for refugee management in the Defence, Justice and Security ministry, Thobo Letlhage, said in the States opposing papers filed recently.

The statements by the applicants that returning refugees have been subjected to human rights violations and languishing in jail are blatantly untrue and this is borne out by the finding of the government and UNHCR.

Nearly 300 Zimbabweans sought refuge in Botswana citing political persecution during the violent 2008 presidential elections.

But officials from the UN refugee agency in Botswana and Zimbabwe now maintain that the refugees were no longer at risk.

The citation by the applicants of an alleged fear of persecution is unfounded. The true and real reason the applicants refuse to go back to Zimbabwe is the prospect of exploiting economic opportunities that they have taken advantage of in Botswana. They are heavily involved in business ventures, Letlhage said.

The UN refugee agency said returning refugees would be assisted with a cash grant, food package and sanitary items.

Reports indicate that the Botswana government will provide transport, while the reception of the returnees and their documentation and reintegration will be the responsibility of Zimbabwean authorities.

A number of nationals have returned home voluntarily, while some have been deported since the outbreak of COVID-19.

There are no clear statistics on the number of Zimbabwean nationals in Botswana and other countries. Newsday


The Nelson Chamisa-led opposition MDC Alliance party yesterday accused the Justice Loice Matanda-Moyo-led Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) of lacking independence to investigate chronic corruption, adding that is should be disbanded.

Party spokesperson Fadzayi Mahere told journalists that Zacc was failing to execute its work.

Zacc should be disbanded if it does not have the capacity and the political will to investigate the chronic corruption that is killing us, if it cannot act independently, of course this must be part of a raft of wider political reforms as we repeatedly demand in the MDC Alliance, she said.

Maheres remarks came at a time when Auditor-General Midlred Chiri has released damning reports exposing the rot in government departments.

On corruption, the (2019) Auditor-Generals report has come out and it tells a sad and ongoing tale of looting. It is the citizens that pay the price of looting and so we demand answers and urgent investigations into the outcome of that report. Citizens bear the brunt of bad governance, so we demand accountability. Corruption is killing us, Mahere said.

Zacc has been accused of being used to fight political opponents and failing to independently execute its mandate, allegations the commission has denied.

The MDC Alliance also accused President Emmerson Mnangagwas government of perpetuating the suffering of the people.

Mahere said the recent wave of demolitions of illegal structures was being spearheaded by a heartless and illegitimate regime.

Operation Murambatsvina 2 is a stark reminder of the unquestionable fact that Zanu PF is against the people, it is at war with the people and it does not have the people at heart, she said.

The destruction of the informal business sector comes at a time when the economy is struggling while the local currency is depreciating in value against foreign currencies.

The economy has stagnated. The business community spoke strongly against the disastrous effects of the ill-thought-out SI [Statutory Instrument] 127 of 2021, which creates an artificial exchange rate. This has resulted in distortions in the market. We strongly agree with them, we call for the statutory instruments urgent repeal, Mahere said.

She said civil servants had become so poor and had lost dignity. The Consumer Council of Zimbabwe has said a family of six needs at least $40 000 to survive (and meanwhile) the average civil servant earns a paltry $19 000. A common person cannot afford to put food on the table, she said. Newsday
The case spikes come as the government sheds the remaining COVID restrictions, reopening nightclubs, bars, and movie theaters, while cities like Medellin and Bogota ready themselves to hold events that will attract thousands. Such events are being allowed, municipal governments say, because theyre needed to get the economy moving again.
You did the right thing. You protected our patients, your colleagues, your families and our community, he said in a statement to employees. The science proves that the vaccines are not only safe but necessary if we are going to turn the corner against COVID-19.
While one inmate was hospitalized and has since been returned to the jail, nearly all of those who have tested positive have either mild symptoms or are asymptomatic, Liedle told the outlet.
(Some) of my favorite scenes in all of these films, that sort of threads all of them, are the scenes where we all show up. ... None of us know what the hell were getting into, but we show up regardless, because were bound to each other, Brewster said. I think a lot of people can relate to that. I think thats what keeps people coming back.
Scheinen tried to persuade a 14-year-old to send him nude photos. The victim was actually an undercover law enforcement agent posing as a child, according to the feds. The former fed was arrested when he tried to meet up with the teen he thought he was messaging.
I would not mind seeing them coming out of the booths, take a gaze up and down the platforms, call the police when something happens, said Albert. They could provide directions. It would add to the safety of the system.
His trial is scheduled to start Aug. 9, though Kellys defense team is still in flux as two of his longtime lawyers asked a judge to be relieved of the case earlier this month. Another attorney was questioned last week over possible conflicts of interest because of her relationship with one of Kellys alleged victims.
When they do something like this, its very disruptive to our system and very disruptive to our customers, said Warren. When you think about vandalism its not just a crime against the MTA. Its a crime against the riders of New York City.
Jealous husband? My mother was always faithful, Enmanuel Aponte told the Daily News. That was only in his mind. My mother was a wonderful woman. She was a school secretary. Thats why all these people are here.
This is a young man that had had several brushes with the law and he was inspired by the campaign and decided he wanted to be part of this movement of change, Adams said Monday. He was just extremely eager about being out every day and were really disappointed [with] what happened.
Tavares is on video lighting a fuse and running off with a grin on his face and a towel in his hand before the intersection erupts in a ball of yellow flames.
The police unions consistently fight to protect the right of cops to kill and brutalize, she said. Its unfortunate they are able to wield outsized power in the politics of this city, and they continue to reject and undermine every attempt to not only reform the police and to keep people safe from police violence.
The duo then got into a gray sedan and headed east on W. 162nd St., cops said. When the victim gave chase, one of the robbers fired off several rounds from the car window to scare him off, cops said. No one was hit.
Thomas, a father of two, was fatally shot in the chest right outside his first-floor apartment on Dix Ave. near Pinson Ave. about 6:30 a.m. Aug. 1, cops said. He was chatting with someone in the hallway when Dennis walked up to him and opened fire, Queens D.A. Melinda Katz said.
It was a single-engine company, but my fondest memories there are of Capt. Ed Higgins, Richardson said. Higgins was the quintessential engine company leader. He demanded discipline, but he was a father of six so it was almost like I was working with my father. He was a tremendous leader and had a great impact on me. Ive even worked with a couple of his sons.
Theres no one here or anywhere in this community could tell you a harsh word that come out of Maria Kellys mouth, said Price. I think she was suffering and never said a word to us. Because I dont know where this came from, this rage, this evilness that he perpetrated on our friend.
An hour later and about a mile away, the same attacker stormed up on a 64-year-old man and 56-year-old woman on Inwood Ave. near Liberty Ave. while spewing anti-Muslim hate. He punched the woman repeatedly in the face before running off. Medics took the woman to Jamaica Hospital with a fractured nose and cuts to her face and head.
I just sent your nudes out to everyone, Fischer is accused of writing. Im going to make sure any sex pics, bad pics are sent to your employer. Do you want to see what war is like? Im about to show you.
Prior to the deadly shooting Friday morning, police said McCloud mailed flash drives to family members in which he similarly revealed his intentions to commit suicide. He acknowledged that it was unfair to involve his ex-wife, but noted that she had just remarried and he wasnt going to let that hillbilly get all his stuff and his wife, the complaint said.
Police said this was an isolated incident and they are currently investigating whether officers had been called to the house before.
In that incident, Lugo-Romero was charged with second-degree burglary, grand theft, two counts of entering a business with intent to commit theft, loss under $950, and two counts of petty theft, according to police. Additionally, he was also charged with three counts of robbery and one count of burglary for stealing from the same Walgreens shown in the video.
People are advised to not pick up or otherwise handle dead birds. Anyone who decides to ignore that advice should wear protective gear to avoid their own potential sickness, officials said. But they noted there is not yet any evidence the disease could be transmitted to humans.
Patrick Larry, 30, was hanging out near the Arkansas River in Little Rock on Saturday night when he told his friends he would be right back, his wife told local media. Larry walked into the woods and never returned.
No one was injured in the incident, the Associated Press reported. Firefighters doused the blaze, and the Hy-Vee was forced to close early on Monday due to all the smoke. It reopened Tuesday afternoon.
When we capture Grandpa Biden we will all severely beat him to the point of death, Reed wrote. If you are a Biden/Harris supporter you will be targeted. We have a list of homes and addresses by your election signs. We are the ones with those scary guns. We are the ones your children have nightmares about.
The report also criticized the former president over a photo-op outside Walter Reed Medical Centre, where Trump, while being treated for COVID, had Secret Service officers drive him past a crowd so he could be seen by supporters. Trumps former campaign manager claimed the Secret Service agents in that car volunteered for the drive-by.
Subway argued that there simply is no truth to the allegations in the complaint that their sandwiches are tuna-free and told the Times that customers are getting 100 percent cooked tuna in their tuna wraps, sandwiches and salads. There are roughly 20,000 Subways in the U.S. and about the same amount abroad. Their tuna offerings, according to the spokesperson, are among the eateries most popular.
Prosecutors charged that Bakker promoted Silver Solutions 11 times in February and March of 2020, when the pandemic was taking hold. One of those pitches included a conversation with a naturopathic doctor who confessed Silver Solutions hadnt yet been tested on COVID-19, but when used to treat other coronaviruses, it Totally eliminates it, kills it. Deactivates it within 12 hours.
The incident remains under investigation by the Auglaize County Sheriffs Office. Officials do not believe that foul play was involved but did not disclose any other details regarding the lead up to the boys death.
For years I have been a trustee  an inactive trustee at that  of only one recipient of my funds, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMG), he wrote. I am now resigning from that post, just as I have done at all corporate boards other than Berkshires. The CEO of BMG is Mark Suzman, an outstanding recent selection who has my full support. My goals are 100% in sync with those of the foundation, and my physical participation is in no way needed to achieve these goals.
Merely throwing a rock is not a plan, he said. I want to encourage you, young black men and women, in this city if Black lives really matter, it cant only be against police abuse. It has to be against the violence thats ripping apart our communities and paving a highway of death for young people.
Its hard for me to work with an administration that is hyper-political and is not competent, he said during a press briefing at his Manhattan office the morning after voters went to the polls to pick de Blasios likely successor. And its hard to do that for a prolonged period of time. And I believe thats what happened with New York City.
So far, more than 9 million doses of the COVID vaccine have been administered in the city  which include both New Yorkers and people from out of town. Some remain hesitant to get the shot, which partially explains the citys rationale for expanding the program.
Sanders described the border visit as part of Harris diplomatic efforts to address the root causes of migration from El Salvador, Guetamala and Honduras  an assignment President Biden tasked her with in March amid a sharp spike in migrants from those countries arriving at the U.S. southern border, often in hopes of claiming asylum.
I know Eric, Im certainly going to take him to task. Im going to ask him to join me in solidarity, if in fact he turns out to be the winner of the Democratic primary, Sliwa, the controversial founder of the Guardian Angels volunteer safety group, said at a Wednesday news conference.
Check out our special section for the latest news on the critical 2021 elections in NYC. And to have the essential news and analysis sent to your inbox, sign up for our Campaign Diaries newsletter.
One New Yorker asked her about the citys recent spate of gun violence and her plans to reduce the bloodshed. Then he accused Garcia of trying to defund the police, which she has said she opposes.
Johns decisions were always guided by his values, by his convictions, and never by personal political consequences, Biden said. And was always guided by his obligations to all of those he represented, even those who did not vote for him.
With their long careers in pure research, they led the way to innovative applications such as obtaining, in an extraordinarily short space of time, effective vaccines to fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, read the citation.
Koerner said that while the cows remained mostly calm, some of the animals began to charge at one point in the night, drawing gunfire from authorities. Emergency services responded to the scene to tend to a shot cow, but it later succumbed to its injuries.
In his confession to police, Caouissin admitted to spying on the Troadec family using a stethoscope to listen in on their conversations from behind windows and doors. At one time, Caouissin also waited in the garage for the family to go to sleep before he snuck into their home to steal a key. During this attempt, he made too much noise and eventually woke the couple.
Freedom Summer required much more than a summer. Anti-democratic Republicans have played a long game to get to the point where the legislatures they control dare ban the providing of food and water to voters waiting in line for their turn. Their opponents have caught on to the need for their own long game. Today, activists talk about the need for a Democracy Summer, building up over the coming year. The idea would be to campaign against restrictive state laws; to register voters en masse over the coming year; to win active, not just nominal, support from every segment of society; to make it abundantly clear that, if democracy is not to shrivel into a dead letter, the right to vote is a universal imperative.
So, on the facts alleged here, it would seem a relatively simple matter for a federal prosecutor to charge Trump with bank fraud in violation of 1344 in connection with his application for a loan from Deutsche Bank, an FDIC-insured bank. And if, as seems likely, the president used the telephone, the internet or U.S. mail in connection with applying for loans, it would also be simple for a federal prosecutor to also charge Trump with wire fraud and mail fraud.
Like all performing arts institutions, Ailey was hit hard during the pandemic, Alvin Ailey executive director Bennett Rink said. Its a brilliant stroke for MacKenzie Scott to make capacity-building gifts that will help so many of us rebuild, whether the communities we serve are local or, in the case of Ailey, circle the globe. Were deeply grateful to her and to all the donors who are supporting us as Ailey continues moving ahead on all fronts.
They were in Austin for the ATX Television Festival, with Cassandra posting an Instagram photo of them smiling together on a stage during a panel on Speech & Debate, their series of comedic shorts directed by Cassandra and starring Stephen and Aisha Tyler.
You seem like a guy whos relaxed, centered, like you know who you are. Im going to have a lot of free time on my hands now for a while, OBrien quipped. Were going to start something else up, but Im going to have some downtime, and honestly, Im not even kidding, I dont really know what to do with downtime.
The new movie marks the fifth time Ford has suited up as the titular archaeologist for the Indiana Jones franchise. He previously starred as Indy in three films during the 1980s, before reprising the role for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, which premiered in 2008.
This is another way for us to diversify our business, Kelly said. Right now, we are still early in the process and are still exploring to see what opportunities there are for our overall business portfolio with this concept.
Volusia County has done much to contribute to the knowledge, protection, and conservation of coastal migratory birds and sea turtles, from its voluntary conservations measures, wrote John Milo, of the FWS. The proposed expansion of beach access to dogs in our view is inconsistent with these efforts.
Charges were filed that year against the driver of the car that hit them, Brian Dale Andrews of Frostproof, at the time 29. FHP said he had a blood alcohol level of 0.315, almost four times the legal limit.
This year, however, the state waived testing consequences, allowing children to be promoted based on other data if they scored poorly or if they skipped the exam because their parents did not think it was safe for them to test on campus, as required by state rules. Typically, about 99% of third-graders in public school take the FSA reading exam. This year, 97% did.
Rosen began his program in Tangelo Park, seeking to help children who lived in poverty not far from the tourist mecca where he made his fortune. Preschool gives them an educational head start, and the program then works to make sure children graduate from high school  its graduation rates are near 100% now  and have a path to higher education.
Across Florida, requiring students to wear face masks in schools has been debated, with some opponents repeatedly showing up at board meetings to urge an end to the rule or taking to social media to denounce the policies. But health experts have said they helped reduce the spread of the virus among school students and staff.
The first girls body showed no signs of trauma, Santiago said, but could not say that about the second because her body was still in the canal at 10 p.m. They believe they have identified the first girl but could not confirm who she was as no family members have come forward.
In May 2019, he drove to Texas and paid the undercover agent $9,750 in cash to buy and transport two Southern White rhino horns, four elephants ivory tusks, one African lion skull and three leopard skulls to Palm Harbor, according to the DOJ.
A 3-year-old girl was seriously injured Tuesday, June 22, 2021, when the impaired driver of a car she was in swerved off a Florida highway and crashed in Pinellas County, troopers said. (Florida Highway Patrol)
I think any time we talk about our First Amendment rights, weve got to be really cautious, Commissioner Nicole Wilson, who represents the west Orange district where the Chauvin protests took place. I dont like the idea of neo-Nazis marching through our neighborhoods but they still do have First Amendment rights and the second we decide to take it from them, then we take it from us.
This is an analogy used by environmentalists to describe how we should approach solutions to climate change. The tap represents the greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted at alarmingly high rates. In the city of Winter Park in 2019, more than 300,000 tons of GHG were emitted by electricity consumption and transportation alone. As a recent graduate of Winter Park High School and member of the community, this is concerning. Citizens and consumers are presented with countless methods to reduce their carbon footprint, but these are examples of secondary solutions  the so-called mops and towels. Without first turning off the tap, these tangible efforts have limited impacts.
I wholeheartedly disagree with Scott Campbells letter (Florida pays it forward with border troops, June 22). How do you compare help in the time of a hurricane crisis to just another one of DeSantis antics to appeal to his base in preparation for his run for president? Folks should talk to Floridians who know his performance by governor has just been less than stellar. Governor, we have no business sending and funding police at the border.
Royal Caribbeans take is basically: Welcome aboard. But if you dont follow our recommendation to get vaccinated, were going to do everything possible to prevent you from infecting anyone else  or from causing a health scare that prompts a quarantine and ruins the cruise for everyone.
Our emergency order has basically been in place to do three main things since the summer: Keep schools open, because we needed the emergency to be able to help the funding for the schools; move money in case of the vaccine or any type of response that weve had to do; and then more recently to make sure we dont have vaccine passports in the state of Florida, DeSantis said on May 3 when he signed the bill banning vaccine passports into law. Thats really it, thats how weve used it.
Myless body was found about 8:30 p.m. on a Monday after a daycare worker for Little Miracles Academy left him in the back seat of a van after dropping kids off for the day at about 9 a.m.
If it does become a tropical storm, or a closed circulating system with maximum sustained winds of 39 mph or more, it will be the fourth named storm of the year and receive the name Danny.
The Fulton Lions Club installed its slate of officers for 2021-22 at its June meeting. Front, from left: District Governor Rosemarie Bush, Lions clubs International-NY State & Bermuda, District 20-Y; Michelle Stanard, Secretary; and Gail Jones, board of directors. Back, from left: President David Guyer, Ron Browning, assistant treasurer; Audrey Avery, service chair; Susan Daratt, treasurer; Linda Hughes, assistant secretary; Paul Foster, board of directors; and Brett Tallents, vice president. Absent from photo: David Dingman and Dennis Rupert, board of directors; and Steve Chirello, marketing chair.
Oswego, NY (13126)

Today

Cloudy skies with a few showers after midnight. Low 59F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30%..

Tonight

Cloudy skies with a few showers after midnight. Low 59F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30%.
Pictured is an early image of the McCrobie Civic Center as it appeared when it was first built as the Oswego Yacht Club and opened in 1919. The landmark building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The event is free and open to the public.
Pictured above is a conceptual design released this week by the Port of Oswego Authority for a proposed performing arts center. Port leaders say it helps establish a clear direction for the facility, which has seen significant expansion in the past decade.
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso (PANA) - Nearly two-thirds of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in sub-Saharan Africa are concerned about the environmental threat, the International Trade Centre (ITC), a joint body of the United Nations and the World Trade Organization (WTO), said in a statement on Wednesday
Welcome back pirates! As you make your return to campus The East Carolinian has created a forum that centers around topics within the community where readers can express their experiences and concerns. With the new guidelines set in place by East Carolina University do you feel as these precautions will keep you safe?

Survey
's ( ) Brian McMaster joins Proactive London's Katie Pilbeam to discuss their transition from explorer to producer which the firm is now 'on the cusp' of.

The company has been exploring and developing assets in North East Brazil for some of the worlds most in demand mineral commodities, including Vanadium, Titanium and Iron.

He says 'because of the strength of Iron Ore and the markets generally we are fast tracking our towards production in early next year'.
Having forced its way to getting three seats on the Exxon board, the firm said the ETF will invest in 500 of the largest US companies in an effort to instigate positive change for employees, customers, communities, and the environment

Engine No. 1, the activist investment firm that managed to get three of its directors onto Exxon Mobil Corp's board despite holding just 0.02% of the oil giant, is launching a US$100mln exchange traded fund (ETF).

The new ETF - The Transform 500 ETF  will have the ticker VOTE.

The fund, whose motto is you have to engage to effect change, will invest in 500 of the largest US companies and track the Morningstar US Large Cap Select Index, in an effort to instigate positive change for employees, customers, communities, and the environment.

Engine No. 1, which launched last December, is looking to tap into retail investors frustration that their main stock portfolios often dont address ESG concerns, Reuters reported.

The activist investment firm describes itself as "purpose-built to create long-term value by harnessing the power of capitalism"..."we believe that over time the interests of Main Street and Wall Street align, and we can engage as active owners to create value by focusing on this alignment".

Earlier this month the environmental activist fund saw its third nominee appointed to Exxons 12-member board.

While it holds only a small number of Exxon shares it has proved influential with the largest US oil company's pension fund shareholders, including which holds a 6.6% stake.

Engine No.1 is trying to force the hydrocarbons behemoth to move away from fossil fuels.
Managers plan to close the fund and sell all properties owned by the fund to return the proceeds to investors

Aegon Asset Management has become the second fund giant to close its property fund within a month, due to liquidity issues in the sector stemming from subsiding valuations in the property market.

The Dutch investment group is closing its Property Income fund, which has been suspended since March last year as the UK property market was rocked by the coronavirus pandemic.

Aegon said it has proved increasingly challenging to raise sufficient liquidity whilst also ensuring that continuing investors have a representative and well-balanced portfolio".

Managers plan to close the fund and sell all properties owned by the fund to return the proceeds to investors, with a series of payments as sales are completed.

Last month Aviva Investors said it was winding up its UK property fund, which has also been in stasis since last year, saying it had become increasingly challenging to generate positive returns while also providing the necessary liquidity to re-open the fund.

With long-standing criticism that open-ended funds are not suitable vehicles for investing in property due to the difficulty in liquidating the underlying assets, the Financial Conduct Authority is carrying out a consultation into the property fund sector and last August proposed enforcing a 180-day notice period for open-ended property funds.

Even before the pandemic, some property funds were forced to suspend redemptions due to investor worries about Brexit.

We said last month that the Aviva closure was unlikely to be the last, and today marks another sad chapter for property fund investors," said Moira ONeill, head of personal finance at Interactive Investor.

She said it will raise further questions about the length of the FCAs fixed redemption periods, with 90-180 days now "looks like pie in the sky".

O'Neill added: Weve always preferred the closed-ended structure when it comes to investing in illiquid asset classes, like direct property. This structure isnt perfect, but it does mean that investors can head for the emergency exit if they need to. And, important but often overlooked  they can buy whenever they spot an opportunity.

Investment trusts, due to their closed-ended structure and fixed level of capital, are not under the same pressure to react defensively when investors take fright and do not need to sell the properties they own.

McDermott, managing director of Chelsea Financial Services, said: The majority of the challenges facing this part of the market have come on the back of the turbulent conditions created by Covid last year. Clearly it is taking time for these vehicles to raise liquidity amid so much uncertainty, and while the FCA review is still ongoing, the fact a couple of funds are now closing their doors is creating major questions over the long-term viability of open-ended commercial property funds.

On Aegon's fund, Ryan Hughes at AJ Bell said given the fund size had fallen to under 400mln, it did not look viable in the long run.

The challenge Aegon now has, like Aviva, is that the market knows they are a forced seller and this may make it difficult to sell down the underlying properties at the right price.

As we have seen with the Woodford fund closure, getting the balance right between time and price is extremely difficult and sensitive and therefore the clear communication of this is key."
The trio often overlooked because they are viewed as cyclical, too expensive or too small

( ), PLC (LONLSPT) and ( ) are the top three shares to buy in the networking and communications subsector, according to broker Berenberg.

The trio are very different but what connects them is their top-three positions in niche and highly technical markets, with all three stocks often overlooked because they are viewed as cyclical, too expensive or too small.

In a note to clients on Wednesday, Berenberg initiated coverage of the three companies with buy recommendations on each, with CentralNic given a price target of 180p that offers around 120% upside to the last close price, Dot Digital 290p and Spirent 310p, offering around 30% upside for both.

CentralNic, through operating across the entire domain name supply chain from top level to backend and via wholesale and retail channels, has 99% SaaS-based recurring revenue and customers hardly change supplier.

Management is using the companys free cash flow (FCF) to consolidate what is currently a fragmented market, the analysts noted, acquiring attractive acquisition targets at near distressed multiples.

With the groups new online marketing business offering potential for substantial organic growth, which we think has been largely overlooked by the market, we see scope for outperformance.

As the business remains unknown to many investors, the analysts said it has a P/E ratio of around 10 times, which is highly attractive despite its market opportunity.

Dotdigital meanwhile is a mid-market leader in cloud-based marketing automation software (MarTech), serving both B2B and B2C customers.

With the company continuing to invest in building out an omni-channel marketing platform and a unified customer data view, the broker sees considerable scope for upselling to customers, with this and faster client acquisition giving rise to a potential scenario where EPS could be 50% higher by FY 2024.

The stocks valuation is high, but with around 40% return on capital employed (ROCE) and FCF having compounded at a 25%, the analysts are not surprised.

Nevertheless, given the rapid consolidation in the MarTech industry at multiples far in excess of dotdigitals, we still see scope for the shares to perform.

As for FTSE 250-listed Spirent, a provider of test and assurance solutions for the telecoms market, the complexity of its services and the historical cyclicality of the business in sync with telecoms operators capex cycles, it has often been ignored by investors.

Its offering includes products and solutions that are used to test, assure and secure high-speed ethernet and internet protocols, mobile networks, clouds, devices and applications.

However, there are reasons now to be more bullish, not least because the company is experiencing 5G rollout tailwinds, but it also has: 1) a new management team; 2) a new strategic focus powering a rapid shift towards recurring revenue; and 3) a new business mix with far less dependence on volatile device testing.

The long-term outlook is for stable and predictable growth, with short-term upside coming from 5G deal volumes in the first quarter of 2021 were annualising far above our FY 2021 estimates.

An attempted acquisition by US giant Viavi of Spirent peer EXFO Inc for a significantly higher multiple suggests there is still upside ahead.
"While the resource update is modest in size, it is impressive given the budgeted amount of drilling.."

Mineral and Financial Investments Ltd ( ) said it is encouraged by the latest drilling at the Lagoa Salgada zinc-lead-copper project in Portugal.

A three-hole drill programme and a new geological model had shown a modest increase in inferred resources at the south zone of the project's Venda Nova deposit,

Results suggested "significant potential for further growth of the resource."

The company's president and chief executive officer Jacques Vaillancourt added: "The Venda Nova deposit.. at Lagoa Salgada continues to deliver impressive resource growth and indicates significant potential for future expansion.

"While the resource update is modest in size, it is impressive given the budgeted amount of drilling....

"These advances support our belief that Lagoa Salgada could well be the next world-class mine on the Iberian Pyrite Belt.

"The new resource and enhanced knowledge will be incorporated into the upcoming Preliminary Economic Assessment...which is expected to be available by the end of July.

"The PEA will include both the North and South Zones and is expected to demonstrate the robust economic potential at Lagoa Salgada."

The company's shares climbed 6.52% or 0.75p to 12.25p.
Ltd ( ) has its sights set on securing a mining licence for its Ivittuut Project in Greenland in 2021, which has near-term cryolite, fluorite and rare earth production potential from processing tailings and low-grade stockpiles.

The company is confident the project has the potential for a large, highly profitable industrial mineral/REE operation in the mining-friendly jurisdiction.

In the next 6-12 months Eclipse is targeting a resource upgrade, the mining licence application, environmental assessment, pit water testing and dewatering design  and a pre-feasibility study in 2021/2022.

Ivittuut development opportunities

The mine process tailings and remnant stockpiles highlight the short-term cashflow potential of the existing Ivittuut pit  which was once the worlds largest and only cryolite mine, producing 3.8 million tonnes of cryolite during a 120-year mining history, ceasing in 1987.

Industrial minerals include:

Cryolite: Eclipse has identified high-grade cryolite-fluorite zones within and beneath Ivittuut pit using 3D modelling;

Fluorite: the fluorite zone at Ivittuut is known to contain rare earth element (REE) mineralisation;

High silica grade quartz; and

Zinc and iron.

The company intends to assess the tailings and mined remnants to determine volume and content of cryolite and fluorite as a possible resource.

In addition, REE mineralisation, which is increasing in demand due to new technology uses including electric vehicles, has been identified in and surrounding the Ivittuut pit and at the nearby Grnnedal-Ika prospect.

Quartz opportunity for PV products

Eclipse has also demonstrated high silica grade quartz mineralisation at Ivittuut below the historic open pit.

High silica grade quartz and high-grade quartz sand is essential for production of photovoltaic (PV) products, in high-end electronics and semiconductors, with end uses including silicon, quartz glass, optical fibre, solar cells and integrated circuit boards.

Notably, the high purity quartz (HPQ) market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6.9% from $671.62 million in 2019 to $1.23 billion by 2027.

High-grade quartz is characterised by high grades of silica (SiO2 ) and low metal contaminants and the company is confident Ivittuut is suitable for the production of HPQ.

The company's Greenland assets.

Grnnedal-Ika exploration

There is also a carbonatite deposit (associated with REE) at Grnnedal-Ika, which is just 10 kilometres from Ivittuut.

It contains a source of carbonate rock, which is used to neutralise acid mine and process water produced by miners, and is much needed for Greenlands mining industry.

This presents an opportunity to the company, with Eclipse easily able to ship carbonate rock from the existing Grnnedal port.

The company is confident that the Grnnedal-lka carbonatite complex has potential for at least two types of deposits:

REE mineralisation occurs throughout the complex, especially in the late-stage veins where it occurs in various strontium enriched, REE-bearing mineralisation; and

Carbonatite body is 2 kilometres by 1 kilometre and can offer potentially large tonnages of carbonate rock.

Liverpool Uranium Project

The companys Australian assets are also on the radar, with exploration potential across base metals, manganese, uranium and vanadium.

At the Liverpool Uranium Project in the Northern Territory, ground geophysical surveys are planned, with 17 drill target zones identified.

The company is focused on the Devil's Elbow, Terrace and Ferricrete uranium prospects.

There is also potential to grow the project area with additional EL applications and negotiations underway with Traditional Owners for an exploration agreement.

HPQ forecast demand.

Ngalia Basin uranium assets

At the Ngalia Basin in the Northern Territory, which is prospective for sandstone paleochannel-style uranium and vanadium mineralisation, Eclipse is negotiating with Traditional Owners for access to land for further exploration.

The Ngalia Basin hosts uranium/vanadium deposits including:

Bigrlyi Deposit (7.5 million tonnes at 0.13% uranium and 0.12% vanadium);

Capper Deposit (22 million tonnes at 0.015% uranium); and

Napperby Project (9.54 million tonnes at 0.038% uranium).

Vanadium and uranium drilling expected to commence in late 2021.

Rock Hill and Mary Valley

At the Rock Hill Copper Prospect, the company is planning an airborne EM survey and RC drilling program over strongly mineralised zones, with infill diamond drilling to follow dependent on results.

The company also holds 35 square kilometres with high-grade manganese with bulk mining potential in the Mary Valley region of Queensland.

Manganese is in demand for the lithium-ion battery market and the company plans to undertake bulk sampling in the near term  targeting a bulk mining permit in 2021.
The company is marching ahead with its top-tier Sunburst program in Canada that includes Gemini 1, 2, 3 and 4 wells being drilled into the existing Sunburst oil pool.

Calima completed a merger with Blackspur Oil during 2021 and successfully transformed into a high margin oil and gas producer.

( ) (OTCMKTS:RLTOF) (FRA:R1Y) has added debt and equity market, mergers and acquisitions, joint venture management and operational experience to its executive team with the appointment of Mark Freeman as finance director.

Freeman is a chartered accountant with worldwide experience in the energy and resources sector, having worked in Africa, North and South America, Asia and Australia as well as with Calima Assets for the last six years.

Reflection of commitment and dedication

Speaking to the appointment, chairman Glenn Whiddon said: Mark has been an integral part of the Calima team over the past few years, working closely with both Alan and myself and is well known to many.

Mark's appointment to the board is a reflection of his commitment and dedication to the company over the years, but more importantly, his experience and expertise as a senior finance executive in the oil and gas sector.

He was integral in the acquisition of Blackspur Oil Corp and the recent financing and will be a key member of the executive team going forward.

Further board changes

As part of the board changes, Alan Stein stepped off the board on June 22.

Calima says the company is grateful for Steins contributions and leadership and wishes him well in his future endeavours.

Whiddon continued: Stein was managing director of Calima from 2017 to 2020 shepherding in the Montney Assets and the generation of the 2 Tcfe resource.

Under his leadership, the company built and drilled three industry-leading wells in the Montney and with the current Montney consolidation the fundamental value of our acreage position will be realized.

Stein will continue to be available to the company as a consultant and we look forward to continuing our relationship.
Drilling has started on Target 1 of the project and to date six high priority drill targets have been verified with 12 remaining targets being refined.

The companys program is fully funded to include around 3,000 metres of diamond drilling.

Adavale Resources Limited ( ) has started a fully-funded maiden diamond drilling program at its 100%-owned Kabanga Jirani Nickel Project in Tanzania.

The companys initial exploration has identified 18 targets across four licences  Kabanga N, Kabanga E, Kabanga W and Kabanga NE.

The company has started drilling on the Target 1 of the project and to date, six high priority drill targets have been verified through modelling of geochemical and geophysical results.

Adavale is also refining the 12 remaining targets for final verification and modelling of further drill targets.

Strong choice of targets

Adavale CEO Allan Ritchie said: Having the rig turning for the first time is a significant milestone for any explorer.

We now have a strong choice of targets that weve worked hard to refine and prioritise to ensure we get the most out of our rig as the time came.

Target 1 ticked a lot of boxes from the outset, so we are excited to see the forthcoming first cores.

From company restructure, licence acquisition, through field exploration, data interpretation to commencement of drilling in the space of 10 months is a remarkable achievement.

We look forward to updating our shareholders with continuous announcements over the coming weeks and months, which we hope will include exciting intercepts.

Target 1

Exploration and survey work has identified important qualifying vectors that coincide at Target 1 providing indications of potential underlying mineralisation.

Coincident level nickel and copper anomalies at surface and magnetic lows indicative of an ultramafic intrusion.

The companys overall program is fully funded to include around 3,000 metres of diamond drilling expected across eight targets.
Flynn Gold Ltd (ASX:FG1) entered a new era last week: it rang the virtual bell and joined the ASXs registrar as a public exploration company.

The ASX newcomer is currently working across Tasmanias lucrative-yet-underexplored north-eastern gold pocket at the same time as it solidifies its holding within WAs Pilbara region.

With one drilling campaign in Tasmania already underway and further exploration to follow, the rest of 2021 is shaping up to be a busy season for Flynn.

So, with all eyes on the local share markets newest explorer, the questions on investors lips are: whats on the horizon for ? and what differentiates it from its peers?

The ASX debut

Flynn Gold joined the local exchange last Thursday, trading under the ticker FG1

FG1s listing follows an oversubscribed $10 million initial public offering (IPO), which saw 50 million shares issued at 20 cents each, generating a $19 million market capitalisation on its debut.

Flynn Gold executive director Sam Garrett said the float was a few years in the making but was supported by ongoing exploration at the companys Tasmanian gold assets.

In about 2019, we made the decision to go public  2020 was a difficult year on the markets and we had some COVID, but we got the ball rolling with our initial drill campaigns at the Portland Gold Project in Northeast Tasmania.

Last year's two drilling programs were co-funded by the Tasmanian Government and successfully led us into the IPO event.

Its been quite a journey  its a great time for us to now be a fully funded listed entity.

Australia-focused explorer

Prior to its ASX debut, Flynn Golds team has been actively searching for gold since 2016  the company now holds ground in emerging gold camps in Tasmania and Western Australia.

Flynn Gold holds ground in WAs highly prospective Pilbara region.

Within the Pilbara region, Flynns landholding spans 448 square kilometres - six tenements and applications that lie in close proximity to De Grey Mining Limiteds (ASX:DEG) (OTCMKTS:DGMLF) (FRA:DGD) landmark Hemi gold discovery.

Commenting on Flynn Golds successful neighbour, Garrett said: One of the encouraging things about Hemi is that it appears to be, for the district, a new style of mineralisation that is associated with intrusive bodies.

That gives shareholders in Flynn hope that well be able to discover similar types of younger intrusives within our group of tenements.

We would definitely like to be drilling by the middle of next year, subject to more of those tenements being granted.

Meanwhile, across Bass Strait, Flynn boasts seven granted tenements and a 1,134-square-kilometre landholding in northeast Tasmania.

This region is of particular interest to the gold explorer: the island of Tasmania is, after all, one of the most mineralised places on the planet.

A lucrative gold hotspot

Flynns focus is founded on evidence the underexplored region is analogous to the Victorian Goldfields.

Historically, the region has produced just 2.7 million gold ounces, but it bears striking similarities to Victorian projects that lie along the Western Lachlan Orogen.

Northeast Tasmania: Mathinna Beds Geology and mineralisation analogous to Victorian Goldfields.

Flynn isnt the only mining entity that sees Tasmanias potential: in 2019, the Fraser Institutes Annual Survey of Mining Companies saw Tasmania reach its best global ranking in almost 15 years, climbing to 22nd place on the ladder.

And last year, Mining Journals World Risk Report awarded Tasmania an AA investment risk rating. The state was also deemed Australias second-lowest risk mining jurisdiction in the same report.

Whats key, however, to Flynn Golds position is its early-mover advantage in a largely ignored region. Thanks to this, Garrett believes Flynn is primed to effectively explore this promising space.

We believe we have a competitive advantage. Weve had the time to select our targets, particularly in northeast Tasmania.

We have the benefit of having deposit style optionality - by that I mean were not just shooting for one target type.

Weve got the very real option of testing or exploring for both orogenic-style gold deposits, for which Victoria is famous, as well as targeting intrusive-related gold systems.

Table highlights the differences in exploration expenditure and gold exploration between Victoria and Tasmania, as well as both regions geological similarities.

Campaigns in Tasmania

Specifically, two priority targets will form the basis of Flynns gold exploration campaign in the near term.

The first, its flagship Golden Ridge Project, is a bulk tonnage gold deposit target. Flynn has identified over 8 kilometres of mineralised strike at the precious metals asset, which has seen limited exploration coverage so far.

To remedy this, a drilling campaign is already underway at Flynns Brilliant prospect - a high-priority gold target nestled within the Golden Ridge Project.

Around 4,100 metres of drilling over 16 holes is planned at Brilliant, with first assays anticipated in the next four to six weeks.

Flynn is also intrigued by its Portland Gold Project, a high-grade, Fosterville-style gold mineralisation target with more than 20 kilometres of cumulative strike potential.

Last year, the explorer completed maiden diamond drilling campaigns at the projects Windy Ridge and Grand Flaneur targets  programs co-funded by the Tasmanian Government.

A drill rig at Flynn Golds Tasmanian assets.

When asked what differentiated Flynn from its peer group, Garrett highlighted the companys holistic approach to exploration in Tasmania.

Weve lived and worked in the Tasmanian jurisdiction for a long time. Im from Tasmania. Our exploration manager is from Tasmania and based near Launceston  we have a proven good relationship with the Tasmanian Government, which supports us as junior explorers with drilling grants.

And then we have a great team of young, eager geologists  again, all Tasmanians or Tasmanian graduates.

Were highly invested in the Tasmanian story.

Whats next?

Even though its just listed on the ASX, Flynns leadership team has already prepared for the explorers next chapter.

Commenting on Flynns near-term targets, the executive director said: Within the next six to 12 months, we would like to complete the drilling at Brilliant, to have defined new drilling targets in the Golden Ridge system and to start expanding our understanding and knowledge of the mineralisation system along strike at Trafalgar.

Garrett and the team also have further exploration slated for the Portland Project after drilling took place last year.

The system at Portland is large  its going to require a lot of work to pull that system apart. We expect to be delivering a lot of news.

All in all, as it doubles down ahead of a busy exploration season, Garrett maintains Flynn is well funded for the next two years.

Weve got a focused exploration program, excellent targets and a wonderful team to help us reach our goals  were really looking forward to what all those things will deliver for us over the next two to five years.
The company is targeting gold in two premier regions, Witwatersrand in South Africa and the Pilbara in Australia.

West Wits is working towards beginning production at the Witwatersrand Basin Project this year.

( ) welcomes written confirmation from South Africa's Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) that documentation for the Mining Right application for its Witwatersrand Basin Project is in good order.

In an update from DMRE with regard to the appeals process and application, West Wits was advised that the department's officers are busy processing the Mining Right application.

In light of this progress, the DMRE has indicated that it needs nothing more from the company to complete the processing of the application.

Nearing positive outcome

Chairman Michael Quinet said: This final leg of the Mining Right application has been slower than expected and at times difficult to monitor.

We, therefore, welcome this written confirmation from the department that the documentation is all in good order.

Perhaps most importantly, the DMRE have indicated they require nothing further from us to complete the process.

Whilst we will continue to press our cause carefully and prudently, we are confident this advice from the DMRE suggests the matter is now nearing a positive outcome.

Our team, led by Jac van Heerden, are in a state of high readiness to commence operations in earnest as soon as the Mining Right is granted.

Shares have been more than 10% higher today to A$0.087 while the company's market cap pre-open was approximately $110.7 million.

EA reinstated

On March 29 the company had the path towards production at the Witwatersrand Basin Project cleared by the reinstatement of the Environmental Authorisation (EA).

Through a detailed written decision, South Africas Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment dismissed all three appeals lodged against the DMRE EA approval.
The company plans a high priority 3,000-metre program comprising up to five drill holes targeting nickel sulphide mineralisation below the historic Nepean nickel mine workings.

The Nepean Deeps RC drill program is scheduled to start in late July.

( ) plans to undertake a 3,000-metre drill program at its Nepean Nickel Project near Coolgardie in Western Australia starting in late July.

This high priority reverse circulation (RC) program will comprise up to five drill holes targeting economic nickel sulphide mineralisation below the Nepean nickel mine workings.

The historic high-grade Nepean nickel sulphide mine, which was the second producing nickel mine in Australia, produced 1,108,457 tonnes of ore between 1970 and 1987 for in excess of 32,000 tonnes of nickel at an average recovered grade of 2.99%.

Very low prices of nickel forced the production to halt in 1987, leaving in-situ large remnant nickel sulphide resources.

High-priority target area

Auroch managing director Aidan Platel said: We are extremely excited to begin work on our maiden drill program of the Nepean Deeps target.

The life of the historic high-grade Nepean nickel mine was cut short in 1987 when nickel dropped to below US$4,000/tonne, so we knew when we acquired this project that it still had a lot more to give.

Program to start next month

The depth extent of the nickel sulphide mineralisation below the mine workings remains underexplored with effectively no previous drilling at depth.

As a result, the Nepean Deeps drill program is scheduled to start in late July.

Platel said: As such, the Nepean Deeps target area is a very high-priority target area, and we look forward to commencing our maiden drill program there next month.

"Important factor in drilling strategy"

A large flat-lying pegmatite vein cross-cuts the nickel sulphide mineralisation at the base of the Nepean mine workings, drawing an analogy to s ( ) Flying Fox nickel mine, where despite several large cross-cutting granite sills the nickel sulphide mineralisation continues at depth below the sills.

Platel said: The presence of the flat-lying pegmatite vein at the base of the old mine workings is an important factor in our drilling strategy as we know geologically that the pegmatite veins are later features that developed a long time after the massive nickel sulphides were emplaced in the basal channel.

Hence, logically, the channel and the nickel mineralisation should continue beneath the pegmatite, exactly as was the case at Flying Fox.
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The company believes acquiring the 346,000-ounce project on the Yandal Belt will be a transformational move.

This acquisition will be funded by a capital raising of around $12 million.

Ltd ( ) will boost its gold resource base on the Yandal Belt in Western Australia to more than 600,000 ounces after acquiring the Millrose Gold Project.

The company has entered into a binding term sheet with Millrose Gold Mines Limited and Golden Eagle Mining Pty Ltd to acquire the project which is adjacent to the companys Horse Well Project and the soon to be acquired Yandal East Gold Project.

Millrose is around 600 square kilometres in size and is roughly 30 kilometres due east of s ( ) 10 million ounces Jundee operation.

The acquisition, which will be funded by a $12 million capital raising, completes the companys consolidation of the north-eastern flank of the Yandal Belt.

Huge footprint in tier-one address

Strickland chief executive officer Andrew Bray said: Its been a very busy three months for the new team at Strickland.

In a short period of time, we have put together a new board and management team; bought out Silver Lakes interest in the Horse Well Joint Venture; acquired the Yandal East project from Renegade Exploration; and injected $13 million of fresh capital into the company, with a further $4 million to come from the upcoming rights issue.

The result of this effort is that the company has consolidated the entirety of the north-eastern flank of the Yandal Greenstone Belt and built up a huge footprint at a tier-one address.

Start drilling in September quarter

Bray said: Of particular excitement for the company is the fact that this part of the belt is significantly underexplored, despite its resource endowment elsewhere and its regional geology.

We are currently gearing up for a major systematic drilling program across this highly prospective gold system, for which we are now very well-funded.

We are scheduled to commence drilling early in the September Quarter 2021.

Millrose deposit

The Millrose deposit is in the north-eastern domain of the highly gold endowed Yandal Greenstone Belt.

Following the discovery, the deposit was subsequently drilled out through extensive programs of reverse circulation (RC) and diamond drilling.

Emerging gold company

This acquisition transforms Strickland into an emerging Western Australian gold company.

It also increases the companys resource base to over 600,000 ounces of gold (11.72 million tonnes at 1.60 g/t for 603,000 ounces).

The company is currently planning major drilling programs, details of which will be released to the market shortly.

Key terms of transaction

The company will pay the following consideration to the vendors:

$1 million cash upon signing the binding term sheet;

$5 million cash within three months of the initial payment; and

$4 million within three months of the second payment.

The third payment can be structured as $4 million cash or $2 million cash and $2 million in fully paid ordinary shares in Strickland.

The share price for the tranche 3 shares will be calculated based on a volume-weighted average price of the shares at the close of trading on the 20 trading days immediately before the third payment date at the companys election.

Capital raising initiative

The company has received firm commitments for a conditional placement to eligible institutional and sophisticated investors of 200 million fully paid ordinary shares at an issue price of $0.04 per share to raise approximately $8 million.

Enrizen Capital Pty Ltd acted as lead manager for the placement which was supported by JP Equity Partners.

The company is also offering eligible shareholders the opportunity to acquire fully paid ordinary shares through a fully underwritten pro-rata non-renounceable entitlement issue of one share for every seven shares held by eligible shareholders on the record date at $0.04 per share to raise about $4.2 million.

Use of funds

The proceeds of the capital raising will be used to fund:
Largest single project within the Cretaceous-age Tireo-formation

Tireo formation is a 100 million year old volcanic island arc known for hosting major gold, copper and silver deposits

Close proximity to Barrick Golds Pueblo Viejo, tier-one asset

Steve Haggerty, expert with four decades metallurgical experience on board of directors

What Unigold does:

Unigold Inc (CVE:UGD) (OTCQX:UGDIF) is going for gold in the lush Caribbean.

The Canadian junior is exploring and developing its gold property in the Dominican Republic. The companys Neita concession is 21,031 hectares and considered the largest single project within the 75 kilometer-wide Cretaceous-age area known for hosting major gold-copper-silver deposits.

The Neita concession consists of 15 gold/copper and 5 copper targets that have been identified by Unigold. Significant exploration has only be completed at 3 of these targets in the last 30 years.

The geologically rich Neita concession hosts the Candelones deposits: a polymetallic zone hosting gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc deposits.

The island nation is home to the largest gold mine in Latin America, the tier-one Pueblo Viejo asset owned by Barrick Gold (TSE:ABX).

Presently, Unigold is focused on the Candelones deposits, described as a series of early Volcanogenic Massive Sulphide (VMS) and disseminated deposits overprinted by epithermal feeders in acid volcaniclastic rocks. As the company has stated, there are two distinct projects at Candelones, the first focuses on oxides at surface level and the second on sulphides to the east.

An initial mineral resource estimate completed by Unigold in 2013 covering the Candelones Main, Connector and Extension deposits projected the gold inferred mineral resource to be 39.5 million tons averaging 1.6 grams per ton (g/t) of which 1.5 million ounces were contained in an open pit.

Two years later an updated mineral resource estimate looked at just the high-grade material and gave an inferred high-grade mineral resource for the Candelones Extension deposit of 5.2 million tons, averaging 5.27 g/t gold and 0.35% copper.

How is it doing:

On May 13, 2021, Unigold unveiled an updated resource estimate for Candelones, which showed measured and indicated resources of 24 million tons averaging 1.50 g/t containing 1.158 million ounces of gold.

Add to that, 2.5 million ounces of silver and 65.7 million pounds of copper, the inferred resource sits at an additional 1.97 million ounces of silver and 45.9 million pounds of copper.

The explorer has converted 66% of the historic inferred resource into the higher-confidence measured and indicated category and 310,000 ounces from underground into the open-pit resource as compared to the 2013 estimate.

In April, Unigold published a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) for the Candelones oxide asset, which evidenced the economic benefit of making it a stand-alone operation.

The PEA showed a pre-tax net present value (NPV) of US$50 million, based on average annual payable gold production of 31,000 ounces with all-in-sustaining costs (AISC) of US$744 per ounce. The oxide operation would provide near-term cash flow as the company continues to expand and evaluate the larger sulphide resource, which offers a longer-term development opportunity.

The prospective stand-alone oxide project has a measured and indicated resource of 91,000 ounces gold.

On a corporate level, Unigold recently appointed Steve Haggarty, the managing director of engineering consultancy Haggarty Technical Services to its board of directors.

The company noted that Haggarty has built a 40-year career in the industry prior to forming Haggarty Technical Services. He previously worked with well-known miners, including Barrick Gold, Homestake Mining, International Corona, and Teck Corporation.

Inflection points:

Completed PEA and updated resource estimate released

Commence application process for an exploitation license

Complete phase II metallurgical studies to finalize a process design

Ongoing exploration and prioritizing of regional targets

What the boss says:

Commenting on the mid-May PEA release, Joe Hamilton, CEO of Unigold said: The delivery of this sulphide resource, in conjunction with the recent delivery of a preliminary economic assessment for our starter oxide project, fulfills a key step in our strategy to become a producer in the Dominican Republic.

He went on to note that the sulphide resource at Candelones is open for expansion to the east, west and to depth.

Silver and copper are principally contained with the higher-grade late-stage epithermal mineralization that we have been drilling since 2016. We continue to drill at Candelones and will use this resource estimate to inform our drilling as we move swiftly to convert the inferred mineralization to the measured and indicated category, Hamilton said.

Contact the writer at georgia@proactiveinvestors.com

Follow her on Twitter @MissInformd
Organisations in the US, UK, Canada and Germany can offer it to staff to show they care about their wellbeing

Inc ( ) announced a new corporate programme where companies can include membership of the exercise equipment manufacturer among work benefits to employees.

Often, employers offer perks such as private healthcare, mental health support, cycle to work schemes and free coffee to show staff they care about their wellbeing.

Organisations in the US, UK, Canada and Germany can now add subsidized access to Peloton Digital and All Access Memberships, as well as exclusive benefits on Connected Fitness products. Australia will be added later this year.

Peloton Corporate Wellness partners will receive access to tailored enterprise features to help drive strong engagement, reduce administrative workload and measure impact, all via an easy to use and secure platform, the posh treadmills company said.

So far, Wayfair, Samsung, SAP, and Sky have signed up in the UK.

During just the first three months of 2021, Peloton said total workouts on the platform grew to 171mln, an increase from 48mln in the same time period last year. As of May 2021, Members averaged 26 workouts per month.

Last month, the company had to recall its treadmills in the US after reports of 70 injuries and the death of a child in the US.

The brand got some publicity boost earlier this week after it emerged that Chancellor Rishi Sunak starts the day with a bike workout at 6am while listening to Britney Spears.
's ( ) David Archer joins Proactive London's Katie Pilbeam to discuss the newly created Portuguese Association for the Battery Cluster (BATPower) which his firm is now a founding member.

The Cluster has been created to maximize Portugal's potential across the battery value chain and complement its strategically important lithium resources and its focus on becoming a European leader of lithium production.

The renewable energy company, DST Solar, will assume the Presidency with other founding members including the integrated energy company, Galp, electrical equipment manufacturer, Efacec, technology and services group, Bosch and Prio, the owner of the largest private EV charging network in Portugal.
It also expects revenue for the six-month period ending June 30, 2021, to be between $28.8 million and $30.5 million

Delta 9 Cannabis said it anticipates continued growth in all three of its business segments units through the back half of 2021

Delta 9 Cannabis Inc ( ) (OTCQX:DLTNF) (FRA:V5D1) said it anticipates generating revenue of between C$15.5 million and $17.3 million for its second quarter of 2021, up from $13.0 million during the same period last year and an increase from the $13.2 million it recorded in 1Q this year.

The company also expects revenue for the six-month period ending June 30, 2021, to be between $28.8 million and $30.5 million, compared with $24.8 million for the same period a year earlier.

We anticipate our Q2, 2021 performance will demonstrate a record revenue quarter for Delta 9, with the companys three business segments contributing to the success of the quarter, Delta 9 Cannabis CEO John Arbuthnot said in a statement.

We anticipate continued growth in all three of our business segments units through the back half of 2021, Arbuthnot added.

Delta 9 noted it will release its 2Q financial results on August 16, 2021 before the market opens.

Delta 9 Cannabis is a vertically-integrated cannabis company focused on bringing the highest quality cannabis products to market. The company sells cannabis products through its wholesale and retail sales channels and sells its cannabis grow pods to other businesses.

The company's wholly-owned subsidiary, Delta 9 Bio-Tech Inc., is a licensed producer of medical and recreational cannabis and operates an 80,000 square foot production facility in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Delta 9 owns and operates a chain of retail stores under the Delta 9 Cannabis Store brand.

Contact Sean at sean@proactiveinvestors.com
The supply agreement will enable Audacious Brands to continue to expand its MSO footprint, which now includes Nevada, Arizona, Oklahoma, Missouri, Washington, and Massachusetts

Audacious is securing long-term access to low-cost, high-quality cannabis to fuel the expansion of its brands across the US

. ( ) ( ) has announced a supply agreement and, through its majority-owned subsidiary ALPS, a facility engineering and design services contract with Belle Fleur Holdings LLC.

The Nevada-based company, which now operates under the name Audacious Brands, said under the supply agreement Belle Fleur will dedicate a certain percentage of its canopy space for the cultivation of its proprietary cultivars under a cost-plus 5% agreement. The companies have agreed to jointly explore opportunities for brand collaboration and further expansion in the US.

READ: Australis Capital to change name to Audacious Brand and finalizes land purchase in Nevada

The supply agreement will enable Audacious Brands to continue to expand its multi-state operator (MSO) footprint, which now includes Nevada, Arizona, Oklahoma, Missouri, Washington, and Massachusetts. It anticipates entering additional US markets within the next few weeks.

This arrangement completely validates our strategy and is a great example of how synergies between AUSA/ALPS and our partners Rapper Weed create a win-win-win situation for everyone involved, while creating shareholder value, Audacious CEO Terry Booth said in a statement.

Our ownership of ALPS, the premier facility design firm in the business, is enabling us to execute on a strategy that is unique and very difficult to imitate. This strategy also de-risks our expansion as we do not have to deploy significant capital to develop cultivation infrastructure, while securing long-term access to low-cost, high-quality cannabis to fuel the expansion of our brands across the US," he added.

Belle Fleur, founded by the powerhouse cannabis and music industry entrepreneurs behind Californian brand Rapper Weed, Rolandy Romelus, Irvin Whitlow and Domenico Cardarelli, are the holders of a license allowing the development of a Tier 11 high-tech indoor grow facility in Blandford, a town in Hampden County, Massachusetts.

The Tier 11 license, the largest cultivation license tier available in Massachusetts, allows for up to 100,000 square feet of canopy space.

Belle Fleur, through its roots in the California legacy market, has access to ultra-premium genetics not currently available in Massachusetts and intends to serve the market with luxury, premium high-end cannabis products.

Rapper Weed was founded in Los Angeles, California. The brands core values consist of growing and manufacturing luxury high-end premium products 100% of the time.

Contact the author at stephen.gunnion@proactiveinvestors.com
Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley is asking staff and clients to be fully vaccinated before entering its New York sites

Gen Z workers are keen to return to the office, but if they work at the New York sites of ( ) theyll have to be vaccinated.

A third of survey respondents aged 16-24 said they missed socialising with colleagues and that they found it difficult to distinguish personal from working time.

Over 70% said the sense of community in the workplace makes them more productive, according to research carried out by office space provider Clockwise.

But both Gen Z and millennials surveyed werent willing to relocate to a city when restrictions will be lifted.

The past year has highlighted the benefits of working from home but also how young people especially want to work in an office at least some of the time, highlighting the myriad of intangible benefits being in an office environment can bring, Alexandra Brunner, Clockwise chief operating officer, was reported as saying by the Evening Standard.

The trend towards regionality, where people want to work and set up businesses has been a long time coming, and this has been hugely accelerated by the pandemic.

The concept of work is becoming far more decentralised, allowing businesses to operate efficiently from wherever their employees need. The fact that Gen Z in particular is seeking a different approach is hardly surprising  and given they are the future workforce, their preferences today will dictate how business operate in the future, they are definitely worth listening to.

Jabs first

While the survey questioned young people based in the UK, their US counterparts will be required to have received both doses of a COVID-19 jab if they want to return to the offices of investment bank Morgan Stanley.

Starting July 12 all employees, contingent workforce, clients and visitors will be required to attest to being fully vaccinated to access Morgan Stanley buildings in New York City and Westchester, a memo seen by the Financial Times read.

It was sent as chief executive James Gorman encouraged staff to return to work by 6 September, which is Labor Day in the US.

If you can go to a restaurant in New York City, you can come into the office. And we want you in the office, he said at conference.

Make no mistake about it: we do our work inside Morgan Stanley offices. And thats where we teach, thats where our interns learn, thats how we develop people.

If you want to get paid New York rates, you work in New York. None of this: Im in Colorado and getting paid like Im sitting in New York City. Sorry, that doesnt work.
Afghanistan is a notoriously difficult country to govern. Empire after empire, nation after nation have failed to pacify what is today the modern territory of Afghanistan, giving the region the nickname Graveyard of Empires,  even if sometimes those empires won some initial battles and made inroads into the region. If the United States and its allies decide to leave Afghanistan, they would only the latest in a long series of nations to do so. As the British learned in their 1839-1842 war in Afghanistan, it is often easier to do business with a local ruler with popular support than to support a leader backed by foreign powers; the costs of propping up such a leader eventually add up. The closest most historical empires have come to controlling Afghanistan was by adopting a light-handed approach, as the Mughals did. They managed to loosely control the area by paying off various tribes, or granting them autonomy. Attempts at anything resembling centralized control, even by native Afghan governments, have largely failed.

Akhilesh Pillalamarri
A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday said it has handed over assets worth Rs 9,371 crore belonging to fugitive businessmen Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi to state-run banks to realise the losses on account of the fraud committed against them.

The ED in a statement said that Mallya, Nirav Modi and Choksi have defrauded public sector banks by siphoning off the funds through their companies which resulted in total loss of Rs 22,585.83 crore to the banks.

The ED has booked the three on the basis of the FIR filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The financial probe agency said that the ED has taken swift action by unearthing myriad web of domestic and international transactions and stashing of assets abroad.

"Investigation has also irrevocably proved that these three accused persons used dummy entities controlled by them for rotation and siphoning off the funds provided by the banks," the ED said.

It further said that the ED has attached or seized assets worth Rs 18,170.02 crore which included assets worth of Rs 969 crore located in foreign countries.

"The quantum of the attached and seized assets represents 80.45 per cent of total bank loss of Rs 22,585.83 crore," it said, adding that the investigation by the ED has proved that substantial part of these assets were held in the names of dummy entities, trusts, third persons, relatives of these accused and these entities were proxy of these accused to hold these assets.

Tue ED has filed charge sheets against all the three accused after completion of PMLA investigation.

"Extradition requests have been sent for these persons to the UK and Antigua and Barbuda. The extradition of Mallya has been ordered by the Westminster Magistrates Court and confirmed by the UK High Court. Since Mallya has been denied permission to file appeal in the UK Supreme Court, his extradition to India has become final," the ED said.

It further said that the Westminster Magistrates Court has ordered extradition of Nirav Modi to India.

Nirav Modi has been in London Jail for last two years and three months on the basis of extradition request by India.

Nirav Modi and Mallya have also been declared Fugitive Economic Offenders by PMLA Court in Mumbai, it said.

The ED also said that recently, the agency has transferred shares attached by it, worth of Rs 6,600 crore, to SBI led consortium as per order of PMLA Special Court, Mumbai.

"Today, DRT on behalf of SBI led consortium, has sold shares of United Breweries Limited for Rs 5,824.50 crore," it said, adding that further realisation of Rs 800 crore by sale of shares is expected by June 25.

It also said that due to the cooperation and help extended by ED, Public Sector Banks have already recovered Rs 1,357 crore by selling the shares earlier.

"Thus, the banks shall be realising total amount of Rs 9,041.5 crore through sale of a part of assets attached/seized by ED under the provisions of PMLA," the ED said.

"As on date, out of total attached or seized assets of Rs 18,170.02 crore under provisions of PMLA, assets worth of Rs 329.67 crore has been confiscated and assets worth Rs 9,041.5 crore, representing 40 per cent of total loss to the bank have been handed over to the Public Sector banks," it added.


External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar's clarion call during his address to the UN Security Council on Tuesday marks a new pro-active phase in India's global diplomacy on Afghanistan. Jaishankar nailed the urgency for a holistic international approach to end conflict by focusing on the umbilical link between terrorism in Afghanistan and Pakistan. In tune with Jaishankar's call, National Security Adviser, Ajit Doval is heading for Dushanbe for a conference of region's security chiefs, under the umbrella of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), where the turbulent situation in Afghanistan is bound to be discussed. Jaishankar during his address went for the jugular when he stressed that the supply chains of terrorism which end up in Afghanistan must be disrupted, for fostering "enduring" peace. "For enduring peace in Afghanistan, terrorist safe havens and sanctuaries must be dismantled immediately and terrorist supply chains disrupted. There needs to be zero tolerance for terrorism in all its forms and manifestations including its cross-border one," he said in a veiled reference to Pakistan. EAM Jaishankar drove home his point of a composite approach to end terrorism when he hammered his call for "double peace," both within and across the border. "A durable peace in Afghanistan requires a genuine double peace. That is, peace within Afghanistan and peace around Afghanistan. It requires harmonising the interests of all, both within and around that country," he said. By calling out for regional approach, Jaishankar was implicitly erasing Pakistan's oft-quoted argument of dominating Afghanistan to acquire "strategic depth" against India. In India, there are deep and genuine concerns that Pakistan's sway can once against turn Afghanistan into a ground zero from where global Jihad radiates across the glove, drawing Kashmir into the international terror orbit. Unsurprisingly, Jaishankar spotlighted that, "It is equally important to ensure that the territory of Afghanistan is not used by terrorist groups to threaten or attack any other country. Those providing material and financial support to terrorist entities must be held accountable." India's high decibel call for the world to act on the fundamentals and mechanics of terrorism threatening to re-permeate into Afghanistan is natural. India has invested over $3 billion since the Taliban's exit in 2001, apart from substantially pitching in its political capital and soft-power reserves in a country, long known as a "graveyard of empires". Jaishankar pointed out that India remains committed to steadfastly supporting Afghanistan during its transition. Our development partnership, including more than 550 Community Development Projects covering all 34 provinces, is aimed at making Afghanistan a self-sustaining nation, he said. Besides, India has recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Afghan government for building the Shatoot dam, which would provide safe drinking water to the residents of Kabul city, he observed. The EAM asserted that landlocked Afghanistan must have access to high -seas-a reference to India's participation with Afghanistan and Iran in the Chabahar port project. India has also built a strategic road linking Chabahar with Afghanistan's road network. But noting practical difficulties on the ground during transit, Jaishankar alerted the international community to work towards the removal of artificial transit barriers imposed on Afghanistan and ensure full transit rights guaranteed to Afghanistan under bilateral and multilateral transit agreements without any hindrance. Jaishankar made two additional points. First, he called for an immediate ceasefire in Afghanistan. Referring to last week's report of UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on the Afghan situation, Jaishankar stressed that the intra-Afghan talks have yielded a reduction in violence. On the contrary, after May 1, there have been targeted attacks on religious and ethnic minorities, girl students, Afghan security forces, Ulemas, women occupying positions of responsibility, journalists, civil rights activists and youth. "It is therefore crucial that the international community and, in particular, this Council presses for a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire to ensure immediate reduction in violence and protection of civilian lives," he observed. CNN is quoting UN special envoy on Afghanistan Deborah Lyons as saying on Tuesday, that as the United States continues its military withdrawal from the country for May 1, 50 out of Afghanistan's 370 districts have fallen to Taliban terrorists. "The Taliban recent advances are even more significant and are as a result of an intensified military campaign; more than 50 of Afghanistan's 370 districts have fallen since the beginning of May," Lyons told the UNSC. "Most districts that have been taken surround provincial capitals, suggesting that the Taliban are positioning themselves to try and take these capitals once foreign forces are fully withdrawn," she added. Analysts say that instead of seeking a diplomatic solution, the Taliban appear to be pressing for a military solution, a throwback to the situation in 1996, when the Pak-backed group had overrun the country. Second, Jaishankar pointed out that India fully supports the UN's apex role in the conduct of international diplomacy to steer Afghanistan's political transition. "India welcomes any move towards a genuine political settlement and a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire in Afghanistan. We support a leading role for the United Nations, since that would help improve the odds for a lasting and durable outcome," he said. Jaishankar added that India has been supportive of all the efforts being made to accelerate the dialogue between the Afghan government and the Taliban, including the intra-Afghan negotiations. The intra-Afghan outside the UN framework had kick-started after the US and the Taliban signed a landmark deal in Doha on February 29, 2020-a result of several rounds of negotiations. Before his UN address, Jaishankar had met US special representative on Afghanistan, Almay Khalilzad in Doha. The Qatari authorities have also confirmed that Indian delegates have met the Taliban in the group's international office in Doha.




Punjab Congress president Sunil Jhakhar, finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal and Rajya Sabha MP Pratap Singh Bajwa met Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday to apprise him of the situation after infighting escalated in the state.

Sunil Jakhar said after the meet, "Hope that the current situation will be resolved and some wrong people are advising the chief minister over the decision on jobs to kin of MLAs."

He said the issue of Navjot Singh Sidhu is under discussion by the party leadership. While another bete noire of Punjab CM, Pratap Singh Bajwa also met Rahul Gandhi and said that he discussed the ground reality and current political situation in the state.

He asserted, "the party high-command will take decision over the chief ministerial candidate for next assembly elections."

Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi has stepped in to defuse the tension in the state unit as he met several leaders including Pargat Singh.

Some MLAs who met Rahul Gandhi said that they have raised issues regarding the state. Pargat Singh, who is among those MLAs, critical of the chief minister, said: "If CM is ready to address the issues raised by me, then the matter is resolved."

Meanwhile, Amarinder Singh expressed his displeasure during the meeting on Tuesday with the party panel for being targeted and said that undue pressure is being created by a few individuals, sources said.

However, senior party leader Mallikarjun Kharge, who heads the three-member panel, which has got a larger mandate for poll preparation apart from resolving factionalism in the state party unit, said: "Everybody has said that they will fight the polls together and the party is united under the leadership of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi."

Sources say the panel discussed the political situation in the state and also issues related to Navjot Singh Sidhu and a possible way out to resolve the issue.

While Sidhu is not relenting in his attack on the chief minister, he has insisted on an early resolution of issues. State in-charge Harish Rawat has said that the matter is with Sonia Gandhi and refused to comment on statements made by Sidhu.
Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne faced a barrage of questions in Parliament on Indian fugitive businessman Mehul Choksi, who is wanted in India in Rs 13,500 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case, local media reported.

According to a clip of Parliamentary proceedings on Tuesday shared by Antigua News Room, a news outlet in the Caribbean nation, Browne said, "Mr Speaker, I am not aware of evidence but this information is in the public domain that Mehul Choksi was abducted. And, I am aware that law enforcement here would have done some research and perhaps may have some individuals of interest but as far as evidence is concerned I am not aware that there is any such conclusive evidence."

Browne also replied in the negative when asked if the Scotland Yard or any other agency has contacted his government about the alleged abduction of Choksi. Browne was asked question by the opposition leader Jamal Pringle.

The Antiguan Prime Minister was reportedly asked if the Scotland Yard or any other investigative body found any evidence that Mehul Choksi was taken to Dominica by "involuntary means".

Choksi had gone missing on May 23 sparking a massive manhunt. He was captured in Dominica where he is facing the charges of "illegal entry". A Dominican court has ordered Choksi to be remanded at the Dominica State Prison despite a decline in his health on June 18.

The Magistrate remanded Choksi until June 24, when he will appear before the court to be further remanded whilst his trial for illegal entry is expected to commence on June 25.

The matter of Habeas Corpus filed by Choksi's attorneys in the High Court has been adjourned sine die.

On June 11, a high court judge denied bail to the fugitive on the basis that he is a "flight risk." On June 8, the Indian authorities described Choksi as an Indian citizen in its affidavit filed in Dominican High Court, saying that his application for renunciation of citizenship was "rejected".

It also noted that he is therefore erroneously claiming renunciation of citizenship under the Citizenship Act, 1955. He had taken the citizenship of Antigua in 2017 and left India on January 4, 2018 days before the bank loan fraud case came to light. He is wanted in India by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Rs 13,500 crore PNB fraud case.

Choksi's lawyers have contended that the Indian fugitive businessman was adducted from Antigua on May 21 by policemen looking like Antiguan and Indian and brought to Dominica on a boat. The legal team of fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi including Michael Polak in London had approached the Metropolitan Police under the "universal jurisdiction" provision to investigate his alleged kidnapping from Antigua and Barbuda to neighbouring Dominica. Polak had stated that Choksi was removed from Antigua and Barbuda to Dominica where these rights are not available to him.
India and its G4 allies have forced General Assembly President Volkan Bozkir to accept an amendment to the decision on rolling Security Council reform negotiations to the next Assembly session during a meeting at which he and Germany's Permanent Representative Christoph Heusgen clashed openly dropping the genteel style of diplomacy.

As the Assembly failed year after to make headway on the reform process, the intergovernmental negotiations (IGN) have been quietly bumped to the next session's agenda, but this time on Tuesday the G4 prevailed in bringing the issue to the open for a discussion and have the decision amended to reflect the call of world leaders to reinvigorate the reform process.

India's Permanent Representative T.S. Tirumurti declared, "IGN can no longer be used as a smokescreen today with this amended rollover decision."

This was likely the first time that the rollover decision was discussed and amended.

Diplomatic sources told IANS that this development was a breakthrough because for the first time it puts on official UN record the discussion on reforms and the various stances because the IGN discussions take place in informal meetings without any official records.

The G4 had wanted the decision to reaffirm "the commitment of the Heads of State and Government representing the people of the world to 'instil new life in the discussion on the reform of the Security Council'."

Those words were taken directly from the declaration adopted in September by the heads of state and government commemorating the 75th anniversary of the UN's founding.

With several countries rallying behind the G4 demand for the amendment, Qatar's Permanent Representative Alya bint Ahmed Al Thani, who is also the IGN co-chair, formally proposed accepting it through a consensus.

Pakistan, Italy and their allies and China, who opposed amending the decision, backed down and with Bozkir accepting it, the amendment was accepted unanimously.

Tirumurti said that "by agreeing to include our leaders promise to instil new life in our role or decision, we are reaffirming once more that what we are engaged in in the IGN is not simply a series of academic debates. Our mandate is to deliver on Security Council reform, not just to discuss it ad infinitum."

In a spirit of compromise, the G4 did not press two other minor changes in the wording of another section of the decision.

The G4 is made up of India, Brazil, Germany and Japan, which work together for Council reforms that would add more permanent members and support each other for permanent seats on an expanded Council.

Bozkir had circulated earlier this month the written draft of what in UN parlance is called an "oral decision" for adoption last Wednesday.

But Heusgen vigorously accused him last Wednesday of failing to consult other members and groups on the draft decision as previous Assembly presidents had done and unilaterally presenting it.

As the tide of opposition swelled, it was decided to postpone the issue to Tuesday.

Meanwhile, diplomatic sources told IANS, Al Thani facilitated consultations on the G4 amendment proposal and a majority of countries backed it leading to a consensus for including the world leaders' call, which makes it a mandate and adds an element of urgency.

Heusgen, who is leaving the position of Germany's Permanent Representative soon, did not mince words on Tuesday, lashing out against Bozkir as well as countries like Pakistan and China that oppose reforms to enlarge permanent membership.

At the meeting last week the matters became personal when Heusgen accused Bozkir of taking the position of his country, Turkey, on reforms instead of staying neutral as Assembly President.

Turkey is a member, along with Pakistan and Italy, of the group known as Uniting for Consensus (UfC), which opposes expanding the permanent membership of the Council and has successfully used procedural measures to stall reforms.

"This is not the task of the President of the General Assembly to represent the position of one group," Heusgen said.

He said that he was "shocked" that Bozkir had not held consultations "in contradiction to the practice of your predecessors" and that there was no mention of the mandate given by the 193 world leaders for reforms.

Bozkir shot back on Tuesday with the threat of a "dangerous" eruption and accused Heusgn of breaking diplomatic traditions.

He said that some delegates have been surprised at his silence when Heusgen  whom he called a "plain-speaking man in New York" without naming him  "showed some arrows to me" and was "very sentimental and not in line with the diplomatic traditions of the General Assembly."

But Bozkir said that his first name Volkan means volcano. There were two types of volcano and the dangerous one is the "silent Vesuvius" and "the day it will erupt, it will spread huge destruction," he said.

"I remain silent in that reply to the distinguished representative, but I just want to clarify that my silence was in line with the Vesuvius volcano style" he warned.

Heusgen said on Tuesday that he was surprised that Pakistan and China said that asking to add the call for instilling "new life" to the reforms process was "controversial elements" or "aggressive demands."

Heusgen suggested that the IGN break away from its quest for consensus and instead vote on the reform  which would require a two-thirds majority in the Assembly.

He also exposed the behind the scenes machinations to block the reform process.

One of the tactics used by those countries blocking the reform process is to prevent the IGN from adopting a negotiating text on which to base the discussions. The negotiations then get trapped in a Sisyphian exercise without such a document to move it forward.

"Those countries who then put pressure on delegates here, or put pressure in capitals to prevent delegations from asking for a text-based negotiations or single text, (should) stop that," he said.

"I hope to see the last of these pressure tactics," he added.

China has pressured countries through its aid programmes to oppose reforms, according to diplomatic sources.

The Turkish news media, Daily Sabah, has quoted Heusgen as telling the Anandolous new agency, "Unfortunately, two countries  and this is China and Russia  are blocking all our progress toward real negotiations."
Kington, UK -- (SBWIRE) -- 06/23/2021 -- Intuit's Canadian, British and Australian divisions offer versions of QuickBooks that support the unique tax calculation needs of each region, such as Canada's GST, HST or PST sales tax, European VAT for the United Kingdom edition and Australia's GST sales tax. The QuickBooks UK edition also includes support for Irish and South African VAT.



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E-Tech's conversion service allows for the conversion of QuickBooks Canada to the UK version so VAT can be handled. This works for companies in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and other countries that have introduced VAT filing requirements.



QuickBooks does not allow payroll transactions to be transferred from one file to another, but can be transferred as regular checks with full line item details. Usernames are not transferred from the secondary files to the primary file. Budget data also cannot be transferred.



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E-Tech is the leading service provider of QuickBooks File Repair, Data Recovery, QuickBooks Conversion and QuickBooks SDK programming in the UK and Ireland. In their 20 years plus of experience with Intuit QuickBooks, they have assisted over 1000 satisfied customers with their requirements. E-Tech UK covers US, UK, Canadian, Australian versions which include Reckon Accounts, and New Zealand versions of QuickBooks through PC and Mac platforms.



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Kington, UK -- (SBWIRE) -- 06/23/2021 -- QuickBooks Enterprise is the most extensive and costly Desktop product that is designed especially to accommodate larger or quickly growing businesses that need the very most functionality from their accounting software.



QuickBooks Pro, on the other hand, is the most basic and simple version of QuickBooks Desktop, designed for smaller businesses that only requires a few simultaneous users.



QuickBooks Pro has a one-time cost while QuickBooks Enterprise has an annual subscription cost. QuickBooks Pro comes at a one-time fee of $399.99. QuickBooks Enterprise, on the other hand, comes at an annual fee of $1,577. Additionally, the annual fee of $1,155 covers one user for the QuickBooks Enterprise Gold versionone of three Enterprise product solutions. QuickBooks also offers their Enterprise product in Gold and Platinum, which cost $1,577 and $1,940 for one user, respectively.



As your business needs change, QuickBooks Enterprise lets you add more users - up to a maximum of 30 users  and is available in 1-10 user, and 30-user licenses. You can add users up to a 10-user license. If you currently have 10 users, you can upgrade to a 30-user license.



"Under these circumstances, most small businesses do not realize that QuickBooks Enterprise may not be the software they need especially if do not exceed the 14,500 products, customers, or vendors. Most company files do not exceed those limits and in such cases, QuickBooks Pro and Premier can offer the required features at a very economical price," E-Tech's John Rocha said.



E-Tech's QuickBooks Enterprise Downgrade and Data Conversion Service will downgrade an Enterprise data file to Pro or Premier by accessing data directly -with no loss of information. The service includes the complete conversion of all data including payroll and service subscriptions.



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About E-Tech

E-Tech is the leading service provider of QuickBooks File Repair, Data Recovery, QuickBooks Conversion and QuickBooks SDK programming in the UK and Ireland. In their 20 years plus of experience with Intuit QuickBooks, they have assisted over 1000 satisfied customers with their requirements. E-Tech UK covers US, UK, Canadian, Australian versions which include Reckon Accounts, and New Zealand versions of QuickBooks through PC and Mac platforms.



For media inquiries regarding E-Tech, individuals are encouraged to contact Media Relations Director, Melanie Ann via email at Melanie@e-tech.ca.



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Melanie Ann

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Kington, UK -- (SBWIRE) -- 06/23/2021 -- In an effort to keep QuickBooks data intact, QuickBooks recommends changing the password after every 90days.



Users are required to choose a complex password for files containing sensitive data such as social security numbers, credit card numbers and employers' identification numbers, and you can only change the password if you are the administrator. Doing so, QuickBooks believes it has significantly lowered the instances of theft.



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"Before downloading the QuickBooks password recovery tool, you must first need to verify the ownership to the QuickBooks company file by filling up an online form. It is crucial to precisely fill the information in the password reset form to download the password recovery tool for changing QuickBooks Desktop password, "E-Tech's John Rocha said.



For the admin password to be reset, security information would need to be verified such as license number, the name, email address, phone number, and ZIP code that was originally used at the time of purchasing the product.



If the Password Reset doesn't Work, the information entered would need to be checked, as well the information entered in CAMPS or the Customer Accountant Management Portal.



E-Tech's Password Recovery service will recover or reset the QuickBooks password from all versions of QuickBooks Data files. In case of a forgotten Administrator password, the service can recover or reset the password from the data file so the file can be accessed as the Administrator. This service works with all versions of QuickBooks including QuickBooks for Mac, QuickBooks Enterprise, Pro, and Premier.



For more information, visit https://quickbooksrecovery.co.uk/quickbooks-data-recovery/password-recovery/.



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E-Tech is the leading service provider of QuickBooks File Repair, Data Recovery, QuickBooks Conversion and QuickBooks SDK programming in the UK and Ireland. In their 20 years plus of experience with Intuit QuickBooks, they have assisted over 1000 satisfied customers with their requirements. E-Tech UK covers US, UK, Canadian, Australian versions which include Reckon Accounts, and New Zealand versions of QuickBooks through PC and Mac platforms.



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Media Contact



Melanie Ann

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Melanie@e-tech.ca

www.quickbooksrecovery.co.uk
Northbrook, IL -- (SBWIRE) -- 06/23/2021 -- According to the new market research report "Industrial Robotics Market with COVID-19 Impact Analysis by Type (Articulated, Collaborative Robots), Component, Payload, Application (Handling, Processing), Industry (Automotive, Food & Beverages), and Region - Global Forecast to 2026", published by MarketsandMarkets, (including the prices of peripherals, software, and system engineering) the market is projected to grow from USD 42.2 billion in 2021 and is projected to reach USD 75.3 billion by 2026; it is expected to grow at a CAGR of 12.3% from 2021 to 2026. Owing to COVID-19, the industrial robot market had to face headwinds for 20192020. The anticipated shortage of skilled laborers in manufacturing industries has paved way for the growth of automation in industries. In addition to this, the growing demand for collaborative robots across all industries has also been a crucial factor in driving the growth of the industrial robotics market. The collaborative robots are targeted toward both small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and large enterprises and hence have a wide-scale adoption owing to their versatility.



Ask for PDF Brochure: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=643



"Market for traditional industrial robots projected to have larger share during the forecast period"



The traditional industrial robots segment is expected to hold a larger share of the market throughout the forecast period, both in terms of value and volume. Traditional industrial robots have been around for a much longer time than collaborative robots, which have only gained traction in the last decade. Industries such as automotive, electronics, and metal account for the major use of these robots as their production process imperatively needs to be heavily automated. They are well suited for high-volume production and have been fundamental in scaling up productivity in major industries such as automotive. Various types of traditional industrial robots are designed for different applications specific to the industry. Articulated robots are widely used for handling applications such as pick-and-place, part transfer, palletizing, and sorting in heavy-duty industries such as automotive and metals and machinery. SCARA robots have a better operational speed and hence are preferred more in manufacturing processes in electrical and electronics industry worldwide. The parallel robots are more suitable for high-precision assembly applications. Owing to their versatility in adaption, varying types with a considerable variation in the payload capacity, the traditional industrial robots are expected to maintain the largest market share during the forecast period.



"Handling application to dominate industrial robotics market in terms of size in 2021"



Handling application is expected to hold the largest share of the industrial robotics market in 2021. The handling application includes various sub-types such as material handling, machine tending as well as bin-picking which are currently booming. The handling application has industry-wide usage in varied industries ranging from the automotive, chemicals, electrical and electronics to food and beverages because of which is expected to register a fairly large amount of the market share in 2021.



Browse in-depth TOC on "Industrial Robotics Market"

297  Tables

66  Figures

347  Pages



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"Automotive industry to maintain the largest size of industrial robotics market during the forecast period"



The automotive industry is one of the largest users of industrial robots. In automotive manufacturing, spot welding and painting robots are used extensively. Articulated robots are generally used for most of the tasks; however, parallel robots are used for assembling smaller components, such as pumps and motors. Welding has been one of the first and most popular applications of industrial robots in the automotive industry. Spray painting automation is another popular application in assembly lines, mainly to protect workers from toxic fumes. Robots provide consistency in paint application and minimize wastages. Machine tending and material removal are a few of the other applications where robots are used. As majority of the processes involved in automotive manufacturing and assembly are automated, the automotive industry has to employ industrial robots on a large scale, which makes it the largest demand generator for the adoption of industrial robots.



"Market for Industrial Robotics in APAC estimated to grow at the fastest rate during the forecast period"



The industrial robotics market both for the traditional and collaborative robots in APAC is expected to grow at the highest rate during the forecast period. As far as collaborative robots are concerned, the rising costs of labor in the APAC region have caused the SME industries, in particular, to incline towards industrial adoption by integrating collaborative robots in their manufacturing processes to make the operations more efficient and cost-effective. China is at the forefront in the adoption of traditional industrial robots owing to the increasing demand of automation given the fact that there is a significant growth in its geriatric population in recent years. Other APAC countries such as Taiwan and Thailand are also not far behind in terms of adopting automation to seek a cost advantage through automation in the wake of rising labour costs. The automotive, electrical & electronics, food and beverage industries from the APAC region are the major demand generators for the adoption of industrial robots.



Key players in the industrial robotics include ABB (Switzerland), FANUC (Japan), YASKAWA (Japan), KUKA (Germany), Mitsubishi Electric(Japan), DENSO CORPORATION( Japan), Kawasaki Heavy Industries(Japan), Seiko Epson (Japan) and NACHI-FUJIKOSHI (Japan). Apart from these Rethink Robotics (Germany)Franka Emika (Germany), Kassow Robots (Denmark) are among a few emerging companies in the industrial robotics market.



Related Reports:



Smart Factory Market With COVID-19 Impact by Component (Industrial Sensors, Industrial Robots, Industrial 3D Printers, Machine Vision Systems), Solution (SCADA, PAM, MES, Industrial Safety), Industry, and Region - Global Forecast to 2026



Top Robotics Market with COVID-19 Impact Analysis by Top Industrial Robotics (Articulated, SCARA, Cartesian, Parallel, Collaborative), Top Service Robotics (Logistics, Domestic, Medical, Defense, Rescue, and Security) - Global Forecast to 2025



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Northbrook, IL -- (SBWIRE) -- 06/23/2021 -- According to the new market research report "Offshore Support Vessel Market by Type (AHTS, PSV, MPSV, Standby & Rescue Vessel, Crew Vessel, Chase Vessel, Seismic Vessel), Application (Shallow water and Deepwater), End-User (Oil & Gas and Offshore Wind), and Region - Global Forecast to 2026", published by MarketsandMarkets, the global Offshore Support Vessel Market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.0%, from 2021 to 2026, to reach a market size of USD 26.8 billion by 2026. The market growth is driven by robust investments in the offshore oil & gas and renewable sectors. Increasing deepwater activities and decommissioning of aging offshore infrastructure is likely to offer lucrative opportunities for the Offshore Support Vessel Market. However, fluctuating crude oil prices have offset the growth of the Offshore Support Vessel Market in the past years and resulted in the oversupply of vessels. This would restrain the growth of the market during the forecast period. Government regulations and high operational risks continue to be challenges for the Offshore Support Vessel Market.



Download PDF Brochure:

https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=1212



The MPSV is expected to be the fastest-growing Offshore Support Vessel Market, by type, during the forecast period



MPSVs are primarily used to perform subsea operations such as maintenance and supply functions in the offshore oilfield industry as well as in offshore wind farms. These vessels are equipped with equipment such as cranes, moon pools, and helipads and are capable of dynamic positioning and firefighting, which enables them to install equipment up to 120 tonnes at a depth of 3,000 m. Moreover, they can carry large equipment and accommodate a large crew on board. MPSVs are also used to perform post-drilling well support services. These vessels can perform a PSV's supply role along with accommodation, pipe laying, diving, well intervention, and operations of remotely operated vessels and cranes. Technological advancements are encouraging exploration activities in new and challenging areas, thereby creating stronger demand for MPSVs. The MPSV segment is expected to grow at a faster rate than other vessel segments as these vessels can perform multiple functions in demanding environments.



Browse in-depth TOC on "Offshore Support Vessel Market"



217  Tables

54  Figures

267  Pages



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https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/offshore-support-vessel-market-1212.html



The oil & gas segment is expected to dominate the Offshore Support Vessel Market, by end user, during the forecast period.



The lifecycle of oil and gas fields can be segmented into 4 phases, namely, exploration, development, production, and decommissioning; each phase has its own set of requirements. Offshore support vessels are designed for specific operations and deliver support services at offshore drilling rigs and oil-producing assets, such as production platforms and floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) unit. These offshore support vessels are also used to carry out pipe laying services and decommissioning of offshore rigs. In the North Sea alone, over 450 platforms, 10,000 km of pipelines, and 5,000 wells are expected to be decommissioned by 2040. According to the Oil & Gas UK, an offshore oil & gas industry association in the UK, decommissioning of this infrastructure would cost up to USD 80 billion. Globally, there are approximately 7,000 offshore structures that are eligible for decommissioning. The Gulf of Mexico and the North Sea are two of the largest regions with most infrastructure eligible for decommissioning. Decommissioning of rigs generates demand for offshore support vessels, thereby driving the market growth.



Asia Pacific: The largest Offshore Support Vessel Market.



In this report, the Offshore Support Vessel Market has been analyzed with respect to 6 regions, namely, North America, Asia Pacific, South America, Europe, Middle East, and Africa. Asia Pacific is expected to dominate the global Offshore Support Vessel Market between 2021 and 2026. The major economies in Asia Pacific, such as China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Thailand, are focusing on increasing their offshore E&P CAPEX. According to Scottish Development International, the CAPEX for new offshore developments in Asia Pacific is set to be about 25% of the global spending, making the region an important part of the offshore industry. Various policymakers in the region are prioritizing new offshore activities in deep and ultra-deep waters. The most important of these new offshore developments include Australia's Briseis, Scarborough, and Laverda projects; Malaysia's Rotan, Gumusut-Kakap, and Petai projects; India's KG-D6 complex; and Indonesia's Gehem project. Moreover, the count of offshore support vessels is also growing in the region due to an increase in the number of vessel manufacturers in the market, especially from China and South Korea.



Speak to Analyst:

https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/speaktoanalystNew.asp?id=1212



To enable an in-depth understanding of the competitive landscape, the report includes the profiles of some of the top players in the Offshore Support Vessel Market.



Some of the key players are DOF group (Norway), Solstad Offshore (Norway), Tidewater (US), Maersk (Denmark), and Siem Offshore (Norway). The leading players are adopting various strategies to increase their share in the Offshore Support Vessel Market. Expansions have been a widely adopted strategy by the major players in the Offshore Support Vessel Market.



About MarketsandMarkets

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Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model  GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. MarketsandMarkets now coming up with 1,500 MicroQuadrants (Positioning top players across leaders, emerging companies, innovators, strategic players) annually in high growth emerging segments. MarketsandMarkets is determined to benefit more than 10,000 companies this year for their revenue planning and help them take their innovations/disruptions early to the market by providing them research ahead of the curve.



MarketsandMarkets's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "Knowledgestore" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets.



Contact:

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MarketsandMarkets INC.

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Content Source: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/PressReleases/offshore-support-vessel.asp
Kington, UK -- (SBWIRE) -- 06/23/2021 -- Files over the 300 MB size cause sluggish performance, and this can be seen while processing payments or generating reports.



Because QuickBooks holds such a vast database of financial information, files are bound to grow larger in size especially if they are more than 5 to 10 years old. Intuit recommends size limits for a Pro or Premiere file to not exceed 150Mb and an Enterprise file, 1GB.



Large files can also bring about frequent crashes, loss of data and difficulties in creating backups. "Data corruption, Unbalanced Balance Sheet reports, slow performance and constant errors are just some of the other effects of an overgrown file," E-Tech's John Rocha said.



E-Tech's SuperCondense service expels old data, reducing the size of the file by as much as 80 percent. "The SuperCondense feature is an advanced version of the Condense feature in QuickBooks and has proven to have far more extensive results with both document size and the QuickBooks' pace," Rocha said.



Reducing the file size provokes superior responsiveness and faster performance, network stability and little to none of data corruption issues. It also keeps customers, vendors and items well below the 14,500 limit for Pro and Premier, making it easier to convert to QuickBooks Online.



For more information on E-Tech's SuperCondense service, visit https://quickbooksrecovery.co.uk/quickbooks-file-data-services/quickbooks-supercondense-service/.



About E-Tech

E-Tech is the leading service provider of QuickBooks File Repair, Data Recovery, QuickBooks Conversion and QuickBooks SDK programming in the UK and Ireland. In their 20 years plus of experience with Intuit QuickBooks, they have assisted over 1000 satisfied customers with their requirements. E-Tech UK covers US, UK, Canadian, Australian versions which include Reckon Accounts, and New Zealand versions of QuickBooks through PC and Mac platforms.



For media inquiries regarding E-Tech, individuals are encouraged to contact Media Relations Director, Melanie Ann via email at Melanie@e-tech.ca.



To learn more about the company, visit: https://quickbooksrecovery.co.uk/.



Media Contact



Melanie Ann

E-Tech

61 Bridge St.

Kington HR5 3DJ

Melanie@e-tech.ca

www.quickbooksrecovery.co.uk
Riga City, Latvia -- (SBWIRE) -- 06/23/2021 -- Tycoon.io is the world's most advanced social trading platform enabling a bridge between beginners and advanced crypto traders in a seamless and intuitive environment.



There are many newcomers in the crypto space, but just a few of them are skilled at trading. Tycoon allows literally anyone to participate in trading using real crypto assets, instead of derivatives ( CFD's ) and makes the whole process as easy as clicking just a few buttons. Oh and the coolest thing is, because of the API connection technology, nobody from Tycoon can have access to the user's funds. Ever!



Trading is as much of an art than it is a science. It takes years of gruelling hard work and unshakable determination to get good at it. Tycoon is here to take the grunt work of complexity out of this equation. Professional traders are doing what they do best. They trade! Newcomers can simply connect to these traders, tap into their strategy and copy to their trades in real-time. Trading could not be any simpler!



Three listings in a row



After the first listing on Whitebit.com, Tycoon has surprised their Global community by also being present on Uniswap (one of the biggest decentralized exchanges). Now strike 2 has been hit home by the second listing on Bithumb Global. One of the top-tier exchanges with a solid track record and reputation.



NFT contest, TYC deposit and Staking program



Tycoon lives and breaths crypto. The current NFT challenge is a great example of this. 10,000 TYC tokens are up for grabs by the 5 best NFT artists that can pour their hearts and souls into this digital creative wave 2.0. The challenge is turning over boulders on the social media networks as we speak.



The event kicked off on 14.6.2021 and is running until 29.6.2021. More information is available in the Twitter blog post, alongside a huge treasure trove of valuable educational content meant for crypto newcomers.



Tycoon is ready to allow all users to deposit TYC tokens onto the platform with military-grade security. No more writing down seed phrases and passwords that need to be kept in 3 copies at grandma's house.



Onboarding Crowdsale investors



Tycoon is infinitely grateful to all the early investors and adopters. This is why there are many incentive and reward programs waiting to be deployed. First of all, in July, the public sale investors are being onboarded as copy traders. They will have the opportunity to connect to their favourite traders and jump onto his/her trades in real-time. Crypto never sleeps, just like the Tycoon platform. There's much more planned for the months ahead and the team is on fire.



Making Crypto Trading accessible to one and all



Tycoon connects all kinds of traders through the use of API technology via the Binance exchange, the world's largest and most reputed centralized crypto exchange. Yes, funds are SAFU.



New traders can simply follow professional traders and "copy" their trades in real-time. When the trader is profitable, so is his/her follower. How cool is that?! The professional trader is doing what's most important; trading. All the worries of creating a loyal community of followers are handled by Tycoon. Just like Nokia in the past, Tycoon is simply and elegantly "connecting people".



But what's the big deal? There are many copy trading platforms out there. What makes Tycoon so different? Currently, the copy-trading platforms are trading derivatives ( synthetic versions of real assets ). Traders are actually trading abstractions. Aside from that, the brokers get paid even during non-profitable trades. Not cool and not productive! Meanwhile, Tycoon is actually allowing people to trade real assets. Also, there's a profit-sharing system that only charges a fee when the professional traders are profitable.



What sets Tycoon apart?



In the crypto-space time moves incredibly fast and the learning curve for any newcomer is sometimes too much to handle. This leads to fewer people actively participating in this technology that literally IS the future today. Tycoon is not just a copy trading platform that strips all the complexity out of trading, it's a lot more than that! It's a knowledge base packed with essential information that drags ANY newcomer through the necessary knowledge about crypto and blockchain tech in a record time. It's a collective of more than 50 people working in all parts of the world just to make sure the platform is running smoothly with intuitive UI and 24/7 support. Tycoon is working on becoming the main conversation point during the thanksgiving table. Here's how;



100% oversight and control: Users have total control over their assets and trades at all times. Traders connect using an API key that can grant specific permissions to the platform, for example: read, execute, etc. Traders decide which permissions they give (according to their intentions, being a trader or a follower). Withdrawal permissions are of course not given. Only the owner of the account can withdraw their assets at any time he/she chooses. Tycoon takes this very seriously.



Safety: All funds are on the user's own exchange account. Tycoon never has access to these funds. It's technically impossible to do!



Fair play: Tycoon Platform doesn't make money if traders aren't profitable. The Tycoon platform has a profit share-based business model and has the customer's best interest at heart.



Simplicity: Crypto trading shouldn't be difficult. This is why all the complexity is attacked head-on by Tycoon. If you can use a computer, you can be a crypto trader!



Customer support battalion: Just like the crypto space, the Tycoon support is reachable 24/7 and 365 days per year. The Tycoon support team has the best response time in the industry.



Passion for crypto: The Tycoon team lives and breaths crypto every day. The team posts frequent educational articles as well as interesting social media posts in order to give all the platform users an edge in this market. New users are joining the Tycoon platform daily. This is exactly why the team is doing their very best to educate the community about all the fine details of this space. This valuable knowledge will be important throughout their whole life.



About Cryptoshib

Criptoshib tries to keep crypto enthusiasts updated with the latest happenings and stories from the crypto world. We try to post stories about projects and people of the crypto and blockchain communities from around the world.



Media Contact



Tycoon Trading Ltd

13 Tepelenoiou st. 8010 Paphos, Cyprus

info@tycoon.io

https://tycoon.io

https://cryptoshib.com/tycoon-platform-bithumb-global-listing/
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Cuban radio hams will celebrate 55th anniversary of FRC Federacion de Radioaficionados de Cuba (FRC) will celebrate its 55th anniversary on July 15, 2021



Although limited by the presence of COVID-19 and social distancing conditions, over 8 thousand Cuban radio amateurs will participate between July 12 and 18 in on-the-air events from their homes with the purpose of celebrating the 55 years of fruitful life of their organization. Within that framework, they will provide recognition to founders and veterans, and to other FRC members known for their work on the air.



It will be a good moment to hold themed meetings in VHF about the work of FRC as a IARU (International Amateur Radio Union) Member Society.



Joel Carrazana Valdes CO6JC

FRC Information System



FRC https://tinyurl.com/IARU-Cuba
Caracas (Venezuela), June 22, 2021 (SPS) - A Sahrawi delegation, head by Ms. Jadiyetu Mojtar, attends the work of the Congress of the Peoples of the World, held from June 21 to 23, 2021, in the Venezuelan, under the slogan "All for the Revolution." , commemorating the Bicentennial of the independence of Venezuela and the historic battle of Carabobo, led by the Liberator Simon Bolivar, which put an end to colonialism in that Latin American country.

During its participation, the Saharawi delegation met on Monday with the Minister for Women and Gender Equality, Ms. Carolys Perez, and the President of the Women's Commission of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela, Ms. Gladys Requena, both parties addressed issues related to the current political and military situation in Western Sahara, particularly after the Moroccan violation of the ceasefire and the resumption of the war in the territory.SPS

125/090/TRA
The sharp policy growth, just as hurricane season gets underway, increases the risk that Citizens $6.4 billion surplus wont be able to cover all claims if a catastrophe strikes South Florida or other populated areas of the state. If that happens, Citizens customers and potentially all property insurance customers in Florida would have to pay special assessments to cover any shortfall.
The Broward Sheriffs Office received a call at 7:45 a.m. to come to 1928 Tigertail Blvd., just west of Interstate 95. Deputies went to the building as did Broward Fire Rescue, who pronounced the woman dead.
The two locations are about a seven-minute walk apart. The canal is in the shape of an L. One girl was found on the side that goes north and south, and the other girl was found on the side that runs east to west. On Wednesday morning, two balloons with the word Princess were on the bank near where Dayshas body was discovered.
Katzs application for interim superintendent was strongly supported by Runcies cabinet, a group of 12 top administrators who run the districts day-to-day operations, as well as four of the nine school board members. A fifth, Patti Good, initially supported his selection, which would have been enough to hire him, but she changed her mind after hearing strong opposition from the four others.
By the year 2000, theres another emergency declared in the lake because the lake was too deep and [snail] kites werent nesting and the fishery had crashed and the [submerged plants] were gone, he said. The lakes not the only consideration we have to make, but these very deep schedules that you guys are contemplating are really ominous for the health of the lake.
Ultimately, these kids will probably all do different pathways in life, DeSantis said, flanked by students and Republican bill sponsors. All of those people are going to be citizens, theyre all going to be part of making sure that our country is able to preserve the freedoms that we possess.
Dr. Anthony Fauci once said that science is a self-correcting search for the truth. Joubert would undoubtedly agree. In order to advance the conversation, and ultimately science, we must remain available to ideas and able to discuss them without fear of retribution. Anything less may result in dogma that is at best incomplete or at worst harmful. We are incredibly privileged to live in the United States where, barring any tectonic shifts, the virus and this pandemic will remain in the rear-view mirror. If we are indeed to continue leaning into new vaccines or therapeutics, it may require us to shift gears, begin new conversations and redirect the focus of an intransigent media and scientific community. The commitment to dialogue and updated ideas will serve us now and lay the foundation for a much more effective response during the next pandemic.
Imagine you are a member of a minority, and a special day is set aside as a holiday to honor minorities, amid the excitement of having a huge parade. As mayor, youre going to speak at this great event, and a truck roars into the crowd of your fellow citizens right in front of you. With all the violence going on across our country this past year, what would you think?
National Police officers investigating an alleged illegal pay TV network have arrested six people in raids across Spain - including the main content provider who was based in Estepona on the Costa del Sol.

The criminal network collapsed after other arrests were made in Castellon, Valencia and Madrid.

Investigations began in early 2020, when officers found the pay TV services advertised on websites and various social media networks. The police discovered that one person headed the organisation, who broadcast the illicit television signals, and provided them to the others involved, who were resellers.

It was discovered that the content provider lived in Estepona, while the other five involved lived in Madrid, Valencia and Castellon.

Police claim that the IPTV provider achieved profits of approximately 150,000 euros per year.
Face masks will no longer be mandatory outdoors as of this Saturday (26 June) in Spain, but that will not mean that you can go out without a face covering.

The new regulations that will come into force on Saturday will oblige you to carry a mask on your person, in case it is necessary to use it where you cannot maintain the safe social distance of 1.5 metres from other people.

"When people are away from home, they must have a mask for personal use at all times in case it is required, in anticipation of crowds, or for use in interior spaces or on public transport," says the draft reform of the law which, since 30 March of this year, has imposed the use of Covid-19 protection - without exceptions - in all public spaces, both open and closed, regardless of whether the safety distance could be kept.

The text which will be approved at a Cabinet meeting on Thursday - insists not only on the obligation to continue wearing the face mask indoors, but also at large outdoor events, such as concerts, demonstrations or sporting events, if it is not possible (because the attendees are standing and without assigned seats) to guarantee a space of 1.5 metres between people.

The reform also makes it clear that the face mask will continue to be mandatory on all forms of public transport.

The reform - which will not be submitted by the Ministry of Health for debate or a vote by the regions - has two major exceptions to the general regulations to maintaining the obligation to wear the mask indoors: residences for the elderly and prisons.

In "social health centres" where more than 80 per cent of the users are fully-vaccinated (which in reality is practically all of them), the residents will not need to wear the face mask in closed common spaces, although both the staff and the visitors must continue to wear the protection.

In prisons, the new regulations leave it to the discretion of the Ministry of the Interior to decide which rules should be applied to mask wearing.
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Blackshear, GA (31516)

Today

Thunderstorms during the evening will give way to cloudy skies after midnight. Low 72F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms during the evening will give way to cloudy skies after midnight. Low 72F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%.
Blackshear, GA (31516)

Today

Thunderstorms early, then cloudy skies after midnight. Low 72F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms early, then cloudy skies after midnight. Low 72F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%.
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HOUSTON, March 29, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- In conjunction with Prosperity Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE: PB) First Quarter 2021 Earnings Announcement, scheduled before the market opens on Wednesday, April 28, 2021, you are invited to listen to its conference call at 11:30 AM, Eastern Time (10:30 AM, Central Time) on that day. Participants will include members of Prosperity's executive management team.
The Perspective

Atlanta, Georgia

June 18, 2021





Menia Jugbeh Nyanseor

It is with profound sadness and wealth of lasting memories, I write this tribute for the Korlah and Nyanseor families - on the transition of Matriarch Menia Jugbeh Nyanseor aka Sister, who departed this world at 3:14 pm, Thursday afternoon, June 3rd, 2021, at Fidelity Healthcare, 20th street, Sinkor, Monrovia.

Sister, as she was affectionately called by both family members and friends was born into the union of Tetee Torborh Korlah Nyanseor and Worhwinn Mardea Sarkpah of Monrovia (Old Kru Town), Montserrado County, Liberia, on December 1st, 1954. All of us siblings were born on the unpaved side of Clay Street (off Camp Johnson Road). On this section of Clay Street, you had to cross over Sonewin (pond) to get onto United Nations Drive. This area was part of Rocktown, Monrovia. We who were born in Monrovia proper were so proud to be called Rock Time Boys or Girls; the name distinguished us from those that were born outside of Monrovia (a false pride we wore as a badge of honor).

Jugbeh began her early education at Monrovia Demonstration Elementary School and continued to the College of West Africa (CWA). Both she and Sarkpah graduated from Wells Hairston High School in Monrovia. In 1975, she got employed with the Liberia Tractor Company (LIBTRACO) as Cadex Clerk until the 1990 Liberian civil crisis. Jugbeh happened to be a dedicated member of the Christian Evangelistic Pentecostal Church (CEPC) the Cow Factory community, Somalia Drive, Gardnersville, where she remained until her demise.

Upbringing

During most of Jugbehs lifetime, she resided in the P.H.P. (Public Health Pond) Community, but only sought refuge elsewhere during the different civil crises in Liberia. Our parents, especially, our mother, Sarkpah Mydea Worhwinn provided the best for us. Our parents made sure we had enough to eat and a roof over our heads. Older brother Korlah Wleh aka Anthony Wleh Roberts (deceased) attended St. Patricks high school (private school); later, I, Jglay Kpa-kay attended Zion Academy junior high school (private school) then went on to graduate from Laboratory High. Jugbeh attended the College of West Africa (CWA), and later, both she and Sarkpah graduated from Wells Hairston High School, Monrovia.

We were born Methodists (Mary Sharpe Old Krutown Methodists church) to be exact. Our upbringing was based on 2 Timothy 2:15  Study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. The Klao/Kru culture which we were born into taught us to respect women and the elderly; and also, we were always reminded of Proverbs 22:6  Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it. And we were told a Good name is better than riches.

Victims of the Liberian Cultural Kwi Dilemma

Our immediate family consisted of four siblings: senior brother Korlah Wleh Nyanseor aka Anthony Wleh Roberts (deceased), followed by me, Siahyonkron Jglay Kpa-kay Nyanseor, Sr. aka Sam (Samuel) Anthony Roberts, III, Menia Jugbeh Nyanseor aka Mary Jugbeh Myers (now deceased), and Sarkpah Fahnseah Nyanseor, formally known as Jackson Sarkpah Myers (victims of Liberias civilized/Kwi culture dilemma). At the time, our fathers only brother, Robert Sorbor Korlah Nyanseors children were part of the family (two first cousins): Tetee Fueh (big) Korlah Nyanseor & Rebecca Tetee Korlah Nyanseor (Wisseh), who were called our sisters were part of our household. Since there was no word in the Klao/Kru language for cousin (female cousin is considered sister, while male cousin is considered brother).

Inherit Matriarch Responsibilities

Jugbeh inherited from our mother, Sarkpah Mydea Worhwinn, true altruism: love for others without regard to how young or old the person is. This unselfish concern and love for others  simply out of a desire to help, not because you feel obligated, but it is done out of concern for the well-being of the less fortunate. It was the same compassion Jesus Christ not only taught but demonstrated when He walked this earth. And those that interacted with Sister could not help to notice the qualities she demonstrated - Love, Compassion, and Honesty, which makes me think of her as an example of the mythological Phoenix. This bird is known throughout all cultures and ages to die, burst into flame, reborn from the ashes, and become immortal to continue doing good deeds for humanity.

Spirit of Love &Altruism

Having no job after LIBTRACO and the 1990 Liberian civil crisis, Jugbeh rekindled her passion for education and sewing, not necessarily to earn money for luxuries but to provide quality education to her children, nephews, nieces, and relatives. Jugbeh established a Homeschool where she taught: Reading, Writing, Spelling, Arithmetic, Science, Geography, Civics, History, and Critical Thinking. Her teaching philosophy was based on 2 Timothy 2:15 - Study to show yourself approved unto God While her Homeschool was in full swing, she started her seamstress business to augment her finances to support the widening extended family. Her tutoring method was so successful that students from her Homeschool excelled. For example, her daughter Sedia Setonneh Weeks and others are gainfully employed.

Jugbeh was a powerful and influential member of the family. She made valuable contributions to the church and the community. She was a woman who empowered the people in her sphere - by her strength, commitment, and ability to empathize. The matriarch role she inherited from our mother included emotional and intellectual prowess. These qualities endure over generations in the family; a position she held with distinction, love, compassion, honesty, and dignity.

So let us weep not, for the transitioned matriarch lived a spiritually fulfilled life. Her time on this earth has expired; as the songwriter, Jim Reeves says: This world is not our home. Im just passing through; my treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue; theyre all expecting me and thats one thing I know.

The message of the song should serve as a reminder to us - who she left behind to live a godly and fruitful life before our time comes to be remembered similarly, as Jugbeh. As for me, instead of mourning for my homegoing sister, Jugbeh, I am encouraged to celebrate and cherish the wonderful memories she left with you and me. Therefore, as Maya Angelou reminds us: A great soul serves everyone all the time. A great soul never dies. It brings us together again and again.

As John 14:1 says: Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

Cherishing the home-going of Jugbeh are the following:

Children  Tiposah Bushu Nyanseor (son) and Sedia Setonneh Weeks (daughter)

Grandchildren  Worwin Dehneseo Nyanseor and Sylvana-June Samu

Brothers  Elder Siahyonkron Nyanseor, Sr. (Lulu-Spouse) & Sarkpah F. Nyanseor (Ankie-Spouse)

Sisters  Mother Lucy Winker and Rebecca T. Wisseh and a

Host of Relatives, Friends, and Loved Ones in Liberia and the United States of America

She was predeceased by her brother, Anthony Korlah Wleh Nyanseor.

The Funeral Services for Sister Menia Jugbeh Nyanseor will be held on Friday, June 18, 2021, at the Christian Evangelistic Pentecostal Church, Cow Factory, Somalia Drive, Gardnersville, and her body will be interred on the same day at Capehart Cemetery on Kehbah Road in Barnesville; behind the Kehbah market.

May Her Soul Rest In Perpetual Peace!




Clearfield, PA (16830)

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A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Mostly cloudy skies. Low near 55F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph.
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Bahrain-based Investcorp, a leader in alternative investment, has signed agreements to invest in Chinas Linkedcare, a top Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) and supply chain management provider for the dental and medical aesthetics industry.



This latest Series D round of funding was led by Investcorp with co-investors Matrix Partners China, Lightspeed China Partners, So-Young International, Jinding Capital and Sheng Ye Capital. Together with the Series C2 round of funding announced a few months ago, Linkedcare has now raised over $100 million during the past six months.



Founded in 2015 in Shanghai and with over 700 employees, Linkedcare currently serves more than 30,000dental and medical aesthetic clinics in the mid-to-high-end segment with complete SaaS solutions covering standalone and chain management, outpatient and inpatient CRM, electronic medical records, inventory and sales management, financial reporting, insurance payment, imaging PACS, YouKe SCRM smart marketing, and YouShu smart business analytics, etc.



Hazem Ben-Gacem, Co-CEO of Investcorp, said: We are pleased to lead this new round of investment into Linkedcare. China is experiencing strong demand in the dental, beauty and other consumer medical areas underpinned by secular growth in its economy and demographics and we look forward to being part of their growth trajectory. As part of our investment strategy, we have been actively growing our presence in Asia over the past years and this is yet another milestone that we have reached as we continue to advance our diversification journey.



Zhijia Wu, CEO and Co-Founder of Linkedcare, said: We are very pleased to welcome Investcorp as a new institutional investor into our blue-chip shareholder group. We look forward to developing highly synergetic cooperation with Investcorps portfolio companies in the global dental care industry to bring world-leading innovative products to our clinician customers in China.



Duncan Zheng, MD &Head of Private Equity China at Investcorp, who will join the Board of Directors at Linkedcare, commented: Linkedcare is a phenomenal innovator in Chinas dental SaaS industry and we are very honoured to partner with Mr. Wu and his excellent management team to further strengthen the Companys leadership position through capital and value-added access to our global resources and sector expertise.



We see many attractive investment opportunities in the Chinese healthcare sector as demand for quality medical services and treatments continue to increase. We believe that such opportunities will deliver enhanced value for all of our stakeholders.



Last year, Investcorp launched a new platform dedicated to investing in high-quality healthcare companies in China. Linkedcare marks Investcorps fourth investment in Chinas fast growing healthcare sector over the last 12 months, including: KindStar, Chinas leading independent medical esoteric testing group; Lu DaoPei, the worlds leading blood oncology hospital group; and WeDoctor, one of Chinas largest digital health services platforms.  TradeArabia News Service
The Mastercard Foundation, a Canadian foundation, announced that Robin L Washington has been appointed to the Board of Directors and long-time Board member President Festus G. Mogae will be retiring.



"I'm thrilled to welcome Robin Washington to the Board," said Zein M Abdalla, Mastercard Foundation Board Chair. "As you can see from Robin's biography, she brings a fantastic range of operational experience and insight that will benefit the Foundation enormously as we continue to expand our impact."



Washington is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Alphabet, Honeywell International, Inc., and Salesforce.com. She served as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Gilead Sciences from May 2008 until November 2019, where she oversaw Global Finance, Facilities and Operations, Investor Relations and IT divisions.



She holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Michigan and an MBA from Pepperdine University.



"The Mastercard Foundation does not shy away from the complex challenges facing the world in these unprecedented times," said Washington. "They have an ambitious goal that will drive meaningful change and impact the lives of millions of young people living in poverty. I am looking forward to being a part of the Foundation's Board and contributing to this important work."



Current Board member President Festus G. Mogae is retiring from the Board after 11 years of service. He led the Republic of Botswana from 1998 to 2008 and focused his efforts on fighting poverty and unemployment as well as reducing the spread of HIV/AIDs.



"President Mogae is deservedly celebrated for his work across Africa and globally. He has long been an advocate for peace and a supporter of human rights, and his active leadership has enabled the advancement of economic and social progress on the continent," said Abdalla. "On behalf of the Foundation, I sincerely thank him for his wisdom and service over the years. He will be deeply missed."  TradeArabia News Service
BFC Group Holdings (BFC), a leading money transfer and currency exchange provider in Bahrain, said it has signed up multicloud technology solutions company Rackspace Technology to help shift its core application and supporting systems to Amazon Web Services (AWS).

The migration creates a robust platform for BFC Group to focus on delivering seamless financial services to customers without the complexity of managing and maintaining a vast data centre, said a statement from Rackspace Technology.

Since installing its first servers 40 years ago, BFC Group had leveraged technology to maintain its competitive edge in the regional remittance and foreign exchange markets.

Over the years, those servers multiplied into fully-fledged, mission-critical data centres supporting the companys expansion to 46,000 pay-out agents in over 30 countries worldwide and - more recently - its growing online operations.

But anticipating the shift away from brick-and-mortar branches towards greater digitisation, BFC Group embarked on a redevelopment of its core business application, and roped in Rackspace Technology for the job.

"With the continued evolution of smartphones and computers, our business is evolving from the traditional brick and mortar to a digital model," stated Ebrahim Nonoo, the Managing Director and CEO of BFC Group Holding Company.

"Since the Covid-19 pandemic hit, our goal is to cross over more decisively into the digital space by modernising our core application to better support both a digital and physical presence. This will help accelerate our digital innovation," he added

We selected Rackspace Technology because they are the best at providing robust technology foundation to companies like ours to achieve our business goals, Nonoo added.

"The company helped us migrate its core application and supporting systems to the AWS public cloud while providing ongoing management and consultancy services," he added.

Rackspace Technology General Manager (MEA) George Pawlyszyn said: "Digital transformation is a business imperative for the modern enterprise. By leveraging our global expertise and technology, BFC Group has maintained its position as the leading money transfer service in the region while improving the customer experience."

"The scalability of public cloud means BFC Group can easily expand across boundaries with a consistent level of service no matter the country," he added.

Before completing the migration, BFC Group saw an immediate uplift in critical performance measures, such as transactions processed per second (TPS) and customer experience. Resiliency in the system has improved, and uptime has increased to 99.99% compared to 99.95% with its on-premises environment," he added.

According to BFC, the strategic migration has also eliminated the hassle and expense of managing in-house data centres, thus enabling the group to invest more resources into innovation and service improvements.

"As we redeveloped our application, our on-premises environment struggled to provide the performance required," remarked Ali Fakhreddine, CIO at BFC Group.

"We didnt want to invest in refreshing the infrastructure and all what that entails because we know that is not where the future lies. So, we brought forward our plans to move to the cloud," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Albwardy Damen, a leading provider of shipbuilding and ship repair services, was recognised as the Best New Building Yard at the 14th edition of the ShipTek International Awards 2021, held recently in Dusit Thani Hotel, Dubai.



The award was received by Willem Moelker, sales & marketing director, Albwardy Damen.



The ShipTek International Maritime Awards has established itself as one of the most distinguished events in the maritime, offshore and oil & gas sectors. The 14th edition of the awards recognised significant industry players who contributed to the sector's growth, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting market disruption.



Albwardy Damen aims to improve the efficiency of its operations and develop strong client relationships by providing high safety standards and excellent services in line with its promise and commitment to its customers. Its services include new building of steel and aluminium vessels, as well as marine, and oil & gas asset maintenance and servicing.



Its services are offered in all of the UAE's major ports and anchorages, as well as in Oman. Moreover, it provides its clients all around the world with docking services, ship repair, conversion services, afloat and voyage repairs, 3D scanning, and new building. Furthermore, the company's diving services and anchor recoveries division in Fujairah serves ports and anchorages across the UAE and provides services such as underwater hull cleaning.



Lars Seistrup, managing director of Albwardy Damen, said: 2020 was a very challenging year for all of us due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Having said that, it was also one of the busiest years ever for our new building department. Our schedule was packed with the construction and delivery of two vessels of almost 100 metres length each. Having worked so hard over the past one and a half years of the pandemic, it is a great honour to be given this award.

Albwardy Damen has state-of-the-art facilities for the construction of all types of modern and complex vessels. Damen Shipyards Group has built over 200 vessels for the Middle Eastern Market since 1969, many of which are still in service. The company employs over 1300 highly experienced and skilled professionals from 26 different nationalities and has an extensive engineering section devoted to repairing and construction of vessels to the highest technical and environmental standards. It is also certified by LRQA for ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001, OHSAS 18001 as well as API Q1.



Albwardy Damen's primary goal has always been to provide the highest level of services to its clients. The companys success over the last ten years is a testament to a never-ending pursuit of technological innovation and commitment to services tailored to our customers, Seistrup added.  TradeArabia News Service
Saudi Water Partnership Company (SWPC) has teamed up with a consortium led by French energy giant Engie for the commercial close of Jubail 3B Independent Water Project. The plant, being set up on a build, own, operate (BOO) model, will begin operations in 2024.

Located 65 km north of Dammam airport in Saudi Arabia, the Jubail 3B IWP plant will produce 570,000 cu m/day of potable water through reverse osmosis technology to supply the cities of Jubail and Dammam.

The plant will include storage facilities for one operational day in addition to in-house renewable energy capacity to reduce grid electricity consumption throughout the desalination process.

The Engie consortium, comprising Saudi-based Nesma Company and Abdulaziz Al Ajlan Sons for Commercial and Real Estate Investment Company each with a 30% stake in the project, was named the preferred bidder by SWPC in April for its SR1.591 halalas per cu m of potable water tariff.

SWPC yesterday (June 22) signed a 25-year Water Purchase Agreement with the consortium in the presence of Engineer Abdulrahman Al Fadli, Chairman of the Board of SWPC and Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture.

The project is part of the water schemes in Saudi Arabia developed under the public-private-partnership (PPP) structure, said the statement from SWPC.

As per the deal, the consortium will develop and finance the desalination plant, which will be operated and maintained by Engie, it added.

On the successful commercial close, CEO Engineer Khalid Al Quraishi, said: Despite the fluctuations, liquidity crises and changing global market conditions, the SWPC succeeded in completing the financial closure procedures with the consortium in close cooperation with the group of lenders, which indicates the companys efforts."

"SWPC will provide full support for investment projects, and to enhance private sector participation in sustainable development by providing the opportunity for local and foreign investors to participate in the implementation of these projects, thus achieving sustainable development," observed Al Quraishi.

It will help in providing job opportunities for young people, and supporting local product and balanced development, in order to achieve the strategic objectives contained in Saudi Arabias vision 2030 and the initiatives approved by the Saudi Council of Ministers to encourage private sector participation in economic development initiatives, he added.

Engie in Saudi Arabia CEO Turki Al Shehri said: The Jubail 3B contract win represents another milestone achievement for us as a long-term positive energy partner to the kingdom. We commend SWPC for continuing to encourage private sector participation to support the development of large-scale infrastructure projects."

"Through our projects, and in close coordination with our partners, Engie remains committed to providing value-added services and knowledge transfer to the local workforce," stated Al Shehri.

A leading low-carbon energy and service solution provider, Engie has been supporting the Gulf countries for more than 30 years in their strong and rapid economic growth through the joint development of independent power and water project, representing today over 30GW of gas-fired power generation capacities and 5.8 million cu m of drinkable desalinated water, he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Dubai Design District (d3) and the Arab Fashion Council have entered a strategic partnership to empower the regional design, fashion community and cement Dubais position as a leading hub for talent and companies in this vibrant sector.

To kick off the new partnership and build on the successful launch of the regions first men's fashion week last year, the Arab Fashion-Men's Spring Summer 2022 will take place in d3 from June 28 to 30, 2021.

The art and design-focused business district is home to major fashion brands such as Dior and Burberry, regional renowned designers and homegrown startups and creative entrepreneurs. With a year-round calendar of events, d3 has become a vibrant global hub for design, fashion, architecture, art and retail.

Arab Fashion Week-Men's Spring Summer 2022 will commence as a hybrid format. d3 will host exclusive physical activations while the designer's creative presentations will continue virtually.

Designers will premiere their Spring Summer 2022 collections on Facebook Live and Instagram Live, allowing users worldwide to view and pre-order the designer's work direct through Instagram Shopping. 17 Established and emerging menswear designers from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, France, Sweden and China have confirmed their participation in Arab Fashion Week-Men's second edition that takes place this month. Showcasing designers are: Amato, Valette Studio, Zardouz, EGOnlab, Emergency Room, Todd Hessert, Louis Gabriel Nouchi, Yasqueen, Lazoschmidl, 1886, Tommazo, Proud Angeles, Behnoode, Arturo Obergo and Anomalous.

As a global destination for creativity, art and design, we are delighted to partner with the Arab Fashion Council and bring the Arab Fashion Week to the local and regional design and fashion community, said Khadija Al Bastaki, Executive Director, d3.

This strategic partnership is important for the sustainable growth and development of the regions fashion and haute couture industries that, much like many other sectors, need to rethink the regular to thrive in the post-pandemic world. We all need to look at creativity from a new perspective and we believe the hybrid format of activations for Arab Fashion Week Mens Spring Summer 2022 will encourage dialogue on the future of fashion. We look forward to hosting it as we gear up for a busy calendar of events in d3, she added.

As part of the continued partnership between the Arab Fashion Council and The Federation de la Haute Couture et de la Mode, five emerging menswear designers from Paris Fashion Week Mens, will present their collections at Arab Fashion Week-Mens Spring Summer 2022. The selected 5 Parisian designers are: Valette Studio, EGOnlab, Lazoschmidl, Louis Gabriel Nouchi, and Arturo Obegero.

Furthermore, 5 menswear Arab designers selected by the Arab Fashion Council and d3 will showcase their Spring Summer 2022 collections at Paris Fashion Week, in a dedicated showroom at TRANOI located at the iconic Palais de Tokyo as part of the Arabs in Paris campaign led by the Arab Fashion Council to promote and export Arab fashion talent to the world. The selected designers are sustainable labels Roni Helou and Emergency Room Beirut, Zaid Farouki, Proud Angeles and 1886 (supported by the Saudi Style Council).

Fashion is an extraordinary field of dialog and of experimentation. It is not just dressing. It expresses values, an identity. It connects people. A new generation of talents is bringing a new view and shaping a better future. They combine sustainability, respect and inclusivity with an incredible creativity in their collections. Their distinctive aesthetics accurately reflects the current need of poetry and emotion. said Serge Carreira, Head of Emerging Brands Initiative, The Federation de la Haute Couture et de la Mode.

Arab Fashion Week-Mens Spring Summer 2022 is powered by the Arab Fashion Council and d3s shared commitment to the principles of equality and progress across the region to boost the creative economy sector and nurture the growth of the regional talent with Dubai as the epicenter of the fashion industry in the Middle East.

The Arab Fashion Council is thrilled to join forces with the Dubai Design District as its strategic partner and is pleased to announce the regions first and only design district, d3, as Arab Fashion Weeks new landmark home. Together, we are committed to continually providing the creative industry with a world-class platform to showcase their talent and to attract international brands to benefit from the unprecedented market opportunities that exist in Dubai and the region, said Jacob Abrian, Founder & CEO, The Arab Fashion Council.-- TradeArabia News Service
AMEA Power, a subsidiary of UAE-based Al Nowais Investments (ANI), has begun commissioning of its 50MW solar photovoltaic (PV) plant at Blitta in the West African nation of Togo.

The Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed PV plant marks the countrys first utility-scale renewable energy project developed by an Independent Power Producer (IPP), and one of the largest solar PV IPP plants in West Africa.

It was supported with concessional loans from the West African Development Bank (BOAD) and the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD). Officially named after HH Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, the PV plant has been delivered in record time, with just 18 months between the signing of the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) and commencement of commercial operations, said the statement from ANI.

Built by AMEA Togo Solar, a subsidiary of AMEA Power, the plant, located 267km from Togos capital, Lome, has a planned production of nearly 90,255 MWh of power per year.

This will supply power to approximately 158,333 Togolese households per year, with 9% of energy generation feeding into the local Blitta distribution network, enough to meet demand in the area, it added.

The power plant will be operated for 25 years by AMEA Togo Solar, saving more than 1 million tonnes of CO2 emissions over the course of its life, said senior officials at the opening ceremony which was attended by President of Togo Faure Gnassingbe, Prime Minister Victoire Tomegah Dogbe and AMEA Powers Chairman, Hussain Al Nowais. Several senior officials including Minister Delegate to the President in charge of Energy and Mines Mila Aziable; Director of Compagnie Energie Electrique du Togo Lare Santiegou and the Deputy Director General of the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD), Khalifa Al Qubaisi also took part.

The plant is instrumental in supporting Togos ambitious $8 billion 2018  2022 National Development Plan (NDP), which aims to achieve universal access to electricity by 2030 and to increase the share of renewables in the energy mix to 50%.

Al Nowais said: "We are delighted to launch the Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed PV plant in Togo, which was an obvious choice for AMEA Powers first operational power plant in Africa, as it is an important trade hub in West Africa."

"This is an incredibly exciting time for AMEA Power, and we are on track to becoming one of the fastest-growing renewable energy IPPs, with several additional projects set to achieve financial close in 2021," he added.
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Saudi No 2 in cybersecurity ranking; US tops 2020 global list

Saudi Arabia jumped up 11 places from 2018 to be ranked second along with the UK (with 99.54 points) among countries committed to cybersecurity at a global level. As per The Global Cybersecurity Index 2020, US topped the list with a perfect score of 100.
Qatar National Tourism Council (QNTC) marks a milestone in its Qatar Clean programme, with 100 per cent of QNTC-licensed hotels now "Qatar Clean" certified.

Launched in partnership with the Ministry of Public Health (MOPH) in June 2020, QNTC's Qatar Clean programme ensures the highest standards in hygiene and cleanliness, with rigorous procedures in place to ensure the safety of customers. QNTC's Secretary General, Akbar Al Baker, as well as COO Berthold Trenkel, marked the anniversary with a visit to the W Doha, which was the first hotel to be certified Qatar Clean. With 100 per cent of hotels now fully certified, the programme is now being expanded to restaurants and can be rolled out to other sectors including transport, retail and culture.

Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive and Secretary General of Qatar National Tourism Council, Akbar Al Baker, stated: "As we mark one year of our Qatar Clean programme, we are very pleased with its successful implementation. 100 per cent of QNTC-licensed hotels have now been certified Qatar Clean, and the programme illustrates how together we are with our stakeholders and therefore have been able to innovate and adapt to the challenges of the past year. Qatar Clean is a key component of our proposition; those in Qatar can enjoy our award-winning hospitality and world-class offerings with their safety assured, and we look forward to welcoming visitors from both near and far."

As Qatar begins to ease restrictions, Qatar Clean-certified hotels and restaurants can operate at limited capacity and serve fully vaccinated individuals. And with visitors from the GCC now able to enter Qatar, both visitors and residents can rest assured that the highest standards of health and hygiene are being maintained at Qatar Clean certified venues. Qatar responded quickly to control the spread of Covid-19, instituting a series of measures prioritizing the health and safety of its residents. The mandatory track and trace app, Ehteraz, as well as measures such as the compulsory wearing of face masks and social distancing, have enabled the country to open domestically and to visitors from the GCC, and prepare for the return of inbound tourism.

Residents and visitors can enjoy Qatar's award-winning hospitality, assured that the Qatar Clean programme provides safeguards in line with global health and safety standards.

To maintain a Qatar Clean certification, hotels must adhere to the following:

 Each hotel facility must appoint its own Qatar Clean Programme Manager responsible for overseeing employee training and overall compliance with programme requirements.

 Hotels must sterilise their facilities daily, conduct frequent and thorough cleaning, use disinfectant in all rooms, air conditioning systems, water tanks, toilets, and ensure stringent sterilisation of designated guest areas, especially reception halls and lobbies.

 In order to reduce contact with guests, hotels must adopt mobile or other contactless procedures for check-in and check-out, while optimising spaces to maintain a distance of at least two metres between individuals.

 Hotels must carry out daily temperature checks on all employees at the start of their shifts, as well as on suppliers and guests. Anyone exhibiting symptoms of coronavirus must immediately be placed in isolation, and MOPH would be contacted.

Joint committees from QNTC and MOPH continue to inspect hotels and their facilities to ensure programme standards are being applied and adhered to, with penalties imposed for non-compliance. With the successful rollout of Qatar Clean across hospitality, the programme is being considered for other sectors such as transport, retail and culture. - TradeArabia News Service
Qatar's Hamad International Airport (HIA), in partnership with Smiths Detection, has installed an innovative screening technology at its security checkpoint that will deliver unprecedented levels of security, customer service and efficiency.

The new screening lane, which has been installed at HIAs transfers hall, is a part of HIAs Smart Security Programme, which aims to deploy advanced screening technological solutions across the wider airport campus and as part of HIAs airport expansion.

The new ground-breaking technology does not require passengers to remove either liquids or larger electronic items from their bags and will allow for faster passenger processing by providing the possibility for up to six passengers to load their items into trays at the same time.

It also incorporates passenger boarding pass scanners prior to screening that enable a range of benefits, one of which is to electronically tag each passengers belongings to their boarding card to ensure the belongings are tracked.

Once passengers remove their possessions from the tray, the system scans the tray to ensure no items are left behind. In the unlikely event a passenger loses an item, a swift and efficient investigation can then be conducted on their behalf.

The technology further advances passenger security and customer service as it incorporates a shoe screening capability conducted in only a few seconds without the need for passengers to remove their footwear.

The passenger experience is also enhanced by a remote screening management system for cabin baggage that aims to continually keep the system belt moving, even during the image evaluation process. The system also provides a high detection and low false-alarm rate, which contributes to fewer random checks.

The scanner is also fitted with UV-C modules to disinfect each and every tray before passenger use. This system in particular is being fast tracked at HIA, and the airport will be one of the first global airports to roll it out across all of its departures and transfers passenger screening lanes later this year.

Saeed Yousef Al-Sulaiti, Vice President of Security at HIA, said: "With the passenger experience at the core of HIA operations, we are always searching for ways to elevate the passenger journey."

"The introduction of this advanced technology is born out of our growing partnership with the leading technology expert, Smiths Detection, and represents our shared dedication to creating and trialling technological solutions for the delivery of a seamless and secure experience at important checkpoints throughout the terminal," he stated.

Al Sulaiti said: "We are proud to have harnessed the power of technology to enhance our operational excellence and passenger experience. We realise the potential of such an efficient security screening technology and look forward to delivering a truly secure and convenient screening process for all."

HIA, he stated, was the first airport in the region to install Smiths Detections Hi-Scan 6040 CTiX, which offers advanced screening of carry-on baggage at security checkpoints using Computed Tomography (CT).

The Hi-Scan 6040 CTiX adheres to the highest levels of security outlined by international regulations and optimises checkpoint performance.

Al Sulaiti said Qatars airport was renowned for advancing various technological solutions to improve its passenger experience and operational efficiency.

"In the past year, HIA installed C2 technology, the latest security screening system which allows transferring passengers to move through security checkpoints without removing electronic devices from their bags," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Opposition spelled out fallacious campaign on false narrative of Corona deaths: UP govt

Lucknow, Jun 23(UNI) Criticising opposition led by Samajwadi Party and the Congress, the state government on Wednesday said the official statistics of deaths in Uttar Pradesh during the recent past have exposed the fallacy of the narrative put forth by the opposition parties amounting to misleading the people over Covid deaths.

The opposition has given the deceptive account of the deaths attributing it to the Covid mismanagement of the state government which stood exposed and as malafide in the intentions of some vested political interests who were running their politics through Twitter only without verifying the facts on the ground, alleged UP government spokesperson Sidharth Nath Singh here.

In a misleading narrative, the opposition had charged the Yogi government with concealing the actual Covid death figures and quoted RTI statement which was manipulated and concocted to defame the government for no reason, he further said.


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In partnership with the Container Control Programme (CCP) operated jointly by the World Customs Organization (WCO) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the WCO COPES Programme1 organized a training course which was delivered online from 21 to 25 June 2021 in Kazakhstan.

The training course brought together 21 Customs officials from the Port Control Units (PCUs) and Air Cargo Control Units (ACCUs) of Kazakh Customs in four locations.

In its fight against the transportation of illicit goods in sea or air containers, the CCP is setting up PCU and ACCU at key seaports and airports of recipient countries. Personnel working in these units are therefore benefiting from training courses provided for the purpose of improving their capacity in relation to risk management and targeting to detect illicit cargo and, subsequently, to establish Customs infringements and gather evidence. Trained officers are thus able to expedite effective controls while minimizing disruption to the flow of legitimate trade.

This COPES training was organized to strengthen the enforcement capacities of the participants. The agenda for the week was structured around the full spectrum of Customs enforcement activities, from the establishment of a violation, its documentation, methods for gathering evidence and conducting seizures, storing seized evidence material all the way to presenting the case in legal / judicial proceedings.

The participants appreciated the training which assisted in broadening the understanding that detections of illicit goods need sound and proper investigative and documentary procedures to become successful cases in the legal / judicial proceedings to follow.

The CCP-COPES training for Kazakhstan was funded by the US Department of State  Export Control and related Border Security programme / EXBS and Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs / INL.

For further information about the COPES Programme, please send your request to: COPES@wcoomd.org.

For further information about CCP, please send your request to: Norbert.Steilen@wcoomd.org.
Fort Polk, LA (71446)

Today

Cloudy this evening with thunderstorms developing after midnight. Low 71F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%..

Tonight

Cloudy this evening with thunderstorms developing after midnight. Low 71F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
West Hartford (06107)

Today

Rain likely. Low 57F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall near a half an inch..

Tonight

Rain likely. Low 57F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall near a half an inch.
Bray Talks Cherry Civic Center, Remote Workers

By West Kentucky Star Staff

PADUCAH - Paducah Mayor George Bray joined the Greg Dunker Show Wednesday to discuss potentially moving the Parks & Recreation Department to the Robert Cherry Civic Center and the proposed Remote Workers Incentive Program.According to Bray, staff had talked about moving the Parks & Recreation Department to the civic center last year. The idea gained momentum after the civic center was closed due to COVID-19."As we come out of COVID, we had to make a decision about whether or not to reopen it or where to go with it." Bray continued, "It was an idea this commission picked up and has decided to move forward with."Bray said moving the Parks & Recreation Department to Noble Park would make sense financially and from a logistical perspective."The building that the Parks & Recreation Department is in now is very costly, and the civic center really has been losing money. We have not been able to generate fees that can really support keeping it open. So it's kind of a double financial improvement," he said.Regarding the proposed Remote Workers Incentive Program, Bray said the pandemic had caused a lot of people to rethink where they can live because of the increasing number of jobs that allow for remote work.He believes Paducah would be an attractive place for remote workers thanks to the low cost of living and quality of life. Bray said the program would be an excellent way to advertise Paducah's good qualities to remote workers.Bray said, "If we present an incentive program and we push it out via advertising where people are looking at looking at relocation, then they might see it and think about Paducah and look at our community when they think about the possibility of relocating."The program is under discussion and was first presented to the Paducah Board of Commissioners on Tuesday.You can listen to the entire interview below.
City Looks To Repurpose Cherry Civic Center

By West Kentucky Star Staff

PADUCAH - The Paducah City Commission held discussions Tuesday on the repurposing of the Robert Cherry Civic Center, and on a proposal to implement a remote workers incentive program.Mayor Bray proposed to move the Parks and Recreation department from its current housing to the civic center building. Bray citied financial reasons being the main driver behind the proposal. He said it is a combination of the high cost of maintaining the current facility the Parks and Recreation department uses, and the financial loss the civic center has had over the last several years."The decision is one of economics," said Bray. "It makes good financial sense to repurpose the Robert Cherry Civic Center for our Parks and Recreation Department. It's a good economical decision for our city. There is no intent to displace people that have been utilizing the facility and we feel and confirm there are places around town that would like to host groups of different sizes."He added the goal would be to move Parks and Recreation and still have a community room in the civic center to host small groups and events all though at this time they aren't sure how big that room would be.Bray said the process will take time and more discussions are needed to work it out.During the discussion on the remote workers incentive program, Business Development Specialist Kathryn Byers shared the first draft of the program. She said with the program the city would be looking to relocate 40 full-time workers permitted to continue work in Paducah. Those workers must be relocating from at least 100 miles from outside of city.Byers said there are three different elements to the financial incentives the city would offer. One would be helping with relocation expenses. The second would be with internet access and assistance with paying for monthly internet. The third would be a city of City of Paducah payroll tax waiver, which would be a one year rebate to help them pull workers from places that lack an income tax.Paducah Mayor George Bray asked Byers how their proposals compare to other cities."I think it positions us in a very different way," Byers said. "All of the cities I researched do have a financial component, what they lack and what we will be able to offer is the high quality of life."On top of that, Byers added they would be one of the few communities offering internet assistance and believes that will help them stand out.The commissioners felt there are still several details to work out and asked for a second draft to be read within the next four weeks with the goal to implement the program by August. The city has allocated $100,000 for the incentives and marketing.You can watch the full meeting here:
Deputies Find Man Who Fled Stolen Car

By West Kentucky Star Staff

PADUCAH - A brief manhunt ensued early Tuesday morning after deputies went to check out a suspicious vehicle in the area of Husbands Road and Homewood Avenue.Deputies said as they approached the vehicle, a male fled on foot into a wooded area. They were unable to locate the suspect at the time, but would then discover the vehicle had been reported stolen out of Arkansas.Later in the morning they were notified of a suspicious person in the same area and based on the description believed it was the same suspect who had fled earlier.Deputies said the man once again went back into the wooded area as they arrived. This time a perimeter was established and a K9 unit deployed who located the suspect, identified as 46-year-old Scott Medlock.Medlock was charged with receiving stolen property under $10,000, fleeing or evading police, 1st degree (on foot), possession of controlled substance 1st Degree, 2nd offense (methamphetamine), drug paraphernalia  buy/possess, tampering with physical evidence, and resisting arrest.
Paducah Receives Award for Financial Reporting

By West Kentucky Star Staff

PADUCAH - For the 30th year in a row, the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada has awarded the City of Paducah the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for its Comprehensive Annual Financial Report.The City says its recent award is for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020. The report, a voluntary document compiled by the City for review and grading, includes the citys audit and various financial and statistical reports.Mayor George Bray said, A thirty-year span of financial excellence represents a significant accomplishment by Paducah. This is the highest form of recognition in the area of governmental accounting and financial reporting. The Paducah community should feel confident in the Citys financial management.City Manager Jim Arndt said, I want to thank the team of experts in the City of Paducah Finance Department. Each and every day they live the Citys organizational value of fiscal responsibility. I appreciate the work they do for Paducah and their commitment to pursuing this award so that we can share Paducahs financial story.Finance Director Jonathan W. Perkins said, The Comprehensive Annual Financial Report provides accurate and meaningful information concerning the Citys financial condition and performance as verified by independent auditors. With the increasing complexity of government accounting rules, I am proud the City of Paducah rises to the challenge of implementing such rigorous national standards.Perkins said the internationally recognized award is an essential element necessary for the City of Paducah to maintain a strong Standard & Poors AA- bond rating.In addition to the financial reports, the Citys Comprehensive Annual Financial Report includes an artistic element on the cover. Since the early 1990s, the City has commissioned Janice Crosno of Paducah to provide a pen and ink drawing of a site unique to Paducah. Crosno drew the sculpture, Wacinton, located on Park Avenue in Noble Park for the most recent report. Wacinton, which means understanding, is a hand-chiseled sculpture in a red oak. The sculpture honors the Chickasaw Indians who lived and hunted in this area until the Jackson Purchase in 1818.
Fugitive Caught During Mayfield Drug Bust

By West Kentucky Star Staff

MAYFIELD - A drug investigation in Mayfield led to the arrest of two people, including one man who was wanted on outstanding warrants.The Sheriffs office said they had been receiving reports about illegal drug sales, and heavy drug activity around several small children at a home on North 15th Street.Detectives learned that 38-year-old Dean OReilly, who was wanted on outstanding warrants from Graves and Christian County, was living at the home.Deputies went there on Tuesday afternoon in an attempt to locate and arrest OReilly. Once they arrived they say OReilly ran through the house and down an HVAC vent into the crawlspace under the home. Deputies found and arrested him.During their search of the home, deputies found a considerable amount of liquid Methamphetamine loaded syringes, used syringes containing suspected Methamphetamine residue, sets of electronic scales containing Methamphetamine residue, Methamphetamine smoking pipes, and other related items.Many of these items were said to by lying in plain view and within easy access to small children who were there and live at the home.OReilly was charged with possession of a 1st Degree controlled substance (Meth), fleeing or evading police, possession of drug paraphernalia, wanton endangerment 1st Degree (Drugs in plain view and accessible of children), and two outstanding arrest warrants.Deputies also arrested 29-year-old Jennifer McAlpin and charged her with wanton endangerment 1st Degree, and possession of Methamphetamine.
Graves County Sheriff Seeks Help With Burglary

By West Kentucky Star Staff

GRAVES COUNTY - The Graves County Sheriffs Office is asking for the publics assistance in identifying a vehicle that was possibly involved in a recent burglary.A Sheriff's deputy responded to a burglary complaint on Twin Hill Road last Friday morning and said the victim believed a mobile home on the property had been burglarized. The victim said they saw a white Chevrolet truck leave the property. A neighbors surveillance camera was able to capture pictures of the truck as it left the scene.The victim reported seeing a white male and white female in the truck.Anyone with any information on who may own or operated the truck is asked to the Graves County Sheriff's Office.
Fixing Unemployment System 'Could Take 2-3 Years'

By The Associated Press

FRANKFORT - Kentucky's labor secretary says fixing the state's outdated system for processing jobless claims could take up to three years.Labor Secretary Larry Roberts spoke Tuesday to a legislative panel delving into problems with the pandemic-stressed system.Roberts says the state is in the latter stages of selecting a contractor to take on the job of reworking and rebuilding the system. But he says that could take two to three years.He says state officials are looking for ways to make more immediate improvements.Like other states, Kentuckys unemployment system was overwhelmed by claims for jobless aid as caused by COVID-19.
More Counties to make Driver Licensing Changes

By West Kentucky Star Staff

FRANKFORT - Ballard, Hickman, Carlisle, Livingston and Fulton Counties will transition in July to a new, more secure driver-licensing model designed to give residents more choices and modern services.The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet says the traditional system of licenses and permits being issued by the Office of Circuit Court Clerk in each county is being phased out, and is being replaced by a network of KYTC Driver Licensing Regional Offices intentionally located across the state. Eighteen regional offices have been opened statewide to date, with more to come. The cabinet and Kentucky's circuit court clerks are working together to smoothly complete the transition statewide by June 30, 2022.Other counties making the transition in July will be Garrard, Magoffin, Martin, Morgan and Muhlenberg counties. The Office of Circuit Court Clerk in each of those counties will cease nearly all in-person driver licensing services on July 26, and licensing services will instead be performed at KYTC's regional offices.With the July transition, one-third of Kentucky's 120 counties will have made the transfer of services."It's a new era of driver licensing in Kentucky that will usher in technology enhancements and more service options than ever before, such as online appointment scheduling and, for the first time, online license renewal," Gov. Andy Beshear said. "After many years of issuing driver licenses, circuit court clerks will be able to focus solely on court business and driver licensing will be executed at new regional offices whose only business is licensing."Residents of counties making the transition may renew or apply for a REAL ID or new standard card version of driver license, learner permits, commercial driver licenses (CDL) and ID cards at any KYTC Driver Licensing Regional Office. Applicants are encouraged to make an appointment online, which can be done at drive.ky.gov. Walk-in customers are welcomed on a first-come, first-served basis until available slots are filled.For the first time in Kentucky, license holders who want to renew their current license, and whose name and address have not changed, now can do so online. See www.drive.ky.gov for information.KYTC regional offices are currently operating in Bowling Green, Burlington, Catlettsburg, Columbia, Elizabethtown, Frankfort, Jackson, Lexington, Louisville/Bowman Field (appointment only), Louisville/Dixie Highway, Louisville/Hurstbourne, Madisonville, Morehead, Owensboro, Paducah, Prestonsburg, Richmond and Somerset, with more offices planned.Kentucky State Police will continue to administer all permit and license testing. Testing services are offered Monday through Friday by appointment only. Applicants who require testing by KSP for a permit, driver license or commercial driver license may make an appointment online by visiting KSP's website, selecting written or road testing and then locating the schedule associated with their county of residence.
Photo taken on June 22, 2021 shows an exterior view of the Museum of the Communist Party of China in Beijing, capital of China. [Xinhua/Ju Huanzong]

 The Museum of the Communist Party of China (CPC), a site devoted to permanent and comprehensive exhibitions of the Party's history, was inaugurated on Friday with its first visitors, including Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee.

 Believing that the Party's history is the most vivid and convincing textbook, the CPC Central Committee, with Xi Jinping at its core, decided to build a museum of the CPC's history in late 2017.

 On May 5, 2021, after nearly 1,000 days of construction, the Museum of the CPC was officially completed. Details of the museum are full of historic connotations.

BEIJING, June 22 (Xinhua)  Ahead of the 100th anniversary of the Communist Party of China (CPC), the Museum of the CPC has opened in Beijing, capturing the attention of the country.

The museum, a site devoted to permanent and comprehensive exhibitions of the Party's history, was inaugurated on Friday with its first visitors, including Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee.

Why is the new landmark museum described as the Party's "spiritual home"? Why is it so important to the centennial CPC?

Scattered throughout China, revolutionary sites such as the memorial of the first National Congress of the CPC in Shanghai, the memorial hall marking the start of the Long March by the Central Red Army in Jiangxi Province, the venue of the 1935 Zunyi Meeting in Guizhou Province, and the Fragrant Hills memorial site in suburban Beijing, map out the contours of the CPC's 100-year history.

Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, Xi, also Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, has been reflecting on the Party's founding mission during his inspections of revolutionary memorials across China in a bid to lead the Party and the country to create the future.

People wait to visit the memorial of the first National Congress of the Communist Party of China, in Shanghai, east China, June 6, 2021. [Xinhua/Liu Ying]

Believing that the Party's history is the most vivid and convincing textbook, the CPC Central Committee, with Xi Jinping at its core, decided to build a museum of the CPC's history in late 2017.

The first issue is to select a site.

A piece of land reserved for cultural sites near Beijing Olympic Park was chosen, taking into consideration its location, the height of the building and the surrounding environment.

Shao Weiping, chief architect of the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design (Group) Co., Ltd., was informed about the museum project at the beginning of 2018.

"As an architect as well as a Party member, I was very excited to have the chance to participate in such an important project," said Shao.

A design team was soon established by the company to draft the proposal.

Seven top-level domestic architectural design institutes bid for the commission.

Shao's company, renowned for designing the Great Hall of the People more than 60 years ago, emerged victorious and became the museum's leading design institute.

The museum's groundbreaking ceremony was held on Aug. 26, 2018, and construction began on Sept. 10 of the same year.

Photo taken on May 20, 2019 shows a memorial hall marking the start of the Long March by the Central Red Army in Yudu County, east China's Jiangxi Province. [Xinhua/Hu Chenhuan]

"We turned our love of the Party into motivation for the construction work, regardless of the heat of summer and the cold of winter," said Wang Heng, project manager of the Beijing Urban Construction Group Co., Ltd.

The museum's construction involved nearly 50,000 people.

Xi himself has been following the construction process.

On the afternoon of Sept. 29, 2020, Xi listened to a work report on engineering construction and museum exhibitions, and outlined clear requirements for the next step.

Xi stressed the importance of demonstrating the theme of "staying true to the founding mission" to show that the CPC strives for the well-being of the people and national rejuvenation.

The museum should be a sacred hall, a spiritual home for Party members, an educational center to guide the public to follow the Party's instructions, and an authoritative institute for Party history research and publicity, Xi said.

On Feb. 8, 2021, Xi also presided over a meeting to review the Party history exhibition plan.

The meeting stressed that representative and convincing elements should be used to clearly explain the historical background of the founding of the CPC, the historical inevitability of the Chinese people choosing the leadership of the CPC, and the Party's adherence to integrity, innovation and progressing with the times.

People visit the venue of the 1935 Zunyi Meeting in southwest China's Guizhou Province, Jan. 28, 2021. [Xinhua/Ou Dongqu]

On May 5, 2021, after nearly 1,000 days of construction, the Museum of the CPC was officially completed.

Details of the museum are full of historic connotations.

The museum is in the shape of the Chinese character "gong," which looks like a horizontal H. "Gong" means workers or labor in Chinese. The design implies that the CPC is the vanguard of the Chinese working class, the Chinese people, and the Chinese nation.

The museum adopts a traditional colonnade structure, fully representing the essence of Chinese architecture: upright and foursquare, simple but grand.

There are 28 colonnades on the eastern and western sides of the exhibition hall, symbolizing that after 28 years of struggle, the CPC established New China.

Five magnificent sculptures stand in the museum's square, with the huge CPC flag sculpture aptly named "Flag" denoting that the CPC flag offers direction and is a source of strength. In the four other sculptures, a total of 276 figures tell the story of the CPC's 100-year struggle for the well-being of the Chinese people and national rejuvenation.

Nearly two-thirds of the main building area, or about 150,000 square meters, has been designed as exhibition space.

In the exhibition hall, a special post office is set up to serve visitors and tell CPC history through its services, using a special postcode "100100" that not only symbolizes that the museum was completed upon the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Party, but also that the CPC is marching forward toward its two centenary goals.

(Source: Xinhua)
Chen Wei, a recipient of the "People's Hero" national honorary title, arrives at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on September 8, 2020 for a meeting to commend role models in the country's fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. [Xinhua]

The Chinese edition of the business magazine Forbes released its list of "Women in Tech 2021" on Monday, which features 50 Chinese women.

The list aims to spotlight outstanding women and their remarkable achievements in science and technology in China, and also highlight women's diversity and inclusiveness, as well as their great driving force and influence on science and technology innovation, sustainability and economic growth, said Forbes China.

The 50 Chinese women in the list not only have a strong entrepreneurial spirit and a profound background in science and technology, but are also good at using their unique tenacity to bring a different and innovative perspective to science and technology.

According to the magazine, the average age of the 50 women is 38.38, with the oldest being 79 and the youngest 32. Among them, 26 percent have a bachelor's degree, 40 percent master's degrees, 34 percent doctorates, and 24 percent experience studying abroad.

Moreover, 60 percent of the 50 are in the pharmaceutical and technology sectors, while 80 percent of them work in domestic companies with 20 percent in startups and 74 percent in listed companies.

Chen Wei, a military biomedical expert and academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering who landed on the list this year, leads a team to work with CanSino Biologics Inc in developing a recombinant vaccine requiring only one shot which has conditional market approval. It means that China's scientific and technological strength has reached a world-class level, said the magazine.

(Source: chinadaily.com.cn)
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-22 00:27:26|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, June 21 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy on Monday called for international support for South Sudan to help the country overcome difficulties.

"Next month, South Sudan will celebrate its 10th anniversary of independence. We should seize this as a new starting point to redouble our efforts to achieve the peaceful development of South Sudan. The international community should continue to provide constructive support," said Dai Bing, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations.

Recently, South Sudan's transitional government has overcome numerous difficulties and completed the restructuring of the transitional national legislative assembly, improved the local governance structure, and started constitution-making, among other achievements, he told the Security Council.

He asked all parties in South Sudan to work to build on the achievements, and called on the opposition coalition to reach a peace agreement with the South Sudanese government as soon as possible.

The issue of South Sudan is complex, and the implementation of the Revitalized Agreement cannot be achieved overnight. The international community should fully consider the national conditions of South Sudan, fully respect its leadership in handling its own affairs, support regional organizations in playing an active role, provide targeted assistance instead of only exerting pressure, said Dai.

The Security Council should respond to the appeal of the African Union as soon as possible and lift the sanctions against South Sudan, sending a positive message, he said.

The cease-fire in South Sudan is generally maintained while the security situation remains fragile. Intercommunal conflicts, armed violence, competition for land resources and other issues still exist. China calls on the parties concerned to honor their cease-fire commitments and actively commit themselves to the peace process, he said.

Intercommunal conflict is an old problem. Efforts should be made to strengthen early warning, adopt preventive actions, promote intercommunal reconciliation to eliminate the root causes. The international community should strengthen capacity building of the government of South Sudan and enhance its ability to protect civilians, he said.

At present, South Sudan is facing great economic difficulties, prominent food insecurity, insufficient health care capacity, and huge gap in humanitarian assistance. The international community should continue to increase humanitarian assistance to South Sudan to fight COVID-19 and provide vaccines, he said.

China has sent more than 3,000 tons of food and other humanitarian aid, over 10 batches of supplies in fighting the pandemic, and dispatched medical expert teams. At the same time, China has maintained its support in infrastructure, construction, education, health care and other fields to South Sudan, said Dai. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-22 23:09:27|Editor: huaxia

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Photo taken on September 23, 2020 shows an exhibit of the Majiayao culture that dates back over 5,000 years in Lintao, northwest China's Gansu Province. (Xinhua/Geng Xinning)

LANZHOU, June 22 (Xinhua) -- An ancient Chinese culture dating back more than 5,000 years witnessed China's early exchanges with foreign countries, experts said.

A number of scholars expressed such views regarding the Majiayao culture at a recent symposium held in Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture, northwest China's Gansu Province.

The Majiayao culture is in the upper reaches of the Yellow River and its tributaries. With more than 5,000 years of history, it forms a significant part of the origin of the Chinese civilization.

Swedish archaeologist Johan Gunnar Andersson first investigated these cultural ruins in 1924. In the 1940s, prominent Chinese archaeologist Xia Nai named the ruins the Majiayao culture, with glamorous painted pottery as its most striking feature.

This culture spread to Central Asia via China's Xinjiang, bringing millets from China to the west, said Han Jianye, a history professor with the Renmin University of China.

Decorations with Central Asian features also appeared on the painted pottery items in Majiayao, in addition to sheep and cattle from the west, Han added.

The Majiayao culture also had interactions with the Harappan culture of India. Similarities are clear from the items from the two sites, said Tang Huisheng, a professor from Hebei Normal University.

Some experts pointed out that the Majiayao culture also shares similarities with the Cucuteni-Tripolye culture at the western and the northern parts of the Black Sea regarding decorations and shapes of painted pottery ware.

"The two cultures thrived and declined around the same time," said Li Xinwei, a researcher from the Institute of Archaeology under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. "People from the two cultures also used pottery to make human head statues."

In recent years, efforts have been enhanced to protect the Majiayao culture by building thematic museums, organizing academic symposiums, and conducting more research. 
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-22 23:12:14|Editor: huaxia

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NEW DELHI, June 22 (Xinhua) -- India's health ministry on Tuesday alerted the states of Maharashtra, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh on a new variant of COVID-19 called Delta Plus.

The ministry described Delta Plus as a Variant of Concern (VOC).

"Based on the recent findings of Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomic Consortia (INSACOG), the health ministry has alerted and advised Maharashtra, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh regarding the Delta Plus variant of COVID-19 being found in some districts in these states," the ministry said in a statement.

"Health secretary has communicated to these three states this variant has been found in genome sequenced samples from Ratnagiri and Jalgaon districts of Maharashtra; Palakkad and Pathanamthitta districts of Kerala; and Bhopal and Shivpuri districts of Madhya Pradesh," the statement added.

INSACOG is tasked with not just the whole genome sequencing but also for giving timely inputs on appropriate public health response measures to be adopted by states.

"INSACOG has informed that the Delta Plus variant, currently a VOC has characteristics of increased transmissibility, stronger binding to receptors of lung cells and potential reduction in monoclonal antibody response," the ministry said.

The Delta Plus variant, a mutant version of the Delta strain first detected in India, has been found in 22 cases across these three states.

Experts in Maharashtra fear the new variant could potentially trigger the third wave, reports said.

The Delta Plus is considered highly infectious and fast-spreading.

"Right now it is a variant of interest, not variant of concern," said Rajesh Bhushan, a senior health ministry official. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-22 23:40:17|Editor: huaxia

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On June 21, over 120 foreign diplomats and representatives in China meet face-to-face with the Ministry of Transport and get updated about the latest development of China's transportation system.

Produced by Xinhua Global Service 
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-22 23:46:55|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Political parties, political leaders and friendly individuals in other countries are extending warm congratulations on the upcoming 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

In their messages, they spoke highly of the great achievements the CPC has made during the past century, believing that under the leadership of General Secretary Xi Jinping, the CPC will embark on a new, splendid journey in the next century.

The following is an edited summary of some of these messages.

Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, also the leader of the People's Democratic Party of Tajikistan, said that under the wise leadership of the CPC, the Chinese people will surely score new remarkable achievements in promoting socio-economic development, national modernization as well as world peace.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta extended his warm congratulations to General Secretary Xi Jinping and the brotherly Chinese people, adding that China has met the poverty eradication target set in the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development 10 years ahead of schedule, which is worth learning for other countries.

Kenyatta, also the leader of the Jubilee Party of Kenya, noted that the CPC is leading the Chinese people marching towards building a more united and prosperous China in an all-round way.

Timor-Leste's Prime Minister Taur Matan Ruak, president of the People's Liberation Party, noted that the CPC has united and led the Chinese people through difficulties and challenges and made significant achievements in various historical periods.

Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth, also party leader of the Militant Socialist Movement, extended congratulations to General Secretary Xi Jinping and the CPC, saying that he believes that the CPC will continue to lead the Chinese people towards prosperity and will play an even more important role in international affairs.

Rached Ghannouchi, speaker of Tunisia's Parliament and party leader of the Ennahda Movement, congratulated the CPC on its 100th anniversary and wished that under the leadership of the CPC, the friendly China can achieve greater development in various sectors, push for a more balanced international order and promote world peace and security. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 00:27:16|Editor: huaxia

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European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson, European Commission Vice-President for Promoting the European Way of Life Margaritis Schinas, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, Portuguese Minister of Internal Administration Eduardo Cabrita, Portuguese Minister for Justice Francisca Van Dunem and European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders (from L to R) attend a joint news conference after the EU-U.S. Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial Meeting under the Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the European Union in Lisbon, Portugal, on June 22, 2021. European Union (EU) officials said on Tuesday they hoped an agreement can be reached with the United States on the reciprocal lifting of travel restrictions in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic following their meeting with U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas in Lisbon, Portugal. (Photo by Pedro Fiuza/Xinhua)

BRUSSELS, June 22 (Xinhua) -- European Union (EU) officials said on Tuesday they hoped an agreement can be reached with the United States on the reciprocal lifting of travel restrictions in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic following their meeting with U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas in Lisbon, Portugal.

The EU and the United States are "redoubling efforts to achieve visa reciprocity and open up post-COVID travel," Margaritis Schinas, vice president of the European Commission for Promoting the European Way of life, said on social media. Four EU member states are still not on the U.S. Visa Waiver Program.

He underlined that Europe is the most vaccinated continent in the world, and that the scheduled July 1 launch of the EU Digital COVID Certificate will restore mobility within the Schengen area.

Mayorkas confirmed that Washington also aims to ease the travel restrictions and that it will take into account the public health data at its disposal and the epidemiological situation in the EU and will make decisions accordingly.

The EU has added the United States to its "white list" of countries that are deemed to be safe for non-essential travel.

"We've reopened the border to the U.S. and we'll see if it's possible to agree on reciprocity," European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders said before the meeting. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 00:31:12|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has called for efforts to consolidate the foundation of disaster prevention and mitigation in the whole society to minimize natural disaster risks and losses.

Li, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks in a recent instruction on disaster control.

He said more work should be done to improve the emergency plan system for disaster prevention, mitigation and relief, calling for better emergency rescue capabilities and enhanced public awareness of disaster prevention.

He urged solid efforts in advancing the first nationwide assessment of comprehensive natural disaster risks, to offer support for sound decision-making to forestall and resolve major disaster risks.

State Councilor Wang Yong, who heads the country's anti-drought and flood work, on Tuesday attended a teleconference on the assessment, urging efforts to ensure that the task will be completed with high quality by the end of 2022 to enhance China's capabilities in disaster prevention and control. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 06:09:04|Editor: huaxia

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European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (L) and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi attend a joint press conference in Rome, Italy, on June 22, 2021. Ursula von der Leyen announced EU's endorsement to three member states' post-pandemic recovery plan during her tour in Rome, Berlin and Riga on Tuesday. (Photo by Alberto Lingria/Xinhua)

BRUSSELS, June 22 (Xinhua) -- European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen announced EU's endorsement to three member states' post-pandemic recovery plan during her tour in Rome, Berlin and Riga on Tuesday.

In Italy, von der Leyen met with Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and tweeted that Italy will receive the largest share from the "NextGenerationEU", the bloc's 750-billion-euro (900-billion-U.S. dollar) recovery instrument.

According to the Commission, Italy will receive 191.5 billion euros from EU, including 68.9 billion euros in grants and 122.6 billion euros in loans.

On the same day, von der Leyen said in Berlin, where the German plan's endorsement was announced, that the plan would earmark "substantial means" for the digitalization of the public administration and healthcare sectors in the country.

"We will put our money into hydrogen, microelectronics, cloud and data processing," said German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Von der Leyen also visited Riga on Tuesday, announcing the endorsement of Latvia's recovery plan.

Last year, EU leaders agreed on the recovery fund to address the economic and social impact of the pandemic. (1 euro = 1.2 U.S. dollars) Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 06:09:45|Editor: huaxia

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SANTIAGO, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Chile's President Sebastian Pinera said Tuesday his government is looking at applying a third dose of the vaccine against COVID-19 to strengthen immunity among the population.

"We are analyzing and conducting many scientific studies to see if a third dose of vaccine is necessary, if appropriate," said the president at a public event held at the La Moneda Palace, the presidential headquarters.

"When we have completed these studies, we will make, as we have always done, the decision that best protects the health and life of our compatriots. We will make that decision soon," he said.

Some governments are considering a third dose to deal with new and more contagious variants of the coronavirus, such as the Delta, which has not yet been detected in Chile, but has been detected in neighboring countries.

Chile has fully vaccinated 62.6 percent of the target population (15 million people or 80 percent of the populace), while 79.5 percent of the target population has received at least the first dose.

The government hopes to immunize about 15 million people by midyear to achieve herd immunity. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 06:15:22|Editor: huaxia

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Photo taken on June 1, 2021 shows a vial of the Sinopharm vaccine in Beijing, capital of China. (Xinhua)

"We are worried by disturbing trend of vaccine nationalism and stockpiling of vaccine doses far above their population's need," a senior Chinese diplomat said during the ongoing 47th Session of the UN Human Rights Council.

GENEVA, June 22 (Xinhua) -- A senior Chinese diplomat has urged all countries, in the spirit of solidarity and international cooperation, to translate their commitment into actions and support timely access of COVID-19 vaccines in developing countries.

Chen Xu, China's Permanent Representative to the UN Office at Geneva (UNOG), made the appeal during a dialogue on COVID-19 on behalf of 63 countries with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights here on Monday.

He urged for the promotion of equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines worldwide, noting that as of all the 2.6 billion doses administered globally, only about 0.3 percent were in low-income countries.

"We are worried by disturbing trend of vaccine nationalism and stockpiling of vaccine doses far above their population's need," Chen said during the dialogue at the ongoing 47th Session of the UN Human Rights Council.

A medical worker prepares to administer a dose of China's Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine in Sale, Morocco, May 18, 2021. (Photo by Chadi/Xinhua)

Chen reaffirmed China's support for fair and equitable distribution of and access to COVID-19 vaccine globally.

He stressed the importance of improving the accessibility, affordability, and production of such vaccines and other health products in developing countries, including least developed countries, to save lives and end the pandemic as soon as possible.

Chen called on all countries and other relevant actors to redouble their vaccine production capacities, while supporting developing countries to build local capacity for vaccine production, and to support the call for an intellectual property rights waiver for COVID-19 vaccines.

"We also call upon those countries in position to do so to take an active part in international development cooperation to help developing countries realize sustainable development goals and mitigate the impact of the pandemic," Chen said. 
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 06:23:12|Editor: huaxia

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ROME, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Ministers of education from the Group of 20 (G20) agreed on Tuesday that education should be a centerpiece of the international political process as the world works to emerge from the coronavirus pandemic.

The ministers participated in person in Catania, Sicily in Italy, and via video hookup, in the Education Ministers' Meeting, which is one of the ministerial meetings organized as part of the G20 Leaders Summit 2021 to be hosted by Italy in October 2021.

In the final communique, the ministers committed to "leave no one behind." In concrete terms, that included addressing educational poverty that has been exacerbated by the pandemic, including the adoption of preventive measures to limit exclusion from education systems, particularly in poor countries.

In the communique, the ministers re-affirmed what they called "the fundamental role of education for inclusive economic growth, equity, equality, human dignity, social inclusion, and wellbeing."

The ministers also recognized "the importance of putting education at the center of the political agenda as part of the recovery from the present global crisis to build back better and with resilience for the future." They also called the right to education a "basic human right."

Schools around the world were shuttered during the worst stages of the pandemic. Distance learning, though proved useful, the ministers also recognized the "irreplaceable role of the school which provides face to face education as well as a safe place for all children."

Much of the attention was focused on access to education in poor and developing countries where students face what the ministers called "disproportionate challenges and a higher risk of falling further behind due to the pandemic and other socio-economic factors."

They called for measures to be taken that are "preventive, tackling the structural roots of exclusion, interventionist, addressing the needs of students, and compensatory, providing second chance opportunities for those who have left school, or have experienced significant learning losses."

Italian Minister of Education Patrizio Bianchi, host of Tuesday's talks, praised the progress the ministers made.

"From Catania, we are launching a global alliance to ensure that the post-pandemic world continues to look at education as a protagonist of any recovery," the minister said.

Analysts said the topics discussed were important to help build resilience in poor countries, better equipping them to withstand the impacts of global events like the coronavirus pandemic, natural disasters, or economic downturns.

"Learning is the backbone of any modern society but it doesn't always have to take place in schools," Pietro Paganini, founder of the Competere think tank and a frequent commentator on educational issues, told Xinhua. "Learning can happen in many places and in many ways, but schools are where we learn how to learn. That is essential."

In remarks to Italian journalists, Bianchi also addressed some local issues as well, promising that some of the money from the European Union's post-pandemic recovery fund would include money for creating more full-time jobs for teachers, improving salaries, and modernizing school facilities across the country. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 06:24:26|Editor: huaxia

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Photo taken on May 9, 2021 shows the books of students who were killed in a car bomb attack in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan. (Photo by Rahmatullah Alizadah/Xinhua)

-- China welcomes the resumption of contact between the Afghan negotiating team and Taliban delegation in Doha, and hopes that the two sides will resume a new round of negotiations as soon as possible. China stands ready to host an intra-Afghan dialogue at an appropriate time to facilitate and support peace talks.



-- China urges foreign forces to withdraw in a responsible and orderly manner, fully consult with the Afghan government on post-withdrawal arrangement, and enhance transparency with countries in the region to prevent the security situation from worsening, or even getting out of control.

UNITED NATIONS, June 22 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy on Tuesday expressed grave concern over the situation in Afghanistan and asked the international community to help the country overcome the many difficulties.

The current situation in Afghanistan is at a critical crossroads and the country is entering a stage of a new round of uncertainties. It appears that since the U.S. announcement of troops withdrawal in mid-April, the intra-Afghan negotiations have seen setbacks rather than progress. The security situation is deteriorating, and the economic and humanitarian situation has become increasingly precarious, said Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the United Nations.

"China is deeply concerned about this. We need to think hard about what caused the current situation in Afghanistan, and what is the way forward for Afghanistan to achieve durable stability and security in the next stage," he told the Security Council.

The future of Afghanistan should be in the hands of the Afghan people themselves, and the future political arrangement for the country should be decided independently by the Afghans. The international community should follow the principle of Afghan leadership and Afghan ownership, uphold fairness and justice, and contribute more positively to the peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan. No external forces shall be allowed to pursue narrow self-interests in Afghanistan and turn Afghanistan into an arena of a geopolitical game, he said.

All parties in Afghanistan should bear in mind the interests of the country and its people, work together to consolidate the gains in peace and reconstruction achieved in the past 20 years, and explore a governance model and development path that suits Afghanistan's national conditions, said Zhang.

Chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah (L, front) talks with the press before embarking the plane for Doha at Kabul International Airport in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan, Sept. 11, 2020. (Afghanistan Peace Council for National Reconciliation/Handout via Xinhua)

Although the progress in intra-Afghan peace talks has been slow, they should not be allowed to fail. China hopes that all parties in the intra-Afghan peace talks can earnestly build consensus and set up a roadmap and timetable for reconciliation as soon as possible. China welcomes the resumption of contact between the Afghan negotiating team and Taliban delegation in Doha, and hopes that the two sides will resume a new round of negotiations as soon as possible. China stands ready to host an intra-Afghan dialogue at an appropriate time to facilitate and support peace talks, he said.

Peace talks need an enabling environment of peace and stability. At present, violence is prevalent in Afghanistan, with security incidents from February to May increasing by nearly 30 percent in comparison with the same period last year. China condemns all violent attacks against civilians and calls for a cease-fire and an end to violence as soon as possible. China welcomes the short-term cease-fire reached by the Afghan government and the Taliban during Eid al-Fitr and hopes that the two sides will create more favorable conditions to gradually expand the duration and the scope of the cease-fire.

The issue of the withdrawal of foreign troops remains the biggest external factor affecting the situation in Afghanistan for some time to come, said Zhang. "Foreign troops cannot come and go as they wish. China urges foreign forces to withdraw in a responsible and orderly manner, fully consult with the Afghan government on post-withdrawal arrangement, and enhance transparency with countries in the region to prevent the security situation from worsening, or even getting out of control."

Terrorism remains a severe challenge facing Afghanistan and regional countries. All parties should step up their efforts to fight terrorist organizations such as al-Qaida, the Islamic State, and the East Turkestan Islamic Movement to prevent the resurgence of terrorist forces. China firmly opposes any politicization of counterterrorism or double standards in this regard, he said.

Lasting peace cannot be achieved without the strong support of development. The international community should continue to support the peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan, help the country engage in regional cooperation, strengthen connectivity, and enhance its capacity for independent development.

Sarwar Danish (R), Afghanistan's second vice president, receives medical supplies from Chinese Ambassador to Afghanistan Wang Yu during the handover ceremony in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan, Oct. 8, 2020. (Photo by Rahmatullah Alizadah/Xinhua)

There is a need to help Afghanistan implement the national peace and development framework 2021-2025, and solve a series of difficult problems such as drugs, poverty, and refugees. Developed countries should earnestly fulfill their commitments and continue to provide development and humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, said Zhang.

The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has played an important role in supporting peace and reconstruction of Afghanistan. Its mandate expires in September this year. Under the current situation, there is great uncertainty in the future environment of UNAMA. The United Nations should continue to play its role on the Afghan issue. But the effective delivery of mandate cannot be achieved without security guarantees. Regarding the UN presence in Afghanistan after September, China requests the UN secretary-general to propose options for early consideration by the Security Council, he said.

As a friendly neighbor of Afghanistan, China has all along actively supported the peace process in Afghanistan and has been making efforts in this regard.

The memorandum of understanding between China and Afghanistan on Belt and Road cooperation is being implemented in an orderly manner. China has so far provided Afghanistan with grant aid worth billions of RMB yuan. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, China has provided multiple batches of anti-epidemic supplies and emergency food assistance to Afghanistan. Early this month, 700,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine and other medical supplies arrived in Kabul, said Zhang.

China will do its utmost to continue to be a supporter, mediator and facilitator of the peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan to help the country achieve peace, stability, development and prosperity at an early date, he said. 
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 10:10:19|Editor: huaxia

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Tourists admire the skyline view of Lujiazui area at the Bund in Shanghai, east China, Jan. 6, 2020. (Xinhua/Wang Xiang)

"The rise of China's wealth in the past two decades is almost equal to the 80 years of growth of wealth in the U.S. from 1925 until 2005," said Anthony Shorrocks, an economist and author of a wealth report.



HONG KONG, June 23 (Xinhua) -- China's wealth will increase at a faster pace than that of the United States in the next five years, the South China Morning Post reported on Tuesday citing a wealth report.

China's millionaires will increase three times faster than those of the U.S. from 2020 to 2025, according to the Global Wealth Report published by Credit Suisse Research Institute.

Customers shop along the renovated East Nanjing Road Walkway in east China's Shanghai, Sept. 12, 2020. (Xinhua/Fang Zhe)

"The rise of China's wealth in the past two decades is almost equal to the 80 years of growth of wealth in the U.S. from 1925 until 2005," Anthony Shorrocks, an economist and the report's author, was also quoted by the newspaper as saying on Tuesday.

China's rise in household wealth was mainly due to gains from the country's stock markets and housing prices, and the country had a better control on the pandemic, the report said.

China's economy grew 18.3 percent year on year in the first quarter of 2021, as strong domestic and foreign demand powered a recovery from a low base in early 2020. 
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 10:59:08|Editor: huaxia

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GENEVA, June 23 (Xinhua) -- A senior Chinese diplomat on Tuesday urged countries around the world to practice genuine multilateralism and enhance consultation and cooperation, instead of drawing lines between different ideologies and creating confrontation.

Jiang Duan, minister of the Chinese mission to the United Nations in Geneva, made the remarks at the ongoing 47th Session of the UN Human Rights Council.

During his speech, Jiang said multi-polarization and democratic international relations are irresistible trend of the times, and "diversity is what defines our world and diversified forms of democracy are practiced in various countries."

"The key judgment is whether it fits the particular situation in a country, whether it represents the will of its people, and whether it safeguards people's interests and enjoys their support," he said, noting that "true democracy brings about political stability, social progress and well-being for the people, and contributes to the promotion and protection of human rights."

Speaking on behalf of 15 countries, Jiang said that to impose one's own social system and model of democracy on others under the pretext of democracy, interfere in other countries' internal affairs, and impose unilateral coercive measures are the very opposite of democracy and humanity, as those acts "violate the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights."

He called on all countries to work together to advance peace and development, promote and protect human rights, and jointly tackle global challenges, so as to create a better future for human beings. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 11:45:59|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhua) -- The two-story brick-and-wood house at 76 Xingye Road in Shanghai looks no different from other buildings in the vicinity. However, a secret meeting held inside the building 100 years ago changed the fate of the world's most populous country.

On July 23, 1921, the first national congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) was convened in the house. The meeting marked the founding of the CPC -- an epochal event in China's history.

Starting from there, the Party's leadership had moved across China strategically before settling in Beijing in 1949. Today the CPC has grown into the largest political party in the world with over 91 million members, and the country under its leadership has become the world's second-largest economy.

VANGUARD IN OPENING-UP

Located at the estuary of the Yangtze River, Shanghai has been China's commercial center and a base of the country's working class since modern times, featuring openness, diversity and innovation.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949, the city remained the country's economic powerhouse and has become a window of China's proactive integration into the international community.

Since the start of reform and opening-up in late 1970s, many foreign investors have chosen Shanghai as a testing ground in the Chinese mainland. They have been the participants and beneficiaries of the groundbreaking policy and experienced an ever-opening China in the CPC's birthplace.

Asia Pulp & Paper (APP), a subsidiary of Indonesian conglomerate Sinar Mas Group, entered China in 1992. Headquartered in Shanghai, the company has benefited from China's favorable trade policies and a continuously improving business environment in recent years, said Zhai Jingli, vice president of APP China.

"The implementation of the Foreign Investment Law, including the further shortening of the negative list on foreign investment, has indeed brought more benefits to foreign investors and provided more long-term development opportunities," she added.

During the past ten years, Shanghai further stepped up its opening-up efforts. It established China's first pilot free trade zone in 2013 and has hosted the China International Import Expo for three years, the first dedicated import exhibition in the world.

In 2020, FDI in Shanghai hit a record high, topping 20.2 billion U.S. dollars, up 6.2 percent year on year.

FAREWELL TO POVERTY

After spending its early years in a metropolis, the CPC headquarters moved to rural, mountainous regions across China. During the rough journey, revolutionaries endured untold hardships and swept from victory to victory.

In November 1931, the CPC declared the establishment of the Provisional Central Government of the Soviet Republic of China in Ruijin, east China's Jiangxi Province.

After the epic military maneuver of the Red Army -- the Long March, Yan'an in northwest China's Shaanxi Province, and Xibaipo in north China's Hebei Province, served as headquarters of the CPC successively.

Rooted in a glorious past, however, Ruijin, Yan'an and Xibaipo had all been stricken by chronic poverty due to harsh natural conditions and inaccessible locations.

Under the leadership of the CPC, people in these areas have all shaken off absolute poverty during the country's poverty alleviation campaign.

Yan'an, located on China's Loess Plateau, was marred by long-standing drought and soil erosion. American journalist Edgar Snow wrote in his 1937 book "Red Star over China" that the northern part of Shaanxi province, where Yan'an is located, was one of the poorest parts of China he had seen.

In 1941, CPC troops initiated a large-scale production campaign in Nanniwan Township about 40 km south of Yan'an. The move created a land of abundance and realized self-sufficiency amid military and economic sieges by the Kuomintang forces.

The miraculous achievement came through hard work and self-reliance, which constitute an important part of the Yan'an Spirit. Inheriting the spirit, impoverished locals had engaged in apple plantation, e-commerce and other businesses to combat poverty and won the battle in 2019, when Yan'an was removed from the poverty list.

By 2020, the city had over 266,800 hectares of apple orchards, the largest among China's prefecture-level cities, and its total output of apples accounted for one-twentieth of the global output, according to local authorities.

"About half of the per capita disposable income of farmers in Yan'an comes from growing apples," said Lu Shuguo, head of the Yan'an fruit industry center, adding that Yan'an apples have been exported to more than 30 countries and regions including Russia, Canada, Italy and the United Arab Emirates.

"Whether in the revolutionary years or in the era of modern development, the Yan'an spirit encourages generations of Chinese people to forge ahead and step into a new realm of development," said Tan Huwa, dean of the School of Marxism at Yan'an University.

CAPITAL OF FUTURE INDUSTRIES

In March 1949, the CPC Central Committee made the Fragrant Hills in suburban Beijing its headquarters and stayed there for half a year, where the Party led the Chinese People's War of Liberation to a countrywide victory.

The city that had been the capital during the reign of several dynasties in Chinese history was once again granted the title of capital when the PRC was founded in October that same year.

In addition to performing its functions as the country's political center, the historical city has also developed into a mega-metropolis with more than 20 million residents.

In August 2008, Beijing hosted the Summer Olympics and Paralympics. With the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics scheduled for February, the city is slated to become the first to host both Summer and Winter Olympics.

The capital is rich in academic and innovative resources, with more than 90 universities, over 1,000 research institutions, and nearly 30,000 national-level high-tech enterprises. Zhongguancun in Beijing's Haidian District is deemed "China's Silicon Valley" where high-tech industries are located.

According to plans, the city's creativity, competitiveness and influence in innovation are expected to reach the top level globally as of 2035.

Beijing will be further integrated into the global innovation network through setting up global scientific research funds and strengthening joint research on global issues including climate change, energy, public health and artificial intelligence governance, according to Li Meng, vice minister of science and technology.

As the blueprint rolls out, the capital of the world's largest socialist country, riding the waves of innovation, is set to lead China into a more remarkable future. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 13:21:00|Editor: huaxia

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WASHINGTON, June 22 (Xinhua) -- The United States on Tuesday seized dozens of websites used by the Iranian news outlets for "violation of sanctions."

"Today, pursuant to court orders, the United States seized 33 websites used by the Iranian Islamic Radio and Television Union (IRTVU) and three websites operated by Kata'ib Hizballah (KH), in violation of U.S. sanctions," said the Justice Department in a statement.

The statement said that both IRTVU and KH, a Shia militia group operating in Iraq, had been designated by the U.S. government and prohibited from obtaining website and domain services in the United States without a license.

The websites of the Iranian state-owned news channel Press TV and Al-Alam were among those being blocked, while both are running again later in the day by using Iranian domains.

The move came one day after Iran's President-elect Ebrahim Raisi urged the United States to lift "all unjust sanctions" against Iran and ruled out a meeting with President Joe Biden.

Washington and Tehran have had indirect negotiations in Austria's capital Vienna since April aimed at restoring the Iran nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The two sides remain divided over the issue after six rounds of talks.

The U.S. government withdrew from the JCPOA in May 2018 and unilaterally re-imposed sanctions on Iran. In response, Iran gradually suspended parts of its JCPOA commitments from May 2019. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 13:40:43|Editor: huaxia

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WELLINGTON, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of people gathered at the Wellington City Gallery on Tuesday to join in a documentary film screening event to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

People from local Chinese communities, together with New Zealanders from all walks of life, watched a documentary film about Rewi Alley, a New Zealand-born writer, social reformer and educator who spent 60 years living and working in China, as well as a movie on China's poverty alleviation.

The film Gong Ho-Rewi Alley of China, directed by New Zealand documentary director and photographer Geoff Steven in 1979, has attracted audience's attention, who were deeply impressed by the friendship between Alley and the Chinese people.

During the event, Steven said the year 1979 marks the 30th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and also the beginning of the country's opening up to the world.

Steven said he felt it was his responsibility to record Alley's life in China, and introduce China to New Zealanders and the world through what Alley has witnessed.

During the screening, the audience also watched the documentary film Poverty Alleviation in China, which recorded how the world's most populous country eliminates poverty with unremitting efforts.

Chinese Ambassador to New Zealand Wu Xi delivered a speech at the event, saying that over the past 100 years, the CPC has adhered to the aspiration and mission of seeking happiness for the Chinese people.

Wu expressed gratitude to those New Zealanders who have contributed to China's revolution and development, noting that China cannot achieve such great achievements without the support and cooperation from the international community.

The Chinese people would always remember the great friendship despite differences in culture, history and social systems, she added. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 15:08:18|Editor: huaxia

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HAVANA, June 22 (Xinhua) -- An exhibition condemning a six-decade United States embargo against Cuba opened at Havana's Wilfredo Lam Center for the Development of Visual Arts on Tuesday.

Under the title "Unblock: Cuban young people against the blockade," the exhibition illustrates how unilateral sanctions by the U.S. has affected the daily lives of Cubans.

Organized by the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the country's National Council for Visual Arts, the exhibition includes works created by fine arts students.

Among them was 17-year-old Miguel Calzadilla, who depicted the psychological impact of the embargo on the Cuban people. "We are committed to the present and future of the Cuban Revolution. The U.S. blockade against Cuba is unfair and violates (the) human rights of people living here," he said.

The event comes as the Cuban government has been preparing its annual resolution against the economic, commercial and financial embargo before the United Nation General Assembly on June 23.

Yamilys Brito, the exhibition's curator, told Xinhua that the works of art express the strength of younger generations. "It is about not only the way the U.S. embargo affects the economy, but also people's access to technology. It is a very diverse exhibition."

Over the past few months, Cuban artists have painted murals outdoors and protested the measures of the U.S. administration against the Caribbean nation, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Twenty-year-old painter Marisol de Armas told Xinhua that the U.S. government must put an end to its embargo, which continues to harm the living standards of the island's people.

"This is a collective work. We want our voices to be heard," she said. "The U.S. blockade affects all walks of life. That is the idea we wish to express with our works of art."

First imposed in 1962, the U.S. embargo was intensified during former U.S. President Donald Trump's term. Meanwhile, U.S. flights to Cuban cities except Havana, U.S. cruise ships and yachts were all barred from visiting the Caribbean nation. The remittances that Cuban-Americans send to their families on the island were also limited. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 15:25:32|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhua) -- The media center for the celebration activities of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC) will launch its official website on Thursday.

The website, www.100cpcnews.cn, will be accessible in both Chinese and English, and will publish news updates on celebration activities and arrangements for press conferences, media interviews and visits.

The website will also have a special section providing information for registered journalists from home and abroad.

The center's new media accounts will be launched at the same time.

The center will be put into operation on June 26. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 16:05:11|Editor: huaxia

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HONG KONG, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong's Center for Health Protection (CHP) reported two new imported cases of COVID-19 Wednesday, marking the 16th straight day with no locally transmitted infections.

The CHP said there were 28 new cases over the past two weeks, all imported from overseas. The total tally in the global financial hub has increased to 11,898.

Hong Kong is also pushing forward its vaccination program that started in late February.

Nearly 2 million residents have taken at least one shot of the COVID-19 vaccine, accounting for 29.4 percent of eligible groups, with more than 1.3 million people fully vaccinated. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 16:09:01|Editor: huaxia

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Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, holds a conversation at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center with three astronauts Nie Haisheng, Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo stationed in the country's space station core module Tianhe, on June 23, 2021. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)

BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday morning spoke with the three astronauts stationed in the country's space station core module Tianhe.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), held the conversation from the Beijing Aerospace Control Center, speaking with Nie Haisheng, Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo. The three astronauts were sent into space aboard the Shenzhou-12 spaceship on June 17.

Xi warmly greeted the astronauts on behalf of the CPC Central Committee, the State Council, the CMC, and people of all ethnic groups in the country.

"You are the first astronauts stationed in the core module Tianhe and will stay in space for three months," Xi said during the video call. "We all care about you very much."

In response to Xi's inquiries about their health, living conditions and work, Nie, commander of the crew, said they were in good health and their work was going well.

"This is my third space mission. I work and live in Tianhe, and the conditions are getting better and better. Now we have a permanent home operating in orbit, and we are proud of our great Party and motherland," said Nie.

Liu told the president that this was his second space mission and that he felt it to be a great honor and responsibility.

"Later we will carry out a series of technological verification experiments, including two extravehicular activities (EVAs) and robotic arm operations. We will carry out the operations carefully to ensure the success of all tests," said Liu.

Tang, who is on his first space mission, said he had adapted to the weightless environment.

"I eat, live and work well, and I can make video calls with my family. Our home in space is very cozy and comfortable, and we have full confidence in completing the upcoming tasks," said Tang.

Xi said he was delighted to learn that the astronauts were in good condition and their work was progressing smoothly.

"The construction of the space station is a milestone in China's space industry, which will make pioneering contributions to the peaceful use of space by humanity," said Xi.

"You are the representatives of those who are striving and climbing in China's space industry in the new era. I hope you will work closely with each other and complete the upcoming tasks," said Xi.

He expressed his hope that the three astronauts would work and live well in space. "We are waiting for your triumphant return in Beijing."

Prior to the conversation, Xi watched both the operations of the in-orbit complex including the core module and Shenzhou-12, and the astronauts' work in orbit via a large screen in the center's command hall.

The screen showed Nie, Liu and Tang conducting in-orbit training with a robotic arm, and inspecting and setting the status of the extravehicular spacesuit in preparation for EVAs.

China launched its space station core module Tianhe on April 29.

Vice Premier Han Zheng, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, participated in Wednesday's event. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 16:13:25|Editor: huaxia

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by Peerzada Arshad Hamid

NEW DELHI, June 23 (Xinhua) -- As the ongoing second wave of COVID-19 started a downward spiral in India, health experts have begun to press the alarm bells for another wave of the outbreak, citing the flouting of health protocols amid eased restrictions and a sluggish vaccine rollout.

On Wednesday morning, India reported 50,848 new cases in the last 24 hours, bringing the case tally to cross the 30 million mark and reach 30,028,709, while the death toll reached 390,660.

The recovery rate in the country has increased to 96.56 percent.

The declining number of daily cases allowed local governments across the country to order relaxations, but warnings from experts and watchdogs pointed towards the risks of another wave of outbreak.

The devastating second wave of the pandemic caught India unawares. It saw the country's hospitals overwhelmed especially in major cities and towns. Unable to cope with the rush of patients, doctors saw themselves struggling for oxygen supplies and essential medicines.

Experts have blamed Indian authorities for ignoring warnings and going ahead with conducting elections in several states, besides allowing a mega Hindu religious congregation called Kumbh Mela.

CALLS FOR CAUTION

The easing of restrictions in the capital Delhi recently saw thousands crowd metro stations and shopping centers, prompting health experts to warn of the possible resurgence in COVID-19 infections.

Last week, the Delhi high court warned that the breach of COVID-19 protocol will only hasten the third wave of the pandemic. It asked authorities to take strict measures against violators and sensitize shopkeepers about the COVID-19 protocol.

The high court said if flouting of COVID-19 norms continues, "we will be in great trouble."

With the resumption of business in the capital, doctors have also cautioned that Delhi could face a "worse than second wave situation" if people lower their guard or do not adhere to safety norms.

Director of India's premier health institute - All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Randeep Guleria said last week that the third wave of COVID-19 could hit the country in the next six to eight weeks.

"It (third wave) could happen within the next six to eight weeks or maybe a little longer. It all depends on how we go ahead in terms of COVID-19 appropriate behavior and preventing crowds."

"We don't seem to have learnt from what happened between the first and the second wave. Again crowds are building up. People are gathering. It will take some time for the number of cases to start rising at the national level," Guleria said.

"Mini-lockdown in any part of the country, which witnesses a surge and a rise in positivity rate beyond 5 percent, will be required. Unless we're vaccinated, we're vulnerable in the coming months," he said.

Jai Prakash Narain, a former regional official of the World Health Organization, also expressed his concern.

"Sadly we... tended to celebrate victory prematurely, much before the battle was actually won. As a result, the country was caught off guard and unprepared to respond adequately when the second wave suddenly hit us and many lives were lost and families tragically devastated by the rampaging virus," Narain wrote in an article in a local daily.

SLUGGISH VACCINATIONS

Currently, vaccinating its huge population remained one of the main challenges facing the Indian government.

V K Paul, member (health) of the Indian government's top policy think tank, National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog (commission), said vaccination against the COVID-19 gives at least 94 percent protection from the infection and reduces the chances of hospitalization by 75-80 percent.

The nationwide vaccination against COVID-19 started in India on Jan. 16, and so far only about 50 million people, or some 5 percent out of the country's total adult population of 940 million, have received two doses of the vaccine, according to the health ministry.

As per the health ministry, over 294 million doses have been administered across the country. A vast majority of the population that have been vaccinated have so far received only one dose.

As the Indian government aims to vaccinate the entire eligible population by the end of this year, experts said the country needs to administer 10 million doses a day to achieve this target. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 17:01:51|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhua) -- As this year marks the 100th anniversary of the Communist Party of China (CPC), many foreign officials have spoken highly of the great strides the CPC has made in the development of China and the world at large.

During recent interviews with Xinhua, they said the CPC in the past century has contributed its wisdom and strength to promoting world peace and development and advancing the well-being of humanity. They view the party's successful experience in state governance as a source of inspiration for countries across the world.

CONTRIBUTIONS TO MARXISM

History has proven that the CPC has successfully integrated Marxism into the building of the Chinese society, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Bangladesh (Marxist-Leninist) Dilip Barua has noted.

In their talks with Xinhua, many foreign officials said that the CPC has adapted Marxism to the Chinese context and made valuable contributions to the development of the theory through practices.

The CPC has enriched the Marxist theory by achieving China's development over the 100 years since its founding, former General Secretary of the Communist Party of Sri Lanka D.E.W. Gunasekera has said.

For former Greek Foreign Affairs Minister George Katrougalos, the CPC has sent a valid message for all progressive parties throughout the world that they should try not just to imitate different doctrines, even doctrines like Marxism, but to adapt them to national environments and the challenges of globalization.

In the eyes of overseas observers, the CPC has always kept pace with the times and continued to promote theoretical innovation through practice.

Under the CPC's leadership, China has established a socialist market economy and made outstanding achievements, Juha-Pekka Vaisanen, chairperson of the Communist Party of Finland, has said, adding that this signifies a great deepening and exploration of Marxism.

PATHS TO PROSPERITY

The 100th anniversary of the CPC coincides with the start of the 14th Five-Year Plan period. It is also the year when China embarks on a new journey to fully build a modern socialist country. The party's experience in leading the Chinese people to making a great success has received attention worldwide.

During an interview, Slimane El Omrani, deputy secretary general of Morocco's Justice and Development Party, said the most noticeable aspect of the Chinese model is the "people-centered" ruling philosophy, adding that such qualities as good governance and anti-corruption also contribute to the CPC's success.

Omrani, also first deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, said "the CPC has achieved great success in many fields such as political and social affairs."

Nalinee Taveesin, chairperson of foreign affairs of the Pheu Thai Party and advisor to the party chief, has said that the CPC, with its 100 years of history, has brought great inspiration to political parties of other countries.

She highlighted the CPC as a positive example which shows "political parties must keep in touch with communities, serve the people, strengthen good governance and distribute wealth more fairly."

In the view of Sofia Carvajal, secretary of international affairs of Mexico's Institutional Revolutionary Party, the CPC has always kept pace with the times and innovated continuously.

She said that her party can learn from the CPC to continuously innovate, develop, and adjust itself to people's changing needs, so as to gain public support.

PLANS FOR BETTER FUTURE

China, under the CPC's leadership, has steadily moved toward the center of the global stage and enjoyed increasingly close exchanges with other parts of the world.

As regards the CPC's international contribution, China's proposals to safeguard world peace, support multilateralism, bolster global development and improve global governance are among the mostly mentioned by foreign officials.

China, led by the CPC, has gained more and more support in the world, as the country is actively participating in international affairs, safeguarding multilateralism, and promoting world peace and development, said Vojtech Filip, chairman of the Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia.

Abdullah Juma Sadala, a senior official of Tanzania's ruling party Chama Cha Mapinduzi, has said that in international affairs, China advocates seeking common ground while shelving differences with other nations, and contributes to maintaining world peace and global environmental governance through global cooperation.

Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel, a former parliament speaker in Iran, praised the international image of the CPC and China, saying that "its most important characteristic is not interfering in the domestic affairs of other countries."

Under the leadership of the CPC, China, instead of seeking to dominate or control other countries in international relations, has been carrying out exchanges and cooperation with other countries, he added.

Romulus Ioan Budura, Romania's former ambassador to China, said that China, which calls for building a community with a shared future for mankind, has contributed its wisdom to responding to various challenges facing mankind, and pointed out the direction of the world's future development. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 18:10:00|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhua) -- The following are the updates on the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

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MANILA -- The Philippines' Department of Health (DOH) reported 4,353 new COVID-19 infections Wednesday, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the Southeast Asian country to 1,372,232.

The death toll climbed to 23,928 after 119 more patients died from the viral disease, said the DOH, adding six testing laboratories failed to submit reports.

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DHAKA -- Bangladeshi Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen has criticized the hoarding of COVID-19 vaccines by wealthy nations.

Even the rich nations are putting conditions for supplying vaccines to other countries, Momen told journalists at his ministry office in Dhaka on Tuesday after a weeklong visit to the United States.

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ULAN BATOR -- Mongolia recorded 2,213 new COVID-19 cases over the last 24 hours, raising the nationwide tally to 100,263, the country's health ministry said Wednesday.

One of the latest confirmed cases was imported from the abroad, and the remaining ones were local infections.

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NEW DELHI -- India's COVID-19 tally surpassed 30 million-mark and the death toll crossed 390,000 on Wednesday, said the federal health ministry.

While the tally rose to 30,028,709, the aggregate death toll reached 390,660.

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SAO PAULO -- Brazil has recorded over 18 million COVID-19 cases, including 87,822 infections in the past 24 hours, for a total of 18,054,653 positive cases, the Ministry of Health reported Tuesday.

Meanwhile, 2,131 more deaths from COVID-19 were reported in the past 24 hours, bringing the national death toll to 504,717, said the ministry.

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BOGOTA -- Colombia reported 614 new deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, raising the national death toll to 101,302, the country's health ministry said Tuesday.

The ministry said that 28,616 new infections were reported, bringing the national tally to 3,997,021.

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BUENOS AIRES -- Argentina reported on Tuesday 792 more deaths from COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, the highest single-day death tally to date, raising the national death toll to 90,281.

According to the Ministry of Health, 21,387 new COVID-19 infections were reported, bringing the country's total caseload to 4,298,782, and 3,928,389 people have recovered from the disease.

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KAMPALA -- Uganda on Tuesday announced the closure of parliament for two weeks as a virulent second wave of COVID-19 continues to devastate the country.

The parliament will be closed for lawmakers with effect from June 28 to July 11 to allow the disinfection of the parliamentary buildings in the capital city of Kampala, said Jane Kibirige, clerk to parliament, in a statement. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 18:42:24|Editor: huaxia

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Staff members check the instruments for nucleic acid testing at a temporary laboratory in a stadium in Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province, June 1, 2021. (Xinhua/Liu Dawei)

This represented the "classic disinformation two-step," in which the White House first leaks a lie to a U.S. media outlet, and the latter publishes it as a startling expose; then, the White House conveniently masquerades behind the credibility of the media.

BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhua) -- As more scientists are speaking out against politicizing the origin of COVID-19, it dawns on many that the "lab-leak hypothesis" is not only flawed but typical of U.S. hypocrisy over human rights.

The World Health Organization (WHO) released in March an origin-tracing study report of the China-WHO joint mission, drawing a clear conclusion that lab leak is extremely unlikely. The report, co-authored by more than 30 top global experts in various fields, is widely representative and highly professional.

However, passing through the U.S. government to corporate press, a sinister production line of misinformation has been rumbling recently to mislead the public and demonize China.

"For a leak to occur, the virus must be present in the laboratory already and there would have to be a breakdown of usual regulated laboratory procedures around sample collection and preparation," according to Dominic Dwyer, a member of the WHO team sent to China in January.

"For further spread, the infected worker must transmit the virus to close contacts and through them to the wider community. There is currently no clear evidence that any of these steps have happened," the expert wrote in his latest opinion for The Guardian.

Photo taken on March 30, 2021 shows an exterior view of the headquarters of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva, Switzerland. (Xinhua/Chen Junxia)

What Dwyer referred to were a series of wild speculations about the origin of COVID-19, a deadly pathogen which has so far infected about 179 million across the globe.

As noted by Ethan Siegel, a science writer who has won numerous awards since 2008 for his blog, as the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic is in no way near an end, the world is witnessing a tremendous push largely among U.S. politicians to bring "an idea that is largely been circulating among conspiracy theorists, the idea of a lab leak origin for the virus, into the mainstream."

As a result, despite their strenuous efforts to understand and fight the unprecedented global health crisis, Chinese scientists found themselves thrown into the maelstrom of conspiracy theories that have emphatically alleged that the virus originated from a Chinese lab in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

In stark contrast to U.S. politicians' push to frame the origin of COVID-19 and smear China, scientific consensus has not shifted toward a lab origin, as noted by U.S. writer Mara Hvistendahl in her recent opinion for The Intercept.

"There is still no direct evidence to support a lab leak, and many scientists with no stake in the outcome still say that a natural origin is more likely," Hvistendahl wrote, adding that those are pundits "with the risky combination of a lack of expertise and an agenda" who have argued that a lab leak caused the pandemic.

In fact, the "lab-leak theory" was widely ridiculed last year as Washington scrambled to divert attention from its failure to address the health crisis by trumping up conspiracy theories against China.

People wander near the White House in Washington, D.C., the United States, June 22, 2021. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

The groundless theory only gained steam recently after Michael Gordon, who wrote either misleading or downright inaccurate articles about the fabricated Iraqi possession of weapons of mass destruction in the run-up to the 2003 invasion, hinted a far-fetched connection between the "sick staff" of a Wuhan lab and the COVID-19 outbreak by quoting a so-called "previously undisclosed U.S. intelligence report."

Three days after the publication, the White House announced an order for U.S. intelligence to draw "a definitive conclusion" on the virus' origin.

As U.S. reporters Amy Goodman and David Goodman said in 2004, this represented the "classic disinformation two-step," in which the White House first leaks a lie to a U.S. media outlet, and the latter publishes it as a startling expose; then, the White House conveniently masquerades behind the credibility of the media.

As noted by The World Socialist Web Site (WSWS), till now, "the only evidence presented by the White House, the U.S. intelligence agencies, and the media to support the claim is that employees at the Wuhan Institute of Virology became ill in late 2019 with symptoms that a State Department report acknowledged are 'consistent with ... common seasonal illnesses.'"

"More than one year into the pandemic, these baseless theories are propounded throughout the corporate press as part of a coordinated international campaign to deflect the burden of blame for the pandemic from the ruling elites' disastrous response against the contagion and thrust it on to the heads of the Chinese government and Chinese scientists," the WSWS commented.

Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, speaks during a hearing of Senate Appropriations Subcommittee in Washington, D.C., the United States, on May 26, 2021. (Sarah Silbiger/Pool via Xinhua)

In his latest interview with The New York Times, U.S. top infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci also appeared to question the "strength" and "confidence" in the U.S. intelligence of connecting the origin of COVID-19 with sick lab staff in Wuhan.

"There is this so-called intelligence that three members of the lab were ill, requiring hospitalization. And I really wonder what the strength of that intelligence is, what the confidence in it is," Fauci said.

"I feel, as do the overwhelming majority of scientists who have knowledge of virology and knowledge of evolutionary biology, that the most likely explanation for this is a natural leap from an animal reservoir to a human," he said.

In the face of overwhelming supports for a natural origin of the virus, some proponents of the "lab-leak theory" then claimed that the evidence for both the natural origin and the "lab-leak" theory is weak and circumstantial.

But David Robertson, head of viral genomics and bioinformatics at the University of Glasgow in Scotland, told The Guardian that the argument has set up a "false equivalence" between them, because a lot of evidence now points to a natural spillover event. 
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 18:42:45|Editor: huaxia

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A member of the European Parliament (MEP) from Ireland called on the European Union (EU) to cooperate with China instead of being "led along by the nose by the Americans" into confrontation with China.

Produced by Xinhua Global Service
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 20:01:48|Editor: huaxia

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BEIRUT, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Amer Yahya, a 50-year-old farmer, is buzy picking different kinds of cherry fruits from his spacious orchard everyday in the town of Rashaya al-Wadi, west of Lebanon's Bekaa governorate.

Yahya climbs the trees while carrying a bowl. He first places the cherries in the bowl and then, with the help of his children, packs up the fruit in plastic boxes with a capacity of 12 kg each.

While wiping the sweat from his forehead, Yahya told Xinhua that he is optimistic about this year's cherry season as his 250 cherry trees increased their production by 30 percent compared to last year.

He added that he looks forward to benefitting from the rise in the prices of cherries which are currently sold at around 15,000 Lebanese pounds (1 U.S. dollar) per one kilogram, while its price did not exceed 8,000 LBP last year.

"We have been eagerly waiting for the cherry season this year to be able to earn enough income to cover our orchard's expenses, which saw an unprecedented rise amid the collapse of the local currency," Yahya said.

Yahya is keen to pick the ripe cherries before they are damaged by birds in the day and bats at night. So he tries to speed up the process by hiring some Syrian refugees to help him.

For his part, farmer Adel Abu Latif, who was gathering with four of his family members around a lush cherry tree in Aaiha, a village in Rashaya, told Xinhua that cherry harvesting lasts for several weeks and it is accompanied by the rituals of preparing food and tea.

"Families help each other in picking the fruits in a joyful atmosphere, especially when the harvest is as abundant as it is this year," he said.

University Student Salwa Saab also loves the happy moments spent with friends and family while picking cherries.

"The best thing about cherry picking is the opportunity it gives to people to meet and enjoy the fresh air in mountains," she said.

The abundant cherry fruits in Lebanon gained the country a reputation in high quality cherry jam production produced by factories and households.

Nawal Abou Ghaida, head of an association that packs fruits and sells them in Hasbaya, southern Lebanon, told Xinhua that the association is now working on drying the cherries to make cherry jam which is increasingly popular among consumers.

According to the Lebanese Ministry of Agriculture, an approximate of 10,000 hectares in Lebanon are planted with cherry trees with an annual production rate of 67,000 tons.

Agriculture in Lebanon contributes by around 7 percent to the country's GDP, and it provides income for about 15 percent of the population. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 20:26:35|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday sent a message of condolence to Zambian President Edgar Lungu over the passing of former Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda.

In his message, Xi said Mr. Kaunda was a globally renowned leader of African independence movements, statesman and social activist, as well as a founder of China-Zambia relations.

During his lifetime, Mr. Kaunda actively promoted friendly cooperation between China and Zambia in various fields, and forged profound friendships with Chinese leaders, Xi noted.

The late president's remarkable contributions to the development of China-Zambia relations will be remembered forever by the Chinese people, Xi added.

Xi said he stands ready to work with Lungu to deepen the traditional friendship between the two countries, expand friendly cooperation in various fields, and carry forward the cause of China-Zambia friendship, so as to create benefits for both countries and their people. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 20:48:38|Editor: huaxia

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ADEN, Yemen, June 23 (Xinhua) -- More than 84 people were killed during the past 48 hours as fighting intensified between government forces and the Houthi rebels in Yemen's northeastern province of Marib, a government official told Xinhua on Wednesday.

According to the local official who asked to remain anonymous, the most intense battles were erupted ferociously between the two warring rivals over the control of key areas on the northern part of the oil-rich province of Marib.

He said the Houthis launched a major attack on the military positions of government forces, and that their attacks were repulsed after violent battles that left dozens killed and wounded on both sides.

He confirmed that the battles are still taking place fiercely on all fronts in the north, northwest and west of the government-controlled province of Marib.

He said the fighting left 28 members of the government forces killed and nearly 56 fighters of the Houthi rebel group were killed during the past 48 hours in Marib's fighting.

The Houthi media outlets reported that the the Saudi Arabia-led coalition carried out 27 airstrikes against the group's positions in Marib.

During the past hours, the Houthis renewed their missile attacks on Marib, weeks after a relative calm on all fronts of fighting in the strategic Yemeni province.

The Houthi rebels began in February a major offensive against the Saudi-backed Yemeni government army to capture the oil-rich province of Marib, which hosts over 2 million internally displaced people from across the country's northern provinces.

The United Nations has repeatedly warned that the assault on Marib could lead to a major humanitarian catastrophe.

Previous UN-brokered negotiations between Yemen's warring sides and other relevant parties have failed to produce any agreement of cease-fire.

Yemen has been mired in a civil war since late 2014 when the Houthi rebels seized control of several northern provinces and forced the internationally recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi out of the capital Sanaa. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 21:19:31|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhua) -- China stands ready to work with all parties to build a closer Belt and Road partnership, President Xi Jinping said Wednesday in a written message to the Asia and Pacific High-level Conference on Belt and Road Cooperation. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 21:42:22|Editor: huaxia

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Zambia's first President Kenneth Kaunda (R) delivers a speech during a groundbreaking ceremony of TAZARA memorial park in Chongwe, Zambia, on May 13, 2019. (Xinhua/Peng Lijun)

BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday sent a message of condolence to Zambian President Edgar Lungu over the passing of former Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda.

In his message, Xi said Mr. Kaunda was a globally renowned leader of African independence movements, statesman and social activist, as well as a founder of China-Zambia relations.

During his lifetime, Mr. Kaunda actively promoted friendly cooperation between China and Zambia in various fields, and forged profound friendships with Chinese leaders, Xi noted.

The late president's remarkable contributions to the development of China-Zambia relations will be remembered forever by the Chinese people, Xi added.

A box of face masks donated by China is seen at a handover ceremony in Lusaka, Zambia, on June 4, 2021. (Photo by Martin Mbangweta/Xinhua)

Xi said he stands ready to work with Lungu to deepen the traditional friendship between the two countries, expand friendly cooperation in various fields, and carry forward the cause of China-Zambia friendship, so as to create benefits for both countries and their people. 
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 22:08:09|Editor: huaxia

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ABUJA, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Nigerian police on Wednesday said they have launched an investigation to unravel how 10 people died in the state of Kwara after allegedly consuming a local "herbal drink" purported to be the cure for a foot infection.

Ajayi Okasanmi, the spokesman for the police in Kwara, said in a statement that the victims, who are members of the same family, died on Tuesday after taking the herbal mixture prescribed by two family friends in the Biogberu area of the state.

Okasanmi disclosed that the two suspects have been arrested, saying they gave a woman with a foot infection the herbal mixture which she was instructed to share with all members of her family to prevent "the spread of the disease."

"After taking the local herbal mixture, the family members started dying one after the other. At the last count, 10 members, including the infected woman, have died," said the spokesman.

The suspects will be arraigned in court at the conclusion of the police investigation, he said. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 22:20:39|Editor: huaxia

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Chinese State Councilor and Minister of Public Security Zhao Kezhi attends the 16th Meeting of the Security Council Secretaries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Member States via video link in Beijing, capital of China, June 23, 2021. (Xinhua/Li Xiang)

BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Chinese State Councilor and Minister of Public Security Zhao Kezhi on Wednesday called on Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member states to strengthen strategic communication and further consolidate the consensus on building a security community.

Zhao made the remarks when attending the 16th Meeting of the Security Council Secretaries of the SCO Member States in Beijing via video link.

Zhao called on all parties to coordinate positions on Afghanistan, promote the orderly withdrawal of foreign military forces from Afghanistan in a responsible manner, support all parties in Afghanistan to reach a political arrangement acceptable to all sides under the "Afghan-led and Afghan-owned" framework, and jointly push forward the reconciliation process in Afghanistan.

All parties should oppose unilateralism, resist external interference, safeguard the international system with the United Nations at its core and the international order based on international law, and jointly maintain harmony and tranquility in the region, he said.

Zhao called on all parties to combat transnational crime, strengthen practical cooperation in combating the "three forces," drug production and trafficking, telecommunications and internet fraud, cross-border gambling and epidemic related crimes, and jointly safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of the people of all countries.

He also called on all parties to strengthen information protection, maintain data security, and actively build a community of shared future in cyberspace that is peaceful, secure, open, cooperative and orderly. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 22:31:42|Editor: huaxia

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TEHRAN, June 23 (Xinhua) -- A "counter-revolutionary terrorist team" was dismantled in Iran's western province of Kurdistan before the recent presidential election, and five of its members were killed, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced on Wednesday.

The militant group was operating in the counties of Baneh and Sarvabad, and had the intention to perpetrate "sabotage" acts, especially during the June 18 election, according to a statement of the IRGC's provincial headquarters in Kurdistan quoted by official IRNA news agency.

The group was identified by Iranian intelligence services after a clash with local IRGC forces, and was neutralized in two separate operations due to the complex geography of the area, the IRGC added in its report.

In the operations, five "counter-revolutionary mercenaries" were killed, three other "rebels" were injured, and "significant quantities" of weapons, ammunition, and equipment were seized, according to the information released.

Iran's Kurdish-populated region in the west of the country, bordering Iraq, has been the scene of deadly clashes between Iranian security forces and Kurdish rebels over the past decades. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 22:35:43|Editor: huaxia

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-- WHO said the Delta variant is the fastest and fittest coronavirus strain that will "pick off" the most vulnerable people.

-- Many health experts said the vaccines are still effective in preventing severe illnesses and reducing deaths.

-- In fighting the pandemic, China has been keeping its word in championing international cooperation.

BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhua) -- The highly contagious Delta COVID-19 variant has been reported in more than 90 countries and regions around the world, posing a serious threat to the global pandemic fight and highlighting the urgency to build a global immunity barrier through mass vaccination.

Facing the widespread variant, China has been sparing no effort to provide vaccines for the international community, and calling for fair and equitable distribution of and access to COVID-19 vaccines globally.

SPEED BUMP TO PANDEMIC FIGHT

First identified in India, the Delta variant is the fastest and fittest coronavirus strain that will "pick off" the most vulnerable people, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Monday.

It has the potential "to be more lethal because it's more efficient in the way it transmits between humans," Mike Ryan, executive director of the WHO Health Emergencies Program, said Monday at a news conference.

Patients receive treatment in a COVID-19 ward of a hospital in Bangalore, India, April 30, 2021. (Str/Xinhua)

According to British officials, Delta is 60 percent more infectious than Alpha, the variant first detected in Britain. The Delta variant is now responsible for nearly all of the new COVID-19 cases in Britain, according to research by Public Health England (PHE).

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced a four-week delay to the final step of England's roadmap out of COVID-19 restrictions until July 19, amid a surge in Delta cases.

In the United States, Delta is now responsible for about one in every five COVID-19 cases, and its prevalence has doubled in the last two weeks, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Tuesday.

The country's top infectious disease expert, Anthony Fauci, warned at a White House briefing on the same day that Delta is now the greatest threat to eradicate COVID-19 in the country's borders.

Delta has also paused the planned relaxation of lockdown restrictions in India, Russia, Thailand and many other countries, with global public health experts keeping tabs on potential additional mutations to the virus.

Palestinian men receive the second doses of Chinese Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccines at a medical center during a vaccination campaign in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, April 29, 2021. (Photo by Luay Sababa/Xinhua)

VACCINES STILL EFFECTIVE

A report released by The Lancet on June 3 showed that the titers of neutralizing antibodies against the Delta strain were reduced after one vaccine dose. However, many health experts said the vaccines are still effective in preventing severe illnesses and reducing deaths.

Recent data published by PHE showed the AstraZeneca vaccine is 92 percent effective against hospitalization from the Delta variant after two doses, and the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is 96 percent effective against hospitalization after two doses.

People line up outside Bridge Park Community Leisure Center to receive COVID-19 vaccines in Brent, northwest London, Britain, June 19, 2021. (Photo by Ray Tang/Xinhua)

Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac Biotech Ltd. also conducted research on the Delta variant. "What we found is that the current vaccines can neutralize these variants ... Inactivated vaccines have good neutralizing effect," said Yin Weidong, CEO of the company.

"Through the industrial layout of our research in COVID-19 vaccine and the completed clinical research, the efficiency of vaccine research in mutant strains will be greatly improved," Yin said. "Once the virus mutates, we can quickly produce a vaccine with the mutated strain."

The WHO validated the CoronaVac COVID-19 vaccine developed by Sinovac Biotech for emergency use on June 1. China's Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine was also validated for WHO emergency use earlier this year. The two Chinese vaccines are expected to help alleviate the inequity in access to vaccines.

The world desperately needs multiple COVID-19 vaccines to address the huge inequity in access across the globe, said Mariangela Simao, WHO assistant director-general for access to medicines and health products.

"The only way to stop the virus from mutating is through vaccination," Vineeta Bal, an immunologist and professor at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, told Indian local media. "Prevention is the only weapon in our hand."



Staff members work at the packing line of the Sinopharm vaccines in Beijing, capital of China, May 31, 2021. (Xinhua)

CHINA HELPS CEMENT GLOBAL IMMUNITY

In fighting the pandemic, China has been keeping its word in championing international cooperation.

Despite a tight supply and huge domestic demand, China has provided more than 350 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines for the international community, including vaccine aid for over 80 developing countries and batches exported to more than 40 countries, the latest data showed.

China has also pledged to provide the first batch of 10 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to COVAX, an international initiative aimed at promoting equitable access to vaccines.

Most recently, the first batch of vaccines produced by China's Sinopharm to be delivered to COVAX has rolled off the production line. Those vaccines feature all-English packaging, a new technology that attaches temperature sensors to the vials, and updated product information in accordance with the WHO standards.

A batch of China's CoronaVac COVID-19 vaccines arrived in Tunisia on Monday afternoon. Thailand's Chulabhorn Royal Academy said that it would allocate a batch of the Sinopharm vaccines arrived on Sunday to medical, educational and charity organizations.

Photo taken on June 10, 2021 shows packages of Chinese COVID-19 vaccines arriving at the Hamid Kazia International Airport in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan. (Xinhua/Rahmatullah Alizadah)

Three Chinese companies are currently co-producing vaccines with eight countries, according to Mao Junfeng, an official with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

China also supports fair and equitable distribution of and access to COVID-19 vaccines globally.

Chen Xu, head of the Chinese Mission to the United Nations Office at Geneva, noted Monday at the ongoing 47th Session of the UN Human Rights Council that of all the 2.6 billion doses administered globally, only about 0.3 percent were in low-income countries.

Pointing to a "disturbing trend of vaccine nationalism and stockpiling of vaccine doses" in some developed countries, Chen said China calls for "international development cooperation to help developing countries realize sustainable development goals and mitigate the impact of the pandemic."
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 23:28:26|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhua) -- China on Wednesday refuted the criticism by some Western countries on its policies involving Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Tibet, opposing interference in China's internal affairs under the pretext of human rights and urging the relevant countries to take concrete steps to address their serious human rights problems.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian made the remarks during a press briefing in response to Canada, on behalf of some Western countries, criticizing China at the 47th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC).

According to a press release issued by the ministry on Tuesday, Belarus delivered a joint speech on behalf of 65 countries, stressing that the affairs involving Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Tibet are China's internal matters, and the outside world should not interfere.

The six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have sent a letter supporting China's position, and more than 20 countries are ready to support China by making statements in national capacity.

Noting that the above-mentioned 90-plus countries have voiced their appeal for justice at the Human Rights Council, Zhao said this reflects what the international community is supporting and exposes the hypocrisy of a few Western countries in interfering in internal affairs of other countries under the pretext of human rights.

"A handful of Western countries are eager to fabricate and peddle rumors about China and interfere in China's internal affairs in the name of human rights with the aim of suppressing and containing China and hindering its development process," said Zhao. "But, such attempts are doomed to fail."

He added that China is determined to promote and protect human rights at home and safeguard its national sovereignty, security and development interests.

Pointing out appalling human rights violations by countries like Canada, the United States and Britain, Zhao advised them to take concrete measures to address their serious human rights problems, abide by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and the basic norms of international relations, and do good deeds for the sound development of the international cause of human rights.

In response to the international community's concern about the human rights situation in the United States, Zhao said the United States has unscrupulously adopted double standards on human rights issues, and treated human rights as a tool to safeguard its hegemony and interfere in internal affairs of other countries.

Zhao added that instances of human rights abuse by the United States are too large to record, which include race massacre against indigenous peoples; prevalent, systemic and persistent racial discrimination; provoking wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria, and unilateral sanctions that violate the human rights of citizens of other countries.

The United States should respond to the voices of minorities and bring justice to history and the world, he said.

Zhao also expressed strong dissatisfaction and opposition to British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab backing Canada's actions in tweet.

"This is a politically motivated accusation against China based on lies and false information, and it is a gross interference in China's internal affairs under the pretext of human rights," Zhao said.

Pointing out that the British army tortured and injured innocent local civilians during wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, Zhao said the British side, however, blatantly justified the crimes perpetrated by its soldiers in legal form.

China urges the British side to seriously reflect on its gross human rights violations, and not attempt to distract attention and shirk responsibilities by attacking and smearing China, Zhao said. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 23:37:37|Editor: huaxia

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LUSAKA, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Zambia on Wednesday resumed the second phase of the COVID-19 vaccination program.

Kennedy Malama, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health in charge of Technical Services, who launched the resumption of the program, urged all those eligible to get vaccinated.

He said the second phase will initially target people who participated in the first phase for their second dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine before involving those who did not participate in the first phase.

He assured that the government will secure more vaccines to ensure that all those eligible get the vaccine.

The first phase was launched on April 14. Zambia is targeting to vaccinate 8.4 million people above the age of 18 years.

Meanwhile, the country recorded 3,367 new cases in the last 24 hours. The cases were picked from 12,952 tests bringing the cumulative cases to 137,026.

And 50 people died during the same period, bringing the total deaths to 1,794. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 23:40:34|Editor: huaxia

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YAOUNDE, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Cameroon's Minister of Women's Empowerment and Family Marie-Therese Abena Ondoa said on Wednesday that deaths through armed conflict have contributed to a significant rise in the number of widows in the Central African nation.

A separatist conflict in the Anglophone regions of the country and insurgency by the terror group Boko Haram in the Far North region has increased the number of widows from an estimated 600,000 in 2018 to 1.5 million, according to government statistics.

The widows were suffering from crushing poverty and persecution, said the minister at a media briefing to launch week-long activities to mark International Widows' Day.

"It is important that all stakeholders come together to mobilize the community to defend the rights of widows. The ministry will continue to sensitize widows on their rights, build income-generating activities for them and help them survive legally and psychologically," she added.

United Nations International Widows' Day commemorated annually on June 23, aims to draw attention toward the voices of widows. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-24 00:07:26|Editor: huaxia

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TASHKENT, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Uzbekistan plans to introduce a series of anti-corruption measures from January next year, a draft presidential decree said Wednesday.

The document, drafted by the Uzbek Ministry of Justice, proposed to create an open online register of persons convicted of corruption crimes, which will be maintained by the country's Anti-Corruption Agency.

Along with other measures, people who are included in the list will be banned from receiving state awards and holding positions in public or state-controlled organizations and institutions.

The document also proposed to introduce a system of compulsory declaration of income and property of civil servants, heads and deputies of state-controlled organizations, enterprises and institutions, as well as income and property of their family members starting from Jan. 1, 2022.

Uzbekistan set up an agency in 2020 to combat corruption and announced that it will reward its citizens 65 to 544 U.S. dollars for reporting corruption. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-24 00:09:19|Editor: huaxia

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NEW DELHI -- India attracted a total foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow of 6.24 billion U.S. dollars in April 2021, which was 38 percent higher compared to the total inflow of 4.53 billion dollars in the corresponding month last year, the government said Wednesday.

According to the ministry, measures taken by the government on the fronts of FDI policy reforms, investment facilitation and ease of doing business have resulted in increased FDI inflows into the country. (India-FDI-Inflow)

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SYDNEY -- China-donated Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccines arrived in Papua New Guinea (PNG) on Wednesday.

A handover ceremony was held at the Jacksons International Airport, which was attended by Chinese Ambassador to PNG Zeng Fanhua, PNG's Minister for National Planning and Monitoring Rainbo Paita, Deputy Controller of PNG's National Pandemic Response Dr. Daoni Esorom and other government representatives. (PNG-Vaccines)

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JAKARTA -- A landslide killed two illegal miners and injured four others in a former mining site early Wednesday in the Indonesian province of Bangka Belitung Islands, local police said.

The accident occurred at about 3:00 a.m. local time in Pemali village in Bangka district. (Indonesia-Landslide)

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JAKARTA -- Indonesia on Wednesday recorded 15,308 newly-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, marking the highest daily spike and bringing the total tally to 2,033,421, the Health Ministry said.

The COVID-19-related death toll added by 303 to 55,594, the ministry reported. (Indonesia-COVID-19-Cases)

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KUALA LUMPUR -- China's solid governance model has been a key factor in the country's ability to respond effectively to the COVID-19 pandemic and allowed rapid recovery, panelists at a virtual conference said Wednesday.

The "Governance of China: Perspectives from Southeast Asia" conference, organized by the Institute of China Studies at the University of Malaya, gathered government officials, scholars, and other participants from China and Southeast Asian countries to discuss topics related to China's political systems, economic development, social issues, anti-COVID-19 measures, poverty alleviation, technology, among others. (Malaysia-Conference-China-Governance) Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-24 00:12:15|Editor: huaxia

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KATHMANDU, June 23 (Xinhua) -- The door has opened for a China-Nepal joint venture to develop three separate hydropower projects simultaneously on the Marsyangdi river in western Manang and Lamjung districts after the Investment Board Nepal (IBN) on Tuesday approved proposed investment for the last project.

A board meeting of the IBN chaired by Nepali Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli approved the proposed investment of 33.41 billion Nepali rupees (280 million U.S. dollars) to develop Lower Manang Marsyangdi Hydroelectric Project with a capacity of 139.2 MW, according to a press statement issued by the agency.

Sichuan Provincial Investment Group Co. Ltd, Chengdu Xingcheng Investment Group Co. Ltd and Sichuan Qing Yuan Engineering Consulting Co. Ltd have joined hands with Nepal's Butwal Power Company to develop three hydropower projects under a cascade development model on the Marsyangdi river.

The SCIG International Nepal Hydro Joint Development Co. Pvt. Ltd, the joint venture of the Chinese and Nepali companies, is also preparing to develop Manang Marsyangdi Hydroelectric Project (135 MW) and Upper Marsyangdi-2 Hydropower Project (327 MW) on the same river.

"The IBN has already approved our planned investments in Marsyangdi Hydroelectric Project and Upper Marsyangdi-2 Hydropower Project and the latest approval to our planned investment for the third project has paved the way for us to work on all three projects simultaneously," Prateek Man Singh Pradhan, vice president of the Butwal Power Company, told Xinhua on Wednesday.

"After the approval of the investment proposal, we can now bring money from China to carry out pre-construction preparations at project sites and regulatory processes at the government offices," said Pradhan.

According to IBN spokesman Bhupal Baral, the approval of the planned investment would help the investors generate resources, including from the banks, to develop the project.

Among the three projects, the preparatory works have reached an advanced stage for the Manang Marsyangdi Hydroelectric Project which lies upstream of all the projects, according to the Butwal Power Company.

"We have set up a camp for the contractor to work and constructed a bridge for the movement of people and transportation of construction materials," said Pradhan. "We may be able to start construction of this project by the end of this year."

In March, the Nepal Electricity Authority, the sole buyer of electricity in the South Asian country, guaranteed the market for the power to be produced by this project by signing a power purchase agreement with the developer.

Before starting the construction, the joint venture company needs to sign with the IBN a project development agreement (PDA) which determines the roles and responsibilities of the investors and the Nepali government.

"The negotiations are under way for PDA in the case of Manang Marsyangdi Hydroelectric Project and Upper Marsyangdi-2 Hydropower Project," said Pradhan.

The Chinese and Nepali investors plan to invest 1.2 billion U.S. dollars for the three projects, according to Pradhan.

Meanwhile, the IBN endorsed the Detailed Project Report (DPR) on the proposed China-Nepal Friendship Industrial Park located in the eastern Jhapa district.

"The board meeting instructed the office of IBN to move ahead preparations to sign PDA with the investor," the IBN statement said.

Baral said the construction work could begin once the PDA is signed between the IBN and the developers.

Damak Clean Industrial Park, a Nepali partner for the joint venture, is working on the project along with Lhasa Economic & Technological Development Zone Investment & Development Co. Ltd and Jing Ping Joint Creation Construction Project Development Co. Ltd from China.

In February, Prime Minister Oli laid the foundation stone for the development of the industrial park, which shall host producers of white goods, transportation equipment, textiles, garments and food, among others. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-24 01:00:33|Editor: huaxia

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YAOUNDE, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Members of the Cameroon National Assembly on Wednesday called for concerted efforts and policies to ensure the success of the universal health coverage (UHC) in the Central African nation.

"Less than 50 percent of Cameroonians have access to essential health services. This is not good and should change," Theophile Baoro, deputy speaker of the National Assembly said during a first-ever special plenary session of the parliament dedicated to evaluating the progress made in implementing UHC in the country.

The country's health minister Malachie Manaouda said the quest to achieve UHC has gained momentum despite many challenges.

The health sector needs over 75,000 health workers for efficient service. At the moment, the government is working with just some 25,000 health personnel, according to the minister.

"We are thinking of improving the working conditions of health personnel. The state has a lot of constraints but we are in favor of this idea," Manaouda told the lawmakers who repeatedly questioned Cameroon's ability to achieve UHC with limited resources during the plenary in the capital, Yaounde.

Cameroon targets a health coverage rate of 70 percent by 2030 which ensures that everyone has equity in access to health services and affordability of healthcare, Manaouda added. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-24 03:43:47|Editor: huaxia

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Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela attends a press conference in Valletta, Malta, on June 23, 2021. Robert Abela said on Wednesday that the country will be fighting back the "unjust" and "undeserved" grey-listing by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog. (Photo by Jonathan Borg/Xinhua)

VALLETTA, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Malta's Prime Minister Robert Abela said on Wednesday that the country will be fighting back the "unjust" and "undeserved" grey-listing by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog.

He made the remarks hours after the FATF voted to add Malta to its grey list on Wednesday. The decision could severely hurt Malta's fast-growing financial and gaming sectors. Abela vowed to forge ahead with financial reforms to help tackle money laundering and prevent the funding of international terrorism.

Addressing a news conference, Abela said: "I feel that Malta did not deserve such a result. While I feel that the decision was unjust, I bow my head to it and we will use it as an opportunity to double our efforts to overcome challenges. Malta will continue building on the reforms it has implemented so far."

He said that entities involved in the fight against money laundering defended Malta's case. He added that the recent report by the Council of Europe's expert group, Moneyval, was a positive one and showed that Malta was among the most compliant countries. "There was no instance where Malta was found to be non-compliant or semi-compliant," he said.

Notwithstanding the decision, the country will continue bringing about positive change where it is needed. "We will continue working to attract foreign investment," he said.

Finance Minister Clyde Caruana said he was not anticipating any "shocks" on the country's finances, and Malta is expected to reach its GDP targets. He said the government will mitigate the effects of the FATF verdict "in the best possible way."

Maltese media quoted some studies as reporting that financial grey-listing could seriously harm Malta's economy. Foreign direct investment, money transactions, and even banking activity could also be impacted. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-24 04:57:35|Editor: huaxia

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GENEVA, June 23 (Xinhua) -- China on Wednesday told the ongoing 47th Session of the UN Human Rights Council that it is deeply concerned about the Japanese government's decision to discharge the nuclear wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear plant into the sea.

Jiang Duan, minister of the Chinese mission to the United Nations in Geneva, said in a statement delivered at the interactive dialogue with UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health that the Fukushima nuclear accident caused a large amount of radioactive material leakage, which had a profound impact on the marine environment, food safety and human health.

Jiang stressed that despite doubts and opposition from at home and abroad, Japan has unilaterally decided to release the Fukushima nuclear wastewater into the sea before exhausting all safe ways of disposal and without fully consulting with neighboring countries and the international community.

This is extremely irresponsible, he noted.

"We notice that a few special procedure mandate holders of the Human Rights Council have expressed their concern on this issue. We call on Japan to respond to the concerns of the international community, withdraw the wrong decision immediately, shoulder due responsibilities to reach a consensus with all stakeholders and relevant international institutions through full consultation," he said.

On the same occasion on Wednesday, the Republic of Korea (ROK) also expressed concern about the Japanese decision, saying that the Japanese government should disclose information transparently and make decisions on the basis of full consultation with neighboring countries. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-24 05:35:30|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, June 23 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy on Wednesday called for an end to U.S. unilateral coercive measures against other countries.

Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, made the appeal at a UN General Assembly meeting on the necessity of ending the economic, commercial, and financial embargo imposed by the United States against Cuba.

At present, the continued ravage of the COVID-19 pandemic is bringing serious shocks to the socio-economic development of all countries, particularly developing countries, making it all the more difficult to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. All countries should bear in mind a community of shared future for mankind, join hands in fighting the pandemic so as to build back better and seek common development, he said.

However, some Western powers resorted to abusive unilateral sanctions in violation of international rules and international order, poisoning international relations. Countries of the world have all the right to adopt countermeasures to resolutely resist and counter the unilateral sanctions so as to effectively safeguard their own legitimate rights and interests, said Zhang.

The U.S. embargo against Cuba and coercive measures against other countries do not go well with the international trend of peace, development and win-win cooperation. The measures violate the international consensus on the 2030 Agenda and harm the rights of the peoples of the countries concerned to survival and development, and basic human rights. These measures must be stopped immediately, said Zhang.

For 28 consecutive years, the UN General Assembly has adopted resolutions with an overwhelming majority on the necessity of ending the U.S. embargo against Cuba. The resolutions represent the just call of the international community and must be effectively implemented, he said.

"It is regrettable that the economic, commercial, and financial embargo imposed by the United States against Cuba, instead of being stopped, has, on the contrary, recently been intensified. This has seriously violated the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and relevant General Assembly resolutions, severely restricted the access of the Cuban people to medicine, vaccines, and supplies needed for fighting the pandemic. It has also severely hindered the efforts of the Cuban people in achieving sustainable development goals, such as poverty eradication, and seriously affected Cuba's normal economic, financial, and development cooperation with other (UN) member states," he said.

China has always advocated for respecting the independent choice of all countries in their social systems and development paths, safeguarding the international order underpinned by international law, defending international fairness and justice, and opposing the use of unilateral coercive measures against other countries by military, political, economic, or other means, said Zhang.

China and Cuba have always maintained frequent economic, trade, and personnel exchanges. Friendly and mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields has been continuously developed. After the outbreak of the pandemic, the Chinese government and relevant businesses and community organizations donated many times anti-epidemic supplies to Cuba to help the Cuban people fight the pandemic, he said.

All the countries in the world form a community of shared future. Dialogue on an equal footing and friendly consultation is the best way of addressing differences. Unilateralism, protectionism and bullying will ultimately backfire, he said.

China urges the United States to immediately and completely lift the economic, commercial, and financial embargo against Cuba, and develop normal state-to-state relationships with other member states in accordance with the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and basic norms governing international relations. This is in line with the common interests of the peoples of the United States and Cuba, and is also conducive to regional peace and stability, he said.

The UN General Assembly on Wednesday adopted a resolution on the necessity of ending the U.S. embargo against Cuba with 184 votes in favor, 2 against, and 3 abstentions. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-22 18:54:13|Editor: huaxia

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ISTANBUL, June 22 (Xinhua) -- The Turkish housewares sector has been developing distinctive strategies to boost export to African countries, according to sector insiders.

The Turkish Home and Kitchenware Manufacturers and Exporters Association (EVSID) launched Tuesday a virtual trade event between Turkey and African countries.

Nearly 30 Turkish companies and 64 buyers from 12 African countries will hold up to 400 meetings to expand their trade relations as part of the event that will last four days, the EVSID said at a press release.

Speaking at the opening webinar of the organization, Turkish Exporters' Assembly President Ismail Gulle said the sector identified 102 different products that Turkey has never exported to Africa.

"African countries buy these products from the world with a value of 1.5 billion U.S. dollars," Gulle continued, saying that Turkey will specifically focus on the export of these goods.

"Even though there are problems in supplying raw materials, we will try to respond at the maximum level of effort," he said.

Gulle added that Africa's youths, rich energy resources, and infrastructure are among the factors that significantly attract Turkish companies.

Talha Ozger, head of the EVSID, said the Turkish housewares export share in Africa is around 15.5 percent, mainly in Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 18:12:49|Editor: huaxia

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MANDERA, Kenya, June 23 (Xinhua) -- A Kenyan police reservist was killed and two others injured when suspected Shabab militants struck for the third day running in Mandera, in northeast Kenya, early Wednesday.

Northeastern regional police commander Rono Bunei said the attack happened at a construction site where the militants also burnt down two tractors and an excavator.

The reservists tried to fight off the armed attackers, who were suspected to have crossed into Kenya from neighboring Somalia, Bunei said.

A rise in terror attacks in the region has grounded many operations in the expansive Mandera county over the last two weeks. At least 15 people were killed and several others injured in the attacks that were mainly blamed on Somalia-based al-Shabab.

The region has born the brunt of grenade and gun attacks in the last several years since Kenya took its troops to Somalia to join the fight against the militant group. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 18:47:38|Editor: huaxia

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NAIROBI, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's Ministry of Health on Wednesday launched a 10-day measles and rubella vaccination campaign in the 22 high-risk counties to reduce the spike in the number of unvaccinated children.

Mercy Mwangangi, chief administrative secretary in the Ministry of Health said that the campaign that runs from June 26 to July 5 targets to reach about 3.5 million children below five years.

A risk assessment that was conducted in the country with the support of the World Health Organization identified 22 counties as being at very high risk for measles outbreaks.

Rudi Eggers, WHO representative to Kenya, said that despite the good progress made so far, Kenya has continued to experience measles outbreaks since the last nationwide measles-rubella vaccination in 2016.

Measles is a common cause of deaths among children from vaccine-preventable diseases. And rubella like measles is a highly infectious viral disease that can cause serious health complications to newborns such as birth defects, heart problems, loss of hearing and eyesight, and brain damage. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 23:28:48|Editor: huaxia

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ADDIS ABABA, June 23 (Xinhua) -- The African Union (AU) election observer mission on Wednesday commended Ethiopia for holding peaceful polls.

Speaking to journalists, the AU election observer team chief, former Nigerian President, Olusegun Obasanjo, commended Ethiopia for holding sixth national polls in a largely peaceful manner.

"Despite the challenging security landscape, the mission commends the security measures put in place by Ethiopian authorities, which ensured a largely peaceful environment on election day," said Obasanjo when presenting the AU election mission's preliminary statement.

"The mission concludes that despite some operational, logistical, security, political and COVID-19 related challenges, overall, the pre-election and election day processes were conducted in an orderly, peaceful and credible manner," he said.

The AU Ethiopia election observer mission comprises eight long-term observers and 57 short-term observers.

On Monday, Ethiopia held twice-postponed general elections in seven of the 10 regional states, with voters choosing candidates vying for 440 of the 547 parliamentary seats in the East African country.

The National Electoral Board of Ethiopia has previously disclosed security and logistical challenges as well as faulty ballots and electoral malpractices, which have forced it to postpone voting in 107 of the 547 parliamentary seats.

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 votes. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 12:40:55|Editor: huaxia

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WELLINGTON, June 23 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand reported four cases of COVID-19 in managed isolation, and no new cases in the community on Wednesday.

The four new cases came from Sri Lanka, the United Arab Emirates and Russia, who have remained in managed isolation and quarantine facilities in Auckland, according to the Ministry of Health.

The number of active cases in New Zealand is 24, and the total number of confirmed cases is 2,367, the ministry said in a statement.

The seven-day rolling average of new cases detected at the border is two, it said.

The Wellington region raised its COVID-19 alert to level 2 from 6:00 p.m. Wednesday until 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, after a visiting Sydney traveler tested positive for COVID-19 upon return to Australia.

Under COVID-19 Alert Level 2, gatherings are limited to fewer than 100 people, social distancing must be observed in public places, and masks are compulsory on all public transport. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 12:45:37|Editor: huaxia

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SYDNEY, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Australia's Sydney saw a further 16 locally acquired cases of COVID-19, the new one-day high in the latest outbreak.

The health department recorded 10 new local cases in the past 24 hours till 8:00 p.m. Tuesday night, among which seven were already announced on Tuesday but included in Wednesday's figures. There were another 13 new local cases reported after 8:00 p.m. Tuesday night who will be counted in Thursday's official statistics. There are 31 cases linked to a local cluster, according to the health authorities.

Eight out of the 13 cases that came in after 8:00 p.m. Tuesday were linked to a party in Sydney's west.

"What I would say to our community is we have gone from that near and present danger to a very real and present danger not just in a shopping center but right across Sydney," said NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard.

NSW Health has increased restrictions across Sydney to curb local transmissions.

From 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, residents in Sydney and surrounding areas will only be allowed five visitors in their homes, restaurants will be restricted to sit-down diners, and no singing or dancing will be allowed except for weddings which will be allowed a maximum of 20 people.

Beyond this, outdoor seated events, including all sporting events, will have the capacity reduced to 50 percent and residents in many of Sydney's metropolitan areas will be barred from non-essential travel outside Sydney.

"We know the effect. This will have on residents and venues but we must take this action now to ensure we keep on top of this outbreak," NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian told the press.

Despite the increased threat, Berejiklian continued to rebuff the idea of putting Sydney under lockdown.

"We know the virus is circulating in particular around those local government areas, the unlinked cases, all those cases that are under investigation are all from that geographic proximity, so this is important and proportionate action at that we are taking to prevent further spread," she said.

In response to a call by NSW Health for more testing, 44,640 tests were conducted as of 8:00 p.m. Tuesday night, compared with 28,645 the previous day.

With this latest uptick in cases across NSW, many states in Australia and neighboring country New Zealand have imposed new travel restrictions on Sydney.

The New Zealand government has suspended its travel bubble with Sydney for 72 hours from Wednesday, which came after an Aussie traveler tested positive after travelling from Sydney to New Zealand's Wellington on June 19.

The Australian state of Queensland's government also announced that as of 1:00 a.m. on Thursday, Queensland will close its borders to a number of areas across Sydney and NSW.

The Australian state of Victoria, after recording zero locally acquired cases on Wednesday, has also restricted travel from a number of areas in Sydney. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 14:43:15|Editor: huaxia

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KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Five people have been killed and 18 others injured as a passenger bus ran over a mine in the restive Miwand district of Afghanistan's southern Kandahar province on Tuesday night, provincial police spokesman Jamal Barikzai said Wednesday.

"A mine planted by militants on a road in Miwand district struck a passenger bus late Tuesday night, killing five commuters including women and children and injuring 18 others," Barikzai told Xinhua.

The official said investigations are underway.

Miwand district has been the scene of fierce fighting between government forces and Taliban militants over the past couple of weeks. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 15:34:22|Editor: huaxia

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SUVA, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Fijian Permanent Secretary for Health James Fong said on Wednesday that people need to take all the necessary COVID measures including vaccination as new COVID-19 cases continued to rise between the Lami-Nausori corridor in Fiji.

Fong said with many more cases and more severe cases, things would get very difficult in Fiji, according to the Fijivillage news website.

He said there were 60 positive cases at the Colonial War Memorial hospital in the capital city of Suva and 11 of the cases were severe that required oxygen.

The Ministry of Health also advised people to get vaccinated as soon as they could.

UN Resident Coordinator for the Pacific Sanaka Samarasinha told local media that the risk of more COVID-19 cases yet to be reported in Fiji was high.

Samarasinha, who received his second dose of the vaccine on Wednesday, said Fijians seriously needed to consider taking the vaccine.

He said the rate at which cases were being recorded in Fiji was worrying and a collapse in the health care system could be expected if people continue to take advisories lightly.

He said the UN would continue to support the country through humanitarian needs, however he called on people to practice COVID-19 safe measures all the time to reduce the risk of infection.

Fiji recorded 126 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, taking the total tally to 2,090, and the recovered patients reached 532, while the death toll stood at seven, according to the health ministry. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 16:53:21|Editor: huaxia

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Security officials and rescuers work at the site of a blast in Lahore, Pakistan on June 23, 2021. A powerful explosion ripped through a residential area in Lahore, the capital city of Pakistan's eastern Punjab province, killing at least two people and injuring 15 others, an official said on Wednesday. (Photo by Sajjad/Xinhua)

ISLAMABAD, June 23 (Xinhua) -- A powerful explosion ripped through a residential area in Lahore, the capital city of Pakistan's eastern Punjab province, killing at least two people and injuring 15 others, an official said on Wednesday.

A police official, two children and a woman were among the injured, Deputy Commissioner of Lahore Mudassar Riaz Malik told Xinhua, adding that the forensic and bomb disposal investigations are underway, and evidences are being collected to determine the cause of the blast.

The injured have been transported to a nearby hospital, and several of them are in critical condition due to severe burn injuries, said the official.

Following the explosion, rescue, police, and bomb disposal teams cordoned off the entire area for rescue activities.

Eyewitnesses in the area told Xinhua that the blast was so powerful that it was heard from a far distance, triggering panic among the residents, adding that glass windows of nearby buildings as well as some vehicles were also severely damaged.

Taking notice of the incident, Chief Minister of Punjab Usman Buzdar directed the concerned authorities to investigate the incident and submit a report as soon as possible.

"Those responsible for the blast should be brought under the law," he said. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 18:19:58|Editor: huaxia

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MALE, June 23 (Xinhua) -- The Maldives lifted restrictions on domestic non-essential travel and reduced curfew hours on Wednesday as daily COVID-19 cases have dipped below 200, local media reported.

The president's spokesperson Mabrook Azeez announced on Tuesday that travel between islands that are not under monitoring for COVID-19 spread will be allowed without the need for a special permit starting Wednesday. Restrictions on travel to islands with guesthouses of tourists will remain, he said.

The ban on non-essential travel was imposed on May 4 amid a surge of COVID-19 cases in the country.

Azeez also announced that curfew hours in the capital Male would be shortened by two hours and last from 6:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m. local time. Azeez said that the extra time was intended to allow people to conduct business and access essential services.

According to revised regulations by the government, gyms will be allowed to operate with a Health Protection Authority (HPA) approved service plan, while cafes and restaurants will be permitted to offer takeaway services during non-curfew hours.

Another 145 cases of COVID-19 were recorded in the Maldives on Tuesday, down from 253 new cases recorded on Monday. New cases have declined from a high of over 2,000 a day in May when stronger restrictions were introduced.

There are currently 4,569 active cases in the Maldives, out of which 39 have been hospitalized for treatment. A total of 207 people have died due to COVID-19 in the country. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 20:15:08|Editor: huaxia

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KUALA LUMPUR, June 23 (Xinhua) -- China's solid governance model has been a key factor in the country's ability to respond effectively to the COVID-19 pandemic and allowed rapid recovery, panelists at a virtual conference said Wednesday.

The "Governance of China: Perspectives from Southeast Asia" conference, organized by the Institute of China Studies at the University of Malaya, gathered government officials, scholars, and other participants from China and Southeast Asian countries to discuss topics related to China's political systems, economic development, social issues, anti-COVID-19 measures, poverty alleviation, technology, among others.

In his opening remarks, the Chinese ambassador to Malaysia Ouyang Yujing said devastating pandemic, economic recession, and governance difficulties are clear challenges facing all countries around the world. Under such circumstances, there has been a growing passion and interest among the international community to learn more about China's effective governance.

"In my opinion, the secret of China's effective governance is not enigmatic, instead it lies in China's political system, that is, the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics," he said.

China's political system follows the development path that is suited to its own conditions, with people-oriented being its fundamental philosophy and its outstanding advantage of the practice of pooling all necessary resources together to accomplish great tasks, he said.

"China stands ready to enhance communication and cooperation with all countries including Malaysia, share governance experience, promote civilized exchanges and dialogues, and work together with peoples from all over the world to build a community with a shared future for mankind, which will be a better world for all," he added.

Speakers from Malaysia and several other Southeast Asian countries pick apart the factors that allowed China to quickly mobilize its resources at all levels to respond to the unprecedented health crisis of COVID-19, concluding that the country's governance style had proven successful.

Ngeow Chow Bing, director of the Institute of China Studies at University of Malaya, said China's development has been one of the most significant events of the 21st century and reshaped the world for today and for the future. China has become the second-largest economy in the world and has achieved the goals of eliminating absolute poverty and building a moderately prosperous society.

China has made great achievements in COVID-19 pandemic prevention and control, and became the only major economy to achieve positive growth in 2020, he said.

China has also achieved rapid development in technologies, which are more advanced, reliable, and accessible, said Ngeow, adding that the achievement and experience of Chinese governance could serve as an important reference for developing countries, including Malaysia.

Wong Tze Ken, dean of Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at the University of Malaya, said China has made a miracle in the past 40 years by making significant progress in all aspects including economy, society, technology and education. The ability to realize development blueprints and achieve national development is a testimony of the advantages of Chinese governance.

The strength of Chinese governance capacity was again proven by its achievements of containing the COVID-19 outbreak, said Wong.

As a country of a 1.4-billion population, China not only brought the COVID-19 outbreak under control domestically but also demonstrated its responsibility to the international community by extending helping hands to neighboring countries and international partners, said Wong, pointing to the recent announcement by the Chinese government to donate COVID-19 vaccines to Malaysia and in promoting cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 20:29:53|Editor: huaxia

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KABUL, June 23 (Xinhua) -- The Taliban militants have intensified activities since the start of the U.S.-led troops from Afghanistan on May 1 and have overrun numerous districts as the armed group's former foes prepare to fight back.

The Taliban outfit, according to its spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, has captured more than 70 districts over the past month and in the latest advancement it has occupied Khash district in the northern Badakhshan province on Wednesday.

Confirming the fall of Khash district to the Taliban, army officer Abdul Razeq said that the security forces had made "tactical retreat" from Khash to reduce civilian casualties, while Taliban spokesman Mujahid claimed capturing the district by force.

Afghan political observers doubted the Taliban's push for a military victory, warning the militants would face backlash if it opted for armed offensives instead of peace talks.

"The locals would take up arms against the Taliban if the armed group pushes for military victory and frequent uprisings of people in several provinces could be a sound proof to the fact," local analyst Khan Mohammad Daneshjo told Xinhua on Wednesday.

Hundreds of thousands of people, according to the observer, have taken up arms against the Taliban fighters in Faryab, Jawzjan, Balkh, Herat, Ghor, Badghis, Takhar and Baghlan provinces over the past couple of days and vowed to support the security forces against the insurgents.

The Taliban has no chance of a military victory, the analyst observed, adding, "the local uprisings have forced the advancing militants to retreat from a dozen districts" over the past two days.

"Since the Taliban group has no economic, social and political programs for the country to win people's support, the group can't uphold its victory," the expert said.

"Whenever it captures a district it dynamites the district headquarters, destroys musical instruments, bridges and asphalted roads and that is why the people migrate to other places when they face the Taliban fighters."

The analyst, who is also the editor-in-chief of the Abbadi daily, opined that the "logic way for the Taliban is to reach an agreement with the Afghan government on the negotiating table" to find a political solution to their country's lingering crisis.

Following the so-called peace deal inked between the United States and Taliban in February 2020, the intra-Afghan dialogue was held in the Qatari capital Doha on Sept. 12 last year but no tangible progress has been reported.

According to Afghan officials, the Taliban outfit has been buying time. Instead of sitting before the negotiating table it has been pushing for war and that is why the armed group's fighters have engaged the security forces across the country.

Locals' uprisings against Taliban under the leadership of former Jihadi commanders or Taliban's former foes have been on the rise in the war-torn country.

Ata Mohammad Noor, a former anti-Taliban commander and ex-governor of Balkh province, visited Balkh's provincial capital Mazar-i-Sharif on Tuesday and vowed to repulse the Taliban militants if the group moved towards the relatively peaceful Mazar-i-Sharif city.

Similarly, senior advisor to president and former anti-Taliban commander Mohammad Mohaqiq has said recently that the "Taliban does not believe in peace talks and therefore we are ready to fight" the group back.

"The Taliban cannot impose its rule on Afghans by force. People won't tolerate the Taliban obstructive culture," expert Najibullah Kabuli told local media. Kabuli also called upon the Taliban outfit to choose peace talks instead of war, otherwise the locals would stand alongside the government to fight back. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 22:21:30|Editor: huaxia

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PHNOM PENH, June 23 (Xinhua) -- The Asia and Pacific High-Level Conference on Belt and Road Cooperation showed unity and solidarity among partner countries in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic and restoring regional economies during and after the pandemic, Cambodian academics said here on Wednesday.

Being held virtually in Beijing, the conference brought together foreign ministers of Belt and Road cooperation partner countries, including Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn.

Kin Phea, director-general of the International Relations Institute of Cambodia, said the conference is organized at the right time and it will lay a solid foundation to call for the international joint efforts and actions to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

He said the pandemic has no boundary and discriminates no one, so it's crucial for all Belt and Road participating countries to work together closely to overcome this hard time based on the principle of multilateralism.

"Dealing with the havoc in the region and the world caused by COVID-19 is not the responsibility of any single country," he told Xinhua. "Collective efforts, actions and measures are vital to effectively fight against this pandemic and to achieve socio-economic recovery as well as enhance partnership for sustainable and inclusive development."

Phea said that China will play a more important role in the efforts to fight COVID-19 and in helping other countries rebuild their economies during and after the pandemic.

He believed that the COVID-19 vaccines will become public goods that are accessible to all nations.

"It's hoped that the least developed countries will equitably receive more vaccines through humanitarian assistance from China and the World Health Organization's COVAX facility," he said.

Neak Chandarith, director of the Cambodia 21st Century Maritime Silk Road Research Center, said the conference is a timely and historic opportunity for participating BRI countries to strengthen inclusive multilateralism and enhanced partnership in an endeavor to jointly defeat these transnational health issues.

"This conference demonstrates unity, shared political commitment and shared responsibility to tackle this global health crisis," he told Xinhua. "It may embody concrete actions and offer practical solutions to battle against the pandemic that has wreaked havoc on all countries around the globe."

He said the number of participating countries in the conference is a testament to the common interests and aspirations for building the community with a shared future of which the critical issues required joint solutions and cooperation.

Joseph Matthews, a senior professor of the BELTEI International University in Phnom Penh, said the conference provides an ample opportunity for the participants to discuss ways to collectively fight the pandemic and to restore regional economies.

"The Belt and Road Initiative is now a truly global and comprehensive partnership," he said. "The most urgent matter for the BRI partner countries now is the acceleration of the vaccination process in order to achieve the herd immunity, so the socio-economic development and infrastructure investments will continue without any hindrance."

Matthews said there is no doubt that China will continue to play a core role in providing vaccines, economic assistance, infrastructure development, connectivity, and technical know-how to both the Asia-Pacific region and the BRI countries. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 01:45:54|Editor: huaxia

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RIGA, June 22 (Xinhua) -- European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen made a visit to Riga on Tuesday, with Latvia's national recovery plan featuring high on the agenda, the Latvian governmental press service informed.

Von der Leyen's visit to Riga came on the day when the European Commission approved Latvia's plan for the absorption of 1.8 billion euros worth of EU funding from the bloc's Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), intended to fuel the European Union's recovery from the COVID-19 crisis.

The plan, which Latvia submitted to the European Commission on April 30, focuses on measures aimed at achieving climate goals, ensuring the digital transformation of the economy, reducing inequality, boosting productivity and strengthening the health sector and the rule of law.

Speaking at a news conference following talks with Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins, the European Commission president praised Latvia's plan as balanced, noting that apart from the climate goals and digital transformation, the plan will also promote social inclusion and investing in human resources and skills.

She stressed reform of minimum income, investment in industrial enterprises and education, as well as affordable housing as the main preconditions for achieving greater social inclusion.

During her trip to Riga, von der Leyen also visited Riga Technical University where she met with students, researchers and academic staff and saw an exhibition of EU-funded projects. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 09:50:25|Editor: huaxia

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LISBON, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa on Tuesday appealed to young people to get vaccinated against COVID-19, which he pointed out as the "great bet at this time" to contain the pandemic.

"Vaccination is the fundamental path, (and) this is the lasting solution to the pandemic. The other solutions are found punctually, temporarily, but the only one that is truly longer-lasting and effective is vaccination," he told reporters.

According to the Portuguese head of state, with the advance of the "second dose for those over 60, who correspond to risk groups," vaccination of the youngest should advance in "less than two months."

"It's a race against the clock. It's not easy. We're transitioning to summer, and that means changes of residence. People are mobile and young people are very mobile," explained the president.

He added that young people "are on the move" especially in the summer period, calling on them "not to stop getting vaccinated" since it helps "solve the problem of the number of cases."

"Fortunately, we have a number of deaths ranging from zero to six, we have a number of inpatients of a few hundred, less than 500 inpatients, and we have a number of intensive care that is far short of what existed in November last year," he said.

Over 46 percent of the Portuguese population have been vaccinated so far, the health authorities said.

As the world is struggling to contain the pandemic, vaccination is underway in an increasing number of countries with already-authorized coronavirus vaccines. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 19:19:28|Editor: huaxia

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A medical worker prepares to administer the COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination site in Istanbul, Turkey, on June 23, 2021. The total number of COVID-19 vaccines administered in Turkey has exceeded 44 million on Wednesday, the Health Ministry's data revealed. (Photo by Serkan/Xinhua)

ISTANBUL, June 23 (Xinhua) -- The total number of COVID-19 vaccines administered in Turkey has exceeded 44 million on Wednesday, the Health Ministry's data revealed.

So far, more than 29.4 million citizens have received their first doses, while over 14.6 million have taken their second shots.

The figure indicated that the country, which has a population of 83 million, vaccinated 17.6 percent of its citizens with two doses of vaccines.

"To be able to meet again at cinemas, concerts, theaters and return to our normal lives, make sure that you get your vaccines done," Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on his Twitter account.

Turkey started its nationwide vaccination drive in January and recently reduced the vaccine eligibility age to 25. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 19:25:23|Editor: huaxia

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ISTANBUL, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Turkish police on Wednesday detained 32 suspects for their suspected ties to the Islamic State, the state-run Anadolu agency reported.

Simultaneous operations were carried out at 39 addresses across the country to capture those allegedly linked to group members in conflict zones, said the report.

According to the agency, operations backed by special operation forces were mainly carried out in Istanbul, the western province of Aydin, and the central Anatolian province of Sivas.

The Islamic State has been blamed for a spate of deadly attacks in Turkey since 2015. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-24 05:55:03|Editor: huaxia

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French President Emmanuel Macron attends a press conference at the Elysee Palace in Paris June 23, 2021. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday ended the first leg of her visit to 12 EU members that had their national recovery plans approved. In Paris, Ursula von der Leyen announced that France will receive 39.4 billion euros in grants. (Xinhua/Gao Jing)

by Matthew Xuereb, Li Jizhi

BRUSSELS, June 23 (Xinhua) -- European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday concluded her first leg of visits to the capital cities of 12 member states of the European Union (EU) that had their national recovery plans approved.

Since last Wednesday, von der Leyen visited Portugal, Spain, Denmark, Greece, Luxembourg, Austria, Slovakia, Italy, Latvia, Germany, France and Belgium. She was touring the capital cities with the European Commission's verdict on their national post-COVID-19 national recovery and resilience plan.

In each country, von der Leyen announced the amount that was being allocated to each member state from the NextGenerationEU, the bloc's historic 750-billion-euro (894 billion U.S. dollars) recovery instrument over the period 2021-2026.

According to the Commission, Italy will receive 191.5 billion euros from the EU, including 68.9 billion euros in grants and 122.6 billion euros in loans. It is the largest package so far.

"It is a generational opportunity, indeed, to invest in Italy's strength to make Italy an engine for growth in Europe," von der Leyen said in Rome on Tuesday.

The European Commission found that Italy's plan devotes 37 percent of expenditure on projects that support climate objectives, including a large-scale renovation program to increase the energy efficiency of buildings. A quarter of the money will go to digital investments.

The Recovery and Resilience Facility, the bulk of the NextGenerationEU, will make loans and grants available to support reforms and investments undertaken by EU states. The aim is to mitigate the economic and social impact of the coronavirus pandemic and make European economies and societies more sustainable, resilient and better prepared for the challenges and opportunities of the green and digital transitions.

The first country von der Leyen visited was Portugal, to which she endorsed a 16.6-billion-euro recovery and resilience plan, where the EU will disburse 13.9 billion euros in grants and 2.7 billion euros in loans.

In Spain, she announced the acceptance of Spain's plan for 69.5 billion euros in grants, which will play a key role in enabling Spain to emerge stronger from the pandemic.

Denmark will receive 1.5 billion euros in grants, Luxembourg received the green light for 93 million euros while Greece will have a total of 30.5 billion euros. Austria will receive 3.5 billion euros, Slovakia 6.3 billion euros, Latvia 1.8 billion euros, while Germany will receive 25.6 billion euros.

In Paris, von der Leyen announced that France will receive 39.4 billion euros in grants, while back to Belgium, she announced that the EU will disburse 5.9 billion euros in grants.

For all approved plans, the Council of the EU has four weeks to adopt the Commission's proposal. The Council's approval of the plan would allow for the disbursement of a percentage in pre-financing, with the rest disbursed according to the satisfactory fulfillment of the milestones and targets. (1 euro = 1.19 U.S. dollars) Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-06-23 16:10:05|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhua) -- As more scientists are speaking out against politicizing the origin of COVID-19, it dawns on many that the "lab-leak hypothesis" is not only flawed but typical of U.S. hypocrisy over human rights.

The World Health Organization (WHO) released in March an origin-tracing study report of the China-WHO joint mission, drawing a clear conclusion that lab leak is extremely unlikely. The report, co-authored by more than 30 top global experts in various fields, is widely representative and highly professional.

However, passing through the U.S. government to corporate press, a sinister production line of misinformation has been rumbling recently to mislead the public and demonize China.

"For a leak to occur, the virus must be present in the laboratory already and there would have to be a breakdown of usual regulated laboratory procedures around sample collection and preparation," according to Dominic Dwyer, a member of the WHO team sent to China in January.

"For further spread, the infected worker must transmit the virus to close contacts and through them to the wider community. There is currently no clear evidence that any of these steps have happened," the expert wrote in his latest opinion for The Guardian.

What Dwyer referred to were a series of wild speculations about the origin of COVID-19, a deadly pathogen which has so far infected about 179 million across the globe.

As noted by Ethan Siegel, a science writer who has won numerous awards since 2008 for his blog, as the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic is in no way near an end, the world is witnessing a tremendous push largely among U.S. politicians to bring "an idea that is largely been circulating among conspiracy theorists, the idea of a lab leak origin for the virus, into the mainstream."

As a result, despite their strenuous efforts to understand and fight the unprecedented global health crisis, Chinese scientists found themselves thrown into the maelstrom of conspiracy theories that have emphatically alleged that the virus originated from a Chinese lab in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

In stark contrast to U.S. politicians' push to frame the origin of COVID-19 and smear China, scientific consensus has not shifted toward a lab origin, as noted by U.S. writer Mara Hvistendahl in her recent opinion for The Intercept.

"There is still no direct evidence to support a lab leak, and many scientists with no stake in the outcome still say that a natural origin is more likely," Hvistendahl wrote, adding that those are pundits "with the risky combination of a lack of expertise and an agenda" who have argued that a lab leak caused the pandemic.

In fact, the "lab-leak theory" was widely ridiculed last year as Washington scrambled to divert attention from its failure to address the health crisis by trumping up conspiracy theories against China.

The groundless theory only gained steam recently after Michael Gordon, who wrote either misleading or downright inaccurate articles about the fabricated Iraqi possession of weapons of mass destruction in the run-up to the 2003 invasion, hinted a far-fetched connection between the "sick staff" of a Wuhan lab and the COVID-19 outbreak by quoting a so-called "previously undisclosed U.S. intelligence report."

Three days after the publication, the White House announced an order for U.S. intelligence to draw "a definitive conclusion" on the virus' origin.

As U.S. reporters Amy Goodman and David Goodman said in 2004, this represented the "classic disinformation two-step," in which the White House first leaks a lie to a U.S. media outlet, and the latter publishes it as a startling expose; then, the White House conveniently masquerades behind the credibility of the media.

As noted by The World Socialist Web Site (WSWS), till now, "the only evidence presented by the White House, the U.S. intelligence agencies, and the media to support the claim is that employees at the Wuhan Institute of Virology became ill in late 2019 with symptoms that a State Department report acknowledged are 'consistent with ... common seasonal illnesses.'"

"More than one year into the pandemic, these baseless theories are propounded throughout the corporate press as part of a coordinated international campaign to deflect the burden of blame for the pandemic from the ruling elites' disastrous response against the contagion and thrust it on to the heads of the Chinese government and Chinese scientists," the WSWS commented.

In his latest interview with The New York Times, U.S. top infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci also appeared to question the "strength" and "confidence" in the U.S. intelligence of connecting the origin of COVID-19 with sick lab staff in Wuhan.

"There is this so-called intelligence that three members of the lab were ill, requiring hospitalization. And I really wonder what the strength of that intelligence is, what the confidence in it is," Fauci said.

"I feel, as do the overwhelming majority of scientists who have knowledge of virology and knowledge of evolutionary biology, that the most likely explanation for this is a natural leap from an animal reservoir to a human," he said.

In the face of overwhelming supports for a natural origin of the virus, some proponents of the "lab-leak theory" then claimed that the evidence for both the natural origin and the "lab-leak" theory is weak and circumstantial.

But David Robertson, head of viral genomics and bioinformatics at the University of Glasgow in Scotland, told The Guardian that the argument has set up a "false equivalence" between them, because a lot of evidence now points to a natural spillover event. Enditem
The High-Level Dialogue on "Celebrating the Centenary of the CPC" Successfully Held in South Africa

2021/06/22

Chinese Embassy in South Africa and the National Press Club South Africa jointly held a high-level dialogue entitled "Celebrating the Centenary of the CPC and Jointly Ushering in Shared Future" on June 21 in celebration of the centenary of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

Chinese Ambassador Chen Xiaodong attended and delivered a keynote speech. Paul Mashatile, one of the "Big Six" of South Africa's ruling party African National Congress (ANC) and Treasurer-General; Motlanthe, the former President of South Africa; Mapaila, First Deputy General Secretary of the South African Communist Party, which is a member of the South African Ruling Coalition; Masondo, President of the ANC Political School and Deputy Minister of Finance; Anil Sooklal, Deputy Director-General of the Department of International Relations and Cooperation of South Africa; Surve, Executive Chairman of Independent Media, South Africa's largest print media group; Emmanuel Matambo, Director of the University of Johannesburg's Centre for Africa-China Studies; and other guests were invited to attend and deliver speeches. The meeting was presided over by Booyeh, president of National Press Club South Africa.

Chinese Ambassador Chen said that we are going to celebrate the centenary of the CPC. On this occasion, the ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa and the General Secretary of the South African Communist Party Blade Nzimande sent congratulatory letters to Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPC, on behalf of their parties, respectively. Friends from all walks of life in South Africa also sent their congratulations to the CPC. These abundantly demonstrate the special sentiments of "comrades and brothers" between China and South Africa.

Chinese Ambassador Chen pointed out that the centennial course of the CPC is a process of striving for national independence, the liberation of the people, a strong and prosperous country, and well-being for the people. Looking over the past one hundred years, we can proudly say that were it not for the leadership of the CPC, China would not have the achievements as we have today, nor enjoy the international status China has today. The leadership of the CPC is a historic choice made by the people. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, the Party and the country have made new historic achievements in the undertakings, and the Chinese nation has the glory of "going from strength to strength" under the leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core. The Chinese people today have more confidence than ever in the path, theory, system, and culture under socialism with Chinese characteristics.

Chinese Ambassador Chen stressed that as the CPC made struggles over the past century, we found rescue in desperate circumstances, resolutely rebounded after setbacks, put the mistakes and errors right, and persevered in the trials and tribulations. As the CPC grows in maturity and strength, it has amassed a wealth of valuable experience in the practice of responding to crises and difficulties. The secret of the success made by the CPC is mainly manifested in the "consistent persistence" in the following five respects:

First, always uphold the lofty purpose of putting people first and staunchly protect the fundamental interests of the Chinese people. Since its birth, the CPC has always been working towards its goal of meeting the people's yearning for a better life, and relying on the people to move history forward. Poverty alleviation is the vivid practice of putting people first. General Secretary Xi Jinping has been personally involved in guidance, planning, and supervision, and led the Party and the people to secure a victory in the battle against poverty. In the course of poverty alleviation, millions of party officials in charge of poverty alleviation devoted their efforts to the work and over 1,800 Party members and officials died in the line of duty. They interpret the original aspiration and mission of the Chinese Communists with their lives. In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, the CPC consistently puts people and life first, and works to protect people's lives at all costs, fulfilling the purpose of serving the people wholeheartedly with practical action.

Second, always stick to the leadership of the Party and bring into play the strengths of the system of socialism. General Secretary Xi pointed out: "The Party exercises overall leadership over all areas of endeavor in every part of the country." As the country's highest force for political leadership, the CPC abundantly shows its leadership status in various endeavors such as economic development, political, cultural, and social progress, and ecological awareness. The defining feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics is the leadership of the CPC; the greatest strength of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics is the leadership of the CPC. The CPC consistently translates the Party's ruling strengths and the strengths of the system of socialism into efficient national governance.

Third, always keep pioneering and innovating, and explore development concepts in line with China's national conditions. The CPC consistently seeks truth from facts, keeps up with the times, continuously adapts Marxism to the Chinese context, and gains a better insight into the laws on development. We have now embarked on a journey to fully build a modern socialist China, and we have shifted from high-speed economic growth to high-quality economic development. We have a scientific grasp of the new development stage, and implement the vision of innovative, coordinated, green, open, and inclusive development. We promote a dual-cycle development pattern relying on both domestic and international economic cycles, with the domestic cycle being the mainstay. China will adopt new institutions for opening up wider to the world as soon as possible, making more room for countries around the world to share cooperation opportunities.

Fourth, always ensure that the Party exercises self-discipline and is strict with its members, and maintain the Party's strong vitality. General Secretary Xi pointed out: "it takes a good blacksmith to make good steel. The CPC consistently enhances the creativity, cohesion, and competence of the Party in terms of organization, ideas, discipline, work style, officials, and personnel, steps up efforts to combat corruption, conducts strict self-governance, and ensures that the Party is always in the forefront of the times, and becomes the backbone of the Chinese people and the Chinese nation.

Fifth, always work for the undertaking of the progress of mankind and contribute to world peace and development. General Secretary Xi stressed that "The CPC always regards making new and greater contributions to mankind as its mission." The CPC and the Chinese people will stay as determined as ever to build world peace, contribute to global prosperity and uphold the international order. Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy, we promote the building of a community of a shared future for mankind, advocate the joint implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative, forge global partnerships, take the initiative in the reform and evolution of the global governance system, actively foster international cooperation in epidemic prevention and control, and promote exchanges and mutual learning with countries worldwide.

Chinese Ambassador Chen said that under the leadership of the CPC, China has performed two miracles in terms of rapid economic development and long-term social stability. The 1.4 billion Chinese people have embarked on a journey to fully build a modern socialist China in an all-round way and march towards the second centennial goal. Under the new situation, the CPC stands ready to work with the ANC, the South African Communist Party as well as the political parties and peoples in Africa and the world to learn from each other, share experience in Party building and state governance, promote party-to-party exchanges, strengthen development strategies, give mutual support, and enhance mutual trust for common progress; foster cooperation in the fight against the epidemic and post-COVID-19 economic recovery, and work together to beat the epidemic for the benefit of the peoples of the two countries; jointly build an open, inclusive, clean, and beautiful world that enjoys lasting peace, universal security, and common prosperity for a better future.

Paul Mashatile said that as a progressive party, the CPC works for the well-being of the Chinese people, and is also an inspiration for the world. The Chinese people led by the CPC supported the struggle for national liberation in South Africa, and the peoples of the two countries have long ago developed a strong friendship. General Secretary Xi Jinping said that "the people are the country, and the country is the people", which dovetails with the ANC's concept of people's war. The ANC attaches great importance to the party-to-party relations with the CPC and thinks highly of China's achievements in poverty alleviation and the fight against corruption. ANC hopes to learn from the CPC's valuable experience and practices in achieving rapid economic development and long-term social stability as South Africa is carrying out social and economic transformation. I believe that as the CPC moves towards its 200th anniversary, it will, as always, lead China to staunchly safeguard a fair and just international order. While realizing the Chinese dream, it will promote the building of a community of a shared future for mankind and make a greater contribution to world peace and development. Long live the Communist Party of China! Long live the friendship between South Africa and China!

Former South African President Motlanthe said that the chief secret to the CPC's extraordinary achievements in its development and state governance is the harmonized ideas and organization. The CPC has foresight, and seeks truth from facts. It formulates development plans in various endeavors and policies for national development. The CPC has advanced ideas for selecting and appointing officials to ensure the long-term stability of the goals. In the current transition from capitalism to socialism, China, as a beacon of hope and a shining example, offers another option for modernization and plays an active role in international affairs. General Secretary Xi said that "The Party and the people play a key role in achieving the goals and tasks set at the 18th National Congress of the CPC, and in making great struggles with new historical characteristics." South Africa should learn from the CPC's valuable experience in its own building. On the occasion of the centenary of the CPC, I salute the great Communist Party of China and the Chinese people.

Mapaila pointed out that the South African Communist Party and the CPC were founded in the same international context, and both share a love of peace and opposition to wars. The extraordinary achievements made by the Chinese people led by the CPC in economic development and poverty alleviation are admirable. The world development still faces the problem of uneven development between the North and the South. The United States' practice of upholding unilateralism and suppressing and containing China's development will not get anywhere. Africa-China relations and South Africa-China relations should become a model for international relations. Guided by the people-centered idea, we should join hands to build a peaceful, safe, and balanced world. As General Secretary Xi Jinping put it, we need the spirit of comradeship and brotherhood. Under this spirit, South Africa stands ready to deepen relations with the CPC, promote party-to-party ties, and foster people-to-people exchanges and pragmatic cooperation for a better future. Long live the Communist Party of China!

Masondo, President of the ANC Political School and Deputy Minister of Finance; Anil Sooklal, Deputy Director-General of the Department of International Relations and Cooperation of South Africa; Surve, Executive Chairman of Independent Media, South Africa's largest print media group; Emmanuel Matambo, Director of the University of Johannesburg's Centre for Africa-China Studies; and other guests praised glorious achievements made by the CPC over the past 100 years, gave an in-depth analysis of the secrets to the success of the CPC, and described the inspiration of the CPC's ruling philosophy for South Africa and Africa. They considered that the CPC brings development achievements to the general public, and the poverty eradication results have demonstrated the strong leadership of the CPC. When Xi Jinping was elected as General Secretary of the CPC in 2012 and as the President in 2013, he made a solemn commitment that China will have shaken off absolute poverty by 2020. China realized this ambitious goal last year, becoming the only country in the world to eradicate absolute poverty. The CPC always puts the people first. There would be no People's Republic of China without the CPC. The CPC is inseparable from the Chinese people. The CPC's care for the people is also shown in the efforts to build a community of a shared future for mankind. The development of Africa-China relations and South Africa-China relations have benefited tremendously from it. Media think tanks should play a greater role in introducing the real China and the CPC to the people.

Other attendees expressed that it was of great significance to hold this dialogue meeting on the occasion of the centenary of the CPC. It is of important inspiration reference for the post-COVID-19 development in South Africa and other African countries as well as bilateral relations. In the speech, Chinese Ambassador Chen shared systematic and profound views in a concise and easy-to-understand way. It is of inspirational value. The promotional videos and slides prepared by the embassy help them review the history of the exchanges between the two parties and the two countries.

The meeting was held in a warm and friendly atmosphere. The participants at the meeting shouted their congratulations. "Long live China! Long live the Communist Party of China! Long live China-South Africa friendship!" are hot comments at the site and online. Many people asked Chinese Ambassador Chen for the text speech and slides.

It was attended online by nearly 200 people including representatives from South Africa's ruling party, government, the business community, youth, and women, think tanks, and media, representatives from CCTV in South Africa, Chinese-funded institutions, overseas students, as well as senior diplomats from the Chinese embassy in South Africa. Chinese Ambassador Chen's accounts on Twitter, the embassy's YouTube, Facebook, and other new media gave live broadcasting of the event, which attracted nearly 30,000 views.

South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), eNCA, Newzroom Afrika, BRICS-TV, PowerFM, EnergyFM, etc. attended the online meeting and gave real-time reporting of activities. Nearly 40 reporters from nearly 30 media organizations including Africa News Agency, The Star, Pretoria News, The Mercury, Cape Times, Business Day, News24, Daily Loners AFP, Reuters, Bloomberg, and other South African mainstream media and international news organizations; China Central Television (CCTV), People's Daily, Xinhua News Agency, China News Service, CHINAFRICA, China Global Television Network, Phoenix TV, and other media organizations' branches in South Africa covered the online meeting.

  

National Press Club is the most important non-governmental organization for media professionals in South Africa, and its membership covers all mainstream media organizations in South Africa.
Wang Yi Speaks with Burkina Faso's Foreign Minister Alpha Barry on the Phone

2021/06/11

On June 10, 2021, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi had a phone conversation with Burkina Faso's Foreign Minister Alpha Barry.

Wang Yi said, since the two countries resumed diplomatic relations three years ago, the bilateral ties have witnessed rapid development. Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the two sides have been supporting each other, and the friendship has been cemented and enhanced. It has been proved that the resumption of diplomatic relations between China and Burkina Faso fully serves the interests of the two countries and their people.

Wang Yi said that China firmly supports Burkina Faso's efforts in developing its economy, improving people's livelihood, and safeguarding its national security. China stands ready to continue offering support for the African country's anti-pandemic fight, and to share its experience in state governance with developing countries including Burkina Faso, so as to accelerate common development. He hopes that China and Burkina Faso will sign documents on the Belt and Road cooperation as soon as possible and strengthen bilateral cooperation in such areas as healthcare and infrastructure, so as to provide new impetus and create new space for the two countries to deepen practical cooperation.

Wang Yi said that China opposes all forms of terrorism, and is willing to continue to provide assistance within its capacity to Burkina Faso in fighting terrorism and safeguarding national security. China is ready to work with Burkina Faso to safeguard the common and legitimate rights and interests in the international and multilateral arenas, and continue to staunchly support each other on issues concerning each other's core interests.

Wang Yi said that not long ago, China and Africa jointly launched the Initiative on Partnership for Africa's Development, which meets the concerns of Africa and has produced positive results. China is willing to work with African countries including Burkina Faso to encourage more countries to join the initiative and build a momentum that the international community works together to help Africa's development. China also stands ready to strengthen coordination with Burkina Faso under the framework of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), so as to make a joint contribution to the success of this year's FOCAC.

Barry thanked China for providing strong support in Burkina Faso's economic and social development, especially in its pandemic fight. China has been honoring its promises in its cooperation with Burkina Faso, which yielded remarkable results, Barry noted, calling China a reliable friend and good partner. He said the two countries have forged a profound friendship with a shared future. Burkina Faso is ready to deepen cooperation with China in the Belt and Road construction, and to push the bilateral relationship to new levels. Expressing gratitude to China for the active contribution it has made to accelerating the development of Africa and safeguarding the continent's interests, Barry said that he looks forward to greater support and assistance from China in anti-terrorism cooperation.
This distinction is the most important granted by the Peruvian State through Mincetur to national crafts.

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YEREVAN, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko congratulated Armenias caretaker Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on his Civil Contract partys victory in the June 20 snap parliamentary elections.

Your determination and service to the interests of the Armenian people have become a key to success in the important public-political campaign for the country, Lukashenko said in his congratulatory letter.

He expressed confidence that the mutual cooperation between Minsk and Yerevan in various areas will develop in the future for the friendship and prosperity of the peoples of the two countries.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. Chair of the Ukraine-Armenia parliamentary friendship group, member of Ukraines ruling Servant of the People faction Artem Dmitruk congratulated Armenias caretaker Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on his Civil Contract partys victory in the early parliamentary elections, AnalitikaUA reports.

The Ukrainian lawmaker said there are many moments when Kiev and Yerevan can help each other.

The peoples of Armenia and Ukraine are friends undoubtedly. They have a common history, common achievements and losses. Therefore, we need to move forward together, he said.

Armenia held snap parliamentary elections on June 20.

21 political parties and 4 blocs were running for parliament.

Accordingly, the Civil Contract party led by caretaker Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan received 53.92% of the votes, the Armenia bloc led by 2nd President of Armenia Robert Kocharyan  21.04%, I Have the Honor bloc  5.23%, CEC Chairman Tigran Mukuchyan said at the Committees extraordinary session.

1 million 282 thousand 411 citizens or 49.4% of the voters cast their ballot in the early elections.

4682 ballots were declared invalid.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. Caretaker Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan sent a congratulatory letter to Luxembourgs Prime Minister Xavier Bettel on the countrys national day, Pashinyans Office told Armenpress.

The message reads:

Your Excellency,

On behalf of the Armenian government and myself personally I want to address my warm congratulations and best wishes of welfare and development to you and the members of the government on the National Day of Luxembourg.

Armenia attaches great importance to the further development and expansion of multi-layered relations with Luxemburg in all areas of mutual interest. I want to reaffirm the readiness of the Armenian side to make efforts to maximally ensure the exercise of the huge cooperation potential existing between the two countries.

By using this chance, I want to express my deep gratitude for the Luxembourg governments decisive principled stance demonstrated during the recent Azerbaijani-Turkish aggression against Artsakh and the Azerbaijani encroachments against Armenias sovereign territory, as well as for raising this position from different platforms.

I am confident that the constructive dialogue between our states will continue to develop and expand for the benefit and welfare of our two friendly nations.

I wish you and the government of Luxembourg new achievements.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. Russia made a landmark contribution to ironing out the conflict around Nagorno Karabakh, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday, reports TASS.

With Russias landmark contribution, the conflict in Nagorno Karabakh was stopped, the Russian leader said in a video message to the participants and guests of the IX Moscow Conference on International Security.

Russian peacekeepers guarantee peace and security in the region and do a lot to improve humanitarian situation, demining territories and restoring social infrastructure, Putin noted.

He said Russia never forgets about the responsibility directed for the security and prosperity of the neighbor countries. We are united by inseparable historical, cultural and human ties, Putin added.
YEREVAN, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. President of China Xi Jinping congratulated Armenian President Armen Sarkissian on birthday, the Armenian Presidents Office told Armenpress.

The Chinese President stated that for them Armenia is one of the traditional friendly countries. He said last year China and Armenia fought together against the coronavirus pandemic, which was a new impetus for the development of the bilateral relations and the cooperation in different fields.

I attach great importance to the development of the Chinese-Armenian relations and I am ready to make efforts with you to raise the bilateral ties to a new level for the benefit of our countries and peoples, the Chinese President said in his congratulatory letter.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has hosted a discussion on media freedom and citizens right to get accurate information.

Member of Parliament of Armenia Naira Zohrabyan participated in the discussion, talking about the manipulations of public opinion by fake news, bringing Azerbaijan as an example where the media was in the forefront for spreading hatred and hostility against Armenia.

The lawmaker called on to introduce tougher legislative regulations in the CoE member states for hatred and hostility campaign with fake news, considering this one of the greatest challenges facing Europe.

Dear colleagues, today we are discussing a very important report on media freedom and citizens right to get accurate information.

Yes, in our information world, media in many cases is much more than the most powerful weapon.

And in our European family there is a country, even the most cursory monitoring of its media field is terrible. When the leader of that country speaks about the causes of their victory in the recent Artsakh war and states that they won because they managed to educate generation who grew up with hatred and hostility against Armenians, he is right, and the Azerbaijani media had a great contribution to this because they spread and continue spreading Armenophobia, violence, hatred and falsification.

When an Azerbaijani politician announces that Armenians must be killed in Karabakh, and it is being spread by the Azerbaijani media, when a 13-year-old Azerbaijani girl announces that she wants to become a sniper in order to kill an Armenian, and this becomes the top lead of that countrys media, we have the terrible picture which we had during the recent bloody war and after that  atrocities, lie, fake news and media manipulations.

These days the trial of Armenia soldiers is underway in Azerbaijan, whom Azerbaijan presents as terrorists and saboteurs, and the whole Azerbaijani media is filled with spreading disinformation, and now what accurate information and protecting society form fake news are we talking about? Today, under the free media flows, if we do not manage to protect our societies from fake news, which especially in totalitarian countries feeds societies with racism, intolerance and lie, we will have Azerbaijan as a result, where the media field is daily filled with videos torturing and humiliating the Armenian prisoners of war and the public opinion which welcomes all these, she said.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. Chairman of the Board of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) Mikhail Myasnikovich congratulated Armenias President Armen Sarkissian on birthday, the Armenian Presidents Office told Armenpress.

This day is in particular pleasure to mention your numerous achievements not only in state and international arenas, but also in scientific field. You are a renowned scientist, Honorary Doctor of the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia, he said.

The EEC Board Chairman wished Armen Sarkissian good health and further success in the development of modern, independent Armenia, the strengthening of friendship and partnership in the Eurasian Economic Union.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. I Have the Honor alliance has no final decision yet on taking its seats in the parliament or not, but if a decision is made to take them, the leader of the alliance Artur Vanetsyan also will be represented in the parliament.

Today we have a situation when the Civil Contract party, the Armenia and I Have the Honor blocs have been elected to the parliament. However, we need to record that there is such a situation. Yes, violations have occurred during the election process which we have raised, are raising and are going to apply to all measures available to us to dispute these results and find out the dignity. We will make a decision only after that  to be in the parliament or not, Vanetsyan said.

He stated that if a decision is made to take their seats, he will not allow leave his team alone. I will go to the parliament, and we will continue our fight in the parliament. Unfortunately, not taking the seats doesnt lead to any legal consequence for the operation of the parliament. This means that if we do not take the mandates, the parliament continues operating, he said, adding that if their bloc decides to enter into the parliament, they will be an opposition. Our fight will continue, we will not stop it and will also use the parliament to make our fight stronger.

Armenia held snap parliamentary elections on June 20.

21 political parties and 4 blocs were running for parliament.

Accordingly, the Civil Contract party led by caretaker Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan received 53.92% of the votes, the Armenia bloc led by 2nd President of Armenia Robert Kocharyan  21.04%, I Have the Honor bloc  5.23%, CEC Chairman Tigran Mukuchyan said at the Committees extraordinary session.

1 million 282 thousand 411 citizens or 49.4% of the voters cast their ballot in the early elections.

4682 ballots were declared invalid.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem Archbishop Nourhan Manougian has sent a congratulatory letter to Armenias caretaker Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on the occasion of his Civil Contract partys victory in the early parliamentary elections.

We will pray that you contribute to the establishment of solidarity in the homeland and implement the expectations of our people, raising Armenias and Artsakhs security, reforming the Armenian Army and contributing to the restoration of its combat preparedness, developing the economy and improving the social conditions of our homeland, Archbishop Nourhan Manougian said in his letter, stating that he is looking forward to meeting with Pashinyan in the Holy Land.

Armenia held snap parliamentary elections on June 20.

21 political parties and 4 blocs were running for parliament.

Accordingly, the Civil Contract party led by caretaker Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan received 53.92% of the votes, the Armenia bloc led by 2nd President of Armenia Robert Kocharyan  21.04%, I Have the Honor bloc  5.23%, CEC Chairman Tigran Mukuchyan said at the Committees extraordinary session.

1 million 282 thousand 411 citizens or 49.4% of the voters cast their ballot in the early elections.

4682 ballots were declared invalid.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. Armenia will host the Summit of Minds, an annual event taking place in the French resort area of Chamonix, for the third time in October 2021, the Presidential Office told Armenpress.

The Summit of Minds is a major event gathering over 300 politicians, scientists, businessmen-investors, heads of large companies and media outlets from all over the world. The event aims at presenting new ideas on issues of global importance, establishing reliable partnering relations through direct discussions.

This year the Armenian Summit of Minds will be held in Dilijan at the Training-Research Center of the Central Bank. This decision was announced by co-organizers of the event  Armenias President Armen Sarkissian, Central Bank President Martin Galstyan and The Monthly Barometer founder Thierry Malleret during an online meeting with the summit participants.

I think many of us miss the Summit of Minds. This year it will be held in several locations - Chamonix, Dilijan and Washington. These three summits show that people are really interested in the opinions voiced by the participants about this or that particular issue, the Armenian President said in his welcoming remarks.

The meeting touched upon the main topics to be discussed at the Summit, relating to the geopolitics in South Caucasus, technology development issues.

The Summit of Minds must continue in Armenia, must examine the future of special technologies  artificial intelligence, biotechnologies, in order to understand what 2021 differs from 2019, the Armenian President said.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and all Russia has sent a congratulatory letter to Armenian President Armen Sarkissian on birthday, the Presidential Office told Armenpress.

The message reads:

Gaining the peoples trust and holding a high state position you are fulfilling the duties trusted to you with responsibility and bring huge contribution to the public unity for the sake of the countrys dignified future.

The fact that you make efforts so that your compatriots do not forget their spiritual roots, respect the national history and culture, preserve the heritage of the ancestors with care, is appreciated.

I wish you spiritual strength, the Gods help and success to your work, and to the people of Armenia  peace and welfare.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
GYUMRI, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. Talks are underway with the Russian side over the deployment of Russian border guards in Armenias Gegharkunik province, Armenian caretaker deputy prime minister Tigran Avinyan said during a briefing in Gyumri.

He, however, noted that this can happen only in case of the complete withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenias territory.

Avinyn said Armenia will not change its position over the border situation.

The Azerbaijani armed forces must pull back from Armenias sovereign territory, and we will spare no efforts for this. There is a discussion with the Russian side, but the Russian peacekeepers will be deployed only when the Azerbaijani forces pull back, he said.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. President of Italy Sergio Mattarella sent a congratulatory letter to Armenian President on birthday, the Armenian Presidential Office told Armenpress.

I would like to reaffirm my intention to further develop and deepen the sincere friendly ties that unite our countries.

I am sure your upcoming state visit to Italy will be a good occasion to think about the results registered together and the possibilities of further developing the bilateral relations.

With the friendship spirit and war memories of our meetings both in Yerevan and Rome, I once again address my warm congratulations and wishes of personal and family welfare to you, the Italian President said in his letter.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. The three-member faction of the Denk political party of the Dutch parliament, well known for servicing the interests of Turkey and Azerbaijan in the Netherlands, has changed its position and joined the resolution adopted by the parliament last week, calling on the foreign minister to pressure Azerbaijan at a European level to immediately release the Armenian prisoners of war and other civilian captives.

Denk party is well known for promoting the interests of the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The party is usually elected to the parliament with the votes received from the Turkish community.
ROME, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. Members of Parliament of Italy from Lega party Massimiliano Capitanio and Giulio Centemero have made a statement, calling for the release of the Armenian prisoners of war, held in Azerbaijan, without preconditions.

ARMENPRESS reports, ANSA published the statement of the Italian MPs, presented below,

Azerbaijan continues holding numerous Armenian prisoners of war as hostages for using them in political negotiations with the support of Turkey. We have been informed that recently a concerning video showing the conversation of the Turkish and Azerbaijani Presidents has appeared on the internet, which confirms the fact that Armenian captives are being held in Azerbaijan illegally and are being used for the exchange of maps of mined territories or for other concessions. Clarity and urgent, tough position from all international colleagues is necessary on this issue in order to stop the speculations on human lives.

We expect our government to make its voice heard as soon as possible, expressing its position against those who continue violating all provisions of the international humanitarian law.

Therefore, we urge that all POWs and detained civilians are immediately released and repatriated without preconditions.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, sent a congratulatory message to the President of the Republic, Armen Sarkissian, on his birthday, the Armenian Presidents Office told Armenpress.

He highly appreciated President Armen Sarkissian's contribution to the strengthening of Armenia's international position and the development of Armenian-Kazakh relations.

I am convinced that continuing our constructive dialogue at a high level will further contribute to the expansion of Armenian-Kazakh cooperation both within the framework of bilateral and integration alliances. It fully corresponds to the interests of the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Kazakhstan, reads the congratulatory message of Tokayev.
YEREVAN, 23 JUNE, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs Armenpress that today, 23 June, USD exchange rate down by 1.06 drams to 512.01 drams. EUR exchange rate up by 1.61 drams to 611.34 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate up by 0.04 drams to 7.05 drams. GBP exchange rate up by 3.19 drams to 714.82 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price down by 60.49 drams to 29219.99 drams. Silver price down by 0.63 drams to 427.51 drams. Platinum price up by 244.40 drams to 17399.81 drams.
* More than 40 countries back statement voicing concerns

* Call for prompt visit by UN rights boss Bachelet

* China rejects statement as driven by 'political motives' (Adds China's rebuttal on Tuesday)

By Stephanie Nebehay

GENEVA, June 22 (Reuters) - More than 40 countries urged China on Tuesday to allow the U.N. human rights chief immediate access to Xinjiang to look into reports that more than a million people have been unlawfully detained there, some subjected to torture or forced labour.

The joint statement on China was read out by Canadian Ambassador Leslie Norton on behalf of countries including Australia, Britain, France, Germany, Japan and the United States to the U.N. Human Rights Council.

Beijing denies all allegations of abuse of Uyghurs and describes the camps as vocational training facilities to combat religious extremism.

"Credible reports indicate that over a million people have been arbitrarily detained in Xinjiang and that there is widespread surveillance disproportionately targeting Uyghurs and members of other minorities and restrictions on fundamental freedoms and Uyghur culture," the joint statement said.

"We urge China to allow immediate, meaningful and unfettered access to Xinjiang for independent observers, including the High Commissioner," it added, referring to Michelle Bachelet.

Bachelet told the council on Monday that she hoped to agree on terms for a visit this year to China, including Xinjiang, to examine reports of serious violations against Muslim Uyghurs.

Her office has been negotiating access since September 2018.

Jiang Yingfeng, a senior diplomat at China's mission to the United Nations in Geneva, rejected the statement on Tuesday as interference driven by "political motives".

"We welcome the visit by the High Commissioner to China, to Xinjiang. This visit is for promoting exchanges and cooperation rather than an investigation based on so-called presumption of guilt," he told the council without giving a timeline.

Story continues

The Canadian-led statement cited reports of torture, forced sterilisation, sexual violence and forced separation of children from their parents.

It decried a law imposed a year ago in Hong Kong against what China deems secession and terrorism. The first trials are due to begin this week of people arrested under the legislation.

"We continue to be deeply concerned about the deterioration of fundamental freedoms in Hong Kong under the National Security Law and about the human rights situation in Tibet," it said.

Jiang said: "Since the national security law, Hong Kong has witnessed change from chaos to rule of law." (Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by William Maclean and Jonathan Oatis)
The alleged leader of an Asian drug syndicate who has been compared to Mexican drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman is fighting extradition to Australia, saying he would not get a fair trial there.

Tse Chi Lop, a Chinese-born Canadian citizen, was arrested in January at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport at the request of Australian police while in transit from Taiwan to Canada.

He has denied wrongdoing and is contesting extradition with his lawyer, arguing that Australian authorities essentially engineered his expulsion from Taiwan to Canada on a flight with a stopover in the Netherlands so he could be nabbed there.

While Australia has extradition treaties with both the Netherlands and Canada, Tse's lawyer argued in court on Tuesday that Dutch extradition policies were more advantageous for Australian law enforcement.

"If Australia was involved in inappropriately turning my client over to the Netherlands, his fair trial rights have already been violated," lawyer Andre Seebregts told Reuters after the hearing.

He asked judges to investigate the circumstances of the arrest before deciding on extradition.

Prosecutors said the circumstances of Tse's expulsion from Taiwan were not relevant.

Australian investigators say Tse's organisation dominates the $US70 billion ($A93 billion)-a-year Asia-Pacific drug trade.

Jeremy Douglas, Southeast Asia and Pacific representative for the UN drugs agency UNODC, told Reuters in 2019 that "Tse Chi Lop is in the league of El Chapo or maybe Pablo Escobar," referring to Latin America's most notorious drug lords.

Tse, 57, spoke briefly in court to protest his innocence.

"Mass media are calling me a drug kingpin but that is not true," ANP news agency quoted him as telling the judges through interpreters.

He added that he was scared Australian judges would be biased against him.

The Rotterdam court is expected on July 2 to rule on the extradition request or order additional investigations into the circumstances of Tse's arrest.
With most of New Yorks pandemic restrictions lifted, many employers are targeting early September as the time they will return employees to regular work stations and end or limit work-from-home arrangements, business leaders say.

Business managers are thirsting for guidance on how best to make the pivot from remote or hybrid arrangements to the full-time return of workers to office settings.

I man a hotline for our members and were getting flooded with calls so everyone can clarify what the requirements are and clarify what they can and cannot do, said Frank Kerbein, director for human resources at the Business Council of the State of New York.

The approach most often being taken by employers, Kerbein said, is: Lets get everyone back but lets get back into this slowly.

Though approximately 70% of New York adults have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccinations and the state has been inching towards herd immunity levels, Kerbein said businesses will be keeping safety precautions in place.

Statistics show that transmission didnt happen in the workplace, he said.It happened in other places. But employers dont want their workers to get sick and so they are keeping the precautions.
Govt-and-politics

ELECTIONS

Army veteran challenging Rep. John Katko for Congress

Provided Steven Holden is a U.S. Army veteran and Democrat seeking the party's nomination to challenge Republican U.S. Rep. John Katko.

Steven Holden isn't a central New York native, but he wants to give back to the region he now calls home.

Holden, a Democrat, is running for Congress in 2022. He is aiming to unseat Republican U.S. Rep. John Katko, who is in his fourth term representing Cayuga, Onondaga and Wayne counties, plus the western part of Oswego County.

Now a Camillus resident, Holden was born and raised in Oklahoma. He told The Citizen in an interview Friday that his grandfather was best friends with another Oklahoma native, New York Yankees great Mickey Mantle.

Holden is a retired lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army. His career as an Army finance officer included four combat tours  two to Afghanistan and two to Iraq. During his first deployment to Iraq from 2003 to 2004, he oversaw financing for the mission to capture Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. He returned to Iraq from 2005 to 2006 and was a comptroller and financial manager under H.R. McMaster, who was a lieutenant general in the Army before his stint as national security adviser in the Trump administration.

The aftermath of that second deployment was difficult, Holden revealed. He says he lost people who were close to him. It was during that time the Army sent him to Syracuse University to earn his Master of Business Administration and Master of Public Administration degrees at the Maxwell and Whitman schools  McMaster wrote one of his letters of recommendation. While in Syracuse, he met his wife, who is also an Army veteran. They married in 2007.

However, he still had Army commitments to fulfill. He was transferred to Florida, where he worked under Marine Gen. James Mattis  he later served as Trump's secretary of defense  and Army Gen. David Petraeus, who would go on to become CIA director in the Obama administration.

In 2010, he deployed to Afghanistan to help "stand up" the Afghan military. His second tour in Afghanistan was from 2013-14 when he managed over $1 billion. After retiring from the Army, he became a contractor and was sent to assist the Afghan Air Force.

After the contract was canceled due to COVID-19, he returned to the U.S. He is now teaching contract, finance and leadership courses for federal government employees about 17 days a month. He also has a side business to help veterans win government contracts.

As he and his wife, a Liverpool native, looked to settle down, she wanted to move back to central New York. They bought a house in Camillus.

"Being in the military, you often get to pick where (home) is," said Holden, who has been stationed at Army posts across the country. "I fell in love with this area when I was here, needless to say, when I fell in love with my wife."

Running for Congress, he says, is something he's wanted to do for a long time. He considered running in 2018, but his professional obligations got in the way.

Holden filed with the Federal Election Commission  a necessary step to raise campaign funds  and he launched a website. He has posted a series of videos detailing his positions on issues ranging from health care and foreign policy to education and the middle class.

He believes protecting voting rights is one of the most important issues and supports the For the People Act and John Lewis Voting Rights Act that have been introduced in Congress. He is a proponent of a Medicare-for-All system, but thinks it should be phased in. He also advocates for legislation to lower prescription drug prices and raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour.

Holden hopes to improve health care for veterans if he's elected to Congress. He shared his own experience of having to drive to Buffalo for certain services that aren't offered at the Syracuse VA center.

Infrastructure, cybersecurity and taxes would be priorities, too. He criticized Katko's vote for the 2017 tax law, which he thinks raised taxes for some central New Yorkers.

He considers himself to be balanced on issues and highlighted his knowledge of budget and fiscal issues.

"That is my strong suit," he said. "But I also have a strong background in foreign policy, particularly some of the hot points around the world."

It is unknown what congressional district Holden will be running in next year. Congressional district maps will be redrawn and New York lost a House seat. There is a strong possibility that central New York could be carved up into different districts.

Regardless of what district he's in, Holden is certain  if he wins the Democratic nomination  that his opponent will be Katko. Like Holden, Katko lives in Camillus.

For now, Holden's focus is on building his campaign team and getting his name out to central New York voters.

"No matter what's going to happen, this area deserves strong leadership," he said. "We should know that there's going to be a consistent voice, not someone who is going to have a voice that every now and then might get a moment of clarity."

It is also an opportunity for Holden to give back to a community that took in an Oklahoma native and to honor his wife's family that is rooted in central New York.

This region, he says, is home. And he hopes to represent his adopted home in Congress.

"This is something that I really wanted to do for a long time," Holden said. "It's now coming to fruition."
"We're using the ability of firemen who are trusted within their community to help spread the word and help engage people to take up the offering," Purdy said.

Local health officials are aware of the numbers and where Cayuga County ranks compared to other counties. According to the state Department of Health, 58.2% of adults age 18 and older have received at least one vaccine dose in Cayuga County. Nearly half of all residents (49.2%) have been given one dose and 45.2% are fully vaccinated.

In the central New York region, which includes Cayuga, Cortland, Madison, Onondaga and Oswego counties, Cayuga has the second-lowest vaccination rates among adults and the overall population. Nearly three-quarters of adults in neighboring Onondaga County have received at least one dose and 56% of the total population is fully vaccinated.

Purdy expressed some frustration that the vaccination rates haven't increased much lately.

"We're just churning all that we can to try to move that number," she said.

Cuddy is encouraged by the progress made at recent clinics. However, she recognizes that it's going to take more effort to increase the vaccination rate.
Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy has been negotiating for weeks with individual Republicans to see if there is legislation that could win enough votes for passage. One option is to narrow the scope of the House bill and expand background checks only to commercial sales like gun shows. Most Republicans oppose regulating private sales between individuals, as the House bill would do, but some have said they would support tougher regulation of gun shows.

Biden will seek increased transparency on gun data and better coordination among states, and he will push Congress for more money for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the agency responsible for enforcing federal gun laws and regulating gun dealers. The Justice Department is also launching strike forces in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., to help take down illegal gun traffickers.

Police officials have said they are struggling with increasing crime and continued tensions between police and communities; some say their calls for support aren't answered as they take the blame for the spike. Biden noted that $350 billion of the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package can be used by cities to hire law enforcement officers, pay overtime, prosecute gun traffickers and invest in technology to make law enforcement more efficient.
MOSCOW (AP)  The leader of Myanmar's military junta on Wednesday attended an international conference in Moscow, an appearance that reflected Russia's eagerness to develop ties with the junta despite international criticism.

The military in Myanmar ousted the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi on Feb. 1, claiming her partys landslide victory in an election last November was due to massive voter fraud. It has not produced credible evidence to back its claim.

Myanmar's security forces have brutally suppressed widespread popular protests against the military takeover, killing hundreds of protesters and carrying out waves of arrests.

The junta's leader, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, claimed in Wednesday's speech that it was trying to consolidate a democratic system in the country that has degraded.

Currently, Myanmar is striving for political stability, he said at the conference organized by Russias Defense Ministry. "The previous government mocked democracy by rigging the election. Due to the dishonesty of the NLD government, our current government has taken steps to restore integrity to democracy.
Elon Musk, one of the worlds richest men, says a $50,000 abode near Brownsville, Texas, is his primary home these days. He has tweeted that hes made some improvements to the house, without specifying what they are.

But earlier this year, Tesla Inc. employees traveled to Brownsville to install the companys Solar Roof on that bungalow and several other houses on Weems Street that are owned by another Musk company, SpaceX. The construction project gave Musk an up-close look at a challenge thats been vexing him.

Musk has many priorities competing for his attention, but recently has become intensely focused on Teslas Solar Roof, a niche product that enjoys demand from wealthy consumers but has proven to be a bear to install more cost effectively. While Solar Roof is only a small slice of Teslas business, it is essential to Musks vision for the company to evolve from an electric-car maker to something much grander: a one-stop shop for a households clean energy needs. Teslas stated mission is to accelerate the worlds transition to sustainable energy," and Musk has been talking up the benefits of solar and the free fusion reactor in the sky" for years.

Frustrated with the Solar Roofs progress, Musk has fired many of the executives and directors on the program, raised prices for consumers and gotten more heavily involved in its details. He is keen to improve the amount of time it takes for workers to install the Solar Roof and helped crews with some of the installations on Weems Street, according to people familiar with the matter. If the Solar Roof is a flop, it would represent an unfulfilled promise  a puzzle he couldnt solve. Tesla and Musk did not respond to an e-mailed list of questions.

Musks focus on the Solar Roof comes as court proceedings loom in a critical shareholder lawsuit. When Musk first unveiled the product in 2016, Tesla was in the process of acquiring SolarCity  the solar panel installer where Musk was chairman and the largest shareholder, and his cousins ostensibly ran the company. The deal was rife with conflicts. Though a majority of investors ultimately approved it, dissenting pension funds contend that Teslas board rolled over for Musk in saying yes to a $2 billion buyout.

After years of discovery, contentious depositions and delays because of the coronavirus pandemic, the lawsuit is set to begin trial in Delaware on July 12. Musk is slated to testify, according to court filings. The trial could put fresh attention on Solar Roofs business potential, given that it will examine the decision to put SolarCity under Teslas wing.

Teslas solar offering resembles a sleek shingle, with photovoltaic solar cells embedded within tempered glass  a more subtle look than traditional solar panels that sit like hulking slabs on a roof. It needs to be beautiful, affordable and seamlessly integrated," Musk said at the 2016 launch event for the product, held on the Los Angeles-area set of Desperate Housewives." Youll want to call your neighbors over and say, check out this sweet roof."

Nearly five years later, Musk is frustrated by how few customers can make such a boast. In 2019, when heralding a version of Solar Roof he pledged would be cheaper, faster and easier to install, Musk set a goal to install more than 1,000 of them a week and vowed sales would grow like kelp on steroids."

But Tesla has struggled to hit 200 installations a week, much less 1,000, according to people familiar with the matter. And affordability has proven elusive. In April, Tesla jacked up the price of the Solar Roof, leading to cancellations from customers. In some cases, price hikes of more than 50% came after buyers were already under contract, according to a lawsuit filed in federal court in Northern California on behalf of customers in several states. The willingness to raise prices suggests Musk is no longer prioritizing growth at all costs for Solar Roof, but has shifted focus to the divisions balance sheet.

That created a sense of whiplash for Eric Weddle, an executive at a roofing company in the Midwest that is one of the nations first Tesla-certified installers of the Solar Roof.

For Tesla, there is a lot of pressure to go fast and deploy fast," said Weddle, who is Chief Financial Officer of Weddle and Sons. They tried to build a roofing company overnight. From our perspective, it seemed like the directive was to go fast and do more installations, period. And then suddenly, out of left field, came this sudden urge to get on a path to profitability."

The slow rollout and swerve on pricing dont reflect lackluster demand. Rather, if Musks 2018 race to manufacture the Model 3 was  production hell," you can think of his Solar Roof problem as installation hell.

The company is coming to grips with how vastly different it is to fine-tune roof projects than to fix issues on an automobile assembly line. Every homes roof is unique, including its size, pitch, angle and age. Unforeseen problems can pop up, like rotting beams or termite damage. Permits, which involve bureaucracy, are required, and the process varies widely depending on location. Crews, spread out across the country, need to be trained.

Installation hell is a human-centric problem, and a diffuse one. Musk cant sleep on the couch of every home getting a Solar Roof, like he claims he did at Teslas factory when he got in the engineering weeds to help salvage the Model 3. On Teslas most recent earnings call, Musk acknowledged that his team made significant mistakes in assessing the difficulty of certain roofs," said that demand remained strong despite price hikes and announced that we will not sell a house solar without a Powerwall," referring to Tesla's home battery product.

Production is going fine, but we are choked at the installation point," Musk said on the April 26 earnings call.

The installation process for a typical roof is straightforward. Materials arrive at the job site and a small crew installs the composition asphalt shingles with a nail gun. When shingles need to fit around chimneys or vents, workers cut them to size onsite. But the tempered glass used in Teslas product cannot easily be cut in the field. The company tried making specialty parts ahead of time, but that sent the number of parts for each job higher, and added more inventory to track.

The Solar Roof is not an easy product to install, its not a cheap product, and its going to take a lot of time to dial it in and bring the cost down," said Mohammed Abdalla, the CEO of Good Faith Energy, another Tesla-certified installer in Texas.

This reporter lives in a 1,295-square-foot house in Oakland, California with no air conditioning and relatively low electricity use. When I punched my address and average electric bill into Teslas online calculator, an instant quote came back: the cash price for the Solar Roof would be $47,774: $37,274 for the roof and $10,500 for a Powerwall. The estimate did not include sales tax or the cost of permits.

In mid-April, Musk held a teleconference with key leaders from the Solar Roof program. RJ Johnson, the head of Tesla Energy, was on the call, as was Ryan Nungesser, the director of operations at Teslas factory in Buffalo, New York, where the Solar Roof is made.

A few minutes in, Musk fired them both, according to several participants on the call. They found the double whammy dumbfounding because replacements were not announced. Since then, scores of other directors and managers have been purged. Many people reached declined to comment but confirmed they were no longer at Tesla.

Will Tesla be able to ramp up to 1,000 Solar Roofs a week? Only if Musk cuts his prices significantly and almost gives it away," said Paula Mints, the chief market research analyst for SPV Market Research in San Jose, California. Residential solar is more popular than ever, but he has a niche product that costs more."

Its unlikely Musk will back away from Solar Roof, whatever its challenges. Instead, he seems hell-bent on making it work.

No one seems to be worried about the future of the program. Everyone is just worried about the people connected to the program," said Weddle, one of the certified installers. We still dont know whos running things, and I dont think Tesla does either."
Dison said in the worst-case scenario, the county has an emergency declaration written and ready in case it needs it.

The county also has plans prepared in case a go order to evacuate is given, Dison said. He said they have surveyed a number of locations in Flagstaff that could act as shelters, but that those announcements would only come if the order to evacuate is called.

McGrath said there are now 140 personnel working the fire total. He said that, so far, the Prescott National Forest is managing the southern portion of the fire while the Kaibab National Forest is managing the northern section. Only a small portion of the fire is burning on the Coconino National Forest, McGrath said.

Fire spokesperson Noel Fletcher told the Arizona Daily Sun there were at least two hotshot crews and six fire engines working the fire Tuesday. Those crews had been working the Rock Butte Fires farther to the west, but were pulled off to begin working on the Rafael Fire, Fletcher said.

McGrath said terrain in the area has both been helpful and a challenge to them in different ways.

The fire has been burning downhill as it enters Sycamore and Tule canyons and McGrath said that is one reason the fires growth likely slowed. Fire generally prefers to burn uphill.
Fletcher said that is not the case on the eastern side of the fire, where the blaze appears to be advancing. Fletcher said in that area, it is likely that aircraft would be used against the fire, but it may be too dangerous for crews on the ground.

A top tier incident team is prepared to take over management of the fire at 6 a.m. tomorrow, according to local forest officials.

Original article, 10 a.m.: While communities in Coconino County remain at the set status, the Rafael Fire forced some areas of Yavapai County to evacuate Tuesday night.

Several rural ranches were evacuated in the area north of Forest Road 525 and Bill Grey Road west of Sedona. Those areas are largely south and southeast of the fire.

Fire managers say the Rafael Fire grew only a little throughout Tuesday but the blaze crossed Tule Canyon, burning up to Sycamore Point. And the fire grew farther to the east, crossing Sycamore Canyon and beginning to burn on Casner Mountain.

With the help of a flyover on Tuesday, fire officials estimate the Rafael Fire to be about 24,191 acres.
But she said it wasnt until she got back home and started working that she decided to create enough paintings from the trip to make up an entire show.

It was like I was still in the canyon, she said of the way she immersed herself in the project over the last few years.

Taylor originally was scheduled to show the work at the San Juan College Art Gallery. But with that facility still closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, she happily accepted an invitation from Farmington Museum director Bart Wilsey to move the exhibition to that institution.

Most of the paintings in Taylors show focus on terra firma, rather than the river itself, and she said her apprehension about the rapids she would encounter on the trip certainly gave her pause.

I never had a desire to do the rapids, she said, laughing.

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Taylor made the trip in a large pontoon boat, so the experience wasnt quite as adventurous as it would have been in a normal, smaller raft, she said. At one point, the boat did get lodged between two rocks, but the three women guides who were leading Taylors 12-person group quickly got the craft headed in the right direction.
Interior Department officials said aside from trying to shed more light on the loss of life at the boarding schools, they will be working to protect burial sites associated with the schools and will consult with tribes on how best to do that while respecting families and communities.

As part of the initiative, a final report from agency staff is due by April 1, 2022.

Chuck Hoskin Jr., principal chief of the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma, which had about 80 boarding schools, called the announcement encouraging and said anything that can be done to address those troubling chapters of history is a positive thing.

I hope we dont discover gruesome incidents like were discovered in Canada. I just think its good in this country to have conversations about what happened to Native American children, Hoskin said.

Navajo Nation President Nez also offered his support for the initiative, noting discrimination against Native Americans continues today on many fronts  from voter suppression to high numbers of missing and murdered people.
CAIRO  The owner and insurers of the enormous container ship that blocked the Suez Canal for six days in March and disrupted global shipping have reached a settlement with the Egyptian authorities, one of the insurers said on Wednesday.

The insurers statement did not specify the amount, but said that once the settlement was formalized, the ship  after nearly three months of haggling, finger-pointing and court hearings  would finally complete its journey through the canal.

Following extensive discussions with the Suez Canal Authoritys negotiating committee over the past few weeks, an agreement in principle between the parties has been reached, said a statement from the insurer UK P & I Club. Together with the owner and the ships other insurers we are now working with the S.C.A. to finalize a signed settlement agreement as soon as possible.

A spokesman for the UK Club said it would not be releasing further details. The Suez Canal Authority had not commented on the deal by Wednesday afternoon.
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Hukou Waterfall in Jixian county, Shanxi province, is providing a spectacular scene for tourists to view rushing water being made a clear distinction between purity and impurity. [Photo by Lyu Guiming/for chinadaily.com.cn]



As a result of recent heavy rainfall in the upper reaches of the Yellow River, Hukou Waterfall in Jixian county, Shanxi province, is providing a spectacular scene for tourists.

Located in the border area between Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces, the Hukou Waterfall is the second-largest in China and the largest on the Yellow River. The tremendous mass of water strikes the rocks, creating piles of foam, a shroud of mist and thundering roar that can be heard miles away.
















With faith and hard work, Vannette is bringing Asian flavors to Big Sky country.

Stella Fong, author of 'Historic Restaurants of Billings and Billings Food' hosts 'Flavors Under the Big Sky: Celebrating the Bounty of the Region' for Yellowstone Public Radio.

TheLastBestPlates.com is a digital destination that serves up Montana's tasty food, travel and culture stories  one bite at a time.
Yellowstone County moved its administrative offices to the building's third floor in 2018. The basement, first, second and fourth floor are still vacant. County commissioners are currently debating whether to move operations from the Stillwater to the Miller Building downtown.

The most recent hurdle in talks between the city and WC Commercial was a disagreement over the building's appraisal process. Holden, in a letter to Mayor Bill Cole and City Council in early June, expressed frustration with that appraisal process.

"If the city would have made it clear at the onset of the appraisal process your goal was to poison the well and do everything possible to reduce the appraised price, we would have not wasted our time with this exercise," Holden wrote.

Holden had not responded by press time to a request for comment sent to him on Tuesday.

Elkhorn Appraisal Services, the company hired by WC Commercial, appraised the Stillwater at $22 million. The city's appraisal, performed by National Valuation Consultants, put the market value of the Stillwater at $12.6 million.

Finally, a third independent appraiser was brought in to evaluate the building and the two previous appraisals.
The Western Heritage Center will join the Montana Beekeepers Association in offering a free High Noon program on Thursday, June 24, at 12 p.m.

Megan OReilly, a Wildlife Biologist from Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, will present Bats! Exploring Biology and Pollination as part of Pollinators Week.

The Montana Beekeepers Association originally scheduled this program for their members, but have opened the presentation to the public. OReilly is a popular local speaker and human-wildlife interaction specialist. She is passionate about bats and the many ways in which they benefit humans and the rest of our ecosystem. In particular, she will dispel some myths about bats, and introduce us to their fascinating world as she explains how they play a crucial role in plant pollination.

O'Reilly has a masters degree in fish and wildlife management from Montana State University, and has done extensive research in additional topics, such as methods for conducting occupancy surveys for mountain ungulates.
Cercy has maintained his innocence through the investigation and trials. He testified at his first trial that he didn't have sexual contact with the woman. He did not take the stand at his second trial.

A message left for the woman's lawyer Tuesday was not immediately returned. Nor was a message left for Cercy's trial attorney.

Cercy's accuser had visited Alcova Reservoir on June 25, 2017. She spent the day boating and relaxing. At about 10 p.m., she and friends went to Cercy's lake house. There was a party happening at the time, and the woman was, the suit says, very intoxicated. She fell asleep on the couch shortly after arriving.

The lawsuit states the woman woke to find her clothes had been removed and Cercy sexually assaulting her on the couch sometime early the next morning. She pushed him away, according to the suit, and contacted friends for help.

Cercy, the suit claims, tried to convince her to stay. The woman left on foot and said Cercy pulled up alongside her in a side-by-side recreational vehicle and told her to get in. He drove her to a trailer belonging to one of her friends, the lawsuit states, in a reckless and dangerous manner before dropping her off a few trailers away.

It was at that point, according to the suit, that the woman says Cercy threatened to have her killed if she told anyone.

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The 50-year-old woman who was imprisoned at the Montana Women's Prison when she died June 8 succumbed to asphyxiation due to hanging, according to her death certificate.

Lisa Nester had recently escaped from the women's prison in Billings and had been returned by the U.S. Marshals Service Montana Violent Offender Task Force, the Billings Gazette reported. The events took place roughly three weeks before she was found hanging by a bedsheet.

The Daily Montanan first reported the cause of death on Monday. Her common-law husband told the Daily Montanan Nester's death was "a big shock" and that he plans to attend the inquest, which has not yet been scheduled.
Two years ago, NorthWestern supported the different approach to covering fixed costs, as many utilities have in recent years. Fixed costs have been become harder to cover over the years as America consumes less energy. The expenses were so bound to the energy ratepayers actually consumed, that when those customers consumed less electricity the money collected for fixed costs fell too low. The solution offered up was decoupling, which meant coming up with a fixed cost price that consumers had to cover no matter how much energy they used.

Utilities liked the new approach because it assured fixed costs were covered. Conservationists like the approach because it ended a perverse incentive for utilities to encourage customers to use more energy and, in the process, generate more pollution related to power plants burning fossil fuels.

In fact, those Montana businesses that spent $10.5 million less on electricity in 2020 would have faced a surcharge of $400,000 to cover fixed costs had the pilot program been in place, an argument made by Hensley and PSC staff.

A good place to start I think, Mr. Hensley, is Mr. McGraw's argument that perhaps this is a case of buyers remorse that were considering today, PSC Chairman James Brown asked the attorney.
With elk and deer populations at record levels, there is no need to kill any wolves, but this commission is likely to rubber stamp the slaughter of wolves to promote trapping and get people into our forests with the lure of a $1,000 bounty on wolves. This action will make our public lands minefields of traps, snares and suffering. Your family pets and children are at risk, all so less than half of 1% of the people of this state can enjoy the suffering and killing of beautiful animals, to support their craven desire to torture wildlife.

Trapping is not a sport, nor is it fair chase. It is a sickness that lingers in Montana, one that needs to be ended. Our proposal would have made areas that are high use recreational areas around Missoula off limits to trapping. We are working on similar proposals for other Montana communities. But this governor and commission have made sure our voice is stifled.

We must make clear that trapping has no place in our modern society, that the killing of wolves cannot be allowed to occur.

President Biden must act to relist wolves to prevent this slaughter, and he should go a step further and use his executive powers to ban trapping on public lands. The case is clear that our state cannot manage wildlife properly, it needs federal oversight and must be stopped from killing 1,000 wolves this coming fall.
The judge who for five years has presided over the Standing Rock Sioux Tribes fight against the Dakota Access Pipeline dismissed the case Tuesday but outlined a path for a future legal challenge to an ongoing environmental review, should the tribe seek to make one.

U.S. District Judge James Boasberg issued a brief order indicating that if the tribe plans to challenge the outcome of the study, expected to conclude in March 2022, it must do so in the form of a new lawsuit that would be assigned to his court. He left open the possibility of reopening the case should any previous orders he made concerning the pipeline be violated.

Boasberg answered the major lingering issues in the litigation in May when he ruled that the pipeline could keep operating. Standing Rock had asked him to issue an injunction forcing the line to stop pumping oil, but he concluded the tribe had failed to demonstrate a likelihood of irreparable injury from the lines continued operation.
A man who was shot by Fargo police six years ago and has a history of drug convictions in Burleigh and Rolette counties now faces drug charges in McLean County.

Karmen Redshirt, 36, was a passenger in a car that pulled to the side of U.S. Highway 83 with a flat tire on Monday. A deputy stopped to check on the vehicle and a K-9 later indicated the presence of drugs. Redshirt and the driver, Sara Gellner, of Fargo, were arrested when a sheriffs deputy found syringes, marijuana pipes, and 10 grams of methamphetamine in a false-bottomed cologne can, according to an affidavit.

Gellner and Redshirt are charged with felony possession of drugs with intent to deliver and possession of paraphernalia. Attorneys arent listed for them in court documents.

Redshirt in September 2015 pointed a laser-sighted BB gun at a Fargo officer after a car chase that ended in a Walmart parking lot. The officer shot him in the abdomen. His recovery from the incident was a spiritual awakening, Redshirt told East Central District Judge John Irby, adding that it changed him for the better. He was sentenced to four years in prison and got out in January 2019. He served another stretch from April 2019 to June 2019 after a parole violation, according to North Dakota Parole and Probation.
PIERRE, S.D. (AP)  South Dakota's attorney general wants to keep cameras and audio recording devices out of the courtroom when he goes on trial in connection with the death of a man along a highway.

Jason Ravnsborg faces three misdemeanor charges related to his driving the night he struck and killed Joe Boever.

A court document recently filed on behalf of Ravnsborg objects to cameras or audio recordings during his trial, which is scheduled to start Aug. 26.

The attorney general is charged with careless driving, operating a vehicle while on an electronic device and driving outside of his lane.

Investigators say Ravnsborg was distracted the night of Sept. 12, swerved out of his lane near Highmore and struck the 55-year-old Boever, who was walking on the shoulder with a flashlight.

Boever crashed headfirst through the windshield of Ravnsborgs car with his glasses landing inside the vehicle, according to authorities. Ravnsborg told officials he never saw Boever and thought he struck a deer.

Hyde County Sheriff Mike Volek responded to the scene and let Ravnsborg drive his car home to Pierre. Ravnsborg said they didnt realize he hit and killed a person until he returned to the scene the next morning.
The theme of self-preservation was invoked again and again by the framers of the Constitution, and by those who approved it in the various state ratifying conventions. The concept of an exclusive state authority to regulate congressional elections, Hamilton explained, would leave the existence of the Union entirely at their mercy. State legislatures, he observed, could annihilate it by neglecting to provide for elections.

James Madison, father of the Constitution, shared Hamiltons deepest concerns. He told the Constitutional Convention that he feared uncontrolled state authority to regulate elections. He warned that it was impossible to foresee all the abuses that might be made of the discretionary power. State legislatures might make arbitrary, manipulative decisions based on purely partisan interests.

James Wilson, second in importance to Madison as an architect of the Constitution, was in full agreement and echoed Hamiltons fear that some states might make no regulations on elections, threatening the very existence of Congress and the dissolution of the Union.
Senators Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona are under a lot of pressure these days to vote in line with the other 48 Democrat senators who wish to end the filibuster. Although both houses are controlled by the Democrats, they lead by razor thin margins  hardly a mandate, but if they are successful in ending the filibuster they will dominate national politics for decades to come. Time is not on their side, it is doubtful that they will be in total control after the mid-term elections of 2022, so they must strike now.

If they can persuade the two reluctant senators to vote with them, they will be able to abolish the filibuster and pass H.R.1, a sweeping voting rights bill named the For the People Act. That law would take the control of elections from the states and give it to the federal government. It would end the requirements for voters to present an ID, introduce public financing of political campaigns, and limit the ability to remove registered voters from the rolls (like the dead). Democrats could then pack the Supreme Court, enact D.C. statehood, and pass the Green New Deal legislation.
Australia Security Insights Report

In this VMware report, 72% said attack volumes had increased in the past 12 months. 89% of those who had a cyberattack said attacks increased due to more people working from home.

This report was conducted to identify trends in hacking and malicious attacks, and the financial and reputational impact breaches had in this unprecedented year.

The frequency of attacks is high, their sophistication continues to grow, and breaches are the inevitable result. Read this report to discover how Australian organizations plans for securing new technology, adopting a cloud-first security strategy, and dealing with the complexity of the current cybersecurity management environment.
By shutting down Apple Daily, the one-party Communist dictatorship has silenced another voice of truth, furthering the states goal of absolute control over its citizens. []

Apple Daily, the last prominent, pro-democracy newspaper in Hong Kong, will shut down after midnight on June 23 and publish its final edition on June 24 after 26 years in operation.

Hong Kong police raided the newspapers headquarters on June 17 and arrested five of its senior executives and journalists, including Chief Editor Ryan Law Wai-Kwong and CEO Cheung Kim-hung, who were charged with conspiracy to collude with foreign forces. Authorities froze HK$18 million (2.3 million USD) of Apples assets, forcing the companys shutdown.

Political leaders in Hong Kong defended the raid, claiming that Apple Daily was not related to journalism. Hong Kongs Security Secretary John Lee warned media and the general public that they would regret it if they did not cut all ties with the organization. In a statement made on June 23, Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam asserted their operations were a suspicious act of endangering national security.

With the strangulation of the last pro-democracy newspaper, the complete absence of free speech and freedom of the press is becoming more and more of a reality in Communist China.

Jimmy Lai, founder, owner, and contributor to Apple Daily, is currently serving a 14-month prison sentence in Hong Kong. Lai was convicted in April for taking part in unauthorized assemblies during mass pro-democracy protests in 2019. (Lai has been recognized by the Acton Institute as a defender of free speech and was the recipient of Actons 2020 Faith and Freedom Award.)

Originally a refugee from mainland China, at the age of 12 he set off for Hong Kong. He made a billion-dollar name for himself in the fashion industry, and used his fortune to launch Apple Daily, which would go on to become one of the countrys most-read newspapers. In 2020, he summarized the newspapers purpose in an Acton interview, saying: In the media business, you deliver information, then you deliver choice, and choice is freedom.

Jimmy Lai is a heroic public figure who is one of the last protectors of truth, liberty, and freedom of speech in Communist China. By shutting down Apple Daily, the one-party Communist dictatorship has silenced another voice of truth, furthering the states goal of absolute control over its citizens.

George Orwell said there are occasions when it pays better to fight and be beaten than not to fight at all. The forced closing of Apple Daily should not extinguish the fight for freedom in Communist China. It now falls to the next generation to pick up Lais mantle, fighting for the preservation of truth to combat tyranny.
Lynsi Snyder is no stranger to our Top CEOs award! Year after year, shes consistently earned her place among the Top CEOs list due to her vast managerial experience and sharp strategy this is her 5th win! At 17 years old, she started her In-N-Out journey as a line cook and at 35, Snyder took full control of the company, becoming the youngest female billionaire in the world in the process. Although COVID-19 has affected employee morale at various organizations, In-N-Out employees boast about their strong company culture, solid compensation and commitment to growth opportunities.
Several years ago when J was in elementary school, he had this Pokemon fever and was obsessed with collecting Pokemon cards. Often after his school, I found myself driving him around the town to try to find a store that had Pokemon cards for sell. It was one of those afternoons when we were on our card-hunting trip, J, sitting in the back of the car, started to talk about a book he had just finished reading.

"They have such a perfect world." J was apparently amazed by the book. He leaned over the front seat in his safety belt to make sure I heard his voice. "It is so perfect that life in the community is always pleasant and predictable because everything is carefully planned and organized. People look the same, act the same, live in the same way, and talk in precisely chosen language so that they do not have to worry about something like competitions, differences, or choices. There are no such things as pain, fear, grief, war, or hatred."

The traffic noise sometimes drowned out one or two of his words. I concentrated on my driving and strained my ears to listen to him as well. A perfect world, I pondered, isn't that the ideal we were all taught to crave when I was an elementary kid in China?

"The boy, who is the main character of this book, receives his assignment when he becomes twelve  Everyone in the community must be assigned a field of profession, you know, as everyone's life is planned by the Committee of Elders. Marriages are also assigned. Each couple are allowed to have exactly two children, one boy, one girl.  The boy's profession is the Receiver of Memories. A Receiver has access to all the memories of the community. So the boy gets to know all the good things and bad things happened in the past."

"What is the Committee of Elders?" I interrupted, looking straight ahead as the car rattled toward a busy intersection.

"The Committee of Elders is responsible for making all of the decisions. It is like their government. The elders make sure the community stays in harmony and peacefulness. People who are different from others, who break rules, would be released. In the community, "release" means death. The community doesn't even have seasons, animals, colors, or music since those can bring emotions and disturbances." J raised his voice a bit and passionately resumed his narration, "OK, so now that the boy has been selected to be Receiver. He has received memories of humanity, going way back. The memories are from before their community was established, back when there were bright colors, extreme cold weathers, and warm sunshine. He then realizes he starts to have feelings, such as pleasure and loneliness. You know, feelings are not allowed in the community."

"Oh mine. In a perfect world that has no grief, no hatred, there is of course no love, no pleasure." I chimed in, "I haven't realized that until right now."

"The boy starts to have passion for people around him. But you know what?" J sounded extremely frustrated, "These people do not have the ability to love him back, because they do not have their own feelings!"

As time goes by, J grows up and becomes more interested in facts than in fictions. He is a little embarrassed whenever I mention his early Pokemon zeal and card collecting enthusiasm. But what I haven't mentioned to him is how, in that one ordinary afternoon, he enlightened me with this unique story and his innocent perception  A perfect world would have no room for individual liberties and personal developments. I have realized since then that how much I appreciate this beautifully imperfect thing called life, and how much I appreciate my life in this gorgeously flawed society.

Medium Link
Last week, the Polk County Health Center said it would once again share daily COVID-19 updates on social media due to an increased number of c
Niacet Corp., which employs almost 100 people as a longtime fixture on the Niagara Falls industrial scene, has been acquired by an Irish company for slightly more than $1 billion.

Kerry Group, whose businesses include food preservation and protection, said in a news release Monday that it was interested in Niacet because of the Niagara Falls company's successful food preservatives for bakery, meat and pharmaceutical products.

Kelly A. Brannen, Niacet's CEO, said the sale will not affect employment in Niagara Falls. He said he will stay on, along with the entire local management team.

However, Brannen, who owns 25% of the company, no longer will be a part owner of the firm his family bought from Union Carbide Co. in 1978.

In 2017, Brannen sold a controlling interest to SK Capital Partners of New York City. He said he and SK Capital made the decision jointly to sell to Kerry Group.

"The combination of the two companies will enhance Niacets growth prospects, allowing us to reach new markets and develop new products. It was a great outcome for the company," Brannen said.
There's only about five or six of us really that have been showing up here lately, but each of us puts up three or four kites. We can put on a pretty good show, Shaw said. I think it's the Covid thing that's been keeping people away so I'm hoping that it starts again.

Dennis Foster, another GLKS member, said he not only enjoys flying kites but he also makes his own. His kites have won four awards from the American Kitefliers Association.

He said another reason for lower membership is that people come out on a day with poor wind conditions and get discouraged.

One of the problems is, you tell people we're flying here the first and third Sunday [of every month] and they come out and there's no wind, Foster said, adding that 75% of the time thats how we fly, its up its down its up its down.

But if you stick with it and put in just an hour to learn the basics, Shaw and Foster agree that flying kites can be a transformative experience.
Cash argues, correctly, that there would be even more improvement if more families lived up to their part of his education bargain by getting kids to put in the necessary two to three hours a night on homework, then youll see achievement gains.

All of which is a roundabout way of saying the district sees no need for city involvement, even as it punts the issue by saying its a question you will need to ask each Common Council member.

Council Education Committee Chairman Bryan Bollman is meeting with Urban Think Tank members to learn more about another of their ideas: a task force to analyze the districts plan for spending the stimulus money. Hes open to it, as well as to the idea that his committee might be the vehicle for that.

As for a city governance role in district operations, he says state education law determines how districts are governed and by the time those types of changes could be implemented,  the stimulus money would probably be gone.

But though it was triggered by the influx of cash, this is an idea that should outlive the temporary windfall.
Five highlights of the Tuesday Democratic primary that appears to have elected India B. Walton as the next mayor of Buffalo:

 21,469 Democrats voted in Tuesday's primary election. 11,132 voted for apparent winner Walton. That means the new mayor takes office in January as a result of 20% backing by the city's Democrats, and about 14% of the city's registered voters.

 It appears the only way four-term incumbent Democrat Byron W. Brown, over whom Walton has claimed victory, can compete in November is through a write-in campaign. He has not filed for any minor party line, and the deadline has passed for running on an established line like Republican.

 Republicans, a tiny band of only 14,553 voters in the City of Buffalo, opted not to field a candidate this year. They now miss out on a potential opportunity for one of their own to challenge a Democratic nominee who considers herself a socialist.

 Brown becomes the first incumbent to lose the mayor's office since Democrat Frank A. Sedita in 1961, who lost to Chester Kowal  the last Republican to occupy the big, mayoral office on City Hall's second floor.
Republican Councilman Adam L. Dickman, who was passed over by Republicans and Democrats for Town Board, won the GOP and Conservative primaries Tuesday.

Mark R. Burkard won the second GOP and Conservative line in November.

Democrats endorsed Councilman Michael J. Wozniak Jr., a Conservative who aligns with Democrats, and Lancaster Village Trustee Paul H. Rudz, a registered Republican, came in third and fourth in the Republican primary. Wozniak was third and Gregory C. White were third and fourth in the Conservative primary.

Party leaders said they wanted to lower the temperature in the town, long a Democratic stronghold where the closely divided Town Board of recent years has seen infighting and a legislative stalemate.

But the political detente spurred a former Lancaster GOP chairman to launch an effort opposing the cross-endorsed Republicans, a campaign joined by the town Conservative Party.

For highway superintendent, the Democrats and Republicans cross-endorsed the incumbent, Daniel J. Amatura, who first won election to the position in 2009 and was a Town Board member before that. But Amatura lost to John R. Pilato, the town's forestry supervisor and the owner of a lawn care company, in both the Republican and Conservative primaries.
Republican and Democratic voters Tuesday turned away the candidates recommended by their parties' leaders to elect upstarts in the race for Erie County sheriff.

While the county's Republican committee wanted Karen Healy-Case as its sheriff candidate, GOP voters chose John C. Garcia, who survived an onslaught of negative campaigning from the party favorite. Both are Buffalo Police Department retirees now in the private-security business.

And while Democratic Party leaders favored Brian J. Gould, the deputy police chief in Cheektowaga, the voters made Kimberly Beaty the Democratic nominee. The former deputy commissioner for the Buffalo Police Department is now Public Safety director at Canisius College.

She was on her way to grabbing about 50% of the vote in a three-way race, according to unofficial results compiled by the county Board of Elections. Activist Myles L. Carter came in third on the Democratic side.

Garcia was the candidate favored by departing Sheriff Timothy B. Howard and by the man who ceded the office to Howard in 2005, State Sen. Patrick Gallivan. Garcia's campaign committee spent more than any other candidate in the run-up to the primary, more than $140,000.
 Thomas J. Prohaska

9:15 p.m.: Will Buffalo's mayor achieve a Borrelli Rule victory?

George Borrelli, the retired political reporter for The Buffalo News, has always classified an electoral "landslide" as winning by 10 points or more. Some pols around here still refer to the "Borrelli Rule."

Most observers expect Mayor Byron W. Brown to prevail tonight in his Democratic primary contest against India B. Walton and Le'Candice M. Durham  though anything can happen. But those handicapping the race are not betting whether Brown will win, but by how much. Will a 10-point landslide suffice? Of could he post a larger tally?

His opponents aren't buying it and are looking for an upset. But if Brown wins, his margin of victory will be scrutinized closely. Does it constitute a mandate, or just a close victory?

 Robert J. McCarthy

9 p.m.: The polls are closed in New York

Primary election voting sites across New York are now closed.

The polls, which opened at 6 a.m. today, were scheduled to close at 9 p.m., provided no voters were waiting in line.
In the 11th District  Pendleton and parts of the city and town of Lockport  Anthony J. Nemi rolled up 64% against Kevin E. Aleong.

And in the 15th District  Royalton and Hartland  Michael A. Hill rang up 57% of the vote in defeating Derek Caldwell.

The challengers generally were supported by former State Sen. George D. Maziarz, who was once the top man in Niagara County GOP politics but in the last two years has emerged as one of the loudest critics of his former allies.

But voters not only rejected the primary challengers to the three legislators, but also gave one of Maziarz's main targets, Legislator John Syracuse, a huge win in a primary for Newfane supervisor.

Maziarz had discussed running for that post himself, attacking Syracuse for seeking to hold the supervisor's post at the same as his chiropractic practice. Voters seemed unconcerned, giving Syracuse's opponent, Councilman Troy D. Barnes, only 10% of the vote.

The GOP organization had more good news from the Working Families Party County Legislature primary in the 13th District. The GOP nominee, Alderman Richard E. Abbott, won the minor line 26-19 from incumbent Democrat Anita Mullane. They will clash again in November.
Healy-Case still holds the Conservative Party line, putting the Republicans and the Conservatives in a pickle as they try to keep the Sheriffs Office as a Republican/Conservative possession and enjoy the patronage it offers.

Garcia and Healy-Case could split the vote from the countys right-leaning residents, making it easier for another candidate to take over.

Unlike Gould on the Democratic side, Healy-Case shows no sign of backing away, even though some commenters on her Facebook page urged her to do so. She issued a statement late Tuesday saying, I look forward to continuing and winning our fight to defend police on the Conservative line in November.

She did not congratulate Garcia, the retired Buffalo police detective she consistently attacked and who is favored by incumbent Sheriff Timothy B. Howard, who has opted not to seek a fifth term.

Judging by Tuesdays outcomes, the leaders of both major parties misjudged their voters. In February, Conservative Party leaders said they would give their line to Healy-Case. The Republicans, who usually work in tandem with the Conservatives, had little choice but to pass over Garcia and endorse Healy-Case.
Conservative and Democratic primary races for the Erie County Legislature awarded a second full term to a Democratic incumbent in Buffalo and strengthened the edge of another Democratic candidate, who won a Conservative Party primary, heading into the general election this November.

Primaries were decided for the 1st District, encompassing a broad swath of the City of Buffalo; the 4th District, which includes Grand Island and the city and town of Tonawanda; and the 9th District, which includes South Buffalo, Lackawanna and Hamburg.

Incumbent Howard Johnson, who has just completed his first full term, won the Democratic primary and is now a shoo-in for a second full term in an overwhelmingly Democratic district. He faced two community advocates: Samuel Herbert, a longtime resident and frequent candidate for the Common Council Fillmore District seat; and Dominique Calhoun, an activist who has recently gained prominence as part of the local police reform efforts.

The 1st District encompasses many Buffalo neighborhoods, including the Lower West Side, downtown corridor, First Ward, Lower East Side, Broadway-Fillmore, Fruit Belt, Lovejoy and Martin Luther King Park communities.
Walton, 38, was leading Brown by a significant margin late Tuesday, even scoring a majority of votes cast on primary day and in early voting. Her victory followed a left-leaning campaign that built surprising strength in finances and organization in its closing days. While Brown, 62, aired soft TV ads that seemed to reflect strength and confidence, Walton jabbed the mayor as out of touch with average voters, under investigation by a federal grand jury, and a pawn of "billionaire" donors unwilling to relinquish his 16-year grip on City Hall.

The results seem to introduce a new brand of Democratic politics to Buffalo and a rebuke to the steady hand Brown emphasized as his main attribute during a time of "renaissance."

Speaking with reporters late Tuesday, Walton was asked if she considers herself to be a socialist. Her response: "Oh, absolutely. The entire intent of this campaign is to draw down power and resources to the ground level and into the hands of the people."

A third candidate, Le'Candice M. Durham, finished far below the two leaders and did not influence the outcome.

Walton told cheering supporters at her Poize nightclub headquarters on Niagara Street that she knew all along her appeal to "ordinary working families" would prevail.
Walton then became executive director of the land trust that was created in 2017 to ensure residents  not outsiders and elected officials  control the vacant city land near the campus.

I know that when you get into neighborhoods and say, Hey, this is your money; tell me how were going to spend it to improve your neighborhood. Thats how you get people civically engaged when they see you coming to them on the ground, in their block club, in their community center and mapping out the neighborhood, she said. We didnt do it in a vacuum. We had dozens of public meetings. We put maps all over the walls. People were able to vote on what they wanted and that is how we set the vision and the tone for what we were going to do. Im excited about bringing that opportunity to all neighborhoods in Buffalo and creating truly mixed-income, high quality amenity neighborhoods where everybody can thrive.

Walton also said she "absolutely" favors term limits.
OLAF FUB SEZ: According to Oscar-winning actress Frances McDormand, born Cynthia Ann Smith on this date in 1957, The only power you have is the word no.

. . .

MARKET EXTRAS  Free yoga classes for all ages will be offered at 6 p.m. Thursdays, beginning this week, at the West Seneca Farmers Market next to West Seneca Town Hall at Union Road and Main Street. Leading classes will be Valerie Halady, fitness instructor for the West Seneca Senior Center. The market is open from 4 to 7:30 p.m. Thursdays through August.

Also on hand will be West Seneca Bikes, taking sign-ups for the weekly Thursday evening group bicycle rides from the Farmers Market that will begin July 1. For more info, visit the West Seneca Bikes page on Facebook.

. . .

DINNER TIME  A drive-through BWs barbecue to benefit Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. today at Holy Mother of the Rosary Church, 6298 Broadway, Lancaster. Chicken dinners are $11, ribs are $14. To pre-order, call 652-5485.
Its A Matter Of Life Or Death: Why We Must Teach Students About Dating Violence

Texas Governor Greg Abbott vetoed a bill aimed at requiring schools to educate kids about dating violence prevention; this education would occur once in middle school and twice in high school.

As reported by San Antonio Express-News, the Christine Blubaugh Act was named after a 16-year old girl who was murdered by her ex-boyfriend in 2000. The bipartisan bill would have given students the education they need to see the warning signs of dating violence and how to handle it.

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Abbott attempted to justify his veto by saying: These are important subjects and I respect the Senate authors good intentions, but the bill fails to recognize the right of parents to opt their children out of the instruction.

If dating violence awareness and education can save lives, why would parents opt their children out?

People are scared of education, especially on a topic that is taboo in nature. These uncomfortable but important topics seem to terrify parents who are blissfully ignorant on how their education system is failing their children.

This debate on what schools can and should teach has been long-standing, with one of the most notable issues being sex. People avoid the mention of sex, especially in the education system, as if it is the plague. But what happened when school systems replaced abstinence-based sex education with factual-based sex ed? We saw a drastic drop in teen pregnancies and an increase in the practice of safe sex. Education was met with change, and this needs to occur with dating violence as well.

There is no way to ensure that these conversations, on topics such as sex and dating, are happening in teens homes, so we must require them to happen in a classroom. Dating violence is an issue that sparks difficult conversations and cannot be met with avoidance. With 26% of women who have experienced some form of domestic violence saying that their first experience was before the age of 18, conversations need to happen; lives are at stake.

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Those who have experienced dating violence at a young age are more likely to develop an unhealthy relationship with their body, perform poorly in school, and rely heavily on drugs and alcohol. They can also fall into the very dangerous domestic violence cycle. The relationships girls fall into at a young age have a major impact on their view of intimacy, and if these relationships are violent, this can lead to a tendency to fall into unhealthy future relationships.

Education on dating violence in schools is essential, and the rejection of this bill is a step in the totally wrong direction. Dating violence is a problem that plagues our youth and a part of the solution is education. Lets move past the uncomfortable and towards the necessary.

Top Photo by Sydney Sims on Unsplash

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Payton Toomey is an editorial intern at BUST and a student at the University of Arizona studying Journalism and Information Sciences and eSociety. She loves writing about mental health, feminism and pop culture. You can follow her on Twitter @PaytonToomey.
MONTREAL and EBENE, Mauritius, June 23, 2021 /CNW Telbec/ - Members of the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) have signed a fintech co-operation agreement with the Financial Services Commission, Mauritius (FSC Mauritius). The members are the securities regulatory authorities in British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec and Saskatchewan.

The agreement extends the work of the CSA Regulatory Sandbox Initiative and the efforts made by FSC Mauritius with innovative financial players. Notably, it includes a referral mechanism for innovative businesses, and enhances and clearly defines information-sharing between these jurisdictions.

"This agreement with FSC Mauritius will provide a solid framework for co-operation and referrals between our jurisdictions," said Louis Morisset, CSA Chair and President and CEO of the Autorite des marches financiers. "As the fintech industry evolves rapidly, we must ensure that we put in place a regulatory framework that gives businesses the flexibility to grow while maintaining investor protection."

"The FSC Mauritius is proud to partner with the CSA through this Fintech cooperation agreement and to work together to support current and future innovation in our respective financial jurisdictions," according to the Chief Executive of the FSC Mauritius, Dhanesswurnath Thakoor. "We have signed bilateral MOUs on Fintech with regulatory counterparts in several key jurisdictions including France and also joined the Global Financial Innovation Network (GFIN). These MOUs, together with this latest cooperation agreement with the CSA, will ease the ability of Fintech entrepreneurs and innovators to receive regulatory guidance and thrive in terms of cross-border innovation from Mauritius to other continents."

About the Canadian Securities Administrators

The CSA, the council of the securities regulators of Canada's provinces and territories, co-ordinates and harmonizes regulation for the Canadian capital markets.

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Among other initiatives, it has put in place the CSA Regulatory Sandbox to support fintech businesses seeking to offer innovative products, services and applications in Canada. The sandbox allows firms to register and/or obtain exemptive relief from securities laws requirements, under a faster and more flexible process than through a standard application, in order to test their products, services and applications throughout the Canadian market on a time limited basis.

About the Financial Services Commission, Mauritius

The FSC is the integrated regulator for the non-banking financial services sector and global business.

The vision of the FSC is to be an internationally recognised Financial Supervisor committed to the sustained development of Mauritius as a sound and competitive Financial Services Centre.

In carrying out its mission, the FSC aims to promote the development, fairness, efficiency and transparency of financial institutions and capital markets in Mauritius; suppress crime and malpractices so as to provide protection to members of the public investing in non-banking financial products; and ensure the soundness and stability of the financial system in Mauritius.

For media inquiries:

Pascale Bijoux

Canadian Securities Administrators

media@acvm-csa.ca

Asha Gopee-Ramjuttun

Financial Services Commission, Mauritius

fscmauritius@intnet.mu; communications@fscmauritius.org

For Investor inquiries, please refer to your respective securities regulator. You can contact them here.

SOURCE Autorite des marches financiers

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View original content: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/June2021/23/c7298.html
People shop at a crowded wholesale vegetable market in Delhis old quarter after authorities eased coronavirus restrictions following a drop in infections (REUTERS)

India has reported a new Delta-plus coronavirus variant of concern that officials claim appears to be more transmissible than the original strain.

Two dozen cases been detected in three states including 16 in Maharashtra.

The government has said the new variant is more transmissible than the original and has urged affected areas to increase testing.

Delta-plus has also been found in the UK and eight other countries - USA, Portugal, Switzerland, Japan, Poland, Nepal, Russia and China.

Indias health ministry says studies showed that Delta-plus - also known as AY.1 - spreads more easily and binds more easily to lung cells.

However virologists have questioned the labelling of the mutated strain as a variant of concern, saying there is as yet no data to show it is more infectious or leads to more serious disease.

There is no data yet to support the variant of concern claim based on 22 sequences, said Dr Gagandeep Kang, a virologist and the first Indian woman to be elected Fellow of the Royal Society of London.

India suffered one of the worlds worst wave of Covid infections in April and May, with people dying on the streets due to a collapsed health system and a lack of oxygen supplies. Images of funeral pyres blazing in car parks raised questions over the chaotic vaccine rollout.

A health worker collects a nasal swab sample from a woman during a Covid-19 coronavirus screening held in Amritsar (AFP via Getty Images)

On April 26, the country reported 350,000 new cases and over 2,800 deaths in one day.

Daily cases have fallen steadily in recent weeks.

Over the past 24 hours India reported 50,848 new coronavirus infections, health ministry data showed - taking its confirmed case load to just over 30 million.

The official death toll stands at more than 390,000, although the real number is thought to be far higher.

On Monday, India vaccinated a record 8.6 million people as it began offering free shots to all adults, but experts doubted it could maintain that pace.

This is clearly not sustainable, Chandrakant Lahariya, an expert in public policy and health systems, told Reuters.

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With such one-day drives, many states have consumed most of their current vaccine stocks, which will affect the vaccination in days to follow.

With the currently projected vaccine supply for the next few months, the maximum daily achievable rate is four to five million doses, Lahariya added.

A man takes a selfie while a medical worker inoculates a dose of the Covaxin vaccine in Amritsar (AFP via Getty Images)

The effort has so far covered about 5.5 per cent of the 950 million people eligible - even though India is the worlds largest vaccine producer.

Since May, vaccinations have averaged fewer than three million doses a day, far less than the 10 million health officials say are crucial to protect the millions vulnerable to new surges.

India has been administering AstraZenecas vaccine, made locally by the Serum Institute of India, and a homegrown shot named Covaxin made by Bharat Biotech.

Last week, Serum Institute said it planned to increase monthly production to around 100 million doses from July. Bharat now estimates it will make 23 million doses a month.

On Tuesday, TV channel CNBC-TV18 reported that phase-3 data for Covaxin showed an efficacy of 77.8 per cent.

India may also soon have a mass rollout of Russias Sputnik V vaccine, and the government expects to import vaccines this year from major makers such as Pfizer.

Although new infections in India have dropped to their lowest in more than three months, experts say vaccinations should be stepped up because of the transmissibility of new variants.

Read More

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Brand uses power of ASMR to celebrate arrival of the Grand Big Mac, giving guests a new way to fulfill their Big Mac craving for a limited time

TORONTO, June 22, 2021 /CNW/ - Did you hear? The Big Mac just got bigger! This summer, McDonald's Canada is giving Big Mac fans cause for celebration with the addition of the Grand Big Mac to nationwide menus at participating restaurants for a limited time. A twist on the legendary fan favourite, the Grand Big Mac is a bigger Big Mac with even more of the iconic, quality ingredients Canadians love.

McDonalds brings the Grand Big Mac to Canada (CNW Group/McDonald's Canada)

"McDonald's puts quality and taste at the forefront of everything we do, and we are continually innovating our food offering for our guests," said Rebecca Smart, Director, National Marketing, McDonald's Canada. "We know that Canadians love the classic combination of ingredients and signature taste of the Big Mac. The Grand Big Mac gives guests even more of what they love, with two larger 100% Canadian beef patties, more special sauce and more of the same Big Mac toppings fans love."

To unveil the Grand Big Mac, McDonald's is using ASMR (autonomous sensory meridian response) to awaken guests' senses to the grandeur of its new burger. The unique "Grand Big Mac Sounds" experience, available via YouTube, takes guests on a journey to discover what makes the Grand Big Mac so special: the sound of a sizzling patty, the squeeze of Big Mac sauce, the rustle of crisp lettuce, and the nestling of the burger on the bun, that will leave listeners' mouths watering in anticipation.

The Big Mac is one of McDonald's biggest, most iconic burgers, and in launching the Grand Big Mac, the company wanted to help guests not just see but hear how epic it really is. Being immersed in the sounds of the Grand Big Mac not only sparks your senses in a way you likely haven't experienced before, but also celebrates a guest favourite in a joyful, unique way and communicates how the Grand Big Mac gives you more of what you love.

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As one of the largest purchasers of Canadian beef, McDonald's proudly sources 100 per cent Canadian beef as part of their long-standing commitment to Canadian farmers and ranchers.

Big Mac fans can snag their own Grand Big Mac for a limited time in-restaurant, through the McDonald's app, at the Drive-Thru, or via McDelivery.

About McDonald's Canada

In 1967, Canadians welcomed the first McDonald's restaurant to Richmond, British Columbia. Today, McDonald's Restaurants of Canada Limited has become part of the Canadian fabric, serving close to three million guests every day. Together with our franchisees, we proudly employ nearly 100,000 people from coast-to-coast, and more than 90 per cent of McDonald's 1,400 Canadian restaurants are locally owned and operated by independent entrepreneurs. Of the almost $1 billion spent on food, more than 85 per cent is purchased from suppliers in Canada. For more information on McDonald's Canada visit McDonalds.ca.

McDonald's Canada Logo (CNW Group/McDonald's Canada)

SOURCE McDonald's Canada

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View original content to download multimedia: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/June2021/22/c5302.html
FILE PHOTO: A Ryanair aircraft, which was diverted to Belarus, lands at Vilnius Airport in Vilnius

By Catarina Demony

LISBON (Reuters) -As the summer holiday season kicks off, the number of passengers hopping on Ryanair planes is "mushrooming" despite travel restrictions in place to control the spread of the coronavirus, Group Chief Executive Michael O'Leary said on Wednesday.

In an interview with Reuters ahead of a news conference in Lisbon, O'Leary said bookings had recovered very strongly over the last eight weeks, with particularly high volumes of bookings to Portugal and other summer destinations from Germany, Scandinavia, and the Benelux countries.

"Traffic is mushrooming and a lot of that folk are families going on summer holidays to the beaches of Portugal, Spain, Greece and Italy," O'Leary said, adding the airline was on track to fly 80 to 100 million passengers by March 2022.

That is up from 27.5 million last year but still below pre-pandemic levels of 149 million. O'Leary said Ryanair carried 1.7 million passengers in May and said the number was likely to increase to 5 million in June and 9 million the following month.

To boost travel further, O'Leary said fully vaccinated holidaymakers across Europe should be allowed to travel freely.

Britain allowed vacations again from May after months of lockdown but discourages travel to popular holiday destinations such as Spain, France, Greece and the United States, classifying them as "amber" under its "traffic light" system.

Last week, Ryanair launched a legal challenge against Britain over the traffic light system, hoping to force a relaxation of the rules.

Britons returning from European holiday destinations, including Spain, Portugal and Greece, that are currently rated "amber", have to take multiple COVID-19 tests and isolate for 10 days.

O'Leary said the UK and Ireland were opening to travel "more slowly" compared with other countries.

"They are terrified to allow people to travel but I think it will be resolved," he said, adding he believed the UK would join the EU's proposed digital certificate travel scheme, which will potentially be in use by July 1.

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Coronavirus cases are on the rise in Britain but also in Portugal, particularly in Lisbon, mostly due to the Delta variant. O'Leary said the increase in cases would not have a big impact on Ryanair.

"There might be some disruption in Lisbon but we think it will be reasonably small and it won't last long because of the vaccinations taking place all over Europe," O'Leary said.

(Reporting by Catarina Demony, writing by Victoria Waldersee and Catarina Demony; editing by Jason Neely and Jane Merriman)
OTTAWA, ON, June 22, 2021 /CNW/ - Today, the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food announced that the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and the Singapore Food Agency have agreed to an African swine fever (ASF) zoning arrangement to allow for the safe trade of swine products from disease-free zones in Canada in the event of an ASF outbreak.

ASF is a viral disease that does not infect humans, but poses a significant risk to the health of Canadian swine herds, pork industry and the Canadian economy.

Following their evaluation of CFIA's zoning proposal, Singapore agreed to a regionalization arrangement with Canada. This means that restrictions on the import of Canadian pork and pork products into Singapore, valued at CAD $10 million per year, would only be limited to the areas within the Primary Control Zone(s), once established, if a case of ASF were to be found in Canada. This arrangement would serve to minimize trade impacts to the Canadian swine sector while protecting the swine populations in both countries.

Zoning is an internationally-recognized tool used to help manage diseases and facilitate international trade. If a case of ASF is identified, geographic boundaries are defined to contain the outbreak. The area within these geographic boundaries form the Primary Control Zone(s) established in accordance with the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) guidelines. The areas outside of these Primary Control Zone(s) are considered disease-free zones.

Zoning arrangements have been established with the U.S., the EU and now Singapore, and they are being pursued with other trading partners. The arrangement with Singapore is another positive step in Canada's prevention and preparedness efforts related to ASF. The Government of Canada is working collaboratively with other countries, industry and other stakeholders to best address the threats this disease poses. To support these efforts, the ASF Executive Management Board was formed to serve as a specialized taskforce, made up of senior industry and government representatives, to provide leadership and strategic direction relating to the risk management of ASF.

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Quotes

"Reducing the risks presented by African Swine Fever is a top priority for our Government. That's why we are taking unprecedented steps to reduce the risk ASF poses to our pig population, our economy and the livelihoods of over one hundred thousand Canadians. We will continue to work with international partners to prevent the spread of African swine fever and mitigate its potential impact on Canada's economy."

- The Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food

"Preparedness is of utmost importance in order to react quickly and to prevent the spread of an animal disease. That's why Canada is taking unprecedented steps in preventing and mitigating the potential impact of African swine fever (ASF) here at home, while collaborating with other countries as a leader in the global fight against ASF."

- Dr. Jaspinder Komal, Chief Veterinary Officer for Canada

Quick facts

Canada's pork industry supports more than 103,000 direct and indirect jobs and contributes about CAD $24 billion annually to the Canadian economy.





In 2020, the Canadian pork industry exported 1.4 million tonnes valued just over CAD $5 billion to 93 export markets.





Canada is the third-largest pork exporting country in both value and volume and represents 14% of the world's pork trade. Canada exports nearly 70% of its live hog and pork production.





Singapore is the 16th largest destination for Canadian pork. Canada exported 3,327 tonnes of pork to Singapore in 2020, valued at CAD $10 million.





There is no treatment or vaccine for ASF. The CFIA is keeping a close eye on any research related to the treatment and control of ASF, including vaccine development, through international collaboration.





There is no evidence that the ASF virus can infect humans, and it is not considered a food safety risk.

Associated links

Follow us on social media Twitter: @InspectionCan

SOURCE Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA)

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View original content: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/June2021/22/c3879.html
Artists impression of Greater Tortue Ahmeyim gas project in west Africa (BP)

BP is planning to drill for fossil gas on the edge of the worlds largest cold-water coral reef  raising the risk of biodiversity loss, further global heating and toxic fuel spills.

The British oil giant has begun construction work on a fossil fuel project close by to the 580km-long coral ecosystem off the coast of west Africa, which is in an area crucial for migrating waterbirds, as well as threatened sharks, turtles and whales, according to an investigation by Unearthed and SourceMaterial shared with The Independent.

The project is the first step in a series of developments in the region that, if approved, aim to produce around 40 trillion cubic feet of gas over the next 30 years, according to an independent estimate from Rystad Energy, a research firm.

When burned, this amount of gas would produce 2.2 billion tonnes of CO2  nearly twice the annual energy emissions of the entire African continent. In global terms, it equates to between 0.3 and 1 per cent of the remaining global carbon budget left to keep the global temperature rise to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels.

A BP spokesperson said they were unable to comment on Rystads projection, and declined to provide their own forecast.

BP has previously promised to slash its emissions to net zero by 2050 and to cut its oil and gas production by 40 per cent within a decade. The oil firm is also a partner of Prince Charless Terra Carta initiative, which aims to bring prosperity into harmony with nature.

Last month, a major assessment from the worlds energy watchdog, the International Energy Agency, said there can be no further fossil fuel expansion in any country beyond 2021 if global climate goals are to be met.

Mohamed Adow, director of Power Shift Africa, a think tank based in Nairobi, Kenya, described further fossil fuel development as a a major threat to Africas food security, water security and public health.

Any future oil or gas drilling will ultimately undermine our livelihoods and development, he told The Independent.

Story continues

We cant excuse a company like BP, at a time when it seems to be taking climate change more seriously, simultaneously bankrolling a project that may end up having a big impact on Africas carbon footprint and future.

BPs fossil gas development threatens an expansive cold-water coral reef off the coast of Mauritania and Senegal (TL, Sven Loven Centre, Uni Gothenburg)

The Independents Stop Fuelling the Climate Crisis campaign is shining a light on UK support for fossil fuels ahead of Cop26, a major climate summit being held in Glasgow in November.

BPs Greater Tortue Ahmeyim project will develop a new gas field 2.7km below the surface of the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Senegal and Mauritania. Such a deep drilling project has never been attempted before in Africa, but previous research shows deep sea gas production can cause long-lasting damage to fragile ecosystems such as coral reefs.

The first 20-year phase of the project has already been approved, with drilling expected to produce gas in two years time. It is one of BPs three developments in the pipeline for the west Africa region, where it hopes to operate for at least 30 years if it is able to obtain approval.

An environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA) carried out for the project, seen by The Independent, Unearthed and SourceMaterial, states that an eruption of a well used in the production process could lead to a spill of condensate, a liquid byproduct of natural gas.

Though it says the chances of a spill occurring are extremely rare, it warns that any such event could prove lethal or damaging to the unique ecosystems surrounding the project site, according to the assessment.

The area chosen for the project is close to key sites along the east Atlantic flyway, a major migration route for millions of birds travelling between the bottom of Africa and the Arctic. Birds using the route include Eurasian spoonbills, grey plovers and red knots.

Eurasian spoonbills are one of many species that travel along the east Atlantic flyway (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

The gas project is also just 5km away from Diawling National Park, which hosts 250 different bird species as well as monkeys, warthogs and monitor lizards. It is a similar distance away from the marine protected area of Saint-Louis, a key site for local fishing and feeding whales and dolphins.

Without careful management, BPs construction and drilling operations could threaten these important wildlife hotspots and the livelihoods of local fishing communities, Sandra Kloff, a consultant marine biologist who has worked in the region for 25 years, told The Independent.

She added that the wildlife in the region already faces large threats from overfishing by international companies.

Since the 1980s, it has been a total wild west for biodiversity off this northwest African coast despite scientific proof that this region is the most important feeding area for charismatic wildlife in the Atlantic Ocean  and in spite of the fact that these waters are home to the longest cold water coral mounds, she told The Independent.

BP has previously pledged to reduce harm to biodiversity by committing to not establishing new oil and gas operations in Unesco world heritage sites or in nature reserves that meet a set of specific criteria. Its Greater Tortue Ahmeyim project does not contravene these rules.

Awa Traore, an oceans campaigner at Greenpeace Africa, said BPs actions amounted to greenwashing.

More fossil fuel production is only going to expose communities to more harm, undermining the renewable energy investment which can effectively lift millions of people out of poverty, she told The Independent.

By adopting renewable energy instead of fossil fuels, African countries have the opportunity to leapfrog dirty energy to meet their energy security needs, with massive potential benefits for the population.

A BP spokesperson said: We want to help conserve the marine ecosystem in Mauritania and Senegal and the projects environment and social impact assessment was approved by the governments and regulators of both Mauritania and Senegal when the project was sanctioned for development.

The spokesperson added that BP was currently developing an additional biodiversity action plan for the project alongside scientists and other stakeholders.

This will integrate the latest scientific data and allow us to identify and implement appropriate biodiversity-related mitigation and management measures for the project, the spokesperson said.

We are working to set up an independent scientific panel of national and international scientists for peer review of our plans.

They added that emissions from the first phase of the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim project will be included in BPs climate targets.

Emissions from any further projects that were approved and developed would also be included as and when they began operation, the spokesperson said.

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Indias antitrust watchdog has ordered an investigation into allegations that Google has abused the dominant position of Android in the countrys smart TV market. The news comes hours after the European Union opened a formal antitrust investigation into allegations that Google abuses its leading role in the advertising-technology sector.

In its initial review, the Competition Commission of India, which began looking into these allegations last year, said Google had breached certain anti-competitive laws. An investigation of this scale can take quarters, if not over a year, to resolve.

"The Commission is of the prima facie opinion that by making pre-installation of Googles proprietary apps (particularly Play Store) conditional upon signing of ACC (Android Compatibility Commitments) for all Android devices manufactured/distributed/marketed by device manufacturers, Google has reduced the ability and incentive of device manufacturers to develop and sell devices operating on alternative versions of Android i.e. Android forks, and thereby limited technical or scientific development relating to goods or services to the prejudice of consumers in contravention of Section 4(2)(b) of the Act," the watchdog said in its 24-page order.

"Further, ACC prevents OEMs from manufacturing/ distributing/ selling any other device which operate on a competing forked Android operating system. Therefore, given the dominance of Google in the relevant markets and pronounced network effects, by virtue of this restriction, developers of such forked Android operating system are denied market access resulting in violation of Section 4(2)(c) of the Act."

Google, which counts India as its largest market by users and last year committed to investing $10 billion in the country, denied any wrongdoing. "We are confident that our smart TV licensing practices are in compliance with all applicable competition laws," a company spokesperson said in a statement.

Story continues

The Competition Commission of India added that it found Google requiring television manufacturers pre-installing all its "must-have" apps and not having the ability to pick and choose from alternatives "amounts to imposition of unfair condition on the smart TV device manufacturers and thereby in contravention of Section 4(2)(a)(i) of the Act."

"It also amounts to prima facie leveraging of Googles dominance in Play Store to protect the relevant markets such as online video hosting services offered by YouTube, etc. in contravention of Section 4(2)(e) of the Act. All these aspects warrant a detailed investigation," the competition regulator added.

About 8 million smart TV sets were sold in India in 2019, over 60% of which were powered by Googles Android operating system. Indias TV shipments grew 10% year-over-year to cross 3 million in Q1 2021, according to research firm Counterpoint.

Its a tough week for American giants in India. On Monday evening, the worlds second largest internet market proposed tough e-commerce rules that could hurt Amazon and Walmarts Flipkart.

Tuesday's order is the third ongoing antitrust case investigation that India has opened against Google. Late last year, Indias antitrust watchdog opened an investigation into Google for allegedly abusing the dominant position of its app store to promote its payments service in the South Asian nation.
A fire damaged a $1.5 million machine at Advanced Laser Machining in Chippewa Falls over the weekend. However, no one was injured, and the company is still in operation.

Rebecca Gudis, ALMs human resources manager, said 10 workers were in the building, located at 600 Cashman Drive when the fire occurred at 11 a.m. Saturday.

The fire is limited to one machine, Gudis said. Were were rapidly able to extinguish it. Its not a total loss. Zero damage to our building and no one was injured. Were excited and really thankful we had a lot of businesses reach out to us and ask if they could help.

While that machine is shut down, Gudis said work has continued as usual.

We dont expect our business to be heavily impacted by this, Gudis said. We should be able to move forward and complete all our customers orders.

Gudis praised her staff for getting the fire under control so quickly. The cause of the fire is still unknown.

We know it was under the machine, but we dont know why it started, she said.

Chippewa Falls Mayor Greg Hoffman praised both the company employees and the citys firefighters for quickly extinguishing the blaze.

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The bill specifically states the proposed human resources office should at all times observe the confidential nature of records, requests, advice, complaints, reviews, investigations, disciplinary actions, and other information in its possession relating to human resources matters.

This sure sounds to me like these records would be harder to get, and I suspect that this language might lead to that, even if it isnt the intent, said Bill Lueders, president of the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council. Lawmakers and their staffs ought to be subject to more transparency and accountability, not less.
Anglers will have to wait another four years to eat walleye from one of the states premier destinations.

The Wisconsin Natural Resources Board approved a plan Wednesday to extend a harvest ban on the Minocqua Chain of Lakes as part of a decade-long rehabilitation plan.

The board also voted unanimously to impose permanent harvest restrictions starting in April 2025 that will limit anglers to one walleye per day. The new rule also prohibits harvesting walleye shorter than 18 inches or between 22 and 28 inches.

According to the Department of Natural Resources, the plan will allow the walleye population to continue recovering while allowing anglers limited opportunities to keep the fish they catch.

The DNR, in partnership with the Lac du Flambeau Band, the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission, and Walleyes for Tomorrow, imposed a five-year walleye harvest ban in 2015 in response to dramatic population declines that started in the early 2000s.
Under the bill, municipalities would have until mid-May of 2022 to adopt new wards, while counties would have until February 2022 to adopt a tentative plan and until July to finalize their supervisory districts following the work of the municipalities.

If signed into law, current maps would remain in place until the spring 2023 election for city council and other aldermanic races and 2024 for county board races, except those that have staggered terms and elections in 2023.

The timeline for congressional and state legislative boundaries would be unchanged.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court in May declined a request from Republicans to adopt new redistricting rules meant to keep litigation over drawing the maps before the Supreme Court, which has a 4-3 conservative majority.

The redistricting process will play a major role in whether Republicans could continue to hold strong majorities in the Assembly and Senate, as they have for the past decade due to GOP-friendly maps drawn by Republicans and signed by former Gov. Scott Walker in 2011.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 22)  The country's budget deficit reached 200.3 billion in May, slightly narrower than last year's tally but the widest since December, data from the Treasury Bureau published Tuesday revealed.

The latest figure is 0.91% lower than the 202.1 billion logged in May 2020. However, it is the largest recorded since December, where the fiscal deficit ballooned to 302.6 billion.

The Treasury noted the deficit's recent marginal narrowing comes as "growth in expenditure levels kept pace with the acceleration in revenue collection."

The government raked in 256.4 billion in May, a 69.26% jump driven by higher tax collections.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue raked in 183.7 billion during the month, growing by 60.54%. The Bureau of Customs, meanwhile, collected 48.6 billion -- a 58.05% increase -- owing to efforts on improving valuation and collection.

The Treasury itself reported 12.4 billion in revenues this May, higher than 2.4 billion last year. Higher dividend remittances on stock shares and Bond Sinking Fund investment income mainly led the surge.

Other offices, which include privatization proceeds and fees and charges, rose to 9.7 billion in May from 3.6 billion. The Treasury attributed this to a low base effect from limited operations last year amid strict quarantine rules.

On the other hand, the government spent 456.7 billion in May. This represents a 29.15% expansion from the 103.1 billion tally during the same month in 2020.

The Treasury points to disbursements for the Public Works and Highways Department's capital outlay projects, and banner education and health programs of the Education and Health Departments for the increase.

Also contributing to the growth in expenditures are releases to state insurer PhilHealth for the premiums of elderlies, and to local governments for the Barangay Development Program.

In a note to reporters, ING Bank senior economist Nicholas Mapa said the Philippines is expected to incur more budget shortfalls for the rest of the year.

This, as state earnings "fall short due to lackadaisical economic activity and the fallout from CREATE, with the government curtailing spending likely to limit the hit on the overall debt to GDP ratio."

Mapa noted that the latest figure brings year-to-date fiscal deficit to 566.2 billion, which is "on track" for the economic team's target 9.4% ratio or 1.86 trillion. This is wider than 1.37 trillion deficit in 2020, as the state continues to ramp up spending in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Editors note: Jay Santiago is a voice actor and ADR scriptwriter who has years of experience in dubbing in English and Filipino for various T.V. shows and films.

Voice acting is Acting!

I remember these words being effusively professed to me by one of my directors on more than one occasion, almost as if it were some forgotten scripture that needed to be proclaimed on a mountaintop, and passed down to philistines.

Since both of us are film buffs, we would spend our down time gushing over our favorite performances and, on occasion, playfully lament the fact that as talents in the dubbing industry, we would never enjoy the same level of recognition as screen actors.

I never really liked the sound of my voice growing up. As a little gay kid, I remember being made to feel so small when a cousin or playmate would tease me for being soft-spoken, or for sounding like a girl (whatever that meant). Part of me wonders if the way I use my voice now was a result of learning to assimilate and be accepted by my more masculine peers at an early age. It wasnt until people complimented my voice towards the tail end of my teen years that I learned it could be an asset.

I cant remember the exact year when I first set foot inside a recording studio. It must have been sometime in the hazy years of college life or briefly before it. What I can recall is that I was there to see my Kuya, who had already been working actively as a voice actor while I was still trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life.

Theres a picture of it in my head that feels so much like a snapshot from a bygone era; a group of maybe five (Kuya included) huddled together in front of a microphone, eyes at attention, waiting to leap in, armed with their respective lines of dialogue. I cant be sure which particular animated series they were working on at the time, but recalling that sight of them as I stood on the other side of the glass, I cant help but feel nostalgic, and a little sad.

When the post-COVID world happens, its hard to know when or if any of us voice actors will get to share the same microphone again, stand side by side in a soundproof space to do what we enjoy, a job that some people may have misconceptions about.

The dubbing industry didnt come to take up such a huge part of my life by design. In truth, I was so determined to forge a different path professionally, no doubt in a bid to distinguish myself from my brothers line of work. A huge part of it was also that, having grown up overseas, I wasnt as fluent in Tagalog, and didnt have much confidence that I could do justice to the localization of series and films for the discerning ears of Filipino audiences.

So I pursued a different career, joining the BPO industry in its fairly nascent stage, before pivoting to fields more aligned with my interests, and where I felt I could better apply my communication arts degree. I ended up in FM radio, and dipped my toes in the publishing industry for a spell. But at one point in the middle of my radio stint, I was recommended by a friend to a studio looking for new voice talents to work on the adaptation of teleseryes into English for international audiences. That was my first real foray into dubbing and its where Ive found the bulk of my work ever since I chose to forego a conventional day job and become a freelancer.

"[People] assume that just because someone speaks well, or has a nice-sounding voice, theyre automatically going to make a great voice actor or will excel at dubbing."

Along this meandering, sometimes dizzying, but always fun, fulfilling field Ive found myself in, Ive made lifelong friendships and have learned so much about the craft. Though I must admit, there is still a small part of me that sometimes feels like a tourist in this industry Im part of.

Many of my mentors, and even some of my contemporaries, have such deep connections to the history of voiceover work in the Philippines, particularly dubbing. Theyve worked with people who have seen the industry through the early days of analog audio editing to where it is today. Even after a decade or so in different studios, I know there is much I have yet to learn. And I recognize how indebted I am to those who came before me.

In the beginning, even with all my confidence as an English speaker, radio DJ and events host, I still needed to prove myself as an actor. I looked for copies of the very first teleserye I dubbed on YouTube the other day and couldnt help but laugh (and yes, cringe) at the choices I made in my performance.

Thats one thing that most people misunderstand about the work we do. They assume that just because someone speaks well, or has a nice-sounding voice, theyre automatically going to make a great voice actor or will excel at dubbing. I cant tell you how many times I was told in the early phases of my career that I had to be reminded to sound less announcer-y. Years working in radio will do that to you.

And since my way into dubbing was through English language adaptations, there were hurdles I needed to overcome before I could even dare to try my hand at Tagalog projects. I was fortunate enough to work with directors who were patient enough with my shortcomings when it came to my vocabulary and especially my accent and intonation.

Another misconception is that if someone is an established voiceover artist for commercials, AVPs, and other creative output, theyre immediately a shoo-in for the dubbing industry. And thats simply not the case. The process of dubbing itself takes more patience, and requires more dexterity and discipline than some people  even within the voiceover industry  realize.

In other forms of voiceover work, as in commercials, youre given a script and are asked to provide a variety of deliveries so that a selection of your best takes will be stitched together to satisfy a clients creative objective. Theres usually more wiggle room to explore different creative nuances in your vocal performance. The same can be said of voicing original animated content. The voice cast will record their lines and animators will bring them to life. Performers have more room to play when they are interpreting a script for the first time. Its easier to make those characters their own.

Now while some of the mechanics of vocal performance may be similar to a certain extent in dubbing, voice actors must now work with material that has already been produced, characters that have already been brought to life by someone else, and find a way for a story to be appreciated in a different language.

Along with the translators and directors, voice actors for dubbing have to consider the language of the source material being adapted, the proper syncing of this new vocal performance to the characters onscreen, along with the nuances of emotion delivered by the original actors performance. These are just some of the basic precepts that a voice actor whose primary focus is dubbing constantly has to abide by that dont exist in other forms of voiceover work.

Its not my place to fully litigate the merits of solely casting voice actors instead of screen actors in the localization of animated content or in homegrown animation projects. Many valid points have been made by people who genuinely know what its like to navigate this industry. These arent people who may have huge social media followings, but theyve worked on dubbing projects where they show up for work at 7 a.m. and sometimes head home from the studio in the wee hours of the following day.

So what I can say as someone who has only recently begun to find my footing in Tagalog dubbing after a decade or so in this business, is that it is hard work.

If the animated adaptation of Trese has highlighted anything, its that while there are some audience members who may have never tried to see the people behind all this work before, hopefully now, their eyes (and ears) have been opened.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23)  Filipinos who are scheduled to receive their second dose of Sputnik V vaccine need to wait longer as the delivery of 50,000 doses faces delay, vaccine czar Carlito Galvez said on Wednesday.

Galvez said the delay stems from Russian vaccine manufacturer Gamaleya's plan to improve the vaccine's efficacy against new coronavirus variants.

The second batch of Sputnik V is for the Filipinos who received their first dose earlier this month. Sputnik V's emergency use authorization states the interval between the first and second doses should be 21 days. The delay means the second dose for Filipinos who got vaccinated earlier this month will be pushed back to a still unknown date.

Galvez assured a longer interval between the shots will not minimize the protection it offers.

"The same level of protection will be guaranteed if the second shot is taken later than scheduled...Likewise, Sputnik V is a viral vector-type of vaccine, the same technology used by other vaccine brands that require longer interval periods for the two shots," he said in a statement.

Galvez added the country's Food and Drug Administration is studying the application lodged by Gamaleya Institute, through the Russian Direct Investment Fund, to lengthen the interval period between the shots from 21 days to 90 days.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23) Senator Risa Hontiveros on Wednesday called on the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to summon Beijing officials anew over the reported presence of more Chinese vessels in Philippine waters.

"Kailangang ipatawag muli ng DFA ang Chinese Ambassador para sa masinsinang pag-uusap (The DFA needs to again summon the Chinese ambassador for a more intensive discussion)," Hontiveros said in a statement. "We, as a nation, are owed dignity and respect."

The senator was reacting to a recent report by data analysis company Simularity, which showed that the number of Chinese ships in the country's exclusive economic zone spiked from 129 to 238 since May.

"Between mid-May and mid-June 2021, the number of ships within the Union Banks increased from 9 to 236 and the number of ships near Gaven Reef in Tizard Bank decreased from 234 to 71," the report further said.

The DFA has filed a flurry of diplomatic protests against the East Asian giant over the continued presence of Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea. In April, the agency also summoned Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian over the issue, demanding that Beijing withdraw its ships from Philippine waters.
(CNN)  Fifty of Afghanistan's 370 districts have fallen to Taliban militants since May, according to the UN's special envoy on Afghanistan Deborah Lyons, as the United States continues its military withdrawal from the country.

"The Taliban recent advances are even more significant and are as a result of an intensified military campaign; more than 50 of Afghanistan's 370 districts have fallen since the beginning of May," Lyons told the UN Security Council on Tuesday.

"Most districts have been that have been taken surround provincial capitals, suggesting that the Taliban are positioning themselves to try and take these capitals once foreign forces are fully withdrawn," Lyons continued.

The news came as a local power company told media Tuesday that violent clashes had damaged key electrical infrastructure, causing power outages in 11 provinces including Kabul.

Over the past 24 hours, Taliban fighters have taken control of several districts in Kunduz province and the important border crossing with Tajikistan, according to a Rabani Rabani, a member of the Kunduz provincial council.

The districts include Chahar Dara, Khan Abad, Imam Sahib, and as well as Shirkhan Bandar, a crossing point with Tajikistan, Rabani said.

One of them, the Chahar Dara district, fell without a fight in order to prevent civilians casualties, Rabani added.

The latest Taliban gains are in areas not traditionally under their control.

Over the weekend, the Taliban claimed it had overrun an Afghan Army base in Balkh governorate in the north of the country. A Taliban propaganda video shows the group of militants inside a military base confiscating military vehicles and weapons.

They claimed in another video that they had taken control of Afghanistan National Army Humvees in Takhar province, in the northeast.

The group also claimed in another propaganda video that dozens of Afghan forces surrendered to Taliban in Faryab province in the north of the country.

Afghan security officials could not confirm or deny these claims to CNN, and CNN cannot verify the authenticity of the videos or the date they were filmed.

In April, US President Joe Biden formally announced his decision to end America's longest war, deeming the prolonged and intractable conflict in Afghanistan no longer in alignment with American priorities.

Biden said he would withdraw US troops from Afghanistan before September 11, the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that catalyzed the war on terror.

Those origins had long given way to other objectives, and Biden declared that no amount of time or money could solve the problems his three predecessors had tried and failed to fix.

Biden is planning to meet with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah, the head of the country's High Council for National Reconciliation, which oversees the government's negotiation team.

"The United States will remain deeply engaged with the Government of Afghanistan to ensure the country never again becomes a safe haven for terrorist groups who pose a threat to the US homeland," White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Monday.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "50 of Afghanistan's 370 districts have fallen to Taliban since May: UN envoy."
(CNN)  The European Union has launched an antitrust investigation into Google's vast advertising business, claiming that the company may have disadvantaged rival services, making it harder for brands to reach consumers and for publishers to fund their content.

The formal investigation, which follows a preliminary probe that began in 2019, will examine whether Google is distorting competition by restricting access to user data for advertising purposes, while reserving such data for its own use, the European Commission said on Tuesday.

"Google collects data to be used for targeted advertising purposes, it sells advertising space and also acts as an online advertising intermediary. So Google is present at almost all levels of the supply chain for online display advertising," EU chief antitrust official Margrethe Vestager said in a statement.

"We are concerned that Google has made it harder for rival online advertising services to compete in the so-called ad tech stack."

A Google spokesperson said that the company would engage constructively with the European Commission "to answer their questions and demonstrate the benefits of our products to European businesses and consumers."

Google is already facing several antitrust cases in the United States, including one brought by the federal government, which accuses the company of operating an illegal monopoly in the markets for online search and search advertising.

The company generates about 80% of its revenue from advertising. In the three months ended March 31, Google's revenues in Europe, Middle East and Africa totaled $17 billion, making it the second most important region to the company after the Americas.

Total display advertising spending in the European Union was worth about 20 billion ($24 billion) in 2019. It's a business dominated by Google and Facebook, which is already being investigated by EU regulators over claims that its use of data gives it an unfair advantage.

France's competition authority fined Google 220 million ($270 million) earlier this month "for abusing its dominant position" in the market for online advertising to the detriment of rival platforms and publishers.

The authority accused Google of giving "preferential treatment" to Google Ad Manager, its ad management platform for large publishers. It did this by favoring its own online ad marketplace, AdX, where publishers sell space to advertisers in real time, according to the watchdog.

Changing its business

As part of the agreement with French authorities, Google committed to making it easier for publishers in France to make use of its data and use its tools with other ad technologies. "We will be testing and developing these changes over the coming months before rolling them out more broadly, including some globally," the company said in a statement on June 7.

Google provides several ad tech services that intermediate between advertisers and publishers in order to display ads on websites or mobile apps. The EU investigation will focus on a number of areas of concern, including the obligation to use its services to purchase or serve ads on Google or YouTube.

"A level playing field is of the essence for everyone in the supply chain," said Vestager.

"Fair competition is important  both for advertisers to reach consumers on publishers' sites and for publishers to sell their space to advertisers, to generate revenues and funding for content. We will also be looking at Google's policies on user tracking to make sure they are in line with fair competition," she added.

According to Google, competition in online advertising has made ads more affordable, reduced ad tech fees and created more options for publishers and advertisers. The company also says that publishers keep about 70% of the revenue when using its products, and that the biggest advertisers use four or more platforms to buy ads.

 Rob North, Eoin McSweeney and Hanna Ziady contributed to this article.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "EU antitrust officials are investigating Google's vast ads business."
(CNN)  Many companies are becoming more flexible with when and where their employees can work, but it's the direct managers and supervisors who really set the tone on remote work for their teams  and not everyone is crazy about it.

While some managers are fine with their direct reports working remotely, others would prefer more on site "face time" with their workers.

They already have been put through their paces after pivoting overnight in 2020 from managing an in-person team to an all-remote one. In a recent client survey by workplace consulting firm Gartner, more than 40% of managers said they'd been feeling higher levels of stress and were logging more hours than before the pandemic.

So how are they really feeling about having to pivot yet again and manage a team that will only be in the office some of the time?

Here's what several told CNN Business.

Bring it on

Robert Allenby is the managing partner of a midsize law firm in San Diego. And his firm plans to let most staff -- not just the lawyers -- work from home a couple of days a week, or more if they don't have to be in the office for trial preparation or other all-hands-on-deck efforts.

"We've gone through the looking glass. So many of the fears people had [about letting employees work from home] have proven not to be worthwhile," Allenby said. "We have not lost productivity or profitability. More importantly, we have gained an improved morale."

He's 55, and says he is surprised that sometimes younger professionals are less amenable to remote work than their age might suggest. "There are younger lawyers who even to this day are butts-in-the-seats kinda guys. And you're like, 'Dude, why? Who cares?'"That said, Allenby notes, it is important to be proactive about integrating and mentoring new hires in person. "It's our job to make them comfortable."

It's aggravating having to chase people down

Lori Smith supports greater flexibility for employees, but said one downside of remote work was having to always chase select team members down.

Smith, who was managing 40 assistants to financial advisers at a bank in Atlanta, said most of her team performed well during the past year and were great about staying in touch with her. But the few who were not exhausted her.

"I would call a person during business hours, expecting them to answer the phone and might not get a callback for several hours," Smith said. "Sometimes, they were quote 'busy' or had to run an errand, and sometimes they didn't have any excuse."

Smith just retired from her job because she was working seven days a week and had no work-life balance, she said. But she believes her team will do well with the hybrid mode, since up to 70% of their work can be done remotely.

And she recommends that any manager get buy-in from all team members regarding how the new system will work and to make sure when they ask people to come into the office that there's a good reason for them to be there, such as for training or to boost their productivity if need be.

It's more work for the manager

Dennis Meyer, a freelance television producer in Los Angeles who line-produces and manages budgets for shows like the Grammy Awards sees value in working from home, especially when the specific task doesn't require someone to be on site.

But having everyone work from home on some days as a matter of course can mean he ends up doing things he'd normally delegate.

"You're always weighing, 'Isn't it just faster if I do it myself?'" Meyer said. "Nothing is faster or more practical than just looking across the room and talking to someone with your voice. The instant you have to pick up a phone or write a message you're wasting valuable time."That's especially true for him when the airing or taping of a show nears and he has to make a lot of decisions and changes. "You want someone nearby," he said.

Hybrid has to be better than all-remote

As a manager of a call center for an education company, Diana Garrett would prefer a hybrid situation to the all-remote one she is in now.

Garrett had only been in her job three months and was working at the Arizona office full-time when the pandemic struck.

Consequently, she's only met 12 people in-person from her current team of 25. Everyone else has been hired since and they no longer are all based in the same state because the Arizona office was closed.

The lack of personal interactions makes her job harder and more time consuming, she said. "My tasks have remained the same, but it all takes so much more time. What could have been a 5-minute conversation in the office now takes double the time, if not more."

And being on site with her team would make it easier for her to know exactly when they need support from her.

"A lot of my time is now spent discovering things I may or may not know. I would prefer some in face interaction. I find myself a lot more stressed."

Just as productive working from home

Rene Cortes manages a sales and support team of about a dozen people for a medical device maker.

Cortes said his own work-from-home experience this past year has been enlightening. He used to fear that people would assume he wasn't as productive working remotely.

But he discovered that was unfounded. "I'm just as productive as before and saved a lot of commuter time that I can use to support my customers and reps," Cortes said.

Before the pandemic, he used to fly for work a lot, and take business calls in airports, he noted. "Now I have a quiet space at home when someone calls. I'm able to be more effective and not be distracted."

Still, he added, "I missed the personal interaction at the office and interaction with customers."

That's been remedied by the hybrid schedule Cortes said his team has been on for months. They work in person during the middle of the week and work from home at least on Mondays and Fridays.

It's been a very positive experience so far, he said. "The hybrid model appears to be the best approach going forward. It gives my team independence, but allows us to work together in person during key times while allowing me to be a more effective and efficient manager."

Misses getting in a conference room together

Tracy Schumacher runs a team of 11 software developers and test engineers for a utility industry service provider in Syracuse, New York.

They worked on site full-time before the pandemic and have been all-remote ever since. But she's currently polling team members to see which three days a week they want to work from home starting in mid-July.

Their experience as an all-remote team was mostly successful, but Schumacher felt that it was harder to onboard the three or four new employees she hired during the pandemic and to develop junior staff members. Plus, she added, on group calls it was harder to see who wanted to talk, so usually half the group remained silent.

She's optimistic that the hybrid model will help remedy those issues.

"I think the thing we've missed is getting in a conference room together and drawing out solutions on a whiteboard," Schumacher said.

That and getting more involvement from junior employees.

But extra care will be needed to develop them since the team will still be home much of the week. "Junior employees may not be as comfortable reaching out and asking questions. I think that's where the challenge lies."

She expects once everyone gets into a routine with their hybrid schedule that days in the office will feel more productive than the few days she's spent there recently. So much of the time, she said, felt like it was spent catching up with people she hasn't seen for ages.

Correction: The original version of this article misidentified which award show Dennis Meyer worked on. He has produced the Grammy Awards.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "How managers really feel about remote work."
(CNN)  The United Kingdom has begun talks on joining a Pacific trade partnership that it sees as one of its biggest opportunities to forge economic alliances beyond Europe after Brexit.

The UK Department for International Trade says membership in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership would produce an economic windfall by lowering tariffs on "key British exports" such as cars and whisky, while helping farmers to sell more meat to "fast growing" markets such as Mexico. It could also boost trade in services and make it easier for tech firms to expand abroad.

"Joining CPTPP would hitch Britain to some of the world's biggest current and future economies, populated by half a billion people and with a joint GDP of 9 trillion ($12.5 trillion) in 2019," the trade department said in a statement. "It is a glittering post-Brexit prize that I want us to seize," added Trade Secretary Liz Truss.

But trade experts say that joining the CPTPP  an 11-country pact that includes Mexico, Australia, Canada and Singapore  will yield only modest economic benefits, and won't make up for the hit to Britain's trade caused by exiting the European Union.

Modest benefits

They point to the challenges of doing business with countries that are many thousands of miles away. The United Kingdom also already has bilateral trade deals in place with seven of the 11 CPTPP members  a number that would rise to eight if an agreement in principle with Australia, announced last week, is included. That raises questions as to how much additional benefit membership will deliver.

"The biggest issue with the CPTPP is that it assists particularly those companies with trans-Pacific supply chains," David Henig, the UK director at the European Centre For International Political Economy said on Twitter. "The UK is mostly involved in European supply chains. And that's why the economic impact is trivial. It could even be negative."

By the UK government's own estimate, membership could lift annual GDP by just 0.08%  or 1.8 billion ($2.5 billion)  in the long run. That compares to a 4% loss of output from leaving the European Union, based on previous modeling by the government's economic forecasting agency.

Membership of CPTPP "will not in any way replace trade with the EU or balance out the effects of leaving it," Anna Jerzewska, the founder of international trade consultancy Trade & Borders said on Twitter.

The United Kingdom exported 294 billion ($408.7 billion) of goods and services to other EU member states in 2019, equivalent to 43% of all UK exports, according to the Office for National Statistics.

But between January and March, ONS data shows that UK goods exports to the bloc tumbled 18% to 32.2 billion ($44.8 billion) compared to the final three months of 2020, as businesses grappled with new trading rules.

By comparison, exports to CPTPP countries are set to increase by 37 billion ($51.4 billion) to 94 billion ($130.7 billion) by 2030, according to UK government forecasts.

"Joining would boost this growth and support British jobs," it said on Tuesday, adding in a strategy document that it "puts Britain at the heart of a dynamic group of countries."

But Jerzewska cautioned that the United Kingdom will be "coming in from the outside," hoping to integrate into supply chains that were established over decades. "It's going to be quite a challenge," she told CNN Business.

While membership could reduce tariffs on goods, it doesn't get rid of other barriers to trade such as red tape and regulations, she added. In this sense, it is similar to the agreement that post-Brexit Britain has with the European Union.

However, an agreement with the CPTPP could reassure Britain's existing trade partners that it still favors trade liberalization, Jerzewska added.

"Brexit was a signal that the UK is becoming a bit more protectionist, so this is a way to show everyone we are serious about free trade," she said.

"The geopolitical objectives are not to be ignored and a small positive impact on GDP is still a positive impact on GDP, but something tells me we're about to hear a lot of inflated numbers and exaggerated claims about this deal."

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Britain's Pacific trade ambitions won't compensate for Brexit."
(CNN)  John McAfee, the controversial antivirus software magnate who'd had multiple recent run-ins with the US law, has died at 75. McAfee was awaiting extradition in a Spanish prison after being charged with tax evasion in the United States last year.

McAfee was found dead in his cell in a prison near Barcelona on Wednesday around 1 p.m. ET and a medical examiner is on the scene, a spokeswoman for the Superior Court of Catalonia told CNN. She said the cause of death is under investigation.

Earlier Wednesday, a three-judge panel at Spain's National Court in Madrid ruled that McAfee could be extradited to the United States to face charges there, a National Court spokesman told CNN.

McAfee was arrested in Spain in October after being indicted in the United States for tax evasion months earlier. He allegedly failed to file taxes for four years despite earning millions in income between 2014 and 2018 from promoting cryptocurrencies, consulting work, speaking engagements, and selling the rights to his life story for a documentary, according to court documents. The amount he owed was not specified in the indictment.

In a virtual hearing in Spanish court earlier this month, McAfee argued that the US tax evasion charges against him were politically motivated, the Associated Press reported.

McAfee  founder of the eponymous antivirus software firm, with which he is no longer affiliated  was also indicted in March on separate fraud and money laundering charges. The US Department of Justice alleged that he and a business partner participated in a scheme that earned more than $13 million by falsely promoting cryptocurrencies to unwitting investors.

The final two decades of McAfee's life included a somewhat bizarre series of events.

In 2012, McAfee briefly vanished after fleeing his home in Belize because local police tried to question him on the death of his neighbor. (He has denied involvement in the death and claimed he fled because he feared for his life.)

He spent time in Guatemala, and then moved to Montreal, Canada, where he worked on a documentary about his life. He ran for US president in 2016 as a Libertarian, and launched a new security product that he called "a f---ing game changer."

This story was first published on CNN.com, "John McAfee found dead in Spanish prison."
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23)  Following the success and international debut of anime series "Hayop Ka!", director Avid Liongoren said they are now working on the next installment of the series called "Hayop Ka Din!"

"Yes, it's called 'Hayop Ka Din!' that will star Jerry the frog. Yes, it's in the works," Liongoren told CNN Philippines' The Final Word, referring to one of the existing characters in the first part of the series.

However, fans will have to wait for another four years before they are able to watch the new film, he said.

Both Liongoren and writer and producer Manny Angeles also expressed their excitement on the big screen debut of "Hayop Ka!" in France.

"We worked with a small team of animators... that is why it kind of takes a while as well, but we are happy that we've gone this far," Angeles said.

Great future for the PH animation industry

With the recent international recognition of several Filipino animations, Angeles said this is a perfect opportunity for local creators to present the works they have had in their brains and computers and to finally show it to people from the bigger studios.

Liongoren also noted that there are still a lot of Filipino comics waiting to be adapted and be shown to the rest of the world.

"We are on the right track, and it's looking good for the next five years," Angeles said.

On hiring celebrities as voice actors, both noted the contribution these people give to Filipino animation, given that the industry is only at its beginning stage in the domestic market.

"They bring in something very new and at the same time they bring in experience from doing their previous filmmaking," Angeles said.

"Animation in the Philippines is really at the beginning stage, so we need the help of familiar names to get people interested in the work," Liongoren noted.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23)  A Makati court has dismissed the drug charges against Marlon Peroramas, popularly known as rap artist Loonie, his sister Idyll, and their staff.

"The Makati Regional Trial Court Branch 64 dismissed yesterday (June 22, 2021) the drug-selling case the Makati City Police Station Drugs Enforcement Unit (SDEU) filed against the Peroramas siblings and their rap production crew," a statement from Peroramas' management said Wednesday.

Peroramas was nabbed in a buy-bust operation in September 2019, which allegedly yielded money, a cellphone, and several plastic bags containing what appeared to be marijuana.

He was released on a 2 million bail in January 2020 after a ruling signed by Judge Elmo Alameda said the testimony provided by arresting officer PCpl Jan Kirby Vigilla  the only witness presented by the prosecution  was "full of inconsistencies and contradictions."

Peroramas' management released some details on the dismissal - among them, findings penned by RTC Judge Hon. Gina M. Bibat-Palamos which said there were "inconsistencies in the testimony of the poseur-buyer and that the details of his testimony are contrary to human experience."

Other details included:

- "None of the prosecution witnesses identified the drug evidence in open court as seized from the accused."

- The required witnesses were absent during the alleged buy-bust operation. "There was no evidence presented or there was even no attempt to justify" their absence.

- "Unjustified deviation from the chain of custody rule."

It also said the judge noted that Vigilla's statements in court "demonstrates the witness' lack of respect to the court and the witness' testimony under oath."

The Peroramas siblings are considering filing counter charges against those who allegedly planted evidence against them.

"We can refute the lies that were told in court and in media by those individuals. We have proof and we will follow due process," Idyll Peroramas said.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23)  There's no truth to reports the Bicol region could suffer the same fate as coronavirus-ravaged India if stricter quarantine rules aren't enforced, Albay Governor Al Francis Bichara said on Wednesday.

"'Yung nagpalabas na magiging India ito, exaggerated 'yun [Whoever said we are going to be like India was exaggerating]," Bichara said in a government briefing.

"'Di naman nagsabi 'yung mga medical station na magiging India ito. Eh gawa-gawa lang 'yan ng media [Medical stations didn't even say we're going to be like India. That was just fabricated by the media]," he added.

Last week, medical groups in Bicol flagged a "worsening" surge in cases due to localized transmission sweeping most parts of the region.

In a joint letter addressed to Interior Secretary Eduardo Ano, the Albay Medical Society, the Camarines Sur Medical Society, the Philippine Medical Association (PMA)-Bicol, and the Philippine College of Physicians-Bicol asked that the provinces of Albay, Camarines Sur, and Sorsogon be placed under the strictest enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).

"If the current situation is not addressed, it is our fear that what is happening in India may not be far behind," the groups warned.

Bichara, however, said that while infections are rising, the COVID-19 situation in Albay is not serious enough to warrant a shift to ECQ.

The province, which has 1,958 active coronavirus cases according to the governor, is currently under the less restrictive general community quarantine.

He added that residents are not in favor of tightening restrictions, as these may impact their livelihood.

"Mas maraming magugutom dito [More people will go hungry]," he said. "Ubos narin 'yung pera namin para magbigay ng mga ayuda [We also ran out of funds to be able to provide aid].

Health Undersecretary Leopoldo Vega and Sorsogon Governor Francis Escudero also earlier said there's no truth to claims that hospitals in the Bicol region and in Sorsogon are already full.

While Dr. Ricardo Isip, governor of the PMA-Bicol, agreed that bed occupancy is not at 100%, he pointed out that the availability of health workers responding on the ground should also be considered.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23) The Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD) on Wednesday said it will renew its alliance with Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte's regional party Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP) ahead of the 2022 national elections.

In a statement, Lakas-CMD president and House Majority Leader Martin Romualdez said the agreement "would bind the two parties to support whoever they decide to field as candidate for president in next year's election."

Romualdez, in particular, said the group would be ready to support the presidential daughter should she seek a higher post next year.

"If Mayor Sara Duterte decides to seek higher office for 2022, we are ready to work for her victory in the coming election," Romualdez said.

For her part, Duterte said she is aware that HNP officers are in talks with several "highly-placed" officials.

"I am not privy to these discussions, but I was told that the meetings are about my candidacy for the presidential race in 2022," the Davao City mayor said in a separate statement. "I was assured that everyone involved in these talks will respect my decision if I decide against running for president."

Mayor Duterte has yet to reveal her plans for the 2022 polls.

RELATED: Good idea, but: Duterte says he won't run for VP if Romualdez vies for post
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23)  With more Pfizer vaccine deliveries expected this year, local government units are urged to seek the help of the private sector in meeting the stringent temperature requirement of the vaccines.

The Department of the Interior and Local Government made the suggestion on Wednesday after the national government sealed a deal with Pfizer for 40 million doses of its vaccine, the countrys biggest procurement for 2021.

Ine-encourage ng ating departamento, ng ating pamahalaan in general, ang pakikipag-ugnayan at pakikipagsuporta sa ating pribadong sektor na may kakayahan for that purpose, particularly yung storage requirements, DILG acting spokesperson and assistant secretary Odilon Pasaraba said in a briefing.

[Translation: Our department and the national government, in general, encourage coordination with the private sector, which has the capacity for that purpose, particularly the storage requirements.]

Pfizer vaccines need to be stored in ultra-cold freezers with temperatures between -80C and -60C. Such storage equipment are not yet widely available nationwide.

Earlier, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the vaccines would be distributed in Metro Manila and other major cities able to fulfill the stringent conditions, which are crucial in ensuring the products efficacy.

The Philippines has received a total of over 2.3 million Pfizer vaccine doses from the World Health Organization-led COVAX facility. The latest shipment, which arrived on June 10, was the biggest so far with 2.2 million doses.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23) - The country logged 4,353 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, raising the nationwide tally to 1,372,232, the Department of Healths latest bulletin showed.

Of the total, 49,862 are active cases or currently sick people. The last time the country recorded COVID-19 active cases below 50,000 was on May 27, when 48,109 were ill.

Among the active cases, at least 90.4% are experiencing mild symptoms, 4.5% are asymptomatic, 1.5% are in critical condition, 2.1% are severe, and 1.49% have moderate symptoms.

Meanwhile, the death toll rose to 23,928 after 119 more patients died of the highly-infectious disease.

The recovery count also climbed to 1,298,442 with 7,139 new COVID-19 survivors.

The DOH said that 15 duplicates were removed from the nationwide tally, of which, 12 are recoveries.

It added that 74 cases previously tagged as recoveries were reclassified as deaths after final validation.

The DOH said all laboratories were operational on June 21, while six laboratories failed to submit their data to the COVID-19 Document Repository System. Based on data in the last 14 days, the six non-reporting laboratories contribute, on average, 3.2% of samples tested and 4.5% of positive cases.

The daily positivity rate or percentage of people that tested positive stood at 11.4% based on 33,413 tests done on June 21. The World Health Organization recommended that positivity rates be below 5% as higher numbers may mean high transmission.

The OCTA Research earlier reported that the number of new cases in Metro Manila continued to decrease to an average of 700 per day - a 15% drop from the previous week. Meanwhile, Davao City, Bacolod, Iloilo City, Cagayan De Oro, and Tacloban were tagged as areas of concern.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23)  The opposition has not yet picked a presidential and vice presidental tandem for the 2022 elections, Liberal Party president Sen. Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan said Wednesday.

Pangilinan made the clarification a day after LP chair and Vice President Leni Robredo was seen in public together with Manila Mayor Isko Moreno for an immunization drive in the city. The two officials are being floated as a possible team for president and vice president next year.

READ: Robredo, Moreno launch drive-thru vaccination for Manila's tricycle drivers, delivery riders

"Talks are still in the nascent stage. I'd rather not talk about tandems," Pangilinan told CNN Philippines' The Source.

"Like I said, we are still in the exploratory talks stage. Nothing is definite. Nothing has been finalized," Pangilinan said. "We are still at the moment reaching out and the reason is also because we are all focused on COVID-19 response and understandably so."

Pangilinan said that while Robredo remains their number one bet for president, they continue to trust and support her while she finalizes her decision. He did not say if the opposition has reached out to Moreno.

He said: "We trust and support our VP and our chairperson of the party in her desire that we should only have one candidate and two, that we should be able to unite behind that candidate even if its not her. She said that categorically."

Robredo has not yet publicly declared her political plans for next year. Moreno has likewise kept mum on his decision, but said that he will not gun for a national position based on political color or mere endorsements.

Moreno was also among the top five choices of President Rodrigo Duterte for president, according to Malacanang. The four others are the President's daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte; his former aide Sen. Christopher "Bong" Go, former senator Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr., and PDP-Laban partymate Sen. Manny Pacquiao.

READ: Moreno mum on possible presidential bid, says endorsement won't be basis of his decision

Meanwhile, only lawyer Chel Diokno and former Sen. Antonio Trillanes from opposition coalition 1Sambayan have so far expressed interest in running in the 2022 polls. Aside from them and Robredo, the opposition coalition also nominated Senator Grace Poe, CIBAC party-list Rep. Eddie Villanueva, and Batangas Rep. Vilma Santos-Recto for president and vice president. However, these four rejected their nominations.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23)  Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the recent remark of the countrys chief executive against the International Criminal Court is justified as a leader of a sovereign country.

Its BS (bullshit), because in the first place, we are a sovereign country, kung mayroong dapat mag-imbestiga at maglitis kay Presidente (if there is someone who needs to investigate and put the president in trial), it will have to be Filipino fiscals and trial will have to be before Filipino judges, Roque said in a briefing.

This is in connection to the statement of President Rodrigo Duterte during his Monday address, wherein he again shrugged off the call of the international body to conduct an investigation on his controversial war against illegal drugs. He also emphasized that he will only face a Philippine court with a Filipino judge if his anti-illegal drug campaign will be investigated.

On June 15, Outgoing ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda requested for an authorization to start an investigation into the alleged crime against humanity committed by Dutertes deadly war on drugs.

According to the ICC prosecutor, around 12,000 to 30,000 civilians were killed from July 2016 to March 2019 in connection with the governments anti-illegal drug campaign. Government data showed that 6,117 individuals died during anti-drug operations as of April 30 this year.

Duterte questioned the need to defend an accusation before white people, even calling the ICC bullshit and crazy.

In the Philippines, the Justice Department formed an inter-agency panel June 2020 assigned to look into the drug operations conducted that led to deaths, including minors.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said at least 81 drug death cases under preliminary investigation or pending before the courts.

RELATED: UN rights chief: PH drug war review must yield meaningful results
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23)  The Philippine National Police Internal Affairs Service (PNP IAS) has recommended the dismissal of the police officer behind the killing of a 52-year-old woman in Quezon City last month, PNP Chief PGEN Guillermo Eleazar said on Wednesday.

While he has yet to receive a copy of the IAS resolution, Eleazar vowed to uphold its recommendation to dismiss Police Master Sergeant Hensie Zinampan.

The PNP chief said he has also ordered to expedite the review and decision on Zinampan's case. Officials earlier said Zinampan will face murder charges.

In a police report, a witness said Zinampan confronted the victim in front of a store at around 9:30 p.m. in Barangay Greater Fairview on May 31. A video showed the visibly agitated policeman drawing his firearm and shooting the victim at the back of her head, killing her instantly.
(CNN)  US Border Patrol Chief Rodney Scott is stepping down, according to a source familiar with the decision, marking the latest change in the border agency's leadership structure.

Deputy Chief Raul Ortiz is expected to step into the role on an acting basis.

Scott, who assumed the post as chief in February 2020, was expected to step down with the change in administrations. He began his career with US Border Patrol in 1992.

CNN previously reported that Benjamine "Carry" Huffman, who's served at Customs and Border Protection over three decades, will take over the role of acting CBP deputy commissioner, following the retirement of Robert Perez at the end of June.

RELATED: Kamala Harris to make first trip to the border as vice president this week

CNN has reached out to CBP for comment.

Prior to serving as Border Patrol chief, Scott served as the acting deputy Border Patrol chief. Before then, he also ran the Border Patrol's San Diego sector, where he was in charge during the arrival of a migrant caravan in 2018, as well as the widely reported border incident in which migrants on the Mexican side rushed the border area, leading US Border Patrol agents to fire tear gas at the group.

Most recently, Scott led the agency during a record number of unaccompanied minors arriving at the US-Mexico border. The surge in children crossing the border alone this spring overwhelmed border facilities, leading to crowded conditions and kids waiting to be placed in shelters equipped to care for them. While arrests of unaccompanied children dropped in May, apprehensions of migrants along the US southern border remain high.

US President Joe Biden nominated Tucson, Arizona, police chief Chris Magnus to serve as CBP commissioner in April. The agency hasn't had a confirmed commissioner since Kevin McAleenan, who was tapped from the agency to serve as acting Homeland Security secretary and eventually left the Trump administration.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "US Border Patrol chief stepping down, source says."
Vasicek noted that Bird has also approached Kearney. At the meeting, she said Kearney was working on an agreement but had not yet approved one. The Kearney City Council's agenda for its Tuesday meeting did not include anything about an agreement with Bird.

Bird has scooters in cities around the world, including numerous cities in Nebraska.

The Bird scooters operate in conjunction with the Bird app. Vasicek said it will cost $1 to unlock a scooter and turn it on and approximately 30 cents per mile ridden.

At the council meeting, Vasicek said a Bird representative said they would have a local employee perform maintenance on the scooters and make sure they stay within certain areas.

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Which areas those will be remain unclear.

"I believe they pick a few places and then are willing to even move those around after they figure out where people are using them," Mayor Jim Bulkley said at the meeting.
CLEVELAND (AP)  Drake Bell, the former star of the popular Nickelodeon show Drake & Josh, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to charges relating to a girl who met him online and attended one of his concerts in Cleveland in 2017, when she was 15.

Jared Drake Bell, 34, of West Hollywood, California, pleaded guilty via Zoom to felony attempted child endangerment and a misdemeanor charge of disseminating matter harmful to juveniles. Sentencing is scheduled for July 12 in Cleveland.

Defense attorney Ian Friedman said Wednesday that he could not comment on the case but said it will be revealed at sentencing why Mr. Bell chose to enter today's plea.

Bell had initially pleaded not guilty to the charges earlier this month. Tyler Sinclair, a spokesperson for the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office, said at the time that the girl contacted Toronto police in October 2018. Toronto authorities then contacted Cleveland police, prompting an investigation.

The attempted endangering children charge relates to the concert, Sinclair said, where Bell violated his duty of care and created a risk of harm to the victim. Sinclair didnt elaborate further.
Make no mistake: critical race theory is an attack on our countrys core values. The American founding is based on the idea that that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. While America has fallen short of this aspiration at times, we must all work together to live up to this ideal. The effect of CRT is to pit Americans against one another, rather than building a more perfect union that promotes the dignity of all Americans and respect for people of all backgrounds.

I am concerned that CRT ideology will be pushed in our schools. NDEs website promotes the 1619 Project, a project of the New York Times that presents a revisionist history of the American founding. Last week after I posted a statement on social media opposing CRT, the founder of the 1619 Project responded to my statement claiming that white supremacy is a core value of America. Furthermore, NDEs website promotes the Zinn Education Project, an organization carrying on the work of self-described socialist Howard Zinn. The Zinn Education Project has been a vocal opponent of states who have sought to ban CRT from being applied in K-12 public schools.
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US to review dark history of Indigenous boarding schools

Evan Vucci, Associated Press Interior Secretary Deb Haaland on Tuesday announced steps that the federal government plans to take to reconcile the legacy of boarding school policies on Indigenous families and communities across the U.S. Michael Bupp, The Sentinel The Carlisle Indian School cemetery is located off Claremont Road at the Carlisle Barracks.

The federal government will investigate its past oversight of Native American boarding schools and work to uncover the truth about the loss of human life and the lasting consequences of policies that over the decades forced hundreds of thousands of children from their families and communities, U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland announced Tuesday.

The work will include compiling and reviewing records to identify past boarding schools, locate known and possible burial sites at or near those schools, and uncover the names and tribal affiliations of students, she said.

To address the intergenerational impact of Indian boarding schools and to promote spiritual and emotional healing in our communities, we must shed light on the unspoken traumas of the past no matter how hard it will be, Haaland said.

A member of New Mexicos Laguna Pueblo and the first Native American to serve as a Cabinet secretary, Haaland outlined the initiative while addressing members of the National Congress of American Indians during the groups midyear conference.

Work begins as remains of 10 more Native American kids to be disinterred at Carlisle Barracks The cemetery contains more than 180 graves of students who attended the former Carlisle Indian Industrial School, a government-run boarding school for Native American children.

She said the process will be long, difficult and painful and will not undo the heartbreak and loss endured by many families.

Starting with the Indian Civilization Act of 1819, the U.S. enacted laws and policies to establish and support Indian boarding schools across the nation. For over 150 years, Indigenous children were taken from their communities and forced into boarding schools that focused on assimilation.

The Carlisle Indian Industrial School was one of those schools. It was founded by an Army officer in 1879 and housed some 10,000 indigenous children before it shut down in 1918. Students were forced to cut their braids, dress in uniforms, speak English and adopt European names. Infectious disease and harsh conditions claimed the lives of many of the children buried there.

Haaland talked about the federal government's attempt to wipe out tribal identity, language and culture and how that past has continued to manifest itself through long-standing trauma, cycles of violence and abuse, premature deaths, mental health issues and substance abuse.

The recent discovery of children's remains buried at the site of what was once Canadas largest Indigenous residential school has magnified interest in the legacy both in Canada and the United States.

In Canada, more than 150,000 First Nations children were required to attend state-funded Christian schools as part of a program to assimilate them into society. They were forced to convert to Christianity and were not allowed to speak their languages. Many were beaten and verbally abused, and up to 6,000 are said to have died.

After reading about the unmarked graves in Canada, Haaland recounted her own family's story in a recent opinion piece published by the Washington Post.

5 Questions: Film documents quest to reclaim lost Native American children from Carlisle Barracks Post Cemetery The co-producer of a Carlisle Indian School documentary answers questions on the effort by the Northern Arapaho to reclaim the remains of three boys who were buried at Carlisle Barracks Post Cemetery.

Haaland cited statistics from the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition, which reported that by 1926, more than 80% of Indigenous school-age children were attending boarding schools that were run either by the federal government or religious organizations. Besides providing resources and raising awareness, the coalition has been working to compile additional research on U.S. boarding schools and deaths that many say is sorely lacking.

Interior Department officials said aside from trying to shed more light on the loss of life at the boarding schools, they will be working to protect burial sites associated with the schools and will consult with tribes on how best to do that while respecting families and communities.

A team of archaeologists began work Saturday at the Carlisle Barracks Cemetery, which also houses the U.S. Army War College, to exhume the remains of 10 Carlisle Indian Industrial School students. Nine of the children were from the Rosebud Sioux tribe in South Dakota and one is from the Alaskan Aleut tribe.

The cemetery contains more than 180 graves of students who attended the former school. This is the Armys fourth disinterment project at the school in as many years.

As part of the initiative, a final report from agency staff is due by April 1, 2022.

Chuck Hoskin Jr., principal chief of the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma, which had about 80 boarding schools, called the announcement encouraging and said anything that can be done to address those troubling chapters of history is a positive thing.

I hope we dont discover gruesome incidents like were discovered in Canada. I just think its good in this country to have conversations about what happened to Native American children, Hoskin said.

Navajo Nation President Nez also offered his support for the initiative, saying discrimination against Native Americans continues today on many fronts  from voter suppression to high numbers of missing and murdered people.

Last week, Congress and President Biden established Juneteenth as a national holiday, in observance of the end of slavery, which I fully support as a means to healing the African American community," Nez said. Now, from my perspective as a Navajo person, there are so many atrocities and injustices that have been inflicted upon Native Americans dating back hundreds of years to the present day that also require national attention, so that the American society in general is more knowledgeable and capable of understanding the challenges that we face today.

This is not the first time the federal government has attempted to acknowledge what Haaland referred to as a dark history.

More than two decades ago, Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Kevin Gover issued an apology for the emotional, psychological, physical and spiritual violence committed against children at the off-reservation schools. Then in 2009, President Barack Obama quietly signed off on an apology of sorts that was buried deep in a multibillion-dollar defense spending bill; the language had been watered down from the original legislation introduced years earlier.
Information is from police reports and may be incomplete depending on the status of an investigation. Phone numbers are nonemergency.
Dear Editor:

RGGI, the Regional Greenhouse Gas initiative, is one way to show that those who are better care about those with limited resources. The elderly, laborers who work in the outdoors, people with respiratory issues, people exposed to flooding, and many others suffer when pollution caused by climate change occurs.

In an April 20, 2021 opinion letter to Cumberlink.com, Brandon Hoover, explained the hopelessness many feel because they dont believe they impact climate change. Hoover went on to remark that humans have the capability to fix the problems they cause.

RGGI is a success in the 11 states that already implement it. Climate pollution is cut by a third and nearly $3 billion dollars was raised for investment in a cleaner environment. Pennsylvania carbon pollution would drop by more than 180 million tons, more than 27,000 jobs would be added, and nearly $2 billion dollars would be injected into the Keystone states economy. Action allowing RGGI by the General Assembly will permit revenue to go to the most disadvantaged communities, those with low income and of color.
BANGKOK (AP)  Britain's top diplomat met Wednesday with his Cambodian counterpart as he pushed for closer economic relations to Southeast Asia, part of the U.K.'s new emphasis on the region.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab met with Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn in Phnom Penh in what his office said was the first visit by a British foreign secretary to Cambodia since the British Embassy was reopened 30 years ago.

Cambodia is to take over the rotating annual chairmanship next year of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, and Raab's office said he would make the case for Britain to attain dialogue partnership with the 10-nation bloc, the closest relationship for non-member countries.

Here to boost trade, support Cambodias energy transition, expand UK ASEAN cooperation  and as a force for good in the Indo-Pacific, Raab tweeted ahead of his meetings.

Following the meeting, Cambodia's Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying the country was strongly supportive of Britain's aspirations for dialogue partnership, taking into consideration its already very active engagement with ASEAN.
Strongman competition coming to Greene

While participants might not be able to leap buildings in a single bound or be superheroes, those who take part in Strongman competitions are the next best things. And this July, the Strongman Competition is coming back to Greene County.

Strongman competitions used to be something that happened in Greene a lot, especially in the mid-80s, said David Roach Jr., coordinator of the event, which is hosted by Primal Strength Gym in Charlottesville. They would happen at county fairs and in those days wed have strongman competitions like how now they have livestock showsit was just an event that would happen at the fair and it would be an attention-getter.

Roach remembers watching his father, Greene County Sheriffs Office Capt. David Roach, participating in them.

Every year he won and I got into fitness and went into the Marine Corps and then law enforcement, Roach said.

Several former deputies, as well as former Sheriff Willie Morris, would work out at Stanardsville Barbell Club, which is no longer in business.
The Fralin Museum of Art at the University of Virginia received a $2 million gift from Dr. Carol R. Angle to support exhibitions at the museum through the Angle Exhibition Fund.

The Angle Exhibition Fund, which also supports the museums permanent collection, was created in 2016 with a previous gift that established the first named endowment to support exhibitions at the Fralin. The fund helps the Fralin mount high-quality exhibitions that serve UVa students and increasingly diverse local and national audiences.

In 2020, Angle also endowed the Carol R. Angle Academic Curator position, which Jordan Love holds.

Angle, who lives in Charlottesville, served as a pediatrician and toxicologist at the University of Nebraska Medical Center for 45 years. Along the way, she became one of the nations leading experts on lead poisoning. The longtime Fralin patron, who has described herself as a museum hound, is focusing on the arts and education in her community and how they can address health and community issues.
The city has received three statements of interest so far from entities interested in acquiring the Confederate statues.

The City Council voted unanimously on June 7 to remove and recontextualize the statues of Robert E. Lee and Thomas Stonewall Jackson in downtown parks. After a 30-day waiting period required by Virginia statute, the city will be able to remove the statues.

The city posted a Request for Statements of Interest following the vote, offering to transfer ownership of one or both statues to an entity, upon terms deemed by City Council to be appropriate and advantageous. The offer is extended to any museum, historical society, government or military battlefield interested in acquiring the statues. The request expires July 7.

At a council meeting Monday, City Manager Chip Boyles said the city also mailed notices to nearby battlefields and museums.

The Request for Statements of Interest is mandated by the state. However, the City Council is not required to allow the transfer of the statues to another entity. They can vote against this after reviewing the proposals.

Boyles said two of the entities interested in acquiring the statues are in state and one is out of state.
VIRGINIA BEACH  The father of a Black man who was fatally shot by police in Virginia Beach has filed a $50 million wrongful death lawsuit.

The Virginian-Pilot reported Monday that the federal lawsuit was filed by the father of Donovon Lynch against Officer Solomon D. Simmons and the city of Virginia Beach.

Police would not confirm that Simmons was the shooter. But police have said the police officer who shot Lynch is Black.

Wayne Lynch claims the officer shot his son immediately, unlawfully and without warning and failed to render aid.

Police have said Lynch had a handgun. The family and a witness have denied that. The officer who shot Lynch did not have his body camera turned on, according to police.

Virginia State Police are currently investigating the March 26 shooting.

Simmons did not return the newspapers calls for comment. City spokeswoman Julie Hill told the Pilot the city could not comment because it had not yet received the lawsuit.
Her plan drew immediate support from the Virginia Chamber of Commerce and other business organizations that called it a path forward for businesses to return to full strength after 15 months in a public health emergency that will end in Virginia next week.

We need to be doing all that we can to support businesses and encourage more workers to return to work, Chamber President and CEO Barry DuVal said Tuesday. This legislation offers an innovative approach to incentivize more workers to return, while not creating additional barriers or burdens for employers.

There were nearly 160,000 fewer employed Virginians in April compared with two years ago, according to federal labor data.

While there are several contributing factors to our current worker shortage, such as the need for greater access to child care and lingering safety concerns, we need to be doing all that we can to encourage more workers to return and help our businesses that are struggling, DuVal said.

The plan would provide as much as $1,620 over nine weeks until the federal unemployment benefits expire on Sept. 6, much like the hiring bonuses that many Republican-led states have offered instead of continuing the $300 weekly benefit through Labor Day under the American Rescue Plan Act that President Joe Biden signed March 11.
Layne has recommended that the state use at least $1 billion of the federal aid to replenish the trust fund, but the Appropriations staff said Wednesday that a $750 million investment would reduce the payroll tax increase next year and restore the fund to about 50% solvency in 2023.

Northam said Wednesday he also wants to devote money to the Virginia Employment Commission to hire staff and complete a long-delayed upgrade of its antiquated information technology system, as he promised both in an executive directive and a settlement of a class-action federal lawsuit against the agency last month.

Help for Virginias small businesses and beleaguered tourism industries also is high on the list. Leisure and hospitality businesses accounted for about 10% of the states non-farm jobs at the beginning of last year, but they suffered 45% of the states losses during the pandemic through April.

Virginia Tourism Corp. is asking for $50 million to help the state and local destination marketing organizations revive one of the states most critical economic engines, encompassing the restaurant, hotel and travel industries that include convention centers, wedding venues and recreational attractions.
Yes. I will do my part to conserve household energy usage, even if I'm uncomfortable in my home.

No. It is too hot to conserve household energy usage.

I already conserve, even before ERCOT requested it.

Maybe, depending on the reason ERCOT provides and whether or not I am home during that time.

Vote

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Now, Iowa law enforcement cannot conduct a warrantless search of garbage that is waiting to be picked up.

In writing for the majority, Iowa Supreme Court Justice Christopher McDonald said Wright had not abandoned his property. The ordinance in Clear Lake states that only a licensed collector under contract with the city may collect garbage.

In moving his trash to the alley for collection, Wright agreed only to convey his property to a licensed collector. Wright would have the right to retrieve the property prior to collection and the right to exclude all others from rummaging through his garbage bins prior to collection.

Until such time as the garbage bags were collected by a licensed collector and commingled with other garbage, Wright had not yet abandoned the property, McDonald wrote. Additionally, the officer who searched the garbage trespassed on property to get the Wrights garbage.

In his concurrence, Justice Brent Appel said, I regard the protections afforded by search and seizure law to be expansive and broad enough to include evolving concepts of property, privacy, and security.
Gujarat: Ahmedabad civic body monitors oxygen levels in river after thousands of fish die

June 23,2021 | Source: Khaleej Times

The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) is monitoring the dissolved oxygen levels in Sabarmati river after thousands of fish were found dead over the weekend. Civic officials have attributed the deaths to the reduced dissolved oxygen levels in the water and weather change including overcast skies. The fish are dying due to less amount of dissolved oxygen in the water, Harpalsinh Zala, the AMC city engineer told the media. Whenever the weather is humid and cloudy, the surface oxygen does not get dissolved in the water. We are regularly monitoring these levels in the water and there has been no incident reported after Sunday.



According to him, oxygen levels can also go down because of less circulation of water. Since AMC uses water from Narmada canal, water from the Sabarmati is used only for recreational and irrigation purposes, demand for which is low now, he said. Thus, the water is stagnant. Incidentally, the tragedy coincided with the publication of a study by the Indian Institute of Technology, Gandhinagar, establishing the presence of coronavirus in samples from Sabarmati and Kankaria and Chandola lakes between September and December 2020. The report, which has been widely quoted in social media, led to panic in Ahmedabad with residents fearing the worst. AMC officials asserted the fish deaths were a natural annual phenomenon, and that there is no study corelating transmission of coronavirus through water. Even the WHO has denied it, said a civic official.

 2021 Galadari Printing and Publishing LLC.
Himachal Pradesh: Breeding season on, 2-month ban imposed on fishing

June 23,2021 | Source: The Tribune

The fishing in the Pong Dam reservoir on the foothills of Kangra district was banned for the next two months today in view of fish breeding season. Sprawling over 24,000 hectares, the manmade water body, which is 42-km long and 19-km broad, is providing livelihood to nearly 2,800 fishermen. As per official information, the Pong reservoir is producing Singhara fish species which is around 60 per cent of the total fish production. It fetches the highest price in the market. Apart from this, species of Rahu, Katla, Common Carpe and Mahasheer are also produced here which are in huge demand. Sat Pal Mehta, Director, Fisheries Department, Bilaspur, said the department planned to put fish seed worth Rs 29 lakh in the Pong reservoir in the current breeding season and 360 tons of fish production was expected this season.



During fish breeding season each fishermen will be paid Rs 1,500 per month as off-season allowance-cum-financial relief. The department is also providing free accidental insurance cover of Rs 2 lakh to every fisherman apart from providing quality fishing nets and boats on subsidized price to them, he said. Mehta said to check illegal fishing during the two-month fishing breeding season the Fisheries Department had geared up its machinery and deployed a flying squad which would use motor boat to keep close look on illegal fishing in the Pong reservoir. A special patrolling camp comprising department and outsourced employees had also been set up at Nagrota Surian for conducting round the clock patrolling around the reservoir. The Fisheries Department imposes blanket ban on fish catching every year in Gobindsagar, Pong, Chamera, Kol Dam and Ranjit Sagar reservoirs. Fishing has also been banned in all rivers in HP for two months from today.

 The Tribune Trust, 2021
Latest issue of ICSF's fisheries journal, SAMUDRA Report No. 85, May 2021, published

June 23,2021 | Source: ICSF

The International Collective in Support of Fishworkers (ICSF) has just published the latest issue of SAMUDRA Report, its triannual journal on fisheries, communities and livelihoods. The current edition, SAMUDRA Report No. 85, dated May 2021, features a range of articles from Africa, Asia, South America and the Caribbean, specifically from Turkey, Cambodia, South Africa, Brazil, Tanzania, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Mozambique, Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Costa Rica, India, France, the Philippines, Brazil and Thailand. The issue also carries articles that analyze the Blue Economy, destructive fishing, small-scale fisheries (SSF) and the SSF Guidelines, among other topics.



The current issue has three articles on food security (from Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Cambodia) and five articles on social development and sustainable fisheries (from Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Costa Rica, India, the Philippines and Thailand).



The editorial Comment in SAMUDRA Report No. 85 discusses how the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the global inadequacy of social-protection floors in safeguarding marginalized communities, in the process exacerbating poverty and vulnerability.



The article on the Blue Economy focuses on a study that illustrates the deep influences that guide the gilded ocean economy and how a mere 100 companies generated 60 per cent of revenues from the largest ocean-based industries in 2018.



The piece from Turkey highlights the effects of COVID-19 on SSF in Istanbul, bringing out the need to address the structural inequalities and power asymmetries that bind the sector.



A correspondent from South Africa reports on the Regional Small-Scale Fisheries Governance Training Course for Africa, held in February 2021, a week-long virtual course, a collaboration between the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the International Ocean Institute - Southern Africa (IOI-SA), which brought together seven African countries.



Another article explains how the Community Fisheries organizations in Cambodia form a vital framework for collective, rights-based fisheries management that persists and thrives in inland and coastal settings.



A research report, the focus of another piece, uncovers the historical injustice meted out to Indian-origin subsistence fishers in South Africa who have to deal with the COVID-19 restrictions.



According to a report from Brazil, one year after an oil spill hit the Discovery Coast, the COVID-19 pandemic has worsened the lot of the region's indigenous fishing communities.



An early champion of the interests of small-scale fishers, points out another report, the East African nation of Tanzania is among the trailblazers in plans to implement the SSF Guidelines.



As the COVID-19 pandemic ravaged the fisher economy of Sri Lanka, says another article, households were left indebted and distressed, and co-operatives emerged as a beacon for the small-scale fishing sectors well-being.



Through a mix of downplaying, intransparency and undertesting, Indonesia, the largest archipelago nation in the world, paid little heed to its vulnerable fishers during the COVID-19 pandemic, says another article in SAMUDRA Report No. 85.



Natural disasters like cyclones, more than the COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with lack of research on the conditions of the poor, threaten the well-being of small-time fishers in Mozambique, according to another piece in the issue.



The last six articles in SAMUDRA Report No. 85 focus on social development and sustainable fisheries in Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Costa Rica, India, The Philippines and Thailand.



The current issue also carries a review of the much-lauded Pecheurs du Monde film festival in Lorient, France, which had to virtually reinvent itself to produce a rich and intense experience of visual delight.



The Roundup section of SAMUDRA Report No. 85 carries news snippets, event announcements, briefings on fishery-related matters, and more.



SAMUDRA Report No. 85, May 2021 can be accessed at:

https://www.icsf.net/en/samudra/article/EN/85.html?limitstart=0



ICSF is an international NGO that works towards the establishment of equitable, gender-just,self-reliant and sustainable fisheries, particularly in the small-scale, artisanal sector.



For more, please visit www.icsf.net

 2021 ICSF
Cyber

CISA lacks insights into agency network defenses

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency doesnt have the data to determine if agencies are segmenting and segregating their networks, according to CISA acting Director Brandon Wales.

In a June 3 response to questions from Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) about the 2020 SolarWinds attack and the role the EINSTEIN cybersecurity system plays in protecting federal networks, Wales said that while his agency continues to develop and promulgate guidance to encourage network segmentation, it does not know the percentage of agencies that have segmented and segregated their internal networks.

This information is apparently not sought in reports required under Federal Information Security Modernization Act, although FISMA does require some detail on how high-value asset systems are managed and protected on agency networks.

Wyden contacted CISA in February 2021 with a list of questions about CISA's capacity to detect zero-day exploits and related anomalous network activity using its $6 billion EINSTEIN sensor system, including why CISA was unable to detect network traffic between agencies that had downloaded a corrupted SolarWinds update package and a remote server that was established by the exploits perpetrators to manage the campaign and send additional malware payloads to compromised systems.

Wales agreed with findings presented by Wyden that firewalls configured to block outgoing traffic would have halted the progress of the SolarWinds campaign, but he added that such a configuration "is not applicable to all types of intrusions and may not be feasible given operational requirements for some agencies." He also noted that the three-pronged EINSTEIN capability is just one piece of the National Cybersecurity Protection System. One big lesson of the SolarWinds campaign, Wales wrote, is that, "EINSTEIN must be supplemented with capabilities that enable us to look inside the network to better detect in-network intrusions."

Additionally, Wales acknowledged that EINSTEIN's focus on the network perimeter is insufficient given the increase in encrypted network traffic and the proliferation of network endpoints. CISA is planning to use a $650 million spending boost included in the American Rescue Plan Act to "rapidly accelerate the transition from a perimeter defense construct to a construct whereby agencies and CISA will be better situated to identify threat activity within federal networks in near-real-time."

Wales wrote that "CISA is continuously evaluating opportunities to use binding operational directives or other authorities to drive appropriate security measures, including to adopt risk-based configuration practices." He added later in the letter that "we need to rethink our approach to managing cybersecurity across 101 federal civilian executive branch agencies."

This article was first posted to FCW, a sibling site to Defense Systems.
Geiger reveals that it was difficult to ascertain whether his father's initial slip-ups were merely quirks resulting from his eccentric nature or signs of something more serious. But then came problems with socks  storing them in the fridge, or putting them on and wondering where the third one was  and undue stress with easy everyday tasks, at which point August's family faced up to reality. Geiger was forced to take action: "As my father can no longer cross the bridge into my world, I have to go over to his."

That world proved to be a tough place for both sufferer and caregiver. Geiger describes his father's disorientation at home and his confusion with people. Oddball antics are eclipsed by more disturbing behavior: "feeding" a newsreader on TV, asking after dead relatives, searching the house in the middle of the night for children who have long since flown the nest. Geiger sits by helplessly, "watching my father bleed to death in slow motion."

But he doesn't die. Geiger informs us that he wanted to write his book while August was alive, for he, "like everyone else, deserved to have an open-ended destiny." Geiger shows him in healthier times, as a conscripted soldier during the war and a mismatched partner in a marriage. We also see him bonding with his son in joyful moments that are "all the more special because they were wrestled from the illness."
The result, says Tufts University political scholar Daniel Drezner, is a GOP that has begun to resemble Lebanon's Hezbollah, "a political party that also has an armed wing to coerce other political actors through violence."

"The comparison is stronger now than before," Drezner told me last week. "The Republicans who wanted to impeach Trump have been marginalized, and the state parties sound more and more secessionist with each passing day."

The willingness of right-wing extremists to resort to violence didn't begin on Jan. 6  and Trump has long sounded as if he was encouraging them.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic last year, for example, he urged supporters to "liberate" their states from Democratic governors. Trump backers in Michigan responded by storming the state Capitol, and six were later indicted on suspicion of plotting to kidnap and murder Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

Before Jan. 6, Trump summoned his loyalists to Washington ("Will be wild!" he promised) and told them: "If you don't fight like hell you're not going to have a country anymore." His defenders said he didn't mean for the word "fight" to incite actual combat.

At this point, some readers may ask: But what about the Democrats? Don't they have a violent fringe too?
The director of ranch life, who had been driving the van, was unconscious and trapped when other motorists pulled her out, Smith said. The children, including two of the director's, could not be saved.

The director is in serious, but stable, condition, Smith said. When Smith visited her at the hospital over the weekend and mentioned he was going to the ranch, he said she asked him to "please tell my girls, I love them."

One of the girls at the ranch told a counselor the loss is adds more trauma on top of all she has already experienced.

"She said through her whole life she's had nothing but her family taken away from her," Smith said. "She's been bounced around in foster homes in many cases. And she was crying her eyes out and now her family has been, her sisters had been taken away from her again.

"So it's tough."

A community shows up to support one another

Smith visited the crash site Saturday and said it was unlike anything he'd ever seen. The damage was so extensive that he didn't recognize his own ranch van.

And now he and his team must prepare for eight funerals, an emotional blow that has struck not just the ranch but the whole community.
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Denton, TX (76205)

Today

Partly cloudy skies early then becoming cloudy with periods of rain late. Low 73F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies early then becoming cloudy with periods of rain late. Low 73F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%.
It looks like some measure of privatisation is finally going to be applied to the state-owned operator Angola Telecom by the Angolan government.

According to local news reports, the government is planning to go ahead with an international public tender involving the national and metropolitan transport infrastructure of Angola Telecom. The international tender will involve a concession to manage, operate and expand Angola Telecoms national and metropolitan transport backbone network.

While this is a somewhat limited privatisation, its aim is nevertheless to take advantage of the know-how of the private sector, not least, as the official announcement suggests, "the need to align the Executive's strategy to make the public business sector more dynamic and profitable.

According to TeleGeography's CommsUpdate, the announcement also refers to synergies with other private, national and international operators, and taking advantage of the skills and funds of national and foreign investors. Tender winners will also be expected to train staff assigned to the public company.

The minister of telecommunications, information technologies and social communication will manage the process and the approval of the procedure and appointment of the evaluation committee, as well as the verification of the validity and legality of the procedures involved in the international public tender. In addition, the minister will have the power to delegate for all these parts of the process. The support of the finance minister has also been mandated.

This initiative takes place more than 18 months after we reported a decree naming a five-person leadership for the loss-making telecommunications company, preparatory, it was assumed at the time, to its privatisation.
Indosat Ooredoo announced the launch of its 5G services in the city of Solo (city of Surakarta) in Java, Indonesia. Huawei is the 5G network supplier for Indosat Ooredoo.

"The new 5G services in Solo will offer Indosat Ooredoo's consumer and business customers access to enhanced mobile broadband internet, empowering the citys economic recovery and digital transformation," said a press release from the telecommunications provider in Indonesia.

President Director and CEO Indosat Ooredoo, Ahmad Al-Neama, said: We believe 5G technology will help accelerate the digital transformation of Indonesian society and stimulate innovation in businesses across all industries.

The launch of commercial 5G services is part of a new partnership with Surakarta Municipality to support its economic recovery. The partnership also includes collaboration in micro & small-medium-sized enterprise (MSME) empowerment, digital talent education, and smart city development.

Johnny G. Plate, Indonesia's minister of communication and IT said: "Even though 4G still serves as the backbone of our digital transformation, we hope that the initial commercialisation of 5G can be further our national vision to be a regional digital powerhouse. Together, lets ensure the presence of 5G service will bring benefits to the nation and have a significant impact on economic recovery.

Indosat Ooredoo plans to launch 5G mobile services in other major cities in Indonesia, including Jakarta, Surabaya, and Makassar.
Moscow, ID (83843)

Today

Mostly clear. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 59F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Mostly clear. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 59F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph.
Alliance Steel Building Systems, an Oklahoma City-based metal building company, has announced its expansion into the Southeast United States with a new office in Eufaula.

The new office space is located at 221 East Broad Street, Suite B, in the heart of Eufaulas Historic District. Alliance Steel Eufaula will be home to at least nine employees including drafters, detailers and engineers responsible for the designs and building plans of Alliances industry leading metal buildings. The Eufaula office will also serve as an engineering center for Alliances sister company ACI Building Systems out of Batesville, Miss.

The move to Eufaula allows us to enlarge our footprint and more thoroughly service this vibrant geographical sector of the country, said Alliance President and CEO Mark Porto. As well as an engineering center for ACI, our design team in Eufaula will lead engineering efforts into new markets.

We are very excited to partner with the city of Eufaula and consider this an investment in the future growth of both our company, and the Eufaula community at large. We are very proud to be the new kid in town and look forward to a mutually beneficial corporate-community partnership.
VATICAN CITY (AP)  Robert Schuman, a French statesman who paved the way for the bloc that eventually evolved into European Union, has moved ahead on the Catholic churchs path toward possible sainthood.

The Vatican said Pope Francis on Saturday approved a decree declaring the heroic virtues of Schuman, a former prime minister, finance minister and foreign minister for France after World War II. In 1950, as foreign minister, he developed a plan to promote European economic unity in hopes of furthering peace.

Schuman died in 1963 after serving as the first president of the forerunner of the European Parliament.

The popes decision means Schuman can be called venerable by the Catholic faithful. It is one of several steps in a usually long process that can result in sainthood.

The European Commission website describes Schuman as one of the founding fathers of European unity, hailing him as the architect of the project of European integration.

The Vatican described Schuman as a man of Catholic faith.
OLIVER, British Columbia (AP)  Two Roman Catholic churches on First Nations reserves in British Columbia have burned to the ground in overnight fires, Canadas national police force said Monday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said a patrol officer saw fire come from the Sacred Heart Church on the Penticton Indian Band reserve early Monday morning.

By the time the officer arrived on scene, police say the church was fully engulfed.

Less than two hours later, the RCMP in Oliver, British Columbia were called to St. Gregorys Church, located on the Osoyoos Indian Band reserve.

They say police are liaising with both the Penticton and Osoyoos Indian Bands as part of the investigation.

The RCMP say both churches were destroyed and investigators are treating the fires as suspicious.

Should our investigations deem these fires as arson, the RCMP will be looking at all possible motives and allow the facts and evidence to direct our investigative action, Sgt. Jason Bayda says in the statement.

We are sensitive to the recent events, but wont speculate on a motive.
The Jackson County Sheriffs Office has issued the following press release regarding the recent arrests of several local people and the search for another suspect in an ongoing investigation authorities have referred to as Operation Silver Dollar.

The Jackson County Drug Task Force conducted an undercover operation into the ongoing sales of methamphetamine within the Jackson County community, the release states. During the course of the investigation multiple suspects were identified and charged. Investigators were able to gather evidence which led to identifying Douglas Pelham as being a major methamphetamine supplier in the Jackson, Washington and Holmes County area, it continues.

On Tuesday, June 8th, 2021, The Jackson County Drug Task Force conducted a search warrant in Graceville, Florida. While executing the search warrant, a large amount of methamphetamine in excess of three pounds was located. The estimated street value of the methamphetamine recovered is approximately $30,000.00. Douglas Pelham was present during the search warrant and taken into custody as a result of the ensuing search warrant. This seizure is the culmination of a lengthy investigation that led to arrest warrants being issued for Jillian Pennewell, Sarah Sizemore, Marcel Deleon, Christopher Benefield, and William Adams.
At other times, the settings feel natural, like the gay nightclub Blur or a tour of the colorful WhimzeyLand bowling ball house in an episode featuring a scavenger hunt. Even the countless gratuitous beach shots mostly feel believable.

Im watching something and Im drawn into the show because of the story line, but also the places Im seeing in front of me, said Steve Hayes, president of Visit St. Pete Clearwater, who noted that he and his wife frequently talked about visiting Wyoming while watching their favorite show, Yellowstone.

While sometimes awkward, the characters in Life's Rewards refer to every destination in the scene by name. There were no fake dive bars or coffee shops.

You start to build, Hey, this looks like a really cool place I want to visit, and its in the background," said Hayes. "Its not in the front where you want to go through and hit the fast-forward button.

It's too soon to gauge whether the series has impacted tourism, or even how widely it was viewed.

The hospitality industry was hit hard by the pandemic, and tourist towns are eager to seize on the new willingness to travel. That's put more pressure on destinations to market outside the box.
TROY  Alabama high school and college students are invited to submit films for a free virtual film festival organized by a design professor at Troy University.

YellowHammer Film Festival is geared to students interested in learning more about filmmaking and animation. The one-day film festival will consist of virtual workshops, critiques, a keynote speaker, a student exhibition and an awards ceremony. The festival will be held July 31 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Submissions are due by July 15. YellowHammer Film Festival was made possible by an Alabama Humanities Alliance (AHA) major grant and matching monies from Troy University.

Troy Associate Professor of Design Chris Stagl, the film festival director, said the festival is intended to be an enriching and interactive experience for high school and college students.

Were looking forward to engaging the students who join us online with a look into the world of filmmaking from a perspective of arts and humanities, Stagl said in a Troy University news release. I think the students that enter the festivals competition will be ecstatic to see their work screened for all of the participants, speakers, and judges. With the help of the AHA and Troy University we hope that the YellowHammer Film Festival can make a long-lasting impact in the community and state of Alabama.

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FPT Software staff have their health checked before getting the Covid-19 vaccine at their company in Thu Duc City, June 19, 2021. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran.

The Ministry of Health announced another 55 local Covid-19 cases Wednesday morning, with 51 recorded in HCMC.

Of the cases in the southern metropolis, 40 are associated with previously confirmed patients, one linked to a church cluster in Go Vap District and for the remaining 10, the sources of transmission have not been determined.

The other patients confirmed this morning are in the northern Bac Giang Province and the central Nghe An Province.

In Bac Giang, the two cases are related to hotspots at the province's industrial parks and have already been isolated prior to testing.

The two cases in Nghe An had both made contact with coronavirus patients.

For the past two months, Vietnam's latest Covid wave has seen 10,495 infections recorded in 43 cities and provinces. The most severely hit are Bac Giang with 5,490 cases and HCMC with 1,973.

The nation of 96 million has administered more than 2.5 million Covid vaccine shots, with 133,843 people having fully received two doses.
Khanh Phan's aerial shot of women in conical hats harvesting water lilies has won the third prize at the Malta International Photo Awards and 500 ($596) in cash.

Taken in a pond in Moc Hoa District in the Mekong Delta province of Long An, the photo captures the women washing flowers with long stems before taking them to sell or cook.

"Women in the Mekong Delta have been doing this for generations and they are taught how to row boat when still young," Khanh said.

The photo description by the MIPA Travel Award 20/21 reads: "There are many tourists who come to southern Vietnam to experience the feeling of boating along the rivers... and they can see these images."

A photograph taken by Khanh Phan shows women harvesting water lilies in a pond in Long An Province.

Water lilies, which blossom during the rainy season, are used for decoration and to make tea. Their stalks are edible and can be eaten raw with either fermented paste or braised sauce or cooked in sour soups and hotpots.

Along with other aquatic resources, water lilies help locals earn an additional income, especially during the flooding season which peaks annually in October.

Khanh, a native of the northern province of Thai Binh, lives and works in Ho Chi Minh City.

In 2017 she bought her first camera to pursue her passion for photography.

Khanh said being a woman makes a photographers job difficult since she has to go alone to places hard to access to take pictures. But her hard work and passion have paid off, and she has won 30 awards at home and abroad in the last three years.

Another photo, "Bamboo basket seller" taken in Tat Vien village on the outskirts of Hanoi by Ly Hoang Long was named in the top 15 in the international contest.

A photo taken by Ly Hoang Long shows a man selling bamboo baskets on his bicycle in Hanoi.

The village has long been known for making bamboo baskets used for fishing. Villagers load them on bicycles and go around to sell.

The 7,500 first prize went to Minko Mihaylov of Morocco for a shot of the Sahara Desert after sunrise.

Founded in 2018, the Malta International Photo Award is a premier contest that seeks to share and promote the art of and passion for photography across the globe. This year it received thousands of entries from all over the world.
The arrest of Russian anti-corruption activist and Putins foremost critic Alexey Navalny resulted in the largest unauthorized protests of Putins tenure. Since then, Russian authorities have gone to great lengths to debilitate or eliminate nearly all of the country's opposition organizations.
Vice President Kamala Harris recently traveled to Guatemala as part of her first overseas visit as Vice President to discuss the root causes of irregular migration to the United States from Central America, and to address the acute factors that cause people to leave their home countries, including natural disasters, food insecurity, hunger and the climate crisis.

Vice President Harris emphasized the need to give people a sense of hope. Each of our governments has to give people a sense that help is on the way to let them know that they are seen that they are heard, that we see their capacity, but we also understand their challenges and their need for support and the resources that any human being needs to be able to survive much less thrive, she said.

Vice President Harris and Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammettei discussed how the United States and Guatemala could enhance cooperation to counter the trafficking of illicit drugs and human smuggling and trafficking across borders.

Our nations have collaborated on these issues, and we will create a smuggling and human trafficking task force which will work with local law enforcement to stop these crimes, announced Vice President Harris.

Both leaders also examined the root causes of irregular migration, in particular the lack of economic opportunity for many people in Guatemala, including, but not limited to lack of opportunities for young, primarily indigenous women and girls. In response, the United States will launch an empowerment initiative to empower and increase education and economic opportunities for young women.

We will also invest in agribusiness and affordable housing and supporting entrepreneurs, said Vice President Harris.

The United States is particularly committed to anti-corruption efforts in Guatemala and promoting an independent judiciary, said Vice President Harris:

The United States will create an anti-corruption task force, the first of its kind. Our Justice Department, our Treasury Department, and our State Department will work together to conduct investigations and train local law enforcement to conduct their own.

The goal of our work is to help Guatemalans find hope at home, stressed Vice President Harris.

Hope is on the way, declared Vice President Harris. The actions we take together will improve the lives of Guatemalans, alleviating the need to flee their homes.
Jayli Chantel Acquistapace, 26, of California pleaded guilty to attempted possession of a stolen motor vehicle and was given a suspended sentence of one year in jail, placed on probation for 12 months and was ordered to pay $495 restitution to the victim and serve 53 days in jail before expiration of probationary period. In a separate matter, she pleaded guilty to possession of a credit card or debit card without cardholders consent and was given a suspended sentence of 12 to 30 months in prison, was placed on probation for two years, and was ordered to pay $106.30 restitution to the victim. In a separate matter, she pleaded guilty to uttering or possessing with intent to utter fictitious bill, note or check and was given a suspended sentence of 12 to 30 months in prison, was placed on probation for two years and was ordered to pay $275 restitution to the victim, with all sentences to run concurrently with one another.
MADRID (AP)  John McAfee, the creator of the McAfee antivirus software, has been found dead in his cell in a jail near Barcelona, a government official told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Authorities said the cause of death was being investigated.

Hours earlier, a Spanish court issued a preliminary ruling in favor of the 75-year-old tycoon's extradition to the United States to face tax-related criminal charges that could carry decades in prison.

Security personnel at the Brians 2 penitentiary near the northeastern Spanish city tried to revive him, but the jails medical team finally certified his death, a statement from the regional Catalan government said.

"A judicial delegation has arrived to investigate the causes of death, the statement said, adding that Everything points to death by suicide.

The statement didnt identify McAfee by name, but said he was a 75-year-old U.S. citizen awaiting extradition to his country. A Catalan government source familiar with the event who was not authorized to be named in media reports confirmed to the AP that the dead man was McAfee.
With attention currently focused on New York City as citizens head to the ballot boxes, many Americans - and others around the globe less familiar with US politics - are asking for information about primary elections and the process behind them.

Primary elections: explained

The purpose of primary elections is simply to select candidates that will then run for public office. There are two types of primaries that can be held, partisan and non-partisan. Partisan primaries are considered closed and only allow declared party members to vote while non-partisan primaries are open and enable all voters to take part without declaring their party allegiance.

Then there are direct and non-direct primaries, the former seeing voters elect their partys candidates, and the latter is where they select delegates to choose the actual candidates at a special convention that is held.

What about caucuses?

As well as primaries, the other early option in the election process are caucuses. Unlike the secret ballot system, these see a gathering of voters decide together on a particular candidate.

New York primary election: whats happening?

For the first time, the New York mayoral primaries are employing a ranked-choice voting system. This allows voters to list their top five favourite candidates in order and then automatically eliminates the least popular candidate one-by-one until one of them is left with at least 50% of the vote.

Once all votes are cast, all of the first choice ballots will be counted. If no one secures more than half of the first choice votes then the candidate with the fewest will be eliminated and anyone who chose them will have their second choice counted instead. This process continues until a candidate reaches the 50% threshold and is named the winner.
BEIJING - Political parties, political leaders and friendly individuals in other countries are extending warm congratulations on the upcoming 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

In messages addressed to General Secretary Xi Jinping of the CPC Central Committee or to the CPC Central Committee, they spoke highly of the splendid achievements the CPC has made during the past century, and conveyed their wishes to boost exchanges and cooperation with the CPC.

The following is an edited summary of some of these messages.

Under Xi's leadership, the Chinese people have scored a complete victory in the fight against poverty, which has won worldwide acclaim, said Nepali Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli.

Nepal expects to work with China to promote the building of a beautiful world featuring lasting peace and common prosperity, added Oli, also president of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist).

Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago Keith Rowley underlined the CPC's exploration of the path to national prosperity and rejuvenation.

China has made hard-won achievements in its economic development, poverty alleviation, social progress and other areas, said Rowley, also the leader of the People's National Movement party.

Bob Loughman, leader of the Vanua'aku Pati and Vanuatu's prime minister, said the CPC, with its strong leadership and outstanding ability to govern the country and the party, has led China to achieve remarkable achievements in political, economic and social sectors as well as international affairs.

Robert Abela, leader of Malta's Labour Party and Malta's prime minister, congratulated the CPC on celebrating the historic moment of its 100th anniversary, adding that Malta-China relationship has achieved remarkable progress in recent years.

Abela said Malta's Labour Party attaches great importance to its relations with the CPC and stands ready to enhance mutually beneficial cooperation between the two parties so as to promote the development of Malta-China relations.

Sultan al-Barakani, deputy secretary-general of General People's Congress Party of Yemen and speaker of the Yemeni parliament, expressed admiration for the achievements made by the CPC in pursuing freedom, carrying out construction and promoting development as well as its leading role in the world in sectors of economy and good governance.

Al-Barakani said that the Belt and Road Initiative proposed by General Secretary Xi has been leading China in building a bridge that connects the whole world.

Ban Ki-moon, former United Nations secretary-general and chairman of Ban Ki-moon Foundation For a Better Future, said by implementing continuous, stable and sustainable macro policies, China has made great progress in economic and social development with people's wellbeing continuously improved, setting a model for global development.

Ban also wished China continued prosperity and greater progress under Xi's leadership.
Photo taken on June 22, 2021 shows an exterior view of the Museum of the Communist Party of China in Beijing, capital of China. (Xinhua/Ju Huanzong)

-- The Museum of the Communist Party of China (CPC), a site devoted to permanent and comprehensive exhibitions of the Party's history, was inaugurated on Friday with its first visitors, including Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee.

-- Believing that the Party's history is the most vivid and convincing textbook, the CPC Central Committee, with Xi Jinping at its core, decided to build a museum of the CPC's history in late 2017.

-- On May 5, 2021, after nearly 1,000 days of construction, the Museum of the CPC was officially completed. Details of the museum are full of historic connotations.

BEIJING, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Ahead of the 100th anniversary of the Communist Party of China (CPC), the Museum of the CPC has opened in Beijing, capturing the attention of the country.

The museum, a site devoted to permanent and comprehensive exhibitions of the Party's history, was inaugurated on Friday with its first visitors, including Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee.

Why is the new landmark museum described as the Party's "spiritual home"? Why is it so important to the centennial CPC?

Scattered throughout China, revolutionary sites such as the memorial of the first National Congress of the CPC in Shanghai, the memorial hall marking the start of the Long March by the Central Red Army in Jiangxi Province, the venue of the 1935 Zunyi Meeting in Guizhou Province, and the Fragrant Hills memorial site in suburban Beijing, map out the contours of the CPC's 100-year history.

Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, Xi, also Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, has been reflecting on the Party's founding mission during his inspections of revolutionary memorials across China in a bid to lead the Party and the country to create the future.

People wait to visit the memorial of the first National Congress of the Communist Party of China, in Shanghai, east China, June 6, 2021. (Xinhua/Liu Ying)

Believing that the Party's history is the most vivid and convincing textbook, the CPC Central Committee, with Xi Jinping at its core, decided to build a museum of the CPC's history in late 2017.

The first issue is to select a site.

A piece of land reserved for cultural sites near Beijing Olympic Park was chosen, taking into consideration its location, the height of the building and the surrounding environment.

Shao Weiping, chief architect of the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design (Group) Co., Ltd., was informed about the museum project at the beginning of 2018.

"As an architect as well as a Party member, I was very excited to have the chance to participate in such an important project," said Shao.

A design team was soon established by the company to draft the proposal.

Seven top-level domestic architectural design institutes bid for the commission.

Shao's company, renowned for designing the Great Hall of the People more than 60 years ago, emerged victorious and became the museum's leading design institute.

The museum's groundbreaking ceremony was held on Aug. 26, 2018, and construction began on Sept. 10 of the same year.

Photo taken on May 20, 2019 shows a memorial hall marking the start of the Long March by the Central Red Army in Yudu County, east China's Jiangxi Province. (Xinhua/Hu Chenhuan)

"We turned our love of the Party into motivation for the construction work, regardless of the heat of summer and the cold of winter," said Wang Heng, project manager of the Beijing Urban Construction Group Co., Ltd.

The museum's construction involved nearly 50,000 people.

Xi himself has been following the construction process.

On the afternoon of Sept. 29, 2020, Xi listened to a work report on engineering construction and museum exhibitions, and outlined clear requirements for the next step.

Xi stressed the importance of demonstrating the theme of "staying true to the founding mission" to show that the CPC strives for the well-being of the people and national rejuvenation.

The museum should be a sacred hall, a spiritual home for Party members, an educational center to guide the public to follow the Party's instructions, and an authoritative institute for Party history research and publicity, Xi said.

On Feb. 8, 2021, Xi also presided over a meeting to review the Party history exhibition plan.

The meeting stressed that representative and convincing elements should be used to clearly explain the historical background of the founding of the CPC, the historical inevitability of the Chinese people choosing the leadership of the CPC, and the Party's adherence to integrity, innovation and progressing with the times.

People visit the venue of the 1935 Zunyi Meeting in southwest China's Guizhou Province, Jan. 28, 2021. (Xinhua/Ou Dongqu)

On May 5, 2021, after nearly 1,000 days of construction, the Museum of the CPC was officially completed.

Details of the museum are full of historic connotations.

The museum is in the shape of the Chinese character "gong," which looks like a horizontal H. "Gong" means workers or labor in Chinese. The design implies that the CPC is the vanguard of the Chinese working class, the Chinese people, and the Chinese nation.

The museum adopts a traditional colonnade structure, fully representing the essence of Chinese architecture: upright and foursquare, simple but grand.

There are 28 colonnades on the eastern and western sides of the exhibition hall, symbolizing that after 28 years of struggle, the CPC established New China.

Five magnificent sculptures stand in the museum's square, with the huge CPC flag sculpture aptly named "Flag" denoting that the CPC flag offers direction and is a source of strength. In the four other sculptures, a total of 276 figures tell the story of the CPC's 100-year struggle for the well-being of the Chinese people and national rejuvenation.

Nearly two-thirds of the main building area, or about 150,000 square meters, has been designed as exhibition space.

In the exhibition hall, a special post office is set up to serve visitors and tell CPC history through its services, using a special postcode "100100" that not only symbolizes that the museum was completed upon the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Party, but also that the CPC is marching forward toward its two centenary goals. 

[ Editor: Zhang Zhou ]
To determine the origin of COVID-19 is thought critical to preventing future resurgence of the virus and developing efficient treatments for the disease. Since the outbreak of the pandemic, intensive efforts have been made by scientists to trace the causative agent, SARS-CoV-2, and investigate its transmission, pathogenesis, and therapeutics.

Following its release of the WHO-China joint report finding a lab-leak of the SARS-CoV-2 "extremely unlikely", the WHO's call for further retrospective and systematic research around earlier cases and possible hosts has intensified global collaboration in origin tracing.

As studies go deep, a growing body of evidence suggests the novel coronavirus was spreading globally months before the outbreak in China. A study published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases on June 15, 2021 showed evidence of coronavirus infections in five American states as early as December 2019 -- weeks before the first officially reported cases. The findings in America are the latest among studies worldwide that date the emergence and circulation of COVID-19 earlier than was recorded and reshape the COVID-19 timeline of many countries.

A study published by a research team from the University of Barcelona on June 26, 2020 showed the presence of the virus genome in a sewage sample collected on March 12, 2019. The team had been testing waste water samples taken between January 2018 and December 2019 in the Spain city Barcelonato identify potential new outbreaks. The levels of SARS-CoV-2 were low but were positive, implying the disease may have appeared nine months in Spain before the first cases were officially identified in Wuhan, China in early December 2019.

A study published by the Italian scientific magazine Tumori Journal in November 2020 showed SARS-CoV-2 RBD-specific antibodies were detected in 111 of 959 (11.6%) volunteers enrolled in a lung cancer screening trial between September 2019 and March 2020. A further SARS-CoV-2 antibodies test carried out by the University of Siena showed that four cases dating back to the first week of October were positive for antibodies, meaning they had got infected in the previous month and the coronavirus had been circulating in Italy in September 2019.

According to a study published by the British Journal of Dermatology on January 7, 2021, a research team from the University of Milan detected the SARS-CoV-2 virus in skin cells from a 25-year-old woman who had a biopsy for an unusual skin condition on November 10, 2019 in Italy. The finding traced the appearance of "patient zero" in Italy back to November 2019.

Another research team from the University of Milan reported in the Emerging Infectious Diseases journal that they identified SARS-CoV-2 RNA in an oropharyngeal swab specimen collected from a 4-year-old boy with suspected measles in early December 2019. As COVID-19 symptoms can appear as late as 14 days after infection, the coronavirus may have been circulating in Italy as early as the end of November 2019.

The Federal University of Santa Catarina in Brazil reported on July 2, 2020 that it found particles of SARS-CoV-2 in two samples of sewage collected in Florianopolis, the countrys second largest city, on November 27, 2019. An author of the study added that people might have been infected with the novel coronavirus a few weeks before they collected the waste water samples. The presence of the virus is about three months earlier than the first officially confirmed case in Brazil on February 26, 2020.

The health department of the state of Espirito Santo, Brazil, announced on January 1, 2021 that the presence of IgG antibodies, specific for SARS-CoV-2 virus, was detected in serum samples from December 2019. The health department stated that it takes about 20 days for a patient to reach detectable levels of IgG after infection, so it could have occurred between late November and early December 2019.

According to a study published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases on November 30, 2020, scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) tested American Red Cross blood donations collected between December 13, 2019, and January 17, 2020, and found evidence of coronavirus antibodies in 106 out of 7,389 blood donations. These suggested that the virus was present in the United States as early as December 2019, about a month earlier than the first US case was officially confirmed in January 2020.

In another study published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases on June 15, 2021, researchers of the U.S. National Institutes of Healths All of Us Research Program reported to have analyzed more than 24,000 stored blood samples contributed by program participants across all 50 states between January 2 and March 18, 2020. SARS-CoV-2 antibodies were detected in samples collected as early as January 7, 2020 from patients in Illinois, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, suggesting that the virus was present in the U.S. in December 2019.

An analysis released by the Italian National Institute of Health on June 18, 2020 showed the presence of the SARS-Cov-2 virus in wastewater. After looking at 40 composite influent wastewater samples collected between October 2019 and February 2020 from five wastewater treatment plants in three cities and regions in northern Italy, researchers found the earliest of positive samples date back to December 18, 2019 in Milan and Turin, suggesting COVID-19 was already circulating in northern Italy after mid-December, 2019.

A retrospective analysis of samples taken from 24 patients treated in December 2019 and January 2020 with influenza-like symptoms at the Avicenne and Jean-Verdier hospitals in France found one patient positive for COVID-19 on December 27, 2019. The report means that the virus had been present nearly a month before the first COVID-19 case was confirmed in both Europe and France on 24 January 2020.

[ Editor: GSY ]
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has said that Ukraine and Georgia plan to step up trade and economic cooperation and boost trade between the countries in 2021 by 25%.

"Georgia is an important trade partner for us. I am sure that despite the coronavirus pandemic, we will step up trade and economic cooperation this year. A positive trend will be an increase in trade turnover by 25%. This will be one of the main tasks of the joint Ukrainian-Georgian Commission on Economic Cooperation," Zelensky said during a joint briefing with Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili on Wednesday in Kyiv.

According to Zelensky, "the next meeting devoted to trade and economic cooperation is scheduled for September this year."
Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal and President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili discussed trade and economic cooperation and tourism development.

"I am sure that by joint efforts we will bring our economic relations to a qualitatively new level. Trade between our countries has prospects for growth, and we are convinced that it can be increased to $1 billion. This, in particular, will be facilitated by the resumption of the work of the Joint Intergovernmental Ukrainian-Georgian Commission on Economic Cooperation," the press service of the government quotes Shmyhal after the meeting.

The head of the government of Ukraine noted the importance of restoring the tourism sector after the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"I hope that the gradual lifting of coronavirus restrictions in our countries will help to restore the tourist flow. During the meeting with the Prime Minister of Georgia, we agreed on the mutual recognition of vaccination documents. A note with relevant proposals was submitted last week for consideration by the Georgian side. We expect an early response," Shmyhal said.
Belarus will not be protecting Europe from illegal immigration, drug trafficking and smuggling under pressure, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said.

"They [Western countries] are whining: ah, Belarusians are not protecting them. Thousands of illegal immigrants are rushing into Lithuania, Latvia and Poland. They demand that we protect them from smuggling and drugs. They are calling even from across the Atlantic: help, as you have been doing before, prevent nuclear materials from getting into Europe. I just want to ask, are you crazy? You have waged hybrid war on us and now you demand that we protect you as we did before," Lukashenko said at the Brest Fortress ceremony dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the beginning of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945.

The Belarus 1 television channel aired the ceremony on Tuesday.

"You are strangling us with information, methodically and collectively. You are ruining, trying to kill our economy and you are still expecting us to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on protecting your geopolitical interests as before. Only crazies can think so and count on our support. We are fighting the evil as good as we can. If you want us to fight as we did before, you should take relevant steps, instead of trying to smother us. That's an unpromising approach," Lukashenko said.

Lukashenko said in late May, after the harsh international response to the forced landing of the Ryanair flight, that Western countries would now be controlling drug trafficking and illegal immigration on the border with Belarus by themselves.

"We have been putting a stop to drugs and migrants, but now you will have to catch them yourselves," he said.

The flow of illegal immigrants, mostly Iraqi citizens, from Belarus to Lithuania grew a lot after that.

A few days ago, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis accused Minsk of using refugees as "hybrid weapon."
The issue of deepening cooperation in various fields was the subject of a meeting between the Ambassador of Ukraine to the State of Israel Yevhen Korniychuk and the Mayor of Rishon LeZion Raz Kinstlich. The Embassy reported this at Facebook.

The parties discussed prospects for deepening Ukrainian-Israeli cooperation in the field of economy, culture and education. Ambassador E.Korniychuk informed the Israeli side about the investment potential of Ukrainian cities. It was agreed to intensify contacts at the regional level and to study the possibility of sending business delegations to Ukraine in order to establish mutually beneficial cooperation, - the statement reads.

Raz Kinstlich spoke about the prospects of the city and demonstrated the work of the system of integrated municipal government.

During the meeting, the interlocutors agreed to work out the possibility of opening a branch of one of the medical schools in Ukraine in Rishon LeZion, - the Embassy noted.
Special Operations Forces of Ukraine, Great Britain and the United States have conducted a joint training session on the British destroyer Defender of the Royal Navy of Great Britain, the press service of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry reported on Wednesday.

"The combined boarding group of special operations (from the Ukrainian side - 73rd Naval Special Operations Center named after commander of Cossack camp Anton Holovaty) conducted a joint training, where they worked out boarding operations on the British destroyer Defender," the message says.

It notes that boarding actions consist in the seizure of a ship unexpected for the enemy. Also, boarding actions are used to free ships from pirates.

"This event has once again proved that the Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are capable of performing tasks on a par with their colleagues from NATO," the Defense Ministry said.
Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac to supply another 5.325 mln doses of COVID-19 vaccine to Ukraine

The Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac will supply another 5.325 million doses of Coronavac vaccine against COVID-19 to Ukraine, said chief sanitary doctor of Ukraine Ihor Kuzin.

"Today we have signed commitments on Sinovac and it is planned that another 5.325 million doses of vaccine will be purchased by Crown Agents," he said on Wednesday during an online discussion entitled "Why Ukrainians don't want to be vaccinated."

Kuzin said additional supplies of Coronavac vaccine are expected in July.

"We expect that all these volumes should come to Ukraine during July," he said.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba, commenting on the warning fire from the Russian Federation on the course of the British destroyer in the Black Sea, stressed the need for a qualitatively new cooperation between NATO and Ukraine in the Black Sea region.

"A clear proof of the Ukrainian position: the aggressive and provocative policy of the Russian Federation in the Black and Azov Seas, the occupation and militarization of Crimea constitute a constant threat to Ukraine and its allies. That is why I emphasize that a qualitatively new interaction between NATO and Ukraine in the Black Sea is needed," Kuleba wrote in Twitter on Wednesday.
The Ministry of Defense of Great Britain says that no warning shots from Russia were made towards the Royal Navy destroyer HMS Defender off the coast of the occupied Crimea.

"No warning shots have been fired at HMS Defender. The Royal Navy ship is conducting innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law," the UK Defense Ministry said in a statement on Twitter.
The Delta-type coronavirus (COVID-19), which was first detected in India, has been recorded in Ukraine in two people, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) of Ukraine Oleksiy Danilov said.

Danilov said in an interview with the TSN television program that two cases were recorded in a mother of 66 years old and a child of 16 years old, who recently returned from Russia. Now they are hospitalized, their condition is stable.

"We have four laboratories that can detect a new strain, two private and two public ones, we do not have tests that detect the Indian strain, so we turned to the World Health Organization (WHO)," Danilov said.

He also did not rule out that travel with some countries could be suspended due to the "Indian" strain.
On Friday, June 25, at 12.00, the press center of the Interfax-Ukraine news agency will host a roundtable talk entitled "How socio-economic decline affects current politics - actions of authorities and opposition." Participants include Head of the Ukrainian Politics Foundation, historian, political analyst Kost Bondarenko; Director of the Institute of Global Strategies Vadym Karasiov; Director of the Ukrainian Barometer sociological service Viktor Nebozhenko; expert of Hardarika Strategic Consulting Corporation Kostiantyn Matviyenko (8/5a Reitarska Street). The press conference will be available on the YouTube channel of Interfax-Ukraine. Questions can be asked in the broadcast chat. Admission of journalists requires registration on the spot.
Interfax-Ukraine to host press conference 'If elections to Verkhovna Rada were held next Sunday, which party would you vote for?'

On Thursday, June 24, at 14.00, the press center of the Interfax-Ukraine news agency will host a press conference by Chairman of the NGO Kyiv Institute of Sociology of Civil Society, Ukrainian parliamentarian of the V convocation Oleksandr Kovtunenko entitled "If elections to Verkhovna Rada were held next Sunday, which party would you vote for?" (8/5a Reitarska Street). Admission of journalists requires registration on the spot. Details by phone: (066) 197 4481, or at: kisgopr@gmail.com.
People walk past an ID. Store X showroom of SAIC Volkswagen in Chengdu, Sichuan province, China (Photo : REUTERS/Yilei Sun)

Volkswagen AG's ID series - the backbone of its electric vehicle ambitions - is off to what even company sources call a worryingly slow start in China.



Sales in May of two ID.4 electric SUV models, launched only two months earlier, came to a mere 1,213 combined. And that was about 200 fewer than in April, according to auto consultancy LMC.



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The sales fall far short of initial hopes, four people with knowledge of the matter said, and what some other automakers have achieved with early sales of flagship EV offerings in the world's largest auto market.



Volkswagen's venture with state-owned SAIC Motor, which makes the slightly bigger ID.4 X model, had been targeting sales of 50,000-60,000 vehicles this year, according to comments by Yang Siyao, a company marketing executive, in Chinese media in March.



A separate venture between the world's No. 2 automaker and FAW which makes the ID.4 CROZZ had similar targets, one of the sources said. Those goals now seem unrealistic.



Furthermore, both ventures' EV plants are running below 10% of production capacity, according to three of the people.



The sources blamed the less than auspicious debut on a lack of smart tech features, fierce competition, a late launch compared to Tesla Inc and Chinese EV makers as well as hiccups with its new EV sales network.



"Sales so far are behind our earlier expectations. We've had to dial down production plans for the ID.4 again and again," said one person, who like the other sources was not authorised to speak to media and declined to be identified.



"This is not healthy, but at the moment customers are not coming to buy them."



In another sign of sales stress, SAIC-Volkswagen has suggested staff members buy ID.4s, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters.



By comparison, Tesla sold 6,612 of its Model Y in China in the first two months after its launch. The ID.4's sales performance in China also contrasts sharply with Europe, where it is a top-selling electric car with 12,101 sold in the first two months post-launch, according to JATO Dynamics.



Volkswagen said in a statement to Reuters that ID. China sales were in line with expectations as it builds up production and a new sales network, adding it does not view Tesla's Model Y as a direct competitor for the ID.4, which occupies a different vehicle type segment.



It also said it was confident the two ID.4 models would see sales growth and noted plans for three more ID models to be launched this year in China.



NOT SMART ENOUGH?



More than any other country, China has aggressively pushed for the adoption of electric cars, introducing sales quotas as it seeks to cut pollution, encourage the growth of its auto industry and reduce reliance on oil.



Volkswagen, the country's biggest foreign automaker with 3.85 million vehicles - mostly gasoline - sold last year, has more riding on successfully transitioning its customers to EVs than the average automaker. It has also declared its intention to surpass Tesla as the world's top EV maker by 2025, ensuring that China will become a crucial battleground.



But getting customers on board is another matter altogether.



At a shopping mall in western Shanghai last week, David Qian, a 50-year-old engineer, was looking for an EV for his wife but found he was not drawn to the ID.4 X, which starts at just under 200,000 yuan ($31,000).



"The car looks okay but I know it is not smart enough," said Qian, who owns a Tesla Model 3 and enthuses about its assisted driving technology.



Unlike Tesla models and a growing number of vehicles from Chinese electric car makers like Xpeng Inc and Nio Inc, the ID.4 cannot park itself and does not offer advanced self-driving features or advanced voice-controlled functions.



"Chinese consumers value the sense of technology and science fiction of electric vehicles, and brand loyalty has always been low which is completely different from the European market," said Yale Zhang, head of Shanghai-based consultancy AutoForesight.



And unlike Europe, electric car competition is already cutthroat in China, where a plethora of manufacturers compete and the top-selling Wuling Hong Guang MINI EV, an entry-level sedan made by a General Motors joint venture, costs just 28,800 yuan ($4,450).



At the shopping mall where Qian checked out the ID.4, the SAIC-Volkswagen showroom is right next door to a store run by Xpeng and close to rival stores belonging to EV startup Neta and Huawei, which sells an electric car in partnership with automaker Seres. A store for Chinese EV maker Aiways is also set to open nearby soon.



"Compared with Europe, this car has too much competition and they are all new models with a strong tech sense," said Zhang.



Volkswagen said in its statement it would be offering new software feature updates in the future and with newer models.



TEETHING PROBLEMS



Volkswagen has been faster than some other foreign automakers in China with EV development such as Toyota Motor Corp and Ford Motor Co, but sources say ideally it should have moved quicker.



Its joint ventures' EV plants, which can each build 300,000 vehicles per year, were ready for mass production in early 2020 but time taken to develop the vehicles in Germany meant the new ID.4s did not get regulatory approval until July, they added.



At the distribution level, Volkswagen is grappling with the introduction of new sales strategies popular with pure-play EV competitors.



Rather than relying predominantly on its existing roughly 2,000-dealer network, it is shifting to an agency sales model for EVs where showrooms are typically located in shopping malls, prices are fixed and there is no inventory for showroom operators.



The lack of inventory, however, has meant that staff who are used to the pressure inventory brings have less financial motivation to sell product, people familiar with the matter said.



Volkswagen said in its statement that production at its EV plants was running on schedule and that internal feedback on its new agency model is very positive.



It had 12 ID. stores in China as of end-May and plans to have more than 100 stores by the end of this year. It is also boosting its number of ID. sales agents to more than 1,000 by the year's end from 825 currently.



($1 = 6.4625 Chinese yuan)


The Huawei logo is seen at the IFA consumer technology fair, in Berlin, Germany (Photo : REUTERS/Michele Tantussi)

A Swedish court on Tuesday upheld a ban against Huawei selling 5G equipment in the country, dashing the Chinese company's hopes of staging a comeback in Europe and increasing the chances of potential retaliation by China against rival Ericsson.



In October, Swedish telecom regulator PTS unexpectedly banned Huawei supplying 5G equipment to Swedish mobile firms due to security concerns raised by Sweden's security service SAPO, a decision the Chinese company challenged in the court.



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"Sweden's security is of heavy importance and the administrative court has taken into account that only the Security Police and the armed forces together have an overall picture regarding the security situation and the threat to Sweden," the court said in a statement.



Huawei said it was considering its options.



"It's not unexpected based on the fact that the court is also leading their conclusions on basically the assumptions being made by SAPO," Kenneth Fredriksen, Huawei's Executive Vice President, Central East Europe and Nordic Region, told Reuters.



"We will continue to fight for our right to be in the (Swedish) market."



European governments have been tightening controls on Chinese companies building 5G networks following diplomatic pressure from Washington, which alleges Huawei equipment could be used by Beijing for spying. Huawei has repeatedly denied being a national security risk.



Romania was the latest country that in effect barred China and Huawei from taking part in the development of its 5G telecommunication networks in the country.



Huawei's troubles have not only helped companies like Nokia and Ericsson to grab market share in Europe, Samsung Electronics made its entry into the continent by signing British telecoms group Vodafone as a customer for supplying 5G network equipment.



China's embassy in Sweden could not immediately be reached for a comment. But Beijing had previously reacted angrily to Huawei being called a security threat.



It had asked Sweden to "immediately correct the mistake" of banning Huawei and issued a veiled warning this month that it might take retaliatory action against Ericsson.



An Ericsson spokesman said the PTS decision, now affirmed by the court, "may adversely impact the economic interests of Sweden and Swedish industry, including those of Ericsson."



Ericsson, which gets roughly 10% of its revenue from China, has voiced concerns about banning Huawei and flagged risks of losing market share in China.



A SAPO representative declined to comment and referred questions to PTS. PTS said it would need to analyze the verdict before giving any comment.


An explosion caused by a police munition is seen while supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump gather in front of the U.S. (Photo : REUTERS/Leah Millis)

Former U.S. President Donald Trump may have an unlikely ally to defend him against lawsuits alleging he incited the U.S. Capitol insurrection: President Joe Biden's Justice Department.



The Biden administration paved the way for that possibility, say constitutional scholars and lawyers in the cases, by arguing in an unrelated defamation case against Trump that presidents enjoy sweeping immunity for their comments while in office - and the right to a defense by government lawyers. Biden's Justice Department used that rationale in a surprise decision this month to continue defending Trump in a case filed by E. Jean Carroll, who contends Trump raped her 25 years ago and then lied about it while in office, defaming her.



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That decision reaffirms the position the department took under the Trump administration. And it has profound implications for several ongoing lawsuits, including one filed by two U.S. Capitol Police officers seeking to hold Trump liable for injuries they suffered defending the building in the Jan. 6 attack.



Attorney Philip Andonian said he fears the Justice Department, under the same legal rationale, will also defend Trump in a case Andonian is pursuing on behalf of U.S. Representative Eric Swalwell, a California Democrat. Swalwell alleges Trump incited the deadly Jan. 6 riot in an effort to stop Congress from performing its duty to certify Biden as the election winner. Andonian called the logic behind the department's decision to defend Trump against Carroll's defamation suit "alarming."



The Justice Department appears to put no limits on immunity for speech by a sitting president on any matter considered "of public concern," Andonian said.



The Justice Department declined to comment on whether it would use the same argument as a basis for intervening in the other lawsuits Trump faces. The White House did not respond to a request for comment but has previously said it had no role in the department's decision on whether to defend Trump in the Carroll case or others.



Trump faces more than a dozen active investigations and lawsuits involving a wide range of matters, including sexual misconduct allegations, financial disputes and government probes into his business dealings and his efforts to overturn the 2020 election. But the Justice Department's assertion of presidential immunity in the Carroll case would only be relevant to other cases involving his statements or actions while in office.



The Justice Department laid out its rationale for defending Trump in a June 7 brief in the Carroll case. After Carroll, a former magazine writer, wrote in 2019 that Trump raped her, Trump - while in office - accused her of lying and said he'd never met her. Carroll is among about two dozen women who have accused Trump of sexual misconduct. The brief argues that Trump, like any president, is covered by federal laws, including the Westfall Act, that protect federal employees from being sued for actions taken as part of their jobs.



Although Trump's remarks were "without question unnecessary and inappropriate," the brief said, he was acting within the scope of his office when he made them. "Elected officials can - and often must - address allegations that inspire doubt about their suitability for office," the argument says. "Speaking to the public and the press on matters of public concern is undoubtedly part of an elected official's job."



'TITANIC' LEGAL BLUNDER



One prominent constitutional scholar characterized the department's position in the Carroll case as a blunder that will be difficult to undo.



"It would be very difficult for the Justice Department to change course now," said Laurence Tribe, a Harvard University constitutional law professor and a frequent critic of Trump. "The Titanic is aimed at the iceberg."



Tribe and other critics of the department's position say it fails to draw obvious distinctions between a president's official conduct and matters that clearly fall outside the duties of the office. When a president says or does something illegal, they say, it does not warrant a taxpayer-financed defense by government lawyers.



Tribe served as a legal adviser for the House of Representatives' second impeachment of Trump, in which the former president was accused - but eventually acquitted - of trying to overturn legitimate election results to retain presidential power. Tribe said it would be "outrageous" for the department to defend Trump against the lawsuits related to the U.S. Capitol riots "on the basis that fomenting a violent insurrection, as charged in those suits, fell within the president's job description."



Trump has denied any responsibility for the violence at the Capitol. His lawyers have said he was making political arguments, protected by the First Amendment, and not inciting people to riot.



Jesse Binnall - a private lawyer defending Trump in the Capitol Police case, the Swalwell case and at least two other ongoing suits - declined to comment on whether he will seek the department's intervention on Trump's behalf in any of those matters. Such a request would require the Justice Department to take an official position.



Binnall has echoed the Justice Department's immunity argument in briefs filed for some of those cases, but he so far has not directly requested that the department intervene in any of them.



If the Justice Department does end up defending Trump in any of the other cases pending against him, he still would be able to retain his private counsel, allowing him to protect his own interests if they diverge from those of the government.



'MATTERS OF PUBLIC CONCERN'



While Trump was president, the Justice Department argued in the Carroll case that federal law gave him a "broad grant of immunity" against her lawsuit, adding that he was protected because he spoke about her in his role as president. A federal district court rejected that position in October, and the department filed an appeal in the waning days of Trump's presidency. If the Justice Department wins on appeal, that would effectively end Carroll's case against Trump.



Carroll's lawyer, Roberta A. Kaplan, said it was "shocking" that the department would maintain the same argument under U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, who was appointed by Biden after the appeal was filed.



In testimony before Congress, Garland defended the position by saying the department had a duty to follow the law rather than to protect any administration. "Sometimes it means we have to make a decision about the law that we never would have made and that we strongly disagree with as a matter of policy," he said.



The Justice Department's appeal in the Carroll case is pending before the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The outcome could have implications for at least four other federal lawsuits pending against Trump. Three of them seek to hold Trump liable for remarks in a speech on Jan. 6 shortly before the Capitol riots. They include the case filed by injured Capitol Police officers, as well as the cases filed by Representative Swalwell and U.S. Representative Bennie Thompson, a Mississippi Democrat. Thompson alleges that Trump violated federal law by inciting his supporters to block Congress from executing its official duties.



The fourth case was filed by the Michigan Welfare Rights Organization, an advocacy group for low-income people. The lawsuit claims Trump disenfranchised Black voters by trying overturn the results in Detroit, a majority Black city, after the 2020 election.



Andonian, the lawyer in Congressman Swalwell's suit against Trump, said he fully expects that Trump's lawyers now will adopt the Justice Department's reasoning to argue that the former president was speaking on "matters of public concern" in his Jan. 6 speech. Trump that day continued his false claims that the election had been stolen from him through voter fraud; assailed Vice President Mike Pence for refusing to stop Congress from certifying Biden's win; and called for his supporters to march to the Capitol.



Andonian and other attorneys argue there's a legal distinction between Trump's attacks on Carroll and his incendiary speeches seeking to reverse his election loss.



Ben Berwick, a lawyer representing the Capitol police officers, said that Trump's appearance at the Jan. 6 gathering just before the Capitol insurrection amounted to a "campaign rally" unrelated to his official duties. That's a different setting, he said, than the presidential news conference where Trump made the statements about Carroll.



"He is effectively acting as a candidate," Berwick said. "He has no official role in the certification of electoral votes."



Joseph Sellers, an attorney representing Congressman Thompson in his suit against Trump, concurred that Trump had stepped well beyond the cover of presidential immunity.



"I don't think anyone would think it's within the scope of the president's legitimate duties to encourage people to interfere with the functioning of another branch of government," Sellers said. "He was promoting an insurrection and a riot."


Americans want voting to be easier, also worry about election fraud

Voting rights activists gather during a protest against Texas legislators who are advancing a slew of new voting restrictions in Austin, Texas, U.S. (Photo : REUTERS/Mikala Compton/File Photo)

Americans want to make it easier to vote but most adults also favor strict voter identification laws and remain concerned about election fraud, Reuters/Ipsos polling shows.



The latest poll, conducted June 11-17, shows that both Democrats and Republicans can claim some degree of popular support as they debate sweeping changes to the way elections are held.



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Republican-controlled state legislatures have rolled out a series of voting restrictions this year, including limits on early voting hours and tougher ID requirements. Republicans say their efforts are focused on preventing election fraud, even though there was no evidence of widespread fraud in last year's election.



Democrats, meanwhile, are hoping to counter that with federal protections that would guarantee a minimum number of early voting days, automatic voter registration, and less restrictive voter identification requirements, for example.



The U.S. Senate is expected to vote on a Democrat-backed election reform bill on Tuesday.



The June poll found that 59% of adults, including a majority of Democrats and Republicans alike, oppose election laws that would cut back on early voting.



States that automatically send voters ballots by mail are also relatively popular: 46% of Americans said they approve of them, while 37% are in opposition. The responses were divided along party lines, however, with 70% of Democrats in support of automatic mail-in ballots and 64% of Republicans in opposition.



The poll also showed Americans largely back some restrictions that Republicans have said would protect the integrity of future elections: 72% said they support requirements that prohibit voting without government identification, including 62% of Democrats and 88% of Republicans.



And 55% of Americans support measures that require local election officials to obtain approval from the state legislature before they could set their own voting plans, while 21% were in opposition.



Americans expressed similar opinions last month. A Reuters/Ipsos survey from May showed that 75% adults felt it was "very" or "somewhat" important that "the government place new limits on voting to protect elections from fraud". At the same time, 82% wanted the government to "make it easier for people to vote".



The Reuters/Ipsos poll was conducted online, in English, throughout the United States. It gathered responses from 4,420 adults, including 2,015 Democrats and 1,583 Republicans. It has a credibility interval, a measure of precision, of about 3 percentage points.


The Supreme Court building is seen in Washington, U.S., (Photo : REUTERS/Sarah Silbiger)

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday made it easier for President Joe Biden to remove the head of the federal housing finance agency - a move the White House said he intends to make right away - while also nixing separate claims brought by shareholders of mortgage finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.



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The court, in a 7-2 ruling, upheld part of a lower court's ruling that the Federal Housing Finance Agency's structure is unconstitutional under the separation of powers doctrine because its lone director is insufficiently accountable to the president.



But the justices unanimously faulted the lower court for allowing the shareholders to pursue separate litigation challenging a 2012 agreement between the FHFA and the Treasury Department arising from the government's rescue of the mortgage finance firms following the 2008 housing crisis.



The Democratic president in light of the ruling will replace the agency's current director, Mark Calabria, who was appointed to the post by Biden's Republican predecessor Donald Trump, the White House said.



A White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Biden is "moving forward today to replace the current director with an appointee who reflects the administration's values."



The ruling was a body blow to the shareholders in their long-running battle contesting the government's total claim on the two companies profits despite winning on the constitutional issue. It likely also means the Fannie and Freddie will not be leaving their government conservatorship anytime soon.



The court, in an opinion authored by Justice Samuel Alito, sent the case back to lower courts on whether the shareholders can obtain compensation based on their constitutional claims. The court noted, however, that the shareholders could not seek to void the 20212 agreement altogether.



Alito also cast doubt on the notion that any subsequent FHFA decisions implementing the 2012 agreement could be cast aside either, saying "there is no reason to regard any of the actions taken by the FHFA ... as void."



The ruling triggered the largest sell off in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in years in late-morning trading. The 37% drop in Freddie Mac shares was the largest since 2017 while the 39% plunge in Fannie Mae's stock was the largest since 2013.



Their preferred shares, owned largely by hedge funds that had bet that the litigation would go their way and force the government to release the companies from the conservatorship under which they have operated following the 2008 financial crisis, fell even further.



Fannie's preferred "S" series and Freddie's preferred "Z" series - among the last private capital raisings by both before their government takeover - both sank more than 60%.



(Graphic: Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac shares dive, https://graphics.reuters.com/USA-COURT/HOUSING/xklpyxendvg/chart.png)



The FHFA is led by a single director who until Wednesday's ruling could be removed by the president only "for cause."



The Supreme Court ruling, in line with a similar decision last year concerning the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), will give Biden and future presidents the authority to remove the head of the agency at any time.



The Supreme Court in the CFPB case ruled in June 2020 that the agency's single-director structure was unconstitutional, deciding that the president should be able to fire the director at any time.



The 2012 agreement eliminated dividend payouts to various shareholders and required Fannie and Freddie to pay the U.S. Treasury an amount equal to their quarterly net worth each quarter, which now totals billions of dollars.



Fannie and Freddie shareholders Patrick Collins, Marcus Liotta and William Hitchcock sued the FHFA and the Treasury Department in federal court in Texas in 2016 arguing that the 2012 agreement, sometimes referred to as the "net worth sweep," exceeded FHFA's authority and should be invalidated.



Trump's administration appealed a 2019 ruling by the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.



The U.S. government in 2008 seized Fannie and Freddie, private enterprises set up by Congress, at the height of the financial crisis as they teetered on the brink of insolvency. The government took a majority stake in each and they were placed under the supervision of the FHFA, which was created at the same time.



The FHFA is headed by a director who is appointed to a five-year term by the president subject to confirmation by the U.S. Senate.


The African Union (AU) is set to hold a meeting between Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia on Thursday and Friday in a new bid to mend the row caused by the disputed Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) after both downstream countries asked the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to intervene in the crisis, an Arab League (AL) official said.

The results of the meeting, which will be held at the level of irrigation ministers, will define the next steps by the permanent ambassadors of the Arab countries at the United Nations (UN); including Tunisia, a non-permanent member of the UNSC, in light of the AL's recent resolution that supports Egypt and Sudan in the decade-old dispute, Maged Abdel-Fattah, the AL representative to the UN told the media on Tuesday.

The meeting, Abdel-Fattah said, was due to be held last week but was adjourned at Addis Ababa's request until after its general elections, which were held on Monday.

The AL issued a resolution following an extraordinary meeting in Doha last week backing both downstream countries in the long-running dispute, asking the UNSC to intervene in the crisis after the AU-mediated talks on GERD's filling and operation rules stalled in April.

Both Egypt and Sudan have sent separate letters to the 15-member council, asking for a session on the dispute and seeking a resolution obliging Addis Ababa not to start the second filing of its Blue Nile dam -- an anticipated step by the upstream country in July that caused further tensions with downstream nations -- before a legally binding deal is reached.

The permanent ambassadors of the Arab countries at the UN are coordinating accordingly, said Abdel-Fattah, stressing that the Arab League moves are based on avoiding a collision between the Arab nation and Africa and giving the AU a full opportunity to help solve the 10-year-old row.



The resolution in Doha stressed the AL's rejection of any measures that would undermine the water share of Egypt and Sudan after Ethiopia had announced its intentions to start the second filling.

"If Ethiopia doesn't display a [sufficient] degree of flexibility, we will go to the Security Council," he said on the coming AU-sponsored meetings.

Cairo and Khartoum have been negotiating with Ethiopia for a decade now to reach an agreement regulating the rules of filling and operating the GERD as downstream countries view the controversial dam as a threat to their water security in the absence of a legal deal.

Egypt and Sudan, as a result, have resorted to international diplomacy, briefing regional and international counterparts on their stances and developments in the latest deadlock in negotiations, including addressing the UNSC.

In June 2020, the UNSC held an open session over the GERD dispute upon Egypt's request due to what it described as Ethiopia's "intransigence" in negotiations.

During the session, the council urged the three countries to reach a consensus and warned against unilateral actions. The three countries agreed to continue negotiations under the aegis of the AU.

Ethiopia, however, held 4.9 billion cubic metres of water in the reservoir a month later without coordinating with Egypt and Sudan.

Ethiopia plans to hold 13.5 billion cubic metres of water during the second filling of the GERDs reservoir next month, a step that both Egypt and Sudan reject in the absence of a deal.

In its recent letter to the UNSC, Egypt highlighted the potential adverse effects of the unilateral filling and operation of this dam on peace, security, and stability on the Nile Basin and the Horn of Africa.

Sudan said if Ethiopia went ahead unilaterally with the second filing, the lives and safety of millions of Sudanese citizens will be in danger.

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An initial agreement has been reached between the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) and the owner of the Ever Given ship, which ran aground and blocked Egypts Suez Canal in March, UK Club  an insurer for the giant vessel  announced.

The UK Club is pleased to announce that, following extensive discussions with the Suez Canal Authoritys negotiating committee over the past few weeks, an agreement in principle between the parties has been reached, the insurer said in an official statement on Wednesday.

Together with the owner and the ships other insurers, we are now working with the SCA to finalise a signed settlement agreement as soon as possible, it added without providing further details.

The UK club said once the formalities have been dealt with, arrangements for the release of the vessel will be made.

The Ever Given, which was refloated on 29 March by a fleet of Egyptian tugboats and diggers, has since been anchored in a lake between two sections of the canal at a courts request, with an exchange of blame over which party was at fault over the crisis.

The mega-ship has been caught in a legal dispute linked to an initial $916 million compensation claim made by the SCA against the ships Japanese owner.

The SCA, however, had offered to slash its compensation claim to $550 million to settle the current judicial dispute, with the mega-ship to be allowed to leave if nearly 40 percent of the sum is paid in cash.

The Ever Givens insurers had said the demanded sum is still too high, previously offering to pay $150 million in compensation for the six-day traffic halt.

On Sunday, an Egyptian court postponed a hearing in the case filed by the Suez Canal Authority against the owners of the Ever Given vessel for further negotiations to amicably settle the dispute.

The SCA has yet to comment on the announcement.

However, SCA lawyer Khaled Abu-Baker said on Sunday that the adjournment request was submitted, as both sides reached an agreement on some points during the negotiations, hinting that offers that may meet the SCAs demands have been received.

Faz Peermohamed of Stann Marine, the representative for the owners and insurers, said on Sunday following the hearing's adjournment that positive working sessions, negotiations are taking place between us, the UK P&I Club, and the committee assigned by the Suez Canal Authority.

We agreed that the details of such negotiations would remain confidential. During the negotiations, we submitted a proposal that we believe satisfies all the requirements of the SCA, Stann said in a separate statement.

Last month, the SCA rejected claims by the UK Club that the speed of the Ever Given was controlled by the canals operator before it ran aground in the canal.

The SCA said that exceeding set speeds at the countrys strategic canal is the sole responsibility of the ships captain.

The ship insurers statement came in response to statements by SCA officials that the ship was sailing too fast and that the error was entirely the responsibility of the Ever Givens captain and not that of the canals operator, whose opinion is non-binding.

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President of Egypt's Central Agency for Organization and Administration (CAOA) Saleh El-Sheikh has said that as many as 49,360 public employees have been trained recently as part of the New Administrative Capital relocation plan.

The training programmes include several packages tailored in coordination with relevant ministries and agencies, El-Sheikh said in an interview with state-owned news agency MENA.

The first package is designed for all employees and focuses on raising national awareness and job fitness, major projects being implemented in various fields, governance and anti-corruption, and digital transformation skills, he added.

The second training focuses on assessing the competency of employees, which includes motivation for achievement, emotional balance, self-confidence, decision-making, and time management.

The programmes also include a specialised package tailored for developing skills, El-Sheikh noted.

The 700-square-kilometre new capital is expected to be a new home for various public agencies by the end of the current year, with thousands of public employees scheduled to be relocated there.

Government offices were due to be relocated to the new capital by mid-2020, but the step was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The NAC was among several Egyptian national projects that were due to be inaugurated last year.

However, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi instructed the government to reschedule the inauguration to 2021 due to the pandemic.

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An Egyptian prosecutor ordered on Wednesday the four-day detention of two minibus drivers involved in a train accident in Cairo on Monday, which caused the death of two women.

A cargo train collided with two stopped minibuses carrying workers on Monday in Cairo's Helwan district, leaving two people dead and six others injured.

The prosecution ordered the drivers to undergo drug testing.

The two drivers were arrested while attempting to flee shortly after the accident, according to the prosecution.

The Ministry of Transport said on Monday the minibuses were stopped at a residential area through which the railroad passes, and the locomotive driver was not able to sop the train.

Cairo governor Khaled Abdel-Aal also visited the site of the collision along with police personnel before checking on the people injured at hospitals.

Egypt's railway system has had a poor safety record for decades, with deadly collisions and accidents that are often blamed on poor maintenance and management becoming a frequent occurrence.

The government has been implementing ambitious multi-billion-pound projects to replace hundreds of old train carriages and modernise an obsolete signalling system.

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Egypts President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi issued a decree on Wednesday appointing Amr El-Sherbini as ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to Qatar.

The decision was published in the states official Gazette as part of a diplomatic reshuffle of Egyptian diplomatic missions.

A veteran diplomat, El-Sherbini was a general ambassador in the Egyptian foreign ministry. He graduated from the Faculty of Mass Communication, Cairo University, and served as a diplomat in Syria and the United States. El-Sherbini later served as a Deputy Chief of the Mission in Brussels.

El-Sisi also appointed Mohamed Omar Gad as ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to Ethiopia instead of Ambassador Osama Abdel-Khalek, who has been appointed as Egypts permanent representative to the United Nations.

Ten days ago, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry visited Doha in a trip that was the first for a top Egyptian official since Egypt signed the Al-Ula agreement for Arab reconciliation with Qatar, which ended a diplomatic and travel boycott by the Arab Quartet  Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain  of Qatar since mid-2017.

Egypt and Qatar have recently signaled their will to improve relations and had official delegations meet for the first time in Kuwait in February to discuss enhancing joint work and bilateral ties.

The Al-Ula agreement was inked in January in Saudi Arabia, after intense Kuwaiti and US efforts to mend fences between the quartet and Doha.

The quartet cut diplomatic, economic, and travel ties with Qatar in June 2017, accusing Doha of interfering in their internal affairs and supporting terrorist groups, accusations denied by Qatar.

Shoukrys visit came a few weeks after his Qatari counterpart led a delegation on a visit to Cairo, during which he met with President El-Sisi and extended an official invitation to visit the Gulf country.

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Egypts Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry praised on Wednesday the unprecedented international consensus on the immediate and full withdrawal of all foreign troops from Libya to allow the Libyan people to continue their political project without the influence of any armed militias or foreign troops.

Addressing the Berlin II Conference on Libya in Germany, Shoukry underlined the importance of putting into effect UN resolution 2570 calling for the immediate exit of all foreign forces from Libya.

He expressed satisfaction over the conviction of the Libyan authorities and people of the seriousness of the presence of foreign troops on Libya's security, stability and sovereignty, saying certain mechanisms should be put in place to guarantee the implementation of what was agreed upon today.

Shoukry said the Berlin II meeting comes 18 months after the first Berlin conference where all participants pledged to back the sovereignty and independence of Libya and to boost UN efforts to launch a lasting and comprehensive political process to end the years-long conflict in the North African country.

He referred to Egypt's call, during the first Berlin conference, on all parties to the Libyan conflict to take definite steps to reach a political solution.

Also, Egypt warned at the time of the grave consequences of continued conflict in Libya on Arab and African neighbors and that it might be forced to take certain measures to protect its national security in case the Sirte-Jufra red line was crossed.

"We see some improvement in Libya and that everything is progressing for the better in light of growing Libyan awareness of the inevitability of reaching a political settlement to the crisis away from the use of weapons and military force," Shoukry stated in his speech released by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry.

He also lauded the pivotal role played by Libya's neighbors to back the political settlement as well as intensive efforts of some regional organisations, including the African Union and the Arab League, in this regard.

Shoukry expressed hope that the international community would work side by side with the Libyan presidential council and the national unity government to prepare for the country's general elections, slated for 24 December.

He underlined the importance of joining hands and removing all hurdles to holding the elections, calling on all Libyan partners to put aside their differences and place the higher national interest above any other.

The Egyptian foreign minister thanked the German government for hosting such an important meeting, expressing hope that the Libyan presidential council would succeed in serving the brotherly Libyans and materialising their aspirations for a better future.

Meetings on the sidelines

Shoukry also held a series of meetings with a number of foreign ministers as well as European and international officials on the sidelines of the Berlin II conference on Libya.

According to the Egyptian foreign ministry, Shoukry held talks with his Tunisian counterpart Othman Jerandi on promoting bilateral ties in line with the directives of the leaderships of the two countries.

He also held talks with his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian and the European Union's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, where they discussed the latest regional developments.

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Egypts Ministry of Military Production signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) this week with the US HUMVEE manufacturer AM General to set up a production line for tactical vehicles in Egypt, the US embassy in Cairo announced on Wednesday.

According to AM General, this collaboration aims to build tactical vehicles and help facilitate the development of a domestic military automobile industry in Egypt.

US Ambassador to Cairo Jonathan Cohen and the Minister of Military Production Mohamed Morsi witnessed the signing ceremony.

Morsi said during the ceremony that the deal comes as part of the ministry's efforts to support local manufacturing and promote the use of modern technologies domestically, in addition to exchanging expertise with global companies in various fields.

He also invited the US Company to take part in the EDEX 2021 exhibition, which will be held in Egypt in late November.

We look forward to applying our manufacturing and design expertise to help grow the Egyptian automotive industry, Andy Hove, AM General President and CEO, said in a statement issued on Tuesday.

Todays signing ceremony further solidifies our long-standing relationship with the government of Egypt, Hove said.

Together with the Egyptian ministry, the AM General statement said, the company will study the feasibility of developing an in-country assembly and manufacturing capability which will enable the ministry replace and/or supplement its existing HUMVEE fleet. The study will result in the development of a detailed plan to move forward with partnership agreement.

AM General is widely recognised as the world leader in design, engineering, manufacturing and logistics support of military grade tactical vehicles, at the top of which is HUMVEE, having produced and sustained more than 300,000 vehicles in over 70 countries.

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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in Berlin for peace talks on Libya, renewed demands Wednesday that all foreign forces leave the war-battered nation.

A ceasefire agreement from October last year "has to be fully implemented including by withdrawing all foreign forces," Blinken told reporters ahead of the opening of the conference.

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An airstrike hit a busy market in Ethiopia's northern Tigray village of Togoga on Tuesday and killed at least 51 people, according to health workers who said soldiers blocked medical teams from traveling to the scene.

An official with Tigray's health bureau told The Associated Press that more than 100 other people were wounded, more than 50 seriously, and at least 33 people were still missing. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because of concerns about retaliation.

The alleged airstrike comes amid some of the fiercest fighting in the Tigray region since the conflict began in November as Ethiopian forces supported by those from neighbouring Eritrea pursue Tigray's former leaders. A military spokesman and the spokeswoman for Ethiopia's Prime Minister, Billene Seyoum, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Wounded patients being treated at Ayder hospital in the regional capital, Mekele, told doctors and a nurse that a plane dropped a bomb on Togoga's marketplace. The patients included a 2-year-old child with abdominal trauma'' and a 6-year-old, the nurse said. An ambulance carrying a wounded baby to Mekele, almost 60 kilometres (37 miles) away by road, was blocked for two hours and the baby died on the way, the nurse added, speaking on condition of anonymity because of concerns about retaliation.

Hailu Kebede, foreign affairs head for the Salsay Woyane Tigray opposition party and who comes from Togoga, told the AP that one fleeing witness to the attack had counted more than 30 bodies in the remote village that's linked to Mekele in part by challenging stretches of dirt roads.

"It was horrific,'' said a staffer with an international aid group who told the AP he had spoken with a colleague and others at the scene. "We don't know if the jets were coming from Ethiopia or Eritrea. They are still looking for bodies by hand.''

On Tuesday afternoon, a convoy of ambulances attempting to reach Togoga, about 25 kilometers (15 miles) west of Mekele, was turned back by soldiers near Tukul, the health workers said. Several more ambulances were turned back later in the day and on Wednesday morning, but one group of medical workers reached the site on Tuesday evening via a different route.

"We have been asking, but until now we didn't get permission to go, so we don't know how many people are dead,'' said one of the doctors in Mekele.

Another doctor said the Red Cross ambulance he was travelling in on Tuesday while trying to reach the scene was shot at twice by Ethiopian soldiers, who held his team for 45 minutes before ordering them back to Mekele.

"We are not allowed to go,'' he said. "They told us whoever goes, they are helping the troops of the TPLF.''

The TPLF refers to the Tigray People's Liberation Front, which governed Tigray until it was ousted by a federal government offensive in November. The subsequent fighting has killed thousands and forced more than 2 million people from their homes.

More than 25 of the wounded finally reached Ayder hospital later on Wednesday, a day after the airstrike, the regional health official said.

While the United Nations has said all sides have been accused of abuses in the Tigray conflict, Ethiopian and Eritrean soldiers have been repeatedly accused by witnesses of looting and destroying health centers across the Tigray region and denying civilians access to care.

"The situation there is appalling,'' European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Wednesday in Berlin, noting that "today a military airstrike has been producing a lot of casualties against the civilians.''

This month, humanitarian agencies warned that 350,00 people in Tigray are facing famine. Aid workers have said they have been repeatedly denied access to several parts of the region by soldiers.

The government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed says it has nearly defeated the rebels. But forces loyal to the TPLF recently announced an offensive in parts of Tigray and have claimed a string of victories.

Also on Wednesday, one of the former Tigray leaders, Getachew Reda, asserted that Tigray forces had shot down a C-130 transport plane carrying explosives, military officers and "Eritrean camouflage uniforms.'' The claim could not immediately be verified.

A resident in Adigrat, about 100 kilometers (62 miles) north of Mekele, said a group of Tigrayan fighters briefly entered the town on Tuesday, although he said it had since been retaken by Ethiopian and Eritrean forces. He said federal police had since been seen beating people in the center of the town.

"Everybody is staying at home, there is no movement in the town,'' he said.

Renewed fighting was also reported in Edaga Hamus and Wukro, two towns that sit on the main road to Mekele.

The reports came as Ethiopia held federal and regional elections on Monday. The vote was peaceful in most parts of the country, although there was no voting in Tigray.

The vote was delayed last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, heightening tensions between the federal government and the TPLF, which went ahead with its own regional election in September.

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Eritrea now has "effective control" of parts of Ethiopia's Tigray region, a U.N. human rights expert said on Tuesday, calling for troops to withdraw and for a prompt investigation into abuses, including the abduction of refugees.

Mohamed Abdelsalam Babiker, U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in Eritrea, was addressing the Human Rights Council a day after he presented a report that described violations by Eritrean troops in Tigray, including summary executions and the abduction and disappearance of Eritrean refugees there.

Eritrea sent troops to Tigray after the Ethiopian military launched an offensive in November in response to attacks on federal government bases by regional forces. Eritrea denied for months that its troops were in Tigray, but later acknowledged their presence while denying they were responsible for abuses.

"According to information that I have, Eritrea has an effective control over the Tigray region...especially in the two camps: Hitsats and Shimelba," Babiker said, referring to camps in Tigray that house refugees from Eritrea.

The United Nations has said Eritrean refugees were attacked and abducted from the camps by armed men suspected to be Eritrean troops.

"The whereabouts of refugees who remain missing is really a matter of great concern," Babiker said, calling for a full investigation by an independent body into these allegations.

Eritrea's foreign affairs ministry responded on Tuesday to the report with a lengthy statement in which it said that the Geneva-based council had targeted Eritrea for more than a decade through politically-motivated and flawed reporting.

The ministry said allegations of sexual violence and other war crimes by Eritrean forces in Tigray were baseless. In comments on Monday, the Eritrean delegate told the forum that the Special Rapporteur's role should be abolished.

During the debate, other countries including the United States criticised the presence of Eritrean troops and referred to "credible reports" that Eritrea was forcibly returning Eritrean refugees to their homeland.

Fighting since November between Ethiopia's government and the region's ousted ruling party, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), has displaced more than 2 million people.

Eritrea agreed to withdraw its troops from Ethiopian territory along their mutual border, Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said in March.

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The EU's chief diplomat decried Wednesday the situation in Ethiopia's Tigray region as "appalling" and pleaded with the world to "wake up and take action".

Josep Borrell issued the statement following a strike that killed or wounded dozens of people at a market in the town of Togoga as reports emerged of rebel advances in some parts of the region.

"What is happening in Tigray is appalling. It is time for the international community to wake up and take action," the statement said.

"We re-iterate the urgent call for an immediate ceasefire in Tigray," Borrell added.

An ambulance driver in the region said he was prevented from driving to Togoga, and Borrell said that if that was confirmed, it would constitute "a grave violation of the Geneva Convention and of International Humanitarian Law".

EU leaders have put the situation in Tigray on the agenda of their summit meeting in Brussels on Thursday and Friday.

Borrell called the strike "yet another attack adding up to the horrific series" of humanitarian law and human rights violations, atrocities and ethnic violence in Tigray.

In November, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed sent troops into the region, promising a swift campaign to oust its dissident ruling party.

The alliance against Tigray's renegade leadership followed peace overtures towards Eritrea by Abiy that ended a long cold war between the neighbours and earned him the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019.

In recent days, as votes were cast and counted in a general election across much of Ethiopia, there were reports of rebel advances in Tigray, where no vote was held.

But Borrell said that deliberately targeting civilians was an "atrocity" that "cannot be justified by using the preservation of the territorial integrity of Ethiopia as an argument".

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Brussels is pushing to provide 5.7 billion euros ($6.8 billion) of fresh support to help Turkey and other countries around Syria host refugees from their neighbour's civil war, according to a proposal seen Wednesday.

Under the European Commission plan, 3.5 billion euros would be provided to Turkey from 2021 to 2024 and the remaining 2.2 billion would go mainly to Lebanon and Jordan.

The proposal -- expected to be presented to EU leaders at a summit on Thursday -- comes as part of the bloc's push to improve ties with Turkey after a spike in tensions last year in the Eastern Mediterranean.

The additional funding is seen as a key incentive to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to stick to efforts aimed at tackling long-running disputes with Greece and cease controversial gas exploration in the waters around Cyprus.

Turkey currently hosts some 3.7 million refugees from the conflict in Syria and has been used by the EU as a bulwark to help stem the flow of migrants into Europe.

Brussels and Ankara struck a deal in 2016 that has seen the bloc give four billion euros so far to Turkey to help it host the refugees in return for preventing crossings and accepting back arrivals from Greece.

A further two billion euros is still set to be disbursed in the coming years under that agreement.

Erdogan has long demanded more assistance to deal with the refugees and has previously threatened to open Turkey's border if the EU does not stump up additional funds.

The new EU proposal says its future assistance "will gradually move from humanitarian priorities to socio-economic support and development" for refugees who need to build lives in Syria's neighbouring countries after over a decade of war at home.

The plan for the new funding is part of a range of enticements that the bloc is using to try to keep Erdogan on side, with Brussels also offering to modernise a customs union with Turkey and start high-level talks on issues from health to security.

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Libya's transitional government underlined its commitment to holding elections on Dec. 24 at a conference Wednesday with powers that have interests in the North African country, while the German hosts vowed to keep up pressure until all foreign forces have been withdrawn from Libya.

Germany and the United Nations brought together 17 countries at the conference in Berlin. Libya's transitional leadership was joined by foreign ministers from Egypt, Turkey, Tunisia, Algeria, France and Italy, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and senior officials from Russia, the United Arab Emirates and others.

The meeting followed up on a January 2020 conference where leaders agreed to respect an arms embargo and to push the country's warring parties to reach a full cease-fire. Germany has tried to act as an intermediary.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said the meeting "marked a new phase" and that "we are no longer only talking about Libya, but above all with Libya.''

Participants welcomed progress since the process was launched. An October cease-fire agreement including a demand that all foreign fighters and mercenaries leave Libya within 90 days led to a deal on the elections in December and the transitional government that took office in February.

Libyan Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush said the transitional government came "with a vision of how best to re-establish stability in our country and pave the way for free, inclusive and safe elections on Dec. 24.''

Wednesday's conference saw powers involved in Libya recommit to refraining from interfering in the country's internal affairs and stating that foreign forces and mercenaries need to be withdrawn "without delay'' _ something on which there has been little progress.

Asked what guarantees the countries involved are giving to withdraw foreign fighters, Maas pointed to the fact that they had gathered for the conference. He said that "we will not let up, and we will not rest, until the last foreign forces have left Libya ... wherever they come from."

He said Russia and Turkey, which have been heavily involved on opposite sides, understand that a withdrawal would have to be carried out ``step by step'' and added that it would have to be balanced, so that one side doesn't gain an advantage.

Mangoush said there was "progress'' regarding mercenaries, "so hopefully within the coming days mercenaries from both sides are going to be withdrawn,'' creating more trust and leading to further steps.

A further challenge will be to start bringing all armed groups in Libya under a joint military command.

Speaking earlier Wednesday ahead of the conference, Blinken said that ``we share the goal of a sovereign, stable, unified, secure Libya free from foreign interference _ it's what the people of Libya deserve, it's critical to regional security as well.''

"For that to happen, national elections need to go forward in December and that means urgent agreement is needed on constitutional and legal issues that would undergird those elections,'' he said. "And the Oct. 23 cease-fire agreement has to be fully implemented, including by withdrawing all foreign forces from Libya.''

Conference participants supported efforts toward a reconciliation process and committed to helping Libyan authorities "in developing a comprehensive approach to addressing migration,'' including the closure of detention centers.

Aid group Doctors Without Borders said this week it was suspending its activities in two detention centers in Tripoli after "repeated incidents of violence toward refugees and migrants held there.'' It said staff had witnessed guards beating detainees at one center and received reports of people being shot at in another.

Libya has been a key transit country for migrants from Africa trying to reach Europe, especially after the collapse of order when a NATO-backed uprising toppled and later killed longtime dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. The oil-rich country was long divided between a government in the capital, Tripoli, and rival authorities based in the country's east.

In April 2019, Khalifa Haftar's Libyan National Army (LNA) forces, backed by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, launched an offensive to try to capture Tripoli. Hafter's 14-month campaign collapsed after Turkey stepped up its military support of the Tripoli-based government with hundreds of troops and thousands of Syrian mercenaries.

*This story was edited by Ahram Online.

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A powerful car bomb went off near the residence of a jailed anti-India militant leader in the eastern city of Lahore on Wednesday, killing at least three people and wounding 15 others, police and rescue officials said.

The blast happened in the Johar Town neighborhood, provincial police chief Inam Ghani told reporters. He said officers were still trying to determine whether it was a suicide bombing or the bomb was remotely detonated.

Ghani said some police officers were also among the wounded persons.

``It was a car bomb, but we are still trying to confirm whether it was a suicide bombing,`` he said.

He confirmed that the bombing happened near the residence of anti-India militant leader Hafiz Seed, who has been designated a terrorist by the U.S. Justice Department and has a $10 million bounty on his head.

Saeed is the founder of the outlawed Lashkar-e-Taiba group, which was blamed for the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people.

Lashkar-e-Taiba was active for years mainly in Kashmir, which is split between Pakistan and India and is claimed by both in its entirety. In the Indian-controlled sector of Kashmir, rebels have been fighting against Indian rule since 1989. Most Muslim Kashmiris support the rebel goal that the territory be united either under Pakistani rule or as an independent country.

India accuses Pakistan of backing rebels in the Indian part of Kashmir, a charge Pakistan denies. Pakistan says it only provides moral, political and diplomatic support to the Kashmiri people, and that this support will continue until they get the right to self-determination under a UN resolution.

TV footage showed badly damaged homes, and many residents spoke of a bomb attack. Doctors say some of the wounded were in critical condition.

Ghani said police were guarding Saeed's house at the time of the attack. He said the attackers might have succeeded in targeting Saeed's home had police not set up a security post in the street where the bombing happened.

Saeed had been under house arrest. It was unclear whether the bombing caused any damage to his home, although the windows of dozens of homes were damaged.

Authorities blocked passageways to Saeed's home, citing security reasons.

Last year, Pakistan sentenced Saeed to 15 years in jail in a terror-financing case, but he was never charged in connection with the Mumbai attacks.

Pakistan and India have a history of bitter relations and they have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir since gaining independence in 1947.

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China condemned the United States on Wednesday as the region's greatest security "risk creator" after a US warship again sailed through the sensitive waterway that separates Taiwan from China.

The US Navy's 7th Fleet said the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur conducted a "routine Taiwan Strait transit" on Tuesday in accordance with international law.

"The ship's transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the US commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific."

The People's Liberation Army's Eastern Theatre Command said their forces monitored the vessel throughout its passage and warned it.

"The US side is intentionally playing the same old tricks and creating trouble and disrupting things in the Taiwan Strait," it said.

This "fully shows that the United States is the greatest creator of risks for regional security, and we are resolutely opposed to this".

Taiwan's Defence Ministry said the ship had sailed in a northerly direction through the strait and the "situation was as normal".

The same ship transited the strait a month ago, prompting China to accuse the United States of threatening peace and stability.

The latest mission comes around a week after Taiwan said 28 Chinese air force aircraft, including fighters and nuclear-capable bombers, entered Taiwan's air defence identification zone (ADIZ), the largest reported incursion to date.

That incident followed the Group of Seven leaders issuing a joint statement scolding China for a series of issues and underscoring the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, comments China condemned as "slander".

The U.S. Navy has been conducting such operations in the Taiwan Strait every month or so.

The United States, like most countries, has no formal diplomatic ties with democratic Taiwan but is its most important international backer and a major seller of arms.

Military tension between Taiwan and Beijing have spiked over the past year, with Taipei complaining of China repeatedly sending its air force into Taiwan's air defence zone.

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France is adding Russia to its "red list'' of countries from which travels are banned unless imperious motives because they are struggling with virus surges and worrisome variants.

French government spokesperson Gabriel Attal said Wednesday that Russia, Namibia and Seychelles are being added to the list of now 21 countries.

The "red list'' notably includes India, South Africa and Brazil and implies that vaccinated travelers arriving in France must justify their trip, show a negative test and self-isolate for a week. Those not vaccinated must go on a quarantine for 10 days, risking a 1000-euro fine, equivalent to $1,194.

Attal also called for enhanced vigilance about the more contagious delta variant, first identified in India.

The delta variant is estimated to represent 9 to 10% overall in France, he said. But authorities are closely monitoring the situation in a region of southwestern France, the Landes, where 70% of confirmed infections are due to the delta variant, he added.

The epidemic situation in France has rapidly improved in recent weeks, with about 2,300 new daily infections reported each day, down from 35,000 in the March-April peak.

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France and Germany proposed on Wednesday a European Union summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin to try to improve relations, two diplomats said, potentially paving the way for the first such meeting since 2014.

Such an event would follow US President Joe Biden's summit in Geneva with Putin earlier this month and reflects concern in Paris and Berlin that the EU's approach to Russia in recent years has mainly been focused on sanctions on Moscow.

"We need to have a discussion about how to get away from this negative spiral but we need to advance united," one senior EU diplomat said, adding that some Baltic countries wary of Russia may not agree to a summit.

It was not clear if any summit would involve all 27 EU leaders or only the EU's chief executive, Ursula von der Leyen, and its chairman, Charles Michel. Such summits were suspended after Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimea peninsula in 2014.

EU leaders will discuss a new strategy to manage worsening relations with Russia at their two-day summit in Brussels on Thursday.

"Germany and France have given some ideas for the EU-summit-debate on Russia. Merkel has mentioned before that not only the US should talk with Russia (and China) on the highest level. Russia is a neighbor. Such a format existed already in 2007 in Finland, a person dealing with the preparation of the summit told Reuters.

A strategy paper by the European Commission and the EU's diplomatic service said earlier this month that despite years of tensions, "the EU and Russia have a fundamental common responsibility for peace and security on the European continent."

Despite accusations by the West that Russia is responsible for cyber attacks, disinformation and other covert acts - which the Kremlin denies - the country is also the EU's fifth largest trade partner. The EU is the largest foreign investor in Russia.

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Europe should brace for a large inflow of migrants from Afghanistan following the pull out of US and NATO troops, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi warned Wednesday.

"It is foreseeable that the withdrawal from Afghanistan will lead to an increase in immigration from that country of an as yet unknown quantity, but we all know it will be big," he said.

"So we need even more to be all together in tackling this problem," Draghi said, calling for EU unity ahead of a June 24-25 summit in Brussels.

He urged the EU to focus on "containment" and the repatriation of illegal migrants, but also on legal migration and on aid to migrants' countries of origin.

He criticised the bloc for neglecting the issue of migration, saying that it has not formally been on the agenda of EU summits for the past three years.

Turning to Italy -- one of the EU countries most exposed to the inflow of migrants -- Draghi called for greater national efforts on integration.

"If we do not integrate these people in Italian society, we first of all harm ourselves... if we do not integrate them, we produce potential enemies," he said.

US and NATO troops are pulling out of Afghanistan after 20 years of war, while the Taliban has been making huge territorial gains.

Peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban have stalled, fuelling fears that the country may slide into civil war once foreign troops are gone.

Afghans already make up a sizeable share of EU asylum seekers, with 44,190 first-time applications last year, out of a total of 416,600, according to Eurostat, the EU's statistics agency.

The largest number of first-time applications -- more than 63,000 -- came from Syria, which has also been trapped in conflict for years.

This year, several EU countries agreed to offer asylum to Afghans who worked with foreign troops and are at risk of retaliatory attacks from the Taliban.

Italy has agreed to take in 270 people who worked with its soldiers and may accept another 400, the defence ministry said last week.

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US lawmakers Wednesday launched a contentious debate on legislation aimed at curbing the power of Big Tech firms with a sweeping reform of antitrust laws.

House Judiciary Committee members began what was expected to be lengthy debate preceding a vote on five bills with potentially massive implications for large online platforms and consumers who use them.

The legislation could force an overhaul of the business practices of Google, Apple, Amazon and Facebook, or potentially lead to a breakup of the dominant tech giants. But critics argue the measures could have unintended consequences that would hurt consumers and some of the most popular online services.

Representative David Cicilline, who headed a 16-month investigation that led to the legislation, said the bills are aimed at restoring competition in markets stymied by monopolies.

"The digital marketplace suffers from a lack of competition. Many digital markets are defined by monopolies or duopoly control," Cicilline said as the hearing opened.

"Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google are gatekeepers to the online economy. They bury or by rivals and abuse their monopoly power conduct that is harmful to consumers, competition, innovation and our democracy."

The bills would restrict how online platforms operate, notably whether tech giants operating them could favor their own products or services.

The measures would also limit mergers or acquisitions by Big Tech firms aimed at limiting competition, and make it easier for users to try new services by requiring data "portability" and "interoperability."

The fate of the bills remained unclear, with some Republicans and moderate Democrats expressing concerns despite bipartisan support.

Republican Representative Ken Buck, a supporter of the initiative, said the legislation "represents a scalpel, not a chainsaw, to deal with the most important aspects of antitrust reform," in dealing with "these monopolists (who) routinely use their gatekeeper power to crush competitors, harm innovation and destroy the free market."

But Republican Jim Jordan criticized the effort, renewing his argument that Big Tech firms suppress conservative voices.

"These bills don't fix that problem -- they make it worse," Jordan said. "They don't break up Big Tech. They don't stop censorship."

- Pushback from industry -

Tech firms and others warned of negative consequences for popular services people rely on, potentially forcing Apple to remove its messaging apps from the iPhone or Google to stop displaying results from YouTube or Maps.

Apple released a report arguing that one likely impact -- opening up the iPhone to apps from outside platforms -- could create security and privacy risks for users.

Forcing Apple to allow "sideloading" of apps would mean "malicious actors would take advantage of the opportunity by devoting more resources to develop sophisticated attacks targeting iOS users," the report said.

Amazon vice president Brian Huseman warned of "significant negative effects" both for sellers and consumers using the e-commerce platform, and reduced price competition.

"It will be much harder for these third-party sellers to create awareness for their business," Huseman said.

"Removing the selection of these sellers from Amazon's store would also create less price competition for products, and likely end up increasing prices for consumers. The committee is moving unnecessarily fast in pushing these bills forward."

The measures may also impact Microsoft, which has not been the focus of the House antitrust investigation but which links services such as Teams messaging and Bing search to its Windows platform, and possibly other firms.

Analyst Daniel Ives at Wedbush Securities said the chances of passage of a major antitrust overhaul were slim in the current political situation, and that any enforcement action would be limited in the absence of new legislation.

As a result, share prices of the major tech firms have seen little movement.

"We believe this antitrust momentum hits a brick wall and for now is more a headline risk that investors are taking in stride," he said.

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In the chaotic, final hours of the Vietnam War, the U.S. evacuated thousands of South Vietnamese who supported the American mission and were at risk under the communist government.

As U.S. and NATO forces prepare to depart Afghanistan by Sept. 11, many are recalling that desperate, hasty exodus as they urge the Biden administration to evacuate thousands of Afghans who worked as interpreters or otherwise helped U.S. military operations there in the past two decades.

Despite unusual bipartisan support in Congress, the administration hasn't agreed to such a move, declining to publicly support something that could undermine security in the country as it unwinds a war that started after the 9/11 attacks.

"We have a moral obligation to protect our brave allies who put their lives on the line for us, and we've been working for months to engage the administration and make sure there's a plan, with few concrete results,'' Republican Rep. Peter Meijer of Michigan said during a House hearing last week.

Lawmakers have urged the administration to consider temporarily relocating Afghans who worked for American or NATO forces to a safe overseas location while their U.S. visas are processed. Some have suggested Guam, a U.S. territory that served a similar purpose after the Vietnam War. Kurdish refugees also were flown to the Pacific island in 1996 after the Gulf War.

Guam's governor recently wrote to President Joe Biden to say the territory was ready to help if needed.

The Biden administration for now is focusing on accelerating a special visa program for Afghans who helped U.S. operations and pouring resources into relieving the backlog.

"We are processing and getting people out at a record pace,'' White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday. "We are working with Congress right now to streamline some of the requirements that slow this process down and we're doing the kind of extensive planning for potential evacuation, should that become necessary.''

Zalmay Khalilzad, the State Department's special representative for Afghanistan reconstruction, warned lawmakers in May that "the departure of all educated Afghans" would "signal panic" and hurt the morale of the country's security forces.

"This is a delicate, complicated balance that we have to keep," Khalilzad said.

Democratic Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado recently introduced legislation that would nearly double the number of visas available this year, to 8,000, and ease eligibility requirements.

But he said congressional action will not be quick enough or sufficient.

Even if the legislation passed immediately, the number of visas would fall far short of the estimated 18,000 Afghans waiting to be processed. That figure does not include their spouses and children, who would bring the total to about 70,000 people.

And the average wait is more than three years. The process has been also hampered by the coronavirus pandemic, which led the U.S. embassy in Afghanistan to suspend visa interviews.

Crow, a former Army ranger who served in Afghanistan, said he prefers the government "evacuate our Afghan partners to a temporary evacuation site where we can safely conduct robust visa processing without threat to applicants' safety by the Taliban.''

In a statement this month, the Taliban vowed not to attack those who worked for Western interests, urging Afghans to remain at home and warning their ranks against revenge killings.

Still, many Afghans are desperate for a visa, fearing violence not only from the Taliban but heavily armed warlords allied with the U.S. and seeing now as their last chance to leave Afghanistan.

The American withdrawal began May 1, when the number of U.S. troops was between 2,500 and 3,500, and could be completed by July 4. Some 7,000 NATO forces are set to leave by Sept. 11.

Independent Sen. Angus King of Maine said the government needs to find a ``creative'' approach to helping Afghans who worked with the U.S. military. That could include sending more people from the State Department or the military to process visas in Afghanistan or evacuating people to a safe place to be vetted.

"It's not only a moral issue, it's a national security issue,'' said King, who sits on both the Intelligence and Armed Services committees, adding that "we also have a practical responsibility, in terms of do we want people to help us in the future?''

More than 300 interpreters have been killed in Afghanistan since 2016, according to No One Left Behind, an organization that advocates on their behalf.

Former Army Maj. Matt Zeller said a military evacuation is the only viable option for thousands of Afghans facing threats who have been protected by the presence of U.S. troops.

"I'm only alive because my Afghan, Muslim translator saved my life by killing two Taliban fighters who were about to kill me in a battle," said Zeller, whose interpreter waited three years for a visa.

The U.S. government should have learned from what happened in Vietnam, said Jim Jones, a Vietnam veteran and former Idaho Supreme Court chief justice.

Initially fearing a mass evacuation would undermine the South Vietnamese military, the U.S. watched for weeks as the North Vietnamese Army overtook South Vietnam before starting to fly out Americans and allies. The effort ended with the largest helicopter evacuation in history in the final hours of the war.

In less than 24 hours, Marine helicopters airlifted about 7,000 U.S. military personnel, South Vietnamese who supported the American mission and their dependents.

Many South Vietnamese soldiers and government officials left behind were killed or held in "reeducation" camps. They included troops who had helped Jones stay alive as an Army artillery officer.

"We had a moral obligation to extract as many as possible but, instead, we abandoned them to a horrific fate,'' Jones wrote in the Military Times. "We simply cannot allow that kind of tragedy to happen again with the Afghans. I pray that this great nation does not again turn its back on beleaguered people who placed their trust in us.''

Pentagon leaders say they are ready to help in any way they can and downplayed concerns that history will repeat itself.

"I don't see Saigon 1975 in Afghanistan," Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, recently told lawmakers.

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John McAfee, the creator of the McAfee antivirus software, has been found dead in his cell in a jail near Barcelona, a government official told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Authorities said the cause of death was being investigated.

Hours earlier, a Spanish court issued a preliminary ruling in favor of the 75-year-old tycoon's extradition to the United States to face tax-related criminal charges that could carry decades in prison.

Security personnel at the Brians 2 penitentiary near the northeastern Spanish city tried to revive him, but the jail's medical team finally certified his death, a statement from the regional Catalan government said.

"A judicial delegation has arrived to investigate the causes of death,'' the statement said, adding that "Everything points to death by suicide.''

The statement didn't identify McAfee by name, but said he was a 75-year-old U.S. citizen awaiting extradition to his country. A Catalan government source familiar with the event who was not authorized to be named in media reports confirmed to the AP that the dead man was McAfee.

Spain's National Court on Monday ruled in favor of extraditing McAfee, who had argued in a hearing earlier this month that the charges against him by prosecutors in Tenessee were politically motivated and that he would spend the rest of his life in prison if he was returned to the U.S.

The court's ruling was made public on Wednesday and was open for appeal. Any final extradition order would also need to get approval from the Spanish Cabinet.

The entrepreneur was arrested last October at Barcelona's international airport. A judge ordered at that time that McAfee should be held in jail while awaiting the outcome of a hearing on extradition.

McAfee led an eccentric life after he sold his stake in the antivirus software company named after him in the early 1990s.

He twice ran long-shot bids for U.S. president and was a participant in Libertarian Party presidential debates in 2016.

In July 2019, McAfee was released from detention in the Dominican Republic after he and five others were suspected of traveling on a yacht carrying high-caliber weapons, ammunition and military-style gear, officials on the Caribbean island said at the time.

McAfee was charged last October in Tennessee with evading taxes after failing to report income made from promoting cryptocurrencies while he did consulting work, made speaking engagements and sold the rights to his life story for a documentary. The criminal charges carry a prison sentence of up to 30 years.

The last post from McAfee's Twitter account was a retweet of a Father's Day message from his wife Janice McAfee.

"These eight months John has spent in prison in Spain have been especially hard on his overall health both mentally and physically, as well as financially, but he is undeterred from continuing to speak truth to power,'' it said.

The U.S. embassy in Madrid didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.

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Egypts Ministry of International Cooperation and its Egypt Ventures, under the auspices of the Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, are due to launch the Generation Next Forum on Saturday, the ministry announced on Tuesday.

Holding the forum is an effort that aims to build knowledge of the economy, increase competitiveness and resilience, and enhance Egypts position as a regional hub for start-ups, according to Minister of International Cooperation Rania Al-Mashat.

Generation Next also aims to invest in the future, thus highlighting Egypts governments commitment to boosting entrepreneurship and investing in start-ups.

The event highlights the key role of the entrepreneurial scene in stimulating the Egyptian economy, which in turn creates competitiveness and catalyses GDP growth through direct and indirect investments.

Over 400 representatives from a community of entrepreneurs, innovators, and start-ups, alongside multilateral and bilateral development partners are expected to attend the forum.

This includes Hasan Al-Attas, the director general of operation and head of the Saudi Grant Management Committee at the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD); Malinne Blomberg, the deputy director general of the African Development Bank (AfDB) in the North Africa region, and USAID Mission Director for Egypt Leslie Reed.

The Generation Next Forum is anticipated to host several discussions on the role of international financial institutions (IFIs) in developing the work environment for technology start-ups; the impact of partnerships with development partners to facilitate access to finance; and the action plan put forth for the implementation of the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles, as well as the role start-ups play in advancing the achievement of the sustainable development goals (SDGs).

The forum promotes Egypt as a destination for investment in the dynamic and tech-savvy start-up scene and will address how to create effective links between large companies and start-ups to stimulate innovation through development projects, according to Al-Mashat.

Egypt Ventures, established in 2017, is the first Egyptian company with governmental contributions that is specialised in investing, supporting, and encouraging entrepreneurship in the field of technology.

The government of Egypt is committed to supporting entrepreneurship in the country and through Egypt Ventures. The financial support and knowledge provided by the venture capital vehicle has a ripple effect on the economy, by creating job opportunities and pushing towards a knowledge economy. Egypt Ventures has also managed to enhance cooperation with international institutions that are interested in entrepreneurship in Egypt, opening the door to increased competition that is in line with the ESG principles, Al-Mashat explained.

Within the portfolio of the Ministry of International Cooperation, there are 34 projects underway, with a focus on innovation, digitalisation, and entrepreneurship, contributing to 13 SDGs with a total development financing of $1 billion, presenting 4 percent of Egypts total official development assistance (ODA).

The volume of investment in start-ups in Egypt in 2020 amounted to $190 million through 114 deals; showing an increase of 30 percent compared to 2019, according to the ministry.

Consequently, Egypt has the fastest-growing entrepreneurship ecosystem in the Middle East and North Africa, coming in as the second largest in the region.

Chairman and CEO of Egypt Ventures Ahmed Gomaa said that the company aims to invest in tech-based companies owned by Egyptian founders, locally and internationally with headquarters in Egypt.

Gomaa added that Egypt Ventures, through its short-term plan, also aims to provide alternative financing opportunities for Egyptian entrepreneurs, provide local investment opportunities for Egyptians living abroad while establishing knowledge transfer links to increase cooperation, and support companies in regional and global expansions.

He added that the long-term plan includes establishing Egypt as a centre for innovation and entrepreneurship in the MENA region, attract foreign and local investments in tech companies, increase direct and indirect job opportunities, and continuously develop Egypts dynamic entrepreneurial scene.

Egypt Ventures was established in September 2017 with a paid-up capital of EGP 451 million, alongside the participation of the Ministry of International Cooperation, the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD), and NI Capital.

The company is focused on investing in tech-based companies in order to provide them with the necessary sufficient attention in financing, especially bank financing, which offers great opportunities for expansion and high investment returns.

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The World Bank Group (WBG) announced that it has increased its allocations and finances for climate action in developing countries under its new 2021-2025 climate change action plan.

The efforts included in that plan include reducing emissions, strengthening adaptation, and aligning financial flows with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

The action plan also broadens the WBGs efforts from investing in green projects to helping countries fully integrate their climate and development goals as well as meeting the countries quests to find sustainable pathways out of the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Our new action plan will identify and prioritize action on the most impactful mitigation and adaptation opportunities, and we will drive our climate finance accordingly. This means helping the largest emitters flatten the emissions curve and helping countries achieve successful adaptation and resilience to climate change, said WBG President David Malpass.

He added that the WBG will be delivering climate finance at record levels and seeking solutions that achieve the most impact.

The World Bank is the largest multilateral provider of climate finance for developing countries.

Its action plan includes a commitment to increase delivery to an average of 35 percent of the WBGs total financing for climate through 2025.

Moreover, at least 50 percent of the International Development Association (IDA) and International Bank for Reconstruction and Developing (IBRD) climate finance will support adaptation.

The World Bank, comprising of the IBRD and IDA, has announced recently that it will align all new operations concerning the climate action starting 1 July 2023.

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This years G7 group meeting held in the British county of Cornwall had a massive symbolic and material importance to all those involved as well as to the rest of the world.

This was the first time the leaders of the worlds seven largest economies had met face-to-face since the Covid-19 outbreak in 2020. The symbolism was that business is going on as usual and that the world will survive its worst pandemic since World War II.

The meeting was also the first time that growing economic and political differences between different members of the group, such as between France and the UK, had been addressed. Quite a few tales emerged from this years meeting of the G7 leaders, including those below.

Post-Brexit issues still dominate Britains foreign policy, and French President Emmanuel Macron took a swipe at British Prime Minister Boris Johnson during the course of the G7 meeting as a result of Britains insistence on trading freely with Northern Ireland despite what had earlier been agreed with the EU.

The issue was raised in November 2020 when Johnson declared that British sausage products would reach Northern Irelands capital Belfast and nothing could stop them from doing so. It seemed a bizarre announcement in November, but there were reasons for it.

Following Britains decision to leave the EU customs union, border checks necessarily had to be applied on goods traded between the UK and the EU. These apply to chilled meat products, which are not allowed to enter EU markets through non-EU countries. Only frozen meat products are allowed, and these do not include mincemeat or sausages, presenting a dilemma for both sides.

The EU and Britain have agreed that Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, an EU member, will preserve their free borders without having to introduce a so-called hard border to avoid further complications, calling this the Northern Ireland Protocol.

But Macron, the representative of a major EU country, insisted at the G7 meeting that the UK abide with EU regulations in order to avoid confrontations that could lead to an open trade war. Johnson then questioned Macron about how he would feel if the French courts stopped Toulouse sausages from being sent to Paris.

Macron said this was an unfair comparison because Toulouse and Paris are parts of the same country. The Republic of Ireland is an independent country, while Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom, and thus post-Brexit laws apply there.

The spat between the French president and the British prime minister was the talk of the media for several days, and it overshadowed the optimistic atmosphere surrounding the G7 meeting. More importantly, it indicated that negative sentiments towards Brexit are still present among EU politicians, who believe that the UKs decision to leave the EU was a destructive one despite efforts to uphold the unity of Europe after Brexit given the new economic challenges presented by the coronavirus pandemic.

But Britain is not giving up easily on the matter, and despite the feud with the EU, whose leaders do not want to see the UK keeping any perks from EU membership, negotiations to settle it are ongoing. This week, the UK asked the EU to suspend an imminent ban on the sale of British sausages in Northern Ireland in order to pave the way for negotiations on an agreement that could save both sides from a likely trade war. The deadline of the grace period given to the UK is until the end of June, so the ongoing negotiations must come to an acceptable conclusion before then to avoid further complications.

The decades-old conflict between the US and Russia was the elephant in the room during the G7 meeting, and shortly after it there was the first meeting between newly elected US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin. During his presidential election campaign Biden had targeted Putin and had gone as far as to call him a killer and to vow to confront Russia and its president once he was elected president.

Fast forward seven months and Biden was sitting with Putin in a one-on-one meeting exchanging laughter, at least in front of the cameras. During the meeting, both presidents seemed to exchange cordial words, with Biden saying that the tone of the entire meeting was good, positive. The bottom line is I told President Putin that we need to have some basic rules of the road that we can all abide by. Putin described Biden as a balanced and professional man, and its clear that hes very experienced.

But niceties aside, both presidents are aware that the statements made to the domestic media do not mean much when it comes to the volatile relations between the superpowers. Biden cannot afford to enter an open confrontation with Putin, who has the same sentiment. The two superpowers have set ground rules or rules of engagement over the years, and they will do their best not to break them. The growing power of China and other issues including the war on terrorism and the global economy will force both leaders to think twice before engaging in open confrontations that will not benefit either politically or economically.

Nevertheless, there are lingering issues that have to be sorted out to clear the air between the two superpowers. Among these are the growing number of cyber-attacks originating from Russian sources and targeting American companies such as Microsoft and American institutions such as USAID and some human-rights organisations. The Russian armys mobilisation on the Ukrainian border, perceived as a threat by Ukrainian officials and NATO, irks the US administration and could cause a rapid deterioration in relations.

No G7 meeting is uneventful, and this years meeting was no exception. But there are already disappointments, especially concerning commitments towards the environment despite Britains pledge of GBP 500 million to help to save the oceans. Bidens calls for large investments in the G7 economies to save them from the impacts of the recession caused by the coronavirus crisis were not clear in their impacts, despite some enthusiasm from the UK. The G7 communique was denounced by China because it included condemnation of Chinas human-rights record concerning Uighur Muslims and the situation in Hong Kong.

The impacts of the recent G7 meeting with all its feuds and tales will be felt in the next few months, and it remains to be seen if the group will commit itself to more cooperation to save the global economy after the Covid-19 crisis and if ongoing military conflicts will be resolved in diplomatic ways.

The writer is a political analyst and author of Egypts Arab Spring: The Long and Winding Road to Democracy.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 24 June, 2021 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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The visit of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to Egypt this week is another confirmation of the excellent bilateral relations between Egypt and Greece. Cooperation between Egypt and Greece has gradually evolved to become a model partnership that extends over many fields and is based on mutual respect and identical national interests.

The Greek prime minister met with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi after an official invitation extended by Egypt. The two leaders discussed issues of mutual interest and ways to enhance ties between the two countries. In November 2020, President Al-Sisi also visited Athens, highlighting the excellent level of cooperation on common challenges. During his visit to Egypt this week, the Greek prime minister also met with Egyptian Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouli, Coptic Pope Tawadros II and members of the historical Greek community of Egypt residing in Cairo and Alexandria.

The partnership between Egypt and Greece is not a conventional one. The two countries have steadily and decisively created a real power bloc in the Eastern Mediterranean based on diplomatic, military, financial and cultural ties. Two characteristic events of this cooperation have been the signing in August 2020 of the partial maritime demarcation deal establishing Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) in the region and the creation of the Eastern Mediterranean Gas Forum (EMGF) at the initiative of Egypt and the participation of many other countries including France.

The two sides have repeatedly emphasised the need to cooperate with respect to the principles of international law, including the Law of the Sea and the principles of good neighbourhood. Egypt and Greece can now effectively move forward and introduce a new level to their partnership.

The EEZ Agreement signed in August between Egypt and Greece is a partial demarcation agreement, and it needs to be completed by full agreement by a new Egyptian-Greek agreement. This could coincide with an EEZ agreement between Greece and Cyprus, so that all three states will have cooperated in the delimitation of EEZs in the region. It is in the interest of Egypt to share sea borders with two member states of the European Union rather than with an unstable Turkey that does not fulfil its promises.

Greece supports Egypt on the issue of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) project, where unilateral actions by Ethiopia have led to considerable regional tension. Greece could help to adopt a diplomatic initiative in the context of the European Union to promote inter-state dialogue for a legally binding agreement on the water of the Nile. Concerning Libya, Greece fully accepts the framework for the future of Libya set by Egyptian diplomacy and agrees with Egypt on the immediate need for the removal of all foreign mercenaries and fighters from Libyan territory. Stability is essential for the rebuilding of the war-torn country and also for the greater stability of the region.

Egypt and Greece are indispensable allies in the Mediterranean, and their national interests coincide in many fields: EEZs and economic partnership, the internal situation in Libya, energy cooperation, the creation of a more stable geopolitical environment and EU external cooperation. The ties between Egypt and Greece are deep and ancient. Today, the two nations are moving ever closer together in the spirit of a true and model partnership controlling the strategic area of the Mediterranean.

The writer is a lecturer in geopolitics at the University of Athens in Greece.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 24 June, 2021 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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Is it simply the nature of this era, the fact that the event epitomised a kind of political essence, or that the mad global media not only covers news but also makes it? Whatever it is, during US President Joe Bidens first tour abroad, the world was at the edge of its seat in anticipation of his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The 46th US presidents stop in the UK to meet with other heads of state of the G7  followed by his meeting with NATO leaders, which included an important fringe discussion with Erdogan  looked like the prelude to this grand event.

It was like a symphony where everything prepares for that moment when the strings pick up pace, the other orchestral sections join in to enhance the drama, and the crescendo builds as excitement peaks in anticipation of the resounding resolution. The performance did not lack some jarring moments, such as that point in an earlier overture when Biden, contrary to his customary equanimity and prudence in his choice of words, called the president of the worlds other superpower  which also has enough nuclear weapons to destroy the planet  a killer and criminal. The coolness of Putins response was thunderous. To him Biden was merely a vice president whom hed met before.

Perhaps observers failed to notice that the two sides struck an agreement concerning cybersecurity in the lead-up to the summit and that during the summit they agreed to sustain current agreements on nuclear weapons and, more importantly, on the need to work towards strategic stability. Both sides also made it clear that they are keen to cooperate in areas where their interests converge, from fighting climate change to the Syrian question in the Middle East. None of the foregoing could have been ruled out before the meeting as such steps were needed in order to douse volatile sparks in various hotspots.

Moreover, at closer inspection, the steps were both logical and consistent with the customary framework of US-Russian relations which deal with matters of global security, matters of concern to all humanity, discussing considerations that are crucial to their own internal policies and, at this stage in particular, any number of important details in a world reeling under the strain of the Covid-19 pandemic and economic recession.

It was mainly two things that made the summit exciting: the absence of Donald Trump after his four years in power, and the issue of human rights which Democrats in the US want Biden to brandish like a sword in a global crusade. Some years ago in a previous summit in Brussels, Trump stunned other NATO members with the ultimatum that the US would withdraw from this Western military alliance unless they spent more on their own defence.

On 14 June this year, in the same venue, Biden had to mend the considerable damage done by four years of histrionics on the part of his predecessor who suddenly decided to pull 12,000 US troops out of Germany. It is hard to ignore the lesson Trump gave the world about the lack of stability in US foreign policy. German Chancellor Angela Merkel did not exaggerate when she said that her country and others had to come to terms with the fact that the US changed its policies every four years. So when Biden stated that his country regarded Article 5 of the NATO charter, which states that an attack on one member is an attack on all and should be met with a collective response, as a sacred obligation, his remarks had the effect of a balm on his listeners ears. Such reverent rhetoric has long been a Biden trademark, but it was not without purpose.

What Washington wanted from its allies in NATO and from its fellow G7 members as well was a stronger collective stance on Russia, especially on cybersecurity. The same applied to China, which the US has come to perceive as an adversary in this matter. Biden got what he came for from his allies and this paved the way to what he later achieved in Geneva. Of course, it is impossible to predict how much of a push from NATO might still be needed to achieve cybersecurity and strategic stability, especially since the delicate Ukrainian question is still up in the air.

As for the Ukraine and the Russian opposition activist Alexey Navalny, the White House had stressed beforehand that no great breakthroughs would be made on these issues during the summit. Biden was more focused on structuring the meeting as an exercise in down-to-earth pragmatism. Specifically, he had in mind the need for higher degrees of predictability on how Washington and Moscow would act in various scenarios and the need to understand each others red lines.

From the coverage of the summit, it appears that democracy and human rights were less a topic on the negotiating table than food for the press conferences that followed the meeting. Rather than the joint press conference one would customarily expect, Biden and Putin held separate press conferences, creating the impression of a different kind of summit, one between each head of state and his own people. As a result, it seemed that Russia came under less of a glare on questions of democracy and human rights than the US because of its actions in Iraq and Afghanistan and the problems of racism and the ramifications of the recent storming of the Capitol Building at home.

Around 50 years ago, two summits, the first between the US and China and the second between the US and the Soviet Union, turned the world as everyone had known it upside-down. They effectively declared the end of the Cold War. The US under Nixon wanted to pull out of Vietnam with the least possible losses. Beijing and Moscow wanted a breath of fresh air untainted by its violent rivalry with Washington.

The result was the policy of detente intended to reduce tensions and prevent dangerous brinksmanship by taking advantage of the opportunities made available by common ground and shared interests so as to promote benefits for both sides. Although disputes would sometimes escalate and the Cold War would return in the 1980s and last until the collapse of the Soviet Union, the summits continued without interruption for the sake of maintaining strategic stability and peace. True, the mutual taunting and name calling would continue, as occurred when Biden told Putin he thought the Russian leader did not have a soul. But such is the stuff of politics and international relations. What matters above all is keeping the world safe from nuclear war.

The writer is chairman of the board, CEO and director of the Regional Centre for Strategic Studies.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 24 June, 2021 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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To avoid the damage  drought and flood  that Sudan encountered during last years filling of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dams (GERD) reservoir, Sudans Foreign Minister Mariam Al-Sadiq hinted this week that Khartoum may be willing to accept a partial agreement on this years filling, due to begin in a matter of days. It is a step which, as recently as April, Khartoum had rejected alongside Cairo.

At the time both downstream countries demanded a comprehensive, legally binding agreement covering all the operations of the dam, and said Ethiopias filling of the reservoir in the absence of such an agreement was a clear violation of international law and a threat to regional security and peace.

Al-Sadiq said in an interview with Saudi Arabias Al-Hadath channel that the partial agreement that Khartoum was considering had previously been proposed by the AU and is also supported by the US, the EU, and the UN.

Political analyst Amr Al-Shobaki says there were indications of this partial agreement and that Sudan would likely agree to it.

The unilateral filling of GERD will impact heaviest on Sudan, and a filling-focused agreement will help Sudan contain the fall-out, Al-Shobaki told Al-Ahram Weekly. But it would, he warned, be at best a short-term expedient, a postponement of a solution.

Ahmed Al-Mufti, a Sudanese expert on international law, told Al-Ghad TV channel that a partial agreement would be a catastrophe, no matter what the conditions Sudan hopes are attached.

Ethiopia will complete the filling and not abide by the conditions, but it will gain legitimacy, nonetheless, said Al-Mufti, a participant in the Nile Basin Initiative negotiations held between 1994 and 2012.

Sudans foreign minister said any partial agreement must come with four guarantees: commitment to a time limit of six months between the signing of the partial agreement and a final agreement; negotiations picking up from what has been previously agreed rather than starting from scratch; effective international mediation led by the AU and including the US, EU and UN and a clear mechanism to punish any intransigent or procrastinating party.

The guarantees sound fine in theory, but I would question Ethiopias commitment to them given its history of intransigence, says Al-Shobaki.

Professor of political science Mustafa Kamel Al-Sayed doubts that Ethiopia will either commit to the guarantees or show the flexibility needed during the six-month timeframe to reach a final agreement.

Ethiopia will not accept the quartet of international mediators. Addis Ababa has never wanted the involvement of parties whose support for its position is not assured. Nor is it likely the international parties will accept the guarantees. They are, after all, as keen on their relations with Ethiopia as they are with Egypt and Sudan, Al-Sayed told the Weekly.

Al-Sayed believes that Sudans proposal of a partial agreement will be viewed by Ethiopia as proof that its intransigence has paid off.

Should Ethiopia proceed with a second filling of GERD, its reservoir will hold twice the 7 bcm capacity of the Sudanese Roseires dam which is just 15km away. According to Al-Mufti, Sudan and Egypt will then be in no position to do anything but bend to Ethiopias will since Addis Ababa will have effectively built a water bomb.

But will Ethiopia, which is currently holding elections, be more flexible if Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed secures a popular mandate? Al-Sayed predicts there will be no change in its position, and Al-Shobaki believes any change is doubtful.

It is theoretically possible that Ethiopias position will change after the elections, but this depends on pressure being exerted on Addis Ababa, says Al-Shobaki.

While Al-Shobaki believes that failure to reach a final agreement at the end of the six-month timeframe will still leave the all options open for Egypt and Sudan, Al-Sayed argues by then it will be too late, and GERD will be a fait accompli.

During a meeting with members of the House of Representatives Defence and National Security Committee on Monday, Egypts Minister of Defence and Military Production Mohamed Zaki stressed that the military is prepared to carry out tasks assigned to them to protect the homeland against any harm.

Addis Ababa argues that GERD is a matter of Ethiopian national sovereignty. In April Ethiopias Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Dina Mufti said it was unacceptable for Egypt and Sudan to use historical accords setting shares of Nile water as reference points during negotiations.

The Anglo-Ethiopian treaty, signed in 1902 between the United Kingdom, representing Egypt and Sudan, and Ethiopia, represented by emperor Menelik II of Abyssinia, prohibited any Ethiopian construction on the Blue Nile that would affect the rivers natural flow. The same treaty granted sovereignty of the then Sudanese Benishangul region, where Addis Ababa has been building the controversial dam since 2011, to Ethiopia.

If Ethiopia does not recognise the 1902 treaty, it will be the most affected due to the previous sovereignty of Sudan over the GERDs region, Al-Shobaki said.

Following an Egyptian letter to the UN Security Council over the GERD sent earlier this month, Al-Sadiq said on Sunday that Sudan would be sending within hours a letter to the UN body to oblige Ethiopia not to proceed with filling its Blue Nile dam without reaching a legal deal with downstream countries.

The one thing the Security Council will propose is a return to the negotiating table, Sudanese expert Ahmed Al-Mufti said, adding that in light of Ethiopias procrastination the only pressure tool for bringing Addis Ababa back to talks is Khartoums claim for sovereignty over the region on which the GERD is built.

However, according to Al-Shobaki, it is unlikely Sudan can claim its sovereignty over the region in the meantime.

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Egyptian General Intelligence Service Director Abbas Kamel visited Tripoli on 17 June to meet with senior Libyan officials, including Chairman of the Presidency Council Mohamed Al-Manfi and Prime Minister of the Government of National Unity (GNU) Abdel-Hamid Al-Debeibah. Following the meetings, Kamel was shown around the historic old town. The visiting Egyptian official was warmly welcomed at both the popular and official levels, a highly placed Libyan source told Al-Ahram Weekly.

Although some arrangements had been made in advance for the open tour, it was characterised by a spontaneity that reflected the nature of the current moment in Libyan relations with Egypt as a sister country of the Libyan people. The source added that the time when Libyans felt that Egypts focus was on the east of their country is now over. Egypt, he said, had played a central role in overcoming the acute polarisation that had divided Libya, and its support of the Libyan political process was highly regarded.

During the open tour, it was remarkable how many Libyans were eager to present gifts to the visiting delegation, the source said. It was an expression of their strong sense of a bond with Egypt. One merchant presented a locally made carpet over a century and a half old as a symbol of the historical dimension of Egyptian-Libyan relations.

The Libyan prime minister was pleased to see the impact of the tour. He felt that it was only right for Egypt, as the largest Arab state and a regional power, to have such a presence in Tripoli.

One of Kamels aims in Libya was to convey the support of Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi for the Libyan people and their government, and Egypts desire to strengthen cooperation between the two countries to help ensure the progress of the Libyan political process and efforts to restore stability in the country. Kamel stressed the need to boost efforts to unify the Libyan military establishment. In this context, he praised the role played by the Libyan Joint Military Committee, known as the 5+5 JMC, in promoting confidence-building measures to help sustain a lasting ceasefire. More generally, he underscored the importance of current efforts to promote Libyan national reconciliation, which he described as a pillar of stability.

President Al-Sisi also appealed to the Libyan institutions involved in preparing for the national elections in December to perform their patriotic duty. He stressed that Cairo fully supports Libyan efforts to hold elections.

Al-Manfi also expressed his pleasure at the Egyptian delegations visit, welcoming the messages it conveyed in the interest of strengthening bilateral relations and cooperation.

The friendly atmosphere surrounding the Egyptian visit contrasted sharply with the stiff atmosphere surrounding the visit of a high-level Turkish delegation. Needless to say, there were no tours to meet with the Libyan people.

Instead, there was a visit to a military base in Mitiga, although it was difficult to see who was visiting who in this case. Libyan Chief of Staff Mohamed Al-Haddad came under harsh criticism after a photo went viral showing him having to display a visitors permit in order to enter a military base in his own country. The majority of members of the Libyan House of Representatives were outraged. Turkey has been particularly obstructive on the question of foreign fighters and mercenaries. While Egypt, together with other international and regional powers, has been working to support the efforts of the 5+5 JMC to rid Libya of foreign mercenaries in order to safeguard the ceasefire that came into effect in October, Turkey has introduced more mercenaries into the country.

Kamels visit came in the framework of Egyptian support for the second Berlin Conference on Libya which began this week. After the visit, Libyan Foreign Minister Najlah Al-Manqoush travelled to Cairo where she met with President Al-Sisi and Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukri. During the meeting, Al-Sisi said: Egypt offers its full support to Libya and the Libyan people. Egypt and Libya share a single national security. We hope that the current rectified political process concludes with free elections that reflect the will of the Libyan people free from militias and armed groups. Egypts position has always been firm and clear. Egypt has always affirmed the necessity of Libyan territorial integrity and non-interference in Libyan affairs.

Al-Manqoush expressed her pleasure at Egypts concern for Libya and its reaffirmation of Libyas territorial integrity. Addressing the president, she added: We are all proud of the role Egypt has played in Libya. Egypt has a historic position that we salute. We value President Al-Sisis wisdom and leadership. We are counting on Egyptian-Libyan security cooperation and we hope that Egypt will play an effective role in unifying the Libyan military establishment.

The unification of the Libyan military establishment within the 5+5 JMC framework was also a subject of Kamels talks in Benghazi, which he visited after Tripoli. In his meeting with Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, Commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA), Kamel underscored Egypts support for the Libyan people at the military and political levels. He conveyed President Al-Sisis praise for the LNAs efforts to achieve domestic stability and fight terrorism, and for the military establishments vital role in safeguarding the welfare and resources of the Libyan people. Kamel also met with Speaker of the House of Representatives Aguila Saleh and other members of the Libyan parliament.

A number of Egyptian officials have visited Tripoli since the new GNU received the Libyan House of Representatives vote of confidence in March. Of particular significance was Egyptian Prime Minister Mustafa Madboulis visit in April at the head of a delegation of 11 ministers. Soon afterwards, Egypt appointed a charge daffairs to the newly reopened Egyptian embassy in Tripoli. It hopes to send an ambassador soon. The charge daffairs of the Libyan Embassy in Cairo was upgraded to Tripolis permanent ambassador to Egypt during Al-Manqoushs recent visit.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 24 June, 2021 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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US President Joe Biden did not need to do much on his first European tour this week. Just being there was good enough for the feel-good factor to return after four disruptive years under former president Donald Trump.

Nonetheless, the challenges that Biden discussed with world leaders at the G7 summit in Britain, the NATO summit, the European-American summit in Brussels and the summit with the Russian President Vladimir Putin in Geneva were all very pressing, including the unprecedented world health crisis due to Covid-19, global warming, fragile economic conditions, geopolitical tensions between the US and China and Russia, international terrorism and cyber-attacks.

All these are urgent issues, but many believe that Bidens priority on his European tour was China and how to contain it and limit its international influence, which the US sees as a threat to its position at the top of the international system.

NATO leaders on Monday declared China for the first time to be a security challenge and said that it was working to undermine the global order, a message in sync with Bidens desire to confront Beijing on trade, military and human-rights practices.

In the summit statement, the leaders said that Chinas goals and assertive behaviour present systemic challenges to the rules-based international order and to areas relevant to alliance security.

They expressed concerns about what they said were Chinas coercive policies, the opaque ways it was modernising its armed forces, and its use of disinformation. We know that China does not share our values... we need to respond together as an alliance, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said during the summit.

White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said that China would feature in the NATO communique in a more robust way than weve ever seen before. It was a PR success for Washington, but there are still big differences between the Biden administration and allies like France, Germany and the UK that seek to engage with China and not to confront it in a new cold war.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said NATOs decision to name China as a threat shouldnt be overstated because Beijing, like Russia, was also a partner in some areas. China is Germanys top trading partner, and she said it was important to find the right balance.

Frances President Emmanuel Macron urged the alliance not to let China distract it from what he saw as pressing issues facing NATO, including the fight against terrorism and security issues related to Russia. I think it is very important not to scatter our efforts and not to have biases in our relation to China, Macron said.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he did not want a new cold war with China, calling it a gigantic fact in our lives. Asked if he shared Bidens opinion that China was a threat that NATO had not taken seriously, he replied that I dont think anybody around the table today wants to descend into a new cold war with China.

As expected, Biden used his first appearance at a NATO summit meeting to renew the US military commitment to the 30-country alliance. He sat down with the organisations secretary-general and underscored the US commitment to Article 5 of the Alliance charter, which spells out that an attack on any member is an attack on all.

Article 5 we take as a sacred obligation, Biden said. I want NATO to know America is there.

The NATO leaders also took a swipe at Russia in their communique, deploring what they consider to be its aggressive military activities and its war games near the borders of NATO countries as well as repeated violations of airspace by Russian planes.

They said that Russia had ramped up hybrid actions against member countries by attempts to interfere in elections, political and economic intimidation, disinformation campaigns and malicious cyber-activities.

Until Russia demonstrates compliance with international law and its international obligations and responsibilities, there can be no return to business as usual, they said.

Im going to make clear to President Putin that there are areas where we can cooperate, if he chooses, Biden told reporters. And if he chooses not to cooperate and acts in a way that he has in the past relative to cybersecurity and other activities, then we will respond, we will respond in kind.

Biden said he was not focused on whether he could trust the Russian president, but he was hoping to be able to find areas where he can work with him while laying out red lines in other areas.

Its not about trusting; its about agreeing, Biden said. When you write treaties with adversaries, you dont say, I trust you. You say, this is what I expect.

While Europe is looking to the results of the Biden-Putin meeting, what it hopes for most is a gradual change in Russian policies that Europeans see as a threat to their security.

One British diplomat told Al-Ahram Weekly that a single summit meeting would not change the dynamics of the relationship between Moscow and the West, but it could lay the foundation for change.

We are still at the beginning of the Biden presidency, and I think there are possibilities to bridge the gap with Moscow on a large number of issues. But lets be clear that we are still taking the first step and the possibilities of failure are the same as the possibilities of success.

On the sidelines of the NATO summit, Biden also met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at a time when relations between Washington and Ankara are going through difficulties. They discussed a range of issues from bilateral relations, US sanctions on Ankara, Syria and Libya, and Eastern Mediterranean tensions.

Erdogan gave no indication after the meeting that Ankaras deal with Moscow to purchase the S-400 missile system, triggering unprecedented US sanctions against a NATO ally, would be reversed.

It was a very fruitful and sincere meeting, Erdogan told reporters, adding that the two allies would continue to negotiate on a range of issues. Biden said the meeting with Erdogan was productive, adding that he was confident the US would make real progress with Turkey.

Some might judge Bidens first European outing as a triumph of style over substance.

The language, the atmosphere and the body language were all in harmony, even if the outcomes were not as hoped for.

Green campaigners and anti-poverty groups said the G7 meeting has failed to address the challenges facing the world. The final communique contained no early timetable to eradicate coal-fired emissions to tackle the climate emergency and offered only one billion extra coronavirus vaccines for the worlds poor over the next 24 months, even though the World Health Organisation (WHO) says that the world needs 11 billion doses to stop the spread of Covid-19.

The British charity Oxfams head of inequality policy Max Lawson commented that never in the history of the G7 has there been a bigger gap between their actions and the needs of the world. We dont need to wait for history to judge this summit a colossal failure. It is plain for all to see.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 17 June, 2021 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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Ahead of the Second Berlin Conference on Libya, which opened yesterday (23 June), Cairo intensified contacts with key Libyan parties to help ensure a successful outcome. In many ways Libyan national security is part of Egyptian national security, and so Cairo has spared no effort to restore stability and security in the neighouring country, torn by a civil war fuelled by regional and international parties.

On Sunday, President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi met with Libyas Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush, who had met with Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukri twice, in Doha and Cairo. A few days earlier, on 18 June, General Intelligence Chief Abbas Kamel had visited both Tripoli and Benghazi to meet with both Libyas Government of National Unity (GNU) Prime Minister Abdel-Hamid Al-Dabaiba, and the commander of Libyan National Army (LNA) Khalifa Haftar. Libyan Presidential Council Chairman Mohamed Al-Menfi has also been in Egypt for consultations with Al-Sisi.

Through all these contacts, Egypt has affirmed its support for the Libyan Presidential Council and the GNU with the aim of restoring peace and prosperity in Libya, the idea being to hold national elections on 24 December as scheduled. Such key elections are a main step on the way to a political settlement of the Libyan crisis, enabling the will of the Libyan people to shape the countrys future.

In a video released by the presidency during Al-Sisis meeting with Libyan foreign minister, Al-Sisi stated that the political roadmap agreed on after lengthy negotiations in Egypt and several other concerned countries is the only way out of the continuing Libyan crisis. We are keen that this path should be completed and end with elections expressing the will of the Libyan people away from the militias and mercenaries, Al-Sisi said.

The president reaffirmed Egypts unwavering stance, based on the protection of the unity of Libyan territories, the preservation of Libyan resources to the benefit of the Libyan people and non-interference in Libyan domestic affairs.

Needless to say, regional and international intervention in Libya since the downfall of the late strongman, colonel Moammar Gaddafi, in 2011 has been the main obstacle, threatening not only Libyas future but even its territorial integrity. The country has been practically divided into two parts, with two governments and several armed groups that have gradually gained power and wealth. Such warring groups have put their own interests above those of the Libyan people, extending alliances with regional and international parties to safeguard them.

Thus, the restoration of Libyan sovereignty must start with the withdrawal of foreign troops and mercenaries from the country, and preserving the states national institutions. This requires unifying military and security institutions, ending foreign interference, and establishing peaceful dialogue among Libyan rivals.

In this framework, Egypt has offered political support for the General Commander of the Libyan National Army Khalifa Haftar, in Benghazi. During GI Chief Kamels visit to the eastern Libyan city, he praised the efforts exerted by the LNA to achieve internal stability and combat terrorism, affirming that the Libyan military institution has a vital role in protecting the interests of the Libyan people.

The issues discussed in a series of meetings held with Egyptian parties will top the agenda of the second Berlin meeting on Libya, hosted by both UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas. The conference will take stock of the progress made since the Berlin Conference on Libya on 19 January 2020, and the next steps needed for a sustainable stabilisation of the country. Those include preparations for the national elections scheduled for 24 December, the withdrawal of foreign troops and mercenaries and the creation of unified Libyan security forces.

Due to Egypts contacts as well as regional and international changes, there is a strong chance that the Second Berlin Conference will yield substantial results, despite many difficulties. The key burden falls on Libyan lawmakers and other decision-makers who still need to agree on the budget for the new executive authority, fill several key offices, approve the legal basis and draw up electoral laws for parliamentary and presidential elections.

The main goal right now, whether for Libyan rivals or concerned regional and international parties, must be to promote a peace settlement that all the Libyan parties can commit to and ensure that outside actors genuinely support the UN-facilitated process.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 24 June, 2021 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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It is very interesting to see how powerful this title is; how it can make such a big difference in every aspect, Diana Hamed, Miss Eco-Egypt 2021, told Ahram online.

Hamed will represent Egypt at Miss Eco-International 2022. The beauty queen will compete against 75 contestants from all over the world.

Miss Eco International is an international beauty pageant meant to promote and raise awareness about the environment and eco-tourism.

Egypt is scheduled to host Miss Eco-International 2022 from 12 to 27 March.

Last year, the contest was cancelled due to the pandemic.

Delegates will arrive in Cairo on 12 March. The beauty queens will visit Hurghada and Alexandria, Amal Rizk, founder and CEO of Miss Eco-International pageant, told Ahram Online.

On 26 March, they will be at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Rizk added.

Hamed is gearing up for the pageant.

There are many stages in the competition, which requires a lot of work, but I am really excited about it, she said.

The 22-year-old is Hungarian Egyptian. She studied business at Hult School in London.

Hamed has been modelling abroad since she was 14. She had always been fond of the world of beauty contests but she was too young to participate.

I got scouted by an agency board which gave me the opportunity to travel all over Asia. I was modelling in all types of fashion runways, editorial and commercial, Hamed said.

She is now working with the UNN Modelling Management agency in Egypt.

Hamed has many role models that have inspired her during her journey. I follow many figures in different industries. In the beauty world, my role model is Indias Miss World 2000 and actress Priyanka Chopra. In modelling, it is Brazilian model Gisele Bundchen, she said.

Hamed loves to travel. It allows me to know different cultures and try a new taste of everything. I like to try as many things as possible, she added.

For her, beauty comes in all shapes. I dont support the term ideal beauty. Everything has its beauty but not everyone sees it. It just takes the right people to notice, Hamed commented.

Hamed started competing in beauty contests in 2019. That year, she was crowned Miss Egypt Universe in Cairo.

As the winner, she represented Egypt in the prominent Miss Universe 2019 in Atlanta, US.

Last year, Hamed won the international title of Miss Eco-Egypt 2020 at Miss Egypt (Bent Masr) which took place in September.

Miss Egypt Bent Masr is a prestigious annual national beauty competition.

At that time the Covid-19 pandemic situation was getting better. This title is very special to my heart because of what it represents. It is much deeper than just beauty, Hamed said.

Being a beauty queen and having this platform gives me an opportunity to be a voice, not just on certain topics but on anything I want to stand up for, she stated.

The title of a beauty queen comes with many duties and responsibilities, depending on the beauty pageant.

Hamed is going to initiate many environmental projects as Miss Eco-Egypt.

I want to work on awareness campaigns for Nile cleaning and educating youth about the importance of the environment, Hamed concluded.

( All photos courtesy of Diana Hamed).

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KYODO NEWS - Jun 23, 2021 - 21:50 | All, Japan, Coronavirus

The Japanese government said Wednesday it is temporarily halting company applications for COVID-19 vaccinations at workplaces due to concerns it will be unable to distribute doses quickly enough.

Applications will be closed off to companies after 5 p.m. Friday, with no timeline set for when they will resume, Taro Kono, the minister in charge of the inoculation effort, told a press conference.

Kono said the government has hit its ceiling for how many doses of Moderna Inc.'s vaccine it can deliver to companies daily and most of the 50 million doses it expects to receive shipments of by September have already been allocated.

Applications for large-scale vaccination sites set up by prefectures, which also use the Moderna vaccine, will stop immediately, he said.

The move, which comes as Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is seeking to finish inoculating everyone eligible among Japan's population of 125 million by November, does not affect hospitals and clinics administering Pfizer Inc.'s vaccine.

Vaccinations began Monday at major companies including Central Japan Railway Co. and SoftBank Group Corp. as well as on university campuses, ramping up a rollout that until then had largely been limited to health care workers and people aged 65 or older.

The government "will take appropriate steps to ensure vaccinations continue to go smoothly," Suga said in a meeting Wednesday with members of his Cabinet including Kono and health minister Norihisa Tamura.

Related coverage:

Japan's COVID-19 vaccinations for under-65s start at hundreds of sites

97% of surveyed major Japan firms plan workplace COVID vaccinations
KYODO NEWS - Jun 23, 2021 - 02:05 | All, Japan, Coronavirus

Japan is planning to approve the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Britain's AstraZeneca Plc for inoculations of those aged 60 and over, government sources said Tuesday.

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare granted fast-track approval for the vaccine in May, but indicated at the time it did not intend to use the vaccine immediately due to rare cases of blood clots reported overseas.

But some health experts have said the vaccine should "not be excluded as an option" as its efficacy has been confirmed in Britain and other countries where a significant number of shots have been administered.

A health ministry panel will discuss the eligible age range for the vaccine at a meeting on June 30, while taking into account the situation overseas, the sources said.

Unlike the COVID-19 vaccines developed by U.S. pharmaceutical companies Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc., both of which use a new technology called messenger RNA, the AstraZeneca vaccine uses a harmless version of a common cold virus.

The AstraZeneca vaccine has proved 70 percent effective against the virus, slightly lower than the other two. But it has the advantage of being easier to store and is produced under license in Japan.
KYODO NEWS - Jun 23, 2021 - 23:20 | All, Japan, Coronavirus

Japan is considering approving the use of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Britain's AstraZeneca Plc for people aged 18 or over, sources close to the matter said Wednesday.

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare granted fast-track approval for the vaccine in May but indicated at the time that it did not intend to use the vaccine immediately due to rare cases of blood clots reported overseas.

It is already planning to approve the AstraZeneca vaccine for people aged 60 or older, other sources said earlier.

An expert panel of the health ministry will discuss the eligible age range for the vaccine on June 30.

Most of the reported blood clot cases involved young people.

The government's inoculation drive currently employs the COVID-19 vaccines developed by U.S. pharmaceutical companies Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc.

It is considering recommending AstraZeneca vaccine only for those aged 60 or older for the time being, they said.
KYODO NEWS - Jun 23, 2021 - 23:42 | World, All

North Korea on Wednesday reiterated its reluctance to hold bilateral talks with the United States, a day after Washington voiced willingness to continue to seek dialogue with Pyongyang over the Asian country's denuclearization.

"We are not considering even the possibility of any contact with the U.S., let alone having it, which would get us nowhere, only taking up precious time," North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Son Gwon said in a statement carried by state-run media.

On Tuesday, U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price told a conference call, "We remain prepared to engage in principal negotiations with the DPRK to deal with the challenge of its nuclear program."

DPRK is the acronym of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, North Korea's official name.

The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden, who took office in January, has recently expressed eagerness to restart denuclearization talks with North Korea.

But North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's younger sister and close aide, Kim Yo Jong, was quoted by the official Korean Central News Agency as saying in a statement released Tuesday that U.S. expectations for bilateral negotiations could bring "disappointment."

At a plenary meeting of the Central Committee of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea held last week, Kim Jong Un pledged to prepare for both "dialogue and confrontation" with the Biden administration.

North Korea is believed to have little intention to hold bilateral talks with the United States unless Washington withdraws what Pyongyang considers its hostile policy position.

Some foreign affairs experts, however, said Kim Jong Un might be keen to resume communication to receive U.S. economic aid, with the North Korean economy languishing amid the novel coronavirus pandemic.

U.S.-North Korea negotiations have been stalled for around 18 months, as they have fallen short of bridging the gap between Washington's demands and Pyongyang's calls for sanctions relief.

The Biden administration plans to keep its North Korea policy flexible, while building on a 2018 summit agreement that included Pyongyang's commitment toward denuclearization.

At their first summit in June 2018 in Singapore, Kim Jong Un and Biden's predecessor Donald Trump agreed that Washington would provide security guarantees to Pyongyang in exchange for "complete" denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

Related coverage:

North Korea says U.S. hopes for talks to bring "disappointment"

North Korea acknowledges "food crisis" amid novel coronavirus pandemic

North Korea's Kim vows to draw serious lesson from defects exposed in 2021
By Ko Shu-ling, KYODO NEWS - Jun 23, 2021 - 17:12 | All, World, Coronavirus, Feature

In April, Taiwan was the toast of the international community for its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

While hundreds of millions were infected worldwide, and millions died, Taiwan went 250 days without a single local case, allowing the island's 23.5 million residents to live largely normal lives without lockdowns or even school closures.

The Democratic Progressive Party-led government of President Tsai Ing-wen was widely credited for its quick implementation of pandemic response protocols that combined strict border controls, mandatory quarantines and contact tracing.

Tsai's polling numbers, already high after her re-election victory in January 2020, rose to record levels in the following months as the pandemic was brought under control.

All that ended in May, however, as an outbreak among flight crews of Taiwan's state-owned China Airlines spread to the broader community, leading to thousands of new local cases and nearly 600 deaths.

Again, the government responded quickly, declaring an island-wide partial lockdown that closed schools and restaurants, required masks and social distancing, but left business untouched -- measures that have had limited impact on daily life while significantly slowing infection rates.

But Taiwanese are far from out of the woods, especially as vaccines are scarce and will remain so until fall.

In addition, Tsai's government, once praised for allowing public health experts to oversee the island's pandemic response, has been blamed for increasingly allowing politics to dictate policy, effectively instigating the current crisis.

Criticism has been particularly harsh in three areas.

The first involves a decision made in April by health minister Chen Shih-chung to reduce the quarantine times for airline personnel returning from overseas flights from an already low five days, to three, with no requirement for a negative test before release.

In clear breach of regulations, crews were also quarantined in an airline-owned hotel along with minimally protected staff and regular guests, several of whom became the first to be infected.

To make matters worse, Chen initially denied responsibility for the decision, a claim he later admitted was false.

The second criticism stems from the lack of preparation for dealing with the virus once it began to spread, especially testing, which as Shih Wen-yi, a former deputy director of Taiwan's Center for Disease Control, said is essential to identify potential carriers.

As long as infections were few, the standard polymerase chain reaction tests were fine. But these take time, and with numbers rising, processing labs were quickly overwhelmed, leading to wait times of a week or more, making them useless as a preventative tool.

Here too, Chen has been faulted for refusing to acquire rapid test kits available from Taiwanese companies that manufacture them. Only too late did he relent and allow local governments to set up rapid testing sites and to import home test kits.

The third issue involves acquiring vaccines, a problem shared by many countries in the region, but complicated in Taiwan by several factors, most notably interference by China, which regards the island as a breakaway province and has been relentless in its efforts to obstruct and embarrass Tsai's independence-leaning party since its landslide election victory in 2016.

While frustrating government efforts to obtain inoculations through normal channels, Beijing has offered to supply Taiwan with vaccines.

In addition to widely shared doubts about the safety and efficacy of Chinese shots, "playing the vaccine card" is an obvious attempt to discredit the DPP government, said Kuo Yu-jen, professor of China and Asia-Pacific Studies at Taiwan's National Sun Yat-sen University.

It also undermines the island's sovereignty, Kuo added. "To accept Chinese vaccines is tantamount to admitting Taiwan is a province of China," he said.

Such claims have not stopped Tsai's political opponents from exploiting the situation.

A senior member of the main opposition Nationalist Party (KMT), Hung Hsiu-chu, urged Tsai to accept Chinese vaccines, saying that "the real enemy is the virus, not Beijing."

Similarly, former KMT presidential spokesman Lo Chih-chiang has been critical of what he calls "gambling" with public safety, and not only with the DPP's anti-China policies.

Citing the low number of doses ordered from foreign suppliers, far fewer than would be needed to treat the population, Lo echoed claims by others that the government is limiting imports to protect a local company, Medigen Biotechnology Corp., currently developing its own vaccine.

"Taiwanese deserve access to all safe vaccines," Lo said, "including Chinese ones."

For now, opposition criticism has had its intended effect.

Tsai's approval ratings have declined from 45.7 percent in May to 43.2 percent this month, according to a tally released by the Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation on Wednesday, with the main cause her administration's botched handling of the May outbreak.

But how the DPP fortunes will fare in the long term is unclear.

The 2022 local elections are still 18 months away, and Tsai has a history of turning polls on their head, as she did so dramatically in the run-up to her 2020 re-election.

Indeed, as infection rates have declined in recent weeks and vaccines begin to arrive, some have remarked, once again, on Tsai's ability to turn adversity to her advantage.

Quick to call out Beijing for its vaccine scheming, she was rewarded with 3.74 million doses from allies Japan and the United States, not to mention declarations of support at the recent Group of Seven leaders' meeting.

Tsai has also used Taiwan's position as the world's leading manufacturer of semiconductors in an effort to work around Chinese obstacles to her government procuring vaccines directly from Western pharmaceutical companies.

While bowing to cross-strait bullying might be safer, as Hung and Lo say, Taiwanese are aware that, in the words of Sung Wen-ti, a lecturer in Taiwan Studies at Australian National University, "balancing dignity and security has always been (a challenge) for Taiwan."

And if Tsai's government did limit foreign vaccines to boost the local product, early data on the Medigen jab suggest considerable promise, which if realized will see the entire island vaccinated by year-end.

As for the recent COVID-19 outbreak's effect of coming elections, Academia Sinica political scientist Nathan Batto cautions against inflated expectations.

While much will depend "on what happens over the next few months," Batto says, voters usually interpret events "consistent with their preexisting bias."

Related coverage:

U.S.-donated vaccines arrive in Taiwan, drawing criticism from China

Taiwan to extend COVID-19 restrictions with more measures

Taiwan thanks Japan for "timely" donation of vaccine
New Delhi:

At least 95 people were killed and around 158 people were injured in a powerful suicide car bomb explosion at Kabul in Afghanistan on Saturday.

Afghanistan Health Ministry confirmed the incident and the deaths.

According to Afghan Police, a bomb hidden in an ambulance was triggered at a police checkpoint near foreign embassies and government buildings.

A member of parliament Mirwais Yasini who was nearby the explosion site told the media that an ambulance approached at the checkpoint, close to an office of the High Peace Council and several foreign embassies, and blew up.

Also read: 120 dead as Taliban launches fresh attack at Maiwand base in Afghanistan



Soon after the blast several people were lying on the ground in pool of blood, he added.

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New Delhi:

Ramalinga Reddy, Home Minister of Karnataka on Saturday hit out at the BJP over its charge of the Congress government indulging in minority appeasement.

BJP doesn't understand English properly. It's not a circular, just a reminder. A few minority leaders had represented that some false cases have been registered against members of the minority communities hence the IG sent a letter to SPs to remind them; that's all, responded an angry Reddy.

The office of the Director General & Inspector General of Police Karnataka had on Friday sent a letter to the 22 district police heads of the state from seeking opinion on the withdrawal of cases against innocent persons from the minority communities to which the BJP took strong objection and accused Karnataka's Congress government of indulging in minority appeasement.
Brussels :

The EU today hit US chipmaking giant Qualcomm with an antitrust fine of 997 million euros (USD 1.2 billion) for paying Apple to use its chips exclusively in iPhones and iPads.

EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said that by striking the agreement with Apple in 2011 that Qualcomm had abused its market dominance to unfairly shut out rival chipmakers such as Intel, denying choice to consumers.

The fine is the latest blow struck by the EU against US tech giants and also a fresh hit for Qualcomm, the leading global supplier of smartphone chips, following another antitrust fine of $800 million imposed by authorities in Taiwan last year.

Qualcomm cemented its position by illegally shutting out rivals from the market for over five years, Vestager told a press conference.

Between 2011 and 2016 Qualcomm paid billions of US dollars to a key customer, Apple, and the payment was to prevent Apple to buy from rivals, Vestager said.

This meant that no rival could effectively challenge Qualcomm in this market, no matter how good their products were.

The deal involved so-called chipsets that enable smartphones to send and receive voice calls and data over cell networks, for use in video calls and internet use.

The Danish commissioner said that Qualcomm had denied consumers and other companies more choice and innovation.

Vestager said the EUs two-and-a-half year probe uncovered internal Apple documents showing it was seriously thinking about switching to Qualcomms rival Intel on several occasions.

This would have made a big difference to Intel. Apple is one of the largest makers of smartphones and tablets in the world. In the end Apple decided not to make the change, Vestager said.

Qualcomm and Apple are currently entangled in a bitter legal dispute over patents and royalties.

The iPhone manufacturer filed a US lawsuit in January 2017 accusing Qualcomm of abusing its market power for certain mobile chipsets to demand unfair royalties.
New Delhi:

Om Prakash Singh, Director General of Uttar Pradesh Police has issued a statement apprising of the current situation in Kasganj which was hit by communal clashes on Friday.

Situation in Kasganj is under control. No incidents have taken place in the last few hours. A number of people were arrested, patrolling has been intensified, and priority is to maintain law and order, said Singh.

On Friday, clashes broke out in Kasganj between two groups during a Tiranga Rally which resulted in the death of a 22-year old youth while another youth was seriously injured following which police arrested 49 people while senior police officers from Western UP were rushed to the troubled town.

Section 144 has been imposed in the entire precinct with adequate police personnel keeping a tight vigil on the situation.
Jaipur:

Oxford Dictionaries has chosen 'Aadhaar' as the Hindi word of 2017. The word gained popularity due to Aadhaar card, which was in news last year and is likely to remain in highlight this year as well.

The announcement was made at a session "Oxford Dictionaries' Hindi Word of the Year" during the ongoing Jaipur Literature Festival.

Other words such as 'Mitron', 'Notebandi', 'Gau-Rakshak' were also considered, but the widespread discussions and debates around 'Aadhaar' was the reason it was selected as the word of the year, journalist Saurabh Dwivedi said during the discussion.

Writer Pankaj Dubey said new words like 'Sleepawastha' (state of sleeping), 'Maukatarian' (opportunist) should be coined to express certain moods. Chitra Mudgal objected to the suggestion and instead advocated for the correct use of languages.

"If a person with lack of proper knowledge coins and expresses such words then it can be understood but this is not acceptable when educated people do this," Mudgal, an author, said.

Poet and writer Ashok Vajpeyi said politicians use Hindi word 'Mitron' (friends) which is not grammatically correct, when in fact the correct word is Mitro - an apparent reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi who uses the term often in his speeches.

Vajpeyi said the responsibility to conserve language lies with people.

"Changes would come, new words would be coined but ultimately the responsibility to conserve the language is on citizens," he said.

Talking about the languages used by media, journalist Vinod Dua said that media's job is to provide news in a simple language for the audience, instead of creating a literature while broadcasting the news.

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Nagaur:

A pilot hired by the Rajasthans Nagaur district administration to shower flowers during Republic Day celebration was killed, and a passenger was injured after a paraglider they were travelling in crashed in Indra Colony city.

Rajasthan Police officials said that the paraglider belonged to a private company but did not confirm who had hired it.

The deceased paraglider pilot has been identified as Manav Mewar, while the injured has been identified as Gaurav Bhati. Manav is a resident of Delhi.

The pilot lost control over the paraglider a few minutes after it had taken off from the airstip. It crashed on a tree near a house, said a police officer deployed at Nagaur.

Also read| Uttar Pradesh: 1 killed, at least dozen injured in clash over Republic Day flag march in Kasganj



The pilot and the passenger were rushed to a local hospital for medical attention, where the Manav succumbed to his his injuries.

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New Delhi:

The Congress released its lists of candidates for Assembly elections in Tripura and Meghalaya on Saturday.

The national party is fielding 57 candidates in Meghalaya and 56 candidates in Tripura.

Meghalaya goes to poll on February 27, while Tripura will vote on February 18. The counting for both the states will be carried out on March 3.

The Assemblies in Meghalaya and Tripura are set to expire on March 6 and 14 respectively.

TRIPURA

Date of issue of gazette notification: January 24

Last date of nomination: January 31

Scrutiny of nomination: February 1

Last date of withdrawal of candidature: February 3

Date of polling: February 18

Date of counting: March 3

MEGHALAYA

Date of issue of gazette notification: January 31

Last date of nomination: February 7

Scrutiny of nomination: February 8

Last date of withdrawal of candidature: February 12

Date of polling: February 27

Date of counting: March 3

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New Delhi:

Days after the latest UFO video, showcasing a few spooky artefacts have sparked several debates over the existence of aliens, a group of researchers has warned those alien-hunters to be careful about their expeditions.

Yes! According to Lucianne Walkowicz, an astrophysicist at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago, making contact with those extra-terrestrial life could be catastrophic for the human race.

"There's a possibility that if we actively message, with the intention of getting the attention of an intelligent civilization, that the civilization we contact would not necessarily have our best interests in mind," she said.

"On the other hand, there might be great benefits. It could be something that ends life on Earth, and it might be something that accelerates the ability to live quality lives on Earth"

"We have no way of knowing."

Also Read: Alien lived on Earth 5000 years ago? Newly discovered sculptures leave UFO scientists amazed! (Watch Video)

Stephen Hawking, the world-famous physicist and cosmologist also warned people of the consequences of trying to contact those small lives around the cosmos.

He believes that alien seekers are playing a dangerous game that may challenge the existence of our planet. Aliens would like to conquer and colonise Earth whenever they will be able to discover the planet.

"If aliens visit us, the outcome could be much like when Columbus landed in America, which didn't turn out well for the Native Americans," he said in a recent interview.

However, confusions are still prevailing regarding this one single theory and different groups of scientists made different kind of revelations about the same.

Moreover, a small group of people believe that, American space agency NASA has been hiding the real information of those extra-terrestrials lives and is expected to announce something big anytime soon.

Also Read: Alien microbes successfully identified by International Space Station astronauts

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New Delhi:

Tattoo-sporting candidates cannot be guaranteed a job in the Indian Air Force (IAF). This stipulation has now got judicial stamp with the Delhi High Court upholding the decision of the Air Force cancelling a mans appointment for the post of airman as he had carved a permanent tattoo on the external side of his forearm.

The Air Force grants relaxation and permits certain kind of tattoos, including in case of tribals, which are as per customs and traditions.

A bench of Justice Hima Kohli and Rekha Palli, however, noted the tattoo engraved on the body of the candidate was not in conformity with the relaxation granted by the force and he had also failed to submit a photograph of his tattoo at the time of submitting his application, as prescribed in the advertisement issued by the IAF.

The counsel for the IAF clarified that only a permanent body tattoo on the inner face of fore arms (inside of elbow to the wrist), the back (dorsal) part of the hand /reverse side of palm and in the case of tribals with tattoos, which are as per custom and traditions of their tribes, were permitted. However, the right to decide on the acceptability or unacceptability of the individual lies with the selection committee, he said.

The man challenged the armed forces decision to cancel his appointment for the post, saying he had duly declared that he had a body tattoo, in terms of a certificate submitted by him when a call letter was issued to him and it is not as if he has concealed anything from authorities.

The bench, however, dismissed his petition, saying having regard to the fact that tattoos engraved on the body of the petitioner is not in conformity with the relaxation granted in the advertisement, we do not find any infirmity in the impugned order of cancellation of his appointment.

It said the authorities cannot be faulted for cancelling his appointment in December 2017, when he had failed to submit a photograph of his tattoo.

The man had applied for recruitment to the post of Airman with the Air Force on September 29, 2016 and after clearing the written and physical examination in February 2017, he was called for a medical test which was also cleared.

In November last year, he was issued a call letter to report on December 24, 2017. On the very next day of reporting to authorities, he was handed over a letter cancelling his enrolment on the ground that the permanent body tattoo on his body was not permissible for selection to the armed forces.

He was also informed that non-permissibility of body tattoos for enrolment in the Indian Air Force was published in the advertisement for the recruitment.

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New Delhi:

Ahead of the India-ASEAN summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held bilateral talks with his counterpart from Thailand Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha on strengthening cooperation in strategic areas of trade, defence and security.

Modi also held a meeting with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, the current chair of the ASEAN grouping. External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted, Our Act East complementing Thailands Act West policy! Prime Minister Modi met with PM of Thailand... Constructive dialogue on economic and commercial exchange, connectivity, defence & security, cultural cooperation and people-to-people exchanges.

On the eve of the ASEAN-India Commemorative Summit to celebrate 25 years of India-ASEAN partnership, Modi had held separate bilateral meetings with Myanmars State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, Vietnam Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Rodrigo Duterte, president of the Philippines on Wednesday.

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New Delhi:

Parvesh Kumar, the driver of GD Goenka School bus which was attacked by protestors opposing Padmaavat is no less a hero than Sheikh Salim Gafur, the Gujarat bus driver who defied terrorists' bullets and saved 52 Amarnath pilgrims.

Parvesh was behind the wheel when a violent mob started pelting stones on the school-bus. Keeping his cool he asked students and teachers to take cover under the seats as he steered the vehicle to safety.

Neeta Bali, the principal of the school is full of praise for Parvesh.

His quick thinking saved many lives. He also warned other drivers and school management against using the Sohna road route, following which three buses travelling behind turned back," said Bali.

The bus was carrying 24 students, five teachers, and an attendant when it was attacked by a group of around 60 activists.

Parvesh has been working for 14 years with the school. He protected all students during the attack. When the stones were being pelted, he applied brakes for a second pretending to slow down, but immediately sped away," she said.

"It was a terrible experience as the students were scared and crying for help. They did not even understand what happened initially. But I asked them to keep calm and take cover under their seats while the window panes were being shattered. They did well though," said Parvesh.

(With PTI inputs)
New Delhi:

Time has not come for any rethink on AFSPA or making some of its provisions milder, Army Chief Gen. Bipin Rawat has said, asserting that the Army has been taking adequate precautions in protecting human rights while operating in disturb areas like Jammu and Kashmir.

Rawats remarks assume significance as they come against the backdrop of reports that several rounds of high-level discussions have taken place between the defence and home ministries on the need to remove or dilute at least some provisions of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA).

The act gives the security forces special rights and immunity in carrying out various operations in disturbed areas. There has been a long-standing demand from various quarters in J-K and the Northeast to withdraw it.

I do not think time has come to even rethink on AFSPA at the moment, Gen Rawat told PTI in a recent interview when asked about reports that government was re-examining the demand for a milder version of AFSPA in these states.

The Army chief said though AFSPA has certain strong provisions, the Army is concerned about collateral damages and ensuring that its operations under the law do not inconvenience the local people.

We have never been strong in applying the force the way it could be applied (under AFSPA). We are very concerned about human rights. We are absolutely concerned about collateral damage. So do not get too much concerned because we are taking adequate measures and precautions, he said.

Gen Rawat said the Army has rules of engagements for various operations at every level to ensure that no inconvenience is caused to the people while it is operating under AFSPA.

The AFSPA is an enabling provision which allows the Army in particular to operate in such difficult areas and let me assure you that the Army has got quite a good human rights record, he said.

Asked whether time has come to adopt a combined approach involving all three services to deal with Pakistan-sponsored terrorism in J-K, the Army Chief did not give a direct reply but added that the armed forces have options available to conduct various kinds of operations.

Yes, we have options available to conduct various kind of operations but these cannot be divulged because of the nature of the operations we have to conduct will only alert the other side, he said.

Gen. Rawat added that when you do operational planning, these are best left to the armed forces in the manner in which they have to conduct their operations. And the manner in which the operations are conducted and the way they are planned and the way they are executed are never put in open domain.

To question on whether there was room for synergy among external and internal intelligence gathering to effectively contain cross border terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir, he said the armed forces and all other agencies have been operating in unison.

At this juncture, the kind of cooperation we are having among the intelligence agencies is of a very high order. Today all the intelligence agencies and the security forces are operating in unison. There is an excellent synergy among all of us and I do not think we can take it to the next higher level from what is happening at the moment. I think this is the best way and right way, the Army chief said.

Since the beginning of last year, the Army pursued an aggressive anti-terror policy in J-K and, at the same time, forcefully responded to all ceasefire violations by the Pakistani troops along the Line of Control with a tit-for-tat approach.

The LoC remained volatile last year. According to official figures, 860 incidents of ceasefire violations by

Pakistani troops were reported in 2017 as against 221 the year before.

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New Delhi:

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Saturday said he stands by his claim that Russia bears responsibility for recent chemical attacks in Syria, despite strong denials from Moscow.

These are just unacceptable deployments of chemicals in ways that violate all conventions which Russia itself has signed up for. It violates agreements that Russia undertook to be responsible for identifying and eliminating the chemical weapons inside of Syria, Tillerson said during a visit to Warsaw.

The chemical weapons are clearly there, theyre being used against civilian populationsand the most vulnerable are childreninside of Syria, Tillerson told reporters, in a joint press conference with Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz.

So we are holding Russia responsible for addressing this. They are (Syrian President Bashar al-) Assads ally. They are members of those conventions and they made commitments. They need to deliver on those commitments.

Tillerson first made the accusations on Tuesday, as diplomats from 29 countries met in Paris to push for sanctions and criminal charges against the perpetrators of the chemical attacks in Syria.

Russia and China have blocked Western-backed efforts at the UN to impose sanctions on Damascus over their use.

On Wednesday, Russia lashed out at Tillerson for having hastily accused the Syrianas they call it regime for the attack in Eastern Ghouta, adding now they are trying to drag Russia into this as well.

Damascus has been repeatedly accused of using chemical weapons, with the United Nations among those blaming government forces for an April 2017 sarin gas attack on the opposition-held village of Khan Sheikhun that left scores dead.

There have been at least 130 separate chemical weapons attacks in Syria since 2012, according to French estimates, with the Islamic State group also accused of using mustard gas in Syria and Iraq.

Next week, Moscow will hold negotiations in the Russian city of Sochi aimed at ending Syrias civil war.

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New Delhi:

The government today said it would leave no stone unturned to ensure the passage of the triple talaq bill in the Budget session of Parliament starting tomorrow, and asserted that it would talk to various parties for a consensus on the issue.

The government met leaders of political parties at a meeting in Parliament House today and also sought their cooperation in ensuring the success of the crucial session during which the Union Budget would be presented.

The all-party meeting was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union ministers Rajnath Singh, Arun Jaitley and Ananth Kumar, besides leaders of opposition and other parties.

Speaker Sumitra Mahajan also held a dinner meeting with party leaders for the sessions smooth functioning and said the leaders had assured her of their cooperation.

Addressing the floor leaders of the various parties in the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Modi said the government accords importance to issues raised by the parties and urged their leaders to create a constructive atmosphere for the national good.

We hope the Triple Talaq Bill is passed in Rajya Sabha too. My colleagues & I will leave no stone unturned in talking to and convincing the political parties. The way they have passed GST unanimously, we request them to pass this too unanimously: Ananth Kumar pic.twitter.com/Yzi2rlF9fZ  ANI (@ANI) January 28, 2018

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kumar described the meeting as fruitful, and said the prime minister urged the leaders of the parties to make the session successful.

We will leave no stone unturned and persuade and request all political parties so that the bill is passed in the Rajya Sabha, as it has been in the Lok Sabha, he said when asked about the triple talaq bill after the meeting.

We are very hopeful that the bill which is going to negate Talaq-e-Biddat and pave the way for empowering Muslim women will be passed in the Rajya Sabha, too, he said.

Kumar said that he, along with Ministers of State for Parliamentary Affairs Vijay Goel and Arjun Ram Meghwal, will approach various political parties to evolve a consensus for its passage.

Like the way parties passed the GST unanimously, we are requesting them to pass this bill which is going to ban the practice of instant triple talaq (Talaq-e-Biddat) among Muslims, he said.

On the forthcoming session, he said, We feel the budget session will be very successful and fruitful.

Budget Session will provide a total of 31 sittings spread over a period of 68 days

from Mon, 29th Jan 2018 to Fri 6th April, 2018, with a recess for both Houses between Friday, 9th Feb 2018 to Mon, 5th Mar 2018 pic.twitter.com/CkX9JdH9vA  Ananthkumar (@AnanthKumar_BJP) January 28, 2018

PM urged to make #ParliamentaryStandingCommittee system of Parliament a role model of Participative Democracy that may be adopted across State Legislatures in India pic.twitter.com/8y93cRssIj  Ananthkumar (@AnanthKumar_BJP) January 28, 2018

Highlights of all party meeting -Budget Session 2018



Shri @narendramodi exhorted all Political Parties to collectively strive to create a constructive atmosphere in Budget Session to achieve National Good pic.twitter.com/xMFOW4JpOU

He said the session was important as the government took seriously suggestions made by various parties during the all-party meeting. Kumar said the prime minister stressed the need to strengthen the system of Parliamentary Committees, where members spoke freely in the absence of the media and deliberated on issues of national interest.

Modi urged all political parties to avoid tokenism in the Standing Committees of Parliament and asked them to give concrete solutions to issues of national importance. Kumar said the prime minister told leaders of various parties to make the system of committees a role model of participative democracy that could be adopted by state legislatures across the country.

In a lighter vein, he added that Modi, who spoke after the CPIs D Raja, told the meeting, After Raja, Praja (referring to himself) will speak. To a question about the demands of various parties during the last session that the bill be referred to a select committee, he said it was now the property of the Rajya Sabha.

The matter is before Rajya Sabha. Till the deliberations are going on...It is for the House to decide, Kumar said. Asked if the bill would come up during the first part of the session, he replied in the affirmative, adding that it was listed in the business of the House.

While the government wants to push the passage of the triple talaq bill during the session, it will present the Economic Survey tomorrow after a joint address by the president. The General Budget will be presented by the finance minister on February 1.

PM Narendra Modi, Congress Leader Mallikarjun Kharge, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar, Deputy Lok Sabha Speaker M Thambidurai & other leaders leave after the dinner which was held post the All Party Meeting called by Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan. pic.twitter.com/gy0iCBHb3s  ANI (@ANI) January 28, 2018

The opposition, however, said it planned to counter the government on issues such as incidents of rape and other atrocities on women, alleged attacks on the Constitution and constitutional institutions and the plight of traders, besides the recent incident of communal violence in Uttar Pradesh. The opposition has also asked the government to allow a discussion on these issues during the Budget session.

Leaders of the opposition parties are likely to meet tomorrow to push for unity and discuss ways to together corner the government on disparate issues. The BJP Parliamentary Party executive will also hold a meeting tomorrow, which will be followed by one of NDA constituents, who will also deliberate on their strategy. These issues are important.

The government should adopt a cooperative attitude and allow the opposition to raise these issues, Congress leader Pramod Tiwari said. RJD leader Jaiprakash Narain Yadav said the opposition wanted the government to speak in Parliament on issues of public importance such as communal and gender violence.

The session is likely to conclude on April 6, with 31 sittings spread over 68 days. Parliament will be adjourned for a recess on February 9 and reassemble on March 5. The opposition was represented at the meeting by Congressleaders Ghulam Nabi Azad, Mallikarjun Kharge and Jyotiraditya Scindia, Mulayam Singh Yadav (SP), D Raja (CPI), Kanimozhi (DMK), Derek OBrien and Sudip Bandhopadhyay (TMC), Tariq Anwar (NCP) and Dushyant Chautala (INLD).

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Kasganj:

Violence erupted in Western Uttar Pradeshs Kasganj town on Saturday when a group of people from a particular community went on rampage after cremation of a youth in his early twenties, who was killed during a clash on Friday.

The groups vandalised shops, burnt down several others at the towns main market. The mob also set two buses on fire.

According to police, one Chandan Gupta, 22, was killed in a clash that broke out during a Tiranga Rally by activists of ABVP and VHP. Another person identified as Naushad is admitted in the hospital with critical injuries. Both had suffered bullet injuries.

Soon after the incident Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath directed the police to sternly deal with the culprits.

Also read| Uttar Pradesh: 1 killed, at least dozen injured in clash over Republic Day flag march in Kasganj



Police have arrested nine people in connection with Friday violence.

Senior IPS rank officers have been deployed in the town to control deteriorating law and order after Friday evening clashes. Paramilitary forces including CRPF and BSF have been deployed to thwart any untoward incident.

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The East Asia country Mongolia recorded 2,213 new Covid-19 cases over the last 24 hours, raising the nationwide tally to 100,263, the country's health ministry said Wednesday. One of the latest confirmed cases was imported from the abroad, and the remaining ones were local infections. Mongolia's Covid-19 surge continues, and since mid-June, more than 2,000 Covid-19 infections have been reported daily in the country with a population of 3.3 million.

According to international media reports, Ulan Bator, which is home to over half of the country's total population, is the hardest hit by Covid-19. More than 81,100 of the total confirmed cases in the country were detected in the capital city. Currently, general hospitals of all 21 provinces and over 40 hospitals in the capital city are receiving only severe Covid-19 patients. Due to a shortage of hospital beds and medical staff, the country has been treating asymptomatic or mild Covid-19 patients at their homes since March.

The country's national death toll rose to 487 after 10 fatalities were reported in the past day. Mongolia lacks medicines and equipment that are essential for critically ill Covid-19 patients, according to the country's health ministry. Mongolia launched a national vaccination campaign against Covid-19 in late February, with the aim of covering at least 60 percent of its total population. A total of 1,918,397 Mongolians have so far received their first dose of vaccines, with 1,709,223 people having been fully vaccinated, according to the ministry.

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The Congress has recently attacked the Central government over its claim that Indian officials have met Taliban leaders. Congress leader Digvijay Singh hit out at the government based on a media report report saying, "This is a very serious matter. The Government of India should make an immediate statement on this subject. Will the BJP IT cell take it into the category of sedition?" Let us tell you that the senior Qatar diplomat has recently claimed that Indian officials have secretly visited Doha and held discussions with Taliban leaders.

Qatar's Special Envoy for Terrorism and Conflict Resolution, Mudadabin Majid al-Qahtani, told a virtual programme on Monday that Indian officials have made a quiet visit to discuss with the Taliban, as not every country believes that the Taliban will dominate after the US forces withdraw from Afghanistan. However, there is no official statement from the Indian Ministry of External Affairs on India's discussions with the Taliban so far and no confirmation of the visit has been made.

On his claim of the same Indo-Taliban meeting, Mutalaq bin Majid Al Kahatani had also said that 'Indian officials may have had discussions with Taliban leaders keeping in mind the future. He had said that India would not have discussed with the Taliban because afghanistan would be in power by the Taliban, whereas it would have been because the Taliban could play an important role in Afghanistan in the near future. That is why each party seems ready for discussion', Kathani said.

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MANDERA: A Kenyan police reservist was killed and two others injured following suspected Shabab militants struck for the third day running here, in northeast Kenya, early Wednesday.

Northeastern regional police commander Rono Bunei said the attack happened at a construction site where the militants also burnt down two tractors and an excavator. The reservists tried to fight off the armed attackers, who were suspected to have crossed into Kenya from neighbouring Somalia, Bunei said.

A rise in terror attacks in the region has grounded many operations in the expansive Mandera county over the last two weeks. At least 15 people were killed and several others injured in the attacks that were mainly blamed on Somalia-based al-Shabab.

The region has born the brunt of grenade and gun attacks in the last several years since Kenya took its troops to Somalia to join the fight against the militant group. This has grounded many operations in the expansive county for the last two weeks, which has left at least 15 people dead.

On Tuesday morning, at least three police were injured when Al-Shabaab gunmen attacked their vehicle in Bambahowla area, Mandera County.

Pakistan: Major Bomb blast near Hafiz Saeed's house in Lahore kills 2

Pakistan reports major decrease in Covid cases, sees lowest positivity rate in 8 months

Kiran Ahuja, Indian American Attorney to Lead Powerful U.S Office of Personnel Management
Known as the worlds smallest big city, Stockholm is a very attractive destination for travellers. It is spread through 14 islands and has over 50 bridges. For visitors who arrive by plane will be greeted with many portraits of famous people who lived in the city, and even with a slogan that says  Welcome to my hometown.

The Architecture here is amazing. It is no wonder, for artists such as Henning Mankell and Stieg Larsson contributed to the cultural life of Stockholm. For shopping, go to the Norrmalm district. There you can find a number of world-famous shops. Galma Stan is the old town and offers many historical landmarks. As for the Ostermalm, it is considered to be the wealthiest part of the city.

In winter time, life slowly moves inside due to the cold weather. Luckily, there are numerous museums and indoor activities that will satisfy the needs of every visitor. The restaurant Villa Kallhagen is one of the best in the city, although keep in mind that Stockholm is a very expensive city. Visit the Grona Lund, a superb amusement park in the heart of the city, and dont leave Stockholm before going to the Nobel Museum that produces traveling exhibitions since 2001.

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New Delhi: Adani Group's woes are not going down well. While shares of the company fell at a high speed, Norwegian company KLP, which invested in Adani Ports, has now started withdrawing its investments. KLP has withdrawn its investments due to Adani Ports' links with the Myanmar army.

In February this year, the Myanmar Army toppled the civilian government there. There were violent protests in Myanmar after the military coup. A large number of people were killed in these protests. This led to severe criticism from the Myanmar army globally and a variety of sanctions. India's giant port company Adani Ports and SEZ has leased land from a businessman associated with myanmar's army to develop the port in Rangoon, Myanmar. As a result, Adani is under scrutiny from international investors. The KLP has also withdrawn its investment on the basis of trade with Myanmar's army.

KLP said in a statement that the trade partnership between the Myanmar Army and adani group is a violation of his company's rules. So, we cannot raise this threat and we have decided to withdraw our investment from Adani Ports and SEz. At the same time, KLP has pointed out that there is a risk of weapons being imported from the terminal being developed by Adani.

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Lahore: A major blast has taken place in Lahore, Pakistan. At least 16 people are said to be injured and one person has died in the accident. The blast took place near the house of Mumbai attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed. According to media reports, a massive blast took place outside the house of terrorist Hafiz Saeed in Lahore on Wednesday afternoon.

According to sources, at least 16 people were reported injured in the blast. Who have been admitted to Jinnah Hospital. Several videos related to the incident are going viral on social media. A gas pipeline near Hafiz Saeed's house in Lahore's Johar Town area suddenly exploded. Saeed was not present at his house during the blast. The blast caused more damage to nearby houses. The window panes of nearby buildings were broken.

One of the buildings has been badly damaged. According to locals, the sound of the blast was heard far and wide. At present, DIG investigation Lahore said that 'We are investigating the cause of the blasts. Evidence is being collected from the spot to ascertain the cause of the blast'.

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A massive bomb blast occurred near the house of terrorist Hafiz Saeed in Lahore's Johar Town area on Wednesday, in which at least two persons were killed, while 17 others have sustained injuries.

Police and bomb disposal teams reached the site of the incident soon after the explosion in Johar town and started rescue operations. Those injured in the Lahore blast were shifted to Lahore's Jinnah Hospital via private cars and auto-rickshaws, a rescue official said.

Top sources said that one of the policemen deployed for the security of the house was killed in the blast. The second person who died in the blast was a passer-by. Lahore's Chief City Police Officer Ghulam Mehmood Dogar told media persons that the probe has started into the incident and a team of bomb disposal squad is on the spot. He had also stated that the Bomb Disposal Squad would share the details about the nature of explosion.

Police and bomb disposal teams have reached the site of the incident. It is found that the glass windows of nearby houses and buildings were shattered. The people, who sustained injuries, had been rushed to Lahore's Jinnah Hospital in private cars and auto-rickshaws. The sound of the blast was so loud that it was heard in faraway areas. However, the nature of the blast has not been ascertained yet.

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New Delhi: Who is the most unhappy outside India after Section 370 was withdrawn from the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir? You must know the answer - this is Pakistan. India's foreign policy is very clear that no other country's interference in internal affairs will be tolerated. But today, when the Kashmiri political parties in the Gupkar organisation met, they chanted Pakistan's anger and said that India should also talk to Pakistan on the Kashmir issue.

A meeting was held in Srinagar today at the house of National Conference (NC) chief and former CM Farooq Abdullah over the meeting convened by PM Modi two days later. It decided that there would be a demand for withdrawal of Section 370. It was also said in the same meeting that political parties related to the gossip will also seek their rights over 35 (A). That is why the whole country is saying to The Secret, "Do so much favours, don't tease Pakistan Raag", don't name 370 now and forget 35 (A).

In fact, for the first time since August 5, 2019, a meeting has been convened in which PM Modi is scheduled to speak to various political parties in Kashmir. The meeting is expected to be attended by 14 Kashmir leaders including PM Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Minister of State in PMO Jitendra Singh besides NC President Farooq Abdullah, PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti, People's Conference chief Sajjad Lone and Gupkar Sangathan spokesperson MY Tarigami.

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Kathmandu, June 23

ADA, a data and artificial intelligence company operating in South and Southeast Asia, has partnered with Outreach Nepal to introduce data-driven marketing practices in Nepal to both global and local brands.

Outreach Nepal is an awarded advertising and communication agency in Nepal, creating dvertising campaigns for a broad range of corporate brands and development sectors since 2003.

With this partnership, the team at Outreach will be equipped to provide its clients with a series of extended services. Business insights, data enrichment, and advanced analytics will help the clients to understand the consumer mindset and design data-driven creative marketing strategies, the company says. The partnership will enable end-to-end digital marketing solutions for growth hacking, funnel and goal optimisation.

Speaking on this partnership, ADA Marketing Manager in Bangladesh, Ashraful Haque, says, I believe this association with Outreach Nepal will be a giant leap towards providing unique data and analytics driven solutions to our prospective clients in Nepal. It widens our horizons as an organisation and cements our vision to go far and beyond when it comes to ensuring data-based business solutions.

Likewise, Outreach Nepal Managing Director Ujaya Shakya says, We always take pride in bringing many new innovative advertising and brand marketing practices in Nepal and adding to the same tradition, we have partnered with the ADA to witness a new and dynamic data driven strategic approach, which would adapt global marketing way forwards for the brands and help achieve realistic business goals.

This will also help to attract younger minds to our business of advertising which is now getting more digital-savvy.
Workforce

DOD watchdog says DDS director didn't mistreat employees

Investigators at the Office of Inspector General at the Department of Defense did not find evidence to substantiate allegations of workplace bullying on the part of outgoing Defense Digital Service Director Brett Goldstein.

Between March and June of last year, the DOD hotline received 30 complaints against Goldstein, who became director in 2019 and is set to depart this month. The OIG's findings were presented in a report dated June 21.

The IG found that Goldstein used and condoned the unauthorized use of Signal, an encrypted messaging and voice call app. Goldstein gave out his Signal phone number in emails and on Slack. He confirmed to investigators that he used the app and was working with DOD's CIO and the general counsel at DDS to get Signal approved for some DOD components. Current DOD policy puts most non-official electronic messaging accounts off-limits for official DOD communication.

The report also details complaints that Goldstein told his employees to hack FedScoop's 2020 "Best Bosses in Federal IT" competition, which he did win.

DDS' legal advisor told the investigators that "subordinates joked about creating a script that could submit votes for Mr. Goldstein, but they were told that doing so would be inappropriate, which resolved the issue," the report says.

Goldstein denied asking anyone to make a script for him. The investigation "found no evidence that Mr. Goldstein took an action in violation of a standard as alleged in these complaints."

The majority of the complaints investigated by IG centered on Goldstein's management, with witnesses alleging that he treated female employees differently than male employees, made subordinates cry, yelled at workers and directed profanities at them.

These aren't the first complaints against him  accusations of bullying surfaced within two months after he started his tenure as director, according to the report.

Goldstein denied the allegations of sexism and told investigators that he didn't recall yelling at his employees or making them cry, although he admitted to generally using profanities.

The IG concluded that he "did not fail to treat subordinates with dignity and respect" on the basis of DOD ethics guidelines, given that "the preponderance of evidence did not support allegations." The majority of subordinates interviewed characterized his leadership favorably, the report said.
FCW Insider: June 23, 2021

No Republicans supported the nomination of Kiran Ahuja to lead the Office of Personnel Management

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency has begun to relax some of its COVID-19 safety procedures, but the challenge has been managing workers across different physical locations, networks and work schedules.

A probe found that Defense Digital Service Brett Goldstein did condone the use of unapproved encrypted communications apps and also identified discussion among staffers about programming a script to rig an online competition.

Quick Hits

*** Nearly 900 U.S. Secret Service employees contracted COVID-19 between March 1, 2020 and March 9, 2021, according to documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act by the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW). There's no way of knowing how many of these were agents assigned to the security detail of former President Donald Trump, who was in close contact with many agents while he was himself under treatment for COVID.

*** The wait continues for the Biden Administration's management agenda. Jason Miller, the deputy director for management at the Office of Management and Budget said a committee of deputy secretaries and administrators has been formed to work on governmentwide management initiatives, including the President's Management Agenda (PMA), but the body is currently missing some members who haven't yet been confirmed by the Senate, Miller said. OMB is "eager for the remaining nominees to get through the Senate confirmation process so we have a full team to deliver on this big agenda," Miller said. The PMA is due out later this year, Miller said.

*** The Biden administration's budget request for fiscal year 2022 includes a workforce initiative designed to help agencies improve their recruitment, said Pam Coleman, associate director for performance management at the Office of Management and Budget, during an event hosted on Tuesday by the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association. The request "funds agency efforts to create a hiring line of business  to create talent teams at the agency level to connect agencies and hiring managers with the best talent to meet mission needs," she said. It would be co-managed by OMB and the Office of Personnel Management.
Collaboration Will Include Cannabis Supply Arrangement, ALPS Facility Agreement & Recuring Revenue APIS Maintenance Contract, Once Again Validating the Execution of the Company's US Strategy

Audacious and Belle Fleur Exploring Additional Expansion Opportunities in the US

LAS VEGAS, June 23, 2021 /CNW/ - Australis Capital Inc., operating as Audacious Brands (CSE: AUSA) (OTC: AUSAF) ("AUSA", "Audacious", or the "Company") today announced the Company has entered into a supply agreement and, through its majority owned subsidiary ALPS, a facility engineering and design services contract with Belle Fleur Holdings LLC ("Belle Fleur"). The agreement furthermore includes ongoing APIS Compliance and Maintenance services. Under the supply arrangement, (subject to local licensing requirements), Belle Fleur will dedicate a certain percentage of its canopy space for the cultivation of AUSA's proprietary cultivars under a cost +5% agreement. The Companies have agreed to jointly explore opportunities for brand collaboration and further expansion in the U.S.

Belle Fleur

Belle Fleur, founded by the powerhouse cannabis and music industry entrepreneurs behind Californian brand Rapper Weed, Rolandy Romelus, Irvin Whitlow and Domenico Cardarelli, are the holders of a license allowing the development of a Tier 11 high-tech indoor grow facility in Blandford. The Tier 11 license, the largest cultivation license tier available in Massachusetts, allows for up to 100,000 sq ft of canopy space.

Belle Fleur, through its roots in the California legacy market, has access to ultra-premium genetics not currently available in Massachusetts, and intends serving the market with luxury, premium high-end cannabis products.

Like Audacious Brands, Rapper Weed is an MSO. Following their success in California, Belle Fleur now transitions to an ownership model in Massachusetts where, with the assistance of ALPS, it will control the cultivation infrastructure to ensure it always has the high-quality product it is known for. The company is ambitious and intends to grow well beyond its footprint, with an eye on the Eastern U.S. markets. The companies have agreed jointly to explore further opportunities for collaboration in regard to brands and expansion into other jurisdictions.

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The supply agreement will enable Audacious Brands to continue to expand its MSO footprint, which now includes Nevada, Arizona, Oklahoma, Missouri, Washington and Massachusetts. The Company continues to execute on its strategy and anticipates entering additional U.S. markets within the next few weeks.

Rapper Weed - Strong Connection to the Community and Culture  It's a Lifestyle Thing

Rapper Weed was founded in Los Angeles, California - the mecca of weed culture and the beating heart of cannabis innovation. The brand's core values consist of growing and manufacturing luxury high-end premium products 100% of the time. The founders of Rapper Weed are true connoisseurs of cannabis and are highly respected by the community and culture. They hold true to these values, never compromising creativity, consistency, quality and potency. Rapper Weed is more than a brand - it's a lifestyle.

The founders of Belle Fleur are from Boston, they then found success in the music and cannabis industry in California. Now the team is returning to their roots, bringing back the cannabis culture to Boston and throughout the Bay State. Rapper Weed has publicly been endorsed by a large number of lifestyle influencers, including Machine Gun Kelly (https://www.rapperweed.com/), who came to the Company through Irvin Whitlow, a highly successful music industry entrepreneur.

Machine Gun Kelly, when asked for a comment on Rapper Weed, stated, "I just bought $1,000 worth of Rapper Weed at Cookies in Maywood. These guys have the best flower in the game."

Irvin Whitlow, Co-Founder

Irvin Whitlow, co-founder, commented, "Rapper Weed consumers reflect the lifestyle of which cannabis is an important part. Rather than signing big endorsement deals with single artists, Rapper Weed has a much broader reach, resonates with the culture, and consequently has been adopted as the herb of choice by many of the people we work and interact with. In turn, this creates a broad roster of influencers for Rapper Weed, magnifying our appeal with a larger experienced audience."

Irvin Whitlow is a highly successful, Grammy award-winning music industry executive, having sold over 30 million records throughout his career. In 2010, Irvin discovered Cleveland native Machine Gun Kelly, who soon after inked a major deal with Bad Boy and Interscope records under the team's independent imprint, EST 19XX.

In addition to Machine Gun Kelly, Irvin has cultivated relationships with some of the hottest artists and producers in the music industry, such as Travis Barker, Nicki Minaj, Cardi B, Wiz Khalifa, Black Bear, Migos, O.T. Genasis, Young Dro, and many others. His work with producers such as Cheeze Beatz and Ayo & Keys, as well as others, has resulted in widespread recognition within the industry and with fans. In 2019 he received a BMI award for his work (songwriter) on 2018 release: "Bartier Cardi" ft 21 Savage off her Grammy award winning/multi-platinum album, Invasion of Privacy.

(CNW Group/Australis Capital Inc.)

Mr. Whitlow continued, "We believe in curating authentic moments in which everyone can feel comfortable consuming cannabis. Gone are the days when weed was looked down upon. Cannabis is a social and a medical herb, and we at Belle Fleur and Rapper Weed pride ourselves in creating experiences that show how cannabis is part of a lifestyle, including music, art, fashion and food. We are bringing urban culture to a high-end lifestyle, and now we are taking our brands and knowledge back to Massachusetts and from there to the Eastern U.S."

The Belle Fleur Team: Domenico Cardarelli, Rolandy Romelus, Irvin Whitlow (CNW Group/Australis Capital Inc.)

Genetics

Through its roots in California, Belle Fleur has access to ultra-premium genetics, such as Gelato 33, Gelato 42, Runtz, Sunset Sherbert, Mochi, Biscotti, Truffle and others. The Company is also working on expanding its library of proprietary genetics, which includes the XX strain, associated with Machine Gun Kelly.

Facility Agreement

Belle Fleur and ALPS have signed a significant facility agreement under which ALPS will provide facility design, construction management and (post) commissioning services. The design phase is progressing well, and the companies anticipate construction to commence in the next 30 days.

The facility will benefit from ALPS' intellectual property, including its proprietary APIS service suite, covering compliance and maintenance. The high-tech nature of the facility will result in the cultivation of GMP and GACP compliant world class cannabis, while operating costs will remain in check. ALPS, with over three decades and over 100 million project square feet under its belt, has a highly bankable track record. Its involvement in projects has enabled its customers to obtain financing, which companies had found difficult prior to engaging with ALPS, in large part due to the significant project de-risking that ALPS brings to design, construction and cultivation operations.

Supply Agreement

Under the supply agreement, Belle Fleur will dedicate a percentage of its canopy space to Audacious cultivars. When fully licensed, AUSA will acquire the produced cannabis under a cost plus 5% arrangement. The arrangement provides Belle Fleur with a solid anchor customer, while providing AUSA with long-term access to low-cost, high-quality cannabis.

Audacious intends to launch its award-winning brands - Provisions, Tsunami and Mr. Natural in Massachusetts. The arrangement between the companies includes a provision for marketing and delivery of the AUSA products by Belle Fleur, thereby further leveraging the partnership.

Terry Booth, Audacious CEO, stated, "This arrangement completely validates our strategy and is a great example of how synergies between AUSA/ALPS and our partners Rapper Weed create a win-win-win situation for everyone involved, while creating shareholder value. Our ownership of ALPS, the premier facility design firm in the business, is enabling us to execute on a strategy that is unique and very difficult to imitate. This strategy also de-risks our expansion as we do not have to deploy significant capital to develop cultivation infrastructure, while securing long-term access to low-cost, high quality cannabis to fuel the expansion of our brands across the U.S."

Mr. Booth continued, "Entering Massachusetts, a cannabis friendly market still in the first inning, is one of many amazing opportunities in the eastern U.S. We are really excited about the agreement with Belle Fleur, as we will be working with an exceptionally accomplished team of entrepreneurs who get what this industry is about: brands that are inclusive and resonate with a broad target audience, including the community and culture. What they have achieved to date is nothing short of remarkable, but not surprising once you meet the team and the influencers associated with the brand. We love what they stand for and we can't wait to work together and explore further projects and brand collaborations with Rolandy, Domenico, Irvin and the rest of the Belle Fleur team. These guys are solid, are true to the plant, true to the culture and will have a positive impact with their awesome genetics and entrepreneurial spirit"

Domenico Cardarelli, Belle Fleur CFO, added, "In AUSA we have found a partner that is the perfect complement to Belle Fleur in many ways. Through ALPS we will be able to develop a facility that will be the benchmark in cannabis production in Massachusetts, enabling us to grow products to our very exacting standards, while at the same time ensuring our production costs are among the lowest in the industry. That provides us with a massive competitive advantage. Furthermore, the agreement with Audacious will provide us with an anchor customer, an important signal to the market and investors. We look forward to completing our construction project and providing the people of Massachusetts with a new experience that was not accessible to them previously."

Massachusetts Cannabis Market

With a population of 6.9 million, Massachusetts is the 15th most populous U.S. state and has legalized both medical and adult use of cannabis. Currently, the state has only approved approximately 1 million square feet of cultivation. With an estimated demand of approximately $1.1 billion by 20241 this means that despite the anticipated expansion, cultivation will continue to operate at a premium in the state, positioning Belle Fleur and Audacious to capitalize on this opportunity. Average wholesale prices for indoor grown cannabis remain very strong in the state at approximately $4,200 per pound for flower, with a derivative price point equivalent to north of $6,800 per pound.

___________________ 1 Source: Statista - https://bit.ly/2ROY2HG

Rolandy Romelus, CEO and Co-Founder

While running his record label, Rolandy, CEO of Belle Fleur, noticed the strong link between rappers and cannabis and decided to launch his own brand. He set to create an inclusive brand experience that encompassed the entire culture and lifestyle, which resulted in the founding of Rapper Weed.

"Three things set us apart from other cannabis companies in Massachusetts: our genetics, a relentless focus on quality, and an inclusive approach to lifestyle and the culture. While we were very successful in California with our brand, we believe in giving back to the community that we come from and decided to take our brand back to Boston and introduce Massachusetts to the lifestyle and our products. The partnership with AUSA/ALPS enables us to do this and we are very excited be working with Terry Booth and the Audacious team and execute on our vision in Massachusetts and potentially other U.S. states as well."

He continued, "Like the industry as a whole owes a huge debt to the advocates who have fought to have cannabis become socially acceptable and legally permitted at the state level, I owe a huge personal debt to my close friend Shezi Rosewood, who no longer is with us. He introduced me to the people that made things happen in the industry, he was a great help in me understanding what this industry is about, and he helped me to become the success I am today. He used to say something that I think describes how we approach business more clearly than anything else I have heard  "Nobody has to lose, for us to win". That's the truth, that's Rapper Weed, that's Belle Fleur and that's the philosophy underlying this new partnership with Audacious Brands."

Domenico Cardarelli, CFO

A Philadelphia and East Coast native, with over 10 years in his primary profession in the real estate industry, Mr. Domenico Cardarelli has laid the groundwork essential to becoming a leader in the cannabis industry. Having successfully closed over 400 sales, from wholesale and multi-unit rentals to ground-up developments, his experience has been well received since he has transitioned into the cannabis Industry. Domenico's role with Belle Fleur Holdings LLC is Chief Financial Officer. He attended college at The Pennsylvania State University and Temple University Fox School of Business & Management.

Mr. Cardarelli concluded, "Belle Fleur is set up to become a success in Massachusetts and beyond. The partnership with Audacious enables us to execute on our vision and introduce our philosophy to new audiences."

About AUSA

Audacious is at its roots a community and culture-based cannabis company, originally founded by Steve Dobler and Terry Booth, the founders of Aurora Cannabis Inc. After the completion of a dissident shareholder battle that ended with convincing shareholder approval, Terry Booth, former Aurora CEO, who had to step away from AUSA upon spin off, re-joined AUSA as CEO on March 9, 2021. Since then, the company has reset the direction of AUSA and in just 3 months closed multiple accretive transactions, improved legacy contracts, established a world class Executive Team, and resolved previous executive and board exits. Audacious is looking forward to becoming a profitable Multiple State Operator in the medical and adult usage cannabis sectors.

Also, in the same 3-month time frame, AUSA with its acquisition of ALPS has entered the global Sustainable Controlled Environment Agriculture Industry, a rapidly growing segment of the global horticulture market. ALPS provides customized designs along with multiple services that allow operators to maximize yield and quality while minimizing inputs and resources, including labor. ALPS at present is active in cannabis and traditional horticulture projects across the globe, including the U.S.A., the E.U., Australia, New Zealand, Iceland, the Middle East, South East Asia and Canada. Total Capex committed by ALPS' clients since Aurora divested its interest just 12 short months ago during the covid crisis, stands at approximately $1 billion, with a rapidly growing business development pipeline approaching $4 billion in total Capex to be spent by potential clients over the next 24 months.

AUSA's business assets include: a 51% ownership interest in ALPS, a milestone weighted deal with an option to acquire the remaining 49% of ALPS - AUSA and Green Therapeutics, an award-winning MSO, have finalized and agreed to all terms with respect to AUSA's 100% acquisition (subject to regulatory state licensing approvals). AUSA also owns land assets in Bellingham, Washington - as well as the iconic West Coast brand Mr. Natural. AUSA furthermore has investments in Body and Mind Inc., a U.S. MSO, Quality Green, a Canadian licensed producer and Cocoon, a company changing the dispensary customer user experience through self-service kiosks The Company also has executed a term sheet for a JV partnership with U.S. and Canada based 3 Rivers Biotech for plant tissue culture, genetics clean-up and micro propagation.

AUSA cannabis assets and ALPS cannabis projects are presently located in Massachusetts, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, Michigan, Missouri, Oklahoma, and California with many other deals in other states presently being evaluated and negotiated.

The Company's common shares trade on the CSE under the symbol "AUSA" and on the OTCQB under the symbol "AUSAF".

"Terry Booth"

________________________________

Terry Booth

Chief Executive Officer

Forward-Looking Statement

This press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein is 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", "budgets", "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. In particular, this press release contains forward-looking information in relation to: the ability of ALPS to convert its pipeline into contracts; the impact of the changes to U.S. federal and state statutory developments with respect to the cannabis industry and the opportunities this may present for the Company; and the Company's current liquidity. This forward-looking information reflects the Company's current beliefs and is based on information currently available to the Company and on assumptions the Company believes are reasonable. These assumptions include but are not limited to the ability of the Company to successfully satisfy the conditions to closing the proposed transaction; the ability of the Company to successfully execute on its plans for the Company and GT; legal changes relating to the cannabis industry proceeding as anticipated.

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. Such risks and other factors may include, but are not limited to: general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; general capital market conditions and market prices for securities; the actual results of the Company's future operations; competition; changes in legislation affecting the Company; the timing and availability of external financing on acceptable terms; lack of qualified, skilled labour or loss of key individuals.

A description of additional risk factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from forward-looking information can be found in the Company's disclosure documents on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com. 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. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. Readers are further cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which they are placed will occur. Such information, although considered reasonable by management at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect and actual results may differ materially from those anticipated.

Forward-looking information contained in this press release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking information contained in this press release represents the expectations of the Company as of the date of this press release and, accordingly, are subject to change after such date. However, the Company expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable securities law.

The CSE has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release. Neither the CSE nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Australis Capital Inc. Logo (CNW Group/Australis Capital Inc.)

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SOURCE Australis Capital Inc.

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(Bloomberg) -- Blackstone Group Inc.s new single-family rental strategy is a $6 billion bet that tight housing markets will lead Americans to seek new ways to get suburban housing.

The private equity giant agreed to buy Home Partners of America Inc., a rental company that owns more than 17,000 houses, according to a statement on Tuesday. The company gives tenants the option of buying their rental at a predetermined price, making it unique among large single-family landlords.

Blackstones acquisition comes at a time when remote work and school have whipped up demand for suburban homes, pricing would-be buyers into rentals and creating consumer appetite for new ways to purchase a house.

This is a pathway to home ownership that works for people, said Kathleen McCarthy, global co-head of Blackstone Real Estate. Theres strong demand for that and an opportunity to grow.

Single-family rentals have been a favorite bet over the past year, as real estate investors seek new places to invest during a pandemic that kept Americans away from offices, hotels and malls.

Blackstone, which built Invitation Homes Inc. into the largest single-family landlord following the U.S. foreclosure crisis, has rekindled its interest. Last August, it led a group of investors that acquired a minority stake in Toronto-based Tricon Residential Inc., which owns and operates more than 31,000 homes and apartments.

Clearly the tenant demand is still robust, and thats driving significant cash flow increases at the property level, said Jeff Langbaum, an analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence. Smart people with smart money want to get a piece of that.

For Blackstone, there may also be a case of sellers regret. The company exited its stake in Invitation Homes in 2019, selling the last of its position at $30.10 per share.

Blackstone made about $7 billion on its stake in Invitation, more than doubling its money, Bloomberg reported at the time. But shares in the company have increased by 25% since then.

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Read more: Senates Brown Demands Briefing From Pretium on Evictions

The flood of investor capital comes as low inventory pushes prices higher at the fastest pace ever, and tenants opt for rental houses over apartments. Invitation Homes posted an occupancy rate of more than 98% in the first quarter, allowing the industry giant to increase rents on new leases at a record rate.

Rising rents and low inventory have also made single-family landlords a target across the political spectrum. Conservative book author J.D. Vance started a firestorm on Twitter recently by arguing that Wall Street investors were making it hard for regular Americans to buy homes.

In 2019, Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren blasted Blackstone for shamelessly profiting from the U.S. foreclosure crisis, arguing that Wall Streets investment in single-family homes was a huge loss for Americas renters.

Home Partners of America, which received backing from KKR & Co. and BlackRock Inc., has a business model that may help its new owner sidestep those criticisms. The companys leases give tenants an option to buy their home during the first five years, providing renters time to save a down payment and improve their credit.

To date, roughly 20% of Home Partners tenants have exercised the option to purchase their home, McCarthy said. She added that Blackstone sees the opportunity to extend Home Partners market to more affordable price points.

(Updates with quote from Blackstone in third paragraph.)

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2021 Bloomberg L.P.
Groundbreaking OSC Exemption Order makes BlockFilm, powered by TokenFunder,

the leading blockchain-based film financing platform

TORONTO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Launching today, BlockFilm Inc., a new producer-driven, Canadian-based platform incorporated in 2019, has obtained a world-first, trailblazing exemption order from the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) to launch 'tokenized' production financing opportunities for the content creation industry by leveraging TokenFunder, Canada's first regulated digital securities issuance and trading platform. The decision follows a rigorous process conducted by the OSC's LaunchPad team and will help investors in content production avoid multiple-year waits before monetizing their investment.

BlockFilm Inc., a producer-driven, Canadian-based platform incorporated in 2019, has obtained a world-first, trailblazing exemption order from the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) to launch tokenized production financing opportunities for the content creation industry by leveraging TokenFunder, Canadas first regulated digital securities issuance and trading platform. The decision follows a rigorous process conducted by the OSCs LaunchPad team. (CNW Group/BlockFilm Inc.)

The decision allows BlockFilm to bring content producers together with accredited investors to finance independent media productions. The platform supports the creation of compliant digital financial instruments (security tokens) to fund and support project budgets. The security tokens (covering equity, debt and/or revenue share methods of financing) represent the underlying fractionalized ownership or debt instruments that provide content producers with unprecedented and efficient access to new sources of private capital.

An innovative new asset class for investors

BlockFilm has partnered exclusively in Canada with TokenGX, an Exempt Market Dealer operating its groundbreaking TokenFunder investing and security token issuance platform, to onboard and serve investors wishing to invest in BlockFilm content producers' security tokens.

Investments in BlockFilm projects are transferable among accredited investors. The TokenFunder partnership will allow this new level of liquidity in the content creation industry. Up until now, traditional film industry investors had to wait out the full lifecycle of a project's distribution path (seven to ten years, or even longer) to monetize their investment.

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"We're excited about this partnership with TokenFunder. Backed by blockchain integrity, security and transparency, we are responding to challenges our industry has faced for decades," says Pauline Couture, Co-CEO of BlockFilm. "The BlockFilm solution is unmatched today and shows true global leadership from the OSC. BlockFilm will be transformational for both content producers and investors."

At the time of launch, BlockFilm's first 11 projects from Canada, Europe and the UK, aim to raise $19.1 million CAD in the next 4 to 6 months. With 50 projects in the pipeline and enormous ongoing interest, BlockFilm is looking for investments for more than 100 projects by the end of 2022, for a projected total raise of $175 million CAD over that time.

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SOURCE BlockFilm Inc.
Stock photo of a man exhaling whilst using a vaping product. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday February 21, 2020. Photo credit should read: Nick Ansell/PA Wire (Photo by Nick Ansell/PA Images via Getty Images)

Acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock is set to testify before a House subcommittee on Wednesday morning about youth vaping. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D., Ill.), chair of the panel, plans to press Woodcock to do more to stop kids from vaping and becoming addicted to nicotine.

"We still have a youth vaping epidemic, even amidst our pandemic," said Krishnamoorthi.

Krishnamoorthi has been an advocate for cracking down on the vaping industry over the past several years. In 2019, amid an outbreak of vaping-related illness, there was bipartisan support for a crackdown  leading the Trump administration to issue a vaping flavor ban in an effort to curb teenage use and nicotine addiction.

The CDC later said Vitamin E acetate, an additive sometimes used in e-liquids containing THC, was "strongly linked" to the illnesses.

The ban covered flavors that critics argued targeted children  like fruit, mint and candy flavors  but allowed menthol and tobacco flavors to remain legal. The ban only applied to cartridges or pre-filled pod devices, like the ones sold by Juul, not disposable e-cigarettes. Some critics argued the move wasn't enough.

"You've got to get rid of all the flavors. Secondly, you have to make sure that disposable cigarettes are subject to the same flavor ban that all other products are subject to  and then third, we have to regulate the nicotine content," said Krishnamoorthi. "These vapes that are currently on the market are so addictive."

FILE - In this Sept. 16, 2019 file photo, Inam Rehman, manager of Jubilee Vape & Smoke Inc., vapes in New York. City lawmakers are poised to enact a ban on flavored e-cigarettes Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2019. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File)

Teen vaping has dropped according to the National Youth Tobacco Survey released in September 2020. It found about 20% of high schoolers and 5% of middle schoolers had recently used e-cigarettes or vaping products  down from 28% and 11% in 2019. However, the survey also found almost 40% of high schoolers cigarette users are using the products at least 20 days per month. There was also an "alarming increase" in the number of young people using disposable e-cigarettes.

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"The jury is now back and we know the results of what happened with that partial flavor ban that the Trump administration put in, which is it didn't work. And now we have to get to something that works, and that has to be incorporated into the PMTA [Premarket Tobacco Product Application] process," said Krishnamoorthi.

The FDA is in the process of considering applications from e-cigarette makers and will decide if the products should remain on the market at all, or if there should be certain restrictions on them.

Krishnamoorthi told Yahoo Finance the hearing will be key to understanding the "philosophical approach" of the Biden administration toward youth vaping.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JANUARY 27: A tobacco store advertises and sells Juul tobacco products as vaping remains popular despite health warnings, on January 27, 2020 in midtown Manhattan, New York City. (Photo by Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images)

"Is it one where, unfortunately, they do what the Trump administration did, which was basically politicize the process and create these huge loopholes, in a bid to win favor from certain constituencies? Or are they 100% on the side of children? Because we cannot have a situation where our children are targets of this industry. Our children are not for sale," said Krishnamoorthi.

Earlier this year, the FDA said it was moving to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars, citing the addictiveness and harm of the products.

Yahoo Finance reached out to Juul for comment about this story.

Jessica Smith is chief political correspondent for Yahoo Finance, based in Washington, D.C.

Read more:
- Enterprise Ireland uncovers APAC regtech landscape in new 'The State of Regtech in APAC' report.

- Developmental divide between developed and developing economies cited as key area of concern for regtech sector in the future.

BEIJING, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Regtech in Asia Pacific (APAC) faces the difficult challenge of bridging the divide between developed and developing economies in the region, according to a report released today by the Irish government's trade and innovation agency Enterprise Ireland, ranked one of the world's most active VC investors, including fintech. The divide was particularly highlighted as the effects of Covid-19 accelerated the demand for the adoption of regtech solutions in the region.

Mo Harvey, Enterprise Irelands Financial Services and Fintech Lead AsiaPacific

The report, entitled The State of Regtech in APAC, provides the most comprehensive, independent analysis available on the adoption of regtech across 10 key APAC markets of Australia, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. Enterprise Ireland commissioned Kapronasia, a leading Asian financial technology market research and consulting firm, to develop the report which identifies the latest opportunities and roadblocks facing regtech players in each of these markets.

Launching the report today, Ireland's Minister of State for Financial Services Sean Fleming said: "I welcome this comprehensive regtech report from Enterprise Ireland. It captures the essence of what the Ireland for Finance Strategy is looking to achieve and the unique value proposition that Ireland offers to firms in Asia Pacific and across the globe. As Minister with responsibility for International Financial Services, I want to consolidate and accelerate our position as one of the world's leading locations for fintech and regtech development. I look forward to working with the Enterprise Ireland firms and their partners in Asia as together they deliver value and bring innovative responses to global compliance challenges."

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It has been forecasted that the global regtech market will grow from USD$6.3 billion in 2020 to USD$16.0 billion by 2025, a rate of over 20% per year, with APAC expected to have the highest growth rate over this period.[1] The projected growth of the sector is in tandem with the booming fintech scene in the region, particularly in Southeast Asia which saw an estimated USD$1 billion worth of investments in 2019.[2]

While APAC is home to some of the world's major financial centres, the non-homogenous region demonstrates varying levels of market development. In developed economies such as Hong Kong, Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo, regtech uptake is driven by a sophisticated financial ecosystem and a complex regulatory environment. The need for governance and accountability, the emergence of new market participants and security concerns arising from disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence and distributed ledger technology give regulatory impetus for regtech adoption.

This contrasts with developing economies where regtech uptake is driven by the sector's promise in helping to create financial inclusion. Uptake is also reliant on business cases and under-resourced regulators in these markets. With that said, market interest for regtech solutions in these economies is not as strong as their developed counterparts. This can be attributed to regulatory inertia and a marked difference in fundamental behaviours and attitudes towards regtech.

Developing economies however stand to mature over time  while technology ecosystems in developed and developing economies will continue to evolve at an increasingly varying pace, given differing regulatory drivers for regtech adoption. This is especially evident in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic that has further reinforced differing domestic priorities and exacerbated the economic and technology gap in APAC.

"Covid-19 compelled financial services sector to see the value of digitalisation as a necessity. It has become a way for organisations to improve their services in response to changing business and consumer needs. The need for regtech solutions also expands far beyond the financial services sector which is why this sector is growing so rapidly. This report is a compendium for anyone in the regulatory, risk or compliance functions of any company in the region, as well as for regtech companies which are looking to scale and expand into Asia Pacific," explained Mo Harvey, Enterprise Ireland's Financial Services and Fintech Lead (Asia Pacific).

"Asia Pacific continues to be a strategic region, not only to Ireland which is home to many regtech specialist companies but to the world. At Enterprise Ireland, we share the commitment to support the development of a vibrant global regtech segment and contribute to the global regtech ecosystem, and we hope that this report will provide valuable insights into the complexity of the sector as we continue to prime many companies for success and long-term growth in the region," she added.

Brian Tang, co-chair of the Fintech Association of Hong Kong's Regtech Committee and co-convener of the APAC RegTech Network that brings together the Regtech committees of the fintech associations of Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan and Malaysia said, "Regtech is a secret sauce that empowers financial institutions, fintechs, virtual asset service providers and beyond. All such institutions, and their regulators and users, across the Asia-Pacific benefit from innovative, efficient and cost effective regtech solutions to combat financial crime and drive efficiencies and financial inclusion, regardless of origin of such technology solutions."

"However, the journey to adoption is certainly not a straightforward one. We congratulate Enterprise Ireland for making this comprehensive report on the state of Regtech in APAC publicly available so that Regtech solution providers from across the globe, as well as APAC policy makers, can benefit from its findings to help drive further regtech adoption in the region," he added.

Key Regional Highlights:

Some insights from the report's overview include:

Impact of Covid-19

Covid-19 accelerated the transition to digitisation of financial services, particularly in the regulatory, risk and compliance sectors.



Compliance Costs Expected to Rise

The projected cost of AML compliance across Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Singapore combined is estimated at US$6.09 billion annually, with more than half of it in Singapore.



Impact of Regulators Across APAC

Country-specific regulators have the most impact on regulatory compliance, but Singapore's regulators also have substantial impact across APAC study countries.



Regtech Adoption

Progress in regtech solutions in Developed APAC countries is starting to gain speed, driven by regulators' need for greater oversight and a tighter regulatory environment.



Promising Areas for Regtechs

Market and industry drivers such as the rise of digital banks, P2P lending, digital assets and remote onboarding present an opportunity for regtechs to fill the need for specialised solutions.



Changes in Regulation

Changes in regulatory stance puts increased focus on compliance and using new technology to meet standards more efficiently and effectively.



Roadblocks and Challenges

Long sales cycles challenge regtech adoption in Developed APAC while regulatory inertia and lack of proper regulatory processes can hinder regtech adoption in Developing APAC.

The State of Regtech in APAC report is available to download here

[1] https://a-teaminsight.com/a-new-frontier-of-regulation-asia-takes-the-lead

[2] https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/wdr2016/Digital-Adoption-Index

The State of Regtech in APAC, provides the most comprehensive, independent analysis available on the adoption of regtech across 10 key APAC market

SOURCE Enterprise Ireland
Chris Pickett joins as Chief Strategy Officer from newly minted Chicago office in Fulton Market

ENCINITAS, Calif., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Flock Freight , a technology company that is reinventing freight shipping with shared truckload service, today announced the hire of Chris Pickett as chief strategy officer, former executive at Coyote Logistics and industry veteran, in addition to the opening of a new 15,000-square-foot office in Chicago to support its growing team.

Flock Freight (PRNewsfoto/Flock Freight)

"As I have gotten to know the Flock Freight team, I've been blown away by the technology solution they have brought to market, the talent they have assembled across every corner of the organization, and the mission that aligns it all. I know how difficult it is to execute shared truckload at scale  both mathematically and operationally, and Flock Freight has solved it, period," said Chris Pickett, chief strategy officer at Flock Freight. "The tech not only works, but it works better and better every day. I couldn't be more fired up about this team and this opportunity to help create a more sustainable and more efficient transportation ecosystem for everyone."

With over 20 years of commercial experience operating at the intersection of global supply chain management, technology innovation, and transportation market economics, Chris brings a rare combination of industry expertise and creativity, plus a track record of leading high-growth organizations, to the Flock Freight team. After spending his early career in distribution network design and software development and implementation, he joined the early leadership team at Coyote Logistics soon after the organization's inception in 2006. Chris was a key contributor to Coyote's legendary rise to $2 billion in global revenue before acquisition by UPS in 2015, as well as its subsequent doubling in size to become the second-largest U.S. truckload (TL) freight broker by 2020.

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As chief strategy officer over much of that period, Chris also conceived of and scaled Coyote's Collaborative Transportation Management service offering and developed an original U.S. truckload market forecasting methodology, known to many as the Pickett Curve. This method is widely used in the industry for understanding market dynamics and projecting long-term directional spot and contract pricing behavior. Along the way, he also earned degrees in Industrial Engineering, Logistics, and Business Administration from Virginia Tech, MIT, and Georgia Tech, respectively.

Chris will work out of the new Chicago office in Fulton Market's accelerating tech hub, which houses other leading technology companies, including Google, Instacart, and TikTok. The 15,000-square-foot space will accommodate approximately 125 employees in the near term. (Flock Freight is hiring engineering and sales team members , specifically, to match the speed of business growth.) The decision to expand the company's footprint in Chicago came from the city's rich freight history. Flock Freight intentionally positioned its team in Fulton Market's tech sphere rather than a traditional trucking hub to align with the way the company brands itself in the market: at the corner of technology and freight.

"Attracting the likes of Chris, who could truly attain any position in the freight industry, demonstrates the trajectory of this business," said Oren Zaslansky, CEO and founder of Flock Freight. "His experience watching the genesis of technology in freight coupled with his enthusiasm for our model will sharpen our focus on growth in the years to come."

Flock Freight recently became the only company in San Diego to earn a spot on the CNBC Disruptor 50 list due to its industry-changing freight-pooling technology. The company has doubled its workforce in 2021 and plans to add even more engineering-focused talent in its Encinitas headquarters and new Chicago location this year. Flock Freight will place an emphasis on growing the engineering and sales teams to accelerate customer acquisition and technology advancements. Additionally, the company is now the largest employer in Encinitas, on the heels of a recent Series C funding round from SoftBank Vision Fund II.

Flock Freight is a San Diego-based B Corporation that's been reinventing freight shipping since 2015. Flock Freight leverages its advanced, first-to-market algorithms that pool shipments and fill trucks at scale to create a new standard of service for shippers and increase revenue for carriers. Flock Freight's shared truckload solution eliminates terminals and is the only carbon-neutral shipping option with all emissions accounted for through carbon offsets supporting freight-related efficiency projects. Flock Freight has garnered backing from SoftBank, SignalFire, GLP, GV (formerly Google Ventures), and several other leaders in the supply chain transformation.

Cision

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SOURCE Flock Freight
Antivirus software entrepreneur John McAfee has died at the age of 75. According to Spanish-language publications El Mundo and El Pais, police found McAfee dead in the Barcelona prison cell where he was awaiting extradition to the US. A spokesperson for the Catalan Justice Department has since confirmed the death to Reuters. The reports indicate that authorities believe he committed suicide, but the cause of death has not been officially determined.

Spanish authorities arrested McAfee at Barcelona airport in October 2020 following an indictment from US federal prosecutors on allegations of fraud and money laundering, as well as tax evasion charges linked to his failed bid to run as the Libertarian Party candidate in the 2020 US presidential election. McAfee allegedly failed to file tax returns for four years between 2014 and 2018 despite earning a "considerable income" from a variety of sources, including from money he made promoting cryptocurrencies and selling the rights to his life story for a documentary.

While he's best known for the antivirus software that carries his name, in more recent years McAfee has mostly garnered media attention for his erratic behavior. In 2012, while he was living in Belize at the time, he was accused of paying a hitman $5,000 to murder his neighbor. More recently, authorities in the Dominican Republic arrested McAfee on suspicion of travelling on a yacht loaded with high-caliber weapons and other military equipment.

"There is much sorrow in prison, disguised as hostility," McAfee recently wrote on his Twitter account. "I'm old and content with food and a bed but for the young prison is a horror  a reflection of the minds of those who conceived them."

In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifelines # is 1-800-273-8255. Crisis Text Line can be reached by texting HOME to 741741 (US), 686868 (Canada), or 85258 (UK).
(Bloomberg) -- The biggest U.S. banks, led by JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Bank of America Corp., are expected to pay out $142 billion in capital to shareholders after clearing this years stress tests.

One year after the Federal Reserve capped stock buybacks and dividends, the central bank is poised to lift remaining Covid-19 restrictions for lenders that perform well on this years exams when results are announced Thursday.

All six of the biggest U.S. banks -- a group that also includes Citigroup Inc., Wells Fargo & Co., Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. -- are expected to pass, paving the way for them to double total shareholder payouts in the next four quarters, according to data compiled by Bloomberg based on estimates provided by analysts at Barclays Plc.

Created in the wake of the last financial crisis, the stress tests were designed to assess whether banks have enough capital to withstand economic turmoil. Though theyre normally administered annually, the Fed required additional exams during the pandemic.

Now, with most banks sitting on mountains of excess cash, the exercise is primarily an indicator of how much of that money can be doled out to investors.

It truly is just a math exercise now, said Jason Goldberg, an analyst at Barclays. Given the fact that these banks did really well in the December Covid stress test and generally have more capital today than they did then, they should screen well.

Heres what investors are watching for when the Fed announces stress-test results:

New Schedule

The day of the results used to be a frantic affair and banks that survived the exams would quickly announce their plans for distributing capital to investors. But now those plans dont need the Feds sign-off because each bank knows its exact capital minimum. A lender can do whatever it likes with its excess cash.

After the results are revealed, the Fed will specify the soonest that banks can announce their latest buyback and dividend intentions. It probably wont be until next week when firms reveal their plans, though, and banks can choose to do so at a later date as well.

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New Rules

The Fed tested 23 banks in total this time around, a list that includes domestic firms and U.S. subsidiaries of foreign lenders. Banks that pass the annual exam remain subject to a constant requirement that they stay above their capital target for the rest of the year. If a lender falls below at any point, the Fed can initiate enforcement actions before waiting for the next stress test.

The stress capital buffer was technically implemented last year; however, because banks were subject to the pandemic-era limitations on shareholder returns, 2021 will be the first year the new system is in full effect.

Bigger Payouts

Some banks have already started sketching out how much cash they plan to return to shareholders as part of the 2021 Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review -- or CCAR -- cycle, which includes the next four quarters.

Bank of America has said it hopes to raise its dividend and announced plans to repurchase as much as $25 billion of its common stock while JPMorgans board has approved $30 billion in stock buybacks over an indefinite time frame.

Reality is, the banking industry was tested by the pandemic, Susan Roth Katzke, an analyst at Credit Suisse Group AG, said in a note to clients. Near term, we expect macro recovery to remain an overwhelming positive, benefiting most, if not all banks.

In all, the six biggest U.S. banks are expected to triple their buybacks alone in the coming months to $107 billion.

No Mulligan

Previously, banks that were near their regulatory capital minimums -- or breaching them -- may have had to tweak their original payout requests to allay regulators concerns. The process is simplified this year and designed to nix this do-over option, known as the mulligan. Bank boards are now allowed to approve the payout plans once the Feds calculations are apparent.

Bank executives have criticized the process for being onerous and some are pleased the mulligan is gone.

Something Ive argued for years, lets not play this game of the mulligan, Morgan Stanley Chief Executive Officer James Gorman said at an event last week. This is treating you like youre grownups. You know what youre doing. Youre running a prudent business, get on with it, run it the way you should.

Risk Management

Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank AG are among the foreign lenders reporting results. Fed Vice Chairman for Supervision Randal Quarles became a target for criticism in recent weeks for his earlier campaign to free Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank and other foreign lenders from the agencys most intensive big-bank supervision. Hed argued that such banks have diminishing footprints in the U.S. and dont need the same level of oversight.

But after they were released from the highest level of Fed supervision, Credit Suisse was mired in the Archegos Capital Management scandal and Deutsche Bank is said to be bracing itself for a significant Fed enforcement action tied to years of risk-management failings.

Credit Suisse is one we are watching, said Alison Williams, an analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence. The fact that there was some noise around U.S. regulators being unhappy with Deutsche Bank could potentially raise some risk for the German lender, Williams said.

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com

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2021 Bloomberg L.P.
KYIV, Ukraine, June 23, 2021 /CNW/ - Today the Northern Appellate Commercial Court of Kyiv postponed the hearing of the illegal disconnection of the TIU Canada solar station in Nikopol, until July 26 at 3:30 PM. The reason given was the failure of one of the defendants to show up for court. In addition, one of the judges recused himself from the case in the morning and was replaced. This follows a postponement last month due to the recusal from the case of the previous three judge panel. TIU Canada filed a motion to dismiss the previous slate of judges. The appeal is based on a January 26 decision by the Kyiv Commercial Court to reject the claims of an illegal disconnection despite overwhelming evidence presented by TIU Canada's legal team. The case is a bellwether of Ukraine's investment environment for foreign business and is attracting international attention.

TIU Canada logo (CNW Group/TIU Canada)

"We will not rest in our pursuit of fairness, rule of law and fighting corruption" said TIU Canada President Michael Yurkovich. He added, "The West is watching this case closely because it is a test of whether or not foreign investors in Ukraine can be protected from raider attacks by oligarchs". The court case number is 910/3844/20 and the judges are O. Gavruliuk, Y. Ponomarenko and the presiding judge is O. Maydanevych.

The 10.5 MW solar station was disconnected from the electricity grid by NFZ on March 2, 2020, despite the fact that Ukrainian law prevents electricity producers from being disconnected from the energy grid without obtaining the range of all the necessary permissions. TIU Canada is seeking an immediate reconnection to the electricity grid and plans to hold the NFZ and its shareholders fully accountable under the law. The main shareholders of the Nikopol Ferroalloy Plant are Igor Kolomoyskyi, Gennadiy Bogolyubov, and Viktor Pinchuk.

A number of respected diplomats and Members of Parliament commented on the case. Roman Waschuk who served as Canada's Ambassador to Ukraine (2014-2019) said, "Ukraine deserves external support, especially now. But it also needs to deal with internal threats, such as oligarch Kolomoysky".

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MP Yvan Baker, who is the Chairman of the Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Friendship Group said, "If Ukraine is to attract the foreign investment needed to grow its economy, offer prosperity to Ukrainians and secure its sovereignty, rule of law must be reinforced and corruption eliminated. Some of the developments around TIU Canada's investment in Ukraine are deeply concerning".

Senator Peter Harder stated, "Rule of law and holding oligarchs accountable is paramount to Ukraine attracting the foreign investment it desperately needs. The people of Ukraine deserve tangible progress on both fronts". Other Members of the Canadian Parliament including Senator Peter Boehm, Garnett Genuis, Heather McPherson, and James Maloney have also spoken in support of TIU Canada and are monitoring the court case.

The Nikopol solar station owned by TIU Canada is on land leased long term from the city of Nikopol. The solar plant connects to a substation on the grounds of the NFZ. On December 23, 2019, TIU Canada received a letter from the General Director of the NFZ, that they would be disconnecting the TIU Canada connection to grids via the substation on the grounds of the NFZ in order to make 'repairs.' The NFZ stated that they would begin the repairs after February 29, 2020, and TIU Canada immediately contacted the NFZ to seek solutions to avoid any disconnection. However, despite multiple discussions, the NFZ management and shareholders proceeded with disconnecting TIU Canada from the substation on the morning of March 2, 2020. This illegal disconnection has caused more than 1.5 million Euros of damage to TIU Canada already and increases daily.

The case is viewed as a test of the Zelensky's administration's commitment to protecting foreign investors. It should be noted that on July 3, 2019, while speaking to the Economic Club of Canada, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky praised the work of TIU Canada at the Toronto Ukraine Reforms Conference. He said, "We think about the future, that is why green energy will be one of the key sectors of our economy during the upcoming years. I know that we have here Canadian company TIU that already successfully works in this area. We are grateful to them for this - please, follow their example".

Unfortunately, this court ruling is just the latest in a series of setbacks for foreign investors in Ukraine. Last year Ukraine received only $400 million in foreign direct investment due to the lack of rule of law, widespread corruption, and the Covid pandemic. The corruption situation was exacerbated last year due to a kangaroo court ruling by Ukraine's Constitutional Court which cancelled the disclosure requirements for public officials.

TIU Canada is owned by the Calgary based Refraction Asset Management, has been working in Ukraine since 2016, and is a leading solar energy producer. The company commissioned a 10  megawatt solar energy plant in Nikopol, Ukraine, in January 2018, and an 11-megawatt solar station in the Mykolayiv region in April 2019. An additional 33 megawatts of solar electricity production have been commissioned in the Odesa region, for a total of 54 megawatts nationwide. TIU Canada has invested more than $65 million in Ukrainian solar energy over the last four years and was the first investor in Ukraine under the Canadian Ukrainian Free Trade Agreement (CUFTA).

TIU Canada directly and through its subcontractors employs more than 30 people in Ukraine whose jobs are now threatened by this illegal disconnection.

Cision

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SOURCE TIU Canada

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Highlights:

Luminex has commenced drilling at its high-grade gold target, Nayumbi, at the Condor project

Long intercepts of copper-molybdenum mineralization in results from first three holes at Cascas

VANCOUVER, BC, June 23, 2021 /CNW/ - Luminex Resources Corp. (TSXV: LR) (OTCQX: LUMIF) (the "Company" or "Luminex") is pleased to provide an update on progress at the Condor and Cascas projects, both located in southern Ecuador.

Condor Project

Nayumbi Target: Luminex has begun drilling the first hole of a programmed 2,000-metre drill program designed to test the depth extent of the high-grade, low sulphidation gold system identified at surface. Surface geology, geochemistry and geophysical modeling in three dimensions point to strong similarities to the Fruta del Norte gold deposit, located 45 kilometres north-northeast in the same mineral belt, as described in the company's news release dated May 13, 2021 (see Figure 1). The initial drill hole, currently underway, is designed to test hydrothermal breccias with sandstone clasts that occur with a latticework of narrow feldspar porphyry dikes, that coincide with rock chip samples grading up to 62.90 g/t gold.

Prometedor Target: Surface mapping and sampling of the area to the southeast of Los Cuyes and Camp, extending to Prometedor is continuing, with the objective of defining targets for drill testing. Mapping has revealed swarms of rhyolite dikes cutting metamorphic and volcanic host rocks, with rock chip sampling returning results of up 3.75 g/t Au. The mineralization style reflects the mineralization style encountered at Camp, that hosts an underground Inferred resource of 1,126 koz AuEq at an average grade of 2.95 g/t AuEq, calculated at a cut-off grade of 1.50 g/t AuEq; see news release dated March 31, 2020 for details.

Condor Preliminary Economic Assessment: The Condor North study that will include Camp, Los Cuyes, Soledad and Enma is near completion. The Company expects to announce results in July.



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Figure 1. Location of initial drill hole with surface geology and rock chip sample results. (CNW Group/Luminex Resources Corp.)

Cascas Project

Shakai Target: The Company has received assay results from the first three holes of the five-hole, 2,017 metre program at the Shakai porphyry copper-molybdenum target, located within the Cascas claim block. The first three holes were drilled on the eastern half of the target area as shown in Figure 2. Results, shown in Table 1 below, reveal long intercepts of low-grade copper-molybdenum mineralization. It is notable that the 0.22% Cu Eq interval reported for hole SK21-03 remains open to depth. The results are consistent with geological observations of disseminated sulphides hosted within porphyritic granodiorites and leucogranites that are pervasively altered with potassic, propylitic and phyllic alteration. The porphyry intrusive is interpreted to be dissected into wedges by a series of northwest to north-northwest trending fault overlaps that dip to the southwest (Figure 2). The Company expects to receive results from the remaining two drill holes in July.

Table 1. Significant intervals from holes SK21-01 through SK21-03.

Drill Hole (final depth) From (m) To (m) Interval (m) Cu (%) Mo (ppm) Cu Eq (%)*

SK21-01 (569.8m) 33.0 406.0 373.0 0.13 88 0.15 incl. 33.0 52.0 19.0 0.15 69 0.18 incl. 312.0 366.0 54.0 0.18 138 0.23

SK21-02 (567.2m) 13.0 19.0 6.0 0.19 478 0.35 and 197.0 343.9 146.9 0.13 52 0.15 and 440.0 454.0 14.0 0.26 5 0.26

SK21-03 (263.2m) 75.0 135.6 60.6 0.15 60 0.17 and 195.0 263.2 68.2 0.19 89 0.22

* Copper equivalent calculation for reporting purposes only. The copper equivalent grade (CuEq) is calculated as follows: CuEq (%) = Cu (%) + 0.000333  Mo (%) assuming prices of Cu US$3.00/lb and Mo US$10.00/lb. Minor gold and silver values not included.

Figure 2. Drill hole locations and interpreted geology at the Shakai prospect. (CNW Group/Luminex Resources Corp.)

Kuru Target: Drill target definition work is continuing at the Kuru low sulphidation epithermal gold vein target located approximately three kilometres southwest of Shakai. Mapping and sampling work are continuing, and rock chip samples have returned grades of up to 8.82 g/t gold.

Figure 3. Contoured soil sample and rock chip gold results overlain on mapped geology to date. (CNW Group/Luminex Resources Corp.)

Qualified Persons

Leo Hathaway, P. Geo, Senior Vice President Exploration of Luminex and the Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, has reviewed, verified and approved the scientific and technical information in this news release and has verified the data underlying that scientific and technical information.

About Luminex Resources

Luminex Resources Corp. (TSXV:LR, OTCQX:LUMIF) is a Vancouver, Canada based precious and base metals exploration and development company focused on gold and copper projects in Ecuador. Luminex's inferred and indicated mineral resources are located at the Condor Gold-Copper project in Zamora-Chinchipe Province, southeast Ecuador. Luminex also holds a large and highly prospective land package in Ecuador, including the Tarqui and Pegasus projects, which are being co-developed with BHP Group plc and Anglo American respectively.

Further details are available on the Company's website at https://luminexresources.com/.

To receive news releases please sign up at https://www.luminexresources.com/contact/contact-us/.

LUMINEX RESOURCES CORP.

Signed: "Marshall Koval"



Marshall Koval, CEO and Director



Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements and information herein, including all statements that are not historical facts, contain forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such forward-looking statements or information include but are not limited to statements or information with respect to the timing for the Preliminary Economic Assessment at Condor North, drilling timing and amount at the Nayumbi target and timing for further Cascas results. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements or information can be identified by the use of phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "will" occur or be achieved.

With respect to forward-looking statements and information contained herein, the Company has made numerous assumptions including among other things, assumptions about general business and economic conditions, the prices of gold and copper, and anticipated costs and expenditures. The foregoing list of assumptions is not exhaustive.

Although management of the Company believes that the assumptions made and the expectations represented by such statements or information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that a forward-looking statement or information herein will prove to be accurate. Forward-looking statements and information by their nature are based on assumptions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. These factors include, but are not limited to: risks associated with the business of the Company; business and economic conditions in the mining industry generally; the supply and demand for labour and other project inputs; changes in commodity prices; changes in interest and currency exchange rates; risks relating to inaccurate geological and engineering assumptions (including with respect to the tonnage, grade and recoverability of reserves and resources); risks relating to unanticipated operational difficulties (including failure of equipment or processes to operate in accordance with specifications or expectations, cost escalation, unavailability of materials and equipment, government action or delays in the receipt of government approvals, industrial disturbances or other job action, and unanticipated events related to health, safety and environmental matters); risks relating to adverse weather conditions; political risk and social unrest; changes in general economic conditions or conditions in the financial markets; changes in laws (including regulations respecting mining concessions); and other risk factors as detailed from time to time in the Company's continuous disclosure documents filed with Canadian securities administrators. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

Cision

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SOURCE Luminex Resources Corp.

Cision

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Middlefield Canadian Income PCC Net Asset Value

Middlefield Canadian Income PCC

Middlefield Canadian Income - GBP PC

(a protected cell company incorporated in Jersey with registration number 93546)

Legal Entity Identifier: 2138007ENW3JEJXC8658

Net Asset Value

As at the close of business on 22 June 2021 the estimated unaudited Net Asset Value per share was 127.33 pence (including accrued income).

Investments in the Companys portfolio have been valued on a closing price basis.

Enquiries:

JTC Fund Solutions (Jersey) Limited

01534 700 000




Reuters Videos

Two pilots survived an emergency nighttime landing in the Pacific Ocean on Friday, after reporting engine trouble on their Boeing 737 cargo plane, which then splashed down off the coast of Honolulu, Hawaii.One of the two crew members was seen in a wheelchair and loaded into an ambulance for transport to the hospital. The U.S. Coast Guard said that pilot was spotted on top of some floating packages and was picked up by a Honolulu Fire Department rescue boat.The other survivor was airlifted by a Coast Guard helicopter, after he was found in the water clinging to the plane's tail. A map of the plane's flight path showed the Boeing 737-200 left Honolulu at 1:33 a.m. local time but quickly turned back, losing altitude as it approached the shore.The Federal Aviation Administration said the two pilots were attempting to return to Honolulu when they were forced to land the aircraft in the water.The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board said they were investigating.Boeing said it was closely monitoring the situation and was in contact with the NTSB.The 737 in Friday's incident was built by Boeing in 1975, according to FAA records, and was not a 737 MAX, Boeing's newest model that was grounded for 20 months after two accidents that killed hundreds of people.Shares of Boeing were trading slightly lower on Friday afternoon.
Motley Fool

Shares of Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ: SWBI) were down almost 12% in morning trading Friday after the FBI reported background checks on gun buyers tumbled 22% in June. After three years of the so-called "Trump slump" that followed President Trump's election in 2016, the firearms industry came roaring back last year on the prospect of a so-called "Biden bump" that was based on a trio of forces pushing gun sales higher last year: big-city riots, calls to "defund the police," and the fear President Joe Biden would enact stricter gun control legislation. Smith & Wesson sales have been at record levels, and it recently crossed the $1 billion sales threshold.
NEW YORK, June 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Pomerantz LLP is investigating claims on behalf of investors of Array Technologies, Inc. ("Array" or the "Company") (NASDAQ: ARRY). Such investors are advised to contact Robert S. Willoughby at rswilloughby@pomlaw.com or 888-476-6529, ext. 7980.

Fighting for victims of securities fraud for more than 85 years (PRNewsfoto/Pomerantz LLP)

The investigation concerns whether Array and certain of its officers and/or directors have engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices.

[Click here for information about joining the class action]

On May 11, 2021, post-market, Array issued a press release announcing its financial results for the first quarter of 2021. Among other results, Array reported lower revenues year-over-year and lower margins, citing increased steel and shipping costs. Concurrently, Array announced the resignation of Peter Jonna from the Company's Board of Directors, effective May 10, 2021. During an earnings call later that day, when asked by an analysts to explain the Company's "decision-making process for not hedging steel," Nipul Patel, the Company's Chief Financial Officer, stated that "in the past, that has not been our strategy. We had been . . . let[ting our suppliers] take that risk on." Following these disclosures, analysts cut their ratings on Array's stock, citing concern about its shrinking profit margins.

On this news, Array's stock price fell $11.49 per share, or 46.05%, to close at $13.46 per share on May 12, 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

Story continues

CONTACT:

Robert S. Willoughby

Pomerantz LLP

rswilloughby@pomlaw.com

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SOURCE Pomerantz LLP
NEW YORK, June 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Pomerantz LLP is investigating claims on behalf of investors of Koninklijke Philips N.V. ("Philips" or the "Company") (NYSE: PHG). Such investors are advised to contact Robert S. Willoughby at newaction@pomlaw.com or 888-476-6529, ext. 7980.

Fighting for victims of securities fraud for more than 85 years (PRNewsfoto/Pomerantz LLP)

The investigation concerns whether Philips and certain of its officers and/or directors have engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices.

[Click here for information about joining the class action]

On June 14, 2021, Philips issued a voluntary recall of certain of its Bi-Level Positive Airway Pressure (Bi-Level PAP) and Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) devices, as well as mechanical ventilators, after finding that the sound abatement foam used in the devices can degrade and become toxic, potentially causing cancer.

On this news, Philips' stock price fell $2.25 per share, or 3.98%, to close at $54.25 per share on June 14, 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

rswilloughby@pomlaw.com

Cision

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SOURCE Pomerantz LLP
MILWAUKEE, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Ademi LLP is investigating Cortland (NASDAQ: CLDB) for possible breaches of fiduciary duty and other violations of law in its transaction with Farmers.

Click here to learn how to join the action: https://www.ademilaw.com/case/cortland-bancorp-inc or call Guri Ademi toll-free at 866-264-3995. There is no cost or obligation to you.

Ademi LLP alleges Cortland's financial outlook is excellent and yet Cortland shareholders will receive only either $28.00 per share in cash or 1.75 shares of Farmers' common stock, subject to an overall limitation of 75% of the shares being exchanged for Farmers shares and 25% for cash. Based on Farmers' closing share price of $16.87 on June 22, 2021, the transaction is valued at approximately $124.0 million or $29.14 per share. The merger agreement unreasonably limits competing bids for Cortland by prohibiting solicitation of further bids, and imposing a termination penalty if Cortland accepts a superior bid. Cortland insiders will receive millions of dollars as part of change of control arrangements. We are investigating the conduct of Cortland's board of directors, and whether they are (i) fulfilling their fiduciary duties to all shareholders, and (ii) obtaining a fair and reasonable price for Cortland.

If you own Cortland common stock and wish to obtain additional information, please contact Guri Ademi either at gademi@ademilaw.com or toll-free: 866-264-3995, or https://www.ademilaw.com/case/cortland-bancorp-inc.

We specialize in shareholder litigation involving buyouts, mergers, and individual shareholder rights throughout the country. For more information, please feel free to call us. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.

Contacts

Ademi LLP

Guri Ademi

Toll Free: (866) 264-3995

Fax: (414) 482-8001

Cision

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SOURCE Ademi LLP
TATU CITY, Kenya, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Investment by South African companies has topped USD 100 million at Tatu City. The 5,000-acre Special Economic Zone  located 30 minutes from central Nairobi  represents one of the largest concentrations of South African foreign direct investment in Kenya and East Africa.

Ms Jenny Coetzee (Left), MD, Crawford International, and H.E. Mr Mninwa Johannes Mahlangu, High Commissioner of South Africa to the Republic of Kenya, cutting the ribbon during the Crawford Road naming ceremony

South Africa's High Commissioner to Kenya, Mninwa Johannes Mahlangu, toured investments by leading South African companies at Tatu City on Tuesday. His stops included Crawford International school, a 20-acre, multi-billion-shilling investment by ADvTECH, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed education group; Kenya Wine Agencies Ltd (KWAL), which is majority owned by South African beverage conglomerate Distell; and Cold Solutions, an investment by ARCH Emerging Markets Partners, which is backed by South African businessman Patrice Motsepe.

"I am delighted to witness these transformational investments South African businesses are making in Kenya," High Commissioner Mahlangu said at a ceremony to mark the naming of Crawford Road, which leads to Crawford International School in Tatu City. "The South African and Kenyan governments are committed to strong bilateral trade and investment, and our private sector businesses are natural partners to grow capital flows and knowledge exchange."

Jenny Coetzee, Managing Director, Crawford International, said that ADvTECH's first Crawford International school had experienced a surge in enrolment in Kenya since opening in 2019 in Tatu City.

High Commissioner Mahlangu visited the site of Cold Solutions, a 15,000 sqm flagship facility, which will improve food and pharmaceutical security and promote economic development in Kenya and the region. ARCH's Cold Chain Solutions East Africa Fund, which is undertaking the investment, is jointly owned by Africa Rainbow Capital, which is backed by South African entrepreneur Motsepe.

"Cold Solutions' first facility in Kenya is on track to open next year and experiencing strong demand from tenants ranging from food to pharmaceutical companies," said Jared Irving, Managing Director.

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The high commissioner concluded his visit at KWAL, which broke ground on a USD 40 million production and distribution facility at Tatu City on 12 February 2021. In addition to Distell, the Kenyan Government is a significant shareholder through the Industrial and Commercial Development Corporation.

Currently at Tatu City Special Economic Zone, more than 60 local, regional and multi-national businesses have opened or started development. These include industry leaders such as Dormans, Cooper K-Brands, KWAL, Cold Solutions, Chandaria Industries, Kim-Fay, Davis & Shirtliff, Copia, FFK, Twiga Foods and Stecol, among others.

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Cision

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SOURCE Tatu City
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Motive.io , the immersive training platform for enterprise, secures significant seed capital to fund the growth of its industry-leading platform. The seed round was led by Toronto-based venture capital firm N49P along with several Vancouver-based angel investors. This equity financing will allow Motive to deepen its Engineering, Sales, and Customer Success investments to better serve Motives growing roster of Fortune 500 customers.



We're excited about VR as a training modality, and Motive has succeeded in solving the barriers to widespread adoption. Their ever-growing list of Fortune 500 clients is testament to the fact that VR is the future of training and Motive makes it possible," said Alex Norman, Partner at N49P.

Motive emerged out of the realization that immersive technology (virtual reality and augmented reality) could offer corporate learning teams an entirely new, high-performance medium to deliver essential skills training - especially for those industries that are contemplating training in a distributed fashion or engage in high-risk work that is better trained in the safety of a virtual environment.

Adult education and corporate training has seen very little innovation since the advent of the internet. While traditional methods are known to offer a predictable, modest ROI, its now a well-established science-fact that virtual reality style training offers vastly superior learning outcomes - including measurably higher retention, engagement, and satisfaction. This seed investment serves as great validation of Motives transformative technology, and will help us expand our industry-leading platform, and provide our growing list of customers with an unprecedented level of support, said Ryan Chapman, CEO of Motive.

Motive has also dedicated itself to overcoming the traditional impediments associated with immersive training; namely high production costs and the inability of corporate trainers to author or control their own content. The Motive.io platform allows IT departments to securely host Motive on their own hardware, or via their chosen cloud provider. Learning teams can use the Motive StoryFlow authoring tool to visually build and edit their own high-fidelity immersive scenarios without code or any prior experience. In short, Motive finally brings the power of VR to learning professionals everywhere, and we think Motive is seeding a revolution in corporate training.

Story continues

A further testament to Motives power, Accenture recently selected Motive as their chosen VR partner which allowed them to assist BC Women & Childrens Hospital in delivering immersive PPE training to its frontline workers. Berkeley Warburton, a managing director at Accenture who led the project, said, At Accenture, we are committed to using emerging technology to benefit people and communities. Motive.ios intuitive platform enabled our learning and development team to create effective training modules quickly, and we are excited to add Motive.io to our global portfolio of capabilities.

About Motive: Motive.io is a leading provider of immersive training solutions for enterprise. The Motive.io platform allows clients and partners to build, deploy, and maintain their own interactive 3D training scenarios on any VR headset or mobile device. Founded in 2015, Motive.io has built industry-leading expertise in virtual and augmented reality since the dawn of immersive technology. Motive.io now offers the most comprehensive and easy-to-use immersive training platform available on the market. Visit www.motive.io to learn more.

CONTACT: Eliza Vagner Marketing Coordinator eliza@motive.io




A man who police say operated a significant cocaine distribution center from his home in the Dahlgren area pleaded guilty to two charges Wednesday in King George County Circuit Court.

Brad Oneal Allen, 43, pleaded guilty to distributing cocaine and conspiracy. In exchange for the guilty pleas, prosecutor Charlie Clark dropped other 19 charges that Allen would have faced had the case gone to trial.

According to court records, multiple controlled drug purchases from Allen and a codefendant were conducted during the early part of 2019. The King George Sheriffs Office, the Tri-County Narcotics Task Force, Virginia State Police, the Naval Criminal Investigative Services and the Virginia National Guard were among the agencies involved.

On Feb. 4 of that year, a confidential informant was given $180 in marked bills from state police to purchase cocaine from Derrick Smith of King George, court records state. With advanced surveillance equipment monitoring the transaction from a helicopter and elsewhere, the informant picked up Smith from his home on Fence Road and drove him to Mathias Point Road in the Dahlgren area to see Allen.

Smith referred to Allen as the big man and identified a silver Mercedes on the side of the road as the mans car, court records state.
A man who struck and killed a tow-truck driver on the Interstate 95 entrance ramp in Fredericksburg last year was convicted Tuesday of DUI-manslaughter.

Christopher R. Minor, 29, of Woodford convicted by Judge Gordon Willis following a trial in Fredericksburg Circuit Court. Minor, who was acquitted of a drug possession charge, will be sentenced Sept. 9.

According to the evidence presented by prosecutor Wenonah Petersen, 29-year-old Louis J. Rich was outside his tow truck about 12:35 p.m. June 11 on the ramp leading from eastbound State Route 3 to southbound I95. It is not clear why Rich was stopped on the ramp.

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Virginia State Police troopers testified that Minors 2020 Chevrolet Impala crossed the white fog line and struck Rich before striking his 2006 International tow truck.

Rich was taken to Mary Washington Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Trooper A. Lubbers testified Tuesday that Minor told him hed taken Percocet, but said he didnt notice any signs of intoxication at the scene.

But Petersen put on evidence that Minor had several controlled substances in his system when his blood was drawn several hours after the crash.
WHEN I settled into my seat at Paragon Village 12 on Friday to see A Quiet Place: Part II, it almost didnt feel real.

While I used to venture to local theaters three or four times a week to review movies for this newspaper, I hadnt seen a movie on anything but my television for nearly 16 months.

But, oh man, did it feel right as the sprawling screen lit up with the story of invading alien creatures that hunt by sound, and the steps smart survivors take to avoid being heard as they try to stay alive.

Yes, Ive seen films such as Tenet, The Little Things and others on streaming services and was glad to watch them. But for me, theres just something special about having an epic sort of picture explode onto a big screen while youre kicking back to enjoy it.

Add a soft drink and popcorn, and youve got one of my favorite things in life, especially if the film is really worth seeing.

For me, this one was. The John Krasinski-directed sequel to the amazing original moves the saga forward, showing how much people will do to save themselves and their families in a world threatened by aliens.
Also in March 2020, U.S. regulators warned Bakkers company and six others to stop selling items using what the government called false claims that they could treat the coronavirus or keep people from catching it. Letters sent jointly by the Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission warned the companies that their products for treating COVID-19 were fraudulent, pose significant risks to patient health and violate federal law.

Silver Solution, a form of colloidal silver, consists of silver particles suspended in a liquid. The solution is often described by manufacturers as having the power to boost the immune system and cure diseases. But it has no known benefit in the body when ingested, according to officials with the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, a federal scientific research agency.

Experts say ingesting colloidal silver can have serious side effects. The NCCIH says it can turn skin blue when silver builds up in the bodys tissue.

Nixon, who served two terms as governor from 2009 to 2017 and is now a partner at the Dowd Bennett law firm in St. Louis, said Bakker immediately complied with orders to stop offering Silver Solution on his show and ministry website after receiving the warning letters from the FDA and FTC.

Meanwhile, Arkansas' attorney general filed a lawsuit similar to Missouri's in June 2020. That case is still pending.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
It was just really hard to recreate the music experience and the artist experience without being able to collaborate, he said. And so to start the year was a really big challenge for us, just to try and find our footing and to find a way to do what we do in the best possible way for our students and staff.

Despite the challenge, Harman and the performing arts department at FHS committed itself to provide the best possible opportunity for each student throughout the year.

The students responded to that commitment and the result could be seen on the stage. The department performed every single performance, play and production this year.

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The students committed to just doing the very best they could and would do whatever they could to experience the best possible thing, he said.

And while Harman said he hopes to never relive anything like the COVID-19 pandemic again, he knows the challenges brought out the best in his students.
This would be a quick, one-stop shop kind of thing for, meet a doctor, maybe schedule with them a sports physical, get your first dose of the vaccination and just hopefully connect some dots when it comes to what is possible or provided in the community, Gossett said.

Three Rivers will offer body fat testing, while the Dodge County Sheriffs Office will have a seatbelt simulator. The YMCA will have information on its summer programming and have an obstacle course set up for kids.

The radio will be there with a live remote, and then well just have some other games and treats for kids, Gossett said. But they will also have adult vaccinations, so if any parents want to get vaccinated with their child, they can do that at that time, too.

With the fair, Gossett said shes hoping families will be able to gather information from various entities in Fremont and learn more about vaccines and health.

Were just really trying to make it easier for people to have access to vaccinations and getting vaccinated so we can stop the spread of COVID and get back to school healthier, she said.

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It is a very long process that takes a lot of patience and a lot of waiting, she said. And so there are some days where Im very nervous and there are others days where Im just so excited to go and be there.

Along the way, Logan View FCCLA adviser Meredith Rohwer said the chapter has been providing Jay with financial support during her campaign, as well as helping her prepare for speeches.

Rebeccas pretty independent, shes very self-driven, so I dont really have to do a whole lot, she said.

But Jay said the campaign has given her a drive that shes hoping shell be able to pass on to others.

We have some really awesome kids in our chapter that are running for state positions and have gotten them, and so its cool to see them come in after me, and were all just paving this path for future members, she said.

Rohwer said she was proud to watch Jay throughout the process and was looking forward to seeing the results next week.

I think Rebecca, just throughout FCCLA, has shown incredibly high achievement, she said. And I have no doubt that if she were to be given that role that she would fulfil it to the maximum capacity for sure.

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Her spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said Merkel intentionally opted for the initial AstraZeneca shot at a time when there were concerns about possible serious side effects.

And so she can now perhaps take away the fears of people...who were or are worried about this so-called cross-vaccination, he said.



BOISE, Idaho  Just over half of Idaho adults have now received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine  about two months after the 50% mark was reached nationwide.

Idaho Public Health Administrator Elke Shaw-Tulloch said during a press conference Tuesday that the state is unlikely to meet the national goal of at least 70% of adults with at least one vaccine dose by July 4.

Still, she said the state continues to make slow gains in vaccination rates. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says Idaho has the eighth lowest adult partial COVID-19 vaccination rate in the U.S.



ANKARA, Turkey  Turkeys health minister says anyone 18 years old and older will be eligible to receive COVID-19 vaccines as of Friday, as the country ramps up its vaccination campaign.
An abandoned gypsum mine in Blackhawk may extend farther than known mapped areas indicate to the northeast, east and southeast sides, a geophysical study shows.

Based on the information obtained in this research, there is also the possibility that the mine extends below the interstate, the study states.

Mohammad Sadeghi, a professor of geological engineering at Montana Technical University who has done multiple studies on gypsum, conducted the study on the abandoned gypsum mine below the Hideaway Hills neighborhood in Blackhawk.

A collapse on April 27, 2020, on East Daisy Drive within the subdivision exposed the mine. More than 40 people from 15 homes were forced to evacuate.

According to a release from the Fitzgerald Law Firm, which hired Sadeghi, the interstate find is in agreement with possibilities left open by the state Department of Transportation study that was conducted in 2020.
A pursuit along Interstate 80 Monday night included damage to fencing at Crane Trust, after which three people hailed a cab at the Alda interchange.

Nike Stevens of Chicago was arrested early Tuesday morning by the Nebraska State Patrol. Stevens, 26, was the driver of a Jeep Patriot that also contained a woman and a child. At one point, the Patriot was traveling more than 100 mph, according to the State Patrol.

The Jeep Patriot drove through gates and fencing at Crane Trust and came to a stop near the Platte River, Hall County Chief Deputy Jim Castleberry said.

After the crash, the three occupants abandoned the vehicle, walked to the Alda I-80 interchange and called a cab, which took them west to Kearney.

The State Patrol gave the full order of events:

At about 5:30 p.m. Monday, a trooper performed a traffic stop on the Patriot for speeding on I-80 near Kearney. Shortly after the traffic stop, the State Patrol received a report of an SUV traveling more than 100 mph and passing vehicles on the shoulder. The trooper was able to locate the reported vehicle, which was the same vehicle from the previous traffic stop.
An adult and child escaped serious injury after a vehicle landed in Lake Minatare on Saturday.

Authorities were called out to Lake Minatare Saturday at about 4 p.m. after a boater recovered an adult and child from a vehicle that had driven off north of the lighthouse at Lake Minatare, according to Justin Haag, public information officer with Nebraska Game & Parks.

Haag said the Nebraska State Patrol and Minatare-Melbeta Fire Department responded, with the fire departments dive team recovering the vehicle. A local towing company removed the vehicle from the lake, according to a video circulating on Facebook.
A key concern for Rose Godinez, legal and policy counsel to ACLU of Nebraska, is the work state troopers will be expected to perform in Texas and whether that includes enforcing federal immigration law.

A Texas DPS spokesperson declined to provide details about the need for help in Del Rio and functions troopers from Nebraska will perform, including whether they will be enforcing federal immigration law and whether that would require special training.

"The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) is committed to securing our border under the direction of Governor Greg Abbott," Press Secretary Ericka Miller wrote in an email. "We are grateful to every agency that has offered assistance in making Texas and the United States more secure, and will be integrating other law enforcement agencies into our operations at the border as appropriate. While the department does not discuss operational specifics, we will continue to monitor the situation as it unfolds in order to make real-time decisions to protect the people and property of Texas."

She wrote that DPS was unable to accommodate a ride-along with Nebraska troopers and DPS that an Omaha World-Herald reporter requested and did not answer a follow-up email asking why.
The Taliban has maintained control of Afghanistan's main border crossing with Tajikistan as the group added to recent gains and pressed an offensive to the outskirts of the northern city of Kunduz.

The militants have wrested control of dozens of districts from government forces in recent weeks as U.S.-led international forces withdraw from Afghanistan ahead of a self-imposed September 11 deadline.

Speaking in the U.S. Congress on June 23, Joint Chiefs Chairman General Mark Milley said 81 of 419 district centers had come under the control of the insurgents. But Milley said 60 of those had been captured last year, before the United States began its final pullout this spring.

In northern Afghanistan, the Taliban on June 22 seized the main border crossing with Tajikistan -- the border town of Shir Khan Bandar.

In a statement, the Taliban said on June 23 that border trade will continue.

About 50 kilometers south of the border, Kunduz city, the capital of Kunduz Province, is encircled by Taliban fighters.

Residents reported heavy fighting and problems with electricity and acquiring supplies.



"The situation is dire. There's fighting on all sides," Kunduz resident Assadullah Zarghood told RFE/RL.

"Shops are closed, people are fleeing, no one has food or water," Abdul Majeed, another resident of the city, said.

If Kunduz falls, it would be the first provincial capital captured by the Taliban.

Kunduz provincial-council member Amruddin Wali warned of a humanitarian crisis if the government doesn't send reinforcements.

"The war has reached the inner city. If the government doesn't send fresh troops, there will be a humanitarian catastrophe in Kunduz," he said.

Afghan government forces have vowed to retake lost territory, while several militias in the north have also begun mobilizing against the Taliban.

The surge in violence comes as Afghan President Ashraf Ghani is set to arrive in Washington later this week to meet with President Joe Biden in the White House.

The rapid advance of the Taliban offensive has raised concerns that the Afghan security forces and government may collapse as the U.S. military exits the country after nearly two decades.

With reporting by AFP and dpa
John McAfee, creator of McAfee antivirus software, has been found dead in his jail cell near Barcelona in an apparent suicide, hours after a Spanish court approved his extradition to the United States to face tax charges punishable by decades in prison
DENVER (AP)  A police officer who was one of three people killed in a shooting at a suburban Denver shopping district was ambushed by a suspect who expressed hatred toward police, authorities said Tuesday.

Arvada Police Officer Gordon Beesley was targeted because he was wearing an Arvada police uniform and a badge, police Chief Link Strate said at a news conference. "Officer Beasley was ambushed by someone who expressed hatred of police officers.

Strate called it a deliberate act of violence and an isolated incident. But he did not provide details about the suspect, who also died in the shootout Monday; how authorities knew that the suspect had deliberately attacked Beesley; and how they knew about the suspect's views toward police.

The suspect was identified as 59-year-old Ronald Troyke by Jefferson County coroner Annette Cannon.

Strate also did not explain what started Mondays shootout, which also killed a man authorities have described as a Samaritan near a library in historic downtown Arvada, an area that is home to popular shops, restaurants, breweries and other businesses about 7 miles (10 kilometers) northwest of downtown Denver.

Strate on Tuesday identified that man as John Hurley, 40, of nearby Golden. Without elaborating on what he did, Strate called Hurley a "true hero who likely disrupted what could have been a larger loss of life.

The chief said there was no connection between Hurley and the suspect.

Arvada police spokesman Dave Snelling declined to say who shot the suspect, saying that would be something investigated by a team of area law enforcement officers.

The city of Arvada planned an evening vigil at Peace Lutheran Church just west of the Olde Town district.

Beesley was a school resource officer with a reputation for taking a compassionate approach with students. With school out for the summer, Beesley was working on patrol when he was hit by gunfire shortly after a report of a suspicious incident that police also have not described.

Beesley was a 19-year veteran of the Arvada Police Department, working as a patrol officer and as a motorcycle traffic officer before working as a school resource officer.

According to his school resource officer biography, he played the drums in a band and enjoyed hiking, biking, skiing, and camping with his family. His motto was Look for the good in every day.

While working at Oberon Middle School, Beesley tried to help students who got into trouble from being prosecuted with crimes and reminded them and their parents that they would get through any problems they had, school counselor David Ruppert said.

Beesley once convinced a student he worked with who did not want to go to school to get out of his car and attend classes, Ruppert said.

The kids gravitated toward him. They looked at him as someone I can go to, Ruppert said.

In 2015, Beesley began biking to school alongside a seventh grader with developmental delay after learning that he was really interested in bicycles but that his mother did not want him riding alone, according to a KUSA-TV story.

Ruppert was one of about 30 school staff members who walked from the scene of the shooting to the growing makeshift memorial for Beesley that was created outside the police department and city hall. Flowers were piled on top a police cruiser and bicycle festooned with U.S. flags and balloons.

The shooting in Arvada came three months after a gunman opened fire and killed 10 people, including a police officer, at a supermarket in Boulder, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) northwest of Arvada.

After Beesley was killed Monday, about 100 people  some holding American flags and pro-police flags  gathered as procession of police cars and motorcycles escorted the hearse carrying Beesleys body to the coroners office.

Among them was Elaine Magnuson, who choked up as she watched. She originally thought the huge police response in the area near her home indicated that a car accident might have happened  not a shooting that killed a police officer.

Its so close, she said.
Arvada Police investigators called John Johnny Hurley a Samaritan and hero without providing details why, but his co-worker for many years was not surprised he intervened in a shooting Monday that left a police officer, the suspect and Hurley dead.
President Joe Biden delivered his first presidential eulogy Wednesday for Virginia Republican Sen. John Warner's funeral, memorializing the life of the Marine Corps veteran, former Navy secretary, and five-term U.S. senator as "a reminder of what we can do when we come together as one nation."
Four new state laws fundamentally restructuring Colorados tax code were signed into the books by Gov. Jared Polis this past week.

They included House Bills 1311 and 1312, a tandem of measures that Democrats hope will close loopholes in the tax code and generate $400 million in revenues.

According to sponsor Rep. Emily Sirota, D-Denver, HB 1311 modernizes the states tax code, closes special interest tax loopholes for large corporations and wealthy individuals, and will benefit small businesses.

The bill Sirota carried along with Rep. Mike Weissman, D-Aurora, and Sens. Chris Hansen, D-Denver, and Dominick Moreno, D-Commerce City, increases the state Earned Income Tax Credit, which is for low-wage earners.

Under current law, Colorados Earned Income Tax Credit is available for those who claim the federal EITC. The bill raises the Colorado credit from 15% to 20% of the federal credit.

It also funds the Child Tax Credit, which would provide up to $600 in tax credits per child for up to 200,000 families. That credit is intended to help pay for child care and other pre-elementary school expenses.

The changes are paid for by capping certain itemized deductions for taxpayers with adjusted gross incomes at $400,000 or more, eliminating the capital gains deduction, and eliminating whats known as a pass through deduction of 20% of business income created under the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in 2017.

Meanwhile, the major provision in HB 1312, from the same set of sponsors, is to increase to $50,000 the business personal property tax exemption for small businesses. That's property taxes businesses pay on items such as desks, computers, phones and other movable equipment that they use to run their operations.

Under the bill, the first $50,000 in property would be exempted from those taxes, up from $7,900. And while those taxes are paid to counties, the state would backfill the under the bill. The measure also provides incentives for employee-owned businesses.

The bill's cost, about $19 million according to the fiscal analysis, is paid for by changes in tax policy for insurance, oil, gas and coal companies, which could not only eventually generate about $150 million per year but would also result in a TABOR refund in 2022-23 that would be paid the following year.

Polis also signed House Bill 1327, a measure from Reps. David Ortiz, D-Littleton, and Kevin Van Winkle, R-Highlands Ranch, and Sens. Chris Kolker, D-Centennial, and Rob Woodward, R-Loveland, aimed at granting a tax break for small businesses.

The bill allows pass-through businesses such as sole proprietorships, partnerships and S-corporations to pay their state income tax at the entity level instead of the individual level, beginning in tax year 2022. These businesses could pay taxes like a C-corporation, which would allow them to claim an unlimited deduction at the federal level for state and local taxes paid.

The governor rounded out the ceremony by putting his signature on Senate Bill 293.

The measure from Hansen, Sen. Bob Rankin, R-Carbondale, Rep. Matt Gray, D-Broomfield, and House Majority Leader Daneya Esgar, D-Pueblo, rewrites property tax classifications, dividing the current two classifications into six subsections and reducing assessment rates for four of those new classifications.

+14 Colorado General Assembly adjourns with historic moves made on transportation, tax policy, mental health care Lawmakers on Tuesday certainly had their running shoes laced up, but the last day of the session transformed into a sprint to the finish line.
Colorado Springs, CO (80903)

Today

Some passing clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 58F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Some passing clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 58F. Winds light and variable.
After the riot, Lloyd described Jan. 6 on Facebook as the best day ever."

On Wednesday, she apologized to the court, her family and the American people, saying she went to Washington that day to peacefully show her support for Trump.

Im ashamed that it became a savage display of violence that day. And I would have never been there if I had a clue it was going to turn out that way, Lloyd told the judge. It was never my intent to be a part of anything thats so disgraceful to our American people.

In seeking probation for Lloyd, prosecutors noted that she was not involved in any violence and destruction or preplanning and coordination of the Capitol breach. Lloyd was invited by her hairdresser to drive to Washington to hear Trump speak, her attorney wrote in court documents.

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U.S. District Court Judge Royce Lamberth said he was giving her a break, but didnt want others to think that probation  and not a stiffer sentence  would be the norm.

Legally, I could give you the six months, but is that really what we want our judiciary to do? the judge asked.
Planned Parenthood of the Heartland and ACLU lawyers also argued requiring an additional appointment created an excess hardship for women, particularly low-income Iowans who face barriers in taking time off work or finding child care.

In 2018, the Iowa Supreme Court struck down a 72-hour waiting period for an abortion. In that decision, the justices ruled the Iowa Constitution upholds the highest level of constitutional protection to the right of abortion  even greater than protections granted under federal law.

However, four of the seven Supreme Court members who were in the majority of the 2018 decision have been replaced in the years since. All four justices have been appointed by Reynolds.

However, abortion rights advocates said Tuesday they believe the court will reach the same decision, should this weeks decision be appealed.

The way that legal precedent works is that it is not supposed to change based on the decision-makers, Bettis Austen said.
DES MOINES  Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said Wednesday she is confident in her decision to appeal a recent court ruling that struck down a mandatory 24-hour waiting period before a woman can have an abortion, despite myriad recent state court rulings that have nullified similar legislation.

An Iowa judge this week blocked a state law that would have imposed the 24-hour waiting period. Reynolds appeal puts the case on track for the Iowa Supreme Court.

I absolutely dont agree with the decision and thats what the process is for, Reynolds said Wednesday during a news conference at the Iowa Capitol. Certainly well be appealing that decision and were pretty confident that we can get the outcome that were looking for.

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The Iowa Supreme Court in recent years has struck down multiple abortion restriction laws, including a 2018 ruling that struck down a 72-hour waiting period.

Since that ruling, Reynolds has appointed four justices to the Iowa Supreme Court.

Rita Bettis Austen, legal director for ACLU of Iowa, said the change in the high courts makeup should not change its adherence to the 2018 ruling.
Together, we can demonstrate the effectiveness of high quality early childhood programming on kindergarten readiness of our young learners, Murillo said during the news conference. Our goal has been to provide universal access to preschool for all of our children. With the investment from the state and with the partnership of the Council Bluffs schools foundation to secure additional private donations, we are eager to proceed with making the dream a reality.

The Waterloo program will be designed for educators to help young students who are not meeting benchmarks in literacy and math proficiency. Studies have conclusively shown that those early indicators have a strong correlation with a young students future academic success.

Waterloo superintendent Jane Lindaman said the pilot program will be designed to help all students, but will have a special focus on minority students.

With broad-based support from the state and the national experts and consultants, we will be looking beyond our policies, procedures and practices to address the experiences that our Black and brown students have attending our schools, Lindaman said at the news conference. We are committing to an action-based approach to achieve immediate and measurable results.
Woodridge Police Chief Brian Cunningham said early warnings likely minimized the number of injuries.

It was a nighttime event, a lot of people were sleeping, werent aware of what was going on, he said. The early warning got people to shelter. And the fact that theres only three people injured and the amount of devastation thats in the community, its just amazing." The storm destroyed the second floor of Bridget Caseys Woodridge home. She sat in a lawn chair in the driveway before sunrise Monday. Her 16-year-old son, Nate, said he was watching TV when the storm swept through and he raced to help his mother get his three younger siblings to the basement.

I just heard a loud crash and Im thinking, Oh, what are my brothers up to? I go look and I see the sky, and then I hear my brothers screaming from the room, he told the Chicago Sun-Times.

Mayor Gina Cunningham called the damage to homes and other property in the village extensive.

Im just emotional because it is devastating to drive through the community that I grew up in and worked in and share with so many wonderful neighbors, she said.
Long story short, Iowa Democrats are going to need four or five strong candidates, including in two statewide races, if they are to effectively dispute the notion that Iowa is simply turning into a red state.

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Can Iowa Democrats, mostly decimated atop the ticket in the past four elections, go four or five deep next year? Well find out. And were starting to hear some of the names that ultimately will provide that answer.

Ras Smith, a state lawmaker from Waterloo, this week became the first Democrat to announce a run for governor. Smith will be an intriguing candidate to follow: he does not have a statewide profile, but he has been a passionate legislator, particularly on issues of racial and social justice, as well as education.

It is likely the Democratic primary for governor will be competitive. Axne, for example, is considering a run, and she would be a formidable candidate. She has won twice in the very competitive and politically balanced 3rd District.
Hi just wonder when you received the offer from Goethe University, and would you mind sharing your profilethank you mate.For the question, I would honestly lean towards Goethe, which is the only one of the three I applied. I looked at the two other programs and decided not to apply coz they are all very standard finance master's. In comparison, MMF's got smaller class size, more selective admission, more interesting modules. Take a closer look at the program structures of the three and you will have a better idea, I guess.Cheers on the offers
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Sorry to hear about the scholarship Sometimes a break may be good. Especially if your score has not been improving as much as you wanted or expected. It may be because the techniques you were using didnt work for you or may be you werent putting your heart into it. I dont mean studying hard but just being really interested in mastering the topics. Its not the same as reading through material and just saying Ive read through it so Im good.At the same time, I would say that if youre not actively thinking and working on the GMAT, you will start forgetting things within two weeks. Depending on the length of your break, you will need to restart your prep which sounds like you would need to do anyway to get to your target score. I know theres a number of people who have taken breaks and then GMAT multiple times such as @dcumins. Certain things were not working for them and it took them a while to get their footing and to get their desired score. I feel its a matter off failing and succeeding fast. If something youre doing is not contributing, dont keep doing it thinking it will suddenly work but rather reconsider your methods and sometimes materials youre using. I feel that people often blame certain products while others praise them. If youre feeling some thing is not working for you and it works for others, try to change things up. Make sure youre enjoying or at least not heating the product youre using to prepare and make sure you actually are using some kind of a study book and I just and mindlessly solving questions _________________
HONG KONG (AP)  Hong Kongs sole remaining pro-democracy newspaper will publish its last edition Thursday, forced to shut down after five editors and executives were arrested and millions of dollars in its assets were frozen as part of China's increasing crackdown on dissent in the semi-autonomous city.

The board of directors of Apple Daily parent company Next Media said in a statement Wednesday that the print and online editions will cease due to the current circumstances prevailing in Hong Kong.

The silencing of a prominent pro-democracy voice is the latest sign of China's determination to exert greater control over the city long known for its freedoms after huge antigovernment protests there in 2019 shook the government. Since then, Beijing has imposed a strict national security law  used in the arrests of the newspaper employees  and revamped Hong Kong's election laws to keep opposition voices out of the legislature.

Apple Daily was founded by tycoon Jimmy Lai in 1995  just two years before Britain handed Hong Kong back to China  and initially was a tabloid known for its celebrity gossip. But Lai had also always portrayed the paper as an advocate of democratic values and said it should shine a light on snakes, insects, mice and ants in the dark," according to the paper.
SATURDAY, JULY 10

REIMAGINE OUR YOUTH: Reimagine Our Youth, a lunch and learn, will feature guest Derrick Coles speaking on "Building Today's Boys into Tomorrow's Men." Held at the Boys & Girls Club of the Danville Area, 123 Foster St., from 1 to 4 p.m. RSVP by contacting the club at 434-792-6617.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 7

SCIENCE & HEALTH SUMMER CAMP 1: Science & Health Summer Camp 1 will be held from 9:30 a.m. to noon July 7-9 at the Danville Science Center for middle and high school students. Only 10 students will be allowed for the camp. For more information and paper applications contact, Anjanette Farmer at 434-791-3630, ext. 1018, afarmer@pathsinc.org or visit https://forms.gle/FoSVgZZpVpSUCF1p8.

MONDAY, JULY 12

KAYAK CAMP: Kayak Camp for teens to learn the basic kayaking skills and techniques, safety protocols and explore sections of the Dan River from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. July 12-16 at Ballou Park shelter six. Cost is $130 for ages 10-16. Register by July 16 by calling Danville Parks and Recreation at 434-799-5150.

SATURDAY, JULY 17
The Pittsylvania County Board of Supervisors agreed to pay up to $75,000 for up to 25 interns who would be placed in county government and county schools, said county spokesperson Caleb Ayers.

But only 15 positions were filled because of the quick turnaround of the programs development, Ayers said.

In county government, two interns are in public relations, two are at the Pittsylvania Pet Center, two are in parks and recreation and one each is in finance and community development, Ayers said.

Seventeen-year-old Pranav Shah, a rising senior at Tunstall High School, is gaining workplace experience in Pittsylvania County governments finance department.

The internship allows him to get a better idea of where to focus his career goals, Shah said Wednesday.

I thought it would be an opportunity to get the experience so I would be able to get a judgment of what I really want to study in college, he said.

So far, he has spent most of his time filling invoices related to CARES Act funding for the county.

Ayers has two interns working under him, helping develop content for social media and the countys website.
Former presidential candidate Andrew Yang, who was far behind in early returns, conceded about two hours after polls closed and vowed to work with the next mayor.

In the Republican primary, Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa defeated businessman Fernando Mateo. Ranked choice voting wasnt a factor because there were only two candidates in the race.

Several candidates in the race to succeed Mayor Bill de Blasio have the potential to make history if elected. The city could get its first female mayor, or its second Black mayor, depending on who comes out on top.

But in the Democratic contest, the initial picture could be misleading. After polls closed at 9 p.m., New York Citys Board of Elections began releasing results of votes cast in person, but the returns focused on who candidates ranked as their first choice.

The ranked choice system, approved for use in New York City primaries and special elections by referendum in 2019, allowed voters to rank up to five candidates on their ballot.
The monks train every year with professional firefighters and reside in the three monasteries. They travel to centers where they are needed, he said.

Despite all the work, they are still meditating every morning and holding service, Migliogli said.

On the eastern flank of the Sierra Nevada, the Inyo Creek Fire in the Whitney Portal area near the town of Lone Pine thwarted hikers planning to climb Mount Whitney, the tallest peak in the contiguous United States.

The fire was officially estimated at 640 acres (259 hectares) .

Hikers were unable to begin treks at Whitney Portal and rangers were in the wilderness to divert returning hikers to other longer egress trails. Hikers were still being evacuated Tuesday evening, fire officials said.

The fires were among dozens that have scorched large swaths of the West, including in Arizona, Utah and Colorado.

A lightning-caused wildfire crept closer Tuesday to Flagstaff in northern Arizona, threatening to force people from their homes. The mountain city has nearly 80,000 residents, a state university and an observatory where Pluto was discovered.

Evacuations were in place because of several other wildfires across Arizona, affecting mostly rural residents and campers, and many local roads were closed. Half of the national forests in Arizona will to close entirely to the public because of wildfire danger and limited resources, authorities said.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
A second bill would give states greater powers over companies in determining the courts in which to prosecute tech antitrust cases. Many state attorneys general have pursued antitrust cases against big tech companies, and many states joined with the U.S. Justice Department and the FTC in their antitrust lawsuits against Google and Facebook, respectively, last year. The measure drew many Republican votes and was approved 34-7.

The advance of the legislation comes as the tech giants already are smarting under federal investigations, epic antitrust lawsuits, near-constant condemnation from politicians of both parties, and a newly installed head of the powerful FTC who is a fierce critic of the industry.

The legislative package, led by industry critic Rep. David Cicilline, D-R.I., targets the companies structure and could point toward breaking them up, a dramatic step for Congress to take against a powerful industry whose products are woven into everyday life. If such steps were mandated, they could bring the biggest changes to the industry since the federal governments landmark case against Microsoft some 20 years ago.

The Democratic lawmakers championing the proposals reaffirmed the case for curbing Big Tech as the committee began digging into the legislation.
Now, 600,000 Americans have died in a pandemic that began under suspicious circumstances in China and about which the Chinese government is stonewalling all meaningful investigation. 600,000 dead  that is a lot bigger than a few Russian Facebook ads in Wisconsin. And yet leading figures in the Biden administration and the Democratic Party seem to have far less zeal about pursuing the origins of a disease that killed 600,000 Americans than they had in investigating what Russia did in the 2016 election.

It doesnt make sense. Everyone involved, scientist and non-scientist, agrees it is important to know the real origins of COVID. The Americans who want more investigation are not accusing China of deliberating loosing the virus on the world, but they do think there is persuasive evidence that the virus escaped into the human population as a result of an accidental leak during research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology. And they know that China has hidden the facts from the very beginning.
Only Martinsville approaches those rates, with 62.2% of adults having had one shot of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines, and 53.7% are fully vaccinated, having received a second shot of one of those vaccines or one of the Johnson & Johnson.

Patrick County, on the other hand, has seen only 40.3% of its adults get one shot and 35.9% fully vaccinated. Only Lee and Carroll counties have had worse rates.

Franklin County (49.2% first shots and 43% fully vaccinated) and Henry County (48.4%, 41.6%) rank in between.

However, when you calculate the percentages of all residents  including the 12-17-year-olds who are vaccine eligible and younger children who arent  then the performance is even worse: 40.4% have had at least one shot, and 34.9% are fully vaccinated, about half the 70% required to reach the level that doctors consider herd immunity against spread of the virus.

State averages for all residents are 57.8% for one shot and 49.3% fully vaccinated.

Slightly more than 6,500 doses have been distributed this month in the health district, just more than 300 per day. In March and April that average was about 1,000.

Variant cases
Such remediation will cost companies, but one way for them to look at it is: what would the cost of a lawsuit be?  They can compare the liabilities to the cost of fixing it, Earles said. It is cost-effective to repair these things when you consider the cost of these lost lives.

Short of adding a chute to a low-lying dam, owners, communities and state regulators can raise awareness of hazards through education and effective signage, Earles said.

On a wide river like the Dan you have to be sure they are really prominent  (with commands like) Danger ahead and Get out, Earles said.

Bold, simple warnings and directions and in multiple languages can save lives, Earles said. But to be effective, the signs must be placed upstream, well ahead of dams, so people have enough time to navigate to a bank, get out of water and walk around a dam, a practice known as portaging, Earles and other river experts said.

Duke Energy, which did have warning signs in place at the time of the Wednesday tubing tragedy, is ready to enhance its signage, Norton said.
Rescue teams and regional river guides theorize that when the tubers went over the dam, they were pulled under water by the hydraulic force of the base water and drowned.

Brooks said there is a sign for boaters and tubers approaching the dam that mentions the availability of a portage to exit the river before the dam. This allows people to walk around the dams powerful currents.

Cates said last week that the four survivors were discovered near the dam, clinging to the tubes in the water and had been there for many hours. They were tired, very fatigued and had been subjected to the elements for 19 hours, he said.

None were wearing life jackets at the time they were rescued and it was unclear if anyone in the group was, Cates said. The four were treated at a local hospital on Thursday for injuries that were not considered life-threatening.

Considering the power of water and hazards of rocks along the Dan, Cates encouraged water enthusiasts to take water safety seriously and to always wear life jackets.

Pulliam agreed.

The biggest thing to remember is always wear a life jacket. They not only help you float, but give you protection against obstacles, he said last week. If youre new to the river, Id recommend a life jacket and a helmet. As for bad accidents, this is the worst in my memory.

Contact Kenwyn Caranna at 336-373-7082 and follow @kcaranna on Twitter.

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Second, I want to rescue, refresh, and expand the concept of American heroism. Yes, historical figures such as George Washington, Daniel Boone and Abraham Lincoln were imperfect in real life. We should come to know as much as we can about them, warts and all.

But we can and should still admire the important contributions these old-school folk heroes made to the growth and development of our country, even as we properly integrate a broader variety of tales into the story of America. In Mountain Folk, one of the main characters is a Cherokee heroine named Nanyehi who as a young woman led her people to victory in battle but later in life became a legendary peacemaker.

Third, I use elements of history and folklore to explore what it really means to be an American. Our country is different from most others in a key respect: We do not share a common ethnic heritage. During centuries of migration  some voluntary, in search of a better life, and some involuntary, the consequences of removal or the slave trade  America has become a dynamic, sprawling, sometimes-brawling society encompassing many different peoples, religions, values, and cultures.
GREENSBORO  Growing up in Niagara Falls, Don Brady learned hed have to work hard to be successful because of his familys modest means.

But he also found out early on that getting a hand from well-meaning individuals can make a huge difference in a persons life. And when his Brady Services became a Greensboro success story, he would help raise millions of dollars so others could get a chance to make their mark, too.

Brady, who died last week at 88, was active in the regions top philanthropic causes well into his 80s.

Just over three years ago, Brady and his wife, Mary Gay, were the annual honorees for the Triad JDRF Gala, which raises millions for juvenile diabetes and is one of the highest-profile fundraisers in the region.

JDRF, formerly known as Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, became a special cause for Brady when one of his 14 grandchildren developed Type 1 diabetes.

Brady learned early on that when people were kind to him, he should pass that kindness along to the community.

He got a helping hand as a youth when he won a scholarship to the University of Rochester in New York.
The Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina, a nonprofit public-private organization that recruits companies for the state under contract with the Commerce Department, also released hundreds of pages of documents about the Apple deal on Tuesday. The partnership first met with a local attorney representing Apple about a potential project on Jan. 10, 2018, according to an email from Garrett Wyckoff, the partnerships senior manager for business recruitment.

Apple may have considered bringing as many as 10,000 jobs to North Carolina in early 2018, according to another email from Wyckoff. By March of that year, the company had reduced the number to 5,000, according to an email from the attorney representing the company.

Apple Inc. is hoping to announce a new campus in the United States by June 1, 2018, according to a memo the attorney sent to recruiters. Apple is considering North Carolina as a potential site for the new campus. The company would commit to creating jobs for a minimum of 5,000 R&D and Operations workers and would make a minimum investment of at least $2 billion throughout the State of North Carolina over a 10-year period.
North Carolinas cabinet is made up of appointed positions, unlike the elected positions on the Council of State.

North Carolina once had more cabinet positions, but former Gov. Bev Perdue proposed and the legislature approved dropping that to eight in an effort to save the state millions of dollars.

The Department of Correction was one of the agencies merged in the new Department of Public Safety in 2012, along with the departments of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention and Crime Control and Public Safety, The News & Observer reported.

In 2015, former Gov. Pat McCrory expanded his cabinet to 10 adding the departments of Information Technology and Military and Veteran Affairs, The News & Observer previously reported.

The Department of Public Safety is one of the biggest state agencies. It is led by Secretary Erik Hooks, who rose through the ranks after joining the State Bureau of Investigation in 1989. He currently oversees 37,000 employees including National Guardsmen.

Tim Moose is the chief deputy secretary of the Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice. He was appointed to the position in 2019 after spending 35 years working in correction.
The charter says a petition would require the signatures of enough Raleigh voters totaling at least 25% of the voter turnout in the last municipal election. Its unclear if that applies to each individual race or the entire election.

In 1953, the City Council was all elected at large and through a nonpartisan primary. North Carolina passed a uniform municipal election law in 1971 that repealed the odds and ends of Raleighs elections in the charter, Cohen said. However, it didnt repeal the recall provision which appears to be modeled after San Diegos own provision from 1889, he said.

It has a very complicated procedure for getting signatures that basically reflects what California did 130 years ago, Cohen said.

The petition is submitted to the city clerk, who must determine if the petition is sufficient or insufficient. If it is sufficient, the Wake County Board of Elections shall order a primary no more than 60 days after the clerks certification of the petition, according to the charter.

Normally it would be the respective countys Board of Elections that would determine the validity of signatures on petitions, said Bob Joyce, a professor of public law and government at the UNC School of Government.
Health conditions would include cancer, epilepsy, HIV/AIDS, Crohns disease, post-traumatic stress disorder and multiple sclerosis, including those suffering nausea related to hospice care. Doctors would declare in writing that the potential health benefits of cannabis use for a patient outweigh the risks. Recreational use of pot would remain illegal.

Qualifying patients could obtain medical cannabis products for smoking or other uses through up to 10 suppliers statewide licensed by a new state commission. Each supplier would control production from seedlings to sale, with up to eight medical cannabis centers from which to sell to the public. Suppliers would have to pay 10% of gross revenues monthly to the state Department of Health and Human Services.

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The measure contains safeguards, such as an online system for cannabis centers and police to check patient registrations. And suppliers would still be subject to cannabis prosecution if found to be driving while high or delivering cannabis to people who arent registered.

Thirty-six states currently permit cannabis products for medical use, while 18 states and the District of Columbia have passed legislation to regulate adult use of cannabis, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Come July 1 in Virginia, adult residents can legally possess up to 1 ounce of marijuana for use.
From May to early June, the latest data available, cases of the delta variant increased nationwide from 2.8% to 9.5%, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the four weeks before June 22, the latest available data, just 0.7% of cases in North Carolina were the delta variant, but state health officials expect that rate to increase in the coming weeks.
With the creation of June 19th (Juneteenth) as a federal holiday, Democrats have one more claim to be the party of civil rights and equal opportunity for African Americans, though most Republicans also voted for the holiday. That claim has been promoted for decades by a compliant media, academia and high-profile politicians, but the facts say otherwise.

From Abraham Lincolns Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 to the mid-20th century, members of the Democratic Party, dominant in the South due to its opposition to civil and political rights for African Americans, were on the wrong side of civil rights.

Federal troops finally brought the news of emancipation to Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865, meeting resistance from plantation owners. This is the same year the Ku Klux Klan was founded. Nathan Bedford Forrest, a Confederate Army general and a Democrat, was the first grand wizard of the KKK, though he tried disbanding it in 1869 after growing critical of its excessive violence.

The Klan, which numbered 4 million members at its peak, dedicated itself as History.com notes, to an underground campaign of violence against Republican leaders and voters (both Black and white) in an effort to reverse the policies of Radical Reconstruction and restore white supremacy in the South.
" " The Moderna and Pfizer mRNA COVID-19 vaccines have helped significantly reduce the number of cases of COVID-19 since they were first approved for emergency use. Dinendra Haria/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

For decades, researchers have dreamed about harnessing the power of genetic technology to prevent or treat a range of diseases. A synthetic version of a molecule in the human body known as messenger RNA (ribonucleic acid), or mRNA, held that promise.

Just how to make it work presented daunting challenges that much of the science community thought was a mountain too high to climb.

But a handful of researchers didn't give up. They spent years trying to solve the mystery of mRNA. Then, just like a made-for-TV movie, they cracked the code just in time to save the world from the deadly coronavirus pandemic.

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mRNA on a Mission

mRNA vaccines work by delivering instructions to cells that empower them to produce antigens and become the body's own antibody-producing factory. But to understand the technology even better and how it is being used to protect us from COVID-19, you first need to understand proteins.

Proteins are often referred to as the building blocks of life. They are essential for the structure, function, and regulation of the body's tissues and organs. Every cell in the human body contains tens of thousands of distinct proteins made up of several amino acids that attach to each other to create chains of varying lengths that fold into various shapes. Protein shape has a great deal to do with protein function.

For example, some regulate specific physiological processes, such as growth, development, metabolism and reproduction. Some proteins act as biological catalysts to help the body build muscle, destroy toxins and break down food particles during digestion. Others serve the immune system as antibodies that can fight infections viruses and bacterial pathogens.

Cells are assigned their amino acid sequence, and thus told the function of their protein via the body's messenger RNA, or mRNA.

Think of this process like a spy mission. mRNA hands the cell instructions to make a certain protein. Once the cell makes its protein, the cell destroys the instructions and then goes to work manufacturing that specific protein.

" " This graphic shows the structure and anatomy of the coronavirus, including its proteins, ribosomes, RNA and envelope. OSweetNature/Shutterstock

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Seemingly Endless Possibilities of mRNA Technology

A few researchers began to wonder: What if science could develop a synthetic mRNA with a specific coding sequence that could be delivered to the body and instruct cells to create any type of protein  growth agents to repair damaged tissues, enzymes to cure rare diseases or even antibodies to protect against infection.

In 1990, a group of University of Wisconsin researchers actually pulled off making a synthetic mRNA and tested it in laboratory mice. The problem was that synthetic mRNA was sensitive to the mice's defenses and was destroyed before ever reaching the target cell to deliver the coded message, says Paul Goepfert, M.D., professor of medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and an expert in vaccine design. Many in the scientific world saw this as a fatal flaw and turned their attentions elsewhere.

But two University of Pennsylvania researchers, Katalin Kariko, Ph.D., and immunologist Drew Weissman, M.D. Ph.D., still believed in the opportunities synthetic mRNA held. They set out to find a way to make mRNA more stable. In 2005, after a decade of painstaking research, they discovered that they could use tiny balls of fat called lipid nanoparticles, or LPNs, to protect the synthetic mRNA. This gave the fragile molecule stealth-like qualities that enabled it to travel outside the immune system's radar.

In the years that followed, researchers would explore the possibilities of mRNA using this new technology. In 2010, Cambridge, Massachusetts-based pharmaceutical and biotechnology company Moderna Inc., was founded to focus specifically on vaccine technologies based on mRNA. The name "Moderna" literally comes from combining the words "modified" and "RNA."

In 2008, German-based BioNTech, short for Biopharmaceutical New Technologies, was founded to develop pharmaceutical cancer immunotherapy candidates using mRNA technology. In 2018, the company partnered with U.S.-based Pfizer Inc. to develop mRNA-based flu vaccines.

And then the world was hit by a global pandemic. Researchers everywhere began directing all their efforts toward developing a vaccine for coronavirus.

" " This diagram shows an encapsulated mRNA vaccine from a viral spike protein (developed from COVID-19 or SARS-CoV-2) and how its work for immune response. BigBearCamera/Shutterstock

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How Did mRNA Vaccines Get Approved So Fast?

Viruses cannot reproduce on their own. They need host cells that they infect to begin the process, which in cases of infectious viruses, makes people sick. For an mRNA vaccine to work, researchers needed to know which protein the virus was using as its host cell. And for that, they needed to crack COVID-19's genetic code. This process was simplified because COVID was similar to two other coronaviruses that had previously infected humans  MERS and SARS.

By Dec. 31, 2020, when China first admitted the cluster of pneumonia-like viruses, Chinese researchers there were already working to identify the virus' genetic code. About two weeks later, Jan. 12, 2020, they released the gene sequencing data. This gave researchers everywhere the ammunition to start on a vaccine.

"We knew that the spike protein was the Achilles' heel," Goepfert says.

From there, vaccine development began to move swiftly. "mRNA vaccines are amenable to very rapid development. We got kind of lucky from that aspect," Goepfert says. "A week later, Moderna and Pfizer made their vaccines." The companies were then able to propel ahead of drug companies developing traditional vaccines, and move quickly into animal testing and, shortly thereafter, human trials began.

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Are mRNA Vaccines as Effective as Traditional Vaccines?

Both Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines are performing surprisingly well. Studies have shown that a full double dose of Pfizer's or Moderna's vaccine provides 95 percent and 94 percent protection against the original virus, respectively.

Yet barely half of all Americans are fully vaccinated.

"One of the reasons for vaccine hesitancy is that people have this misunderstanding that [mRNA COVID vaccines] were developed so quickly and that, in doing so, we skipped safety evaluation, which is not true at all," Goepfert says.

"This vaccine has been tested on incredible numbers of people and it actually underwent the normal safety testing of any products. And now that it's under Emergency Use Authorization we have millions more safety data  actually more than any other product that we've had for a vaccine."

These mRNA vaccines work so well because they induce multiple arms of defense in the immune system, Goepfert says. "They induce the neutralization of antibodies, which I think of as spears because they can knock out the virus before you even get infected. They induce functional antibodies, which utilize cells to be more effective. And they induce T-cell responses  both helper and killer cell responses  which are extremely important. T-cells help prevent severe disease and death." A neutralizing antibody (NAb) is an antibody that defending cells from pathogens.

Traditional vaccines also create neutralizing antibodies and induce antibody responses, but "they don't do the T-cell response as well," he says.

" " A woman displays a victory sign while she receives the first dose of a COVID-19 mRNA vaccine June 22 in Guwahati, India. India is recovering from a severe outbreak of the delta variant where more than 7,300 people died in 24 hours in June from COVID-19. Anuwar Ali Hazarika/Barcroft Media via Getty Images

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The Future of mRNA Vaccines

So what does the future hold for mRNA technology? This is likely just the beginning. In fact, in 2017, two clinical trials were already underway to test mRNA vaccines against several infectious diseases, including HIV, influenza, Zika and rabies  and then COVID-19 hit.

A team at MD Anderson led by Scott Kopetz, M.D., Ph.D., is already using mRNA on colorectal cancer in a Phase II clinical trial to test whether the technology could prevent the cancer from recurring.

"mRNA vaccines can be used to target almost any pathogen," John Cooke, M.D., Ph.D., medical director of the RNA Therapeutics Program at the Houston Methodist Research Institute, said in a press statement for the Association of American Medical Colleges. "You put in the code for a particular protein that stimulates an immune response. It's essentially unlimited."

That means scientists think diseases like malaria, tuberculosis, hepatitis B and cystic fibrosis could all be prevented in the future with mRNA vaccines.

"These vaccines are remarkable," Goepfert says. "Even in older adults, they work really, really well, which is unusual for most any vaccine that we have. So that's just remarkable."

Now That's Awesome It usually takes about 10 to 15 years for vaccines to be made available to the general public due to all the research and testing involved in developing them. But nearly a year to the day Wuhan, China officials revealed they were fighting an unknown contagion, the first COVID vaccine given outside clinical trials was administered in the United States Dec. 14, 2020.

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Originally Published: Jun 22, 2021
" " Life expectancy in the U.S. dropped almost two years between 2018 and 2020, the biggest drop since WWII. Hyejin Kang/Shutterstock

If you think life expectancy in the United States is among the longest in the world, you're wrong. In fact, the gap between how long people live in the U.S. compared to those in other high-income countries has been widening for decades. A team of researchers led by Steven Woolf, M.D., director emeritus of Virginia Commonwealth University's Center on Society and Health, wanted to know why.

They published their findings June 23, in The BMJ, a journal published by the British Medical Association. Their research is the first to show the significance of that gap continuing to widen  by a lot. Average life expectancy in the U.S. dropped by almost two years (1.87 to be exact) between 2018 and 2020  that's the most ever since World War II.

A decline of less than two years might not sound like much, but that now puts life expectancy in the U.S. at 76.87 years. And two years is 8.5 times the average decrease of just 0.22 years 16 other countries experienced in the same time span. The number is even worse when the researchers focused on people of color: The research found life expectancy for Black Americans declined by 3.25 years and 3.88 years for Hispanic Americans. That's 18 and 15 times higher than in peer countries, respectively.

"We expected that life expectancy in the U.S. would decrease, that the drop would be smaller in other countries, and that people of color in the U.S. would be disproportionately affected," Woolf says via email, "but we were stunned by the magnitude of the disparities we found. We did not anticipate that the drop in [life expectancy] in the U.S. would be 8.5 times the average decrease in peer countries. And we were horrified to see the massive decreases in [life expectancy] that the Hispanic and Black population experienced."

" " This graph shows how changes in life expectancy contributed to the gap between the U.S. and peer countries. VCU Center on Society and Health/The BMJ

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Decline Is 'Massive'

Between 1959 and 2016, life expectancy for the average American increased from 69.9 years to 78.9 years, according to a 2019 study in JAMA. But starting in 2014, it declined for three consecutive years, the study showed, likely because more Americans began dying at middle age from drug overdoses, suicide, obesity and other organ system diseases.

These trends were already "very worrying," Woolf said in a press statement. "To give some perspective, when the decline in life expectancy was happening a few years ago, it was a decrease of about 0.1 years each year that was making front-page news. That's the kind of increase or decrease that we're accustomed to each year."

Woolf called the 1.87-year decline "massive."

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What's Going On?

So what's to blame for this "massive" drop? There are several factors. First, the leading cause, according to the study, was the COVID-19 pandemic and the country's mishandling of it. More than 600,000 Americans have died of COVID-19 to date, more than any other country. And the botched management early on allowed the virus to spread unmitigated.

But, according to the team's research, national, state and local policy issues that already existed before the pandemic in the United States  and put the country at a health disadvantage  are still in place and also to blame. Think factors like limited access to health care, unemployment, food insecurity and homelessness. The pandemic did draw attention to some of these conditions, as well as the clear inequities in the U.S. health care system.

"The enormous drop between 2018 and 2020 was caused by the COVID-19 pandemic," Woolf says. "Preliminary reports from the CDC suggest that [life expectancy] increased by about 0.1 years between 2018 and 2019, so the stunning decrease reported in our study is almost certainly due to the pandemic. We can blame a virus, opioids, eating habits and other proximate causes, but the long-term decline of U.S. health that began in the 1990s has systemic origins. And it will continue until those root causes are addressed."

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BIPOC Disproportionately Affected

As we mentioned previously, life expectancies of people of color, especially Black men and women dropped significantly between 2018 and 2020  12.3 times and 20.3 times greater, respectively, than the average decrease for peer countries. For Black men, life expectancy is at its lowest level since 1998, at 67.73 years. Improvements made between 2010 and 2018 to reduce the gap in life expectancy between Black and white populations were completely wiped out between 2018 and 2020.

The decline is even worse for the Hispanic population, with estimated drops in life expectancy 15.9 times and 22.5 times higher among men and women, respectively, compared with those in other countries.

"COVID-19 was a vivid new example of a very old problem. For generations, people of color  particularly Black and Native Americans  have died at higher rates than white people," Woolf says. "This death toll reflects the perennial barriers that people of color have systematically faced in gaining access to the opportunities for good health and well-being, the systemic advantages and privileges the white population has historically enjoyed, and the legacy of systemic racism that is responsible for this divide."

Woolf says the U.S. must address the causes to reverse the trend in declining life expectancy  like tackling the opioid epidemic and obesity  but meaningful change will require the country to invest in human capital.

"The countries that outperform the U.S. have worked harder to offer their children a good education, promote good jobs and livable wages, provide support systems for families facing trying times (including pandemics), and make those resources available across the population to reduce inequities and give everyone a fair shot," he says. "Reversing the trend in declining [life expectancy] requires a commitment to come to the aid of low and moderate-income American families. Policies that leave them behind ... and widen income inequality are likely to result in higher death rates and a widening gap between the health of Americans and other people. And racial disparities will persist until the country gets serious about addressing systemic racism."

Now That's Interesting More from the study: "Estimates of life expectancy during the COVID-19 pandemic can help clarify which people or places were most affected, but they can't predict how long a group of people will live. Although life expectancy is expected to recover in time to levels before the pandemic, past pandemics have shown that survivors can be left with lifelong consequences, depending on their age and other socioeconomic circumstances."
Hertz said in Tuesday's announcement the committee's position "all along" has been that the dispute should have been handled outside of the courts.

To be clear, we expect the judicial branch to release public records, the same as they have ruled the legislative and executive branches must do in numerous court rulings over the years, Hertz said.

Hertz also said withdrawing the subpoenas meant the litigation over the Legislature's subpoena power likewise ended Tuesday.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Montana Supreme Court met for a conference meeting on a recent motion by lawmakers asking for the justices to recuse themselves because they, too, were under subpoena. It was the second such motion; the first request for recusal was heartily denied, with Justice Laurie McKinnon writing in the unanimous decision that lawmakers had attempted to "manufacture a conflict" in an effort to evade the judicial branch getting the final say on the Legislature's subpoena power.
Abbott and Ducey's letter criticizes the Biden administration as "unwilling or unable" to enforce federal immigration laws and says that cartels are transporting drugs and human trafficking victims into the U.S.

"Given the staggering number of violations now occurring in Texas and Arizona, additional manpower is needed from any state that can spare it," Abbott and Ducey wrote.

In the letter, the governors say there's a "surge of illegal border crossings, with the accompanying threats to private property and to the safety of our citizens." They say that in the Arizona Border Strike Force has intercepted 284 pounds of fentanyl since it was created in 2015.

In May the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency had just over 180,000 enforcement encounters along the southern border, a record high for a single month.

Past CBP data shows the number of encounters changes dramatically from year to year. In the 2018 fiscal year, for example, there were 521,090, but there were 977,509 the following year and 458,088 in 2020, a year marked by the pandemic. From October to May, three have been 929,868 encounters.
You were taught by your parents to not put all your eggs in one basket.

They were told the same by their parents, and the same message has reverberated for generations. You have not passed it along because your kids would ask what a basket is, and tell you eggs come from the grocery store.

But you know what I mean.

Agriculture, in some ways, is guilty of putting too many eggs in the same basket. Maybe not all, but maybe more than should be there. And there are a couple of examples that could teach some painful lessons, unless the risk is spread out.

The first is China. China will likely buy a billion bushels each of corn and soybeans from the United States during a marketing year. Chinese purchases have pulled down the carry-outs of both commodities to the point that supplies are tight and that is what has pushed up prices rapidly in the face of a potential drought-shortened crop.

Those high commodity prices have made agriculture giddy to the point that we want to be Chinas main supplier, and guarantee strong commodity prices year after year. But it may not come to fruition because China does not want to become as dependent on the United States as we would like.

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But corn and soybean growers are not the only ones currying favor from Chinese buyers because China is currently driving the U.S. pork market with massive purchases to keep its populace happy in the wake of continued disease problems in Chinas swine herd. Once those issues are resolved China is expected to resume its long-term position as the worlds largest producer of pork, and no longer the worlds largest importer of pork.

That is more easily done than Chinas farm policy shifting its production into road gear and no longer needing to rely on imported grain. China has not always been the largest importer, albeit it will need some level of imports for the government to maintain peace among its constituents. The point is, U.S. commodity groups need to diversify their export sales book to ensure there is always a strong demand if China is not buying as much

Another example of too many eggs in a basket is ethanol, which consumes twice as much corn as exporters, but nearly as much as the livestock feeders. What would happen to those five billion bushels of corn going to ethanol refineries if the Biden administration succeeds in switching to electricity-based transportation? Ethanol trade groups insist their product is here to stay, but will demand for it grow as much as the supply of corn will grow in the next few years?

Do we need a new use for corn that will consume five billion bushels, or do we need a new use for ethanol that will consume 14 billion gallons?

Either way, commodity groups need to always be forward thinking and looking out for the next big thing that will consume a U.S. agriculture product that will help underpin the farm economy.

Farmers like the taste of higher commodity prices.

Stu Ellis is an observer of the Central Illinois agriculture scene. In addition to his weekly column, you can view his From The Farm and Harvest Heritage reports on WCIA 3 News.

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DECATUR  A fryer is one of the essential appliances in most restaurants.

However, many owners are finding it more and more of a worry to use the important piece of equipment.

Along with a shortage of employees and supplies, the price of cooking oil has shot up, causing many restaurant owners to study their options.

Although his overall operating costs may be lower, Clint Brumleve, co-owner of the Tornado Food Truck parked on Illinois 48 in Decatur, faces the same struggles as the brick-and-mortar restaurants. The prices of cooking oil have more than doubled since the beginning of the food truck season. They are saying that its not supposed to go back down for at least a little while, Brumleve said. And no one knows what a little while means.

Dave Jordan, owner of The Wagon on North Woodford Street in Decatur, and his staff serve many popular items straight from the fryer, including mozzarella cheese sticks, beer battered onion rings, cod fish, shrimp and, their very popular fried chicken.

A couple of months ago, when the price was still OK, I was paying about 26 bucks a box, Jordan said. Then it went $30, then $32, then $34, and now its $41.

A box of oil used to cook The Wagons food is about five gallons. I buy about 18 a week, Jordan said.

According to the global news agency Reuters, the most used edible oil throughout the world is palm oil. A labor shortage in Malaysia has been to blame for a portion of the problems. The Southeastern Asian country, along with Indonesia, make up for 84% of global production of palm oil.

A December 2020 news release on the topic from ReasearchAndMarkets.com also noted the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Due to the current novel coronavirus infection outbreak, the edible oil refineries have experienced a downfall in their operating capacity to around 50%. This is mainly attributed to the deficiency of raw materials along with delays in the import clearance. The decrease in the operating capacity is also related to the lockdown measures that resulted in the delayed harvesting of certain oilseeds, for instance, mustard seeds in India."

Jordan refuses to follow the markets lead and hasnt changed prices or portions, although the price of cooking oil continues to go up.

I havent done anything, he said. I just absorb it.

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Renad Qattoum and her family serve fish and other fried items at their restaurant Big Sharks Fish and Chicken on East Prairie Avenue in Decatur. The restaurant opened in November 2019, months before the pandemic limited the operation of most businesses. Qattoum said her family was ready.

Ever since COVID, they were talking about the high prices, she said.

Sharks menu prices have changed several times since the restaurant opened. About a month ago, we had to do about three changes on our menu, Qattoum said.

Along with the fish and chicken, popular fried items include mushrooms, okra, hush puppies and French fries.

Unlike other restaurants, Sharks business has grown, according to Qattoum. We are used to people calling in their order, coming in real quick, she said. People love fish and chicken.

Whether they are busy or not, many restaurants face challenges when ordering supplies and food. So we always over-order when its available, Qattoum said.

Restaurant owners and managers work with various supply companies, even for the oil, to outsource the best products and prices. Their suppliers often suggest the businesses raise the prices on their products to offset the increasing supply costs.

Brumleve doesnt feel comfortable with this suggestion.

You are constantly competing to have the lowest food prices and the best quality food, he said. At some point, you have to make a choice, do I raise my prices or do I change my quality.

Restaurant managers and staff struggle with this decision.

But in every case, we just eat it (the cost), Brumleve said. Because the most important thing for us is our customers being happy.

Contact Donnette Beckett at (217) 421-6983. Follow her on Twitter: @donnettebHR

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DECATUR  A barn raising will be held at this year's Farm Progress Show that will benefit Richland Community College's agriculture program.

FBi Buildings will use the barn raising to showcase its new building process, which uses hydraulic cylinders, I-beams, scissors lift technology, and safety nets, allowing its crew to assemble a complete roof on the ground, build and attach the wall frames with hinges, and raise the entire structure into place hydraulically in about 15 minutes.

Matt Jungmann, national shows director for Farm Progress, said, This is the biggest innovation in pole building since the pole. Its a totally different way to construct the pole building. Im thinking this will be one of the cant-miss things of the show in 2021.

Richland has not yet chosen a permanent site for the new building, but plans are for it to be in place and ready for use by fall 2022. The base cost is $25 per square foot and the board of trustees has approved funding up to $300,000.

Richland offers an associate in arts/science degree in agriculture for transfer, and associate in applied science degrees in agribusiness, crop science and horticulture. The building will provide added space for classrooms and laboratories.

Contact Valerie Wells at (217) 421-7982. Follow her on Twitter: @modgirlreporter

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DECATUR  Decatur Public Schools will offer an extended day program beginning in the fall, to help bridge the child-care gap and offer academic enrichment to students.

The target, said Ashley Grayned, executive director of innovative programs and strategic planning, is to have 50 students at each of the 13 sites, and she hopes for many more than that.

At their meeting on Tuesday, the school board approved a memorandum of understanding with the Decatur Education Association and the Decatur Federation of Teaching Assistants regarding staffing of the program, which will be available 6 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Certified staff will be paid for the extra hours at $33 per hour, non-certified staff at their usual hourly rate, and high school and college students will be paid $15 per hour. To staff the program, which will be offered at 13 buildings, will require one program coordinator, who will oversee the entire program; 13 site coordinators, one for each building; 39 certified teachers, three at each building; 26 non-certified staff, which includes teaching assistants and parent liaisons; and 26 non-certified staff, two per building, which can be filled with high school and college students.

The program is designed to be a safe environment for students before and after school, offering homework support aligned with state learning standards, and enrichment programs that include art, music, physical fitness, recreation, character education and service learning as well as academic activities.

"We're really reassessing the program, wanting to put a more targeted effort behind our attention on academics," Grayned said. "I'm very excited that DPS has worked closely with DEA and DFTA to roll out our extended day program. The whole goal behind the extended day program is a bridge between child care and resources for DPS and provide intentional academic support for students beyond the school day."

Transportation will be offered in the evenings, but not in the mornings, and not on days when schools are closed for holidays. The program will be free to all Decatur Public Schools students, including special education students, and meals will be provided. The hope is to kick off in August, she said, with jobs being posted on Wednesday, June 23.

Board member Regan Lewis said the cost of day care is so high that offering this to families at no cost will be a boon to families who have been struggling with that.

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"I'm so glad to see that DEA and DFTA have bought in to this and I just want to say I'm supportive and so glad the district is doing this," Lewis said.

The district also plans to return to normal school days in August, with five days a week of in-person learning and regular school hours, following the Illinois Department of Public Health guidelines in place at that time. Currently, those guidelines would still require masks and social distancing as much as possible. Students in fragile medical conditions must request remote learning through the Student Services office, 217-362-3060. COVID-19 vaccines for ages 12 and older will be offered 5:30 to 7 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday, July 6 and July 8, in cooperation with the Macon County Health Department. Children under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.

Superintendent Paul Fregeau said districts have asked the Illinois State Board of Education for specific guidance and have not yet received it. It's difficult to make concrete plans without that, he said.

A contract was approved for Interim Superintendent Bobbi Williams, who will work no more than 120 days between July 1 and June 30, 2022. Williams retired from the Decatur School District in 2019 and was named interim superintendent at the June 8 school board meeting, to serve while a search for a new superintendent is underway. Retired educators are limited as to how many days they can work. Williams served as a teacher, principal, administrator and as assistant superintendent and co-interim superintendent during her years with Decatur schools.

Williams will be paid $800 for each day worked, minus the usual deductions required by law. She will not receive payments into the Teachers Retirement Fund on her behalf, but will receive monthly insurance payments of $299 paid on her behalf, and travel reimbursement as approved by the board.

The board approved a contract with Hazard, Young, Attea Associates to conduct a search for a new superintendent for $24,950.

Teaching assistants who are pursuing certification as teachers will continue to receive their pay as teaching assistants and retain their seniority as long as they remain in good standing, and will receive a $500 stipend if they are hired as teachers by the district after completing the requirements. The district will pay for a substitute to fill in for teaching assistants who are fulfilling their student teaching requirements if those hours are the same as their regular work schedule.

Contact Valerie Wells at (217) 421-7982. Follow her on Twitter: @modgirlreporter

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DECATUR  Millikin University and Richland Community College have no plans to require students to have the COVID-19 vaccine to return to classes.

"We are not requiring vaccinations," said Shelby Baum, director of operations and events at Millikin. "We are just gathering information from students as best we can (regarding whether they've been vaccinated). We're not requiring it to come back to campus."

Millikin plans to return to a normal schedule of in-person classes and activities in the fall, she said.

Tracy Withrow, director of marketing and public relations at Richland, said much the same.

"We aren't currently requiring students to be vaccinated to attend in person," she said.

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A number of other institutions have already announced their plans to require vaccines for in-person classes, such as the University of Illinois, which is requiring vaccines for all three of its campuses.

No other public university in Illinois has yet announced that requirement, though several private universities have, including Northwestern University, the University of Chicago, Loyola University and DePaul University.

Nationally, more than 500 universities have announced a vaccine requirement, most of them private institutions like Cornell and Duke, though some are public universities such as the Indiana university system.

All of them will allow medical exemptions and students who continue to study remotely are also exempt.

While universities and colleges already require students to be current on vaccinations such as measles, mumps and rubella, some state lawmakers and two lawsuits so far argue that requiring a COVID-19 vaccine is unlawful due to the vaccines' emergency use only approval status by the Federal Drug Administration.

College Pulse's survey showed 71% of students believe universities and colleges have the right to require students to be vaccinated.

Contact Valerie Wells at (217) 421-7982. Follow her on Twitter: @modgirlreporter

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Brian Rock has a vision: He wants to make pizzas for people at natural disaster sites.

So when Rock, 29, of Merrillville, Indiana, heard about the tornado that tore through the Naperville area Sunday night, he packed up his dough, sauce and cheese and headed toward the wreckage.

Stopping at Woodridge  the first hard-hit community he came upon  he sprang into action, delivering his own brand of comfort: hand-tossed, gourmet pizzas cooked in his wood-fired oven. Over the next five hours, he made 72 12-inch pizzas and distributed them, free of charge, to anyone who asked.

It sure was fun, a tired but undefeated Rock said in a phone interview Monday night.

Rock, a U.S. Army veteran and co-owner of Elevated Pie Co., a year-old pizza startup, said that people in Woodridge complimented his pizza skills and donated hundreds of dollars to his disaster relief cause. On his companys Facebook page, one of his new fans wrote that she and her father were working on a damaged property until 9 p.m., and the pizza kept us going.

Rock, who served in Afghanistan in 2013, said the benefits flow both ways.

Even when its physically demanding, he said he finds making free pizzas a stress reliever.

This is my medicine, he said. This is my relief for PTSD.

Ultimately, Rock would like to raise enough money for a 24-foot enclosed trailer with a full kitchen, a sink, and two refrigerators.

My goal is to head down to the hurricanes and the tornadoes to just travel with the storms, he said.

Rock said his PTSD, acquired in Afghanistan, has improved over the past five years. He hasnt had a nightmare in years, and hes excited about his pizza company, which he co-owns with his fiancee.

Im much happier now and Im trying to stay stress-free, he said. Ive got a dog, and that helps out a lot. Its been a work in progress.

The suburban Chicago visit was his second solo trip to a natural disaster site. He provided pizzas in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, last summer after tornado damage. He works farmers markets to raise money for his pizza giveaways.

Rock said he learned about Sundays tornado via a news report he saw at the gym Monday morning. He called police, firefighters and the Red Cross to try to figure out where to go, but they didnt have any guidance, so he turned to the Snapchat app, where people were uploading videos.

He drove in the direction of the worst damage and stopped where he saw work crews.

He arrived in Woodridge at 1:30 p.m., and started making pizzas at 2 p.m., working until 6:30 p.m. and averaging 18 pizzas an hour, he said. Rock works solo, tossing crusts for some pizzas while he cooks others.

Reached by phone a few hours after his pizza-making effort, he said it was great to hear praise from Woodridge residents and questions along the lines of, Who does this?

Im dehydrated and tired, but I basically feel really good, Rock said.

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Lenoir-Rhyne University has hired Avery Staley as its first vice president for diversity, equity and inclusion. In this new role, Staley will provide leadership and will be instrumental in planning and implementing DEI initiatives and will serve as LRs chief diversity officer. Staley will begin his new role at the university on July 19.

Staley comes to Hickory from Livingstone College in Salisbury, where he has served the past six years in various administrative positions in human resources, corporate, foundation and governmental relations, HR compliance and as adviser to the president. In addition to his work in higher education, Staley has served as senior adviser and special counsel to former North Carolina Lieutenant Governor Walter Dalton.

I am very humbly excited to join the Lenoir-Rhyne family, Staley said. I would like to thank President Whitt, the board of trustees and the senior administration for this opportunity. At a time when diversity, equity and inclusion are rightfully on the national radar, LR has taken an intentional step toward addressing these issues. I look forward to working with students, faculty, staff and administrators to create a national model for DEI efforts.
After the riot, Lloyd described Jan. 6 on Facebook as the best day ever."

On Wednesday, she apologized to the court, her family and the American people, saying she went to Washington that day to peacefully show her support for Trump.

Im ashamed that it became a savage display of violence that day. And I would have never been there if I had a clue it was going to turn out that way, Lloyd told the judge. It was never my intent to be a part of anything thats so disgraceful to our American people.

In seeking probation for Lloyd, prosecutors noted that she was not involved in any violence and destruction or preplanning and coordination of the Capitol breach. Lloyd was invited by her hairdresser to drive to Washington to hear Trump speak, her attorney wrote in court documents.

U.S. District Court Judge Royce Lamberth said he was giving her a break, but didnt want others to think that probation  and not a stiffer sentence  would be the norm.

Legally, I could give you the six months, but is that really what we want our judiciary to do? the judge asked.
Weve all seen it: An image of a dairy cow and calf, standing together in a pasture, on the label of a gallon of milk or another dairy product. Marketers use pictures like this because they know it resonates with the people buying milk. The hitch is that this image does not reflect reality on most dairy farms.

That picture of a cow and calf together on pasture is not what the industry does, said Nina von Kerserlingk, a professor at the University of British Columbia, during the June Hoards Dairyman webinar. That is a risky place to be.

Consumers want to know more about the farms that their food comes from, and as they learn more, they have more concerns. Outside of North America, von Keyserlingk said cow and calf separation after birth is one of the hottest discussion points. People are asking questions about this, she said.



An alternative to leaving a calf with its own dam is to raise calves in groups with a foster cow. von Keyserlingk said she gets many questions about this practice, which would give a calf the opportunity to drink as it pleases directly from a cow.

Although farmers are considering this as a possible middle ground solution, will it meet consumers expectations?

In a University of British Columbia study, 1,500 individuals were given some background information on calves and then asked their opinion on four calf rearing systems:

1. Individual housing

2. Pair housing

3. Raised with a foster cow

4. Raised with the dam in a cow-calf system

Before the study, von Keyserlingk said she expected participants to rank cow-calf systems first, foster cows second, pair housing third, and individual housing as the least favorable. However, that is not what they found.



Instead, on a 7-point scale ranging from strongly agree to strongly disagree, participants did rank the cow-calf system as most favorable, with a score of 4.9. The other three options, though, all received similar scores (from 2.7 to 2.9).

Its all about separation, von Keyserlingk explained. They hate the fact we are separating the cow and calf. Based on these findings, she said she would not recommend putting money toward expensive research on how to make a foster cow system work, because it doesnt fix the problem consumers have with calves being separated from their dams at birth.

She shared a parallel example in the poultry industry. In an attempt to counteract criticism over battery cages for laying hens, millions of dollars were spent on research looking into furnished or enriched cages, and many egg organizations around the world transitioned to enriched cages for housing.



While each bird has more space, they are still housed in cages, and that seems to be an issue.

When was the last time you were in the grocery store when they talked about the eggs coming from an enriched cage? she asked the audience. She said cartons are labeled as either caged or free range  there is nothing in between.

We already see in Europe, bigger cages are just not acceptable by the public, von Keyserlingk stated. Millions of dollars were put into this research, and for what? For a system that never really resonated with the public.

Her advice to the dairy industry is to come up with a strategic plan and a vision for the future. This is something animal agriculture has to do, or someone is going to tell us what to do, she said.



To hear more on this topic, watch the June Hoards Dairyman webinar, "Reimagining the future of dairy  Maintaining our social license by improving animal welfare. The webinar was sponsored by the Dairy Cattle Welfare Council.





To comment, email your remarks to intel@hoards.com.

(c) Hoard's Dairyman Intel 2021

June 21, 2021
Lionel Kho of Dentsu has been named as Australia's top analytics leader. Photo: Supplied

Lionel Kho, vice president of data and analytics at Dentsu International, has topped the list of Australian analytics professionals in a year where women made up 40 per cent of the top 10.

Awarded by IAPA (Institute of Analytics Professionals of Australia), the rankings acknowledge the top 25 analytics leaders of Australia.

Data practitioners are now being elevated to C-Suite positions and creating an organisational culture for data practitioners to thrive is paramount, said Kho.

Furthermore, as a person of colour, I hope my own recognition inspires young data and analytics practitioners from a wide cross section of our community, and I will use this opportunity to continue to advocate for cultural diversity in executive leadership in corporate Australia.

In second place was Virginia Wheway, vice president, Data and Analytics, at mattress and furniture company, Koala, whose leadership of data projects for billion-dollar outcomes, delivering predictive analytics benefits to operations, and identifying additional online revenue flows during COVID received a nod from the judges.

It's an honour to be recognised as one of Australia's top analytics leaders, as it's a role and profession I've been passionate about for over 30 years.

I have been supported in developing and deploying Koala's first data and analytics strategy, as well as being an analytics change agent. It is refreshing for me working in a such a fast-paced environment with such a thirst for using data and analytics as koala moves from startup to scale-up, whilst also being able to have analytics contribute to that awesome customer experience it is known for.

Rounding out the top five analytics leaders are Brad Petry, Executive Director, technology and Insights, Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions, Alex Antic, Head of Data Science, Australian National University and Sally Smith, Head of People Analytics at National Australia Bank.

This is the most diverse set of entrants we have ever seen in the Top 25 Analytics Leaders, said Annette Slunjski, Managing Director, IAPA.

This is the first time we have seen someone from the legal profession enter into our top 10 and we are excited that we are broadening the recognition of data analytics in this country.

While there is a widely known gender imbalance in the industry, 40 per cent of the top ten are women, encouraging Slunjski that Australian businesses are well-positioned to navigate key industry issues of bias and ethics.

With a spotlight on advanced analytics techniques like machine learning and AI, its important for analytics teams to have strong governance and ethics guidance but its impossible to discuss bias and ethics without discussing diversity and having diverse teams in the discussion.

Forty percent is encouraging but we still need more women and more diversity in analytics teams, Slunjski said.

The 2021 cohort of top 25 leaders in analytics represents a range of industries including government, education, banking, retail and agencies.

Judged by a panel of leading analytics and business leaders, the 2021 IAPA Top 25 Analytics Leaders recognises excellence in four key areas: strategy and impact; influence and advocacy; innovation and improvement; and team growth and leadership.

IAPA, is the peak body for data and analytics in Australia, incorporating data analytics, data science and analytics-driven insights for better business decisions.

A complete list of the IAPA Top 25 Analytics Leaders cohort for 2021 can be found at iapa.org.au.
The government has added four new ICT jobs to the Priority Migration Skilled Occupation List (PMSOL).

Multimedia specialists, analyst programmers, software and applications programmers, and ICT security specialists are now on the list of 41 occupations that will receive priority immigration processing as Australia continues tight control of international arrivals.

The PMSOL was introduced last September to help address local skills shortages that had been exacerbated by COVID-19.

It initially included just 22 occupations with developer programmer and software engineer being the only two ICT roles.

Immigration Minister Alex Hawke said the list update was in line with what the business community needs.

Government has received valuable feedback from Australian business stakeholders on critical skill vacancies, which has been considered together with data from the National Skills Commission, he said in a short statement.

The occupation titles are defined by the Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) which contain some vagaries and anachronisms.

The multimedia specialist occupation, for example, is broad enough to include video game developers, graphic designers, and video content creates and specifies making content for CD-ROMs in its definition.

With the new PMSOL update, four out of five occupations in the software and applications programmers ANZSCO group will be eligible for priority processing.

These are the six ICT occupations currently on the PMSOL (ANZSCO code number in brackets):

Software engineer (261313)

Developer programmer (261312)

Multimedia Specialist (261211)

Analyst Programmer (261311)

Software and Applications Programmers (261399)

ICT Security Specialist (262112)

Band-aid solution

Industry was generally welcoming of the PMSOL changes but is aware that it will only act as a short-term solution to a larger skills shortage.

Georgia Higgins, CEO of Australian data analytics company itus, said the PMSOL changes are a step in the right direction but is concerned small business will keep missing out on the best talent unless more changes are made.

Hiring remote programmers has become a norm for small and medium businesses, Higgins said.

These skill sets are limited in Australia and the large companies snap up the skilled programmers quickly, pricing everyone else out so smaller businesses have no other option.

Tim Hill, founder of social media analytics company Social Status operating out of ACS River City Labs in Brisbane, agreed that the lack of local tech expertise has a negative effect on scaleups.

There isnt a big enough talent pool of software engineers and developers which forces people out to sites like Freelancer and Upwork and they end up spinning their wheels a bit, because it can quite hard to find good talent on these kinds of marketplaces, he told Information Age.

Hills experience running a startup has meant he sees the values in the research and development tax incentive scheme but wants to see it continue with more certainty.

That was a really big incentive to not hire outsourced offshore team. We hired locally knowing we would be paying more but it was okay with the tax offset, he said.

It seems like every budget theres questions about whether it will be reduced or cut in some way. I want to see a long-term commitment to that so we can invest in local talent knowing the incentives will continue.

Jon Lang, CEO of corporate IT training firm DDLS, said the government should do more to address what he called a lack of homegrown talent.

The COVID-19 pandemic has proved why relying on international sources of labour and materials is not always a favourable approach, Lang said.

In the long run, it will ultimately be far better for Australias economic recovery if we focus on boosting our own digital skills pipeline and creating a solid pool of homegrown talent.

ACS, which provides skills assessment services for the government, welcomed the extra PMSOL occupations but pointed out the ongoing gap in local talent.

Our 2021 Digital Pulse report highlighted the technology skills shortages faced by the Australian economy, forecasting that current trends indicate shortfall of 60,000 technology workers per annum over the next five years, a spokesperson said.

However, skilled migration is only part of the solution to the shortage and, with just 7,000 domestic IT degree graduates, encouraging students to study and boosting reskilling of existing workers will also be essential to meet Australias ICT needs.
Independent Sen. Angus King of Maine said the government needs to find a creative approach to helping Afghans who worked with the U.S. military. That could include sending more people from the State Department or the military to process visas in Afghanistan or evacuating people to a safe place to be vetted.

Its not only a moral issue, its a national security issue, said King, who sits on both the Intelligence and Armed Services committees, adding that we also have a practical responsibility, in terms of do we want people to help us in the future?

More than 300 interpreters have been killed in Afghanistan since 2016, according to No One Left Behind, an organization that advocates on their behalf.

Former Army Maj. Matt Zeller said a military evacuation is the only viable option for thousands of Afghans facing threats who have been protected by the presence of U.S. troops.

Im only alive because my Afghan, Muslim translator saved my life by killing two Taliban fighters who were about to kill me in a battle," said Zeller, whose interpreter waited three years for a visa.

The U.S. government should have learned from what happened in Vietnam, said Jim Jones, a Vietnam veteran and former Idaho Supreme Court chief justice.
FICTION: A rich, rewarding debut novel of female friendship set against the backdrop of the Bosnian war and its aftermath.

"Catch the Rabbit" by: Lana Bastasic; Restless Books (256 pages, $18)



By the beginning of 1992, the dissolution of Yugoslavia was well underway. Slovenia, Macedonia and Croatia had declared their independence, and soon Bosnia and Herzegovina would do the same. Most Americans remember the ensuing Bosnian war, if they remember it at all, for its monstrous moments, while the day-to-day costs of the nearly four-year conflict have been largely forgotten.

"Catch the Rabbit," the spectacular debut novel from the Yugoslavian-born Lana Bastasic, uses these quieter consequences of the war and its aftermath to bolster a fantastically genuine yet gently fantastical story of female friendship.

Growing up in 1980s Yugoslavia, Sara and Lejla were inseparable, but they haven't spoken in the 12 years since graduating from college. Sara, a writer and the novel's narrator, moved to Dublin, where she lives with her boyfriend and frets over trifles like her avocado tree. Lejla got married, dyed her hair white and moved to Mostar, where she works in a restaurant that caters to tourists.

When the novel opens, Lejla has called out of the blue to say that her older brother, Armin, who disappeared at the outset of the war almost 20 years earlier, is in Vienna. Sara, despite her misgivings, buys a plane ticket home.

The ensuing road trip from Mostar to Vienna allows the women to catch up and reminisce. The complexities of their friendship, from shared adolescent milestones to the day it all broke apart, are tenderly portrayed through Sara's interspersed flashbacks. The women reconnect slowly but incompletely during the drive, becoming "clumsily joined like two pieces of broken crockery, with a crack down the middle that could never be concealed."

Bastasic, who also translated the book into English, is a glorious writer, approaching even familiar emotions with a unique vibrancy, and if "Catch the Rabbit" simply followed Sara and Lejla as they drove from, say, Minneapolis to St. Louis, it would still be well worth your time.

But the novel's true brilliance lies in the many ways that the war, though rarely explicitly named, infuses and enhances every aspect of Sara's narration. When it began, she was 12 years old, and she remembers how "I would lie to foreigners later on. I was too little, I would say, I wasn't even aware of what was going on. But that's not true."

The legacy of violence is everywhere, from the tired riverside shrubs that ask, "Did someone die here? Did someone kill here?" to the light bulb "hung from the old department store building like an execution" to the women's hometown of Banja Luka, "a cold grave in the middle of our itinerary."

There is no historical hand-holding here, however, rather breadcrumbs that lead to unavoidable conclusions about Sara and Lejla's lives. And while readers unfamiliar with the war or the region may miss out on some of those insights, the main messages in this unmissable novel are clear: Ethnic violence tore apart not just a nation, but families and friends, and just because the fighting has stopped doesn't mean that peace can be easily achieved.



Cory Oldweiler is a freelance writer and editor.

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SULLIVAN  Chief Andrew Pistorius said the Sullivan Police Department has opted to not move forward with creating a canine program due to new state use-of-force guidelines for law enforcement agencies.

Pistorius said his understanding of the SAFE-T Act that Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed into law in February is that this criminal justice reform law will increase use-of-force guidelines on police canines being used to apprehend subjects. He said law enforcement agencies will be exposed to more legal liability for taking this action.

"For us being a small community and a small department, it's unfortunately not going to work for us," Pistorius said of creating a canine unit.

The Sullivan Police Department had planed to obtain a "dual purpose" canine that could handle apprehensions and drug detection, Pistorius said. Moving forward with a "single purpose" canine focused solely on drug detection would not be worth the training and operations expenses, he said.

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In February, the Sullivan Police Department put its first canine, Renzo, into service. However, the department reported that the dog died later that month due to a previously undiagnosed medical condition.

Pistorius said Sullivan will continue requesting assistance from canine units with the Arthur Police Department, Shelby County Sheriff's Office, Illinois State Police, and other agencies for its police canine needs.

"We do work well with other agencies. We do have access to that," Pistorius said. "We have those other options, too."

The Sullivan Police Department will return donations that it has received to help start a canine program and give that money to a charity, the chief said.

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Bob Timberlakes realist paintings of rural landscapes and everyday objects are instantly recognizable. But his artistic process is less familiar.

Beginning in July and continuing through August, Timberlake, 84, gives an inside look at how he goes from blank canvas to finished work.

The 50th Anniversary Art Exhibition at The Bob Timberlake Gallery in Lexington contains previously unseen pieces, many created by Timberlake within the past couple of years, as well as what Timberlake calls easel studies.

As he prepares to paint, Timberlake covers his easel with a piece of paper. Throughout the painting process, he fills the paper surrounding his canvas with doodles, quotes, observations, phone numbers of people he needs to call back  whatever enters his mind as he creates.

Because we had to wait a year, we had time to realize what this show was really all about, Timberlake says. Its an insight into how the artist thinks, or how I think.
He specifically and pointedly praised Forsyth County Sheriff Bobby Kimbrough Jr., saying that he and Kimbrough have worked closely together to figure out ways to stop the violence. The problem, Gist said, is that there arent enough people working to finding solutions.

The issue is that only a few of us are working, he said. Its going to take all of us to build ... get up everybody, teacher, lawyer, doctor, businessman, businesswoman, law-enforcement, city council member, you all have a calling to do more in this community and Im telling you now to get up or blood will be on all your hands.

Winston-Salem police have said the city is on track to surpass last years total of homicides, with 19 so far this year, including shootings and other forms of violence. The city had 13 homicides at this time last year.

In addition, as of Tuesday, there had been 98 non-fatal shootings in the city this year. For the same period last year, there were 66 non-fatal shootings.
Take a bow, UNC School of the Arts: A magazine that covers film, TV and entertainment has ranked the UNCSA drama school as one of the best in the world.

The Hollywood Reporter put the School of Drama at No. 4 in its recently published rankings of the worlds top 25 drama schools.

The magazine said UNCSAs four-year undergraduate program is among the premiere training institutions to offer a (Bachelor of Fine Arts) in acting. It also said the drama school was among the most innovative in getting its students on their feet throughout the pandemic, with a combination of filmed theater, radio plays and socially distanced in-person shows.

The magazine also noted two School of Drama alums: Anthony Mackie, who starred in The Hurt Locker and has portrayed Falcon in several of the Marvel Cinematic Universe films; and Billy Magnussen, who will appear in a pair of upcoming films: The Sopranos prequel The Many Saints of Newark, and the James Bond film No Time to Die.
HB312 and companion Senate Bill 306  both Republican-sponsored  closely mirror House Bill 863 from the 2019 session. SB306 has not been acted upon in committee.

The bills do not name Hege, the Republican sheriff of Davidson from 1994 until he resigned in 2004. His name was not mentioned during debate about the bill.

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However, Hege is apparently the only sheriff candidate in recent memory whom the bills would affect.

He pleaded guilty in 2004 to two felony counts of obstruction of justice after facing 15 felony counts. His convictions, though, were later expunged, meaning they were removed from his record.

Two Senate Judiciary committee members asked Wednesday about the fairness of barring someone with an expungement from running for sheriff while someone who is pardoned or received a pardon of innocence is eligible.

The 2019 version of the legislation moved quickly through three House committees in July 2019 before drawing considerable debate on the House floor.

There were enough concerns about potential loopholes that a motion to send that bill back to Rules and Operations committee passed by a 62-52 vote, with Democrats and Republicans voicing concerns.
Forsyth County reported two new cases of COVID-19 and no deaths on Tuesday, the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services said.

The case total is at 36,865 cases with the lowest 14-day average at 14. At least 94% of people who have had the virus in the county are considered as fully recovered.

Forsyth has had 418 COVID-19 related deaths, including 29 so far in June.

DHHS lists COVID-19 cases and deaths on the day they are confirmed by medical providers and public health officials, so people may have been infected or may have died days before their cases were counted.

Joshua Swift, the countys health director, said earlier in June that some of the deaths reported this month represent the case of us cleaning up old reports, so not recent deaths.

Dr. David Priest, an infectious diseases expert with Novant Health Inc., Dr. Christopher Ohl, an infectious diseases expert of Wake Forest Baptist Health, and Swift have said they remain concerned that Forsyth could experience clusters of new cases, particularly among unvaccinated individuals.

The infectious diseases experts have expressed concern that as the delta variant becomes more prevalent, it could become a spreading issue in schools this fall.
A High Point man accused of having his girlfriends body in a vehicle was arrested in Tennessee on Monday.

Michael Louis Cadogan, 24, is charged with abuse of a corpse. He will be served with warrants charging first-degree murder and concealment of death after he is extradited back to Guilford County in the near future, High Point police said in a news release.

Officers were sent to check on Cadogans live-in girlfriend, 19-year-old Gianna Rose Delgado, on Monday afternoon at Delgados apartment, located at 3942 2E Pallas Way.

Investigators allege Delgado was fatally assaulted by Cadogan and that he was driving to Tennessee to dispose of her body, police said.

Cadogan was arrested after High Point police contacted the Carter County Sheriff's Office and alerted them to the situation, said High Point Police spokesman Lt. Matt Truitt.

A Carter County deputy stopped Cadogan and took him into custody, Truitt said. He's being held at the Carter County Detention Center without bail.

A medical examiner positively identified the body as that of Delgado, according to authorities.
We are aware that today, with our release from prison, nothing has ended, Junqueras told supporters in a defiant speech. Prison does not scare us, it reinforces our ideas.

The Catalan regional president, Pere Aragones, and the speaker of the Catalan parliament, Laura Borras, also went to the prison for the separatists' release.

The pardon canceled the remainder of prison terms ranging from nine to 13 years over sedition and misuse of public funds linked to the 2017 banned referendum and a short-lived Catalonia independence declaration. But the separatists won't be able to hold public office until the end of their sentences and they could go back to prison if they break Spanish law again, the decree said.

Despite polls showing that many people in Spain were against the pardons, Sanchez has defended them, arguing that they are popular in Catalonia and that freeing the separatists will be a fresh start for relations between central and regional authorities.

The prime minister's office announced Wednesday that Sanchez and Aragones will meet in Madrid on June 29, exactly one week after the pardons, in their first encounter since the latter became Catalonia's regional chief earlier this year.
When seeing an animal trapped in a hot car  and they can heat up like an oven  it may be tempting to take immediate action by breaking a window. A better course of action would be to call local law enforcement agencies. Police officers, firefighters and rescue workers are authorized to break into cars if its deemed necessary.

Owners should also remember that their pets paws can be very sensitive to heat. If its too hot for a human to walk barefoot on a concrete sidewalk, its too hot for a dog, too. Best to do walkies in the morning or evening rather than at noontime. And a grassy patch or dog park is more suitable any time of day.

Last year, as we began sequestering at home, many saw the wisdom in adopting or fostering pets. Across the country, there was a significant uptick in the number of pets taken home, where they eased the isolation felt by their new owners and members of their families.

Organizations like the Forsyth Humane Society took thorough steps to facilitate adoptions and fostering while minimizing risky personal contact.

Unfortunately, some places are now seeing an uptick in people dropping their pets off at animal shelters. They include Guilford County.
Bryan Health officials said Tuesday that its comprehensive center for cancer services under construction in south Lincoln will be named in honor of a Lincoln woman who battled cancer.

The $45 million, 140,000-square-foot April Sampson Cancer Center is set to open in 2023. It's named for Sampson, who died five years ago after battling breast cancer, according to a news release.

Sampson's husband, John Sampson, president of Sampson Construction, and daughter Cori Vokoun and her husband, Dan Vokoun, both vice presidents at Sampson Construction, donated 29 acres of land near 40th Street and Rokeby Road for the future Bryan South Campus.

The Sampson Cancer Center to be located there will consolidate a number of services at one location, including treatment, care and counseling services for cancer patients.

The Sampson family said in the release they think April would be proud of the center established in her name and are glad to help centralize cancer care in one location.
A 19-year-old Lincoln man went to prison Tuesday for shooting his mother's ex-husband twice last August.

Alex Hernandez, who previously pleaded no contest, stood and faced the victim before Lancaster County District Judge Ryan Post sentenced him to eight to 12 years in prison for first-degree assault.

"I just want to say, Charlie, I'm sorry for everything," Hernandez said. "I wish this wouldn't have happened."

Just before 7 p.m. Aug. 6, Hernandez's mother called police and medics to the University Place home on Ervin Street, saying there'd been a shooting.

Charlie Sims, then 59, had been struck twice.

Police found clothes with blood on them in the teen's room, and they found a hidden gun.

Deputy Public Defender Webb Bancroft said Sims and Hernandez's mother, who were living together despite divorcing, had been in an argument that turned physical that night and Hernandez "foolishly had a gun."

He said he believes the gun went off during a struggle between Sims and the teen over the gun.
John Kotopka, 80, allegedly told investigators he was "exhausted and couldn't take care of her any longer" and was concerned about the financial burden if she were to go to a health care facility.

"On the morning of the shooting, defendant was in the living room with Janet, went upstairs to retrieve and fully load his revolver, went downstairs and shot Janet one time in the head," Koziol wrote.

Jackson said the couple was married for more than 57 years. Prompted and speaking generally, he encouraged those facing challenges caring for aging residents to seek out resources.

LPD is asking for tips from the public in the case, despite Kotopka being in custody.

We dont know what we dont know, Jackson said, including whether John Kotopka had planned his wife's death.

Angel Horton-Frank, director of communications for the Nebraska chapter of the Alzheimer's Association, said the organization's policy is not to comment on specific or ongoing situations, but there are resources for both patients and caregivers on their website.

She also said situations like this one are extremely rare.

In a statement shared with the Journal Star on Monday, family members said they were going through a difficult time and requested privacy.
The Journal Star will provide highlights from each of the four finalist's appearances  including coverage of their prepared remarks, question-and-answer sessions and pre-forum media availability.

Addressing crime prevention

In her post as a commander in San Francisco, Ewins works frequently in the city's down-trodden Tenderloin district  an area that she described as flush with people struggling with mental health issues and addiction.

The area, too, has a high rate of prostitution and drug crimes. And it is home to more than 3,000 children.

Ewins noted issues with a largely disenfranchised group of people in the Tenderloin  challenges that she said can push youths to turn to gangs for basic needs like food and protection.

It was there, in the Tenderloin, where Ewins seems to have molded her philosophy on preventing crime -- stopping it at its source.

"That means in schools; that even means when there's contact by our officers in which (youths) have made bad decisions, that they can actually recover from that bad decision," Ewins said, later noting the effects of trauma experienced by children in crime-ridden areas.

"Even though you think the youth are not seeing it, they're seeing it," she said. "We need to address that. Even in Lincoln, we need to address that."

Dealing with mental health patients

Jennifer Brinkman, Gaylor Baird's chief of staff, asked Ewins how officers should be trained to respond to mental health crises. The commander then revealed in 26 years of policing, she has undergone crisis intervention training twice.

"Is that right?" she asked the crowd. "Do you think I should be trained more? More often? Yeah. It's not one fix and done. It is continuous."

Ewins advocated for officers to practice greater patience in dealing with people suffering from mental health issues, only providing immediate intervention when necessary.

And, imploring an idea that has grown in popularity nationwide, Ewins called for mental health technicians to be available 24/7, but said officers should accompany the techs on mental health calls.

A balancing act

As law enforcement remains under a nationwide microscope, Brinkman asked Ewins how she would support the officers she leads while heeding community concerns about unequal enforcement of the law.

After pausing for close to 10 seconds, Ewins doubled down on her commitment to personally interact with residents who voice concerns about LPD.

Ewins pledged to investigate any officer-civilian conflicts with objectivity, rather than sweep matters "under the rug." And she noted those kinds of conflicts provide an opportunity of reflection for both officers and the public, calling for officers to report discord themselves.

"Everyone deserves an opportunity to be better," Ewins said. "Police officers make mistakes. The public makes mistakes. Everyone deserves to recover from that."
A Bellevue man has been found guilty of cyberstalking after he threatened to make public nude photos of the wife of a candidate for the Nebraska Legislature.

Dennis Sryniawski, 48, was found guilty Monday by a jury in the U.S. District Court of Nebraska. Cyberstalking is punishable in the federal courts by up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

The jury also found Sryniawski not guilty of a second charge, intent to extort.

A message left for Sryniawski's attorney seeking comment was not immediately returned.

FBI investigators determined that Sryniawski sent threatening and sexually explicit emails to Jeff Parris. Diane Parris of La Vista served as the campaign manager for her husband. Jeff Parris was seeking the District 14 seat in the Nebraska Legislature in 2018.

"We'd just like to say that we are happy that he was found guilty on that charge," Diane Parris said Tuesday.

Jeff Parris received emails in October 2018 from a man who Diane Parris was in a relationship with more than two decades ago. The emails demanding that Jeff Parris drop out of the race contained personal information about Diane Parris and included a nude photo of her.
Two teens charged in connection with a double homicide in Omaha who were caught in the Kansas City area tried to escape from custody  breaking a guards hip in the attempt, a prosecutor said Wednesday.

Terrance Moore, 16, and Lerajai Key, 17, appeared in Douglas County Court for the first time Wednesday morning. The two are accused in the June 3 fatal shootings of JiaQuan Williams and JaVondre McIntosh, both 17.

Moore has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder, first-degree assault and weapons charges. Key, who prosecutor Nathan Barnhill said was driving during the shootings, faces two accessory charges.

Barnhill said Moore also stabbed someone in the upper left chest during an altercation in a parking lot before the June 3 shooting.

About 8 p.m. that night, Omaha police officers went to 29th and Pinkney streets to investigate a report of gunshots. They found that both Williams and McIntosh had been shot.

Williams, who had just finished his junior year at Benson High School, died soon after being taken to the hospital. McIntosh, who had just finished his junior year in the Omaha Public Schools' Integrated Learning Program, died two days later.
An adult and child escaped serious injury after a vehicle landed in Lake Minatare on Saturday.

Authorities were called out to Lake Minatare Saturday at about 4 p.m. after a boater recovered an adult and child from a vehicle that had driven off north of the lighthouse at Lake Minatare, according to Justin Haag, public information officer with Nebraska Game & Parks.

Haag said the Nebraska State Patrol and Minatare-Melbeta Fire Department responded, with the fire departments dive team recovering the vehicle. A local towing company removed the vehicle from the lake, according to a video circulating on Facebook.

The identity of the adult driving the vehicle was not released by Haag, but he said the adult had been cited on charges of careless driving, possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and seat belt violation. Only minor injuries were reported, and neither the adult or child were transported for treatment.

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Breland Ridenour, an IT manager for Skarda Equipment Co. in Omaha, is on the 2022 Republican gubernatorial campaign trail along with University of Nebraska Regent Jim Pillen of Columbus and agri-businessman Charles Herbster of Falls City.

Sen. Brett Lindstrom of Omaha is still widely expected to join the GOP race.

Former Republican Gov. Dave Heineman is considering whether to enter the contest with a decision to come later. Heineman served 10 years as governor from 2005 to 2015 before being term-limited out of office.

Ridenour announced his candidacy in mid-May.

In a news release, he said he believes he offers Nebraska voters "fresh eyes, young blood and a 360-degree perspective."

Writing on his campaign website, Ridenour said he recently spoke against promotion of the controversial critical race theory at a meeting of the Douglas County Learning Community.

"This is the time to be vocal and active," he said.

"If critical race theory was indeed true, we would not have prominent people of color in our society today," Ridenour wrote on Twitter.

"Even the highest office in the U.S. was recently held by a black man, and then re-elected.
She holds a bachelors degree in biology and a masters degree in psychology and human relations. She is a graduate of Georgetown Universitys Legislative Fellowship program, which included a stint as an adviser to then-Rep. (and now Gov.) Tim Walz, D-Minnesota.

Most recently, Thompson was commander of the 380th Expeditionary Operations Group at Al Dhafra Air Base, United Arab Emirates.

The 55th Wing is the Air Forces largest, with 33 squadrons, operations groups and two detachments operating RC-135, WC-135, and EC-130 reconnaissance aircraft out of Offutt, Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, and several overseas locations. It has been deployed continuously to the Middle East since August 1990.

I am super-pumped to be part of a mission set that is undoubtedly the gem of the Air Force, she said. We are part of a special group of world-class, game-changing warfighters. As I look out, I look forward to the history we will continue to make.

Thompson will be the third 55th Wing commander to lead during a period of destruction and renewal that is transforming Offutt, remaking a base largely constructed during the 1940s and 1950s into a new facility for the 21st century.
Wednesday's conference saw powers involved in Libya recommit to refraining from interfering in the country's internal affairs and stating that foreign forces and mercenaries need to be withdrawn without delay  something on which there has been little progress.

Asked what guarantees the countries involved are giving to withdraw foreign fighters, Maas pointed to the fact that they had gathered for the conference. He said that we will not let up, and we will not rest, until the last foreign forces have left Libya ... wherever they come from."

He said Russia and Turkey, which have been heavily involved on opposite sides, understand that a withdrawal would have to be carried out step by step and added that it would have to be balanced, so that one side doesn't gain an advantage.

Mangoush said there was progress regarding mercenaries, so hopefully within the coming days mercenaries from both sides are going to be withdrawn, creating more trust and leading to further steps.
Sometime in March, cement barriers were placed in front of the Erickson Truck-n-Parts' entrance on Frontage Road, blocking the only way the owners could get in and out. The village is mum about what's going on, even after one of the Ericksons was cited for trespassing on his own property.

An attorney representing the Ericksons wrote in a letter to a Mount Pleasant official: "In Catch-22 fashion, my client has been directed to clean up its property, but its owners and employees are not allowed on the premises."
A bill to eliminate the states personal property tax, which businesses pay on equipment and furnishings, received bipartisan support in a Senate committee Tuesday.

The bill was recommended for approval by the Senate workforce committee 4-1, with Sen. Janis Ringhand, D-Evansville, the lone vote against the measure over concerns future Legislatures could stop providing local entities more state aid to make up for the lost revenue.

The budget committee last week voted to set aside about $202 million for such payments over 2021-23 biennial budget. However, officially eliminating the tax, which lawmakers described as an antiquated and unfair tax on businesses, would be done through separate legislation rather than through the budget process.

Both the budget and a standalone bill to end the tax are expected to come before the Assembly and Senate next week.

Itll be a great day when we can finally get rid of this tax, bill author Sen. Duey Stroebel, R-Saukville, said Tuesday.

Stroebel said the intent is to keep providing local taxing authorities with state money to compensate for the reduction in revenue. But Ringhand said she worried future Legislatures wouldnt keep that promise.
Other bills signed into law by Evers include the creation of a narrow exception to the existing ban on operating a drone over a correctional institute; requiring anyone on probation, extended supervision or parole in another state who moves to Wisconsin to provide a human biological specimen to the state crime lab for DNA analysis; and requiring a prosecutor to seek an order requiring a defendant to submit a test to detect the presence of communicable disease and disclose the results if a defendant threw or expelled a bodily substance at a public safety worker or prosecutor.

Police funding bill

On Tuesday, the Assembly approved a bill to mandate that any municipality that decreases the number of police officers, firefighters or medical first responders would receive a cut in state aid equal to the amount of compensation cut.

Municipalities that do not cut the number of officers would receive more in state aid and police departments with fewer than 30 officers would be exempt.

The bill passed on a 61-37 vote, with all Republicans and Rep. Nick Milroy, D-South Range, in support and all other Democrats against. The measure now heads to Evers, who is likely to veto it.
1. Yes. Its a serious public health issue; unvaccinated workers put others at risk.

2. Yes. Some colleges and school districts are mandating it. Its a necessary step.

3. No. Employees should have the option of getting vaccinated or not. Its up to them.

4. No. Some people have serious side-effects. Geting jabbed should be optional.

5. Unsure. Getting people vaccinated is important, but so is having a choice.

Vote

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The Best Little Floorhouse in Texas Your choice for flooring in Central Texas! Your flooring is more than just the surface you walk on  it's an integral part of your home. With over 35 years of flooring experience, The Best Little Floorhouse in Texas has the resources and knowled
UPDATE - 1:45 p.m.

KEARNEY - Fire at a large storage building at Aurora Coop east of Kearney caused an estimated $700,000 damage early Wednesday morning.

When firefighters arrived at 6540 E. 39th Street shortly before 2 a.m. they found the structure, used to store dry fertilizer, on fire, said a Kearney Volunteer Fire Department news release.

The fire was under control at 4:34 a.m., and is believed to have been an electrical issue, the release said. No injuries were reported. The structure was a total loss.

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Nine tankers, three engines, three grass rigs, three utility trucks and 49 firefighters from Kearney, Gibbon, Elm Creek and Pleasanton and paramedics from CHI Health Good Samaritan responded to the scene.

______________________________________________________________

KEARNEY  The Nebraska Fire Marshals office is investigating an early morning fire involving a structure at a fertilizer facility east of Kearney.

At 1:43 a.m. the Kearney Volunteer Fire Department was called to 6540 E. 39th St. for the fire. Firefighters from Gibbon, Elm Creek and Pleasanton also responded to the scene for mutual aid.
PRAGUE (AP)  Europes main human rights body on Wednesday demanded a thorough and independent investigation into the death of a Roma man who died after a Czech police officer responding to a call over an altercation knelt on his neck.

Police say the man's death last week was due to a drug overdose, and the country's prime minister backed their handling of the incident. But Roma activists reject the police explanation and are planning a protest rally on Saturday in the northern city of Teplice, where the incident occurred.

Some compare the incident to the killing of George Floyd, a Black American man who died when a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck, according to prosecutors.

The Council of Europe said in a statement Wednesday that the police action was alarming and raises numerous questions about the circumstances of this tragic incident.

The local branch of the Amnesty International and the government's envoy for human rights, Helena Valkova, joined the call for an independent investigation while the countrys deputy ombudsman, Monika Simunkova, said Wednesday she will launch her separate probe into it.

Three police officers were involved in Saturday's incident in Teplice.
Wisconsin is an important place for pollinators:

 54 of 72 Wisconsin counties are located within the breeding area prioritized for monarch habitat

 Wisconsin is a stronghold for the federally endangered rusty patched bumble bee and Karner blue butterfly

 Wisconsin is home to populations of 18 other at-risk pollinator species

Across the country and here in Wisconsin we are seeing unprecedented losses of once common pollinators, said David Clutter, Natural Resources Foundation Executive Director. We have a narrow window to take action to reverse these trends, and this project will be an important step to restore critical pollinator habitat in southern Wisconsin.

The grant and partnership are good news for pollinators in Wisconsin, adding to a growing list of pollinator habitat and monitoring projects the DNR has been pursuing on state lands, mostly State Natural Areas.
Kickapoogian Press of La Farge published a re-print of the 1948 book, The Story of Wisconsin Women, a few years ago, and now it is on sale for $15 at the Vernon County Museum as part of our womens suffrage commemoration. The book was originally written by Ruth De Young Kohler for the Wisconsin centennial. The story begins in the early 1800s and ends in the post-World War II period, and covers womens suffrage efforts here in Wisconsin.

Other related items for sale at the museum include Votes for Women sashes, and buttons in suffrage colors of purple, white, and yellow, plus the many beautiful handmade goods in the Stitching for Suffrage silent auction. The Vernon County Historical Society would like to thank all the people who donated their time and talents to provide items for the auction. The auction will be held at the Vernon County Museum through June 26 during regular museum hours.

On June 28 the museum will contact people with the winning bids. All items must be picked up and paid for (or arrangements made with the museum) by 4 p.m. on June 30. For any items not claimed by that time, the winning bid will go to the second highest bid and the museum will contact that person. Also on June 30, the museum staff will draw the winners of the four gift certificates from the names of people who donated items. Many thanks to Ewetopia and Quilt Basket for the gift certificates.
LOS ANGELES (AP)  Britney Spears asked a judge Wednesday to end court conservatorship that has controlled her life and money since 2008.

The dramatic request at a Los Angeles hearing came with her first words in open court in the conservatorship in its 13-year existence.

Spears called the conservatorship abusive, and condemned her father and the others who have controlled it.

I want to end this conservatorship without being evaluated, Spears said in a long, emotional and sometimes profane speech, in which she condemned the legal arrangement and her father, who has controlled it for most of its existence.

This conservatorship is doing me way more harm than good, she said. I deserve to have a life.

Spears said she wants to marry her boyfriend and have a baby, but the conservatorship wont allow her to.

About 100 fans from the so called #FreeBritney movement gathered outside the courthouse before the hearing, holding signs that read Free Britney now! and Get out of Britney's life!

Jennifer Preston, 33, crossed the country from Richmond, Virginia, to be outside the hearing because, she says, Im a mom and Im a fan.
Fort McCoy Soldiers and civilians looking to enhance their careers should consider seeking guidance and assistance from the 88th Readiness Division Education Center at Fort McCoy.

Our soldiers and civilian employees should use the Education Center to learn more about their educational benefits. Most have no idea of everything that they are entitled to receive, said Connie Schauer, education services specialist with the Education Center.

The Education Center serves the wider military community: soldiers, retirees, spouses, civilian employees and contractors.

We dont turn anyone away, Schauer said.

The education services specialists administer an array of military tests, including the Oral Proficiency Interview, Defense Language Proficiency Test, Defense Language Aptitude Battery, Selection Instrument for Flight Training (SIFT) and the Armed Forces Classification Test.

ROTC Cadet Morgan Schwittay, soon to be a senior at Ripon College in Ripon, Wis., used the Education Center to take the SIFT because she wants to commission into the aviation branch. She got the contact information for the Education Center from her ROTC battalion and set up a time to take the test.
MADISON  A La Crosse man accused of brandishing a firearm and threatening to shoot children last June was sentenced Wednesday in federal court to six years in prison for felon in possession of a firearm.

Almondo Baker, 40, was arrested by La Crosse police who responded to a report that Baker had made the threats and brandished a firearm while driving on Liberty Street, according to police.

Police located Baker near 1100 Rose St. and his car in Copeland Park. A loaded pistol and drugs were recovered during a search of the car.

Baker was released on bond but his case was referred to the U.S. Attorney, resulting in Baker being indicted in federal court in August.

He pleaded guilty in March to the felon in possession charge.

On Wednesday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary Corey requested an eight-year sentence, saying it was warranted by Bakers 11 prior felony convictions.

Those convictions include a conviction in La Crosse County Circuit Court for possession with the intent to deliver marijuana, substantial battery in Monroe County and felon in possession of a firearm.

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He also has convictions in Illinois and Florida.
While vaccinated individuals are now free to go without a face covering in many settings, even fully inoculated individuals were still required to wear wear masks while in La Crosse public schools at the end of the spring semester. Starting July 1, the School District of La Crosse will no longer require high school students to have face coverings indoors or outdoors.

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The DHS program will offer testing for individuals with symptoms, those who were in close contact with an infected person and those attending or participating in school events or activities. The testing can also be conducted on a routine basis for unvaccinated, asymptomatic youth or for testing large groups in the school following a COVID outbreak.

Participation in the program is voluntary, and schools and school districts that choose to participate are urged to follow the CDCs Operational Strategy for K-12 Schools through Phased Prevention and have access to both antigen tests and PCR tests.
Streamlining patient education not only guaranteed patients received the correct pre and post-operative instructions for joint replacement, but it ensured that patients would thoroughly be prepared for their surgical journey, says Sandra Elsen, management engineering and consulting at Mayo and co-leader for the ERAS project team. We implemented virtual total joint classes, the first offered in Mayo Clinic Health System for patients, along with expanded access to online educational materials and hands-on medication education. Because of these changes, patients became more engaged in their care and knew what to expect before the procedure, during the operation and throughout their recovery.

The team was able to surpass its goal of reducing hospital stay length for total knee and total hip replacements to 1.3 days, with the average stay during 2020 reaching 1.08 days and the length now being sustained at less than a day.

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Patients benefit from the program as they can recover in their own homes, feel more prepared, and have a smoother recovery. This leads to a better surgical outcome and patient experience for them, says Elsen.

According to Tradewell, readmission rates are at zero, without any negative impact to patient safety and post-operative outcomes.
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP)  A Maryland judge carefully focused on asking potential jurors Wednesday whether they believed they could be fair and impartial in weighing the plea of guilty but not criminally responsible by a man who killed five people at the Capital Gazette newspaper nearly three years ago.

Judge Michael Wachs said his goal was to have a jury empaneled on Friday in the high-profile case that traumatized the community in Maryland's state capital.

The judge emphasized that Jarrod Ramos already pleaded guilty to all 23 counts against him in 2019, but he has pleaded not criminally responsible due to his mental health.

Jurors in the second phase of his trial will be asked to determine whether Ramos lacked substantial capacity to appreciate the criminality of his conduct in a case that will be based largely on testimony from mental health experts.

After delays in a case that will be three years old next week, an initial pool of 300 potential jurors was chosen for consideration to fill 12 seats on the jury and several alternates. About 50 of them were already dismissed, based on their responses to a questionnaire.
An 80-year-old Lincoln man told police that he shot his 78-year-old wife in the head because she had advanced Alzheimers disease and he couldnt take care of her anymore.

John C. Kotopka told the officers that his wife, who he said had been diagnosed with Alzheimers about two years ago, had become extremely combative with him and other caregivers when they tried to help her with her basic needs.

According to a statement in his case file, Kotopka said his wife needed to be monitored constantly, and he said he was exhausted and couldnt take care of her any longer. Kotopka also said he was concerned about the financial burden if she had to be housed in a health care facility.

Janet Kotopka was taken to a Lincoln hospital about 6:30 a.m. Sunday with a gunshot wound to her head. She died early Wednesday, Lincoln police said.

John Kotopka was arrested Sunday on suspicion of first-degree assault and use of a weapon to commit a felony. He is being held on $500,000 bail and must pay 10%, or $50,000, to be released.
As of this month, an estimated 31 million Americans have health insurance either through ACA marketplaces or the laws Medicaid expansion, according to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services data. Just as significantly, the nation saw a drop in the rate of the uninsured for much of the last decade. Thats been true not just in Maryland where the ACA has been embraced but in red states that have only grudgingly accepted ACA perks such as broader Medicaid eligibility or the requirement that insurers cant refuse coverage because of a preexisting health condition. Yet too many Americans still lack health insurance. And during the Trump administration, there was an uptick in uninsured rates for the nonelderly from 10% in 2016 to nearly 11% by 2019.
Fred Prehn is an outspoken critic of wolves in Wisconsin, calling for the death 600 of the state's 900 or so wolves. He is also chair of the Natural Resources Board and plays a central role in setting wolf policy in this state.

This is the same board that allowed a hunt of wolves, using packs of dogs, just after they were removed from the list of "endangered" species, with 200 wolves slaughtered in a two-day killing spree.

His term expired on May 1, but he refuses to vacate his seat. Gov. Tony Evers has appointed a successor.

All Wisconsin citizens should be outraged at Prehn's refusal to vacate his seat.

Prehn does not represent the values of the majority of Wisconsinites who do not want to see wolves hounded to exhaustion and gunned down for the sake of trophies and bragging rights.

Wisconsin is the ONLY state in this country that allows hunters to use unleashed packs of their own dogs to hunt wolves and receive payment if their dog is injured or killed. Wisconsin has paid well over $500,000 to these so-called hunters having their own dogs do the hunting for them. This needs to end as well.
MILAN (AP)  The COVID-19 pandemic hit Italy especially hard, killing more than 127,000 people and sending the European Union's third-largest economy into a devastating tailspin.

Yet out of that tragedy may come solutions for decades-old problems that have held back growth and productivity  and with them, a new sense of stability for the euro, the currency shared by 19 of the European Union's 27 members.

Backed by 261 billion euros from the EU and Italian government, the country's plan for recovering from the pandemic calls for a top-to-bottom shakeup of a major industrial economy long hampered by red tape, political reluctance to change, and bureaucratic and educational inertia.

Leading the charge is Premier Mario Draghi, the former head of the European Central Bank, who was tapped as head of a national unity government specifically for his economic expertise and institutional knowledge both in Italy and the EU.

The challenge is formidable: Italy has failed to show robust growth in the more than two decades since it joined the euro currency union in 1999.

Execution of the recovery plan remains a risk given Italys often-fractious politics. But if they succeed with even half, it will have a big impact, said Guntram Wolff, director of the Bruegel think tank in Brussels.

A key target is keeping more young Italians from taking their know-how abroad, a perennial issue in Italy, which has one of the lowest rates of university graduates in Europe and one of the largest brain drains.

The plan aims to create eco-systems that would help scientific discoveries find their way into the market place, fueling startups and industry while creating career paths that would help retain educated Italians, many of whom leave home due to low pay and limited prospects.

Velia Siciliano, who heads a biomedicine lab in Naples for the Italian Institute of Technology, said the pandemic only underlined the necessity of strong domestic research centers.

She has spent large chunks of her scientific career abroad, building on her undergraduate and masters degrees in Italy with a Ph.D. from the U.K. and postdoctoral study at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She was named one of Italys top 10 women of the year for 2019.

Siciliano noted that Italy had already launched programs to stop brain drain with ad-hoc initiatives, but she said a key missing element has been public-private synergies that transfer research results into new inventions and innovations.

The truth is, if they dont nurture a system and if research doesnt also include technology transfers, it will be difficult to have a large number of Italian researchers returning to Italy, she said.

Universities failing to turn ideas into startups is just one of the chronic problems listed in the 270-page recovery plan. Others include too much red tape for businesses, lower levels of higher education than in many other developed countries, clogged courts, and low participation of women in the workforce.

The plan would fund efforts to tackle all of these: For instance, digitizing how people use public services to cut down on wasted time and paperwork. Using alternative dispute resolution such as arbitration to quickly resolve business disputes. Adding 228,000 day care and pre-school places to help get more women into the work force.

Of the 261 billion euros, the lion's share of 191.5 billion euros in grants and loans comes from the EU's recovery and resilience facility, part of the 27-country bloc's 806.9 billion euro pandemic recovery fund backed by common borrowing. Italy is the largest recipient because it suffered the most economic damage.

The recovery fund aims to promote long-term growth and recovery by funding economic reforms, efforts to fight climate change, and the spread of digital technologies.

The underlying problem: From 1999 to 2019, Italys economy grew only 7.9%, compared to 30.2% for Germany, 32.4% for France, and 43.6% in Spain. Slow growth has kept Italy's debt at a dangerously high level. The pandemic has pushed the debt ratio even higher, from 134.6% of GDP before the pandemic to 157.1%. More growth would mean a smaller debt burden compared to the size of the economy.

Right now, that's not a problem, since European Central Bank stimulus has driven borrowing costs to record lows. But rising borrowing costs threatened the country's finances in 2011. Italy is a concern for the entire 19-country eurozone since it is too big to be bailed out by the other eurozone governments, as smaller economies such as Greece and Ireland were during the 2010-2015 debt crisis.

Just an additional half-percentage point of growth would, over the longer term, make Italy's debt much more manageable, said Bruegel's Wolff.

It's the most important question of Europe's monetary union, Wolff said. The one critical issue has always been, if Italy doesn't grow, at what stage will Italian debt become a problem, not just for Italy but for the eurozone. 

Wolff said he was cautiously optimistic that the plan could bring about long-postponed change. The size of the support gives political leeway for the government to address deep underlying issues: "This is the first government in power in Italy that actually talks about the right reforms and has financial support from Europe to implement them, so I think there is reason to be optimistic here.

Francesco Di Stasio, a 37-year-old researcher at a top robotics center, has left Italy twice, but returned each time. He has degrees from Italian and British universities, has worked in both Italy and Britain, and has done advanced studies both at home and abroad in Spain.

Di Stasio says Italys problem is not that Italians go abroad  that is common in Europe and essential in the sciences. Now in a position to hire scientists for his lab developing light sources using nanomaterials, he says the real weakness in the system is the difficulty in attracting qualified applicants to Italy, be they Italians or foreigners. The question is more complex than salary.

While Italy has pockets of excellence  including relatively recent research institutes like Genoa-based Italian Institute of Technology, where Di Stasio works  what it is lacking are fuller ecosystems on par with more competitive economies like Germany, Britain or France, where researchers in scientific and technological fields can see places to jump every few years as they pursue a career path.

The doubt is more present. When I search for people, they worry about the future. They dont know how to access a career path in Italy, Di Stasio said. What plays against us is the perception we have of Italy.



McHugh reported from Frankfurt.
Doctors at the countys only pediatric unit have treated two children in Lancaster County within the past six weeks for severe lead poisoning.

Given so few children are tested each year and many parents skipped routine checkups during the COVID-19 pandemic, experts fear far more could be at risk.

You cant do a lead screening by telemedicine, said Dr. Frances Gross, chair of Penn Medicine Lancaster General Hospital pediatric unit.

Both of the children were younger than 3 years of age. One had a blood lead level of 52 micrograms of lead per deciliter of blood (g/dL). And the other childs blood lead level was 112 g/dL.

While no level of lead is considered safe, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has identified 5 g/dL as a level of concern.

The urgency, Gross said, is because one of the children with severe lead poisoning had normal levels just seven months ago.

Lead poisoning can be detected with a simple blood test, but only about 20% of Pennsylvania children are tested each year.

In children, lead exposure has been shown to result in a lowered IQ, an inability to pay attention and poorer academic achievement.

Gross, who has practiced in Lancaster County for more than 30 years, does not recall the last time a child in Lancaster County was diagnosed with such elevated lead levels.

The number the pediatric unit at LGH has treated in the past three years: Zero.

"It's a very broken system," said Gross, who last week participated in a virtual press conference to raise awareness on lead paint poisoning.

Canaries in the coal mine

Lead is fairly ubiquitous.

Its found naturally in soil. Its also in older water pipes. Pennsylvania law requires lead-free materials be used in constructions and repairs after 1991. And its found in imported candies from other countries as well as in certain products such as toys and jewelry.

But the most common source for lead is in homes built before 1978, when lead-based paints were banned.

Nearly 70% of the housing in Pennsylvania was built before 1978.

The kicker for advocates is that lead poisoning is completely preventable.

Good housing is good health, said Jordan Casey, an attorney for the Health, Education and Legal Assistance Project with the Foundation for Delaware County.

The problem  as state Rep. Michael Sturla, D-Lancaster, sees it  is identifying which homes have lead paint.

Sturla, who is a landlord, introduced a bill earlier this year that would require a housing inspector to conduct lead testing on housing units built before 1978. The proposed bill would also require the results to be publicly available.

Housing advocates say the bill, which does not yet have bipartisan support, doesnt go far enough.

Right now we dont even know where the places are, Sturla told LNP | LancasterOnline Tuesday. Were using children as canaries in the coal mine to identify where there are high levels of lead. That to me is barbaric.

Sturla added, noting his proposed bill is a first step, "The costs are enormous and they are lifetime costs."

Prevention, the only treatment

There is no cure for lead poisoning. And the damage is irreversible.

Joyce Ravinskas, program manager for the UPMC Pinnacle Lead Poisoning Prevention and Education Program, said she has seen a 35% increase for investigation referrals.

This is roughly the decrease the CDC found had skipped testing between January and May last year, compared to the same period in 2019. Released in February, the CDC study examined test results from 34 U.S. jurisdictions, and did not include Pennsylvania.

This is definitely attributed to COVID, said Ravinskas, noting she typically received 300 referrals a year.

Ravinskas added, Right now were seeing a lot more cases coming in because children are starting to come back for their wellness checks and theyre being tested for lead.

The CDC report did not collect socioeconomic data, but researchers anticipate a disproportionate impact for children from racial and ethnic minority groups or in economically marginalized families living in older housing. These groups have also been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the reports authors noted.

Nearly 9,000 Pennsylvania children are poisoned every year.

The only treatment for lead poisoning is prevention, Gross said during a Thursday press conference with the Lead Free Promise Project, a coalition pushing for one-time state funds from the American Rescue Plan to be used to remediate lead-laden homes.

Lead poisoning has been a longstanding issue in Lancaster County, with a number of schools identifying the heavy metal in their water.

The real issue, though, is housing.

According to the state Health Department, roughly half of Lancaster County homes were built before 1978.

Colleen McCauley, health policy director for the Philadelphia-based advocacy organization Citizens for Children and Youth, notes Pennsylvania children are poisoned at a rate 2.3 times higher than those in Flint, Mich., at the height of the citys water crisis.

The difficulty for counties like Lancaster that do not have a local health department is getting data in real time. The most recent information available is from 2019 and state health officials do not anticipate having 2020 data until the end of the year.

From a general perspective, I believe that a County Public Health Department would be a useful tool in helping to combat lead poisoning throughout Lancaster County, Democratic County Commissioner Craig Lehman said in a text to LNP | LancasterOnline.

County Commissioner Chairman Josh Parsons and County Commissioner Ray DAgostino, both Republicans, did not respond to requests for comment on the issue.
A volunteer surveys the ground at Lancaster Cemetery, carrying a big stick. Seeing a recess in the ground, the volunteer presses the stick into the dirt and listens.

Ping.

That sound is significant  the stick hit a veterans grave that has sunk into the ground. Over the years, the weather causes the stones to sink into the ground, or even break.

That ping has become familiar to the volunteers of the organization, Red Rose Blue Star Moms, who have found and identified over 1,200 veterans headstones at the cemetery; all part of a project to restore, repair, identify and honor the graves of each U.S. veteran buried in the Lancaster Cemetery in Lancaster city.

The cemetery is the final resting place of local veterans who served in the Revolutionary War and the Civil War and later conflicts.

On Saturday at 1 p.m., Red Rose Blue Star Moms will host a scavenger hunt-style fundraiser at the Lancaster Cemetery, located at 205 E. Lemon St. Teams of two to five people can register online at lanc.news/RedRoseBlueStarMoms at $15 per person.

Teams will solve puzzles located throughout the cemetery, and will also learn the history of some of Lancaster Countys most famous residents buried there  including painter Charles Demuth and Civil War general John Fulton Reynolds.

The idea for the fundraiser came from Red Rose Blue Star Moms first vice president, Maurene Learys daughter-in-law, Ashley Leary. She designed 11 stations  each centered on 11 notable people buried in the cemetery. Each station is an escape-room adventure puzzle for the teams to solve. It isnt a race, and the stations arent timed.

Even if you know everything about the cemetery  it will still be challenging, Leary said.

Funds from the event will be used to repair veteran headstones, in cases where the veterans have no family to request repair or replacement.

It brings awareness of who is buried within Lancaster Cemetery, said Lisa Colon, president of Red Rose Blue Star Moms. People can see the work that we have before us, the work that weve done and why we need to raise funds.

Honoring veterans gravesites

Identifying, marking, restoring and cleaning veterans gravesites at the cemetery is a challenging task.

As of June 7, Red Rose Blue Star Moms has found the graves of 1,262 veterans  18 of whom served in the Revolutionary War. Blue Star Moms volunteers began the process in the summer of 2019. They combed through handwritten cemetery records written in bound leather books to identify grave.

From looking at a map and going out into the cemetery and finding the grave site, it can take the team a half-hour to find one headstone.

Making it more difficult, Colon said there are some veterans buried there that did not want recognition as a military member for personal reasons, so their headstone has no military medallion. In those cases, the volunteers need a descendants permission to proceed with the grave repair.

Through help with the Daughters of the American Revolution, volunteers are able to trace back the lineage of some individual. Its a genealogy adventure, Leary said, to research the individual and find their descendants.

The group uses platforms like social media to find family members. Often, when they find the descendant, the family member doesnt know a family member is buried there.

The next phase for this project is to recover and restore the stones of veterans.

For the stones to be repaired through the Veterans Administration (VA), a family member needs to initiate the request. Family members can request the discharge papers proving the person was in the military. In some cases, the cemetery can also give permission to repair the stone.

Our goal is to be able to replace a stone if its been broken, but in order to do that, we need the family members to act on their members behalf, Colon said.

Whats rewarding is knowing that we have [over 1,200] veterans there, and now that weve been closer to finding out who they are, we place the marker and the flags. The next time we have a ceremony, or when someone comes through the cemetery, they see all these flags that werent there, Colon said.

The organization hopes to sell 100 tickets for the scavenger hunt, which will raise enough money to lift 15 stones. Leary says that the long-term goal is for every veteran to have a stone.

We have a duty as residents to remember those that have fought for our freedom, Colon said.

Red Rose Blue Star Moms

Colon and four other mothers started the Lancaster chapter of Blue Star Mothers of America Inc. in late 2018. She found out about Blue Star Mothers of America Inc. when her son, Israeli, was stationed at an army base in Fort Riley, Kansas.

Originally formed in 1942, Blue Star Mothers of America Inc. provides support for mothers who have sons or daughters in active service in the U.S. Armed Forces. Families hang a banner, called a service flag, in their homes window.

A blue star shows they have a military member currently serving in the military. Those displaying a gold star had a family member lose their life while in service.

Currently, membership in Blue Star Mothers of America is open to mothers, stepmothers, grandmothers, foster mothers and female legal guardians who have children serving in the military, guard or reserves, or children who are veterans.

The mission for Red Rose Blue Star Moms, Colon said, is to offer help and a support system to military families, veterans and the military members themselves.

That help can be anything from sending care packages out, to sending Valentine cards; like Valentines for Vets, Colon said.

During this process, Leary notes there is a lot of work left to be done to recognize and honor all of the veterans who are buried in the cemetery. The Red Rose Blue Star Moms presented a stone on June 13 in remembrance and honor of all of those who served the United States. That stone was donated by Weaver Memorials.

The groups work brings to mind the old military adage, Youre never forgotten.

It really should be None left behind, and none forgotten, Colon said.
A Lititz man is facing charges after police say he sexually abused two girls multiple times between 2008 and 2011.

Shane Ernest Richardson, 54, faces charges of aggravated indecent assault, corruption of minors, unlawful contact with a minor and indecent assault of a person under the age of 16.

Two girls reported the sexual assaults to Manheim Township Police on Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021, according to the criminal complaint.

The juveniles said Richardson sexually abused both of them over the course of three years, according to police.

The criminal complaint details some of the abuse Richardson is accused of, including:

- Inappropriately touching one of the girls while sitting on the couch watching television.

- Climbing into bed, "spooning" and inappropriately touching one of the girls

- Climbing into the bed where both girls were sleeping, lying in between them and inappropriately touching one of them.

Richardson surrendered to Magisterial District Judge David Miller on Monday and was arraigned on his charges.

Richardson is free on $50,000 unsecured bail, and is scheduled for a preliminary hearing at 9 a.m. on July 6.
Workers at Rose City Nursing & Rehabilitation intend to strike and will picket at the Lancaster city nursing home in July, according to a union delegate at the facility.

Rose City staff that are members of SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania voted Monday to authorize a 10-day strike notice, which means that at any time, workers can let their employer know they intend to strike, an SEIU spokeswoman said Tuesday. Legally, health care workers must give 10-day notice before striking.

Lashelle Robinson, a certified nursing assistant and union delegate at Rose City, said workers will picket at the 425 N. Duke St. nursing home on July 13. She said workers want a living wage, hazard pay and better staffing ratios. She said they also want to keep their current insurance.

Rose City is one of 12 nursing homes statewide currently negotiating separate union contracts.

Keystone Nursing and Rehab of Lancaster operates Rose City. Keystone shares the same Pennsylvania address as New York-based Priority Healthcare Group. Neither answered the phone Tuesday seeking comment, and an error message appeared when using the email address at Priority Healthcare Groups website.

We need higher wages so we can get more permanent staff in to care for our residents, Robinson said in a press release from union SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania.

On Tuesday, Robinson told LNP | LancasterOnline some aides at Rose City make $12 to $13 per hour, with some making up to $15. She said 58 people currently work at the nursing home and agency workers earning more than double and triple what staff is paid are being brought in to help with the staffing issue.

Residents need to know their caregivers and trust us, Robinson said. We just need more help so we can do whats best for our residents. How can you get permanent staff if they can make more money down the street at a convenience store?

Robinson said staff did receive $3 per hour hazard pay earlier in the pandemic, but workers are requesting that be a permanent benefit in a new contract. She said they also want to keep Highmark Blue Shield as their health insurance company.

As of June 15, 117 of Rose Citys 124 beds were occupied, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

As of Tuesday, 15 Rose City nursing home residents had died of COVID-19, according to Eric Bieber, Lancaster County chief deputy coroner.

Rose City was known as Lancaster Care & Rehabilitation Center until 2018, when Keystone Nursing and Rehab of Lancaster LCC began operating the facility. Prior to that, it was known as Golden LivingCenter Lancaster.
THE ISSUE: A Republican rewrite of Pennsylvania election law that would mandate voter IDs, alter registration and ballot counting deadlines and give conservatives auditing procedures they have clamored for passed the state House on Tuesday despite the Democratic governors veto threat, The Associated Press reported Tuesday night. House Bill 1300, a lengthy and complex bill, crafted after a series of committee hearings on the subject earlier this year, was sent to the state Senate on a vote of 110 to 91, the AP reported. Common Cause Pennsylvania, an organization focused on good governance, issued a news release projecting that HB 1300 would cost the state almost $92 million and would make voting more difficult. Common Cause expressed concern that the bill is being rushed through the legislative process, without time for careful deliberation or public input.

The majority of buzz and bustle emanating from Harrisburg this month surrounds proposed changes to the states election law.

The timing should strike us all as a bit odd, given that the deadline for the state budget is June 30, and that weve been given little detail about how lawmakers plan to address critical state needs while taking advantage of a multibillion-dollar surplus. The full General Assembly and the taxpayers who fund it should be given ample time to scrutinize and respond to whatever proposed deal is struck by party leaders for the 2021-22 budget. But it seems providing that opportunity is not a priority.

The timing of proposals to significantly change the states election law also strikes us as odd because the Nov. 3 election in Pennsylvania was free, fair and had record turnout. More than 6.9 million residents  nearly 71% of the voting-age population  cast ballots.

Those are incredible numbers, showcasing a robust participation in our democracy by motivated voters. Its an even greater success story, because it happened in the midst of a deadly pandemic that upended our lives and communities.

To be clear, the Nov. 3 election was one of Pennsylvanias finest hours, though that isnt to say it was perfect. We owe thanks to the elections officials and poll workers whose tireless efforts ensured that democracy did not falter because of COVID-19.

Thanks are owed, too, to the bipartisan foresight of the Pennsylvania lawmakers  most of whom are still in office  who passed Act 77 in 2019.

Carefully negotiated by leaders on both sides of the aisle, Act 77 wasnt perfect, but overall it represented voter-friendly, pro-democracy election reform. For the first time, it allowed any voter to cast a ballot by mail. It gave Pennsylvanians more time to register to vote, and more time to request and submit their mail-in or absentee ballots.

The birthplace of democracy hasnt always made participating in that democracy easy, we wrote in a 2019 editorial after the passage of Act 77. At long last, thats about to change.

So why the rush to change so much of Pennsylvanias election law?

We know the primary reason, of course. What Spotlight PA describes as a sweeping overhaul of the states election system proposed by state Republicans is part of the ongoing dangerous fallout of former President Donald Trumps false claim that the 2020 election was stolen from him.

Some state Republicans supported Trumps Big Lie last winter and some continue seeking ways to support it now, thanks to continuing pressure from Trump and his backers. On Tuesday, Trump again falsely stated, The 2020 Presidential Election was rigged!

Trumps lies and tactics continue to threaten the integrity of Pennsylvania politics and American democracy.

Tweaks, not an overhaul

Thats not to say theres no room for improvement to how Pennsylvania administers elections.

As we wrote, Act 77, while bolstering democracy in meaningful ways, is not perfect. And the Nov. 3 election was administered across the commonwealth in incredibly praiseworthy, but not perfect, fashion.

Pennsylvanias election laws can be improved in small but important ways. One oft-mentioned example: We advocate change that would give county election workers more time to precanvass mailed ballots  that is, to inspect, open and count them, but not record or publish the results. Officials of both parties from across the state have pushed for this change, too.

The Republican-controlled General Assembly should focus its proposals on a few targeted areas in which both bipartisan agreement and support from the public are found. These areas exist, but agreements cant be reached if the state GOP pushes for a sweeping bill full of significant changes that becomes easy for Democrats to reject and for Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf to veto.

John Baer, who comments on state politics for PennLive, wrote this June 16: What if, instead of the usual hard NO split between Rs and Ds over everything on the planet ... the Republican Legislature and Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf cut a deal on proposed changes to state voting laws? Im talking a Grand Bargain resulting in positive action with something for both. All it would take is some forward thinking and a dose of common sense.

That kind of compromise is essentially what happened with 2019s Act 77.

Baers idealism may be unrealistic in these bitterly partisan times, but at some point we must get back to having a functional state government that works on behalf of the people. We cannot let what divides us destroy us.

Lawmakers should consider the sentiment of Pennsylvanians, such as those expressed in the recent Franklin & Marshall poll finding that, as LNP | LancasterOnlines Gillian McGoldrick reported June 17, a majority of Pennsylvania registered voters say they support major changes to the states election law, including photo identification and signature validation rules.

The General Assembly would have to work together, however, to translate those voter wishes into reforms that dont infringe upon free and fair elections. Any proposals to change state election law must be crafted carefully to hew to these principles:

 Does this make it easier to register to vote?

 Does this make the act of voting easier and more accessible for all?

 Does this help our poll workers and elections officials?

 Are measures to make elections more secure implemented in such a way that they do not serve as an obstacle to voting? (We must remain mindful of past measures in the U.S. that have disenfranchised African Americans and ensure we are never complicit in such measures again.)

 Does this bolster participation in our democracy?

Additionally, we believe that state election law  and proposed changes to it  are sacrosanct. Which is to say they must be left in the hands of the lawmakers we elect to serve us. Election law should never be changed via voter referendum.

Our elections were secure before Donald Trump began regularly attacking their integrity prior to the 2016 election.

And they are secure now.

Any proposals to change state election law should proceed from the clear understanding that individual instances of voter fraud are incredibly rare and that there was no evidence of widespread fraud in the 2020 election.

Pennsylvania should approach this as fine-tuning, not a complete overhaul.
EIR LEAD EDITORIAL FOR WEDSDAY, JUNE 23, 2021

U.S.-Russia Strategic Stability Talks Moving, and Citizen Action for New Paradigm Makes All the Difference

June 22, 2021 (EIRNS)Official confirmation has been made that U.S.-Russia talks on nuclear strategic stability, mandated by the June 16 Biden-Putin Summit, are formally in the works; and there are critical expressions of support. What will make all the differenceas it already has to dateis to engage more and more citizens in active mobilization, as through the Schiller Institute process of dialogue, and in particular over the two days of international deliberation at this weekends conference hosted by the Schiller Institute, For the Common Good of All People, Not Rules Benefiting the Few!

Yesterday Russias Ambassador to the U.S. Anatoly Antonov announced that he has sent proposals to U.S. authorities for how the stability talks can proceed. He did this within a day of returning to his post in Washington from Moscow, following the June 16 Geneva meeting between Presidents Biden and Putin. Antonov said June 21,

All participants [left Geneva] with the hope that Russian-U.S. relations would stabilize. Certainly, we expect that tomorrow will be better, better not only for Russia and the U.S., but the entire world.... In the early hours of today, we sent our colleagues a series of proposals on the meetings, on the need to hold a serious conversation on how we will live together. We have no other option but to live without quarrelling on this planet. Thats because, as Russian President Vladimir Putin stated many times, Russia and the U.S. bear special responsibility for international peace and security. We should cooperate and there is no other option.

Later in the day Ned Price, spokesman at the U.S. State Department said that preparations for the first U.S.-Russia meeting were underway. The U.S. delegation will be led by a senior State Department official.

One strong view on how the talks should proceed comes from Russia, from Dmitry Stefanovich, an expert at the Primakov Institute for World Economy and International Relations. He stressed that there are two parts to the mandate of the June 16 Biden-Putin agreement. One is discussion on nuclear arms control. The second matter is bilateral dialogue for risk management to avert triggering war through accident or other exigency.

The danger from deliberately high-risk acts is clear from the latest NATO forward deployment plans. Next week in the Black Sea begins a NATO-Ukraine joint military exercise, Sea Breeze, involving more than 5,000 troops, 32 ships, 40 aircraft, and participation from 32 countries for 12 days (June 28-July 10). Right now, in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Royal Navys HMS Queen Elizabeth floats with its escorts and contingent of F-35B stealth fighters, ready for combat action in Syria and Iraq, ostensibly against ISIS.

Add to this war danger, the worsening conditions of both the pandemic and famine. There are COVID-19 surges in the Southern Hemisphere in South America and Africa, as well as new waves in Central Asia.

The extent of hunger and famine is increasing. Today, the World Food Program issued a release, 41 Million People Now at Imminent Risk of Famine, increasing the previous WFP estimate, up from 34 million, of the number of people who could die this year from starvation, without emergency aid. Executive Director David Beasley said, I want to emphasize just how bad it is out there. Today, 41 million people are literally knocking on famines door. The price tag to reach them is about $6 billion. We need funding and we need it now.

There is no natural physical constraint causing these terrible disasters. They result from decades of deliberate suppression of economic development by the London-Wall Street imperium, which now is imposing drastic reductions in energy, water, food, chemicals, industry, farming, and other basics, to bring about mass depopulation in the name of saving the planet.

But at the same time, thousands of people are stepping up in opposition. This weekends Schiller Institute conference is a rallying point in the mobilization for the world anti-Malthusian alliance.

Helga Zepp-LaRouche today described our situation as tense but promising. Among the points she remarked in her briefing was the initiative by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Today in Russia is the Day of Remembrance and Sorrow, on the 80th anniversary of the attack on the Soviet Union by Hitlers forces. Putin wrote a guest column published in today issue of the German weekly newspaper Die Zeit, titled, Being Open, Despite the Past. It could not more embody the mode of thinking and acting called the coincidence of opposites, conceptualized in the 15th century by Cardinal Nicholas of Cusa, and today advocated by Helga Zepp-LaRouche.

Putin concluded his article, addressing Europe specifically, but by implication the world in general:
Martha White Dies, Sparked 53 Louisiana Capital Bus Boycott

Martha White, a Black woman whose actions helped launch the 1953 bus boycotts in Louisianas capital city, has died. She was 99.

White died Saturday, her family and others confirmed.

White, then 31, was working as a housekeeper in the capital city of Baton Rouge in 1953 when she took action. After a long day of walking to and from work while seeking to reach her bus stop, she decided to sit in one of the only bus seats available  one designated for white passengers.

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When the driver ordered her to get up, White refused and another Black woman sat beside her in solidarity. The bus driver threatened to have the women arrested. Ultimately police, the bus company manager and a civil rights activist, the Rev. T.J. Jemison, showed up. Jemison informed the driver of a recently passed ordinance to desegregate buses in the city, meaning White wasnt violating any rules.

In response to the ordinance, bus drivers began a strike and the ordinance was later overturned. That prompted a boycott by the Black community in Baton Rouge.

Baton Rouge Mayor Sharon Weston Broome issued a statement Monday recognizing Whites contribution to the citys civil rights movement.

Martha White undoubtedly shaped our community in Baton Rouge, and communities across our nation, Broome said. We honor her legacy today and every day.

That boycott later helped provide the framework for the famous effort sparked by Rosa Parks that led to a bus boycott in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1955.

Ted Jemison, the son of the Rev. T.J. Jemison, remembered White as being outspoken and unafraid to share her opinion. He told The Advocate of a conversation he had with her years ago about that day. He recalled her telling him she just wanted to sit in that bus seat because she was tired from being on her feet constantly that day.

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Can you imagine working on your feet all day and just wanting to sit down? Jemison recalled White as saying. She was the same way from when she was young to when she was 90 years old. She knew that what she did was for the good of everyone in Baton Rouge.

We really lost a true pioneer for civil rights, said Jason Roberts, co-owner of the Baton Rouge African American Museum, speaking of Whites death, the newspaper reported.
Australia has criticized a United Nations plan to declare the countrys Great Barrier Reef in danger from climate change.

The U.N.s Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) proposed this week that the Great Barrier Reef be added to its List of World Heritage in Danger.

A UNESCO committee report said this week it had found that there is no possible doubt that the reefs collection of colorful corals was facing ascertained danger.

The Great Barrier Reef covers about 344,000 square kilometers of area on Australias northeast coast. It contains about 3,000 reefs, natural structures made by very small animals called corals. The reef also includes more than 900 islands. The reef has been listed as a World Heritage site since 1981.

A report by the committee said it found the Great Barrier Reef had suffered major coral bleaching events in 2016, 2017 and 2020. It blamed the events on unusually warm ocean temperatures. UNESCO said the in danger listing was needed to make sure action is taken to protect the reef from the effects of climate change.

Such corrective measures would likely include stronger rules to reduce pollution linked to greenhouse gases. Adding the reef to UNESCOs in danger list could also reduce the number of international visitors coming to the area to see the huge collection of colorful corals.

Australian officials said they were surprised and saddened at the proposal. This decision was flawed. Clearly there were politics behind it, Environment Minister Sussan Ley told reporters.

China chairs the UNESCO committee. But when asked about the issue in parliament, Ley would not say whether she thought China was to blame for the decision. Another Australian government official, however, told Reuters that China was responsible for the committees position. We will appeal, but China is in control, said the official, who did not want to be named.

In Beijing, a foreign ministry spokesman denied the Chinese government was behind the decision.

Ley said that she and Foreign Minister Marise Payne had called UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay to officially protest the proposed listing.

Some environmental groups praised the U.N. proposal. Imogen Zethoven is an environmental advisor for the Australian Marine Conservation Society. She told The Associated Press she welcomed the committees recognition that Australia hasnt done enough on climate change to protect the future of the reef.

The reef would become the first site to be added to the List of World Heritage in Danger because of climate change concerns, Zethoven added.

Richard Leck, a spokesman for the World Wide Fund for Nature in Australia, said the listing would come as a real shock" to many Australians.

In 2014, Australia was warned that an in danger listing was being considered. The country had time to react by developing a long-term plan -- called the Reef 2050 Plan -- to improve the reefs health.

But the committee said this week that that plan requires stronger and clearer steps toward fighting the effects of climate change.

Im Bryan Lynn.

The Associated Press and Reuters reported on this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the reports for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.

____________________________________________

Words in This Story

doubt  n. a feeling of not being sure about something

ascertain  v. to discover something

bleaching  n. a process, usually caused by warm ocean temperatures, in which corals lose algae and turn white

greenhouse gases  n. heat-trapping gases that warm the Earths atmosphere

flawed  adj. having a defect or imperfection
U.S. lawmakers, educators and students are among those pushing for all school-age children to be taught more Asian American history.

The Asian American Student Union at Farmington High School in the state of Connecticut is part of this effort. It organized a meeting after the killing of six Asian women in Atlanta, Georgia in March.

Lily Feng is co-president of the group. She thought maybe 10 or 15 students would attend. By the end of the meeting, however, nearly 100 people had joined.

When she saw the reaction of other students, she said she knew how much they wanted to learn about Asian American issues.

Feng said, Our Asian American and Pacific Islander community members, they want their voices to be heard. The student group has brought in speakers, had discussions and created lessons about Asian American history.



Illinois could become the first state to require public schools to teach events of Asian American history if the governor signs a bill that passed the state legislature in May. Lawmakers have proposed similar requirements this year in Connecticut, New York, and Wisconsin.

Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz is an Illinois state representative. She said she supported the bill because of increasing anti-Asian violence and language.

Gong-Gershowitz said she knew little of the discrimination her family had faced in earlier generations. She said she knew so little because it was not taught in school and her family did not speak openly about it.

She did not learn about the Chinese Exclusion Act until she studied at law school. The act was an 1882 law that placed restrictions on immigration from China. The law was withdrawn in 1943.

Gong-Gershowitz learned about the threat of removal from the country that the law represented for her grandparents. She said she understands that history is central to dealing with violence today.

She said, empathy comes from understanding, and we cannot do better unless we know better.

United States Representative Grace Meng is a member of the Democratic Party from New York. She has reintroduced legislation meant to increase the teaching of Asian American history.

The bill would require the Presidential and Congressional Academies to include Asian American history in their acceptance process. The academies offer history and civilian/government responsibility programs for teachers. The bill would also support including Asian American history on state and national tests.

Nicholas Hartlep is a professor at Berea College in Kentucky. He wrote a book about the way Asian Americans are shown in learning materials. He said Asian Americans are mostly not included in schoolbooks. He also said it is good to see legislation aimed at teaching history, but funding to support the requirements is necessary for them to make a difference.

The growing discussions of Asian issues have given support to efforts to develop learning materials for schools that explore Asian American history.

Some educators in the U.S. are creating their own Asian American history content. Freda Lin and Cath Golding are providing materials for teachers through Project YURI, an education group.

Jason Oliver Chang is a professor at the University of Connecticut. He has worked to provide support for the states legislation on Asian American studies.

He commented on what he thinks ethnic studies are. Its about teaching in a way that engages the studentwith the structures of power that shape their world, Chang said.

Im Gregory Stachel.

Annie Ma reported this story for The Associated Press. Gregory Stachel adapted it for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter was the editor.

Quiz- Legislators, Educators, Students Push for Asian American Studies in Schools Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz

______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

empathy  n. the feeling that you understand and share another person's experiences and emotions

fund  v. to provide money for (something)

engage v. to cause someone to take part in something, like a discussion


A top North Korean official Tuesday signaled that future talks with the United States were unlikely. The comments came days after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un talked about the possibility of opening talks with the U.S.

Kim Yo Jong is the powerful sister of the North Korean leader. She said in a statement that the U.S. has the wrong expectation about her brothers recent comments.

The U.S. is looking at the situation in a way to seek comfort for itself, she told the state-run Korean Central News Agency. She added that the expectation for talks with North Korea will lead the U.S. into greater disappointment.

Last week, Kim Jong Un said at a ruling party meeting that his country must be ready for both dialogue and confrontation.

President Joe Bidens administration said last month that it was open to talks with North Korea. But the administration added that North Korea must give up its nuclear weapons.

Jake Sullivan is the White House National Security Advisor. He told ABC News that Kims comments were an interesting signal but that he wants a clearer message from North Korea. He also said the U.S. wanted to restart negotiations with North Korea about its nuclear program.

This week, Sung Kim, the U.S. diplomat for North Korea, met with South Korean and Japanese officials on the North Korean issue. He said he hopes North Korea will agree to meet anytime, anywhere without preconditions.

Jenny Town is a Korean expert at the Stimson Center in Washington, D.C. She said Kim Yo Jongs statement does not fully eliminate the idea that diplomacy can restart. She noted that the statement appears to suggest its not likely for now.

North Korea has boycotted talks with the United States since 2019. Kim Jong Un and former U.S. President Donald Trump met in February of that year in Vietnam. North Korea offered to close a nuclear center in exchange for a lifting of sanctions. But Trump rejected the offer.

Since then, the coronavirus pandemic has made talks all but impossible. North Korea closed its border in January 2020. And it limited contact with the outside world including its main trading partner China.

Leif-Eric Easley is a professor at Ewha University in Seoul. He said the border closings have caused much economic hardship in the country.

At a meeting with senior officials last week, Kim Jong Un admitted that his country is facing a tense food situation. Easley said, These meetings are largely political theater to cover up failures of economic planning and oppressive social control.

Several foreign media outlets reported that North Korea is facing growing food shortages and high price increases. However, it is difficult to confirm the information. Most foreigners, including aid workers and diplomats, have left the country during the pandemic.

North Korea says that it has no coronavirus cases in the country. The claim has been widely disputed by experts. And an outbreak would be very damaging to a poor country with a weak healthcare system and a lack of medical supplies.

Im Dan Novak.

William Gallo reported this story for Voice of America. Dan Novak adapted it for VOA Learning English. Hai Do was the editor.

_______________________________________________________

Words in This Story

comfort  v. to improve the quality of (something): to make (something) better

disappointed  adj. feeling sad, unhappy, or displeased because something was not as good as expected or because something you hoped for or expected did not happen

dialogue n. a discussion or series of discussions that two groups or countries have in order to end a disagreement

confrontation  n. a situation in which people, groups, etc., fight, oppose, or challenge each other in an angry way

precondition  n. something that must exist or happen before something else can exist or happen

sanction  n. an action that is taken or an order that is given to force a country to obey international laws by limiting or stopping trade with that country, by not allowing economic aid for that country, etc.

outbreak  n. a sudden start or increase of fighting or disease
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that a high school violated a students free speech rights by punishing her for a social media post.

By a vote of 8-1, the nations highest court ruled in favor of Brandi Levy over Mahanoy Area School District in the state of Pennsylvania.

In 2017, Levy was upset that she did not make the top cheerleading team at the areas high school. She was selected for the second-best team.

Levy, who was 14 at the time, then posted on Snapchat an image of herself raising a middle finger, an offensive sign, and using bad language to criticize the school and the team. The action took place outside of school hours and away from the school grounds.

The Snapchat messages could only be seen for a short time. But the post was captured and shared with parents and school officials. Some students approached school officials about the post and were visibly upset.

School officials punished Levy by banning her from cheerleading for one year. They decided that her offensive action was related to cheerleading, a school activity, and disruptive.

Levy and her parents took their case against the school to court. A lower court judge ordered the school to let her back onto the team. But the school appealed the decision to a federal court in Pennsylvania and then the Supreme Court.

The school argued that it was permitted to punish Levy based on a 1969 Supreme Court ruling. The ruling in Tinker v. Des Moines protected students rights to protest the Vietnam War. But the court also said students could be punished for disruptive speech.

Justice Stephen Breyer wrote the opinion for the majority. Some might think Levys words were not worthy of the First Amendment protection of free speech rights, Breyer noted. But sometimes it is necessary to protect the superfluous in order to preserve the necessary, he added.

A lower court had ruled that schools have no authority over a students speech when it happens away from school grounds. But the Supreme Courts ruling is more limited.

Breyer wrote that the schools interests remain significant in some off-campus circumstances. He added, however, "When it comes to political or religious speech that occurs outside school or a school program or activity, the school will have a heavy burden to justify intervention.

Levy said she was glad the Supreme Court agreed that her school went too far.

Now, an 18-year-old college student, she told Reuters, "I never could have imagined that one simple snap would turn into a Supreme Court case, but I'm proud that my family and I advocated for the rights of millions of public school students.

Im Dan Friedell.

Hai Do wrote this report for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter Jr. was the editor.

__________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

disruptive adj. to cause (something) to be unable to continue in the normal way : to interrupt the normal progress or activity of (something)

superfluous adj. beyond what is needed; not necessary

authority n. the power to give orders or make decisions; the power or right to direct or control someone or something

circumstances n. (pl.) conditions that affect a situation, event or decision

occur v. to happen

advocate v. to support or argue for a cause or policy

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Lewiston, ID (83501)

Today

Mostly clear. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low near 65F. W winds shifting to SSE at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

Mostly clear. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low near 65F. W winds shifting to SSE at 10 to 15 mph.
A fee of $100 is due at the time of testing and will not be billable to health insurance.
Santa Barbara County Counsel Michael Ghizzoni received a standing ovation from the Board of Supervisors and staff during last week's meeting, his last before his retirement following 17 years of service with the county.

Ghizzoni was honored with a resolution and heard plaudits from his successor, Chief Assistant County Counsel Rachel Van Mullem, and supervisors during the June 22 meeting in Santa Barbara.

The resolution and speakers referred to Ghizzonisms, phrases he often used to describe situations the county encountered, conditions within county government and the obligation his office had to the county and its citizens.

Those included 12 hours is a half day, Fast, good, cheap: Pick two, You fix it, you fly it, We are an Oreo without the creamy middle and Three years from now, what will you wish the county did today?

Ghizzoni retired from a 24-year career with the U.S. Coast Guard and joined the County Counsels Office as a deputy county counsel in October 2004, working his way up to county counsel in 2014.

The resolution noted Ghizzonis emergency training in the Coast Guard allowed him to assist with many fast-moving, essential disaster response and recovery projects in a calm, organized manner, including the Tea fire, Jesusita fire, Refugio oil spill, Thomas fire, 1/9 Debris Flow, Conception boat fire and COVID-19 pandemic.

Mike often describes his approach in hearings as calm robot guy, Van Mullem said. And I think thats a side that many people get to see. But what often isnt known about Mike is that below that calm robotic surface, hes a positive, compassionate, caring person and hes also hilarious.

Van Mullem also repeated some of his Gizzonisms, which she said unknown to him she began writing down three years ago, and she related the impact he had on staff in County Counsels Office.

A few years ago we had an attorney retire, and at his going-away, he said that Mike made him a better attorney and a better person, and Id like to echo that now, she said.

Fifth District Supervisor Steve Lavagnino noted that as he read the resolution he realized how many disasters Ghizzoni guided the county through, how many times we could have just really ended up stepping on the land mines and youve navigated us through those.

Lavagnino said the "combination of a very sharp legal mind, very quick wit and the even-keel approach was exactly what we needed in that chair.

First District Supervisor Das Williams praised Ghizzoni for his work ethic and dedication, noting he didnt think he ever had anyone call him back while he was still leaving a message as often as Ghizzoni.

He also said Ghizzoni has this immensely powerful and vital sense of duty to protect what the county can do for the people.

Third District Supervisor Joan Hartmann also noted Ghizzoni had to butt up against difficult situations but also had the ability to keep the board legal.

You have such tender care for the county, the board, for us individually and for your staff that its really hard to see you go, Hartmann said, emotion showing in her voice.

She said he always showed tremendous pride in his staff, and that and his legacy is what will get the board through his retirement.
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Local

County moves forward in process to establish countywide polling locations

Angelina County is one step closer to establishing countywide polling locations after commissioners approved an application elections administrator Elizabeth Hawkins will send to the Texas secretary of state.

The new system would allow voters to cast a ballot for their appropriate precinct anywhere in Angelina County on Election Day. This is something already permitted during early voting, and early voting participation has far outstripped Election Day voting since at least 2016, Hawkins told commissioners.

The proposal would just extend the opportunity to election day, she said.

This application does not guarantee approval; Angelina County may not be one of the four counties with populations of fewer than 100,000 approved this election cycle, Hawkins told commissioners. But she intends to keep trying until the county has been approved, she said.

Five community members, including the Angelina County Democratic and Republican party chairs, spoke in favor of this application. It offers voters more opportunities to vote safely on election day, using the same system that has worked for thousands of county residents in previous elections.

I have no great profundity to share, except that I have had the honor and the privilege to serve Angelina County and the city of Lufkin as a clerk, an alternate judge and a judge for the elections; it has been an honor to do so, Elizabeth Girardi said.

I have also been on the receiving end of many an irate voter who has come to the wrong polling place.

She believes the current system is wonderful and easy to use, and it is able to recognize what precinct a voter is in and bring up the correct ballot for them, she said. But the voter is often already lost after being turned away from one polling location, and this does not maintain elections integrity, Girardi said.

The uniformity of the system will be a great asset to the people running the polls, she said.

Luan Tatum, the Angelina County Democratic Party chair, has been involved in running elections since she was 18, she said. She looked back on a time when the county relied on voting books and just how difficult the current proposal would have been under the former system.

Now, she said, they have access to all voters within just a few minutes and this allows voters to participate in early voting with little to no issue, she said.

She talked about a theoretical worker who lives in Zavalla but works in Lufkin. It may be impossible in some cases for that person to vote in their precinct on Election Day. This system would allow that person to stop at a polling place near their work and handle it on a short break, rather than missing the opportunity as a whole.

There is no negative as far as I can understand it, she said. We have the technology, we have the ability, it wont cost any more.

Michael McCracken joked that his points had all been spoken about by the previous speakers. He believes the proposed system is a benefit to the county  its better and more efficient. He believes this is the way of the future.

I am 100% in favor of countywide voting locations, said Donald Baum, the Republican County chair. Convenience is the big word. I think thats going to really bring a lot more people out to vote who havent in the past.

Connie Brown, the former county elections administrator, agreed with the speakers and sought to set minds at ease regarding the issue.

The system would work the same as it has during early voting  when voters can cast a ballot at any polling location  it just extends those benefits to Election Day and adds more polling locations. But the voting system does not allow voters to cast more than one ballot, regardless of the polling location.

Commissioners also approved a few polling location changes to offer easier access to voters and a sales order agreement between the county and Election Systems & Software for media burn capability software. The software would allow the county to run the elections without waiting on third parties to burn the necessary media to flash drives.

In other business, commissioners also:

 Approved the creation of a reinvestment zone for Azalea Springs Solar Energy.

 Allowed Chuck Brooks, the landfill supervisor, to go out for bids to construct Sector L at the landfill.

 Awarded East Texas Asphalt the contract related to a Texas Community Block Grant contract project to purchase oil sand materials for the Rivercrest Subdivision. The project does exceed the grant amount approved for the original project by $15,750. Commissioners also allowed Pct. 2 Commissioner Kermit Kennedy to move $15,750 from one budget to another to cover this cost.

 Permitted the sheriffs office to apply for and accept a reimbursement grant from DETCOG for up to $25,000 to replace the emergency 911 recording system.

 Listened to a presentation about the countys retirement plan based on recommendations by Ralph Wallace, the employer service representative from the Texas County & District Retirement System.

 Increased the monthly premiums for the Angelina County Employee Benefit Program.

 Renewed the Group & Pension Administrators as third-party administrators and renewed the Stop Loss Insurance Carrier for the countys employee benefit plan.

 Appointed members of the Deep East Texas Council of Governments Board for 2021-22.

 Reappointed Randy George to the Burke Center board of trustees for two years.

 Appointed County Judge Don Lymbery to the Angelina County & Cities Health District Board of Health representing Angelina County.

 Approved final plat of FM Highway No. 58 Estates No. 1.

 Approved the monthly treasurers report for May.

Approved budget transfers for:

 Road and Bridge Pct. 2, to move $15,750 from one hardtop roads account to another.

 The County Court at Law 2, to move $1,000 from trial transcript to visiting judges.

 The County Attorney, to move $1,000 from the telephone utility to dues and publications.
"The goal is to make sure at the end of the day that every single person has a chance to vote, but that we guarantee the confidence in the election, which has been severely undermined by the actions of a few over the course of the last election cycle  (which) hopefully are a thing of the past," Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, told reporters before lawmakers voted to approve the bills, which all previously passed the Senate with GOP approval.

Democrats slammed the legislation as part of a broader effort to discredit or relitigate the 2020 presidential election. The bills were "built on conspiracy theories and lies," said Rep. Lisa Subeck, D-Madison. Rep. Mark Spreitzer, D-Beloit, described them as "extremely anti-voter" and "insidious."

"Voting should be simple, clear and easy. Our elections in Wisconsin are squeaky clean. We should not be adding hurdles that make it more burdensome to vote. That is exactly what these bills will do," said Rep. Gary Hebl, D-Sun Prairie. "Were trying to present a solution to a problem that doesnt exist, and that is wasted energy and an exercise in futility."

Rep. Jodi Emerson, D-Eau Claire, accused Republicans of trying to change the rules because they didn't like the outcome of the 2020 election. Rep. Rick Gundrum, R-Slinger, disagreed.
Three years ago, following a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel investigation that uncovered allegations of inmate abuse and unsafe working conditions over several years at Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake youth prisons, Wisconsin lawmakers were unequivocal and united across party lines in their demands that the facilities were beyond repair and needed to be closed.

Coming together in both the Assembly and Senate to unanimously approve Act 185, a three-pronged strategy to close and replace the troubled sites in northern Wisconsin, the move was held up as the first step toward not just eliminating the abuses at the states only youth prisons, but in overhauling Wisconsins approach to youth justice.

Rep. Michael Schraa, R-Oshkosh, praised his colleagues on the Assembly floor just before the vote: "When we work together, both Democrats and Republicans, when we take the politics out of the equation in this building and we roll up our sleeves, we focus on producing a bill that can change lives in a positive way, those feelings will last a lifetime."

In a recent interview, Schraa recalled the bills passage as an emotional and connected and bipartisan moment. But in the three-and-a-half years since that moment, politics and partisanship returned to the process and the state repeatedly failed to carry out measures spelled out in the law.

Its very frustrating being one of the original authors of Act 185 and having all the time and energy and blood, sweat and tears put into it to see it just kind of fade from everyones attention, he said.

In addition to closing the youth prisons, located about 30 miles north of Wausau in Lincoln County, the bill envisioned replacing them with a combination of state-run sites for more serious juvenile offenders, county-run residential care facilities and an expansion of Madisons Mendota Juvenile Treatment Center.

But with just a week left before the July 1 deadline laid out in the law for closing Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake, there are no replacement facilities. One leg of the plan, the state-run sites for serious juvenile offenders who commit crimes such as murder or first-degree sexual assault, has yet to receive the full legislative approval needed to move forward.

That has created an uncertain environment for officials overseeing the two prongs of the replacement plan that are moving forward: the Mendota expansion and Racine Countys residential care facility. But the overhaul cant stand on its own without the state acting on all three legs.

You really cant just do one without the other and arrive at the goal of actually closing the facility in Lincoln County, said Rep. Evan Goyke, the Milwaukee Democrat who co-authored Act 185 with Schraa.

It could be another couple of years until the Mendota and Racine County sites are complete. In the meantime, the unmeetable July 1 deadline to close the youth prisons approaches and officials appear to have no plans to push back that legally mandated timeline.

Still, Mendota Mental Health Institute director Greg Van Rybroek remains optimistic, even as he acknowledged that the other parts of the plan are growing at different rates.

Those legs will grow, he said in an interview earlier this month. The fact that this leg (the Mendota expansion) is actually almost on the ground here will help those legs grow, and that will create a conversation that will be really helpful to making an entire system.

Green light for the Mendota expansion

Expanding the Mendota Juvenile Treatment Center, located on the sprawling state-owned Mendota Mental Health Institute campus on Lake Mendotas north shore, has been part of the states plan to close and replace Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake since the law was signed in 2018 by former Gov. Scott Walker.

Though funding for the expansion was included in the states 2019-21 biennial budget, it wasnt until last month that lawmakers decided to allow the facility to move forward with the project which, once completed, will house females for the first time.

The sudden restart means construction on a 50-bed addition to the existing facility isn't expected to begin until December, Van Rybroek said, and it will be several years until that process is complete.

Still, he said he was confident the forward movement will help the entire system snap into place.

The delay for the expansion, which includes 30 new beds for males and 20 new beds for females, has increased the price tag slightly, to nearly $66 million. Dane County Juvenile Court Administrator John Bauman said the expansion and addition of females to the facility, while long overdue, are very positive developments.

Its positive that MJTC is poised to expand; that will just help regardless of the (youth justice) model going forward, he said.

Under the existing process, male juveniles who exhibit certain mental health issues or are grappling with trauma and abuse that manifests itself in anger or other reactions are referred from Lincoln Hills to MJTC by the Department of Corrections. In 2021, the average daily population there has been around 19, according to a May memo from the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau. Capacity is 29.

But Mark Mertens of the Milwaukee County Health and Human Services Department worried the expansion would create a net widening effect, as additional youth who dont typically meet the clinical criteria for the current treatment model may be referred to MJTC as more space becomes available.

Hes especially concerned about girls who are prone to running away from non-secure facilities being funneled to the secure MJTC, a move he said would cause harm and fail to appropriately address the trauma they experienced.

If we build that sort of capacity, we will fill it, he said. And what well end up with is a justice system where the end justifies the means.

Van Rybroek acknowledged an expanded Mendota will probably see juveniles who wont be as severe as weve had for the last 25 years, the length of time the facility has been open. But he said officials would develop criteria to identify the youth most likely to benefit from treatment based on severe, persistent issues or pattern behavior that would be very problematic.

Noting officials would also be able to move any juveniles they determine dont need that degree of care back to Lincoln Hills, Copper Lake or another site, he downplayed fears that the expansion would result in a stream of youth who dont belong at MJTC.

I think those are, for me, false fantasies and they all have to deal with the stigma of mental hospitals and the idea that these hospitals dont do any good and that is because there is that image that goes back certainly to the late 1940s, he said.

Meanwhile, some advocates question how the facilitys expansion fits into the spirit of Act 185, which prioritized housing youth offenders closer to their homes and support systems, rather than sending them to a remote location in northern Wisconsin.

ACLU of Wisconsin senior staff attorney Karyn Rotker noted MJTC is still a large, secured institution.

Yes, there's mental health services, she said. But if its not a great idea to put large numbers of youths together in a prison and just sort of isolated from the community like that, its not clear that its a great idea to put large numbers of youths into a mental health treatment facility, either.

Van Rybroek stressed MJTC is only a piece of a larger (statewide) program and its not realistic to work with this kind of population without intensive psychiatric treatment that MJTC provides. According to the LFBs recent memo, treatment currently is reserved for males with the greatest propensity for violence and psychopathy.

This is designed with the idea of being of assistance or help to the entire state, Van Rybroek said.

Racine County alone in constructing residential care center

As Racine County forges ahead with its piece of the plan to close youth prisons, officials there see an opportunity to lead the state in addressing the needs of at-risk youth.

Racine is the only county moving ahead with the creation of a locally operated secure residential care center after three others, including Dane County, dropped out of the process last year.

Jonathan Delagrave, the Racine County executive, stressed the effort is not just a worthwhile endeavor but another pillar to what makes our county really, really good. Still, he acknowledged that one county alone cant shoulder the creation of what was originally envisioned as a new statewide approach to youth justice.

We want to be a leader in at-risk youth, he said. How counties treat their at-risk youth says a lot about priorities and what type of county they are.

The $40 million-plus project has faced roadblocks. Officials havent yet nailed down a location for the 48-bed, 70,000-square-foot secure residential care and detention centers, delaying their plans to break ground in May. Racine City Council members and Mayor Cory Mason, a former Democratic state lawmaker, have pushed back against plans to build it on county-owned property on Taylor Avenue in Racine. They argued in a past letter that the facility, when added to the Racine County Jail and the state-run Racine Youthful Offender Correctional Facility, would be too many incarceration facilities in the city, the Racine Journal Times reported.

Human Services Director Hope Otto said in early June the county is looking to kick-start construction in the coming months, meaning the target end date would be late 2022 or the beginning of 2023.

Over the course of the project, Racine County is poised to get $40 million in state grant funds. So far, according to state Department of Corrections spokesman John Beard, the county has been paid some $600,000 from the grant award for design and planning work.

In the meantime, Dane Countys Bauman said hes watching Racine County fairly closely as local leaders consider working with the state to fund a secure residential care center here.

Despite the efforts at Mendota and in Racine, its unclear how committed the state remains to fulfilling the promises of three years ago and closing its youth prisons, replacing them with closer-to-home facilities. In recent years, state lawmakers repeatedly declined to move forward with funding state-run replacement sites and delayed approving dollars for others, as in the case of the secure residential care centers.

Legislators have also refused to take action to release money for state-run Type 1 sites for more serious youth offenders. Though the Department of Corrections sought to construct two such facilities in Milwaukee and Outagamie counties, the Legislatures powerful Joint Finance Committee in February 2020 refused to act on the plan, an early sign the state wouldn't hit the July 1 deadline to close Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake.

Then, in early June of this year, Republicans on the Joint Finance Committee declined to approve $46 million to build a juvenile corrections facility in Milwaukee County. Instead, they designated $4 million for planning and development of the site, but didnt move to allow construction to begin.

To better understand the current statewide situation and Racine Countys place in it, Delagrave called for a really broad and transparent conversation on what exactly is going to happen with the states attempt to overhaul its approach to youth justice.

Delagrave still doesn't know whether other counties will follow through on their previous plans to build. If they dont, he questioned whether Racine County officials would need to create a bigger locally run site to take more juvenile offenders.

What are the solutions moving forward? he asked. I havent really seen or heard of that conversation.

But Schraa, the Act 185 co-author, stressed the need for between four and six regional care centers around the state to foster a closer-to-home model of youth corrections.

Deviating from that, he said, would mean were really not changing anything.

If you get them too big, theyre going to end up like Lincoln Hills, he said.

Dane County on the sidelines, for now

Though Dane County originally sought to operate its own secure residential care center, it was one of the three counties  in addition to Brown and Milwaukee  where officials opted to pump the brakes on their involvement.

Dane County envisioned expanding its downtown Madison juvenile detention center. But due to broader concerns over cost and whether the state was committed to improving juvenile corrections, local leaders backed out last August.

Bauman, the juvenile court administrator, said the county remains in a holding pattern as officials watch for more action on the state level and forward momentum on the other parts of the replacement plan.

I would like to think that if theres more movement at the state level with the Type 1 facilities and coming to the table to have a discussion about operating facilities in terms of finances and partnership, we would certainly be interested in having a discussion about that, but I cant say, if this happens then yes, were in at this point, he said.

Other county officials lamented the lack of a broader state framework to inform current and future juvenile justice efforts.

It's really unfortunate that we're in a place now where we have to react, and things are happening in a piecemeal manner, and there's no overarching plan, there's no discussion of what's best practice, what's the best way to serve communities, where should these youth be served and how  none of that, Milwaukee Countys Mertens said. Everyone may have a different opinion on that; there's no guiding principles around it, at this point.

The number of juveniles at Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake, which combined have a capacity of nearly 550, has significantly dwindled in recent years. As of June 4, 48 males and six females were housed there, respectively, according to the state Department of Corrections.

As of June 1, just eight males and one female from Dane County were at the youth prisons, Bauman said, and one Dane County male was at MJTC.

The declining population makes it more expensive for counties to send youth there. Through the end of the fiscal year, June 30, counties are charged a rate of $615 a day, or $224,500 for a full year, for each youth housed in the facilities.

Milwaukee County officials last year also put off accepting grant funds from the state to build a secure residential care center and Mertens said it plans to no longer house any youth at state detention facilities by the end of the year.

Officials, Mertens said, are also looking to find better alternatives individually for each youth to transition them out of state-run sites.

The efforts come as the county works to improve its Milwaukee County Accountability Program, an alternative juvenile correction option, and create a continuum of care extending from that model to other community alternatives.

Thats a contrast from a few years ago, when officials looked to participate in the secured residential care center process.

When we first started exploring this, we were talking about building 80 beds. We would have been widening the net at that point, Mertens said. Im actually grateful that weve had the time to really explore other alternatives and really start to understand what we can do and maybe more importantly what we dont need to do.

Beyond July 1

With the deadline for closing Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake looming, and no state-run replacements ready for the juveniles housed there, eyes are on the courts. Goyke, the Milwaukee Democrat, is among those expecting lawsuits to be brought by youth incarcerated at facilities that are statutorily mandated to be closed after July 1.

The situation also raises questions about where serious juvenile offenders will be sent, and whether judges would be inclined to commit youth to prisons that are supposed to be closed.

Beard, the Department of Corrections spokesman, said the agency will continue to accept youth at Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake until a new facility is funded and built.

This administration is committed to closing Lincoln Hills School/Copper Lake School, but there needs to be an appropriate replacement facility built, staffed and ready to accept youth before the schools can be closed, he said.

Schraa, the Oshkosh Republican, also remains committed to the plan, saying the state has to follow through because its the right thing to do for our youth.

The only people getting hurt by this are the youth involved in this tug of war, he said.

As for the replacement sites that are moving forward, Sen. Melissa Agard, D-Madison, said its up to lawmakers to ensure juveniles within the system are taken care of. Her district includes the Mendota Juvenile Treatment Center.

We need to make sure that there is oversight on what it is that happens and how it is that it happens and when it happens, so that we dont recreate a system  so that were actually solving problems; were not just moving it from here to there, she said.

While Act 185, the 2018 law closing the youth prisons, was focused on brick-and-mortar replacements and investments, Goyke said its now up to the Legislature to look at the structures that feed youth into those facilities.

That includes rewriting and modernizing the states juvenile justice code, updating conditions and criteria for secure placements and alternative programming and more, a process Goyke said could be worked out by bringing judges, prosecutors, defenders, advocates and formerly incarcerated youth into the fold.
Since the Trump administration hollowed out the IRS, those private equity schemes are never subjected to audits. There simply aren't enough auditors left at the IRS with the expertise to keep tabs on purposely complicated partnerships.

The revelations had Pennsylvania GOP Sen. Patrick Toomey, one of the architects of the law that cut taxes to the wealthy by more than a trillion dollars in 2017, defensively claiming: "My intention as the author of the 2017 tax reform was not that multibillionaires ought to pay no taxes. I believe dividends and capital gains should be taxed at a lower rate, but certainly not zero.

Awfully nice of him.

Vermont independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, who has spent a political career arguing for a fair tax system, said the report didn't come as a surprise to him. On the contrary, he declared, The rich have money, the rich have power, the rich have lobbyists, and the rich do not pay their fair share of taxes.
The cemeteries of Wisconsin are filled with the graves of Civil War soldiers who joined the struggle to end the original sin of the American experiment.

Of the more than 91,000 Wisconsinites who entered the fight, 12,216 lost their lives. Some were buried near the battlefields where they fell, along with other Black and white martyrs in the battle against slavery. But thousands of bodies were returned to the farmsteads, small towns and cities of Wisconsin for internment in cemeteries where, to this day, their gravestones are decorated with flags and medallions each Memorial Day.

For the Wisconsin Civil War soldiers who died in battle, and for those who lived to tell the tale of their service, the measures of victory came not on the battlefields of the war itself but in the transformation of their country from a place where human beings were enslaved to a land where the promise that all men (and women) are created equal might eventually be realized.
MADISON, Wis. (AP)  The state Senate approved a bill Wednesday that would make it easier to kill beavers and muskrats that are damaging roads.

Wisconsin law allows the Department of Natural Resources to capture, shoot, trap or relocate wild animals that are causing damage or a nuisance. But no one can open fire within 50 feet of the center of a road.

The Republican-authored bill would create an exemption from that 50-foot rule for government agents looking to kill beavers and muskrats that are damaging the road.

The Wisconsin counties and towns associations and the Safari Club have all registered in support of the bill. The Sierra Club's Wisconsin chapter is the only group registered in opposition.

The Senate passed the bill Wednesday on a voice vote with no debate. The Assembly passed the bill Tuesday on a voice vote as well.

Rep. James Jimmy Boy Edming, the bill's chief Assembly sponsor, said during Tuesday's debate that tons of beavers have moved in and are flooding roads by damming up anything they can dam up, no pun intended. He said shooters can't sneak up on beavers and muskrats because they're smart.
Patrons unhappy

Vickie OConnor, 58, of Madison, said shes been going to Jazz at Five for 20 years or more and is unhappy about the move, even if it ends up being for just one summer.

Its just being Downtown and the Capitols right there. Its just a beautiful view. Its a nice area, she said, noting that shed get something to eat from a vendor or Ians Pizza and then pick up some popcorn across the street.

She worries about how the loss of events will affect Downtown businesses.

I dont want to go to McKee Park and I dont want to go to these other places to attend the Downtown events, said OConnor, who works as a financial specialist for a home health care company. I want to go Downtown. These events are about being Downtown.

Ken Johnson, who runs Kegonsa Capital Partners, has been on the Jazz at Five board for 15 years, and his firm, which manages Wisconsin-based venture capital funds, has been a sponsor of the series even longer.

Johnson said the board had to make its location decision back in January, not knowing how COVID-19 restrictions were going to change. At McKee, he said, they were able to comply with all the social distancing guidelines.
In March, Eisenga pleaded guilty to creating a fake lease agreement and lease guarantee for a grocery store property he owned in Columbus. He gave the documents to Alliant as part of a loan application in 2017. Alliant told investigators it would not have approved the loan without the lease and guarantee.

In a letter to Conley filed on Wednesday, Eisenga blamed his own drive to succeed on behalf of his hometown for the lie he told when he applied for the loan with Alliant.

I made a simple miscalculation based on a combination of pride, success and an inflated self-image, Eisenga wrote. I violated one of the simplest principles of morality: When I committed this crime, I decided, wrongly and criminally, that the ends would justify the means. The ends do not, cannot and never will justify the means.

Eisenga believed the shopping center and grocery store would succeed, based on three optimistic market studies he had reviewed, he wrote.

I figured that in a couple years, I could refinance the fraudulent loan with a legitimate loan, Eisenga wrote. I thought to myself, nobody would ever know and nobody would ever be financially harmed. I also thought that I could preserve my self-image and my standing in the business and local community.
A fire Tuesday caused significant damage to an East Side home and heat damage to two neighboring properties, the Madison Fire Department reported.

Fire crews were dispatched to a structure fire in the 2500 block of East Dayton Street at 4:59 p.m. Tuesday and while they drove there they could see black smoke rising from the area from several blocks away, Fire Department spokesman Cynthia Schuster said in a report.

When they arrived at 5:06 p.m., they found heavy fire on one side of the house and began attacking it, while searching the house and finding no people or pets inside, Schuster said.

Fire crews also found high heat and more fire inside, including in the attic, attacked it and the fire was declared out around 5:30 p.m., Schuster said.

The blaze caused significant damage  no dollar estimate was available  to the home, and heat damage to two neighboring properties, Schuster said.

The cause of the fire remained under investigation on Wednesday, Schuster said.

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Federal officials have designated a huge swath of Wisconsins Lake Michigan coastline as a National Marine Sanctuary to protect historic shipwrecks in the area, Gov. Tony Evers office announced Tuesday.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will publish regulations designating 962 square miles from Kewaunee County south to Ozaukee County as a sanctuary, Evers office said.

The designation will protect 36 shipwrecks, 21 of which are on the National Register of Historic Places. Evers office says research suggests the area may include as many as 60 additional shipwrecks.

The designation is subject to congressional and gubernatorial review. Evers said his administration is really excited about the designation, according to comments posted on NOAAs website.

The shipwreck sanctuary would become the 15th marine sanctuary NOAA has established. The network encompasses more than 600,000 square miles of marine and Great Lakes waters. Then-Gov. Scott Walker nominated the Lake Michigan area as a sanctuary in 2014 but rescinded it in 2018 amid fears of federal overreach. Evers petitioned NOAA in 2019 to renew the nomination.
We had to do a lot of convincing to get the approval from the speaker to go on the trip, Murphy told WTAQ-FM last week. He made fun a little bit of the whole bamboo ballot issue, which I think that at the end of the day was really a nonissue and is just whats being used by the other side to discredit this kind of thing.

The Arizona audit  appropriately dubbed a fraudit on social media  wont be completed until later this summer by Cyber Ninjas, an unqualified and provocatively named company whose top executive is a Trump supporter.

Most telling is that the Republican-run Arizona Senate launched this witch hunt for fake ballots in late April over objections from local Republican officials in Maricopa County. The local GOP officials warned that the effort would undermine trust in elections and defame election workers. Arizona senators nonetheless pressed ahead, using a legislative subpoena to seize the countys ballots and voting machines.
Prater assesses each submission and selects five groups from various genres, working tirelessly to keep his promise: every year is different.

Born and raised in Twin Falls, Prater has spent most of his life in southern Idaho. After a short stint away from home, Twin Falls sense of community called Prater back, and in doing so, inspired his daughter and grandson to join him.

Not long after Prater returned to southern Idaho, he hit the ground running, excited to do anything he could to serve his community and meet more people. Since returning to Magic Valley, this drive has not been extinguished.

Thats why we do the events, honestly, he said. I always tell everybody when they ask why Ive been doing this for so long, its because I want my grandson to have a place to grow up, kind of like I had a place to grow up. Its important for me to be a part of these events.

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Its the community, he said, that gives Twin Falls Tonight the power to continue its legacy. Each concert is run by volunteers and the $5,000-per-night tab is paid for using community donations.

It takes a lot of community support and donations to make it happen, and the community supports it very well, he said.
Of every dollar of general fund revenue collected by the city, 27 cents goes to the police department. The Boise Fire Department receives 19.9 cents of every dollar. The Parks and Recreation Department receives 11.8 cents, while the library receives 5.4 cents and public works 2.8 cents.

Eric Bilimoria, a senior budget manager for the Boise Department of Finance and Administration, said a new state law limiting property tax collections tied to growth will cost Boise about $700,000. He said the city expects to collect $7.5 million less over the next five years due to the new law.

Rather than being able to assess taxes for 100% of the value of growth, only 90% can be collected. This reduces the ability of municipalities to maintain service levels when growth occurs, he told the newspaper.

Boise plans to boost the amount of revenue collected from property taxes the full 3% allowed, resulting in an increased cost of $42 for the average Boise homeowner. The average property tax bill would increase from an average of $1,122 to $1457, a $335 increase.

Bilimoria said most of that increase is due to the end of one-time relief involving federal coronavirus money, the diminishing value of the homeowner's exemption and the rate of growth for residential properties compared to commercial properties.

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2021 National Interagency Fire Center projects

$275,000 for replacing the outdated fire detection system at the fire centers hangar and repairing the HVAC system. This is being split with the U.S. Forest Service, which is contributing an additional $600,000.

$245,000 for repairing an aging stormwater collection system that is inadequate to manage stormwater in accordance with Clean Water Act requirements.

$220,000 for replacing two aging un-interruptible power supply units that serve a mission critical data center, and for repairing a failing subgrade, heating systems and finishes.

Other 2021 Department of Interior projects for Idaho include:
JEROME  The Jerome Freedom Fest is back for its fifth year.

After canceling last year because of COVID-19 concerns, the city and citizens are excited for the festival to return.

We took a year off last year and the community really missed it, City Administrator Mike Williams said. Its a good time, great food and just a festive and patriotic atmosphere.

The event will be held June 26 from 3-9 p.m. at the Idaho Central Credit Union Park and Veterans Memorial Park in downtown Jerome.

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Attendees will be able to enjoy food, life music and bounce houses for the kids, as well as take advantage of the local skatepark and splash pad on site.

Five different musical acts have been booked for the festival.

At dusk, head over to Jerome High School to watch the fireworks display. The show is expected to last about 20 minutes.

New this year is the Canyonside Christian Schools Freedom Run at 7:30 a.m. Runners are encourage to dress up in patriotic attire for the 4-mile run through downtown Jerome. A costume contest will be held to determine who has the best outfit.
And the report contained a number of recommendations for the Legislature. Eliminate courses that addressed social justice  which is to say, institute political control over the academy. Defund universities with such courses, universities such as Yenors own.

Yet, because Boise State adheres to important values of academic freedom  because it is more committed to freedom than the Legislature, the Idaho Freedom Foundation or Yenor  he still has a job. Boise State has created a faculty diverse enough to tolerate even members who lobby to limit what other members of the faculty can teach.

This is how it should be. Yenors students deserve the opportunity to think critically about his ideas. Academic freedom, like many other kinds of freedom, means tolerating a lot of stuff you dont like.

It is well worth noting, however, that Yenors continued employment is proof of the falsity of his claims. Can you think of another institution that would continue to employ a person who set out intentionally to reduce its revenue? Each one of Yenors paychecks is a concrete demonstration of Boise States commitment to academic freedom.

The next round of elections will be a choice between these two conceptions of freedom. One tolerates a wide range of views. The other wishes to stamp out all but one.

The Post Registers editorial board consists of Publisher Travis Quast, Managing Editor Monte LaOrange and editorial writer Bryan Clark. Clark can be reached at 208-542-6751.

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Two residents of the Collinsville district complained Tuesday night at a regular meeting of the Henry County Board of Supervisors about bonuses for the school board, real estate taxes and reversion as the six members on the board sat in silence and listened.

These bonuses our elected school board voted to give themselves, I dont agree with elected officials getting bonuses, and some are already getting free health insurance, Doug Stegall said. How do we know what they [school board members] do when we dont know how many hours they are working?

At a meeting last month the Henry County School Board asked the Board of Supervisors for permission to shuffle some money around in order to pay cafeteria workers a $1,400 bonus for working through the pandemic.

Iriswood District Supervisor David Martin, who is also a former Henry County school superintendent, pointed out that the $1.8 million transfer was split among three accounts and would provide a bonus to all eligible full-time and part-time employees.

Martin questioned if school board members should be qualified to receive the bonus when they had already been paid a $1,000 bonus in the same year. A Henry County school board member is not only an elected official but also considered an employee of the school system.
Henry County is proposing to build part of an interstate highway into the county that has been on the drawing board since the 1990s.

Henry County is working with Rockingham County [N.C.] to apply for a Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity [RAISE] grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation, Henry County Administrator Tim Hall at a regular meeting of the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday. This bites off a chunk of I-73.

The interstate, billed by leaders at the time as a potential economic savior to the region, is a thoroughfare that would extend from Myrtle Beach, S.C., to Michigan, passing through six states.

After almost 25 years, North Carolina has built more than 100 miles of the road  from the city of Rockingham, N.C., in the south to Madison, part of Rockingham County, in the north  but no other state has added to the project.

We presented a proposal to Rockingham last night, and they [commissioners] voted for it unanimously, Hall said. They are going to be co-applicants with us.
Council agreed to repay the commission over a 5-year period and took over ownership of the property that has a total assessed value of $161,800, according to the Martinsville geographic information system.

The city acquired the property and tried a few things, but nothing worked out, Towarnicki said. Mr. [John] Garland was interested in the building and Jim Turney.

Its an interesting proposal, and theyve done this sort of thing in Roanoke.

Along with multiple projects in the Roanoke area, John Garland is also behind the conversions of the old Fieldale High School in Fieldale and John Redd Elementary School in Collinsville into modern housing.

This [Fayette Street project] will be similar to some projects we have done at a couple of old car dealerships, Garland said. We are proposing 26 apartments, some makerspaces for $395 a month for hobbyists or hair salons.

There will be 11 commercial spaces, and Frith Construction will do the work, so the money will stay local.

Garland said the apartments would rent from $694 to $850 a month and will feel big, but still be small spaces catered to singles and couplesmainly younger people.
Rescue teams and regional river guides theorize that when the tubers went over the dam, they were pulled under water by the hydraulic force of the base water and drowned.

Brooks said there is a sign for boaters and tubers approaching the dam that mentions the availability of a portage to exit the river before the dam. This allows people to walk around the dams powerful currents.

Cates said last week that the four survivors were discovered near the dam, clinging to the tubes in the water and had been there for many hours. They were tired, very fatigued and had been subjected to the elements for 19 hours, he said.

None were wearing life jackets at the time they were rescued and it was unclear if anyone in the group was, Cates said. The four were treated at a local hospital on Thursday for injuries that were not considered life-threatening.

Considering the power of water and hazards of rocks along the Dan, Cates encouraged water enthusiasts to take water safety seriously and to always wear life jackets.

Pulliam agreed.

The biggest thing to remember is always wear a life jacket. They not only help you float, but give you protection against obstacles, he said last week. If youre new to the river, Id recommend a life jacket and a helmet. As for bad accidents, this is the worst in my memory.

Susie C. Spear is the editor of RockinghamNow. contact her at susie.spear@greensboro.com .
John F. Kerry, the special presidential envoy for climate, said only months ago that those losing fossil fuel jobs in coal and hydraulic fracturing will find they have a better choice of jobs either in the solar industry or as wind turbine technicians.

That was then. Now, a wind blade manufacturing plant located in Aberdeen, S.D., has announced it is shutting its doors permanently in less than two months.

The disappearance of Molded Fiber Glass will displace over 300 workers and their families. It marks another major loss of energy jobs in the state following President Joe Bidens halting of the Keystone pipeline on the first day of his administration.

MFG said in a news release that the closure will happen because of changing market conditions, foreign competition and proposed revisions to tax policies affecting the wind energy industry in the United States.

Since 2007, the Aberdeen plant has been producing wind turbine blades. The plant will remain in operation for the next two months until it has fulfilled existing orders.

A family member of one of the workers said they were informed of the closure about two weeks ago. Employees were completely taken off guard by the announcement. She was also perplexed by it. They should be swimming in orders right now, she said.
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

U.S. life expectancy decreased by 1.87 years between 2018 and 2020, a drop not seen since World War II, according to new research from Virginia Commonwealth University, the University of Colorado Boulder and the Urban Institute.

The numbers are even worse for people of color. On average, whereas life expectancy among white Americans decreased by 1.36 years in 2020, it decreased by 3.25 years in Black Americans and 3.88 years in Hispanic Americans.

The data will be released June 23 in The BMJ, a journal published by the British Medical Association.

Other countries also saw declines in life expectancy between 2018 and 2020, but the loss of life expectancy in the U.S. was 8.5 times that of the average for 16 peer countries. The declines for minority populations were 15 to 18 times larger than other countries.

"When the pandemic came, my naive assumption was that it would not have a big impact on the preexisting gap between the U.S. and peer countries," said Steven Woolf, M.D., the study's lead author and director emeritus of VCU's Center on Society and Health. "It was a global pandemic, and I assumed that every country would take a hit. What I did not anticipate was how badly the U.S. would fare in the pandemic and the enormous death toll that the U.S. would experience."

The U.S. death toll has surpassed 600,000, according to Johns Hopkins University's Coronavirus Resource Center. Excess deaths, which exceed the official count, may contribute to the impact of the pandemic, according to previous research led by Woolf.

Life expectancy trends in the U.S. were already "very worrying," Woolf said. Since the 1980s, improvements in life expectancy in the U.S. have not kept pace with peer countries. Around 2010, life expectancy in America plateaued and then decreased for three consecutive years. It continued to climb in other countries.

"The gap has been widening for some time," Woolf said. Then COVID-19 hit, and the United States had among the world's highest per-capita mortality rates. Black and Hispanic communities were hit harder than white populations.Woolf's paper is the first to show the significance of the widening life expectancy gaps. Previous reports only included data from the first half of 2020 and did not provide the comparison to peer countries.

"To give some perspective, when the decline in life expectancy was happening a few years ago, it was a decrease of about 0.1 years each year that was making front-page news," said Woolf, VCU's C. Kenneth and Dianne Wright Distinguished Chair in Population Health and Health Equity. "That's the kind of increase or decrease that we're accustomed to each year."

Woolf called the 1.87-year decline in life expectancy "massive" by comparison.

"It's like nothing we've seen since World War II," he said. "1943 was the last time the US had such a large decrease in life expectancy."

Six countries in the authors' comparison group saw their life expectancy increase during 2020places like New Zealand, Finland and Norway. Other countries did poorly: Italy and Spain saw losses in life expectancy. But none came close to the U.S.

"The disorganized handling of the pandemic in the U.S. had a lot to do with governance," said Woolf, a professor in the Department of Family Medicine and Population Health at VCU School of Medicine. "Our Constitution delegates public health authority to states, so we had 50 response plans. Many lives were lost because so many decisions were driven by politics and ideology. COVID-19 exposed a lot of the systemic problems that have been fueling the long-term decline in the health of Americans.

"And when vaccination gets us past the pandemic, and COVID-19 is in the rear view mirror, those systemic issues will still be with us," Woolf said.

Included in those issues are racial health inequities and the role of systemic racism. The most jarring statistic for Woolf was the data on life expectancy for Black and Hispanic Americans. It's well-known that COVID-19 had a disproportionate impact on people of color, but the effect on life expectancy for those groups was "jolting," he said.

Life expectancy in Black men in particular reached its lowest level since 1998.

"It's a big setback because, for many years, the U.S. had been making progress in closing the Black-white mortality gap," Woolf said. "And Hispanic Americans, for many years, enjoyed higher life expectancies than whites, but that advantage was almost completely erased by COVID-19."

Data on Native Americans, who also experienced very high death rates during the pandemic, was not examined in the study because of inadequate data.

"In many ways, the U.S. has turned a corner in its response to COVID-19, but the data emerging on pandemic health disparities is urgent and valuable in helping understand the impact on our communities," said Peter Buckley, M.D., dean of the VCU School of Medicine. "The life expectancy gaps between America and other countries and between racial groups reported in Dr. Woolf's paper are worrisome, and I hope the numbers serve as a wake-up call for the health care community and beyond."

Explore further Covid cuts Italy life expectancy by almost one year

More information: Effect of the covid-19 pandemic in 2020 on life expectancy across populations in the USA and other high income countries: simulations of provisional mortality data, The BMJ, DOI: 10.1136/bmj.n1343 Effect of the covid-19 pandemic in 2020 on life expectancy across populations in the USA and other high income countries: simulations of provisional mortality data,
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

France on Wednesday added Russia to its list of countries from which non-essential travel is banned, as concern grows over a spike of cases in Moscow due to the Delta variant.

Namibia and the Seychelles are also being added to the "red" list, government spokesman Gabriel Attal told reporters.

Russia, and especially Moscow, have been hard hit by the highly infectious Delta variant first identified in India in recent weeks, a problem compounded by slow take-up of vaccines even though the country has produced its own jabs.

As it seeks to stop the spread of potentially dangerous variants in the face of an increasingly successful vaccination programme, France has divided the world into green, orange and red countries for travel.

There are now no restrictions for vaccinated travellers coming from green countries, which include all the EU as well as a handful of other nations including Australia and the United States.

Most other countries are defined as orange, from where travel is allowed if a traveller is vaccinated and presents a negative Covid test on arrival.

Travel from red list countrieswhich already included Brazil, India and South Africais only allowed on pressing grounds and even then vaccinated travellers must self-isolate for seven days.

There has been concern over the rise of Delta variant cases in the UK.

The recent spike in cases there has been far less drastic than in Russia against the background of the rapid vaccination rollout in the UK, where 82 percent of adults have had at least one jab.

Still hospitalisations and the numbers of patients on mechanical ventilators, while well down from their peak, have crept up in recent weeks. There were 227 people requiring help breathing on June 21, up from 120 a month earlier, NHS data show.

Asked if France was considering adding the UK to its red list, Attal said: "We adapt our rules according to the development of the threat. If measures need to be taken for other countries, then we will take them. But at this stage I have no information to communicate."

Explore further Moscow to require anti-COVID pass to enter restaurants

 2021 AFP
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Increased risk of cancer due to a genetic predisposition in first- and second-degree relatives is long-established but has previously only been studied in white or European populations.

Now, a new study published in eLife is the first to demonstrate that the inherited risk of early-onset cancer is significantly higher among Latino and African American families for solid tumors, and Asian/Pacific Islander families for blood-based cancers, compared to non-Latino white families in California.

"Cancer clustering within families, meaning the devastating diagnosis of more than one early-onset cancer within the same family, usually points to a genetic cause. Interestingly, family cancer clustering has only been examined previously at the population level in white, or European origin population studies," says study author Joseph Wiemels, Ph.D., a member of the Cancer Epidemiology Program at the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, and professor of Preventive Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. "In this study, we looked at clustering of cancer cases in young family members in California over the past 30 years within non-white populations and compared it, for the first time, to white populations. We found that family-based cancer clustering occurs more frequently among minority populations."

Researchers used California population-based health registries to evaluate the relative cancer risk among parents, siblings and children of patients diagnosed with cancer by the age of 26. Between 1989 and 2015, they identified 29,632 early-onset cancer patients and then examined cancer incidence in 62,863 healthy family members. They found that overall, mothers and siblings of those cancer patients had a higher relative risk of early onset cancer. But when they looked at the role of race and ethnicity in genetic predisposition, they found that for patients with solid tumors, the familial cancer risk was significantly higher for Latino and non-Latino Black mothers and siblings compared to non-Latino white families. Asian/Pacific Islanders had a higher familial risk for blood-based cancers compared to non-Latino whites.

This study demonstrates the need for increased scrutiny on familial cancer clustering in minority populations. This information could help health care providers and genetic counselors offer more precision-based care and advice, particularly in the multiethnic populations that reside in Los Angeles County.

Explore further Inherited mutation linked to higher prostate cancer risk in African American families

More information: Qianxi Feng et al, Increased burden of familial-associated early-onset cancer risk among minority Americans compared to non-Latino Whites, eLife (2021). Journal information: eLife Qianxi Feng et al, Increased burden of familial-associated early-onset cancer risk among minority Americans compared to non-Latino Whites,(2021). DOI: 10.7554/eLife.64793
Morgan Stanley's vaccine mandate will apply to its offices in New York City and in nearby Westchester county.

Morgan Stanley became the latest big financial firm to require employees to be vaccinated at some company offices as corporate America adjusts workplace rules to the reopening US economy.

Starting July 12, staff of the investment bank as well as visitors and clients wishing to enter buildings in New York City and in nearby Westchester County must attest to being fully vaccinated, a person familiar with the policy told AFP on Wednesday.

The policy will operate on an honorary system and people will not be required to prove vaccination status, the person said.

The move comes as large companies grapple with new questions as the economy reopens and employees return to the office after working from home during the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Until recently, companies had been reluctant to require employees to disclose their vaccination status or to get vaccinated, even though US government officials have said it is legal to do so.

Employers can require vaccination to physically enter the workplace as long as companies provide "reasonable accommodation" under US law, according to May 28 guidance from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

An AFP survey of leading financial companies show a range of approaches as companies adapt to a fluid and evolving situation.

Earlier this month, Goldman Sachs ordered employees to submit vaccination status by June 10.

Last week, BlackRock mandated employees disclose their vaccination status by June 30. The asset manager also barred non-vaccinated employees and visitors from going into BlackRock US offices in July and August.

JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America have encouraged employees to get vaccinated and report vaccine status, but have not required it, industry sources said.

A Citigroup spokeswoman declined to elaborate beyond a human resources memo that said the bank planned to practice social distancing and require face masks through the summer, and did not address whether employees should report vaccination status.

Masks no longer required

At Morgan Stanley, staff will be required to report their vaccination status by July 1. That disclosure is currently voluntary.

The shift will enable the firm to lift rules that require unvaccinated staff to wear a mask and follow social distancing protocols. The policy means unvaccinated staff will need to work remotely, the source told AFP.

The investment bank's chief executive, James Gorman, said at a conference on June 14 that "well over 90 percent" of employees are now vaccinated.

The company will take a "nuanced" approach given that the situation on the ground varies worldwide as far as the spread of the virus and vaccine availability. In New York, where vaccines are "ubiquitous," the company expects workers to get shots, Gorman said.

"If you can go to a restaurant in New York City, you can come into the office and we want you in the office," he said.

"We do our work inside Morgan Stanley offices. And that's where we teach. That's where our interns learn," Gorman said. "That's where you build all the soft cues that go with having a successful career that aren't just about Zoom presentations."

Personal choice

BlackRock also cited the benefit of removing in-office mask and social distancing requirements, according to a company memo earlier this month outlining its policy.

"Although we look forward to the day when CDC guidance permits us to remove in-office safety controls and comingle vaccinated and unvaccinated employees, that is not yet the case," said the memo from Chief Operating Officer Rob Goldstein and two other BlackRock executives.

Exceptions for employees are not expected in July and August, the memo said.

"We recognize that vaccination is a deeply personal decision that in some cases may be driven by pre-existing medical conditions, religious beliefs, or other factors," the BlackRock memo said. "We are evaluating options to accommodate employees who are not vaccinated."

BlackRock's policy means that visitors at BlackRock could be required to provide proof of vaccination, a spokesman said.

"By entering our offices, visitors are attesting they have been fully vaccinated," a BlackRock spokesman said. "Visitors are being asked to carry a proof of vaccination as some locations may require proof of vaccination prior to entering."

Explore further Even vaccinated California workers may have to keep masks on

 2021 AFP
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Current American Heart Association, European Society of Cardiology, and UK National Health Service guidelines recommend a 5-yearly health checks for screening of individuals at high cardiovascular disease risk. These health checks include measurement of major risk factors, such as systolic blood pressure, cholesterol profile, blood glucose, and smoking status.

If lifestyle interventions are unsuccessful in reducing risk factor levels, prevention guidelines recommend initiation of preventive medication therapies such as statins. However, current guidelines advice only using the latest risk measurement and do not use information from individual's risk factor history.

Faster risk progression should be identified in health checks

According to a Finnish-English study published in The Lancet Digital Health, individuals whose risk levels increase faster than expected based on aging should be identified to inform decisions on preventive interventions. If the initiation of preventive interventions was delayed, these individuals can lose two to six cardiovascular disease free life-years, depending on their risk progression rate.

"Our study shows that individual risk history may provide important information for primary care to better identify individuals at high risk of cardiovascular diseases. Similarly, information allows to identify individuals who manage to reduce their risk levels between the health check and thus are at lower risk of cardiovascular diseases. In the UK, approximately 160,000 die from cardiovascular disease every year and it has been estimated that 80% of them would be preventable by timely interventions, so even small improvements in the prevention system can have large impact," says lead author Joni Lindbohm MD, Ph.D. at University College London and University of Helsinki.

The study was based on the Whitehall II cohort of 7000 British adults. Following current guidelines, their risk factor levels were screened every five years over a 22-year follow-up. The participants were linked to electronic health records from NHS registries including records on cardiovascular disease events. The investigators found that accelerated risk progression was most detrimental among the youngest participants aged between 40 and 50. Similarly, the benefits of risk reduction were highest in this group.

Based on their results the researchers developed an online tool that can be used to study how risk history modifies estimated cardiovascular disease risk.

"These results are promising, but national guidelines are rarely changed based on a single study. The benefits of using additional information on risk history in health checks should be further studied in randomized control trials, says Professor Mika Kivimaki, University College London, who is director of the Whitehall II study and one of the study authors.

Currently, UK residents can determine their individual cardiovascular disease risk with the QRISK3 calculator that includes questions about age, sex, smoking, total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, systolic blood pressure, antihypertensive medication, diabetes status, and variety of medical conditions.

A prototype of the new risk calculator, including risk history, can be tested from github.com/ninamars/Change-in-CVD-risk-scores.

Explore further The screen interval for high cardiovascular disease risk should be individual

More information: Joni V Lindbohm et al, Association between change in cardiovascular risk scores and future cardiovascular disease: analyses of data from the Whitehall II longitudinal, prospective cohort study, The Lancet Digital Health (2021). Joni V Lindbohm et al, Association between change in cardiovascular risk scores and future cardiovascular disease: analyses of data from the Whitehall II longitudinal, prospective cohort study,(2021). DOI: 10.1016/S2589-7500(21)00079-0
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Only 1 in 10 older adults in a large national survey who were found to have cognitive impairment consistent with dementia reported a formal medical diagnosis of the condition.

Using data from the Health and Retirement Study to develop a nationally representative sample of roughly 6 million Americans age 65 or older, researchers at the University of Michigan, North Dakota State University and Ohio University found that 91% of people with cognitive impairment consistent with dementia told questioners they had no formal medical diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease or dementia.

"(The discrepancy) was higher than I was expecting," said Sheria Robinson-Lane, study co-author and assistant professor at the U-M School of Nursing.

When proxy reporters (generally, family members) responded, the prevalence dropped from 91% to around 75%, which is still very significant, she said. While many people may have been diagnosed and remain unaware or forgot about their diagnosis, what's concerning is that cognitive assessment, specifically dementia screening, isn't routine during annual well visits for older adults.

COVID-19 gives these numbers heightened significance because people with dementia have higher risk for hospitalization and death following an infection, Robinson-Lane said. COVID-19 also causes long-standing neurological effects in some people, perhaps increasing risk for future dementia-related diagnoses.

"Now more than ever, these routine screenings and assessments are really critical," she said. "I think it's particularly important to have some baseline information available to providers of patients over 65."

Co-author Ryan McGrath, an assistant professor at North Dakota State University, suggested that the migration to telemedicine during the COVID-19 pandemic further underscores the importance of cognitive assessments.

"We recommend that health care providers screen for low cognitive functioning during routine health assessments when possible," he said. "A telemedicine option may reduce clinic time and expand reach."

The prevalence of not having reported a dementia-related diagnosis, despite being identified as living with a cognitive impairment consistent with dementia, differed by gender, education and race.

People who identified as non-Hispanic Black had a higher estimated prevalence (93%) of no reported diagnosis, as did males (99.7%) compared to females (90.2%) The estimated prevalence of no reported diagnosis for non-high school graduates was about 93.5%, compared to 91% for those with at least a high school education.

"There is a large disparity in dementia-related treatment and diagnosis among Black older adults, who are often diagnosed much later in the disease trajectory compared to other racial and ethnic groups," Robinson-Lane said.

Education is often a proxy for socioeconomic status, so throughout life, wealthier individuals have more access to resources that affect both risk and disease progression, she said. And, evidence suggests that education may influence cognitive testing performance.

The Medicare visit is supposed to include a cognitive screening, but it can be difficult to ascertain a cognitive concern in a 20-minute annual visit, she said. Adding a specific cognitive assessment can also take up visit time.

Often, Robinson-Lane hears from concerned family members who don't know next steps, or the family member they're concerned about wants to maintain independence and privacy, and doctors can't share information without the patient's consent.

She encourages open communication and reminds families that they can still share information with the loved one's provider directly or through a nurse or medical assistant.

Explore further How accurate are virtual assessments of cognitive function?

More information: Ryan McGrath et al, Self-Reported Dementia-Related Diagnosis Underestimates the Prevalence of Older Americans Living with Possible Dementia, Journal of Alzheimer's Disease (2021). Journal information: Journal of Alzheimer's Disease Ryan McGrath et al, Self-Reported Dementia-Related Diagnosis Underestimates the Prevalence of Older Americans Living with Possible Dementia,(2021). DOI: 10.3233/JAD-201212
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Over recent weeks, we've seen reports some Australians under 40 who are not yet eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine have been getting their first dose.

These are people who don't fall into a priority group outlined by the federal government, and are not eligible under the current rules in their state or territory.

These young people have been described as "queue jumping". Although some might be jumping the queue, most, in my view, are not doing anything wrong.

Besides, given how slowly the vaccine rollout is progressing in Australia, these eager young folks may actually be doing us all a favour.

What exactly is going on?

It appears some younger ineligible Australians are getting the Pfizer vaccine, while others are choosing to take the AstraZenca vaccine.

The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (ATAGI) has advised people under 60 (previously people under 50) should not be given the AstraZenca vaccine because of the risk of thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS), a rare but serious blood clotting disorder.

Some younger Australians are accepting this risk in order to get the AstraZeneca vaccine before they're eligible for Pfizer.

But how are young Australians who are not technically eligible getting either vaccine in the first place? Reports suggest there are three ways:

they're showing up at the vaccination sites and seeing if they can get a vaccine at the discretion of health-care staff, presumably if there's no one else scheduled at that time

they're registering online through the regular channels. They're providing their information truthfully and the system is allowing them to book in

they're using online links that were intended for people who are actually eligible (for example, household contacts of health-care workers).

It's important to note the context here. Some evidence suggests there's a higher level of vaccine hesitancy than predicted or desired among Australians (around one-third of all adults).

The rollout of the vaccine in Australia has been slow and troubled for a variety of reasons, including changing safety advice and logistical issues.

Mixed messaging from politicians doesn't help. For example, claims the vaccination rollout is "not a race" are off the mark. Speed is in fact of the essence.

Most younger Australians are not queue jumping

From an ethical standpoint, what matters is making sure you don't potentially disadvantage or harm other people who are in greater need of the vaccine than you are.

Generally speaking, if there are good reasons provided for the order in which a scarce resource will be allocated, no individual person should cheat their fellow resident from that resource by disregarding the allocation process.

While Australia's priority list is morally defensible, I would argue there's little "queue jumping" occurring.

First, those younger Australians choosing to take the AstraZenca vaccine are not taking away a scarce resource. There is plenty of the AstraZenca vaccine, although the Pfizer vaccine is in much shorter supply.

There may be an ethical question about whether younger people should be offered the AstraZenca vaccine at all given the risk of TTS and ATAGI's recommendations. But assuming people are giving their free and informed consent, we can set aside this concern for now.

Those younger ineligible Australians who are taking the Pfizer vaccine may be said to be jumping the queue. But if they're telling the truth when enrolling online, or perhaps waiting until the end of the day to use a dose that would otherwise go to wasteand a health-care worker at a vaccination center is giving them permission to be vaccinatedthey can't be accused of queue jumping.

The rules around allocation, and the enforcement of those rules, cannot rest with each individual, but rather lies with those in charge of delivering vaccines. If there are spare vaccine doses to be had, this suggests there's a system failure at some point between vaccine procurement and delivery.

The only people who could be rightfully accused of queue jumping are those who register for vaccines with links that aren't meant for them. Doing so is a clear intent to bypass the rules and enforcement mechanisms in place.

We want vaccines in arms

Unless people who are eligible and want to receive the Pfizer vaccine are being denied accessand I haven't heard this is happening, at least not because of queue jumpingthen the default should be to vaccinate as many Australians as possible, as quickly as possible.

We know individuals won't be as safe as they could be until a large proportion of the population is vaccinated. We also know our vaccine rollout is well behind schedule.

So if anything, we should be thanking younger Australians for doing their part to accelerate the COVID-19 vaccination rates in this country.

Explore further Australians under 60 will no longer receive the AstraZeneca vaccine

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Nurse Jody Berry draws a syringe full of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine at a clinic at Mother's Brewing Company in Springfield, Mo., on Tuesday, June 22, 2021. As the U.S. emerges from the COVID-19 crisis, Missouri is becoming a cautionary tale for the rest of the country: It is seeing an alarming rise in cases because of a combination of the fast-spreading delta variant and stubborn resistance among many people to getting vaccinated. Credit: Nathan Papes/The Springfield News-Leader via AP

As the U.S. emerges from the COVID-19 crisis, Missouri is becoming a cautionary tale for the rest of the country: It is seeing an alarming rise in cases because of a combination of the fast-spreading delta variant and stubborn resistance among many people to getting vaccinated.

Intensive care beds are filling up with surprisingly young, unvaccinated patients, and staff members are getting burned out fighting a battle that was supposed to be in its final throes.

The hope among some health leaders is that the rest of the U.S. might at least learn something from Missouri's plight.

"If people elsewhere in the country are looking to us and saying, 'No thanks' and they are getting vaccinated, that is good," said Erik Frederick, chief administrative officer at Mercy Hospital Springfield, which has been inundated with COVID-19 patients as the variant first identified in India rips through the largely non-immunized community. "We will be the canary."

The state now leads the nation with the highest rate of new COVID-19 infections, and the surge is happening largely in a politically conservative farming region in the northern part of the state and in the southwestern corner, which includes Springfield and Branson, the country music mecca in the Ozark Mountains where big crowds are gathering again at the city's theaters and other attractions.

Retired RN Barbara Vicente administers a shot of the Pfizer vaccine to Bobbie Guillette, 68, from Austin, Texas, at a clinic at Mother's Brewing Company in Springfield, Mo., on Tuesday, June 22, 2021. Guillette was visiting family in Springfield a took up Mother's Brewing on their offer a free beer for getting a vaccine shot. Credit: Nathan Papes/The Springfield News-Leader via AP

While over 53% of all Americans have received at least one shot, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, most southern and northern Missouri counties are well short of 40%. One county is at just 13%.

Cases remain below their winter highs in southwestern Missouri, but the trajectory is steeper than in previous surges, Frederick said. As of Tuesday, 153 COVID-19 patients were hospitalized at Mercy and another Springfield hospital, Cox Health, up from 31 just over a month ago, county figures show.

These patients are also younger than earlier in the pandemic60% to 65% of those in the ICU over the weekend at Mercy were under 40, according to Frederick, who noted that younger adults are much less likely to be vaccinatedand some are pregnant.

He is hiring traveling nurses and respiratory therapists to help out his fatigued staff as the rest of the country tries to leave the pandemic behind.

"I feel like last year at this time it was health care heroes and everybody was celebrating and bringing food to the hospital and doing prayer vigils and stuff, and now everyone is like, 'The lake is open. Let's go.' We are still here doing this," he said.

Signs hang on a fence for Mother's Brewing Company's COVID-19 vaccine clinic in partnership with the Springfield-Greene County Health Department and Jordan Valley Community Health Center on Tuesday, June 22, 2021, in Springfield, Mo. As the U.S. emerges from the COVID-19 crisis, Missouri is becoming a cautionary tale for the rest of the country: It is seeing an alarming rise in cases because of a combination of the fast-spreading delta variant and stubborn resistance among many people to getting vaccinated. Credit: Nathan Papes/The Springfield News-Leader via AP

There are also warning signs across the state line: Arkansas on Tuesday reported its biggest one-day jump in cases in more than three months. The state also has low vaccination rates.

Lagging ratesespecially among young adultsare becoming an increasing source of concern elsewhere around the country, as is the delta variant.

The mutant version now accounts more than 20% of new COVID-19 infections in the U.S., doubling in just two weeks, the CDC said Tuesday. It is responsible for half of new cases across a swath that includes Missouri, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming.

"The delta variant is currently the greatest threat in the U.S. to our attempt to eliminate COVID-19," said Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert. He said there is a "real danger" of local surges like the one in Missouri in places with deep vaccine resistance.

To help counter the threat, administration officials are stepping up efforts to vaccinate Americans ages 18 to 26, who have proved least likely to get the shot when it's available to them.

In this June 13, 2020, file photo, Silver Dollar City employee takes the temperature of guests before they are allowed to enter the park on just west of Branson, Mo. As the U.S. emerges from the COVID-19 crisis, Missouri is becoming a cautionary tale for the rest of the country: It is seeing an alarming rise in cases because of a combination of the fast-spreading delta variant and stubborn resistance among many people to getting vaccinated. Credit: Nathan Papes/The Springfield News-Leader via AP, File

Elsewhere around the world, Britain, with an even higher vaccination rate than the U.S., has postponed the lifting of remaining restrictions on socializing in England because of the rapid spread of the variant. Israel, another vaccination success story, is reacting by tightening rules on travelers.

In Missouri, Republican Gov. Mike Parson has taken the position that it is better to ask people to take "personal responsibility" than to enact restrictions.

Missouri never had a mask mandate, and Parson signed a law last week placing limits on public health restrictions and barring governments from requiring proof of vaccination to use public facilities and transportation.

Missouri Health Department spokeswoman Lisa Cox said the agency is encouraging people to get vaccinated, but confessed: "This is the Show-Me State and Missourians are skeptical."

Frederick said some people in the heavily Republican state are resistant because they feel as if Democrats are pushing the vaccine.

A man receives a COVID-19 vaccine at a clinic at Mother's Brewing Company in Springfield, Mo., on Tuesday, June 22, 2021. As the U.S. emerges from the COVID-19 crisis, Missouri is becoming a cautionary tale for the rest of the country: It is seeing an alarming rise in cases because of a combination of the fast-spreading delta variant and stubborn resistance among many people to getting vaccinated. Credit: Nathan Papes/The Springfield News-Leader via AP

"I keep telling people, while we are busy fighting with each other, this thing is picking us off one by one," he said. "It takes no sides. It has no political affiliation. It is not red. It is not blue. It is a virus. And if we don't protect ourselves, we are going to do a lot of damage to our community."

Steve Edwards, CEO of Cox Health, lamented in a tweet that while a number of major news organizations have contacted the hospital about the rise in cases, Fox News was not among them.

"Fox," he tweeted, "is the most popular cable news in our areayou can help educate on Delta, vaccines and can save lives."

Lisa Meeks, 49, of Springfield, is among those who haven't been vaccinated. She said that she is a Christian and that God gave her a strong immune system.

"As of right now, nobody knows anything long term or short term about these vaccines because they are brand new," she said, despite months of real-world evidence that the vaccines are highly safe and effective. "And so people are now basically the lab rats."

In this June 11, 2021, file photo, passengers board a Missouri River Runner Amtrak train in Lee's Summit, Mo. As the U.S. emerges from the COVID-19 crisis, Missouri is becoming a cautionary tale for the rest of the country: It is seeing an alarming rise in cases because of a combination of the fast-spreading delta variant and stubborn resistance among many people to getting vaccinated. Credit: AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File

An offer of free beer from Mother's Brewing Co. in Springfield for those who get vaccinated drew a disappointing 20 to 50 people to each of the first three clinics.

"We keep trying," said Jeff Schrag, owner and founder of Mother's Brewing. "It is a game of inches."

As immunizations slow, the delta variant has become the predominant form of the virus in the region. Aaron Schekorra, a spokesman for the Springfield-Greene County Health Department, said it makes up 93% of the random sample of cases that the county is sending for analysis, up from 70% three weeks ago.

He said that unvaccinated people gathering for graduation celebrations and Memorial Day festivities also fueled the spread of the virus. The events came just as the community lifted its mask mandate.

"My concern," he said, "would be that this is a preview of what is to come in other parts of the country that don't have higher vaccination rates."

Explore further Biden pushes shots for young adults as variant concern grows

 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
The UK's successful vaccination drive has helped shield it from the more deadly and contagious Delta variant.

The highly contagious Delta variant could soon account for 90 percent of new coronavirus cases in the EU, the bloc's disease control agency said Wednesday, urging members to spur vaccination drives.

While the Alpha variant first discovered in the UK is the predominant strain now circulating in the European Union, that is expected to change quickly, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said.

"It is very likely that the Delta variant will circulate extensively during the summer, particularly among younger individuals that are not targeted for vaccination," Andrea Ammon, the centre's director, said in a statement.

The Delta variant, first identified in India, is more infectious than other strains, she said, adding "that by the end of August it will represent 90 percent" of new cases in the EU.

The centre's warning comes as Russia warned of an "explosive" surge in infections that has been made worse by low rates of vaccine uptake.

The UK has also seen the Delta variant become dominant, but has been shielded by a successful vaccination campaign, with 82.5 percent of adults having had at least one jab and 60 percent fully protected.

"It is very important to progress with the vaccine rollout at a very high pace" in order to stop the spread of the variant and mitigate its health impact, the centre said.

To date, about 30 percent of the over-80s and 40 percent of the over-60s in the EU are still not fully vaccinated, the centre's data show.

Speed up vaccine rollout

"At this stage it becomes crucial that the second vaccination dose is administered... to speed up the rate at which vulnerable individuals become protected," Ammon said.

The centre estimates that the Delta variant (B.1.617.2), is 40 to 60 percent more contagious than the Alpha variant (.1.1.7).

Delta variant around the world.

"Unfortunately, preliminary data shows that it can also infect individuals that have received only one dose of the currently available vaccines," Ammon said.

"The good news is that having received two doses of any of the currently available vaccines provides high protection," she added.

In the UK, hospitalisations and the numbers of patients on mechanical ventilators have crept up in recent weeks. There were 250 people requiring help breathing on June 22, more than double the number from a month earlier, National Health Service data show. Still, both measures are well down from their peak.

Don't drop guard

The centre also urged countries to be cautious about relaxing curbs aimed at limiting the spread, especially over the summer months.

Any relaxation "could lead to a fast and significant increase in daily cases in all age groups," the agency said.

This increase could in turn lead to a rise in "hospitalisations, and deaths, potentially reaching the same levels of the autumn of 2020 if no additional measure are taken," it said.

France on Wednesday added Russia to its list of countries from which non-essential travel is banned, as concern grows over the spike of cases in Moscow.

With 50,000 new infections recorded in Moscow over the past two weeks, Mayor Sergei Sobyani on Wednesday warned that "the situation has become explosive," with 90 percent of cases being the Delta variant.

Since it was first discovered in India at the end of last year, the Delta variant has been reported in 85 countries according to the World Health Organization.

In mid-June, the emergence of the Delta variant in the UK prompted Prime Minister Boris Johnson to delay a planned full lifting of virus restrictions in England.

Portugal has also recently seen a rise in cases and on Tuesday reported that more than half of new cases in Lisbon were from the Delta variant.

 2021 AFP
Effect of a flow diverter on blood flow around a brain aneurysm. Once the flow diverter is in place, it reduces blood flow to the aneurysm, allowing it to heal. Credit: University of Leeds

A study involving virtual rather than real patients was as effective as traditional clinical trials in evaluating a medical device used to treat brain aneurysms, according to new research.

The findings are proof of concept for what are called in-silico trials, where instead of recruiting people to a real-life clinical trial, researchers build digital simulations of patient groups, loosely akin to the way virtual populations are built in The Sims computer game.

In-silico trials could revolutionize the way clinical trials are conducted, reducing the time and costs of getting new medical devices and medicines developed, while reducing human and animal harm in testing.

The virtual patient populations are developed from clinical databases to reflect age, sex and ethnicity but they also simulate the way disease affects the human body: for example, the interactions between anatomy, physics, physiology, and blood biochemistry. Those simulations are then used to model the impact of therapies and interventions.

The international research, led by the University of Leeds and reported today (23 June) in the journal Nature Communications, investigated whether an in-silico trial could replicate the results of three, real-life clinical trials that assessed the effectiveness of a device called a flow diverter, used in the treatment of brain aneurysms, a disease where the wall of a blood vessel weakens and begins to bulge.

Flow diverter reduces blood flow into the aneurysm

A flow diverter is a small, flexible mesh tube which is guided to the site of the aneurysm by a doctor using a catheter. Once in place, the flow diverter directs blood along the blood vessel and reduces flow into the aneurysm, initiating a clotting process that eventually cuts the aneurysm off from blood circulation, thus healing it.

Without successful treatment, the aneurysm can burst causing a bleed on the brain and a stroke.

To establish their proof of concept, the researchers had to see if the results from their in-silico study agreed with the results from three previous major clinical trials into the effectiveness of flow diverters.

The 'participants' in the virtual trial

The researchers built a virtual population using real patient data drawn from clinical databases, ensuring that the anonymised virtual patients closely resembled the patients used in real flow diverter clinical trials in terms of age, sex and aneurysm characteristics.

The researchers then built a computational model that analyzed how the implanted device would affect blood flow in each of the virtual patients. They were able to study different physiological conditions for each patient, such as normal and high blood pressure, and perform analyses on patient sub-groups, such as those with large aneurysms or aneurysms with a branch vessel.

The in-silico trial had 82 virtual cases.

The traditional clinical trials (called PUFS, PREMIER and ASPIRe) had 109, 141 and 207 patients, respectively. Around half the cases in the traditional trials had high blood pressure.

The results of the in-silico trial predicted that 82.9% of the virtual patients with normal blood pressure would be successfully treated with a flow diverter. In the traditional clinical trials, the number of people who were successfully treated was 86.8%, 74.8% and 76.8%, respectively, thus showing that the in-silico trial replicated the traditional clinical trials results.

In-silico trials generate 'huge benefits'

Professor Alex Frangi, Diamond Jubilee Chair in Computational Medicine and Royal Academy of Engineering Chair in Emerging Technologies at the University of Leeds, who supervised the study, said: "The results demonstrate the huge potential of in-silico trials. We have shown that the approach can replicate the findings of traditional clinical trialsand they do that in a fraction of the time it normally takes, and at a fraction of the cost."

In the in-silico trial, the researchers were also able to adapt their computational model to investigate new hunches or emerging scientific findings.

By modeling the physics of blood flow and the biochemistry of blood clotting in aneurysms under different physiological conditions, they were able to identify sub-groups of patients at higher risk of stroke, with patients with large complex-shaped aneurysms at higher risk of haemorrhagic stroke and patients with hypertension at higher risk of ischaemic stroke.

Being able to rigorously analyze medical device performance in this way will allow biomedical engineers to optimize the device design and reduce the risks associated with treatment.

Clinical trials 'cut from years to months'

Professor Frangi said: "In-silico trials offer an opportunity to do virtual experiments that could explain concepts that are difficult to study in conventional clinical trials.

"The current approach to improve our understanding of new medical devices is slow, as conventional trials can easily take five to eight years, from their design to completion.

"In-silico trials could reduce this period to less than six months in some circumstances, making knowledge and therapeutic technologies safer and more promptly available to clinicians and patients."

The research involved an international collaboration of scientists from Leeds, the University of Oxford, Radbound University Medical Centre in the Netherlands, and KU Leuven in Belgium.

The paperIn-silico trial of intracranial flow diverters replicates and expands insights from conventional clinical trialsis published in the journal Nature Communications.

Explore further Virtual patients and in silico clinical studies improve blue light treatment for psoriasis

More information: In-silico trial of intracranial flow diverters replicates and expands insights from conventional clinical trials, Nature Communications (2021). Journal information: Nature Communications In-silico trial of intracranial flow diverters replicates and expands insights from conventional clinical trials,(2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-23998-w
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus S.Aleinik participates in the Virtual Meeting of the CEI Foreign Ministries

On June 23, 2021 the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus, Sergei Aleinik, took part in the Virtual Meeting of the Foreign Ministries of the Central European Initiative (CEI) chaired by Montenegro.

The meeting was also attended by CEI Secretary General Roberto Antonione, Ministers and Deputy Foreign Ministers of Albania, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary, Italy, Moldova, Poland, Romania, North Macedonia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ukraine, Croatia, Montenegro, Czech Republic, as well as Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe, Pierre Heilbronn, Vice President for Policy and Partnerships at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), representatives of the OSCE and the EU.

In his statement, S.Aleinik emphasized the importance of regional cooperation for successfully overcoming the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic and sustainable development of the region. The Deputy Minister welcomed the measures taken by CEI to respond to COVID-19, including in the area of project cooperation, as well as advocated the active implementation of the CEI action plan for 2021  2023, including in such areas as digital transformation and connectivity, facilitating passenger and traffic flows, improving infrastructure and simplifying border procedures.

The Deputy Minister confirmed Belarus' openness to dialogue with all interested partners. S.Aleinik noted with regret the destructive position of the European Union and its member states towards Belarus, which does not correspond to the spirit of good-neighborliness and cooperation. The Deputy Minister said that the practice of air blockade, sanctions and restrictions against a sovereign and independent state were absolutely unacceptable. S.Aleinik pointed out that such actions were contrary to international law and contributed to the growth of tensions, undermining stability and security in our region.

The head of the Belarusian delegation emphasized that the sanctions confrontation only leads to the creation of new dividing lines in Europe, which contradicts the fundamental goals of the CEI.

Background Information: CEI is an interstate association created in 1989 with the aim of developing regional cooperation. Currently, the CEI includes 17 states: Albania, Belarus, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary, Italy, Moldova, Poland, Romania, North Macedonia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ukraine, Croatia, Montenegro and Czech Republic.

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Since our launch this past March, Feast and Field has told innumerable stories of American food and drink  and met many new faces along the way. Weve traveled coast to coast reporting from the ocean to the field, learning from pioneers of sustainable, regenerative and organic farming, and weve discovered the history and processing behind some of our favorite foods and drinks. Weve introduced you to innovative chefs who have taught us a few of their best tricks of the trade with recipes and tips, and featured producers creating the highest-quality products in their industry and craft.

Not only are our bellies fuller, but our audience bigger. Feast and Field has already reached over 170,000 users, and our stories have been read over 300,000 times. Week over week, our social communities continue to quickly expand with followers eager to read new content.

With that, we have some exciting news.

Enjoy Feast and Fields makers at home.

We are thrilled to announce the launch of our new online store featuring goods from some of Feast and Fields past makers. Now, you can shop the incredible products youve been reading about  along with a few new additions.

Find us in print, too.

On June 26th and 27th, Feast and Field will reach Lee Enterprises 1.2 million subscribers throughout the country with our 16-page printed edition located inside their 80-plus publications  filled with a curated collection and taste of some our best stories, cooking tips and recipes.

Work with us.

Feast and Field is always on the lookout for the next illuminating story or talented contributor. As we grow, we are looking for a full-time sales representative. Please reach out to Donna Bischoff at donna.bischoff@lee.net. Writers, reach out to Dana Fouchia at dfouchia@feastandfield.net; photographers and videographers should contact Heather Gray at hgray@feastandfield.net.

As always, be sure to check out our next adventure every Monday.

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Also, the city currently pays about $180,000 annually to lease office space around downtown for employees.

If the federal building isnt acquired by the city and the county, it will sell at auction to the highest bidder and could be demolished.

We dont know what could happen to the building if it goes to auction, Adams said. Were skeptical that someone could rehab it and maintain the historic character. We would receive the building for free.

The building is in decent condition but needs quite a bit of work in order to be a functioning center of government. Adams said it could take $30 million to get the building ready to move in, and there would also be another $10 million worth of historic preservation work required. The city and county havent yet identified a funding source to rehab the interior, but city manager Dale Bickell has been charged with looking into that.

Bickell told the committee there are federal funds available, and the city could expand one of the downtown urban renewal districts.

"We have all kinds of opportunities to fund this building," he said.

Adams said it could cost about $31 million to build a new city hall or about $28 million to rehab the current city hall and expand it.
Trump, though, laid blame for the spike in crime on protesters who demonstrated against police brutality following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. He claimed that Democrats were allowing crime to run amok in their cities. But despite pockets of violence in both Democratic- and Republican-run cities, the protests were mostly peaceful. A Harvard Radcliffe Institute study found there were no injuries reported in 97% of the events. Still, Republican leaders continue to echo Trump's claims.

And while crime is rising  homicides and shootings are up from the same period last year in Chicago; Los Angeles; Minneapolis; Portland, Oregon; Baltimore; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; and Houston  violent crime overall remains lower than it was a decade ago or even five years ago. And most violent crimes plummeted during the first six months of the pandemic, as people stayed indoors and away from others.

Crime started creeping up last summer, a trend criminologists say is hard to define and is likely due to a variety of factors such as historic unemployment, fear over the virus and mass anger over stay-at-home orders. Public mass shootings have also made an alarming return.
Harris will arrive in the area just days before former President Donald Trump is to visit the border with a group of House Republicans and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, and Trump is certain to use the opportunity to drive Republican attacks on Democrats as soft on immigration.

The border issue shadowed Harris first foreign trip earlier this month, to Guatemala and Mexico, where she met with both nations presidents and local officials to discuss economic and humanitarian solutions to the significant outmigration from both countries.

During that trip, she sat for an interview with NBC News in which she dismissed a question about why she hadn't made a trip to the border by responding, I've never been to Europe, and adding, I don't understand the point you're making. Harris and White House aides were subsequently forced to parry repeated questions about the decision and her remarks.

Harris said she was focused on tangible results as opposed to grand gestures," but she also said she might visit in the near future.

She has noted that as a senator from California, she has visited the border in the past, and she has asserted that unless the root causes of migration are addressed the situation there will never be fixed.
Nearly all big tech companies  from Amazon to rental sites like Airbnb, ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft and service providers like Verizon  now have teams to respond to such requests and regularly publish reports about how much they disclosed. Many say they work to narrow overly broad requests and reject those that aren't legally valid.

Some of the most dramatic increases in requests have been to tech companies that cater to younger people. As the messaging app Snapchat has grown in popularity, so have government requests for its data. Snap, the company behind the app, fielded nearly 17,000 data requests in the first six months of 2020, compared to 762 in the same period of 2015.

Salter said the fact that were all doing so much online means police detectives need to stay tech-savvy. But training courses for how to file such requests arent hard to find.

For those worried about the growing volume of online data sought by law enforcement, Salter said: Dont commit crimes and dont use your computer and phones to do it.

Judges are not going to sign off on something if we dont have probable cause to go forward, he said. Were not going to look at peoples information without having something to go on.
As part of a settlement agreement in a lawsuit brought by the state of Ohio, the Census Bureau promised in May to release the redistricting data no later than Aug. 16  a date it had previously picked for releasing the numbers in an older format.

Ohio sued the Commerce Secretary earlier this year after the Census Bureau said it would be unable to meet a legal deadline to release the redistricting data to the states by March 31 because of delays caused by the pandemic. The bureau said in February that the data would be available in an older format in mid-August and in a more user-friendly format by the end of September. A federal judge dismissed Ohio's case and the state appealed, saying the delay threatened its ability to meet redistricting deadlines approved by voters and set in its state constitution.

An appellate panel later said Ohio had standing to sue the Census Bureau. It sent the case back to the lower court to come up with a solution.

Still pending is a lawsuit filed by the state of Alabama against the Census Bureau in an effort to get the statistical agency to release the redistricting data before August. Alabama's lawsuit also challenges the bureau's use of a statistical method that Census Bureau officials say is needed to protect participants' privacy, but which the state says damages accuracy. A three-judge panel could issue a ruling any day.
RALEIGH  Legislation that would raise the minimum age to get married in North Carolina from 14 to 16 cleared a House committee on Tuesday.

The measure, which was approved unanimously by the Senate last month, also would prevent the young persons spouse from being no more than four years older. And 16- and 17-year-olds would need either written parental consent or a judges order to marry.

Current law requires parental consent for 16- and 17-year-olds, and 14- and 15-year-olds can only marry if a pregnancy is involved and a judge authorizes the marriage. There is no age limit gap between the couple.

Backers of the measure say North Carolina has become a destination for out-of-state couples involving an underage partner because of its rules, and that in turn can encourage child trafficking. They say the age-gap limit also would bring restrictions more in line with North Carolinas statutory rape law.

An estimated 8,800 minors were listed on North Carolina marriage license applications from 2000 to 2015, according to an analysis by the International Center for Research on Women. Bill supporters say too many of these young women end up living amid poverty and abuse.
Q: What is the summer solstice?

A: The summer solstice marks the longest day of the year.

It is an astronomical event caused by Earths tilt on its axis and its orbit around the sun.

Monuments such as Stonehenge on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, demonstrate that ancient cultures knew the path the sun traveled through our sky changed in a routine way throughout the year. They undoubtedly observed that how high the sun appears in the sky varied throughout the year and that the higher the sun gets in the sky, the longer the length of daylight.

Our summer solstice occurs when the sun is directly overhead at noon at 23.5 degrees north of the equator, the latitude called the Tropic of Cancer. This is the farthest north the sun ever gets. This year, the sun reached the Tropic of Cancer at 10:32 p.m. CT Sunday.

At the summer solstice, the sun reaches its highest point in the sky, and daylight is longest. The sun rises and sets farthest north at the June solstice. However, our earliest sunrise occurred on June 14, while our latest sunset occurs about a week later than the summer solstice. So, while the summer solstice has the longest daylight hours, that day does not correspond to the earliest sunrise or the latest sunset.
This is one of the strongest self-defense cases Ive had in a very long career of practice, Piper told the judge.

Shea said she agreed to drop the attempted homicide charge for various reasons, but said it is highly disputed that this was self-defense. She said Ott, in phone calls from jail, bragged about the shooting to others.

Ott told Whelan he was only being open about the events during those discussions and regretted events that led up to the incident.

I do have an extreme amount of remorse, he said. Butte is my home and I regret what happened in this community. I wish none of it had taken place.

But, he said, At no point was there any malicious intent. He said he ditched the crossbow and ran because he was scared.

Prosecutors say the man who was shot was a victim and had gone to the house with a woman to retrieve some belongings. The man said he walked to a bedroom with an ax because he thought the door would have a lock on it and he didnt have a key. Ott opened the door, the man said, and after a few words were exchanged shot him in the chest with a crossbow.
Butte police reports

Hindering investigation

While police officers were investigating a potential incendiary device at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Town Pump, 531 S. Montana St., Kayla Charleigh Hoffman, 29, of Butte ignored officers orders to stay away from the scene.

Hoffman continued to get in the way of the investigation and continued to interrupt, so she was arrested for misdemeanor disorderly conduct and obstructing a police officer. She also had a warrant out for her arrest from the Montana Highway Patrol.
The relationship between politics and religion has a long and sordid history. A recent manifestation of this struggle is support by the U.S. Catholic bishops for withholding communion from public figures who advocate policies at variance with the churchs position on abortion. The goal is to stymie free political discourse by pressuring public figures who happen to be Catholic.

I dont want to get into a debate on the polarizing question of allowing abortion. I want to examine the egregious and abominable nature of this move by the Catholic bishops to enforce compliance. One can abhor abortion and still abhor what the bishops are attempting to do.

There is a wall of separation of church and state in this country. The government should not entangle itself in religion; religion should not entangle itself in government. The Catholic bishops would legislate for all on the basis of their unique religious beliefs even though a majority of Americans are not practicing Catholics. (Polls show that a majority of Catholics do not accept the church position on abortion, so the bishops position is at variance with church teaching that the laity, as the people of God, are the church. The bishops are steeped in clericalism.) Other religions are just as bad at comingling religion and politics.
A sample of a Guam Visitors Bureau advertisement that includes vaccination against Covid-19 while on vacation. This version is for the Philippine market and is one of several that will be promoted to the international market.
Takealot has an opportunity to start selling groceries in South Africa thanks to its extensive delivery and warehouse infrastructure and technology.

This is the view of Naspers and Prosus chief financial officer, Basil Sgourdos. Naspers owns 100% of Takealot.

News24 quoted Sgourdos as saying perishable goods will be something new for Takealot and a completely different category of goods to its current operations.

The expansion will probably have to be organic, but it is certainly attractive, he said.

Delivering groceries will be a completely new category for Takealot, but it is not too far away from what it is already doing.

Through Mr D Food, Takealot provides a convenient way for South Africans to order food from restaurants.

The company has the IT infrastructure and logistics in place to deliver products fast and affordably to consumers and expanding into perishable goods is, therefore, a natural evolution to grow its ecommerce presence in South Africa.

Takealot will face stiff competition in this market, though. Checkers, Pick n Pay, and Woolworths have excellent ecommerce operations with growing support.

These retailers are investing heavily in their ecommerce capabilities and their platforms  Checkers Sixty60, PnP Bottles, and Woolies Dash all offer excellent service levels.

While it will enter a hotly contested space, Naspers, through Prosus, is well-positioned to help Takealot offer grocery deliveries in South Africa.

Prosus has investments in many prominent food delivery platforms including iFood, Delivery Hero, and Swiggy.

While food delivery is one of the key pillars of the Prosus strategy, we expect to see an evolution to a broader on-demand delivery ecosystem, Prosus said.

The companys focus is now to extend beyond restaurants to convenience, grocery delivery and logistics.

All our food delivery businesses have rolled out convenience and grocery delivery, Prosus said.

In January 2021, Prosus extended its presence in this field through an investment in Helsinki-based delivery platform Wolt.

Wolt started with restaurant deliveries but has moved into delivering products from grocery stores and local shops to homes and offices.

In April 2021, Prosus made its first direct investment in an online grocery business, Norwegian-based Oda.

This followed with an investment in Germany-based instant grocery delivery company Flink in June.

With these investments through Prosus, it is clear that Naspers believes grocery deliveries are a growth area.

Just like with their international food delivery businesses, it will make sense to extend Mr Ds operations to convenience and grocery deliveries.

Takealot has experienced exceptional growth over the last year, increasing its revenues by 65% to US$606 million (R8.7 billion).

The company  which includes Takealot.com, Superbalist, and Mr D Food  also reported Gross Merchandise Value growth of 84%. This represents the total value of sales made through its platform, including third-party sellers.

Mr D Food delivered particularly strong results as consumer demand shifted from in-restaurant dining to online delivery.

Mr D Foods order volumes grew 117%, resulting in a 103% growth in revenues year on year.

This growth has helped Takealot to reduce its trading loss from US$43 million (R618 million) to US$7 million (R101 million) over the last year.

US$6 million of this trading loss came in the first half of the financial year during which the hard lockdown hurt online retailers. In the second half of the year, the loss narrowed to US$1 million.

Takealot is therefore set to make a profit for the first time since it launched a decade ago.
Africas largest wireless carrier MTN Group Ltd. and Chinese technology company ZTE Corp. were accused in a U.S. lawsuit of indirectly supporting an Iranian terrorist campaign that resulted in Americans being injured and killed in Iraq.

In a federal lawsuit filed Tuesday in New York, more than 50 Americans claim MTN and ZTE did business with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, even though they knew the transactions would help finance, arm and support the Iranian groups terror campaign in neighboring Iraq.

As a result, thousands of Americans were injured or killed between 2011 and 2016, according to the suit.

MTN is reviewing the details of the complaint and is consulting its advisers, the Johannesburg-based company said in an emailed statement.

It conducts its business in a responsible and compliant manner in all its territories and so intends to defend its position where necessary.

ZTE spokeswoman Margaret Ma didnt immediately respond to an email sent after hours in China.

MTN faces a similar complaint filed in 2019 by more than 150 Americans, who claim the company paid Taliban officials not to attack its mobile phone towers in Afghanistan.

The South African company has done business in parts of the world other carriers consider too risky, including Syria, Iran and Afghanistan. It has said it will sell its Middle East operations over the medium-to-long term.

Irans decision to grant a license to MTN in 2005 has been the subject of several legal claims by Turkcell Iletisim Hizmetleri AS, which was initially awarded the contract, though none have yet succeeded and MTN denies wrongdoing.

The case is Stephanie Zobay v. MTN Group, 21-cv-3503, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York (Brooklyn).

Now read: MTN hit by crime syndicate
Bitmain Technologies Ltd. has suspended sales of machines for spot delivery globally, aiming to prop up local prices after crypto miners fleeing Beijings crackdown dumped used mining rigs on the market.

The worlds biggest maker of Bitcoin machines told the local mining community Wednesday it has stopped selling new equipment after prices for top-tier rigs plunged by about 75% since April.

By postponing sales, it could help miners exiting the industry get better prices for their machines. Bitmain could also benefit if the reduced supply buoys prices over the longer term for new machines.

The firm said it will continue to sell gear for future delivery of devices used to mine smaller altcoins. A company spokesman confirmed the decision, which was reported earlier by local blogs, without saying when business will resume.

In May, Chinas State Council  its cabinet  called for a renewed crackdown on Bitcoin trading and mining activities.

Local governments in places from northern Inner Mongolia to hydro-rich Sichuan acted quickly to sever power for mining facilities.

The unprecedented crackdown is spurring more and more major miners to uproot or abandon their operations, a growing exodus thats rocking cryptocurrencies globally while flooding the domestic market with cheap machines.

The Bitcoin networks computer power has suffered a plunge in recent weeks amid the disruption.

On the second-hand market, top-tier mining machines developed by companies including Bitmain and rival Whatsminer are now sold at around 150 yuan ($23) per THash/second  the reference unit for their computing power  down from 600 yuan in April when Bitcoin hit an all-time high of $64,870, according to Arthur Li, founder of Bitmain-backed mining startup Sai Technology.

Last week, Bitmain hosted a closed-door event with hundreds of miner clients at a Chengdu Hotel. The firm pledged to serve as a matchmaker to help miners hook up with data centers in countries like the U.S. and Kazakhstan.

Canaan Inc., a much smaller Bitmain competitor, said Wednesday it would start to mine Bitcoin by itself as a way to optimize revenue and strengthen inventory management.

Now read: Banks block buying Bitcoin from overseas in South Africa
If South Africas roads authorities press on with the rollout of the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (Aarto) without making revisions, it will fail just like E-tolls.

This is the warning from the CEO of the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa), Wayne Duvenage.

As far as we are concerned, the Road Freight Association (RFA), the SA Vehicle Renting and Leasing Association (Savrala), the Automobile Association (AA), Outa and many others have indicated that Aarto will fail, yet the authorities believe otherwise, Duvenage said.

Just as they did with the launch of E-tolls, they ignored their critics and blindly believed that if the law is written, the scheme must work.

Duvenages warning comes amidst a flood of criticism from the industry and public ahead of the 1 July launch of Aarto.

The AA said that there are still too many unanswered questions surrounding the implementation of South Africas new driving infringement system.

This is a huge concern for South African motorists and businesses that rely on road transport given that Aarto is meant to go into effect next week.

Since then, the Road Traffic Infringement Agency (RTIA) has provided some clarification of its plans for a five-phased rollout of Aarto.

The RTIA said that it expects each phase to take roughly three months to roll out and that the new points demerit system for road traffic infringements will also be phased in.

However, the final plan for the phased rollout of Aarto will only be announced at a later date by the Minister of Transport, Fikile Mbalula.

Under the new demerit system, motorists will be allowed to accumulate 15 points on their licence before it is suspended. A licence may be suspended twice before it is cancelled.

If a motorists licence is cancelled, they have to redo their driving licence test to get a new one.

We dont believe the authorities are ready to start with the rollout of Aarto. People within the Road Traffic Infringement Authority (RTIA) have also said that they are not ready to launch, Duvenage told MyBroadband.

All indications are that AARTO will be an administrative nightmare and this bodes for a failure of the system within a very short space of time after its launch.

However, Duvenage said that it is possible to fix Aarto to make the system workable.

This will need a complete halt of the current processes and an in-depth workshop with a number of stakeholders, stated Duvenage.

Furthermore, there are many municipalities and some metros that have indicated their inability or unwillingness to participate in the Aarto scheme, with the Western Cape being a major player that will resist the schemes implementation.

MyBroadband asked the RTIA whether it was possible to halt the rollout of Aarto and hold an in-depth workshop with industry stakeholders, as Duvenage suggested.

RTIA spokesperson Monde Mkalipi said that it would be very difficult to simply stop the process now.

Mkalipi said that various workshops and consultations with all the stakeholders have already been held and that Aarto has already gone through the necessary Parliamentary process.

While all these avenues have been exhausted, Mkalipi said that no law is sacrosanct or remains static.

If people want to call for review in future they are welcome to, but lets allow the process starting on 1 July to take place, he said.

Mkalipi also said that while there are some stakeholders who are dissatisfied with Aarto, there are many more who support it and are excited for it to begin rolling out nationally.

Not everyone will openly say they support Aarto, he said.

As an example, Mkalipi said that companies that are in the business of selling vehicles on credit are one of Aartos supporters.

This is because it will allow them to screen prospective buyers and see which drivers are high risk before they sell them a vehicle on contract, he said.

The general community welcomes Aarto, said Mkalipi.

He said that it will help deal with habitual infringers, such as those drivers in suburban areas that are known to roam around in their vehicles and participate in drag racing.

They will be brought to book for their actions, he said.

According to Mkalipi, the carnage on South Africas roads is their greatest concern.

The points demerits system hunts down infringers and brings them to book, he said.

It brings habitual infringers back to the classroom so they can relearn how to drive.

It also standardises road traffic penalties in one common register  the National Contravention Register.

The Democratic Alliance in the Western Cape has disputed the assumption that Aarto will reduce road deaths in South Africa.

It pointed to statistics of fatal crashes in the Western Cape and Gauteng between 2010 and 2019 to substantiate its argument.

Despite a pilot version of Aarto being implemented in Gauteng, there was no change in the number of fatal crashes in the provinces over ten years, the Western Cape argued.

However, Mkalipi noted that demerit points were not part of the pilot in Gauteng.

You therefore cant conclude that Aarto doesnt reduce road fatalities if the main mechanism for reducing them hasnt been implemented yet.

Mkalipi pointed to case studies from Norway, Denmark, Germany and Ireland which suggested that crashes resulting in injury were reduced through the implementation of a demerit points system.

As demerit points are phased in there will opportunity for them to be properly tested, he said.

Outa has said that it has a Constitutional challenge against Aarto which will be heard in court within the next few months.

It has suggested to the roads authorities that the launch of Aarto should be held back until that date.
A drug used to treat parasite infections in humans and livestock will be investigated as a possible treatment for Covid-19 in a large U.K. study at the University of Oxford.

The medicine, known as ivermectin, has antiviral properties and initial preliminary studies have shown it can reduce viral load, the amount of virus in the respiratory tract, and the length of symptoms in those with a mild infection, according to a statement from the university.

Ivermectin has been in use for decades to treat livestock infested with parasitic worms, while in humans its used as a topical ointment for diseases including skin infections.

Its already been approved for use on compassionate grounds in a controlled-access program in South Africa, and health authorities have reported widespread use of the drug on the black market.

The World Health Organization and the European Medicines Agency recommend that it only be used in clinical trials, as more data is needed to support its use.

The drug will be analyzed as part of the Platform Randomized Trial of Treatments in the Community for Epidemic and Pandemic Illnesses, or Principle, the worlds largest clinical trial of potential treatments for the virus in non-hospital settings.

Eligible U.K. participants with Covid-19 symptoms can join the ivermectin trial, which is being evaluated alongside the influenza antiviral favipiravir.

By including ivermectin in a large-scale trial like Principle, we hope to generate robust evidence to determine how effective the treatment is against Covid-19, and whether there are benefits or harms associated with its use, said Chris Butler, a professor of medicine at the University of Oxford and one of the studys lead authors.
A total alcohol ban is needed to reduce trauma cases and free up hospital space in Gauteng as the province struggles to cope with the rise of Covid-19 cases.

This is the view of Professor Charles Parry, director of the Alcohol, Tobacco and other drug research unit at the SA Medical Research Council (SAMRC).

Although Parry is not directly involved with the national and provincial coronavirus command councils, he still gives recommendations to these bodies.

Speaking to ENCA, Parry said Covid-19 cases in Gauteng are expected to peak in around two weeks, and hospitals are already full.

An alcohol ban should be considered to prevent trauma cases, which take up hospital beds that could be used for Covid-19 patients.

Parry said data from the previous lockdown phase shows that what the government is doing now will not reduce trauma cases.

It isnt sufficient to only have some controls on curfew and limited controls of alcohol, like the restriction on off-consumption sales from Monday to Friday, he said.

What our research shows is that only full a liquor sales ban substantially reduced alcohol-related trauma.

A ban on alcohol sales in only Gauteng, the epicentre of the third wave, is unlikely to work because people will bring alcohol across the provincial border.

Parry said with Gauteng set to reach the peak of the third wave in early July, a potential alcohol ban should last for a month.

He conceded that it is a tough political decision as a ban will hurt the alcohol industry and result in job losses.

Dr Mark Human from the Gauteng branch of the South African Medical Association said the lockdowns in the past were not the correct answer.

He said Covid-19 spread through person-to-person contact. What is therefore needed is curbing people coming together, especially in large groups.

Large gatherings are the single biggest target which should be focussed on, he said.

Human added that alcohol plays a significant role in people not adhering to non-pharmaceutical interventions like social distancing.

It is quite difficult to understand that liquor stores remain open. It makes absolutely no sense, he said.

These comments come amidst a warning from Gauteng Premier David Makhura that the province is facing a COVID-19 crisis.

There is a shortage of hospital beds, there is not enough oxygen, and there are not enough medical professionals to care for patients.

Medics from the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) were called in to help, but this is not enough to cope with the growing demand for healthcare.

Our province is under fire. This place is burning with [the] coronavirus. Everywhere in the province, the positivity rate is extremely high. The chances of getting infected are extremely high wherever you are, Makhura said.

The Gauteng premier said the province might need more restrictions to curb the spread of the virus.

The pandemic is out of control. Something needs to be done, he said.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has also expressed concern about the rise in Covid-19 cases, especially in Gauteng.

Ramaphosa said the government would meet this week to discuss restrictions, adding that it might be necessary for the National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) to review the lockdown level in the country.

He said indications are that the government will have to increase the measures that it puts in place to prevent Covid-19, particularly in Gauteng.

The president noted that the countrys first hard lockdown in March 2020 did help bring down infections at the start of the pandemic.

Now read: Level 5 hard lockdown for Gauteng called for
We were encouraged to learn that St. Helena should be able to buy at least 145 acre-feet from Napa, on top of the 600 acre-feet guaranteed by our contract. Thats less than the 200 acre-foot option we can exercise in normal years, but its better than nothing given the pressure Napa is experiencing due to reduced deliveries from the State Water Project.

We went into Fridays meeting hoping for ambitious plans to expand the citys water portfolio. Hardy tempered our expectations, noting that local water systems throughout California are looking for more sources.

Any new sources were able to secure amid such a strained water marketplace should be considered a bonus, Hardy said, but they wont be the centerpiece of our water strategy.

Instead, he called our attention to the recycled water that will be produced at the upgraded wastewater treatment plant. It will be non-potable but perfect for irrigation and industrial use.

The city doesnt have the infrastructure to distribute that water to customers, but purple pipe installed as part of the Farmstead hotel project will at least get it to Crane Park. Thats 15 acre-feet of demand that will no longer have to be supplied by the main water system.
For its significant contribution to fighting the coronavirus pandemic by deploying mobile vaccine clinics in Napa Valley, even as its main facility was recovering from wildfire damage, St. Helena Hospital Foundation has been named Nonprofit of the Year by Sen. Bill Dodd, D-Napa.

This recognition speaks to the professionalism and dedication of the foundation and hospital staff, which really came through for the community in a time of crisis, Dodd said in a release announcing the choice. Their work during the pandemic literally saved lives. Year after year, the foundation has supported top-quality healthcare for our families. We owe a debt of gratitude for their tireless commitment.

We are grateful for this special recognition as Nonprofit of the Year; this past year has been an extraordinarily trying one for our community and Im so proud of our mobile health team, volunteers, and foundation board members and supporters for stepping up said St. Helena Hospital Foundation President and CEO Glen Newhart. For over 140 years, our hospital has been dedicated to ensuring our community has access to exceptional healthcare when they need it most.

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Christian was skeptical. He did agree more must be done so the residents of and visitors to American Canyon's planned Watson Ranch community can move north-and-south.

"But once that route is constructed, additional traffic and commuters will be there trying to beat Highway 29," he said. "And the proposed road through Hess properties actually adds more traffic due to the (planned) commercial uses."

He suggested that instead another Highway 29 lane be built.

Gregory said he expects a traffic study to be done. That would show whether an extended Newell Drive would truly improve south county congestion.

Also, Gregory said he'd want to avoid having only pieces of the extension built over years as development occurs. That is what is happening with Devlin Road through the airport industrial complex.

The Hess Collection Winery project would convert agricultural land, some of it prime, to urban. But there could still be a link to agriculture, as noted in a county report. The nearby airport industrial area has wine warehouses and other businesses that support the wine industry.
Leaders from American Canyon and NorthBay Healthcare broke ground Wednesday on a new urgent care facility, which will open in summer 2022.

Plans call for NorthBay Urgent Care to occupy 4,500 square feet, with 10 exam rooms, X-ray, and a laboratory at 416 Napa Junction Road, in the Napa Junction Commercial Center.

The building, at 6,600 square feet, will have the capacity to add primary and specialty care services in the future.

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: $3 for your first 3 months!

NorthBay Healthcare, in partnership with Carbon Health, already operates two urgent care centers in retail centers in Vacaville and Fairfield.

We are overjoyed you are bringing these services to American Canyon, said Mayor Leon Garcia. This is what our growing community needs.

The facility will be similar to the urgent care centers in Vacaville and Fairfield, with an open and airy design and convenient advanced technology kiosks for checking in.

Our involvement in offering COVID-19 vaccine pop-up clinics in American Canyon in 2021 helped establish connections and paved the way for the decision to expand to American Canyon, considered the gateway to the Napa Valley, said Wayne Gietz, vice president of Ambulatory Services. We look forward to serving the community.
I believe that NVUSD's decision to make Browns Valley and Shearer Elementary schools K-8 pilot schools has provided a "soft landing" for Harvest students 6-8 (Harvest is also being closed) ... I am requesting consideration on your part for "equity," fairness to the students of Willow who also deserve a "soft landing," a chance to attend a smaller, caring community for middle school, their existing school, "Willow K8" How, you ask, were Browns Valley and Shearer "chosen" for this "pilot" program ... their enrollment was declining, therefore they had the "space" to accommodate a K-8. Willow, on the other hand, is "expanding," primarily due to its excellent administration, staff, and its "Arts Integration Program" ... So, a school that is "growing" is not given the opportunity to be considered for a K-8 pilot! That is fairness, equity?

I am writing to request that the NVUSD personnel contact the principal, PAFA, and other interested stakeholders to meet ASAP to "evaluate" the possibility of using existing physical space at Willow to accommodate this program! Unlike BV and Shearer, Willow was not even given consideration for the K-8 pilot!

Thank you for considering this proposal and for your service to our students during these challenging times!
Hikmet Hajiyev's slip of the tongue - "Zangezur corridor" in exchange of a land route for Armenia towards Russia

Bloomberg: US asks Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan to accept refugees from Afghanistan

Armenian bailiffs killed in Sochi posthumously awarded Order of Courage by Putin

Armenian court to continue examination of appeal against arrest of doctor Armen Charchyan on July 6

Turkey reaches no agreement on Kabul airport issue

Euro 2020: Spain defeat Switzerland with post-match 11-meter kicks, make it to semi-final

French military neutralizes several ISIS leaders in Sahel

Putin, Macron discuss Nagorno-Karabakh

Baku court sentences 2 Armenian POWs to 4 years in prison, 12 captives to 6 months in prison

Bishkek offers Baku to create Council in "5+3" format at level of Presidents of Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan

Ambassador: US ready to provide support to peaceful normalization and reconciliation of Azerbaijan and Armenia

Cats and dogs may catch COVID-19 from their owners, research claims

Man detained in Afghanistan for carrying explosives in musical instrument

Armenia government sets up inter-agency commission to eliminate consequences of drought or water scarcity

Armenia Shirak Province deputy governor sacked

Levon Aronian defeats Magnus Carlsen during tie-break, makes it to final

Cyprus authorities change rules of entry for tourists

Karabakh emergency situations service: Remains of another Armenian soldier found in Fizuli region

'Armenia' bloc representative: Many police officers from Yerevan voted in Shurnukh and other villages of Syunik Province

'I Have Honor' bloc also applies to Armenia Constitutional Court regarding results of snap parliamentary elections

Mitsubishi Electric president resigns amid document forgery scandal

Roma join fight for Leipzig midfielder

'Armenia' bloc representative: Petition submitted to Constitutional Court for impossibility of judge's participation

What products may help fight fatigue and stress?

Erdogan: Turkey will maintain its presence in Azerbaijan and take what belongs to it

French government denies concealment of radiation levels in Pacific Ocean after nuclear tests

Boeing 737 cargo crew rescued after falling into water

Digest: EU commissioner to visit Armenia; Armenians discover 97kg heroin, Turkey citizen detained

Barcelona and Real Madrid legends to play in Israel (PHOTOS)

Old school in Geghhovit village of Armenia's Gegharkunik Province being renovated

Yerevan Police solve loan office robbery case

India confirms 400,000 deaths from COVID-19

Russia FM says there is significant progress in talks over Iran's nuclear deal

Boeing 737 cargo crashes near Honolulu

Manchester United extend contract with Juan Mata

Sham trial continues in Baku, prosecutor demands sentencing 12 Armenian POWs to 2 years in prison

Armenia acting PM dismisses Vayots Dzor Province deputy governor

Armenian analyst: Armenia needs to understand what it can offer China through One Belt One Road project

Wimbledon: Karen Khachanov reaches 1/8 final

Over 100 organizations urges Biden to stop using drones

Armenia Constitutional Court registers Zartonk party petition to invalidate snap parliamentary election results

Attorney: The two grounds for keeping Armenian doctor Armen Charchyan under arrest no longer exist

Dollar still dropping in Armenia

Diabetes incidence among children doubled during COVID-19 pandemic

Armenian American Maria Sahakian appointed Chief Operating Officer of Alex Theater in Glendale

Lawyer Aram Vardevanyan to represent Armenia bloc at Constitutional Court

Kanye West leaves US with kids

Armenia acting Deputy PM visits construction sites in Yerevan

YouTube deletes video about hate speech against Armenians posted by Turkey President's spokesperson

FC Pyunik to leave for Tbilisi

Armens: Araksya Karapetyan, the Emmy winning Armenian anchor talks her childhood, Spitak earthquake and her path to Fox 11

Armenia acting justice minister receives Kazakhstan Ambassador

European Commissioner plans visits to Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia

Four new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

IMF sharply raises its forecast for US economic growth to 7%

Serj Tankian calls for joining signature campaign, not allowing Baku to host Euro 2020 quarterfinal match

Fan Yong: We work to draw Chinese investors to Armenia

Body implementing proceedings completes case of Armenian doctor Armen Charchyan, sends it to court

Whether is celery good for health?

Macron warns of American-style culture dangers

Armenia Shirak Province village veterinarian commits suicide

Karine Ceyhan to become first Armenian on Top Chef Amateurs show

Facebook to start warning some users that they may have seen extremist content

July in Armenia will be as hot as in June, says chief meteorologist

China ambassador to Armenia: We are waiting with pain in our hearts for return of captives

Amber Heard secretly welcomes her baby girl

Both Armenia and Azerbaijan are included in Belt and Road Initiative, says China ambassador to Yerevan

China envoy to Armenia refutes Azerbaijan media report

US worries China is building over 100 new ICBM silos

Armenia State Revenue Committee discovers 97kg heroin, Turkey citizen detained

Armenian captives 'trials' continue in Azerbaijan

What kind of nutrition can help cope with headaches?

Borussia Dortmund introduce new manager

Chief meteorologist: June heat in Armenia is absolute record-breaking in meteorological monitoring history

Ombudsman informs CoE Commissioner for Human Rights on urgency of Armenian captives return from Azerbaijan

Australia announces drastic reduction in number of people who will be allowed to enter country

Armenia Seismic Protection Department activities terminated

Outgoing MP attends OSCE Parliamentary Assembly session, speaks about Armenian POWs in Azerbaijan

Tokyo 2020: Armenia will be represented by 2 swimmers

118 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Armenia bloc petition already at Constitutional Court

Seven villagers with symptoms of anthrax are hospitalized in Gyumri

Yerevan hosting international conference on 100th anniversary of Communist Party of China

Armenia President visits US ambassador

Messi and Aguero receive souvenirs in Argentina (PHOTOS)

130 countries support introduction of global minimum tax for multinational corporations

New Zealand to ban most single-use plastics by 2025

Euro 2020: Quarterfinals getting underway

Al Pacinos rental home in Beverly Hills to be demolished?

Newspaper: Armenia Investigative Committee dismissals have interesting backstory

Newspaper: Why Armenia ex-President Sargsyan calls 7 "I Have Honor" bloc MP candidates to him?

World Bank pledges $20bn in funding coronavirus vaccine purchases, deployment

Newspaper: Why is coronavirus-related reality in Armenia being kept secret?

Wimbledon: Federer advances to 3rd round

Armenia Ombudsman calls on Artsakh-Armenians to remove or block phone numbers, personal data on social networks

Armenia acting minister: Two new electric trains to transport passengers to and from Yerevan and Gyumri soon

Body of 33-year-old man found hanged in Armenia's Lori Province

Karabakh State Minister: I also have questions regarding loss of Hin Tagher and Khtsaberd villages

Armenia Ambassador to Ukraine hands copies of credentials to Ukrainian MFA leadership

Erdogan defends Turkey's withdrawal from Istanbul Convention
Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of Armenia on Wednesday sent a congratulatory message to the Prime Minister Xavier Bettel of Luxembourg on the latters national holiday.

The message says that Armenia attaches great importance to the further development and expansion of relations with Luxembourg.

Also, Pashinyan reaffirmed the readiness of the Armenian side to make efforts to ensure the maximum realization of the potential of cooperation between the two countries.

In addition, the Armenian acting PM expressed his deep gratitude to the Luxembourg government for its resolute principles during the Azerbaijani-Turkish military aggression unleashed against Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) and the Azerbaijani encroachments on the sovereign territory of Armenia, and for voicing that position from multilateral platforms.

Further more, Nikol Pashinyan expressed confidence that the constructive dialogue between Armenia and Luxembourg will continue to develop and expand for the benefit and welfare of the two friendly peoples.
This purchase was made in accordance with the sub-item of a section of an article of the Law on Procurement, according to which the purchase can be made from one person if the product, work or service to be purchased can be purchased from only by one person, which is due to its copyright and related rights, and in case of special or exclusive right.

This amount was allocated to the Public Television of Armenia back on April 15, by one of the government's decisions that was on the agenda as an unreported matter.

The purpose of allocating this amount is to create a new news television channel.

To note, however, the Ministry of Finance was against the allocation of this amount, and it had submitted its respective objection to the government.
YEREVAN.  At Wednesday's press conference, Artur Vanetsyan, the candidate for prime minister of the "I Have Honor" bloc of Armenia and the leader of the opposition Homeland Party, commented on his two controversial statements he had made in his interview with renowned Russian journalist Vladimir Solovyov.

Vanetsyan stated as follows, in particular: "If we translate [it] literally, it means I said, 'Crimea is Armenian.' Of course, I could not have said such a thing. It was made in response which has a continuation. The continuation is as follows: The right of peoples to self-determination is inalienable; and I have drawn parallels with the Artsakh [(Nagorno-Karabakh)] issue. I have said [that] if more than 95% of the population of Crimea has expressed a wishthrough their expression of free willto join Russia, then that right must be respected, and first of all it must be respected by Armenia and the Armenian people because we have the issue of the Artsakh conflict where the exercise of the right to self-determination is a cornerstone. Is there an Armenian who does not agree with this assertion?

As for the phrase, I am a Chekist staff, the so-called Chekist staff is generally the colloquial slang of the representatives of the special services. I had the opportunity to answer one of the representatives of the civil society when I was still the director of the NSS [(National Security Service)], and I said that the NSS of Armenia does not consider itself the legal successor of the former KGB, that page is closed for us. It caused quite a stir even then, too. Yes, I believe that the NSS of Armenia is a body that serves and should serve solely the interests of Armenia, regardless of whether Russia is our ally or not."
Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan met with Sovereign Armenia party leader David Sanasaryan as part of consultations with a number of political forces.

Nikol Pashinyan - Dear Mr. Sanasaryan, I am glad to see you. I initiated our meeting to hear your views on the further course of political life in Armenia. You are a newly formed political party and I would like to hear your views on the steps to take so that the government and the extra-parliamentary opposition could come closer to each other and work together.

The concept of extra-parliamentary opposition is quite a broad one: some forces adhere to ideas and principles that are diametrically opposite to each other. This is another problem. Nevertheless, I believe that given the challenges facing our country, we should at least try to find ways of getting some synergy, extra energy even by combining mutually exclusive, incompatible approaches. So I would be grateful if you could express your views on these issues. Thank you.

Davit Sanasaryan - Thank you, Mr. Pashinyan, as you mentioned, Sovereign Armenia is a newly established party, it has been a month since it was registered. Our party brings together individuals who participated in the April and 44-Day wars, people who went through the hardships of political struggle. We consider ourselves the bearers of the values proclaimed by the 2018 revolution and we will do our best to make reality what you and I promised during the revolution.

We have criticized you on various issues, from incomplete pledges to the fact that the former authorities that oppressed and robbed the people are not in penitentiaries; moreover, they are bidding for power again. We do hope that these meetings will help us shape a new culture. We will definitely present our approaches, programs and the proposed solutions.

During the electoral campaign, we asked the people not to applaud those who preached hatred, those who used to draw social divides. We said that we have no enemies in Armenia. As you mentioned, we have numerous problems to solve. There are opposition forces with which we cannot imagine any step, but there are issues that we must sit down and understand together, because this is our state, no one will solve our problems for us. We must do everything we can to get out of this situation on our own.

The interlocutors discussed ways of mobilizing potentialities and opportunities nationwide, as well as the prospects for further cooperation.
Armenian News - NEWS.am presents the daily digest of Armenia-related top news as of June 23:

The Central Electoral Commission of Armenia reported that votes will be recounted at more than 70 polling stations.

Applications for recounting votes were made at 27 polling stations. Only three applications were submitted by the competent authorities.

Thus, the number of votes for the Armenia bloc led by ex-president Robert Kocharyan grew by 10 times after a recount at polling station 23/47 in Vanadzor.

Meanwhile, the 'Armenia bloc' has also received 258 votes at polling station 35/17 in Kapan.

Azerbaijan is ready to work with Armenia on a big peace agreement, Azerbaijani FM Jeyhun Bayramov said in an interview with TRT.

"We believe that this is realistically the first time after the obtaining of independence by Armenia and Azerbaijan when our countries have a unique chance to normalize their relations," he said. "This is the first time when there is no fact of occupation."

"As a result of this war, Azerbaijan 'restored its territorial integrity based on 4 UN Security Council resolutions.

"Four out of seven occupied regions were liberated by military operations and three were based on these trilateral statements."

"Azerbaijan is ready to work with Armenia on a big peace agreement between our two countries and we are offering this," Bayramov said adding that they expect the same level of political will from Armenia.

The trial of Armenian captives Lyudvig Mkrtchyan and Alyosha Khosrovyan continues in Baku, Azerbaijani media reported.

In the framework of a concocted criminal case, Mkrtchyan and Khosrovyan are accused of absurd crimes.

Azerbaijani authorities have put them on trial for their participation in the first Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) war in the early 1990s. Similar charges have been brought against all Armenians who took part in the war.

Russia's contribution to the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh [(Artsakh)] conflict was decisive, said Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"The conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh was stopped with a decisive contribution from Russia," he noted.

Putin also said that Russian peacekeepers reliably guarantee peace and security in the region, and are doing much to improve the humanitarian situation, demine the territories, and restore social infrastructure in Artsakh.

Two boys have suffered an electric shock in Yerevan - one of them, 11, died in hospital.

The electric shock occurred at the power distribution point on their street.

The police are preparing materials on the fact.

The two boys are neighbors.

As of Wednesday morning, 100 new cases of the coronavirus were confirmed in Armenia, and the total number of these cases has reached 224,430 in the country.

Also, one more death from COVID-19 was registered, making the respective total 4,503 cases.

The number of people who have recovered over the past one day is 48, the total respective number so far is 216,230.
I believe we [Armenians] need to have very deep ties with the European Union and other countries of the West. We have longstanding, very close and historical ties with Russia. This is what President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian stated in an interview with El Pais.

If youre a nation that has a history of genocide with neighboring Turkey, you need to be very careful. You need a friend. For many years, Russia has been that friend, and the others understand this. Armenia has had and will continue to have deep and strong ties with Russia, but there is no disagreement since Armenia also has good and deep ties with the EU, he said.

Asked if Russia is still as good a friend as it has been in the past, Sarkissian said the following: Who can assess this? It is necessary to take care of friendship, even family ties. Every relationship requires time, effort and hard work in order to keep it viable, effective and useful.

Asked if the ties have been taken care of sufficiently, Sarkissian said the following: Armenia can do more for the relations, and not only with Russia. Armenia can and must do more for its relations with Europe as well, especially in the case of Armenia, which is a small country, but has millions of compatriots in the Diaspora. This is exactly what I will propose to the new Cabinet, that is, I will propose to be more active and listen to friendly countries in order to work more effectively with them. Its clear that there was less international support to Armenia during the war in Nagorno-Karabakh, compared with the first Nagorno-Karabakh war that took place in the early 1990s when the Armenian army achieved victory.
Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan today met with Chairman of the European Party of Armenia Tigran Khzmalyan as part of his consultations with a number of political forces.

Nikol Pashinian - Dear Mr. Khzmalyan, I am pleased to see you. First of all, I would like to thank you for accepting my invitation. We have gone through challenging times, plus the pre-election period which came to highlight the clash of views and divergences. However, I feel that we need to think of strengthening our national potential, and this issue stands high on our domestic policy agenda in the wake of parliamentary elections.

The main task that we formulated is as follows: some of those political forces that took part in parliamentary elections went to parliament, others not, nevertheless, each political force has its own share of the electorate, which represents the point of view of a certain stratum in society. I wish to hear your opinion on the ways of building closer ties of interaction between extra-parliamentary forces and the government. I would also like to learn your views about the future course of political life in Armenia.

Tigran Khzmalyan - First of all, let me congratulate you on your victory. Thank you for finding time to host us - I do not say me, because you yourself said that the public was not fully represented in these elections. Nevertheless, thank you.

I believe that three of those many problems you are facing now are the most important, and if you allow me, I will talk about them. I mean Armenias sovereignty, security, and, of course, the economy. The electorate and the ideology that the European Party of Armenia represents suggest that the answer to these three questions is European integration. And we call on you since this is the second time you have been elected as a symbol, a symbol of rejection: the first time you symbolized the rejection of Serzh, it meant rejection of the system that had brought the country to the brink of an abyss, and to my mind this time you were elected under the logic of rejection of Kocharian. We are convinced that in both cases society consciously or subconsciously rejected the system that had given rise to such monsters.

Having learned from the press that you agreed or at least are discussing cooperation with extra-parliamentary forces through some kind of structure, we thought that this is a very correct step from the point of view of democracy, especially amid the current chaotic situation. On behalf of the European Party of Armenia, we offer our services to the people in terms of introducing the process of European integration in a bid to help the country overcome the crisis. As regards the risks and the threats which await us and seem to be inevitable, we are prepared to support you with the resources we have, both obvious and yet not so obvious, with all our human, intellectual and organizational potential. That is just what I wanted to tell you.

The interlocutors discussed ways of tapping the potentialities and opportunities available nationwide, as well as the prospects for further cooperation.
Judge Armine Meliksetyan, who ruled to remand Director of Izmirlian Medical Center, doctor-traumatologist, Professor Armen Charchyan today, was appointed judge of the Yerevan court of general jurisdiction on November 7, 2019, that is, during the administration of Nikol Pashinyan.

Before that, she was the head of the Legal Clinic of the Educational Complex of the Police of Armenia. Based on the declaration posted on the website of the Commission for the Prevention of Corruption, Meliksetyans husband, Husik Hovhannisyan is the deputy head of a police station.

Although Meliksetyan is relatively new in the judiciary, she has already managed to be in the spotlight with her decisions on arrest under a number of controversial cases.

In particular, on February 21, 2021, Meliksetya ruled to arrest former chief of staff-general secretary of the National Assembly of Armenia Ara Saghatelyan. However, the Criminal Court of Appeal overturned the decision and released Saghatelyan two weeks later. Meliksetyan is also known to the public for her decisions on custody against those accused under the cases of hooliganism and use of violence against representatives of the authorities with regard to the visit that the Prime Minister paid to Syunik Province on April 21.
A little while ago, Director of Izmirlian Medical Center, doctor-traumatologist, Professor Armen Charchyan was transferred to a hospital with cardiac distress, Charchyans attorney Erik Aleksanyan told Armenian News-NEWS.am.

A little while ago, Judge Armine Meliksetyan ruled to hold Charchyan in custody for a month.

Charchyan is charged with giving a bribe to voters, receiving a bribe, violating the ban on charity during elections or obstructing implementation of the free will of a voter.

Charchyan doesnt accept the charge brought against him.

According to the investigator of the Special Investigation Service, if Charchyan stays in liberty, he will hide from the body implementing proceedings and will obstruct investigation of the case.

The court had declared Charchyans detention unlawful. After his release, he gave a press conference during which he touched upon the launched criminal case and insisted that it is a phony case.
LOWER MATECUMBE KEY, Fla.As a teenager, Kathleen Sullivan Sealey spent summers at her grandmothers house in Key Largo, snorkeling along Tavernier Creek and into the Atlantic Ocean.

By simply wading in with a mask and fins, Sealey was transfixed for hours, swimming above the lush green sea grasses, purple sea fans, and pipe-like orange sponges growing from the rocky limestone sand. A little farther offshore, she swam up to coral reefs brimming with marine life.

Sealey

Years later, when she became a biology professor at the University of Miami in the 1980s, Sealey would introduce her students to the nearshore coral ecosystem by driving south to the Keys, pulling her car off the road, donning her snorkel gear, and hopping in.

While the serenity of the Florida Keys still entrances Sealey today, the colors of the nascent plants and animals lining the shores of the archipelago are less vibrant. The shallow waters support small patches of seagrass beds that are home to baby fish, crabs, and shrimp, but compared to their previous green luster, now they are often brown and muddy.

The water is cloudier too, reducing the amount of light reaching the seagrass. And Sealey, who has devoted her career to coastal ecology, is working with her students to inform Monroe County officials just how much the waters that hug the Keysand the wildlife that blossoms therehave been transformed by the development of residential canals.

I used to be able to see all the different types of nearshore coral within 100 yards of the shoreline, she said. But now, those places dont exist.

Jacob Patus holds a probe used to measure the temperature, depth, salinity, dissolved oxygen, and pH in the water.

Sealey and a team of graduate students, led by Ph.D. candidate Jacob Patus, recently finished a two-year project funded by Monroe County and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to survey the waters in and around 13 different canal sites throughout the Keys. They hope to get a sense of the current nearshore water quality and to determine if it has improved since 2017, when the county finished implementing a massive wastewater system to replace thousands of septic tanks that were likely leaking nutrients and other pollutants into the ground. These contaminants inevitably found their way from the porous limestone into the coastal waters, Patus and Sealey believe.

Monroe County wants some scientific data to answer the question of how much pollution is being created by residential canals, so we are trying to provide them with that, Sealey said. The idea is that once they have this knowledge, they can implement mitigation plans to improve canal water quality.

At the same time, the team is also trying to narrow down why some canals are cleaner than others.

Roots in the region

Sealeys work in the Keys stretches back more than 20 years when she helped create a database of the archipelagos more than 500 canals, with information on when they were constructed, along with the length and depth of each waterway. Her work, and the research of others, determined that some of the most harmful man-made contaminants are trapped in the canals, which are often used as roads for boaters.

The reasons are plenty. First, Sealey said that canals were dredged out from the limestone starting in the 1940s through the 1980s to create water access for homes and marinas. As part of that effort, mangroves were removed without regard for the environmental damage that it did to the fragile Keys ecosystem.

Then, as storms and rain passed through, the nutrients from cleared land and development trickled into the deep canals, where the harmful nutrients accumulated. This created the backdrop for some of the algae blooms that occur today. In addition, as patches of sargassum seaweed have been proliferating since 2011, the floating masses often get trapped in the canals.

When these outside elements are carried into canals, they decompose and the stagnant waterways are unable to flush out the harmful nutrients, contributing to poor water quality. The worst levels of nitrogen and phosphorus are in the canals, Sealey said. Especially near the bottom of the deeper canals.

Thats why county officials want to focus on those thoroughfares first. Yet another driving force behind their efforts is the Florida Impaired Waters Rule, or a state environmental law that outlines levels of nutrients that can be present in the water before it is deemed environmentally unsafe.

If samples show that certain levels are higher than what is considered safe, local cities and counties must mitigate the situation, or face fines for the environmental harm. Therefore, by conducting this study, the county is trying to be proactive and improve water quality in its most concerning spots, according to Sealey.

Unfortunately, identifying the source of water pollution is less clear cut. Although the new Monroe County sewer system has likely improved water quality, simultaneous development and climate changewhich are raising water temperatures and prompting sea level riseare now also impacting the water quality and its inhabitants, Sealey added.

Anytime you have flooding you are going to exacerbate the problems of coastal pollution, she explained. And sea level rise will only carry more debris from land right into the ocean and increase nearshore water quality problems.

Gauging water cleanliness

As an osprey circles overhead, Sealey guides a long fiberglass tube holding clear plastic sample bottles over the edge of an open fisherman boat, dunks them into the murky water of a canal, and guides them back into the boat. She then filters half of the samples with a fiber filter, while the others are left unfiltered. The process helps identify nutrients that are dissolved in the water from nutrients carried in particulate matter.

Ashley Goncalves records collection data to label the water samples.

At the same time, Patus drops a probe into the water, measuring the temperature, depth, salinity, dissolved oxygen, and pH in the water. He calls out the measurements to graduate student Ashley Goncalves, who scribbles the numbers down on a label, along with the location, time, and date. She then passes the label to Patus, who affixes it onto each bottle Sealey hands him, and then drops it into a cooler full of ice.

The trio replicate the pattern about 16 times throughout the morning, inching farther out from the mouth of the canal 500 yards into the open water. It is a task they have repeated each quarter from Key West to Key Largo, and this is their final trip.

Once they return to Miami, Patus will shuttle the samples to a lab certified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Using the lab data, Patus will enter the information into a scoring system he created. One of the most telling water quality parameters in the canals is chlorophyll, Patus noted, because the canals with the most pollutants in them often have an overabundance of the green phytoplankton, or single-celled plants.

Low chlorophyll is a more ideal situation, so then theres less plankton in the water stealing oxygen from other marine organisms, he said. This also ensures the water is clearer, so light can reach the seagrassmore chlorophyll often means less seagrass.

Looking for bright spots

Patus and Sealey are now in the process of scoring all 13 canals, some of which open up to the Atlantic Ocean on the eastern side of the Keys and others to Florida Bay on the western side.

Sealey filters water samples.

We have some canals we can point at that are benefiting from [coastal] management and others that need more attention, Sealey pointed out.

Although the data varies widely, Patus said one trend they have noticed is the farther south canals are from mainland Florida, the better their water quality. However, Sealey and Patus noted that they have only surveyed a small fraction of all the canals. After fully analyzing the results, they will share the data with the Monroe County Commission in the fall.

Another thing we have noticed is if you have a canal with poor water quality, the worst spot is at the mouth of the canal, Patus indicated.

A degraded seagrass bed at Rock Harbor Healthier seagrass at Dagny Johnson

There are already several ideas for how to improve water in the canals, and the county is testing out some of them. One idea includes installing a solar-powered air curtain, which releases bubbles at the mouth of the canal to oxygenate the water better. Other potential improvements include putting plastic barriers at the mouth of canals so that less seaweed will float into them and get trapped, or even filling the canals so they are shallower. The county has also considered asking homeowners to plant mangroves and build up their seawalls to help counter sea level rise.

Ideally, what we are doing should help show the county the areas that need to be targeted, so that they put a higher priority on remediation in certain canals, Sealey said.

Regardless of what the Monroe County Commission decides to do, Sealey is glad that they are taking water quality seriously. Left unchecked, she stated, water pollution could destroy the beautiful marine ecosystem that attracts so many to the Keys.

Weve noticed that where theres bad water quality in the canals; there tends to be less diversity in the marine plants and marine organisms just outside the canals, she said. Weve also noticed that theres been a shift in environmental conditions. So, while there used to be a hard limestone bottom at the shore with sponges, corals, and seagrasses growing from it, the nearshore communities are now shifting to less diverse algal communities.
China angered as US warship sails in Taiwan Strait

The US Navy has been conducting such operations in the Taiwan Strait every month or so. Photo: AFP

China condemned the United States on Wednesday as the region's greatest security "risk creator" after a US warship again sailed through the sensitive waterway that separates Taiwan from mainland China.



The US Navy's 7th Fleet said the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur conducted a "routine Taiwan Strait transit" on Tuesday in accordance with international law.



"The ship's transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the US commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific."



The People's Liberation Army's Eastern Theatre Command said their forces monitored the vessel throughout its passage and warned it.



"The US side is intentionally playing the same old tricks and creating trouble and disrupting things in the Taiwan Strait," it said.



This "fully shows that the United States is the greatest creator of risks for regional security, and we are resolutely opposed to this".



Taiwan's Defence Ministry said the ship had sailed in a northerly direction through the strait and the "situation was as normal".



The same ship transited the strait a month ago, prompting China to accuse the United States of threatening peace and stability.



The latest mission comes around a week after Taiwan said 28 Chinese air force aircraft, including fighters and nuclear-capable bombers, entered Taiwan's air defence identification zone (ADIZ), the largest reported incursion to date.



That incident followed the Group of Seven leaders issuing a joint statement scolding China for a series of issues and underscoring the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, comments China condemned as "slander".



The US Navy has been conducting such operations in the Taiwan Strait every month or so.



The United States, like most countries, has no formal diplomatic ties with democratic Taiwan but is its most important international backer and a major seller of arms.



Military tension between Taiwan and Beijing have spiked over the past year, with Taipei complaining of China repeatedly sending its air force into Taiwan's air defence zone. (Reuters)
LUXEMBOURG--(BUSINESS WIRE)--SES S.A. announced today the successful launch and pricing of a tap of its 1.625% Notes due 22 March 2026 in which it has agreed to sell incremental senior unsecured fixed rate notes for a total amount of EUR 150 million. The new notes were priced at 106.665% of their nominal value representing a credit spread of 47bps and a yield-to-maturity of 0.207%.

SES is rated Baa2 by Moodys (with negative outlook) and BBB- by Standard & Poors (with stable outlook). Proceeds of the issuance will be used for general corporate purposes.

BBVA, Deutsche Bank and IMI Intesa Sanpaolo acted as Joint Bookrunners. The settlement is scheduled for 29 June 2021 and application has been made for the notes to be listed on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange. The securities were placed with a broad range of institutional investors across Europe.

Sandeep Jalan, Chief Financial Officer of SES, commented, We are pleased to have secured this financing which allows us to further strengthen our liquidity position at the lowest yield ever achieved by SES. The successful conclusion of this bond offering reflects the markets view of SES as a strong investment grade credit and underlines the ability of SES to secure funding at attractive terms.

The securities have not been registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the Securities Act) or the securities laws of any other jurisdiction and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons absent registration or unless pursuant to an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act and any other applicable securities laws. No public offering of securities will be made in the United States of America or in any other jurisdiction where such an offering is restricted or prohibited. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy the securities, nor shall it constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.

This announcement does not constitute and shall not, in any circumstances, constitute a public offering nor an invitation to the public in connection with any offer within the meaning of the Directive 2003/71/EC of the Parliament and Council of November 4, 2003 as implemented by the Member States of the European Economic Area (the Prospectus Directive). With respect to the member States of the European Economic Area which have implemented the Prospectus Directive (each, a relevant member State), no action has been undertaken or will be undertaken to make an offer to the public of the securities requiring a publication of a prospectus in any relevant member State. As a result, the securities may only be offered in relevant member States: (a) to qualified investors (as defined in the Prospectus Directive, including as amended by directive 2010/73/EU, to the extent that this amendment has been implemented by the relevant member State); or (b) in any other circumstances, not requiring the issuer to publish a prospectus as provided under article 3(2) of the Prospectus Directive.

In addition to (and without prejudice to) the foregoing, in the European Economic Area this press release is directed only at persons who are not retail investors. For these purposes, a retail investor means a person who is one (or more) of: (i) a retail client as defined in point (11) of Article 4(1) of Directive 2014/65/EU (MiFID II); (ii) a customer within the meaning of Directive 2002/92/EC, where that customer would not qualify as a professional client as defined in point (10) of Article 4(1) of MiFID II; or (iii) a qualified investor within the meaning of Article 2(1)(e) of the Prospectus Directive (Directive 2003/71/EC as amended by Directive 2010/73/EU).

With respect to the United Kingdom, this press release is only directed at (i) persons who are outside the United Kingdom, (ii) to investment professionals falling within Article 19(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005 (the Order) or (iii) high net worth entities, and other persons to whom it may lawfully be communicated, falling within Article 49(2)(a) to (d) of the Order (all such persons together being referred to as relevant persons). Any securities will only be available to, and any invitation, offer or agreement to subscribe, purchase or otherwise acquire such securities will be engaged in only with, relevant persons. Any person who is not a relevant person should not act or rely on this document or any of its contents.

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About SES

SES has a bold vision to deliver amazing experiences everywhere on earth by distributing the highest quality video content and providing seamless connectivity around the world. As the leader in global content connectivity solutions, SES operates the worlds only multi-orbit constellation of satellites with the unique combination of global coverage and high performance, including the commercially-proven, low-latency Medium Earth Orbit O3b system. By leveraging a vast and intelligent, cloud-enabled network, SES is able to deliver high-quality connectivity solutions anywhere on land, at sea or in the air, and is a trusted partner to the worlds leading telecommunications companies, mobile network operators, governments, connectivity and cloud service providers, broadcasters, video platform operators and content owners. SESs video network carries over 8,400 channels and has an unparalleled reach of 361 million households, delivering managed media services for both linear and non-linear content. The company is listed on Paris and Luxembourg stock exchanges (Ticker: SESG). Further information is available at: www.ses.com.
Good morning, and welcome to 10 Things in Politics. If this was forwarded to you, sign up here.

I'm the Insider politics reporter Oma Seddiq, filling in for Brent Griffiths. Send me tips at oseddiq@insider.com or @omaseddiq.

Here's what we're talking about today:

With Jordan Erb.

Developing: New York's primary results are still coming in. Follow our Election Day coverage here.

Absentee ballots and a new ranked-choice voting system mean it could take weeks for the winner of New York City's Democratic mayoral primary to be declared. That said, Brooklyn's borough president, Eric Adams, held a commanding lead after Tuesday's votes came in. The 2020 presidential candidate Andrew Yang dropped out of the race after early results showed him in fourth.



Sen. Amy Klobuchar offers donors special access to virtual gatherings. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

1. PAY-TO-PLAY ACCESS: For $725 a year, you can be invited to an elite donor club that has regular policy talks with Sen. Amy Klobuchar.

Klobuchar is a top advocate in the Senate for curbing the role of money in politics, but the Minnesota Democrat's campaign committee is encouraging supporters to become members of the senator's "North Star" conversation series, which features virtual conversations and more.

Documents obtained by Insider show the detailed list of price points that Klobuchar's campaign committee sent would-be donors: $1,450 to become a North Stars Committee member; $725 to be a North Stars friend; $500 to be a sponsor; and $100 to be a guest. See the documents here.

Klobuchar on Tuesday night hosted a discussion with a special guest, Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia, after the vote on the For the People Act, which among other things seeks to reduce big money in politics (more on that below).

It appears that the $500 or $100 donations allowed Klobuchar's supporters to attend the chat.

Klobuchar isn't the only lawmaker to offer pay-to-play access for donors - but specifics are usually kept under wraps. Read our exclusive report on Klobuchar's elite club of donors.

Story continues

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and the Democratic leadership speaking with reporters about progress on an infrastructure bill and voting-rights legislation on June 15. J. Scott Applewhite/AP

2. GOP blocks voting-rights legislation: Senate Republicans on Tuesday night blocked the For the People Act, the sweeping elections bill seeking to expand voting rights and overhaul campaign-finance and ethics laws.

The bill became a top priority for congressional Democrats hoping to push back on GOP-led states that have raced to enact voting restrictions in the aftermath of the 2020 election.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer before Tuesday's vote blasted Republican efforts to limit voting access, saying legislatures were "making it easier to own a gun than to vote."

Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia was a "yes" vote to bring the bill to debate after he initially opposed it. His support created a unified Democratic front; zero Republicans voted to advance the legislation.

3. Andy Slavitt on vaccines and the pandemic: Insider's global editor-in-chief, Nicholas Carlson, recently spoke with Slavitt, the head of President Joe Biden's vaccine rollout - who left his role in early June and has a new book out on the US's pandemic response.

What he said: Vaccine-hesitant people generally don't trust the government and would rather like to hear from their employer, doctor, or pharmacist, per Slavitt.

But the pandemic provided lessons: Don't politicize science, and be more supportive of one another, he said.

Here's the full interview - in just 600 words.

4. Moderate Dems work on infrastructure pay-fors: As a bipartisan group of 21 lawmakers hammers out the details on how to pay for a $1 trillion infrastructure package, some moderate Democrats are thinking of leaning on the IRS to pursue wealthy tax evaders.

One member, Sen. Angus King of Maine, told Insider that beefing up funding for the IRS was among "the clearest opportunities" for new infrastructure revenue. "That's found money," he said.

Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia said the group would have its proposal ready soon: "I think it is overall very settled." More on what they said here.

5. Trump reportedly wanted DOJ and FCC to go after 'SNL': Donald Trump was a frequent target of late-night hosts during his presidency, and now The Daily Beast reports the former commander in chief actually tried to get the Justice Department to stop the jokes.

Sources tell the outlet Trump was repeatedly told the programs were protected because they were satire.

But remember when Trump hosted 'SNL'? Take a look at the eight of the most controversial hosts in "Saturday Night Live" history.

NBC

6. The US will most likely miss Biden's July 4 vaccination goal: Biden sought to have 70% of adults at least partially vaccinated against COVID-19 by the Fourth of July. But as it stands, about 65% of the country has at least one dose. The White House press secretary, Jen Psaki, said the goal would probably be achieved a couple of weeks later.

Some groups have hit the goal: The White House says 70% of Americans ages 30 and older have been vaccinated - and by July 4 the milestone is expected to be achieved for adults ages 27 and older.

Plus, governors of all 50 states are vaccinated: Gov. Mike Dunleavy of Alaska was the last to join the ranks.

7. Burned-out workers demand more support: American workers are running on empty - including on Capitol Hill, where traumatized staffers told us they're heading for the door after a "chaotic year."

But that burnout extends far beyond Washington . Executives at major retailers, banks, and more have added a ton of benefits this year, from fat bonuses to "Zoom-free" Fridays.

While the execs say they've promised to keep many of those benefits in place, experts and workers agree it's not enough.

Workers say employers need to address workplace cultures to really fix burnout. Here's what the workers told us.

8. A federal agency just made it easier for people with student-loan debt to get a mortgage: The Federal Housing Administration announced new calculations to determine mortgage assistance - a move set to benefit people with student loans and particularly people of color. Here's how the new rules work.

The Hubble Space Telescope at the boundary of Earth and space in this picture, taken after Hubble's second servicing mission in 1997. NASA

9. Ground control to  the Hubble Space Telescope: NASA has tried repeatedly to revive the Hubble telescope after a mysterious computer issue took it offline last week. In the meantime, the telescope's science instruments are in a hibernation-like "safe mode."

This isn't the first time Hubble has glitched or needed an upgrade - not even the first time this year. Here's what's going on.

10. Britney's day in court: Britney Spears is set to address a Los Angeles court directly during a hearing today on her conservatorship.

A recent New York Times documentary, "Framing Britney Spears," reignited the #FreeBritney movement - and spurred new interest in the 13-year conservatorship that prevents her from controlling her life and $59 million fortune. Take a look inside the complex arrangement that is Spears' conservatorship.

Today's trivia question: Since there's a holiday for everything, today is Runner's Selfie Day. So in that vein, which president is said to have finished a marathon in under four hours? Email your answer and an idea for a new question to oseddiq@insider.com.

Yesterday's answer: Judy Garland serenaded JFK with a rendition of "Over the Rainbow" ... over the phone.

Read the original article on Business Insider
pixdeluxe / Getty Images

Building a business is hard. Building a business that can stand the test of time, on the other hand, is a rare accomplishment that most entrepreneurs will never experience. Although survival rates vary by industry, about 20% of new businesses fail within a year and about 30% meet their demise by the end of the second year. After five years, half of all new businesses fall victim to the realities of capitalism, and after 10 years, just 30% are left.

2021 Small Business Spotlight: Check Out Our Small Business Stories, Plus the Nominated Businesses Near You

Find: 30 Odd Jobs That Pay Insanely Well

Some businesses, however, have the foresight, the management, the customer base and the luck to last over the years, decades, generations and even the centuries.

Heres a look at 10 small businesses from all over the country and from all different industries with legacies that date back more than a century. They all have a different product, service and story, but they all have one thing in common, too  longevity.

Shirley Plantation

You cant talk about American businesses that stood the test of time without starting with Shirley Plantation in Virginia. Established in 1613  163 years before the founding of the United States  it is the oldest family-owned business in North America. Its also a treasure trove of historical records, artifacts and ambiance. Its Great House  now in its 12th generation of family stewardship  remains largely untouched in its original state.

The place is a testament to the brutal realities of Colonial life. One of the earliest records of an African captive enslaved in America comes from Shirley in the 1622 Census. The first record of Europeans being put to work as indentured servants at Shirley comes from 1625.

Read: 5 Startup Tech Companies Changing the Scope of the Industry

Caswell-Massey

The first truly American cologne was Number Six Eau de Parfum, which was created in 1772 in what would become the United States  and it was famous for being the preferred scent of future President George Washington. It was made by the Caswell-Massey company of Rhode Island, the oldest fragrance and cosmetics firm in America and one of the oldest small businesses across all categories nationwide.

Story continues

Founded in 1752, its been nearly 270 years since Caswell-Massey first began making Colonial Americans look and smell their best  and you can still buy Number Six today.

Your Information: Beware These 18 Industries and Companies Selling Your Information

Seaside Inn

The Seaside Inn in Kennebunkport, Maine, is probably the oldest continuously operating hotel in America  certainly in New England. Perched on the Kennebunk River on Kennebunk Beach, its in its ninth generation of family ownership. A legend of not only Maine but all of greater New England, its current family lineage took ownership in 1756, but Seaside has been a working inn since at least 1600. It is believed not only to be the oldest inn in America but also the No. 5 oldest family-run business in America and the No. 46 oldest family-run business in the world.

Retail: 25 Biggest Companies Youve Never Heard Of

Stoneware & Co.

Entrepreneur Jacob Louis opened the first factory in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1815, but thats a different Louis  Louisville was founded in the 1700s and was named for a French king. Louis factory was the production facility for what would become Louisville Pottery and eventually Louisville Stoneware. It remains one of the oldest and most revered stoneware companies in America, with its pieces renowned for both their quality and their reflection of local Kentucky heritage. After celebrating its bicentennial in 2015, it remains one of the 100 oldest companies in America.

Hot or Flop: Biggest Product Flops From 20 Major Companies

Rose Law Firm

The legal partnership that started Rose Law Firm was signed on Nov. 1, 1820  before Arkansas even became a state. It is the oldest law firm west of the Mississippi River and the written agreement still hangs on the wall in the firms boardroom today. Although the name has changed several times over the years, the Rose portion has always been there. One of the most prestigious law firms in America, six of its former members have served on the Arkansas Supreme Court, including three as chief justice.

Read More: Coronavirus Has Made These 100+ Brands More Valuable Than Ever

See: 14 Famous Companies That Arent Profitable

C.D. Peacock

Today, well-heeled Chicagoans stop by C.D. Peacock for fine timepieces, engagement rings and high-end gifts, just like they did in 1837 when the Windy Citys oldest business was founded. Elijah Peacock was already a third-generation jeweler when he moved from England to Chicago in 1837 to ply his trade as a jeweler and watch repair specialist. Mary Todd Lincoln visited Peacock once, as did Cyrus McCormick (who invented the reaper), George M. Pullman (who invented the railroad sleeping car) and Mick Jagger.

State by State: The Most-Loved Company in Every State

Minhas Craft Brewery

Family-owned since 1845, Minhas is the oldest brewery in the Midwest and the second-oldest in America. Located in the historic cheese town of Monroe, Wisconsin, Minhas survived two major fires, encounters with the mob and even Prohibition. Its undergone several name changes  in 1845, after all, all beer was craft beer  but its brewery tours and tastings still attract visitors from all over the Midwest and beyond.

Moneys Worth: 50 Brands With Lifetime Warranties

Pensacola Hardware

Entrepreneur Albert Lord A.L. Avery founded Pensacola Hardware in 1851. Its probably the oldest continuously operating business in Florida and is definitely one of the 50 oldest in the entire country. Today, it competes with the big-box chains by splitting its business into two departments with two different websites. One deals in hardware, paint and commercial and residential contractor supplies. The other is for upscale houseware and giftware. In 1921, the business changed ownership from the Avery family to the Martin family, whose descendants are still in charge today.

Find Out: 17 Companies Facebook Famously Purchased and How Theyre Doing Now

The Palace Saloon

There is a direct pipeline from the Palace in Prescott, Arizona, to the Old West. The oldest and most famous frontier bar in the state, the Palace was located in Arizonas infamous Whiskey Row, but it was always a place of prominence, importance and politics.

Famed lawman Virgil Earp lived in Prescott and patronized the Palace with his even more famous brother Wyatt and their legendary associate Doc Holliday. The Earp brothers visited the Palace before making their way to Tombstone. They were later joined in Tombstone by Holliday after the famous gunslinger won $10,000 during a legendary poker run on Whiskey Row, perhaps at the Palace itself. You can cozy up to the same bar today  the Palace doesnt look much different now than Holliday and the Earps would have known it in the Wild West.

Looks Marketplace

The butchers department is still the beating heart of the South Dakota institution that is Looks Marketplace. Its sleek, modern appearance would be unrecognizable to Carl Look, an immigrant  and youngest of 13 children  who in 1883 opened what is now the oldest business in the state. He had just completed a three-year butchers apprenticeship in his native Germany when he went into business for himself. Although it has changed families several times, Looks remains a family-owned business.

More From GOBankingRates

Last updated: June 14, 2021

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 10 US Small Businesses That Are More Than 100 Years Old
Brandon Bell/Getty Images

More than 150 hospital workers in the Houston Methodist Hospital system were fired or quit by the end of their two-week suspension after refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

Earlier this month, 178 hospital workers were suspended without pay for failing to comply with the hospital's requirement that all employees get fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The requirement was announced in April, and workers had until June 7 to comply.

After the two-week suspension period, 153 employees were either terminated or stepped away Tuesday, a Houston Methodist Hospital system spokesperson told NPR. A spokesperson for the hospital system did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.

More than 100 employees filed a lawsuit over the requirement, arguing that it was unlawful for the hospital to require employees to be inoculated or fired, according to documents obtained by the New York Times.

RELATED: Houston Hospital Suspends 178 Workers for Refusing to Comply with Its COVID Vaccine Mandate

Houston U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes threw out the lawsuit earlier this month, though the plaintiffs have appealed the dismissal, NPR reported.

"Methodist is trying to do their business of saving lives without giving them the COVID-19 virus," Hughes wrote in her June 12 ruling. "It is a choice made to keep staff, patients, and their families safer."

Hughes also pointed out that the employees "can freely choose to accept or refuse a COVID-19 vaccine" - but if they refuse, they will "simply need to work somewhere else."

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The 178 employees who were suspended represent less than one percent of the hospital's total 25,000 employees, PEOPLE previously reported. While some of the group did get vaccinated during their suspension, the rest have now been fired.

According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, current federal guidelines "do not prevent an employer from requiring all employees physically entering the workplace to be vaccinated for COVID-19, so long as employers comply with the reasonable accommodation provisions of the [Americans With Disabilities Act] and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and other EEO considerations."

As information about the coronavirus pandemic rapidly changes, PEOPLE is committed to providing the most recent data in our coverage. Some of the information in this story may have changed after publication. For the latest on COVID-19, readers are encouraged to use online resources from the CDC, WHO and local public health departments. PEOPLE has partnered with GoFundMe to raise money for the COVID-19 Relief Fund, a GoFundMe.org fundraiser to support everything from frontline responders to families in need, as well as organizations helping communities. For more information or to donate, click here.
The hospital said in late March that it would mandate COVID-19 vaccines for its 26,000 employees. FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images

Houston Methodist Hospital told The Washington Post that it had fired staff who refused a COVID-19 shot.

Some staff quit over the vaccine mandate, too. More than 150 staff had left or were fired, it said.

Earlier this month a judge dismissed a lawsuit that said the mandate treated staff like "guinea pigs."

See more stories on Insider's business page.

Houston Methodist Hospital said it had fired workers who refused to get a COVID-19 vaccine.

The hospital said it had either fired or accepted the resignations of 153 staff members on Tuesday, after they refused to get the vaccine, The Washington Post first reported. A spokesperson for the hospital confirmed this to Insider.

The hospital said in late March that it would mandate COVID-19 vaccines for its 26,000 employees, and could fire staff who refused to get the jab - making it one of the first hospitals to introduce a vaccine mandate. It said it would allow religious and medical exemptions "in very rare cases."

It rolled out the policy to managers and new hires first, before expanding it to its entire workforce. CEO Marc Boom said in an internal email in March that managers would receive a list of all the employees they manage who hadn't yet received a dose of the vaccine, and gave a deadline of June 7 for people to get their shot.

Read more: Experts explain why the mRNA tech that revolutionized COVID-19 vaccines could be the answer to incurable diseases, heart attacks, and even snake bites: 'The possibilities are endless'

The spokesperson told The Post that more than 99% of workers had got the vaccine, but that on June 7 it suspended 178 workers who hadn't got a shot. These people got an extra two weeks to get vaccinated, but only 25 of them did.

The 153 who still hadn't received a vaccine were either fired or resigned, the spokesperson said.

It told Insider that its entire workforce has now been either vaccinated or given an exemption.

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"All our employees have now met the requirements of the vaccine policy and I couldn't be prouder of them," Boom said in an email to staff seen by Insider. "Our employees and physicians made their decisions for our patients."

More than 100 workers sued the hospital over the policy in May, saying it was "forcing its employees to be human 'guinea pigs' as a condition for continued employment."

The lawsuit also called the COVID-19 vaccines "experimental," and noted that none have been granted full approval by the US Food and Drug Administration.

The three vaccines in use in the US all have emergency use authorization from the FDA and have undergone rigorous clinical trials, Insider's Michelle Mark reported.

The lawsuit was dismissed by a federal judge on June 12, who called the plaintiff's allegations that the vaccine was experimental "false." The judge added that the hospital's policy doesn't violate state or federal law.

Houston Methodist isn't the only employer mandating vaccines for staff.

United Airlines said it would require all new US-based employees to be vaccinated, and would give extra vacation to current staff if they get jabbed, while Delta said it could bar its staff from international flights if they refuse a shot.

Goldman Sachs, meanwhile, doesn't have a vaccine mandate, but told US employees to share their vaccination status with the financial-services company.

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Associated Press

Immediately after the bombshell announcement that Justin Marks had purchased Chip Ganassi's NASCAR team, the outgoing owner took the soon-to-be new boss back to the shop to address a room full of anxious employees. The work begins next week for the co-owner of Trackhouse Racing, who struggled to find a charter for the team's first year of competition and balked at paying the escalating costs of NASCAR's equivalent of a franchise. Kaulig Racing last month bought a pair of charters for what the industry believes to be at least $10 million apiece, and after crunching the numbers, Marks just couldn't justify the spend.
A Grand Canyon hiker was a half-mile from the trailhead when he died, park officials said.

William Smith, a 60-year-old from Oswego, Illinois, had just completed a day hike Tuesday when bystanders rushed to give him CPR, Grand Canyon National Park officials said.

He was hiking out of the canyon after going to Ooh Ahh Point, a popular 1.7-mile trail.

Bystanders initiated CPR and National Park Service EMS personnel responded and assisted with resuscitation efforts, park officials said in a Wednesday news release. All attempts to resuscitate the victim were unsuccessful.

The incident is under investigation, and park officials didnt share additional details on what led to Smiths death.

Its the second fatality at the Grand Canyon in the past week. On Sunday, a backpacker died after falling ill from extreme heat. She became disoriented and later unconscious.

Grand Canyon backpacker dies in 115-degree heat. How to stay safe as temperatures soar

It was at least 115 degrees Sunday, and park officials said exposed parts of the trail can get hotter than 120 degrees. In the past, the Grand Canyon has been so hot that shoes melted and fell apart.

Park officials did not say if Smiths death was thought to be heat related.

Hiking in extreme heat can lead to serious health risks including heat exhaustion, heat stroke, hyponatremia, and death, park officials said.

If you plan to hike in brutal temperatures, the National Park Service recommends these tips:

Carry and drink plenty of water and plan to replenish electrolytes

Eat twice as much food as normal and have salty foods on hand

Carry a first-aid kit

Pack essentials only

Bring a flashlight with spare batteries to hike during the cool evening

Spray yourself with water to cool down

Have a hat and sunscreen as protection from the sun

Have a whistle or signal for emergency use

Wear waterproof clothing

Fresh baked cookies in a car? Park rangers in Arizona just did it in extreme heat

63-year-old on day 6 of Grand Canyon boating trip dies in Colorado River, officials say

National Park Service once again tells tourists to not push their friends into bears
A view of 50th anniversary decorations on Cinderella Castle at Magic Kingdom. Disney Parks

October 1 marks 50 years since Magic Kingdom, the first Disney World park, opened in Florida.

The theme park is celebrating the anniversary with a Cinderella Castle makeover and new live shows.

There will also be new costumes for characters, and vibrant lights added to classic rides.

Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Disney World turns 50 this year, and the theme park will host "The World's Most Magical Celebration" in honor of the event.

Disney World in Orlando, Florida, turns 50 years old on October 1. John Raoux/AP

According to Disney World's website, the theme park's 50th-anniversary event will start October 1 and run for 18 months.

First, Cinderella Castle received a glamorous makeover.

A view of 50th anniversary decorations on Cinderella Castle at Magic Kingdom. Disney Parks

The Magic Kingdom landmark was decorated with gold ribbons and blue banners earlier this year, and a 50th-anniversary sign will be added for October 1, according to renderings released by Disney. The new decorations complement the pink-and-gold paint job the castle received in 2020.

It also seems that sparkling lights will be visible on the castle at night to represent pixie dust.

Rides like Tower of Terror and Spaceship Earth will also glow and sparkle during the celebration.

Disney World's rendering of what Tower of Terror will look like during the anniversary. Disney Parks

The Disney Parks Blog previously announced that Disney World's Tower of Terror, Spaceship Earth, and Tree of Life attractions will be turned into "Beacons of Magic" via new decorations and an "EARidescence" sparkle that will shine at night.

Some fan-favorite characters will be sporting new outfits.

Classic characters wear new outfits for Disney World's 50th anniversary celebration. Disney Parks

Mickey Mouse will wear a purple-and-blue gradient suit with shining gold shoes, while Minnie Mouse will wear the same colors on a dress. She'll also have new white gloves, a golden bow, and shimmering heels.

As seen in photos shared by Disney, classic characters including Chip, Dale, Donald, Daisy, Pluto, and Goofy will wear the same colors and fabrics.

The new character outfits will first be worn on October 1, and they'll then be seen in the upcoming "Mickey's Celebration Cavalcade," according to the Disney Parks Blog.

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A new fireworks show will debut at Magic Kingdom.

Disney shared this rendering of what the "Disney Enchantment" show will look like. Disney Parks

The new show, called "Disney Enchantment," is meant to inspire "everyone to believe in magic," according to the Disney Parks Blog.

It features music, fireworks, "enhanced lighting," and immersive projections that extend from Cinderella Castle to the buildings that surround the audience.

Epcot will also become home to a new evening event.

Disney shared this image to give a glimpse of the upcoming "Harmonious" show. Disney Parks

"Harmonious" is described on the Disney Parks Blog as "one of the largest nighttime spectaculars ever created for a Disney park."

It will be held nightly at the World Showcase Lagoon, and the show honors classic Disney songs, this time sung by 240 musicians in various languages. The show will also include pyrotechnics, moving fountains, vibrant lighting, and more.

At Animal Kingdom, Disney will unveil a daytime show that features animal-shaped kites.

Disney World shared this rendering of the upcoming "Disney KiteTails" show. Disney Parks

The show debuts on October 1, according to the Disney Parks Blog, and will be held numerous times each day at the Discovery River Amphitheater.

Performers featured in the show are said to "fly windcatchers and kites of all shapes and sizes" on land, while "three-dimensional kites" that depict Disney characters will be seen on the water.

"These colorful creations will dance through the sky to the beat of favorite Disney songs in an uplifting, vibrant experience for the whole family," the Disney Parks Blog says.

Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse will be honored with golden statues placed near Cinderella Castle starting October 1.

Disney shared this rendering of what the golden statues will look like. Disney Parks

The same goes for Donald Duck, Daisy, Pluto, Goofy, Chip, and Dale, though it's currently unclear where their statues will be located.

There will be 50 character statues in total across Disney World's four theme parks, according to the Disney Parks Blog, and they'll be announced closer to the anniversary.

A "Coco"-inspired scene will be added to Mickey's PhilharMagic at Magic Kingdom.

A view of the "Coco" scene that will soon be added to the musical attraction. Disney Parks

According to the Disney Parks Blog, the scene  which will include the track "Un Poco Loco"  will first be added to the attraction at Disneyland in California and Paris, France, starting July 17. The Florida version will later be updated for Magic Kingdom's 50th anniversary.

The musical number marks the first time Disney and Pixar animators have worked together on a project where "characters from both animation studios will be seen together on screen," according to Disney.

Read the original article on Insider
A man was arrested Wednesday after North Carolina police say he shot at a Walmart truck workers were unloading.

Officers were called around 12:15 a.m. to the back of the store in Franklin where an active shooter incident was unfolding, according to a Wednesday news release from the Franklin Police Department.

Police say a man was firing a hunting rifle at a Walmart truck as workers were unloading items from it.

The employees took cover inside the store, went into their lockdown procedure and called 911, police say.

Fortunately, no causalities or injuries were sustained as the shooter fired rounds at the truck and potentially employees, police say.

Officers and deputies with the Macon County Sheriffs Office arrived at the Walmart as the suspect was driving off.

He was intercepted by officers not far from the store, police say, and a chase ensued.

A deputy used stop sticks to disable the suspects car, which came to a halt in the parking lot of the Mountain View Intermediate School, about a mile from the Walmart.

The suspect was taken into custody, and police say several long guns, including hunting rifles and assault rifles, were found in his car along with ammunition.

He is being held in the Macon County Detention Center on a $5,000 secured bond, police say.

Police say they believe the suspect was acting alone, but the investigation is ongoing. No other information was released Wednesday afternoon.

Franklin is in Western North Carolina, about 180 miles west of Charlotte.

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Actor Michael B. Jordan apologized Tuesday for naming his new brand of rum after a Caribbean festival, sparking allegations of cultural appropriation against the "Creed" star.

His "J'Ouvert rum" shares the same name as a celebration that has 18th-century roots in Trinidad, when the island was controlled by French colonizers who kept slaves to toil in the sugar, coffee, and cotton industries.

The 34-year-old "Friday Night Lights" star said he understood the backlash and promised to change the rum's name.

"I just wanna say on behalf of myself & my partners, our intention was never to offend or hurt a culture (we love & respect) & hoped to celebrate & shine a positive light on," the actor wrote on Instagram Story late Tuesday night. "Last few days has been a lot of listening, A lot of learning & engaging in countless conversations."

He added: "We hear you. I hear you & want to be clear that we are in the process of renaming. We sincerely apologize & look forward to introducing a brand we can all be proud of."

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The withering backlash appeared to be fueled by Nicki Minaj, the Trinidadian-born, New York-raised rapper and singer-songwriter.

About six hours before Jordan's message, Minaj  with 142 million Instagram followers  shared an extensive IG post by the Trinidadian artist Xaria Rae Roxburgh who explained the festival's sobering ties to slavery.

The "Starships" artist said she's sure Jordan "didn't intentionally do anything he thought" would offend those with Caribbean roots. But she still urged him, "now that you are aware," to change the name and "continue to flourish & prosper."
MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters will vote Thursday about organizing Amazon workers, Vice reports.

Amazon defeated efforts to unionize its Bessemer, Alabama warehouse earlier this year.

Amazon has a history of campaigning heavily against unionization efforts.

See more stories on Insider's business page.

Amazon is used to unions trying to organize its workers. And while there hasn't been any success in unionizing US warehouse workers and or delivery drivers, activists aren't giving up just yet.

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters will vote Thursday on a decision to organize Amazon workers, labeling their efforts the "Amazon Project," Vice's Motherboard reported and CNBC confirmed.

The Teamsters union is one of the largest in the country. It consists largely of truck drivers and warehouse workers but has also organized workers in "virtually every occupation imaginable, both professional and non-professional, private sector and public sector," it says.

The push comes just months after Amazon defeated efforts to unionize its warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama.

The company aggressively campaigned against the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU)'s efforts, and it paid off for the online retailer with 1,798 votes against the union and 738 votes for the union.

For labor organizers, establishing a union at Amazon - one of the largest retailers and most valuable companies in the world - would be a significant milestone.

"We've been working on this for quite some time-well before Bessemer broke out," Randy Korgan, Teamsters National Director for Amazon, told Vice's Motherboard.

"We understand transportation and logistics companies that are only motivated by profit will make changes that always end in workers losing," Kroger told Motherboard. "There's been one unified organization for those workers and that's been Teamsters members and the Teamsters union as a whole."

Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Eric Adams celebrates on primary election night, which saw him in an early lead with roughly 30 per cent of the vote from in-person ballots. (REUTERS)

Brooklyn borough president and former police officer Eric Adams snagged an early lead but fell short of an outright victory in the Democratic primary for New York Citys next mayor, as voters await the results from the citys first-ever ranked-choice voting system that could alter the outcome in the weeks ahead.

After tallying ballots from Election Day and early in-person voting ballots, Mr Adams has a nearly 10-point lead, while progressives have coalesced around Maya Wiley, who stands in second place with more than 22 per cent of the vote.

Former presidential candidate Andrew Yang was the first among early front-runners to concede on Tuesday night after he fell to a distant fourth place.

The primary election marks the debut of the citys first-ever ranked-choice election, in which voters can fill ballots ranking their first, second, third, four and fifth choices in order of preference in citywide races.

Without a clear majority win in the first-choice results, the outcome of the race might not be revealed until several weeks later.

Following the results from Election Day, the last-place candidate is eliminated, and their votes are redistributed, a process that will continue through several rounds until only two candidates remain.

Election officials will finish processing ranked picks on 29 June, and it could take up to 12 July  after processing all absentee ballots  to determine the winner.

Mr Adams told supporters at his election night party on Tuesday night that New York City said our first choice is Eric Adams.

Ms Wiley, buoyed by late endorsements from prominent progressive lawmakers and the Working Families Party, told supporters that she believes there remains a path to victory as votes are counted.

Curtis Sliwa has won the citys Republican Party primary, but the largely Democratic-leaning city all but guarantees a Democratic victory in the race.

The Democratic candidate will face Mr Sliwa in the general election on 2 November.

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The coronavirus pandemic  which has killed more than 33,000 New York City residents  has underscored the citys overlapping crises in housing, unemployment, healthcare and education, but public safety became a defining issue in the final weeks of the primary campaign following a spike in violent crime.

Candidates also debated their competing visions for the future of the nations largest and most expensive police force after antiracist uprisings and calls to defund the police to prioritise critical social services.

While speculators have seen Mr Adamss early lead as a sign of winnowing left-wing influence across New York politics, progressive candidates saw several victories in citywide races and in other boroughs and in the states second-largest city of Buffalo.

Early results from Manhattans district attorney show a lead for Alvin Bragg, backed by national progressive groups. Current public advocate and leading New York progressive Jumaane Williams received more than 70 per cent of the vote for his re-election. And Brad Lander, endorsed by Senator Bernie Sanders and New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, also is leading the race for the citys next comptroller. Left-wing candidates in several other city council races, including Tiffany Caban in Queens, also are leading.

In Buffalo, India Walton appears to have defeated the citys four-term mayor Byron Brown in an upset that could see her become the citys first-ever Black woman as mayor.

Read More

A last push, then a long wait in NYC mayoral primary

Heres how ranked choice voting will work in the NYC mayoral primary election

New Yorks mayoral candidates are battling for our attention
'In our country, if you come from Great Britain you have to go into quarantine  and that's not the case in every European country, and that's what I would like to see,' Mrs Merkel said on Wednesday - Michele Tantussi/Reuters

Angela Merkel on Wednesday night threatened to scupper hopes of foreign holidays in Europe this summer by demanding that EU countries introduce mandatory quarantine for travelling Britons.

The German chancellor urged countries to introduce the quarantine for vaccinated Britons just as the UK Government is finally preparing to relax its rules for returning holidaymakers.

Her intervention came ahead of a key meeting on Thursday at which Boris Johnson is expected to approve plans for fully vaccinated people to be able to travel to amber list countries later this summer and not be subject to quarantine when they return home.

The Balearic Islands, Malta and some Caribbean islands could also be added to the green list.

The fully vaccinated travel scheme is expected to take effect in August, although some ministers, Tory MPs and travel industry chiefs are urging Boris Johnson to bring forward the date to July 19 to coincide with the proposed lifting of domestic restrictions.

Mrs Merkel said European countries should require travellers from nations with high rates of the highly transmissible Indian or delta variant to self-isolate, as is the case in Germany.

"In our country, if you come from Great Britain you have to go into quarantine  and that's not the case in every European country, and that's what I would like to see," Mrs Merkel told the Bundestag lower house of parliament.

New EU-wide rules will be introduced next week to facilitate the resumption of travel, which will allow vaccinated people to move freely within the Schengen area. However, individual countries can set their own tougher rules, and several  including Germany, Italy and Poland  are introducing quarantine for Britons.

Other popular holiday destinations including Greece and Spain are welcoming British tourists who have been vaccinated, and are likely to defy the German call amid fears over the devastating economic impact of losing another summer season.

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It is not clear whether France will toughen its requirements for entry from Britain.

Germany's intervention comes amid growing concerns over the spread of the delta variant in many European nations.

Some British sources suspect Mrs Merkel is preparing to blame Britain for the inevitable resurgence of Covid in Germany, which is months behind the UK with its vaccination programme.

Delta has become the dominant variant in Portugal and emerged in clusters in Germany, France and Spain. On Wednesday, the EU's disease control agency called for swifter vaccination as it forecast that the variant would account for 90 per cent of all cases in member states by the end of August.

In a meeting with Ursula von de Leyen, the European Commission president, Mrs Merkel demanded common EU rules on travel and said the increase in cases in Portugal showed that a failure to do that "has now struck back". Portugal was temporarily on the UK's quarantine-free green list before being axed.

If other countries heed the German chancellor's call to bar Britons, it could significantly decrease their holiday options. Germany only accepts people from the UK for "humanitarian reasons" such as a family bereavement and has mandatory 14-day quarantine for any Germans travelling from the UK.

Italy has imposed a five-day quarantine on British travellers until at least July 30 because of concern over the delta variant.

The US currently bans UK tourists amid a surge in delta variant cases and its top infectious disease expert, Dr Anthony Fauci, has signalled that the US is unlikely to open a travel corridor with Britain before September. Government sources believe the US is "reluctant" to restore transatlantic travel.

Senior Tory MPs and travel chiefs warned that Mrs Merkel's comments were "unhelpful" and threatened further job losses in the UK by wrecking hopes of restarting international travel.

Henry Smith, the Tory chairman of the all-party Future of Aviation group, said: "Angela Merkel's comments are unhelpful and going in the wrong direction. It will undoubtedly have an impact.

"We need to be looking to reopen international travel, particularly for those who are fully vaccinated. The vaccine is demonstrating it is effective against new variants. It is a reality that there will be new variants going forward."

Paul Charles, the chief executive of travel consultancy the PC Agency, said Mrs Merkel's comments played into the sceptics' arguments that there were "still many risks out there and Britons should not be going abroad, which will only further damage the travel industry".

As part of a "cautious" restart of foreign travel, ministers will on Thursday consider limiting quarantine-free holidays to fully vaccinated Britons and British residents.

It would mean inbound foreign tourists from amber countries would still have to self-isolate for 10 days on arrival even if fully vaccinated and would only join the scheme later.

Sources said the Government wanted to avoid a "massive spike" in tourism, which means ministers are also expected to urge vaccinated Britons not to rush out and book holidays and instead travel "where necessary".

There are also tensions over the Foreign Office's advice on travel, which currently recommends against all but essential travel to most of Europe, including France, Spain, Italy and Greece. This invalidates most insurance policies even if people are vaccinated.

"The Foreign Office jealously guards its right to issue the advice and Grant Shapps [the Transport Secretary] has spoken of his frustration at getting them to align it with its strategy," said a senior industry source.

Ministers will also decide on Thursday whether to add the Balearic islands of Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza, and Formentera, Malta and some Caribbean islands to the green list.

This would allow quarantine-free travel to them from next Monday. Just 11 countries are currently green, of which Iceland, Gibraltar and Israel are the only viable holiday destinations.
John McAfee, the eccentric founder of the antivirus computer software bearing his name, was found dead inside a jail cell shortly after Spains National Court approved his extradition to the U.S., Spanish media reported Wednesday.

The 75-year-old cybersecurity pioneer, who was charged with tax evasion and cryptocurrency-related federal crimes in recent months, appears to have died from suicide in the town of Sant Esteve de Sesrovires, according to Madrid-based newspaper El Pais.

The U.S. Department of Justice did not immediately return a request for comment.


The Rev. William J. Barber II took his national movement back to its Raleigh roots Monday evening with a rally at Halifax Mall kicking off a yearlong campaign meant to remake America so that it serves the poor and immigrants as well as the wealthy.

We have work to do, he reminded about 300 attending the rally in person, along with thousands watching online. Especially when so many things are working to the contrary of what we know is right.

As he has before, Barber cited a litany of injustices he said are caused by systemic racism and intractable poverty, starting with ongoing efforts by legislators in various states that would restrict voting.

The same politicians who support voter suppression use their power once they get elected to deny health care and deny living wages and deny LGBTQ rights., Barber said.

Yes, they mean to take us backwards, denying climate change, supporting unchecked military spending and defunding anti-poverty programs, he said. They block efforts to require living wages, deny climate change and stymie action to transition to renewable energy, he said.

It seems like they work overtime to build walls of injustice rather than pathways to equality, Barber told the crowd.

We know what they are doing. But the question is, what are we going to do? I declare with every breath in my body: We have work to do.

The rally launched what the National Poor Peoples Campaign said would be a years worth of events leading up to a mass march on Washington in June 2022.

Demonstrators organized by the National Poor Peoples Campaign rally Monday, June 21, 2021 at Halifax Mall in Raleigh. The campaign kicked off what is billed as a years worth of events leading up to a mass march on Washington in June 2022.

Barber is a co-founder of the National Poor Peoples Campaign along with the Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis, who also spoke at the Raleigh event.

All kinds of people, Theoharis said  poor people, health care workers who cant afford their own health care, family farmers, struggling veterans, teachers and others  are rising up to demonstrate their power over forces of regression to reconstruct society from the bottom up.

Barber, longtime pastor of Greenleaf Christian Church in Goldsboro, held the first Moral Monday event in Raleigh in April 2013, after Republicans took full control of state government and began shifting state policy to the right. He led a group of protesters into the state Legislative Building to decry the work of what Barber calls extremist lawmakers.

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The Moral Monday movement gained traction, and within months, 1,000 people, including Barber, had been arrested during protests at the N.C. General Assembly.

Moral Monday became a model for nonviolent civil disobedience across the country.

The Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II leads a National Poor Peoples Campaign rally Monday, June 21, 2021 at Halifax Mall in Raleigh. The campaign kicked off what is billed as a years worth of events leading up to a mass march on Washington in June 2022.

More than a dozen speakers were on the slate for Mondays rally, including President Joe Biden, who sent a recorded speech that was played at the gathering. Biden expressed his solidarity with the Poor Peoples Campaign, saying, We are all created in an image of God, and we all have the right to economic opportunity, to health care, to clean air, water, and the right to vote. With our advocacy, were translating our shared prayers into policy. and building our economy from the bottom up and the middle out.

Biden said it wont be enough to build back from the pandemic, which has been especially hard on the poor, analysts say. We have to build back better than before, with millions of jobs that deliver dignity, a $15 minimum wage, affordable housing, universal pre-K, tuition-free community college. We need to build worker power through organization and collective bargaining, and heed the cry for racial justice some 400 years in the making.

Temperatures were in the 90s during the three-hour event, though a breeze made it tolerable. Volunteers walked through the crowd offering water and chairs for those who tired of standing. Some opted for a seat in the grass, lush from recent rains and a lack of public gatherings because of COVID-19.

As Barber neared the closing of his remarks, his oratory reaching a fever pitch, the band on stage punctuated his points with drums and staccato organ chords.

We got work to do, he growled. And if  I said if  we do it together, if the rejected work together, generations yet unborn will rise up and remember us for the work we did, and together we will change the nation. 

It was a message Barber had preached before, but his enthusiasm had not waned.

Ive been working for justice a long time, he said. I aint tired yet. 
KYIV, Ukraine (AP)  Belarus' authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko has warned that his country will not try to stem a flow of illegal migrants to the European Union, a move that comes after the EU tightened its sanctions on the country.

The EU and the United States have slapped Belarus with tough sanctions after it diverted a passenger jet last month to arrest a dissident journalist.

Lukashenko on Tuesday night denounced the sanctions as what he called a hybrid war waged by the West against Belarus and warned the country's EU neighbors  Latvia, Lithuania and Poland that they shouldn't expect Belarusian authorities to stop illegal migrants from crossing the border.

They are wailing: "Ah, Belarusians are not protecting them  thousands of illegal immigrants are rushing into Lithuania, Latvia and Poland, he said in the city of Brest on the border with Poland. "They demand that we protect them from smuggling and drugs. I just want to ask, are you mad? You have unleashed a hybrid war against us and now you demand that we protect you as we did before.

Earlier this month, officials in Lithuania accused Belarus of opening the doors for migrants to cross their shared 680-kilometer (420-mile) border.

Belarus has been rocked by months of protests fueled by Lukashenkos re-election to a sixth term in an August 2020 election that was widely seen as rigged. The authorities responded to the demonstrations with a massive crackdown that saw more than 35,000 people arrested and thousands beaten by police.

On May 23, Belarusian flight controllers ordered a Ryanair jet traveling from Greece to Lithuania to land in Minsk, where authorities arrested Raman Pratasevich, a 26-year-old dissident journalist who was on board.

Outraged EU leaders responded by barring the Belarusian flag carrier from EU airspace and airports and directing European carriers to avoid Belarus airspace. They also warned of more sanctions to come targeting the main export sectors of the Belarusian economy.

___

Follow all AP stories on global migration issues at https://apnews.com/hub/migration.
MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Global miner BHP Group said on Wednesday that it had terminated the employment of a Western Australian worker after a rape allegation, the second case of alleged sexual assault by a BHP worker to become public this month.

Western Australian state police said on Wednesday they charged a 42-year-old man in August 2020 after he allegedly sexually assaulted a woman in Perth in July last year. The man's trial date has been listed for a Perth court in July 2022, state police said in a statement.

A BHP spokesman said in a statement the alleged incident occurred at a private residence in Perth while employees were off roster.

"We have supported the individual in reporting to police, who have subsequently laid charges against the accused. The accused was also immediately stood down and their employment subsequently terminated. We are providing on-going support to the person involved who is still employed with us, BHP said.

Reuters was unable to contact the accused' s legal representatives for comment.

State police charged a man on June over a separate alleged sexual assault by a worker at BHP's Mulla Mulla accommodation camp in November 2020. BHP said the accused was also dismissed.

(Reporting by Melanie Burton; Editing by Jon Boyle)
WASHINGTON  The wages earned by those responsible for controlling the nation's deadliest wildfires are "ridiculously low" President Joe Biden said Tuesday.

Before a meeting with homeland security and federal emergency management officials, the president told reporters he promised to end the $13 an hour salary paid to federal firefighters.

"I just realized - I didn't realize this, I have to admit - that federal firefighters get paid $13 an hour. That's going to end in my administration. That's a ridiculously low salary to pay federal firefighters," Biden said.

Biden reportedly banged the table and said "that's ridiculous" when he learned of the salary, according to a pool report.

Base starting pay for a federal firefighters  those who fight wildland fires on federal land  relies on the federal General Schedule payscale. An entry level Wildland Firefighter or Forestry Aid, depending on location and with leeway for schooling or military experience can expect to start off earning between $11 to $14 per hour, according to the Department of the Interior. Crews also earn overtime pay.

The median nationwide salary for a firefighter, regardless of location, was $52,500 a year, or $25 an hour, in May 2020, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

States like California also employ prisoners to fight its wildfires, often compensating them with as little as $2 to $5 a day.

Biden had the backing of the nation's firefighters during the 2020 presidential campaign. The International Association of Fire Fighters publicly endorsed then-candidate Biden for president.

The work of firefighters will be more crucial than ever this year. Officials in Colorado, California, Oregon, Nevada and Washington State have warned that the 2021 wildfire season may exceed the over 52,000 wildfires reported in 2020  a nationwide record.

Biden also announced he will hold a meeting next week with governors of states in the western half of the country, cabinet members and federal emergency management officials to discuss preparedness efforts for the upcoming wildfire season.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: President Biden calls $13 federal firefighter wage 'ridiculously low'
Asylum seeking migrant families and unaccompanied minors from Central America take refuge in a makeshift U.S. Customs and Border Protection processing center under the Anzalduas International Bridge after crossing the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico in Granjeno, Texas, U.S., March 12, 2021 Adrees Latif/Reuters

The Biden Administration sent a memo to Congress on Tuesday related to the "Remain in Mexico" asylum policy.

It said that the close to 28,000 asylum seekers who had their cases rejected could have their cases processed.

In early June, the administration formally ended the 2019 Trump-era policy.

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The Biden administration sent a memo to congressional offices on Tuesday instructing them that migrants who were deported "in absentia," or had asylum cases thrown out due to the Migrant Protection Protocols policy, will have their asylum claims processed, according to Buzzfeed News.

The "Remain in Mexico" policy initiated by the Trump administration in 2019 left tens of thousands of asylum-seekers stranded along the US-Mexico border as the protocols forced them to stay in Mexico as they waited for their US court dates, or had claims rejected.

Many cases were thrown out by immigration judges or migrants were ordered deported in absentia, and those asylum-seekers will have the chance to have their cases heard as well.

At least 11,000 asylum seekers with open cases have been granted asylum under the Biden administration, and close to 28,000 asylum seekers could now have their cases processed, according to the report.

"As part of our continued effort to restore safe, orderly, and humane processing at the Southwest Border, DHS will expand the pool of MPP-enrolled individuals who are eligible for processing into the United States," the notice said. "Beginning June 23, 2021, DHS will include MPP enrollees who had their cases terminated or were ordered removed in absentia (i.e., individuals ordered removed while not present at their hearings)."

In early June, the Biden administration formally ended the "Remain in Mexico," asylum policy.

Read the original article on Business Insider
WASHINGTON  The Biden administration asked Border Patrol Chief Rodney Scott to step down on Wednesday, two sources familiar with the decision told NBC News, the end of a tenure many had expected would not outlast the Trump administration.

Scott was sent a letter known as the 3 R letter that gives a senior government employee the option between retiring, resigning or relocating to a different job within the department, the sources said.

The Washington Post was the first to report Scotts departure. The Post also reported that Scott would be remaining in his post for 60 days before departure.

A spokesperson for Customs and Border Protection, which oversees the Border Patrol, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

As Border Patrol chief, Scott was in charge of men and women who apprehend and process migrants crossing illegally between ports of entry on the northern and southern U.S. border, the latter of which is experiencing a 20-year high in border crossings.

Scott assumed the role of Border Patrol chief in February 2020 and it had been widely presumed that he would depart with the change in administration.
WASHINGTON (AP)  A House panel pushed ahead Wednesday with ambitious legislation that could curb the market power of tech giants Facebook, Google, Amazon and Apple and force them to sever their dominant platforms from their other lines of business.

Conservative Republican lawmakers haggled over legislative language and pushed concerns of perceived anti-conservative bias in online platforms but couldnt halt the bipartisan momentum behind the package.

The drafting session and votes by the House Judiciary Committee are initial steps in what promises to be a strenuous slog through Congress. Many Republican lawmakers denounce the market dominance of Big Tech but dont support a wholesale revamp of the antitrust laws.

Work on the massive bipartisan legislation stretched into the night. The session pushed beyond the 12-hour mark as lengthy debate ensued over a complex bill that would require online platforms to allow users to communicate directly with users on rival services. Proponents said the measure also would give consumers more power to determine how and with whom their personal data is shared.

Earlier, the Democratic-majority committee made quick work of arguably the least controversial bills in the package, which were approved over Republican objections. A measure that would increase the budget of the Federal Trade Commission drew Republican conservatives ire as an avenue toward amplified power for the agency. The legislation, passed 29-12 and sent to the full U.S. House, would increase filing fees for proposed tech mergers worth more than $500 million and cut the fees for those under that level.

A second bill would give states greater powers over companies in determining the courts in which to prosecute tech antitrust cases. Many state attorneys general have pursued antitrust cases against big tech companies, and many states joined with the U.S. Justice Department and the FTC in their antitrust lawsuits against Google and Facebook, respectively, last year. The measure drew many Republican votes and was approved 34-7.

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The advance of the legislation comes as the tech giants already are smarting under federal investigations, epic antitrust lawsuits, near-constant condemnation from politicians of both parties, and a newly installed head of the powerful FTC who is a fierce critic of the industry.

The legislative package, led by industry critic Rep. David Cicilline, D-R.I., targets the companies structure and could point toward breaking them up, a dramatic step for Congress to take against a powerful industry whose products are woven into everyday life. If such steps were mandated, they could bring the biggest changes to the industry since the federal governments landmark case against Microsoft some 20 years ago.

The Democratic lawmakers championing the proposals reaffirmed the case for curbing Big Tech as the committee began digging into the legislation.

It will pave the way for a stronger economy and a stronger democracy for the American people by reining in anti-competitive abuses of the most dominant firms online, said Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., the Judiciary Committee chair. Each bill is an essential part of a bipartisan plan to level the playing field for innovators, entrepreneurs and startup  and to bring the benefits of increased innovation and choice to American consumers.

Conservative Republicans laid down their markers. They insisted that the proposed legislation doesnt truly attack anti-competitive abuses by the tech industry because it fails to address anti-conservative bias on its social media platforms.

And they previewed a fight over legislative definitions. The legislation as drafted would apply to online platforms with 50 million or more monthly active users, annual sales or market value of over $600 billion, and a role as a critical trading partner.

The new proposals make it worse," insisted Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, the panel's senior Republican. They dont break up Big Tech. They dont stop censorship.

The legislation's definition of which online platforms would fall under stricter antitrust standards could mean that companies such as Microsoft, Walmart and Visa would soon be included, Jordan suggested. Who knows where it will end?" he said.

President Joe Bidens surprise move last week elevating antitrust legal scholar Lina Khan to head the FTC was a clear signal of a tough stance toward the tech giants. It was top of mind for the conservative Republicans objecting to the new legislation. Khan played a key role in the Judiciary Committees sweeping 2019-20 investigation of the tech giants market power.

The four companies deny abusing their dominant market position and assert that improper intervention in the market through legislation would hurt small businesses and consumers.

Lauded as engines of innovation, the Silicon Valley giants for decades enjoyed minimal regulation and star status in Washington, with a notable coziness during the Obama administration, when Biden was vice president. The industrys fortunes abruptly reversed about two years ago, when the companies came under intense federal scrutiny, a searing congressional investigation, and growing public criticism over issues of competition, consumer privacy and hate speech.

Biden said as a presidential candidate that dismantling the big tech companies should be considered. He also has said he wants to see changes to the social media companies long-held legal protections for speech on their platforms.

The legislative proposals also would prohibit the tech giants from favoring their own products and services over competitors on their platforms. The legislation was informed by the 15-month Judiciary antitrust investigation, led by Cicilline, that concluded the four tech giants have abused their market power by charging excessive fees, imposing tough contract terms and extracting valuable data from individuals and businesses that rely on them.

The legislation also would make it tougher for the giant tech companies to snap up competitors in mergers, which they have completed by scores in recent years.

Democrats control the House, but they would need to garner significant Republican support in the Senate for legislation to pass. The chamber is split 50-50 with the Democrats one-vote margin depending on Vice President Kamala Harris being the tiebreaker.

___

Follow Marcy Gordon at https://twitter.com/mgordonap.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP)  A powerful car bomb went off near the residence of a jailed anti-India militant leader in Pakistan on Wednesday, killing at least three people and wounding 25 others, police and rescue officials said.

The blast happened in the Johar Town neighborhood in the eastern city of Lahore, provincial police chief Inam Ghani told reporters. He said officers were still trying to determine whether it was a suicide bombing or the bomb was remotely detonated.

Ghani said some police officers were among the wounded.

It was a car bomb, but we are still trying to confirm whether it was a suicide bombing," he said.

He confirmed that the bombing happened near the residence of anti-India militant leader Hafiz Saeed, who has been designated a terrorist by the U.S. Justice Department and has a $10 million bounty on his head.

Saeed is the founder of the outlawed Lashkar-e-Taiba group, which was blamed for the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people.

Lashkar-e-Taiba was active for years mainly in Kashmir, which is split between Pakistan and India and is claimed by both in its entirety. In the Indian-controlled sector of Kashmir, rebels have been fighting against Indian rule since 1989. Most Muslim Kashmiris support the rebel goal that the territory be united either under Pakistani rule or as an independent country.

India accuses Pakistan of backing rebels in the Indian part of Kashmir, a charge Pakistan denies. Pakistan says it only provides moral, political and diplomatic support to the Kashmiri people, and that this support will continue until they get the right to self-determination under a U.N. resolution.

TV footage showed badly damaged homes, and many residents spoke of a bomb attack. Doctors say some of the wounded were in critical condition.

Ghani said police were guarding Saeeds house at the time of the attack. He said the attackers might have succeeded in targeting Saeed's home had police not set up a security post in the street where the bombing happened.

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Last year, Pakistan sentenced Saeed to 15 years in jail in a terror-financing case, but he was never charged in connection with the Mumbai attacks.

Saeed, who is serving the jail term at his home under a special government order, escaped unharmed, but the windows of his house were also shattered. The bombing damaged several homes and the government announced compensation for those residents whose property was damaged in the attack.

Authorities blocked passageways to Saeed's home, citing security reasons.

Pakistan and India have a history of bitter relations and they have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir since gaining independence in 1947.

___

Associated Press writer Asim Tanveer contributed to this report from Multan, Pakistan.
Border Patrol Chief Rodney Scott announced on Wednesday that he is stepping down, after the Biden administration gave him notice that he is being reassigned -- amid a continuing crisis at the southern border.

Scott, who has served in Border Patrol for nearly 30 years since joining in 1992, said in a Facebook post that he had received a letter of direct reassignment from the federal government, after which the recipient has three options -- relocate, resign, or retire.

21 REPUBLICANS, LED BY BOEBERT, MOVE TO CENSURE BIDEN OVER FAILURE TO ENFORCE BORDER LAWS

He noted that no rationale is required, and that the move is not disciplinary.

"Just a simple needs of the service directed reassignment so the new administration can place the person they want in the position," he said.

On Thursday, acting CBP Commissioner Troy Miller confirmed the move in a statement and announced that Border Patrol Deputy Chief Raul Ortiz would replace Scott.

"I personally thank Rodney S. Scott for his 29 years of service with the U.S. Border Patrol and for his 17 months of service as Chief of the U.S. Border Patrol. He has dedicated his career to public service, and I am grateful for the depth of experience and knowledge he has brought to U.S. Customs and Border Protection," Miller said.

Scott became the 24th Border Patrol Chief in February 2020. He had previously served as Deputy Chief Patrol Agent and Chief Patrol Agent of the San Diego Sector and in 2019 became Acting Deputy Chief of the Border Patrol.

He said that he would remain in his position for about 60 days in order to ensure a smooth transition.

"I remain confident that God is in control," he said. "And...over 29 years is a pretty good run!"

DHS ALLOWING SOME MIGRANTS REJECTED UNDER TRUMP-ERA REMAIN IN MEXICO POLICY INTO US

His move is the latest shakeup at U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) which oversees Border Patrol, by the Biden administration as it seeks to implement a radically different outlook to border security and immigration to the Trump administration -- and as it attempts to solve a spiraling migration crisis that critics have blamed on that new approach.

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The Washington Examiner reported last month that CBP Deputy Commissioner Robert Perez is stepping down at the end of June.

More than 180,000 migrants were encountered in May, and critics have blamed a rapid reversal of Trump-era policies like the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) and border wall construction, as well as what they see as a more welcoming message to migrants.

The Biden administration has instead emphasized the role of "root causes" like violence, poverty and climate change in Central America -- while focusing more on the challenges of processing migrants, including unaccompanied children, into the U.S. quickly.

Republican critics have pointed to the high migrant numbers, as well as an increase in the amount of fentanyl coming to the border, as proof the administrations approach has failed and has instead encouraged illegal immigration.

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Meanwhile, Vice President Kamala Harris, who was appointed to oversee the diplomatic effort to combat the "root causes" has come under heavy criticism for having failed to visit the border in the more than 90 days since being appointed.

On Wednesday, her office announced that she would be going to the border on Friday, in a short visit to El Paso, Texas.

Fox News Griff Jenkins contributed to this report.
BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazilian Environment Minister Ricardo Salles has resigned, the official government gazette said on Wednesday, amid a criminal investigation into whether he obstructed a police probe of illegal logging in the Amazon rainforest.

Earlier this month, a Supreme Court justice authorized the investigation of Salles, following federal police raids targeting the minister and other officials who allegedly allowed illegal wood exports.

Salles had acted as the lead negotiator for Brazil in talks with the United States over funding to preserve the Amazon rainforest, where deforestation has surged since right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro took office in 2019.

Bolsonaro nominated Joaquim Alvaro Pereira Leite as his replacement, according to the official government gazette.

(Reporting by Jake Spring and Gabriel Stargardter; Editing by Brad Haynes)
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP)  Brazilian Environment Minister Ricardo Salles announced his resignation Wednesday, giving up his post amid sharp criticism of his tenure and two investigations into his actions involving allegedly illegal timber operations.

The move comes as talks with the U.S. government aimed at curbing Amazon deforestation have hit obstacles. Salles had insisted Brazil needs external financial support to take stronger action, while critics cautioned Washington to await concrete results before reaching any agreement with a Brazilian administration that has hobbled enforcement of environmental laws.

I understand that Brazil this year and next, for its international and national agenda, needs a very strong union of interests and efforts and, so that can be done as smoothly as possible, I tendered my resignation to the president, Salles told reporters at the presidential palace.

Salles and President Jair Bolsonaro have been outspoken supporters of development in the Amazon, which critics say has encouraged land grabbing and illegal mining in protected areas. As some foreign investors began expressing concern about surging deforestation, Bolsonaro's administration received no rebuke from then U.S. President Donald Trump on his environmental policies.

On the campaign trail last year, U.S. President Joe Biden called on Brazil to curb Amazon deforestation in order to slow climate change, and this year his administration began talks with Salles' ministry in an attempt to find solutions.

Preliminary data, based on satellite images, has shown year-on-year increases of Amazon deforestation for three straight months, most recently by 41% in May. The data is considered a reliable leading indicator for more complete calculations released at year end.

Brazilian activists said Salles' departure was overdue.

Adriana Ramos, coordinator of the policy and legal program at the nonprofit Socioenvironmental Institute, said Salles' tenure will be remembered by the loss of international confidence, an increase in emissions from deforestation and the dismantling of environmental controls.

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Marcio Astrini, executive secretary of the Climate Observatory, a network of environmental groups, told The Associated Press that Salles' legacy is "the worst possible.

"There were two straight years of deforestation in the Amazon, fires in Brazil and invasions of public areas. He paralyzed the collection of environmental fines, persecuted inspectors and followed a path of environmental destruction in the country, Astrini said.

Talks between the Biden administration and Brazil's environment ministry are "paralyzed, Sen. Katia Abreu, who heads the Brazilian Senate's foreign relations committee, said in a statement Tuesday provided to AP. She said that reflects U.S. dissatisfaction and the need for changes by Brazil in order to reestablish dialogue.

The spokesperson for the U.S. Embassy in Brasilia, Tobias Bradford, said in a statement that the United States remains committed to partnering with Brazil to address climate change and that its stance regarding conversations with its government hasn't changed.

Neither Bradford, nor Brazil's environment and foreign ministries provided information regarding the date of the last meeting.

Environment ministry officials including Salles are under investigation for possibly facilitating the export of illegally cut timber. A separate probe is investigating whether Salles obstructed an operation to seize illegal timber. Salles has denied wrongdoing in both cases.

It isn't possible for people to criminalize different opinions, points of views. Brazilian society needs that advance, Salles said Wednesday. We experience a lot of objections over measures that were taken or planned, an attempt to characterize them as disrespecting laws or the constitution, which isn't true.

Speaking at an event Tuesday, Bolsonaro congratulated Salles and said his job was no easy task.

Astrini, of the Climate Observatory, and other environmental groups expressed skepticism that Salles' eventual replacement will usher in a change in policy.

"The true chief of environmental policy in Brazil is Bolsonaro. As we saw in other ministries, he is capable of changing a minister, but who orders policy is the president, Astrini said.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Utah Rep. John Curtis says he's tired of hearing that Republicans  his party colleagues  don't care about climate change or slowing global warming.

A former Provo mayor who has served in Congress since 2017, Curtis says Republicans can push for serious climate solutions while holding fast to conservative values. To prove the point, he has formed the Conservative Climate Caucus, an all-GOP group aimed at educating fellow Republicans on climate change and advancing market-based policies to counter the Green New Deal and other Democratic proposals.

Those who watch this caucus will see Republicans do care about this Earth  deeply,'' Curtis said at a news conference Wednesday.

"We, too, want to leave this Earth better than we found it. We dont need to kill the U.S. economy to reach our climate goals. In fact, its just the opposite. There is a way to lower emissions without sacrificing American jobs and principles. And I believe Republicans are the ones to lead on this.''

Leading Republicans, most notably former President Donald Trump, have mocked climate change as a hoax and downplayed the effects of warming temperatures caused by fossil fuel emissions. Trump withdrew the United States from the global Paris climate accord, and his Environmental Protection Agency refused to update a website highlighting evidence of climate change in the United States, including rising temperatures, increased ocean acidity and more severe droughts and wildfires.

Rep. Peter Meijer of Michigan, another caucus member, said it's long past time for Republicans to acknowledge the reality of climate change and put forward solutions that reduce carbon emissions while remaining "aligned with our business community.''

Climate caucus members are not going to be bringing snowballs onto the House floor,'' Meijer said. Were bringing solutions. Were not using this as a cheap talking point.''

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Meijer was referring to a 2015 incident when Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., brought a snowball to the Senate floor to dispute global warming.

Meijer, a freshman who voted to impeach Trump in January, acknowledged that Republicans have an image problem on climate change, but he said Democrats must answer for excesses of their own.

Far too often,'' he said, "our colleagues on the other side of the aisle look at the environment as a cloak they can wrap around any policy, as just another adjective in front of a nebulously defined justice that can encompass whatever their talking points want.''

Curtis, who voted against impeachment but supported a bipartisan commission on the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, said he has not talked to Trump about the climate caucus. The group includes some strong Trump supporters, but all are "independent thinkers,'' Curtis said in an interview.

Calling climate change a serious threat, he said, "We've been missing from the table for too long as conservatives.''

A total of 56 Republicans  a quarter of the GOP caucus  had joined the climate group as of Wednesday, including Louisiana Rep. Garret Graves, the top Republican on the House Select Committee on Climate; Washington Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, the top Republican on Energy and Commerce; and Arkansas Rep. Bruce Westerman, top Republican on Natural Resources.

None of the top three GOP leaders in the House belongs to the climate group, although House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California has pledged to form a GOP task force on energy and climate issues.

Rep. Kathy Castor of Florida, the Democratic chair of the full House climate panel, said she hopes Republicans are serious about addressing climate change and are not just trying to score political points.

As a dangerous heatwave threatens to break all-time temperature records across the West, and as families and farmers struggle with rising costs, it is clearer than ever that Congress must act now to expand clean energy and cost-saving energy efficiency,'' Castor said. There is no more time for half measures. If my Republicans colleagues really want to do something, they need to start voting in favor of real solutions.

David Doniger, a top climate strategist at the Natural Resources Defense Council, said his organization welcomes Republican engagement on climate. The key question is: Will they support actual limits on carbon pollution to cut emissions in half in the next 10 years and reach net-zero (greenhouse gas emissions) by 2050? he said.

Curtis and other caucus member cited private-sector innovation and development of technologies that capture and store carbon emissions as crucial to address climate change, and said the United States is the global leader in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Natural gas exports from Russia produce about 40 percent more carbon emissions than U.S. gas exports, Graves said, citing a 2019 Energy Department study.

We didnt do it with mandates, we didnt do it with picking technological winners or losers. We did it because of Americas innovators, because of the same people that allowed the United States to be this amazing economy,'' he said.
Priti Patel - Simon Dawson/No 10 Downing Street

British citizens living in the EU after Brexit are being denied work and healthcare, Priti Patel has warned.

In an exclusive article for The Telegraph, published below, the Home Secretary urges EU nations to treat UK citizens as fairly as Britain was treating their citizens.

It coincides with the fifth anniversary of the Brexit referendum vote, as Boris Johnson marked the moment by declaring the recovery from the pandemic offered the chance to "seize the true potential of our regained sovereignty to unite and level up our whole United Kingdom".

The warning comes amid government concerns that Britons have been stopped at borders and faced hurdles to being granted residency in some EU states, which has led to complaints in joint committees on citizens rights after Brexit, according to the Home Office.

There have been delays in residency documents in Portugal; Italian town halls have failed to complete registrations of residency applications; and similar problems in Spain have prevented some Britons from being able to work or access healthcare.

Britons protesting against Brexit in Malaga in 2019. Some have faced trouble applying for jobs since Britain left the bloc - GETTY IMAGES

Ms Patel writes: The UKs approach is very generous. Our EU settlement scheme has been open for more than two years. Many EU countries have an application window of 12 months or less; Frances is currently open for less than nine months.

We are aware that some UK nationals in the EU have faced disruption on boarding and entry to the EU; and there have been a number of reported instances of UK nationals in the EU being asked for residence documents they do not need to hold, being prevented from accessing benefits and services, and having trouble with their right to work.

It is only right that the EU uphold their obligations on citizens rights, just as the UK has done for EU citizens in the UK.

Some 5.6 million EU citizens have applied for residency rights in the UK. About 95 per cent of those have been granted the right to stay since the settlement scheme was started more than two years ago.

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Ms Patel urged all remaining eligible EU citizens in the UK to apply before the June 30 closing deadline, although she promised a compassionate, proportionate and pragmatic approach to all those with reasonable grounds who missed it.

Kevin Foster, the Immigration Minister, said enforcement officers would issue 28-day notices to those EU citizens thought to be eligible for settled status because they were resident in the UK on December 31 but who had missed the deadline to apply for residency.

No action would be taken against those people until the application was resolved, the minister said as he called on other EU countries to make similar provisions for British citizens in their countries.

Priti Patel: 'The EU Settlement Scheme is a success story'

Five years ago, the British people voted to leave the European Union.

This Government has delivered on our promise.

The deal we struck last year with the EU saw us take back control of our money, borders, waters, and laws.

We have introduced a points-based immigration system that prioritises skill over where someone comes from. And we have already seen the benefits, from welcoming thousands of healthcare professionals through our Health and Care Visa, to keeping the UK at the forefront of innovation with bespoke routes that enable more students, scientists, academics, investors, and entrepreneurs to come to the UK, and allowing prestigious prize-winners to fast-track the endorsement process and make a single visa application.

We are also making our borders stronger ending the use of unsecure ID cards for people to enter the country and applying tougher criminality rules. Further reforms will include Electronic Travel Authorisations, as part of a simpler universal permissions to travel requirement. This will make it easier to identify potential threats before they reach the border and  because that border will be fully digital  we will be able to count people in and out of the country.

Last month, I signed a ground-breaking agreement with India that tackles illegal migration and gives thousands of British and Indian people the chance to live and work legally in each others countries.

Boris Johnson signed the Brexit trade deal with the EU in December - GETTY IMAGES

In addition to delivering all these new opportunities, we have kept our promise to EU citizens in the UK.

Securing their rights has been, and remains, a top priority.

The EU Settlement Scheme is a success story, and I am very proud that we have already given assurance and legal status to around five million people for whom the UK is home.

My officials at the Home Office have done a superb job, working tirelessly to help 1.5 million callers and respond to half a million online requests. The Government has made available up to 22 million in funding for a network of 72 organisations, covering all corners of the UK, to help vulnerable and harder-to-reach groups apply to the scheme.

Successful applicants receive a digital immigration status that provides secure evidence of their rights here.

The UKs approach is very generous. Our EU Settlement Scheme has been open for more than two years. Many EU countries have an application window of 12 months or less; France's is currently open for less than nine months.

We are aware that some UK nationals in the EU have faced disruption on boarding and entry to the EU; and there have been a number of reported instances of UK nationals in the EU being asked for residence documents they do not need to hold, being prevented from accessing benefits and services, and having trouble with their right to work.

It is only right that the EU uphold their obligations on citizens rights, just as the UK has done for EU citizens in the UK.

With seven days until the June 30 deadline for the EU Settlement Scheme, my message is simple: if you are eligible, apply now and secure your rights in UK law.

Those with reasonable grounds for missing the deadline will still be able to apply. Our approach will remain compassionate, proportionate and pragmatic.

Getting the application in by June 30 is nevertheless the best way to secure your status.

We left the European Union because we wanted to be a sovereign country once again. This has never meant we dont value the contributions people from other European countries have made to the UK. EU citizens who call our great nation their home are our colleagues, friends, and family.

You are welcome here and you are cherished  and the success of the EU Settlement Scheme proves it.
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56-year-old Brooke Shields looks incredible in this $34 Aerie bikini top (Photo via @brookeshields/Instagram)

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Shields's Instagram was flooded with approving comments from her A-lister pals, including actress Leslie Mann and Debra Messing.

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By Jonathan Stempel and Eva Mathews

(Reuters) -Billionaire investor Warren Buffett said he is resigning as a trustee of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and has donated half his wealth to philanthropy since pledging 15 years ago to give away his fortune from running Berkshire Hathaway Inc.

Buffett, 90, said in a Wednesday statement he has been an "inactive trustee" for years at the foundation, but fully supported Chief Executive Mark Suzman and that their goals were "100% in sync."

He did not explain why he is resigning, while noting he has given up all directorships outside Berkshire, reducing his workload.

Buffett also announced a new donation of more than $4.1 billion, comprising nearly 15.2 million Berkshire Class "B" shares, to the Gates Foundation and four family charities, part of his pledge to give away 99% of his net worth.

He has since 2006 donated more than $41.5 billion of Berkshire shares, including $32.7 billion to the Gates Foundation. The overall total is now equivalent to about $100 billion because Berkshire's stock price has risen.

"Over many decades I have accumulated an almost incomprehensible sum simply by doing what I love to do," Buffett said. "Society has a use for my money: I don't."

Founded in 2000, the Gates Foundation focuses on combating poverty, disease and inequity, spending $54.8 billion in its first two decades.

Its future has been uncertain since its namesake co-founders said last month they were divorcing after 27 years of marriage.

Microsoft Corp later said it had reviewed an accusation that Bill Gates had tried in 2000 to have an intimate relationship with an employee.

GOVERNANCE COMMITMENT

In an email to Gates Foundation employees, Suzman said he has discussed with Buffett and the Gateses how to strengthen governance and decisionmaking, and planned to share more information in July.

"I am fully committed to following [Buffett's] guidance to ensure we are the best possible stewards of his, Bill, and Melinda's resources," Suzman said.

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In statements released by the foundation, Bill Gates said he was grateful for his "enduring friendship" with Buffett and that "we will always have a deep sense of accountability" to him, while Melinda French Gates said Buffett's teachings will help "chart a way forward."Berkshire did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Buffett's donations also go to the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, named for his late first wife, and charities run by his children Howard, Susan and Peter: the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, the Sherwood Foundation and the Novo Foundation.

Had Buffett not made his donations, his fortune would roughly equal that of Amazon.com Inc founder Jeff Bezos, the world's richest person according to Forbes magazine.

Bill Gates and Buffett also pioneered "The Giving Pledge," where more than 200 people like Michael Bloomberg, Larry Ellison, Carl Icahn, Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal have committed at least half their fortunes to philanthropy.

NO 'SWAN SONG'

Buffett has since 1965 built Omaha, Nebraska-based Berkshire into a more than $600 billion conglomerate, owning businesses such as the BNSF railroad and Geico auto insurance, and stocks such as Apple Inc.

He still holds 31.5% of Berkshire's voting power, even after the donations.

Buffett's statement on Wednesday also addressed recent criticism after a ProPublica investigation included him among wealthy people who paid low taxes.

Buffett said his donations have resulted in only about 40 cents of tax savings per $1,000 given.

"Nevertheless, tax deductions are important to many - particularly to the super-rich - who give large amounts of cash or securities to philanthropy," he said.

Buffett also used references to American football to assure fans he has no plans to step away, including from Berkshire.

"These remarks are no swan song," he said. "I still relish being on the field and carrying the ball. But I'm clearly playing in a game that, for me, has moved past the fourth quarter into overtime."

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York and Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva, Nick Zieminski and Marguerita Choy)
Members of Bidens party have defended his right to take Communion following of US Catholic bishops attempts to disallow him. (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

A Democratic congressman from California has said that the Catholic church should have their tax-free status revoked if they decide President Joe Biden should not be able to take Communion.

The comment from Rep Jared Huffman comes after a recent US Conference of Catholic Bishops vote on 18 June to begin the process to deny Mr Biden the ability to take Communion. Seventy-three per cent of US bishops voted for the motion, which was to share a full description of the sacrament of the Eucharist.

Mr Huffman wrote on Twitter, If theyre going to politically weaponize religion by rebuking Democrats who support womens reproductive choice, then a rebuke of their tax-exempt status may be in order.

According to IRS website, churches may enjoy certain tax relief if they are not beholden to shareholders. Additionally, the conditions state that churches may not attempt to influence legislation as a substantial part of its activities and it may not participate in any campaign activity for or against political candidates.

Recently, a wave of Republican-controlled states have been passing restrictive anti-abortion laws, including Texas and Alabama. They have introduced limits on the medical procedure at as early as six weeks of pregnancy. This trend is believed to be a part of an overall strategy to overturn Roe v Wade, a 1973 Supreme Court ruling that allowed safe and legal access to abortion.

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The debate about Biden being able to take Communion comes from him being personally pro-life, but uninterested in denying women the right autonomy over their own bodies. He wrote in his 2007 book Promises to Keep he did not think he has right to impose my view on the rest of society. Since then, Biden has repeated this belief on the record, such as in a vice-presidential debate in 2012 against Paul Ryan.

When asked about the vote on Friday, Biden said to reporters, Thats a private matter and I dont think thats going to happen.

Biden is well known for his Irish Catholic faith and regularly attends public Mass services, including in England during the G7, surprising local parishioners. While campaigning with President Barack Obama, he had dedicated aides to locate Catholic churches that would welcome him in their Mass services, according to The Washington Post.

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The bishops statement is believed to not be written yet. The America Magazine reported on the existence of a brief that implied it would include the theological foundation for the Churchs discipline concerning the reception of Holy Communion and a special call for those Catholics who are cultural, political, or parochical leaders to witness the faith.

According to The Washington Post, the Vatican has warned against the drafting and publishing of the document, as Cardinal Luis Ladaria has written a letter to US bishops stating that creating policies about politicians receiving Communion would become a source of discord rather than unity.

According to the Pew Research Center, 67 per cent of US Catholics disagree with banning Biden from taking Communion.

Read More

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Joe Biden will attend church despite Catholic bishops plan to deny communion as White House shuts down abortion questions

An architect of European unity moves ahead on sainthood path
A driver in a stolen big rig truck led California Highway Patrol on a nearly hourlong, wrong-way chase overnight before police fatally shot him, according to officials.

The incident began before midnight on Tuesday on the 210 Freeway near San Bernardino, where police pursued a truck traveling in the wrong direction, police said.

Officers chased the truck that proceeded to the 10 Freeway, where police set up a roadblock to stop the driver with the help of a police helicopter, KTLA reported.

CALIFORNIA TO PAY OFF UNPAID RENT ACCUMULATED DURING CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

The suspect tried to make a U-turn in the truck when officers shot him, ending the chase on the freeway in the city of Fontana, according to police. The driver, who law enforcement has not identified, later died.

Were not talking about a small vehicle. Were talking about a big rig here, said highway patrol officer Ramon Duran, who called the incident extremely dangerous.

What could have happened could have been catastrophic, Duran said. Obviously, were fortunate that no innocent victims were injured during this incident.

A big rig is something thats very difficult to stop once momentum is going," Duran also said of the incident.

Police took a second person who was also in the truck into custody, Duran added.

The eastbound lanes of the 10 Freeway closed completely and were still closed as of 9:18 a.m. local time, according to a tweet from the California Department of Transportation.

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The Washington Examiner reached out to California Highway Patrol for more information but did not immediately receive a response.

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California police fatally shoot driver in wrong-way big rig chase
By Julie Gordon

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canadian lawmakers on Wednesday passed Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's budget bill, approving billions in funding to extend COVID-19 supports on the last day of voting before the summer break and a likely election in the fall.

Bill C-30 passed 211 to 121, as the opposition New Democrats and Bloc Quebecois supported the measure. Trudeau's ruling Liberals have a minority in the House of Commons and must rely other parties to pass legislation.

The bill will only become law once the Senate, or upper chamber, adopts it and it receives royal assent. Senators are expected to have a special sitting on Friday to take up the bill.

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland unveiled Canada's first budget in more than two years in April, including an ambitious stimulus plan to kick-start Canada's economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Liberals have said they need to pass the budget bill before the summer break as key pandemic support programs were set to expire at the end of June. These include a wage subsidy to help employers pay workers and aid to help businesses pay their rent.

Critics say the Liberals want to push through legislation ahead of a likely election in the fall.

Trudeau's Liberals led the main opposition Conservatives 34% to 30% in a national poll released Tuesday by Leger.

Earlier on Wednesday, the House passed a Conservative bill that will exempt farmers from paying a levy on carbon emitted by burning natural gas and propane for farming operations.

On Tuesday, the House passed a controversial bill to regulate programming on streaming services and social media platforms and a bill criminalizing LGBT conversion therapy, and the Senate opened the way to legalize betting on single games or sporting events.

(Reporting by Julie Gordon in Ottawa; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
General Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, denied accusations that the military has gone woke on Wednesday and defended the U.S. military academys teaching of critical race theory, saying that it is important to have some situational understanding of the countrys history.

During testimony before the House Armed Services Committee regarding the budget request for the Department of Defense, Milley said that on the issue of critical race theory he believes it is important actually for those of us in uniform to be open-minded and widely read.

The United States Military Academy is a university and it is important that we train and we understand, he said.

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I want to understand white rage and Im white, he added.

What is it that caused thousands of people to assault this building and try to overturn the constitution of the United States of America, Milley said, seeming to suggest January 6 Capitol riot was related to racial strife.

Ive read Mao Zedong. Ive read Karl Marx. Ive read Lenin. That doesnt make me a communist, he said. So what is wrong with understanding, having some situational understanding about the country for which we are here to defend?

I personally find it offensive that we are accusing the United States military, our general officers, our noncommissioned officers of being woke or something else because were studying some theories that are out there that was started in Harvard Law School years ago, he said.

Milleys comments come after Representative Mike Waltz (R., Fla.) demanded earlier this month that U.S. Military Academy West Point stop teaching cadets critical race theory.

Waltz first contacted West Point Superintendent Lieutenant General Darryl Williams in April to question the schools curriculum around race after he obtained examples of a lecture entitled Understanding Whiteness and White Rage and a classroom slide labeled White Power at West Point.

Waltz called the teachings divisive, destructive, and unacceptable for the future leaders of the U.S. military.

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In a letter to Williams earlier this month, Waltz questioned whether the academy plans to continue its teachings and warned that the country is on incredibly perilous ground if any future leaders of our military are taught the civilian institutions and structures with ultimate authority over them are systemically oppressive and that they therefore have a duty to oppose them.

Earlier this year the Pentagon completed a 60-day stand down to address extremism after a number of veterans participated in the Capitol riot. A stand down occurs when the defense secretary deems an issue important enough to be addressed through discussions across the force, according to the New York Times.

The Pentagon said a group would be assembled to review how to improve its vetting process for recruits and to educate service members who may be targeted by extremist organizations.

More from National Review
The Colorado police officer who was killed Monday along with the suspected gunman and a civilian was identified Tuesday as a 19-year veteran of the force who was "targeted" and "ambushed" because he was wearing a uniform and badge, officials said.

Gordon Beesley was a school resource officer at Oberon Middle School in the Denver suburb of Arvada but was working patrol while school was out for the summer, the Arvada Police Department said. No other details about him were disclosed.

In a news conference, police Chief Link Strate said Beesley was targeted because he was a police officer.

"While we dont yet have all the facts, I can tell you that Gordon was targeted because he was wearing an Arvada Police uniform and a badge," he said. "Officer Beesley was ambushed by a person who expressed hatred of police officers."

The department also identified a "Good Samaritan" as 40-year-old Golden resident John Hurley. Strate called Hurley a "true hero who likely disrupted what could have been a larger loss of life."

The suspected gunman was identified by the Jefferson County Coroner's Office as Ronald Troyke, according to local reports. No other details were released.

Beesley was killed Monday during a shooting in the city's Olde Town district. He was responding to a call about a "suspicious incident" near the Arvada Library around 1:15 p.m. Mountain Time, police said. Moments later, authorities received 911 calls that shots were being fired and that an officer had been struck by gunfire.

Authorities have not disclosed details of the shooting. During the incident, a shelter in place order was issued while authorities searched the area. A second order was issued hours later and lifted Monday evening.

In an interview with Fox News hours after the shooting, Arvada Mayor Marc Williams described Beesley as a "highly respected" officer whose "involvement in the community went far beyond just his police duties."

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"You've got an officer with a family who went to work this morning thinking he was going to do his public service and he didn't come home," Williams said. "I'm just so sad for his family and sad for our community that now we're part of the statistic of these horrible losses."

Before Monday, the city had lost two officers while in the line of duty, but never to gun violence, Williams said.

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Arvada City Hall was closed Tuesday so rooms and other resources could be made available to the police department, the city said. Also closed for the day was a municipal court, which is expected to reopen Wednesday. Cases expected to be heard Tuesday will be rescheduled.

A vigil for the victims will be held at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Peace Lutheran Church.
The highly contagious Delta variant of COVID-19 has been detected in wastewater samples taken at some Kansas City area wastewater treatment facilities, according to tracking by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.

The water is not a danger to the public, officials say, but it is a sign that the variant is taking hold in the area.

The data comes as Missouri earned the dubious honor of having the highest rate of new COVID-19 infections in the United States, racking up a 72% increase over the last two weeks, according to a New York Times analysis. And it comes with new concerns over the rapid spread of this variant.

The latest wastewater testing, from the week of June 7, found levels of the variant at the Atherton and Rock Creek wastewater treatment plants, both in Independence.

It also found the variant in samples taken at treatment plants in Platte City and St. Joseph, north of Kansas City, the state health departments tracking map showed. The week before, the variant was found in samples from the Atherton plant, and in Liberty, according to the map.

The Delta virus, first detected in India, could soon be the dominant strain in the United States, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, warned last week.

The variant is becoming more prevalent across Missouri, especially in rural areas. It was found in 27 of 30 locations tested across Missouri the week of June 7.

Towards mid-to-late February we started seeing the UK virus in sewersheds and saw it start spreading across the state, said Jeff Wenzel, chief of the Bureau of Environmental Epidemiology for the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.

Were seeing a similar story with the Delta virus now. A few weeks ago we saw it in one or two sewer systems.

The trend is enough of a concern that state health officials continue to urge Missourians to get vaccinated against COVID-19. The vaccine rate in both Missouri and Kansas is far below the national average.

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Working with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and the University of Missouri, the state health department began testing wastewater for variants in February. The genetic material from the coronavirus can show up in human waste, providing an early indication of COVID-19 infection in communities.

DHSS posts the findings of the Sewershed Surveillance Project in a map, linked on its website.

The first week of June, 14 out of 23 facilities contained mutations associated with the Delta variant. The week of June 7th, we are seeing 27 of 30, said Wenzel. This is the most locations we have seen, but it is also the most sites we have tested.

According to the New York Times analysis, 13 of the 25 counties in the country with the highest rates of new COVID-19 cases are in Missouri. Most were in rural areas, although Joplin was also included.

So what we saw with this India variant, basically it seems to have started in that rural population. Those smaller cities, more rural locations, were the ones where we were more likely to see it, said Wenzel. Not that it couldnt happen in Kansas City or St. Louis. Its just those were the areas we were testing, those were the areas we were seeing it.

In Kansas, the state health department teamed up last year with researchers at The University of Kansas and Johnson County officials to study wastewater samples in the county for the presence of COVID-19.

Now, though, we are not conducting Delta variant testing in wastewater at this time, said Kristi Zears, spokeswoman for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. However, we are exploring it as a future effort and our consultant has reached out to Missouri concerning their operations.

Kansas ranked 23rd in The Times analysis of new cases.

Delta is a moving target

The wastewater is sampled before it goes through the usual treatment process, so no one is getting exposed to that water or drinking it, said Wenzel, answering a question he gets asked often. And, he said, the bits of virus they find in the treatment system are no longer dangerous.

As its passed through that miles of sewer pipe it has become inactive, he said. And really, it might have been inactive before it even left your body.

Especially in Kansas City. It takes a long time for sewage to move from point of entry to the sewage plant. There are some cases that its been in there for a few days.

The department is testing for COVID-19 at 83 facilities, Wenzel said.

Were only able to test for variants when the viral load gets to high enough for us to look at, he said. We have to have enough there to look for those mutations. So that means were not testing every plant every week.

So unfortunately were not able to show you those mutations every week. So its kind of a moving target.

Plants where the viral load increased by 40% or more from the previous week, or increased by 25% or more for the previous two weeks, can sometimes, but not always, predict an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases in that community.

Because the testing looks at a sewer system as a whole, it is impossible to know exactly where in the community the virus is coming from, health officials say.

In early April, testing began at KC Waters KC Rocky Branch wastewater treatment plant north of the river, Wenzel said, and the detected viral load this week is one of the higher ones that weve seen there, he said.

We werent testing it at the same time as we were having those huge viral load numbers in November and December, so we dont have that to look at. So really were just looking at those numbers in early April and theyre at or above those levels we were seeing then.

Delta variant is in 41 states

Testing for variants doesnt show how much is in the wastewater, Wenzel said.

That is one of the downfalls of our sewershed testing, he said. With the variants, were able to see is it there. But we cant tell you how much is there.

Were just able to say were seeing that mutation. So we piece the puzzle together to say Delta is there, but were not able to tell you a certain percentage is Delta versus something else.

The Delta variant has been reported in at least 41 states, according to the CDC.

When these viruses mutate, they do so with some advantage to the virus. In this case, it is more transmissible, Walensky told Good Morning America.

Its more transmissible than the Alpha variant, or the U.K. variant, that we have here. We saw that quickly become the dominant strain in a period of one or two months, and I anticipate that is going to be what happens with the Delta strain here.

Current COVID-19 vaccines work against this strain, Walenksy said, but health officials worry that the virus could mutate to the point where the vaccines wont work. Potentially, the Delta variant can cause more serious illness and require hospitalization among people who arent fully vaccinated.

Thats especially concerning in Missouri, considering how many people arent vaccinated yet.

About 44% of Missourians  the same percentage as Kansas  have had at least one shot, according to state health departments, compared to 53% of eligible Americans reported by the CDC.

Missouri posts the map of wastewater testing results both for public health officials and the general public, all of whom have decisions to make when it comes to COVID-19.

Hopefully, this will encourage people to go out and get their vaccinations and do what they can do to help prevent the spread, get tested, and stay at home if youre sick, said Wenzel.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced Tuesday that he supports changes to the military justice system in cases of sexual assault.

Why it matters: This is the first time Austin has publicly commented on a proposed overhaul of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which would see independent military prosecutors replace commanders in deciding whether to try serious criminal cases in court.

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Failure to address sexual assault has plagued the military for years, and it became a national issue after Vanessa Guillen's death in 2020.

An investigation found the chain of command had failed to address the sexual harassment she faced before she was killed.

What he's saying: Austin said in a statement that he will present President Biden with recommendations he said provide "us real opportunities to finally end the scourge of sexual assault and sexual harassment in the military. "

The defense secretary noted that the Independent Review Commission on Sexual Assault in the Military recommended changes to "other special victims' crimes inside this independent prosecution system, to include domestic violence."

Austin said he also supported these changes, "given the strong correlation between these sorts of crimes and the prevalence of sexual assault."

Driving the news: Austin's announcement came hours after it emerged that the top U.S. military officers opposed a Senate bill on the matter because they said it would "undermine military leadership," per the Wall Street Journal.

Go deeper: Military sexual assaults reported in Pentagon survey jump to 20,000

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The Delta strain was said to be responsible for the deadly second wave of infections

India has classified a new variant of the coronavirus first identified in Europe as a "variant of concern", but it's too early to tell whether it poses a significant threat.

India's health ministry says studies showed that the so-called Delta plus variant - also known as AY.1 - spreads more easily, binds more easily to lung cells and is potentially resistant to monoclonal antibody therapy, a potent intravenous infusion of antibodies to neutralise the virus.

The variant is related to the Delta, an existing variant of concern, which was first identified in India last year and is thought to have driven the deadly second wave of infections this summer in India.

The health ministry says the Delta plus variant, first found in India in April, has been detected in around 40 samples from six districts in three states - Maharashtra, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh. At least 16 of these samples were found in Maharashtra, one of the states hardest hit by the pandemic.

Delta plus has also been found in nine other countries - USA, UK, Portugal, Switzerland, Japan, Poland, Nepal, Russia and China - compared to the original highly contagious Delta strain, which has now spread to 80 countries.

Graphic shows current names for covid variants and WHO's proposed Greek names

Viruses mutate all the time and most changes are inconsequential. Some even harm the virus. But others can make the disease more infectious or threatening - and these mutations tend to dominate.

A mutation is elevated from a "variant of interest" to a "variant of concern" (VOC) when it shows evidence of fulfilling at least one of several criteria, including easy transmission, more severe illness, reduced neutralisation by antibodies or reduced effectiveness of treatment and vaccines.

But leading virologists have questioned the labelling of Delta plus as a variant of concern, saying there was no data yet to prove that the variant was more infectious or led to more severe disease compared to other variants.

"There is no data yet to support the variant of concern claim," said Dr Gagandeep Kang, a virologist and the first Indian woman to be elected Fellow of the Royal Society of London.

Story continues

"You need biological and clinical information in order to consider whether it is truly a variant of concern."

This means India needs more data to determine whether the variant is neutralised by antibodies generated by available vaccines or infection by another variant of the coronavirus.

Also, extensive data is needed about the increase in transmissibility, diagnostic failures - routine tests not picking up the variant - and whether the variant is causing more severe disease.

Hundreds of thousands of viral genomes have been analysed across the world

"You need to study a few hundred patients who are sick with this condition and variant and find out whether they are at greater risk of greater disease than the ancestral variant," Dr Kang said.

The Delta plus variant contains an additional mutation called K417N on the coronavirus spike, which has been found in the Beta and Gamma variants, first found in South Africa and Brazil respectively (Beta was linked to increased hospitalisation and deaths during South Africa's first wave of infections, while Gamma was estimated to be highly transmissible).

Even with 166 examples of Delta plus shared on GISAID, a global open sharing database, "we don't have much reason to believe this is any more dangerous than the original Delta," according to Dr Jeremy Kamil, a virologist at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in Shreveport.

"Delta plus might have a slight advantage at infecting and spreading between people who were previously infected earlier during the pandemic or who have weak or incomplete vaccine immunity," Dr Kamil told me.

"I would keep calm. I don't think India or anyone else in the world has released or accumulated enough data to distinguish the risk from the so-called Delta plus as being more dangerous or concerning than the original Delta variant."

Dr Anurag Agarwal, director of the Delhi-based CSIR-Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (IGIB), one of the 28 Indian labs involved in genome sequencing, said "all lineages of the Delta variant are variants of concern", so there was nothing unusual in labelling Delta plus as such.

"We do not have any indicators as of now to show that Delta plus should be causing any public health worry or panic. We are not seeing anything worrisome yet. We are tracking it carefully, and strengthening all public health measures," he said.

Dr Kamil said the government in India "would rather over-react now than seem flat-footed later, as was the case with the Delta variant".

Most scientists say India dropped the ball on sequencing enough samples for the variant which had fuelled a massive second surge in Covid infections in India in April and May.

"I am not overly worried. But it's fair to keep an eye on the variant."

Read more stories by Soutik Biswas
Nina Turner, the Democratic front-runner for Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Marcia Fudge's former Ohio congressional seat, has close ties to a radical activist who has said police "represent the enemy."

Far-left activist Phillip Agnew worked alongside Turner as a campaign surrogate for Sen. Bernie Sanders' failed presidential campaign in 2019 and 2020.

DEM FRONTRUNNER IN OHIO SPECIAL ELECTION HAS CLOSE TIES TO CONTROVERSIAL ACTIVIST LINDA SARSOUR

The two traveled together to several Sanders campaign stops between June and September 2019, including Miami , Charleston , S.C., and Greensboro , N.C., and attended a rally together for Sanders in March 2020 .

Turner, who served as the national co-chair of Sanders' campaign, has also called Agnew her " friend " multiple times online, even referring to Agnew as a "thought leader" in a July 2020 tweet. Agnew has described Turner as a person who "animates people with the conviction of an impassioned leader with unmatched acuity."

Turner published a video of her and Agnew dancing at an NAACP dinner, had Agnew on her radio show , and hosted a " Justice Town Hall " with the activist in December 2020.

Agnew has posted anti-cop rhetoric on social media in the past, tweeting, " f---... the police " multiple times , and gave an interview with the Afrikan Black Coalition in January 2021, where he said he was "FTP [f--- the police] all day."

"I don't got no love for no police officer ever in my life," Agnew said. "I don't care. I don't love, I don't like none of them, right? And I never will. Okay, so just be clear."

"That's where I stand politically and personally. The police are put into  they are a system of enforcement, right? To reinforce the cultural norms and the status quo," he continued. "... No mincing of words. We dont need police. We never have needed police and they represent the enemy, the ops every single time."

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Agnew tweeted in 2018 that he stood by his previous comments on the police, including a tweet where he said, "I hope I never have a buddy that becomes a Police Officer. I've recognized that I have a deep hate for all of them."

DEM CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE RAILS AGAINST CORRUPTION BUT HER POLITICAL DIRECTOR IS UNDER INVESTIGATION

Agnew, a self-described socialist, co-founded the activist group Dream Defenders after the death of Trayvon Martin in 2012.

In 2014, Dream Defenders voiced support for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine  which has been dubbed a terror group by the U.S. government since 1997  according to the Anti-Defamation League, a left-leaning anti-Semitism watchdog.

Dream Defenders also supports the defund the police movement, writing on Facebook in February that they want to defund "the pigs, and free every Black person locked up behind these walls." They also signaled their support for convicted cop killer Assata Shakur, who is on the FBI's most-wanted list.

The group has also called for the abolition of law enforcement, saying defunding the police is the " path " to doing so.

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Turner took part in a Dream Defenders " Sunday School " event in April of last year alongside Agnew, even promoting it as one "to remember."

Neither Turner's campaign nor Agnew responded to Fox News' requests for comment.

Fox News Stephen Sorace contributed to this report.
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards speaks during a press conference to update the public on FEMAs disaster recover and temporary housing programs on August 19, 2016 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The governor has vetoed a bill seeking to bar transgender youth from participating on girls and womens sports teams. (Getty Images)

Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards vetoed legislation on Tuesday that sought to bar transgender youth from participating in girls and womens school sports teams.

As I have said repeatedly when asked about this bill, discrimination is not a Louisiana value, Mr Edwards, a Democrat, said in a statement on the decision.

Noting that there wasn't a single case in his state where this was an issue, the governor said: This bill was a solution in search of a problem that simply does not exist in Louisiana.

He also said the measure would make life more difficult for transgender children, who are some of the most vulnerable Louisianans when it comes to issues of mental health.

We should be looking for more ways to unite, rather than divide our citizens, Mr Edwards said.

The bill had made its way onto the governors desk desk after being pushed forward in Louisianas Republican-led legislature.

Under the legislation, schools would have been protected from discrimination lawsuits if they blocked transgender students from joining girls and womens sports teams.

Meanwhile, cisgender athletes, or those whose gender identity matches the sex they were assigned at birth, would be be able to sue if they felt they had been deprived of an athletic opportunity due to the participation of a transgender peer.

Supporters of the bill claimed that the measure would protect young women from having to face unfair competition at sporting events.

Critics of the legislation, however, including Mr Edwards, say it and others measures like it plainly discriminate against an already marginalised group.

In a statement on Twitter, the American Civil Liberties Union in Louisiana welcomed Mr Edwards decision, saying: Well keep saying it: Trans youth belong in sport. Trans youth belong in Louisiana. Trans youth belong everywhere.

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Still, the Louisiana High School Athletic Association does have a rule in place that requires student athletes to compete in the gender of their birth certificate unless they have undergone sex reassignment.

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And it is also unclear whether lawmakers will try to call for a special veto session to try to override Mr Edwards decision to reject the bill.

The regular legislative session is over, however, and Louisiana has never before held a veto override session under the current constitution adopted in 1974, according to NPR.

In the past year alone, several states have passed laws or implemented executive orders restricting the ability of transgender young people to play sports or receive gender-affirming treatment and procedures.

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Former Nickelodeon star Drake Bell on Wednesday pleaded guilty to two charges involving a minor at a court hearing in Ohio.

The child actor and singer, 34, appeared virtually over Zoom before Judge Timothy McCormick at the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas in Cleveland.

Bell, wearing a dark suit and pink shirt and tie, pleaded guilty to one count of disseminating matter harmful to juveniles and one count of attempted endangering children.

The child actor was informed by the judge that attempted endangering children, a felony of the fourth degree, carries a maximum sentence of anywhere between six to 18 months in prison and/or a fine of up to $5,000. Disseminating matter harmful to juveniles is a first-degree misdemeanor and carries a sentence of up to six months in county jail and/or a fine of up to $1,000.

McCormick informed Bell that prison time is not mandatory but if he does go to prison he'd be subjected to a discretionary period of three years post-release control upon his release.

The case will continue at a hearing on July 12.

DRAKE BELL OF NICKELODEON'S 'DRAKE AND JOSH' CHARGED WITH ATTEMPTED ENDANGERING CHILDREN

Bell, whose born name is Jared Drake Bell, posted a $2,500 bond and was released from the Cuyahoga County Jail on June 3 after being arrested in Cleveland.

'NICKELODEON' STAR DRAKE BELL'S EX-GIRLFRIEND ACCUSES HIM OF ABUSE, ACTOR DENIES CLAIMS

Fox 8 previously reported that Bell allegedly engaged in an inappropriate chat with a victim that "at times, was sexual in nature."

According to the outlet, prosecutors say the victim, 15, filed a report with a local police department in Canada in 2018 regarding an incident involving Bell that took place in Cleveland on Dec. 1, 2017. Police in Canada contacted authorities in Cleveland and an investigation ensued.

Bell reportedly tweeted about playing Cleveland's The Odeon Concert Club on Dec. 1 of that year but the post has since been deleted.

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At the concert, Bell allegedly "violated his duty of care and, in doing so, created a risk of harm to the victim," prosecutors said.

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Bell is also known as Drake Campana. "Drake and Josh" ran from 2004-2007 and saw him and his onscreen brother Josh Peck as teens trying to survive high school and learning to get along.

Since "Drake & Josh" ended in 2007, Bell has done voice acting and starred in various short films. He also voiced Timmy Turner in three television movies of the Nickelodeon cartoon "Fairly Odd Parents." Just days before he was taken to jail, Bell promoted live video chats on Cameo with him through his official Twitter account.

Last August, Bell spoke out after his ex-girlfriend Melissa Lingafelt accused him of verbal and physical abuse. Lingafelt, a singer and actress, posted a lengthy video on TikTok under her stage name Jimi Ono, detailing the alleged assault during their relationship from August 2006 to February 2009. Bell said he "never abused my ex-girlfriend or did so many of the other things Melissa falsely claimed on her TikTok video."

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The "Drake & Josh" alum continued: "As our relationship ended  more than a decade ago  we, unfortunately, both called each other terrible names, as often happens when couples are breaking up. But that is it."

In 2015, he was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence in California.
A drone pilot developed a device that can help save animals trapped in the chaos of natural disasters, including hurricanes and wildfires.

Douglas Thron created a drone that can locate confined critters with the help of an infrared camera, Reuters reported. Once the camera identifies an animal, crews can come in to aid in the rescue.

There is no consistent data available on the number of animals that die trapped in wildfires, according to a report from National Geographic last year, but animal escape instincts aren't always going to save them. For example, a koala might climb a tree, which could leave the critter confined.

Thron has already saved hundreds of animals -- from Australia to the Bahamas -- no matter how small. He's jumped into action in the wake of hurricanes Dorian and Laura, as well as a wildfire in Oregon, among other disasters.

CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP

After Hurricane Dorian pounded the northern Bahamas for two days in 2019, decimating the Abaco Islands and Grand Bahama, Thron jumped in to help rescue dogs. The hurricane's destructive winds blew at more than 185 mph. Some dogs that survived the catastrophic blow, including one later named Miracle, were found alive in the rubble weeks and even a month after the storm ravaged the area.

Douglas Thron retrieves a drone. (Reuters)

Thron also sprung into action to rescue animals in the wake of Hurricane Laura in August 2020. The Category 4 hurricane tore through Cameron, Louisiana, and unleashed 150-mph winds.

Thron came up with the idea for the drone while working as a cinematographer on a film about animal rescue.

"I thought, 'Imagine if we put this infrared scope on a drone, how many more animals you could actually find'," Thron told Reuters.

The drone, which features a spotlight and zoom lens, can locate animals much faster than previous technologies. The device is also quiet, so it doesn't make loud noises that could frighten animals.

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The drone's infrared camera can help to identify animals. (Reuters)

During Australia's devastating bushfires in 2020, Thron was hired by the World Wildlife Foundation to save as many animals as he could, from "spiny-looking, porcupinelike animals like echidnas, to tiny pygmy possums" that were the size of a mouse. The crisis killed or displaced nearly 3 billion animals, including koalas and wombats, according to the World Wildlife Foundation.

In the past two years, Thron also helped to rescue critters in Louisiana and Puerto Rico, he told Reuters.

Thron is the subject of the documentary "Doug to the Rescue," which follows his work to save animals in emergency zones. In the documentary's final episode, Thron tracks down an abandoned dog in San Bernardino, California. He and his girlfriend adopted the young canine, Ghost, who joins the duo on their adventures, according to Reuters.

In the future, Thron wants to train other drone pilots to use infrared technology.

"With the natural disasters getting bigger and bigger, my ultimate goal is to have an animal rescue ranch where people can adopt these animals because with the bulk of the animals, the owners are never found or they're abandoned."

Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti addresses a press conference on June 2. (Los Angeles Times)

It was bad enough when it came to light last week that Mayor Eric Garcettis chief of staff had posted sexual innuendo and denigrating comments about city employees and politicians on a private Facebook group shared by mayoral staff and supporters. But the latest news, that Ana Guerrero also disparaged 91-year-old labor icon Dolores Huerta, among other respected Latino political leaders, raises the question: Is this City Hall or high school?

Garcetti was already under scrutiny for allegations that his office fostered a toxic workplace culture. Last year, Garcettis former bodyguard, Matthew Garza, sued the city, alleging he was sexually harassed by one of the mayors top aides, Rick Jacobs, and that the mayor did nothing to stop it. Garcetti has denied witnessing inappropriate behavior by Jacobs, who has denied harassing anyone.

The private Facebook group, dubbed Solid Gold, has come up repeatedly in the depositions taken in the sexual harassment lawsuit, Times reporters Dakota Smith and Richard Winton revealed. Guerrero and others were asked if Jacobs behavior was discussed in the forum.

After The Times reported the damning posts about Huerta and others on Tuesday, Garcetti announced that he asked Guerrero to step away from her executive management responsibilities in the office so that she can make things right with the people addressed in these comments. Shell be on administrative leave for the foreseeable future, without pay for the first month.

Garcetti also tried to make amends himself, calling Huerta to apologize. Thats a good start, but perhaps too little, too late.

His aides' bad behavior reflects poorly on Garcetti. The mayor sets the tone for his office. The online comments were petty, crude and just mean. That kind of behavior  even if its intended to be a private venting among friends  should be both deeply embarrassing for those directly involved, and for Garcetti, by association.

Garcetti has always cultivated a nice-guy image. Hes polite and positive, including exhorting residents to lead with love during the pandemic. Hes loath to pick public fights and he fancies himself the diplomat of Los Angeles government. But City Hall insiders have long observed that Garcetti maintained that cool detachment while surrounding himself with a circle of advisors  like Jacobs, Guerrero and his wife, Amy Wakeland  who were said to be the bad cops to his good-cop routine, threatening political opponents or holding grudges.

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The mayor created the culture in his office, and theres no way he can disassociate himself from the toxic spillover now on display. If the mayors chief of staff and a cadre of top aides were regularly engaging in malicious banter online, how were they treating their colleagues in the mayors office? What about constituents and fellow political leaders? (You have to wonder why these private posts from 2016 and 2017 are being leaked now, when President Biden is considering Garcetti for the job of ambassador to India.)

The posts reveal an insular us-versus-them attitude among his top aides. How could that not affect the mayors ability to build partnerships and advance policies? And now that the posts are public, how will that affect Garcetti's relationships and productivity going forward?

Last month we urged Garcetti to finish his mayoral term, rather than dash off to India, and to throw himself into the essential work of leading Los Angeles. But with scandals and distractions, its hard to see Garcetti rising above lame-duck lethargy.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
PRAGUE (AP)  Europes main human rights body on Wednesday demanded a thorough and independent investigation into the death of a Roma man who died after a Czech police officer responding to a call over an altercation knelt on his neck.

Police say the man's death last week was due to a drug overdose. But Roma activists reject that explanation and are planning a protest rally in Prague later Wednesday.

Some compare the incident to the killing of George Floyd, a Black American man who died when a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck, according to prosecutors.

The Council of Europe said in a statement Wednesday that the police action was alarming and raises numerous questions about the circumstances of this tragic incident.

Three police officers were involved in Saturday's incident in the northern city of Teplice.

Video footage shows one of them kneeling on the mans neck for several minutes. The man, who has not been formally named, later died in an ambulance. Police said a drug overdose was preliminary determined by a doctor as the cause of death.

Police deny wrongdoing. Interior Minister Jan Hamacek said he stands by them.

They said the preliminary autopsy showed the man had a drug in his system and a heart problem, rejecting that his death had anything to do with their intervention.

Police said they arrived at the scene, in a Roma neighborhood, after receiving a call that two men were fighting and damaging nearby cars. They said one of the men fled but the other attacked them after they approached him when they saw him lying on the street.

The site has been turned into an impromptu memorial, with people coming to light candles.

Roma have long suffered racism and discrimination in eastern Europe and continue to face huge hurdles in employment and education.
Towering 385 feet above First Ward, at the corner of 8th Street and North College, sits The Ellis, uptowns latest apartment tower. Its design, which features a yellow, gray and white color-blocked facade and contrasting black mullions, offers a stark contrast to the blue glass towers that uptown has been known for over the past two decades.

Building a tower during normal times is never easy, and building a tower on a tightly packed construction site is even harder. Add in a once-in-a-lifetime global pandemic and things become almost impossible. I sat down with Daryl Whitehurst, a project executive at Hoar Construction, to discuss the obstacles the construction team faced with logistics, health and safety, and labor while building one of the tallest residential towers in Charlotte.

A complicated project on a smaller site

The Ellis, built in partnership with LMC, is among the most concentrated residential projects in Charlotte. The multifamily complex, housed on an approximately 3.5-acre site, is now complete and ready to lease. It includes a 33-floor main tower, featuring 365 for-rent apartment homes, a mid-rise portion with an additional 184 units wrapping a central parking structure and 19,000 square feet of retail.

The Ellis offers a 33-floor main tower with 365 apartments, a midrise portion with an additional 184 units wrapped around a central parking structure and 19,000 square feet of retail.

Rounding out the rest of the block will eventually be a 209-room Homewood Suites by Hilton, with 4,000 square feet of retail. This final piece of the puzzle, being developed by Concord Hospitality, stalled mid-construction this time last year.

With all these uses on a full city block, the logistics of material delivery became one of the biggest challenges of the towers construction. Operating within a zero-lot-line site, construction materials couldnt linger for very long, and the team was in constant coordination with its trade partners.

The Ellis rooftop deck includes a pool.

Our team faced considerable challenges during construction and still managed to execute the entire process with professionalism and efficiency, which ultimately led to a successful and on-time completion, Whitehurst said. Im appreciative of both LMC and our trade partners collaboration and willingness to think strategically to get the job done.

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A large seating area offers a gathering spot near the TV.

The mind-blowing stats:

 8,000 square feet of pre-waterproofed exterior facade was delivered and installed per week.

 4,000 square feet of glass was delivered and installed per week.

 15,000 square feet of work was completed per week.

 256 miles of electrical wire runs through the building.

 Approximately 1.4 million linear feet of framing materials was used.

 More than 2.7 million square feet of drywall board was used.

Work spaces are built in to the amenities areas at The Ellis.

The COVID factor

Every construction project is unique, but the formula for completing a building stays fairly consistent. Rarely do experienced firms run into an issue that doesnt have a precedent to look back at for solutions. When COVID-19 began to spread across the country in early 2020, there was no playbook to combat it, because there was no precedent. With construction deemed an essential industry, it was up to the local construction industry to come up with a strategy.

Residents can work or unwind in the common spaces at The Ellis.

The early months of the pandemic raised alarm throughout the industry, early cases included a large percentage of construction workers. Aiming to combat this reality, a coalition of local and regional general contractors and inspection leaders was formed. The group, known as 4C (Charlotte Commercial Construction Coalition,) came together to tackle the best way to approach continued operation, while prioritizing the health and safety of their workers. The group looked at ways to promote social distancing, enhanced PPE usage and good worker morale.

Grills are provided for outdoor relaxation at The Ellis.

In construction, its essential that workers are at ease and confident in their personal health and safety. In many cases its very difficult to socially distance workers on a construction site, as plenty of tasks are a two-or-more-person job. To combat this, every day workers were expected to follow strict PPE protocols and go through health screenings. After construction workers wrapped up for the day, a cleaning crew came in at night. Above construction elevator access points, TVs looping health and safety protocols were set up for team members to watch while they waited.

Outdoors at The Ellis, theres plenty of space to gather.

Despite all the adversity, the team pressed on and in the end proudly delivered a prominent new feature to the growing Charlotte skyline. Hoar Construction also worked with Ellinwood + Machado Structural Engineers, KTGY, Kimley Horn and Intec Group.

Separate pools serve the mid-rise and high-rise portions of The Ellis.

What can renters expect?

Leasing is well under way at the Ellis, with mid-rise units at the Ellis available for move in today. The high rise portion will accept first move-ins later this summer. Overall, The Ellis features 549 apartment homes ranging from 531 to 2,669 square feet. Renters will experience two distinct concepts between the mid-rise and the high-rise units.

Units in the Ellis offer modern kitchens and dining space.

The mid-rise portion is meant for renters looking for something more eclectic and relaxed. The indoor amenity spaces are filled with common spaces to unwind, intimate seating nooks, work from home space, a fitness center and more. The exterior amenities include a pool with cabanas, a bar overlooking First Ward Park, spaces to grill and entertain and tons of seating to hang out al fresco. The building also faces a retail-lined woonerf dubbed North Ellis Lane, which can be closed down to host food truck rallies, farmers markets, Small Business Saturdays and more. Mid-rise studios start at $1,253.

Catch a skyline view from a patio at The Ellis.

The high-rise spot is meant for renters that are looking for expansive and refined modern spaces. The penthouse units I toured were among the largest and more luxurious apartments in Charlotte, some spanning nearly 2,700 square feet. The tower also has its own amenities, featuring an additional pool with cabanas, a private dining room, library, game room and an indoor/outdoor fitness center, all with sweeping views perched 33-floors above Charlotte. High-rise units start at $1,555.

This penthouse kitchen at The Ellis includes upgraded appliances and a view overlooking the city.

512 N. College St.

Instagram: @theellisapts

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The claim: A man named Jake Matthews died on 9/11 while rescuing a pregnant woman from the World Trade Center

As the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks approaches, social media users are sharing a false tale about a man who died while rescuing a pregnant woman from the World Trade Center.

The story goes like this:

The pregnant wife of a man named Robert Matthews narrowly missed getting on one of the hijacked flights on 9/11 due to a flat tire. But Matthews' father Jake, a retired New York City firefighter, died rescuing people from the World Trade Center.

Years later, a man tells Robert Matthews that Jake Matthews saved his pregnant wife from the World Trade Center.

When their baby boy was born, they named him Jacob Matthew, in honor of the man who gave his life so that a mother and baby could live, the story says.

In this Sept. 11, 2001, file photo, smoke rises from the burning twin towers of the World Trade Center after hijacked planes crashed into the towers, in New York City. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)

That story, shared in a May 2019 Facebook post that recently received a lot of comments, may be heartwarming, but there's no evidence to suggest it actually happened.

According to the Facebook post, the story became public Sept. 11, 2003, after Robert Matthews spoke with a Norfolk, Virginia, radio station. But USA TODAY found no evidence of such a report, and there's no record of someone with the name "Matthews" dying in the 9/11 attacks. This story has circulated online for more than 17 years and has been debunked several times.

Fact check: False claim persists that planes weren't used in 9/11 attacks on World Trade Center

USA TODAY reached out to the Facebook user who shared the story for comment.

No one named Matthews died on 9/11

The 9/11 Memorial, located at the site of the World Trade Center, lists the names of the 2,983 people who died during the 2001 and 1993 terrorist attacks. The list doesn't include anyone named Matthews.

The list includes everyone who died on 9/11 at the Pentagon and in the World Trade Center's south and north towers, as well as first responders and passengers on the four hijacked flights. The list also includes the victims of the 1993 bombing inside the World Trade Center's parking garage.

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No one on that list has the last name Matthews. USA TODAY also searched for Jake Matthews and Jacob Matthews and found no victims with those names. Searches for the names on several other memorial databases yielded no results.

Fact check: Hillary Clinton was not hanged at Guantanamo Bay

In the years after the 9/11 attacks, news organizations shared many stories about the victims, families and survivors. USA TODAY could not find any reputable reports about the story shared in the Facebook post. Neither USA TODAY nor Snopes could find any Norfolk radio reports about the story, either.

Our rating: False

The claim that a man named Jake Matthews died on 9/11 while rescuing a pregnant woman from the World Trade Center is FALSE, based on our research. There is no record of anyone with the last name Matthews dying in the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. The story has circulated online for more than 17 years and has been debunked several times.

Our fact-check sources:

Thank you for supporting our journalism. You can subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or electronic newspaper replica here.

Our fact check work is supported in part by a grant from Facebook

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fact check: 9/11 story about Jake Matthews lacks evidence
The claim: British Airways is talking with the U.K. about whether vaccinated pilots can safely fly

As vaccination rates climb domestically and abroad, the world is gearing up to resume travel. Yet, some of those plans might be met with unnecessary hesitancy caused by viral misinformation about flying after getting vaccinated against COVID-19.

British Airways now in crisis talks w/ govt about whether to allow vaccinated pilots to fly, claims a June 17 Instagram post. It connected this with a claim that three pilots died after taking the COVID-19 vaccine.

Other social media posts, like this June 17 Instagram post, shared a video that makes the same claim.

Fact check: No, video doesn't prove COVID-19 vaccines will connect you to Bluetooth

But this claim is both wrong and unoriginal.

In early June, PolitiFact debunked a similar false claim that airlines were considering health risks for vaccinated passengers. Since the start of the pandemic, vaccines have been the subject of speculation and misinformation.

USA TODAY reached out to several accounts that posted the claim for comment.

UK confirms no such talks happening

The United Kingdom's Medicines & Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency confirmed in a statement to USA TODAY that no such talks were underway.

Dr. Sarah Branch, the director of vigilance and risk management of medicines for the MHRA, said the agency has not had discussions with BA or other airlines about preventing pilots from flying after receiving the Covid-19 vaccine.

Fact check: COVID-19 vaccines aren't magnetic

Branch also said the MHRA was not aware of any BA pilot deaths related to receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.

There are currently no restrictions on aviation or other industries and activities post-vaccination, she said.

Branch said that the MHRA continues to advise people to get vaccinated.

British Airways says pilot deaths are unrelated

When asked about the claim, British Airways directed USA TODAY to a statement the company shared on Twitter.

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Sadly four members of our pilot community passed away recently. Our thoughts are with their family and friends. However, there is no truth whatsoever in the claims on social media speculating that the four deaths are linked, British Airways wrote in a June 17 tweet.

British Airways tweeted the statement after false claims that three pilots had died from the COVID-19 immunizations spread on the platform. It did not identify the pilots, their vaccination statuses or their causes of death.

Fact check: COVID-19 vaccines provide safer, more consistent immunity than infection

An unnamed British Airways spokesperson told Reuters the company was not in talks with the government about grounding vaccinated pilots.

Our rating: False

The claim that British Airways is in crisis talks with the U.K. government about whether vaccinated pilots can fly is FALSE, based on our research. A spokesperson from the agency that regulates medicine and health care products confirmed it was not in talks with the airline. British Airways confirmed four pilots died recently, but said the deaths are not related. Health care officials continue to advise those who havent been vaccinated to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

Our fact-check sources:

Thank you for supporting our journalism. You can subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or electronic newspaper replica here.

Our fact check work is supported in part by a grant from Facebook

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fact check: False claim about British Airways pilots and vaccination
Supreme Court decision is a setback for firms that have sought to persuade the government to release Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from government control. (Associated Press)

The Supreme Court dealt a blow to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac investors in their challenge to the governments collection of more than $100 billion in profits from the government-sponsored enterprises.

The justices threw out a core part of the investors lawsuit, rejecting claims that the Federal Housing Finance Agency exceeded its authority under federal law.

Common shares of Fannie Mae slumped as much as 42% and those of Freddie Mac plunged 44%, both posting their steepest intraday declines since October 2014. Fannie Mae was down 36% as of 11:05 a.m. in New York. Freddie Mac sank 37%.

The court said investors might be able to win damages on a separate claim that some payments under the so-called profit sweep were illegal because the FHFA director was unconstitutionally insulated from being fired by the president. But the justices said they wouldnt use that claim to toss out the entire profit sweep.

The justices sent the case back to the lower-court level, where the investors will have a chance to show they were harmed by the lack of presidential control over FHFA directors who implemented the agreements. But it means shareholders cant recover the bulk of the overpayments they sought, said Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Elliot Stein.

The decision is a setback for firms including Paulson & Co., Pershing Square Capital Management and Fairholme Funds Inc. that have sought for years to persuade the government to release Fannie and Freddie from government control, thereby earning billions of dollars on their shares.

The ruling means President Biden will be able to oust Mark Calabria, the FHFA director and an advocate for releasing the mortgage giants from government control. Biden will face pressure to remove Calabria and put in his place someone more likely to allow Fannie and Freddie to ease mortgage credit.

This will allow the Biden administration to finally put an end to the course that Calabria has the nations mortgage market on, much to the relief of progressives and industry alike, said Jim Parrott, who is a consultant for financial firms and was a senior housing advisor in the Obama White House when the net worth sweep was implemented.

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The suing investors targeted the 2012 agreements that let the federal government collect more than $300 billion in profits from Fannie and Freddie. That included $124 billion the investors said was an unwarranted windfall, beyond what the Treasury would have netted under earlier accords.

Brandon Barford, a partner at policy research firm Beacon Policy Advisors, called the decision a profound rejection of most of the shareholders claims, though he expected some shareholders to continue to fight knowing the tenacity of those who feel theyve been wronged.

Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote the opinion for the court, which splintered on various parts of the case.

The cases are Collins vs. Yellen and Mnuchin vs. Yellen, 19-563.

Felice Maranz and Jesse Westbrook contributed reporting.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Leon Elias Wu has pivoted from making bespoke suits to sporty leisurewear

Fashion designer Leon Elias Wu says that when the pandemic first hit he felt as if he was "a character in a zombie apocalypse film".

"I went into autopilot... my first real thoughts and feelings were concern about my family and loved ones," says the Los Angeles-based 42-year-old.

"And then I thought about the economy, and how that would impact my business. We had to think quickly... to keep the business afloat during the challenging times ahead."

Mr Wu is a designer of bespoke suits beloved by a number of Hollywood actors, including Laverne Cox, Beth Dover, and Jake Graf.

Leon Elias Wu suits are worn by actors including Jake Graf, pictured

Like most high-end fashion bosses, he suddenly found that with no-one able to go out to big events, such as film premiers, or even just to a fancy restaurant, far fewer people wanted to buy a expensive suit.

So Mr Wu decided he had to pivot his business. With everyone isolating at home he launched a range of "athleisure" clothing - sporty leisurewear, such as sweatshirts and leggings, that can be worn both while exercising or simply while relaxing and lounging around.

Here he speaks of his experience, as do four other fashion designers who have made similar moves over the past year to keep the money coming in.

SharpeHaus's new clothing line is gender inclusive

Mr Wu says that at the start of the pandemic his first reaction was to offer clients a 20% discount if they prepaid for future suits. But even with that financial incentive his suit sales fell 40% last year.

It was then that he decided to also start designing athleisure wear, launching a range of hoodies and sweatshirts under the brand name SharpeHaus. Mr Wu, who is a transgender man, says he designed all the new clothing items to be gender inclusive, and appeal equally to a female, male and non-binary audience.

SharpeHaus is also continuing to make a series of music videos on YouTube that involve lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender artists covering classic 1980s songs. It is doing so to raise funds for Cyndi Lauper's True Colors United homelessness charity.

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Icelandic designer Sigrun Bjork Olafsdottir makes couture dresses inspired by Nordic and Viking legend.

Sigrun Bjork Olafsdottir says that the pivot to athleisure wear is a long-term project

She says that "one minute" she was participating at the House of iKons' Fashion Week in London in February 2020, "and the next I was locked at home wondering how to continue pursing my passion for design".

Floored by what was happening, the 50-year-old had to take "a step back" and re-focus. "The way to do that was to look at what was needed," she says. "Ready-to-wear in the form of trendy athleisure wear was the answer, and there began my transition away from high-drama couture."

However, she and her company - Sigrun Design - did not find it an easy pivot. "This has been a very expensive transition, as it isnt an easy path to manoeuvre, and the industry is very elusive to newcomers in the athleisure field."

Nevertheless, Ms Olafsdottir remains hopeful that her new clothing lines will sell.

"The revenue has increased, but so has the cost, and I still haven't made up the start-up funding. So I can't say that this pivot has made a huge difference in terms of finances.

"But building an online presence takes a lot of time and money, and so, it is gradually increasing. This has to be seen as an investment."

Brandon Hunt, the boss of Dallas-based fashion label Livintage Apparel, says the pandemic hit him hard because he had only recently become a father. "The shock was unreal," he says. "My family and I did everything we could to stay safe. We were overly cautious and managed to stay in quarantine for months."

The former model had been designing angular, tough-looking "streetwear" - such as leather jackets and thigh length boots - but switched to designer hoodies and jogging trousers because people stuck at home "wanted comfortable clothing that would still look stylish for virtual meetings".

Brandon Hunt says his first collection of casual clothes sold out

"Expanding my inventory was definitely a challenge for me during this uncertain time," says the 33-year-old. "I had to think outside of the box and figure out what would be most successful.

"It was not only a time where people weren't out shopping as much for new pieces, but there were shortages in fabrics. It was much harder to be hands on with manufacturers."

Yet, despite these problems he says his first men's and women's collections sold out quickly. "I also have a monthly subscription, where clients can be styled and receive new items. This has motivated me so much, I am already at work on my next custom loungewear items."

Elisabeth Weinstock used to make expensive snakeskin leather goods, everything from jackets to handbags and wallets under her eponymous brand.

During the pandemic she launched a range of women's loungewear and sleepwear under the name Andine.

"It was easy for me to start small, buy my own machines and find incredible craftsmen who are excellent sewers to work in-house," she says. "Thus far, everything is cut and sewn in our building [in Los Angeles]."

Ms Weinstock said that "most anything" is cheaper to produce than a snakeskin item. "The price points are not comparable, and the clientele is different as well. While it's too new to discuss financials, the initial response has been amazing."

Elisabeth Weinstock says that the benefit of her new Andine range, pictured, is that is much more affordable than her former leather items

While most women in their late 70s would be perhaps taking things a little easy, Ellen Curtis has launched her own fashion business - Statement by Ellen C.

Prior to the pandemic, the 77-year-old was working as a psychiatric nurse providing patients with in-home addiction and detox support and care. "But when Covid hit, my doctor recommended I stop working - the mental stress coupled with the virus was just too risky for a senior," she says.

But instead of retiring, she "decided to explore my love of fashion by creating upscale, custom-designed denim jackets and masks, which also meant learning to sew!".

Then, with people stuck at home, the Los Angeles-based Ms Curtis expanded to a range of athleisure clothing to boost sales.

"In many ways, the loungewear presented fewer challenges," she says. "Leisure fabrics are easier to work with than denim, and require fewer embellishments, so pieces come together faster and ultimately cost less to create.

"With the price lower and the demand for fun casual fashion higher, my loungewear is also more accessible to customers."

Ellen Curtis has become a fashion designer in her late 70s

Pippa Stephens, retail analyst at research group GlobalData, says this move to athleisure clothing has been replicated across the largest fashion labels.

"As the suppression of Covid-19 allows social events to gradually resume, consumers will begin to look for more going-out appropriate styles once again" she says.

"However, since increased home working is likely to be a long-term trend, and consumers have now got used to more comfortable outfits, non-sportswear specialists should still ensure that they continue to offer some athleisure options to suit consumers' adjusted lifestyles."
A group of firefighting monks was ready to defend a Buddhist monastery being threatened Tuesday by a wildfire burning in the rugged central coast mountains south of Big Sur.

The seven monks have been clearing brush from around the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center and running a sprinkler system dubbed "Dharma rain," which helps keep a layer of moister around the buildings, said Sozan Miglioli, president of San Francisco Zen Center, which operates the monastery.

"The blaze is about a mile away but weve been lucky with the weather, it has really cooled down," Miglioli said.

The fire was climbing uphill among chaparral, grass, and scrub. The steep, remote area meant that the 500 firefighters had to hike in to battle the flames. They were aided by water-dropping aircraft.

CALIFORNIA'S WILLOW FIRE SPREADS AS RECORD DROUGHT, HEAT CONTINUE TO GRIP STATE

Most people evacuated the Buddhist center but members of the fire crew stayed. Other firefighting monks joined them from the San Francisco Zen Center and the Green Gulch Farm Zen Center, a third monastery in the Marin County mountains.

The group of firefighting monks was created after a 2008 blaze reached the Tassajara monastery and a dozen stayed behind to defend it. They got their name from a book titled "Fire Monks" about those who stayed to fight that blaze, Migliogli said.

The monks train every year with professional firefighters and reside in the three monasteries. They travel to centers where they are needed, he said.

Despite all the work, they are still meditating every morning and holding service, Migliogli said.

On the eastern flank of the Sierra Nevada, the Inyo Creek Fire in the Whitney Portal area near the town of Lone Pine thwarted hikers planning to climb Mount Whitney, the tallest peak in the contiguous United States.

The fire was officially estimated at 640 acres (259 hectares).

Hikers were unable to begin treks at Whitney Portal and rangers were in the wilderness to divert returning hikers to other longer egress trails. Hikers were still being evacuated Tuesday evening, fire officials said.

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The fires were among dozens that have scorched large swaths of the West, including in Arizona, Utah and Colorado.

A lightning-caused wildfire crept closer Tuesday to Flagstaff in northern Arizona, threatening to force people from their homes. The mountain city has nearly 80,000 residents, a state university and an observatory where Pluto was discovered.

Evacuations were in place because of several other wildfires across Arizona, affecting mostly rural residents and campers, and many local roads were closed. Half of the national forests in Arizona will to close entirely to the public because of wildfire danger and limited resources, authorities said.
Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida. Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

A new law in Florida requires public universities to survey students and staff about their beliefs.

The surveys purportedly seek to determine the state of "intellectual diversity" on campuses.

Gov. Ron DeSantis said campuses that are "hotbeds for stale ideology" were "not worth tax dollars."

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Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida on Tuesday signed legislation requiring the state's public colleges and universities to survey students, professors, and staff members about their political views in an effort to crack down on intellectual "indoctrination" on campuses.

DeSantis, a potential 2024 presidential contender who's closely aligned with former President Donald Trump, threatened to cut funding from state universities that he determines don't promote "intellectual diversity."

During a press conference at a middle school in Fort Myers, the governor said campuses that are "hotbeds for stale ideology" were "not worth tax dollars, and that's not something that we're going to be supporting going forward."

The bill says the annual surveys would assess "intellectual freedom and viewpoint diversity" and determine "the extent to which competing ideas and perspectives are presented" and whether students, professors, and staffers "feel free to express their beliefs and viewpoints on campus and in the classroom."

The law, effective July 1, demands that students "be shown diverse ideas and opinions, including those that they may disagree with or find uncomfortable," the state's Department of Education said.

University professors and education experts in Florida have expressed concerns that the law would allow the state government to interfere with teaching; politicize faculty hiring, firing, and promotions; and stifle faculty and student speech.

"I worry that this bill will force a fearful self-consciousness that is not as much about learning and debate as about appearances and playing into an outside audience," Cathy Boehme, a researcher at the Florida Education Association, told the Miami Herald in April.

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DeSantis said on Tuesday that he knew "a lot of parents" who were concerned that their kids would be "indoctrinated" in college.

"It used to be thought that a university campus was a place where you'd be exposed to a lot of different ideas," the governor said. "Unfortunately, now the norm is really these are more intellectually repressive environments. You have orthodoxies that are promoted, and other viewpoints are shunned or even suppressed."

The law is part of a broader right-wing drive to push back on progressive influences in education. Republican lawmakers across the country have pushed to prohibit the teaching of The New York Times' 1619 Project, about the history of slavery, and of critical race theory, both of which have been banned in Florida's public schools.

The governor signed two other education bills on Tuesday mandating new civics and "patriotism" education requirements in Florida's K-12 schools, including teaching about the "evils" of communist and totalitarian governments.

Florida House Speaker Chris Sprowls, a Republican, said at the press conference that Florida's kids needed to be taught "about loving America" and "what our real history is and what our legacy is."

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The result of the New York City mayoral primary will not be known for another week or two, but as expected, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams is currently in the lead.

Adams, a former NYPD captain, emerged in April as the frontrunner in public polling by emphasizing his crime-fighting credentials. His rise coincided with survey results showing that violent crime was the top concern of voters in the nations largest city, replacing the COVID-19 pandemic.

Given the citys strong Democratic tilt, Adams will be the overwhelming favorite to win the general election later this year, should he emerge victorious from the primary. Republicans on Tuesday nominated talk show host Curtis Sliwa  a longtime city fixture known for his trademark red beret and his leadership of the volunteer anti-crime group the Guardian Angels  as their candidate for the November election.

New York City mayoral candidate Eric Adams at his election night party on Tuesday. (Robert Nickelsberg/Getty Images)

For Tuesdays primaries, the city adopted ranked-choice voting for the first time in its history, a reform that is gaining support around the country among those who want to encourage moderation and bipartisanship in politics. Under this system, voters were able to rank their top five choices for mayor  and as candidates who receive the least votes are eliminated, their supporters are reallocated based on their second, third, fourth and fifth choices.

The New York City Board of Elections, however, wont announce the results of the reallocation until next week, and even then wont announce the results of absentee ballots. That means it could be two weeks until the winner is declared.

Adams led the first round of voting with 31.7 percent support, followed by the civil rights lawyer Maya Wiley, with 22.3 percent. The citys former sanitation commissioner, Kathryn Garcia, was a close third, with 19.5 percent. The entrepreneur Andrew Yang  who conceded the race Tuesday night  came in at a more distant fourth, with 11.7 percent.

In the past, the race would have gone to a runoff between Adams and Wiley because no candidate won more than 40 percent, the citys threshold for winning outright. The last New York City runoff for mayor was held in the 2001 Democratic primary.

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Were in a holding pattern  while the votes are counted and while we wait to see how the ranked-choice tabulations work out, said City Councilman Brad Lander, who is leading the race for city comptroller, in a TV interview.

Voters scan completed ballots at the Church of St. Anthony of Padua polling site for the New York City mayoral primary on Tuesday. (Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Of course, if there were to have been a runoff, as there would have been in the past, it would have taken even longer to determine a winner.

The consensus among observers is that it will be hard for Wiley or Garcia to catch Adams, who dominated working-class neighborhoods in Queens, the Bronx and Staten Island. Wiley performed best in upscale portions of Brooklyn, while Garcia was most popular in Manhattan and parts of Staten Island.

Adams, Garcia and Yang were all seen as the more moderate candidates in the crowded Democratic field, with progressives rallying in recent weeks behind Wiley.

Based on his considerable lead over the next two candidates, it would seem very unlikely he loses, an adviser to one of the eliminated candidates told Yahoo News. If it was 30 to 27, [it] would be very different and, yes, more fluid, but 10 points is a lot, especially when you consider how many Yang voters likely ranked Adams as a two.

One recent poll, the Marist survey, backs that up, showing that the most common second choice of Yang voters was Adams. But it also showed that the most common second choice of Wiley voters was Garcia, and the most frequent second choice of Garcia voters was Wiley.

Are you saying its girls against boys? Garcia joked when asked about that survey result last week. But the serious point is that if enough voters listed Wiley and Garcia as their first and second choices, one of them could approach 50 percent.

Mayoral candidates Kathryn Garcia, left, and Maya Wiley greet each other at the unveiling of a mural in New York City's Chinatown on Sunday. (Kena Betancur/Getty Images)

Maya may have a path. Its just really narrow, the adviser to a defeated candidate said, adding that if enough voters for other candidates listed Wiley second, she could make it really tight in the final round.

Fair Vote, an election reform organization that promotes ranked-choice voting, noted that the vast majority of candidates who have led in the first round of voting in ranked-choice elections over the past 15 years have ultimately won.

The biggest surprise may have been the high turnout. There were 798,000 votes already counted as of Tuesday night, with another 90,000 absentee ballots yet to be counted, and another 130,000 absentee ballots not yet returned. Ballots that were postmarked by June 22 must be received by next Tuesday, the city Board of Elections told Yahoo News.

That means the final turnout for the Democratic primary will be close to 1 million votes, compared with only 691,000 in 2013, the last time there was an open race for mayor.

____

Read more from Yahoo News:
BRUSSELS (Reuters) -France and Germany proposed on Wednesday a European Union summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin to try to improve relations, two diplomats said, potentially paving the way for the first such meeting since 2014.

Such an event would follow U.S. President Joe Biden's summit in Geneva with Putin earlier this month and reflects concern in Paris and Berlin that the EU's approach to Russia in recent years has mainly been focused on sanctions on Moscow.

"We need to have a discussion about how to get away from this negative spiral ... but we need to advance united," one senior EU diplomat said, adding that some Baltic countries wary of Russia may not agree to a summit.

It was not clear if any summit would involve all 27 EU leaders or only the EU's chief executive, Ursula von der Leyen, and its chairman, Charles Michel. Such summits were suspended after Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimea peninsula in 2014.

EU leaders will discuss a new strategy to manage worsening relations with Russia at their two-day summit in Brussels on Thursday.

"Germany and France have given some ideas for the EU-summit-debate on Russia. Merkel has mentioned before that not only the U.S. should talk with Russia (and China) on the highest level. Russia is a neighbor. Such a format existed already in 2007 in Finland, a person dealing with the preparation of the summit told Reuters.

A strategy paper by the European Commission and the EU's diplomatic service said earlier this month that despite years of tensions, "the EU and Russia have a fundamental common responsibility for peace and security on the European continent."

Despite accusations by the West that Russia is responsible for cyber attacks, disinformation and other covert acts - which the Kremlin denies - the country is also the EU's fifth largest trade partner. The EU is the largest foreign investor in Russia.

(Reporting by Robin Emmott and Philip Blenkinsop)
The trial for a French man accused of murdering and dismembering his brother in-law and the rest of his family began on Tuesday.

For months, Hubert Caouissin believed that he and his wife, Lydie were being deprived of their share of an alleged family treasure containing gold hidden from the Nazis.

In February of 2017, Caoussin killed Pascal Troadec, 49, with a crowbar and went on to kill his Troadecs wife, Brigitte, 49, and their two children, Sebastien, 21, and Charlotte, 18, in their beds.

Caouissin believed that since 2006, Lydie and Pascals father discovered gold ingots and coins that he allegedly recovered while working on a building in Brest. The gold was rumored to have a 50kg consignment that the Bank of France had hidden during German occupation of France in World War II.

Feeling jealous after not receiving any gold from his late father-in-law following his passing, Caouissin believed that all the gold was left to Troadec instead, according to The Guardian.

In his confession to police, Caouissin admitted to spying on the Troadec family using a stethoscope to listen in on their conversations from behind windows and doors. At one time, Caouissin also waited in the garage for the family to go to sleep before he snuck into their home to steal a key. During this attempt, he made too much noise and eventually woke the couple.

He hit and killed Pascal and Brigitte Troadec first then killed Sebastien and Charlotte. The crime scene was one of great violence, said Pierre Sennes, the Nantes public prosecutor. The following evening, Mr. Caouissin went back to the house with the intention of cleaning it to remove traces of what had happened and to take the bodies.

In the two or three days that followed he tried to make the bodies disappear, Sennes added. It seems the bodies were dismembered and some parts were buried and others were burned.

A month after the murder, police discovered 379 individual remains of Troadecs family on Caouissins farm in Brittany.

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In his first interview with police, Caouissin said that he had not seen his in-laws in many years. This statement prompted psychological reports to say that Caouissin was suffering from extreme paranoia.

Caouissin faces life in prison, but his lawyers have argued for an insanity defense and believe that his mental condition should exclude him from receiving the maximum sentence.

He never intended to kill the family, his lawyer, Thierry Fillion, said.

Caouissins wife also faces charges of helping him dispose of the bodies.
BERLIN (AP)  Libya's transitional government underlined its commitment to holding elections on Dec. 24 at a conference Wednesday with powers that have interests in the North African country, while the German hosts vowed to keep up pressure until all foreign forces have been withdrawn from Libya.

Germany and the United Nations brought together 17 countries at the conference in Berlin. Libyas transitional leadership was joined by foreign ministers from Egypt, Turkey, Tunisia, Algeria, France and Italy, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and senior officials from Russia, the United Arab Emirates and others.

The meeting followed up on a January 2020 conference where leaders agreed to respect an arms embargo and to push the countrys warring parties to reach a full cease-fire. Germany has tried to act as an intermediary.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said the meeting marked a new phase" and that we are no longer only talking about Libya, but above all with Libya.

Participants welcomed progress since the process was launched. An October cease-fire agreement including a demand that all foreign fighters and mercenaries leave Libya within 90 days led to a deal on the elections in December and the transitional government that took office in February.

Libyan Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush said the transitional government came with a vision of how best to re-establish stability in our country and pave the way for free, inclusive and safe elections on Dec. 24.

Wednesday's conference saw powers involved in Libya recommit to refraining from interfering in the country's internal affairs and stating that foreign forces and mercenaries need to be withdrawn without delay  something on which there has been little progress.

Asked what guarantees the countries involved are giving to withdraw foreign fighters, Maas pointed to the fact that they had gathered for the conference. He said that we will not let up, and we will not rest, until the last foreign forces have left Libya ... wherever they come from."

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He said Russia and Turkey, which have been heavily involved on opposite sides, understand that a withdrawal would have to be carried out step by step and added that it would have to be balanced, so that one side doesn't gain an advantage.

Mangoush said there was progress regarding mercenaries, so hopefully within the coming days mercenaries from both sides are going to be withdrawn, creating more trust and leading to further steps.

A further challenge will be to start bringing all armed groups in Libya under a joint military command.

Speaking earlier Wednesday ahead of the conference, Blinken said that we share the goal of a sovereign, stable, unified, secure Libya free from foreign interference  it's what the people of Libya deserve, it's critical to regional security as well.

For that to happen, national elections need to go forward in December and that means urgent agreement is needed on constitutional and legal issues that would undergird those elections, he said. And the Oct. 23 cease-fire agreement has to be fully implemented, including by withdrawing all foreign forces from Libya.

Conference participants supported efforts toward a reconciliation process and committed to helping Libyan authorities in developing a comprehensive approach to addressing migration, including the closure of detention centers.

Aid group Doctors Without Borders said this week it was suspending its activities in two detention centers in Tripoli after repeated incidents of violence toward refugees and migrants held there. It said staff had witnessed guards beating detainees at one center and received reports of people being shot at in another.

Libya has been a key transit country for migrants from Africa trying to reach Europe, especially after the collapse of order when a NATO-backed uprising toppled and later killed longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. The oil-rich country was long divided 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, eastern-based commander Khalifa Hifter and his forces, backed by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, launched an offensive to try to capture Tripoli. Hifters 14-month campaign collapsed after Turkey stepped up its military support of the U.N.-backed government with hundreds of troops and thousands of Syrian mercenaries.

-

AP Diplomatic Writer Matthew Lee contributed to this report from Berlin.
An investigation by Michigan's Republican-led Senate Oversight Committee found no evidence of widespread voter fraud in 2020, and recommended that Michigan's attorney general investigate individuals who made false claims "for their own ends."

Why it matters: A 35-page report released by the committee debunks election falsehoods and conspiracy theories spread by former President Trump and his supporters in the aftermath of November's election.

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As recently as May, Trump was falsely claiming that votes in Michigan were "intentionally switched" from him to President Biden, calling the fraud allegation "MASSIVE and determinative."

Driving the news: The months-long investigation repudiates claims from GOP activists who alleged that some voting machines were manipulated in rural Antrim County, where human error by the Republican clerk led to initially skewed results, per Bridge Michigan.

"The committee finds those promoting Antrim County as the prime evidence of a nationwide conspiracy to steal the election place all other statements and actions they make in a position of zero credibility," the report says.

The report acknowledges that "there are glaring issues that must be addressed in current Michigan election law, election security, and certain procedures," but says the issues should not bring into question the integrity of the 2020 election.

What they're saying: "Our clear finding is that citizens should be confident the results represent the true results of the ballots cast by the people of Michigan," the report concluded.

The committee strongly recommends citizens use a critical eye and ear toward those who have pushed demonstrably false theories for their own personal gain.

"The committee recommends the attorney general consider investigating those who have been utilizing misleading and false information about Antrim County to raise money or publicity for their own ends."

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A New Hampshire man who was out on federal supervised release is accused of gunning down another man in front of his children at a summer gathering on Fathers Day in a Boston neighborhood.

Ira Grayson, 35, of Manchester, New Hampshire, was arraigned Tuesday at the Roxbury Division of the Boston Municipal Court on murder, unlawful possession of a firearm and drug-related charges, the Boston Herald reported. He was ordered held without bail after allegedly fatally shooting 33-year-old Stacy Coleman at 8:36 p.m. Sunday on Danube Street in Boston's Dorchester neighborhood.

Boston police officers who responded to the scene found Coleman suffering from a gunshot wound to the chest and transported him to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead, WYCN-LD reported.

NYC FAMILY MOURNS SLAIN BOY, 10; BOROUGH PRESIDENT LAMENTS BLACK ON BLACK VIOLENCE AMID SHOOTING SURGE

During the course of the investigation, Boston Police detectives assigned to the Homicide Unit learned that Grayson and Coleman were both present at an outdoor gathering on Danube Street when they became involved in an altercation, Suffolk County Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Hickman said.

Hickman told the court that there were two firearms involved in the altercation, and Grayson admitted himself to an area hospital with a non-life threatening gunshot wound to the arm. He was in possession of illicit drugs at the time of his arrest at the hospital, prosecutors said.

He was arrested at the hospital around 10 a.m. Monday  just three weeks before he was scheduled to appear in federal court in Manchester, where a judge was to decide whether he would return to federal prison for violating terms of his probation, according to Dorchester Reporter.

Grayson was on federal supervised release after being convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm in New Hampshire, according to Boston.com. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Hampshire agreed to allow Grayson to remain out of jail before his July 15 hearing.

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"As the weather turns warm and our communities shed pandemic-era restrictions on gatherings, there become more opportunities for personal conflict and confrontations," Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins said in a statement. "No matter what those conflicts may be, there is never an excuse for taking a life or inflicting harm through violence."

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Coleman was reportedly shot in front of his kids on Father's Day, Boston.com reported.

"Mr. Coleman's family and loved ones are now left grieving and asking questions that we will try our best to answer," Rollins added. "My office is available to this family and all survivors of homicide in Suffolk County to help connect them with resources and to provide the support they deserve."
By Dan Whitcomb

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The U.S. Pacific Northwest could experience a historic heat wave in the coming days that has the potential to shatter long-standing temperature records, strain power grids and endanger vulnerable residents, forecasters said on Wednesday.

A high-pressure dome was building over the upper northwest and Canada, the National Weather Service said, similar to the atmospheric conditions that punished California and U.S. Southwestern states last week.

"This will be setting the stage for the beginning of a potential historic heat wave for the Northwest this weekend," the weather service said in issuing excessive heat watches for parts of California, Oregon and Washington state.

"While record high temperature are not expected over the next two days over the Northwest, the high temperatures will still be 10 to 20 degrees above average and lead into the weekend when numerous record highs are likely," the weather service said.

Experts say extreme weather events such as the late-spring heat waves that have descended on parts of the United States this year can't be linked directly to climate change.

But more unusual weather patterns could become more common amid rising global temperatures, National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Schoening told Reuters in an interview last week.

In issuing excessive heat watches and warnings, the weather services said that high temperatures can be dangerous, advising U.S. Northwest residents to stay indoors during the hottest parts of the afternoon and care for children, pets and the elderly.

Record-breaking temperatures could also trigger a repeat of the strained power grids in several states last week as wilting residents cranked up air conditioners.

The weather service was also expected to issue new red flag warnings in California and elsewhere to advise that the brutal conditions raise the risk of wildfires.

Wildfires scorched more than 6,500 square miles (17,000 square km) of land in 2020, destroying hundreds of Californian homes during a particularly fierce fire season.

(Reporting by Dan Whitcomb; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
By Clement Uwiringiyimana

KIGALI (Reuters) - Paul Rusesabagina, the ex-hotelier immortalised in the film "Hotel Rwanda", never belonged to a rebel group that sought to overthrow President Paul Kagame, one of the former rebels accused with him of terrorism told a court on Wednesday.

"Rusesabagina was never a member of the National Liberation Front (FLN), he was a civilian ... He is not a soldier," former FLN spokesman Callixte Sankara told the court in Kigali.

He said the prosecution had presented no evidence to substantiate its claim that Rusesabagina had given orders to the FLN, which has claimed responsibility for attacks in past years that it said were aimed at ousting the president.

Sankara is one of 20 Rwandans being tried alongside Rusesabagina, who is 67. Prosecutors describe them as fighters for the FLN. Most were captured in southern Rwanda in 2018, after attacks.

Rusesabagina, however, told the New York Times last September, in an interview supervised by officials, that he had boarded a private plane in Dubai weeks earlier, believing it was taking him to Burundi, only to find that it had landed in Rwanda, where he was arrested.

Rusesabagina faces 13 charges, including forming an armed rebel group -- the FLN -- and terrorism.

The trial began in February but Rusesabagina stopped attending after a few weeks, telling prison officials he did not expect justice from the court.

The trial has shone a spotlight on Kagame, whose government says Rusesabagina directed the 2018 attacks from abroad.

Rights groups say the trial is only the latest example of Kagame using authoritarian means to quell political opposition and extend his 21 years in power.

Prosecutors have requested a life sentence for Rusesabagina, whose family says he is in poor health and being mistreated in prison.

His case has also attracted international attention because of "Hotel Rwanda", a 2004 Oscar-nominated movie based on his life.

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The movie shows how he used his connections as a hotel manager to save ethnic Tutsis fleeing slaughter by Hutus in Rwanda's 1994 genocide.

An estimated 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed in the genocide. Rusesabagina's father was Hutu, his mother and wife - Tutsi.

Rusesabagina later obtained Belgian citizenship and moved to Texas.

He became a vocal critic of Kagame and called for armed resistance to the government in a YouTube video in 2018, saying that change could not be achieved by democratic means. The year before, Kagame had won re-election with 99% of the vote.

Rusesabagina said in a pre-trial hearing that he had contributed 20,000 euros ($24,000) to the FLN, the military wing of the Movement for Democratic Change, a political party that he co-chaired from exile. But he denied any wrongdoing.

More defendants are due to present closing remarks on Thursday and Friday.

(Reporting by Clement Uwiringiyimana; Writing by Maggie Fick; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
House lawmakers are planning on a double-digit spending hike on Capitol expenses next year and also stripping the building of more statues they deem racist, according to a new draft funding measure.

Statues of Charles Aycock, John C. Calhoun, James Paul Clarke, and Roger B. Taney would be removed from the building under a $4.8 billion fiscal 2022 legislative branch spending bill House Democrats released Wednesday.

CAPITOL DAMAGE AND SECURITY COSTS EXCEED $30 MILLION FOLLOWING RIOT

The bill also includes language that would, for the first time, legalize the employment of Dreamers in Capitol Hill offices.

A strong and well-functioning legislative branch is essential to our democracy, and this bill makes important investments to strengthen Congress as an institution, Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Rosa DeLauro said. With work authorization for Dreamers and more funding for Congressional offices and paid internships, we will be able to recruit and retain a talented and diverse workforce to help Congress deliver for the people.

The bill would hike Capitol spending on the House side by $582 billion, a 13.8% increase over last year.

Democrats said the additional money is needed for a variety of new needs, including additional security measures in the wake of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol and funding a more diverse workforce.

The bill would bolster funding by 21% for congressional offices. Lawmakers said the money was aimed at increasing paid internships to support more interns from working and middle-class families and to pay for allowing Dreamers to work in the legislative branch.

Dreamers, who arrived here illegally as children, are allowed to work in the United States under an Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, but the legislative branch had been excluded from it.

Democrats inserted a similar provision in last years spending bill that would allow hiring Dreamers in congressional offices, but it was blocked in negotiations with the GOP-led Senate.

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Now, Democrats control the majority in the upper chamber, and its more likely the language will survive final negotiations on a legislative branch spending measure.

The House legislation includes a key nonspending provision addressing the dozens of historic statues on display in the Capitol.

Democrats have been determined to rid the building of any statue that memorializes a former member of the Confederacy or those who embraced white supremacy.

The bill recognizes the need to confront the crisis of systemic racism, Democrats said, announcing the legislation.

Aycock was a prominent Democrat and North Carolina governor from 1901-1905. He promoted white supremacy and keeping black people suppressed and disenfranchised.

Clarke, another Democrat, was the former governor of Arkansas and a senator from 1903 until 1916 and was also a white supremacist.

Arkansas officials have already taken steps to replace the Clarke statue in the Capitol as well as another statue of Uriah Milton Rose. The figures will be replaced with statues of musician Johnny Cash and Daisy Lee Gatson Bates, who was a member of the Little Rock Nine.

Calhouns likeness can be spotted in several locations in the Capitol. Hes memorialized in a marble bust and a portrait in the Senate, as well as a statue designed by South Carolina that stands in the lower level of the Capitol.

Calhoun was a senator and embraced white supremacy and slavery.

A bust of Taney, the nation's fifth chief Supreme Court justice, is located in the Senate, inside the Old Supreme Court Chamber. Taney authored the 1857 Dred Scott decision that declared black people were not citizens.

The House bill will have to be merged with a Senate version, which means GOP agreement will be required to meet the 60-vote legislative threshold.

Typically, the two chambers do not interfere with each others spending requests, but the statue removal and Dreamers provisions could draw some GOP opposition.

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Republicans have argued it is up to the states to decide the fate of the two Capitol statues each is allowed to commission for display inside the building.

In 2020, a Virginia Commission voted to remove the statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee from the Capitol. It will be replaced with a statue of Virginia civil rights icon Barbara Johns Powell.

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Tags: News, Congress, House Democrats, Rosa DeLauro, Arkansas

Original Author: Susan Ferrechio

Original Location: House funding bill would hike Capitol spending and remove racist statues
The investment firm that Hunter Biden continues to hold a 10% stake in has invested in Chinese Communist Party-linked firms the United States has sanctioned, including a technology company accused of assisting in human rights abuses against the Uyghurs and a nuclear company that allegedly conspired to acquire U.S. nuclear technology to benefit Chinas military.

The younger Biden still holds a 10% equity stake in Bohai Harvest RST (Shanghai) Equity Investment Fund Management Company, according to Chinese business records, despite pledges from President Joe Biden that his family would not have any foreign business ties and White House press secretary Jen Psaki saying in February that the president's son "has been working to unwind" his stake in the firm.

BHR, which counts Hunter Biden as a former board member and current significant stakeholder, has made extensive investments in multiple controversial Chinese companies, including Megvii Technology, sanctioned in 2019 for its alleged participation in China's repression and high-technology surveillance in Xinjiang, and the state-owned China General Nuclear Power Group, blacklisted in 2019 for having allegedly attempted to acquire U.S. nuclear technology for military use in China. The Chinese investment firm also teamed up with the state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China, which was hit with sanctions in 2021 for its role in Chinas military-industrial complex. BHR and AVIC purchased Michigan-based Henniges Automotive in 2015.

Hunter Biden has reportedly been under criminal investigation since 2018 as federal authorities scrutinize his taxes and, possibly, his foreign business dealings, and the 51-year-old's financial transactions with China might be at the forefront. BHR touts the fact that it benefits from the support of its Chinese stakeholders including the Bank of China and China Development Bank Capital.

The Financial Times reported that Megvii was a leading facial recognition company whose technology was linked to Beijings mass surveillance of Uyghurs in Xinjiang and that BHR was an investor in Megviis Series C funding round in 2017. Reuters also reported that Megvii Technology Face++ has recently officially completed a U.S. $460 million Series C financing, led by a Chinese state-owned capital venture capital fund" and other investments including "Bohai Huamei.

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HUNTER BIDEN STILL HASN'T DIVESTED FROM CCP-LINKED FIRM

The Commerce Department announced in 2019 that the Bureau of Industry and Security would add 28 Chinese governmental and commercial organizations," including Megvii, to the Entity List for engaging in or enabling activities contrary to the foreign policy interests of the United States, and that this action constricts the export of items subject to the Export Administration Regulations to entities that have been implicated in human rights violations and abuses in Chinas campaign targeting Uyghurs and other predominantly Muslim ethnic minorities. The federal agency said that these entities have all been implicated in the implementation of Chinas campaign of repression, mass arbitrary detention, and high-technology surveillance.

A report by Internet Protocol Video Market in December contended that Huawei and Megvii worked together to test and validate Uyghur alarms, according to a Huawei interoperability report found by IPVM. The Washington Post reported that the system tested how a mix of Megviis facial recognition software and Huaweis cameras, servers, networking equipment, cloud-computing platform and other hardware and software worked."

Huawei said the report was "simply a test," while Megvii said our solutions are not designed or customized to target or label ethnic groups and our business is focused on the well-being and safety of individuals, not about monitoring any particular demographic groups. The Chinese Foreign Ministry called the IPVM report purely slander."

In September, the Washington Free Beacon reported that Megvii doesn't believe any of the actual capital behind BHR's investment came directly from Hunter Biden or individuals in the United States and instead said the investments came from BHR Investment Fund II and BHR Investment Fund VI. But a recent prospectus for Megvii says that those BHR entities are managed by BHR (Cayman) GP, which, according to 2019 company board meeting minutes found on Hunter Bidens purported laptop and provided to the Washington Examiner by former Steve Bannon War Room podcast co-host Jack Maxey, appears to be listed under a Summary of BHR Subsidiaries and Managed Funds. Specifically, this is listed as one of BHRs Offshore Indirect Subsidiaries incorporated in the Cayman Islands.

That same prospectus for Megvii states that, in 2018, the two BHR entities were each listed as having a shareholding ratio of 1.15%, or 2.3% combined between the two BHR entities, and figures that appear to be from 2020 list each of the two BHR entities as holding either 0.72% or 0.85%, for a combined total of 1.44% or 1.7% of Megviis shares.

The Chinese state-run Global Times said in June that Megvii, which it called one of "China's four AI dragons," was looking to raise around $926 million. In March, Protocol reported that Megvii's annual revenue in 2019 reached 1.26 billion RMB ($193.6 million), quadrupling its 2017 revenue of 300 million RMB ($46.7 million) and that last year, during the first three quarters, Megvii's revenue exceeded 700 million RMB ($110 million).

China General Nuclear is touted as an investment on BHRs website. The Wall Street Journal reported that BHR had a $10 million holding in CGN just before an initial public offering.

The Chinese nuclear company was blacklisted by the U.S. in 2019 after it was determined by the U.S. Government to be acting contrary to the national security or foreign policy interests of the United States because it has has engaged in or enabled efforts to acquire advanced U.S. nuclear technology and material for diversion to military uses in China.

Last summer, the Defense Department released a list of companies operating in the U.S. that the Pentagon believes are tied to the Peoples Liberation Army, one of which was China General Nuclear.

Then-President Donald Trump issued an executive order in November related to the Pentagons list, stating that those companies, though remaining ostensibly private and civilian, directly support the PRCs military, intelligence, and security apparatuses and aid in their development and modernization. The executive order banned transactions in publicly traded securities, purchases, or sales related to these sanctioned Chinese companies.

The Justice Department unveiled an indictment in 2016 against Allen Ho, Energy Technology International, and China General Nuclear for conspiracy to unlawfully engage and participate in the production and development of special nuclear material outside the United States. Ho, a naturalized U.S. citizen who was born in Taiwan, was also charged with conspiracy to act in the United States as an agent of a foreign government. The indictment said that Ho, with CGNs direction, identified, recruited, and executed contracts with U.S.-based experts from the civil nuclear industry who provided technical assistance related to the development and production of special nuclear material for CGNPC in China. Prosecutors announced in 2017 that Ho was sentenced to two years in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to unlawfully engage or participate in the production or development of special nuclear material outside the U.S.

In 2015, BHR also combined forces with AVIC Automotive Systems Holding Company, a subsidiary of the Chinese state-owned AVIC, to purchase Henniges Automotive, an auto company now with offices in the U.S., Europe, and China. AVIC, a CCP-linked aerospace and defense company, builds jets for the Chinese military and was added to a U.S. blacklist in 2021.

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A report prepared for the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission in 2009 warned about Chinas defense enterprise groups and the Chinese governments pursuit of civilian-military dual-use technologies, with a focus on AVICs role, with the report noting that AVIC develops, manufactures, and markets military and commercial aircraft, as well as engines and airborne weapons. The report warned about the overlap between civil and military programs as a commercial endeavor beneath the single umbrella of AVIC" and the "involvement with dual-use applications" of some of AVIC's subsidiaries.

A review of BHRs financial documents shows the firm had access to tens or hundreds of millions of dollars for Chinese and global investments and purchases and set up a complicated web of China-based and Cayman Island shell companies and subsidiaries.

BHR and Hunter Bidens lawyer did not respond to the Washington Examiners questions about whether the presidents son would relinquish his holdings in the Chinese firm.

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Original Author: Jerry Dunleavy

Original Location: Hunter Biden holds stake in Chinese firm that invested in companies sanctioned by US
BERLIN (Reuters) - Iran and world powers have been making progress in talks to revive their 2015 nuclear accord but still have to overcome major hurdles, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Wednesday.

"We are making progress but there are still some nuts to crack," Maas told a joint news conference with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, adding that a deal was possible even after the election victory of a hardline Iranian president.

(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; Writing by Joseph Nasr; Editing by Paul Carrel)
By Padraic Halpin

DUBLIN (Reuters) -Ireland's government will begin to sell down part of its 13.9% shareholding in Bank of Ireland over the next six months, Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe said on Wednesday, marking the state's first sale of any bank shares since 2017.

Ireland pumped 64 billion euros ($76.3 billion) or almost 40% of its annual economic output - into its banks a decade ago after a property crash had left its now mostly state-owned banking sector requiring the biggest state rescue in the euro zone.

Bank of Ireland was the only lender to avoid majority state ownership and the government has already recouped more than the 4.7 billion euros it originally invested in the bank. Donohoe said the announcement marked the start of a phased exit from the country's largest bank by assets.

Citigroup was appointed to manage the sale and instructed to target that up to, but no more than, 15% of expected aggregate total trading volume in the bank be sold over the duration of the trading plan, Ireland's finance ministry said.

The state's shareholding is worth close to 700 million euros and will not be sold below a certain undisclosed price per share which will be kept under review, the ministry said.

Bank of Ireland shares were 4.5% lower at 4.3 euros by 0735 GMT.

The shares are up 31% so far this year but 45% lower than they were in 2018, before a Europe-wide slump in bank shares.

The government's trading plan will become operational in the coming days and can be renewed at the minister's discretion after six months.

The British government sold down its remaining 24.9% stake in Lloyds Bank from 2014 to 2016 in a similar process.

Ireland last recouped part of the taxpayer funds ploughed into its lenders when it cut its holding in Allied Irish Banks (AIB) to 71% from 99.9% with a 2017 IPO. It also owns 75% of the smaller mortgage bank permanent tsb.

Of the 29.4 billion euros put into the banks still trading, 19.2 billion has been recovered by way of disposals, investment income and liability guarantee fees. The remaining shareholdings are currently valued at 5.3 billion euros.

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Donohoe acknowledged that the competitive dynamic for Bank of Ireland had "completely changed" following the planned exit of Britain's Natwest and Belgium's KBC from the Irish market and that this would be a factor in the sale.

He said it was still possible that the state could make a profit through the sale of its holdings in the banks that are still trading, through there were no imminent plans to sell shares in the other two lenders.

($1 = 0.8384 euros)

(Reporting by Padraic Halpin; Editing by Andrew Heavens, Jason Neely and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
By Ange Aboa

ABIDJAN (Reuters) -An Ivory Coast court on Wednesday sentenced former prime minister and rebel leader Guillaume Soro in absentia to life in prison on charges of plotting a coup against his former ally President Alassane Ouattara.

Soro, who is in exile in Europe, was charged with conspiracy and an attempted attack on state authority. He has repeatedly denied the charges and denounced them as politically motivated.

"This trial has demonstrated once again the corruption of the Ivorian judiciary and its wilful submission to the diktats of the executive," Soro said in a statement after the verdict.

The case has raised tensions in a country still recovering from a brief civil war a decade ago, during which Soro led the rebels that swept Ouattara to power after a disputed election.

Soro went on to serve as prime minister and speaker of parliament under Ouattara, but the two men later fell out as the president made clear he would oppose Soro's own presidential ambitions.

Prosecutors issued an arrest warrant for Soro in December 2019, just before he planned to return home from Europe to launch his presidential campaign.

Soro was also accused of stealing public funds, for which he was convicted and sentenced last year to 20 years in prison. He denies those charges too.

The court on Wednesday also handed 20-year prison sentences to several of Soro's close associates for participating in the coup plot. It dissolved his political party and ordered the seizure of its property and any weapons acquired by Soro and his allies.

Soro used the 2010-2011 civil war and its aftermath to stockpile hundreds of tonnes of weapons, United Nations investigators have alleged. Soro has denied this.

(Reporting by Ange Aboa; Writing by Nellie Peyton; Editing by Bate Felix, Aaron Ross and Alex Richardson)
Portrait of Christopher Columbus from the Naval Museum in Madrid, 19 May 2006 (AFP)

A school board in New Jersey reversed its decision to remove holiday names from its calendar after a rowdy meeting where hundreds of parents called for their resignation for almost four hours.

The Randolph Township Board of Education removed religious, military and ethnic names like Christmas, Thanksgiving, Memorial Day and Colombus Day in what Italian-American families said was an attempt to erase their history and indoctrinate their children into a Marxist ideology.

As board president Tammy MacKay prepared to pass a motion to reverse the decision and asked "where are we now, where are we tonight", calls from the crowd yelled for her resignation.

"Really?" she said as the room erupted in cheers. "Im going to finish, so"

Ms MacKay apologised for the move while questioning the political motivations behind how their school board became a national news story seemingly overnight. School board meetings across the country have become flashpoints in a campaign against critical race theory being used to inform curricula without community consultation.

"I can assure you that I did not intend and I do not believe that any member of this board intended to insult or disrespect the ancestry or heritage of an Italian-American or anyone else," Ms MacKay said. "I would also like to apologize to those who believe that this board is disrespected or disregarded."

The 10 June vote to remove all holiday names and replace them with day off came after backlash for the boards renaming of Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day. It led to a Change.org petition demanding the board resign, with creator Tom Tatem appearing on cable news networks like Fox News to say the board was pushing its ideological agenda without consulting parents.

Board member Ronald Conti said they started with the best intentions to be more inclusive to the districts students and families, but that it became a "political bomb" with outside groups to blame for the board landing on a grenade.

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"The actions of select groups outside of the board of education, seized the opportunity and exploited this discussion and through various news organisations making Randolph school calendar ground zero for a national political debate," he said.

But for almost four hours on Monday night, regular residents, parents and families expressed their frustration at having the school board dictating their personal ideologies rather than taking into consideration the communitys views.

They included Kathleen Mahoney, a former Randolph school employee of 33 years who worked as a school psychologist.

"Our school district provided in-service to the staff on multiculturalism, that was a board administrative dictate, and we were taught as staff members, to value each child as an individual," Ms Mahoney told the school board she once worked under.

"In the words of Alveda King, the niece of Martin Luther King, we need to be kind to each other, we need to value history, and we need to respect ethnicity, not erase it."

Another local resident, Kiara, said she has suffered discrimination as an Italian-American who "couldnt be trusted" because of the stereotype theyre all involved in crime, and that people pushing their own agenda into the school district would lead to increased prejudice.

"Some forget how a person is not defined by their skin colour, religion, political beliefs and ethnicity, so some forget to love and start to judge," she said.

"Sometimes some forget about injustice and discrimination faced by a lot of ethnic groups as they came to the United States for a new life, one of these groups being Italians just because in todays society we label them as white."

Randolph Township Schools Director of Communications, Matthew Pfouts, said in a statement to The Independent that the board is grateful for the feedback.

"The very essence of education is to learn, to grow and to apply lessons learned. The last few weeks have showcased a concerned community, an interested public and a responsive Board of Education that acknowledged a decision made without proper consideration," he said.

"In the future, a review committee will seek community input on any proposed calendar changes."

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Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib has met widespread support since his groundbreaking decision Monday to announce that he is gay.

In doing so, he became the first active player in NFL history to come out. Since his revelation, the Raiders, the NFL, the NFLPA, Las Vegas quarterback Derek Carr and other current and former NFL players have voiced their support of Nassib on social media.

Now the president has his back.

On Tuesday night, President Joe Biden tweeted his support of Nassib and Washington Spirit forward and Japanese soccer star Kumi Yokoyama, who came out Tuesday as a transgender man.

President Biden: 'I'm so proud of your courage'

Tweeting from the official @POTUS account, Biden wrote of Nassib and Yokoyama: "I'm so proud of your courage."

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He did so as the @POTUS account's banner read "Happy Pride Month" while adorned in rainbow colors.

In his coming out message, Nassib announced a $100,000 donation to the Trevor Project, a charity focused on reducing suicide among LGBTQ youth. He also wrote about the impact an adult's support can have on a young LGBTQ person who's having thoughts of suicide.

"Studies have shown that all it takes is one accepting adult to decrease the risk of an LGBTQ kid attempting suicide by 40%," Nassib wrote. "Whether youre a friend, a parent, a coach or a teammate  you can be that person."

Joe Biden expressed his support for two athletes who came out this week. (Kenzo Triboullard/AFP)

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(This June 23 story corrects to show John McAfee was no longer involved in McAfee antivirus business when Intel bought it)

BARCELONA (Reuters) - British-born U.S. technology entrepreneur John McAfee died on Wednesday by suicide in a Barcelona prison after the Spanish high court authorised his extradition to the United States on tax evasion charges, his lawyer told Reuters.

McAfee's lawyer, Javier Villalba, said the anti-virus software pioneer died by hanging as his nine months in prison brought him to despair.

During a court hearing last month, McAfee, 75, said that given his age, he would spend the rest of his life in jail if convicted in the United States. "I am hoping that the Spanish court will see the injustice of this," he said, adding "the United States wants to use me as an example."

McAfee had lived for years on the run from U.S. authorities, some of that time aboard a megayacht. He was indicted in Tennessee on tax evasion charges and was charged in a cryptocurrency fraud case in New York.

The colourful tech founder was detained on Oct. 3 at the Barcelona airport as he was about to board a flight to Istanbul with a British passport, a Spanish police source said at the time.

McAfee worked for NASA, Xerox and Lockheed Martin before launching the world's first commercial anti-virus in 1987. Intel bought the business in 2011, when McAfee himself no longer had any involvement. The program still carries his name and has 500 million users worldwide.

Spain's high court said on Wednesday it agreed to extradite McAfee to the United States. The regional justice department confirmed that a U.S. man aged 75 awaiting extradition was found dead in his cell on Wednesday. Prison authorities were investigating the cause of death.

McAfee still had opportunities to appeal his conviction but could not stand more time in jail, Villalba said.

"This is the result of a cruel system that had no reason to keep this man in jail for so long," Villalba said. U.S. prosecutors will likely ask the judge overseeing the tax evasion case to dismiss charges because of McAfee's death.

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McAfee said in 2019 that he had not paid U.S. income taxes for eight years for ideological reasons. That year, he left the United States to avoid trial, largely living on a megayacht with his wife, four large dogs, two security guards and seven staff.

He offered to help Cuba avoid a U.S. trade embargo using cryptocurrency and sought to run for U.S. president for the Libertarian Party.

McAfee, who said in 2018 that he had fathered at least 47 children, lived in Belize for several years. He fled after police sought him for questioning in the 2012 murder of a neighbour. They ultimately said he was not a suspect.

He met his wife, Janice McAfee, when she solicited him as a prostitute while he was on the run, he said.

Janice McAfee said in a post on Twitter on Sunday, "Now the U.S. authorities are determined to have John die in prison to make an example of him for speaking out against the corruption within their government agencies... There is no hope of him ever having a fair trial in America."

McAfee was a prolific user of Twitter, where he had 1 million followers, and other social media.

He posted a profanity-laced video on YouTube in 2013 that mocked the difficulty of removing the software that bore his name from computers.

A number of cryptocurrency backers around the world on Wednesday posted tweets of condolence. In his last public tweet on June 18, McAfee wrote: "All power corrupts. Take care which powers you allow a democracy to wield."

(Reporting by Inti Landauro and Joan Faus, Editing by Cynthia Osterman and Howard Goller)
John McAfee, the eccentric tech mogul who made his fortune developing antivirus software, was found dead in a jail cell near Barcelona on Wednesday, just hours after Spains National Court ruled that he was to be extradited to the United States to face tax evasion charges. He was 75.

The news of his death was first reported by El Pais, who said he died by suicide. An official then confirmed the news of his death to the Associated Press, with a statement from the Catalan government saying a 75-year-old US citizen awaiting extradition could not be resuscitated.

McAfee was arrested last October in Spain, charged with failing to pay millions of dollars in income taxes from 2014 to 2018 in Tennessee. He also faced charges from Manhattan federal investigators over his involvement in a "pump and dump" cryptocurrency scheme.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Spanish court ruled McAfee would face extradition, after months of him claiming that the charges against him were politically motivated and designed to ensure he never left prison again.

The tax evasion charges weren't the first time McAfee had been connected to a criminal investigation. In 2012, McAfee was wanted for questioning in Belize over the murder of his neighbor.

For months, McAfee had been tweeting from prison.

In a democracy, power is given not taken. But it is still power. Love, compassion, caring have no use for it. But it is fuel for greed, hostility, jealousy... All power corrupts. Take care which powers you allow a democracy to wield.

McAfee, who sold his software company in the 1990s, claimed to have fathered 47 children during his life.

"Father of many, loved by few," his wife Janice wrote in a letter posted on Twitter on Sunday for Father's Day.

In the letter, she claimed that the US government was "determined to have John die in prison to make an example of him for speaking out against the corruption within their government agencies."

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Happy Father's Day @officialmcafee. Though you are spending the day in prison know that you are loved and appreciated. #FreeJohnMcAfee #FreeMcAfee

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It was shot by the first Black female photographer whose works were acquired by the Museum of Modern Art

The Jordan Brand and its parent company, Nike, have released a new creative project aimed at celebrating the players of the WNBA during the 25th anniversary of the league.

The black-and-white photo series was photographed by Ming Smith, a Black woman who was the first Black female photographer to have her work acquired by the Museum of Modern Art in New York. She photographed nine WNBA players in ensembles styled by Carlos Nazario, i-D magazines global fashion director.

Former Chicago Bulls superstar Michael Jordan is featured in the shots standing alongside some women who cherish the sport of basketball with his identical passion: Professional players Jordin Canada, Tea Cooper, Crystal Dangerfield, Chelsea Dungee, Arella Guirantes, Dearica Hamby, Kia Nurse, Aerial Powers and Satou Sabally.

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The women of the WNBA experienced unique challenges during their season in 2020, playing during the coronavirus pandemic. As many of the star athletes were also working mothers, their bubble in Bradenton, Florida  which was nicknamed a wubble  had to be kid-friendly.

Los Angeles Lakers guard Avery Bradley and his wife, Ashley, donated more than $30,000 worth of supplies, including games and toys, for the wubble. Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving committed $1.5 million to help cover the salaries of WNBA players who sat out last season to protect themselves and their families during the pandemic.

Last summer also saw an increase in support for the 25-year-old league. Ratings for the WNBA finals were up 15% over the previous year.

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In a statement to CNN, Jordan Brand president Craig Williams said, Weve seen our entire culture shift these past few years, and we are entering a new era for the game. We wanted to capture this powerful moment in time to champion our WNBA family, who share our commitment to putting our community first.

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Williams was referring to the civic leadership of league players, who regularly used their platform to advocate for Black lives last summer.

Jordan released a statement praising the women, saying, The world needs female voices, and we cant ignore that or else were not growing, signaling his intent to give women a platform to amplify their voices, which influence, inspire and push culture forward.

Have you subscribed to theGrios Dear Culture podcast? Download our newest episodes now!

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The post Jordan brand releases portrait series of WNBA players shot by Black photog appeared first on TheGrio.
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a news conference on Tuesday in Mexico City, Mexico. Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Kamala Harris will travel to the US-Mexico border on Friday, Psaki announced.

She will visit the border with DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

Republicans have attacked Harris for not personally taking a trip to the border.

See more stories on Insider's business page.

Vice President Kamala Harris will travel to the US-Mexico border on Friday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki announced Wednesday.

Harris will visit the border with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and make a stop in El Paso, Texas, Psaki told reporters during a news conference.

The trip is part of Harris' ongoing efforts to "address the root causes" of migration and "get the situation under control," Psaki said.

Harris' upcoming visit comes as Republicans continue to attack the Biden administration for its handling of the rise in migrants at the southern border over the past few months. Former President Donald Trump and around a dozen House Republicans announced plans to visit the border next Wednesday.

Psaki denied that the timing of Harris' trip had anything to do with Trump's visit.

"We made an assessment within our government about when it was an appropriate time for her to go to the border," Psaki said.

Trump swiftly responded to the news on Wednesday, claiming he influenced Harris' travel plans.

"After months of ignoring the crisis at the Southern Border, it is great that we got Kamala Harris to finally go and see the tremendous destruction and death that they've created - a direct result of Biden ending my very tough but fair Border policies," Trump said in a statement.

"Harris and Biden were given the strongest Border in American history," he added. "And now, it is by far the worst in American history. If Governor Abbott and I weren't going there next week, she would have never gone!"

President Joe Biden tapped Harris in March as the administration's point-person on immigration affairs. She has been tasked with navigating diplomatic efforts between the US and Central American countries, primarily Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras. Since then, Republicans have repeatedly slammed Harris for not personally taking a trip to the southern border.

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Earlier this month, Harris pushed back on the criticism, saying other top administration officials have visited the border and she will too "at some point." She also reiterated that her focus is on figuring out the underlying causes of migration.

"We are going to the border. We've been to the border," she told NBC News' Lester Holt in an interview that aired on June 8.

"You haven't been to the border," Holt responded.

"And I haven't been to Europe," Harris said. "I don't understand the point that you're making. I'm not discounting the importance of the border. ... I care about what's happening at the border."

Read the original article on Business Insider
The Kansas City-St. Joseph diocese has failed to include nearly 20 priests on its list of clergy credibly accused of sex abuse even though they are named elsewhere, a victims advocate group said Wednesday.

Those priests  including one convicted in Texas of trying to hire a hit man to kill his victim all had ties to the diocese in the past, according to the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. The group publicly released the names at an afternoon news conference.

For nearly two years, SNAP has repeatedly pushed Bishop Johnston to add roughly 20 names to his credibly accused list, largely to no avail, said former SNAP executive director David Clohessy. Bishops elsewhere have, however, honored some such requests by SNAP.

David Clohessy of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, wrote the names of priests credibly accused of sexual abuse down Wednesday, June 23, outside the Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese, 20 W. 9th St., in Kansas City before a sidewalk press conference to denounce that the Diocese has failed to include nearly 20 priests on its list of clergy credibly accused of sex abuse even though they are named elsewhere. Clohessy wrote the names of 18 accused of those priests who worked locally that were left off the accused abusers list.

In 2019, Bishop James V. Johnston Jr. released a list of 24 priests he said had been credibly accused of sexual abuse of a minor, saying that the dreadful scourge of sexual abuse of minors has wounded our entire family of faith.

But SNAP said 19 priests with connections to the diocese were left off the list. The group believes its important that those names be listed so other potential victims can come forward.

One, SNAP said, was the Rev. John M. Fiala, who pleaded guilty in Texas in 2014 to charges of raping a boy at gunpoint. In 2012, Fiala was convicted of plotting to have the teen killed. Fiala died in prison in 2017.

The youth had accused Fiala of sexually assaulting him in 2007 and 2008. The abuse allegedly occurred when Fiala was a pastoral administrator at Sacred Heart of Mary parish in the West Texas community of Rocksprings.

Fiala served in the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas in 2001 and 2002 and was spiritual director from 1998 to 2001 at a religious order that had a house in the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph.

Officials with the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas and the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph told The Star in 2010 that they had received no complaints about Fiala when he was in the Kansas City area.

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Fiala was an associate pastor at St. Josephs parish in Shawnee from Aug. 31, 2001, to January 2002. After that he helped at a parish in Holton, Kansas, from January to April 2002, the archdiocese said. The archdiocese included Fiala on a list of credibly accused priests it released in 2019.

David Clohessy of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, wrote the names of priests credibly accused of sexual abuse down Wednesday, June 23, outside the Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese, 20 W. 9th St., in Kansas City before a sidewalk press conference to denounce that the Diocese has failed to include nearly 20 priests on its list of clergy credibly accused of sex abuse even though they are named elsewhere.

A spokeswoman for the Kansas City-St. Joseph diocese told The Star in 2010 that Fiala did not work for the diocese. She said that from August 1998 until mid-2001 he served as spiritual director to the SOLT (Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity) community, which maintained a religious house in the diocese.

SNAP also said Wednesday that the Rev. Julian Hartig, who worked at St. Marys parish in Higginsville from 1926 to 1929, had been found to be credibly accused by other church institutions.

The Gallup Diocese in New Mexico publicly named Hartig as an abuser in 2005. The Franciscan Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe also confirmed that there was at least one credible allegation against him. Hartig died in 1987.

Both worked in KCMO, Clohessy said of Hartig and Fiala. But Bishop James Johnston refuses to put them on his diocesan credibly accused list even though both have been deemed credibly accused molesters by bishops in New Mexico and Kansas and can be found listed that way on church websites elsewhere.

Diocesan spokeswoman Ashlie Hand said in an email Wednesday that all but one of the names SNAP was releasing were included on lists made public by other dioceses or religious orders that the Kansas City-St. Joseph diocese linked to at the bottom of its own list. To see those names, a person would need to click on the links from the other institutions.

We do not list duplicate names that are included on lists elsewhere, rather at the bottom of our list, we link to additional lists in the dioceses of Springfield and Jefferson City, as well as lists maintained by Conception Abbey and the Jesuits of U.S. Central and Southern Province, the diocese said.

SNAP also on Wednesday announced that the Kansas City-St. Joseph diocese had recently paid a settlement in a case involving former priest Thomas Reardon, who has been the subject of more than two dozen sexual abuse lawsuits.

David Ford alleged that Reardon sexually abused him in the late 1970s when the priest worked at St. Gabriel parish and that the diocese covered it up.

Ford told The Star in an interview years ago  and also said in a 1997 deposition in another case  that on more than a dozen occasions in 1978 and 1979 when he was 14 and 15 and working at St. Gabriel he was asked to be a bartender for priests parties. At those parties, he said, several clergy saw him give drinks to priests and to boys the priests had brought with them.

At those parties, Ford said, priests took boys alone to rooms. He said Reardon did the same with him. Ford said in his deposition that he disclosed his abuse to Catholic officials at least four times  in 1979, 1980, 1981 and 1996.

Reardon, who SNAP described as Missouris most-sued and most dangerous predator priest, was defrocked years ago. His assignments in the diocese were at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, St. Elizabeths Catholic Church, St. John Francis Regis Catholic Church, St. Gabriel Archangel, Catholic Youth Organization, Church of Santa Fe in Buckner and Camp Little Flower in Raytown.

David Clohessy of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, wrote the names of priests credibly accused of sexual abuse down Wednesday, June 23, outside the Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese, 20 W. 9th St., in Kansas City before a sidewalk press conference to denounce that the Diocese has failed to include nearly 20 priests on its list of clergy credibly accused of sex abuse even though they are named elsewhere.

SNAP said it also had found numerous other under the radar clerics who had at one time been stationed in Kansas City and are listed as credibly accused abusers on at least one church website  mostly in other states or dioceses  but are not on the Kansas City-St. Joseph list.

Those priests, the group said, are Vincent Barsch, Bede Parry, Edgar Probstfield, Regis Probstfield, Gilbert Stack, Hugh Tasch, Paschal Thomas and Isaac True, all from the Benedictine order; and Paul Pilgram, Burton J. Fraser, Chester Gaiter, Dennis Kirchoff, Philip Kraus and Francis Kegel of the Jesuit order.

The others are Donald Redmond, Lawrence Gregovich and Martin Juarez. Redmond and Juarez are on the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas list of credibly accused priests.
Kansas Secretary of State Scott Schwab, a Republican who challenged President Donald Trumps unfounded attacks on the integrity of the election system in 2020, announced Wednesday he would run for re-election next year.

Schwab, 48, was elected to the statewide office which handles election administration in 2018 following Kris Kobach, who is now running for attorney general.

In announcing his candidacy Wednesday, Schwab reaffirmed his opposition to Democratic efforts in D.C. to expand federal control of elections.

His office previously testified in favor of a state resolution asking Congress to reject HR 1, the bill to expand mail-in voting nationwide and establish same-day registration for federal elections. The measure failed on a 50-50 procedural vote in the U.S. Senate Tuesday.

At a time when Democrats in Washington D.C. are trying to dramatically change state election administration, we need leaders who will defend the integrity of our elections, Schwab said in a statement Wednesday. I am seeking a second term as Kansas Secretary of State because it is imperative that we protect our election processes in Kansas and streamline business filings.

During and after the 2020 election, Schwab dismissed efforts by Trump to diminish trust in mail in voting and the election results. He was among the first GOP officials nationally to reject Trumps suggestion in July that the election be delayed.

In Kansas, we have implemented measures to ensure the security and safety of the August and November elections. We respectfully ask the Kansas delegation to not support any delay to the November election, Schwab said in a statement at the time. Now is not the time to act in fear but to show the world we are courageous.

Following the election, Schwab told lawmakers that Kansas had held free and fair elections despite the pandemic and surge in mail-in voting laws.

His office remained neutral in Legislative efforts to adjust voting laws, stating that Kansas is voter friendly but that lawmakers should regularly evaluate voting rules.

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Schwabs office is now facing state and federal lawsuits claiming changes passed in May are unconstitutional.

Rep. John Carmichael, a Wichita Democrat and ranking minority member on the House Elections Committee, said he didnt expect Schwabs handling of the 2020 election to hurt his chances for re-election.

Hes in a difficult position because hes the chief election officer in KS. He cant say that Kansas elections are corrupt or that the election was stolen, Carmichael said. An attempt to impugn the integrity of the Kansas elections would reflect poorly on him as an individual.

Carmichael said he felt Schwab had been professional running the office though he said was frustrated with Schwabs firing of a Sedgwick County elections official and delayed implementation of a law granting voters flexibility in where they vote.

Hes done a craftsman like job, Carmichael said. Which is, by the way, consistent with what Secretaries of State did until Kris Kobach came into office.

Correction: an earlier version of this story identified John Carmichael as a Republican. He is a Democrat.
SYDNEY, Australia  A state government minister has been infected with COVID-19 and another minister is in isolation as a cluster in the Australian city of Sydney worsens.

New South Wales Agriculture Minister Adam Marshall said he was told on Thursday that he had tested positive after dining with three government colleagues on Monday at a Sydney restaurant after an infected diner.

All four lawmakers had been attending Parliament as recently as Tuesday.

Health Minister Brad Hazard said he was self-isolating after being exposed to a potential case at Parliament House.

Hazzard said while standing next to Premier Gladys Berejiklian at daily pandemic media briefings, that he thought she was fairly safe.

Pandemic restrictions tightened in Sydney on Thursday as a cluster of the Delta variant increased and states banned travel from either parts of Sydney or from anywhere in New South Wales.

The cluster began last week when a Sydney airport limousine driver tested positive. He was not vaccinated and is suspected to have been infected while transporting a foreign air crew. The cluster had grown to 31 cases by Wednesday.

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MORE ON THE PANDEMIC:

 Italy is banking on a huge windfall of EU pandemic recovery funds to revamp its lagging economy. The future of the eurozone may depend on how well it does.

 Due to the pandemic, Tokyo is shaping up to be the no-fun Olympics

 Colombia hits 100,000 confirmed COVID-19 deaths, president blames antigovernment protests

 US finds deaths among Medicare patients in nursing homes soared by 32% last year

 WHO plans technology transfer hub for coronavirus vaccines in South Africa

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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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HERE'S WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

JERUSALEM  Israels government has postponed the planned reopening of the country to vaccinated tourists over concerns about the spread of the infectious delta variant of the coronavirus.

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Israel was set to reopen its borders to vaccinated visitors on July 1, after having largely closed the country during the pandemic. It had already started allowing groups of vaccinated tourists to enter in May. All visitors will need to be tested before boarding flights to Israel and show proof of vaccination.

But after a rise in infections in the past week, the government said Wednesday that it would be pushing that date until Aug. 1. Israels Health Ministry recorded 110 new cases of coronavirus in the past day.

Israel has suffered a major economic blow due to the coronavirus pandemic, but even as the country has gradually recovered after a speedy vaccination campaign, the tourism industry has remained blighted.

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ALBANY, N.Y.  New York will lift more COVID-19 restrictions when the state of emergency expires later this week, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday.

New Yorkers will still have to wear masks on public transit, hospitals, nursing homes, correctional facilities and homeless shelters, in accordance with federal guidance.

But Cuomos announcement Wednesday means public meetings, for example, no longer must occur virtually.

Fighting COVID & vaccinating New Yorkers are still top priorities, but the emergency chapter of this fight is over, Cuomo tweeted.

Its the governors latest announcement about lifting COVID-19 restrictions at a time when rates of new positives are dipping to record lows as more New Yorkers get vaccinated. And it follows months of pushback from Republicans and business groups who have called for Cuomos executive power to be reined in.

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BERLIN  Germanys disease control center says the delta variant accounted for more than 15% of coronavirus infections in the country by mid-June, with its share roughly doubling in a week.

The Robert Koch Institute said in a weekly report Wednesday that the more contagious delta variants share in sequenced samples rose to 15.1% in the week ending June 13. That compares with 7.9% a week earlier.

The alpha variant, first detected in Britain, remained dominant in Germany, though its share declined to 74.1% from 83.5%.

Overall cases in Germany have declined to their lowest level in months. On Wednesday, the disease control center said that 1,016 new cases were reported over the previous day  a rate of 7.2 new cases per 100,000 residents over seven days.

Authorities have relaxed many restrictions but are pointing to surges in Britain, Portugal and Russia driven by the delta variant, first detected in India, as illustrating the need to remain vigilant.

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MADRID  Spain is scrapping its requirement to wear face masks outdoors, as long as people can remain at least 1.5 meters (5 feet) apart, from next Saturday.

Health Minister Carolina Darias said masks will still be needed at large gatherings, such as concerts, when people are on their feet instead of sitting on distanced chairs.

Masks remain mandatory indoors in public places and on public transport.

She said Wednesday that face coverings have been tremendously efficient and useful in helping curb the spread of COVID-19.

She noted that 32% of Spaniards have had two vaccine doses and 50% have had a single doses so far, allowing a relaxation of mask rules.

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BERLIN  A spokesman for Angela Merkel says the German Chancellor received two different vaccines in a conscious effort to encourage people not to be afraid if they are advised to get a mix of shots.

Merkels office confirmed Tuesday that the 66-year-old received a first shot of the AstraZeneca vaccine on April 16. For the second shot, she received the Moderna vaccine.

Her spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said Merkel intentionally opted for the initial AstraZeneca shot at a time when there were concerns about possible serious side effects.

And so she can now perhaps take away the fears of people...who were or are worried about this so-called cross-vaccination, he said.

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BOISE, Idaho  Just over half of Idaho adults have now received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine  about two months after the 50% mark was reached nationwide.

Idaho Public Health Administrator Elke Shaw-Tulloch said during a press conference Tuesday that the state is unlikely to meet the national goal of at least 70% of adults with at least one vaccine dose by July 4.

Still, she said the state continues to make slow gains in vaccination rates. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says Idaho has the eighth lowest adult partial COVID-19 vaccination rate in the U.S.

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ANKARA, Turkey  Turkeys health minister says anyone 18 years old and older will be eligible to receive COVID-19 vaccines as of Friday, as the country ramps up its vaccination campaign.

Speaking after a meeting of the countrys scientific advisory council on Wednesday, Fahrettin Koca said the government aims to administer at least one dose to around 70% of the 55 million people that are eligible to be vaccinated, by mid-July.

So far, close to 30 million people in a population of 84 million have received their first dose and 14.6 million people have received both doses.

Meanwhile, Koca said 40,800 people would be involved in the late-stage trial of Turkeys first local COVID-19 jab, which had been named TURCOVAC. The vaccine that uses the inactivated virus technology, was developed by Turkeys Erciyes University.

Some volunteers would be administered the vaccine developed by Chinas Sinovac pharmaceutical instead of a placebo, allowing researchers to compare the two inactivated vaccines safety and efficacy, the minister said. Volunteers in Hungary, Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan would also be involved in the trials.

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MOSCOW  Buryatia, a republic in Siberia, became the first Russian region on Wednesday to announce a lockdown because of a surge in coronavirus infections.

The lockdown will take affect on Sunday and last for two weeks, during which only essential services such as grocery shops, pharmacies, utility companies, public transport and media organizations will be allowed to operate.

Coronavirus infections in Russia have surged in recent weeks, with the daily tally of new cases growing from approximately 9,000 in early June to over 17,000 last Friday.

Buryatia is the only Russian region so far that imposed several lockdowns since the beginning of the pandemic. Last November, the regions governor also closed all non-essential businesses for two weeks in an effort to cope with a resurgence of the outbreak.

Russia had only one, six-week nationwide lockdown last spring, and most coronavirus restrictions in the country were lifted over the summer. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Wednesday no plans to reimpose another nationwide lockdown were being discussed by authorities.

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LISBON, Portugal  The Lisbon regions recent surge in COVID-19 cases is powering ahead, with new infections pushing Portugals number of daily cases to a four-month high.

Portugal on Wednesday reported almost 1,500 new cases, with two thirds of them in the region of the capital where some 2.8 million people live.

The national 14-day cumulative Covid-19 case notification rate per 100,000 people has risen to 130.

The pressure on hospitals remains manageable, with just 437 virus patients admitted and 100 in intensive care.

The Portuguese government has already banned travel into and out of the Lisbon region at weekends. Experts blame the Delta variant for the virus spread there.

It is widely expected to announce new restrictions for Lisbon after a Cabinet meeting on Thursday.

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GENEVA  Swiss authorities are vastly easing measures aimed to combat COVID-19 and relaxing some key requirements facing incoming travelers, as case counts and deaths from the pandemic have plunged in Switzerland in recent weeks.

Among the new steps effective Saturday, the Federal Council said work-from-home rules and the requirement to wear masks outdoors will be lifted. Restaurants will also no longer have to limit the number of patrons that can dine together.

The Swiss government said people from the European Schengen area  a vast zone that allows visa-free travel between countries  will no longer be required to quarantine upon entry to Switzerland.

Rules limiting entries of people from abroad will focus on countries with worrying levels of coronavirus variants in circulation.

The council  Switzerlands executive branch  is also extending the estimated duration of vaccine effectiveness for mRNA vaccines like those from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna to 12 months, from six months.

Swiss health authorities said Wednesday that 154 new cases and 2 new deaths were recorded from Tuesday to Wednesday in the country of about 8.5 million. Overall, Switzerland has tallied over 700,000 cases and 10,000 deaths linked to COVID-19.

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PARIS  France is adding Russia to its red list of countries from which travels are banned unless imperious motives because they are struggling with virus surges and worrisome variants.

French government spokesperson Gabriel Attal said Wednesday that Russia, Namibia and Seychelles are being added to the list of now 21 countries.

The red list notably includes India, South Africa and Brazil and implies that vaccinated travelers arriving in France must justify their trip, show a negative test and self-isolate for a week. Those not vaccinated must go on a quarantine for 10 days, risking a 1000-euro fine, equivalent to $1,194.

Attal also called for enhanced vigilance about the more contagious delta variant, first identified in India.

The delta variant is estimated to represent 9 to 10% overall in France, he said. But authorities are closely monitoring the situation in a region of southwestern France, the Landes, where 70% of confirmed infections are due to the delta variant, he added.

The epidemic situation in France has rapidly improved in recent weeks, with about 2,300 new daily infections reported each day, down from 35,000 in the March-April peak.

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BRUSSELS  Teenagers in Belgium aged from 12 to 15 with underlying conditions will be able to get vaccinated with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

The move was adopted Wednesday following a meeting of the countrys health ministers.

They said COVID-19 shots will be offered to youngsters affected by pathologies such as leukemia, Down syndrome or liver and kidney diseases because the risk they face to develop a severe form of coronavirus requiring a stay in hospital higher than the general population.

A decision has yet been taken on the vaccination of others in that age group.

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THE HAGUE, Netherlands  A telephone line set up to allow people in the Netherlands to book a Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccination has been overwhelmed with callers.

Health Minister Hugo de Jonge tweeted Wednesday that more than 130,000 people had attempted to call the line a total of more than 2 million times on the first morning that the government allowed anybody over the age of 18 to make an appointment for a J&J vaccination.

The J&J single-dose shot has largely been removed from the Dutch COVID-19 vaccination program because of the tiny risk of an extremely rare blood clotting disorder.

However, the government has about 200,000 J&J shots available over the next two weeks and is making them available to the public on a first-come-first-served basis.
One man was arrested and another detained for trespassing after a fight broke out during a raucous school board meeting in Virginia that was disrupted by parents protesting against critical race theory and a proposed policy for transgender students' rights.

The Loudoun County School Board was forced to end the public comment section of its meeting on Tuesday evening after "loud public demonstrations violated the decorum of the meeting," the board said in a statement.After the crowd ignored repeated warnings not to disrupt the meeting, the school board voted to end the public comment section, prompting people to chant "shame on you," point their middle fingers, and sing the national anthem in protest, NBC News4 reported.

A fight also broke out in the boardroom with one man physically threatening another attendee, Kraig Troxell, a spokesperson for the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office, told BuzzFeed News.

The 48-year-old man, identified as Scott T. Smith, continued to be disorderly and physically resisted attempts to take him into custody, Troxell said. He was charged with obstruction of justice and disorderly conduct.

School officials eventually declared the meeting an unlawful assembly and warned that those who did not leave would face trespassing charges.

One person who refused to leave was detained by deputies and later released on a summons for trespassing, Troxell said. Video footage from a Reuters reporter also showed the man resisting deputies' attempts to make him leave, saying, "This is an unlawful arrest. I have a First Amendment right."

Two arrests made at the Loudoun County, Virginia school board meeting after it was declared an unlawful assembly and some parents here to protest against critical race theory and a transgender policy refused to leave right away #CriticalRaceTheory

Nearly 260 people had signed up to speak at the meeting where board members were set to discuss the adoption of a school policy that would require school staff and other students to address gender-expansive or transgender students by their chosen names and gender pronouns. The draft policy would also allow transgender students access to school facilities and activities that correspond to their gender identity.

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However, many of the people in the audience used the meeting to protest against teaching critical race theory in Loudoun County schools  despite previous assurances from school board officials that it was not being taught in classrooms.

Critical race theory is an academic term that has been misappropriated by mostly white conservatives in the wake of the New York Times Pulitzer Prizewinning 1619 Project as a stand-in for almost any educational discussion that might frame US history through a critical racial lens.

Parents held up signs saying "We the parents stand up" and "Education not indoctrination." During the meeting, former Virginia state senator Dick Black spoke out against critical race theory, calling it "disgusting" to loud cheers from the audience, according to a video clip shared by a Reuters reporter.

Despite numerous requests for decorum, "those attending insisted on continued interruptions in an attempt to delay and disrupt the proceeding," Loudoun County School Board Chair Brenda L. Sheridan said in her closing remarks at the meeting.

"These politically motivated antics ought to end. But if they dont, know that they wont delay our work," Sheridan said.

Parents protesting against critical race theory broke into the national anthem when the Loudoun Co., Virginia school board ended public comment because the crowd got too out of hand

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"Tonight, the Loudoun County School Board meeting was interrupted by those who wish to use the public comment period to disrupt our work and disrespect each other," Sheridan said at the end of the meeting. "Dog-whistle politics will not delay our work. We will not back down from fighting for the rights of our students and continuing our focus on equity."

The Loudoun school district is at the center of the country's political and cultural flashpoint around critical race theory.

Fueled by efforts from conservative and right-wing activists to ban lessons and conversations around race, racism, and slavery, parents in Loudoun County have claimed that the school district's initiatives to combat systemic racism are proof that they are teaching critical race theory to students.

Superintendent Scott A. Ziegler was forced to clarify earlier this year that the school's equity initiatives were "not an effort to indoctrinate students and staff into a particular philosophy or theory."

Despite such assurances, some Loudoun County parents sued the school board earlier this month, accusing it of implementing "explicit racial distinctions between its students ... in the name of 'dismantling systemic racism.'"

After Tuesday's school board meeting devolved into chaos, Sheridan, the school board chair, said that "despite what the fearmongering media tells you  no  critical race theory is not being taught in our schools, period."She accused opponents of the school board of "pushing false stories about critical race theory" that have resulted in death threats.

"Im deeply concerned about the rise in hateful messages and violent threats aimed at progressive members of the school board," Sheridan said. "We recently saw KKK flyers in Fairfax, our own school board members are receiving graphic threats via email and voice mail, and parents who support our work are afraid to speak up."

Sheridan also expressed her support for the LGBTQIA community and students.

"Loudoun County is for learners and loud voices aiming to make our schools a political battleground will not silence the work for our students," she said.

More on this
A 13-year-old boy in Massachusetts carried his 4-year-old sibling out a window to safety during a suspected murder-suicide inside their home Tuesday, according to reports.

A suspect appeared to have fatally shot his girlfriend inside the Oxford, Massachusetts, home before turning the gun on himself, police said, according to WBZ-TV of Boston. The woman's body was found in the kitchen and the man's in the backyard.

The 13-year-old ran to a neighbors house to get help and an Oxford police officer went to the home and rescued a 3-year-old who was still inside.

"The 13-year-old was a pretty courageous young kid," Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. told reporters in a Tuesday night briefing.

CHICAGO MOM WHO WAS BEATEN, SHOT IN WEEKEND ROAD-RAGE AMBUSH DIES DAYS AFTER BOYFRIEND

Two of the children were the couples and one was from a previous relationship, Early said.

Both the man and the woman called 911 separately and shots were heard on at least one of the calls, according to WBZ.

"This appears to be a tragic case of domestic violence within the house," Early added.

The children were taken to the police station for trauma services, according to WBTS-CD in Boston.

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"I don't know how old the other ones are, if they'll comprehend what went on, but it's really sad," neighbor Jeff Emco told the station.

Another neighbor called the man and woman a "young couple just getting started in life," according to WBZ. "Why did something like this happen?"
Mauritania's former president, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, was on Tuesday jailed after a judge in charge of a corruption probe ordered his incarceration, his party and prosecutors said.

A prosecutor speaking on condition of anonymity and the spokesman of the former president's party Djibril Ould Bilal confirmed his detention without citing the reason.

Aziz has twice gone before a magistrate investigating the case since the charges, including money laundering, were brought in March.

The move comes days after the former leader refused to continue reporting to police after being put under house arrest.

Aziz ruled the conservative West African state from 2008 to mid-2019, when he was succeeded by his former right-hand man and ex-defence minister, Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani.

The ex-president has said he is being persecuted in a bid to keep him out of politics, but has vowed he will not go into exile.

Aziz joined a small opposition party, Ribat National, in April in an attempt to salvage his political career after being expelled from the ruling Union for the Republic (UPR) party, which he had founded.

The 64-year-old former general who came to power in a coup already had to report to police three times a week and to seek approval before leaving the capital.

The charges followed a year-long probe initiated by parliament into the handling of oil revenue, the sale of state property, the winding up of a publicly owned food-supply company and the activities of a Chinese fishing firm.

A state prosecutor involved with the investigation in March said cash and assets worth the equivalent of about 96 million euros ($115 million) had been seized.

hos-lal/ach/bfm
BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's coronavirus infection levels are encouraging but cases of the Delta variant are rising and the country should exercise sound judgment so as not to risk what it has achieved, Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday.

"The pandemic is not over yet. We are still on thin ice," she told lawmakers in the Bundestag lower house of parliament.

(Reporting by Caroline Copley; Writing by Paul Carrel)
Warning: This story includes graphic details of an alleged murder.

A New Mexico suspect has reportedly confessed to brutally murdering and decapitating a 51-year-old man at a park in Las Cruces on Fathers Day.

Joel Arciniega-Saenz, 25, was arrested on first-degree murder charges in the death of James Garcia at Apodaca Park on June 20, KFOX 14 of El Paso, Texas, reported.

Arciniega-Saenz is accused of stabbing and decapitating Garcia.

The suspect reportedly claimed he followed Garcia to the park after Garcia robbed him while he was hanging out at his house a few days earlier. Arciniega-Saenz also claimed without evidence that Garcia had raped Arciniega-Saenzs wife several years ago but wouldnt identify her to police.

He allegedly said he dragged Garcias body to the street and kicked the victim's severed head at 14 cars. Investigators found the head yards away from his body. The suspect is also accused of severing one of Garcia's middle fingers.

CALIFORNIA DRIVER CHARGED WITH MURDER AFTER SUSPECTED DUI CRASH KILLS YOUNG SISTERS, 11 AND 8: REPORT

The suspect was later found at the park with a bloody knife and dried blood on his clothes and was arrested.

Arciniega-Saenz was previously arrested in 2017 for the shooting death of Benjamin Montoya, 21, but the charges were later dismissed when a key witness was found with a gun of the same caliber as the one used to kill Montoya, according to KDBC-TV in El Paso.

Montoyas sister told KDBC that when she read the suspect had allegedly confessed to Garcias murder, it made her "angry."

"I prayed he wouldnt do it again and ruin someone elses family," Krystal Montoya said. "I just was very angry because they let a monster out."

Arciniega-Saenz was also arrested last month for vandalizing businesses in Las Cruces but was released again.

The Third Judicial District Attorneys Office told KFOX it "diligently argued to keep this guy in jail on the most recent charges for vandalizing Becks Coffee House, but the District Court Judge Wingenroth didnt find him dangerous and released him on a $2,000 bond."

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Montoya said, "I dont want this guy to be released again and go do something stupid again and go hurt another family again. No matter how much I hurt from my brother, I can say that I hurt for this persons family. He needs to be put away, period."

The suspect was being held at the Dona Ana County Detention Center, according to KFOX.
South Beach bars with early-morning liquor licenses can once again serve alcohol until 5 a.m. after the city announced late Tuesday it would no longer enforce a 2 a.m. prohibition on the sale and consumption of alcohol in its South Beach entertainment district.

The announcement came a day after Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Beatrice Butchko granted the Clevelander hotel a temporary injunction blocking the city of Miami Beach from limiting the hours of alcohol service at the Ocean Drive business for the duration of the lawsuit.

The Clevelander sued the city last month over the new law, which was enacted May 22. The prohibition applies to businesses with licenses to serve alcohol until 5 a.m. in the citys mixed-use entertainment district, also known as the MXE, along Ocean Drive and Collins Avenue from Fifth to 16th streets in South Beach.

The city appealed the order Tuesday to the Third District Court of Appeal, triggering an automatic suspension of the order. Butckho lifted the stay Tuesday at the request of the Clevelander.

Effective immediately, the City will NOT be enforcing the 2 a.m. alcohol sale/service/consumption prohibition as the Court has entered an injunction and vacated the Stay, a city spokeswoman said in a statement to the Miami Herald on Tuesday evening. As such, those alcoholic beverage establishments in the MXE (Clevelander and all of the others) with 5 a.m. Alcohol Licenses may once again sell/serve/allow patrons to consume alcoholic beverages until 5 a.m.

In her order, Butchko said the 2 a.m. prohibition was not properly enacted because the city commission passed the legislation with affirmative votes from four of seven commissioners, instead of the five necessary to approve zoning changes.

Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber said Tuesday that the city is focused on its appeal. Gelber, who is running for reelection, proposed the 2 a.m. ban as a way to curb crime and hard partying in South Beach.

Commissioners approved the legislation as a temporary pilot program, with the intention of calling a citywide referendum in November to ask voters whether to make it a permanent policy.

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This is a safety issue, pure and simple, Gelber said. Theres simply to much disorder in this area and we must take action. We will vindicate the rights of our residents in every venue available.

Clevelander attorney Alexander Tachmes said he was glad the city decided to stop enforcing its new law. He said his hope was that the decision would foster cooperation between the city and the businesses that run its world-famous nightlife scene.

The ordinance was approved improperly, and were confident that at the end of the litigation the 2 a.m. ordinance will be struck down, he said.
Michael Gove (PA Archive)

Senior Cabinet minister Michael Gove has insisted he cant see Boris Johnson granting a new referendum on Scottish independence before the next general election.

Mr Gove, who is responsible for countering the push for independence, said the Prime Ministers focus was completely focused on recovery from the pandemic for the lifetime of this parliament.

His comments, likely to infuriate the SNP, appear to go further than other ministers who have said that this is the wrong time for another referendum.

Under the Fixed Term Parliaments Act, the next general election is not due until May 2024  although Mr Johnson is committed to repealing the act which could allow him to go to the country before then.

Asked by the Telegraph whether there was any circumstance in which Mr Johnson would approve a referendum before a May 2024 election, Mr Gove said: I dont think so.

Asked whether his position was that there will be no referendum before the 2024 election, he replied: I cant see it.

After pro-independence parties won a majority in the elections to the Scottish Parliament in May, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said it was a matter of when, not if there would be a second referendum.

(PA Wire)

Mr Goves intervention may heighten the chances that the SNP could try to hold a unilateral referendum without the approval of Westminster, which would almost certainly result in a legal battle through the courts.

Mr Gove however insisted that it was foolish to talk about a referendum at a time when the country was still recovering from the coronavirus pandemic.

The Prime Minister is completely focused on making sure that, for the lifetime of this parliament, we increase economic opportunity, we provide people with the chance to make more of their lives, take control of their futures. And thats quite rightly what the Prime Minister of the United Kingdoms focus should be, he said.

It seems to me to be at best reckless, at worst folly, to try to move the conversation on to constitutional division when people expect us to be working together in order to deal with these challenges.

Story continues

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Michigans Republican-controlled state Senate released a report on Wednesday concluded that there was no evidence of widespread of systematic fraud in the 2020 election.

The report, released by the state Senate Oversight Committee, said that its clear finding is that citizens should be confident the results represent the true results of the ballots cast by the people of Michigan.

There is no evidence presented at this time to prove either significant acts of fraud or that an organized, wide-scale effort to commit fraudulent activity was perpetrated in order to subvert the will of Michigan voters, the report says.

President Joe Biden defeated former President Donald Trump in the state by 154,000 votes.

The panel adds that it can confidently assert that it has been thorough in examination of numerous allegations of unlawful actions, improper procedures, fraud, vote theft, or any other description which would cause citizens to doubt the integrity of Michigans 2020 election results.

The investigation included a review of the results from Antrim County, where human errors originally led to incorrect results. While the countys unofficial results showed Biden winning, Trump ultimately won with 61 percent of the vote, according to The Hill.

Republican Antrim County Clerk Sheryl Guy said the error was a result of a failure to update a number of precincts media drives ballot information, leading to mismatched data when the unofficial results were tabulated, the Detroit Free Press reported.

All compelling theories that sprang forth from the rumors surrounding Antrim County are diminished so significantly as for it to be a complete waste of time to consider them further, committee chairman Republican state Senator Edward McBroom wrote in an addendum to the report.

As is often the case, the truth is not as attractive or as immediately desirable as the lies and the lies contain elements of truth, he said. We must all remember: extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof and claiming to find something extraordinary requires first eliminating the ordinary.

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Of false claims that ballots were manipulated in Antrim County through Dominion Voting Systems, the report said the data clearly and concisely shows that ideas and speculation that the Antrim County election workers or outside entities manipulated the vote by hand or electronically are indefensible.

Further, the Committee is appalled at what can only be deduced as a willful ignorance or avoidance of this proof perpetuated by some leading such speculation, the report said.

The panel also debunked claims that dead people or non-residents voted, that voting tabulators were compromised, ballots were harvested or that ballots were dumped at the TCF Center in Detroit.

The report said there were two cases in Wayne County where a person appeared to have voted but was deceased: one was a clerical error and the other was a 92-year-old woman who died days before the election.

There was no evidence that thousands of absentee voter ballots were mailed out without having been requested, the committee found. Those who made such claims were falsely equating absentee ballot applications with actual absentee ballots, according to the report.

The report is the result of an investigation into election fraud. claims that began on November 7, days after Election Day. The committee reviewed 28 hours of testimony from almost 90 people and countless claims and concerns from the people of Michigan. It also subpoenaed documents from government entities.

More from National Review
Donald Trump signs copies of his 2015 book, Crippled America (EPA)

The post-presidential wave of books about Donald Trump is beginning to crest, with more and more autopsies of his presidency and deep-dives on specific subjects on the way  all adding to the already swollen canon of Trump literature, a genre thatll be alive for decades to come (maybe even longer).

And Trump isnt just one of the most written-about modern presidents: hes also one of the most published, as well as one of the best-selling. And when the 45th presidents surely inevitable memoir of his time in office materialises, it will be the 20th book credited at least in part to him  though he has made no secret of the fact that his oeuvre was mostly penned by ghostwriters, many of whom he has bitterly and publicly fallen out with.

But in 2021, things are different. While Mike Pence, Jared Kushner, Bill Barr and others have had no trouble finding publishers to pay massive advances for their stories, Mr Trump is reportedly struggling to get a book deal at all.

There are plenty of reasons this might be. A report from Politico quoted a publishing industry insider pointing out that Trump has screwed over so many publishers that before he ran for president none of the big five would work with [him] anymore. That point was borne out by the ex-presidents statement in response to the Politico story, in which he claimed to have received and rejected offers from two of the biggest and most prestigious publishing houses (he did not name them).

If my book will be the biggest of them all, he opined, and with 39 books written or being written about me, does anybody really believe that they are above making a lot of money? Some of the biggest sleezebags [sic] on earth run these companies.

Theres more to it, though, than publishers not wanting to work with someone so erratic and difficult. Unlike the works he published in the decades before he became president, Trumps post-presidency is a hard sell in the publishing world because his own position is a difficult one too.

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Hes quite possibly going to run again in 2024, but faces intimidating legal investigations on multiple fronts that might well prevent him from doing so. He still has phenomenally high approval ratings among the Republican base, but he hasnt yet found a new place in public life that will consistently hold the publics attention, at least not in a way that flatters him.

And most problematically of all for publishers, his narrative of the last four-plus years  and especially the months since 3 November 2020  is a flat-out lie thats widely credited with inciting deadly violence at the US Capitol.

Anyone releasing a book that restates Trumps version of events would put themselves in serious reputational and legal jeopardy. And any publisher who attempted to put out a version watered down in service of the truth and the law would surely feel Trumps notorious rage soon enough.

Then again, problematic presidential memoirs have certainly been published before.

On many fronts  multiple accusations of high crimes and misdemeanours, for one  the best ex-president to compare Trump with is Richard Nixon. And so it goes with the possibility of a Trump presidential memoir, which apart from its problems getting published in the first place can surely expect a major public backlash upon its release.

When Nixons first memoir, RN, was lined up for publication in 1978, it was met with public disgust. The New York Times reported that at an American Booksellers Association gathering, a group calling itself the Committee to Boycott Nixons Memoirs tried to discourage visitors from buying the book, selling T-shirts that read Dont buy books by crooks.

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For its part, the Times  which had already paid for the serial rights to the former presidents memoirs  was happy to let the marketplace decide the issue.

Any potential reader who is offended by the notion of adding to Mr Nixons wealth by adding to his royalties, the papers editors wrote, has an inalienable right to borrow the book from library or from a less fastidious acquaintance, or simply to forgo the experience.

Whatever ones opinion of the former president, if scoundrels could not publish, the world would be deprived of much literature.

However awful the Nixon presidency might have been, Trump might not get such a generous response from the media today. Craig Fehrman, whose Author in Chief tellsthe untold story of our presidents and the books they wrote, thinks a massive backlash to a Trump book deal is guaranteed.

One interesting shift, he says, will be that a Trump book creates the potential for protest not just outside the publishing house but inside it, too. Minus a few notable exceptions, most literary types  editors and booksellers  were fine to publish Nixons memoirs. With a Trump book youd have a huge backlash from editors and booksellers and authors affiliated with the publisher.

Thats a big shift from the Nixon era  and even from the backlashes against George W Bush and Sarah Palins books. Trump is a far more divisive figure than they ever were, and we live in a much more partisan time.

And speaking of partisan times, perhaps the best template for Trump to work from is the one hes least likely to use.

Of all the presidential candidates to have lost an election in recent decades, only one has carried enough weight to write a genuine post-defeat blockbuster: Hillary Clinton, Trumps own vanquished rival and to this day his bete noire, whose What Happened became both a bestseller and the subject of heated debate.

As with almost every interview she gave after her shattering loss, the book was met by Ms Clintons detractors with complaints that she should stop talking about the election and withdraw from political discourse altogether. But those dubious critiques aside, What Happened offers much more than many post-campaign or post-presidency memoirs can be bothered with.

In the book, Ms Clinton doesnt just defend herself on some points while acknowledging mistakes where they mattered; she also offers what might be the closest thing any such book has included to a multicausal political science analysis of why the election went the way it did, explaining with reference to data why no single external event, campaign decision or cultural shift can on its own account for her defeat and Trumps victory.

(She gives particular credit to James Comeys announcement a week before the election that the investigation into her emails was being reopened, but even she doesnt go so far as to say his intervention was the only factor.)

Whether or not Ms Clintons analysis holds water is up for debate, but the important thing about What Happened as a text is that its title is a statement, not a question. It seems safe to say that if or when Trump publishes a book on his defeat in 2020, it will be similarly declarative rather than reflective.

Whereas Ms Clinton gives a rationale for why she campaigned in the way she did before weighing different hypotheses about her defeat against each other, Trump has only two claims to make: that his presidency was a golden age of towering achievements, and that the election was stolen from him.

As was true when RN hit the shelves, publishers have put out myriad books by the worlds most powerful people despite their history of elision, misrepresentation and outright lying. But Trumps legal situation, his corrosive effect on the USs culture and society, and the fact that he may yet try to rise again make the opportunity to pay him for his words and then profit from them a dubious one indeed.

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The Pentagons top general told lawmakers Wednesday he finds it offensive that some are accusing top military officers of being woke.

Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley made the comments as some Republican lawmakers are accusing the Defense Department of pushing wokeness. Top defense officials say the programs are intended to rid the ranks of extremism and promote diversity, but the conservatives see political correctness going overboard.

NATIONAL GUARD'S POST-CAPITOL RIOT MISSION COST $521M BILL AS FINAL TROOPS HEAD HOME

"I personally find it offensive that we are accusing the United States military, our general officers, our noncommissioned officers of being quote 'woke,' Milley told lawmakers Thursday.

He implied that troops who enter the training programs do not leave them after being transformed into woke warriors  just better educated about others.

Ive read Karl Marx. Ive read Lenin, Milley said. That doesnt make me a communist. So what is wrong with understanding ... the country which we are here to defend?

But the training programs have drawn the ire of conservatives, including some military veterans-turned-lawmakers.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

Texas GOP congressman Dan Crenshaw, a retired Navy SEAL, recently launched a web portal designed to allow troops to share examples of what he dubbed woke ideology in the military.

"Enough is enough," Crenshaw wrote on Twitter. "We won't let our military fall to woke ideology."

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Tags: News, Pentagon, U.S. military, woke, Woke culture, Dan Crenshaw, diversity

Original Author: John T. Bennett

Original Location: Military's top general says it's 'offensive' to call officers 'woke'
LONDON (Reuters) - European Union citizens will be given a formal 28-day notice if they fail to apply for settled status in Britain in what the government bills as its pragmatic approach to a post-Brexit immigration system that some users say is difficult to navigate.

Since completing its exit from the EU late last year, Britain is bringing in a new immigration system, ending the priority for citizens from the bloc over people from elsewhere to meet pledged made during the 2016 Brexit referendum.

Around 5.6 million EU citizens have applied for residency rights in Britain before the June 30 deadline, but officials are concerned that without firm figures for how many nationals from the bloc live in the country, some may fail to apply.

"The UK's approach is very generous. Our EU settlement scheme has been open for more than two years. Many EU countries have an application window of 12 months or less; France's is currently open for less than nine months," interior minister Priti Patel wrote in the Telegraph newspaper.

The government has repeatedly said it will look to grant status, rather than look for reasons to refuse it to EU citizens, and adds that the 28-day notice should not be seen as a point when individuals are liable to be removed from Britain.

Under the government's scheme, EU citizens who can prove they were living in Britain before Dec. 31 will retain the right to work, study and access benefits.

But if EU citizens have not applied within the 28-day notice, they will not be eligible for work, benefits and will lose the right to services such as free non-urgent healthcare.

Lawyers and campaigners estimate there are tens of thousands of EU citizens who risk missing the deadline, some of whom have become ensnared in what they describe as an overly-bureaucratic and poorly functioning system.

(Reporting by Elizabeth Piper. Editing by Andrew MacAskill)
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's (R-Ky.) remarks on the chamber floor Tuesday morning all but officially signed the death certificate for Democrats' sweeping election reform bill, the For The People Act.

The upper chamber, McConnell claims, is no obstacle to voting laws "done the right way." Only when the "policy is flawed and the process is rotten" might the Senate stand in a bill's path  which, he claims, is the job of the legislative body.

Therefore "today, the Senate's going to fulfill our founding purpose, stop the partisan power grab, and reject S.1," McConnell asserts.

The Senate will vote later Tuesday on whether to open debate on voting rights legislation, but needing 60 votes to overcome the chamber's filibuster rule, Democrats are unlikely to garner the 10 Republican votes needed to proceed. McConnell has previously signaled GOP opposition to the bill, even after Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) issued an updated proposal intended as a step toward bipartisan compromise.

Watch a clip of McConnell's comments below:

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Jun. 23Top Minnesota lawmakers and Gov. Tim Walz have reached an agreement on an education plan that will include the largest spending increase for the state's public schools in 15 years, several lawmakers announced.

Many details of the bipartisan agreement remained unclear on Tuesday, but the attention-grabber trumpeted by both Democrats and Republicans was agreement on two straight years of increases to the formula that determines how much money schools get based on the number of students and other factors.

Under the agreement, the formula would increase 2.45 percent for the 2021-22 school year and 2 percent for the following year, lawmakers said.

Minnesota's flush accounts  aided by a hefty influx of federal funds  make the increases possible without tax hikes, making the compromise bill possible, lawmakers said.

"This has been the number one ask from Minnesota schools: more money," said Sen. Roger Chamberlain, R-Lino Lakes, who chairs the Senate's education committee. Chamberlain said Republicans were able to fend off a number of unspecified "mandates" proposed by Democrats, noting that funding from the state formula carries few strings attached.

Democrats said they believe the funding increase will help schools districts across the state, some of which have seen enrollment fall and are mulling cuts, including teacher layoffs.

"I do think some teachers will be able to keep their jobs because of this bill," Senate Minority Leader Susan Kent, DFL-Woodbury, said.

OTHER SPENDING

In addition to the funds, Democrats were claiming victory in other spending programs, including $10.4 million in reimbursements to school districts for special education costs, $4 million over the next two years for programs for students for whom English isn't the primary language spoken at home, and $33.5 million over the next two years for programs that aim to attract, train and retain non-white teachers.

"That's a historic investment in teachers of color and American Indian teachers," said Rep. Jim Davnie, DFL-Minneapolis, who chairs the education committee in the Democratic-Farmer-Labor-controlled House.

The total size of the K-12 education bill appears to be between $1.1 billion and $1.2 billion over the next two years. The actual agreement had yet to be written as a formal bill Tuesday, and it remained unclear when it would be introduced and voted on by each chamber to be signed by Walz. The Legislature is scrambling to finalize a two-year, $52 billion state budget as a June 30 deadline approaches.
More than 150 employees at the Houston Methodist hospital in Texas were fired or resigned after failing to comply with orders to get a Covid-19 vaccination to continue working there, a hospital spokeswoman said Tuesday.

Officials Houston Methodist told its staff they needed to have received a Covid vaccination by June 7 or be suspended for two weeks.

Hospital spokeswoman Gale Smith told AFP that 153 employees "either resigned in the two-week suspension period or were terminated today.

"The employees who became compliant during the suspension period returned to work the day after they became compliant," she said.

Nearly 200 staff had been suspended, the New York Times reported, and protests were staged against the mandatory vaccine rule.

Last month, 117 staff members filed a lawsuit against the hospital, accusing it of "forcing its employees to be human 'guinea pigs' as a condition for continued employment."

The lawsuit was dismissed by a judge who said the vaccines' safety was not at issue, and that Texas law only protects employees from refusing to commit a crime.

"Receiving a Covid-19 vaccination is not an illegal act, and it carries no criminal penalties," Judge Lynn Hughes wrote.

The judge also reprimanded one of the main plaintiffs behind the lawsuit, nurse Jennifer Bridges, for the analogy that the threat of being fired for not getting vaccinated was like "forced medical experimentation during the Holocaust."

"Equating the injection requirement to medical experimentation in concentration camps is reprehensible," Hughes wrote.

But Bridges, who was one of the staff to have lost their job in the protest, told AFP Tuesday their legal push was receiving more support.

"117 people joined us initially. Now we're about to add another 70. We want Methodist to be held accountable for their actions. We want the public to see that we should not have lost our jobs and that Methodist is not properly giving people informed consent or talking about adverse reactions," the 39-year-old said.

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"I chose not to get this shot because the risks for me are too great. I've personally seen adverse reactions within employees and patients. Everything from severe headaches to blood clots, to paralysis, to even death," she said.

"At my age, my benefits from getting this vaccine aren't much at all because I only have a one percent chance of dying from the virus anyways."

Houston houses the world's largest medical complex, the Texas Medical Center, a sprawling district that includes hospitals and research universities.

The Medical Center employs more than 106,000 health care workers in all, and sees some 10 million patients a year.

As of Tuesday, 65.4 percent of adults in the United States had received one or more doses of the Pfizer, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson shots.

And yet, surveys show that health care workers have been among the greatest vaccine skeptics.

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Artist Chuu Wai Nyein standing in front of the Sule bridge, with 21ft long handwritten posters hanging over the side, which were made by Chuu.

Artist Chuu Wai Nyein standing in front of the Sule bridge in Yangon, Myanmar in February 2021. 21ft long handwritten posters made by Chuu for the Write for Right project are seen in the background. Credit - Courtesy of Chuu Wai Nyein

Chuu Wai Nyein felt an overwhelming sense of guilt when she first arrived in Paris from Myanmar at the end of April. I was pushed to leave the country, but it was not how I wanted to leave, says the 28-year old. As an artist working for the last ten years, mostly in the central city of Mandalay, Chuu built up an international reputation for her expressive paintings of women. Now, forced to leave because of intimidation from authorities, she has been trying to start over in France, adapting from the intensity and violence of her home country to the relative peace of her new location. During my first week here, I felt guilty when I walked outside on the street, because Im still alive, she says. I felt like its not fair for the other people I left behind. Even when I smiled or felt happy, I also felt guilty.

Myanmars military overthrew the countrys leader Aung Sang Suu Kyi in a coup on Feb. 1. At first, a surge of creativity in protest art, posters and poems flooded both the countrys streets and social media platforms. But in the five months since, an escalation in violence from the military, and a growing armed resistance movement, has put the country on a dangerous path towards all out civil war.

On June 17, the U.N.s office in Myanmar released a statement saying it was alarmed at recent acts of violence that illustrate a sharp deterioration of the human rights environment across Myanmar. It pointed to the discovery of two mass graves of people who had reportedly been detained by the Karen National Defense Organization, a rebel militia, and to the burning of more than 150 homes, reportedly by government troops, in the central Magway region in June. According to local monitoring group Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, the junta has killed more than 870 people, and more than 5,000 were under detention as of June 20.

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Read more: The World Has Failed Myanmar. So Now Its Youth Are Stepping Up

The heightened danger and violence under the brutal crackdown has forced journalists, artists, filmmakers and writers into hiding, staying one step ahead of the security forces, with an increasing number fleeing to border areas or into neighboring countries, says Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director for Human Rights Watch. Some, like Chuu, have been able to flee even further afield, hoping to do what they can from afar to help those back home.

Chuu had plans to move to Yangon and set up her own studio, and was looking for locations in the city, when the coup happened. She started off feeling helpless, not knowing what to do as Internet and communications blackouts ensued in the immediate aftermath of Feb. 1. I thought, maybe what I can do is paint, and I can collect peoples opinions and feelings in their own handwriting, she says. She collaborated with other local artists and art students to start a demonstration called Write for Right, encouraging demonstrators at the daily street protests to write down what they hoped for and wanted. Many of them wrote democracy during those early days.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CLJw1aejgkM

Chuu continued her work at the protests through February and March, joining with womens rights groups to bring art to their protests, and donating the proceeds of the sale of some of her paintings to the countrys Civil Disobedience Movement. But as the violence escalated, and several other artists were detained in late March, Chuu and her collaborators on the Write for Right project hid their evidence and went underground with their activities. Just a few days after Chuu smuggled several Write for Right posters out of her apartment, trucks of police and soldiers searched her building several times and she was questioned by police. It was that moment, combined with calls from former colleagues encouraging her to leave if she could, that changed her mind. The feelings change when groups of people are standing in front of your door, and suddenly you realize you are fighting something so unfair, and they can do whatever they want: they can break the door, they can touch you, or they can just shoot you right on your doorstep.

Since the coup, Ive dreaded waking up every day, says another artist known by the moniker Bart Was Not Here, who was interviewed by TIME in February using a pseudonym for his safety. Bart too left Yangon for Paris, arriving in early June to take up a six-month-long artist residency with Cite Internationale des Arts Paris. He wanted to leave Myanmar last year to live in the U.S., but the COVID-19 pandemic followed by the coup upended his plans. For Bart, 25, the decision to leave wasnt so much about feeling personally endangered, as it was about the inability, in such a volatile situation, to create the art he wanted to make. I make art, I think so highly of art, and art history is beautiful. All of these things go out the window once people start shooting each other. You cant win a war with art. It breaks me and makes me sad, and I had to accept it.

An artwork titled 'Gods and Prophets on Strike' by Bart Was Not Here, featured in U.K.-based social enterprise Migrate Art's online fundraiser supporting Mutual Aid Myanmar Courtesy of Bart Was Not Here

When a lot of young creatives like me leave the country, its going to be a huge setback for a long time, says Bart, adding that its not only artists affected, but young entrepreneurs and young professionals in other fields, some of whom studied abroad and came back to Myanmar after elections in 2015 to help build their countrys future.

Both Bart and Chuu want to dedicate their time in France to raising funds for those on the ground back home. This month, Barts work has featured in a fundraising project by U.K.-based social enterprise Migrate Art, and the sale of artwork and posters for the project has so far raised 25,500 ($35,547) for Mutual Aid Myanmar. Chuu is also looking to do all she can to help and find connections with galleries in France willing to support her and her work.

Read more: How Myanmars Protests Are Giving a Voice to LGBTQ+ People

The military junta is moving full throttle to try to stamp out freedom of expression, art and film, and the independent media that grew up over the past decade under the previous civilian governments, Robertson of Human Rights Watch tells TIME via email. But this time around, the military severely underestimated the peoples determination to resist, especially among the youth who are not willing to give up their freedoms to express themselves, and are now employing innovative ideas and tactics to continue the protests with various unifying themes.

Robertson points to the June 19 flowers in the hair protests on social media, marking the birthday of ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who is currently on trial for a wide range of criminal charges, as an example of protests rallying solidarity online. These creative people are continuing to spark support and unity among the Burmese people, and will continue the fight even from the shadows where the junta has forced them to hide, he says.

For Bart and Chuu, who have both posted their photographs from their new locations to social media, that fight is continuing far beyond Myanmars borders. Not a lot of people have a chance to leave the country, says Chuu. Ive realized there is a reason for me to help and to work. Even if its small and not efficient, I will keep demonstrating wherever I will be. I will keep going.
SEOUL (Reuters) -North Korea is not considering any contact with the United States that would only waste time, Foreign Minister Ri Son Gwon said on Wednesday.

"We are not considering even the possibility of any contact with the U.S., let alone having it, which would get us nowhere, only taking up precious time," Ri said in a statement carried on state media KCNA.

He made his remarks after the new U.S. envoy for North Korea said in Seoul on Monday that he looked forward to a "positive response soon" on dialogue from Pyongyang.

North Korea's nuclear weapons programme has been an intractable problem for Washington for years and in trying to change that, President Joe Biden's new administration conducted a review of policy and said it would seek "calibrated and practical" ways to persuade Pyongyang to denuclearise.

On Tuesday, the sister of North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un, said in a statement that the United States appeared to be interpreting signals from North Korea in the "wrong way".

Kim Yo Jong, a senior official in North Korea's ruling party, was responding to U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan, who on Sunday said he saw as an "interesting signal" a recent speech by Kim Jong Un on preparing for both confrontation and diplomacy with the United States.

Analysing the responses, 38 North, a Washington-based North Korean monitoring project, said Pyongyang was making clear it had no plans for immediate engagement, "especially not without something more concrete from Washington than repetition of vague policy formulations."

However, it said the statements were carefully composed not to say "no" to the idea of dialogue in general, but rather as a response to the Biden administrations "lukewarm" reaction to Kim Jong Un.

According to 38 North, the foreign minister was rejecting "meaningless" contact, "but by implication, more substantive talks are still possible."

It said it was also possible North Korea was throwing up objections to buy time until it is ready, given that its COVID-19 restrictions were still in place and face-to-face diplomatic contact was not possible.

(Reporting by Heekyong Yang in Seoul; additional, reporting by David Brunnstrom in Washington; Editing by Angus MacSwan and Grant McCool)
Katie Harp / Unsplash

GOBankingRates wants to empower women to take control of their finances. According to the latest stats, women hold $72 billion in private wealth  but fewer women than men consider themselves to be in good or excellent financial shape. Women are less likely to be investing and are more likely to have debt, and women are still being paid less than men overall. Our Financially Savvy Female column will explore the reasons behind these inequities and provide solutions to change them. We believe financial equality begins with financial literacy, so were providing tools and tips for women, by women to take control of their money and help them live a richer life.

In todays column, we chat with Dina Friedman, a managing director and wealth strategist at Merrill Private Wealth Management, about the common mistakes women make when navigating a divorce and how to ensure youre best prepared for the financial transition from ours to yours and mine.

Read: 3 Money Moves Every Woman Must Make, According to Rachel Cruze

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Dont Neglect To Review Planning Documents and Beneficiary Designations

Part of going through the process of divorce is all the financial ramifications of that, Friedman said. People typically focus on the assets and income, but they wont necessarily look at what the implications are of different types of trusts that have been put into place, or assets that have beneficiary designations that have long-term implications.

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Friedman said that trusts, in particular, are often neglected when a couple figures out their divorce agreement.

Frequently, families have quite a lot of assets in these irrevocable trusts. Now what happens when someone gets divorced? Friedman said. If its a trust thats for the benefit of the spouse, that spouse may now be divorced from the person who created that trust, and may or may not still have a continuing interest in that trust depending on what is actually in the language of the trust itself.

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According to Friedman, matrimonial lawyers are very good at assessing assets, but theyre not necessarily as good at reviewing these other types of very complicated legal documents, like trusts.

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But neglecting to review trusts may lead to an inequitable division of assets. Its important to evaluate those [documents] within the holistic context of all of the assets that might be available post-divorce, Friedman said.

In addition to trusts, its important to review beneficiary designations in the context of insurance policies and retirement plans.

Again, those arent necessarily part of what we would call equitable distribution, which is taking all of the assets that the couple has and dividing them in some way, Friedman said. But the beneficiary designations on insurance policies and retirement plans are very important. They have to be evaluated at the time of divorce. [When you] move assets between the couple when theyre getting divorced, you dont have any tax implications to that  you can move those assets without triggering capital gains tax, without triggering the gift tax  but if a couple gets divorced and you find a mistake five years later, its not as easy to do that. Then youve got a bigger problem, because now if you want to rearrange the assets between the two people who are no longer married, youre going to have all these other potential income tax issues.

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Pay Attention To All of the Financial Implications of a Proposed Settlement

Before agreeing to any divorce settlement  even one that seems fair on paper  take into account all of the various nuances that may affect your finances.

Part of what we do is we look at different settlement proposals from the perspective of, if this is what youre paid out, how does that actually translate into income that you could use to support yourself for, and for how long? Friedman notes.

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One of the elements that should be taken into consideration is whether you agree to a lump sum payout or a payout over time.

A lump sum is potentially more valuable than a payout over time, where youre essentially giving your former spouse an interest-free loan, Friedman said. And with a long-term payout, youre also taking on business risk. Maybe what youre getting today is what [your spouses] business is worth, but what if it goes bankrupt?

Women also need to take liquidity into consideration when dividing up assets.

When couples are dividing assets and one says, I would just like the $1 million cash, you take the $1 million vacation home, that looks like theyre splitting things equally  but is that really equal when one has cash in hand that they can spend for any purpose, and the other has a home that may potentially be difficult to sell if they had to have that money for something? Friedman said. They wouldnt be able to access that as easily as the person with the cash.

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In addition, taxation becomes a very important factor, Friedman said. You want to try to minimize any tax disparities between the parties post-divorce with respect to the assets.

Friedman again gives the example of the $1 million house versus $1 million in cash.

If its sold, is going to be [worth] significantly less than the receipt of sale because whoever owns that home is going to have to pay capital gains tax, whereas if you just take a cash settlement with no admittance, you dont have that tax, Friedman said. Those arent really equal, even though they might look equal. Evaluating the embedded taxations and the tax ramifications of different assets is also very important.

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Meet With a Financial Advisor Before Signing on the Dotted Line

Meeting with a financial advisor before you divorce is as important as meeting with a divorce lawyer, Friedman said.

This is vital whether you hold the greater income and assets, or whether your spouse was the primary income earner.

Theres going to have to be some kind of financial planning because youre taking one household and dividing it into two, so youre losing some of that economy of scale that you have in a single household, Friedman said. Meeting with a financial advisor can help you get a handle on, what is a realistic settlement? What is one I can live with? What is the wish list? [An advisor can help you] develop a financial negotiating position in addition to whatever other issues went on in the marriage.

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Last updated: June 23, 2021

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Jun. 22Navy sailor Randall Tilton was sentenced to 210 years in federal prison Tuesday for the sexual abuse of seven infants and toddlers in a case U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Meyer and government prosecutors called the worst of its kind they've ever seen.

Before Meyer sentenced Tilton, parents of several of the victims spoke either by Zoom or in person at the federal courthouse in New Haven, where Tilton sat, dressed in prison garb, wearing a face mask.

One mother described him as "a vile, inhuman creature."

"I don't wish you death, but a long life full of pain," another said.

A father who addressed the court struggled to deliver a profanity-laced condemnation of Tilton.

"I beg of you, your Honor, don't ever let him out," a mother of one of the victims said. "He belongs in the general (prison) population, and I understand what that would mean for him and I don't care."

Tilton delivered a statement in which he apologized to the victims.

"It's not just the production of child pornography, the video, images, for your own satisfaction, which is not even a charge in this case," Meyer told Tilton before pronouncing sentence. "What really sets it apart is the scores and scores of hands-on acts of sexual abuse of seven children  much worse than hands on  that goes on for year after year. ... And for some of these children, it's rape, there's no other word for it  rapes of children who knew you and who you knew could not complain."

In arguing for a 30-year sentence, Moira Buckley, the federal public defender representing Tilton, said, "We're asking for daylight at the end of the sentencing tunnel. ... His life is going to be one long prison term whether he's in prison or out."

Meyer told Tilton he was troubled by his choice of victims  "children under your complete whim and control"  and was not persuaded to be lenient by Tilton's military service or by the fact he has not been convicted of other crimes. The judge said he was not confident that Tilton would be rehabilitated in prison and was concerned that if Tilton were released in his 50s, he could still inflict harm.

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"I also think about the peace of mind of the victims," Meyer said. "I heard them loud and clear."

Meyer adopted prosecutors' recommendation that Tilton serve his sentence at Federal Medical Center, Devens, a federal prison in eastern Massachusetts for male inmates requiring specialized or long-term medical or mental health care.

The sentence includes an order that Tilton pay more than $900,000 in restitution to his victims.

Tilton, a New Hampshire native who was stationed at the Naval Submarine Base in Groton aboard the USS South Dakota as a machinists mate 1st class, waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty in December to child pornography offenses related to his sexual abuse of two infants as young as 4 months old and five toddlers, most of whom were about 3 years old when Tilton's abuse of them began.

The criminal activity spanned three states  California, New Hampshire and Connecticut  over the course of eight years.

Tilton violently raped the two infants and published videos he made of his abuse to the dark web. He took pornographic photos of a Navy comrade's 4-year-old daughter at a BBQ and raped and recorded videos of the 7-year-old daughter of a local woman he met on a dating app.

Tilton told investigators he abused his first infant victim more than 300 times. His rapes became increasingly violent, prosecutors said, and a video of his rape was viewed more than 100,000 times on the dark web. In forums on the dark web, Tilton spoke publicly about how much he enjoyed what he did.

"While it is hard to imagine what would lead a person to sexually abuse any child, it is inconceivable that a person could be so inherently evil as to prey upon infants. Randall Tilton, however, is the personification of that very evil," Assistant U.S. Attorney Nancy V. Gifford wrote in a 25-page sentencing memo filed with the court this month.

"It is difficult to overstate  or even to adequately state  the horrifying nature of Tilton's crimes," Gifford wrote in the memo, which at one point describes Tilton's crimes as "among the most horrific seen in this district."

In imposing the maximum, 210-year penalty  30 years for each of seven counts  Meyer adopted the prosecutors' sentencing recommendation. In seeking a 30-year sentence, Tilton and his attorneys had submitted a letter Tilton wrote to the judge in which Tilton calls his actions "selfish, destructive, unnatural and wrong."

Prosecutors said that in another letter Tilton wrote from prison to someone he considers his grandfather, Tilton described his abuse  and how much he enjoyed it  in great detail.

"Tilton's own words, captured in comments he made in forums on the dark web and chilling letters sent from prison, demonstrate that he reveled in the abuse and brutality he inflicted," Gifford wrote.

Meyer referred to Tilton's letter to the grandfather figure as "that remarkable letter you wrote."

Tilton confessed to Groton Town Police that he had assaulted his first victim when she was 6 months old, and investigators obtained 35 videos and 66 images of that abuse over the course of several years. The abuse only ended when Tilton was arrested, prosecutors said.

Investigators found more than 8,000 videos and photos of infants and toddlers being sexually abused in Tilton's possession.

b.hallenbeck@theday.com

t.hartz@theday.com
SYDNEY (AP)  Wallabies scrumhalf Nic White is set to miss Australias three-test rugby series against France next month after injuring his knee in training.

The 31-year-old White has started in 20 of his 37 test matches since his international debut in 2013, including all six last year.

His absence leaves Queensland Reds scrumhalf Tate McDermott likely to make his starting debut in the first test against France on July 7 in Sydney. The 22-year-old McDermott earned two caps last year as a substitute against New Zealand.

The series against France will be the Wallabies first against European opposition since the 2019 World Cup in Japan. The 2020 international season was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 42-strong French squad arrived in Sydney and will complete a 14-day hotel quarantine ahead of the three tests in 11 days against Australia.

Rugby Australia chief executive Andy Marinos said organizers remained confident of hosting the tests in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane as planned.

Appreciating that we continue to operate in a dynamic environment with COVID-19 impacts, we are moving ahead with our plans to host these matches as planned, Marinos said in a statement. We are now just two weeks away from the start of the series which kicks off with the Wallabies first match at the historic Sydney Cricket Ground in 35 years.

___

More AP sports: https://apnews.com/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
Nikole Hannah-Jones, lead author of the New York Times magazines 1619 Project, is refusing to join the faculty at UNC-Chapel Hill without tenure, a letter from her legal team to the university this week indicated.

Jones was originally scheduled to start her position as Knight Chair in Race and Investigative Journalism on July 1, which she will now no longer take without the prerequisite condition of tenure.

The UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees presented Jones with a five-year fixed-term contract and decided not to proceed with the tenure vote. Some trustees reportedly did not support Jones candidacy given the politically charged nature of her experience, sources on the board told NC Policy Watch. Certain prominent conservatives involved with UNC wanted the board to reject Jones, including major Arkansas donor Walter Hussman, whose $25 million gift to the journalism school led to it being named for him.

The letter said Jones is rescinding her fixed-term contract because of inadequate employment conditions but will not withdraw her application for full professorship with tenure. It also referenced the meddling of the philanthropist in the tenure deliberation process for Joness hire.

Since signing the fixed-term contract, Ms. Hannah-Jones has come to learn that political interference and influence from a powerful donor contributed to the Board of Trustees failure to consider her tenure application, it read.

In light of this information, Ms. Hannah-Jones cannot trust that the University would consider her tenure application in good faith during the period of the fixed-term contract. Such good faith consideration for tenure was understood to be an essential element of the fixed-term contract when Ms. Hannah-Jones agreed to enter into it. In light of the information which has come to her attention since that time, she cannot begin employment with the University without the protection and security of tenure, it added.

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The letter also alleged that denying Jones tenure constitutes discrimination that is grounds for a federal lawsuit, citing a number of potential legal infractions including political influence in violation of North Carolina law.

The inferior terms of employment offered to Ms. Hannah-Jones in the fixed-term contract resulted from viewpoint discrimination in violation of the freedom of speech and expression, secured by the United States and North Carolina Constitution, it said.

The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, a non-profit that defends free speech rights on campus, issued a statement in the wake of UNCs announcement saying that it was investigating whether the decision to revoke the offer of tenure constituted viewpoint discrimination.

If it is accurate that this refusal was the result of viewpoint discrimination against Hannah-Jones, particularly based on political opposition to her appointment, this decision has disturbing implications for academic freedom, which is vital in allowing faculty members to voice divergent views and in avoiding casting what the Supreme Court called a pall of orthodoxy over the classroom, the statement reads. When decisions on academic tenure incorporate a form of political litmus test, this freedom is gravely compromised.

Hannah-Joness work has been deemed politically contentious. Historians have called the 1619 project a very unbalanced, one-sided account and wrong in so many ways. The project teaches that the institution of slavery and racism are intrinsic to America history and national fabric and aims to incorporate that doctrine into school curricula.

Susan King, the dean of the journalism school, has defended Joness candidacy, claiming that Investigative journalists always are involved in controversies. They dig deep, and they raise questions that demand answers. Part of what they do is raise uncomfortable questions for people, institutions and systems.'

King said the universitys provost and chancellor gave the seal of approval to onboard Jones with or without tenure, according to the News & Observer.

They stood by the school to try to find a way to bring her here, King said. She will help our students navigate a changing time in America at a very partisan moment.

More from National Review
Journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones says she will not join the faculty at UNC-Chapel Hill unless she has tenure, NC PolicyWatch reported Tuesday, citing a letter from her legal team sent to the university this week.

She will not start her job as Knight Chair in Race and Investigative Journalism at the Hussman School of Journalism and Media on July 1, according to the letter. Hannah-Jones appears to be rescinding the five-year, fixed-term contract that was offered and pursuing a tenure appointment.

The letter was shared with members of the UNC-CH Board of Trustees, who vote on and approve faculty tenure, on Tuesday afternoon.

The board has not offered Hannah-Jones, a Black woman, tenure for the position, which previous Knight Chairs at UNC-CH have received.

The reputation of UNC in their hands

Dean Susan King of the journalism school told The News & Observer on Tuesday evening that she has not heard from the administration about this development but, if true, UNC needs the boards leadership now more than ever.

They have the reputation of UNC in their hands, and I do believe they are honorable people, King said. I look forward to their vote.

For weeks, professional journalists, scholars and UNC-CH faculty, alumni and students have defended Hannah-Jones and demanded that the board grant her tenure immediately. The national controversy stems from criticism that race, politics and Hannah-Joness work on The 1619 Project are behind the boards decisions. The project, which was published in The New York Times, explores the legacy and history of Black Americans and slavery.

A number of Black faculty and staff have said they are considering leaving the university because they feel undervalued on campus, particularly after this case.

Hannah-Joness attorneys threatened a federal lawsuit in late May, saying UNC-CH unlawfully discriminated against Hannah-Jones based on the content of her journalism and scholarship and because of her race.

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While no lawsuit has been filed, UNC-Chapel Hill officials and Hannah-Joness legal team have been directly discussing her employment at the university.

The UNC-CH board can meet at any time to officially discuss and vote on Hannah-Joness tenure appointment. Despite public pressure and a legal threat, the board has not called a special meeting. Its next meeting is scheduled for July 14 and 15 in Chapel Hill, after Hannah-Jones is set to start her job.

Hannah-Joness hiring process at UNC

Hannah-Jones was hired this spring as the Knight Chair, a position that is designed to bring successful industry professionals into academia and has historically come with tenure at Carolina.

Hannah-Jones is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist for The New York Times who has spent nearly two decades in the journalism industry, including at The News & Observer. Shes won a MacArthur Genius Grant, a Peabody Award and a George Polk Award. She earned her masters degree from UNC-CH in 2003.

Her best-known work, The 1619 Project, has faced criticism from some historians and conservative politicians. The Times published a clarification to Hannah-Joness piece. The Times and more than 150 scholars, historians and UNC-CH faculty have defended Hannah-Jones and her work.

The project is also a source of debate in Congress and state legislatures as lawmakers discuss Critical Race Theory and school curriculum that teaches about systemic racism and slavery.

University leaders have argued that the board never denied Hannah-Jones tenure because trustees never voted on the matter. Her tenure was supposed to be discussed at the January 2021 trustees meeting, but it was stalled because trustee Chuck Duckett had questions about her candidacy, according to the university.

In March, UNC-CH offered Hannah-Jones a fixed-term contract, with the option of being reviewed for tenure within five years. Her hiring was announced in April and she was set to begin on July 1, making a $180,000 annual salary at UNC-CH, while keeping her job at the New York Times.
Nine Catalan separatists who were serving long prison sentences for their role in a failed 2017 independence bid were released from jail on Wednesday, a day after being pardoned by Spain.

The seven men left the Lledoners jail, some 70 kilometres (45 miles) northwest of Barcelona, where they were met in the rain by umbrella-carrying supporters shouting "Independence, independence!"

As they walked through the gates, they were embraced by newly-appointed Catalan leader Pere Aragones and posed for a photograph alongside a Catalan independence flag and a banner reading "Freedom for Catalonia", an AFP correspondent said.

"Long live a free Catalonia!" said Oriol Junqueras, who was deputy head of the Catalan government at the time of the crisis and the prisoner serving the longest sentence of 13 years.

"Until the day of victory, we will continue to work with everyone to make this dream of a Catalan republic a reality."

Two women were also freed from separate prisons, just hours after the pardons for all nine separatists were published in the government's official gazette.

The clemency decision was approved by the Spanish government on Tuesday in the hope it can draw a line under past confrontations with Catalonia's separatist-led regional leaders and open the way for talks.

The prisoners were serving between nine and 13 years each for their role in a banned referendum that was marred by police violence and followed by a short-lived declaration of independence in the wealthy northern region, sparking Spain's worst political crisis in decades.

Some of those involved fled abroad, while 12 were tried and convicted with three-quarters of them handed years of jail time.

Although the prison terms have been dropped, all nine are banned from holding public office and the pardons are conditional on them not committing "a serious crime" over the next three to six years.

They have all served more than three years behind bars.

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"I am here because the sacrifice they have made for Catalonia and for all of us has been huge," said Ignasi Sole, a 65-year-old retired mechanic who was waiting outside Lledoners prison for their release.

"It's a way of thanking them."

- 'Independence through dialogue' -

As they walked out, several of the prisoners pledged to continue the struggle.

"We will keep fighting," said Jordi Cuixart, head of Omnium, one of the region's biggest grassroots pro-independence groups, who was serving a nine-year sentence.

"Today is not a day of surrender, it's a day in which all of us Catalans say we will continue to fight."

Leaving Was-Rad women's prison in Barcelona, former parliamentary speaker Carme Forcadell said they would work to secure a full amnesty that would allow those who fled abroad to return home.

"Let's make this small victory work towards our greater victory: achieving an amnesty, self-determination and a Catalan republic," she said.

The pardons have been condemned by Spain's right-wing opposition as well as by the Supreme Court, but Madrid hopes they will give impetus to the upcoming talks with Aragones who is more open to dialogue than his hardline predecessor.

Aragones and Junqueras, who heads the moderate ERC party, have recently taken steps towards Sanchez by distancing themselves from the path of unilateralism.

"The best way to achieve (independence) is through dialogue, negotiation and agreement," said Aragones, who will meet with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez for the first time on June 29.

Aragones has pledged to push for an amnesty and a new referendum on self-determination -- this time with Madrid's approval.

Spain has rejected both out of hand.

When the separatists were sentenced in October 2019 by Spain's Supreme Court, the ruling triggered an outcry across Catalonia, with thousands hitting the streets in protests that sometimes turned violent.

Although granting clemency may help calm tensions in Catalonia, analysts warned it would not solve the years-long turmoil over the separatist crisis, which has left the region sharply divided.

The move was approved by more than two-thirds of Catalans but opposed by 53 percent of Spaniards, an Ipsos poll found.

bur-hmw/kjl
The first trial under Hong Kong's new national security law began on Wednesday without a jury, a watershed moment for the financial hub's fast-changing legal landscape.

The opening of the closely-watched court case came as police also arrested a senior columnist from the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily under the same law.

China's authoritarian leaders have used the law to stamp out dissent in Hong Kong after the city was convulsed by huge and often violent democracy protests in 2019.

Prosecutors started presenting their case against Tong Ying-kit, 24, who was arrested the day after the security law came into effect.

He allegedly drove his motorcycle into a group of police officers during protests on July 1 last year.

Footage showed his motorcycle was flying a flag that read "Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times", a popular pro-democracy protest slogan that is now deemed illegal under the security law.

Tong faces charges of inciting secession and terrorism, as well as a charge of dangerous driving and has pleaded not guilty.

"Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times" was little used until huge and often violent democracy protests convulsed Hong Kong for months in 2019 where it became the dominant rallying cry.

For some, it meant advocating for full independence. But for many others, it was a broader call for democracy or greater autonomy as well as a cry of frustration at Beijing's rule.

- Trial by judges -

Tong's trial, which western diplomats are attending, is a key legal test for whether the slogan is now illegal.

As they opened their case, prosecutor Anthony Chau said his team would show the phrase meant separating Hong Kong from China, or seeking "regime change".

Chau added that the terrorism charge was justified because Tong was trying to coerce the government "to pursue a political agenda".

Two courts rejected Tong's plea to have his case heard by a jury, which his legal team had argued was a constitutional right given that he faces a life sentence if convicted.

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Trial by jury has been a cornerstone of Hong Kong's 176-year-old common law system and is described by the city's judiciary on its website as one of the legal system's "most important features".

But the national security law allows for cases to be tried by three specially selected judges.

The city's justice secretary invoked the no-jury clause for Tong's trial arguing that juror safety could be compromised in Hong Kong's febrile political landscape.

The wording of Beijing's security law makes clear that it trumps any local regulations in the event of a dispute, something successive court rulings have already upheld.

Tong's case is unusual because he is the only Hong Konger so far charged under the security law with an explicitly violent act.

More than 60 people have now been charged under the law, including some of the city's best-known democracy activists, but their offences are related to political views or speech that authorities have declared illegal.

- Columnist arrested -

The most recent arrest on Wednesday was the lead editorial writer for Apple Daily.

The outspoken tabloid has long been a thorn in Beijing's side, with unapologetic support for the city's pro-democracy movement and caustic criticism of China's authoritarian leaders.

Yeung Ching-kee -- who writes under the pen name Li Ping -- was detained on suspicion of colluding with foreign forces to endanger national security.

Two of the paper's executives were charged last weekend with the same crime in an operation police said was sparked by articles that allegedly supported international sanctions against China.

Authorities also used the security law to freeze Apple Daily's assets. The paper has warned it will go out of business in a matter of days if it cannot get those funds unfrozen.

Hong Kong and Chinese authorities have hailed the security law for successfully restoring stability after the 2019 demonstrations.

But it has radically transformed the political and legal landscape of a city authoritarian China promised would be able to keep key liberties and autonomy after its 1997 return.

A host of political views have been criminalised by the law.

China has jurisdiction over some cases and allowed its mainland security agents to operate openly in Hong Kong for the first time.

As well as the no-jury provision, the law has removed the presumption of bail for non-violent crimes.

Those charged have to instead prove to judges they will no longer pose any sort of national security threat. The vast majority of those charged are held in custody until trial.

su-jta/qan
Jun. 23The North Dakota Farmers Union submitted comments this week to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Marketing Service calling for greater efforts in antitrust enforcement.

"Without competition in the marketplace, farmers and ranchers make less money, and consumers pay more for food," said Mark Watne, president of North Dakota Farmers Union. "Market concentration is weakening our food supply chain and the ability of everyone to put food on the table."

Watne said the worst example occurred last year in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, causing meatpacking plant closures that resulted in major financial losses to ranchers when the spread between fed cattle and boxed beef prices soared by more than 300%.

Additionally, Farmers Union is calling on USDA to immediately leverage existing rural development programs for investment in local and regional processing projects and greater support for farmer-owned cooperatives.
A 37-year-old nurse is accused of using the U.S. Postal Service to send poop and a bloody sanitary napkin to her husbands ex-wife in Tennessee, according to federal court documents and media reports.

Della Marie Gibson Lathum was charged with two counts of sending biohazardous materials through the mail in a criminal complaint filed June 9. Lathum is from Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and worked as a nurse at Parkwest Medical Center in Knoxville, a postal inspector with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service said in the complaint.

A spokesperson for the hospital told media outlets Lathum no longer works there. The public defender appointed to represent Lathum declined to comment on her behalf Wednesday.

According to the complaint, Lathum sent a soft package on April 5 with feces inside. Four days later on April 9, the postal inspector said she mailed an envelope with a human blood-stained feminine napkin.

The feces belonged to a dog and the blood had been drawn from a patient at the hospital, WBIR reported.

Investigators interviewed Lathum at her workplace on April 19, where she first denied the allegations. The postal inspector said she later admitted to sending both of the packages.

Lathum reportedly told investigators she did it to show the kids the truth about her husbands ex-wife.

(Lathum) claimed her reason was (the ex-wife) was lazy, didnt work and lived off the system, the postal inspector said. However, (Lathum) worked hard for everything she had.

Court filings show Lathum was arrested June 11. In releasing her, the judge ordered Lathum to stay away from her husbands ex-wife and her children and not to look for another job in the medical field.

The federal complaint follows several state charges of harassment, stalking and vandalism in Loudon County  where the ex-wife lives, WBIR reported.

Lathum was also accused of mailing harassing letters in April  including one using hospital property with the words New Patient stamped on the front, WATE reported, citing arrest warrants. Another letter mailed to the ex-wifes minor daughter was reportedly disguised as a party invitation.

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According to the TV station, the letter said you are poor white trash faking a fancy life and your mom is broke and lazy and wont pay her bills.

Lathum was also accused of vandalizing the ex-wifes car in a high school parking lot during a student banquet in March, causing more than $1,000 in damages, WATE reported.

Shes scheduled to appear in Loudon County court on July 28.

Man warned Biden would get his head blown off unless Congress paid him, feds say

Road rage driver douses child, others with bear spray in car, California police say

North Carolina man found driving with girlfriends body in car, Tennessee cops say

Man threatens to shoot up Myrtle Beach hotel after woman rejects him, SC cops say
A Florida man admitted Wednesday that he joined with other members of the far-right Oath Keepers in storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, the second follower of the group to plead guilty to charges stemming from the riot.

Graydon Young, 54, pleaded guilty to conspiring with roughly a dozen other Oath Keepers who came to Washington to protest the results of the presidential election. Prosecutors said he and other members of the group discussed the need to maintain operational security and used encrypted messaging applications.

It was the first guilty plea in one of the government's conspiracy cases connected to the riot.

Young also entered a guilty plea to a charge of obstructing the congressional proceeding. Prosecutors agreed to drop four other charges connected to the riot.

He faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, but the punishment will likely be far less when he is sentenced later this year.

Prosecutors said Young joined with other Oath Keepers by lining up in a military-style stack formation, barging past the police perimeter, and entering the Capitol building. He was not accused of engaging in any violent behavior in the building or damaging any property.

In April, Oath Keeper member Jon Schaffer of Indiana admitted that he entered the Capitol while wearing a tactical vest and armed with bear spray. He agreed to cooperate with investigators.

Young is also cooperating, prosecutors said, agreeing to testify before a grand jury investigating the riot. His agreement to help in one of the few conspiracy cases connected to the riot is a boost for the government.
People hold posters picturing Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi and lightened candles during a gathering outside the Saudi Arabia consulate in Istanbul, on October 25, 2018. Yasin Akgul/Getty Images

Four Saudis involved in the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi received training in the US prior to his killing, NYT reported.

The contract for the paramilitary training was approved by the State Department, according to the NYT.

The training initially began in 2014 and continued during at least the first year of Trump's presidency, according to The Times.

See more stories on Insider's business page.

Four Saudis who were involved in the death of the Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018 received paramilitary training in the US the year prior, The New York Times reported Tuesday.

The contract for the paramilitary training was approved by the State Department and carried out by a contracted group called Tier 1, according to documents and sources familiar with the matter, The Times reported.

"The State Department initially granted a license for the paramilitary training of the Saudi Royal Guard to Tier 1 Group starting in 2014, during the Obama administration," according to The Times. "The training continued during at least the first year of former President Donald J. Trump's term."

Arkansas-based security company Tier 1 Group provided the paramilitary training. The company said the training was defensive in nature and intended to teach how to better protect Saudi leaders, including "safe marksmanship" and "countering an attack," The Times reported.

Louis Bremer, a senior executive of Cerberus, the parent company of Tier 1 Group, confirmed the company's role in the paramilitary training in response to questions from lawmakers as part of his nomination for a high-ranking position at the Pentagon during the Trump administration.

The document containing Bremer's answers, which he provided to The Times, confirmed that four members of the team behind Khashoggi's death received training in 2017 from Tier 1 Group, and two members previously participated in another iteration of the training between October 2014 and January 2015.

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In his responses, Bremer said that a review of the Tier 1 Group training in March 2019 "uncovered no wrongdoing by the company and confirmed that the established curriculum training was unrelated to the murder of Jamal Khashoggi."

"The training provided was unrelated to their subsequent heinous acts," Bremer said in his responses, citing The Times report.

The Trump administration ended up withdrawing Bremer's nomination for the top Pentagon position and did not send the document to Congress, so lawmakers never received responses to their questions, according to The Times.

Insider reached out to the State Department for comment.

Khashoggi, a prominent commentator and columnist for The Post, was once within the Royal family's circle, but their opinion of him soured once his work became more critical of the Saudi royal family's dealings.

Khashoggi was killed in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul in October 2018; he was dismembered by Saudi agents. Khashoggi went to the consulate to pick up marital documents needed to marry his Turkish fiancee, Hatice Cengiz.

His remains have yet to be found.

In February, the Biden administration declassified a CIA intelligence report, which directly implicated the Saudi Crown Prince in Khashoggi's murder.

"We assess that Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman approved an operation in Istanbul, Turkey, to capture or kill Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi," said the report, provided by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

A UN report issued after Khashoggi's killing seconded the claim, saying that, "Assessments of the recordings by intelligence officers in Turkey and other countries suggest that Mr. Khashoggi could have been injected with a sedative and then suffocated using a plastic bag."

Turkish officials, along with UN and US officials, corroborated that Khashoggi's body was dismembered with a bone saw.

A Turkish court is currently trying 26 Saudi nationals connected to the murder, in absentia, with the next trial date set for July 8. The Saudi government, after a series of excuses, admitted that Khashoggi was killed in a "rogue operation," and placed 11 individuals on trial.

Five people were sentenced to death in December 2019 by the Riyadh Criminal Court for "committing and directly participating in the murder of the victim," and three others were handed prison sentences. Three others were found to be innocent in a trial the UN heavily criticized, and Ahmad Asiri and Saud al-Qahtani, two high ranking officials close to MBS scraped by with no charges.

After the ruling, Cengiz said, "The ruling handed down today in Saudi Arabia again makes a complete mockery of justice."

Khashoggi's murder ignited a global pressure campaign against the Saudi regime, prompting officials in the US and abroad to briefly question their diplomatic relationships with Saudi Arabia.

After President Biden's first meeting with MBS in early March, he reportedly refused to sanction the Saudi regime over Khashoggi's killing.

This story is breaking. Check back for more details.

Read the original article on Business Insider
A sheriff's deputy shot and killed a pet chimpanzee at the owner's request after the animal had bitten the keeper's adult daughter in northeast Oregon, authorities said Wednesday.

The male adult chimp had lived with the family for about 17 years in Pendleton, about 200 miles east of Portland, when it got out of its outdoor cage and attacked the owner's 50-year-old daughter on Sunday morning, officials said.

Tamara Brogoitti, 68, and her injured daughter had taken cover in the basement while their pet chimpanzee named Buck, who weighed between 200 and 250 pounds, roamed grounds outside before it was fatally shot, Umatilla County Sheriffs Lt. Sterrin Ward told NBC News.

"It's extremely sad," Ward said, "and tragic is the best word I could come up with."

Brogoitti told a 911 dispatcher she would have shot the animal herself, if she had been able to reach her own firearms.

"I've locked myself in the basement with her," Brogoitti told a 911 dispatcher. "I can't get out to get my own gun. You're going to have to do a head shot."

When the dispatcher said help was on the way, the caller said multiple deputies would be needed to kill the animal.

"Send more than one because ... if the ape gets the drop on him, he's gone, too," she said. "I've never seen anything like this. He's got to be put down. We're both locked in the basement and they have to do a head shot on the ape."

The deputies followed through with instructions to gun down the animal and Buck was fatally shot with one round to the head.

The adult daughter was taken to St. Anthony's Hospital in Pendleton and treated for several bites to her torso, arms, and legs, officials said.

An attorney for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals said Brogoitti had "long deprived the highly social animal of the companionship of other chimpanzees."

"PETA warned state authorities that Tamara Brogoitti had created a ticking time bomb by engaging in direct contact with a dangerous ape, and now, he is dead and a woman has been mauled because of Brogoittis refusal to follow experts advice and transfer Buck to an accredited sanctuary," Brittany Peet said in a statement.

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Brogoitti told NBC News on Wednesday that she didn't want to discuss the tragedy.

"Can you understand that this is a very painful time and we need to be left alone?" she asked before hanging up.

Buck was well known in the community and would accompany Brogoitti on errands around town when he was younger and much smaller, according to Ward.

"I had local reporter that called me and he says, 'Is it true that Buck got shot?' You knew him by name," Ward said.

Chimpanzees and other exotic animals were made illegal as pets in Oregon in 2010, but many such creatures were grandfathered in and allowed to stay with their humans.

Brogoitti had a pre-2010 permit for Buck, so the primate was legally residing at that home, a state agriculture spokeswoman said Wednesday.

Legal or not, Peet cited the disturbing 2009 chimpanzee attack in Connecticut as a clear warning sign that these primates cannot be kept as ordinary household pets.

"Since long before the chimpanzee Travis ripped a womans face off in 2009, it has been clear that attacks are inevitable so long as people continue to treat chimpanzees like Chihuahuas," Peet added.
A deputy in Pendleton, Oregon, shot and killed a pet chimpanzee named Buck on Sunday morning after it attacked and severely injured a woman.

Authorities were called to a home at around 8 a.m. local time on June 20 after the owner of the chimpanzee, 68-year-old Tamara Brogoitti, called 911 and reported it escaped from its cage and bit her daughter, according to KAPP-KVEW.

The chimpanzee owner requested Ward to shoot and kill it, according to Lt. Sterrin Ward with the Umatilla County Sheriffs Office, who said the 50-year-old daughter sustained several bites to her torso, arms, and legs.

In audio from the 911 call, a dispatcher is heard asking a woman if she is applying pressure to the wound.

"I'm trying to guard her from a 200-pound ape, so I can't really put pressure on it, ma'am," the caller said.

Ward said when deputies arrived, the victim was trapped under a fenced-off area resembling a cage underneath the home and needed immediate medical support. Body camera footage, released by the sheriff's office, shows an officer taking aim with his gun and firing a single bullet at the ape and saying, "He's down."

ABBOTT VETOES ANIMAL CRUELTY BILL, SAYS IT WOULD CREATE 'OVER-CRIMINALIZATION'

Ward confirmed the chimpanzee was shot in the head and died. Both Brogoitti and her daughter were taken to a local hospital for medical treatment.

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PETA released a statement on June 21 saying the group warned state authorities Brogoitti created a "ticking time bomb" by engaging in direct contact with a "dangerous ape."

The animal rights group claimed Brogoitti "had long deprived the highly social animal of the companionship of other chimpanzees and kept him as a 'pet.'"

Brogoitti had the animal in her possession for around 17 years, according to a local CBS affiliate.

Ownership of exotic animals in Oregon is illegal unless the owner is licensed through the U.S. Agriculture Department or the owner has a valid Oregon exotic animal permit obtained before 2010, according to a state government webpage.

Story continues

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The Washington Examiner contacted Buck Brogoitti Animal Rescue INC, but a woman on the phone declined to comment. A representative from the sheriff's department did not immediately return a response.

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Original Location: Oregon deputy fatally shoots chimpanzee that attacked woman
The pandemic has helped rebuild a little of the confidence lost in the media, and pushed news companies even more towards digital, according to the annual Reuters Institute report published Wednesday.

The 10th edition of the report on digital news found that confidence in news reporting had risen six points to 44 percent since the start of the crisis.

The figures were based on a series of opinion polls conducted by YouGov in 46 countries, with more than 92,000 participants in total.

The highest rates of trust remained in Finland (65 percent) while the United States fell to the lowest among the countries covered, at just 29 percent.

France was little better at 30 percent despite an increase of seven points.

"The focus on factual reporting during the Covid-19 crisis may have made the news seem more straightforward, while the story has also had the effect of squeezing out more partisan political news," said lead author Nic Newman.

"This may be a temporary effect, but in almost all countries we see audiences placing a greater premium on accurate and reliable news sources."

- Shift to digital -

The Reuters Institute, based at Britain's University of Oxford, found increased consumption of mainstream news particularly in countries with "strong and independent public service media".

But it also said printed media remained in steep decline, worsened by the impact on sales and advertising revenue of the pandemic.

This has accelerated the shift towards digital subscriptions, especially in countries where physical sales had stayed relatively high like Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

However, in the roughly 20 countries where newspapers were actively developing their digital sales, only 17 percent of respondents said they paid for news online, up two points on last year's report and five compared to 2016.

The number of people paying for news was highest in wealthier countries with traditions of subscribing to physical newspapers, such as Norway (45 percent) and Sweden (30).

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The numbers were lower for the US (21 percent), France (11), Germany (9) and Britain (8).

"Subscriptions are beginning to work for some publishers but it won't work for all publishers and most importantly, it won't work for all consumers," said co-author Rasmus Kleis Nielsen.

"Given abundant access to free news, publishers will need to develop compelling options to bundle publications or more ways of paying a smaller amount for limited access."

- Misinformation -

Meanwhile, trust in news shared on social media remained very low at 24 percent.

There has been a gradual increase in concern over misinformation, though it varies greatly between countries, from 82 percent in Brazil to 37 percent in Germany.

A large majority still want media to be impartial (74 percent) and believe opposing views should be given a balanced hearing (72 percent).

The report also found younger generations had weak links to traditional media, and were more likely to get their news from social media, aggregators and notifications.

Facebook has lost ground to its subsidiaries WhatsApp and Instagram as a source of news.

It said TikTok has become an increasingly popular sources of news, particularly among younger audiences, in the wake of the pandemic and race protests of 2020, as well as becoming a key way to mobilise political protests in places like Peru, Indonesia and Thailand.

fpo/er/yad
US Supreme Court (EPA)

Police could be barred from following suspects into their homes unless there is an emergency, a Supreme Court ruling has suggested.

In a verdict on Wednesday, the court ruled that officers were required to seek a warrant to follow an individual into their home, and must do so on a case-by-case basis for minor offences, with few exceptions.

A lower court in California had previously ruled that no warrant was required in incidents involving harm, violence or the suspect fleeing from the scene of a crime, even after a minor offence was committed, CNN reported.

The case in court on Wednesday looked at whether officers were exempt from seeking a warrant even if they believed the individual had carried out only a minor offence.

Justice Elena Kagan said in the ruling: The flight of a suspected misdemeanant does not always justify a warrantless entry into a home.

An officer must consider all the circumstances in a pursuit case to determine whether there is a law enforcement emergency, the justice added.

Citing evidence of violence, destruction or escape as a good reason to enter, the justice continued by saying that when the officer has time to get a warrant, he must do so  even though the misdemeanant fled."

The ruling followed a case in California in which an officer pursued a driver to his front door for sounding his horn for no reason.

He was afterwards found to be intoxicated and faced charges, which his lawyer argued was wrong because there was not societal interest in following the driver to his home.
I think whats important here is that were willing to try this, Police Chief Chuck Lovell said

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler has announced that police will no longer prioritize low-level traffic infractions.

The move is part of new policy changes that aim to address racial disparities in traffic stops. Police Chief Chuck Lovell has directed officers to no longer stop motorists for minor offenses, including expired tags, broken headlights, and other harmless equipment issues.

Officers are also required to inform drivers that they can decline searches and any consent for searches must be audio recorded, as reported by KATU.

Mayor Wheeler, who serves as the citys police commissioner, said the new directive is in response to the number of Black drivers who are disproportionately impacted by consent searches and traffic stops. Black people make up 6 percent of Portlands population, but reportedly account for 23 percent of stops for non-moving violations.

Portland police respond to a counter protest during an alt-right rally on August 17, 2019 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Stephanie Keith/Getty Images)

This is a time where officers are, I think most of them know, were in a time of change. Reform is upon us, and were really looking at ways that we can meld what the community is asking for with public safety at the same time, said Chief Lovell.

I dont want to over promise the results on the disparities because Im not sure what those will be, Lovell added. What I think whats important here is that were willing to try this. Were willing to ask officers to do it and look at the data and see if its having an impact on safety, if its having an impact on disparities and then making appropriate judgments from there.

Chief Lovell said the impact of the traffic stop changes will be tracked and the data shared in the future.

We need to acknowledge that the reality that we have a scaled-down bureau, and therefore we need to focus on our top public safety priorities, said Wheeler. We dont have the resources at this point to squander on anything other than the important mission of protecting the publics safety.

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Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty, who has been a vocal critic of the police, said she supported the changes.

Even less violent encounters have contributed to a feeling of being profiled and thus losing trust in law enforcement, said Hardesty. This allows the police to focus on traffic violations that pose an immediate safety threat and other higher priority crime mitigation efforts, such as solving crimes related to the increase in gun violence.

As previously reported by theGrio, following the Derek Chauvin guilty verdict, the Biden-Harris administration has its eyes set on police reform that would establish new federal standards with stiff penalties for officers who show disregard for human life.

Part of the plan would end qualified immunity, allowing officers to be criminally liable for deadly and unauthorized force.

U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the COVID-19 response and vaccination program as Vice President Kamala Harris listens in the Rose Garden of the White House on May 13, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Vice President Kamala Harris, in her address to the nation, discussed her efforts as a former U.S. senator when she introduced the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.

This bill is part of George Floyds legacy. The president and I will continue to urge the Senate to pass this legislation, not as a panacea for every problem but as a start, said Harris.

The legislation would give the U.S. attorney general authority to develop and recommend a set of uniform standards for all state and local departments, as well as review departments accreditation standards. It also calls for mandatory use of body cameras by police.

This work is long overdue, Vice President Harris added. Black Americans, she said, have been historically treated less than human.

The story contains additional reporting from White Hosue Correspondent April Ryan.

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The post Portland mayor announces changes to policing due to racial disparities appeared first on TheGrio.
Russia on Wednesday said it fired warning shots at a British navy destroyer in the Black Sea after it violated the country's territorial waters, but the UK denied the incident had occurred.

Incidents involving Western aircraft and ships are not uncommon at Russia's borders, especially during heightened tensions with Washington, Brussels and London, but rarely result in open fire.

The HMS Defender "was given a preliminary warning that weapons would be used if the state borders of the Russian Federation were violated. It did not react to the warning," the Russian defence ministry said, according to Interfax news agency.

The ministry added that "a border patrol ship fired warning shots" and a Su-24 aircraft dropped four bombs along the destroyer's path. It said that the ship then left Russian waters.

But the UK's defence ministry swiftly denied that the incident had happened.

"No warning shots have been fired at HMS Defender. The Royal Navy ship is conducting innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law," the ministry said.

London said it believed Russia was "undertaking a gunnery exercise" and had provided prior warning of its activity.

After announcing that it had fired warning shots at HMS Defender -- a T45 destroyer -- Russia's defence ministry summoned Britain's military attache, Interfax reported.

The defence ministry then released a statement denouncing the "dangerous actions" of HMS Defender, describing the incident as a "gross violation of the UN convention" and calling on London to conduct an investigation.

Meanwhile, foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that Britain's ambassador to Russia would be summoned over the incident.

"We qualify this as a gross British provocation that runs counter to international law and Russian law," she said.

- 'Constant threat' -

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According to Moscow, the incident took place off the coast of Cape Fiolent on Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014, also claiming the peninsula's coastal waters.

The Royal Navy said earlier this month that HMS Defender had "peeled away" from its strike group conducting NATO operations in the Mediterranean to carry out "her own set of missions" in the Black Sea.

On Wednesday, UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said in a statement that HMS Defender had been carrying out a "routine transit from Odessa towards Georgia across the Black Sea".

Earlier on Wednesday, President Vladimir Putin said Russia was "concerned" about the NATO build-up near Russian borders.

Addressing an international security conference in Moscow, Putin said the alliance "refuses to constructively consider our proposals to de-escalate tensions and reduce the risk of unpredictable incidents".

The US periodically sends warships to the region in a show of support for Ukraine, often drawing protests from Russia.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on Wednesday slammed Russia's "aggressive and provocative policy" in the Black Sea region, describing it on Twitter as a "constant threat" to Kiev and its allies.

At the height of tensions over Ukraine this spring after Russia built up troops on its border and in Crimea, Moscow stepped up military exercises in the Black Sea and Washington warned it would send two warships.

Those ships were never dispatched, as Russia pulled back its forces and the tensions eased.

- 'Reaffirming law' -

At the time, Russia also threatened to close parts of the Black Sea, which would have affected access to Ukrainian ports in the Sea of Azov, which is connected to the Black Sea through the Kerch Strait on the eastern tip of Crimea.

Ukraine had been free to navigate the Kerch Strait -- of crucial importance to Kiev for exporting grain and steel -- along with Russia until 2014, when Moscow claimed full control of the waterway after annexing Crimea.

"By international law, of course, the waters off Crimea are not Russian, as the annexation is not recognised," Mark Galeotti, a professor of Russian studies at University College London, tweeted on Wednesday.

"Continuing to pass those waters -- without being too provocative -- is a crucial way of reaffirming law over land and sea grab."

The most serious recent tensions over the waters were in November 2018, when Russian forces boarded and took control of three ships as they headed through the Kerch Strait.

Russia captured 24 Ukrainian sailors in the seizure, returning them to Ukraine as part of a prisoner swap in September 2019.

bur-emg/pbr
By Maria Kiselyova and Andrew MacAskill

MOSCOW/LONDON (Reuters) -Russia said on Wednesday it had fired warning shots and dropped bombs in the path of a British warship to chase it out of waters Moscow claims in the Black Sea off the coast of the Crimea peninsula.

Britain rejected Russia's account of the incident, saying it believed any shots fired were a pre-announced Russian "gunnery exercise", and that no bombs had been dropped. But it confirmed that its destroyer, HMS Defender, had sailed through what it described as waters belonging to Ukraine.

The ship was "conducting an innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law", Britain's Ministry of Defence said in a statement.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson's spokesman said: "It's incorrect to say either that it was fired upon or that the ship was in Russian waters."

Military experts said that whether or not the details of the Russian or British accounts were accurate, the incident appeared to represent an escalation in confrontation between the West and Russia over disputed sea lanes.

Russia's foreign ministry called the passage of the British warship through the area an act of "blatant provocation" and said it would summon the British ambassador over the incident.

Russia seized and annexed the Crimea peninsula from Ukraine in 2014 and considers areas around the peninsula's coast to be Russian waters. Western countries deem the Crimea part of Ukraine and reject Russia's claim to the seas around it.

"Innocent passage" is an internationally recognised right for ships to sail through territorial waters of a country provided they mean no harm.

"This was done to test Russian resolve over Crimea," Mark Gray, a maritime security specialist and a retired colonel with Britains Royal Marines, told Reuters.

"Russia is trying to create facts on the ground and get them respected internationally, so that their annexation is in effect rubber-stamped by the world," he said, comparing Moscow's Black Sea claims to those of Beijing in the South China Sea, also rejected by the West.

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"Nonetheless, the Russian response is extraordinarily robust, a tad undiplomatic and way over the top."

SEA BREEZE

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said the incident showed that Russia's "aggressive and provocative policies" in the Black Sea and nearby Azov Sea constituted a "continuous threat to Ukraine and its allies". In a tweet, Kuleba called for more cooperation between NATO and Ukraine in the Black Sea.

Western countries are conducting naval exercises this week in the Black Sea known as Sea Breeze. Hours before the incident, Russia's embassy in Washington had called on the United States and allies to cancel them.

The British destroyer visited the Ukrainian port of Odessa this week, where an agreement was signed for Britain to help upgrade Ukraine's navy.

Russia's defence ministry, quoted by Interfax news agency, said the British destroyer had left Russian waters soon after Russia fired the warning shots. A Russian bomber dropped four high explosive fragmentation bombs in its path, it said.

The Russian ministry said the British ship had ventured as far as 3 kilometers (2 miles) into Russian waters near Cape Fiolent, a landmark on Crimea's southern coast near the port of Sevastopol, headquarters of the Russian Navy's Black Sea fleet.

"The destroyer had been warned that weapons would be used if it trespasses the border of the Russian Federation. It did not react to the warning," the ministry said.

(Reporting by Olzhas Auyezov, Pavel Polityuk, Andrew MacAskill, William James and Jonathan SaulWriting by Olzhas Auyezov and Peter GraffEditing by Mark Heinrich and Gareth Jones)
MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia will work with the United States to track down cyber criminals, the head of the FSB security service said on Wednesday, a week after U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to increase cooperation in certain areas.

"We will work together (on locating hackers) and hope for reciprocity," the RIA news agency quoted FSB chief Alexander Bortnikov as saying at a security conference in Moscow.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told an investor conference that Russia had been "able to establish a very thorough and down-to-earth exchange with the U.S. side" on cyber security.

Another senior ministry official said Moscow was awaiting an answer from Washington on starting consultations, TASS news agency reported.

Biden told Putin at the summit that certain critical infrastructure should be "off-limits" to cyber-attacks after hackers seeking ransom money triggered the brief closure of a major U.S. oil pipeline network.

Washington has said those responsible for some cyber-attacks in the United States have been working either directly for the Russian government or from Russian territory. The Kremlin has denied any state involvement.

Putin and Biden also agreed to embark on negotiations to lay the groundwork for arms control agreements and risk-reduction measures.

Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said on Wednesday that Moscow had requested greater transparency about the deployment of missiles in Europe.

He said Putin had proposed measures such as a moratorium on the deployment of intermediate- and short-range missiles in Europe to build mutual trust. The Kremlin has accused NATO of dismissing the proposals.

"The overall situation in Europe is explosive, which requires concrete steps to de-escalate it," Shoigu said. "We are ready to work towards this."

Russia's relations with the West are at post-Cold War lows, strained by issues ranging from Moscow's 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine to allegations of Russian hacking of U.S. elections.

(Reporting by Maria Kiselyova and Tom Balmforth; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov/Gabrielle Tetrault-Farber; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
MOSCOW (AP)  Russia said one of its warships in the Black Sea fired warning shots and a warplane dropped bombs Wednesday to force a British destroyer out of an area near Crimea that Moscow claims as its territorial waters, but Britain denied that account and insisted its ship wasn't fired upon.

It was the first time since the Cold War that Moscow acknowledged using live ammunition to deter a NATO warship, reflecting the growing risk of military incidents amid soaring tensions between Russia and the West.

The Russian Defense Ministry said a patrol ship fired warning shots after the HMS Defender had ignored a notice against intrusion and sailed 3 kilometers (1.6 nautical miles) into Russias territorial waters near Sevastopol, the main Russian naval base in Crimea. It said a Russian Su-24 bomber also dropped four bombs ahead of the vessel to persuade the Defender to change course. Minutes later, the Defender left Russian waters, the ministry said.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova denounced the rude British provocation that defies international law, and said Londons ambassador was being summoned. The Defense Ministry said it also called in the U.K. military attache in Moscow to protest the destroyers dangerous move and urged British authorities to investigate the crews actions.

Britains Ministry of Defense denied the Defender had been fired on or was in Russian waters, but had been in Ukrainian waters.

No warning shots have been fired at HMS Defender, it said in a statement. The Royal Navy ship is conducting innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law."

Russia annexed Ukraines Crimean Peninsula in 2014, a move not recognized by most countries, gaining access to its long Black Sea coast. Russia has chafed at NATO warships visiting near Crimea as destabilizing. In April, it declared a broader area off Crimea closed to foreign naval ships.

We believe the Russians were undertaking a gunnery exercise in the Black Sea and provided the maritime community with prior warning of their activity," the British Ministry of Defense said. No shots were directed at HMS Defender and we do not recognize the claim that bombs were dropped in her path.

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British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said the Defender carried out a routine transit from Odessa towards Georgia across the Black Sea.

As is normal for this route, she entered an internationally recognized traffic separation corridor, he tweeted, adding that HMS Defender exited the corridor safely at 9:45 a.m. BST (0845 GMT; 4:45 a.m. EDT).

"As is routine, Russian vessels shadowed her passage and she was made aware of training exercises in her wider vicinity, he added.

Speaking to Parliaments defense committee, Wallace again denied Russias version of events.

These are the things that come and go with Russia, he said. Disinformation, misinformation is something that we have seen regularly. Were not surprised by it; we plan for it.

Asked if Defender's crew had seen or heard anything, he said initial reports say they did hear or observe training noises somewhere to the rear of her but beyond visual range.

We saw the reports this morning, said Max Blain, a spokesman for Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Its incorrect to say either that it was fired on or this ship was in Russian waters. HMS Defender was taking the most direct and internationally recognized route between Ukraine and Georgia.

He emphasized that Britain, and much of the international community, does not recognize Russias annexation of Crimea.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said it was clear proof of Ukraines position: Russias aggressive and provocative actions in the Black and Azov seas, its occupation and militarization of Crimea pose a lasting threat to Ukraine and allies.

We need a new quality of cooperation between Ukraine & NATO allies in the Black Sea, Kuleba tweeted.

In November 2018, Russian coast guard ships fired on three Ukrainian gunboats trying to pass from the Black Sea into the Azov Sea and captured them along with 24 crewmembers. It returned the crew and the boats the following year.

HMS Defender, a Type 45 destroyer, is part of the U.K. Carrier Strike Group heading to the Indo-Pacific region. It was announced earlier this month that it would be temporarily breaking away from the group to carry out its own set of missions in the Black Sea.

Just before Wednesday's incident, Defender stopped in the Ukrainian port of Odessa, where Ukrainian and British officials and industry representatives signed an agreement to collaborate on boosting Ukraines naval capabilities.

NATO members Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria border the Black Sea. Warships from the U.S., U.K. and other NATO allies also have made increasingly frequent visits in support of Ukraine.

Speaking before the incident, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, the chief of the General Staff of the Russian armed forces, sharply criticized the deployment of NATO warships near Russian waters.

The moves by warships of the U.S. and its allies have been clearly provocative, Gerasimov said at an international security conference in Moscow organized by the Defense Ministry. It creates preconditions for incidents and doesn't help ease tensions in the military sphere.

He charged that the British destroyer HMS Dragon intruded into Russian waters near Crimea in October, and the U.S. destroyer USS John S. McCain violated the Russian border in the Sea of Japan in November.

In April, Russia imposed restrictions on foreign naval movements near Crimea until November in a move that drew strong complaints from Ukraine and the West. Russia rejected the criticism and noted the restrictions wouldnt interfere with commercial shipping.

Earlier this year, Russia also bolstered its troops near the border with Ukraine and warned Kyiv against using force to reclaim control of the country's eastern industrial heartland, where a conflict with Russia-backed separatists has killed more than 14,000 people in seven years. Moscow withdrew some of its forces after maneuvers, but Ukrainian officials say many of them remain.

Speaking earlier Wednesday via video to participants of the security conference, President Vladimir Putin expressed concern about NATO forces near Russia.

We arent striving for a decisive, unilateral military advantage to tip the balance of forces in our favor, Putin said. But we will never allow anyone else to tip that balance.

Russias relations with the West have sunk to the lowest levels since the Cold War, following Moscow's annexation of Crimea, accusations of Russian interference with elections, hacking attacks and other tensions.

In a speech at the same conference before Wednesday's incident, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said the situation in Europe is explosive, and accused NATO of stonewalling Russian proposals to enhance security by refraining from military exercises near the borders of Russia and alliance members.

He said the world is rapidly sinking in a new confrontation, which is much more dangerous than during the Cold War times.

___

Lawless reported from London.
Salma Hayek and Samuel L. Jackson in "The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard." Lionsgate

Salma Hayek said she insisted on a few traits for her "The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard" character.

The actress said she fought for her character, Sonia, to be in her 50s and experiencing menopause.

Hayek said that it was important to show an older woman participating in action sequences, too.

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"The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard" star Salma Hayek said that she fought for her character to be older than originally intended.

"It was conceived as maybe a girl in her 40s, but the truth is that I said 'Why?' And I said, 'Let's make it a woman in her 50s and I think we should make it about her having to do all this action while she's going through menopause," Hayek said during a virtual appearance on the latest episode of "Red Table Talk" on Facebook Watch.

During the episode, Hayek spoke with cohosts Jada Pinkett Smith, Adrienne Banfield-Norris, and Willow Smith about aging, motherhood, and menopause.

Hayek first portrayed Sonia Kincaid, the wife of Samuel L. Jackson's titular hitman, in 2017's "The Hitman's Bodyguard," though her character spent most of the film in a prison cell.

In the sequel, released on June 16, her character is more prevalent as she teams up with Ryan Reynolds' bodyguard. In the movie, she openly talks about her desire to start a family and even beats up a man for calling her old.

Salma Hayek in "The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard." Lionsgate

Hayek, who has personally experienced symptoms of menopause in real life since her 40s, said that she "had to convince some people" to modify the character in the ways she suggested for the sequel.

"And they were like, 'Do we have to say the word [menopause]?' And I'm like, 'It doesn't matter about words. What matters is that we go through it,'" the actress recalled.

Hayek said that it was important to explicitly include such characteristics because it shows that "there's no expiration date for women," especially in action films.

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"That has to go because you can kick ass at any age, hold your own at any age," she said. "You can dream at any age. You can be romantic at any age. We have the right to be loved for who we are at the place that we are. We're not just here to make babies, we're not just here to baby the men. We're not just here to service everything and everyone around up."

The actress previously alluded to giving input regarding her character's journey in the sequel during a recent interview with the Chicago Tribune.

"For me, it was important that we didn't change her age," she said. "In action films, the men are allowed to age, but this is one of the few times where you're seeing a middle-age woman as a lead in an action film. It's not a common thing, but I got my way."

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Four Saudis who participated in the 2018 killing of the Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi received paramilitary training in the United States the previous year under a contract approved by the State Department, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.

The training was provided by Tier 1 Group, which is owned by the private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management, and was defensive in nature and devised to protect Saudi leaders, the Times reported.

Cerberus did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.

In response to the Times report, State Department spokesman Ned Price said under the law the department cannot comment "on any of the licensed defense export licensing activity alleged in media reporting."

Price also said U.S. policy towards Saudi Arabia "will prioritize the rule of law and respect for human rights."

Khashoggi, a U.S. resident who wrote opinion columns for the Washington Post critical of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed and dismembered by a team of operatives linked to the prince in the kingdom's consulate in Istanbul in October 2018. A U.S. intelligence report in February said the crown prince had approved an operation to capture or kill the journalist.

Cerberus senior executive Louis Bremer confirmed his company's role in the training of four members of the Khashoggi kill team last year in written answers to questions from members of Congress as part of his nomination for a senior Pentagon job in former President Donald Trump's administration, according to the Times.

But the lawmakers never received the answers because the Trump administration does not appear to have sent them to Congress before withdrawing Bremers nomination, according to the Times, which said Bremer provided it with the document.

Bremer said the U.S. State Department and other government agencies are responsible for vetting foreign forces trained on U.S. soil, the Times reported.

(Reporting by Eric Beech; Editing by Mohammad Zargham and Neil Fullick)
By Alistair Smout and Gerhard Mey

LONDON, June 23 (Reuters) - British pilots, cabin crew, travel agents and other workers are urging politicians to save the summer holiday season by reopening routes abroad or risk destroying tens of thousands of jobs as companies fail.

Workers from the travel industry demonstrated across Britain on Wednesday. Protesters outside parliament held banners saying "Speak up for travel" as pilots and air stewardesses from British Airways, easyJet and Virgin Atlantic lined up in full uniform, to highlight the threat to their jobs from the government's strict rules.

England is expected to re-open from a third COVID-19 lockdown in July but the travel sector remains effectively shut, with the government advising against travel except to a handful of destinations.

British government ministers are examining ways to re-open travel more broadly, and are considering plans to ditch quarantine requirements for vaccinated adults and their children to some destinations.

But Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said that whatever happens, it will be a difficult year for travel.

The industry says the rules need to be eased urgently to prevent more jobs being lost.

Brian Strutton, acting General Secretary of the British pilots union BALPA said it was make or break time for the sector.

"If we lose this summer as well, I don't know how some of the travel companies, some of the airlines, are going to be able to survive, because with no money coming in, how can they continue to run their operations?," he said in an interview.

To survive more than 15 months of travel restrictions, companies including British Airways, easyJet, TUI and Jet2, have taken on billions of pounds of debt.

"Airlines are at the absolute limit of what they can borrow and without a genuine reopening this summer they will require government support to survive," the chief executive of industry group Airlines UK Tim Alderslade said.

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Airlines are also ramping up pressure on the government to ease its travel rules by joining legal action, led by Manchester Airports Group. England's High Court ruled the case an urgent matter this week.

RED TRAFFIC LIGHT

Under the government's traffic light system, only travellers to a small number of green-list countries can avoid quarantine.

Popular European holiday destinations for Britons, including France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain and the United States, are rated amber and require returning passengers to take three expensive COVID-19 tests and isolate for 10 days on return.

The industry urged the government to expand the green list when the system is reviewed on June 28.

COVID-19 rules restricted the numbers permitted to attend the Westminster protest to a few hundred who held up placards with pictures of flip flops and planes saying "Give safe travel the green light". There were also events at Manchester, Heathrow and other airports.

At the Westminster protest, Kelly Cookes, leisure director at Advantage Travel told Sky News the industry's future was "hanging in the balance" and said she was expecting companies to fail without rule changes.

Another protester said that now was the time to help the family-owned businesses that help make up Britain's large and once vibrant travel industry.

"Look at our livelihoods, we've sold everything, we've borrowed money, we're in debt," he said to gathered crowds.

Airline bosses have said that they could be ready for a wider re-opening of travel within weeks should government rules change.

But even if Britain eases its rules, airlines and tour operators could still face a challenge as the spread of the Delta variant of the novel coronavirus has prompted other countries to place restrictions on British arrivals.

(Reporting by Gerhard Mey, Alistair Smout and Sarah Young; writing by Sarah Young; editing by Guy Faulconbridge and Barbara Lewis)
The Biden administration and the Israeli government held talks recently on countering the proliferation of Iranian drones and cruise missiles among its proxies in Iraq, Yemen, Syria and Lebanon, Israeli and U.S. officials tell me.

Why it matters: After several drone attacks from pro-Iranian militias in recent weeks, some of which were thwarted, the U.S. and Israel are highly concerned that the technology will spread to additional groups who could target their forces in the region.

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Driving the news: Al Asad Airbase, where most U.S. troops in Iraq are stationed, has been attacked repeatedly by pro-Iranian Shia militias. A hangar was damaged in a drone attack on May 8, and two armed drones were shot down there on June 6.

The Israeli air force, meanwhile, shot down an armed Iranian drone that was trying to enter Israeli airspace during the Gaza crisis on May 18.

Behind the scenes: During a meeting in Washington on April 27, national security advisor Jake Sullivan and his Israeli counterpart, Meir Ben Shabbat, agreed to establish an inter-agency working group to focus on unmanned aerial vehicles and precision-guided missiles produced by Iran and provided to its regional proxies.

The group's first meeting took place three weeks ago, with the U.S. side headed by White House Middle East coordinator Brett McGurk and the Israeli side led by deputy national security adviser Reuven Azar.

The Israeli delegation proposed a regional cooperation framework involving Arab countries who face a similar threat from Iranian drones and missiles.

The Israeli side also proposed a no-fly zone for Iranian-made drones in the region, per Israeli officials briefed on the meeting. It's not clear how that would work.

Whats next: Israeli officials say their impression is that the working group will continue meeting because the Biden administration sees the drone threat to U.S. forces in the region as a high priority and worries that as the technology spreads the danger will only grow more severe.

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Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday blasted Vice President Kamala Harris's just-announced trip to the southern border while taking credit for it at the same time.

"After months of ignoring the crisis at the Southern Border, it is great that we got Kamala Harris to finally go and see the tremendous destruction and death that they've created  a direct result of Biden ending my very tough but fair Border policies," Trump wrote. "Harris and Biden were given the strongest Border in American history. And now, it is by far the worst in American history."

HARRIS TO VISIT SOUTHERN BORDER ON FRIDAY

The 45th president claimed that if he and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott "werent going there next week, she would have never gone!"

Harris will travel to El Paso, Texas, this coming Friday with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, but her visit was announced roughly one week after Trump announced his Abbott-led tour.

"The Biden Administration inherited from me the strongest, safest, and most secure border in U.S history and in mere weeks they turned it into the single worst border crisis in U.S history. Its an unmitigated disaster zone," his statement released on June 15 read. "Our Nation is now one giant sanctuary city where even dangerous criminals are being cut loose and set free inside the U.S interior on a daily basis."

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Abbott had pledged to finish the Texas portion of the Trump administration's border wall, an uphill challenge considering the $20 million average cost per mile of construction.

Harris's trip comes weeks after she was criticized by Republicans and some Democrats for a shaky trip to Guatemala and Mexico, during which she flubbed several questions about why she, as President Joe Biden's appointed lead on the migrant surge, has not visited the border.

Washington Examiner Videos

Story continues

Tags: News, Kamala Harris, Immigration, Donald Trump, White House, Border Crisis

Original Author: Christian Datoc

Original Location: 'She would have never gone!': Trump claims he forced Harris to visit border
AUSTIN ENDORSES CHANGE: Last night, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin released a statement endorsing the recommendations of his Independent Review Commission on Sexual Assault in the Military, which calls for removing decisions on prosecuting sexual assault cases from military commanders.

In coming days, I will present to President Biden my specific recommendations about the commissions findings, but I know enough at this point to state the following, Austin said. We will work with Congress to amend the Uniform Code of Military Justice, removing the prosecution of sexual assaults and related crimes from the military chain of command.

Austin said he also endorses the commissions recommendation that other special victims crimes, including domestic violence, also be handled by independent prosecutors instead of commanders. I support this as well, given the strong correlation between these sorts of crimes and the prevalence of sexual assault, Austin said.

INHOFE OPPOSES WIDER REFORM: Sen. Jim Inhofe, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, has been working to kill the more expansive changes included in the proposed Military Justice Improvement and Increasing Prevention Act, which has the bipartisan backing of 66 senators.

The bill, championed by New York Democrat Kirsten Gillibrand, would give independent prosecutors responsibility not just for sexual assault but for all major crimes, defined as felonies that carry a punishment of more than a year in prison.

Yesterday, Inhofe released letters from seven of the eight members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, each expressing concerns about removing authority from the chain of command for all but relatively minor crimes.

It is my professional opinion that removing commanders from prosecution decisions ... may have an adverse effect on readiness, mission accomplishment, good order and discipline, justice, unit cohesion, trust, and loyalty between commanders and those they lead, wrote Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley.

Story continues

My best military advice continues to be that removing commanders case disposition authority would be detrimental to the good order and discipline, said Army Chief Gen. James McConville, who recommended a three-year trial period for change that would only apply to rape and sexual assault.

The Gillibrand bill erodes the ability of commanders to create and maintain the environment necessary to effectively exercise mission command, wrote Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Michael Gilday.

The scope of the offenses covered should be specific to the sexual assault and harassment, wrote Air Force Chief Gen. Charles Q. Brown. Implementation should reinforce commanders responsibilities in the process, not relieve them from it.

The bill would challenge the timely administration of military justice in combat and forward-deployed environments by creating delays and procedural uncertainty, distracting commanders from their combat mission, wrote Marine Corps Commandant Gen. David Berger.

GILLIBRAND: DISAPPOINTING, BUT NOT SURPRISING: In a blistering response, Gillibrand accused the Joint Chiefs of once again being on the wrong side of reform.

From racially integrating the armed forces to enabling women to serve in combat to allowing LGBTQ service members to serve openly, the chain of command has always fought to protect the status quo, just as they are doing here, Gillibrand said in a statement. Their arguments are recycled talking points from the battles for progress in the past and are void of any coherent argument beyond the disingenuous good order and discipline.

The content of these letters is disappointing, but not surprising, she wrote. It is time for Congress and the administration to exercise their constitutional oversight duties and professionalize and reform the military justice system to reduce bias, increase efficiency and restore the confidence of our service members.

WHEN A BIPARTISAN SUPERMAJORITY IS NOT ENOUGH: Despite garnering the support of 43 Democrats, two independents, and 21 Republicans, Gillibrands bill has been effectively derailed by Inhofe and Armed Services Committee Chairman Jack Reed, a retired Army major and 1971 West Point graduate.

Reed and Inhofe have so far prevented the bill from getting the committee vote it needs to send it to the Senate floor, where it would likely pass.

Nevertheless, California Democratic Rep. Jackie Speier plans to introduce a companion bill in the House today.

If Gillibrand is unsuccessful in passing a stand-alone bill, she and the bipartisan co-sponsors could try to enact the provisions as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act, the annual must-pass policy bill.

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Good Wednesday morning, and welcome to Jamie McIntyres Daily on Defense, written and compiled by Washington Examiner National Security Senior Writer Jamie McIntyre (@jamiejmcintyre) and edited by Victor I. Nava. Email here with tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. Sign up or read current and back issues at DailyonDefense.com. If signing up doesnt work, shoot us an email and well add you to our list. And be sure to follow us on Twitter: @dailyondefense.

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NOTE TO READERS: Daily on Defense will not publish on July 5 as we observe the long Independence Day holiday weekend. Back on July 6.

HAPPENING TODAY: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley will face more pointed questions today about President Joe Bidens proposed $715 billion Pentagon budget, which has come under withering attack from Republicans as woefully inadequate given the challenges from a rising China.

Republicans point to the billions of dollars of unfunded priorities submitted by each of the services, which are essentially wish lists of what the military would buy if money were no object.

I don't call them a wish list. I call them a risk list, said Sen. Jim Inhofe at yesterdays Armed Services Committee hearing on the Navy and Marine Corps budget. You're not getting an adequate budget, and I can say that you can't. Anyway, we're going to do everything that we can to try to make this happen, Inhofe said, addressing Adm. Michael Gilday and Gen. David Berger.

Austin and Milley appear before the House Armed Services Committee at 10 a.m.

'DIVEST TO INVEST': BIDEN NAVY SHIPBUILDING PLAN LEAVES LAWMAKERS AND ANALYSTS BEWILDERED

ALSO TODAY: At 11 a.m., President Joe Biden delivers remarks at the funeral ceremony of former Armed Services Committee Chairman Sen. John Warner at the Washington National Cathedral.

At 1 p.m., Chief of the National Guard Bureau Army Gen. Daniel Hokanson briefs reporters at the Pentagon.

And at 1:30 p.m., U.S. Central Commander Gen. Frank McKenzie discusses how nonmilitary factors, such as environmentally sustainable public utilities, advance U.S. security interests in the Middle East at a Center for Strategic and International Studies web event.

MORE THAN HALFWAY OUT: In its weekly Tuesday update, the U.S. Central Command now says the United States and NATO withdrawal from Afghanistan has passed the halfway mark.

The statement, which is devoid of any significant details, said simply, U.S. Central Command estimates that we have completed more than 50% of the entire retrograde process.

So far, the U.S. has flown the 763 C-17 loads of materiel out of Afghanistan and has turned over nearly 14,790 pieces of federal excess personal property to the Defense Logistics Agency for disposition.

Most of this equipment is not defensive articles or considered to be major equipment, CENTCOM said.

TALIBAN GAINS CONTINUE: The Central Command made no mention of the latest gains by the Taliban, which come as the peace process has stalled, and the Taliban seem intent on a takeover of the country.

On Monday, Taliban fighters took control of a key district in Afghanistans northern Kunduz province, one of dozens of districts that have fallen to the Taliban since U.S. and NATO troops began to leave in May.

Their significance often lies in their proximity to roads and major cities, reports the Associated Press. The latest district to fall is strategically located near Afghanistans northern border with Tajikistan, a key supply route from Central Asia.

On Friday, President Joe Biden meets here in Washington with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah, the head of the countrys High Council for National Reconciliation.

The talks will center on how we can work together to ensure that Afghanistan never again becomes a safe haven for terrorist groups who pose a threat to the U.S. homeland, said White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Monday.

AS GOES IRAQ, SO GOES THE MIDDLE EAST: Thats the thrust of a new analysis from the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War.

The United States cannot stabilize  or safely deprioritize  the Middle East without first stabilizing Iraq. Regional powers treat Iraq as a battleground to carry out proxy conicts that harm U.S. interests and exacerbate instability through the region, the ISW report states, advocating that the U.S. should not disengage from Iraq

The United States should continue to strive for a stronger, more democratic, and more independent Iraq that can provide a regional buffer to mitigate future conflicts, say the authors, arguing, Iraq is not moving toward increased stability and that its corrupt political system is ultimately unsustainable.

The Iraqi state cannot aord to keep creating government jobs to appease its underemployed, ever-growing, and increasingly dissatised population barring a dramatic and sustained increase in oil prices. Read the full report here.

IN YOUR FACE, CHINA: The U.S. Navy reported yesterday that the guided-missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur sailed through the disputed Taiwan Strait on what the U.S. calls a routine Freedom of Navigation mission, aimed at guaranteeing the 100-mile waterway remains international waters.

The ship's transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the U.S. commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific, said the Navy in a statement. The United States military flies, sails, and operates anywhere international law allows.

YOU BREAK IT YOU BUY IT: Sens. Jim Inhofe, Tammy Duckworth, and Mike Rounds are still smarting from last years decision by the FCC granting Ligado Networks permission to operate a terrestrial wireless network that the Pentagon says will threaten the reception capability of hundreds of millions of GPS devices.

The three senators have introduced the Recognizing and Ensuring Taxpayer Access to Infrastructure Necessary for GPS and Satellite Communications Act, which would require Ligado to cover the cost for correcting any interference its operations create for the public or private sector.

While the FCCs decision required Ligado to upgrade or replace government devices, it did not apply to the millions of private devices that could be affected.

However, 99 percent of the more than 900 million GPS devices found in the United States are used by the private sector, consumers, as well as state and local governments; under the current Order, they  or their consumers  would have to bear the costs, said the senators in a statement.

SHUTTING DOWN IRANS DISINFO NETWORK: The Justice Department says the U.S. has seized 33 websites used by the Iranian Islamic Radio and Television Union and three websites operated by Kataib Hezballah to spread disinformation and that attempted to sow discord during the 2020 election campaign.

According to the Office of Foreign Assets Control, the sites targeted the U.S.s electoral process with brazen attempts to sow discord among the voting populace by spreading disinformation online and executing malign influence operations aimed at misleading U.S. voters, according to a press release.

THE PUSH TO BAN LAND MINES: Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy and Massachusetts Rep. Jim McGovern, both Democrats, have sent a letter to President Joe Biden urging him to put the U.S. on a path to ban land mines.

In the letter, signed by 21 members of Congress, they ask Biden to reinstate an Obama policy that banned the production of land mines and limited their use to Korea.

We further urge you to direct the Pentagon to expeditiously review its plans for the defense of the Republic of Korea and provide a classified report to you and the Congress describing the options for defending the Republic of Korea with alternatives to anti-personnel mines, and of finally putting the United States on a definitive path to accede to the treaty  an important U.S. foreign policy goal announced by President Clinton and reaffirmed by President Obama  by 2024.

LATEST SASC APPROVALS: The Senate Armed Services Committee has voted by voice to report out a list of 2,932 pending military nominations in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Space Force, including:

Caroline Krass to be general counsel of the Department of Defense

Gina Ortiz Jones to be undersecretary of the Air Force

Ely Ratner to be assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific security affairs

Shawn Skelly to be assistant secretary of defense for readiness

Meredith Berger to be assistant secretary of the Navy for energy, installations, and environment

LATEST DOD NOMINEE: Yesterday, President Joe Biden nominated Celeste Wallander, president and CEO of the U.S.-Russia Foundation, to be assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs.

Wallander served as special assistant to the president and senior director for Russia/Central Asia on the National Security Council from 2013-2017 and as the deputy assistant secretary of defense for Russia/Ukraine/Eurasia from 2009 to July 2012.

LATEST SENATE CONFIRMATION: The Senate has confirmed Chris Fonzone for general counsel for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

NEW AUSA CEO: The Association of the U.S. Armys board of directors has appointed retired Gen. Robert Brown as its new president and CEO, succeeding retired Gen. Carter Ham, who has led AUSA since 2016, the associations board of directors announced.

The Rundown

Washington Examiner: 'Divest to invest': Biden Navy shipbuilding plan leaves lawmakers and analysts bewildered

Washington Examiner: Full circle: Biden may preside over the end of the wars he voted for

Washington Examiner: Defense Department closes last federal vaccination site amid continued vaccine hesitancy

Washington Examiner: Tom Cotton warns against new China lobby as ODNI lawyer is confirmed despite Huawei links

Washington Examiner: Not so fast: GOP taps brakes on revoking 2002 war powers

Washington Examiner: White House: Khamenei still 'decision-maker' after presidential election in Iran

Washington Examiner: Iran's incoming president shoots down Biden plan to expand nuclear deal to missile program

Washington Examiner: Just 145 miles of Texas border have a wall  here are the 1,100 miles Abbott vows to build

Washington Examiner: Life in Uniform: From the cornfields to the desert

Washington Examiner: Merkel heir warns Biden not to start 'new cold war with China'

Washington Examiner: Opinion: Germany's Armin Laschet is ready to be China's puppet

Reuters: China Condemns Latest U.S. Warship Transit Of Taiwan Strait

New York Times: North Korea Delays Restart of U.S. Talks

Military.com: Space National Guard Proposal Headed to Congress Soon, Top Leaders Say

Air Force Magazine: USAF Would Greatly Value Congressional Boost for Sustainment, Flying Hours

USNI News: U.K., U.S. F-35Bs Launch Anti-ISIS Strikes from HMS Queen Elizabeth

CNN: U.S. Warplanes Fly First Combat Missions Off Foreign Aircraft Carrier Since World War II

Air Force Magazine: Which Wings Would Lose A-10s Under USAF Plan

Bloomberg: U.S. Navy Ships Close to Getting Interceptors That Could Stop an ICBM

AP: Pelosi signals new panel to investigate Jan. 6 Capitol riot

Military.com: The Military Has A Watchdog For Stopping Extremism. Now, It Wants Teeth -- And Independence

Breaking Defense: Hicks Will Send AI/Data Experts To Combatant Commanders

Washington Post: In Afghanistan, Militias Take Up Fight Against The Taliban

AP: Putin hails WWII heroes, warns of degrading Europe security

AP: Almost 900 Secret Service employees were infected with COVID

Forbes Opinion: How China Will Try To Unmask U.S. Submarines In The Western Pacific

Calendar

WEDNESDAY | JUNE 23

8:15 a.m.  Joint Artificial Intelligence Center virtual DOD Artificial Intelligence Symposium and Technology Exchange: Competitive Challenges - Technological Opportunities," with Joint Chiefs Vice Chairman Air Force Gen. John Hyten; and Army Gen. Richard Clarke, commander of the U.S. Special Operations Command. https://www.ai.mil/ai2021.html

9 a.m.  Carnegie Endowment for International Peace virtual 2021 International Nuclear Policy Conference, with Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks. https://carnegieendowment.org

9 a.m.  Arab Center virtual conference: Looking Toward Peace in Afghanistan After the U.S.-NATO Withdrawal," with Fatima Gailani, negotiator for the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. http://arabcenterdc.org/events/looking-towards-peace

9:30 a.m.  House Homeland Security Committee hearing on "Building the Coast Guard America Needs: Achieving Diversity, Equity and Accountability within the Service, with Adm. Karl Schultz, commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard. https://homeland.house.gov/activities/hearings

10 a.m. 2118 Rayburn  House Armed Services Committee hearing: The Fiscal Year 2022 National Defense Authorization Budget Request from the Department of Defense, with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley. https://armedservices.house.gov/hearings

10 a.m.  Council on Foreign Relations CEO Speaker Series, Kathy Warden, Chairman, CEO, and president, Northrop Grumman; and Frances Fragos Townsend, executive vice president, corporate affairs, Activision Blizzard; member, Board of Directors, Council on Foreign Relations. https://www.cfr.org/webinar

1 p.m. Pentagon Briefing Room 2D972 Army Gen. Daniel Hokanson, chief of the National Guard Bureau briefs reporters.

1 p.m.  Defense One Tech Summit, with Rob Joyce, director of the Cybersecurity Directorate, National Security Agency; Maj. Steven Harvey, director of partnerships and technology, Marine Corps Installation Next; Randy Clark, Business Development and Strategic Planning for DOD and Public Safety, Verizon Business Group; and Lt. Col. Brandon Newell, director of technology and partnerships, Marine Corps Installation Next. https://d1techsummit.com

1 p.m.  Red River Chapter of the National Defense Industrial Association virtual discussion, with Air Force Gen. Timothy Ray, commander of Global Strike Command. https://www.ndia.org/events

1:30 p.m.  Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual discussion: Why Sustainable Public Utilities Are a Security Issue," focusing on the Middle East, with Marine Corps Gen. Frank McKenzie, commander of U.S. Central Command; Melani Cammett, professor of international Affairs in Harvard University's Department of Government; Franck Bousquet, deputy director of the IMF Institute for Capacity Development; Tessa Terpstra, former regional envoy for water and energy security in the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and Jon Alterman, director of the CSIS Middle East Program https://www.csis.org/events

12 p.m.  Hudson Institute virtual event. Are Iran and the IAEA Headed for Confrontation? with David Albright, founder and president, Institute for Science and International Security; Olli Heinonen, distinguished fellow, Stimson Center and former deputy director-general for safeguards, International Atomic Energy Agency; and Joshua Block, adjunct fellow, Hudson Institute. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/virtual-event

2 p.m. 222 Russell  Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Cyber hearing on recent ransomware attacks, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Cyber Policy Mieke Eoyang, Air Force Maj. Gen. Kevin Kennedy, director of operations, U.S. Cyber Command, and Rear Adm. Ronald Foy, deputy director for global operations, Joint Staff. https://www.armed-services.senate.gov

2 p.m.  Association of the U.S. Army Thought Leaders webinar: The Armys growing role in the Indo-Pacific, with retired Gen. Robert Brown, AUSA executive vice president and a former commanding general of U.S. Army Pacific; retired Navy Adm. Scott Swift, former commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet; Loren Thompson, chief operating officer of the Lexington Institute and chief executive officer of Source Associates; and Tom Karako, senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. https://info.ausa.org/e/784783/my-s-Role-in-the-Indo-Pacific

2:45 p.m.  Carnegie International Nuclear Policy Conference with Colin Kahl, undersecretary of defense for policy. https://carnegieendowment.org

THURSDAY | JUNE 24

9 a.m.  Carnegie Endowment for International Peace virtual International Nuclear Policy Conference discussion: Alliances, Proliferation, and Escalation Risks in Northeast Asia, with former U.S. Ambassador to South Korea retired Adm. Harry Harris. https://carnegieendowment.org

12 p.m.  R Street Institute virtual discussion: When You Wish Upon a DOD Budget," focusing on the Pentagon's unfunded priorities list, with Mark Thompson, defense analyst at the Project on Government Oversight; Sheila Weinberg, founder and CEO of Truth in Accounting; Andrew Lautz, director of federal policy at the National Taxpayers Union; Ramesh Ratnesar, opinion editor at Bloomberg; and Jonathan Bydlak, director of the R Street Institute's Governance Program. https://www.rstreet.org/event/pentagon-purse-strings

1 p.m.  Defense One virtual Tech Summit, with Mieke Eoyang, deputy assistant secretary of defense for cyber policy; Rep. Jim Langevin, D-R.I.; and Chris Lynch, CEO and co-founder, Rebellion Defense. https://d1techsummit.com

FRIDAY | JUNE 25

12 p.m.  Heritage Foundation virtual discussion: Preview of the Heritage Foundation's 2021 China Transparency Report, with Rep. Steve Chabot, R-Ohio; former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs David Feith, adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security; Chad Wolf, visiting fellow at the Heritage Foundation's Davis Institute; and Walter Lohman, director of the Heritage Asian Studies Center https://www.heritage.org/asia/event/virtual-preview

1 p.m.  Defense One Tech Summit, with Tim Grayson, director, Strategic Technology Office, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency; and Lisa Sanders, director of science and technology for special operations forces, acquisition, technology and logistics, U.S. Special Operations Command. https://d1techsummit.com

TUESDAY | JUNE 29

2 p.m.  Association of the U.S. Armys Thought Leaders webinar, with retired Col. Tom Vossler and retired Col. Jeff McCausland to discuss their book, Battle Tested! Gettysburg Leadership Lessons for 21st Century Leaders. Register at : https://info.ausa.org/e/784783/s-Webinar-Series-Battle-Tested

11 a.m. 2118 Rayburn  House Armed Services Committee hearing: The Fiscal Year 2022 National Defense Authorization Budget Request for the Department of the Army, with Christine Wormuth, secretary of the Army; and Gen. James McConville. https://armedservices.house.gov/hearings

4 p.m. 2118 Rayburn  House Armed Services Subcommittee on Cyber, Innovative Technologies, and Information Systems hearing, Department of Defense Information Technology, Cybersecurity, and Information Assurance for Fiscal Year 2022, with John Sherman, acting Pentagon chief information officer. https://armedservices.house.gov/hearings

WEDNESDAY | JUNE 30

3 p.m. 2118 Rayburn  House Armed Services Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces Hearing: Fiscal Year 2022 Rotary Wing Aviation Budget Request, with Douglas Bush, acting assistant secretary of the army for acquisition, logistics and technology; Maj. Gen. Walter Rugen, director, Future Vertical Lift Cross Functional Team, Army Futures Command; Frederick Jay Stefany, acting assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development, and acquisition; Lt. Gen. Mark Wise, deputy Marine Corps commandant for aviation; Rear Adm. Andrew Loiselle, director, Air Warfare Division, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations; Darlene Costello, acting assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, technology, and logistics; Brig Gen. Mark August, director, Air Force Global Reach Programs. https://armedservices.house.gov/hearings



QUOTE OF THE DAY

I just realized  I didn't realize this, I have to admit  that federal firefighters get paid $13 an hour. That's going to end in my administration. That's a ridiculously low salary to pay federal firefighters.



President Joe Biden before meeting with FEMA and Homeland Security officials at the White House



Washington Examiner Videos

Tags: National Security, Daily on Defense

Original Author: Jamie McIntyre

Original Location: Showdown over military justice reform as Austin endorses removing prosecution of sexual assault and domestic violence from chain of command
US anti-virus software pioneer John McAfee smiles as he arrives at the Aurora international airport in Guatemala City on December 12, 2012. Mr McAfee was found dead in his prison cell in Spain on Wednesday, 23 June, 2021. (AFP via Getty Images)

British-born software pioneer John McAfee was reportedly found dead in his prison cell in Spain on Wednesday just hours after the countrys National Court agreed to extradite him to the US to face tax evasion charges.

In a statement, the Spanish Justice Department said everything indicates that McAfee, who was 75, took his own life, Reuters reported.

While McAfee first rose to prominence by releasing the first commercial anti-virus computer software, igniting what would become a multi-billion dollar industry, his final years were mired in controversy.

In October of last year, the tycoon was arrested in Spain and accused of failing to file tax returns for at least four years, despite having made millions.

The US Justice Department accused Mr McAfee of evading tax liability by having money paid into a number of different accounts.

He was also reportedly accused of concealing assets, including real estate and a yacht.

Who was McAfee?

Born in Gloucestershire, England, McAfee first launched his software company McAfee Associates back in 1987.

He headed the company until 1994 before resigning amid the companys early success.

Years later, the company was purchased by Intel in 2011, but it maintained McAfees name, which is still emblazoned on McAfee anti-virus software.

McAfee would go on to found a string of companies after leaving his company, including Tribal Voice, QuorumEx and Future Tense Central.

He has also held leadership roles in a number of other companies, including MGT Capital, Everykey and others.

Years mired in controversy

In the years before his indictment, McAfee had faced repeated controversies.

In 2012, he was at the centre of international attention after Belize police named him as a person of interest following the death of his neighbour, Florida businessman Gregory Faull.

The magnate had denied any involvement in his death.

In 2019, he was detained in the Dominican Republic, where he was accused of bringing weapons into the country, according to the BBC.

Story continues

That same year, he had also announced outright on Twitter that he had not filed tax returns for eight years, because, he said, taxation is illegal.

Political ambitions

Despite facing repeated controversies, McAfee continued to pursue his ambitions, even seeking out the highest position in the United States twice over.

The software tycoon unsuccessfully pursued the Libertarian Party nomination to run for President of the United States in both 2016 and 2020.

McAfee had announced in September 2015 that he would be running for president in the 2016 election as the candidate of a new political party called the Cyber Party.

He later re-announced his election bid asserting that he planned to instead seek the nomination of the Libertarian Party.

He lost that bid, however, but tried again in the following election, announcing in June 2018 on Twitter that he would be running for president again in 2020, whether with the Libertarian Party or another.

The tycoon ended up joining the race as a Libertarian, with a key part of his platform being to promote the use of cryptocurrencies.

In January 2019, McAfee tweeted that he would have to continue his campaign in exile after reports that he and his wife, along with campaign staff members, were being indicted by the IRS for tax-related felonies.

In March, 2020, he tweeted that he was ending his 2020 campaign, before announcing plans to seek the vice presidential nomination instead.

However, after asserting that no one in the Libertarian Party would consider him for VP, he said he was returning to the presidential race, before changing course again the next month and announcing that he had become Adam Kokeshs vice-presidential candidate while also continuing his bid for the presidency.

Ultimately, he was not nominated, losing to Jo Jorgensen and Spike Cohen for the vice-presidential nomination.

McAfee feared life in prison

In the days before his death, McAfee had told a Spanish court that he feared being faced with a life in prison if he was forced to return to the US.

Addressing Spains National Court on 15 June via videolink, he said: If I am extradited, it is almost certain that I will spend the rest of my life in prison because the United States wants to use me as an example, according Spanish news outlet Europa Press.

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John McAfees Instagram posts Q image minutes after his death is reported

Ill spend the rest of my life in prison: John McAfee said he feared extradition to US days before death
After several tireless days we have finished crunching the numbers from nearly 900 13F filings issued by the elite hedge funds and other investment firms that we track at Insider Monkey, which disclosed those firms' equity portfolios as of March 31st. The results of that effort will be put on display in this article, as we share valuable insight into the smart money sentiment towards SPI Energy Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ:SPI).

Is SPI a good stock to buy? SPI Energy Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ:SPI) shareholders have witnessed an increase in activity from the world's largest hedge funds in recent months. SPI Energy Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ:SPI) was in 5 hedge funds' portfolios at the end of March. The all time high for this statistic was 4. This means the bullish number of hedge fund positions in this stock currently sits at its all time high. Our calculations also showed that SPI isn't among the 30 most popular stocks among hedge funds (click for Q1 rankings).

So, why do we pay attention to hedge fund sentiment before making any investment decisions? Our research has shown that hedge funds' small-cap stock picks managed to beat the market by double digits annually between 1999 and 2016, but the margin of outperformance has been declining in recent years. Nevertheless, we were still able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that outperformed the S&P 500 ETFs by more than 115 percentage points since March 2017 (see the details here). We have been able to outperform the passive index funds by tracking the moves of corporate insiders and hedge funds, and we believe small investors can benefit a lot from reading hedge fund investor letters and 13F filings.

Donald Sussman Paloma Partners

Donald Sussman of Paloma Partners

At Insider Monkey, we scour multiple sources to uncover the next great investment idea. For example, an activist hedge fund owns nearly 40% of this $23 biotech stock and is trying to buy the rest for around $50. So, we recommended a long position to our monthly premium newsletter subscribers. We go through lists like the 10 best battery stocks to pick the next Tesla that will deliver a 10x return. Even though we recommend positions in only a tiny fraction of the companies we analyze, we check out as many stocks as we can. We read hedge fund investor letters and listen to stock pitches at hedge fund conferences. You can subscribe to our free daily newsletter on our homepage. Keeping this in mind we're going to review the key hedge fund action encompassing SPI Energy Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ:SPI).

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Do Hedge Funds Think SPI Is A Good Stock To Buy Now?

Heading into the second quarter of 2021, a total of 5 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey held long positions in this stock, a change of 25% from the fourth quarter of 2020. On the other hand, there were a total of 0 hedge funds with a bullish position in SPI a year ago. With hedge funds' sentiment swirling, there exists a few noteworthy hedge fund managers who were increasing their holdings substantially (or already accumulated large positions).

Is SPI A Good Stock To Buy?

When looking at the institutional investors followed by Insider Monkey, Citadel Investment Group, managed by Ken Griffin, holds the number one position in SPI Energy Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ:SPI). Citadel Investment Group has a $1.1 million call position in the stock, comprising less than 0.1%% of its 13F portfolio. The second most bullish fund manager is Sabby Capital, led by Hal Mintz, holding a $1 million position; the fund has 0.2% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Other professional money managers that are bullish contain Peter Rathjens, Bruce Clarke and John Campbell's Arrowstreet Capital, and Donald Sussman's Paloma Partners. In terms of the portfolio weights assigned to each position Sabby Capital allocated the biggest weight to SPI Energy Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ:SPI), around 0.19% of its 13F portfolio. Paloma Partners is also relatively very bullish on the stock, earmarking 0.0029 percent of its 13F equity portfolio to SPI.

Consequently, specific money managers have jumped into SPI Energy Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ:SPI) headfirst. Sabby Capital, managed by Hal Mintz, initiated the biggest position in SPI Energy Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ:SPI). Sabby Capital had $1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Ken Griffin's Citadel Investment Group also made a $0.1 million investment in the stock during the quarter.

Let's check out hedge fund activity in other stocks similar to SPI Energy Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ:SPI). These stocks are Overseas Shipholding Group, Inc. (NYSE:OSG), Movano Inc. (NASDAQ:MOVE), Medallion Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:MFIN), Battalion Oil Corporation (NYSE:BATL), OncoSec Medical Incorporated (NASDAQ:ONCS), Voyager Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VYGR), and Protara Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:TARA). This group of stocks' market caps match SPI's market cap.

[table] Ticker, No of HFs with positions, Total Value of HF Positions (x1000), Change in HF Position OSG,10,49316,-2 MOVE,1,244,1 MFIN,4,4344,-1 BATL,5,110185,1 ONCS,8,6934,-1 VYGR,9,24139,2 TARA,14,91477,-2 Average,7.3,40948,-0.3 [/table]

View table here if you experience formatting issues.

As you can see these stocks had an average of 7.3 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $41 million. That figure was $2 million in SPI's case. Protara Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:TARA) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Movano Inc. (NASDAQ:MOVE) is the least popular one with only 1 bullish hedge fund positions. SPI Energy Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ:SPI) is not the least popular stock in this group but hedge fund interest is still below average. Our overall hedge fund sentiment score for SPI is 51.4. Stocks with higher number of hedge fund positions relative to other stocks as well as relative to their historical range receive a higher sentiment score. This is a slightly negative signal and we'd rather spend our time researching stocks that hedge funds are piling on. Our calculations showed that top 5 most popular stocks among hedge funds returned 95.8% in 2019 and 2020, and outperformed the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by 40 percentage points. These stocks gained 17.4% in 2021 through June 18th and surpassed the market again by 6.1 percentage points. Unfortunately SPI wasn't nearly as popular as these 5 stocks (hedge fund sentiment was quite bearish); SPI investors were disappointed as the stock returned -9.3% since the end of March (through 6/18) and underperformed the market. If you are interested in investing in large cap stocks with huge upside potential, you should check out the top 5 most popular stocks among hedge funds as most of these stocks already outperformed the market in 2021.

Disclosure: None. This article was originally published at Insider Monkey.

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Jun. 23ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.  Sophie Earp, a 10th grade student at Albuquerque School of Excellence, has been selected to represent New Mexico at the two-day National Congress of Future Medical Leaders taking place Saturday in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

The congress is an honors-only program for high school students pursuing medical or medical research degrees with a goal of honoring, inspiring and motivating top students, organizers said in a news release.

Earp's nomination was signed by Dr. Mario Capecchi, winner of the Nobel Prize in medicine and the science director of the National Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists. She was selected based on her academics, leadership potential and commitment to serving humanity in medicine, according to the release.

The event features Nobel laureates and National Medal of Science winners talking about leading medical research, top medical school deans speaking on what to expect in medical school, stories of patients who are living medical miracles, and learning about cutting-edge advances and the future in medicine and medical technology.

The Academy also offers free services and programs to students who want to become physicians or go into medical science.

For more information, visit www.FutureDocs.com or call 617-307-7425.
(Independent)

The Supreme Court delivered its latest ruling in defense of the First Amendment rights of students on Tuesday with an 8-1 decision in favor of a high school student who sued after she was removed from the schools cheerleading team after criticising the school on Snapchat.

The justices found in their ruling that the speech in question did not fall under the exceptions spelled out in Tinker V. Des Moines, a previous landmark ruling that found school officials may regulate speech that materially affects classroom activities or targets specific individuals.

In Wednesdays ruling, the justices wrote that the special interests offered by the school are not sufficient to overcome B. L.s interest in free expression in this case, and found that the Mahanoy Area School District of Schuylkill County, Pa., had violated a students rights by removing her from the junior varsity cheer squad following remarks about the varsity cheer squad and school itself on Snapchat.

More to follow...
Sydneysiders were largely banned from leaving the city Wednesday as Australian authorities rushed to stop a growing outbreak of the highly contagious Delta Covid-19 variant from spreading to other regions.

More than 30 people have been diagnosed with Covid-19 since the cluster emerged in the city's Bondi Beach area last week, the latest in a string of flare-ups that highlight Australia's difficulty in extinguishing outbreaks.

New South Wales state Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced new restrictions that will apply for the next week, including the immediate ban on non-essential travel out of Sydney and limits on social gatherings.

A "very huge proportion" of Sydney's five million residents are subject to the travel ban, which applies to seven local government areas where Covid-19 cases have been detected, she said.

Authorities stopped short of ordering the closure of restaurants and bars, but singing and dancing are out, while major events can still go ahead with stadium capacity limited to 50 percent.

Officials pleaded with Sydney residents to follow the new rules.

"I know from my experience ... there is a degree of tiredness and a degree of apathy about the response to the virus," said NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard.

"But in a sense, this is a new and more dangerous version of the virus and that apathy has to be swept away."

Australia has been among the world's most successful countries in containing Covid-19, with just over 30,000 cases and 910 deaths.

The latest outbreak has been linked to a driver for international flight crews who contracted the Delta variant of the virus, which was first identified in India.

New Zealand authorities also tightened Covid-19 restrictions in Wellington after a Sydney man who visited the capital over the weekend tested positive when he returned home.

The virus has repeatedly escaped Australian hotels used to quarantine returning travellers, and health experts say the outbreaks will continue until large numbers of Australians are vaccinated.

Roughly 6.7 million doses have been administered to date in a population of 25 million, with only a small fraction of those having received both jabs.

hr/dm/qan
Syrian mother Umm Saeed was so desperate to find her two jailed sons she even sold the family furniture to pay "fixers", but a decade of deceit has left her no closer to the truth.

"Had they asked for my heart, I would have handed it over," the 63-year-old mother told AFP by phone from central Syria, using a pseudonym for fear of reprisal.

But "they lied to me".

In war-torn Syria, where tens of thousands of people have disappeared into a murky web of regime jails infamous for torture, a booming trade has emerged for "fixers" offering to help families locate or save their loved ones.

Policemen, lawyers, businessmen and even lawmakers, with security and judicial contacts, demand steep fees to dig up information about a disappeared son or brother, allow a visit, reduce their sentence, or obtain their release.

Some efforts are successful, while more often scammers pocket the money and stop answering phone calls.

It's normally families who seek out the so-called fixers, but sometimes they receive cold calls persuading them to pay up for a photo or voice recording, only to vanish with the money.

AFP spoke to members of eight such families, most of whom asked that their real names not be used.

Umm Saeed said her two sons were detained in 2012.

"Whenever someone told me about a potential middleman, I would go to them," said the mother, who suffers from heart problems.

She paid a lawyer who asked for the equivalent of more than $3,000 but "did not provide the slightest bit of information".

Another man claiming to be a policeman was paid with a mobile phone after saying he could get her permission to visit Sednaya, a notorious prison in Damascus.

But when she showed up at the jail which Amnesty International calls a "slaughter house", she was told the pass was fake and sent away.

"I sold my home furniture and my daughters' gold. I have nothing left," she said.

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- 'Black market' -

Diana Semaan, a researcher at Amnesty, said the government's policy of silence on the fate of detainees had created a "black market" for information.

"Families, desperate for information, end up paying huge amounts of money, sometimes their entire life savings, to intermediaries and 'middlemen' close to the Syrian government," she explained.

Suaad, 45, said her family in northern Syria had paid 20 million pounds to various brokers over the years to try to find her brother since he disappeared in 2013.

In April, someone contacted the family asking for payment to release him.

But after they raised the cash, "he told us my brother had died three days earlier", Suaad said.

Two weeks later, another person rang, offering a phone call with her brother.

When the call came, there was no audible voice on the other end of the line; all they got for their money was static.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says around half a million people have entered regime jails since the 2011 start of Syria's conflict, of whom 60,000 have died of poor detention conditions or torture.

Another mother, 56-year-old Umm Yahya, said she had managed to visit her son just once, six months after he was detained in Idlib, northwest Syria, in 2012.

"I barely recognised him. His weight had dropped from 110 (240 pounds) to less than 50 kilos," she said.

She has heard nothing since.

Her family has over the years poured a small fortune into the pockets of possible intermediaries, selling two plots of land and a house in Idlib to cover the costs, but to no avail.

Her husband has grown increasingly reluctant to squander the family's savings. Two years ago, a lawyer asked for $10,000, but her husband refused.

"If a hundred more people turned up, even if there was just a one percent chance of success, I would do it again," said Umm Yahya.

- Estimated $900 million in bribes -

The Association of Detainees and Missing Persons at Sednaya prison accused the regime in a report earlier this year of using detention as a means to extort money and "increase the influence of security services, their leaders, influential people in its government, some judges and lawyers."

It carried out hundreds of interviews showing that families had paid a total of more than $2.7 million over the years in return for the promise of information, a visit or a release from jail.

Based on that figure, the association estimates that the Syrian regime has made almost $900 million through "extortion" of families over the past decade.

Noura Ghazi, director of Nophotozone, an association which helps detainees' relatives, said many lawyers "invested" in state security courts.

Most of them deceive the families, "but some pay bribes to judges and to the security apparatuses, while taking a percentage or just their fees, and succeed in getting a person released", she said.

Though most efforts fail, three people told AFP they had managed to transfer their relative to a better jail or even to have them freed.

Tamer said his family spent the past two years trying to save his brother Nizar from death in detention.

Nizar was arrested in 2018 in southern Syria despite having signed a so-called "reconciliation deal" with the regime.

The family learned he had been taken to Sednaya and was to appear before a military court infamous for handing out death sentences.

An MP asked for a payment of $40,000, but the family did not trust him.

They agreed instead to pay the same amount to a lawyer but only after his sentence was reduced and he was transferred. Within a month, he delivered and they paid.

Then a presidential pardon reduced his sentence further and Nizar was set free, returning home after having shed 30 kilos.

Tamer said that had they known about the upcoming pardon, they would have done it all anyway.

"All we wanted was to get him out of there as soon as possible."

rh/ah/jmm/hc
The Taliban were in control of Afghanistan's main crossing with Tajikistan on Wednesday following a blistering onslaught across the country's north, as President Ashraf Ghani prepared to visit Washington.

The militants have swallowed up a dizzying number of rural districts in recent weeks, stirring fears that Afghan security forces will buckle once US and international troops wind up their withdrawal from the country.

Tuesday's capture of the border hub of Shir Khan Bandar -- along the key trade route to Central Asia -- came as the Taliban encircled nearby Kunduz city, putting it on the verge of becoming the first provincial capital to fall.

"There are many, many displaced people who fled the districts to come here, but there is no electricity, no water and the fighting has reached the gates of the city," Gulbuddin, a 25 year-old resident of Kunduz, told AFP.

"The markets are mostly closed, and there is serious shortage of food items and other basic stuff in the city," added Mustafa, another local who gave only his first name out of security concerns.

Afghan government forces have vowed to retake lost territory, while several informal militias in the north have also begun mobilising.

But Kunduz provincial council member Amruddin Wali said it appeared there were no plans at the moment for a government counteroffensive at the border.

Tajikistan's national security committee confirmed Tuesday that more than 100 Afghan servicemen had crossed the border to escape the Taliban onslaught.

"We have reports from our local staff that the Taliban have confiscated all the goods and commodities in the port, and they have destroyed the customs office," said Massoud Wahdat, a spokesman for the Kunduz chamber of commerce and industries.

A Taliban spokesperson denied their forces had ransacked the facilities and sought to reassure the traders that business would continue at the Tajik border crossing despite the fighting.

Story continues

"All commercial import and export will function as normal and administrative work of traders will continue uninterrupted," said a statement released by the Taliban.

- Vital US air support -

The surge in violence comes as President Ghani is set to land in Washington later this week, where he will meet with his counterpart Joe Biden in the White House.

The speed and breath of the Taliban's offensive has stirred fears that Afghan security forces may crumble in the absence of vital US airpower and logistical support.

Since early May, the Taliban have launched several major offensives targeting government forces and say they have seized over 80 of the country's 421 districts, although many of their claims are disputed by the government and difficult to independently verify.

The Pentagon said on Monday that it would complete its full withdrawal by September 11, but the pace of the pullout could be slowed given the Taliban's gains.

Over the weekend, Ghani replaced two top ministers charged with managing the country's faltering security.

The embattled leader appears to be increasingly isolated in Kabul, while infighting within the government is rife and peace talks with the Taliban in Qatar deadlocked.

Biden has ordered the departure of all US forces from Afghanistan by this year's 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks that triggered the invasion.

In moving to end America's longest war, the president has said he believes that no more can be achieved.

us-ds/ecl/fox/oho
Billy Ison makes a statement against arming teachers during a meeting of the school board at Madison Jr./Sr. High School in Madison Twp., Ohio, on Tuesday, April 24, 2018. The school board voted unanimously to approve arming educators inside of schools.

COLUMBUS, Ohio  School teachers and staff in the Buckeye State can't carry firearms on duty without extensive police training or 20 years of experience, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled Wednesday.

In a 4-3 decision, the Ohio Supreme Court struck down a Madison Local School District policy that allowed up to 10 employees with concealed handgun licenses and training to carry weapons while in school.

The policy was enacted after four students were injured in a 2016 shooting at Madison Junior-Senior High School, prompting a group of parents to challenge the Butler County school district's policy in court.

Chief Justice Maureen OConnor, who was joined by three Democratic justices, wrote the school district's policy violated Ohio law. The court affirmed an early ruling from the 12th District Court of Appeals, which ruled that teachers needed to have police training to conceal weapons at school.

Surviving a school shooting: The shooting wasnt the worst thing to happen to me

"(Ohio law) prohibits a school from employing a person who goes armed while on duty in his or her job unless the employee has satisfactorily completed an approved basic peace-officer-training program or has 20 years of experience as a peace officer," O'Connor wrote.

The remaining Republican justices dissented from the court's decision. Justice Pat DeWine and Justice Sharon Kennedy, who are both running for chief justice in 2022, wrote that teachers and school staff did not need extensive police training.

"Had the General Assembly intended to condition the authority to carry a firearm in a school safety zone on having the basic police training required of peace officers, it could have written the statute that way," Kennedy wrote. "It did not."

Erin Gabbard, one of the parents challenging the policy, called the ruling a "relief."

"Like any parents, we just want our kids to be safe," she said. "Once this ruling is implemented, parents will at least know that the teachers who carry firearms in our schools are properly trained, as required by state law.

Story continues

The Ohio Supreme Court's decision could prompt lawmakers to redefine what training teachers and staff need to carry weapons at school.

'Zero tolerance policy': As gun violence soars, Biden targets rogue dealers, illegal firearms in new crime strategy

Former Sen. Bill Coley attempted to loosen the training requirements for teachers last year. His proposed changes passed the Ohio Senate but never became law. Rep. Thomas Hall, R-Madison Township, introduced a similar bill earlier this year.

Hall said he was disappointed in the Ohio Supreme Court decision, but it underscores why school boards need the authority to impose their own training standards.

The Ohio General Assembly has a responsibility to give our school districts the option to protect their students and staff by embracing local control and establishing appropriate baseline training requirements for educators to carry a firearm, he said.

The Ohio Fraternal Order of Police offered an alternative: Working with local law enforcement.

Schools should encourage the use of resource officers on campus, Ohio FOP President Gary Wolske said. The answer isnt arming untrained teachers, but engaging with and using trained professionals.

Read the decision here:

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Jessie Balmert is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Akron Beacon Journal, Cincinnati Enquirer, Columbus Dispatch and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Ohio Supreme Court: Armed teachers need police training, experience
Michael Foster of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union holds a sign outside an Amazon facility in Bessemer, Ala, where warehouse workers voted in April against joining the union. (Jay Reeves / Associated Press)

One of the nations largest unions, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, announced it will mount a nationwide effort to organize Amazons delivery and warehouse workers, declaring that the multibillion-dollar behemoth is an existential threat to workers across the logistics industry.

In a resolution presented Tuesday at its 30th international convention, the 1.4-million-member union proposed to fully fund and supply all the resources necessary to help Amazon workers organize.

The announcement, coinciding with Amazons annual sales bonanza Prime Day, comes in the wake of a stunning defeat for the labor movement and its progressive allies.

In April, Amazon workers at a giant Bessemer, Ala., warehouse voted overwhelmingly against representation by the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union after a fierce anti-union campaign by the company.

Amazon exploits its employees, contractors, and employees of contractors via wage theft, fraudulent classification, intense production quotas, dehumanizing work environments, unsafe workplaces and production standards, low wages, high turnover, no voice on the job, lack of job security and outsourced jobs, the resolution said.

The Teamsters' 500 locals, meeting online, are expected to approve the initiative Thursday.

Amazon did not respond to a request for comment.

With 1 million workers, the Seattle e-commerce giant is on pace to be the nations biggest company, capturing market share from UPS, the Teamsters' largest unit, and other logistics companies. It is already one of Southern Californias largest employers, feeding goods from the sprawling ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to destinations across the U.S.

At least at first, the Teamsters will reportedly bypass the standard approach to union organizing through facility-by-facility elections under the National Labor Relations Board, which has been widely criticized as favoring employers.

We chose not to go down the path of an NLRB election for the reasons that were validated in the Bessemer union election," National Teamsters Director for Amazon Randy Korgan told Vice this week. "The list is very long in how workers can seek justice on the job. The NLRB is not the only way."

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Instead, the Teamsters are mobilizing their members at UPS and other companies to form alliances with community groups and help train Amazon workers to advocate for their workplace rights  an effort that has already been underway in Southern Californias Inland Empire, where Amazon is the largest employer, and other regions.



In San Bernardino, Teamsters Local 1932 has worked for several years with environmental groups and the Warehouse Worker Resource Center, a nonprofit in Ontario, in an effort to force a $200-million Amazon airport cargo hub to boost wages and reduce air pollution from trucks in the smog-plagued region.

Unionizing any part of Amazons exploding workforce would be a brutal challenge. The companys giant workforce has a high worker turnover rate, which makes organizing difficult.

Margaret Cisneros speaks at a town hall meeting in 2019 in San Bernardino. Hundreds of residents who want stable jobs and clean air voiced their concern about a massive air cargo logistics center to be built in the area. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)

"Building genuine worker power at Amazon will require shop-floor militancy by Amazon workers  in addition to unquestioned solidarity from warehousing and delivery Teamsters, Tuesdays resolution warned.

The Teamsters, which lost 9% of its membership during the COVID-19 pandemic, has mounted few organizing campaigns at Amazon facilities.

Despite a decade-plus campaign aimed at truckers serving the Los Angeles and Long Beach port complex, the Teamsters have made little progress in unionizing companies that rely on independent contractors.

The stakes are rising. Amazons global workforce shot up by more than 50% last year as the COVID-19 pandemic drove demand for online shopping.

Last year, the company tripled its suburban logistics nodes in Southern California from nine to 32, according to a survey by the Southern California News Group, adding new facilities in such places as Mission Viejo, Palmdale, Playa Vista and Upland, and quadrupling its industrial footprint.

Amazon is changing the nature of work in our country and touches many core Teamster industries and employers such as UPS, parcel delivery, freight, airline, food distribution and motion picture, and presents an existential threat to the standards we have set in these industries, the Teamsters resolution said.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Nickell Photography / Nickell Photography

We here at GOBankingRates want to help get our nations small businesses back on their feet after the COVID-19 pandemic. To do that, were highlighting readers favorite small businesses around the country, and shining a spotlight on what makes them special to their customers and their towns.

2021 Small Business Spotlight: Check Out Our Small Business Stories, Plus the Nominated Businesses Near You

In this edition of our Small Business Spotlight series, were featuring Nickell Photography, a photography business based in Cedar Park, Texas. Owner Nickell Blair  a photographer for 15 years  photographs anything from weddings to graduations, and even births, and has photographed clients around the U.S. and abroad. Here, we chat with Blair about how her own wedding photo fail inspired her to start her business, how shes been able to juggle family and career, and the best way you can support your favorite service industry professionals.

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Was there a particular moment or experience that inspired you to start your business?

When my husband and I got married, we were discouraged by our options for photographers. We ended up using a neighbor that was a professional photographer who fit into our budget. We were so disappointed with our photos! Its the one thing I wish I could go back and change. Id always loved photography, and my husband was already a wedding videographer, so making the leap to start my business wasnt a surprise to anyone.

Keep Reading: Meet the Ohio Grandmother Who Launched a One-of-a-Kind Candle Company During the Pandemic

What did you take from past experiences or jobs that you knew you wanted to be a part of your new business?

The most important thing for me when starting my business was creating relationships with my clients. When someone is uncomfortable with their photographer, it shows. I strive to be someone they can be comfortable with and have fun with. My favorite compliment is, That was so fun! I wasnt expecting it to be fun!

Story continues

Check Out: Arizona Couple Turns a Family Ranch Into a Lavender-Filled Oasis

What has been the most rewarding aspect of being a business owner?

I have loved the flexibility. Ive been able to be around and raise my four kids. I love being able to make my own schedule. I still work hard and get busy, but Im able to prioritize my family. Im so grateful I have been able to do that.

Read: A Zero-Waste Store Grows in Brooklyn

How has the pandemic affected your business?

Unfortunately, I definitely felt the effects of the pandemic. Nearly all of my weddings were either postponed or canceled. And booking new weddings has been slow coming back. Hopefully, it will continue to pick up.

How can people continue to support your business during this time?

The best way to support is to refer. Referrals are how most of my business finds me. If you know a photographer  or anyone in the service industry, really  tell all your friends. Spread the word!

Read More: This Midwest Mom Credits Her Daughter for Inspiring Her Bath & Body Business

What advice would you give to someone who wants to start their own business?

Shadow as many people as you can. Educate yourself thoroughly. Theres a lot more to it than people realize. People assume I just take pictures and give them to the client. Theres so. Much. More. Its hard work, but its so rewarding!

Do you have a small business you want to see in this spotlight? Just let us know.

More From GOBankingRates

This interview has been edited for clarity.

Last updated: June 7, 2021

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: A Texas Photographer Captures All of Lifes Meaningful Moments
Former President Donald Trump participates in a ceremony commemorating the 200th mile of border wall at the international border with Mexico in San Luis, Arizona, June 23, 2020. SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images

Trump will travel to the US-Mexico border next Wednesday with a group of House Republicans.

The former president's trip comes amid GOP attacks on the Biden administration over its border policies.

Trump made immigration a central issue of his campaign and administration.

See more stories on Insider's business page.

Former President Donald Trump will visit the US-Mexico border next week along with about a dozen House Republicans, according to a Politico report on Wednesday.

The lawmakers are members of the Republican Study Committee (RSC), a conservative caucus in the House GOP that also met with Trump at his Bedminster club in New Jersey earlier this month, per Politico.

The upcoming border trip comes as Republicans have attacked the Biden administration for months over its handling of an uptick in migrants at the US-Mexico border.

"President Trump spent four years fixing the border. But the Biden administration broke it again, and we are now experiencing the worst border crisis in our history," GOP Rep. Jim Banks of Indiana told Politico. "That's why the RSC has made carrying on the Trump legacy on immigration our top priority this Congress and why we are heading to the border with President Trump to explain how we can end this national embarrassment."

Trump announced last week that he accepted an invitation from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott for an "official visit" to the southern border on June 30.

The former president made immigration and the creation of a "border wall" a central issue of his campaign and his administration. Since leaving office, he's kept that rhetoric alive. The trip is another break from the modern precedent that former presidents step back from public life and don't politically attack the current office holder, especially outside of an election year.

"The Biden Administration inherited from me the strongest, safest, and most secure border in U.S history and in mere weeks they turned it into the single worst border crisis in U.S history," Trump said last Tuesday in a statement released through his leadership PAC, Save America. Details of the trip's exact location have not yet been announced.

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Trump's ex-spokesperson Jason Miller previously teased in March that the former president was considering a trip to the border at some point, but was waiting for President Joe Biden to "fail on his own" first.

Many Republicans have blamed the rise in migrants at the border on Biden's rollback of Trump-era immigration policies. Yet Biden has pushed back on the criticism, previously saying that the surge happens "every year" and pointing to factors like natural disasters, violence, and poverty as reasons behind it. He has warned prospective migrants not to come to the border as his administration works on reforming the US' immigration policy.

Top GOP members have also blasted Vice President Kamala Harris for not personally taking a trip to the border, though she and the White House have responded that other administration officials have gone down on several occasions. Harris recently traveled to Mexico and Guatemala, where she met with leaders to discuss and address the underlying causes of migration.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Canadian authorities are investigating the burning of two Catholic Churches located in separate First Nations reserves.

The Sacred Heart Church, located on Penticton Indian Band lands, and the St. Gregorys Church, on the territory of the Osoyoos Indian Band, burned down on Monday night. The two churches, which are both more than a century old, are located about 40 km, or roughly 25 miles, apart.

Police are regarding the fires, which coincided with Indigenous Peoples' Day and an outpour of anger from indigenous communities after the discovery of the remains of 215 indigenous children buried at a residential school, as suspicious.

"Should our investigation deem these fires as arson, the RCMP will be looking at all possible motives and allow the facts and evidence to direct our investigative action," said Penticton South Okanagan Royal Canadian Mounted Police Sgt. Jason Bayda.

The chief of the volunteer fire department that extinguished one of the fires stated, We believe by looking at the scene and the surroundings that there was a liquid accelerant used  Early indications are that it was set.

REMAINS OF 215 CHILDREN DISCOVERED AT DEFUNCT SCHOOL FOR FIRST NATIONS STUDENTS IN CANADA

The Penticton Indian Band released a statement, saying, We, along with the Osoyoos Indian Band  are in disbelief and anger over these occurrences as these places of worship provided service to members who sought comfort and solace in the church  Please do not approach our Indigenous members and ask how we feel about it. This is a fresh wound that needs time to heal and contextualize our feelings as we will support the investigative efforts."

The burning of the two Catholic churches follows an announcement from authorities last month about the discovery of the remains of 215 children outside a former residential school near the town of Kamloops. The ages of the victims vary, and the causes of death are unknown. The school was run by the Catholic Church.

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Between 1883 and 1996, Canada attempted to assimilate their indigenous population by sending their children to Christian residential schools. The schools forbade the children from speaking their native languages and engaging with their culture or religion, teaching them the English language, Western culture, and the Christian religion. Widespread abuse was reported in these schools.

The indigenous community of Canada called upon the Catholic Church to apologize for its role in the residential school system, with some going a step further and demanding reparations to indigenous communities. The Ottowa Archbishop apologized for the Churchs involvement, while Pope Francis expressed sorrow but stopped short of an apology.



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Local Catholic parishes have reached out to the indigenous community to mend relations. Father Obi Ibekwe, the head of several parishes surrounding the burned churches, met with several tribal chiefs on June 11 after a vigil for the 215 discovered children.

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Tags: Canada, Catholic Church, Catholic, Native Americans, Schools

Original Author: Brady Knox

Original Location: Two Catholic churches burned down in separate First Nations reserves in Canada
BANGKOK (Reuters) - The U.S. embassy in Thailand on Wednesday turned down a direct appeal to fly in coronavirus vaccines for its citizens but said the U.S. government was taking actions to boost vaccine access worldwide.

The embassy in a message to its citizens in Thailand said the state department could not provide vaccines to the millions of Americans abroad, but would advocate for equitable access locally.

The message comes after four U.S. citizens' groups last month wrote to Secretary of State Antony Blinken asking for Thailand to be made a pilot project for vaccinating Americans abroad, who should have the same rights as at home.

U.S. embassies have posted information about local vaccinations on their websites, saying the U.S. government does not provide them.

Thailand's mass vaccination drive, which includes foreigners, started this month amid its worst coronavirus outbreak so far. A record 51 deaths were announced on Wednesday.

So far, about 2.3 million people in Thailand have been fully vaccinated.

France's embassy on Wednesday started vaccinating its citizens in Thailand. China has donated one million vaccine doses to Thailand, with 400,000 earmarked for its nationals.

The need to vaccinate elderly Americans who may be unable to travel home was "paramount", Paul Risley, a U.S. citizen and chair of Democrats Abroad, told Reuters.

Vaccinating American citizens would help alleviate the burden for Thailand, Risley said.

The U.S. government will release seven million vaccine doses to countries in Asia, including Thailand, the embassy said.

(Reporting by Chayut Setboonsarng and Panarat Thepgumpanat; Editing by Martin Petty)
Boris Johnson Getty

UK asks schoolchildren to sing "One Nation, One Britain" song as the country marks 5 years since Brexit.

The call by the Education department was met with thousands of mostly derisive responses.

The UK on Wednesday marked the anniversary of Britain's vote to leave the European Union.

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The UK government has backed a campaign for schoolchildren to come together and sing a song for "One Nation, One Britain day", as the country marks five years since the vote to leave the European Union.

The Education Department on Tuesday tweeted a link to the campaign, which has been championed by Conservative members of Parliament.

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The song, which includes the lyrics "We are Britain and we have one dream to unite all people in one great team", ends with the line "Strong Britain, Great Nation," repeated four times.

The campaign website, linked to by the government, is encouraging school children to sing the song this Friday.

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The call was met with widespread mockery on social media, with thousands of responses to the tweet by the department headed up by Gavin Williamson.

Downing Street figures have since distanced themselves from the call.

Boris Johnson's spokesman on Wednesday said that while the prime minister "supports schools promoting fundamental British values" and endorses "One Nation One Britain's aim" the government has "not asked people to sing songs or promote any specific materials for One Britain One Nation day."

It comes as the UK marks five years since the vote for Brexit.

Marking the occasion, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a statement on Tuesday that: "The decision to leave the EU may now part of our history, but our clear mission is to utilise the freedoms it brings to shape a better future for our people."

A poll published on Tuesday suggests that a narrow majority of British people now oppose Brexit.

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51% of people told pollsters Savanta/Comres that they would vote to Remain in the EU, as opposed to 49% who would still back Britain's exit.

Separate polling released by NatCen and What the UK thinks this week found limited enthusiasm for the terms of Britain's exit, however.

Just 21% in Britain said the UK had left the EU with a good deal, compared with 36% who said it had secured a bad deal.

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A British police officer who tasered ex-Premier League star Dalian Atkinson and kicked him twice in the head was Wednesday convicted of manslaughter in a verdict labelled "historic" by campaigners.

A six-week trial in Birmingham was told Benjamin Monk fired a Taser three times -- including a single 33-second discharge -- and left two bootlace prints on Atkinson's forehead during the incident on August 15, 2016.

Jurors took nearly 19 hours to reach unanimous verdicts on Monk, whom prosecutors said had exaggerated the threat posed by the former Aston Villa player and lied about the events to justify excessive and unlawful force.

The trial was told the 48-year-old star went into cardiac arrest after being taken from the scene, near his father's home in Telford, about 30 miles (48 kilometres) from Birmingham, in an ambulance, and was pronounced dead in hospital about an hour after he was tasered.

Monk, who was cleared of an alternative charge of murder, maintained his actions were lawful self-defence.

The 43-year-old officer was granted bail until sentencing at the same court on Monday. He was told by the judge that "a custodial sentence in his case is inevitable".

Jurors are still deliberating over an assault charge relating to Monk's colleague and former girlfriend, police constable Mary Ellen Bettley-Smith.

Following the verdict, charity INQUEST said no British police officer had been found guilty of murder or manslaughter following a death in custody or after police contact in England and Wales since 1986.

Director Deborah Coles said the "historic" verdict sent a strong message that officers were not above the law.

"Dalian's death is not an isolated case but part of a systemic problem," she said.

"For decades black men, particularly those in mental health crisis, have disproportionately died following use of force by police.

"True justice requires structural change across our society and its institutions to address racism, and respond better to mental ill-health and state violence."

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Atkinson's family said the former footballer, a high-profile forward for Aston Villa in the early 1990s, who also played for Sheffield Wednesday, Ipswich and Real Sociedad, was "much missed".

"We are hugely relieved that the whole country now knows the truth about how Dalian died," said a family statement.

"While it has been hard for us not to be able to talk about the details of Dalian's death, it has been even harder to sit through this trial and to hear PC Monk try to justify the force he used."

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LONDON (Reuters) - Britain said on Wednesday no Russian warning shots were fired at a British navy ship in the Black Sea and did not recognise claims that bombs were dropped in its path.

Interfax cited Russia's defence ministry as saying that a Russian military ship fired warning shots at a British Royal Navy destroyer after it entered Russian waters in the Black Sea, and a Russian jet dropped bombs in its path as a warning.

"We believe the Russians were undertaking a gunnery exercise in the Black Sea and provided the maritime community with prior-warning of their activity," Britain's Ministry of Defence said in a statement on Twitter.

"No shots were directed at HMS Defender and we do not recognise the claim that bombs were dropped in her path."

(Reporting by Andrew MacAskill; editing by William James)
The UN's envoy to the Central African Republic (CAR) accused the nation's security forces and their Russian allies on Wednesday of multiple human rights violations.

The CAR's closer relationship with Moscow dates back to 2018, when Russia sent "instructors" to help train its beleaguered armed forces and supplied small arms, gaining exemption from a UN weapons embargo.

One of the world's poorest countries, the CAR has been chronically unstable since it gained independence from France in 1960.

Mankeur Ndiaye told the UN Security Council that human rights violations and breaches of international humanitarian law are "attributable to the Central African armed forces, bilateral forces and other security personnel", referring to the hundreds of Russian paramilitaries deployed in the country.

The CAR has become a key area in the controversy over the role in Africa of the Wagner mercenary group which is allegedly run by the shadowy businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin, a close confidant of President Vladimir Putin.

Prigozhin was sanctioned by Washington which accused him of playing a role in meddling in the 2016 presidential elections, in particular through his internet "troll factory." He has denied any involvement.

Deputy US Ambassador to the UN Richard Mills also spoke out against the paramilitaries.

"We are troubled as well by continued reports of Central African armed forces and Russian instructors committing violations of international humanitarian law," he said. "They are operating (as a) direct extension of Russia's ministry of defense."

France's ambassador to the UN, Nicolas de Riviere, also raised concerns about armed groups.

"Some will attempt to deny the presence of the Wagner company. Therefore, who are these men involved in the fighting... and to whom do they answer for their actions?" he asked.

Russians also provide CAR President Faustin Archange Touadera's personal protection and his powerful national security advisor, Valery Zakharov, is a Russian.

"The deployment of bilateral forces will only gain in utility and legitimacy if they contribute to the protection of civilians against the abuses of armed groups," said Ndiaye.

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The University of Hartford will require all students to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by mid-August, the school said this week.

Having a fully vaccinated student body will a give us the best chance to return to a more typical college experience, with in-person services and activities, and fewer restrictions in the residential neighborhoods and in the classroom, administrators said in a campuswide notice issued Tuesday. Science continues to show that the vaccine is safe, effective, and the best way to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

UHarts decision follows similar announcements from several Connecticut schools, including UConn, Wesleyan University and Yale University. A spokesperson for the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities system has said it is strongly considering a vaccine requirement.

Once UHart students receive either one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine or two doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, they will have to upload an image of their CDC vaccination card to their Student Health Portal account, as well as provide the dates they received the doses. For international students, the university will accept vaccines authorized for emergency use by the World Health Organization.

If you have received a vaccine that is not on this list, it is possible that Health Services may ask you to re-vaccinate based on CDC guidance available in late summer, the school said. We will work with you through that process.

In alignment with UHarts current policies for all required vaccines, the school said limited exemptions may be granted for medical and religious reasons. Students who want exemptions would have to apply for one by July 15, which includes completing forms through the state government. They will also have a one-on-one consultation with a Hartford HealthCare partner of the university.

If you are granted an exemption, you may be required to be tested weekly for COVID-19 and may be charged a fee for the administration of this test, the universitys website states. If you contract COVID-19 or are a close contact of a confirmed case, you may be asked to isolate or quarantined off campus at your expense.

According to the schools calendar, UHart residence halls will open for student move-in starting Aug. 19, with classes beginning the following Monday.

Amanda Blanco can be reached at ablanco@courant.com.
A woman walks near a wall depicting the Cuban flag in Havana as the UN meets in New York (AFP via Getty Images)

Cuba slammed Joe Biden for breaking an election promise to improve relations between the two countries after the US voted against a United Nations resolution to end the blockade of the island.

The Biden administration voted against the UN General Assemblys annual resolution to end the economic embargo despite the presidents campaign commitment to lift current restrictions on remittances and travel.

Cubas Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez told the UN in New York on Wednesday that Mr Bidens "pernicious passivity" was due to the Democrats electoral ambitions in Florida.

"The electoral platform for the Democratic party around the election promised voters that it would rapidly reverse actions taken by the government of Donald Trump, and in particular that it would eliminate restrictions on travel to Cuba, remittances and the fulfilment of bilateral migratory agreements, including restrictions to the issuance of visas," Mr Rodriguez said.

"What will those that who voted for president Joseph Biden think of what is happening. Mr President, the human damage caused by the blockade is incalculable. No Cuban family has escaped the effects of this inhumane policy."

The Trump administration added more than 200 sanctions against the Communist-run government, with the State Department designating the country a state sponsor of terrorism just days before the former president left office.

Asked in March about the new administrations position toward the country, press secretary Jen Psaki said it was carefully reviewing policy decisions made by their predecessors.

A Cuba policy shift is not currently among President Bidens top priorities, Ms Psaki told reporters

It came after a group of 80 Democrats from the House of Representatives wrote Mr Biden to lift Mr Trumps "cruel sanctions and revert to the position of former president Barack Obama

With the stroke of a pen, you can assist struggling Cuban families and promote a more constructive approach, the letter said.

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Despite pressure from within his own party, the US voted against the UN resolutions to lift the embargo for the 28th time  with the one exception in 2016 when Washington abstained under Obama.

The USs diplomat at the UN on Wednesday, Rodney Hunter, told the General Assembly that sanctions against Cuba were a "legitimate tool" in achieving its foreign policy objectives and to support the Cuban people.

"Sanctions are one set of tools in our broader effort toward Cuba, to advance democracy, to promote respect for Human rights, and help the Cuban people exercise the fundamental freedoms enshrined in the universal declaration of human rights," he said.

"The United States opposes this resolution. We encourage this body to support the Cuban people in their quest to determine their own future," he added.

While the UN resolution passed with 184 votes versus two against (including Israel), it carries no binding consequence at lifting the embargo, which can only be done by the US Congress.

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Witnesses say airstrike in Ethiopia's Tigray kills dozens

Germany hosts conference to push for progress in Libya
The U.S. will allow asylum seekers whose claims were denied or dismissed due to a missed court date under the Trump administration "Remain in Mexico" policy to seek refuge again.

Under the Remain in Mexico policy, or Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), asylum seekers were required to wait in Mexico for their court dates before entering the U.S. On Wednesday, those migrants whose asylum claims were denied or dismissed after they missed a court date will be able to begin registering for another shot.

The move amounts to a significant step by the Biden administration to reverse the effects of Trump-era policies theyve deemed inhumane.

"As part of our continued effort to restore safe, orderly, and humane processing at the Southwest Border, DHS will expand the pool of MPP-enrolled individuals who are eligible for processing into the United States," a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson told Fox News. "Beginning June 23, 2021, DHS will include MPP enrollees who had their cases terminated or were ordered removed in absentia (i.e., individuals ordered removed while not present at their hearings). DHS will continue to process for entry into the United States MPP enrollees with pending proceedings."

US BEGINS ADMITTING MIGRANTS FROM MEXICO, AS BIDEN ADMINISTRATION WINDS DOWN TRUMP-ERA POLICY

Its not clear how many people will be eligible for entry into the U.S. under the program.

Nearly 40,000 cases were denied or dismissed, according to Syracuse Universitys Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse. Its unknown how many cases were denied for failing to appear in court, or how many stayed in the Mexico border region.

A DHS official told AP the Biden administration is aware of concerns the move might draw those who have left the region to make the dangerous journey across Mexico again and is considering taking responsibility for bringing people into the U.S. as they await their claims.

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BIDEN EXPANDS ENTRY OF MIGRANTS KEPT IN MEXICO UNDER TRUMP

Biden ended MPP immediately upon taking the presidency, and began what his administration called a "phased" entry of migrants into the U.S. Officials said approximately 25,000 migrants were waiting in Mexico as part of MPP.

Proponents said it stopped the pull factors bringing migrants north, and was effective in weeding out illegitimate asylum claims. But critics claimed it was cruel and designed to close the border -- pointing also to squalid conditions in camps set up on the Mexican side of the border.

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After scrapping the program, the administration set up a virtual registration system, where migrants are given a date and time to appear at a staging site in Mexico, before being transported to a point of entry.

Fox News' Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
The top US military official, General Mark Milley, on Wednesday defended the necessity of studying even controversial parts of history, saying accusations by Republican lawmakers that the armed forces are teaching recruits a controversial theory about racism were offensive.

At the core of the argument, which has mostly taken place on social media, is a legal framework called critical race theory.

The term refers to a school of thought that first appeared in American legal scholarship in the 1970s, as a way to analyze racism as part of a system with laws and power structures, rather than at the level of individual prejudice.

But Republican detractors have recently turned the phrase into a catch-all term to refer to all efforts to teach grade school and high school students about grim themes of racism in American history, including slavery and segregation.

Two Republican lawmakers in the House of Representatives, including Trump supporter Matt Gaetz, took advantage of a congressional hearing with Milley, who is the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to question the two about whether critical race theory is being taught in military academic institutions.

"And I personally find it offensive that we are accusing the United States military... of being, quote, 'woke' or something else, because we're studying some theories that are out there," that "started at Harvard years ago," Milley said, while Gaetz shook his head in irritation.

Woke is a slang term that refers to awareness of social injustice, especially about race, that is used with derision among some conservatives.

"But I do think it's important actually, for those of us in uniform to be open-minded and be widely read," Milley said.

"And the United States Military Academy is a university, and it is important that we train and we understand," he said.

"And I want to understand white rage. I'm white and I want to understand it," Milley said, referring to the motivations of pro-Trump rioters involved in the assault on the Capitol January 6.

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"I've read Mao Zedong. I've read Karl Marx. I've read Lenin. That doesn't make me a communist," Milley said.

"So what is wrong with understanding... the country for which we are here to defend?" gesturing to his uniform.

For his part, Austin, the first Black Pentagon chief, called Republicans' questions on the topic "spurious."

sl-elc/caw/dw
(AP)

A Virginia school board meeting descended in chaos on Tuesday after shouting and violence erupted during public commentary about transgender policies.

The Loudoun County Public Schools board cut the meeting short after participants at the meeting refused to follow several orders to quiet down.

Members of the public attended the meeting in Ashburn, Virginia, to either voice their opposition or support towards the public school district changing its transgender policies.

Under the draft school policy the board was considering, teachers would be required to refer to students by their preferred names and pronouns. Transgender students would also have access to facilities and activities that matched their gender identity.

The policy calls for all students to be treated with dignity and respect, regardless of their sex, sexual orientation, transgender status, or gender identity/expression, NBC Washington reports.

Loudoun was considering a revision to its school policy in accordance with a recently passed Virginia state law that required school systems to alter their policies on how they treat transgender students.

But the school board meeting to discuss the changes descended into chaos during the public comment portion.

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Attendees started to talk over each other and refused to cooperate. The meeting then ended with one person arrested for disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, and one person was injured, officials said.

Another attendee was issued a trespassing summons, according to the Loudon County Sheriffs Department.

The Loudoun County School Board ended the public comment section of its June 22 meeting on a unanimous vote after Chair Brenda L. Sheridan repeatedly warned the attendees in the Board Room that loud public demonstrations violated the decorum of the meeting, the board said in a statement. Sheridan had previously, and repeatedly, warned the public after introducing the public comment section with a reading of [the policy]. Earlier the chair recessed the School Board meeting for five minutes due to disruptions before the unanimous vote to end public comment was taken.

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The school districts policy towards trangender students already earned national headlines after an elementary school gym teacher refused to follow the guidelines. He said the policy went against his religious beliefs.

The teacher was fired for refusing to follow the policy, but a judge later ordered for him to be reinstated.

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A woman heading east on Interstate 40 crossed the center median Tuesday, striking multiple cars as she entered westbound traffic and killing two people from Wake County, according to the Greensboro Police Department.

The crash occurred just after 4:20 p.m. on I-40 near McConnell Road, police said in a news release.

Priya Hairston, a 19-year-old Summerfield resident, was driving a gray Nissan Altima when she crossed into westbound traffic and struck a white Kia Sorento and a black jeep.

Lisa Tate, a 51-year-old Apex woman, and Victoria Padilla, a 17-year-old Holly Springs girl, were killed during the crash, police said.

Tate was the driver of the Kia, and Padilla was a passenger. Another passenger in the car, a minor who has not been named, was taken to the hospital.

Two other vehicles were involved in the crash, but police said they did not contribute to the wreck and that their drivers were not injured.

Hairston was charged with two counts of misdemeanor death by motor vehicle, and driving left of center, the department said.

The News & Observer has asked Greensboro police for more information about how the crash occurred.

The investigation remains ongoing, and police have asked anyone with information about the incident to contact Greensboro/Guilford CrimeStoppers anonymously at 336-373-1000.
Jun. 22For the next four days, Walgreens is offering $25 in cash rewards for those getting vaccinated at one of their pharmacies. The $25 can come as Walgreens Cash or a gift card.

From June 22 to 26, anyone who gets a COVID-19 vaccine at Walgreens can receive a gift card. For those with a myWalgreens account, the Walgreens Cash will be available immediately following their vaccination. Those without a myWalgreens account can opt in to receive a gift card following their vaccination. Parents or guardians of those aged 12-15 can redeem the Walgreens Cash or gift card on their behalf, Walgreens officials said in a release.

Walgreens officials said that the pharmacy is providing the incentive in support of President Biden's National Month of Action, which encourages eligible adults to get at least one coronavirus vaccine by July 4. According to Walgreens officials, 4,000 of their pharmacies have extended their hours on Fridays in June to help provide more flexible hours for walk-in appointments. Walgreens advises calling to check local hours.

COVID-19 vaccinations are accessible through walk-in appointments or through a scheduled appointment. To schedule an appointment, visit https://www.walgreens.com/topic/promotion/covid-vaccine.jsp or call 1-800-Walgreens.
India Walton, a nurse and progressive activist, upset four-term incumbent Byron Brown in Tuesdays Democratic primary in Buffalo, N.Y., in a bid to become the first socialist mayor of a major American city since 1960.

Walton, who would also become the first female mayor elected in Buffalo, must still win in the November general election  though the last time the city elected a Republican to lead it was during the presidency of John F. Kennedy. There is currently no Republican seeking the office.

While absentee votes have not yet been counted, the Associated Press declared Walton the winner in the race against Brown. She currently holds a lead of 7 percentage points, with 52 percent of the vote to Browns 45. Brown has so far refused to concede defeat, however, until each and every vote is counted.

India Walton in December 2020. (Lindsay DeDario/Reuters)

Walton was endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America, the Working Families Party and Peoples Action. Challenging Brown, who had the advantages of both incumbency and fundraising, she emphasized the need for change and new leadership.

Folks are ready for change, Walton said in an interview earlier this month, according to Politico. The mayors been in office for 16 years, and we have not seen significant improvements in many of our communities, especially those that are primarily occupied by Black people and brown people and poor people."

In her victory speech, Walton said the progressive wing of the Democratic Party is gaining momentum in the state. We set out to not only change Buffalo but to change the way progressive politics are viewed in upstate New York, she said.

Walton campaigns to replace Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown in December. (Lindsay DeDario/Reuters)

Today is only the beginning, she continued. This is about building the infrastructure to challenge every damn seat  Im talking about committee seats, school board, common council. All that we are doing is claiming what is rightfully ours. We are the workers, we do the work. We deserve a government that works with and for us.

Walton has promised she will sign a tenants bill of rights that would institute rent control and create a tenant advocate; remove police from responding to most mental health calls and establish a new response to mental health calls; and declare Buffalo a sanctuary city that would safeguard undocumented immigrants, all in her first 100 days in office. Her long-term goals include increasing city funding for public schools and expanding neighborhood community development.

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In a Wednesday interview with Buffalos WGRZ following her victory, Walton emphasized how her platform as a democratic socialist differs from that of a traditional Democrat. That means we put people first, that means we prioritize the working class, the marginalized, the often unseen, unheard people over profits, corporations and developers, she said.

She went on to emphasize that she does not consider herself a politician, and that what the people need is someone who understands the challenges that average people face.

The last socialist politician to serve as the mayor of a big U.S. city was Frank Zeidler, who was elected to lead Milwaukee in 1948 and served until 1960.

Walton, who used a vigorous grassroots campaign to fundraise, has also promised to incorporate the citizens of Buffalo into her mayoral term. We are going to co-govern. We are doing this together. In the beginning, I said Im taking all of my people with me, and that is exactly what I intend to do, she said.

____

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pentagon is overseeing an orderly withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan and the United States has not seen an increase in violence directed against its troops in the country in the past year, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Wednesday.

Psaki told a news briefing that while there had been increased attacks on Afghan forces and the government compared with a year ago "we have not seen an increase in attacks on our military or presence since February 2020."

(Reporting by Nandita Bose, Steve Holland, Lisa Lambert, Doina Chiacu and David Brunnstrom; Editing by Chris Reese)
Wisconsins Republican-led Assembly approved a measure Tuesday that would penalize local municipalities that pull funding away from police departments.

The bill, passed by the state Senate on June 9 and approved 61-37 by the Assembly, would withhold state aid payments from localities in direct proportion to any amount the local government reduces in its law enforcement budget.

If in any year a municipality decreases the amount of its municipal budget dedicated to hiring, training, and retaining law enforcement officers  so that the amount is less than the amount so dedicated in the previous year, the department of administration shall reduce the municipality's payment under this section by the amount of the decrease in the municipality's budget, the measure read.

PORTLAND TO REDUCE ENFORCEMENT OF LOW-LEVEL TRAFFIC OFFENSES

The reduced aid amount would then become the municipalitys aid payment for subsequent years, according to the measure.

The Republican-backed measure was pushed as a response to defund the police and police funding reallocation initiatives, including a plan to cut funding for more than 100 officers in Milwaukee, according to bill sponsor Republican state Sen. Van Wanggaard.

Fewer officers means when you are threatened, you wait long to have someone come and help you out, said Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, a Republican. When police officers do their jobs, they prevent violence, and thats what we need more of in our society.

We need to have enough officers, so they can do their job, said Republican state Rep. Janel Brandtjen, adding that lawmakers are taking up the bill because we are here to save lives.

All but a single Democrat in the Assembly opposed the measure Tuesday, with one calling the bill "cynical" and "laughable."

The solution is not for the Legislature to try to micromanage these municipal budgeting decisions, said Democratic state Rep. Mark Spreitzer. "Its to actually fund municipal budgets so our communities can make the investments in public safety we would all like to see."

Story continues

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Democratic Gov. Tony Evers's office did not immediately respond to the Washington Examiner when asked whether he would sign the proposal.

Evers has approved other policing-related measures sent to him by the Legislature, including a bill he signed into law Tuesday banning police chokeholds except for self-defense.

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Tags: News, Tony Evers, Wisconsin, Law Enforcement, State Legislatures, Law, Budgets and Deficits

Original Author: Jeremy Beaman

Original Location: Wisconsin Legislature passes bill to penalize localities that cut police funding
By Katharine Houreld

ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) -An air strike killed at least 43 people in the town of Togoga in Ethiopia's Tigray region on Tuesday, a medical official told Reuters, after residents said new fighting had flared in recent days north of the regional capital Mekelle.

Ethiopian military spokesman Colonel Getnet Adane did not confirm or deny the incident. He said air strikes were a common military tactic and that government forces do not target civilians.

The bomb hit a market at around 1 p.m., according to a woman who said her husband and 2-year-old daughter had been injured.

"We didn't see the plane, but we heard it," she told Reuters on Wednesday. "When the explosion happened, everyone ran out. After a time we came back and were trying to pick up the injured."

The woman said the market had been full of families, and she did not see any armed forces in the area. "Many, many" people had been killed, she said.

Reuters could not independently verify her account. She and other sources asked not to be identified for fear of reprisals.

The medical official confirmed at least 43 fatalities, citing witnesses and first responders.

A spokesperson for Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and the head of a government task force on Tigray did not respond to requests for comment.

The U.S. State Department said it was concerned by reports of civilian deaths in the market attack and urged Ethiopian authorities to ensure full medical access for all the victims.

"We also call for an urgent and independent investigation, as well as remedial action, to hold those responsible for this attack accountable," State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is deeply alarmed by the reports of civilian casualties, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters in New York.

"We have requested access to the area to assess the situation and see how we can provide assistance," Dujarric said. "The situation in the area remains very, very volatile."

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The airstrike happened as Ethiopian officials counted ballots from national and regional parliamentary elections held this week in seven of the nation's 10 regions.

No voting was held in Tigray, where the military has been battling forces loyal to the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), the region's former ruling party, since November. Security concerns and problems with ballot papers also delayed voting in two other regions.

Residents reported that TPLF forces had entered several towns north of Mekelle in the past three days, withdrawing from one of them within hours.

AMBULANCES BLOCKED

The official and two other health workers helping with the response in Togoga told Reuters on Wednesday that Ethiopian soldiers were blocking the main road from Mekelle to the town and preventing ambulances from reaching the scene.

"Patients are dying right now," the official told Reuters around midday.

He said two ambulances had been able to reach the town via a back road late on Tuesday but did not have the necessary equipment and were not allowed to leave.

He said the teams had counted at least 43 dead, and 44 critically wounded patients needing treatment.

One medical worker told Reuters he had tried to reach the scene six times over two days.

Finally around several ambulances reached Mekelle's Ayder Referral Hospital as night fell. The oldest victim who arrived was 62, and the youngest was six, a doctor there told Reuters. Many had serious injuries, including a man whose brain was exposed, he said.

A doctor who had stayed at the scene overnight told Reuters it was "terrible" and shared pictures of people too wounded to move wrapped in blankets against the cold.

"We heard screaming and crying coming from houses where people died - one family lost four members," she said. "All the houses around the market were flattened, apples and tomatoes lying everywhere."

"Many people who were injured died before we could reach them ... I felt so hopeless."

Military spokesman Getnet denied that the military was blocking ambulances.

(Reporting by Katharine Houreld; Additional reporting by Ayenat Mersie, Giulia Paravicini, Michelle Nichols and Daphne PsaledakisEditing by Catherine Evans, Jonathan Oatis and Grant McCool)
Three teens were stabbed Tuesday evening at an apartment in upstate New York and the suspect remains at large, according to local reporting.

The attack happened at East Hills Apartments in Watertown, a small town in northern New York, near the Canadian border.

Witnesses told WWNY TV they saw one teen get stabbed in the chest and arm, another in the leg, and another in the arm.

CHICAGO POLICE SCOUR HOMELESS CAMPS FOR MAP WHO STABBED MARYLAND GRADUATE STUDENT IN BRAZEN DAYLIGHT ATTACK

The suspect fled the area and police are conducting a search, according to the outlet.

It was unclear was prompted the stabbing. None of the victims identities have been released.

A spokesperson for the Watertown Police Department told Fox News they received a call around 7:20 p.m. about a stabbing but declined to provide more details, citing an ongoing investigation.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Two of the victims were transferred to Samaritan Medical Center, while the third was airlifted to a hospital Syracuse's WWNY reported.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
North Carolina officials are searching for two young children who have been missing since last week.

Elijah Inman, who turns 2 years old next month, and 3-year-old Waylon Inman were last seen in Henderson County on Friday, according to the sheriffs office. They are believed to be with their mother, Emily Ann Brown, who does not have custody of the children, the sheriffs office said.

Brown is wanted for two counts of felonious restraint. By definition, a suspect can be charged with felonious restraint when they unlawfully restrain another person without that persons consent, or the consent of the persons parent or legal custodian if the person is less than 16 years old, and moves the person from the place of the initial restraint by transporting him in a motor vehicle.

Brown is believed to be driving a red 1996 Mazda Protege with the North Carolina license plate TFV-3451, according to the sheriff.

Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Elijah, Waylon or Brown are asked to contact the Henderson County Sheriffs Office at 828-697-4911.
By Paulina Duran and Praveen Menon

SYDNEY/WELLINGTON (Reuters) -Australia's largest city of Sydney re-introduced "soft touch" COVID-19 curbs on Wednesday to contain a widening outbreak of the highly infectious Delta variant, mandating masks in offices while neighbouring states closed their borders.

New Zealand raised the alert level in its capital of Wellington over exposure concerns after an Australian tourist tested positive for the virus upon returning to Sydney from a weekend visit to the neighbouring nation.

The latest virus cluster in Australia's most populous state of New South Wales (NSW) has swelled to more than 30 in a week, prompting New Zealand to halt quarantine-free travel.

On Wednesday, the state tightened curbs for a week on gatherings and movement in Sydney, but stopped short of a full lockdown, as fears grew that the latest cluster of the highly infectious Delta variant could drive a major outbreak.

Travel was limited to essential tasks for residents of seven council areas in Sydney's east and inner west, with home visits limited to five guests and masks mandatory indoors, even in offices and gyms. Some schools moved to online-only teaching.

"We have gone from near and present danger to a very real and present danger, not just in a shopping centre but right across Sydney," the state's health minister, Brad Hazzard, told reporters in Sydney.

The state's first virus cluster in more than a month was linked to a driver who transports overseas airline crew and visited several places, among them a shopping centre in Bondi, thronged by tourists.

Ten new cases were reported by 8 p.m. on Tuesday but 13 further cases have been detected since.

Neighbouring states such as Victoria, the second most populous, and northeastern Queensland shut their borders to travellers from Sydney and surrounding areas, while South Australia closed its border altogether.

Snap lockdowns, tough social distancing rules and swift contact tracing have helped both Australia and New Zealand to limit outbreaks and hold down COVID-19 infections.

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Australia has reported just over 30,350 cases and 910 deaths since the pandemic began, while New Zealand recorded more than 2,300 infections and 26 deaths.

In New Zealand, Wellington will move to a 'level 2' alert, or one short of a lockdown, until Sunday midnight as a precaution against any potential outbreak.

New Zealand, with a population of 5 million, agreed to quarantine-free travel with Australia this year as both had reined in community spread of the virus.

But fresh outbreak worries have emerged after the positive test for the unidentified male Australian tourist, who visited more than a dozen locations from the national Te Papa museum to pubs, cafes, a bookshop and a hotel during his trip.

"This is not a lockdown," New Zealand's COVID response minister Chris Hipkins told a news conference in Wellington. "These are precautionary measures which will remain in place while we contact trace and test all of those we need to."

The level 2 alert allows offices, schools and businesses to stay open but observe social distancing, one of the conditions on which sport and recreation activities are allowed.

But gatherings of more than 100 for events such as weddings and funerals are barred.

(Reporting by Praveen Menon in Wellington and Renju Jose in Sydney; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
Faced with inflating costs, Nelson County Public Schools officials are looking at higher-than-anticipated price tags for several ongoing capital improvement projects, coming in at thousands of dollars more than what was previously estimated.

Ahead of the Nelson County School Board awarding contracts to bidders for the projects, Assistant Superintendent Shannon Irvin told board members during their June 10 meeting the rising costs were the result of a perfect storm.

Unfortunately, we are in the midst of the perfect storm in terms of legislation changing, building products being in short supply, and therefore the costs are going up, and a lack of labor is that the bids have all come in substantially higher than what we anticipated, Irvin said.

Originally estimated to cost more than $250,000, revamping the greenhouse at Nelson County High School  a project that looks to breathe new life into the facility as well as address safety concerns  would cost the division nearly $450,000, Irvin said.

Due to the condition of the greenhouse and the fact that weve identified it as a concern, our recommendation would be to go ahead and approve the low bidder using all of the funds from this years CIP program to be carried over from this year to pay for that project, Irvin said.
Well have to do some more reporting straight to the federal government and not the state, McBride said. Were going to have to provide a status report to the federal government.

The first report to the federal government is due in late August and another is planned in late October, according to McBride. The money must be spent or obligated by December 2024 and all has to be fully expended by Dec. 31, 2026, she said.

It gives you a wide range of time, McBride told supervisors.

The county can choose to aid businesses and nonprofits, as was done with a portion of the CARES money, and the premium pay to essential county workers is up to $13 an hour extra, McBride said.

The ARP money does not cover local matches for any other federal program, economic development and general infrastructure projects such as roads and bridges, non-public safety payroll unless it can be proven to mitigate COVID-19, debt payments, legal settlements, deposits to rainy day reserve funds and general infrastructure, unless covered with revenue loss, according to the report.
Scott said her mother had a wonderful servant spirit in serving and helping others. It was just her joy, she said.

The resolution, which refers to Mary Woodruff as Mama, said Woodruffs Store employed four generations and she was a well-loved member of the community who is missed by many, as well her dedication to her church, Chestnut Grove Baptist, where she played piano for more than 60 years and served as a deaconess.

The shop also gained national attention during an early 2020 visit from journalist Al Roker of the Today show. Roker, who heard about the shops popularity from a Wall Street Journal article, especially hit it off with Mary Woodruff during the interview and gave a glowing review on national television of the shops pies.

She lived a great, long life and had a wonderful family that was always together, Supervisor David Pugh said. I know shes missed every day.

Jennifer Moore, the boards chair, on June 15 presented Scott with the resolution that noted her positive impact on the community.

I thank you for setting a good example for our community on what a family should be like, Pugh said to Scott.
Although bacteria levels vary based on weather conditions, testing sites in or immediately downstream of urban areas tend to be bacteria hotspots, as well as sites in rural areas where farm animals have access to streams and rivers.

Water samples test temperature, turbidity (or water cloudiness), and fecal coliform bacteria each week during the summer months. High levels of fecal coliform bacteria can indicate presence of pathogens harmful to human health. After the samples are analyzed, results are verified for quality assurance and then uploaded each Friday to the James River Associations James River Watch website  an online resource reporting real-time river conditions, created by Chesapeake Commons.

James River Watch has been carefully designed as a quick and easy reference for river users to determine the latest boating and swimming conditions by assimilating multiple data sources all in one place, the release said. Now in its ninth year, James River Watch has undergone several improvements to make it more user-friendly and informative, including river stage forecasts that let you see current and future river levels.

Water quality data demonstrates that the river is safe for recreation most of the time, but its important to understand that conditions can change quickly after rainstorms, said Jamie Brunkow, James Riverkeeper and Senior Advocacy Manager for JRA, in the release. James River Watch is an essential tool for summer months, providing a weekly update on swimming and boating conditions to help ensure a safe, fun time on the water.
The developer will work with the Bedford Regional Water Authority in a sewer study, said Jamey White of White Engineering & Design. The study would assess actual sewer connection capability on site and help determine how many dwellings could realistically be constructed on the acreage. Risk factors and potential complications including root systems and flood-prone areas would be assessed, White added, as the existing neighborhood already wrestles with stormwater drainage problems. Depending on the results of the sewer study, White said it is possible that fewer than the maximum proposed 213 residences could be developed.

We think our option is better, White said of the revised development proposal.

The Town of Bedford Planning Commission unanimously recommended denial of the CUP in a 6-0 vote at its meeting earlier this month, also suggesting the developer work directly with existing Governors Hill neighborhood residents to design developments.
They are like my second parents, former ranch resident Therese Meshall Crawford said Wednesday of the couple, who were her house parents a decade ago. The best way to explain Candice and Tommy is they are the most open-hearted people ever. Candice, she will do anything for you."

Crawford, 26, said she knew the Gulley's two children who were killed in the crash for much of their lives.

It broke my heart. I cried for hours. I still cry, " Crawford, now a mother herself and an aspiring nurse.

Gulley has a God-given ability to relate to children in a positive way, said Jerry Ferguson, a pastor who worked with the ranches for 30 years and hired the Gulleys as house parents.

She was genuine. She had the ability to relate to children at their level, that was very important," Ferguson said

Often known as mom and pop to the girls, the couple would play games with their charges, take them on trips and horse rides, all while pushing them to excel in school and showing unconditional love and support, he recalled. For some of the girls, he said, it was the first taste of a supportive family life.
The morning bell rang at Republican High (Home of the Fightin Pachyderms) as students shuffled in. Gretchen Niedermeyer dry swallowed a couple of pre-emptive aspirins and reminded herself as she did every morning that she was just 16 months and  a glance at the calendar  seven days from her pension.

Good morning, class, she said. As you know, oral reports on African-American history are due this morning. She ignored a chorus of groans. Tommy, you go first.

Tommy Weissmuller stood. My report is on slavery, he said. Slavery is when they made the black people work really hard. Like, they even had to work on weekends. And the Founding Fathers were surprised when they heard about this. They thought it was unfair, so they had a war with the South to make them stop. Then the South realized the Founding Fathers were right and together, they ended slavery. The end.

Mrs. Niedermeyer willed herself to stop grinding her teeth and marked a B+ in her grade book. In the old days, shed have given him an F. But that was before 2021, when Republicans banned Critical Race Theory, the 1619 Project, museums, history books, Spike Lee movies, Spike Lee, dreadlocks, Black Panther comic books and anything else that made white people uncomfortable.
In 2013, there was one in Blacksburg. In 2017, in Wise. Appalachian School of Law in Grundy stepped forward to propose one for 2021. Youngkin accepted way back when. Now McAuliffe has put out a list of five debates hes accepted  Grundy being one of them. Weve been around long enough to understand thats still not a done deal  weve seen too many campaigns get into the tiresome debate over debates, so the whole thing could still blow up.

But right now, it looks like Southwest Virginia will have one. The next challenge: Can the panelists, whoever they may be, get the candidates to focus on issues unique to the region, or will they simply play to the cameras and all those voters in Northern Virginia like some Democrats did in their May debate in Bristol?

4. Rep. Bob Good voted against a medal for police officers who defended the Capitol on Jan. 6.

Youd think this would be the easiest vote possible. Yet 21 Republicans still voted against awarding the Congressional Gold Medal to those officers. One of them was Good, who represents Virginias 5th District.
Veteran jazz saxophonist Nobuo Hara, whose band was at the forefront of Japanese jazz music for decades, died Monday due to pneumonia-induced respiratory failure, his family said Tuesday. He was 94.

Hara, whose real name was Nobuo Tsukahara, formed the jazz band Sharps and Flats in 1951. The band went on to achieve great popularity, with Hara leading it for more than half a century.

A native of Toyama Prefecture, central Japan, Hara was a band member for the former Japanese Navy. He was inspired by jazz music as he visited nightclubs for occupation forces after Japan's surrender in World War II.
The transport ministry will require airlines to submit business improvement plans by late August in anticipation of a recovery in travel demand, which has been devastated by the coronavirus crisis, informed sources said Tuesday.

The step is part of the ministry's efforts to help pandemic-hit airlines maintain their flight routes.

While cutting a total of 120 billion in costs that the industry pays partly by reducing airport usage fees, the ministry will oblige airlines to come up with growth strategy plans so that they will not lag behind their rivals in capitalizing on the anticipated recovery in demand for flight services, according to the sources.

A new ministry ordinance was drawn up to mandate the submission of such plans.

The ministry will also ask airlines to pursue carbon neutrality, or reduce carbon dioxide emissions to virtually zero, by introducing fuel-efficient equipment and using alternative fuels, for example.
People in the southern Japanese prefecture of Okinawa are looking back at one of the deadliest battles of World War Two, which occurred 76 years ago.

The clash on the islands between the Japanese military and US forces came to an end on June 23.

On Wednesday, officials held a memorial service in Itoman City. The last major clash of the Battle of Okinawa happened there.

At exactly noon, people observed a moment of silence to remember family members, relatives, and friends. They also prayed for world peace.

The Battle of Okinawa erupted in the final stages of World War Two. Fighting between the US-led forces and the Japanese Imperial military killed more than 200,000 soldiers and civilians.

At the ceremony, Okinawa's Governor Tamaki Denny read a peace declaration. Tamaki said, "Today marks the 76th anniversary of the last fierce ground battle of the Pacific War. We will continue to make constant efforts to abolish nuclear weapons, abandon war, and establish permanent peace, with the aim of connecting the circle of peace from Okinawa to the world."

At the ceremony, a junior high school student from Okinawa read a poem that she wrote. She expressed hope for a better world, and she said that the younger generation is determined to learn from history.

Uehara Miharu said, "Never forget the dark past, let us never make those mistakes again. We have a role here to create a peaceful world."

Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide also delivered a video message. He spoke about the challenges Okinawa continues to face with the American bases on the islands. Okinawa accounts for less than one percent of Japan's territory, but about 70 percent of the US's military facilities in the country are concentrated there.

Suga said, "For many years, the concentration of US military bases has heavily impacted the people of Okinawa. We will continue to do everything we can to reduce Okinawa's burden of hosting US bases. We are determined to produce results one step at a time."

The ceremony usually draws thousands, but it was scaled back this year and last year, due to the coronavirus pandemic.

About 30 people took part.

Throughout the day, people all over the prefecture will be experiencing a sense of grief and hoping for peace.
NEW YORK CITY  Bank of America announced today grant funding for 23 major art restoration projects in 13 countries and nine U.S. cities through the 2021 Bank of America Art Conservation Project (ACP). The company is celebrating a decade of art conservation projects, providing grant funding to nonprofit cultural institutions throughout the world to conserve historically or culturally significant works of art that are in danger of deterioration. This years grant recipients include:

Cantor Arts Center, Stanford University, Palo Alto, Calif.  Conservation of 32 works in the Asian American Art Initiative

Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA), Long Beach, Calif.  Conservation of four sculptures by contemporary Latinx artists Jose Luis Cuevas; Carlos Luna; Luis Torruella; Noe Katz

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture of The New York Public Library, New York City, N.Y.  Preservation of eight artworks by African American modernists along with three rare books, c. 1800

Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Tel Aviv, Israel  George Segal (American, 19242000), Sacrifice of Isaac , 1973

, 1973 Vatican Museums, Vatican City  Apollo del Belvedere

With the 2021 selections, we have now been able to fund the conservation of over 5,000 individual pieces of art through 195 projects in 36 countries since launching the program in 2010, said Rena DeSisto, global arts and culture executive, Bank of America. Its a privilege to support this important work to safeguard our cultural treasures as we believe in the power of the arts to help economies thrive, educate and enrich societies and create greater cultural understanding.

This years selections again span the globe, including the restoration of artworks by five Japanese manga artists at Kawasaki City Museum in Japan, three artworks at the National Museums of Kenya and nine paintings showcasing Brazilian independence at the Museu Paulista in Sao Paulo.

The program also continues to help raise understanding and awareness for the field of art conservation through unique projects and partners including Fisk University Galleries in Nashville, Tenn. Fisk, one of the nations leading historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), is conserving artworks that will be part of an upcoming traveling exhibition, African Modernism in America, 1947-1967". Students from Fisk University and from other University members of the Alliance of HBCU Museums and Galleries, will have unique opportunities to work alongside conservators and gain valuable experience in the field of art conservation.

This years selections also include several iconic paintings, including Georges Seurats A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte at the Art Institute of Chicago, a piece that was also featured as part of the Bank of America Masterpiece Moment program earlier this year.

"Since its inception, this innovative and enigmatic painting has continued to intrigue, elude and inspireleaving a transformative mark on the history of artand drawing millions of visitors to Chicago to see it, said James Rondeau, President and Eloise W. Martin Director of the Art Institute of Chicago. Bank of America's support for the conservation of this artworkamong so many great works of art around the worldnot only ensures its preservation and care for future generations of visitors, but, specifically, it enhances our understanding of Seurat's creative process and the materials he used, making us better stewards of this great painting."

Additional conservation projects including The Boy in a Red Vest by Paul Cezanne and Man-Eater with Pennants by Alexander Calder, will take place at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.

The past year has been enormously challenging for museums, yet our mission to safeguard and share art with the public has never been more important, said Kate Lewis, The Agnes Gund Chief Conservator at The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Bank of Americas commitment to conservation and to keeping the arts thriving ensures that we can continue to connect people with extraordinary works of art, both now, and for future generations."

The full list of museums receiving grants through the 2021 Bank of America Art Conservation Project includes:

Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Ill.

Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University, Palo Alto, Calif.

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS), Mumbai, India

Denver Art Museum, Denver, Colo.

Fisk University, Nashville, Tenn.

Kawasaki City Museum, Kawasaki City, Japan

Kunsthaus Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland

Museo Nacional De Antropologia, Mexico City, Mexico

Museu Paulista, Sao Paulo, Brazil

Museum of Latin American Art, Long Beach, Calif.

Museum of Modern Art, New York City, N.Y.

National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya

Rose Art Museum, Waltham, Mass.

Sadberk Hanim Museum, Istanbul, Turkey

Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York City, N.Y.

Stadel Museum, Frankfurt, Germany

Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Tel Aviv, Israel

The Menil Collection, Houston, Texas

The New York Public Library, New York City, N.Y.

The Wallace Collection, London, England

Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Vatican Museums, Vatican City

Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, Conn.

Bank of America Arts and Culture

The Bank of America Art Conservation Project is a key demonstration of Bank of Americas arts support worldwide, and part of the companys environmental, social and governance commitment. Through the Art Conservation Project, programs like Museums on Us, loaning exhibitions through the Art in Our Communities program, the Masterpiece Moment video series and sponsorships and grants, we support a wide range of both local and world-class organizations. Our programs are designed to have a positive impact on economies and societies throughout the world, and shine a light on diverse cultural traditions. Through steadfast and strategic support, we have become one of the worlds leading corporate supporters of the arts. To learn more about our arts and culture support and programs, please visit bankofamerica.com/arts.

Bank of America

At Bank of America, were guided by a common purpose to help make financial lives better, through the power of every connection. Were delivering on this through responsible growth with a focus on our environmental, social and governance (ESG) leadership. ESG is embedded across our eight lines of business and reflects how we help fuel the global economy, build trust and credibility, and represent a company that people want to work for, invest in and do business with. Its demonstrated in the inclusive and supportive workplace we create for our employees, the responsible products and services we offer our clients, and the impact we make around the world in helping local economies thrive. An important part of this work is forming strong partnerships with nonprofits and advocacy groups, such as community, consumer and environmental organizations, to bring together our collective networks and expertise to achieve greater impact. Learn more at about.bankofamerica.com, and connect with us on Twitter (@BofA_News).

For more Bank of America news, including dividend announcements and other important information, visit the Bank of America newsroom and register for news email alerts.

Reporters may contact:



Vanessa Cook, Bank of America

Phone: 1.980.683.2247

vanessa.a.cook@bofa.com
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He said the members of the 1075th Transportation Company, which will occupy the new vehicle shop, have lived up to their motto: Nothing happens until something moves.

The Guards statewide pandemic response involved delivering 21,000 gallons of hand sanitizer, 1 million gowns, 3 million masks and face shields and 5 million gloves, Ricketts said.

Guard members also staffed 45 mobile COVID-19 testing sites, supported all 19 of Nebraskas district health departments and delivered more than 67,000 vaccines.

Its a pretty impressive track record, the governor said. The new North Platte shop will help make sure that going forward, the Nebraska National Guard will be able to continue delivering for the people of Nebraska as they have the past two years.

Ricketts said he plans to be back to cut the ribbon on the new building, which is scheduled to be finished next summer.

Kelliher briefly called attention to North Plattes historic support for the military. We understand the sacrifices you make for us, he said. We will always honor you as long as I have this office.
That type of residential zoning would rule out mobile homes within the development, said Planning Administrator Judy Clark.

If the council approves the rezoning, McKeons southern 10.58 acres fronting East Philip would retain its current I-1 light industrial zoning for possible future businesses.

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His full tract lies northwest of the retired sewer lagoon where Sustainable Beef LLC hopes to build an 875-employee processing plant.

City officials are awaiting a formal request to sell the lagoon and provide tax increment financing to raise it 5 feet to hold the beef plant.

But city officials said TIF is not on the table for McKeons land, on which the former agriculture teacher said he originally wanted to offer a show and tell farm for local students.

With Sustainable Beef on the horizon, four investors  most of whom have experience with housing developments  are forming a corporation with him. Three are from the Denver area, McKeon said.

If I was made of money, itd probably have been done already, he told Planning Commission members.
When school officials learned of the outburst, Levy was suspended from the JV team for having violated school rules. But her lawyers sued, alleging the school had violated her freedom of speech. Levy is now 18 and a freshman at Bloomsburg University.

"Today's decision may seem obvious to those who have a hard time seeing why public schools should be able to regulate any and all off-campus speech by students, but the fact that the court is identifying circumstances in which they can't is actually a big deal," said Steve Vladeck, CNN Supreme Court analyst and professor at the University of Texas School of Law.

"Although the line between the off-campus speech that schools can and can't regulate is less than clear, the fact that there is a line will have significant ramifications for just about all public school administrators going forward. It's a rare win for a student in a speech case before the current court," he added.

Dissent from Thomas

Justice Clarence Thomas dissented, writing that students like the former cheerleader "who are active in extracurricular programs have a greater potential, by virtue of their participation, to harm those programs."
Photo: Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Give Ron DeSantis credit for this much: The Republican governor of Florida is a relatively transparent figure. Though his war on critical race theory isnt based on facts, hes open about what it means for educators and students. On Tuesday, the Tampa Bay Times reported that DeSantis signed a bill that will require public universities and colleges to survey students, faculty and staff about their beliefs and viewpoints to support intellectual diversity.

What happens after the survey? The bill doesnt say, but according to the Times, both DeSantis and the bills lead sponsor implied that budget cuts could be looming if they dont care for the results of the survey. It used to be thought that a university campus was a place where youd be exposed to a lot of different ideas, DeSantis said. Unfortunately, now the norm is, these are more intellectually repressive environments. You have orthodoxies that are promoted, and other viewpoints are shunned or even suppressed.

The public university is vulnerable to politicians like DeSantis. Budget cuts are a real and potentially devastating threat, and the governors statements dont offer much reason for optimism. DeSantis sounds like a man who will see what he wants to see, whatever the reality. Hes already concluded that public universities are indoctrination factories, which provides all the justification he needs to attack their funding. In doing so, he makes explicit a tendency that has always been present in the panic over critical race theory. The crusade DeSantis adopted is hostile to free speech.

Floridas survey bill carries with it an inherent threat: If you express speech the governor doesnt like, punishment may follow. This is not unusual for foes of so-called critical race theory, who have fixed their sights on subjects that are not critical race theory at all. They seek to root out the accurate teaching of history, diversity training, and anti-racist education from public schools. That isnt just an attack on the academic quality or the diversity of public education; its an attack on free speech, and it has become vicious.

DeSantis isnt the only Republican to consider or pass legislation designed to restrict the teaching of divisive subjects in public classrooms. Its become such a trend that the AAUP, PEN America, the American Historical Association, and the Association of American Colleges & Universities recently released a joint statement in defense of academic liberty. First, these bills risk infringing on the right of faculty to teach and of students to learn, the statement read. The clear goal of these efforts is to suppress teaching and learning about the role of racism in the history of the United States.

In higher education, under principles of academic freedom that have been widely endorsed, professors are entitled to freedom in the classroom in discussing their subject. Educators, not politicians, should make decisions about teaching and learning.

Indeed, should is the operative word. But DeSantis knows that money is a powerful cudgel. With it, he can strike at academic freedom and make his agenda the only viable one that exists. While DeSantis is empowered to act in certain ways by the might of his office, its not hard to see a version of the same threat in wealthy Loudoun County, Virginia, where a group of parents have vitriolically protested the teaching of what they are calling critical race theory. Members of a local anti-racist Facebook group told NBC News that they have been doxxed and faced threats. Having my address shared is really frightening, but I think it also speaks to the broader problem of how this is turning people on their neighbors, said Jamie Neidig-Wheaton, an administrator of the Facebook group. This is about peoples political aspirations and creating a wedge issue for midterms. What I want is to bring this back to addressing the real problem of racism in our schools.

Neidig-Wheatons critics could point to her Facebook group as one source of conflict: Members had begun compiling a list of local parents they perceived as being hostile to anti-racist educational initiatives; screenshots then leaked to the public. From there, the dispute morphed into something much bigger, and potentially more dangerous. The Facebook group has become a strand in a local battle over CRT with parents  including some with links to Republican politics  protesting the idea of CRT in classrooms, though the district has said its schools do not actually teach the subject. Six Democratic school board members, several of whom belonged to the Facebook group, are facing a recall effort organized by a former spokesperson for President Donald Trumps Justice Department. This, too, is an assault on speech and academic liberty. When parents and educators fear to teach, or to express their views in public, free speech is under threat.

At least DeSantis is an honest warrior. Hes open about what he believes, and what he wants, and that means punishing speech he doesnt like.
A rally in Georgia to overturn the 2020 presidential-election results. Photo: Jason Armond/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

The problem, according to Brad Raffensperger, is Stacey Abrams. Three years ago, while returns were still being processed in the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial race, it looked like Brian Kemp was going to win, and Abrams, his Democratic opponent, wasnt ready to admit defeat. Abramss reasoning was that Kemp, Georgias secretary of state at the time, had cheated, using a range of voter suppression tactics unmatched in modern politics: voter-ID laws, proof-of-citizenship requirements, aggressive voter-roll purges, restrictions on early voting, and the mass closure of polling sites. Kemp probably wouldve won without these measures  demographics were on his side  but the confusion they introduced was meant to throw poor and nonwhite voters for a loop.

In case that didnt work, Kemp was also overseeing the election. To Abrams, these facts were more than enough to be skeptical that the rules were being applied fairly and to insist that all provisional and absentee ballots be counted before the results were officially declared.

It was the beginning of the end for Raffensperger, who went on to become Kemps successor as secretary of state. The publics faith in elections subsequently fell to a dangerous low, he now says, forcing him to do something about it. He knows Donald Trump was lying when he claimed the 2020 election had been stolen from him  the secretary famously declined to find the extra votes the former president asked him to look for in January to help him win  whereas he and other Republicans have not denied Abramss allegations, even if they have disputed the notion that they were cheating. Raffensperger has chosen to support a new anti-democratic initiative based on Trumps lie anyway: a review of all 147,000 absentee ballots cast in Fulton County.

Not incidentally, hes also fighting for his political life. This is important for understanding why hed characterize his indulgence of this effort as aimed at restoring integrity to the electoral process as a general goal, rather than a party-specific one. Republican activists voted to censure him at the state GOP convention earlier this month. Hes facing a Trump-supported primary challenger in Jody Hice, a congressman who passed the purity test increasingly demanded by the GOP base: He voted to overturn Joe Bidens victory. These developments are a culmination of the partys post-2016 turn, where fitness is measured by loyalty to Trump. But in Raffenspergers telling, it started with Abrams speaking out about actual malfeasance. In Georgia, it goes back to the 2018 governors race, when Stacey Abrams did not concede, he told the New York Times in an interview last month.

Ahistorical blame-laying is nothing new for embattled incumbents. Whats notable about Raffenspergers example is that it comes from a man who has been praised widely for his principled insistence on the truth at a moment when it was deeply unpopular in his party, yet has also embraced delusion in the interest of endearing himself to delusional voters. That is to say, Raffensperger is still a Republican beholden to the demands of modern Republicanism. And those demands have become increasingly unhinged. Turning Abrams into a supervillain may be a promising diversion, freighted with the kind of racial insinuation thats benefited politicians across the ideological spectrum. But it also avoids challenging the partys Trumpian pivot, and so calls into further question its leaders willingness and ability to do so.

That Abrams is both a Black woman and a voting-rights advocate has made her an irresistible target for Republican lawmakers. When Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia went public with his long-awaited compromise to S1, the voting-rights bill supported by most of his party but not by him, Abrams praised it as a set of basic building blocks. Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell immediately recast it as the plan endorsed by Stacey Abrams, a no compromise bill that would amount to an election takeover. In the same spirit, Senator Roy Blunt of Missouri claimed that Manchins proposal became the Stacey Abrams substitute, not the Joe Manchin substitute the moment she gave it her blessing.

These remarks gave a national platform to sentiments that had already been brewing at the local level. Raffensperger recently touted his planned purges of Georgias voter rolls  one of the measures that drew scrutiny when his predecessor used it to winnow the electorate  by bragging about how he fought and beat Stacey Abrams in court in 2019 for the right to proceed with a previous purge. Earlier this month, Governor Kemp was booed at the same GOP convention whose delegates censured Raffensperger. In an effort to mollify them, he responded by claiming to be the one person whos beaten Stacey Abrams. And Vernon Jones  the former state legislator, recent GOP convert, and all-around more popular convention speaker than Kemp  took a similar tack, comparing Biden, Nancy Pelosi, and Chuck Schumer to the Cowardly Lion, the Tin Man, and the Scarecrow from The Wizard of Oz. Dorothy isnt leading them from Kansas, he quipped. Theyre being led by that Wicked Witch from the South, Stacey Abrams.

The state-level implications of this campaign are clear. Damaging Abrams politically by making her out to be a radical and a villain is a preemptive strike ahead of her expected second shot at running against Kemp for the governorship next year. The stakes are even higher this time because of Georgias emergence as a swing state this past election. The backlash Kemp has received from GOP activists for not doing more to give Trump the states 16 electoral votes seems to have put him in peril.

But name-dropping Abrams also serves a bigger ideological project focused on the vote itself. The Republican Party has long been committed to anti-democratic voting restrictions. But ever since Trump made it party dogma that Democratic election victories were fraudulent by default, and must be disputed accordingly, the GOP has embraced these constraints with a zeal unseen since the immediate aftermath of the 2013 Shelby County v. Holder Supreme Court decision, which gutted protections enshrined in the Voting Rights Act.

Abrams is a natural focal point for the GOPs paranoid fears because of her outsize prominence in stories about how Georgia turned purple. For them, she has come to symbolize the theft of what is rightfully theirs and, with Raffenspergers contribution, the erosion of faith in the mechanics of American democracy. That such erosion was a core goal for Republicans going back at least a decade earns no mention in this origin story.

This strategy has served the party well so far  both as a pretense to place more power over voting apparatuses into the hands of GOP-held legislatures and as a means to justify getting rid of local election officials who dont actively pursue their interests. It has also evolved in a way that transcends the former president. Trump turbocharged the GOPs anti-democratic impulses, which now have a more impassioned and more conspiratorial-minded base of support. This puts officials like Raffensperger in an incomprehensible position. Keeping his job depends on embracing the very forces he claims to be fighting against.
The brief Senate debate over voting rights was treated as an anticlimax, chiefly because its bottom-line result  fewer than ten Republican senators, and as it turned out zero, voting to break a filibuster  was never in doubt. But the preordained outcome may have hidden a surprising and even shocking message contained in the rhetoric used by Republican opponents. The entire party grounded its opposition in the principle of states rights.

The Senate bill, insisted Mitch McConnell, is an assault on the fundamental idea that states, not the federal government, should decide how to run their own elections. Importantly, his entire caucus, including the handful of moderates, repeated the same message in the same terms. The bill would take away the rights of people in each of the 50 states to determine which election rules work best for their citizens, complained Susan Collins. I am not going to detail state-by-state where they may have overstepped or not have overstepped or actually improved in terms of access to voting rights, said Lisa Murkowski. Im a federal senator. Im not going to tell a state what they should do, echoed Mitt Romney.

The fundamental idea that states, not the federal government, should decide how to run their own elections is indeed a very old idea, but it is not one enshrined in the Constitution. Article I, Section 4 of the Constitution grants Congress authority to regulate elections. That authority was the basis for the Civil Rights Acts of 1957 and 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Department of Justices decades-long role enforcing voting rights in the states.

States rights, of course, has been the chief principled basis for the white South to repress its Black population since the 19th century. States rights may not be an inherently racist idea  one can certainly come up with arguments to privilege state authority in a given situation that dont contain racist arguments or compel racist outcomes  but it lends itself conveniently to such purposes. States rights was the most common rationale for maintaining slavery, for rejecting any federal protection for formerly enslaved people after the Civil War, and to reject civil-rights bills in the 20th century.

National Reviews 1965 cover story attacking the Voting Rights Act, Must We Repeal the Constitution to Give the Negro the Vote?, argued that the law strikes with the brute and clumsy force of a wrecking ball at the very foundations of American federalism. (The story is not online; historian Joshua Tait shared his research with me.) These arguments are identical in principle to the ones being used by Republicans on the Senate floor today.

To be sure, the methods of vote suppression used by white Southern Republicans today are considerably milder now than those employed by white Southern Democrats in the past. That hardly renders them perfectly innocent. Republican-controlled states have deliberately imposed restrictions on the timing of, and requirements for, casting the vote with the goal of reducing Black participation. A federal judge, citing internal Republican emails proving the North Carolina party sought out racial data to guide its vote-suppression bill, concluded that the state targeted African Americans with almost surgical precision.

Republicans have quibbled with aspects of the Democratic voting-rights bill, but when Joe Manchin proposed to meet their objections  even giving ground on the requirement for voter ID  Republicans showed no interest in compromise. After Manchin proposed letting voters who dont own a photo identification use a utility bill, The Wall Street Journal (which closely tracks McConnells views on nearly everything) devoted an entire editorial to shooting it down, on the grounds that Anyone with a color printer can forge a utility bill. (Forging the logo and precise layout contours of a utility bill on my home printer strikes me as a complex task, but maybe Journal editorial writers have more advanced document-forging skills.)

The purpose of McConnells states rights gambit is to render this kind of quibbling unnecessary. Republicans wont get sucked into litigating case-by-case defenses of every Republican scheme to make voting harder for Democratic constituencies. They can simply ground their opposition in the global principle that states enjoy an absolute right to design voting laws however they please.

Notably, this principle not only denies that existing Republican laws to restrict the franchise are unfair, but even that any such laws could ever be unfair. The idea that somehow or another that we cant count on states to conduct elections right or fairly is a premise that I have a problem with, Murkowski blurted out. All these voting laws, written entirely by Republicans, many of them open supporters of Donald Trumps lies that he won the election, enjoy the presumption of good faith by their national GOP colleagues.

Why would state-level Republicans ever design voting restrictions for any purpose other than the fairest possible election process? What motive could they have? The presumptive naivete boggles the mind.

Obviously, Senate Republicans grasp the situation perfectly well. Its not that they lack the imagination for how their state-level colleagues might be tempted to rig voting laws to burden minorities; they simply do not consider it a problem. The message of their states rights rhetoric is to rule out any federal voting protection tout court. And they have given a green light to every Republican state to go as far as they want; the federal government, having tied its own hands with the filibuster, will do nothing to stop them.
Photo: Nate Peracciny

The lefts hope for a progressive mayor in New York City may be vanishing, as Eric Adams took an early lead on Tuesday evening. In Buffalo, however, the story is very different. There, socialist and union member India Walton is on the verge of stunning incumbent Byron Brown in the citys Democratic primary. The New York Times reports that Walton led Brown by seven points as of midnight on Tuesday, and she has declared victory, though Brown refuses to concede. Should Waltons lead hold, and should she win Novembers general election  a very likely outcome, considering Buffalos deep-blue tilt  shell make history on two counts. She will be Buffalos first female mayor, and the first socialist to lead a major American city since Frank Zeidler, who was Milwaukees mayor from 1948 to 1960.

Waltons probable victory invokes an often-forgotten aspect of American history. In Milwaukee, mayoral sewer socialism concentrated on public-works projects  parks, infrastructure, social centers, and the like. The idea was to create a more livable city for everyone, not just a wealthy few.

Reporter: "Do you consider yourself a socialist?" @Indiawaltonbflo: "Oh, absolutely. The entire intent of this campaign is to draw down power and resources to the ground level and into the hands of the people."

pic.twitter.com/kcSmYdIxB4  Brett "Unions 2021" Banditelli (@banditelli) June 23, 2021

Walton ran on a similar platform. We envision a Buffalo where people are housed, healthy, and have the agency to live to their full potential, her website reads. Detailed housing policies include a land-use policy that sets aside 50% of city-owned vacant parcels for public good and a pot of funds to assist homeowners who have fallen behind on their property taxes due to an unexpected hardship. Waltons campaign is also notable for its attention to policing reform. Last June, the Buffalo police department generated unflattering national headlines when officers violently shoved a 75-year-old protester, Martin Gugino, to the ground; in video of the incident, Gugino can be seen lying on the ground, bleeding from the head. After the department suspended the officers involved, all 57 members of the citys riot-response squad resigned in protest.

Fittingly, Walton called for a reduced police presence in public life, and has pledged to remove police from most mental-health calls. She also called for tougher civilian oversight of the city police department, which is facing a lawsuit alleging systematic racial discrimination in traffic ticketing.

Walton isnt the only likely victory the left has to celebrate in western New York. In Rochester, a candidate backed by the Working Families Party defeated incumbent Lovely Warren. City Councilman Malik Evans led Warren definitively on Tuesday night, and Warren conceded. (Though Evans doesnt identify as a socialist, he and Walton share the endorsement of the WFP. The Democratic Socialists of America also endorsed Walton, and its active Buffalo chapter campaigned for her.) The left has yet to conquer Gracie Mansion, but elsewhere, its about to write new chapters of history.
Washington, PA (15301)

Today

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some clouds. Low around 55F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some clouds. Low around 55F. Winds light and variable.
Washington, PA (15301)

Today

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. A few clouds. Low 54F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. A few clouds. Low 54F. Winds light and variable.
I am still a big fan of The Old Guard thank you very much. And I remember The Perfection because of how bad it was.



(Also I remember Bird Box.)

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I love TOG too, but I feel like it's the fact that it has such an active fandom that keeps me thinking about it so much. Plus the new comics coming out regularly. Idk if the film on its own would still be so memorable a year later?

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I kinda agree - it's faded into the background somewhat even with the active fandom. They need to hurry up with the sequel before it fades even more. Or at least a Nicky/Joe special movie LMAO.

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Oof The Perfection was so dumb.

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the perfection was absolutely batshit, I remember it solely because the first part of that movie had me screaming lmao

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The Perfection was so weird. I was like "um, wtf is going on?" during that scene towards the end.

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God, the Old Guard was such an entertaining movie. I didnt expect to like it as much as I did.

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This makes sense to me. Theatre movies are universal in a way. As popular as Netflix is, a lot of people don't have it and so the movies have a much smaller public impact.

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Netflix movies can reach more people imo, since a lot of films don't get distribution in other countries or it takes a long time.

The thing is though because it is up to the audience at home when to watch it, the public impact rarely comes with the release day like a theater movie.

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I love the Eurovision movie. I'm not sure I've watched any other Netflix films, but I genuinely love that one.

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I went into it not expecting much and it was my favorite movie of last year. We've watched it so many times.

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Same! My bar was really low, but it ended up being such a fun love letter to ESC. I've put it on so many times when I just want to relax and decompress.

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I just wish it was like half an hour shorter, but I still really liked it

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Same , i rewatched it and everything , it was so much fun and campy and Ott , everything i needed

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Bird box was a good one

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I loved bird box

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And that one stands out in my memory-- I think it was released during a holiday weekend? And EVERYONE watched it.

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Yeah I thought it was pretty good, I dont know really get why it got such poor ratings

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Bird box was foreshadowing of how people don't give a fuck about rules during a pandemic

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Imo the only one that will stand the test of time is Roma. That's an incredible film. I'm so glad I got to see it in the theater lol.



Even all the ones done by super talented directors just feel off to me. Like first draft movies. I know studio oversight can be terrible sometimes, but I'm wondering if a lot of these movies absolutely do need it.

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I forgot Roma existed. it was disappointing.

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I go to all my other streaming spots before Netflix these days, I'm just not impressed by their selection anymore. There are a few exceptions but mostly, if I want good new shows/movies, I'm looking elsewhere



Edited at 2021-06-23 01:29 am (UTC)

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Ditto. Netflix seems cluttered.

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yeah, I've been using hulu a lot more lately which has a much better selection of movies imo.

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I cancelled my Netflix a few months ago. I don't regret it. I will start up again when The Crown continues but it's not something I feel I need every month anymore.

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Same. I usually alternate between HBO Max and Hulu now.

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At this point, I'm only interested in The Crown. They cancelled Glow and cancelled CAOS so my interest has gone way down. Why bother getting into one of their shows when they will probably cancel it?

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Oh yeah I also like Mindhunter and The Haunting of Hill House but Netflix doesn't support those shows as much as it should so they've stalled.

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my entire frontpage is just netflix original recommendations and i just dont care about any of them

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Everyone I know watches Netflix movies but I don't know anyone whose favorite movie is a Netflix movie. They're fun to watch and be a part of that one-week cultural moment but I don't ever go back to them after that.

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What about movies that weren't made by Netflix but were sold to them (Mainly 90% of Sony's Animation Output this year) - do they suffer the same?



Honestly I think the last, truly Netflix made movie I was hyped for was......Beasts of No Nation.

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Meh. I don't really see much of a difference.

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Are Netflix films memorable to you ONTD?



No.



I agree that often their movies feel like a first draft. They need more time to develop.

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This! Also, I think because they dont have to have box office smash they dont put that much effort into the process

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They always miss the mark. I always feel like something is missing. Like its close to the finish line but not quite there

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I enjoyed Enola Holmes. But most of the movies are very disposable.

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That was so cute! I just watched it with my baby brother and actually liked it

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it's also kind of BECAUSE they produce so many? They stop feeling like (and Netflix stops promoting them as) "events". Without the added factors of going out to see something in theatres, having friends over or watching with your kids, of course it'd be easy to just move on to the next movie or to do something else so the thing you're watching becomes a background watch.



That being said, a lot of Netflix films have still made an impression on me (maybe because I don't pay for the other services lmao). I enjoyed Roma, To All The Boys 1, I'm Thinking of Ending Things, Ma Rainey, The Eurovision Film, Space Sweepers, Always Be My Maybe, The Old Guard, Okja, etc. I also appreciate their documentaries a lot, though My Octopus Teacher shouldn't have been anywhere near that oscar.





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i agree, it's the marketing. their films don't get a push outside of the platform.



i remember a little push for to all the boys and the ali wong/randall park romcom

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Yeah someone needs to explain to me why My Octopus Teacher won that award. I liked it but it wasn't that impressive to me.

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Umm true, I forgot. Havent watched anything but just some kdrama. In fact, I am watching So Not Worth It.



Edited at 2021-06-23 02:24 am (UTC)

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His version of events is better, I guess, but it certainly isn't good and the fact that he think that minor difference matters here is scary. I hope his wife is okay.

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Yeah the fact that just he was removed and his wife did not go with him is a huge red flag. I hope she leaves his ass for good.



Edited at 2021-06-23 02:24 pm (UTC)

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I start hating him when arrow got shit early on and then he showed himself as a messy person and I feel like my hatred is justfied

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lol for real! we call him the lesser amell for a reason ;)

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Didn't realize there was more than 1 Amell person until this post lol.

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omg i missed this story. he must have been acting like a nightmare to get kicked off. his poor wife, how humiliating for her. i hate this asshole.

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Cassandra, run sister friend. This dick isn't worth it.

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I hope the following news are her filing for the divorce but the sad reality is that it'll probably be an instagram post with a cute picture of them and a caption about how people make mistakes and she knows what a wonderful husband and father he is in private.



Edited at 2021-06-23 03:33 pm (UTC)

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Idk I legit cant imagine my husband and me getting into an argument that heated in public. Getting kicked off a flight? Thats seems really extreme to me.



Edited at 2021-06-23 02:03 pm (UTC)

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Yeah, it sounds like he was screaming at her. That shouldnt happen behind closed doors. In public, its a dealbreaker.

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If he's brave enough to do that in public, imagine how he treats her privately.

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A friend of mine is a flight attendant and once had to deal with a couple where the wife asked for a divorce right before they boarded. The husband got drunk and tried to grab my friend when she wouldnt get him another drink so she kicked him off.

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My half-sister was super abusive to her husband, and for some incomprehensible reason, she always wanted an audience when she was verbally berating him. She would be fine on the way to wherever we were going, but as soon as we got there she'd find a reason to scream at him in public. It was horrible. (She was 11 years older than me and most of this happened when I was a kid, so there wasn't much I could do to stop it.) As a result, I have a flight response to yelling now. If a person is screaming at someone they are with, I need to get away. I wouldn't be able to on a plane, so I am glad they kicked him off. Fuck this guy.

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Never really followed Arrow bts stuff but he's always seemed so obnoxious to me tbh

Hope his wife is okay

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ah so he's abusive. got it.

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If he yells at her in public, what is he like in private. This is horrible. Hope his wife it safe.

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My ex-stepdad used to scream at my mom and sister a lot. It took me years to realize just how deep the emotional abuse went, though I often never got the brunt of it (my sister was the one who was more brave and bold and so hed target her). Im rambling here, but I dont want to undermine how serious and abusive yelling can be.



Edited at 2021-06-23 02:02 pm (UTC)

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It took me until I was like 25 to realize that people at work can't yell at me like my parents did when I mess up something.



The RELIEF I felt as that WEIGHT was lifted off my shoulders....

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I lived with that at work daily for two and a half years. He's a corporate darling so he's still employed.

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Ive been yelled at at work by bosses like I have by my parents, the relief for me came when I realized I dont have to stand for it, I walk as soon as a boss yells at me now

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Sadly you get used to it and don't realize it's not normal and you don't have to put up with it.

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this sounds familiar, i went through the same thing. you learn to make yourself really small and walk on egg shells. i went NC with my mom for that reason, still working through all of that emotional abuse in therapy.



fuck people who scream at people.

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My grandfather used to yell a lot. He was never violent or anything, but I get really upset and freaked out when men get mad and yell. I didn't realize there might a connection until fairly recently.

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Im really really sorry bb. Ive been where you are. My dad is horribly verbally abusive to my mom and sometimes us kids. He slowed down with age but it really leaves a mark. I struggle because I like him as a person (we share interests), but Ill always hate him for what he did to my mom.

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remember when he said this



"Had breakfast on Tuesday in Los Angeles with my wife and daughter. In the midst of marveling at how she's able to eat pancakes intended for fully grown humans while weighing less than 25 pounds... An incredibly famous young woman came in with her sort of (not really) famous boyfriend. I immediately tensed because I consider this person  as the father of a young girl  to be nothing short of an emotional terrorist. My wife senses this and asks me what's wrong. I respond that we need to leave immediately for fear my kid and this overly sexualized velociraptor make eye contact even for the briefest of instances. I was dead serious. This is what it's like to have a daughter."



woman-hating trash. i hate him so much, i hope he never works again lmao

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Ew, that guy.

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wtf

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Turns out he's the emotional terrorist.

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Oh my God, what the fuck??

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Pepperidge Farm remembers.

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He was afraid.... of another women corrupting his minor daughter through a glance? Is my reading comprehension off, because that is insane.

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i think it might be the somehwat famous boyfriend that he briefly refers to



nvm idk what im talking about



Edited at 2021-06-23 02:15 pm (UTC)

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The young lady was dressed kinda provocatively, and rather than minding his own business that was enough to insult his sensitive self so he told his wife they had to leave the restaurant before his daughter saw her and was tainted by the sluttiness. I wish I was making this up.

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I thought the boyfriend was the issue?

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Wasnt it Miley Cyrus?

I remember when this came out. Hes insane

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What a man move to ruin a perfectly good stack of pancakes

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What the fuck?

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lmao YIKES this kept getting worse and worse!!

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holy shit i forgot about this. wasn't he talking about miley?

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Can Musk take this asshole to space with him?

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"emotional terrorist", "overly sexualized velociraptor", dear god! Who does even describe women like that.



I bet he's one of those men that's scared his daughter is gonna start dating because he knows what a shitty man he is and what he has done.

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w h a t

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Oh no, he has a daughter? I feel bad for her.

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WTF? That is insane.

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Thats just nuts.

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I actually found the ONTD post about this incident - it happened in early 2015. There were so many comments! Made me realize that its a lot harder to blithely consume gossip these days. We take bad behavior a lot more seriously now than we did just 6 years ago. And thats definitely a good thing, but it means that the stakes are much higher in these conversations. Celeb gossip is kind of draining lol.

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What the FUCK

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The fact that he thought this story was funny and charming...

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oh he is one of those "having a daughter made see women different but i still hate thrm" men

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umm what?

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"overly sexualized velociraptor"? Did she reject him, personally or for a project? Because this sounds personal. He's gonna lock up his daughter like Rapunzel so his misogyny shields her from the evil women out there?



Edited at 2021-06-23 05:31 pm (UTC)

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Wtf even is this shit? How gross.

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I wish I was a velociraptor so I could scratch throats out

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yeah, since this happened my dislike of him was justified

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What the fuck did I just read?

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this is always what i associate him with.



can you imagine if his wife had actually made it as a model? i doubt he would've given her the time of day, for fear that she'd also ~corrupt their future daughter. 

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whether he was forcibly removed or left willingly seems almost besides the point. like the fact that you were angry/belligerent enough to even have to fly separately...

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I totally get your point, but having experienced both in one of my flights, theres a world of difference. (this has nothing to do with him, I know very little about his life/career)

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Idk, If youre being asked to leave a flight because youre screaming at your wife, whether youre removed or willingly leave is not a world of difference imo. Youre still being asked to leave because youre being abusive to your wife, whether youre dragged off or not. Like good for him it didnt escalate to being dragged off but he was so belligerent and abusive towards his wife that outside people had to step in and he had to be asked to leave a flight

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You might've gotten OP's point but you're certainly missing the point of this discussion.

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For a white remotely celeb man to be "asked" to leave though...

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A man that will yell at you in public (especially loud/aggressive enough to cause a scene and warrant interference) is a dangerous man.



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At first I was going to say that the truth is probably somewhere in between (he left the flight voluntarily when asked to do so but still yelled at his poor wife) but you really have to be belligerent to get kicked off a flight and this is AFTER the flight attendants ask you to calm down, or they move you to another available seat. The fact that they removed him from the flight proves he was an asshole to her, not that it was a "slow news day." I feel very bad for his wife because if he's going off on her in public it's even worse in private.

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you have to be ESPECIALLY belligerent to get kicked off of a flight when you're a white man with a modicum of celebrity status on top of that, y i k e s.

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Isn't escorted off just a politer way of saying forced off lol. That's why they 'escort' you, to make sure you leave and don't make a fuss.

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forced off is literally dragging someone physically from his seat and down the aisle, generally kicking (especially if theyve been handcuffed) at anyone (crew, police, other passengers) they can reach, spitting, screaming, the works. escorted off is someone yells for a bit and at one point they grumpily stomp towards the door threatening a lawsuit.

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I would classify this as physically removed. Semantics, I guess.

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Good on him for speaking up. I feel like when bw, who are particularly affected by colorism, speak on it we are gaslit. Called divisive, paranoid, ugly, jealous.

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Colorism is a big problem, honestly. Black actresses with dark brown skin tend to suffer the most due to colorism in the media and industries in general.



Edited at 2021-06-24 02:07 am (UTC)

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my first thought "the kid from stranger things?"



anyway we been knew. this is why every black best friend on netflix passes the paper bag test.

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I thought of him first too 

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I thought of that kid too and was confused

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Whats the paper bag test?

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Skin no darker than a brown paper bag

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I'm glad we're having this conversation, it's time.



Jokes aside, yeah, it's good that a white guy is actually coming forward and calling out fellow whites as when a POC does it, they're ignored or vilified.



Edited at 2021-06-23 09:33 pm (UTC)

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Can Hollywood also stop casting biracial actresses in roles where they have two Black parents? One of the only things I like about Euphoria was that Zendaya's parents were an interracial couple because Hollywood has been on some shit.

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Good for him. This is disgusting but shocked I am not.

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Good on him for speaking up and for pushing back on all of this.



I thought Jon M. Chu's response to the criticism towards In the Heights was ridiculous, since it was the same criticism people had towards Crazy Rich Asians. It shouldn't just be a conversation anymore; there should be action.



Edited at 2021-06-23 08:50 pm (UTC)

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Jon Chu had no business directing In The Heights. I was very surprised in the closing credits because I'd had no idea.

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Hollywood's been racist af. The system is broken and should be burned down in order to really change things. I mean look at the shit Netflix has been doing, what's happened with In the Heights, the K*nya B*rris industrial complex. If they're not full on racist, then they're colorist af.

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I don't expect better from Hollywood at this point. I'm mostly so disappointed in the Latin community and their dismissiveness of Afro-Latinos and their critique of this film.

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we want names miss glen

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The list would be miles long tbh.



Its execs, producers, writers, directors, and even actors who get a say in who their costars are.





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Yet again, she's white! How fucking petty.

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Yes. Preach. Great for him.



Imagine my utter shock when I was watching the 1st episode of SNWI and theres a Black Korean dude onscreen in NETFLIX. The cast are diverse and sets in College! To think Netflix is somehow miles better on promoting and representing diversities than Ol Racist & Colorist Hollywood in DECADES this is 2021 halfway to 2022 CRAZY!!

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You mean, Han Hyun Min? He's half Nigerian, half Korean. He's actually pretty well known in Korea, b/c he's an model.

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Yes! Thats really amazing. So super new to me bc I didnt think Id ever see a fellow Black Korean model turned actor like Han Hyun Min onscreen especially on a very diverse college Kdrama comedy in this lifetime. Im shocked lol. Such a delight. Very refreshing! 

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i started watching that show and yeah, but haven't had a whole lot of time to really get into it. but i was excited to see han hyun-min in it. i watched some of a web doc thingy recently that dealt with kids that were either mixed or ethnically not korean and just happened to have been born there and raised there and the discrimination they've faced and he showed up and talked with them and hung out with them - i'm assuming because he's been through something similar, i'm not great at focusing these days. but he's very likable and i like that he's getting more chances to do things.



But this isn't the first k-drama to feature a black actor and actually give him character growth. Itaewon Class had a Black American actor in it and he was like a part of the cast and not just back ground or something else. That's two netflix series, too. Netflix may be doing a really decent job at diversity.

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Glad someone finally called out the execs. It's always these people in offices who are only concerned with $$$ who get to make the final calls on casting and never get called out.

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https://www.tiktok.com/@zoediackiller/video/6898845072683552005?is_copy_url=1&is_from_webapp=v1



Didn't embed, but the link is legit!



Edited at 2021-06-23 09:57 pm (UTC) Didn't embed, but the link is legit!

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more and more people should be speaking up about this

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Definitely referring to his time on TWD. I remember season 3 of the show when GM was the showrunner, it was like one in, one out for Black men. Oscar showed up > TDog died > Tyreese showed up > Oscar died



Then S4 came, Bob became a regular and two Black men(Tyreese and Bob) were regulars for a full season!

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This month, Gazprom launched the first of six lines of the Amur Gas Processing Plant (GPP). By 2025, when the plant reaches its design capacity, it will not only become the largest Russian site for natural gas processing (42 billion cubic meters per year) but will also increase Russia's share in the global helium market. Apart from ethane, liquefied petroleum gases and pentane-hexane fraction, the bordering China Amur GPP will be capable of producing up to 60 million cubic meters of helium annually. To make it clear, in 2020 Russia produced 4.5 million cubic meters (mcm) of helium, much less than the United States (74 mcm, including helium from the Cliffside storage) and Qatar (45 mcm, according to the US Geological Survey).

A window of opportunity Gazprom made the final investment decision on the Amur GPP project in October 2012, also approving an investment plan for the Chayandinskoye field, which later supplied the Power of Siberia pipeline with natural gas. A year later, the US Congress passed the Helium Stewardship Act (2013) that limited withdrawals from the Cliffside helium storage facility. In 2012, 60 mcm of helium were taken from this storage, while in 2020 this figure did not exceed 13 mcm, according to the US Geological Survey. As a result, over the same period, the United States reduced its helium supply by more than 40% (from 133 million to 74 mcm, as follows from USGS data), which could not but create opportunities for other supplying countries, whose global share has increased from 24% in 2012 to 47% in 2020. Qatar, for example, has more than tripled its helium production between 2012 (13 mcm) and 2020 (45 mcm).

Related: How Much Oil Can Saudi Arabia Really Produce?



However, this did not prevent the risk of a global shortage, as evidenced by rising prices. According to the UN/ WTO International Trade Center, in 2020, the average US export price for helium increased by 21%, from $3.5 to $4.2 per cubic meter, while in November 2020 it exceeded $4.9 per cubic meter. The reason is the growth in demand, especially in Asia: in 2020, the total supply of helium from the United States to Japan, China and South Korea exceeded the 2017 level by 40% (43.4 million cubic meters versus 31.0 million cubic meters). The demand is driven by the market for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which is one of the key segments of helium consumption. From 2016 to 2019, sales of MRI equipment in Japan, China and South Korea increased by 24% in total (to $1.1 billion, according to Mordor Intelligence), and they have not peaked yet: in 2019, in terms of the average number of MRI units, South Korea was almost half the size of the United States (30 versus 55 units per million population, according to OECD data). Another driver is the aerospace industry, which accounted for 9% of global helium demand on the eve of the pandemic (versus 26% for healthcare, 14% for electronics and 51% for all other sectors, according to Mordor Intelligence). Here, the use of helium will be spurred on by the launch of a Chinese orbital station, along with SpaceX's ambitious plans and greater availability of space tourism. Between 2016 and 2019, global helium demand within this sector grew by 9%, while by 2024 it will increase by another 21%, according to the Mordor Intelligence forecast. The same goes for electronics, where helium is used to cool smartphones. Between 2016 and 2020, the global number of smartphone users grew by two thirds, from 3.7 billion to 6.1 billion. This growth is unlikely to stop, given that by 2024 the number of mobile devices (including tablets and IoT devices) will increase from to 14 billion to 17.7 billion, according to the Statista forecast.

Related: Big Oil Backs $100 Crude Narrative



Therefore, global helium demand will continue to grow: by 2024 it will increase by 21% compared to 2019 levels, as follows from the forecast provided by Mordor Intelligence before the pandemic began. Moreover, the actual increase may turn out to be even more significant, given the explosive growth in demand for MRI during the pandemic. This is why helium producers have been among the favorites of the stock market over the past year and a half: according to Bloomberg, from early January 2020 to mid-June 2021, the market capitalization of Helium One (UK) almost tripled (to $154.1 million). For Blue Star Helium (Australia), it grew 9 times (up to $32.9 million), and for RHC Helium (Canada)  86 times (up to $60.5 million).

A timeline for new projects

For the same reason, the Amur GPP will not be the only new helium production site in Russia. To date, the only Russian site is the Orenburg Helium Plant, which has cut production from 5.1 mcm to 4.5 mcm between 2017 and 2020. But already in 2022, the Irkutsk Oil Company (INK) intends to commission a plant with an annual capacity of 7.5 million cubic meters of helium, based at the Yarakta field in Eastern Siberia. Following this, in 2025, INK will launch another helium plant (with an annual capacity of 4.5 mcm), which will process gas from the Markovskoye field.

In Yakutia, with the support of the Far East Development Corporation, a helium storage facility with a capacity of 40 mcm will be built by 2030. It will be filled with helium from the Otradninskoye and Srednebotubinskoye fields (East Siberia), whose operators  Sakhatransneftegaz, as well as Rosneft, RNG and Alrosa  may undertake a two-stage helium project. At the first stage, helium capacities with an annual volume of 0.3 to 1.2 mcm will be built, and at the second stage their volume will be increased to 8  12 mcm.

In turn, regulatory bodies, following the needs of key market players, are going to include obligations to extract helium reserves in licenses for natural gas fields (to avoid the annual loss of up to 15 mcm of helium), as well as to establish both the state and commercial reserves of helium concentrate (to meet the long-term needs of helium-consuming industries and to hedge export risks). This will help Russian producers increase the annual helium capacity to more than 80 mcm  to a level, that is excessive for the Russian market, given that annual domestic demand has never exceeded 4.8 mcm, and in 2020 it amounted to 4 mcm, as follows from the Analytical Center of the Fuel and Energy Complex of the Russian Ministry of Energy. That is why new Russian helium projects will be export-oriented.

More than a timely decision

And this is good news for the global market, given the already mentioned risk of a global shortage. In fact, Russian producers will enter the niche formed following the reduction in the US supply. Between 2012 and 2020, the latter fell by 59 mcm, which is almost equivalent to the helium capacity of the Amur GPP. Therefore, the growth of Russian exports will not result in either a price collapse or a surplus on the world market. On the contrary, Russia will become the savior of the global market, able to meet the needs of European and Asian consumers thanks to its dispersed production facilities and the associated logistic benefits.

Linde has already taken advantage: in 2018, the German industrial gas producer signed a contract to purchase helium from the Amur GPP, having previously become its licensor. Hopefully, other key market players will follow this path.

By Fares Kilzie for Oilprice.com

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The Guyana-Suriname Basin, which the U.S. Geological Service estimates hold crude oil resources of up to 33 billion barrels, is in the midst of a massive drilling boom that has seen a swathe of major oil discoveries over the last six years. While most of those finds have occurred on the Guyana side of the hydrocarbon basin, the former Dutch colony of Suriname is rapidly catching up. The impoverished South American country, which has been hit particularly hard by the COVID-10 pandemic with gross domestic product shrinking 13.5% during 2020, is focused on launching its own great petroleum boom. In January 2021, Apache Corporation and 50% partner French energy supermajor TotalEnergies, formerly known as Total, made their fourth oil discovery in Block 58 offshore Suriname with the Keskesi East-1 well.

Source: Apache Corporation.

According to Apache, the well-encountered hydrocarbons in the upper Cretaceous-aged Campanian and Santonian intervals. The crude oil found in earlier discoveries had similar API gravities ranging from 34 to 45 degrees, indicating the presence of lighter petroleum grades. The liquids found had API gravities of 27 to 28 degrees in the Campaign level and 35 to 37 degrees in the Santonian.

Related: China's Private Oil Refiners Are Too Powerful For Beijing



The recent raft of discoveries sparked considerable speculation as to the potential crude oil resources held by Block 58, with analysts from investment bank Morgan Stanley calculating that it could hold over six billion barrels of oil equivalent. That estimate is supported by the blocks proximity to the prolific Stabroek Block in neighboring offshore Guyana, where ExxonMobil along with partners Hess and CNOOC have experienced considerable success. Exxon has determined that the Stabroek Block, where it has made 20 discoveries, holds around nine billion barrels of recoverable oil equivalent resources. Block 58, which is adjacent to the Stabroek Block, sits upon the same hydrocarbon trend boding well for further discoveries by Apache and Total, which is also the operator.

By early March 2021 however, greater than expected well pressure saw Apache and Total elect to cease drilling and release the Noble Sam Croft drillship, with the partners electing to focus on drilling the next prospect in the block, the Bonboni exploration well. Despite that setback, Apache and Total still expect first oil from Block 58 by 2025. The oil discoveries are not confined solely to Apache and Totals operations. Malaysian national oil company Petronas with 50% partner Exxon discovered the presence of hydrocarbons at the Sloanea-1 exploration well in Block 52 offshore Suriname, which is adjacent and east of Block 58.

The abundance of recent quality oil discoveries saw energy industry consultancy Rystad Energy state in May 2021 that Suriname has at least 1.9 billion barrels of recoverable oil resources, which will keep growing as further exploration and development activities are undertaken. The consultancy expects production from Blocks 58 and 52 alone to reach 650,000 barrels per day by the end of this decade which will see Suriname become a major regional oil exporter.

Related:

This impressive slew of oil discoveries in such a short period, spurred on Surinames government and oil regulator state-controlled oil company Staatsolie to attract greater foreign investment in the impoverished former Dutch colonys oil industry. The key to this was opening the 2020/21 shallow-water offshore bid round on 16 November 2020. That saw the regulator offer eight shallow water blocks to the south of Apache and Totals Block 58 and north of onshore oilfields believed to hold up to one billion barrels of crude oil.

Source: Staatsolie.

The round closed at the end of April this year with global energy supermajor Chevron winning Block 5. Chevron is well-equipped to operate in Suriname because of its long history of operating in South America, including nearby Colombia as well as neighboring Venezuela and Brazil. A consortium comprised of Total and Qatars national oil company Qatar Petroleum was successful in bidding for Blocks 6 and 8. Staatsolie and the bidders are now in the process of drawing up production sharing contracts for the relevant blocks.

A key reason Suriname is an attractive jurisdiction for foreign energy companies is the favorable regulatory environment. Not only does the government offer 30-year production sharing contracts, the longest in the region thereby providing foreign energy companies with long-term legal certainty, but royalties of 6.2% after Guyana are the lowest in South America.

Staatsolie has a contractual right to a 20% participation share in each of the assigned blocks and has reputedly expressed interest in exercising that claim regarding Block 58. Surinames favorable regulatory environment contributes to the former Dutch colony having low projected breakeven prices. Analysts estimate that Block 58s breakeven price is $45 per barrel once production starts in roughly four years, although analysts estimate it will fall as further oil discoveries are made and additional necessary infrastructure is put in place. It is important to note that Exxons operations in the neighboring Stabroek Block have projected breakeven prices of between $25 to $35 per barrel Brent, indicating that Block 58 and offshore Surinames overall average breakeven prices could fall considerably lower.

Suriname is poised to become a leading offshore oil exploration and production location in South America. The rapid rate at which quality oil discoveries are being made underscores the former Dutch colonys tremendous hydrocarbon potential, with it sharing the prolific Guyana-Suriname Basin with its neighbor Guyana. Paramaribos creation of a favorable regulatory environment is an important incentive for attracting much-needed investment from foreign energy majors which are flocking to Surinames offshore petroleum industry. As that industry rapidly expands it will deliver a significant economic bonanza for a country which has been severely impacted by the pandemic.

By Matthew Smith for Oilprice.com

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Oil prices jumped further today after the Energy Information Administration reported a crude oil inventory draw of 7.6 million barrels for the week to June 18.

This compared with a draw of 7.4 million barrels reported for the previous week and another draw, of 7.2 million barrels, that the American Petroleum Institute reported for the week to June 18 yesterday.

Analysts had expected the EIA to report a crude stock draw of 3.625 million barrels for the period.

The draw comes amid a slight faltering in the oil price rally as reports emerged that OPEC+ is considering returning more barrels to global supply from August in response to the strong rebound in demand.

The hiccup came after the rally got another strong boost from the Iranian elections. These yielded a hardliner for the new president of the country, casting a shadow over the success of nuclear talks with the United States. This success would lead to a return of a couple of million barrels daily in Iranian production.

However, with Ebrahim Raisi at the helm, it just got a lot more uncertain: the Iranian President-elect this week rejected the possibility of meeting with President Biden and discussing Irans ballistic missile program and its support for various Middle Eastern armed groups.

The latest update on U.S.-Iranian events, however, is potentially bearish for oil: a Tehran official said the U.S. had lifted all sanctions on the Iranian oil industry, pushing prices up.

Meanwhile, the EIA also reported a 2.9-million-barrel draw in gasoline stocks and production of 10.3 million bpd. This compared with a build of 2 million barrels for the previous week, and production of 9.9 million bpd.

In middle distillates, the authority estimated an inventory increase of 1.8 million barrels for the week to June 18, with production averaging 5.1 million bpd. This compared with a stock draw of 1 million barrels for the previous week and production of 5.1 million bpd.

Brent crude was trading at $75.78 a barrel at the time of writing, with West Texas Intermediate at $73.80 a barrel.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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For decades, the true numbers relating to Saudi Arabias level of crude oil reserves and production have been a subject of much debate and confusion, not helped by the obfuscation from the Saudis over precisely what these numbers are. The reason for obfuscation is that Saudi Arabias only source of real power in the world begins and ends with its oil reserves and production, so the higher these numbers, the more the power, and the lower the number the less the power. In recent weeks this debate has become even more pronounced in the run-up to Saudi Arabias latest bond offering and in the debate oversupply and demand in the oil market over the remainder of this year and beyond. As detailed below, much of what Saudi Arabia has said about its oil reserves, current production, and likely future production is an exaggeration made for the purposes of self-aggrandizement but despite that, the numbers have increased somewhat compared to where they were 10 years ago. To begin with the claimed crude oil reserves numbers: these have been a work of stunning bravado and almost complete fiction since 1990 when the Kingdom suddenly increased the official number from 170 billion barrels to 257 billion barrels, despite absolutely no new oil discoveries or improvements in recovery rates being made, as highlighted in my last book on the oil markets. Shortly thereafter, Saudi Arabia increased its official crude oil reserves numbers again, to 266.4 billion barrels, a level that persisted until a slight increase in 2017, to 268.5 billion barrels. Over the same period  in fact, from 1973 to last month - Saudi Arabia has pumped an average of 8.162 million barrels per day (bpd). Taking just the 30-year period from 1990 to 2020, this means that Saudi Arabia permanently removed 2,979,130,000 (around 2.98 billion) barrels of oil every year from its fields, a total over that 30-year period of: 89,373,900,000 (about 89.4 billion) barrels. Using the original number of crude oil reserves would have meant that Saudi Arabias reserves would now stand at around 81 billion barrels, placing it around eighth on the list of countries by crude oil reserves ranking. Instead, due to the exceptionally fortunate  and equally mystifying - unilateral hike in the reserves numbers by Saudi itself in 1990 (the numbers were not originated or corroborated by any independent source, mark you), Saudi Arabia has somehow been able simultaneously to remove 89.4 billion barrels of oil permanently from its fields whilst actually increasing its crude oil reserves numbers by over 87 billion barrels. Given, as mentioned, that during this time there were no new oil discoveries made  indeed, there was declining production over this period at many of Saudi Arabias core fields, including Ghawar - this is a mathematical impossibility.

So to the actual oil crude oil production numbers: as highlighted above, the average amount of crude oil that Saudi Arabia was able to pump from 1973 to last month was 8.162 million bpd. That is it, there is no equivocation on that number, and no account is taken within that number of the unverifiable claims of any other oil equivalents that Saudi likes to throw into any questioning of that number in order to further obfuscate the issue. If this  correct  number is used as the basis for discussion then all of Saudi Arabias subsequent activities make perfect sense. Most tellingly in this regard, the question often asked around the time of the first Saudi-instigated oil price war from 2014-2016 that was aimed at destroying the then-nascent U.S. shale oil threat to Saudi was: Why didnt the Saudis pump more oil to crash prices more? After all, the Saudi strategy was for it and all other OPEC members to pump as much crude oil as possible to push oil prices as low as possible to cause as many bankruptcies as possible in the U.S. shale oil sector. The fact of the matter is that the Saudis did pump everything it could at that point. It pumped its usual 8.1 and a bit million bpd, plus it pumped to the maximum on all of its other fields, plus it used its oil in storage but despite all of that it was not able to produce more than around 10 million barrels per day of oil at any point for more than a few months or so (basically until its storage ran out and it had to rely on genuine production from the wellheads). Given that what was at stake in the 2014-2016 oil price war was the long-term future of Saudi Arabia as a significant power in the Middle East and the world, if it could have pumped one drop of oil more over that period then it would have.

Related: The Real Reason Big Oil Is Giving Up On Iraq

This leads to Saudis nonsensical claims about its spare capacity. These claims have been based on the foundation that its base crude oil production is around 10 million bpd rather than the 8.162 million bpd that is factually correct. It did indeed, as mentioned, produce just about 10 million bpd during its existentially important oil price war of 2014-2016 but that was going at absolutely full tilt and included storage volumes. The point here is that spare capacity is precisely that: basically, the extra amount that a country can produce in an emergency if and when required over and above the amount that can be produced with ease every day. The Energy Information Administration defines spare capacity specifically as production that can be brought online within 30 days and sustained for at least 90 days, whilst even Saudi Arabia has said that it would need at least 90 days to move rigs to drill new wells and raise production to the mythical 12 million bpd or 12.5 million bpd level. Abiding by this rule, Saudi Arabias genuine spare capacity up to at least the end of 2016 was at most about 2 million barrels per day using 8 million bpd as the base number, so equalling about 10 million bpd in total, which is precisely what it produced when it needed maximum production most (that is, during the 2014-2016 oil price war). The Saudis instead have been using the correct spare capacity of 2 million bpd but adding it to the false baseline production number of 10 million bpd for years, giving a number that it keeps mentioning of total capacity of 12-13 million bpd. Indeed, during its ill-fated 2020 oil price war the Saudi Ministry of Energy said it would increase its maximum sustained capacity to 13 million bpd. So fundamentally wrong is this Saudi number that it was forced to say so in the prospectus for its latest bond Saudi Aramco stated that it has not yet embarked on work to expand its maximum sustained capacity to this 13 million bpd level.

In terms of where we are now, there has been a slight change in Saudi Arabias favor. For a start, the restarting of the Partitioned Neutral Zone (PNZ) will bring 500,000-600,000 bpd back onto the market to be shared equally by Saudi and Kuwait, meaning up to 300,000 bpd extra for Saudi Arabia, which is not taking into account recent expansions. The average crude oil production from the start of 2012 - when the Saudis raised output to offset loss of Libya - to April 2020, we estimate at 10.0 million bpd, and for much of this period the PNZ was shut-in and for 2015 and 2016, the annual averages we have are 10.2 million bpd and 10.6 million bpd, which was a pretty sustained run, Richard Bronze, an analyst at Energy Aspects, in London, exclusively told OilPrice.com last week. Its tricky to validate official production capacity figures from any country unless we see it produce at that level for an extended period, at least three months, and Saudi Arabia briefly surged production last April [2020], but I suspect this took it to a level that was not sustainable, he said. I estimate that Saudi Arabia can sustainably produce around 11.3 million bpd of crude, some way below the official figures of 12 million bpd or even 12.5 million bpd including the PNZ, he added. Saudi Arabia has announced several upstream projects that are scheduled to come online around the middle of the decade, but these are largely required to offset the natural declines at existing fields and if the Kingdom is serious about wanting to raise production capacity then this will require significant additional capital investments over several years, he concluded.

By Simon Watkins for Oilprice.com

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The United States has agreed to lift all sanctions on the Iranian oil and shipping industry and to remove several senior officials from a blacklist, Reuters has reported, citing the chief of staff of outgoing President Hassan Rouhani.

"An agreement has been reached to remove all insurance, oil and shipping sanctions that were imposed by (former U.S. President Donald) Trump," Mahmoud Vaezi said, as carried by Iranian state media.

"About 1,040 Trump-era sanctions will be lifted under the agreement. It was also agreed to lift some sanctions on individuals and members of the supreme leader's inner circle," the official added.

However, based on comments from the Western powers participating in the negotiations, the finalization of the new nuclear deal between Tehran and Washington is yet to be reached.

The Reuters report comes on the heels of news that suggested reaching an agreement had just become harder: the U.S. blocked about three dozen Iranian websites, Bloomberg reported earlier today, citing the Department of Justice. The DoJ said the move was made in response to "brazen attempts" on the part of Iran to spread disinformation and mislead Americans.

In response, Iran said the move was "not constructive" in the context of the nuclear talks.

"We are using all international and legal means to... condemn... this mistaken policy of the United States," Mahmoud Vaezi said, as quoted by AFP. "It appears not constructive when talks for a deal on the nuclear issue are under way."

Oil prices have yet to react to these mixed signals, although the report about removing oil sanctions is bound to push benchmarks higher.

Iran, meanwhile, is preparing to return to the international oil markets. In May, Bloomberg reported data that Iran had some 69 million barrels in floating storage, ready to be dispatched to buyers when sanctions were lifted.

This week, state news agency Shana said that the Iranian Offshore Oil Company (IOOC) had started production from a new well at the Abuzar offshore field.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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The day of reckoning for Big Oil, when events at boardrooms and courtrooms issued last month the starkest warning to oil majors license to operate yet, was hailed as a huge victory for climate activists. But the climate celebration may be a bit premature.

Rebel shareholder votes at Exxon and Chevron and a court ruling against Shell delivered a blow to Big Oil in a single day, and environmentalists are ecstatic.

But for all the glee that oil majors got what they deserved, climate activists may be overlooking the unintended consequences of shareholders punishing oil companies about their continued investment in oil and gas production.

Pyrrhic Victory

The court and boardroom wins for climate enthusiasts could be a pyrrhic victory, because unless oil demand also drops, emissions may not fall, Jason Bordoff, the co-founding dean of the Columbia Climate School and a columnist at Foreign Policy, says.

Global oil demand will continue to rise, probably for another decade, until electric vehicles (EVs) and other technologieswhich are not yet to scaleundermine demand for fossil fuels.

As demand grows, the gap left by international oil majors, if they accelerate a shift away from oil and gas faster than they have planned under investor and activist pressure, will simply be filled by national oil companies. Those companies, held by the Middle East oil powerhouses such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Iraq, or Kuwait, as well as Russias Rosneft, havent pledged any net-zero energy company goals. Nor do they operate in major markets that have net-zero emission targets.

While activists are focused on punishing international oil majors, the national oil companies will not be sitting on the fence drafting net-zero strategies. They will step up to explore for and extract more oil and gas because, first, the world still needs fossil fuels. And second, because oil revenues are the pillars of government budgets and the social contracts in major Middle Eastern economies, including that of the worlds largest oil exporter, Saudi Arabia.

Moreover, how many shareholders would demand climate action at Saudi Aramco or Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), considering that the state holds (nearly) all the shares in each of those oil giants? Would Greenpeace activists dare breach a court order and board a rig offshore Saudi Arabia, as they have done several times in the North Sea in recent years?

Emissions Pledges

The primary goal of recent climate activism, leaving aside the radical keep it in the ground, should be forcing a change in the emissions profile of oil and gas production and planning for a future where oil demand may not be rising year after year.

All international majors have pledged to cut emissions, but environmentalists dont think those are enough.

The easiest and certainly the cheapest way to cut emissions from oil and gas production is to reduce oil and gas production. Yet, if Big Oil slashes production based on environmental wishes instead of on plans for gradual deceleration of investment in fossil fuels, Saudi Aramco and Rosneft will boost their output, and the net outcome for society and the climate would be no emission reduction at all.

To be fair, Shell, BP, and Eni have said over the past year that their respective oil production would gradually fall over time as they plan to become net-zero energy businesses by 2050. Shell affirmed earlier this year its oil production peaked in 2019. BP looks to slash oil and gas production by 40 percent by 2030. Eni sees its oil production peaking in 2025.

All these pledges from oil majors would do nothing to reduce overall emissions from oil and gas globally because as long as there is growing or plateauing demand for oil and gas, there will be producers willing to offer supply. Just ask Saudi Arabia.

Global Oil Demand Is Not Falling

Since oil demand is not showing any signs of falling anytime soon, a supply reduction from one international oil major will not reduce global emissions, Shells CEO Ben van Beurden said earlier this month.

The change the world needs toward low-carbon energy must address the demand for carbon-based energy, not just its supply, he wrote on LinkedIn in response to the court ruling which Shell expects to appeal.

Related: Oil Rally Continues On Bright U.S. Economic Data



To mention one, perhaps extreme scenario, imagine Shell decided to stop selling petrol and diesel today. This would certainly cut Shells carbon emissions. But it would not help the world one bit. Demand for fuel would not change. People would fill up their cars and delivery trucks at other service stations, van Beurden said.

If Big Oil was forced to cut production faster than it intends to, people filling up their cars would likely mean that producers like Saudi Arabia and Russia would own an even greater share of the oil market. Moreover, persistently low investment in oil and gas from international majors will give OPEC and its allies led by Russia more license to pump more oil to meet global demand and stabilize the oil market. In other words, OPEC+ would have all the more reasons to step up and fill the gap and prevent the world from running the risk of facing an acute deficit of oil and gas, as Rosnefts CEO Igor Sechin said earlier this month.

While Big Oil fights climate activists in the courtrooms, OPEC+ will gain an ever greater geopolitical influence and will step up production, hindering the global fight to reduce emissions from oil and gas operations and the use of fossil fuels.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is the key Arab state at the centre of the U.S.s Middle East pushback against increasing Chinese and Russian influence across the region via the recent normalisation deals between Israel and the UAE and Bahrain. The UAEs Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) is the key corporate proxy in this effort. For the strategy to function effectively it is necessary not only that the UAE increases its crude oil volumes via ADNOC - and plans are proceeding to push this up by around 1 million barrels per day (bpd) to at least 5 million bpd by 2030 at the latest  but also to ensure that the UAE is self-sufficient in gas. This latter consideration is vital as it will safeguard the UAE from any external pressure that might be brought upon it by the big gas powers in the region, notably Iran, were it to lack this self-sufficiency. Last weeks announcement of a US$510 million deal with Italys Saipem to expand the capacity of the UAEs flagship Shah Sour Gas Plant is vital in this strategy.

The deal itself is an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract to expand the capacity of its Shah Sour Gas Plant aimed at increasing its processing capacity from 1.28 billion standard cubic feet per day (scf/d) to 1.45 billion scf/d by the end of 2023. This latest initiative is all part of the decision made back in 2014/2015 to eventually make the UAE self-sufficient in gas in order to bolster the countrys energy and power security and to use in its burgeoning and value-added petrochemicals sector. At that point, the Shah Sour Gas Plant, located around 200 kilometres southwest of Abu Dhabi city, had just come on stream and the Related: China's Private Oil Refiners Are Too Powerful For Beijing



Shah Gas Development was designed initially to process about 1 billion scf/d of well fluid containing 23 per cent hydrogen sulphide and 10 per cent carbon dioxide. From this feed gas stream, the plant provided at that time approximately 500 million scf/d of clean natural gas for the domestic Abu Dhabi market while supplying 4,400 tons per day of natural gas liquids, 33,000 barrels per day of condensate, and 9,200 tons per day of elemental sulphur for industrial and agricultural uses.

Given this foundation point for its gas business expansion, which was later formalised into a key element in Abu Dhabis Economic Vision 2030, plans for multiple parallel developments were also discussed, each of which is currently at a varying stage of development. By 2017, ADNOC was looking at investing up to US$20 billion to develop the Hail, Ghasha, Delma, Nasr, and Shuwaihat fields, which it was estimated could produce at least 1.2 billion scf/d of gas. As it stands, the progress at these fields has been mixed but a focused and sustained push across all of the better prospects is likely to occur within the next six to nine months, OilPrice.com understands from sources close to ADNOC.

It is unclear as yet whether these renewed efforts will include the ultra-sour Dalma Gas Development project for which ADNOC last year terminated US$1.65 billion worth of contracts awarded in February to a Petrofac-led group. In keeping with its original strategy for the development of its gas sector development back in 2015, ADNOC will continue to seek foreign partners to exploit its various natural gas sources - including tapping into gas caps and undeveloped deep and sour gas reserves  with the onus being on those companies connected to the nascent U.S.-Israel-Arab state alliance. This corporate partner strategy would also be in line with the fact that ADNOC Sour Gas  which is at the heart of the Shah Gas Development - is 60 per cent owned by ADNOC but the remaining equity stake is held by the U.S.s Occidental. The companies chosen will also be in a position to help ADNOC to further develop its petrochemicals business, according to the sources exclusively spoken to by OilPrice.com last week. Specifically, ADNOC is looking to nearly triple its current petrochemicals production, to nearly 12 million tonnes per annum by 2025.

That these future gas field (and petrochemicals contract) awards would follow a similar geopolitical theme is further implied by the recent awarding by ADNOC of a second major oil and gas exploration block concession to Occidental. The U.S. major had previously won the 5,782 square kilometre (sq. km) Onshore Block 3 in Abu Dhabi's first competitive bid round in February 2019. In return for an initial investment of AED514 million (US$140 million), Occidental most recently secured a 100 per cent stake in the exploration phase of the 4,212 sq. km onshore block while ADNOC will retain the option to own 60 per cent of the production phase in the 35-year concession.

Similarly, the fact that it is Italys Saipem that has been chosen to expand the capacity of the UAEs flagship Shah Sour Gas Plant is in keeping with the nationalities of the companies that featured in the first round of concession awards that ended in March 2019. These were: a consortium led by Italys ENI and Thailands PTT Exploration and Production Public Co. for Offshore Block 1 and Offshore Block 2, while Onshore Block 1 was awarded to Indias Bharat Petroleum Corp. and the Indian Oil Corp., Onshore Block 3 was awarded to the U.S.s Occidental Petroleum, and Onshore Block 4 was awarded to Japans INPEX Corp.

By Simon Watkins for Oilprice.com

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BP has started up an oil project in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, its fourth of five major projects globally this year, which will generate cash flow to fund low-carbon energy developments at the supermajor.

BP announced on Wednesday that it had safely started up the Manuel project, which includes a new subsea production system for two new wells tied into the Na Kika platform 140 miles off the coast of New Orleans. BP and Shell each hold a 50-percent working interest in the Manuel development.

The wells at the Manuel project are expected to boost gross platform production by an estimated 20,100 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd).

Manuel is exactly the type of high-value project that is critical to growing our business here in the Gulf of Mexico. bps focused and resilient hydrocarbons business is a key pillar of our strategy, said Starlee Sykes, BP senior vice president Gulf of Mexico and Canada.

According to Ewan Drummond, BP senior vice president of projects, production and operations: Our disciplined investment in Manuel is part of our target to add 900,000 boe/d of production from new projects by the end of 2021. The safe production of resilient hydrocarbons in the basins we know best is core to advancing our strategy to transform into an integrated energy company.

And its high-margin projects like this one that will generate the cashflow to fund our transition to a low carbon future, BPs chief executive Bernard Looney wrote on LinkedIn, adding that this was Performing while transforming at its best.

BP looks to cut its oil and gas production by 40 percent by 2030 through active portfolio management and no exploration in new countries.

However, Looney has said many times that BP will continue to be in the business of oil and gas, and it will be this business that would deliver cash for renewable investments and steady returns to shareholders.

Performing while transforming  this is what Looney reiterates in every update to the market.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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Norway has awarded four new exploration licenses in frontier Arctic areas as it looks to support its oil and gas industry, as well as value and job creation, the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy said on Wednesday.

The ministry has offered seven companies stakes or operatorship in four production licenses, one in the Norwegian Sea and three in the Barents Sea, as part of its 25th licensing round. The so-called numbered licensing round typically includes frontier parts of the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS).

According to Norways oil ministry, it will be the frontier regions that are most likely to host large new discoveries.

Norway needs new discoveries to maintain employment in one of its most important industries and its supply chain, especially after the last few challenging months, Energy Minister Tina Bru said last year when the ministry proposed the expansion of areas for oil and gas exploration.

In the 25th licensing round, announced in November 2020, companies could apply for licenses in nine different areaseight in the Barents Sea and one in the Norwegian Sea.

After evaluating the bids, Norway awarded stakes and/or operatorship to Shell, Equinor, Idemitsu Petroleum Norway, INEOS E&P Norway, Lundin, OMV (Norway), and Var Energi, the ministry said today. Of the four licenses, Equinor will operate two, while Var Energimajority held by Italys Eniand INEOS will each operate one license.

Earlier this month, Norways government said that it is betting on offshore wind, hydrogen, and electrification to meet its commitment under the Paris Agreement, but its oil and gas sector will continue to play a major role in long-term job creation, economic growth prospects, and value for the country.

Norway, Western Europes largest oil producer, is preparing to face the energy transition, yet it believes that it can develop its petroleum resources to deliver low-emission production within its climate policy, the governments White Paper Putting Energy to Work showed.

The main goal of the governments petroleum policy - to facilitate profitable production in the oil and gas industry in a long term perspective - is firmly in place, minister Bru said.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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South Sudan has just launched its inaugural oil licensing round, hoping to attract interest from a diverse group of foreign investors.

South Sudan broke from Sudan in 2011, taking with it around 350,000 bpd in oil production. But then civil war in South Sudan broke out in 2013 that further complicated oil production.

In 2018, the warring factions in South Sudan signed the so-called Khartoum Declaration of Agreement, in which the parties to the South Sudan conflict declared a permanent ceasefire, and the governments of Sudan and South Sudan explored ways to rehabilitate the oil sector in South Sudan.

Now South Sudans Ministry of Petroleum has identified new exploration blocks with potential hydrocarbons and has compiled crucial data to provide to interested investors, operators, and counterparties, it said in a statement.

Around 90 percent of South Sudans oil and gas reserves remain unexplored, according to an analysis commissioned by the Petroleum Ministry. These resources provide unprecedented opportunities to international investors, South Sudan says.

This Oil Licensing Round aims to attract interest from a diverse group of foreign investors to a region that is already home to oil and gas majors from China and Malaysia, the ministry noted.



Related: BP Claims High Oil Prices Will Benefit Its Strategy

South Sudan also hopes to welcome back experienced partners and operators now that it has made significant progress in returning to peace and stability, it added.

Currently, South Sudan has four producing blocks, operated by China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) and Malaysias Petronas.

The first licensing round is offering five blocks up for grabs.

Due to the pandemic last year, crude oil production in South Sudan declined to 165,000 bpd from 185,000 bpd. Floods in some parts of the country and geological challenges also led to reduced oil production.

South Sudan has been part of the non-OPEC group in the OPEC+ production cut agreement since its inception in 2017.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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This week, dozens of members of Congress wrote to Biden and CDC Director Rochelle Walensky calling for the moratorium to be not only extended but also strengthened in some ways.

The letter, spearheaded by Democratic Reps. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Jimmy Gomez of California and Cori Bush of Missouri, called for an unspecified extension in order to allow the nearly $47 billion in emergency rental assistance included in the American Rescue Plan to get into the hands of tenants.

Ending the assistance too abruptly, they said, would disproportionately hurt some of the same minority communities that were hit so hard by the virus itself. They also echoed many housing advocates by calling for the moratorium's protections to be made automatic, requiring no special steps from the tenant in order to gain its protections.

The impact of the federal moratorium cannot be understated, and the need to strengthen and extend it is an urgent matter of health, racial, and economic justice, the letter said.

Diane Yentel, president of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, called an extension of the eviction ban the right thing to do  morally, fiscally, politically, and as a continued public health measure.
NEW YORK  Warren Buffett resigned Wednesday as trustee of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which says it will announce plans in July to answer questions raised about its leadership structure as it deals with the divorce of its two founders.

The announcement from Buffett comes weeks after Bill and Melinda Gates revealed that they were divorcing after 27 years of marriage but would continue to jointly run the foundation, one of the largest charitable foundations in the world. Buffett is one of three members of the foundations board; the others are Bill and Melinda Gates.

For years I have been a trustee  an inactive trustee at that  of only one recipient of my funds, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMG). I am now resigning from that post, just as I have done at all corporate boards other than Berkshires, Buffett said in a Wednesday. The CEO of BMG is Mark Suzman, an outstanding recent selection who has my full support. My goals are 100% in sync with those of the foundation, and my physical participation is in no way needed to achieve these goals.

Buffett, the chairman and chief executive of Omaha-based Berkshire Hathaway, also said Wednesday that he is halfway to reaching his goal of giving away all his shares in the conglomerate and that hes donating an additional $4.1 billion in shares to five foundations.
In a similar vein, the administration is now working on a plan to beef up the American manufacture of lithium-ion batteries. Used in electric cars and for storing renewable energy, these batteries are essential to a green economy. China has 93 gigafactories that make them. The U.S. has four.

This would be a good time to briefly compare the Biden approach to China with that of his predecessor. One of former President Donald Trumps first actions in office was to pull the U.S. out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. The partnerships purpose was to help its members  about a dozen countries, including Canada, Japan and Australia  compete with China.

Sanders opposed the Trans-Pacific Partnership as well. He and Trump apparently shared an aversion to anything with the word trade attached. Lets just say that had the U.S. stayed in the agreement, many of the currently disrupted supply chains might have been oriented away from China. Some might have moved to the United States.

Biden has also dispensed with the racial taunts. Which do you think concerns China more, Trumps calling COVID-19 the China virus or Biden talking about extreme competition?

A modern economy runs on computer chips. A clean-energy future relies on lithium batteries. America cannot let China control the supply of them. Drop your purist dogmas, everybody. Economic nationalism is the future.
The debate over critical race theory is best viewed not as a serious discussion of how we should deal with racial issues, but as a case study of whats wrong with U.S. politics.

Critical race theory, until last year a little-known academic concept, is uncomfortable for many White people. It argues that racism is not merely a character flaw of some individuals, but is embedded in our present laws, policies and social assumptions, harmful residue of an unenlightened past.

An example: North Omaha, like many historically Black neighborhoods, suffers serious poverty. It doesnt take an academician steeped in critical race theory to grasp that this is a legacy of redlining, which was an official U.S. government policy started in the New Deal era.

The federally funded Home Owners Loan Corp. had assessors rate neighborhoods on factors including the threat of infiltration of foreign-born, negro, or lower grade population. The agency then literally drew red lines around neighborhoods it deemed as risky and unfit for investment.

In Omaha, the red lines were drawn around the core of North Omaha and two areas in South Omaha.
The U.S. Catholic bishops have sunk their energy into deciding which public figures deserve to receive Christ in Holy Communion. Much like the Pharisees, they would rather use their agenda and influence to call out others as sinners. Im not surprised. Rather than fighting for justice, supporting suffering humanity or making amends for their own sexual atrocities, the USCCB remains blind for the log in their own eye. Maybe this is the time Jesus spoke of when he told his disciples they do not need a church in which to pray, Matthew 6:1-34. I for one, will pray in secret for our president, Joseph Robinette Biden, who is returning our country to the compassionate, inclusive democracy that works to help the least among us. If abortion is their priority, the USCCB should practice making abortion unnecessary rather than illegal. If they were Christ, they would feed the poor, house the homeless and welcome the foreigner instead of judging people and telling followers of Christ that they are not welcome to receive Him.
The affixing of tax stamps on alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages has grown exponentially since its introduction about four years ago.



From an initial 28.5 million tax stams affixed in 2018, the number increased to 38.5 million the following year and 70.2 million in 2020, with managers of the project projecting to affix some 90 million stamps in 2021.



The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) said it was also engaging the Food and Beverages Association of Ghana (FABAG) and local manufacturers to pay for the affixing of the stamps on their beverage products at the stamping facilities.



The Ghanaian printing company, Buck Press, and its partner, DelaRue, a British security printing company, are responsible for printing the tax stamps on behalf of the GRA, while Streamline Resources, which is located at the Tema Port, assists companies without the technical capacity to fix the stamps on individual products.



Fraud reduction.



The Project Manager of Excise Tax Stamp at the GRA, Mr Kwabena Apau Awuah Anto, who disclosed this, said the move would reduce the incidence of product fraud and piracy, where importers and manufacturers applied for the stamps for specific products but affixed them on pirated products that had no approval and safety certification from the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA).



Speaking during a tour of the tax stamp facilities at the Tema Port by a team from the Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL) last Thursday, Mr Anto noted that the Commissioner General of the GRA had already granted authorisation to some 34 large importers and manufacturers, including Guinness Ghana Limited and the Coca-Cola Bottling Company, to undertake the affixing of the stamps at their factories at their own cost.



The GGCL team, which was led by the Managing Director, Mr Ato Afful, included the Editor of the Daily Graphic, Mr Kobby Asmah; the Director, Marketing, Mr Franklin Sowa, and the Editor of The Mirror, Ms Doreen Hammond.



The team was in Tema to have firsthand appreciation of progress of the excise tax stamp policy and also explore collaboration with the GRA on how to further advance the initiative.



Reducing fraud



Mr Anto said the excise stamp policy would reduce product fraud and ensure that only wholesome products were allowed into the market space to ensure public health and safety..



Similarly, he said, the policy would ensure revenue assurance and further level the playing field for importers and manufacturers to compete fairly on the market through the payment of appropriate taxes.



No cost



Mr Anto said: What we do here at the Tema facilities and 13 other stations across the country where we have affixing facilities is at no cost to importers.



Operating the facilities, he said, came with headline costs such as the procurement of the stamps, utility, labour, operational cost and materials such as shrink wraps.



He indicated that when the project took off in 2018, the government decided to give a six-month window to supply the stamps for free, but that had continued till date, hence the Commissioner General's directive for the stakeholders to be engaged and sensitised to the need for them to pay.



The engagements, Mr Anto said, would determine whether the GRA would charge the full cost or there would be cost sharing between it and the stakeholders.



In countries such as Kenya, importers pay for the stamps or they get the products stamped at the point of export. Ghana's policy on the tax stamp policy places the responsibility on the affected excise product on the importer or the manufacturer. In many countries where similar policies are implemented, manufacturers have affixing facilities at their production units, Mr Anto said.



Challenges



On the recent challenges that saw delays and congestion at the facility, which led to an outcry among importers, Mr Anto explained that the Tema facilities were not meant for large volume importers but for people who only imported occasionally.



However, he said, large volume importers, in their attempt to avoid associated costs that came with the affixing, often sent their products to the facilities for stamping, a situation which resulted in congestion and delays.



Similarly, challenges with the stamps after a change in the service provider also resulted in some delays, he noted.



However, engineers worked on the machines to be able to pick the new stamps.



Graphic to deepen collaboration



In his remarks, Mr Asmah called on the GRA to intensify education on policies that were periodically introduced into the trade space.



Tax education, he said, was important, since it would ensure compliance at all levels and also ensure that people did not short-change the system.



He commended officials of the GRA and the service provider, Streamline Resources, for taking steps to address the challenges.



The GCGL, he said, would collaborate with the GRA to scale up its sensitisation efforts, having had an insight into the operations of the excise tax stamp policy.

I believe this is the right time for the GCGL and the GRA to deepen collaboration for the purpose of public sensitisation, so that we can get a buy-in from the public, Mr Asmah said.





Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Hollard Ghana with subsidiaries, Hollard Insurance and Hollard Life Assurance has announced that June's edition of H.Insured: All About Insurance Webinar Series dubbed, Is Insuretech the future of insurance, will be moderated by Managing Director of Hollard Insurance, Daniel Boi Addo. The webinar is slated for Thursday, June 24 at 4 pm via Zoom.



On the panel speaking to the MD about how insuretech is disrupting the industry, are Alfred Kisseadu, Chief Strategist, RedPear Communications, developers of AI solutions; Fred Frimpong, Head of Financial Services, at ecommerce giant, Jumia Ghana, and Sheila Wristberg, Managing Director, of top insurancebrokers, iRisk Management Limited.



Speaking on Junes theme, the Group Head of Marketing and Corporate Affairs at Hollard Ghana, Cynthia Ofori-Dwumfuo, said the topic comes at the right time.



This months discussion is relevant to the times.The consumption of technology coupled with on-demand consumer trends is changing the practice of insurance. Its about time industry players sat back to look at things from a wider perspective, ultimately proposing a way forward for a typically conservative industry. With Hollard Insurance MD, Daniel Boi Addo moderating, weve brought together experts working in technology, e-commerce and insurance. Attendees are guaranteed an insightful discussion..



Our goal as an insurance group, is to help Ghanaians secure their future by making sound financial decisions. This aligns with our purpose to enable more people to create and secure a better future through financial literacy programs like our H.Insured webinar series. We welcome all to join in the session on Thursday., she added.



Interested participants should visit Hollard Insurance and Hollard Life pages on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and Hollard Ghana on LinkedIn for information on how to register or join directly via Zoom Webinar ID95097238012.



About Hollard Ghana



The countrys favourite insurance group is Hollard Ghana, with subsidiaries Hollard Insurance and Hollard Life Assurance. The group combines its deep local knowledge of the market having previously operated in Ghana for 25 years as Metropolitan Insurance with the world-class expertise of an international insurance brand in 18 countries across the world. With feet firmly planted on Ghanaian soil but headquartered in South Africa, Hollard delivers innovative insurance solutions customized to the unique risks Ghanaians face. Hollard offers various life and general insurance products including funeral, personal accident, motor, business, travel, home, and more; and can be reached via the following means: 0501603967 (Hollard Insurance) and 0501533698 (Hollard Life).



Beyond various nationwide office branches and Hollard 2U franchise shops, Ghanaians can find Hollard at Shell Fuel Station Welcome Shops, Melcom stores and online at www.hollard.com.gh and www.jumia.com.gh for all their insurance needs.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









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The Ghana National Association of Private Schools (GNAPS), zone 12 has held its termly general meeting at Dodowa in the Shai-Osudoku District of the Greater Accra Region.



During the meeting, the newly elected Chairperson of the Greater Accra Regional Division of GNAPS in the person of Aisha Asi Akrofi in her speech highlighted the new administrations ambition.



According to her, the Greater Accra division of GNAPS shall tackle very vital and critical issues such as inculcating the habit of reading in schools especially kindergarten and lower primary. She reiterated that for this new GNAPS administration, their focus is on the infrastructural development of schools, sustainability of schools and delivering quality education at affordable cost.



Aisha Akrofi who is also the C.E.O for Prima Academy based in Tabora, Accra emphasized that, teachers are the drivers of our vision and we will focus on training them quarterly to ensure they deliver well for better learning outcomes.

GNAPS Greater Accra Region has adopted the jolly phonics programme for all member schools which will be rolled out in August this year. The programme makes kids as young as four years read within the shortest possible time. I will therefore take this opportunity to encourage all private schools who are not yet part of us to do so, to benefit from all these trainings, and to all GNAPS members we ask you to stand with us to make this vision a reality in order for us to develop, sustain and give quality education in our schools, she noted.



The National Schools Inspectorate Authority (NASIA) Member, Madam Cecilia Acheampongmaah Dwomah also in her presentation to GNAPS members at the meeting, reflected on the Act (2020) which mandates them to register and regulate schools.



The act she said was passed on 26th August 2020. She added that, schools that were established before the Act have six months to register with NASIA and schools that were established after the Act have six months but the deadline to register all schools is December, 2021.



The Association also organized a sensitization forum for GNAPS members led by National Teacher Council (NTC) member, Bernard Cook who highlighted on the need for every teacher in Ghana to be encouraged to acquire professional licensing which will enhance quality teaching and quality education in Ghana.



The Ghana National Association of Private schools (GNAPS), is an association of schools in the private sector in Ghana which has been in existence for over forty years with members in all sixteen regions.

Source: Kwaku Amoateng Kyei









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One of the greatest images on the campus of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) is the conglomeration of trees that provide an amazing canopy in a combination of natural and built environment.

On entering the campus, one is greeted with the refreshing ambience of a university in the forest.



Apart from its academic excellence, which the university guards with jealousy, another unique thing on which the institution places premium is environmental protection, which dates back to the time when the then Asantehene, Otumfuo Sir

Osei Agyeman Prempeh II (19311970) gave out a vast tract of virtually virgin forest for the establishment of the first university in Kumasi.



Over the years, the greenery of the total land area of about 13 square kilometres has fiercely been preserved, while new trees are planted for the benefit of future generations.



There is a policy which consistently encourages the university community to pay particular attention to its environment.



Aesthetics



With an enormous deal of green space and extraordinary commitment to sustainability, KNUSTs organic environment  the trees and the green grass and the way they are immaculately maintained  typifies the aesthetic standard that has kept the institution as a bastion of environmental friendliness.



There are economic, as well as medicinal, trees, some of which are used for teaching purposes.



Green Ghana



The management of the university has a vision to keep the campus environmentally friendly and super serene for teaching and learning.



Therefore, since the launch of the governments Green Ghana Project on June 11, this year, the university, in spite of its green environment, has not stayed back.



In response to the Green Ghana Project, KNUST has so far planted 6,000 tree seedlings (2,000 on the main campus and 4,000 on its virgin land at Anwomaso, which is earmarked for another campus).



We are taking the Green Ghana Project very seriously. As you look around, the university is beautifully green, but we continue to plant more trees, the Pro Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof. Prof. Ellis Owusu-Dabo, told the Daily Graphic in Kumasi last Saturday.



One student, one tree



The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. (Mrs) Rita Akosua Dickson, led staff and students to plant 2,000 trees at the Prince of Wales Park, KNUST, and other sites on campus on June 11, in an exercise dubbed: One student, One tree, which was supported by Friends of Rivers and Water Bodies, an environmental non-for-profit organisation which donated 1,000 seedlings.



We supported the university in that important exercise because we believe that KNUST is a good example of what commitment to the environment is all about, the President of Friends of Rivers and Water Bodies, Nana Dwomoh Sarpong, said.



Supporting learning



The Pro Vice-Chancellor said: We want an environment that supports learning. Our philosophy is to become an ecological teaching and learning hub.



He said the universitys tree planting activities were intensified during the tenure of the immediate past Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Kwasi Obiri-Danso, which practice was being continued by the current Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Dickson.



Prof. Obiri-Danso, as part of his effort to improve the aesthetic beauty of the campus, also collaborated with Friends of Rivers and Water Bodies to plant over 2,000 tree seedlings of various species on the campus.

Significantly, the seedlings that were planted have been well nurtured.



The Students Representative Council (SRC) had equally engaged in the planting of trees on the campus.



On October 20, 2019, the SRC organised its biggest tree planting exercise as part of its special initiatives, with the trees being nurtured.



Filling spaces



The KNUST believes that it still has open spaces that must have vegetative cover.



Naturally, some of the trees will die, and because of the long period it takes trees to grow, we believe we have to plant consistently, the University Relations Officer (URO), Dr Daniel Norris Bekoe, told the Daily Graphic.



He was of the belief that life could be better with trees, saying that given the adverse effects of global warming, creating a serene atmosphere for teaching and learning was the way to go.



So, as you go round the campus, you see students sitting under trees studying, Dr Bekoe said.



Community rules



Every member of the university community is encouraged to protect the environment, and for that reason no one is allowed to cut trees in the university. Even when a tree branch obstructs someone in his house, the person cannot cut it because the rule is that you have to invite the estate department to come and prune.



There is a special budget for the maintenance of the university environment.



We have all kinds of species for teaching and learning, especially botany and herbal medicine. Now herbal medicine has become part of the health medicine and so we plant medicinal trees, Dr Bekoe said.



According to the URO, anytime people visited the campus, one conspicuous thing that hit them was the green environment.



Many Ambassadors and High Commissioners who have come here have been amazed at the way we keep the environment. They are thrilled by how we keep the environment and the amazing infrastructure, he said.









Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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A large number of poorer countries receiving Covid-19 vaccines through a global sharing scheme do not have enough doses to continue programmes, the World Health Organization has said.



WHO senior adviser Dr Bruce Aylward said the Covax programme had delivered 90 million doses to 131 countries.

But he said this was nowhere near enough to protect populations from a virus still spreading worldwide.



The shortages come as some nations in Africa see a third wave of infections.



On Monday, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa called for an end to vaccine hoarding by wealthier countries as his government scrambled to curb a steep rise in cases.



On a continental level, only 40 million doses have been administered so far in Africa - less than 2% of the population, Mr Ramaphosa said.



To address this, he said his government was working with Covax to create a regional hub to produce more vaccines in South Africa.



Covax was created last year to ensure Covid-19 doses were made available around the world, with richer countries subsidizing costs for poorer nations.

Source: BBC









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The European Union is in the process of removing financial restrictions on Burundi, the presidents office has said.



In 2016, the EU suspended direct financial support to the Burundian government over human rights violations after the unrest that followed the failed coup of 2015.



Since 2020, under current President Evariste Ndayishimiye, Burundi has made efforts to restore rights and foreign relations, and had approached the EU to lift the ban.



The decision to lift the ban on restrictions was communicated to Burundis president when he met the EU delegates on Monday in the political capital, Gitega, the Burundian presidency announced on Twitter.



The EU's representative in Burundi, Claude Bochu, said that this was "a starting process to lift the ban on Burundi".



But different rights groups on Monday wrote a petition to the EU deploring widespread impunity for past and ongoing serious human rights violations in the country.

Source: BBC









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Overlord of Mamprugu, the Nayiri, Naa Bohogu Mahami Abdulai Sheriga, has applauded President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, for seeing to the construction and completion of several projects which had been on the wish list of the chiefs and people of Mamprugu for many years.



According to the Nayiri, the impact of the work undertaken by the President Akufo-Addo has been felt by the entire country, especially the people of the North East Region.



He indicated that several town water projects across the North East Region, which have been commissioned, the asphalting of the Nalerigu, Gambaga, and Walewale town roads, as well as the ongoing construction of Wulugu-Kpasenkpe Road, the Nasia-Kparigu road, the Nalerigu-Bunkpurugu road, the Nalerigu-Gbintiri road and Gbintiri-Chereponi Road, all in the North East Region, are examples of projects undertaken by the Akufo-Addo government.



The above-mentioned projects that are being witnessed, have been on the request list of Mamprugu for years which eluded, and, undoubtedly, passed on from government to government. Certainly, we owe you tons of gratitude, the Nayiri added.



Naa Bohogu Mahami Abdulai Sheriga made this known on Tuesday, 22nd June 2021, when the President paid a courtesy call on him at his palace, as part of his two-day tour of North East Region.



The Nayiri also expressed gratitude to President Akufo-Addo for the Pwalugu Multi-Purpose Dam and Irrigation Project, which he described as the Super Game Changer Project in the North, which will result in the provision of electricity, and 25,000 hectares of irrigation facilities.



The Dam I also understand will serve as a receptacle to collect all water up stream which has been the source of the region's perennial flooding, he added.



Touching on the pro-poor policies implemented by the Government of President Akufo-Addo since 2017, such as the free Senior High School policy, Planting for Food and Jobs, One-constituency-One Ambulance, the expansion of the National School Feeding Programmme and the introduction of the Nation Builders Corps he indicated that these policies are well thought-out and targeted policies that are aimed at reducing poverty. Ours is a young region on which these policies perfectly fit.



The Nayiri thanked President Akufo-Addo for the appointment of the former Hon. Hajia Alima Mahama to the high office of Ghana's Ambassador to the United States of America.



We are forever most grateful. Your appointment of Hon. Mustapha Ussif as Minister of Youth and Sports, Hon. Hajia Abudu Zuweira Lariba as Deputy Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection is being highly appreciated, he added.









Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament (MP) for Madina , Mr Francis Xavier- Sosu, has initiated a private member bill that seeks to provide a legal regime on how people who are wrongfully jailed can be compensated by the state.



To be known as the Compensation Act ,it will enshrined in law the computation formulae to be used to award compensation to innocent people wrongfully incarcerated in line with Article 14 clauses (5) and (7) of the 1992 Constitution.



In furtherance of his quest, the MP who is also a well-known human rights lawyer has sent his proposals to the Clerk of Parliament requesting them to be drafted into a bill by the Legislative Drafting Office for subsequent consideration by the House.



Proposals



Among other things, Mr Sosu is proposing an Act of Parliament that would clearly define what amounts to wrongful arrest, unlawful detention, malicious prosecution and wrongful conviction.



The Act , he envisages, would also stipulate a formula for calculating compensation on hourly, daily , weekly, monthly and yearly basis, and provide the circumstance under which a particular compensation must apply.



Also, the MP proposes that the Act would provide the sources of compensation, which he expected to be the consolidated fund.



But it must have a pro viso that offending state agents who may be complicit in the violation will be surcharged with whatever compensation paid by the state to the person whose rights have been violated, the proposals said.



In terms of how to activate the Act, the MP proposes that an application shall be made to the Solicitor -General , who will have the power to decide on the compensation to be paid.



Where there is a disagreement as to the amount to be paid , a formal application can be made to the High Court for determination, the proposals added



Constitutional provisions



Article 14(5) of the 1992 Constitution stipulates that a person who is unlawfully arrested , restricted or detained by any other person shall be entitled to compensation from that other person.



Article 14(7) of 1992 Constitution clothes the Supreme Court with the power to determine the compensation that shall be paid to a person who is has served jail term for an offence he never committed and has been duly acquitted by a court.



Inadequate compensation



In his proposal, Mr Sosu is of the view that despite the constitutional provisions mentioned above, the lack of legal guidance has made it very difficult for courts to determine what would amount to adequate compensation.



In the absence of any clear legal basis for computation of compensation, the courts /judges are left to exercise their discretion. In the exercise of their discretion, the compensation awarded by the courts/judge to persons who have been wrongfully convicted, detained and arrested have not been satisfactorily as compared to the kind of wrong suffered by the person due to the wrongful acts committed by actors of state agencies, the proposal said.



The MP cited the case of Eric Asante , a teacher who was wrongfully jailed on accusation of defiling and impregnating a 14-year-old pupil.



After serving 15 years in jail, he was acquitted and discharged by the Supreme Court after a DNA test showed that he was not the father of the child born out of the said defilement.



Following his acquittal ,Mr Asante applied to the Supreme Court for compensation seeking almost Ghc7milion, but the court awarded him Ghc45,000.



Mr Sosu said many people criticised the compensation awarded by the apex, describing it as insensitive



If there were clear regulatory regimes that provided for computation of compensation, it would have guided the discretion of the court, the proposal said.



The legislator also cited the case of Felix Nyaba , who was acquitted after serving 3 months in jail, but was refused compensation based on technicalities.



There have been several individuals who have been victims of wrongful arrest, malicious prosecution, unlawful detention and wrongful conviction who have been unable to access any compensation due to lack of very clear rules on the rules on the type of compensation they can be entitled to as a result of the wrong done them, the proposals added.

Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The 37 Military Hospital has cut the sod for the construction of an 80-bed cardiothoracic centre expected to be completed in a year.



The centre is being sponsored solely by the Member of Parliament for Assin Central and the Chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Defence and Interior, Mr Kennedy Ohene Agyapong.



The estimated cost of the project has not been made public, but the sponsor presented a seed fund of GH1.2 million to the Chief of the Defence Staff, Vice Admiral Seth Amoama, at the sod-cutting ceremony in Accra yesterday to facilitate the start of the project.



Upon completion, the facility will become the second after the National Cardiothoracic Centre (NCC) at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, the only cardio centre serving the country and other African countries.



It will offer specialised diagnostics and treatment for people with cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, and offer specialised training and research opportunities to medical practitioners.



The centre will, among others, be equipped with a state-of-the-art operating theatre, and radiography and cardiac catheter laboratories.



Inspiration



Mr Agyapong said the support for such a facility was inspired by the fact that only a few African countries had the capacity to deliver specialised heart health services despite the high demand, adding that it was due to the lack of requisite human resource and infrastructure.



He said although Ghana already had that kind of facility, it still needed an upgraded facility to complement the NCC to deliver improved services.



Research has revealed that relatively little can be done to reduce the incidence of congenital heart defects. A high number of people will, therefore, continue to require such prompt and reliable surgical intervention. We must, therefore, be prepared to concentrate our efforts towards enhancing the countrys capacity in that aspect of health care, he said.



Mr Agyapong said the 37 Military Hospital was a strategic host of the facility because of the hospitals dedication to duty as the first port of call during disasters.



He said by strengthening the capacity of the hospital, the entire country and the region stood to benefit from its professionalism.



Inasmuch as we always expect more from our health facilities, it is only fair to make sure they have all they require to deliver, he said.



He charged the contractor to adhere to the highest professional standards by delivering to the required specifications.



Health care



Vice Admiral Amoama said the facility would be of great significance to healthcare delivery in the country.



He expressed gratitude to Mr Agyapong, describing the gesture as a full demonstration of the benefactors love for the people of Ghana and the Ghana Armed Forces.



It is our fervent desire and belief that this exemplary initiative will be emulated by other well-meaning Ghanaians to augment our total efforts to ensure better healthcare delivery.



I wish to assure you that the Ghana Armed Forces will put in place the necessary measures to ensure the successful completion and maximum utilisation of the centre, he said.

Vice Admiral Amoama said the necessary discussions and actions had begun with Mr Agyapong on the prospects of training the human resource base to man the facility so that it would not become a white elephant.

Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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An aspiring Presidential candidate of Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) Albert Kwabena Dwumfuor, has appealed to members of the Association to elect a presidential candidate who would work to reposition the GJA and the media landscape in Ghana.



He said the many years of experience garnered in the media landscape as an employee, employer and an executive of the Ghana Journalists Association, has thought him so many lessons.



These useful, and eye-opening lessons, he underscored, would be applied to assist him adopt the right leadership approach as President of the GJA, if he emerges winner of the impending GJA national elections.



Addressing members of GJA at TV3, a member of Media General group, on Monday, as part of his campaign activities, the aspiring presidential candidate, justified the negative impact of lack of resources in hampering activities of the Association.



He therefore urged members to consider his vast experience, professional acumen and entrepreneurship qualities during the polls.



These unique qualities possessed, he emphasized, would be used judiciously to secure opportunities for journalists.



Again, he said the same qualities would be applied appropriately to galvanize resources required to position the group.



According to him, the Association in its current state, form, and structure, requires serious resource mobilization to carry out effectively all its activities.



Consequently, he said anybody vying to lead the organization, must be prepared to bring something to the table and not take from the table since the GJA was a voluntary organization.



For effective management of the Association and its activities, he suggested that members must consider candidates with entrepreneurship background to work with them for the sake of securing funding opportunities activities of the GJA.



As part of his determination to revive the fortunes of the GJA, he said, he would lead the group to secure funding opportunities, sponsorship packages, and other obvious benefits that would accrue to improve the structure of the Association and general welfare of members.



In line with this, Albert Dwumfuor promised to roll out an insurance package for all members of GJA including retirees.



The pilot phase of the insurance package, he announced, had already been activated during the last general elections.



Consequently, he assured that it would subsequently be rolled out nationwide when he emerges winner of the GJA elections.



The Star General, as many of his admirers call him, said he would partner banks, and other relevant financial institutions to offer all regional branches of GJA operational vehicles.



These vehicles, he explained, would be branded with GJA and sponsors images to promote activities and ultimately the mutual interest of the organizations at the local and national levels.



The barter trade deal, he revealed, has already been secured and awaiting implementation when he takes office.



He said as part of the broader implementation of attractive social policies to enhance the welfare of members, he would introduce scholarship packages for journalists intending to continue their education to do so with ease.



According to Albert Kwabena Dwumfuor, his administration would also focus on building the capacity of members in various sectors of interest.



The capacity building, he said, would assist journalists to develop interest in specialization and professionalism.



Aside that, he said he would foster unity among journalists through an effective public private partnership program to create synergy in the media landscape while leveraging on the strengths of both sectors for the benefit of members of the Association.







In addition, he would create bonding between retirees, senior Journalists who are well established in the system and young ones doing very well to close the gap between the three fringes of the inky fraternity.



The Assignment Editor of TV3, Rowland Walker and members of staff of the company, who are GJA members in good standing, enumerated a number of challenges they would like the GJA to address.



These included membership drive, opportunities for all, rebranding and repositioning of the GJA as the main vehicle for development of the country's media landscape.



In response, Albert Kwabena Dwumfuor, an organizing secretary of the GJA, then assured them of his commitment to work with Tom Dick and Harry.



He would also endeavor to deliver all his campaign promises as contained in his message.



In doing so, he said he would reach out to members for these concerns raised to be received and factored into the holistic approach required to achieve results in the development of the Association.





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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A claim that South African woman Gosiame Sithole gave birth to 10 babies earlier this month is not true, an official inquiry has found.



No hospitals in Gauteng province have a record of decuplets being born, the provincial government says.



Medical tests show that Ms Sithole had not even been pregnant recently, it said.



The 37-year-old is now being held under the mental health act for observation and will be provided with support.



The statement did not elaborate on the reasons behind the fabrication of the story.



Independent Online (IOL), the media group which owns the Pretoria News that first reported the story, had stood by its reporting.



It went on to allege that Ms Sithole delivered the children on 7 June at Steve Biko Academic Hospital (SBAH) in the capital, Pretoria, saying staff were ill-prepared.



It accused the hospital and the provincial health authorities of trying to cover up medical negligence.



"These allegations are false, unsubstantiated and only serve to tarnish the good reputation of Steve Biko Academic Hospital and the Gauteng Provincial Government," the latest statement said.



Legal action would be taken against the editor-in-chief of Pretoria News, Piet Rampedi, and IOL, it said.

Where did the story come from?



Ms Sithole, who has six-year-old twins, and her partner Teboho Tsotetsi lived in Thembisa, a township with many working-class residents in Gauteng province near Johannesburg.



According to IOL, they attended the same church as Rampedi where he was introduced to them in December. In May it is alleged he interviewed the couple who said they were expecting eight babies - a photoshoot shows Ms Sithole looking heavily pregnant.



The birth of a surprise 10 babies was announced by Pretoria News on 8 June quoting Mr Tsotetsi as the source. He later said he had received text messages from his partner telling him about it, adding he was not allowed at the hospital because of coronavirus restrictions.



Rampedi also relied on WhatsApp messages - and did not get independent confirmation from the hospital of the story.



Their local mayor then confirmed the births - which is when other outlets, including the BBC, published the story - but a government spokesman later said the politician only had the family's word and no one had yet seen the babies.

Donations began flooding in for the couple and their reported babies, dubbed the "Thembisa 10", including 1m rand ($70,000; 50,000) from IOL chairman Iqbal Surve.



But the story drew suspicion after Pretoria News initially failed to disclose the hospital where the babies were born and a series of hospitals in Gauteng came out to deny their involvement.



Ten days after the alleged births, IOL made the accusations against SBAH.



The couple seemed to fall out in the aftermath with Mr Tsotetsi reporting her missing and asking people to stop donations a week later, while Ms Sithole accused him of wanting to benefit financially from the babies, the Pretoria News reported.



Meanwhile, social workers managed to track down Ms Sithole and she was admitted to hospital for tests last Friday, the Gauteng provincial authorities say.



A leaked memo seen by News24 alleges that Rampedi has recently apologised to IOL for "the reputational damage" the story has caused the group, saying he should have treated it more like an investigative piece rather than a "feel-good story".

Source: BBC









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has taken a swipe at the Chief Justice, Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah, for reporting a leading member of the party, Dr Dominic Ayine, to the General Legal Council (GLC) for investigation.



Addressing a press conference yesterday, the General Secretary of the NDC, Mr Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, described the move by the Chief Justice as judicial tyranny.



The NDC stands with Dr Ayine against what is increasingly becoming a campaign of judicial tyranny being waged by the Chief Justice of the republic against lawyers who identify with the NDC.



We therefore join well-meaning Ghanaians to demand that the Chief Justice withdraws his petition against Dr Ayine forthwith, he said.



Disciplinary Committee



On May 25, this year, the Chief Justice dragged Dr Ayine, a former Deputy Attorney General, to the Disciplinary Committee of the GLC after the latter allegedly questioned the independence of the Judiciary with regard to how it dealt with the 2020 Election petition.



During a panel discussion on the judgment by the Supreme Court, Dr Ayine allegedly stated that his confidence in the Judiciary had waned because of the manner in which the apex court applied the rules of procedure in dealing with some of the applications filed by the petitioner.



A petition signed by the Judicial Secretary, Justice Cynthia Pamela Addo, accused Dr Ayine, who is also the NDC Member of Parliament for Bolgatanga East, of disparaging the Judiciary.



His Lordship the Chief Justice therefore finds his alleged disparaging comments totally unacceptable and would like you to investigate the matter, the petition addressed to the Disciplinary Committee of the GLC added.



Ayines conduct



For the NDC, the comments by Dr Ayine did not violate any professional conduct expected of a lawyer to warrant a petition by the Chief Justice to the GLC.



Mr Nketiah said the fact that the Chief Justice did not agree with the comments did not mean that Dr Ayine had breached any rules or disparaged the Judiciary.



The statements made were decorous expressions of opinion about a judgment delivered by the Supreme Court and do not warrant professional discipline.



As a matter of fact, neither Dr Ayine nor we in the NDC can be compelled to increase our confidence in the independence of the Judiciary.



The Chief Justice ought to be reminded that justice emanates from the people and is administered on our behalf. Public confidence in the independence of the Judiciary must therefore be earned and not forced on us, he said.



Criticisms



The NDC scribe said the Judiciary as an arm of government was not above criticisms, adding that any attempt to muzzle criticisms would be a danger to the countrys democracy.



He said people must be allowed to criticise decisions of courts to enable them to freely exercise their freedom of speech which is protected by the 1992 Constitution.





Source: Graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The States second witness in the trial of persons alleged to have plotted to overthrow government, Major General Nicholas Peter Andoh says evidence available leaves him with no doubt that the founder of the Citdel Hospital, Dr. Frederick Yao Mac-Palm, is the main brain behind the alleged plot to overthrow and kill President Akufo-Addo.



Major General Andoh served with the Defence Intelligence Department of the Ghana Armed Forces during the time a top-level surveillance was mounted on persons believed to have been discussing the plot.



He was on Tuesday led by Attorney General, Godfred Yeboah Dame to testify in the case against 10 persons including Senior Police Officer, ACP Benjamin Agordzo and Senior Military Officer, Col. Samuel Kojo Gameli.



He told the court that shortly after receiving intelligence regarding the said coup plot, an active surveillance was mounted on the suspects.



This took the form of dispatching operatives to follow some of them around while others infiltrated the ranks of the alleged plotters to record audio and video of their meetings.



He also revealed that some of the operatives got onto the WhatsApp platform of the alleged plotters and monitored discussions.



A court order, he stated was obtained shortly after the accused persons had been picked up from various locations, to enable an assessment of their phones. This assessment, he said confirmed what had already been uncovered during the surveillance.



He said it confirmed the active participation of ACP Benjamin Agordzo whom he alleges pledged his full support and made suggestions about the need for massive violent demonstrations typical of the Arab Spring.



ACP Agordzo, according to the Military Chief was outside the country at the time. He is, however, alleged to have indicated that he was going to participate fully in all the activities of the group.



He is said to have made a donation of GHC2,000 when he returned to Ghana.



Maj. Gen. Andoh continued that; The text extraction also reveals that Col. Gameli introduced Mr. Zikpi who is a communication expert in the Signal Regiment of the Ghana Armed Forces. His role was to work out the communication support for the coup plot and he proposed the acquisition of GoTa phones to conceal their communications.



Mr. Zikpi also went ahead to contact some soldiers in the Signal Regiment to procure the GoTa phones. He also suggested the acquisition of a communication jamming equipment so that all radio stations will be jammed except the one that they will use in the announcement of the coup.



He told the court that, the introduction of Mr. Zikpi and the role that he was to play was in tandem with the plan to jam communication that was discussed at a meeting that brought Col. Gameli into the full knowledge of the coup.



Concluding his testimony, Major General Nicholas Peter Andoh said, The overall summary of my submission based on the information that got to me from my operatives, BNI and the WhatsApp extractions from their telephones, my analysis is that Dr. Mac-Palm was the main brain behind the plot to overthrow the government. He took practical steps to recruit military and police officers through Bright Alan Debrah to advance his course.



He also took steps to procure and manufacture weapons that could cause harm. When the IEDs were taken for testing by the experts, their report was that each of the IEDs could kill or cause damage to anybody within 200 meters of the point of impact.

He provided his hospital which was meant to treat human being, for the production of IEDs which could cause destruction.



Major General Nicholas Andoh is to be cross examined on Wednesday, June 23.



Assistant Commissioner of Police, ACP Benjamin Agordzor, senior military officer Col. Samuel Kojo Gameli and 8 others; Dr. Mac-Palm, Donyo Kafui, Bright Alan Debrah, Johannes Zikpi, WO II Esther Saan, Corporal Seidu Abubakar, Corporal Ali Solomon, and Sylvester Akankpewubare are facing various charges including high treason.

Source: myjoyonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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A video making rounds online has shown moment a Zambian TV news presenter went off script and demanded for his salary and that of his colleagues during a live news report. According to social media users, the incident occurred last weekend. Shortly after giving a roundup of the top stories during a live broadcast, Kabinda Kalimina who works with KBN TV said;



Away from the news, ladies and gentlemen, we are human beings. We have to get paid. Unfortunately, on KBN we havent been paid. People are getting instruments on KBNSharon and everyone else havent been paid, including myself . We have to get paid.



However, he was cut off almost immediately.



Reacting to this, management of the TV station alleged that Kaliminas antics has brought the station into disrepute. They also accused him of exhibiting a drunken behavior



In the statement released by Kennedy Mambwe, owner and chief executive officer of KBN TV, it was gathered that the management is investigating how Kalimina found himself on air on Saturday night. Mambwe also said that anyone who had assisted Kalimina in his "outrageous stunt" would face disciplinary action.



The statement read;



As KBN TV, we are appalled with the drunken behaviour exhibited through a video clip that has gone viral on social media and staged by one of our part-time presenters during what should have been the main news bulletin last night. As a young television station, we work with a very highly talented and professional team, with a noble character and we owe the success of unbroken broadcasting for the last two years to such gallant men and women. Members of the public may wish to know that KBN TV like any other institution, has very well-established grievance procedures for all members of staff through which they can channel their complaints.



Therefore, last nights behaviour by Kabinda Kalimina is out of character and does not represent who we are as a station. We strongly condemn that despicable behaviour and urge members of the public to treat that One-Night stunt of Fame with the contempt it deserves.

As management, we are carrying out investigations to determine how a drunken part-time presenter found himself on air unabated and disciplinary action will be taken against anyone who may have been party to the scheme."

VIDEO-









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Robinsons Online's new website look. (PHOTO: Screenshot of Robinsons Online)

SINGAPORE  Robinsons Online is on schedule to go live tomorrow (24 June) at 3pm, under the new management Robinsons Department Store Online. In a virtual press conference held today, managing director of Robinsons Singapore, Jordan Prainito, said that at the relaunch, over 1,000 products from 200 brands will be on sale for up to 60 per cent off.

Department store chain Robinsons closed its stores in Malaysia and Singapore last year after 162 years of operations amid poor business during the pandemic. It has since changed management and now operates purely online with no brick-and-mortar stores. Robinsons now operates only in Singapore.

Prainito, 29, feels privileged to be "involved with such an iconic brand and is passionate about getting Robinsons up and running once again."

We are excited to continue the legacy of the 163-year-old retail icon as an online department store focused on a high quality, compelling value curation strategy. In addition, we are committed to provide an excellent user experience as well as prompt and attentive customer service that Singaporeans have come to know Robinsons for, Prainito added.

Jordan Prainito, MD of Robinsons Online. (PHOTO: Robinsons Online)

Whats in store?

Robinsons Online will continue to expand its Home and Lifestyle department with new-to-Robinsons labels that include luxury home fragrance Baobab Collection from Belgium; high-quality Canningvale Bedlinen, Towels & Scented Candles from Australia; kitchen mixers from Swedish brand Ankarsrum; Zinus Mattresses from USA; exquisite Berrocal tissue boxes from Peru and more.

For the Womens Fashion category, Robinsons Online will stock sophisticated, functional fashion apparel from the trailblazing American designer Anne Klein; luxury label Sara Miller London which sells dainty jewellery, beautiful watches and bags; homegrown label Cloth.ier which uses fabrics made with the highest quality silk, cotton and bamboo linens with traditional craftsmanship; as well as merchandise from Jockeys new Forever Fit and Parisienne collections.

Story continues

In the realm of beauty and wellness, shoppers can look forward to Modern Apothecary from London; Jill Lowe Skin Care; Neals Yard Remedies; Invity supplements; popular Korean hair and skincare brand Moremo; Korean holistic beauty and lifestyle brand Aromatica; and homegrown brand Play by Tuft hair styling tools.

Robinsons Online. (PHOTO: Screenshot of Robinsons Online)

Parents can inculcate learning through play to develop their kids problem-solving and motor skills in a fun way with popular educational Bigjigs Toys from the UK; Eitech building toys from Germany; as well as fun and developmental toys by New Classic Toys from the Netherlands.

One of Singapores well-known toy makers, Mighty Jaxx, will also make its debut on Robinsons Online, offering a range of collectible figurines and lifestyle products, in partnership with global brands such as Hasbro, Sesame Street, Warner Brothers and more.

Robinsons' shoppers can expect more than 50 returning brands, including Antler, Braun, Byford, Coupe Cousu, HoneyWorld, Hush Puppies, Joan Allen, Jockey, Kordels, Moroccanoil, Oral B, Phyto Haircare, Rene Furterer, The Station and Vitahealth.

Membership rewards

Shoppers who sign up for the Robinsons newsletter will be rewarded with a discount code for an extra S$10 off on their first purchase. Robinsons Online has partnered with Grab to offer shoppers an additional 20 per cent off with a minimum spend of S$100 on all items (capped at a S$50 discount), by using the code GRAB20 upon checkout, from 25 June to 25 July 2021. In addition, Robinsons' customers can earn points that are redeemable on the Grab rewards network, depending on their mode of payment.

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In anticipation of the Senate vote Tuesday evening on the For the People Act, a bill intended to expand voting rights and counter restrictive voting laws pushed by GOP lawmakers, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., denounced Republican efforts to stop the legislation from being passed.

In remarks on the Senate floor Tuesday morning, Schumer said, Donald Trump, fresh off a resounding loss in the 2020 presidential election, cried foul and lied  lied  that the election was stolen from him, like a petulant child.

Schumer focused on the former presidents role in the politicization of voting rights, which created Republican opposition that had not previously existed. He described how Act 77, the Pennsylvania law that legalized no-excuse mail-in voting, was passed by a Republican majority in the state Legislature in 2019. A year later, due to Trumps baseless accusations of voter mail fraud, Republican lawmakers promptly proposed repealing the law.

Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., talks to reporters at the Capitol on June 15. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

There is a rot at the center of the modern Republican Party, Schumer continued. Donald Trumps big lie has spread like a cancer and threatens to envelop one of Americas major political parties. Even worse, it has poisoned our democracy, eroded faith in our elections, which is so detrimental to the future faith people need to have in our democracy. And of course, it became the match that lit a wildfire of Republican voter-suppression laws sweeping across the country. Because of one mans lie, Republicans are now doing the dastardly act of taking away voting from millions of Americans, making it much harder for them to vote, and many, many will not.

Schumer launched a similar attack on Trump on Monday, taking to the Senate floor to call him despicable for spreading the big lie that he did not legitimately lose the 2020 election.

The For the People Act was passed in the House by a Democratic majority in March and now faces unanimous Republican opposition in the Senate. To pass the bill, 10 Republican senators would need to cross party lines to provide the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster and begin debate.

Story continues

The legislation as it currently stands includes a number of provisions aimed at making it easier for people to vote, such as the expansion of early voting and automatic voter registration for federal elections.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., has opposed the legislation since it was introduced earlier this year, but said last week that he would support a list of compromise measures, including 15 days of early voting and making Election Day a public holiday. Former President Barack Obama on Monday urged Republicans to back Manchins proposal, which he described as a product of compromise.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has already promised that the Republican senators will not budge. Democrats have made abundantly clear that the real driving force behind S. 1 is a desire to rig the rules of American elections permanently in Democrats favor, McConnell tweeted, referring to the legislation by its bill number. Thats why the Senate will give this disastrous proposal no quarter.

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With Phuket Sandbox due to launch on 1 July 2021, nine SHA Plus-certified Marriott Bonvoy properties prepare to welcome back guests with Summer Dreaming promotion

Marriott Bonvoy, Marriott Internationals extraordinary portfolio of 30 hotel brands, award-winning loyalty program, and endless experiences today introduces the Summer Dreaming offer. The offer is available across a choice of nine hotels and resorts in Phuket, covering eight world-renowned brands to celebrate the return of cherished international guests from 1 July 2021.

International guests who have been dreaming of visiting Phuket for the last 15 months will soon be able to return to the Pearl of the Andaman following the launch of the Phuket Sandbox program. Under this important initiative by the Government, overseas travelers can fly direct to Phuket, stay quarantine-free in world-class hotels and resorts, and soak up the blissful ambiance.

Under the Summer Dreaming offer, travelers who book at any participating Marriott Bonvoy property in Phuket will enjoy preferential rates, complimentary breakfast for two, and THB 1,000 (approximately USD 32) of hotel credit per room per night, which can be redeemed for memorable meals at the resorts restaurants, sunset drinks at the bars, soothing spa treatments and more. So the longer you stay, the more rewarding your stay becomes!

To offer extra flexibility to guests, all bookings can be cancelled without charge up to 24 hours before the check-in date, and Marriott Bonvoy members will receive 5,000 bonus points. Signing up as a Marriott Bonvoy member is complimentary.

For truly blissful beachfront breaks, guests who book seven nights or longer under the Summer Dreaming promotion will be treated to a complimentary room upgrade and late 4pm check-out, ensuring that every couple or family can maximize their time in paradise.

From activity-packed resorts to exclusive island retreats, every guest can discover their own tropical idyll across the nine Marriott Bonvoy properties. The brand-new Courtyard by Marriott Phuket Town, which opens in August 2021, will allow guests to immerse themselves in Phukets cultural heritage, surrounded by classical architecture, museums and markets.

Under the Tourism Authority of Thailands (TAT) newly-introduced Amazing Thailand Safety & Health Administration (SHA) Plus certification system, inbound visitors to Phuket will be required to stay at a hotel in which at least 70% of staff members have been vaccinated against COVID-19. Guests can rest assured that all of Marriott Bonvoys properties in Phuket have achieved SHA Plus certificates.

Marriott Bonvoy properties across the world upholds the highest standards of health and safety under the companys Commitment to Clean. The Marriott Cleanliness Council is redefining cleaning and safety standards, including enhanced cleaning technologies, adhering to social distancing protocols, food safety and more. To learn about how Marriott is keeping its guests safe, please visit clean.marriott.com.

The Thai governments Phuket Sandbox program, which comes into effect on 1 July 2021, allows international travelers who have received two COVID-19 vaccinations to fly directly to Phuket without the need to quarantine upon arrival, as long as they show proof of booking at an SHA Plus-certified hotel and when applying for their Certificate of Entry (CoE). For more information, please click here. As one of the largest hospitality companies in Thailand, Marriott International is fully supportive of this initiative and cant wait to welcome overseas visitors back to Phuket!

The Summer Dreaming promotion is valid for bookings made between 1 June and 31 August 2021, for stays taken between 1 July 2021 and 31 March 2022. Reservations must be made direct via https://hotel-deals.marriott.com/summer-dreaming-thailand-en/phuket/ using the promotional code A1764.

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1  Marriott Bonvoy Portfolio taking part in the Summer Dreaming promotion include Four Points by Sheraton Phuket Patong Beach Resort; Renaissance Phuket Resort & Spa; The Westin Siray Bay Resort & Spa, Phuket; Le Meridien Phuket Beach Resort; Phuket Marriott Resort & Spa, Merlin Beach; Phuket Marriott Resort and Spa, Nai Yang Beach; JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa; The Naka Island, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa, Phuket; and Courtyard by Marriott Phuket Town (opening in August 2021)

2  Upon availability, terms and conditions apply

3  Reference: https://www.tatnews.org/2021/06/phuket-introduces-amazing-thailand-sha-plus-certification/
The famous Anglo-Saxon Sutton Hoo helmet from about 625 CE, part of the British Museum collection.Photo: Elissa Blake/University of Sydney. Credit: Elissa Blake/University of Sydney

A new study from archaeologists at University of Sydney and Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, has provided important new evidence to answer the question "Who exactly were the Anglo-Saxons?"

New findings based on studying skeletal remains clearly indicates the Anglo-Saxons were a melting pot of people from both migrant and local cultural groups and not one homogenous group from Western Europe.

Professor Keith Dobney at the University of Sydney said the team's results indicate that "the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of early Medieval Britain were strikingly similar to contemporary Britainfull of people of different ancestries sharing a common language and culture".

The Anglo-Saxon (or early medieval) period in England runs from the 5th-11th centuries AD. Early Anglo-Saxon dates from around 410-660 ADwith migration occurring throughout all but the final 100 years (ie 410-560AD).

Studying ancient skulls

Published in PLOS ONE, the collaborative study by Professor Dobney at University of Sydney and Dr. Kimberly Plomp and Professor Mark Collard at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, looked at the three-dimensional shape of the base of the skull.

"Previous studies by palaeoanthropologists have shown that the base of the human skull holds a shape signature that can be used to track relationships among human populations in a similar way to ancient DNA," Dr. Plomp said. "Based on this, we collected 3D data from suitably dated skeletal collections from Britain and Denmark, and then analysed the data to estimate the ancestry of the Anglo-Saxon individuals in the sample."

The researchers found that between two-thirds and three-quarters of early Anglo-Saxon individuals were of continental European ancestry, while between a quarter and one-third were of local ancestry.

When they looked at skeletons dated to the Middle Anglo-Saxon period (several hundred years after the original migrants arrived), they found that 50 to 70 percent of the individuals were of local ancestry, while 30 to 50 percent were of continental European ancestry, which probably indicates a change in the rate of migration and/or local adoption of culture over time.

"These findings tell us that being Anglo-Saxon was more likely a matter of language and culture, not genetics," Professor Collard said.

The debate about Anglo-Saxons

Although Anglo-Saxon origins can clearly be traced to a migration of Germanic-speaking people from mainland Europe between the 5th and 7th centuries AD, the number of individuals who settled in Britain is still contested, as is the nature of their relationship with the pre-existing inhabitants of the British Isles, most of whom were Romano-Celts.

The ongoing and unresolved argument is whether hordes of European invaders largely replaced the existing Romano-British inhabitants, or did smaller numbers of migrants settle and interact with the locals, who then rapidly adopted the new language and culture of the Anglo-Saxons?

"The reason for the ongoing confusion is the apparent contradiction between early historical texts (written sometime after the events that imply that the newcomers were both numerous and replaced the Romano-British population) and some recent biomolecular markers directly recovered from Anglo-Saxon skeletons that appears to suggest numbers of immigrants were few," said Professor Dobney.

"Our new data sits at the interface of this debate and implies that early Anglo-Saxon society was a mix of both newcomers and immigrants and, instead of wholesale population replacement, a process of acculturation resulted in Anglo-Saxon language and culture being adopted wholesale by the local population."

"It could be this new cultural package was attractive, filling a vacuum left at the end of the Roman occupation of Britain. Whatever the reason, it lit the fuse for the English nation we have todaystill comprised of people of different origins who share the same language," Professor Dobney said.

More information: Plomp KA, Dobney K, Collard M (2021) A 3D basicranial shape-based assessment of local and continental northwest European ancestry among 5th to 9th century CE Anglo-Saxons. PLoS ONE 16(6): e0252477. Journal information: PLoS ONE Plomp KA, Dobney K, Collard M (2021) A 3D basicranial shape-based assessment of local and continental northwest European ancestry among 5th to 9th century CE Anglo-Saxons.16(6): e0252477. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0252477
Chi Nguyen 21 Ph.D. (astrophysical sciences and technology) makes final adjustments to the rocket payload prior to CIBER-2s launch. Credit: NSROC III/NASA

By sending a Black Brant IX rocket on a 15-minute flight to space and back, researchers from Rochester Institute of Technology, Caltech, Kwansei Gakuin University, and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute glimpsed traces of light from the earliest stages of the universe. The Cosmic Infrared Background Experiment-2 (CIBER-2) completed a successful first launch on June 7 at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, the first of four planned over the next several years.

Led by principal investigator Michael Zemcov, an assistant professor in RIT's School of Physics and Astronomy and Center for Detectors, the experiment aims to better understand extragalactic background light, which traces the history of galaxies back to the formation of the first stars in the universe. Zemcov said data collected by the study could help resolve discrepancies about how many stars exist in the universe.

"Scientists do this measurement different ways and we're having a really hard time to make the results of those different ways agree," said Zemcov. "So there's a mystery going on. Why aren't all these measurements agreeing? I think that CIBER-2 will start to unravel some of that."

The experiment leverages an observational technique called intensity mapping used to study the structure of the universe. The rocket spends 6-7 minutes in space each flight, taking measurements in six infrared wavelengths to help the researchers analyze the diffuse infrared glow in our skies.Recent alumna Chi Nguyen '21 Ph.D. (astrophysical sciences and technology), whose thesis and much of her graduate career were focused on the project, called the launch exhilarating.

"It feels amazing, a lot of weight off my shoulders," said Nguyen. "It's really exciting right now because we're pulling the data and I can actually see star images. I think this is a great experiment and we're doing a lot of interesting work in astronomy. It may take a while to get the science out of it but I think it has been a very successful first launch."

Nguyen will next head to Caltech for a position as a postdoctoral researcher under Professor Jamie Bock, co-principal investigator of CIBER-2 and Zemcov's former mentor.

Four RIT researchers spent the last several months in New Mexico helping to prepare the rocket for launchZemcov, Nguyen, astrophysical sciences and technology master's student Michael Ortiz, and Serena Tramm, an astrophysical sciences and technology Ph.D. student. The experiment was nearly ready for launch in February 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic brought the project to a halt. Fortunately, after sitting idle for 15 months, the device just needed a few adjustments during testing and the launch went off without incident.

After launch, the researchers collected the payload, recovered the data from the on-board hard disk, and shipped the CIBER-2 device back to Rochester. In the months ahead, the team will analyze the data and make modifications in preparation for the next launch, expected this time next year.

The project is part of NASA's Sounding Rockets Program, which uses rockets such as the Black Brant IX to carry scientific instruments for short sub-orbital flights at low vehicle speeds to carry out experiments. Zemcov called the program an ideal experiential learning opportunity for students.

"I think part of the mission of the sounding rocket program is to be a place where we can train the next generation of space scientists in a relatively low-risk environment," said Zemcov. "The students get hands-on experience in the details of the engineering and the science and then get to think about how they would transfer those skills to bigger missions. That's part of why the program exists, and we should remember that."

Explore further Rocket team to discern if our star count should go way up
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

When examining data regarding police officerinvolved homicides, correlations to local data regarding race, income level and population density may seem obvious. But Brian Finch, professor (research) of sociology and spatial sciences at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, suggests that less obvious factors, such as the level of municipal debt in the city in which the homicide occurred, are worthy of careful examination.

The term "officerinvolved homicide" refers to any death involving a police officer, whether intentional, such as an officer shooting a suspect, or unintentional, such as an officer accidentally dropping his gun, which fires and kills someone.

For the past seven years, Finch has supported the development of the Fatal Encounters website, the most comprehensive online database of officer-involved homicides, dating back to 2000. Free and accessible to users, including the public, via maps and spreadsheets, it includes the location of the homicide, cause of death, the poverty level of the area in which the killing took place, and the race and age of the decedent, as well as a brief description of the deadly incident, if available.

Now, Finch is preparing to launch a new repository for police homicide data: the National Officer-Involved Homicide Database (NOIHD). NOIHD is an expansion of the Fatal Encounters website and will provide more data, such as whether the deceased was armed or unarmed, the education and training requirements for the officers in that department and who conducted the autopsies of the deceased. The NOIHD information is collected from police departments, hospital emergency departments, the FBI, census data, state governments and other sources.

"People usually study police homicides in large aggregations, such as by county or state," says Finch. "This expansion of the Fatal Encounters database is adding data at the police department level. That has allowed me to more accurately control for things like whether the level of gun ownership in a state has a relationship to crime at a more disaggregated level, and if so, whether there's also a correlation with police violence."

Crime down, officer homicides up

Finch became involved with Fatal Encounters, which is run by journalist D. Brian Burghart, in 2014 after reading a Washington Post article about the website's tracking of officer homicides that sparked widespread interest in Burghart's work. Finch brought in several researchers from USC Dornsife's Center for Economic and Social Research (CESR) to work on the site's data compilation, and the team began to create NOIHD. Burghart himself also joined CESR as a research associate.

Finch's research has yielded some interesting, albeit sometimes seemingly counterintuitive findings. For example, a recent uptick aside, crime rates in the United States have been steadily and substantially declining for four decades, even though officer-involved homicides have been on the rise over the past 20 years. Perhaps surprisingly, some of the large police departments, like New York's, have not seen an increase in their population-adjusted rate of homicides.

"We're seeing officer-involved homicides become more common in suburban, and even rural areas, rather than cities. And there doesn't seem to be a correlation with crime rates," Finch says.

Location, education and money

Some correlations in officer-involved homicides are rather straightforward, Finch says. For example, departments that require officers to have more training and higher levels of education tend to have lower levels of homicide. Also, deaths often have a racial component; both the decedent's race and the racial makeup and segregation levels of the surrounding area are factors in police killings.

Finch adds that the relationship between law enforcement and other departments also matters. For example, in more than 50 California counties, coroner or medical examiner activities are overseen by the sheriff's office rather than the county government.

"Two coroners in San Joaquin County resigned because they said the sheriff's department pressures them to not report things that are law enforcement-related," Finch says. "We're finding that police homicides in our database are less likely to show up in official sources if the medical examiner or coroner is overseen by the sheriff's department."

Municipal debt may also play a role in police homicides, though Finch says he is still exploring that correlation.

"Someone sent me research that when there's debt, police officers become more proactive in policing poorer areas by constantly imposing traffic fines and doing low-level stops; they're over-policing because they need the money," he says. "And it's become apparent that a lot of these homicidesand violence in generalresult from low-level stops that are just completely unnecessary."

Finch notes that there are different types of officer-involved deaths. For example, a car chase that led to a deadly crash might be classified as an accidental death, even if the true culpability has never been established. On the other hand, shootings and asphyxiations are more commonly defined as officer-involved, although many of them never find their way into official government databases.

Finch adds that NOIHD will also include statistics on officers killed in police incidents, but the data will come from the FBI's Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted database. Because there is a three-year window of time between an incident and when the information surrounding it is released to the public, there will be a lag in data reporting.

A user-friendly version of the database, facilitating simple searches with a focus on local statistics, is expected to be launched in August.

Explore further Police more likely to be killed on duty in states with high gun ownership

More information: Fatal Encounters: Fatal Encounters: fatalencounters.org/
(Left) East Antarctic warming associated with an anomalous high pressure (H) excited by the MJO rainfall events in the Indian Ocean. (Right) East Antarctic cooling associated with an anomalous low pressure (L) caused by the MJO rainfall events in the western tropical Pacific. The blue (red) line indicates anomalous atmospheric low (high) pressure at sea level. Credit: Zhen Fu

Our planet is warming due to anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions, but the warming differs from region to region, and it can also vary seasonally. Over the last four decades, scientists have observed a persistent austral summer cooling on the eastern side of Antarctica. This puzzling feature has received world-wide attention, because it is not far away from one of the well-known global warming hotspotsthe Antarctic Peninsula.

A new study published in the journal Science Advances by a team of scientists from the IBS Center for Climate Physics at Pusan National University in South Korea, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, NOAA Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory, University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, Ewha Womans University, and National Taiwan University, uncovers a new mechanism that can explain the regional warming/cooling patchwork over Antarctica.

At the heart of the mechanism are clusters of rainfall events in the western tropical Pacific, which release massive amounts of heat into the atmosphere by condensation of water vapor. Warm air rises over the organized rainfall clusters and sinks farther away. This pressure difference creates winds which are further influenced by the effect of the earth's rotation. The interplay of these factors generates a large-scale atmospheric pressure wave which travels from west to east along the equator with a speed of about several hundred kilometers per day, and which drags along with it the initial rainfall clusters. This propagating atmospheric wave is known as the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO), named after Roland Madden and Paul Julian, who discovered this phenomenon in 1971. The characteristic atmospheric pressure, convection and wind anomalies, which fluctuate on timescales of 20-70 days, can extend into the extratropics, reaching even Antarctica.

The international research team arrived at their conclusions by analyzing observational datasets and specially designed supercomputer climate model simulations. "Our analysis provides clear evidence that tropical weather systems associated with the Madden-Julian Oscillation can directly impact surface temperatures over East Antarctica," says Prof. Pang-Chi Hsu from Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, who co-led the study.

More specifically, as the MJO rainfall clusters move into the western Pacific towards the location of the Solomon Islands, the corresponding global atmospheric wave tends to cool East Antarctica three to eleven days later. In contrast, when the MJO-related rainfall occurs in the Indian Ocean, East Antarctic shows a pronounced warming.

"During recent decades, MJO rainfall and pressure changes preferably occurred over the western tropical Pacific but decreased over the Indian Ocean. This situation has favored cooling of East Antarctica during austral summer," says Prof. June-Yi Lee from the IBS Center for Climate Physics and Pusan National University, and co-leader of the study.

The research team estimated that up to 20% to 40% of the observed summer cooling trend in East Antarctica from 1979 to 2014 can be attributed to the long-term changes in the character and longitudinal core location of the MJO. Other contributing factors include the ozone hole and the Interdecadal Pacific Oscillationa slowly varying weaker companion of the El Nino-Southern Oscillation. The new Science Advances study highlights that climate change even in remote regions such as Antarctica, can be linked to processes that happen nearly 10,000 km away.

Explore further Warming waters in western tropical Pacific may affect West Antarctic Ice Sheet

More information: P.-C. Hsu el al., "East Antarctic cooling induced by decadal changes in Madden-Julian oscillation during austral summer," Science Advances (2021). Journal information: Science Advances P.-C. Hsu el al., "East Antarctic cooling induced by decadal changes in Madden-Julian oscillation during austral summer,"(2021). advances.sciencemag.org/lookup  .1126/sciadv.abf9903
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

A new study of small Iowa towns found that vulnerable populations within those communities face significantly more public health risks than statewide averages.

The study, published this week in PLOS ONE, a peer-reviewed open access journal, was led by Benjamin Shirtcliff, associate professor of landscape architecture at Iowa State University.

He focused on three Iowa townsMarshalltown, Ottumwa and Perryas a proxy for studying shifting populations in rural small towns, in particular how vulnerable populations in these towns are affected by their built environment (where people live and work) and environmental risks. Shirtcliff wants to understand how small towns can prioritize investment into their built environment for vulnerable populations on the heels of declining economic resources due to population change.

The study found the three towns have significantly higher environmental exposures than state averages, including more exposure to diesel, air toxins, lead paint in older homes and proximity to potential chemical accidents.

These risks are exacerbated for and increase physical and mental stress on populations with social vulnerability (minority status, low-income, linguistic isolation, below high school education, and populations under age 5 and over 64), which are also significantly higher in the three small towns than state averages.

With the growth of industrialized agriculture over the past few decades, small towns' populations have shifted: "...what environmental justice advocates describe as a 'double jeopardy' of injustice where people with the fewest resources reside in low-income communities with high level of environmental risk and unable defend against social threats like racism," according to the study.

Urban areas benefit from more green space, which would make it seem as if small towns surrounded by green landscapes would have greater benefits. That's not always the case, Shirtcliff says, due to the routine application of pesticides, fertilizers and other organic and inorganic toxins.

"There is a rural health paradox: These small towns may appear on the outside that they're healthier and safer, but the reality is that the metrics cities use are not really compatible," he said.

This exposes a knowledge gap in current research: Measures of environmental risk and design on vulnerable populations in urban areas are not comparable to those in small towns.

'Parallel communities'

Shirtcliff describes these small towns as having "parallel communities," or populations that rarely interact due to their opposing work and personal schedules, geography and language barriers.

This research began following one of Shirtcliff's design studios in Perry four years ago. During an interview with Jon Wolseth, assistant director of community and economic development with ISU Extension and Outreach, he and fellow researchers learned about the parallel communities in the town.

"When we think about public health these days, we think about viruses and epidemics," he said. "What's increasingly being supported through research is that the neighborhoods we live in have huge impacts on our mental and physical health."

As some Iowans move to more urban areas from small towns, the built environment they leave behind is sometimes neglected.

Now, there are new barriers that people in these towns face to report and seek care for poor health effects from their built environment. There is also sometimes an information barrier; for example, rural populations may not correlate higher rates of asthma with the landscape.

"Although the influx of foreign-born workers and their families to small towns has enabled economic growth in the hands of a local few, the stability of small towns is fragile," according to the study. "A decline in local investment coupled with aging infrastructure is likely to impact the built environments in small towns, potentially compounding deleterious effects as vulnerable populations bring families and become established."

Shirtcliff puts a call out to the landscape architecture profession, which can sometimes focus on broad-reaching issues such as major parks and environmental remediation, to also focus their efforts on "the banal, everyday 'human environment' where a sidewalk, street tree, and crosswalk make a fundamental difference." Low-cost interventions such as these can counteract "a mounting public health crisis in small towns," he says.

Explore further COVID-19 lockdown hits coastal communities the hardest
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

The European Banking Authority called Wednesday upon banks to better take into account climate-related risks when setting their business goals and strategies.

The EBA, which is responsible for setting the rules for regulating and supervising banks in EU countries, issued a report on environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks.

ESG criteria are used to measure the impact and sustainability of companies and a growing number of investors are requiring commitments.

In its report, the EBA said both regulators and financial institutions need to explicitly take into consideration ESG risks.

"The management of ESG risks by institutions, in addition to the incorporation of ESG risks in supervision should, in an initial stage, give particular prominence to climate-related and broader environmental risks," said the EBA.

It urged financial institutions to incorporate ESG risks when setting business strategies, and to extend the time horizon for strategic planning to 10 years and test the resilience of strategies to different scenarios.

The EBA also urged banks to set and disclose their ESG risk-related strategic objectives, including any related performance indicators.

The authority called on banking regulators in EU countries to look at ESG risks when they assess the business models of banks, and urged them to extend the time horizon for review to 10 years.

The EBA carries out annual "stress tests" of European banks to evaluate whether they would be able to withstand adverse events.

Last month it released the results of a pilot review of the climate risks of banks, which found the need for a harmonised approach and common metrics to address and mitigate potential disruptive impacts upon lenders from environmental risks.

Explore further In world first, New Zealand to make banks report climate impact

 2021 AFP
Assistant Professor Michael Ungeheuer. Credit: Lasse Lecklin

Firms that are more visible in the media increase their value and their stock returns, according to new research from Aalto University and Goethe University.

Assistant Professor Michael Ungeheuer at Aalto University School of Business and Professor Alexander Hillert at Goethe University analyzed the relation between firm visibility and stock returns using comprehensive data on news coverage of U.S. firms ranging from 1924 to 2019.

The researchers found that firms with higher media visibility exhibit predictable improvements in corporate governance, a higher likelihood of forced CEO turnover after poor performance, as well as higher sales growth and higher profitability growth.

"Our research suggests that future returns of more visible firms are significantly higher. This provides new insights on the common view that media coverage affects a firm's cost of capital through a reduced risk premium for well-known firms," says Ungeheuer.

But why is this? The researchers claim that their research supports previous studies that have suggested that media coverage could increase sales, similar to product market advertising.

As well as this, their research shows how the media could play a monitoring role and prevent value-destroying behavior by managers.

"If these positive effects of visibility on profitability are not adequately priced, a positive relation between visibility and future stock returns follows," says Ungeheuer.

So, this research implies a positive role for the media, and more generally, a positive role for firm visibility.

As such, managers should learn about the value of visibility from stock markets and, thus, increase their efforts to improve firm visibility in the media.

Explore further New research finds CEOs who appear on CNBC can see their pay rise over $200,000 per year

More information: Alexander Hillert et al, Ninety Years of Media Coverage and the Cross-Section of Stock Returns, SSRN Electronic Journal (2015). Alexander Hillert et al, Ninety Years of Media Coverage and the Cross-Section of Stock Returns,(2015). DOI: 10.2139/ssrn.2689652
Tessa Plint pictured with her fossil track discovery. Credit: Heriot-Watt University

Ancient animal tracks dated almost two-million years old have been unearthed accidentally by Heriot-Watt University scientists from the Lyell Center in Edinburgh.

The fossils were discovered by Tessa Plint, a Ph.D. researcher specializing in palaeoecology, and Dr. Clayton Magill during geological field work at the world-renowned Olduvai Gorge in Northern Tanzania. Located in the East African Rift Valley, it is one of the most important palaeoanthropological sites on Earth having yielded early evidence of human ancestors.

It is not known what species were responsible for leaving the tracks but the scientists say they were formed by cloven-hoofed mammals, such as prehistoric antelope or gazelle. The fossils also reveal the animals left their hoof prints as they walked across a layer of freshly fallen ash resulting from a nearby volcanic eruption around 1.8 million years ago.

A total of three tracks have been found, each measuring approximately 7cm in length and offering a unique window into life in the Olduvai Gorge.

It was a find that came as a surprise, according to Tessa Plint, who made the discovery while surveying a small plot of land. She explains: "We were at Olduvai Gorge to collect archeological sediment samples for geochemical analyzes.

"We weren't there to prospect for fossil tracks, so finding them was 100 percent a matter of looking down in the right place at the right time! It was a very exciting moment.

"There have been fossil bird footprints found in geologically younger rock layers from Olduvai Gorge, but never any fossil footprints from large, land-based animals.

"A lot of what it known about the ancient ecosystem at Olduvai Gorge comes from fossil bones and teeth.

"Fossil footprints, or in this case, the fossil hoof-prints offer a unique window into the past. They have the potential to tell us about the behavior of the track-maker, something that is very difficult to ascertain from extinct animals."

Detailed fossil tracks are rare due to their fragility and are often not preserved in the archeological or palaeontological record. It takes incredibly specific environmental conditions for them to survive millions of years.

This latest discovery offers remarkable detail largely thanks to the hoof prints being made in very fine, volcanic ash and provides an insight into the landscape seen by early humans.

In many ways, the ancient Olduvai landscape resembled the contemporary Serengeti plains, with vast grasslands speckled by patches of thorny shrubs and trees. But, the presence of a large volcano once provided just enough water runoff to support a massive shallow saline lake. The water was not drinkable but did harbor an abundance of wetland vegetation. The rivers, streams and freshwater springs that fed into the lake were, however, safe to drink resulting in animals and early human ancestors being drawn to the area.

Dr. Magill, an Assistant Professor at the Lyell Center, adds: "The fossil tracks capture a snapshot in time. It's a discovery that suggests that if fossil tracks can be preserved in the sediments at Olduvai Gorge then there is potential for future discoveries of large animal or maybe even early hominin tracks or trackways in this area.

"One of the tracks is preserved in stunning detail, it's so crisp and clear, it looks like it could have been made the morning we found it.

"Having these artifacts is incredibly useful when studying ancient ecosystems. We know for certain that that animal was physically present in that environment at a specific time in the past."

Dr. Magill and Tessa Plint's paper on the rare discovery has been published in the journal Ichnos.

Explore further Fossilized tracks show earliest known evidence of mammals at the seashore

More information: Tessa Plint et al, Large mammal tracks in 1.8-million-year-old volcanic ash (Tuff IF, Bed I) at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania, Ichnos (2021). Tessa Plint et al, Large mammal tracks in 1.8-million-year-old volcanic ash (Tuff IF, Bed I) at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania,(2021). DOI: 10.1080/10420940.2021.1930540
Credit: Shutterstock

Vast, treeless paddocks and fields can be dangerous for wildlife, who encounter them as "roadblocks" between natural areas nearby. But our new research found even one lone tree in an otherwise empty paddock can make a huge difference to an animal's movement.

We focused on the Atlantic Forest in Brazil, a biodiversity hotspot with 1,361 different known species of wildlife, such as jaguars, sloths, tamarins and toucans. Habitat loss from expanding and intensifying farmland, however, increasingly threatens the forest's rich diversity of species and ecosystems.

We researched the value of paddock trees and hedges for birds and bees, and found small habitat features like these can double how easily they find their way through farmland.

This is important because enabling wildlife to journey across farmlands not only benefits the conservation of species, but also people. It means bees can improve crop pollination, and seed-dispersing birds can help restore ecosystems.

Connecting habitats

Lone trees in paddocks, hedges and tree-lined fences are common features of farmlands across the world, from Brazil to Australia.

They may be few and far between, but this scattered vegetation makes important areas of refuge for birds and bees, acting like roads or stepping stones to larger natural habitats nearby.

Scattered paddock trees, for instance, offer shelter, food, and places to land. They've also been found to create cooler areas within their canopy and right beneath it, providing some relief on scorching summer days.

Hedges and tree-lined fences are also important, as they provide a safe pathway by providing hiding places from predators.

For our research, we used satellite images of the Atlantic Forest and randomly selected 20 landscapes containing different amounts of forest cover.

White-browed meadowlark perched on a bush in a farm paddock within the Atlantic Forest. Credit: Milton Andrade Jr, CC BY

We then used mathematical models to calculate the habitat connectivity of these landscapes for three groups of speciesbees, small birds such as the rufous-bellied thrush, and large birds such as toucansbased on how far they can travel.

And we found in areas with low forest cover, wildlife is twice as likely to move from one natural habitat to another if paddock trees and hedges can be used as stepping stones.

We also found vegetation around creeks and waterways are the most prevalent and important type of on-farm habitat for wildlife movement. In Brazil, there are legal protections for these areas preventing them from being cleared, which means vegetation along waterways has become relatively common compared to lone trees and hedges, in places with lower forest cover.

Insights for Australia

While the contribution of lone trees, hedges and tree-lined fences towards conservation targets is relatively low, our research shows they're still important. And we can apply this knowledge more widely.

For example, in Australia, many koala populations depend on scattered trees for movement and habitat. In 2018, CSIRO researchers in Queensland tracked koalas using GPS, and found koalas used roadside vegetation and scattered trees for feeding and resting significantly more than they expected.

Likewise, lone trees, hedges and tree-lined fences can also facilitate the movement of Australian fruit-eating birds such as the olive-backed oriole and the rose-crowned fruit dove. Improving habitat connectivity can help these birds travel across landscapes, feeding and dispersing seeds as they go.

In fragmented landscapes, where larger patches of vegetation are hard to find, dispersing the seeds of native plants encourages natural regeneration of ecosystems. This is a key strategy to help achieve environmental restoration and conservation targets.

Policies overlook lone trees

In Brazil, there's a strong initiative to restore natural areas, known as the Brazilian Pact for Restoration. This pact is a commitment from non-government organizations, government, companies and research centers to restore 15 million hectares of native vegetation by 2050.

Koalas use roadside vegetation for feeding and resting. Credit: Shutterstock

However, the pact doesn't recognize the value of lone trees, hedges and tree-lined fences.

Likewise, the Brazilian Forest Code has historically provided strong legal protection for forests since it was introduced. While this policy does value vegetation along waterways, it overlooks the value of lone trees, hedges or tree-lined fences.

These oversights could result in poor connectivity between natural areas, seriously hampering conservation efforts.

Australia doesn't fare much better. For example, in Queensland, the native vegetation management laws protect only intact native vegetation or vegetation of a certain age. This means scattered, but vital, vegetation isn't protected from land clearing.

Helping your local wildlife

But farmers and other landowners in Australia can make a big difference through land stewardship grant schemes (such as from Landcare) and private land conservation programs (such as Land for Wildlife or conservation covenants).

These schemes and programs can help landowners finance revegetation and protect native vegetation. Grants and programs vary by state and territory, and local council.

Restoring natural areas is a key goal on the global conservation agenda for the next decade, and it's clear that lone trees, hedges and tree-lined fences on farms may play a larger role than once thought.

So think twice before you remove a tree or a hedge. It might be a crucial stepping stone for your local birds and bees.

Explore further Scientists call for improved management of a weedy tree to protect owl habitat

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Large-scale lateral spreading displacement maps for the 22 February 2011 Christchurch earthquake. (a) Displacements observed from optical image correlation (after Rathje et al., 2017b), and displacements predicted by Random Forest (RF) classification models using (b) Model 3 (No CPT data) and (c) Model 5 (CPT data). Credit: Maria Giovanna Durante and Ellen M Rathje, UT Austin

Our homes and offices are only as solid as the ground beneath them. When that solid ground turns to liquidas sometimes happens during earthquakesit can topple buildings and bridges. This phenomenon is known as liquefaction, and it was a major feature of the 2011 earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand, a magnitude 6.3 quake that killed 185 people and destroyed thousands of homes.

An upside of the Christchurch quake was that it was one of the most well-documented in history. Because New Zealand is seismically active, the city was instrumented with numerous sensors for monitoring earthquakes. Post-event reconnaissance provided a wealth of additional data on how the soil responded across the city.

"It's an enormous amount of data for our field," said post-doctoral researcher, Maria Giovanna Durante, a Marie Sklodowska Curie Fellow previously of The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin). "We said, 'If we have thousands of data points, maybe we can find a trend.'"

Durante works with Prof. Ellen Rathje, Janet S. Cockrell Centennial Chair in Engineering at UT Austin and the principal investigator for the National Science Foundation-funded DesignSafe cyberinfrastructure, which supports research across the natural hazards community. Rathje's personal research on liquefaction led her to study the Christchurch event. She had been thinking about ways to incorporate machine learning into her research and this case seemed like a great place to start.

"For some time, I had been impressed with how machine learning was being incorporated into other fields, but it seemed we never had enough data in geotechnical engineering to utilize these methods," Rathje said. "However, when I saw the liquefaction data coming out of New Zealand, I knew we had a unique opportunity to finally apply AI techniques to our field."

The two researchers developed a machine learning model that predicted the amount of lateral movement that occurred when the Christchurch earthquake caused soil to lose its strength and shift relative to its surroundings.

The results were published online in Earthquake Spectra on April 2021.

"It's one of the first machine learning studies in our area of geotechnical engineering," Durante said.

The researchers first used a Random Forest approach with a binary classification to forecast whether lateral spreading movements occurred at a specific location. They then applied a multiclass classification approach to predict the amount of displacement, from none to more than 1 meter.

"We needed to put physics into our model and be able to recognize, understand, and visualize what the model does," Durante said. "For that reason, it was important to select specific input features that go with the phenomenon we study. We're not using the model as a black box we're trying to integrate our scientific knowledge as much as possible."

Durante and Rathje trained the model using data related to the peak ground shaking experienced (a trigger for liquefaction), the depth of the water table, the topographic slope, and other factors. In total, more than 7,000 data points from a small area of the city were used for training dataa great improvement, as previous geotechnical machine learning studies had used only 200 data points.

They tested their model citywide on 2.5 million sites around the epicenter of the earthquake to determine the displacement. Their model predicted whether liquefaction occurred with 80% accuracy; it was 70% accurate at determining the amount of displacement.

The researchers used the Frontera supercomputer at the Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC), one of the world's fastest, to train and test the model. TACC is a key partner on the DesignSafe project, providing computing resources, software, and storage to the natural hazards engineering community.

Access to Frontera provided Durante and Rathje machine learning capabilities on a scale previously unavailable to the field. Deriving the final machine learning model required testing 2,400 possible models.

Sink holes and liquefaction on roads in Christchurch, New Zealand after 2011 earthquake. Credit: Martin Luff, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

"It would have taken years to do this research anywhere else," Durante said. "If you want to run a parametric study, or do a comprehensive analysis, you need to have computational power."

She hopes their machine learning liquefaction models will one day direct first-responders to the most urgent needs in the aftermath of an earthquake. "Emergency crews need guidance on what areas, and what structures, may be most at risk of collapse and focus their attention there," she said.

Sharing, Reproducibility, and Access

For Rathje, Durante, and a growing number of natural hazard engineers, a journal publication is not the only result of a research project. They also publish all of their data, models, and methods to the DesignSafe portal, a hub for research related to the impact of hurricanes, earthquakes, tsunamis, and other natural hazards on the built and natural environment.

"We did everything on the project in the DesignSafe portal," Durante said. "All the maps were made using QGIS, a mapping tool available on DesignSafe, using my computer as a way to connect to the cyberinfrastructure."

For their machine learning liquefaction model, they created a Jupyter notebookan interactive, web-based document that includes the dataset, code, and analyses. The notebook allows other scholars to reproduce the team's findings interactively, and test the machine learning model with their own data.

"It was important to us to make the materials available and make it reproducible," Durante said. "We want the whole community to move forward with these methods."

This new paradigm of data-sharing and collaboration is central to DesignSafe and helps the field progress more quickly, according Joy Pauschke, program director in NSF's Directorate for Engineering.

"Researchers are beginning to use AI methods with natural hazards research data, with exciting results," Pauschke said. "Adding machine learning tools to DesignSafe's data and other resources will lead to new insights and help speed advances that can improve disaster resilience."

Advances in machine learning require rich datasets, precisely like the data from the Christchurch earthquake. "All of the information about the Christchurch event was available on a website," Durante said. "That's not so common in our community, and without that, this study would not have been impossible."

Advances also require high-performance computing systems to test out new approaches and apply them to new fields.

The researchers continue to refine the machine learning model for liquefaction. Further research, they say, is needed to develop machine learning models that are generalizable to other earthquake events and geologic settings.

Durante, who returned to her native Italy this year, says one thing she hopes to take back from the U.S. is the ability for research to impact public policy.

She cited a recent project working with Scott Brandenberg and Jonathan Stewart (University of California, Los Angeles) that developed a new methodology to determine whether a retaining wall would collapse during an earthquake. Less than three years after the beginning of their research, the recommended seismic provisions for new buildings and other structures in the U.S. included their methodology.

"I want my work to have an impact on everyday life," Durante said. "In the U.S., there is more of a direct connection between research and real life, and that's something that I would like to bring back home."

Explore further Envisioning safer cities with AI

More information: Maria Giovanna Durante et al, An exploration of the use of machine learning to predict lateral spreading, Earthquake Spectra (2021). Maria Giovanna Durante et al, An exploration of the use of machine learning to predict lateral spreading,(2021). DOI: 10.1177/87552930211004613
Protoplanetary disks are classified into three main categories: transition, ring, or extended. These false-color images from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) show these classifications in stark contrast. On left: the ring disk of RU Lup is characterized by narrow gaps thought to be carved by giant planets with masses ranging between a Neptune mass and a Jupiter mass. Middle: the transition disk of J1604.3-2130 is characterized by a large inner cavity thought to be carved by planets more massive than Jupiter, also known as Super-Jovian planets. On right: the compact disk of Sz104 is believed not to contain giant planets, as it lacks the telltale gaps and cavities associated with the presence of giant planets. Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO), S. Dagnello (NRAO)

Using data for more than 500 young stars observed with the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA), scientists have uncovered a direct link between protoplanetary disk structuresthe planet-forming disks that surround starsand planet demographics. The survey proves that higher mass stars are more likely to be surrounded by disks with "gaps" in them and that these gaps directly correlate to the high occurrence of observed giant exoplanets around such stars. These results provide scientists with a window back through time, allowing them to predict what exoplanetary systems looked like through each stage of their formation.

"We found a strong correlation between gaps in protoplanetary disks and stellar mass, which can be linked to the presence of large, gaseous exoplanets," said Nienke van der Marel, a Banting fellow in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Victoria in British Columbia, and the primary author on the research. "Higher mass stars have relatively more disks with gaps than lower mass stars, consistent with the already known correlations in exoplanets, where higher mass stars more often host gas-giant exoplanets. These correlations directly tell us that gaps in planet-forming disks are most likely caused by giant planets of Neptune mass and above."

Gaps in protoplanetary disks have long been considered as overall evidence of planet formation. However, there has been some skepticism due to the observed orbital distance between exoplanets and their stars. "One of the primary reasons that scientists have been skeptical about the link between gaps and planets before is that exoplanets at wide orbits of tens of astronomical units are rare. However, exoplanets at smaller orbits, between one and ten astronomical units, are much more common," said Gijs Mulders, assistant professor of astronomy at Universidad Adolfo Ibanez in Santiago, Chile, and co-author on the research. "We believe that planets that clear the gaps will migrate inwards later on."

The new study is the first to show that the number of gapped disks in these regions matches the number of giant exoplanets in a star system. "Previous studies indicated that there were many more gapped disks than detected giant exoplanets," said Mulders. "Our study shows that there are enough exoplanets to explain the observed frequency of the gapped disks at different stellar masses."

The correlation also applies to star systems with low-mass stars, where scientists are more likely to find massive rocky exoplanets, also known as Super-Earths. Van der Marel, who will become an assistant professor at Leiden University in the Netherlands beginning September 2021 said, "Lower mass stars have more rocky Super-Earthsbetween an Earth mass and a Neptune mass. Disks without gaps, which are more compact, lead to the formation of Super-Earths."

This link between stellar mass and planetary demographics could help scientists identify which stars to target in the search for rocky planets throughout the Milky Way. "This new understanding of stellar mass dependencies will help to guide the search for small, rocky planets like Earth in the solar neighborhood," said Mulders, who is also a part of the NASA-funded Alien Earths team. "We can use the stellar mass to connect the planet-forming disks around young stars to exoplanets around mature stars. When an exoplanet is detected, the planet-forming material is usually gone. So the stellar mass is a 'tag' that tells us what the planet-forming environment might have looked like for these exoplanets."

And what it all comes down to is dust. "An important element of planet formation is the influence of dust evolution," said van der Marel. "Without giant planets, dust will always drift inwards, creating the optimal conditions for the formation of smaller, rocky planets close to the star."

The current research was conducted using data for more than 500 objects observed in prior studies using ALMA's high-resolution Band 6 and Band 7 antennas. At present, ALMA is the only telescope that can image the distribution of millimeter-dust at high enough angular resolution to resolve the dust disks and reveal its substructure, or lack thereof. "Over the past five years, ALMA has produced many snapshot surveys of nearby star-forming regions resulting in hundreds of measurements of disk dust mass, size, and morphology," said van der Marel. "The large number of observed disk properties has allowed us to make a statistical comparison of protoplanetary disks to the thousands of discovered exoplanets. This is the first time that a stellar mass dependency of gapped disks and compact disks has been successfully demonstrated using the ALMA telescope."

"Our new findings link the beautiful gap structures in disks observed with ALMA directly to the properties of the thousands of exoplanets detected by the NASA Kepler mission and other exoplanet surveys," said Mulders. "Exoplanets and their formation help us place the origins of the Earth and the Solar System in the context of what we see happening around other stars."

Explore further High-mass stars are formed not from dust disk but from debris

More information: "A stellar mass dependence of structured disks: A possible link with exoplanet demographics," N. van der Marel and G. Mulders, ApJ, "A stellar mass dependence of structured disks: A possible link with exoplanet demographics," N. van der Marel and G. Mulders, DOI: 10.3847/1538-3881/ac0255 , preview: arxiv.org/pdf/2104.06838.pdf
Rice University scientists have enhanced models that could detect magnetosphere activity on exoplanets. The models add data from nightside activity that could increase signals by at least an order of magnitude. In this illustration, the planet's star is at top left, and the rainbow patches are the radio emission intensities, most coming from the nightside. The white lines are magnetic field lines. Credit: Anthony Sciola/Rice University

We can't detect them yet, but radio signals from distant solar systems could provide valuable information about the characteristics of their planets.

A paper by Rice University scientists describes a way to better determine which exoplanets are most likely to produce detectable signals based on magnetosphere activity on exoplanets' previously discounted nightsides.

The study by Rice alumnus Anthony Sciola, who earned his Ph.D. this spring and was mentored by co-author and space plasma physicist Frank Toffoletto, shows that while radio emissions from the daysides of exoplanets appear to max out during high solar activity, those that emerge from the nightside are likely to add significantly to the signal.

This interests the exoplanet community because the strength of a given planet's magnetosphere indicates how well it would be protected from the solar wind that radiates from its star, the same way Earth's magnetic field protects us.

Planets that orbit within a star's Goldilocks zone, where conditions may otherwise give rise to life, could be deemed uninhabitable without evidence of a strong enough magnetosphere. Magnetic field strength data would also help to model planetary interiors and understand how planets form, Sciola said.

The study appears in The Astrophysical Journal.

Earth's magnetosphere isn't exactly a sphere; it's a comet-shaped set of field lines that compress against the planet's day side and tail off into space on the night side, leaving eddies in their wake, especially during solar events like coronal mass ejections. The magnetosphere around every planet emits what we interpret as radio waves, and the closer to the sun a planet orbits, the stronger the emissions.

Astrophysicists have a pretty good understanding of our own system's planetary magnetospheres based on the Radiometric Bode's Law, an analytical tool used to establish a linear relationship between the solar wind and radio emissions from the planets in its path. In recent years, researchers have attempted to apply the law to exoplanetary systems with limited success.

"The community has used these rule-of-thumb empirical models based on what we know about the solar system, but it's kind of averaged and smoothed out," Toffoletto said. "A dynamic model that includes all this spiky behavior could imply the signal is actually much larger than these old models suggest. Anthony is taking this and pushing it to its limits to understand how signals from exoplanets could be detected."

Rice University graduate student Anthony Sciola, pictured at Kaldidalur (The Cold Valley) in Iceland, has developed a numerical model to enhance the analysis of radio signals from exoplanets. Though the instruments to obtain such data are not yet available, they could help determine what planets have protective magnetospheres. Credit: Anthony Sciola/Rice University

Sciola said the current analytic model relies primarily on emissions expected to emerge from an exoplanet's polar region, what we see on Earth as an aurora. The new study appends a numerical model to those that estimate polar region emissions to provide a more complete picture of emissions around an entire exoplanet.

"We're adding in features that only show up in lower regions during really high solar activity," he said.

It turns out, he said, that nightside emissions don't necessarily come from one large spot, like auroras around the north pole, but from various parts of the magnetosphere. In the presence of strong solar activity, the sum of these nightside spots could raise the planet's total emissions by at least an order of magnitude.

"They're very small-scale and occur sporadically, but when you sum them all up, they can have a great effect," said Sciola, who is continuing the work at Johns Hopkins University's Applied Physics Laboratory. "You need a numerical model to resolve those events. For this study, Sciola used the Multiscale Atmosphere Geospace Environment (MAGE) developed by the Center for Geospace Storms (CGS) based at the Applied Physics Laboratory in collaboration which the Rice space plasma physics group.

"We're essentially confirming the analytic model for more extreme exoplanet simulations, but adding extra detail," he said. "The takeaway is that we're bringing further attention to the current model's limiting factors but saying that under certain situations, you can get more emissions than that limiting factor suggests."

He noted the new model works best on exoplanetary systems. "You need to be really far away to see the effect," he said. It's hard to tell what's going on at the global scale on Earth; it's like trying to watch a movie by sitting right next to the screen. You're only getting a little patch of it."

Also, radio signals from an Earth-like exoplanet may never be detectable from Earth's surface, Sciola said. "Earth's ionosphere blocks them," he said. "That means we can't even see Earth's own radio emission from the ground, even though it's so close."

Detection of signals from exoplanets will require either a complex of satellites or an installation on the far side of the moon. "That would be a nice, quiet place to make an array that won't be limited by Earth's ionosphere and atmosphere," Sciola said.

He said the observer's position in relation to the exoplanet is also important. "The emission is 'beamed,'" Sciola said. "It's like a lighthouse: You can see the light if you are in line with the beam, but not if you are directly above the lighthouse. So having a better understanding of the expected angle of the signal will help observers determine if they are in line to observe it for a particular exoplanet."

Explore further The effects of solar flares on Earth's magnetosphere

More information: Anthony Sciola et al, Incorporating Inner Magnetosphere Current-driven Electron Acceleration in Numerical Simulations of Exoplanet Radio Emission, The Astrophysical Journal (2021). Journal information: Astrophysical Journal Anthony Sciola et al, Incorporating Inner Magnetosphere Current-driven Electron Acceleration in Numerical Simulations of Exoplanet Radio Emission,(2021). DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/abefd9
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Research led by scientists at the University of Bristol has shed new light on how the kidneys of the one-humped Arabian camel play an important role in helping it to cope with extremes.

In a new paper published today in the journal Communications Biology, they have studied the response of the camel's kidneys to dehydration and rapid rehydration stresses.

Camelus dromedarius is the most important livestock animal in the arid and semi-arid regions of North and East Africa, the Arabian Peninsula and Iran, and continues to provide basic needs to millions of people.

Thought to have been domesticated 3,000 to 6,000 years ago in the Arabian Peninsula, the camel has been used as a beast of burden, for riding and sport, and to produce milk, meat and shelter, and they are still used today for the same purposes.

This animal is so incredibly well adapted to the desert environment that can endure weeks without access to water. A very well-developed kidney is the key to produce highly concentrated urine and assure water is never wasted.

In the current context of advancing desertification and climate change, there is renewed interest in the adaptations of camels. Further, advanced laboratory techniques allow to study the underlying genetic mechanisms of these adaptations.

However, there was not to date, a freely available and comprehensive study of the genes implicated in coping with dehydration in the kidney of the camel.

This project was born in 2015 with the onset of a fruitful collaboration between Professor David Murphy's Lab at University of Bristol and Professor Abdu Adem's Lab at United Arab Emirates University.

The team analysed how thousands of genes changed in the camel kidney as a consequence of dehydration and rehydration and suggested that the amount of cholesterol in the kidney has a role in the water conservation process. They used different techniques to further validate these results.

Lead authors Fernando AlviraI Iraizoz and Benjamin T. Gillard from the University of Bristol's Medical School, said: "A decrease in the amount of cholesterol in the membrane of kidney cells would facilitate the movement of solutes and water across different sections of the kidneya process that is required to efficiently reabsorb water and produce a highly concentrated urine, thus avoiding water loss.

"This is, to the best of our knowledge, the first time that the level of cholesterol has been directly associated with water conservation in the kidney. Thus, we describe a novel role for this lipid that may be of interest when studying other species."

The team also presents an immense source of information that, as mentioned by one of the reviewers, is very valuable in the context of climate change and thus will help scientists to understand the mechanisms of water control in dehydration.

Following the publication of this research, the team are now looking at how the camel brain responds to the same stimuli and how other species, such as jerboas and Olive mice, adapt to life in the deserts.

Explore further More than one way for animals to survive climate change

More information: Multiomic analysis of the Arabian camel (Camelus dromedarius) kidney reveals a role for cholesterol in water conservation, Communications Biology (2021). Journal information: Communications Biology Multiomic analysis of the Arabian camel (Camelus dromedarius) kidney reveals a role for cholesterol in water conservation,(2021).
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Headlines proclaiming COVID lockdowns drastically reduced pollution were mostly referring to nitrogen dioxide, NO 2 , a reactive gas emitted from burning fuel. There had been less understanding of how lockdowns affected PM2.5, tiny particulate matter that can penetrate a person's lungs, leading to a host of health problems, including increased risk for heart attack and cancer.

"PM 2.5 is the leading global environmental determinant of longevity. It is a key pollutant of concern for health," said Randall Martin, the Raymond R. Tucker Distinguished Professor in the Department of Energy, Environmental & Chemical Engineering in the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis.

New research from Martin's lab, in collaboration with the Goddard Space Flight Center, California Institute of Technology and Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia, mapped PM 2.5 levels across China, Europe and North America. Using satellite data, ground-based monitoring and an innovative computer modeling system, researchers found mostly slight changes in PM 2.5with one exception.

The majority of changes they found were not driven by lockdown, but by the natural variability of meteorology. Their results were published June 23 in the journal Science Advances.

The meteorological effects that we experience everyday also affect PM2.5 variability, Martin said.

"The shorter time period, the more susceptible PM 2.5 is to meteorology," he said.

During the pandemic, among the images of overflowing ICUs and empty grocery store shelves, there were some photographic bright spots: before and after pictures accompanied articles proclaiming air quality improved because people were staying home.

The visuals were strikingboth on the ground, where blue skies shone over LA highways, and from spacedata from NASA satellites made clear atmospheric reduction in nitrogen dioxide.

"People automatically started wondering, 'What's the picture for PM 2.5?'" said Melanie Hammer, a visiting research associate in Martin's lab. That was the obvious question not just because particulate matter often comes from the same sources as NO 2 , but because NO 2 can form PM 2.5.

"NO 2 is considered a secondary source of PM 2.5," Hammer said. When it's emitted, NO 2 interacts with other chemicals in the atmosphere and can form PM 2.5. A few early studies looked at data gathered from ground monitoring sites, which test the surrounding air, but those ground sites are few and far between and incapable of piecing together a bigger picture.

Only about a fraction of the world's population live in countries that have more than three PM 2.5 monitors per million people. Most of the population live in areas with no monitoring.

"We decided to look again, using a more complete picture from satellite images," Hammer said. The images, provided by NASA, contain data for columns of atmosphere spanning the ground to the edge of space. These data, referred to as aerosol optical depth, related to surface PM 2.5 concentrations using the chemical transport model GEOS-Chem, which simulates the composition of the atmosphere; the reactions and relationships of its different constituents; and the way they move through the air.

Researchers focused on three regions that do have extensive ground monitoring systems in place: North America, Europe and China, and compared monthly estimates of PM 2.5 from January to April in 2018, 2019 and 2020.

When they compared PM 2.5 levels over the three years during the months that coincided with each region's lockdown phases, there weren't many clear signals over North America or Europe.

"We found the most clearly detectable signal was a significant reduction over the North China Plain, where the most strict lockdowns were concentrated," she said.

To figure out whether lockdown was responsible for that signal, and several smaller ones dotted around the areas surveyed, the team ran "sensitivity simulations" using GEOS-Chem, changing parameters to see which scenario most closely matched reality.

They simulated a scenario where emissions were held constant and meteorology was solely responsible for year over year changes in PM 2.5.

"We found that that explained a large part of the differences we were seeing," Hammer said. They also ran a simulation in which they reduced transportation-related emissions and other man-made sources of NO 2 , mirroring lockdown, when fewer people were driving and fewer industrial sites were operational.

"On its own, that actually didn't really explain much at all," Hammer said. But combining the two, "That's when the signal over the North China Plain stood out."

Hammer suspects that the change in PM 2.5 levels over the North China Plain was so striking because of how polluted it tends to be in "normal" times. "You're probably more likely to see a larger reduction in a region that has higher concentrations to begin with."

In a way, that highlights a relevant point that may not at first be intuitive: Average PM 2.5 levels have been dropping steadily in North America and Europe. "It's just harder to perturb really low concentrations," Hammer said.

But it also underscores the complex relationship between NO 2 and PM 2.5. Although NO 2 does interact with other atmospheric chemicals to form PM 2.5, the two do not have a linear relationship; twice as much NO 2 in the atmosphere does not necessarily lead to twice as much PM 2.5.

Hammer said, intuitively, she did expect to see more of a reduction in PM 2.5 levels. "It was kind of a surprise that meteorology played such a dominant role.

"Turns out, it's a pretty complex relationship and it doesn't always behave how you would expect."

Explore further Global pollution estimates reveal surprises, opportunity

More information: "Effects of COVID-19 lockdowns on fine particulate matter concentrations" Science Advances (2021). Journal information: Science Advances "Effects of COVID-19 lockdowns on fine particulate matter concentrations"(2021). advances.sciencemag.org/lookup  .1126/sciadv.abg7670
New research examined the effect of different parenting styles during adolescence on crime among African American men. The study found that parenting styles characterized by little behavioral control placed youth at significant risk for adult crime, even though some of those styles included high levels of nurturance. In contrast, youth whose parents monitored them, were consistent in their parenting, and had high levels of behavioral control were at lowest risk for adult crime.

The study, by researchers at the University of Georgia and Mississippi State University, is forthcoming in Criminology, a publication of the American Society of Criminology.

"We examined parenting styles rather than parenting behaviors, which allowed us to look at various combinations of parenting behaviorsthings like warmth, monitoring, and consistent disciplineas they naturally co-occur rather than treating them as though each occurs in a vacuum," explains Leslie Gordon Simons, professor of sociology at the University of Georgia, who led the study.

In their analysis, the authors went beyond how parenting is typically studied to include styles that use corporal punishment. This approach allowed them to examine the impact of corporal punishment in the context in which it takes place (e.g., the presence or absence of nurturance or behavioral control).

The researchers examined longitudinal data on 318 African American men to identify the effects of eight parenting styles in early adolescence on crime in young adulthood. The participants, from a sample initially recruited from Iowa and Georgia, were part of the Family and Community Health Study and were generally representative of African American families in poor, working-class, and middle-class neighborhoods.

The researchers assessed parents' style when youth were 10 and 12 years old and identified eight styles of parenting: authoritative, no-nonsense, authoritarian, vigilant, permissive, lax, neglectful, or abusive. The researchers also measured criminal behavior when youth were 22 and 25 years old. In addition, the study considered how childhood traits (e.g., conduct problems, poor self-control), as well as background and social-environmental variables (e.g., parents' education, community violence), were likely to affect the quality of parenting and youth's antisocial behavior. Researchers also observed the effects of parenting styles mediated by factors that can cause criminal behavior, including antisocial behavior, negative emotions, affiliations with deviant peers, and involvement with the criminal justice system.

The study found that found that parenting styles that involved high levels of behavioral control (e.g., authoritative, authoritarian, no-nonsense) reduced the risk of crime in adulthood. In contrast, the study found that parenting styles with low levels of behavioral control (e.g., abusive, permissive, and lax) significantly increased the risk for crime in adulthood. The harmful consequences of abusive parenting (harsh corporal punishment in the absence of nurturance or behavioral control) are not surprising, but the negative consequences of permissive parenting (which were characterized by indulgent levels of warmth without behavioral control) and lax parenting (which involves high levels of nurturance combined with corporal punishment) suggest that parenting styles lacking monitoring and consistent discipline are more likely to put youth at risk for later criminal behavior, even when parents are warm and nurturing.

"This suggests that parenting with a lot of responsiveness is not, on its own, sufficient to reduce risk for criminal involvement," notes Tara Sutton, assistant professor of sociology at Mississippi State University, who coauthored the study.

The study also found that the effects of corporal punishment on crime depend on the parenting context in which the punishment occurs: It can enhance monitoring and consistency of some parenting styles (e.g., no-nonsense), but in the absence of these behaviors (e.g., lax, abusive parenting styles), it is a risk factor for later participation in crime. The authors note that although some parenting styles that include corporal punishment were effective at deterring adult crime, past research has found that there are costs associated with this this discipline strategy, such as adolescent depression, anxiety, and poor school performance.

The authors identified as a limitation that their study considered only one outcomecrime; studying other outcomes might yield different results. For example, experiencing warm, nurturing parenting as an adolescent may be associated with later success at being a loving romantic partner or father.

Also, while the study considered the impact of parenting during adolescence on criminal behavior during early adulthood, it did not consider the extent to which parenting might moderate the effects of various criminogenic factors (e.g., neighborhood crime), so the authors suggest the study be viewed as a conservative estimate of the effect of parenting on adult crime.

"Most studies on predictors of crime have focused on peer affiliations, neighborhood disadvantage, racial discrimination, and transitions to adulthood, with less attention to the effect of parenting during adolescence on adult criminal behavior," notes Dr. Simons. "Our study suggests that parents, who are the primary socialization agents during their children's formative years, continue to have considerable influence over their adolescents' later criminal behavior."

Explore further The impacts of children's emotions and behavior on parenting

Provided by American Society of Criminology
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Beyond how much cream and sugar to add to their morning brew, coffee lovers also face more serious decisions: one of those is whether or not to buy ecolabelled coffee, which advertises itself as more ethical and environmentally friendly. But whether customers are willing to pay the extra price for these perks remains an unanswered question. In a study publishing in the journal Heliyon on June 23, researchers combined data from 22 studies to conclude that in general, people are willing to pay $1.36 more for a pound of coffee that's produced in an eco-friendly way and are especially partial to coffee that's labelled "Organic."

"We hear in the media or sometimes read in the newspaper that there is an increasing number of ecolabelling logos in the market, and that these logos are sometimes related or even look alike. This may reduce consumers' trust and willingness to pay over time," says first author Nizam Abdu, a Ph.D. candidate and research assistant at the University of Tasmania in Australia. "However, our results show that coffee consumers in some selected countries are still willing to pay a positive and significant premium for ecolabelling."

As many people's go-to beverage, coffee's enormous social, cultural, and economic influence makes it an ideal candidate for ecolabelling, a system that identifies and certifies certain products with ethical and environmental benefits. Common coffee ecolabels include Organic, Country of Origin Labelling (COOL), and Fairtrade (a certification that workers are given fair wages and safe working conditions) and aim to help consumers make informed choices on food safety, health, and environmental impact. However, it's possible that having too many ecolabel options will instead confuse buyers, causing them to avoid buying ecolabelled coffee.

Many previous studies have tried to quantify the public's opinion on different types of coffee ecolabelling. But the studies have varied dramatically in their estimates of how much consumers are willing to pay: some found that people are willing to pay more, while others suggest that people actually are less willing to pay for ecolabelling. As a result, it's been challenging to present a standardized conclusion on the overall effectiveness of ecolabels.

Abdu and his co-author set out to address this gap. They combined data from 22 studies over the past fifteen years, forming an overall dataset of 97 observations across Europe, North America, Africa, and Asia. With their meta-analysis, they wanted to understand what factors give rise to the large range of price estimates and determine once and for all whether consumers are willing to pay more for coffee ecolabelling.

The researchers found that the variation in previous studies came down to a few factors: the region or country under study, surveying methods, types of ecolabels, and publication bias, the tendency for only studies with the desired outcome to be published. For example, there was a noticeable effect on the studies' results when survey participants made yes/no choices about which coffee they'd buy versus when they were given trade-offs and budget constraints.

After taking these things into account, however, they found that overall, ecolabelling worked as intended: people were willing to pay for socially responsible coffee.

"In general, consumers are happy to pay a premium price of $1.36 for a pound of ecolabelled coffee. In particular, we clearly see that Organic is the most crucial coffee attribute," says Abdu. The specific ecolabels of Fairtrade, COOL, and Organic all had values significantly larger than zero, but Organic ecolabelling had the highest value of the threepeople were willing to pay an additional $1.14 per pound of coffee for just the Organic ecolabel.

That said, consumer attitudes still varied depending on factors like location. For instance, compared to other regions, people were less willing to pay more for ecolabelled coffee in North America, which may suggest that preference for such a labelling system varies across the regions. The researchers were also surprised to find that while people did care where their coffee came from, they didn't necessarily prefer coffee that was produced near them. "I was expecting consumers would prefer locally produced coffee," he says.

The authors say, however, that their finding still suggests a clear preference among consumers for certain types of ecolabelling. Abdu says, "Our findings are a good indicator that the policy of coffee ecolabelling is working in the global coffee market."

Explore further Drinking any type of coffee associated with reduced risk of chronic liver disease

More information: Heliyon, Abdu et al.: "Willingness to pay for socially responsible products: A meta-analysis of coffee ecolabelling" DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e07043 , Abdu et al.: "Willingness to pay for socially responsible products: A meta-analysis of coffee ecolabelling" www.cell.com/heliyon/fulltext/  2405-8440(21)01146-4
Credit: The Ohio State University

Americans consistently believe that poor African Americans are more likely to move up the economic ladder than they actually are, a new study shows.

People also overestimate how likely poor white people are to get ahead economically, but to a much lesser extent than they do for Black people.

"It's no surprise that most people in our society believe in the American Dream of working hard and succeeding economically," said Jesse Walker, co-author of the study and assistant professor of marketing at The Ohio State University's Fisher College of Business.

"But many people don't know how much harder it is for African Americans to achieve that dream than it is for white people."

The good news in the study was that making people aware of economic racial disparities, or merely having them reflect on the unique challenges that Black Americans face in the United States, helped people calibrate their beliefs about economic mobility.

Walker conducted the study with Shai Davidai, assistant professor of management at Columbia Business School at Columbia University. Their findings were published this week in the journal Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin.

The researchers conducted six studies with a total of 1,761 U.S. adults, who participated online.

In one study, they asked participants to estimate the chances that a randomly selected child born to a family in the lowest income quintile (0 to 20%) would rise to one of the four higher income quintiles. They made two predictions, one for a white child and one for a Black child.

Results showed that participants overestimated upward mobility for the white child by about 5%, but overestimated mobility for the Black child by about 16%. white Americans' actual likelihood of moving up from the bottom quintile is 69%, compared to 52% for Black Americans.

The researchers also measured how likely the participants thought the randomly selected poor child would be able to rise to the top of the economic heapone of the two highest income quintiles (those in the top 40% in terms of income). Here participants again overestimated the odds of the Black child reaching those heights, but actually underestimated the chances of the white child doing so.

It wasn't just white Americans who held these misperceptions. A separate study found that Black participants were similarly inaccurate in their estimation of a Black child's probability of moving out of poverty.

While the results cannot say why this happened, Davidai said it may be that Black Americansparticularly those in the lower economic groups themselveswant to believe in their chance at economic success.

"No one wants to believe there is no American Dream out there for them," Davidai said.

Results from other studies in the series suggested that people can more accurately assess the chances of poor Black people moving up if they are reminded of economic racial disparities or even just think about the problems Black people face in the United States.

In one study, participants were shown one of two graphs before they estimated the probability of poor white or Black Americans moving up economically. One showed the distribution of wealth by income quintiles, revealing that the richest 20% of Americans own 81% of private wealth.

The remaining participants were shown a graph of the distribution of wealth in the United States by ethnicity, revealing that white people own 89% of private wealth, compared to Black people, who own 1.3%.

In this study, those who were shown the graph highlighting general economic inequality overestimated a poor Black person's chances of moving up the economic ladder by about 20%. But those who were shown the graph revealing racial economic inequality were quite accurate in their beliefs about economic mobility.

"Making people think about the racial economic disparities in this country made them much better able to estimate the real chances of Black Americans getting ahead economically," Davidai said.

Another study showed that considering the general social challenges that Black Americans face in the United Stateswithout any reference to economicsmade people more accurate in their mobility estimates.

But it wasn't just information about the current situation of African Americans that influenced how participants viewed the possibility that a Black child could get ahead economically.

In one study, participants read one of two short articles: one discussing the amount of progress Black people have made in the United States in the past century, or one about how much progress still needs to be made toward racial equality. Both focused on social rather than economic progress.

People who read the positive story about racial progress believed that a Black child born to a family in the poorest 20% of Americans was more than twice as likely to move up the economic ladder than those who read about the lack of progress.

Still, people who read either article overestimated the chances of the Black child from a poor family achieving more economic success. Reading either article didn't change what people thought about the white child's chance of moving up.

"Because people think Black people have made progress toward social equality, they assume that there must have been positive changes in economic mobility, too," Davidai said.

In this study, participants who were Black showed the same tendencies to overestimate the Black child's chances of success as did white participants, no matter which article they readbut they were much more accurate than the white people.

Overall, the results of the six studies have important implications, Walker said.

"If you think someone is more likely to move up the economic ladder than they actually are, it is a lot easier to blame them for not being successful," he said.

"These misperceptions may make people less likely to support policies that may actually help African Americans move up and address the large racial wealth gap that exists in America."

Explore further White Americans still vastly overestimate racial progress, study finds

More information: Shai Davidai et al, Americans Misperceive Racial Disparities in Economic Mobility, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin (2021). Journal information: Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin Shai Davidai et al, Americans Misperceive Racial Disparities in Economic Mobility,(2021). DOI: 10.1177/01461672211024115
Migratory birds such as European robins can sense the Earth's magnetic field. Now researchers show for the first time that a molecule from their visual apparatus is sensitive to magnetic field. Credit: Corinna Langebrake and Ilia Solov'yov

Humans perceive the world around them with five sensesvision, hearing, taste, smell and touch. Many other animals are also able to sense the Earth's magnetic field. For some time, a collaboration of biologists, chemists and physicists centered at the Universities of Oldenburg (Germany) and Oxford (UK) have been gathering evidence suggesting that the magnetic sense of migratory birds such as European robins is based on a specific light-sensitive protein in the eye. In the current edition of the journal Nature, this team demonstrate that the protein cryptochrome 4, found in birds' retinas, is sensitive to magnetic fields and could well be the long-sought magnetic sensor.

First author Jingjing Xu, a doctoral student in Henrik Mouritsen's research group in Oldenburg, took a decisive step toward this success. After extracting the genetic code for the potentially magnetically sensitive cryptochrome 4 in night-migratory European robins, she was able, for the first time, to produce this photoactive molecule in large quantities using bacterial cell cultures. Christiane Timmel's and Stuart Mackenzie's groups in Oxford then used a wide range of magnetic resonance and novel optical spectroscopy techniques to study the protein and demonstrate its pronounced sensitivity to magnetic fields.

The team also deciphered the mechanism by which this sensitivity arisesanother important advance. "Electrons that can move within the molecule after blue-light activation play a crucial role," explains Mouritsen. Proteins like cryptochrome consist of chains of amino acids: robin cryptochrome 4 has 527 of them. Oxford's Peter Hore and Oldenburg physicist Ilia Solov'yov performed quantum mechanical calculations supporting the idea that four of the 527known as tryptophansare essential for the magnetic properties of the molecule. According to their calculations, electrons hop from one tryptophan to the next generating so-called radical pairs which are magnetically sensitive. To prove this experimentally, the team from Oldenburg produced slightly modified versions of the robin cryptochrome, in which each of the tryptophans in turn was replaced by a different amino acid to block the movement of electrons.

Using these modified proteins, the Oxford chemistry groups were able to demonstrate experimentally that electrons move within the cryptochrome as predicted in the calculationsand that the generated radical pairs are essential to explain the observed magnetic field effects.

The Oldenburg team also expressed cryptochrome 4 from chickens and pigeons. When studied in Oxford, the proteins of these species, which do not migrate, exhibit similar photochemistry to that of the migratory robin, but appear markedly less magnetically sensitive.

"We think these results are very important because they show for the first time that a molecule from the visual apparatus of a migratory bird is sensitive to magnetic fields" says Mouritsen. But, he adds, this is not definitive proof that cryptochrome 4 is the magnetic sensor the team is looking for. In all experiments, the researchers examined isolated proteins in the laboratory. The magnetic fields used were also stronger than the Earth's magnetic field. "It therefore still needs to be shown that this is happening in the eyes of birds" Mouritsen stresses. Such studies are not yet technically possible.

However, the authors think the proteins involved could be significantly more sensitive in their native environment. In cells in the retina, the proteins are probably fixed and aligned, increasing their sensitivity to the direction of the magnetic field. Moreover, they are also likely to be associated with other proteins that could amplify the sensory signals. The team is currently searching for these as yet unknown interaction partners.

Hore says "if we can prove that cryptochrome 4 is the magnetic sensor we will have demonstrated a fundamentally quantum mechanism that makes animals sensitive to environmental stimuli a million times weaker than previously thought possible."

Explore further Radical pair analysis overcomes hurdle in theory of how birds navigate

More information: Magnetic sensitivity of cryptochrome 4 from a migratory songbird, Nature (2021). www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03618-9 Journal information: Nature Magnetic sensitivity of cryptochrome 4 from a migratory songbird,(2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-021-03618-9

Provided by University of Oldenburg
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

When it comes to education, we cannot think about race, sex and class in isolation. When I was commissioned by the UK government to investigate how these issues affect academic achievement, I discovered how they all matterand in combination. I believe that an analysis that focuses on any one of these in isolation will inevitably miss important aspects of inequality.

I was tasked with analyzing inequalities in educational achievementspecifically at age 16as part of the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities' report which was published in March. The issue has been raised again recently by a report from the House of Commons education select committee that highlighted the educational outcomes of white working class children in particular.

Sixteen is when pupils sit their GCSEs and statutory full-time education in England ends. It is an important transition. The qualifications they achieve at this stage are key to their future outcomes at every level: educational, economic, health and wellbeing.

I looked at what historically have been the three central dimensions of inequality: race, sex and class (or socio-economic status). I used the Department for Education's second longitudinal study of young people in England. This nationally representative sample of 10,000 young people sat their GCSEs in 2015/16, and is the most up-to-date and comprehensive data on race, sex, class and achievement at age 16.

The data showed that how well pupils do at GSCE level is related far more to social classas assessed by parental occupation, education and household incomethan to race or sex. For example, the achievement gap between pupils from the 20% of homes with the highest household income and the 20% of homes with the lowest household income was very large (measured at 0.91 standard deviations or SD). It was over three times larger than the small gap between boys and girls (0.29 SD), and over eight times larger than the very small gap between black and white pupils (0.11 SD). (Standard deviations are a unit of measurement used in statistics to gauge how far any given data point is from the average, or mean.)

Comparing gaps

But it is important to look at this data in the round. Everyone has an ethnicity, sex and a class background. We don't hold any of these characteristics in isolation.

The dataset provided a large number of categories. It included two sexes, three levels of socio-economic status (high, average and low), and nine major ethnic groups (white British, white other groups, Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, other Asian, black Caribbean including mixed white and black Caribbean, black African including mixed white and black African, and any other group). With these categories, we produced 54 unique combinations of race, sex and class. We then used statistical modeling to calculate the achievement score for each of these groups. The results are shown in the graph below.

Best 8 exams point score at age 16 by race, sex and class combination.

Three of these groups performed significantly less well than white British pupils of the same sex and socio-economic status: black Caribbean and black African boys from high socio-economic status homes, and Pakistani girls from high socio-economic status homes.

Understanding these outcomes means considering them from all angles. Why is this under-achievement only noted among pupils from high status backgrounds in these ethnic groups, and why only among boys or girls respectively? My report discusses the factors which may be having an effect on these outcomes. These include how different high socio-economic status families deploy their capital, what their expectations and norms might be, what expectations the teachers in their schools might have, or cultural considerations around masculinity or identity.

But there was no ethnic under-achievement in the other 45 comparisons we made between ethnic minority and white British pupils. Indeed in two-thirds of them, the average score for pupils from ethnic minority groups was substantially higher than the mean score for white British pupils. So, where there are ethnic achievement gaps in England at age 16, they are predominantly associated with higher achievement by pupils from ethnic minority groups compared to their white British peers. This success in education has been identified before, for example in the first longitudinal study of young people in England, in 2006.

Poverty and inequality

Given the critical role of educational achievement at age 16 for life outcomes, an important question is which groups of young people are most at risk of low achievement. The data shows that young people with the lowest achievement are those from low socio-economic backgrounds. This applies particularly (though not exclusively) to white British and black Caribbean young people, and particularly to boys.

Poverty affects young people from all ethnic groups. So policies such as the pupil premiumintroduced in 2011 to target funding for young people from disadvantaged backgroundsare crucial. Such funding will also particularly support pupils from those ethnic minority groups (including Pakistani and Bangladeshi pupils) who are most likely to experience poverty.

Given the size of the class-related achievement gap, it is unclear whether the scale of the funding is sufficient. The National Audit Office concluded in 2015 that "no clear trend has been established and the gap remains wide."

None of this denies ethnic inequalities in other educational or social outcomes, be that in entry to employment, access to high-fee universities or representation in the highest status occupations. Indeed, a key question is why high educational achievement at age 16 does not always translate into later success for young people from ethnic minorities.

If we want to help young people do better at secondary level, and improve their chances for the future, we have to think about race, sex and class in tandem. And for those students who fare the worst, great care needs to be taken to unpick at which points institutional biases might be hurting them.

Explore further Closing the attainment gaps

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Adult male zebra finches (left) learn their songs and use them during courtship interactions with females (right). Credit: Raina Fan.

If you listen to songbirds, you will recognize repeated melodies or phrases. Each phrase is made up of distinct sounds, strung together. A study from researchers at McGill University has found that the song phrases of many songbird species follow patterns that are similar to those used in human speech. At least in some respects.

The songbirds the researchers studied, like humans-no matter what language they speak-tend to use shorter elements (whether these are words or sounds) when they are putting together longer phrases. Linguists speculate that this pattern, known as Menzerath's Law, may make communication more efficient by making things easier to understand or say.

But the McGill team suggest that, at least in songbirds, physical factors such as muscle fatigue and limited lung capacities may also play a role. They also speculate that similar factors could contribute to seeing Menzerath's Law in humans.

Do physical elements play a role in songbird (and human) vocal patterns?

"Although we see Menzerath's Law in all the songbird species we looked at, and others have seen it among primates and penguins, we aren't sure this necessarily reflects enhanced communication efficiency in non-human animals," said Jon Sakata, a professor in McGill's Biology Department and the senior author on the paper that was recently published in Current Biology. "It is possible that these patterns of communication that we saw in songbirds are caused by physical predispositions and constraints."

Interestingly, Sakata also notes that the brain mechanisms regulating breathing and vocal muscles seem to be organized in similar ways in birds and humans.

Even song from untutored birds follow similar patterns

The idea that physical elements may play a role in these song patterns is supported by the fact that when the researchers compared the song patterns of birds that had been typically reared and tutored by their parents with those that had not been taught to sing by their parents (untutored birds), they found the same patterns.

"The individual units of sound made by untutored birds were very different from those made by the typically raised birds," said Logan James, the first author on the paper and a former Ph.D. student in Professor Sakata's lab, now a post-doctoral Fellow at the University of Texas at Austin. "However, the 'rules' by which they organize these aberrant elements is indistinguishable from typically raised birds. These results suggest that physical predispositions or limitations may play a role in producing these song patterns."

Further work will need to be done in this area to see whether this is indeed the case. For example, work linking species variation in the strength of Menzerath's Law to species variation in the biomechanics of vocal production would be a useful next step.

Explore further Researchers translate a bird's brain activity into song

More information: Logan S. James et al, Phylogeny and mechanisms of shared hierarchical patterns in birdsong, Current Biology (2021). Journal information: Current Biology Logan S. James et al, Phylogeny and mechanisms of shared hierarchical patterns in birdsong,(2021). DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.04.015
"We have long known that the sea is a barrier to people meeting each other and having children. One could suspect this not to be the case for a maritime nation like Norway, but Norwegians have surprisingly little kinship with Danes for example," says Morten Mattingsdal. Credit: Colourbox.com

There is less genetic variation in the South than in the rest of Norway. Rogaland, Agder and Telemark have seen surprisingly little migration over the last couple of hundred years, according to a new genetic study that is the first of its kind in Norway.

The study is built on an analysis of genetic material from 6369 individuals from all over Norway. The analysis was performed by Morten Mattingsdal from the University of Agder (UiA) and Eivind Hovig from the University of Oslo and their colleagues.

They studied a biobank that Pal Mller at Radiumhospitalet collected over a period of 40 years. The researchers have examined the population structure of Norwegians, or simply put, who had children with whom over the last couple of hundred years.

"We did not expect to find that Rogaland, Agder and Telemark were so isolated, genetically speaking. There has been little migration from other parts of Norway, and the people who have lived here have found partners from the same region," says Mattingsdal.

The article, "The genetic structure of Norway," is published in European Journal of Human Genetics. The study was funded by the Norwegian Cancer Society, South-Eastern Norway Regional Health Authority, the Research Council, and the University of Oslo.

Poor and isolated regions

It is a well-known fact that geography influences who has children with whom. Formations such as mountains and seas are natural barriers that affect where people meet. This affects the gene flow between populations in many species, including humans.

"Our starting point was that there are a lot of mountains and fjords in Norway, and we expected that this would impact the genetic structure of the population," says Mattingsdal.

The researchers expected to find that the Sami population and immigrant minorities, such as the Kvens from Finland, would stand out, since they have a genetic ancestry from the east. What they did not expect to find was that the counties in southern Norway would stand out as much as they do.

Mattingsdal speculates that the lack of deep fjords along the coast between Stavanger and Oslo has made southern Norway, and especially the inland areas, more isolated. Another explanation for the genetic isolation may be that the region has been a relatively poor part of Norway for the last couple of hundred years.

"Especially the hinterland in Agder, Telemark and south of Stavanger were not attractive places to move to if you were without a job at the beginning of the 20th century," Mattingsdal says.

A brother nation

Another finding in the study reveals that Norwegians have a much greater kinship with Sweden than with Denmark.

"We have long known that the sea is a barrier to people meeting each other and having children. One could suspect this not to be the case for a maritime nation like Norway, but Norwegians have surprisingly little kinship with Danes," Mattingsdal says.

The counties of Hedmark and Trndelag, on the other hand, show a close relatedness to the neighboring counties in Sweden.

"Jamtland, which Norway lost to Sweden in the 17th century, also shows a close relatedness to the Trndelag counties. It might not by surprising, but it is interesting that historical events have left a genetic imprint," says Mattingsdal.

Valuable for cancer research

The biobank, on which the study is based, was set up to investigate whether there are genetic variants that predispose to cancer. One of the underlying goals has been to gain new knowledge about the genetic structure of the population. This will make it easier to identify vulnerabilities and genetic variants predisposing to cancer in the population.

In the future, the researchers plan to look at new mutations and rare variants and see if any areas of Norway have an accumulation of mutations that are pathogenic.

"In addition to the medical aspect, trends in population patterns are of historical interest. These trends, and these genetic structures in the population, disappear as we become more mobile," says Mattingsdal.

More information: Morten Mattingsdal et al, The genetic structure of Norway, European Journal of Human Genetics (2021). Journal information: European Journal of Human Genetics Morten Mattingsdal et al, The genetic structure of Norway,(2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41431-021-00899-6

Provided by University of Agder
M87s black hole with magnetic field lines. Credit: EHT Collaboration

Back in 2019, the world was treated to the first-ever image of a black hole, which was originally captured in 2017. The feat was widely heralded as a leap forward for astrophysics, supporting Einstein's theory of relativity. Now, a team led by the Radboud University proposes sending instruments into space to estimate black hole parameters more accurately by an order of magnitude. The newest paper, led by Dr. Volodymyr Kudriashov, translates science goals into technical requirements and focuses on the instrumentation needed for the Event Horizon Imager, as the mission is called.

The paper mainly considers logging data from the "easiest-to-capture" black holes, though it is possible to image other objects and to make black hole movies depicting black holes in action. As a proof of concept, the team took some preliminary images of the "easiest" black holes and confirmed that image reconstructions would work for higher resolutions. Now, the project faces the biggest obstacle of most space missionsgetting launched, preferably on a budget.

The mission itself calls for two separate satellites orbiting in mid-Earth orbit about 26,000 km (16,000 m) from each other. Data links over such long distances may prove to be a problem though, so the team developed a system for handling usual "raw'' data. This novel system will leverage both on-board GPS and a laser between telescope satellites and will allow the data rate back to Earth to be tiny. Using optical inter-satellite communication seems feasible if the system avoids one potential hazard of such optical systemsclouds breaking line of sight. Luckily, the team found plenty of relevant inter-satellite laser technologies for ranging and communication, including some that are already flying in space now.

Mode of how the EHI could fit in to an Arianne 6 rocket, with room to spare. Credit: Kudriashov et al.

Such a system would be worth it if it captures data that can be used to compare the competing gravitational theories that have divided the physics community for decades. Though there are no concrete plans to launch a system similar to the EHI anytime soon, imaging black holes from space is among the recommendations of Voyage 2050 ESA's Senior Committee, so such a system is already on the long-term roadmap of the astronomical community.

Credit: Universe Today

Explore further Telescopes in space for even sharper images of black holes

More information: Kudriashov V, et al. An Event Horizon Imager (EHI) Mission Concept Utilizing Medium Earth Orbit Sub-mm Interferometry[J]. Chinese Journal of Space Science, 2021, 41(2): 211-233. Kudriashov V, et al. An Event Horizon Imager (EHI) Mission Concept Utilizing Medium Earth Orbit Sub-mm Interferometry[J]. Chinese Journal of Space Science, 2021, 41(2): 211-233. DOI: 10.11728/cjss2021.02.211
The invisible gateway realized by the researchers' metamaterial superscatterer. Right: stopping coming wave into the gateway. Credit: Ye et al.

Entering an invisible doorway to catch a train at King's Cross station in London is a renowned fictional scene from the Harry Potter series. In recent decades, physicists have been trying to produce a similar effect by focusing their research efforts on illusion devices.

Illusion devices are devices that can change the optical properties of objects to match those of other virtual objects or make them apparently invisible, producing an illusion. Two common types of illusion devices are super-scatterers and invisible gateways. The first are designed to scatter light and the second to bounce back light rays through a physical gateway.

From a theoretical standpoint, super-scatterers and invisible gateways have so far been primarily studied in the context of transformation optics and folded geometry transformations (i.e., the visual, illusory transformation of objects into other objects). Experimentally realizing these devices, however, requires the use of metamaterials with specific properties (e.g., a negative permittivity and permeability) that can be difficult to employ in fabrication processes.

Researchers at Nanjing University and Xiamen University in China have recently used a metamaterial with a simultaneously negative permittivity and permeability to create one of the first big super-scatterers. In their paper, published in Physical Review Letters, they demonstrate this device's superscattering effect at microwave frequencies using field-mapping technology.

"The invisible gateway based on a perfect lens only has one circuit-based experiment," Huanyang Chen, one of the researchers who carried out the study, told Phys.org. "Our motivation was to realize a real invisible gateway for electromagnetic waves based on a previously developed theory. We were able to finish this device in the Lab of Prof. Rui-Xin Wu, ten years after we started working towards this goal."

Physicists had previously been unable to verify stopping wave propagation and other superscattering effects in illusion devices. To demonstrate the superscattering effect of the big metamaterial super-scatterer they realized, Chen and his colleagues used microwave field-mapping technology.

"This technology allowed us to directly observe the wave propagation within the super-scatterer," Prof. Wu, another researcher involved in the study, told Phys.org. "Using microwave field mapping, we observed the wave pattern for a big metal object whose size is bigger than the real size of the superscattterer and the prohibited wave propagation in a big gateway that includes a metamaterial super-scatterer."

The findings gathered by this team of researchers confirm that superscattering originates from the excitation of surface plasmons, a hypothesis introduced in previous papers. In addition, Chen, Prof. Wu and their colleagues showed that an invisible gateway could stop electromagnetic waves in an air channel with a width much wider than the cut-off width of the corresponding rectangular waveguide.

The recent paper published in Physical Review Letters provides the first direct observation of the superscattering effect in metamaterials. This observation could ultimately inspire the design of new illusion devices based on a similar design as the one realized by the researchers.

"Our paper demonstrates a real case of super-scattering, yet only for a narrow band of working frequencies," Chen said. "In addition, the doorway could be switched from a normally open state to an invisible close state by tuning the applied magnetic field. Our work is likely to inspire more research on illusion devices for microwaves. Moreover, in the future, it might also be possible to extend the concept to acoustic waves or even ocean waves."

 2021 Science X Network
Digital reconstruction of the new Mesozoic bird fossil skeleton (scale bar: 10 mm). Credit: Wang Min

Researchers from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (IVPP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have discovered a 120-million-year-old partial fossil skeleton of a tiny extinct bird that fits in the palm of the hand and preserves a unique skull with a mix of dinosaurian and bird features.

The two-centimeter-long (0.75 inch) skull of the fossil shares many structural and functional features with the gigantic Tyrannosaurus rex, indicating that early birds kept many features of their dinosaurian ancestors and their skulls functioned much like those of dinosaurs rather than living birds.

Their findings were published in Nature Communications on June 23.

The bird was deposited 120 million years ago in a shallow lake in what is today Liaoning Province in northeastern China.

Through detailed reconstruction of the bird family tree, the researchers demonstrated that the new fossil bird species belongs to an extinct group of birds called enantiornithines, or 'opposite birds.' They are the most diverse group of birds from the time of the dinosaurs in the Cretaceous and have been found all over the world.

In living birds, the quadrate is one of the most movable bones in the skull and allows for the unique feature of living birds known as 'kinetic skull,' which allows the upper jaw to move independently of the brain and the lower jaw.

Digital reconstruction of the new Mesozoic bird skull with expanded detail of the dinosaur-like palatal bones, i.e., the basisphenoid (red), pterygoid (pink), and quadrate (purple). The stars indicate the two parts of the pterygoid prong that extend behind the eye. Credit: Wang Min

In contrast with living birds, however, the skull of this new 'opposite bird', as well as those of dinosaurs like Tyrannosaurus rex and the close dinosaurian relatives of birds (e.g., troodontids and dromaeosaurs), is not kinetic. Instead, its bones are 'locked up' and unable to move.

The temporal regions (sides) of the skull of this bird fossil are very different from living birds. This new species has two bony arches for jaw muscle attachment like those found in reptiles such as lizards, alligators, and dinosaurs, making the rear of the skull rigid and resistant to movement among the bones.

"When reconstructing all parts of the skull three-dimensionally from the high resolution CT scans of the fossil, I had a problem figuring out one bone in particular," said Dr. Wang Min, the lead and corresponding author of the study. He said his colleague Dr. Thomas Stidham proposed that the bone was the pterygoid and looked "exactly like that of the dromaeosaur Linheraptor." The fossil has the first well-preserved pterygoid bone found in an early bird.

The researchers compared CT scans of the bird skull to scans of the skull of the well-known dromaeosaur Linheraptor from Inner Mongolia, China. The results showed that many other features of the rear portion of the skull, including the shape of the basisphenoid bone and its connections with other skull bones, also resemble dromaeosaurs rather than living birds.

"The fossil bird and dinosaurs also lack the discrete contact between the pterygoid and quadrate near the palate that is used in skull kinesis in living birds. In combination with the 'locked up' temporal bones, the difference in the palate structure also points to the absence of kinesis among early birds," said Dr. Stidham, co-author of the study.

Furthermore, the team's discovery and meticulous anatomical research help to reinforce the already well-supported contention, based on many different lines of evidence, that birds are not only living dinosaurs, but evolved from the branch of dinosaurs that includes troodontids and dromaeosaurs like the four-winged Microraptor and swift Velociraptor.

"Having a 'dinosaur' skull on a bird body certainly did not stop the enantiornithines, or other early birds, from being highly successful in places all around the world for tens of millions of years during the Cretaceous," said Dr. Wang.

Explore further Bird skull evolution slowed after the extinction of the dinosaurs

More information: Min Wang et al, Cretaceous bird with dinosaur skull sheds light on avian cranial evolution, Nature Communications (2021). Journal information: Nature Communications Min Wang et al, Cretaceous bird with dinosaur skull sheds light on avian cranial evolution,(2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-24147-z
Cane toad. Credit: Wikipedia.

A global risk-assessment tool shows 33 nonnative aquatic species worldwide pose a "very high risk" of becoming invasive in current and future climate conditions.

"These species readily establish, spread and have severe impacts across several regions of the world," said Jeff Hill, a UF/IFAS professor of fisheries and aquatics and a lead author on a new study that used the risk-assessment tool. "The threat posed by invasive species worldwide requires a global approach to identify which introduced species are likely to pose an elevated risk of impact to native species and ecosystems."

That's why Hill worked with scientists across the globe to develop the Aquatic Species Invasiveness Screening Kit.

Scientists, including Hill, used the kit to assess the risk of such invasions. Once established outside its native range, an invasive species can cause environmental, social or human health impacts, Hill said.

Here are a few invasive species and their potential impacts in Florida, as outlined by Hill:

Redear Slider, Trachemys scripta elegans. This turtle breeds with the native turtle known as the Yellowbelly Slider.

Cane Toad, Rhinella marina. This large toad consumes smaller amphibians and competes with natives for food. It also secretes toxins dangerous to pets and wildlife.

Amazon Sailfin Catfish, Pterygoplichthys pardalis. This armed catfish digs burrows for spawning. In doing so, it exacerbates erosion in natural waters and in stormwater ponds.

Hill helped lead a newly published study in the journal Science of the Total Environment that shows the risks of invasion by hundreds of species in the six inhabited continents.

For the study, 195 scientists used the Aquatic Species Invasives Kit (AS-ISK) to examine 819 species.

Their goal is to inform policy makers, those making day-to-day management decisions and other stakeholders about global threats to aquatic ecosystems, said Hill, a faculty member at the UF/IFAS Tropical Aquaculture Laboratory in Ruskin. Agencies and businesses across the word use the decision-support tool to help sustain aquaculture, the aquarium trade and fisheries management by identifying potentially invasive species before they establish and cause negative effects.

AS-ISK uses a scoring system. The higher the score, the higher the risk of a species becoming invasive. To get the most out of the tool, scientists calculate a score to differentiate between medium and high risknormally non-invasive vs. potentially invasive. Researchers studied risk thresholds for species in various climates. Those factors provide a basis for scientists to interpret invasion thresholds.

Though helpful, the risk assessments are not meant to be comprehensive, Hill said. Each screen consists of 49 questions for basic assessment and six more questions about climate change.

Through their analyses, researchers provided global thresholds so natural resource managers can now assign species as "low," "medium" or "high" risk under current and future climate conditions, Hill said.

If the assessment is "high-risk," responses are to determine which species:

Require an immediate, rapid management action such as eradication or control to avoid or mitigate negative impacts.

Need a full risk assessment.

Meet criteria for additional regulation in vulnerable areas.

This risk-screening tool used in this study is a generalized version of the Fish Invasiveness Screening Kit developed by the UF/IFAS Tropical Aquaculture Laboratory and the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Sciences. Researchers use it as an international tool for nonnative freshwater fish.

Explore further Scientists recommend proactive response to invasive plants

More information: Lorenzo Vilizzi et al, A global-scale screening of non-native aquatic organisms to identify potentially invasive species under current and future climate conditions, Science of The Total Environment (2021). Journal information: Science of the Total Environment Lorenzo Vilizzi et al, A global-scale screening of non-native aquatic organisms to identify potentially invasive species under current and future climate conditions,(2021). DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.147868
Original excavation photograph of Tsukumo No. 24, courtesy of the Laboratory of Physical Anthropology, Kyoto University. Credit: Kyoto University

Newspapers regularly carry stories of terrifying shark attacks, but in a paper published today, Oxford-led researchers reveal their discovery of a 3,000-year-old victimattacked by a shark in the Seto Inland Sea of the Japanese archipelago.

The research in Journal of Archeological Science: Reports, shows that this body is the earliest direct evidence for a shark attack on a human and an international research team has carefully recreated what happenedusing a combination of archeological science and forensic techniques.

The grim discovery of the victim was made by Oxford researchers J. Alyssa White and Professor Rick Schulting while investigating evidence for violent trauma on the skeletal remains of prehistoric hunter-gatherers at Kyoto University. They came upon No. 24, from the previously excavated site of Tsukumo, an adult male riddled with traumatic injuries.

"We were initially flummoxed by what could have caused at least 790 deep, serrated injuries to this man," say the Oxford pair. "There were so many injuries and yet he was buried in the community burial ground, the Tsukumo Shell-mound cemetery site."

They continue, "The injuries were mainly confined to the arms, legs, and front of the chest and abdomen. Through a process of elimination, we ruled out human conflict and more commonly-reported animal predators or scavengers."

Since archeological cases of shark reports are extremely rare, they turned to forensic shark attack cases for clues and worked with expert George Burgess, Director Emeritus of the Florida Program for Shark Research. And a reconstruction of the attack was put together by the international team.

The team concluded that the individual died more than 3,000 years ago, between 1370 to 1010 BC. The distribution of wounds strongly suggest the victim was alive at the time of attack; his left hand was sheared off, possibly a defense wound.

Individual No. 24's body had been recovered soon after the attack and buried with his people at the cemetery. Excavation records showed he was also missing his right leg and his left leg was placed on top of his body in an inverted position.

According to the pair, "Given the injuries, he was clearly the victim of a shark attack. The man may well have been fishing with companions at the time, since he was recovered quickly. And, based on the character and distribution of the tooth marks, the most likely species responsible was either a tiger or white shark."

Co-author Dr. Mark Hudson, a researcher with the Max Planck Institute, says, "The Neolithic people of Jomon Japan exploited a range of marine resources... It's not clear if Tsukumo 24 was deliberately targeting sharks or if the shark was attracted by blood or bait from other fish. Either way, this find not only provides a new perspective on ancient Japan, but is also a rare example of archeologists being able to reconstruct a dramatic episode in the life of a prehistoric community."

Explore further Suspected fatal shark attack in New Caledonia

More information: J. Alyssa White et al, 3000-year-old shark attack victim from Tsukumo shell-mound, Okayama, Japan, Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports (2021). J. Alyssa White et al, 3000-year-old shark attack victim from Tsukumo shell-mound, Okayama, Japan,(2021). DOI: 10.1016/j.jasrep.2021.103065
Washington County residents cleaned up from Mondays storms, which caused no serious damage or injuries.

High winds and rain felled trees and power lines. The cleanup has been completed in most cases, and there is no continued flooding or other issues, according to Tim Hardy, deputy director of the Washington County Department of Public Safety.

Granville and Whitehall were hit particularly hard. Reports came in of trees and wires down at Cross Road and Butler Road, Depot Street, Route 22A and Middleton Road in Granville.

Trees and wires were down on Morse Lane in Whitehall. A pole caught fire on Poultney Street and a transformer on Main Street in Whitehall.

Water flooded basements of houses in Whitehall on Poultney Street, Montcalm Street and North Williams Street. Gilmore Street in Whitehall was flooded.

Trees fell across the road on Hogsback Road in Easton and Spraguetown Road in Greenwich.

There was a report of a pole that had sheared and a tree that had fallen on a house in Pavilion Way in Fort Ann. No one was injured. Wires and trees were down on Buttermilk Falls Road.

There were also reports of damage in Putnam on county Route 1, Craig Road and Lake George Way.
Several New York government and business leaders say Canada needs to do much more than the slight loosening of entry restrictions it announced Monday.

Starting July 5, fully vaccinated Canadian citizens and permanent residents will no longer have to quarantine for 14 days or more upon entering Canada. Yet each of those people still has to provide a negative COVID-19 test from 72 hours before arrival, take a second test upon arrival and have a quarantine plan in case the second test comes back positive.

The U.S.-Canada border has been closed to nonessential travel since March of last year. Pandemic restrictions have been lifted in much of the U.S., including New York, as full vaccination rates approach 50%. In Canada, that rate lags at 12.8%, although 64% have received at least one vaccine dose, according to the Canadian governments website.

Canada announced Friday the border would remain closed to nonessential travel for another month, until at least July 21. Business and trade traffic has continued throughout the pandemic.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called Canadian Ambassador Kirsten Hillman Friday to express his disappointment.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP)  Missouri senators on Wednesday returned to the Capitol to work out a deal on a critical piece of Medicaid funding that's entangled in a fight over family planning services.

Republican Gov. Mike Parson called the last-minute special session after threatening to cut $722 million from the state budget July 1 if lawmakers don't reup a tax on hospitals and other medical providers. Money from the tax is used to bring in more federal Medicaid funding.

The tax expires Sept. 30.

Lawmakers didn't renew the tax during regular session after it became tied to an effort to ban Medicaid coverage of some contraceptives and block government funding for Planned Parenthood.

Lawmakers can address those issues now, although some senators on Wednesday proposed setting aside those disagreements and focusing only on the hospital tax.

Parson's call gives the GOP-led Legislature the opportunity to block Medicaid payments for abortion medications, as well as intrauterine devices and the morning-after pill when those are used to induce an abortion.
RUTLAND, Vt.  Rutland is planning a Parade of Heroes and a number of other activities to mark the easing of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In their first in-person meeting since March 2020, the Board of Alderman on Monday approved the parade for Aug. 28.

The board also approved two events in September, and a whoopie-pie festival in October.

Back, probably before the holidays, we were all starved to be out with other people, said Lyle Jepson, executive director of Community and Economic Development for the Rutland Region. We were fortunate enough to be able to stay home. A lot of people were not fortunate enough to be able to stay home.

People working in health care, retail, education and similar fields, can sign up to participate in the parade. There will also be speeches, a free concert and fireworks.

The Rutland Herald reports the parade originally was planned to coincide with the whoopie-pie festival, but was moved up because Vermonts state of emergency, which expired June 15, ended earlier than expected.

The whoopie pie festival is scheduled for Oct. 9.

The whoopie pie festival is just to have a blast, Jepson said. Its whoopie, were out of COVID.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
New Yorks top prosecutor is suing the school district in charge of a high school where dozens of students walked out in 2019 to protest the schools response to a rape of a student by another.

The lawsuit filed Wednesday by New York Attorney General Letitia James alleges the Niagara-Wheatfield Central School District ignored student complaints of rape, assault, sexual harassment and gender-based bullying.

In May 2019, school officials suspended a student who had pleaded guilty to third-degree rape, though he continued to attend classes for a week after entering a guilty plea. He had also attended nearly his entire senior year while his criminal case was pending. His accuser attended the same school.

The student who was raped said in a statement released by the attorney generals office that the school district had failed her.

Their negligence and active disregard for my well-being only deepened my pain and suffering. In the time since, they have repeatedly tried to intimidate and silence me, the student said. She is identified by her initials in the lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York. The Associated Press does not identify victims of sexual assault who have not spoken publicly.
Local

MARGATE

Margate road closure for Bocca talk of the town

MATTHEW STRABU Photos, FOR THE PRESS Margates Bocca Coal Fired Bistro has set up a tent and 16 tables in the street on North Essex Avenue between Ventnor and Oak Grove avenues. MATTHEW STRABUK, FOR THE PRESS Margate summer resident Dennis Fisher, left, with friend Jim Victory, says some neighbors have been circulating a petition, asking the city to stop Bocca from playing live music outdoors. MATTHEW STRABUK, FOR THE PRESS Val Gerner, an employee of Bocca Coal Fired Bistro in Margate, says having a section of the road blocked off for outdoor dining makes the area safer, as cars cannot use the street to cut through to local businesses. MATTHEW STRABUK FOR THE PRESS On June 16 2021, in Margate, locals give reaction to the closing of North Essex from Oak Grove to Ventnor avenues for the purposes of outside dining. Lauryn Freedman, manager at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro. MATTHEW STRABUK FOR THE PRESS On June 16 2021, in Margate, locals give reaction to the closing of North Essex from Oak Grove to Ventnor avenues for the purposes of outside dining. (l-r) Steve Sprague of Linwood and Bob Naumchik of Galloway, enjoy their lunchtime break at Bocca's while renovating a local home MATTHEW STRABUK FOR THE PRESS On June 16 2021, in Margate, locals give reaction to the closing of North Essex from Oak Grove to Ventnor avenues for the purposes of outside dining. Ventnor resident Val Gerner, an employee of Bocca Coal Fired Bistro, rides her bike to work. MATTHEW STRABUK FOR THE PRESS On June 16 2021, in Margate, locals give reaction to the closing of North Essex from Oak Grove to Ventnor avenues for the purposes of outside dining. Ventnor resident Val Gerner, an employee of Bocca Coal Fired Bistro, rides her bike to work.

MARGATE  Bob Naumchik, of Galloway Township, discovered outdoor dining during the COVID-19 pandemic, and now he cant get enough of it.

Its beautiful, he said as he ate outside at Bocca Coal Fired Bistro at North Essex and Ventnor avenues Wednesday with friend Steve Sprague, of Linwood. A lot of people discovered a lot of new things because of COVID.

The city helped out Bocca last year by closing a block of North Essex for the summer, allowing the restaurant to serve patrons outside at tables under a tent on the street near the intersection with Ventnor Avenue.

Last week, the city again closed the block from Oak Grove to Ventnor avenues to help Bocca recover from its 2020 losses. The restaurant has set up 16 tables under the tent, to add to the 60 or so inside.

Mayor Michael Becker said he and the other two commissioners are committed to helping businesses survive the COVID-19 pandemic, and that is why they are closing the road again this summer.

Not everyone is happy about it.

Margate to close part of North Essex Avenue until September MARGATE  The Margate City Commission has decided to close a portion of North Essex Avenue to traffic until September to extend outdoor dining, Richard Deaney, the citys business administrator announced Friday.

I just saw this for the first time today. I said, Not again, Joel Garber said Friday evening. The attorney from West Berlin, Camden County, who owns a vacation home on North Essex in the block closest to Bocca, spends Fridays through Sundays here.

Garber said the city never notified him of the proposed street closing, as he believes it should have, so he never had the chance to object.

Last summer I said, Theres a pandemic. I didnt have a problem with it, I was understanding, Garber said. But I have an issue with a private business getting public space now.

Are they going to let other restaurants close streets? Garber said of the many others that lost money last year.

Bocca is unique, Becker said, in that it doesnt have a parking area or other empty ground to use for outdoor seating, as other restaurants in town do.

No other restaurant asked for a road closure this year, Becker said.

Since we had some questions and made some concessions (on music and parking), I have heard no complaints, Becker said. We went through the weekend, and my understanding is they stopped the music on time (8 p.m.) and stopped serving at 10 p.m.

Asked how he felt about the street closing, Fran Ciociola, a seasonal resident in a home a couple of doors from the restaurant, sighed deeply.

I just said it all, Ciociola said.

His main concerns are about safety, he said. In particular, delivery trucks are not supposed to be using the block, but they do.

Yesterday, we had an 18-wheeler, he said. It drove past his home, and then had to back down the whole street.

Thats not safe for kids playing in the block, he said. He also worries about how ambulances or firetrucks will get access if needed.

There was no indoor dining allowed anywhere in the state last summer, and the outdoor tent allowed Bocca to survive, General Manager Lauryn Freedman said.

Freedman said the restaurant is making adjustments to minimize annoyances for neighbors after hearing complaints last year about noise and parking problems.

We are ending the music at 8 p.m. this year, Freedman said, compared with 10 p.m. last year. It will be an earlier party type of scene.

Farther down the street, Glenda Orlin sat on her porch as live music wafted through the air.

If the music stops at 8 p.m., then I dont have a problem with it, Orlin said. She likes the fact that the road closure means less traffic.

Parking on the block will be limited to permit parking for residents, Freedman said.

Garber said he has not received a parking permit, and when he called City Hall on Friday, he was told no one was working who could answer his questions. He was told to contact police for a parking permit, he said.

The restaurant is not paying rent on the space, Freedman said.

The governor put out a mandate that cities should help local businesses until 2022, Freedman said, after all of the loss we took last year.

In February, Murphy signed a bill (S3340) that expanded opportunities for outdoor dining in the state through Nov. 30, 2022. It extended the effective period of permits issued under a special Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control ruling made last summer that allowed licensees to serve alcoholic beverages in some outside spaces.

Dennis Fisher, who is renting a house on the block for the month of June, said some residents have been circulating a petition, asking the city to stop the restaurant from playing live music outdoors. Fishers primary residence is just outside Philadelphia.

This is not a kids town, Fisher said as he sat on his porch with visiting friend Jim Victory, also from the Philadelphia area.

To quote the people I talked to (about the petition), I didnt like My Sharona the first time I heard it, Fisher said, let alone when its played by some garage band.

Ashley Tumpowsky, of Princeton, was outside with her mom at the home they rent on North Essex a block away from the restaurant last week.

Luckily we are far enough down, Tumpowsky said. Well have to see (if things are better this summer).

She babysat last year for a couple with a 3-year-old child who lives near the restaurant, and last summers noise was tough on that family, Tumpowsky said.

Val Gerner, of Ventnor, was biking to work at Bocca down North Essex last week and stopped to talk about neighbors concerns.

North Essex is often used as a cut-through for drivers going to the businesses in North Margate, she said. They include Bocca, Hot Bagels and More, OceanFirst Bank and Liangs Imperial East Chinese restaurant.

Having the road closed to through-traffic definitely cuts down on the number of cars using the street, she said, which she would like if she lived there.

People need to slow it down  get out of their cars and ride a bike, she said as she peddled away.
Staab started his journey in April in Sandy Hook, Monmouth County, and has taken a rather practical approach to his journey. Not camping along the way, he has opted to stay in hotels, and uses his phone to order car services at the end of his walks to get back to where he parks his car. He also spends time traveling back and forth to his home in Sea Bright, Monmouth County, for work engagements, but he always picks up where he left off.

Staab travels light, carrying only his cellphone and a couple bucks a time to get supplies like water.

I go on my phone, Wheres the closest Wawa?" said Staab. A lot of the Wawas are a block in, and thats super dependable and has restrooms.

Beach party shut down after thousands gather; 4 arrests LONG BRANCH  Authorities say a beach party that drew thousands to a New Jersey shore city p

Staab has been documenting his journey at jerseyshorewalk.com. His posts include tips on parking and beach badge information, as well as tales of lesser-known beaches and rules of the different beach towns regarding surfers and dogs. Mostly, it's his perspective on the walks.

I post about what my view of that town is from the beach," he said. "It's a better way to experience all of the towns as you walk by because you also understand how often towns connect to each other.
CAMDEN  The chief operating officer of a Philadelphia-based technology startup company orchestrated a long-running securities offering fraud while simultaneously embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from the firm, federal prosecutors say.

Joseph Geromini, 54, of Linwood, faces 10 counts of wire fraud and two counts of securities fraud in an indictment unsealed Wednesday. He was due to make his initial court appearance via video conference later in the day, and it wasnt known whether hes retained an attorney.

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The tech startup specialized in the development of point-of-care diagnostic testing of various diseases, prosecutors said, and Geromini controlled its bank and debit card accounts. He also was responsible for soliciting investments in the company through debt and equity fundraising.

From July 2018 through October 2018, the company raised about $2.25 million of investor funds. Geromini misrepresented to investors that he would use the money to pursue the companys business plan, but he instead diverted significant portions of the funds to pay himself hundreds of thousands of dollars through unauthorized wire transfers and make ATM cash withdrawals and debit card transactions, prosecutors said.
Garber said the city never notified him of the proposed street closing, as he believes it should have, so he never had the chance to object.

Last summer I said, Theres a pandemic. I didnt have a problem with it, I was understanding, Garber said. But I have an issue with a private business getting public space now.

Are they going to let other restaurants close streets? Garber said of the many others that lost money last year.

Bocca is unique, Becker said, in that it doesnt have a parking area or other empty ground to use for outdoor seating, as other restaurants in town do.

No other restaurant asked for a road closure this year, Becker said.

Since we had some questions and made some concessions (on music and parking), I have heard no complaints, Becker said. We went through the weekend, and my understanding is they stopped the music on time (8 p.m.) and stopped serving at 10 p.m.

Asked how he felt about the street closing, Fran Ciociola, a seasonal resident in a home a couple of doors from the restaurant, sighed deeply.

I just said it all, Ciociola said.
Bezaire said he had already had a hearing June 17.

Ive been here for seven days now, he said. I was hoping to have the hearing today in order to possibly be released on my own recognizance or at least have a discussion as to why I was being detained.

Since New Jersey introduced bail reform in 2017, it is unusual for a suspect to be held in custody after being processed.

DeLury said that initial hearing was for the prosecution to request that he remain in custody. Wednesday was the start of the detention hearing, but the state is allowed to request an adjournment of up to three days.

This matter is extremely complicated, Hance told DeLury in the livestreamed proceedings. Detectives are still working on reports to provide to attorney John Tumelty, who has taken over Bezaires defense.

+2 Cape May OKs 50-foot limit on outside drinking CAPE MAY  City Council on Tuesday amended rules for the public consumption of alcohol, limi

There are additional charges that are coming against Mr. Bezaire involving a second victim, Hance said.

Hance said prosecutors are still working on whether Bezaire will also face charges of official misconduct, a New Jersey charge filed against a public official alleged to have taken action that violates his duty to act on behalf of the public good.
EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP  The use of drones could revolutionize the way New Jersey responds to natural disasters, according to some officials and private agencies.

Those parties gathered Wednesday at the National Aviation Research & Technology Park to demonstrate the ways in which unmanned aircraft systems, also known as drones, can work in tandem with manned aircraft in response to such situations.

Currently, the general rule from the Federal Aviation Administration is that drones cannot be flown in the immediate aftermath of an emergency, though enthusiasts have been known to pitch in and survey the area without permission. The purpose of Wednesdays test was to show the administration that New Jersey has thorough enough systems and procedures to cooperate with search-and-rescue aircraft in the event of a disaster.

If approved by the FAA, the state would be just the fourth to use such a strategy.
In addition, by consistently refusing to take questions about her role, it was inevitable that, when she visited the region in early June, she would be asked. What was not inevitable was that she would be so ill-prepared to reply.

The question that has come up and you heard it here and youll hear it again Im sure, is, why not visit the border? NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt asked Harris.

We have to deal with whats happening at the border, she replied, adding that her focus was on why people were coming. When Holt asked if she had any plans to visit the border, she replied, At some point, you know, we are going to the border, then added three times, Weve been to the border  apparently a reference to visits while a California senator.

You havent been to the border, Holt said. And I havent been to Europe, Harris said, a flip answer that hardly helped her out of the political hole she had dug.

The next day, talking to reporters in Mexico City, Harris tried to explain her position, saying, You cant say you care about the border without caring about the root causes, and declaring again, Ive been to the border before. I will go again.
Last year, they rescued 111 of the quarter-sized babies and by last month already had 75 more this year.

Paisley and Sunny learned this satisfying hobby from Evelyn Kidd after she was spotted fishing terrapins out of a drain. Kidd spent years rescuing baby turtles until she aged out of regular participation, graduating from Stockton and moving to North Jersey. She had done it throughout childhood and had learned it from her brother.

Kidd was delighted that Paisley and Sunny felt the same as she did about the tiny helpless terrapins and were enthusiastic about saving them.

A parent always accompanies the girls, which points to an important aspect of roadway turtle rescue  the threat of vehicles is not only to the turtles but to their rescuers, and someone responsible must make sure the rescuers are kept safe. We advise the many motorists who stop to help turtles cross a street to focus on safety first and not take risks themselves in attempting a rescue.

Terrapin rescue operations have been a great success of the Jersey Shore wildlife community. Stocktons vivarium that raises them for release is at full capacity with 1,114 diamondback terrapins.

The many friends of turtles should feel good about their accomplishments for the turtle species in the region, even if they cant save each individual.
Among Democrats, 51% say the U.S. is not supportive enough of the Palestinians. The sentiment jumps to 62% among Democrats who describe themselves as liberal. On the other hand, 49% of Republicans say the U.S. is not supportive enough of the Israelis, a number that rises to 61% among those who say they're conservative.

Paul Spelce, a 26-year-old Democratic-leaning independent voter and supporter of Palestinian statehood, is a member of a heavily religious Texas Republican family whose support for Israel is ingrained with their Christian faith. Spelce, of Austin, says he followed news of last month's Gaza war and the U.S. response closely on the radio as he helped deliver mail.

I started paying a lot more attention," said Spelce, who said he disapproved of Biden's handling of the conflict and thinks the United States is too supportive of Israelis and not supportive enough of the Palestinians.

I don't think Biden's word was that strong," Spelce said. And I don't think, you know, this administration ... can actually do anything regarding the conflict.
Goines, 56, and Gallegos, 33, are the only officers charged with murder in the raid. Goines, who was indicted on seven counts in state court, is also facing federal charges. If convicted of murder, Goines and Gallegos could each face up to life in prison.

Prosecutors allege Goines, who led the raid, lied to obtain the warrant to search the couples home by claiming a confidential informant had bought heroin there. Goines later said there was no informant and that he bought the drugs himself, they allege. Police found small amounts of marijuana and cocaine in the house, but no heroin.

We are honored to stand behind Mr. Goines. We are eager to see the evidence in this matter and very much look forward to vigorously defending this good man in court, Nicole DeBorde, Goines attorney, said Wednesday.

Rusty Hardin, an attorney for Gallegos, didnt immediately respond to a request for comment.

Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said the indictments mark the end of the corruption probe.

Now its time to get this case to trial before a jury of Harris county residents, so the public can learn exactly what occurred on January 28, 2019, and determine whether or not these defendants will be held accountable for their crimes, Ogg said.
In the aftermath, Lincoln said, the weather experts are striving to document, understand and explain what happened Sunday night.

Its one of our most important times, he said. Its one of the times when you need the information, when the public wants to know, and we need to get it documented for the official record  things like the strength of the wind and what caused it. We want to be able to answer everything we can from a technical standpoint and put the information in context.

Among their findings as of Tuesday afternoon, meteorologist Jake Petr said the office has determined:

There were at least two tornadoes in the Chicago area. The more destructive was the one that touched down in Naperville, Woodridge and Darien, and was categorized at an EF-3 on the Enhanced Fujita scale.

As it approached the 1800 block of Princeton Circle in Naperville, the larger tornado likely had sustained wind speeds of about 140 mph. The same tornado was, at times, an EF-2, with winds as strong as 111 to 135 mph, but because it surpassed that in Naperville, the tornado was categorized as an EF-3.

A second tornado touched down near Romeoville and Plainfield as an EF-0, meaning it had wind speeds of 65 to 85 mph.
Finally it is coming together with all of that knowledge and just creating a really great space to gather with friends is really such a testament to their hard work and dedication and passion for what they do, Madilyn said.

Dereck said that their passion will be present in every decision that the brothers make for their business.

We want people to see that when you know we're behind the bar, so is passion, Dereck said. We are not just going to hire bartenders, we are going to hire people that are passionate about the same things we are."

With their years of expertise in the local restaurant industry, the Fisher brothers aim to create a bar that serves all residents in the Quad-Cities.

Our tagline, our first T-shirt, is going to say from Busch Light to bougie because everyone in the Quad-Cities fits into that category, Skip said. Sometimes when you go and you think wine bar, it feels a little too snooty. We're trying to make this way more comfortable.

Along with a new joint venture, Dereck said this is the first time the brothers are co-bartending, so it will be different behind the bar.
Chances are you've heard of the Delta variant.

It is the most common COVID-19 variant in India and Britain, where it accounts for more than 90% of cases. It's been reported in 80 countries, including the United States.

First identified in the U.S. in March, its spread gained momentum. According to the CDC, Delta represented 0.1% of cases in April, 1.3% of cases in early May, and jumped to 9.5% in early June.

Now the CDC estimates the Delta variant accounts for 20.6% of COVID-19 infections.

Scott County Health Department Medical Director Dr. Louis Katz said the variant is present in the upper Midwest and has been confirmed in Iowa by the State Hygienic Laboratory.

The Illinois Department of Public Health confirmed last week 64 cases of the Delta variant.

"Bad news is that the Delta variant that was first recognized in India, is on pace to become dominant in the US over the next several weeks."

Katz described Delta as a more potent variation of the earlier evolutions of the virus.
"We were able to talk about ways that we can help facilitate, coordinate with them (Davenport officials) to address some of the increase in crime that they're seeing in Davenport. So, whether it's technology or whether it's more troopers on the ground, there's a lot of different things that we're working on that can help supplement their team to address some of the uptick that they're seeing," Reynolds said of the meeting. "It's a great collaboration, and I look forward to hopefully seeing some good results from it."
Short of votes to adopt a U.S. House-passed version, U.S. Senate Democrats had accepted changes that would have eliminated provisions dealing with public campaign financing and state voter identification laws but would have preserved other parts expanding early voting, making it easier to vote by mail, designating Election Day as a federal holiday, toughening ethics rules and ending partisan gerrymandering of congressional districts. Despite those changes, the effort stalled under Senate filibuster rules.

U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, said she opposed the election bill because it showed Democrats were ignoring the needs of families by pushing legislation that put the priority on Washington politicians by attempting to centralize power, politicize the Federal Elections Commission, mandate unlimited ballot harvesting and force taxpayers to fund campaigns. She said her experience as a county commissioner of elections reinforced her trust in state and local officials more than the federal government.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, issued a statement calling the Democrats measure more about sending power to Washington than stopping voter suppression.
The Bureau of Prisons said the two regional directors  Juan Baltazar, Jr. and J.A. Keller  are retiring and had been planning to do so. But two other people familiar with the matter said that neither had planned to leave for months and were told other officials were being appointed to their jobs.

On Wednesday, the agency said it was appointing wardens William Lothrop and Heriberto Tellez to the regional posts. Tellez is currently in charge of the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where a 34-year-old inmate was found dead in his cell early Wednesday.

British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell is also being held at the jail. Last year, her lawyers sought to question Tellez about the constant surveillance she has been subjected her to since her arrest on sex trafficking charges, but a judge refused.

The Justice Department, which runs the bureau, did not directly address whether officials were considering removing Carvajal, one of the few remaining holdovers from the Trump administration. Instead it said it was working to put in place recommendations made by both the departments inspector general and the Government Accountability Office and is undertaking other changes.
CHICAGO  A Chicago woman has died days after she was dragged from a car and shot during an attack captured on video that killed her boyfriend and drew more attention to the city's particularly violent year.

Yasmin Perez, 23, died Tuesday, the Cook County medical examiners office said. Her death came three days after Gyovanny Arzuaga, 24, was shot in the head and killed following a Puerto Rican Day parade in Chicago's Humboldt Park neighborhood.

The couple, who had two children, were attacked after what police called a minor traffic crash.

They left their babies, Arzuagas aunt, Vickie Ponciano, said Tuesday as she wept.

Police said the couple was ambushed by several men in the middle of a street after the crash. The deadly attack was captured on a video that was shared widely online, drawing more national attention following violence that included a recent mass shooting that killed five people in Chicago.

In an attempt to stem a rising national tide of violent crime, President Joe Biden is announcing new efforts Wednesday that focus in part on addressing gun violence. The Justice Department is also launching strike forces in cities including Chicago to help take down illegal gun traffickers.
DES MOINES  The Waterloo and Council Bluffs school districts will conduct separate early education pilot programs in partnership with the state education department and funded by federal pandemic relief dollars, Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Wednesday.

Council Bluffs will receive $7 million that will enable the district to offer an early childhood program that provides childcare and early learning activities that will prepare young children for preschool and kindergarten.

Waterloo will receive $3 million for a program that will aim to close the achievement gap in literacy and math among young students, particularly minorities.

Both districts will be working with national experts and evaluating ways that we can expand their programs potentially again across the entire state, Reynolds said Wednesday during a news conference at the Iowa Capitol.

The Council Bluffs early childhood program will expand childcare access and preschool programming for nearly 200 children ages 0 to 3, said Council Bluffs superintendent Vickie Murillo. A portion of the $7 million will go toward the construction of an early learning center on the district campus, which should be open by the fall of 2023, Murillo said. The district also will work to raise private funds for the project.
Many of President Joe Biden's critics, and a few of his friends, feared he would not be able to handle the presidential press conference.

It turns out that the concern was misplaced.

It is not Biden who seems antiquated; it is the custom, and format, of the presidential press conference.

Like Dwight D. Eisenhower, who seemed old at the time of his presidency (he was 62 when he took office and 70 when he left, the age of Donald Trump when elected), Biden sometimes takes time to find the right word.

That's not entirely a bad thing.

And, like Ike, if one focuses on substance, Biden seems perfectly fine  at times commanding  in Q&A, including with the press. He is actually better at press conferences than Barack Obama.

(Trump did not hold many formal press conferences, but he had frequent unofficial exchanges with the White House press corps in which he gave at least as good as he got.)

Also, the president sometimes seems old because he is old. He is 78  16 years older than Ike when he came to office. Biden is not trying to hide it. So what? Franklin D. Roosevelt could not walk. But he could think, speak, deal and lead.
The Pro Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) has announced the PRCA Xtreme Broncs Tour Finale will return to Rapid City for the third consecutive year in August.

The Central States Fair and its Range Days Rodeo will again host the event, a Rory Lemmel Bucker, on Aug 26, as part of the 76th Annual Central States Fair.

The competition will be the richest one-day saddle bronc riding event in PRCA history, with $101,000 in prize money.

South Dakota is rich in saddle bronc history and the Central States Fair has been a fantastic host and producer of this event said George Taylor, PRCA CEO in a release. The PRCA is excited about advancing the sport of professional rodeo through this outstanding event.

The Xtreme Broncs Tour is a series of events that feature saddle bronc riding only. The finales are the annual conclusion of the tour and consist of the top 12 saddle bronc riders in the PRCA RAM World Standing and the top 12 competitors in the Xtreme Broncs Tour.

The event will include a long-go and short-go, where all money earned from the Finales will count towards qualifying for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas.
Council member Darla Drew said when she tried to bring an urban hen ordinance forward, it required that they be inspected and licensed every year.

But dogs and cats, they can just do whatever and they can have kennels and just hang out and we dont have anybody inspecting them really from what I can tell, she said. Im just wondering where any equity is here for an ordinance like I wanted because who would inspect them anyway?

Drew said she likes the proposed ordinance for the most part, but the city and Humane Society need to figure out what to do with boarding facilities.

Council member John Roberts said it bothers him when all stakeholders arent involved in discussions with changes of this nature.

When we push through ordinances and we dont get everybody, especially the stakeholders that have a voice in it, then we end up with issues like this, he said.

Roberts said hed like the business owners to have the opportunity to speak with the city to have their questions answered.

Council member Jason Salamun asked if it would be possible to present the zoning changes at the same time as the pet-business changes.
Theyre just needing a hand up. Any one of us, if we had a really bad month financially, it could really throw you back and put you in poverty. I think people need to look at it that way, she said.

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Representatives from 19 community agencies will have information and resources to help people find jobs, physical and mental health care, housing and more, along with giveaways such as water bottles and toilet paper. Volunteers of America will offer free HIV tests and the Department of Health will provide free syphilis tests.

At least two local stylists, Lesley Stone and Shawna Heilman, will provide haircuts free of charge. Kim Lathe Photography will take family photos and provide a copy free of charge, according to Sarah Glynn, who works as a transitional caseworker for Crisis Care for Pennington County Health and Human Services. Glynn is the chairman of the Homeless Connect committee.

I think well (attract) a variety of folks in need. I think the target population will be broader. I foresee all walks of life coming and checking it out, Glynn said. There wasnt anyone who wasnt affected by the pandemic, and I think a lot of families are still struggling to find housing and affordable housing. Thats a big part of why families become displaced.
Mayor Steve Allender will join President Joe Biden at a crime prevention roundtable discussion meeting on Wednesday at the White House.

According to a news release, President Biden will deliver remarks on his administration's crime prevention strategy and ways to keep cities and neighborhoods safe.

Allender flew to Washington, D.C. on Tuesday to meet with Biden and Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, Miami-Dade County Mayor Danielle Levine Cava, New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal, Baton Rouge Police Chief Murphy J. Paul, DeVone Boggan of Advance Peace and Eddie Bocanegra of READI Chicago.

According to a press release from the city, Allender said the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs heard about Rapid City and its approach to crime and community-based violence intervention programs.

City Communications Coordinator Darrell Shoemaker said Allender was contacted about two weeks ago to discuss local intervention programs. He said Allender had a Zoom call with the office last week and received an invitation to come to the White House on Sunday.

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Allender was selected to participate in the discussion given his background as a former police offer then police chief, and now mayor of Rapid City, according to the city.
South Dakota's attorney general wants to keep cameras and audio recording devices out of the courtroom when he goes on trial in connection with the death of a man along a Hyde County highway.

Jason Ravnsborg objects to cameras in court at his trial facing three misdemeanor charges related to his driving the night he struck and killed Joe Boever.

A court document recently filed on behalf of Ravnsborg objects to cameras or audio recordings during his trial, which is scheduled to start Aug. 26.

The attorney general is charged with careless driving, operating a vehicle while on an electronic device, and driving outside of his lane.

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Investigators say Ravnsborg was distracted the night of Sept. 12, swerved out of his lane near Highmore and struck the 55-year-old Boever who was walking on the shoulder with a flashlight.

Boever crashed headfirst through the windshield of Ravnsborgs car with his glasses landing inside the vehicle, according to authorities. Ravnsborg told officials he never saw Boever and thought he struck a deer.
Some of them, it might take them a while longer to get geared up and to go, she said.

Those who enter the missions program must be sober and get a job within 90 days of being at the facility. Guests are asked to do chores to contribute to the mission.

Were more of a hand up than a hand out, and thats why people who stay here are expected to do chores, she said. We live in our own apartments and do our own chores, we have to clean up after ourselves, so its that kind of thing here.

She said theres an expectation that if you eat at the daily soup kitchen, you wipe down tables, do dishes or help however you can.

If we enable people, we wouldnt have them do anything, we would do everything for them and we cant have that, Allison said.

Allison said they work closely with the Care Campus, Passages Transitional Living Facility and other organizations to help get people to where they need to be.

She said the missions emergency shelter guests average in the 35-55 age range and every once in a while there will be someone in the 60s to 80s range. She said about 60% of guests are Native American while 40% are white and other.

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In the opposition, Bailey wrote that the two programs disagree that Powertech would be able to commence the mining project if it acquired the state permits. She detailed the history of each permit application, stating that the companys materials license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, two permits for Class III and V wells from the Environmental Protection Agency, and an EPA aquifer exemption were all appealed and are currently under review.

While there is no legal impediment to restarting these proceedings at this time, there is no legal obligation to do so either. It is within the Boards discretion to determine the appropriate time to resume these proceedings, Bailey wrote. An examination of the recitation of the federal proceedings illustrates not only how lengthy federal proceedings can be, but also how a permit can be remanded and required to be altered. The Board would be within its authority to determine that it is more efficient to continue the stay of those proceedings until such time as the permits are finalized or even until such time as the federal appeals have concluded.

Hollenbeck said Powertech is well within its right to request that hearings resume and that he hopes the WMB agrees with the company.

Proposed uranium mine resumes permit process A Canadian corporation spearheading a controversial uranium mining project near Edgemont is 
This freshman year pigeon-holing practice was preceded by changes in the methods and principles of teaching in the lower grades that weakened basic academic structures. Promoted as flexibility, very young children can now decide the focus of their studies for themselves based on their current (changeable) interests.

More flexibility in what children must learn in the early grade disciplines leads to less flexibility and fewer options in higher education, potential job opportunities, and career pursuits. Education should be narrow at the bottom for a firm foundation and be adaptable at the top to accommodate emerging talents and interests.

Even the vocabulary used in common education parlance has devolved. A child in school is rarely called a student, meaning one who studies, or a scholar, meaning one who pursues scholarship. The more common term is learner, meaning simply one who learns what is offered. Children are called future workers; not future citizens, public servants, or entrepreneurs. This difference may seem insignificant, but Plutarch would certainly understand how nuance can lower expectations.
Sapphire Lutheran Homes will host Montana Shakespeare in the Parks with a twist this summer. Hamilton is a double feature city.

A double feature city means that Hamilton will get to see both Shakespeare in the Parks performances in a two-night event, Farrenkopf said. Both performances are free.

MSIP will perform A Midsummer Nights Dream at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, July 27, and Cymbeline at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, July 28.

A Midsummer Night's Dream is a comedy written by William Shakespeare around 1595 or 1596 and is one of his most famous and popular plays. The setting is Athens where there will be a marriage of Hippolyta and Theseus. Subplots include the conflict between four Athenian lovers, the drama of six amateur actors as they rehearse the play for the wedding and mischievous fairies who manipulate the humans.

Cymbeline, also known as The Tragedie of Cymbeline or Cymbeline, King of Britain, is a play set in Ancient Britain and based on legends about the early Celtic British King Cunobeline. The play, written around 1611, was first declared a tragedy but some modern critics have declared Cymbeline as a comedy or even a romance. The play explores jealousy, innocence, romance, and murder in a plot featuring the king, his children, their lovers and enemies.

Attend the free Montana Shakespeare in the Parks performances on the large lawn of the Sapphire campus at 501 N.10th Street in Hamilton. For more play information, visit shakespeareintheparks.org. For up-to-date information about the Hamilton performances call 406-363-2800 or visit sapphirelutheran.org.

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The water that descends from Angel Falls often does not reach the bottom. The fall is so long and steep that the air pressure is often stronger than the water pressure. The water is turned to mist before it reaches the small tributary below.

The three tallest waterfalls in the United States can be found on the Hawaiian Islands. Oloupena Falls and Puukaoku Falls both descend into the Pacific Ocean from the same cliff on the north coast of the island of Molokai. Waihilau Falls descends into a deep valley on the island of Hawaii. The fourth and fifth tallest, Colonial Creek Falls and Johannesburg Falls, are both located in the state of Washington.

The highest waterfall in Virginia is Crabtree Falls, located in Nelson County. This waterfall is a 1,200-foot-long series of cascades with five distinct drops.

Name

The indigenous name given to the waterfall by the Pemon Indians was Kerepakupai Meru, which means the deepest place waterfalls. But outside of the area, the waterfall is known as Salto Angel or Angel Falls.
While such homes are generally clustered in trailer park communities, he said trailers on parcels that already contain a single-family home are more often found in rural areas.

Knopf said those types of secondary homes on a residential property, such as above-garage apartments, or granny flats, can help expand housing stock in communities where its in short supply.

As a housing advocate, speaking personally, I would want localities to have much greater flexibility when it comes to the allowance of accessory and subordinate dwelling units on properties to support situations like this where somebody needs a low-cost form of housing, Knopf said. Its incredibly hard to find affordable housing across the city, especially in the midst of a pandemic.

Knopf said a special-use permit for an accessory dwelling unit on the property could allow Summers to stay, but Vonck said the citys building code also prohibits the use of recreational vehicles as permanent housing.

Dianne Tarabay, Summers landlord, said she used the trailer for storage space for about seven years before he moved in. Summers said her sister-in-law, a friend from high school, connected them.
Mychael is a proven leader, skilled attorney and passionate advocate, Dave Johnson, the commissions executive director, said in a statement. She brings a wealth of experience and a strong vision for the office to this position.

Chesterfields public defender office is the 27th established in the state, which combined serves 55 localities across Virginia.

This office will be the largest criminal defense firm in the county and its sole focus will be to zealously advocate for indigent persons facing criminal charges in Chesterfield, Jefferson-Reese said in a statement. Our team of attorneys, paralegals, mitigation specialists, investigators and legal assistants will work diligently to help our clients navigate the criminal legal system and also provide the highest level of representation of indigent persons.

The public defenders in the office largely will supplant the current system of private court-appointed attorneys that are paid a set amount by the state to represent defendants who cannot afford legal representation. Private attorneys, however, will still occasionally be needed to handle specific cases where conflicts exist.

The office currently is on schedule to begin accepting court-appointed cases by the end of this year.
An investigation by the Office of the State Inspector General has led to the arrest of a retired compliance supervisor for the Virginia Department of Taxation who is accused of embezzling nearly $1.3 million in public funds.

Steve Hardie Anderson of Halifax County was indicted May 19 by a Richmond grand jury on charges of embezzling public funds and computer trespass. Both are felony offenses.

The Inspector Generals Office conducted a yearslong investigation after the Department of Taxation finished an internal probe and notified OSIG about allegations that involved Anderson, the agency said in a release.

The allegations centered on two taxation employees who allegedly gave Anderson access to the departments computer systems and confidential taxpayer accounts, OSIG said. Specifics about how the funds were misappropriated were not disclosed. The offense date listed in electronic court records is March 1, 2013.

Anderson has repaid Virginia about $250,000 of the stolen funds, OSIG said.
WASHINGTON (AP)  The Democrats' sweeping attempt to rewrite U.S. election and voting law suffered a major setback in the Senate Tuesday, blocked by a filibuster wall of Republican opposition to what would be the largest overhaul of the electoral system in a generation.

The vote leaves the Democrats with no clear path forward, though President Joe Biden declared, This fight is far from over.

The bill, known as the For the People Act, would touch on virtually every aspect of how elections are conducted, striking down hurdles to voting that advocates view as the Civil Rights fight of the era, while also curbing the influence of money in politics and limiting partisan influence over the drawing of congressional districts.

But many in the GOP say the measure represents instead a breathtaking federal infringement on states authority to conduct their own elections without fraud  and is meant to ultimately benefit Democrats.

It failed on a 50-50 vote after Republicans, some of whom derided the bill as the Screw the People Act, denied Democrats the 60 votes needed to begin debate under Senate rules. Vice President Kamala Harris, the first Black woman to hold her office, presided over the chamber as the bill failed to break past that filibuster barrier.
Still, its unclear how much will change as a result of the court's ruling.

The access regulation in particular is unique to California. And the state had said that union organizers use the regulation sparingly  only five times in the 2019-2020 budget year and 24 times in 2018-2019. Still, the United Farmworkers of America told the justices that the regulation is more necessary now than ever. The union said farmworkers are increasingly indigenous workers from Mexico and the only effective way to communicate with them is in person at their job sites.

In court documents filed before President Joe Biden took office, the Trump administration had urged the justices to side with the businesses. The Biden administration later changed the governments position.

The case the justices ruled in involved Fowler Packing Company in Fresno, which ships grapes and citrus, and Cedar Point Nursery in Dorris, which grows strawberry plants for commercial growers.

Union organizers used Californias regulation to go on to Cedar Points property in 2015. That same year, union organizers complained Fowler Packing Company interfered with their ability to access company property for three days. That complaint was later withdrawn.
The Times said members of the group made disparaging comments about various politicians and officials, including state Sen. Maria Elena Durazo, City Council member Gil Cedillo and University of California Board of Regents chairman John Perez.

These comments were offensive and wrong, and I deeply regret making them," Guerrero said in a statement Tuesday. There is no excuse  and to anyone who was the subject of these posts, I am deeply sorry for the pain they caused.

Guerrero apologized to her City Hall colleagues and anyone in my life who looks up to and depends on me to set an example for leadership."

Garcetti's statement said the mayor had just learned about the postings, which he said do not reflect the values that I expect from members of my administration.

I am a big believer in second chances and in teachable moments of both growth and reconciliation," Garcetti added. Ana has been an important part of the work we have done at City Hall and has exceptional talents, and it is my hope that she can grow from this experience.

Huerta told the Times that all of us on the front lines are used to having people say negative things about us.

The growers used to call me all kinds of names," she said. I think it just reflects badly on them when they have positions like the chief of staff of the mayor. It would seem they would have better ethics.
A local lawmaker wants to condemn a city-owned park in Seattle with a large homeless encampment next to a courthouse and declare the area a public safety hazard or nuisance property.

Under the proposal by King County Councilman Reagan Dunn, King County would acquire the park from the city of Seattle and request that Executive Dow Constantine relocate the parks dozens of residents to transitional or permanent housing, provide additional security, and fix damage to the park, The Seattle Times reports.

The proposal came after the fatal stabbing on June 17 of a 31-year-old man in the park. Seattle police Sgt. Randy Huserik, a spokesperson for the department, said police responded to 100 calls of service at City Hall Park between April 13 and June 20  including assaults, robberies, warrant arrests and public disturbances.

The city of Seattle has no one to blame except for themselves for failing to abate the nuisance and keep that area safe, Dunn said. People have the right to a safe county courthouse and we shouldnt have to fight this hard for it.

The adjacent King County Courthouse belongs to the county and taking over City Hall Park would allow it to be policed by the King County Sheriffs Office instead of the Seattle Police Department, he said.
NEW ORLEANS (AP)  Rapper McKinley Mac Phipps has been released from prison after being granted parole in the case of a 2001 shooting at a south Louisiana nightclub.

The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate reported that Phipps was released late Tuesday, hours after parole was granted by the state parole board.

Phipps was serving a 30-year sentence after a St. Tammany Parish jury found him guilty in 2001 of manslaughter in the shooting death of a man at a nightclub in Slidell. At the time of the shooting, he was a 22-year-old rapper with a new record deal with the No Limit label.

Phipps has always maintained that he was wrongfully convicted. Witnesses told The Huffington Post in 2015 that their testimony was coerced, bringing new attention to his case.

Phipps, meanwhile, was drawing praise for mentoring young inmates. Board members noted that he had no disciplinary infractions in the last 18 years and that he would be eligible for early release for good behavior in 2024.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)  American authorities seized a range of Irans state-linked news website domains they accused of spreading disinformation, the U.S. Justice Department said Tuesday, a move that appeared to be a far-reaching crackdown on Iranian media amid heightened tensions between the two countries.

The Justice Department said 33 of the seized websites were used by the Iranian Islamic Radio and Television Union, which was singled out by the U.S. government last October for what officials described as efforts to spread disinformation and sow discord among American voters ahead of the 2020 presidential election. T

he U.S. says three other seized websites were operated by the Iraqi Shiite paramilitary group, Kata'ib Hizballah, which more than a decade ago was designated a foreign terrorist organization. The group is separate from the Lebanese militant Hezbollah group whose news websites remained operational.

The website domains are owned by U.S. companies, but despite the sanctions, neither the IRTVU nor KH obtained the required licenses from the U.S. government before using the domain names, according to the Justice Department.

The Justice Department announcement came hours after the Iranian state-run news agency IRNA revealed the U.S. government seizures without providing further information.
At bottom, the factual allegations in Fairfaxs amended complaint fall considerably short of plausibly alleging that CBS broadcast its April 1 and 2 CBS This Morning programs despite entertaining serious doubts as to the truth of those broadcasts, Rushing added.

The opinion noted, Fairfax vigorously disputes the accusations made by Tyson and Watson, and we express no opinion on the truth or falsity of their claims. But even accepting Fairfaxs version of events, he has alleged nothing to suggest that CBS reported the womens stories with knowledge or reckless disregard of their falsity.

Carl Tobias, a professor at the University of Richmond School of Law, said this result is not surprising because the U.S. Supreme Court has imposed the actual malice requirement in this context, which is a difficult standard for a plaintiff to meet.

Tobias said that Fairfax has two ways to appeal Wednesdays ruling: by asking for the full appeals court to reconsider the case or appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Both avenues would be long shots, he said. The 4th Circuit agrees to rehear five or six cases a year and the U.S. Supreme Court takes roughly 100 of the 7,000 to 8,000 cases it is asked to consider.
It should come as no surprise that McAuliffe and Youngkin dont need to be in the same room, on the same stage to trade jabs.

The Youngkin campaign poked first: Only weak incumbents like McAuliffe need to debate five times in hopes of making up lost ground.

To which the McAuliffe replied, If Glenn cant take the debate stage heat, he surely cant handle the pressure of being governor.

Welcome to the debate on debates.

It is a quadrennial rite, one quickly forgotten, unless it leads to a moment in the debates, themselves, that shapes or reshapes the campaign  particularly to the disadvantage of a candidate.

Thats foremost to McAuliffe, the veteran, and Youngkin, the neophyte.

To Tucker Martin, a communications adviser to three Republican gubernatorial candidates, two of whom were hurt by debates and one whom thrived because of them, said the bottom line on debates this year might be the bottom line  specifically, Youngkins.

He obviously will have the resources available to get his message out on all platforms, said Martin.
Her plan drew immediate support from the Virginia Chamber of Commerce and other business organizations that called it a way for businesses to return to full strength after 15 months in a public health emergency that will end in Virginia next week.

We need to be doing all that we can to support businesses and encourage more workers to return to work, chamber President and CEO Barry DuVal said Tuesday. This legislation offers an innovative approach to incentivize more workers to return, while not creating additional barriers or burdens for employers.

There were nearly 160,000 fewer employed Virginians in April compared with two years ago, according to federal labor data.

While there are several contributing factors to our current worker shortage, such as the need for greater access to child care and lingering safety concerns, we need to be doing all that we can to encourage more workers to return and help our businesses that are struggling, DuVal said.

The plan would provide as much as $1,620 over nine weeks until the federal unemployment benefits expire on Sept. 6, much like the hiring bonuses that many Republican-led states have offered instead of continuing the $300 weekly benefit through Labor Day under the American Rescue Plan Act, which President Joe Biden signed on March 11.
The vote represents an important step toward equity and reckoning with histories of racism, the foundation said. The relationship provides a national model for resolving historic imbalances in decision-making, power and authority.

"More than 300 American men, women and children were enslaved at Montpelier and played vital roles throughout the founding era of our country," said James French, a Montpelier Foundation board member who is founding chair of the Montpelier Descendants Committee. The true history of Montpelier cannot be known or shared without including the stories and perspectives of those who were enslaved.

Calling the vote groundbreaking, French said "the decision moves the perspectives of the descendants of the enslaved from the periphery to the center, and offers an important, innovative step for Montpelier to share broader, richer and more truthful interpretations of history with wider audiences."

In a June 14 op-ed commentary in The Washington Post, French wrote, Montpeliers extraordinary power of place is remarkable in demonstrating how a single space was simultaneously occupied by polar opposite paradigms of power: freedom and slavery. What can we learn from this paradox? How should we interpret the history here, how should we tell it, and what lessons and impact can it have?
So why isnt there five times as much clamor to do something about medical debt? Again, we dont mean to discount the student loan debt problem but people do choose to take out a student loan (yes, yes, the economy basically demands it, so its not as much of a choice as it might seem).

Still, no one, absolutely no one, wants to run up a medical debt  all that is forced upon us by circumstances beyond our control.

And that raises a bigger question: Why is health care in the United States so expensive?

The United States is an outlier in how we pay for health care.

In France, the typical cost of a visit to the doctor is $1.12. In the United States, the Health Care Blue Book puts the cost at $68 and up.

In Germany, an overnight stay in the hospital costs about $11. In the United States, its between $9,300 and $12,600.

Why is there such a big difference?

The Los Angeles Times delved into this two years ago and the results arent pretty: Nearly all of Americas global competitors  whether they have government health plans, such as Britain and Canada, or rely on private insurers, such as Germany and the Netherlands  strictly limit out-of-pocket costs.
This column is a tale of three novels, all bought in local bookstores during Independent Bookstore Day (which was actually Independent Bookstore 10 Days) back in April. I didn't realize how these three books were connected when I picked them up; now, having happily made my way through all three, I see them as a trio of examples of how broad the category of "crime fiction" can be  and how very much there is to discover in this rich genre.

I've been meaning to read Ivy Pochoda's work for some time (still intend to get to her award-winning "Wonder Valley") and so I picked up a brand-new paperback of her 2020 novel "These Women." It's a beautifully sculpted modern noir, set in South Los Angeles and told by six diverse women whose stories are connected by a serial killer. The world of this novel is tough and dark and bleak, but Pochoda finds poetry in each of these women's lives  in the way they're haunted by ghosts (one by a murdered daughter, another by a memory of a devastating event), in the way they simply get through their days. I found myself especially drawn to Essie, a no-nonsense LAPD vice cop accustomed to being underestimated, and who knows that crime is like the crosswords she meticulously completes every day. "There's always a solution," she muses. "The catch is finding it." You leave "These Women" feeling that you've heard some voices not usually heard, and wish they could speak further.
A: Not only did he not get angry  it was as if he was waiting for someone to come along and say hey Pops, lets get the pen to paper. Give me all of it. He answered every question and every follow-up and a lot of it was uncomfortable for him. But he didnt shy away from it and I was pleasantly surprised by that. The part that he struggled with the most was being the child of a woman who went to prison. He was born in prison. We talked about how that shaped him and molded him; I can hear the sadness in his voice. I think he was sad because he just never talked about it. It wasnt addressed. Back then you didnt talk about things like that especially in Black families in the South; there were a lot of questions that did not get asked and that was at the top of the list. That always bothered him.

A: I would contend this was the least probable path, all things considered. Thats where my mom comes in. I know the book is called Pops, but it is also a story of this woman who had remarkable faith in us. There are things we didnt appreciate at the time the way we do now. My mother knew all of our friends, she knew their parents. For the better part of my life, she was playing the role of mother and father  she carried the family emotionally, financially, mentally and spiritually. Thats how I ended up where I am now. My father would admit this. He had very little to do with our success. My mother figured early on that if my father wasnt going to be present, she was going to have to be three times as present as any mother probably should be. At the time it was like  Oh God really, you want me to compete in an oratorical contest, you want me to play the violin, you want me to do all of these things the white kids are doing? And then you get older its like  Oh, now it makes sense. At the time, it was like growing up in a Stalinist regime.
The ensuing road trip from Mostar to Vienna allows the women to catch up and reminisce. The complexities of their friendship, from shared adolescent milestones to the day it all broke apart, are tenderly portrayed through Sara's interspersed flashbacks. The women reconnect slowly but incompletely during the drive, becoming "clumsily joined like two pieces of broken crockery, with a crack down the middle that could never be concealed."

Bastasic, who also translated the book into English, is a glorious writer, approaching even familiar emotions with a unique vibrancy, and if "Catch the Rabbit" simply followed Sara and Lejla as they drove from, say, Minneapolis to St. Louis, it would still be well worth your time.

But the novel's true brilliance lies in the many ways that the war, though rarely explicitly named, infuses and enhances every aspect of Sara's narration. When it began, she was 12 years old, and she remembers how "I would lie to foreigners later on. I was too little, I would say, I wasn't even aware of what was going on. But that's not true."

The legacy of violence is everywhere, from the tired riverside shrubs that ask, "Did someone die here? Did someone kill here?" to the light bulb "hung from the old department store building like an execution" to the women's hometown of Banja Luka, "a cold grave in the middle of our itinerary."
A Distant Grave, by Sarah Stewart Taylor (Minotaur)

Homicide detective Maggie Darcy has been hoping to heat up a cross-Atlantic romance with her sweetheart, Conor Kearney, but after a body turns up on Long Island beach, her trip to Ireland appears to be off.

When the murder victim turns out to be Gabriel Treacy, a Dublin resident who had just arrived in America, however, she flies to the Emerald Isle to combine business with pleasure. As the investigation heats up, she finds scant time for the latter.

The indomitable Darcy, introduced by author Sarah Stewart Taylor last year in the critically acclaimed Mountains Wild, soon finds herself entangled in a case with threads that stretch from Long Island and Ireland to Italy and war-torn Afghanistan.

Treacy, it turns out, was an aid worker who once had been kidnapped, and subsequently rescued, in Afghanistan. And recently, he had been looking for a long-lost brother who had been torn from his family during Irelands stolen babies scandal. Could either, or perhaps both, explain why he had come to America? Could either involve motives for his murder?
Regardless of the scientific reason, Sarah now understands simple sentences, responds to basic instructions and attempts to use sign language to say more and all done, where before she did not communicate in any way, her mother said.

Before when we had physio in the UK, shed start crying and Id be like, Oh, shes had enough, and then Id cuddle her and wed just give up, because I dont like seeing her upset, but now I know, Laura Hattersley said. Even if shes really upset after half an hour, if you just push through it, an hour later she might be smiling and playing.

From rare condition, broader discoveries?

From a lab at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, Konark Mukherjee has studied the effects of the CASK gene mutation since 2011. The mutation was first recorded in medical literature only in 2008, he said.

CASK is a just a gene, with a very essential function in the nervous system, Mukherjee said. If you have mutations in that gene, it can give rise to severe pediatric neurological issues.
A Southwest Virginia family has given Virginia Tech $7 million to support programs and services for international students, the university announced Wednesday.

The Cranwell familys donation  the largest the universitys student affairs has ever received  will benefit the Cranwell International Center, which is named after the family. The center responds to the specific needs of the international community, which is made up of 4,000 undergraduate and graduate students from more than 100 countries.

Bill Cranwell and his wife, Ellen, and his brother Bob Cranwell and his wife, Susie, pooled together the donation. The brothers are graduates of Virginia Tech.

The familys donation has already been put to use on some initiatives, including pre-departure programs in China, the International Street Fair, various intercultural training programs and the Global Fellow in Residence Program that provides short-term housing for a globally-oriented researcher or speaker. The funds will also be put toward improving the centers Mozaiko Living-Learning Community, which opened four years ago for U.S. and international students to live together with the mission for students to learn about one anothers cultures.
Also during Tuesdays meeting, the board voted 4-1 to increase its pay by 3%, following staff raises in the annual 2021-22 budget, effective July 1.

Supervisor pay will increase $533 per year, and will now be $18,306.91 annually, according to county documents. The chair makes an additional $1,800, and the vice-chair gets another $1,200.

Supervisor Martha Hooker voted against giving herself a raise, but did not express why, while the other four supervisors voted to approve the measure, offering no discussion and receiving no input from the public following a 10-minute pause for hearing.

A second reading was foregone prior to approval, because the board needed to pass its raise before July 1, said County Attorney Peter Lubeck.

County staff working in emergency services will see revised pay-scales that make their salaries more competitive, and non-emergency staff got 3% raises, too, under the new fiscal year budget.

And in two other matters :
I do not feel safe and I am currently in fear for my life from Mr. Braddock, Luna said in her petition.

The case took a darker and somewhat bizarre turn last week when Politico reported that Olszewski had secretly recorded a phone call with Braddock earlier this month in which he says the alleged Russian and Ukrainian hit squad could kill Luna within 24 hours.

Luna's going to go down and I hope it's by herself, Braddock says in the recording, according to Politico, which said it had obtained the recording. For the better or the good of the majority of the people, we've got to sacrifice the few.

According to the report, Braddock described the hit squad as being armed for close-battle combat to make sure nothing was left to chance.

No snipers. Up close and personal. So they know the target has gone, Braddock said, according to the Politico report. The online news site quoted Braddock as saying he hadn't heard the recording and that there there was no proof it was him on it.
WASHINGTON (AP)  The Democrats' sweeping attempt to rewrite U.S. election and voting law stalled in the Senate Tuesday, blocked by a wall of Republican opposition to what would have been the largest overhaul of the electoral system in a generation.

The bill, known as the For the People Act, would touch on virtually every aspect of how elections are conducted, striking down hurdles to voting that advocates view as the Civil Rights fight of the era, while curbing the influence of money in politics and limiting partisan influence over the drawing of congressional districts.

But many in the GOP say the measure represents a breathtaking federal infringement on states authority to conduct their own elections without fraud  and one meant to ultimately benefit Democrats.

It failed on a 50-50 vote after Republicans, some of whom derided the bill as the Screw the People Act, denied Democrats the 60 votes needed to begin debate. Vice President Kamala Harris, the first Black woman to hold her office, presided over the chamber as the bill failed.

The fight's not over, she said afterward.
Many are believed to have left the Mexican border region, thinking their cases were finished, raising the possibility that they will make the dangerous trek to return. The official said the administration is aware of those dangers and considering bringing people to the United States, like it is doing to reunite families that remain separated years after Trump's zero tolerance" policy on illegal border crossings.

The move is another significant effort at redress for Trump policies that Biden administration officials and their allies say were cruel and inhumane and defenders say were extremely effective at discouraging asylum-seekers from coming to the U.S.

President Joe Biden halted the Remain in Mexico policy his first day in office and soon allowed an estimated 26,000 asylum-seekers with active cases to return to the United States while their cases play out, a process that can take years in a court system backlogged with more than 1.3 million cases. More than 12,300 people with active cases have been admitted to the U.S. since February, while others who have registered but not yet entered the country bring the count to about 17,000.
Recently, the Central Bank Issued Digital Currency (CBDC) has begun to attract the attention of the public at large. There has also been much talk and media hype about the possibility that the Chinese digital yuan will be a global game changer and replace the dominance of the US dollar in the world market.

Unlikely scenario

Many people believe that the emergence of digital currency issued by the Central Bank of China (PBOC) will dominate the global monetary and financial markets and compete strongly with the US dollar. They also assume that digitization will be the future revolution in the international monetary world market. However, global trade and international capital flow are mostly still happening in digital form, and the PBOC digitization of currency is a dream ambition, and not a game-changer.

The US dollar is regulated as a world currency by an executive order, and the markets have chosen it. This choice not only reflects the geopolitical dominance of the United States of America since the Second World War, but also reflects the size of the US economy and its dynamism, such as unparalleled liquidity, depth, strength of the financial system and capital markets, strong institutions, and strong protection of property rights within the United States.

The United States issues a safe asset that is a risk-free government bond, currently at USD 21,000 billion, which is the world's highest value. It's a safe haven asset for international investors, even accepting negative yield. This choice reflects the openness of the US economy, to absorb most of the imports from the rest of the world.

The Federal Reserve System, also known simply as Fed, is the central banking system of the United States of America, and highly reliable. As the global position of the US dollar has been asserted for a long period of time, increasing self-reinforcing systems have helped maintain the US dollar dominance across the globe. If anything could at all destroy the US dollar, it will be only the American people, and not the Chinese yuan or any other world currency.

Meanwhile, it is clear that China's current financial system is extremely weak. Banks are weighed under bad debts, and they could explode at any time. Capital markets, although developing, are only in their early stages, while the yuan is still not convertible. Most importantly, the capital account is tightly controlled, although the super-rich can still transfer money abroad easily. Contract enforcement is quite arbitrary, while accounting and auditing standards are still too loose and inadequate.

However, we have to admit on one fact, that China is a country with a great vision and pioneership, going far further than many developed countries in CBDC implementation. As early as 2013, the Chinese government and technology companies increasingly showed unity towards many goals and ambitions. This admirable relationship between the State and the market has further facilitated the introduction of CBDC.

Reformist leaders such as former PBOC Governor Zhou Xiaochuan have persuaded the Party leadership to open up financial sectors, that were previously only available to state-owned enterprises, to the private sector and banking sector, even daring to accept private companies such as Alibaba and Tencent to carry out lending and investment operations. Just a year after this bold idea, right after the Bitcoin boom in China, the PBOC officially started researching and then officially launched CBDC in 2020.

The world highly appreciates the PBOC for having a team of extremely talented experts, but the most important thing is that outstanding talent and the PBOC are not independent of the government. CBDC requires the personal identification (ID) of the holder of the digital yuan wallet. So it is a question whether people believe in CBDC to be used for monetary and financial policies.

A report by Goldman Sachs raises many questions but seems unlikely to be answered satisfactorily. When CBDC is ID-based, how far will that personal file go? What kind of non-monetary information should or should not be included in the ID? To what extent can account holders deny access to their data to third parties? Who does the government assign to manage and operate, and how is the government accountable to the CBDC?

An example of how this is put is the result of the recent Swiss referendum on the citizen ID system when implementing CBDC. The results showed that 64.4% of the people opposed this plan. Interestingly however, the objections to this proposal do not focus on the complete rejection of the ID recognition system. Instead, people believe that they must be provided entirely by the government but through a substantive accountability mechanism. In this regard, recent information shows that even the Chinese people are afraid of the digital yuan, so we have to wait and see if the governments of other countries accept it in international trade and investment.

What has raised concerns recently is that China may even politicize the digital yuan through proposals for international payments and funding through its One Belt, One Road-OBOR initiative. However, we must be aware, that while the renminbi is heavily used in China's trade payments, the yuan's current global financial role is still very low. The yuan has increased somewhat in global foreign exchange reserves since 2016 but has remained around 2% over the last few years, according to IMF data. SWIFT data shows that the yuan shows no signs of progressing as part of global payments and has no advantage against the US dollar as of now. In the future, it is possible that the use of the yuan to settle commercial and financial transactions will increase. Nonetheless, until they fully liberalize the capital account, letting the yuan exchange rate float, the future of the PBOC may not be the story of the near future.

Vietnam cautious

While the benefits and risks of CBDC are still largely unknown, more and more Central Banks around the world are taking it seriously. In the ASEAN region, except for Vietnam, Laos, and Myanmar, there has been no movement, as the remaining countries are still implementing research and tests of CBDC. There is also a reason for Vietnam to adopt a cautious attitude towards the excessive complexity of CBDC, which is the requirement of digital payment information infrastructure, especially for attracting talented experts. This is not possible overnight in the current mechanism.

However, whether we like it or not, the research and readiness to deploy digital currency in some specific form and coexisting with cash are inevitable in a digitized world. Deploying digital currency may not be a priority, but it is certainly vital to maintain an awareness of its use in the future.

Prof. Dr. Tran Ngoc Tho
Ocean Coatings (Vietnam) Company Limited, located in Long Thanh Industrial Zone in Long Thanh District, has set up six containers to offer temporary accommodations for its workers.

More than 100 workers at the factory agreed to stay at the factory in the temporary housing from two to three weeks.

Hoang Thi Minh Nguyet, the companys HR Manager, told VnExpress.vn that the rented containers, 30 square metres each in size, are equipped with air conditioners, ventilation fans, lights, windows and doors.

Each container can accommodate 10 people, five working day shifts and five night shifts. Each person has six square metres of usable area.

The company has built new bathrooms and purchased new refrigerators, blankets, pillows and essential items to serve workers. It is also providing each worker three meals a day at a cost of VN150,000 (US$6.45).

Apart from the workers staying at the factory, the company has arranged for some workers to stay at a container office outside the factory.

Some employees are working at home, while others will take time off and be paid a minimum salary.

All workers have been tested for SARS-CoV-2 regularly to prevent infection in the company.

Pham Van Cuong, deputy head of the ong Nai Industrial Zone Authority, said that Shinpoong Daewoo Pharma Co. Ltd in Bien Hoa 2 Industrial Zone and GreenFeed VietNam Corporation in Song May Industrial Zone, among others, were also planning to expand worker accommodations.

The workers will be given COVID-19 tests regularly.

Depending on the size and number of employees, businesses have different plans for working and housing.



Ocean Coatings, for example, employs only a few hundred workers, who could stay at the factory. However, companies with tens of thousands of workers may offer housing to workers living in COVID-hit areas.

The Chang Shin Vietnam Company Limited in Vinh Cuu District with more than 40,000 employees, for example, has helped 2,200 workers from HCM City and Binh Duong Province to rent houses near the factory.

The other employees must strictly comply with the Ministry of Health's 5k prevention protocol, and receive testing.

The Taekwang Vina Industrial Joint Stock Company in Bien Hoa 2 Industrial Zone has rented hotels for 500 employees who are from HCM City and Binh Duong Province.

The company with 30,000 workers has asked those who cannot stay in ong Nai to work at home or take time off.

ong Nai has more than 1.2 million labourers, including 620,000 people working in 32 industrial zones. Many of them are from neighbouring provinces and travel back and forth on the same day.

As the fourth wave has become more complex, the province has asked local businesses to provide accommodations for workers at the factories to prevent the spread of the virus.

On June 14, a company in the Amata Industrial Zone in Bien Hoa City was locked down due to a COVID-19 positive case. Five days later, more than 18,000 workers at the Pousung Vietnam Company Limited in the Bau Xeo Industrial Zone in Trang Bom District had to stay at home because of an F1 case (a person who has had contact with an F0, someone who has tested positive).
For nearly half a century, Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange have been fighting a losing battle against multinationals that manufactured the toxic defoliant. Their plights have been ignored, their lawsuits dismissed and their voices drowned out.

That David-and-Goliath struggle came to the fore again last month when a French court rejected a lawsuit by a Vietnamese-French woman against 14 chemical manufacturers that produced and sold Agent Orange. Sixty years ago this August, the U.S. Air Force began spraying some 12 million gallons (45 million liters) of the herbicide, containing highly toxic dioxins, over a large portion of southern Vietnam.

The plaintiff, Tran To Nga, who is now 79, first filed the lawsuit in 2014 seeking damages from several companies including U.S. Monsanto acquired by Germany's Bayer in 2018 and Dow Inc.



After the French court ruled that it did not have jurisdiction to judge a case involving the U.S. government's wartime actions, Nga told the media that despite her disappointment, she would appeal. In response to the court's decision, Bayer/Monsanto reiterated its default position that "wartime contractors... are not responsible for the alleged damage claims associated with the government's use of such product during wartime."

It would be unrealistic to expect Western media to strike a more sympathetic tone toward Nga. Still, the somewhat formulaic approach of "covering both sides of the story" without proper context risks oversimplifying the history of Agent Orange and Vietnam's perplexing relationship with Monsanto. It also risks overlooking what remains the most salient issue between the U.S. and Vietnam since the normalization of relations in 1995.

Despite Monsanto's repeated denials of its responsibility for Agent Orange, one public document after the next have disproved this well-worn defense argument. According to the Poison Papers, a public data trove that contains over 20,000 files about the chemical industry, although Monsanto and other manufacturers of Agent Orange knew about the dangers it posed to humans, they concealed this information before supplying it to the U.S. government.

And even though Nga's lawsuit was rejected, it still carries a message for Washington: The wounds inflicted by Agent Orange in Vietnam -- the very country it is courting as a buffer against China -- have not healed yet. Yes, the U.S. government has so far allocated around $400 million to clean up hot spots and help Vietnamese victims with disabilities in areas heavily sprayed with Agent Orange, but it also stressed that such assistance was "regardless of cause."

A stark reality has set in. While the U.S. acknowledges a number of conditions and diseases that are presumed to have been caused by exposure to Agent Orange in its own veterans, and has compensated them accordingly, it has refused to do so for the Vietnamese who were on the receiving end of the spraying.

In late May, Rep. Barbara Lee of California introduced a bill seeking to provide financial aid for Vietnamese victims and further help with the cleanup of Agent Orange-contaminated areas. But one of the bill's other aims -- to expand research on Agent Orange and its effects on the health of exposed individuals -- could ironically sidetrack the flow of the much-needed financial aid.

Past U.S. administrations have dawdled on conducting any across-the-board joint study on the true extent of the health effects of Agent Orange, blaming Vietnam for stalling progress. Such finger-pointing is anything but helpful, because time is running out for Vietnamese victims.

As the U.S. government has launched cleanup campaigns at two former air bases where Agent Orange was transported and stored during the Vietnam War, its aid should keep going directly toward ridding the environment of the toxic defoliant and supporting the victims. It is also time Vietnam obliged Monsanto -- even in the post-Bayer acquisition era -- to steer its profits toward contributing to the cost of the cleanup.

Monsanto has consistently maintained that the company today is completely separated from the version of Monsanto that manufactured Agent Orange, stating that its core business is now focused on agriculture. But the problem here is that Monsanto's present and future are very much tethered to its chemical past.

There is no better exemplar of this conundrum than Monsanto's flagship product, the glyphosate-based herbicide Roundup. Monsanto recommends using Roundup -- the world's most heavily used weed killer -- with its genetically modified seeds, and has successfully marketed both products in Vietnam since the mid-2010s.

Until, that is, Roundup became the target of a spate of U.S. lawsuits alleging that exposure to glyphosate causes cancer, with Vietnam banning the further import of glyphosate-based herbicides in 2019.

Vietnam has every reason to be skeptical about what Monsanto has to say about glyphosate. Vietnamese authorities should also stop burnishing the Monsanto brand, such as when they twice honored it as a "sustainable company" prior to its 2018 acquisition.

To the victims of Agent Orange who keep fighting for justice and many other Vietnamese, given the company's dark past and controversial present, Monsanto is guilty until proven innocent.
TIMMONSVILLE, S.C.  A packet presented Tuesday by the four remaining board members of Florence School District Four accused South Carolina Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman of speaking with a forked tongue and of imperialistic colonizing behavior by ordering the district to consolidate with the Florence One Schools district.

Chairwoman Lillie Mae Joe and board members Derrick Echols, Misty Hopkins  who was elected temporary secretary at the meeting  and Darrell McFadden met Tuesday evening to examine the boards options in several areas. Included alongside the meeting agenda at a table near the entrance of the Stepping Stone Holiness Church was a public/media packet. Echols, Hopkins and McFadden read from the packet before making motions to take action at the meeting.

Forked tongue

Why is Molly Spearman trying to kill Timmonsville? the front page of the packet asks. It goes on to accuse Spearman of trying to prevent the people of Timmonsville from representing themselves by canceling the 2020 school board election and attempting to intimidate the school board while trying to play the victim. Spearman wants to kill Timmonsville High School! Spearman wants to bus our students! Spearman speaks with a forked tongue!
 Will any new sentencing issues be central to the new "comprehensive crime reduction strategy" soon to come from Prez Biden? | Main | SCOTUS completes OT20 criminal docket with "it depends" Fourth Amendment ruling on misdemeanors and exigent circumstances 

June 23, 2021

Notable education efforts prior to sentencing of minor participant in Capitol riot (who seems likely to get probation)

This local article, headlined "Indiana woman to plead guilty in Capitol riot wrote reports on 'Schindler's List,' more," provides the interesting backstory leading up the scheduled sentencing of one person prosecuted for involvement in the Capitol riot on January 6. Here are some details:

A Bloomfield woman will plead guilty this week for her role in the U.S. Capitol riot after appealing to the court that she has learned from her participation from movies and books such as "Schindler's List" and "Just Mercy." Anna Morgan-Lloyd has agreed to plead guilty to one of her pending federal charges in the Jan. 6 insurrection in exchange for three years probation, $500 in restitution and community service. The 49-year-old attended what initially began as a rally with her friend Dona Sue Bissey  also federally charged in the riot. Bissey, whose case is still pending, is scheduled to appear in court July 19. In a letter to the judge, Morgan-Lloyd apologized for entering the U.S. Capitol and said she feels ashamed about how the march that day turned violent. She attached movie and book reports to her letter, summarizing Schindlers List and Just Mercy. Her attorney recommended them, she said, to learn what life is like for others in our country.... Bissey and Morgan-Lloyd referred to Jan. 6 as the most exciting day of their lives in Facebook posts, tagging one photo inside the Capitol building. The FBI arrested the two women in late February, making them among six Hoosiers criminally charged in the aftermath of the insurrection. Court records show the Acting U.S. Attorney has agreed to the plea, calling Morgan-Lloyds participation a serious violation of the law, but noted she did not engage in physical violence or destroy government property. To be clear, what the Defendant initially described as the most exciting day of (her) life was, in fact, a tragic day for our nation  a day of riotous violence, collective destruction, and criminal conduct by a frenzied and lawless mob, Acting U.S. Attorney Channing Phillips wrote in court records. The U.S. listed Morgan-Lloyds apparent remorse, no prior criminal history and cooperation with law enforcement after her arrest as some of the reasons for the governments acceptance of the plea agreement.

This extended HuffPost piece, headlined "A Lawyer For Jan. 6 Defendants Is Giving Her Clients Remedial Lessons In American History," provides additional details on this defendant and the valuable efforts of her defense attorney to turn her prosecution into a "teachable moment." I recommend this piece in full, and here is an excerpt:

This week, Morgan-Lloyd will become the first of nearly 500 defendants arrested in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol to face sentencing. She wants a judge to know shes changed, and her book report-style filings are meant to illustrate that growth. Ive lived a sheltered life and truly havent experienced life the way many have, Morgan-Lloyd wrote to the judge. Ive learned that even though we live in a wonderful country things still need to improve. People of all colors should feel as safe as I do to walk down the street. The remedial social studies program that Morgan-Lloyd is following was created by her D.C.-based lawyer, H. Heather Shaner.... Shaner is one of many D.C. lawyers assigned to represent Capitol defendants who cant afford their own attorneys, as guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and as laid out in the Criminal Justice Act. In addition to representing her clients in court, Shaner has seized an opportunity to try and educate them on the history their teachers glossed over. Shaner regularly sends her clients who are incarcerated pretrial books to read: Theyre a captured audience, and its life-changing for a lot of them. But she decided to take an even more intensive approach with her Capitol clients, who were part of another ugly, historical event in American history. Reading books and then watching these shows is like a revelation, Shaner told HuffPost. I think that education is a very powerful tool ... So I gave them book lists and shows that they should watch. In addition to Morgan-Lloyd, Shaner represents Capitol defendants Annie Howell, Jack Jesse Griffith (aka Juan Bibiano), Israel Tutrow and Landon Kenneth Copeland, a veteran with post-traumatic stress disorder who had a major episode during a virtual hearing in his case and cursed out everyone on the call. (Copeland, who was filmed assaulting officers at the Capitol on Jan. 6 and is facing the most serious accusations of any of Shaners Capitol clients, was ordered to undergo a competency evaluation and remains in custody.) Shaner said her clients had poor educations and knew very little about the country. Her two female clients took to the task with zeal, Shaner said, and got library cards for the first time in their lives. Both my women are like, I never learned this in school. Why dont I know about this? Shaner said. (A couple of the male clients werent quite as eager students, she said. The men are very much like Oh, Ill get to it. But she said some of her male clients have been doing some self-education.)

Here are some links to some of the court filings discussed above:

Government's Memorandum in Aid of Sentencing

Defense's Memorandum in Support of Probationary Sentence

Anna Lloyd Statement (and reports here and here)

Prior related posts:

June 23, 2021 at 09:21 AM | Permalink

Comments

"Anna Morgan-Lloyd has agreed to plead guilty to one of her pending federal charges in the Jan. 6 insurrection in exchange for three years probation, $500 in restitution and community service."

$500? Don't go too high now.

I'm sympathetic to the final result here given the lack of aggravating factors cited by the government report. The "learning experience" stuff is less notable me, though if she is serious, it is better than continuing to say she did a fine thing & not to have any shame about it.

Probation means a period of oversight where she has to be on good behavior. This isn't without real effects, especially if someone on probation violates its terms. The "trivial" nature of this restraint therefore can be overblown.

Community service also is a real thing.

For cases like this, I am not totally against some sort of at least token term of imprisonment. I can imagine a special sort of confinement to deal with low level offenders of this sort. The actress, e.g., who had a short prison sentence recently to me was not some sort of victim of excessive punishment.

But, for this type of defendant in the 1/6 insurrection, I am okay with the general punishment offered here.

Posted by: Joe | Jun 23, 2021 10:54:53 AM

For some reason the header made me think the offender was going to actually be a minor (at least on Jan 6th) , not that their participation was so. After all, what can possibly make a riot better but bringing children along?

Posted by: Soronel Haetir | Jun 23, 2021 11:58:24 AM

Are we still allowed to call a minor a "minor" these days, Soronel? Are we supposed to say something like "a person who has not yet reached majority"? Wow, do I sound like an old grumpy guy....

Posted by: Doug B | Jun 23, 2021 1:23:26 PM

Okay, Grandpa.

Posted by: Joe | Jun 23, 2021 1:44:08 PM

I a probably not the person to ask, I am still perfectly happy using the term "illegal alien".

Posted by: Soronel Haetir | Jun 23, 2021 2:39:49 PM

This is one of the most effective sentencing letters I've ever read. Creative, very concise, and very compelling. And of course, getting the government on board with a sentence of probation. This was excellent advocacy.

Posted by: afpd | Jun 24, 2021 9:58:00 AM

She is now going on Fox News and I wonder how if anything this will affect her and other defendants.

https://twitter.com/JanNWolfe/status/1408257042570256385

Posted by: Joe | Jun 25, 2021 4:09:43 AM

Post a comment
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Five years ago, if anyone had predicted that Brexit would be such a disaster, with riots in Belfast, gunboats in Jersey to keep out the French, and our trade with the EU in precipitate decline, I would have demurred. Dont worry, it will be Norway or Switzerland, and it may not happen at all once there is an inevitable second referendum on the terms, I said then.

How wrong. It turned out that none of the Brexit leaders had a credible plan. As soon as Theresa May started producing one, she was destroyed by Johnson, Farage and Cummings, in a lunge for power like Robespierre eviscerating Danton and the moderates in the French Revolution.

As for a second referendum, that came close to happening in 2019 and would probably have yielded a majority to end the whole Brexit nightmare, it probably still would, if held today. But the combination of Jeremy Corbyn and Jo Swinson, as inept as they were deluded, got us to an early election instead. And in a general election to choose between Johnson and Corbyn as prime minister, there was only one outcome. A quarter of Remain supporters voted Tory, while virtually all Leave voters backed Boris, which says it all.

Reason and facts are the basis of arguments that ultimately win in mature democracies like ours. It is obviously an unreasonable lie to pretend  just to take the last week  that a trade deal with Australia worth an extra 0.02 per cent of GDP substitutes for a fundamental deterioration in the terms of trade governing half of our imports and exports, as well as the end of the right of Brits even to work on the continent when their livelihoods depend upon it, as for musicians, artists, engineers and architects.

It is an equally unreasonable untruth for Lord Frost, the minister for Brexit, to claim  as he keeps doing  that no one foresaw the problem with having a customs barrier down the Irish Sea, when virtually everyone sensible foresaw it and flagged up the danger as soon as he and Johnson negotiated the Northern Ireland Protocol. As the DUP implodes in Northern Ireland and Leo Varadkar, Irelands last and probably next prime minister, makes speeches about the path to a united Ireland, reality is taking over.

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Were it not for Covid-19, and the success of the British vaccination programme while the European Commission initially flailed, I suspect British politics would today be overwhelmed by Brexit. Once we are post-Covid, the fact that Brexit is so obviously unstable and unviable will reassert itself.

In my view, Brexit almost certainly wont last in this extreme form and may well be reversed entirely in this generation. It mainly requires leadership, and after a year of Sir Keir Starmer saying amen to Johnson on Brexit, in the forlorn hope that Europe would just go away, this is still sorely lacking.

A big question in British politics today is where the anti-Johnson leadership in England is to come from. Once that question is answered, this hard Brexit deal will start to be reversed. The Chesham and Amersham by-election, combined with Labours weakness, creates a situation as fluid as when Roy Jenkins  Britains only president of the European Commission  created the SDP in 1981. Having been there at the time, I saw how close the SDP-Liberal Alliance came to breaking through, and that was when Labours social base was far stronger than now.

My personal five years in politics since 2016 have followed this same trajectory of regret, resignation, disbelief, shock and now determination to reverse this catastrophe.

I played almost no part in the 2016 referendum, foolishly thinking there would be a big Remain majority and not wanting to campaign alongside Cameron and Osborne. Even after the referendum, believing that Norway or Sweden beckoned, I focused on setting up a new cross-party National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) as a state institution to get Britain moving after austerity. It was only when Theresa May declared that leaving the customs union and single market was the definition of Brexit that I started campaigning against it, resigning from the NIC because I simply couldnt work with a government betraying the national interest so flagrantly.

Today, I am chair of the European Movement, seeking to turn it into a mass membership movement campaigning step by step towards Rejoin. You can join here and help us achieve this goal.

For most of Europe, 23 June isnt remembered mainly for the Brexit referendum. Rather, it was the day, shortly after the 1940 armistice, that Hitler visited Paris to view his new and biggest conquest, on the eve of launching a still greater war, and ultimately a holocaust, across our continent. The European Union was set up to prevent anything like that from ever happening again. It has succeeded, beyond the dreams even of its founders. We belong inside, not outside, for our own good and the good of Europe.

Andrew Adonis was a cabinet minister under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. His latest book, Ernest Bevin: Labours Churchill, is out now in paperback

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Boris Johnson has no intention of uniting the country over Brexit  division suits him

Five years on from the Brexit vote, what if Theresa May was still prime minister?

Five years on from the EU referendum, Brexit is not remotely close to being done
Goodyear Philippines (GYP) received this years Platinum Award for the Reader's Digest Trusted Brand under the Tire Category.

In its statement, GYP expressed pride over the latest recognition from the independent research conducted by Readers Digest. The Platinum Award is the highest accolade given in the aforementioned survey.

With over a century of operations in the country, Goodyear has established a strong brand presence by offering innovative, quality, and reliable tires and services. Over the years, GYP strives to earn the trust and confidence of its most valued customers by offering technologically advanced and sustainable products. These are highlighted in the features and benefits that Goodyear tires present. A variety of patterns and sizes are available to respond to the diverse needs of the market. GYP is also an advocate of road safety and social responsibility, the company shared in its statement.

Goodyear receives Trusted Brand Award from Reader's Digest

Goodyear Philippines, Vietnam, Singapore and Export Markets Market Director Susi Gamers expressed elation in the latest honor received by the company.

We at Goodyear Philippines are truly honored to earn the Platinum Award in the 2021 Readers Digest Trusted Brands Awards in the Tire category... We dedicate this award to our customers and the community who have been our inspiration in striving to be the most valued tire brand. For 123 years, Goodyear has been a brand that continues to innovate and offer more value to its consumers. Apart from offering the usual manufacturer's warranty to our product, we backed this up by giving more to our customers such as the Worry Free Assurance providing vast benefits such as Roadside Assistance, Personal Accident Insurance, and Road Hazard Protection that only the Goodyear brand has. We continue to make our brand even more valuable by taking good care of our customers and the society as well and by offering more, she said.

Goodyear logo

The Trusted Brand Award conducted by Reader's Digest is aimed at identifying the brands that are important to consumers. For 23 years, Reader's Digest has confidently scrutinized what features a brand must possesses to maintain its relevance and purpose to consumers. This research is conducted in Asian markets, including the Philippines.

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Consumers are asked to rank the brands based on these six attributes: trustworthiness and credibility, quality, value, understanding of customer needs, innovation, and social responsibility.

Earlier, the Goodyear company declared that it completed its acquisition of Cooper Tire and Rubber Company.

Photos from Goodyear Philippines, Goodyear Philippines Facebook page

Also read:

Goodyear Autocare takes Gold in 2021 Readers Digest Quality Service Award

'Intelligent Tires' Uses Algorithms for Enhanced Vehicle Safety, Performance

Designed for Wet Conditions, Goodyear PH Brings in Assurance TripleMax 2
WASHINGTON (AP)  The Supreme Court's latest rejection of a Republican effort to dismantle Obamacare signals anew that the GOP must look beyond repealing the law if it wants to hone the nation's health care problems into a winning political issue.
SALIX, Iowa  The impact of an ongoing drought and sunny days can be seen at Brown's Lake.

The lake has extremely low water levels and Woodbury County Conservation is asking boaters to be cautious.

The lake is fed by three sources: rain, the Missouri River and pumps from MidAmerican Energy.

There have been no major rainfall since last year and it has caused a drought stretch, said Woodbury County Conservation Director Daniel Heissel. The Missouri River is also more than five feet lower than usual, and isnt providing water to Brown's Lake.

With the recent spate of hot days and no rainfall, even more water is being lost through evaporation.

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Even though MidAmerican is pumping as much water as they can right now, Heissel said there is not enough water flowing across the ground to increase the lake level.

He described the situation as the perfect storm.

For locals who live on the water, this decrease has been apparent for a while.

Paul Scott lives on the lake and said many of his neighbors chose not to put their boats on the water this year. For those who did, Scott said it is concerning how they will get the boats back out.
Wednesdays distributions bring MRHDs total contributions to Woodbury County non-profit organizations and governmental entities to more than $42 million since 1994. An additional $800,000 has been pledged to the Sioux City Riverfront project, bringing MRHDs total impact to more than $43 million.

A non-profit organization, MRHD has the license to conduct gaming in Woodbury County. Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Sioux City has the license to operate gaming in Woodbury County.

MRHDs Special Grants provide much-needed funding to Woodbury County non-profits and governmental entities that are making a difference in thousands of peoples lives, Harmelink said. We thank Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, the source of this funding.

Since 1994, major MRHD contributions have gone to: the City of Correctionville; Boys and Girls Home and Family Services; Food Bank of Siouxland; City of Moville; Bishop Heelan High School; Center for Siouxland; UnityPoint St. Lukes; MercyOne Siouxland Medical; and Mary Treglia Community House.

MRHDs funding for the Sioux City Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center totals $4 million. MRHD also built the adjoining Betty Strong Encounter Center at a cost of $3.6 million. Since 2002, MRHD has funded operation of the riverfront Center.

MRHD was formed in 1989 when Woodbury County voters approved a referendum that sanctioned riverboat gaming. A second referendum passed by 75 percent in 2002. A third passed by more than 75 percent in 2010.

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There were good signs and bad signs for Adams, according to elections data analyzed by The Associated Press.

Overall, in the ballots counted so far, he was ranked on more ballots than any other candidate.

About 474,000 voters ranked him in their top five. That compares to 454,000 voters who ranked Garcia and 443,000 who ranked Wiley.

However, Garcia and Wiley both did better than Adams among the ballots that could be redistributed in the ranked choice voting system.

For example, 298,000 voters ranked Garcia second, third, fourth or fifth on their ballots. Wiley was ranked on 265,000 ballots in which she was not the top candidate, while Adams was ranked on 221,000 ballots in which he was not the top candidate.

The numbers suggest that any of the three candidates could ultimately win.

Under the version of ranked choice voting that New York City adopted in 2019, voters in primaries can rank up to five candidates in order of preference instead of choosing just one.

If one candidate is the first choice of a majority of voters  which did not occur in Tuesday's mayoral primary  that person wins outright.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP)  An Alaska man linked to the 2018 death of a 10-year-old girl has pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and sexual abuse of a minor, authorities said.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP)  Claims by a Republican congressional candidate that another GOP hopeful plotted to kill her landed Tuesday in a Florida courtroom.
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP)  Former U.S. Labor Secretary Tom Perez is running for governor of Maryland.

The former chairman of the Democratic National Committee is making the announcement official Wednesday.

Perez is highlighting his experience in local, state and federal government, particularly with labor issues and civil rights.

I want to make sure here in Maryland that zip code never determines destiny, that people have access to good jobs, safe communities, affordable housing, health care  all the building blocks of a vibrant community," Perez said in an interview with The Associated Press.

Perez, 59, served as Maryland's labor secretary from 2007 to 2009 in former Gov. Martin O'Malley's administration. He went on to serve in former President Barack Obama's administration as assistant attorney general for civil rights from 2009 to 2013 and as head of the U.S. Labor Department from 2013 to 2017.

He was chairman of the DNC from 2017 until January.

Perez said he wants to bring a progressive vision to Maryland's crowded Democratic primary.

You can have all the vision in the world, but if you cant govern, youre not going to deliver results," Perez said.
LAS VEGAS (AP)  Former U.S. Sen. Dean Heller, a Republican who lost his reelection in 2018, is testing out a potential run for Nevada governor next year, speaking to rural Republicans at two events this month alongside announced candidates.

Heller, who had a complicated relationship with former President Donald Trump, spoke at a June 12 dinner in Elko hosted by the county Republican Party. He made a similar appearance last weekend at a GOP dinner in Churchill County.

The former senator has kept a low profile since losing reelection in 2018 to Democrat Jacky Rosen. Heller had once been a critic of Trump, and the former president publicly scolded him for hindering a GOP health care plan. But they patched up their relationship by the time Heller sought another term, and they campaigned together.

U.S. Rep. Mark Amodei told The Associated Press last month that Heller had told the congressman that he was considering a run for governor, but Heller has not responded to messages seeking comment.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP)  Many New Mexico communities are behind the curve when it comes to investing in drinking water infrastructure as persistent drought threatens supplies, and the state's fragmented funding process makes it hard to know what taxpayers are getting for their money, legislative analysts said Wednesday.

New Mexico provided roughly $876 million for water projects over a five-year period. But the analysts told members of the powerful Legislative Finance Committee during a meeting that communities arent doing enough to leverage federal and local dollars.

A review of the state's numerous financing mechanisms for water projects found that New Mexico over the last decade made proportionally more grant and loan funding available for water projects than any other state in the U.S. But inconsistent vetting and piecemeal funding put projects at greater risk of being delayed or derailed, according to the review.

About one-third of the state-funded local water projects that were examined did not meet their intended purpose  even several years after the initial funding was issued.
FALLS CHURCH, Va. (AP)  A federal judge on Wednesday tossed out all charges against six defendants accused of cheating the government by supplying unqualified linguists to serve in Afghanistan, ruling that the government waited too long to bring the case to trial.

Prosecutors obtained a grand jury indictment against the six defendants in April for conduct that occurred in 2011 and 2012. Prosecutors say the defendants arranged for unqualified candidates to be hired as linguists in Dari and Pashto, the primary languages in Afghanistan, in part by having more proficient speakers take tests over the phone on their behalf. The linguists hired under the contract would support Army soldiers in communicating with Afghan civilians and military officials.

The defendants asked the judge to dismiss the case, saying their ability to defend themselves was prejudiced by the 10-year delay in bringing charges. They said one key witness had died, another went missing, and others were suffering memory impairment caused by medical conditions and the passage of time. They also said key evidence was never preserved.
DENVER (AP)  Johnny Hurley was hailed by police as a hero for shooting and killing a gunman they say had killed one officer and expressed hatred for police in a Denver suburb. But when another officer rushed in to respond and saw Hurley holding the suspects AR-15, he shot Hurley, killing him, police revealed Friday.
Williams said he did not see or hear the device explode, and assumed he ran it over with the back wheels of his vehicle.

The next morning, an 8-year-old girl playing outside her home discovered the device and her mother called police. Agents with the Iowa Fire Marshals Office disarmed the explosive without setting it off.

Williams has been charged with making and possessing an unregistered explosive device and ordered jailed in Polk County pending a detention hearing next week. A judge ruled Tuesday that Williams qualified for a lawyer at public expense, even though records show he and his wife recently moved into a home they purchased in April for $403,000. Federal public defender Joe Herrold, who is representing Williams, didn't immediately return a message.

Residents within one block of where the device was found had reported hearing loud explosions on April 2, May 12 and June 7. The Ankeny Police Department said in a press release the investigation of Williams involved the placement of several explosive devices on Waywin Drive, but the criminal complaint against Williams does not make mention of any prior incidents or explain any potential motive.

Ankeny Police Chief Darius Potts said the other explosions were still under investigation.
Millers office opened a hotline and encouraged victims of abuse to come forward, and 50 people made accusations against dozens of Catholic priests concerning abuse that took place from the 1930s to 1997. Seventeen victims said they had never previously reported the abuse, and three allegations involved active priests.

Millers office said all of the allegations against Catholic clergy fell outside the statute of limitations for criminal charges. One prompted an investigation by church officials of St. Ambrose University professor and Davenport priest, the Rev. Robert Bud Grant, which concluded that his misconduct did not amount to sexual abuse of a minor but led to restrictions on his activities with students.

Millers investigation focused on how church officials had investigated prior allegations that they determined werent credible. He sent a letter in 2019 requesting internal records, which the dioceses agreed to turn over, and investigators later asked for more information on specific cases.
In 2018, the Iowa Supreme Court struck down a 72-hour waiting period for an abortion. In that decision, the justices ruled the Iowa Constitution upholds the highest level of constitutional protection to the right of abortion  even greater than protections granted under federal law.

However, four of the seven Supreme Court members who were in the majority of the 2018 decision have been replaced in the years since. All four justices have been appointed by Reynolds.

However, abortion rights advocates said Tuesday they believe the court will reach the same decision, should this weeks decision be appealed.

The way that legal precedent works is that it is not supposed to change based on the decision-makers, Bettis Austen said.

Earlier this year, state lawmakers approved a constitutional amendment that would make it clear the state does not recognize or grant a right to an abortion.

The proposal faces a long road. Lawmakers would need to agree on the same language in the 2023 or 2024 Legislative session before the measure would appear on the ballot during the 2024 general election. If then approved by the majority of Iowans, the language would be added to the state constitution.
GREENSBORO  A 19-year-old from Summerfield faces charges in connection with a crash that killed two people Tuesday on Interstate 40, according to the Greensboro Police Department.

Authorities say Priya Hairston was driving east on I-40 in a gray Nissan Altima near McConnell Road about 4:22 p.m. Tuesday when her car crossed the center median and entered onto the westbound lanes and struck a white Kia Sorento and a black Jeep, then was hit by a third vehicle.

Lisa Tate, 51, of Apex, who was driving the Kia, and her passenger, Victoria Padilla, 17, of Holly Springs, were killed during the crash, a news release said. Another juvenile passenger in the Kia was taken to a local hospital for treatment of injuries not considered life threatening, officials said.

Hairston was charged with two counts of misdemeanor death by motor vehicle and driving left of center. Hairston sustained serious injuries in the crash and was transported to a local hospital for treatment, according to Ron Glenn, spokesman for the Greensboro Police Department. She was still in the hospital Wednesday morning, according to the latest update from police.
Gutierrez chose an astronautical engineer, whom she modeled after herself, to be the crew's pilot and commander. She then decided to bring a hydrologist to help examine the moon's groundwater and a chemist to oversee the chemical reactions.

On the day she won, Gutierrez was in study hall when she peeked at her phone. Next to her name on the contest website's name was a little ribbon.

"I was pretty excited," she said.

Her parents, Jennifer and Juan Carlos Gutierrez, were elated, too, proud of their daughter's initiative to enter the contest and the essay itself.

"I had to read it twice," Juan Carlos Gutierrez said. "We just were very impressed."

Amanda Gutierrez, who said geometry was her favorite class last year, plans to study aerospace engineering in college before working at NASA.

Her biggest dream is to become an astronaut, just like the ones she envisioned in her essay.

"I've always loved space," she said. "And I love engineering and building. I've always been building Legos and doing hands-on experiments and things like that. And so being an astronaut would just combine everything that I love into one job."
Bulldogs, Longhorns, Wildcats and a Wolfpack are among the teams at the CWS.

Unfortunately for officials, there also have been raccoons.

A recent video tweet from a TV sports reporter showed a raccoon poking his head through a gap in the ceiling tiles on the press-box level at TD Ameritrade Park. A second tweet two days later showed another raccoon lurking in the booths ceiling grate.

It was an unexpected development for MECA Director of Communications Kristyna Engdahl, who said Tuesday that the critters had been captured and released away from the ballpark.

Playing at an outdoor venue, there are elements of wildlife that were going to contend with, she said. But we werent aware of the raccoons until we saw that tweet the other night.

The fact TD Ameritrade is vacant for several months each year and last years cancellation of the CWS because of COVID-19 also might have contributed to the invasion.

It wasnt a normal season in 2020, she said. We havent had the CWS crowds in here for two years.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP)  A Nebraska man has been convicted of cyberstalking for trying to use nude photos of a legislative candidate's wife as blackmail to derail the candidate's campaign.

A federal jury convicted Dennis Sryniawski, of Bellevue, on Monday, according to the Omaha World-Herald. The jury also found the 48-year-old not guilty of a second charge of threatening with the intent to extort.

Prosecutors said Sryniawski sent threatening and sexually explicit emails to Jeff Parris when he was running for the Nebraska Legislature in 2018. At the time, Diane Parris was serving as her husband's campaign manager.

The emails demanding that Jeff Parris drop out of the race contained a nude photo of his wife and personal information about her. Authorities said that Diane Parris and Sryniawski were once in a relationship more than 20 years earlier. She has said she consented to having the photo taken but not distributed.
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP)  The parents of an infant who died at a Sioux Falls hospital have agreed to settle their malpractice lawsuit against the health care provider.

The terms of the mediated settlement between Avera McKennan Hospital and the baby's parents, Khayyam and Tejumade Gordon, were not disclosed, the Argus Leader reported.

The boy, identified in court records as K.G., was born on Jan. 1, 2018, at Avera Holy Family Hospital in Estherville, Iowa, and was released two days later. Tejumade Gordon brought the boy to the emergency room 11 days later because of swelling in his left groin area, according to the lawsuit.

An ultrasound showed a hernia, and Tejumade Gordon was instructed to call her baby's primary care physician the next day to discuss surgery. But his symptoms got worse, so Gordon returned to the ER with him later that night. He was again released.

The mother returned to the emergency room the next morning because her son had stopped eating, had been vomiting, was lethargic and had a temperature of 102 degrees, according to the complaint. An X-ray showed that he had multiple loops in his small intestine.
Tuesdays bagels are barely stale and already the conventional wisdom in New York City is coalescing around a mayoral victory for Eric Adams, the Brooklyn borough president and ex-cop whose idiosyncratic politics are matched only by his eccentric personality.

In the Democratic primary election, Adams won 253,000 votes and counting, giving him 32 percent of the vote and a 10-point lead over progressive favorite Maya Wiley. The competence candidate Kathryn Garcia is close behind Wiley in third, with 20 percent of the vote.

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At first glance, the results look similar to the primary election that Bill de Blasio won eight years ago. In that race, the lanky public advocate captured just 260,473 votes, or 40 percent of the votemeaning that the votes of just one in 29 New Yorkers were effectively enough to send de Blasio on his way to a two-term mayoralty.

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But the race still isnt over this time around, because New York City is using ranked choice voting in a citywide election for the first time. And the results so farwhat looks to be decade-high primary turnout, shared between 13 different candidatesoffer an excellent case study in why ranked choice voting is a great thing. Even if it does take a couple weeks to nail down the results.

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Ranked choice voting is a popular electoral reform that allows voters to rank their preferences, creating instant runoffs as votes are reallocated from the least popular options. In theory, it ensures the outcome best-liked by the larger number of people and decreases the chances that a third-party or fringe candidate can play spoiler. In an RCV scenario, voters pick Ralph Nader to make a pointbut Al Gore once their man has been eliminated.

So far, RCV has been adopted in a number of races: Democratic primaries in Kansas and Wyoming, municipal elections in cities such as Minneapolis, San Francisco, and Oakland, and statewide in Maine and Alaska.

In the lead-up to New York Citys first citywide RCV election, some observers began to panic. Voters wouldnt be able to handle it! Celebrity candidate Andrew Yang would use his name recognition to coast through on second- and third-place votes! The wide field made possible by RCVs spoiler-free elections would sap New Yorkers interest; the candidates could barely fit on a debate stage, let alone deliver a comprehensible debate.

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Instead, what seemed like a low-interest election seems likely to draw more voters than the 2020 Democratic presidential primary and has surpassed the 2013 mayoral primary in New York City. Yang was among the first candidates to concede, having only won 12 percent of the vote.

New Yorkers didnt just handle it. They used the system to express a wide and complex range of preferences, using their first-choice votes to send a message of support to doomed candidates. And so the exceptionally qualified Shaun Donovan got 17,000 nods, and the true progressive Dianne Morales, done in by campaign infighting, took in 22,000. Those voters will likely have one of the top three candidatesAdams, Wiley, or Garciadown ballot.

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It would take a bit of a miracle for either Garcia or Wiley to pull enough votes to surpass Adams. The three of them have split the de Blasio coalition, with Garcia taking the left-wing yuppies, Wiley the gentrifiers, and Adams most outer-borough communities of color. (As well as many public housing buildings in gentrified Manhattan and Brooklyn, which are visible islands of Adams support on the electoral maps.)

The better precedent for this scenario might be San Franciscos 2018 mayoral election, in which voters elected supervisor London Breed. Like Adams, Breed was a Black native of her city who ran to the right of her opponents on issues like development and policing. In the first round, she had 37 percent of the vote, 13 points ahead of her two progressive challengers, Mark Leno and Jane Kim. But when Kims voters were reassigned, Leno surged. Breed wound up winning by just a few thousand votes.

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Adams lead is both smaller than Breeds and harder to surmount, because his opponents voters are an ideological mishmash. Despite his late pact with Kathryn Garcia, for example, Andrew Yang is likely to send voters in Jewish parts of Brooklyn to Adams. Some supporters of Morales and Ray McGuire, the Black former Citigroup executive, may also break the way of the former police captain.

In short, it seems likely that New Yorkers will come away from their first ranked choice election with high turnout distributed to a superwide range of candidates, but with a plurality of New Yorkers getting to register a choice between the top two vote-getters. That would be a win for ranked choice voting.

The other possibility is that either Wiley or Garcia winds up overtaking Adams on the final ballot. When Yang and Garcia formed an alliance in the closing days of the campaign (each asking supporters to rank the other second on their ballots), Adams likened the pact to Jim Crow. His surrogates accused the pair of seeking to disenfranchise Black voters. As things stand now, the second-place challenger to Adams is also Black, but that doesnt mean it wouldnt get ugly if Wiley came from behind to win.

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Something like this happened in Oakland 11 years ago when City Council member Jean Quan leapt ahead of frontrunner Don Perata on the strength of second-place votes. Peratas campaign manager said it was collusion. But the candidate reluctantly conceded and everyone moved on.

Thats not going to happen in New York, where Adams said on Monday, No one is gonna steal the election from me. If he loses in the final rounds, expect an all-out meltdown. Would that be a failure for ranked choice voting? On the contrary, it would be the system working just as intended.
Last week, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops drew an immediate uproar with a vote about an inoffensive-sounding issue: By a margin of 168 to 55, they favored drafting a document on the sacrament of Holy Communion.

The subtext was crucial: The vote was part of a campaign by conservative bishops to deny Catholic politicians who support abortion accessmost notably, President Joe Bidenthe Eucharist, one of the most central and sacred elements of the Catholic faith. While some bishops have argued that this debate was simply about clarifying the understanding of the sacrament, several of their colleagues undermined that point during the meeting by directly referencing Biden. Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City supported the vote by raging against a Catholic president thats doing this, the most aggressive thing weve ever seen in terms of this attack on life.

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Pope Francis does not like any of this. The Vatican has quietly voiced concerns that such an alignment with partisan politics could be degrading for the church. In May, the Vaticans Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith put out a letter warning the bishops that such a debate could become a source of discord rather than unity within the episcopate and the larger church in the United States. The cardinal who penned the letter warned that it would be misleading to characterize abortion and euthanasia as the only grave matters of Catholic moral and social teaching. The U.S. bishops forged ahead anyway.

None of this was all that surprising to many observers of the U.S. church, even if liberal critics shook their heads at the outcome. But it left many non-Catholics wondering: Why couldnt Francis force these bishops to back down? Isnt the whole point of the pope to make these calls?

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The answer has to do with Francis own efforts to reimagine the shape of the church. If Francis really wanted, he could have already stopped these bishops. The pope has no formal checks on his powerone of the few absolute monarchs in the world, according to Patrick Hornbeck, a professor of theology at Fordham University. Francis could remove a bishop from pastoral care, and previous popes have done just that in times when their bishops have strayed too far. (In 2011, Pope Benedict XVI fired an Australian bishop for suggesting the church should consider ordaining women and married men.) But Francis could not fire these bishops for a simple reason: There are too many of them. The lopsided vote would require him to sweep out some three-quarters of the church leadership in the U.S.

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The less nuclear optionsimply command the bishops to stop debating the topicis one Francis could certainly use, even as it would involve layers of bureaucracy. But Vatican politics are as complicated as any states, and Francis is managing different factions and the implications of a bold move into the conflict. Such a heavy-handed approach would bolster beliefs in some corners that Francis is forcing liberal orthodoxy onto the church. Francis has faced an organized opposition from the start, based in large part out of the U.S. He has at times acknowledged this resistance. In 2017, the New York Times reported that shortly after being elected, Francis told his ambassadors he was aware that the U.S. was where the opposition is coming from. Speaking to reporters on the papal plane as it headed to Mozambique in 2019, Francis said it was an honor that the Americans attack me. But he has held back on more severe rebukes. Even when he faced serious challenges, such as when the conservative Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano accused Francis, with little evidence, of covering up sex abuse, the pope largely stood by to watch the discourse play out. I would imagine that if he were to respond, it would make it a bigger story than it is, Hornbeck said.

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On another practical level, Francis does not want to alienate American Catholics, many of whom are conservative. (Catholics overall are politically split in the U.S., but white Catholicsand in particular, highly engaged Catholicsfavored Donald Trump in the 2016 and 2020 elections.) Francis has advocated for a big tent approach to the church, which has angered many conservatives who argue for more defined boundaries to what it means to be a Catholic. So while he has tried to promote compassion for gay and divorced Catholics, and welcomed some of the folkloric traditions from non-Western regions, he has also at times pointedly held back on challenging some of the traditionalists, who show a fondness for ornate dress and strict orthodoxy.

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More importantly, though, even a one-time command would undermine the central philosophy of Francis papacy. To outsiders, the Catholic Church may seem like an immutable force, but the reality is that even today, there is little agreement internally over how, exactly, the church should be structured. A lot of that has to do with ongoing debates over how to implement the vision of Vatican II, the major reform the church underwent in the 1960s. According to Joseph Mudd, a professor of religious studies at Gonzaga University, Francis has staked his position in that debate by going all-in on compressing the hierarchy and pushing back against those who want a top-down, highly centralized church.

In May, the pope announced that he was converting the meeting of the worlds Catholic bishops from an occasional event into a process involving regular Catholics in conversation. Some believe this will shift the church toward a more popular approach to controversial matters. These synods are not legislative or in any way democraticthe pope is still the popebut more than Benedict and John Paul II, experts say, Francis seems to want to work alongside his bishops and empower the clergy at the local level to decide whats best for their communities. Catholic academics think that Francis genuinely believes in the idea of spirited and open debate. To meddle too much in the U.S. bishops affairs would be to undermine that effort.

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For liberal Catholics, this can all be very frustrating. Catholics tend to appeal to the pope when they want their way, Mudd said. Everyone wants the pope to be in charge. Francis is resisting that.

In this case, Francis still has the ability to block any actual bold measures. So far, the bishops have only voted to authorize a committee to draft a document on the Eucharist; they havent voted on any such document itself. If the document ends up saying that pro-choice politicians cannot receive the Eucharist, the bishops would need a unanimous vote to finalize it, which wont happen. The document then would have to go to Rome for approval, where Francis can simply ignore it.

Is there an interesting story happening in your religious community? Email tips to molly.olmstead@slate.com.
During last years presidential campaign, Joe Biden repeatedly condemned the Trump administrations violent tear gassing of peaceful protesters in Lafayette Square. On June 2, the day after the attack, Biden made a speech denouncing the parks clearance as violence thats being done by the incumbent president to our democracy and to the pursuit of justice. Biden called on President Donald Trump to open the US Constitution where hed find the First Amendment.

It protects the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances, he said.

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But this week, Bidens Justice Department successfully convinced a federal court to dismiss Lafayette Square protesters lawsuit against Trump, former Attorney General William Barr, and other federal officials for violations of their First Amendment rights, taking advantage of a glaring gap in federal law.

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In her 51-page opinion released on Monday, U.S. district judge Dabney Friedrich acknowledged that the protestors had plausibly alleged a constitutional violation of their right to protest, which would have been clear to every reasonable officer at the time it occurred. She allowed their case to go forward against law enforcement officials from Washington D.C. and Arlington, Virginia, rejecting local police departments arguments for qualified immunity. But the judge ruled that federal officials could not be sued for the exact same violations of the First Amendment.

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Rather than recognizing the obvious truth that led to the crackdownthat President Trump harbored animus toward the protestors demonstrating against police violencethe judge bought in to the Biden Justice Departments after-the-fact explanations about the need to protect the president. When it comes to presidential security, she wrote the presence of a large crowd of protesters, even a peaceful one, near the president implicates presidential security questions. With that, the government had provided an excellent pretext for the judge to dismiss the case against the federal officials.

The plaintiffs lawyers rightly denounced the decision. Scott Michelman, the legal director of the ACLU of the District of Columbia, warned in a statement that [t]odays ruling essentially gives the federal government a green light to use violence, including lethal force against demonstrators, as long as federal officials claim to be protecting national security.

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As appalling as that conclusion is, it follows recent Supreme Court precedents, which, in the words of conservative federal judge Don Willett, have created something resembling a Constitution-free zone for federal officials. If you wear a federal badge, you can inflict excessive force on someone with little fear of liability, Willett wrote.

The officers in this case had tear gas and rubber bullets, but what if it were live ammunition? Armed with the national security justification, the ruling opens the door for federal officials to escalate their attacks on civil protesters and to do so with impunity.

Its important to note that the right for individuals to sue federal officials for constitutional rights violations is not explicitly written into federal law. And while the Supreme Court ruled in the 1971 case Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics that such a right does exist, in more recent decisions the court has chipped away at the Bivens standard until there was nothing left of it, eliminating the ability to sue federal officials even in a case where a border patrol agent killed a child without justification.

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President Biden and the Justice Department should have advocated for an end to the loophole that allows the federal government to escape liability for violating the Constitution. Instead, the Justice Department argued that federal officials should be immune from such lawsuits, noting that future violations would be unlikely under Biden.

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But a presidential transition should not ease concerns about federal officials ability to abuse their power with impunity. Even if we wanted to take the Biden administration at its word that they wont direct a repeat of the Lafayette Square teargassing, whos to say how the next administration will treat those seeking to protest the actions of their government? And no president controls the conduct of the thousands of federal officialsfrom Border Patrol to the line prosecutors at the Justice Departmentwho could do harm to constitutional rights.

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In this country, government officials are able to hide behind broad legal protections when they violate individuals rights. When largely peaceful protesters are violently cleared from an area using pepper spray and batons, they should be able to seek damages from the officers who violated their constitutional right to protesta right guaranteed by the very First Amendment to the Constitution.

Because Americans can apparently no longer rely on the courts to protect these important rights, it is past time for Congress to step in and pass legislation establishing the right for individuals to sue federal officials for when they violate a persons constitutional rights. All it would require is adding just five words (or of the United States) to existing civil rights law, making it clear that individuals can sue federal officials, in addition to state and local officers.

It may be too late for the peaceful protesters in Lafayette Square and Sergio Hernandez Guerecathe boy murdered by a border patrol agent a few years agobut we know these will not be the last instances in which federal officers abuse their power. And without a way to hold federal officials accountable for their abuses, we cannot hope for an end to violence committed by government officials against members of the public and we cant even guarantee certain fundamental rights.
Wildfires erupted this past weekend across 10 statesincluding California, Colorado, Arizona, and Oregonas record-high temperatures continue to bake many areas in the West and Southwest United States. By Monday, 7 million people were under fire danger warnings, as the record-shattering temperaturesstretching from Palm Springs to Tucson to Denvermigrate north into Oregon and Washington.

The scorching temperatures are the result of a heat domea persistent ridge of high pressure that traps hot air while also blocking the formation of rain clouds. Heat domes often contribute to record-breaking temperatures in the later summer months, but this particular system is exceptional for its early arrival and expansiveness. Its not only unusual for June, but it is pretty extreme even in absolute terms, Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at the UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, told NPR.

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The heat wave itself poses a wildfire threat, which is exacerbated by the long-term drought conditions across the region. As of Thursday, more than half of the U.S. was classified as being in a state of either severe, extreme, or exceptional drought.

And as the heat dome has shifted north and east, wildfires have extended their reach as well. A fire raging southeast of Oregons Mount Hood had scorched 6,200 acres by Monday. In Washington, moisture levels tested in soil and fallen branches clocked in at 10 percent, which is really, really dryespecially this early in the year, Vaughn Cork, a Washington Department of Natural Resources fuels analyst, told Seattle news station King 5. An ominous forecast for the coming week suggests obscene temperatures and thunderstorms, deepening the threat of fire. The National Interagency Fire Center reports that as of Tuesday, 50 large fires have burned more than half a million acres across the country.

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So whats to blame for this slew of alarming adjectives? A partial answer is climate change. A study led by Columbia bioclimatologist A. Park Williams compared the current state of the drought to what it would be in a hypothetical, computer-generated world that didnt burn fossil fuels, and the researchers found that an average of 47 percent of the Western U.S.s megadrought was attributable to global warming. Moisture is evaporating from the ground much faster than in the past, thanks to temperatures that are 2.9 degrees hotter compared to those of the mythical non-fossil fuel-burning world that the study imagines. So, while a drought isnt necessarily cause for climate alarm, the current drought is, especially in combination with an unrelenting heat dome and thunderstorms threatening lightning strikes on parched land.

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Another major concern is resources. The heat wave (likely only the first of many to come this summer) and enduring drought conditions may cause more concurrent fires across Western states. In previous decades, fire seasons were shorter and staggered, allowing neighboring states to lend essential firefighting help across borders. But this mutual aid could be a thing of the past, if (or when) large-scale wildfires rage simultaneously.

States have prepared for the extreme heat, potential wildfires, and smoke across the Pacific Northwest by opening public facilities to help people cool down and encouraging home hardeningan umbrella term for measures that range from keeping gutters clear of dry leaves to renovations that rebuild roofs, walls, and decks with ignition-resistant alternatives to wood. Longer-term measures to address the ongoing and worsening dangers posed by wildfires are also in the works: Democrats in Oregons state Legislature are attempting to pass a bill that would allot nearly $200 million in funding to new programs aimed at wildfire mitigation. In D.C., Utah Sen. Mitt Romney introduced legislation that would establish a national committee to review wildfire policy and make recommendations to Congress, and Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden pressed the Forest Service to develop a written plan to address the likely catastrophic year for wildfires. Though, like much of the U.S. response to climate change, these measures will fall far short of whats needed to address this crisis.
On Tuesday, the culture war over critical race theory reached a new low point. During a school board meeting in Loudoun County, Virginia, to discuss a draft policy on transgender student rights, an unruly group of protesters calling themselves Parents Against CRT disrupted proceedings and forced officials to shut down public comment. A former Virginia state senator accused the school board of bigotry and depravity, causing protesters to erupt, officials to abruptly end the meeting, and law enforcement to declare an unlawful assembly and arrest two protesters. This was just the latest firestorm over an academic theory that has caused conservative backlash all over the country.

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Denouncing critical race theory for teaching kids to hate our country and to hate each other, Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier this month signed a new law that made Florida the latest state to ban not just the teaching of CRT, but also to prohibit structural approaches to teaching about racism. These types of laws represent a form of patriotic education that depicts America as a shining city on a hill and deems many present-day criticisms as anti-American. At bottom, this view of patriotism makes two claims: First, love of country requires accepting certain ennobling truths about America; and second, that criticism of the past will erode a shared affection that is a pillar of political community. As disputes over CRT become more heatedas they did in Loudoun Countyadvocates for educational models that acknowledge the role systemic racism has long played in American society may need to consider a new approach. It is, of course, possible to love the place of ones birth or adopted home and to see its history in clear-eyed fashion. The surest way of doing so is to practice reflective patriotism, an approach to teaching the past that combines appreciating the vitality and resilience of this nations ideals and reckoning candidly with its failure to live up to them.

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Reflective patriotism is a model of civic education proposed by a new group called Educating for American Democracy, supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities, and reflecting a collaboration of leading and ideologically diverse experts in civic education, history, and constitutional studies. Instead of viewing current social movements ominously as aiming to destroy the Constitution, as anti-CRT ideologues have claimed, EAD sees evidence of such mobilization as warning signs for a political order that has fallen short of stated ideals. Recognizing that the U.S. stands at a crossroads of peril and possibility, it calls for a reflective patriotism that unites love of country with clear-eyed wisdom about our successes and failures in order to chart our path forward. It aims to educate young Americans to participate in and sustain our constitutional democracy, andechoing the Constitutions preambleto make our union more perfect. It emphasizes that the constitutional order has become more democratic over time due to efforts by social movementsfor example, the efforts of suffragists and civil rights activists to expand the right to vote.

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In EADs road map for teachers of core themes and basic framing questions, it does not use the term systemic racism, likely because of its objective to produce guidelines that could be widely adopted despite our polarized times. However, it includes critiques of those structural issues in all but name. For example, the road map calls for engaging with hard histories of inclusion and exclusion, dynamics of oppression and power. It demands an unflinching examination of the unequal, and often brutal, consequences of private violence as well as state-sanctioned wrongs against vulnerable populations.

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EAD recommends that students engage with texts like the Declaration of Independence and the Constitutionnot merely to internalize abstract values, but rather to build the capacity for collective self-criticism. Students should consider how and why the Constitution did not afford key segments of the population equality. Rather than reifying 1776 or 1787, reflective patriotism addresses questions about who was denied full rights in the polity. It asks students about the degree of liberty and equality in 1619, 1620, 1776, and 1789, and how the relationship between these concepts changed over time.

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The road map proposes teaching how individuals and groups used agency in the face of oppression to expand rights; it aims to prepare students to be agents in present-day challenges. It helps students explore the connections between hard histories and contemporary debates and how they and their allies can seek to avoid historical mistakes.

In our view, this approach makes the most sense if we want to revitalize our constitutional democracy without getting bogged down in distracting sideshows, like what happened on Tuesday in Loudoun County. Instead of demanding veneration of past achievements, it empowers people to use fundamental texts to try to solve societys most pressing problems. When young people are not taught to think about the design of the Constitution and instances of past constitutional change, they cant imagine a better way of doing things together. When they see history as simply a collection of facts and events, they become detached from past generations and believe that past problems of justice have been solved. But when they are taught that constitutional history has been made, and continues to be made, through a series of refoundings, then the skills necessary for democracys continuation are hardwired into the learning of history. Questions of justice can then be broached with maturity and understanding, but less of the high-stakes drama.

To us, developing critical faculties is not merely consistent with American constitutionalism, it is essential to its survival. After all, civic education isnt about turning the page on the past. Its about learning how to live together in a more perfect union.
Theres always been a cost to the messy U.S. relationship with Saudi Arabia and, on Tuesday, another bill arrived with the New York Times reporting that four of the Saudi guards that participated in the gruesome 2018 murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi received paramilitary training on U.S. soil. The news is simultaneously shocking, while also unsurprising. Adding to the unsavory mess is that the training was administered by a private security company, the Arkansas-based Tier 1 Group, which is owned by the private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management. The deal to provide the specialized training to the Saudi Royal Guard was originally approved by the State Department in 2014 during the Obama administration and the license to train the foreign unit continued at least through 2017, the first year of the Trump presidency.

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The training was provided under the auspices of enhancing the Saudi guards ability to provide protection to its leaders and the company told the Times it included courses like safe marksmanship and countering an attack, but the training was also said to include instruction on surveillance and close-quarters battle, which could be anythingand lead to anything. Lo and behold, the following year a group of seven members of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salmans protective force were dispatched to Turkey where they lured Khashoggi into the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, before killing and dismembering the dissident. According to an American intelligence report, four of those seven security forces received training the previous year in the U.S.; two of those security operatives were part of an earlier training regimen on American soil in late 2014-early 2015.

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Even before the 2018 Khashoggi murder, Prince Salman was already ruthlessly consolidating power after just six months in power, imprisoning hundreds of members of the sprawling royal family in a Ritz-Carlton in Riyadh. The [paramilitary training] occurred as the secret unit responsible for Mr. Khashoggis killing was beginning an extensive campaign of kidnapping, detention and torture of Saudi citizens ordered by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabias de facto ruler, to crush dissent inside the kingdom, the New York Times notes. Members of the team that killed Mr. Khashoggi were involved in at least a dozen operations starting in 2017, according to officials who have read classified intelligence reports about the campaign.
To speak to a Senate Democrat early this week was to get a lesson in the discipline of staying in the present. What would they do after Tuesdays procedural vote to open debate on voting rights and election reform, which Senate Republicans would unanimously filibuster? How dare you think so many hours ahead.

Weve got to get through the vote today, Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who had been negotiating vigorously with West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin to bring him on board, said Tuesday morning.

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Well see what happens in todays vote, Maryland Sen. Ben Cardin said. Lets analyze that after todays vote. He added that he wouldnt try to get into Schumers strategies at this point.

Perhaps thats because Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumers strategy ahead of the vote was also to defer the question about what would come next. After Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley, a lead author of the For the People Act, said in a press conference that Tuesdays vote was merely the bell ringing on round one of the fight to defend our Constitution, Schumer sharply dismissed questions about what round two would look like.

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Okay, look, we will have the vote, and then we will discuss our future, Schumer said. Im not going to put the cart before the horse. Right now, the vote is: Will Republicans move to proceed, or are they unanimously against it?

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Republicans are unanimously against it, as everyone already knew. By the time of the vote late Tuesday afternoon, all that Democratic leaders had managed was to be unanimously for it: They had at least secured Manchins vote to open debate on voting rights, avoiding the embarrassment of bipartisan opposition to merely considering legislation they argue is necessary to save American democracy. (That doesnt mean they had secured consensus on policydebates between Manchin and the rest of his caucus remain.) But at least they had achieved their talking point that it was Republicans, exclusively, who were hostile toward efforts to alleviate corruption, partisan gerrymandering, voter suppression, dark money, and the latest innovation, state and local election subversion. What they had not achieved was any path forward for passing such reforms into law. The 50-50 partisan vote to block debate came 10 votes short of what is needed to break a filibuster.

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The talking point about Republican obstructionism is on a trajectory to be the most Democrats will get on voting rights this Congress. Continued belief that Senate Democrats might possess a secret plan to pass this bill, and that theyre just in the early phases of a process, runs into a mathematical wall. This particular wall could be papered in Washington Post op-eds reiterating the intransigent Democrats reasoning for not eliminating the filibuster. Republicans, and this cannot be stressed this enough, have no interest in reaching a compromise on voting rights and election reform. Defeat of the For the People Act, and its cousins, is the delicious smell wafting from the kitchen that gets them out of bed in the morning. The issues that the For the People Act seeks to reform are foundational beliefs and projects of the Republican Party.

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That is why the elimination of the Senate filibuster is the only way to pass some version of this bill. But this bill will not pass, because eliminating the filibuster would require the support of all 50 Democratic senators, and though activists will certainly apply all the pressure they can in the coming months, stalwart Democrats Manchin and Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema keep telling us they will not budge. Standing against liberal pressure only enhances Manchins standing in West Virginia. And Sinema, who wrote her latest op-ed this week defending the filibuster, has two choice words and a curtsy for those who hope to sway her.

The internal Democratic plan to pass a voting rights bill, then, is the same as the public plan: Let time do its work. Or at least, let time, hearings, and more states passing more laws restricting the vote attempt to move Sinema and Manchin. See if something happens.

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Hawaii Sen. Mazie Hirono, when asked about Sinemas op-ed defending the filibuster, said that she wouldnt start banging on my colleagues at the moment because she was still hoping they would come around on reforming the rules. But she was pretty frank about the consequences of their failure to do so: that this next year-and-a-half of their majority would be their last.

If we dont make the changes to the filibuster, she said, then I think we are going to look at losing the House and the Senate.

No wonder they want to stay in the present.
In the 1960s, the United Farm Workers began demanding better pay and working conditions for Californias agricultural workers, who were subject to egregious exploitation and abuse. Led by Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta, the unions campaign culminated in the passage of the California Agricultural Labor Relations Act. Among other guarantees, this landmark law granted union organizers limited, temporary access to agricultural workplaces to speak with laborers. Businesses challenged the act as a violation of their property rights, but in 1976, the U.S. Supreme Court dismissed the case for want of a substantial federal question.

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The Supreme Court of 2021stacked, as it is, with six conservative Republican-appointed justicessees things differently. On Wednesday, the courts conservative supermajority held that Californias law violates the Fifth Amendment, which bars the taking of private property for public use without just compensation. Remarkably, the majority held that the law constitutes a per se takingnot a mere regulation, but an appropriation of property that flouts the owners right to exclude. The courts 63 decision in Cedar Point Nursery v. Hassid is thus a crushing blow to organized labor, which often relies on workplace access to safeguard workers rights. It also undermines the broader legal framework that permits the government to impose all manner of regulations on private property, including workplace safety laws and nondiscrimination requirements. With Cedar Point, the Supreme Court has handed business owners a loaded gun to aim at every regulation they oppose.

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Before we get to the devastating impact of Wednesdays decision, some background: The Supreme Court has identified two types of takings under the Fifth Amendment, and deemed one much worse than the other. This distinction matters a great deal in Cedar Point. First, there are per se takings, which involve a major intrusion of private property. Historically, only the most burdensome lawsthose that deprive property of all economically beneficial or productive use or constitute a permanent physical occupationqualify as per se taking. In those situations, a property owner can automatically demand compensation or, if denied payment, block the law. Second, there are regulatory takings, which involve more minor restrictions on property, like zoning ordinances. Its much harder to fight a regulatory taking in court, and even if you win, the government may have more flexibility in providing compensation.

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The consequences of Roberts maximalist decision will be swift and severe.

For many years, Justice Antonin Scalia agitated to expand the definition of per se takings in a crusade to curb the governments regulatory authority. He never quite succeededbut in Cedar Point, Chief Justice John Roberts finished the job for him. Roberts opinion for the court deemed Californias union access law a per se taking that requires just compensation for agribusiness owners. How could that be? After all, union organizers are not on the property every day, but rather for three hours a day, 120 days a year; they do not constitute a permanent physical occupation. Nor do these organizers halt all economically beneficial or productive use of the land; most employees keep working, harvesting the produce that makes their bosses wealthy.

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To get around this problem, Roberts changed the law (under the guise of applying precedent): He declared that a law that temporarily limits a property owners right to exclude qualifies as a per se taking of private property, compelling the government to pay the property owner. Any time a regulation allows third parties to physically invade propertyeven for a brief timeit takes that property under the Fifth Amendment, the chief justice concluded. As a result, the state must either compensate property owners or else cease its activities.

As Justice Stephen Breyer noted in dissent, this holding does not fit with Supreme Court precedent. Yes, the court has held that a temporary physical appropriation of property is a per se taking. But, Breyer wrote, Californias law does not appropriate anything. It does not take from the owners a right to invade (whatever that might mean). It does not give the union organizations the right to exclude anyone. It does not give the government the right to exclude anyone. Instead, the law merely limits the landowners right to exclude certain others. Until Wednesday, such regulations had not been deemed a per se taking. Now they will be.

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The consequences of Roberts maximalist decision will be swift and severe. Most obviously, it will hobble unions ability to help Californias agricultural workers, who toil in dangerous conditions, facing the persistent threat of illness and death, for rock-bottom wages. Agribusinesses are notorious for exploiting these laborers, many of whom are immigrants who speak limited English. Californias union access rule arose out of necessity: Many farmworkers are migrants who continually move around the state in pursuit of seasonal work and lack permanent housing. They are, in short, inaccessible outside the workplace. If unions cannot speak to them at their job, they may not be able to speak to them at all.

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Roberts did not explain how California could remedy the constitutional violation identified in Cedar Point, but its notable that the plaintiffs did not even ask for just compensation. Instead, they asked for an injunction excluding union organizers from their property. In theory, the state could fix the problem by compensating agribusinesses for unions invasion of their property. But how much would that cost? At oral arguments, Justice Amy Coney Barrett floated $50 per takinga charge that would quickly balloon as every California agribusiness demanded payment each time a union organizer stepped on their property. And the plaintiffs suggested that businesses are owed much more. Are state lawmakers willing to cover that bill? Or will California require the unions to pay the cost? If so, might unions simply forgo farm access rather than pay out huge sums to every agribusiness they try to organize?

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But the broader implications extend into nearly every corner of commercial activity in the U.S. In dissent, Breyer pointed to the large numbers of ordinary regulations that permit an invasion of private property. The government can enter a business to examine food products and inspect private schools, for example. Its agents can enter all manner of businesses to ensure compliance with run-of-the-mill health and safety laws. And it can force businesses to serve certain customers by passing civil rights measures. Are these per se takings?

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To avoid answering this question, Roberts invented exceptions to Cedar Points new rule, including a business generally open to the public. As Harvard Law professor Niko Bowie wrote on Wednesday, however, the chief justices improvised exceptions wont actually prevent businesses from refashioning typical regulations as a taking. Nondiscrimination laws take a clubs right to exclude women, religious minorities, and other disfavored groups. Environmental regulations take a landowners right to exclude inspectors. Fair housing laws take a landlords right to exclude Black renters. If guaranteed access to private property (including commercial businesses) is a per se taking, then, as Bowie put it, the government will have to start paying for what it regulates.

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None of this is required by the original public meaning of the Constitution. Not even close. The Fifth Amendments framers understood the takings clause to apply only to direct appropriation of physical property. They carried on a long tradition, rooted in English common law and colonial practice, of authorizing entry onto private property for public purposes. The right to exclude that Roberts conjured in Cedar Point is not a constitutional principle but a policy judgment thinly veiled in legalese. It is the product of the conservative legal movements relentless demands for deregulation by judicial fiatfor a return to the era when federal courts struck down health, safety, and economic policies on the basis of their own political preferences.

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The most optimistic spin on Cedar Point is that the Supreme Court will limit its reasoning to the context of unions. That, after all, is what the court did in 2018s Janus v. AFSCME, hobbling public sector unions by creating a constitutional rule that applies to nobody else. The conservative justices evident hostility toward organized labor may not extend to the myriad regulations jeopardized by Cedar Point; the decision may be a ticket good for one ride only. Thats cold comfort to thousands of low-income workers who will now be subjected to even more abuse on the job. But if the court takes Cedar Point to its logical conclusion, we are entering a new era of black-robed rulers overriding lifesaving regulations put in place by representatives of the people.
Back in January, after the riot at the Capitol, election law expert Richard L. Hasen wrote out a checklist of all the things Democrats should do once they assumed control of the White House and Congress: strategies to shore up the distrust that has been seeping into American politics. What wasnt on his list was a massive voting rights billhe just thought it was too unwieldy: I dont think that the strategies Democrats are pursuing are ones that are likely to actually yield results in Congress, he told me. But Democrats did go ahead and try to pass a major voting rights bill known as the For the People Act, or H.R. 1, and came up against the Senate minority blockade. All 50 Democratic senators voted on Tuesday to open up debate over voting rights legislationbut without 10 Republicans, the motion failed. Have the Democrats squandered their chance at election reform, on an issue no less fundamental than the very right to vote, by trying to shoot the moon? To figure out what went wrong, what lessons Democrats can take from this, and what the future of voting rights legislation may look like, I spoke with Hasen on Wednesdays episode of What Next. Our conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.

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Mary Harris: You seem to encourage lawmakers to be pragmatic and practical. How often do you actually see them acting thus?

Rick Hasen: In the election space, its really tough because its seen as a zero-sum game. This is about the legislators themselves and whether theyre going to get reelected. Its not as though I philosophically disagree with a lot of whats in H.R. 1. Its that in a 50-50 Senate, it seems that H.R. 1 or we all die is a bad and ultimately self-defeating message.

Its hard to have these conversations across the aisle is because voting is existential to the people who are making the decisions about how to reform the laws. So the stakes are very high.

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The stakes are high, and the road to election reform is full of unintended consequences. When you try to make things better, you dont always succeed. So thats an argument for incrementalism, even if you think that ultimately we need radical change.

I mean, you said in January that things are going to get much worse if Democrats do not act quickly and decisively when it comes to voting rights.

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And they havent. Were in a period where the potential for the worst nightmare is there. But months have been wasted.

Right now the battle Democrats are waging over voting rights is mainly focused on the Senate. That was where the For the People Act was parked. Saying it is a massive piece of legislation is an understatement.

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I think its more than 800 pages of a Democratic wish list. It tackles everything from partisan gerrymandering to early voting to Supreme Court ethics rules to public financing for congressional elections to campaign disclosure. Its like a Democratic messaging bill: Heres the package of things we would like.

Youve always said that H.R. 1 is just too bigback in January, you wrote, Although there will be great pressure to do so, Congress should not first try to pass H.R. 1. Can you explain your thinking here?

Well, Democrats have the thinnest of majorities, right? If they had won fewer seats, they wouldnt have the majority in the Senate. So one defection is enough to get rid of it. And in the House, they only have a narrow majority, because Democrats 2018 majority narrowed after the 2020 elections.

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"The focus should be on things that are more urgent, rather than a wish list for another time."  Richard L. Hasen

And theres some evidence that not all Democrats are on board with this.

Exactly. When you put together this really big bill, theres two ways to think about it. One is you put together a Christmas tree kind of bill, as they call it, where you give everybody an ornament and everybodys happy. Sometimes that works if youre basically giving away pork. But if youre doing it the other waytrying to put in a lot of election reforms, some of which are going to affect the members themselves who are going to vote on ityou end up losing people. To take an important example, some Black Democrats in the House are worried the provisions that would limit partisan gerrymandering are going to hurt the ability to draw Black-majority districts under the Voting Rights Act, and that this could hurt their power.

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Because thats part of what happens where areas are carved out. And its much more likely youre going to have Black representation in Congress because of how those districts are made.

Right. And thats just one example. There are some Democrats who dont like the particulars of the public financing provision that would, for the first time, install public financing for congressional elections.

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Again, if Democrats had a supermajority, that would be one thing. But when you peel off one or two votes, you dont have the margin there. So really, the focus should be on things that are more urgent, rather than a wish list for another time. But Democrats have used H.R. 1 as a form of campaigning, as a form of messaging. So they seem to be almost satisfied with having it as an election issue, rather than actually getting something done.

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For a long time, West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin was the only Democratic senator who refused to publicly endorse the bill. But then, last week, he released a counterproposal. Its not as massive as H.R. 1, but it picks out a lot of the highlights from the bigger bill and combines it with a version of another piece of voting rights legislation: the John Lewis Voting Rights Act. That law would restore sections of the Voting Rights Act that were struck down by the Supreme Court in 2013. When you saw this from Manchin, what did you think?

My first reaction was that Democrats should grab it, even though its still not likely to pass because its going to come up against the filibuster. Manchin and Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema have said theyre not going to blow up the filibuster either, but if theres a unified Democratic front and theres a tight bill and theres repeated Republican intransigence, then maybe theres a chance that Manchin would blow up the filibuster.

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Well, Manchin implied that he could bring some Republicans along with him.

He said that. And then as a show of force, the very next day, you had Mitch McConnell hold a press conference with other Republican senatorsincluding some that you wouldnt expect, like Lisa Murkowski or Mitt Romney, those who might be perceived as looking for common ground. But they all came out and said, no way, were sticking together. So Manchin is not going to get what he says he thinks hes going to get.

Manchins compromise legislation proposes limits on partisan gerrymandering, 15 days of early voting, and automatic voter registration. But it also has some provisions that, if youre a liberal, you may think are problematiclike national voter ID. But you think, when you look at the larger picture, its not such a bad trade-off.

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Ive been saying since my 2012 book, The Voting Wars, that you can imagine a compromise where you have a national voter ID combined with universal voter registration, and the government just goes out and registers everybody. I mean, thats pretty much how its done in every other advanced democracy. They have a national identity card and registration is automatic. So voter ID itself is not necessarily bad if the state takes on the burden of getting people the right IDs. Manchins memo says that this is No. 4 on this list: requiring voter ID with allowable alternativesutility bill, etc.to prove identity to vote.

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I dont think that voter ID laws are necessary to prevent an appreciable amount of fraud. But voter ID is popular. It seems like a commonsense thing to too many Americans. And if this is the price to rein in partisan gerrymandering, restore preclearance, legislate a meaningful form of disclosure for online political advertising, and establish early voting throughout the country for 15 days, I would pay that price any day of the week.

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The real glaring issue is that Manchins tries to correct some amount of voter suppressionbut it doesnt do much to prevent voter subversion.

One of the things that bothers me the most about Manchins proposaland its something that hasnt really gotten a lot of attentionis that in H.R. 1, theres a provision that requires everyone to vote using a voting machine that produces a paper ballot. That is so crucial to prevent election subversion, because theres a paper record. If somebody says the votes are this much and you can have an independent court or someone count the paper votes, we can find out if thats actually true. But the paper trail provision was missing from Manchins bill. Maybe thats just because its not a priority of his. Maybe he hasnt thought about it. But I am concerned.

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The other senator from West Virginia has talked about how they are experimenting with, having people in the armed services vote digitally. You could see why you would not want to have that in there.

Exactly. And thats what I mentioned in Slate last week, that Im concerned Manchin actually might like internet voting, which I think is a disaster from the point of view of election confidence. Right now, youve got a third of the country or more that believes without evidence that the 2020 election was stolen. We need to shore up our confidence in elections. Just imagine if we had the same situation that led to Jan. 6 and the fight over the vote in Georgia but there was no paper trail to be recounted. A few years ago in Georgia, many counties had electronic voting machines with no pieces of paper. So you push a button that says, heres the totals, and thats all you can do. You can imagine the conspiracy theories that were flying around there when there was no paper. Brad Raffensperger had a hand recount of every ballot in Georgia. Its essential that we have pieces of paper so we can conduct recounts. That, to me, is the most important provision of H.R. 1 that needs to pass.

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Whats interesting to me is youre saying theres something thats very important thats missing from what Manchin has offered as a compromisebut Dems should be taking the deal anyway.

Yeah, take the deal anyway. Because its Manchin or nothing, right? So why not take the deal? That doesnt mean you cant still push for all kinds of measures to prevent election subversion. I hope theres going to be a moment where some adults in the room want to, for example, change the Electoral Count Act, which has the crazy rules for how Congress counts the Electoral College votes. We had the 160 or so Republicans who objected to the votes in Pennsylvania and Arizona for no good reason. We need to change those rules before 2025 because were going to have lawless legislators who are not going to follow what the actual election results are. We need to make those changes. Thats got to be at the top of the agenda. I love the Manchin compromise. But its not the most important thing that we need to do right now.

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And its not the end. But at the same time, were waiting on a couple of decisions from the Supreme Court. Theres a lot of concern that these decisions will further erode voting rights. Can you explain these cases and what youre waiting to hear about?

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Its not all or nothing, and you can fight state by state.  Richard L. Hasen

There are two pending cases that Im watching closely. One is called Brnovich v. Democratic National Committee. Whats at issue there is a part of the Voting Rights Act thats different from preclearance part that we talked about earlier. This time, its about a part of the Voting Rights Act called Section 2, which says that minority voters should have the same opportunity as others to participate in the political process and elect representatives their choice. That language was crafted in 1982. We learned in 1986, in a case called Thornburg v. Gingles, what that means in the context of redistrictingrequiring the creation of some of these majority-minority districts. We dont know from the Supreme Court what it means in the context of what have been called vote denial laws, which make it harder for people to register or to vote. And lower courts have weighed in.

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So, like only having voting during business hours.

Sure. The United States Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, which is the most conservative appeals court in the country, ruled that Texas has a very strict voter ID law that violated Section 2. Texas tweaked it, made it a little bit less strict, and then the 5th Circuit upheld it under Section 2.

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Section 2 is a tool thats been used over the past few years in the lower courts as a way to rein in some of the most egregious forms of voter suppression. But the Supreme Court hasnt told us what Section 2 means and how tough it is. So were going to know whether federal Voting Rights Act protection is going to be meaningful or not over the next few years based on what SCOTUS doesits the most important voting rights case the Supreme Courts going to decide since Shelby County in 2013. So thats the bigger of the two cases. Im really nervous about that. I think Democrats never should have brought this case. The last place you want to try to get expanded voting rights is in the Supreme Court. But Democrats have been very aggressive about bringing this case.

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The other rule that was challenged is one that prevents so-called ballot harvesting, which is the idea that you can have third-party collection of absentee ballots. This is controversial: Its allowed in some states but not in other states. The question really is, is this something that can prevent fraud? And we do have cases where fraud occurred with ballot harvesting, when a 2018 congressional election had to be redone. But is that a voting rights violation when there actually is a risk of fraud? I think that the Supreme Court, maybe unanimously, is going to reject the Democrats arguments. But the real important thing is not whether Democrats win or lose this particular case, but what the standards are going to be.

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So just to sum up, weve got this big voting rights bill in the Senate thats dead. The Supreme Court may be about to hobble the Voting Rights Act, but were not sure how. And the possible corrective to whatever that ruling might bethe John Lewis Actis still in the House, still chugging along. We also have state legislatures passing bills to restrict when and how people can vote. Youre frantically warning we need to do something, but it doesnt feel like weve gotten very far, even though it feels like all of the motion is in the direction of restricting access to the ballot, not opening it up.

Well, there are some stateseven Kentucky, a Republican statethat are working in a bipartisan way to make it easier for people to vote. I think there are a lot of election officials working on ways of improving the competence of the system. But I think the way you need to think about it is that there are different levers that can be used to try to deal with both the question of voter suppression and election subversion. And weve got to use all of them.

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One of them is the Department of Justice. Attorney General Merrick Garland said theyre going to double the staff of the Civil Rights Division, and theyre going to go after voting cases. So lets see them go after this crazy audit in Arizona. Lets see them bring lawsuits under Section 2, assuming thats still preserved after Brnovich, and go after some of these states. This DOJ is fighting state by state over these rules. States are passing some bad rules, but theres pushback. The business community pushing back. Democrats are pushing back. Democrats walked out and really stalled things in Texas. So theres this hand-to-hand combat in each state, and then there are state courts where you can fight. But ideally, Congress needs to step in.

You say the Texas folks walking out is a good signal, but the Texas legislators who walked out specifically said we need Congress to act now because weve laid all our cards on the table and done what we can.

There were two provisions in the Texas bill that didnt pass that got attention. No. 1, a measure that would make it much easier to overturn election results by changing the burden of proof and changing the standard there. The Republicans are now not going to include that in their bill, according to our reporting. No. 2, no voting on Sundays, when in the mornings Black voters would often go to church and then go vote in early voting drives. Theyre now taking that out too. Im not saying these bills are good, but Im saying its not all or nothing, and you can fight state by state. So even without congressional action, there are ways to try to fight this. And, of course, political organizing matters, agitating for transparency. It might mean that people are going to have to be vigilant over the next few years, regarding attempts to try to to change who runs election boards. Thats not the ideal way to do it. But thats all weve got. Weve got to fight with the tools we have.

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From The Ascent of Information: Books, Bits, Genes, Machines, and Lifes Unending Algorithm by Caleb Scharf published on June 15, 2021 by Riverhead, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. Copyright  2021 Caleb Scharf.

In 1889, a mechanical engineer named Herman Hollerith persuaded the United States government to use machinereadable paper punch cards and electric counting machines to conduct the national Census, saving the U.S. Treasury about $5 million in the costs of handling data for 62 million people. By 1891 Hollerith was designing machines to be used in censuses in Canada, Norway, and Austria, as well as by railroads to tabulate fare information. As a result, Holleriths fledgling company quickly became part of the growing data landscape, and eventually, in 1924, it became the International Business Machines Corporation, or IBM.

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The core technological idea that Hollerith exploited had originated in the early 1700s with punched holes in paper tape that could govern the movement of thread in automated weaving looms. This mechanical hack meant that complex patterns could be reproduced quickly and efficiently in all kinds of textiles. And during the 1800s punched paper grew beyond looms into a more general technique for information storage and manipulation.

By 1937, IBM was churning out an astonishing 10 million blank punch cards per day. In the first half of the 20th century, these simple paper cards, designed to take a precise grid of punches (literally rectangular holes) of 80 columns by 12 rows, were used in an enormous variety of business and governmental applications, from accounting records to personnel files. Their tiny papery voids were data manifested in the physical world.

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For a time, punch cards were a dominating force in humanitys dataome. Thats what Ive come to call the mass of data humanity creates and carries, other than our geneseverything from the plays of Shakespeare to the memories held in the neurons of your brain. This is one of the most peculiar and possibly unique features of humans: We carry vast amounts of information externally to our biological forms. That data not only reflects humanitys actions, but drives them as well. And for a while, the 20th century dataome was drowning in punch cards.

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In World War II the cryptographers working at Bletchley Park in England would routinely use about 2 million punch cards a week to store their decryptions of Nazi communications. But that wasnt the peak: That came in 1967, at which point the U.S. alone consumed approximately 200 billion cards per year. By then punch cards were also the common medium for programming and interrogating fully digital computers.

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Extremely critical tasks like the core programming of NASAs Apollo Projects Guidance Computer, whose design was overseen by the computer scientist Margaret Hamilton as director of software engineering at MITs Instrumentation Laboratory, were transposed onto IBM paper punch cards. This process was entirely standard routine for software development. A programmer would write code by hand on special coding sheetspreformatted forms. Those coding sheets would then be converted into physical punch cards using a keypunch machine, essentially a typewriter attached to a powered machine equipped to punch the holes in the cards. Often this procedure would take place twice, where a second human operator would punch the cards again in a verifier machine that compared this new set with the first to catch any errors. Finally, the cards would be fed to a cardreading machine that would convert the holes to electrical signals, physically compiling the data into the electronic computer.

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All of this meant that using a computer was a physical chorefrom making the cards to carrying a stack of them to the card reader and waiting your turn to program the computer. In software parlance this was a batchmode process with you as a part of the batch. And as with all of our books and printed materials, punch cards also represented a significant energy burden. Factoring in the paper production, the transport, the machines, and the human effort, its likely that in the late 1960s an equivalent of somewhere between 1 percent and 10 percent of the national coal burning energy budget in the U.S. was going into the production and use of punch cards.

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The fascinating thing is that punch cards, perhaps even more than ordinary printed matter, demanded very specific human behaviors. The whole thought process of writing, testing, and using computer software was, for a while, beholden to the quirks of a format that had its origins in how we massproduced pretty textiles. There was also a direct physical relationship to the data as stacks of cards were carried and deposited, organized and discarded. For a while in the 1960s, it must have seemed like our future was truly that of a cog in a giant electromechanical organism. But by the mid1980s, punch cards went pretty much extinct. Even IBM wasnt making them anymore. Instead, the cards and the machines that used them became relegated to specific legacy needs. Magnetic tapes and disks and solidstate computer memory became the norm. These new media were vastly more compact, faster, and more reliable. Critically, these storage techniques also lent themselves to a much more natural approach to data. Imagine trying to record and digitize an orchestral performance with punch cards. Not only would this be spectacularly slow, the machinery would need to be highly customized. By contrast, that music can be almost seamlessly and finely digitized and recorded onto magnetic tape or a silicon memorywith an enormously more accommodating set of limitations on speed and capacity. The barrier between the dataome and the physical world, and us, was magically lowered. Punch cards enabled the rise of the digital world, but they were also outdone by it.

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There is a striking similarity between the history of punch cards and the kinds of patterns we find in evolutionary biology and the ebb and flow of species. That is not necessarily a profound thing. A correlation and similarity do not imply an underlying fundamental linkage. But seen through this lens its pretty undeniable that these simple pieces of paper take on an organismlike character, in an essential symbiosis with humans.

Punch cards were initially an emergent innovation in a niche environment (of mechanical looms and tabulating machines). But as their utility was exploited for a broader range of purposes, they in turn influenced the environment. In biological terms, their phenotype extended.

They placed demands on energy and raw materials and sculpted their surrounding infrastructure. They also reached back to directly govern human behavioran interpretation that makes sense to take quite literally. The punch card component of an evolving dataome resulted in humans training themselves to punch the cards, to carry them to the machines, to painstakingly disentangle things when stuff caught and jammed. To live, think, and dream of punch cards.

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Special printing presses needed to be invented to produce these cards, and engineers worried over excruciating minutiae like the shape of the punchescircular versus the more efficiently packed rectangles. The specific data passing through the cards at any given moment, whether the U.S. Census or an Apollo lunar trajectory, was almost irrelevant. In the dataome, the punch card was an evolutionary experiment, a new kind of biomechanical structure if you will. In the process, it changed the ways we think about information and the things we can do with it. Punch cards helped drive human society out of the Industrial Age and into the Data Age like an unruly herd.

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Eventually they were selected out of existence because they were too energy hungry and too cumbersome. Arguably, though, some of their genes survived through this extinction. The way that these cards structured data included designating years with two digitsto save space. This feature created the threat of a socalled Y2K disaster as the human calendar passed the year 2000. The nomenclature used by some computer languages for formatting data also has its roots in the need for standardizing punches in their 80 columns. These traits have indeed outlived their material hosts, and carried a little bit of the burden with them.

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Its all too easy to assume that today were done with such temporary and demanding phenomena as punch cards. But of course that isnt necessarily the case. If I was writing this from 50 years in the future I might be rolling my eyes at the craziness of cryptocurrencies of the early 21st century. Or the lunatic naivety of smartphones and social media and how they made us behave. There is no reason to suppose that other novel and differently burdensome experiments wont keep emerging from the dataomeand supplanting their predecessors.

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society.
Slovakia will sell or donate unused Sputnik V vaccines

Finance Minister Igor Matovic, who orchestrated the purchase, might face an attempt to oust him.

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Slovakia will sell or donate 160,000 unused doses of the uncertified Sputnik V vaccine before they expire.

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.

The decision was adopted by the cabinet at its June 23 session.

Slovakia received 200,000 Sputnik V doses in early March, but it took three more months to launch the registration with the vaccine. Altogether 14,214 have registered for the vaccination with Sputnik V, and 8,004 people have already been vaccinated. The Health Ministry is ready to stop the registration after June 30.

Given the persisting serious epidemiological situation and the need for mutual cooperation with countries to slow down the spread of Covid-19, we propose to donate a certain number of Sputnik V doses to the Western Balkans countries as part of the material aid, reads the document approved by the cabinet, as quoted by the TASR newswire.

At the same time, the vaccines will be sold to countries that show an interest. So far, only Argentina has offered to buy some doses.

Disinformation was supposed to help the Russian vaccine, but it harmed everyone Read more

SaS agrees with the proposal

The Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) party which criticised the purchase of the Russian vaccine considers the cabinet decision wise. It was supported by all three ministers nominated by the party, said its chair Richard Sulik, as reported by TASR.

Foreign Affairs Minister Ivan Korcok (SaS nominee) added that a preferable option is to sell the vaccines, but if there is no one to buy them, it is better to donate them than to let them expire.

If there are countries that use them and help their citizens to reduce the risk that concerns us all, its necessary to support them, Korcok said, as quoted by the SITA newswire.

Matovic to face ousting attempt

Determined and unconcerned about travelling abroad. Who are the people interested in the Russian vaccine? Read more

A group of opposition MPs who belong to the non-parliamentary Hlas party meanwhile started collecting signatures to summon a special session to recall Finance Minister Igor Matovic (OLaNO), who orchestrated the purchase of Sputnik V when serving as the prime minister.

They talked about a scandal, pointing to the fact that if Slovakia fails to sell the unused doses, the damage caused may amount to some 20 million, as reported by TASR.

More on vaccination in Slovakia:

23. Jun 2021 at 17:31 | Compiled by Spectator staff
Pauley said the state agency is doing what it can to right the wrong. He said what would really help is to have the endorsement of organizations like the NAACP.

We do diligence in holding our troopers accountable, changed our policies to better fit law enforcement of the day, he said. To have your endorsement in society, the more help and more voice we have out there the easier it will be for us to enforce what needs to be enforced.

Chilton spoke for continued dialogue with the NAACP and an open door policy where folks can come to them at any time.

Culpeper PD has more than half dozen officers dedicated strictly to community policing and events, he said.

That has proved itself over and over a million times, Chilton said, noting local officers marched with organizers of last years Black Lives Matter rally following the murder of George Floyd. And there was dialogue leading up to the peaceful assembly, made sure it went off without a hitch, he said. Chilton said the agency is 100 percent engaged with the community and will continue as such.

Chief Jenkins, who regularly announces new hires and vacancies at the PD at town council meetings, said one of the biggest challenges is finding the right people to do police work.
Paul W. Edmondson, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, said the preservation group was pleased that the action provides the Montpelier Descendants Committee with equal representation on the foundations board.

The Montpelier board of directors and the MDC have shown critical leadership in creating equitable governance of a site that is not only the ancestral home of James Madison, but also of hundreds of people enslaved by the Madison family, Edmondson said. The National Trust strongly supported this proposal, and we worked with both parties over the past year to achieve this new level of partnership. We commend both The Montpelier Foundation and the Montpelier Descendants Committee for working together to achieve this breakthrough.

The vote on bylaws came during the week of Juneteenth, and followed a May 27 resolution saying the foundation board affirms its commitment to collaborate with the Montpelier Descendants Committee to achieve structural parity with descendants at all levels of the organization.

Support Local Journalism Your subscription makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}}

Montpelier President and CEO Roy Young praised the difficult yet important work by the board and committee.
The Rev. Adrian Sledge is running for Culpeper Town Council out of a continued drive to be active in his community.

The 47-year-old logistics management specialist with Dept. of the Army said running for elected office was one of the things he wanted to do before he turned 50.

I wasnt a politician and timing was never right, but now I got tired of people complaining about whats not right, social inequality. The question I asked myself: What am I doing about it? Sledge said during a recent interview downtown. I believe voting does make a difference, but voting doesnt change everything. A lot of things are happening that are out of our hands. The only way to fix it, we got to get inside ourselves.

He spent more than 25 years active and in the reserves in the U.S. Army before his retirement in 2019. Sledge got into the Christian ministry in his 20s and was interim pastor at New Chestnut Baptist Church in Mechanicsville for a year ending in 2010.

He is a native of San Antonio Texas, third-generation military and a grandfather. His two sons, in their 20s, are also in the Army and his oldest, a daughter, lives in Hawaii as part of her own military family.
The state is tracking variants and breakthroughs, and are watching the P.1 and the B.1.617 variants closely because they have been demonstrated to require higher levels of antibodies for protection.

What we know from areas that are having high rates of these new variants of concerns, and seen more cases of these variants, is that vaccination is still working to keep people out of the hospital and keep people from dying, he said. Even in countries with very high proportions of those variants, vaccinations are still working to do what we need them to do.

Donahue and PPHD director Kim Engel did discuss that the Delta variant has been detected in the Panhandle, with eight cases having been traced.

The question of how big of a problem it becomes, I think, is entirely edged on how quickly we can convince our loved ones to get vaccinated, Donahue said. Only time will tell.

Also, the Panhandle is higher than the rest of the state as far as active COVID-19 cases, overall, which could be attributed to it also having a lower vaccination rate. As of Monday, only 31% of Panhandle residents had been vaccinated for COVID-19. Its not the lowest rate of vaccination in the state, Engel said, but is the second lowest rate.
Schingle said theyve already begun installing some, and one has even been used successfully already.

We did install a box  early last week and we already had a call, he said. It is working. Its wonderful.

Those who are 60 years of age or older may apply for a loaner box and the Scottsbluff Fire Department will install the box and provide a safety survey of the residence. The box is loaned, at no charge, for as long as the applicant resides at the address. Those who are interested must reside within the City of Scottsbluff or the two-mile extra-territorial jurisdiction of Scottsbluff.

The city council also received an update on the aquatic center, a back and forth project that has the city, the school district and the YMCA all trying to decide if this was something to be pursued. At this point, city manager Dustin Reif said, the council needed to begin looking at the language of the LB 357 tax to truly get the ball rolling, as that would be the best way to pay for the bulk of the project.

The next steps from us would be on looking at the 357 language and going that route, he said.

Zac Karpf, president of the YMCA directors board, was present and echoed the request for the city to start moving on their side of things.
However, today, riders only travel one mile, rather than 100 miles, swapping the mochila.

Our horses are not in as good of shape as those in the 1860s, Debus said.

There are other differences as well.

Today, when you are on the trail, you have to worry about vehicles, trash that is along the burrow pit, she said. In 1860, riders had to watch for herds of buffalo, Indians and had other worries. They didnt have a nice highway to ride alongside like we do.

On Wednesday, the best place to catch the Pony Express Re-Ride in the Panhandle is at the Scotts Bluff National Monument. Currently, the Re-Ride is anticipated to arrive at the monument between 4:30 and 5 p.m.

Right now, its one hour ahead of schedule, Debus said Tuesday, noting that it also had a stint where it was six hours behind schedule.

However, Debus says, the Re-Ride could be going ahead of schedule, or even behind schedule. People need to understand it is not an exact time. We can be early, we can be late, we can be on time.
Ashley had her cellphone with her when she was last seen playing with friends at a park. Authorities say the phone was found later that day in Wilsons jacket by one of his relatives after her parents repeatedly called it.

Wilson told authorities that he found the phone on the ground near the park. A message left with his lawyer, Ariel Toft with the Office of Public Advocacy, was not immediately returned.

The afternoon the girl went missing, authorities say Wilson disappeared with a four-wheeler for about two hours. The FBI, which sent 17 agents to help investigate, said the girls body was found on tundra outside Kotzebue, in an area concealed by brush.

After the girl disappeared, Kotzebue residents helped search for her and vigils were held across Alaska.

Scotty Barr said Wilson changing his plea was another good little relief off our shoulders, off our minds."

Wilson will be sentenced Sept. 21. If the court accepts the plea agreement, he will be sentenced to 198 years in prison with 99 of them suspended.

It plays with your emotions, mentally, physically and emotionally and spiritually, Barr said, noting that Ashleys six siblings might be having the hardest time with her death. Were almost at the end, and were looking forward to it, to become a family again, to learn to live without one of your children that will never, ever come back.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

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A Bellevue man has been found guilty of cyberstalking after he threatened to make public nude photos of the wife of a candidate for the Nebraska Legislature.

Dennis Sryniawski, 48, was found guilty Monday by a jury in the U.S. District Court of Nebraska. Cyberstalking is punishable in the federal courts by up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

The jury also found Sryniawski not guilty of a second charge, intent to extort.

A message left for Sryniawski's attorney seeking comment was not immediately returned.

FBI investigators determined that Sryniawski sent threatening and sexually explicit emails to Jeff Parris. Diane Parris of La Vista served as the campaign manager for her husband. Jeff Parris was seeking the District 14 seat in the Nebraska Legislature in 2018.

"We'd just like to say that we are happy that he was found guilty on that charge," Diane Parris said Tuesday.
Breland Ridenour, an IT manager for Skarda Equipment Co. in Omaha, is on the 2022 Republican gubernatorial campaign trail along with University of Nebraska Regent Jim Pillen of Columbus and agri-businessman Charles Herbster of Falls City.

Sen. Brett Lindstrom of Omaha is still widely expected to join the GOP race.

Former Republican Gov. Dave Heineman is considering whether to enter the contest with a decision to come later. Heineman served 10 years as governor from 2005 to 2015 before being term-limited out of office.

Ridenour announced his candidacy in mid-May.

In a news release, he said he believes he offers Nebraska voters "fresh eyes, young blood and a 360-degree perspective."

Writing on his campaign website, Ridenour said he recently spoke against promotion of the controversial critical race theory at a meeting of the Douglas County Learning Community.

"This is the time to be vocal and active," he said.

"If critical race theory was indeed true, we would not have prominent people of color in our society today," Ridenour wrote on Twitter.
The Biden administration called Chinas retaliatory move economic coercion.

The practice of governments making major investments in their own companies is called economic nationalism. This kind of state intervention does not sit well with some ideologies. Conservatives traditionally believe that the governments should not mess with market mechanisms. Let the private sector make such decisions.

Only one Democrat voted against the Senate bill. That was Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who complained that it amounted to corporate welfare to big, rich companies. Suffice it to say, if the companies could have become richer doing this on their own, they would have done it.

The bottom line should be American jobs, not Sanders highly dated idea of how the world economy works. This spending not only creates jobs at the corporations, rich or otherwise, but also helps retain jobs at other companies slowed down by the shortage of semiconductors.

In a similar vein, the administration is now working on a plan to beef up the American manufacture of lithium-ion batteries. Used in electric cars and for storing renewable energy, these batteries are essential to a green economy. China has 93 gigafactories that make them. The U.S. has four.
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Williams and Treme were the final policy makers for the Town, the lawsuit says. They both acted with actual malice towards (Call).

The lawsuit goes on to claim that Williams and Treme contributed to what became a hostile work environment for Call during his final 10 months as an employee for the town.

After bringing his issues with Williams and Treme to the Mooresville Board of Commissioners and the mayor, another investigation was launched into his claims of a hostile work environment, as well as other claims that he felt needed to be addressed.

The U.S. ISS Agency also handled the investigation into his claims, during which Call claims he was subjected to interviews in which he was berated and belittled.

Williams was suspended from his position as police chief on June 3, 2019, and ultimately resigned on Nov. 14, 2019.

Campurciani is named as a defendant in the suit because of his involvement in the final days of Calls employment. The lawsuit claims that despite (knowing) he could not lawfully terminate (Call) for exercising his First Amendment rights and testifying truthfully under oath  he did so anyway.
That would be everything. Its been something that Ive worked toward for so long and Ive put so much energy into it, and I know it would mean so much to my friends and family and the Statesville community as a whole, she said. I think that our community could really use this win, especially after everything that COVID has thrown at us. But I know on a personal note, I was that girl that grew up and was a little weird, a little quirky, listening to the hard rock, and I was bullied for being chunky, and bullied for listening to the hard rock, and all of that, so being able to be a representative who is willing to be vulnerable about those things and connect with young women and young people, people in general, about those kinds of topics, I think is so important.
ABINGDON, Va.  Ned Beatty  the Oscar-nominated character actor who died last Sunday at age 83  appeared onstage at Abingdons Barter Theatre for several summers.

Its unfortunate, Rick Rose, the Barters retired producing artistic director from 1992-2019, said of Beattys death.

Best known for his roles in the movies Deliverance and Superman, Beatty spent his early acting career, 1959-1964, performing in various roles such as Big Daddy in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1959) under the guidance of Barter Theatre founder Robert Porterfield.

Beatty lived in a home on Valley Street in Abingdon for a while, Rose said.

I almost became a minister, and that stage turned out to be my seminary, Beatty once said about the Barter Theatre, which is the state theater of Virginia.

Literally, there is nothing better for a young actor to do than be in a company like this, Beatty said.

Beyond the Barter, Beatty became an acclaimed star of screen, stage and television.

He played a city slicker exploring the backwoods of the South in 1972s controversial Deliverance, filmed along the South Carolina-Georgia border.
The groups fundraising efforts also helped raise money for the restoration project.

A naming program allowed individuals or families to name a window, door or pew in the chapel in honor or in memory of someone special. Wall plaques in the chapel commemorate those gifts. There are a few naming opportunities still available.

According to Morgan, the gathering also will serve as a homecoming for former members and pastors of the chapel. The Rev. Charles Maynard, a Methodist minister in Knoxville who served as pastor of the chapel more than 40 years ago, will speak at the event.

Being a student pastor at Smyth Chapel was a formative experience for me, said Maynard in a recent email. The congregation lovingly embraced me and gently taught me about pastoring. Its thrilling that the old building has been restored and even improved to continue ministering to the community. I am looking forward to being in the little white church on the hillside with community people once again.

Morgan said the homecoming is open to everyone in the community, but they especially are reaching out to former church members and their families.

Many members are no longer living, but their families are still in the area. We want them to come and see the restored and expanded building.

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But Pinson said the producer should have learned more about how to get a special-exception permit and inform neighbors before all that planning.

After that, Pinson asked whether a bear baiting competition could be allowed.

Bear baiting was very popular in the Middle Ages, he said.

With this, bears would be chained up, and dogs would attack them. If the bear proved particularly active in fighting the dogs, they would just have more dogs attack, Pinson said.

I dont think you would approve, Pinson said.

In turn, Pinson criticized rodeos as being cruel to animals.

The sport of rodeo is headed towards the trash heap of history because there are changing views about that activity, Pinson said. It may not be widespread in Washington County, but it is across the country.

Rodeo in the Valley is sanctioned by the International Pro Rodeo Association, which requires its rodeos to keep veterinarians on-site in case of animal injury and enforce rules to protect animals inside and outside the ring. No bear baiting shows up in the roster of events, but the rodeo will include bull riding, barrel racing and calf roping, to name a few.
Of those 375 slaveowners in Nottoway County, 95 owned 20 or more enslaved people, which accounted for 4,311, or two-thirds of the total enslaved population  which meant that 1% of the county held nearly half the humanity in the county captive. It was the economic interests of that 1%  or that 4.2%, depending on which accounting you prefer  that led to the great bloodletting that we know as the Civil War.

All those Confederate battle flags might stand for different things depending on whos viewing them, but ultimately they are the flag of that 4.2% of the population.

The first three letters of Confederacy spell con, which is what that secessionist project was  a con job on the poor whites who wound up dying so their richer neighbors could keep their slaves. They might have signed up in the name of states rights, but the states right to do what?

We single out Nottoway County because it singled itself out  no other county in Virginia in 1860 had a higher percentage of its population enslaved. But many came close. In Amelia County, the figure was 71%. In Cumberland County, 67%. In Greensville County, 65%. In all, 39 counties had more than half their population enslaved  all east of the Blue Ridge. (If youre curious, the percentage in Pittsylvania County was 44.7%).
Kelso School District

Grateful for flags along the streets

With the Fourth of July coming up, I thank Bob Gregory and the Longview Rotary Club members for all the beautiful flags placed along our streets.

Im deeply thankful also, to Rick Little and his team of volunteers and staff who created a magnificent display of large and small flags (approximately 4,000). The ceremony was wonderful as well.

The biggest disappointment for my wife and I was the huge lack of people in attendance. As The Daily News stated: dozens of attendees. I ask where were all those who claim to be patriots and love to shoot off fireworks at any time for days on end? Im sure those who fought and died for us would wonder if giving their lives was really worth it.

I love our lake and festivities, but I detest the selfish and careless people who set off fireworks then leave it up to others to clean up. Every evening the wind comes up from the ocean an carries all the fireworks debris over everyone elses alleys, roofs, streets and lawns.
Doumit served two terms as a Wahkiakum County Commissioner before entering statewide politics. He was elected to the House of Representatives, where he served from 1997 to 2002 and chaired the House Natural Resources Committee.

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Doumit switched chambers in 2002 when he was appointed to fill the seat of Sid Snyder, the Senate Democratic leader who announced his retirement halfway through his term. Four years later, Doumit announced he was stepping down from the Senate to become the executive director of the WFPA.

Cindy Mitchell, public affairs director for the WFPA, said Doumit was a natural fit to lead the organization.

Mark was very passionate about the natural resource issues and about people. He always saw the best in other people and he always sought common ground, Mitchell said.

Doumit was one of the original sponsors of the 1999 Forest and Fish Law, which overhauled the states salmon recovery program by protecting 60,000 miles of streams and was considered a landmark piece of environmental legislation. The WFPA was a major stakeholder in the forests affected by the law and manages the Forests and Fish website.
Cowlitz County Health and Human Services Deputy Director Gena James said 270 people are interested in housing through coordinated entry. Those on this list could be referred to receive emergency housing vouchers, she said.

The Housing Opportunities of Southwest Washington covers Wahkiakum, Lewis, Pacific and Cowlitz counties, except for Kelso and Kalama, which are included in the Kelso Housing Authority. The Kelso Housing Authority could not be reached to confirm if it also will distribute emergency housing vouchers.

A 2019 report by The Daily News said the Kelso Housing Authority also opened voucher applications in 2018 for only two days.

The emergency voucher allocation comes from a total of 70,000 vouchers for $5 million through the American Rescue Plan, according to HUD. The American Rescue Plan was signed by President Joe Biden in March 2021.

Wait times

According to Rhodes, 231 people are on the Housing Opportunities of Southwest Washingtons waiting list for traditional vouchers. People on the traditional waitlist cannot receive emergency vouchers.

On average, Rhodes said it takes about 98 days for a homeless person to find a location to use vouchers distributed by the organization and 67 days for people who are not homeless.
A former Massachusetts resident has pleaded guilty to her role in a romance scam that prosecutors say defrauded multiple victims out of more than $4 million, the U.S. attorney's office in Boston said.

Florence Mwende Musau, 36, a Kenyan woman who lived in Canton, pleaded guilty Monday to conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud, prosecutors said in a statement.

She faces a maximum of 30 years in prison at sentencing scheduled for October 14.

Musau was one of six people charged in March.

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Musau participated in a series of romance scams designed to persuade victims into sending money to bank accounts controlled by her and her alleged accomplices, according to authorities.

She used fake online identities and created the illusion of a romantic relationship with the victims to steal from them, prosecutors said. She also used fake passports and aliases to open bank accounts in the Boston area to collect and launder the proceeds of the scams, prosecutors said.

When she withdrew the money, it was often in amounts less than $10,000 in an effort to evade detection and currency transaction reporting requirements, prosecutors said.
Google Meet has allowed people to communicate effectively, both voice and video, in these dark, coronavirus-hit times. It is a simple and very effective tool to use and this has allowed Google Meet to become one of the most popular video conferencing platforms in the world. Google Meet has not only helped people coordinate with their colleagues while working from home it has also made it easier for school and college-going kids to study without having to attend physical classes. Now, a massive update has been rolled out for Google Meet that is aimed at helping both students and teachers make studying-from-home stress free.

Google Meet security

Google Meets latest update makes video calls much more secure for students and teachers. Google said that every teacher and co-teacher in a Classroom will now be able to become a host in a meeting, which will enable multiple teachers to share the load of managing a class. The company also said that once a teacher is present, students who are on the Classroom roster will be automatically admitted to the meeting. Students will be placed into a waiting room and won't be able to see or communicate with other participants until a teacher is present. Additionally, a student who is not on the Classroom roster will have to ask to join and only the teacher can allow them into the meeting. Clearly, Google has been studying keenly what has been happening in video classrooms and is looking to make the experience more effective for teachers and more fulfilling for students.

For meetings started from Meet or Calendar

Google in a blog also mentioned a bunch of new features for meetings started from Meet or Calendar. The company said that when a host ends breakout rooms, participants will get a warning and then will be forced back into the main meeting. Hosts can match the breakout room safety settings with the safety settings from the main meeting. Also, to prevent distractions, hosts will be able to turn off everyones video at once with a video lock.

Google also said that it is adding important meeting safety controls, such as the ability to end meetings for everyone on the call and mute everyone at once, for hosts using tablets and mobile phones.

All of these features will arrive on Google Meet in the coming months.

For admins

Google has also announced a bunch of new features for admins. In its blog post, Google said that it is adding settings to the Admin Console so school leaders can set policies for who can join their schools Meet video calls and whether people from their school can join video calls from other schools. Google also said that admins will also soon have a new setting to control whether Quick access is enabled by default, and another setting to control whether people can use the chat in meetings. Google has already started rolling out these changes to the Google Classroom admins.

And in the coming weeks, Google will enable admins with Education Standard and Education Plus to end any meeting in their organisation directly from the investigation tool. Doing so will also turn off Quick Access automatically so nobody can rejoin the meeting without the host present.

And others...

Googles updated list of features doesnt end there. Google said that soon teachers will be able to choose co-hosts in meetings, and all meeting hosts will have access to safety controls. And in the coming months, it will be rolling out support for multiple hosts on Google Meet. Additionally, users will be able to pin multiple tiles to customise what they want to focus on and use closed captions during live streams.

Google Meet live translations

Another major feature coming to Google Meet is live translations. Google said that later this year, Meet will offer live translated captions. With live translations enabled, you can listen to someone speaking one language and see real-time captions in another language. We expect this will be especially helpful in multilingual classrooms or when meeting with parents who speak a different language, Google wrote in its blog post.

Google Meet public live streaming to YouTube

Lastly, Google said that users will soon be able to host public live streams streamed right to YouTube so anyone outside of your institution can attend, ideal for school board meetings, school events and more. Public live streaming will be rolling out in beta later this year and will be widely available for customers with the Teaching and Learning Upgrade or Education Plus in early 2022.
Google's YouTube won its latest copyright infringement challenge after Europe's top court said online platforms are not liable for users uploading unauthorised works unless the platforms failed to take quick action to remove or block access to the content. The case marks the latest development in a long-running battle between Europe's $1 trillion creative industry and online platforms, with the former seeking redress for unauthorised works that are uploaded.

It is also part of the wider debate on how much online platforms and social media should do to police the posting of unauthorised, illegal, or hateful content, an issue that European Union regulators are targeting with tough new rules that could come into force next year. "As currently stands, operators of online platforms do not, in principle, themselves make a communication to the public of copyright-protected content illegally posted online by users of those platforms," the EU Court of Justice said.

"However, those operators do make such a communication in breach of copyright where they contribute, beyond merely making those platforms available, to giving access to such content to the public," judges said.

The EU court said platforms could also be liable if they do not put in place the appropriate technological tools to tackle copyright breaches by their users or where they provide tools on their platforms for illegal sharing of content. In response to the court ruling, a YouTube spokesperson said: "YouTube is a leader in copyright and supports rights holders being paid their fair share."

"That's why we've invested in state-of-the-art copyright tools which have created an entirely new revenue stream for the industry. In the past 12 months alone we have paid $4 billion to the music industry, over 30% of which comes from monetised user-generated content."

The case underlines a long-running debate on the responsibilities of online platforms, with the CJEU giving useful guidance to national courts assessing such disagreements, said Nils Rauer, a partner at law firm Pinsent Masons.

"The core question is and remains whether the platform is in a rather passive role (no liability) or in an active role (liability). There is a fine line between those two roles," he said.

"With today's ruling, the domestic courts will be able to build on more guidance from Luxembourg where to draw the line between the good ones (platforms) and the bad ones," he said.

YouTube found itself in the dock after Frank Peterson, a music producer, sued the company and Google in Germany over the uploading to YouTube by users in 2008 of several phonograms to which he holds the rights. In a second case, publishing group Elsevier took legal action against file-hosting service Cyando in Germany after its users uploaded several Elsevier works on its platform Uploaded in 2013 without its approval.

A German court subsequently sought advice from the EU Court of Justice, which ruled on both cases on Tuesday. Existing EU rules exempt YouTube and its peers from such liability regarding copyright when they are told of violations and remove them.

The EU last year overhauled its copyright rules for the first time in two decades to help its creative industries by adopting a key provision known as Article 17. This requires YouTube, Facebook's Instagram, and other sharing platforms to install filters to prevent users from uploading copyrighted materials.

But this has drawn criticism from civil rights groups worried about potential censorship by authoritarian governments and risks to freedom of expression. Several EU countries have yet to transpose the EU law into national legislation, due in part to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The European Commission has also proposed much a more wide-ranging Digital Services Act, which sets stringent obligations on very large online companies, online platforms, and hosting services, backed by fines up to 6% of a company's revenue for non-compliance.

This would apply to websites, internet infrastructure services, and online platforms such as online marketplaces, social networks, content-sharing platforms, app stores, and online travel and accommodation platforms.

The draft rules need to be thrashed out with EU countries and EU lawmakers before they can become law, likely to be next year.

The cases are C-682/18 YouTube and C-683/18 Cyando.
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

As you drive down the highway, you may notice an increasing number of hybrid and electric vehicles. Alternative energy automobiles are on the rise contributing to the global effort to reduce carbon emissions. As we move together down this road, researchers are looking to determine new solutions to this ongoing problem.

Dr. Muzammil Arshad, instructional assistant professor for the Department of Multidisciplinary Engineering at Texas A&M University, and a team of multidisciplinary student researchers conducted a study to analyze the performance of hydrogen-enriched fuel on spark engine performance and efficiency. This solution could make significant contributions to helping automobiles become more environmentally friendly.

"Due to climate change as well as a focus on reduced emissions and deprivation of fossil fuel reserves, there has been immense research to reduce emissions," said Arshad. "This has led to investigating effects of dual fuels on the emissions as well as engine performance parameters because we don't want to lose the combustion characteristics by injecting a secondary fuel."

Two multidisciplinary students, Jonathan Rodriguez and Miriam Alanis, contributed significantly and are co-authors of the research. As undergraduate students at the Higher Education Center at McAllen (HECM), this accomplishment is an impactful stepping stone.

Their research was accepted into the 12th U.S. Annual Combustion Meeting hosted in College Station, where they presented their findings.

"I think presenting at the conference was wonderful," said Alanis. "From the study, we were able to produce tangible results that could potentially be meaningful and useful."

This study was also recently published in the Petroleum and Chemical Industry International journal.

"These accolades establish our research and give it credibility," said Rodriguez. "We are making progress at the HECM. I believe we are part of the first student research project conducted on campus. As an undergraduate, I didn't believe it was an experience I would achieve until Dr. Arshad developed the project."

Spark ignition engines are commonly used in various small SUVs and sedans. In these engines, gasoline merges with air and is ignited by a spark formed by the spark plug, creating combustion. The car can convert thermal energy into kinetic by burning the fuel, allowing the car to move.

"We have performed numerical simulations to understand and predict the performance of spark ignition engines by introducing hydrogen in various quantities and predicting the effect on various efficiencies, in-cylinder pressure and emissions," said Arshad.

The goal is that by adding hydrogen, the car will be more fuel-efficient and produce less harmful emissions. The researchers also analyzed whether significant changes would be required to current spark ignition engines to account for the addition of hydrogen.

"Originally, we thought the difference in the in-cylinder pressure due to the enrichment could create issues that would require major modifications to the engine," said Rodriguez. "Our findings show a reduction in the in-cylinder peak pressure, consequently insinuating that we do not need major modifications to the engine to use this dual fuel. This research has potential value in the fuel market while leaving the vehicle market untouched."

As the first research initiative at the HECM, Arshad is thrilled with the results and plans to conduct similar projects with students in the future.

"Research experience and publications are a major skill they can now showcase on their resumes," said Arshad. "They also learned skills such as time management, working under pressure, meeting deadlines and presenting in front of large audiences. All of these skills are valuable and will help them in the future."

Explore further Jet ignition technology could boost efficiency and lower emissions of combustion engines
Jingyang Wang holds up a ceramic palette sample prepared for the DRX research program co-led by Gerbrand Ceder and Guoying Chen at Berkeley Lab. Credit: Marilyn Sargent/Berkeley Lab

In our future electrified world, the demand for battery storage is projected to be enormous, reaching to upwards of 2 to 10 terawatt-hours (TWh) of annual battery production by 2030, from less than 0.5 TWh today. However, concerns are growing as to whether key raw materials will be adequate to meet this future demand. The lithium-ion batterythe dominant technology for the foreseeable futurehas a component made of cobalt and nickel, and those two metals face severe supply constraints on the global market.

Now, after several years of research led by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), scientists have made significant progress in developing battery cathodes using a new class of materials that provide batteries with the same if not higher energy density than conventional lithium-ion batteries but can be made of inexpensive and abundant metals. Known as DRX, which stands for disordered rocksalts with excess lithium, this novel family of materials was invented less than 10 years ago and allows cathodes to be made without nickel or cobalt.

"The classic lithium-ion battery has served us well, but as we consider future demands for energy storage, its reliance on certain critical minerals exposes us not only to supply-chain risks, but also environmental and social issues," said Ravi Prasher, Berkeley Lab's Associate Lab Director for Energy Technologies. "With DRX materials, this offers lithium batteries the potential to be the foundation for sustainable battery technologies for the future."

The cathode is one of the two electrodes in a battery and accounts for more than one-third of the cost of a battery. Currently the cathode in lithium-ion batteries uses a class of materials known as NMC, with nickel, manganese, and cobalt as the key ingredients.

"I've done cathode research for over 20 years, looking for new materials, and DRX is the best new material I've ever seen by far," said Berkeley Lab battery scientist Gerbrand Ceder, who is co-leading the research. "With the current NMC class, which is restricted to just nickel, cobalt, and an inactive component made of manganese, the classic lithium-ion battery is at the end of its performance curve unless you transfer to new cathode materials, and that's what the DRX program offers. DRX materials have enormous compositional flexibilityand this is very powerful because not only can you use all kinds of abundant metals in a DRX cathode, but you can also use any type of metal to fix any problem that might come up during the early stages of designing new batteries. That's why we're so excited."

Illustration of a DRX cathode's "disordered" atomic structure (right) versus the "ordered" atomic structure of a conventional cathode. A disordered cathode structure can store more lithium - which means more energy - while allowing for a wider range of elements to serve as the transition metal. Credit: Berkeley Lab

Cobalt and nickel supply-chain risks

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has made it a priority to find ways to reduce or eliminate the use of cobalt in batteries. "The battery industry is facing an enormous resource crunch," said Ceder. "Even at 2 TWh, the lower range of global demand projections, that would consume almost all of today's nickel production, and with cobalt we're not even close. Cobalt production today is only about 150 kilotons, and 2 TWh of battery power would require 2,000 kilotons of nickel and cobalt in some combination."

What's more, over two-thirds of the world's nickel production is currently used to make stainless steel. And more than half of the world's production of cobalt comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo, with Russia, Australia, the Philippines, and Cuba rounding out the top five producers of cobalt.

In contrast, DRX cathodes can use just about any metal in place of nickel and cobalt. Scientists at Berkeley Lab have focused on using manganese and titanium, which are both more abundant and lower cost than nickel and cobalt.

"Manganese oxide and titanium oxide cost less than $1 per kilogram whereas cobalt costs about $45 per kilogram and nickel about $18," said Ceder. "With DRX you have the potential to make very inexpensive energy storage. At that point lithium-ion becomes unbeatable and can be used everywherefor vehicles, the gridand we can truly make energy storage abundant and inexpensive."

Ordered vs. disordered

Ceder and his team developed DRX materials in 2014. In batteries, the number and speed of lithium ions able to travel into the cathode translates into how much energy and power the battery has. In conventional cathodes, lithium ions travel through the cathode material along well-defined pathways and arrange themselves between the transition metal atoms (usually cobalt and nickel) in neat, orderly layers.

What Ceder's group discovered was that a cathode with a disordered atomic structure could hold more lithiumwhich means more energywhile allowing for a wider range of elements to serve as the transition metal. They also learned that within that chaos, lithium ions can easily hop around.

In 2018, the Vehicle Technologies Office in DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy provided funding for Berkeley Lab to take a "deep dive" into DRX materials. In collaboration with scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, and UC Santa Barbara, Berkeley Lab teams led by Ceder and Guoying Chen have made tremendous progress in optimizing DRX cathodes in lithium-ion batteries.

For example, the charge rateor how fast the battery can chargeof these materials was initially very low, and its stability was also poor. The research team has found ways to address both of these issues through modeling and experimentation. Studies on using fluorination to improve stability have been published in Advanced Functional Materials and Advanced Energy Materials; research on how to enable a high charging rate was recently published in Nature Energy.

Since DRX can be made with many different elements, the researchers have also been working on which element would be best to use, hitting the sweet spot of being abundant, inexpensive, and providing good performance. "DRX has now been synthesized with almost the whole periodic table," Ceder said.

"This is science at its bestfundamental discoveries that will serve as the bedrock of systems in future homes, vehicles, and grids," said Noel Bakhtian, director of Berkeley Lab's Energy Storage Center. "What has made Berkeley Lab so successful in battery innovation for decades now is our combination of breadth and depth of expertisefrom fundamental discovery to characterization, synthesis, and manufacturing, as well as energy markets and policy research. Collaboration is keywe partner with industry and beyond to solve real-world problems, which in turn helps galvanize the world-leading science we do at the Lab."

Fast progress

New battery materials have traditionally taken 15 to 20 years to commercialize; Ceder believes progress on DRX materials can be accelerated with a larger team. "We've made great progress in the last three years with the deep dive," Ceder said. "We've come to the conclusion that we're ready for a bigger team, so we can involve people with a more diverse set of skills to really refine this."

An expanded research team could move quickly to address the remaining issues, including improving the cycle life (or the number of times the battery can be recharged and discharged over its lifetime) and optimizing the electrolyte, the chemical medium that allows the flow of electrical charge between the cathode and anode. Since being developed in Ceder's lab, groups in Europe and Japan have also launched large DRX research programs.

"Advances in battery technologies and energy storage will require continued breakthroughs in the fundamental science of materials," said Jeff Neaton, Berkeley Lab's Associate Lab Director for Energy Sciences. "Berkeley Lab's expertise, unique facilities, and capabilities in advanced imaging, computation, and synthesis allow us to study materials at the scale of atoms and electrons. We are well poised to accelerate the development of promising materials like DRX for clean energy."

Explore further New technology could wean the battery world off cobalt
Thorvald: an autonomous robot from Saga Robotics. Credit: Matt Munro, Saga Robotics, Author provided

Farming robots that can move autonomously in an open field or greenhouse promise a cleaner, safer agricultural future. But there are also potential downsides, from the loss of much-needed jobs to the safety of those working alongside the robots.

To ensure that the use of autonomous robots on farms creates more benefits than losses, a process of responsible development is required. Society as a whole needs to be involved in setting the trajectories for future farming.

We are part of a project called Robot Highways, which is currently demonstrating multiple uses for autonomous robots made by Saga Robotics on a fruit farm in south-east England. Robots are now treating plant diseases in fields and glasshouses, and will be mapping terrain, picking, packing, and providing logistical support to workers over the course of the project. This is achieved by attaching different tools to an autonomous "base robot."

In this way, autonomous farming robots have the potential to do some of the laborious agricultural work for which farmers in some countries often struggle to find employees at a cost that keeps food prices competitive. Our project has produced an estimate that robots may eventually help reduce the number of human farm workers needed by up to 40%.

At the same time, robots could help create new jobs. The UK's National Farmers' Union argues that increasing use of digital technologies in farms will attract younger, skilled people to a sector struggling with an aging workforce.

Strawberries are treated for disease using UV light. Credit: Matt Munro, Saga Robotics, Author provided

There could also be environmental benefits. Swapping traditional, fossil fuel-powered farm machinery for electric robots charged from renewable sources will cut farming's carbon emissions. Robots equipped with ultraviolet lights that can kill mildew on plants could reduce fungicide use by up to 90%.

Machines like those produced by the Small Robot Company can navigate in tight spaces between objects like trees, so could potentially be used in agroforestry systems to perform weeding, disease treatment and mapping. They could also help reduce chemical use on farms by targeting individual plants, rather than whole fields.

However, unrestricted use of autonomous farming robots could also create problems. In parts of the world where there is not an agricultural labor shortage, reducing the demand for human workers means people will need resources and opportunities to retrain in other sectors. They may just end up moving into dull, dangerous and underpaid jobs in other industries such as mining, which will be needed to produce the materials to make the robots.

Humans who are left on the farmor walkers on footpathswill face health and safety concerns from having to work alongside the robots. The possibility of someone hacking a farm robot and forcing it to do their bidding cannot be overlooked. And poorer farms that can't afford robots at all are likely to be left at a disadvantage.

There are also concerns over the ownership of the data collected by robots operated by commercial companiesand whether that data will be used for the benefit of those companies, rather than the farmers.

Autonomous robots are capable of multiple tasks, including collecting samples, selectively treating plants and mapping fields. Credit: NASAHQPhoto/Flickr

Responsible development

To make sure farming robots are developed responsibly, we need to get those people who might be affected by the technology - from manufacturers and regulators to rural communities - thinking about all its possible implications.

This might include so-called "Wizard of Oz" studies, in which remote controlled robots are tested alongside human users in order to simulate what reactions and consequences fully autonomous robots might produce once the technology is ready. This would allow robot designers to save money and manage expectations by studying user experience at the early stages of development. Another option is hosting "robot movie nights" to help show the public how robots on the farm would behave.

Once countries allow autonomous robots to be used on farms, safety and data-ownership regulations will need to be swiftly updated. In Australia, a code of practice for such robots has been developed in the crop sector and similar work is underway in the UK. This will set out robots' obligations, state the conditions in which robots can be used, and determine who is responsible for worker and public safety.

Base robots with attachable tools provide a huge range of functionality. Credit: Matt Munro, Saga Robotics, Author provided

The stakes of getting things wrong are high. Injured workers, hacked or unreliable robots, or negative consumer perception could all stand in the way of the promises of autonomous robots being realized. To help avoid this, governments can start providing rural digital and internet infrastructure, training, and financial support so that farmers can hit the ground running if autonomous robots hit the market.

Will we see autonomous robots picking fruit across Britain by 2025or even sooner? That depends: not on the quality of our technology alone, but also on our ability to work together to listen, learn and respond to the needs of farmers and society alike.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
A smart light pole in the UK can also recognise faces and numberplates and detect speeding. Credit: Nazlika/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

Smart street furniturepowered and digitally networked furniture that collects and generates datais arriving in Australia. It comes in a variety of forms, including benches, kiosks, light poles and bus stops. Early examples in Australia include ChillOUT Hubs installed by Georges River Council in the Sydney suburbs of Kogarah, Hurstville and Mortdale, and information kiosks and smart light poles in the City of Newcastle as part of its Smart City Strategy.

The "smartness" of this street furniture comes from its new data and connectivity capabilities. The idea is that these can generate new products and services, and support real-time planning decisions in cities. Most offer free wi-fi in combination with other functions like advertising, wayfinding, emergency buttons, phone calling and device charging via USB.

Smart, but controversial

The promise of smart street furniture is that it will enhance public spaces and revitalize aging infrastructure. By providing vulnerable and disadvantaged citizens with access to free connectivity services it can also bridge digital barriers.

Despite these benefits, some aspects of smart street furniture are controversial. In particular, its data collection and impact on public space have created concerns.

In New York City, the replacement of phone booths by LinkNYC digital kiosks has given rise to protest about data ownership and sharing and surveillance through built-in security cameras. Other sources of tension are the kiosks' physical footprint, visual impact and use for outdoor advertising with its double-sided 140cm digital displays.

In Australia, Telstra has been fighting a long court case against the cities of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane over plans to convert its phone booths into smart hubs equipped with digital advertising. Councils objected to these on the basis that they required local planning approval. Telstra argued the hubs were exempt as "low-impact facilities", but has had to delay installation.

A ChillOUT Hub installed in Timothy Reserve, Hurstville, by St Georges River Council. Credit: Chris Chesher, Author provided

What can we learn from early adopters overseas?

We don't yet understand the public impact and value of smart street furniture, what service model is to be adopted at scale, or what kind of future it offers. To what extent are these facilities offering public services, or are they just enablers of more advertising and surveillance?

Australia can learn from the early examples of smart street furniture in other countries. Our Smart Publics research project investigated the design, use and governance of InLinkUK kiosks in Glasgow and Strawberry Energy smart benches in London with a research team at the University of Glasgow. (The final report is here.)

We found the main users were those who were living rough, young people, students and gig workers. Smart furniture enabled these groups to stay digitally connected. They used these facilities to charge their phones and make free calls, which were especially valuable for those who didn't own phones or lacked the credit to use them. (The InLinkUK kiosks offered free calls to any mobile or landline in the UK.)

Who is funding these facilities?

Even though kiosks and smart benches could be used for community service information, we found it was commercial advertising that drove private investment in this infrastructure. Advertising revenue paid for the services offered by the InLinkUK kiosks and sponsorship for the Strawberry Energy benches. Advertising agency Primesight was one of the three main partners in InLinkUK (with British Telecom and Intersection, the company responsible for LinkNYC).

An InLinkUK kiosk in Glasgow city centre. Credit: Smart Publics researchers, Author provided

Because advertising was so prominent in their design, many people were unaware of their other functions. Asked if they'd noticed the InLinks, one person replied: "Er no, I haven't [] what's it for? Is it to make free calls to anywhere in the UK? [] I just thought it was like an advertising board, I guess!"

People recognized the wide public value of free wi-fi, device charging and phone calls. But we found the public as a whole didn't understand the data-collection aspects. The marginalized groups who relied on these services were more exposed to corporate advertising, data collection and surveillance in public spaces.

Councils were also limited in their ability to leverage the benefits that came from the data. The Strawberry Energy benches, for example, collected environmental data such as temperature, noise level and air quality from inbuilt sensors. However, these data weren't being used to inform planning or policy.

Reliability of the data was another issue. We found inaccuracies when we tested the environmental data.

Where to now in Australia?

These issues highlight some of the challenges councils encounter when embarking on smart street furniture initiatives with private companies. These include data-sharing contract arrangements as well as the need to upskill council staff to manage new kinds of data capabilities and systems.

A Strawberry Energy smart bench in Southwark, South London. Credit: Smart Publics researchers, Author provided

The examples we studied in the UK had been rolled out in public-private partnerships. However, some of the models emerging suggest a different kind of civic implementation.

Local governments that have been early adopters of smart furniture in Australia have envisioned it as an extension of council services without added advertising or compromising heritage values. These have typically begun as experimental initiatives funded by federal and state government grants. The City of Newcastle, for example, is planning to integrate smart city technologies into regular council operations.

Smart street furniture is not going away. If anything, it will become pervasive as technology advances and becomes more integrated into our physical surroundings.

The issues raised by smart street furniture warrant close inspection and further research. It is crucial that governments and private actors are transparent about its use for advertising and data collection. To ensure the benefits of smart street furniture are realized, they need to:

emphasize the public value of smart street furniture, including its use for community-based informationcollaborate with the public on its design and placementin the case of councils, take a pro-active approach to access, ownership and stewardship of dataensure marginalized citizens are not exposed to increased risk of surveillance and data harms.

Explore further Sensors in public spaces can help create cities that are both smart and sociable

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Digital crime by an anonymous hacker. Credit: Shutterstock/ Rawpixel.com

Because corporations and governments rely on computers and the internet to run everything from the electric grid, healthcare, and water systems, computer security is extremely important to all of us. It is increasingly being breached: Numerous security hacks just this past month include the Colonial Pipeline security breach and the JBS Foods ransomware attacks where hackers took over the organization's computer systems and demanded payment to unlock and release it back to the owners. The White House is strongly urging companies to take ransomware threats seriously and update their systems to protect themselves. Yet these attacks continue to threaten all of us on an almost daily basis.

Columbia Engineering researchers who are leading experts in computer security recently presented two major papers that make computer systems more secure at the International Symposium on Computer Architecture (ISCA), the premier forum for new ideas and research results in computer architecture. This new research, which has zero to little effect on system performance, is already being used to create a processor for the Air Force Research Lab.

"Memory safety has been a problem for nearly 40 years and numerous solutions have been proposed. We believe that memory safety continues to be a problem because it does not distribute the burden in a fair manner among software engineers and end-users," said Simha Sethumadhavan, associate professor of computer science, whose research focuses on how computer architecture can be used to improve computer security. "With these two papers, we believe we have found the right balance of burdens."

Computer security has been a long-standing issue, with many proposed systems workable in research settings but not in real-world situations. Sethumadhavan believes that the way to secure a system is to first start with the hardware and then, in turn, the software. The urgency of his research is underscored by the fact that he has significant grants from both the Office of Naval Research and the U.S. Airforce, and his Ph.D. students have received a Qualcomm Innovation Fellowship to create practical security solutions.

Sethumadhavan's group noticed that most security issues occur within a computer's memory, specifically pointers. Pointers are used for managing memory and can lead to memory corruption that can open up the system to hackers who hijack the program. Current techniques to mitigate memory attacks use up a lot of energy and can break software. These methods also greatly affect a system's performancecellphone batteries drain quickly, apps run slowly, and computers crash.

The team set out to address these issues and created a security solution that protects memory without affecting a system's performance. They call their novel memory security solution, ZeR: Zero-Overhead Resilient Operation Under Pointer Integrity Attacks.

ZeRO features a set of memory instructions and a metadata encoding scheme that protects the code and data pointers of a system. This combination eliminates performance overheadit will not affect the speed of a system. ZeRO requires minor changes to a system's architecture and it can easily be added to modern processors. Especially critical is that, even when under attack, ZeRO can perform all these functions and avoid crashing a system.

"Zero offers memory security at no cost and it is a perfect complement to systems that mitigate memory attacks," said Mohamed Tarek, a fourth-year Ph.D. student and co-lead author of the studies. "The keys to widespread adoption of security techniques are low-performance overhead and convenience."

The second paper that Sethumadhavan's team will present, No-FAT: Architectural Support for Low Overhead Memory Safety Checks, is a system that makes security checks faster with only a small8%effect on the computer's performance which is 10x faster than current software technique for detecting memory errors. The name is an allusion to no-fat milk, which, as the ads say, "has all the goodness of milk with fewer calories."

No-FAT speeds up fuzz testing, a type of automated software testing method, and it is very easy for developers to add it when building a system. The technique builds on a recent trend in software towards binning memory allocators, which uses buckets of different sizes to store memory until it is needed by the software. The researchers found that when binning memory allocation is used by the software, it is possible to achieve memory security with little impact on performance and is compatible with existing software.

Both ZeRO and No-Fat are targeted at beefing up memory systems to be more resilient against attacks while having little to no effect on a computer system's speed or power consumption. The bonus is that with both systems, programmers need to do little to nothing to harden their programs. These ideas could transform how memory safety features are currently supported in processors.

"No-FAT & ZeRO are two major steps toward putting an end to a long-standing problem," said Miguel Arroyo Ph.D. '21, who was a co-lead author of the papers. "Memory safety attacks cost the cyber community millions of dollars. Now we can avoid that and keep everyone's data safeit's a win-win!"

Both papers were presented at the International Symposium on Computer Architecture (ISCA), June 16, 2021.

Explore further Shape-shifting computer chip thwarts an army of hackers
South Hills (15301)

Today

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some clouds. Low around 55F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some clouds. Low around 55F. Winds light and variable.
Local_news

State Fire Marshal sets conditions for Logistec after conflagration

Terry Dickson/The Brunswick News Brunswick firefighters train water on the smoldering wood chips still burning inside the Logistec warehouse in May.

Before flames erupted into an explosion May 2 at a massive warehouse crammed with wood pellets near neighborhoods in Brunswicks south end, employees there spent a day trying to control the fire without contacting the citys fire department, Georgias State Fire Marshals office concluded.

The resulting conflagration that Sunday evening sent flames shooting 75 feet in the air above the 40,000-square-foot Logistec warehouse at the East River Terminal, creating an all-too-familiar scene for Brunswick firefighters and south end residents.

In addition to failing to quickly notify the Brunswick Fire Department of the fire, Logistec officials apparently stored pellets too high in the cavernous warehouse and did not have proper authorization to store products that produce combustible dust.

The wood pellets were decomposing when spontaneous combustion occurred, the fire marshals office noted.

These are among the findings of an investigation into the fire by the state fire marshal operating under Georgias Office of Commissioner of Insurance and Safety Fire (OCI).

The report, submitted Monday, laid out half a dozen conditions Logistec must meet to resume wood pellet storage operations at its leased facility at the Port of Brunswick on the East River.

According to the report, Logistec officials said they were satisfied with their fire safety practices. The fire marshal and city fire department chief concluded otherwise.

Logistec, based in Canada, leases the facility from the Georgia Ports Authority.

Wood pellet storage operations ceased there after the fire that destroyed the main warehouse, Brunswick Fire Chief Randy Mobley said.

Among the conditions, the OCI will deputize a Brunswick firefighter as a state fire marshal to conduct random inspections to ensure compliance, the report stated. Additionally, Logistec must immediately contact the Brunswick Fire Department at the first sign of a fire in its wood pellet warehouses in the future, the report states.

Logistec must also subdivide its warehouses into fireproof compartments that hold no more than 20,000 square feet of wood pellets, the fire marshal stated.

After a tour of existing facilities on June 2, state fire marshal investigators concluded that Logistec is not operating its wood pellet warehouses within standards of the International Fire Code and the National Fire Protection Association.

Logistec was operating under permits and supervision of the Georgia Ports Authority, the report said.

The company will have six months after resuming operations to meet state and national industry standards for storing combustible dust that is a byproduct of storing wood pellets and peanut shells, the fire marshals office determined.

A quick review of the storage facility confirmed that these warehouses do not meet IFC or NFPA standards to operate, the report noted.

Brunswick Fire Chief Mobley did not spare his criticism for Logistecs fire safety practices, according to the report. Chief Mobley was adamantly opposed to allowing operation under current conditions, the report states.

Contacted Tuesday, Mobley said he had not seen State Fire Marshal Craig Landolts completed report.

Mobley said the fire likely would not have been so damaging had Logistec contacted the fire department sooner.

The warehouse had a capacity for 50,000 tons of pellets. It was full when the fire occurred, Mobley said.

We should have been called, Mobley told The News. If we would have been called sooner, they would probably still have a warehouse.

Mobley had seen this before. The older Logistec warehouses that were inspected June 2 were originally used to store bulk paper, the report said. They had been repurposed to store wood pellets.

However, the steel-framed aluminum warehouse destroyed in the inferno last month was relatively new, completed in October 2016. Its state-of-the-art features included interior water sprinklers and a vacuum system to contain combustible dust.

Logistic constructed the facility to replace two 50,000-square-foot wood-framed warehouses that were consumed by flames in July 2015.

Numerous neighboring agencies responded to assist Brunswick firefighters with the initial firefight. Brunswick firefighters remained on scene guarding against smoldering flare-ups until September of that year.

Brunswick firefighters have since responded to smaller wood pellet fires at the new warehouse in 2017, 2018 and on Easter Sunday in 2019.

A stevedoring and shipping conglomerate based in Quebec, Logistec ships the wood pellets stored in Brunswick to European countries for use as biofuel in power plants. It also stores peanut shells at the site for use as livestock feed.

The peanut shells and wood pellets are provided by Fram Renewable Fuels in Hazelhurst.

Logistec receives and ships about 1 million tons of wood pellets a year, company officials told inspectors. It ships about 40,000 tons of peanut shells.

Investigators determined that a Logistec fire brigade had spent approximately a day trying to extinguish last months fire before it got out of hand. Brunswick firefighters were notified after the booming explosion of fire made the problem obvious at around 8 oclock that night, the fire marshals report stated.

The Logistec facility is located near Newcastle Street and 4th Avenue, a stones throw from neighborhood homes in Brunswicks south end.

The warehouse closely adjoins a residential neighborhood, the report noted. The fire grew rapidly dangerous to the surrounding residences ... Ultimately the fire grew out of control and caused a violent explosion.

Brunswick firefighters and a host of neighboring agencies fought the fire through the night. The effort was assisted by the Savannah Fire Departments trailer-mounted industrial submersible pump, with which thousands of gallons of river water per minute were poured onto the fire.

To resume operations, Logistec must provide the Brunswick Fire Department with a trailer-mounted submersible pump or some other means of improving the water supply at the facilitys south end in case of future fire fights, per order of the fire marshal.

During the tour of facilities on June 2, Logistec safety manager Lynn Delassus told investigators employees are trained to spot potential fires by the smells and flower patterns on the wood pellet piles. They carry carbon monoxide and methane monitors, he said.

During the tour, investigators spotted several large piles of fine cinnamon-like dust .... scattered around the hopper and conveyor system.

Mobley kept a Brunswick firefighting detail at the scene of the fire 24/7 until May 29.
The VB 10,000 crane vessel completed its cut of Section 3 from the shipwrecked Golden Ray in the St. Simons Sound at around daybreak Thursday, ending an eight-week ordeal stymied by dense steel brackets and a massive internal fire.
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The Bryan school board has named Sara Rueda as Davila Middle Schools next principal.

The announcement came after a two-hour closed session during a Monday board meeting that included discussion and an open-session approval of Superintendent Christie Whitbecks evaluation.

Rueda is moving into the position from Navarro Elementary School, where she has served as principal for the past six years.

Prior to that, she served as assistant principal at Navarro Elementary from 2012 to 2015 and assistant principal at Davila Middle School from 2008 to 2012.

She was named administrator of the year twice at both campuses.

Im so excited to be Davilas next principal, Rueda said in a press release sent out by the school district. I look forward to continuing the schools tradition of excellence well into the future. I would also like to thank the students and staff at Navarro for the relationships Ive formed during my time there. I will always be a Chaparral and a Texan at heart.

Rueda, a Texas A&M graduate, has been in education for 21 years, with 17 of those in the Bryan school district. Before moving into campus administration, she served as a physical education teacher.
We have a balance of powers for a reason, Howard said. If you do not have the branch that represents directly the people of this state, then you are in essence having something very similar to a monarchy, with one person in charge of everything that happens in the state with no input from elected representatives.

So far, Abbott has one announced competitor  former Dallas state Sen. Don Huffines  who has been campaigning on Texas building its own border wall.

The wall should have been built years ago, and the only reason Gov. Abbott is now discussing it is because hes facing a primary challenge that threatens his political power, Huffines told the Texas Tribune.

Two others, so far, said to be considering running for governor in the GOP primary, are outgoing state Republican Party Chairman Allen West, who indicated when he resigned that he was considering running for statewide office, and Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller, who said hes decided instead to seek re-election.

Beto Capitol voter rally: If the governor was wondering how the Democrats might respond, he just had to look across the street from the governors mansion on Sunday.
Gov. Greg Abbott speaks during a June 16 press conference on details of his plan for Texas to build a border wall and provide $250 million in state funds as a down payment.
Grand Island needs to have built 1,361 houses from 2019 to 2024 to keep up with demand. To date, only 398 have been built.

Dave Taylor, Grand Island Area Economic Development Corp. president, explained to the Grand Island City Council Tuesday that efforts are underway to bolster development of local housing.

More housing is needed in Grand Island, Taylor said.

A housing study is completed every five years.

A study completed in 2014 said that 1,700 houses need to be built for the city to be healthy. During the five-year period after that, 952 houses, or 56% of the goal, were built.

In 2019, the housing study recommended 1,361 houses.

As of May 2021, only 398 have been built.

In the next two and a half years, we have to do almost another 1,000 houses, Taylor said.

A rural workforce housing grant for $1 million was awarded to Grand Island this year from the Nebraska Department of Economic Developments Rural Workforce Housing Fund.

Efforts will focus on missing middle housing, Taylor said.
YORK  Travis Landanger, 40, of York has been charged with five felonies and is accused of being a habitual criminal in a case involving methamphetamine possession, assaulting an officer and tampering with evidence.

His scheduled arraignment proceedings in District Court were to be held this past week in York County District Court but were postponed to June 28.

According to court documents, York police officers were in a convenience store parking lot regarding an unrelated situation when they say Landanger pulled in. They allege, according to court documents, that as Landanger was exiting his vehicle, a small clear glass pipe with white residue fell from the truck onto the ground.

They say Landanger looked at them as he knelt to pick up the pipe. They say he then attempted to step on the pipe with great force. He then picked up the pipe and quickly proceeded away from officers, going around the front of his truck.

According to the affidavit, one officer yelled at Landanger to stop as he began to run to the northeast. They said he continued running and they pursued him.

The officers said when he came to a dumpster behind a building, he appeared to throw something forcefully at the ground.
However, at McCool, Cogswell said even the elementary and middle school students have an assembly once month.

They get special recognition, Cogswell said. We recognize their birthdays. When students say where theyre going to college, we celebrate that as well. It truly is a family.

Cogswell said that its special when alumni come back to visit. He said he has gotten several invitations to weddings, and that past students often want to come back and talk with him.

Kids who graduate from here can do anything, Cogswell said. We have doctors and lawyers. I have a kid who is in the secret service, and we have a kid who can do lung transplants. On the flip side, we have had great electricians and plumbers. People say you cant do things because youre from a small school. Yes, you can. You can do anything you want.

Cogswell said that his biggest accomplishment isnt about him, but it is about the community of McCool.

This community makes believers out of you, Cogswell said. Even though there were challenges, the community fought. They all said we are going to be alright. Weve been in situations where we had to slow growth because we grew too fast. Every challenge that we are given, we are going to rise and meet it.
An eventful pursuit along Interstate 80 Monday night included damage to fencing at Crane Trust, after which three people hailed a cab at the Alda interchange.

Nike Stevens of Chicago was arrested early Tuesday morning by the Nebraska State Patrol. Stevens, 26, was the driver of a Jeep Patriot that also contained a woman and a child. At one point, the Patriot was traveling more than 100 mph, according to the State Patrol.

The Hall County Sheriffs Department assisted the State Patrol with the case. The Jeep Patriot drove through gates and fencing at Crane Trust and came to a stop near the Platte River, said Hall County Chief Deputy Jim Castleberry.

After the crash, the three occupants abandoned the vehicle, walked to the Alda I-80 interchange and called a cab, which took them west to Kearney.

At about 5:30 p.m. Monday, a trooper performed a traffic stop on the Patriot for speeding on I-80 near Kearney. Shortly after the traffic stop, the State Patrol received a report of an SUV traveling more than 100 mph and passing vehicles on the shoulder. The trooper was able to locate the reported vehicle, which was the same vehicle from the previous traffic stop.
[This will be indulgent Writer Mike's LAST watch post for a while. Just in case you are not enjoying these. Disciplined Editor Mike]

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I bought a watch. As you might have expected I would. (It's the best way to settle down these littleer, let's be nice to me and call them "enthusiasms"*to which I intermittently fall prey. "Remember the Wista.")

Monday night I went to look at an Apple Watch (I saw the 40mm SE) at the local Verizon store. It's nice, and much easier to figure out than I feared. But I decided that really the last thing I need is another monthly bill**. [UPDATE: Carl tells me the Apple watch doesnt incur an additional monthly expense unless you want it to have its own data plan. Otherwise it does all its tricks coordinated with your iPhone. If youre in the house with WiFi the phone doesnt even need to be near the watch. Away from WiFi it just needs to be within Bluetooth range. Sorry for the error. Ed.] Then, yesterday morning, I spent several hours watching videos for alternative smartwatches. Interesting to come up to speed on those a bit, but they don't seem like my thing.

So, surfeited with looking at watches online, I decided I needed a dose of reality. I had to go to Canandaigua yesterday for another reason, so, was there a Seiko Authorized Dealer in Canandaigua? The Seiko website said yes: Crown Jewelry on Main Street.

No substitute for the real thing

It was just the place. I got waylaid on the way in by the many watches in the window, and there were many more inside, including a selection of estate watches. The young lady who helped me quickly decided I was asking questions that were too specific ("what is 10 bar in meters?"), so she went to get "the watch guy."

The watch guy turned out to be a man named Nick (right), who knows all about the stock, is a watch repairman and restorer, and owns 33 watches himself. He was wearing a Seiko dive watch on which he had replaced the stock flat crystal with a convex sapphire one. (I asked him to hold his watch up for this quick phone-snap portraitmade with his permission.) Turns out Nick is a photography enthusiast toohe does mostly macro work, mainly of watches as you might expect. We had an interesting conversation. He does know a whole lot. Not your average store clerk by a long shot.

In person

Seeing actual watches was instructive, too. (As it often is with cameras.) It turns out that I was wrong about the sizes: a 40mm case is not too big; it looks fine. Actually it does look a little more masculine and proportionate than the smaller, more traditional (for Seiko) 37mm case size.

I ended up buying a Seiko SNE031, which does have the smaller 37mm case. Nick says Seiko has been making a version of this model for some 50 years. There was a very similar but larger watch (the one just to the left of the red dot in the first picture), but it didn't display the weekday, which I decided I wanted. There was also a much better-looking watch that I was drawn to at first (just above the red dot), but the face was silvery and a little too close to the same tonal value as the hands once we got it out of the bright light, and I thought I might have trouble reading it in poor light.

Curiously, Monday night, looking at watches on the computer until I was bleary-eyed, I had picked out the Seiko SNE039 as being a candidate that had pretty much what I wanted. (It's an "Amazon's Choice," too.) Turns out that the watch I actually bought is the exact same thing except with a white face instead of black. I didn't even realize until I got home. Hey, at least I'm consistent. Seiko SNE032, Seiko SNE036, Seiko SNE047, and Seiko SNE042 are also all essentially the same watch as mine, just with different cosmetics.

The watch I bought is Solarthat is, driven by a quartz movement with a permanent battery that is recharged by light, an innovation first developed by Citizen.

On the plus side, the SNE031 "disappeared" on my wrist practically as soon as I put it on. Very comfortable. On the negative side, it's tough for me to read the day and date in poor light without my computer glasses on (my eyesight is 20/20 with glasses but worse without them).

With tax, my new watch cost only $1.22 more at Crown Jewelers than Amazon charges. Pretty great for a bricks-'n'-mortar store with a real live expert answering your questions. (He can answer your questions, tooyesterday he was shipping one of the fancier Seikos off to Utah. Call or email him if you want to buy a watch and tell him I sent you.)

So, then, why a watch? As an experiment. Many of you had good reasons for preferring a wristwatch, but I like to try things for myself. So I plan to wear this for a few months to see if I think there really is any advantage, for me, over using the iPhone as a pocket watch.

It'll at least be nostalgic; I wore a Seiko not dissimilar to this for years when I was younger. I enjoy nostalgia.

Experiment Part 2: I set it exactly to the second against the phone. Of course I'll have to reset it at the end of June, but then I'll be able to let it go three straight months without resetting. That should give me a bit of a read on its accuracy. I'll report back then. If I think of it.

Here's an interesting video about the accuracy of quartz movements.

More resources

In case you've been following along these past few days with interest, more tidbits for you: Here's a neat video about how quartz movements work. Explained by Steve Mould. (I wanted a quartz watch. Maybe it's because I was a kid when all the fuss over the Seiko Astron happened, but I find I gravitate to Seiko and I'm a fan of quartz movements. When I bought my first good watch, in Switzerland, at age 14, I bought a Seiko, and I was informed by the shop proprietor in no uncertain terms that it was not proper to buy a Japanese watch as a souvenir of Switzerland! But that was a year after the Astron and a Seiko was what I wanted.)

Another recommendation was supplied by Justin Ting and several other readers: "Confessions of a Watch Geek," a New Yorker article by Gary Shteyngart. Finally, the two best books I've personally read about timekeeping are Revolution in Time by David S. Landes and, especially, Longitude by Dava Sobel, which deservedly won many awards. It's been a long time since I read either, but I remember really liking Longitude, the all-too-human story of the the first marine chronometer and its star-crossed inventor. Along with Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea, one of the best books on tech I've read.

Oh, and the best watch in the world? Not one from the "holy trinity" of Audemars Piguet, Vacheron Constantin, and Patek Philippe. It's a Citizen. That's right, a Citizen. And quartz. Check out the Citizen Eco-Drive Caliber 0100. "The most accurate watch anyone has ever produced, anywhere, ever" (Hodinkee)accurate to well under two minutes over a human lifetime without external influence. (The best mechanical watches manage the same accuracy over the course of a month.)

Oh...and, right after I bought this, while Nick was still in the back adjusting the band and retrieving the box, I started thinking about what my next watch was going to be. Settle down, Mike.

It's a good thing I'm not rich. I'd just waste more money. :-)

Mike

*I used to follow common parlance and call it "OCD"humans love intensifiersbut then I read a book about OCD, which is a very serious disorder on a different level altogether than getting all hot about a new watch (or camera). Calling it "OCD" or "an obsession" is akin to a well-fed individual who hasn't stuffed his face in three hours saying "I'm starving"something I've also stopped doing. ("You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means." Inigo Montoya.)

**Although it's a significant safety device for seniors who live, or spend time, aloneit can detect a fall and send out a distress signal. So I'll probably have one eventually. Consider Kristine Hinrichs' comment from yesterday:

"I have the Apple Watch for a variety of reasons (excuses for tech). However, the primary reason is the fall detection feature. Im out alone before dawn almost every day, often along the Lake Michigan shore. Im paranoid about falling and being alone where no one knows exactly where I am. If I fall, a voice asks if Im OK. If I dont respond in 60 seconds, 911 is called. I can also activate it manually. It gives me peace of mindand keeps my friends and family from worrying. Get the watch."

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(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)

Featured Comments from:

Mark Rouleau: "I too wear a Seiko solar. Supposedly runs for 10 months on two minutes of sunshine. Since I live in Rochester that seemed possible."

Mike replies: :-)

Howard W. French: "The Seiko SNE039 (black face) is available for $99 on Amazon, which is a pretty dramatic discount if the only difference is cosmetic, i.e. the color scheme."

Mike replies: The prices fluctuate daily and it's a few dollars higher now, but you're basically rightand yes, it is the same watch as mine.

There's a bit more to the story. Quartz watches still account for 97% of the market, in volume, but a lot of the profit in the market now is in luxury mechanical watches, and the high-volume, low-cost makers are in a bit of a bind. As Nick put it to me, "mechanical watches used to be a niche market; now all watches are a niche market." (At least I think he used the word "niche"maybe he said "specialty.") One of Seiko's huge strengths has long been in making very conservative, plain, but highly capable quartz wristwatches of almost incredibly high valuelike that amazing solar watch for a mere ~$100, a triumph of modern technology and manufacturing.

But, and as Sir Mix-a-Lot said it's a very big but, Seiko doesn't really want to be in that segment of the market any more! It's trying to position itself as being more upmarket. So it has actually banished the Essentials linewhere all the practical quartz watches residefrom its own main website. If you just go to Seiko's global website, you won't find it listed among its new "brands" categorizations. It still exists, but to get there, you might have to Google "Seiko Essentials." (It's still accessible on seikousa.com). Apparently Seiko would like you to think that its basic line is the 5 Sports automatic line of self-winding mechanical watches (also very high-value, but less accurate, less practical watches than their quartz counterparts). Although it does retain some quartz lineage in some of its flagship Grand Seiko brand watches, including in the groundbreaking new Spring Drive movement, it's passing strange that the progenitor of the quartz revolution is now quietly returning more and more to making mechanical watches.

So the SNE039 is a bit of a threatened speciesprobably not on the endangered list yet. But actually Seiko is not pushing its traditional strength any more.

Michel Hardy-Vallee: "Seiko and Citizen watches are great products when you want to have appreciable quality and still some leftover lunch money. I read a lot of blogs about watches for a while (yeah, these temporary passions can happen for all sorts of things!), and once I mustered the courage to go to a Rolex store to try one, gape in amazement, and tell the clerk who couldn't give a crap about me that I would think about it. So I eventually got myself one of the Orange Monster watches from Seiko, because I wanted a mechanical movement, and I loved the design of dive watch. I took it diving twice, but now it's mostly my daily timepiece. Since it's mechanical, it's not the most accurate, but I check it regularly and adjust it using the noon signal on the radio. That's what I also do with my grandfather clock, formerly owned by my actual grandfather!"

Herman Krieger: "And, if you need a watch repairer:

Peter Wright: "Patek Philippe sends out a lavishly produced 'free' quarterly magazine to its owner list, so I get a copy every so often. The photography in it is excellent. It always includes good articles on fine art, exotic geographic locations, and of course Patek watches. It comes in the mail in a plain brown heavy duty, opaque plastic envelope, without any company logos or indicators whatsoever: just my name and address. I am sure the postman thinks I subscribe the to the worst imaginable pornography. I fear he may be right!"

Benjamin Marks: "Three things.

"First, congratulations! That Seiko is a great piece and I think/hope it is going to make you very happy.

"Second: Regarding accuracy: I remember a comment made by a watch guy on one of the forums to the effect that he changed watches every day and wound and set the mechanical watches when he put them on after a period of inactivity. In practice this meant that his watches only needed to be accurate over the 18 hours he was wearing them on a given daya standard (say 15 seconds a day) that almost any watch from the last 30 years could meet.

"Third: watch makers are a crafty breed. There is a Seiko (massive, expensive thing) that talks by radio to an atomic clock several times a day and resets itself according to that standard. So it doesn't need to be accurate to several seconds per human life, because it is adjusting on the fly to a very accurate standard frequently. Clever, although I despair when I think of any situation in my own life that might need that level of precision. The thing is also solar powered, but looks like it weighs enough to leave one arm longer than the other."

Mike replies: Regarding your last point, there are actually two types. One is the so-called radio-controlled watch, which, between the hours of midnight and some very early hour of the morning, will reset itself according to the radio signal broadcast from the atomic clock of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in Boulder, Colorado. (There are other atomic clocks broadcasting elsewhere in the world.) One problem is that some devices won't receive the signal if you live too far away from Denver. As with all radio reception devices, some are better at pulling in signal than others.

The other is simply a bluetooth watch, which checks in with your smartphone, which gets its time signal from GPS satellites and is generally accurate to 50 milliseconds or less. If you want to find out how accurate your computer or phone isfor those in the U.S.go to time.gov and it will tell you both the Official U.S. Time and also how far off your device is. My Mac Mini is off by a whopping 152 milliseconds this morningmore than a tenth of a second!but it's usually far less than that.

Naturally, watch aficionados feel that's cheating, somehow, and that a timepiece should keep track of time independently of other devices. I personally like it. Here's a really gorgeous radio or bluetooth watch that is made for the JDM (Japanese domestic market) but that you can actually buy from an exporter on Amazon, with all of Amazon's protections. It has its own app!

The Oceanus will be accurate right down to its limit of precision virtually all the time. So here's where we need Cteinwell, I do, anyway, maybe you don't. If you have a watch with a jump second handthat is, a second hand that jumps from one index to the next rather than moving from one to the next smoothly (and we'll assume for the sake of argument that the jump is instantaneous, which obviously it can't be), how accurate can it be? My presumption is that it's exactly correct once a second, but that it can be off by as much as almost a second potentially added to the inaccuracy of the syncing device. That is, if your smartphone is off by 30 ms, then your watch could never be off by more than 1.2999 (9 repeating, however you write that) seconds. Then we would have to add in the watch's possible error in between synchronizations. But I'm definitely no physicist and mathematician. So I'd probably say a quartz watch with a jump second hand that syncs to a phone is probably "accurate to within a second." But that's its accuracy continually, since its rate of error isn't allowed to continue to accrue.

Curiously, re your comment "I despair when I think of any situation in my own life that might need that level of precision," actually our need for time precision in daily life is usually very loose indeed. One cultural norm that might be changing is that when you look at a clock with hands, you will customarily round to the nearest five-minute increment if you're telling someone else the timesometimes even to the nearest half-hour. If it's 5:22 and someone asks "What time is it?", you might say "about twenty after" but you might also say "coming up on half-past." This could be changing as more and more young people never learn to use a clock with hands and are only familiar with digital readouts. If their phone says "10:13" and someone asks them the time, they'll say "ten-thirteen," not "about quarter after."

In fact, I seem to remember that a young person in our family once asked what "quarter to" meant when I used the expression....

Dori: "Solar Seikos are pretty neat. I went with a Seiko Prospex Padi Solar SNE435P1. I have automatic watches too, but it's nice not to worry about winding them, good in case of a swim (though mainly desk diver for me), and I don't have to worry so much about having something too expensive on my wrist potentially getting banged around. Something else that's a plus, really good luminescence so I don't have to bring out the brightness of the sun from the phone to just read the time at night."

hugh crawford: "You do know that Seiko was also a camera and shutter manufacturer right? Always wanted a Zenobiaflex just because, well, who wouldnt want a Zenobiaflex?

"There, I fixed that pesky off-topic posting ratio for you."

Ernest Zarate: "I was an elementary school teacher for 30 years (now retired), having taught in a number of different schools and classrooms. All the rooms had a wall clock in them as a standard feature. Anytime I taught intermediate (5th/6th grade) I often covered up the clock with a sign that said: 'Time will pass. Will you?' No one on earth is more attuned to time than students (recess, lunch, dismissal). My goal was to engage the students in their learning enough to have them ask if they could simply keep working rather than leave.

"One room I was in for a few years had a delightfully frustrating wall clock that never told the correct time. It always displayed times that were hours ahead (or behind) the actual time. It would even change its wildly inaccurate time during the day, the hands spinning forward lazily or quickly until they would stop at some other random point. The solution ended up being a trip to IKEA to purchase a $10 wall clock, battery operated. One of many purchases out of my pocket during those three decades.

"Another school had all the classroom clocks tied to the main computer (a huge monolithic thing menacingly hanging on the staff room wall) I dubbed HAL 9000. The clocks would all gain time each week until it would be several minutes fast, making on-time students tardyand making for unhappy parents. It was the VPs job to reset the clocks (a mildly onerous, 24-hour process) when the complaints from everyone reached a level she determined as too much.

"I currently have a wristwatch after not having one for a couple decades. I went with the Apple Watch Series 6, as it synced smoothly with my phone and computer. It also has apps that tie to my Tesla and makes sending commands to the car easier than having to dig out my phone. It took a couple of weeks to get used to wearing a watch again, but now it feels pretty good. It does not incur any fees."

Mike Hess: "My grandfather owned a jewelry store in Northwest Minnesota for 39 years. He was trained as a watchmaker after WWII ended. He was a Seiko dealer. I have always had a soft spot for them. I especially love their 1960s designs. After he retired, he held onto all his watch parts and even had a large inventory of repairs that were never picked up. My uncle has his watchmaker's bench and tools. Plus, the pile of old watches belonging to others is there, too."
Whether or not to teach critical race theory in the classroom

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The $4 million released by the state last year was used to finish the final permitting, engineering and even some site preparation for the development. When asked last year how the $40 million announcement was different than the 2018 announcement of $1 million from the state for similar permitting and design costs, Fowler and Pritzker deferred to Todd Ely, a member of the Alexander County Port District who has worked on the project for nearly a decade.

In 2020, Ely said, that the initial $1 million was pivotal to doing engineering work that would eventually convince both state and private business leaders that the project was itself viable. Ely added that the money released would help to finalize the public-private partnerships that will push the project toward the finish line.

There are more announcements to come, and soon, Fowler said. He anticipates holding a press conference next month in Cairo to unveil refined site plans and to announce an agreement with local labor groups.

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It will be built with Southern Illinois labor, Fowler said. More than that, though, Fowler said, there will be workforce training for local Cairo citizens. The city has been plagued with a declining economy and citizen population. Fowler said providing opportunities for citizens is crucial  its not all about outside jobs and investment.
Please, Bob. Just take your trophy, go back to Greenwich Village and write me a more direct song, like "Visions of Johanna," one of my favorites of yours.

It cannot be escaped that the metaphor is a device commonly used to express a sentiment in songwriting as well as in literature.

Specifically, it's a figure of speech describing or comparing something in a way that's not literally true.

It worked for Shakespeare, who coined the phrase "wild goose chase" to imply a futile search for something. While I've never had a reason or occasion to chase a goose, either domesticated or wild, I'll wager the effort wouldn't be successful.

The Bard of Avon also wrote, in "As You Like It": "All the worlds a stage, And all the men and women merely players."

Bill, you wrote 38 plays and, obviously, were a big fan of the theatre. But the earth is a large planet, surrounded 71% by water, and it would take a heck of a lot of wood and materials to cover it with a stage. And have you seen the price of lumber lately?

Madonna: "Like a virgin."
"There is no replacement for John," Cassandra Peterson told the Los Angeles Times on Monday.

Peterson, who portrays the cult horror favorite Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, created the campy persona alongside Paragon. "Without John, I could tell you Elvira would never be the character that she came to be."

The LA Times recently spoke to Peterson and Paul Reubens, who played Pee-wee Herman on "Pee-wee's Playhouse," about Paragon's invaluable contributions to two of the most beloved pop-culture franchises of the 1980s and '90s.

"He was very charismatic, and his performing was very electrifying," Reubens said of his late co-star. "He was hard not to notice."

Paragon's spark caught the attention of both Reubens and Peterson when they first met the comedian during his run at the Groundlings. "He made you want to work with him," Reubens said.

The future "Pee-wee" showrunner said Paragon had a "wickedness and a slyness and ... a naughty edge" to his humor. His deft use of innuendo also fit right into Elvira's world, where, according to Peterson, he wrote many of the quotes her fans repeat to this day.
Its a fun week of Bible quizzes, character training, singing and staging a complete childrens musical in just one week. Its very high-energy, Taylor, who serves as the churchs music and worship pastor as well as the director for Summer Week of Choir.

This years musical features an Olympic theme.

This year we are bringing back a favorite from a number of years ago, Hans Bronsons Gold Medal Mission. Its about an American hero who is competing in the Olympics. Reporters help him start thinking about his goals in life and what drives him. Its a really cool way of looking at the Olympic rings and how all of the colors can stand for something in the Christian life, he said.

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The musical, which features skits as well as music from the SWOC participants, will be offered in two free public performances this weekend.

Taylor said even though the week-long program is a ministry of Murdale Baptist Church, Summer Week of Choir has a much bigger reach.
On Saturday, blues-based power trio The Deciders will perform a special concert at 7 p.m. to celebrate the Varsitys 81st birthday. Cara Recine, executive director of the Varsity, said three of Carbondales most talented musicians, Robert Russell, Chris DiBiase and Jimmy Beers, will make their first Varsity appearance. She added that they are like nothing youve seen or heard anywhere else.

Their music incorporates a wide range of influences that includes jazz/fusion, funk, and hard-driving rock n roll. Their emphasis is on original material and improvisation, making them one of the most interesting bands on the local music scene.

Tickets are $10 in advance at thevarsitycenter.eventbrite.com. Tickets will be available on the night of the show, when doors and the Varsity Bar open at 6:30 p.m.

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Colombo said they produced 56 Virtual Varsity shows and a couple special events during the pandemic. They are planning a livestream concert with a live audience as a sort of blend of the virtual and live shows. He said their ability to livestream grew during those 14 months.

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We will give the audience and performers something to leave with, Colombo said.

We survived and made it through the pandemic, Recine said.
CHICAGO  Two men who said they were sexually molested decades ago by a notorious Catholic priest who was imprisoned for molesting other boys have agreed to a settlement of $880,000 from the Archdiocese of Chicago, attorneys announced Wednesday.

The men alleged Norbert Maday sexually abused them repeatedly starting when they were as young as 10 years old while they were alter boys and students at St. Bede the Venerable Elementary School on the citys South Side, attorneys Jason Friedl and Martin Gould said.

Based on lawsuits, court cases and documents, the two were among at least 14 boys whom Maday molested at the six parishes where he was assigned from 1967 to 1986, the attorneys said, adding that they believe Maday died in recent years.

Archdiocese spokesman Manny Gonzalez declined to comment on the settlement.

Friedl and Gould said the agreement was reached before a lawsuit was even filed, representing a significant shift for an archdiocese that has a history of protecting sexually abusive priests.

This is a sharp departure from prior responses and it is a good sign (because) the church itself is recognizing what has happened in the past, said Friedl. This is an indication of a new culture of protection, healing and accountability.
Black smoke from the fire was visible for miles, as debris fell to the ground across a broad swath of land. Winnebago County public health officials asked residents within 3 miles of the fire to wear face masks and use gloves to handle any waste that fell on their property.

Edward Manzke, a Naperville attorney representing Mackey and Migliore in the lawsuit, said they were allowed to return to their home, which is less than a mile from the site, on Friday. The couple stayed with relatives outside of Rockton for the week, Manzke said.

When they returned, they found huge chunks of burned debris, oil spots, and a filmy buildup on their vehicles and lawn, Manzke said. Its like something out of a disaster movie, he said.

The lawsuit alleges Chemtool and Lubrizol were negligent in failing to prevent the fire, caused a nuisance and trespassed on nearby properties by contaminating them with debris.

The lawsuit is seeking monetary damages for the lost use and enjoyment of the homeowners properties, and an injunction requiring Chemtool and Lubrizol to remediate the damage.

Manzke said the aim of the lawsuit goes beyond monetary compensation.
Both later apologized for their comments.

The evening is billed as a "patriot reception" and "private dinner for freedom and liberty sponsors." Attendees must submit their names prior to the event with their purchase of a $75 ticket per person. Sponsorships ranging from $500 to $5,800 are also available.

Miller has aligned herself with Greene, most recently joining her at a press conference promoting a bill that would "fire" the nation's leading infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci. The bill would reduce Fauci's salary to zero, but as a civil servant he can't be fired directly by either Congress or the president. Miller and Greene also voted against a bill honoring police who protected the U.S. Capitol during the riot and were both cited for not wearing masks on the House floor in May.
Blood banks consider themselves prepared when they have about three days' worth of the normal blood supply, according to the American Association of Blood Banks. A task force says blood supply in the U.S. has dropped to "red" level, meaning most inventories have less than a one-day supply.
Agencies usually claim that technology and time prevent them from presenting their disciplinary work in more accessible ways, said Jessica Pishko, a lawyer and former fellow at the University of South Carolina who researched corrupt sheriffs. But the real problem is a lack of leadership, she said.

Many of these agencies are self-policing. So you need a stick, a law that says you have to put your investigation on a website in a month or something like that. Why not have a database where you can look up an officers name and see all the misconduct complaints against them?

That fraud triangle is less likely to form when governments and businesses establish clear lines of behavior and visible consequences when people cross those lines, added John Warren of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners group. Aggressive and repeated ethics training also helps.

You tell them, 'Its not OK.' Weve clearly told you you cant do this thing.' That makes it harder to rationalize.

And without rationalizations, fraudsters almost never do it.

Case closed

After SLED finished its tree-cutting investigation in Hartsville last year, the case landed in a gray zone of potential punishments.
Today is Wednesday, June 23, 2021. Let's get caught up.

Here's what you should know today: President Biden announcing new efforts to target rising violent crime across the U.S.; Eric Adams holds a fragile lead in NYC mayoral primary; and Britney Spears will address her conservatorship judge today.

Keep scrolling for today's top stories, this date in history and celebrity birthdays.

TOP STORIES

Biden anti-crime effort takes on law-breaking gun dealers

WASHINGTON (AP)  President Joe Biden is announcing new efforts to stem a rising national tide of violent crime as administration officials brace for what could be a turbulent summer, focusing on attacking gun violence, providing money to cities that need more police and offering community support.

The worry over crime is real: It has created economic hardship, displacement and anxiety. But there are also tricky politics at play. The spike in crime has become a Republican talking point and has been a frequent topic of conversation on conservative media.
We dont often think that how the U.S. conducts itself at home has much impact on how we face the world, but it does. When its messy at home, its hard to sustain the strength and readiness to turn our attention outward.

Doing so is especially important right now because what weve come to term the international order is under stress. Its not collapsing by any means, but US leadership faces challenges and if were divided and unsettled at home, it will be much more difficult to respond appropriately.

What is the international order? Its essentially the set of structures and values that evolved during the 20th century to resolve disputes, promote commerce and free trade, undergird economic development and investment, and protect human rights.

These days, no aspect of the order we once took for granted isnt at least facing questions. China and Russia are asserting their interests and, often, working actively to undermine ours. Our allies, especially after the four years of the Trump administration, are uncertain of our commitment to global leadership and wonder how much they can count on us. And forces beyond the control of any government are reshaping the global picture, including nationalism and a popular taste for authoritarianism.
But military policy has changed. In 2013, the Defense Department lifted the ban on women serving in combat. Two years later, the department said all military positions would be open to women without exception.

So it would seem equal treatment under the law means that no one should have to register for the draft or all people should have to register. We see it differently. The movement in this country to do away with male and female identity and distinctions is not about equal opportunity, its aimed at changing the American way of life, our very culture.

We call upon the words of South Carolinian and Washington Post columnist Kathleen Parker from 2019:  this entire debate isn't really about military preparedness but is about social engineering -- changing the way people perceive things so that they can be arranged according to the designs of a relatively very few. What's missing from all such cultural arrangements is a full appreciation of human nature, which remains essentially the same through most of time. Progressives will twist themselves into balloon poodles trying to codify gender differences, but heaven forbid we should speak of sex differences, not to mention cultural adaptations to better ensure survival of the species.

Maybe no 18-year-old American woman will ever be conscripted or ordered to fight men mano a mano, but it seems more than a possibility at this point. I'm going to go out on a limb and simply say that a civilized nation doesn't put its women in combat where they have an unequal ability to survive.

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The next sale will be held on June 24, 25, and 26. Appointments will be required for all time slots and will be scheduled by accessing https://nclbooksale.ticketleap.com. As you are currently on our mailing list, you may sign up for your spot now. We are allowing up to 25 customers per time slot.

June 24 will be an Early Bird sale. All customers who schedule for that day will pay $20 at the door for admission to the sale. Any items they purchase that day will be sold at regular prices with hardbacks selling for $2 and all other items at $1 or less.

June 25 will be the Second Chance sale with customers paying $10 at the door for admission. Again, items will be sold at regular prices.

On June 26, there will be no admission charge and items will, once again, be sold at regular prices.

We continue to have a great number of donations arriving daily. You should not be disappointed. We hope to see you at the sale. Please email folncpl307@gmail.com with questions.

Summer reading performer: Cody Landstrom, magician
Much of the backlash against the news of the operation, according to McPheeters, was in response to the grants name, which implies it was to be used specifically to seize cannabis. If it had claimed to target methamphetamine, council member Steve Cathey said, likely no one would have batted an eye.

During the two-day operation, Casper police arrested 23 people, 12 of them on drug-related suggested charges.

In 14 hours, 389 traffic stops were made. McPheeters said the department made 380 stops total over the last week.

About 1.15 pounds, or 520 grams, of marijuana was seized by officers between seven cars. One pound of that was found in one car. That, combined with another driver found with two ounces of weed, means that 510 of the 520 grams seized came from just two cars.

On the other end of the spectrum, a different car had just 0.6 grams of marijuana seized, roughly equivalent to one joint. Another was found with one gram of THC wax.

Officers also found a total of 66.7 grams of methamphetamine and one gram of cocaine during the interdiction.

Rebekah Ladd, spokesperson for the Casper Police Department, said at the time that officers were essentially pulling anyone over who committed a traffic infraction in the targeted area.

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As part of a settlement agreement in a lawsuit brought by the state of Ohio, the Census Bureau promised in May to release the redistricting data no later than Aug. 16  a date it had previously picked for releasing the numbers in an older format.

Ohio sued the Commerce Secretary earlier this year after the Census Bureau said it would be unable to meet a legal deadline to release the redistricting data to the states by March 31 because of delays caused by the pandemic. The bureau said in February that the data would be available in an older format in mid-August and in a more user-friendly format by the end of September. A federal judge dismissed Ohios case and the state appealed, saying the delay threatened its ability to meet redistricting deadlines approved by voters and set in its state constitution.

An appellate panel later said Ohio had standing to sue the Census Bureau. It sent the case back to the lower court to come up with a solution.
I think we certainly need to do more, but there are a lot of places where the issue wasnt and isnt connectivity, the issue is that Medicare wouldnt reimburse for telehealth, she said.

State health care groups have lined up in support of the bill.

It makes it much easier for physicians to keep in touch with their patients. It makes it much more efficient. And we also have had support for the bill from the Wyoming Primary Care Association and the Wyoming Hospital Association as well, said Cheney, who is facing a tough reelection fight after voting to impeach former President Donald Trump.

The Wyoming Hospital Association, meanwhile, lauded Cheney for pursuing the legislation. So did Jan Cartwright, executive director of the Wyoming Primary Care Association.

The Wyoming Primary Care Association supports this bill as an important step in the delivery of healthcare through telehealth. Wyoming federally qualified health centers located in some of the most rural parts of the U. S. moved quickly to provide care to their patients through telehealth during the pandemic. We thank Congresswoman Cheney for her bill to make the telehealth waivers permanent, she said in a statement.
Tim Harts life was too brief  but it was the one he wanted to live.

Hart died this month at 36 from injuries suffered while parachuting to fight a forest fire in New Mexico. How a kid from Illinois ended up as a smokejumper out West is unlikely but seemed, to those who knew him, the inevitable result of him pursuing his dreams.

Growing up in north suburban Wheeling and Beach Park, attending Zion-Benton Township High School, Hart always wanted to be outdoors. When he got a job at a grocery store, he bribed the other workers to always let him collect the carts, just so he could work outside.

He joined the Youth Conservation Corps in Lake County, Illinois, where he enjoyed his time fixing trails and foot bridges, hacking out invasive buckthorn, even swimming through muck to unblock culverts.

As he studied forestry at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Hart joined the Saluki Fire Dawgs, and conducted prescribed burns and forest management. After he graduated cum laude, he became a wildland firefighter, and in 2016 became a smokejumper  someone who jumps out of planes to fight forest fires.

He was the kind of guy who was never going to stop below the top of something, his wife, Michelle Hart, said. He had to climb it all the way to the top.
CARLISLE, Pa.  The remains of 10 more Native American children who died more than a century ago at a boarding school in central Pennsylvania are being disinterred and will be returned to their relatives, authorities said.

A team of archaeologists began work Saturday at the cemetery on the grounds of the Carlisle Barracks, which also houses the U.S. Army War College. Nine of the children were from the Rosebud Sioux tribe in South Dakota and one is from the Alaskan Aleut tribe.

The cemetery contains more than 180 graves of students who attended the former Carlisle Indian Industrial School  a government-run boarding school for Native American children. This is the Armys fourth disinterment project at the school in as many years.

The school founded by an Army officer opened in 1879 and housed some 10,000 indigenous children before it shut down in 1918. Students were forced to cut their braids, dress in uniforms, speak English and adopt European names. Infectious disease and harsh conditions claimed the lives of many of the children buried there.
GOVERNMENT is looking to put the framework in place for a new fuel distribution system that will affect gas prices at the pump, but Finance Minister Colm Imbert said yesterday the eventual retail costs ought not to be much different from what prevails now.
AT 32 years old, Zwede Hewitt is building out an app that he is confident is going to take the world by storm.

The name of the app is LUHU, which stands for Let Us Help U and Hewitt describes it as social marketplace.

It is a place where people can do social networking, but it combines that with the ability to shop. So the concept is essentially social networking meets e-commerce, says Hewitt.
We want to work now!

Hundreds of truck drivers throughout the country say they have been crippled by Covid-19 restrictions, which saw the closure of the construction sector in early May.

They are therefore pleading with the Government to reopen the sector for the sake of their survival.
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Because of my previous association with the Tobago House of Assembly (THA), several persons have been asking why am I not commenting on the two self-government bills for Tobago.
Value for money should be the guiding principle for Government expenditure, given the countrys strained expenditure during this Covid pandemic.

The unanticipated but emergency spending arising out of the visitation of Covid-19 ought to speak for itself. In this regard, therefore, the request by the police administration for $22 million for the purchase of a fleet of 80 new SUVs deserved a more studied response than that provided by the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister has an open mind on the selection of a police commissioner.

Asked yesterday whether as head of the Cabinet, his Government was prepared to approve a nomination coming to the Parliament for the continuation of Gary Griffith as Commissioner of Police, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley said: We in the Cabinet keep an open mind on matters of national interest like that. The Cabinet has a duty to keep an open mind. The authority (Police Service Commission) advises us and we will look at the advice with an open mind as you would have seen us doing before.
The local office market appears to be making a slow but steady comeback after more than a year of remote work.

CJR Investments recently sold a 5,200-square-foot office suite at 10130 N. Oracle Road to private investors for $1.5 million. The space houses the administrative offices for Basis school, which has renewed its lease for five years.

Theyre committed to the space  not just working from home, said Gary Heinfeld, with Advisors in Real Estate, who represented the seller along with Chris Hollenbeck of Cushman & Wakefield. Just in the last month, weve seen a little more activity for offices, he said.

Vacancy rates remained steady at 9.3% during the first quarter of 2021, according to a report by commercial brokerage firm Picor.

We anticipate that (the second quarter of 2021) will turn the corner toward increasing demand for office space, the report says. Pent-up demand is likely to become evident as decision makers feel more comfortable evaluating their near- and long-term office requirement.

Other recent commercial transactions include:
So now he wants the U.S. Supreme Court to let him and other Republican attorneys general do what Biden will not  defend the rule.

The ability of immigrants to support themselves has always been a part of the consideration when determining if someone who enters this country legally should be granted permanent status. But the rules, going back to the Clinton administration, have been much more lax in determining whether someone can get what is formally known as a Permanent Resident Card.

In 2019, the Trump administration adopted a rule that allows the Department of Homeland Security to deny admission to anyone who is likely to become a public charge.

It said that would be based on the persons age, health, family status, assets, resources, financial status, education and skills. And a separate section of the rule said that someone already in the country would be deported if, within five years, the person has become a public charge.

That led to a series of lawsuit across the nation, with several judges blocking the rule from taking effect. It was when appellate courts split on the issue  but before it went to the Supreme Court  that the Biden administration decided it no longer wanted the rule, effectively killing the litigation.
Bowers said if theres no budget in place by the end of this week, that could mean state employees wont be paid for what they do next week. That would lead to ripple effects as government would have to be shut down, he said.

So if youre planning on a July 4th weekend at a state park of your choice, that wont be available, he said.

Republican Gov. Doug Ducey dismissed questions of what happens if the budget stalls, saying he is confident that it will pass  eventually. He was a bit more guarded when pushed on the question of having a contingency plan to ensure that basic state services, like prisons and public safety, continue after July 1 if there is not an approved budget.

We do have a backup plan, Ducey said. You present that plan when you need a backup. Right now its full speed ahead.

Even if the House approves the budget, there may not be the votes in the Senate.

Sen. Kelly Townsend, R-Mesa, said Tuesday it is up in the air whether she will support the spending and tax-cut plan. And with no Senate Democrats willing to vote for the plan, Senate President Karen Fann, R-Prescott, needs her vote.
Pima County Attorney Laura Conover announced on social media the hiring of Tucson Unified School District legal counsel Sam Brown as chief civil deputy.

Browns hiring rounds out the top tier of Conovers senior leadership team, which includes Chief Deputy Tamara Mulembo and Chief Criminal Deputy Dan South.

The Civil Divisions top spot had been vacant since former civil chief Andy Flagg resigned March 16. Brown will remain with TUSD until July.

Brown was first hired as TUSDs legal counsel in 2010, transitioning to the districts director of desegregation in 2012. He held that position until January 2015, when he returned to his former job as legal counsel for the district, according to his LinkedIn page.

During his work with TUSD, Brown counseled leaders and governing board members through school closures and legislative efforts to eliminate the districts ethnic studies program, among other challenges, according to Conovers post on the Pima County Attorneys Offices Facebook page.

Most recently, Brown led efforts to reform the Tucson Urban League. Under his leadership, the organization moved from seven figures in the red to a revitalized TUL that has re-engaged and reclaimed community programs that had been lost, Conover said in the post.
"He needed this in here in order for him to feel good about rescinding the emergency order because he's afraid of what Phoenix or Tucson are going to do,'' Townsend said Wednesday. "He's basically saying 'If I rescind the emergency order, then I need assurances that the cities can't do all this other stuff.' "

But there may be a delay: Townsend said she agreed to let Ducey defer ending his declaration until the state gets $450 million in COVID-19 relief funds Arizona is owed from the federal government, funds the state may be entitled to only if it still has a declared emergency.

And, on the subject of gubernatorial emergencies, senators also approved a related proposal by Sen. Michelle Ugenti-Rita, R-Scottsdale, that limits future such declarations to no more than 120 days. Any extensions would have to be approved by the Legislature, and only for 30 days at a time.

As it is now, once a governor declares an emergency it can last as long as he or she wants. Lawmakers can void the action with a simple majority vote. But that does no good if they are not at the Capitol, as it takes either a call by the governor or a two-thirds vote to create a special legislative session.

Election audit
Interfaith Community Services honored a longtime volunteer by renaming its emergency financial fund after him.

ICS changed the name of its Good Samaritan Fund to the Ed Jenkins Helping Hand Fund. The renaming was in honor of philanthropist and ICS emeritus board member Ed Jenkins.

Jenkins died in late 2020.

The Ed Jenkins Helping Hand Fund helps individuals or families receive assistance for emergency situations. These situations may arise from a loss of income, illness or injury, or during a waiting period for other forms of public assistance. The goal of this program is to provide for acute basic needs that help clients in distress get back on their feet and take steps to stability and independence.

Jenkins was a volunteer for ICS for more than 17 years. His impact on ICS and the Tucson community is immeasurable. He was a tireless advocate for those less fortunate in our community and an inspiration to all, the nonprofit said in a news release.

Every Monday morning, Ed sat at the ICS front desk fielding calls from residents needing food, financial assistance, transportation, a daily wellness call or home repairs. The position gave him a vantage point to see this communitys huge needs, says Tom McKinney, ICS chief executive officer.
Scott clarified he supports approving the funding for the body-worn cameras, but that the policies guarding them should be finalized before they are approved for use.

Im in support of this purchase, but there have been questions raised around this country about policies that govern the use of body-worn cameras, including when the footage from those body-worn cameras are released to the public, Scott said. Im not trying to assert authority that the board does not have, but I think we do have authority over purchases, and theres information I would like to know before the purchases we approve are finalized.

According to Nanos, the sheriffs department has developed a draft of the guidelines for body-worn cameras and will likely finalize it this week.

I feel like theres a great lack of trust from this board and this current chair, and I dont understand why, Nanos said. I really do struggle with the issue of submitting for your review policies that you know are going to lead to questions and then hold us hostage, if you will, for funding this program.

The county attorneys office will look into the boards authority to review a body-worn camera policy for the sheriffs department and return with clarification.

Home sharing
Her party is applying continuous pressure to end the filibuster, and Sinema is burnishing her centrist bona fides among moderates, said Mike Noble, chief of research for OH Predictive Insights.

Noble said his organization polled registered Arizona voters after the minimum-wage vote and found Democrats were dissatisfied with Sinema, but the dip in party support was only temporary. Within two months, her numbers had already rebounded, he said.

There was a penalty at first, and if that wouldve stayed longer term it couldve given her some real electoral challenges, but shes not up for reelection for a while so her controversial vote makes her stand out, Noble said.

Kyle Kondik, managing editor of Sabatos Crystal Ball at the University of Virginias Center for Politics, said the fact that Sinema is not as liberal as the rest of the Democratic caucus may help her in the future. But it is unclear how many times she can vote against her own party without it having long-term consequences.

Noble called Sinemas current positioning very strategic.
She emphasized that person-to-person contact is key in determining how to direct the homeless and near-homeless toward resources.

When you actually talk to people living on the streets, they have so many diverse stories. Sometimes we lump them all together and think that if they dont have a home, they must want one. Many people are comfortable on the streets, while the temporarily homeless may not have access to things they need because they have not adapted to that lifestyle and dont know how to find resources. Our hope is to bring access to resources to single parents and those in temporary homeless circumstances, said Trotter.

Ultimately, outreach is the cornerstone of the organizations general philosophy, which embraces Value Exchange: The idea that value is placed on individuals, not circumstances. Trotter emphasized that everyone has the ability to give back to the community.

We invite the community to come out and make things for our programs. They can get things they need while they make things to give to others. If you need a food box or gift certificate, you can come help make blankets for children: The value exchange is your time. We remind everyone that we all have gifts to share, said Trotter.
The Tucson City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved a $1.9 billion budget for fiscal year 2022.

The budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1 prioritizes employee compensation, pandemic recovery, neighborhood road improvements and community safety.

Im pleased that were considering this budget tonight. It has taken a lot of work to craft, a lot of minds put together and the entire team working hand-in-hand with each other, Mayor Regina Romero said. Im very proud of the decisions that weve made in this years budget to refocus our energy and investment in the residents of the city of Tucson and the workers of our city.

More than $33.5 million is included in the budget for employee raises, bringing wages below the standard market rate to those of nearby jurisdictions pay for similar positions.

City employees began seeing raises in their paychecks last week, City Manager Michael Ortega said. Approval of the budget comes with a one-time $2,000 payment to employees who have worked with the city for 28 years or more.
The Alamo Fire had burned 7,501 acres west of Nogales on the border between Mexico and the Coronado National Forests Nogales Ranger District as of Wednesday morning.

The blaze is being fueled by short grass and bush in steep, rugged terrain. The total land burned so far includes 4,953 acres in the Coronado National Forest and 2,548 acres in Mexico.

Nearly 100 firefighters and personnel are battling the blaze, forest officials said.

The cause of the fire, first reported on June 20, is under investigation.

No structures are threatened or have been damaged. There are currently no closures or evacuations.

Meanwhile, the human-caused Telegraph Fire has burned 180,725 acres near Globe, about 90 miles southeast of Phoenix.

Since it was first reported on June 4, it is already among the 10 worst fires Arizona has ever seen, the Associated Press reported. Its being fueled by desert grass and brush.

As of June 18, 52 structures were destroyed. The fire also caused some residents in small towns in Pinal and Gila counties to be placed in various stages of evacuation.
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP)  India Walton, a socialist community activist, has defeated the four-term mayor of Buffalo in a Democratic primary, putting her on track to become the first woman to lead New York's second-largest city.

The 38-year-old nurse and union leader captured a major political prize for the party's left wing with her victory over Mayor Byron Brown.

The Associated Press called the race Wednesday after it became clear there werent enough absentee ballots for Brown to overcome Waltons lead. She had declared victory Tuesday night.

As her apparent upset win sunk in, Walton paced on a darkened Buffalo street, putting her hand to her forehead and bowing in disbelief in a moment captured on camera.

Mommy! the 38-year-old nurse and union representative shouted into her phone. I won! Im the mayor of Buffalo!

Walton is all but assured to win the general election in November. There is no Republican candidate in the race.

Walton was born in Buffalos economically depressed east side and became a working mother at 14. After earning her GED while pregnant, she went on to become a nurse in the same hospital where her twins were born.
MAMMOTH CAVE, Ky. (AP)  Dozens of people face criminal charges or suffered injuries during a five-day party in south central Kentucky billed as a Redneck Rave."

Blue Holler Offroad Park in Edmonson County hosted the event last week that organizers said would feature mud, music and mayhem, the Lexington Herald-Leader reported. The crowd was estimated to be in the thousands.

Edmonson County Sheriff Shane Doyle told the newspaper 14 people were arrested and another 34 were cited on criminal charges that ranged from assault and strangulation to drug and alcohol possession. Those arrested came from Kentucky and several other states including Michigan, Indiana, Missouri and Tennessee, according to court records.

Some who attended reported accidental injuries including one person who was impaled by a log that pierced the floorboard of his vehicle and others suffered lacerations, dislocated fingers and broken bones, Doyle said.

Organizer Justin Stowers did not immediately respond to the newspaper when asked about the event.
NEW LONDON, Conn. (AP)  Merle Smith Jr., the first Black cadet to graduate from the Coast Guard Academy, has died, his family said. He was 76.

Smith died on June 16 of complications from Parkinson's disease and COVID-19, his wife Lynda Smith said.

Smith commanded a cutter in Vietnam, taught law classes at the academy in New London and retired from active-duty service with the rank of Coast Guard commander before joining the legal staff of submarine builder Electric Boat.

The academy's superintendent, Rear Adm. William Kelly, said in an email to the campus community that Smith served as a role model for countless cadets, faculty, and staff."

Smith, the son of an Army colonel, attended the academy as a member of the Class of 1966. In an interview with The Associated Press in 2012, he said he generally did not feel like an outsider during his years as a cadet.

Every now and then you would get something that would happen. Someone would make some remark somewhere, he said. In the main, it was not a situation that I felt uncomfortable with.
This month, Brown announced additional prizes including travel packages to destinations around Oregon and more than 1,500 gift cards, worth $100, that were being distributed at vaccine sites during the weekend of June 12  an incentive that officials said brought a noticeable increase of people to sites.

In Colorado, vaccinations have slowed since its lottery was rolled out by Democratic Gov. Jared Polis last month, with about 589,000 fewer doses given out in the month since Polis announcement, compared to the same amount of time a month before the contest began.

The state is offering five residents the chance to win $1 million each in weekly lottery drawings from June 4 until July 7.

In Ohio, about 5.5 million people have received at least one shot of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or the Johnson & Johnson vaccine as of Wednesday, or about 47% of the population. About 5 million people, or 43% of the population, have completed the process.

While the incentives success was short-lived, it got Ohioans who were either straddling the line or those who had not plans to get the vaccine to get vaccinated, Ohio's governor said.
McKINNEY, Texas (AP)  A grand jury in Texas has declined to indict eight jailers over the in-custody death of a Black man who died after struggling with detention officers.

But the Collin County grand jury also issued a rare statement Tuesday calling for the creation of a work group to study the March death of Marvin Scott III to prevent something similar from happening again.

We sincerely hope that the loss of Marvin Scott III will not be in vain, the statement said. We are therefore recommending that a work group be convened as soon as practicable to study the events of March 14th for lessons learned in an effort to avoid any similar future tragedy.

The grand jury found no probable cause to charge the eight jailers with a crime in connection with Scott's death, which was ruled a homicide in April. A medical examiner found that Scott died of fatal acute stress response while struggling with officers who were trying to detain him.

The medical examiner said Scott was previously diagnosed with schizophrenia and his family has said Scott was likely in a mental health crisis at the time.
DENVER (AP)  A Colorado man was shopping when he heard the gunfire that killed a suburban Denver police officer, rushed out of the store with his gun and shot the suspect, according to a worker who saw the shooting.

Bill Troyanos told Denver news station KMGH-TV that he was working at the Army Navy Surplus store in downtown Arvada on Monday when he and a man later identified by police as 40-year-old John Hurley heard shots and spotted a gunman in a plaza outside. Troyanos said Hurley rushed to confront the shooter.

He did not hesitate; he didnt stand there and think about it. He totally heard the gunfire, went to the door, saw the shooter and immediately ran in that direction, Troyanos said. I just want to make sure his family knows how heroic he was.

Troyanos said he heard five or six shots fired from Hurleys gun. The gunman, identified by police as 59-year-old Ronald Troyke, fell against a parked vehicle, he said.

Hurley, who lived in the city of Golden, was killed, as were the gunman and Arvada police Officer Gordon Beesley, a 19-year department veteran and beloved school resource officer. Police have not said who shot Hurley or the gunman.
At Fort Bliss, the Honduran girl on suicide watch said she could hardly sleep at night because the lights were always on and she found herself sleeping during the day. She said the food was horrible, including soggy salad and foul-smelling bread, so she resorted to eating only popsicles and juice.

She said that while on suicide watch, pens and pencils were taken from her and guards observed her every move  measures meant to protect her from harming herself.

She said she was told if she tried to escape, she would spend a longer time in detention. When she filed her account, she said she had been at the facility for nearly 60 days and didn't know when she could go live in New Mexico with her uncle, who told her that he had completed the paperwork for her release.

I have been here for a really long time. I really want to leave, she said.

Record arrivals of unaccompanied migrant children have tested the Biden administration, which has picked up nearly 60,000 of them from February to May, many of them from Central America.
KYIV, Ukraine (AP)  Belarus' authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko has warned that his country will not try to stem a flow of illegal migrants to the European Union, a move that comes after the EU tightened its sanctions on the country.

The EU and the United States have slapped Belarus with tough sanctions after it diverted a passenger jet last month to arrest a dissident journalist.

Lukashenko on Tuesday night denounced the sanctions as what he called a hybrid war waged by the West against Belarus and warned the country's EU neighbors  Latvia, Lithuania and Poland that they shouldn't expect Belarusian authorities to stop illegal migrants from crossing the border.

They are wailing: "Ah, Belarusians are not protecting them  thousands of illegal immigrants are rushing into Lithuania, Latvia and Poland, he said in the city of Brest on the border with Poland. "They demand that we protect them from smuggling and drugs. I just want to ask, are you mad? You have unleashed a hybrid war against us and now you demand that we protect you as we did before.

Earlier this month, officials in Lithuania accused Belarus of opening the doors for migrants to cross their shared 680-kilometer (420-mile) border.
Also in this case, a series of errors by employees who did not observe strict safety procedures caused the outage, Wioletta Czemiel-Grzybowska, the head of the state mining and conventional energy concern PGE GiEK that operates Belchatow, told the parliament commission, according to PAP.

The unit will be fully operational after Oct. 31, following the needed repairs, and four employees have been fired, she said.

Poland relies on black and brown coal for some 65% of its energy. The Belchatow lignite mine and power plant is Europe's largest single pollutant and under pressure to close, as the European Union strives to meet its ambitious climate goals. Belchatow's last unit is to close in 2036, and the mine in 2038 according to plans by the PGE GiEK and local authorities.

Poland is also in intensive talks with the neighboring Czech Republic over another Polish lignite plant and mine near the countries' border. Prague has taken Warsaw to the European Court of Justice over what it says are the harmful effects of the Turow complex on nearby Czech villages. The court has ordered the mine closed immediately, which Poland says is not possible.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
OPINION: With the differential water rated approved our letter writers are sharing ideas on how it could done in a better way. What are your thoughts? Submit a letter to the editor at tucson.com/opinion.
OPINION: "Two-thirds of the USCCB still believes the majority of Catholics take them seriously? After Pennsylvania? After the revelations about Cardinal Theodore McCarrick? No. We. Dont," writes contributing columnist Renee Schafer Horton.
There is a demand, she said of the multifamily element. We have seen a constant flow of people. On the residential side, it is rockin and rollin. We have seen inquiries from people all over the country, be it New York, San Francisco, Boston, Austin (Texas), Washington, D.C.

Some people are moving because of the Whirlpool factory. There are new jobs being created here. Tulsa has just really made a name for itself with the Gathering Place, with the Tulsa Remote program and all of the amazing things it has to offer: affordability, accessibility. We really think the downtown living piece is important.

Constructed as an office building, it was completed in 1949 as headquarters for Service Pipeline Company. The structure later was named after Arco (Atlantic Richfield Company), which left Tulsa in 1985.

The first-floor exterior was finished with 45 tons of Cold Spring Diamond Gray granite from Minnesota, and the entrance vestibules are of Vert Champdepraz stone from France. Marble was used liberally in the corridors and in special color combinations.

The walls of the lobby feature Italian marble and every floor has a different marble in its elevator lobby.

Johannsen, her husband and their two young children moved downtown from midtown about a month and a half ago.
The director of one participating school said adding academic requirements like in other states would take away some of the flexibility of being a private school.

The more they add, the more difficult it might be to make sure were meeting everyones needs, said Clair Bartley, executive director at Paths to Independence, a private school in Bartlesville that educates students with autism.

She said the school evaluates each students growth based on an individualized plan, and while some students take the ACT or benchmark tests, for other students, it wouldnt make sense to require them to test.

The new data reporting requirements for the states other school-choice program, the Oklahoma Equal Opportunity Scholarship Fund, are different from Lindsey Nicole Henrys. That program is not under the Education Department but is managed by scholarship-granting organizations, which collect donations and disperse the scholarship funds to private schools, and educational improvement grant organizations, which collect donations for public schools.

Under a new law, the Oklahoma Tax Commission will be required to publish the complete list of those organizations on its website as well as an audited financial statement of each and details about the benefits, successes or failures of the program.
A Tulsa man pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court to aggravated identity theft in connection with a COVID-19-related business loan he sought from a local bank.

Adam Winston James, 45, admitted in Tulsa federal court to his part in a scheme to fraudulently obtain a Paycheck Protection Program loan.

Federal prosecutors alleged James and Rafael Maturino, 40, worked together on the PPP loan scheme. The pair were charged separately in 2020 with filing false loan applications for the business loans.

Maturino was sentenced June 1 to serve one year and one day in federal prison after he pleaded guilty in March to bank fraud after illegally receiving nearly $100,000 in PPP loans.

James was alleged to have applied for a PPP loan May 6, 2020, on behalf of a company he claimed to own and operate, Velocity Innovations LLC. As part of the application, James used the identification of at least seven other people without their knowledge, fraudulently claiming they were employees of Velocity Innovations LLC, prosecutors alleged.

James received $125,900 from the bank as a result of the scheme,according to prosecutors.

James, who is free on bond, is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 30.
People who received Tulsa police citations, made police reports or interacted with the city online are urged to check their financial records, as more information has been compromised as part of the citys ransomware attack.

(Tuesday), the City of Tulsa was made aware the persons responsible for the May 2021 city of Tulsa ransomware attack shared more than 18,000 city files via the dark web mostly in the form of police citations and internal department files, the city said in a news release.

Police citations contain some Personal Identifiable Information (PII) such as name, date of birth, address and drivers license number. Police citations do not include Social Security numbers.

No other files are known to have been shared as of (Tuesday), but out of an abundance of caution, anyone who has filed a police report, received a police citation, made a payment with the city, or interacted with the city in any way where PII was shared  whether online, in-person or on paper, prior to May 2021  is being asked to take monitoring precautions.

Residents are asked to:
The 15,000-square-foot mural should be completed by late July, Sarfati said, with finalization of augmented reality elements expected to take roughly an additional month and a half to complete.

Sarfati said the augmented reality portion of the mural will bring to life the flora and fauna of the mural, animating the artwork and providing audio when viewed through a phone camera and providing more information on the nature it depicts. The mural will also be accompanied by plaques with similar information.

Once completed, the work will be the largest augmented reality mural in the world, overtaking Columbus, Ohios The Journey, also created by Skotnes and Sarfati.

The art was commissioned by the Tulsa Parking Authority through a public request for proposals, according to the city press release. Discussions on enhancing the storefront area began around two years ago, Downtown Coordinating Council Executive Director Brian Kurtz said.
Theres this sense that we know were not doing what we need to do for kids when we lock them up, and were not giving them the kind of support and focus on their families and all the circumstances that help them become more thriving adults, she said. Its a question of what that actually looks like. Thats the thing people are starting to grapple with.

States efforts would get a boost under the budget proposal released last month by President Joe Biden, which calls for increasing the overall youth justice budget from $359 million to $796 million and spending $100 million to support efforts to close detention facilities and invest in community alternatives to support youth.

In Maine, the Legislature voted to close the states only youth detention center but the governor hasnt said whether shell sign the bill. The proposal would direct the Maine Department of Corrections to make a plan to close the Long Creek Youth Development Center in South Portland by 2023. The Maine Department of Corrections is opposed to the bill, saying it doesnt take a balanced approach to ensuring rehabilitation and public safety.
A husband and wife from Tahlequah have been sentenced to 25 years and 20 years respectively after a wide-ranging investigation into an allegation of child sex abuse.

John Haynes, 44, and Jennifer Mason, 37, entered pleas in Cherokee County District Court.

Mason pleaded guilty June 17 to one count of sexual abuse of a child and one count of procuring, producing, distributing or possessing child pornography.

Haynes pleaded no contest March 25 to one count of sexual abuse of a child under 12 and one count of aggravated possession of child pornography.

Haynes will be a lifetime registered sex offender, according to a news release from the Oklahoma Bureau of Investigation.

According to the release, digital chat logs had been reported to authorities by the service provider, with concerns that Mason had participated in Haynes abuse of an infant. On May 1, 2020, OSBI Internet Crimes Against Children agents and Department of Homeland Security-Tulsa agents served a federal search warrant at the couples Tahlequah residence.

Haynes was arrested and booked into the Cherokee County jail, with further evidence prompting Masons arrest the next month, the OSBI release states.
Ruling that way would require overturning Employment Division v. Smith, a 1990 decision written by conservative hero Antonin Scalia that most conservatives have come to regret. In that case, the court said that the state of Oregon didnt owe unemployment insurance to two counselors it had fired for breaking the drug laws by using peyote in a religious ceremony. It said, as well, that a law that does not single out religious believers for penalties can be applied to them even if it happens to impose a burden on the exercise of their faith.

It was a highly controversial decision then: There were four dissenters, and Congress nearly unanimously passed a law to undo much of its effect. Academic heavy-hitters, including conservatives, have argued for each side of the subsequent debate.

Alito zeroes in on the chief weakness of the Scalia rule: It seems to give religious liberty less judicial protection than other parts of the Bill of Rights. Matthew Franck, a scholar at Princeton University, has elaborated on the point in an essay.

Scalia, Franck explains, envisioned two categories of government policies with respect to the free exercise of religion: invalid ones that aim to restrict it, and valid ones that may place incidental limits on it. The justice concluded that the Constitution does not guarantee exemptions for believers from the second type of policy.
A young man with no underlying condition has passed away due to unknown reasons about 39 hours after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine shot in Hanoi.

The man was T.H.L., a 26-year-old teacher from Dong Anh District, the Hanoi Center for Disease Control confirmed on Tuesday evening.

L. came to the medical center in Nam Hong Commune at 8:20 am on Sunday to undergo a health check before receiving a dose of COVID-19 vaccine.

His body temperature was 36.1 degrees Celsius, blood pressure at 130/80mmHg, pulse at 80 times per minute, and respiratory rate at 18 breaths per minute.

He did not have any underlying health condition.

L. got a shot of AstraZenecas COVID-19 vaccine before having his health monitored at the medical center for 30 minutes.

Health workers then instructed him on how to monitor his condition at home.

At 9:55 pm on Monday, L.s family members contacted a local medical center to report that he was having a seizure.

An emergency unit from the Dong Anh District Medical Center arrived at his house 15 minutes later.

After receiving emergency treatment for 30 minutes, L.s condition worsened as his skin turned purplish and his pupils dilated to about five to six millimeters.

His carotid pulse could not be felt while his blood pressure could not be measured, either.

L. was rushed to Dong Anh General Hospital but died at 11:15 pm the same day despite doctors efforts.

According to the Hanoi Department of Health, the medical center in Nam Hong Commune had met all requirements to become a vaccination station.

The center administered AstraZenecas COVID-19 vaccine shots belonging to batch No. ABX1466, whose expiration date is on August 31, to 100 people on Sunday.

Aside from L., all people receiving the doses that day are in normal health.

The entire inoculation process was carried out in accordance with regulations, the health department added.

During a meeting on the case on Tuesday morning, experts from Bach Mai Hospital and the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology concluded that the man had died from an unknown cause 39 hours after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine shot.

Clinical manifestations and forensic results showed no evidence of death due to anaphylaxis or embolism, thus microscopic tests and gene sequencing need to be performed to reach a conclusion.

Vietnam began COVID-19 inoculation on March 8 and has administered more than 2.5 million doses as of Tuesday night.

Four post-vaccination deaths have been recorded in the country so far, of which three were due to unknown causes, according to VnExpress newspaper.

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Here are todays leading news stories:

Politics

-- During online talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday, Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh suggested Germany create favorable conditions for Vietnam to early access vaccine supplies and transfer vaccine production technology to the Southeast Asian nation.

COVID-19 Updates

-- The Ministry of Health documented 55 domestic COVID-19 cases on Wednesday morning, of which 51 were in Ho Chi Minh City, raising the national tally to 13,782, with 5,546 recoveries and 69 deaths.

-- A 26-year-old teacher died in Hanoi 39 hours after being given the first shot of the AstraZeneca vaccine, the citys Center for Disease Control said in a notice on Tuesday.

-- A fireman living in Ho Chi Minh Citys Binh Chanh District, who works with another COVID-19 patient at the municipal Fire Prevention and Fighting and Rescue Police Division, tested positive for the novel coronavirus last weekend, a source told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Tuesday.

-- A grocer next to Tu Du Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, tested positive for the novel coronavirus on Tuesday night, according to a local official.

Society

-- Police in the southern Vietnamese province of Binh Phuoc on Tuesday night said that they had taken legal proceedings against two Vietnamese people for arranging for five Chinese to travel from Vietnam to Cambodia illegally.

-- Eateries in the southern province of Long An have closed again from 0:00 on Wednesday after resuming dine-in service for only four days, as authorities have reinstated several COVID-19 prevention and control measures.

-- Authorities in the central province of Quang Nam on Tuesday successfully detonated more than six metric tons of explosives to demolish 75 illegal gold mines inside Song Thanh National Park.

-- Multiple streets in Hanoi were inundated following a torrential rain on Tuesday night. More downpours, possibly along with thunderstorms and strong gusts, are forecast to strike the capital in the next three days, according to the National Center for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting.

-- A 51-year-old man from the southern city of Vung Tau has been condemned to seven years in jail for chopping down 24 bougainvillea trees of Vung Tau Urban and Parks Development Joint Stock Company to bring them home for sale.

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A vendor selling groceries at a rented kiosk next to Tu Du Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City had tested positive for COVID-19, authorities said on Tuesday evening.

The vendors main customers were caretakers of patients at the hospital.

The vendor visited another hospital to check on a coughing symptom and fever a few days earlier and was kept there for monitoring.

The hospital on Tuesday announced that the vendor had tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

Local authorities urgently zoned off and disinfected the kiosk, while tracing people who had come into direct contact with the grocer.

A representative of Tu Du, the leading hospital in the field of obstetrics and gynecology and infertility treatment, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that the vendor had never come inside the hospital.

The hospital had also issued the guidance for the patients caretakers to limit buying supplies from vendors just outside its premises.

The aforementioned vendors infection thus does not affect the hospitals operations, the representative stated.

The Ministry of Health confirmed 55 domestic COVID-19 cases on Wednesday morning, of which 51 were in Ho Chi Minh City, raising the national tally to 13,782, with 5,546 recoveries and 69 deaths.

Since April 27, when Vietnam began to suffer the pandemics fourth wave, 10,495 have been recorded nationwide.

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As a month-long ban on non-essential businesses was eased on Tuesday morning, Hanoi dwellers were seen going out in droves to resume their normal routines at local eateries and barbershops.

On May 25, all barbershops, dine-in eateries, and beverage outlets in Hanoi were forced to close and completely switch to takeaway services, pursuant to an order by the municipal authority to curb the fourth wave of coronavirus in the capital city.

On Tuesday, they were allowed to reopen their sit-in operations, provided that they put no more than 50 percent of their full seating capacity to service or receive no more than 20 customers at a time, close before 9:00 pm, place barriers between seats, and ensure safe distancing, among other preventive measures.

As witnessed by Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper correspondents on Tuesday morning, Hanoi dwellers showed up early at their favorite food stalls and coffee shops to try their first sit-down dining experience in almost a month.

Queues also formed in front of barbershops and hairdressers in the city.

Anh Thai, owner of a barbershop in Hanoi, serves a customer at his shop on the reopening day, June 22, 2021. Photo: Pham Tuan / Tuoi Tre

Tools in a barbershop in Hanoi are put to use for the first time in a month, June 22, 2021. Photo: Pham Tuan / Tuoi Tre

Cao Van Thai, 26, owner of a barbershop on Pham Ke Binh Street in Ba Dinh District, said he only had a few hours on Monday evening to prepare for the reopening, as the decision from Hanoi authorities came late into the night.

Im glad that my store can finally be reopened, and I can finally get to work instead of sitting around, he said.

According to Thai, an abnormally big crowd, consisting of mostly male customers, had queued up in front of his shop, yearning for a fresh cut after days of social distancing.

A customer gets his hair trimmed in a barbershop in Hanoi, June 22, 2021. Photo: Pham Tuan / Tuoi Tre

Hanoi residents enjoy drinks at a coffee shop, June 22, 2021. Photo: Pham Tuan / Tuoi Tre

Lines of customers were also seen at another barbershop on Lang Street in Dong Da District.

Ngo Quang Huy, 24, a waiting customer, said he had booked a time slot with the shop earlier, which was why he did not have to queue.

Huy eagerly looked forward to his turn as he had not got his hair cut for four weeks.

They opened at 9:00 am, but I had arrived at 8:00 am, Huy said.

Normally, the place is not packed until the afternoon, but for today people have shown up in droves since the early morning.

Food stalls and coffee shops were also open in time to welcome back sit-in diners longing for their favorite treats.

A diner enjoys a bowl of pho in a food stall in Hanoi, June 22, 2021. Photo: Pham Tuan / Tuoi Tre

Most sit-in stalls in Cau Giay and Ba Dinh Districts were equipped with divider panels and hand sanitizers to ensure safety for their customers.

These places required their customers to keep a safe distance and abide by epidemic prevention guidelines.

Kieu Viet Khanh, a local resident, said he had been craving a bowl of pho for weeks.

The first thing I did this morning was get myself some pho," Khanh said.

"I think all Hanoians did the same.

Hand sanitizer bottles are prepared in a coffee shop in Hanoi, June 22, 2021. Photo: Pham Tuan / Tuoi Tre

Dinh Tien Dung, secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee, told the press on Monday that the restrictions on sit-in services are only eased, not fully lifted.

We will consider easing services that are deemed more essential before others, he said.

From April 27, Hanoi has recorded 466 local cases of COVID-19 in 13 clusters, becoming the locality with the fourth-highest number of infections in Vietnam, after Bac Giang Province, Ho Chi Minh City, and Bac Ninh Province.

However, the infection rate in the city has slowed down in the past few days, with the last case recorded in an isolated area on June 19.

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Many people living in Ho Chi Minh City have shown support for the metropolis largest-ever COVID-19 immunization drive by showing up at vaccination venues to get inoculated against the respiratory disease.

The drive kicked off on June 19 and is carried out at 650 injection locations every day until June 27, using 836,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine developed by British-Swedish firm AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford.

In addition to priority subjects designated by the government, this vaccination campaign benefits others including essential service providers, teachers, health workers, people working at administrative agencies, people over 65 years old, and workers at industrial parks and export processing zones.

Aside from some vaccine-hesitant people, many others were eager to line up and get injected against COVID-19, doing their part in slowing and hopefully ending the pandemic.

One of the first arrivals at the vaccination site at Hoang Hoa Tham High School in Binh Thanh District on Tuesday, Nguyen An Mi, a dweller in the same district, said that she went to receive the inoculation for the sake of herself, her family, and the entire society.

A healthy person, Mi felt no pain or abnormal symptoms about half an hour after the injection.

Considering vaccination as a benefit rather than a duty, Nguyen Ba Hai, 28, found time from his hectic working schedule for the shot on Tuesday.

Like Mi, Hai understood that getting vaccinated was to not only protect him against the disease but to also limit its spread to others.

A medical worker helps a man perform health declaration on a mobile phone before COVID-19 injection at a vaccination site at Nguyen Binh Khiem Elementary School in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, June 22, 2021. Photo: Quang Dinh / Tuoi Tre

Mai Linh, a 36-year-old woman living in Phu Nhuan District, expressed her happiness after she and her husband were vaccinated, for the two are working at the Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department, with exposure to many people every day.

Honestly, Im more worried about not being protected than the possible side effects of the vaccine, Linh said.

Its dangerous not to get inoculated.

Everyone is waiting to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

What a relief that I received my first jab!

Hoang Dang Bac, a 57-year-old officer from the same department as Linh, showed his appreciation for medical staff.

I am very impressed with the hard work of the medical staff, Bac said.

They are very enthusiastic and work well in screening and vaccination stages.

Bac added that he hoped all citizens will soon get vaccinated like him.

With the proactive participation of the citizens, some vaccination venues were crowded on Tuesday, but medical staff and volunteers still managed to handle the workload.

People get COVID-19 injection at a vaccination site at 19/5 Kindergarten in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, June 22, 2021. Photo: Tu Trung / Tuoi Tre

Since March 8, when Ho Chi Minh City began vaccination for local residents, nearly 44,000 people have received their first shots and 50,718 people have finished the two-dose regimen, local health authorities reported.

In the ongoing vaccination drive, the city has administered 50,000 doses since June 19, according to the Central Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology.

Vietnam has given a total of 2,569,156 AstraZeneca jabs, with 133,843 people receiving two full doses as of 4:00 pm on Tuesday, according to the Ministry of Health.

To date, about 14 - 20 percent of vaccinated people have had a post-injection reaction  which is still a reasonable ratio as recommended the vaccine manufacturers and the World Health Organization (WHO), the ministry stated.

The Ministry of Health confirmed 80 domestic COVID-19 cases at noon on Wednesday, of which 40 were in Ho Chi Minh City, raising the national tally to 13,862, with 5,546 recoveries and 69 deaths.

Since April 27, when Vietnam began to suffer the pandemics fourth wave, 10,575 have been recorded nationwide.

A medical worker gives consultancy to a woman before COVID-19 injection at a vaccination site at 19/5 Kindergarten in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, June 22, 2021. Photo: Tu Trung / Tuoi Tre

Do Xuan Thanh holds his vaccination certificate after getting COVID-19 injection at a vaccination site at 19/5 Kindergarten in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, June 22, 2021. Photo: Tu Trung / Tuoi Tre

People wait for COVID-19 injection at a vaccination site at Nguyen Binh Khiem Elementary School in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, June 22, 2021. Photo: Quang Dinh / Tuoi Tre

People have their heart rate measured before COVID-19 injection at a vaccination site at Nguyen Binh Khiem Elementary School in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, June 22, 2021. Photo: Quang Dinh / Tuoi Tre

People wait for COVID-19 injection at a vaccination site at Lanh Binh Thang Sports Hall in District 11, Ho Chi Minh City, June 22, 2021. Photo: Quang Dinh / Tuoi Tre

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A man has been sentenced to seven years in prison for chopping down and stealing dozens of bougainvillea trees planted along local streets in the southern Vietnamese province of Ba Ria - Vung Tau earlier this year.

The Peoples Court in Vung Tau City under Ba Ria - Vung Tau Province conducted the trial of Nguyen Van Vu, 51, on Tuesday.

Vu was condemned to six years in jail for destruction of property and one year behind bars for theft.

In January and February, the Vung Tau Urban and Parks Development JSC discovered that 24 bougainvillea trees, locally referred to as paper flower trees, along Vo Nguyen Giap and 2/9 Streets had been chopped down.

All of these trees were about 13 to 15 years old.

On February 14, police officers spotted Vu as he was carrying a handsaw on his motorbike along 2/9 Street.

A bougainvillea tree on Vo Nguyen Giap Street in Vung Tau City under Ba Ria - Vung Tau Province, Vietnam. Photo: Dong Ha / Tuoi Tre

During a working session at the police station, Vu admitted to cutting down the bougainvillea trees on Vo Nguyen Giap and 2/9 Streets.

He also hired two other men to help him.

Vu added he had felled two bougainvillea trees grown by two residents in a local commune.

All of these trees were taken to Vus house, where he planted them in order to sell them to his buyers.

Vu was arrested before he could sell any of the trees.

An assessment by local authorities showed that the 24 bougainvillea trees on Vo Nguyen Giap and 2/9 Streets were worth more than VND290 million (US$12,600), while the two trees that Vu stole from local residents were priced at VND9.5 million ($413).

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Police in the southern Vietnamese province of Binh Phuoc on Tuesday night said that they had taken legal proceedings against two Vietnamese people for arranging for five Chinese to travel from Vietnam to Cambodia illegally.

Phan Hong Khanh, 33, from Ho Chi Minh City, and Le Quang Hoa, 37, from southern Binh Duong Province were charged with organizing others unlawful entry into Vietnam.

Khanh and Hoa were caught carrying five Chinese nationals in two taxis in the direction of the Vietnam - Cambodia border in Binh Phuoc Province.

Police officers later found out that the five Chinese hail from Chinas Henan, Guizhou and Fujian Provinces.

Two Vietnamese taxi drivers (left) and five Chinese people are caught in a border jumping case in Binh Phuoc Province, Vietnam. Photo: V.T. / Tuoi Tre

All of them failed to present their passports but only identification cards with Chinese characters upon the Vietnamese forces request.

Khanh and Hoa admitted that they had agreed to transport the five from Ho Chi Minh City to the area bordering Cambodia in Binh Phuoc, from which the latter could illegally enter the neighboring country, for VND1.5 million (US$65) per person.

Both taxi drivers and the five Chinese have been sent to a centralized quarantine facility for COVID-19 prevention according to regulations.

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A 32-year-old man died in a concentrated isolation facility in the southern Vietnamese province of Dong Thap on a background of tuberculosis and exhaustion on Tuesday morning, after his first real-time RT-PCR test results had returned negative for the coronavirus.

Doan Tan Buu, deputy chairman of Dong Thap, on the same day confirmed the death of C., 32, hailing from Thap Muoi District, at Hong Ngu College, which had been requisitioned for COVID-19 quarantine purposes.

C. was paid to go fishing in the southernmost province of Ca Mau and Malaysia and visited a number of other Vietnamese localities before returning to his hometown and being sent to the college for such quarantine on June 8.

At that time, he had a normal body temperature and a sore throat with physical exhaustion.

As the man began to feel tired, lose his appetite, and his health condition worsened on June 9, he was transferred to Hong Ngu Regional General Hospital for further isolation and treatment.

His real-time RT-PCR test result on the same day showed that he was negative for the pathogen.

Doctors at Hong Ngu Regional General Hospital diagnosed the man with tuberculosis and exhaustion.

He was treated there for four days before he was transferred back to the previous centralized quarantine facility as his condition became quite stable on June 14.

However, the man suffered exhaustion and appetite loss again afterward.

He was found dead at 6:00 am on Tuesday when medical staff came to his quarantine room to measure his body temperature.

The results of the forensic examination determined that the man died from respiratory failure and heart failure on the background of pulmonary tuberculosis, according to Buu.

The provincial medical authorities collected samples from the deceased man to conduct an additional real-time RT-PCR test for COVID-19 before carrying out cremation to hand over his ashes to his family.

Dong Thap has recorded only one local coronavirus infection in the ongoing wave of community-based COVID-19 cases, which broke out in Vietnam on April 27.

The country has documented 10,495 local infections across 43 out of its 63 provinces and cities ever since.

The national tally has reached 13,782 cases, including 12,065 domestic and 1,717 imported infections, since the eruption of the pandemic in the Southeast Asian nation on January 23, 2020.

Recoveries have hit 5,546 while 69 people, most of whom had pre-existing medical conditions, have died.

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Under the scorching sun of Hanoi, a group of young artists meticulously wield their brushes to paint colorful art murals to help combat COVID-19.

Nguyen Manh Quang, the groups representative, said the project 'Fighting the Pandemic like Fighting Your Enemies' was aimed at honoring frontliners and calling for social awareness in protecting public health.

We first painted a 15-square-meter mural in Hoan Kiem Districts Phuc Tan Commune," Quang said.

"We later received support to make big murals, ranging from 20 square meters to 105 square meters, in Dong Da, Ha Dong, and Tay Ho Districts.

The next destination is Cau Giay District. The group sets a goal to cover walls of 10 to 20 square meters in the Vietnamese capital with art on the theme of COVID-19 fighting and prevention.

Quang said the project was funded by artists and some donors.

He expressed the expectation that district authorities and Hanoians could give helping hands to spread the idea, especially finding big, plain walls for these artworks.

A team of three to four artists can complete a mural of 20 square meters in two to three days in Hanoi. Photo: Ha Quan / Tuoi Tre

On this mural, the 5K message conveying the Ministry of Healths advice and warnings against COVID-19 is visualized in Hanoi. Photo: Ha Quan / Tuoi Tre

An artist braves Hanois hot weather to complete a mural. Photo: Ha Quan / Tuoi Tre

A mural delivers a message hailing social solidarity to fight against COVID-19 in Hanoi. Photo: Ha Quan / Tuoi Tre

A nurse 'angel' protecting the earth from COVID-19 is painted on a mural in Tay Ho District, Hanoi. Photo: Ha Quan / Tuoi Tre

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Network 10 and WIN Corporation have signed a new affiliation agreement for the supply of Network 10 content to WIN Network for Northern NSW.

But with less than a week to go a deal with Southern Cross Broadcasting is yet to be finalised.

The new agreement with WIN is for a term of five years from 1 July 2021 for channels 10, 10 Bold and 10 Peach into Northern NSW.

Jarrod Villani, Chief Operating and Commercial Officer and Executive Vice President, ViacomCBS Australia and New Zealand, said: We are pleased to continue our relationship with WIN and renew the affiliate agreement for Northern NSW. WIN are a valued broadcast partner and we believe the outcome from these discussions collectively benefits both companies.

Andrew Lancaster, Chief Executive Officer of WIN, said: The continuation of Network 10 content on our channels in Northern NSW is a great win for our viewers who enjoy channels 10, 10 Bold and 10 Peach. We look forward to working with 10 over the next five years to deliver mutually beneficial outcomes.

The deal follows Nines affiliate plans with WIN for Tasmania, regional Western Australia, Victoria, Queensland and Southern NSW (Nine already has NBN in Northern NSW).

10 noted further affiliation agreements in other regionals areas are expected to be announced shortly.
With less than seven days until switch off Community TV broadcasters Channel 31 Melbourne and Channel 44 Adelaide have been granted a 3 years extension to their licence.

An amendment to broadcast legislation was passed in the Australian Senate overnight and confirmed in the House of Representatives today, providing three more years of free to air broadcast access to Community TV stations C31 Melbourne & C44 Adelaide, through to June 30, 2024.

It follows a last minute backflip in June 2020 just 24 hours before a transition to an online only model.

This will give the two community television licensees more time to transition to online platforms, Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said.

Moving to online platforms will vacate the spectrum in time for appropriate testing, planning and transition requirements ahead of any reallocation.

In a statement, C31 said, A renewal term of three years is a welcome relief for C31 Melbourne staff, volunteers, program makers and the wider community whose support has been unwavering over the past seven years as the Community Television sector has continued to fight to retain their free to air broadcast licences. This decision ensures that Community Televisions valuable contribution to the wider arts industry can continue until at least 30 June 2024 and assists the sector in building its financial and digital capacity to continue broadcasting to audiences around the country.

C31 Melbourne General Manager Shane Dunlop says, It is with great pride and considerable relief that we announce todays news. A licence renewal of three years will finally provide Community TV stations with the stability we have gone without for almost a decade. We are glad that common sense has prevailed, and we look forward to the next three years, continuing our 27-year tradition of providing an accessible, vibrant, and important service to Melbournes diverse communities and beyond.

C31 Melbourne Chair Mike Zafiropoulos AM continued, The C31 board would like to acknowledge the efforts of our wonderful staff, producers and program makers over the last few months. We have also been overwhelmed by the showing of public support and are heartened by the collective resolve to fight for a positive outcome for Community Television in Victoria. Thank you.

C44 General Manager Lauren Hillman added, This is a huge win for the Community TV sector in Adelaide and Melbourne and we are honoured to be recognised and valued by the Australian Senate. The power of community should never be underestimated, and we are so very grateful for all the support across the board which has resulted in this fantastic outcome for the Community TV sector.

ALP Senator Marielle Smith said, Taking community TV off air was a destructive and wasteful decision  it costs the Government nothing for them to keep broadcasting, and theres no plans to use the spectrum for years. This result is an admission that the Government got it wrong, and a huge win for our community and for the Community TV stations.

Federal Member for Mayo Rebekha Sharkie MP, who was instrumental in the negotiation to provide Community TV with this lengthy renewal said, I would like to thank Communications Minister Paul Fletcher for listening to our community and our valid arguments for keeping C44 and C31 on air and working with me to draft an amendment to set this timeframe in legislation. I would like to sincerely thank Senator Rex Patrick for putting up my amendment in the Senate when my Centre Alliance colleague Senator Stirling Griff had to take a leave of absence. The amendment does set a clear deadline for 2024 but this will allow C44 & C31 to work through the Media Reform Green Paper process and give the station sufficient time to really plan its future.

Shadow Minister for Communications Michelle Rowland said, Labor is proud to have backed community TV every step of the way. We moved a successful motion in the Senate, made representations in the House, and moved an amendment to keep to keep community TV on air until there is an alternative use for the spectrum. This Governments inept handling of community TV has caused needless uncertainty for the sector, contributed to the closure of stations in other capital cities and constitutes an act of vandalism in the Communications Portfolio. Labor congratulates the community TV sector staff, producers and volunteers for their strong campaign and ongoing advocacy to #KeepTVLocal.

The Australian Community TV Alliance (ACTA) recognises the last seven years have seen unprecedented political support across all parties for Community TV.

C31 Melbourne also extend their sincere gratitude for the advocacy and support from;

Senator Marielle Smith, Shadow Minister for Communications Michelle Rowland, Amanda Rishworth MP  Australian Labor Party

Rebekha Sharkie MP  Centre Alliance

Senator Rex Patrick  Independent

Senator Simon Birmingham  Liberal Party of Australia

Senator Sarah Hanson-Young, Tammy Franks MLC, Adam Bandt MP  Australian Greens Minister Luke Donnellan, Minister Ros Spence, Minister Danny Pearson  Victorian Labor Party

Lord Mayor Sally Capp, Deputy Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece  City of Melbourne Commissioner Viv Nguyen, Deputy Commissioner Bwe Thay  Victorian Multicultural Commission

Commissioner Gerard Mansour  Commission for Senior Victorians
This week for Foreign Correspondent Hamish Macdonald looks into deep fakes from the USA.

A new generation of deepfake videos has got Hollywood excitedand Washington worried. Theyve got the potential to change reality as we know it.

Deepfakes are synthetic media created by Artificial Intelligence  technology that can make real people say and do things they never actually did.

This week, reporter Hamish Macdonald does a deep dive into an emerging technology with explosive potential.

Until recently, deepfakes videos were mostly a staple of the dark web, their subject matter mainly porn.

Now the technology is coming out of the shadows and into the mainstream.

In Bangkok, we meet a video effects expert with a reputation as one of the worlds best deepfakers, who recently created a Tom Cruise TikTok video  that wasnt Tom Cruise.

I see the creative possibilities, deepfaker Chris tells Foreign Correspondent. I think were coming to a point where everything is synthetic, especially in the movie industry.

I think its a good thing I created these videos, because now Im raising awareness and (people) realize this is realits coming!

TikTok Tom was so convincing, he beat nearly all the latest deepfake detection technology, racking up millions of online views and becoming a global AI sensation.

But some US security experts see him as a harbinger of dangers to come, a technology that can now be weaponised; fake politicians declaring warfake CEOs triggering the collapse of financial markets.

In Washington, we meet a former CIA officer, now a lawyer advising corporate America on how to combat the rising tide of digital disinformation.

I think that weve only really started to scratch the surface of the bad things that can happen because of deepfakes, says Matt. In the national security context, theres no end to the nightmare scenario.

Recently the FBI issued an unprecedented warning to business and financial markets, declaring that that it was almost certain that in the next 12  18 months, (they) would be the victims of synthetic media (attacks).

I think deepfakes play into the hands of anybody, any state sponsor, any institution that wants to create confusion or deceive, says Mounir, a former US diplomat, once based in Syria, where he attempted to visually distil fact from fiction.

So will TikTok Tom, born of neural networks and machine learning, be harnessed and regulated, to entertain us?  or will he usher in a real-world version of Hollywoods dystopian future? Stay tuned.

Thursday 24 June at 8pm on ABC.
Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. (Romans 12:3)
Iran, Turkey, and Russia are building a new model of bilateral ties. Unshackled by formal alliances, the trio is showing it can work together to limit Western influence while avoiding an overreliance on one another. This mixture of correlating and contradictory interests, which characterizes the new Eurasianist model of bilateral relations, is a product of the changing global order, The Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies reports.

Because Westerners tend to place the idea of cooperation among nations under a normative umbrella, whether it be an alliance or some other legal mechanism (as is often the case in the West), analysts and pundits have been mischaracterizing the ongoing Russia-Turkey-Iran cooperation as an alliance. This both underestimates and overstates the interaction between the three pivotal Eurasian states.

The players have not formed an alliance; in fact, the opposite is in place. They cooperate, compete, seek each others help, and turn their backs on one another as they see fit. This kind of interaction is very similar to the 19th century concert of European powers in which mistrust ran wide, but the powers nevertheless wished to find common ground where necessary and achieve a balance to avoid the imposition of one powers will on the others. They also shared the overarching belief that a changing world order is something to be feared.

Several threats have brought Iran, Turkey, and Russia together: the war in Syria; terrorism and extremism; and, to an extent, Kurdish separatism (Russia shares Ankaras and Tehrans concerns about this). Crucially, US pressure of varying degrees on each of the three powers serves as glue to promote their cooperation in resisting the liberal world order. The three seek to remake the world order as they no longer benefit sufficiently from post-Cold War arrangements. Each wants new space for balancing.

Their ideas vary, however, in terms of the depth and breadth of the necessary changes. Iran seeks a complete overhaul, as its revolutionary fervor and geopolitical outlook are in diametric opposition to the US-led world order. Russia is also a revisionist power but its demands for fundamental changes are less radical, as it gains some advantages through the liberal world order.

Turkey seeks to balance between the US and Russia. This has become one of the most important aspects of Ankaras Middle East and Mediterranean policy. Turkey argues that in the evolving world order, it should be free to cooperate with any global actors depending on its interests, but none of those relations should be considered fixed.

Significantly, the Russian, Turkish, and Iranian peoples all have a similar historical experience of anti-imperialist struggle. They believe Eurasia can provide an alternative to the Wests cultural, historical, political, and economic dominance.

More importantly for smaller countries, the three also advance the concept of regional ownership, which prioritizes bilateral cooperation in regional problems without the involvement of third parties. In this way, Turkey and Russia pursued a shared vision in the Black Sea and cooperated in the South Caucasus following the Second Karabakh War. Efforts were made in Libya as well, and similar ideas were expressed (at least rhetorically) about the recent crisis between Israel and the Hamas organization.

Iran has similar aspirations to Russia when it comes to the Caspian Sea. No foreign powers are allowed into the region, and smaller states with access to the Sea have to acknowledge Tehrans and Moscows vital energy and security interests.

The trios aspiration to sideline the West is visible in concrete initiatives. The Astana Talks are nothing but an attempt to advance an alternative vision to the Syrian problem. Similar attempts were made in the South Caucasus, when Turkey and Iran proposed and supported the idea of creating a regional pact on security and cooperation that has no place for the West.

Russia has long aspired to better ties with Turkey and Iran. Even in the Soviet period, Moscow periodically attempted to advance a form of cooperation with those two countries that would exclude the West. Both states gradually emerged as pillars of Russias post-Soviet aspirations to construct a more active foreign policy in the Middle East and remold the existing world order.

Though Turkish Eurasianism is inimical to the Russian version, from the late 1990s Russian neo-Eurasianists began looking at Turkey in a more positive light. The current Russian leadership might not be radically neo-Eurasianist, but the seeds of the modern reliance on Turkey has its roots in the ideological fervor of the 1990s.

While underlying currents on both the regional and global levels are pulling the trio closer together, this does not imply that the parties will attempt to create an official grouping with formal alliance obligations. This is what sets them apart from the West. Iran, Russia, and Turkey see the absence of a formal alliance as a boon. It allows them to maneuver, balance, and honor each others vital spheres of influence.

This trend of finding common ground without formal obligations is characteristic of the post-unipolar world. Russia and China officially refuse to have an allianceindeed, they claim an alliance would undermine their purportedly benevolent intentions toward one another. While much of this is just rhetoric to conceal the absence of any common cultural or otherwise important features necessary for a geopolitical alliance, this behavior is part of an emerging trend in which Eurasian states prefer maneuverability to the shackles of formal obligations.

For Russia, intensive cooperation with Turkey and Iran is beneficial inasmuch as it provides leverage over the West and allows Moscow to solve critical problems in the Black Sea, Caucasus, and Caspian regions, as well as Syria. With that said, it is doubtful how much Russia wants Turkey to completely sever its ties with NATO. In a way, Turkeys position as a member of the allianceone that generates continuous intra-alliance tensionsbenefits Russia more than an unshackled Turkey would. The latter scenario would ease NATOs internal problems and perhaps even diminish Turkeys importance in Russias geopolitical calculus.

As far as Iran is concerned, Russia seeks to render the Islamic Republic dependent on its diplomatic clout. A long-term solution to Irans nuclear stalemate is the Kremlins least desired scenario. While it would allow Russian companies to penetrate Irans market, that market would also be opened up to more competitive Western enterprises. A closer interaction beyond the partnership is also not an option for Russia.

For Moscow, keeping Ankara and Tehran close will be a constraining geopolitical weight, but distancing from them would be detrimental as well. Russia is trying to maintain a delicate balance with the two.

Turkey and Iran naturally have their own agendas. Each plays the Russian card to get concessions from the West, and for each, a complete severing of ties with the West in a non-starter. Turkey understands that while its over-reliance on the West as a balance against the Soviet Union during the Cold War era was costly to Ankara, its reliance on Russia as a balance against the US could be similarly disquieting. Iran, too, is unwilling to commit solely to the Russian card. Balancing between the West, China, and Russia is arguably the best choice.

This mixture of different interests makes the interaction between the three all the more surprising. But the trio shares similar objectives, and each needs the other two to help it maneuver in its relations with the West.

The trio has introduced a new pattern of tiesone unconstrained by formalities but still driven by long-term shared interests. This Eurasian model is a byproduct of an evolving global order in which each state with geopolitical influence recalibrates its foreign policy ties. Russia is critical here, and its efforts to have Turkey and Iran play the role of disruptors have brought results. But we have also seen Ankara and Tehran pursue their own game by sticking with Russia only intermittently.
Russia has begun a project to rehabilitate Syrias ancient city of Palmyra. Pursuant to three agreements signed with the Syrian government, Russia has announced the start of a project to restore artifacts from the ancient city of Palmyra in the eastern countryside of Homs in central Syria, Al-Monitor writes.

The first agreement, founded in November 2019 between the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg and the Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums, is to restore the Archaeological Museum of Palmyra and its collections.

The second agreement, with the Russian Academy of Sciences Institute of Material Culture, is to train Syrian staff and exchange information on image-based 3D modeling when assessing the damage caused by the Islamic State (banned in Russia).

The Association Stone Industry of Russia signed the third agreement in November 2020 to restore the Arch of Triumph in Palmyra.

The outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020 prevented the implementation of the agreements. Syrian media outlets quoted Dmitry Medyantsev, the project manager in Palmyra, as saying on June 13 that Russian experts taking part in the restoration of the ancient city have already completed the first stage of the project, which includes measurements and ground surveys. In the second stage, they will remove the rubble, scan the fragments of destroyed monuments and prepare an inventory. The Russian experts will create an interactive model of the city, which will reveal the missing parts to be re-created, he added.

In this context, Mohamad Hasan al-Ayid, director of the Palmyra News Network, an opposition-affiliated media outlet in Palmyra, told Al-Monitor, The Russian interest in Palmyra began when IS was still controlling the city. At the time, Russia supported the regime forces in regaining control of Palmyra. The Russian forces oversaw the demining efforts and removal of explosive remnants of the war in the city. [After IS was expelled in 2016], Russia showed interest in the restoration of the ancient city, part of which IS destroyed.

IS destroyed the Temple of Bel, the Temple of Baalshamin and the Arch of Triumph, in addition to several artifacts displayed in the citys museum. In early [2017], the terrorist group destroyed the Tetrapylon, which the UN labeled a war crime. Meanwhile, regime forces also targeted archaeological sites in the ancient city under the pretext that IS cells were hiding there, he added.

Ayid continued, In addition to its cultural importance, Palmyra is located near the phosphate mines and gas fields, making it a priority for Russia. The city has turned into a hub for archaeological excavations. We have no idea about the fate of the artifacts after the regimes control of the city and the entry of Russian and Iranian militias. We do not know the extent of the destruction or the number of stolen artifacts. Russia has transferred hundreds of artifacts, including the Lion Statue, to Damascus for restoration purposes. More than 60 funerary reliefs and portraits, which IS destroyed, have been under restoration by Syrian experts at the National Museum in Damascus. Yet field visits and surveys are required in large parts of the city so as to assess the damage.

Nasr al-Yousef, a Syrian-Russian journalist based in Moscow and an expert on Russian affairs, told Al-Monitor, The most prominent Russian statements on Palmyra were made in 2016 when Russia urged UNESCO to help restore the ancient city. Also, then-Russian Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Gennady Gatilov met with UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova in May 2016 to discuss a plan to dispatch international experts to Palmyra to assess the damage. Moscow put forward a 3-D model of the city, including the [Roman] theater and the Temple of Bel. Natalia Solovyova, deputy director of the Hermitage Museum, says that the model would allow to assess new excavation sites, study the city planning and reconstruction costs without being present in the city, he added.

Yousef went on to say that in early August 2020, 12 Russian experts arrived in Damascus with the aim of supervising archaeological excavation works and assessing archaeological sites in Palmyra. Contracts were signed with 35 Syrian experts to carry out excavations. On Sept. 17, 2020, the team found 28 artifacts that were extracted within 48 continuous working hours. Then they were moved to 30-meter-long and 20-meter-wide warehouses built at the Palmyra military air base where the artifacts were hosted until the arrival of cargo aircraft where the artifacts were loaded.

With this, Russia seeks to draw the attention of the world to the destruction incurred in Palmyra in order to obtain restoration funds, although it does not have the experience in restoration of antiquities. Moscow also aims to take hold of the city through antiquities and the reconstruction process, to steal the UNESCO funds and open new investments in the city. Previously, most of the missions working in Syria were mainly German and French, in addition to some Japanese, Belgian and US ones. Russia only had one mission operating intermittently in Tell Khazneh in Hasakah, he added.

Moscow shows special interest in the city of Palmyra and the citys monuments, given its touristic importance and the possibility of implementing major projects should the situation become stable in the country. The Russian army built a military base within the ancient city of Palmyra in order to prevent the Iranian militias from seizing the area.

Wael Olwan, a researcher at the Istanbul-based Jusoor Center for Studies, told Al-Monitor, Russia seeks to take hold of all dossiers that would generate economic gains in Syria, including raw materials, the reconstruction file and tourism, which is mainly centered on the Syrian coastal and archaeological areas. It also seeks to show that the Syrian regime is the one that won the battle, that it is actively seeking to achieve social stability, and that Syrias tourism and investment projects have begun their recovery. Russia is trying to keep Iran away from the ancient city because the militias stole and smuggled antiquities through Lebanon. Since Russia is in control of the area, it seeks to prevent such operations from taking place so as to avoid any accusations in this regard.
Five virologists said few conclusions can be drawn based on the available scientific evidence, but they noted that the context and circumstances of the debate have changed, NBC News reports. Alina Chan isn't saying the coronavirus definitely leaked from a lab in China. What she is saying is what more scientists have grown comfortable discussing publicly: There's no clear evidence either way.

"I know a lot of people want to have a smoking gun," said Chan, a postdoctoral associate at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard University who specializes in genetic engineering and has been vocal about the need to investigate the possibility of a lab leak. "It's more like breadcrumbs everywhere, and they're not always leading in one direction. It's like the whole floor is covered in breadcrumbs."

Chan was one of 18 scientists who published a letter in the journal Science last month calling for a more in-depth investigation into the virus's origin that takes into account theories about both natural occurrence and laboratory spillovers. The letter helped kick-start a new round of calls to investigate the "lab leak hypothesis," including demands from President Joe Biden and several leading scientists.

And while public discussion of a potential lab leak has shifted significantly in recent months, as more people pay attention to a theory that was originally promulgated by former President Donald Trump and his followers, the scientific evidence has remained unchanged, according to interviews with five virologists who have experience in microbiology, infectious disease ecology and viral evolution.

The researchers offered near-uniform summations that few conclusions can be drawn based on the available scientific evidence, but they noted that the context and circumstances of the origin debate have changed, particularly as critics point out that China hasn't been fully transparent about the earliest days of the pandemic.

The shift reflects how some scientists who previously avoided the topic or were quick to dismiss it are grappling with enduring uncertainties about the virus's origin, free from the politicization that clouded such discussions during the Trump administration.

Chan said there had been trepidation among some scientists about publicly discussing the lab leak hypothesis for fear that their words could be misconstrued or used to support racist rhetoric about how the coronavirus emerged. Trump fueled accusations that the Wuhan Institute of Virology, a research lab in the city where the first Covid-19 cases were reported, was connected to the outbreak, and on numerous occasions he called the pathogen the "Wuhan virus" or "kung flu." "At the time, it was scarier to be associated with Trump and to become a tool for racists, so people didn't want to publicly call for an investigation into lab origins," she said.

Now, more scientists are comfortable confronting the gamut of plausible theories  particularly given China's opacity about the topic  although many still caution that entertaining the idea of a lab leak requires clear scientific proof, which hasn't materialized. "There has been no new evidence over the past 16 months that the virus had a lab origin," said Maciej Boni, an associate professor of biology at Penn State University, who specializes in tropical disease epidemiology and viral evolution.
The IX Moscow Conference on International Security is being held in Moscow these days, where the most urgent problems and trends in the field of international military policy are discussed. Vestnik Kavkaza learned from the military and diplomatic sources that representatives of the Armenian Defense Ministry refused to participate in the conference this year. Moreover, even the military attaches of Armenia, accredited in Russia, are not participating in the conference.



It should be noted that the forum's program includes the most pressing issues of the modern agenda of global and regional security, in the solution of which the defense departments play a key role. Heads of military departments, heads of international organizations, representatives of the expert community and academia are usually invited to the conference by Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.
U.S. President Joe Biden is nominating Celeste Wallander as his assistant secretary of Defense for international security affairs, a crucial position and one of his last remaining foreign policy posts, Axios has learned.

By tapping Wallander, president and CEO of U.S.-Russia Foundation, Biden is rounding out his Pentagon team with an academic and Russia expert respected on both sides of the aisle.

"She has deep policy expertise in key regions, experience in getting things done in the Pentagon, and a track record as a gifted manager and leader," said Michele Flournoy, an ex-Pentagon official under President Obama. "She will bring excellent judgment and proven experience in defense diplomacy to the job."

The assistant secretary of international security affairs typically travels with the secretary of Defense to Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The job holder ensures the Pentagon's broad - and specific - policy imperatives are conveyed to foreign governments. The assistant secretary also helps approve weapons sales and manage relationships with foreign militaries.

Wallander will require Senate confirmation and, if approved, will report to Colin Kahl, the under secretary of Defense for policy.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday described the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline as a Russian geopolitical project that undermines the security of Ukraine, adding the United States wants to ensure Russia does not use energy as a coercive tool against any European state.

Speaking at a joint press conference in Berlin after meeting German counterpart Heiko Maas, Blinken said Washington was determined to see if it can make something positive out of a difficult situation and strengthen Europes energy security.

"Our goal remains to ensure that Russia cannot use energy as a coercive tool as a weapon against Ukraine, or anyone else in Europe," Blinken said.

Washington is against the Nordstream 2 pipeline which would double Russian gas exports across the Baltic Sea. The project, now about 95% complete, would help Russia curtail gas exports via Ukraine, depriving Kyiv of lucrative transit fees.

Germany, a key NATO ally with which Democratic President Joe Biden has sought to repair relations frayed during the administration of former Republican President Donald Trump, wants to complete the $11 billion pipeline.

A U.S. State Department report sent to Congress in May concluded that Nord Stream 2 AG - the company behind the pipeline to Germany - and its CEO, Matthias Warnig, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, engaged in sanctionable activity. But Blinken waived those sanctions, saying that this was in the U.S. national interest.

Maas said Berlin wanted a solution that is acceptable for both sides. "We know the expectations in Washington. It is extremely important for us to achieve results that Washington can also support," Reuters cited him as saying.
The Russian Black Sea Fleet, together with the Federal Security Service Border Control, stopped a violation of the Russian border by UKs HMS Defender destroyer near Cape Fiolent in Crimea, Russian Defense Ministry said Wednesday.

The destroyer traveled three kilometers deep in the Russian territorial waters. A border guard ship fired warning shots, while a SU-24M bomber had to drop warning bombs ahead of the destroyer before the ship turned back and left the Russian waters.

According to the Ministry, the British destroyer was warned about the use of force in case of violation of the Russian border. "It did not react to the warning," the Ministry said.

The Black Sea Fleet, jointly with the Border Guard Service, halted the violation of the Russian state border by a UK naval ship off Crimea.

A guard ship of the Black Sea Fleet fired warning shots while a Su-24M bomber conducted preventing bombing.

"At 11:52 on June 23 this year, the UK Navys guided missile destroyer Defender operating in the northwestern part of the Black Sea crossed the state border of the Russian Federation and moved 3 km into the territorial sea near Cape Fiolent," the ministry said in a statement.

The Russian Black Sea Fleet jointly with the Border Guard Service of the Federal Security Service (FSB) of Russia "halted the violation of the Russian state border by the UK Navys guided missile destroyer Defender," the statement says.

The UK warship received a warning that weapons would be employed, if it violated the Russian state border, but did not respond to it, the ministry said.

"At 12:06 and 12:08, the border guard patrol ship conducted warning fire. At 12:19, a Su-24M plane carried out preventing bombing (four OFAB-250 bombs) along the route of the guided missile destroyer Defender," TASS cited the statement as saying.

At 12:23, following the joint measures by the Black Sea Fleet and the Border Guard Service, the UK Navys guided missile destroyer Defender left Russias territorial sea boundaries, the ministry said.

The UK Navys guided missile destroyer Defender was floated out in 2009. The warship can develop a speed of about 30 knots and operates various armaments, including Harpoon anti-ship missile launchers and short-and medium-range air defense systems.
Russia's nuclear policy is defensive and an element of strategic stability, the chief of Russia's General Staff, General of the Army Valery Gerasimov, told the Moscow International Security Conference on Wednesday.

"Russia's official views on this score were for the first time declared in public in 2020 in the basic principles of Russia's nuclear deterrence policy. The document confirms the provision of the Military Doctrine the nuclear policy is purely defensive," Gerasimov said.

He stressed that nuclear deterrence remained an element of strategic stability.

"Russia reserves the right to use nuclear weapons in response to the use of nuclear or other mass destruction weapons against it or its allies, or in case of aggression against Russia with conventional weapons that endangers the very existence of the state," Gerasimov said.

He added that the conditions of using nuclear weapons were strictly limited and codified.
Russia wont face the shortage of COVID-19 vaccines, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Wednesday.

"We do not consider this (such a risk - TASS). We believe that this should not be and it wont be," Peskov said in a comment on how the presidential administration assessed a potential risk of the shortage of COVID-19 vaccines in the country.

According to Peskov, a potential shortage of vaccines in the regions could be linked to logistics and a growing demand for jabs. "These are temporary logistic hurdles," he said, explaining that the overall vaccination pace has changed, which previously "left much to be desired".

"Now, thanks to the fact that citizens have developed a more responsible behavior amid another coronavirus wave, which is rather strong and very dangerous, thanks to boosting information and public awareness activity, the number of those willing to get vaccinated has significantly increased," Peskov said, noting that there are also certain conditions for storing such drugs.

Vaccination of citizens remains a priority for the Russian authorities, he stressed. Meanwhile, it is impossible to meet the demand for Sputnik V abroad at once. "Indeed, because the absolute priority is domestic consumption and meeting domestic needs and vaccinating Russian citizens, our producers and agencies are focusing on this priority. Its impossible to fully meet the entire demand abroad immediately, but some time later all commitments will be honored," he stated.
The Russian president held his first face-to-face talks with Joe Biden in the latter's capacity as president last week, with European and world leaders watching closely for any signs that the current icy relationship between Russia and the US might thaw, TASS reports.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Emmanuel Macron of France are privately calling for a summit meeting of European leaders including Russian President Vladimir Putin in a bid to steer the European Union toward "closer engagement with Russia," the Financial Times reports, citing people said to be familiar with the diplomatic discussions.

Diplomats told the business newspaper on Wednesday that the summit proposal is being spearheaded by Merkel, with Macron expressing support for the idea.

At the same time, German and French diplomats reportedly put other EU members on the spot in a meeting in Brussels on Wednesday by fielding a new proposal to improve relations with Russia, with some countries raising a "stink" about the idea.

Merkel is said to have been in close contact with Germany's European allies on the matter over the past several days, with Macron and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi recently visiting Berlin this week. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also held talks with German officials this week.
The Moscow authorities believe that a lockdown must be introduced only in an extreme situation because the city's isolation will harm the economy, deputy mayor for social affairs, Anastasiya Rakova, told the round-the-clock television news channel Rossiya-24 in an interview.

"From the epidemiological standpoint, the most effective way of struggle against the pandemic is a lockdown. Total isolation of the city always brings about a drastic reduction in infection rates. But it will be a very dramatic and painful decision that would deal a colossal blow on the city's economy," Rakova said.

She recalled that in the spring of last year, the authorities had no other choice because the health service was unable to cope with its task and collapsed. Currently, the situation in the city is slightly different. The disease rates are unprecedented, but the city has a vaccine against the coronavirus.

Rakova said that despite the colossal strain, the health system is coping with all of its tasks.

"We do hope that the measures being taken will help ease the pressure on the health system and make it possible to keep businesses and the city's economy going. We will be taking proportionate measures depending on the situation," Rakova said.
The Russian Embassy in Washington urged the United States to stop the Sea Breeze-2021 military operations with Ukraine in the Black Sea.

The scale and obviously aggressive nature of the military drills SeaBreeze in no way match the real security needs in the Black Sea region. Increase risks of unintended incidents. Inspire militaristic ambitions in Kiev," the embassy's statement on Twitter reads.

"We call on the US and its allies to stop military operations in the Black Sea," the embassy stressed.

The Sea Breeze 2021 naval exercise is set to take place from June 28 through July 10.
A weak link in Israels world-beating COVID-19 vaccination rollout until now, adolescents have found themselves on the front line of the campaign with fears of the Delta variant prompting reluctant parents to get their children vaccinated, Reuters reports.

About three-quarters of Israelis in eligible age groups have received the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. But that includes just 2-4% of 12-15-year-olds since they were made eligible this month, according to Health Ministry data.

With infections falling from more than 10,000 daily cases in January to single digits, Israel has dropped nearly all social distancing. It hopes to admit vaccinated tourists as of July.

But after daily cases more than doubled to 125 on Monday after outbreaks at two schools attributed to the more infectious Delta variant, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett announced that border clampdowns could be extended as part of new precautions.

"Vaccinate your children," he urged in televised remarks, warning that currently allotted doses would expire on July 9.

Israel's two largest healthcare providers say appointments for 12-15-year-old vaccinations have doubled and tripled in the last few days.

"Now, after the COVID outbreaks, I said - today, today, I don't give a damn, today," said Yizhak Nevo, who took his 13-year-old daughter to get the jab in the town of Binyamina, where one school had a recent outbreak.

The Health Ministry on Monday recommended that 12-15-year-olds get vaccinated and is now investing in outreach to parents.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Jeyhun Bayramov held phone talks, according to the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry.

The sides exchanged views on issues related to the current situation in the region, implementation of trilateral statements [on ceasefire and cessation of all hostilities in the Nagorno-Karabakh region] signed by the leaders of Azerbaijan, Russia and Armenia.

The foreign ministers also discussed the development of the region in the post-conflict period [following the second Karabakh war], in particular, stressed the activity of the trilateral working group consisting of the deputy prime ministers of Azerbaijan, Russia and Armenia.

Moreover, the foreign ministers discussed the issues of mutual interest.
The trilateral working group consisting of deputy prime ministers of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia will continue its activity after the formation of the new Armenian government, Azerbaijani Deputy Prime Minister Shahin Mustafayev said.

Mustafayev made the remark during a trip to Azerbaijans Aghdam district, Trend reports on June 23.

The Azerbaijani deputy prime minister assessed the previous activity of the tripartite working group as very constructive.

"As you know, the electoral process is underway in Armenia, a new government is being formed, Mustafayev said. I think that after the formation of a new government, the trilateral working group will continue its activity. Until now, a constructive approach was observed at the meetings."
An inactive coronavirus vaccine began Phase 3 trials on Tuesday at a ceremony attended by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The first volunteers were injected with the jab, which was named 'Turkovac' by Erdogan.

The vaccine is being developed in cooperation with Erciyes University and Health Institutes of Turkey. It was tentatively named Erucov-Vac, after the name of the university. It is expected to be the first locally-made vaccine to be available in the country if it receives approval from Health Ministry after safety tests. Earlier, authorities announced that it may be available before the end of 2021.

Speaking in a videocall to officials at the ceremony held at the vaccine application center at Ankara City Hospital, Erdogan said the locally-made vaccine was "critical" to save Turkey from the threat of a pandemic. "This is the last stage to have our own vaccine. I hope the vaccine will start mass production and have widespread use soon. I call upon our citizens to get vaccinated as soon as possible to protect themselves and their loved ones from this (pandemic)," Erdogan said.

The president said they aimed to vaccinate the entire population age 18 and above within a few weeks and lift more restrictions with new "progress in the fight against the pandemic and through vaccination."

The vaccine will be tried on thousands of volunteers and experts say the whole process can be concluded by November. If its approval is fast-tracked, it will be fully available for the Turkish public by the start of next year. The trials will be held in more than two dozen centers across Turkey. The country also plans to export the vaccine once it is approved, Daily Sabah reported.
Mai Anh Duc directed production for sanitizers and disinfecting devices remotely while still being treated for Covid-19, and donated them all to hospitals and quarantine zones across Vietnam.

Mr. Mai Anh Duc

In July last year, Mai Anh Duc, 39, from Hai Chau district, Da Nang city, and his 13-year-old son tested positive for COVID-19. A year later, he returned to hospitals and Covid-19 quarantine zones as a donor to give out liquid sanitizer and disinfecting machines. They were part of his project named 687, which was his patient number a year ago.

Duc had been considering making them even before he found out about his infection.

As an electronic engineer who works with water filtering machines and air conditioners, Duc was confident that his skills were adequate for the project. I knew the formulas for the solution," Duc said.

He started working on the project in the summer last year.

Duc borrowed special equipment from a friend in HCM City to produce sanitizer that is environmentally friendly, not harmful to human health, and 99% effective.

The day the equipment and materials were shipped to Da Nang, however, was also the day Duc received the news that his son had tested positive for COVID-19. His whole family had to be quarantined.

Everything was in chaos, everyone in my family had to move to the quarantine zone. I had no one to receive the shipment and my mind was in no condition to even think about it, Duc said.

So the equipment and materials had to be shipped back to HCM City. The day after, Duc found out that he had been infected and was transferred to a field hospital in Hoa Vang district for treatment.

During his 10 days in the hospital, he noticed the doctors conscientiousness and the hardships they had to go through.

They were with me the whole night I had the fever. It was really moving to see the crew care so much for their patients, Duc said.

Duc remembers that everyone was wearing protective clothes covering their body. He couldnt see anyones face, but could hear their voices. He knew they werent just from Da Nang but from other places. They came to provide support Da Nang in tough times.

While I was in hospital, I sometimes received supplies, like toothpaste or soap. It made me grateful so I knew I had to give something back to the community, Duc said.

After recovering from the initial shock, he immediately called his colleagues from the hospital to begin the production process using the borrowed equipment, which was once again shipped from HCM City to Da Nang.

After being tested negative for the third time, he was transferred back to self-quarantine and finished the first batches of liquid sanitizer. Around 60,000 liters of liquid sanitizer so far have been donated to hospitals in Da Nang, quarantine zones, entry points, schools, the Viet-Laos border areas in the central province of Quang Nam, Hai Duong and Bac Giang provinces.

After liquid sanitizer, Duc started working on full-body disinfecting compartment. With help from his friends and colleagues, five full-body disinfecting compartment were made to donate to Da Nang (four) and Hai Duong province (one).

However, he soon realized that full-body disinfecting compartments were too expensive to make and too clunky to move around. To tackle this, he instead started making more compact disinfecting devices for half the production cost.

With financial support from generous donors, project 687 produced eight mobile disinfection devices to give to Bac Giang province  the countrys epidemic hotspot. The team is currently making more disinfection devices to send to Bac Giang and Bac Ninh.

According to Duc, the production cost of a mobile disinfecting device is VND8 million (nearly $400), which is half the cost of a disinfection compartment.

Duc said: What we are doing now is almost nothing compared to what we received from the community in times of hardship. I hope that with project 687, I can give back as much as I can so that Vietnam can return to its normal state.

Being a former COVID-19 patient, I wish other patients good luck, and I have faith in our medical teams. And I hope that our doctors and nurses can be strong so that together we can overcome this tough time, he added.

Dang Duong
Prof Phan Van Truong, who has been to 80 countries and negotiated contracts worth up to $60 billion, said self-study accounts for 90 percent of learning, and occurs over a lifetime.

Prof Phan Van Truong

Truong is the author of the famous book Mot doi thuong thuyet (A life in negotiation).

At the age of 75, he still has the habit of getting up at 4 am to study. This skill helped him have a successful career. A university graduate in civil engineering, he became senior manager of many large corporations in the world.

He said that most of he had learned came from self-study after graduation.

Truong said he left for France to study at a boarding school when he was 17 years old. Four years later, he passed the exam to the National School of Bridges and Roads. However, his French language skills were just enough to write, and he was poor at communication and could barely speak French.

I felt like a fish out of water when my friends, during breaks, enjoyed the time by gathering and telling jokes. However, every time when I wanted to join the group of friends, they would disperse. In their eyes, the French I spoke was a language of somewhere else in the world, he recalled.

This urged him to study French by himself. He bought a book of French jokes and stayed at home every weekend to learn by heart the jokes in front of a mirror. He even practiced bending his tongue so that he could pronounce French like native speakers.

When he could tell the jokes and see his friends splitting their sides with laughter, he understood that he had succeeded in speaking French.

That was how I learned French, he said, adding that he felt hurt when even his Vietnamese countrymen did not enjoy talking to him, which was another motivation for him.

As a Vietnamese in France, Thuong mostly used English in his jobs.

Thuong now can speak both French and English fluently. However, he said he learned English also because he felt he was under pressure.

When I was negotiating with British people in English, I found as if they thought they were superior to me, not because they were better, but because they could negotiate in their mother tongue, he said.

He then put vowed to learn English. English skills helped him successfully negotiate contracts with the total value of $60 billion during his 40 years of working.

Truong said when he came back to Vietnam, he had to struggle to learn Vietnamese again on the first day.

He was then a visiting lecturer at a university in HCMC, and a lot of students complained that they could understand only 70 percent of what he said, though they found the knowledge they received interesting.

Prof Phan Van Truong, who has been to 80 countries and negotiated contracts worth up to $60 billion, said self-study accounts for 90 percent of learning, and occurs over a lifetime.

Truong then apologized and decided to learn Vietnamese again, everywhere and anytime he could.

I tried to write and read while looking up at dictionary and I learned from my students as well, he said.

Thuong believes that one should not learn foreign languages with only logical thinking, but with feeling.

France makes big investments in teaching and learning English, but the effects remain below expectations.

French people are not better than Vietnamese in learning English, because they also learn English the way Vietnamese learn, i.e. the academic way. They think they need to learn English with only their brain, Truong said.

Self-study accounts for 90 percent of learning

Once holding high positions at many large corporations in the world, including President of Alstom Power Asia and President of Suez Southeast Asia, and once awarded the National Order of the Legion of Honor, Truong said he is a lucky man.

I was trained to become a civil engineer, but I never built roads and bridges in my life, and I never drew roads and bridges, he said.

The first job I took after graduating from university was teaching economics, though I had not studied economics before and I had no degree in economics, he said.

However, he still became one of the best professors teaching economics at economics schools.

Most of the time he was a businessman in his career. He was a senior manager of an electricity industry group with 25,000 workers, and then a high-speed railway company and urban water supply and oil and gas firm in France.

He was not trained in these fields, but succeeded in all. He believes that success does not lie only in degrees, but in everyones self-study.

Self-study accounts for 90 percent of learning, he said. It is the continuous self-improvement of skills such observation, reasoning, communication, i.e. speaking and listening, analysis, evaluation and peoples psychology.

"If you only rely on degrees you have obtained and do not continue studying, you will lag behind in modern life five years after graduation and you will be eliminated," he said.

Truong was granted the Medal for the Cause of Education by former President Nguyen Minh Triet in 2009.

Thuy Nga

Female scientist wants to start public awareness campaign about organ donations Dr Do Pham Nguyet Thanh, born in 1995, an expert at the Biomedical Research Center under the Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine, has been honored as one of HCMC 2020 Outstanding Young Citizens thanks to her active contributions to the community.
As Hanoians cannot take long-distance trips these days because of the pandemic, they have been going to resorts near Hanoi. Many suburban resorts are often full on weekends.

At a resort in Mai Chau on June 19

As her children have begun their summer holiday, Hamy Nguyen in Hoan Kiem District in Hanoi has been looking for a resort near Hanoi for her 5-member family to avoid the heat.

When Nguyen contacted a travel firm and asked about a resort in Mai Chau (Hoa Binh), she was told that the resort is fully occupied until the end of June. Nguyen did not have the opportunity to book rooms there, even on ordinary days.

I have been advised to go to Ninh Binh as the prices are reasonable, while the resorts there are not overly crowded, Nguyen said.

The travel demand has increased recently as students finished their academic year one month ago, while secondary school students have completed the entrance exam to high schools.

Since they cannot travel far by air as they fear they may get infected with coronavirus on flights, they tend to take short-term trips to places near Hanoi which they can reach with personal cars.

The demand is especially high these days, as Hanoi and northern provinces are being hit by scorching sun and a severe hot spell.

The resorts standing isolated, with large area, but with not too many rooms, with large greenery and swimming pools in Ba Vi and Soc Son in Hanoi, and Mai Chau in Hoa Binh are the main choices of many families.

The resorts standing isolated, with large area, but with not too many rooms, with large greenery and swimming pools in Ba Vi and Soc Son in Hanoi, and Mai Chau in Hoa Binh are the main choices of many families.

As demand is increasingly high, some resorts are running out of rooms, though the room rates are absolutely not low.

Mai Chau Hideaway Resort, with more than 30 rooms in Hoa Binh, is an example. According to Duong Thi Huyen, the manager of the resort, the high business season there is from September to December, or after Tet, from January to March. However, the resort has been full since May.

She said the number of guests has increased sharply since mid-June and the guests are mostly from Hanoi. The room occupancy rate was 70-80 percent mid-week and 100 percent on weekends.

Bakhan Village, which is near Mai Chau Hideaway Resort, is also full. With a reasonable hotel room rate, from VND400,000 per traveler per night (mid-week), it has few vacancies.

The hotel room rate at Avana Retreat is VND5-20 million a night, and it collects additional fees on weekend. However, its occupancy rate is also relatively high, 70-80 percent in mid-week, from mid-May to the end of June, and 100 percent on weekends.

To reach Mai Chau, travelers need to spend four hours to drive cars from Hanoi. If they want nearby destinations, they can choose Serena Resort (Hoa Binh), Tomodachi Retreat Lang Mit (Son Tay Town), Melia Ba Vi Mountain Retreat, and Memory Villa (Ba Vi). The occupancy rate there is 50-60 percent on ordinary days and higher on weekends.

Experts say that isolated and close-to-nature tourism is a growing tendency in the Covid-19 time. Hanoians have the habit of spending holidays and weekends with family members and friends. Therefore, suburban resorts recently have had high and stable numbers of guests.



Travel activities resume

Some localities near Hanoi, including Ninh Binh and Quang Ninh have reopened, so Hanoians have more choices for their travel plans.

An agent of Thien Phuc Tourism Company said on the first reopening day (June 12), FLC Ha Long in Quang Ninh received 800 guests.

However, the localities still restrict the numbers of guests from other provinces, except Vinpearl and FLC resorts. Travelers need to show PCR testing certificates to stay in the resorts. The resorts offer the combo with a testing service.

The other hotels, such as Legacy Yen Tu, have not reopened, or they are only receiving guests on weekends.

Hotels and resorts in Quang Ninh also offer very attractive room rates and service fees. The room rate at Vinpearl Ha Long is VND1.85 million a night with three meals, applied to guests from all cities/provinces, including PCR testing fee.

The Quang Ninh Peoples Committee has agreed to exempt the Ha Long Bay, Yen Tu and Quang Ninh Museum excursion fees until the end of 2021, instead of the 50 percent reduction as currently applied. This is one of the solutions to help stimulate domestic travel demand.

In Ninh Binh, travel activities have recently resumed, so the number of travelers remains modest. The hotel room rate therefore is low. Emeralda Ninh Binh offers a combo at just VND800,000 a night and a 20 percent reduction for the second night.

Ngoc Ha

Sling-shaped bungalow resort sets Vietnam record A resort with fifteen sling-shaped houses in Quan Ba District in the northern mountainous province of Ha Giang is certified by the Vietnam Record Organisation (Vietkings) to be the first of its kind in Vietnam.
Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son held talks with the visiting British First Secretary of State and Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, Dominic Raab, in Hanoi on June 22.

Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son (R) and the British First Secretary of State and Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, Dominic Raab, in Hanoi on June 22. (Photo: VNA)

Son welcomed Raab once again paying an official visit to Vietnam and directly attending the Asia - Europe Meeting (ASEM) High-level Dialogue in Hanoi, voicing his belief that the trip will provide a new driving force for relations between the two countries.



In reply, Raab affirmed the wish to intensify the strategic partnership and close coordination with Vietnam as the UK is orienting its policy towards the Indo-Pacific region.



The two ministers expressed their delight at the positive strides in bilateral cooperation, especially since 2020, when the countries issued the Joint Declaration on the Vietnam - UK Strategic Partnership: Forging Ahead for Another 10 Years, and signed and enforced the UK - Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA).



They agreed to soon resume the exchange of delegations and key cooperation mechanisms such as the security - defence strategy dialogue and the joint economic and trade committee (JETCO).



Both host and guest also spoke highly of the thriving economic links despite impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic, with bilateral trade hitting 5.6 billion USD in 2020 and the UKs direct investment in Vietnam reaching 3.92 billion USD at present.



They emphasised the need to capitalise on great opportunities offered by the UKVFTA so as to give a stronger boost to bilateral trade and investment, especially in potential areas like the digital economy, financial services, and renewable energy development, thereby contributing to post-pandemic recovery.



The two sides discussed directions to further bolster bilateral cooperation in the spheres of security - defence, health, development cooperation, education - training, science and technology, as well as expand cooperation between the two foreign ministries.

The talks in Hanoi on June 22. (Photo: VNA)

Son suggested the UK side, in the spirit of the strategic partnership, continue to support Vietnam in accessing COVID-19 vaccine supplies and consider transfering vaccine production technology to Vietnam.



They spoke highly of the Vietnam - UK cooperation at multilateral forums, especially their coordination at the UN Security Council (UNSC) during 2020-2021, when Vietnam serves as a non-permanent member of the UNSC, and within the ASEM framework.



The Vietnamese minister affirmed that he would work closely with the UK side to ensure the success of the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) hosted by the UK in November this year.



For his part, Raab thanked Vietnam for supporting the UK in its efforts to secure ASEAN Dialogue Partner status, as well as in negotiations to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).



The two sides also exchanged views on international and regional issues of common concern, emphasising the importance of ensuring the freedom of navigation and overflight, security and peace in the East Sea, and upholding international law, with the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) - the UN charter of the oceans considered the legal framework for all activities at sea and ocean.



Following the talks, the two ministers met with Vietnamese diplomats who received the UK's Chevening Scholarships in 2020 - 2021.



Son thanked the British Government for providing scholarships for and helping Vietnam train high-quality human resources, including diplomats, over the past three decades.

Source: VNA

UK Foreign Secretary Raab arrives in Vietnam for ASEM policy dialogue Dominic Raab, Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs of the United Kingdom, arrived in Hanoi on June 21 evening as part of his Southeast Asia tour.
Many restaurants in Hanoi have opened to welcome back customers after the citys authorities approved the reopening of hair salons, indoor eateries and cafes as of 0:00 on June 22.

City dwellers are excited to enjoy their preferred breakfast at their favourite places.

Hanoi People's Committee allowed the reopening of establishments such as hair salons and in-house dining and drinking venues as of 0:00 on June 22.

These places are requested to strictly follow COVID-19 prevention and control measures.

Employees at an eatery set up plastic shields to prevent any COVID-19 spread.

Preparing hand sanitizer for diners.

Owners of a pho restaurant in Hoan Kiem district preparing fresh beef to welcome back diners on reopening day.

Many people chose to have pho for their breakfast nearly a month after the closure orders.

Pho is a typical dish of Hanoi and a favourite breakfast of many Hanoians.

"Although we could order pho to eat at home during the closure, it tastes so much better served at the restaurant, said Truong, a gourmet from Hoan Kiem district.

However, some eateries still maintain their takeaway service due to fear of COVID-19 infections.

A plastic shield ensures a safe distance between customers at a cafeteria.

Everyone hopes that life will soon be back to normal.

Source: Nhan Dan
The northern mountainous borderline province of Cao Bang is beautiful all year round relying on its highland terrain.

Ban Gioc Waterfall.  SGT Photos: Huu Long

August and September are said to be the best time to visit Cao Bang, a northern province bordering China. During this period, Ban Gioc Waterfall, which is a natural borderline separating Vietnam and China, fully exposes its beauty. The waterfall is one of the 10 most spectacular cascading scenes in the world, according to Touropia in 2015. Moreover, tourists will be enchanted by the peaceful views of sunset in the smoky air from local kitchens and the yellow rice fields.

In the end of the year, buckwheat flower fields stretching from mountains to valleys are in full bloom. Meanwhile, blooming wild sunflowers are blowing in the wind.

Aside from Ban Gioc Waterfall, Cao Bang also offers other attractions which are arguably equally beautiful. Thang Hen Lake, Nguom Ngao Cave and Thung Na Ma Valley all boast mountainscapes so idyllic that tourists may feel they are lost in paradise. Thung Na Ma, also known as Thung Nam Tra or Mat Than (Gods Eye) Valley, is a must-see destination when somebody travels to Cao Bang.

Thang Hen Lake.

To reach Thung Na Ma, which is roughly 30 kilometers from the heart of Cao Bang City, tourists have to get over Ma Phuc Pass. Then, they follow a path lined by stone fence meandering serpentine-fashion to the valley.

It takes visitors about 15 minutes to walk on the 1.5-kilometer path. The short walk gives tourists a chance to enjoy scenic and peaceful views along the way where terraced rice and corn fields, stilt houses and herds of grazing cows and buffalos are among the best offers.

Doc Nhan Mountain.

The valley is walled by Phja Piota and Doc Nhan (One Eye) mountains overlooking a big lake with crystal clear blue water. Especially, Doc Nhan Mountain highlights a 50-meter diameter hollow through it the view of the bright sun and blue sky on the other side of the mountain can be seen.

Source: SGT

Northern provinces urged to develop local tourism Six northern provinces in Vietnam should continue to actively support and participate in two national tourism stimulus programmes  Vietnamese Travelling within Vietnam and Vietnams Tourism  Safe and Attractive.
When Baylor University graduate student Chelsea Curto looked for a play for her masters thesis production in direction, she decided she wanted something from Singapore, the multicultural city in which she grew up.

Curto, 31, selected Wills and Secession, a two-woman play by Singaporean playwright Eleanor Wong, which gave the student director an opportunity to share something outside of the Western culture that dominates much of American theater.

It came with a challenge, however: Curto didnt have any actors of Asian descent, much less Singaporean ones, in the Baylor students available for casting. So she contacted Wong for her advice. The playwright gave Curto permission for her casting as her play didnt address race as much as faith and family. Wong did, however, request it retain its setting in Singapore.

Waco audiences will get to see the result when Wills and Secession runs for three performances Thursday through Saturday at Baylor Universitys Hooper-Schaefer Fine Arts Center. The story examines the conflict between two sisters, Ellen and Grace Toh, who come together in 1990s Singapore in the aftermath of their fathers serious illness. Ellen (Macy Lapham) is a New York attorney married to a woman (Kayla Bush) while Grace (Hannah Charles) is married to a conservative Christian pastor.
Like other large businesses in Waco, we are working hard to retain our employees as well as to recruit new employees, Ford said.

He said the employees with the lowest hourly wages are laborers with the parks and recreation department who mow, clean and maintain the parks.

The lower-wage jobs are spread across departments including parks, Cameron Park Zoo, Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum, and some civilian positions in the Waco Police Department.

In an interview following the meeting, Palmer said she began thinking about the issue when the Waco City Council voted last summer to change its policy for recipients of Waco-McLennan County Economic Development Corp. money. Companies receiving incentives must pay a minimum of $15 an hour for full-time employees, with an average wage of $17.50.

Were one of the largest employers in the city, and were not doing that, Palmer said. That feels like an unsettling, unfair ask. Like, OK, we recognize that this is the start of a living wage, but were not willing to pay that.
WASHINGTON (AP)  The U.S. government is stepping up efforts to get younger Americans vaccinated for COVID-19 as the White House acknowledges it will miss two key vaccination benchmarks and as concern grows about the spread of a new variant that threatens to set the country back in the months ahead.

The delta variant, first identified in India, in the last two weeks has come to represent more than 20% of coronavirus infections in the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Tuesday. That's double what it was when the CDC last reported on the variants prevalence.

The delta variant is currently the greatest threat in the U.S. to our attempt to eliminate COVID-19, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nations top infectious disease expert, said at a White House briefing on the virus. Good news: Our vaccines are effective against the delta variant.

He added: We have the tools. So lets use them, and crush the outbreak.
I think Joe Bidens decision to fully withdraw U.S. forces from Afghanistan is a mistake. Its mistaken on strategic and moral grounds. I hope Im wrong. But when even administration officials, and experts who favor the decision, concede that our pullout  of a very small contingent of troops  could result in a Taliban takeover, it seems a safe bet that it will happen.

But that decision has been made and theres no point arguing about it anymore. But theres still one thing the United States can do, and morally must do: Get the people who signed up to work, and fight, with us out of there.

Over the last 20 years thousands of Afghans worked with U.S. and NATO forces as interpreters, cultural advisers, etc. They chose to do so knowing that they put their lives and the lives of their families at risk. The Taliban knows who most of them are, and will find out about the rest soon enough. Scores have been assassinated over the years. The Taliban has lists of people it plans to kill. Interpreters are at the top of the list, but so are countless others who worked with Western organizations and governments to stand up a (sadly corrupt) democratic government, as well as schools and other civil society projects.
PRAGUE  For years, Larry Mach was the driving force behind the Prague American Legion Tractor Drive each June. Hed map out the course the tractors would take as they slowly wound through the Bohemian Alps on a leisurely late spring drive, the drivers and passengers enjoying the scenery and each other.

His daughter, Wendy Mach, enjoyed helping her father plan the pathway.

I would always go with him to make the route, she said.

This year, Wendy had to map the route by herself, without her former traveling companion. Larry Mach and his wife, Margaret Marty Mach, were killed in a car accident on Sept. 25 in Wahoo.

Larry organized the first Prague American Legion Tractor Ride in 2013, and one was held every year since, with the exception of last year, when the COVID-19 pandemic put the brakes on the event.

This years event will honor Larry and Marty Mach.

They wanted to make it a memorial drive because of dad, said Wendy.

Larrys presence will be felt when the drive starts out in Prague at 12 p.m. Wendy will be driving the McCormick Farmall Tractor, the same one her dad drove in the first year of the tractor ride. It was his grandfathers tractor, Wendy said.
Running parallel to and beyond her educational career has been her involvement with the Relay for Life of the American Cancer Society.

Im a 31-year cancer survivor, she said, having been first diagnosed in 1990. That was my beginning of involvement with the Relay and the Cancer Society, which shes continued. I had a wonderful support network and that was one of the reasons I wanted to be involved in the American Cancer Society.

A friend who nominated Lorenzen for Eight Over 80 recognition, Julie Knaack, is herself a cancer survivor.

I have been fortunate enough to have her as a special friend since high school, Knaack wrote of Lorenzen. They say laughter is good for the soul, and my, my, how we have laughed so hard through the years. She is fun and a positive person. I also am a recent breast cancer survivor, and her positive support through my battle helped me to fight hard to get through that.

Knaack also noted Lorenzen is an avid quilter, and she has continually found beautiful fabrics to make lovely neck scarves which she then sells and sends all the profits to the American Cancer Society  resulting in her own donations in the thousands of dollars.
WATERLOO  Hawkeye Community College President Todd Holcombs salary and benefits are growing by 3.51%.

The board of trustees approved an $8,000 increase in Holcombs salary and extended his three-year contract following a 20-minute closed session. That boosts his annual base salary to $254,500 effective July 1, when the new fiscal year starts.

Along with other benefits including a vehicle allowance, retirement plan contribution, and expense reimbursement, Holcombs total compensation for the next year will be $280,880. That is a $9,520 increase from his salary and benefits of $271,360 during the current fiscal year.

Which we think is fair compensation for what has happened and how he has led this college, board chairman Jay Nardini said before the vote, speaking on behalf of the trustees. We are all very pleased with Dr. Holcomb. And I would go as far to say that he is the perfect person for the job with what has happened in the past year.

The board approved the increase unanimously, with five of the nine trustees in attendance at the meeting. Last month, trustees also met in closed session for about 40 minutes to evaluate Holcombs performance.
U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, said she opposed the bill because it showed Democrats were ignoring the needs of families by pushing legislation that put the priority on Washington politicians, attempting to centralize power, politicize the Federal Elections Commission, mandate unlimited ballot harvesting and force taxpayers to fund campaigns. She said her experience as a county commissioner of elections reinforced her trust in state and local officials more than the federal government.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, issued a statement calling the measure more about sending power to Washington than stopping voter suppression.

Make no mistake: This bill is not about voter rights, and after pushing it for several years, this bill is obviously not in response to the 2020 election, which had the greatest voter turnout in our history, he said. This bill would upend our very well-run elections in Iowa and replace them with a new system from Washington. We ought to make it easier to vote and harder to cheat. This bill does not achieve that goal.

Jeff Kaufmann, chairman of the Republican Party of Iowa, called the proposed election-law changes a blatant political move by Democrats who see that President Joe Biden is upside down in the polls to want to hold onto power in the 2022 midterm elections.

Earlier this year, the Republican-led Iowa Legislature passed and Gov. Kim Reynolds signed election-law changes that shorten the states early voting period, shorten the period to request mail-in ballots and bar elections officials from proactively sending ballot request forms to voters, among other provisions. During Tuesdays conference call, Pate said he and his colleagues are constantly looking at best practices for elections, but some voting rights experts, county election officials and Democrats have argued that the changes will make it harder for minority, elderly and disabled voters to cast ballots.

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He also cited sensationalist media pundits for stirring needless alarm over CRT, which members then pass on to their pastors. Indeed, Fox watchers at liberal Media Matters for America found Fox News has mentioned critical race theory almost 1,300 times from January to mid-June.

Pastors only have their members for one hour a week, Stetzer quipped. Fox News has them for maybe 30 hours a week.

Thats a big challenge, but worth it, especially for an organization to which multitudes look for guidance as it tries to build on its own diversity.

Interestingly, the statement by the conventions right wing didnt say much about what CRT is, either. CRT, in simplest terms, was created by legal scholars in the mid-1970s as a scholarly lens or framework that seeks to understand the role that race and racism have played in American history and society.

But, outside of academia, that frame for inquiry and debate has been transformed into a terrifying Marxist-inspired child-indoctrinating menace  catnip for cable-TV pundits. Sensationalized like a QAnon conspiracy, that cartoon version of CRT makes an effective propaganda pushback against the racial justice movements that emerged after the death of George Floyd.
The Cedar Falls Water Reclamation Facility, which provides treatment for all wastewater generated by the citys residents, businesses, and industries, does not release raw sewage into rivers or other bodies of water. No wastewater facility in the nation is legally able to do this. The wastewater is treated to the point that it can be released into the Cedar River with no adverse environmental effects.

Like hundreds of cities across Iowa, Cedar Falls does discharge water to a public waterway, in this case the Cedar River. The treatment process Cedar Falls uses is very extensive, effective, and heavily regulated through a permit system overseen by the Iowa DNR and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The city does perform multiple tests throughout each month to ensure compliance with its permit, and the water discharged from Cedar Falls is actually of much higher quality than required by its permit. The city is proud to note that year after year Cedar Falls remains well under the Iowa DNR permit limits. Continuous upgrades are made each year to the treatment system to ensure the highest quality of water leaves the facility at all times without interruption. The Cedar Falls treatment plant has been very effective over the last 80 years, and the city continues with long-range plans to make sure compliance with all regulations will continue for decades to come.
You need to understand that this is how the West destroys sites that tell too much truth about the West. Take them offline, block them, DDOS attacks, etc etc etc.there is no reason to do this, except for trying to mess up life for many.there will be no proof, no reason, Why? Just because they can and they know they can get away with it

(CNN)The United States government has seized dozens of US website domains connected to Iran, linked to what the US says are disinformation efforts, a US national security official told CNN.

Source: US government seizes dozens of US website domains connected to Iran  CNNPolitics

Until we were able to finally find a basically safe home for windowstorussia.com, life was hell. Literally hell

We lost several domains and many sites as lawsuits and threats went on for years. When that failed them, they proceeded to DDOS attack for many more years. I had the coffeetalk website and it reached unbelievable popularity and finally GoDaddy based in the USA sold it out from under us and gave the domain and name to someone else.it did not matter that I had it first.I could not grease the wheels at GoDaddy with money to get what I want and or keep what I owned

That was the straw that broke the camels back and made us realize that if the domains are even a tiny bit in any jurisdiction of the US, they will be able to get to you in some way

PressTV is a very good news site. Maybe that is what scares the USA?

I know! As long as you can post about kitties and sock monkeys.who cares right?

WtR
California is fortunate to be home to nine national parks (yes, nine!), more than any other state.



With such a plethora of natural and national treasures, it may not come as a surprise that two of the state's most spectacular parks, Sequoia and Kings Canyon, are often overlooked.

While typically referred to together, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks are actually two distinct but contiguous parks located in the southern Sierra Nevada Mountains. Kings Canyon lies to the north and Sequoia to the south. Other than iconic giant sequoia trees that inhabit both parks, many of the highlights of Sequoia and Kings Canyon tend to be less known precisely because they are located within the rugged parks' backcountry and are inaccessible by road. Having world-famous Yosemite lying to the north doesn't necessarily help in winning the popularity contest either.



If you're ready to hit the road to discover these hidden natural gems, use this sample itinerary, heading north to south, that packs in some of these west slope wonders. Happy trails!

*Note that reservations for campgrounds are required in 2021; no first-come first-served sites will be available.*





Day 1:

Enter Kings Canyon National Park on Highway 180 at the Big Stump entrance, continuing east and dropping into Kings Canyon proper.

Sheep Creek Campground is a solid spot to spend the night, but don't forget to make advance reservations online.

is a solid spot to spend the night, but don't forget to make advance reservations online. Get your bearings by driving to Road's End, passing through the Cedar Grove area. Explore Muir Rock and relax for a bit on the beach near the emerald waters of the South Fork of the Kings River.

Wrap up the day by stretching your legs with a half-day hike around the Kanawyer Loop Trail.









Day 2:

After enjoying an early morning fire in camp, head east back toward Road's End and soak in the splendors of Zumwalt Meadow . This picture-perfect montane meadow provides unobstructed views of the deep granite walls of Kings Canyon.

. This picture-perfect montane meadow provides unobstructed views of the deep granite walls of Kings Canyon. Heading back west, stop at Roaring River Falls , a narrow gorge flowing into scenic pools where the Roaring River drops into the Kings River. For a longer hike option, Roaring River Falls can be combined with a pleasant walk from Zumwalt Meadow along the River Trail .

, a narrow gorge flowing into scenic pools where the Roaring River drops into the Kings River. For a longer hike option, Roaring River Falls can be combined with a pleasant walk from Zumwalt Meadow along the . Climb west out of the canyon and head for a campground near Grant Grove . For those anglers out there, consider carving out a couple of hours to fish a stretch of the South Fork of the Kings River before climbing out of the canyon. There are some decent fishing holes upstream from Grizzly Falls .

. For those anglers out there, consider carving out a couple of hours to fish a stretch of the South Fork of the Kings River before climbing out of the canyon. There are some decent fishing holes upstream from . Make a reservations at Azalea Campground or Sunset Campground.





Day 3:



Wake up with the sun and take a morning walk through some of the largest trees in the world in Grant Grove.

Continue south along Highway 198 toward the Giant Forest . En route, stop at Lodgepole Campground and set up your campsite (make advanced reservations). However, if staying in a cozy room sounds more like your cup of tea, book a room and reserve a dinner for a night in Wuksachi Lodge , a few miles away.

. En route, stop at and set up your campsite (make advanced reservations). However, if staying in a cozy room sounds more like your cup of tea, book a room and reserve a dinner for a night in , a few miles away. With camping or lodging behind you, soak in the wonders of the Giant Forest. Visit the Giant Forest Museum, and of course, no trip through the ancient sequoias is complete without seeing the largest tree (by volume) in the world, the General Sherman Tree.





Day 4:



If you are camping at Lodgepole, take a nice morning walk straight out of the campground along the Tokopah Valley Trail to get the blood flowing (hint: there's more hiking/climbing in store today). Both the Watchtower and Tokopah Falls, Sequoia National Park's tallest waterfall, are beautiful sights.

to get the blood flowing (hint: there's more hiking/climbing in store today). Both the Watchtower and Tokopah Falls, Sequoia National Park's tallest waterfall, are beautiful sights. Head back to into the Giant Forest to climb the granite dome of Moro Rock to catch a glimpse of the Sequoia high country and the peaks of the Great Western Divide, which splits the Kern and Kaweah watersheds.

to catch a glimpse of the Sequoia high country and the peaks of the Great Western Divide, which splits the Kern and Kaweah watersheds. Visit Crescent Meadow , known as the "gem of the Sierra," and wander through giant sequoias surrounding a picturesque montane meadow. Keep on the lookout for black bears in this area, as they are frequently spotted around the hillsides between Moro Rock and Crescent Meadow.

, known as the "gem of the Sierra," and wander through giant sequoias surrounding a picturesque montane meadow. Keep on the lookout for black bears in this area, as they are frequently spotted around the hillsides between Moro Rock and Crescent Meadow. Head back down 198 toward Visalia and exit Sequoia National Park, or stay in one of the campgrounds near the park entrance: Buckeye Flat or Potwisha.





If you have more time, consider heading back up to the trails and peaks of Mineral King Valley, accessed via Mineral King Road in the town of Three Rivers.
Meetings for AuStar securityholders to vote on the proposed merger with White Rock Minerals to be held on 30 July 2021



White Rock and AuStar Merger - Results of First Court Hearing

Ballarat, June 22, 2021 AEST (ABN Newswire) - AuStar Gold Limited ( ASX:AUL ) and White Rock Minerals Ltd ( ASX:WRM ) ( OTCMKTS:WRMCF ) are pleased to provide the following update on the proposed merger of AuStar Gold and White Rock (Merger) by way of a share scheme of arrangement (Share Scheme) and option scheme of arrangement (Option Scheme) (together, the Schemes) pursuant to the Revised Merger Implementation Deed lodged with ASX on 30 April 2021 (refer AuStar Gold ASX Release "Revised Merger Implementation Deed with White Rock Minerals" and White Rock ASX Release "White Rock & AuStar Sign Revised Merger Implementation Deed").First Court HearingThe Federal Court of Australia (Court) has on 22 June 2021 approved the despatch of AuStar's scheme booklet, providing information about the Schemes and notice of the Scheme Meetings (Scheme Booklet) and has ordered that AuStar Gold convene meetings of its shareholders and listed optionholders (together, AuStar Gold Securityholders) to consider, and if thought fit, approve the Schemes.The Schemes continue to be unanimously recommended by the AuStar Board, in the absence of a superior proposal and subject to the independent expert concluding (and continuing to conclude) that the Schemes are in the best interests of AuStar Gold shareholders and Listed Optionholders (AuStar Securityholders).Each AuStar director intends to vote, or procure the voting of, all AuStar shares or listed options held or controlled by them in favour of the Schemes, subject to those same qualifications.Scheme BookletThe Scheme Booklet will be released on ASX following registration with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and will also be available on AuStar's website www.austargold.com and on White Rock's website www.whiterockminerals.com.au.The Scheme Booklet will include a copy of the Independent Expert's report prepared by RSM Corporate Australia Pty Ltd.AuStar Securityholders who have nominated an email address for the purposes of receiving communications from AuStar will receive an email containing a link to a website where they can download the Scheme Booklet. Securityholders who have not nominated an email address for the purposes of receiving communications from AuStar will receive a letter (sent by post) containing that same information and the Scheme Booklet.AuStar Securityholders should read the Scheme Booklet in its entirety, including the material accompanying it, before deciding whether to vote in favour of the Schemes.Scheme MeetingsThe Share Scheme Meeting, at which AuStar shareholders will vote on the Share Scheme, will be held at 10.00am (AEST) on 30 July 2021, at the offices of Maddocks, Level 25, Tower 2, 727 Collins Street, Melbourne, Victoria.The Option Scheme Meeting, at which AuStar listed optionholders will vote on the Option Scheme, will be held at the later of 11.00am (AEST) or on the adjournment or close of the Share Scheme Meeting on 30 July 2021.Each Securityholder's vote is important to determine whether the Schemes proceed. The two Schemes are conditional upon each other. If the Share Scheme or Option Scheme is not approved by the requisite majorities of AuStar Securityholders or the Court, neither of the Schemes will become Effective and the Merger will not proceed.All registered AuStar Securityholders as at 7.00pm (AEST) on 28 July 2021 will be eligible to vote at the Scheme Meetings and are encouraged to do so.AuStar Securityholders do not need to attend the Scheme Meetings in person to vote, as their vote can be made by proxy by completing the personalised proxy form enclosed in the Scheme Booklet.Instructions for proxy lodgement, including an option to lodge the proxy form online, are included on the proxy form. Given the current uncertainty regarding COVID restrictions AuStar Securityholders are strongly encouraged to lodge their votes by proxy prior to the Scheme Meetings.To view the timetable and key dates, please visit:About White Rock Minerals Ltd

White Rock Minerals Ltd (ASX:WRM) (OTCMKTS:WRMCF) is a diversified explorer and near-stage producer, headquartered in Ballarat, Victoria. The Company's flagship exploration project is Red Mountain in central Alaska. At Red Mountain, there are already two high grade zinc - silver - gold - lead VMS deposits, with an Inferred Mineral Resource of 9.1 million tonnes @ 609g/t AgEq / 13% ZnEq. The Company is also exploring its recently discovered large intrusion related gold anomaly at Last Chance, also located in the Tintina gold belt of Alaska, home to multi-million gold ounce deposits like Pogo, Fort Knox and the Donlin Project. The Company also has the Mt Carrington project, located near Drake, in Northern NSW, which is a near-production precious metals asset with a resource of 341,000 ounces of gold and 23.2 million ounces of silver on an approved mining lease, and with a Gold First PFS and JORC Reserve.


Investor Presentation June 2021

Sydney, June 22, 2021 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Vango Mining Ltd ( ASX:VAN ) is a gold exploration and development company focused on exploring and developing the Company's key asset, the 100 owned Marymia Gold Project in the Mid West region of Western Australia.In the near term, the Company is focused on expanding its high grade resource base to support plans to become a significant gold mining and production company.Vango also has a Farm in, Joint Venture Agreement with Lodestar Minerals ( ASX:LSR ) for the nearby Ned's Creek Project, confirming Vango's dominant ground position in the world class Marymia Gold Belt.To view the presentation, please visit:About Vango Mining Ltd

Vango Mining Limited (ASX:VAN) is an exploration mining company with ambitions of becoming a high-grade WA gold miner by developing the 100% owned Marymia Gold Project (Marymia) located in the mid-west region of Western Australia, consisting of 45 granted mining leases over 300km2.

Marymia has an established high-grade resource of 1Moz @ 3 g/t Au, underpinned by Trident - 410koz @ 8 g/t Au, with immediate extensions open at depth/along strike.


Investor Conference Presentation

Perth, June 23, 2021 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Schrole Group Ltd ( ASX:SCL ) is expanding from its 2 core products to a full HR SaaS suite, whilst growing its sales team into new markets. With clearly identified growth target markets, and a growing Schrole Community, SCL is well positioned for future growth.Human Resources Software as a Service (SaaS) suite for educational organisations. Expanding from 2 to 5 key SaaS offerings, a complete HR SaaS suite.Schrole has grown from $1.4m revenue (2017) to $6m (2020), with only 2 products and 3 sales staff.In 2017, there were 2 software products, Connect and Cover, with the training business Develop providing training to blue-chip enterprise-level clients. Verify was added in 2018. In 2HCY2021, the first version of the fully integrated HR SaaS suite will be launched. SaaS revenue is expected be the key growth driver.A significant opportunity to grow and monetise the Schrole Community (all customers and platform users). Our Schrole Community increased by ~6% to 176,714 from Dec 20 to April 2021.SCL is growing its direct sales team and selling into new markets from 1 July 2021. Direct sales team has a strong track record.Schrole's initial growth was through global and international schools networks Enterprise level clients and Government are a significant growth option, with multiple adjacent industry expansion opportunitiesTarget #1:12,000 international schools an immediate growth opportunityTarget #2:180,000 domestic schools an adjacent segmentTarget #3:Enterprise and government medium term growth optionsTo view the presentation, please visit:About Schrole Group Ltd

Schrole Group Ltd (ASX:SCL) is a publicly listed Australian company that delivers innovative, HR management software and training solutions for the international and domestic education sector.


Announcement of Expansion of Anode Materials Business

Brisbane, June 23, 2021 AEST (ABN Newswire) - NOVONIX Limited ( ASX:NVX ) ( FRA:GC3 ) ( OTCMKTS:NVNXF ) is pleased to announce its plan for the next phase of growth for NOVONIX Anode Materials in Chattanooga, Tennessee.NOVONIX is under contract to purchase, and plans to retrofit, the former Alstom building, which will be the company's second facility in Chattanooga. The 400,000+-square-foot plant will accommodate a planned 8,000+-tonne per year production operation and will join the existing operations located at 353 Corporate Place where the company has been since 2019.This expansion plan will bring the Company's total production capacity of anode materials to 10,000 tonnes per year and is expected to come online by 2023 and is underpinned by the funding received from the Company's recent successful equity capital raise on the ASX earlier this calendar year.NOVONIX continues to progress the agreements with Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd of Japan and Samsung SDI of South Korea, both major international manufacturers of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles (EVs) and energy storage systems (ESS) globally. The Company is well positioned to serve the growing needs of the battery supply chain as the only qualified producer in North America of high-grade anode material suitable for lithium-ion batteries for EVs and ESS. This phase of growth will support the production of anode materials to support the lithium-ion battery packs for over 100,000 EVs."We are excited to be announcing this next phase of expansion of our anode materials business in Tennessee. Chattanooga has been a great location for our operations over the past four years, and we look forward to growing the company in the expanding south-east hub of electric vehicle battery manufacturing. We look forward to continuing to work with the great people in Chattanooga, Hamilton County and the State of Tennessee as we help establish the domestic supply chain of key materials for the lithium-ion battery sector." - Chris Burns, CEO, NOVONIX.To view the press release from the State of Tennessee with more information on the planned expansion, please visit:About NOVONIX Ltd

NOVONIX Ltd (ASX:NVX) (FRA:GC3) (OTCMKTS:NVNXF) is an integrated developer and supplier of high-performance materials, equipment and services for the global lithium-ion battery industry with operations in the USA and Canada and sales in more than 14 countries. NOVONIX's mission is to support the global deployment of lithium-ion battery technologies for a cleaner energy future.




Wiluna Development Update - June 2021

Perth, June 23, 2021 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Wiluna Mining Corporation Limited ( ASX:WMX ) ( FRA:NZ3 ) ( OTCMKTS:WMXCF ) is pleased to provide an update on mine development activities in support of our 24-month (commenced October 2019), five-point Wiluna Development Strategy to;1. Continue to strengthen the balance sheet2. Increase operational cash flow3. Transition to include gold concentrate production4. Expand production, and5. Undertake exploration and feasibility studies to fully develop a 250kozpa, long life gold operation.HIGHLIGHTS- Stage 1, 750ktpa Flotation Plant construction is 54% complete and mine development approximately 35% advanced; targeting full ramped up production of 120kozpa by end of FY2022.- Golden Age eastern extension identified and currently being developed in the upper section in Q4; expected to provide significant growth in scale and mine life of dore production to support Stage 1.- FYTD 2,749 metres of underground development completed.- Stage 2 Feasibility Study continues; completion expected by end of CY2021.- FYTD Mineral Resource drilling for Stage 1 & Stage 2 Feasibility Study on track; 101,450 metres completed.- Optimisation Metallurgical test work ongoing and positive. Work continues to optimise gold recovery, grind size and reagent consumption.- Rod Mill rectification work completed and back in service resulting in immediate increase in milling rates.To view the full update, please visit:About Wiluna Mining Corporation Ltd

Wiluna Mining Corporation (ASX:WMX) (OTCMKTS:WMXCF) is a Perth based, ASX listed gold mining company that controls over 1,600 square kilometres of the Yilgarn Craton in the Northern Goldfields of WA. The Yilgarn Craton has a historic and current gold endowment of over 380 million ounces, making it one of most prolific gold regions in the world. The Company owns 100% of the Wiluna Gold Operation which has a defined resource of 8.04M oz at 1.67 g/t au. In May 2019, a new highly skilled management team took control of the Company with a clear plan to leverage the Wiluna Gold Operation's multi-million-ounce potential.
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BOISE, Idaho  U.S. wildfire officials expecting increased fire activity and more demand for firefighters and equipment have raised the national preparedness to level 4  which is unusual for June.

The National Interagency Fire Center said Tuesday that its the second earliest it reached what it calls preparedness level 4 on the 1-5 scale since 1990. Its also only the fourth time in the last 20 years that it has reached the level 4 in June.

More than 8,700 wildland firefighters across the U.S. are currently battling 47 large wildfires that have burned more than 800 square miles (2,070 square kilometers), officials said. Arizona had 14 of those fires, followed by California with seven.

Officials said there have been more than 29,000 wildfires so far this year, about 4,000 more than the 10-year average.

We are seeing fire behavior as if it were in the middle to late August instead of still June, said Jessica Gardetto, a fire center spokeswoman with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.

Most wildfires are quickly put out by firefighters stationed in the areas where they are posted before they grow to sizes that require assistance from firefighters from other states. However, wildfire officials have said much of the U.S. West is immersed in a drought that will likely make putting out fires more challenging for firefighters  a primary reason for bumping the risk level to level 4.

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We are planning for a lot of large fire activity throughout the West, though were not there yet, Gardetto said.

She said another potential problem for fire managers is that federal agencies are competing to recruit new firefighters who can find better-paying jobs elsewhere in the current economy.

Theres not technically a shortage of firefighters because we always overprepare, Gardetto said, but its a concern right now.

More than 80% of wildfires annually are started by people, often while enjoying outdoor activities or using fireworks.

This is that time of year when we see a lot of human-caused fires, and that really does not help the situation, Gardetto said. Firefighters could use some help right now.
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FLAGSTAFF, Ariz.  A wildfire in northern Arizona crept closer to the regions largest city Tuesday, threatening to force people from their homes.

The lightning-caused fire near Flagstaff was one of dozens that have scorched large swaths of the U.S. West and kept firefighters busy as they hold out hope that the monsoon season will deliver some significant rain.

It made a significant run Monday but slowed its growth overnight. Crews were busy Tuesday identifying features in the landscape that could help slow the blaze that has burned 38 square miles (99 square kilometers).

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Theres a lot of vegetation out there thats very old, has not had fire in it in a very long time and now has either been stressed or killed because of the drought, fire information officer Noel Fletcher said. Its a lot of standing, dead fuel.

Firefighters have yet to corral the perimeter. Crews were dropping fire retardant to keep it from moving into a canyon where it would be more difficult to tackle, and escaping where it could make a run on flatter land. They also were working to protect private property in the forest and lookout towers.

Evacuations were in place because of several other wildfires across Arizona, affecting mostly rural residents and campers, and many local roads were closed. A portion of Interstate 10 in southern Arizona was shut down because of a wildfire there. Supervisors in Navajo County declared an emergency because of a wildfire that was threatening Heber and Overgaard.

More evacuations could go into effect if the large fire in northern Arizona continues toward Flagstaff, a mountain city with nearly 80,000 residents, a state university and an observatory where Pluto was discovered. The city is nestled among the largest contiguous ponderosa pine forest in the U.S. with an Army depot and veterans cemetery to the west and smaller communities on the outskirts.

A top-tier national management team will take over Thursday, said Matthew McGrath, a district ranger for the Coconino National Forest.

Half of the national forests in Arizona will close entirely to the public because of wildfire danger and limited resources. The Coconino and Kaibab closures start Wednesday, and the Apache-Sitgreaves on Thursday.

The weather has been unrelenting lately, with hot and dry conditions combining with wind to fuel wildfires. The preparedness level for wildfire activity nationally was bumped up Tuesday to reflect more demand for firefighting resources.

More large wildfires were burning in Arizona than anywhere else in the country. Arizona had 14, followed by half as many in California. Utah and Colorado also had a handful of large wildfires.

Arizona already was at the highest preparedness level for wildfires. Nationally, the level rose to a 4 on a 1-5 scale Tuesday, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. Its only the fourth time in the last 20 years to reach level 4 in June.

In California where several large wildfires were burning, hikers were turned away from trekking to the summit of Mount Whitney, and flames were scorching tinder dry vegetation in the rugged central coast mountains.

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Associated Press writer John Antczak in Los Angeles and Keith Ridler in Boise, Idaho, contributed to this report.
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Copyright  2021 Albuquerque Journal

The Bernalillo County Commission on Tuesday appointed attorney Pamelya Herndon to represent District 28 in the New Mexico House of Representatives, filling a vacancy created by Melanie Stansburys recent election to the U.S. Congress.

Herndons appointment is good until voters have their say on the seat, which will be on the 2022 ballot.

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The president and CEO of the nonprofit KWH Law Center for Social Justice and Change, Herndon is also a former New Mexico assistant attorney general and onetime senior trial attorney for the Internal Revenue Service. She has been active in the Democratic Party of New Mexico, having served as its secretary.

She was one of eight who applied for the opening, though one dropped out prior to Tuesdays special commission meeting. District 28 encompasses part of Northeast Albuquerque, roughly east of Morris between Constitution and Montgomery, including an area east of Tramway.

I will represent every single person in this district; I will be a strong voice, Herndon said after the commission voted 4-0 to appoint her.

Commission Chairwoman Charlene Pyskoty said she received nearly 300 emails about the appointment prior to Tuesdays meeting; of the writers who live within the district, she said Herndon had the most backing.

Several Herndon supporters  including current state Sen. Martin Hickey, an Albuquerque Democrat, current Albuquerque City Councilor Diane Gibson, and former state Sen. Dede Feldman  spoke to her credentials during the meetings public comment session.

A lot of people dont exactly have the skills needed to be a legislator, but she has them, Feldman told the commission. Shes a lawyer, shes an advocate, she knows how to build communities.

The appointment of Herndon, a Democrat, wont change the political composition of the House. Democrats held a 45-24 advantage over Republicans, in addition to one independent, during the regular and special sessions this year.

Republican lawmakers had represented House District 28  covering a chunk of the Sandia foothills and Northeast Heights  for decades until Stansbury defeated incumbent Jimmie Hall in 2018.

The six other District 28 applicants considered in Tuesdays meeting were: Bunnie Cruse, Idalia Lechuga-Tena, Marcie May, Michelle Peacock, Matt Powell and Thomas Stull.

Journal staff writer Dan McKay contributed to this report.
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The City Councils lack of consideration for Councilor Pat Davis proposed amendment to the Integrated Development Ordinance at the special city council meeting June 17 is at most a degradation of representative government, or at best a complete fumble of fiduciary obligations to our community.

Davis amendment to limit shelter beds at the proposed Gibson Health Hub was a reasonable attempt to pump the brakes on a disorderly and increasingly costly proposal to establish a homeless services center at the forthcoming Gateway Center. The Councils lack of consideration, instead, recklessly hammers the accelerator.

Voters approved a bond in 2019 to obligate the city to a $14-million project with matching funds from the Legislature and other entities to establish the Gateway Center. The voters trusted the city would employ reason and common sense. The city now is roughly $2 million over budget, with little to no matching funds. And most strikingly, no plan beyond the mayors aspirational well figure it out as we go.

Gibson Medical Center at 5400 Gibson SE.

Davis amendment to the IDO was not just about the proposed Gateway Center. The health hub was pitched as the first in a network of locations across the city to serve the homeless. The limitations Davis sought came out of careful consideration of the unproven capabilities of the city to serve the homeless while giving due caution to the impact on neighborhoods, businesses and city services. Those limitations would have been safety barriers for every part of the city considered for the yet-to-be-seen subsequent Gateway centers.

Despite the administrations rhetoric that a plan for the Gateway will not be inked until input from the neighborhoods surrounding the facility has been considered and integrated, it is evident a plan there already is. The plan appears to be simply doing something for the sake of saying they did something, no matter how ill conceived. Councilor Trudy Jones spoke to this in her discussion of the IDO amendment. She stated she has difficulty voting for the Gateway given the lack of an operational plan. Jones cast her vote against the amendment and her instinct nonetheless.

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This lack of planning has worried the surrounding neighborhoods from the moment the city announced it was negotiating silently to purchase the Gibson medical complex. Yet our concerns have been labeled as the NIMBY ranting of a small minority. We have questioned the cost, the staffing, the security, and the nature of services to be provided. These are not our concerns alone. Businesses throughout the district, as well as other homeless service providers, have echoed these concerns for months now.

It appears the writing is on the wall for the Gateway Center. Gateway is destined to become a homeless warehouse in a red-lined city district already overburdened by its share of social hurdles, and underserved in security and infrastructure. The low barrier model for serving all people with little to no background checks to ensure the city is not giving harbor to sex offenders and violent felons  combined with the councils refusal to limit the number of beds placed in the Gateway  is merely powering this facilitys self-destruct button.

The city has already blown its budget, it has no plan  and yet not a brick has been turned.
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Copyright  2021 Albuquerque Journal

Col. Jason Vattioni launched his Air Force career as a nuclear weapons technician in 1990. On Tuesday, he assumed command of the 377th Air Base Wing at Kirtland Air Force Base in front of four inert training munitions set up behind the stage as a nod to the bases role in the countrys nuclear enterprise.

The Air Force held a change-of-command ceremony, a military tradition where a flag is ceremoniously transferred from one leader to the next, as Col. David Miller officially relinquished his command of the 377th wing.

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Vattioni, previously vice commander of the 75th Air Base Wing at Hill Air Force Base in Utah, will now command the wing, whose mission is to execute nuclear, readiness, and support operations for American air power.

As the host wing of KAFB, the 377th is also responsible for such base operations as security, medical care and facility maintenance.

There are so many mission partners (at Kirtland) that bring together so many different capabilities  for our nation, our allies and our partners. That is really exciting, Vattioni said in an interview.

Throughout his career, he said he has trained and attended several courses at Kirtland, such as nuclear weapons orientation, and munitions and missile training.

It really is the heartbeat of the Air Forces (nuclear) enterprise, he said of the Albuquerque base.

Miller, immediate past commander of the 377th, is being assigned to Tinker Air Base in Oklahoma. He was awarded the Legion of Merit for his work over the past two years, which included guiding Kirtland through the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kirtlands response to COVID included isolating nearly 300 critical troops for six weeks in the early days of the pandemic, and other strategies, Miller said.

Our approach allowed us to continue to contribute to the nations defense, he said.
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SILVER CITY  Former 6th Judicial District Attorney Francesca Martinez Estevez is again accused of careless driving, and this time may face a formal charge of driving while intoxicated with the New Mexico Attorney Generals Office handling the case.

On the morning of June 4, Estevez was arrested following a traffic stop by a Grant County Sheriffs deputy who reported that her car was swerving in traffic, nearly striking other vehicles and then a traffic light during the initial stop.

After being instructed to move her car out of traffic into a nearby parking lot, the deputy reported in court records that her vehicle struck a parking block hard enough that the car nearly rolled over it.

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She was cited for driving under the influence, careless driving and not carrying proof of vehicle insurance.

In 2018, Estevez pleaded guilty to reckless driving and two counts of disorderly conduct  all misdemeanors  in a case that arose from a 2016 traffic stop and allegations that she used her public office to intimidate law enforcement and obstruct their investigation.

Video footage indicated that officers suspected she was impaired, but she left the scene without submitting to a sobriety test. Court records indicated she was driving a state vehicle.

At the time, she was serving her second term as the district attorney representing Grant, Hidalgo and Luna counties. She did not run for reelection in 2020, but served out her term despite calls for her resignation from Attorney General Hector Balderas, a fellow Democrat. Estevez was succeeded as DA by Democrat Michael Renteria.

On June 4, Estevez was placed under arrest after failing field sobriety tests, which she attributed to hip trouble and having been up all night with an ailing relative, as documented on officers body camera footage.

The AGs Office confirmed Tuesday that it was taking the new case, after Chief Deputy District Attorney Kenny Montoya dismissed the single charge of aggravated DWI without prejudice and indicated that the case will be refiled in state district court.

The DAs office did not respond to a query from the Sun-News, but Renteria told the Silver City Daily Press he was really grateful that Balderas office would take over the prosecution, citing the potential appearance of a conflict of interest.
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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.  Sophie Earp, a 10th grade student at Albuquerque School of Excellence, has been selected to represent New Mexico at the two-day National Congress of Future Medical Leaders taking place Saturday in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

The congress is an honors-only program for high school students pursuing medical or medical research degrees with a goal of honoring, inspiring and motivating top students, organizers said in a news release.

Earps nomination was signed by Dr. Mario Capecchi, winner of the Nobel Prize in medicine and the science director of the National Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists. She was selected based on her academics, leadership potential and commitment to serving humanity in medicine, according to the release.

The event features Nobel laureates and National Medal of Science winners talking about leading medical research, top medical school deans speaking on what to expect in medical school, stories of patients who are living medical miracles, and learning about cutting-edge advances and the future in medicine and medical technology.

The Academy also offers free services and programs to students who want to become physicians or go into medical science.

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For more information, visit www.FutureDocs.com or call 617-307-7425.
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Copyright  2021 Albuquerque Journal

A man accused of killing his wife two years ago in Colorado was arrested last week at Kirtland Air Force Base.

Albuquerque police on June 16 arrested Dane Kallungi, 38, on a warrant charging him with an open count of murder in the March 2019 death of 28-year-old Jepsy Kallungi.

KAFB spokesman James Fisher said base security and Air Force law enforcement assisted in arresting Kallungi, who was then placed in Albuquerque police custody. Kallungi worked for one of Sandia National Laboratories subcontractors, according to a lab spokesman.

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He is currently jailed at the Metropolitan Detention Center awaiting extradition.

Authorities say that while Kallungi has long denied having anything to do with his wifes death he told an ex-wife, in a recorded phone call last March, that he strangled her during a fight.

Police say he then put her in the trunk, took his son to school, went to work and buried the body in Teller County, Colorado, the following night.

According to the fugitive complaint filed in Metropolitan Court:

Officers in Colorado Springs were dispatched April 4, 2019, to the Kallungi home in the 1900 block of La Salle to do a welfare check on Kallungis wife. A longtime friend of Jepsy Kallungi told police they hadnt heard from her, she hadnt been on social media and they believed she was injured or dead.

The friend said she had recently separated from Dane Kallungi, who detectives learned had been in the military and had access to weapons. Police say Kallungi was nervous and unconcerned about his wifes whereabouts the first time they spoke.

Kallungi said his wife had gone to visit a friend and left him due to marital problems.

The friend Kallungi said his wife went to visit told police she hadnt talked to Jepsy Kallungi in days and her husband had threatened to prevent her from getting citizenship to control her behavior.

The longtime friend told police the couple had argued a lot over Dane Kallungis inappropriate relationship with his ex-wife, the mother of his child, and he once left Jepsy Kallungi at home for a week without food or transportation to stay with his ex-wife.

The woman was entered into the missing persons database on April 4, the same day detectives searched Kallungis home and found ammunition, a pistol and a rifle.

Police called Dane Kallungi, who had broken his apartment lease and gone to California, and he told them his wife left him on March 20. Kallungi said she left after the two argued when he found messages from another man on her phone.

Detectives searched the phone records of Dane and Jepsy Kallungi and learned they both pinged around the same time in Cripple Creek, Colorado, on March 22. The ex-wife told police Dane Kallungi had gotten spooked after they searched his apartment and packed his stuff and left for his fathers home in California, telling her he was staying permanently.

Police were contacted by two men, a sergeant and a soldier in the Army, who said they had been having an affair with Jepsy Kallungi in the two years leading up to her disappearance. One of them said they had seen her last on March 20.

Detectives went to San Diego and searched the fathers home and questioned Kallungi, who repeated his previous stories. When challenged with cellphone location information, Kallungi invoked his Fifth Amendment rights.

Kallungis ex-wife met with detectives again and detailed multiple domestic violence incidents during their 15-year relationship. She said he had choked her several times, sometimes she would lose consciousness and once he picked her up by her throat and threw her like a rag doll.

The complaint drops off until March 23, 2021, when the ex-wife called police to say Kallungi was coming back to Colorado due to an illness in the family and asked her to lunch. She said, during lunch, Kallungi told her he had killed Jepsy Kallungi.

The ex-wife agreed to a recorded call with Kallungi and he said he attacked Jepsy Kallungi because he was trying to literally stop the words from coming out of her mouth for a second. He told the ex-wife it looked like (Jepsy Kallungi) was suffering and he didnt want to watch her suffer anymore.

And no matter how much I tell myself that I didnt mean to, or she was doing this and she was doing that it doesnt matter, she still didnt deserve it, Kallungi is quoted as saying in the complaint.

Kallungi told his ex-wife he got lost on four different back roads and eventually dug a hole as deep as I could and buried his wife.

I said goodbye to her before I put her in there and tried to apologize a million times, Kallungi is quoted as saying in the complaint.

Ryan Boetel contributed to this report.
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Copyright  2021 Albuquerque Journal

Star Wars is moving from the big screen to the desert Southwest as the billionaire owners of Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic ready their rockets for commercial launch into suborbit this summer.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos will board Blue Origins New Shepard rocket July 20 for a flight to the edge of space from West Texas, accompanied by his brother, Mark, and two other as-yet unnamed passengers, including one who paid nearly $30 million for a seat to the stars.

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Sir Richard Branson also plans to fly this summer from Spaceport America in southern New Mexico, possibly as soon as the July 4 weekend, according to media reports that the British billionaire hopes to beat Bezos in the race to space.

Virgin Galactic firmly denies those rumors. But either way, Branson is scheduled to shoot into suborbit sometime this summer, marking the launch of commercial passenger service for tourists who can pay at least $250,000 for a joy ride to the stars.

Hyped-up rivalry

The battle of the billionaires may only be media hype. But it reflects a new stage in the effort to launch paying passengers on private rockets to space, marking the transition from yearslong research-and-development operations to commercial launch by both Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin.

And that, in turn, is generating renewed excitement among investors about the prospects for commercial space services finally coming to fruition, said Rich Smith, a writer for the investor advisory service The Motley Fool who follows Virgin Galactic on the New York Stock Exchange.

The Bezos-Branson debate is really just a public relations war, Smith told the Journal. It doesnt really matter who gets up first. This is really about investors looking for something to hang a stock price on.

Indeed, Virgin Galactics stock has soared since the company successfully launched its VSS Unity rocket into suborbit on May 22 for the first time from New Mexico. Its stock price reached $39.12 per share Tuesday afternoon, up from a low of $14.27 in early May.

That reflects a huge rebound in investor confidence, which fell significantly in February after Virgin Galactic reported technical issues that forced the company to ground its rocket for three months to correct the problems. Company stock had climbed to a peak of $62.80 a share in early February, and then steadily declined over the following three months.

The companys stock still has more ground to recover, but its bounced back significantly, Smith said. If it does fly over the July 4th weekend, the stock price could grow a lot more. But the bottom line is, Virgin Galactic has fixed the problems it faced and is back on track.

Virgin timeline

Virgin Galactics publicly announced test-flight schedule now calls for one more launch to space with a four-member technical team on board, followed by Bransons long-awaited flight sometime over the summer. The company will also fly four passengers from the Italian Air Force to space in early fall to conduct experiments in microgravity and provide astronaut training.

After that, Virgin Galactic plans a four-month hiatus for upgrades and maintenance on the Unity, and on the mothership VMS Eve, which carries the Unity on its underbelly to about 50,000 feet, where the rocket breaks away from Eve and fires up its motors to shoot into space at 50 miles up.

If all goes well, full commercial service would start in early 2022, allowing up to six paying passengers per flight to float for a few minutes in microgravity and view the Earths curvature before gliding back down to Spaceport America.

In early June, however, the online news service Parabolic Arc reported that Virgin Galactic may attempt to beat Blue Origin to space by accelerating its plans to fly Branson over the July 4th weekend. That generated significant media speculation about competition between the companies.

Virgin Galactic refutes the report, which Parabolic Arc based on an anonymous source.

We are in the process of analyzing the data from our successful May 22nd flight, one spokesperson said in an email to the Journal. As previously announced, we expect to complete the final test flights this summer through to early fall. At this time, we have not determined the date of our next flight.

Long-term feasibility?

Notwithstanding media speculation, the race to space is much less important than pending questions about the long-term sustainability of Virgin Galactics and Blue Origins business propositions, said Henry Hertzfeld, a research professor with George Washington Universitys Space Policy Institute.

Of course showmanship is involved on who gets there first, Hertzfeld told the Journal.  But the market has yet to be proven.

In that regard, Blue Origins upcoming flight bodes well for both companies. Some 7,600 people from 153 countries bid in an online auction this month to fly with Bezos in July, culminating in one anonymous bidder paying $28 million, plus a 6% buyers commission, for the winning ticket.

That demonstrates substantial interest among potential customers with money to burn.

The winning bidder is paying a premium to be the first to go up, said Smith of The Motley Fool. But the auction shows significant interest from people who can afford it.

To date, 600 people have paid $250,000 each to reserve seats on Virgin Galactics rocket. And the price may rise when the company reopens sales later this summer.

At those prices, Virgin Galactic is targeting a finite number of wealthy space tourists, Hertzfeld said.

There clearly are some people who will pay for flights, Hertzfeld said. But theres no mass market for ordinary people to buy seats for a cheap price. I dont know what theyll need to break even, but I assume its a large number of full flights.

Virgin Galactic is striving to achieve some 400 flights per year to generate $1 billion in annual revenue at Spaceport America once it reaches full commercial operations. Its also betting on business services, such as flying institutional customers like the Italian Air Force to space.

Growing competition

But as commercial space gains momentum, both Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin will face more competition, particularly from Elon Musks company SpaceX, which is already flying cargo and astronauts to the International Space Station. And it has plans to fly paying passengers on a three-day orbital ride in September.

Both Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin are finally approaching the starting gate for space tourism, but it remains to be seen how theyll fare in the long term, Smith said.

For now, everyones focused on the start of commercial operations, Smith said. I recommend that investors take the long view, looking out over three-to-five years. Virgin Galactic has no revenue or earnings yet, and people are just trading on future prospects.
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TUCSON, Ariz.  A 71-year-old hiker reported missing on Mount Lemmon has been found dead, authorities said Tuesday.

Pima County Sheriffs officials said the body of John Jack Menard was located about three miles northwest of the Gordon Hirabayahsi Campground.

Menard started hiking the Arizona Trail on June 17 in Oracle and planned to hike from American Flag Ranch to the Gordon Hirabayashi Campground and get picked up on June 20.

When he didnt show up at the meeting location, Menard was declared missing and search and rescue deputies along with the assistance of the Southern Arizona Rescue Association began looking for him.

The extensive three-day search involved crews from the Arizona Department of Public Safety, Cochise County Sheriffs Office, Pinal County Sheriffs Office, Pima County Sheriffs Department and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Authorities said the cause of death wasnt immediately known.

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MOSCOW  Russia said one of its warships in the Black Sea fired warning shots and a warplane dropped bombs Wednesday to force a British destroyer out of an area near Crimea that Moscow claims as its territorial waters, but Britain denied that account and insisted its ship wasnt fired upon.

It was the first time since the Cold War that Moscow acknowledged using live ammunition to deter a NATO warship, reflecting the growing risk of military incidents amid soaring tensions between Russia and the West.

The Russian Defense Ministry said a patrol ship fired warning shots after the HMS Defender had ignored a notice against intrusion and sailed 3 kilometers (1.6 nautical miles) into Russias territorial waters near Sevastopol, the main Russian naval base in Crimea. It said a Russian Su-24 bomber also dropped four bombs ahead of the vessel to persuade the Defender to change course. Minutes later, the Defender left Russian waters, the ministry said.

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Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova denounced the rude British provocation that defies international law, and said Londons ambassador was being summoned. The Defense Ministry said it also called in the U.K. military attache in Moscow to protest the destroyers dangerous move and urged British authorities to investigate the crews actions.

Britains Ministry of Defense denied the Defender had been fired on or was in Russian waters, but had been in Ukrainian waters.

No warning shots have been fired at HMS Defender, it said in a statement. The Royal Navy ship is conducting innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law.

Russia annexed Ukraines Crimean Peninsula in 2014, a move not recognized by most countries, gaining access to its long Black Sea coast. Russia has chafed at NATO warships visiting near Crimea as destabilizing. In April, it declared a broader area off Crimea closed to foreign naval ships.

We believe the Russians were undertaking a gunnery exercise in the Black Sea and provided the maritime community with prior warning of their activity, the British Ministry of Defense said. No shots were directed at HMS Defender and we do not recognize the claim that bombs were dropped in her path.

British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said the Defender carried out a routine transit from Odessa towards Georgia across the Black Sea.

As is normal for this route, she entered an internationally recognized traffic separation corridor, he tweeted, adding that HMS Defender exited the corridor safely at 9:45 a.m. BST (0845 GMT; 4:45 a.m. EDT).

As is routine, Russian vessels shadowed her passage and she was made aware of training exercises in her wider vicinity, he added.

Speaking to Parliaments defense committee, Wallace again denied Russias version of events.

These are the things that come and go with Russia, he said. Disinformation, misinformation is something that we have seen regularly. Were not surprised by it; we plan for it.

Asked if Defenders crew had seen or heard anything, he said initial reports say they did hear or observe training noises somewhere to the rear of her but beyond visual range.

We saw the reports this morning, said Max Blain, a spokesman for Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Its incorrect to say either that it was fired on or this ship was in Russian waters. HMS Defender was taking the most direct and internationally recognized route between Ukraine and Georgia.

He emphasized that Britain, and much of the international community, does not recognize Russias annexation of Crimea.

Ukraines Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said it was clear proof of Ukraines position: Russias aggressive and provocative actions in the Black and Azov seas, its occupation and militarization of Crimea pose a lasting threat to Ukraine and allies.

We need a new quality of cooperation between Ukraine & NATO allies in the Black Sea, Kuleba tweeted.

In November 2018, Russian coast guard ships fired on three Ukrainian gunboats trying to pass from the Black Sea into the Azov Sea and captured them along with 24 crewmembers. It returned the crew and the boats the following year.

HMS Defender, a Type 45 destroyer, is part of the U.K. Carrier Strike Group heading to the Indo-Pacific region. It was announced earlier this month that it would be temporarily breaking away from the group to carry out its own set of missions in the Black Sea.

Just before Wednesdays incident, Defender stopped in the Ukrainian port of Odessa, where Ukrainian and British officials and industry representatives signed an agreement to collaborate on boosting Ukraines naval capabilities.

NATO members Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria border the Black Sea. Warships from the U.S., U.K. and other NATO allies also have made increasingly frequent visits in support of Ukraine.

Speaking before the incident, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, the chief of the General Staff of the Russian armed forces, sharply criticized the deployment of NATO warships near Russian waters.

The moves by warships of the U.S. and its allies have been clearly provocative, Gerasimov said at an international security conference in Moscow organized by the Defense Ministry. It creates preconditions for incidents and doesnt help ease tensions in the military sphere.

He charged that the British destroyer HMS Dragon intruded into Russian waters near Crimea in October, and the U.S. destroyer USS John S. McCain violated the Russian border in the Sea of Japan in November.

In April, Russia imposed restrictions on foreign naval movements near Crimea until November in a move that drew strong complaints from Ukraine and the West. Russia rejected the criticism and noted the restrictions wouldnt interfere with commercial shipping.

Earlier this year, Russia also bolstered its troops near the border with Ukraine and warned Kyiv against using force to reclaim control of the countrys eastern industrial heartland, where a conflict with Russia-backed separatists has killed more than 14,000 people in seven years. Moscow withdrew some of its forces after maneuvers, but Ukrainian officials say many of them remain.

Speaking earlier Wednesday via video to participants of the security conference, President Vladimir Putin expressed concern about NATO forces near Russia.

We arent striving for a decisive, unilateral military advantage to tip the balance of forces in our favor, Putin said. But we will never allow anyone else to tip that balance.

Russias relations with the West have sunk to the lowest levels since the Cold War, following Moscows annexation of Crimea, accusations of Russian interference with elections, hacking attacks and other tensions.

In a speech at the same conference before Wednesdays incident, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said the situation in Europe is explosive, and accused NATO of stonewalling Russian proposals to enhance security by refraining from military exercises near the borders of Russia and alliance members.

He said the world is rapidly sinking in a new confrontation, which is much more dangerous than during the Cold War times.

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Lawless reported from London.
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PARIS  The European Space Agency says it was blown away by the record number of applicants  more than 22,000  hoping to become the continents next generation of space travelers, including more women than ever and some 200 people with disabilities.

In releasing the results of a new recruitment drive aimed at more astronaut diversity, the agency acknowledged Wednesday that it still has work to do on gender balance. Just 24% of the applicants were women, up from 15% at the last hiring drive in 2008.

The hiring campaign didnt specifically address ethnic diversity, but stressed the importance of representing all parts of our society. The agency received applications from all 25 member nations and associate members, though most came from traditional heavyweights France, Germany, Britain and Italy.

ESA specifically sought out people with physical disabilities, for a first-of-its-kind effort to determine what adaptations would be necessary to space stations to accommodate them.

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The competition is fierce. Just four to six people will be chosen as Europes next astronauts, with a reserve team of about 20. The candidates will undergo intensive screening over the next year, with a final decision expected in late 2022.

Weve all been astonished at the number of applicants, ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher told a news conference. Its a very strong expression of interest and enthusiasm that people have across Europe for space.

The European agency has sent only two women into space to date  Claudie Haignere and Samantha Cristoforetti  but wants that number to grow.

While 5,419 women applied for the new ESA program, the numbers also show there is more to be done to achieve gender balance in the space sector, said David Parker, its director of human and robotic exploration.

Globally, 65 of the more than 560 people who have explored space were women, most of them Americans.

ESA this week signed an agreement with the European Union that will see the 27-nation bloc deepen ties with and increase its funding for the space agency.

As part of the deal, the EU will invest almost 9 billion euros ($10.8 billion) between now and 2027 for ESA programs aimed at boosting economic growth, digitalization and environmental protection.

While many ESA members are also part of the EU, some  such as Britain  are not.

Among the future programs planned are one that will test the use of a satellite-based quantum encryption system for secure communications, and another to monitor space for potential hazardous debris.
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JERUSALEM  Israels Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the decision to destroy the family home of a detained Palestinian accused of a deadly shooting. It rejected a petition by his estranged wife, who lives in the house with their children and says she knew nothing about the attack.

The case drew attention to Israels policy of demolishing the family homes of attackers after they have been killed or arrested. Israeli officials say the demolitions deter future attacks, while rights groups view it as a form of collective punishment.

The U.S. State Department has urged a halt to punitive home demolitions. An internal review by the Israeli military in 2004 reportedly questioned its effectiveness as a deterrent, leading the military to largely halt such demolitions for nearly a decade. It resumed the practice in 2014 after three Israeli teenagers were kidnapped and killed in the West Bank.

Israel says Muntasser Shalaby carried out a May 2 drive-by shooting in the occupied West Bank that killed an Israeli and wounded two others. He was arrested days after the attack.

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His wife, Sanaa Shalaby, told The Associated Press they were estranged for several years and that he spent most of his time in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where he had married three other women in unofficial Islamic ceremonies. The entire family has U.S. citizenship.

Sanaa said he would return to the West Bank for a month or two every year to visit their three children, aged 17, 12 and 9, who live with her in the home in the village of Turmus Ayya. HaMoked, an Israeli rights group representing her, said he had a history of mental illness.

In upholding the demolition order, the Supreme Court noted that Muntasser had lived in the home continuously from 2006-2012, before their estrangement, and had resided there for weeks before the attack. It said the petitioners did not present sufficient evidence to show he had suffered from mental illness.

Jessica Montell, the executive director of HaMoked, said the disappointing judgment would allow the military to expand the use of punitive home demolitions. Her group is weighing whether to request another hearing and says the court is unlikely to grant one.

She said the house could be demolished anytime after an interim injunction expires on June 30.

If Mrs. Shalabys legal recourse has been exhausted, the diplomatic recourse is crucial: Is the U.S. government going to allow this blatant collective punishment against a U.S. citizen mother and three children?

The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the ruling. Earlier this month, it called on Israel and the Palestinians to refrain from any actions that undermine efforts to revive the peace process, including punitive home demolitions.

The home of an entire family should not be demolished for the actions of one individual, it said.

___

Associated Press writer Isaac Scharf contributed.
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SANTA FE, N.M.  Downtown Santa Fe was teeming with police activity Wednesday morning due to an incident that ended when a Santa Fe police officer shot and killed an armed man.

No officers or bystanders were injured, according to Santa Fe police.

The incident started about 10:15 a.m. at De Vargas Park, across Sandoval Street from a skate park in the downtown area and behind the First Judicial District courthouse.

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Santa Fe police say they responded to a call about a fight in progress about 10:05 a.m. One person had been shot and police officers arriving at the scene gave aid to the shooting victim before they were transported to a local hospital for treatment.

Police did not disclose the gender or age of the shooting victim or their condition.

Meanwhile, police pursued the suspect east on West Alameda Street in the direction of the commercial district heavily populated this time of year by tourists.

I saw him walking down the street and police were on the other side of the street yelling at him, Drop the gun, drop the gun, said Scott Dawson, whose office at the state Land Office overlooks West Alameda. He went around the corner and then I heard two or three shots.

Just what the tourists want to see, quipped a woman visiting from Albuquerque.

A man visiting from Colorado who witnessed the shooting said the man was shot in front of the Loretto Chapel, a tourist attraction famous for its miraculous staircase.

He and his wife were eating breakfast at a nearby restaurant when he saw police yelling at the suspect to drop his weapon.

Police gave him every chance (to drop the gun), said the man, who was escorted away by police to be interviewed before a reporter could ask his name.

State police are investigating killing, as is standard protocol in cases of officer-involved shootings, while Santa Fe police are investigating the earlier incident at De Vargas Park.

SFPD and the city of Santa Fe issued a news release confirming that officers engaged with and shot the suspect and the suspect had died. It said that SFPD and the city would not be providing further comment.

The first shooting took place directly across West De Vargas Street from the 1st Judicial District Attorneys Office.

D.A. Mary Carmack-Altwies issued a statement early Wednesday afternoon:

I am saddened to learn of the shootings that occurred today, including one officer involved shooting. As always, our office pledges full transparency in our handling of officer involved shootings, which is critical for ensuring public trust in the justice system, she said. While we encourage and await the results of a full investigation, the preliminary reports appear to show that the suspect had a gun and that officers were in danger. We always grieve the loss of any life, regardless of the circumstances.
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Copyright  2021 Albuquerque Journal

LOS LUNAS  A jury found Leland Hust not guilty of first-degree murder and deadlocked on two other felony charges in the 2018 rape and strangulation death of a 6-year-old girl in Rio Rancho.

Jurors deliberated for 17 hours over three days before telling a judge they were hopelessly deadlocked on the charges of child abuse resulting in death and criminal sexual penetration of a child.

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Prosecutors said they plan to seek a new trial on those charges.

Hust cried and appeared relieved after Judge George P. Eichwald read the jurys verdict. Members of his family also cried after the verdict. None agreed to speak with the Journal after the trial.

The verdict came nearly three years after Ariana Jade Romeo was found dead and bloodied Oct. 11, 2018, in a bedroom of the Rio Rancho house she and her mother shared with Hust and seven others.

A forensic examination found evidence that she had been raped and strangled or smothered to death.

Arianas mother, Stephanie Romeo, was not in the courtroom Wednesday. Romeo attended much of the trial wearing a childs backpack she said belonged to her daughter.

Deputy District Attorney Jessica Martinez said she was disappointed with the verdict and planned to seek a new trial on the two charges on which the jury deadlocked.

Well review our evidence and do a better job next time, Martinez said. All the evidence we have points only to (Hust).

A retrial will take place no sooner than six months from now, she said. Hust will remain in custody in the meantime.

Husts attorneys said they were pleased by the single not-guilty verdict for first-degree murder.

This is the case of a diligent jury that took their time, attorney Michael Rosenfield said. The verdict shows that the jury system works, he said.

Testimony began in the trial on June 9.

Jurors were instructed to consider three criminal charges: Count 1 was intentional abuse of a child resulting in death or, in the alternative, first-degree murder during the commission of criminal sexual penetration. Count 2 was first-degree criminal sexual penetration of a child under 13.

Hust faced a minimum sentence of 35 years in prison if he had been convicted of either the first-degree murder or child abuse charge. Criminal sexual penetration of a child carries a minimum sentence of 18 years.

Jurors sent the judge several questions Monday, including one less than three hours into deliberations, suggesting that they were deadlocked and asking the judge if they could give up.

Eichwald told them to continue deliberating. Jurors asked no questions during the final two days of deliberations.

Prosecutors told jurors during closing arguments Monday that Hust was the person with the best opportunity to attack Ariana while other members of the household were either away from the house or asleep.

Arianas mother was working at a Rio Rancho brew pub and routinely returned home at about 3 a.m., according to testimony.

Deputy District Attorney Jessica Martinez told jurors that Hust was obsessed with Ariana and took advantage of the time alone to attack the girl.

Graham Dumas, one of Husts attorneys, told jurors that an older household member was more likely than Hust to have attacked Ariana. He identified Winston Scates Sr., who owns the house where Ariana was killed, as the most likely attacker.

Scates, 65, pleaded guilty in 2019 to sexual contact of a minor, a third-degree felony, for inappropriately touching a female family member. He received a four-year suspended sentence in that case.

Much of the testimony during Husts trial focused on DNA evidence gathered in Arianas bedroom and from her body. No semen was found at the scene, witnesses testified.

Prosecutors told jurors that Hust was the only household member who could not be excluded as a contributor to DNA evidence found at the scene.

Husts attorneys countered that the DNA evidence did not conclusively identify Hust as the attacker and that, as a frequent visitor to Arianas room, his genetic material could have been transferred to the girls body by someone else.

Jurors also listened to hours of recorded video interviews with Hust, including a six-hour interview with Rio Rancho detectives the day of his arrest in October 2018, about two months after Arianas death.

Husts attorneys characterized the interview as a hardball interrogation in which detectives coerced Hust into making incriminating statements by overstating the strength of DNA evidence linking Hust to the attack.

Hust appeared distraught throughout much of the interview and said repeatedly that he didnt remember attacking the girl.

Detectives accused him of lying or repressing memories of Arianas death.
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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.  The New Mexico Public Regulation Commission may have set a national precedent this week after one of its hearing examiners declared human-caused climate change a scientific fact in regulatory proceedings.

Hearing Examiner Ashley Schannauers order, released Monday, specifically pertains to proceedings in the proposed merger between PNM Resources and Connecticut-based energy giant Avangrid. Schannauers action means parties in the case wont have to present any testimony, evidence or proof about the issue in public hearings in August, where case intervenors will debate the pros and cons of allowing Avangrid to acquire PNMR in a $4.3 billion all-cash transaction.

But while the order is specifically limited to the merger proceedings, it could set a precedent to guide commission decision-making in future cases when climate change issues arise. And that may make the PRC the first state regulatory body in the U.S. to consider the issue an indisputable reality thats no longer up for debate, said Steve Michel, an attorney with Western Resource Advocates, one of the environmental groups that asked Schannauer to emit the order.

By doing this, the commission is saying that this is something were not going to continue to debate  that its established fact, Michel told the Journal. Im not aware of any other regulatory commissions in the country that have done this.

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Some courts in the U.S. have taken judicial notice of the issue in cases that involve climate change. Thats a procedural mechanism that allows uncontroversial facts to be established without evidentiary proof.

In the PRCs case, Schannauer took administrative notice of the issue, specifically accepting:

That climate change is caused by human activity leading to accumulation of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere;

That fossil-fuel combustion by power plants, vehicles and industry is a predominant source of greenhouse gas emissions;

That direct consequences include wildfires, drought, floods, extreme weather events and rising sea levels; and

That severe adverse consequences for all living things will be widespread and irreversible without quick action to substantially curtail emissions.

The Attorney Generals Office, WRA and other environmental organizations asked Schannauer to approve the motion, which none of the nearly two-dozen parties in the merger case opposed.

This allows us to work fast to get ahead of climate change and its impacts, because we dont have time to keep debating whether its real or not, Michel said. We can stop debating now and focus on getting it fixed.
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DENVER  A Colorado man was shopping when he heard the gunfire that killed a suburban Denver police officer, rushed out of the store with his gun and shot the suspect, according to a worker who saw the shooting.

Bill Troyanos told Denver news station KMGH-TV that he was working at the Army Navy Surplus store in downtown Arvada on Monday when he and a man later identified by police as 40-year-old John Hurley heard shots and spotted a gunman in a plaza outside. Troyanos said Hurley rushed to confront the shooter.

He did not hesitate; he didnt stand there and think about it. He totally heard the gunfire, went to the door, saw the shooter and immediately ran in that direction, Troyanos said. I just want to make sure his family knows how heroic he was.

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Troyanos said he heard Hurley fire five or six shots. The gunman, identified by police as 59-year-old Ronald Troyke, fell against a parked vehicle, he said.

Hurley, who lived in Denver, was killed, as were the gunman and Arvada police Officer Gordon Beesley, a 19-year department veteran and beloved school resource officer. Police have not said who shot Hurley or the gunman.

Authorities were still investigating the shooting that happened in Olde Town Arvada, a historic and popular downtown district with restaurants, breweries and shops about 7 miles (10 kilometers) northwest of downtown Denver.

In a statement Wednesday, police acknowledged that questions remained unanswered, saying they had not finished interviewing witnesses and were waiting for forensic evidence.

We hope in the next few days to have all of this information and we promise to provide that to our citizens, it said.

On Tuesday, Police Chief Link Strate called Hurley a true hero who likely disrupted what could have been a larger loss of life. He said the gunman targeted the officer because he was wearing an Arvada police uniform and badge.

Officer Beasley was ambushed by someone who expressed hatred of police officers, Strate said.

A note left behind by Troyke and recovered after the shooting contained threats against Arvada police officers, Detective Dave Snelling told the AP on Wednesday.

The Gazette, citing officials who spoke on condition of anonymity, reported the note was found in Troykes apartment.

Cody Soules, who went to high school in Colorado Springs with Hurley, recalled his friend as an idealist who was outspoken on political issues but always wished the best for everyone he met. Hurley, known to friends as Johnny, was working with a catering company before he died, Soules said.

John was a good guy, a big-hearted person. He wanted to make a change in our society, said Soules, a general contractor and yoga instructor who lives near Napa, California. When we were in high school, we were troublemakers, and we got into a bit of trouble. But he had a good heart.

I know for sure he was doing what he thought was the right thing, trying to protect those people, Soules said.

According to a fundraising page for Hurleys funeral, he loved the outdoors, had a passion for food and cooking, and loved spending time with family.

Hurleys sister, Erin Hurley, declined to comment when contacted by the AP but said her family planned to issue a statement at some point.

She wrote on Facebook: Johnny acted without hesitation and possibly saved many lives while sacrificing his own.

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This story has been corrected to show that Hurley lived in Denver, not Golden, according to police.
WENN Celebrity

The Duke of Sussex will stay with Princess Eugenie at Frogmore Cottage, where he used to live with wife Meghan Markle, before the unveiling of his mom statue.

Jun 23, 2021

AceShowbiz - Britain's Prince Harry will stay with his cousin Princess Eugenie when he returns to the U.K. to unveil Princess Diana's statue.

The Duke of Sussex is said to be planning to stay with Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank at Frogmore Cottage - his and wife Meghan's U.K. home - in Windsor when he comes back to Britain for the event in honour of his late mother on 1 July (21).

Frogmore Cottage has been divided into two separate self-contained cottages so the British royal can isolate there for the required five days before being tested for Covid-19.

"The building was originally five different cottages before it was given to Harry and Meghan," a source told Britain's The Sun newspaper of the family's plans. "They spent a lot of money getting it into shape for their family - before quitting for California. Eugenie and Jack were handed the keys last year and told they could use it while Harry and Meghan were in America."

"The cottage is now literally split into two, meaning Harry can isolate in one half of the house without ever coming into contact with his cousin and her family. It has been set up for his return after last-minute plans seemed to work when he was back for the Duke of Edinburgh's funeral in April."

It comes after it was revealed The Duke of Sussex will pause his five months' parental leave following the birth of his and Meghan's daughter Lilibet to attend the statue unveiling.

Omid Scobie, the couple's biographer and friend, said, "We're so used to seeing royal men heading back to work the next day, sometimes the same day, we've seen senior royals on engagements almost the same time as the birth. But Harry and Meghan are leading by example with their Archewell foundation. They offer up to 20 weeks parental leave for mother and father."

"They're doing the exact same, so it'll be several months off work for the pair of them."
WENN Celebrity

According to the 'American Horror Story' actress, the 'Friends' actor refused to kiss her when he pulled out her name at a star-studded party hosted by late Carrie Fisher.

Jun 23, 2021

AceShowbiz - Sarah Paulson was once snubbed for a kiss by Matthew Perry at a "make-out party" hosted by the late Carrie Fisher.

The "American Horror Story" actress recalls attending a star-studded party hosted by the "Star Wars" icon at the home of the late writer Gore Vidal and, when the "Friends" funnyman pulled her name out of a hat, he balked at kissing her.

Speaking on U.S. talk show "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" on Monday (21Jun21), Sarah said, "Carrie had this 'make-out party.' Shirley MacLaine (was there), I mean, it was huge. I think Queen Latifah was there. All these people were there, and I was obviously panicked before, neurotic."

"I didn't see anyone make out, but there was a hat with names in it, and you were supposed to make out with whomever you pulled out of the hat."

"Matthew Perry pulled my name out of the hat, and then promptly left the room."

Asked by Jimmy how she knew Matthew had picked her name, Sarah explained, "Because I saw him. He was like, 'Oh, well...' And he was like, 'I got you.' And I was like, 'Uh, well let's (do) that kiss.' And he was like, 'No.' "

She added, "We knew each other a little bit through one of my very best friends in the world, so it was awkward."

Sarah did finally get to plant some smooches on Matthew when they starred together on the 2006 TV series "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip".

"But then we ended up playing romantic partners years later on a show called Studio 60, and I got my kiss. I got several kisses. And boy did he regret not taking me up on it back at Gore Vidal's make-out party," she laughed.
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A New York judge has halted the NFT sale of the Jiggaman's classic hip-hop album 'Reasonable Doubt' amid his legal feud with former friend and business partner.

Jun 23, 2021

AceShowbiz - A New York judge has slapped a temporary ban on rap producer Damon Dash's plans to allegedly sell an NFT (non-fungible token) of Jay-Z's rap classic "Reasonable Doubt".

The "Empire State of Mind" icon launched legal action against former friend and business partner Dash on Friday (18Jun21), accusing him of attempting to cash in on the digital art form craze by offloading the copyright to his 1996 debut album in a SuperFarm Foundation online auction on 23 June, without the superstar's permission.

"Reasonable Doubt" was released on Roc-A-Fella Records, the now defunct label co-founded by Dash, JAY-Z, and fellow business partner Kareem 'Biggs' Burke, who each own a third of the company.

The original court papers, filed by lawyers for Roc-A-Fella, stated, "The bottom line is simple: Dash can't sell what he doesn't own. By attempting such a sale, Dash has converted a corporate asset and has breached his fiduciary duties. His planned auction of Reasonable Doubt would result in irreparable harm."

On Tuesday, Manhattan federal Judge John Cronan issued a temporary restraining order to halt the NFT sale, ruling, "If the plaintiff's allegations prove true... the plaintiff is likely to suffer irreparable injuries."

A follow-up hearing is set for 1 July, reports the New York Post's Page Six.

Dash has yet to respond to the legal action but on Monday, he claimed the news of the NFT auction was inaccurate, as he is actually trying to find a buyer to take over his entire share of Roc-A-Fella.

"I'm not running around to different places trying to auction off Reasonable Doubt," he told Page Six. "I've been working with one platform and that's SuperFarm."

"That's what corporate always does to the independent guy. It's a case of corporate versus independent and how they try to bully me - but they are trying to bully the wrong one."

According to TMZ, JAY-Z previously tried to buy out Dash's share of the label in March, but at a price he "deemed unacceptable."
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The son of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith will be celebrated by the University of California for his environmental work, following in the footsteps of Al Gore and Barbra Streisand.

Jun 23, 2021

AceShowbiz - Jaden Smith will be honoured by the University of California, Los Angeles for his environmental activism.

The 22-year-old son of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith will be named Environmental Champion on 13 October (21) by UCLA's Institute of the Environment and Sustainability.

"The climate challenges we face are too big to leave any ideas unexplored. Supporting the very bright minds at the school tackling the toughest problems with intellect and action is the true honor for me and my nonprofit 501CTHREE," Smith told The Hollywood Reporter, adding that he's "humbled and grateful" to receive the award.

"There is no doubt Jaden represents the new generation of environmental warriors who understand not only the climate crisis but also climate justice," added producer Lawrence Bender, who is a co-chairman of the organisation's board. "I couldn't be more thrilled to honour him and by doing so, help shine a light on these most pressing issues."

In 2012, the young rapper co-founded the brand Just Water, which uses plant-based packaging and sustainably sourced water. Through his 501CTHREE nonprofit, he has made mobile water-filtration systems available to lower-income minority communities in the U.S, including Flint, Michigan, which has long struggled with lead contamination in its water supply.

Previous recipients of the award include former American Vice President Al Gore and Barbra Streisand.

Jaden also gave back to community by feeding homeless in Los Angeles. He opened a restaurant and charged those who could afford it a higher price to help provide free food for the unfortunate.
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While she believes that the actor didn't intentionally name the brand J'Ouvert Rum to offend Caribbean people, the 'Anaconda' raptress suggests the 'Creed' star to change the name.

Jun 23, 2021

AceShowbiz - Nicki Minaj has weighed in on the controversy surrounding the name of Michael B. Jordan's new rum brand. As the actor is accused of cultural appropriation for naming the brand J'Ouvert Rum, the rapper has come to his defense.

Reposting users' comment taking issue with the rum brand's name on her Instagram account, Nicki believes that Michael didn't intentionally mean to offend Caribbean people. "I'm sure MBJ didn't intentionally do anything he thought Caribbean ppl would find offensive," she captioned her post.

Still, the Trinidadian-born femcee suggested that Michael changes the name of his rum brand. "but now that you are aware, change the name & continue to flourish & prosper," she added in the caption, sending her well wishes to the actor.

The original comment shared by Nicki slammed the decision to name Michael's rum brand J'Ouvert Rum, which the user explained is "a broken down version of the French Jour Ouvert, the morning time referred to as day open." The event originated in Trinidad with the festivities of Canboulay and marks the start of the main Monday and Tuesday Carnival street parade events in Trinidad.

J'Ouvert, "also known as jouvay," was "later adopted by other Caribbean Islands as they experienced emancipation throughout different periods in history," the user noted. "Its not just about the name its what is represents pertaining to enslavement and freedom," she argued, before calling out Michael, "The ignorance is real!"

"Modern day j'ouvert may look fun to you because of all the music and mud and paint but if you knew anything about the vitality of trinbagonian people or west indian people it's that through all we been through we celebrate our past and ancestors with jubilation," another Twitter user pointed out. "just because a festival or aspect of our culture looks fun and inviting does NOT mean it's yours to take. everything here has a dark past but we make due in honour of those who came before us. respect it and leave it alone."

A third critic tweeted, "What's next? A free doubles with every #JouvertRum purchase?! someone point out Michael B Jordan's Trini roots fast for me please!!! Cuz I'm not understanding this s**t. Is it his grandma who makes the rum cakes???"

The Minister of Trade and Industry in Trinidad and Tobago, Paula Gopee-Scoon, has commented on the controversy, stating that they will launch an investigation. "The first thing is to gather the information to see if it is in fact so," he stressed. "Then working together with the intellectual property office of the Ministry of the Attorney General, we'll do the necessary investigation..."

Michael launched J'Ouvert Rum on Sunday, June 20. The description on the box for the rum says it's "derived from the Antellian Creole French term meaning 'daybreak,' J'OUVERT originated in the pre-dawn streets of Trinidad, as a celebration of emancipation combined with Carnival season to serve as the festival informal commencements. Crafted on those same islands, J'OUVERT Rum is a tribute to the party started."

Following the backlash, the brand's official page has been made private while Michael and his girlfriend Lori Harvey have deleted all posts related to the launch from their social media pages.
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During an appearance on 'Good Morning America', the 'Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard' actress admits to make the video after the film's publicity team asked her to market it via social media.

Jun 23, 2021

AceShowbiz - Salma Hayek's viral Britney Spears dance routine she recently posted online to promote her new film was a happy mistake that came together in minutes.

The Mexican actress admits she didn't quite understand what she had to do when "The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard" publicity team asked her to market the film with an Instagram video and she gathered friends and relatives and asked them to choreograph a dance routine with her to Britney's "Hit Me Baby (One More Time)'.

The sequence has since become a huge hit online and Salma admits she can't believe people are raving about something that came together so quickly.

"It's a good mistake," she told "Good Morning America". "I got sent out of the blue new requests from Lionsgate [film studio]... and in one of them, we couldn't understand, it said something about..., 'You have to do a challenge with the Britney [song]'."

So the star called on her hair and makeup artists and the son of a visiting friend to help her come up with a passable dance routine.

She shared, "Within five minutes we did the choreography and we made Miguel, my hairdresser, take his shirt off, so in case we were really bad, there would be some distraction... I'm not even dressed. I was in my sweats."

Lionsgate bosses clearly weren't that impressed and they decided they didn't need the footage, but Salma posted it on Instagram anyway.

The dance routine did, however, impress her co-star Ryan Reynolds, who quipped, "The round-house high kick [you do], I would only do that in the lobby of a hospital, so I could receive top-notch medical attention."
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The 'Black Panther' actor issues a statement via his Instagram Story to apologize for his newly-launched rum brand's controversial name, saying it was never the intention to 'offend or hurt a culture.'

Jun 23, 2021

AceShowbiz - Michael B. Jordan has spoken up after he landed in hot water over his controversial rum brand's name. Accused of cultural appropriation by naming the rum brand J'Ouvert, the actor has issued an apology and announced the plans to change the brand's name.

The 2020 People's Sexiest Man Alive made use of his Instagram Story to share his response to the backlash. Apologizing for causing the uproar, the 34-year-old stated that they never meant "to offend or hurt a culture" with the name.

"I just wanna say on behalf of myself & my partners, our intention was never to offend or hurt a culture(we love & respect) & hoped to celebrate & shine a positive light on," Michael wrote in a statement released on late Tuesday, June 22 via his social media account. "Last few days has been a lot of listening. A lot of learning & engaging in countless community conversations..."

Despite the good intention with the name, the "Black Panther" star noted that they took the criticism in stride. "We hear you," he added, "I hear you & want to be clear that we are in the process of renaming. We sincerely apologize & look forward to introducing a brand we can all be proud of."

Michael B. Jordan apologized for rum brand's controversial name.

Michael faced the cultural appropriation allegations after launching J'Ouvert Rum on Sunday, June 20. Many took issue with the name, which is derived from the Antellian Creole French term meaning "daybreak." It is an event that originated in Trinidad with the festivities of Canboulay and was later adopted by other Caribbean Islands as they experienced emancipation from slavery throughout different periods in history.

Weighing in on the controversy, Trinidadian-born rapper Nicki Minaj defended Michael as she wrote on Instagram, "I'm sure MBJ didn't intentionally do anything he thought Caribbean ppl would find offensive." Still, she urged the boyfriend of Lori Harvey to change the name of his rum brand. "but now that you are aware, change the name & continue to flourish & prosper," she added.
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Meanwhile, when asked about the last time he got 'too high,' the 'Young, Wild And Free' hitmaker divulges that it was when he was hanging out with Willie Nelson in Amsterdam.

Jun 23, 2021

AceShowbiz - Snoop Dogg has divulged one of his famous friends who could not handle his weed. When he was pressed with the question in a new interview, the "Young, Wild And Free" hitmaker mentioned this celebrity's name.

"The last person I just blew with, I knocked his wig off," the 49-year-old MC spilled on E!'s "Nightly Pop" on Tuesday, June 22. "I'm supposed to see him again this week, my good friend Pete Davidson."

Snoop's answer was met with a shocking reaction from host Morgan Stewart. It led Snoop to explain, "He fights and he fights and he fights, then he says, 'Hey, man, I'm cool.' "

When asked about the last time he got "too high," Snoop disclosed that it was back in 2007. At that time, he was hanging out with Willie Nelson in Amsterdam where the two of them had concerts. "I had to stop because he was blowing me out of the water as far as performance-wise and [smoking] performance-wise," he recalled.

Snoop, real name Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr., also discussed his long-lasting marriage with wife Shante Broadus in the interview. About the secret to their happy relationship, he said, "The main goal is to establish a friendship and to establish communication."

Around a week earlier, the "Drop It Like It's Hot" spitter celebrated their 24th wedding anniversary on Instagram. Sharing a picture of him and his wife, he raved, "Happy anniversary. @bosslady_ent, here's 2 24 more."

Earlier this month, Snoop announced that he appointed Shante as his official manager. On the reason why, he explained, "Shante has been guiding my career behind the scenes from day one." He continued, "She has always been my final gut check with all my decisions, and I wouldn't be where I am today without her. I am grateful to have her as my official manager, helping to build the Snoop Dogg empire together."
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Discussing his 2020 Netflix special in which he tore into the conservative political commentator, the comedian points to an unwritten rule of comedy that 'you shouldn't apologize for jokes.'

Jun 24, 2021

AceShowbiz - Dave Chappelle has no regret for calling Candace Owens an "articulate idiot" and other names. In the latest episode of his podcast "The Midnight Miracle", the stand-up comedian talked about his 2020 Netflix special "8:46" in which he tore into the Republican pundit and discussed with his co-hosts about whether he owed her an apology for it.

"There is no possible way that I owe Candace Owens an apology, is there?" Dave raised the question at the top of the episode. His question was met with immediate answer from his co-hosts Talib Kweli and Yasiin Bey, who shouted, "F**k that!"

The three then continued digging further into Candace's role as a "mascot for colonial interests in America today." Dave once again asked for an agreement, "So the verdict is no apology, right?" before he pointed to an "often spoken but unwritten rule" of comedy that "you shouldn't apologize for jokes," because it's a "very bad precedent to set."

"It's like Rachel Maddow crying on the news," he drew a comparison to defend his case. "If you cry about one story, you're going to have to cry about all these s**ts."

Dissecting his jokes about Candace, the 47-year-old said, "I did say that but I also conceded that I don't know if her p***y stinks or not, but that I was guessing that it probably does stink." He went on claiming that Candace is "cruel and dangerous and completely the opposite of any black woman I've ever met in my life."

Dave, who was taking issue with Candace's comments about George Floyd's in the special, then doubled down on his remarks. He stressed that while "it's not illegal to be an a**hole," he found her comments about George "particularly cruel."

In the end of the episode, Dave did apologize to Candace, but not for the obviously offensive remarks. "By the way, Candace Owens, I'm sorry I called you 'articulate,' " he quipped.

In the said special, Dave ripped into Candace as he said on stage in front of a socially distanced crowd, "That rotten b***h, she's the worst. I can't think of a worse way to make money. She's the most articulate idiot I've ever seen in my f**king life."

"I don't care if he personally kicked Candace Owens in her stinky p***y," he continued. "I don't know if it stinks, but I imagine it does. If I ever find out, I'll let you know, for sure. I'll tell like Azealia Banks. I'll tell."
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The 'Thug Matrimony: Married to the Streets' rapper stands by his controversial comments about Beyonce Knowles, which prompted backlash from her loyal fans.

Jun 24, 2021

AceShowbiz - Rapper Trick Daddy isn't backing down after causing outrage online with his unpopular opinion that "Beyonce can't sing."

In the audio clip from Clubhouse, the Miami-born DJ alleged that the 28-time Grammy-winning star is only motivated to make music because it makes her money.

"(She hasn't) tried to give back to music or nothing, she don't write music and barely can sing her own motherf**king self," he said in the clip, according to Vibe, before going on to also slam Bey's husband Jay-Z. "Beyonce can't sing. I'ma say my unpopular opinion right now. Beyonce is to R&B what JAY-Z is to New York. That's why they're together. JAY-Z ain't never won 'The Greatest Rapper Alive.' Whoever put him on a level of that?"

"New York lost Biggie, they needed a hero, they wanted a 'mega' of Hip-Hop and they just handed it over to JAY-Z."

The clip quickly went viral, and Beyonce's fans decided to show her support for the star by leaving negative reviews on the website for the rapper's restaurant Sunday's Eatery.

"The food was appalling!!" Corey Goldman, one of Beyonce's most loyal fans, wrote. "I've never in my life tasted such filth. The Lemonade (Beyonce's 2016 album), on the other hand, was divine."

"The food was undercooked but tasted overcook the restaurant smelled like wet dog, but there was a delightful bee's nest outside waiting," another wrote - Beyonce's fans are referred to as the "Bey-hive."

However, when asked on radio station 99Jamz Miami about what he'd said about Beyonce, Trick refused to back down.

Instead, he tried to reiterate his thoughts, adding, "What I said was I don't think Beyonce could singwhich is my opinion, and opinions (are) like buttholes. Without them, you'll be full of doo-doo. That's my unpopular opinion. Who are you? How you feel? If you gotta walk around here worried about how somebody else feel about how you feel, then you ain't who you are. That's my opinion."

"But if you've got a problem with speaking your own mind and (thinking) I was a sucker, I apologise. I ain't him. That's not me. That ain't what I do."
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The 'Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard' actress blames laziness for losing the major role in the critically-acclaimed action sci-fi movie which was fronted by Keanu Reeves.

Jun 24, 2021

AceShowbiz - Salma Hayek is convinced her laziness cost her a starring role in "The Matrix".

The 54-year-old actress was one of four finalists for the part of Trinity in the 1999 sci-fi film - but Salma admitted she wasn't fit enough to get through the "physical test."

Speaking to Jada Pinkett Smith on the new episode of her webs series "Red Table Talk", she said, "We were one of the four finalists for The Matrix. We'd jumped through many hurdles, screen testing, and many auditions. They brought these stunt coordinators from Asia. It was the physical test. I'm flexible and agile, but I'm lazy."

"I never really went to the gym, they said, 'You have to run!' I go, 'To where?' I couldn't even go around the room once."

Jada was also one of the four finalists alongside Carrie-Anne Moss - who later landed the part - but her physical ability left Salma feeling embarrassed about herself.

"Here comes Jada, a mean, lean, sexy machine!" she said. "Oh my God! She was so good! It was so embarrassing! She was so fit, she was so focused, she was so disciplined. She was so capable. She was so gracious. And I just looked at this woman and I thought to myself, 'That's who I want to be when I grow up.' "

Now, "The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard" star looks to Jada for motivation before she starts shooting a film.

"Every time I'm going to do action, I say, no, I better start getting some stamina and practice the routines, you've got to be like Jada!" she explained.

However, the pair both admit that Carrie-Anne was perfect for the role of Trinity and Jada is happy she lost the role to the actress.

She previously said, "I thought Carrie-Anne was the perfect Trinity, and there was no way I could do what she did. And that's the only time in my career I've said that about losing a role."

Jada did go on to star in "The Matrix Reloaded" and "The Matrix Revolutions" as Niobe - a rebel participating in the war against the Machines and the Matrix.
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The 'Arrow' actor plays down reports suggesting he was booted off a Los Angeles-bound flight from Austin, Texas after yelling at his wife Cassandra Jean during an argument.

Jun 24, 2021

AceShowbiz - "Arrow" star Stephen Amell has cleared up reports suggesting he was kicked off a flight from Austin, Texas following a fight with his wife, insisting he was not "forcibly removed."

The actor hit headlines on Wednesday (23Jun21) amid claims he had been yelling at his wife, Cassandra Jean, prior to take off on Monday.

According to the New York Post's Page Six, Amell apparently ignored a Delta flight attendant's request to calm down and ended up being escorted off the Los Angeles-bound aircraft by other staffmembers, including an air marshal.

In a statement detailing the incident, Delta officials explained, "Delta flight 966 on June 21 took a brief, eight minute departure delay after an unruly customer was deplaned from the aircraft prior to departure in Austin."

"The flight arrived ahead of schedule at Los Angeles International Airport."

However, Amell has now taken to Twitter to set the record straight and play down the controversy.

"My wife and I got into an argument Monday afternoon on a Delta flight from Austin to LA. I was asked to lower my voice and I did," he wrote.

"Approximately 10 minutes later I was asked to leave the flight. And I did so immediately. I was not forcibly removed."

"I rebooked myself on a Southwest flight 2 hours later and traveled home without any further issue. I let my emotions get the better of me, end of story," he added, before quipping, "Must be a slow news cycle."

The couple had been in Austin attending the ATX Television Festival.
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The former '30 Rock' actor reveals his personal battle with obsessive-compulsive disorder during a podcast interview with 'America's Got Talent' judge Howie Mandel.

Jun 24, 2021

AceShowbiz - Alec Baldwin has opened up about his obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), confessing it's a condition he's "really seriously" struggling with.

The "30 Rock" star detailed his personal battle on the latest episode of his podcast, "What's One More", as he interviewed "America's Got Talent" judge Howie Mandel, who also has the condition, and explained his symptoms have worsened over the years.

"OCD is something I personally struggle with," Alec said. "I'm grateful to Howie for opening up at a time when few people were talking about this publicly, and there was even more of a stigma about OCD and mental health than there is today. It's through empathy, understanding and being kinder to one another, that we can finally remove the stigma and change the narrative."

Alec went on to ask Howie about the origins of his OCD, saying, "Is germaphobia the only way that that OCD was expressed, and what was the beginnings of when you started to track that and sense that (sic)? Because I'm going through this myself now. I am, like really seriously."

For Mandel, who also suffers from anxiety and depression, the disorder leads him to repetitive actions such as washing his hands over and over and re-checking that doors are locked.

Hilaria Baldwin, who co-hosts the podcast with her husband of nine years, admitted it's become a "very personal" issue for the couple.

"(We're) still very new to the journey of understanding what OCD is," she shared, "but we're learning that by being open about our challenges, we find a community where we realise we are not so alone, and we can be a part of paving the way for more people to seek help."

After the episode dropped on Tuesday (22Jun21), Hilaria shared an Instagram post praising Alec's "bravery" for talking about the issue publicly. "It is through opening up that we allow others the opportunity to understand us better, support us better, and potentially be inspired to open up as well," she wrote.

Funnyman Howie previously went public with his OCD battle, and has since made it his "life mission" to remove the stigma from the disorder.
The US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has blocked a federal judge's controversial ruling that overturned California's longtime ban on assault weapons, in which he likened the AR-15 to a Swiss Army knife.

In an order Monday, a three-judge panel on the federal appeals court issued a stay of US District Judge Roger Benitez's order earlier this month that overturned California's three-decade old assault weapons ban.

The state's current assault weapons laws will remain in effect while further proceedings continue, California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement on Twitter.

"This leaves our assault weapons laws in effect while appellate proceedings continue," Bonta said in a tweet. "We won't stop defending these life-saving laws."

In his order on June 4, Benitez, an appointee of former President George W. Bush, called firearms that have been labeled assault weapons "fairly ordinary, popular, modern rifles."

"Like the Swiss Army Knife, the popular AR-15 rifle is a perfect combination of home defense weapon and homeland defense equipment," Benitez said in the ruling.

The ruling sparked criticism from numerous California officials, including Gov. Gavin Newsom who said the AR-15 is a "weapon of war."

When Benitez overturned the state's ban on assault weapons, he gave the state 30 days to challenge the ruling. Bonta filed an appeal less than a week later, calling it "fundamentally flawed."

The 9th Circuit court said both parties will file a status update within 14 days.

An AR-15 style rifle has been the weapon of choice for the most violent mass killings in modern history, including in a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado; the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh; the Route 91 Harvest musical festival in Las Vegas; a massacre at a church in Texas; the Pulse nightclub in Orlando; a high school in Parkland, Florida; and the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut.

Judge Benitez previously ruled against other state firearm restrictions. Last year, he ruled California's ban on high-capacity magazines was unconstitutional. He also struck down the state's restriction on remote purchases of gun ammunition.
OROVILLE, Calif.- A wife will be held to answer for the murder of her husband from Nov. 6, 2020, in their Oroville apartment on Grand Ave., according to the Butte County District Attorney's Office.

Jessica Nichols, 23, was in court Tuesday and heard the evidence that supported the judge's decision to uphold the murder and weapon charges brought by Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey.

The evidence presented at the preliminary hearing showed that Nichols, shot her husband, Mateo Lange, 22, several times with a handgun.

Neighbors informed Oroville police they heard two shots in the couple's apartment at around 6:45 a.m.

Nichols then came out from the apartment with their 22-month-old son and gave the boy to a neighbor. Nichols went back to the apartment and one-shot was heard, according to Ramsey.

Ramsey said Oroville police found Nichols with a handgun. Officers then disarmed and arrested Nichols.

Judge Jesus Rodriguez ruled that there was enough evidence to proceed to trial in the murder case against Nichols. Her arraignment is set for July 1.

Nichols' bail was previously set at $2,050,000 and she remains in custody.
CHICO, Calif.  Its been one week since the state's pandemic reopening but some local businesses say some things are still not back to "normal."

Some business owners said they are still not able to operate at pre-pandemic capacity.

Boyd Atkin, the owner of The Foodie Cafe, said he'd like to extend his hours to be what they were before the pandemic but isn't able to right now because he is short-staffed.

The restaurant is finally back open at full-capacity but now he's facing a new challenge.

Were short a couple people in the kitchen and a couple of people serving," said Atkin. "Sometimes it takes longer for a server to take an order or longer to get the food out.

He is looking to add to his restaurant and catering staff but said it's been difficult.

You hardly get any people applying for jobs. Its real slim pickins and sometimes we don't get any, he added.

And Atkins is not the only one facing this problem.

Employees at Pita Pit in downtown Chico said they have about seven workers total but now that everything is back open at 100% they could use about three to four more people to help them out.

One of the biggest impacts of not having enough staff is that is causes stress for workers here, said employee, AJ Alvarez.

Employees said some days they have had to close a little earlier because they are short staffed.

When it gets super busy in the afternoon and I dont have enough staff to help me out, sometimes we are out of things and customers get frustrated, said Nusheen Sheikhabadi.

Atkin said he appreciates that people have been understanding during this time.

We're grateful and glad to be here and glad to be reopen, added Atkin.

Next month the state will require those on unemployment to prove that they are actively looking for a job in order to keep getting their benefits. They are hoping this will help bring in more people applying.

California's EDD announced that those receiving unemployment benefits will need to start looking for work by July 11 to maintain their eligibility.
REDDING, Calif. - A Redding nonprofit has been awarded $1 million to develop a Downtown e-Bikeshare project that will help reduce emissions in the city, the City of Redding said.

The Clean Mobility Options (CMO) created a Voucher Pilot Program that awarded 21 California communities or tribes a total of $20 million to develop a zero-emission mobility project.

The McConnel Foundation, the Redding nonprofit, is the lead organization in bringing the bikeshare to the downtown Redding area.

In Redding, when the project is finished, it will provide residents with a safe, clean and affordable way to commute.

This will be Reddings first bikeshare program.

Building on catalytic investments through the Affordable Housing Sustainable Communities program, these funds will serve the transportation needs of downtown residents, said Rachel Hatch, Senior Program Officer for Community Vitality of The McConnell Foundation in Redding. This public-private-philanthropic effort for bikeshare creates a synergy that is both good for the environment and good for our community.

Redding will soon get 70 bikes and stations as a convenient way to get around the city, according to the CMO.
Axis Bank, one of Indias leading private sector banks, has released a multi-film digital campaign promoting Grab Deals - its online shopping portal. The campaign conceived by Lowe Lintas Mumbai is a fun and interesting take on Indias popular parlour game Antakshari to promote Axis Bank's 10-day mega sale.

Grab Deals allows one to shop from their favourite brands and save money while doing so. It provides a list of merchants where one can avail exclusive offers or cashbacks for purchases made via Axis Bank Credit and Debit Cards.

Commenting on the new campaign, Sameer Shetty  President& Head-Digital Business and Transformation, Axis Bank said: "At Axis Bank we carry a customer centric approach in everything that we do. Grab Deals is one such initiative that provides exclusive offers & cashback to our customers across major brands. With up to 45% cash back across 30+ brands all through the year, Grab Deals has soon established itself as a go-to place for the best of the deals. We are excited to announce the launch of the first edition of GRAB DEALS FEST by Axis Bank exclusive to our Credit and Debit card customers who can avail the mega sale offer of FLAT 15% cashback with two of our biggest partners- Amazon & Flipkart. The campaign showcases this mega sale through a clutter breaking creative device of a popular game that lands the sheer scale of offers for anything that your heart might desire.

Using the device of Antakshari, the campaign film highlights the range of products one can buy during the 10-day sale. Dubbed MannTakshari, to emphasise the fact that Grab Deals has an offer for everyone, no matter what product their hearts desire, the film shows how shopping from home can be a fun, exciting and entertaining experience.

Talking about the idea, Amar Singh, Regional Creative Officer, Lowe Lintas said: "Online shopping is now more part of our lives than ever. And as far as online offers and discounts are concerned, its a fairly crowded scene. But even in this noise, Axis Banks Grab Deals Fest stands out. Because it genuinely gives you flat 15% cashback on practically anything you might wish to buy on two of Indias largest online shopping giants, via the Grab Deals page. The campaign for this fest, conceived by Joshua Thomas, Katya Mohan and Prathamesh Gharat, is an uplifting take on a popular game, that aims to capture the full scale of the offer by connecting it to practically anything you might wish to buy. Which could be pretty much anything that comes to mind."

CREDITS:

Client: Ananya Shukla, Archana Koushik, SaloniBagga

Creative: Amar Singh, Joshua Thomas, Prathamesh Gharat, Katya Mohan, Tejas Dangre, Gaurav Pawar, Manoj Kolaskar, Khushnaaz Jamshedji

Account Management: Shantanu Sapre, Jay Ladhani, Reema Bahadkar, Ankita Joshi

Planning: Aditi Patwardhan, Abhishek Joshi

Production House: Rising Sun Films (Director: Sweta Kutty)
Since its launch in 2005, Tata Ace from Tata Motors has earned the reputation of an iconic vehicle, where it pioneered the small commercial vehicle (SCV) category in the country. The company recognised their SCV customers aspirations to become their own bosses and engineered Ace Gold to become the Entrepreneurship Vehicle. The company claims that since its inception, Tata Ace has been the trusted partner of more than 23 lakh entrepreneurs and is the single largest commercial vehicle brand in the country.

In its latest campaign, which rolled out recently, Tata Ace Gold pays tribute to Indias business owners and showcases the opportunities for the youth of India in the last-mile delivery segment. The campaign embodies Aces spirit of self-employment and entrepreneurship with an inspiring message of taking charge of ones future. The campaign features Bollywood actor and Tata Motors commercial vehicle segment brand ambassador, Akshay Kumar, and banks on Aatmanirbharta sentiment.

Building on the brand proposition of Kaamyabi, Kal, Aaj Aur Kal, the film is set against the backdrop of a difficult economic situation and growing unemployment among the youth, further encouraging the youngsters of India to work hard and look for opportunities as entrepreneurs. Establishing Ace Gold as the first step in the journey to success, the film features young and prosperous logistics business owner, Vijay, who traces his success back to his first Ace Gold. He passes on a stirring message to the new generation, who are underqualified in a highly competitive corporate environment and feel left behind. The film ends with Vijay attributing his accomplishments to Tata Ace Gold, a reliable partner in his journey.

Conceptualised and developed by Rediffusion, the campaign has been rolled out across multiple channels as various digital platforms. Its an extension of the brands philosophy, focused on showcasing the youth of India as change-makers and architects India  economically and socially.

In an exclusive interview with Adgully, UT Ramprasad, Head of Marketing Communications, Tata Motors, shares his insight on the unique proposition of Tata Ace to help the youth of India turn entrepreneurs, regardless of their education and experience levels. He also speaks at length about self-reliance and the stability of the future that one can experience from becoming an entrepreneur.

What is the legacy of Tata Ace since its launch in 2005?

The crux of the group was to give it back to society and launch it for the society.

The purpose is to provide a large number of masses with livelihood, especially to the middle class of our country. Bringing a four-wheeler on a cost of three-wheeler was because people in our country deserved it. Providing an advanced product by replacing the 1970s technology was basically to liberate a common man from driving three-wheelers without any comfort or safety, where they can carry extra load, protect themselves and to pull up their status (respect in the society). The primary objective was not to make profit for the business, but to provide comfort at affordable prices.

What were the challenges faced at the time of launch?

The challenge during that period was to target the group of audience (mass of India), who have the potential and willingness to secure their future and convince them to buy the product by choosing Tata Ace as their occupation.

People who are school dropouts or havent been able to complete their education due to different reasons, end up being a security guard, plumber, delivery man, etc. Even with ample number of choices, Tata Ace gave them the opportunity to be self-employed and purchase their own vehicle at an affordable price without waiting for their monthly increments and bonuses. An occupation, where one can be self reliant by just making the down payment and starting their own business.

What was the potential that you saw? How did you zero in on your target segment?

Having the largest population is a serious concern for India. Of the youth of India below the age of 30 years, 70-80% are school/ college dropouts.

Thus, the largest and the youngest population in the world and lack of schooling, became the target segment to convince the unemployed masses, which are growing year-on-year and are entering the market with an enthusiasm of Now I have to do something. It could be because of peer pressure, family responsibilities or much more which made them a potential segment for Tata Ace, which could help build their future. Aspirations in life can be met by Tata Ace. Not being schooled or trained properly for jobs should not stop you from earning and having a good livelihood.

And that was the segment which we wanted to tackle in the fresh commercials that we launched.

Could you tell us about your brand positioning as a market leader?

The launch of Tata Ace provided a four-wheeler without any compromise in terms of looks, appearance, style, comfort or performance and at the same had the price point of three-wheelers. It took us 6 years to come out with a product like Ace with a fair budget, which was the beauty of it.

In terms of safety, stability as well as respect, Tata Ace became affordable for a huge mass of India and continues to create employment opportunities for thousands. As PM Modi once said, education or job limitations should not stop you from being an entrepreneur.

The vehicle has been aptly engineered for maximising revenues by ensuring more trips, superior load carrying capability and a quicker turnaround time, meeting requirements of both rural and urban transportation.

Has the first and second wave of the pandemic compelled the company to set fresh operational benchmarks?

Looking at the COVID-19 situation, the unemployment scenario is only becoming worse day by day due to organisations that are removing their employees on short notice, Not only Tata Motors, but all the companies have to set up fresh operational benchmarks and have reworked on the strategies to keep the engagement high and continuing with their set of audiences.

Everything has shifted to digital, for internal sales, marketing team and others. This is what is now going to be the future for all the organisations and everyone is prepared for the same.

(Edited and additional inputs by Shanta Saikia)
Throughout 2020, Kantar- the worlds leading data-driven insights and consulting company tested more than 10,000 creatives for clients around the world. Over 1,000 of those creatives were tested in India alone.

Kantar has unveiled the ads that were most effective and creative in India across 2020. At Kantars Creative Effectiveness Awards, consumers are the jury, making it unique and different from all other awards in the advertising world. The India report includes over 150 ads tested across categories, markets, TGs and media channels which were potential contenders.

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Across the television ads that were tested in India, Kantar has called out the standout performers/ winners in four key categories. These ads exemplify essential characteristics of being creatively engaging and landing persuasive brand stories. There is also a special award for ads tested in the digital space for bringing to life the exciting storytelling possibilities in the digital world.

Kantar Creative Effectiveness Awards 2021 India Winners

Award Category: Corporate: Brand: Creative Agency: Creative: Channel: Personal Care Hindustan Unilever Closeup Mullen Lowe Bedsheet TV Durables BSH Home Appliances Corp Bosch Home Appliances Jung von Matt, Germany Sustainability TV Foods & Beverages Kellogg India Kellogg India Ogilvy Ek Chamach TV Home Care Hindustan Unilever Surf Excel Quick Wash Lowe Lintas Surf excel Olsen Vada TV Digital Beam Global Spirits & Wine Oaksmith Gold Publicis Teppanyaki Digital

The study that led to the selection of winners captured a plethora of consumer insights:

During 2020s COVID crisis, ads started following a templated communication. Most focussed on being together in unprecedented times and showcased brands as Corona Warriors in different ways. Whether this connected with consumers or not is arguable, but they all definitely looked quite similar.

The winning ads had certain winning ingredients like storytelling, consistency, localisation and well-integrated brand role.

Winning ads offer a practical solution & embed themselves into a category moment of truth.

This is in line with what other Kantar data sources indicate consumers want brands to be a part of their lives. 56% feel that brands should be a trusted source of accurate information.

44% consumers pinned their choice on brands that can reduce their anxiety and understand consumers concerns.

Another 56% feel that brands need to be practical and realistic and help consumers in their everyday life.

Response to advertising continues to be led by individual executions. Enjoyment levels of ads remain similar between pre-COVID (41%) and during COVID times (43%).

Finally, creativity in advertising still is the key indicator of brand building. Kantar BrandZ data for 94 brands from 2006 to 2018 shows that brands with creative communication grew a whopping 271% over 12 years.

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Commenting on this years winners, Soumya Mohanty, Managing Director- Client and Quantitative, Insights Division at Kantar, said, We are happy to extend this global property to India. The winners are from a diverse range of industries and products. Like our global report, in India, too, brands that have won have a penchant for achieving creative excellence and their brand promise is delivered through performance, consistently.

Across the year, and the 10,000+ adverts analysed globally using Link, Kantars validated ad testing solution, five habits from the most effective advertisers were identified as:
Planet Marathi OTT has been piquing the curiosity of Marathi fans ever since their launch with announcements of web series and web films in their kitty. Now the release of Planet Marathi OTTs first Marathi cinema June will mark the beginning of their journey. The films release and launch of the platform is timed perfectly together on 30th June 2021.

The ticket-window now goes digital even for Marathi films, thanks to Planet Marathi Cinema. June happens to be the first ever Marathi film to be launched on a TVOD basis. Marathi movie fans can simply buy a ticket and watch the movie in Planet Marathi Cinema! Vistas Media Capital, a Singapore-based venture capitalists firm has synergized with Planet Marathi OTT to enable this and many more such innovations to Marathi Digital Theatre.

The film June was expected to release June 2020, but the pandemic made it impossible to find a theatrical release. A digital release was the imminent option for the makers of the film. What would be a better way to release a content-rich Marathi cinema other than Planet Marathi OTT? After all, a magnificent cinema needs a magnificent cinematic experience. The platform offers a First-Day-First-Show experience on Planet Marathi Cinema to Marathi movie fans across the world.

June has been the talk of the town due to its star cast, namely Nehha Pendse Bayas, Siddharth Menon, Kiran Karmarkar, Resham Shrivardhan and Nilesh Diwekar. Helmed by Suhrud Godbole and Vaibhav Khisti, June is the most sought-after story since it is penned by critically acclaimed director Nikhil Mahajan. Nikhil, who proved his mettle with Netflix Original horror web series Betaal, is venturing into writing for the genre of feel-good emotional movies. It is also his debut as a producer. Shalmali Kholgade is the musical mastermind for the film, with Jitendra Joshi and Nikhil Mahajan penning the heart touching lyrics. The film is the synergetic production of Supri Medias Shardul Singh Bayas and Nehha Pendse Bayas in association with Nikhil Mahajan and Pavan Malu of Blue Drop Films Pvt. Ltd.

June is the story of two incomplete souls who seek solace in one another while navigating through lifes challenges. It was selected under the category of Indian Panorama for the 51st International Film Festival Of India. The film shined in the Pune Film Festival, Kerala Film Festival, and New York Indian Film Festival as well. Nehha Pendse Bayas and Siddharth Menon were even nominated in the Best Performance category in which Siddharth Menon has won the award in New York Indian Film Festival.

Akshay Bardapurkar, CMD Planet Marathi, is certain that fans will have a delightful movie experience with June, he says, The story penned by Nikhil Mahajan and the direction by Vaibhav and Suhrud brings together a mature and gratifying film. Planet Marathi OTT the 1st and only exclusive Marathi OTT is proud to present this feature film to audiences through our platform. The film is close to my heart since it is filmed in Aurangabad, my birthplace and hometown. We too, are excited to present this film that delves into the layers of our emotions. In times like now, movie-buffs seek the experience of theatre but are not able to go out. Planet Marathi OTT brings a theatre experience for Marathi film to their devices. Not everyone wants to subscribe for the whole month or a year. They can simply buy a ticket and view a movie multiple times over 48 hours!

The leading lady and the co-producer of the film June, Nehha Pendse-Bayas is beyond delighted to be a part of this landmark moment in Marathi film industry, she says, June is a path-breaking cinema but what makes this experience even more exhilarating was that I got to work with the best in the industry. Nikhil Mahajan has done a great job penning down raw emotions in this film and Suhrud and Vaibhav bring it to life. The film will certainly touch audiences because it is a bold yet sentimental take on the magical experience of healing. Planet Marathi truly gives justice to the film by giving it a global theatrical release but even better, digitally. We couldnt have had a better platform!

Betaal fame Siddharth Menon quotes, June I feel is indeed a turning point for the entire team right from the directors to everybody, this film opened me up as a more nuanced artist. It is also a turning point of the way Marathi films can be experienced through Planet Marathi OTTs global digital platform. It will be a relatable yet thought provoking experience for the audience, we can't wait to see how the people respond to the film

The teaser of June is officially released on the Planet Marathi OTT website. On 30th June, 2021, when the platform is launched fans can watch their favourite film on their Planet Marathi OTT app.
Mr. Amit Kumar, Executive Director and Group CEO  designate expressed his gratitude "I thank the board of Symphony for giving me this opportunity. I look forward to leading the company through the next phase of its growth journey, take brand Symphony to new heights2021: Symphony Limited announces the appointment of Mr. Amit Kumar as Executive Director (ED) and Group CEO of the Company, effective August 2, 2021.

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With over 18 years of work experience, Mr. Kumar has worked with GE, PwC, Shapoorji Pallonji, EY and KPMG. In addition, he cofounded analytics focused startup and ran it for 3 years and he currently works with KPMG as a Partner with focus on the Consumer Products sector. He specializes in Business Transformation and Profitability Improvement. Mr. Kumar holds bachelors degree in Technology, Mechanical Engineering from IIT Kanpur and Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management (PGDBM) from IIM, Ahmedabad.

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Welcoming the new ED and Group CEO on board, Mr. Achal Bakeri, Chairman and Managing Director stated: "We are delighted to have Amit Kumar join us as Executive Director and Group CEO of Symphony. He has nearly 18 years of experience with corporate and consulting sectors, had his own tech startup and has been a business transformation and profitability improvement specialist with three of the Big Four accounting/consulting firms and help create longterm value for all its shareholders and stakeholders.
V Spark Communications, Indias first boutique & leading Brand Management Company in Delhi NCR, recently announced that it has bagged Media communication Mandate for Sharp Sight Eye Hospitals, pioneers in eye care for over 20 years. The Delhi-based PR organization will look after Sharp Sight's media and brand upgrade duties by creating powerful communication strategies to increase their public engagement.

With the trust of over 10 Lac delighted patients and more than 5 Lac successful surgeries and procedures, Sharp Sight has established itself as a leading eye care provider in North India with nine centers and was the first to be accredited with NABH, which stands for very high International quality clinical services.

Ms. Deepshikha Sharma, CEO, Sharp Sight Eye Hospitals said "Having worked with V Spark Communications in one of our previous projects, we are extremely bullish about our partnership. Sharp Sight Eye Hospitals is one of the leading eye care facilities and we needed an experienced consultancy to be our partner in growth. The best part of working with V Spark is that they are flexible, approachable, and go the extra mile to deliver beyond expectations. We trust that V Spark Communications is the right choice for us"

Ms. Kanika Chabbra, Co-founder & Director, V Spark Communications, said, "We are honored to be selected as the strategic communications partner for Sharp Sight Eye Hospitals. As a team, we deeply understand the needs and communication strategies required for different organizations. Our endeavour will be to devise sustainable communication campaigns that help raise awareness among end consumers on the one hand and establish the organization as a major thought leader in the Eye Care facilities on the other.

Apart from Healthcare, V Spark Communications also specializes in other sectors that include Energy, Retail, Agriculture, Manufacturing, Lifestyle, Hospitality, and Technologies. The agency, which completed a decade in its business, has been serving as a communication partner for a series of premium organizations like FoodPanda, Stay Happi, Goodyear Lubricants, Mosaic, Super Tech, and among others.
While the global pandemic has bought economies to a halt and massively disrupted businesses, it has also fuelled start-up dreams and we even saw several Indian start-ups achieve Unicorn status during the pandemic period. The times have never been better for the budding entrepreneurs to give wings to their start-up dreams.

The Government, too, has come up with various schemes to support its Vocal for Local drive. A case in point is the recent Rs 1,000 crore Start-up India Seed Fund announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the Start-up India International Summit 2021 held earlier this year.

Adgully is turning the spotlight on the entrepreneurs who fought against all odds to bring their dreams to fruition in our special series  START-UP STARS. We at Adgully wholeheartedly support the Vocal for Local movement and over the next few months will be featuring all local/ homegrown businesses, brands and Apps.

Globally, consumers are moving towards customised personal care and are buying products based on natural ingredients. Vedix, with its roots in customised Ayurveda, embodies those concepts and creates products for global consumers. Vedix is founded by Chaitanya Nallan, Co-Founder & CEO, Sangram Simha, Co-Founder & CMO, and Veerendra Shivhare, Co-Founder & CTO.

In conversation with Adgully, Jatin Gujrati, Business Head, Vedix, speaks about the concept of customised Ayurvedic formulations, creating a deeper engagement with the customers, how digital commerce has taken off in the country, and much more.

What need gap did you want to fulfil with your start-up? What is the core business proposition?

Most personal care products take a one-size-fits-all approach, which leads to a sub-optimal customer experience as only 25-30% customers see any benefit and majority are indifferent to the products they use. However, at Vedix we firmly believe in customised Ayurvedic formulations. Ayurveda is a 5,000-year old concept that lends itself beautifully to the idea of customisation. It believes that each individual is unique based on the doshas they are born with. We have leveraged this concept to create a detailed questionnaire that understands the dosha profile for each customer and recommend products that are suited to them. Our in-house Ayurvedic experts pour through texts to create a questionnaire that closely mimics an offline consultation and technology allowed us to build that to scale in an online format.

As a result, we have repeat purchase rates that are 2-3x the industry average. This serves as a validation of our unique value proposition and as an entrepreneur, gives me the confidence that we are building something really meaningful at scale.

Beyond the first purchase, we also engage with customers through follow-ups and regimen reviews. This data feeds into the product iteration and development cycle and thus, creates an infinite loop of building products that keep getting better over time.

How did you identify your TG? Did you carry out any feasibility study prior to starting your business?

Vedix as a brand is part of IncNut Digital, which also owns and operates two women-centric digital media platforms  Stylecraze.com and Momjunction.com. We have promoted multiple personal care brands through these platforms and have subsequently engaged in collecting feedback on usage through large scale surveys. Most of the responses pointed us towards the fact that the customers were not happy with generic personal care products and rather yearned for something that works better for them. Based on this data, we formulated a panel of Ayurvedic experts to help us create products suited to individuals by leveraging Ayurvedic principles of customisation.

What were the challenges that you faced in your start-up journey and how did you overcome them?

When customers come on the Vedix platform they have to take an assessment quiz, which helps us understand the imbalance in ones current state of dosha (Vikruti) and recommend the products suited for them. The analysis page not only shows the recommendation, but also talks about each ingredient and why they are relevant to the customer. When we launched, we had to build awareness as to why the quiz is important. But once customers saw the impact of customised products vis-a-vis generic personal care products, it became much easier to get them to try Vedix.

Over the last 3 years, more than 3 million customers have taken the quiz and we have shipped more than 1.2 million orders. As a brand, we have industry leading repeat purchase rates, which is a testament to the product quality and our ability to match the right product to the customer. A large part of this was built by leveraging tech as we have a fully automated customer journey, right from first purchase to follow ups, product change recommendations, regimen review, and renewals. This has helped us scale significantly in a short span of time.

What were the clearances that you required for your venture from various authorities?

Department of AYUSH, Hyderabad.

Funds/ finance is the prime issue for almost all start-ups. What can the industry and the Government do to address this issue and ease the capital requirements of start-ups?

While the funding ecosystem has evolved over the years with multiple early stage funds, the Government should offer tax rebates and subsidies to make it easier for start-ups to scale. For D2C start-ups, prototyping requires time and monetary investments. The Government could support in that area as well by setting start-up cells with facility to rapid prototyping.

Earlier this year, Prime Minister Modi announced a Start-up India Seed Fund. How do you see start-ups benefiting from it?

I think the fund will definitely help young entrepreneurs with a good, scalable idea get off the ground and get market validation. The whole ecosystem benefits when new start-ups are incubated and seeded and any move in that regard is always welcome.

How is digital helping you further your business?

Digital commerce saw its best year in 2020. As lockdown ensued, consumers flocked to platforms and online brands for their everyday consumption. We saw our business double through the pandemic and the momentum that we built last year continues in 2021. For Vedix, the only way to build a large scale capital efficient business is by being digital first.

And thanks to mass adoption of smart devices and growing broadband penetration, we are finding customers in the deepest corners of the country. In fact, more than 60% of our sales come from Tier 2 and beyond. Thanks to digital, consumers from far reaches of the country are able to experience products that are especially formulated for them. I think this is just the start and we should expect a tsunami in digital commerce as consumer acceptance grows. The way digital commerce has taken off in other countries such as China and the US, we should expect the same trend in India. Digital penetration is expected to grow from low single digits to high double digits in the next 5-7 years.

Another opportunity that digital offers for a brand like Vedix is that it allows us to expand geographies with limited upfront capital investments. We expect to be available in more countries in the next 6-8 months.

What were your key learnings from 2020? How do you see the start-up ecosystem progressing in 2021?

The year 2020 brought into focus the importance of a robust supply chain. When lockdowns hit, the entire supply chain got affected and prices of basic inputs soared. But our team was quick on its feet in arranging alternate suppliers and ensuring a scenario like that does not repeat again. Thanks in large part to that we faced no major issues in the second wave from a supply perspective. In 2020, we only sold through our own website and that impacted sales when lockdown ensued. But today, we have expanded our distribution channels and are now available on Amazon and will be available on other platforms soon.

For the start-up ecosystem in general and for D2C companies in particular, the key focus area in 2021 will be on working with local suppliers to ensure a robust supply chain. Overall, I see the whole ecosystem flourishing. There is more funding available now than ever, there are plug and play solutions right from incubation to scale and more consumers who are comfortable with buying online. However, we have to stay focused on creating high quality products that continue to earn and further build customer trust in D2C commerce.

What would be your message for the budding entrepreneurs?

The most important thing is to believe in the problem that you are trying to solve, because without it, the ride will feel utterly pointless. Also, always keep talking to your customers.
In a continuous effort to innovate and provide the best digital services, Zirca Digital Solutions is now a Google certified partner. This is a huge milestone the company has achieved after starting from ground zero. With this development, Zirca can now provide its partners in India and globally with the best Google Ads service.

Google Partnership certification promotes accreditation and aids in growing business by using data-driven results, achieving even better best practices, staying ahead of the digital advertising curve and refining digital expertise every day. A Google Partner company is considered to be the #1 trusted search engine, which means better results and bigger impacts for growing business.

While shaping a digital marketing plan for clients, this partnership can result in a huge outcome from the campaign and the data derived from the same will help the brand evaluate the performance. Google Ads can help accelerate business and will create more brand visibility for the client.

Distinct areas that will benefit from the Google Partnership:

Zirca can now provide deeper insights for digital campaigns for the clients as their team of performance marketing experts is all Google Ads certified

It will help in providing support to proficiently manage large client accounts and meet higher spend requirements across various campaign types and diverse clients.

Its completely data driven so the brand has the information on what's working for them and what's not.

Zirca will be given priority for any beta updates, versions Google releases from time to time

Google Ads can assure maximum outputs from the digital campaigns

Karan Gupta, Managing Director, Zirca, added: We are thrilled to announce this partnership as the team had worked really hard for this. We have vested in using the technology and platforms to help extend quality solutions to all our clients. With the rapid move to online platforms, we are looking for more meaningful ways to bring outcomes and strive for growth. This is a huge game changer for us and the kind of services we provide to clients

Neena Dasgupta, CEO and Director, Zirca Digital Solutions, said: At Zirca, we always put our best on knowledge, research and insights driven decisions. Our google partnership reflects our commitment towards delivering smarter and holistic solutions to our partners. Zirca will always strive to present the industry and consumers with insights that will help them make better business decisions.
The Federal Council

Bern, 23.06.2021 - At its meeting of 23 June, the Federal Council approved bilateral climate protection agreements with Senegal and Vanuatu. The agreements create the conditions to enable Switzerland to offset CO2 emissions by means of climate protection projects in these two countries. Switzerland concluded similar agreements with Peru and Ghana in 2020.

Under the Paris Agreement, Switzerland has pledged to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to half its 1990 levels by 2030. It will meet this target primarily through domestic measures; however, the Paris Agreement also allows countries to offset their emissions through climate protection projects abroad. This means Switzerland can count emissions reductions achieved in other countries towards its national reduction target.

On 20 October 2020, Switzerland signed the first ever agreement of this kind with Peru, and a month later it signed a similar agreement with Ghana. At its meeting of 23 June 2021, the Federal Council approved two further such agreements, this time with Senegal and Vanuatu, allowing Switzerland to reduce CO2 emissions in these two countries through climate protection projects. In Senegal, for example, biogas plants will be installed on farms, resulting in a reduction in firewood and charcoal use. Climate change is having a detrimental effect on agricultural yields in the West African country. In Vanuatu, one project will involve installing solar panels to generate electricity on islands not connected to the electricity grid. The existence of the South Pacific island nation is threatened by rising sea levels and, as a further consequence of climate change, it is being hit with increasing frequency by devastating tropical storms.

Strict environmental protection and human rights standards

In signing these agreements, Switzerland sets a standard for international climate projects that meet stringent environmental protection requirements while also respecting international human rights standards. The agreements also commit both parties to using a method that prevents double counting of emission reductions. The projects will be regularly reviewed to ensure that they meet the established criteria.

Address for enquiries

Franz Perrez, Ambassador, Head of International Affairs, Federal Office for the Environment FOEN, Tel. +41 58 462 93 23

Publisher

The Federal Council

https://www.admin.ch/gov/en/start.html



Federal Office for the Environment FOEN

http://www.bafu.admin.ch/en



General Secretariat of the Federal Department of Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications; General Secretariat DETEC

https://www.uvek.admin.ch/uvek/en/home.html




The Federal Council

Bern, 23.06.2021 - The measures in place to contain the coronavirus will be eased and simplified significantly from Saturday, 26 June. The requirements to work from home and to wear masks outdoors, for example, will be lifted. Furthermore, restaurants will again be allowed to seat as many people together as they wish, and large-scale events with COVID certificates will be allowed to take place without restrictions on capacity or the number of people present. This reopening step therefore goes further than proposed in the consultation. At its meeting on 23 June, the Federal Council also decided to relax rules on entering the country. The health-related measures at the border will now focus on those arriving from countries with variants of the virus that give rise to concern.

The reopening steps introduced on 19 April and 31 May have not had a negative impact on the development of the COVID-19 epidemic in Switzerland. Case numbers and hospital admissions due to COVID-19 are continuing to fall sharply. In addition, around half of the adult population will be fully vaccinated by the end of the month. However, caution is still warranted. Switzerland has been in a stabilisation phase since the beginning of June. Not all those who wish to be vaccinated have received their jabs yet. The Federal Council is continuing to monitor the spread of the more transmissible Delta variant closely.

In view of these positive developments in the epidemiological situation, the progress being made with the rollout of the vaccines and the responses to the consultation received from the cantons, social partners and other participants, the Federal Council has decided to take a reopening step that is more wide ranging than proposed in the consultation. Rules will be harmonised and simplified, and the COVID-19 Special Situation Ordinance will be broadly revised.

Reopening step more wide ranging than planned

The fifth reopening step extends beyond the proposals in the consultation paper in the following main areas:

- Requirement to work from home downgraded to a recommendation

- No limit on the number of people per table at restaurants

- No restrictions on capacity or the number of people and no requirement to wear masks at large-scale events with a COVID certificate requirement

- No requirement to wear masks or keep a distance during cultural and sporting activities, and no distinction between professionals and amateurs

- No restrictions on face-to-face teaching at higher education and continuing education institutions

Requirement to wear masks outdoors lifted

The requirement to wear masks in outdoor areas of publicly accessible venues, leisure facilities and restaurant terraces will be lifted. On public transport, outdoor spaces are defined as any areas with large openings on at least two sides, such as railway platforms (including those underground), bus stops, underpasses and overpasses, or halls and shopping arcades. Indoor spaces are enclosed underground station complexes (such as the underground area at Zurich main station) including the underground access and shopping areas in basements and indoor waiting rooms.

The recommendations issued by the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) remain in place: masks should be worn where it is not possible to maintain a distance of 1.5m. Masks must still be worn indoors as it is not possible to check whether or not someone has been vaccinated or has recovered from COVID-19.

The general requirement to wear masks in the workplace will also be lifted. Employers still have a duty to ensure that staff are protected, but are free to decide where and when masks should be worn. The government is also lifting the requirement for masks to be worn in schools at upper secondary level. The cantons will again assume responsibility for setting rules covering baccalaureate, specialised and vocational schools.

Requirement to work from home downgraded to a recommendation

The requirement to work from home will now become a recommendation, and the requirement to conduct regular workplace testing is to be lifted.

No restrictions on face-to-face teaching

Restrictions on class sizes for face-to-face teaching at professional education, continuing education and higher education institutions will be lifted, and there will be no requirement to conduct regular testing.

Full use can be made of available capacity

Shops, leisure and sporting facilities will be able to make full use of their available capacity. Water parks may also reopen. However, a restriction of two-thirds capacity will apply to events and venues where no COVID certificate is required.

Restaurants: no limit on group size per table

The limit on the number of people allowed to sit at a table at restaurants will be lifted. Guests must still remain seated indoors and the distance between guest groups must still be respected. Contact details must still be recorded, but only for one person per group. Masks must still be worn, apart from when seated. The limit on the size of guest groups outdoors is to be lifted and guests will no longer have to be seated. The distance between guest groups must still be respected. Contact details no longer need to be recorded for guests outdoors.

Clubs and discos allowed to reopen

Clubs and discos will be allowed to reopen provided access is limited to people with a valid COVID certificate. The proposals set out in the consultation paper to limit attendance to 250 people and require the recording of contact details have been dropped. As at all venues where COVID certificates are required, there will be no requirement to wear masks.

There will be no restrictions on events at which access is limited to people with a COVID certificate, including large-scale events. Events for over 10,000 people may go ahead from 26 June and the venues full capacity may be used. The protection plan must however set out how access is to be limited to people with a COVID certificate. Cantonal authorisation is required for events for over 1000 people.

The rule for events without a COVID certificate requirement are as follows:

- If the public are seated, up to 1000 people may attend  indoors or outdoors.

- If people are standing or moving around, up to 250 people may attend indoors, and up to 500 outdoors.

- Up to two-thirds of the venues capacity may be used  indoors or outdoors.

- Indoors: masks must be worn in areas where food and drink are served, and food and drink may only be consumed in the designated areas; contact details must be recorded if seated.

- Outdoors: no requirement to wear masks.

- Events and concerts involving dancing are not allowed.

Private events: 30 people indoors, 50 outdoors

The limits regarding private events continue to apply, i.e. no more than 30 people indoors and 50 people outdoors.

The ban on trade fairs for fewer than 1000 people indoors is to be lifted. Capacity restrictions for trade fairs will also be lifted regardless of the number of visitors or the restriction to people with a COVID certificate. At trade fairs without a COVID certificate requirement, masks must be worn indoors and food and drink may only be consumed in the designated areas.

Sporting and cultural activities: no masks required

There are to be no restrictions for people carrying out sporting or cultural activities outdoors. However, contact details must be recorded for indoor activities. Requirements to wear masks and keep a distance will be lifted, as will capacity restrictions.

Duration of vaccine effectiveness to be extended to 12 months

The Federal Council is extending the duration of vaccine effectiveness for mRNA vaccines approved for use in Switzerland for those fully vaccinated to 12 months. The decision is based on the recommendation made by the Federal Commission for Vaccination. People who have been vaccinated are therefore now exempt from contact and travel quarantine for a period of 12 months. In line with the requirements for the EU Digital COVID Certificate, people who have recovered from COVID-19 are exempt from quarantine for a period of 6 months. The validity of rapid antigen tests is also being extended from 24 to 48 hours.

Self-tests also available at drugstores and in shops

Approved self-tests may now also be sold at drugstores and in shops. The packs of five self-tests per person per month funded by the Confederation will continue to be available in pharmacies, but only for people who have not been vaccinated or who have not had COVID-19. Provision will be made in the COVID-19 Ordinance 3 for the reimbursement of the cost of tests taken prior to camps and on access to events.

Restrictions on entering Switzerland to be relaxed

The Federal Council has also decided to relax the requirements for entering Switzerland, as it proposed in the consultation. Persons entering from the Schengen area will no longer be required to quarantine. The requirement to be tested will now apply only to persons arriving by plane who have not been vaccinated or have not recovered from COVID-19. Contact details will still be required when arriving by plane. In addition, Switzerland is easing the existing entry restrictions for persons arriving from third countries who can prove they have been vaccinated. The list of countries issued by the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) has been amended accordingly. It is now once again possible for third-country citizens travelling from countries such as the USA, Albania or Serbia to enter Switzerland.

Entry from a country with a variant of the virus of concern

The current list of high-risk countries issued by the Federal Office of Public Health is to be revised and will only contain countries or regions where virus variants of concern to Switzerland are in circulation. Persons who have been vaccinated or who have recovered from the disease will be permitted to enter Switzerland from these countries or regions without having to be tested or to quarantine as long as it is certain that the vaccination offers good protection. Those who have neither been vaccinated nor have recovered must present a negative PCR test or rapid antigen test and go into quarantine on entry.

In practice, this means that persons who have been vaccinated or who have recovered do not have to produce a negative test even when travelling from countries where the Delta variant is widespread (such as India or the United Kingdom) and do not have to quarantine on entry. The vaccines used in Switzerland are only slightly less effective against the Delta variant and thus still offer a very high level of protection.

International compatibility of Swiss COVID certificate

As a Schengen extension, the Federal Council also took steps today to adopt two EU regulations on the EU Digital COVID Certificate. The process to have the Swiss certificate recognised by the EU has been launched. During the six-week transition phase commencing 1 July, it is likely that other forms of proof will also be accepted in the EU/EFTA area. It is therefore important to check the specific entry requirements prior to travel.

Address for enquiries

Federal Office of Public Health,

Coronavirus Infoline +41 58 463 00 00

COVID-19 Vaccination Infoline +41 58 377 88 92



State Secretariat for Migration, Information and Communication: medien@sem.admin.ch

Publisher

The Federal Council

https://www.admin.ch/gov/en/start.html



Federal Department of Home Affairs

http://www.edi.admin.ch



Federal Office of Public Health

http://www.bag.admin.ch



Federal Office of Cultural Affairs

http://www.bak.admin.ch



Federal Department of Justice and Police

http://www.ejpd.admin.ch



State Secretariat for Migration

https://www.sem.admin.ch/sem/en/home.html



Federal Office of Sports

http://www.baspo.admin.ch/



Federal Department of Foreign Affairs

https://www.eda.admin.ch/eda/en/home.html




Federal Department of Foreign Affairs

Bern, 23.06.2021 - On 23 June 2021, the members of the Berlin group convened for the second international Berlin Conference on Libya, hosted by Germany and the United Nations. As a participating member, Switzerland was represented at the conference by Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis. In promoting peace and acting as a host state, Switzerland supports a political solution in Libya.

Within the framework of the Berlin process, Switzerland is committed to creating conditions conducive to the establishment of lasting peace in Libya. As co-chair of the working group on international humanitarian law and human rights, Switzerland draws on its tradition of good offices and its experience in peace processes.

Mr Cassis recalled the progress achieved in recent months, namely the signing of a ceasefire agreement on 23 October in Geneva and the formation of a government of national unity  the first since 2014. Mr Cassis also underscored the importance of pressing ahead with the political transition process, in particular through the elections set to be held in December 2021. "Switzerland renews its engagement and its readiness to provide support and expertise to the Libyan people in shaping the future of their country", he added.

Facilitating the holding of elections and promoting adherence to the ceasefire

A key focus of the conference was how to support the Libyan government in holding free elections in December, in accordance with the political process roadmap approved by Libyan actors on 16 November 2020. All involved parties believe this prospect to be the best way to move the country towards a democratic transition and long-term stability.

Switzerland: a recognised host state

Recent developments show that the situation in Libya remains highly volatile. The conflict that broke out in 2011 triggered considerable migration crises. This is why Switzerland is fully committed to stabilising the country in the long term. Since February 2020, Switzerland has played host to seven meetings within the framework of the three tracks of the UN peace process (political, military and economic). Two events of great significance for Libya took place in this context: the signing of the ceasefire agreement between the two parties to the conflict on 23 October 2020 in Geneva; and the appointment of a new transitional executive authority on 5 February 2021 in the canton of Vaud.

Switzerland's engagement in Libya is set out in the Federal Council's Foreign Policy Strategy 202023 and in its Middle East and North Africa Strategy 202124. This work involves contributing to conflict resolution and strengthening human rights. Peaceful conflict resolution also addresses the root causes of forced displacement, such as armed conflict and human rights violations, and thus contributes to reducing irregular migration.

Address for enquiries

FDFA Communication

Federal Palace West Wing

CH-3003 Bern, Switzerland

Tel. Communication service: +41 58 462 31 53

Tel. Press service: +41 58 460 55 55

E-mail: kommunikation@eda.admin.ch

Twitter: @SwissMFA

Publisher

Federal Department of Foreign Affairs

https://www.eda.admin.ch/eda/en/home.html




VP Harris to visit U.S.-Mexico border months after being put in charge of illegal immigration crisis
The dairy-cattle transition period is classified as the 21 days pre- and post-calving. But how often do we really think about all the changes 
The National Cattlemens Beef Association in early June sent a letter to the U.S. Senate and House Agriculture committees to address areas of concern in the cattle and beef industry. The association had the support of the Wisconsin Cattlemans Association and 36 other affiliate state cattle organizations. The letter urged the committee leaders to take quick action in several areas.

Expand beef-processing capacity.

Broaden labor policies to strengthen the beef-processing workforce.

Increase transparency in markets by reauthorizing Livestock Mandatory Reporting.

Support industry efforts to reform Product of the USA generic labeling.

Ensure proper oversight of cattle-market players by concluding the ongoing U.S. Department of Justice investigation into the meatpacking sector.

Cattle producers want to see an update from Congress on where things stand, said Matt Ludlow, president of the Wisconsin Cattlemans Association and a cattle producer at Rush Creek Ranch near Viroqua, Wisconsin. Live-cattle prices are so far behind what they need to be.

Concerns among beef producers have been growing for the past few years. An August 2019 fire at the Tyson Foods beef-packing plant in Holcomb, Kansas, created an oversupply of livestock, resulting in dramatic reductions in cattle prices. The plant, which has more than 5 percent of the countrys beef-processing capacity, was closed for four months following the fire.

With the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, market disruptions continued. During that time the difference between the Choice-boxed-beef cutout values and dressed-fed-cattle prices increased to record levels, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
When a producer finds patches of yellowing in a pea field, it could lead to yield loss, especially if it is Fusarium.

When you have a problem, youll go out to your fields and youll seed yellowing starting at the base of your plant, said Frankie Crutcher, plant pathologist at Montana State Universitys Eastern Ag Research Center.

Crutcher talked about the effect of long-term rotations on root rot control.

While there are lots of root rots, Fusarium tends to be severe and causes major losses, she said.

Producers will find plant germination issues, excessive weeds, and poor canopy establishment.

There are a lot of weeds because they are unable to be choked out by the pea plant, Crutcher said. If you pull that plant up by the roots, you will see a decrease in nodulation, root volume, root vigor and less secondary roots.

With pea and lentil acres a major part of rotations in the Montana/North Dakota region, root rot diseases have also increased.

Montana is the number one pea and lentil producer in the nation, followed closely by North Dakota, which is number two, Crutcher said. Root rot pathogens have been found in these systems.

Audrey Kalil, NDSU Williston Research Extension Center plant pathologist, asked Crutcher to join her in a rotation study on the impact of crop rotation and Fusarium and Aphanomyces.

Audrey Kalil invited me into the project because I work a lot with Fusarium, she said.

The main types of Fusarium infections Crutcher is finding in the study include: Fusarium root rot, Fusarium avenaceum, and Fusarium solani f. pisi.
Nearly 90% of South Dakota is now in some level of drought. According to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor, 56% of the state is in the Severe Dr
Grain prices are high and new storage space is in demand, but the pandemic has contributed to a drastically lower supply of raw materials to build bins.

These key supply and demand issues will likely get worse before they get better, according to Gary Woodruff, the GSI district manager for Indiana and Kentucky and a grain storage expert.

Producers are putting in orders for grain bins that may not be filled until 2022 in some cases. That may prompt some to look for temporary storage options for this falls harvest. With air flow and aeration systems, some temporary options can help keep grain in condition before its sold.

GSI offers is a patented system that has a set of airflow systems, as well as a wall, that helps contain and aerate the grain while its being stored.

This goes up very quickly and doesnt take a lot of preparation, Woodruff said.

The air flow system can remove air, which helps old the tarp down. Its a system that can be re-used from year to year, but Woodruff recommends using it only when youre in a pinch for grain storage or waiting to put up a new bin.

While its not the ideal situation, some farmers strapped for space may look to empty machine sheds for storage. Woodruff had a few suggestions for that option. No. 1 is not to pile the grain against the walls. With wall blowouts, both the shed and the grain will be lost.

In a spot, it can work, but you need to figure out how to get it in the building and get it back out, he said.

While loaders and augers can get the grain into the shed easily enough, Woodruff said hes heard of plenty of stories of producers realizing theyll have to get into the shed and remove the grain with buckets when it comes time to move it.
Paula Vogelgesang Paula edits the monthly newsletter, PennyWise, from her familys diversified farm and ranch operation on the edge of South Dakotas Badlands. Follow Paula Vogelgesang Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today

Special gifts are hard to come by, but a reader from Washington has an idea for all:

I was visiting with a friend recently about a gift she was in the process of making for her grown children and her grandchildren.

She had gone through boxes and boxes and some family photo albums and is in the process of getting each of her children and grandchildren a photo album of several generations of the family. She is getting a lot of the pictures reprinted, she has some of the really early ones of her great-great grandparents as well as the rest of the families on down through the generations until present day.

They are also trying to write the story of each of the generations so that the history is not lost. They are writing a note to go with each picture telling the names of each of the children of the various generations from both sides of the family and they have left room at the back of the album so that succeeding generations can add their own pictures in the empty pages.

Im thinking these albums will be very special to all who relieve them and just maybe if someone reads this, it might give them the inspiration to make up their own albums for those future great-grandchildren. Im thinking especially of those young folks who dont know the history of how their family ancestors came to the United States to live, work and raise families.



Its plant season and a reader from Kansas has a helpful tip:

Save your toilet paper and paper towel cardboard tubes and use them to prevent worms from cutting off those brand new tomato plants you just set out.
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TULSA, Okla. (AP)  A Tulsa man is facing federal charges after federal prosecutors say he threatened to kill President Joe Biden, members of Congress and their families.

Acting U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson says 58-year-old John Jacobs Ahrens was charged Monday with making threats against the president.

Johnson says Ahrens sent a series of emails to a Tulsa television station threatening to murder Biden, members of Congress and their families if he didn't receive money.

"Making online threats to murder public officials and their families has consequences," Johnson said in a statement. "The arrest and filing of criminal charges is the first step in holding individuals accountable for their alleged actions."

Ahrens was arrested at his home in Tulsa last week and allegedly admitted to investigators that he sent the threatening emails, authorities said.

Court records don't indicate whether Ahrens has an attorney who could speak on his behalf.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP)  A bipartisan proposal in the U.S. House would ban the farming of mink fur in the United States in an effort to stem possible mutations of the coronavirus, something researchers have said can be accelerated when the virus spreads among animals.
NEW YORK (AP)  Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams lost much of his lead in the Democratic primary for mayor of New York City after the first round of ranked choice tabulation was released Tuesday, sowing new seeds of uncertainty into an unpredictable contest.
Lake Charles Mayor Nic Hunter and six of the seven City Council members were sworn in for their new terms in office Thursday. Hunter, who is starting his second term as mayor, called on the community and local elected leaders to work together so that the city can rebound from a string of nat
Dwight Eisenhowers 1961 Farewell Address has been considered visionary in its warning against a military-industrial complex that would lead us into numerous, endless wars to the benefit of a few at great cost to the many. Often overlooked, however, was his immediately following warning against a takeover of government and academia by a similarly self-interested few:

The prospect of domination of the nation's scholars by federal employment, project allocations, and the power of money is ever present -- and is gravely to be regarded. While holding scientific research and discovery in respect, as we should, we must also be alert to the equal and opposite danger that public policy could itself become captive of a scientific-technological elite.

The above is an apt description of the state of education, research thats scientific-in-name-only, and public policy in 2021 America. It is the substrate in which the nations scientists are trained and must function. If theyre intellectually curious about things outside a politically approved narrative its despite, not because of, what theyve been taught. They learn that investigating some things severely forecloses their options within the system that governs a scholastic or scientific career. Scientists in training emulate the attitudes, beliefs, and priorities that are reinforced by those administering their respective departments, colleges, and funding sources. If they do not demonstrate those prerequisite qualities they are denied entry into or progress within their desired career path. Thats why students and professors espousing conservative ideas are rare in academia. Thats why the majority of researchers in American academia today cover the ideological gamut all the way from Woke to Woke+. Thats why peers in peer review can be relied upon to keep inconvenient, dissenting, disconfirming research from ever seeing the light of day. That's why one of the Ivy League's formerly preeminent institutions, Harvard, can give rise to something as intellectually specious and venomous as Critical Race Theory. That's how newly minted Harvard physicians and their professors can voice with impunity their views on the propriety of treating minority before white patients, all while proclaiming they're against racism. That's why a Columbia University student who defected from North Korea can credibly state that Columbia is more fanatically dogmatic than the Hermit kingdom. Thats why people who challenge the orthodoxie du jour on college campuses are shouted down and frequently precipitate violent protests if they have the temerity to try to speak at one. All of this is also why the worlds expert class may never recover its erstwhile credibility after so poorly, if not malevolently, navigating the COVID situation.

The preceding are logical results of replacing education with indoctrination, reason with feelings, and science with politics. Thats why we are where we are. Those responsible are now in power and trying to consolidate their power indefinitely. Restricting the breadth of a nonapproved studies audience is the go-to tactic in protecting the narrative.

Research challenging politically desired outcomes will suffer a predictable fate. Upon becoming aware of it, Eisenhowers scientific-technological elite will collectively ignore it in the hope that it wont catch on. Should it begin drawing attention, it will be dismissed as unimportant, misguided, or fringe. If it remains on the scholarly radar, itll be adjudged biased, poorly designed, or otherwise flawed. If its still standing afterward the popes of the new medieval church will simply lie about it as befits their need.

Attention given competing theories about the SARS-CoV-2 virus origin provides a prime example. Initially, China said the U.S. was the source; even home-grown America-haters couldnt make that pig fly. The natural position, that the virus came from a Wuhan wet-market, quickly followed, was heavily pushed by China and embraced by the World Health Organization (WHO). The lab-leak theory was concurrently proposed and holds that the virus originated in the Wuhan Institute of Virology. It was ignored by mainstream and social media. The blogosphere covered and sustained it. Then media influencers attacked anyone who brought it up. Social media censored any mention of it and subsequently banned users who continued to talk about it. Mainstream media figures then ridiculed it and those associated with it. The lab-leak theory nonetheless gained public traction in early 2020, precipitating more focused suppressive efforts. Drs. Anthony Fauci and Jeremy Farrar, directors of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and the British Wellcome Trust, respectively, organized a teleconference of relevant officials. Afterward social media, health officials at all levels, and the WHO, in lockstep, actively suppressed any discussion of the lab-leak idea. Shortly thereafter two peer-approved articles appeared in the Lancet and Nature, both of which forcefully denigrated the possibility of the virus originating in a Wuhan lab. The mainstream media eagerly cited these publications in deriding any lab-leak talk. It was attacked on procedural, philosophical, racial, and economic grounds. President Trumps advocacy of the lab-leak idea guaranteed that his political foes would act against it at every turn. Reflexively anti-Trump media maintained that only extremists and crackpots, like Trump and his supporters, could possibly take it seriously. It took a dogged and protracted FOIA request to obtain email exchanges between Fauci and other officials revealing that the Lancet's open letter had been drafted by Peter Daszak, president of EcoHealth, which had received millions in funding from Fauci's NIAID. Those same emails disclosed that EcoHealth had redirected over a half-million dollars to the Wuhan Institute of Virology -- the same one from which the natural theorys advocates maintained the virus could not possibly have originated. Of the five scientists who coauthored the Nature article, four had participated in the Fauci-Farrar teleconference. Everyone is supposed to accept that these are just coincidences, that such activities were not coordinated. Except that anyone competent in probability theory understands that they were. A high-level Chinese defector has recently provided persuasive evidence of a Chinese lab being the virus's probable source. Material from the same FOIA request strongly supports the lab-leak origin, so much so that media that had rabidly attacked it before have been forced to rein in their condemnation. Now implicated parties and the media are furiously back-filling, removing altogether, and altering the substance of their earlier statements on the lab-leak theory. Given its rising credibility, the lab-leak question now pivots on whether the virus was released deliberately or leaked by accident. Of course, the same media and experts who uncritically snarked the lab-leak theory proclaim that only extremists and crackpots could possibly believe its distribution was deliberate. The Narrative uber alles.

Having mostly purged dissenting thought within academia and become dominant within the unelected bureaucratic groves of government, this Pro-Regressive mentality is now engaged in trying to consolidate itself as the dominant ethos in corporate America. If successful, dissenters will have even fewer private sector options to satisfy genuine intellectual curiosity. Scientific inquiry will have become as effectively controlled as in Orwell's direst predictions. Wherever that leads wont be good -- except for the parties who benefit from shaping public policy in their favor, using the public's money to do it, against the public's interests. These are the same people who have always, without exception, risen to the top of collectivist societies as their masses sink into stagnation and misery. Every time. Without exception.

Trust Pro-Regressive science to take you where Your Betters want you to go. Every time. Without exception.

Image: Petri Damsten

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Dong Jingwei is a Chinese defector working with the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA). He served as Vice Minister of State Security in the Chinese Ministry of Defense. Before defecting, he was responsible for the counterintelligence efforts in China. He was in a position to know about all things espionage in China and is perhaps the highest-level Chinese defector the U.S. has ever had. Even though the legacy media is playing it down, this is a big deal.

It speaks volumes that the man who knows the identity of all the Chinese spies in our country chose to defect to the DIA and only the DIA. Further, its reported that the DIA is not sharing the information its receiving with the FBI or CIA. Now, why would that be?

Dong provided details of meetings between U.S. officials, Chinese spies, and Russian SVR agents. He also provided details about how the Chinese government gained access to CIA communications, which resulted in the deaths of dozens of CIA assets. Anonymous sources are also reporting that members of the federal law enforcement community (i.e. FBI) are scared s**tless about Dongs information.

Is it possible that the FBI and CIA are hopelessly compromised? As wed say in Minnesota -- you betcha!

Dong has allegedly provided the names of Chinese spies working or attending universities in the U.S. He claims that a third of Chinese students in this country are actually PLA assets. To validate his claims, Dong has provided financial records showing which businessmen and public officials have received money from the Chinese Government. Private persons receiving money may or may not be illegal depending on what theyre doing for it. If theyre selling protected technology, its illegal. If theyre influencing public opinion, it may not be illegal, but is still problematic. However, public officials receiving money is a huge deal -- its either bribery or espionage.

How much are businesses, educators, public officials, and opinion influencers beholden to China? It appears to be a disturbing number.

Dong provided copies of Hunter Bidens laptop hard drives to the DIA. Granted, theres not much thats secret about that laptop anymore. But isnt China verifying their possession of those drives kind of like a blackmailer showing his victim pictures of himself in bed with an underage girl? How incriminating is that picture when information from Hunters laptop is combined with financial records which the Chinese surely have? Maybe theres more than one underage girl in that photo.

In 2015, the Aviation Industry Corp of China (AVIC) acquired Henniges Automotive. This acquisition is significant because Henniges Automotive provides stealth technology for the F-35 program. AVICs U.S. partners in this acquisition were none other than Hunter Biden and Chris Heinz. The acquisition was approved by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). Secretary of State John Kerry was a member of the CFIUS during this decision. He is also the stepfather of -- surprise, surprise -- Chris Heinz! Dong provided details of how China was able to acquire stealth technology after the U.S. approved its purchase of Henniges Automotive.

Anyone who doesnt see that the Biden family's financial ties to China leave President Asterisk vulnerable to blackmail is hopelessly naive.

Dong provided copies of pathogenic studies to the DIA which show that the Chinese military was involved in the development of the COVID-19 virus. He also provided copies of Chinese models which predicted the spread and damage that the pandemic would do to the U.S. and the rest of the world. Given what were learning about Dr. Fauci and his gain of function research, we may have paid China to develop a weapon that was used against us.

Further, the Chinese government changed the travel plans of Chinese students returning to the U.S. after the Christmas break. Their travel plans were advanced so that they returned much earlier than originally planned -- prior to the outbreak of the pandemic. Dong reportedly claimed that they were tasked to gather information about the U.S. response to the pandemic. They were to gather information on:

Policy changes

Economic response and damage

Impacts on the healthcare system

Impacts on the supply chain

Civil unrest

The implication is that even if the Chinese government did not intentionally release the virus, they intentionally let it spread and used it as an espionage bonanza. As a side benefit to the Chinese, COVID-19 provided the excuse for massive election changes, which facilitated the removal of President Donald Trump -- Chinas greatest threat. They learned from the Democrats not to let a good crisis go to waste.

As far as we know, Dong has not provided any direct information about BLM or Antifa. However, the fact that returning Chinese students were tasked to monitor civil unrest is quite curious. If our FBI and CIA werent hopelessly compromised, they might consider following the money. But we already know that wont be happening.

This all brings me to the most important point -- have we been under attack from China and didnt know it? A colleague recently reminded me of the Goldfinger dictum: Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. Three times, now that is enemy action.

John Green is a political refugee from Minnesota, now residing in Star Idaho. He is a retired engineer with 40 years of experience in the areas of product development, quality assurance, organizational development, and corporate strategic planning. He currently writes at the American Free News Network (americanfreenewsnetwork.org). He can be followed on Facebook or reached at greenjeg@gmail.com.

Image: Pixabay

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More people around the world areat least nominallyfree than at any other time in history. Free from monarchs, dictators, communism, fascism. Free from serfdom, servitude, slavery, deprivation, and extreme oppression. This has ironically led many to take their freedom for granted. Especially in the West. Perhaps the longer you have had something the less you cherish it. Because never before in human history have so many people willingly ceded control of their minds, souls, and bodies to others. Examples of this are legion, perhaps none more illustrative and chilling than the reaction to government mandates and restrictions put in place during the coronavirus plandemic pandemic.

Healthy people must stay in their homes for two weeks a year or more? No problem. We have to cover our breathing apparatus with masks, indoors or out? Check. My job is nonessential? Yes, sir. I cant go see my dying grandmother? Okay. Daughter cant get married if she wants all her friends and family to attend and share her joy? Whatever you say. Experts say I must inject an unvetted foreign substance into my body if I wish to attend college or keep my job? Thank you, sir, Ill have another! We must keep at least six feet apart from all other homo sapiens and eat our Thanksgiving dinner outside? Big Brother knows best!

Whether submitting to hoaxes, obeying frauds, or allowing educators, journalists, Big Tech tyrants, corporate charlatans, and unelected bureaucrats to tell us what to do, how to speak, how to think, and what is right, far too many of us have effectively knelt before the emperor. But the emperor has no clothes. It is time for us to acknowledge this fact.

(A brief aside: Those who would enslave us spent four years telling us that President Trump was an emperor, a tyrant. They opposed everything he did or said simply because he did or said it. Turns out, most of what he said was correct. And he was one man fighting, for us, against the vast systemic bigotry of The Left. He was, in fact, the anti-emperor, the embodiment of a true anti-fascist.)

Too many of us have put up with exorbitant taxes, punitive regulations, mindless mandates, and policies that make us less happy, less free, and at greater risk of being physically harmed or killed. Enforced mask mandates for us but not for those burning down our cities. Protect our borders? No way. Defund the police? You bet.

This madness has to stop. But it can only stop when the vast majority of people no longer choose to be slaves and victims. When unprecedentedly large numbers of people effectively willingly enslave themselves, when they outsource their free will to a government entity, it is a sign of mass insanity, an Age of Delusion. Voluntary slavery is anathema to an individual soul, a free society, and to God Himself.

Leftists dont want us to remember, let alone laud, our Founders, old white men that most were. But, though they were classical liberalsmeaning they would be conservatives today-- they were true progressives. Their knowledge, brilliance, self-sacrifice, and courage changed the world for the better, ushering in an age of freedom, invention, and reason. Some called the results of their endeavors the 5,000 Year Leap.

And they threw off an oppressive government, in part, because of a mild tax on tea.

As we approach Independence Day, July 4, 2021, Ive found myself looking out at the world and in at my children. Are we too far gone? I have asked myself. Can we still save the republic? Has the unique quest for equal opportunity morphed into a demand for equal outcome, or equity?

I recently received, via regular old mail, a notice from Hillsdale College, perhaps the last bastion of actual higher education in America. It bid me a Happy Independence Day, and followed that up with a plea to help preserve the only nation ever conceived in liberty by participating in the Preserve the Declaration Project.

John Trumbull's 1817 'Declaration of Independence, which hangs in the Capitol Rotunda.

I humbly ask you to do the same. Simply go to hillsdaleforliberty.com/declaration and download the free commemorative copy of the Declaration of Independence. Sign the pledge to read the Declaration on July 4th, and then read the Declaration to your family and friends on the Fourth of July during your cookout/party/observance. Thats it.

As Abraham Lincoln said of the hundreds of thousands who were killed fighting to end slavery and preserve the Union:

It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before usthat from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they here gave the last full measure of devotionthat we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vainthat this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."

158 years later, is it too late to keep government of the people, by the people, for the people, from perishing from the earth? Is it still possible to have a new birth of freedom? Can we save the last, best hope on earth?

I honestly dont know. But let us try.

Dear Lord, let us try.

To comment, you can find the MeWe post for this article here.
Reporting on Alaska GOP Senate candidate Kelly Tshibaka's strong showing in recent polls and President Trump's recent endorsement, CNN's Chris Cillizza admits that incumbent Lisa Murkowski is in trouble but thinks she's still got a shot at winning. "She's not a lost cause just yet," he claims. He bases his tepid optimism on three factors:

"She has a very well-known name." It's true that the Murkowski political dynasty has held a seat in the U.S. Senate for 40 consecutive years. But it's not true that there is something politically positive about the name. The founder of the dynasty, Frank Murkowski, was humiliated when he ran for re-election as governor in 2006. In the Republican primary that year, he came in third, with 19% of the vote. I don't believe that a sitting governor has been more roundly repudiated in American political history. He lost, essentially, because of his arrogance. His daughter has the same problem. Ominously, the most recent poll shows Lisa Murkowski's support is at  19%! Spooky.

"Alaska has an open primary." While it's true that Prop. 2, which introduced the jungle primary to Alaska, means that Murkowski can avoid certain loss in a Republican primary, this may not redound entirely to her advantage. If, as expected, the Alaska GOP adopts a rule that calls for a party endorsement at the state convention, Tshibaka will win an overwhelming majority of delegates and emerge as the Republican Party's unquestioned choice. Murkowski would be wise not to place her name before the convention. Her support would probably be in single digits.

"Alaska has ranked choice voting." But if the past is any guide, and it usually is, ranked choice voting will result in more electoral victories for conservative candidates in Alaska. Over the past 40 years, when conservatives have split their votes, Democrats get elected. Now, under the instant runoff system, voters who supported the second-place conservative can switch to the leader in the second round.

Democrat governors Sheffield (1982), Cowper (1986), and Knowles (1994) were all elected with a minority of votes. In each case, Libertarian or Alaska Independence Party (AIP) candidates pulled votes from the Republican, and the Democrat won. In 2008, Mark Begich beat Senator Ted Stevens by only 48%-47%. Without the AIP candidate in the race, Stevens could have pulled it off. There have been countless legislative races where Alaska conservatives have split their vote, allowing the Democrat to win.

In the past 46 years, Alaska has had around 50 statewide elections, for governor, U.S. senator, and U.S. representative. A Democrat got a majority of the vote once  Tony Knowles was re-elected in 1998 with 51% of the vote. But that was a special year. The Alaska GOP repudiated its own nominee, John Lindauer, and endorsed the write-in campaign of Robin Taylor. In a normal election, without the corrupt and fraudulent Lindauer, Taylor would have won.

The liberal dark money groups behind Prop. 2 weren't trying to help conservatives with ranked choice voting, of course. This initiative was designed for one, express purpose: to help Lisa Murkowski get re-elected. But there are certain dubious assumptions built into this scheme. First and foremost, Murkowski must finish ahead of the Democrat in the first round. Second, Democrat voters must overwhelmingly prefer Murkowski to Tshibaka. Third, Tshibaka cannot reach 50% plus one without Democrat or Murkowski votes.

In congressional elections, Alaska is a bright red state. Now that Tshibaka just got President Trump's endorsement, she has united the entire Republican Party behind her. The 2022 off-year congressional election looks to be a wave for Republican conservatives nationally, and Kelly Tshibaka can ride that wave right into the United States Senate.

Fritz Pettyjohn was Deputy Campaign Manager of Murkowski for Senate, 1980. Donations to Tshibaka should be sent to KellyforAK.com.

Image: Kelly Tshibaka and Lisa Murkowski, both from YouTube screen grabs.

To comment, you can find the MeWe post for this article here.
The fundamental question about the current Covid-19 vaccinations is not whether they are safe and effective. This, however, is the wrong question. The more telling question is why those with power are forcing vaccines on us as the only permissible solution to SARS-COV-2. A partial answer to this question comes from insights that Dr. Peter McCullough offered in his recent testimony before the Texas State HHS Committee  and what he says has to do with things other than medical efficacy.

McCullough, an Internist, Cardiologist, and Professor at Texas A&M Medical School, is one of the most widely cited physicians in the history of peer-reviewed medical literature. Not only this, McCullough himself got SARS-COV-2 in the fall and used on himself the same protocol he recommends to his patients. McCullough has defended the long-lasting and stable durability of the antibodies for SARS-COV-2. He has also provided a critical account of our response to the pandemic, one which he coins as therapeutic nihilism.

To McCullough, Americas full response to the pandemic was already determined back in early May of 2020. Innovative attempts to create early treatment protocols were almost universally shelved. Instead, all the eggs went into the basket of the vaccine. Vaccinations were now pushed as the silver bullet. Growing mechanisms of control developed, the aim of which was to delegitimize any attempts to examine or utilize significant and effective early treatment protocols to fight the virus.

Thus, the first reason why vaccinations became the only permissible solution to SARS-COV-2 was because the public health bureaucracy decided this by fiat. This fact was fully on display in our societal response to those who contracted the virus.

The message for the sick would be something unprecedented in the recent medical tradition: Patients would be advised that there was nothing that could be done for them until they were at deaths door. The dereliction of duty at the heart of therapeutic nihilism meant that someone who received a positive PCR test would simply be informed to go home, rest, and then go to the ER if things ever got really bad.

The standardization of therapeutic nihilism also revealed something more disturbing that helps to explain further why the vaccines have been pushed with such ferociousness. By March 2020, there were already curious trends regarding the COVID narrative. In a March 17, 2020, article in Stat, Stanford epidemiologist Dr. John Ioannidis, made the prophetic case that the response to SARS-COV-2 would eventually be revealed for what it is -- a once in a century evidence fiasco. To Ioannidis, the scientific and medical tradition that formed the foundation for how to respond to pandemics was quickly trashed. It was replaced by a juggernaut the saw constant, decontextualized information intentionally deployed to inculcate fear narratives.

Why, though, were global mechanisms being utilized in this way? The answer is as simple as it is unsettling. The response to the pandemic was meant to accelerate the conditions of a social and political ecosystem that attacks the virtue of prudential judgment. In his most recent book, Joshua Mitchell has succinctly summarized this psychological context for which the pandemic response has helped to solidify:

Citizens are not, after all, competent enough to exercise prudential judgment about how to care for themselves, their families, or their neighbors. They must leave that to the global managers.... [E]very day citizens will surely die if they dare attempt to figure things out by themselves or together with those around them. (P. 237)

SARS-COV-2 has given immediacy to the deeper challenge before us. Weve seen that liberal democratic regimes are unstable because truths could no longer be perceived, ideas could no longer be thought, experiences could no longer be had, and no one would ever know what he was missing.

Thankfully, however, this deeply existential threat has not entirely succeeded in squashing the truth. Politics as a power grab is revealing itself for what it really is; namely, an attempt to transform human life based upon no other standard than the globalist collective will.

McCullough, along with other innovative physicians such as the Front-Line Covid Critical Care Alliance, has demonstrated that there are real grounds for confidence in effectively combating the virus through early treatment protocols. Multi-drug treatment therapies have been highly effective, as can also be seen in the practices of Drs. Brian Tyson and George Fareed, and Dr. Shankara Chetty in South Africa. Using drugs such as Hydroxychloroquine, the anti-viral Ivermectin, and Antihistamines, along with regular doses of Vitamins D, C, Zinc, Quercitin, corticosteroids, Melatonin, and aspirin should be seen as one set of actual treatments that vastly eliminate deaths and hospitalizations.

What these courageous physicians have revealed is that the possibility of discovering the truth is still alive in the democratic age  and that when a politician tells you that the only solution is a vaccine, or were all going to die, he may have an ulterior motive.

IMAGE: Vaccines by rawpixel.com

To comment, you can find the MeWe post for this article here.
This post wanders from the Midwest to a D.C. suburb, but the locations really have no geographic relevance because we're witnessing the same thing playing out in public schools across America. It's also got a lot of tweets, because they tell the story in real-time, with important videos. Stick with it, because the bottom line is important: parents are beginning to realize that the institutions that they fund and to which they've entrusted their children are indoctrinating their children with racist, Marxist theories. Moreover, when challenged, they will react like cornered rats and call upon the police state to protect themselves.

To begin with, you must see the Critical Race Training forced on Iowa School System teachers. The training is aggressively partisan in tone, as well as being racist and Marxist. (Hat tip: Twitchy.) After you've looked at these tweets (skimming them is fine), keep reading this post, because I'll have more evidence of the battle between public schools and the public:

LEAKED DOCUMENTS from Iowa School System show Teachers are FORCED to classify Make America Great Again as a type of racism" & white supremacy.



This is done through MANDATORY Critical Race Theory training FORCED on teachers at taxpayer expense.



Trump won Iowa by +9 points pic.twitter.com/6xEuVJpv7g  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

Teachers of Iowa are being INSTRUCTED to classify the vast majority of Iowan children as Racist & White Supremacist.



Iowa is Trump country. Trump carried 94 out of 99 Iowa counties in 2020. The Republican Governor endorsed Trump. The Iowa Senate/House is solid Republican. pic.twitter.com/t9mhy30w1I  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

This is a ROCK SOLID, REAL WORLD application of Critical Race Theory being used as a *political* weapon to target Republicans.



This is NOT education.



It is naked political vengeance using the state education system and our childrens educators.



This training is CRT in practice pic.twitter.com/U4jaEZaVdU  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

This training was MANDATED to ALL educators and employees of the Mississippi Bend Area Education Agency, one of the largest school districts in Iowa.



The training is stamped with the approval of the school district, which operates under the Iowa Department of Education. pic.twitter.com/9z9giA3k2J  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

At the time of this racist training House file 802 was working its way through the Iowa legislature. This bill explicitly banned this style of derogatory, offensive training in mandatory diversity training for state and local government employees.



This Bill is now Iowa LAW. pic.twitter.com/tt1mo1ERiV  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

The slide that lists Make America Great Again as white supremacist is also lists as racist:



- Columbus Day

- American Immigration Law

- "Mass Incarceration

- "Denying white privilege"

- Believing America is "post racial"

- Believing people are part of a "human family" pic.twitter.com/hiPbZypd8D  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

Here is more from the Presentation.



This slide shows the Levels of Racism - Systemic, Institutional, Interpersonal, and Internalized.



Translation: Everything is racist and you are racist for being white. pic.twitter.com/WKmiFIHdsx  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

This slide shows Terms for Deeper Understanding and links to two websites that define these terms citing the biggest proponents of CRT, Robin DiAngelo, Ibram X. Kendi and the creators of Critical Race Theory Jean Stefancic and Richard Delgado. pic.twitter.com/bBWIkqOEoS  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

The presentation itself defines Critical Race Theory as a tool for the destruction of America:



"Unlike traditional civil rights which embraces step by step progress, Critical race theory questions the very foundations of the liberal order & principles of constitutional law" pic.twitter.com/6FWdeLbp5g  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

Hundreds of educators and staff have been FORCED to take this training. We have the sign in sheet. Attendees of the meeting were prompted to give their input on drafting an Anti-Racism Statement and break into groups to discuss their own whiteness and racism. pic.twitter.com/fQcmKNh08o  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

The Facilitator notes on this slide show that attendees were asked to question their own beliefs and basically forced to ask themselves if they might be racist for agreeing with the term Make America Great Again. pic.twitter.com/sfaRAWTZ2a  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

More slides showing the purpose of the meeting, Norms, their definition of Equity and Silence Breakers pic.twitter.com/InEFpwEMtp  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

The conclusion of the presentation prompts the instructors to plan next steps for our shared learning and organizational growth in the fall.



They are planning on teaching this to your children next semester. This is illegal under Iowa Law. Will the law be enforced? pic.twitter.com/qwTGKqMSgE  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

At the end of the training the Iowa teachers are given a reading list that includes:



- White Fragility: by Robin DiAngelo

- Racial Equity Tools Glossary

- Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi

- Eurocentric Curriculum pic.twitter.com/dGC4NjSDsq  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

This training is hard proof that Critical Race Theory is being used as a POLITICAL weapon specifically targeting Republicans. This is NOT education. It is political vengeance using the federal education system. They are starting with our children - even in DARK RED STATES.  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

I have reached out to the offices of Iowa Gov. @KimReynoldsIA, Iowa House Speaker @PatGrassley, and Iowas Department of Education Director @aelebo for comment on CRT being used by the Iowa education system to target and discriminate against Republicans.



No comments yet...  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

BREAKING: Statement from Gov. @KimReynoldsIA: This is indoctrination not education. And its exactly why I took action to ban teaching divisive concepts and critical race theory in Iowa schools. Kids need to be taught how to think and not what to think.  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

Is something like this happening in your school district?



Send us your stories.@TPUSA has set up a secure email: ExposeCRT@tpusa.comhttps://t.co/yFPk06fgGw  Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 22, 2021

While many attendees doubtless sit in those CRT training sessions stoically listening as a way to keep their jobs, many teachers take this seriously. They believe that it is their Gaia-given right to use their classrooms to indoctrinate the students in their care.

The teacher in the video below, who is from Iowa (so ignore the language about Texas), is an example of people who take the training to heart, helped, no doubt, by the endless indoctrination they experienced at college. They then use their authority in the classroom (and their control over students' grades) to brainwash America's children with material that violates laws against partisan education; racism; and, in Iowa, CRT indoctrination:

Texas teacher laments a new law which she says prevents her from teaching Critical Race Theory next fall.



She says teachers are already activists & claims this law demands teachers lie to students. Her call to action:



Hinting that teachers should disobey the law en masse. pic.twitter.com/DggKpcWNKD  Mythinformed MKE (@MythinformedMKE) June 22, 2021

Parents are beginning to understand what is going on. White parents realize that their children are on the receiving end of the same heinous racism the Nazis used against the Jews in German classrooms in the 1930s. Everything taught in that class is intended to stir up visceral, violent hatred against Whites and Republicans. Black parents of goodwill understand that what's happening is every bit as dehumanizing as the old Jim Crow system. Moreover, as Lincoln said, "a house divided against itself cannot stand"  and they would prefer not to live in an imploding nation.

One of the Ground Zeroes for parents pushing back has been Loudoun County in Virginia, which was an early adopter of Critical Race Theory. The first overt evidence of its departure from American values and sanity was its decision to ban Dr. Seuss. Not long after, we learned that current and former teachers within the school district had plotted to attack parents who were opposing them (in case you were wondering where the Iowa teacher got the idea to stage her little Marxist rebellion).

Parents have been pushing back. They've been doing so because they believe that, by electing school officials and paying for school salaries, they are the ones in the driver's seat. At the Loudoun County school board meeting on Tuesday, though, the school board swiftly asserted its dominance by shutting down a public meeting and having attendees arrested. You can see the narrative unfold in these tweets.

Before the meeting, 200 gathered to protest CRT:

Heres the scene in Ashburn, VA this afternoon as parents protest against critical race theory before the Loudoun County school board meets. Scott Mineo, founder of Parents Against CRT, talking to a crowd of about 200: pic.twitter.com/DZLo7beTx4  Gabriella Borter (@gabriellaborter) June 22, 2021

Break in the critical race theory protest speaker lineup for the National Anthem: pic.twitter.com/L6JaXKPaND  Gabriella Borter (@gabriellaborter) June 22, 2021

Meanwhile, across the street, another 100 gathered to oppose ending CRT and demand a transgender policy:

More than 100 gathered on the other side of the parking lot in Loudoun County opposing the anti-CRT protesters and supporting a transgender policy that is being discussed at the school board meeting soon pic.twitter.com/XCzWnUooNI  Gabriella Borter (@gabriellaborter) June 22, 2021

The room was packed, for people wanted to have their say. Note that the school board wants to go down the unicorn slide of transgenderism, while parents care about classes telling their children that they are evil, defective racists:

Inside the Loudoun County, VA school board meeting. More than 200 people signed up to make public comment. Agenda includes discussion of transgender affirming policy for students. Critical race theory not an official action item but is the priority for many here pic.twitter.com/lJYIHyqQE8  Gabriella Borter (@gabriellaborter) June 22, 2021

Update: former VA state senator Dick Black spoke out against critical race theory in the board meeting and crowd couldnt stay silent. The Loudoun Co school board said if there were eruptions like this theyd end public comment pic.twitter.com/dx0oMAy1Fu  Gabriella Borter (@gabriellaborter) June 22, 2021

There was no way that the petty despots on the school board were going to listen to challenges to their policy, so they shut down the meeting:

WOW: Moments ago, the Loudoun County school board abruptly cut off the public comment portion of the board meeting, which was set to go another couple of hours at least, after taking withering criticism from parents and citizens: pic.twitter.com/W51PxuiBOq  John Cooper (@thejcoop) June 22, 2021

Parents were outraged. Instead of looting the place and throwing rocks at the school board, which was the appropriate form of protest all through 2020, they loudly made their displeasure known  and then sang the National Anthem:

Loudoun County school board ended public comment. Anti-critical race theory protesters react: pic.twitter.com/QpdVoiAksl  Gabriella Borter (@gabriellaborter) June 22, 2021

Parents protesting against critical race theory broke into the national anthem when the Loudoun Co., Virginia school board ended public comment because the crowd got too out of hand pic.twitter.com/qms00grIIj  Gabriella Borter (@gabriellaborter) June 22, 2021

Thinking about it, things might have ended differently if the parents had reacted with greater destructive violence. However, because they were essentially peaceful in their defense of their country and values, the school board sicced the cops on them:

The Loudoun County sheriffs office declared the school board meeting an unlawful assembly. Everyone told to get out or will be trespassing. Two arrests made #CriticalRaceTheory pic.twitter.com/23Cojtczvy  Gabriella Borter (@gabriellaborter) June 22, 2021

Two arrests made at the Loudoun County, Virginia school board meeting after it was declared an unlawful assembly and some parents here to protest against critical race theory and a transgender policy refused to leave right away #CriticalRaceTheory pic.twitter.com/dsZDrqJ0Gp  Gabriella Borter (@gabriellaborter) June 22, 2021

Those sheriffs seem like the same type of "law enforcement" officers who groveled before BLM last year. They obviously don't like it when criminals or BLM and Antifa (but I repeat myself) attack them. However, if push comes to shove, an inordinate percentage of law enforcement personnel are Democrats who will side against the people.

Why? Because they're unionized. Government unions in America are inherently corrupt because the unions have become a money-laundering factory for Democrats. And union members know that the Democrats will keep them fat and happy with generous, taxpayer-funded salaries and pensions in return for a cut.

It's time for those Americans who believe in the Constitution, the rule of law, the traditional role of American government (small), non-partisan education, and a colorblind society to throw their hats in the ring for school board. We know from the election in Southlake, Texas that when they do so, they win  not by a little, but by a landslide.

To comment, you can find the MeWe post for this article here.
To hear the press tell it, the failure of the Senate Democrats' S.1, dishonestly named the "For the People Act," is the death knell of democracy.

According to the Washington Post:

Senate Republicans banded together Tuesday to block a sweeping Democratic bill that would revamp the architecture of American democracy, dealing a grave blow to efforts to federally override dozens of GOP-passed state voting laws. The test vote, which would have cleared the way to start debate on voting legislation, failed 50-50 on straight party lines  10 votes short of the supermajority needed to advance legislation in the Senate. It came after a succession of Democrats delivered warnings about what they said was the dire state of American democracy, accusing former president Donald Trump of undermining the country's democratic system by challenging the results of the 2020 election in a campaign that prompted his supporters in numerous state legislatures to pass laws rolling back ballot access.

Get a load of some of the headlines:

Republicans crush voting rights, making a mockery of their support for Juneteenth: Brazile USAToday

Senate Republicans block debate on elections bill, dealing blow to Democrats' voting rights push Washington Post

Senate Republicans block debate on elections bill, dealing blow to Democrats' voting rights push Washington Post

Republicans Use Filibuster to Block Voting Rights Bill New York Times

Nearly 500 State Legislators Sign Letter Pleading Congress To Pass For The People Act NPR

Based on a Google search, I found virtually no fair or honest headlines from the mainstream press. Besides this, President Obama was out drawing additional headlines for his support of the bill, with his pious intonations about democracy itself being at stake and other claptrap. It was incredible.

Yet there's a reason Sens. Joe Manchin and to some extent Kyrsten Sinema, both moderate Democrats, had reservations about the S.1 bill and now the new calls to end the filibuster in the Senate. It's that huge majorities of voters don't support it, even in this miasma of media spin.

The bill is badly misnamed, for one, calling itself the "For the People Act" when, in fact, it should be called the "For the Cheaters Act," given how many ways to Sunday election cheating can be enabled with this federal takeover of elections.

Mandates in the 900-page bill include same-day voter registration (helpful if Democrats are losing), extended voting (helpful again, if Democrats need to find out how many more votes to print up so they can win), zero voter ID (the so-called "compromise" with Joe Manchin was to allow "sworn statements," electrical bills, and student ID to vote  something that would certainly help this bunch, which registers 56 or more from an single apartment), ballot-harvesting (giving something for the unions to do to muscle voters the way they want with "we know where you live"), a crony-political voting commission with solely Democrats determining the voting rules, and other flaming garbage usually found in "democracies" like Cuba.

It was an atrocious bill, and to his credit, Mitch McConnell saw through it and marshaled Republicans to resist it. McConnell may not like Trump, but he understands that if you don't want More Trump, then you had better ensure free and fair elections, along with voter confidence that that is what they are getting. Otherwise, they turn to Trump. There's no other way to send a message.

Sen. Susan Collins had the most prescient opposition to this naked power-grab by Democrats to rig elections in that she effectively argued that if elections now are as fair and fraud-free as Democrats say they were in 2020, and turnout was as high as they said it was, and they "won," why do they need this bill at all?

According to Legal Insurrection:

Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, pointed out voter participation increased to record levels in many states in the 2020 election. "This information contradicts the underlying premise in S. 1, that we must overturn the law in every state in our nation in order to preserve the right to vote," Collins said. Collins said the new regulations imposed under the measure would be burdensome and overturn voter integrity laws, such as the requirement to show voter identification in 35 states.

That gets to the heart of the matter. Democrats, and Joe Biden in particular, wanted this vote more than anything to seal their legitimacy as well as their political power. That's why it was Priority One for old Joe, with Kamala Harris appointed to be his S.1 czar. (She performed about as well on this as she has on the border, but don't worry  she'll call her efforts a success, and Joe can fume.)

Biden seems to know that voters are uneasy with the result of the 2020 election, with all its many instances of apparent fraud  from the mysterious halts and shifts of voting direction in the dead of night from five swing states to the defiance of Democrat officials to court orders to allow GOP observers to observe the count to the witness testimonies of all kinds of voter-fraud shenanigans to the missing ballots to the dead voters to the voters registered at UPS boxes in big numbers to the more-ballots-than-voters issue in Democrat-controlled areas to the strange uncreased ballots counted all for Joe Biden alone to longstanding nests of vote fraud rings to the trucker who was ordered by Democrats to take his truck full of ballots from state to state to be counted to the Atlanta suitcases wheeled out after observers were ordered to leave. This isn't the half of it, and one out of three Republicans at least firmly believes the last election was fraudulent, according to a recent poll. It's probably more.

Stopping this rigging bill puts a stop to the kinds of things that happened on Nov. 3, 2020, in the name of stopping fraud before it starts. The failure of the Supreme Court to rule on several obvious voter fraud cases signals that the only time Republicans can stop voter fraud is before it starts, through laws that ensure election integrity. This is being accomplished by the states, as the Constitution intended, and Democrats see that activity precisely. That's why they're screaming so unreasonably about voter ID as well as lying about the defeat of this bill as evil Republicans trying to end voter rights, although they've lately started reading the voter writing on the wall on voter ID, which is widely supported by the public.

According to Byron York, writing in the Washington Examiner:

On Monday, Monmouth University released a survey covering a number of voting proposals. Among the questions, the pollsters asked was: "In general do you support or oppose requiring voters to show a photo ID in order to vote?" The headline is that 80 percent of those surveyed  a huge majority  favored photo ID. Just 18 percent said they opposed. That left just two percent who didn't know, which means that voter ID is an issue about which most Americans have a considered opinion. Now look inside the numbers. Among Republicans, 91 percent supported photo ID. Among independents, 87 percent. And among Democrats, 62 percent. Democratic leaders in Washington know that a solid majority of their own voters support a measure some of them have been denouncing for years. Looking at the results along racial lines, 77 percent of white voters supported photo ID  and 84 percent of non-white voters supported it, too. Along educational lines, 69 percent of Americans with a four-year college degree favored ID, and 85 percent of those with no degree favored it. When divided by age, 78 percent of Americans age 18 to 34 supported it, 82 percent of those 35 to 54 supported it, and 79 percent of people 55 and older supported it. And on the income scale, 81 percent of people who make less than $50,000 a year supported ID, while 82 percent of people who make between $50,000 and $100,000 supported it, and 76 percent of people who make more than $100,000 supported it.

Those are monster numbers, and a message from voters that fairness in elections is more important than who wins elections. For Democrats, this bill has always been the opposite. What's more, the poorest and most non-white of voters were the ones who supported it in the largest numbers. They weren't the gullible fools with cash and degrees, who, in any case, supported it also by 3 to 1.

The Democrats should have taken a clue from the steadfast reaction seen in Georgia, when the legislators enacted their voter integrity act, and the left screamed the end of democracy and the big corporate wokesters found themselves boycotted by customers after they attempted to demonize Georgia. That failed horribly as the Georgia legislators carried on serenely, knowing they had the voters on their side. Now a bigger failure has taken place with this Senate rebuke of Biden and his vile power-grab, his miserable vice president notching another failure to her lipstick case. The winners here are the voters. They held the Legislature in Georgia and the Senate up against a barrage of lies from Democrats and their press.

Good riddance. While the left says it is not done, and obviously, will exact some kind of pressure on Sinema and Manchin over the filibuster, one hopes they hold firm, too. If the abuse is too great, invite them to join the Republicans.

Image: Official portrait via Wikimedia Commons (cropped), public domain.
On a national radio program the other night, I discussed Israel's new government. I offer readers of American Thinker a summary of my comments.

First, I am a big fan of Bibi Netanyahu and the unprecedented prosperity and relative peace (given the bad neighborhood it inhabits) he brought to Israel. Bibi got a major assist from the Trump administration, the most pro-Israel ever, for four of those years. Having said that, Israel's political system has been unstable for the past two years, with one election after another. In addition, Bibi has served as prime minister for fifteen years (twelve consecutively). That is a lot of time for any democracy to have one leader.

The new coalition may be even weaker than the recent governments. It is headed by a prime minister (Naftali Bennett) who is even farther to the right than Bibi, including a large centrist element controlled by Yair Lapid (who holds the real power in the coalition), and left and Arab parties. If even one member of the new coalition bolts, this government will fail, and new elections will be called. As such, I do not expect any substantive changes in Israel's approach to the Palestinians, Iran, and other key issues. In the meantime, Bibi retains power as opposition leader against a weak, fragile coalition.

Unlike too many on the left who stated publicly over the past twelve years that they couldn't support Israel while Netanyahu was in power, I support Israel unequivocally, no matter who its leader is, even when I disagree with his policies. For example, while I frequently disagreed with liberal Israeli prime ministers such as Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres and, sadly, turned out to be correct that the Oslo "peace process" was bound to fail because the Palestinians never would accept and live in peace with Israel as a Jewish state, I supported Israel during their leadership.

In sum, while I have serious reservations about its stability and have concerns about some of its policies, I sincerely wish the new government success in building on Netanyahu's unprecedented accomplishments.

Josh Kantrow is a cybersecurity attorney based in Chicago who has traveled to Israel fifteen times and is active in causes that support a strong U.S.-Israel relationship.

Image via Pixy.

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To be an American is a very special privilege. Our allegiance is to the red, white, and blue flag, not the sickle and the hammer. We live in one of the few constitutional republics that has freedom as the cornerstone of society. President Ronald Reagan said, "Freedom is not free." Many patriotic Americans gave their lives to keep our flag waving over the U.S. Capitol. We patriots are proud of the America we grew up in, and we will not allow the Marxists to destroy it.

Our message to the anti-American outlaws is "love it or leave it," with the suggestion that they go to some communist "paradise" like China or Russia to live. There they can bask in the sun, work in a slave labor camp, and enjoy being re-educated in communist indoctrination centers.

My father was a coal miner, and my mother was a dedicated homemaker. We lived in a country setting in the mountains of West Virginia. I walked two miles every day to school. When I got to the schoolhouse, the first activity all the students and teachers participated in was to gather around the flagpole with our country's flag waving proudly in the air. Then we would in unison say the Pledge of Allegiance with the phrase, "One nation under God"; sing the National Anthem; and then pray the Lord's Prayer.

My teacher had a Bible on her desk and read it to us in class at Christmas and Easter time. Every week, on Tuesday afternoons after school during the school year, many of us would walk another quarter of a mile to attend Bible school.

Our home life, school, and church environments complemented each other. These things encouraged me to love and appreciate God, family, and country. I remain to this day, along with millions of other Americans, a dedicated and loyal, flag-waving, patriotic American who would  if necessary  die fighting the enemies of our free and beloved republic.

Like a cancer, the ideological shackles of Marxist totalitarianism have affected the White House, the U.S. Congress, public school systems, and the business world. The dictators of the cancel culture movement demand that everyone submit to their insane, Utopian ideological philosophies. If not, they will try to ostracize those who resist so they cannot be successful in today's society. This communist cultural revolution started several decades ago.

First, in 1962, in the case of Engel vs. Vitale, the U.S. Supreme Court outlawed prayer from the public school system. From that time until now, violence and lawlessness in public schools have dramatically increased. Also, drug use and teenage pregnancy have skyrocketed in schools. Then in 1963 in Abington School District vs. Schempp, the court struck again and "invalidated the reading of verses, without comment, from the Bible and the Lord's Prayer in public school settings."

Why did this matter? It mattered because morals become meaningless if they are no longer anchored to a higher being. Without God, they're simply rules, rather like the one prohibiting running a red light, and are as easily sidestepped or abandoned.

America's moral fiber took a drastic hit in 1973 when the Supreme Court, in Roe v. Wade, legalized death to the unborn. Since 1973, there have been more than 62,000,000 unborn babies slaughtered through abortion. The world still has not reckoned with Adolf Hitler's having killed about 6,000,000 Jews, yet our country, through the bloody institute of abortion, has murdered ten times that number.

In 2015, in Obergefell v. Hodges, the Supreme Court announced that the Constitution supports same-sex "marriage." This is a direct attack on the family because history has proven that there is no stronger unit for prosperity and liberty than the heterosexual nuclear family. Men and women bring different skills and emotional energy to these unions that are optimal for raising children. And that's separate from normalizing behavior the Bible scorns.

The best antidote for the spreading disease of Marxism is to stand up and speak the truth concerning its destructive power of Utopian falsehood in every sector of our society. We will win this cultural war because, in the end, the truth cannot be defeated.

America will remain free because we have faith in God and love for our country. As in every war, many good soldiers of freedom, unfortunately, die in battle. In this war against Marxism, there will be those who lose their positions of influence, their businesses, their opportunities for promotion, and their friends. The reason is that they dare to put truth and country before themselves. In the final analysis, they will go down in history as heroes of freedom who would not compromise away their heritage and constitutional rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

We will continue to fight for an America that honors God, family, and country. We will stand against any Marxist attempt to destroy the moral foundation of our nation.

The Bible says, Proverbs 14:34, "Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people."

Image: Sheet music for the Star-Spangled Banner (1918). Library of Congress.

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Critical Race Theory (CRT) is an anti-white, anti-American philosophy that has spread like cancer throughout society. It has made surprising headway in government agencies, the corporate world, and the K12 public schools  and, of course, the colleges and universities where it originated. This has happened while most Americans slept. But as awareness of CRT has grown, so has the resistance to it.

Tennessee, Idaho, and Oklahoma have enacted laws against teaching CRT in their respective public schools. Another 16 other states are seriously considering similar bans. In Florida, legislation did not pass, but its state Board of Education barred CRT from the classroom. Former President Donald Trump has added his weight to exposing CRT. At the North Carolina Republican Party convention, he gave the keynote speech, in which he called out CRT for being divisive, a form of educational indoctrination, and Marxist in nature. All true.

The strength of the pushback against CRT has caught progressives of all stripes by surprise. Many of them are now forced to openly admit their thinking. They claim that CRT is needed to teach the young how racism is woven into seemingly neutral laws and through America's institutions. In other words, the intent of CRT is to teach children that America's DNA has genes of racism in it, making the country inherently racist. The logical extension of this line of reasoning is that all whites are racist (except for those who are "woke") and have an unjustified privileged place in society  and that this privilege comes at the expense of everyone else. Nothing divisive there, right? Truly, progressives see white supremacy under every rock, and they're hell-bent on making sure our children learn to see it, too.

It's not just leftists who argue against banning CRT from the classrooms. More than a few libertarians are on the same page with the left. Take Reason magazine. The people there urge against banning CRT and instead advocate for school choice. Ah, yes. CRT is on the verge of actual implementation in the public schools, with the entire media complex, education establishment, and Biden administration behind it, while universal school choice is a pie-in-the-sky distant hope. That's a smart trade-off, all right, and typical of shallow libertarian thinking.

Then there's David French, the perennial NeverTrump. He's another libertarian. French's argument against banning CRT boils down to saying the state should not be in the business of banning ideas. Oh, really? Forgive me for getting personal, but if I had offered up such a threadbare argument in my sophomore high school civics class, Brother Cannon would likely have given me a rap on the side of the head. For French's edification, I can list half a dozen of ideas off the top of my head that French would vehemently want banned from the schools. Why can those ideas be banned and not CRT?

What it comes down to is this. Whom are the public schools for? The educational establishment doesn't own them, although its members earn a lucrative livelihood through the schools and believe that they should call the tune to which the schools dance. Rather, the unvarnished fact, which has too often lain dormant, is that the public schools belong to the people. It is the people who should have the final say in what is or is not taught in their schools. Who better represents the people: the education establishment or the state legislatures? To pose such a question begets the proper answer to all but the leftist hive.

For too long, the public has allowed the left-wing education establishment to have a free hand in running the schools. The public pays the bills and is told to be content with the slop the schools serve up to their kids. This has resulted in continuous deterioration of academic performance while costs have skyrocketed. Generations of kids have been stupefied by cockamamie educational programs like "New Math" and "Whole Language." Critical thinking was long ago abandoned. Standardize tests show the results of this educational malfeasance. Reading and math scores fall, while the performance of our students is pathetic when compared internationally.

It's clear that what the education establishment excels at is feathering its own nest, not educating the young. This is the very same education establishment and its left-wing allies that now want to force CRT into the schools. So instead of learning civics and reading, writing, and arithmetic, schoolchildren will be taught to dislike, if not hate, America...just as the leftists behind CRT do.

The audacity of this is breathtaking. But there it is.

Image: jarmoluk via Pixabay, Pixabay License.

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Pope Francis wants any and all walls, real or figurative, that stand between the West and Islam broken down immediately  or so he's constantly saying.

Most recently, on Sunday, June 13, 2021, he called for the "growth of a more supportive humanity that tears down the wall of indifference." This was spoken in the context of urging Europeans to take in more illegally arrived Muslim migrants.

Earlier, in March 2019, when asked "a question about migration in general and about U.S. President Donald Trump's then-threat to shut down the southern border with Mexico," the pope pontificated in platitudes. "Builders of walls," he said, "be they made of razor wire or bricks, will end up becoming prisoners of the walls they build. ... With fear, we will not move forward, with walls, we will remain closed within these walls."

Less than a week before that, Francis lectured the mayor of Rome about the need to be more welcoming to Muslim migrants. "Rome," he declared, "a hospitable city, is called to face this epochal challenge [floods of Muslim migrants demanding entry] in the wake of its noble history; to use its energies to welcome and integrate, to transform tensions and problems into opportunities for meeting and growth."

"Rome," he exulted, "city of bridges, never walls!"

The grand irony of all this is that Pope Francis lives in the only state to be surrounded by walls  Vatican City  and most of these bastions were erected to ward off ongoing Islamic invasions.

In 846, for example, a Muslim fleet from North Africa consisting of 73 ships and 11,000 Muslims, landed in Ostia near Rome. Muslim merchants who frequently visited Italy had provided them with precise intelligence that made the raid a success. Although they were unable to breach the pre-existing walls of the Eternal City, they sacked and despoiled the surrounding countryside, including  to the consternation of Christendom  the venerated and centuries-old basilicas of St. Peter and St. Paul. The Muslim invaders desecrated the tombs of the revered apostles and stripped them of all their treasures.

Pope Leo IV (847-855) responded by building many more walls, including fifteen bastions along the right bank of the Tiber River, the mouth of which was forthwith closed with a chain to protect the sacred sites from further Muslim raids and desecrations. Completed by 852, the walls were in places 40 feet high and 12 feet thick.

Further anticipating the crusades against Islam by over two centuries  and thus showing how they were a long time coming  Pope Leo (and after him Pope John VIII) offered the remission of sins for those Christians who died fighting Islamic invaders. Such was the existential and ongoing danger Muslims referred to in contemporary sources as "Sons of Satan," caused for Europe  more than two centuries before the First Crusade was launched in 1095.

Indeed, just three years after the initial Muslim invasion of Rome, "in 849 the Muslims attempted a new landing at Ostia; then, every year from around 857 on, they threatened the Roman seaboard," explains French medieval historian C. E. Dufourcq:

In order to get rid of them, Pope John VIII decided in 878 to promise them an annual payment [or jizya] of several thousand gold pieces; but this tribute of the Holy See to Islam seems to have been paid for only two years; and from time to time until the beginning of the tenth century, the Muslims reappeared at the mouth of the Tiber or along the coast nearby.

Today, many Muslims, not just of the ISIS variety, continue to boast that Islam will conquer Rome, the only one of five ancient apostolic sees never to have been subjugated by jihad (unlike Antioch, Alexandria, Jerusalem, and Constantinople).

Similarly, many Muslims all throughout Europe continue exhibiting the same hostility and contempt for all things and persons non-Islamic, whether by vandalizing churches and breaking crosses or by raping "infidel" women as theirs by right.

And that is the point that Pope Francis  whose own ancient city would never have lasted to the present if not for walls  misses: walls should go down and bridges should be extended only when both parties are willing to live in amicable peace. Otherwise, they serve only to make the destructive work of those who have for centuries been trying to conquer and destroy in the name of Islam that much easier.

For more on how walls saved Western civilization, see Raymond Ibrahim's Sword and Scimitar: Fourteen Centuries of War between Islam and the West.

Image via Max Pixel.

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Sort of a proverb: If you look for something hard enough, you'll eventually find it  even if it's not really there.

During our current moment, public discourse is obsessed with racism. In a population in excess of 300 million, there have to be some particularly hateful people. But racism is not the reason for the lower standard of living endured by the descendants of slaves who were freed by the Civil War.

One of the smartest of the 300 million is a descendant of those slaves, Thomas Sowell. Dr. Sowell has written several books, one of which is titled Ethnic America. In it, he describes the history of every significant ethnic group in our midst...including those whose ancestors came from Africa. He breaks those into three groups: 1) Free persons "of color." Prior to the Civil War, some Blacks had already achieved their freedom, Frederick Douglass being one of the most famous, and Crispus Attucks had come about a century earlier, and was killed at the Boston Massacre. 2) African and West Indian immigrants...such as Vice President Harris's father (Jamaican). And 3) the descendants of slaves freed by the Civil War.

The last group is certainly the most numerous. The first two groups, early freedmen and immigrants, are mostly identical to the "white" population as far as educational achievement and income, thus blowing up the use of racism as a cause for the disparity  since, to the typical hateful "Cracker," they all look alike.

Dr. Sowell proffers an explanation for this phenomenon. The early freedmen had been integrated into American society long before slavery in the South was abolished. Slavery in the West Indies was particularly harsh (compared to that in the U.S.), so the ultimate survivors of that practice had finely honed survival skills. African immigrants are typically representative of the elites of their countries of origin.

Historically, postCivil War America was deluged with freed slaves. Obviously, mistakes were made. In our modern world, it would be assumed that plans were afoot to deal with the hordes of new citizens, but things were different back then. Race riots overwhelmed places like New Orleans, and the next elected president, Ulysses Grant, stated that the American Indians were his first priority since America was really their property in the first place. Various state militias, now battle-hardened, were ruthlessly forcing Indians off land they wanted for themselves.

Upon Grant's retirement, the election of 1876 was a humdinger. Ever wonder why various streets and parks are named "Tilden"? Samuel J. Tilden, Democrat governor of New York, failed to get a decisive majority in the Electoral College  as did his Republican opponent, Rutherford B. Hayes. Thus, the election was decided by the House of Representatives, where each state's delegation got only one vote, as specified by the Constitution. Unspecified was the political reality that the fix was in. The Democrats let Hayes win in exchange for the Republicans putting an end to Reconstruction. Thus began the era of Jim Crow.

Time passes. The Second World War spelled the ultimate end for Jim Crow. First, Southern Blacks migrated north to find work in defense industries. Second, and more subtly, Hitler's grotesque fanaticism gave racism a bad name. Previously, speaking ill of certain types of people was acceptable in polite conversation, but no longer.

Racism persists, however, as a political weapon. Herding voters into groups enhances the efficiency of getting elected. Sure, it's demagoguery...but it still works.

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All throughout sub-Saharan Africa  in Nigeria, Mozambique, the Central African Republic, Mali, the Democratic Republic of Congo  Muslims are terrorizing and slaughtering Christians, and have been for many years now.

Nor is there any hope on the horizon, for problems that cannot be correctly and objectively addressed are doomed to persist in perpetuity. As far as the Western "mainstream" is concerned, all such persecution and terrorism is a byproduct of economic grievances  or, in the words of an April 16, 2021 report, titled "How poverty and corruption fuel terrorism across Africa":

On March 24th, a group of jihadis struck the town of Palma in Mozambique, killing dozens and burning government buildings to the ground. ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack  but doubts have been cast over who was behind the siege[.]

The remainder of the report argues that such attacks, which "are on the rise across the African continent," are "a consequence of poverty, domestic grievances new and old, and Africa's resource 'curse,' which paradoxically impoverishes people living on land which is rich in natural resources."

This has been the mainstream media's argument, and they're sticking to it  no matter all the mountains of contradictory evidence.

Take the little-known genocide of Christians that has long been going on in Nigeria. "Not less than 32,000 Christians have been butchered to death by the country's main Jihadists" between just 2009 and the first quarter of 2020. According to the most recent report, between January and April of this year alone, 1,470 Christians were hacked to death. On average, this comes out to about 368 Christians killed every month for four months straight. Since just 2016, 13,000 churches have been destroyed by "Allahu akbar"screaming Muslims.

The full name of Boko Haram, the premier terror group that dominates northern Nigeria, is "Sunnis for [Islamic] Propagation and Jihad." "Boko Haram," their nickname, means "Western education is a sin" (not "we kill because we're poor"). Their stated goal is the establishment of a pure sharia state in Nigeria and the brutal subjugation or slaughter of the nation's Christians. Moreover, the Muslim Fulani herdsmen, who in recent years have terrorized more Christians than even Boko Haram, are acting on jihadi teachings and hate for Christians.

Despite all this, the Western "mainstream" remains committed to describing the jihad in Nigeria  and increasingly all throughout sub-Saharan Africa  as a byproduct of "inequality" and "poverty," to quote Bill Clinton, when once explaining what is "fueling all this stuff" ("stuff" being a reference to the aforementioned genocide of Christians in Nigeria).

Or, in the words of Barack Obama's assistant secretary of state for African affairs, Johnnie Carson, speaking after the bombing of a church that left nearly forty Christian worshipers dead on Easter Sunday, 2012  one of countless churches to be burned or bombed before and since that Easter: "I want to take this opportunity to stress one key point, and that is that religion is not driving extremist violence" in Nigeria.

But as the Nigerian nun Sister Monica Chikwe once observed, "[i]t's tough to tell Nigerian Christians this isn't a religious conflict since what they see are Fulani fighters clad entirely in black, chanting 'Allahu Akbar!' and screaming 'Death to Christians.'"

Similarly, the Christian Association of Nigeria once asked: "How can it be a [secular or economic] clash when one group [Muslims] is persistently attacking, killing, maiming, destroying, and the other group [Christians] is persistently being killed, maimed and their places of worship destroyed?"

Such is the current state of affairs: a jihad of genocidal proportions has been declared on the Christian population of Nigeria  and has since spilled over into several other sub-Saharan nations  even as Western media and analysts present Nigeria's problems in purely economic terms that defy reality.

The inability to accept these straightforward facts; the inability to factor ideological or existential motives, seeing only material motives (money, land, etc.); the almost instinctive conclusion that Muslim violence is proof positive of a legitimate grievance  all of these are so ingrained in the predominant paradigm, from the mainstream media to mainstream politicians, and all of these are poisoning Western civilization from within, and eroding its influence and capacity to act from without.

Raymond Ibrahim, author most recently of Sword and Scimitar, is a Shillman Fellow at the David Horowitz Freedom Center, a Judith Rosen Friedman Fellow at the Middle East Forum, and a Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Gatestone Institute.

Image: CreaPark via Pixabay, Pixabay License.

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As I listen and read about America's systemic racism embedded in all the assorted fabrics of American life, I am numb. William Buckley in his book, Rumbles Left and Right, makes the point that in the aftermath of a nuclear holocaust, "bereavement becomes redundant." Similarly, empathy in the quest for racial justice has become redundant. Born in 1952, I still slog through the same racial justice narratives: peaceful protests, violent protests, violently peaceful protests, calls for national dialogues, compensatory wails for reparations, the left's Great Societies with their endless political children  integration, busing, affirmative action, and now CRT, not to mention the apotheosis of Trayvon Martin and George Floyd. Six decades of activist media cranking out rote messages on white injustice, and still, white elites take the stage at awards shows waxing eloquent about their unbearably heavy white guilt and get tearful awards for doing so.

I'm 69. The Great Societies, as of now, apparently show less than nothing for six decades of effort except for video of BLM big-city chaos. By rights, Baltimore should be a shining city on a hill. The media in all their forms along with the political class make essentially the case that their decades-long march was, well, worthless. Is America really as racist as we stand accused of being? Ponder it. The only people who relentlessly pontificate about race are talking heads from leftist redoubts of the wannabe famous to the actually famous. Are these people with assumed superior moral wisdom really ordained to dispense it? Are they not merely people with P.R. representation and activist funding?

I submit that you and I, Americans without P.R. reps, regular people getting on with their lives, navigating the government's potholed aftermath of COVID, are listening to people with press agents and activist funding tell us what terrible people we are. I'm sorry, but are we just so unsure of our self-worth that over the many months of masked lockdown, we can let the media and political personalities dump all over us to the point where we look at our reflection and say, "I sure do suck!"?

In 1990, presidential candidate Ross Perot introduced the catchphrase "that giant sucking sound" to describe the draining of American jobs to Mexico. In 2021, that giant sucking sound is the fatiguing white noise of racial agonizers strutting the stage of social media ephemera. America, you don't suck. Never forget it.

Spruce Fontaine is the pen name of an artist and retired college art instructor.

Image: Andy Witchger via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.

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During the hey days of Cold War, the Soviet started blowing up nukes all over northeastern Kazakhstan to investigate the possibility of using nuclear power for peaceful construction purposes such as moving earth, creating canals and reservoirs, drilling for oil and so on. The tests were carried out under the banner of Nuclear Explosions for the National Economy. This was the Soviet version of Operation Plowshare  a similar program devised by the U.S.

Having borrowed the terrible idea from the U.S., the Soviet program got underway in vigor and ended up being many times larger than the U.S. Plowshare program both in terms of the number of applications explored with field experiments and the extent to which they were introduced into industrial use. While the U.S. conducted 27 tests before realizing it was a bad idea and terminated the program in 1977, the Soviets continued right up to 1989 during which as many as 156 nuclear tests were conducted.

Photo credit

One of the better known tests is the January 1965 test at Chagan, on the edge of the Semipalatinsk Test Site in Kazakhstan. The Chagan test was designed to test the suitability of nuclear explosions for creating reservoirs. It was the first and largest of all detonations carried in the Nuclear Explosions for the National Economy program. A 140 kiloton device was placed in a 178 meter deep hole in the dry bed of the Chagan River so that the crater lip would dam up the river during periods of high flow. The blast created a crater 400 meters across and 100 meters deep with a lip height of 20 to 38 meters. Later, a channel was cut into the crater allowing it, and the reservoir behind it, to fill up with water.

The reservoir, known informally as Lake Chagan, still exist today in substantially the same form. The water continues to be radioactive - about 100 times more than the permitted level of radionuclides in drinking water, though 100-150 meters away dose levels were at background level. At that time of its creation, the Soviet government was proud of Lake Chagan. They made a film with the Minister of the Medium Machine Building Ministry, the one responsible for the entire Soviet nuclear weapons program, taking a swim in the crater lake and water from it was used to feed cattle in the area.

It was estimated that some 20% of the radioactive products from the Chagan test escaped the blast zone, and were detected over Japan. This infuriated the USA for violating the provisions of the October 1963 Limited Test Ban Treaty, which banned atmospheric tests. The Soviets replied that it was an underground test and the quantity of radioactive debris that escaped into the atmosphere was insignificant. After several subsequent interactions, the matter was eventually abandoned

Also see: Sedan Nuclear Crater in Nevada Test Site, based on which the Chagan test was conducted.

Video of the nuclear test that created Lake Chagan.

Satellite picture of Lake Chagan (the circular crater) and the reservoir (below).

Photo credit

Photo credit

Sources: Wikipedia, World-Nuclear, Nuclear Weapons Archive
One of Australias famous pioneer monuments is located in the small town of Gundagai about half way between Melbourne and Sydney. The monument constitutes a dog sitting on top of a tucker box, which is the Australian equivalent of a lunchbox, but larger. Erected in 1926, the memorial pays homage to the bullockies or bullock cart drivers who transported building materials and supplies to remote towns and settlements over great distances under great hardship. The statue was inspired by a doggerel poem about a bullock cart driver named Bill, whose cart got bogged down at creek, and while he swore at his bullocks, his canine friend sat on his lunchbox, or worse, and spoiled his food.

Dog on the Tuckerbox. Photo: Zeytun Images | Dreamstime.com

Bullock teams were used in Sydney and around New South Wales in the late 18th century to haul building materials for the newly established penal colony. Bullock carts were also used by explorers Hamilton Hume and William Hovell in 1824, when they led an expedition into New South Wales to find new grazing land. Later, British officer Charles Sturt led several expeditions into the interior of the continent, and also used bullock teams during his explorations.

In the mid 19th century, before the advent of railways, bullock carts were the mainstay of transport, carrying essential food and station supplies to isolated country areas, and the produce of the land such as wheat, wool, and sugarcane to the shipping ports. Transporting materials and harvest over bullock wagons was slow, and consequently the journeys were long. The job demanded skilled and tough men who could face any adversity. Bullockies were also colorful characters, noted for their strong language and swearing. A typical bullocky wore a cabbage tree hat, a twill shirt of that period, moleskin trousers, blucher boots and carried a long bullock whip.

Bullock team hauling wool on a dray, Walcha, New South Wales, circa 1918. Photo: Gooreen collection/Wikimedia Commons

A bullock team carting a load of wool, circa 1909. Photo: South Australian State Library/Wikimedia Commons

The Poem

The poem is based upon the misfortunes of a certain bullock cart driver named Bill, whose cart got hopelessly bogged down at a creek, some five or nine miles from Gundagai. While trying to pull the wagon out of the bog, one of the bullocks broke the wagons yoke. Thereupon, Bill gave up the job and went to have his lunch, only to find that the dog had fouled the foodstuffs contained in a tucker box. The other bullockies thought it was a great joke and one of the them presumably wrote a poem about it.

The poem Bullocky Bill was first published in 1857 attributed to an unknown poet who used the pen name 'Bowyang Yorke'. The poem has many different versions, but the one that is famous today and is sung both in the bush and in the cities reads as follows:

As I was coming down Conroy's Gap,

I heard a maiden cry;

'There goes Bill the Bullocky,

He's bound for Gundagai. A better poor old buggar

Never earnt an honest crust,

A better poor old buggar

Never drug a whip through dust. 'His team got bogged at the nine mile creek,

Bill lashed and swore and cried;

'If Nobby don't get me out of this,

I'll tattoo his bloody hide. 'But Nobby strained and broke the yoke,

And poked out the leader's eye;

Then the dog sat on the Tucker Box

Nine miles from Gundagai.

This version of the poem was written by the poet and traveler Jack Moses and published in the booklet 'Beyond the City Gates' in 1923. In the original poem, Bills dog defecates on his lunchbox, but Jack Moses decided to sanitize the text and replaced the word shat with sat.

The Monument

Dog on the Tuckerbox. Photo: Alex Proimos/Flickr

The first dog monument was erected by an unknown resident about 5 miles from Gundagi in 1926. Consequently, local Gundagai stonemason Frank Rusconi suggested a proper memorial be erected using the legend of the Dog on the Tuckerbox. The memorial was unveiled in 1932 by the then Prime Minister of Australia, Joseph Lyons as a tribute to pioneers.

Gundagai's fame was further immortalized by Jack O'Hagan in 1937 in his popular songs 'Along the Road to Gundagai' and 'My Mabel waits for me' that put the town on the world map.

References:

# The Dog on the Tucker Box Story, thedogonthetuckerbox.com

# Dog on the Tuckerbox, Jane Dogs

# Wikipedia
(Image source from: mynation.com)

UK Court rejects Nirav Modi's application against Extradition:- Indian billionaire businessman Nirav Modi is absconding from the country after he owes Rs 13500 crores to Punjab National Bank and its allies. Nirav Modi was caught in London and he is jailed in the capital. A London court is hearing his extradition and the Indian officials are speeding up the process of his extradition without leaving any stone unturned. A UK High Court rejected the application filed by Nirav Modi to appeal against the extradition case to India. He lodged an appeal last month in the High Court of London. It was on April 15th this year, UK Home Secretary Priti Patel allowed Nirav Modi to be extradited to India. Nirav Modi was arrested on March 19, 2019 and he is landed in Wandsworth prison in London.

Fugitives & economic offenders will be actively pursued; their properties attached & dues recovered.#PSBs have already recovered 1357 Cr by selling such shares.

A total of 9041.5 Cr shall be realised by banks through sale of such attached assets.https://t.co/e6F7n8drdl https://t.co/Jw96WlfjHX  Nirmala Sitharaman (@nsitharaman) June 23, 2021

A red corner notice was issued in June 2018 after he escaped from the country in January 2018. All his bail petitions are rejected by the Westminster Court and High Court. With his appeal against extradition, Nirav Modi will now be flown to India soon. Assets worth Rs 9371 crores belonging to Vijay Mallya, Mehul Choksi and Nirav Modi have been transferred to the state-run banks by the Enforcement Directorate to recover the losses from the bank fraud. The Enforcement Directorate seized assets worth Rs 18,170.02 crores including Rs 969 crores worth foreign assets. The banks could recover 80.45 percent of the total loss. "Fugitives & economic offenders will be actively pursued; their properties attached & dues recovered," told Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in a tweet.
Mukesh Ambani suggests Companies to go Green:- Indian business tycoon and Asia's richest man Mukesh Ambani, the Chairman of Reliance Industries Limited is in plans to transform all his units of business into a sustainable business model by 2035. He said that there is no option for everyone and we have to adopt a sustainable business model, told Ambani. He told this at Qatar Economic Forum. Without sharing more details, Ambani wanted the companies to go green. Ambani's 60 percent revenue comes from its hydrocarbon fuelled energy operations. Mukesh Ambani told all his shareholders last year that Reliance will completely focus on clean energy with solar, wind, fuel cells, batteries and hydrogen.

Mukesh Ambani is focused on green initiatives after several energy giants are under pressure from investors to improve their environmental policies so that they could move towards a low-carbon future. Mukesh Ambani announced that Reliance will become a net-zero carbon company by 2035. This is a shorter time when to compared to several companies that imposed 2050 as the deadline. Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries bought its first cargo of carbon-neutral crude oil in February 2021 and it is aiming for more collaborations and partnerships in the future.
Heart failure in extreme cases of Broken heart syndrome:- Several scientists in the United Kingdom identified two key molecules that play a role in the development of Takotsubo syndrome which is known as the broken heart syndrome that can lead to heart failure or heart stroke. In most of the extreme cases, there is heart failure. The research is done in Imperial College London that found the increased levels of the small molecules. These regulate how the genes are decoded which is called microRNAs. The research is funded by the British Heart Foundation and is published in the journal Cardiovascular Research. This helps the scientists to understand the disease and identify the risk to treat the disease.

Sian Harding, Professor of Cardiac Pharmacology at Imperials National Heart & Lung Institute told that Takotsubo syndrome is a very serious condition and it happens when people slip into a sudden emotional shock. Sian Harding also said that it is not easy to understand why some people respond on such a strong note. The further research about the Takotsubo syndrome is being investigated for now. The other causes and the symptoms are traced and it would take a long time to conduct a detailed research on Takotsubo syndrome.
HMD Global is bringing the Nokia G20 to the US, starting at the end of this month. Thats based on an announcement from the Nokia brand, detailing exactly what buyers can expect when it lands.

Now, one of the biggest features of the Nokia G20 is its battery life. The company claims that, with help from a battery management AI, the 5,050mAh capacity battery can last up to three days. When it does need to fuel up, the company opted for a 10W charging solution delivered by USB-C.

And longevity from this phone goes well beyond day-to-day usage too. With Nokia promising an update to Android 12 when that arrives, as well as one more update over time. Thats setting aside three years of promised updates on the security front. With those updates set to arrive monthly. For any device with a sub-$600 asking price  and this one is actually much more affordable than that still  thats fairly groundbreaking. If Nokia can live up to its promise.

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Beyond even that, Nokia G20 is not a small device by any standard. In fact, it has a screen that should by all accounts drain the battery even faster.

To begin with, the panel is set at 6.5-inches with an HD+ resolution in a v-notch style at a ratio of 20:9. The notch in question, of course, houses the front camera and more colloquially resembles a water droplet just beginning to form from the top edge. But its the brightness boost that makes the battery and screen size impressive.

Nokia says that even under direct sunlight, this budget-friendly handset will be easily and clearly visible thanks to a brightness boost that offsets above and beyond the typical brightness.

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The screen is built using 2.5D glass at a resolution of 1600 X 720 pixels.

The Nokia G20 is going to be one of the best truly budget phones you can buy

As noted above, the Nokia G20 has already been appearing well ahead of its US launch. Not least of all, it was officially announced alongside several other devices back in early April. But theres more to this handset than a big screen, long-lasting battery, or promised updates. And theres more than the textured back panel allowing for dynamic color changes based on lighting too.

Nokia G20 ships with an octa-core Mediatek G35 SoC with eight A53 cores clocked at 2.3GHz. Just for starters. And thats driving Android 11 out of the box, backed by 4GB RAM and 128GB of MicroSD card expandable storage up to 512GB.

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The 3.5mm audio jack is sticking around for this build too. So users can hear all of their favorite movies, apps, games, or songs  even via FM Radio  using their favorite wired headphones. And that includes the immersive audio captured via the 48-megapixel quad-cameras OZO Audio surround sound recording. Macro, Depth, and Ultra-Wide cameras are in place backing that sensor up as well. As is a dedicated Night Mode and Portrait Mode, on the software side.

Around the front, HMD Global backed that camera up with an 8-megapixel selfie shooter. Face unlock is part of the bundle via that sensor too.

The company rounds out those features with a side-mounted fingerprint sensor and a dedicated Google Assistant hardware key. And, of course, the company ensured that the whole package is IPX2 rated. So it should survive sweat, a light sprinkle of rain, and dust. While not quite as good as the water and dust proofing found on many flagships, this is an unusual feature for a budget handset to have. So its a welcome addition to this Nokia handset.

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The biggest drawback in all of this is that this phone will not support next-gen 5G networking. Despite those networks becoming much more widespread over the last couple of years. Instead, HMD Global opted for a more widely available, more reliable 4G LTE connection. And Bluetooth 5.0 backs that up for more localized connectivity.

Specs

Now, HMD Global already announced the specs of the Nokia G20 for its global launch, buried amidst other announcements from that day. Here are those specs again, for those who might have missed them  as provided by the company.

Nokia G20 Display 6.5(6.517) HD+ | v-notch | 20:9 | Brightness boost SoC Mediatek G35 8x A53 2.3GHz Memory RAM: 4GB

ROM: 128GB | MicroSD card slot supports up to 512GB Cameras Main: 48MP f/1.79 + 5MP UW + 2 MP Macro + 2 MP Depth | Flash

Front: 8MP

Night mode | Portrait mode | OZO Audio Connectivity & Sensors 802.11 b/g/n | Bluetooth 5.0 | GPS/AGPS + GLONASS + Beidou

Ambient light sensor | Proximity sensor | Accelerometer (G-sensor) | Gyroscope | NFC (TA-1336, TA-1343, TA-1347) Network LTE CAT4 Charging 5V2A Charging Battery 5050mAh | Non-removable I/O USB Type-C (USB 2.0) OTG | 3.5mm audio jack Dimensions & Weight 164.9 x 76.0 x 9.2mm | Weight 197g SIM Slot Dual SIM | Nano SIM + Nano SIM + Micro SD

Single SIM | Nano SIM + Micro SD Other Google Assistant button | FM radio (headset required) | 2 microphones | Side fingerprint sensor | IPX2 OS Android 11 | two years of upgrades  three years of monthly security updates Colors Night, Glacier

Pricing and availability

In terms of the exact launch timeframe, although this announcement is happening now, the official sales date isnt. The company says that the 4GB RAM, 128GB Dual SIM configuration will be available starting on July 1. Sales will be happening directly through the Nokia phones website and the handset will be available in both its dark blue  almost purple at its darkest  Night and semi-pearlescent, ice-inspired white Glacier color schemes.

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For pricing, US buyers can expect to pay just $199 for the Nokia G20. Making it arguably one of the best-priced, high-value budget handsets available from launch. If not one of the most exciting handsets from the Nokia brand in the past couple of years. Albeit, one that arrives without 5G support in tow.
Anniston, AL (36206)

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Isolated thunderstorms early, becoming mostly clear after midnight. Low 64F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%..

Tonight

Isolated thunderstorms early, becoming mostly clear after midnight. Low 64F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%.
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(ANSA) - ROME, JUN 23 - Premier Mario Draghi said Italy would try to involve the US in the Libyan situation on Wednesday, under the aegis of the UN, saying "the actor that h as the most cards to play does not want to be involved in that part of the world".

"It's not as if we have no cards to play in Libya," Draghi told the Senate.

"We have at least as many as the other actors...we spoke about it in Cornwall.

"What we are trying to do is to urge the intervention of the UN under the auspices of the UN and at that point we can see if the US intends to be involved". (ANSA).


BRUSSELS - The European Commission is proposing strategic support worth 5.7 billion euros for refugees and the communities hosting them in Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, until 2024. This package should include 3 billion in resources of the EU budget that should be allocated to support actions for refugees in Turkey, in addition to the 535 million euros of the ongoing bridging fund to continue key humanitarian projects with refugees until the beginning of 2022. The proposal circulated under the form of an informal 'non paper' document, which ANSA can disclose and which will be discussed by leaders at a summit tomorrow.
WASHINGTON - Four Saudis who took part in the 2018 killing of the Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi received paramilitary training in the United States the previous year, based on a contract with the State Department, the New York Times reports, quoting documents and people familiar with the case.



The training took place as the secret unit responsible for Khashoggi's murder was starting an extensive campaign of kidnapping, detention and torture of Saudi citizens ordered by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler, to crack down on dissent in the kingdom, the New York Times reported in an article published on Tuesday.



The newspaper said the training was provided by Arkansas-based company Tier 1 Group, which is owned by the private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management. The Times reported the company as saying that the training, including "safe marksmanship" and "countering an attack", was defensive in nature and aimed at better protecting Saudi leaders. A source added that it also included work in surveillance and close-quarter battles.



The paper added that there is no evidence that American officials who approved the training or Tier 1 Group executives knew that the Saudis were involved in the crackdown inside Saudi Arabia. However, the fact that the government gave its authorization proved how intensely connected the US has become with an autocratic country while its agents committed human rights abuses, the New York Times said.


MADRID - The nine detained separatist leaders of Catalonia have left prison after being pardoned by the central Spanish government. The leaders spent three years in prison after being convicted over a failed independence bid in 2017. They were welcomed by members of the regional government and of separatist parties.



"Today nothing ends, today everything continues", said Oriol Junqueras as he was leaving prison. Junqueras, a former regional president of Catalonia, had been sentenced to a 13-year term over the separatist bid in 2017. "Prison doesn't bend us in front of anything, on the contrary it strengthens our ideas", added Junqueras. "We are leaving with the pledge to continue to work with politics on what should never have left politics", he said outside the penitentiary of Lledoners (Barcelona).



Before his speech, the other six independentist leaders who were also imprisoned, made statements. "If today we are out it is because the State could not keep us inside anymore due to pressure from Europe", said for example the activist Jordi Cuixart. "Today is not a day to give up but one in which us Catalans are resolving to continue this fight".



"We will not accept any silence in exchange for any pardon", said for his part Jordi Sanchez, who is also an activist and a member of the party Junts per Catalunya. "We will continue to fight to obtain Catalonia's independence", said former regional councilor Josep Rull. The seven were photographed while they were holding a banner saying 'Freedom for Catalonia' and a flag of independentist Catalonia.



Near another Catalan jail, located in the province of Girona, former regional councilor Dolors Bassa, who was also pardoned after a conviction, stated that the pardon is "a first step" but "the repression is not over".
The Wisconsin Assembly has passed a bill that would create a new $10 million grant program to help communities clean up contamination from forever chemicals known as PFAS but would ban them from suing those responsible for the pollution
Pope Francis shared the limelight with a member of the public dressed as Spider-Man during a gathering at the Vatican on Wednesday.

Twenty-eight-year-old Matteo Villardita  who dons the comic-book and movie superhero outfit to cheer up children he visits in hospital  was among the public lined up in rows during the pontiffs weekly audience.

Sweating under his costume in Romes heatwave, Mr Villardita said he asked Francis to pray for the children and their families.

He told AP TV that he gave Francis a spare mask, as a sign, to tell him that through these eyes I daily see pain from sick children in hospitals.

Mr Villardita reached out and touched Francis, who was not wearing a face mask, on the back off his arm as he greeted the pontiff.

It was very exciting because Pope Francis immediately understood my mission, he said.

Mr Villardita took selfies with youngsters attending the audience in a Vatican courtyard.

The Vatican described Mr Villardita as really a good superhero and quoted him as saying that during Italys long months of pandemic lockdown he had made more than 1,400 videocalls, since he was not able to visit in person, to help ailing children smile.

Mr Villardita planned to visit the Vaticans paediatric hospital later on Wednesday.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has expressed hope that the world could open up, as holidaymakers eagerly await an update to the Governments foreign travel lists.

The Cabinet minister told the PA news agency that other countries are catching up with the UKs coronavirus vaccination programme.

But Thursdays review of the lists which determine the quarantine and testing requirements for people arriving in the UK is expected to be lean for holidaymakers.

The Times reported that Malta and the Balearic Islands are among a handful of places being considered for addition to the green list.

People arriving in the UK from green list destinations are not required to self-isolate, but there are currently no viable major tourist destinations in that tier.

Malta and Spain are currently on the amber list, alongside other popular summer hotspots such as Portugal, Italy and Greece.

A 10-day quarantine period at home is required for people returning from those locations.

A checkpoint review of the rules for each tier is scheduled to take place on Monday.

Asked about the prospect of restrictions being eased, Mr Shapps said: Im optimistic that the world is catching up with where we are in our vaccination programme.

What happens in the UK is, people say well everyone I know or a lot of people I know are vaccinated.

People will say that, but of course as soon as you go abroad you find thats actually not the case.

So balancing the opening up whilst preserving peoples safety and security at home is absolutely at the forefront.

Of course I very much hope the world could open up. Weve got to follow the data, and thats what well be doing in the meetings over the next few days.

The weekly rate of coronavirus cases per 100,000 people on Malta is just 2.5, compared with 108.4 in the UK, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).

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Figures for the Balearic Islands  which include Ibiza, Menorca and Mallorca  are not published by the ECDC, but the weekly case rate for the whole of Spain is 49.6.

The UKs travel industry held a day of action on Wednesday to put pressure on the Government to reopen the sector and provide tailored financial support to businesses.

Industry body Abta estimates 195,000 travel jobs have been lost during the coronavirus pandemic or are at risk.

It accused ministers of failing to deliver a restart to travel by undermining the traffic light system.

The Government has urged people to avoid holidays to locations on the amber list.

Hundreds of travel industry workers  including travel agents, pilots and cabin crew  gathered outside the Palace of Westminster, London; Holyrood, Edinburgh; and in Belfast.

A virtual campaign event was held for people in Cardiff.

Derek Jones, boss of luxury travel firm Kuoni, said the outbound travel sector has been decimated by this pandemic and by the Governments haphazard response to it.

He added: Today, we have joined together to call upon ministers to acknowledge that the restrictions they have placed on international travel are having a deep and devastating impact on travel businesses.

We are united in one message today: we want to see the safe reopening of international travel alongside targeted financial support for businesses which have not been able to trade for well over a year.

Mr Shapps said: As a Cabinet, we take collective decisions in which we have decided, I think rightly, to prioritise the health of British people first and foremost.

Where thats meant for example curtailing travel, we provided 7 billion worth of support just to the aviation sector alone, 406 billion pounds to the whole economy.

So weve not been slow at coming forward for support. But of course, everybody wants to see as much of the economy opened as possible.

As Transport Secretary, for me that means people being able to travel around domestically and internationally, just as soon as its safe to do so.
Brandon Lewis has been told that any changes made to the Northern Ireland Protocol must be significant to address commercial discrimination against businesses and customers.

In an appearance before the Northern Ireland Affairs Select Committee, the Secretary of State said it is reasonable to take the view that changes will be made to the terms of the Brexit deal as it is not sustainable in its current form.

But DUP MP Ian Paisley said that any changes needed to be substantive, and could not be tinkerings.

Mr Lewis made his comments after outgoing DUP leader Edwin Poots said he had received a personal assurance from the UK Government that significant changes will be made to the Protocol.

In a separate interview, Mr Poots has warned of serious loyalist paramilitary violence in Northern Ireland this summer if Irish Sea trade barriers are not removed.

The UK Government and the EU are locked in a dispute over the implementation of the Protocol, the part of the Brexit divorce deal aimed at avoiding a hard border with Ireland.

Appearing before the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee on Wednesday, Mr Lewis was asked what he had told Mr Poots about alterations to the Protocol.

Ian Paisley warned that businesses in Northern Ireland are facing commercial discrimination (Brian Lawless/PA)

He said: We are very clear that the current position of the Protocol is not sustainable, it is causing issues for businesses and consumers and citizens in Northern Ireland and we need to rectify that.

Ultimately for us there is a very core point about the Protocol, which is about protecting and respecting the UKs internal market and not disrupting everyday lives of people in communities.

We want to get that rectified and we are determined to do so, so I think it is reasonable for anybody to take the view that we have said that there will be changes because there has to be  the current status quo is not sustainable.

DUP MP Ian Paisley referred to correspondence sent from Stormont Economy Minister Paul Frew to the committee.

He said: It is saying they have significant concerns about the distinct possibility that firms in GB will become dissuaded from engaging with Northern Ireland markets when faced by regulatory barriers.

He goes on to say that the UK Internal Markets Act does nothing to protect against commercial discrimination. These are very strong words from the Department of Economy in Northern Ireland that businesses are now facing commercial discrimination.

Mr Lewis responded: I think it highlights the points I made around the sustainability of the Protocol in its current format and how it is being implemented.

Outgoing DUP leader Edwin Poots has warned that the Northern Ireland Protocol could spark paramilitary violence (Brian Lawless/PA)

Weve got to get back to that situation where the products that are available in Northern Ireland are the products youve always been able to access and they are not unavailable because of anything other than consumer choice.

Mr Paisley said: I dont think it should be lost on anyone as to why there is a requirement for significant changes, and I hope that those changes, which you are tempting us with, and putting in front of us, that they are actually significant and they will not be tinkerings, but they will be changes which address this discrimination aspect.

Meanwhile, in an interview with BBC Radio Ulsters Nolan Show, outgoing DUP leader Mr Poots warned that tensions over the Protocol meant the paramilitaries may get involved if violence was to flare again in the summer.

I fear that if things dont change over the course of the summertime, that perhaps some older people who are involved in paramilitaries will get involved.
Russian forces fired warning shots at a Royal Navy destroyer after it entered the countrys territorial waters in the Black Sea, the Russian defence ministry has said.

A border patrol boat fired warning shots at HMS Defender and a Su-24M warplane dropped four bombs, the defence ministry said in a statement reported by the Russian Interfax news agency.

The destroyer was warned in advance that weapons would be fired in case of a violation of the Russian state border. It disregarded the warning, the statement said.

As a result of joint actions of the Black Sea Fleet and the Border Service of the Russian Federal Security Service, HMS Defender left the territorial sea of the Russian Federation.

The there was no immediate response to the statement from the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

HMS Defender  a Type 45 destroyer  is part of the UK Carrier Strike Group currently heading to the Indo-Pacific region.

However, it was announced earlier this month that it would be temporarily breaking away from the group to carry out its own set of missions in the Black Sea.
(Reuters) -Warren Buffett on Wednesday resigned as trustee of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, one of the world's largest private charitable organizations, as he delivered another $4.1 billion worth of Berkshire Hathaway stock to philanthropy.

Buffett has been making annual contributions to five charitable foundations since 2006 as part of a plan to distribute about 99% of his net worth to philanthropy.

"With today's $4.1 billion distribution, I'm halfway there," Buffett said in a statement.

He did not clearly state why he was leaving the Gates foundation board at this time, and expressed his support for the foundation's current CEO and its direction.

Bill Gates and his wife Melinda, co-founders of the foundation, filed for divorce in May after 27 years of marriage but have pledged to continue their philanthropic work together.

The 21-year-old foundation has become one of the most powerful and influential forces in global public health, spending more than $50 billion over the past two decades to bring a business approach to combating poverty and disease.

Last year, Buffett reported donating more than $2 billion worth of his Berkshire stock, to the Gates Foundation as part of previously announced plans to give away his entire fortune before his death.

"For years I have been a trustee  an inactive trustee at that  of only one recipient of my funds, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. I am now resigning from that post, just as I have done at all corporate boards other than Berkshire's," Buffett said.

Gates and Buffett pioneered "The Giving Pledge" campaign over a decade ago, urging dozens of U.S. billionaires to give at least half their fortunes to charity.

Many billionaires have since then been active in philanthropy in everything from genetic and cancer research to education, gun control and libraries and the arts.

MacKenzie Scott, ex-wife of Amazon.com Inc billionaire founder Jeff Bezos, has donated over $4 billion towards food banks and emergency relief funds in previous months.

(Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)
CLEVELAND (AP)  Drake Bell, the former star of the popular Nickelodeon show Drake & Josh, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to charges relating to a girl who met him online and attended one of his concerts in Cleveland in 2017, when she was 15.

Jared Drake Bell, 34, of West Hollywood, California, pleaded guilty via Zoom to felony attempted child endangerment and a misdemeanor charge of disseminating matter harmful to juveniles. Sentencing is scheduled for July 12 in Cleveland.

Defense attorney Ian Friedman said Wednesday that he could not comment on the case but said it will be revealed at sentencing why Mr. Bell chose to enter today's plea.

Bell had initially pleaded not guilty to the charges earlier this month. Tyler Sinclair, a spokesperson for the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office, said at the time that the girl contacted Toronto police in October 2018. Toronto authorities then contacted Cleveland police, prompting an investigation.

The attempted endangering children charge relates to the concert, Sinclair said, where Bell violated his duty of care and created a risk of harm to the victim. Sinclair didnt elaborate further.

Bell and the girl had developed a relationship online several years prior to the concert, Sinclair said. The disseminating harmful material charge concerns Bell having sent the girl inappropriate social media messages, Sinclair said.

The sentencing range is probation to two years in prison. The girl, who is now an adult, will be allowed to give a victim impact statement at the sentencing.

Bell, also a singer, began acting as a child, but was catapulted to stardom as a teen with Nickelodeons The Amanda Show and later Drake & Josh, which debuted on the channel in January 2004. The final episode aired in September 2007. Bell and co-star Josh Beck also starred in two Drake & Josh movies.
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FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga.  Forsyth County residents insured by UnitedHealthcare could soon find visits to Northside Hospital Forsyth classified out-of-network.

The hospital network and major insurance providers agreement for in-network care is set to expire Aug. 1. If the deadline passes without the two sides inking a deal, thousands across the Metro Atlanta area, including in Forsyth County, could be forced to find an alternative in-network medical provider.

If a deal is not struck by Aug. 1, Northsides Forsyth County, Atlanta and Cherokee County hospitals will be out-of-network for employee-sponsored, individual and UnitedHealthcares Medicare Advantage Plan, including its National PPO plan.

UnitedHealthcares contracts with Northsides ancillary locations, ambulatory surgical centers, its Northside employed physicians  including those at Gwinnett Medical Group and Northside Medical Group  will not be affected if a deal is not struck, UnitedHealthcare said.

Both sides have kept their cards close to the vest on details, but the issue stems from a cost agreement that has left talks at a stalemate.

"Northside and United Healthcare have continued regular discussions for quite some time, Northside Hospital Vice President Lee Echols said. While we have not reached an agreement on what's best for Northside's patients who have lost their health care coverage, we're committed to fixing this situation. We hope that United will do the same."

The hospital system has stepped up the pressure.

Attorney Sam Olens, who is representing Northside, asked members of the Forsyth County Commission to send a letter to UnitedHealthcare urging it to facilitate an equitable agreement. Commissioners approved the letter by unanimous vote.

For its part, UnitedHealthcare says it is meeting with Northside officials to renew its contract for Northsides Atlanta, Cherokee County and Forsyth County hospitals. The firm says it desires to keep these facilities in-network, but at a lower cost to customers.

Throughout several months of negotiations with Northside, weve been focused on our goal of making health care affordable for the residents and employers we serve in Atlanta, UnitedHealthcare said in a statement to the Herald. We have made significant compromises in an effort to renew our relationship and ensure our members have continued access to affordable care at Northsides hospitals.

The local fight between the companies comes after United and Northside failed to reach an agreement for in-network coverage in Gwinnett County. On March 1, Northside Hospital Gwinnett and Northside Hospital Duluth went out of network for employee-sponsored and individual plans for UnitedHealthcare customers.

United says it is still looking to reach an agreement with Northside to resume in-network coverage at the Gwinnett hospitals in addition to its Forsyth County, Cherokee County and Atlanta hospitals.
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The court also allowed the petitioners to approach it if any coercive and arm-twisting action is taken under the new rules

They submitted the new IT Rules seek to regulate the conduct of entities that do not even come under the ambit of the Information Technology Act, 2000. (PTI Photo)

Chennai: The Madras High Court on Wednesday issued notice to the Centre over a plea challenging the constitutional validity of the new IT rules.

The first bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy directed issuing the notice on a plea by the Digital News Publishers Association, comprising 13 outlets which challenged the constitutional validity of the Information Technology rules 2021.

Admitting the plea, the bench tagged it with an earlier petition moved by well-known Carnatic musician TM Krishna over the issue earlier.

The court also allowed the petitioners to approach it if any coercive and arm-twisting action is taken under the new rules.

Senior advocate P S Raman, appearing for the petitioners, objected to certain provisions in the rules.

Rule 16 is an omnibus provision giving power to the secretary to the Union ministry of Information and Broadcasting to block public access to any digital information.

He sought an interim order restraining the Centre from taking any action under the rules pending disposal of the plea.

However, the bench said there was no need for an interim order at this stage since no coercive action has been taken against the media outlets so far.

"Since no adverse action has been initiated against the petitioners as of now, no omnibus order made at this stage. However if such provisions are resorted to against the petitioners, petitioners will be at liberty to apply for interim relief," the court said.

According to the petitioners, Part II of the IT Rules, 2021 (Due diligence by intermediaries and grievance redressal mechanism) is anti-ethical to fundamental rights.

By these provisions, private intermediaries are vested with excessive power in shaping the discourse of speech in the country.

The stringent timelines forced under Part II incentivise intermediaries to over-censor content, thereby curbing free speech, the petitioners contended.

They submitted the new IT Rules seek to regulate the conduct of entities that do not even come under the ambit of the Information Technology Act, 2000.

The IT Rules, 2021 seek to curb freedom of speech and expression, as well as the freedom of the press by proscribing content based on vague and subjective grounds, which have already been struck down by the Supreme Court, they added.
The meeting is the first such exercise since the Centre announced the abrogation of Jammu and Kashmir's special status under Article 370

Lucknow: BSP president Mayawati on Wednesday termed as a "proper initiative" the meeting convened by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Kashmir, and hoped that it would prove helpful in taking some concrete decisions.

Fourteen leaders from Jammu and Kashmir have been invited to the meeting to be chaired by the prime minister on Thursday to discuss the future course of action for the union territory.

In a tweet in Hindi, the BSP president said, The meeting of 14 leaders of Jammu and Kashmir at the level of PM Narendra Modi on June 24 is a proper initiative. Hope this meeting, which comes after a gap of about two years, will prove fruitful in taking some concrete decisions and will also be helpful on (issues like) restoration of statehood of Jammu and Kashmir etc .

At the same time, the early completion of delimitation of Jammu and Kashmir Assembly seats and general elections are such issues on which the eyes of the country are focussed. The Centre should intensify efforts to restore the situation in Jammu and Kashmir at the earliest as per its promise and claim," she said in another tweet.

The meeting is the first such exercise since the Centre announced the abrogation of Jammu and Kashmir's special status under Article 370 of the Constitution and its bifurcation into union territories on August 5, 2019.
The top court is hearing a plea seeking directions to state governments to not hold board examinations in view of the COVID-19 pandemic

The state government said it will tentatively hold the Class 12 examination in the last week of July and the time table would be issued shortly. (PTI Photo)

New Delhi: The Andhra Pradesh government on Wednesday told the Supreme Court that it will be able to conduct Class 12 exams successfully as there are no reliable alternatives to assess the state board students.

The state government said it will tentatively hold the Class 12 examination in the last week of July and the time table would be issued shortly.

In its affidavit, filed through standing counsel for the state Mahfooz A Nazki, the state government said that COVID-19 cases are fast declining in the state.

It gave figures of COVID cases for June 20 - 5,646, June 21 - 5,541 and June 22 - 4,169 cases and compared them with last month's corresponding dates May 20 - 22,610, May 21 - 20,937 cases and May 22- 19,981 cases.

Experts have been consulted and they are of the view that it will be feasible to hold the examination. The state accordingly shall endeavour to conduct the examination tentatively in the last week of July 2021. The actual time table shall be issued shortly and intimated to the students and parents 15 days in advance, it said.

The practical exams have already been conducted from March 31 to April 24, 2021, it said.

The Andhra government said there does not appear to be a reliable alternative to assess Class 12 of the state board Class 10 students are awarded grades instead of marks.

The board does not have any check or visibility on the internal examinations conducted by various schools. Thus, any assessment based on internal examination in the State of Andhra Pradesh may not yield accurate results, the state government said.

The state's affidavit, which will be taken up for hearing before a special bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar and Dinesh Maheshwari on Thursday, said that in the common entrance exam (Engineering, Agriculture and Pharmacy Common Entrance Test), 25 per cent weight is given to the marks obtained in Class 12.

The top court is hearing a plea seeking directions to state governments to not hold board examinations in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thus, Class 12 results play a crucial role in determining the future of the Students, the Andhra Pradesh government said, adding that in view of the difficulties coupled with the improving COVID situation, the authorities are of the view that it will be in the best interest of Students if examination is conducted.

It said a total of 5,19,510 students are scheduled to appear for Class 12 exams and 5,12,959 students are eligible for Class 11 exams.

It said that several precautionary measures will be put in place if the state government is permitted to conduct examinations -- like, Class 12 and Class 11 will be held on alternative days.

It added that Class 11 and Class 12 students are required to appear for 5-6 subjects only, hence each student will be required to attend examination for 5-6 days.

Only 15 to 18 students will be allotted to each examination Centre, the state government said while giving details of several precautionary measures it will be taking keeping in mind the COVID pandemic.

The state is conscious of the difficult situation that it is in. However, under the given circumstances, the State is of the considered view that conduct of examination shall not only be in the best interest of the Students but shall also be conducted safely, it said.

The state government sought permission of the top court to conduct the Intermediate Public Examination 2021 adhering to the precautions.

On Tuesday, the top court had said If there is any fatality, we will hold the state responsible.

The remark of the top court came after it was informed by the state government of its decision to hold the Class 12 board examination.

The top court was informed that Andhra Pradesh and Kerala are the only two states which have till now decided to hold the Class 12 board examination.

It had told the counsel for Andhra Pradesh that the state government will have to give very good reasons to hold Class 12 board examinations.

The bench said that it will consider the affidavit of Kerala government on Thursday and asked a students' body of the state to file a counter affidavit to the state government's response.

On Monday, the top court was informed by the Assam and Tripura governments that they have cancelled their state boards of Class 12 board exam due to the pandemic.

The Counsel for the Karnataka government had said it too has announced that class 12 board exam has been cancelled, but no final decision has been taken as far as Class 10 examination is concerned.

On June 17, the top court was informed that out of 28 states, six states have already conducted the board exams, 18 states have cancelled them, but four states (Assam, Punjab, Tripura and Andhra Pradesh) have not cancelled them as of now.
Under the legal guidelines, Modi, as an appellant, has 5 business days to apply for such an oral consideration

London: Nirav Modi has lost the first stage of his extradition appeal in the High Court here, just over two months after the wanted diamond merchant's extradition to India was ordered by UK Home Secretary Priti Patel in the estimated USD 2-billion Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam case.

The case was before a High Court judge for a decision "on the papers" submitted for the appeal to determine if there are any grounds for an appeal against the Home Secretary's decision on April 16 or the Westminster Magistrates Court February ruling in favour of Modi's extradition to India to face charges of fraud and money laundering.

A High Court official confirmed that the permission to appeal was "rejected on paper" on Tuesday, which leaves the 50-year-old jeweller with a chance for his lawyers to make his case at a brief oral hearing in the High Court with a renewed "leave to appeal" application for a judge to determine if it can proceed to a full appeal hearing.

Under the legal guidelines, Modi, as an appellant, has five business days to apply for such an oral consideration, giving him time until next week. If a renewal application is made, it will be listed before a High Court judge for a hearing. It is understood that Modi plans to make such an application.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which appears in court on behalf of the Indian authorities, said it is waiting for the next stage in the process.

"If they are allowed to appeal then we would contest any appeal proceedings on behalf of the GOI [government of India]," the CPS had said last month.

Meanwhile, Modi remains behind bars at Wandsworth Prison in south-west London since his arrest over two years ago on March 19, 2019.

In his ruling in February, District Judge Sam Goozee concluded that the diamond merchant has a case to answer before the Indian courts and that the bars to extradition under UK law do not apply in his case.

As part of a very comprehensive judgment, the judge concluded that he was satisfied that there is evidence upon which Modi could be convicted in relation to the conspiracy to defraud the PNB.

"A prima facie case is established, he said, in relation to all counts of charges brought by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED)  including money laundering, intimidation of witnesses and disappearance of evidence.

The court had also accepted that while Modi's mental health had deteriorated due to the lengthy incarceration in a London prison, exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, his risk of suicide did not meet the high threshold to conclude that it would be "unjust or oppressive" to extradite him.

Modi is the subject of two sets of criminal proceedings, with the CBI case relating to a large-scale fraud upon PNB through the fraudulent obtaining of letters of undertaking (LoUs) or loan agreements, and the ED case relating to the laundering of the proceeds of that fraud.

He also faces two additional charges of "causing the disappearance of evidence" and intimidating witnesses or criminal intimidation to cause death, which were added on to the CBI case.

"I do not accept the submissions that NDM [Nirav Deepak Modi] was involved in legitimate business and using the LoUs in a permissible fashion, notes the magistrates' court judgment forwarded to the Home Secretary.

India is a designated Part 2 country by virtue of the Extradition Act 2003, which means it is the Cabinet minister who has the authority to order a requested person's extradition after considering all issues. The Home Secretary's order rarely goes against the court's conclusions, as she has to consider only very narrow bars to extradition, which do not apply in Modi's case.

The case will now go through the next stage of the High Court appeals process, with a renewed application expected to lead to a hearing in which Modi's lawyers will argue in favour of a full appeal hearing against the extradition order.

As witnessed in the extradition case of former Kingfisher Airlines chief Vijay Mallya - who remains on bail in the UK while a confidential matter, believed to relate to an asylum request, is resolved  there is still some way to go before Modi can be moved from Wandsworth Prison in London to Barrack 12 Arthur Road Jail in Mumbai and face trial in India.
AWD

The Illinois-based specialist might be famous thanks to its GT-R builds , but the company's Huracan efforts mean the Italian platform is getting a similar level of attention.We've discussed this AMS Alpha Omega Huracan before, with thebeast having set a Lamborghini 1/4-mile world record of 7.4s at 189 mph (304 kph) back in March at the TX2K event.Well, the mid-engined rocket crushed its own record at least month's Hail Mary Derby in Maryland, as you'll notice in the clip below (lens tip to 1320video): the beast managed to pull a 7:33 run at 193.5 mph (311.5 kph).While AMS Performance handled the build itself, it also supplied plenty of goodies fitted to the machine, such as the twin-turbo kit, which features Garrett G42 1200 units, the billet intake manifold, and of course, the built V10 motor . As for the dual-clutch tranny, it now works with Dodson Performance parts, with the vehicle testing some new clutches during the said event.Sure, wheelies keep the audience on their toes, and this Sant'Agata Bolognese machine pulls them through multiple gears. However, keeping that nose from getting too high for too long is the key to delivering numbers such as those mentioned above.After all, both axles sport beadlock wheels securing Mickey Thomspon ET Drag slicks, which had to be put to good use. In fact, you'll see Jordan Martin, the owner of the machine, fighting the massive output of that V10, which produces a dyno-proven 2,000+ hp and 1,279 lb-ft (1,734 Nm) at the wheels.The car wants to go sideways at times, while slowing down once you pass the finish line is done with the help of lever next to the steering wheel, which operates the parachute.(record run at the 10:10 timestamp)
ECU

How many motorcycles do you know, that have a special song dedicated to them? Well, Honda s Super Cub 125 is one of them, praised by the Beach Boys in their popular song, My Little Honda. Granted, that was quite a long time ago (1964), but over the years, this bike only gained in popularity. In 2017, the 100 millionth Super Cub came into the world, confirming the models undiminished fame. And one year later, its European trajectory was set.The latest Super Cub 125 boasts more power, thanks to the new 124cc air-cooled engine. Modifications had to be made in order to comply to the Euro5 regulations, but the new engine is also smoother, matched by a new, smaller airbox and connecting tube that make riding even easier.With the new modifications, the Super Cubs engine offers a fuel economy of 66.7km/l (156 mpg) and a 250 km (155 miles) range. Also, the engine control unit () is now programmed to increase efficiency, while the Alternating Current Generator (ACG) output is increased too.The iconic silhouette is unchanged, except that footpegs and a pillion pad are standard-fit for the 2022 version. Plus, the telescopic forks and twin rear shocks are fitted with new springs that increase rider control and absorb shocks, for a smoother ride even when the road gets tough. The ergonomically-placed grips and high-density foam seat increase comfort levels even more.Some of the things that stay the same for the 2022 model include the all-LED lighting and the Honda Smart Key, which is not only an anti-theft feature, but also helps to locate the bike in busy parking areas, thanks to the answer back function.With upgraded features, but the same legendary design, the 2022 Honda Super Cub 125 is likely to keep its status for years to come.
HP

The pickup, which is Hyundais first open-bed vehicle for the North American market, has joined the Elantra and Sonata sedans, and the Tucson and Santa Fe SUVs on the Montgomery assembly line, following a plant expansion that has helped it support the product mix.Open-bed flexibility, coupled with closed-cabin security, meets the changing everyday needs of its adventure-oriented buyers, while powerful and efficient engines and superb maneuverability ensure it is a pleasure to drive in urban or off-road environments, commented Hyundai North Americas President and CEO, Jose Munoz.Set to arrive at dealers nationwide this summer, with pricing to be announced in due course, the 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz is somewhat like a Tucson, yet it is longer and has more space between the axles.The exterior design is similar to other modern products in the Korean companys lineup, and the interior could trick some into thinking that they are looking at the Tucson. A 10-inch infotainment system, optional 10-inch digital gauges, Bose audio, leather upholstery and others can be found inside.Drivers will be assisted by an array of safety systems, with Hyundai mentioning the forward collision avoidance, blind spot warning, lane keep assist, safe exit assist, highway drive assistance, rear cross-traffic alert, driver attention warning and surround view monitor.Power is supplied by two 2.5-liter engines, a naturally aspirated unit, with 190and 180 lb-ft (244 Nm) of torque, and a turbod mill , rated at 275 HP and 310 lb-ft (420 Nm). Choosing the former will get you an eight-speed automatic transmission, whereas the latter will be mated to a dual-clutch gearbox. All trim levels will be available with the brands HTRAC all-wheel-drive system.
The universe still expanding and Porsche fully exploring every limit of the 911 family are pretty much a constant, so beginning in early 2022, fans with at least $136,700 in the bank will be able to snatch the latest and greatest 911 GTS in U.S. specification. Of course, there isnt just a single version, and one can have the 911 GTS in no fewer than five variations.For example, if the base 911 Carrera GTS doesnt hit home run, theres also the all-wheel-drive 911 Carrera 4 GTS at exactly $144k. Alternatively, owners can have the wind blowing in the hair with the $149,500 Carrera GTS Cabriolet, or the $156,800 Carrera 4 GTS Cabriolet and Targa 4 models. The new 911 GTS comes some two and a half years since the introduction of the current 911 generation and around twelve years since the launch of the original version.Therefore, Porsche had more than enough time to refine the recipe of a distinctive and dynamic 911, adding a little more of everything in the process. So, the company promises more refinement, better handling, and an increase of power when compared both to the 911 Carrera S and the previous GTS. The six-cylinder boxer is now capable of churning out 473 hp and 420 lb-ft (569 Nm) of torque, which is an additional 30 hp over the 992 Carrera S and some 23 hp above the previous generations rating.Thanks to the added ponies, the 2022 Porsche 911 Carrera 4 GTS will sprint to 60 mph (96 kph) in 3.1 seconds when equipped with the eight-speed dual-clutch transmission (PDK), which is three-tenths of a second faster than before. Additionally, purists can also order a seven-speed manual transmission with a 10mm (0.39 in) shorter gear level as an alternative to the PDK.
Imagined by Photoshop maestro Kleber Silva in two exterior colors, two wheel designs, and two equipment groups, the all-new Colorado will soldier on with two cab options and two box lengths. As opposed to the brand-new underpinnings of the 2023 Ford Ranger, General Motors will utilize an evolution of the outgoing 31XX vehicle architecture known as the 31XX-2.These bits and pieces are shared with GM do Brasil because the Colorado is manufactured locally for South America under the S10 moniker. Turning our attention back to the U.S. variant , General Motors could phase out every single powerplant available today in favor of a four-cylinder turbo engine.L3B is the codename of the culprit, which is alternatively called Tripower in the Silverado 1500. The 2.7-liter engine makes use of a dual volute turbine housing and an electrically actuated wastegate, and the BorgWarner turbocharger produces up to 22 pounds per square inch of boost. Also shared with the Cadillac CT4-V, the all-aluminum engine cranks out from 310 to 325 horsepower plus 348 and 381 pound-feet (472 to 517 Nm), respectively.Like the Silverado and Sierra from the GMC brand, the Colorado and Canyon are further expected to get a little smarter thanks to next-generation infotainment systems. The cabin is clearly getting a makeover as well, and chances are that touch controls will replace some physical buttons.As ever, the lineup should start with the rear-wheel-drive WT (Work Truck) and top with the Z71 and ZR2 variants. Because the underpinnings are pretty similar to the outgoing Colorado, the next-generation ZR2 should retain the Multimatic DSSV (Dynamic Suspension Spool Valve) damper technology that Chevrolet previously used in the fifth-generation Camaro Z/28.
CVT

Previewed by the Bigster Concept, the Romanian automakers new visual identity has been applied to the design study before your eyes by pixel artist Kleber Silva . The DC badging up front is complemented by the DC insignia on the steering wheel, along with DACIA uppercase lettering out back.A bulky front bumper is joined by a sculpted hood, thoroughly modern signature lighting, and two vents that appear to channel incoming air into the front brakes to keep them cool. The Y-shaped taillights add to the visual drama of the Duster, along with black-painted five-spoke alloys.Like the 2022 model year, the next generation of the front- and all-wheel-drive crossover will utilize the Renault parts bin for the chassis and oily bits. But on this occasion, Dacia will transition from the aging B0 platform to the CMF-B LS vehicle architecture from the French automaker.LS is Renault jargon for low specification, while the high-specification platform is currently used by the Clio, Captur, Arkana, the Nissan Note, and Juke. And yes, the French overlord will give Dacia the CMF-B platform for subcompact vehicles instead of the CMF-C/D platform for compact and larger vehicles such as the Megane, Kadjar, Scenic, Talisman, and Koleos.The next-generation Duster and the Bigster will both feature some kind of hybridization because Dacia cant go against the CO2 regulations of the European Commission. As a brief refresher, the Euro 7 emission standard of 2025 is already considered a sort of de facto ban on internal combustion.Another way of keeping emissions and fuel consumption under control is the adoption of a continuously variable transmission, an option that you can already get in the Logan, Sandero, and Sandero Stepway. The downside to ais the lack of physical gears, and as far as the Renault-Nissan Alliance is concerned, Nissan arguably makes the worst CVTs out there.On that note, do look forward to the all-new Duster in late 2023.
The Cygnus spacecraft, which is made up of a service module and a pressurized cargo module, features advanced avionics as well as guidance and navigation components that enable a fully autonomous rendezvous with the space station.Four months ago, Northrop Grumman's 15th cargo flight, or NG-15 (named after Katherine Johnson, NASA mathematician who calculated orbital mechanics for some of the first U.S. human spaceflights), to the space station carried 8,000 pounds (3,629 kg) of hardware, scientific investigations, commercial products, and other supplies. Now, Cygnus is finally ready to depart the orbital laboratory.The departure will be broadcast at noon EDT on NASA TV , the agency's website, and the NASA app. On Earth, flight controllers will send commands to the spacecraft to start detaching from the Unity module's Earth-facing port using the ISS Canadarm2 robotic arm.Cygnus will then be maneuvered into place by the robotic arm before being released at 12:25 p.m. EDT. Once separated from the space station, the spacecraft will deploy two cube satellites Dubbed the Ionosphere Thermosphere Scanning Photometer for Ion-Neutral Studies (IT-SPINS), the first satellite will offer insight on changes in the Earth's ionosphere and the physics that cause it. The data collected will be used to improve forecasts of space weather.Khalifa University Students Satellite-2 (MYSat-2) is the second one. Developed by Khalifa University students, its mission is to evaluate the performance of algorithms and the spacecraft's control reaction. Better algorithms might help better control satellites and other spacecraft and enhance their overall safety and performance.After deploying the satellites, Cygnus will fire its deorbit engine and prepare for a fiery re-entry into Earth's atmosphere. As it burns up on re-entry, the spacecraft will dispose of the waste that the space station crew packed during these months on the ISS.
In the U.S., several branches of the military and companies are working on such projects. It was only last month when we learned about the Navy conducting a successful live-fire test of a hypersonic rocket.Meant as a means of propulsion for missiles, these technologies should be capable of achieving speeds of between Mach 5 and Mach 10 (3,836 mph/6,173 kph to double that).That means remote targets could be hit in the blink of an eye, and no technology currently available would be able to stop the incoming threat. But what happens if the target is much closer to the maximum range such a weapon has to travel before its fuel runs out?It is exactly what DARPA and Aerojet Rocketdyne tried to find out as they performed a test back in May at the Armys Redstone Test Center in Huntsville, Alabama.As part of the American agencys Operational Fires (OpFires) program, which seeks to develop new technologies for ground-launched medium-range hypersonic weapons, a full-scale static test firing of a second stage propulsion system was performed.Described as being unique, the system, a solid-fuel throttleable rocket motor, has the capability to turn off before all of its fuel had been depleted. This capability, called on-demand thrust termination, should open up a wide range of targets located anywhere within a medium-range continuum, but also create ways for the rockets trajectories to be adjusted on the fly.The OpFires program is presently Phase 2, with the delivery of a fully functional rocket not expected until Phase 3b. What that means in terms of years is anybodys guess.
Were not sure how big the Cherokee Nation idea will eventually get, but companies using such names will probably have to face similar issues in the future.For what its worth, despite the company itself being called Indian , one of Americas largest bike makers has generally steered clear of such controversy by going for more common names for its products. Sure, the Scout and Dark Horse could be open for debate, but thats about it.In Germany, people care little for this kind of sometimes sensitive things, so its understandable how the Indian Mohawk was born. Originally a regular Scout , the bike was transformed and rechristened with the name of the Iroquois Confederacy tribe by a shop that goes by the name of Hollisters Motorcycles.First shown in 2018, the Mohawk retained the mechanical bits, such as the 1,131cc engine and 6-speed transmission, but was gifted with a long list of custom parts that include risers, handlebars, and front and rear fenders.Riding on 16-inch front and 17-inch rear wheels, the Scout sets itself apart even more through the paint job used for it, described by the shop as "concept carbon." The thing that stands out the most, and probably the reason behind naming the project Mohawk, is the special graphics on the fuel tank.We are not entirely sure this bike is still up for grabs, but Hollisters still has it listed on its website, with a price tag of 29,500 (about $35,200 at todays exchange rates). That would be about three times as much as the stock and most recent Indian Scout available.
Electric Assisted Vehicles Limited or EAV was founded in 2018, after nearly two years of developing the four-wheel e-cargo bicycle concept. Formed by a group of F1 and aerospace engineers, the EAV's goal is to create something that any van driver would enjoy using.The two EAV2Cubed vehicles, named Aria and Atlas by Oxford City Council, will be used by the Covered Market's businesses to deliver fresh produce and flowers around the center of Oxford. The vehicles will also help reduce the carbon footprint of the market, reduce congestion in the city center, and will contribute to Oxford's new proposed NO2 local target.The current legal target set out by the UK Government is 40 g/m3. However, the Council has established its own voluntary target of 30 g/m3 of NO2 by 2025. The transportation sector accounts for 68 percent of Oxford's emissions, according to the city's most recent analysis.Closing the gap between traditional cargo bikes and the vans , Aria and Atlas use a stable platform chassis with Cloudframe technology and offer a zero-emission solution to the crowded city center. The EVs have a range of 18 to 60 miles (29 to 96.5 km) at full assistance and can reach a top speed of 15.5 mph (25 kph), keeping pedestrians safe. The EAV2Cubed weigh 275 lbs (125kg) each and can move easily around the market.By adopting this green initiative, Oxford's city council hopes that other cities will follow through and introduce zero-emission vehicles in markets and other busy city locations, contributing to improving the overall air quality.
According to Edmunds, a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu Maxx is worth from $380 to around $2,000 right now. Basically, it's a weird thing nobody wants to buy. But wasn't that the case with Pontiac Aztek too?While the Maxx is unlikely to get featured in a popular TV series, we at least have a complete redesign from YouTuber TheSketchMonkey. This is just like the time he did a rendering based on the Fiat Multipla, which by the way, was in a Doug DeMuro review. What the heck?Let's admit that there have been some pretty weird-looking Malibus over the years. In the 2000s, General Motors moved the car to a platform called the Epsilon, which was shared with the Vauxhall Vectra C, the Pontiac G6, and the Saab 9-3.And this Maxx version was the first hatchback since the 1989 Chevrolet Corsica. It does feel like they were trying to be more European, right? Well, luckily, we know whose homework they copied. Between 2003 and 2008, the German factories made something called the Opel Signum. The Signum was also a five-door, derived from the Vectra sedan. Struggling to imagine that car? Well, we remember the perfect Top Gear review from over a decade ago, where Jeremy Clarkson makes fun of it.TheSketchMonkey begins by talking about how the Malibu Maxx was a missed opportunity to have a well-designed wagon. He keeps insisting that it was marketed as a wagon, but we find it a "5-door." It's a weird-shaped thing either way, with a strangely placed wheelbase. He compares it to the Dodge Magnum, which is arguably better-looking.He then starts turning it into a real wagon by playing with the wheelbase and getting rid of the messy lines at the back. Maxx models came with a 3.5-liter V6 producing 200 horsepower. However, we also find mention of a 3.9-liter with 240 hp and 240 lb-ft (325 Nm). Maybe those are the ones to search for if you're into the most obscure Chevys of the 2000s.
The car break-ins started a few weeks ago, but the investigators had a hard time finding a suspect simply because they found no fingerprints or trails that could lead them to a certain individual or group of thieves.As it turns out, theres a good reason why the thief left no fingerprints : its because its hands are completely covered in fur, as recent surveillance video showed that the thief breaking into cars was actually a bear.Surprisingly, however, the black bear was quite a craftsman, as he always managed to leave the scene without leaving too many trails revealing his identity. The animal did cause some damage, such as the bumper of one vehicle, but other than that, it just broke into the car, searched for something to eat, and then just left without looking back.Local police say the bears are just coming close to cars because theyre searching for food, and this is why its critical for regions in the area never to leave any edibles in their cars.Their strong sense of smell allows bears to figure out if theres any food inside a vehicle and then try to break into it, obviously causing substantial damage in the process. However, as we said, in this case, the four-legged suspect has always paid attention to the other belongings, trying not to leave any scratches.Furthermore, local police warn residents its better not to leave trash outside, as they could eventually end up face to face with a bear. In that case, they should make as much noise as possible and avoid panicking and running. That is exactly what most people would do anyway.
Sweden gives a good example to other countries industrial sector  Axfood, its leading food retailer has taken the plunge and committed to all-electric deliveries for Stockholm. Dagab, the companys purchasing and logistics branch, will be using Scanias first electric heavy-duty truck for daily food deliveries to Stockholm and the entire surrounding area.These Scania electric trucks will have an important mission. Every day, they will be riding from Dagabs warehouse, located in Jordbro (the southern suburbs of Stockholm), to various grocery stores throughout the city and nearby areas, to deliver food. Sounds simple, but this is a big step towards more environmentally-friendly food delivery and retail industries.The commissioning of these e-trucks is just one component of an extensive partnership between Scania and Dagab, which will develop even further the use of electrical alternatives for logistics. Called Reel1, the initial phase of the project is meant to develop and demonstrate electric-powered food deliveries in the Stockholm area. This began last summer and is now reaching an important point, with the Scania e-trucks ready to hit the road.According to Scania, transport vehicles that are not 100% emission-free will soon be faced with restrictions in most big cities, not just because of carbon neutrality requirements, but also because noise pollution is becoming increasingly worrying. Electric trucks that are 100% emission-free and noise-free are the best solution not just for delivering goods to stores, but also for construction, waste management and infrastructure maintenance. And, even though the company is involved in several projects related to sustainable alternatives for the automotive industry, it believes that ultimately, electrification is the answer for transforming this industry.
If the name Volocopter rings a bell, its because the company has been around for a decade. It started with modified oversize drones for agricultural use and leaned into urban mobility, anticipating a boom in the market. Currently, Volocopter has two such UAM vehicles under development: the eVTOL VoloCity and the larger, hybrid VoloConnect The Volocopter 2X prototype for the VoloCity is now at the Paris Air Forum, along with the VoloCity model. For a proper insight into how air taxis of tomorrow will be like, Volocopter sent the prototype on a first public flight at the Le Bourget Airfield. It wasnt longjust three minutesbut it marked a very important milestone in UAM development. You can see it at the bottom of the page.According to the company, the 3-minute flight saw the prototype cover a distance of about 500 meters (1,641 feet), at an altitude of 30 meters (98.4 feet), and a speed of 30 kph (18.6 mph). VoloCity will carry two people (plus luggage) once development is completed, which, by the way, should happen in time for the Paris 2024 Olympics, as part of a partnership with the French Civil Aviation Authority (DGAC).The clear intention for Paris 2024, the objective is to actually have a regular service in operation, Volocopter Chief Executive Florian Reuter told Reuters at the event. Thats a challenge. Reuter added that the goal was to make VoloCity automated, so anyone could pilot it without a license.If the original timeline sticks, before VoloCity makes its debut in Paris, it will take the first flights with passengers in Singapore in 2023, as part of an ongoing partnership with the Economic Development Board of Singapore (EDB) and the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS). Tickets went on sale in December 2020.
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Palmdale, CA (93550)

Today

Partly cloudy skies. Gusty winds during the evening. Low near 70F. SSW winds at 20 to 30 mph, decreasing to 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies. Gusty winds during the evening. Low near 70F. SSW winds at 20 to 30 mph, decreasing to 5 to 10 mph.
President Biden on Wednesday will announce new strategies to prevent and respond to gun violence, according to senior administration officials.

Why it matters: Officials say the pandemic has seen a surge in gun violence, with the U.S. witnessing mass shootings on a weekly basis this year, per the nonprofit Gun Violence Archive. Homicides jumped 30% in large cities in 2020, officials said.

Biden called gun violence in the U.S. an "epidemic" and "international embarrassment" in April.

What's happening: The administration will implement a new policy to revoke licenses from dealers the first time they violate federal law, barring extraordinary circumstances. It will also:

Set aside $350 billion from the American Rescue Plan in state and local funding to advance community policing strategies, such as investing in new technologies and bolstering prosecutions of gun traffickers.

Launch a collaborative comprised of 15 different jurisdictions that will invest their federal funds into community violence intervention programs.

Expand resources for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives resources designate a point of contact in every field division so mayors, police or other local leaders can report concerns about specific dealers' compliance with the law.

Launch five multi-jurisdictional firearms trafficking strike forces to stem the flow of guns between cities and states.

Expand summer programs, employment opportunities and other services for young people so they are "productively engaged" and less likely to commit crime.

Help formerly incarcerated people successfully reenter their communities and transition to employment, which will include housing assistance and the appointment of a formerly incarcerated person to a DOJ role focused on reentry issues.

Between the lines: Officials emphasized that "no one size fits all" and said states and cities should invest in the tools that make sense for their communities.

Be smart: The package for policing strategies could put Biden at odds with Black Lives Matter activists who have called for defunding police.

The big picture: The new set of initiatives follow Biden's initial executive actions, which were announced in April after weeks of high-profile mass shootings.
American officials seized 36 news website domains linked to Iran's government for spreading disinformation as part of a propaganda campaign, the Department of Justice said Tuesday.

Why it matters: The action comes at a time of heightened tension between the two countries, with Iran's hardline President-elect Ebrahim Raisi on Monday ruling out negotiating over missiles or meeting with President Biden as the two nations hold talks on returning Tehran to the 2015 nuclear deal.

Driving the news: The DOJ said in an emailed statement it took action against 33 websites used by the Iranian Islamic Radio and Television Union and three others operated by the Iran-backed Kataib Hezbollah militia.
Israel supported a statement criticizing China at the UN Human Rights Council after being pressured to do so by the Biden administration, U.S. and Israeli officials tell me.

Why it matters: This is a significant policy change from Israel's newly inaugurated government. Under former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel refrained from voicing any criticism about human rights violations in China  pushing for closer ties with Beijing and resisting pressure from the Trump administration to limit Chinese investments in Israel.

Driving the news: More than 40 countries signed the statement expressing "grave concern" about human rights violations by the Chinese government against the Uyghur minority in Xinjiang and civilians in Hong Kong and Tibet.

The statement called on the Chinese government to allow UN human rights commissioner Michelle Bachelet and other independent observers "immediate, meaningful and unfettered access" to Xinjiang.

There has been a diplomatic duel at the council over China's human rights record over the last few years, with democracies in Europe and elsewhere signing statements criticizing China and a bloc of largely authoritarian countries backing statements defending China's record.

Last October, 38 countries criticized China and 45 defended China. Israel was on neither list.

Behind the scenes: Several days ago, the U.S. embassy in Israel issued a formal request to the Israeli foreign ministry asking it to support the statement against China, U.S. and Israeli officials tell me. A similar request was passed by diplomats from the U.S. mission to the UN in Geneva to their Israeli counterparts.

The Israeli foreign ministry debated the request and several officials raised concerns about backlash from Beijing, Israeli officials say. The issue was presented to foreign minister Yair Lapid who decided to accept the U.S. request and support the statement.

Israeli officials hoped that the decision would not attract much attention.

But Chinese officials pressed their Israeli counterparts not to support the statement and protested after the statement was published.

What they're saying: Israeli foreign ministry spokesman Lior Hayat confirmed Israel supported the statement but declined to give any further details.
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, U.S. ambassador to the U.N., has argued over her 39-year diplomatic career that educating and empowering women and girls is an investment in peace and security for their nations.

"I will always push for women to be part of negotiation teams," she told me in the State Department Treaty Room, during an interview for "Axios on HBO."

"I notice ... when they're not in the room. ... Sometimes I'm the only one," she added with a laugh. "And I will call it out."

The ambassador, who rose as a career foreign-service officer to become Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Africa, told me this story about walking into an overseas room with no other women:

" I raised that ... before the head of state came in. And the men laughed."

I raised that ... before the head of state came in. And the men laughed." Then she had a word with the president  and it was different the next time.

The big picture: "When I walked into the State Department in 1982, there were very few people who look like me," the ambassador added. "There were even very few women in senior positions. And we were dealing with a system that didn't necessarily appreciate the diversity that a woman and a person of color would bring to the table."

"I think that has significantly changed," she added. "We still have some challenges. It's not yet perfect."

"I would hope that young people who see me  who are Black, who are women, who are people of color  will see me as an example for what they could achieve. And I'm hoping that I can use my voice and my presence to give them a reason to be hopeful."

Go deeper: In the video clip below, the ambassador describes her worldwide adventures with "gumbo diplomacy."
Senate Republicans filibustered Democrats' signature voting rights bill on Tuesday, denying it the 60 votes needed to advance the bill and start debate.

Why it matters: It's an expected-but-significant blow to Democrats' hopes of passing a sweeping federal elections overhaul to combat a wave of new voting restrictions in Republican-led states.

The far-reaching bill was co-sponsored by every Democratic senator except for Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), who called it too partisan and introduced his own compromise bill  which was promptly rejected by Republicans.

Manchin ultimately voted "yes" to move forward and allow debate on the bill, even though he opposes the original legislation. He said in a statement he wanted the Senate to debate his "updated voting legislation as a substitute amendment to ensure every eligible voter is able to cast their ballot and participate in our great democracy."

Vice President Kamala Harris presided over the vote. The final vote was 50-50.

Driving the news: The "For the People Act," which the House passed in March, would create national standards for early voting and voter registration, end partisan gerrymandering, overhaul campaign finance and ethics laws, restore voting rights to felons who have completed their sentences and more.

The big picture: Republicans' refusal to allow the Senate to even debate the bill is likely to ramp up pressure on moderate Democrats to support eliminating the 60-vote filibuster, a move that Manchin and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) staunchly oppose.

President Biden and Democrats have cast the need to pass federal election reform as a generational civil rights issue, while Republicans have condemned the Democratic efforts as an unconstitutional "power grab."

Both the filibuster and voting rights are sure to be flashpoints in the midterm elections.

What they're saying: "Theres a rot, a rot a the center of the modern Republican Party, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said on the Senate floor ahead of the vote Tuesday. Should the United States Senate even debate how to protect the voting rights of our citizens? Theres only one correct answer. Well see if our Republican colleagues chose it this afternoon."

The other side: "The Senate is no obstacle to voting laws done the right way," Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) countered. "I've helped write legislation regarding our democracy that has soared through this chamber on huge bipartisan margins. The Senate is only an obstacle when the policy is flawed and the process is rotten. And that's exactly why this body exists."

Go deeper: What's next for the voting rights fight
A documentary following CNN commentator Van Jones' journey to see prison reform passed under President Trump (and the backlash he faced) is set to screen at the American Film Institute Docs Film Festival.

The big picture: "The First Step" chronicles the advocacy of progressive-leaning Jones as he seeks to work with the Trump administration under intense criticism from allies.

Details: Directed by Brandon Kramer, the film is scheduled to be screened Wednesday at the AFI DOCS Festival in Washington, D.C., and can be watched online until June 27.

The film shows Jones bringing Black activists from South Central Los Angeles together with white people in West Virginia as they discuss ways to battle the opioid crisis.

It also highlights the commentator's attempts to get a compromise bill on prison reform through a divided Congress and to Trump's desk.

During his fight, Jones endured harsh criticism from some Black advocates for agreeing to work with Trump officials on a bill while conservative activists called Jones a Communist at public events.

Following the film, Axios' Russell Contreras will host a panel discussion with Jones and activists about their roles in battling the opioid crisis and fighting for prison reform.

The intrigue: Jones, a former Obama official who supports progressive causes, has publicly chided the orthodoxy of "wokeness" that he believes prevents coalition-building and runs from debates and engagement.

It's similar to the critique from some Latino intellectuals who call young, well-meaning activists misguided "wokosos" (combining the term "woke" with the Spanish word "mocosos"  snot-nosed brats).

Don't forget: The First Step Act reduced some sentences and gave judges more sentencing flexibility.
The United States congratulates the people of Armenia on their June 20 parliamentary elections, a spokesman for the U.S. State Department, Ned Price, said in a statement released late on Monday.

Price noted and welcomed a largely positive assessment of the Armenian authorities handling of the snap election given by European observers earlier in the day.

We urge Armenians of all political affiliations to respect the results of these elections once certified, employ the legal election grievance process to address issues of concern, and avoid political retaliation as Armenia continues to pursue a sovereign, democratic, peaceful, and prosperous future, he said.

Price also praised the Pashinian governments track record and said Washington looks forward to working with it to grow our bilateral relationship and cooperation.

We commend Armenia for the progress it has made with respect to reforms and anti-corruption efforts and encourage Armenia to continue along this path, in line with the aspirations of the Armenian people, as expressed in the spring of 2018, he said.

In its official reaction to the polls, the European Union also cited the preliminary findings of the more than 330 election observers that were mostly deployed by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

The European Union calls on all political forces to now work together in order to effectively tackle the challenges Armenia is confronted with, in the interest of the Armenian citizens, an EU foreign policy spokesperson said on Tuesday.

The OSCE-led mission described the elections as competitive and generally very well-managed and said they were assessed positively overall by its monitors. Pashinian and his political team have portrayed this verdict as further proof of their freedom and fairness.

The two leading opposition groups that challenged Pashinians Civil Contract party in the tense parliamentary race have rejected the official vote results as fraudulent.

Former President Robert Kocharians Hayastan bloc, the official runner-up in the polls, accused the European observers of turning a blind eye to many vote irregularities that benefited the ruling party.

In a statement issued late on Monday, the bloc charged that the observer mission ignored its complaints about Pashinians pre-election hate speech and compelling evidence of abuse of administrative resources and harassment of Hayastan activists by the Armenian authorities.

Kocharian said on Tuesday that police rounded up 60 Hayastan proxies and campaign activists and held them in custody for several hours during Sundays voting. He claimed that this was done to facilitate fraud at polling stations.

Pativ Unem, the other opposition bloc that won seats in Armenias new parliament, also reported police raids on its campaign offices and mass detentions of its activists on Saturday and Sunday.

Armenian law-enforcement bodies have opened criminal cases against several dozen members of these and other opposition groups accused of trying to buy votes. It is not yet clear if they will press charges against any government officials who opposition representatives say have forced their subordinates to vote for Pashinians party or fired public sector employees openly supporting the opposition.
According to the official election results, the Pativ Unem alliance finished a distant third with 5.23 percent of the vote.

It should get 7 parliament seats despite failing to clear a 7 percent vote threshold to enter the National Assembly. Under the Armenian constitution, at least three political forces must be represented in the parliament.

Both Pativ Unem and former President Robert Kocharians Hayastan bloc, the official runner-up in the snap elections, have accused the authorities of rigging the vote to keep Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian in power. Pashinian and his Civil Contract party deny the accusations.

Kocharian said on Tuesday that Hayastan will likely accept its 29 parliament seats despite planning to ask the Constitutional Court to overturn the election results.

Vanetsian said Pativ Unem is also intent on appealing to the court but has not yet made a final decision on a parliament boycott demanded by some opposition supporters.

Right now we are collecting [evidence of] all violations that occurred during the elections and considering appealing to the Constitutional Court with other forces, he told a news conference. Only after the Constitutional Courts decision will we make a decision on whether or not we accept the election results  and whether or not we will go to the parliament.

If the alliance decides to take up its mandates I will not leave my team alone and will go to the parliament so that we continue our struggle, said the former director of Armenias National Security Service.

Vanetsian implied he personally thinks that Pativ Unem should join the new parliament. The parliament will operate even if dont take our mandates, he said.

Pativ Unem was formed one month before the June 20 elections by Vanetsians Fatherland party and Sarkisians former ruling Republican Party (HHK). Both parties were key members of a coalition of opposition forces which tried to force Pashinian to resign over his handling of the autumn war in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Vanetsian, 42, was appointed as head of the NSS immediately the 2018 Velvet Revolution that toppled Sarkisian and brought Pashinian to power. He quickly became an influential member of Pashinians entourage, overseeing high-profile corruption investigations into former government officials and Sarkisians relatives. He fell out with Pashinian and resigned in September 2019.
Arsen Titanian said on Wednesday that Lori Governor Aram Khachatrian told him to tender his resignation during a tense meeting held in the provincial capital Vanadzor. He said he was assaulted by about a dozen other men moments after leaving Khachatrians office in the provincial administration building.

Titanian said he suffered several injuries to his face and head. I have a headache right now, he told RFE/RLs Armenian Service by phone.

It also emerged that unknown individuals broke overnight into a shop in the village of Odzun belonging to Titanians sister and stole cigarettes and other products kept there. The intruders smashed the shops door.

Police officers from the nearby town of Alaverdi arrived at the crime scene on Wednesday. They said they will look into a possible connection between the robbery and the alleged assault on the long-serving village chief.

Governor Khachatrian, who is affiliated with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinians Civil Contract party, admitted summoning Titanian to his office but denied demanding his resignation or ordering his beating.

We may have raised our voices but that was not a reason for complaining to the police, he told RFE/RLs Armenian Service.

The alleged assault was first reported by Hayastan representatives late on Tuesday. They said Titanian was threatened and pressured by the governor because of having backed Hayastan in the June 20 parliamentary elections.

The office of Armenias human rights ombudsman, Arman Tatoyan, said shortly afterwards that it contacted Titanian and was told that he is reporting the incident to police. It pledged to send a note to the Office of the Prosecutor-General the following morning.

A spokesman for Prosecutor-General Artur Davtian said, meanwhile, that he has already ordered a formal criminal investigation into the alleged beating.

With a population of more than 5,000, Odzun is one of the countrys largest rural communities. Titanian has run the village since 2008.

The 51-year-old mayor made clear that he still intends to complete his fourth term in office next year. He admitted being a Hayastan supporter but insisted that he did not campaign for the opposition bloc led by former President Robert Kocharian in the run-up to the elections won by Pashinians party.

Several local residents interviewed by RFE/RLs Armenian Service said Titanian never pressured them to vote for Hayastan. We voted for our preferred man on our own, said one woman.

Civil Contract won 2,230 votes in Odzun, compared with only 376 votes cast for Kocharians bloc.

A spokesman for Hayastan, Aram Vardevanian, claimed that many other local community heads supporting the bloc have also come under strong government pressure to resign in the wake of the elections.

If the authorities do not put an end to this practice they will trigger a new political crisis, he warned in a statement.

Hayastan finished second in the snap polls, according to official vote results rejected by it as fraudulent.

Many of the local officials affiliated with it run towns and villages in southeastern Syunik province. They demanded Pashinians resignation shortly after Armenias defeat in the autumn war with Azerbaijan. At least three of them were prosecuted on different charges in the following months.

Some Pashinian associates demanded the resignation of the pro-opposition Syunik mayors immediately after Civil Contracts election victory.

Kocharian predicted on Tuesday morning that the authorities will crack down on these and other mayors allied to him in the coming weeks.

During the 12-day election campaign Pashinian pledged to wage political vendettas against local government officials linked to the opposition.
Professor Armen Charchian, the director of the Izmirlian Medical Center, was first detained last Friday after a non-governmental organization publicized a leaked audio recording of his meeting with hospital personnel.

Charchian, who ran for the parliament on the opposition Hayastan blocs ticket, can be heard telling them that they must vote in the snap elections. After the elections I will take voter lists and see who went to the polls and who didnt, he warns.

A Yerevan court freed Charchian from custody on Saturday before he was formally charged under a Criminal Code article carrying between four and seven years in prison. The court allowed the Special Investigative Service (SIS) on Wednesday to arrest and hold him in detention pending investigation.

A lawyer for Charchian, Erik Andreasian, said he will appeal against the decision. Mr. Charchian is subjected to political persecution, he told reporters.

Hayastan, which is led by former President Robert Kocharian, has also condemned the criminal proceedings as politically motivated.

Speaking after a court hearing on Tuesday, Charchian insisted that he did not coerce the medics to participate in the elections and vote for Hayastan. He also denied threatening to fire them.

Charchian claimed that he only warned his staffers that they should no longer count on their and their relatives preferential medical treatment at the Izmirlian Medical Center if they do not heed his appeal.

Prosecutors maintain, however, that his remarks amounted to election-related pressure and coercion prohibited by Armenian law.

In the leaked audio, Charchian also stresses the fact that the Armenian Apostolic Church, which owns the hospital, does not want Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian to stay in power.

Im not telling you to vote for this or that candidate. The position of the Mother See [of the church] is that one must not vote for the current authorities, he says.

The office of Catholicos Garegin II, the supreme head of the church, deplored Charchians first detention and demanded his release. It did not immediately react to the last court decision.

According Armenias Office of the Prosecutor-General, law-enforcement authorities have so far brought election-related criminal charges against 16 individuals, among them 7 election candidates.

Virtually all of them are opposition members and supporters accused of trying to buy votes. They are mostly affiliated with the Pativ Unem alliance co-headed by former President Serzh Sarkisian and former National Security Service Director Artur Vanetsian.

If their guilt is proven during the investigations in a credible manner I will accept those results, Vanetsian said on Wednesday. If the opposite is proven I will say this is another case of the authorities persecuting us.

No government officials and loyalists are known to have been arrested or indicted so far.

The Pativ Unem and Hayastan blocs claim that public sector employees openly supporting them have been harassed and even fired by government officials in the run-up to the elections. They have also accused central and provincial government bodies of forcing their employees to attend the ruling Civil Contract partys rallies.
SAN CARLOS, ARIZONA (3TV/CBS 5) - Theres no doubt firefighters are desperately trying to get water on the growing Telegraph Fire thats now merged with the Mezcal Fire. But firefighters told state officials at the Capitol Wednesday theres not even enough water in some of our lakes to get the job done.

As flames continue to plague Arizona, so does extreme drought. And with these dangerous firefights, crews absolutely need access to water. This year, its become a lot more limited on availability as some of the ponds are drying up, said John Truett, a state fire management officer.

Truett spoke at the state Capitol Wednesday and told officials the San Carlos Lake is so low, they cant even scoop water out of it for airdrops or theyd leave the lake completely dry.

Arizonas Family went up to the lake Wednesday and couldnt see any water at all from the recreation area. To put that into perspective, according to our Arizonas Weather Authority numbers, Tempe Town Lake has 58 times more water right now than the San Carlos Reservoir. I was there with some long-term residents and they said its the lowest theyve ever seen it. Theyre putting it as a historic low, Truett said.

Things you need to know about Telegraph Fire, Mescal Fire in Arizona Arizonans living near Superior, Miami, and Globe in Pinal and Gila counties are facing evacuations or are being told to be ready due to the Telegraph and Mescal Fires

Data shows the lake can hold a capacity of 19,500 acre-feet, but right now, its at just 50 acre-feet. A water data graph shows how fast the decline was in less than a year from July 2020 to May 2021.

Truett said while they can pull water from bigger lakes, they take longer to get to, and every second counts when it comes to stopping the fast-moving flames. If its a long turnaround, the fire just keeps spreading and it isnt adequate enough to keep a line of water on there to put the fire out, he said.

Truett and his crews are hoping for a monsoon rain soon, but the reality is the next four to five weeks are critical with extreme heat and Arizona lake levels that continue to dry up by the day.
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FILE - In this Oct. 1, 2020, file photo, an Amazon delivery van departs an Amazon Warehouse in Dedham, Mass. The Teamsters, a union that represents 1.4 million delivery workers, is setting its sights on Amazon. The union is voting Thursday, June 24, 2021, on whether to make organizing Amazon workers its main priority, saying that Amazon, which is now the nations second-largest private employer, is exploiting its employees by paying them low wages, pushing them to work at fast speeds and offering no job security.
Carlos Javier Sanchez /Contributor

San Antonio's award-winning writers Shea Serrano and Adam Serwer will discuss the "cruelty" of the President Donald Trump era next week.

Serrano and Serwer, a writer for the Atlantic, will discuss the latter's book "The Cruelty is the Point" in a June 29 Zoom chat hosted by Nowhere Bookshop, an Alamo Heights bookstore owned by author Jenny Lawson.
For those who live in San Antonio, you probably missed "The Bachelorette" Monday night.

While the reality series airs on ABC, KSAT 12 instead replaced it with a live feed of the Texas Cavaliers River Parade on the channel (leaving me scrambling to find a link to watch the show). Don't worry, I got you covered if you didn't see it.

The episode started with the cliff-hanger from the previous week, where Karl Smith dropped a drama bomb on Katie Thurston by saying there are men on the show who are there for the wrong reasons (shocker) but didn't give out any names. Thurston  stunned and frustrated  canceled the cocktail party and headed straight to the rose ceremony.

READ ALSO: 'The Bachelorette' is the best sporting event on TV

As Thurston began to give out roses, another contestant told her Smith's allegations are baseless and wrong as he had no proof of anyone being on the show for reasons that don't concern her. Thurston walked off to collect her thoughts but, ultimately, sent Smith home (thank you, queen). Our Texas men  Quartney Mixon, a 26-year-old nutrition entrepreneur from Dallas, and Hunter Montgomery, a 34-year-old software strategist from Houston, survived the ceremony.

Mixon and Montgomery later joined an emotional group date where the men revealed some of their not-so-proud moments from past relationships. Montogomery won the hearts of many in Bachelor Nation after he told his tearful story of how he took his past marriage for granted. Mixon's story didn't make the producer's cut, but his story was juicy enough for celebrity guest Nick Viall to share on his podcast, "The Viall Files." The Texan said he lost his ex-girlfriend respect after signing up for what Viall assumes is "OnlyFans" to see photos of her friend.

Thurston also bravely disclosed how she is a survivor of sexual assault, saying "consent is important and I did not give it" in a situation from about 10 years ago. She said she didn't plan to share her story but became inspired by the vulnerability of others.

Other things to note from the episode: Everyone loves Michael Allio, who opened up about his wife's death to breast cancer and navigating being a single dad while on a one-on-one date with Thurston. No one trusts Thomas Jacobs after he admitted he went on the show to become the next "Bachelor" (maybe Smith was right?). And there wasn't another rose ceremony, so we'll have to wait and see if the men tell Thurston about Jacobs' intentions because it sure looks like our Texas guy Montgomery wants to.
A Distant Grave, by Sarah Stewart Taylor (Minotaur)

Homicide detective Maggie Darcy has been hoping to heat up a cross-Atlantic romance with her sweetheart, Conor Kearney, but after a body turns up on Long Island beach, her trip to Ireland appears to be off.

When the murder victim turns out to be Gabriel Treacy, a Dublin resident who had just arrived in America, however, she flies to the Emerald Isle to combine business with pleasure. As the investigation heats up, she finds scant time for the latter.

The indomitable Darcy, introduced by author Sarah Stewart Taylor last year in the critically acclaimed Mountains Wild, soon finds herself entangled in a case with threads that stretch from Long Island and Ireland to Italy and war-torn Afghanistan.

Treacy, it turns out, was an aid worker who once had been kidnapped, and subsequently rescued, in Afghanistan. And recently, he had been looking for a long-lost brother who had been torn from his family during Irelands stolen babies scandal. Could either, or perhaps both, explain why he had come to America? Could either involve motives for his murder?

Meanwhile, powerful Suffolk County DA John J. Cooney, insistent that the murder was just a gang-related robbery gone bad, pressures Darcy to return to Long Island.

As she persists in following her lines of investigation, however, several others involved in either the stolen babies scandal or the kidnapping die from a mysterious killers bullets. Eventually, she realizes her own life is in danger.

The result is a fast-paced, tension-filled yarn filled with twists the reader is unlikely to see coming. Taylor tells the story in a lyrical prose style that is a joy to read. She excels in vividly portraying both the rural Ireland and Long Island settings and in developing memorable characters including Darcys partner, Dave Milich, and her troubled daughter, Lilly.

The only off note is occasional references to events in The Mountain Wild that are difficult for readers to fathom unless they have read the first book in the series.

___

Bruce DeSilva, winner of the Mystery Writers of Americas Edgar Award, is the author of the Mulligan crime novels including The Dread Line.
The LuAnn Platter will live on, it seems.

The cafeteria chain beloved by Texans announced that a company has agreed to buy 32 Lubys locations in Texas and the Lubys Cafeteria brand for $28.7 million, the Houston Chronicle's Amanda Drane reports.

GOODBYE, CHICKEN WINGS?: The chicken wing shortage has fueled the creation of ThighStop

Calvin Gin, part of the family that founded Chicago-based catering business Flying Food Group, is behind the acquisition and the potential survival of everyone's favorite square fish patties. Flying Food Group is one of the largest airline catering companies in North America and provides food preparation services to other companies, including Starbucks.

We are so pleased to be able to acquire the operation of these Lubys Cafeteria stores, one of the iconic brands in the Texas restaurant market, Gin said in a news release, according to Drane. This transaction will allow us to continue serving the many loyal Lubys customers at these locations and to provide long-term employment opportunities for the many associates currently at these locations.

Even better: Most of the 1,000-plus employees at the 32 Texas Lubys locations will keep their positions under the sale, according to Drane.

DINING OUT: Your guide to Houston's best soul food spots

According to Ron Rugless with Nation's Restaurant News, 10 Luby's locations in Houston are included in the sale:

Houston  East Freeway

Houston  730 West FM 1960

Houston  Fuqua

Houston  South Mason, Katy

Houston  Meyer Park

Houston  11250 Northwest Freeway

Houston  19668 Northwest Freeway

Houston  Spring Cypress

Houston  Veterans Memorial

Houston  Westminster Plaza

Cubed Jell-O fans everywhere, rejoice.
File Photo/Hearst Connecticut Media

The Beaumont Police Department has released the names of three people killed in a Tuesday night crash.

Braxton Socia, 48 of Groves; Mandy Socia 45 of Groves; Melissa Hargrove, 47 of Beaumont, were killed.
PORT NECHES  Two local Professional Firefighters Associations are in a time crunch to gather hundreds of signatures from for a chance to negotiate working conditions and pay.

Port Neches Local No. 3713 and Groves Local No. 1905 separately need the signatures to get a voter referendum on the November 2021 ballot.

Should the departments get the signatures and the referendum passed, they would be able to establish a contract or collective bargaining agreement between the firefighters and the city.

Groves and Port Neches are the last two departments in the region that dont have such an agreement.

It will actually give us the ability to actually establish our very first contract and then every year or every four or five years  however we determine the term to have that contract last  we will have that forever now, IAFF Local 3713 President Tyler Hebert said.

Provisions up for negotiation could include wages, hours, fringe benefits, discipline, health and safety and other working conditions.

The association also is petitioning for binding arbitration, which would settle any labor management disputes. The association said the provision would include a neutral third party or panel that holds a formal hearing, takes testimony and renders an verdict.

Hebert said approval would not result in a tax increase and the public servants would not be able to strike or get locked out. Instead the contract would give workers a voice on matters that directly affect employment, which the association said could help retain and recruit experienced and talented firefighters.

Heberts department needs to get just under 340 signatures for each of the petitions by a Monday deadline. For a petition to be put on the ballot, it needs to get the signatures of a certain percentage of registered voters. That percentage is taken from the number of people who turned out in the most recent election. However, Hebert said he hopes to reach 550 signatures in case any are invalid.

Related: New PN Fire Chief Vega focused on transparency, development

As of Monday morning, he reported at least 450 signatures total for the two petitions.

After the Monday deadline, the petitions will be sent to the Jefferson County Voters District, which will take a fine-tooth comb to verify signatures and throw out any that are found to be invalid.

This week, the firefighters have been working to collect signatures during lunch hours at the Neches River Wheelhouse because they cannot ask for signatures while on city property or during work hours. They also are providing more information on their Facebook page about the signature drive. State law prohibits city or city employees from using taxpayer money to fund campaigns for or against a ballot item.

The voter referendum actually is the vision of a group of now-retired firefighters who established the Port Neches IAFF L3713 nearly 25 years ago and acquired civil service for its firefighters around 1996.

When Hebert became president in 2017, he wanted to finish what they started, especially when other local fire associations asked to compare their contract to Port Neches nonexistent document.

We have an excellent working relationship with our city, and this will be able to grow on that and build our working and professional relationship between each other, Hebert said. Some of the things that we would like to see in the future is trying to secure what we have now. We dont have a lot of complaints as far as pay and benefits, its mainly and to protect fire fighters.

Groves Local 1905 President Haden Groves said he plans to submit his departments petition by Thursday. In an email he described a great relationship with the city and commended Fire Chief Lance Billeaud.

In a statement emailed to the Beaumont Enterprise, Grove said most police and fire departments are union and have collective bargaining that enables them to negotiate a contract with their cities. He did not say how many signatures the department needed.

We believe that if we are successful in gaining collective bargaining and binding arbitration, then we will continue to be the best and most professional fire department out there, Grove stated. Also, (the fire department would) be able to continue to hire and retain the caliber of professional firefighters that we have had for years.

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

The move comes shortly after the city of Nederland successfully negotiated contracts with their police and fire associations. The cities of Beaumont, Orange and Port Arthur also have such contracts with their police and fire.

We want that too, Grove stated in the email. A bunch of professionals working together towards a common goal: To better the city. In the end, the citizens will be the winners. Thats most important!

The city of Beaumont has had a collective bargaining agreement for several years, said Beaumont Professional Firefighter Association, IAFF Local 399, President Jeff Nesom.

He said the contract gives firefighters a level playing field and keeps the department competitive. It was particularly helpful last fall when they had to negotiate a contract in the middle of a global pandemic.

We were in a COVID year, Nesom said. We were dealing with issues nationwide, and it was a tough time for our whole country. Us being able to have our collective bargaining rights where we could sit down and discuss things with the city were critical.

He said the firefighters have three basic goals when working with the city: to provide excellent service, be good stewards of city resources and give back to the community.

When we uphold our side of the deal and do all of that, it makes working with the city really easy, Nesom said. I believe we were able to come up with a fair contract during a really tough time for our nation because of those relationships and us being able to do that.

Related: Port Arthur Fire Chief retires after 39-year career with department

Across the state, the Texas Association of Firefighters has been working on passing a bill passed for statewide collective bargaining, said District Vice President Mark Medrano.

In fact, they had a bill in the Legislature this session, but it wasnt passed before time ran out on the regular session.

It doesnt cost a penny to the city. It lets them sit down at the table with the firefighters and work out a contract they can work under, he said.

City managers, a lot of them have contracts when they come to work for the city. It is really no different than letting the firefighters come back on their contracts. It keeps them from going back on their word.

And nationwide, the International Association of Firefighters in April announced that the bipartisan Fire Fighters and EMS Employer Employee Cooperation Act, HR 2586, had been introduced to extend basic collective bargaining rights to firefighters and emergency medical personnel.

According to the bills congressional record, as of Tuesday, it had been introduced in the U.S. House by Representatives Dan Kildee, D-Michigan, and Brian Fitzpatrick R-Pennsylvania, and referred to the House Education and Labor Committee on April 15. No further action has been taken yet.

Thats how much of a priority it is to our firefighters, to be able to do this, for any fire department to be allowed to sit down and bargain, Nesom said.

meagan.ellsworth@beaumontenterprise.com

twitter.com/megzmagpie
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP)  A bipartisan effort to legalize marijuana for medical use in North Carolina got a legislative committee hearing on Wednesday. But it's unclear whether enough legislators are ready now to alter their views on pot to make it law.

With nearly three-quarters of states already allowing medical marijuana, senators who unveiled their framework told colleagues the measure takes health and safety seriously while offering palliative care for those with painful or life-threatening illnesses such as cancer.

Similar bills have failed to get traction over the past decade, unable to garner enough support. But views on marijuana have been changing quickly.

To some people, it is a contentious issue and to some people it is not, said Senate Rules Committee Chairman Bill Rabon of Brunswick County, a bill sponsor and cancer survivor. I think theres nothing less compassionate on this Earth than to watch a person you love suffer when theres something that can ameliorate at least that suffering ... I think it is time to bring this forward.

The legislation would create a new regulatory system in which patients are declared in writing by a physician to have one of several "debilitating medical conditions" to obtain an ID card to purchase or possess marijuana and cannabis-infused products. The patients' caregivers also could be registered.

The health conditions would include cancer, epilepsy, HIV/AIDS, Crohn's disease, post-traumatic stress disorder and multiple sclerosis, including for those suffering nausea related to hospice care. Doctors would declare in writing that the potential health benefits of cannabis use for a patient outweigh the risks. Recreational use of pot would remain illegal.

Qualifying patients could obtain medical cannabis products for smoking or other uses through 10 suppliers licensed by a new state commission. Each supplier would control production from seedlings to sale, with up to eight medical cannabis centers from which to sell to the public. Suppliers would have to pay 10% of gross revenues monthly to the state Department of Health and Human Services.

The measure contains safeguards, such as an online system for cannabis centers and police to check patient registrations. And suppliers would still be subject to cannabis prosecution if found to be driving while high or delivering cannabis to people who aren't registered.

Thirty-six states currently permit cannabis products for medical use, while 18 states and the District of Columbia have passed legislation regulate adult use of cannabis, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Come July 1 in Virginia, adult residents can legally possess up to 1 ounce of marijuana for use.

Committee speakers included military veterans who served in the Iraq War and suffer with PTSD. They say they know of colleagues who have committed suicide because of the mental anguish that was often treated with pharmaceuticals.

I do not seek to get stoned. Its not what its about, said Josh Biddix, an ex-Marine who served in Iraq and former Asheville and Gastonia police officer. He is now a hemp farmer, which is lawful in North Carolina. But I do seek pain relief and stress relief from anxiety and (PTSD) without the plethora of medications. Cannabis, in my opinion, is a lot safer and a lot better alternative than alcohol.

The Rev. Mark Creech of the Christian Action League of North Carolina opposed the measure, saying that while he was moved by the other speakers, the states that offer medical marijuana correlated with locales with higher rates of marijuana addiction.

Marijuana is not medicine, and science has never been conclusive that it is proven safe or effective as other (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) approved medications have, Creech said. He added that he hoped senators will see through the haze about marijuanas effectiveness.

Several committee members praised Rabon for the measure. Some Democrats want marijuana use more decriminalized broadly.

At least two committee Republicans said they were skeptical about medical marijuana. The bill wasn't voted upon Wednesday and would have to clear four committees before reaching the Senate floor and heading to the House if approved. But the GOP lawmakers said they could be persuaded.

I do have a number of concerns, morally and otherwise, but Im trying my best to look at this with open eyes, and I might be convinced," said Sen. Chuck Edwards, a Henderson County Republican.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP)  The University of New Mexico has helped lead a national study of hesitancy surrounding COVID-19 vaccines, which found it prevalent in its own state.

The school announced Wednesday researchers with the UNM Center for Social Policy joined a coalition of groups to conduct the American COVID-19 Vaccine Poll.
Bill Maher opened the latest episode of Real Time With Bill Maher on an unexpected note: criticizing the policies that meant that his studio audience was still masked and distanced despite California being reopened. He described it as the open mic at Cedars Sinai, and expressed some hope that when the show returned after its July break, things would be more normal. It was a curious moment for someone who had tested positive for COVID-19 after being vaccinated, though its not that strange  there are plenty of people out there who happily got vaccinated but who are also eager to stop masking when given the all-clear.



Elsewhere in his opening monologue, Maher addressed the recent US/Russia summit, covered the heat wave enveloping parts of the country and circled back on his riff about this years Oscars being about largely depressing films. And if you spent the week wondering if Maher would address the Batman oral sex controversy  and yes, typing that phrase out makes it very clear how bizarre it is  youll be pleased (or horrified) to learn that he did.

Comedian and podcast host Nikki Glaser was this episodes first guest. Maher spoke of wanting to have a comedian as his guest for this episode, as he himself is about to do his first standup gig in well over a year. Im nervous like I havent been since I was 23, he said. Glaser mentioned that she had done a few masked and distanced shows in the last year. I started to feel like the crowds that were coming out for those shows were anti-maskers, who arent really the people that enjoy me, she told Maher.



From there, the conversation shifted to the ubiquitous debate over comedy and cancel culture. Was Glaser ever worried about getting canceled, Maher asked? She admitted that she had once been, but that spending 10 months living with her parents during the pandemic prompted a realization that that was probably what cancellation would look like. But she also added more nuance to her answer. Im accountable, Glaser said. I dont mind apologizing. And then things took a very surreal turn into whether or not Glaser could kill a shark with one punch.
United States President Joe Biden speaks at a news conference at the end of the G7 summit, at Cornwall Airport Newquay, England, June 13, 2021.

Bangladesh and nations in Southeast Asia are welcoming the Group of Sevens new answer to Chinas One Belt, One Road initiative, saying it will be another source for financing their burgeoning infrastructure needs.

But because the U.S.-led Build Back Better World Partnership (B3W) initiative is scant in details, officials of some governments in the region and analysts say they also are waiting for more information to see how it can help their countries. China has an eight-year head start and has pumped huge amounts of money into its global infrastructure-building program (OBOR).

The new initiative, announced this month at the G7 summit in Cornwall, England, promises sustainable and value-driven infrastructure investment to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars in low- and middle-income countries in the coming years. The program will help narrow a U.S. $40 trillion need for infrastructure projects across the developing world, President Joe Biden said in announcing the new initiative.

B3W is a good opportunity for us, Bangladesh Planning Minister Abdul Mannan told BenarNews this week.

We will try to exploit the opportunity for our development efforts. Other than the Chinese sources, B3W would allow us to explore funds for infrastructure development in Bangladesh, he said.

Thailand, too, welcomes the G7 initiative and views it and Beijings OBOR initiative as mutually reinforcing, Thanee Sangrat, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told BenarNews.

Both aim to strengthen connectivity and create resilient supply chains in our region, he said.

The Philippines welcomes B3W but to see and to actually receive it is to believe [it], presidential spokesman Harry Roque told BenarNews.

Indonesia, Southeast Asias largest and most populous country, is also waiting to see how B3W investments are made, according to Jodi Mahardi, spokesman for the investment ministry.

We welcome the B3W development initiative proposed by the G-7, but we want to see the implementation. There have been many U.S.-led initiatives that are lacking in realization, Jodi told BenarNews.

The schemes must be flexible, based on the needs of partner countries, not on what Western countries see as good. I used the word partner because we dont want the relationship to be between donors and recipients, we want it to be [cooperation] between equals.

BenarNews contacted Malaysias investment agency, the trade ministry and the minister in charge of economics, but officials did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

Economists and political analysts in these countries said B3W investments would be good alternate sources of funding for infrastructure projects.

Ahsan H. Mansur, an economist and executive director of the Policy Research Institute in Dhaka, described the G7 initiative as a big opportunity for us, the developing and low-income countries.

This is because now we have an alternative option to get funds from, he told BenarNews.

B3W is not fully fleshed out yet but, in principle, is a good funding source for Indonesia, said Fithra Faisal Hastiadi, executive director of Next Policy, an Indonesian think-tank.

I think B3W will be a good alternative for Indonesia as a non-aligned country. But I think the problem is the initiative is still half-baked, Fithra told BenarNews.

Walden Bello, co-chair of the Board of Focus on the Global South, a Bangkok think-tank, was blunter. He dismissed the G7 initiative as purely reactive.

[A]nd purely reactive programs tend to be put together in a hurry with little serious thought to follow-through, he said.

For Oh Ei Sun, an international relations specialist based in Singapore, B3W will lead to countries in the region playing both sides to see who will be able to offer more.

Its all about the money, lets not kid ourselves, Oh told BenarNews.

Unveiled in 2013, OBOR is Chinese President Xi Jinpings signature geopolitical program that aims to build a modern-day Silk Road through a network of ports, railways, roads and trade routes to connect China to markets in Southeast Asia, South Asia and beyond.

OBOR began eight years ago with a focus on investments around the world in energy, infrastructure and transportation projects. Estimates about the size of OBOR investments vary widely  from $1 trillion to $8 trillion.

According a London-based financial data firm Refinitiv, in January 2020 OBOR comprised close to 3,000 projects valued at $3.87 trillion.

Ongoing construction in Southeast Asia includes the $6 billion Bandung-Jakarta high-speed rail project in Indonesia and the $1.3 billion Kyaukphyu deep-water port in Myanmar, among others.

In Bangladesh, China has provided nearly $7 billion for nine development projects since October 2016, according to data from the Ministry of Finance.

More equitable way

Some may see B3W and OBOR as complementary, but President Biden and the G7 see the two initiatives as fundamentally different.

The point is that whats happening is that China has this Belt and Road Initiative, and we think that theres a much more equitable way to provide for the needs of countries around the world, Biden told a press conference in Cornwall on June 13, according to a White House transcript.

And we believe that will not only be good for the countries, but itll be good for the entire world and represent values that our democracies represent, and not autocratic lack of values.

The democracies he referred to are the U.S. and fellow G7 members Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom.

Biden was highlighting that China is not a democracy, and alluding to what critics have said is Beijings practice of predatory lending or debt-trap diplomacy in OBOR.

For instance, analysts point to Chinese loans to Sri Lanka, in particular, as a cautionary tale for nations planning to borrow from Beijing.

In 2017, a Chinese state-owned company took over a majority stake in Sri Lankas strategic Hambantota port after Colombo struggled to repay its loans from China.

B3W, on the other hand, emphasizes what it calls enhanced multilateral finance, the G7 said in a communique issued from Cornwall on June 13.

Multilateral development banks and other international financial Institutions have evolved to embody the highest standards for project planning, implementation, social and environmental safeguards, and analytical capability, the communique said.

We emphasize the importance of transparent, open, economically efficient, fair and competitive standards for lending and procurement, also in line with debt sustainability, and the adherence of international rules and standards for major creditor countries, the joint statement said.

B3W-related investments are to be guided by standards such as those promoted by the updated Blue Dot Network, G7s communique added.

The Blue Dot Network, announced by the United States, Japan and Australia in November 2019, assesses and certifies infrastructure projects for environmental sustainability, financial transparency and economic impact.

Thailand shares G7s endeavor

Thailand, for one, especially welcomes the B3Ws focus on transparent and sustainable investments through clear and established international mechanisms, said Thanee, the foreign ministry spokesman.

Thailand shares the G7s endeavor in developing high-quality infrastructure with a fresh approach that advocates responsibility for the environment and for the people; fiscal sustainability; the participation of international investors and financial institutions; and compatibility with global standards by adopting international norms, Thanee said.

[T]he B3W initiative  supports our priorities.

B3Ws priority investment areas will be climate, health and health security, digital technology, and gender equity and equality, according to a White House fact sheet about the initiative.

But transparency in investment, and funding in gender equity and health projects may be seen by some nations as pet projects that come with strings attached, said Oh, a senior fellow at the Singapore Institute of International Affairs.

These are important only in the eyes of advanced liberal democracies and not considered as vital in some other countries, Oh told BenarNews.

The G7 is also harping on transparency which is in not the norm in most parts of the developing world, Oh told BenarNews.

Oh, Indonesian economist Fithra, and other analysts cast doubt on whether the G7 countries, however advanced and industrialized, have the financial chops to compete with Chinas massive OBOR investments.

Bello, the analyst based in Bangkok, noted that Chinas initial commitment to OBOR was $1 trillion in 2013-2014, but had now ballooned to  by some estimates  around $4 trillion.

Washington has already committed the bulk of what it plans to raise from taxes to the planned new U.S.-focused high-tech industrial policy program passed by the Senate over a week ago, Bello told BenarNews, referring to the Innovation and Competition Act, which analysts say is intended to counter China.

The biggest problem [for B3W] is the money, and with all these countries suffering fiscal crises, with the possible exception of Germany, where are they going to get the trillions of dollars to match Chinas investment?

European members of the G7, meanwhile, will have trouble convincing their citizens that infrastructure investments are needed around the world as they recover from the pandemic and the effects of Brexit, Fithra said.

If they have to chip in for the initiative, where does the money come from? There will be opposition from their own people. So its like a paper tiger, he said.

Chan Hoi Cheong, a senior political and security risk analyst at Safeture ABs Malaysia branch, said B3W may have come too late in the geopolitical game.

If B3W aims to capture the hearts and minds of Asian countries, it will have a lot of catching up to do, Chan told BenarNews.

Nontarat Phaicharoen in Bangkok and Kunnawut Boonreak in Chiang Mai, Thailand, Kamran Reza Chowdhury in Dhaka, Ahmad Syamsudin in Jakarta, Hadi Azmi in Kuala Lumpur and Ken Chang in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, and Marielle Lucenio in Manila contributed to this report.


This effort will raise donations to help Central Oregons creative artists  musicians, visual artists, performers and creative workers  by offering grants and a platform to bring attention to the talent that needs help to continue thriving in this community throughout the pandemic and beyond.

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Hakurei turnips, left, also known as Japanese turnips or white turnips, are seen among the offerings at a farmers market. Saute the turnips and greens with butter and oil for a main dish or to serve as a side.
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BURLINGTON  A Chittenden County judge approved the payment of nearly $8 million in outstanding claims made by three Koffee Kup Bakery creditors on Tuesday afternoon.

However, when the former employees of Koffee Kup might receive their paid-time-off balances has not yet been determined.

KeyBank, Koffee Kups primary lender, will receive $7.6 million, the Vermont Economic Development authority will receive $213,000 and Continental Indemnity, an insurance company, will get $84,000.

Judge Samuel Hoar approved the payments and also signaled he was open to expanding the role of Ronald Teplitsky, the receiver of Koffee Kups assets, to make recommendations on how other creditors, including the 500 employees who lost their jobs on April 26, will receive money owed to them.

Just 25 days after American Industrial Acquisition Corporation acquired a majority interest in Koffee Kup, its three bakeries, in Burlington, Brattleboro and North Grosvenor Dale, Conn., were closed.

The closure was blamed on an inability to find investors to take on debt accumulated by Koffee Kup over the past four years, said Jeff Sands, a turnaround specialist at Dorset Partners and the senior advisor in North America for American Industrial Acquisition Corporation.

Four years of losses are the culprit, said Sands. Everyone wants a villain storyline, but theres just not one there. This one just wasnt salvageable.

Employees received their final paychecks, but shortly after they were deposited in bank accounts, they were rescinded by the receiver, who said he was not responsible for paying paid-time-off balances, about $800,000, out of the funds he was overseeing.

Vacation pay given, taken away from Koffee Kup employees BRATTLEBORO  One day, former Koffee Kup Bakery employees had pay for unused vacation time. The next day, it disappeared from their bank accounts.

Employees filed a class action suit in federal court, which is pending, against Vermont Bread Company, which was located in Brattleboro, Koffee Kup and American Industrial Acquisition Corporation, alleging the abrupt termination was a violation of the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988.

Since the closure, a number of companies showed interest in purchasing Koffee Kups assets, including Mrs. Dunsters, a Canadian firm, and East Baking Company, in Holyoke, Mass.

Koffee Kup says receiver 'lacks transparency and reliability' BURLINGTON  An attorney for the owner of Koffee Kup assets is taking the receiver of the assets to task for his lack of transparency in negotiating a sales agreement with a Georgia-based bakery conglomerate.

However, during a court hearing on June 8, Justin Heller, attorney for the receiver, announced an offer from Georgia-based Flowers Foods had been accepted.

Vermont Bread employees to get owed money, but bakery not reopening BURLINGTON  Former employees of Vermont Bread Company in Brattleboro got some good news and some not so good news Monday.

While we are contractually bound to keep the purchase price confidential, said Heller during the hearing, we are authorized to disclose that the price is sufficient to pay KeyBank and others secured, in full, and to pay the PTO claims ... in full.

That same day, Flowers Foods announced it had no immediate plans to reopen the three bakeries.

During Tuesdays hearing, Hoar learned that the deal has not yet been finalized, but also learned a substantial surplus was available to pay off the creditors, including the employees.

Turns out there is more than enough to satisfy the claims that underline this entire lawsuit, said Hoar.

He also learned that other creditors, including Bernardinos Bakery in Chicopee, Mass., and Lily Transportation, are asking for payment of monies owed.

The receivership as presently structured does not contemplate a continuing process beyond the payment of the KeyBank claim, noted Heller.

There needs to be a mechanism for a determination of the validity of the claims, said David Reier, representing Lily Transportation. An expanded role for the receiver should also include who has priority when it comes to being paid, he said.

Reier recommended the court expand Teplitskys role under court supervision.

Attorneys fees will also need to be paid out of the surplus, noted Jack Kennelly, counsel for KeyBank.

What Flowers Foods paid for the assets of Koffee Kup and what funds were accumulated by the receiver as accounts receivable were tallied is considered confidential.

Hoar asked the attorneys to come back before the court on July 6 to describe the expanded role for the receiver and how payments will be made to all the creditors.
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PITTSFIELD  A family of five quickly escaped an early morning house fire thanks to working smoke detectors.
Pittsfield has been ranked as the best city for young families in Massachusetts, according to a new report by a Cambridge-based insurance comparison website.

Cities identified in the report by Insurify were ranked based on real estate "hotness," inventory trends, outdoor activity accessibility, diversity in schools, crime rates and safe driving practices.

"For young families on the house hunt, Pittsfield should be at the top of their list," a spokeswoman for Insurify wrote in an email.

Other cities in the region that received top billing in their states included Burlington, Vt., Concord, N.H., Bridgeport, Conn., and Utica, N.Y.

These cities foster the success and wellbeing of young families, from supporting childrens development inside and outside the classroom to maintaining safety throughout the community, Snejina Zacharia, CEO of Insurify, said in a news release.

The new report comes as population trends show that more people are moving to the Berkshires, driven by families' desire to leave urban centers during the coronavirus pandemic for smaller, more rural communities. For example, the Pittsfield metro area, which includes all of Berkshire County, had the sixth-highest change in net in-migration among the 926 similar areas in the country from 2019 to 2020, according to 30 million change-of-address requests compiled by the U.S. Postal Service.

The Postal Service defines net change as the difference in number of inbound change-of-address requests and outbound requests in a metro area, compared with all residential addresses.
Silver Therapeutics officials hope to create a cannabis growing facility in Hinsdale. In this 2019 photo, they mark the opening of a retail outlet in Williamstown. From left, Brendan McKee, chief financial officer; Joshua Ferranto, chief operating officer; and Joshua Silver, CEO. The Hinsdale Select Board is expected on Wednesday to approve a Host Community Agreement that would allow the company to seek further approvals.
Amanda Burke covers Pittsfield City Hall for The Berkshire Eagle. An Ithaca, New York native, she previously worked at The Herald News of Fall River and the Fitchburg Sentinel & Enterprise. Find her on Twitter at @amandaburkec.
GREAT BARRINGTON  Town officials said Monday that they are drafting a cease-and-desist order for the owners of a Long Pond Road property who are running a retreat and event venue without a special permit.

The neighbors in this residentially zoned district say 250 Long Pond Inc. is polluting the area with noise and other problems from large-scale events that include weddings. Kenneth Alpart, who owns the property with his wife, withdrew a special permit application intended to bring his property use into conformity with town regulations, though he has the right to reapply.

A public hearing to discuss the special permit application scheduled for the Select Boards meeting Monday, held via Zoom, was canceled.

This did not stop abutters from asking the board for relief to address what they say are years of events whose sound radiates from the mountaintop on which the property sits. Neighbors say event guests sometimes drive, lost, onto neighboring property, and that partygoers once launched fireworks during a drought, imperiling the forest and her home.

Abutters filed an 83-page opposition document that includes a cease-and-desist order issued last summer for noise stemming from a wedding. They say previous calls to the police and the town were fruitless, since the events did not cease.

So, is the town willing to put some teeth into this? asked Jan Wojcik, a Roger Road resident who is building a home on an abutting lot.

Town Manager Mark Pruhenski said that a new cease-and-desist order is in the works, and board Chairman Stephen Bannon also noted that it can be appealed. Bannon later said that violations will result in fines. Pruhenski said complaints should be directed to the towns Building Department or police, if after hours.

In a letter to abutters in which he asked for their support for the permit, Alpart says he and his wife have rented out the house for the past nine years and have, at times, been on the brink of foreclosure. They have turned to the events to offset the $80,000 per year in property taxes and $20,000 in insurance for the three-dwelling property of more than 113 acres, which Alpart bought in 2006.

Over 108 acres are in conservation restriction held by the Berkshire Natural Resources Council which, that year, allowed the building site to be moved, infuriating a neighbor.

The property contains more than 14,000 square feet of total space and 5.7 acres for event use. It is assessed by the town for approximately $5 million, and Alpart has tried to sell it through the years.

Its unclear why the town never compelled Alpart to apply for a special permit.

Ive been wondering that myself, Bannon later said, when asked.

In his letter, Alpart told abutters that he and his wife are committed to being kind and thoughtful neighbors. Alpart told The Eagle the same, and that he turns down the music when neighbors call to complain  which, he recalls, has happened twice. Police arrived a few times in 10 years and his guests immediately complied, he added. He hopes to resolve any issues in a community-minded way.

I fully intend to abide by whatever the guidelines are, Alpart said. Ive stopped taking bookings for large events until there is more clarification about what I can do, but I will continue to rent my house out for small gatherings.

I rent my house  as far as I know, Im allowed, he added.

Alpart said the issue has sparked false accusations about me as a person, that stray from the matters at hand, and include abutters saying he is lying about his primary residence, which he says is in Tenafly, N.J.

Susan Segall, a direct abutter, said the noise and other disturbances by guests or vendors have been an issue since she moved here full time five years ago.

Hes violating all of our rights, she said. The noise is so loud [during the parties], I could never have anyone over at my house. Hes just violated all the laws you can think of from zoning to noise ordinance to shooting off fireworks.

Segall also said the noise issue isnt entirely Alparts fault, since the elevation creates a kind of amphitheater effect that is heard from all sides.

He inherited an acoustical problem, she said.

Trevor and Denise Forbes, who live on the other side of the mountain, on North Plain Road, also can hear the parties. Trevor Forbes asked the board how the sanctions will stick if Alpart continues to market the property online  on Airbnb, for instance. And Denise Forbes says that such a venue sidestepping local health and other regulations can be a safety hazard.

Abutter Ruby Chang, who with Wojcik is building a home near Alparts property, said in a letter to the board that it shouldnt allow one homeowner to profit at the cost of the sanctity of the neighborhood, and that complaints are usually too late an option.
Sen. Sonia Chang-Diaz speaks in January at the ceremonial signing of Massachusetts' new policing reform law. The Boston Democrat was one of the lead negotiators of the landmark bill.
A House panel is pushing ahead with ambitious legislation that could curb the market power of Facebook, Google, Amazon and Apple and force them to sever their dominant platforms from their other lines of business
Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin said Tuesday that with current no-excuse mail-in voting laws set to expire at the end of June, state lawmakers need to take action quickly to extend those rights through the end of the year
@facebook.com/northeastberksnews/

Lisa Mitchell is an editor for Berks-Mont Newspapers, covering news and events in the Northeast Berks County area.
A sweeping Democratic bill that aimed for a major reform of voting rights is predicted to hit a stall when legislators vote on it on Tuesday, due to not having enough support behind it to get past a procedural hurdle.

S1, also known as the For the People Act, targeted outdated voting systems and limited voting hours, and also would have created a nationwide automatic voter registration system, mandated 15 days of early voting, ensured restoration of voting rights for ex-felons, required dark money groups to reveal who their anonymous donors are, and made voting by mail a simpler process.



The Democrats House version of the bill passed in March. But it has been held up in the Senate due to a tug-of-war between Democratic and Republican lawmakers.



RELATED: Sweeping Legislation That Could Strengthen Voter Power Heads To The House



But it will likely not get the 60 votes it needs to avoid running into a Republican senate filibuster. The GOP has been vocally opposed to the bill all along. Democrats also were not completely united on the bill, but Tuesday afternoon, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer struck a deal with Sen. Joe Manchin for Manchin to vote yes, which would open a debate on a new version of the bill.



"Over the past month, I have worked to eliminate the far reaching provisions of S.1, the For the People Act  which I do not support. Ive found common ground with my Democratic colleagues on a new version of the bill that ensures our elections are fair, accessible and secure, said Manchin in a statement, according to CNN. Today I will vote YES to move to debate this updated voting legislation as a substitute amendment to ensure every eligible voter is able to cast their ballot and participate in our great democracy,"



Manchins yes vote would mean all 50 Democrats in the Senate would be united in their support of the bill. But that only helps if Republicans do not filibuster, which they are all but certain to. However, the Democrats being united sends a message that the GOP is standing in the way of a progressive bill that would help advance voting rights in the United States.



Manchins problems with the bill included what he felt was partisan voting legislation, but he introduced changes to the bill that he could get behind with provisions including making Election Day a public holiday, a ban on gerrymandering, requiring voter ID with allowable alternatives, and changes to the John Lewis Voting Rights Act.



Former president Barack Obama gave his support to Manchins version of the bill, noting the urgency of getting the bill passed.



I have tried to make it a policy not to weigh in on the day-to-day scrum in Washington, but what is happening this week is more than just a particular bill coming up or not coming up to a vote, said Obama, according to Yahoo News. I do want folks who may not be paying close attention to whats happening ... to understand the stakes involved here, and why this debate is so vitally important to the future of our country.

Voting rights advocate Stacey Abrams said she also supports Manchins changes in a CNN interview last week.

What Sen. Manchin is putting forward are some basic building blocks that we need to ensure that democracy is accessible, no matter your geography, she said. And those provisions that he is setting forth are strong ones that will create level playing fields, will create standards that do not vary from state to state and I think will ensure that every American has improved access to the right to vote despite the onslaught of state legislation seeking to restrict access to the right to vote.
FILE - In this Feb. 7, 2020 file photo, Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez, addresses member of the audience on stage in Manchester, N.H. Perez is running for governor of Maryland. The former chairman of the Democratic National Committee is making his formal announcement Wednesday, June 23, 2021.
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Spearfish, SD (57783)

Today

Thunderstorms early, then becoming clear after midnight. Low 66F. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms early, then becoming clear after midnight. Low 66F. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 80%.
There are some Biblically significant places in the history of the world. As a Christian, some of the most exciting landmarks and locations are those mentioned in Scripture. Mount Sinai is arguably one of the most valuable places mentioned in the Bible.

What Happens on Mount Sinai in the Bible?

We first read of Mount Sinai in Exodus 19. The Israelites had been out of Egypt for three months and came to the desert Sinai. The people camped by the mountain and God spoke to Moses. The people washed their clothes and were consecrated and on the third day the Lord came down on the mountain. God is so holy that if anyone even touched the bottom of the mountain, that person would be put to death. On the third day, there was thunder and lightning, a cloud over Mount Sinai, and a loud trumpet. The mountain was hidden with smoke because God came down in fire. Moses heard God call him up. He was given guidelines for the people and the priests. Moses then brought Aaron up with him.

In Exodus 20, Moses goes to get the 10 Commandments from God Himself on the mountain. The Lord spoke the commands to Moses, and he wrote them down. Chapter after chapter we see instruction and order being given from God. Once we get to Exodus 32, we read about the golden calf idol with Aaron. The Israelites got tired of waiting and took matters into their own hands. They thought they could create a God. Moses was furious and threw the tablets on the ground (Exodus 32:19). When he went back up the mountain he pleaded on their behalf. He cleared the stones which were rewritten by God (Exodus 34:1).

A food offering was presented at Mount Sinai (Numbers 28:6). Another amazing fact is that Moses was familiar with the area since an angel appeared to him in a burning bush near Mount Sinai (Acts 7:30). This landmark was significant to the communication between God and Moses, as well as the place of intimacy. Mount Sinai itself is not holy, however, the Lord dwelling on top of that mountain made it holy.

Galatians 4:21-31 goes into detail about Hagar and Sarah regarding the law. Galatians 4:24 says, Now Hagar stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present city of Jerusalem, because she is in slavery with her children.

Hagar represents Mount Sinai in being slaves to the law. Gods law was perfect; it helped the people of the Lord know how to live for Him. However, in the same way, it also revealed their sins. Sarah represents the Jerusalem from above (Galatians 4:26). Those who accept Jesus are freed by His blood. Essentially, Mount Sinai is a symbol of our sin and a reminder of our need for a Savior. The people could not even touch the ground of the mountain because of the holiness of God and their unholiness in their sin. We are reminded at Mount Sinai of the seriousness of our sins and the division that they cause between us and our Heavenly Father. We are also given newfound gratitude that we no longer live under the law of sin, but the law of liberty through Christ Jesus.

Mount Sinai is still applicable to the believer today because when we love God, we delight in obeying Him. We know that His ways are ultimately what are best for us and will bless us in the end. James 1:25 says, But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in itnot forgetting what they have heard, but doing itthey will be blessed in what they do.

Where Is Mount Sinai Located?

When you look at a map, Mount Sinai is located between the Gulf of Suez and the Gulf of Aqaba in the Sinai Desert. However, Amanda Idleman from Crosswalk shares, "There is no firm consensus on where exactly Mount Sinai is located. Some believe it is located in Saudi Arabia because Moses fled in that direction during his exile. Modern archaeologist, Emmanuel Anatim, is convinced that he has found the Biblical Mount Sinai at Har Karkom because he feels that some rock art at this location has biblical motifs. This is a 2,700-foot ridge in the southern Negev. Even with these modern findings, the exact location of the biblical Mount Sinai is still up for debate. In other words, a safe answer is somewhere near or in Egypt.

What Are Some Other Important Mountains in the Bible?

Mount of Olives: Significant in the life of King David and Jesus. This is where Jesus ascended into Heaven after His resurrection (Acts 1:10-11). This is where Jesus is believed to be returning (Zephaniah 14:4).

Mount Zion: Known as the City of David (2 Samuel 5:7, 1 Kings 8:1) Glory Dy from Christianity.com shares, The first and obvious significance of Zion is that it is a city, which is physically located on top of a hill outside Jerusalems wall. It is also associated with the Temple of the Mount and also the Western Hill. Moreover, Israel is also referred to as Mount Zion.

Mount Carmel: Where Elijah called out fire from heaven against the prophets of Baal and proved who was the One true God (1 Kings 18).

Interesting Facts about Mount Sinai

There are only a few covenants in the Bible made by God with man. One of these is the Mosaic covenant which occurred at Mount Sinai. This mountain is a symbol of covenant and a reminder that the Lord meets with us.

According to Beautiful World, Mount Sinai is also called Mount Moses or Mount Horeb.

Mount Sinai is a unique place where a few were able to see God. Lori Hatcher from Crosswalk teaches, Along with brother Aaron, nephews Nadab and Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel, Moses saw God on Mt. Sinai(Exodus 24:9-11). Can you imagine the glory and splendor of seeing the Lord? Not only that, but we would think that our God would meet with kings in palaces or in more beautiful places. However, He met Moses and the leaders in the middle of the desert on this mountain. This is a great reminder that our Lord works in obscure places, and He meets with us in our deserts too.

Britannica says, The mountain rises to 7,497 feet (2,285 metres) above sea level. To give you an idea, that is about the height of Mount Mitchell in North Carolina or the Olympic Mountains in Washington.

Mount Sinai is one of the most valuable places mentioned in Scripture because it is a place where God met man, the location of the Mosaic Covenant, and the Mountain of great mercy on behalf of the Lord. He could have not given the 10 Commandments a second time, but as we think about the breaking of the tablets over the idolatry of the people, we remember the sins of Adam and Eve breaking the union with God. As we ponder Moses going back to God on behalf of the people who could not even touch the mountain due to its holiness, we remember the foreshadowing of Jesus Himself going up to the cross on our behalf. As we think on the second time God wrote the commandments on the tablets, we remember the covenant that would come through Christ.

Photo credit: GettyImages/boygovideo

Emma Danzeys mission in life is to inspire young women to embrace the extraordinary. One of her greatest joys is to journey with the Lord in His Scriptures. Emma is a North Carolina resident and green tea enthusiast! She is married to her husband Drew and they serve international college students. She enjoys singing, dancing, trying new recipes, and watching home makeover shows. During her ministry career, Emma recorded two worship EP albums, founded and led Polished Conference Ministries, ran the Refined Magazine, and served in music education for early childhood. Currently, she is in the editing stages of her first two writing projects: a Bible study on womanhood and a non-fiction book on singleness. You can visit her blog at emmadanzey.wordpress.com
ZANZIBAR, Tanzania (AP)  Leaders of an Islamist group that advocated for independence for Tanzanias semiautonomous region of Zanzibar have seen terrorism-related charges against them dropped, officials said Wednesday.

The two top leaders of the civil society group the Association for Islamic Mobilization and Propagation, or UAMSHO, were freed after eight years of detention. Farid Hadi and Msellem Ali Msellem were released Tuesday night.
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Heres whats happening across our nation. A majority of Americans support strict Voter ID laws California bails out its failing Marijuana industry

Supreme Court sides with student athletes US Airlines ban booze until the fall Adults report the highest level of unhappiness in 50 years Plus, Bill's Message of the Day, the threat...





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Thanks for listening to The OReilly Update. No Spin. Just Facts. Always looking out for YOU.



Heres whats happening across our nation. The Democrats Election Reform Bill stalls in the Senate Republican Governors send police to secure the southern border

Seattle Pride Parade Organizers apologize for charging Reparation Fees to Whites 80-percent of adults say the pandemic has brought their families closer together

The US marriage-rate falls to record lows Plus, Bill's Message of the Day, what Trump must do to return in 2024

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Farrer Park Hospital Collaborates with Sincere Healthcare Group & Icon Cancer Centre Singapore

Farrer Park Hospital has announced its collaboration with Sincere Healthcare Group (SHG) and Icon Cancer Centre Singapore (ICCS) to provide fertility preservation services for reproductive-age female cancer patients.

To render more support to women with cancer, ICCS at Farrer Park Hospital already had the Young Women's Cancer Program in place. Helmed by Medical Oncologist Dr. Lee Guek Eng, the program provides diagnosis and treatment, fertility counseling and psychosocial support for young women. Through this program, Farrer Park Hospital and SHG will closely work with ICCS to increase awareness of fertility preservation services available.

According to the 2018 Singapore Cancer Registry Report, the incidence of cancer has been rising over the years, with 51.5% of cancer patients being women. Top cancers affecting women include breast cancer, colorectal cancer and lung cancer. According to the report, though the incidence rose with age, 153.7 per 100,000 women under the age of 40 are affected by the disease.

Ovarian tissue preservation does not require particular time in the menstrual cycle for stimulation. In addition, each ovarian tissue contains a reserve of eggs that are then frozen. Ovarian tissues can be preserved for up to 55 years[2]. Patients who have completed their cancer treatment and are ready to reproduce can have the tissue returned to their bodies. Immediately after the ovarian tissue preservation procedure, patients can begin their cancer treatment.

SHG's Medical Chairman, Professor Ng Soon-Chye, said: "Ovarian tissue preservation does not require ovarian stimulation, and hence can be initiated at any time of a patient's menstrual cycle. Immediately after the procedure, the patient can begin her cancer treatment. There won't be time delay in cancer treatment."
The detailed papers shed light on the solutions for augmenting healthcare workforce capacity in India

Boston Consulting Group (BCG) in association with the Global Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (GAPIO) have jointly released two position papers with the aim to augment the healthcare worker capacity in India. Titled 'Reimagining Nurses Role in India' and 'Formalizing Allied Healthcare Workforce in India, the detailed papers shed light on the solutions for augmenting healthcare workforce capacity in India and were presented to Dr Vinod Paul member NITI Aayog and Amitabh Kant CEO, NITI Aayog. The papers propose an integrated strategy.

According to Dr Prathap C Reddy, Founder President, GAPIO and Founder Chairman, Apollo Hospitals Group, Nurses are the backbone of every health system. They account for 50 per cent of the global health workforce, their roles are diverse from devoting their lives to caring for mothers and children, giving lifesaving immunisations and health advice and looking after all age groups including the older people. Given the continued shortage of both nurses and allied healthcare workforce in the overall healthcare system, India needs to review and drive transformation in this sector holistically.

Dr Anupam Sibal, President, GAPIO and Group Medical Director, Apollo Hospitals Group said, It is crucial to plan a holistic strategy for the nursing workforce in India that can comprehensively solve the challenges of adequate nursing staff as well as the quality of education and training of nurses in India.

Dr Nandakumar Jairam, Vice President, GAPIO said, We continue to face challenges in terms of the quality of allied healthcare professionals. While there has been some progress, India still has a long way to go in formalising this segment of the workforce and introduce the right quality controls."

Dr Sudhir Parikh, Secretary-General, GAPIO, added, Studies from MOH&FW and NSSO indicate that demand for allied healthcare workers is significantly higher than supply, with disparity also being observed across states. India could need 60,00,000 - 70,00,000 total AHP by the year 2024. The current training capacity at ~1.5 lakh seats per year would fall short of achieving our objectives. We need to enhance both the capacity and quality of healthcare workforce.

Priyanka Aggarwal, MD and Partner, Boston Consulting Group Solutions for issues concerning nursing, need to address lack of college infrastructure, focusing on states with limited infrastructure. Tagging of colleges with operational multispecialty hospitals needs to be developed. The attractiveness of the profession needs to be enhanced for better fill rates; including through building social respect for the profession and strengthening professional development and progression. There is an opportunity to enhance current skilling pedagogy and adopt new methodologies and telenursing, robotic nursing, forensic nursing etc. and adopt the global best practices. The availability of training faculty for nursing colleges also needs to be improved.

Kshitij Vijayvargiya, Partner, Boston Consulting Group said, College infrastructure needs to be enhanced and awareness about job opportunities needs to be increased. The attractiveness of the profession needs to be increased by enhancing awareness in secondary schools, formalisation of staffing and deployment norms and making career progression easier."
Ondela Mlandu is the head of media at Positive Dialogue. She originally comes from a journalistic and creative background, but her career path has launched her into the other side of this world: PR and content creation.

Ondela Mlandu, head of media at Positive Dialogue

What does your role entail, and what does your average day at work look like?

What do you love most about your work?

Could you tell us a bit more about your career path prior to your current role?

Tell us a bit more about projects you have worked on which have shown success.

Describe your creative process when it comes to coming up with new ideas.

What are your long term career goals?

What do you like to do in your spare time?

Do you have any advice for young people looking to enter your field?

Passionate about the world she works in, Ondela Mlandu has worked hard to climb up the ladder to where she is now. After working in writing and media creation for a while, she decided to take time to see what happens on the other side of it in PR.Here, she tells us more about her work, who she is, and what her plans are for the futureMy role entails creating captivating copy, podcasts and video content that will set companies apart from their competition by using digital media tools.I love the digital age because it comes with a plethora of ways to address communication challenges. The PR industry is embracing digital tools such as video content, podcast creation and social media to engage with their clients audiences. I love that video and podcast content creation brings the subject matter to life and can make some of the most complex subjects simplified so that a wider audience can understand.I come from a journalistic background with experience in journalism, digital marketing and radio broadcasting. Ive been fortunate enough to contribute to print publications such as Mail and Guardian, Womens Health Magazine, True Love, Modern Wellness and Getaway Magazine. Ive also contributed travel content to national radio stations such as Power FM and Metro FM.In addition to that, I have hosted podcasts and video interviews for entrepreneurship platforms such as Go Hustle, Heavy Chef and the Stream where Ive had the opportunity to sit with influential business owners and entrepreneurs in South Africa. Im now in the PR space at Positive Dialogue and its been interesting to get a glimpse of both worlds and how they work simultaneously.Ive been fortunate enough to be led by amazing women who have entrusted me with great responsibility. During my time at Womens Health, editor-in-chief Dan Weakley encouraged me to start a podcast for Media24s women empowerment career platform Go Hustle and thats how the podcast bug has bitten me. The podcast has been a great success.I dont have a specific creative process that I stick to, however Im a very visual person who believes in the power of the pen, so I write things down before I start any project. I use the old-school method of creating mind maps to establish how a project can unfold. Sometimes, I work backwards and imagine the success of the project before tracing back to the steps of conception. Those are the perks of being a dreamer, you believe anything is possible even before it happens.The PR industry that I currently find myself in is evolving faster than we think. Peoples attention spans keep getting shorter and one only has a short time to wow an audience and media. I enjoy the creative process that comes with making sure an audience and media are engaged especially through the usage of writing, podcasting and video content creation.My long-term career goals include promoting a gender-equal society, where women can utilize their skills and experience to drive women empowerment initiatives across the continent. My biggest dream is to leave an imprint of impact, where leadership, skills, self-confidence, knowledge and understanding of human rights and the impacts of gender discrimination are instilled in young girls and women across the continent. My wish is to do meaningful work through organisations such as the UN Women, Global Fund for Women, Human Rights Watch, International Alliance of Women (IAW) and Equality Now.You'll often find me hiking in the mountains, submerging in water or going for a lovely walk. I'm also an avid traveller who enjoys exploring all that South Africa has to offer. When I'm not being adventurous, you'll often find me in a coffee shop, with a pen in hand - writing (storytelling is my first and greatest love).I also do work with the Global Shapers Cape Town Hub (an initiative under the World Economic Forum)- a lovely group of passionate youth who have a common goal to improve the city of Cape Town through various community projects.Interpret self-doubt as a positive emotion or a motivating force. Nerves are a reminder that youll grow - something Im trying to embrace for myself.
If you are a car enthusiast from Cape Town there is a good chance that you have come across the YouTube channel LibeRebil. The channel is owned by Niyaaz Isaacs, a young devout petrol head that has become one of the most recognisable YouTube acts in South Africa. The videos on the channel are vlogs and reviews of new cars and modified ones. Cape Town youth has a strong passion for modified cars, and Isaacs is the man who is showcasing these local cars on the world's biggest video sharing platform.

Niyaaz Isaacs, YouTube video content creator

Tell us what motivated you to start your YouTube channel and what motivates you to keep it going.

Congratulations on 50,000 subscribers on YouTube. Tell us what you did to reach this level and what it takes to find success on the platform.

I noticed that you bought a new warehouse late last year. Can you tell us about that and the new business ventures youve started?

What all needs to be done in order for you to create a quality video that will get lots of views and increase your number of subscribers?

Comment on the significance of electric mobility and how it will change the automotive landscape in South Africa.

I know that you are a devout petrol head. But do you think South African youth need to develop a sense of affection for electric cars? If so, why?

What do you think the most important thing is for youth in South Africa when it comes to cars and why?

In conversation with Sabelo Nxele AKA 'The Car Guy' Nxele reveals the reason he willingly gives out valuable advice to car buyers on social media. He also tells the short story of his path to the automotive industry...

What advice would you give to your younger self?

What words of encouragement do you have for our youth?

We are celebrating Youth Month this June at Bizcommunity and Isaacs is a good example of a young person that has taken things into his own hands. I spoke with him regarding his YouTube channel and other business ventures he's entered.I've been watching a guy called Maxx Chewning since he started and I loved the way his content made me feel. Because of him, I started YouTube with a friend.Thank you so much. Honestly, I just remained consistent with my uploads and for every video, I put out I tried my best to bring the best part of me forward. YouTube requires dedication, lots of it.Gino Lange, an extremely good friend of mine, pitched me an idea to start a customs shop in Paarl, Western Cape. I was taken aback because all my life I wanted to be part of a business where not only my channel can grow but where can help build a business that is authentic and from the heart. Where I can go through difficulty in order to grow and develop. It's a custom car shop called L.A Customs where we build customs cars and do vehicle wrapping.Firstly is an idea, once you have that idea for the particular vehicle you are shooting you then film it and see that idea come to life. I don't worry about how many subscribers I have and how many views the video gets. I do it because I enjoy it.Unfortunately, I don't have much experience here, and to speak of this now is too early. We simply don't have the infrastructure yet and electric cars in South Africa are extremely expensive.I had the opportunity to drive BMW's i3 and I was completely blown away by it. I couldn't believe the acceleration but also how quiet it was. Once the youth start seeing what these cars do at our local race tracks, they are surely going to come round.Cars keep youth out of trouble, they stir emotions and put a smile on your face, they keep you away from doing wrong as they keep you occupied. That feeling of your foot on the throttle, lovely exhaust note at the back and a good song on the radio, there is nothing like it.Definitely to remember that all things in life don't last forever, and not to care what anyone thinks of me.Put your mind to something knowing it won't be easy, that it will challenge you with all sorts of things and look at that challenge as a lesson and regard it as development for yourself. We all are not perfect, but if you keep your mind on the right path success will find you.
Mike Sharman

Mike, comment on your involvement in this years Nedbank IMC?

#PRISMAwards2021: Campaign of the Year - #MyKreepyTeacher Retroviral won Campaign of the Year at PRISM Awards 2021 for work done on #MyKreepyTeacher...

The topic of your talk is 'From zero to viral in 96 hours. Learnings from an Octopus Teacher.' What are some key talking points you plan to discuss?

What are you looking forward to with regard to the event?

Tell us about your role as co-founder of Retroviral?

You also co-founded Retroactive, MatchKit.co, Webfluential.com and Put Foot Foundation. Tell us more about these companies/initiatives and your current involvement in them.

Tell us more about your experience and/or any career highlights to date.

How has the pandemic and subsequent national lockdowns affected Retroviral specifically and your work?

Whats really behind your mask  literally and figuratively speaking?

Growing up, what did you want to be?

What did you study, where did you expect your career to take you and how does this measure up to your current reality?

What do you love most about the creative industry?

Whats your typical workday routine?

When youre not busy working, what do you do? How do you socialise these days?

What are you reading/listening to/watching at the moment?

Whats the first thing you plan to do when things go back to normal?

He was named one of thes top 200 young (under 35) South Africans in 2013.Here, we find out more about whats really behind his maskI'm a speaker, with a focus on our 2020 smash hit, triple Creative Circle Gold winner, 'My Kreepy Teacher'.At Retroviral, we have made more brands go viral globally than any other agency in Africa. Virality for us is 'eyeballs + actions' = sales, leads, conversions; some form of activity that supports our client business objectives.The IMC keynote is dedicated to the insights behind 'concept to virality in 96 hours'. The event is movie themed and it's perfectly aligned with my topic based on the continued successes of the BAFTA-, SAFTA-, Oscar-winningQuasi-remote, but being back on a physical stage is the part of the Nedbank IMC that fuels my presenter fires. The stage is sensational and the audience is set for some of the brightest international marketing minds. This event is a highlight of the integrated marketing calendar.Almost 11 years in and each year it becomes more inspiring, from the people I work with to the brand challenges thrown our way. Retroviral will always be my first startup love and it keeps me honest and my creative ego in check. It has been built to focus on our boutique offering never being the biggest, but rather the best. According to last quarter's Creative Circle rankings we are currently the seventh-best agency in the country and that's an insanely proud achievement for me.How much time do you have? Seriously, I'm a serial entrepreneur and dot connector. Each of these businesses are at different life stages and maturity.Put Foot Foundation is where I atone for my sins and do good. We raise money to fit primary school children in rural SADC communities with school shoes, and communicate to these kids that they matter, regardless of what other people in their lives tell them.Webfluential, a marketplace platform that connects brands with influencers, is a truly global business and was my first foray into product over service. I'm not operational at this business as it is ably led by a team of very smart minds. Tens of thousands of influencers; close to 2bn reach at any given time.MatchKit.co is borne out of Retroviral's sister agency, Retroactive (double Young Agency of the Year at the Sport Industry Awards) and has been named Startup of the Year by Heavy Chef, won Gold awards at the Mobile Marketing Association for being the App of the Year, and most recently received top honours from RMI's accelerator programme - Alpha Code Incubate - with another R500K grant fund injection.I'm fortunate enough to work with some of the most talented people in the world, not just in South Africa, and across the various interests, we are forging paths unlike anyone else before us.I like to create tomorrow what didn't exist today. I've been fortunate enough to disrupt, build brands, win some of the most coveted global awards in my industry and scratch multiple creative itches. I'm also incredibly lucky to be able to focus and distill information across a seemingly chaotic list of interests.We've had some losses, but it helps that we've been a cloud-driven creative agency since 2015, so we adapted a lot quicker than most. Most of our clients are digital-led, whereas we are nimble and were able to adapt exceptionally quickly to chaos. Sure, we had some losses, but fortunately the net result has been positive for our agency. I am incredibly grateful for our clients who have stuck with us and believed in our vision during the period of societal pandemic paralysis.Literally, my trademark bum-chin and figuratively, my IRL personality is what you see with my social media personality. I'm not everyone's cup of tea; I'm a challenger brand, and I resonate with challenger brands.A lawyer, an actor. Since acting in SA is incongruous with paying bonds and medical aid, I opted for another route with tertiary education safety.I graduated from BA Marketing Communications from RAU early 2005, then headed off to the States to pursue a foray in acting, wrote a play, produced and financed it, profits were ploughed back into the production to take it to Grahamstown. I landed a job in PR, won a fancy dress Castle Lager Superfan competition to the UK, worked in London for two years, became a social media early adopter in 2008, and when I officially launched Retroviral in 2010, I began carving out aspects of a job that I really wanted. Here I am 11 years later and I'm still hunting my elusive Oscar. It's inevitable... maybe for documentary filmmaking ;)The characters. We have the most colourful human beings in the world. I love creatives. And the stories.The only thing typical about my day is dropping my kids off at school before 8am. The rest of the day: Digital Jesus take the wheel!I obsess over ideas, consume content, engage in social media and I "dad"! I love my kids and watching them learn and grow. They give me hope that the planet is better off with future generations; if not, there's always Mars, hey Elon!I just finished reading, have Paul Van Doren's memoir about Vans on my list of next reads. I love founder biographies. I'm watchingand trying to finish off my new book,(coming soon).What normal? Also, all the travel. Lusting over
Search match: All words Any word Exact phrase Date posted: All Last day Last 3 days Last 7 days Last 14 days Last 30 days Last 60 days Highest qualification: All Not Applicable Matric Diploma Degree Honours Masters Doctorate Experience level: All Student Junior Junior/Mid Mid Mid/Senior Senior Management (Jnr - Mid, 1-4 yrs) Management (Snr - Executive, 5+ yrs) Remuneration: All salaries GreaterThan5000 GreaterThan10000 GreaterThan15000 GreaterThan20000 GreaterThan30000 GreaterThan40000 GreaterThan50000 Position type: All Permanent Contract Temp BEE policy: N/A BEE Salary specified jobs only:
More than 150 workers at a Houston hospital quit or were fired on Tuesday after being suspended for refusing to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.

The Houston Methodist Hospital system suspended 178 unvaccinated employees without pay two weeks ago for missing a June 7 deadline to get jabbed.

Whoever didnt comply or resign during the suspension period was let go on Tuesday, system spokeswoman Gale Smith told The Post.

The employees who became compliant during the suspension period returned to work the day after they became compliant, Smith said.

A group of 117 staff members had sued the hospital in May, claiming the COVID-19 vaccines were experimental and required inoculations made workers guinea pigs. The lawsuit compared the vaccine requirement to medical experiments inside Nazi Germany concentration camps.

But US District Judge Lynn Hughes tossed out the suit on June 12, condemning the Nazi comparison and saying it was false to label the vaccines as experimental.
Boulder, MT (59632)

Today

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Partly cloudy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 59F. Winds light and variable.
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Another round of Manitoba Bridge Grant funding is on the way for businesses that did not previously qualify for previous editions of the program.

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Another round of Manitoba Bridge Grant funding is on the way for businesses that did not previously qualify for previous editions of the program.

Finance Minister Scott Fielding announced in a Tuesday afternoon media conference that applications for the program are open for the fifth wave of $5,000 payments for businesses, non-profits and charities affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and public health orders.

This new round of applications is open to new and seasonal businesses that were not in operation when the original wave of grants went out in November last year.

Businesses with storefronts are eligible for $5,000, while home-based businesses are eligible for up to $5,000 based on 10 per cent of their most recent calendar years revenues.

The $2,000 food waste top-up introduced after short-notice public health orders forced restaurants to close right before Mothers Day will also be eligible to new applications as well as other food services not covered in the original round.

Businesses will not be able to apply retroactively for funding from previous rounds of the bridge grant, but businesses rejected as ineligible in previous rounds are welcome to reapply.

Fielding estimates that approximately 1,000 businesses will be eligible for this next round, with 600 businesses expected to receive the $2,000 top-up on Friday. The total cost for this round of the bridge grants is expected to be approximately $5 million.

According to Fielding, the food service industry had expressed concerns that only restaurants had been previously eligible for the top-up when other types of premises also had food go to waste because of the Mothers Day health restrictions.

"This could be things like new businesses who opened after the program deadline in November or seasonal businesses that recently opened for the summer," Fielding said.

"Thisll mean that the chip stand at the beach is now eligible for the program. The photographer who was on maternity leave over the winter and only returned this spring is now also eligible for the bridge grant program."

After 16 months of the COVID-19 pandemic, many Manitoba businesses have been forced to close. Fielding was asked what reassurances he had for surviving businesses that theyll be able to keep their doors open.

He said what he has been hearing from the business community is that they want to reopen.

"The most important thing we can do is get Manitobans vaccinated," Fielding said. "We think the biggest thing we can do right for businesses right now is to get businesses open by reducing our case counts, which is done through vaccination levels."

The finance minister was also pressed about criticisms that his government hasnt done enough to help struggling businesses during the pandemic.

"We have flowed a lot of money to businesses," Fielding said after running down a list of what supports his government has offered. "We cant replace the total amount of money that theyve lost, but what we can do is make sure we have a plan thats safe."

With Manitoba having hit its Canada Day vaccination targets on Monday, chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin is expected to provide further details on Manitobas reopening plans today.

Fielding said additional business supports will be announced as part of the reopening process and will be providing in a mix of targeted sector assistance as well as general assistance.

Brandon Chamber of Commerce president Barry Cooper was happy to see Fieldings announcement, though he noted it wasnt a large amount of money.

"We know that was never the intention of it, but we are pleased to see support and a recognition that businesses are still suffering, that businesses are still taking the brunt of the responsibility to protect the public through their closures and limited ability to operate," he said. "From that perspective, were glad to see some money come in and help a little bit. I think the biggest thing wed like to see is for these grants to come a little sooner."

Cooper said hes hoping that Roussins announcement will provide more specifics about how the reopening process will work and what kind of businesses will be able to reopen, details lacking from Premier Brian Pallisters initial announcement of the provinces reopening plan last week.

Hes also hoping restrictions will be lifted earlier than Canada Day given that Manitoba hit the set vaccination targets earlier.

Businesses have until July 16 to apply for this round of bridge grants.

 cslark@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @ColinSlark
The RCMP is investigating after a Brandon man died in a northern Manitoba mine on Saturday night.

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The RCMP is investigating after a Brandon man died in a northern Manitoba mine on Saturday night.

The 59-year-old was working in the mine when he fell, according to a press release from the Snow Lake RCMP. The death was reported to police at approximately 11 p.m. on Saturday.

Workers on the scene gave first aid and rescue personnel transported the man out of the mine.

He was taken to hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The incident happened at the Lalor mine facility, according to Manitoba RCMP spokesperson Sgt. Paul Manaigre.

The mine is located approximately 700 kilometres north of Brandon, just west of Snow Lake.

A press release from Hudbay Minerals, which operates the Lalor mine, says the man died while working "at height" during underground mining operations. The man was employed by a service provider.

No one else was injured and the scene has been secured, according to Hudbay Minerals.

Underground mining has been suspended during the investigation into the mans death.

"This is a tragic situation and we are profoundly saddened by this unfortunate incident. Our hearts go out to the individuals family, friends and colleagues during this difficult time," Peter Kukielski, Hudbays president and CEO, stated in the companys press release.

"The safety and health of our workforce remains our utmost priority. We will continue to provide support to all those who were affected, and we remain more committed than ever to our objective of zero harm."

According to the companys website, gold, zinc and copper is mined at the Lalor facility.

The Sun reached out to United Steel Workers Local 7106, the union representing some workers at the mine, for comment but did not receive a response by press time.

The RCMP and Workplace Safety and Health are still investigating the incident, Manaigre said.

 dmay@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @DrewMay_
LETHBRIDGE, Alta. - Crown prosecutors have stayed charges against parents who were facing a third trial in the death of their toddler in southern Alberta.

LETHBRIDGE, Alta. - Crown prosecutors have stayed charges against parents who were facing a third trial in the death of their toddler in southern Alberta.

Shawn Buckley, a lawyer for David and Collet Stephan, said Tuesday he received a letter from the Crown about the decision.

David and Collet Stephan leave for a break during an appeal hearing in Calgary on Thursday, March 9, 2017. Alberta Crown prosecutors have stayed charges against the Stephans who were facing a third trial in the death of their toddler. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Todd Korol

"The Crown dropped the charges," Buckley told The Canadian Press.

"Obviously they're very relieved that the Crown is not proceeding against them to try and convict them."

A copy of the letter from Chief Prosecutor Shelley Bykewich directs the Lethbridge court to stay charges of failing to provide the necessaries of life against the Stephans.

The Alberta Crown Prosecution Service said it made the decision after a careful review of all of the available evidence that determined it did not meet its standard for prosecution.

"It has been more than nine years since the child passed away and the available evidence has deteriorated since the previous two trials," the service said in an email late Tuesday.

"The available evidence is no longer sufficient to meet the standard for prosecution and a reasonable likelihood of conviction no longer exists."

The service said senior prosecutors reviewed the evidence, transcripts of the previous proceedings, and input from prosecutors who previously handled the file. It said their assessment was further reviewed by a team of prosecutors including those with expertise in the area of child protection files.

David Stephan said it has been nine years since his son Ezekiel died and it was eight years ago he and his wife were charged.

"It has been absolutely life consuming," Stephan said in an interview.

"It's somewhat of a relief in relation to not going back to trial again although there was a part of me as well that would have liked to go back to trial and been able to dig in more to the missing evidence and all that we still haven't had provided to us eight years into it."

Stephan successfully represented himself at the second trial.

The Stephans were accused of not seeking medical attention sooner for 19-month-old Ezekiel, who died in 2012.

Over the course of their trials, the Stephans testified that they initially thought Ezekiel had croup, an upper airway infection, and treated him with natural remedies, including a smoothie with tinctures of garlic, onion and horseradish.

They said he appeared to be recovering at times and saw no reason to take him to hospital, despite his having a fever and lacking energy.

They called an ambulance when the boy stopped breathing.

A jury convicted them in 2016, but the Supreme Court of Canada overturned that verdict and ordered a second trial. A judge hearing the case without a jury found them not guilty in 2019.

The Alberta Court of Appeal granted a request by the Crown earlier this year to overturn the acquittal and ordered a new trial.

Buckley said the Crown's decision caught him off guard and the matter isn't over.

"Actually it's a little surprising because we still have an application for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada," Buckley said.

"Both David and Collet want to proceed with that because they think it's very important for the law to be clarified so that other parents don't face the type of uncertainty that they have been facing."

David Stephan said he's not expecting to celebrate.

"I think it's a little early to celebrate now," he said.

"We're still involved in the battle. We're still moving forward to the Supreme Court and it's still going to be a bit of an uphill journey."

Stephan said he will also seek to be repaid by the courts for the "tremendous amount of money" they spent over the past eight years.

The report by The Canadian Press was first published June 22, 2021.

 By Bill Graveland in Calgary.
PORT HAWKESBURY, N.S. - In the four months before former soldier Lionel Desmond killed his family and himself in 2017, his case manager with Veterans Affairs was frustrated by bureaucratic barriers that delayed his rehabilitation, a public inquiry heard Tuesday.

The home of Lionel and Shanna Desmond in Upper Big Tracadie, N.S., is shown in this undated police handout aerial photo. An inquiry examining why a former soldier in Nova Scotia killed his family and himself in 2017 is hearing today from his case manager at Veterans Affairs Canada. Marie-Paule Doucette worked with former infantryman Lionel Desmond between October 2015 and January 2017, helping him overcome barriers to his reintegration into civilian life. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO - Lionel Desmond Fatality Inquiry

PORT HAWKESBURY, N.S. - In the four months before former soldier Lionel Desmond killed his family and himself in 2017, his case manager with Veterans Affairs was frustrated by bureaucratic barriers that delayed his rehabilitation, a public inquiry heard Tuesday.

Marie-Paule Doucette told a provincial fatality inquiry that the Afghanistan war veteran was admitted to a rehabilitation program in May 2015 because he was suffering from severe post-traumatic stress disorder. She said she didn't start working with him until November of that year  a six-month delay she blamed on a backlog caused by government cutbacks.

As a case manager, Doucette's role was helping veterans overcome barriers to reintegrating into civilian life, which included providing guidance on obtaining treatment and dealing with other challenges.

Doucette said the goal of Veterans Affairs was to have each case manager handle a maximum of 25 veterans, but her caseload had grown to between 35 and 40 by January 2017.

The inquiry has heard Desmond, who served as an infantryman in Afghanistan in 2007, was diagnosed with PTSD in 2011 and medically released from the military in June or July of 2015. At that time, he was referred to the Operational Stress Injury Clinic in Fredericton, which is not far from Canadian Forces Base Gagetown where he was posted.

Doucette confirmed Desmond was receiving psychiatric treatment and therapy at the clinic, but his sessions were often interrupted by frequent visits to his hometown in eastern Nova Scotia. At the time, Desmond and his wife, Shanna, and their young daughter, Aaliyah, were in the process of moving back to Nova Scotia.

By November 2015, the clinic had concerns about Desmond's mental stability, Doucette testified, adding that she first met her new client the following month when she conducted a detailed assessment.

Referring to the assessment file, Doucette said it was clear Desmond was struggling with mental health issues, though there were no signs he was contemplating suicide or self-harm. At the time, Desmond was friendly and trusting when the two met in his tidy home in Oromocto, N.B., she said.

"He seemed to be happy to be engaging," she said. "I didn't get a sense that he was mistrusting me."

The file also said Desmond had difficulty controlling his emotions and suffered from panic attacks, angry outbursts and relatively constant marital strife.

Desmond also told her the police had been recently dispatched to his home because his wife was worried he was about to kill himself, Doucette said. But Desmond insisted his wife had misunderstood what he was saying, she added.

The inquiry has heard that police in Fredericton seized a firearm from his property during that call.

As well, Desmond told Doucette he was having difficulties dealing with his PTSD symptoms and persistent marital and financial problems.

"He felt he needed more support from professionals," Doucette said.

The plan for Desmond, arranged by the clinic in Fredericton, was to have him attend an intensive residential treatment program at Ste. Anne's Hospital in Montreal, where the goal was to stabilize his mental health before treating his trauma with therapy.

Desmond attended the program between June and August of 2016, but the staff there determined he had made little progress. More importantly, they said he needed more treatment and a comprehensive neuropsychological assessment to test for possible cognitive impairments that may have been interfering with his treatment.

But that never happened.

The inquiry has heard that Desmond received no therapeutic help for the next four months, despite Doucette's efforts to help him get the help he needed in Nova Scotia.

That gap has become a focus of the inquiry, which started hearings in January 2020 but has twice been delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Doucette said it was agreed that after Desmond left the hospital in Montreal, she would continue to oversee his case, even though his move from New Brunswick to Nova Scotia would normally require a transfer to another case manager. Referring to her notes, Doucette told the inquiry she remained in close contact with Desmond between August and December of 2016.

But there were delays that made it difficult for Doucette to do her work. Her attempts to arrange for the help of a so-called clinical case manager, for example, were frustrated by training delays and bureaucracy.

In notes she prepared after the tragedy, Doucette said: "Significant bureaucratic barriers complicated the process to have (clinical care manger) services started. (Case manager) would like to discuss with decision-makers at some point, if at all possible."

As case manager, Doucette also had to deal with the fact that Desmond wanted to receive services near his rural home in Guysborough County rather than Halifax, which complicated the search for assistance.

"There were a lot of moving parts," Doucette told the inquiry. "I wanted to stay connected until he had some stable supports in place."

Doucette eventually sought the help of Catherine Chambers, a private psychotherapist based in Antigonish, N.S., who specialized in treating veterans and first responders with PTSD.

But there were more delays because Desmond failed to follow up on instructions to contact Chambers for several weeks.

The inquiry has heard that Chambers was in the process of assessing Desmond for treatment when, on Jan. 3, 2017, he bought a rifle and killed his wife, mother and 10-year-old daughter in their home in Upper Big Tracadie, N.S.

"I'm not sure there's much more I could have done in terms of preventing this," Doucette said.

"I obviously did not have all of the information regarding what was happening in the marital relationship. I definitely have no hesitation now in asking more direct questions if someone is reporting conflict in their marital relationship."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 22, 2021.

 By Michael MacDonald in Halifax

Note to readers: This is a corrected story. An earlier version incorrectly stated there was a delay in getting training for psychotherapist Catherine Chambers.
The latest news on COVID-19 developments in Canada (all times eastern):

A nurse uses a swab to perform a test on a patient at a drive-in COVID-19 clinic in Montreal, on Wednesday, October 21, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson

The latest news on COVID-19 developments in Canada (all times eastern):

8 p.m.

Yukon is recording eight new COVID-19 cases.

Chief medical health officer Dr. Brendan Hanley says in a news release there are now 92 active cases in the territory and recoveries are expected.

Since June 4, screening results show all cases are positive for the Gamma variant first identified in Brazil.

Hanley says COVID-19 is primarily affecting unvaccinated people.

6:10 p.m.

B.C. health officials say more than one million people have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says she's confident both mRNA vaccines are safe to use.

She says B.C. currently has more supply of the Moderna vaccine.

It comes as B.C. recorded 56 new COVID-19 cases and no new deaths.

5:45 p.m.

Alberta is reporting 57 new cases of COVID-19 and one more death.

Dr. Deena Hinshaw, the provinces chief medical officer of health, says 38 of the new cases involve the more contagious variants of concern.

She says the positivity rate is at 1.4 per cent.

There are 1,773 active cases, which is the lowest number since the beginning of October.

Hinshaw says 200 people are in hospital, with 54 of those patients in intensive care.

3:45 p.m.

Saskatchewan is reporting 36 new cases of COVID-19 today, and no new deaths.

Eighty-seven more people have recovered, leaving the province with 639 active cases.

The province is also reporting 79 people in hospital, including 12 in intensive care.

The province has now administered more than one million total doses of COVID-19 vaccine.

For the third day in a row, Saskatchewan is reporting that 69 per cent of those aged 12 and older have had their first COVID-19 vaccine.

3:40 p.m.

The Manitoba government is expanding a program to help businesses affected by public health restrictions put in place to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Finance Minister Scott Fielding says the Manitoba Bridge Grant Program will provide an estimated $5 million more to businesses in the province.

It will be expanded to seasonal businesses and others that werent able to apply when it was initially implemented last year.

The program makes up to $5,000 available for eligible small and medium-sized businesses, not-for-profits and charities.

1:35 p.m.

Manitoba is reporting 69 new infections of COVID-19 and four more deaths.

One of those who died was a man in his 20s linked to the Alpha variant of concern.

New case numbers have been steadily dropping in recent days after a delayed third wave put significant pressure on the health-care system and prompted strict public health orders last month.

There are still 224 Manitobans hospitalized with COVID-19, including 14 who are in intensive care units in other provinces.

1:25 p.m.

Nova Scotia is opening its provincial boundaries on Wednesday to travellers from the Atlantic provinces, but with modified rules for those coming from New Brunswick.

The province says New Brunswick travellers can enter for any reason but will have isolation requirements based on their vaccination status and testing.

The move comes after New Brunswick was the first province in the region to reopen its borders to Canadian travellers last week.

New Brunswick travellers who have had two doses of vaccine at least 14 days before their arrival in Nova Scotia will have to self-isolate until they receive a negative test.

Those with one dose will have to isolate for at least seven days and will need two negative test results before being released from quarantine, while travellers without a vaccination will have to self-isolate for 14 days and will need to be tested at the beginning and end of their quarantine period.

1 p.m.

Quebec will be moving all regions into the green, least-restrictive pandemic-alert level on Monday, including Montreal and Quebec City.

Under green-zone rules, health orders are relaxed considerably, notably for indoor and outdoor gatherings, both in private homes and in restaurants and bars.

Quebec has now partially vaccinated about 80.4 per cent of its population, and 20 per cent of residents are considered fully vaccinated.

But Premier Francois Legault says regions like Montreal and Laval remain below the provincial average for vaccinations and authorities want to see inoculation numbers increase for people in the 18-to-39 age range.

12:45 p.m.

More than 31,000 New Brunswickers registered for appointments Monday for a second dose of COVID-19 vaccine -- a new single-day record in the province.

New Brunswickers can book a second-dose vaccine appointment if at least 28 days have passed since their first dose.

Health officials are reporting one new travel-related case of COVID-19 today, involving a person in their 20s in the Saint John region.

There are now 49 active reported cases of COVID-19 in New Brunswick and five patients in hospital with the disease, including two in intensive care.

12:40 p.m.

Newfoundland and Labrador is reporting one new case of COVID-19 today.

Health officials say the new case involves a woman in her 60s in the western health region who is a contact of a previously reported infection.

The province has 13 active reported cases of COVID-19.

There are no COVID-19-related hospitalizations in Newfoundland and Labrador.

12:35 p.m.

Nova Scotia is reporting two new COVID-19-related deaths today and two new cases of the virus.

Health officials say the deaths include a man in his 60s in the Halifax area and a man in his 50s in the province's western health zone.

The two new cases include one in the Halifax area who is a close contact of a previously reported case and one in the western zone related to travel.

Nova Scotia has 74 active cases of novel coronavirus with two people in hospital as a result of the virus.

As of Monday, 790,514 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered, with 96,781 people having received their second dose.

11:15 a.m.

Construction is complete on a new vaccine-manufacturing plant in Montreal that will be able to produce about 24 million doses a year.

Federal Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne made the announcement today regarding the Biologics Manufacturing Centre, which is located on the National Research Council of Canada's Royalmount site.

The National Research Council of Canada says it is working with Novavax Inc. to produce a COVID-19 vaccine at the facility.

The site is not yet fully licensed and operational, and equipment at the new factory is still being installed.

11 a.m.

Quebec is reporting 84 new COVID-19 cases today and four more deaths attributed to the novel coronavirus, one of which occurred in the previous 24 hours.

Health authorities say hospitalizations dropped by seven, to 161, and 40 patients were in intensive care, a rise of one.

The provinces public health institute says 80 per cent of Quebecers 12 and up have received at least one dose of vaccine and 20 per cent of them are considered fully vaccinated.

Premier Francois Legault, Health Minister Christian Dube and Dr. Horacio Arruda, the provinces public health director, will hold a COVID-19 briefing this afternoon.

10:30 a.m.

Ontario is reporting 296 new COVID-19 cases and 60 deaths today, but the province says the numbers include older infections and deaths that are just now being counted.

The province says 54 of the deaths reported today are from previous months but are now being recorded after a data review.

It also says approximately 80 cases reported today are from last year, following a data review by Toronto Public Health.

Ontario has been updating its case management system for much of 2021, leading to data cleanup adjustments.

10:25 a.m.

Nunavut is announcing eight recoveries of COVID-19 today, bringing the territory's active case count to zero.

All eight recoveries are in Iqaluit, where an outbreak has been ongoing since mid-April.

There have been 262 cases in Iqaluit since April 14.

Iqaluit's COVID-19 outbreak will be declared over if there are no cases over the next 28 days.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 22, 2021.
OTTAWA - The Liberals have accused Parliament of becoming toxic to their minority agenda while the Opposition Conservatives say Canada's institutions are broken under the Trudeau government  finger-pointing that fuels growing speculation voters may soon head to the polls.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau holds a press conference at Rideau Cottage in Ottawa on Tuesday, June 22, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

OTTAWA - The Liberals have accused Parliament of becoming toxic to their minority agenda while the Opposition Conservatives say Canada's institutions are broken under the Trudeau government  finger-pointing that fuels growing speculation voters may soon head to the polls.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his ministers are calling out Conservatives for using procedural delay tactics to stop votes from happening on outstanding pieces of legislation, which time is ticking on to pass before the House of Commons breaks for summer on Wednesday.

One bill that did clear a legislative hurdle Tuesday was the government's proposed ban on the widely condemned practice of trying to change someone's LGBTQ identity to heterosexual, which the Liberals reintroduced last fall after proroguing Parliament over the summer.

The conversion therapy ban passed the House in a 263-63 split, with only Conservative MPs along with former party member and Independent MP Derek Sloan voting against.

With 62 out of 119 Conservatives coming out against the bill, aimed to protect those who are LGBTQ from experiencing the harmful act, Leader Erin O'Toole has to reconcile the vote with his message on social issues and that he is modernizing the party to appeal to more voters whenever the next election happens.

Uncertainty around where former leader Andrew Scheer stood on LGBTQ issues, as well as around abortion, dogged him during the 2019 campaign.

Since becoming leader, OToole has repeatedly said he is pro-choice and stands up for LGBTQ rights. On Tuesday, he voted in favour of the conversion therapy ban, while Scheer and deputy leader Candice Bergen did not.

In a statement issued following the vote, party justice critic Rob Moore reiterated the Conservatives want conversion therapy banned, promising to do so if the Liberals fail to get their bill into law.

The party also added there are concerns that the Liberals' definition of the practice is too broad. Some of its MPs say as it's written, the proposed law threatens to infringe on the ability of people to speak freely about sex and gender issues.

"Conservatives are committed to ensuring protections are in place to ban conversion therapy in Canada and that the law targets coercive practices, and not conversations," Moore's statement read.

Earlier in the day, Trudeau said he welcomed parliamentary scrutiny of the government's work.

But, he said, he found it troubling to see opposition MPs recently bring the head of the Public Health Agency of Canada to be publicly shamed before the House of Commons using parliamentary rules for a failure to release information.

Conservatives say the agency needs to spill on why two scientists were escorted from Canada's highest security laboratory in Winnipeg two years ago and eventually fired, flagging potential security concerns involving China.

Trudeau said the admonishment of PHAC president Iain Stewart, who he pointed out has steered the agency through the COVID-19 pandemic, was done for "purely partisan political purposes."

"We have seen a level of obstructionism and toxicity in the house that is of real concern," Trudeau said outside of the steps of Rideau Cottage, where he's quarantining under COVID-19 rules after a trip to Europe to attend international meetings.

In a statement, New Democratic Leader Jagmeet Singh pushed back against the allegations, saying "if the PM goes to an election, its not because the House doesnt work, but because its a play to try get more power."

The Conservatives added the Liberals' argument lacks credibility given that last summer the government prorogued Parliament to prevent committees from digging any further into its WE Charity contract controversy, which reset the legislative agenda.

Conservative foreign affairs critic Michael Chong also pointed on Tuesday to the fracas over the unredacted lab documents. He said the government and agency's repeated failure to hand them over, despite being ordered by the Commons to do so, is part of the proof that the system under Liberal governance is broken.

"The pandemic has laid bare the state of our institutions," he told the House.

Chong detailed how scandals have led to Canada currently being without a governor general and eight top military officials leaving their posts over fallout from misconduct allegations.

The government is in contempt of Parliament. The government does not deserve another mandate. The government must go," said Chong.

October will mark two years since Trudeau was re-elected to power after first forming a majority government in 2015.

The Liberal's budget implementation bill is among the pieces of legislation still being debated in the House.

Trudeau said his government's bill to enshrine Canada's goal to get to net-zero emissions by mid-century  introduced last fall  can happen with the help of the Bloc Quebecois and NDP.

The Liberals also touted their progress on gun control Tuesday, with both Trudeau and Public Safety Minister Bill Blair highlighting two provisions of a 2019 law that are set to come into effect July 7.

Gun licence background checks will cover a lifetime rather than the last five years, and an authorization to transport will be required for restricted and prohibited firearms to most locations.

In a late-night session of Monday's sitting of the House, the Liberals proposed changes to Canada's Broadcasting Act were adopted at third reading to be sent to the Senate.

Conservative MPs have been vehemently opposed to Bill C-10 and voted against it, saying it gives the government powers to regulate Canadians' social media and it's an attack on free speech.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 22, 2021.

Note to readers: This is a corrected story. An earlier version incorrectly reported that the two scientists at Canada's highest security lab were fired two years ago.
CALGARY - A federal regulator has lifted a stop-work order on tree cutting and grass mowing along the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project route.

Pipes for the Trans Mountain pipeline project are seen at a storage facility near Hope, B.C., Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2020. A federal regulator says it has lifted a stop work order on tree cutting and grass mowing work along the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project route. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

CALGARY - A federal regulator has lifted a stop-work order on tree cutting and grass mowing along the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project route.

Trans Mountain has now submitted a satisfactory plan to correct deficiencies in the oversight of its contractors that could pose threats to nesting birds, the Canada Energy Regulator said Tuesday in a statement.

The regulator, which enforces safety and environmental guidelines for pipeline projects, issued a stop-work order on June 3 following investigations of tree-clearing work in the suburban Vancouver area that could have impacted nesting birds.

The regulator's website outlines four incidents along the pipeline route in the Burnaby and Coquitlam areas and near Agassiz in the Fraser Valley that date back to early April when a member of the public complained about bird nest destruction and improper buffer zones.

It also investigated tree-felling work near Agassiz that destroyed a robin's nest despite the area being marked by flags as a no-cutting zone.

The regulator says the stop-work order was issued after Trans Mountain reported to it on June 2 that one of its contractor crews cleared trees and shrubs in Burnaby without company authority.

No damaged or destroyed bird nests were reported in the June 2 incident, says the regulator.

"The order requires Trans Mountain to investigate and find the root cause for why there were two incidents related to contractor oversight issues in May," the regulator said in its order.

"Trans Mountain must also be able to prove that work is being done in a way that protects the environment, and more specifically, that workers are following Trans Mountain's own procedures and mitigation practices to protect the environment and migratory birds."

The regulator says Trans Mountain's plans now include improving field procedures to protect nesting birds and increasing direct supervision of its contractors.

Trans Mountain said in a statement on Tuesday the plan it filed to the regulator includes implementing enhanced communication, supervision and training measures before restarting pipeline clearing work.

The $12.6-billion expansion project between Burnaby, B.C., and north of Edmonton will triple existing pipeline capacity to about 890,000 barrels per day of oil products, including diluted bitumen, lighter crude and refined fuel.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 22, 2021.
The Branson Board of Aldermen on Thursday (now postponed to July 28) will consider an ordinance that would require face coverings in public spaces. The aldermen might approve it, disapprove it, or approve an amended version. Would you be in favor of some form of mandatory face covering ordinance in the city of Branson?

You voted:
Want to praise someone or get something off your chest? Darts and Pats is the place to do it.
The financial intelligence watchdog and big four banks will be probed under a new parliamentary inquiry designed to measure the efficiency and adequacy of the Australias anti-money laundering regime.

The Senate approved a motion brought by Labor Senator Deborah ONeill on Wednesday to launch a formal inquiry into the effectiveness of the laws, regulators and companies tasked with stamping out illicit fund flows.

The Senate has approved Senator Deborah ONeill and Labor MP Daniel Mulinos calls for an inquiry into the countrys anti-money laundering regime. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) has recently scored a number of high profile victories, fining Westpac and the Commonwealth Bank a combined $2 billion since 2018 over systemic breaches of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing (AML-CTF) Act.

The dual-track regulator, that feeds intelligence from banks to law enforcement, has become a much feared operator and has now set its sights on cleaning up the casino industry, revealing this month it was conducting simultaneous enforcement investigations on Crown, Star and SkyCity.
High rates of Indigenous suicide, and the over-representation of Aboriginal children in out-of-home care and adults in prison, have worsened in what a senior Indigenous leader calls a strong indictment on the nation.

The federal government is not on track to meet targets to improve outcomes under the new Closing the Gap agreement in these three key areas, according to updated data to be released today by the Productivity Commission.

The results should not come as any surprise, said James Christian, the chief executive of the NSW Aboriginal Land Council.

This is basic human rights. If children cant be kept in a safe and nurturing home, they find themselves in the criminal justice system. All these things are interrelated. It is a pretty strong indictment on the nation that we still cant get these fundamental human rights in balance, he said.

Although the updated statistics come only 11 months after the new Closing the Gap Agreement, Mr Christian said it was time the Australian public woke up to the fact that successive governments had failed to make a change despite the significant human and financial cost.
Its because people can experience something thats rare and becoming rarer in this world, he said. It goes beyond the famed Ningaloo wildlife encounters  its also because you can stand on the coast and youre not confronted by development. Youre more likely to see a whale than a ship. Thats worth a lot, in so many ways. You can almost see it wash away peoples stress. And when the humpbacks start arriving, as they are now, it gives a lift of the spirits. Tourism in the regions biggest employer, providing more than 1000 jobs to people like Sandy Burt. Credit:Cruise Ningaloo State-based consultants on Ningaloos original World Heritage nomination included Exmouth Gulf in the optimal boundary.

Their report detailed features of world heritage value including underwater dunes that were remnants of the Ice Age, supporting an enormous diversity of life including seagrass meadows in which dugongs foraged and migratory humpbacks rested; coral colonies; and countless sponges and snails including the highly coveted cowries, known for their polished, brightly coloured egg-shaped shells. They listed fossilised coral reefs, also from the Ice Age, and coastal waters connected to underground limestone cave systems that supported a rich diversity of subterranean animals. Under the superlative beauty criteria, the committee described continuous bush panoramas and estuarine areas in the Bay of Rest and along the east coast, grand vistas with an absence of industrial infrastructure. They pointed out strong ecological links between Ningaloo and the Gulf, in particular mangroves and other shallow-water habitats that were nurseries and foraging grounds for many species including mangrove jacks (red snapper) and shovelnose rays  a ray critically endangered globally, but whose population remains so healthy in the Coral Coast that the region was recently described as a Noahs Ark for the species.

Exmouth Gulf is considered the most diverse and intact example of its coastal ecosystem type in the Pilbara coastal bioregion, and the only one remaining that is non-industrialised. It was excluded from the area Australia ended up nominating, after several petroleum exploration and production companies with tenements in and near Exmouth Gulf expressed extreme concern about the likely impact of any World Heritage listing on their activities, concerns echoed by the peak oil and gas industry body. A humpback and her calf in Exmouth Gulf. Credit:Oceanwise The original intention to include it, however, was noted by the United Nations committee, which in its official decision even recommended the Australian government consider inclusion of the Exmouth Gulf on the grounds of the ecological links between the reef and the gulf, in particular the mangroves and other shallow habitats. Peter Garrett, the federal minister for the environment and heritage at the time Ningaloo was listed  which he calls a highlight of his political career  took time out from touring with Midnight Oil to voice support for the campaign to take this recommendation forward.

The case we took prevailed because Ningaloo is such an incredible place, he said. I know its successful World Heritage listing is a source of pride for so many Western Australians and people all around the country. It makes a lot of sense to take the World Heritage committees advice and undertake the necessary plans to prepare for Exmouth Gulf to be included as part of the Ningaloo listing too. The Exmouth Gulf vistas are beautiful for their very remoteness and lack of disturbance, the original world heritage consultative committee wrote in 2004. Credit:Blue Media The Gulf has experienced growing pressure to industrialise in recent years, with oil and gas exploration, a subsea pipeline, and a deep-water port among proposals.

The Protect Ningaloo campaign set up to fight these has echoes of an earlier campaign. The rally filled the streets in Fremantle. Credit:Roel Loopers Two decades ago, in 2000, a WA Liberal-National government and a developer made public their plans for a major resort development on the Ningaloo Coast. The Save Ningaloo campaign was formed, and public figures such as Tim Winton and Toni Collette lent their support. In 2001, Labor won a landslide election victory, partly on its promises to protect the environment. In 2002, 15,000 people marched in Fremantle to Save Ningaloo. The proposal collapsed and so began further years of effort by conservationists, governments of all persuasions, scientists and others that culminated in the June 2011 listing.

Paul Gamblin was a spokesman for Save Ningaloo in 2001 and has returned 20 years later, after working with the World Wildlife Foundation on its Australian and international oceans campaigns as director of the modern incarnation, Protect Ningaloo. He said he would always remember the sense that right had been finally done by Ningaloo in 2011; that it was gratifying to see its international brand and stature grow, cementing it as a place of profound environmental and social importance. But even as they celebrated, campaigners knew their job was unfinished. The bottom line is that if we truly value Ningaloo and its economic contribution to WA  we have to look after Exmouth Gulf too, Mr Gamblin said. If the case was solid enough a decade ago to prompt UNESCO to formally call for Exmouth Gulfs inclusion  its strengthened considerably since then.

Mr Gamblin said the past decade had made it clear that Ningaloo-Exmouth Gulfs relative health, and function as a refuge, made it increasingly important as ecosystems declined across the planet, and Australias international obligation to secure this heritage was growing. He said Ningaloos listing had led to it becoming a major eco-tourism destination. Exmouth Gulf mangroves are such vital nurseries some species reproductive systems evolved to depend on them. Credit:Blue Media A recent Deloitte report, commissioned by the WA government, found the Ningaloo and Exmouth Gulf region supported more than 1000 full-time jobs and contributed more than $110 million a year to the economy. Heritage listing  can provide confidence to people who want to invest in economic activity that is compatible with those important values, not at odds with them, Mr Gamblin said.

It can provide greater clarity and certainty for the direction of an area like Ningaloo and Exmouth Gulf. Loading The World Wildlife Foundation released a prescient statement when the heritage listing was announced. Ningaloos status among the worlds great natural wonders has been asserted, it said. But special places like Ningaloo will only survive if we are eternally vigilant.

Exmouth Gulf, in particular must be protected with no less resolve. If oil rigs stray too close, when climate change threatens, the newly-minted World Heritage-listed Ningaloo will be able to draw on a whole new wellspring of interest and support. Asked for her response to the new campaign, a spokeswoman for WA Environment Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson said Exmouth Gulf was a significant place for many West Australians. She said the Environmental Protection Authority was providing the minister with strategic advice on the area and she would consider what steps were most appropriate. As an independent authority, the EPA is best placed to provide the information and analysis needed to inform the McGowan governments decisions on any future development in Exmouth Gulf, she said. The minister expects the EPAs advice and recommendations to be finalised soon.
The Age was right to call not only for an open trial of Bernard Collaery in the East Timor bugging case, but for the Commonwealth to abandon its prosecution altogether in its editorial earlier this week. As a former attorney-general and foreign affairs ministerresponsible in my time for both ASIO and ASIS  I well understand the argument that absolute institutional discipline must be maintained in relation to our intelligence agencies.

But every case is context-dependent, which is why prosecutorial discretion always exists in criminal cases, and there multiple grounds for its exercise here.

Lawyer Bernard Collaery is being prosecuted for allegedly helping his then client, Witness K, reveal aspects of an alleged secret bugging operation against East Timor. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

They include the evident motivation of Collaery - like his client, the former intelligence officer Witness K - as being not to aid an enemy or adversary of Australia but to call out ill-advised or unconscionable official activity. There is also the limited nature of the public disclosures in question, not naming any individual intelligence officers, or identifying any non-routine operational methodology and the very long delay involved in bringing these cases to trial.

But above all they include the serious damage to Australias international reputation. That which has been done already by our acknowledgment, in the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) proceedings in 2013, that espionage activity was conducted against East Timor in the context of the essentially commercial oil and gas negotiations.
A former soldier who war veteran Ben Roberts-Smith suspected of making damaging claims about him to the media had his home raided by police after a private investigator hired by the decorated soldier made a complaint about him to the Australian Federal Police.

Mr Roberts-Smith, a Victoria Cross recipient, conceded at his defamation trial in the Federal Court that he had told the private investigator that a former Special Air Service (SAS) comrade known as Person 6 had smuggled unregistered guns into Afghanistan in 2012 and still had one of the weapons in his possession in Australia.

Ben Roberts-Smith arriving at the Federal Court in Sydney on Wednesday. Credit:Rhett Wyman

He said during cross-examination that he told the private investigator, John McLeod, it was fine with me if he passed the information on to his contacts or friends in the Australian Federal Police (AFP). However, Mr Roberts-Smith insisted he didnt instruct [Mr McLeod] to do anything.

Mr Roberts-Smith said he had come to regard Person 6 as his enemy in about 2010, and by 2017 he believed the soldier was part of a whispering campaign against him in the media.
The first 150 GP practices in NSW will begin dispensing Pfizer jabs from July 5, with supply of the vaccine to the state expected to reach up to 770,000 doses from October.

NSW will receive an additional 50,000 Pfizer doses by Friday as Sydney battles a growing Delta variant COVID-19 outbreak.

A pharmacy technician loads a syringe with Pfizers COVID-19 vaccine. Credit:AP

The rise of Pfizer doses comes as NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said there was insufficient vaccination coverage to allow for people fully or partially vaccinated to be exempt from restrictions triggered by the outbreak across Sydney.

This particular strand is extremely contagious, and we dont have enough of the population vaccinated to make those distinctions. Until the vast majority of our population is vaccinated, these threats will be real and ongoing, Ms Berejiklian said on Wednesday. No matter how good we are dealing with the outbreaks, the threat is real until the majority of our population is vaccinated.
A man allegedly involved in the kidnapping of former Test cricketer Stuart MacGill from outside his Cremorne apartment could lose all his teeth while behind bars if he does not continue receiving private treatment, a court has heard.

Frederick Schaafs barrister Ian McLachlan said his clients back teeth were already missing and he needed urgent ... treatment which Justice Health would not be able to provide.

One of the men allegedly involved in Stuart MacGills (pictured) kidnap has been denied bail after a court heard he had a history of violence. Credit:AP

Mr McLachlan told Manly Local Court on Wednesday if the matter was to proceed to trial there could be a delay of more than 18 months, during which time Mr Schaaf could suffer from serious tooth decay and require all his teeth to be removed.

The court heard some time during the kidnapping incident in April Mr Schaaf allegedly touched his hip, giving the impression he had a gun.
We have fewer cases than we did at some points last year and we know more about COVID, but this is Delta strain and previous strains werent transmitting as frequently, she said. Dr Chant and Premier Gladys Berejiklian both defended the decision to allow people who were at Bondi Junction Westfield last week but did not attend a specific store identified as an exposure site or have symptoms to test for COVID-19 and then not isolate, as the number of local cases and in the city grew. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video NSW Health told anyone receiving a test they did not need to isolate as they waited for their result. There was a significant increase in tests processed in the 24 hours to 8pm Tuesday: 44,640 people, up from 28,645 the previous day.

Dr Chant said the advice, announced on Saturday for people at the shopping centre the previous weekend and extended to the entire week by Monday, was a pragmatic decision to maximise testing numbers. These are all complex, weighted decisions, and we asked people to minimise movements and we asked them if they could isolate, could they not go to a restaurant or other activities, minimise their movements, she said. Stuart Turville, an associate professor in immunovirology at the Kirby Institute, was not particularly concerned by the decision to allow some people to test without isolating, noting the exposure site list for the Westfield was pretty extensive. Most people who went to Westfield would have been in many of the areas they list where you have to isolate, he said. Stephen Leeder, an emeritus professor of public health and community medicine at the University of Sydney and editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Epidemiology, said balancing quarantining potential cases with encouraging tests was a tricky area.

The index of suspicion for having a test is set so high that lots of people who in all probability wont have the virus are asked to test and then isolate, he said. Loading We could probably be a bit more discriminatory [about who needs to isolate] without serious health risks. The approach is not unique. In South Australia, people from designated hot spot areas - such as any arrivals from inner Sydney this week - need to test on days one, five and 14 of their stay but are free to move about in the community while they wait for results, provided they do not visit high-risk settings such as aged care.
The pilot of a helicopter that crashed into waters off Port Stephens, killing five people, was not qualified to fly at night.

An investigation by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau found the pilot of the flight, David Kerr, continued to fly after last light and likely lost control of the helicopter after becoming spatially disoriented.

Pilot David Kerr, left, and his friends, Grant Kuhnemann, top, and Jamie Ogden, were are among the five who died in the crash.

The September 6, 2019 crash killed Mr Kerr and passengers Jamie Ogden and Grant Kuhnemann, from Queensland, and Sydney couple Jocelyn Villanueva and Gregory Milleron.

Wreckage of the helicopter was found in about 30 metres of water, about 5 kilometres south-west of Anna Bay, almost three weeks after the crash.
Loading Dr Chant described the birthday party in West Hoxton as a super-spreading event. Of the 10 locally reported cases to 8pm last night, seven cases were already announced yesterday including a nine-year-old child who attends St Charles Catholic Primary School, Waverley. The others include: A man in his 60s from Wollongong who is a household contact of a previously reported case and has been in isolation while infectious.

Five family members who are household contacts of a previous case. They have been in isolation while infectious. Three further cases were reported to 8pm last night including a man in his 50s who works in Bondi Junction, and a woman in her 40s from Wollongong. She is a close contact of a previously reported case and has been in isolation while infectious and a man in his 30s from south-west Sydney and he is a close contact of a previously reported case.

This is an evolving situation and we would have preferred not occur. Our government will take action today to limit the spread of what is a very contagious variant of COVID, Ms Berejiklian said. There was also a significant increase in testing with 44,640 people tested to 8pm last night, a jump from 28,645 the previous day. Loading Additional restrictions, including a return to the four-square-metre rule for all indoor and outdoor venues and a 50 per cent capacity cap on outdoor seated events will also be introduced, alongside a ban on drinking while standing up at venues, singing by audiences at indoor shows or congregants at places of worship, a 20-person cap on dance and gym classes. We are in the midst of a very serious outbreak of a very contagious variant of the virus, Ms Berejiklian said.

We are placing restrictions on our citizens ... which are proportionate to the risk at this stage but that could change. We cant control how contagious this is and that is why we have put in the restrictions we have. The childcare centre in Narellan Vale closed after a child who attended the centre on Monday tested positive on Tuesday. Richard Bell, chief executive officer of Little Zaks Academy, which has several child care centres across Sydney, said he learned at 4.42pm on Tuesday that a child who spent the day at the centre on Monday had tested positive. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video The girl, who is under five years old, had attended a family birthday gathering over the weekend with her father, Mr Bell said. Both the girl and her father have tested positive.

Mr Bell said Little Zaks had put its COVID-19 action plan in place within two hours of receiving news of the positive test. The centre in question has closed for deep cleaning and all staff and close contacts were alerted, he said. The Laverty Pathology testing site at Narellan reached capacity before 11am on Tuesday, with local police encouraging people to visit Campbelltown or Camden hospitals for a swab instead. Testing clinics in Sydneys east were operating until after midnight on Tuesday, with cars at Bondi Beachs drive-through clinic backed up about one kilometre at 9pm and some redirected to Bondi Junctions Laverty Pathology Drive-through clinic. Healthcare workers at The Bondi Junction clinic were collecting swabs until after midnight. The cases come as some states tighten travel restrictions for Sydneysiders.

On Tuesday night, Victoria designated the City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick local councils as red zones, meaning non-Victorian residents who have recently been in these areas are barred from entry. On Wednesday morning, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk closed her state to the same councils from 1am on Thursday. Anyone travelling to Western Australia from NSW must quarantine on arrival until getting a COVID-19 test and receiving a negative result. Loading In South Australia, people from these council areas must avoid high-risk health settings and be tested on arrival and on day five and 14 of their visit, should they stay for that long. However, they do not need to isolate after their tests. There were no new local cases reported elsewhere in Australia on Wednesday morning, as Queensland authorities continued to investigate a likely transmission between two people in quarantine at the Brisbane Airport Novotel.

People should be prepared that if there is further spread in NSW, this advice may have to be updated during the course of the day or into the evening, Queenslands Premier warned. New Zealand health officials are tracing the contacts of an Australian traveller from Sydney who visited Wellington over the weekend while infectious with COVID-19. The visitor was in Wellington from June 19 to June 21, and tested positive for the virus on their return to Australia. From 1am Wednesday, any non-Victorian residents who have been in the City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick will not be allowed to enter Victoria. A group of NSW Nationals MP, including Agriculture Minister Adam Marshall and upper house MPs Ben Franklin and Trevor Khan, are also isolating after being contacted overnight by NSW Health and told to get a COVID-19 test immediately. Mr Franklin said he was at Christos Pizza in Paddington on Monday.
A senior police detective told one of his investigators to delete any claim that officers had fabricated the confession of an arsonist convicted over Brisbanes Whiskey Au Go Go firebombing in her report to the Queensland coroner.

The revelations were heard in the coronial inquest last Thursday, but were subject to a non-publication order from the legal counsel for the Queensland Police Commissioner.

However, that order was revoked on Wednesday after a legal challenge by media outlets.

Highly experienced homicide and cold case investigator Detective Inspector Damien Hansen. Credit:Jorge Branco

A fresh two-week inquiry into the Fortitude Valley firebombing on March 8, 1973, in which 15 people died, began last week in the Brisbane Magistrates Court before State Coroner Terry Ryan.
Community broadcaster Channel 31 has had its licence extended for three more years after the federal government reversed a decision to end its free-to-air operations.

Communications Minister Paul Fletcher announced the extension on Wednesday evening after a campaign by volunteers, staff and City of Melbourne councillors.

Mr Fletcher said that the existing community TV licence holders, Channel 31 and Channel 44 in Adelaide, will be able to continue to hold their licence until mid-2024.

Channel 31s poster celebrating the licence extension. Credit:Facebook

The Age had reported on the disappointment among the next generation of broadcasters facing federal government plans to close the channels free-to-air operations at the end of June, despite not planning to use its frequency range for at least three years.
Police are investigating the circumstances of a mans death after his body was found near a popular shopping centre in Melbournes south-east.

A crime scene has been established near Fountain Gate shopping centre after the body was found opposite a park, near the intersection of Princes Highway and Raven Crescent in Narre Warren about midday.

Police and emergency services are at the scene.

A police spokesman said the exact circumstances of the mans death had not yet been established but that it was not being treated as suspicious at this time.
The Delta COVID-19 variant is spreading in Sydney, prompting fresh restrictions and concern from authorities. Here is what we know about it.

The variant was the second spotted in India. Formerly known as B1.617.2, it is one of two sub-variants of the B1.617 lineage (the other being the Kappa variant, which spread in Melbourne last month).

Evidence suggests it is substantially more transmissible than the Alpha variant, which was already more transmissible than the virus that came originally out of Wuhan.

It is the second-most common variant in NSWs quarantine system, after the Alpha variant. There were 48 cases of the Delta variant recorded in returned overseas travellers to the end of May, although none since.

Loading

Outside the states quarantine system, Health Minister Brad Hazzard said Delta was a spreading gold medallist, with transmission occurring at Bondi Junction Westfield among people who CCTV showed had only passed each other.

Last year, we talked about this particular virus when it first came to our shores as being obviously dangerous but it wasnt a long jumper and it wasnt a high jumper, Mr Hazzard said on Tuesday.

[But] we also need to recognise that the Delta variant of the COVID virus is actually a gold medallist when it comes to jumping from one person to another - it is a long jumper.

Read the full story here.
Venues without seated service can also have up to 300 people indoors and 1000 outdoors. Venues smaller than 600 square metres must abide by a density quota of one person per two square metres with up to 150 patrons, provided that a COVID-19 check-in marshall is present at the venue. Under the new rules, community sporting venues will also be allowed to have up to 300 people in indoor space and 1000 outdoors. And people in hospitals and care facilities can have two visitors at a time, or up to five per day, although some individual facilities may have their own rules.

We did want to provide as much certainty as we can today for the easing of restrictions, particularly as the next couple of weeks will be school holidays, Mr Merlino said on Wednesday. We are taking some big steps forward, so we can spend more time together with the people we love. Loading Later on Wednesday, federal health authorities announced Victorias weekly vaccine allocation to state hubs and primary care will be a maximum of 633,000 AstraZeneca doses and up to 177,000 Pfizer doses per week in July and August. That will increase to a limit of 315,000 AstraZeneca, 317,000 Pfizer and 30,000 Moderna doses in September, and then a maximum of 570,000 Pfizer and 148,000 Moderna shots each week from October.

The changes come as the state prepares for school holidays  which begin on June 26  and after Victoria recorded no new coronavirus cases on Wednesday. One case was recorded in hotel quarantine. More than 28,200 test results were processed in the past 24 hours and more than 17,200 people received their vaccine doses. Victoria had a total of 50 active coronavirus cases as of Wednesday, and the states Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said 24 of those were local cases. NSW records 16 new cases

Loading Meanwhile, in NSW, extra COVID-19 restrictions are being imposed for residents following an increase in local cases. On Wednesday, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said 16 new cases of COVID-19 had emerged. Ten cases of COVID-19 were detected in the NSW community in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday. A further 13 were discovered after 8pm. However, of the original 10 cases, just three were not previously reported in the media. Eight of the 13 new cases discovered after 8pm on Tuesday attended the same birthday party, Ms Berejikilan said.

Clearly this is an evolving situation, she said. Given what has occurred the NSW government will be taking action today to limit the spread of what is a very contagious [strain of] COVID. Victoria reaches 2 million COVID-19 vaccine doses Victoria has become the first state where more than 2 million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered, about 50,000 more than NSW.

Health Minister Martin Foley used the milestone to urge the federal government to urgently step up and provide more doses to Victoria so that more people can be vaccinated heading into the winter months. Two million vaccine doses across Victoria is a significant achievement, Mr Foley said in a statement. Victorians have shown they want to be vaccinated, but we just need the certainty of increased supply as soon as possible. We know theres a long way to go, and there are millions more Victorians who want to be vaccinated. Victorian border slammed shut to parts of Sydney

Victoria slammed its border shut to large parts of Sydney at 1am on Wednesday. The states authorities declared seven NSW local government areas as red zones: the City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, the Inner West and Randwick. Non-Victorian residents who have been in a red zone are barred from entering Victoria unless they obtain an exemption. Victorias Health Department said anyone arriving into the state from those local government areas without a valid travel permit will be fined and have to stay in hotel quarantine.

Loading On Wednesday, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk also announced that her state will shut its border to seven local government areas in NSW. Well be easing even more restrictions across Queensland, and we cannot afford to have this Delta variant out in our community, she said. New Zealand pauses travel bubble with NSW New Zealands quarantine-free travel bubble with NSW is being paused over concerns about the states growing outbreak.

An Australian travelled from Sydney to Wellington over the weekend before returning to Australia on Monday and testing positive to COVID-19, according to the NZ health officials. This is the first time an Australian traveller has brought COVID-19 to NZ and since gone home, NZs Ministry of Health said in a statement. Health authorities say an Australian man flew from Wellington to Sydney on Monday while infectious. Credit:iStock Based on the time of their symptom onset and CT [cycle threshold] score it is most likely they contracted the virus in Sydney prior to their visit to New Zealand. Genome sequencing is under way in Australia to see if the case is linked to the current outbreak in Sydney. As a result, travel between NSW and New Zealand has been paused for the next few days.
So its a real cause for celebration, but also a story with more twists and turns than youd expect. Its almost impossible to believe now, but Ningaloos World Heritage crown wasnt a sure thing.

We West Australians already knew Ningaloo was beyond special but it certainly felt good having our reef on the list of the worlds most outstanding heritage places, from the Acropolis and Machu Picchu to the Serengeti.

Not because it didnt measure up but because of opposition to the listing from some quarters that seemed to be based on concerns that activities like pastoralism, camping or fishing, for example, would be constrained. Thats clearly not how it works, or what has happened at Ningaloo, as anyone who has been to the region or lives there knows.

Fortunately, the original broad community movement for Ningaloo, embodied by the Save Ningaloo campaign of the early 2000s, encouraged the relevant officials and ministers, from different parties at the state and federal levels, to press ahead with the listing to create this overwhelmingly positive legacy, to their enduring credit.

Corals in Exmouth Gulf. Credit:Blue Media

But theres another twist to the story, particularly topical given the uncertainty over Exmouth Gulfs future, beset as it is by one unplanned and increasingly controversial industrial development proposal after another.

When UNESCO, the arm of the United Nations that determines World Heritage listing, made its decision about Ningaloo, it also made a most pertinent comment about Exmouth Gulf.
Former Victorian premier Ted Baillieu will lead the Australian Heritage Council for the next three years, with the task before him involving assessing applications dating back more than a decade.

He replaces Howard-era environment minister David Kemp, whose second term as chair expired in March.

Ted Bailieu will lead the Australian Heritage Council for the next three years. Credit:Arsineh Houspian

Mr Baillieu was an architect before entering politics and since leaving Parliament has pursued academic positions in the field. In his capacity as patron of the Victorian Public Records Office, he recently was among 150 eminent Australians who called on the federal government to act urgently to help the National Archives save deteriorating records.

The Heritage Council is the federal governments main adviser on heritage matters, assessing places nominated for the national and Commonwealth heritage lists.
Liberal MPs are escalating calls for stronger action on climate change to counter Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce, demanding he stands up for farmers rather than defending mining and gas companies against pressure to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

Backing a goal of net zero emissions by 2050, key Liberals want the government to set the formal target as soon as possible by staring down scepticism within the Nationals about the need to act.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Queensland Liberal MP Warren Entsch. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer

Queensland Liberal Warren Entsch challenged the Nationals to help farmers by making sure fossil fuel companies did their share of the work to reach net zero.

If the Nationals were really concerned about the livelihoods of farmers, perhaps they would do more to advocate for and enable the sectors autonomy  rather than going off half-cocked and running roughshod over a net zero 2050 emissions target, he said.
Supporters of the maverick former James Cook University physics professor Dr Peter Ridd packed three courtrooms at the High Court of Australia to see their heros unlawful sacking case.

Despite the technical legal arguments that several admitted they did not understand, most stayed as the hours ticked on to watch the case of the scientist whose firing has become a test for academic freedom.

Peter Ridd in Canberra, where he debriefed with supporters after his court hearing. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Dr Judy Ryan, who described herself as a Canberra-based independent scientist, said she was there to support Ridds criticism of the oxymoronic scientific consensus on climate change.

Canegrowers Robert Malaponte and Denis Pozzebon had come down from their properties near Townsville in Queensland for the hearing to represent their local industry association.
Recovery of water for the environment under the $12 billion Murray Darling Basin Plan would be halted in its tracks under a move launched by National party senators in Canberra on Wednesday morning.

The basin plan was created in 2012 to buy back water from irrigators and invest in infrastructure projects to return 3200 gigalitres to the environment, after scientists found extractions for farming had been over-allocated and the ailing river system needed an urgent injection of extra environmental water.

The Nationals want to halt water buy backs for environmental flows under the Murray Darling Basin Plan. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer

Nationals senators lodged an amendment to alter the basin plan legislation to prevent any future water recovery that would reduce the volumes available to irrigators across the nations food bowl. They stressed that their move was in the making weeks before Barnaby Joyce assumed the Nationals leadership.

Water recovery is unpopular in NSW, Queensland and Victorian rural electorates, with many irrigation communities calling for their Nationals representatives to stop the basin plan.
Nationals senator Samantha McMahon was encouraged to leave the upper house on Tuesday evening after several colleagues raised concerns that she appeared to be disoriented, struggling to walk, barely awake and was battling to sit upright in her seat.

The Northern Territory veterinarian, who faces a preselection battle for the number one spot on the Country Liberal Party ticket on Saturday, was a key supporter of Barnaby Joyce in his ousting of Michael McCormack this week to return as Nationals leader.

Nationals senator Sam McMahon takes a sip of water during a division in the Senate on Wednesday morning. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

More than 10 senators  from different political persuasions have confirmed Senator McMahon appeared to be heavily under the influence of alcohol while on the floor of the Senate.

Senator McMahon said it was incorrect she had been adversely affected by alcohol, saying shed had only one glass of wine with dinner and had been overwhelmed during the evening after receiving sad personal news. She said she had asked to leave the chamber because she was not coping.
Its just guys constantly lining up to have a crack. Were here to work and if we did want something more, then thats fine, but its the unwanted harassment that makes you feel like youre a goldfish in a bowl. Following the assault the woman lodged a complaint with her employer but did not report it to police as she had let the man into her donga and felt she wouldnt be believed. I had a drink and then I cant remember another thing and then I woke up and realised what had happened, she said.

For all the reasons, you dont want to say anything ... youd never have another job. The woman said she reported the assault to her line manager, a married man who had also been sexually harassing her via text message. Her company referred the matter to a third party for investigation. She went on to lodge a more complete complaint regarding all the behaviour she had faced. Her formal complaint, which WAtoday has seen, included claims men would leave money in the fridge for cleaners to have sex with them, grooming of younger women by older men, prostitutes working out of store rooms and excessive alcohol use.

Workers involved in a drinking game at a Pilbara mining camp where a woman claimed sexual harassment was rife. She said the manager quit shortly after this process began. The alleged perpetrator of the assault was moved to another site. The woman  who has worked at a number of WA mining camps  wants men and women to get more education about sexual harassment when they first arrive on site and for women to feel more supported to speak up. Every site is different, so you can go to a really great one, but then you can have others that are out-of-control and just a free-for-all. There needs to be more regulation, she said.

Curtin University Centre for Transformative Work Design spokeswoman Dr Jess Gilbert said a hyper-masculine work culture can easily manifest at remote mining camps where women usually represent just one in five workers. A hyper-masculine work culture is essentially one that is characterised by an exaggeration of stereotypical masculine behaviour and attitudes, such as physical strength, power contests and domination, aggression and emotional detachment, she said. Workers within such cultures are encouraged to demonstrate masculinity through these means ... this also usually includes devaluing and dismissing women. Women need to not only manage the challenges of FIFO work and their job itself, but also the challenges of navigating a culture on mine sites that inherently discriminates against them. Dr Gilbert said fixing a hyper-masculine culture takes a consistent and considerable effort.

Transforming a hyper-masculine culture doesnt necessarily need to be done by highlighting gender issues, but rather creating an alternative way for the workplace socially to be organised and function, which needs to be upheld by all levels of management, promotion and hiring decisions, she said. Another BHP employee charged with rape A BHP spokesman described the alleged July 2020 sexual assault of one of its employees by another as a disturbing and distressing incident. We have supported the individual in reporting to police, who have subsequently laid charges, he said. We are providing ongoing support to the person involved who is still employed with us.

BHPs Mulla Mulla camp is the scene of one of the alleged rapes. Credit:Trevor Collens BHP is also fighting an unfair dismissal claim the alleged rapist has lodged with the Fair Work Commission. BHP conducts mandatory training on respectful behaviours on site, including the consequences of not meeting those expectations, and how to report an incident and seek help. Over the next five years BHP will also invest $300 million in strengthening security measures at its offices and camps. A national inquiry into sexual harassment in the workplace, commissioned in 2020 by the Australia Human Rights Commission, found 74 per cent of women in the mining industry had reported being sexually harassed in the past five years.
London: China has been accused of overseeing the deletion of crucial coronavirus data that could shine a light on the origins of the pandemic.

Scientists at Wuhan University asked for the genomic sequencing of 50 COVID cases discovered in the city early last year to be deleted from a publicly searchable American database.

The data, which has been rediscovered by an American scientist researching the origins of the pandemic, appears to show a previously missing stage in the evolution of the virus in humans. It also suggests the virus was circulating in Wuhan earlier than reported.

A medical worker attends to a patient in the intensive care unit at Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University in January 2020. Credit:AP

The US National Institutes of Health (NIH), which maintains the Sequence Read Archive (SRA), a giant repository of genome data, said it removed the gene sequences after a request from the team in June last year.
Lansdale, PA (19446)

Today

Partly cloudy this evening followed by increasing clouds with showers developing after midnight. Low near 60F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening followed by increasing clouds with showers developing after midnight. Low near 60F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
Former CEO S D Shibu Lal was on Wednesday appointed chairperson of a three-member task force formed to help the government in bringing major bureaucratic reforms through its ambitious "Mission Karmayogi".

Besides Lal who is founder of ShikshaLokam and founder and ex-CEO of Limited, Govind Iyer, Consultant at global management consulting group Egon Zehnder, and Pankaj Bansal, Co-founder and Group CEO of HR tech company PeopleStrong, will be part of the task force, according to a Personnel Ministry order.

Adil Zainulbhai, chairman designate, Capacity Building Commission, Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) will be a special invitee to the discussions of the task force, it said.

The Centre has recently approved the National Programme for Civil Services Capacity Building - Mission Karmayogi' to effect a transformational shift from rule based training to role-based capacity development of all civil services in the country so as to enhance citizen experience for government services and improve availability of competent work force.

To effectively roll out this competency driven mission, a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), namely Karmayogi Bharat, would be set up as a not-for-profit company, the order said. It will be set up under section 8 of Act, 2013 as a 100% government-owned entity.

The SPV will be responsible to deliver and manage design, implement, enhance and manage a digital platform and infrastructure, manage and deliver competency assessment services, and manage governance of telemetry data and ensure provision of monitoring and evaluation, it said.

It has been decided to constitute a task force comprising leading experts to draw a clear road map for the guidance and operationalisation of the Karmayogi Bharat', the SPV, the order said.

The task force will be free to constitute working groups, co-opt additional members/experts/special invitees, and consult national and international leaders in the field, it said.

The task force shall submit its recommendations on organisational structure for the SPV aligning its vision, mission and functions; policy frameworks for HR, compensation, IT, procurement and oversight functions, and staffing plans for top management including board members and key personnel with panels of potential candidates.

The task force is expected to complete its work within a period of six months from the date of its constitution and submit its recommendations in the form of periodic/interim reports in respect of various terms assigned to it, the Personnel Ministry order 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.)
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announced that Guenter Butschek who had informed his desire to relocate to at the end of the contract for personal reasons, will be stepping down from his role as CEO & MD from June 30, 2021. He will continue as a consultant to the company till the end of this fiscal year.



Pursuant to this, Girish Wagh is being appointed as the Executive Director to the Board of from July 1, 2021. Wagh is the president of commercial vehicles division. The passenger vehicle division will continue to be headed by Shailesh Chandra.



Chairman said, I would like to thank Guenter for leading successfully over the last 5 years and creating a strong foundation for the future. I look forward to his continued inputs as a consultant to the company.



Before Butschek, Tata Motors was without a CEO for two years (2014 till 2016) after Karl Slyms sudden demise. At that time, former Tata Motors chairman supervised its functioning. The company was also without a CEO for 10 months in 2012, after Prakash Telang superannuated. Before that too, it was without a CEO for 10 years (1994 to 2005), after J E Talaulicar retired. Tata Motors chairman emeritus oversaw the companys operations during that period.



Butschek, also a German national, has been managing Tata Motors from his home country Austria for most of the Covid-19 pandemic that has restricted human mobility.
Heineken, the second largest beer company in the world, increased its stake in (UBL) to 61.5 per cent on Wednesday. The Dutch parent of UBL, which had 45 per cent stake prior to todays transaction, bought the 14.99 per cent stake worth about Rs 5,825 crore held by the Debt Recovery Tribunal.

Given that received an exemption from making an open offer, it could also acquire the balance 11 per cent UB group stake pledged with banks through the same route. If this goes through, Heinekens stake in UBL, which has a 50 per cent share in Indias beer market, will cross the 72 per cent mark.

These shares were earlier owned by UB group chairman, Vijay Mallya who fled India after defaulting on bank loans taken by his now closed airline  Kingfisher Airlines. After Mallya escaped to London  leaving unpaid bills of thousands of employees, vendors and lenders  the Enforcement Directorate attached his properties including his stake in Indian The Indian lenders had made claims worth Rs 9,000 crore against the airline. The ED transferred the shares to the lenders after the PMLA Court ordered the agency in May last week.

The PMLA court, however, said in case Mallya is found innocent later, the banks will have to restore the properties back to Mallya after recovering their dues.

Meanwhile, the latest stake purchase will help to consolidate its market share in India through UBL and offer additional products to the Indian consumers.

The street perceives this as a positive with Emkay Global Researchs Ashit Desai highlighting that the increase in ownership may drive higher involvement and support from However, he doesnt see material benefits in the medium term as the company is run efficiently with market leadership, stronger profitability and access to Heinekens portfolio.





Credit Suisse, however, believes that full control for Heineken would mean more focus on improving mix and profitability at UBL. Say Arnab Mitra and Pratik Rangnekar of the foreign firm, Once Heineken takes full control of the business, we expect greater focus on premiumisation with brands like Amstel and Heineken Silver, and on cost efficiencies to improve operating profit margins. Amstel, which has a presence in 10 states, has gained market share in the March quarter. Moreover, the premium portfolio (Heineken Silver, Ultra Witbier, Amstel) has grown ahead of the overall portfolio in the quarter.

In addition to the stake consolidation, volume recovery and margin gains will be key triggers for the stock which shed 3.7 per cent in trade on Wednesday after scaling a new high of Rs 1,497.65 in intra-day trades. The companys volumes grew 8 per cent in the March quarter after five consecutive quarters of year-on-year decline with the total number of cases crossing the 40 million mark. The volume growth in the quarter was led by most markets barring Telangana, Odisha and Delhi. Desai of Emkay Global Research expects a faster recovery than the first lockdown given benign taxation, earlier reopening of on-premise trade (bars, pubs, restaurants) and ongoing vaccination.

Given the higher input costs, the street will keep an eye out on margin trends. While gross margins were below expectations in the March quarter, tight control on costs helped the company post a strong 16.9 per cent operating profit margin. While glass prices are stable and availability should improve post lockdown, barley prices continue to remain high. This could impact margins in the June quarter as recovery was cut short mid-way by the second wave.

The stock is up 14 per cent since the start of May and is valued at 47 times its FY23 earnings estimates. These gains along with the market regulator Sebi on Tuesday exempting Heineken International from making an open offer to the shareholders of UBL for its additional stake purchase can be attributed to Wednesdays correction.

Given the low levels of consumption, expectations of market share gain from spirits, lower tax rates (Haryana, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh) and premiumisation, most brokerages are positive on long term growth prospects. Investors can consider the stock on further corrections.
Heineken NV, the world's second largest maker, has taken control of India's largest brewer Limited (UBL), cementing its position in a vast market where consumption could grow from a low base.

The Dutch brewer said on Wednesday it had it had bought 39.6 million shares in UBL to push its holding to 61.5% from 46.5% before. Based on Tuesday's close at 1,466 Indian rupees, the acquisition would be worth 58.1 billion Indian rupees ($781.3 million).

UBL is the maker of India's top-selling Kingfisher lager and was owned by Indian businessman Vijay Mallya, who India want to extradite from Britain over $1.4 billion of loans taken out from Indian banks which authorities argue he had no intention of repaying.

The banks took possession of the stake and India's Competition Commission approved Heineken's proposed acquisition of additional equity on Monday. Heineken has steadily been building its stake in UBL since taking an initial 37.5% through its 2008 acquisition of Scottish & Newcastle.

Brokers Jefferies said India, accounting for 18% of the global population but only about 1% of world volumes, represented a long-term growth opportunity. Traditional drivers of beer expansion, a young population and economic growth, were in place, but high excise duty meant affordability was an issue.

A narrowing of the gap between tax on beer and on spirits, Jefferies said, would give significant potential for the market to grow from current annual beer consumption of 1.6 litres per capita towards the global average of 24.4 litres.

($1 = 74.3620 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Philip Blenkinsop; editing by David Evans)

(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 Aditya Kalra

NEW DELHI (Reuters) -New Indian e-commerce rules will raise costs for all online retailers but particularly and Walmart's as they may have to review their business structures, senior industry sources told Reuters.

India's Ministry of Consumer Affairs outlined plans on Monday which include limiting "flash sales" by online retailers, reining in a private label push, compelling them to appoint compliance officers and impose a "fall-back liability" if a seller is negligent.

The new rules are expected to have an impact across the board in an e-retail market India forecasts will be worth $200 billion by 2026, with players including from Tata's BigBasket, Reliance Industries' JioMart and Softbank-backed Snapdeal to market leaders and

The rules are the latest in a growing confrontation https://www.reuters.com/world/india/frequent-run-ins-with-india-govt-cloud-us-tech-expansion-plans-2021-06-11 between U.S. tech giants and New Delhi over a host of policy-related issues which are seen by some as protectionist.

"The rules will have a wider impact on all forms of e-commerce and will increase business costs. Entities, even beyond big players, are analysing the policy and will share concerns with the government," Arjun Sinha, a partner at Indian law firm AP & Partners, told Reuters.

The have until July 6 to respond to the proposals, after which time they may be reviewed further or implemented.

Snapdeal said it was reviewing the rules. BigBasket declined to comment. Reliance did not respond to a request for comment.

One aspect of the proposed new rules which is likely to have a particular impact is one which gives the customer "suggestions of alternatives to ensure a fair opportunity for domestic goods" if a retailer is showing imported goods for sale.

"The concept is about promotion of local goods. It's good for Made-in-India products, but not for the platforms," said Salman Waris, a partner at TechLegis Advocates.

Non-compliance with the rules, if implemented, could be punishable with prison terms, and fines of at least 25,000 Indian rupees under the India's consumer law, Waris added.

'WIDESPREAD CHEATING'

Monday's Indian government notification detailing the rules said that they were being issued after complaints of "widespread cheating and unfair trade practices being observed in the e-commerce ecosystem."

It did not name any company.

The rules potentially present a bigger setback for and Amazon, as they contain clauses that say e-commerce firms must ensure none of their related enterprises are listed as sellers on their shopping websites, and that no affiliate entity should sell goods to an online seller operating on its platform.

holds an indirect stake in two of its top sellers.

Indian retailers allege that Amazon and Flipkart use their wholesale units to indirectly list products on their websites through select sellers, bypassing foreign investment restrictions that prohibit direct sales.

Both deny any wrongdoing.

Amazon and Flipkart are likely to push back against the proposals, two of the industry sources said.

The rules were seen by some in the industry as a government alternative to a more stringent version of its foreign investment law, which restricts business arrangements Flipkart or Amazon can have with sellers, the sources said.

"The Consumer Affairs ministry has nothing to do with issues brought under these rules," one e-commerce executive said.

Amazon said in a statement that online marketplaces promote competition and enable transparency, adding that it was reviewing the draft policy and it was too early to comment.

Flipkart did not respond to a request for comment.

A Reuters investigation https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/amazon-india-operation in February cited Amazon documents that showed it gave preferential treatment to a small number of its sellers and used them to bypass federal law, sparking calls for a ban against the company. Amazon has said it does not give favourable treatment to any seller.

(Reporting by Aditya Kalra in New Delhi; Editing by Euan Rocha and Alexander Smith)

(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.)
Even as e-commerce players grapple with the latest chnages to the ecommerce rules, India's largest online fashion brand is gearing up for its End of Reason Sale (EORS). The 14th edition of the sale that begins from July 3, will also be for an extended period of six days this time, compared to the earlier four and five days.

The EORS is going to be the first big fashion sale event this year after the second wave of Covid-19 hit the country, the Walmart-led company is looking to cater to 50 million visitors over the six day period. The event will connect consumers with 3,000 brands, it is also giving a push to local artisans with more that 10,000 artisans participating this year, giving a push to made in India handloom products.

This time around the biannual sale will also not give sleepless night to employees at the fashion e-tailer, as it makes sure that its last years learnings are put to use. The ecommerce platform has built a playbook based on remote learnings of last year to apply for.

Last years June and December EORS events went without a flaw or a glitch. And today, it's learnings have become a playbook. So the amount of effort we used to invest into scaling up for an event like this has come down significantly. And more than that, the work life balance is much better. People are not spending as much time as they should on this event as they have become better at it, said Amar Nagaram, CEO, When asked about the recent changes the Consumer Affairs Ministry has suggested for flash sales, Nagaram declined to comment on the issue.

During the previous editions last year, while the entire organisation was busy with the sale, this time only a small section of the company is planning EORS and the rest of the organisation is focusing on what is next for the company. What I mean is that we don't require a particular individual to be doing a particular task anymore. Anybody can do it with the playbook that we have defined for ourselves. So everybody's chipping in a very minimal way, he explained.

Traffic to the platform during the six day period is expected to rise by about 75 per cent over the previous edition of the sale held in June last year, with a projection of over three times demand over business as usual. is readying to take the load of up to 800,000 concurrent visitors at peak and up to 12,000 orders per minute. Overall the company is expecting to sell over 15 million items from six million orders, 40 per cent of which is likely to be delivered to tier 2 cities and beyond. The Bengaluru-based company had sold 10 million items during last Junes event.

A blessing in disguise are the new customers that are coming in from the markets that are open, which was not our primary market. Like Tier 2 and Tier 3, especially in the north is showing significant traction. And thats one of the reasons why we decided to go ahead with the event even though some part of our addressable market is still not open, said Nagaram.

The new customers on the platform during the May-June period has grown 2x year-on-year with the user having a different perception of essentials during this lockdown than the last year.

While the focus is more on work from home wear and casual footwear, DIY (do-it-yourself) beauty products are also in demand. About four times more customers bought lipsticks, kajal, compact and foundation this year on the platform as compared to 2020.

In fact, beauty and personal care, kids wear and casual wear are expected to contribute to about 50 per cent of the EORS demand Now that people are spending more time at home, they are also investing in beautifying their houses and we are creating more curated content for this category. It has been ramped up 2.5 times over last year, said Nagaram.

To meet the last mile delivery requirements, Myntra has scaled up its MENSA (Myntra Extended Network for Service Augmentation), network four times and will be working with 17,700 kirana partners who will cater to 80 per cent of the overall deliveries spanning about 600 cities.
Country's largest bank State Bank of India may raise only up to Rs 9,000 crore in capital through additional tier I bonds (AT1 bonds) in current financial year (FY22) and could consider additional raising plan only next year to further enhance it's capital adequacy profile.

Official sources said that the bank is sitting with a sound capital adequacy ratio (CAR) of 13.74 per cent and expects loan growth to touch close to 9 per cent in FY22. This would prevent the bank from raising full quanta of Rs 14,000 crore Tier-I capital raising plan that its board approved early this year.

The Central Board on Monday approved plan to raise up to Rs 14,000 crore in capital through additional tier I bonds (AT1 bonds) by way of issuance of Basel lll compliant debt instrument in rupee and/or US dollar in FY 22.

Sources said that most of the capital raised by the would be used to finance the maturity of AT1 and Tier-II bond coming up this year. The maturity amount works to about Rs 9,000 crore that could be financed through the capital raised by the bank this year.

An executive said that permission for Rs 14,000 crore capital raising plan is an enabling provision and the actual issuance will depend on the market conditions and credit growth in the system.

Sources said that the centre has approved the capital raise plan of the bank, but it could not be verified with the officials. Concurrence of the centre is important as it is promoter of the bank with 57.63 per cent stake as of March 31, 2021.

SBI's Common Equity Tier I (CETI) was 10.02 per cent in March 2021 higher than regulatory requirement of 7.97 per cent. Its AT-1 level was 1.42 per cent in March 2021, up from 1.23 per cent in March 2020.

With CETI higher than regulatory requirements, SBI is not hard pressed to raise capital and would approach the board and shareholders for requisite approvals as and when need arises.

--IANS

sn/skp/

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The bidding race for ended in a photo finish on Wednesday, with the Suraksha groups resolution plan winning 98.66 per cent of the committee of creditors (CoC) votes and India receiving 98.54 per cent of the votes.

Both plans were put up for voting separately, and the tight result is leading to speculation that may move court again.

All lenders, except ICICI Bank, voted in favour of both the plans, while most homebuyers chose However, dissent by Srei Infrastructure against NBCCs plan tilted the scales in favour of Suraksha.

Jaypee Infratech, which owns the Delhi-Agra expressway and land on both sides of it, was referred to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in August 2017 under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) after it defaulted on Rs 22,600 crore of loans. Since then litigation by various stakeholders, including former promoters and homebuyers, apart from the CoC's flip-flop, has delayed the debt resolution process.

The company had earlier received interest from the JSW, Vedanta and Adani groups, but all of them withdrew from the process, citing delay.

Finally, the contest was left between Suraksha Asset Reconstruction Company and NBCC India. The two firms have also shown interest in developing the land around the expressway.





On June 7, Suraksha had sweetened its offer by Rs 1,298 crore to Rs 7,736 crore for the financial lenders and promised to bring in additional interim funding of Rs 300 crore to build houses faster for Jaypee customers.

Government-owned NBCC, on the other hand, had offered Rs 1,200 crore lower, and its offer included 100 per cent shareholding of the land bank company with 1,900 acres of land to the financial creditors, who had agreed to the resolution plan.

NBCC also agreed to transfer a 90 per cent stake in the Expressway SPV (special purpose vehicle), including concession rights of Yamuna Expressway and land.

The offer also included 4,660 acres of expressway land and 137.85 acres of commercial land for developing facilities along the expressway. NBCC had offered additional 100 acres of land, which was to be earmarked for payment to the homebuyers on account of past delay penalty in a pro-rata manner.

In the entire process, homeowners were the biggest losers who had been waiting for over 11 years to get keys to their homes and had moved the Supreme Court to get a seat on the CoC.

Thanking the judiciary and the CoC, a spokesperson for the Suraksha group said they were committed to the homebuyers, and would accelerate the construction work, leading to faster deliveries. We look forward to the continued support of all stakeholders in our journey to bring back the beleaguered real estate project to fulfill the dreams of thousands of homebuyers, said the spokesperson.
Mumbai-based Suraksha group on Wednesday received the approval of financial creditors and homebuyers to takeover debt-laden Ltd (JIL).

The 10-day-long voting process on the takeover proposals submitted by NBCC and Suraksha group ended on Wednesday afternoon. More than 98 per cent of the votes were in favour of Suraksha group's bid.

This is the fourth round of bidding process to find a buyer for JIL, which went into Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) in August 2017.

"Suraksha group has won the bid with 98.66 per cent votes," JIL's Interim Resolution Professional (IRP) Anuj Jain told PTI.

It got 0.12 per cent more votes than NBCC, he added.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Senior television journalist illegally tampered with the TRPs in connivance of the then CEO of the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) Partho Dasgupta to improve ratings of channels and paid him for his help, as per the supplementary chargesheet filed by the Mumbai Police who cited Whatsapp chats between the duo as a "crucial evidence".

The Crime Intelligence Unit (CIU) of the Mumbai Police on Tuesday filed a third chargesheet before a magistrate's court here in the alleged fake Television Ratings Points (TRP) scam.

Besides Goswami, the Editor-in-Chief of Republic TV, and ARG Outlier Media that runs channels, the police also named six other accused including some employees of Republic group channels in the latest chargesheet.

"We have found evidence to show they (Goswami and Dasgupta) had exchanged confidential information about the repeatedly to benefit Goswami's channels," the chargesheet said.

During the period between June 2017 and March 2018 when Dasgupta was working with the BARC, the TRP ratings of an English news channel were illegally manipulated so that they fall below the TRPs of channels, which resulted in Rs 431 crore loss to that channel, police said, citing the statement of an executive of the news channel.

Police further said they possess the evidence to show that Goswami had paid Dasgupta in return for the latter's assistance in manipulating the TRPs, "which was evident from the jewellery and expensive items seized from Dasgupta's residence", the chargesheet said.

Dasgupta, who had been named as accused in the previous chargesheet, was arrested in December last year. He is currently out on bail.

The first chargesheet in the TRP rigging case, filed in November last year, had named Dasgupta and Republic TV CEO Vikash Khanchandani.

The alleged fake TRP scam came to light in October last year when the rating agency Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) filed a complaint through Hansa Research Group (HRG), alleging that certain television channels were rigging TRP numbers.

The HRG had been tasked with installing barometers for recording channel viewership data at sample households.

Police had arrested dozens of people, including the top officials of and Republic TV. Most of them are currently out on bail.

In March this year, the Bombay High Court had asked the Mumbai police why Republic TV and Goswami had not been named as accused in the case if the investigators believed to possess adequate evidence against them.

The ARG Outlier Media and Goswami had approached the high court last year, filing a bunch of petitions seeking several reliefs in the alleged TRP scam.

They had alleged that the whole case was malafide and they had been targeted for Republic TV's reportage in connection with the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput and Palghar lynching case last year.

(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.)
Arunachal Pradesh's COVID-19



tally rose to 33,664 as 289 more people tested positive for the infection, a senior health official said here on Wednesday.

The death toll in the frontier state rose to 160 after a woman from Namsai district succumbed to the disease on Tuesday, State Surveillance Officer, Dr Lobsang Jampa said.

The Capital Complex Region reported the highest number of fresh cases at 88, followed by West Kameng (25), Upper Subansiri (24), Namsai (21), East Siang (18), Changlang (15), Lohit (14), Kurung Kumey (12) and Lower Dibang Valley district at 10, the official said.

Fresh cases were also reported from West Siang, Lower Subansiri, Tawang, Leparada, East Kameng, Upper Siang, Tirap, Dibang valley, Kra Daadi, Longding, Lower Siang, Siang, Anjaw, Papumpare and Kamle district, the SSO added.

Of the fresh cases, 277 were detected through rapid antigen tests, nine through RT-PCR and three via TrueNat methods, the official said, adding that 125 people have symptoms of COVID-19.

now has 2,548 active COVID-19 cases, he said.

As many as 279 patients were cured of the disease on Monday taking the total number of COVID-19 recoveries in the state to 30,956, Jampa said.

The COVID-19 recovery rate now is 91.95 per cent while the active percentage stands at 7.57 and the positivity rate at 5.11 per cent, he said.

The Capital Complex Region - comprising Itanagar, Naharlagun, Nirjuli and Banderdewa areas - has the highest number of active cases at 465, followed by West Kameng (296), Changlang (189), East Siang (164) and Namsai at 141 cases.

Altogether, 7,26,805 samples have been tested for COVID-19 in the state so far, including 5,648 on Tuesday, Jampa said.

State Immunisation Officer Dr Dimong Padung said that a total of 5,10,237 people have been administered COVID-19 vaccine in the state since the inoculation drive began in January.

(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 (ED) has transferred a portion of the assets valued at Rs 8,441 crore it had seized in connection with cases related to the three fugitive economic offenders  Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, and Mehul Choksi  to state-run banks.

With this, the total transfer of the attached assets stand at Rs 9,371 crore, the agency said on Wednesday. This amounts to 40 per cent of the banks losses, the agency clarified.

According to the federal agency, the State Bank of India (SBI)-led consortium on Wednesday recovered Rs 5,824 crore in the Mallya case by selling some United Breweries (UB) shares through the Dispute Resolution Tribunal as directed by the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court.

In the Mallya case, the ED recently transferred Rs 6,600 crore worth of assets.

In the Nirav matter, it transferred Rs 1,060 crore to Punjab Bank.

The SBI consortium is also in the process of recovering Rs 800 crore this week by liquidating some more UB shares, taking the total recovery to Rs 7,981 crore. This includes the earlier recovered amount of Rs 1,357 crore by banks in the case.

The banks will be realising a total amount of Rs 7,981.5 crore this week through a sale of a part of the assets attached/seized by the ED under the provisions of PMLA, the agency pointed out.

Besides, the federal agency revealed that the three offenders have defrauded the public sector banks (PSBs) of Rs 22,586 crore, of which 80 per cent (or Rs 18,170 crore) has been attached/seized by the ED.

These include the recent attachment of assets worth Rs 329 crore, the agency further said.

Sources said the agency is in the process of attaching further assets worth Rs 4,000 crore to cover the total amount defrauded. This may include foreign assets as well.

Responding to the action, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday tweeted, Fugitives and economic offenders will be actively pursued; their properties attached and dues recovered."



She further tweeted, PSBs have already recovered Rs 1,357 crore by selling such shares. A total of Rs 9,041 crore shall be realised by banks through the sale of such attached assets.According to the federal agency, it unearthed the money trail by exposing a web of domestic and international transactions and unearthing assets stashed abroad. The investigation revealed that the three accused used dummy entities controlled by them for rotation and siphoning off the funds provided by the banks, it said.

The agency also said that the extradition requests have been sent to countries where the three accused are holed up. Mallya and Nirav live in London, while Choksi fled to Antigua.

Mallya has been denied permission to file an appeal in the UK Supreme Court, which has made his extradition to India almost final.

Niravs extradition to India is in its final leg.

Choksi has been contesting a legal battle in Antigua against his extradition process.
The has rejected the Delhi government's proposed doorstep ration delivery scheme citing "funny excuses", Deputy Chief Minister said on Wednesday.

Sisodia, however, claimed the Delhi government never sent any proposal regarding the scheme to the

Addressing an online briefing, the deputy chief minister also accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of "picking fights with states".

Sisodia said the Delhi government received a letter from the on Tuesday that said that the proposal for the doorstep ration delivery scheme for poor people has been rejected.

The Centre, he said, cited "funny excuses" for its decision.

It asked how ration will be delivered to beneficiaries who live in narrow lanes and multi-storey buildings and what will happen if ration delivery vans break down, he said.

Sisodia claimed the Delhi government did not send any proposal on the scheme to the Centre for its approval.

"What proposal did they reject when none was sent to them?" he asked.

The deputy CM said, "Ration distribution under public distribution system is the responsibility of the state."



"If people can have pizza, clothes and other consumables delivered to their homes, why can't ration be delivered to their doorstep?" he asked.

Citing the Centre's clash with West Bengal and Maharashtra governments, Sisodia said, "I want to ask the prime minister why he is always in the mood to quarrel. The country has never seen such a quarrelsome prime minister in the last 75 years."



The Delhi government planned to launch the scheme for the doorstep delivery of ration in June.

The launch was halted after the lieutenant governor returned the file on the scheme stating that it could not be implemented, according to a statement from the Chief Minister's Office.

According to the Delhi government, if implemented, the scheme would benefit 72 lakh ration cardholders in the city.

(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.)
China has now delivered more than 1 billion vaccine doses, hitting that Covid-19 milestone the same weekend that Brazil passed one of its own: more than 500,000 deaths. Daily case numbers remain worryingly high, and those hospitalized and dying include larger numbers of young people. India, meanwhile, is at risk of a third wave of infections sooner than predicted, after a devastating second.

The end of the pandemic is almost here. But the tail is long and  thanks to short-sighted global and national policies  this phase is no more of a great equalizer than the start was. Blame uneven access to immunization made worse by vaccine nationalism as rich governments focus on domestic needs. Insufficient state capacity, poor logistics, and distrust and misinformation, often fueled by populist leaders, have left millions behind and widened existing gaps in the global economy. Then there are insular policies in places like Australia or Hong Kong that focus on zero cases, making them reluctant to open up, discouraging vaccination and prolonging the endgame.

We know from past pandemics that the finale was never going to be swift or clear-cut. Its easy to track the start of the Spanish Flu pandemic in 1918, but far less simple to pinpoint the end, probably after the winter of 1920. Other mass vaccination efforts to combat infectious diseases, say polio, have also taken years  and arent yet over. But we dont have to repeat all the same mistakes.

Granted, the world has come far. Vanquishing Covid-19 is no longer a vague possibility; its visible in the distance. Researchers cracked the vaccine puzzle earlier than expected and shots have been distributed in record time, proving effective against even troublesome variants. As my Bloomberg News colleague Todd Gillespie reported this week, some epidemiologists are beginning to consider using hospitalizations, not case numbers, as the primary measure of virus risk.





ALSO READ: Covid-19: Quick vaccination is key to opening the economy, say experts

Yet 18 months on, Covid-19 continues to devastate. The developing world doesnt have enough shots, too many existing inequities have grown worse, and theres excess bureaucracy. Its not just a problem for the poorest: has underperformed in large part because of conservative regulation around new medicines that slowed the vaccine rollout,while restrictions on who can give injections led to a chronic staff shortage. With an aging population and the Olympics now weeks away, the country has fully vaccinated only 7% of residents.

For some nations, vaccines created an opportunity to earn back some much-needed political capital after botching earlier stages of the pandemic. Britain managed, as did the United States thanks to Operation Warp Speed, and most remarkably Israel, helped by a data-rich health system that encouraged Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE to assure supplies  plus deep pockets that allowed the country to pay a premium. That didnt keep Benjamin Netanyahu in the prime ministers seat, but it has resulted in getting 57% of the population fully vaccinated.

Others, after handling the pandemic well with effective controls, hung back in the inoculation race but are now sprinting to catch up as new variants threaten. Singapore has become the first Southeast Asian nation to distribute at least one shot to more than half its population. China has fully vaccinated 80% of adults in Beijing and distributed more than 1 billion doses overall, more than a third of the global total, leaning on a tried-and-tested top-down approach with the July 1 centenary of the Communist Party on the horizon.

The trouble is that state capacity, urgency and ready cash arent the norm. That ability to efficiently deliver policies, correct course, and hold the populations trust has been a big predictor of pandemic-management success, far more than democracy, autocracy or other measures, as David Skilling of the economic advisory firm Landfall Strategy Group points out. Its a rare commodity.

Strongmen leaders have been among the worst, too inflexible to bow to science and fact, and loathe to deliver bad news. is one such mess. Despite a pioneering Covid-19 shot, deep-rooted vaccine hesitancy has gotten worse with time, not better. Rather than prioritizing inoculations, officials including President Vladimir Putin  never seen in a mask  signaled all was well. It left the country vulnerable to the delta variant-fueled third wave now tearing through Moscow, which was forced last week to mandate jabs for service-sector workers. India, too complacent after its first wave ebbed, has paid an even higher price.

The reality of the late stage of this pandemic is, first, that theres no end to the cycle of surges and lockdowns without vaccinations. There must be a concerted push to get vaccines to the developing world soon  and not by backloading donations, as the Group of Seven nations appeared to do earlier this month. At-risk, jab-hesitant weak spots in the West will need to be tackled. And investment is critically needed in logistics and health care structures that can, in everyones interest, continue monitoring once the pandemic fades from headlines.

Then, even amid the excitement of reopening, there needs to be a recognition that at home and on a global scale, the pandemic has left the most vulnerable further behind. Covid-19 has accelerated some de-globalization trends, hampering the human mobility that so many states rely upon, and, with lengthy school closures, hurt human capital. Its fueling a multi-speed global economy, Landfalls Skilling says, and making it harder to close gaps.

After a pandemic that has touched all corners of the world and killed nearly 4 million people, investing in vaccinations, future generations and health care capacity to ensure we do better next time is a worthy memorial.
Countries like Mongolia, Seychelles and had relied on the easily accessible Chinese COVID-19 vaccines to combat the pandemic and bring back normalcy. These countries are now battling a surge in infections.

Examples from several countries suggest that the Chinese vaccines may not be very effective at preventing the spread of the virus, particularly the new variants, reported The New York Times (NYT).

In Seychelles, Chile, and Mongolia, about 50 to 68 percent of the populations have been fully inoculated with Chinese vaccines, outpacing the United States, according to Our World in Data, a data-tracking project. They are also among the top 10 countries with the worst COVID-19 outbreaks as recently as last week.

"If the vaccines are sufficiently good, we should not see this pattern," said Jin Dongyan, a virologist at the University of Hong Kong. "The Chinese have a responsibility to remedy this."

Amid uncertainty over how countries with relatively high inoculation rates are suffering new outbreaks, scientists have pointed out to relaxing of social controls and careless behaviour.

Israel, which has the second-highest vaccination rate in the world with shots from Pfizer after Seychelles, reports 4.95 new COVID-19 cases per million. On the other hand, Seychelles, which relied mostly on Sinopharm, that number is more than 716 cases per million.

China, as well as the more than 90 nations that have received the Chinese shots, may end up as a country that is fully vaccinated but partly protected from the virus, contending with rolling lockdowns, testing and limits on day-to-day life for months or years to come. Moreover, economies could remain held back, reported NYT.

Beijing saw its vaccine diplomacy as an opportunity to emerge from the pandemic as a more influential global power. China's top leader, Xi Jinping, pledged to deliver a Chinese shot that could be easily stored and transported to millions of people around the world.

Mongolia, relying on Chinese aid, quickly rolled out an inoculation program and eased restrictions, vaccinating 52 per cent of its population. However, it recorded 2,400 new infections on Sunday, a quadrupling from a month before.

In a statement, China's Foreign Ministry said it did not see a link between the recent outbreaks and its vaccines. It cited the World Health Organization as saying that vaccination rates in certain countries had not reached sufficient levels to prevent outbreaks, and that countries needed to continue to maintain controls, according to NYT.

"Relevant reports and data also show that many countries that use Chinese-made vaccines have expressed that they are safe and reliable, and have played a good role in their epidemic prevention efforts," the ministry said.

While the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines have efficacy rates of more than 90 per cent, China's Sinopharm vaccine has an efficacy rate of 78.1 per cent and the Sinovac vaccine has an efficacy rate of 51 per cent.

Moreover, the Chinese companies have not released much clinical data to show how their vaccines work at preventing transmission. Data on breakthrough infections has not been made available, either, though a Sinovac study out of Chile showed that the vaccine was less effective than those from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna at preventing infection among vaccinated individuals.

William Schaffner, medical director of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases at Vanderbilt University, said the efficacy rates of Chinese shots could be low enough "to sustain some transmission, as well as create illness of a substantial amount in the highly vaccinated population, even though it keeps people largely out of the hospital".

Despite the spike in cases, officials in both the Seychelles and Mongolia have defended Sinopharm, saying it is effective in preventing severe cases of the disease.

Nikolai Petrovsky, a professor at the College of Medicine and Public Health at Flinders University in Australia, said that with all of the evidence, it would be reasonable to assume the Sinopharm vaccine had minimal effect on curbing transmission. He said that a major risk with the Chinese inoculation is that vaccinated people may have few or no symptoms and still spread the virus to others.

In Indonesia, where a new variant is spreading, more than 350 doctors and health care workers recently came down with Covid-19 despite being fully vaccinated with Sinovac, according to the risk mitigation team of the Indonesian Medical Association.

and the United Arab Emirates were the first two countries to approve the Sinopharm shot, even before late-stage clinical trial data was released. Since then, there have been extensive reports of vaccinated people falling ill in both countries, NYT reported.

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The national capital reported 111 fresh cases on Wednesday at a positivity rate of 0.15 per cent, while seven more people succumbed to the infection, according to data shared by the health department here.

The seven new fatalities pushed the death toll in the city to 24,940. The case fatality rate stands at 1.74 per cent.

Delhi has recorded 14,33,366 cases since the pandemic started. As many as 14,06,629 patients have recovered so far and there were 702 recoveries in the last 24 hours, according to the bulletin.

Delhi reported 134 COVID-19 cases on Tuesday at a positivity rate of 0.20 per cent, while eight more people died due to the infection.

The health bulletin said that 477 positive cases pertaining to previous weeks were added on the ICMR portal on Tuesday by Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and associated Safdarjung Hospital.

On Monday, Delhi had reported 89 cases at a positivity rate of 0.16 per cent, both lowest this year so far, while 11 more people died, according to data shared by the health department.

According to covid19India.org, a crowd-sourced initiative that collects data on COVID-19 and vaccination in India, Delhi had recorded 76 cases on April 30 last year.

Monday was also the first time since February 16 -- when 94 people were diagnosed with the disease -- that the number of new cases has dropped below the 100-mark. On January 27, the capital had reported 96 cases.

The infection rate had reached to 36 per cent in the last week of April.

On April 20, Delhi had reported 28,395 cases, the highest in the city since the beginning of the pandemic. On April 22 the case positivity rate was 36.2 per cent, the highest so far.

The highest number of 448 deaths linked to the pandemic was reported on May 3.

According to the latest health bulletin, 76,185 tests, including 52,940 RT-PCR tests, were conducted a day ago, while the rest were rapid antigen tests. The number of active cases decreased to 1797 from 1918 on Tuesday, according to the bulletin.

Out of 23,640 beds in hospitals, only 1,139 are occupied.

The number of patients in home isolation slightly declined to 522 from 541 a day ago, while the number of containment zones dropped to 4340 from 4502 a day before, the bulletin added.

As many as 84,812 people were vaccinated in the last 24 hours, including 18,842 who were administered the second dose, thereby making them fully vaccinated.

According to data on CoWIN portal, 66,95,944 people have been vaccinated till now, including 16,16,638, who have received both the doses.

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India on Wednesday reported a net reduction of 19,327 in active cases to take its count to 643,194. Indias share of global active cases now stands at 5.67 per cent (one in 17). The country is second among the most affected countries by active cases. On Tuesday, it added 50,848 cases to take its total caseload to 30,028,709 from 29,977,861  an increase of 0.2%. And, with 1,358 new fatalities, its Covid-19 reached 390,660, or 1.30 per cent of total confirmed infections.

With 5,424,374 more Covid-19 vaccine doses being administered on Tuesday, Indias total count of vaccine shots so far reached 294,639,511. The count of recovered cases across India, meanwhile, reached 28,994,855  or 96.56 per cent of total caseload  with 68,817 new cured cases being reported on Tuesday.

Now the third-most-affected country by active cases and deaths, second by total cases, and first by recoveries, India has added 395,604 cases in the past 7 days.

India now accounts for 5.67% of all active cases globally (one in every 17 active cases), and 10.02% of all deaths (one in every 10 deaths).

India has so far administered 294,639,511 vaccine doses. That is 981.19 per cent of its total caseload, and 21.14 per cent of its population.

Among Indian states, the top 5 in terms of number of vaccine shots administered are Maharashtra (33340554), Uttar Pradesh (32039007), Gujarat (26981876), Rajasthan (26861654), and West Bengal (23760884).

Among states with more than 10 million population, the top 5 in number of vaccine shots per one million population are Kerala (426793), Gujarat (422434), Delhi (412674), Uttarakhand (388021), and J&K (345603).

Backwards from here, the last 1 million cases for India have come in 15 days.

The count of active cases across India on Wednesday saw a net reduction of 19,327, compared with 40,366 on Tuesday. States and UTs hat have seen the biggest daily net increase in active cases are Kerala (746), Assam (350), Mizoram (197), Meghalaya (77), and Arunachal Pradesh (9).

With 68,817 new daily recoveries, Indias recovery rate stands at 96.56%, while fatality rate remained unchanged at 1.30%.

The Indian states and UTs with the worst case fatality rates at present are Punjab (2.68%), Uttarakhand (2.08%), and Maharashtra (1.98%). The rate in as many as 18 is higher than the national average.

Indias new daily closed cases stand at 70,175  1,358 deaths and 68,817 recoveries. The share of deaths in total closed cases stands at 1.9%.

Indias 5-day moving average of daily rate of addition to total cases stands at 0.2%.

Indias doubling time for total cases stands at 409 days, and for deaths at 199.1 days.

Overall, five states with the biggest 24-hour jump in total cases are Kerala (12617), Maharashtra (8470), Tamil Nadu (6895), Andhra Pradesh (4169), and Karnataka (3709).

Among states with more than 100,000 cases, the five with worst recovery rates at present are Karnataka (94.57%), Maharashtra (95.90%), and Kerala (96.00%).

India on Tuesday conducted 1,901,056 to take the total count of tests conducted so far in the country to 395,973,198. The test positivity rate recorded was 2.7%.

Five states with the highest test positivity rate (TPR)  percentage of tested people turning out to be positive for Covid-19 infection (by cumulative data for tests and cases  are Goa (18.42%), Maharashtra (15.01%), Dadra & Nagar Haveli-Daman & Diu (14.53%), Kerala (12.77%), and Sikkim (12.05%).

Five states with the highest TPR by daily numbers for tests and cases added  are, Sikkim (12.05%), Manipur (12%), Kerala (10.72%), Meghalaya (10.07%), and Mizoram (9.56%).

Among states and UTs with more than 10 million population, five that have carried out the highest number of tests (per million population) are Delhi (1116666), J&K (704171), Kerala (620652), Karnataka (488706), and Uttarakhand (474513).

The five most affected states by total cases are Maharashtra (5987521), Kerala (2829460), Karnataka (2815029), Tamil Nadu (2436819), and Andhra Pradesh (1857352).

Maharashtra, the most affected state overall, has reported 8470 new cases to take its tally to 5987521.

Kerala, the second-most-affected state by total tally, has added 12617 cases to take its tally to 2829460.

Karnataka, the third-most-affected state, has reported 3709 cases to take its tally to 2815029.

Tamil Nadu has added 6895 cases to take its tally to 2436819.

Andhra Pradesh has seen its tally going up by 4169 to 1857352.

Uttar Pradesh has added 202 cases to take its tally to 1704678.

Delhi has added 397cases to take its tally to 1432778.
The Delhi Police's Crime Branch has sent a notice to chief whip in the Rajasthan Assembly Mahesh Joshi asking him to appear before it on June 24 for questioning in the case lodged on a complaint by Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat.

The police have asked Joshi to reach the Prashant Vihar office of the Crime Branch in Rohini for the questioning.

Joshi confirmed he had received the notice on Tuesday but said he would not be able to appear before the Crime Branch on June 24.

"I will not be able to appear before the Crime Branch in Delhi on the said date. A reply to the notice will be given today," Joshi told PTI.

The leader said he was not named in the FIR that was registered by the police on the complaint lodged by Shekhawat, who is also the BJP MP from Jodhpur.

The phone-tapping controversy erupted in July last year in Rajasthan. Audio clips of alleged telephonic conversations between Shekhawat and leaders surfaced amidst a rebellion against Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot by his then deputy Sachin Pilot and 18 party MLAs supporting him.

Congress leaders of Gehlot's camp had alleged that BJP leaders were indulging in horse-trading to topple the state government.

On the basis of Shekhawat's complaint, the registered an FIR in March this year against Gehlot's Officer on Special Duty Lokesh Sharma and others on charges of criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust and unlawfully intercepting telegraphic signals (telephonic conversation).

Sharma has rejected the allegations.

He had approached the Delhi High Court seeking quashing of the FIR against him. Earlier this month, the court asked the not to take any coercive action against Sharma till the next date of hearing -- August 6.

Joshi had lodged complaints regarding the audio clips of conversations purportedly about attempts to topple the Rajasthan government with the state police's Special Operations Group (SOG) and the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) last year.

However, the Rajasthan Police FIR did not mention that Gajendra Singh referred to in the clip was Union minister Shekhawat.

The SOG ultimately closed the case after the Congress high command intervened to resolve the issues between Gehlot and Pilot.

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The Delhi High Court on Wednesday refused to stay the notice dated June 4, 2021, to by the Director-General of Competition Commission of India (CCI).

The Division Bench Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani and Justice Jasmeet Singh said that "we would only urge the DG, to bear in mind that investigation against the appellant is under judicial consideration before a Division Bench of this court."

The bench also underlined that, in our view, there is no doubt that the issuance of impugned notice by the DG is a step in furtherance of the investigation commenced in the suo-motu case, in which the investigation is a subject matter of the challenge in the present Letter Patents Appeal (LPA).

"...we do not consider it appropriate to stay the operation of impugned notice dated 04.06.2021, at this stage..." says the Delhi High Court.

Senior Advocate Harish Salve, appearing on behalf of LLC submitted that while the present LPA is pending before a Division Bench of this court, in an act that smacks of overreach, the DG has issued notice dated June 4, 2021, purporting to be under section 41(2) read with section 36(2) of Competition Act 2002, demanding from the appellant information and response to certain queries, which are 22 in number, and which are already the subject matter of the challenge in the LPA.

Salve also informed the court that related challenges are also pending before the Supreme Court.

Additional Solicitor General, Aman Lekhi, appeared for the stated that he has instructions to say that though the issuance of notice dated June 4, 2021, was perfectly in line with the procedure contemplated under the statute for taking forward an ongoing investigation, which has not been stayed by the Division Bench. He said it would take substantial time for preparation of a report pursuant to the receipt of the information called-for by way of the impugned notice; which report would thereafter be forwarded to the Competition Commission of India.

ASG Lekhi accordingly submitted that preparation of the report would not be completed at least before the next date of hearing before the Roster Division Bench i.e., July 9, 2021.

The Delhi High Court had on Monday reserved an order on LLC plea challenging Competition Commission of India (CCI)'s June 4 notice seeking certain information messaging application's privacy policy.

WhatsApp and Facebook have urged the Delhi High Court to stay notice issued by on June 4 against messaging application. The CCI has sought certain information on WhatsApp's new privacy policy.

WhatsApp urged the Delhi High Court to issue direction to authorities concerned not to take any coercive action against messaging application till the next date of hearing.

The fresh pleas were filed by Facebook and Whastapp on an ongoing petition whereby the companies have challenged single-judge bench order dismissing their pleas against the CCI decision.

Earlier, the Division Bench had issued notice to the CCI in the matter.

The single bench of Delhi High Court on April 22 had dismissed Facebook and WhatsApp pleas challenging a CCI order for an investigation into the messaging app's new privacy policy.

The petitioners had challenged the March 24 order passed by CCI directing a probe into the new privacy policy and the probe should be completed within 60 days. Facebook and WhatsApp said that since the issue of WhatsApp's privacy policy is being heard by the Supreme Court, High Court, therefore, there was no requirement of CCI to order the probe.

Senior Advocate Harish Salve and Former Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi appeared for the petitioners and had told the court that CCI proceedings must be kept in abeyance as the matter is pending before Supreme Court and High Court.

Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Aman Lekhi, who represented CCI in the matter, had earlier told the court that the matter is not of privacy but access to data and the Competition is going to deal with metadata.

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The (ED) on Wednesday transferred seized assets worth Rs 9,371.17 crore in the cases related to Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, and Mehul Choksi, to Public Sector Banks (PSBs) and

Assets worth Rs 18,170.02 crore have so far been seized by the ED.

" (ED) not only seized assets worth Rs 18,170.02 crore (80.45% of the total loss to banks) in the case of Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, and Mehul Choksi under PMLA but also transferred a part of attached/ seized assets of Rs 9371.17 crore to the and Central Govt," ED informed in a tweet.

The ED, in a press release elaborated, "As on date, out of the total seized assets of Rs. 18,170.02 crore, under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA), assets worth of Rs 329.67 crore were confiscated and assets worth Rs 9041.5 crore, representing 40 per cent of the total loss to the bank have been handed over to the Public Sector banks."

Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, and Mehul Choksi had allegedly defrauded various by siphoning off the funds through their companies, resulting in a total loss of Rs. 22,585.83 crore to the banks.

ED's investigation based on FIR by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) once and for all proved that the three accused used dummy entities controlled by them, for rotation and siphoning off the funds provided by the banks.

The seized assets worth Rs. 18,170.02 crore, includes assets worth Rs. 969 crore located in foreign countries.

Prosecution complaints, along with extradition requests to the United Kingdom (UK), Antigua, and Barbuda, have been filed against all the three accused after the completion of the PMLA investigation, the release informed.

Since, Vijay Mallya has been denied permission to file an appeal in the UK Supreme Court, his extradition to India has become final. Nirav Modi too will be extradited to India.

According to the release, Nirav Modi has been in London jail for the last two years and three months on the basis of an extradition request by India.

Nirav Modi and Vijay Mallya have also been declared Fugitive Economic Offenders by PMLA Court in Mumbai.

The ED has recently transferred shares seized worth approximately Rs. 6,600 crore to State Bank of India (SBI) led consortium as per the order of PMLA Special Court, Mumbai. "Today, Debts Recovery Tribunal (DRT), on behalf of SBI led consortium, has sold shares of United Breweries Limited for Rs 5824.50 Crore," the release said.

"Further realisation of Rs 800 Crore by the sale of shares is expected by 25th of June. It is pertinent to mention here that due to the cooperation and help extended by ED, Public Sector Banks have already recovered Rs 1357 Crore by selling the shares earlier. Thus, the banks shall be realising the total amount of Rs 9041.5 Crore through the sale of a part of assets attached/seized by ED under the provisions of PMLA," the release added.

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Sentence of former Chief Minister of Chaudhary Om Prakash Chautala has been completed in the JBT case, informed his Lawyer Amit Sahni.

According to Chautala's Advocate, Tihar Jail Authority has communicated that the Government of GNCT of Delhi has passed an order regarding special remission of 6 months to convicts who are sentenced for 10 years and have already completed 9 years and 6 months of custody including regular remission.

"It has been a battle to seek justice for OP Chautala. We had to approach the Delhi High Court on multiple occasions for his release. The Delhi High Court has reprimanded the Delhi government for not considering his early release despite fulfilling all parameters," Sahni told ANI.

Tihar Jail Authority informed the lawyer that the convict, Om Prakash Chautala, has completed his sentence and he is eligible for special remission.

"...The said convict will be finally released whenever he formally surrender before the jail Authority as he is currently on Parole due to the COVID-19 situation," the Tihar Jail Authority said.

Earlier, Lawyer Amit Sahni had approached Delhi High Court for the directions to release the petitioner, OP Chautala, by granting special remission in light of Special Remission Notification issued by the Government of India, as the Petitioner has already undergone the prescribed sentence awarded under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.

His lawyers had submitted that the Petitioner is aged about 83 years old and as per the disability certificate issued by the Dr RML Hospital, New Delhi on April 25, 2013, the petitioner is suffering from 60 per cent permanent disability of Residual Paralysis of both lower limbs and left upper limb.

Chautala was serving a 10-year jail term in the teachers' recruitment scam which took place in during his tenure as the state's chief minister. The jail term was awarded by a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court in the capital.

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Vice President M said it was heartening to note that three out of five people vaccinated as part of the COVID-19 inoculation drive on June 21 were from rural areas, where the majority of the country's population resides.

According to the government, of the record 88.09 lakh vaccine doses administered on June 21, when the revised guidelines for COVID-19 vaccination came into effect, nearly 64 per cent of the jabs were given in rural areas.

"It is heartening to note that 3/5 persons vaccinated in the stepped up drive on Monday were from rural areas, where the majority of population resides. My compliments to the Centre and various states for working in a coordinated manner in a truly 'Team India' spirit," the Vice President Secretariat quoted Naidu as saying in a tweet on Wednesday.

States that have done extremely well must share their best practices with others to achieve optimal results, he said.

"I also urge people to proactively come forward and get themselves vaccinated," he added.

As of Tuesday, India's cumulative COVID-19 vaccination coverage had crossed the 29-crore mark, according to the Union health ministry.

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Chief Minister on Tuesday announced further relaxations in COVID-19 lockdown regulations in the state while cautioning the public against a possible third wave of the pandemic.

The new relaxations would come into effect from Thursday, June 24.

As per the new guidelines, banks will now be allowed to function on Tuesdays and Thursdays also but the public will not have access to the bank branches. All Government institutions and banks in Category A and B areas will be allowed to operate with up to 50 per cent of employees and all government institutions in Category C with up to 25 per cent staff.

Places of worship can open subject to a maximum of 15 persons at a time. However, liquor shops in local bodies bordering Tamil Nadu will remain closed because of the lockdown in Tamil Nadu. While briefing the media after a COVID review meeting, the Chief Minister said, "The spread of the disease in the state is on the decline. The average test positivity rate (TPR) for the last three days is 10.2 per cent. Thrissur district has the highest TPR of 12.6 per cent while Kannur district has the lowest at 7.8 per cent. Apart from Kannur, the TPR in Alappuzha, Kottayam, Idukki, Kozhikode, Wayanad and Thiruvananthapuram districts is less than 10 per cent. The remaining seven districts have a TPR between 10 and 12.6 per cent."

He further said that although the spread has decreased, the pace of that decline is not as expected.

"As compared to last week, the TPR remained unchanged in 605 local bodies. While it improved in 319, the situation worsened in 91. The TPR should go below 5 per cent to reach a comfortable level. Strict caution must continue and people should cooperate to avoid another lockdown. Further concessions the lockdown can be made if we proceed with caution," Chief Minister said. At present, there are 277 local bodies in with an average test positivity rate of less than 8 per cent in the last seven days (A Category), 575 between 8 and 16 per cent TPR (B Category), 171 in the 16 to 24 per cent TPR range (C Category) and 11 LSG bodies with over 24 per cent TPR (D Category).

The relaxations in lockdown restrictions are being allowed in the A & B Category local bodies. Full lockdown will continue to be enforced on weekends across the State.

Classes for medical students will start on July 1 as they have been vaccinated. The 18 to 23-year-olds will be treated as a special category for vaccination. This would enable the opening up of regular colleges for them.As many as 12,617 new COVID-19 were reported in in the last 24 hours, out of 1,17,720 tested samples. 141 deaths were also confirmed, taking the death toll to 12,295.

Presently, there are 1,00,437 active cases in Kerala.

The Chief Minister further informed that efforts are being made to detect and study the genetic variation of the through continuous genetic sequencing. The study is led by the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Biotechnology and Kozhikode Medical College. In addition, the Institute of Genomics and Integrated Biology is conducting studies into this.He also announced that Kerala State Pravasi Welfare Development Co-operative Society in collaboration with HLL LifeCare Limited is all set to launch Covid 19 Molecular Testing Laboratory at all the four airports in the state to facilitate the travel of expatriates.

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The has issued notice to the on a petition filed by Digital News Publishers Association, comprising of 13 media outlets, challenging the constitutional validity of the new Information Technology Rules, 2021.

A bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy admitted the plea and tagged along with another plea by noted Carnatic musician, T.M. Krishna on similar lines.

The court also granted interim relief for the association, allowing it to approach the court if any coercive or arm twisting action is taken under the rules, particularly under provisions 12,14 and 16 of the rules.

Senior advocate P.S. Raman, appearing for the petitioner, contended that two provisions of the rules were creating major problems for the digital news platforms. He said that in particular Rule 16 is an omnibus provision that gives power to the Secretary of the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to block public access to any digital information.

He sought that the court pass an interim order restraining the Information and Broadcasting Ministry from taking any action under the rules pending disposal of the plea.

The bench, however, refused to grant any interim order staying the operation of the rule as no adverse action has been initiated against the petitioner as of now.

It also said that if any such adverse action is initiated against the petitioner, they will be at the liberty to apply for interim relief in these proceedings.

The court adjourned the hearing by three weeks.

--IANS

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Chief Minister has stayed the transfer of 100 MHADA flats here to the for providing temporary accommodation to cancer patients undergoing treatment there.

State Housing Minister Jitendra Awhad on Wednesday confirmed the decision.

Shiv Sena MLA Ajay Chaudhary told reporters that the decision to stay the transfer order was taken after he complained to the CM about objections to it from local residents.

Notably, Awhad had taken the decision to allot 100 flats in buildings of the Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) to the hospital.

The keys of the flats were handed over to the hospital authorities in May by NCP president Sharad Pawar, whose party shares power with the Shiv Sena and Congress in the state.

Chaudhary, who is an MLA from Sewri in Mumbai, said over 1,000 families living in the vicinity objected to the disturbance created by outsiders arriving there on a temporary basis.

"My repeated pleas to the housing minister to hear the grievances of locals went unheard. So, I had to petition the chief minister, he said.

Chaudhary said the MHADA can allot an entire building to the hospital, so that it is easy for the hospital authorities to maintain it.

But, the decision to allot flats for temporary accommodation in different buildings where people are already staying was not acceptable to locals, he said.

"We have no objection to tenements in transit camps being given to the hospital. There are MHADA tenements in the Bandra-Kurla Complex. One entire building can be given to the hospital, but not where locals are residing," he said.

Chaudhary also said his wife succumbed to cancer four years ago, and he set up a trust in her name with his own money and is helping the needy cancer patients to get medical treatment.

"Nobody should tell me the agony of cancer patients as me and my family have undergone the trauma," he 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.)
Most of the 14 leaders including four ex-chief ministers of invited for an all-party meeting with Prime Minister on the union territory on June 24 have arrived here by Wednesday evening.

The Thursday's meeting will be the first between the Centre and mainstream politicians after the abrogation of Article 370 and the divisions of the erstwhile state into two union territories in 2019.

With no agenda announced for the Thursday meeting, the J&K leaders said they will go with an open mind.

"We have not been given an agenda. We will be attending the meeting to know what the Centre is offering, said CPM leader Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami, who is also a spokesman for the six-party People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD).

Tarigami is among the 14 leaders invited for the all-party meeting convened by Modi. Others invited include four former chief ministers Farooq Abdullah, Ghulam Nabi Azad, and

The Communist leader said the PAGD will "be out there to protect the interests of the people of "



This is the first meeting between Jammu and Kashmir mainstream parties and the prime minister after the Centre revoked the erstwhile state's special status and carved two union territories out of it in August 2019.

While the PAGD -- a grouping of the Conference, PDP, CPM, CPI, Awami Conference and People's Movement -- has decided to attend the meeting, the constituents will be sending their individual representatives as well, indicating the bloc might be having a difference of opinion over the key issue of restoration of special status to Jammu and Kashmir.

The PAGD was formed with the aim of striving to restore Jammu and Kashmir to its position as it existed before Article 370 was revoked on August 5, 2019.

The Conference, meanwhile, continued intra-party interactions and a delegation of Jammu-based leaders headed by Devendra Rana met party president at the latter's residence here on Wednesday.

"Our only stand is a single J-K, to maintain its unity and integrity and respecting the wishes and aspirations of the people of J-K, Rana said.

He said dialogue and inclusiveness is an important and vital essence of democracy.

"Any dialogue that can take us out of this morass and can lead to the welfare of the state of J-K and its people, we are all for it," he said.

He said the party leaders from Jammu have reposed faith in Abdullah as he is not only the president of the NC, but the tallest leader of J-K.

(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 of Antigua and Barbuda Gaston Browne on Tuesday said that he was not aware of any evidence that proves fugitive diamantaire was abducted and taken to Dominica.

PM Browne faced a barrage of questions on in parliament by the MPs.

Answering a question whether he or the Minister of Security was aware or if any other investigative body has found any evidence that was taken to Dominica by involuntary means, Browne said, "I'm not aware of evidence, but there's information in the public domain that Mehul Choksi was abducted."

"And I'm aware that law enforcement here would have done some research, and perhaps may have some individuals of interests, but in so far as evidence is concerned, I am not aware that there is any such conclusive evidence. I am not aware that the sea vessel would have breached the security of the state, my understanding is that the vessel ostensibly that was utilised to abduct MC came here legally...," Browne said while answering a query related to the integrity of Antigua and Barbuda borders.

He also said that the royal Antigua and Barbuda police force issued the yellow notice to Interpol in the first instance to try and locate Mehul Choksi when he was reported missing.

"It's well known that throughout the Caribbean region, we have relatively porous borders because of all of the different keys and the different beaches, and evidently we do not have enough resources including manpower," he said.

"It is an area that we continue to struggle with, we have been assisted by the US government and other external agencies to help us to build capacity in that area. But admittedly, it is one of the weak areas in which the countries in the Caribbean, you know, they all have porous borders," he added.

Choksi had gone missing from Antigua on May 23 after going out for dinner and was soon caught in Dominica. He was charged with illegal entry by the police in Dominica after he allegedly escaped from Antigua and Barbuda in a possible attempt to evade extradition to India.

The Government is actively engaged with the Dominican government to seek the early deportation of Choksi.

Choksi's lawyers have claimed that he was kidnapped and didn't go to Dominica of his own free will.The 62-year-old fugitive is wanted in India in connection with a Rs 13,500-crore fraud in the Punjab Bank (PNB).

(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 all-party meet to be hosted by Prime Minister on Thursday will be the first exploratory outreach by the Centre to political parties in (J&K). However, it is unlikely to discuss anything as dramatic as statehood or a schedule for assembly elections.

It is a sequel to the democratic process of elections already on in the region and should be seen as just that: nothing more, nothing less, say top government sources.

Two tiers of local body elections  for Panchayats and District Development Councils (DDCs)  have already been held. The eight-phase DDC election was the first direct election in J&K since the writing down of Article 370. It was also the first election in which the two bitter rivals  the Farooq Abdullah-headed Conference (NC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) led by  which had banded together as the Peoples Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD), contested. The turnout of voters in both the Muslim-majority Kashmir valley and the Hindu-majority Jammu was higher than in the panchayat election, indicating that people wanted the election process to re-start.

The panchayat elections were boycotted by the PDP. The party may have felt this was a tactical mistake as PDP members contested as representatives of other parties. Such was the pent-up demand to contest.

In the DDC elections, against 64.21-72.71 per cent turnout during different phases in the Jammu region, Kashmir recorded 29.91-40.65 per cent turnout. But the turnout was better than earlier elections. For instance, Srinagar district, which registered a turnout of 35.3 per cent in the DDC elections, had registered only 7.90 per cent and 14.5 per cent turnout in the parliamentary and panchayat elections, respectively.

Building on the momentum of these exercises, the PM has called PAGD and other J&K leaders for a broad-based discussion on what to do next.

J&K is a hive of vested interests, says a government source. There are separatist groups whose very existence depends on making sure no common space emerges between democratic forces and the Union government. And, there are covert agencies that thrive in an atmosphere where democratic forces are absent. The interests of both the groups converge in ensuring normalcy, even partial, never returns, say sources. According to them, one way of derailing talks is to raise the expectations bar so high that the outcome is deemed unsatisfactory.

The government is realistic  issues of statehood can only be thrashed out in Parliament. Assembly elections are still some distance away. But the bitterness of political leaders, who have emerged after a long period of detention, has to be given a vent. The Prime Minister will be in listening mode tomorrow (Thursday), say sources. Nothing radical should be expected from the meeting they add.

The backstory of the meeting is that when fell ill with Covid-19, state lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha called on him. In the course of that meeting, he also met Something in the mien of the two leaders compelled him to flag the issue to the PM, who agreed to have a broad-based meeting.

There is another aspect of the meeting. With several western countries, including the US, hammering India on its limited democracy, the government is keen to show that a conversation with democratic forces is underway.
has moved the seeking stay on the proceedings in connection with multiple FIRs lodged against him by (IMA) in Bihar and Chhattisgarh over his remarks against use of allopathic medicine during COVID-19 pandemic.

The Patna and Raipur chapters of the IMA have lodged complaints against the yoga guru alleging that his remarks are likely to cause prejudice to the COVID control mechanism and may dissuade people from availing proper treatment against the pandemic.

The Yoga guru, in his plea, has sought transfer of the FIRs lodged in Patna and Raipur to Delhi.

He has been booked under various provisions of the IPC and the Disaster Management Act, 2005.

Sections 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 269 (negligent act likely to aa infection of disease dangerous to life) and 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) of the IPC have been invoked against him.

Ramdev, whose alleged statements created a nation-wide debate over Allopathy versus Ayurveda issue, however, had withdrawn his statements on May 23 after receiving a letter from Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan who had called his remarks as "inappropriate".

Ramdev has sought clubbing of FIRs on the issue and their transfer to Delhi and as an interim relief, he has also urged for a stay on the investigation in connection with the criminal complaints.

(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.)
Migrant workers were weeks from running out of food, struggled to access healthcare and faced acute livelihood problems during the partial lockdowns imposed by states to limit the second surge of the Covid-19 pandemic, shows a recent survey conducted by Aajeevika Bureau, a labour rights organisation.

Unlike the of 2020, covered extensively in the media, little attention has been paid to the provision of relief and social protection to migrant workers during state lockdowns, the study found. Since the restrictions this year were partial, some migrant workers chose to return home in the early days of the wave. But many chose to stay back in the hope of a quick revival.

However, the families that chose to stay back in the city struggled to survive, showed Aajeevika's rapid telephonic survey of 195 migrant workers in Ahmedabad conducted in May 2021. Up to 75% of Ahmedabad's migrant workers chose to remain in the city or returned soon after leaving, it found. The city employs over 1.3 million migrant workers and is a popular work destination because of its construction, textiles and pharmaceutical industries, and the domestic work sector.

During Gujarat's partial lockdown, lasting from April 28, 2021 to June 11, 2021, little or no work was available, workers said. Weekly earnings fell by 30%, and 60% of the migrant households interviewed said they were left with cash and dry ration for less than 15 days. Up to 27% of the respondents said they had health problems, including Covid-19 infection. Access to vaccines remains a constant worry too.

The relief measures initiated last year, especially those targeting hunger and employment among migrant workers, do not seem to have alleviated their distress in the ongoing wave either, as we explain later.

In a two-part series, we investigate the problems faced by Ahmedabad's migrant workers who opted to stay back in the city. In this, the first part, we look at how they battled for livelihood and survival. In the second part, we report on how urban health networks, which routinely exclude migrant workers, left them even more vulnerable during the lockdown.

No time to recover from last shock

The latest crisis hit workers at a time when many had not yet recovered from last year's economic shocks that depleted their savings and pushed up their debts. A May 21, 2021 analysis by the Stranded Workers Action Network, a migrant resource group, showed that 58% of migrant families were days from going hungry.

ALSO READ: Process of registration of migrant workers needs to be expedited, says SC

Up to 15 million jobs were lost in May 2021 alone, said a report by Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), a think-tank. "This is not as bad as the loss of 114 million in April 2020 but it comes second to only that draconian month of a complete nationwide lockdown," CMIE managing director Mahesh Vyas wrote.

In an interview with IndiaSpend, economists Amit Basole and Rosa Abraham of Centre for Sustainable Employment (CSE) had emphasised the importance of putting in place support systems for migrant workers before the declaration of a lockdown. "The most important lesson from last year was that the lockdown hurt the poorest the most," they stated.

It may not be readily visible yet, but the impacts of deteriorating economic conditions of migrant workers will be felt in the long-term, drastically affecting their life cycle, said Divya Ravindranath, a researcher at the Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS).

Work available only for 2-3 days, wages yet to be paid

With restrictions on gatherings being imposed in Gujarat from April 28, 2021 onwards, daily wagers were among the first to be affected, said Mahesh Gajera, an Aajeevika worker in Ahmedabad. A CMIE report found that "of the total 22.5 million jobs lost in April-May [2021], 17.2 million were of daily wage earners".

Daily wagers obtain work through labour nakas, junctions where they wait for contractors to hire them for work on construction sites. "Aaj kaam nahi mila, kal mera chulha nahi jala (Today I did not find work, tomorrow my hearth won't be lit)," said Gajera of the precarious existence of daily wagers.

Most workers interviewed for the survey said they could get work for just two to three days in a week and have yet to be paid for it. The survey found a 51% decline in weekly earnings of daily wagers.

Durgaram (he uses one name), a community leader who works with migrant workers in Narol, Ahmedabad, recounted the troubles of a group of seasonal tribal migrants who had been contracted to operate a boiler machine at a garment factory in the same area.

"About Rs 3 lakh were due to them for over six months and the employer was coercing them to stay only to ensure the periodic upkeep of the factory's boiler. This when the rest of the factory was not operating," said Durgaram. The workers were forced to let go of this amount and take up daily wage work at another local plant so they could feed themselves. They have now filed a case for non-payment of wages against their employer at the local labour court.

Factories and stitching units could only operate at 50% capacity until June 7, 2021. Night curfews have affected those working in night shifts, a restriction that will continue until June 26. Anil Kumar*, who has been working in the textile processing sector for over 10 years, reported that his factory and many others in the sector have had no work for over a month.

ALSO READ: NHRC issues more advisories on bonded labourers, migrant workers amid Covid

Only export-oriented units were able to continue working. The textile industry in Gujarat witnessed an increase in export orders earlier in 2021 before the onset of the second wave, yet by the end of April, it saw a 25% decline in production as lockdowns were imposed.

"We are being called into work only on alternate days throughout this time. I find odd jobs on other days to make ends meet," said Anil Kumar. Even though he was a payroll worker, he was being paid only for the days he was called in, which was just about half his monthly wage in normal times. He also added that some of his colleagues who were on contract were asked to leave.

Garment units, small and medium-sized establishments employing 10-50 workers and relying on orders from larger factories, had completely shut down since no new orders were coming in, the survey found. Workers engaged in these units, who had been called in to finish pending orders during the second wave, cited a 47% drop in weekly wages due to non-payment of wages for this work. Employers, they said, use financial distress as an excuse--or promised payment when paid by their buyers.

Home-based workers, restaurant employees hit hard

Home-based women workers, who rely on outsourced value addition work such as thread-cutting and collar and button sewing, have not had any substantial orders since last year's lockdown.

"Abhi to sab band hai. Ek saal se to bohot kam kaam hai. (Everything is shut. There has been very little work in the last one year)," said Chhaya Shinde, a home-based worker. She added that the frequency of thread-cutting work orders has reduced to once a month and the current rate offered by contractors is so low it cannot even cover the cost of thread and electricity bills. (Payment deadlines for electricity were extended in Gujarat during the last lockdown.)

Hotel and restaurant workers reported a 20% decline in weekly wages during the second wave. Hotel owners' associations all over Gujarat were complaining that extended curfew hours and the cap on guests would be a huge setback and this could force them to shut shop. Laxman Singh*, who has been working in this sector for the last 20 years, said that restaurants, operating only for home deliveries, needed just four to five workers. The rest were sent home before the lockdown.

Guidelines on restrictions during the partial lockdown were not very clear and night curfews have not been lifted since Diwali last year. Many Ahmedabad eateries have shut down. Workers have been left unemployed for prolonged periods, and have not been paid their dues, said Laxman Singh, who contracted Covid-19 at the restaurant where he was employed as a general manager. He managed to get a bed in a private hospital, where he incurred expenses upwards of Rs 2.5 lakh. He did not receive any support from his employer who has stopped answering his calls. Some of those from his village, Pali in Rajasthan, who worked in restaurants in Ahmedabad, were compelled to seek work in neighbouring mining sites, he said.

Reverse trend: Tribal youth moved to cities

Though return migration has been widespread during the pandemic, Gajera of Aajeevika Bureau reported the reverse in Ahmedabad in April 2021 when the second wave was peaking in the city.

Many seasonal migrants from the tribal pockets of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh were migrating to the city in even larger numbers. Most of them, he said, were young adults aged between 14-17 years. Their schooling had been disrupted and they were looking for work.

Why was this happening? In a crisis of this scale, there are mainly two fallback mechanisms in tribal belts: (1) subsidised rations available to each member of a poor household through the targeted public distribution system (PDS) ensured under the Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA), and (2) the guarantee of 100 days of waged manual labour to every rural household provided by the Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA).

In response to the migrant distress of 2020, rural employment generation has been in focus, with the launch of schemes such as Garib Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyan. But ground reports suggested that these programmes did not necessarily translate into jobs due to enrolment issues and budget allocation cuts.

Also, rural and tribal areas in Gujarat were severely hit by the second wave of the pandemic. A June 8 Down to Earth analysis estimated that April onwards, every second, a fresh case or a death was being reported from India's rural districts. Work sites started closing, pushing young adults out of villages.

'Barely enough to eat'

In cities, migrants have had to rely on their earning capacity to purchase rations. A study on migrants' access to urban governance systems conducted in 2020 before the pandemic, had found that with access to PDS blocked by domicile restrictions, more than 50% of their income was spent on food and cooking fuel. Even with this, they were only able to afford bare essentials. During the lockdown last year, workers had to cut their food intake. This year too, the migrants we interviewed said they had to cut food consumption to survive.

Aajeevika's survey revealed that migrants were left with 17 days' worth of functional savings, that is cash and dry rations, in the city. Semi-permanent migrants, those residing for over 10 years in the city, found themselves in a worse situation than last year.

"Bas kha rahe hai, kuch bachat to hai nahin, (We are only managing to eat, there is no saving)," said Chhaya Shinde. She added that the prices of cooking essentials had increased but her husband's income had not. Her husband is employed in a listed textiles manufacturing company but he has not been given any increment this year or the customary Diwali bonus last.

Migrant households are burdened with debts that they are struggling to repay. Their savings were exhausted in trying to survive last year's 2.5-month long lockdown. "Household debt to GDP ratio has been steadily increasing since Q1:2018-19 rose sharply to 37.1% in Q2:2020-21 [July-September 2020] from 35.4% in Q1:2020-21 [April-June 2020]," said the March 19, 2021 monthly bulletin of the Reserve Bank of India. The report admitted that these data do not capture households' indebtedness to non-institutional lenders such as relatives, landlords and money lenders.

Ranjanben Parmar, a leader of a workers' collective in Ahmedabad, said that some of her neighbours had to take private loans at a monthly 10% interest to just run their households. Now they are borrowing from relatives and others to repay the debt, she said. Relief schemes do not address this indebtedness faced by migrants.

Seeking support for survival

The survey found that workers who remained in Ahmedabad expected relief mainly on two fronts--ration supply (57%) and cash transfers (49%). When asked about relief expectations, Savita Dube, who works in a stitching unit said: "Dilli mein, humne samachar mein suna, ghar- ghar ration dene ja rahe hain. Yahan pe kabhi aesa kuch nahin hua (We heard in the news that in Delhi there is going to be door-to-door distribution of ration. Nothing of the sort has ever happened here [in Gujarat])."

Some states such as Karnataka and Delhi, recognising the impact of the second wave on migrant workers, reached out with cash transfers, food and medicines. However, this year too relief measures are repeating the exclusions that delayed migrants' recovery last year. The government of Karnataka, for example, announced a cash transfer of Rs 3,000 to only registered construction workers and Rs 2,000 to unorganised workers in the state.

On April 23, the central government announced the allocation of additional free food grains to NFSA beneficiaries under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana for May and June 2021. However, no relief has been announced for non-ration card holders or those without any form of identification as was done under the Atma Nirbhar Bharat scheme last year.

In spite of the Centre's acknowledgement of the problems with the beneficiary identification process, the flagship One Nation-One Ration Card scheme for nationwide portability of ration cards has been missing from the current discourse on relief. During the first lockdown, Gujarat's Anna Brahma scheme attempted to reach out to non-ration card holders distributing solely on the basis of Aadhaar card. However, it was not extended beyond June 2020. Delhi released the guidelines for ration distribution to non-PDS beneficiaries but this is only a one-time measure limited to 200,000 beneficiaries, unlike last year's outreach to three million.

On June 11, LiveLaw reported that the Supreme Court has directed all states to implement the One Nation-One Ration Card scheme. It also emphasised that unregistered or migrant workers be registered and directed states to complete the registration process as early as possible. Several experts, such as Jean Dreze, Yamini Aiyar and Himanshu, have proposed universalisation of PDS as a prompt solution. Amartya Sen, Abhijit Banerjee and Raghuram Rajan suggested in The Indian Express that temporary ration cards be issued for six months with minimal checks to anyone willing to queue up for monthly allocations.

What workers want

The survey reveals workers' expectations and needs for a broad range of support initiatives. For instance, workers said they needed support to pay rent (38%), school fees (34%) and medical bills (39%). They also sought waiver of electricity bills (34%), as we noted earlier.

"Abhi CM ne restaurants, malls, hotels aur chaar-panch ka [property] tax maaf kiya hai ek saal ke liye, humare liye kyun nahi? Mazdoor ko zyada problem hai (Recently the CM has exempted tax for restaurants, malls, hotels and 4-5 others for one year. Why not for us? Workers are facing more problems)," said Anil Kumar, referring to the recently announced one-year property tax exemption for hotels, restaurants, malls and water parks in Gujarat.

Up to 51% of respondents also demanded that work be provided in the city. Urban employment guarantee on the lines offered by MGNREGA in rural areas has time and again been demanded by civil society. Dreze advocates for an urban employment guarantee scheme that can address poverty, especially during distress periods such as the pandemic, as well as social inequality. Ayyankali Urban Employment Guarantee Scheme of Kerala, dubbed as the urban counterpart of MGNREGA, has been running since 2010.

Last year, the Odisha government introduced an Urban Wage Employment Initiative for the urban poor within a month from imposition of the lockdown; closely followed by Jharkhand's Mukhyamantri Shramik Yojana. In spite of widespread expectations, urban employment schemes were absent from this year's budget.

*Names changed to protect identities
The government of on Wednesday issued orders fixing treatment and investigation charges for Covid-19 in private hospitals.

The state government, which had capped the treatment charges last year, issued a revised Government Order (GO) on the direction of High Court.

The fresh GO has fixed charges for routine ward and isolation Rs 4,000 per day; for ICU without ventilator Rs 7,500 and charges for ICU with ventilator Rs 9,000. These include all blood tests, X-Ray, ECG, consultations, bed charges and meals but exclude interventional procedures and high-end drugs.

It also mentioned that PPE kits should not be charged at price exceeding Rs 273 per kits.

These rates, however, are not applicable to the patients subscribing insurance scheme as well as patients being treated under various agreements/MoUs entered into the hospitals and different sponsored groups or corporate entities.

The GO also fixed the rates for investigations pertaining to Covid-19. Charges for HRCT fixed at Rs 1,995, for IL-6 at Rs 1,300, Digital X-Ray 300, D-Dimer Rs 800, CRP Rs 500, Procalcitonin Rs 1,400, Ferritin Rs 400 and LDH Rs 140.

The ambulance charges per kilometer for ambulances with basic life supporting system have been fixed at Rs 75 and for those with advanced life supporting system at Rs 125. Minimum charges will be Rs 2,000 and Rs 3,000 respectively.

It asked the hospitals to refrain from experimental treatment, unnecessary investigations and repeated HRCTs. It makes it clear that no compliance with the orders will attract action as per the provision of the law.

S.A.M. Rizvi, secretary, health, medical and family welfare, issued the GO a day before the expiry of the two-week deadline fixed by the high court.

The court had repeatedly pulled up the state health authorities for the delay in issuing the revised GO and during the last hearing it even remarked if the government will come out with fresh order after Covid-19 vanishes.

The court had issued the directions while hearing public interest litigations with regard to private hospitals collecting excess charges from the Covid patients.

The government capped the charges on the recommendations of a committee constituted for fixing the charges for inpatient treatment, diagnostic tests and investigations for Covid-19.

Meanwhile, the director of public health and family welfare informed the high court on Wednesday that 350 complaints have been received against 170 private hospitals. He said in respect of 30 complaints, the victims were refunded to the tune of Rs 72.20 lakh while efforts are on to do justice to other complainants.

caps cost of #COVID19 tests, treatment at

private labs & hospitals



The bed charges in private hospitals cannot exceed Rs 4,000 per day in normal wards, Rs 7,500 in Intensive Care Units (ICU) without ventilator and Rs 9,000 with ventilator support pic.twitter.com/VSziufgwNr  ANI (@ANI) June 23, 2021

(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 Delhi [India], June 23 (ANI): Asking armed forces to be on guard along borders with both China and Pakistan, Chief of Defence Staff General has said that terrorists working with the can go rogue and it could escalate the situation with India.

Speaking to ANI on Tuesday, the Chief of Defence Staff also stated that while there was a need to be alert on both the borders, the primary front for the defence forces at the moment was the Northern border where India and China have been locked in a military standoff since last year.

"I would say both the fronts are a priority for us. While we have to prepared at the northern fronts especially after the situation that evolved in 2020, We can't lower our guard but on the western front."

"I have always maintained that there are terrorists who operate with the Pakistani armed forces, some of these terrorists can actually become loose cannon and create a situation which could lead to an escalation. So we have to be fully prepared on our western fronts also. So I would say that we should be prepared for both the fronts but our primary front remains the northern front," Gen Rawat said when asked who is the main adversary for the Indian defence forces between China and Pakistan.

Asked about the deployment of two-strike corps on the China front in last one year, he said this was about reorientation of the forces which have been getting dual tasks for several years now and they were not new raisings.

On Pakistan's support for terror activities inside India, the CDS said while the ceasefire is holding along Line of Control (LoC) so far, the internal peace process is being disrupted by infiltration of weapons and drugs, using drones.

Gen Rawat said if the internal peace process is disrupted by the smuggling of drugs and weapons, then "we can't really say that the ceasefire is holding".

"Ceasefire so far along the LoC is holding, which is a positive sign. At the same time, we are also witnessing infiltration of weapons and ammunition, using drones. It doesn't augur well for peace as these drugs and weapons are meant to disrupt the internal peace process," he said.





Terrorists working with can become 'lose cannons' to escalate situation, warns Gen Bipin Rawat



Read @ANI Story | https://t.co/RcBWsDR90W pic.twitter.com/MMeZU4hLTx  ANI Digital (@ani_digital) June 23, 2021

"If the internal peace process is disrupted, then we can't really say that the ceasefire is holding. The ceasefire doesn't mean that you ceasefire along borders, but you at the same time create trouble in the hinterland. We would like a semblance of peace in the entire Jammu and Kashmir," the CDS added.

Speaking on theaterisation of forces, General Rawat said that the process is going on well and it is making satisfactory progress.

"Amongst the three services, we have been able to resolve most of the issues. There is a better understanding that if the three services integrate, they can bring about jointness and carry out transformation. Then I think, we will ensure better efficiency and utilisation of our existing services. I think we'll be better prepared for combat in the future," he said.

Shedding light on the internal situation in Jammu and Kashmir, the CDS said he is "very confident" that the people of the Union Territory want peace.

"They have seen a lot of terrorism and insurgency over the years. People are now looking at peace returning, especially after the abrogation of Article 370. If this continues, the time will come when people themselves will shun violence and will not allow insurgency in the Valley because insurgency and terrorism can't survive without the support of locals," General Rawat said.

He further said that Army needs to identify the youth in the Valley who have been misled and guide them away from terrorism.

"Some of the youth who have been misled, I think we need to identify them and see how best we can converse with them and explain to them that terrorism is not the way forward, but peace and tranquillity is the way forward," CDS Rawat 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.)
Top headlines of the hour: Auto, IT firms lead in advance tax collection, New rules for e-commerce may raise compliance burden, Private hospitals to order Covid jabs on CoWin platform from July

Automobile, IT firms lead in advance tax collection



Sharp growth in by India Inc has been led mainly by automakers and technology giants including Maruti Suzuki, Hero MotoCorp, Tata Consultancy (TCS), and Infosys.

These four companies reported a jump between 44 per cent and 200 per cent in the April-June quarter of this financial year on account of a low base. Financial institutions such as State Bank of India (SBI) and ICICI Bank reported lower but double-digit growth in tax payment. Read more

New rules likely to raise e-commerce companies' compliance task

The new e-commerce rules, as proposed in by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, will impact a wide range of companies, across sectors, including the likes of Swiggy, Zomato, BigBasket and several others, increasing their compliance burden.

Government officials said taxi aggregators such as Ola, Uber, food aggregators, such as Zomato, Swiggy, online grocery stores such as BigBasket, among others, will fall under the ambit of the proposed consumer protection rules. Consumer Affairs Additional Secretary Nidhi Khare said that the rules will be applicable to all Read more

Private hospitals to book vaccines at CoWin portal

Private hospitals will be able to book Covid-19 vaccine doses directly on the CoWin platform from July onwards and make advance payments too, indicated multiple private hospital sources.

The quantum of doses a hospital can purchase, however, will depend on its past track record of vaccination. Union Ministry of Health has conveyed to hospitals that from July onwards a single-window system will be in place for vaccine ordering and procurement which will cover Bharat Biotechs Covaxin and Serum Institute of Indias Covishield. Read more

Infosys to resolve major issues with new tax filing portal

Infosys has assured the Central government that major issues with the new tax filing portal such as e-proceedings, viewing the previous years income tax returns (ITRs), downloading relevant forms including TDS, foreign remittances, etc will be resolved in a week.

The IT major which is also a service provider of the income-tax portal 2.0, said this on Tuesday during a meeting with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, senior ministry officials, chartered accountants, and other stakeholders. Read more

Bharat Biotech's Covaxin shows over 77% efficacy in phase 3 trials

Bharat Biotechs Covaxin, Indias first indigenous vaccine against Covid-19, has shown 77.6 per cent efficacy in the final analysis of phase 3 clinical trials, according to sources in the expert panel.

The vaccine has shown an efficacy rate of 93 per cent against severe disease and 60 per cent against asymptomatic Covid-19. Read more
Amid mounting pressure over calls for a fresh probe into the origins of COVID-19, a review of Wuhan Institute of Virology's public records and internal guidelines have revealed the existence of unspecified classified projects and discussion of the lab's responsibilities under China's state secrets law, which hamper the search for the origins of the virus.

According to Washington Post, some records mention protocols for disclosing information to foreigners and the sealing of some research reports for up to two decades.

Tang Kaihong, a local representative of China's National Administration for the Protection of State Secrets, discussed the national security risks of the institute's research and warned of infiltration efforts by foreign spies, according to an account published by the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The secrecy may help to explain why efforts to confirm or disprove the lab-leak theory of the pandemic's origins have made little progress.

US President had earlier ordered intelligence agencies to 'redouble their efforts' to determine the source of the virus, which is exactly the sort of operation the Wuhan lab prepared for more than a decade ago with the setting up of systems to handle confidential information.

The Wuhan lab has drawn global scrutiny because of its research on bat coronaviruses in the city where the pandemic began. The lab leak theory has recently become the subject of renewed public debate after several prominent scientists called for a full investigation into the origins of the virus.

As China's threshold for the classification of secrets is lower than in some countries, the country's State Secrets Law entails information on military and diplomatic affairs and on the country's economic, scientific and social development to be confidential, reported Washington Post.

The topics of the Wuhan lab's classified projects are unknown. Its guidelines on information disclosure say the institute shares details of its work with the public, with the exception of state secrets, research and work secrets, matters under investigation, and disclosures that would violate the law.

In January, the US tate Department said in January that the Wuhan lab had worked on classified projects, including animal experiments, with China's military since at least 2017. Washington Post discovered public records of the lab working with Chinese military hospitals on unclassified projects for drug development and AIDS prevention, as well as instances in which lab officials mentioned classified projects at the institute.

In March 2014, updated its State Secrets Law implementation regulations, providing practical guidance for those whose work involves sensitive information. President Xi Jinping declared national security a priority the next month, saying the country faced growing threats.

This was followed in October 2014 by a training session for more than 60 staff members at the Wuhan lab who were Communist Party members. Xiao Gengfu, head of the lab's confidentiality committee, discussed the meaning of state secrets and the institute's protocols.

Xiao appears to have kept a close eye on the lab's research since the pandemic began. In recent years, the lab has held regular confidentiality training sessions for staff, including one in 2018 where speakers discussed best practices for moving researchers on and off classified projects.

This year, the lab distributed forms to students for sealing dissertations on confidential topics. One of the forms said "confidential" dissertations would be sealed for up to 10 years and "classified" ones for up to 20 years.

The hypothesis that the virus was accidentally leaked from the lab was largely disregarded by scientists in the early stages of the outbreak. has repeatedly denied that the lab was responsible for the outbreak.

Members of a WHO team that visited earlier this year hunting for COVID-19's origins have said they did not have access to all data, driving the continued debate about the country's transparency.

Former US President Donald Trump, earlier this month, called on America and all the nations to demand reparations from China due to the damage caused by COVID-19.

Speaking at the North Carolina Republican Convention, Trump said: "The time has come for America and the world to demand reparations and accountability from the Communist Party of China. We should all declare within one voice that China must pay. They must pay.

(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 Department of Telecommunication on Wednesday further liberalised the guidelines for Other Service Providers (OSPs), enabling business process management (BPM) firms employees to and provide voice-based services in India and abroad.

The government has removed the distinction between domestic and international OSPs, which means a BPM centre with common telecom resources will now be able to serve customers located worldwide including in India. It also means interconnectivity between all types of OSP centres is now permitted.

In order to encourage our BPO industry, OSP guidelines that were liberalised in November 2020 have been simplified even further, offering greater ease of business and regulatory clarity. This will further reduce compliance burden and help our tech industry, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted.

The guidelines issued in November 2020 had reduced the compliance burden of the BPM industry.

The BPM industry revenues grew from $37.6 billion in 2019-20 to $38.5 billion in 2020-21, despite the pandemic. This was largely possible due to the industrys ability to work remotely and majorly enabled by the Government of Indias relaxations of WFH requirements under the OSP regime, first temporarily, in March 2020 and then complete reforms under the new guidelines in November 2020, the Department of Telecom said in a statement.

Now, EPABX (Electronic Private Automatic Branch Exchange) of the OSP can be located anywhere in the world. OSPs apart from utilising EPABX services of the telecom service providers can also locate their EPABX at third-party data centres in India.

It also allowed a BPM employee sitting anywhere to now connect directly with the centralised exchange of the customer using any technology including Broadband over wireline/ wireless.

The government has removed restrictions for data interconnectivity between any OSP centres of same company or group company or any unrelated company. It also removed penalties for violations.





The remote agent to directly connect to centralised system of OSP or customer will help avoid a double hop. Inter-connectivity between OSPs will allow seamless services. Centralised internet connectivity using MPLS/SD-WAN will provide much needed flexibility. While use of third party hosted for a full set of services has not been permitted, but allowing own EPABX in 3rd party data centre or entire suite of service from telecom providers will allow industry to focus on their core work. Combined with the first set of OSP reforms in November 2020, this is a significant ease of doing business reform for the industry, said Ashish Aggarwal, senior director and head  public policy, at industry body National Association of Software and Services Companies.

The registration requirement for OSPs has also been done away with altogether. There are some security related obligations for voice based OSP. The BPM industry engaged in data-related work has been completely taken out of the ambit of the definition of an OSP.

The issue of OSP guidelines dates back to a clause in the earlier telecom policy under which certain kinds of work (such as voice calls) could not be shifted to employees homes. However, last year, given the lockdowns in both India and client locations, the industry lobbied hard to have some of these guidelines simplified.

As a precautionary measure to contain the spread of Covid-19 and ensure business continuity, Nasscom had asked the DoT to relax restrictions around for IT / ITeS employees, guided by the OSP regime.
Nigerians angry about their governments recent banning of Inc. have understandably focused their ire on President Muhammadu Buhari: It was Twitters decision to take down his tweet implicitly warning separatists that they could suffer the same violent end as former Biafran rebels that prompted the crackdown.

But the Nigerian ban should be a warning to U.S. lawmakers and activists, too. Their efforts to rein in U.S.-based social media giants such as and Inc. risk restricting democratic freedoms worldwide.

Antipathy toward the big platforms is rising across the U.S. political spectrum. Democrats blame them for allowing misinformation to flourish; Republicans, for allegedly censoring right-wing voices. Both agree they should be cut down to size: The Democratic chair of the House Consumer Protection & Commerce subcommittee has said there is a bipartisan agreement that the status quo is just not working.

The U.S. consensus has now begun to equate the tech companies attempts to maintain the integrity of their platforms through content management with infringements by powerful corporate monopolies on state power. Congress has taken up harsh new bills that are a first step toward using antitrust laws against tech companies.





ALSO READ: No video call, UP Police summon Twitter India MD Manish Maheshwari

This backlash is a gift to authoritarian governments around the world, who have been looking for a stick with which to beat and among others. Illiberal leaders have adopted the language and legal tools being wielded by activists and politicians in the U.S.

Nigerias information minister has complained, Twitter's mission in Nigeria is very suspect, they have an agenda. Russia, which has started choking Twitters bandwidth, last week fined Google and for banned content. Moscow also wants to force the companies to open offices in Russia, so executives and employees can be held hostage to an increasingly arbitrary legal system.

India, meanwhile, reportedly decided last week that Twitter is no longer an intermediary but a publisher  and so can be held criminally liable for anything anyone says on it. Police in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh swiftly registered a criminal complaint against Twitter and seven journalists, all of them Muslim.

The reason? A viral video in which an elderly Muslim man claimed to have been attacked because of his religion. (The state police, which answers to a government run by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, has insisted that there was no communal angle to the assault and that both Hindus and Muslims attacked the man.) In response, Indias information minister said, What happened in UP was illustrative of Twitters arbitrariness in fighting fake news.

What global authoritarians want is for the big U.S.-based social media networks to fall into line with the rest of the local media--which are already, more or less, subject to state control and intimidation. U.S. action to constrain the tech companies provides those leaders with a toolkit of controls that they can justify internationally. Companies that resist leave themselves open to accusations of hypocrisy if they reject state diktats in the rest of the world but accept them in the U.S.

Many struggling activists in backsliding democracies may not be happy at depending upon the faceless bureaucracies of Big Tech to have their voices heard. Yet not one of them would want that power to devolve instead to the functionaries of their own states, most of whom are eager to silence all dissenters. A U.S. that sets out to subordinate social networks to the government only empowers authoritarian leaders that have wanted to do the same for years.

U.S. activists should take heart in knowing that the state is not the only option for disciplining the social media platforms. Tech companies face another burgeoning check on their power, one some would argue is more trustworthy than any politician: their own workforces.



ALSO READ: Facebook decides to update its policies on handling satirical content

Facebook, for example, recently had to reorganize its team in India after employees worldwide accused it of being too close to the government. The companys Israel public policy team, whose head had earlier worked in Benjamin Netanyahus office, faced similar accusations last month. Facebook workers fought back, with the New York Times saying, dozens of employees later formed a group to flag the Palestinian content that they said had been suppressed to internal content moderation teams.

Authoritarians around the world wont stop trying to suppress critics online or off. That doesnt mean American activists and politicians have to help them.
India is making collective efforts to reduce gender gaps in labour force participation, Union Minister Santosh Gangwar said on Wednesday.

He said the country is ensuring education, training, skilling, entrepreneurship development and equal pay for equal work.

Gangwar was delivering Ministerial Address on Declaration and Employment Working Group Priorities at G20 Labour and Employment Ministers' Meeting.

The new Code on Wages 2019 shall reduce gender-based discrimination in wages, recruitment and conditions of employment, a labour ministry statement quoted him as saying.

Listing the steps taken by the government, he said women are entitled for all types of work in all establishments and employers have to ensure their safety and provisions for working hours.

Women can now work even during night hours, Gangwar said, adding that the duration of paid maternity leave has been increased from 12 weeks to 26 weeks.

Further, the labour minister said Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana provides financial support to women entrepreneurs to start small enterprises. Collateral free loans worth Rs 9 lakh crore have been disbursed under this scheme. There are around 70 per cent accounts of women in this scheme, the ministry stated.

Gangwar said the new Code on Social Security may now include even self-employed and all other classes of workforce into the folds of social security coverage.

A voluntary and contributory pension scheme introduced in 2019 for the unorganised sector workers provides for minimum assured pension after the age of 60 years.

While supporting the adoption of the Joint Ministerial Declaration, Gangwar emphasised that such an initiative by the member countries shall be very helpful for the overall development and capacity building of the entire young generation, which is rapidly evolving and has now become more challenging due to the pandemic.

The Employment Working Group deliberated upon key issues, including women employment, social security and remote working.

In 2014, G20 leaders pledged in Brisbane to reduce the gap in labour force participation rate between men and women by 25 per cent by 2025, with the aim of bringing 100 million women into the labour market, increasing global and inclusive growth, and reducing poverty and inequality.

In recent years, almost all G20 countries made progress in terms of equal opportunities, participation of women in the labour market and reduction of the gender pay gap. The process of reducing gender inequalities has slowed down due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the global economy.

The measures implemented by G20 countries helped mitigate the employment and social impact of the COVID-19 crisis. Yet, evidence from many countries shows a disproportionate impact on women.

Acknowledging the risk of increasing gender inequalities in labour markets and societies, G20 leaders at the Riyadh Summit called for a roadmap to achieve the Brisbane goal along with improving the quality of women's employment.

In response to this call, the G20 Roadmap Towards and Beyond the Brisbane Target has been developed for achieving equal opportunities and outcomes for women and men in the labour markets as well as societies in general.

Many factors continue to hinder the participation of women in the labour market and the improvement of the quality of their employment. Overcoming these barriers is key to achieving not only the Brisbane target and previous commitments of member states, but also aiming at full gender equality in the labour market and in societies.

To achieve this goal, it should be ensured that policy measures are informed, by behavioural insights, based on data and evidence and adapted in accordance with national circumstances.

(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 board of (PNB) is scheduled to meet on June 25, and the lender will apprise the board of the deal that is mired in controversy.

Although the issue is not a part of the listed agenda of the board meeting, the lender will apprise the members about the fate of the deal.

The shareholders of PNB Housing on Tuesday voted on a special resolution for a preferential allotment of shares to a clutch of investors led by the Carlyle Group.

The mortgage lender had moved the Securities Appellate Tribunal after the Securities and Exchange Board of India halted its fundraising proposal, and termed the decision as ultra vires of its Articles of Association.
The on Tuesday released its revised academic calendar which has details about the commencement of the new academic session and exams for the students of first year.

According to the calendar, the new session for the students currently in first year year will begin from August 31.

The exams will be held between August 12 and 24 after which there will be a semester break of six days.

Students will be given a preparatory break from August 3 to August 11 during which practical examinations will be conducted.

The online classes for the students were suspended between May 4 and May 16 in view of the surge in Covid cases across the country.

BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri on Tuesday met DU officials to discuss opening of a college for students from rural areas in south Delhi.

"Ramesh Bidhuri, Member of Parliament, visited DU to discuss progress on opening of a college for rural areas in south Delhi. He met the VC, DSC, estate officer, Dean Works and officers of the engineering department. He promised to help DU in facilitating progress in this endeavour," the varsity tweeted.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
After the transferred a portion of attached assets in cases of Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, and to Public Sector (PSBs) and the Central Government, the lawyer of has issued a statement on Wednesday and claimed that the ED has indeed attached assets much more than the money due to the "

Advocate Vijay Aggarwal, in the case, said, "ED has indeed attached assets much more than the money due to the Further, if one looks at the principal amount and the kind of haircut banks are taking in NCLT (National Company Law Tribunal) or otherwise in OTS, in this case, banks will recover more than a hundred per cent of the principal as well as interest."

"However, for the people, who have been declared fugitive, I have my doubts as to how will banks get the money as in the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act. There is no provision to give the money to the victims and the money is confiscated by the central government. However in the prevention of money laundering act, there is an amendment in 2019 in the prevention of money laundering restoration of property rules 2016, now bank as a victim can approach the special Judge PMLA and seek the property seized to satisfy their dues," he added.

The on Wednesday transferred seized assets worth Rs 9,371.17 crore in the cases related to Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, and Mehul Choksi, to Public Sector Banks (PSBs) and Central Government.

Assets worth Rs 18,170.02 crore have so far been seized by the ED.

" (ED) not only seized assets worth Rs 18,170.02 crore (80.45% of the total loss to banks) in the case of Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, and Mehul Choksi under PMLA but also transferred a part of attached/ seized assets of Rs 9371.17 crore to the PSBs and Central Govt," ED informed in a tweet.

The ED, in a press release elaborated, "As on date, out of the total seized assets of Rs. 18,170.02 crore, under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA), assets worth of Rs 329.67 crore were confiscated and assets worth Rs 9041.5 crore, representing 40 per cent of the total loss to the bank have been handed over to the Public Sector banks."

Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, and Mehul Choksi had allegedly defrauded various PSBs by siphoning off the funds through their companies, resulting in a total loss of Rs. 22,585.83 crore to the banks.

ED's investigation based on FIR by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) once and for all proved that the three accused used dummy entities controlled by them, for rotation and siphoning off the funds provided by the banks.

The seized assets worth Rs. 18,170.02 crore, includes assets worth Rs. 969 crore located in foreign countries.

Prosecution complaints, along with extradition requests to the United Kingdom (UK), Antigua, and Barbuda, have been filed against all the three accused after the completion of the PMLA investigation, the release informed.

(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 countrys largest private sector lender, HDFC Bank, has set its eyes on becoming a technology-led powerhouse by investing heavily in scaling up its tech infrastructure after it faced repeated outages during the past few years on its digital banking front.

In its annual report for 2020-21, the bank said its vision is to build a technology-led Bank. We are doing this by leveraging our strengths and building for the future, it said.

Irked by the repeated outages that the bank faced, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) barred it from issuing new credit cards last December and stopped it from going ahead with its new digital launches.

Commenting on the outages, Sashidhar Jagdishan, MD & CEO, HDFC Bank, said,  As a bank. we are certainly sorry for what has happened. And have taken this as an opportunity to improve and redouble our efforts to fix this problem for good.

There was an audit by a third-party tech auditor, appointed by the regulator, from February till April, who prepared a report and submitted it to the RBI. The bank is now awaiting the decision of the regulator now.

The lender is revamping its technology infrastructure by making large-scale investments, wherein it is bringing new talent, getting into cloud-native stacks, a shift from the traditional monolithic IT infrastructures, and working with strategic partners for better products and services.

Jagdishan said, We have invested heavily in the scale-up of our infrastructure to handle any potential load for the next 3-5 years. We are also in the process of accelerating our cloud strategy to be on the cutting edge leveraging best-in-class cloud service providers.

Along with that, the lender has strengthened monitoring of its data centre (DC) and has also shifted key applications to a new data centre. Further, the disaster recovery trials and process have been strengthened so that even if there is an outage the downtime can be minimised as much as possible. Although the bank has not had any security issues in the past, however, it has focused on strengthening its firewalls so that it is prepared for any potential security threats. Furthermore, the bank has put in place an enhanced monitoring mechanism across the board to keep its IT systems always ON.

While we execute this technology transformation agenda, there will sometimes be pain and outages beyond our control. But this is the bitter pill we need to swallow, Jagdishan said. ...we are putting in place measures that will ensure that downtimes will not be prolonged. Yes, it will take some time but we will get around this. And live up to the standards that people have come to expect from us, he added.

On the business side, the bank has identified growth engines -- corporate banking, commercial banking, rural, government and institutional banking, private banking, retail assets, and payments -- that will constitute the bulk of investments that it is making.

Our growth engines will be fully supported by our renewed focus and vigour on technology/digital investments that would act as the core backbone to both Run and Build the bank, Jagdishan said.

The management had earlier said that it is modernising the existing bank and has created a vertical within the bank called an 'enterprise factory' to keep the banks systems always ON. And, they have created another vertical called the 'digital factory', housed with very competent resources focused on building a digital platform for the bank. The mandate of the digital factory is to foster innovations in the product and consumer experience domain through own build or collaborate with new-age fin-tech and big-tech companies.
A powerful car bomb went off outside Mumbai terror attack mastermind and banned Jamat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed's house here on Wednesday, killing at least three people and injuring 20 others, police said.

The blast took place at the BOR Society in Jauhar Town at the police picket outside Saeed's residence.

The Punjab police chief Inam Ghani said there could have been a "major loss" had there been no police picket outside the house of the high-profile personality, referring to Saeed.

He said three people were killed in the car bomb blast while 20 were injured.

"Explosive material was installed in the car. There was a police picket outside the high-value target's house. The car could not cross the police picket," Inspector General Police (IGP) Punjab Ghani said, describing it as "a terror" act.

The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) has taken over the blast site and investigating from all aspects, he said.

Ghani also claimed that "hostile" intelligence agencies could be involved in this blast.

The injured people have been shifted to the Jinnah Hospital where the condition of six of them is said to be critical.

"The injured also include policemen. The condition of six injured of the 17 admitted to hospital is critical," said Dr Yahya Sultan of Jinnah Hospital.

It was a powerful blast that damaged a number of houses, shops and vehicles in the area. A roof of a house caved in because of the impact of the blast, says Rescue 1122.

The blast sparked rumours at the site that Saeed was present in the house.

Saeed, 71, has been serving a jail sentence at the Kot Lakhpat Jail Lahore for his conviction in terror financing cases.

(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.)
Amid e-commerce giant Amazon's ongoing crackdown on attempts by sellers to solicit positive consumer reviews, three more Chinese consumer brands have been banned from selling on the platform, dealing a fresh blow to the "made in China, sold on Amazon" community.

Citing the Guangdong SACA Precision Manufacturing, South Morning Post (SCMP) reported that has banned the sale of RAVPower power banks, Taotronics earphones and VAVA cameras, three brands under Shenzhen-based electronics company Sunvalley, effective from June 16.

The suspension came after the merchants were found to be offering gift cards to customers willing to write positive reviews about their purchases. This is a common practice in the Chinese e-commerce world but considered an abuse of the review system by

"According to our investigation, the reason [for the ban] may be that some products offered gift cards to customers, which is allegedly in violation of the rules of the platform," SACA said in the statement.

The three brands hit by the latest decision sell a range of consumer electronics products, including baby monitoring cameras, with the affected products accounting for around one-third of Sunvalley's total sales revenue on Amazon since the start of 2020, SCMP reported citing the statement.

The online platform had taken similar action against other Chinese merchants for violating its rules on fake customer reviews, including an online store backed by TikTok owner ByteDance.

Since last month, product listings from some of the biggest Chinese electronic gadget sellers have vanished from Amazon's online marketplace, SCMP reported earlier.

Amazon has a 'zero-tolerance policy towards violations, including asking a friend to leave a review and its latest action has garnered wide public attention in because of the vendors involved.

"Amazon shuts down thousands of stores every single day for manipulation of the review system. The reason it's so notable this time is because the stores that they shut down are so big," said Zack Franklin, a Shenzhen-based Amazon consultant for merchants.

One of those affected by Amazon's electronics vendor Aukey, which generated more than three-quarters of its revenue from Amazon in the first quarter of 2018 and 2019, according to a prospectus it filed in 2019.

Mpow, the main Amazon electronics store run by ByteDance and Xiaomi-backed consumer product firm Patozon, was also affected by the crackdown. It had recorded 2 billion yuan from exports in the first half of 2020, according to a financial statement.

"The main reason Amazon specifically targeted the biggest Chinese accounts is to send a very strong signal to sellers. If you are breaking the rules, we will shut you down," Franklin said.

In recent years, a growing number of Chinese merchants have turned to large e-commerce platforms, including eBay and Amazon, to reach consumers beyond their home market.

Despite Amazon's fake review crackdown, there are some small vendors who choose to continue with the practice to stay competitive.

(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.)
Trade power tensions, regulatory hurdles and attempts by the West to counter Chinese competition are delaying a return of the 737 MAX in China, frustrating Boeing Co as a potential rival demonstrates its growing influence.

Six months after the West lifted an almost two-year flight ban on the MAX, there is no clear end in sight for the crisis surrounding Boeing's fastest-selling jet in - the first nation to ground it in 2019 after two deadly crashes in five months.

The company had hoped for to approve the MAX to return to the sky by the end of last year; in January 2021, Boeing said it expected the MAX to be approved by regulators everywhere by the end of June. Now, with help from the Biden administration, Boeing is stepping up efforts to convince the plane is safe and reset its most strategic partnership as airlines start to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.

But people familiar with the discussions say regulatory and political obstacles mean any resolution is still months away. For Boeing Chief Executive David Calhoun, that means seeing profits and market share slip to European rival Airbus SE.

"I do know that if it goes on for too long, I pay a price," he told a Bernstein conference this month. "I pay a price because they're (China) the biggest part of the growth of the industry in the world."

Because of the China uncertainty, Boeing is not confident it can raise production beyond the 31 MAX planes per month level it expects to hit by early 2022, Calhoun said.

The company has been all but shut out of new orders in the world's biggest aircraft market since 2017, which contributed to its decision to cut production of its long-haul 787 model.

China hopes to compete against Western planemakers, including with its C919, a direct rival to the MAX and other narrowbodies such as the Airbus A320. Its manufacturer, state-owned Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) is aiming for local certification of the C919 by year end, and is ultimately seeking Western certification.

That potential competition has prompted the United States and Europe to call a truce in a 17-year aircraft trade war so they can focus on challenging Chinese subsidies.

Group of Seven leaders last week scolded China over a range of issues and demanded a thorough probe of the origins of COVID-19, angering Beijing.

Any improvement in the political backdrop to the MAX decision seems unlikely before the Communist Party's 100th anniversary on July 1, sources and analysts say.

"The 100th anniversary of the founding of the party, the 20th Party Congress next year, the (2022 Winter) Olympics - all of those push China to be less cooperative," said Scott Kennedy, a senior adviser at Center for Strategic and Studies.

PRACTICAL PROBLEMS

The MAX grounding - after crashes that killed 346 people - has been worst crisis in Boeing's history. Design flaws led to multiple investigations, damaged its reputation worldwide and left it short of cash needed to cope with the COVID-19 crisis.

Yet a year ago, the prospects of China returning the MAX to service on a timeline similar to that of the United States and Europe seemed good.

But politics, practical problems such as visa and quarantine issues, and the Chinese aviation regulator's intense scrutiny have gradually sapped U.S. hopes of a quick solution, industry sources say.

Last year, engineers from Seattle visited China to answer Civil Aviation Administration of China's (CAAC) technical queries, one of the people said.

Once it was clear CAAC's timeline lagged that of other regulators, Boeing suggested China send representatives to Seattle to observe test flights, two people said, but CAAC declined as the pandemic raged in the United States.

Discussions shifted to having Boeing's engineers and pilots travel to Beijing for test flights, but six months later that hasn't happened, the first person said.

Boeing said it continued to work closely with CAAC and other regulators to return the MAX to service worldwide but declined to respond to specific questions from Reuters.

CAAC declined to comment about the timeline for approval or the considerations for granting it. But CAAC chief Feng Zhenglin late last year raised concerns about Boeing's pilot training and after-market services in a small group meeting, a third source familiar with the matter said. The source, like others in this article, declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter.

CAUTIOUS REGULATOR

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was also cautious about the MAX's return to service and slapped down efforts by Boeing to speed up the process; Europe's aviation regulator delayed approvals by months.

CAAC, however, is known in the industry as the most conservative of the world's major aviation regulators. China has not had a deadly commercial air crash in more than a decade.

CAAC was the first regulator to ground the MAX. It has since issued three requirements for the return to service of the MAX in China: certified design changes, sufficient pilot training, and definitive findings from the crash investigations.

Beijing has big long-term regulatory ambitions, according to a State Council blueprint. It aims for China to become a global aviation power by 2050, giving the regulator greater influence.

CAAC's most recent jet aircraft certification was with the domestically manufactured regional jet ARJ21, whose production is ramping up after five years in service. It has not been certified by any Western regulator.

In the past, the Chinese regulator would have simply ticked certification boxes under bilateral agreements, a source at a Western aerospace supplier said. But now, as Beijing pins its aviation hopes on the C919, it is asking for detailed and sometimes proprietary data, analyses and presentations.

"CAAC... have put on their big boy pants," the source said. "Now what they're doing in the industry is saying, 'We do not trust traditional certification authorities anymore. We want to learn ourselves what you guys have been doing for the past 50, 60, 70 years.'"

(Reporting by Norihiko Shirouzu and Stella Qiu in Beijing and Jamie Freed in Sydney; additional reporting by Eric M. Johnson in Seattle; Writing by Jamie Freed; Editing by Tim Hepher and Gerry Doyle)

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Facebook's recommendation algorithm amplifies military propaganda and other material that breaches the company's own policies in following a military takeover in February, a new report by the rights group Global Witness says.

A month after the military seized power in and imprisoned elected leaders, Facebook's algorithms were still prompting users to view and like pro-military pages with posts that incited and threatened violence, pushed misinformation that could lead to physical harm, praised the military and glorified its abuses, Global Witness said in the report, published late Tuesday.

That's even though the giant vowed to remove such content following the coup, announcing it would remove military and military-controlled pages from its site and from Instagram, which it also owns. It has since enacted other measures intended to reduce offline harm in the country.

said Tuesday its teams continue to closely monitor the situation in Myanmar in real-time and take action on any posts, Pages or Groups that break our rules.

Days after the Feb 1 coup, the military temporarily blocked access to because it was being used to share anti-coup comments and organize protests. Access was later restored.

In the following weeks, continued to tighten its policies against the military, banning all military entities from its platforms and saying it would remove praise or support for violence against citizens and their arrest.

Once again, Facebook shows that it's good at making broad sweeping announcements and bad at actually enforcing them. They've had years to improve their work in Myanmar but once again they are still failing, said Sophie Zhang, a former Facebook data scientist and whistleblower who found evidence of political manipulation in countries such as Honduras and Azerbaijan while she worked there.

The struggle between the military regime that deposed Aung San Suu Kyi's elected government and those opposing it has sharpened in recent months.

Soldiers and police have killed hundreds of protesters. Last week, the United Nations' office in Myanmar expressed concern about escalating human rights abuses after reports that a group opposed to the junta may have executed 25 civilians it captured and allegations that troops had burned down a village.

Myanmar, also known as Burma, had over 22.3 million Facebook users in January 2020, more than 40 per cent of its population, according to management platform NapoleonCat.

What happens on Facebook matters everywhere, but in Myanmar that is doubly true," the report says. As in many countries outside the Western Hemisphere, mobile phones in Myanmar often come pre-loaded with Facebook and many businesses do not have a website, only a Facebook page. For many people in the country, Facebook effectively is the internet.

On March 23, just before the peak of military violence against civilians, Global Witness said it set up a new, clean Facebook account with no history of liking or following specific topics and searched for Tatmadaw, the Burmese name for the armed forces. It filtered the search results to show pages, and selected the top result a military fan page whose name translates as a gathering of military lovers.

Older posts on this page showed sympathy for Myanmar's soldiers and at least two advertised for young people to join the military but none of the newer posts since the coup violated Facebook's policies. However, when Global Witness's account liked" the page, Facebook began recommending related pages with material inciting violence, false claims of interference in last year's election and support of violence against civilians.

A March 1 post, for instance, includes a death threat against protesters who vandalise surveillance cameras.

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As prepares for the pullout of the US troops, peace there requires zero tolerance for and those supporting terrorists must be held accountable, according to India's External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar.

"A durable peace in requires a genuine 'double peace' -- that is, peace within and peace around Afghanistan. It requires harmonising the interests of all, both within and around that country," he said on Tuesday during a Security Council debate.

While ensuring that Afghanistan is not used by terrorists to threaten or attack other countries, "those providing material and financial support to terrorist entities must be held accountable", he said

"For enduring peace in Afghanistan, terrorist safe havens and sanctuaries must be dismantled immediately and terrorist supply chains disrupted. There needs to be zero tolerance for in all its forms and manifestations including its cross-border one," he said.

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres's Special Representative for Afghanistan, Deborah Lyons, acknowledged the broader impact that developments in that country have beyond it s border.

"What happens in Afghanistan remains of global consequence," she said while briefing the Council.

Jaikhankar said, "Any political settlement in Afghanistan must ensure that the gains of the last two decades are protected, and not reversed. It should, therefore, preserve the constitutional democratic framework and ensure the protection of rights of women, children and minorities."

In a criticism of Pakistan for limiting Afghanistan's supply routes, he said, "The community should work towards the removal of artificial transit barriers imposed on Afghanistan and ensure full transit rights guaranteed to Afghanistan under bilateral and multilateral transit agreements without any hindrance."

"For Afghanistan's economic development, it is important to have unhindered access to the high seas," he added.

He said that to India has operationalised air freight corridors and the Chabahar Port to link Afghanistan regionally.

The Chabahar Port developed by India in Iran, close to Afghanistan's border, provides a sea outlet for the landlocked nation.

Using the port, Jaishankar said, India has sent it 75,000 metric tonnes of wheat to overcome food insecurity due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Lyon told the Council that the US and NATO troop withdrawal announcement has "sent a seismic tremor through the Afghan political system and society at large".

"The withdrawal decision was expected but its speed -- with the majority of troops now already withdrawn -- was not. All actors have had to adjust to this new, reality that is unfolding," she said.

She noted the advances made by the Taliban that threatens to put the country firmly in its grip and said, "There is still time, barely but still time, to prevent the worse-case scenario from materialising. Enough has been built in Afghanistan to allow further building... if only there can be peace."

She said that "for the Taliban to continue this intensive military campaign would be a tragic course of action".

The Taliban has been taking advantage of the disunity in the non-Taliban leadership, but she said that she was "cautiously encouraged" by the efforts of President Ashraf Ghani and two other leaders to discuss security and show unity.

US Permanent Representative Linda Thomas-Greenfield said that despite the troop pullout, Washington's "commitment to Afghanistan's safety and security endures".

She said, "We will continue to support the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces in securing their country."

"We will use our full diplomatic, economic, and assistance toolkit to support the peaceful, stable future the Afghan people want and deserve," added.

But Thomas-Greenfield also acknowledged that "we have now seen months of unacceptable violence, often directed toward ethnic and religious minorities and innocent women and girls".

(Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in and followed @arulouis)

--IANS

al/int/pgh

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Expressing grave concerns over the " genocide" in China's Xinjiang province, Canada delivered a joint statement on behalf of 42 countries at the UN Humans Rights Council on Tuesday.

"We urge to allow immediate, meaningful and unfettered access to Xinjiang for independent observers," Canada's Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva Leslie Norton said at the UNHRC meeting on behalf of 40 countries.

The statement was backed by major countries Germany, France, Italy, Japan, Australia, Britain, Spain and the United States, among others.

Norton also called on to implement the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination's Xinjiang-related recommendations, including ending the arbitrary detention of Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities.

The remarks highlighted reports of torture or cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment, forced sterilization, sexual and gender-based violence, and forced separation of children from their parents by authorities.

"We also share the concerns expressed by UN Special Procedures in their March 29 statement on alleged detention, forced labour and transfers of Uyghurs and members of other Muslim minorities and in a letter published by UN experts describing collective repression of religious and ethnic minorities," the statement added.

The countries also urged to allow immediate, meaningful and unfettered access to Xinjiang for independent observers, including the High Commissioner.

The statement also raised concerns about the deterioration of fundamental freedoms in Hong Kong under the National Security Law and about the human rights situation in Tibet. "We call on Chinese authorities to abide by their human rights obligations."

Despite mounting evidence, China denies mistreating the Uyghurs, and goes on to insist it is simply running "vocational training" centres designed to counter extremism.

On Monday, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet had said that she hopes to agree on terms with China for a visit this year to Xinjiang province, to look into reports of serious abuse against Uyghurs.

This is the first time that UN rights official has suggested a timeline for the visit amid the growing pressure from the community to secure access to Xinjiang.

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Apple Daily, a popular newspaper in Hong Kong, has long needled Beijing with its rambunctious support of pro-democracy protesters, aggressive investigations of officials and lampooning of Chinas Communist Party leadership. Now China has effectively silenced the paper  and along with it, one of its most defiant critics.

Apple Daily said on Wednesday that it was closing less than a week after the police froze its accounts, raided its offices and arrested top editors, as the governments escalating campaign against dissent takes aim at the citys once vaunted media freedoms.

The forced closure of Apple Daily struck a blow to the unique character of the city itself. The paper churned out stories on celebrity gossip and lurid scandals, as well as hard-hitting political news and analysis, always with a decidedly anti-government slant and an irreverence antithetical to what the Communist Party would allow in the mainland. Even in the face of advertising boycotts, assaults on its journalists and firebomb attacks, the paper persevered and thrived, remaining one of the most widely read newspapers in the city, living proof of the freedoms enjoyed despite its return to Chinese rule in 1997.

When anti-government protests erupted in in 2019, posing the greatest political challenge to Beijing in decades, Apple Daily was an unabashed supporter of the movement, even printing placards for demonstrators. But when Beijing moved to quash resistance to its rule in the city with a powerful and sweeping national security law that squeezed space for dissent, Apple Daily quickly became a key target.
A Swedish court has upheld a ban on Chinese telecoms giant Huawei Technologies selling 5G equipment in the country, following Stockholm's decision to bar the company in October last year.

Sweden's regulator, the Post and Telecom Authority, banned the company along with its Chinese counterpart ZTE from the network in October because of security concerns on the recommendation of the nation's intelligence services. Huawei lost its initial appeal in December, reported South Morning Post (SCMP).

A Huawei representative said that the company was 'disappointed' with the court's verdict, adding that it was "not the final ruling" on the company's case.

"We are currently studying the judgment and the court's reasoning to determine what further legal remedies to pursue to protect our legitimate rights and interests. Our door remains open to constructive dialogues with relevant parties to work out practical solutions to mitigate any security concern," said a statement from the company.

It added that the regulator had "failed to produce any facts or evidence to demonstrate that Huawei's equipment has technical security issues".

This is the latest blow to Huawei's European plans after a series of bans in the continent. The company was banned from taking part in Romania's 5G roll-out, also citing security risks, reported SCMP.

Last year, the UK had banned the installation of Huawei 5G equipment starting in September 2021 and further ordered Huawei to be phased out of its 5G network by 2027, following in the footsteps of the US.

Other European countries, including France and Germany, have mulled a ban on Huawei. Last July, the EU encouraged member states to stop using suppliers that may add to cybersecurity risks, a move that was widely seen as targeting Chinese firms.

However, the Swedish court's decision to uphold the ban will stoke speculation that Swedish giant Ericsson, both a competitor and a customer of Huawei, will face retaliation in China, according to SCMP.

In response to questions about the Swedish ban of Huawei and ZTE, had said in January that it would "take all necessary measures" to defend its overseas.

"We urge to immediately correct its approach, considering the overall position of economic and trade cooperation between the two countries, and meet halfway to find a workable solution," said former foreign ministry spokesman Gao Feng.

According to Swedish media, Ericsson's chief executive had lobbied Anna Hallberg, the country's trade minister, after the ban on Huawei, to say the ban would be 'bad for Ericsson' because it "singles out our Chinese competitor in a way no other EU country has done".

This also comes as Swedish faced blowback in China this year. Swedish clothing giant H & M saw a consumer boycott after it announced it would not use cotton from the Western Chinese region of Xinjiang because of the suspected use of forced labour.

"Even if the Chinese government didn't consciously try to send a signal to with the H & M boycott, people in noticed it - it was big news here. There is a general expectation that economic retaliation from China because of the Huawei case might be possible," said Bjorn Jerden, director of the Swedish National China Centre.

Earlier this month, the Biden administration included Huawei on a list of 59 Chinese firms it said had ties to China's military or surveillance industries, barring US entities from investing in them.

"With China increasingly represented by Wolf Warrior diplomats, Huawei's reassurance that its roles in critical infrastructures - including 5G - do not look sufficiently reassuring to democracies that are not friends of Trump," said Steve Tsang, director of the China Institute at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London.

The US Innovation and Competition Act that has earmarked USD 54.2 billion towards shoring up America's competence on a number of technological fronts, has left out China's Huawei Technologies on a list of restricted entities, banning it from gaining access to US hardware and software.

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A team of scientists at the University of Oxford have on Wednesday announced a trial to investigate the efficacy and safety of ivermectin -- an antiparasitic drug -- for people at more risk of serious illness from Covid-19.

Previous studies of ivermectin, which show that early administration with ivermectin can reduce viral load and the duration of symptoms in some patients with mild Covid, have generally been small or low quality.

The World Health Organisation in March and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had, in April last year, recommended against the use of ivermectin in treating Covid patients. The WHO said there was a "very low certainty of evidence" on ivermectin's effects on mortality, hospital admission and getting rid of the virus from the body.

"Safety and efficacy are important when using any drug for a new indication. @WHO recommends against the use of ivermectin for #COVID19 except within clinical trials," Soumya Swaminathan, the global health body's chief scientist, said in a tweet.

However, ivermectin has been taken up by doctors and by individuals self-medicating in countries, including Brazil, Bolivia, Peru and South Africa.

"Ivermectin is readily available globally, has been in wide use for many other infectious conditions so it's a well-known medicine with a good safety profile, and because of the early promising results in some studies it is already being widely used to treat Covid-19 in several countries," said Professor Chris Butler, from the University Oxford's Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, said in a statement.

"By including ivermectin in a large-scale trial, we hope to generate robust evidence to determine how effective the treatment is against Covid-19, and whether there are benefits or harms associated with its use," he added.

The trial has so far recruited more than 5,000 volunteers from across the UK, who will be randomly assigned to receive a three-day course of ivermectin treatment. They will be followed-up for 28 days and will be compared with participants who have been assigned to receive the usual standard of National Health Service care only.

People aged 18 to 64 with certain underlying health conditions or shortness of breath from Covid-19, or aged over 65, are eligible to join the trial within the first 14 days of experiencing Covid-19 symptoms or receiving a positive test.

People with severe liver disease, who are on the blood-thinning medication warfarin, or taking other treatments known to interact with ivermectin, will be excluded.

The trial can be joined easily from anywhere in the UK either online, over the telephone or via a GP practice, and without the need for face-to-face visits with the trial team in Oxford.

--IANS

rvt/dpb

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Pakistan has received another two million doses of a China-made vaccine, as the country hopes to enhance its immunisation drive.

A special flight of Pakistan Airlines (PIA) PK-6852 airlifted two million doses of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine from the Beijing Capital Airport to Islamabad on Tuesday.

It is in addition to 1.55 million doses of Sinovac vaccines from China to Pakistan on Sunday.

According to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), the main body to combat the virus, "The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) is spearheading the process of purchasing vaccines from the market under the auspices of the NCOC.

The fresh doses will be sent to various vaccine centres across the country for which arrangements are already in place.

"With the arrival of this consignment, the daily average administering of doses across the country will be enhanced considerably," the NCOC said.

Meanwhile, the number of cases in the country rose to 950,768 after 930 new cases were reported on Wednesday.

With 39 more deaths, the country toll rose to 22,073, reported the Ministry of National Health Services.

Pakistani health authorities had launched a nationwide vaccination drive with around a million doses of Sinopharm vaccine donated by China, starting with older people and frontline healthcare workers, in March.

Initially, the government had to deal with vaccination hesitancy and a shortage of vaccine supplies and had limited shots for people aged 30 or over.

Now vaccines are available for people aged over 18 years.

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President on Wednesday spoke to the three astronauts stationed in China's space station and told them that the project is an important milestone in the country's ambitious space exploration programme.

China successfully launched its longest crewed space mission to date on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its new orbiting station, in a major milestone for the Communist giant's space exploration plans and establishing it as a leading space power.

Xi, also the General Secretary of the ruling Communist Party and the head of the People's Liberation Army, spoke to astronauts Nie Haisheng, Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo from the Beijing Aerospace Control Centre.

In his first direct contact with the astronauts telecast live by the state-run television channels, Xi thanked them for their work in space in a five-minute call reflecting the importance of the country's space exploration project to the Chinese leadership.

You will spend three months in space and while in space, your work and your life will be in the hearts of the Chinese public, he said.

Establishing our own space station is an important milestone and a significant contribution to humankind's peaceful use of space, he was quoted as saying by the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.

The three astronauts saluted Xi and thanked the country for its support. All three are members of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) which is celebrating its centenary on July 1.

This will be China's longest crewed space mission to date and the first in nearly five years.

China previously sent the space station's Tianhe core cabin module on April 29, and a cargo spacecraft with supplies on May 29.

The three astronauts, who will build the station, are expected to set a new record for China's manned space mission duration, exceeding the 33 days kept by the Shenzhou-11 crew in 2016.

The three astronauts were sent into space by the Shenzhou-12 spaceship on June 17 and docked with the core module Tianhe on the same day.

They will spend the next three months constructing the space station named Tiangong (Heavenly Palace) which will be rival to Space Station (ISS), a collaborative project involving five participating space agencies - NASA (US), Roscomos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA (Europe) and CSA (Canada).

Tiangong was expected to be ready by next year.

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Four Saudi operatives involved in the killing of the Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018, had received paramilitary training in the United States in the previous year under a contract approved by the State Department, the New York Times reported.

The training was provided by a security company named Tier 1 Group based in Arkansas and owned by the private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management. The training was defensive in nature and devised to protect Saudi leaders, said NYT on Wednesday.

There is no evidence to suggest that the American officials who approved the training or Tier 1 executives knew that Saudis were involved in the crackdown of dissent inside the kingdom.

The US State Department had granted the license to Tier 1 Group for paramilitary training of the Saudi Royal Guard in 2014. The training continued during at least the first year of former President Donald Trumps term.

Louis Bremer, a senior executive of Cerberus, the parent company of Tier 1, had confirmed his companys role in the training in 2020 in written answers to questions from Congress as part of his nomination for a top Pentagon job during the Trump administration. However, the lawmakers never received the answers because the Trump administration does not appear to have sent them to Congress before withdrawing Bremers nomination.





ALSO READ: Saudi crown prince Salman approved plan to kill Jamal Khashoggi: US report

In the documents that Bremer provided to NYT, he said that four members of the Khashoggi kill team had received Tier 1 Group training in 2017, and two of them had participated in a previous iteration of the training, which went from October 2014 until January 2015.

He said that the training provided was unrelated to their subsequent heinous acts.

Bremer said the US State Department and other government agencies are responsible for vetting foreign forces trained on US soil.

Khashoggi was killed inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul in October 2018. The murder brought widespread condemnation to Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler of and who has publicly denied any knowledge of the operation.
said it used bombs and gunfire in warning shots to force a British destroyer to leave waters it claims in the Black Sea, but the U.K. rejected that, saying it was likely a gunnery exercise that didnt affect the ships planned voyage.



The episode, which the Russian Defense Ministry said took place off Cape Fiolent, south of its Sevastopol naval base in Crimea, highlights the tensions in the area following Moscows 2014 annexation of the strategic peninsula from Ukraine.



said the incident lasted about half an hour, with the HMS Defender entering waters Moscow claims as its own by about three kilometers (1.2 miles) and ignoring radio warnings. The Defender continued even after a Russian Border Patrol warship fired its cannon, leaving the area when a Su-24 aircraft dropped four bombs on its course, the Defense Ministry said.



The U.K. rejected that account, saying no warning shots were fired and noting was conducting a gunnery exercise in the area.



This morning, HMS Defender carried out a routine transit from Odessa towards Georgia across the Black Sea, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said. As is normal for this route, she entered an internationally recognized traffic separation corridor.



She exited that corridor safely at 0945BST. As is routine, Russian vessels shadowed her passage and she was made aware of training exercises in her wider vicinity.



Russia summoned the British ambassador and military attache in Moscow to protest the incident and call for an investigation.



The U.K. and its allies dont recognize Crimea as Russian territory after Moscow annexed the region from Ukraine in 2014.



Since then, Russia has deployed its planes and ships when the North Atlantic Treaty Organization has sent ships into the area. At the height of tensions in early 2014, the U.S. accused Russia of flying a warplane dangerously close to a U.S. warship, an allegation Moscow denied.



The talk of warning shots could be a total or partial fabrication (it wouldnt be the first time) or it could be true, Mark Galeotti, senior associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute in London, wrote in Twitter. Either way, it shows not strength but weakness.



Russia has claimed it expelled another British warship in the area last year, an assertion London rejected.



Moscow is responding to NATOs freedom-of-navigation exercises with a theatrical stunt designed to show a domestic political audience that it is ready and able to defend what it claims is Russian territory  as well as crafting a narrative of successfully repulsing Western invaders  without the risks of an actual military clash, said Daragh McDowell, Principal Russia Analyst at risk consultancy Verisk Maplecroft.



Russian military analysts said the use of weapons would be an unusual escalation, if it happened.



Thank God it didnt cause any casualties -- the common sense of the British commander has to be saluted, said Maxim Shepovalenko, a retired Russian naval capitan who is deputy head of the Moscow-based Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, a defense industry consultancy. Both sides seem keen now to draw a line under the affair.



The U.K.s muted response could mean they miscalculated and were not ready for what the Russians did, said Vasily Kashin, a military expert at the Higher School of Economics in Moscow.



The Defender on Tuesday left the Ukrainian port of Odessa, where officials signed agreements implementing the U.K.s program to help Ukraine build up its navy, according to the ships Twitter account. Reached last October, the deal includes refurbishment of existing ships and delivery of new ones.



The U.K. said the ships route Wednesday was the most direct one between Ukraine and Georgia, its next destination.
The United States government has seized dozens of website domains connected to Iran, linked to what the says are disinformation efforts, according to a national security official.

CNN reported that some users are not able to access sites such as Presstv.com, which is an Iranian state-run English-language news outlet.

When attempting to access, users are seeing the following message: "The domain presstv.com has been seized by the United States Government in accordance with a seizure warrant pursuant to 18 U.S.C. ... as part of a law enforcement action by the Bureau of Industry and Security, Office of Export Enforcement and Federal Bureau of Investigation."

Iranian media reported that it has blocked the websites of several news agencies. Taking to Twitter, the Press TV account said: "In what seems to be a coordinated action, a similar message appears on the websites of Iranian and regional television networks that claims the domains of the websites have been 'seized by the United States Government.'"

The move comes just days after the election of Iranian president-elect Ebrahim Raisi in a process the State Department called "pre-manufactured" and not free and fair. All of Raisi's serious rivals were barred from the race and overall voter turnout was 48.8 per cent, the lowest figure since the establishment of the Islamic Republic in 1979.

In a news conference Monday, the Iranian President-elect ruled out a meeting with US President Joe Biden and called on the US to lift sanctions on Tehran and rejoin the Iran nuclear deal.

According to CNN, the US government's seizure of the outlets is a potentially provocative move amid the talks in Vienna about the 2015 nuclear agreement. The sixth round of those discussions -- aimed at returning the US to the deal and getting Iran back into compliance -- wrapped up over the weekend.

"When it comes to our diplomacy, we've always said that it is absolutely in our interests to arrive at a mutual return to compliance with the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) precisely because it would allow us to once again permanently and verifiably prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. That was in our interests before the Iranian election. It is manifestly in our interests after the election," said State Department spokesperson Ned Price.

"I would make the point that even though Iran will have a new president in the coming weeks, ultimately it is Iran's supreme leader who determines Iran's policy on a range of important issues," Price added.

The Iranian President-elect, in response to a question from CNN on Monday, accused the US and the European Union of violating the nuclear deal and called on Biden to lift all sanctions against Iran. He also said that his country's ballistic missile program was "not up for negotiation".

"My serious proposal to the United States government is for them to return [to the agreement] in an expedited manner ... in doing so they will prove their sincerity... The people of Iran do not have good memories of the JCPOA," he said.

Raisi will take office in early August, replacing moderate President Hassan Rouhani who was not allowed by the constitution to run for a third consecutive term.

He has become the first Iranian president to be sanctioned by the United States even before assuming office as he was designated in 2019.

The US blacklisted him for his role in the mass execution of political prisoners in 1988, his involvement in the crackdown on the 2009 Green Movement protests, and "administration of oversight over the executions of individuals who were juveniles at the time of their crime".

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By Andrea Shalal

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The on Tuesday agreed to boost its spending on to 35% from 28% and to provide annual progress reports to its board after its draft action plan came under fire for lacking a clear implementation strategy.

The bank, the largest source of climate finance for developing countries, said it would also publicly release a roadmap to show how it will help those nations meet their targets.

Bank officials pledged to provide the board with regular updates, with details to be included in an addendum to the plan, Genevieve Connors, who oversees tracking and reporting of climate finance for the World Bank, told Reuters.

"This is really transformational in the way we do business," she said. "One of the central differences of this ( action plan) is that we as the Group have now elevated climate to be central to everything that we do."

The released some details of its five-year plan in April, saying it would help developing countries reduce greenhouse gas emissions by aiding the transition out of coal. But it drew fire for stopping short of halting all funding of fossil fuel projects.

The bank's plan calls for increase the amount it dedicates to climate finance, which has totaled $83 billion over the past five years, peaking at $21.4 billion in 2020.

Environmental campaigners took aim at the new plan on Tuesday, saying its failure to completely end fossil fuel investments undermined the broader goals.

"The World Bank Group's selective approach to phasing out fossil fuels is about as effective as throwing both water and gasoline at a house fire," said Luisa Galvao, a campaigner with the U.S. arm of Friends of the Earth.

Connors said the bank would assess gas investments on a case-by-case basis and that gas projects would face high thresholds to win funding.

In some cases, it makes sense to proceed with gas projects, Connors said, adding that there was no firm deadline for halting all such investments.

"It's a moving target," she said. "We see it as a journey towards decarbonisation ... but our countries are all on different pathways and there always may be extenuating circumstances in which a particular natural gas project may make sense. But the hurdles are high, and proof needs to be shown."

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal in Washington; additional reporting by Kate Abnett in Brussels; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

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President on Wednesday spoke to the three astronauts stationed in China's station and told them that the project is an important "milestone" in the country's ambitious exploration programme.

successfully launched its longest crewed mission to date on June 17, sending three astronauts to its new orbiting station, in a major milestone for the Communist giant's space exploration plans and establishing it as a leading space power.

Xi, also the General Secretary of the ruling Communist Party and the head of the People's Liberation Army, spoke to astronauts Nie Haisheng, Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo from the Beijing Aerospace Control Centre.

In his first direct contact with the astronauts telecast live by the state-run television channels, Xi thanked them for their work in space in a five-minute call reflecting the importance of the country's space exploration project to the Chinese leadership.

"You are the first astronauts stationed in the core module Tianhe and will stay in space for three months," Xi said during the video call. "We all care about you very much," state-run Xinhua news agency quoted him as saying.

"The construction of the space station is a milestone in China's space industry, which will make pioneering contributions to the peaceful use of space by humanity," he said.

"You are the representatives of those who are striving and climbing in China's space industry in the new era. I hope you will work closely with each other and complete the upcoming tasks," he said.

He expressed his hope that the three astronauts would work and live well in space. "We are waiting for your triumphant return to Beijing," he said.

"You will spend three months in space and while in space, your work and your life will be in the hearts of the Chinese public," Xi said.

Prior to the conversation, Xi watched both the operations of the in-orbit complex, including the core module and Shenzhou-12, and the astronauts' work in orbit via a large screen in the centre's command hall.

The screen showed Nie, Liu and Tang conducting in-orbit training with a robotic arm, and inspecting and setting the status of the extravehicular spacesuit in preparation for extravehicular activities (EVAs).

The robotic arm which can be stretched to 15 metres has raised concerns in the US for its possible military applications.

Astronauts will team up with the robotic arm to make in-orbit space station construction and maintenance possible.

China, in the past, has launched several scavenger satellites fitted with robotic arms to gather and steer space debris so that it burns up in Earth's atmosphere.

The three astronauts saluted Xi and thanked the country for its support. All three are members of the ruling Communist Party of (CPC) which is celebrating its centenary on July 1.

This will be China's longest crewed space mission to date and the first in nearly five years.

previously sent the space station's Tianhe core cabin module on April 29, and a cargo spacecraft with supplies on May 29.

The three astronauts, who will build the station, are expected to set a new record for China's manned space mission duration, exceeding the 33 days kept by the Shenzhou-11 crew in 2016.

The three astronauts were sent into space by the Shenzhou-12 spaceship on June 17 and docked with the core module Tianhe on the same day.

They will spend the next three months constructing the space station named Tiangong (Heavenly Palace) which will be rival to Space Station (ISS), a collaborative project involving five participating space agencies - NASA (US), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA (Europe) and CSA (Canada).

Tiangong was expected to be ready by next year.

(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 recovery in demand across from virus-driven slumps remains patchy, offering a complex picture as improvements in nations such as India are partially offset by deteriorations elsewhere.

While consumption has shown signs of picking up in the regions third-largest economy, as well as in Thailand, its offset by slowing demand in Taiwan, Vietnam and Malaysia, Apple Mobility data and Bloomberg calculations show. That means the complex remains a mixed bag, according to consultant FGE.

Global crude prices have extended a rally this month, with Brent topping $75 a barrel, as economies step up the pace of reopening and mobility increases. But that process is most advanced in the parts of Europe and the U.S., where demand just hit the highest level this year, according to Descartes Labs. Across Asia, a key oil-consuming region, its much more varied.

In India, and diesel sales rebounded in the first half of June after a deadly coronavirus wave hobbled the economy in May, according to people familiar with figures from nations the three biggest retailers. The Apple Mobility data tally with that finding, with daily average driving activity up by 39.3 percentage points so far in June from the month before.





ALSO READ: Govt brings forward by two years 20% ethanol blend to gasoline

Thailand also reversed May declines, with driving activity up 12.9 percentage points so far in June. But elsewhere, driving in Taiwan, Vietnam and Malaysia continued to fall from May amid anti-virus restrictions.

Its likely that mobility in Malaysia and Vietnam, as well as purchasing manager index readings -- key indicators of gasoline and gasoil consumption -- will fall in June, said Kendrick Wee, director at IHS Markit. A recovery in Vietnam is likely only in the third quarter, said Wee.

Stockpiles of light distillates in the distribution hub of Singapore suggest growing oversupply. The holdings, comprised of fuels such as naphtha and gasoline, hit a nine-week high of 14.2 million barrels last week. This was partly due to reduced exports from the city-state to other parts of Southeast such as Malaysia, according to FGE.

Refiners could slow the return of their offline capacity from maintenance to ease any lengths in the product markets, said IHS Wee, referring to a potential buildup of supplies. While regional gasoline and gasoil cracks are expected to strengthen over the next two months as movement restrictions ease, most of the recovery hinges on outside of Asia, he added.

In the third quarter, regional gasoline demand should recover by about 300,000 barrels a day from the second, according to FGE, which highlighted support from the easing of curbs in Japan and South Korea. That may flip Asias gasoline balance to a deficit from the current surplus of 70,000 barrels a day.
Shares of took a flight on Wednesday, hitting 5 per cent upper circuit at Rs 104 apiece on the BSE, as the Kalrock-Jalan consortium recieves nod to operate the airline again. Shares of the defunct airline are up 15.6 per cent in 3 trading sessions as against a 1 per cent gain in the frontline S&P BSE Sensex.

On Tuesday, the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) cleared the resolution plan submitted by the consortium, pavong way to re-start the airline that has been out of business since 2019. The consortium will now apply for the relevant government approvals before it can recommence operations.

According to a Business Standard report, the airline's new management will have to appoint key executives in engineering, flight safety, operations and security. It will also have to update all operations manuals and undergo a regulatory audit before securing permission to start operations.

"The consortium has shortlisted Sudhir Gaur, former head of operations and training, and a few other executives in senior operational roles. Gaur has been working with Nepal Airlines following the closure of Jet. With the passing of the resolution plan, the insolvency process of Jet has come to an end. Now, a monitoring committee, comprising representatives of banks, the consortium and resolution professional Ashish Chhawchharia will oversee the functioning of the company for the next 90 days," the report said. READ ABOUT IT HERE

While the consortium will be responsible for negotiations with airports and suppliers, the committee will function as a quasi-board and look after all corporate actions and compliances, it added.

The new board of the airline will take over on the effective date which has been set at 90 days from the passing of Tuesdays order. The consortium will also have to pay a performance bank guarantee of around Rs 100 crore and meet other conditions.

Other aviation stocks, InterGlobe Aviation and SpiceJet were trading either way of flat line. The former was up 0.08 per cent at 9:50 AM while the latter was down 0.7 per cent. The benchmark Sensex index, meanwhile, was up 0.13 per cent.
Nifty futures on SGX traded 63 points or 0.40 per cent higher at 15,832 around 8.40 am, indicating a strong start for the benchmark indices on Wednesday.

Here are the top stocks to track today:

Earnings Today: Apollo Hospitals Enterprise, HCC, Mcleod Russel India, Mercator and V2 Retail are among 64 companies slated to release quarterly earnings today.

NMDC: The company posted a manifold jump in its net profit to Rs 2,838 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2021. It had clocked a Rs 351-crore net profit during the January-March period of the financial year 2019-20.

Hero MotoCorp: Two-wheeler maker will hike its vehicle prices by up to Rs 3,000 from July to partially offset the impact of the higher commodity prices.

UBL: regulator Sebi on Tuesday exempted Heineken International B V from the obligation of making an open offer following its proposed acquisition of shares in United Breweries Ltd (UBL).

Sobha: The realty firm on Tuesday reported a 65 per cent YoY decline in its consolidated net profit at Rs 17.9 crore for the quarter ended March. Its net profit stood at Rs 50.7 crore in the year-ago period.

Symphony: Amit Kumar has been appointed as the Executive Director and Group CEO of the company. Kumar's appointment would be effective from August 2, 2021, Symphony said in a statement.

Wabco India: Auto components maker Wabco India said its promoter group ZF International UK Ltd plans to sell up to 6.5 lakh equity shares for at least Rs 425.75 crore through the stock exchanges.

GE Power India: The company posted a nearly 8 per cent YoY increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 16.02 crore for the March quarter, mainly on the back of higher revenues. The consolidated net profit of the company stood at Rs 14.87 crore in the same quarter of the previous fiscal.

Jaypee Infratech: Debt-laden realty firm Jaypee Infratech has posted a consolidated net loss of Rs 491.60 crore for the quarter ended March 2021. The company had reported a net loss of Rs 940.53 crore in the year-ago period.

Centrum Capital: The company reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 5.54 crore for the last quarter of the fiscal ended March 2021, while the full year loss stood at Rs 42 crore. The company, which is set to acquire the troubled PMC Bank alongside BharatPe, had reported a net profit of Rs 25.05 crore in the same quarter a year ago. Further, it plans to raise up to Rs 500 crore in equity capital from institutional investors to fund organic and inorganic opportunities.

IDBI Bank: The government on Tuesday invited bids from transaction advisors and legal firms for assisting in the strategic sale of IDBI Bank.

VIL: Telecom operator (VIL) said it is offering voice and data benefits for low-income group users to reconnect back, as they resume work amid lockdown relaxation.

CDSL: on Tuesday offloaded leading depository CDSL's shares worth a little over Rs 185 crore through an open market transaction. Meanwhile, PPFAS Mutual Fund lapped up 15,90,764 shares of the depository at an average price of Rs 937.34 aggregating the transaction size to Rs 149.10 crore.

Minda Industries: Auto components maker Minda Industries said it will acquire 51 per cent stake in Uzbekistan-based automotive lighting manufacture UZ Chasys for around Rs 58 crore.

HDFC Bank: The country's largest private sector lender on Tuesday announced that it will hire 500 people over the next two years as part of a special project to improve its IT infrastructure.

Vedanta: The firm said the coal block in Odisha allotted to it, once operational, will provide fuel security, improve power availability and further strengthen the company's aluminium operations.

Bharat Electronics: The company reported higher consolidated profit at Rs 1,368.15 crore in Q4FY21 as against Rs 1,046.97 crore in Q4FY20.
Bharat Electronics (BEL) rose 2.05% to Rs 154.45 after the company's consolidated net profit jumped 30.5% to Rs 1,355.73 crore on 18.2% rise in net sales to Rs 6,769.96 crore in Q4 March 2021 over Q4 March 2020.

Profit before tax soared 36.3% to Rs 1,935.97 crore in Q4 FY21 as against Rs 1,420.09 crore in Q4 FY20. The Q4 earnings were announced after trading hours yesterday, 22 June 2021.

During the financial year, BEL's consolidated net profit climbed 15.43% to Rs 2,069.34 crore on 9.60% increase in net sales from operations to Rs 13,849.71 crore in FY 2021 over FY 2020. The company had an order book position of Rs 53,434 crore as on 1 April 2021.

The company's board has recommended a final dividend of Rs 1.20 per share for FY 2020-21.

BEL is a state-owned aerospace and defense company with about nine factories, and several regional offices in India. It primarily manufactures advanced electronic products for the Indian Armed Forces.

The Government of India held 51.14% stake in BEL as on 31 March 2021.

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India Cements announced that on the midnight of 22 June 2021, based upon an anonymous call to the Plant Head of the Sankarnagar Cement Works of the Company, the police were asked to investigate the possibility of any explosive device in the Plant. The police have located two suspicious 'small pipes' which have to be examined for explosive content.

The police have taken into custody a few suspects and are conducting an investigation. There is no interruption of production and the Plant is completely safe and no untoward accident has happened. The police have complete control and life is normal in the Plant.

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Japan stock market finished session marginal lower after fluctuating between gains and losses on Wednesday, 23 June 2021, amid a lack of fresh trading cues, with losses in steelmakers, brokerages, property developers, and pharma stocks offset gains in materials and resources and energy stocks.

At closing bell, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average fell 9.24 points, or 0.03%, to 28,874.89. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange dropped 10.39 points, or 0.53%, to 1,949.14.

Trading volume turnover in the 1st section decreased to 944 million shares from 1,173 million shares in previous session. Trading value turnover decreased to 2,285.62 billion yen from 2,772.88 billion yen in previous session.

Total 28 of 33 sectors sub-indexes on the Tokyo exchange ended lower, with top losers were Iron & Steel (down 1.4%, Securities & Commodities Futures (down 1.4%), Real Estate (down 1.3%), Pharmaceutical (down 1.1%), Electric Power & Gas (down 1.1%), Banks (down 0.9%), and Textiles & Apparels (down 0.9%) sectors, while top gainers included Mining (up 0.9%), Warehousing & Harbor Transportation Services (down 0.6%), and Oil & Coal Products (down 0.5%) sectors.

ECONOMIC NEWS: Japan Jibun Manufacturing Stays In Expansion In June - Japan manufacturing sector stayed in expansion with a manufacturing PMI score of 51.5, the latest survey from Jibun Bank revealed on Wednesday. That's down from 53.0 in May, although it remains above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.

This was the weakest reading of the headline Index for four months. This came as output levels declined for the first time since January and at the quickest pace seen since November 2020, while growth in new orders softened to a marginal pace. Positively, job creation continued for the third consecutive month, with the rate of growth picking up slightly to reach the fastest since January 2020. Firms also remained confident that activity would increase over the next 12 months, however optimism dipped to a three-month low in June. The survey also showed that the services PMI rose to 47.2 from 45.7 in June and the composite index fell to 47.8 from 48.8 a month earlier.

CURRENCY NEWS: The Japanese yen changed hands at 110.75 per dollar, having weakened from below 110 against the greenback earlier this week.

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Jet Airways (India) hit an upper circuit of 5% at Rs 104.40, extending gains for the third session.

The stock has added 15.68% in three sessions, from its recent closing low of Rs 90.25 recorded on 18 June 2021.

On Tuesday (22 June 2021), the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) approved Jalan Kalrock Consortium's resolution plan for the company.

"by the order pronounced orally on June 22, 2021, the Mumbai bench of the National Company Law Tribunal approved the Resolution Plan submitted by the Resolution Applicant for the corporate insolvency resolution of the Company under Section 31 of the Code," the aviation company said in a statement made on Tuesday.

As part of the revival plan NCLT has reportedly given 90 days to Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and Aviation Ministry to allot slots to the debt-laden Jet Airways, the media reported.

However, Jet Airways being given its important historic domestic and international routes remains unresolved, reports added.

As per reports, the Kalrock-Jalan consortium had proposed to repay banks, financial institutions and employees Rs 1,200 crore over next five years and plans to establish Jet Airways as a full service airline with 30 aircrafts.

Jet Airways is debt-ridden non-operational airline company. The airline had grounded its operations in April 2019, after it ran out of money to meet its debt repayment obligations. It was admitted for insolvency on 20 June 2019, after lenders failed to sell the grounded airline.

In October 2020, the Committee of Creditors (CoC) of Jet Airways had approved the resolution plan submitted by a consortium of UK's Kalrock Capital and UAE-based entrepreneur Murari Lal Jalan.

The air carrier reported a standalone net loss of Rs 5,535.75 crore in the year ended March 2019 (FY19), higher than net loss of Rs 767.62 crore in the year ended March 2018 (FY18). Total income declined 2.7% to Rs 23,314.11 crore in FY19 from Rs 23,958.37 crore in FY18.

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The acquisition would enable the UNO Minda Group to have significant presence in Uzbekistan, as a leading OEMs supplier.

Shares of Minda Industries rose 1.60% to Rs 652.50 after the company said that it had won the bid to acquire 51% stake in leading automotive lighting manufacture UZ Chasys LLC in Uzbekistan.

The acquisition is being done for a cash consideration of 83.1 billion Soums, equivalent to approximately Rs 58 crore. The company expects to complete the transaction within a period of six months.

Uzbekistan government is moving toward liberalization of economy and divesting their stake is some of the government-controlled entities. As part of this process, Uzbekistan Government is divesting their 51% stake in UZ Chasys through auction process.

UzChasys specialize in manufacturing of automobile headlights and lamps and is a leading Supplier to OEM's in Uzbekistan and has significant exports. Uzbekistan automotive market is expected to grow significantly in coming years along with introduction of new models which will benefit UZ Chasys. The acquisition will further expand the company's geographical footprints.

The proposed investment in UzChasys will enable the UNO Minda Group to have significant presence in Uzbekistan as a leading OEMs Supplier.

Minda Industries is a flagship company of UNO MINDA Group. UNO MINDA, a technology leader in Auto Components Industry is a leading supplier of proprietary automotive solutions to OEMs as Tier-1. It manufactures automobile components for Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs).

The company's consolidated net profit surged to Rs 140.32 crore in Q4 FY21 from Rs 13.10 crore in Q4 FY20. Net sales during the quarter increased by 49.44% YoY to Rs 2,238.27 crore.

In the past one month, the stock has gained 15.23% while the benchmark Nifty 50 index and the Nifty Auto index have risen 4.05% and 2.64%, respectively.

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West Bengal chief minister on Wednesday said bypolls, due in six assembly seats of the state, can be held within seven days since the COVID-19 situation is "under control".

She went on to allege that the of India is waiting for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's nod to hold the bye-elections.

"If it is so, then I will ask the PM to give the go- ahead. Now the situation is okay, but if the third wave of the pandemic comes, then you cannot do anything," Banerjee told reporters at the secretariat.

The chief minister had lost to BJPs Suvendu Adhikari from the Nandigram seat in the assembly polls and the deadline for her re-election ends on November 5.

"We are waiting to see (what decision the ECI takes). The bypolls should be held as early as possible because the COVID-19 situation is totally controlled now. So, I think within seven days they can hold the elections. There is no need to give so much time to the candidates. Even our bye- elections are pending," she said.

On reports that the central government is allegedly trying to delay the bye-elections in West Bengal, Banerjee referred to the constitutional stipulation of holding the elections within six months.

"They held the Bengal assembly elections in eight phases when the COVID-19 positivity rate went up to 33 per cent and now when it is down to 3 per cent they cannot organise the bypolls," she said.

Elections were deferred in two assembly constituencies of Shamsergunj and Jangipur following the deaths of two candidates.

Bypolls will have to be held in Bhabanipur following the resignation of state minister Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay as an MLA to make way for Banerjee to contest from her old constituency.

Chattopadhyay is likely to contest from Khardah where party leader Kajal Sinha had succumbed to Covid-19 before the results were announced.

Byelections are also due in Shantipur and Dinhata where two BJP MPs contested and won but have resigned to retain their Lok Sabha seats.

The ECI had deferred bye-elections in three parliamentary constituencies in Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli because of the pandemic.

It also deferred bye-elections in nine assembly constituencies in Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, and Meghalaya.
Finance Minister on Wednesday made a case for re-thinking financing and development priorities for inclusive, sustainable and resilient infrastructure aligned with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Adopted in 2015, SDGs are the world's shared plan to end extreme poverty, reduce inequality, and protect the planet by 2030.

Participating in Asia Infrastructure Forum co-organised by Enterprise Singapore, Ministry of Finance of Singapore and Monetary Authority of Singapore, Sitharaman spelt out various measures taken by the government to boost infrastructure spending by the government.

"FM emphasised India's policy-led approach of open, rule-based and transparent economic environment; encouragement to private investment and foreign capital; enhanced public expenditure and robust institutional structure for funding infrastructure development for #ResilentRecovery," the said in a series of tweets.

The Finance Minister highlighted setting up of National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development, National Infrastructure Pipeline, National Monetisation Pipeline, liberalised FDI, development of GIFT City to promote Infrastructure Development, incentivise private partners and innovation.

"FM Smt. @nsitharaman called for re-thinking financing and development priorities for inclusive, sustainable and resilient #infrastructure, prioritising healthcare and education, ensuring resilience of global supply chains and creating infrastructure aligned with #SDGs," another tweet said.
The Competition Commission has ordered a detailed probe against for alleged anti-competitive practices in the smart television operating systems market in the country.

After assessing a complaint, the watchdog has reached the prima-facie view that is dominant in the relevant market for licensable smart TV device operating systems in India.

In a 24-page order, the (CCI) said that prima-facie mandatory pre-installation of all the applications under TADA amounts to imposition of unfair conditions on the smart TV device manufacturers.

This is contravention of Section 4(2)(a) of the Competition Act, the regulator said, adding that it also "amounts to prima facie leveraging of Google's dominance in Play Store to protect the relevant markets such as online video hosting services offered by YouTube, etc".

The latter contravenes Section 4(2)(e) of the Act and all these aspects warrant a detailed investigation, CCI said in the order dated June 22.

TADA refers to Television App Distribution Agreement (TADA). Section 4 pertains to abuse of dominant position.

A Google spokesperson said, "we are confident that our smart TV licensing practices are in compliance with all applicable competition laws".

"The emerging smart TV sector in India is thriving, due in part to Google's free licensing model and TV competes with numerous well-established TV OSs such as FireOS, Tizen, and WebOS," the spokesperson said in a statement.

Citing submissions made by Google, the regulator said the company enters into two agreements with TV licensees -- TADA and Compatibility Commitment (ACC).

Google makes Android Open Source Project (AOSP) available to any third parties under an open source license but the AOSP license does not grant Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) the right to distribute Google's proprietary apps such as Play Store and YouTube.

Also, the AOSP license does not grant OEMs the right to use the Android logo and other Android related trademarks. In order to obtain those rights, Google requires OEMs to sign an optional, non-exclusive agreement TADA. Further, TADA requires the OEMs to be in compliance with a valid and effective ACC.

The regulator said it was of the prima facie opinion that by making pre-installation of Google's proprietary apps (particularly Play Store) conditional upon signing of ACC for all android devices manufactured/distributed/marketed by device manufacturers, Google has reduced the ability and incentive of device manufacturers to develop and sell devices operating on alternative versions of Android such as Android forks.

"... thereby limited technical or scientific development relating to goods or services to the prejudice of consumers in contravention of Section 4(2)(b) of the (Competition) Act.

"Further, ACC prevents OEMs from manufacturing/distributing/ selling any other device which operates on a competing forked Android operating system," it noted.

The regulator has also mentioned about Google's submissions wherein the company has asserted that licensing of Android operating system is not conditional upon signing of either of the two agreements -- TADA and ACC are optional.

"In this regard, the Commission is of the prima facie opinion that Google's app store, i.e. Play Store is prima facie noted as a 'must have' app, in the absence of which the marketability of Android devices may get restricted. Since, the license to pre-install Play Store is dependent on execution of TADA and ACC between Google and OEMs, therefore, these agreements become de facto compulsory," the order 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.)
New Delhi [India], June 23 (ANI/BusinessWire India): Godfrey Phillips India bags the coveted title of Best Companies to Work For 2021. Participating for the third year, Godfrey Phillips India received a ranking of 28th this year.

The recognition by Great Places to Work (GPTW), that ranks companies worldwide on outstanding people practices and workplace cultures, is a validation of the dynamic culture of Godfrey Phillips that stands on the pillars of respect, transparency, collaboration, empowerment and passion for winning.

Godfrey Phillips takes pride in its 'People First' philosophy that lies at the core of all business decisions. This fundamental value served the Company well through the two waves of pandemic and lockdowns as the Company emerged with not only with all its employees secure but achieved great business results.

The GPTW ranking validates the forward thinking best practices that the Company has advocated and established over many years; which include the Bottom Up approach that nurtures empowerment at all level, allows risk taking and learning from failures, encourages training, upskilling and development programs. Company is also recognized for a host of admirable benefits that include a much appreciated medical support for employees and their families.

The pandemic allowed the Company to enjoy the fruits of the effort as employees exhibited high engagement and innovative solution orientation that reflects in business results. Godfrey Phillips also propagates consistent communication with emphasis on emotional connect with employees.

Dr. Bina Modi, President & Managing Director of Godfrey Phillips India shared her delight at the news. "The biggest test of humanity has been the pandemic. I believe that an intrinsic human strength emerges in a crisis that is almost superhuman. We strove to harness that strength, that power. It was this strength that helped us override the business challenges. We left no stone unturned to ensure humanity, empathy, security and care for our employees and they reciprocated with positivity. Best Companies to Work For recognition is a rewarding validation of our value system - a company that has our employees at the core of our all business decisions."

Bhisham Wadhera, CEO, Godfrey Phillips India Limited, shared "I have always called myself the Chief Empowerment Officer. Our philosophy of 'People First' is a value that is driven down right from our promoters to leadership to the last mile. We constantly endeavor to listen, to trust, to connect, to provide autonomy and encourage learning from failures; I believe these practices have helped us overcome the biggest challenge of the century. Being recognized by GPTW year on year encourages us to stay firm on our fundamentals."

Sharad Aggarwal, COO, Godfrey Phillips, commented "The recognition is a validation of our substantial efforts on a culture that is supportive, empathetic and empowering. We are proud to be 'OneGPI' - a term coined by our own employees and what truly reflects who we are; a strong and unified family. The pandemic tested all organizations and I believe we came out victorious as our focus on safety, empathy and support of employees resonated with every individual. We set high benchmarks for ourselves year on year and we take pride in reaching them."

Rajesh Mehrotra, CHRO, Godfrey Phillips India Limited, said, "Receiving the Best Companies to Work for recognition third year in a row is truly an honour. Strong cultures are tested best during a crisis and we are proud that we not only emerged relatively unscathed but also proved that we are united in our purpose. We credit this to our consistent effort at ensuring emotional and physical security and encouraging ownership through empowerment. We saw our people focussed, engaged and strong through the worst of the times because they knew we had their back. We are proud to be that kind of organisation, a family you can depend on."

Great Place to Work is the global authority in creating, assessing and identifying the Best Workplaces world over. Every year, more than 10,000 organizations from over 60 countries partner with Great Place to Work Institute for assessment, benchmarking and planning actions to strengthen their workplace culture.

In India, more than 850 organizations applied to Great Place to Work Institute to undertake the assessment this year. Every year, Great Place to Work appreciates and applauds the effort of 100 Best organizations that have created and sustained a great workplace culture. India's Best Companies to Work For is the most prestigious and the most credible employer brand recognition in the country.

This story is provided by BusinessWire India. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/BusinessWire India)

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New Delhi, (Delhi), [India], June 23 (ANI/NewsVoir): SRAM & MRAM Group, a leading conglomerate, along with ATD Group instrumental in contributing to the society for the welfare and development have set up the second oxygen plant in Nawalgarh town in Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan, after installing its first plant in Kuchaman (Rajasthan), earlier in this month. Together the group has committed to building a robust health infrastructure in the state as well as other states.

Amidst the COVID outbreak, the district witnessed its first oxygen plant for better healthcare treatment. Nawalgarh administration along with their partners has been working on providing better healthcare facilities to the resident of the area. The state government has been actively working to facilitate hospitals with oxygen ICU beds for adults and kids. Furthermore, the state continues to add better healthcare facilities by providing oxygen plants in the state, which will empower the hospitals and residents for any further healthcare crisis.

Dedicated to supporting India with the maximum contribution, SRAM & MRAM along with ATD Group is committed to bringing in 1 million oxygen concentrators and 40 generators to help India fight the contagious virus. The group has been working actively to set up 60 plants in India, and now along with ATD Group, the company has successfully installed its second plant at Nawalgarh (in Jhunjhunu district), which will be operational by this week.

Speaking on the progress, Vandana Rao, SRAM & MRAM Group quoted, "We are very happy to announce the installation of a second oxygen plant in Nawalgarh (Jhunjhunu District, Rajasthan). We are committed to supporting India along with ATD Group by setting up all the 60 oxygen plants in the stipulated timeline. Also, our second oxygen plant has been set up and will be operational by this week. We are thankful to the Rajasthan Government for its constant support and our team which has been working around the clock to support the country fight with the pandemic."

The group is actively working on installing further plants all across the different cities of Rajasthan as per the state mandate. The group is actively in touch with the state governments to fight the current crisis or any upcoming challenges. The company has been adhering to its committed timelines to set up all the 60 plants by July 2021.

Commenting on the development, Shailesh Anandani, ATD Group said, "We are delighted to announce our successful installation of the second oxygen generator plant in Nawalgarh. With our committed team and support of the state government, we are dedicated to build strong health infrastructure and support the nation with employment during the time of crisis."

SRAM & MRAM Group is a United Kingdom-based conglomerate, founded in 1995. Today the group is the world's leading public health emergency management solutions company.

Headquartered in the United Kingdom, the brand has offices in Cambodia, South Africa, Indonesia, Malaysia, Bahrain, Georgia, India & Bangladesh. The company's core strengths lie in Agro-products and Information Technology, with footprints spread across multifarious services, verticals and operations viz., Neural Networks, Artificial Intelligence, Hedge Fund Management, FOREX Management, Hospitality Services & Solutions, Information Technology, Media & Publishing, Embedded Systems and Infrastructure. The brand also owns a chain of exclusive luxury hotels and resorts in Cambodia and Malaysia.

For more information on SRAM & MRAM Group, kindly visit: srammram.com.

Walletz4u is a flagship brand owned by SRAM & MRAM Group, manufacturer of their flagship 'Medical Protection Supply' products for consumers across the globe.

For more information on Walletz4u, kindly visit the website: www.walletz4u.com.

Established in 2002, ATD Group has been excelling in the area of IT and Telecom industries. Since its inception, the group has diversified into varied verticals like Investment and Finance, Telecom, BPO, OFC, protection and safety supply for COVID-19, Supply, and installation of Oxygen Generator Plants and others.

The group has been working closely with the Government of India, supporting the 'Make in India' initiative by bringing in safe products like - Sanitiser Foot Stand, Hand Sanitiser Stand, Wall Mount Elbow Pedal Sanitiser Stand, Automatic Sanitiser Table Top & Wall Mount, Foot Sanitizing Automatic Machine, Sanitising Foot Mat, Disinfectant Spray with Trolley, Sanitiser Panel, Sanitiser tunnel, Manual Dual Pedal Hand Wash Station, Forehead Infrared Thermometer, Oximeter, PPE Kit, Disposable Apron, 3 Ply Surgical Mask with Meltbown Filter & Nose Pin, N95 Mask, Cloth Mask, Face Shield, Counter Shield. The company has been actively working at supporting India to fight the deadly pandemic and recover the economy with its best service.

For more information, kindly visit: alltimedata.com and atdgroup.in.

This story is provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/NewsVoir)

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The $46 billion Aditya Birla Group has no plans to acquire companies with global supply chain in future as Covid-19 pandemic has changed the dynamics of doing business amid growing protectionism, says chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla.

During the Qatar Economic Forum, the 54-year-old businessman said a reset has happened as the world is faced with the worst pandemic and countries resort to protectionism.

"We wouldn't look at a company or a business where you source in one corner of the world and sell in another corner of the world," Birla told Bloomberg.

The Birla conglomerate has acquired around 40 companies in the past 25 years but the group has changed its strategy now. It wants to focus on creating regional strongholds to avoid uncertainty in the increasingly divided world.

Also read: Indian economy normalising after Q1 slump; growth potential intact: Kumar Mangalam Birla

Birla said that even cross-border mergers and acquisitions have a "strong element of regionalisation".

China's rapid rise in the world economic order and the pandemic have exposed vulnerabilities in the global supply chain. This has triggered all economic superpowers to make changes in their macroeconomic policies. This has also created problems for multinational conglomerates and they have to adapt to the new normal.

Birla said all companies are formulating different policies as they plan to create regional champions. The business giant believes companies need a "sharp dimension of regionalisation" even to realise global dreams.

Also read: Vodafone Idea crisis: 'Will shut shop if we don't get relief,' says Kumar Mangalam Birla

That is why, Birla thinks, his conglomerate is looking at "regionalism" as a very big theme.

He said the Birla group wants to pivot towards creating a global business house rooted in local economics. The one that believes in creating "regional hubs, regional presence, regional employment, and catering to regional demand".

Also read: The Defenders
Norwegian pension fund KLP is divesting from Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Limited on the grounds the company's links with the Myanmar military breach the fund's responsible investment policy, KLP told Reuters on Tuesday. Adani Ports, India's largest port operator, has been under scrutiny from international investors over its project to build a container terminal in the city of Yangon on land leased from a Myanmar military-owned conglomerate.

A military coup in Myanmar on Feb. 1 and an ensuing crackdown on mass protests in which hundreds have been killed has drawn international condemnation and sanctions on military figures and military-controlled entities. "Adani's operations in Myanmar and its business partnership with that country's armed forces constitutes an unacceptable risk of contributing to the violation of KLP's guidelines for responsible investment," KLP said in a statement to Reuters.

A spokesperson for the Myanmar military did not answer calls from Reuters seeking comment. KLP, Norway's largest pension fund, had an investment worth nine million crowns ($1.05 million) in Adani Ports at the time of its decision, it told Reuters.

It was divesting because the container terminal is being built on land owned by the Myanmar military and that there is an "imminent danger" the armed forces could use the port to import weapons and equipment, or as a naval base. "In this way, the port could be used by the army to continue its violations of human rights," KLP said.

Adani Ports was not immediately available for comment. Adani Ports said in May it could abandon the Myanmar container terminal project and write down the investment if it was found to be in violation of sanctions imposed by the United States.

KLP said it had been in a dialogue with Adani Ports since March this year and held a meeting with the company's management in April. Adani told KLP "it takes human rights seriously, and that it has a human rights policy", KLP said in its statement.

At the same time, "Adani said it had made no due diligence assessments relating to human rights before the agreement it concluded with the Myanmar military", KLP said.

Also read: Chinese port faces COVID-19 outbreak; global shipments suffer delay
Tata Motors has confirmed that Guenter Butschek will step down from his role as chief executive and managing director from June 30. The auto giant has appointed Girish Wagh, president-commercial vehicles, as the executive director to the board of Tata Motors from July 1.

He will continue as a consultant to the company till the end of this fiscal year. Butschek had earlier expressed his desire to relocate to Germany at the end of the contract for personal reasons. Chairman of Tata Sons, N Chandrasekaran said Butschek created a strong foundation for Tata Motors' future.

"I would like to thank Guenter for leading Tata Motors successfully over the last 5 years and creating a strong foundation for the future. I look forward to his continued inputs as a consultant to the company," he said.

Also read: Tata Motors in talks to raise capital for electric vehicle business

Guenter Butschek said leading Tata Motors over the last five years was an "exciting experience". "The business fundamentals are stronger, and we are well-positioned to leverage the opportunities in both commercial and passenger vehicles. I look forward to my continued association with the company as a consultant in the coming months," he said.

The company said Tata Motors' domestic business has successfully transitioned to a "business unit" structure with the commercial vehicles division headed by Girish Wagh and the passenger vehicle division headed by Shailesh Chandra".

Girish Wagh, Shailesh Chandra, President-Passenger Vehicles, and Thierry Bollore, CEO-Jaguar Land Rover, will continue to work closely with Chandrasekaran. "The executive committee is an experienced leadership team that has been successfully scripting the turnaround of the company and will continue to drive the business," the company added.

In March, Tata Motors had said Marc Llistosella, who was to join Tata Motors as its CEO & Managing Director from July 1, won't be joining Tata Motors since he is not able to relocate to India for personal reasons. Llistosella is the former President and CEO of Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation and Head of Daimler Trucks in Asia.

Also read: Tata Motors says CEO-designate Marc Llistosella will not join company
Bitcoin that has been witnessing a slide for the past few days eventually dropped below $30,000 on Tuesday evening. The cryptocurrency had not fallen below $30,000 since January. However, all's not lost for investors as the cryptocurrency rebounded on Wednesday. According to CoinMarketCap index, Bitcoin recovered 3.44 per cent to $33,833.81 today morning.

Ethereum also recovered 1.77 per cent to $1,997.91 and Tether recovered 0.04 per cent.

Such fluctuation is in line with the crypto's trading history. It started trading around $29,000 in January after witnessing a four-fold increase since 2020. It hit its peak of $65,000 in April but has since lost more than 50 per cent.

Sean Rooney, head of research at crypto asset manager Valkyrie Investments told Bloomberg that such trading indicates that Bitcoin traders could find themselves in choppy waters for weeks to come.

The cryptocurrency had breached $30,000 during at least five separate instances this year before Tuesday but had recovered each time to trade above that level.

This dip can be credited to concerns about its energy use that was put on focus by Elon Musk. China's crackdown on Bitcoin mining has also pushed it low in recent weeks. The People's Bank of China summoned officials from its biggest banks as well as AliPay on Monday to reiterate its ban on cryptocurrency services.

Beijing is aiming to reach peak output of greenhouse gas by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. Due to concerns about its environmental impact, Bitcoin mining has come under the Chinese government's lens. Long hours of running computers to produce Bitcoin is detrimental to the environment, experts have pointed out.

Also read: Bitcoin continues to tumble, falls below $30,000

Also read: Bitcoin tumble continues; nears $30,000
The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved the merger of Central Railside Warehouse Company Ltd (CRWC) with its holding enterprise Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC).

The merger will unify similar functions of both the companies, like warehousing, handling and transportation, through a single administration to promote efficiency, optimum capacity utilisation, transparency, accountability, ensure financial savings and leverage railway siding for new warehousing capacities.

The decision to merge and transfer all assets, liabilities, rights and obligations of CRWC with CWC is another step towards the Prime Minister's call for 'Minimum Government Maximum Governance', promoting ease of doing business and bringing private sector efficiencies in public sector undertakings (PSUs), the government said in a release.

"It is estimated that management expenditure of railside warehouse complexes (RWCs) will come down by Rs 5 crore due to savings in the corporate office rent, salary of employees, and other administrative costs. The capacity utilisation of RWCs will also improve as there will be potential for CWC to store commodities other than commodities of cement, fertiliser, sugar, salt and soda being stored presently," the release said.

The merger will facilitate setting up of at least 50 more railside warehouses near goods-shed locations, which is likely to generate employment opportunities equivalent to 36,500 man days for skilled workers and 9,12,500 man days for unskilled workers. The merger is expected to be completed within 8 months.

Also read: ED transfers Rs 9,371 cr -- 41% of fraud -- by Mallya, Modi, Choksi to PSBs, govt

CWC, a profit making PSU, had formed separate subsidiary company CRWC on July 10, 2007 to plan, develop, promote, acquire and operate RWCs, terminals and multimodal logistics hubs on land leased from Indian Railways or acquired otherwise.

CRWC has 50 employees and a staff of 48 outsourced personnel. Currently, it is operating 20 railside warehouses across the country. As on March 31, 2020, its net worth stood at Rs 137.94 crore.

"CRWC developed specialisation, expertise and goodwill in development and operation of RWCs, but due to shortage of capital and also due to some of the restrictive clauses in its MoU with Ministry of Railways, its pace of growth was not as expected," the government said.

As CWC is the sole shareholder of CRWC and all the assets, liabilities, rights and obligations will be transferred to CWC, there will be no financial loss to either, and the merger will bring synergy. A separate division with the name 'RWC Division' will be created by CWC for handling operations and marketing of RWCs, the release said.

Also read: Wealth of India's super-rich dipped 4.4% to $12.83 trillion in 2020: Credit Suisse
The Enforcement Directorate has transferred Rs 9,371 crore out of the total assets worth Rs 18,170 crore seized from Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi to various public sector banks as well as the central government. Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi's defrauding have resulted in total loss of Rs 22,585.83 crore to banks.

The assets were seized under Prevention of Money Laundering Act

In a tweet a short while back, ED said that the amount attached/seized from the trio is 80% of the total losses to the banks.

"ED not only attached/seized assets worth of Rs 18,170.02 crore (80.45% of total loss to banks) in case of Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi under the PMLA but also transferred a part of attached/ seized assets of Rs 9,371.17 crore to PSBs and Central Government," said the tweet.

ED not only attached/ seized assets worth of Rs. 18,170.02 crore (80.45% of total loss to banks) in case of Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi under the PMLA but also transferred a part of attached/ seized assets of Rs. 9371.17 Crore to the PSBs and

Central Government. ED (@dir_ed) June 23, 2021 "Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi have defrauded PSBs by siphoning off the funds through their companies which resulted in total loss of Rs 22,585.83 crore to the banks," ED said in a release today, which means that 41 per cent of the assets have been transferred to PSBs and government. "As a sequel to FIR by CBI, the ED has unearthed a myriad web of domestic and international transactions and stashing of assets abroad. Investigation has also irrevocably proved that these three accused persons used dummy entities controlled by them for rotation and siphoning off the funds provided by the banks," the ED release said. Fugitives & economic offenders will be actively pursued; their properties attached & dues recovered.#PSBs have already recovered 1357 Cr by selling such shares.

A total of 9041.5 Cr shall be realised by banks through sale of such attached assets.https://t.co/e6F7n8drdl https://t.co/Jw96WlfjHX Nirmala Sitharaman (@nsitharaman) June 23, 2021

The ED has also taken immediate steps to attach/seize assets worth Rs 18,170.02 crore which included assets worth of Rs 969 crore located in foreign countries, it added.

"The investigation by the ED has proved that substantial part of these assets were held in the names of dummy entities/trusts/third persons/ relatives of these accused and these entities were proxy of these accused to hold these assets," ED said.

Prosecution Complaints have been filed against all the three accused after completion of PMLA investigation. Extradition requests have been sent for these persons to the UK and Antigua and Barbuda.

Also read: Mehul Choksi arrested in Dominica; to be handed over to Antigua Police

Also read: Mehul Choksi's 'friend' Barbara Jabarica says he 'flirted' with her, gave fake diamond ring
Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne has said he is not aware of "any conclusive evidence" but there is information in public domain that diamantaire Mehul Choksi was abducted and law enforcement agencies may be having some "persons of interest" after their research.

Choksi, wanted in Rs 13,500 crore bank fraud case in India, had mysteriously gone missing on May 23 from Antigua and Barbuda where he has been staying since 2018 as a citizen.

Browne was responding to questions of opposition MP in the Parliament there who asked him whether the Scotland Yard or any other investigative body found any evidence that Choksi was taken to Dominica by "involuntary means".

"Mr Speaker, I am not aware of evidence but this information is in public domain that Mehul Choksi was abducted. And, I am aware that law enforcement here would have done some research and perhaps may have some individuals of interest but as far as evidence is concerned I am not aware that there is any such conclusive evidence," Browne said, according to a clip of Parliamentary proceedings shared by media outlet Antigua News Room.

He also replied in the negative when asked if the Scotland Yard or any other agency has contacted his government about the alleged abduction of Choksi.

Choksi was detained in neighbouring island country of Dominica for illegal entry after a possible romantic escapade with his rumoured girlfriend.

His lawyers alleged that he was abducted from Jolly Harbour in Antigua on May 23 by policemen looking like Antiguan and Indian and brought to Dominica on a boat.

Legal team of fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi in London had approached the Metropolitan Police under the "universal jurisdiction" provision to investigate his alleged kidnapping from Antigua and Barbuda to neighbouring Dominica.

His lawyer Michael Polak had said Choksi was removed from Antigua and Barbuda, where as a citizen he enjoys rights to approach the British Privy Council as last resort in cases on his citizenship and extradition, to Dominica where these rights are not available to him.

Also read: Finance Minister asks Infosys to fix issues with new income tax e-filing portal on priority
Tata Motors is in talks with investors, including private equity funds, to raise capital for its electric vehicle business as the Tata Group company works to build a range of affordable electric cars.

In March this year, the company had received shareholders' approval for its plan to subsidiarise its passenger vehicles, including electric vehicles, business into a separate subsidiary through a scheme of arrangement.

While announcing the plan last year, Tata Motors had said it would seek a strategic partnership to help the unit secure its long-term viability.

Also read: Moody's slashes India 2021 growth forecast to 9.6% from 13.9%

"Discussions are open for a strategic partner or financial investors for the passenger vehicle business and the electric vehicle space is seen as a strong growth engine. Plans are open-ended currently in terms of likely partnerships," the Economic Times quoted a company source as saying.

Talks with investors are at an early stage and may not result in a deal, the publication said quoting company officials.

Tata Motors will need approval from the National Company Law Tribunal to subsidiarise its passenger vehicles business and is hoping to complete the process by September this year, it said.

The company's consolidated net loss widened to Rs 13,395 crore in financial year 2020-21 from Rs 11,975 crore in FY20.

Also read: Cabinet approves merger of CRWC with holding company Central Warehousing Corporation
The United States will likely fail to meet President Joe Biden's goal to deliver at least one COVID-19 vaccine to 70% of adults by July 4, officials said on Tuesday and warned the Delta variant first found in India poses the greatest threat to US eradication efforts. They said the administration is poised to meet the target for adults 27 and older on July 4, US Independence Day, but will fall short of Biden's goal for adults 18 and older.

"Our focus from the beginning has been continuing to redouble our efforts among demographics and groups where we need extra assistance," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said. White House COVID-19 senior adviser Jeffrey Zients said it would likely take a few weeks beyond July 4 to meet Biden's target. "The country has more work to do... particularly with 18- to 26-year-olds," Zients told reporters.

"The reality is many younger Americans have felt like COVID-19 is not something that impacts them, and they've been less eager to get the shot." The Delta variant is the greatest threat to the effort to eradicate COVID-19 within US borders, US infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci said during a call with reporters.

Fauci said existing vaccines were effective against the new variant, which is more transmissible than the original variant. "We have the tools, so let's use them and crush the outbreak," Fauci said. The United States already has vaccinated 70% of adults age 30 and older, Zients said. Fifteen of the 50 states and Washington, D.C., have delivered at least one shot to 70% of adults 18 and older.

The rate of US vaccinations has increased by less than one percentage point over the past two weeks and would have to more than double over the next two weeks for the United States to hit Biden's target. Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and other top officials have deployed a campaign-style push encouraging more Americans to get shots in order to protect public health as well as reopen the economy and return the country to a path of normalcy.

Racial imbalances in vaccination rates, the Delta variant and the challenge of convincing young American adults they should protect themselves with the vaccine remain roadblocks.

Also read: US announces plan to allocate 5.5 cr COVID-19 vaccine doses to India, other nations
Measles vaccine is 87.5 per cent effective against coronavirus in children and can provide long-term protection against the virus, as per a study.

Children immunised with measles vaccine are less likely to show severe COVID-19 symptoms on getting infected by the virus as compared to those without any such prior vaccination, the study by Pune-based BJ Medical College found.

The study, published in peer-reviewed journal Human Vaccines and Immunotherapeutics, comes at a time when there are some concerns that the third wave of COVID-19 can affect children.

The study was conducted on 548 children in 1-17 years age group, who were divided into two groups -- those who had tested positive for COVID-19 and others who were negative.

"Measles Containing Vaccines (MCVs) reduced incidence of laboratory confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection in children. Number of symptomatic cases were also lower in the vaccinated group compared to the unvaccinated group," the study said, adding that age and sex did not influence the protection offered.

"This is the world's first such study. We focused on MMR (measles-mumps-rubella) vaccines for the study since the amino acid sequence of SARS-CoV-2 is nearly 30 per cent similar to that of rubella virus. The spike (S) protein of SARS-CoV-2 is also similar to the hemagglutinin protein of the measles virus. That is why we did the study and the results are promising," Dr Nilesh Gujar, who is the lead investigator of the study, told India Today.

The MMR vaccine may also help prevent cytokine storms, a condition in which body starts to attack its cells and tissue rather than confronting the virus, in children infected with COVID-19, Gujar added.

The researchers of the study called for more trials to confirm their findings.

So far, no COVID-19 vaccine had been approved for those below 18 years of age in India. Last month, the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) had granted permission to Bharat Biotech for carrying out phase-II and phase-III trials of its COVID-19 vaccine Covaxin in children of 2-18 years age group.

(Edited by Purnima Priyadarsini)

Also Read: 3 out of 5 people receiving free COVID-19 vaccine from rural areas, says VP
Sensex and Nifty were set to open higher today as Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange traded 51 points higher at 15,821. On Tuesday, Sensex settled 14.25 points higher at 52,588 amid profit booking. Nifty rose 26.25 points to end at 15,772.

Here's a look at stocks that are likely to remain in news today.

Hero MotoCorp: The auto firm will hike the prices of its motorcycles and scooters by up to Rs 3,000 from July 1, 2021. The prices have been increased due to rising commodity prices.

Jet Airways: The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has approved the resolution plan provided by the Kalrock-Jalan consortium for Jet Airways. The two-member bench approached the plan with riders.

IDBI Bank: The government has invited proposals to appoint legal and transacation advisors for strategic stake sale in the lender , boosting efforts to meet its ambitious Rs 1.75 trillion disinvestment target for this fiscal year.

Infosys: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met with Infosys representatives to review technical issues that plague the new income tax e-filing portal. Sitharaman has asked Infosys to address all issues without further loss of time. The new income tax portal e-filing portal had gone live on June 7, 2021.

HDFC Bank: Private sector lender HDFC Bank announced that it would hire 500 people over the next two years as part of a special project to improve its IT infrastructure.

Pfizer Ltd: Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said the US-based drug maker is final stages to sign an agreement with Indian government to supply COVID-19 vaccines.
Airtel chairman Sunil Mittal has said that it would be tragic if India ends up having only two telecom operators. He further noted that a country as big as India should have at least three private sector players. Mittal also said that it is important for companies to get into new businesses and said that companies that previously said will not disappear "have gone off the face of the business charts for not staying relevant." Mittal's comments come at a time when telecom company Vodafone Idea or Vi is trying to find investors and looks at improving its financial position in the market.

"We are already down to 2.5 operators from 12 earlier, and if India goes down to just two operators, that will be tragic as the country being a very large one deserves to have three private sector players, and I hope we end up with that situation," ET Telecom quoted Mittal who spoke at the Qatar Economic Forum on Tuesday.

Mittal said that Airtel's position was getting stronger in the market and that the telco had gained market share and had also bolstered its position in Africa. He also noted that the company's OneWeb's upcoming satellite broadband operations would be "a game-changer, and would complement" Airtel's growth ambitions. He also noted that OneWeb, which is putting up a low-earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellation as part of its global space internet initiative, would complement Airtel's growth ambitions by helping it connect people via satellites in remote and rural regions, who were beyond reach.

Mittal noted that half the world was still offline highlighting the problems faced by the population in remote areas. He noted that he had never seen a technology like LEO satcoms) that's on the cutting edge to serve remote and rural communication needs.

"We have taken a very big bold bet with OneWeb, which will be one of the first two (global) LEO constellations in space serving every square inch of the worldit will also complement Airtel's ambitions as it helps us serve areas that we couldn't have imagined going to before, be it deserts, mountains, jungles, anywhere," Mittal said. OneWeb, backed by the Bharti Group and the UK government, is slated to roll out satellite internet services in India from June 2022.
The 44th Reliance AGM will take place on Thursday. We expect to see a couple of big announcements from the telecom giant at the event. The most important of all being the timeline for the rollout of 5G services in the country. A few telecom players, including Jio, have got permission from DoT (Department of Telecommunications) to test 5G in India.

Jio has launched a new phone but it doesn't seem to have 5G. JioPhone Next is the company's first smartphone.

Recently, Jio opened its 5G field testing in Mumbai. Reports suggest that hardware being used for Mumbai trials is developed in-house. The trials will soon expand to other cities, making us believe that the announcement will likely happen tomorrow.

Moreover, Intel also opened up about its partnership with Jio to develop 5G networking technology. It will be interesting to see how this collaboration benefits the rollout of 5G services in India. For now, let's talk about Jio 5G in detail.

Jio 5G: What we know so far

--Jio has been the pioneer of 4G services in India. And we wouldn't be surprised if the brand takes the lead even with the country's rollout of 5G services. In December, Reliance head revealed that 5G services would roll out mid-2021, which perfectly coincides with Reliance AGM 2021.

--In addition to that, Jio has also begun 5G trials in Mumbai. A report published by Qualcomm says that Jio 5G was able to achieve a speed of 1Gbps during the trials using indigenous technology. Now that's similar to what Airtel achieved in its 5G test conducted in the Cyber Hub area in Gurgaon.

Jio 5G representation in the 43rd AGM 2020

--Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has allowed telecom operators to use 700MHz, 3.5GHz, and 26GHz spectrums for the 5G trials. Jio used a mix of mid (sub-6GHz) and mmWave trial spectrum for the field test in Mumbai.

--The telecom giant mentioned that it created a complete 5G solution in-house from scratch. Also, it is committed to relying on home-grown hardware and solutions for this purpose solely.

--From what we have learnt, Reliance will also be deploying sub-6Hz and mmWave networks in India. Both of which have their benefits, While the sub-6GHz network offers a longer range, the mmWave provides faster internet speeds at the cost of a shorter range.

--Reliance Jio is also tipped to test 5Gi in India, a technology that is developed co-jointly by IIT Madras and IIT Hyderabad. Besides this, the brand has been developing Virtualised Radio Access Network (RAN) in collaboration with Qualcomm to improve the pace of the 5G rollout in India.

--Jio rolled out the 4G service at really affordable pricing in the country, which is also one of the reasons for its widespread reach in India. Now that the announcement of Jio 5G is on the cards, we expect the telecom giant to follow the same suit. That said, it will not be as cheap as the 4G service, considering the hardware and infrastructure required for it.

--While Airtel has also been testing 5G services in India, It's Jio that has been tipped to roll out 5G services first in the country. Along with Jio 5G, the telecom operator is expected to launch the affordable Jio Phone 5G and JioBook during the event tomorrow.

--Folks interested in watching the event live can tune in to the Jio YouTube channel at 2 PM IST.
Realme has started rolling out Android 11 to Realme Narzo 30 Pro 5G, Realme Narzo 30A, and the Realme 5 Pro in India. The Android 11 software, however, is available through the Early Access Programme, which is Realme's way of testing the new Android version in beta before the wider release. With Android 11, the three phones will get new features, such as enhanced dark mode, chat bubbles, and a rich power menu. The device's security will also become more robust with the Android 11 update. Realme phones run Realme UI on top, so that is going to be there.

The Android 11 rollout under the Early Access Program is in line with the roadmap that Realme shared last year, but updated in March to accommodate the new smartphones. Since the Narzo 30 Pro 5G and Narzo 30A are new phones, it is good news for their users that they will be able to use Android 11 soon. The Realme 5 Pro, however, is a pretty old phone, so the fact that it is getting Android 11 is itself a respite to their users. Realme's roadmap for Android 11 rollout does include several old phones, and that is a good thing on the company's part, which, unlike others, is not abandoning them.

To sign up for the Early Access Program, you will need to fill out a Google form that is available on the Realme website. On registering yourself with that form, your account and device will become eligible to receive the update. However, it is going to be limited to a few slots, which is why not everyone can join the programme initially. And after you become eligible, there are a few guidelines for getting the update, such as at least 60 per cent battery on the phone. Since the software will be available through the beta programme, you are likely to see bugs and face issues when using the phone. And that is why it is recommended you do not install the Realme UI 2.0 on your daily driver.

In other news, Realme is holding an event on June 24 in India to launch the new Narzo 30 4G, Narzo 30 5G, Buds Q2, and 32-inch Smart TV. The first three products are already available elsewhere: the Narzo 30 4G arrived in Malaysia, the Narzo 30 5G debuted in Europe, and the Buds Q2 were launched in Pakistan previously. The Buds Q2 that Realme is launching in India tomorrow, however, are not the same earbuds that sell in Pakistan. Because the Indian version will have active noise cancellation, the Realme Buds Q2 earbuds look like the rebranded Buds 2 Neo that arrived in Malaysia earlier this year.
New data published today by LinkedIn has revealed the impact of Covid-19 on graduates in 2020, with the pandemic severely impacting their likelihood of employment, with a -38% year-over-year drop in hiring July last year based on the LinkedIn Hiring Rate.

The outlook for 2021 graduates, however, is more positive as a recovery in the graduate jobs market is evident. By November, hiring for the 2020 cohort was actually 6.1% higher than for the 2019 cohort in the previous November.



While Covid-19 restrictions may have begun to unwind, the impact on Irish work life is evident with a tenfold increase in remote working positions available. Remote jobs accounted for 9.2% of all graduate level positions advertised between January - March 2021, up from 0.9% during the same period last year. While this reflects a changed way of working, LinkedIn says it also poses unique challenges for employers to ensure that they maintain their company culture and provide good experiences to graduates who may not physically meet colleagues when they take up their new roles.



Linkedin say the rebound in recruitment is reflective of Irelands pandemic recovery with momentum behind certain sectors like the tech industry continuing and a spike in demand in healthcare related areas. The most in-demand positions are reflective of an economy on the rebound and a tech sector that continues to boom. The most popular role advertised in the first three months of 2021 was for Software Engineers. The demand for remote working opportunities is particularly evident in the tech sector, with 19.8% of all the Software Engineer roles available to graduates offering a remote work option.

Commenting on the graduate jobs data, Head of LinkedIn Ireland, Sharon McCooey said, "Irelands graduating class of 2021 is entering a jobs market that has been fundamentally impacted by Covid-19, with young professionals bearing the brunt more than any other demographic. Despite this there are signs for optimism, with the hiring rate for the class of 2020 recovering to pre-pandemic levels last November, which bodes well for this years graduates. Graduates are entering a jobs market which has drastically changed during the pandemic, with certain sectors such as hospitality and travel still feeling the effects, while others like the technology and healthcare industries going from strength-to-strength."

She added, "Our data highlights the increased demand for digital skills, but also reflects a changed way of working as more positions with remote working opportunities available. This represents a unique challenge to employers to ensure that their onboarding process is as seamless for colleagues working remotely, as it is for colleagues who return to the office."

Source: www.businessworld.ie
Pictured is a conceptual illustration of the "Shay Showcase" project being undertaken by the Cadillac Area Chamber of Commerce Leadership Class.
Construction of the new Workers Stadium began last year, with the aim of creating a world-class soccer venue and restoring the Beijing landmark to its original appearance from the 1950s. The home of the Beijing Guoan soccer team has hosted a number of key events over its history and has been renovated three times since the 1990s

Jul 02, 2021 07:44 PM
Dakota graduated from Bret Harte in 2013 and went to Davidson College, NC where she earned a bachelor's degree in Arab studies. After spending time studying in the Middle East and Europe, she is happy to be home, writing about the community she loves.

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Colored areas on this map show where federal officials are looking at offshore wind energy projects or have issued leases for them already. (National Renewable Energy Laboratory graphic)
A gray fox is caught on camera in the wild in North Carolina in this undated photo. (Mark Buckler photo)
Margaret Myrick-Station, assists 87-year-old Hattie Staton with curbside voting at the Edgecombe County Administration Building in Tarboro in November 2018. Calvin Adkins / Carolina Public Press
Fun for the whole family as seen at last year's Classic Car Show at the Aviation Museum of N.H. This year's show is Sat., July 17, from 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.; admission is $10.00 per vehicle entry plus occupants; general public is $5.00 per person, children 12 and under free. Proceeds benefit the Aviation Museum.
Boulder - Barbara Ann Keirana, of Boulder, Colo., passed away on May 12, 2021. She was 87 years old. An out of state celebration of her life will be held at a future date. Barbara's final resting place will be with her husband, Alan Keiran, at Ft. Logan Naional Cemetery in Denver. Howe Mortu
Leading South African studio Triggerfish on Wednesday announced a call for entries for a pan-African Story Artist Lab. The program is sponsored by Netflix.

Triggerfish has enjoyed terrific success with its earlier story lab programs. Malenga Mulendema, a Zambian writer who participated in the 2015 edition, developed her project Mama Ks Super 4 in the lab, and it is now being produced by Triggerfish as Netflixs first original African animated series. A subsequent story lab program resulted in a nine-person all-African-women writing team working with head writer Amy Keating Rogers for Mulendemas series.

Unlike the earlier labs which focused on writers, this new lab is aimed at story artists. Story artists translate screenplays into animatics, the loose first version of the movie that then shapes every step of animation that follows, says Tendayi Nyeke, a development executive at Triggerfish. So having skilled story artists from the continent in control of how their stories are told is a gamechanger, not only in grooming the next African directors but also in giving pre-production artists the opportunity to establish their own voice as they bring African stories to life.
Photo: The Canadian Press Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., talks with reporters as the Senate voted on a key test vote on the For the People Act, a sweeping bill that would overhaul the election system and voting rights, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, June 22, 2021. The bill is a top priority for Democrats seeking to ensure access to the polls and mail in ballots, but it is opposed by Republicans as a federal overreach. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The Democrats' sweeping attempt to rewrite U.S. election and voting law suffered a major setback in the Senate Tuesday, blocked by a filibuster wall of Republican opposition to what would be the largest overhaul of the electoral system in a generation.

The vote leaves the Democrats with no clear path forward, though President Joe Biden declared, This fight is far from over.

The bill, known as the For the People Act, would touch on virtually every aspect of how elections are conducted, striking down hurdles to voting that advocates view as the Civil Rights fight of the era, while also curbing the influence of money in politics and limiting partisan influence over the drawing of congressional districts.

But many in the GOP say the measure represents instead a breathtaking federal infringement on states authority to conduct their own elections without fraud  and is meant to ultimately benefit Democrats.

It failed on a 50-50 vote after Republicans, some of whom derided the bill as the Screw the People Act, denied Democrats the 60 votes needed to begin debate under Senate rules. Vice President Kamala Harris, the first Black woman to hold her office, presided over the chamber as the bill failed to break past that filibuster barrier.

Biden praised Senate Democrats for standing together against the ongoing assault of voter suppression that represents a Jim Crow era in the 21st Century." In a statement from the White House, he said that in their actions, though unsuccessful on Tuesday, they took the next step forward in this continuous struggle.

The rejection forces Democrats to reckon with what comes next for their top legislative priority in a narrowly divided Senate. They've touted the measure as a powerful counterweight to scores of proposals advancing in GOP-controlled statehouses making it more difficult to vote.

Once again, the Senate Republican minority has launched a partisan blockade of a pressing issue," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said from the chamber floor. He vowed that the vote was the starting gun and not the last time voting rights would be up for debate.

Whatever Democrats decide, they will likely be confronted with the same challenge they faced Tuesday when minority Republicans used the filibuster  the same tool that Democrats employed during Donald Trumps presidency  to block consideration of the bill.

Republicans showed no sign of yielding.

Republican leader Mitch McConnell called the bill a a solution looking for a problem and vowed to put an end to it. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz dismissed it as "partisan legislation, written by elected Democrats, designed to keep elected Democrats in office.

And, more graphically, Sen. Shelley Moore Capito called the bill a despicable, disingenuous attempt to strip states of their constitutional right to administer elections" that "should never come close to reaching the presidents desk.

Pressure has been mounting on Democrats to change Senate rules or watch their priorities languish. A group of moderate Democratic senators, however, including Sens. Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, have ruled that out, denying the votes needed to make a filibuster change.

Biden has vowed what the White House calls the fight of his presidency over ensuring Americans access to voting. But without changes to Senate rules, key planks of his agenda, including the voting bill, appear stalled.

Sen. Raphael Warnock, a Georgia Democrat and senior pastor at the Atlanta church Martin Luther King Jr. once led, called minority Republicans willingness to prevent debate on the voting bill a dereliction of duty.

What could be more hypocritical and cynical than invoking minority rights in the Senate as a pretext for preventing debate about how to preserve minority rights in the society, Warnock said during a floor speech Tuesday.

The changes being enacted in many Republican states are decried by voting rights advocates who argue the restrictions will make it more difficult for people to cast ballots, particularly minority residents who tend to support Democrats. Republicans, cheered on by Trump, talk instead about fighting potential voting fraud and say the Democrats' concerns are wildly overblown.

As the Senate discussion churns, more changes could be coming to the bill.

Democrats want to protect against intimidation at the polls in the aftermath of the 2020 election. They propose enhancing penalties for those who would threaten or intimidate election workers and creating a buffer zone between election workers and poll watchers, among other possible changes.

They also want to limit the ability of state officials to remove local election officials. Georgia Republicans passed a law earlier this year that gives the GOP-dominated Legislature greater influence over a state board that regulates elections and empowers it to remove local election officials deemed to be underperforming.

But Democrats have divisions of their own. Until Tuesday, it wasn't even clear that they would be united on the vote to bring the bill up for debate. Manchin, a moderate from West Virginia, announced earlier this month that he couldn't support the bill because it lacked Republican support.

Manchin flipped his vote to a yes after Democrats agreed to consider his revised version. His proposal was endorsed by former President Barack Obama and called a step forward by Biden's administration.

Manchin has proposed adding provisions for a national voter ID requirement, which is anathema to many Democrats, and dropping a proposed public financing of campaigns.

Those changes did little, however, to garner the bipartisan support Manchin was hoping for. Senate Republicans said they would likely reject any legislation that expands the federal government's role in elections. McConnell dismissed Manchin's version as equally unacceptable.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a moderate Alaska Republican, said some aspects of the Democratic bill were laudable and she supports other voting rights legislation, like a reinstatement of the Voting Rights Act struck down by the Supreme Court in 2013.

But, ultimately, she said the sprawling bill amounted to a one-size-fits-all mandate coming out of Washington D.C. that "in many cases doesnt work.

Months in the making, Tuesdays showdown had taken on fresh urgency as Trump continues to challenge the outcome of the 2020 election and new limits move ahead in Republican-led states.

State officials who certified the results of the 2020 election have dismissed Trumps claims of voter fraud, and judges across the country have thrown out multiple lawsuits filed by Trump and his allies. Trumps own attorney general said there was no evidence of widespread fraud that would change the outcome.
Photo: The Canadian Press

British Columbia's provincial health officer is encouraging anyone who is offered a different COVID-19 vaccine than the one they first received to take it.

Dr. Bonnie Henry said fluctuating vaccine supply means if you received Pfizer-BioNTech, you may be offered Moderna for your second shot, or vice versa.

The two mRNA shots are essentially the same vaccine in a "slightly different package," which is the same antigen wrapped in different lipids, she said.

"We will do our best to make sure that we have both products available at our clinics, but sometimes that simply isn't possible," she said Tuesday, adding that Pfizer shipments are expected to lag behind Moderna in the coming weeks.

"With the millions of doses of vaccines delivered in Canada and across the world, we are confident that both of these mRNA vaccines are safe and effective and can be used interchangeably."

Henry spoke from Prince George, where she met with colleagues at Northern Health and spoke about how to increase vaccination rates.

Accessibility is one of the biggest barriers in rural communities, she said. She encouraged anyone with ideas for community events or gatherings that would be appropriate hosts for pop-up clinics to pitch their suggestions to the health authority.

She said the province is seeing a sustained drop in new cases, hospitalizations and clusters thanks to climbing vaccination rates.

More than one million people have been fully vaccinated in the province, she said. About 77.7 per cent of adults in B.C. and 76.2 per cent of those 12 and older have received their first dose.

British Columbia recorded 56 new infections Tuesday and there were no new deaths.

There were 1,150 active cases, of whom 111 people were in hospital, including 41 in intensive care.

Health Minister Adrian Dix, speaking from Vancouver, said the province has seen a moderate drop in the number of people choosing AstraZeneca for their second dose, following new advice on mixing and matching vaccines from the National Advisory Committee on Immunization.

On June 1, the federal committee had said AstraZeneca recipients "could" get Pfizer or Moderna for their second shot if they wanted, but last Thursday it went further to say an mRNA vaccine was the "preferred" choice.

The committee's guidance is based on the growing supply of mRNA vaccines, evidence that a second dose of an mRNA vaccine produces a stronger immune response and because of the very low but serious risk of vaccine-induced blood clots associated with AstraZeneca.

Before the new guidance, about half of AstraZeneca recipients were opting for a second dose of the same vaccine, or about 6,000 people per day. Over the past four days, that dropped to under 4,000 a day, Dix said.

The B.C. government is not turning down additional doses of AstraZeneca and expects about 10,000 to be delivered this week, alongside about 896,000 shots of Moderna and 327,000 doses of Pfizer.

Henry is not making a recommendation on which vaccine AstraZeneca recipients should receive for their second dose, instead leaving it up to them to make a personal choice.

She said AstraZeneca is also safe and effective, and those opting for a second dose are making a "perfectly valid decision."

The B.C. government once again extended the provincial state of emergency Tuesday that gives officials extraordinary powers under the Emergency Program Act to support the pandemic response. It is in effect through July 6.
Photo: The Canadian Press

The House of Commons is poised to break today for the summer  and possibly for an election  after giving eleventh-hour approval to what the minority Liberal government considers its priority legislation.

But it's far from certain the Senate will be as accommodating.

Three priority bills have landed in the Senate over the past couple of days and a fourth is expected to arrive later today in the upper house, where some senators are balking at the prospect of rushing them through at lightning speed.

The Senate is scheduled to wrap up today as well and it would take unanimous consent to extend the sitting in its current hybrid format, adopted to allow for virtual participation during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Senate committees have already conducted pre-studies of two of the four bills  C-30, the budget implementation bill, and C-12, which would set targets for achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050  so they're likely to make it to a final vote.

But two others  C-6, a bill to ban conversion therapy aimed at altering a person's sexual orientation or gender identity, and C-10, a controversial bill to regulate online streaming giants  would require unanimous consent to fast-track through the Senate, without study by a committee.

Sen. Scott Tannas, leader of the Canadian Senators Group, warned the Senate on Tuesday that his 12-member caucus won't be stampeded into forgoing their duty to give legislation sober second thought.

He recounted an old saying: "Your bad planning is not my emergency."

On behalf of his group, Tannas added, "In the coming days, we will carefully and thoughtfully be applying that principle."

Discussions about extending the Senate sitting were continuing among the leaders of the various Senate groups late Tuesday. But even if they agree to do so, it's not clear they'll sit long enough to wrap up all four priority bills.

Any bill that is not passed by the Senate will die if, as many suspect, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau calls an election this summer.

The Liberals have been scrambling to get the four priority bills through the Commons in the face of Conservative delay tactics.

With the help of the Bloc Quebecois and the NDP, the government won final approval of C-10 in the Commons late Monday night and C-6 on Tuesday. They passed C-12 just after midnight today.

The budget bill is to be put to a final vote this afternoon before being sent along to the Senate.

The government has given up on a number of other bills it once considered a priority, including C-19 which would have given the chief electoral officer temporary new powers meant to ensure an election could be conducted safely during the pandemic.

If Trudeau does call an election this summer or fall, it will be without those safeguards.

Other legislation still stuck in the Commons legislative process include bills to strengthen privacy protections, tighten firearms restrictions, reform the criminal justice system, overhaul the Official Languages Act and introduce a new disability benefit.

The disability benefit bill was tabled Tuesday, with zero chance of making any progress before the House rises. Such last minute initiatives have fuelled suspicions that Trudeau intends to pull the plug on his government and hold up the unfinished business as examples of the kinds of things Liberals could accomplish if they had a majority.

Throughout the winter and spring sitting, the government did manage to attain royal assent for a dozen pieces of legislation, including bills to expand access to medical assistance in dying, require sexual assault training for judges, implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, create a national day of Truth and Reconciliation and amend the citizenship oath to include a recognition of Indigenous rights.
Photo: Twitter

A powerful car bomb went off near the residence of a jailed anti-India militant leader in the eastern Pakistan city of Lahore on Wednesday, killing at least three people and wounding 15 others, police and rescue officials said.

The blast happened in the Johar Town neighborhood, provincial police chief Inam Ghani told reporters. He said officers were still trying to determine whether it was a suicide bombing or the bomb was remotely detonated.

Ghani said some police officers were also among the wounded persons.

He confirmed that the bombing happened near the residence of anti-India militant leader Hafiz Seed, who has been designated a terrorist by the U.S. Justice Department and has a $10 million bounty on his head. Saeed is the founder of an outlawed Lashkar-e-Taiba group, which was blamed for the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people.

TV footage showed badly damaged homes, and many residents said it was a bomb attack. Doctors say some of the wounded were in critical condition.
Photo: Twitter

An airstrike hit a busy market in Ethiopias northern Tigray village of Togoga on Tuesday, according to health workers who said soldiers blocked medical teams from traveling to the scene. Dozens of people were killed, they and a former resident said, citing witnesses.

Two doctors and a nurse in Tigrays regional capital, Mekele, told The Associated Press they were unable to confirm how many people were killed, but one doctor said health workers at the scene reported more than 80 civilian deaths. The health workers spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.

The alleged airstrike comes amid some of the fiercest fighting in the Tigray region since the conflict began in November as Ethiopian forces supported by those from neighboring Eritrea pursue Tigrays former leaders. A military spokesman and the spokeswoman for Ethiopias prime minister did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Wounded patients being treated at Mekeles Ayder hospital told health workers that a plane dropped a bomb on Togogas marketplace. The six patients included a 2-year-old child with abdominal trauma and a 6-year-old, the nurse said. An ambulance carrying a wounded baby to Mekele, almost 60 kilometres away by road, was blocked for two hours and the baby died on the way, the nurse added.

Hailu Kebede, foreign affairs head for the Salsay Woyane Tigray opposition party and who comes from Togoga, told the AP that one fleeing witness to the attack had counted more than 30 bodies and other witnesses were reporting more than 50 people killed. Many more were said to be wounded in the remote village that's linked to Mekele in part by challenging stretches of dirt roads.

It was horrific, said a staffer with an international aid group who told the AP he had spoken with a colleague and others at the scene. We dont know if the jets were coming from Ethiopia or Eritrea. They are still looking for bodies by hand. More than 50 people were killed, maybe more.

On Tuesday afternoon, a convoy of ambulances attempting to reach Togoga, about 25 km west of Mekele, was turned back by soldiers near Tukul, the health workers said. Several more ambulances were turned back later in the day and on Wednesday morning, but one group of medical workers reached the site on Tuesday evening via a different route.

Those medical workers were treating 40 wounded people but told colleagues in Mekele that the number of wounded is likely higher as some people fled after the attack. Five of the wounded patients were said to need emergency operations but the health workers were unable to evacuate them.

We have been asking, but until now we didnt get permission to go, so we dont know how many people are dead, said one of the doctors in Mekele.

Another doctor said the Red Cross ambulance he was traveling in on Tuesday while trying to reach the scene was shot at twice by Ethiopian soldiers, who held his team for 45 minutes before ordering them back to Mekele.

We are not allowed to go, he said. They told us whoever goes, they are helping the troops of the TPLF.

The TPLF refers to the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front, which governed Tigray until it was ousted by a federal government offensive in November. The subsequent fighting has killed thousands and forced more than 2 million people from their homes.

While the United Nations has said all sides have been accused of abuses, Ethiopian and Eritrean soldiers have been repeatedly accused by witnesses of looting and destroying health centers across the Tigray region and denying civilians access to care.

The situation there is appalling, European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Wednesday in Berlin, noting that today a military airstrike has been producing a lot of casualties against the civilians.

This month, humanitarian agencies warned that 350,00 people in Tigray are facing famine. Aid workers have said they have been repeatedly denied access to several parts of the region by soldiers.

The government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed says it has nearly defeated the rebels. But forces loyal to the TPLF recently announced an offensive in parts of Tigray and have claimed a string of victories.
Photo: Twitter

Spains National Court has approved the extradition of detained antivirus software entrepreneur John McAfee to the United States, where he is wanted on tax-related criminal charges that carry a prison sentence of up to 30 years.

The decision can be appealed and the final extradition will need to be approved by the Spanish Cabinet.

Tennessee prosecutors charged 75-year-old McAfee with evading taxes after failing to report income made from promoting cryptocurrencies while he did consultancy work, as well as income from speaking engagements and selling the rights to his life story for a documentary.

The charges refer to the three fiscal years from 2016 to 2018, according to the Spanish court's ruling on Wednesday.

The entrepreneur was arrested last October at Barcelonas international airport. A judge ordered at that time that McAfee should be held in jail while awaiting the outcome of a hearing on extradition.

In a hearing held via videolink earlier this month, McAfee argued that the charges against him were politically motivated and said he would spend the rest of his life in prison if he was returned to the U.S.
Photo: The Canadian Press

A lawsuit alleging RCMP systematically brutalized Indigenous people in Northern Canada can proceed as a class action despite objections from the government, Federal Court ruled on Wednesday.

In her decision, Judge Glennys McVeigh rejected the government's arguments that the proposed suit failed to meet the legal grounds for certification although individuals could sue on their own, and that the claim had no prospect of success.

"I disagree with Canada's characterization of these claims as individual," McVeigh wrote. "The claims do not ask if an RCMP officer illegally assaulted a class member, but rather whether the operations of the RCMP create a system where illegal assaults happen."

The untested claim, initially filed in 2018, seeks $600 million in various damages. Among other things, it alleges the federal government negligently failed to stop what it characterizes as routine police assaults on Aboriginal people who comprise the majority in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon.

The claim asserts systemic negligence, breach of fiduciary duty and constitutional violations. The government, it says, has known about the issues for years but has failed to substantively address the problem.

"Aboriginal persons are frequently arrested, detained or held in custody by RCMP officers in the territories on the basis of their race, ethnic and/or national origin," the claim states.

"RCMP officers and other agents of the RCMP regularly discriminate against Aboriginal persons by employing excessive and unnecessary force, by arresting or detaining Aboriginal persons for no reason, and by using hateful speech and language in the course of policing in the territories."

The claim, which names the attorney general as defendant on behalf of the RCMP, alleges common incidents involve officers beating, pepper-spraying, shooting and verbally abusing Indigenous people.

The representative plaintiff is a high school student, Joe David Nasogaluak, now 19, of Tuktoyaktuk, N.W.T., who claims RCMP arrested and assaulted him without cause or provocation in November 2017. Among other things, he alleges officers punched and choked him, used a stun gun on him, and used derogatory slurs. He was released to his mother shortly after.

"As a result of this assault, Mr. Nasogaluak sustained physical and psychological harm," the claim asserts. "Incidents like the above take place ordinarily in the territories."

In affidavits, other potential class members similarly described experiences of racism and RCMP violence when being detained and arrested.

A year ago, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the RCMP had a problem with systemic racism after Commissioner Brenda Lucki denied racism was entrenched within the organization. Those comments came after video emerged showing Mounties wrestling the chief of an Alberta First Nation to the ground in a parking lot.

In certifying the action, McVeigh noted the plaintiff's assertion that class members had a reasonable expectation Canada would run its RCMP detachment in the North in the same way it runs policing of non-Indigenous people.

Members of the class, McVeigh decided, comprise all Indigenous people who allege being assaulted at any time while in RCMP custody or detention in the territories, and were alive as of December 18, 2016.

"I do not agree that Canadas claim that a public inquiry or internal complaint process would be preferable procedure," McVeigh said.

Nevertheless, the judge said, the plaintiffs still have to prove their claims at trial which is "far from an easy hurdle."

Because the plaintiff was a minor when he sued, his mother acted as a litigation guardian. McVeigh said Nasogaluak, now a legal adult, must get court permission to substitute his name for his mother's on the claim but appeared perfectly capable of acting as representative plaintiff.
Photo: The Canadian Press Letisha Reimer is shown in a photo, part of a memorial to her outside Abbotsford Senior Secondary School, in Abbotsford, B.C., Monday, Nov.7, 2016. A sentencing hearing is being held in B.C. Supreme Court for Gabriel Klein who was convicted of second-degree murder and aggravated assault in the death of Reimer, 13, and the injuries of her friend. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Geordon Omand

The father of a 13-year-old girl who was murdered at a high school in Abbotsford, B.C., says he doubts the killer will receive a fit sentence for the damage caused to his family by her death.

Ulrich Reimer told a sentencing hearing today for Gabriel Klein in B.C. Supreme Court that he struggles with anger and grief over the death of his daughter Letisha in November 2016.

Klein was convicted of second-degree murder for Reimer's death and the aggravated assault of her friend.

He faces a mandatory life sentence but the judge will decide when Klein will be eligible for parole, with the Crown arguing he should spend at least 18 years in prison for the murder before he can apply.

Eliane Reimer told the court in New Westminster that the world stopped on the day her daughter "died on the cold floor of her school."

She told Klein she hopes he never has another moment of peace in his life.
Photo: The Canadian Press Valerie Gideon, Associate Deputy Minister of Indigenous Services Canada, right, looks on as Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations Carolyn Bennett answers a question virtually during a press conference in Ottawa on Wednesday, June 23, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

Canada is open to providing archival data on residential schools to the U.S. government to help with its recently announced investigation into Indigenous boarding schools, the Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister said Wednesday.

Carolyn Bennett said the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation has been collecting data on the burial sites of residential schools and cemetery registries since 2016, and some of its findings would be helpful for the U.S.

"Obviously we would make that resource available should (Interior Secretary Deb Haaland) want to avail herself of it," Bennett said.

Haaland announced Tuesday that Washington will investigate its role in the boarding schools and work to uncover the truth about the loss of human life and the lasting consequences of policies that took hundreds of thousands of children from their families and communities.

She said the U.S. investigation will include compiling and reviewing records to identify past boarding schools, locate known and possible burial sites at or near those schools and uncover the names and tribal affiliations of students.

Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller said both Canada and the U.S. share a history of residential and boarding schools where Indigenous children where abused.

"It's a shared stain on our respective histories," he said.

"In certain respects, we're ahead of the U.S., in the truth part. You could take any position on how we are ahead on reconciliation."

The recent finding of what are believed to be 215 childrens remains buried at the site of a Kamloops, B.C., residential school has magnified interest in the troubling legacy in both the U.S. and Canada.

Haaland, who is the first Native American to serve as a U.S. cabinet secretary, met two weeks ago with Miller and Bennett to discuss several topics including residential schools and combating violence against Indigenous women and girls.

"Secretary Haaland was moved to tears when we met her about the events in Kamloops," Miller said. "I believe that she will move quite aggressively on it."

The day before her meeting with Miller and Bennett, Haaland wrote an opinion piece in the Washington Post saying the Kamloops finding made her "sick to (her) stomach" and that many Americans may not know that the U.S. pursued a similar policy to residential schools.

She wrote that the first step toward justice for Native Americans is acknowledging painful truths and understanding their effects.

"I am a product of these horrific assimilation policies. My maternal grandparents were stolen from their families when they were only 8 years old and were forced to live away from their parents, culture and communities until they were 13," she wrote.

A member of New Mexicos Laguna Pueblo Native American tribe, Haaland outlined the investigation into Indigenous boarding schools while addressing members of the National Congress of American Indians during the groups mid-year conference Tuesday.

She said the process will be long, difficult and painful and will not undo the heartbreak and loss endured by many families.

To address the intergenerational impact of Indian boarding schools and to promote spiritual and emotional healing in our communities, we must shed light on the unspoken traumas of the past no matter how hard it will be, Haaland said.

Starting with the Indian Civilization Act of 1819, the U.S. enacted laws and policies to establish and support Indigenous boarding schools across the nation.

For over 150 years, Indigenous children in the U.S. were taken from their communities and forced into boarding schools that focused on assimilation.
Photo: The Canadian Press Canadian Foreign Minister Marc Garneau speaks during a meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, at the Harpa Concert Hall in Reykjavik, Iceland, Wednesday, May 19, 2021, on the sidelines of the Arctic Council Ministerial summit. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Saul Loeb/Pool Photo via AP

Canada's foreign affairs minister will soon travel to Israel and the West Bank to advance a two-state solution following a deadly 11-day war between Israelis and Palestinians.

Marc Garneau's office says his visit to the Middle East is part of an international trip that begins in Italy, where on Monday and Tuesday he will attend several ministerial meetings including one with his G20 counterparts.

Afterwards, his office says, he will travel to Jordan, Israel and the West Bank to advance Canadas support towards the goal of a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the region and a two-state solution.

The minister's visit to the region comes weeks after a ceasefire ended the war that left at least 230 Palestinians and 12 Israelis dead.

Global Affairs Canada spokesman Jason Kung said last week that Canada supports the principle of two states for two peoples, with both Israelis and Palestinians living within secure borders that are mutually respected and recognized.

He said Canada calls on Israel to stop settlement activities, including those in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, as these activities are a violation of international law.

The fighting between Israel and Hamas erupted on May 10, when Hamas militants in Gaza Strip fired long-range rockets toward Jerusalem.

The barrage came after days of clashes between Palestinian protesters and Israeli police at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in Islam, which is built on a hilltop site sacred to Jews in the holy city.

Tensions were fuelled by a lengthy legal battle waged by Israeli settlers to take over properties and plan for the removal of dozens of Palestinians from the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood of East Jerusalem.

While in Italy, Garneau will also attend a ministerial meeting of the global coalition against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant and a ministerial meeting on Syria.

After visiting the Middle East, Garneau will end his trip on July 8 in Lithuania where he will attend the Ukraine Reform Conference.

"As we build back better from the COVID-19 pandemic, we must not lose sight of the challenges and priorities that need our attention," Garneau said in a statement.

"Im looking forward to engaging with our allies and partners to help collectively advance global peace and security, increase our economic co-operation and strengthen Canadas bilateral and multilateral relationships."

Garneau has already travelled internationally amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Last month, he attended a G7 foreign ministers meeting in the United Kingdom and quarantined in a hotel upon his return to Canada.
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Siam Cement Group targets digital platform and machine efficiency upgrades

23 June 2021

Siam Cement Group (SCG) is maintaining its investment budget at THB65-75bn (US$2.04m-2.36m) for the second half of this year even though the third wave of the pandemic has damaged its businesses.

The company is focusing on digital platforms and is asking the government to support e-commerce and other measures to deal with the pandemic.

"Businesses must brace for changes caused by virus spread," said Roongrote Rangsiyopash, SCG president and CEO.

SCG plans to spend most of the budget on machine efficiency upgrades and maintenance to enable its factories to better compete in the global market. SCG aims to achieve a net zero goal to curb levels of carbon dioxide emissions by 2050.

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Buena Vista, CO (81211)

Today

Scattered thunderstorms during the evening. Mainly clear skies after midnight. Low 51F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms during the evening. Mainly clear skies after midnight. Low 51F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
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Officials with the City of East Ridge announced that their city was awarded one of only 15 $25,000 grants as part of the 2021 Tennessee Dog Park Dash by the Boyd Foundation. The money will provide the opportunity for the city to create a dog park at Springvale Park in the heart of East Ridge. The park is slightly more than two acres in size and will provide plenty of space for a safe social outlet for dogs and their owners.



The City of East Ridge had previously explored the possibility of constructing a dog park at Springvale Park, but the funds needed were not available to complete the project. When leaders learned of the Boyd Foundations grant opportunity, they created an online forum within the community on social media platforms requesting citizens opinions on potentially building a dog park. The surveys response numbers skyrocketed within hours with positive feedback.



Pet owners expressed their want for a possible dog park for multiple reasons, said Cameron McAllister, grant writer for East Ridge. Most importantly was to create a sense of community within our hometown and to allow social time for their dogs as well as others. Local citizens also indicated that they would gladly make annual contributions to help maintain the quality of the park once it is opened.



Officials said, "Currently the city lacks access to a fenced area for dogs to safely play, therefore causing citizens to travel to surrounding cities for this amenity. This grant will allow for the construction of a much needed area for dogs to safely roam leash free and play with other dogs in a controlled environment. Studies have also shown that having dogs and actively going to dog parks can also have a positive influence on a persons health."



Representatives from the Boyd Foundation will be making the check presentation to the City of East Ridge between August and October. Additional information and updates will be posted on the Citys website at www.eastridgetn.gov.
The Chattanooga winner of the Third Annual Federal Court Civics Essay Contest will be honored at a ceremony at the Joel W. Solomon United States Courthouse in Chattanooga on Tuesday at 9 a.m.

The 2021 divisional winner is Lisa Lin, a rising tenth grade student at Signal Mountain High School.

Ms. Lin previously won the Hamilton County Spelling Bee in 2017, and went on to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C. She is also on the Signal Mountain track team and an avid reader. Ms. Lin will receive an iPad and case as a prize at the celebration.

The essay contest was open to public, private, and home school high school students in 24 East Tennessee counties. The Courts Civics and Outreach Committee and the Chattanooga chapter of the Federal Bar Association sponsored the contest.

This years essay prompt asked what it means to support and defend the Constitution, and whether the oath is different for different groups. Ms. Lins essay discussed the enduring value of oaths in different aspects of American civic life, noting that taking an oath allows people to better understand the circumstances they are entering and what it means to protect the Constitution.

The local essay contests were coordinated with the national essay contest sponsored by the Federal Bar Association. More information is posted on the Courts Connections website at connections.tned.uscourts.gov.
The new Tennessee State Library & Archives is a treasure trove for judges and attorneys searching for historical information related to court cases, legislative history or personal records that may be applicable to specific projects and problems. The new building opened in April on the Bicentennial Mall. In fact, the TSLAs largest collection, and also one of its most frequently requested, is composed of historic Tennessee Supreme Court cases. The collection runs to over 10,000 boxes and dates back to the early 19th century. For about 15 years, the TSLA has undertaken the massive project of indexing these records. Court of Appeals Judge Andy Bennett, through his leadership role in the Tennessee Supreme Court Historical Society, was instrumental in initiating that project.



Originally, those boxes of records were stored in the attic of the capitol building. The capitol attic was not heated or cooled so the papers there were subject to extremes in temperature, which is not good for paper, he said. The building was also heated by coal so coal dust would waft up into the attic, soiling the records.

In order to read and index the cases, the TSLA staff had to carefully roll out and clean the records, a painstaking task. The task has paid off and today about 85 percent of the collection has been indexed in a searchable online database.



As Judge Bennett explained, although historic Tennessee Supreme Court opinions have long been published and available to researchers, access to the full records of these cases is invaluable.



You can open up a book and find the opinion, but you dont have the briefs. You dont see the arguments. You dont have the depositions that might be referred to in the opinion, and these files have all that, Judge Bennett said. If you really want to go behind the opinion, these documents are great.



The files may also contain the local court records for the cases that eventually made their way to the Supreme Court, as Tennessee State Librarian Chuck Sherrill explained on a recent tour of the new TSLA building.



These cases are a powerful testament to the rich and complicated history of the state. Some of them are notable because they address the most important issues of the day. For instance, the case of Ford v. Ford, dating back to the 1840s, involved a slave-owner who wished to manumit his slaves and leave his land to them upon his death. The mans children contested the will and the case wound up in the Supreme Court. In the end, the mans wishes were honored, and the slaves were freed and given the land.



Even cases with less historic significance provide an unprecedented level of access to the customs and beliefs of the past, such as the rustic practice of fishing with dynamite, or the bygone image of domestic disputes ending with a husband retreating out to the barn. There is also the thrill of personal discovery. Judge Bennett had the honor of sharing the details of the Ford v. Ford case with some of the Ford slaves descendants last year who were unaware of the improbable legal victory their ancestors had won in the antebellum South. Judge Bennett himself, in the course of research, even found two historic Supreme Court cases involving his own relatives.



Sherrill said that the value of those discoveries can be compounded by the nature of the files themselves. For instance, some of the cases include dozens of depositions, which provide a flavor of the way people spoke at that time. Not only might a user find out that their great-great-great-great-grandfather had some involvement in a Supreme Court case, they might also be able to read their relations own exact words.



The level of detail in the testimony is just amazing, he said.



Another TSLA holding that is especially useful to lawyers and judges is the Library and Archives legislative history collection. That collection encompasses old volumes of state codes as well as decades worth of recordings of Tennessee legislative hearings.



When the statutes are ambiguous, were allowed to go and look at the legislative history, which is essentially the debates in the legislature and in committees about bills as well as any reports that are made about bills, Judge Bennett said. Those can shed light on the intent of the legislature.



Judge Bennett said that when he was a practicing attorney he spent a great deal of time, sometimes entire days, listening to these recordings, trying to parse exactly what a particular phrase or sentence in a piece of legislation meant. He also often consulted other legislative records at the TSLA, including one legislative report that he quoted in a brief for a case before the Supreme Court of the United States, Burson v. Freeman. The U.S. Supreme Court, in turn, cited the report in its opinion. Judge Bennett has also continued to consult the legislative history collection as a member of the judiciary, where discerning legislative intent can sometimes factor into the formation of his own opinions.



Vince McGrath oversees this collection at the TSLA, as the institutions legislative history coordinator. He said the new building offered major improvements in the way the material in this collection is stored. Instead of the legislative material being scattered across different parts of the building, there is enough room for it all to be in one place.



The same is true for the TSLAs overall vast collection of holdings, which Sherill estimates would stretch 26 miles if laid side by side. To find and retrieve records in the new building, an automated storage and retrieval system (ASRS) consisting of three different robotic cranes pulls materials for patrons from a vast temperature-and-humidity-controlled storage area.



Patrons can simply send a request for a piece of material through the catalog and, after the request is approved by an archivist or librarian on duty, it is sent on to the storage area, where one of the cranes finds it amid over 8,000 bins and 700 shelving units of holdings. Once the material is located, the crane brings it to a loading and unloading area where it is scanned by a staff member and sent down to the patron.



This large, dedicated storage space allows the new building to offer more to its visitors, as Sherrill explained.



This building is about 65 percent larger than our previous building, he said. The wonderful part about the square footage in this building is that so much more of it is public space rather than storage space. That allows us to use the square footage for things like our wonderful lobby and exhibits, or meeting and conference rooms, or the nice, large reading room.



State lawmakers passed funding for the new 165,000-square-foot Library and Archives building in 2017. Visitors eager to learn more about the past may start their research in the new 12,000 square foot reading room, where TSLA archivists are stationed and ready to help those interested in genealogical research, historic records, or any other number of topics.



This space is far more user friendly and far more spacious, TSLA Director of Public Services Gordon Belt said. Although we loved our old building, and it did have architectural character, we really ran out of space to serve our patrons, so we are really grateful to have this brand new facility open to researchers.



Mr. Sherrill agreed, noting that this new state-of-the-art home for some of Tennessees most valued documents had been worth the wait.



Were really proud of this new building for the Tennessee State Library and Archives, Mr. Sherrill said. It is the realization of a long-held dream for so many people.
A jury from Davidson County will hear the trial in which the former postmaster for Soddy Daisy is charged with the traffic death of a rookie Chattanooga Police officer.

The jury will be brought back to Chattanooga for the start of the trial on Sept. 20.

Judge Don Poole said a final pre-trial conference will be held July 12.

Jury questionnaires and motions are due no later Aug. 13.

Jury selection is due to begin in Nashville on Sept. 16 and continue the next day if necessary.

Jurors will be transported to Chattanooga on Sunday, Sept. 19.

The jury will be sequestered (kept together and apart from others) while they are in Chattanooga.

Ms. Hinds allegedly hit Officer Nicholas Galinger with her vehicle while he was inspecting an overflowing manhole on Hamill Road on Feb. 23, 2019. Officer Galinger was originally from Cincinnati.

There was testimony earlier that Ms. Hinds had had drinks at a restaurant near Ringgold prior to heading home along Hamill Road. She was not taken into custody for several days and briefly went on the TBI's Most Wanted List.

District Attorney Neal Pinkston and Assistant Cameron Williams are trying the case for the state. Ms. Hinds is represented by attorneys Ben McGowan and Marya Schalk.
Patriotic Americans still fly Old Glory on Memorial Day, the Fourth of July and several other dates proclaimed by the President of the United States, the birthdays of states and on state holidays. In spite of the fact that millions of Americans have died in support of the banner, its continued existence has not been without controversy. In 1989, in response to a Supreme Court ... (click for more)

The Epoch Times may be my favorite of all the news sources I receive and in almost every issue they dedicate a page To The Next Generation. Many readers submit their stories, and each is glorious, dripping with love and wisdom of what they were once given. In the June 15 th edition, there appears a letter written by a retired firefighter in Mississippi by the name ... (click for more)
Walter Shaub, who served as the director of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics under former President Barack Obama wrote, Authoritarianism and corruption go hand in hand. If we don't clean up government, we're setting the table for the next authoritarian. Surprisingly, Mr. Shaub was not talking about the Trump Administration, but rather the Biden Administration.

We should all applaud Walter Shaub for his honesty. We need more transparency in our federal government, and we need more transparency in our state and local government as well. This is a non-partisan issue.

When it comes to funding public education, it has always been a litigious and controversial issue. Education funding in Tennessee has been subjected to countless lawsuits, which make changing the funding formula challenging and difficult. The Basic Education Program is the funding formula through which state education dollars are generated and distributed to Tennessee schools is incredibly complex. Both sides of the political aisle have priorities they want to be funded.

Lets be honest. There is a limited amount of taxpayer dollars available in any year and the economic pie can only be sliced so far. Fiscal discipline is always tough, but necessary. Both Republicans and Democrats want to increase teacher salaries, but we have struggled with how to get those dollars into the pockets of educators and not into the pockets of bureaucrats, vendors, and other groups.

Recently McKenzie Scott, the ex-wife of Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos, decided to start giving her astounding wealth away to charities and community organizations. Ms. Scott wrote, Putting large donors at the center of stories on social progress is a distortion of their role.

The remarkable aspect is that Scott donated her own money without any strings attached to the gifts. The charities themselves were not made aware of the donation until the gift was made. This is in stark contrast to other venture philanthropists like the Gates Foundation, Broad Foundation, and Walton Family Foundation. Taxpayers should be aware of when private donations or grants are made and what strings are attached to those dollars if it impacts public education or any government entity.

We have heard the argument that we have just thrown money at a lot of problems in the past and that we have required very little accountability. Perhaps there is some truth to that point. However, it seems very hypocritical that government expects citizens to account for their own money and not be answerable to taxpayers. It is time to change that narrative.

Budgets are often complex and need to be adaptable. They are contingent on expected revenues and planned expenditures which may change over a fiscal year. We understand those budget decisions are also influenced by policy decisions.

We recommend three steps for greater transparency: First, all school budgets should be available online for employees, citizens, and taxpayers to review and comment on annually. Budgets should be easy to find on the website and simple to understand. Second, any revenue that comes into a school system, either through government funding, grants, or private donations---including gifts, should be immediately disclosed, including any obligations that those dollars may impose on a school or district. Third, all expenditures, including information on specific vendor payments, should be available for public review in a timely fashion through a user-friendly online platform with an easy search feature. We should enable citizens to look at expenditures just like one would their bank account.

Government should welcome transparency and accountability when it comes to spending. It will help ensure that funds are spent as wisely as possible. Greater transparency will allow us to better measure and manage the progress of our programs. Using specifics about government budgets and spending empowers all educators, taxpayers, and citizens to engage in closer scrutiny of their tax dollars. It helps build better policy initiatives in the future when we can see what works.

When taxpayers understand that schools and districts are wise stewards of their tax dollars, they are more likely to support the goals and objectives being implemented. We need more accountability in government and should embrace more visibility in the budget process. It is true bi-partisanship when stakeholders and policymakers, regardless of political affiliation, incorporate greater transparency and better access to critical spending information. Its simply common sense.

Terri Lynn Weaver, state representative for the 40th District in Tennessee

JC Bowman, executive director for Professional Educators of Tennessee
Angelina Jolie is one celebrity mom who has been raising children of different backgrounds. Aside from having three biological kids with ex-husband Brad Pitt, Jolie also adopted children from Cambodia, Vietnam, and Ethiopia.

Jolie recently revealed that her daughter Zahara, who was born in Ethiopia, experienced medical bias when recovering from her surgery.

Angelina Jolie with daughters Shiloh and Zahara | Marilla Sicilia/Archivio Marilla Sicilia/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images

Angelina Jolies children underwent surgeries

In 2020, Jolie shared in an essay with Time that two of her daughters underwent surgeries. She did not go into details about their medical conditions, but she said one of her younger daughters had a hip surgery.

Jolie revealed that her children have rallied around to help each other through this trying time.

I have watched my daughters care for one another, Jolie wrote. My youngest daughter studied the nurses with her sister, and then assisted the next time. I saw how all my girls so easily stopped everything and put each other first, and felt the joy of being of service to those they love Their brothers were there for them, supportive and sweet.

Angelina Jolie says Zahara experienced medical bias

RELATED: Why Angelina Jolie Said Her Behavior Used to Be Misinterpreted By Other People

People of different ethnicities do not all have the same experience with the medical system. Jolie revealed she noticed this with Zaharas recovery process.

I have children from different backgrounds, and I know when there was a rash that everybody got, it looked drastically different depending on their skin color, she shared in an interview with medical student Malone Mukwende, according to Us Weekly. But whenever I looked at medical charts, the reference point was always white skin. Recently my daughter Zahara, whom I adopted from Ethiopia, had surgery, and afterward a nurse told me to call them if her skin turned pink.

Mukwende explained that this is because, all over the world, medical textbooks and classes still use white patients as a reference point. According to the student, there is a lack of knowledge in how symptoms for many illnesses show up in non-white populations.

What else Angelina Jolie has said about raising a diverse group of kids

RELATED: Angelina Jolie Reveals the Interesting Reason She Almost Did Not Adopt Her Son Pax

Jolie has talked about the experience of having a diverse family with kids from various backgrounds.

Speaking to Vogue last year, she described how she tries to be open with her kids about adoption and orphanages.

Adoption and orphanage are positive words in our home, Jolie said. With my adopted children, I cant speak of pregnancy, but I speak with much detail and love about the journey to find them and what it was like to look in their eyes for the first time.

She also explained how important it is for her to learn from her adopted children. Jolie said, All adopted children come with a beautiful mystery of a world that is meeting yours. When they are from another race and foreign land, that mystery, that gift, is so full Learn from them. Its the most amazing journey to share. They are not entering your world, you are entering each others worlds.
Talk to any devout anime or manga fan, and they likely have a soft spot for Fullmetal Alchemist.

While the series has been out of publication for several years, it never lost its loyal fanbase. Recently, creator Hiromu Arakawa announced a new animated project that has fans clamoring for new details, with some even speculating.

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood at a glance

The original Fullmetal print ran from 2001 to 2010, and a direct adaptation appeared early in. Around that same time of its final printing, IMDB notes how a sequel series reached television screens across the world by way of Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. Taking the spirit of Arakawas original ideas and adapting them to the television medium, fans who loved the manga and the ones who never heard of it fell in love with the mature anime series.

A steampunk-inspired story that crosses over through nearly every genre, the series was a massive hit in Japan and the American market. While it only lasted three seasons, the sustained popularity of both it and the source material means that new fans are born every day. With Arakawa teasing new content, however, the fanbase may soon grow even bigger.

A big announcement

Cosplayer Margaret Smith as Samurai Roy Mustang from Fullmetal Alchemist | Daniel Knighton/Getty Images

The speculation started with a cryptic announcement that Manga Mogura teased on Twitter. In it, they confirmed that Fullmetal Alchemist artist Hiromu Arakawa was working on something new, but the who or what remains unspecified. Add that some new images and a whole lot of fan hype, and it predictably set the anime world ablaze.

In a French interview translated into English by Tumblr user Clewilan, she spoke about her groundbreaking artwork that helped make the manga into the bigger brand it is today. She spoke about that journey at great length. According to her, the greatest feeling in the world was getting nine years of work in without selling herself short or feeling like she gave an incomplete story.

When we finished the manga, I was surprised because I had been drawing this story for nine years, and I was convinced that in the end, I would be sad, as in a breakup. When I submitted the last chapter, I was actually relieved. Not because I was glad it was over, but because I had the conviction I had told everything I wanted to, Arakawa told the French publication.

However, while Fullmetal Alchemist ended its print journey and Arakawa is on to other things, these cryptic messages have fans wondering if something new is headed their way. Many see it as a perfect opportunity to expand the anime world while keeping the original saga intact.

Fans have big hopes for new Fullmetal material

In a Reddit thread about the big announcement, fans speculated, celebrated, and further broke down what this news will mean to them. After all, a decade after its final print, the franchise remains as big as ever. A return to the Fullmetal universe could mean many things, from new Manga to new anime, to both. . U/MrEriMan13 sees it as a potential extra story building off of one of the originals biggest events.

If its a bonus chapter, I REALLY hope its about Mustang being appointed as the new Fuhrer. I was kind of confused why they didnt include that in the original manga ending, they wrote.

Other users, such as u/AnnePackrat, just want to see what Arakawa came up with, be it part of this franchise or another.

I wanna see an Arakawa do a Sci-Fi show. Like a space romp or buddy comedy. Ah hell, she could just do FMA in space, and Id buy it immediately, they wrote.

From anthologies about the many characters to a sequel, spin-off, or brand new franchise altogether, everyone had takes about the direction of Arakawas career. It helps explain why her creation is so big. People are on board not just with her ideas but with her. Now, they just have to see where this is headed next.

RELATED: Attack on Titan: Why the Anime Series Should Wrap Up With a Movie to Satisfy Fans
Some Hollywood celebrities always knew they wanted to be in the line of work they found themselves in, beginning as child stars and acting or performing from a very young age. For American actor, comedian and producer Keegan-Michael Key, it was quite the opposite.

Best known for his time on shows like Key & Peele, Friends From College and sketch comedy series Mad TV, Key recently revealed that his successful career in comedy was not an intentional choice. Rather, it was a chance opportunity that he initially felt flew in the face of all his acting training.

Keegan-Michael Keys Emmy-winning work makes him one of Hollywoods most successful comedians

Key has won one Primetime Emmy Award, and been nominated nearly a dozen times for additional Emmys.

The comedian has also picked up nominations and accolades from the Writers Guild of America Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards, American Comedy Awards, the Peoples Choice Awards, and more. These nominations highlight Keys status as one of the most well-regarded comedy actors and producers in the industry.

Much of Keys success has arisen alongside his co-creator and co-star, fellow comedian Jordan Peele. The two have worked together on projects like Key & Peele, Keanu, and Fargo.

Key and Peele should need no introduction, reports Newsday. Both are brilliant mimics and outrageously creative improv stars who now comprise the most successful comedy duo on television.

Despite Keys record-making successes, he has said that he never intended to do the work he does today. In fact, he initially found the idea of doing comedy to be quite offensive.

Keegan-Michael Key was annoyed by the idea of performing comedy

Actor Keegan-Michael Key | Andrew Lipovsky/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

Before he was an actor, Key attended the University of Detroit. After graduating from college, he earned his Master of Fine Arts in Theater at Pennsylvania State University, reports IMDB.

Key took acting seriously, and in an interview with The New Yorker, it was revealed that the comedian never intended to get into comedy.

If the depth Key brings to comic moments is unexpected, the bigger surprise is that hes doing comedy at all, explains the publication. [Key] claims to have been a tad put out when, in 1997, he was invited to become a member of the Second City Detroit.

Second City Detroit was a comedy theater and comedy training center in Michigan,

Ive got an M.F.A.! A Mother-Fucking-A.! I took total umbrage! the comedian says in The New Yorker.

Key finally got to live out his Shakespearean career dreams in 2017

Despite falling into comedy acting by accident, and building a successful career in it, Key still always dreamed about pursuing the acting goals he had when he first got started. Namely, Shakespearean acting.

According to Broadway publication Playbill, Key wanted to perform the classics since he was young, and was laser-focused on doing Shakespeare when he was in school preparing to be an actor.

I was a dramatically trained actor, a Shakespearean-trained actor, and that was always the plan, Key elaborated in an interview with Stephen Colbert on YouTube. My career went on a 19-year detour into sketch comedy. His dreams came true in 2017, when he landed a role at New Yorks Public Theater in a performance of Hamlet. He starred as Horatio, alongside Guatemalan-American actor Oscar Isaac.

Despite not having done classic theatre in nearly two decades, Key isnt so much nervous as he is relishing the experience, noted Playbill at the time.

The immediacy of improvisation is intoxicating, but theres an intimacy that you get thats very different when youre doing drama, Key told the magazine. It just took me 19 years.

RELATED: Celebrities Who Started on Broadway
The Korber European Science Prize 2021, endowed with one million euros, goes to Clare Grey. The British chemist pioneered the optimisation of batteries using NMR spectroscopy.

Grey pioneered the optimisation of batteries with the help of NMR spectroscopy. This method allows non-invasive insights into the inner workings of batteries  and is similar to magnetic resonance imaging, which doctors use to screen patients. Her NMR studies have helped to significantly increase the performance of lithium-ion batteries, which supply power to mobile phones, notebooks or e-vehicles, for example. Furthermore, Grey was instrumental in the development of new types of batteries  including lithium-air batteries, which have a tenfold increase in energy density, and others that charge very quickly and are particularly safe in operation. She is also conducting research into cost-effective and durable storage systems for electricity from renewable sources. The Briton sees her fundamental research as an important contribution to achieving the European Union's declared goal of climate neutrality by 2050.

The first mobile phones were reminiscent of bricks in terms of their volume and weight. They only became really manageable at the beginning of the 1990s with the powerful lithium-ion batteries. These battery types were actually developed for video cameras to be carried on the shoulder. Almost none of the engineers at the time had an inkling that lithium-ion batteries would open the door to future portable and internet-capable communication devices, let alone to today's era of electromobility.

There have been significant advances in lithium-ion batteries since 1991,  explains Clare Grey. Their energy density has tripled. That means their weight can be reduced by two thirds, while retaining the same electrical storage capacity. In addition, prices have fallen by 90 percent.  The British chemist has made a key contribution to this development. Grey is a pioneer in the study of solids with the help of NMR spectroscopy. NMR uses resonances of atomic nuclei to gain novel insights into materials such as batteries. With the help of NMR technology, Grey was able to study the electrochemical processes during the charging and discharging of batteries while they operate to follow the lithium ions as they move in and out of the battery materials.

Grey had already worked on NMR spectroscopy during her undergraduate studies

Clare Grey, 56, studied chemistry at Oxford University in the UK. At the age of 22, she published her first scientific article in the science magazine Nature. Following her doctorate in 1991, she went to Radboud University in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. In 1992/93 Grey worked as a visiting scientist at the US chemical company Dupont. From 1994, she was an assistant professor at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, where she became a full professor in 2001. In 2009, she became Geoffrey Moorhouse Gibson Professor at the UK's University of Cambridge. She has also been a Fellow of the Royal Society since 2011.

Grey had already worked on NMR spectroscopy during her undergraduate studies and used it to examine metals such as tin. At the time, this was new territory, because physicists and chemists usually study the structure of solids by bombarding them with X-rays. The diffraction of the X-rays reveals the internal structure of the samples. Using this method, the subsequent Nobel Prize winners James Watson and Francis Crick were able to detect the double helix structure of the hereditary molecule DNA in 1953. A particularly powerful alternative to this is NMR spectroscopy. The abbreviation NMR stands for nuclear magnetic resonance.

NMR is easiest with liquid samples in which the molecules move very fast, averaging out interactions between them. Grey, on the other hand, was one of the first in her field to use NMR to investigate solids such as metals. During her time in the USA, she met researchers from the Duracell company who inspired her to use NMR technology to study materials in batteries. Previously, the usual investigations with X-rays only provided an average picture,  Grey says. With the help of NMR, I was now able to detect the fine details in these often disordered materials.  Initially, she examined individual ingredients by opening the batteries at a certain stage of their charging and life cycle. The aim was partly to find out which chemical processes cause the batteries to age and how their lifespan and capacity can be increased. Later, Grey improved the NMR technology so that she could also use it to examine cells non-destructively during operation  so-called in-situ experiments. These measurements also helped to discover short-lived substances and speed up the studies enormously.

The Korber European Science Prize 2021 will be presented to Clare Grey on 10 September

Grey is also researching batteries for the coming beyond lithium" era, which contain the more environmentally friendly sodium instead of lithium. However, such batteries are heavier and more suitable as low-cost intermediate storage for wind or solar power. The same applies to novel redox flow batteries that store electrical energy in two separate tanks of chemicals. Grey was also able to follow the processes in such liquid batteries live by means of her NMR studies and, among other things, ascertain the causes of the degradation processes. She is working on further optimising the NMR method in the future to design even more powerful, faster-charging and more environmentally friendly batteries.

In 2019, Grey cofounded a company for ultra fast-charging batteries that uses technology developed in its laboratories. Another company supplies the NMR measurement technology she designed to laboratories around the world. To achieve climate goals, Grey believes it is very important that basic research into new battery technologies is already in full swing today  tomorrow is too late.

The Korber European Science Prize 2021 will be presented to Clare Grey on 10 September in the Great Festival Hall of Hamburg City Hall. The Korber Prize, endowed with one million euros, is one of the world's most highly endowed research prizes. Five percent of the prize money is to be used for science communication. Every year since 1985, the Korber Foundation has honoured a major breakthrough in the physical or life sciences in Europe with the Korber Prize. It is awarded for excellent and innovative research approaches with high application potential. To date, six prize winners have also been awarded the Nobel Prize after receiving the Korber Prize.
Dr. Edgar Endlein, Managing Director Research & Development, Werner & Mertz GmbH, Mainz, will receive the Meyer-Galow Award for Business Chemistry Chemistry 2020 on July 7, 2021. The prize of the foundation of the same name, which is part of the German Chemical Society (GDCh), is endowed with 10,000 euros. It is awarded for the market launch of an innovation in chemistry that is of particular value to society, especially in terms of sustainability. Edgar Endlein has been successfully involved in the transfer of surfactants based on regional European vegetable oils into sustainable household and personal care products and their market launch for years. The award ceremony takes place during a virtual ceremony and is chaired by Prof. Dr. Peter R. Schreiner, President of the GDCh.

Renewable materials and regenerative energy must increasingly be used for sustainable use of limited resources. Biodiversity must also be respected and preserved in order to preserve it for future generations. Detergent substances, so-called surfactants, in detergents, cleaning agents and cleansing personal care products should be biodegradable against this background, have the best possible (eco) toxicological profile, be plant-based and agricultural cultivation and logistics should have the lowest possible environmental impact. Renewable vegetable oils are therefore increasingly being used for the production of surfactants. Many of the vegetable oils used do not come from biodiverse sources, but are based on palm kernel oil or coconut oil.

The use of regional European vegetable oils would lead to greater diversity. However, such oil plants have a different composition than tropical ones: the carbon chain of the triglycerides of European oil seeds is generally longer and, depending on the type of plant, the fatty acids they contain are more or less unsaturated. Both have an influence on the chemical reactivity and the application properties. For this reason, additional research and development efforts are necessary in order to use such surfactants based on oil plants of the temperate climate zone in recipes for household and personal care products.

Dr. Edgar Endlein accepted. The sugar surfactants used, for example based on sunflower oil, are almost entirely made up of renewable carbon. Just like those based on rapeseed oil, they are also extremely mild and skin-friendly, can form stable foams and have strong emulsifying properties. Thanks to his innovative and future-oriented thinking and acting, the award winner has been able to successfully use surfactants based on regional European vegetable oils in detergents and cleaning agents of the Frosch brand in recent years. Its development and its market launch have a special value for society, especially under the aspect of sustainability.
Already this year, the U.S. has seen 14 more gun deaths per day than the average of the last six years, according to the Washington Post. 2021 has already been worse than 2020, which was the deadliest year for gun violence in the last two decades.

Taylor S. Schumann is a survivor of the April 2013 shooting at a college in Christiansburg, Virginia. She is a writer and activist whose writing has appeared in Christianity Today, Sojourners, and Fathom. She is the author of the forthcoming title When Thoughts and Prayers Aren't Enough (IVP, July 2021).

The following is an adaptation from Chapter 13, Beyond Thoughts and Prayers.

When I began to publicly speak out about gun reform, I expected the backlash and the criticism. What I did not expect were the attacks on my faith and my character from people who claim to follow Jesus. Even though I had spent almost all of my life in a conservative and religious area of the country where many people own firearms, I never grasped just how enmeshed it all is.

I was somehow labeled unpatriotic and un-American for wanting to reduce gun violence. I was told that I hate my country, that I should be more grateful to be an American, that I was attacking a God-given right. I have frequently been told that what happened to me is simply a price we pay for freedom. I have been called an angry and emotional woman. I have been accused of using my victimhood to become famous.

I have been told that I am selfish. Selfish for wanting to take peoples rights and guns away. Selfish for centering my own story and my own beliefs. And selfish for thinking other people should have to make compromises because something bad happened to me. I have been accused of using my story to manipulate people. I have asked people, If giving up your guns meant saving a life, would you do it? And they have replied to me, passionately, No. Its my right. Maybe the worst part of all of these is that when they happen online, and I click over to view their profile, I see a line saying that they believe in God.

None of these criticisms or observations of me are true, except for one. I am angry.

I am angry about the ways guns have poisoned our country like lead seeping into our water. I am angry that people are taught to cling to their personal freedoms and their individual comforts above caring for real life human people. I am angry that the God I believe in, the one who teaches us to love our neighbors, to sacrifice our lives for that of our friend, and to consider others more important than ourselves has been turned into a justification for a right he did not bestow and an ideology that looks nothing like him. So yes, I sure am angry. But more than that, I am sad.

Gun reform isnt about taking away everyones guns, or even the right to own one. But I ask you: even if it was, even if guns were banned tomorrow, why should we be so afraid? If you know and love Jesus and are going to spend eternity in Heaven with him, why does the idea of not having guns anymore scare you so much?

When we recite the Lords Prayer, we say Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. There are no guns in heaven. When I pray this prayer, I ask that God would help me bring some of his kingdom to earth. I pray that, in the same way, there would be no gun violence here on Earth, just as there is no gun violence in heaven.

Many people own guns for the just in case, the maybe, the what-ifs. Meanwhile, I live in a constant state of the reality, the actual, and the absolute. My reality is the same as thousands of others in America who wake up from a nightmare at 3am and cant sleep. Who operate in a dull state of chronic pain. Who cower at the sound of a car backfiring. Who wonder if the bullet fragments left in their body are poisoning them or damaging their bodies as they move around inching closer to the surface of their skin.

When I log into my online survivors support group I see posts of despair by people who miss their children, their parents, and their friends who were stolen by guns. I see posts from people who are in a state of panic because someone set off fireworks in their neighborhood or who cant stop panicking after seeing reports of a shooting on the news.

While some people sit in homes admiring the guns on their nightstand or in their display cases, theres another group of people who are trying their best to figure out how to live in a world where those guns are more important than their lives and the lives of people they love. We dont get to live in the what-if anymore.

Jesus says to inherit eternal life we must love God, and we must love our neighbor. Then he tells us what loving our neighbor looks like. He says go and do. Imagine a scenario in which the Good Samaritan passed by the man dying on the side of the road and stopped down to offer his thoughts and prayers and then go on his merry way. This man is called good because he cared for this mans physical needs, because he showed this man mercy, not because he simply prayed for this man to be helped.

Jesus says this is what loving our neighbor is. It is seeing their needs and taking care of them the way we take care of our own.

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I believe in the power of prayer. I believe in praying for others and I am thankful every day for the people who have and continue to pray for me. Every time I see a shooting on the news, I pause to pray, every time. Every month in my prayer journal I write a line for gun violence.

Its not the thoughts and prayers Im tired of. Its pretending the thoughts and prayers are all we have to do and all we have to offer.

I cant make people change their minds about gun reform. I cant force people to believe the data, the studies, and the stories. All I can do is offer these up for consideration. I can remind us of the words of Jesus many of us have read in the Bible since childhood. I can offer a picture of what the world might look like if Christians fought to save lives lost at the hands of gun violence as they do for those lost in abortion. I can ask all of us to imagine a world where we lay down the weapons of this world and try out the ways of Jesus for a change. The worst that could happen? We end up more like Him and less like this world.

We have so much more to offer this world than thoughts and prayers. We know a Savior who redeem, rescues, and gives of Himself to save others. A savior who leaves the 99 to find the one who is lost. We know a Savior who has taught us how to love one another. This is what we have to offer this world. This is what I want us to see. We are clinging so tightly to this thing that the world gave us, instead of walking in the ways that Jesus offers to us.

I want to end gun violence. I want no one else to have to suffer as a result of this horrific crisis. But what I want even more than that, is for Christians to take up their place in this fight. I want them to finally open their eyes to this injustice all around them, and to show the world we are here and we care and we will work to protect each other. I want us to stop enabling violence and instead seek peace, even if it costs us something.

We have the ability to bring the Kingdom of God to this earth with our hands and our feet. If the goal of being a follower of Jesus is to be more like him and to invite other people into His kingdom, then this would be a great place to start.

We cant keep trying to serve two masters. We cant keep passing the dying man on the side of the road. Weve desperately tried for decades to hold a Bible in one hand and a gun in the other and we have no hands left to serve each other, or Jesus. We have to choose. We have to lay one down. So I ask, who will you serve this day?

Adapted from When Thoughts and Prayers Arent Enough by Taylor S. Schumann. Copyright (c) 2021 by Taylor Sharpe Schumann. Published by InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL. www.ivpress.com
Back in March, Iowa pastor Andrew Schmidt could tell from the energy in the sanctuary that it would be Celebrate Churchs most-attended weekend since the pandemic began.

Schmidt welcomed new members, baptized babies, and teared up as he extended his arms to pray blessings over the congregation from the stage. Even with the church split between mask-required and mask-optional services, he said seeing 390 people in the building felt almost normal.

It was excitingand a wake-up call.

Wait a minute, we didnt want to just go back to the same things, he later told fellow leaders at Celebrate, the biggest church in the 7,000-person city of Knoxville. What is different for us, opportunity-wise?

With COVID-19 vaccines making way for looser recommendations around distancing and masking, many congregations in the US have been able to get back to normal operations again. But some are not rushing to return to how things were, opting instead to rethink how and why they gather.

Across the country, pastors like Schmidt have ushered weary congregants through virtual worship setups, lonely hospital stays, funerals, job losses, intense political tensions, and relentless debates over pandemic precautions. Churchgoers making their way back through the sanctuary doors in 2021 will carry the weight of trauma and divides built up over more than a year spent apartif they decide to return to the building at all.

During the first months of the year, fewer than half of regular churchgoers in the US made it to an in-person service, according to the Pew Research Center, though more than three-quarters said their churches had reopened.

Attendance has continued to rise, but some who once filled the rows of gray upholstered chairs in Celebrate Churchs auditorium, and sanctuaries across the country, have gotten used to the convenience of online worshipor have checked out altogether.

We have to retrain people from the beginning on why you should bother to assemble, said Collin Hansen, an elder at Redeemer Community Church in Birmingham and coauthor of the upcoming book Rediscover Church: Why the Body of Christ Is Essential. I think pastors take that for granted and are going to be surprised how many people never had that vision to begin with and never come back when the all-clear is given.

The immediate challenge is to get people to see the church as a community requiring their involvement rather than as content to consume on their owna problem that was widespread even before COVID-19 struck.

The sense of deep-rooted connectedness that most Americans have to a local church is becoming more and more transactional, less and less frequent, said David Kinnaman, president of the Barna Group.

The past year and a half, he said, didnt just change how Christians met; it changed their hearts and minds toward the church. Barna found that a third of practicing Christians had dropped out of church at some point and 29 percent of senior pastors said they seriously considered quitting in the past year.

Church leaders are going to revert to doing things the ways theyve always known them, whereas the population in general and millennials are going to find that this disruption altered their habits and perspectives on the role and relevance of the church, he said. The gap between the church and society is only going to be larger as we rebuild the church in a postpandemic world.

During nearly every crisis in US history, through wars and disasters, at least church communities could be together. In 2020, Christians faced the threat of the coronavirus, as well as the countrys compounding political and racial tensions, away from the people and spiritual practices they typically relied on.

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Pastors will have to be transparent about their personal experience in the pandemic, said Daniel Yang, who coaches church planters across the country as the director of the Send Institute, a think tank for evangelism affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention and Wheaton College. Modeling that in the congregation gives permission to the congregation and opens them up to doing the same in small groups or one-on-one situations, he said.

Yang rattles off the kinds of issues that have come up in his community in suburban Chicago: strained marriages, mental health struggles, young adults worried over school and career decisions, racial trauma.

What feels like struggles atop struggles could be an opportunity for the church to live up to its ideals, to care well for each other and look to God in their suffering.

For us to shy away from these things would be to reject what the Lord has offered, Yang said.

Ahead of its return to in-person services last month, One Life City Church in Fullerton, California, convened a series of lament panels to bring deeper emotions to the surface. Medical staff cried as they recounted stories from the hardest days treating COVID-19 patients in the ICU, and Asian Americans spoke up about the vulnerability they felt amid the recent surge in hate crimes.

The discussions were meant to bypass the slow awkwardness of surface-level catch-ups and get people talking about how theyre actually doing and what they went through over the past year.

If you come to church, it almost feels like thats the place where you hide and pretend everythings okay. Theres a sad irony to it because our faith is built upon a trauma: Christ died on the cross, said David Wang, One Life Citys pastor of spiritual formation. Wang is also a clinical psychologist and professor at Biola University. If anything, our faith has so much to say to people who have survived things, which is most of us. COVID is a mass trauma on a global scale.

Throughout the pandemic, churches still adapted to extend care in the short term, boosted by an influx of volunteers and donations from people desperate to help. But so much outreach was done from a literal arms length, without the ongoing conversation, prayer, and physical togetherness that grounds Christian community.

At Celebrate Church in Iowa, members rose to the challenges of the pandemic, running a drive-thru food bank that expanded from serving 27 families to 170 families a week. Church leaders started the pandemic by calling every member to check in and following up months later.

Larissa Van Donselaar, a member and elder at the Reformed Church in America congregation, happened to cold-call a woman she had never met just after the woman had lost her job, and they prayed together over the phone.

The pandemic forced churches to prioritize people over programs, and Van Donselaar believes thats where their focus needs to remain. God doesnt call us to go back, she said. We only go forward and look forward.

At Celebrate Church, people are hungry now to be in person with each other and to have real relationships, said Schmidt, so the church is trying to offer more points of connection. Members who have never done Bible study are now signing up, and leaders are exploring ideas for micro communities to open up new settings for prayer, worship, and teaching on a smaller scale.

The micro gathering trend, where Christians from the same church worship in homes and backyards, took off during the pandemic, especially in places where restrictions on worship extended for much of 2020. Its expected to carry on even now that its safe to return to full services.

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There are a significant number of pastors asking the question, How do we do church in a more decentralized fashion coming out of the pandemic?  said Yang. Theres going to be a partial reimagination of how to be the body [of Christ].

Without big church gatherings during lockdown, Christians didnt have the chance to sit side by side in pews or come to the Communion table alongside fellow churchgoers with whom they disagree. Instead, debates over major issues like the 2020 election and pandemic responses played out over social media, and it became easier for people to segregate with those who shared their beliefs or even to switch churches.

Experts say many pastors will find themselves reopening to deeper divisions or having lost members who opted to find more like-minded congregations. Youre going to have to ask, Okay, now that everybodys vaccinated, where are we? Are we united? Are we on the same page?  said Yang. That conversation is going to happen for certain kinds of churches.

Hansen mentioned a retreat center pitching itself as a place for churches to get away and hash everything out when theyre back together. This isnt going to be solved through some one-way sermons, he said. We need to talk about why this is going to be so difficult for us.

The conversations wont be easy, especially if churches are quick to celebrate a happy ending rather than address challenges. Theres no trajectory for how a community recovers from a trauma they experienced at once but separately. If we were to try to skip all the stages of grief and go straight to meaning-making and celebration, wed just be encouraging avoidance and denial, said Wang at Biola. Wed be setting people up for failure in a way that I dont believe is sound theology either.

Predominantly Black churches, whose communities suffered a disproportionate number of COVID-19 deaths and were hit hardest financially during the pandemic, have a slower trajectory.

Were going to have to be ready when people come back together for those who itll feel like a dam breaks when they walk into the doors. Itll feel like theyve been holding in all this longing to be together, to worship, said Nicole Massie Martin, executive director of trauma healing at the American Bible Society and a minister at Kingdom Fellowship AME Church in Maryland.

When they get a chance to do that, I hope and pray the church will be prepared to bring healing and usher people into a new season.

Kate Shellnutt is senior news editor of Christianity Today. Follow her on Twitter @KateShellnutt.

Have something to add about this? See something we missed? Share your feedback here.
Over the last year of the US pandemic, a few key scientists and medical professionals have been lifted onto the national stage by their timely expertise. Americans turn to them for information, insight, and even pastoral care of a certain kind. Among those is the physician-geneticist Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and founder of BioLogos.

Timothy Dalrymple, president and editor in chief of Christianity Today, and Ted Olsen, CTs executive editor, spoke recently with Collins about the Delta variant, vaccine hesitancy among evangelicals, and how Christians can come alongside communities that are still crippled by the virus.

Dalrymple: I understand there is an effort to get more folks vaccinated before July 4, and thats the reason for this conversation. But first, tell us about the Delta variant.

This Delta variant, which is the one that decimated the country of India, is leading to all kinds of terrible tragedies. It has now also taken over in the United Kingdom, where now theyre wondering whether they can actually open upwhich they planned to dobecause this virus is spreading so rapidly.

Its about 50 percent more contagious than the previous record holder, which is the one we call Alpha. But Delta is even more contagious. And unfortunately, this has now come to the US, and in the last couple of weeks, about 6 percent of the viruses that were isolated from infected folks are this Delta variant. Its likely to grow very rapidly now, just because of its ability to spread.

It seems also really good at spreading amongst young people, who are often the folks who havent gotten around to getting vaccinated, because they thought maybe this wasnt such a threat to them. And this certainly can be a threat.

Dalrymple: So what Ive heard is that the Delta variant is more transmissible, perhaps more likely to lead to hospitalization, and yet the vaccines seem to be effective against it.

Thats the good news. If you get both dosesnot just one but both dosesof the Pfizer or the Moderna vaccine, you are protected about at the 90 percent level from getting sick from Delta. And thats something you would really not want to pass up.

So I know theres still about 90 million people out there who have not yet rolled up their sleeve for that first shot, and many people still on the fence wondering, Is this really safe? Is it really something that I want to do for myself? Heres one more really good reason to get off the fence.

Look at the data. Theres lots of information there. Go to the website thats called getvaccineanswers.org if youre interested in having some of your questions answered. And then make a decision, because this is potentially going to ruin our plans for getting back to something approaching normal. If we have communities where vaccination levels are still pretty low, Delta is potentially going to cause another round of outbreaks, and its going to be preventable, if we can move quickly now to get shots in arms.

Dalrymple: I check the Johns Hopkins dashboard every day, and for a long time there, every state was blue, which indicates that the rates are still falling. Now I see a couple of states that are showing pink or red again. Are you starting to see a breakout of containment in a couple places?

I think that is unfortunately the case. For a while we could see rates falling in all 50 states, and boy, was that wonderful to see after what weve been through for the last year and a half. And really only back in January, where there were hundreds of thousands of new cases every day and thousands of deaths.

And weve come way down from that, by like a 90 percent drop in the number of cases and deaths, but thats not a guarantee that will continue. As youre saying, when you start to see a shift in a few places, thats a warning that were not exactly where we need to be.

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But we could be again, now that weve had these vaccines out there for almost a year, beginning with the original large-scale trials. Weve been able to see just how effective and how safe they are in the real world, and for people who havent yet figured out that its something they want to take advantage of, this would be a great moment to look again.

Let me say one other thing that we have to think about, and that is those people who cant get vaccinated. Those would be kids under 12. But it would also be people who have cancer, who are on chemotherapy. They could get it injected but it probably wont work. They wont have an immune system that can respond to it.

Dalrymple: Right.

Or my friend who has a kidney transplant, who, because of the suppression therapy he has to be on, cant respond to the vaccine. Those people are counting on the rest of us to develop enough community immunity that this virus wont keep going and wont threaten them. So yeah, this is a love your neighbor kind of moment. Its not just about your own self-protection. Its also about helping other people around youand it seems like thats what Christians have always been called upon to do and have always risen to that challenge. This would be a great time to do so.

Dalrymple: Obviously, weve been concerned about vaccine hesitancy among evangelicals. Do you have any data on whether that hesitancy is declining? Are we making new progress? Ive had a hard time finding any updated data on that.

I look at the various polls that are put out by the Kaiser Family Foundation and others. It hasnt been terribly encouraging. Yes, I am an evangelical Christian, and it does trouble me that this seems to be a group where the hesitancy is particularly strong. And there are lots of reasons and lots of questions, although many of those have really good answers.

But for some reason, in many churches, theres still sort of this sense of, okay, well, were trusting in God here, and therefore we dont need to reach out and take advantage of these vaccines that might, by something weve heard on social media, have something wrong with them.

First of all, theres a lot of things on social media. Please dont pay too much attention to those. Go and look at the real datagetvaccineanswers.org is a good place to do that. But secondly, if youve been praying for protection for yourself and your family from COVID-19, and now these vaccines come along that are safe and effective, it kind of seems to me like thats an answer to prayer. It felt that way to me, being part of the process of getting those developed. Maybe think of it as a gift from Godbut a gift youve got to unwrap.

Which means roll up your sleeve.

Olsen: Im curious about the folks who have received both doses and have been masking. How can they further show love for neighbor, not knowing who may be unvaccinated? Ive checked my box, I got a vaccine, but now I wonder, Theres this Delta threat, and I dont know if theres anything I should be doing. Not necessarily for myself, but for the community.

Its a great question. I do think its a time for those of us who have had already the opportunity to get immunizedand Im one of thoseto become ambassadors to those who are still not sure.

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Go to Google and type in We can do this, and itll take you to a site that has hundreds of organizations, hundreds of churches, the National Association of Evangelicals, youll see theyre right there, joined up together to try to be in that space of providing encouragement to people who are still not sure. Individuals can be ambassadors. Just go to We Can Do This, and theyll send you a whole bunch of links to information that you can use to answer other peoples questions.

Because sometimes thats the way peoples minds really get made upnot because they hear some government guy, that would be me, talking about this. Its because of a neighbor who has the information, or their doctor, or their priest, or their clergyman. All of those are trusted voices. By the way, 90% of doctors have gotten immunized, and that tells you something about what they think about the importance of the vaccine. And the We Can Do This site is a place to empower yourself, if you want to be one of those trusted voices and arent sure how.

Dalrymple: Thank you for pointing us toward that. On the international front, are you concerned that sub-Saharan Africa might be the next India?

Im really worried. Ive been worried all along that Africa is in a vulnerable position because of health care delivery limitations; access to vaccines, which has been very limited up until now; and of course with these variants coming along that are even more contagious. So far Africa hasnt been hit too hard, but theres no reason that could not be in the future.

So we as citizens of the planet and people who care about our brothers and sisters, regardless of what country theyre in, we should be doing everything we can to try to help make sure that vaccines do become as readily available as possible as soon as possible.

One of the things that Im caring most about as head of the NIHwe have a global health mission as wellis to try to see in the longer term what we could do to get vaccine manufacturing capabilities more widely distributed. Why dont we have vaccine manufacturing in Ethiopia, in Senegal, in South Africa, instead of depending on just a few places in the world? We need to fix that in the long term.

Olsen: One last question. Other than prayer, is there something that American Christians can be doing to help folks overseas? How can we help organizations on the front lines?

Certainly for organizations that are committed long term to supporting health care in Africa, this is a crucial moment to be sure they have the resources they need. Because it wont just be about vaccine doses. Itll be about the personnel out there and delivering the vaccines in hard-to-reach places. People mostly have their favorites, I think, whether its World Vision or whatever. This is a time to double down on being generous, and Christians are pretty good at that.

For more information, go to christiansandthevaccine.com and getvaccineanswers.org.
We all know that race relations are toxic in our society today. Debates over statues, critical race theory in education, police reform, and election reform are only the tip of the iceberg.

Some would have us believe there are only two routes to ending racial alienation: Either we take a passive, colorblind approach, or we take an aggressive, antiracist approach. But there is a third and better way to solve the problem. To understand that path, it is valuable to understand first how we use reason, power, and moral suasion to affect others actions.

By way of illustration, lets say that you have a child unwilling to clean up his room. How do you get him to do start doing that? Or you have a friend dating a guy who is mentally manipulative and even abusive. You fear for her safety. How do you get through to her? Or you are teaching a student who needs to put more time into his studies. Can you get him to do that? Or your aunt is picking up some of the most toxic QAnon philosophy. How do you show her the error of those ideas?

One option is to not try to convince your son, friend, student, or aunt to change. But we often are in situations when we believe that we must change the perspective of others.

If we want to persuade someone to change, we have the options of using power, moral suasion, or possibly reason. But to be honest, I think using reason to convince others is overrated. Most of us are not as driven by reason as wed like to think. Confirmation bias and groupthink tend to interfere with our ability to rely on just our intellect to make decisions. We easily mistake our emotional desires for rational conclusions.

If reason is not reliable, then we are left with the other two options: power and moral suasion. We can change peoples ways by using some form of social, political, legal, or other power. Or we can find a way to persuade individuals that making those changes is the right thing to do. Except for rare circumstances, when people make changes due to the influence of others, there is typically some degree of power or moral suasion in play.

There are many forms of power that can be used. A parent obviously has some power over a child. Legal power can be used to hand out punishment. Social power can be used to stigmatize anyone who does not submit to demands or change their attitudes. Those with material resources can withhold those resources. In these battles over power, people either fear losing it when they have it, or they fear not getting it from the person in control.

There is a time when power needs to be used. I want the police officer to use power to stop the bank robber. As a parent, I need to exercise my power to stop my young kids from making foolish decisions, such as only eating candy. I have used physical power to stop a physical altercation.

Power is a necessary tool when there is a need to deter. But there is a cost to using it. People who alter their beliefs or actions due to fear are likely to go back to their old habits when the fear is removed. If we rely upon power to get what we want, then we will continue to overpower others to get our way.

For example, Cubans justifiably used power to throw off the oppressive regime of Fulgencio Batista. But the movement installed Fidel Castro, who went on to use his newfound powers to continue the oppression in a different format. Those who gain power through power often are unwilling to relinquish it once they have it. Those who gain power will not always use it for righteous means.

But if reason is ineffective and power brings its own dangers, then what we have left is moral suasion. We can persuade individuals that it is right to change their mind or to take certain actions. Once people become convinced that the new actions are the moral thing to do, then change is likely to occur.

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When some people think of moral suasion, they may think of a wild-eyed evangelical preaching incessantly. Or they may think of a liberal professor indoctrinating students. Nothing could be further from the truth. Real moral suasion requires that we build rapport with those we want to persuade. It means we must accurately understand their point of view. We must also learn to admit when they are correct. And we should be willing to find areas of agreement with those we are attempting to persuade.

In other words, real moral suasion is about relationship-building, not browbeating.

Moral suasion, done properly, has the power to unite us by making us want to identify with and care for each other. It can make us want to work with others and find out what is good for them. It is not about forcing people to believe what they do not want to believe. It is about coming together to find common ground and moving forward together. When people change through moral suasion, then they are likely to maintain their new attitudes regardless of changing social attitudes.

Of course, sometimes we still need to use power. My experience of raising three boys under seven illustrates this point: I must use power to get them to eat what they should, get bathed, avoid dangerous play, avoid mistreating their brothers, clean up after themselves, and so on.

But as they get older, I must rely less on power and more on moral suasion. I must convince them that its right to eat the proper types of food, bathe, treat their brothers well, and clean up after themselves. Beyond learning how to make smart decisions, when they get older, I will no longer have the power to enforce those views. Then they will do what they want instead of what I can force them to do.

What does all of this have to do with our dysfunctional race relations? We have had hundreds of years of racial abuse in this country. While we do not have the same degree of racial abuse today, we are still suffering from the effects of that abuse. The big questions is: What are we going to do with the enduring effects of that abuse? Disagreement on that question is a major source of our racial alienation.

There are those who believe the best way to answer that question is to ignore race. This has been called the colorblind approach. There are others who emphasize an aggressive, proactive tactic to address racism in all its myriad forms. Much of this effort falls under a general rubric of antiracism. Racial conflict in the United States is often tied to the enduring argument about how aggressively we should tackle modern expression of racism.

For the most part, individuals in both groups rely on power to move their perspectives forward. Whether it is political, social, or cultural power, supporters of colorblindness and antiracism seek to force individuals to accept their particular point of view. If supporters on either side of this debate gain enough power to force their perspective on others, then history teaches us that they will do whatever they need to do to maintain that power. They will do so not because they are evil but because they are all too human.

But what if we looked in a different direction? What if moral suasion and relationship-building became our approach to constructing our racial future? What if we worked at understanding the perspective of others and collaborating to find functional compromises? What if we built rapport to create unity around common identity rather than fear? Would that not be a better path?

What would it look like if we relied on moral suasion, instead of power, to put forward our racial vision for society? There would be less saber rattling in social media and on political talk shows and more discussions that attempt to understand the perspective of others. We would learn how to actively listen and express ourselves in ways that communicate our desires to others. We would figure out solutions that do not denigrate others and that others can help us to implement.

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Bringing people together to solve problems rather than argue with each other would qualitatively alter our race relations for the better. Trying to use moral suasion in a healthy way brings people together rather than driving them apart.

We know this from other areas of our lives. In our interpersonal relationships, we know it is not healthy to just overpower each other. There are marriages where one spouse consistently overpowers the other spouse. And we have seen how unhealthy those relationships become.

We know those marriages would be qualitatively better if the spouses learned how to communicate with each other and find solutions that meet the needs of both. While sometimes power is necessary, we know that good relationships depend much more on using moral suasion than force.

Yet in our current society, we often deal with race by consistently trying to overpower our enemies, rather than by finding ways to communicate and persuade them of our perspective. Why cant we work at finding common values and agreements? Why cant we listen to each other until we accurately understand the interests and desires of others? Should not everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, as James 1:19 reminds us?

Sometimes I think that we already know what we need to do to improve race relations but we simply dont want to do it. But we are going to have to live in this society together. We are going to have to find answers to the racial issues of our day. We can choose to remain in a power struggle with each other, or we can begin to learn how to dialogue in a healthy fashion.

Many people on different sides of these racial issues have a vested interest in continuing our unproductive fighting. But if we learn to stop listening to those voices and start listening to each other, we can finally take important steps toward real racial unity and equality.

George Yancey is a professor of sociology at Baylor University and author of the forthcoming book, Beyond Racial Division (IVP).

Speaking Out is Christianity Todays guest opinion column and (unlike an editorial) does not necessarily represent the opinion of the magazine.
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Last year, I spoke at Missio Nexus, the fellowship and training group, on a clear shift in global missions. Its a shift from missions agencies to local (often larger churches) leading in missions. This does not mean that missions agencies dont matter they have actually engaged that shift by resourcing local churches. The next few articles are taking from that talk at Missio Nexus.

The way by which evangelical churchesespecially in the United States and Canadaparticipate in global missions has undergone subtle, but significant shifts over the last few decades. I refer to this shift in missional engagement as being from agency to church. By agency I refer to the prominent role of missions agencies like YWAM or Pioneers as well as large missionary-sending denominations like the Assemblies of God or the Southern Baptist Convention. Missional engagement has taken place throughout the world primarily through these missional agencies and denominations, but this is beginning to change.

In this short series, I am not encouraging disengaging from such agencies. Actually, I have consulted with several such agencies on how they can engage the substantial trend of local churches doing their own mission sending.

Mission Through Agency

Mission agencies and denominations have long functioned as centers, both of missionary sending as well as missiological strategy and training. Agencies generally have well-established inroads in nations all around the world, with robust strategies and training to match them. Additionally, agencies often have established indigenous missions boards in local contexts around the world that partner with Western counterparts. This gives agencies a unique capacity to understand the needs and cultural mores of the context and therefore allows missionaries from the West to respond to the needs of the context with less collateral damage than a missionary who enters the culture without the insight of indigenous cultural informants.

Missions agencies and denominations have generally been funded through micro-donations from Western patrons and affiliate churches. For example, many Assemblies of God missionaries have been funded by a multitude of AG churches and individuals giving smaller recurring donations. This model creates opportunities for smaller churches to participate in missions by funding the missions strategy at smaller levels but in partnership with others.

With every strength, there are generally weaknesses to a model or method. Under the agency model, while smaller churches can engage in missions abroad, their missions strategy is largely outsourced to agencies rather than led and engaged by churches and congregations. When we reflect on the relationship between the local church and cross-cultural missions under the agency model we see how agencies and denominations have functioned largely as outsourcing agents to missions. Thus, the local church acts as the funder of missions strategy, but not an active participant in missions strategy. While the agency model does enable some churches the ability to engage in missions work through funding with little other involvement, it also possesses the negative impact of disempowering other churches, who do possess the means to engage in cross-cultural missions work by outsourcing its missions work.

In conversations with pastors around the country, Ive observed two shifts within this transition from missions through an agency to missions through the church: the shift from a small church to a large church and the shift from long-term to short-term.

Church Shift Number One: From Small Church to Large Church

Megachurches have been around for decades, and the number of megachurches in the United States continues to grow, despite the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. The rise of the megachurch in the last several decades has meant that many local churches, because of their size, capacity, and funding, have become their own agency for global missions with the missions pastor as the leader. Megachurches are developing their own people to send. They are funding global workers at much higher levels. They are developing their own international connections, partners, and projects. They are taking on many of the roles that were typically done by mission agencies. Whereas smaller churches tend to view missions agencies or their denominations missions department as a missions-focused extension of themselves, larger churches see missions agencies and even denominations as potential missions partners. Megachurches want to engage in global missions on their own terms and work together with mission agencies to support and partner with their workers and projects.

This shift from small church dependency on a missions agency to large church independence in missions work has uniquely contributed to the shift from agency to church in mission.

This shift presents some opportunities. Some have explained that such missions appears to cut out the middleman. Technology and globalization have made it easier for churches to form partnerships that simply run cross-culturally, church-to-church. This is certainly simpler than a church-to-agency-to-indigenous agency-to church planter on the ground partnership.

Can lose missiological sophistication

While its true that the shift from agency to church does effectively streamline the missions process, there are still some deleterious effects from this change. There is increased potential to lose the missiological sophistication that established agencies bring to global missions in church-to-church partnerships without agency or denominational involvement. Agencies and denominations alike have functioned as a reservoir of knowledge and experience and have functioned as a key broker of information between missiologists in academia and boots-on-the-ground ministry. While missions agencies and denominations are informed by the missiological work being done in the academic world, they are also doing the informing for the missiologists about what is taking place in the field. Agencies and denominations can provide a treasure trove of history, expertise, and training. While there are notable exceptions, church-to-church partnerships have usually not taken advantage of that treasure.

As a result, we risk creating unintentional damage in cross-cultural contexts by ignoring economic and cultural differences that we do not understand, creating systems of dependency that agencies and denominations have fought hard to avoid over the years. Mission agencies and denominations have generally possessed a higher level of sophistication due to a century of mistakes and learning throughout the missionary movement of the 1900s. Many churches are now making the same mistakes as they engage in missions without this accumulated knowledge.

The need for missiological training

As local church missions pastors are playing crucial roles in this new paradigm of church-led mission, there is a crucial need in North American evangelical churches for training and diversity in the missions pastor role. Missions pastor roles today require a higher level of sophistication and thus require missiological and cross-cultural training and experience to be effective. Additionally, most missions pastors around the country are middle-aged white men. Diversifying this role with well-qualified pastors who are female or from other ethnic backgrounds and cultures would dramatically reduce the tendency toward Western dependency and paternalism.

In previous generations missionaries committed to a certain context for life, setting sail to the other side of the world and figuratively burning their boats or bringing their caskets with them. Few still follow this lifelong missionary model in a single location even though it is still necessary and important. Many changes have been brought on by the ease of global travel and communication which has changed the field workers' and churches' engagement in global missions. Today, missionary assignments, projects, partnerships, and travel are increasingly short-term instead of long-term. Many churches have shifted their focus from sending long-term workers to developing international partnerships and sending short-term teams for one to two weeks.

The challenge of partnerships

The newest edition of the Missions Handbook reports interesting data related to this topic. The number of long-term field workers (those serving four years or more) from North America (the US and Canada) has decreased by approximately 3-4 percent since 2010. Additionally, an increasingly important segment is mid-term field workers who serve overseas for 1-4 years. The number of mid-term workers decreases by 3 percent since 2010. Since the 1970s there have been exponential increases in short-term missions. This category of short-term workers serving more than two weeks but less than one year shows a significant decrease. The decrease is not just relative to 2008 but is significantly lower than the numbers recorded in 1996, twenty years ago. Since its peak in 2001, this category has been in steady decline.

This data does not report the number of people going on even shorter-term mission trips sponsored by churches for two weeks or less to work typically with church partners. Many churches heavily focus on engaging their congregation in global missions through the use of these short-term trips even though the immediate and long-term benefits of these trips are often questionable. Additionally, many churches are focusing on developing international partnerships with churches and organizations around the world and use short-term teams as the primary vehicle for engagement rather than on sending and supporting long-term workers. This is especially true for churches that have a shallow understanding and investment in global missions with untrained missions leaders.

Nevertheless, cultivating a long-term covenantal partnership with international partners is an encouraging shift in global missions which indicate that the North American church is learning to act with humility and mutuality as it engages in the Great Commission alongside friends in other parts of the world who often have the cultural expertise, connections, and resources to reach their own region better than Americans. As the shift from agency to church continues, large churches taking up this missional task can lean into the practice of deeply-rooted relationships with indigenous churches and organizations that foster relationships, between the leaders of those churches and the congregations as well.

Where from here?

The practice of global missions continues to change as the world has changed. The shifts that we see from agencies and the primary vehicle for missions to churches, from small church involvement to large church leadership, and from long-term sending of field workers to short-term sending of teams brings both positive and negative impact to global missions. We must continue to examine these shifts and practices so that the North American church can participate with the global church in the Great Commission in both healthy and strategic ways.
Thelma Battle Buckner learned to play piano in dreams.

She took one lesson as a child, but then the teacher left, and she prayed for help. She received visions in her sleep of her practicinglessons from God, as she understood itand quickly learned Jesus Loves Me, How Great Thou Art, and Just a Closer Walk With Thee.

Later, when she played for her fathers Pentecostal revivals, and later, when she and her children performed for Minnesota Lutherans and on the public radio show A Prairie Home Companion, and still later, when she pastored a Church of God in Christ congregation in St. Paul even though the denomination does not believe that women should lead churches and neither did she, she would apologize for her limited skill.

But then she would say, Dont blame me if I cant play any better. God taught me.

Buckner always recognized her own limitations and Gods call on her life to rise above them. She responded to God with worship, thanksgiving, and workand urged those around her to do the same.

I will always serve the Lord, she sang in one of the gospel songs she wrote herself. And let me tell you why / He has given me strength in trouble / My guiding light in the sky.

Buckner died on June 11 at age 89.

The Gospel Temple Church of God in Christ in St. Paul will celebrate her life with music on Wednesday. She will lie in state in the church on Thursday. And she will receive a homegoing service on Friday.

From a long line of fervent Pentecostals

Buckner was born to Nathan and Bessie Wainwright Battle in Racetrack, Mississippi, on April 26, 1932. Her parents were sharecroppers and partners in Pentecostal ministry, regularly leading revivals around the state.

During the summer, Nathan Battle often preached every night. A revival would last a few weeks, Buckner later recalled, but if the Holy Spirit broke out, it could go on for an entire month.

The Battles came from a line of revivalists and fervent Black Pentecostals and passed down family stories about the power of God. According to one, Buckners grandfather was being cheated out of cotton profits by a white landownera common problem for Black families struggling to survive as farmers after the abolition of slaveryand he decided to leave and find a new place to sharecrop. The white owner stopped him with a shotgun.

Buckners grandfather started praying in tongues, and it scared the white man, who used a racial epithet and swore Black people dont speak other languages. The man then begged them to leave his land, just as Pharaoh once asked Moses and the Hebrew children to leave their bondage in Egypt.

The story delighted Buckner, and when she was a child, she loved the sound of people praying in tongues and all the noise of a revival.

There would be singing, shouting, clapping, and jumping, she wrote in her memoir in 2013. Folks gave their lives to Christ from all that preaching, shouting, clapping, and jumping.

After she learned to play piano, Buckner, who was nicknamed Sassy, contributed to the holy noise. She was baptized in a Mississippi river at 10, and she gave her life to church, worship, and revival whenever she wasnt in school.

A difficult marriage

In 1950, Buckner married a young Pentecostal preacher her family had known before he moved from Mississippi to Ohio. Though she had only met Arthur Buckner twice, they corresponded by mail and she agreed to marry him and move to be with him in Ohio.

She quickly regretted the decision.

What did I know at 18? she said. We married as strangers and didnt know how to get acquainted.

In 1952, they moved from Ohio to Minnesota, where Buckners older brother had started a small Church of God in Christ, but the marriage did not improve.

Buckners husband left her at home during the day while he went to work and at night while he went to preach at various churches around the city. She wanted to accompany him and participate as a partner in his ministry, but he refused.

When Buckner got pregnant, he didnt want her to leave the house at all. And she got pregnant five times in 11 yearsincluding with three sets of twins. Buckner had eight children by age of 29 when Arthur abandoned her. He went to preach at a revival in Chicago in 1961 and never returned.

Buckner was mostly glad to be left to raise the children on her own. She started working at a local factory and trusted God to provide.

Im just taking a moment to testify, Buckner told the church after her husband left. Every day the Lord makes a way.

It was hard trials and tribulations

A short time later, Buckner took in eight of her sisters children when her sister was too ill to care for them. Then she started taking in children whose parents were struggling with drugs and alcohol. She took care of an estimated 500 kids before the county government licensed her as a foster care provider in 1972.

In 1985, she bought a 100-year-old, nine-bedroom house in St. Paul so she could take in more children. The exact number of children she cared for is unknown, but it is believed to be more than 1,000.

You see a need, you take care of it, Buckner said. I dont know how successful I was. It was hard trials and tribulations and bumping my head. Only way to raise a child is to be persistent.

At the same time, she and six of her eight children started performing gospel music. First they played in the Gospel Temple, where they attended, and then around the city and the state. They performed as Thelma Buckner and the Minnesota Gospel Twins, and they were a big hit at Lutheran churches and with Garrison Keillor, creator and host of A Prairie Home Companion. They appeared on the show multiple times.

Called to ministry

At 62, Buckner faced a new challenge when her elder brother died and there was no one available to lead the Gospel Temple. She tried to hire a minister, and then another and then another, but no one was willing to take on the small church. She felt God telling her that she should do it.

I didnt believe in women priests, she said. I came from the old school. I didnt think I should even be a pastor.

Buckner was reminded of Moses, who also thought he was unqualified to lead Gods people and his brother should do the job. She thought of Jesus statement that if his followers didnt praise him, the rocks themselves would cry out. And she made a decision.

I said, Okay, Lord, Ill speak whenever you want me to, Buckner said. I refuse to let a rock talk in my place, so Im going to serve the Lord, hallelujah.

She led the church for 15 years, retiring in her 70s. Gospel Temple is now pastored by her son Dwight.

She went back to school and earned a doctorate from the Minnesota Graduate School of Theology in 2002, at age 70, and launched a ministry teaching young people to sew. They called her Granny.

Bucker is survived by her children Gwen Onumah-Onikoro, Bessie Jean Manga, Jesse Buckner, Dwight Buckner, Patrick Buckner, Patricia Lacy-Aiken, Arthur Buckner, and Aretta-Rie Johnson.
An open letter to the Southern Baptist Convention

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Dear Southern Baptists:

Though I am an elderly man, I am your kid.

And though I am no longer a pastor in a Southern Baptist church, I am employing skills and applying knowledge you nurtured in me beginning in 1950 when I first joined a Southern Baptist church at age nine.

Through scholarships and grants you enabled me to graduate from a Baptist school, Samford University, and then attend Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Alabama Baptists surprised me in 1983-1985 by twice electing me president of the million-member Alabama Baptist State Convention.

You licensed me to ministry in 1958 and ordained me in 1962. From 1973 to 2019 I had the privilege of serving as pastor or associate pastor of Southern Baptist churches, including your largest, Second Baptist of Houston. There I was a senior associate pastor for eighteen years under one of your finest leaders, Dr. Ed Young.

While I am not currently in a Baptist pulpit, my love for you has not faded. There are three great themes that have reverberated in my spirit and soul, whether in newspaper journalism, covering the turmoil of the 1960s, or in the White House where I served three intense years, or the U.S. House of Representatives where I worked as an aide for a year.

The vision the Lord used you to instill in me has never faded and continues to drive me in my eighth decade of life to the extent I cannot sit down and be still.

Those three great themes that the Holy Spirit seared into my heart using you as an instrument were these:

The Bible is the inerrant Word of God, fully inspired by the Holy Spirit.

Evangelism is the passion of our existence as a body of Christians seeking to work together.

Missions is critical to our task, and we must keep our eyes and minds open to the whole world as our mission field, beginning with our own communities.

I write this letter to you in the wake of your recent convention in Nashville. My mind and emotions traveled back over the decades. In all those conflicts, we were intensely conscious of outside forces trying to deepen the wedges that we ourselves had first opened in our fellowship. Those issues, their propagators, propagandists, and perpetuators, diverted our passion for evangelism and the energy and material resources for global missions, and weakened commitment to the highest view of biblical inspiration and authority.

There are those who recall and remind us of the cancer of racism and slavery in the Conventions founding history. But Baptist institutions and the Convention itself, under the leadership of men and women like Dr. Al Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, have publicly confessed and formally repented of the sins of the founders, and the perpetuation of that social iniquity.

Southern Baptists must maintain a continual watch lest ground be given again to societal evils like racism and discrimination. But it is also important to embrace the truth that in Christ old things are passed away and all things are made new. (2 Corinthians 5:17) That includes institutions as well as the individuals who comprise them.

Newness often involves a recovery of the best of the old, so dont join the herd of historical revisionists who are seeking to redefine the United States and re-write its history.

Be a voice that cries out to God in repentance for our past national sins, but also the herald of hope in Gods promise of forgiveness and the freshness of His restoration of ourselves to fellowship with Him, love for our neighborswhomever they may beand the promise of a blessed future.

Relevancy is essential for the sake of proclaiming the Gospel to the culture. However, there is a point at which the passion for relevancy becomes reactionary. Reactionism leads to a loss of focus on the grand objective. There is a confusion of fundamental identity.

Contemporary issues become definitive of both being and function. The unthinking and constant reactionism brought on by the urge to relevancy ultimate leads to conformity. The person or institution enamored with its contemporariness becomes identified more with those with whom it seeks identification than its real being.

I have seen this in myselfespecially in the 1960sas well as institutions.

So, dear Southern Baptists, the Zeitgeist, the spirit of the age, has been wrestling with you. Its aim is to bring you over to its side. It seeks entry constantly. Once in, it seeks to control dominance everywhere.

The Long March of Marxist-inspired theory that has produced a pandemic of spiritual, philosophical, and functional disease in so many of our institutions wants to invade you as well.

You dont need the latest theory to root out racism and discrimination because the Bible informs you of what to do about such sin. While others try to pull you into their agendas and notions of the systemic nature of things, you have the greater perspectivethe transcendent. You must address the systemic evil of personal and societal sin as the Bible addresses it. You have the treasure of the Book of Revelations unveiling of the Babylonian world system. Let that shape your understanding and message.

Allow Gods transcendent truth about sin, including racism and other present malignancies, inform you and then you inform the rest of society through Spirit-inspired prophetic proclamation, and bind the wounds of those afflicted by our current manifestations of evil through Spirit-empowered pastoral ministry.

Go back to who you truly are. Bring the best of your past into the worst of the present.

Keep upholding and teaching the inerrant authority of the Bible.

Continue the focus on evangelism.

Continue casting the vision for global missions.





In Christs Bond and with much love,

Wallace B. Henley
Kamala Harris to visit Texas border 3 months after being put in charge of immigration crisis

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Vice President Kamala Harris will visit the U.S. southern border about three months after she was put in charge of handling the illegal immigration crisis.

The Office of the Vice President sent out an email to the press on Wednesday confirming that Harris will visit El Paso, Texas, on Friday, with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas joining her.

Earlier this year, the President asked the Vice President to oversee our diplomatic efforts to address the root causes of migration from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, stated the email. As a part of this ongoing work, the Vice President traveled to Guatemala and Mexico earlier this month and will travel to El Paso on Friday.

Harris will be nearly 800 miles away from the cities and towns affected by the border crisis, such as Mission and McAllen. The vice president also won't be meeting with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott or Border Patrol agents, mayors and residents who are most affected by the surge of migrants.

"Vice President Harris is ignoring the real problem areas along our southern border that are not protected by the border wall and are being overrun by the federal government's ill-thought-out open border policies," Abbott said in a statement about Harris' visit to El Paso amid the ongoing border crisis.

"She will fail in her mission if she refuses to speak to residents of the Del Rio sector whose homes and ranches are being overrun by gangs and smugglers," the governor added.

"The vice president was named border czar over 90 days ago, and in that time Texans have had their homes broken into, property damaged, and guns pointed at their heads as cartels, smugglers and human traffickers profit off the Biden administrations reckless open-border policies," he continued. "I launched Operation Lone Star in March to combat this record-high influx of people and crime, and since then DPS has arrested over 1,700 criminals, apprehended over 41,000 migrants, and seized enough fentanyl to kill over 21 million people."

President Joe Biden tapped Harris to be border czar on March 24, saying she was the most qualified person to do it" due to her experience as attorney general of California. She has since faced criticism for not accepting repeated requests that she visit the southern border to see the crisis for herself.

The Biden administrations approach to dealing with mass migration and the border crisis was also criticized by Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei. He noted that despite telling people not to come to the U.S. months after the crisis began, as Vice President Kamala Harris did during her recent visit to that country, the administration's policies are making it easier for cartels to traffic people into the U.S.

I want to be clear to folks in this region who are thinking about making the dangerous trek to the United States-Mexico border  do not come, do not come, said Harris at a press conference in Guatemala. There are legal methods by which migration can and should occur, but we, as one of our priorities, will discourage illegal migration. And I believe if you come to our border, you will be turned back.

Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., who recently went to the border to see the immigration crisis, criticized the Biden administration for its border policies that he says are enabling cartels to profit from human trafficking.

"The answers arent down there in Guatemala because the cartel is actively recruiting. Theyre making about $5 billion this year trafficking people across our southern border," Donald said in an interview with Fox News earlier this month. "And so you dont have to go down to Guatemala to know whats actually going on. Whats going on is the administrations weak policies allow the cartels to make billions of dollars. Its that simple."

On his first day in office, President Joe Biden signed an executive order to halt border wall construction, a move Republican lawmakers say is unauthorized since funds for construction had already been appropriated.

When Harris was tasked with resolving the border crisis in late March, she described it as a challenging situation and said the root causes of the border problems must be addressed. And while we are clear that people should not come to the border now, we also understand that we will enforce the law, Harris said at the time.

We will collaborate with Mexico and other countries throughout the Western hemisphere," Harris added. "And as part of this effort, we expect that we will have collaborative relationships to accomplish the goals the president has and that we share.

Data released by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection show there were 180,034 land encounters between illegal border crossers and immigration officials in May, making it the highest monthly tally in 21 years and the 13th consecutive month that the number of illegal border crossings increased.

Customers and Border Patrol statistics show that there have been 1.1 million enforcement actions with immigrants illegally entering the U.S. in fiscal year-to-date at the border. These encounters include " ... arrests of individuals with criminal convictions and individuals who have been apprehended multiple times crossing the border illegally."

Recently, Harris has faced questions from multiple reporters for her apparent hesitation to visit the southern border, having previously said that it would serve little purpose.

The issue of root causes is not going to be solved in one trip that took two days, said Harris earlier this month, as reported by The Daily Wire. This is an issue that is long standing, is in many cases generational. It is not a new issue for the United States, to feel the effects of those root causes on our shores.

The day before the trip was announced, a bipartisan group of Texan legislators urged Harris to visit their border with Mexico in light of a sharp influx of immigrants entering the U.S. illegally over the past several months.

The momentum for this crisis has been building for months, but no significant action has been taken to address it, they said in an op-ed piece published by The Dallas Morning News. The president and vice president have yet to even visit the border.
Kansas City pastor dies from COVID-19 at 39 after doctor allegedly said 'hes going to be fine'

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For months, Pastor Michael Grizzy Griswold of Kansas City, Missouri, fought to survive a COVID-19 infection that doctors initially told his wife he would beat. Two weeks ago, the Macedonia Baptist Church teen pastor died at the age of 39.

The pastors wife, Venus Griswold, told The Kansas City Star that when her husband began his battle with the virus about five months ago, a doctor told her, hes gonna be fine. That outlook, she said, did not last very long as his condition quickly worsened.

I had just had a conversation with his doctor. He was like, hes gonna be fine, hes young, hes going to be fine, Venus Griswold told the publication. The next day, I walk in and his oxygen levels are just tanking, and so at that point, it was the decision. Do you put him on life support? Or do you let him go? And so I put him on life support.

The disease ravaged her husbands lungs as she fought to keep him alive with a lung transplant. She said her husband was able to get on the list for a transplant, but he died on June 6 before doctors could get him the help he needed.

His family and friends remembered his life in a touching memorial service on Sunday.

Grizzys impact was so magnanimous that Im telling you 20 years from now, this church will remember Grizzy, Macedonia Baptist Churchs Senior Pastor John L. Brooks told the Kansas City Star. Im telling you, older people and younger people.

He recalled Griswold as an inspiring figure who enjoyed making people feel better in life.

Malcolm Griswold, the late pastors young brother, recalled how he started taking care of his siblings at the age of 12, and how the pressure of that responsibility caused him to become a drug dealer until he found faith in his 20s and turned his life around.

When I think of Mike and his whole transformation story, I witness the power of God saving Michael from his life from his own lifestyle, Malcolm Griswold recalled. Michael would come to parenting conferences with my mother, he would come and eat lunch at my middle school with me and my brother  When I think of Michael, I think of a father.

Brooks said Griswold treated the teenagers in his ministry with similar care.

He spent time with them, corrected them, loved them, he invested in them, Brooks said. He helped the parents, went to schools, went to their events. He was there with them to keep them off the street, and hundreds upon hundreds of teenagers' lives have changed because Michael Grizzy Griswold invested his life in their life.

Along with his wife, siblings and extended family, Griswold leaves behind four children, MiKeycia Griswold, Myaun Boyd, Tristan Chandler and Michael Andre Griswold Jr., according to his obituary.
Va. school board halts public comment on controversial transgender policy; 2 arrested

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A Virginia public school board meeting on Tuesday resulted in two arrests and silenced public comments after a heated discussion erupted regarding new transgender policies, which one conservative activist called psychological child abuse and a total fraud.

The new policy for Loudon County Public Schools in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., includes privacy and restroom accommodations for trans-identified students and would require teachers to use students pronouns or name preferences.

About 259 people reportedly signed up for public comments, but only 51 voices were heard since the public comment session was halted after chaos ensued, Fox News reports.

The proposed policy, known as Policy 8040, is not expected to be officially voted on by the school board until Aug.10 at the earliest.

Many parents fear implementing the policy in public schools will violate parents rights and lead to left-wing indoctrination.

A draft of the policy explains: LCPS staff shall allow gender-expansive or transgender students to use their chosen name and gender pronouns that reflect their gender identity without any substantiating evidence, regardless of the name and gender recorded in the students permanent educational record.

Inadvertent slips in the use of names or pronouns may occur; however, staff or students who intentionally and persistently refuse to respect a students gender identity by using the wrong name and gender pronoun are in violation of this policy, the policy states.

Tensions arose in the crowded school board meeting when one speaker, the mother of a trans-identified student, said that hate was dripping from the followers of Jesus in this room." The comment was directed toward the Christian parents who disagreed with transgender discussions in public school, according to Fox News.

After calling a short recess, the board unanimously voted to allow no more public comments if the room got out of control again. The board later voted 9-0 to end public comment in the meeting altogether when they were criticized by former Republican state Sen. Dick Black for the board's treatment of an elementary school physical education teacher placed on leave after speaking out about the policy in an earlier meeting.

Byron Tanner Cross of Leesburg Elementary School was recently put on administrative leave after expressing opposition to the proposed policy. Cross said that as a Christian, he cannot affirm that a biological boy can be a girl and vice versa. The school district is appealing a judge's order to reinstate Cross temporarily. Multiple parents at the meeting urged the school board to drop its appeal of the court's decision.

At least two parents protesting critical race theory and the transgender policy were arrested after the meeting was declared an unlawful assembly.

The arrests occurred after the parents remained in the room to deliver their remarks. According to Fox News, one parent refused to leave until everyone was given the opportunity to speak. Deputies alleged he was arrested for trespassing.

One man was issued a trespassing summons and released and the second was accused of "acting disorderly," "aggressive behavior towards another attendee" and resisting arrest, the Loudon County Sheriff's Office disclosed.

2 parents protesting against CRT and a transgender policy have just been arrested after a Loudoun County, Virginia school board meeting was declared an unlawful assembly. pic.twitter.com/0lKhZYG7Pw  Pembrokeshire-Patriot (@DarrenEdmundso1) June 23, 2021

Cathy Ruse, a Northern Virginia lawyer who earned a Juris Doctor degree from Georgetown University and formerly served as a senior fellow at the conservative Christian advocacy group Family Research Council, delivered remarks at a rally before the school board meeting.

She condemned the anti-science proposition and fake science propaganda of transgenderism.

The Loudoun County School Board is about to force all families in Loudoun County Public Schools to embrace the radical, anti-science proposition that biological sex is meaningless, Ruse said in prepared remarks obtained by The Christian Post.

It is an ideology that teaches children they can be born in the wrong body," she added. "Thats psychological child abuse, according to the American College of Pediatricians. And of course its a lie. The truth is: Every child is born in exactly the right body.

Ruse argued that most children grow out of gender dysphoria.

She said the school boards proposal demands that all members of a school community lie to a confused child and tell him he is, indeed, in the wrong body.

Transgender activists want to turn our classrooms into laboratories, Ruse said. And this School Board is complicit. Public schools should never be a place to experiment on other peoples children.

Ruse stressed how imposing the policy on the school district would be a total fraud.

[The policy] calls itself progressive, but acts like a retrogressive tyrant, especially when it comes to the freedom of speech, she argued.

And worst of all, it preaches tolerance and acceptance, and then tells kids to reject their own bodies, even to the point of mutilation," she continued. "This ideology has no place in our public schools.

Evangelical leader and Samaritans Purse President Franklin Graham called on Christians in Loudon County to stand strong and speak the truth in love, saying school boards decisions have implications on the nations future.

In 2016 I went to all 50 states holding prayer rallies for our nation and I urged Christians to run for office in their cities and communities  specifically for school boards  and this is exactly the reason why! Graham, son of legendary evangelist Billy Graham, shared in a Facebook post Wednesday.

School boards are making decisions about what is being taught in our schools and the policies that will be followed, Graham added. These impact our children and our grandchildrens lives, and they impact the future of our country, so it is vitally important.

I'm thankful for the parents in Loudoun County, Virginia, who are speaking up and working to keep things like critical race theory and concerning transgender policies out of their schools, Graham continued. We have to stand up against the godless socialist agenda trying to divide us and take over this country.
Tulsa pastor gives reparations to massacre survivors, calls on churches to take the lead

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Transformation Church Pastor Michael Todd in Bixby, Oklahoma, called on churches across America to take the lead on the issue of reparations as he presented $200,000 checks to each of the only living survivors of the Tulsa Race Massacre during a moving sermon on Sunday.

The Tulsa Race Massacre, according to History.com, occurred over 18 hours from May 31 to June 1, 1921. A white mob attacked residents, homes and businesses in the predominantly black Greenwood neighborhood of Tulsa, leaving hundreds dead and thousands homeless. It is one of the worst incidents of racial violence in U.S. history.

Reparation is not a political word. Reparation is not a word that your left-wing friends or your right-wing friends have coined," Todd said. "Let me give you the definition of reparations. The action of repairing something that was devastated. Reparations mean that somebody is going to take up the mantle and actually put into action the process of repairing something that was destroyed."

He then quoted Joel 2:25, which says: And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.

He stressed that God will bring reparations and said God told him that the controversial process must start in the Church. And since he is a part of the Church, Todd said he has to be a part of the reparations process.

Reparations is not coming from them, he said, referring to the government.

I told the team. I said, 'Find me every living survivor that survived this [Tulsa race] massacre.' And they began to search. And I said the most devastating thing that was stolen from people were their homes. And I said, 'How in the world do you rebuild when you go to sleep on a Thursday, and on the Friday, all your memories, all your life savings, everything that you build your life for is in rubble in front of you. And you got to go to the fairgrounds and stay on cots and try to rebuild your life from ashes?' he asked. I read in the Bible where it says God is the only one that gives beauty from ashes.

Todd then announced the presence of all three of the living survivors of the Tulsa Race Massacre  Viola Fletcher, 107; Hughes Van Ellis, 100; and Lessie Randle, 106.

Thank you for living a life that survived the devastation, Todd said. Thank you for appearing before Congress. Thank you.

Im a young black man who took over a church from a white man who built it in North Tulsa. That couldnt have happened if you all didnt survive. Today, we cant restore everything that has been stolen from you. But today, we can put a seed in the ground, he told the survivors.

He said his church decided on giving the survivors $200,000 each after researching the median price of a house in Tulsa.

Its reparations season, and change starts in the Church, he declared to cheers.

Transformation Church gave away a total of $1 million to the massacre survivors and nonprofit organizations Sunday. This includes a $100,000 check to AJ Johnson, owner of Oasis Fresh Market, which provides fresh fruits and other groceries to an underserved community.

The church also donated $50,000 to the Terrance Crutcher Foundation, $50,000 to Build in Tusla, $100,000 to One Race Movement and $100,000 to Greenwood Cultural Center.
A narrow SCOTUS ruling with serious implications for religious liberty

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On Thursday, the Supreme Court issued a much-anticipated ruling in Fulton v. City of Philadelphia. In 2018, the city of Philadelphia barred Catholic Social Services (CSS) from placing foster children, as it had been doing for over 200 years, unless it changed its policy on same-sex households. Rather than compromise Church teaching, CSS challenged the citys action in court. They lost at the Third Circuit, but in a 9-0 decision, CSS and religious freedom won the day at the Supreme Court.

This win was expected, but many had hoped the justices would use this case to overturn Employment Division v. Smith, a 1990 ruling which held that state and local law could restrict religious freedom, if it did so in a way that applies equally to everyone.

It is because of Smith that so many religious freedom cases are argued on the grounds of either free speech or (as was the ruling of the Masterpiece Cakeshop case) that a law wasnt applied equally. Consistent with the aversion of the Roberts Court to issue sweeping rulings, the court didnt use this case to overturn Employment Division. Instead, all nine justices agreed that Philadelphia didnt apply its anti-discrimination laws equally, thus rendering Employment Division inapplicable.

Philadelphias anti-discrimination provision permits exceptions [its requirements] at the sole discretion of the [Human Services] Commissioner. According to the court, a law that invites the government to consider the particular reasons for a persons conduct by creating a mechanism for individualized exemptions, cannot, by definition, be called generally applicable.

Whats more, once exceptions are permitted for other reasons, exceptions in cases of religious hardship cannot be dismissed without a compelling reason In the unanimous opinion of the Court, the city didnt have a compelling interest in refusing to contract with CSS.

Chief Justice Roberts, who wrote the courts opinion, put it like this, CSS seeks only an accommodation that will allow it to continue serving the children of Philadelphia in a manner consistent with its religious beliefs; it does not seek to impose those beliefs on anyone else. So, the court ruled that Philadelphia did not have a basis for its actions against CSS and, further, violate[d] the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment.

Immediately, media headlines attempted to spin the outcome as the court privileging religious freedom over LGBTQ rights. It wasnt. No LGBTQ rights were in any way diminished by this decision whatsoever. The media outlet Vox chided the court for failing to settle the significant issues raised by the case (which is true), claiming that an epic showdown between religion and LGBTQ rights ended with a whimper. Thats only true if you consider a decisive victory for religious institutions over forces that would force them to choose between their beliefs and their mission to be a whimper.

The Human Rights Campaign made it sound like the courts real objection to Philadelphias law was that it was badly drafted and, had it been better-written, might have survived scrutiny. Perhaps. But as National Review noted, a majority of the court sees Employment Division v. Smith as something that needs to be addressed.

While its not clear which standard theyd accept as a replacement, it is reasonable to assume they could make it harder for government entities to justify infringements on religious freedom. Chief Justice Roberts words, that there was no compelling reason for the city to refuse to contract with Catholic Social Services, is true whether or not Employment Division is applicable.

Despite its narrow scope, the Courts ruling in Fulton v. City of Philadelphia is very good news. In addition to being a win for Catholic Social Services, it means the court is taking seriously Justice Kennedys warning in his (otherwise terrible) Obergefell decision: Religious organizations need protection as they seek to teach the principles that are so fulfilling and so central to their lives and faiths. As Micah J. Schwartzman of the University of Virginia told the Washington Post, the courts signal for social service providers is clear enough: It will grant them religious exemptions, even when doing so entails allowing them to violate anti-discrimination laws.

Two additional observations: First, the Supreme Court will eventually have to address the conflict between religious freedom and LGBTQ rights, including for business owners like Jack Phillips. Jack lost this week in a Colorado court, when a judge ruled that Phillips discriminated against a transgender lawyer who has been targeting his business. Second, the court now has an even stronger track record of protecting the freedoms of religious organizations. So, theres no need to compromise biblical morality, even on these most controversial of issues.

Originally published at Breakpoint.
Feminist academic targeted over advocacy for sex-segregated spaces, criticism of trans ideology

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An Australian academic says she is being targeted for launching a website promoting sex-segregated spaces on campus amid ongoing protests to protect trans-identified students.

University of Melbourne Associate Professor of Political Philosophy Holly Lawford-Smith, who is interested in preserving sex-segregated spaces, explained in an interview with Sky News Australia that the project she started caused controversy both on and off campus because it was said to be transphobic.

This has been going on since February now, she said of the antagonism she has experienced. She added that some are trying to shut down her classes and are making accusations against her about her research ethics and behavior between colleagues on campus.

Supporters of the professor have had water thrown at them, have been subject to profanity-laced threats and physical assaults, the outlet noted.

The backlash started after Lawford-Smith set up a website called No Conflict, They Said, highlighting the clash between women and trans-identifying males who claim to be women.

The website is run by members of LGB Alliance Australia.

The LGB Alliance, which has chapters in the United Kingdom and the USA, is a group of lesbians, gays and bisexual individuals who consider transgender ideology a threat to the rights of same-sex attracted people. They warn that the ideology is dangerous and confusing to children.



Noconflicttheysaid.org documents personal accounts from people who have found that conflict does indeed exist in real life between biological sex and gender identity. Featured stories include incidents of harassment of women and girls by trans-identifying males in public spaces and how transgender ideology manifests across Australian society.

When asked what the university is doing to protect free academic inquiry, the professor told Sky News Australia that a chilling effect was pervading free speech on campus.

I already know from a number of different students about their negative experiences in various classes that have been shut down from being able to ask questions about sex and sex-based rights, to be able to question things from a gender-critical perspective at all, Lawford-Smith explained.

Women are disproportionately impacted by this hostility to open inquiry, she added. Activist academics have reportedly tried to get Lawford-Smith fired and have filed petitions against her.

The gender affirmation policy proposed on campus appears to be a specific attempt at limiting her public-facing activities related to her academic research, she said. The professor said that work to draft the proposal began shortly after an event in 2019 she hosted with other academics to discuss the issues related to education.

Although still a draft, the professor said that policy measures would effectively violate the campus free speech policy by compelling staff and students to use opposite-sex pronouns when referring to transgender-identifying students, inviting the violation of sex-specific spaces and giving trans-identifying students veto power over public events and public discourse.

The university community is quite divided over this issue, she replied when asked if she was receiving support from colleagues who secretly tell her that they agree with her viewpoint.

Its absolutely not the case that its me versus the rest of the university. I think this has become a very polarizing issue. I have an awful lot of support, some more public than others.



She warned that because there are "such strong feelings on both sides, its going to be difficult for the university to work out a good resolution.

According to The Australian newspaper The Age, the draft policy would prohibit public speeches or events that the school deems to be an attack on gender diversity. The policy would alter the university's free speech policy to prevent academics from engaging in public discourse the university believes can "harm" the transgender community.

The professor argues that the word "harm" is not defined in the policy.

The draft proposal comes after a queer student group called for the suspension of Lawford-Smith's feminism class over concerns course materials contained transphobic rhetoric." Critics also called for Lawford-Smith to be suspended.

A spokesperson for the university said that the proposed policy has been in the works since 2019 and all feedback will be considered before it is finalized.

One of our core values is that there must be a genuine and deep culture of respect for everyone at our university and of course this includes being completely respectful towards the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community, the spokesperson told The Age.
Reality star couple scammed black investors out of millions with Blessings in No Time scheme: lawsuit

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Thousands of African Americans who pumped an estimated $40 million into what some saw as a Godly, ALL-Black, socially conscious gifting community known as Blessings in No Time, might have placed their faith in an illegal pyramid scheme started by reality star couple Marlon Moore, also known as D.J. ASAP, and his wife, LaShonda, according to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

In a lawsuit filed on June 10 in federal court, Paxton alleged that the Texas couple, who appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Networks reality show Family or Fiance, which brings together disapproving families of engaged couples, used deceptive trade practices to fleece their victims. He is seeking an injunction against the couple to stop their business, known as BINT (Blessings in No Time) Operations LLC. The company was formed in August 2020 when COVID-19 had already killed thousands of black people nationwide.

Since January 2021, state authorities have received nearly 200 consumer complaints against the couple, alleging over $700,000 in lost BINT investments. Many complainants said they only joined the community because they were promised the right to a full refund at any time.

"Marlon & Lashonda Moore & staff of B.I.N.T, LLC, used deceit, celebrity connections, name dropping & the collective fear, grief & trauma that Americans were experiencing during & after the 2020 Spring/summer riots to scam over 8k Black people out of over $40 million dollars. Blessings In No Time (BINT, LLC), was presented as a Godly, ALL-Black, socially conscious gifting community that came about on the tail-end of a lot of this past summer protest. They claimed that BINT was completely legal, they repeatedly said that they were not a sou sou or pyramid scheme, they said there is no way to lose money because guarantee, one complainant noted in the lawsuit.

This was my first encounter with gifting circles, I am ashamed I believed them. I brought in 6 of my family members. BINT used all 6 people & said they would return my fires when I needed them to ensure that I was blessed out. That never happened.  Total family loss = $32K, of that, I lost $15,650 between my own spots & family I sponsored . . . Why would I believe they would give a refund? I believed we'd get a refund due to the heavily documented refund guarantees from BINT founders & staff, the complainant wrote.

The Prosper, Texas, couple promised to "bless" and assist needy members of the African American community with an eight-fold, $11,200, return if they placed an initial investment in BINT of $1,400 to $1,425 and recruited other people to join who they called "fires."

In an effort to cover the "illegal scheme," the Moores imposed a formal condition of membership on all participants, prohibiting them from posting reviews on social media and sharing negative comments about BINT in any forum under penalty of termination of their membership and all of their rights, the lawsuit said.

By stifling existing members' ability to speak the truth about Defendants' practices. Defendants were able to continue deceiving more victims to buy into their illegal pyramid scheme, it continued.

Fearing they would never be able to get a refund of their initial investment, many of the victims kept quiet about the scheme until the couple revealed in a January Zoom meeting that they didnt have enough funds to make refunds and BINT investors didnt have a right to refunds.

Previously, Defendants might have provided some refunds, but they appear to be making no refunds at all as victims are filing consumer complaints with the State and seeking the State's help with redress. As it became clear Defendants will not provide refunds, the threats of losing their refund rights was no longer enough to stop victims from speaking out, the lawsuit said.

Many of the investors who said they've been swindled have also banded together to create a website called bintscam.com in an effort to expose the Moores and their scheme.
Judge rules Trump officials can't be sued for clearing of DC park before Bible photo-op

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A judge has denied most of the constitutional claims of multiple lawsuits leveled against former President Donald Trump, former Attorney General William Barr and other government officials over the forced clearing of protesters from a park near the White House last June.

The litigation stems from the June 1, 2020 incident where officers from the U.S. Park Police and National Guard stormed Lafayette Square near the White House in Washington, D.C. Officers in riot gear used chemical irritants to disperse protesters who had gathered following the death of George Floyd days earlier.

After officers cleared the park, Trump was later seen walking through the park on his way to do a controversial photo-op with a Bible outside of St. Johns Episcopal Church, which had been damaged by demonstrators the day before. However, a federal watchdog report earlier this month stated that the clearing of the park was not related to the president's photoshoot.

In an opinion released Monday, U.S. District Court Judge Dabney Friedrich, a Trump appointee, tossed out the plaintiffs' claims that their constitutional rights were violated.

The plaintiffs have not adequately pleaded either an ongoing injury or an immediate threat of future injury based on the defendants June 1 clearing of Lafayette Square, wrote Friedrich.

Because the plaintiffs lack standing, the Court lacks jurisdiction to issue an injunction ordering the defendants to change their practices of using physical force against protestors.

Friedrich also rejected the claims of plaintiffs that the clearing of the square presented ongoing chilling effects, ruling that they are insufficient to confer standing.

  the plaintiffs claims of impending future harm are too speculative to confer standing to seek an injunction, the judge continued.

Such harm would require that plaintiffs again demonstrate in Lafayette Square; that agencies headed by the official-capacity defendants again respond to the demonstration; that federal officers again use that law enforcement response as cover to deliberately target non-violent peaceful demonstrators; and that one or more of the plaintiffs again be targeted.

Friedrich did conclude that the plaintiffs have standing to challenge the continued restrictions on access to Lafayette Square because they have plausibly alleged an ongoing injury.

To this day, over a year after the events of June 1, Lafayette Square remains subject to heightened restrictions that periodically limit protestors access to the Square, read the ruling.

Despite the change in Administrations, the federal defendants have not met the high bar of showing that this claim has been mooted by subsequent events.

The District of Columbia chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, which helped bring the litigation against Trump and other officials, denounced the decision.

Todays ruling essentially gives the federal government a green light to use violence, including lethal force against demonstrators, as long as federal officials claim to be protecting national security, stated Scott Michelman, legal director for the ACLU of D.C.

Not only is this decision a stunning rejection of our constitutional values and protestors First Amendment rights, but it effectively places federal officials above the law.

Earlier this month, the Office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of the Interior released a report concluding the clearing operation was carried out so that antiscale fencing could be erected "in response to destruction of property and injury to officers occurring on May 30 and 31.

The evidence we obtained did not support a finding that the USPP cleared the park to allow the President to survey the damage and walk to St. Johns Church, stated the report.

Further, the evidence showed that the USPP did not know about the Presidents potential movement until mid-to late afternoon on June 1hours after it had begun developing its operational plan and the fencing contractor had arrived in the park.

Last month, Justice Department attorney David Cutler asked Friedrich to dismiss the legal claims, arguing that the police acted lawfully. The department called the president's security a "paramount" government interest, The Washington Post reports.
About 100 abducted from Nigerian school in broad daylight; 11 rescued, 3 found dead Cleric warns Nigeria is a 'killing field,' needs 'multi-faceted approach' to fight terrorism

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Around 100 students and staff members were abducted from a Nigerian school by armed insurgents on Thursday, and 11 have since been rescued or freed, while three others have been found dead.

Mustapha Yusuf, principal of the federal government college in the remote town of Birnin Yauri, told Reuters that gunmen raided the school in the northwest Kebbi state in broad daylight for a mass abduction of over 94 students (the number is not confirmed) as well as eight staff members.

The armed militants reportedly killed a policeman during the raid.

The army said it rescued three teachers and eight students as of Monday and had killed one of the abductors, Reuters reported.

Two girls and a boy were found dead, two of whom had suffered gunshot wounds in their legs. One is believed to have died of exhaustion, according to Voice of America News.

The kidnappers "have been taking cover under the students," Yusuf was quoted as saying.

"They are in the bush," Yusuf said.

He said the kidnappers had used students cell phones to call parents, demanding a ransom worth 60 million nairas (about $146,341).

This kidnapping is part of a trend of mass abductions in northern Nigeria in recent months, including the abduction of nearly 300 schoolgirls in February who were freed days later.

Kidnapping for ransom has become a lucrative industry for criminals and extremist groups in Nigeria.

The government's inaction in holding kidnappers accountable and its willingness to pay ransom to insurgents has led many to believe the government is complicit or complacent toward the attacks and kidnappings.

Solomon Gbetogo Kuponu, an Anglican bishop in Nigeria, warned during a recent session of the church's sixth synod in Ogun state that the government is giving amnesty to terrorists and further fueling insecurity. According to The Daily Trust, Kuponu accused the government of encouraging kidnappers by paying ransoms.

He said the violence and instability have become the worst under President Muhammadu Buhari's administration.

Kuponu said Nigeria has become a "killing field" due to "kidnapping, abduction, banditry, fatal clashes of herdsmen and farmers, ritual killings, political assassination, armed robbery and murder."

"Fighting terrorism needs a multi-faceted approach, to cut off their sources of funding, disrupt their logistics and support networks and decapitate the leadership as the United States' war on terror has proved," Kuponu said.

Northern Nigeria is especially impacted by the surge in mass kidnappings since late 2020, where schools are often the targets.

"The recent abductions we have seen across different states in northern Nigeria tell us that the government is either unwilling or unable to secure schools and protect the right to education," Amnesty International's Seun Bakare said, according to Voice of America News. "Millions of children are now having to pay the price of government's failure to protect citizens from violence."

Hundreds of schools in the north have reportedly shut down in response to the kidnapping surge.

The wave of school kidnappings follows the abduction of 276 Nigerian schoolgirls from a school in Chibok in 2014. The abduction of the Chibok girls gained international attention and inspired the #BringBackOurGirls campaign. Over 112 of the Chibok schoolgirls are still missing.

Maulid Warfa, the United Nations Childrens Fund [UNICEF] field office chief of the Kano state, urged the Nigerian local, state and federal government to ensure the wellbeing of children in schools, according to This Day newspaper.

Education of our children is fencing very serious challenges, including the mass kidnapping of boys and girls, Warfa said. Mass kidnapping of school children is something that is very worrisome to all of us and as UNICEF, we condemned the act.

Children are the future of the country, they need their rights to be fulfilled, they need their education to be assured, he continued.

The Global Terrorism Index ranked Nigeria as the third-most affected country by terrorism in 2020. The index reports that over 22,000 people were killed by acts of terror in Nigeria from 2001 to 2019.

Much of the violent terror is fueled by Islamic extremism and terrorist groups like Boko Haram and radicalized herdsman.

The U.S. Commission on International and Religious Freedoms 2021 annual report warned Nigeria will move relentlessly toward a Christian genocide if action is not taken quickly.

Nigeria was the first democratic nation to be added to the U.S. State Department's list of "countries of particular concern" under the International Religious Freedom Act for engaging in or tolerating systematic, ongoing and egregious violations of religious freedom.

Open Doors World Watch List ranks Nigeria as the ninth-worst country for Christian persecution, stating that Islamic oppression toward believers is rampant and often runs unchecked.

Just under half of the population in Africas most populous nation is Christian. Open Doors reports there are over 95 million believers in Nigeria.

Advocates have argued that if the international community does not act, Nigeria could become the next Rwandan genocide if action is not taken quickly.
'Fresh wave of violence' in Mozambique driven by radical jihadist extremists; children beheaded: report

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Conditions in Cabo Delgado, northern Mozambique, have seriously deteriorated over the past year, affecting children disproportionately as nearly 3,000 people have been killed and over 800,000 displaced since the violent insurgency that began in October 2017, according to a report.

Violent attacks by Islamic rebels in the Cabo Delgado province have led to the deaths of more than 2,838 people, including over 1,400 civilians, though the actual number is expected to be higher.

A report released this month by Save the Children, Plan International and World Vision showed how the extent of the conflict in Cabo Delgado has worsened in the last 12 months and how children are suffering disproportionately.

The last 12 months of Mozambiques Islamic insurgency has escalated due to increased armed conflict on villages and district capital towns, leading to casualties and grave violations against children.

Amy Lamb, director of communications for Open Doors, told The Christian Post that the fresh wave of violence in Mozambique has had a devastating toll.

Lamb said that for the first time, Mozambique was added to the World Watch List as being among the most persecuted countries because of the fresh wave of violence coming into Mozambique primarily driven by radical jihadist extremists.

A March attack on Palma, a town in the northeast of Mozambique, led to an estimated 67,848 displaced people as of June 4.

Many children affected by this attack were orphaned or were separated from their parents as they fled.

The southeastern African country is home to about 17 million Christians, which is over 50% of the population. Lamb said it's also home to one of the fastest-growing evangelical populations in the world.

Because of [the rise in Christianity], were seeing jihadist groups including those who are affiliated with the Islamic state, with al Shabab, with Boko Haram, al Qaeda, Lamb explained.

Its just organizing together in order to expand their territories throughout the African continent, and their goal is really to eradicate Christianity from this territory and, unfortunately, in some ways, its working, she continued. Even specifically from this northern part of Mozambique, an estimated 800,000 people have fled the region, and those who remain, including women, children, families, are facing starvation even if theyre spared from  violence.

Lamb said Christians in Mozambique are especially targeted with violence and believes the government contributes to this.

There is a great deal of instability, and there can even be some anti-Christian antipathy at the government level, Lamb said. So as far as the government of Mozambique, in some ways, its not helping because there are some of those antipathies even at the highest level, so when its pervasive at the lower level, its combining into a perfect storm.

The report also offers recommendations and said the U.N. and international community must, without delay, support the establishment of peace and address underlying causes of the conflict.

In March, the U.S. Army Green Berets were deployed to Mozambique to train Mozambican marines to counter the violent insurgency that has led to children as young as 12 years old being beheaded.

Lamb agrees that the situation requires the international communitys attention and said the Islamic State is struggling to gain a hold of the entire region in what she believes is the greatest wave of Islamic violence in the modern era.

It should be a matter of grave concern for the international community because it is an indication that there is an emerging caliphate throughout the sub-Saharan African region, she said. So what we saw in the devastation  thats all caliphate activity.

And whats so concerning is these groups are organizing together to create whats essentially a new Islamic State throughout the entire region, Lamb continued. So that is deeply concerning, not just from a religious freedom standpoint, but also from a democracy standpoint. Also from just the overall human rights condition of we have this one group of incredibly violent extremists who are saying  were going to take over. It should be a matter of concern for the international community because this is probably the greatest wave of Islamic violence that the modern era has seen.

Lamb called on the American Church to pray for Christians in Mozambique and for those who have been displaced.

Pray for Gods intervention in the violent attacks, and as rapidly as we have seen this wave of violence rise, that we would see it decline just as fast, Lamb added.
Democrat warns Catholic Church it may be stripped of tax-exempt status if politicians denied communion

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As U.S. Catholic bishops draft a controversial document on whether priests can deny communion to politicians who support abortion, one House Democrat has implied that the Catholic Church should lose its tax-exempt status if churches institute such a ban.

If theyre going to politically weaponize religion by rebuking Democrats who support womens reproductive choice, then a rebuke of their tax-exempt status may be in order, wrote Rep. Jared Huffman, D-Calif., in a Twitter post lashing out at Catholic bishops.

Huffman's post came after nearly 60 House Democrats released a statement of principles to warn the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops against what they deem as weaponizing the Eucharist.

The statement was released after the USCCB voted Friday to approve the continued drafting of the document on the meaning of the Eucharist in the life of the Church.

An overwhelming majority of the bishops (168) voted in favor of proceeding with the draft document, while 55 voted against proceeding. The bishops will continue working on the document, which will be presented to the public at a later date. While the document will provide guidelines for the reception of communion, it will leave decisions on withholding Communion up to individual bishops.

In their statement, the Democrats solemnly urge the Church to not move forward and deny this most holy of all sacraments, the source and the summit of the whole work of the gospel over one issue.

 We seek the Churchs guidance and assistance but believe also in the primacy of conscience, it reads. In recognizing the Churchs role in providing moral leadership, we acknowledge and accept the tension that comes with being in disagreement with the Church in some areas.

It continues: We recognize that no political party is perfectly in accord with all aspects of Church doctrine. This fact speaks to the secular nature of American democracy, not the devotion of our democratically elected leaders. Yet we believe we can speak to the fundamental issues that unite us as Catholics and lend our voices to changing the political debate  a debate that often fails to reflect and encompass the depth and complexity of these issues.

It adds: We believe the separation of church and state allows for our faith to inform our public duties and best serve our constituents. The Sacrament of Holy Communion is central to the life of practicing Catholics, and the weaponization of the Eucharist to Democratic lawmakers for their support of a womans safe and legal access to abortion is contradictory."

The debate over whether pro-abortion Catholic politicians should receive communion has intensified following the election of President Joe Biden, a pro-abortion Catholic who attends mass regularly. As he campaigned for president ahead of the 2020 presidential election, a priest in South Carolina refused to serve Biden communion due to his abortion advocacy.

Last month, more than 60 bishops also wrote a letter to Archbishop Jose Gomez calling for the delay of the debate over whether pro-abortion Catholic politicians should receive communion, citing concerns that implementing a national policy on the matter would pose a threat to the unity of the Church.

Supporters of withholding communion from pro-abortion Catholic politicians, both inside and outside the Church hierarchy, point to the Churchs Code of Canon Law as the justification for their position. The Code of Canon Law states that those who are obstinately persevering in manifest grave sin are not to be admitted to Holy Communion.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis beats Trump in 2024 presidential straw poll

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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis received more votes than former President Donald Trump in a non-partisan straw poll asking voters about their preferred presidential candidate for the 2024 election at the Western Conservative Summit, one of the largest annual gatherings of conservatives.

Seventy-four percent of the attendants at this weekends gathering at the Centennial Institute, Colorado Christian Universitys public policy think tank, approved of DeSantis as a 2024 presidential candidate, while 71% said they preferred Trump over dozens of the other top contenders, both Republican and Democratic.

Neither DeSantis nor Trump spoke at the event, which was held both live in-person and online with the theme Frontier Freedom.

The other top candidates, in order of most approval to least, included Sen. Ted Cruz (43%), Mike Pompeo (39%) and Sen. Tim Scott (36%), according to a statement by the Centennial Institute.

South Dakota Republican Gov. Kristi Noem received approval from about 30% of the poll participants, followed by Sen. Tom Cotton at 29.92%, Sen. Rand Paul at 27.76%, and Donald Trump Jr. at 24.8%.

Former Vice President Pence came in 10th place.

President Joe Biden was ranked at No. 16 with 2.3%.

The poll, called the 2021 Western Conservative Summit Approval Voting Poll, also asked attendees to mark any of 25 policy issues as most important to them.

The top five most important issues were immigration/border security (82%), election integrity (79%), religious freedom (75%), federal budget/deficit (74%), and gun rights (74%).

Issues at the bottom of the list included police reform (12.43%), race and racism (10.81%), COVID-19 (9.19%), environment/climate change (8.65%), diversity, equity and inclusion (5.68%), and LGBTQ (4.86%).

In a 2024 presidential straw poll held at the Conservative Political Action Conference in February, Trump beat DeSantis in receiving approval for his policies and agenda but not in the question covering a field of potential candidates, as The Christian Post reported at the time.

Attendees at CPAC said if Trump decides not to run in 2024, DeSantis would win the support of a plurality (43%) of conservatives gathered at that conference.

The top five issues at CPAC were election integrity (62%), constitutional rights (48%), immigration/border wall (35%), reopening the economy (32%), and Second Amendment (26%).

In his speech at CPAC, DeSantis said to those gathered: We can sit around and have academic debates about conservative policy, we can do that. But the question is, when the Klieg lights get hot, when the left comes after you: Will you stay strong, or will you fold?
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Imagine a software engineering class that doesnt make students learn computer code. That should give you some idea how ridiculous it is that Princeton University is no longer requiring classics majors to learn Greek or Latin. Not zoology students or English majors, but classics students. You know, the folks who study Greek and Latin culture.

Why this departure from centuries of academic standards? The head of undergraduate studies in Princetons classics department explains that this change will bring new perspectives, and make for a more vibrant intellectual community.

Not every student of language agrees. Writing at The Atlantic, Columbia University linguistics professor John McWhorter argues that buzzwords like new perspectives and vibrant community are code for forced racial diversity.

Of course, as a black academic, McWhorter values diversity in higher education. But he argues that the study of classics is under assault from a twisted and condescending view of diversity  one that sees minority students as incapable of learning and reading ancient languages, and which requires colleges to dumb down their curricula. If anything, hes understating the problem. Not just Greek and Latin, as languages, but the study of classics itself is under attack by those who see racism behind every rock and ionic pillar.

In his Atlantic piece, McWhorter quotes one of Princetons classics faculty, who said in 2019 that the whole discipline of classics is explicitly aimed at disavowing the legitimate status of scholars of colorFar from being extrinsic to the study of Greco-Roman antiquity, he claims, the production of whiteness resides in the very marrows of classics.

In other words, requiring students who want to study the Greeks and Romans to learn their languages is racist. In fact, studying the classics at all may be racist. If this sounds just as absurd as a recent Washington Posteditorial that argued the names of North American birds are racist, well, thats because it is. Writing in The New York Times Magazine, Rachel Poser observes that Some classicists have come around to the idea that their discipline forms part of the scaffold of white supremacy

At Americas universities and schools, this kind of claim is becoming alarmingly common  and its not just Homer and Virgil in the crosshairs. Last month, The Wall Street Journalreported on proposed revisions to the framework for Californias mathematics curriculum, which would make dismantling racism in mathematics instruction a top priority. Among their suggestions? Stop correcting students mistakes in a direct way. Apparently, thats what passes for white supremacy.

The point here is less about Greek, Latin, or algebra than it is about the way modern ideologies (like the always nebulous anti-racism) are gobbling up everything else thats worth learning. At the heart of this feeding frenzy is an attitude Owen Barfield dubbed chronological snobbery, the notion that were smarter and better than our ancestors simply because were modern.

Writing at the Circe Institute, Austin Hoffman notices the same attitude. He argues that by abandoning classical languages, We have cut ourselves off from the past and the wisdom which it has to offer us. As this sheltered thinking stunts our minds, we come to believe that [o]ur modern concerns are the only real problems and our own insular discourse is the only hope of rescue.

Thats why one of the duties of Christians in a culture like ours is to be people who live in  but are not trapped in  the moment. To do that, we need to be well educated. First and foremost, of course, in Scripture. But we should also become fluent in age-old wisdom, in the books, ideas, and art that have stood the test of time and nurtured civilization.

Reading the classics is worth doing for its own sake, of course. But as C.S. Lewis points out in his essay, On the Reading of Old Books, ancient ideas can be a powerful antidote to modern errors, like the obsessions currently consuming higher education. Only by keeping the clean sea breeze of the centuries blowing through our minds, he argues, can we learn to recognize where contemporary thinking has become stagnant.

Subjecting every discipline to woke racial ideology will only stifle true diversity, and buzzwords like vibrant and new perspectives cant conceal that. Still, I guess students ought to study the new jargon well. It may be the only language they learn at Princeton.

Originally published at BreakPoint.
8 churches damaged in last month amid Myanmar conflict; priest abducted as army raids parish 40K displaced individuals taking shelter in 23 churches: report

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At least eight churches have been attacked and five civilians killed in less than 30 days in eastern Myanmar, where hostilities between the Buddhist-majority countrys army and local militias have increased since the military coup on Feb. 1.

The eight churches that have been damaged since May 20 are located in Myanmars Kayah and Shan states and five civilians who were sheltering inside the churches have also been killed, Radio Free Asia reports.

Myanmars ethnic minorities, including Christians, live in the various conflict zones across the countrys borders with Thailand, China and India.

Militias in those areas have been morally supporting pro-democracy protesters since the coup, which has led to the use of heavy weapons by the Burmese army. Thousands of civilians in the conflict zones have sought shelter in churches when their villages are under attack.

According to the United States government-funded non-profit news service, the military has used heavy weaponry against local militia forces in a series of attacks from May 23 to June 6.

Churches destroyed in the various attacks include the Golden Temple of Jesus and Jeroblo Marian Shrine and Our Lady of Lourdes Cave in Pekon, Mother Marys Church in Moebye, St. Josephs Church in Demoso, the Catholic Church in Daw Ngan Khar Village and St. Peters Church in Loikaw.

Its just a building, but it hurts people in their hearts, Radio Free Asia quoted a Catholic priest from Demoso in Kayah state as saying. Are they just targeting us? I would like to appeal to both sides not to carry out such attacks in future.

Fighting in Kayah state since May 20 has forced more than 100,000 residents to flee their homes. Over 40,000 of those displaced are taking shelter in 23 churches, according to the RFA's Myanmar Service.

The military also raided a Catholic parish house in Chin state, a majority Christian state in northern Myanmar, last Wednesday. According to The Union of Catholic Asian News, Fr. Michael Aung Ling and a boarding student were arrested for allegedly providing food to a civil resistance group.

Soldiers suspected the priest of supplying the food to the civil resistant group Chinaland Defense Force after finding bags of rice in the parish house. The priest was reportedly arrested around 8 a.m. and questioned for 11 hours before being released.

CDF had reportedly ambushed the military in the Chin state last month, causing many casualties.

Church officials in Chin state claim that the priest's arrest came after informants gave false information to the military.

Earlier this month, the Burmese military arrested and released six Catholic priests and a lay Catholic in Chan Thar village in the Archdiocese of Mandalay.

According to Fides News Agency, soldiers raided the Church of the Assumption and its adjoining clergy house, arrested the parish priest and other religious leaders visiting him during a midnight raid on June 12 and June 13. The church was built by French missionaries over 200 years ago.

The raid occurred after informants said National League for Democracy parliamentarians were hiding in the Catholic churches and Buddhist monasteries.

In May, four civilians were reportedly killed and around eight others were injured when military forces fired artillery shells at a Catholic Church in the Kayah state's Thar Yar village.

Earlier in June, the Church of Mary Queen of Peace in Daw Ngan Kha in Kayah, which was acting as a place of refuge for many displaced by conflict, was shelled. No one was reportedly killed in the attack.

Aung Myo Min, the human rights minister for the National Unity Government, the Burmese government in exile, told RFA that the attacks on religious buildings by the military are a "violation of international laws of war."

"The shooting of people who are hiding and taking refuge in there is another serious matter, the minister argued. We are now working to condemn these attacks and then we will continue to work to get the international community to get involved in stopping this kind of attacks. At the same time, we will systematically put on record these violations in order to bring the perpetrators to justice one day."

On Feb. 1, the military detained civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi in response to her National League for Democracy partys landslide victory in last years election. The coup makes an army general the de-facto leader of the country. Protests against the coup have been met with force as the military has reportedly killed hundreds since Feb. 1.

In the three months between Feb. 15 and May 15, Asia News reported that 73 people under the age of 18-years-old had been killed.

Christians make up just over 7% of the majority-Buddhist nation. Formerly known as Burma, the country is home to the worlds longest civil war, which began in 1948. Myanmar is ranked No. 18 on Open Doors USAs 2021 World Watch List of 50 countries where Christians face the most severe persecution. The persecution level in Myanmar is very high due to Buddhist nationalism. Burma is recognized by the U.S. State Department as a "country of particular concern" for egregious violations of religious liberty.

The military is notorious for its relations with the ultranationalist ultra-Buddhist group the Ma Ba Tha, International Christian Concern Southeast Asia Regional Manager Gina Goh said in a statement earlier this year. The military together with Ma Ba Tha has targeted the Muslims in the country, but they also go after Christians. Once they get a hold of the power, they might resort to things they were doing before they passed the power to the civilian government. They kill. They rape minority Christians.

The U.S. Commission for International Religious Freedom raised concern about violence toward religious minorities after the military coup.

Given the history of brutal atrocities by the Burmese military, our fear is that violence could quickly escalate, especially towards religious and ethnic communities, such as the Rohingya and other Muslims, USCIRF Chair Anurima Bhargava said in a statement at the time. We urge the Burmese military to honor the faith and will of the Burmese people and restore democratic civilian rule as soon as possible.
Christian pastor killed over outreach to Muslims: Today Allah has judged you

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A radical Muslim has confessed to police in Uganda that he killed a 70-year-old pastor earlier this month because of Allahs word to kill all infidels who mislead Muslims by sharing the Gospel.

The accused, identified as Imam Uthman Olingha, told police he killed Bishop Francis Obo, senior pastor of Mpingire Pentecostal Revival Church Ministries International in Odapako village Mpingire Sub-County, on June 11, Morning Star News reported.

Olingha was one of the Muslim extremists dressed in Islamic attire who stopped Pastor Obo and his wife on their way home from a market at about 8:30 p.m., his wife, Christine Obo, said.

Olingha openly confessed (to police) that he cant regret that he killed the bishop because he did it in the cause of Allahs word to kill all infidels who mislead Muslims. He added that Allah will be with him in jail, but the kafiri (infidel) deserved the killing.

One of the attackers told the pastor, who oversaw 17 churches across the region and had been sharing Christ with Muslims, that he was an infidel who caused Muslims to leave Islam and blasphemes the words of Allah, and that, Today Allah has judged you.

A week before the murder, the couple had invited a former Islamic teacher to testify on how he became a Christian at their church, Christine Obo recalled. Area Muslims were also upset with the church because it offered the former Islamic teacher a pig as part of a micro-enterprise livestock project that helped raise funds for the church, she added.

Describing the incident, she said, As I moved a few meters in a hurry trying to save my life, I heard a little noise and wailing from my husband and realized that his life was in danger.

When she reached home, she was trembling and unable to speak, she said, and her children took her to a hospital. When she regained consciousness the following morning, she told her oldest son and his siblings to go to the site.

Reaching there, they were shocked and fearful as they found a big number of Christians and relatives gathered around the dead body mourning their bishop after being murdered by Muslims, Obo was quoted as saying.

According to World Watch Monitor, a homegrown Islamist rebel movement organizing in the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo has emboldened Ugandan radicals to persecute Christians.

Voice of the Martyrs earlier noted that Ugandas history has made it vulnerable to the influence of Islam as Arab countries also continue to invest significant resources into furthering Muslim interests in the country.

In Uganda, persecution is mainly seen in the form of local Islamists persecuting Christians, mostly in areas where radicals have been steadily encroaching.

Radical Islams influence has grown steadily, and many Christians within the majority-Muslim border regions are facing severe persecution, especially those who convert from Islam, a Voice of the Martyrs factsheet explains. Despite the risks, evangelical churches in Uganda have responded by reaching out to their neighbors; many churches are training leaders how to share the Gospel with Muslims and care for those who are persecuted after they become Christians.

Last December, a mob of Muslim extremists in Uganda reportedly killed 41-year-old former imam Yusuf Kintu a week after he converted to Christianity.
Christians, religious minorities protest establishment of Islam as state religion in Bangladesh

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Christians and other religious minorities in Bangladesh recently took part in the annual Black Day protest against the 1988 constitutional amendments that established Islam as the state religion, leading to persecution and discrimination against non-Muslims in the Muslim-majority country.

With the amendment, the seed of sectarian politics has been planted, Asia News quoted Nirmol Rozario, a Christian leader who was part of the march on June 9, as saying. In a country where Hindus, Buddhists and Christians also live, a single religion cannot proclaim itself as the state religion. We do not agree.

The number of Christians in Bangladesh is estimated at 1.6 million, which comprises around 1% of the country's population.

Rozario added, In its Constitution, Bangladesh declares itself a secular country. But at the same time, it says that the state religion is Islam. This is a clear contradiction. And if this state of affairs continues, Islamic fundamentalism and religious hatred will end up creating serious problems.

Muslim radicals often have a level of impunity because police in Bangladesh tend to turn a blind eye to the persecution of religious minorities, Christian Freedom International said in an earlier report.

Despite reports that Christianity is growing in the country, CFI emphasized that Christians are forced to keep their worship activities secretive to prevent retaliation for their faith.

Churches, especially house churches where Muslim-background believers meet, prefer not to display any Christian symbols in order to avoid being recognized, a report from the Christian persecution watchdog ministry Open Doors U.K. stated earlier. Sometimes, even historic or mainline churches face opposition and restrictions in putting up a cross or other religious symbols.

Religious minorities are often persecuted by the majority group, Rana Dasgupta, secretary-general of the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, was quoted by Asia News as saying. For our security, we strongly demand a minority ministry and a commission for religious communities.

Bangladeshs society is deeply divided along political lines. Bengali nationalists, who are proud of the country's language and culture, favor the countrys independence from Pakistan, which was established during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War, as they believe that religion alone does not form a cohesive national identity. They also believe that West Pakistan, what's called Pakistan today, imposed religious hegemony on its Eastern territory, East Pakistan, as Bangladesh was called before its independence.

Muslim nationalists, on the other hand, oppose Bangladeshs separation from Pakistan and supported the countrys Islamization as their pride had been wounded by the independence.

Last year, at least 22 Rohingya Christian families who had fled to Bangladesh were attacked, a Christian pastor and his 14-year-old daughter were abducted, and a Christian church and school were vandalized in the Coxs Bazar area, which is home to thousands of refugees who fled ethnic and religious persecution in neighboring Myanmar.

The attack took place on Jan. 27, 2020, by machete-wielding Muslim Rohingya men on a Christian community, Radio Free Asia reported at the time.

In a report on his visit to Bangladesh as the U.N. special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Yanghee Lee said at the time that Rohingya Christians were in a most difficult position.
SBC becomes first US denomination to condemn China's genocide of Uyghurs

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NASHVILLE  Messengers to the Southern Baptist Conventions 2021 Annual Meeting voted to adopt a resolution condemning the "genocide" committed against Uyghurs and other ethnic Muslims by the Chinese government, becoming the first major United States-based denomination to speak out against the abuses.

Resolution 8 called for the Chinese Communist Party to stop its genocide of the Uyghur people  a community that resides mainly in China's western Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region  and restore to them their full God-given rights.

The motion also urged the U.S. government to prioritize the admission of Uyghurs to this country as refugees, and provide resources for their support and resettlement." Additionally, the document asks for prayers for the persecuted religious minority and the Christian workers who bring both physical aid and the Gospel of Christ.

The resolution, presented to over 15,000 messengers gathered in Nashville on Tuesday, cited credible reporting that uncovered the CCPs persecution of the Uyghur people. The persecution includes forced abortions, rape, sexual abuse, sterilization, organ harvesting, human trafficking and scientific experimentation, among other abuses.

Estimates suggest that as many as 1 million to 3 million Uyghur Muslims have been subject to internment camps in western China. They are allegedly subject to ideological brainwashing and taught to be secular citizens who never oppose the ruling Communist Party.

Griffin Gulledge, a pastor at Madison Baptist Church in Madison, Georgia, wrote and introduced the motion. He called the persecution of Uyghurs one of the worst things happening in the world.

Its ethnic cleansing. It's a genocide. It's a Holocaust. The Uyghurs are being treated horribly in a way that is unique to our lifetime, Gulledge told The Christian Post. All all of this is happening under the authority of the Chinese government, and nobody's saying anything. We have an obligation to speak.

Though they live in a remote region, China is employing its most aggressive technology to oppress Uyghurs, including sophisticated cameras, facial recognition technology and the collection of DNA samples.

A report from last year documents how hospitals in Xinjiang were ordered to abort and kill all babies born over Chinas mandated family planning limits  including newborns born after being carried to full term. The orders were part of strict family-planning policies intended to restrict Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities to three children.

Condemning the persecution of Uyghurs aligns with the SBCs theological mission to obey Jesus call in the Bible for His disciples to spread the Gospel throughout the world, Gulledge stressed.

The greatest Baptist contribution to theology is the freedom of religion, he said. This is an area for us to be consistent and to say, We're going to protect the freedom of religion, no matter what it is. The freedom of religion opens the door to global evangelization. As Baptists, our two greatest priorities are the freedom of religion and global evangelization.

Before presenting the resolution on Tuesday, Gulledge said he consulted with several Uyghur rights groups who were very, very excited to see Southern Baptists lend their support to the cause.

Currently pursuing his Ph.D. in Systematic Theology at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Gulledge said his interest in the plight of Uyghurs began after reading a New York Times article highlighting their situation.

From there, Gulledge posted a series of tweets drawing attention to the abuses, which soon went viral.

"China is committing one of the grossest acts of human rights violations in modern history, and we arent saying a word because it financially benefits most of the rest of the world," he tweeted.

Shortly after that, SBCs Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission hosted a webinar last summer focused on China's persecution of the Uyghur Muslim community.

The event included then-U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Sam Brownback and garnered attention from major news outlets like CNN and BBC.

At the time, then-ERLC President Russell Moore said that the crimes being perpetrated against religious minorities in China and elsewhere rely on an invisibility where the rest of the world doesn't pay attention and tribalism.

Let's be the people who stand up for whoever is being made invisible, whoever is being intimidated and bullied in our own neighborhoods and in our own communities because we're the people of Jesus Christ, Moore said.

While he doesnt claim to be the precipitating force behind the series of events, Gulledge said it all kind of happened at once.

So when the SBC was approaching, I figured, what a better time to speak out than now? The SBC has spoken out against the Nazi Holocaust and the genocide in Sudan, and so I wanted us to speak out on this as well," he contended.

The SBC is now the first major U.S. denomination to condemn the actions of the Chinese government and call upon the U.S. government to fight for Uyghur freedom and uphold their dignity as human beings, according to Gulledge.

Earlier this year, the U.S. State Department labeled China's treatment of Uyghurs as a "genocide" following years of criticism during the Trump administration. During the early days of the Biden administration, Secretary of State Antony Blinken affirmed the new administration's position that what is happening to Uyghurs in western China is genocide.

Gulledge said he would love to see Christian groups of all sorts, whether nonprofits and NGOs, relief agencies or other denominations, follow the SBCs example in using their voice and influence to advocate for these people.

He cited Luke 4:18, which reads: The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free.

I hope they'll speak out because I think that this is consistent with our call as Christians, Gulledge said. I hope that anyone who is able to speak will speak.
Mentally, I was a mess when I first came across Tony Robbins. It was around 2008; I had just had a full-on panic attack, finding myself curled up in the fetal position in a friend's garden. A cocktail of unhealthy behaviors, relationship challenges and work stress had built up. Completely disconnected from my own soul and spirit, my body shut down.

At the time, I had no idea what was going on and how to resolve my pain, so I searched on YouTube and came across this tall man who started to make sense to me. It was Tony Robbins. I ended up investing in his course Personal Power II, and something clicked. It was the moment when I discovered that I could change myself. This started my journey of transformation, and I found that the more I worked on myself, the better my life became.

Six years later, I was attending a mastermind in Las Vegas, and someone who worked closely with Robbins offered me a complimentary ticket to Unleash the Power Within (UPW), and it was then that I decided to sign up for his Platinum Partnership, a $65,000 investment at the time. I can remember being stood at the table, my heart pounding  this was to be the biggest investment I had ever made in my personal development.

Part of this investment meant that I would be taking trips all over the world with the man who had had a huge impact on me, and my first private chat with him was at a West End show in London. That's where I learned my first big lesson from Robbins.

Related: Tony Robbins: Want Success? Rewire Your Mind.

1. London, England: the power of the eyes and presence

Robbins is the master of presence, and for me, this was a big lesson because I really struggled with eye contact as a result of childhood bullying and social anxiety. Because people didn't feel safe to me, I had trouble maintaining eye contact, and consequently, people thought I was being rude. It wasn't the case; I just really had a hard time.

In London, I described some of my personal challenges to Robbins. He looked me directly in the eyes and asked, "Are you going to India?" I told him I was, and he said, "I'm going to rip that right out of you there." I felt his words throughout my entire nervous system, and from that day on, I wanted to master presence. It's true what they say about the most successful people: They make you feel like you're the only person there. Robbins taught me that the eyes are the connection to the soul.

2. Chennai, India: deep reprogramming

Up until the trip to India, I would not have labeled myself as "spiritual," but I was open to "woo woo" since I had been meditating off and on for a couple of years. In India, we went deep into meditation, and it was the first time that I had an out-of-body experience. Robbins expands your thinking beyond what is taught in the Western world.

While in a private room with Robbins's energy worker, I realized there was so much about the world I didn't know. During the deeper meditations, we were taught how to heal and reprogram ourselves, and this gave me a new perspective on energy and how we are trapped as adults from events in childhood. I had been introduced for the first time to work in the quantum field. Being in an environment where people have little also humbles you, and this trip did that.

Related: This Is How Energetic Intelligence Can Be Your Superpower

3. Whistler, Canada: the love of animals

The trip to Canada focused on investments. Robbins brought in billionaires, but it was a single comment to another entrepreneur that helped me the most. The man was experiencing depression, and Robbins said three words that changed my life: "Get a dog." At the time, having my own dog was not on my radar, but as soon as I got home, I made the call and chose a King Charles Cavalier Spaniel to be my new friend.

My dog Buddha, whose name was inspired by the India trip, has been with me for five years now, and he's played such a big part in my own personal growth. He also brings so much happiness to others. Dogs are such a powerful lesson in presence and unconditional love. Whenever I'm outside and he just wants to sniff the flowers, he reminds me to take a pause instead of rushing back to work.

4. Hawaii, USA: ending co-dependent relationships

One entire event was focused on relationships, and at the time, I was in a toxic relationship, and my own behaviors were very unconscious. A lot of anger, resentment, jealously and fear led me to show up as very passive. There was a big part of me that didn't want to be in the relationship I was in, but there was so much fear of being alone that I stayed in it for too long. Robbins helped me start to understand relationships on a deeper level, and it was soon after this event that I had the courage to end the relationship that had caused us both a lot of pain. There's so much truth to the fact that you can't allow the right person into your life if you're stuck dependent on someone who is draining you.

Robbins has had a huge impact on my life because I acted on what he taught me. You can get key leadership lessons from his energy alone, but my personal advice is to use his teachings as an opening to go deeper into whatever is showing up at the time.

When we take a leap to work with someone more closely, we shave years off our transformational process because we get closer to the person and access inside information not just from the leader, but from those that the leader surrounds himself or herself with. While I had a big fear about my investment at this level, in reality, it didn't really "cost me" anything because of the connections I made and the business that I was able to generate afterwards, even though that wasn't my original intention.

Related: Tony Robbins Describes the Top Traits Found in Truly Coachable

That leap you're scared to take is highly likely to get you where you want to be. I trusted my gut, and whether that leads to Robbins or someone else for you, don't focus on what you will lose  that's based on fear  focus on what you will gain by taking action. Then, your return on investment is fully in your control.

Copyright 2021 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
MADRID (AP)  John McAfee, the creator of the McAfee antivirus software, has been found dead in his cell in a jail near Barcelona, a government official told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Hours earlier, a Spanish court issued a preliminary ruling in favor of his extradition to the United States to face tax-related criminal charges.

READ ALSO: Can Texas wind turbines melt in the summer heat? We checked.

Security personnel at the Brians 2 penitentiary near the northeastern Spanish city tried to revive McAfee, who was 75, but the jails medical team finally certified his death, a statement from the regional Catalan government said.

The statement didnt identify the U.S. tycoon by name, but said he was a 75-year-old U.S. citizen awaiting extradition to the country. A Catalan government source familiar with the event who was not authorized to be named in media reports confirmed to the AP that the dead man was McAfee.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. APs earlier story follows below.

MADRID (AP)  Spains National Court has approved the extradition of detained antivirus software entrepreneur John McAfee to the United States, where he is wanted on tax-related criminal charges that carry a prison sentence of up to 30 years.

The decision can be appealed and the final extradition will need to be approved by the Spanish Cabinet.

READ ALSO: Spears set to make rare remarks to conservatorship judge

Tennessee prosecutors charged 75-year-old McAfee with evading taxes after failing to report income made from promoting cryptocurrencies while he did consultancy work, as well as income from speaking engagements and selling the rights to his life story for a documentary.

The charges refer to the three fiscal years from 2016 to 2018, according to the Spanish court's ruling on Wednesday.

The entrepreneur was arrested last October at Barcelonas international airport. A judge ordered at that time that McAfee should be held in jail while awaiting the outcome of a hearing on extradition.

In a hearing held via videolink earlier this month, McAfee argued that the charges against him were politically motivated and said he would spend the rest of his life in prison if he was returned to the U.S.
Richard Shotwell/Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP

Harrison Ford is taking a hiatus from filming Indiana Jones 5 after sustaining a shoulder injury on set. The 78-year-old was hurt rehearsing a fight scene, a spokesperson for the Walt Disney Co. said Wednesday.

Production is expected to continue and the filming schedule will be reconfigured as needed while treatment options are evaluated.
New Yorks second largest city, Buffalo, is poised to make history this fall by electing its first female mayor  and the first socialist mayor of a major American city in more than 60 years. On Tuesday, 38-year-old India Walton defeated four-term incumbent Mayor Byron Brown in the Democratic primary. Walton was leading Brown by more than 1,500 votes, or roughly 7 percentage points, when the AP called the race on Wednesday morning.

As the returns streamed in on election night, Walton was jubilant. Asked about her political philosophy and whether she really considered herself a socialist, she answered instantly: Oh, absolutely.

The entire intent of this campaign is to draw down power and resources to the ground level, to the hands of the people, Walton explained. When we think about socialism, were perfectly fine with socialism for the rich. We will bail out Wall Street and banks and give a billion dollars in tax incentives to one of the richest people in the world to build an empty Tesla factory in South Buffalo. And when it comes to providing the resources that working families need to thrive, socialism becomes scary at that point.

The speed and conviction with which India Walton answers Are you a socialist? with Oh absolutely is just incredible pic.twitter.com/rzbcM6NWNS  Meagan Day (@meaganmday) June 23, 2021

Walton was born and raised in Buffalo. She became a mom at 14 years old and lived in a group home for young mothers outside of the city for two years before moving into her own apartment. I was 17 years old, I had to have special permission to have utilities turned on in my name, Walton told a local TV station earlier this year. She went on to have three more children  including a pair of twins, born premature when she was 19  to become a nurse, and an organizer for the health care workers union.

After moving into a neighborhood near the hospital where she worked, Walton became involved in housing activism, eventually rising to become the executive director of the Fruit Belt Land Trust, a nonprofit that returned ownership of the Buffalo neighborhood to its residents, one plot at a time.

If elected in the general election this November, as is expected in the heavily Democratic city, Walton has promised to bring her experience as a housing advocate to city hall, instituting rent control and signing a tenants bill of rights into law. Shes also pledged to increase funding for public schools, institute a moratorium on charter schools, re-allocate funding from the police department, and end the practice of sending cops to respond to mental health calls.

Buffalo, being the third poorest mid-size city in this country, we should be considering how we begin to eradicate concentrated poverty and disadvantage, and Democratic Socialist leanings are a big step toward getting us there, Walton said on Tuesday night. All that we are doing in this moment is claiming what is rightfully ours. We are the workers. We do the work. And we deserve a government that works with and for us.

Waltons victory is the latest example of what appears to be a trend emerging in the industrial Northeast: She is the third Black progressive to oust the incumbent mayor in the last three weeks, after Malik Evans win in Rochester and Ed Gaineys in Pittsburgh.

Brown, Buffalos sitting mayor and a staunch ally of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, refused to debate Walton during the primary, and he has not yet conceded the race.
Director Heidi Ewing makes a powerful narrative debut with  I Carry You with Me, a dreamy and tender, decades-spanning story about love, sacrifice, memory and immigration.

The central character is Ivan (Armando Espitia), an aspiring chef who we meet in Mexico as hes struggling to get a spot in a kitchen and to make enough money to support his son. His boss, who has him washing dishes and fixing toilets, tells him to be patient. Ivans culinary school degree and talent are of no interest to the boss, who fills an open kitchen position with a relative in need.

Then one night Ivan meets the handsome Gerardo (Christian Vazquez), a teacher who, unlike him, is out as a gay man. They begin a passionate affair that Ivan tries to keep secret from everyone. He fears that his sons mother wont let Ivan see him if hes outed and his own mother wont understand. When it looks like hes about to be exposed, he makes the decision to cross over into America with his best friend, Sandra (a heartbreakingly good Michelle Rodriguez), and to just leave it all behind for the hope of better opportunities in the U.S. The way the characters living in Mexico talk about those whove made the crossing, it sounds akin to disappearing forever.

New York is hardly a promised land for Ivan at first either, who is still not able to get a break in a kitchen and ends up working as a janitor and deliveryman. Hes also achingly lonely and isolated, with only Gerardo as a lifeline.

The film cuts back and forth between past and present freely, with some devastating flashbacks to both Ivan and Gerardos childhoods and their fraught relationships with their own fathers.

Because of the structure, we know early that Ivan achieves his dream and makes it as a chef in New York. But it also becomes abundantly clear that his promises to return to his son have not been fulfilled. There are too many complications with being undocumented and the threat of deportation looms always. Its a gut punch to realize on one of their facetime conversations that the little boy he left in Mexico is now a grown man.

Ewing, who has previously co-directed documentaries, co-wrote the screenplay with Alan Page Arriaga. They based it on the real story of an acclaimed New York chef. The project even started out as documentary before evolving into a hybrid of sorts, with actors portraying the younger versions of Ivan and Gerardo. The way the non-linear elements come together sometimes disrupts the overall flow and poignancy of key moments, but the film is always engaging and emotionally authentic.

Mexican cinematographer Juan Pablo Ramirez does wonders with the camera, too, capturing the very different energies of Mexico and New York. Mexico also exists mainly as a nostalgic idea for Ivan and is given an even dreamier quality.

I Carry You with Me couldnt be any more specific about the trials of an undocumented gay couple trying to carve out a place for themselves, but its that specificity that makes its themes and emotions all the more universal. By the end, Ivans losses, triumphs and memories good and bad start to feel like your own.

I Carry You with Me, a Sony Pictures Classics release in theaters Friday, is rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America for language and brief nudity. Running time: 111 minutes. Three stars out of four.

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MPAA Definition of R: Restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.

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Follow AP Film Writer Lindsey Bahr on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ldbahr
Click here to read the full article.

This piece originally appeared as part of Rolling Stones annual Hot List, in the July/August 2021 issue of the magazine.

When Twitter banned @real-donaldtrump on January 8th, it short-circuited the 45th presidents hard-wired connection to the nations consciousness, silencing his anytime platform to threaten, cajole, insult, troll, and terrify the nation. Two weeks later, the inauguration of the subdued, levelheaded Joe Biden brought an end to four years of national trauma.

For the liberal opposition, Trumps departure meant mental liberation! We were free to obsessively share Bernie Sanders mitten memes; to consume news stories of low-impact ephemera like the shrimp tail a comedian (allegedly) discovered in a box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch; or to propose overconfident solutions to the saga of the stuck Suez Canal container ship. So starved were Americans for non-Trumpian drama that Oprahs interview with Harry and Meghan about their split from the royals damn near broke the internet.

But the end of the Trump presidency has also left a wicked hangover. Instead of pure release and relief, the national nervous system remains decidedly on edge. The hyperfocus formerly dedicated to Trump has been swinging around indiscriminately  and only occasionally landing on stories of national weight, like the conviction of Derek Chauvin in the murder of George Floyd.

The difficulty in recalibrating what is worth our attention, says psychiatrist Bandy X. Lee, president of the World Mental Health Coalition, is a mark of mental injuries produced by four years of having our fight-or-flight reflexes triggered by Trump. After prolonged vigilance and trauma, it is very hard for the limbic system to return to its previous normal, she says, referencing the part of the brain that regulates our survival responses.

Lee calls the lived experience of the Trump administration a complex trauma, by which she means that Americans were not only exposed to prolonged, repeated conditions of having to fear for our very survival, but the very person who was supposed to protect us  the president  inflicted more harm than all our enemies for the past 100 years. This is a lot for us to come to terms with as a nation, she says.

The challenge for America, mental-health experts say, is to come to a sense of closure with the Trump administration  despite the lack of accountability our former White House tormentor has faced. Psychiatrist James S. Gordon, author of The Transformation: Discovering Wholeness and Healing After Trauma, emphasizes the good that can come from stepping down from the eat-or-be-eaten mindset that Trump cultivated. Trump was a total believer in the zero-sum game. He wins. You lose. Too bad! Youre a sucker! Gordon says.

Post-Trump brain freedom presents Americans an opportunity to move beyond that anger and mistrust and to come into balance, and to find our meaning and purpose, says Gordon, who teaches at Georgetown University. This calmer, more centered mind space is enhanced by the easing of the pandemic, which has enabled a return to many of the daily activities, from concert festivals to book clubs to dinners with friends, that give life meaning. That, in turn, creates room for reconciliation. When were being traumatized, its very hard to pay attention to somebody else, he says, and very hard to relax with them and accord them respect.

Rather than forgetting and just moving forward, Lee says, America has got to put in the work of confronting the damage Trump wrought  both to the stability of our country and to our national self-image  and to the danger that his political movement continues to pose. The prerequisite for reconciliation, she argues, is truth. The sooner we face reality, the sooner healing can occur, Lee says.

That is, of course, a heavy lift. In the meantime, if your personal trauma recovery requires chiming in online about the re-emergence of Bennifer, the Bill Gates divorce, or the mystery of the militarys UFO videos, please know were not here to judge.
Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark Milley delivered a powerful defense of the militarys right to study critical race theory while speaking before Congress on Wednesday. In just under two minutes, Milley drew on history from the Civil War to the January 6th insurrection in explaining how important it is for members of the military to educate themselves on the ideas that are animating America.

Ive read Mao Zedong. Ive read Karl Marx. Ive read Lenin, Milley said. That doesnt make me a communist. So what is wrong with having some situational understanding about the country which we are here to defend?

Milley also called out those who have denigrated military officials as woke for entertaining critical race theory, saying he was personally offended that anyone would criticize members for studying some theories that are out there.

Gen. Mark Milley responds to Rep. Matt Gaetz on Extremism & Critical Race Theory: "I personally find it offensive that we are accusing the United States military, our general officers, our commissioned, non-commissioned officers of being 'woke' or something else." pic.twitter.com/P1x6vg9FUr  CSPAN (@cspan) June 23, 2021

Milleys speech came during a House Armed Services Committee budget hearing on Wednesday. After Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.)  who, we must remind you, is currently under federal investigation for sex trafficking a 17-year-old  asked Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin how the Department of Defense should think about critical race theory, Milley asked if he could make a comment. Gaetz rebuffed the request, but Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Penn.) later yielded some of her time so that Milley could say his piece. Here are his remarks in full:

I do think its important for those of us in uniform to be open-minded and be widely read. The United States Military Academy is a university. It is important that we train and we understand. I want to understand white rage  and Im white. What is it that caused thousands of people to assault this building and try to overturn the Constitution of the United States of America? What caused that? I want to find that out. I want to maintain an open mind. I do want to analyze it. Its important that we understand it. Our soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, and guardians  they come from the American people. Its important that the leaders, now and in the future, understand it. Ive read Mao Zedong. Ive read Karl Marx. Ive read Lenin. That doesnt make me a communist. So what is wrong with having some situational understanding about the country we are here to defend? I personally find it offensive that we are accusing the United States military  our general officers, our commissioned and non-commissioned  of being woke or something else because were studying some theories that are out there while calling out those who have criticized military officials as woke for entertaining the theory based on the idea that systemic racism exists in America. [Critical race theory] was started at Harvard Law School years ago and proposed that there were laws in the United States prior to the Civil War that led to a power differential with African Americans that were three-quarters of a human being when this country was formed. We had a Civil War and an Emancipation Proclamation to change it. We brought it up in the Civil Rights Act. It took another 100 years to change that. I do want to know. I respect your service and were both Green Berets, but I want to know. It matters to the discipline and cohesion of this military.

Critical race theory, an academic movement based on the idea that systemic racism exists in America, has been around for decades, but right-wing media and Republican demagogues in Congress have recently been using it to drum up fear that the Biden administration wants to destroy America.

The most recent example came on Tuesday during a Senate confirmation hearing for Kiran Adju, an Indian-American woman Biden tapped to run the Office of Personnel Management. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) used the occasion to go on a screed against critical race theory, arguing it holds that the United States is rotten to its core. He rationalized voting against Adju by claiming that critical race theory appears to be her fundamental ideology, and that her nomination is an example of Biden trying to pump the government full of individuals who do not share a view of America as a good and decent place.

In our American flag, they see propaganda, and in our family businesses, they see white supremacy, Hawley said of the Biden administration.

Wed like to see him say that to Milleys face.
The Great Library of Alexandria. The Dead Sea Scrolls. Wikipedia. Bastions of information have come and gone over the years, educating the masses.

But this one may just prove the most important of all.

PARDON?: Buc-ee's is building the world's largest convenience storebut it won't be in Texas

The Houston Barbecue Festival has done us all an incredible service and created the Houston BBQ Guide, a truly impressive database that helps you choose a barbecue spot in Houstonfrom the best smokehouses in the city to the pretty-good-to-great-and-maybe-just-more-convenient Houston barbecue.

Here's how it works: The Houston BBQ Guide currently has 28 joints in its database chosen by its meat-savvy editors. In the site's sidebar, you can narrow your choices down to the most minute details, including what neighborhood it's in, barbecue style, pit type, whether there is easy parking on site, if it's open on Mondays and even which kind of wood they use (oak is particularly prevalent in Houston).

From there, it will narrow down Houston barbecue joints that fit your criteria. Click on each spot to see photos, all its contact information and hours, a short blurb about the restaurant or its owners, accolades won, local media coverage and more.

The Houston BBQ Guide launched June 21 and will continue to be updated with hopes to add in barbecue pop-ups and an eventual mobile app for the guide, the Houston Chronicle's Greg Morago reports.

LONG LIVE LUBY'S: Luby's gets new life after selling 32 locations to Chicago-based group

"I like to think of it as a guide for everyday barbecue fans," said J.C. Reid, co-founder of the Houston Barbecue Festival, barbecue columnist for the Houston Chronicle, and the primary developer and editor behind the guide, according to Morago.

The team is also working on guides for Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth and the entire state of Texas, according to its website.

Choosing your next barbecue outing just got a lot easier. May this encyclopedia of smoked meat live on and expand.
Jarritos, the classic Mexican soda in a bottle, is forming an alliance with Duolingo (the language learning app on your phone that youve been meaning to revisit).

The two forces are giving away 100 3-month premium Spanish lesson subscriptions, with one fortunate subscriber winning an all expenses paid four-night trip for two in Mexico.

READ ALSO: How you can drink wine at charity event with Jose Altuve and wife Nina

The trip will be to the Mexican destination of the winners choice, anywhere from Cabo San Lucas to Cancun.

"Since Jarritos is flavored by culture and rooted in rich Mexican tradition, partnering with Duolingo allows us to further celebrate our heritage by focusing on the language of our brand's birthplace," says Eric Delamare, director of marketing for Jarritos in a press statement. "Something as simple as learning that the letter 'J' is pronounced like an 'H' in our brand name can unlock a whole new world of learning through language.

With 13 flavors ranging from mandarin, tamarind, guava and grapefruit, a cold Jarritos (HA-reetos) is a summer-time favorite. Even if you already know how to pronounce the beverage correctly, you can still enter to win.

Those seeking to brush up on their Spanish through lessons or take an immersive language vacation must complete several tasks to enter the drawing.

Courtesy of Brianna Hernandez, Jarritos

First, follow both Duolingo and Jarritos on Instagram. Then, on either brands account, tag one friend who youd want to join you on a trip to Mexico. Then, if you havent already, download (or re-download) the Duolingo App and follow the link online to finalize your entry by sharing your name, email, address, Duolingo and Instagram handles.

The deadline to enter is July 20, 2021.






A betrayal like no other from a beaver who just cant get enough.

Buc-ee's is building the world's largest convenience store, not at all a shock for a chain that built its name on Walmart-sized gas stations where you can get Dippin' Dots and home decor under the same roof.

LONG LIVE LUBY'S: Luby's gets new life after selling 32 locations to Chicago-based group

But it wont be in Texas.

Buc-ee's upcoming location in Sevierville, Tennessee will break the record already held by Buc-ee's with a 74,000-square-foot travel center, ABC 6's Gregory Raucoules reports.

And after all Texas has given this buck-toothed behemoth, youd think our state would deserve to keep the world's largest convenience store record. Everything is already supposed to be bigger in Texas. Its our unofficial slogan. And theyre just going to throw that away for Tennessee? Unconscionable.

Plus, weve already seen how non-Texans feel about letting a giant beaver loom over their highways. Theyre not always welcoming, obviously stemming from a reasonable lack of understanding on why a convenience store would ever need to be that size and where the fudge actually comes from.

IT'S TRUE: Buc-ee's Beaver Nuggets really are the best gas station snack

But alas. King Buc-ee will not stop until every motorist coast to coast has a bag of Beaver Nuggets in hand and has seen just how clean a gas station bathroom can be. And perhaps we should have prepared for the day Buc-ee left the nest for greener pastures (states where an oversized gas station is even more of a shock). Maybe the thrill of the chase just wore off for him here in his home state.

Until the Tennesse Buc-ee's location opens, visit what will formerly be the world's largest convenience store at the New Braunfels Buc-ee's and pay your respects to a Texas legend.
After traveling to locations across the country, the Lake Conroe Queen paddleboat is making its permanent home on Lake Conroe.

Michigan residents Dale and Linda Shaver have recently launched the Lake Conroe Queen for tours and events on the lake and theyre happy to set sail with their retirement project near Lindas siblings and their daughter.

They had enjoyed the area for years while visiting Texas family and when Linda retired they decided to make the paddleboat their full-time passion.

They lived on Gull Lake in Michigan for 20 years and raised their children there. In retirement, Dale Shaver bought the paddlewheel boat from a businessman who also owned the Michigan Princess Riverboat.

The 60-passenger, double-decker boat is a reproduction of a 1860s riverboat.

The Lake Conroe Queen was built in 1986 in Grand Ledge, Michigan and has traveled to Indiana, Colorado and Louisiana with Dale as the host for a variety of cruises and events. It is run by two diesel engines, but it does feature a paddlewheel that slowly churns along in the water to add visual impact to the experience.

Upon Lindas retirement, she joined her husband in the paddleboat business and they brought the boat to Lake Conroe.

She said the top level of the boat folds down and the structure can then by hauled by a flatbed trailer.

They were hoping to launch the business in summer 2020, but the pandemic put a pause on that plan.

Now the boat is docked near Wolfies restaurant on the south end of Lake Conroe. The address is 14954 Texas 105 W Montgomery. The loading dock can be accessed by turning on the access road to Lake Conroe Park and Wolfies - which has recently been purchased by a new owner.

They have worked with Wolfies and also the owners of the Southern Empress - a larger paddle-wheeler that is docked near the Seven Coves area off FM 830.

Southern Empress owner Jeff Taggert struck up a friendship with the Shavers and theyve worked together to support both businesses by sharing referrals and more.

Theyre good people and it has worked out well, Taggert said.

The Lake Conroe Queen does lunch and dinner tours as well as private events, sunset tours and will have a Fourth of July fireworks boat tour.

Linda Shaver called Lake Conroe peaceful, but quite a bit warmer than Michigan summers shes used to.

Visit https://lakeconroequeen.com/ to book a tour online and for more about the paddleboat.

shernandez@hcnonline.com
A 13-year-old Honduran girl who spent two months at the government's largest emergency shelter for migrant children said she was put on suicide watch and was eating only popsicles and juice because the food smelled so foul. At another site, a 17-year-old Salvadoran girl said she had to wear the same clothes and underwear for two weeks and spent most days in bed.

At a third facility in Texas, a 16-year-old Honduran boy said he had not met with a case manager for more than three weeks to see whether he could go live with his sister in New Orleans.

I am desperate. I wouldnt mind being here for 20 or 30 days if I knew that I was going to be released soon. But because the process hasnt started and because I had no idea whats happening or when the process will start, that makes me feel very, very anxious. I dont know when this will end, he said.

More than a dozen immigrant children described similar conditions and desperation to get out of large-scale emergency care facilities set up by the Biden administration at places like convention centers and military bases to address a record rise in the number of children crossing the U.S.-Mexico border.

The children were interviewed by immigrant advocates from March to June, and their accounts were filed late Monday with a federal court in Los Angeles that oversees a longstanding settlement governing custody conditions for children who cross the border alone.

Advocates have said for weeks that President Joe Bidens administration is taking too long to release children to relatives in the United States and that conditions at some of the unlicensed emergency facilities are inadequate and distressing. The Obama and Trump administrations also faced challenges addressing the care of unaccompanied migrant children.

The Biden administration said significant improvements have been made, including redoubling efforts to swiftly reunify kids with their families or move them to licensed long-term care facilities. That has resulted in a drop in the number of children in emergency shelters, from a high of about 14,500 in April to fewer than 8,000 children now, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the agency in charge of their care.

At the Fort Bliss Army Base in El Paso, Texas, the administration's largest emergency shelter, the number of children has dropped from about 4,800 to 1,600. Activities like exercise classes and weekly meetings with case managers are now available, along with a library on site that children can visit anytime, the department said.

In their accounts, the children  who are not named in the court filings  describe waiting for weeks or more than a month in facilities with little to do, minimal education and no knowledge of when they will be allowed to leave.

At Fort Bliss, the Honduran girl on suicide watch said she could hardly sleep at night because the lights were always on and she found herself sleeping during the day. She said the food was horrible, including soggy salad and foul-smelling bread, so she resorted to eating only popsicles and juice.

She said that while on suicide watch, pens and pencils were taken from her and guards observed her every move  measures meant to protect her from harming herself.

She said she was told if she tried to escape, she would spend a longer time in detention. When she filed her account, she said she had been at the facility for nearly 60 days and didn't know when she could go live in New Mexico with her uncle, who told her that he had completed the paperwork for her release.

I have been here for a really long time. I really want to leave, she said.

Record arrivals of unaccompanied migrant children have tested the Biden administration, which has picked up nearly 60,000 of them from February to May, many of them from Central America.

The government opened more than a dozen emergency intake sites this spring to respond quickly to overcrowding at Customs and Border Protection facilities, one of which was holding 4,000 people in a space intended for 250 and keeping many for weeks, far past a three-day limit.

At the emergency sites, children were expected to remain for a week or two until they could be reunited with relatives in the United States or sent to more stable locations, such as state-licensed long-term facilities or foster care.

More than 2,100 children were housed at emergency facilities for over 40 days and more than 2,600 for 21 to 40 days at the end of May, according to the governments June report to the court. About a third of transitional foster care beds remained empty, as did nearly 600 beds at licensed shelters, the report said.

In their court filing this week, advocates who say children are languishing in the massive, tent-like structures questioned why the government is keeping so many in those unlicensed shelters rather than placing them in licensed facilities or with foster families.

After this many months, that remains a complete mystery to us, said Leecia Welch, senior director of legal advocacy and child welfare at the National Center for Youth Law and one of the lawyers for children in the federal case. And its not for lack of asking the question. Were simply not getting an answer."

A hearing is scheduled for next week with the federal judge overseeing the case.

All emergency shelters are required to provide clean, comfortable sleeping spaces, toiletries, laundry and access to medical and mental health services, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. Kids also can confidentially submit feedback in comment boxes.

The government contends it shut down any sites that did not meet those standards and are closing more as the need decreases.

But advocates fear more children could end up at the unlicensed emergency sites because Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has ordered the closure of federally funded shelters that house migrant kids in that state. The Biden administration has threatened to take legal action if the Republican governor carries out the order. More than half of migrant children sheltered by the U.S. government in licensed facilities are in Texas.

At a facility in Houston that has since closed, the 17-year-old from El Salvador she couldn't shower for eight days and was told to turn her underwear inside out because there was no laundry. She said children were limited on when they could use the bathroom and that she would cry at night.

We spent most of the day in our beds at Houston because there was nothing else to do," she said. I felt very desperate.

___

Taxin reported from Orange County, California, Gomez Licon from Miami and Watson from San Diego.
MCCORMICK, S.C. (AP)  An South Carolina inmate was stabbed to death Tuesday in a common area of a prison in McCormick County, authorities said.

Garrett Lemont Lyles Jr., 31, was stabbed several times with what appeared to be a homemade weapon at the McCormick Correctional Institution, the state Corrections Department said in a news release.
OPELIKA, Ala. (AP)  A man accused of keeping a 13-year-old girl in a house and plying her with drugs so he and other men could have sex with her was convicted of human trafficking.

Brian Askew, 40, of Auburn could receive a sentence of life without parole at a sentencing hearing set for July, a prosecutor said, and five other people await trial.
Pack the car for your Fourth of July road trip Celebrate Independence Day with a getaway in the Hill Country or a Gulf Coast retreat.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Vice President Kamala Harris will make her first visit on Friday to the U.S.-Mexico border since taking office, following criticism from members of both parties for failing to go earlier despite her role leading the Biden administrations response to a steep increase in migration.

Harris will visit the El Paso area, accompanied by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, according to a statement Wednesday from Harris senior adviser Symone Sanders.

Harris has faced months of criticism from Republicans, and even some frustration from those in her own party, for not visiting the area.

She was tasked earlier this year by President Joe Biden with taking on the root causes of migration from Central America to the United States, and so far she's focused largely on outreach to local leaders and advocacy groups with the goal of improving economic and living conditions in the region. Harris has said her goal is to offer residents of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Mexico hope for their future, so they no longer feel compelled to leave home for better opportunities.

Her aides have repeatedly insisted her efforts are distinct from the security issues that plague U.S. officials trying to handle a spike in border crossings. But Republicans have pointed to the failures by both Harris and Biden to visit the border to paint the administration as absent in a crisis.

Harris will arrive in the area just days before former President Donald Trump is to visit the border with a group of House Republicans and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, and Trump is certain to use the opportunity to drive Republican attacks on Democrats as soft on immigration.

The border issue shadowed Harris first foreign trip earlier this month, to Guatemala and Mexico, where she met with both nations presidents and local officials to discuss economic and humanitarian solutions to the significant outmigration from both countries.

During that trip, she sat for an interview with NBC News in which she dismissed a question about why she hadn't made a trip to the border by responding, I've never been to Europe, and adding, I don't understand the point you're making. Harris and White House aides were subsequently forced to parry repeated questions about the decision and her remarks.

Harris said she was focused on tangible results as opposed to grand gestures," but she also said she might visit in the near future.

She has noted that as a senator from California, she has visited the border in the past, and she has asserted that unless the root causes of migration are addressed the situation there will never be fixed.

It's unclear what Harris' plans include during her visit to the area, but one migrant detention facility in El Paso, at the Fort Bliss military post, has drawn criticism from advocates who have described unsafe conditions and allegations of abuse toward some of the thousands of children housed there.

On Wednesday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the trip was part of the coordinated effort between her office, her work, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Health and Human Services, to continue to address the root causes and work in coordination to get the situation under control.

While Psaki emphasized that border security is under Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas' purview, she added that its important every component of our government is coordinated on the issue.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection recorded more than 180,000 encounters on the Mexican border in May, the most since March 2000. Those numbers were boosted by a pandemic-related ban on seeking asylum, which encouraged repeated attempts to cross the border because getting caught carried no legal consequences.

The numbers have led even some centrist Democrats to join Republicans in their calls for Harris to make a trip to the area. Rep. Henry Cuellar, a Texas Democrat whose district stretches from south of San Antonio down to the southern border, wrote a letter to Harris earlier this month inviting her to observe the ongoing humanitarian crisis and share the perspective of Americans who live there.

I believe it is critical that you meet with local stakeholders and residents, consider their concerns, and use their lived experiences to implement more effective policies, he wrote.

Cuellar issued a tweet Wednesday thanking Harris for her plans to visit.

But his engagement on the issue underscores the potential political peril for Democrats on immigration. An AP-NORC poll conducted in April found that more Americans disapprove than approve of how Biden is handling the sharply increasing number of unaccompanied migrant children arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border.

And Trump's trip to the border marks another sign of how closely Republicans continue to align themselves with Trump and the extent to which they see the border as a winning campaign issue. The former president immediately took credit for Harris' trip, speculating in a statement that the vice president would not have made plans to go if he hadn't been headed there himself.

Psaki said the administration "made an assessment within our government about when it was an appropriate time for her to go the border.

___

Associated Press writer Jill Colvin contributed to this report.

___

This story has been corrected to show that Psaki's statement was Wednesday, not Tuesday.
PHOENIX (AP)  The Arizona Senate passed a $12.8 billion budget for the coming fiscal year early Wednesday that contains massive income tax cuts after a marathon session where majority Republicans packed the package with a conservative policy wish list.

Republicans in last year's election just barely held onto legislative majorities that have been eroding for a decade, and they are using them to advance a grab bag of priorities new and old.

The GOP package includes the tax cut and a big expansion for Arizona's private school voucher program, both of which go against ballot measures backed by voters in the last two elections. The package also includes a ban on teaching critical race theory and prohibitions on vaccine or mask mandates. And it strips power from the state's most prominent elected Democrats.

The Senate finished voting on the 11 bills that make up the budget package about 2:30 a.m., about 16 hours after starting debate. The House had also planned to vote Tuesday, but minority Democrats boycotted the session, leaving Republicans fuming because they lacked a quorum to conduct business.

The House is expected to make another attempt on Thursday, when all 31 Republicans are expected to be in the Capitol, preventing Democrats from blocking votes for a second time. Majority Leader Rep. Ben Toma said there may be some changes to what the Senate enacted.

Here's a look at some of the conservative priorities in the Senate-approved budget:

VOUCHERS

Last-minute amendments revived a stalled bill expanding private school vouchers. The measure adds about 600,000 low-income students to those who qualify to get public money to attend private schools. Just three years ago, Arizona voters rejected a universal school voucher plan passed by the GOP-controlled Legislature and signed by Republican Gov. Doug Ducey by a 2-1 margin.

This will take money directly from your public school classrooms, Democratic Sen. Lisa Otondo of Yuma said. This is a slap in the face.

The state Department of Education says about 250,000 students are now eligible, but only about 9,800 students are currently getting vouchers and half are disabled children attending specialized schools. Technically called Empowerment Scholarship Account, they cost the state about $145 million a year. Parents get 90% of the state funds that would otherwise go to their local public school to use for private school tuition and other education costs. Disabled students can receive up to $40,000 for specialized therapy.

CRITICAL RACE THEORY

Senate Republicans also barred the teaching of critical race theory, a hot-button topic for the GOP base. The measure blocks any instruction that infers that one race is inherently racist, should be discriminated against or feel guilty because of their race. Teachers could lose their credentials and schools fined if they allow such instruction.

It also allows the attorney general to seek civil penalties against teachers who use work time to advocate for a strike, directly targeting a repeat of a 2018 statewide teacher's strike over low teacher pay and underfunded schools.

COVID

The budget was packed with a host of items targeting enforcement of coronavirus restrictions. It now bans school districts and universities from requiring face masks or vaccines. Mandatory testing would also be outlawed, except in cases of outbreaks in dormitories and only with approval from Ducey's administration. That was prompted by Arizona State University rules issued last week that said unvaccinated students must be regularly tested and wear face masks that Ducey blocked by executive order.

The plan also will limit a future governor's ability to issue extended emergency declarations without the Legislature's approval, and preempts cities, towns and counties from issuing their own public health mandates, such as business closures. The governor will lose authority to mandate vaccines in the future.

State and local governments cant require so-called vaccine passports or mandate that businesses check their customers vaccination records. And cities and counties will be preempted from issuing any of their own COVID protection orders, including mask mandates, capacity limits or closures.

ELECTIONS

Republicans embraced the unfounded theory that former President Donald Trump lost in Arizona because of voter fraud, creating a $12 million election integrity fund to pay for election security updates and future hand recounts. Their bill lays out a series of security features for ballot paper, such as watermarks or holograms, though it stops short of explicitly requiring they be used. County election officials implored lawmakers to reverse course, fearing lawmakers will mandate security standards that would be unworkable.

It also created a joint task force with the attorney general to investigate whether Facebook and Twitter's bans on former President Donald Trump's accounts constitutes an illegal in-kind political donation to his opponents. The task force also would investigate whether social media company algorithms favor or disfavor certain candidates. Both measures are a response to Trump supporters' conviction that he's treated unfairly by social media giants.

The Senate is currently overseeing an unprecedented audit of the November election results in Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix, and where Trump lost in the formerly red-leaning state.

TAX CUTS

Democrats vehemently oppose a $1.9 billion-per-year tax cut in the budget negotiated by Ducey and top leaders of the House and Senate, all Republicans. When fully phased in, the plan would lower tax rates for most taxpayers to 2.5%, down from a range of 2.59% to 4.5%. Wealthy taxpayers would, in effect, be spared from a 3.5% tax hike approved by voters last year to pay for schools.

Ducey hailed the passage of the budget plan, issuing a statement at 2:30 a.m. Wednesday praising the tax cuts and saying he will sign it once the House enacts the plan.

This balanced and fiscally responsible plan is a win for all Arizonans  it delivers unprecedented tax relief to working families and small businesses, it pays down state debt, and it continues to invest in our schools and infrastructure so we can keep Arizona competitive, Ducey said.
Over the last several days, Laredo Sector Border Patrol agents and law enforcement partners shut down six stash houses and arrested nearly 150 undocumented individuals throughout Laredo.

The first stash house was found during the mid-afternoon of June 15. Agents assigned to Laredo North Station, along with Webb County Precinct 3 Constables Office deputies, responded to a report of suspicious activity at an apartment in northwest Laredo which led to the discovery of nine undocumented individuals from Mexico.

The second incident occurred the next day at noon at a hotel on San Bernardo Avenue. Laredo North Station agents along with Laredo Police Department discovered three individuals in the U.S. illegally from Mexico.

The third stash house was discovered during the late evening of June 16, agents from Laredo North Station, LPD, and Texas Department of Public Safety apprehended 42 undocumented individuals in several hotel rooms on Mines Road from the countries of El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico and Nicaragua.

The fourth incident occurred during the early morning of June 18, as agents from the Laredo South Station, Precinct 3 deputies and DPS received information of a residence on Seymour Street being used as a stash house. Law enforcement officers approached the residence and found 19 undocumented individuals from the countries of Mexico and Guatemala.

An additional 19 undocumented individuals were arrested by law enforcement officers at a stash house on Lyon Street, after information was received of suspicious activity at the residence.

The final stash house was found in the evening of June 21, when Laredo South Station agents, DPS, LPD and other federal law enforcement partners approached a suspected stash house in central Laredo. Inside the residence were 53 undocumented individuals from the countries of Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

None of the individuals from the stash houses were wearing personal protective equipment when found. The individuals were provided PPE and were medically screened and processed accordingly.

The use of stash houses by criminal organizations continues to be a threat to national security and to the citizens of our nation, but they are also a danger to the people they exploit by concealing them in dilapidated close quarters, USBP said in a statement. The cooperation between our local law enforcement partners in our communities continue to have a great impact to the criminal element and making our communities safer. Help us take a stand against these criminal organizations and their dangerous acts by reporting suspicious activity in our neighborhoods.

To report suspicious activity such as human and/or drug smuggling, download the USBP Laredo Sector App or contact the Laredo Sector Border Patrol toll free at 1-800-343-1994. If you see something, say something.
EUGENE, Ore. (AP)  A man accused in the killings of his father and two other people in a small Oregon city before he allegedly forced a woman to drive him more than 2,000 miles in her car to Wisconsin last week is scheduled to make his first court appearance on Friday.

Oen Evan Nicholson, 30, is suspected of killing three people on June 18 including his father, Charles Nicholson, another man at the Mill Casino RV campground in the small coastal city of North Bend; and a woman working at a nearby marijuana dispensary.

Coos County District Attorney Paul Frasier said in a news release that autopsy reports released Wednesday found the manner of death for all three victims is homicide," the Register-Guard reported.

The first death was reported just before 10 a.m. Friday, when Nicholson is accused of stealing his fathers 2019 Dodge pickup truck at the campground and running over Anthony Oyster, 74, who was killed, and his wife Linda Oyster, 73, who was taken to a hospital in critical condition, according to authorities.

Anthony Oyster died of massive internal injuries to the chest and abdomen, according to the autopsy report released Wednesday.

Linda Oysters condition improved to fair as of Tuesday afternoon at a Springfield hospital, the newspaper reported.

The body of marijuana dispensary manager Jennifer Davidson, 47, was found just after 10 a.m. Friday at Herbal Choices. The autopsy found Davidson died of multiple gunshot wounds to the chest and abdomen.

Nicholsons father was later found dead inside the trailer he registered at the Mill Casino, Frasier said in a news briefing. Nicholson, 83, died of sharp force injuries to his neck, chest and abdomen, the autopsy report said.

Nicholson later Friday drove along a highway until crashing the pickup near Noti, where Frasier said a witness saw Nicholson get out with a handgun and disappear into the woods, police said.

Authorities unsuccessfully searched for Nicholson in that area. Oregon State Police said they suspect that he obtained a ride from Noti to Springfield and are requesting that anyone with information about who gave Nicholson a ride to contact them.

In Springfield, police have said Nicholson abducted Laura Johnson while she was on her lunch break in a parking lot. Nicholson forced Johnson to drive him to Wisconsin, where Nicholson peacefully turned himself in to police in Milwaukee, according to Springfield Police.

Johnson was unharmed and has since returned to Oregon, Springfield police said in a news release. She is currently resting and is enjoying the reunification with her family, police said.

Frasier said the extradition process to return Nicholson to Oregon would begin following his court appearance Friday.

Nicholson faces 10 charges in Coos County Circuit Court, including first-degree murder, attempted murder, first-degree assault and failure to perform the duties of a driver to injured persons, Frasier said.

Attempts to find out whether Nicholson has a lawyer to speak on his behalf were not immediately successful Wednesday.
WASHINGTON (AP)  President Joe Biden on Wednesday mourned his former Senate colleague, Virginia's John Warner, as a man of conscience, character and honor" who was deeply committed to God and country.

At a time in America's political history when some lawmakers are seen as reaching decisions based on partisan or personal interests, Biden said Warner was the opposite.

Johns decisions were always guided by his values, by his convictions and never by personal political consequences the president said in remarks before a masked audience at Washington National Cathedral that included Warner's immediate family and members of Congress.

It was always guided by his obligation to all those he represented, even those who did not vote for him, said Biden, who met privately beforehand with Warner's family.

Warner died of heart failure at his Alexandria, Virginia, home on May 26. He was 94.

Warner was a centrist Republican who served three decades in the Senate, including with Biden. Warner joined the Navy when he was 17, served with the Marines in the Korean War and rose to become Navy secretary. He was elected to and served five terms in the Senate where he became, in Biden's telling, a towering and respected voice on foreign policy, national security and defense.

Warner also was one of Elizabeth Taylor's seven husbands, a union that gave him a potent dash of star power.

In an appeal for bipartisanship, Biden lauded Warner's willingness to see each other as opponents, not as enemies and view everyone as fellow Americans even when we disagree."

In the battle for the soul of America today, John Warner is a reminder of what we can do when we come together as one nation, Biden said.

Warner crossed party lines last year to endorse Democrat Biden for president. Biden said the backing carried extra meaning for me.

When John endorsed me, it gave me confidence, Biden said. John gave me confidence.

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Associated Press writer Darlene Superville contributed to this report.
BERLIN (AP)  U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will meet with Israels new Foreign Minister Yair Lapid in Italy over the weekend, a senior State Department official and Israels foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

They said the meeting would take place on Sunday in Rome but neither side offered any details about the agenda, which is likely to focus on Israel's concerns about a possible U.S. return to the Iran nuclear deal and Israel's security more broadly.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP)  A powerful car bomb went off near the residence of a jailed anti-India militant leader in Pakistan on Wednesday, killing at least three people and wounding 25 others, police and rescue officials said.

The blast happened in the Johar Town neighborhood in the eastern city of Lahore, provincial police chief Inam Ghani told reporters. He said officers were still trying to determine whether it was a suicide bombing or the bomb was remotely detonated.

Ghani said some police officers were among the wounded.

It was a car bomb, but we are still trying to confirm whether it was a suicide bombing," he said.

He confirmed that the bombing happened near the residence of anti-India militant leader Hafiz Saeed, who has been designated a terrorist by the U.S. Justice Department and has a $10 million bounty on his head.

Saeed is the founder of the outlawed Lashkar-e-Taiba group, which was blamed for the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people.

Lashkar-e-Taiba was active for years mainly in Kashmir, which is split between Pakistan and India and is claimed by both in its entirety. In the Indian-controlled sector of Kashmir, rebels have been fighting against Indian rule since 1989. Most Muslim Kashmiris support the rebel goal that the territory be united either under Pakistani rule or as an independent country.

India accuses Pakistan of backing rebels in the Indian part of Kashmir, a charge Pakistan denies. Pakistan says it only provides moral, political and diplomatic support to the Kashmiri people, and that this support will continue until they get the right to self-determination under a U.N. resolution.

TV footage showed badly damaged homes, and many residents spoke of a bomb attack. Doctors say some of the wounded were in critical condition.

Ghani said police were guarding Saeeds house at the time of the attack. He said the attackers might have succeeded in targeting Saeed's home had police not set up a security post in the street where the bombing happened.

Last year, Pakistan sentenced Saeed to 15 years in jail in a terror-financing case, but he was never charged in connection with the Mumbai attacks.

Saeed, who is serving the jail term at his home under a special government order, escaped unharmed, but the windows of his house were also shattered. The bombing damaged several homes and the government announced compensation for those residents whose property was damaged in the attack.

Authorities blocked passageways to Saeed's home, citing security reasons.

Pakistan and India have a history of bitter relations and they have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir since gaining independence in 1947.

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Associated Press writer Asim Tanveer contributed to this report from Multan, Pakistan.
MILAN (AP)  The COVID-19 pandemic hit Italy especially hard, killing more than 127,000 people and sending the European Union's third-largest economy into a devastating tailspin.

Yet out of that tragedy may come solutions for decades-old problems that have held back growth and productivity  and with them, a new sense of stability for the euro, the currency shared by 19 of the European Union's 27 members.

Backed by 261 billion euros from the EU and Italian government, the country's plan for recovering from the pandemic calls for a top-to-bottom shakeup of a major industrial economy long hampered by red tape, political reluctance to change, and bureaucratic and educational inertia.

Leading the charge is Premier Mario Draghi, the former head of the European Central Bank, who was tapped as head of a national unity government specifically for his economic expertise and institutional knowledge both in Italy and the EU.

The challenge is formidable: Italy has failed to show robust growth in the more than two decades since it joined the euro currency union in 1999.

Execution of the recovery plan remains a risk given Italys often-fractious politics. But if they succeed with even half, it will have a big impact, said Guntram Wolff, director of the Bruegel think tank in Brussels.

A key target is keeping more young Italians from taking their know-how abroad, a perennial issue in Italy, which has one of the lowest rates of university graduates in Europe and one of the largest brain drains.

The plan aims to create eco-systems that would help scientific discoveries find their way into the market place, fueling startups and industry while creating career paths that would help retain educated Italians, many of whom leave home due to low pay and limited prospects.

Velia Siciliano, who heads a biomedicine lab in Naples for the Italian Institute of Technology, said the pandemic only underlined the necessity of strong domestic research centers.

She has spent large chunks of her scientific career abroad, building on her undergraduate and masters degrees in Italy with a Ph.D. from the U.K. and postdoctoral study at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She was named one of Italys top 10 women of the year for 2019.

Siciliano noted that Italy had already launched programs to stop brain drain with ad-hoc initiatives, but she said a key missing element has been public-private synergies that transfer research results into new inventions and innovations.

The truth is, if they dont nurture a system and if research doesnt also include technology transfers, it will be difficult to have a large number of Italian researchers returning to Italy, she said.

Universities failing to turn ideas into startups is just one of the chronic problems listed in the 270-page recovery plan. Others include too much red tape for businesses, lower levels of higher education than in many other developed countries, clogged courts, and low participation of women in the workforce.

The plan would fund efforts to tackle all of these: For instance, digitizing how people use public services to cut down on wasted time and paperwork. Using alternative dispute resolution such as arbitration to quickly resolve business disputes. Adding 228,000 day care and pre-school places to help get more women into the work force.

Of the 261 billion euros, the lion's share of 191.5 billion euros in grants and loans comes from the EU's recovery and resilience facility, part of the 27-country bloc's 806.9 billion euro pandemic recovery fund backed by common borrowing. Italy is the largest recipient because it suffered the most economic damage.

The recovery fund aims to promote long-term growth and recovery by funding economic reforms, efforts to fight climate change, and the spread of digital technologies.

The underlying problem: From 1999 to 2019, Italys economy grew only 7.9%, compared to 30.2% for Germany, 32.4% for France, and 43.6% in Spain. Slow growth has kept Italy's debt at a dangerously high level. The pandemic has pushed the debt ratio even higher, from 134.6% of GDP before the pandemic to 157.1%. More growth would mean a smaller debt burden compared to the size of the economy.

Right now, that's not a problem, since European Central Bank stimulus has driven borrowing costs to record lows. But rising borrowing costs threatened the country's finances in 2011. Italy is a concern for the entire 19-country eurozone since it is too big to be bailed out by the other eurozone governments, as smaller economies such as Greece and Ireland were during the 2010-2015 debt crisis.

Just an additional half-percentage point of growth would, over the longer term, make Italy's debt much more manageable, said Bruegel's Wolff.

It's the most important question of Europe's monetary union, Wolff said. The one critical issue has always been, if Italy doesn't grow, at what stage will Italian debt become a problem, not just for Italy but for the eurozone. 

Wolff said he was cautiously optimistic that the plan could bring about long-postponed change. The size of the support gives political leeway for the government to address deep underlying issues: "This is the first government in power in Italy that actually talks about the right reforms and has financial support from Europe to implement them, so I think there is reason to be optimistic here.

Francesco Di Stasio, a 37-year-old researcher at a top robotics center, has left Italy twice, but returned each time. He has degrees from Italian and British universities, has worked in both Italy and Britain, and has done advanced studies both at home and abroad in Spain.

Di Stasio says Italys problem is not that Italians go abroad  that is common in Europe and essential in the sciences. Now in a position to hire scientists for his lab developing light sources using nanomaterials, he says the real weakness in the system is the difficulty in attracting qualified applicants to Italy, be they Italians or foreigners. The question is more complex than salary.

While Italy has pockets of excellence  including relatively recent research institutes like Genoa-based Italian Institute of Technology, where Di Stasio works  what it is lacking are fuller ecosystems on par with more competitive economies like Germany, Britain or France, where researchers in scientific and technological fields can see places to jump every few years as they pursue a career path.

The doubt is more present. When I search for people, they worry about the future. They dont know how to access a career path in Italy, Di Stasio said. What plays against us is the perception we have of Italy.

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McHugh reported from Frankfurt.
CHICAGO (AP)  A Chicago woman has died days after she was dragged from a car and shot during an attack captured on video that killed her boyfriend and drew more attention to the city's particularly violent year.

Yasmin Perez, 23, died Tuesday, the Cook County medical examiners office said. Her death came three days after Gyovanny Arzuaga, 24, was shot in the head and killed following a Puerto Rican Day parade in Chicago's Humboldt Park neighborhood.

The couple, who had two children, were attacked after what police called a minor traffic crash.

They left their babies, Arzuagas aunt, Vickie Ponciano, said Tuesday as she wept.

Police said the couple was ambushed by several men in the middle of a street after the crash. The deadly attack was captured on a video that was shared widely online, drawing more national attention following violence that included a recent mass shooting that killed five people in Chicago.

In an attempt to stem a rising national tide of violent crime, President Joe Biden is announcing new efforts Wednesday that focus in part on addressing gun violence. The Justice Department is also launching strike forces in cities including Chicago to help take down illegal gun traffickers.

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot called the shootings of Perez and Arzuaga horrific on Monday and vowed that authorities would track down those involved.

Video of the shooting showed Perez being dragged by several people from a dark SUV with a Puerto Rican flag sticking out of a window. Arzuaga, who was seen on the ground nearly covering her, was then shot by a gunman in a white tank top.

Arzuaga and Perez were among eight people fatally shot in Chicago from 6 p.m. Friday to late Sunday night. Those killed were among more than 50 shooting victims during that period, the Chicago Tribune reported.
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP)  Consumers Energy said Wednesday it would stop burning coal to generate electricity by 2025, relying instead on natural gas and renewable energy sources in a push to continue reducing its planet-warming carbon emissions.

The Jackson-based utility, which provides power or gas to homes and businesses across Michigan's Lower Peninsula, said ending its coal use 15 years earlier than previously planned was part of a long-term strategy to produce energy in a more environmentally friendly way.

It allows for a cleaner future, an affordable future for all our customers, and ensures reliability," said Garrick Rochow, president and CEO.

Approval from the Michigan Public Service Commission will be needed to carry out the plan, under which Rochow said Consumers would rely on clean sources for 90% of its energy output by 2040, including 8,000 megawatts of solar power.

The plan calls for retiring all three coal-fired units at the Campbell generating station near Holland, Michigan, in 2025. Units 1 and 2 would close six years sooner than previously scheduled and the third unit 15 years early.

Additionally, two units at the Karn plant near Bay City, Michigan, that run on natural gas and fuel oil would close in 2023  about eight years earlier than their intended life span.

Solar, wind and other renewable sources will make up more than 60% of the utility's electric capacity by 2040, officials said. Combining that with advances in storage and efficiency should enable Consumers to produce 90% of its energy from clean sources, they said.

With the coal phaseout, natural gas will become the fuel source for generating baseline power.

The utility plans to buy four Michigan gas-fired plants. They include the Covert Generating Station in Van Buren County; Dearborn Industrial Generation in Wayne County; Kalamazoo River Generating Station in Kalamazoo County; and Livingston Generating Station in Otsego County.

State and federal approval would be required for the purchases, which would augment Consumers' gas-powered plants in Zeeland and Jackson.

Production of 8,000 megawatts of solar energy, already underway, will continue throughout the 2020s, officials said. Consumers operates solar plants at Western Michigan University, Grand Valley State University and in Cadillac and purchases solar generation from several sites elsewhere in the state.

Environmental groups have pressured Consumers to quicken the pace of its transition from coal and appealed this week for shutdown of the third Campbell unit.

It's really encouraging that they're going to be phasing out their coal and increasing the amount of renewables they'll be using to meet their generation needs, Derrell Slaughter, Michigan clean energy advocate for the Natural Resources Defense Council, said Wednesday.

He said the group would study the plan more closely and offer comments as the Public Service Commission considers it.

One immediate concern is the extent to which Consumers would rely on natural gas, which emits carbon dioxide, although less than coal does, Slaughter said.

Rochow said as solar, wind and battery storage technology develops, it's necessary to keep a baseline fossil fuel in the mix.

We need that flexibility, that reliability, that comes with natural gas, he said.

Switching to gas as a baseload fuel would save customers about $650 million through 2040 compared to what they would pay under utility's present plan, said Brandon Hofmeister, senior vice president for governmental, regulatory and public affairs.
BIRDSEYE, Ind. (AP)  A February fire that destroyed 11 boats at a southern Indiana reservoir and damaged numerous other vessels was most likely started by an electrical malfunction, authorities said.

The Indiana Department of Natural Resources said Tuesday that an investigation by conservation officers and the State Fire Marshals Office concluded that the Feb. 19 fire at the Hoosier Hills Marina on Patoka Lake was accidental in nature.
PRAGUE (AP)  Europes main human rights body on Wednesday demanded a thorough and independent investigation into the death of a Roma man who died after a Czech police officer responding to a call over an altercation knelt on his neck.

Police say the man's death last week was due to a drug overdose, and the country's prime minister backed their handling of the incident. But Roma activists reject the police explanation and are planning a protest rally on Saturday in the northern city of Teplice, where the incident occurred.

Some compare the incident to the killing of George Floyd, a Black American man who died when a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck, according to prosecutors.

The Council of Europe said in a statement Wednesday that the police action was alarming and raises numerous questions about the circumstances of this tragic incident.

The local branch of the Amnesty International and the government's envoy for human rights, Helena Valkova, joined the call for an independent investigation while the countrys deputy ombudsman, Monika Simunkova, said Wednesday she will launch her separate probe into it.

Three police officers were involved in Saturday's incident in Teplice.

Video footage shows one of them kneeling on the mans neck for several minutes. The man, who has not been officially named, later died in an ambulance. Police said a drug overdose was preliminary determined by a doctor as the cause of death.

Police deny wrongdoing. Interior Minister Jan Hamacek said he stands by them. He said police are investigating whether the action was appropriate.

Police said the preliminary autopsy showed the man had a drug in his system and a heart problem, rejecting that his death had anything to do with their intervention.

They said they arrived at the scene, in a Roma neighborhood, after receiving a call that two men were fighting and damaging nearby cars. They said one of the men fled but the other attacked them after they approached him when they saw him lying on the street.

Prime Minister Andrej Babis thanked the police unit in Teplice.

If someone is destroying cars, is aggressive and even bites a policeman, then they cannot expect to be treated with kid gloves, Babis said Wednesday.

The site has been turned into an impromptu memorial, with people coming to light candles.

Roma have long suffered racism and discrimination in eastern Europe and continue to face huge hurdles in employment and education.
BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP)  A former emergency room doctor at Vermonts largest hospital has agreed to plead guilty to a variety of state and federal charges after police found hidden cameras in a hospital bathroom with hundreds of images of hospital employees, federal prosecutors say.

Investigators also found digital devices at the South Burlington home of Eike Blohm, 39, some of which contained images of child pornography, prosecutors say.

Blohm is due in federal court on July 8 and state court on July 13 to enter the pleas to charges including one count of possession of child pornography and 19 counts of voyeurism.

As part of a plea agreement, Blohm agreed to a sentence of between eight and 11 years in prison. The agreement also provides that nearly $40,000 from the proceeds from the sale of Blohms former South Burlington residence be used to pay restitution to the victims.

Blohm's attorney Lisa Shelkrot said Wednesday that she had nothing to add.

Blohm was fired from his job at the hospital.

Court records say that in April 2020 police received a report that an employee at the University of Vermont Medical Center discovered a camera hidden in a unisex employee bathroom in the Emergency Department of the Burlington hospital. Investigators who recovered the camera found images on the camera of a physician identified as Blohm setting it up.

The investigators discovered approximately 900 videos depicting hospital employees in at least two bathrooms at the hospital.

The investigators then searched Blohms home and seized numerous digital devices, some of which contained images of child pornography, including some of children under age 12.
SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP)  Salvage crews who have spent seven months dismantling an overturned cargo ship along the Georgia coast may turn to using explosives to cut through some of the thickest steel on the remaining half of the hulking vessel.

The multiagency command overseeing demolition of the South Korean freighter Golden Ray said Wednesday it has approved the use of shaped explosive charges inside the ship.

It's not certain whether workers will need to use the charges, which are designed to focus explosions along a straight line to cut through tough materials like steel, said Coast Guard Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael Himes, a spokesman for the command team.

Salvage crews have been using anchor chain attached to winches and pulleys on a towering crane to saw through the shipwreck, often with workers using torches to cut through thicker steel ahead of the chain.

Himes said explosive charges would be used to cut through several thick steel supports inside the hull if the cutting chain is unable to maneuver around them. Team leaders decided explosives would be safer than having men with torches working inside the ship.

Its about safety, Himes said. If we dont have to use this, we wont."

He said local residents and mariners would be given notice at least one day before any detonations.

There could be a loud boom," Himes said, and we want to make people understand what it is and what it isn't.

Workers were using cutting torches on the outside of the Golden Ray last month when a large fire ignited inside the ship. All crew members evacuated safely as intense flames sent clouds of black smoke into the air. Boats with water canons extinguished the blaze.

The Golden Ray capsized on Sept. 9, 2019, with about 4,200 automobiles in its cargo decks. Roughly half the ship remains partially submerged off St. Simons Island, about 70 miles (112 kilometers) south of Savannah.

Demolition crews began working in November to remove the ship by cutting it into eight giant chunks and placing them on barges.

The fourth section containing the vessel's engine room was lifted from the wreck in April. Efforts to cut away the fifth section have been stop-and-go, slowed in part by the fire May 14.

The salvage team is still dealing with setbacks caused by the fire. The intense heat warped portions of some steel plates welded to the hull to anchor giants lugs that will attach to the crane to lift each cut section. Himes said workers are cutting away warped sections and welding steel patches in their place.

He said there is no warping affecting lugs on the section currently being cut.

The Golden Ray was headed to sea when it rolled onto its side soon after leaving the Port of Brunswick, about 70 miles (112 kilometers) south of Savannah. Though four crew members had to be rescued from deep inside the ship, all 24 people on board survived.

A Coast Guard expert later concluded the Golden Ray tipped over because unstable loading had left its center of gravity too high.
ATLANTA (AP)  Teresa MacCartney will be the acting chancellor of Georgia's university system as regents remain at an apparent impasse over efforts to name former Gov. Sonny Perdue as the leader of 26 universities and colleges.

Regents voted unanimously Wednesday to name MacCartney to take the reins from outgoing Chancellor Steve Wrigley when he retires June 30.

But the acting title could signify that they expect MacCartney, now the system's executive vice chancellor of administration, to hold the post for only a short while. Otherwise, she might have been given an interim title, as Wrigley was given before regents decided he should lead the system permanently.

Regents met by videoconference and weren't available for questions. A spokesperson for the system couldn't immediately answer how long MacCartney was expected to lead the 340,000-student system, although regents said in a news release that the search for a permanent chancellor continues.

As a member of the university systems senior leadership team and a veteran public servant, she will keep a steady hand on USGs progress as the board finds the next chancellor of one of the top university systems in the nation," board Chairman Sachin Shailendra said in a statement.

MacCartney will make $438,000 a year for as long as she holds the post. As executive vice chancellor, she oversees cybersecurity, leadership and institutional development, economic development, legal affairs, human resources, real estate, buildings, internal audits and security.

She was state budget director under Gov. Nathan Deal before moving to the university system post in 2019. Before that, she had worked for the state Department of Education and the Georgia Student Finance Commission, which administers lottery scholarship money.

I appreciate the Boards confidence in me to ensure USG and our 26 institutions remain focused during this transition on doing all we can to help more Georgians earn their college degrees, MacCartney said in a statement.

Wednesday's meeting followed a nearly two-hour meeting Monday behind closed doors to discuss the chancellor search. In May, regents hired a new search firm after the previous search firm quit, citing misinformation. The new search firm was supposed to reexamine existing candidates and recruit new ones. But regents agreed to name a temporary leader if they couldn't find a permanent one by June 30.

Perdue has said he is interested in the job, telling The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in a June 3 interview, Its safe to say Im willing to serve. The governor and I had a conversation about it. I felt like it was probably, in this stage of my life, the only job in Georgia I felt like I was passionate about and that I would accept."

Regents paused the search in April as contention spread about the possibility of naming Perdue. The agency that accredits all the schools sent a letter on April 26 asking whether there has been undue political pressure to appoint Perdue. A recent public records request by The Associated Press shows regents never responded to that letter from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

Perdue was a two-term governor and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture under President Donald Trump. A group called Students Against Sonny launched earlier this year, promoting a petition urging regents to reject him and holding two anti-Perdue rallies.

Critics say Perdue had a bad record as governor of reducing student access to higher education. Perdues efforts to help Trump fight his 2020 electoral loss to Democratic President Joe Biden also prompted questions.

MacCartney is a known quantity with lawmakers, with Kaleb McMichen, the spokesperson for House Speaker David Ralston issuing a statement congratulating her.

Her experience is unmatched and her dedication to this state and its young people is unquestionable, McMichen said.

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Follow Jeff Amy on Twitter at http://twitter.com/jeffamy.

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This story corrects the spelling of the last name of Kaleb McMichen.
ALBANY  Fabiana, a 33-year-old Brazilian woman, fled with her infant daughter, Freja, from a rigid re-education center in Denmark.

She went on the lam in a twisted international saga with overtones of a film noir plot that landed her in Albany.

Fabiana bolted because she feared Danish authorities would follow through on threats to take away both her children and place them in institutional care. She said social services officials there concluded the children had special needs and the state was better equipped than the parents to care for them.

They kept calling me illegal, like I was worthless, and saying they were going to remove my children, said Fabiana, who asked that her last name not be used to help shield her identity. She and a Danish man, Jonas, 27, are the parents of Johann, 3, and Freja, 2. The couple lived together near Copenhagen and raised the two children, but never married. She worked as an au pair and housekeeper. He was employed as a bartender.

At the re-education center outside Copenhagen, Fabiana and Freja were forced to live in a locked facility under 24-hour surveillance, while her partner and son remained in their apartment. Authorities warned Fabiana if she did not comply, they would place both children in foster care.

Staff forced Fabiana to stop breastfeeding her daughter at 3 months, she said. They enforced child-rearing rules that the mother, whom they deemed in need of strict parental training, resisted.

I was losing my mind. The Danish government does not like immigrants. I am not illegal, but the system was against me. They treated me horribly, said Fabiana, who fled Denmark with Freja (pronounced FRAY-uh) in the fall of 2019.

After being held six months at the facility, a friend purchased a one-way airline ticket to Rio de Janeiro after seeing Fabianas Facebook plea: Please help me. Im in prison. She seized her chance when the centers door was left unlocked.

I grabbed my passport, two diapers and fled with Freja, Fabiana said, as her voice quavered and she heaved into sobs. I had to say goodbye to Johann and left him behind. I have not seen him since.

The Sophies choice that Fabiana felt forced to carry out while fracturing her family is not unprecedented. Dozens of similar cases in the past two years have been brought to the European Court of Human Rights against Denmark and Norway by parents whose children were removed  with parents granted only a few hours per year to see their children.

The European Center for Law and Justice, a nongovernmental organization dedicated to protecting human rights in Europe, profiled a case on its website similar to Fabianas with the headline: Kafkaesque Family Nightmare in Denmark.

Fabiana and her daughter have been sheltered for the past seven months at Family Promise of the Capital Region. The 6-year-old Albany program runs a day center and partners with 13 local congregations of various denominations who open their facilities for hospitality space. Dozens of volunteers provide lodging, meals, transportation and assistance to families facing homelessness. The Albany-based program is part of an interfaith network with more than 200 national affiliates established in 1986 in New Jersey. Each local group deploys volunteers to provide a variety of services, including help finding employment and securing affordable and safe housing as a means to restore human dignity.

Along with Family Promise support, Fabiana and her daughter are represented by Albany attorney Seth Leech, a partner with Whiteman Osterman & Hanna, who specializes in immigration and asylum cases.

Its a really bizarre case and almost Orwellian, said Leech, who is seeking asylum status for Fabiana and Freja to prevent Denmark from extraditing her daughter and placing her in foster care. My first thought was this cant be true because Denmark has a reputation as a progressive Scandinavian country.

Leech vetted Fabianas claims and took her case after discovering documentation on other women who fled Denmark in order to prevent their young children from being taken by Danish social services. Im arguing that this is a huge government overreach, Leech said. Taking away Freja is not in anyones best interest.

Fabianas son Johann faced developmental delays, according to Danish authorities, and testing during Fabianas pregnancy with Freja indicated that her daughter might be born with special needs. Although Freja is developing normally, Danish officials argued that removing her from Fabianas parental custody and placing her in a state-run institution would give Freja the special care she may require, Leech said.

As I develop this case, the stronger I feel about it, Leech said. He is building an asylum case on the grounds that children who are perceived to have developmental disabilities are a legally protected group. It could take six months to a few years to get a court ruling, but a pending asylum case in the U.S. would likely block Danish extradition attempts, Leech said.

A press representative could not be reached for comment at the Danish Embassy in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday and Leech said that he has thus far been unable to get cooperation or documents requested from the Danish government.

One afternoon at Family Promises day center, a three-bedroom home, Freja climbed into her mothers lap, laughed and jabbered in Portuguese, and played in the backyard with a volunteer. Fabiana, who earned a masters degree in industrial engineering in Brazil, speaks five languages and is teaching her daughter to be multilingual.

Look at how happy Freja is and you can see for yourself that Fabiana is a good mother, said Mary Giordano, executive director of Family Promise of the Capital Region. The group specializes in taking challenging cases of unhoused families who fall through the cracks. Fabiana and her daughter were referred to Family Promise by Albany County Department of Social Services, which could not shelter the pair because they did not meet the countys criteria.

Freja was 9 months old when Fabiana returned home to Rio. Her parents lost their jobs when the Brazilian economy collapsed during the pandemic and they could not offer much help. Paranoid that Danish authorities would find her there and extradite Freja, Fabiana used airline miles to buy a ticket to Thailand  where she failed in an asylum bid.

Fabiana next tried to flee to Canada (by flying first to Mexico and then the U.S.), but found the border closed due to COVID-19 restrictions. She spent $75 of the $100 she had left for a Plattsburgh taxi to drive her to the Canadian border, but the driver refused to attempt an illegal crossing. Instead, he gave Fabiana the phone number of a social worker, who paid for a hotel room for Fabiana and Freja.

A good Samaritan drove mother and daughter to Albany, where Albany County social services staff referred them to Family Promise. They arrived on Nov. 2, 2020.

All Fabiana knew about Albany was that it was the name of a soap opera, or telenovela, she occasionally watched in Brazil.

I like to think of it as an Albany miracle, Giordano said.

We take families wherever they are at and help them overcome obstacles, said Sister Nadine Farnum, assistant director and a Sister of Mercy. We lift them up and leave them in a better situation.

Fabiana praised the love and support of Family Promise staff and volunteers. Her goal is to be granted asylum and to settle in the Albany area with Freja and be reunited Johann. She hopes to land an engineering job to support her family after splitting with her children's father,

Everyone has been so kind to us. Freja is very happy here. Now, I just want my son back, Fabiana said.

Paul Grondahl is director of the New York State Writers Institute at the University at Albany and a former Times Union reporter. He can be reached at grondahlpaul@gmail.com
LAS VEGAS (AP)  Former U.S. Sen. Dean Heller, a Republican who lost his reelection in 2018, is testing out a potential run for Nevada governor next year, speaking to rural Republicans at two events this month alongside announced candidates.

Heller, who had a complicated relationship with former President Donald Trump, spoke at a June 12 dinner in Elko hosted by the county Republican Party. He made a similar appearance last weekend at a GOP dinner in Churchill County.

The former senator has kept a low profile since losing reelection in 2018 to Democrat Jacky Rosen. Heller had once been a critic of Trump, and the former president publicly scolded him for hindering a GOP health care plan. But they patched up their relationship by the time Heller sought another term, and they campaigned together.

U.S. Rep. Mark Amodei told The Associated Press last month that Heller had told the congressman that he was considering a run for governor, but Heller has not responded to messages seeking comment.

A person close to Heller who was not authorized to speak publicly told The Associated Press that Heller is taking a hard look at whether to run, is very concerned about the possibility of Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak being reelected and wants to ensure the Republican Party has a candidate who can unseat him.

The former senator told the crowd of several hundred people at the Elko GOP's Lincoln Day Dinner that he's exploring whether to run for governor in 2022 and try to unset the incumbent, according to one attendee.

Mandy Simons, a member of the Elko City Council who attended the June 12 Lincoln Day Dinner, said Heller spoke along with the other GOP candidates but Heller told the crowd he hadnt decided yet whether to run.

Heller said hes exploring the possibility of running for governor, she said.

Lee Hoffman, the chairman of the Elko Republican Party, confirmed the former senator appeared with the candidates for governor but declined to comment further on Heller's remarks or how he was received.

Heller also spoke at a June 19 Lincoln Day Dinner in Fallon, where several announced gubernatorial candidates also spoke. According to Churchill County Republican Party Chair Gary Smith, Heller was invited to speak to the event of about 100 people as a former senator and honored guest.

Hes a friend of all ours here, Smith said. He did not discuss running for governor. He just gave us a nice short talk.

Lincoln Day Dinners are a staple of local Republican parties across the country, an annual occasion to raise funds for their operations while giving politicians a chance to mix with rank-and-file members.

Hellers remarks in Elko were brief as candidates were limited to three minutes. Heller recounted to the crowd how past presidents Trump and George W. Bush asked him to accompany them when visiting Elko and northeastern Nevada, dubbing the area Heller Country.

Heller sat with his family at a table during the dinner, and his wife, Lynne Heller, sang the national anthem, Simons said.

Heller appeared alongside two other Republicans who have announced they are running for governor: Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo and Joey Gilbert, a northern Nevada attorney who has questioned the results of the 2020 presidential election.

North Las Vegas Mayor John Lee, who recently left the Democratic Party to become a Republican, was invited, but a canceled flight kept him away.
Vida Volkert/AP

PICO RIVERA, Calif. (AP)  Forty cows escaped a slaughterhouse and ended up in a Los Angeles suburb where one was killed after charging a family, authorities said Wednesday.

The cows were reported running loose on the streets of Pico Rivera around 7:30 p.m. Tuesday after a gate at a meat packing facility was accidentally left open, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said in a statement.
(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

Daniel Baldwin Hess, University at Buffalo and Alex Bitterman, Alfred State College of Technology, The State University of New York

(THE CONVERSATION) Throughout the pandemic, local neighborhoods have played a critical and well-documented role providing the health and social services necessary for American communities and businesses to survive and recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gay neighborhoods were particularly well equipped to meet this challenge, according to our latest research on these communities.

We find that the lessons learned and trauma experienced early in the HIV/AIDS pandemic helped urban gay areas respond to COVID-19 quickly and effectively  especially in the face of early federal government paralysis.

How gay neighborhoods fought HIV/AIDS

Gay neighborhoods are those that welcome lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, queer and other sexual minorities  a population generally referred to by the shorthand LGBTQ+. Well-known examples include the Castro district in San Francisco, Dupont Circle in Washington and Greenwich Village and Chelsea in New York City.

Gayborhoods grew during the sexual liberation movements of the 1960s and 1970s, offering LGTBQ people and their allies an escape from pervasive discrimination and prejudice. In these areas, sexual minorities could rent apartments, socialize in bars and express themselves freely in a like-minded, compassionate community.

Even as LGBTQ people in the U.S. began to live more openly, gay neighborhoods really coalesced around the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

When that mysterious new disease began ravaging the LGBTQ community in the 1980s, the U.S. government turned away from, not toward, those communities. Support critical for fighting HIV  including health care subsidies for uninsured people and funding for research on treatments and cures  was initially not provided. Information given by governments about disease transmission and treatment was inconsistent and sometimes inaccurate.

Government neglect ended up stigmatizing people with HIV and leading to many avoidable deaths. So, as we uncovered in our most recent book, gay neighborhoods filled the void where government and mainstream organizations failed. They became the battlefields where the AIDS pandemic was fought and eventually won.

People in gay neighborhoods developed community organizations and systems to deliver health care and mental health services, provide social support for LGBTQ+ people and support LGBTQ-friendly businesses.

Public health organizations like New York Citys Gay Mens Health Crisis also stepped in to do what many doctors would not. They shared information about slowing and stopping the spread of HIV and also distributed condoms, conducted free HIV testing and connected people who tested positive to help.

Building community through crisis

The COVID-19 pandemic shares many similarities reminiscent of early days of the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

With both HIV/AIDS and COVID-19, there was a disjointed and bungled government response that endangered lives and produced both fear and stigma. Even some of the same government-appointed leaders were in place: Both Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. Deborah Birx worked on marshaling government resources to spearhead the medical response to HIV in the 1990s.

With COVID-19, as with HIV/AIDS, city and state governments were unprepared to fight a disease outbreak. They lacked both planning and infrastructure to effectively fight a rapidly accelerating public health threat.

Several U.S. states, as a result, looked to organizations within gay neighborhoods for help, relying on neighborhood-based LGBTQ+ health care organizations to help support their COVID-19 pandemic response.

For example, in New York, the Erie County Department of Health requested that Evergreen Health  an LGBTQ community group originally established in the 1980s as a volunteer effort to fight HIV  assume responsibility for HIV testing during the COVID-19 pandemic so that the county government could focus on COVID-19 testing. Evergreen also opened a drive-though COVID-19 testing center in the spring of 2020  four decades after it had introduced HIV testing to the Buffalo region.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Evergreen Health not only continued to provide health care and other supportive services to Buffalos LGBTQ community but expanded offerings to better serve underserved and minority neighborhoods across the city. At that time, New York state was the global epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In Chicago and other cities, activists used LGBTQ+ urban social and professional networks established during the HIV/AIDS pandemic to tackle this latest disease. Queer communities disseminated information about COVID-19 to neighbors and distributed face masks and other protective gear, just as they had once shared information about HIV transmission and given out condoms.

[The Conversations most important coronavirus headlines, weekly in a science newsletter]

Lessons learned

States with major grassroots activism in the HIV crisis also applied lessons from that era about overcoming misinformation and fear of contagious diseases.

For instance, New York state used a network of small laboratories to process its COVID-19 tests and administer vaccines  a model pioneered during the emergence of the HIV/AIDS pandemic when large, centralized laboratories were initially nervous about working with HIV-positive blood samples. Early on in the COVID-19 pandemic, this allowed New York to react effectively and process COVID-19 tests relatively quickly.

New York, followed by California, was among states in which COVID-19 infection first showed up in the U.S. As these state governments set up testing procedures, they drew upon methods for testing established during the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The experience in both New York and California with HIV/AIDS helped, at least in part, to establish robust testing networks during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The United Kingdom government, on the other hand, chose centralized laboratories to process tests, rejecting an offer to create a complementary network of smaller local providers. That decision may have complicated testing and slowed results and contact tracing, according to reporting by SkyNews.

Our research also finds gay neighborhoods banded together to meet the needs of the broader community.

Activist mutual aid networks formed decades ago within gayborhoods deployed peer-to-peer mobile technologies to help feed locked down and sick people  not only within the LGBTQ community.

Many of these efforts to combat COVID-19, like actions taken to fight HIV/AIDS, were done quietly, without fanfare. This neighbor-helping-neighbor approach is a hallmark of the leadership that can be found in gay neighborhoods  experienced rescuers in times of crisis.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: https://theconversation.com/how-gay-neighborhoods-used-the-traumas-of-hiv-to-help-american-cities-fight-coronavirus-162213.
(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

Lena Surzhko Harned, Penn State

(THE CONVERSATION) The recent U.S.-Russia summit between Presidents Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin suggests that a controversial Russian natural gas pipeline, Nord Stream 2, is a done deal.

If completed as planned by the end of this year, Nord Stream 2 will convey 55 billion cubic meters of gas per year from Russia to Germany via the Baltic Sea and thence to the rest of Europe. It is expected to bring US$3.2 billion to Russia annually.

Construction had been halted for over a year by U.S. sanctions passed in 2019 on the pipelines construction and financing. Sanctions were later expanded in 2020. Some Russia experts expected those sanctions to be a bargaining chip for Biden at the recent Geneva summit to pressure Putin over Russian occupation of territories in Ukraine and Georgia; support for Belarus dictatorial regime; violation of human rights within Russia; and the poisoning, jailing and outlawing of political opposition.

Instead, a month before the summit, the White House lifted sanctions on Nord Stream 2, dismaying some U.S. legislators and U.S. partnersin Europe.

The pipeline project is a joint venture between a handful of European gas companies and Russian giant Gazprom, a majority state-owned company that is the largest gas supplier in the world. For Putin, the pipeline is an opportunity to increase his influence in Europe by deepening the regions dependence on Russian energy.

Natural gas has been the bedrock of Putins power both domestically and internationally for decades. Nord Stream 2 gives the Russian leader a new direct and powerful line of control in Western Europe.

How Putin controls Russian oil

Since taking office in 2000, Putin began seizing control of the Russian gas and oil industry. He renationalized Gazprom, the state oil company that had been privatized after the fall of the Soviet Union.

Scholarly research has demonstrated that regaining government control over the gas and oil industry contributed to consolidation of authoritarianism in Russia. And it coincided with crackdowns on Putins political opposition.

In 2003 Mikhail Khodorkovsky, owner of the Yukos oil company and a vocal critic of Putins growing authoritarianism, became the regimes first famous political prisoner, after he was arrested at gunpoint and imprisoned for 10 years for tax evasion. Yukos was eventually seized by the government and absorbed into the state-owned companies.

By the end of his first term in office in 2004, Putins government had significant control over oil and gas production in Russia, which is the one of largest producers and exporters in the world. Proceeds collected from oil and gas sales allowed Putin to pay for his domestic agenda and boost military spending. It also gave him extraordinary leverage over neighboring countries that relied on Russia for their energy needs.

For example, in 2006 and 2009, when the Ukrainian government adopted more pro-Western policies and upset the Kremlin, Russia outright shut off the countrys gas supply  and by extension, shut off the gas of countries down the supply line in Central and Western Europe, including Germany.

Russia versus Europe

As a direct line of supply from Russia to Europe, Nord Stream 2 could avoid such problems for Western Europe in the future. But it also opens Western Europe to the same kind of direct Russian pressure it has used to punish Ukraine. So the proposed pipeline has been divisive.

Nord Stream 2 has already produced a rift between NATO allies, even before its completion.

Sweden, Poland and the Baltic countries, for example, have all raised concerns, citing environmental problems related to construction and maintenance of the pipeline. They worry that Russia will use its new pipeline infrastructure to increase its military naval presence in the Baltic Sea. That would increase Russias intelligence-gathering capacity.

Further crumbling NATO, as Putin puts it  sowing divisions in the alliance  would be a win for his regime.

The Russian leader sees NATO, which he calls a Cold War relic, as the greatest threat to Russian security. Disunity in Europe allows Russia to continue pursuing political repression of its own citizens and territorial aggression against neighboring nations with less foreign interference.

Ukraines dilemma

For Ukraine, Nord Stream 2 presents both a security and financial threat.

Ukraine largely stopped buying gas from Russia in 2015 following Russias 2014 annexation of the Ukrainian territory of Crimea and support for a still-deadly Russian-sponsored separatist war in Donbas, in eastern Ukraine.

However, Ukraine still collects up to US$3 billion in annual fees because Russian gas currently runs through a pipeline in Ukrainian territory to get to Europe.

Nord Stream 2 will deprive Ukraine of this income. According to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, the money lost in gas transit fees will mean Ukraine will have nothing to pay for the Ukrainian army to defend Ukraine from further Russian aggression.

In April 2021, observers documented a build-up of Russian military at Ukraines border with Russia, as well as in the waters of the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. The Russian military pulled back after a few weeks, but there is evidence that some 80,000 Russian troops remain near Ukraine, along with military equipment, including trucks and armored vehicles.

Zelensky says the pipeline has become a real weapon against Ukraine. In Kyiv, fears are that once Russia stops relying on Ukraine for transit to Europe, Putin will begin to exert more pressure on the Ukrainian government over the warring Donbas region or resume military aggression.

The risk may not be worth the reward of cheaper gas prices for European consumers. The economic boost that Russia will likely receive from capturing the European gas market will further enrich Putins kleptocratic regime  and, history shows, finance his undemocratic projects in Eastern Europe and beyond.

[The Conversations most important politics headlines, in our Politics Weekly newsletter.]

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: https://theconversation.com/how-vladimir-putin-uses-natural-gas-to-exert-russian-influence-and-punish-his-enemies-162413.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP)  An Iowa man has been charged with making and placing a pipe bomb that was recently found by a young girl in a Des Moines suburb, but investigators do not believe hes linked to a bomb that was left at a nearby polling place in March.

Agents looking into the explosive devices discovered in Ankeny, a fast-growing city of about 70,000, have found no connection between the two, said John Ham, a spokesman for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

At this point, there is nothing to indicate that the two are related, Ham said.

On Friday, ATF agents arrested 46-year-old husband and father Chad Allen Williams after searching his home in the neighboring suburb of Johnston. Around a workbench in his garage, they found materials used to construct the bomb found in the middle of an Ankeny residential road June 9, including fireworks, a spool of fuse, a bottle of vehicle lubricant, zip ties, screws, nuts and metal wall anchors, according to charging documents.

Williams told investigators in an interview that he made the bomb by filling the vehicle additive bottle with BBs and metal items and taping it to two firework shells, according to an affidavit signed by an ATF special agent. He said he hid the bomb in a cardboard box to conceal the device, lit the fuse and dropped it in the middle of Waywin Drive in Ankeny in the dark late June 8 or early June 9, according to the affidavit.

Williams said he did not see or hear the device explode, and assumed he ran it over with the back wheels of his vehicle.

The next morning, an 8-year-old girl playing outside her home discovered the device and her mother called police. Agents with the Iowa Fire Marshals Office disarmed the explosive without setting it off.

Williams has been charged with making and possessing an unregistered explosive device and ordered jailed in Polk County pending a detention hearing next week. A judge ruled Tuesday that Williams qualified for a lawyer at public expense, even though records show he and his wife recently moved into a new home they purchased in April for $403,000. Federal public defender Joe Herrold, who is representing Williams, didn't immediately return a message.

Residents within one block of where the device was found had reported hearing loud explosions on April 2, May 12 and June 7. The Ankeny Police Department said in a press release the investigation of Williams involved the placement of several explosive devices on Waywin Drive, but the criminal complaint against Williams does not make mention of any prior incidents or explain any potential motive.

Ankeny Police Chief Darius Potts said the other explosions were still under investigation.

Investigators are also still looking into who is responsible for the six- to eight-inch pipe bomb found March 2 outside an Ankeny polling place, about two miles away from where the bomb was found June 9.

A couple walking their dog found the device in grass outside the Lakeside Center, a city banquet hall that was serving as a polling place for a special election related to school funding. The discovery led to the temporary evacuation of the polling place, which reopened a few hours later. It remains unclear how long the device had been at the center and whether its placement was related to the election.

The state fire marshals office also disarmed that bomb, and said later that it could have caused major damage had it detonated. Polk County Auditor Jamie Fitzgerald has described that device as a metal piece with two end caps.
MEXICO CITY (AP)  A journalist was found stabbed to death Tuesday in the northern Mexico city of Ciudad Acuna, across the border from Del Rio, Texas.

Saul Tijerina Renteria was the fourth journalist killed in Mexico so far this year.

Tijerina Renteria reported for various web-based news outlets, including La Voz de Coahuila.

La Voz reported that Tijerina Renteria went missing after leaving his job at a maquiladora assembly plant in the pre-dawn hours Tuesday. His body was later found stabbed to death in the trunk of a car. Journalists in provincial Mexico make so little money that many work other jobs.

The Article 19 press freedom group called on authorities to investigate whether he was killed because of his reporting.

La Voz quoted state police as saying two suspects had been found with a knife and had been detained in connection with the killing.

Last week, reporter Gustavo Sanchez Cabrera was shot to death in the southern state of Oaxaca, and another journalist was killed just west of Mexico City. In May, online journalist Benjamin Morales Hernandez was abducted and killed in the northern state of Sonora.

Two other reporters have disappeared in Sonora this year.

Press groups say nine journalists were killed in Mexico in 2020, making it the most dangerous country for reporters outside of war zones.
GODDARD, Kan. (AP)  A woman who said she and her three children became violently ill after using a splash park at the Tanganyika Wildlife Park is suing the attraction, alleging unsanitary conditions led to an illness outbreak.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment and Sedgwick County Health Department opened an investigation Friday after several cases of a diarrheal illness were connected to Tanganyikas Splash Park. Health officials have not determined what caused the illnesses, The Wichita Eagle reported.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP)  Investigative journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones has told the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in a letter that she will not join the faculty at its journalism school without tenure, a report said Tuesday.

The letter says Hannah-Jones will not begin her position as Knight Chair in Race and Investigative Journalism as scheduled July 1 at the Hussman School of Journalism and Media, NC Policy Watch reported. The letter was sent to school officials by Hannah-Jones' legal team.

Since signing the fixed-term contract, Ms. Hannah-Jones has come to learn that political interference and influence from a powerful donor contributed to the Board of Trustees' failure to consider her tenure application, the letter said. In light of this information, Ms. Hannah-Jones cannot trust that the University would consider her tenure application in good faith during the period of the fixed-term contract.

UNC spokesman Joel Curran acknowledged that the school had been contacted by the attorneys for Hannah-Jones, but didn't respond specifically to the letter.

While this remains a confidential personnel matter, as Chancellor (Kevin) Guskiewicz has said publicly, we feel she will add great value to the Carolina campus," Curran said.

Hannah-Jones, who won a Pulitzer Prize for her work on The 1619 Project for the New York Times Magazine, had accepted a five-year contract to join the journalism schools faculty as the Knight Chair in Race and Investigative Journalism.

The trustee who leads the subcommittee that considers tenure applications, Charles Duckett, chose in January to postpone the review of Hannah-Jones submission, said Richard Stevens, the chairman of the board of trustees for the Chapel Hill campus. It was never brought before the full board for approval, and instead the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist accepted a five-year appointment to the faculty of the journalism school.

School leaders said Hannah-Jones could be considered again for tenure before the end of her five-year contract.

In addition, Walter Hussman Jr., publisher of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, said in emails to university leaders that he was concerned about whether Hannah-Jones presence at the journalism school would distract from its core values, according to an article in The Assembly. In 2019, Hussman pledged $25 million to the UNC journalism school that bears his name.

The Knight Chair in Race and Investigative Journalism urged the school to reconsider its decision, while members of the journalism school faculty sought an explanation as to why tenure was not offered to Hannan-Jones. A letter signed by various professional athletes, writers and academics last month assailed the university, saying the trustees failed to uphold the first order values of academic freedom and the free exchange of ideas.

A two-page ad in The News & Observer of Raleigh last month featuring 1,619 alumni and students at UNC-Chapel Hill offered support to Hannah-Jones and called on the school to grant the tenure request. The Baltimore Sun also published an editorial criticizing the school for refusing to gran tenure to Hannah-Jones.
SEATTLE (AP)  A Seattle man was charged Tuesday with felony hit and run and the theft of a vehicle of an off-duty Seattle police officer, who was fatally struck by a car while helping people involved in a crash, according to the King County Prosecuting Attorneys Office.

Roger Lee Owens Jr., 49, was arrested last week on suspicion of stealing Officer Alexandra Lexi Harris personal vehicle, The Seattle Times reported.
JACKSON, Miss. (AP)  Federal prosecutors in Mississippi say a man has pleaded guilty to trying to bribe a deportation officer with the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.

The U.S. Attorneys Office in Jackson says in a news release that Jesus Miranda-Alcantar, 34, of Mexico entered the plea Tuesday.
Federal legislators heard from the Midland Business Alliance (MBA) this month regarding the impact of repeated flooding on Midland and the surrounding region.

In early June, Tony Stamas, president and CEO of the MBA, submitted written testimony to the U.S. House Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration and Related Agencies.

The subcommittee has jurisdiction over the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and other federal agencies.

The Midland Daily News spoke with Stamas about representing the MBA, community businesses, and residents of Midland County and the Great Lakes Bay Region.

Q: How did it feel to provide a testimony to the U.S. House Subcommittee?

A: There are a lot of partners that we work with on the federal, state and local level and we want to make sure that we're clearly communicating the history, challenges and opportunities. We appreciated that there was a forum to do that and we wanted to make sure that Midlands voices are being heard there.

Q: Why was it important to submit a testimony to the U.S. House Subcommittee?

A: As they're looking at (approving assistance) - whether it's the regular budgets or disaster assistance for communities around the country - we want to make sure that they understand the unique circumstances and challenges which we've been dealing with and certainly work closely with (our representatives) and the whole delegation. But, we also want to come in and communicate directly with those members on the committee that are from all over our country.

Q: What was it like to provide a voice for community members?

A: I think we're so fortunate, we have so many community leaders; J.W. Fisher (the MBA Advisory Committee on Infrastructure chair) is leading and Lee Ann Keller is our co-chair in terms of this advisory committee. So, (we are) just kind of bringing those voices together and communicating that again with our partners on the federal level and with legislators from all the other states.

What are the next steps in this process?

A: It's going to be an ongoing conversation, as they're debating legislation and we identify solutions, whether it's at the city level or on the county level. At that point, (legislators) have that history and we can say, Okay, this is a solution that we think makes sense, and we can go back and continue that dialogue. I think it's just the beginning, but it's part of an ongoing conversation we're going to be having to find long-term solutions for our community and region.

According to the MBA, in his testimony, Stamas included an overview of the flood-related losses, rebuilding efforts and continuing progress within the Great Lakes Bay Region.

On behalf of the MBA, Stamas asked the subcommittee to support Representative John Moolenaars report language request which urges the USDA to participate and coordinate as an essential federal stakeholder, with other federal partners on developing and supporting measures to mitigate the severity of future flood events to protect Midland and the GLBR.

Prior to this testimony, Stamas submitted a written testimony to another U.S. House subcommittee, the Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies, in early May.

In that testimony, Stamas encouraged the subcommittee to support Moolenaars report language request.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, both testimonies for the subcommittees Fiscal Year 2022 Public Witness Hearing were requested to be submitted in writing rather than in person. According to the Midland Business Alliance, the written testimony will be printed in each of the subcommittees permanent records.

In 2021, the MBA Board of Directors formed the MBA Advisory Committee on Infrastructure to examine infrastructure issues that impact the quality of life and economic vitality of the Midland area.

The committee is made up of MBA board members, community members, an MBA staff representative, and non-voting representatives from Midland County, the City of Midland, and the delegated authority for Midland and Gladwin counties, the Four Lakes Task Force.

Our first task is to find options to help reduce the frequency and severity of flooding in the Midland area and build resilience for the future, Fisher said.
HELENA, Mont. (AP)  Montana's Republican-controlled Legislature has withdrawn its subpoenas for the emails of Supreme Court justices and the court administrator that included state judges' opinions about a bill to allow the governor to directly fill judicial vacancies between elections.

The law to eliminate the Judicial Nomination Commission  which the Montana Supreme Court recently upheld as constitutional  is an element of a longer-term effort by Republican lawmakers to remake what it considers an activist judiciary and to appoint more conservative judges.

Gov. Greg Gianforte, a Republican, has said he would use the new law to appoint judges who will interpret laws, not make them from the bench, and who are committed to the fair, consistent, and objective application of the law.

The Legislature on Tuesday withdrew the subpoenas seeking the emails and asked the court to dismiss legal challenges to the subpoenas.

Republican lawmakers sought the emails after learning judges had widely opposed the proposal to allow the governor to fill judicial vacancies and that one judge who opposed the legislation was appointed to hear legal challenge against the law. Chief Justice Mike McGrath recused himself because he had asked Gianforte to oppose the bill. The replacement judge was recused, as well.

Randy Cox, the attorney for Court Administrator Beth McLaughlin, told the Montana State News Bureau that he will ask the court to make a ruling on Legislative subpoena authority, citing a need to have it settled. Lawmakers received thousands of McLaughlin's emails through a subpoena to the Department of Administration, an executive branch agency that includes the state's information technology services.

The justices temporarily quashed their legislative subpoenas pending a hearing while Justice Jim Rice asked a state judge to block a subpoena seeking his information.

District Judge Michael McMahon of Helena granted Rice a preliminary injunction last month after finding the Legislature had overstepped its authority in subpoenaing documents from the judicial branch. McMahon said that authority belonged with the Montana Judicial Standards Commission, which enforces the Montana Code of Judicial Conduct.

McMahon's ruling said that while the Legislature has the authority to subpoena people to testify, it does not appear to have the authority to subpoena documents.

Rices subpoena does not represent a run-of-the-mill legislative effort but rather a clash between separate government branches over records of intense Legislative political interest," McMahon wrote.

Republican Sen. Greg Hertz of Polson is chairman of the Legislatures Special Select Committee on Judicial Accountability and Transparency. He said Tuesday the committee still expects the judicial branch to release public records.

Rep. Kim Abbott of Helena, one of two Democrats on a six-member select committee, said in an email the committee was always an overreach that threatened the separation of powers and checks and balances" and that she hoped the withdrawal of the subpoenas "puts an end to expending resources on partisan attacks against a co-equal and independent branch of government."

Earlier Tuesday, the Montana Supreme Court met to discuss a recent motion by lawmakers asking the justices to recuse themselves from hearing arguments over whether they should turn over their own emails to the Legislature.

The justices denied the first recusal request in a ruling in which Justice Laurie McKinnon wrote that lawmakers were trying to manufacture a conflict to avoid receiving a final ruling by the Judicial Branch over the Legislature's subpoena power.

McGrath did not respond to a phone message Wednesday seeking comment on the withdrawal of the subpoenas.
MOSCOW (AP)  The leader of Myanmar's military junta on Wednesday attended an international conference in Moscow, an appearance that reflected Russia's eagerness to develop ties with the junta despite international criticism.

The military in Myanmar ousted the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi on Feb. 1, claiming her partys landslide victory in an election last November was due to massive voter fraud. It has not produced credible evidence to back its claim.

Myanmar's security forces have brutally suppressed widespread popular protests against the military takeover, killing hundreds of protesters and carrying out waves of arrests.

The junta's leader, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, claimed in Wednesday's speech that it was trying to consolidate a democratic system in the country that has degraded.

Currently, Myanmar is striving for political stability, he said at the conference organized by Russias Defense Ministry. "The previous government mocked democracy by rigging the election. Due to the dishonesty of the NLD government, our current government has taken steps to restore integrity to democracy.

He rejected international criticism, charging that some countries are constantly trying to influence other political systems and ideologies in a variety of ways" and adding that they also want to interfere in the internal affairs of sovereign states on the pretext of democracy and human rights.

On Tuesday, Min Aung Hlaing met with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, who hailed the strong military cooperation between the countries.

We pay special attention to this meeting as we see Myanmar as a time-tested strategic partner and a reliable ally in Southeast Asia and the Asia-Pacific region, Shoigu said.

He added that cooperation in the military and military-technical field is an important part of relations between Russia and Myanmar and praised Min Aung Hlaing for strengthening the country's military.

Shoigu said Russia would work to expand ties with Myanmar based on mutual understanding, respect and trust.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP)  Many New Mexico communities are behind the curve when it comes to investing in drinking water infrastructure as persistent drought threatens supplies, and the state's fragmented funding process makes it hard to know what taxpayers are getting for their money, legislative analysts said Wednesday.

New Mexico provided roughly $876 million for water projects over a five-year period. But the analysts told members of the powerful Legislative Finance Committee during a meeting that communities arent doing enough to leverage federal and local dollars.

A review of the state's numerous financing mechanisms for water projects found that New Mexico over the last decade made proportionally more grant and loan funding available for water projects than any other state in the U.S. But inconsistent vetting and piecemeal funding put projects at greater risk of being delayed or derailed, according to the review.

About one-third of the state-funded local water projects that were examined did not meet their intended purpose  even several years after the initial funding was issued.

In the village of Maxwell, for example, $1 million was spent to drill and equip a new drinking water well that could be used in times of drought. A $30,000 shortfall resulted in the well not being hooked up to electricity, leaving the project unfinished and unable to yield any public benefits. Similar issues were found with projects in Lovington and Pecos.

Republican Rep. Larry Scott of Hobbs described the process as a train wreck."

The way were doing it now  from a business persons perspective  theres no comprehensive effort toward a sustainable goal. Thats what we need to be looking for here, said Scott, who is an engineer.

The concerns raised in the report also prompted lawmakers to question whether New Mexico will be able to efficiently spend its share of federal pandemic relief aid and infrastructure funds to address communities' water needs.

President Joe Biden in March proposed a $2 trillion infrastructure plan that includes more than $110 billion to address aging water systems, pollution and water-related natural disasters. While the White House has been short on details about how the money will be distributed if approved by Congress, New Mexico officials said many of the state's most significant water-related challenges would fall into the categories that have been outlined as priorities.

Still, the report noted that communities often seek grants before tapping local revenues or pursuing funding through the states federally backed revolving loans. Analysts said those revolving loan funds had untapped capacity of about $125 million as of this spring.

The uncommitted balances have drawn the attention of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Like the legislative analysts, federal officials determined the availability of state grants is undercutting interest in federal funding options even though state dollars are typically not enough to see a project through to completion.

If improvements aren't made, analysts warned lawmakers that future federal funding could be compromised.

According to the report, federal support for drinking water and wastewater projects has declined overall since the 1980s, while state and local spending have risen.

The problems with the state's water project funding system stretch back at least two decades. Analysts expressed some frustration during Wednesday's meeting, noting recommendations have been made in the past and previous attempts to change the system have fizzled.

This time, analysts recommended that New Mexico lawmakers consider creating an interagency team to vet funding requests using a scoring system that could help prioritize projects on an annual basis. They also suggested that scoring and policies be standardized across the state's grant programs and that a report on all water project requests be submitted to the Legislature each year so the state can begin to track the outcomes of the spending.

Officials with the New Mexico Environment Department said the agency would need more money and personnel to implement the recommendations.
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. (AP)  At the end of the month, motorists traveling Hilton Head Island's Cross Island Parkway will no longer have to pay a toll.

The South Carolina Department of Transportation said it will stop collecting tolls June 30. At 11:59:59 p.m., the bonds issued to build the parkway will be paid off and tolls will end as required under state law, the department said in a news release.
SKOPJE, North Macedonia (AP)  The prime minister of North Macedonia expressed his nations disappointment Wednesday after neighbor Bulgaria refused to withdraw a veto on accession talks with the European Union over a language dispute.

Its Europes problem now. It failed to stop one country blocking the enlargement process because of a bilateral issue, Prime Minister Zoran Zaev said at a meeting with Edi Rama, his counterpart from Albania  another Balkan neighbor.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP)  A Kentucky father has been charged with murder in the death of his 7-week-old daughter, police said.

DelShawn Banks, 23, was arrested Monday, news outlets reported. His bond was set at $250,000, and he will be placed on home incarceration if he posts it.

The Louisville man is expected back in court June 30. It was not immediately clear whether he had an attorney who could comment on his behalf.

Court documents say DelLuna Banks was unresponsive and had severe head injuries, including a fractured skull, when she was taken to a pediatric center June 17. Medical staff tried to perform lifesaving measures before the infant was rushed to a hospital, where she died.

The father admitted to shaking his 7-week-old daughter and throwing her on the ground, according to court documents. An autopsy conducted Monday found that the childs injuries were related to the actions Banks described, the Jefferson County Coroners Office said.

Cortney Jones, the infants mother, told WLKY-TV she was still dealing with complications from the delivery and was in the hospital at the time.

Im sitting in the wheelchair waiting to get rolled back to the room and I get the call my baby wasnt breathing and hes crying  the dads crying, Jones said.

The 23-year-old said Banks had hurt their child before, according to WDRB-TV. They were in a relationship for a year-and-a-half but are no longer in communication.

It hurts so much, because she was my rainbow baby, Jones told the station. Youre expecting to live a long life with your child, to make memories, and I only have two months worth of memories. Thats just not enough.
MANAGUA, Nicaragua (AP)  The president of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights said Wednesday that Nicaragua had entered a new phase of repression with at least 20 opposition figures arrested in recent weeks and constant human rights violations.

Antonia Urrejola told members of the Organization of American States Permanent Council that the crackdown appeared to be part of a government strategy to snuff out internal dissidence ahead of the Nov. 7 elections, in which President Daniel Ortega will seek a fourth consecutive term.

An extended de facto state of exception in Nicaragua has intensified the closure of democratic spaces, she said.

In the past month, the regional human rights body has received 27 requests for protective measures for people persecuted or threatened in Nicaragua, virtually the same number as in all of 2020.

Urrejola said many of the recent arrests involved the use of force and raids of homes without judicial orders. Some people were taken to secret hearings without legal representation. Authorities refuse to tell relatives where they are being held or the state of their health.

Ortegas government has maintained that massive street protests sparked by a change to the social security system in April 2018, were an attempted coup that received foreign backing.

At least 328 people were killed and more than 2,000 were wounded as the government put down those protests in the following months, according to the commission.

Many of those arrested in recent weeks face allegations of crimes against the state, often involving receiving funding from overseas.

Nicaraguas representative at the OAS, Ricardo Alvarado, described the commissions report as fallacious and bad intentioned. It charged that the commission was used as the tip of the spear by the United States against Nicaragua.

Alvarado accused the U.S. and other countries of interfering in Nicaraguas upcoming elections. He called Ortegas opponents terrorist groups, mercenaries and traitors directed and financed by the (U.S.) government.

Late Wednesday, in a televised speech Ortega railed against U.S. interference and said those arrested were not targeted because they were presidential hopefuls, but rather because they were allegedly plotting to overthrow his government as he claimed they tried in April 2018.

It was the first time Ortega had spoken of the latest wave of arrests.

The president said investigators had identified a network of people and organizations that had conspired to organize the massive street protests of April 2018 and the protests over the governments slow response to a massive wildfire in a nature reserve earlier that year.

Ortega said Nicaragua had survived far more difficult moments than this one. There will be no step back, only forward.
BRUSSELS (AP)  Human rights group Amnesty International said Wednesday that the practice of migrant pushbacks in Greece has become so bad that even people who have applied for asylum and been in the country for some time are being summarily picked up and deported.

Charity groups and media outlets routinely accuse Greek authorities and the EUs border agency Frontex of denying people their right to apply for asylum  which is illegal under EU law and refugee treaties  often in the Aegean Sea between Turkey and the Greek islands.

Greece and Frontex strenuously deny conducting such pushbacks.

But Amnesty said in a new report that pushbacks have become so entrenched that it has documented four cases where people affected had a registered protection status in Greece or had been in the country days or weeks before, and were apprehended well inland.

One case concerned a Syrian man who registered as an asylum seeker in Greece in late 2019. He was arrested in the northwest port city of Igoumenitsa last July. He said police confiscated and destroyed his asylum card. He was put on a bus and taken to a detention center before being sent to Turkey.

Amnesty said a young Syrian couple traveling with two small children were also detained at a refugee facility near Drama in northern Greece. They were taken to a detention center or police station where their belongings were confiscated, and later sent back across Greeces land border with Turkey.

The rights group said that these returns have an enormous impact on the individuals and the community: they are tearing people away from one another after they have found what they thought was safety.

It also heard testimony from some people forced to leave by crossing the Evros River on the Greece-Turkey border that Turkish authorities, in turn, tried to prevent them from crossing into Turkish territory.

Amnesty called on the European Commission to launch infringement proceedings against Greece for its violation of EU asylum and fundamental rights law.

It appealed to the Turkish authorities to halt all practices forcing or pressuring individuals to return to Greece, including through the use of threats or violence and conduct prompt, independent, impartial, and effective investigations into all such allegations.
LANSING, Mich. (AP)  State Senate Republicans who investigated Michigan's 2020 presidential election for months concluded there was no widespread or systemic fraud and urged the state attorney general to consider probing people who have made baseless allegations about the results in Antrim County to raise money or publicity for their own ends.

The GOP-led state Senate Oversight Committee said in a 55-page report released Wednesday that citizens should be confident that the election's outcome represents the true results. Democrat Joe Biden defeated then-President Donald Trump by about 155,000 votes, or 2.8 percentage points, in the battleground state.

Trump and his allies have pushed debunked conspiracy theories and unfounded information about voter fraud.

The committee strongly recommends citizens use a critical eye and ear toward those who have pushed demonstrably false theories for their own personal gain, the panel wrote days after Republican activists requested an Arizona-style forensic audit of the election.

The committee's three Republicans did recommend legislation to close "real vulnerabilities" in future elections. Election-related bills are pending in the GOP-controlled Legislature, including proposed tougher photo ID rules that the Senate passed last week and the House amended and approved Wednesday. But Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will veto them if they reach her desk.

Election night results in northern Michigan's rural Antrim County, which has roughly 23,000 residents, initially erroneously showed a local victory for Biden over Trump. But it was attributed to human error, not any problems with machines, and corrected. A hand recount turned up no signs of shenanigans.

We will review the report in its entirety in order to determine if a criminal investigation is appropriate, Lynsey Mukomel, spokeswoman for Attorney General Dana Nessel, said of the call to probe individuals who have lied about what happened in Antrim.

People mentioned in the report include Mike Lindell, the MyPillow creator-turned-conspiracy peddler; lawyer Matthew DePerno, who unsuccessfully sued the county on behalf of a resident, and ex-state Sen. Patrick Colbeck. The report also criticized Texas-based Allied Security Operations Group, a company that worked with Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani to raise baseless allegations of fraud and counting errors.

The report dismissed various allegations  that many dead people voted, that hundreds of thousands of unsolicited absentee ballots were mailed to Michigan voters, that absentee ballots were counted multiple times, that tens of thousands of fraudulent absentee ballots were dumped at Detroit's counting center after the polls closed. Those ballots had been submitted throughout Election Day in drop boxes, in the mail and at clerk's offices.

The panel's Republicans recommended that drop boxes not be used or be closed sooner than 8 p.m. on election night so that processing and tabulating the ballots they contain do not extend long into the night. Democrats have said the move would disenfranchise some voters.

The committees report goes into considerable detail ... and I hope the public is reassured by the security and protections already in place, motivated to support necessary reforms to make it better and grateful for our fellow citizens who do the hard work of conducting our elections, said Sen. Ed McBroom, a Vulcan Republican who chairs the panel. Other recommendations include uniform signature-verification standards, the authorization of counting to begin before Election Day and the prohibition of unsolicited mailings of absentee ballot applications by the secretary of state.

The lone Democrat on the committee, Sen. Jeff Irwin of Ann Arbor, noted that its two other members had been among 11 GOP senators who asked Congress to investigate credible allegations of election misconduct on Jan. 4, two days before it met to certify Biden's win amid the deadly insurrection by Trump supporters at the Capitol.

It is unfortunate that the Michigan Legislature participated in the circus, parading witnesses who were not credible or who pressed obvious falsehoods in order to promote the lie that Michigans results were tainted," he said. "But it is my fervent hope that we, as a legislative body, can finally focus our energy on getting help out to our residents who need it most after such a tumultuous year for many due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

___

Follow David Eggert at https://twitter.com/DavidEggert00
Courtesy photo /U.S. Border Patrol

Armed smugglers dressed in camouflage brandished their weapons on an off-duty U.S. Border Patrol agent and his family who were fishing along the Rio Grande by the Mines Road area in northwest Laredo.

On Tuesday, the agent and his family were fishing on the river near the Lago del Rio, off Mines Road. Three armed individuals approached the agent and identified themselves as Federales, according to Border Patrol.
CONCORD, N.H. (AP)  As states from California to Maine consider drastic changes to youth detention centers, New Hampshire is grappling with its own facility that has been rocked by abuse allegations from years past.

The states Legislature will vote Thursday on a proposed state budget that would close the sprawling facility  housing fewer than 20 children on a campus built for 144  by March 2023 and replace it with a new, 18-bed center.

Though debate over the centers future began years ago, it has come to a head amid recent abuse allegations made by more than 300 men and women who say they were physically or sexually abused as children by 150 staffers at the states facility from 1960 to 2018. Eleven former workers have been arrested since April, and the state Division for Children, Youth and Families has said it is cooperating with the broad criminal investigation launched in 2019.

The facilitys potential closure, however, is part of a larger national trend, said Vidhya Ananthakrishnan, director of youth justice initiatives for The Justice Lab at Columbia University.

While the number of incarcerated children has declined over the last 30 years, conversations about how to best serve children often havent gone far enough, she said. But she believes both the pandemic and last years racial reckoning have helped advance the debate to an important crossroads.

Theres this sense that we know were not doing what we need to do for kids when we lock them up, and were not giving them the kind of support and focus on their families and all the circumstances that help them become more thriving adults, she said. Its a question of what that actually looks like. Thats the thing people are starting to grapple with.

States efforts would get a boost under the budget proposal released last month by President Joe Biden, which calls for increasing the overall youth justice budget from $359 million to $796 million and spending $100 million to support efforts to close detention facilities and invest in community alternatives to support youth.

In Maine, the Legislature voted to close the states only youth detention center but the governor hasnt said whether shell sign the bill. The proposal would direct the Maine Department of Corrections to make a plan to close the Long Creek Youth Development Center in South Portland by 2023. The Maine Department of Corrections is opposed to the bill, saying it doesnt take a balanced approach to ensuring rehabilitation and public safety.

In Oklahoma, three state-run youth facilities are being consolidated into one campus featuring cottages with individual bedrooms and a more therapeutic environment. In Wisconsin, lawmakers responded to abuse allegations at their states only youth prison by passing legislation several years ago to replace it with smaller, regional facilities, but the money to do so has yet to materialize. California, meanwhile, is ending admissions to its state-operated Division of Juvenile Justice facilities as of July 1. The state-operated facilities are to close entirely by June 30, 2023, with youth then instead going to county-run facilities.

New Hampshire state Sen. Cindy Rosenwald, D-Nashua, said she is troubled both by the incredibly high cost of operating the states facility in Manchester at 10% capacity and the fact that many of the kids cycle in and out. New Hampshire currently spends $13 million per year to operate the Sununu Youth Services Center, named for former Gov. John H. Sununu and father of the current governor.

That is just reckless spending, she said. And I dont think it is the optimal program to address the needs of these kids.

Last year, Vermont closed its only juvenile detention center after a drop in the number of kids housed there and a lawsuit accusing the 30-bed Woodside Juvenile Rehabilitation Center in Essex of housing children with disabilities in dangerous conditions, including the use of restraints, unsupervised seclusion and long-term isolation.

Vermont plans to open a new six-bed facility that will be run by a private New Hampshire company with a focus on rehabilitation. It will be primarily for adolescent boys ages 12 through 17 who are involved with the criminal justice system, said Sean Brown, commissioner of the Vermont Department for Children and Families.

It will be geared to stabilize kids in crisis, quickly start working with them and hopefully start transitioning them to lower levels of care immediately upon their arrival so that we can reconnect those kids and youth with their communities and their families as quickly as possible, back into their natural support networks, Brown said.

In the meantime, Vermont has an agreement to house those children at the Sununu Center in New Hampshire. It placed its first Vermont youth at the facility about a month ago, Brown said.

Joe Ribsam, director of New Hampshires Division for Children, Youth and Families, said he agrees with lawmakers that managing a massive building and campus for a small number of kids doesnt make sense either fiscally or programmatically. In recent years, the state has invested in building a comprehensive system of care to address childrens behavioral health, and Ribsam said he believes that holds promise as a long term solution to reducing youth incarceration. In the meantime, he considers the current debate, with its focus on cost, to be a bit backward.

I think its just as, if not more critical, to think of these issues in terms of policy than cost, he said. I think the focus has been a little off for a long time around the cost being the primary driver of the conversation, he said. That being said, the policy conversation has been happening, it just seems to happen after the budget pressure.

___

Associated Press writers Lisa Rathke in Marshfield, Vermont; David Sharp in Portland, Maine; Todd Richmond in Madison, Wisconsin; Sean Murphy in Oklahoma City and Don Thompson in Sacramento, California, contributed to this report.
LONDON (AP)  People whose lives were torn apart when the government improperly questioned their right to be in the U.K. are demanding that a program designed to compensate them be taken out of the hands of the agency that violated their rights.

About a dozen activists spoke to journalists outside the Home Office ahead of a planned march Wednesday, saying the British government should create a new independent body to administer the program, which has been criticized for moving too slowly to process claims from the mostly Black victims of the scandal.

Many legal residents who came to Britain from the Caribbean lost their homes, jobs and right to medical care when they were targeted by Home Office efforts to crack down on illegal immigration. The agency is now responsible for the program set up to compensate the Windrush generation, named after the ship that carried the first post-war migrants from the West Indies.

Anthony Brown, an attorney who moved to Britain from Jamaica in the 1960s, also wants the law changed to guarantee the citizenship rights of the Windrush generation  and their children.

We want the Windrush scheme to be declared not fit for purpose, and we want a new scheme to be put in place that is based on registration not naturalization because the naturalization process is irrational to people who are already British, Brown said.

The Home Office acknowledges that the compensation program got off to a slow start but says it was overhauled in December to provide more money more quickly.

The program has made compensation offers totaling 30 million pounds ($41.7 million), of which 20.4 million pounds has been paid to victims, the Home Office said. Thats up from less than 3 million pounds paid out before the December changes.

The opposition Labour Party has also called for the government to give control of the compensation program to a new independent body.

This is to help restore faith in the process and get compensation quickly to people who have been appallingly treated, Nick Thomas-Symonds, Labours spokesman on domestic issues, said in a letter released to the media earlier this week.
LONDON (AP)  The British government wont extend the June 30 deadline for European Union citizens in the U.K. to apply for permanent residency or risk losing their right to live and work in the U.K.

Britains departure from the EU last year ended the automatic right of people from the bloc to settle in the U.K., and of Britons to live in the 27 EU nations. As part of the divorce, both sides agreed everyone would keep the residence rights they had before Brexit.

In Britain, that means citizens of the EU and several other European countries must apply online for confirmation of their settled status if they want to continue to work, study or receive social benefits.

The U.K. government says there have been 5.6 million applications since the program opened in March 2019, only a handful of which have been refused. That is far more than the governments pre-Brexit estimate that about 3 million EU citizens lived in Britain. The number of EU residents in Britain who have not applied is unknown.

I want to be clear -- we will not be extending the deadline, Immigration Minister Kevin Foster said Wednesday. Put simply, extending the deadline is not a solution in itself to reaching those people who have not yet applied and we would just be in a position further down the line where we would be asked to extend again, creating even more uncertainty.

The government says people who have applied by the end of June will be sent letters giving them 28 days to act. People will also be able to apply after the deadline if they had reasonable grounds, such as an illness that prevented them doing it sooner, Foster said.

EU citizens advocates worry that some people are still unaware they need to apply, while others are caught in a backlog of 400,000 applications that have yet to be processed.

They also want the British government to provide physical, rather than just digital, proof of residents status. Many fear a repeat of the traumatic experience of thousands of Caribbean immigrants who settled in the U.K. after World War II only to be denied jobs and medical care or even threatened with deportation decades later because they did not have paperwork to prove their right to live in Britain.

Alberto Costa, a lawmaker from Britains governing Conservative Party who has campaigned on behalf of EU citizens, said Prime Minister Boris Johnson had assured him that no eligible resident will be denied their rights.

I will do everything in my power to ensure the government honors its promises to those citizens, he said.

Other EU countries have made similar arrangements for the estimated 1 million U.K. citizens who reside there. In some, right to remain is being granted automatically while in others British citizens have to apply.

Free movement for people among EU member states is a core principle of the bloc, and Britains 2016 vote to leave was, in part, a reaction to high levels of immigration. More than 1 million EU citizens moved to the U.K after eight formerly communist eastern European countries joined the bloc in 2004.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP)  West Virginia families with eligible school-age children will receive funding from the federal government for groceries this summer.

One-time benefits of $375 are expected to be issued for each eligible child by mid-July, the state Department of Education said in a news release. The benefits will be loaded onto existing pandemic electronic benefits transfer cards that were issued during the 2020-21 school year.
Over the span of about a week, Texas received $459,000 in private donations for the states planned wall at the southern border, the governors office said Wednesday.

This comes after Gov. Greg Abbott said he would reallocate $250 million in state funds as a down payment for the project  while crowdfunding some of the remaining costs.

RELATED: Abbott says he'll use crowdfunding for his plan to build a border wall

The identities of the donors and how much they donated to the wall construction are not readily available and can only be obtained through public information requests, a spokesperson for Abbott said. Eventually, Abbotts office said, the total donations figure will be available online on a website that currently solicits people to donate.

Abbott has not given an estimate of the projects total costs or details of how long the wall will be or where it will be located but said he expected it to be hundreds of miles long. He directed the Texas Facilities Commission to hire a program manager who will lead efforts to determine those factors.

The commission said in a statement Thursday it began work on creating a request for proposal for the program manager position, saying it would remain transparent and compliant with State competitive bidding standards.

Abbott also said he expects Texans to volunteer their land for the project and said he would send a letter to President Joe Biden asking the federal government to return land the Trump administration took from private property owners in Texas to build a border wall.

The Trump administration had met fierce resistance from private property owners unwilling to allow the federal government to build on their land. Land Commissioner George P. Bush said last week he would grant emergency authorization for the building of the wall on state lands, which makes up approximately 591,595 surface acres along the border.

Promises and calls for a border wall between Mexico and the U.S. were a hallmark of former President Donald Trump and his supporters, both during his campaigns and his presidency. Trumps administration built about 450 miles of barrier, mostly in Arizona, according to The Washington Post. Trump is set to tour the border with Abbott next week. Vice President Kamala Harris will head to the U.S.-Mexico border on Friday.

'I'M JUST STUNNED:' Texas leaders react to Abbott's announcement about border wall

Construction on the federal wall largely stopped after Biden in January ordered federal agencies to pause construction on the barrier where possible. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told House lawmakers DHS is not requesting further border wall funding in its 2022 budget proposal to Congress.

Tensions over border security have risen between the Democrat president and the two-term Republican governor. Abbott has blamed Biden's immigration policies for the increase of immigrants on the state's southern border, saying in a disaster declaration that new federal policies have paved the way for dangerous gangs and cartels, human traffickers, and deadly drugs like fentanyl to pour into our communities. Abbott has announced a partnership with the state of Arizona calling for other states to send law enforcement officials to help border states arrest and jail immigrants crossing the border.

There were 180,034 border crossings last month, compared to fewer than 25,000 border crossings in late 2020, according to data from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection. During the Trump administration, the highest recorded number of apprehensions was nearly 150,000.

Portions of the existing wall in Texas cost $26.5 million per mile to construct, federal lawmakers have said. The Biden administration has said building the wall cost taxpayers $46 million per mile in some areas along the border.

Texas border fundraiser has already surpassed a similar effort in 2011 by the Arizona Legislature. That effort received almost $270,000 by 2014, but the attempt was abandoned and the money reallocated after estimates for the final project stretched into the billions, according to The Arizona Republic.

Correction, June 23, 2021: A previous version of this story erroneously stated the state has a total of $709,000 set aside for the walls construction. The state has more than $250 million set aside for the border wall construction including $459,000 in private donations.

This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at https://www.texastribune.org/2021/06/23/texas-border-wall-donations/.

The Texas Tribune is a nonpartisan, nonprofit media organization that informs Texans  and engages with them  about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott can't catch a break. But then again, does he deserve one?

Everyone's not-so-favorite leader of the not-so-best state (depending on who you ask, of course) has vetoed 20 bills over the course of this year's legislative session, including Senate Bill 474, or the Safe Outdoor Dogs Acta bill that would make it illegal to tether dogs with heavy chains and leave them without access to drinking water, shade or shelter, among other safeguards.

TELL US HOW YOU REALLY FEEL: Texas artist creates a festive sign, gives the bird to Texas Governor

"Texans love their dogs, so it is no surprise that our statutes already protect them by outlawing true animal cruelty," Gov. Abbott said in his veto statetment. "Yet Senate Bill 474 would compel every dog owner, on pain of criminal penalties, to monitor things like the tailoring of the dogs collar, the time the dog spends in the bed of a truck, and the ratio of tether-to-dog length, as measured from the tip of the nose to the base of the tail."

The governor added that, "Texas is no place for this kind of micro-managing and over-criminalization." I guess his disdain for micro-management doesn't extend to legislating women's bodies though, huh?

Abbott was right about one thing though: Texans love their dogs. And animal lovers everywhere wasted no time sharing their thoughts on his latest unjust action.

Similar to the #AbbottFailedTexasAgain frenzy that took over social media last week after ERCOT asked Texans to "conserve energy," "#AbbottHatesDogs" began trending on Twitter after the governor's veto.

TEXAS ON TWITTER: 'I hate it here' trends on social media as Texans react to lifted mask mandate

The @TexasDemocrats Twitter account took a moment to also take a jab at Senator Ted Cruz, who found himself in scorching hot water when he abandoned his post  and rescue poodle Snowflake  for sunny skies in Cancun while millions of Texans were left suffering in the dark and frigid cold during February's freeze.

"Greg Abbott vetoed a bill that would've ensured protection for dogs left in extreme weather conditions," the Texas Democrats account tweeted Tuesday. "In wake of this news, we're sending our best wishes to Snowflake, Ted Cruz's dog, who was left in the cold while the Senator fled for Cancun. #AbbottHatesDogs." (Yikes!)

It's safe to say: reelection is looking pretty "ruff" for the governor of Texas right about now. But at least he has air conditioning.
Peter Gridley, Contributor / Getty Images

There's a new party forming in one of the "most fun" states in Americabut not the kind you may be thinking.

The "Serve America Movement," or SAM, is Texas' newest political party. The party consists of current and former Democrats, Republicans and Independents who have banded together to "fix America's broken politics," per its official website.
Florida, FL (34429)

Today

Scattered thunderstorms this evening becoming more widespread overnight. Low around 75F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms this evening becoming more widespread overnight. Low around 75F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%.
Florida, FL (34429)

Today

Scattered thunderstorms early, then mostly cloudy overnight with heavy thunderstorms becoming likely. Low around 75F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 90%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms early, then mostly cloudy overnight with heavy thunderstorms becoming likely. Low around 75F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 90%.
Adrian Butler grew up in a farm community of no more than 100 people, so when he became CIO of Caseys General Stores, a $9 billion convenience store chain with a large rural presence, the job had real meaning for him. Casey's opened its first store in Boone, Iowa in 1968, says Butler. In many ways, the Caseys guest is me and my family. Our guests work hard, and they want speed, accuracy, and easy access to all of our products, from our pizza to snacks to fuel.

As Caseys first-ever CIO, Butler also felt a deep commitment to his team and colleagues, to ensure he was developing an IT strategy and operating model that would be of lasting value to the business. Casey's has had a history of growth and stability, but two years ago, a new CEO joined the company with the remit to enhance the service we provide to our guests. My role is a realization from our CEO, board, and executive team about the importance of investing in technology, he says.

Starting with IT basics

Recognizing the rich history of the business, Butler did not try to change everything at once. I did not start with a moonshot, he says. I started by making sure our day-to-day IT operations were solid, while asking what big problems we were trying to solve. Like most retail businesses, these challenges were all around digital engagement, guest analytics, supply chain optimization, and creating efficiencies in the stores. The goals were to allow team members to spend more time with guests and to ensure that the right products get on the right shelves.

In moving toward those goals, Butler turned the teams attention to using data to better understand supply chain, inventory, and the guest experience.

Casey's General Stores Adrian Butler, CIO, Casey's General Stores

With data, the hardest step is the first step, says Butler. Overthinking your data strategy can inhibit your ability to move. For Butler and his team, the key first step was to bring together leaders across the company to ask: What does data mean to us? Why is it important? What will we do with the data? Once you define your data philosophy, you can find low hanging fruit, like better visualization of the data you already have, to provide your business with value, he says. We started by using data to do a better job of running key areas of our business and reporting on performance, before moving to more advanced analytics and attempting to project the future.

Shift to product management model

To help Caseys IT organization and business partners start thinking differently, Butler adopted a product management model. Butler has defined approximately 15 product teams that are aligned to the major retail functions of buy, move, sell, and enabling corporate functions. For example, product teams within the buy and move function are merchandising, supply chain, and fuel. Within the sell function, the product teams are payments, point of sale, back of house systems, and kitchen. Digital product teams are ecommerce, customer engagement, and customer retention.

Product managers are aligned to the broader, higher-level functions and product owners are responsible for a specific product team. For example, the stores product manager interacts with store colleagues across the organization to define the store product roadmap; product owners for sub areas, like point of sale and payment, are more narrowly focused and can go deeper. The product managers job is to develop really deep, detailed knowledge about that part of the business, and what is happening not only inside of Caseys, but in the broader industry, Butler says. They work with our functional business partners to develop business cases and structure the big body of work. The product managers then hand off that work to the product team who breaks the work into components with priorities and sequencing.

There are new roles in the product model and some similar roles. The key difference is that these roles are integrated into one agile team and work together to build products rather than hand them back and forth between teams.

Outcomes over org chart

With the product model still in its initial stage, product leaders sit in the IT organization. Since product management is a new capability, we are starting it in IT, so we can model the behaviors we need in a product team, says Butler. But as we scale, and the model becomes embedded in our operations, I can see the role sitting outside of IT, in our functional areas.

But Butler is not too hung up on who reports where. I am a big a fan of blurred reporting lines, because if we get wound up thinking about reporting, we lose sight of what we are trying to accomplish, he says. I am focused on getting the right people in the right seats, and making sure they are building the right relationships and driving the right outcomes.

Regardless of where product leaders report, Butler looks for the same competency he looks for in all of his leaders: critical thinking. Critical thinking is a force multiplier; it drives innovation, velocity, and helps to realize business value much sooner by allowing us to become much more predictable regarding delivery. I also look for people who can communicate, collaborate, and ideally, have some experience working outside of IT. The product manager role does not have to be deeply technical.

Butlers advice to CIOs intent on moving into a more collaborative operating model? Set a vision for the future and take others on the journey with you. Be 100 percent transparent with the good and the bad, he says. Every time I join a new organization, I ask my peers and their direct reports about their challenges, and I listen. Once my team and I have a clear understanding, I can present my thoughts on the strategy, roadmap, and team necessary to support them.

Butler also spends time ensuring his colleagues really understand the product management approach before he asks them to participate. I invite them into the product model discussion, he says. I walk them people through the why, the how and the what? Why are product management and agile the right approaches? How will this affect you? What will the impact be? I believe in leaning into the why before people have to ask. I do that upfront, so that people can get their minds wrapped around it. I want to create advocacy outside of IT for what we are trying to do. The loneliest place for a CIO to be is on an island.
Last year, my team of developers and architects was moved to the marketing function as part of a broader company-wide reorganization.

Developers and marketers? It seemed like an odd marriage. My small engineering team has historically focused on innovation and the use of our products to demonstrate the art of the possible.

We still do these things, but were now working alongside skilled but mostly non-technical professionals. My hope is this new virtual proximity will lead to more collaboration between developers and marketersand create new citizen developers in the process.

Getty Images Citizen developers are everywhereif you take the time to nurture them.

Encouraging citizen developers

By narrowing the gap between developers and marketers, we can change the dynamic between IT and lines of business within the company.

Right now, that partnership is mostly transactional: The business requests services or applications from IT and IT works to fulfill those requests. But by embedding professional developers within the business and embracing the use of low-code platforms, we can turbocharge the creation of citizen developers.

Citizen developers tend to have limited programming skills. What they do have is deep domain expertise, which is something that professional software developers often lack. As a result, citizen developers can build solutions that quickly propel the business forward in meaningful ways.

The challenge is getting startedand thats where folks like my developers and architects can help.

We have the opportunity to help non-technical departments understand what low-code can offer and how they can use the platform to do truly amazing things. Here are three ways teams like mine can help build a culture of citizen development within their organizations.

1. Make work flow.

First, we must acknowledge that not every business problem is well suited for low-code solutions. By understanding the distinction between citizen and pro developers, we can minimize frustration (and even make the business appreciate IT just a little more).

Although theres no hard-and-fast rule, citizen developers generally excel at handling manual, repetitive, and process-based tasks. When these workflows are automated, the productivity gains are significant. Not only is human error reduced, but also employees are freed to focus on higher-value activities that build their companys competitive advantage.

One tip Ive found useful here: Look out for the Excel ninjas on your team. In my experience, that skill is easily extended into the way of thinking encouraged by prevailing low-code platforms.

2. Embrace internal IT.

Low-code development efforts thrive when there is a strategic plan in place to nurture the citizen developer flame and ensure its not confined to isolated projects. The internal IT organization can help develop just such a plan, so leaders should encourage their employees to build these relationships early in their low-code journey.

The resulting partnership will pay ongoing dividends. At the highest level, it can help build support for citizen development at an organizations highest levels, all the way up to the CIO.

This is the path my own team followed when we took ownership of a skunkworks project. Built by two citizen developers using the Now Platforms low-code capabilities, the app tracks customer engagement and is now part of the standard DevOps pipeline. Today, we work closely with the citizen developers to expand the apps functionality, but within ITs guardrails and processes and at our own rapid pace of release.

Getty Images When we return to the office, take measures to mix techies and non-tech employees.

This should also assuage the fears of organizations that may have security concerns about low-code platforms. Experienced IT architects can establish digital guardrails for citizen developers, keeping company assets and data safe while putting a long-term support plan in place.

3. Transform your workforce.

Finally, its important for organizations to formalize their low-code training programs and how those skills can be applied to the business. Because its in everyones interest to learn and encourage low-code development, this should be an easy lift.

In fact, from a business perspective, encouraging citizen development is the only way to keep pace with the growing demand for applications. By 2021, IDC estimates there will be over 500 million apps developed. Thats far too many for central IT departments to build and oversee.

At the same time, citizen development is a becoming a highly marketable skill and should remain so for years to come. It allows employees to build a portfolio of successes with quantifiable business value, which provides all kinds of opportunity for career advancement. In time, top talent may even seek out these opportunities and the organizations that provide them, viewing low-code programs as evidence of a company that embraces modern trends and a culture of innovation.

Thats the type of company I want to work for, and its why my team of engineers feels at home in a traditionally foreign organization. As we embrace low-code capabilities and help our colleagues do so as well, well not only see digital transformation acceleratewell see our careers accelerate, too.

Learn more about low code here: https://www.servicenow.com/now-platform/what-is-low-code.html

This article originally appeared on Forbes BrandVoice.
With nations across Africa having some of the highest percentages of the unbanked in the world, NCBA Bank has turned to digital innovation to improve the lives of many people across its home nation of Kenya and, increasingly, across other East African nations, like Uganda and Tanzania.

Eight years ago, NCBA Bank established a digital business department to address the challenges of the unbanked and provided mobile wallet and micro-loans services through the M-Pesa mobile payment platform and the M-Shwari digital lending platform. Today, the M-Shwari platform hosts over 35 million users, and NCBA is recognised as one of the leading innovators in the African financial sector.

Mobile banking is appealing to the people of Africa, as bank cards tend to involve high handling fees, cutting into the limited incomes that many live on. On the other hand, mobile devices have a penetration rate of 112 per cent, and local financial services institutions can offer cheap transactions via mobile.

This does pose a technology challenge to the bank; however, a digital platform requiring data confidentiality, anti-hacker and anti-fraud security mechanisms, and the scalability and efficiency to handle millions of transactions per day will be an enabler for inclusive financial service. NCBA turned to Huawei to resolve this challenge.

Eric Muriuki Njagi, Group Director for Digital Business of NCBA said, We have a view or a mission to be Africa's most valued digital platform for financial services, which then means we are seeking to not just identify ourselves as a bank but actually identify ourselves as a marketplace upon which financial services are offered, upon which customers can then find innovations that positively impact their daily life. So that also was a primary motivation for the investment we made with Huawei and the continued collaboration with them.

Huawei

Huawei and its partner, MuRong Technology, conducted a thorough analysis of NCBA Banks services and its IT infrastructure, and subsequently rolled out Kenyas first digital core banking system with distributed architecture for NCBA. Built on a distributed DevOps framework, the next-generation digital core banking system provides agile and robust technical support for NCBA Bank's digital financial services. On the first day of operations, the system migrated data from 60 million accounts all at once, reaching 420 TPS at the peak of system performance.

To ensure that the system remains stable, the core banking system features Huaweis private cloud platform for centralized resource management and flexible provisioning, while GaussDB supports the more complex queries to minimize the cost of databases. The OceanStor Dorado all-flash storage facilitates quick rollout of services for customers. This distributed system can also scale horizontally, process highly concurrent requests, and eliminate single point of failure (SPOF).

The result is a platform that sets NCBA up for the next decade of growth and scalability, while also reducing the TCO, improving system reliability to 99.99 per cent, and backing e-banking system migration and financial service innovation in the future.

(Read more about this story and the resulting benefit for NCBA bank here.)

Through Huaweis FinTech solution, the mobile payment platforms have been able to deliver more for Kenyas communities:

50% higher crop yields  Mobile payments enabled a One Acre Fund, which provides loans and technical training to farmers, with flexible repayments that can be made at any time during growing season. With such flexibility, farmers can grow more corps when they have sufficient money.

 Mobile payments enabled a One Acre Fund, which provides loans and technical training to farmers, with flexible repayments that can be made at any time during growing season. With such flexibility, farmers can grow more corps when they have sufficient money. Easier accesses to education  Mobile payments have made it possible to pay for tuition fees in less than a minute, saving poorer families the challenge of losing work to travel to a bank to withdraw cash.

 Mobile payments have made it possible to pay for tuition fees in less than a minute, saving poorer families the challenge of losing work to travel to a bank to withdraw cash. Made electricity cheaper  Innovative Pay-As-You-Use mobile payment options have allowed families to install solar power solutions that have reduced the cost of lighting by nearly 90%.

Delivering to the unbanked

Traditional financial institutions have struggled to meet the needs of the unbanked with financial services. Typically, these people have simple requirements; they need easy and immediate access to electronic funds (many traditional banking structures have been too inflexible and inconvenient to meet those needs), and they need for the bank to provide these services without any significant fees or added expenses. The most common reason that the unbanked persist in avoiding financial services is the perception (real or imagined) that they lack enough money to put into banking, and that if they do fees will scrape away at their money.

And yet, as noted by the World Bank, addressing the challenge of the unbanked needs to be a priority around the world. FinTech is seen as the pathway to affordable financial services, which is critical for both poverty reduction and economic growth. And, at a time when face-to-face and physical interactions are seen as risky, consumers are flocking to digital banking services to transact. This alone offers health benefits by reducing the amount of physical money that is communally touched and transferred, which helps minimize one common cause for virus transference.

This challenge  and the potential in addressing it  was a core focus of the Huawei Intelligent Finance Summit 2021, which ran from June 3-4. Already a world leader in financial services, having managed 300 million users, 500,000 agents, and $200 billion in transaction value per year, Huawei used the event to unveil its Intelligent Finance Cloud Engine I5 model, which is specifically designed around assisting banks with transformation and digital services. The five components of the I5 model are:

First there is Robotic Infrastructure (unified management and control, end-to-end automatic deployment, intelligent O&M, and fast service provisioning, energy-saving, high reliability, and intelligent financial digital infrastructure), as well as deeper Data Intelligence and Analytics and Agile Innovation. In turn, financial organizations can leverage these attributes to gain market share in growing areas such as Financial Inclusion and embedded digital financial services (Industrial Finance).

Brought together, these five components provide financial services with both transformation and a platform for future-proof, sustainable growth. As banks increasingly engage with the unbanked, the pressures on the IT environment will be exponential, and the impact of outages, downtime, or unreliable systems will be all the more pronounced. With the Intelligent Finance Cloud Engine I5 model, these financial institutions will be able to continue adding value for their customers with new products and solutions, leveraging an open platform with more than 400 APIs, while maintaining the critical security and stability of their environment.

Huawei is working with more than 2,000 financial services customers across 60 nations, including those with large unbanked communities, such as Kenya, Pakistan, and Myanmar. On the other end of the scale, it also counts almost half (47) of the top 100 banks as its customers. This depth and expertise have allowed it to present a vision for the future of financial services that is inclusive, socially responsible, and will help banks rise to meet the next wave of challenges in this increasingly digital world.

All of this speaks to Huaweis stated goal of delivering New Value Together. It is not just about delivering technological benefits to banks, but also reducing world poverty, helping to mitigate the ongoing impacts of the global pandemic, and driving positive social change through healthier economies.

For more information on Huawei intelligent financial services solutions, click here.
Wilkes-Barre, PA (18701)

Today

Partly cloudy this evening then becoming cloudy with periods of light rain after midnight. Low around 60F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening then becoming cloudy with periods of light rain after midnight. Low around 60F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
Primary elections ended Tuesday night as a test of the strength of established political party interests and partisan insurgents, with incumbent mayors in Albany, Buffalo, Rochester and Syracuse battling challengers who wanted to deny them another term in office.

The mayors of each of these cities share the goal of getting reelected, but vary widely in the types of campaigns they ran. Four-term Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown ignored his left-leaning opponent who now has a significant lead over him. Two-term Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan debated hers and still cruised to victory. Two-term Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren had to deal with an array of scandals and lost in a landslide to an upstart member of the City Council with no such political baggage. First-term Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh is a political independent who got to rest easy Tuesday night as Democrats and Republicans faced off for the right to run against him in November.

The final results in the races will depend on absentee votes that have yet to be counted. Brown could somehow defy the odds and beat back a primary challenger from the left. Either one of two Democratic mayoral candidates in Syracuse could still win. Other candidates like Warren are not so lucky. In any case, Democrats will likely waltz to victory in Buffalo, Rochester and Albany in November considering their dominance of local politics.

Here is a rundown of the races and results from Tuesday.

Albany

Kathy Sheehan (incumbent): 61.44%

Valerie Faust: 34.87%

With 128 out of 128 election districts reported.

The Rev. Valerie Faust offered Albany voters the chance of electing their first Black mayor, but she faced some tough odds at unseating incumbent Mayor Kathy Sheehan, who has said the coronavirus pandemic and the need to help the city recover scrambled her plans to step down after two terms. Democratic voters ended up favoring Sheehan by a large margin.

Buffalo

India Walton: 51.85%

Byron Brown (incumbent): 44.83%

LeCandice Durham: 3.03%

With 117 out of 117 election districts reported

India Walton, a community activist and registered nurse, is on the brink of becoming the first female mayor of Buffalo. Her candidacy once appeared to be a longshot, but support from groups like the Working Families Party and local chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America added some activist energy to her campaign. Walton attacked Brown on longtime problems like poverty, segregation and police violence. The four-term incumbent meanwhile did little campaigning in an apparent effort to avoid giving free publicity to Walton.

Rochester

Malik Evans: 66.03%

Lovely Warren (incumbent): 33.83%

With 113 out of 113 election districts reported.

There is such a thing as bad publicity. Two-term Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren got plenty of that over a past year that has included a federal indictment for alleged campaign finance violations, an alleged cover-up of a police killing and a state police raid on her home in relation to gun and drug charges against her estranged husband. Malik Evans, a member of the City Council, had no such political baggage and won the Demoratic primary in a landslide.

Syracuse

Democratic primary

Khalid Bey: 49.85%

Michael Greene: 49.01%

With 138 out of 138 election districts reported

Republican primary

Janet Burman: 66.62%

Thomas Babilon: 31.38%

With 138 out of 138 election districts reported

First-term incumbent Mayor Ben Walsh is the first political independent to seek a second term as mayor in over a century. The country Democratic Party backed Michael Greene, an at-large member of the Syracuse Common Council, to face Walsh in November instead of Khalid Bey, a former state Senate aide, who touted his community roots.

Republicans meanwhile chose between two candidates with differing visions of the role of policing. Former state Senate candidate Janet Burman ran for the GOP nomination on restoring funding that was cut from law enforcement as part of a wider reassertion of policing. Thomas Babilon, a former City Hall attorney, expressed support for some ideas backed by the defund the police movement like reinvigorating the Citizen Review Board for investigating complaints against officers.
While polling has shown New York City Council Speaker Corey Johnson in the lead in the citys comptroller race, progressive City Council Member Brad Lander remains well ahead of the pack so far. Lander, who has gotten the backing of left-leaning lawmakers and organizations, is the favorite first-choice candidate for voters while Johnson remains as the second-top contender. Behind them is former CNBC contributor Michelle Caruso-Cabrera, while the remaining candidates are polling in the single digits so far.

Its still too soon to declare an official winner in the race to become the citys fiscal watchdog, given that absentee and affidavit ballots need to be counted and ranked-choice votes need to be tabulated. But Lander and Johnson are the most likely winners based on the results from Tuesday night.

Candidates

Brad Lander: 31.31%

Corey Johnson: 22.54%

Brian Benjamin: 7.71%

Kevin Parker: 5.88%

David Weprin: 6.95%

Michelle Caruso-Cabrera: 13.56%

Reshma Patel: 5.17%

Zach Iscol: 3.10%

Terri Liftin: 1.07%

Alex Pan: 2.52%

96.62% of scanners reported.
New York City voters first major tryout of ranked-choice voting may be over, but now the work of tallying votes  including absentee ballots still yet to be returned  begins. As of late Tuesday night, few of the more than 300 candidates in three dozen open City Council districts were decisively declaring victory or conceding defeat.

While Council Members Carlina Rivera, Rafael Salamanca Jr. and Farah Louis were a few of the Democrats to face primaries as incumbents, those challenges werent particularly competitive and each of the incumbents swon easy victories. And a few new City Council candidates also won, with Democrat Jennifer Gutierrez and Republican Joann Ariola, who The New York Times declared as the winners in the 34th and 32nd Council Districts, respectively.

But most of the more competitive primary contests had yet to be called as of late Tuesday. Thats hardly a surprise. The results released by the city Board of Elections on Tuesday night consisted of voters first-choice votes, and only those that were cast in-person. Absentee ballots arent due until June 29, and the official results in the primaries arent expected until mid-July.

Still, some candidates maintained promising, if not presumptive, leads in the initial round of ballot counting. Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer appears to have a very good chance of heading back to her old council stomping grounds. However, Council Member Darma Diaz was far behind challenger Sandy Nurse. And Erik Bottcher could very well end up winning former boss Corey Johnsons old seat.

District 1

Manhattan

Incumbent: Margaret Chin, who is term-limited

Candidates

Christopher Marte: 40.14%

Jenny Low: 17.45%

Gigi Li: 15.77%

Maud Maron: 8.66%

Susan Lee: 7.80%

Sean Hayes: 3.76%

Tiffany Johnson-Winbush: 3.47%

Susan Damplo: 1.50%

Denny Salas: 1.25%

99% of scanners reported.

With the majority of precincts reporting in-person ballot results on Tuesday night, progressive Christopher Marte maintained a strong lead in his second go at this seat. Trailing Marte was Jenny Low, a longtime local power broker who works for Council Speaker Corey Johnson and has grabbed major endorsements from Rep. Nydia Velazquez, District Council 37 and the United Federation of Teachers. Almost neck and neck with Low is Gigi Li, whos currently Chins chief of staff, has the current members support, leads in total fundraising and got a boost from mayoral candidate Andrew Yangs endorsement.

District 6

Manhattan

Incumbent: Helen Rosenthal, who is term-limited

Candidates

Gale Brewer: 53.74%

Maria Danzilo: 14.99%

Sara Lind: 13.63%

Jeffrey Omura: 10.38%

David Gold: 4.58%

Zachary Tov Weiner: 2.53%

98.78% of scanners reported.

Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer is well positioned for another two years in the City Council. With over 90% of ballot scanners reporting late Tuesday night, Brewer led with over 50% of first-choice in-person votes. There are still absentee ballots to be counted, but top competitors Maria Danzilo, Sara Lind and Jeffrey Omura are significantly behind at the moment.

District 7

Manhattan

Incumbent: Mark Levine, who is term-limited and running for Manhattan borough president

Candidates

Shaun Abreu: 27.35%

Daniel Cohen: 10.97%

Marti Gould Allen-Cummings: 11.83%

Maria Ordonez: 11.51%

Stacy Lynch: 10.08%

Luis Tejada: 8.12%

Keith Harris: 5.04%

Corey Ortega: 4.17%

Carmen Quinones: 3.28%

Miguel Estrella: 3.55%

Raymond Sanchez Jr.: 2.18%

Lena Melendez: 1.60%

99% of scanners reported.

Late Tuesday night, Shaun Abreu  a tenants rights attorney and ally of Rep. Adriano Espaillat  maintained a decent lead in the crowded field to replace Mark Levine. Following Abreu were Marti Gould Allen-Cummings, Maria Ordonez, Daniel Cohen and Stacy Lynch who had each amassed 10% to 12% of the votes counted so far. Luis Tejada, who ran for this seat in 2013, trailed farther behind.

District 9

Manhattan

Incumbent: Bill Perkins, who is running for reelection

Candidates

Bill Perkins: 20.60%

Kristin Richardson Jordan: 19.33%

Athena Moore: 11.03%

Cordell Cleare: 10.06%

Mario Rosser: 8.75%

William Allen: 6.28%

Joshua Albert Clennon: 5.44%

Keith Taylor: 5.40%

Ruth McDaniels: 3.62%

Billy Council: 2.98%

Pierre Gooding: 2.74%

Sheba Simpson-Amsterdam: 2.27%

Bernadette McNear: 1.32%

96.15% of scanners reported.

City Council Member Bill Perkins faces a close race to hold on to his seat. With the majority of in-person votes counted in the first round, Kristin Richardson Jordan  a poet and publisher, and arguably the races most progressive candidate  is roughly 2 percentage points behind Perkins. Still, Perkins razor-thin lead is impressive, given he has barely campaigned at all. Athena Moore, who challenged Perkins in 2017, was in third place as of Tuesday night.

District 10

Manhattan

Incumbent: Ydanis Rodriguez, who is term-limited

Candidates

Carmen De La Rosa: 39.89%

Johanna Garcia: 28.43%

Angela Fernandez: 17.21%

James Behr: 3.47%

Francesca Castellanos: 3.20%

Josue Perez: 2.96%

Thomas Leon: 2.87%

Tirso Pina: 1.68%

94.12% of scanners reported.

A record of representing the district and a string of high-profile labor and lawmaker endorsements powered Carmen De La Rosa to a strong lead late Tuesday night, with the current Assembly member garnering roughly 40% of in-person votes in the first round of counting. Its not a blowout lead for De La Rosa yet, however. Johanna Garcia, who served as chief of staff to then-Council Member Robert Jackson, followed roughly 13 percentage points behind.

District 14

Bronx

Incumbent: Fernando Cabrera, who is term-limited and running for Bronx borough president

Candidates

Pierina Ana Sanchez: 38.39%

Yudelka Tapia: 20.88%

Adolfo Abreu: 18.99%

Haile Rivera: 10.10%

Fernando Aquino: 9.66%

Socrates Solano: 1.69%

95.12% of scanners reported.

The race for Fernando Cabreras Bronx council seat is still up in the air asPierina Ana Sanchez, Adolfo Abreu and Yudelka Tapia led the early results from ballots cast in person. Sanchez, backed by major figures like Reps. Adriano Espaillat and Ritchie Torres, came out ahead with a decent lead, with over 80% of scanners reporting. Yudelka Tapia followed in second, and Adolfo Abreu  who is backed by the Democratic Socialists of America and Working Families Party  followed in a close third. Sanchezs lead, while comfortable, is far from a guaranteed win.

District 18

Bronx

Incumbent: Ruben Diaz Sr., who is retiring

Candidates

Amanda Farias: 27.39%

William Rivera: 26.46%

Michael Beltzer: 12.83%

Mohammed Mujumder: 11.65%

Darlene Jackson: 10.72%

Mirza M. Rashid: 5.76%

William Russell Moore: 3.74%

Eliu A. Lara: 0.99%

84.16% of scanners reported.

As early results trickled in Tuesday night, Amanda Farias had a thin lead in her follow-up bid to replace Ruben Diaz Sr. Very close behind Farias is William Rivera, the district manager of Bronx Community Board 9. With no candidates amassing close to half of in-person voters first-choice votes, its far too soon to draw conclusions about this district.

District 19, Democratic Party

Queens

Incumbent: Paul Vallone, who is term-limited

Candidates

Tony Avella: 37.10%

Richard Lee: 29.90%

Austin Shafran: 20.03%

Adriana Aviles: 8.46%

Francis Spangenberg: 2.53%

Nabaraj KC: 1.46%

99% of scanners reported.

Name recognition and a long political history appears to have helped Tony Avella score an early lead over his competitors for this Queens City Council seat, but Avella is followed fairly closely by Richard Lee, the budget director for the Queens borough president, and Austin Shafran, a political consultant. No candidate amassed close to half of the initial votes that were counted on Tuesday.

District 19, Republican Party

Queens

Candidates

Vickie Paladino: 52.70%

John-Alexander Sakelos: 45.96%

99% of scanners reported.

One of the few competitive Republican primaries among our races to watch this year is also one of the closest. Vickie Paladino, a conservative activist, leads by nearly 7 percentage points over John-Alexander Sakelos, who challenged Assembly Member Ed Braunstein last year, after the first round of counting.

District 20

Queens

Incumbent: Peter Koo, who is term-limited

Candidates

Sandra Ung: 24.28%

Ellen Young: 16.69%

Neng Wang: 14.98%

Anthony Miranda: 15.32%

John Choe: 16.56%

Hailing Chen: 6.44%

Dao Yin: 5.14%

Ming-Kang Low: 0.45%

97.53% of scanners reported.

The race to replace term-limited Peter Koo in Flushing is another close one, though Sandra Ung, an attorney and aide to Rep. Grace Meng, is working with a decent lead at the end of election night. But with nearly all scanners reporting and only roughly 25% of first-choice votes cast in person, Ung cant declare victory yet. Former Assembly Member Ellen Young, Neng Wang, Anthony Miranda and John Choe are each within 10 percentage points of the leader late on Tuesday night.

District 22

Queens, Bronx

Incumbent: Costa Constantinides, who resigned from office before his term ended

Candidates

Tiffany Caban: 49.32%

Evie Hantzopoulos: 26.26%

John J. Ciafone: 9.35%

Leonardo T. Bullaro: 7.29%

Catherina Gioino: 4.73%

Nick Velkov: 2.87%

95.45% of scanners reported.

Can Tiffany Caban win elected office and jump-start a democractic socialist faction of the City Council? By late Tuesday, she appeared to have a good chance of doing so, securing almost 50% of the first-choice votes cast in person, with almost all scanners reporting. Nonprofit leader Evie Hantzopoulos had a solid showing too, but falls almost 23 percentage points behind Caban so far.

District 23

Queens

Incumbent: Barry Grodenchik, who is retiring

Candidates

Linda Lee: 31.20%

Jaslin Kaur: 26.37%

Steve Behar: 13.24%

Debra Markell: 9.87%

Sanjeev Kumar Jindal: 9.34%

Koshy Thomas: 5.23%

Harpreet Singh Toor: 4.41%

91.92% of scanners reported.

The race is close between Linda Lee, a prominent nonprofit director, and organizer Jaslin Kaur, but by Wednesday, Lee pulled ahead by almost 5 percentage points. As votes continue to be updated, Kaurs endorsements from the Democratic Socialists of America, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, could bolster her strong showing.

District 26

Queens

Incumbent: Jimmy Van Bramer, who is term-limited and running for Queens borough president

Candidates

Julie Won: 18.47%

Amit Bagga: 17.65%

Brent OLeary: 9.97%

Julia Forman: 8.05%

Denise Keehan-Smith: 6.83%

Ebony Young: 6.61%

Badrun Khan: 5.68%

Hailie Kim: 4.94%

Jonathan Bailey: 4.59%

Glennis Gomez: 3.53%

Emily Sharpe: 3.52%

Steven Raga: 3.03%

Jesse Laymon: 2.98%

Lorenzo Brea: 2.22%

Sultan Al Maruf: 1.67%

96.77% of scanners reported.

This crowded Democratic primary is too close to call, with lead candidates Amit Bagga and Julie Won still each under 20 percent of the vote. Bagga has been backed by the Working Families Party, progressives like Cynthia Nixon and state Sen. Jessica Ramos, and several labor unions.

District 27

Queens

Incumbent: I. Daneek Miller, who is term-limited

Candidates

Nantasha Williams: 35.55%

James Johnson: 11.86%

Rene Hill: 10.15%

Al-Hassan Kanu: 8.37%

Jason Myles Clark: 7.83%

Marie Adam-Ovide: 7.54%

Kerryanne Burke: 5.41%

Harold Miller Jr.: 5.14%

Anthony Rivers: 3.11%

Jermaine Sean Smith: 1.98%

Leroy Gadsden: 1.89%

Linda Guillebeaux: 0.94%

99% of scanners reported.

Nantasha Williams is currently the leading candidate in one of the citys most competitive races. Williams finished in a close second to Clyde Vanel in a 2016 Assembly primary race, and has the biggest endorsements, including from unions 32BJ SEIU and District Council 37. James Johnson, the candidate with the most individual contributions in the race, trails Williams by more than 20 percentage points.

District 28

Queens

Incumbent: Adrienne Adams, who is running for reelection

Candidates

Adrienne Adams: 56.14%

Ruben Wills: 24.18%

Japneet Singh: 19.23%

99% of scanners reported.

Adrienne Adams, a first-term Democrat, had a strong lead with more than 50 percent of the first-place votes. Her opponents, including recently exonerated Ruben Wills, and Sikh activist Japneet Singh, are trailing well behind.

District 32

Queens

Incumbent: Eric Ulrich, a Republican, is term-limited

Candidates

Felicia Singh: 36.23%

Michael Scala: 34.96%

Helal Sheikh: 9.94%

Bella Matias: 7.93%

Kaled Alamarie: 6.79%

Shaeleigh Severino: 2.50%

98.41% of scanners reported.

Michael Scala and Felicia Singh are locked in a close battle after the election night results came in from in-person voting. Scala, backed by state Sen. James Sanders Jr. and the United Federation of Teachers, and Singh, the top fundraiser in the race, will have to wait for the results of ranked-choice voting to determine the outcome. The winner will face Republican Joann Ariola in the November general election.

District 35

Brooklyn

Incumbent: Laurie Cumbo, who is term-limited

Candidates

Crystal Hudson: 38.49%

Michael Hollingsworth: 34.45%

Renee Collymore: 12.51%

Regina Kinsey: 4.63%

Curtis Harris: 4.49%

Deirdre Levy: 3.85%

Hector Robertson: 1.39%

98.80% of scanners reported.

In this district, the New York City Democratic Socialists of America helped elect a state senator and Assembly member over labor-backed progressives in 2020. But the DSA candidate, Michael Hollingsworth, is currently behind Crystal Hudson by approximately 4 percentage points. Hudson, the top fundraiser in this race, leads with nearly 40% of the first-choice votes.

District 36

Brooklyn

Incumbent: Robert Cornegy Jr., who is term-limited and running for Brooklyn borough president

Candidates

Chi Osse: 37.23%

Henry Butler: 22.86%

Tahirah Moore: 22.85%

Robert Waterman: 14.09%

Reginald Swiney: 2.63%

94.85% of scanners reported.

On Tuesday night, progressive activist Chi Osse held a decent lead in the race to replace Robert Cornegy Jr. Osse has support from the Working Families Party, Council Member Brad Lander and rapper Killer Mike. Henry Butler, a local politics whiz, trailed Osse by 14 percentage points. Tahirah Moore, also backed by the Working Families Party, competed closely with Butler for runner-up.

District 37

Brooklyn

Incumbent: Darma Diaz, who is running for reelection

Candidates

Sandy Nurse: 51.58%

Darma Diaz: 24.04%

Heriberto Mateo: 9.28%

Misba Abdin: 6.23%

Rick Echevarria: 5.33%

Christopher Durosinmi: 3.30%

96.67% of scanners reported.

Incumbent Council Member Darma Diaz appears to have suffered a large defeat to Sandy Nurse. A year ago, Diaz ran unopposed after her allies challenged her opponents petitions and got them all removed from the ballot. Unfortunately for Diaz, Sandy Nurse  backed by almost every major union in the city, a host of progressive organizations and local elected officials like Rep. Nydia Velazquez  has a strong lead with more than 50% of first-choice votes.

District 39

Brooklyn

Incumbent: Brad Lander, who is term-limited and running for city comptroller

Candidates

Shahana Hanif: 32.42%

Brandon West: 22.52%

Justin Krebs: 16.03%

Douglas Schneider: 13.60%

Briget Rein: 6.79%

Jessica Simmons: 4.31%

Mamnun Haq: 4.11%

99% of scanners reported.

Shahana Hanif has a decent 10-point lead in the race to replace incumbent Brad Lander. Hanif, a former Lander staffer, had endorsements from progressive groups, including the Working Families Party, state Sen. Jessica Ramos and City Council Member Helen Rosenthal. Brandon West  backed by the Democratic Socialists of America, as well as progressive lawmakers  trailed in second place.

District 40

Brooklyn

Incumbent: Mathieu Eugene, who is term-limited

Candidates

Rita Joseph: 25.23%

Josue Pierre: 20.31%

Kenya Handy-Hilliard: 19.19%

Edwin Raymond: 8.16%

Cecilia Cortez: 7.44%

Blake Morris: 5.07%

Maxi Eugene: 4.95%

Harriet Hines: 3.12%

John Williams: 3.00%

Vivia Morgan: 1.80%

Victor Jordan: 1.51%

99% of scanners reported.

The crowded race to replace the citys longest-serving council member still remains uncertain. Teacher Rita Joseph currently leads with 25% of first-choice votes. But its too close to call, as Kenya Handy-Hilliard and Josue Pierre both trail Joseph by less than 5 percentage points.

District 49

Staten Island

Incumbent: Deborah Rose, who is term-limited

Candidates

Kamillah Hanks: 25.05%

Amoy Barnes: 21.12%

Ranti Ogunleye: 12.26%

Kelvin Richards: 10.57%

Selina Grey: 8.88%

David Hernandez: 7.10%

Michael Schnall: 6.06%

Troy McGhie: 6.01%

John McBeth Sr.: 2.59%

97.50% of scanners reported.



As the election night came in, nonprofit leader Kamillah Hanks, who ran for this seat in 2017, led with about 25% of the vote. With absentee ballots still to be counted and runner-up Amoy Barnes within 5 percentage points, the race is too close to call.
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Colonial Pipeline Co. was sued by a gas station seeking to represent thousands more over the ransomware attack in May that paralyzed the U.S. East Coasts flow of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel.

EZ Mart 1 LLC, a two-pump station in Wilmington, North Carolina, buys its fuel from a distributor supplied by Colonial, according to a complaint filed Monday in federal court in Georgia. Colonials headquarters, in Alpharetta, is the site of the control center where the electronic ransom note was discovered, EZ Mart says in the lawsuit, in which it seeks to represent more than 11,000 gas stations and asks for unspecified monetary damages.

The hack occurred despite advance knowledge and warnings, and in the lead-up to the attack Colonial repeatedly ignored and rejected efforts by the applicable regulatory agency to meet with it so as to check on its cybersecurity, EZ Mart alleges.

A spokesperson for Colonial said the company doesnt comment on pending litigation but worked around the clock to safely restart our pipeline system following the cyberattack against our company.

Hackers gained entry to Colonials networks on April 29 through a virtual private network account, or VPN, through which employees could remotely access the companys computer network, a cybersecurity official who responded to the attack has said. The VPN account, which has since been deactivated, didnt use multifactor authentication, a basic cybersecurity tool, so the hackers could breach the network using just a compromised username and password. It isnt clear how they came up with the right credentials.

The hack affected 45% of the East Coasts fuel supply, driving up gasoline prices and sparking shortages at filling stations after the company shut down the roughly 5,500-mile pipeline on May 7.

Colonial had no plan in place for ransomware attacks and had left up a legacy VPN system without shutting off logins and passwords for old employees, which its own experts called a basic failure, the gas station alleges.

While apologizing for the massive disruption, Colonials chief executive officer, Joseph Blount Jr., has defended the companys response, including his decision to pay the hackers  an affiliate of a Russia-linked cybercrime group known as DarkSide  $4.4 million in ransom.

I believe with all my heart it was the right choice to make, Blount told U.S. lawmakers this month. In a hearing on Capitol Hill, they criticized Colonials cybersecurity practices, asking Blount why the company hadnt hardened its systems before an attack occurred.

In addition to the Colonial hack, Russia-linked criminal gangs have recently been blamed for a ransomware attack against meat supplier JBS SA, which disrupted operations in the U.S., Canada and Australia.

President Joe Biden last week said after a summit in Geneva that he warned Russian President Vladimir Putin against further cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure. In the lawsuit, EZ Mart claims it has been clear for years that the sector is especially vulnerable to both conventional and cyber criminals. The complaint details a history of such warnings and attacks.

The case is EZ Mart 1 LLC v. Colonial Pipeline Co., 21-cv-2522, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Georgia (Atlanta).

With assistance from William Turton.

Copyright 2021 Bloomberg.
CAMP HILL, Ala. (AP)  Girls have often lived a life of abuse, abandonment or neglect by the time they land at a Christian youth home in rural Alabama, but an annual trip to the beach with the director and her family offered them a bright spot in otherwise tough times.

This years trip to the Gulf Coast ended in disaster when four residents of the Tallapoosa County Girls Ranch, two of the directors children and two guests were among 10 people killed in a fiery crash on a rainy highway as Tropical Storm Claudette barreled through Alabama.

In all, the storm took 14 lives before it rolled through the Carolinas and headed out to sea, where it was expected to dissipate. A 24-year-old man and a 3-year-old boy were killed Saturday when a tree fell on their house just outside Tuscaloosa, and a 23-year-old woman from Fort Payne, southeast of Huntsville, died after her car ran off the road into a swollen creek, authorities said.

Search dogs located the body of a man believed to have fallen into the water during flash flooding in Birmingham, according to news outlets.

The van in Saturdays crash erupted in flames in the wreck along a wet Interstate 65 about 35 miles (55 kilometers) south of Montgomery. Butler County Coroner Wayne Garlock said multiple vehicles probably hydroplaned in the vacationer-heavy area he said was notorious for dangerous conditions where the northbound highway curves down a hill to a small creek.

The van was carrying children ages 4 to 17 who were being cared for at the ranch, which is operated by the Alabama Sheriffs Association and takes in abused and neglected children, including foster children. The group was heading back to the ranch near Camp Hill, northeast of Montgomery, after a week at the beach in Gulf Shores.

A U.S. flag flew at half-staff at the ranch on Monday, and bouquets of flowers decorated a sign. Grim-faced workers and volunteers came and went in silence as the chief executive struggled to keep his emotions in check.

I know that we lost eight of our children. Thats what I know, said Michael Smith.

Smith said there were two vans from the camp along with a car pulling a trailer loaded with suitcases. The lead van was involved in the crash, he said.

Many of our children have never even seen the beach, so its an annual event that were able to take these children down there, he said. This was the first visit back to the beach after the COVID-19 pandemic, and we were so excited.

The crash also claimed the lives of two people in another vehicle _ a 29-year-old Tennessee man and his 9-month-old daughter. Other people were injured.

Smith said victims included Ben Gulley, who would have turned 4 on Tuesday and was the son of ranch Director Candice Gulley, the vans only survivor, who was pulled from the flames by a bystander. Another of her children, age 16, was also killed.

Four others killed were ranch residents, and two were guests, Smith said.

A GoFundMe page started to pay the funeral expenses of the two guests, 12-year-old Josiah Dunnavant and 8-year-old Nicholas Dunnavant, said the boys were Gulleys nephews.

Words cannot explain what I saw, Smith said of the accident site, which he visited Saturday. He returned from Gulf Shores in a separate van and did not see the crash when it happened.

Gulley remained hospitalized Sunday in Montgomery in serious but stable condition. In a Facebook post from earlier this year, she described her love for the work that the ranch does.

This place holds a huge place in my heart and its mission has become my personal mission, Gulley wrote.

Volunteers delivered food Monday to the ranch, which is on a section of a two-lane county highway lined with white wooden fences. Sheriffs cars and orange traffic barrels blocked the road leading to the area where girls live in homes with their house parents.

Students and community members gathered for a prayer service Sunday at Reeltown High School, the school the girls attended. One of the surviving girls, who was traveling in a separate vehicle, wept as she spoke about her little sisters, al.com reported.

When people hear about the ranch, they usually assume that the girls have done something wrong or bad to get there. But thats not the case, said the teen, who was not identified because she is in state custody.

These girls have been through so much, and they were such strong, wonderful, kind family members, and it was my privilege and my honor to be their big sister, she said.

In Camp Hill, Smith said those affiliated with the ranch were in a state of grief but would work on healing.

In the Bible, it says God wont put anything on us that we cant handle, and weve questioned that quite a bit these past few days, Smith said. But Gods got big shoulders, and we know that our only way to get through the grief that we have right now is with prayer.

Chandler reported from Montgomery. Jeff Amy in Atlanta, Amy Forliti in Minneapolis, Meg Kinnard in Columbia, South Carolina, and Julie Walker in New York contributed to this report.

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
BIG SUR, Calif. (AP)  Californias weather moderated Monday after a long siege of extreme heat but firefighters still faced the difficult task of trying to contain a large forest fire in rugged coastal mountains south of Big Sur.

The Willow Fire covered 4.4 square miles (11.5 square kilometers) of Los Padres National Forest, the U.S. Forest Service said. More than 500 firefighters were on the lines, aided by planes and helicopters.

The fire broke out Thursday evening in the Ventana Wilderness and burned near the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, a Buddhist monastery located in a remote valley.

Crews were preparing for structure defense at the center and at a campground, the fire command said.

The Monterey County Sheriffs Office issued evacuation orders for the area.

The fire was feeding on dry chaparral 6 feet (1.8 meters) high as well as grasses and other brush. It was expected to continue burning at low to moderate intensity, fire officials said.

Its the largest of several wildfires that erupted during days of dangerously high heat up and down the state.

The moderating conditions were being produced by an area of low pressure off the coast, the National Weather Service said.

While coastal cities cooled down under widespread clouds pushing ashore overnight and lingering through morning hours, the interior was expected to be not as hot, the service said.

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP)  Dozens of wildfires were burning in hot, dry conditions across the U.S. West, including a blaze touched off by lightning that was moving toward northern Arizonas largest city.

The mountainous city of Flagstaff was shrouded in smoke Monday, and ash was falling from the sky. The national forest surrounding it announced a full closure set to begin later this week  the first time that has happened since 2006.

Intense heat that has hampered firefighting efforts more broadly was expected to moderate in the coming days. But, the National Weather Service noted it could bring uncertainty for fire crews.

The humidity and the possibility of some scattered rainfall is a good thing, said meteorologist Andrew Taylor. The lightning is not a good thing.

In California, firefighters still faced the difficult task of trying to contain a large forest fire in rugged coastal mountains south of Big Sur that forced the evacuation of a Buddhist monastery and nearby campground.

In New Mexico, lightning-sparked blazes have been scorching the southern part of the state where a large portion of the Gila Wilderness remains closed, and fire officials are closely watching the Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument.

More land has burned across Arizona so far to date with new wildfire starts quickly shifting resources. While humans are to blame for an overwhelming majority of wildfires, lightning started a 31-square mile (80-square kilometer) blaze west of Sedona that was moving toward Flagstaff.

A top-tier management team had been ordered to oversee the blaze thats burning in grass, juniper, chaparral and ponderosa pine.

Some campers already evacuated, and residents of rural areas have been told to prepare to evacuate on a moments notice, said Coconino County sheriffs spokesman Jon Paxton.

If the fire continues its northeastern push, hundreds of people in Flagstaff  a college city about two hours north of Phoenix  also could be impacted, Paxton said.

Fire officials were mapping out a plan to starve the Rafael Fire of fuel as it moves through rugged terrain, canyons and wilderness, said fire information officer Dolores Garcia.

As of Monday, it was moving parallel to Interstate 40 along the Coconino and Yavapai county lines. The fire was about 16 miles from Flagstaff, but its hard to say how quickly it was spreading through various terrain, Garcia said.

Two national forests in northern Arizona made rare announcements to close completely to visitors starting Wednesday because of concerns they wont have enough resources to respond to any future wildfires.

We have limited resources, and were tapped right now, said Brady Smith, a spokesman for the Coconino National Forest that surrounds Flagstaff.

The Coconino last issued a full closure in 2006. The nearby Kaibab National Forest, which borders the Grand Canyon, last fully closed in 2002. Both forests are popular for hiking, camping, fishing and other recreation because they sit at higher elevations and are much cooler than the states desert areas.

Arizona is at the highest level of preparedness for wildfires. Evacuations were in place for fires west of Phoenix, northeast of Tucson and near Heber. Some local roads also were closed.

A top-tier management team was overseeing a blaze near the communities of Pine and Strawberry where residents also were evacuated. The fire has burned among the treetops, with wind carrying flames far ahead.

Firefighting crews have yet to contain any of the wildfires perimeter. The lightning-sparked blaze was estimated at 51 square miles (132 square kilometers) Monday.

Firefighters in Oregon were focused on two wildfires, one burning near the states highest peak and another in the southern part of the state that was threatening 125 structures.

In Utah, several wildfires were burning in bone-dry conditions. The largest near the small town of Enterprise in southern Utah forced evacuations over the weekend. But homeowners were allowed to return as containment reached 50%.

Associated Press writer John Antczak in Los Angeles and Andrew Selsky in Salem, Oregon, contributed to this report.

About the photo: In this Sunday, July 21, 2019, photo, a tanker releases a wave of fire retardant into the crest of a wildfire line in Flagstaff, Ariz. Crews on Monday were trying to keep the wildfire in a popular Arizona vacation area from homes and a ski resort. (Ben Shanahan/Arizona Daily Sun via AP)

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
William Russell Allton was born in Dewey, Oklahoma on April 25, 1931 to Russell Frank and Alice Mae (Steffens) Allton. He attended school in Claremore and graduated with the class of 1948. On August 26, 1949 Bill married Jimmie Louise Reed and the couple made Tulsa home for the first 25 year
It happened. Benjamin Netanyahu is no longer prime minister of Israel. After Netanyahus 12 years in office, it will take a while to get used to hearing the title prime minister followed by Naftali Bennett.

Since I am left-of-center on the Israeli political spectrum, I have no illusions about Bennett, who may actually be to the right of Netanyahu when it comes to relations with the Palestinians, but his inauguration is a real relief. Twelve consecutive years is too long for the leader of any democracy to remain in power. It creates a cult of personality and, at its worst, also corrupts.

The shift of power from Netanyahu to Bennett was moving to watch. After a raucous debate, the new government won a vote of confidence by the barest of pluralities  60 to 59. Netanyahu and his Likud party leadership left their

front-row seats in the Knesset chamber and the new governments leaders took their places. The outgoing Knesset Speaker, Yariv Levin, a member of Netanyahus Likud party, turned over the Speakers chair to his successor, Mickey Levy, of Yesh Atid, the largest party in the new government. The two men hugged.

It was a rare show of unity at the end of the term in office of a prime minister who had worked so hard to divide the country  turning right against left and earlier in his term, Jews against Arabs. Even in defeat, Netanyahu was unwilling to take the high road.

Netanyahu made do with a half-hour discussion with Bennett in handing over the prime ministers office. After 12 years in office, all of the wisdom and insight that Netanyahu had to offer could apparently be delivered in half an hour. A beginning waiter at a cafe gets more training than that, the Haaretz daily, where I work), fumed in an editorial the following day.

The two men know each other well. They began working together in 2005, when Netanyahu, who was the Knesset opposition leader at the time, hired Bennett as his chief of staff. In the new government, Bennett is not the only right-wing former associate of Netanyahu who had enough of him. The other two right-wing party leaders in the government had also worked closely with Netanyahu.

Despite the new coalitions diversity, ranging from the Islamist United Arab List on the left, which Netanyahu himself had unsuccessfully cultivated  to Bennetts Yamina party on the right, the party leaders in the new coalition have demonstrated an immense measure of goodwill and collegiality. Much of the credit goes to Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid, who ceded the first two years of the prime ministers term to Bennett even though Yesh Atid has many more seats in parliament.

Netanyahu has left Bennett a mixed legacy. Israel has become a high-tech powerhouse and has a much higher diplomatic profile in Washington, D.C., and other western capitals thanks to Netanyahus brilliance and eloquence. He has also left Israel in better health than nearly any other Western country. COVID-19 has almost disappeared here.

In the long run, however, I think he will be remembered as a tragic figure whose legacy was derailed by the criminal corruption trial that he faces and by his failure to marshal his political savvy to seek peace with the Palestinians  or prove that peace is not possible. The new government is probably too diverse to tackle the Palestinian issue, but if it survives for a few years, it can offer Israel good government, the rule of law and a chance to heal the divisions in Israeli society that Netanyahu so skillfully exacerbated.

Cliff Savren is a former Clevelander who covers the Middle East for the Cleveland Jewish News from Raanana, Israel.
Beck Center for the Arts annual Spotlight Gala will be held live and in-person from 6 to 11 p.m. June 17 at the Gordon Green event space, 5400 Detroit Ave. in Cleveland. The gala will honor major donors Wally and Joyce Senney and artistic director Scott Spence as well as celebrate 88 years 
Beachwood, OH (44122)

Today

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some passing clouds. Low 58F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some passing clouds. Low 58F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph.
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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23)  An opposition lawmaker on Wednesday questioned why 173 billion under the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act remains unspent even as its June 30 expiration nears.

Speaking to CNN Philippines' The Source, Senator Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan said the Executive Department must now act to obligate, source, and release the funds under Bayanihan 2. The program was supposed to lapse on December 2020 but the deadline was extended to June 30.

"That's 173 billion worth of Bayanihan 2 assistance, health, expenses, etc. na hindi pa nagagasta (that remained untouched) as of two weeks ago," he said.

Pangilinan said last week's Senate of the Whole committee hearing on the vaccine rollout found that a "tepid" government response to the pandemic only continues to bog down the country's economic recovery. He cited bureaucratic problems and lack of transparency on whether there are readily available funds to act on the crisis.

Last week, Budget Secretary Wendel Avisado admitted that one-fourth of the country's pandemic stimulus measures remained unspent more than a year into the local coronavirus outbreak.

He said during the EJAP Economic Forum that only 487.19 billion out of the 660.5 billion funds set aside for COVID-19 response since March 2020 has been disbursed as of May 31, leaving 173.31 billion still unused. The department earlier cited "implementation issues" among agencies that delayed fund releases.

Pangilinan noted that barely 1 billion out of the 5 billion initially allocated for the Transportation Department's service contracting program has been spent. Meanwhile, only 3 billion out of 10 billion worth of assistance to micro, small and medium enterprises or MSMEs has been released.

"The other issue is may pondo pa ba? Nasaan na yung cash? Are we liquid?" Pangilinan said.

[Translation: Do we really have enough funds? Where is the cash?]

However, a trade official quickly clarified the numbers, saying 4 billion has been released for MSMEs - 3.5 billion for non-tourism businesses and 500 million for tourism establishments. Under the Trade Department's arrangement with Small Business Corp., 8.08 billion under Bayanihan 2 was allotted for MSME loans but it will be split in half between tourism and non-tourism entities.

Trade Undersecretary Blesila Lantayona said the tourism sector is low on loan uptake as establishments are still wary that they will not be able to pay back the loans due to insufficient income from limited travel. The Tourism Department even allowed the reallocation of 1.5 billion of the sector's loan share to non-tourism borrowings due to hesitancy among business owners.

"'Yung mga tourism natin kahit na andiyan na 'yung pera, wala naman pumapasok sa aming mga establishment," Lantayona told CNN Philippines in a phone call. "Paano mo mapipilit eh babayaran din nila 'yun and they feel na wala pa talagang nagpa-patronize ngayon, wala pang nagtatravel."

[Translation: For our tourism (businesses), the funds are there but there are no establishments applying for loans. How will you force them (to take the loans) that they have to eventually pat for when they feel that there is no one patronizing their businesses or traveling.]

Pangilinan earlier filed Senate Bill 2218 seeking to extend the validity of Bayanihan 2 until December 31. The measure is still pending at the committee level.

The upper chamber is expected to tackle the extension of Bayanihan 2 once it resumes session on July 26.

READ: Sotto: 'Better' to extend Bayanihan 2 instead of passing Bayanihan 3
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23)  Four regions in the Visayas and Mindanao are currently tagged as "high risk" for COVID-19 in terms of their case data and trends, a Department of Health official said Wednesday.

"These are Caraga, Regions 6 (Western Visayas), 11 (Davao) and 12 (Soccsksargen)," DOH chief epidemiologist Alethea de Guzman said in an online media forum.

An area is considered high risk if its average daily attack rate or ADAR, defined as the number of infected people per 100,000 population, reaches above seven. Officials earlier said the higher the ADAR in a place, the higher a person's risk of getting the infectious disease there.

Meanwhile, the Ilocos Region, Cagayan Valley, Eastern Visayas, Central Visayas, and Bicol are under moderate risk status, De Guzman said.

The remaining regions, including Metro Manila, are now at low risk for COVID-19, she added.

ICU capacity in parts of PH dwindling

De Guzman also flagged several areas for having high COVID-19 bed occupancy rates as of June 21.

Around 70% to nearly 85% of ICU beds in Cagayan Valley, Western Visayas, Northern Mindanao, Davao Region, and Soccsksargen were occupied as of June 21, she reported.

De Guzman said 33 cities and provinces were experiencing "continuous case increase as well as high to critical risk healthcare utilization rates and ICU utilization rates."

Meanwhile, almost all the COVID-19 beds, mainly in critical care units, in six other provinces were occupied despite their low COVID-19 case counts, the epidemiologist noted.

Based on the data presented by De Guzman during the forum, 95% of ICU beds for COVID-19 patients in Zambales were being used. Close to 90% of ICU beds in Tarlac were occupied while the occupancy rates in critical care units in Pampanga, Misamis Occidental, and Benguet ranged from 70% to over 83%.

Meanwhile, the isolation beds in Oriental Mindoro were more than 81% occupied.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23)  Sen. Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan believes there is no problem with vaccine hesitancy among Filipinos, and the government should instead be addressing insufficient doses instead of threatening to arrest those who refuse to get their shots.

"Hindi ko nakikita yung koneksyon  (kailangang) pinapabakunahan lahat, pero nasaan muna yung bakuna? 'Yun ang dapat madaliin," Pangilinan told CNN Philippines' The Source on Wednesday.

[Translation: I do not see the connection  you want to vaccinate everyone, but where are the vaccines? That's what should be rushed.]

He added: "Whats the point of threatening someone kung wala namang ibigay na bakuna (if you have no vaccine to give)?"

On Monday, President Rodrigo Duterte warned the public not to decline their coronavirus shots or else they could be jailed. Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said such warning was only used to encourage people to get vaccinated, as there is no law that penalizes those who refuse to get their shots.

READ: DOJ: No law to force vaccination, Duterte's arrest warning only out of exasperation

Over 2 million Filipinos have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 this year, still far from the government's target of inoculating at least 70 million to achieve herd immunity by yearend.

Pangilinan said the government should now aim for 700,000 daily inoculations to achieve this target.

"We are only vaccinating a little over 100,000 a day. We are seven times behind in terms of our targets. Seven-fold challenges," the senator said.

Vaccine czar Carlito Galver on Sunday cited higher figures. He said the government posted its highest daily vaccination rate of 322,929 shots on June 15.

To date, the country has received over 14 million COVID-19 vaccines, most of which are being distributed in the National Capital Region, the epicenter of the local coronavirus outbreak.

Local officials from areas outside Metro Manila are also appealing to get more COVID-19 shots to protect more residents from the virus.

READ: City mayors seek COVID-19 vaccines for areas outside NCR+8
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23)  An infectious disease expert on Wednesday reminded Filipinos to keep their guards up and get vaccinated against COVID-19 as an additional mutation of the more contagious Delta coronavirus variant has surfaced in India and other parts of the world.

India has recorded at least 22 cases of the "Delta Plus," a mutation of the Delta variant, which has been blamed for the deadly surge in the South Asian nation in May. Also called B.1.617.2.1 or AY.1, the mutation has also been reported in at least nine other countries.

Dr. Rontgene Solante said Delta Plus is "more fit" to enter a person's cells. This means people not observing minimum public health standards such as wearing face masks, observing physical distancing, and avoiding enclosed spaces can get the virus even during a short interaction with someone carrying the mutated variant.

"When you have a virus that is highly fit to enter your cells, even with a low amount of the virus, it can easily be transmissible. You don't need more than 15 minutes. Even less than that, you can get the virus," he told CNN Philippines.

There are only preliminary data available, but India's Health Ministry said one worrying characteristic is the variant's possible capability to resist monoclonal antibodies cocktails, a medicinal treatment used for mild-to-moderate COVID-19.

Solante asked the public to continue wearing face masks, following physical distancing rules, and avoiding spaces without ventilation in view of the emergence of the Delta variant and its mutation. He also urged Filipinos to get vaccinated against COVID-19 as soon as possible, adding observing minimum public health standards should be continued even after inoculation.

"If that will enter the Philippines, then that's too risky," he warned.

The Philippines so far has 17 Delta variant cases - with one remaining active, and one death.

The B.1.617.2 variant is four times more contagious than the original virus detected in Wuhan in 2019, Dr. Edsel Salvana of the Department of Health-Technical Advisory Group warned. He added the variant is 60% more infectious in indoor spaces and 40% more infectious outdoors. Patients with the feared variant are also found to stay longer in hospitals due to more severe symptoms.

Another expert said the Delta variant may be manifesting different symptoms.

Dr. Eva Maria Cutiongco-de la Paz, executive director of the University of the Philippines-National Institutes of Health (UP-NIH), cited as an example the case of China and the UK.

"In southeast China, there are reports that patients are becoming sicker and deteriorating more quickly than the patient they treated with the original virus at the start of the pandemic," Cutiongco-de la Paz told a media forum on Wednesday. In the UK, infected people have shown changing symptoms, with headaches as the most common, she added
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23) - The Department of Education has recommended three dates for President Rodrigo Duterte to choose from for the opening of the next school year.

The DepEd on Wednesday said it proposed that classes start on any of the following dates: August 23, September 6, or September 13.

"We will release the final school calendar for School Year 2021-2022 once we get the final approval of the President," it said in a statement.

Under RA 11480, an academic year shall start on the first Monday of June but not later than the last day of August. However, in case a state of emergency or state of calamity is declared, the President, upon the recommendation of the education secretary, may set a different date.

The current school year will end on July 10. This means if Duterte chooses to open classes on August 23, summer vacation will be cut short to six weeks instead of the usual eight.

The DepEd said it will continue to implement "enhanced blended learning" after the President thumbed down its proposal to resume face-to-face classes in low-risk areas. Duterte decided against in-person education amid threats of new COVID-19 variants, especially the Delta variant first identified in India.

READ: DepEd withdraws request to resume face-to-face classes after Dutertes rejection

We will continue to prepare and improve the delivery of quality education no matter what the circumstances will be in the coming months, the DepEd said.

Blended learning involves the use of printed materials, internet-based sessions, and radio and TV broadcasts. While this style of education is deemed necessary to stem the spread of coronavirus, a national survey released in March showed that 89% of families nationwide think that the remote learning arrangement is more difficult than physical classes.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23)  The Land Transportation Office said it is looking at tapping other facilities to help produce millions of vehicle license plates which the agency failed to deliver to motorists.

"So that we can supply the plates in a shorter period of time, we have to make use of other suppliers," LTO Chief Edgar Galvante told CNN Philippines on Wednesday.

Galvante said they would need to produce 18 million plates, and with the limited capacity of the agency's plant, he said meeting the backlog would take "many, many months."

"If all those plates needed will have to be produced in our own plant, this will take a long time. In our estimate, it will take us about 37 or 40 months," the LTO chief said.

Galvante did not provide any information on whether they have already selected which companies or plants would help in producing the plates.

Earlier, Senator Richard Gordon called on LTO officials to resign after failing to release millions of motorcycle plates since 2013.

He also attributed the increase in riding-in-tandem crimes to the backlog, as authorities found it difficult to trace the culprits because their motorcycles did not have plates or with plate numbers too small to be determined from CCTV footage.

During the Senate hearing in February, Galvante explained they were already in the process of printing license plates but were stopped by a new law imposing a new size.

He said they were already able to print more than a million plates but had to halt production when a stop order was filed in the Supreme Court.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 23)  Malacanang stands by the country's commitment to achieve population protection within the year amid a report from a United Kingdom-based think tank saying herd immunity will only be possible in two years given the current pace of vaccination.

"Allow us to prove the think tank wrong...containment, population protection within the year," Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said in a briefing on Wednesday.

UK think tank Pantheon Macroeconomics published a report on Monday stating that based on its current vaccination rate, the Philippines can reach herd immunity by early 2023. Around 85% have to be immunized to control the Delta variant, it added.

"The relatively slow pace of vaccination in the Philippines implies that early 2023 probably is the best the archipelago can hope for," the report said.

The group added that the Philippines is falling behind the fight to reach the 85% herd immunity target against the Delta variant compared to other countries in "emerging Asia," which consists of India, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam.

However, Roque claimed the report only based its projections on the previous vaccination rate when doses were still scarce, but the report itself took into account increases in the vaccination figures since the middle of last month. It also acknowledged that supply issues in some countries were "being smoothed out."

Pantheon's Senior Asia Economist Miguel Chanco also contradicted another government official, saying it is still too soon for the Philippines to be preparing for the next normal.

Roque argued that vaccination efforts will ramp up as more doses come in. Recently, the country hit a new all-time high in daily vaccinations at 350,000 from the previous record of 320,000, he pointed out. With the recent plan of the private sector to lead the inoculation of its own personnel, Roque said he is confident the country can soon administer 500,000 doses a day.

The spokesman reiterated that the goal is population protection within the year. The Department of Health earlier explained that population protection means the vaccination program will prioritize nine highly dense areas: Metro Manila, Bulacan, Pampanga, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Metro Cebu, and Metro Davao - collectively known as NCR+8.
(CNN)  The Delta coronavirus variant, which is highly transmissible and possibly more dangerous than current predominant variants, now makes up more than 20% of all samples sequenced in the United States after the percentage doubled in a recent two-week period, Dr. Anthony Fauci said.

The country seems to be following a pattern seen in the United Kingdom, both with a variant first seen there -- the B.1.1.7 Alpha -- and now with the Delta variant, said the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

"As was the case with B.1.1.7, we seem to be following the pattern with the Delta variant, with a doubling time of about two weeks," Fauci said Tuesday at a White House Covid-19 Task Force briefing.

Some labs genetically sequence samples of the virus taken from patients to find out which variant is involved, and these test results are reported to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Offering some good news, Fauci said the mRNA vaccines, which are made by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna, appear to hold up against the Delta variant.

The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was 88% effective in preventing Covid-19 symptoms in the Delta variant two weeks after the second dose of the vaccine, he said.

"When you look at hospitalizations, again, both the Pfizer BioNTech and the Oxford AstraZeneca are between 92 and 96% effective against hospitalizations," Fauci said.

The challenge, though, is getting more people to take the vaccines.

Although health officials are pouring efforts into convincing those still hesitant to get vaccinated against Covid-19, none of the strategies appear to be a "Hail Mary pass" to get the US to reach President Joe Biden's vaccination goal and curb spreading variants.

"I just don't know if there's something out there that we're not doing that for sure will get us over the score line," Dr. Marcus Plescia, the chief medical officer at the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, told CNN. "That's the problem -- we're doing all the things that we know can be effective, but it's just allowing us to maintain this steady state, when what we really need to do is bump the demand back up."

Biden set a goal earlier this year for 70% of American adults to have received at least one dose of vaccine by July 4. Although the country is getting close, with 65.4% of adults having received at least one dose, demand and vaccination rates have declined, leaving experts to worry if enough of the population will be vaccinated in time to curb fall and winter surges.

Low vaccination rates are dangerous when combined with the spread of variants such as Delta, which is believed to be more transmissible and cause more serious illness. Steve Edwards, CEO of CoxHealth, a healthcare system in Springfield, Missouri, told CNN the combination is to blame for a six-fold increase in hospitalizations in his system.

"I think it is the Delta variant and there is a lot of kindling with low vaccination rates, so it's spreading very rapidly," Edwards said. "Almost all of our cases are unvaccinated people that, in my opinion, have put themselves in harm's way during this pandemic."

Fortunately, Plescia said, there are tactics underway to encourage vaccinations that have seen success.

Some states, such as Colorado, are making a final push by calling unvaccinated people directly to provide them with information and help schedule appointments. Incentives -- from the big ones like million-dollar lotteries to free tickets to the zoo or food coupons -- have also worked, Plescia said.

A strategy Plescia and other experts have supported recently is a transition from mass vaccination efforts to local provider's offices -- a plan that moves slowly but can be effective, he said.

"We do anticipate that this is going to be an important function of public health for quite some time," Plescia said.

Young adults fall behind in vaccinations

Many officials have turned their vaccination attention to young adults -- a population that is low in both vaccination rates and the desire to be vaccinated, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention studies show.

"High vaccination coverage among all age groups is important for decreasing COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths, especially among groups with lower vaccination uptake, such as young adults," the authors of a study published Monday wrote.

If the weekly pace of vaccinations continues at the rate from the week of May 22, only 57.5% of adults under the age of 30 will have received at least one dose of Covid-19 vaccine by the end of August.

More than 71% of those between 30 and 49 years would have been vaccinated with at least one dose by the same time, as well as nearly 86% of adults 50 to 64 years old and nearly 95% of seniors 65 and older, the study found.

Only about half of adults under the age of 30 said they had been vaccinated or plan to get vaccinated, another CDC study found, less than those between 30 and 34 years (55%) and those 35 to 39 years (53%).

The authors of the study said that "a desire to protect others and resume social activities were motivators to get vaccinated, suggesting that messages emphasizing that vaccination would allow them to resume social activities and encouraging vaccination for the greater good might be effective."

Celebrations still risk infections, study finds

Along with increasing vaccinations have come more reopenings and social gatherings, including weddings and birthday and holiday celebrations.

In many places, the reopenings have not inhibited progress on combating the pandemic. On Monday, Maryland reported no Covid-19 deaths for the second day in a row and Virginia reached the milestone of having 60% of adults in the state fully vaccinated.

But in counties that still have high Covid-19 rates, those celebrations could spark increased virus spread, according to research published in JAMA Internal Medicine on Monday.

Researchers used private insurance data from 6,535,987 individuals living in 2,926,530 households between January 1 and November 8, 2020. They compared Covid-19 infections between households with and without a birthday in the previous two weeks, adjusting for household size.

They found that households were more likely to have confirmed Covid-19 cases two weeks after a birthday. The risk was even higher when the birthday was for a child, the study reported.

While informal gatherings can impact the spread of Covid-19, they are harder to track than more formal occasions. The team says birthdays, which are often celebrated with gatherings, offer the opportunity to study their impact on the spread of Covid-19.

"This study suggests that events that lead to small and informal social gatherings, such as birthdays, and in particular, children's birthdays, are a potentially important source in SARS-CoV-2 transmission," the team wrote.
Columbia, SC (29201)

Today

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Cloudy skies early, then partly cloudy after midnight. Low 67F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Cloudy skies early, then partly cloudy after midnight. Low 67F. Winds light and variable.
One year after plans for State Colleges first Pride month parade were canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, the borough saw its first official celebrations with the Pride Ride caravan and afterparty earlier this month.

In collaboration with the State College borough, the Centre LGBTQA Support Network helped organize the event. Now, the organization is looking to the future in hopes of creating more programming opportunities for LGBTQ people and allies in the area.

CLSNs chair and co-founder Susan Marshall said the founding members first united in 2011 to support a lesbian couple that sued the State College Area School District due to its lack of health insurance benefits for gay and lesbian partners.

After the couple won the lawsuit and were granted equal benefits, Marshall said this core group of people came back together to discuss the idea of reviving an inactive chapter of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays.

This shifted into a larger conversation to create an entirely new organization centered around the needs of LGBTQ people in the area.

Pia Smal, another founding member, said before the group established CLSN in 2014, there was an absence of organizations in State College that focused specifically on bringing LGBTQ people together and creating a safe environment for younger queer and trans people.

There was a gap in the community, Smal said. A lot of our focus is often surrounding the next generation We really wanted to create an environment where they could explore their sexuality and gender identity and know they were supported by their community.

Two of the main goals of CLSN are to help educate people and spread visibility to the State College community, Smal said. In the past seven years, she said CLSN has been able to create a more welcoming environment for LGBTQ people through successful programming efforts.

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State College to host 'Live After 5' concert series downtown The Downtown State College Improvement District announced it will host a free "Live After 5"

We always want to be a visible presence in the community and hope people realize that were here, and were not any different from you or your family, Smal said.

CLSN has hosted an array of events and activities to bring people together and provide educational opportunities for those wanting to get more involved, Smal said.

A key programming effort of CLSN comes in its various support groups  dedicated to LGBTQ people, friends and family members, and middle and high school students. These groups serve as a safe environment for members to have personal discussions and get to know each other, Smal said.

Before the pandemic, the support groups were held in person but have since moved to an online format.

Susan Port, a CLSN board member, said it was necessary to keep the support groups going, despite the difficulties the pandemic brought.

One of the most critical things we provide are our support groups, and because of Zoom, we were still able to do that, Port said. It was really important for us that people still had a community  [the pandemic] was so isolating for people.

Other events CLSN regularly held before the pandemic included open mics at Websters Bookstore Cafe, quarterly drag bingos in partnership with State College Queens, an annual Gayla fundraiser held at The Lodge at Tussey Mountain and movie showings at The State Theatre.

Beyond creating safe and inclusive events and activities, Marshall said CLSN is also focused on educating members of the greater State College community on LGBTQ equity.

Offering educational training for organizations across the borough is one way CLSN is able to open doors and welcome new partnerships, Marshall said. Beyond training, CLSN has ties all around the State College area.

We have a lot of community engagement, Marshall said. We know a lot of people, and our board members know a lot of people We want to collaborate.

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Smal said a majority of the funding CLSN receives comes from community donations and grants, and during the pandemic, it began donating a total of $1,000 every month to two nonprofits that were either aligned with or were supporting the support network.

In addition to these donations, Marshall said CLSN developed a yearly scholarship for SCASD around the time the organization was founded  $1,000 for a high school student who does either some work or advocacy for the LGBTQ community.

While the scholarship is limited to State College Area High School, Marshall said she hopes they are able to expand it to neighboring schools one day.

Smal and Marshall both said while their focus is dedicated to LGBTQ people in the Centre County region, it is important for allies of the community to continue showing up and showing support.

Everyone is welcome in our space  we love allies, Smal said. I think allies are really important. I want people to know they can walk into drag bingo and not have any experience with the queer community, and they will be welcome.

Going forward, CLSNs board members will focus on trying to obtain a permanent space they can call home for the organization and its members, Smal said. They are focused on bringing in new people to the board and setting up roots to keep CLSN growing as well.

Having a place thats ours that kids can come to, that adults and students could come to  thats our dream, Smal said. Were actively working [toward] it, but COVID really derailed that.

Marshall said she would love to see more people come in and volunteer with future endeavors and give the reins over to a new generation of LGBTQ youth. She said she hopes to one day have a director to take over operations and someone to take over volunteering efforts.

Continuing to reach out to both younger and older generations of LGBTQ people in State College to make sure they are receiving the help and resources needed will also be an important part of the process in a post-pandemic world, Port said.

Following the success of the Pride Ride, Smal said she has already seen people reach out and donate to the organization, and she said she would love for CLSN to continue making connections with those wanting to help spread its mission.

Show up, come to an event, reach out to us, Smal said. If someone is really interested in getting involved, like volunteering some time, that would be a great place to start  reaching out to us.

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Ernest Luning: "In conversations with political insiders lately, it's become nearly as common as remarking on the weather to ask if there's news about a Republican running for any number of top-ticket offices, and the answers are usually the same."
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This year our dine and drink business locations throughout the Gorge have suffered with closures. You can help support your favorites by purchasing take out and gift cards. Many of these business will offer curb-side delivery and some will deliver to your home. Lets keep the Gorge going strong!
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What goes around comes around. In fact, the 1990s called and want their browser suite back.

Vivaldi, one of the boutique browsers that fight for scraps left on the floor by Google's Chrome and Microsoft's Edge, has turned to a strategy reminiscent of Netscape Navigator, the world's first dominant web browser.

Vivaldi 4.0, which launched earlier this month, added an email client, calendar, and RSS (Really Simple Syndication) reader to the already-available browser, creating the 21st century version of Netscape Communicator, an all-in-one kitchen sink released in 1997. That collection ranged from the browser and email client (Netscape Messenger) to calendar and an HTML editor (Netscape Composer).

The successor to Netscape Communicator was, for those with long memories, the Mozilla Suite (later called the Mozilla Application Suite), which began with the former's code base.

Vivaldi's makers have to be hoping for a better ending than Netscape saw; that company not only lost its No. 1 spot to Microsoft's Internet Explorer but inside of a decade had effectively disappeared from the browser playing field.

Big Tech, bad tech

Vivaldi's co-founder and chief executive Jon von Tetzchner pitched his grab bag as the answer to Big Tech, the words initial-capped to mimic headline writers referring to the largest firms, like Google and Apple, Amazon and Microsoft, that are facing scrutiny from regulators worldwide. "The era of blindly trusting Big Tech is over," declared von Tetzchner. "A growing movement of people worldwide is looking for reliable, functional alternatives to the tools offered by the tech giants. We are building Vivaldi to meet that need  and more  with an expanded set of integrated features that give you more control of your data and your workflow."

It's an interesting approach, if only because it runs counter to the demise of integrated software, like Netscape Communicator, Apple's AppleWorks, Microsoft Works, Lotus Jazz, and others.

The Vivaldi browser remains the cornerstone of the new construction. It also remains what von Tetzchner debuted five years ago: a wildly customizable browser that very much went against the grain of austerity that Chrome pioneered, and every major rival adopted sooner or later. Vivaldi's settings pane is still overloaded with options of all kinds, to the point that those accustomed to the minimalism of the biggest browsers may feel more lost than comfortable.

Vivaldi During first-time installation, users choose how much Vivaldi they want to see.

First-timers are given a helping hand during the browser's opening moments, when they're asked to choose between three layouts, essentially how much of Vivaldi 4.0's new features to surface. "Fully loaded," for instance puts everyone in the UI (user interface), including the email client and news reader, in view. Users can later add elements from the Settings/Preferences pane, although Computerworld struggled to find the options and had to resort to Vivaldi's support pages to come up with an answer.

The big add to the browser itself is integrated translation, provided by the Cypriot firm Lingvanex. The translation engine, though, is hosted on Vivaldi's servers  not Lingvanex's  which are located in Iceland.

But the trumpeting of Vivaldi 4.0 was loudest about the expansion beyond the browser, notably to the email client, less so to the RSS reader and calendar. All were labeled as betas by Vivaldi.

Vivaldi Baked-in translation works but at times can be slow as data is processed, then passed to the browser from Icelandic servers.

The client can render both POP3 and IMAP email, and has some skill  Gmail excepted because of Google's somewhat-self-serving rules regarding non-Google applications and security  at automatically inserting the correct settings to pull messages from third-party providers. Not surprisingly, the email client cannot grab mail from an Exchange server, whether on-premises or on Microsoft's Azure servers. The end result is a webmail creature with the usual skills, although writing a new message in another tab, rather than have it open in a new window atop the browser, is something others should copy.

Likewise, the reader and calendar will be familiar to users of other online rivals. Neither can match a stand-alone app, but that's not really the point: If users pick Vivaldi's suite, it's because they're willing to give up something (functionality, feature set) to get something (a centralized experience).

It's a good idea to remember that Vivaldi characterized the emailer, reader, and calendar as beta projects, meaning that more may well come before they're dubbed production readyand that the company has an easy excuse when things don't work properly.

More information about the trio in beta can be found here.

Vivaldi 4.0 can be downloaded for Windows (32- and 64-bit), macOS (64-bit) and Linux (32- and 64-bit) from the company's website. An Android version can be downloaded from Google's Play Store.
Following CEO Tim Cooks statements on security at a recent conference, Apple has come out fighting to protect the security of its App Store distribution model, publishing a white paper that argues enforced side-loading of apps would make the platform  and its users  far less secure.

Security isn't simple

Its an argument that makes sense. Anyone involved in enterprise security already knows that the biggest security problem in any business is the people in the business. Humans make mistakes, and todays generations of hackers and crackers have become pretty good at identifying and attacking individuals to help create cracks in the security of larger targets.

Apples argument  that permitting unconstrained side-loading of apps from third-party stores would create a new attack surface  makes complete sense. However, legislation currently under consideration in the EU and elsewhere proposes to make side loading mandatory.

It really shouldn't happen.

What about the Mac, though?

Some argue that this is no different than the security model on the Mac, which permits app installs from a variety of sources. We know the platform has become an increasingly attractive target as its adoption grows.

Apple doesnt agree that the Mac should be seen as a template for iOS app distribution. It argues not only that the iOS platform is 10 times larger than the Mac, but that theres a difference in how we use these platforms:

iPhone users download apps on a regular basis, which extends the size of the attack surface.

Mac users tend to install only apps they need.

It also points to the vast stack of uniquely personal data smartphones gather in the event security is compromised. Location, connections, contacts, website searches, documents, data, banking details, and every other fragment of life is gathered on these things.

The nature of this data is both personal and wide-ranging, exceeding the information gathered on Macs. It means that those who manage to take your data from your mobile device can build a complete picture of your pattern of life.

I believe that what weve built and what were offering users now is uniformly better, because we can focus in on that smaller attack surface and our stronger protections to help keep users safe, an Apple representative said.

At the same time, the company has said it sees Mac security in its present form as a problem.

What the App Store model provides

With a goal to protect the user and the ecosystem, Apples App Store delivers automated malware scans, vets app descriptions and features for mistruths, and reviews data accessed by the apps. It also makes sure software aimed at children meets a higher standard of protection.

Critics point to Apples errors as evidence it doesnt always get this protection right, but in so doing they also prove the extent of the problem that does exist. If Apple were not policing its platforms, what would the situation be?

Fortunately, we already know the answer.

Android, while moving to adopt more Apple-like security, has 15 times more infections from malware than the iPhone. In part, this is because Android apps can be downloaded from multiple sources.

Earlier this year, Apple published data it claims illustrates the scale of the security challenge. In 2020, the company reviewed around 100,000 apps each week and rejected/removed nearly a million problem apps. Approximately 10% of those were removed for criminal intent, while 20% violated privacy guidelines.

Its a big business

Apples white paper cites research that shows pirated apps published on third-party sites cost developers billions in revenue each year. But distribution of pirated apps isnt the biggest business to rely on lax platform security models. Those shadowy firms selling iPhone unlocking solutions to law enforcement are making big money from their exploits, but even their bonanza is dwarfed when it comes to the money to be made in malware.

Apples data reflects the scale of this. The company has expelled 470,000 teams from the Apple Developer Program over fraud. It has also rejected 205,000 dodgy enrollment attempts.

Another facet of modern Apple crime sees app reviews used to help build trust in apps that may be fraudulent or criminal in intent. Reflecting the scale of this, Apple said it deactivated 244 million customer accounts due to fraudulent and abusive activity, including fake reviews. It also rejected 424 million attempts to create new customer accounts due to what it terms, fraudulent and abusive patterns."

The significance of all this data should be clear. It isnt about looking at what Apple has done to protect its customers and its platforms but is about illustrating the scale of the tide its bulwarks already protect us against.

What happens if?

In the event sideloading on iOS platforms became mandatory, there would be an instant business opportunity for tens of thousands of malicious developers to create fraudulent apps designed to steal your data, bolstered by millions of fake reviews.

Malicious actors would take advantage of the opportunity by devoting more resources to develop sophisticated attacks targeting iOS users, thereby expanding the set of weaponized exploits and attacks  often referred to as a threat model  that all users need to be safeguarded against, said Apple.

This would quickly weaken platform security and make users vulnerable. Doing so will also undermine enterprise security, unleashing a fresh tide of malware across Apples platforms to the eventual detriment of every business and every customer as ransomware runs rife.

We know this will happen because it already does happen: Security on every platform is under attack and insisting a platform become less secure by design will unleash havoc on every single company going through digital transformation.

History is not a template

After all, merely because other platforms permit sideloading doesnt mean that's the correct decision. It reflects the app distribution models that existed in a far less networked age, when software shipped in packages, on CDs, and on floppy disks.

I can recall at least one incident when a magazine publisher inadvertently distributed a cover disk containing software demos that also contained malware. The relatively recent evolution of Internet distribution of apps reflected those distribution models, but is this really a viable approach when billions of users become vulnerable to being hoodwinked into downloading malicious apps?

Id argue that side loading of apps should be seen as an inevitable historical anomaly. It reflects a time when the risks were lower, markets smaller, and the information gathered by devices more limited. The scourge of malware on every platform that permits this should be proof enough, and it won't stop as platforms continue to proliferate.

Today, you have a choice

As things stand, you have a choice. You can choose platforms that permit sideloading, with all the risk that entails. Or you can choose Apples curated platform, which is the right choice for anyone who wants the best privacy and security. Its certainly the appropriate choice for security-conscious enterprise users.

Weakening those models with sideloading will amplify risk across the mobile enterprise. Because humans are the weakest link, and even if every company mandates official app download sources there will be one or two who ignore that advice.

And when it comes to infecting your enterprise systems with worms, trojans, or tiny backdoors to enable data exfiltration, it only takes one successful exploit to undermine perimeter security.

What happens if sideloading is enforced?

If governments force Apple to support sideloading, you can rest assured that bad actors will use every tool in their arsenal to exploit the opportunity. Their creative approaches will span highly targeted phishing attacks, fake app download sites and malware-infested development environments, all bolstered by a network of genuine-seeming reviews designed to reassure suspicious users that these travesties are safe.

The extent of these attacks would be so vast that people will look back to the insane explosion of malware that impacted Windows and Internet Explore in the late 90s as a golden age of app security. It wasnt.

Apple will respond, of course, but the damage will be done and the result will be that no user, no business, no government, and no industry will ever be quite as secure again.

Who benefits from that? No one.

Please follow me on Twitter, or join me in the AppleHolics bar & grill and Apple Discussions groups on MeWe.
Singapore to receive batch of Comirnaty vaccines soon

Singapore will soon receive a batch of Comirnaty vaccines against COVID-19, as the country aims to fully vaccinate half its residents by August and at least 75 per cent by October.

At least 36 per cent of the population have received the complete regimen of two shots. Photo courtesy: Twitter/@nickmarsh6

The Singapore Ministry of Health (MOH) in a statement today said that these vaccines are the same as Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines which are now being used in the nationwide inoculation drive. The ministry added that the vaccine has the same research name BNT162b2.

"Comirnaty vaccines are manufactured in the same processes and procedures and meet the same finished product specifications as the Pfizer-BioNTech doses, " the ministry said. The Comirnaty vaccines are manufactured similarly in Europe and are directly shipped to Singapore. However, the only difference is that of the label.

The ministry further said that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine used in Singapore is manufactured at various sites across Europe and labelled according to the regulatory approval in the various markets. The vaccine will be labelled as Pfizer-BioNTech/Comirnaty in the records.

Moderna is the other messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccine currently used in Singapore and approved by the Health Sciences Authority (HSA). The Sinovac vaccine remains unregistered here and is not authorised by the HSA for use under the Pandemic Special Access Route, but it can be administered at 24 private healthcare clinics, the ministry added.

Last Saturday, more than half of the population have received at least one jab of the Covid-19 vaccines.

At least 36 per cent of the population have received the complete regimen of two shots.
06/23/2021

Photo (c) jarun011 - Getty Images Coronavirus (COVID-19) tally as compiled by Johns Hopkins University. (Previous numbers in parentheses.) 

Total U.S. confirmed cases: 33,567,044 (33,555,657)

Total U.S. deaths: 602,504 (602,143)

Total global cases: 179,261,894 (178,881,598)

Total global deaths: 3,884,666 (3,875,176)

Researchers warn the Delta virus may be dominant in the U.S.

U.S. coronavirus cases, hospitalizations, and deaths are all declining as vaccination numbers rise. But people who arent vaccinated are still at risk, and researchers say that risk may be increasing. In a new study, they say its likely that the Delta variant of the virus, first discovered in India, may account for a majority of U.S. cases by next month.

Thats a concern because the Delta variant spreads much more easily than the original strain of the virus. While people who have been vaccinated have a high level of protection, the variant has caused severe illness in the unvaccinated population, particularly among young people.

U.S. health officials agree. At a briefing on Tuesday, Dr. Anthony Fauci, President Bidens chief medical adviser, warned that the Delta variant is currently the greatest threat in the U.S. to our attempt to eliminate COVID-19.

July 4 vaccination goal probably not attainable

With less than two weeks to go, the White House has conceded the inevitable. The nation will not achieve President Bidens goal of vaccinating 70% of the adult population by the Independence Day holiday, although it will come close.

White House COVID-19 coordinator Jeffrey Zients said age appears to be a factor. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows a high vaccination rate among older people. Zients says that after age 30, the numbers arent as good.

The reality is, many younger Americans have felt like COVID-19 is not something that impacts them and have been less eager to get the shot, he said.

U.S. agents reportedly have seized unapproved treatment drugs

Federal agents have seized unapproved and counterfeit versions of the COVID-19 treatment drug remdesivir, breaking up what appears to be a highly sophisticated smuggling ring.

The Wall Street Journal quotes sources as saying the drugs were apparently produced in Bangladesh and India and then shipped to the U.S., where smugglers picked them up and moved them across the border to Mexico, apparently for distribution there.

According to the Journal, the Mexican market for the illicit drug is huge. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers have reportedly captured more than 100 shipments.

Around the nation
06/23/2021

Photo (c) Yuichiro Chino - Getty Images Space Xs satellite internet service, Starlink, could be providing high-speed internet to users in every country before the end of this year, Reuters reported.

At a web conference on Tuesday, SpaceX president Gwynne Shotwell said the company could offer global coverage as soon as September once all 1,800 satellites reach their operational orbit. That will be contingent on securing regulatory approvals.

"We've successfully deployed 1,800 or so satellites, and once all those satellites reach their operational orbit we will have continuous global coverage so that should be like [the] September timeframe," Shotwell said, speaking as part of the virtual Macquarie Technology Summit.

The launch will follow a beta testing program through which SpaceX generated significant interest. The company offered interested consumers the option to pay a $99 deposit in exchange for the promise of coverage sometime this year or next.

"We've got almost 100,000 users. Half a million people want to be users, but we need the electronic piece part situation to settle down so that we can actually build the user terminals for the folks that want the service," Shotwell said.

Last December, SpaceX received $885 million in grant funding from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to bring its satellite broadband service to consumers in 35 U.S. states. Starlink internet is currently available as a beta service in only a handful of countries, including the U.S., the U.K., and Canada.
Hakata-bijin.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 6 Jan 2013, you can refresh this analysis whenever you want.

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PAGE TITLE    DESCRIPTION   KEYWORDS , , , ,  OTHER KEYWORDS



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Domain and Server

DOCTYPE XHTML 1.0 Transitional CHARSET AND LANGUAGE Japanese SHIFT_JISJapanese DETECTED LANGUAGE Japanese Japanese SERVER Apache/2.2.23 OPERATIVE SYSTEM Linux Linux

Type of server and offered services. Represents HTML declared type (e.g.: XHTML 1.1, HTML 4.0, the new HTML 5.0) Character set and language of the site. Operative System running on the server. The language of hakata-bijin.com as detected by CoolSocial algorithms.

Site Traffic trend during the last year. Only available for sites ranked <= 100000 in the world.

Referring domains for hakata-bijin.com by MajesticSeo. High values are a sign of site importance over the web and on web engines.

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Summer is in full swing, and with that comes many days spent on the water. Read more
Going to IKEA has become part of the ritual of reaching maturity. Inside the Swedish showrooms, 20-somethings will experience many firsts of adulthood, from buying their first couch to having their first public breakup because how hard is it to write down the right serial number Dwayne now we have to go all the way back. But while its products are designed to cheaply simulate the trappings of being a grownup, its stores are perfectly designed to encourage something far less mature: epic games of hide-and-seek.

The problem with hide-and-seek isnt that it stops being fun; its that you run out of clever places to hide around the house. Thats not an issue in the Escherian nightmare that is the average 500,000 square foot IKEA. While its confusing signs, labyrinthine pathways, and endless rows of identical wardrobes were contrived to mentally wear customers down to the point that spending $100 on a mostly cardboard nightstand feels like a bargain, this also makes the showrooms an epic gauntlet of hidey holes.

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This was first put to the test in 2014 when Belgian Elise De Rijck fulfilled her 30th birthday wish by playing a game of hide-and-seek inside her local IKEA. Either a very clever commentary on how millennials barred access to the housing market has lead to a generationwide arrested development or the kind of basic wackiness concocted by someone who calls herself the Phoebe of her friend group
Anna Mae Wilson-Welborn, 86, of Crossville, passed away at her home surrounded by her family on Monday, June 28, 2021. She was born July 11, 1934, in Spencer, TN, daughter of the late Floyd Stanton Dodson and Annie (Lawson) Dodson. Anna worked as a seamstress and was of the Baptist faith. Sh
 John Christianson is a member of the Governors Council on Biofuels, which advises the governor and state agencies on the role of biofules in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and recommend policy and budget proposals to foster growth in the production and use of biofuels.
Yes, I'm concerned we're going to end up back where we were last fall and winter.

I'm not concerned for the vaccinated but cases could surge among the unvaccinated, shutting things down.

I'm not concerned about a surge or shutdowns this fall.

Vote

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This is what was left after a white mob attacked the predominantly African American Greenwood neighborhood of Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1921. Did you learn about this in school?
The true toll of a cybersecurity incident is not felt during the attack, it may take a business weeks, months or even years to truly recover. While data might be recovered, a significant breach impacts employees and forces changes on your entire business.

Attack effects last well beyond the cause

Ransomware attacks may seem passe but they are still a significant issue with the Australian government saying it is likely to introduce a mandatory reporting scheme for attacks. Criminals are constantly updating their attack tools and focusing on different targets they believe are vulnerable.

The effects can linger far beyond the initial attack and response. In many cases, organisations may elect to pay the ransom but that is not necessarily the end of the problems. When 500 machines are hit, the decryption process to recover those systems often means entering a separate key to each machine. This can create a resourcing nightmare as organisations and CISOs scramble to identify and agree on which systems need to come back online first.

If an organisation chooses to not pay the ransom, they then face the task of either recovering those systems from backups if you have backups of those endpoints, rebuilding those systems from scratch, of losing valuable business data. Either way, the impact on productivity and the cost of recovery can be significant.

More recently, ransomware has been backed up with extortion. Before encrypting an organisations data, criminals exfiltrate valuable information and threaten to make it public unless they pay the ransom. Even if there are robust processes in place for recovery, organisations may find confidential information published in the public domain. The goal here, for the threat actors, is to put more pressure on the organisation to pay.

Business email compromise, or email fraud, is a huge earner for cybercriminals. The immediate impact is the loss of funds  the ACCC says losses suffered by Australians are five times higher in 2021 than the year before with most experts agreeing this figure is substantially underreported. The toll it takes on the victims is significant. When a person is fooled by some very clever tactics to handover large sums of money, they feel the impact personally.

Organisations need to ensure they have adequate counselling services in place to support staff in the aftermath of a significant cyber-attack. The mental impact on IT staff and those who have the pressures of recovery cannot be understated. Many IT admins feel personally responsible and the staff who are duped can feel shame and extreme guilt.

The biggest weapon criminals have in their armoury is their ability to take advantage of our trust. This is why supply chain attacks are so pernicious. When the likes of Solarwinds and Accellion saw their hardware and software exploited by criminals and the CIA was able to embed their own chips into Cisco routers, it highlighted that the trust we have for these critical endpoint devices is overrated.

For years businesses have had these devices act as gateways between their private networks and the internet. As they were critical infrastructure, outages were not tolerated which meant patching was often ignored or indefinitely delayed. And while a scheduled outage may be inconvenient, an unscheduled outage caused by an attacker can be devastating.

What can CISOs do?

These and other attack vectors create a significant challenge of CISOs and CSOs. With a finite pool of money, people and time, the challenge is how to balance those resources while meeting the needs of the business.

The first step is in understanding the risks and articulating them to your colleagues in the c-suite and boardroom in language they understand. For example, rather than talking about ransomware being about a loss of access to information and systems, describe the recovery process and that the disruption may last weeks or longer and put a dollar figure on the recovery time.

These discussions need to take place at all levels up to and including the board. There are legal, technical, regulatory, marketing/comms, human resources, vendor management and other areas that need to be carefully considered with plans in place so decisions are not made in the heat of an incident. Having an agreed response plan now will save tremendous headaches and panic when an incident occurs.

If data is exfiltrated in an attack, ask them whether there is data that they would not put into the public domain. There is also the associated cost of reporting the loss of personal information to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, notifying customers if they are affected and keeping suppliers and partners in the loop. For companies doing business in other jurisdictions, there may be requirements to also report incidents to other governments. For example, the GDPR in Europe, the PDPA in Singapore and others all require reporting of data breaches.

The human impact of business email compromise cannot be underestimated. But the risk of such an attack can be mitigated by putting appropriate process checks in place such as non-email checks. For example, adding an actual phone call to verify significant payments can ensure that an accounts payable clerk does not make a fraudulent funds transfer.

Staying ahead of the evolving threat landscape requires the right processes, not just technologies. As the CISO, you are in a unique position to drive change across the whole organisation to minimise the risk of future attacks by making process recommendations.

For over a decade, the Australian Signals Directorate has been touting the importance of patching systems. Now part of its Essential Eight, businesses must accept that the risk of not patching systems outweighs the cost of a short outage. For CISOs, the message needs to be about the risk of not patching rather than the impact of a short outage.

Even for businesses that believe they need 24/7 access to all systems, a short outage during a non-peak period is a small cost compared to a multi-day outage or significant data loss caused by not patching a known vulnerability.

With businesses highly dependent on digital technologies, the impact of an attack cannot be underestimated. CISOs need to stand above the technical minutiae of the risks and present them in business terms. That may mean reallocating resources towards supporting business units creating more secure processes. It may mean articulating the entire attack cycle and how long a complete recovery will really take. Businesses need to understand that a short, scheduled outage, even of a critical system, is a better outcome than a long-term, unplanned outage.
The political infighting is all finished in the Connecticut marijuana legalization debate. And man, there was a lot of it, right to the last day.

Now the state turns to creating and enforcing the rules for recreational cannabis. What does that mean for you? Some details arent yet clear, like how many stores well see. Some aspects of the 295-page bill that Gov. Ned Lamont will soon sign into law remain open to interpretation.

And of course, no law is carved in stone. These things will change and evolve over time, said Rep. Steve Stafstrom, D-Bridgeport, co-chairman of the legislatures Judiciary Committee and a key sponsor of the bill.

Heres what we know now. Every bit of this applies strictly to people age 21 or older.

Generally when we talk about marijuana, we mean any cannabis product that contains THC, the psychoactive ingredient. There are some differences in the law between smokable and edible forms; you can consume gummie and chocolates most anyplace, as long as youre not driving.

When does the law take effect and what happens then?

Starting July 1, you can have more marijuana than you can possibly consume in a reasonable time. It will become perfectly legal to possess  no infraction and certainly no arrest  but you cant sell it. Thats still a crime. Stores are targeted to open in mid-2022, but a lot has to happen first.

Can I smoke pot in public after the bill goes into effect?

As with tobacco, smoking pot is prohibited in public buildings, most workplaces and stores, state parks and lots of other places. The bottom line is, anyplace that smoking tobacco is illegal, either smoking or vaping cannabis will also be illegal, Stafstrom said. The bill expands the no-smoking list to include areas within 25 feet of any doors, windows or intake vents of public buildings. That means you cant walk down a sidewalk smoking a joint if its within 25 feet of a store  but that provision doesnt kick in until Oct. 1 of this year. As for walking down the street in a residential area, thats open to interpretation by police so its not yet clear. An example of the complexity: The bill gives cities and towns a lot of leeway to determine whether smoking marijuana is allowed on property they own or control, such as local parks.

How about in a car, if Im not driving?

Nope. You cant smoke marijuana even as a passenger in a motor vehicle that is being operated on any public road, highway or parking lot with more than 10 spaces.

How will police be able to tell if Im driving under the influence?

Each police officer will be certified to tell whether someone is high, Stafstrom said, based on new training they will all receive. And the state will train many more drug recognition experts, whose testimony will be admissable in court.

Can I smoke pot on my private property in clear view of the public, such as sitting in a chair on my front lawn  even if children are just a few feet away?

Yes.

How much am I allowed to possess starting July 1?

You can carry up to 1.5 ounces of plant material or equivalent in other forms. In addition, you can have up to 5 ounces in a locked container at home or in a locked glove compartment or the trunk of your car.

How much will I be allowed to grow at home, and when?

Medical patients may cultivate up to three mature and three immature cannabis plants starting Oct. 1, 2021. Anyone else will have to wait until July 1, 2023, with the same plant limits, the state Department of Consumer Protection said.

Where exactly can I grow the plants?

They must be inside, not outdoors, at your primary residence.

Can I sell any pot that I grow? Can I give it away as a gift?

No, you cant sell any marijuana even if you grow it yourself, unless you hold a license from the state. You are allowed to give away cannabis as a gift.

Can I go to the store and buy it for a friend who then pays me back for the cost?

No, receiving compensation is the same as selling, even if youre just picking it up for a friend and not profiting.

Can my employer prohibit me from using THC products? How about while not at work?

This is a complex area but generally, employers will have leeway under Connecticut law to bar employees from using marijuana  certainly at work, and also outside of work. We have the most employer friendly protections of any legalization bill Ive seen in the country, Stafstrom said. Some types of workers fall udner even stricter guidelines, including firefighters, police, commercial drivers and certain federal employees and contractors. We were very sensitive to the fact that we are a state that has a heavy concentration of defense manufacturers, Stafstrom said.

What is the best estimate of when the first stores will open?

The governors office at first said May 2022, and now is wavering on that goal. Before anyone opens retail doors, the state must license growers and retailers and license an entire supply chain, which then must be up and ready. Most states have taken longer than a year to open.

How many stores we will see in, say, five years?

The number could be very large, rivaling the number of package stores  but market conditions will play a strong part in determining who opens. Cities and towns will also be able to prohibit marijuana dispensaries through their zoning powers.

What is the maximum amount I will be able to buy?

One ounce of cannabis, or an equal amount of THC products per day at a single retailer. Medical patients have higher limits.

Will the ingredients for blended THC products such as edibles and vape be listed?

Yes, unlike in many states.

Will we see colorful trade names for products, such as Purple Haze and Grand Master Trashed, which are not allowed in the medical dispensaries?

Yes, as long as they arent designed to appeal to teens and young kids. But the rules may limit flashy packaging or colors.

dhaar@hearstmediact.com
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP)  Brazil's federal prosecutors office is investigating possible irregularities in a Health Ministry contract to purchase 20 million doses of the Covaxin vaccine manufactured by Indian laboratory Bharat Biotech.

The agreement signed in February commits the ministry to pay $320 million - at a cost of $15 per vaccine dose - to Precisa Medicamentos, the representative of Bharat Biotech in Brazil, according to a document sent to The Associated Press by the prosecutor general's press office.

The price per dose, which was higher than for other COVID-19 vaccines, drew prosecutors' attention, as did the fact that ministry officials apparently ignored a history of alleged irregularities by Precisa associates in previous contracts with the federal government.

Precisa said in a statement the vaccine price agreed to with Brazil's Health Ministry was the same as the price negotiated with 13 other countries and that the deal followed all formal paths and was carried out transparently.

Federal prosecutor Luciana Loureiro Oliveira said in a document signed on June 16 that three years ago Precisa associates, through another company, entered a contract with the Health Ministry for the sale of medicines that were never delivered.

Oliveira wrote that the ministry signed a purchase contract for the Bharat Biotech vaccine even though it had not been approved by Brazil's health agency, Anvisa, and that other already-approved vaccines were on the market at lower prices.

The history of irregularities involving Precisa partners and the high price paid for the contracted doses require a thorough investigation in both civil and criminal matters, Oliveira wrote.

Francisco Maximiano, a Precisa shareholder, was to appear Tuesday before a Senate commission investigating federal government omissions in the handling of the pandemic, but presented a petition to postpone his testimony saying he was in quarantine after arriving from India, according to a statement from his lawyers.

Anvisa approved the import of the Covaxin vaccine with restrictions on June 4, allowing the entry of only 4 million doses. In March, the agency had rejected a request to import the vaccine, citing concerns over a lack of documentation and information on its safety.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP)  It's been a year and a half since California Gov. Gavin Newsom directed oil regulators to consider new health and safety measures to protect people living near oil and gas drilling sites.

But those regulators missed another deadline Monday for releasing the rules, frustrating environmental advocates who say communities can't wait any longer for change. The California Geologic Energy Management Division, known as CalGEM, hasn't set a new timeline for the rules, which Newsom originally mandated be out last December. Regulators delayed but said they would come out in the spring.

California is the nations seventh-largest oil-producing state and has no statewide rules on how far oil and gas wells must be from where people live, work or go to school. While it has a reputation as a climate leader, other oil-producing states, including Pennsylvania and Colorado, already have such regulations. Even Texas bans wells within 467 feet (142 meters) of a property line.

Advocacy groups point to studies that show living near drilling sites can worsen a slew of health risks, including respiratory problems and birth defects.

It is clear CalGEM does not respect the urgency needed to prevent further damage and inequity in our communities, Cesar Aguirre, a community organizer with Central California Environmental Justice Network, said in a statement.

The group is one of dozens in the Last Chance Alliance that sent Newsom an open letter calling for him to immediately mandate a 2,500-foot (762-meter) buffer zone between wells and places like homes and schools and to issue a moratorium on all new drilling permits in those zones. Newsom has previously declined to impose such a mandate in favor of the agency rulemaking process.

Your leadership can deliver equitable and effective relief today," the letter says.

Uduak-Joe Ntuk, the state's oil and gas supervisor, was not made available for an interview Tuesday to discuss the delay.

The process is taking longer than expected because of complex subject matter within and beyond our previous regulatory experience," David Shabazian, director of the California Department of Conservation, said in a statement. His department oversees CalGEM.

We continue to work closely with our state partners and the public health experts panel to thoroughly examine and assess impacts across the board so that we develop the most well-informed, legally durable rule possible to protect communities and workers from the impacts of oil extraction activities," he said.

Spokespeople for Newsom didnt comment on whether he would communicate with regulators about the delay or respond to advocates call for him to take immediate action.

But as he faces an expected recall election later this year, the regulation of the oil industry places him between two powerful constituencies: environmentalists and some labor unions aligned with the oil industry. Democrats, who control state government, are divided on how much to regulate the industry.

The Western States Petroleum Association and the State Building and Construction Trades Council oppose a statewide mandate on buffer zones, saying such a rule would hurt workers and raise the cost of fuel.

Meanwhile, environmentalists have long been frustrated by the state's oil regulator, saying the agency is too close with the companies it oversees.

Newsom, a first-term Democrat, pledged to reform CalGEM in 2019 by renaming it and directing it to focus on health and safety. He told the agency to consider prohibiting drilling within certain distances of homes, schools, hospitals and parks.

Last year, he used executive powers to mandate the draft regulations come out by December. But the agency punted to the spring, saying it needed more time to take feedback from public health experts. Advocates took note when summer began on Monday without the new rules.

Its astounding that the state has failed to develop a draft public health and safety rule in over a year and a half," said Gladys Limon, executive director of the California Environmental Justice Alliance.
Its common sight in cities and towns across Connecticut and the world: People outside of restaurants, stores or government buildings, puffing on cigarettes, or smoking as they walk along a downtown sidewalk.

Common, but all of that will become illegal in Connecticut on Oct. 1. Gone will be guest rooms in hotels and motels where smoking is allowed; no designated smoking lounges in workplaces, period; and no smoking in prisons or psychiatric facilities.

We all know smoking isnt allowed in publicly owned or leased buildings, and food stores and restaurants. Starting Oct. 1, that ban extends outside, to 25 feet from any door, operable window or any air intake vent. And that outdoor buffer will also apply to all retail establishments, meaning you wont be able to walk down the sidewalk of any downtown Main Street while smoking.

The new prohibitions apply to vaping, too. Its all part of a new law Gov. Ned Lamont signed Tuesday at the state Capitol.

You dont recall the debate? Thats because it didnt happen. The stricter cigarette smoking rules were baked into the new marijuana legalization law, 295 pages long. And of course, they all apply to smoking or vaping marijuana.

Lawmakers and Lamont agreed on the sweeping restrictions from the start, with little if any dissent. They had two goals in mind: First, they wanted to restrict where people in Connecticut could smoke marijuana. Yes, possession and private consumption of pot becomes legal for anyone 21 or older on July 1, but that doesnt mean its a smart idea to let six friends to fire up joints right outside the door of a restaurant or a town hall.

Restricting marijuana, in practical reality, meant restricting all smoking. After all, the reasoning goes, it will be hard enough to police public marijuana smoking without having to sort out what it is thats being smoked.

And secondly, as Rep. Michael DAgostino, D-Hamden, told me, Those were updates that were going to be made regardless of whether we did cannabis.

Connecticuts Clean Air Act keeps a lid of second-hand smoke, so it made sense to write the reforms to that law into the cannabis legislation because the Clean Air Act had to include cannabis anyway.

Im good with that, Lamont said when I asked him about the strict new smoking rules that will take effect in the fall.

Most people agree. In fact, as common as cigarettes remain in Connecticut  they will raise nearly $350 million this year at $3.90 a pack in excise taxes  smoking in public isnt nearly as common as it was a few years ago. Most restaurants have really gone away from allowing smoking at all, said Scott Dolch, president of the Connecticut Restaurant Association.

He was talking about outside dining areas, where its still allowed, with restrictions. The new law tightens those up even more.

It was a festive night at the Old Post Tavern in Fairfield Center on Monday, as music filled the outdoor dining area, part of a townwide evening of live music. I told Carol Carbin, a local teacher, about the new rules as we arrived at the same time. She doesnt smoke but sometimes vapes.

I dont like it, but maybe it will make me quit, Carbin said, giving the answer public health officials had in mind when the state added the new restrictions.

Inside, owner Patrick Tennaro said hes just fine with the new rules. He already doesnt allow smoking at the outside tables; the town owns that part of the property. Some patrons step out to the sidewalk for a smoke  which will become illegal on Oct. 1.

Ill have less cigarette butts Ill have to clean up, said Tennaro, whos clearly a very hands-on owner, as I also saw him busing tables.

The ban on smoking along sidewalks outside of establishments raises a question. How am I as a restaurateur supposed to police this? Tennaro asked.

The answer is, hes not. That, said DAgostino, co-chairman of the legislatures General Law Committee, a strong supporter of cannabis legalization, will be up to the towns, which control the sidewalks.

Two smokers and their friend outside a small market on Bridgeports Main Street, north of downtown, recoiled at the rules in the new law. I dont think its right, said the non-smoker, who identified himself as Shea Bionic. You should be able to smoke a cigarette outside wherever, right?

We counted off 25 feet. Even on that very wide sidewalk, it put us in the road, where buses pull up for a stop.

They all agreed the Bridgeport police wouldnt likely enforce the rule but suburban towns might  selectively, against some people, in their view.

As for all those soon-to-be-banned nicotine breaks in office lounges, on sidewalks, in prisons and on the platforms leading to the doorways of government buildings  all part of cannabis legalization  we will eventually see a culture change, as we did inside restaurants and bars.

State Senate Republican Leader Kevin Kelly, R-Stratford, doesnt oppose the restrictions but said this week he couldnt help noticing an irony. I think theres a disconnect with the majority between looking at smoking as a public health issue and then saying recreational marijuana is okay, he said.

Ironically or not, marijuana legalization has become a venue for one of the furthest reaching smoking restrictions Connecticut has ever seen. Another change: Under current law, workplaces with 5 or fewer people are exempt from the no-smoking-in-workplaces rules, but that will end on Oct. 1.

Through the passage of this law we have taken the next step in restricting areas where the public will be subjected to second-hand smoke, said Rep. Steve Stafstrom, D-Bridgeport, co-chairman of the Judiciary Committee. The bottom line is, anyplace that smoking tobacco is illegal, either smoking or vaping cannabis will also be illegal.

dhaar@hearstmediact.com
NEW YORK (AP)  Federal officials said Wednesday they plan to strengthen cautions about a rare side effect of some COVID-19 vaccines  chest pain and heart inflammation, mostly among teenagers and young adults.

But in an unusual joint statement, top U.S. government health officials, medical organizations, laboratory and hospital associations and others stressed the overriding benefit of the vaccines.

The facts are clear: this is an extremely rare side effect, and only an exceedingly small number of people will experience it after vaccination. Importantly, for the young people who do, most cases are mild, and individuals recover often on their own or with minimal treatment, the statement said.

There does seem to be a link between the Pfizer and Moderna shots and some cases of heart inflammation, experts said at a meeting Wednesday of an outside panel that advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on vaccinations.

The problem appears to be most common in young men after they receive their second of two doses, but it is nevertheless rare overall: There have been 323 confirmed reports of the inflammation in people younger than 30, and the vast majority recovered from their symptoms.

That risk seems to me, and to many others, to be much lower than the risk of COVID, said Dr. Brian Feingold, a University of Pittsburgh heart specialist who is not a member of the panel.

There have been nearly 2,800 COVID-19 deaths among adolescents and young adults, and more than 4,000 youths have suffered a dangerous condition called MIS-C that appears to be linked to the coronavirus. COVID-19 itself also can cause heart inflammation.

The expert panel did not vote to change its recommendation to CDC that Americans as young as 12 get the shots.

CDC officials said Wednesday that they plan to update their guidance to say that anyone who suffers the heart inflammation after one dose of the vaccine can defer a second shot. Meanwhile, the Food and Drug Administration is planning to put together a product warning that notes the risk.

One of the first Americans diagnosed with vaccine-linked heart inflammation was Sean Morrison, a scientist in Dallas. Three days after his second dose, he developed intense pain in his chest that he said felt like a heart attack.

He was hospitalized for four days as doctors investigated. They did not see any lingering effects, but they advised him avoid exercise so his heart could recover.

Morrison, a stem cell biologist at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, praised the vaccines as a crucial weapon in the battle against a virus that has killed about 600,000 Americans. But he also called for more research into the side effect.

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The Associated Press Health & Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institutes Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
DALLAS (AP)  More than 150 employees at a Houston hospital system who refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine have been fired or resigned after a judge dismissed an employee lawsuit over the vaccine requirement.

A spokesperson for Houston Methodist hospital system said 153 employees either resigned in the two-week suspension period or were terminated on Tuesday.

The case over how far health care institutions can go to protect patients and others against the coronavirus has been closely watched. It's believed to be the first of its kind in the U.S. But it wont be the end of the debate.

Earlier this month, a federal judge threw out the lawsuit filed by 117 employees over the requirement. The hospital system's decision in April to require the vaccine for workers made it the first major U.S. health care system to do so.

The Houston Methodist employees who filed the lawsuit likened their situation to medical experiments performed on unwilling victims in Nazi concentration camps during World War II. U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes called that comparison reprehensible and said claims made in the lawsuit that the vaccines are experimental and dangerous are false.

Hughes, who dismissed the lawsuit on June 12, said that if the employees didn't like the requirement, they could go work elsewhere.

Those who filed the lawsuit have already appealed the judges dismissal to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

The hospital system had required employees to complete their immunization by June 7. The next day, 178 employees were suspended for two weeks without pay for not complying.

Jennifer Bridges, a registered nurse who is the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit against Houston Methodist, said her director called her Tuesday to ask if she'd gotten the vaccine yet or made any effort to do so. She said that when she replied absolutely not," she was told that she was terminated.

We all knew we were getting fired today," said Bridges, 39. "We knew unless we took that shot to come back, we were getting fired today. There was no ifs, ands or buts.

She had worked for 6 years at the medical-surgical in-patient unit at Houston Methodists hospital in the suburb of Baytown.

Bridges said Tuesday was also her first day at her new job at a company that sends nurses into people's homes.

Im hoping if we win this at a federal level then theyre going to create laws to protect employees from having to go through this anywhere else in the country, said Bridges, who said she does not have confidence in the vaccine's safety.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said that while a small number of health problems have been reported, COVID-19 vaccines are safe and highly effective.

Other hospital systems around the country, including in Washington, D.C., Indiana, Maryland, Pennsylvania and most recently New York, have followed Houston Methodist and have also gotten pushback.

Legal experts say such vaccine requirements, particularly in a public health crisis, will probably continue be upheld in court as long as employers provide reasonable exemptions, including for medical conditions or religious objections.

Harris Methodist has said some employees got medical or religious exemptions, and some were deferred for pregnancy or other reasons.

But Houston Methodists president and CEO, Marc Boom, has said nearly 25,000 of the systems more than 26,000 workers have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

You did the right thing. You protected our patients, your colleagues, your families and our community. The science proves that the vaccines are not only safe but necessary if we are going to turn the corner against COVID-19, Boom said in a statement to employees.
HARTFORD  On the 50th anniversary of the war on drugs, the state Senate put the finishing touches Thursday on legislation to legalize marijuana in Connecticut.

On July 1, it will be legal for adults over 21 to have an ounce-and-a-half of marijuana, plus another five ounces in a locked container. Retail sales in Connecticut may begin as soon as next spring, under legislation the state Senate approved in a 16-11 vote after a 70-minute debate on Thursday morning.

Lamont, who campaigned in 2018 with a promise to legalize adult use of cannabis, announced within minutes of the vote that he looks forward to signing the bill into law.

Its fitting that the bill legalizing the adult use of cannabis and addressing the injustices caused by the war of drugs received final passage today, on the 50-year anniversary of President Nixon declaring the war, Lamont said in a statement. The war on cannabis, which was at its core a war on people in Black and brown communities, not only caused injustices and increased disparities in our state, it did little to protect public health and safety. 

The bill, which passed with nine senators absent in the special session, was the third time in 10 days that the Senate voted in favor of landmark legislation that will make Connecticut the 19th state, plus the District of Columbia, to legalize recreational marijuana.

The bill focuses on cannabis business opportunities for inner-city neighborhoods that have been targets for generations in the failed war on drugs. It also contains strong language designed to make it easier for labor unions to organize workers.

National marijuana advocates called the legislation a model for the country.

Sen. Gary Winfield, D-New Haven, co-chairman of the Judiciary Committee, who introduced the bill, noted that Thursday was the 50th anniversary of Nixons press conference declaring the ar on drugs. That long effort targeted the counterculture, the anti-Vietnam War movement and communities of color in urban areas.

It has come to be acknowledged that those individuals who worked for Richard Nixon had certain intentions, Winfield said. We put in place unjust laws.

Regulation vs. prohibition

Opponents in the Senate, all of them Republicans, said Conneticut should distinguish itself by not legalizing recreational marijuana sales.

I dont believe that just because other states are going down this path, that we should, said Sen. John Kissel of Enfield, the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee. Why cant Connecticut be that shining city on the hill? An oasis?

Kissel added, My concerns regarding our young people and the message that the underlying bill sends to our young people is of concern. He said that towns and cities in the eastern part of the state are suffering economically, and he is concerned that citizens there might be shut out of business opportunities that favor underserved neighborhoods.

Its not just about New Haven, Hartford and Bridgeport, Winfield replied. It goes beyond that.

Kissel admitted he has constituents who believe that marijuana is less dangerous to public health than alcohol.

State Senate Minority Leader Kevin Kelly, R-Stratford, warned of adverse health effects for adults and children.

By contrast, Lamont, like most other Democrats, contends that a regulated market is safer than what we have now.

By allowing adults to possess cannabis, regulating its sale and content, training police officers in the latest techniques of detecting and preventing impaired driving, and expunging the criminal records of people with certain cannabis crimes, were not only effectively modernizing our laws and addressing inequities, were keeping Connecticut economically competitive with our neighboring states, he said in the written statement.

Social equity measures

An April poll from Sacred Heart Universityin Fairfield indicated that 64 percent of the state favors its full legalization.

People overwhelmingly think the legislature did the right thing getting it passed, Lamont said at an unrelated event in Wethersfield. Were going to get it going, soon. I think it makes a big difference.

The he quipped, referring to a last-minute hitch that nearly derailed the effort Tuesday night, Lets sign it before somebody changes their mind.

The final version of the legislation, which easily passed the House of Representatives late Wednesday, was nearly identical to a bill that cleared the Senate early June 8, but which died at midnight June 9 when the House failed to act before the regular legislative session ended.

A Senate bill approved Tuesday would have given people arrested on marijuana crimes favorable treatment in seeking business licenses, in addition to people who live in or grew up in underserved communities. That was not part of a deal negotiated by lawmakers and Lamont. The House stripped those sections from the bill on Wednesday after Lamont threatened a veto  leading to the need for Thursdays Senate vote.

Democrats who voted against the bill Thursday included Sen. Steve Cassano, of Manchester; Sen. Christine Cohen, of Guilford; Sen. Joan Hartley, of Waterbury, and Sen. Dennis Bradley, of Bridgeport. No Republicans voted for it. Sen. Kevin Witkos, R-Canton, who voted for it previously, was absent from Wednesdays hastily called session.

The bill will provide paths for people who have been convicted of lower-level drug possession offenses to erase their criminal records. Eligible people in the social-equity provisions of the legislation will be able to seek cultivation and production partnerships and other business opportunities, including retail, marketing and delivery, under the multi-agency program headed by the state Department of Consumer Protection and a new Social Equity Council.

Sen. Dan Champagne, R-Vernon, a former police officer, charged that the 15-member Social Equity Council would be almost entirely populated by Democrats, which he characterized as partisan. I also fear where the money ends up, he said. I also have concerns that in many places throughout this bill that the police are basically handcuffed.

Sen. Tony Hwang, a staunch opponent of legalized marijuana, provoked Winfields ire by painting a picture of broken lives of addiction and proclaiming the bill is focused on tax revenue, and had not been discussed thoroughly enough by the legislature.

In 1971 when the war on drugs started, there was policy that was intended to negatively impact certain citizens, Winfield said, stressing he has been working on legalization since around the time he joined the legislature in 2009. Thats not the way laws are supposed to be made. The reason why I think this is important, is because we have operated for 50 years with unjust laws that target certain communities. Weve damaged the lives of human beings in the United States of America who are a certain hue, because of politics.

Projections for tax revenue in a new legal cannabis market exceed $73 million by the 2025-26 fiscal year, but only $4 million in the budget year that starts July 1, as the program gets off the ground.

Ending a long era

The states medical marijuana program, approved in 2012, serves 54,097 patients. In recent years, the state has decreased criminal penalties for possessing small amount of cannabis.

Senate President Pro Tempore Martin Looney, D-New Haven, said while the tone of some of the debate would indicate its a new issue, in fact, cannabis has been present for decades.

It is here in an amount and visibility and accessibility that probably wont be any different once it is legal for adults, Looney said. We will have a regulated product, a taxed product, and a system for use by adults, as we have for tobacco, as we have for alcohol.

He stressed that most of the focus of talks among lawmakers and the governors office centered on the social equity pieces of the bill to help minority communities that might have been harmed since the 1937 outlawing of marijuana.

Under General Assembly rules, the bill was transmitted to Lamonts office immediately, meaning he could have signed it Thursday afternoon, but he is likely to wait until next week.

Adam Wood, state spokesman for the Marijuana Policy Project, said the law contains meaningful public safety and health regulations, as well as employment and economic opportunities.

The Connecticut Legislatures commitment to legalizing cannabis through a justice-centered approach is commendable, Wood said. For decades, cannabis prohibition and criminalization has harmed some of the states most vulnerable communities. This bill not only ends this failed and unjust policy, but it also includes measures that will work to repair the harm that it has caused.

kdixon@ctpost.com Twitter: @KenDixonCT
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP)  After enjoying nearly four months without any community transmission of the coronavirus, New Zealanders were on edge Wednesday after health authorities said an infectious traveler from Australia had visited over the weekend.

New Zealand has taken a zero-tolerance approach to the pandemic and continues to pursue an elimination strategy.

The country's response has been among the most effective in the world and the isolated nation of 5 million people has recorded just 26 COVID-19 deaths. But its vaccination campaign has been far slower than in most developed countries, with just 13% of the population having gotten their first dose.

Although there were no immediate cases confirmed as a result of the traveler's visit from Sydney to New Zealand's capital Wellington, authorities were asking people at more than a dozen locations to self-isolate for two weeks and get tested.

They also imposed physical distancing requirements in the Wellington region and restricted crowd sizes to 100 from Wednesday evening through Sunday.

Im confident that if we do all the things we have done in the past, if people do what is asked of them, we will reduce the risk, said Ashley Bloomfield, the director-general of health.

Bloomfield said the traveler was linked to a Sydney outbreak of the more contagious Delta variant that originated in India.

The outbreak in Australias largest city has grown to 31 cases and led to a tightening of restrictions

It began last week when a Sydney airport limousine driver tested positive. He was not vaccinated and is suspected to have been infected while transporting a foreign air crew.

Residents living in the worst-affected parts of Sydney have been told they can only travel outside the city for essential reasons. Authorities have also made masks compulsory outside homes and limited the number of household visitors to five.

New Zealand has stopped quarantine-free travel from the Australian state of New South Wales for at least three days.

New Zealand and Australia opened a quarantine-free travel bubble in April, although it has been temporarily halted several times as Australia has dealt with small community outbreaks.

Health authorities said the traveler had visited New Zealand's national museum Te Papa as well as a number of restaurants, stores and tourist spots. Te Papa announced it was closed and would provide updates as the situation unfolded.

Health authorities said the traveler visited Wellington from Saturday through Monday before returning to Australia and testing positive for COVID-19. They said four close contacts of the traveler were self-isolating and had all tested negative for the virus.

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Associated Press writer Rod McGuirk in Canberra, Australia, contributed to this report.
NEW HAVEN  With just over a week left in the fiscal year, the state has yet to disburse Tweed New Haven Regional Airports $1.5 million annual subsidy and Tweed Executive Director Sean Scanlon said he worries the Connecticut Airport Authority is sitting on the money.

But CAA Executive Director Kevin Dillon, whose agency oversees Bradley International Airport, said the money for Tweed comes from a tax on the sale of aviation fuel, primarily at Bradley, and that fund has been down significantly as a result of a drastic drop in aviation activity as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

In recent months, there has been some recovery, but its certainly not back to where it was, Dillon said. Tweed was offered a portion of their subsidy back in the fall, for which they never signed the grant. He estimated that proposed grant at $200,000 to $300,000.

Arnold Gold / Hearst Connecticut Media

It was my understanding that subsequently Tweed decided to take this matter up with the Office of Policy and Management, Dillon said. He said he did not know what came of those discussions.

Dillon, who has called for more coordination between Tweed and Bradley if Tweed is going to expand  is in charge of the disbursement, with approval by Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management Melissa McKaw.

An OPM spokesman did not immediately to respond to a request for comment.

We agree that coordination is important. But it must be coordination amongst partners, not coordination (with) somebody who holds something over our head, said Scanlon.

Scanlon said he didnt understand how the money could not be there.

Every week for the last few weeks I have read an announcement in the paper of a new airline announcing that theyre serving Bradley, and Bradleys load factors have gotten better and better in recent month, Scanlon said.

With regard to any lower figure, Its not his offer to make. Were owed $1.5 million based on what the General Assembly approved, Scanlon said. He offered us half the money and wanted us to sign a letter agreeing to various conditions, he said.

The idea that he didnt have the money to give me in July of 2020 when we were just three months into the pandemic is understandable, but now were a year... past that ... and I know for a fact that he has collected enough in the last six months to give us what they are supposed to give us.

Dillon acknowledged that there has been some improvement in recent months. Its starting to recover, so we may have to do a recalculation of whats owed, he said.

Contributed / AvPORTS

But Tweed, as well as many airports  just about any airport across the country  received federal assistance to make up for the loss of many revenue streams, and its deficiency has been more than made up by the federal assistance that they have received and will be receiving, Dillon said.

Scanlon also is a Democratic state representative representing Guilford and Branford, and is the House chairman of the legislative Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee. He said his legislative position is a totally separate issue and has never come up in his discussions with Dillon.

The General Assembly has long allocated Tweed the $1.5 million subsidy, which comes from taxes on aviation fuel sales. It shifted the authority to disburse it from the state commissioner of transportation to the executive director of the CAA when it passed Public Act 19-123 on July 9, 2019.

Scanlon said Dillon initially told him in early 2020 that the CAA didnt have the money because of the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

Since then, he said he has spoken to Dillon several times and Ive spoken to the Secretary. I have expressed to her and the administration my uneasiness with the CAA in relation ... to this situation...

Scanlon acknowledged that its a short-term problem, however, because we hope that this will be the last fiscal year that would require the subsidy.

Tweed and its contract manager, Avports LLC, announced plans last month for a project totaling more than $100 million to lengthen Tweeds existing by 1,035 feet to clear the way for more direct flights to more destinations and build a new, carbon-neutral, 74,000-square-foot terminal  roughly three times the size of the existing terminal  with four gates, expandable to six gates on the East Haven side of the airport.

Avports, under a new 43-year contract with Tweed, will front the money for the project, eliminating the need for existing state and city subsidies, which currently total $1.8 million per year.

They also announced the start of new air service by start-up Avelo Airlines in the third quarter of this year. Avelo also has agreed to a $1.2 million contribution for shorter-term improvements at the existing terminal to provide a better experience for passengers while the new terminal is being planned, designed and built.

A new entrance to the airport would be off Proto Drive, with an approach along Hemingway Avenue in East Haven.

mark.zaretsky@hearstmediact.com
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP)  As the U.S. emerges from the COVID-19 crisis, Missouri is becoming a cautionary tale for the rest of the country: It is seeing an alarming rise in cases because of a combination of the fast-spreading delta variant and stubborn resistance among many people to getting vaccinated.

Intensive care beds are filling up with surprisingly young, unvaccinated patients, and staff members are getting burned out fighting a battle that was supposed to be in its final throes.

The hope among some health leaders is that the rest of the U.S. might at least learn something from Missouri's plight.

If people elsewhere in the country are looking to us and saying, No thanks' and they are getting vaccinated, that is good," said Erik Frederick, chief administrative officer at Mercy Hospital Springfield, which has been inundated with COVID-19 patients as the variant first identified in India rips through the largely non-immunized community. We will be the canary.

The state now leads the nation with the highest rate of new COVID-19 infections, and the surge is happening largely in a politically conservative farming region in the northern part of the state and in the southwestern corner, which includes Springfield and Branson, the country music mecca in the Ozark Mountains where big crowds are gathering again at the city's theaters and other attractions.

While over 53% of all Americans have received at least one shot, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, most southern and northern Missouri counties are well short of 40%. One county is at just 13%.

Cases remain below their winter highs in southwestern Missouri, but the trajectory is steeper than in previous surges, Frederick said. As of Tuesday, 153 COVID-19 patients were hospitalized at Mercy and another Springfield hospital, Cox Health, up from 31 just over a month ago, county figures show.

These patients are also younger than earlier in the pandemic  60% to 65% of those in the ICU over the weekend at Mercy were under 40, according to Frederick, who noted that younger adults are much less likely to be vaccinated  and some are pregnant.

He is hiring traveling nurses and respiratory therapists to help out his fatigued staff as the rest of the country tries to leave the pandemic behind.

I feel like last year at this time it was health care heroes and everybody was celebrating and bringing food to the hospital and doing prayer vigils and stuff, and now everyone is like, The lake is open. Lets go.' We are still here doing this," he said.

There are also warning signs across the state line: Arkansas on Tuesday reported its biggest one-day jump in cases in more than three months. The state also has low vaccination rates.

Lagging rates  especially among young adults  are becoming an increasing source of concern elsewhere around the country, as is the delta variant.

The mutant version now accounts more than 20% of new COVID-19 infections in the U.S., doubling in just two weeks, the CDC said Tuesday. It is responsible for half of new cases across a swath that includes Missouri, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming.

The delta variant is currently the greatest threat in the U.S. to our attempt to eliminate COVID-19, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nations top infectious disease expert. He said there is a real danger of local surges like the one in Missouri in places with deep vaccine resistance.

To help counter the threat, administration officials are stepping up efforts to vaccinate Americans ages 18 to 26, who have proved least likely to get the shot when its available to them.

Elsewhere around the world, Britain, with an even higher vaccination rate than the U.S., has postponed the lifting of remaining restrictions on socializing in England because of the rapid spread of the variant. Israel, another vaccination success story, is reacting by tightening rules on travelers.

In Missouri, Republican Gov. Mike Parson has taken the position that it is better to ask people to take personal responsibility" than to enact restrictions.

Missouri never had a mask mandate, and Parson signed a law last week placing limits on public health restrictions and barring governments from requiring proof of vaccination to use public facilities and transportation.

Missouri Health Department spokeswoman Lisa Cox said the agency is encouraging people to get vaccinated, but confessed: This is the Show-Me State and Missourians are skeptical.

Frederick said some people in the heavily Republican state are resistant because they feel as if Democrats are pushing the vaccine.

I keep telling people, while we are busy fighting with each other, this thing is picking us off one by one, he said. It takes no sides. It has no political affiliation. It is not red. It is not blue. It is a virus. And if we dont protect ourselves, we are going to do a lot of damage to our community.

Steve Edwards, CEO of Cox Health, lamented in a tweet that while a number of major news organizations have contacted the hospital about the rise in cases, Fox News was not among them.

Fox," he tweeted, is the most popular cable news in our area  you can help educate on Delta, vaccines and can save lives."

Lisa Meeks, 49, of Springfield, is among those who haven't been vaccinated. She said that she is a Christian and that God gave her a strong immune system.

As of right now, nobody knows anything long term or short term about these vaccines because they are brand new," she said, despite months of real-world evidence that the vaccines are highly safe and effective. And so people are now basically the lab rats."

An offer of free beer from Mother's Brewing Co. in Springfield for those who get vaccinated drew a disappointing 20 to 50 people to each of the first three clinics.

We keep trying, said Jeff Schrag, owner and founder of Mothers Brewing. It is a game of inches.

As immunizations slow, the delta variant has become the predominant form of the virus in the region. Aaron Schekorra, a spokesman for the Springfield-Greene County Health Department, said it makes up 93% of the random sample of cases that the county is sending for analysis, up from 70% three weeks ago.

He said that unvaccinated people gathering for graduation celebrations and Memorial Day festivities also fueled the spread of the virus. The events came just as the community lifted its mask mandate.

My concern," he said, would be that this is a preview of what is to come in other parts of the country that dont have higher vaccination rates."
The federal government will investigate its past oversight of Native American boarding schools and work to uncover the truth about the loss of human life and the lasting consequences of policies that over the decades forced hundreds of thousands of children from their families and communities, U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland announced Tuesday.

The unprecedented work will include compiling and reviewing records to identify past boarding schools, locate known and possible burial sites at or near those schools, and uncover the names and tribal affiliations of students, she said.

Evan Vucci/AP

To address the intergenerational impact of Indian boarding schools and to promote spiritual and emotional healing in our communities, we must shed light on the unspoken traumas of the past no matter how hard it will be, Haaland said.

A member of New Mexicos Laguna Pueblo and the first Native American to serve as a Cabinet secretary, Haaland outlined the initiative while addressing members of the National Congress of American Indians during the groups midyear conference.

She said the process will be long, difficult and painful and will not undo the heartbreak and loss endured by many families.

Starting with the Indian Civilization Act of 1819, the U.S. enacted laws and policies to establish and support Indian boarding schools across the nation. For over 150 years, Indigenous children were taken from their communities and forced into boarding schools that focused on assimilation.

Haaland talked about the federal government's attempt to wipe out tribal identity, language and culture and how that past has continued to manifest itself through long-standing trauma, cycles of violence and abuse, premature deaths, mental health issues and substance abuse.

The recent discovery of children's remains buried at the site of what was once Canadas largest Indigenous residential school has magnified interest in the troubling legacy both in Canada and the United States.

In Canada, more than 150,000 First Nations children were required to attend state-funded Christian schools as part of a program to assimilate them into society. They were forced to convert to Christianity and were not allowed to speak their languages. Many were beaten and verbally abused, and up to 6,000 are said to have died.

After reading about the unmarked graves in Canada, Haaland recounted her own family's story in a recent opinion piece published by the Washington Post.

Haaland cited statistics from the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition, which reported that by 1926, more than 80% of Indigenous school-age children were attending boarding schools that were run either by the federal government or religious organizations. Besides providing resources and raising awareness, the coalition has been working to compile additional research on U.S. boarding schools and deaths that many say is sorely lacking.

Interior Department officials said aside from trying to shed more light on the loss of life at the boarding schools, they will be working to protect burial sites associated with the schools and will consult with tribes on how best to do that while respecting families and communities.

As part of the initiative, a final report from agency staff is due by April 1, 2022.

Chuck Hoskin Jr., principal chief of the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma, which had about 80 boarding schools, called the announcement encouraging and said anything that can be done to address those troubling chapters of history is a positive thing.

I hope we dont discover gruesome incidents like were discovered in Canada. I just think its good in this country to have conversations about what happened to Native American children, Hoskin said.

Navajo Nation President Nez also offered his support for the initiative, noting discrimination against Native Americans continues today on many fronts  from voter suppression to high numbers of missing and murdered people.

Last week, Congress and President Biden established Juneteenth as a national holiday, in observance of the end of slavery, which I fully support as a means to healing the African American community," Nez said. Now, from my perspective as a Navajo person, there are so many atrocities and injustices that have been inflicted upon Native Americans dating back hundreds of years to the present day that also require national attention, so that the American society in general is more knowledgeable and capable of understanding the challenges that we face today.

This is not the first time the federal government has attempted to acknowledge what Haaland referred to as a dark history.

More than two decades ago, Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Kevin Gover issued an apology for the emotional, psychological, physical and spiritual violence committed against children at the off-reservation schools. Then in 2009, President Barack Obama quietly signed off on an apology of sorts that was buried deep in a multibillion-dollar defense spending bill; the language had been watered down from the original legislation introduced years earlier.

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Associated Press writer Ken Miller in Oklahoma City contributed to this report.

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This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Kevin Gover's last name.
More than a month after Gov. Ned Lamont lifted COVID restrictions, towns are still taking different approaches to mask use in government buildings.

We follow state guidance, and we have followed state guidance all along throughout the pandemic, Old Saybrook First Selectman Carl Fortuna said. At the moment, there are no restrictions in town hall at all. Nor should there be, in my opinion.

Fortuna pointed to the states recent low transmission rate, and while that may change in the future, he thinks Lamont was spot-on in his guidance. Fortuna said people were afraid cases and deaths would spike when the state lifted restrictions, but that hasnt appeared to happen.

They were all wrong, he said. Theyre wrong because, No. 1, viruses are seasonal. No. 2, and more importantly, Connecticut is a very vaccinated state. Old Saybrook, were over 80 percent vaccinated. Were good.

Up the Connecticut River in Middletown, Mayor Ben Florsheim said city employees can go to work without a mask if they are vaccinated and show their vaccination card to human resources. He said members of the public are also allowed to enter government buildings without masks as long as they are fully vaccinated, but noted the city uses the honor system.

We dont really have the capacity to verify with everyone, but we have a high vaccination rate, he said, noting that Middlesex County has consistently led the state, and its been working well for the last month or so since we instituted the policy.

Kevin Elak, the citys acting director of health, said Middletown made the change in line with guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He said he is still seeing a good number of people come in the the building with face coverings, but noted that could be a comfort-level thing.

I think when we first changed the policy that people, including myself, were still wearing a mask because we were used to wearing it, he said. Then, maybe in the past week or two, Im starting to not wear the mask anymore around the building. But I still see people wearing it, which is totally fine.

Elak said he still sees a decent number of businesses that are requiring masks in Middletown. But, Elak said, he has seen businesses, such as grocery stores, that are only requiring masks for people who are not vaccinated.

Essex First Selectman Norm Needleman said the town is requiring the public to still wear masks when they enter municipal buildings.

People who work there, who are fully vaccinated, dont have to wear masks, he said, noting that some employees are not yet vaccinated because of medical conditions. I think that well probably revisit that whole policy on July 1.

Needleman said people are comfortable with having some level of mask use in the building because officials do not know who is actually vaccinated.

I could see a point in which we say, Anyone who is unvaccinated has to continue to wear a mask, but were not checking or doing admission, he said. Its 100 percent on the honor system.

Needleman said many in the community are seeking a return to normalcy.

People are comfortable and (businesses) are going more on the honor system, he said. I think thats where were going to be.

In East Haddam, masks are still required in town buildings. First Selectman Robert Smith said the policy remains in effect because the town does not know who is vaccinated.

When you are in a situation with a limited amount of people in the room with room enough to separate, then we allow people to take their masks off, he said, noting employees who have been vaccinated can also go without masks. But the public areas, if youre just walking in to do a permit and stuff, then you have to wear a mask.

Smith said businesses in East Haddam are a hodgepodge when it comes to mask requirements.

Some still require a mask for everything, he said. Some are saying mask unless youve been vaccinated. Some people dont even care anymore.

joshua.labella@hearstmediact.com
A Groton man who sexually abused multiple children has been sentenced to over 200 years in prison for child pornography offesnses tied to the abuse, according to federal prosecutors.

U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Meyer sentenced 32-year-old Randall Tilton, who was serving as a U.S. Navy mechanic at the time of his arrest, to 210 years in prison on Tuesday, the U.S. Attorneys office said. He had previously pleaded guilty to seven child porn production charges.

[Tuesdays] sentence will ensure that Mr. Tilton will not be able to inflict physical and emotional pain on our societys most vulnerable population, David Sundberg, a special agent charged with the Federal Bureau of Investigations New Haven division, said in the release. The horrific nature of these crimes serves as a constant reminder of why we as law enforcement and all residents of this country must do everything we can to protect our children at all times.

Tilton was first arrested in November 2019, authorities said, after he admitted to Groton police that he had sexually assaulted several minors and recorded some of the assaults.

Investigators examined a laptop, tablet, cellphone and several flash drives seized from Tilton that showed he had sexually assaulted seven girls, between four months old and eight years old, prosecutors siad.

Tilton photographed and video recorded many of these sexual assaults. Some of the images depict a minor victim bound and restrained while Tilton sexually assaulted her, the U.S. Attorneys office said.

Tilton. also shared some videos on the dark web through the Tor network, the release said.

Tiltons electronic devices also included thousands of images and videos of the sexual abuse of other minors, including sadomasochistic images of minors in bondage, sexual assaults on infants, and sexual acts on the corpse of a minor, the U.S. Attorneys office said.

Groton police chief Louis Fusaro referred to the case as among the most disturbing and heinous series of acts that any law enforcement officer will ever encounter in their careers.

Through the investigation, authorities determined that Tilton had sexually assaulted children in Connecticut, New Hampshire and California, according to the U.S. Attorneys office.
GUILFORD  As organizers affiliated with a group opposing lessons on systemic racism say they expect a big crowd at a forum Thursday, another group says they plan to protest the event outside the community center.

The forum, scheduled for 7:30 pm, advertises speakers who have written in opposition to critical race theory, a controversial academic framework through which to view systems of racism and oppression in America.

Its alleged presence in schools has been the source of debate in the last year and has polarized people in Guilford, as well as nationally. Guilford Superintendent of Schools Paul Freeman has denied that critical race theory is taught in the towns schools.

The events organizers from the group Truth in Education opposed the creation of an equity and social justice initiative for Guilfords school district, calling it indoctrination.

Parents of students in Guilford schools have claimed the movement is just a word salad of terms that promotes the unequal treatment of students.

Truth In Education, the Connecticut chapter of No Left Turn In Education, is calling the event a much-needed informational forum on critical race theory, which is rapidly being implemented in our Guilford School Community under the guise of equity and social justice.

The forum will include guest speakers Mike Breen, Dan Richards and Guilford High School alum Tony Dinse, according to organizers.

Breen is the New Hampshire state director for No Left Turn in Education, a group that opposes leftist agenda sweeping into public education.

Richards leads Global Rescue, a company that provides medical, security, intelligence, and crisis response services to corporations, governments and individuals.

In promotional materials for the event, Richards condemns critical race theory, a decades-old academic concept, as akin to the totalitarian ideologies yours and my ancestors fought against.

The group also said Dinese, a 2013 Guilford High School grad, will speak at the event.

Organizers said the town is limiting the space to 200 people, potentially with an overflow room of 100 people.

christine.derosa@hearstmediact.com
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HONG KONG (AP)  Hong Kongs sole remaining pro-democracy newspaper published its last edition Thursday after five editors and executives were arrested and millions of dollars in its assets were frozen as part of China's increasing crackdown on dissent in the semi-autonomous city.

The board of directors of Apple Daily parent company Next Media said in a statement Wednesday that the print and online editions would cease due to the current circumstances prevailing in Hong Kong.

The silencing of a prominent pro-democracy voice was the latest sign of China's determination to exert greater control over the city long known for its freedoms after huge anti-government protests there in 2019 shook the government. Since then, Beijing has imposed a strict national security law  used in the arrests of the newspaper employees  and revamped Hong Kong's election laws to keep opposition voices out of the legislature.

Apple Daily was founded by tycoon Jimmy Lai in 1995  just two years before Britain handed Hong Kong back to China  and initially was a tabloid known for celebrity gossip. But Lai also portrayed the paper as an advocate of democratic values and said it should shine a light on snakes, insects, mice and ants in the dark," according to the paper.

It grew into an outspoken voice for defending Hong Kongs freedoms not found in mainland China, and in recent years it often criticized the Chinese and Hong Kong governments for limiting those freedoms and reneging on a promise to protect them for 50 years after the handover. While pro-democracy media outlets still exist online, it was the only print newspaper of its kind left in the city.

In a post on Instagram, the paper thanked its readers.

Even if the ending is not what we want, even if its difficult to let go, we need to continue living and keep the determination we have shared with Hong Kong people that has remained unchanged over 26 years, Apple Daily wrote.

The newspaper said it planned to print 1 million copies for the final edition, up from the usual 80,000, and people lined up to buy them.

The paper's announcement coincided with the start of the city's first trial under the year-old national security law that is being closely watched as a barometer of how strictly the courts will interpret the legislation.

The widely expected move to close Apple Daily followed last weeks arrests and crucially the freezing of $2.3 million of the papers assets. Its board of directors wrote a few days ago to ask Hong Kongs security bureau to release some of the money so the company could pay wages, but its not clear if it got a response. The paper also said it made the decision to close out of concern for employees safety.

The editors and executives were detained on suspicion of colluding with foreigners to endanger national security. Police cited more than 30 articles published by the paper as evidence of a conspiracy to encourage foreign nations to impose sanctions on Hong Kong and China. It was the first time the national security law had been used against journalists for something they published.

On Wednesday, police also arrested a 55-year-old man on suspicion of foreign collusion to endanger national security, according to Apple Daily, which cited unidentified sources. The paper said the man wrote editorials for it under the pseudonym Li Ping.

Lai, the newspaper's founder, faces charges under the national security law for foreign collusion and is currently serving a prison sentence for his involvement in the 2019 protests.

The move against Apple Daily drew criticism from the U.S., the EU and Britain.

The forced closure by Hong Kong authorities is a chilling demonstration of their campaign to silence all opposition voices, British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said in a Twitter post. It is clearer than ever that the (national security law) is being used to curtail freedom and punish dissent.

German Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Adebahr called the closure a hard blow against press freedom in Hong Kong.

Amnesty International Asia-Pacific Regional Director Yamini Mishra said the police action against Apple Daily will send a shiver down the spine of all media outlets operating in Hong Kong.

The forced closure of Apple Daily is the blackest day for media freedom in Hong Kongs recent history," Mishra said. The paper has been effectively banned by the government for publishing articles that criticized it, and for reporting on international discussions about Hong Kong."

The law, imposed last year, criminalizes subversion, secession, terrorism and foreign collusion. Chinese and Hong Kong officials have said the media must abide by the law, and that press freedom cannot be used as a shield for illegal activities.

The first person to stand trial under the law, Tong Ying-kit, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges of terrorism and inciting secession by driving a motorcycle into police officers during a 2019 rally while carrying a flag with the slogan Liberate Hong Kong, the revolution of our times. Several officers were knocked over and three were injured.

That slogan was often chanted during the 2019 demonstrations, which began as protests against a bill allowing Hong Kong residents to be extradited to China for trial but burgeoned into broader calls for greater democratic freedoms. China was shaken by the breadth of the protests and responded with tough measures, including the national security law, which makes calls for Hong Kong's independence illegal.

Tong's trial will set the tone for how Hong Kong handles national security offenses. So far, more than 100 people have been arrested under the law, with many others fleeing abroad. The result is that it has virtually silenced opposition voices in the city.

A court ruled last month that Tong will stand trial without a jury, a departure from Hong Kong's common law traditions. Under the national security law, a panel of three judges can replace jurors, and the citys leader has the power to designate judges to hear such cases.

The law carries a maximum penalty of life in prison for serious offenses. Tong is on trial at the High Court, where sentences are not capped.

___

Associated Press writer Frank Jordans in Berlin and news assistant Janice Lo contributed to this report.
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP)  The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said Wednesday it would conduct an extensive review of Enbridge Energy's plan to build an oil pipeline tunnel beneath a Great Lakes channel in Michigan, which could significantly delay the project.

The tunnel would house a replacement for a portion of Enbridge's Line 5 that crosses the bottom of the Straits of Mackinac, a roughly 4-mile-long (6.4-kilometers-long) waterway connecting Lake Huron and Lake Michigan.

Michigan's Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy has issued a permit for the $500 million tunnel, but approval from the Army Corps also is needed. The federal agency would consider potential effects on the straits and adjacent wetlands.

The Corps could have settled for a narrowly tailored examination of needs and purposes for the tunnel before making its ruling. But it opted for an environmental impact statement, which involves a more comprehensive study, including consideration of reasonable alternatives.

I have concluded that an EIS is the most appropriate level of review because of the potential for impacts significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, said Jaime A. Pinkham, acting assistant secretary of the Army for civil works.

Thousands of comments from the public and indigenous tribes justified the deeper investigation, Pinkham said, adding that navigation in the busy shipping channel also was also a consideration.

Enbridge had pledged to complete the tunnel by 2024 but is evaluating the timeline in view of the government's decision, which will hold up construction, spokesman Ryan Duffy said.

Placing a pipeline in a new Great Lakes tunnel will provide extra layers of safety and environmental protection and make what is currently a safe pipeline even safer, while creating Michigan jobs and securing the needed energy for consumers in Michigan and the region, Enbridge said.

The Canadian company, based in Calgary, Alberta, reached a deal in 2018 with former Republican Gov. Rick Snyder to construct the tunnel. It came amid pressure from area tribes, tourist businesses and environmental groups to shut down Line 5, which carries oil and natural gas liquids between Superior, Wisconsin, and Sarnia, Ontario.

Critics contend the underwater section  two parallel pipes laid in 1953  is vulnerable to a spill that could pollute hundreds of miles of waters and shorelines. Enbridge, backed by industry and labor groups, says it is in good condition and has never leaked.

Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer ordered Line 5's underwater pipes closed by mid-May, a deadline the company ignored. A lawsuit is pending in federal court. Canada, which has described continued operation of the pipeline as non-negotiable, is pushing the Biden administration to intervene.

The proposed tunnel is a separate regulatory matter. In addition to the Army Corps, Enbridge also awaits approval from the Michigan Public Service Commission.

We are encouraged to see that the Army Corps of Engineers heeded our call to undertake a more rigorous analysis" of the project, said Whitney Gravelle, chairwoman of the Bay Mills Indian Community. The tribe, which has treaty-guaranteed fishing rights in the straits, is very concerned that the pipeline threatens our way of life, she said.

Drilling through bedrock and soils beneath the straits would violate numerous environmental protection laws, said David Holtz of Oil and Water Don't Mix, an anti-Line 5 coalition.

It is difficult to imagine how Enbridges tunnel project can survive the kind of thorough, independent evaluation that is now possible with todays Army Corps decision, Holtz said.

Enbridge said it would continue working with the Corps on its review of company's application and towards a successful conclusion to this process.
BRIDGEPORT  After a 54-year run in Bridgeport, a group of school volunteers has reached the end of the road.

In a letter dated Friday, the School Volunteer Association of Bridgeport informed recipients that the organization is unable to continue to work within the Bridgeport public schools.

The groups dissolution can be dated back to June 2018, when funding for the Office of Volunteer Services was eliminated from the 2018-19 budget. Previously, the School Volunteer Association had been a public-private partnership, with the school board paying the salaries of the offices staff while the association paid for the books, supplies and programming.

The cut, Hearst Connecticut Media reported then, amounted to $161,525, but put nearly 1,000 volunteer positions at risk.

At the time, the association negotiated an agreement to fund two office employees  Joyce Goodwin and Anne Gribbon  with its own cash reserves and endowment. But that funding model proved unsustainable.

While we realize that this system has not been adequately funded for many years and is now facing a myriad of new responsibilities, we are saddened that SVA will no longer be integral to the system, Gribbon, the associations longtime executive director, and her colleague Ed Davies, association president, wrote in the letter.

The group includes many volunteers from neighboring suburban communities, who have spoken out at several school board meetings in an attempt to get the funding restored to no avail. Several volunteers have worked for decades with the district.

The leadership team said they are trying to continue some of its signature programs with other local nonprofits.

The associations elementary school mentorship program will be absorbed by Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Fairfield County, and high school mentors and scholarship program by the Bridgeport Public Education Fund.

Volunteer tutors will work with the Bridgeport Caribe Youth Leaders to expand their existing tutoring program into the regular school day.

But the association could not find a group to manage its yearly fall Read Aloud Day or Reading Enrichment Program.

Bridgeports 35th Annual Read Aloud Day was held virtually last fall, and included guest readers from Bridgeport-native John Ratzenberger to Mayor Joe Ganim.

If you are among these volunteers, we encourage you to contact the teacher with whom you worked in the past and ask if you can return to his/her classroom in the fall, read the letter.

Your generosity and commitment to the children of the Bridgeport public schools have enriched the lives of thousands of children, and you should be proud of your contributions, said association leadership.
BIG SUR, Calif. (AP)  A group of firefighting monks was ready to defend a Buddhist monastery being threatened Tuesday by a wildfire burning in the rugged central coast mountains south of Big Sur.

The seven monks have been clearing brush from around the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center and running a sprinkler system dubbed Dharma rain, which helps keep a layer of moister around the buildings, said Sozan Miglioli, president of San Francisco Zen Center, which operates the monastery.

The blaze is about a mile away but we've been lucky with the weather, it has really cooled down, Miglioli said.

The fire was climbing uphill among chaparral, grass, and scrub. The steep, remote area meant that the 500 firefighters had to hike in to battle the flames. They were aided by water-dropping aircraft.

Most people evacuated the Buddhist center but members of the fire crew stayed. Other firefighting monks joined them from the San Francisco Zen Center and the Green Gulch Farm Zen Center, a third monastery in the Marin County mountains.

The group of firefighting monks was created after a 2008 blaze reached the Tassajara monastery and a dozen stayed behind to defend it. They got their name from a book titled Fire Monks about those who stayed to fight that blaze, Migliogli said.

The monks train every year with professional firefighters and reside in the three monasteries. They travel to centers where they are needed, he said.

Despite all the work, they are still meditating every morning and holding service, Migliogli said.

On the eastern flank of the Sierra Nevada, the Inyo Creek Fire in the Whitney Portal area near the town of Lone Pine thwarted hikers planning to climb Mount Whitney, the tallest peak in the contiguous United States.

The fire was officially estimated at 640 acres (259 hectares) .

Hikers were unable to begin treks at Whitney Portal and rangers were in the wilderness to divert returning hikers to other longer egress trails. Hikers were still being evacuated Tuesday evening, fire officials said.

The fires were among dozens that have scorched large swaths of the West, including in Arizona, Utah and Colorado.

A lightning-caused wildfire crept closer Tuesday to Flagstaff in northern Arizona, threatening to force people from their homes. The mountain city has nearly 80,000 residents, a state university and an observatory where Pluto was discovered.

Evacuations were in place because of several other wildfires across Arizona, affecting mostly rural residents and campers, and many local roads were closed. Half of the national forests in Arizona will to close entirely to the public because of wildfire danger and limited resources, authorities said.
FAIRFIELD  A Facebook post about racism is at the center of a defamation case in town, according to court documents.

According to the complaint, Jason Gladstone, a town resident, has sued Laura Karson, a member of Fairfields Democratic Town Committee and Representative Town Meeting, over a social media post he claims, among other things, included false and defamatory statements regarding him.

Karson filed a special motion to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing, among other things, she has made an initial showing that Gladstones complaint is based on her exercise of her right to free speech, her right to petition the government and her right of association under the constitution in connection with a matter of public concern; that Gladstones claims were insufficiently pled; and that Gladstone cannot establish probable cause that he will prevail on any of his claims.

As of Tuesday, Karsons special motion to dismiss is pending and Gladstone has not yet filed an opposition to the special motion to dismiss.

When reached for comment prior to Karsons filing of the special motion to dismiss, Karsons attorney did not respond to a request for comment and Gladstone, a New Canaan attorney, said all information is in the court documents and declined to comment further.

The suit stemmed from an email sent from Superintendent Mike Cummings to the Fairfield Public Schools community, according to court documents. According to the special motion to dismiss, Cummings said in the email that in the wake of national demonstrations and conversations about racism over the past summer, and with acts of violence against Asian Americans on the rise, he was reaffirming Fairfield Public Schools commitment to racial awareness and anti-racism.

In the superintendents email, which is quoted in Karsons special motion to dismiss, Cummings expressed the school districts commitment to raising staff awareness of inherent biases.

Fairfield Public Schools is committed to continuing to examine our own policies, practices, beliefs, and actions so that we can become aware of the hurt we may cause students, staff, and the community, when we are unmindful of our own inherent biases, Cummings wrote, as quoted in Karsons special motion to dismiss.

Gladstone responded to Cummings email, copying elected officials like Karson, suggesting the superintendent was out of line for his message.

I am truly offended that you would insinuate that I am inherently racist or biased within your March 19, 2021 email, according to the special motion to dismiss.

On March 24, Karson sent an email to Fairfield First Selectwoman Brenda Kupchick to garner support for Cummings.

Throughout the pandemic, Mr. Cummings has demonstrated steady leadership, always putting the best interests of our children first. He is to be commended for dealing with all the challenges COVID-19 has put on our children, teachers, administrators and parents. These are tough times for all of us, but tearing down an educator, accusing him of calling others racists, when in fact he was trying to share his own reflections and ask for everyone in the community to do better, will not lead to a stronger Fairfield, K arson wrote in the email, which is quoted in the special motion to dismiss.

A s quoted in the special motion to dismiss, she also expressed in the email to Kupchick that Gladstone was outraged that Mr. Cummings insinuated he was inherently racist, which couldnt be farther from the truth and Mr. Gladstone and others on the email chain exhibited white fragility, a discomfort and defensiveness on the part of a white person when confronted by information about racial inequality and injustice.

According to Karsons special motion to dismiss, in an attempt to gain support for the superintendent, Karson posted a copy of her email to Kupchick in the Facebook group, Fairfield Standing United, an advocacy group representing residents of Fairfield and New Haven counties that focus on advocacy of social and political issues on federal, state and local levels.

According to the special motion to dismiss, Gladstone on April 12 sent Karson a letter demanding a full retraction for allegedly defamatory statements in her Facebook post. According to the special motion to dismiss, following receipt of the retraction request, Karson removed her original post and on April 21 posted a retraction.

I characterized the tone and tenor of Mr. Gladstones email as a disrespectful and offensive and suggested that it exhibited white fragility and that he was tearing down an educator. I understand that these comments offended Mr. Gladstone and I hereby retract them, Karson said in her retraction, as quoted in her special motion to dismiss.

According to court documents, Karson was still served with Gladstones complaint on May 4.

If the court grants Karsons special motion to dismiss, she is seeking the cost of attorneys fees.

In his affidavit in support of his application for prejudgment remedy, Gladstone claims the allegedly defamatory statements have damaged him financially in the amount of $1 million. Judge Barry Stevens denied the application for prejudgment remedy on May 5.

As discussed at the conference today, there appears to be insurance coverage for this matter, and the application of a prejudgment attachment is denied without prejudice to reclaim, the order states.
NAUGATUCK  A third person allegedly involved in an armed home invasion in May of last year was captured in Georgia and extradited back to Naugatuck on Tuesday, according to police.

Leequaje Jackson, 23, was served with an active arrest warrant by Naugatuck police and charged in connection with a home invasion on May 25, 2020. Jackson was held on a $50,000 bond.

That day, officers responded to a report of three armed men who had gone into a home and held three women at gunpoint while they allegedly took over $14,000 in cash and personal property, police said. There were no injuries. The men fled from the area in a vehicle.

Police traced the individuals allegedly involved back to Bridgeport, where Naugatuck and city police set up surveillance in the area where the three men were reported to be. Naugatuck detectives saw one of the men get out of a vehicle with property from the victims home in Naugatuck, police said.

When officers tried to stop the vehicle, the driver took off. They eventually fled from the vehicle on foot, with authorities taking two individuals into custody and reporting two more were at large.

Police said officers recovered numerous items of evidentiary value, including the gun believed to be used during the Naugatuck home invasion.

The final individual authorities said was allegedly involved in the armed home invasion was identified by police as Khalil Abdul-Hakeem. Police said they secured a warrant to charge him in connection with the home invasion. Before he could be taken into custody, he was killed in an unrelated shooting in West Haven in 2020.
MADRID (AP)  John McAfee, the creator of McAfee antivirus software, was found dead in his jail cell near Barcelona in an apparent suicide Wednesday, hours after a Spanish court approved his extradition to the United States to face tax charges punishable by decades in prison, authorities said.

The eccentric cryptocurrency promoter and tax opponent whose history of legal troubles spanned from Tennessee to Central America to the Caribbean was discovered at the Brians 2 penitentiary in northeastern Spain. Security personnel tried to revive him, but the jails medical team finally certified his death, a statement from the regional Catalan government said.

"A judicial delegation has arrived to investigate the causes of death, it said, adding that everything points to death by suicide.

The statement didnt identify McAfee by name but said the dead man was a 75-year-old U.S. citizen awaiting extradition to his country. A Catalan government official familiar with the case who was not authorized to be named in media reports confirmed to The Associated Press that it was McAfee.

Spains National Court on Monday ruled in favor of extraditing McAfee, 75, who had argued in a hearing earlier this month that the charges against him by prosecutors in Tennessee were politically motivated and that he would spend the rest of his life in prison if returned to the U.S.

The court's ruling was made public on Wednesday and was open for appeal, with any final extradition order also needing to get approval from the Spanish Cabinet.

McAfee was arrested last October at Barcelonas international airport and had been in jail since then awaiting the outcome of extradition proceedings. The arrest followed charges the same month in Tennessee for evading taxes after failing to report income from promoting cryptocurrencies while he did consulting work, made speaking engagements and sold the rights to his life story for a documentary. The criminal charges carried a prison sentence of up to 30 years.

Nishay Sanan, the Chicago-based attorney defending him on those cases, said by phone that McAfee will always be remembered as a fighter.

He tried to love this country but the U.S. government made his existence impossible, Sanan said. They tried to erase him, but they failed.

The lawyer said Spanish authorities have not given his legal team a cause of death, and he wants to know if there were video cameras in McAfees cell or in the prison.

The U.S. Attorneys Office in Memphis declined to comment.

Tennessee prosecutors had argued that McAfee owed the U.S. government $4,214,105 in taxes before fines or interests for undeclared income in the five fiscal years from 2014 to 2018, according to a Spanish court document seen by AP. But in this weeks ruling, the National Court judge agreed to extradite him only to face charges from 2016 to 2018.

Born in England's Gloucestershire in 1945 as John David McAfee, he started McAfee Associates in 1987 and led an eccentric life after selling his stake in the antivirus software company named after him in the early 1990s.

McAfee twice made long-shot runs for the U.S. presidency and was a participant in Libertarian Party presidential debates in 2016. He dabbled in yoga, ultralight aircraft and producing herbal medications.

In 2012 he was wanted for questioning in connection with the death of Gregory Viant Faull, who was shot to death in early November 2012 on the Belize island where the men lived.

McAfee told AP at the time that he was being persecuted by the Belizean government. Belizean police denied that, saying they were simply investigating a crime about which McAfee may have had information. Then-Prime Minister Dean Barrow expressed doubts about McAfees mental state, saying, I dont want to be unkind to the gentleman, but I believe he is extremely paranoid, even bonkers.

A Florida court ordered McAfee in 2019 to pay $25 million to Faulls estate in a wrongful death claim.

In July of that year he was released from detention in the Dominican Republic after he and five others were suspected of traveling on a yacht carrying high-caliber weapons, ammunition and military-style gear.

McAfee told Wired Magazine in 2012 that his father, a heavy drinker and very unhappy man, shot himself when McAfee was 15. Every day I wake up with him, he told Wired.

He lived for a time in Lexington, Tennessee, a rural town of about 7,800 some 100 miles (160 kilometers) east of Memphis. In a 2015 interview with WBBJ-TV, McAfee said he only felt comfortable when armed. The TV station reported that he chose to be interviewed with a loaded gun in each hand.

Very little gives me a feeling of being safe and more secure other than being armed in my bedroom with the door locked, McAfee told the station.

In one of his last known media interviews, with British newspaper The Independent last November, McAfee said his prison experience in Spain was a fascinating adventure and he planned never to return to the U.S.

I am constantly amused and sometimes moved," he was quoted as saying. "The graffiti alone could fill a thousand-page thriller.

He also told The Independent that prisoners and guards had recognized him and some asked for his autograph.

McAfee said his main point of contact outside the prison was his wife, Janice McAfee. The last post from his Twitter account was a retweet of a Fathers Day message from her.

These eight months John has spent in prison in Spain have been especially hard on his overall health both mentally and physically, as well as financially, but he is undeterred from continuing to speak truth to power, it said.

California chipmaker Intel, which bought McAfee's company in 2011 for $7.68 billion, for a time sought to dissociate the brand from its controversial founder by folding it into its larger cybersecurity division. But the rebranding was short-lived, and Intel in 2016 spun out the cybersecurity unit into a new company called McAfee.

Jaime Le, a McAfee company spokesperson, said in a statement: Although John McAfee founded the company, he has not been associated with our company in any capacity for over 25 years. That said, our thoughts go to his family and those close to him.

A spokesperson with the U.S. Embassy in Madrid said it was aware of the reports about McAfee's death but would not comment for privacy reasons.

___

Brito reported from Barcelona and Hatton reported from Lisbon, Portugal. Adrian Sainz in Memphis, Tenn., Barbara Ortutay in Oakland, Calif., David Hamilton in San Francisco and Matt OBrien in Providence, R.I., contributed.
As CEO and co-founder of EmpowerFi, I understand the common experiences you may encounter as you climb the corporate ladder and maneuver your way through your journey from credit union marketer to CEO.

Learning to lead is an ongoing process and after 17 years of experience working with marketers and executives in the credit union space, Ive gained a keen insight into how you work through the transition to CEO.

While it can be scary at first, if you have the drive and ambition to become a CEO then there is absolutely no reason why you cant achieve your goal and smash it when you get there!

Lets dive right in with top tips to help set you on the right path towards achieving your leadership dreams.

Taking risks

If you dont try you wont succeed and if at first, you dont succeed then try and try again! Put simply, if you dont take risks then you will never know your full potential and the capability of what you can achieve when you really put your mind to something.

Fear of failure is a natural reaction in all of us, but ultimately failure is necessary because it is the only way we learn from our mistakes and grow as individuals.

Plus, in case anyone forgets to tell you, experiencing failure is all part of the journey to success. You just pick yourself back up, brush yourself off and head off on your next adventure!

Establishing credibility

Trust is essential, whether its with your team, your members, or your consumers. Building trust with everyone you engage with, no matter who they are, will put you in the perfect position of being recognized as a person with credibility.

Employees respond well to transparent and consistent behavior in leadership. You must lead with intent, talk, and treat your team with the respect and integrity they deserve. Do what you say and say what you do  and you cant go wrong.

Also, its good to keep in mind that your personal actions can impact you professionally and others perceptions of you. Never underestimate your staff because they know their stuff when dealing with the day-to-day running of the credit union and ultimately, they are your number one critic when it comes to your credibility.

Remaining loyal to your team, always having their back, and standing strong for them is a crucial skill to have.

Being intentional

Intentionality is a sustained focus on a goal or initiative, one that has purpose and meaning. People see an intentional leader as deliberate; they always have a plan and a strategic vision.

The opposite is true if you lack intention and slow down the organizational process in your credit union  resulting in wasted time, money, and resources.

Reviewing your job description and thinking about why you were hired in the first place can be a helpful starting point in defining your purpose and goals if you are feeling slightly unsure.

Understanding your purpose and what drives you will help you commit to taking the actions you need to achieve your ambitions. By being intentional, you will be taking vital steps towards reaching your goals as well as your organizations strategic aims. Its a win-win scenario.

Gaining confidence

If you dont approve of yourself and youre not confident in your abilities, how are others supposed to be confident in your capabilities?

Developing a sense of self-awareness and owning who you are will really help with building your confidence.

Of course, if youre not a naturally confident person then it can be challenging to deal with. While it can be scary as anything, putting yourself outside of your comfort zone can sometimes be the best way forward to boost your self-belief.

Becoming a thought leader, an expert in your field, and even writing articles based on your knowledge and experiences can all contribute towards building a confident you.

Embrace who you are and be optimistic  act as if its already happened and you are a CEO. This kind of positive thinking will manifest itself into actions.

Making bold decisions

You have to make bold decisions and take matters into your own hands when youre a leader. Not only does this allow for more creativity and foster new ideas and energy, but when you make bold decisions, you have to take a step forward too.

When you propose an idea thats a little out of the box in thinking, youre going to receive support from those around you because youre confident in your belief and your new idea.

Theres always a different way of doing things or even a different perspective, so be bold, make bold decisions and you will gain a following.

New voices get heard and draw attention  be as confident in your decision-making as you are as a leader and these two skills will complement each other immensely in your career.

Expanding your network

Its about who you know, and who you know counts! Networking, talking to people, and building relationships are key to growth and typically, all the CEOs, board chairs, and leaders of the world have the largest networks you will ever find. This isnt just a coincidence, expanding your network is crucial to becoming a true leader.

With the impact of the pandemic, it has become easier in some ways to build your network of contacts as many groups, membership organizations and forums have moved online.

Even updating your LinkedIn profile with your experience and devoting time to expand your network through social media, can be a helpful first step towards creating your professional presence both online and offline.

More often than not, when Ive met someone in person at an event (remember those?) they have found me and connected with me on LinkedIn afterward or vice versa. Remember, your social media profiles are just as much a reflection of who you are as an individual, as they are a representation of who you are when you meet people face-to-face and in real life.

The other key point about LinkedIn is that there isnt a hierarchy and its easily accessible  allowing you to meet and connect with CEOs and leading figures from credit unions, but you might not be a CEO yet yourself. And thats ok, because if you follow my other tips then youre already thinking, feeling, and talking as if you are a CEO  you fit right in.

Thinking strategically

Strategic thinking rarely occurs spontaneously  its something that has to be learned. While not everyone can think strategically, if you want to become a CEO then you must learn to think strategically. But how do you start thinking strategically?

One of the most important ways is to have a long-term focus. Having a short-term focus is just as important, but CEOs always talk about the bigger picture and what that looks like.

In the same way, you as a CEO in the making need to anticipate and look at future opportunities and challenges. Being forward-thinking in approach will help you find creative ways to solve problems and come up with positive solutions.

Those who think strategically, constantly think about the future. Theyre not worried about what their staff is doing so if you want to be a good CEO, dont micromanage. The best leaders learn how to trust their team, how to delegate, and how to be nimble.

If youre a person who leads change and helps others overcome their fear of change then youll certainly set yourself on the right path to success.

Growing personally and professionally

As a result of the pandemic, our work lives and personal lives have all merged into one particularly as everyone has been working from home.

Finding a balance between the two is difficult to achieve but finding time for yourself on any given day and taking time out to be a normal human being and not a work machine will benefit you greatly.

Youll find that if youre able to integrate your personal life into your workplace, youll be far better off. As a leader, if you can also be as considerate for your team and allow them to integrate their personal lives then they will be much more efficient. And if theyre happy, youre happy.

Success truly does breeds success. Essentially, if you have the support of a team around you who have your back and who can rely on you too, and youre open to continue learning as you go along then you have all the ingredients you need to be a great future leader.

EmpowerFi CEO, Hilary Reed, and CXO, Kelly Hellickson discussed the path from marketing to being a CEO in a CrossState Credit Union Association webinar  Catch the replay here.
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Weather Alert

...The Flood Advisory continues for the following rivers in Illinois... Kankakee River near Wilmington affecting Will, Kankakee and Grundy Counties. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... A Flood Advisory means water levels near flood stage are imminent or may already be occurring. Water may overtop low stream banks in some areas. Persons in the advisory area should use caution and avoid flood waters. Turn around, don't drown when encountering flooded roads. Most flood deaths occur in vehicles. Additional information is available at www.weather.gov/Chicago and water.weather.gov The next statement is expected around 1100 AM CDT Saturday morning. && ...The Flood Advisory remains in effect... The Flood Advisory continues for the Kankakee River near Wilmington. * Until Saturday afternoon. * At 6:45 PM CDT Friday the stage was 5.0 feet. * Action stage is 5.0 feet. * Flood stage is 6.5 feet. * Forecast...The river is expected to fall below 5.0 feet by midday Saturday. * Impact...At 5.0 feet, Minor lowland flooding begins in areas immediately adjacent to the river. &&
Windsor, NC (27983)

Today

Partly cloudy skies during the evening giving way to a few showers after midnight. Low 64F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies during the evening giving way to a few showers after midnight. Low 64F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%.
Local

Pasquotank OKs $51.7 million county budget after hearing opposition to sheriff's budget

jeure / Paul Nielsen/The Daily Advance People protesting the fatal shooting of Andrew Brown Jr. by sheriffs deputies express their opposition to a funding increase for the Sheriffs Office in the 2021-22 Pasquotank County budget, at the county courthouse Monday night.

Protesters angered by Andrew Brown Jr.s shooting death by Pasquotank sheriffs deputies in April finally got to express their views directly to county commissioners Monday night.

Almost 20 people addressed commissioners at the boards meeting with several asking commissioners to vote against a proposed $300,000 increase in the Sheriffs Offices budget in the wake of Browns death.

Others criticized commissioners for barring the public from commissioner meetings since Browns death. Many of those at the meeting have taken part in daily marches protesting Browns shooting death by three sheriffs deputies on April 21.

Mondays board meeting was the first that was open to the public since Browns death as the city and county declared a state of emergency because of the possibility of civil unrest.

Brown was shot and killed as authorities attempted to serve drug-related arrest and search warrants at his home on Perry Street. An autopsy showed Brown was killed with a shot to the back of the head as he attempted to flee deputies.

District Attorney Andrew Womble cleared the three deputies of any criminal wrongdoing in the shooting last month, determining Brown used his vehicle as a weapon and put the deputies lives at risk.

Despite the protesters pleas, commissioners unanimously approved the countys $51.7 million 2021-22 fiscal budget that includes $4.6 million for the Sheriffs Office, which is an increase of around $300,000 from the current revised budget.

The budget approved by commissioners Monday includes the addition of two deputies, both of whom will be assigned to provide security in the courthouse. The cost of salary and benefits for the two positions is almost $108,000.

All county employees, including those in the Sheriffs Office, will get a 2-percent cost-of-living-adjustment. The budget also includes funds to help the county start a 401(k) program for employees.

Prior to commissioners decision, June Gibbs told the board she has been marching with protesters almost every day since Browns shooting death. She said her phone calls to county officials have gone unanswered.

County commissioners who we all vote to put in office, decided at last that they would speak to us, Gibbs said, referring to Mondays meeting. I cant get a phone call back. Does that mean because I am Black that I am dangerous? Some of you dont have the intestinal fortitude to stand up for anything.

Pasquotank NAACP President Keith Rivers told commissioners that we have missed your presence ever since a Black man was shot in the back of the head and said he was disappointed to see a budget increase for the Sheriffs Office.

That shouldnt even be on the table, Rivers said. We strongly demand that there is no increase in the budget and that the budget be put on a public hearing and let everybody see what they are getting paid for.

Rivers also expressed frustration that a number of sheriffs deputies were in and around the courthouse meeting room Monday night, saying that protesters have been peaceful.

Are they there because we are here? Rivers asked. When I look out in the hallway, I see six or seven sheriffs deputies out there. I have been to many county commissioner meetings and never have I seen that display of force.

Christina Williams of the newly formed Pasquotank Political Action Committee urged commissioners to approve the budget increase for the Sheriffs Office.

Williams helped organize the PAC with a goal of supporting Sheriff Tommy Wooten and District Attorney Womble while also seeking to elect conservatives to city and county offices. She praised commissioners.

I just want to say, since all the commissioners had to sit here and be berated for the last hour, that I appreciate your strong leadership during these last couple of months, Williams said. I think you have done an outstanding job supporting our sheriff. I dont want to see our police defunded.

Commissioner Sean Lavin said he was impressed with those who spoke at Mondays meeting and he told fellow commissioners that he has talked with some city officials about conducting a joint meeting.

Pasquotank commissioners rejected Elizabeth City Mayor Bettie Parkers request for a joint meeting with City Council following Browns shooting. They also suspended holding future joint meetings, which usually happen twice a year.

Hopefully, we can have an open meeting. I know we have some things to work through on that, Lavin said. I will continue to promote that. Those talks have actually happened.
Elizabeth City, NC (27909)

Today

Isolated thunderstorms during the evening. Cloudy skies after midnight. Low 66F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30%..

Tonight

Isolated thunderstorms during the evening. Cloudy skies after midnight. Low 66F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30%.
Mrs. Martha Lyndell Wilbanks, age 84, of Chatsworth passed away Thursday, July 1, 2021, at Chatsworth Health Care. She is survived by her husband, Damon Wilbanks of Chatsworth. No public memorial services have been planned at this time. Cremation services were provided by Peeples Funeral Hom
A portion the proposed mixed-use development known as The Kingstonian is shown in this architectural rendering.
KINGSTON

Man who pleaded guilty in Orange IDA probe had close ties to Ulster
The following items are based on information provided by officials in law enforcement and the criminal justice system.
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Canadian Dollar Outlook:

USD/CAD rates may have experienced a failed bullish breakout, having returned back into the descending channel dating back to November 2020.

Meanwhile, CAD/JPY rates have been able to maintain their uptrend from the February and April 2021 lows.

According to the IG Client Sentiment Index USD/ CAD rates have a near-term bullish bias.

Loonie Enjoys Technically-Driven Bounce

In the wake of the Federal Reserve June policy meeting, we noted that the Canadian Dollar is testing significant levels of support (support in CAD/JPY, resistance in USD/CAD) that suggests an inflection point is nearby: either the Loonie will regain technical posture from this point forward; or a more significant technical breakdown could be afoot.

It appears that the former path is being taken; the Canadian Dollar has started to regain its technical posture in recent days as evidenced by reversals in the two major crosses, CAD/JPY and USD/CAD rates.

Having returned back into the descending channel dating back to November 2020, USD/CAD rates may have experienced a failed bullish breakout; typically, return to consolidations see a return to the other side of the consolidation.

Meanwhile, CAD/JPY rates have been able to maintain their uptrend from the February and April 2021 lows, and have also moved back above the descending trendline from the October 2007 and December 2014 highs.

CAD/JPY Rate Technical Analysis: Daily Chart (June 2020 to June 2021) (Chart 1)

In the prior update, it was noted that CAD/JPY rates are testing the aforementioned descending trendline; failure below this level would suggest the recent effort higher was a false bullish breakout attemptbut that wouldnt necessarily indicate that potential for more gains are out the window. Should CAD/JPY rates lose trendline support, a pullback towards the March high at 88.31  which coincides with the rising trendline from the January and April swing lows  could develop before price action settles prior to attempting another drive higher.

CAD/JPY rates indeed dropped to 88.31 before finding support, but have since then used the former March high as well as the uptrend from the February and April 2021 swing lows as a springboard. CAD/JPY rates are also trading higher through the descending trendline from the October 2007 (all-time high) and December 2014 highs, again, suggesting that a multi-year bottoming effort is back on track.

USD/CAD Rate Technical Analysis: Daily Chart (June 2020 to June 2021) (Chart 2)

Last Thursday it was noted that the equidistant measured move of the range suggested USD/CAD could rally towards 1.2370; the high came in today at 1.2374. Coupled with resistance in the descending channel in place since November 2020 coming in play between 1.2350 and 1.2400 for the remainder of June, there is nascent technical evidence that the USD/CAD rally may be capped from here.

Since then, USD/CAD rates have fallen back below the former March low at 1.2365, returning back into the descending channel that has guided price action for the past eight months. USD/CAD rates are holding around 1.2300, caught up in the middle of its daily EMA envelope (which remains in bullish sequential order). If the combination of retreating Fed rate hike expectations (if only minorly) and ongoing gains in oil prices continues, USD/CAD rates may soon find themselves pressured more to the downside.

IG Client Sentiment Index: USD/CAD Rate Forecast (June 23, 2021) (Chart 3)

USD/CAD: Retail trader data shows 67.10% of traders are net-long with the ratio of traders long to short at 2.04 to 1. The number of traders net-long is 7.08% lower than yesterday and 34.41% lower from last week, while the number of traders net-short is 3.16% higher than yesterday and 0.65% lower from last week.

We typically take a contrarian view to crowd sentiment, and the fact traders are net-long suggests USD/CAD prices may continue to fall.

Yet traders are less net-long than yesterday and compared with last week. Recent changes in sentiment warn that the current USD/CAD price trend may soon reverse higher despite the fact traders remain net-long.

--- Written by Christopher Vecchio, CFA, Senior Currency Strategist
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THE STEAM LOCOMOTIVE helped to shape the region. On Saturday, the No. 29 steam locomotive will be used to pull the passenger cars for Railroad Day.
Janet Colliton, Esq. is a Certified Elder Law Attorney and limits her practice to elder law, retirement, life care, special needs, and estate planning and administration with offices at 790 East Market St., Suite. 250, West Chester, PA 19382, 610-436-6674 Call via Mitel , colliton@collitonlaw.com. She is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and, with Jeffrey Jones, CSA, co-founder of Life Transition Services, LLC, a service for families with long term care needs. Tune in to Radio Station WCHE 1520 A Plan Ahead on Wednesdays at 4 p.m. with Ron Ehman, Real Estate Ron, Broker, Next Home Signature Real Estate.
Survivors of the savage purges that engulfed Iran after the revolution in 1979 recall a very young prosecutor in charge of their interrogations.

Ebrahim Raisi was in his early twenties and looked more like a student with his wavy hair than an avenging angel of the new Islamic Republic.

But anyone thinking that this bearded youth would be merciful to the endless queue of suspects brought before him in the 1980s was soon brutally disillusioned. Many of those he found guilty were blindfolded and ordered to form a line that went straight to the gallows.

Raisi's election as president of Iran in a rigged election on Saturday has re-awakened nightmare memories for Iranians. It should also serve as a warning to anyone in the West who is hoping that this hardline, ultra-conservative with blood-soaked hands will be a friend.

Ebrahim Raisi (pictured) was in his early twenties and looked more like a student with his wavy hair than an avenging angel of the new Islamic Republic

Raisi played a key role in the 1980s in purging any dissidents who had dared to protest against the Ayatollah Khomeini's religious dictatorship.

Survivors of these purges allege that Raisi ordered some of his victims to be tossed off cliffs.

Mark Almond (pictured): Survivors of these purges allege that Raisi ordered some of his victims to be tossed off cliffs

He personally supervised torture in order to get confessions and even pregnant women were beaten to get incriminating material on their husbands and family members.

It was this utter ruthlessness  and his loyalty to a state in which protest is met with a bullet  that earned him approval at the top. And gave him the name the Butcher of Tehran.

This mega-purge killed 4,000 prisoners according to quasi-official Iranian sources dismayed by the massacre. But relatives and human rights groups charge that as many as 30,000 critics of the regime 'disappeared' in the frenzy of killing.

London-based human rights lawyer, Geoffrey Robertson, described the slaughter as the worst crime against humanity since the concentration camps of the Second World War.

The victims, he said, 'were hanged from cranes four at a time, or in groups of six some were taken to army barracks at night, directed to make their wills, and then shot by firing squad.

Their bodies were doused with disinfectant, packed in refrigerator trucks and buried at night in mass graves'.

It was this utter ruthlessness  and his loyalty to a state in which protest is met with a bullet  that earned him approval at the top. And gave him the name the Butcher of Tehran

To this day, relatives have not been told where their loved ones lie. Amnesty International has said that the new Iranian president should face trial for his brutalities over the years, rather than enjoying 'sovereign immunity' as a head of state.

The dissident Ayatollah Montazerim, who remains in Iran, warned Raisi and his henchmen that their bloody past was 'a stain they could never wash off'. But to Raisi, victims of the Islamic Republic's cruel courts were 'corrupt in the face of God'. He regards his barbaric purges and torture sessions as a badge of honour, proof of his utter reliability to the regime in Iran.

Raisi's election was monstrously unfair. From the beginning of the campaign, the supreme leader Ali Khamenei and the brutal Revolutionary Guard were determined to rig the vote in favour of someone who would protect their interests.

The turnout was pitifully low, almost certainly because so many were so disgusted at the prospect of such an extremist leader  and their only safe means of protest was abstaining from voting.

Even if Raisi was by no means alone in running Iran's kangaroo courts in the 1980s, he is the only hanging judge to have used the scaffold as the launching pad for a successful campaign for the country's presidency.

In the run up to the elections, Raisi presented himself as the pitiless opponent of the corruption making life an expensive misery for so many Iranians. A couple of years ago, he told an audience of Iran's deeply crooked Revolutionary Guard: 'We will not only cut off the fingers but chop off the arms of the corrupt.'

Tahar Boumedra (pictured), of the Justice for the Victims of the 1988 Massacre in Iran campaign group, said: 'The massacre is an ongoing crime against humanity. The families of the victims continue to receive heavy sentences simply for asking the authorities where their loved ones have been buried. It's time the UN conducts its own investigation into these mass executions

Given his extensive and brutal track record, the chorus of siren voices in the Western media depicting Raisi as a new broom to clean up Iranian politics and open a fresh chapter in dealings with America are naive at best.

Raisi's soft-spoken post-election press conference led some to see him as a moderate under his turban. In fact, in Iranian culture men of authority speak quietly and coldly. The notorious 'Butcher' of the 1980s doesn't need to bellow to intimidate.

He is the ultimate hardliner and the regime's trusted insider. His father-in-law after all is an ayatollah, a member of Iran's ruling religious oligarchy. Will the West talk to this killer and torturer now he is president? When asked this week whether he would be willing to meet President Biden, Raisi replied 'No', and made clear that Iran's ballistic missile programme and its role in the Middle East are not subject to negotiation. But the truth is Raisi may be forced to negotiate in order to lift the sanctions crushing his country.

Mr Biden has indicated he might lift some of the sanctions to revive the Obama-era nuclear deal that President Trump abandoned. The danger is, though, that with revenues from energy exports flowing again Raisi will have the cash to ramp up efforts to radicalise the Middle East and attack Israel and Jewish targets across the world.

From Hezbollah in Lebanon on Israel's northern border, to Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Iran funds and arms Israel's terrorist opponents.

For its part, Israel's new government is already threatening to send in warplanes to Iran to attack its nuclear plants  which could easily provoke massive retaliation.

At home a hanging judge, abroad the paymaster of terrorists, President Raisi shares the ayatollahs' ambitions to eliminate Israel and re-shape the Middle East in Iran's image. His election could not be more inflammatory in the tinderbox of the Middle East.

Mark Almond is director of The Crisis Research Institute, Oxford.
As the height of summer approaches, this is a make-or-break moment for the British travel industry. It is a time for dynamism, not delays, for optimistic courage rather than over-caution.

The decisions made now by ministers will have a crucial impact on the future of the sector, which badly needs a shot in the arm after the miserable long months of Covid paralysis.

The industry was one of the first to feel the impact of the pandemic, as travel restrictions were imposed in early 2020. Today, with controls still in place, it will be one of the last to feel the effects of recovery.

Without an energetic spirit to open up Britain again to the world, further businesses will fail and jobs will be lost.

The decisions made now by ministers will have a crucial impact on the future of the sector, writes Steve Heapy (pictured: travellers at London's Heathrow Airport on June 8)

Contrary to the misguided, outdated notion in some quarters that travel abroad by Britons somehow drains money out of the country that would be better spent here, this industry actually contributes enormously to the British economy, both in terms of GDP and employment.

Airlines, transport hubs, and holiday firms all create wealth for Britain. By supporting the revitalisation of this sector by eliminating barriers and encouraging travel once more, the Government will give us all an economic boost.

As ministers prepare to make their announcement on the overhaul of restrictions, they claim they will be guided by the data. Well, that has not always been the case.

All too often in recent months, there seems to have been a gap between hard scientific evidence and ministerial policy, resulting in inconsistencies such as travel restrictions to places that have lower rates of coronavirus than Britain.

But if the data is truly to be the guide, then one of the Governments first steps should be to add a number of new countries and islands to the green list, thereby allowing travel without quarantine.

These should include Malta, Madeira, the Balearics, the Canaries, the Greek islands and Cyprus. All these destinations have lower infection rates than the United Kingdom and the rates of vaccination are rapidly catching up with our own.

Given the scale of Covids retreat, I see no reason why such destinations should not now be fully opened up to travel from Britain.

That would be good for them and for the British public, many of whom have not had a proper holiday in the sunshine for more than a year or have been unable to see relatives or friends who live overseas.

New countries and islands added to the green list should include Malta, Madeira, the Balearics, the Canaries, the Greek islands and Cyprus (pictured: Balos Beach on the island of Crete)

I gather that the Government is urgently considering whether quarantine should end for holidaymakers who have been given two doses, writes Steve Heapy (pictured: Calo des Moro in Mallorca, Spain)

Given the scale of Covids retreat, I see no reason why such destinations should not now be fully opened up to travel from Britain, writes Steve Heapy (pictured: Cyprus)

It is a crackdown that, however necessary during the peak of the first two Covid waves, has had a detrimental effect on mental health, family ties and social relationships, as well as on my own industry and the economy.

Nor is there any justification for its continuation, particularly since the vaccine programme has proved such a success.

All the evidence, including the latest report from Public Health England, indicates that two jabs are over 90 per cent effective in preventing hospitalisation from the virus.

Against that backdrop, it is illogical that passengers who have been double vaccinated do not enjoy more freedom.

I gather that the Government is urgently considering whether quarantine should end for holidaymakers who have been given two doses.

In the light of the vaccine triumph that they rightly proclaim, I would urge ministers to take exactly this step. The rest of Europe is breaking free of lockdown, and their reviving economies are starting to show the benefits of renewed international travel.

All the evidence, including the latest report from Public Health England, indicates that two jabs are over 90 per cent effective in preventing hospitalisation from the virus (pictured: Celia Martin, 29, receives a Pfizer vaccine in north London)

Britain should not be trailing behind their lead, but should be advancing boldly forward.

Our nation, after all, has a rich heritage in travel and aviation. Our greatness was built on exploration.

Britons were the pioneers of the Spitfire, the jet engine, the worlds first international airport (Croydon), the worlds first turboprop airliner (the Viscount) and the only successful supersonic civil plane (Concorde).

Equally important is the fact that Britain invented the package holiday.

We should be a pioneer again today. Any delay in opening up travel will be a massive act of self-harm that will be disastrous for our competitiveness and public morale.

The Government often asserts that, post-Brexit, Britain should take its place on the global stage.

Here is a golden opportunity to translate those words into action. I urge the Prime Minister and his Cabinet tomorrow to be daring, not dilatory.
The Government's Online Safety Bill is a good example of the best of intentions leading to the worst of outcomes. It is at best 'naive'; in fact, it is positively harmful  it's a censor's charter.

It requires Silicon Valley providers to police the content on their platforms under threat of eye-wateringly enormous fines  potentially billions of pounds  administered by the communications regulator Ofcom.

Where that is simply enforcing the law, it's fine. But Silicon Valley providers are also required under the Bill to adjudicate and censor 'legal but harmful' content. Because of the vagueness of the criteria determining what this is, and the potential size of the fine, providers will inevitably lean massively to the side of caution.

The Government's Online Safety Bill is a good example of the best of intentions leading to the worst of outcomes. It is at best 'naive'; in fact, it is positively harmful  it's a censor's charter. Pictured: David David

It requires Silicon Valley providers to police the content on their platforms under threat of eye-wateringly enormous fines  potentially billions of pounds  administered by the communications regulator Ofcom

You can be sure that in any area of controversy  political issues, culture wars, or even Covid science  there will be plenty of people complaining and demanding a post be taken down.

And with Silicon Valley mega corporations as arbiters of the truth, anything that appears online and can be characterised by someone as misinformation could be censored. The chilling effect on free speech will be terrible.

Even before this Bill, we saw Silicon Valley giants appointing themselves as a sort of morality police. Facebook, for example, blocked a disparaging news story about US President Joe Biden's son Hunter in the New York Post.

Even before this Bill, we saw Silicon Valley giants appointing themselves as a sort of morality police. Facebook, for example, blocked a disparaging news story about US President Joe Biden's son Hunter (pictured) in the New York Post

Perfectly respectable scientists who challenge the conventional wisdom on Covid have had their online channels blocked and demonetised.

The fact is that science is at its most important when it is controversial. The greatest advances often occur when a new paradigm challenges the existing establishment viewpoint. It will be precisely these sorts of new and controversial ideas that will be censored under the new Bill. And not just in science: in politics, in social policy, in public morality.

We must not allow these Silicon Valley giants to dampen the fire of creativity or strangle free speech because it does not fit their own agenda.

Once this Bill is in place that will be the norm. Every day. For everybody. It will be a disaster. We must be careful that the attempt to clean up the internet does not lead to a sterile internet.

There are several better ways: we need real laws, not guesswork by Silicon Valley companies. Otherwise, the result will be subjectivity, not safety. We need to review internet harms every year and allow Parliament  not Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg (pictured)  to write the appropriate laws

I have no doubt that the aims of this Bill are well intentioned; of course, we want to protect children from the dangers of the internet. But this kind of censorship is not the way to achieve that.

There are several better ways: we need real laws, not guesswork by Silicon Valley companies. Otherwise, the result will be subjectivity, not safety. We need to review internet harms every year and allow Parliament  not Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg  to write the appropriate laws.

A start could be to change the presumption of anonymity on the internet. Studies show that online anonymity encourages both sexism online and offline, fuels online aggression and abuse, increases the promotion of conspiracy theories and leads to the proliferation of 'bot' accounts, used for malicious purposes.

This would be just one way to reduce the fire and fury of the internet and encourage responsibility, without denying or abridging the freedom of speech.
A couple who had their offer accepted on a new house has revealed how they were left 'shaking with anger' after the sellers asked them for an extra 50,000 one month later because they couldn't find a property in their price range.

The frustrated British buyer, who is chain free, took to Mumsnet and explained that she and her husband had their offer of 875,000 - 25,000 above the original asking price - accepted on a four-bedroom house just outside of London.

However, the couple had to wait for the sellers to find their own place to complete the chain - and were left in shock when they received a call four weeks later asking for another 50,000 because they couldn't find a new house within their budget.

The couple, who admitted they had stopped their search after thinking they'd found their 'future home',' went on to question whether they should tell the sellers to 'do one' or 'have more sympathy and try to work with them.'

A British couple who had their offer accepted on a new house has revealed how they were left 'shaking with anger' after the sellers asked them for an extra 50,000 one month later because they couldn't find a property in their price range. Pictured, stock image

The controversial topic caused quite the outraged response, with many slamming the sellers for changing the offer after it had been agreed and branding it 'poor form.'

'Tell them to do one. You dont want to end up paying more for the house than its worth,' wrote one. 'Plus if youre planning an extension, youll need every penny. Building costs have gone up considerably.'

A second added: 'Really poor form on their part. It's only been a month and you're obviously not pushing them so their decision that they need to up their price is so unreasonable.

'I wonder if the truth is that they've simply decided they could just get more for theirs.'

The British buyer took to Mumsnet and explained that she and her husband had agreed to pay 875,000 for a four-bed property just outside of London - but received a call one month later asking for an additional 50,000

In the initial post, the woman explained how it sounded like the sellers were getting outbid on places in Surrey that were getting snapped up.

She penned: 'They think if they put it back on the market now, they'd get even more for it, but wanted to give us the opportunity to stump up the cash first. How generous, right?

'I'm practically shaking with anger. We know how nuts the market is right now - we were caught up in it and we're already paying 25k over asking price. They just seem like unbelievable CFs to ask us this.

'In good faith we stopped our search when the offer was accepted, thinking we'd found our future home.

Many agreed that the additional money being asked for didn't make the house any more desirable - with one saying they'd end up paying more than the house was worth

'And it's quite frankly not our problem that they can't find somewhere in budget - maybe they need to rethink their requirements.'

The woman went on to say that she and her husband couldn't afford the extra money being asked of them, but could potentially spare half of the amount.

She continued: 'We could probably stretch to 25,000 more if we had to, but the house isn't worth that.

'That's part of our budget for doing the extension and extra work that the house will want in due course.

And many were in agreement that the additional money being asked for didn't make the house any more desirable.

One wrote: 'Nope. Their "need" for another 50k does not magically make their house worth an additional 50k. Cheeky f****** indeed! I'd say, no, not going to happen. They're acting in bad faith. Tell them you'll only proceed at the agreed price.'

Parents on the site took to the comments to express their shock at the seller, with many saying their decision to ask for more money was 'poor form'

Another commented: 'Tell them no. The house isn't worth that much to you,' while a third added: 'If the house isn't worth it, then tell them no, but you are happy to continue the sale at the agreed price. I'd also remind them that you are chain free!'

Elsewhere, others encouraged the woman to give the seller a taste of her own medicine and to string her along while looking for a better property.

'No! Dont - thats really really cheeky. Id start looking for new options immediately. Good luck,' wrote one, while a second penned: 'Tell your lawyer to formally refuse their request in writing. Then contact their estate agent and start viewing other houses on their books. This sends a clear warning which he'll pass on to the vendors.'

Another who has experienced a similar situation penned: 'This happened to me. I increased my offer to what they were asking.

'Then I went straight back out searching for another house, and agreed a sale on one. Then I strung the first vendors along for months and months before telling them I was withdrawing. Petty? Yup. I regret nothing.'
Furious NHS workers have slammed local councils across the country for scrapping free parking permits for frontline workers during the pandemic on June 21.

On March 25 last year Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced that the government would cover the costs of car parking for NHS staff who he said were 'going above and beyond every day' at hospitals in England.

In July last year, the Department of Health said that the scheme cannot continue indefinitely, stating that free parking will continue only for 'key patient groups and NHS staff in certain circumstances' as the pandemic eases, although no further timeline was given.

On May 17 the government announced it would be withdrawing its emergency parking pass guidance on June 21 to coincide with the original 'Freedom Day' set out by the prime minister when he revealed his roadmap out of lockdown.

Furious NHS workers have slammed local councils across the country for scrapping free parking permits for frontline workers during the pandemic on June 21. Tagging North Lincolnshire Council and sharing a photo of his parking ticket, Scunthorpe pharmacist Dale McVeigh tweeted: 'Is this how you treat NHS Frontline workers in The Ironstone Centre?'

Despite the decision last week to extend the restrictions until July 19, many NHS workers lost their right to free parking on Monday.

According to the government website, local councils are responsible for setting their own local policy on parking. It adds that 'current or potential pass holders are advised to contact their local council find out about any local plans for the future of the parking pass, or to check whether they are eligible for other local parking permits'.

Several NHS workers who were caught out and received fines took to social media to complain, while others criticised local councils for failing to continue the scheme given the fact the pandemic isn't over.

It comes as a petition to scrap parking charges for NHS and frontline workers completely hit 114,027 signatures.

Tagging North Lincolnshire Council, Scunthorpe pharmacist Dale McVeigh tweeted: 'Is this how you treat NHS Frontline workers in The Ironstone Centre?? Given passes to use in car park during pandemic and no notification that this has ended. Parking pass displayed yet still get a ticket so many workers have tickets. Shame on you.'

Several who were caught out and received fines took to social media to complain, while others criticised local councils for failing to continue the scheme given the fact the pandemic isn't over

Directing her tweet at Folkestone and Hythe District Council, Emily Reynolds complained: 'Thank you to the parking warden from @fstonehythedc who gave me a ticket today.

'Not only was I in a @NHSKentCHFT [Kent Community Health NHS Foundation Trust] vehicle but I was at work urgently visiting a patient for the Home Treatment Service. Why have parking permits been discontinued for NHS? The pandemic isn't over.'

And Chelone Lee-Wo, a consultant midwife in Tooting, south London, tweeted: 'Thanks to Wandsworth council for more than a year of free parking in local streets for NHS workers, and for issuing only warning PCNs today with NO FEE attached to remind us that the free period has ended.'

In response, nurse Anne Hazelby commented: 'I'm looking forward to my 25 parking bill tomorrow for my 11.5 hour work day.'

Justine Kerrigan, who has worked for the NHS for 22 years, tweeted the Mayor of Liverpool to ask: 'Is there any chance that NHS community staff, DN's and all AHP staff can have parking permits reinstated? Covid permits have expired. This makes the job very difficult when parking city centre.'

On Sunday Torbay Council tweeted a 'final reminder' to its residents that the scheme was coming to an end on Monday

The government website states that local councils are responsible for setting their own local policy for car parking - despite it scrapping charges nationwide during the pandemic

And Brighton resident Gary Palmer raged: 'Please tweet @GeoffRawBHCC @Phelimmac @BHGreenCllrs to reverse #shameful re-instatement of BHCC council Parking charges for NHS staff going to work to save lives. You've clapped them, You've marched with them, You've claimed you value them, but now you seek to profit from them!'

On Sunday Torbay Council tweeted a 'final reminder' to its residents that the scheme was coming to an end on Monday. It previously tweeted on June 18: 'A reminder to all NHS and critical care workers in Torbay. From Monday 21 June 2021, temporary car parking permits and concessions linked to the COVID-19 emergency response period will no longer be valid across Torbay.'

Wiltshire Council-owned car parks are no longer free of charge to NHS staff as of Monday, while Islington Borough Council also responded to a tweet asking if it'd had a 'change of heart' about ending the scheme on June 21 with a link to its website stating that it was going ahead.

Certain councils have decided to extend the scheme, with Haringey in London keeping passes valid until July 19.

Other Twitter users who reside in the London Borough of Camden told how they received an email yesterday alerting them that the permits would no longer be valid from July 30.

Other Twitter users who reside in the London Borough of Camden told how they received an email yesterday alerting them that the permits would no longer be valid from July 30

Elliott Hughes tweeted: 'Camden Council doing the vital work of removing parking permits from frontline NHS workers on July 30th. Even as cases rise. Wonder if those @CamdenCouncil clapped these workers last summer?'

Hadley Middleton also posted, writing: 'Just had an email from Camden Council to say they're withdrawing parking permits for all NHS and frontline workers. Amazing how quickly the "heroes of the pandemic" are again expendable.'

The petition on the campaign website 38 Degrees, addressed to Mr Hancock and Robert Jenrick, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, describes the governments plan to scrap free emergency parking for NHS workers as 'yet another kick in the teeth to NHS workers fighting in the frontline of the pandemic'.

'Theyre trying to pass the buck onto local councils, saying they have the power to make their own decisions on parking in council car parks. But after all the sacrifices our NHS workers have made, this isnt good enough,' it goes on.

'The current scheme shows that the government has the power to give NHS workers the free parking they so desperately need. Now its time they take responsibility and ditch their plan to end the scheme.'

Mail Online has reached out to North Lincs Council, Brighton and Hove Council, Folkestone and Hythe District Council and Camden Council for comment.

A Folkestone & Hythe District Council spokesperson said: 'We have extended the free COVID-19 parking pass for care workers in Folkestone and Hythe until 19 July. All motorists have the right to appeal if they are unhappy about a PCN issued to their vehicle  we understand that right has been exercised on this particular occasion. Our parking team will consider all representations in accordance with the legal requirements.'

A Camden Council spokesperson said: 'Other boroughs in London withdrew from the parking scheme months ago - we are one of the last to do so.'

Last year The British Medical Association (BMA) has said to reintroduce charges while the virus is still being fought would be 'a rebuff to the immense efforts of staff across the country and the sacrifices they have made to keep others safe'.
A debut novelist has won comparisons to Agatha Christie with her gripping whodunnit which reviewers have hailed as 'impossible' to predict.

Caitlin Wahrer, from Maine, is set to release her first book The Damage, which documents the fall-out from a drunken night out which ends in the main character being hospitalised, later this summer.

The plot jumps between 2015, when the attack took place, and 2019, when the terminally ill detective who took on the case opens up in a final conversation about what happened in the fallout from the attack.

Reviewers have said the book is an 'all-consuming read' while calling the gripping ending 'head-spinning and impossible to guess'.

Caitlin Wahrer, from Maine, is set to release her first book The Damage, which documents the fall-out from a drunken night out which ends in the main character being hospitalised, later this summer

Caitlin's debut novel follows Nick Hall, who is a 'a junior in good standing at the University of Maine, Salisbury' as he is stood up by a man on a date.

He ends up meeting an 'uncomfortably handsome' stranger who introduces himself as Josh instead while buying tequila shots in the bar.

The following day, Nick wakes up from a violent sexual assault, beaten bloody in an unknown motel room and unable to remember what has happened.

'Josh' is untraceable but forensic evidence and a photograph taken by a friend identifies him as Ray Walker, who is quickly arrested.

Because of Nick's sexuality, the rape quickly becomes hot fodder within their small town community.

The plot documents the fall-out from the attack from the point of view of several different characters, including Nick's older half brother, Tony, who is enraged by the assault and desperate to seek revenge.

Ray, out on bail, continues to dispute his version of what happened and insists the sexual encounter was consensual.

The debut novelist has won comparisons to Agatha Christie with her gripping whodunnit which reviewers have hailed as 'impossible' to predict

Meanwhile Tony's wife Julia, who is a defense lawyer, grows increasingly concerned about her husband's threats, while detective John Rice works on the case.

She begins to realise 'the naive little house cat who believed in rules and order was being toppled by the puma who knew that some days, the only law is kill or be killed.'

Eventually, Raymond disappears before the trial and questions are raised over whether Tony has anything to do with the disappearance.

Caitlin, who was born in Maine, left the state for college but returned to attend law school and practice law.

She now practices civil litigation in Portland, and lives with her husband, also a lawyer, and their son.

She has worked on cases involving some of the broad issues she writes about in The Damage.

The lawyer hit the headlines in 2017 for arguing an Augusta man convicted of sexual assault against a child that statements he made to authorities shouldn't have been allowed at trial, because the police officer displayed 'excessive friendliness.'

Caitlin, who was born in Maine, left the state for college but returned to attend law school and practice law

Reviewers have heaped praise on the debut novel, with the Elisabeth Egan writing in the New York Times: 'We won't learn the real reason for their post-mortem until the end of the book; all is revealed in a head-spinning, Agatha Christie-style wrap-up.

'(I don't care how good you are at predicting the outcome on 'Law and Order.' You won't predict this one.)'

Meanwhile horror writer Stephen King hailed it a must read on your summer list.

He wrote: 'The Damage pulled me in from the first page with smart narration, characters I cared about, a hold-your-breath plot, and a terrific final twist. Put this one high on your summer list.'

Meanwhile bestselling author Jeffery Deaver also praised the book, writing: 'Damage sets the standard for psychological suspense!

'With a consummate authorial hand, Wahrer weaves a brilliantly layered story of a horrific crime and how it forces each member of a loving family to confront the harrowing question of what kind of person they truly are.

'The style of this novel is as elegant as the characters are breathtakingly real and the plot undeniably compelling.'
A leading nutritionist has served up her take on a delicious Mexican bowl, much to the delight of her many health-conscious fans.

Jessica Sepel, the founder of the multi-million dollar Australian vitamin empire, JSHealth, shared her 'Rainbow Mexican Bowl with Guacamole' on Instagram as a healthy and substantial mid-week dinner option.

Described as 'plant-based, bursting with flavour and beautifully nourishing', the dish is made with black beans as the protein source but they can be swapped out for one of your choice.

'This is the perfect recipe to make whilst avocados are so very cheap in Australia,' she added, urging Aussies to make the most of the $1 fruits while they last.

A leading nutritionist has served up her take on a delicious Mexican bowl, much to the delight of her many health-conscious fans

Recipe: How to make Jessica Sepel's Rainbow Mexican Bowls with Guacamole Serves 2 Ingredients 1 sweet potato, cut into cubes 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil sea salt & black pepper 1 cup mushrooms, sliced 1 400g tin black beans, rinsed and drained 1 tsp ground cumin 1 tsp paprika  tsp chilli flakes  head cauliflower, pulsed into rice, or 1 packet of store-bought cauliflower rice 10 cherry tomatoes, halved 1/8 bunch coriander, leaves picked & chopped  lime, in wedges, to serve For the guacamole 1 avocado  lime, juiced 1 tsp paprika 1/8 red onion, finely diced sea salt & black pepper Method 1. Preheat the oven to 180C or 350F. Line a baking tray with baking paper. 2. Spread the sweet potato across the tray and drizzle with 1  tbsp olive oil. Season with sea salt and black pepper. Roast in the oven for 25 minutes or until golden and cooked through. 3. Meanwhile, prepare the guacamole topping by placing the avocado flesh in a mixing bowl. Use a fork to mash the avocado. Add the lime juice, paprika and red onion, if using, and stir to combine. Season to taste with sea salt and pepper and set aside. 4. Heat the remaining olive oil in a non-stick frying pan. Add the sliced mushrooms, black beans, cumin, paprika and chilli flakes to the pan. Saute for 3-4 minutes or until the mushrooms have softened. If the mixture looks dry, add a small splash of water to the pan. Once cooked, transfer to a bowl and cover to keep warm. 5. To finish, pulse 1/2 head of cauliflower into rice. chop up 10 cherry tomatoes and combine all the elements together in a bowl. Season with coriander and serve with two wedges of sliced lime. Advertisement

To make the bowl, preheat your oven to 180C (350F) and line a baking tray with baking paper.

Spread one sweet potato (cubed) across the tray and drizzle with 1  tbsp olive oil, season with sea salt and black pepper and roast in the oven for 25 minutes or until golden and cooked through.

While the sweet potato is cooking, prepare the guacamole topping by placing the flesh of one avocado in a mixing bowl and use a fork to mash it.

'This is the perfect recipe to make whilst avocados are so very cheap in Australia,' she added, urging Aussies to make the most of the $1 fruits while they last

To finish the guacamole add lime juice (1/2 a lime), 1 tsp of paprika and 1/8 of red onion sliced up and stir to combine; season with salt and pepper to taste.

Next, heat a splash of olive oil in a non-stick frying pan and add one cup of sliced mushrooms, one 400g tin of black beans (rinsed and drained), 1 tsp of cumin, 1 tsp of paprika and chilli flakes.

Saute them for 3-4 minutes or until the mushrooms have softened and if the mixture looks dry, add a small splash of water to the pan. Once cooked, transfer to a bowl and cover to keep warm.

Recipe: How to make Jessica Sepel's Halloumi & Roasted Pumpkin Bowl Serves 2 Ingredients 1/4 jap pumpkin, cut into wedges 100g haloumi, sliced 2 tbsp olive oil 2 cups mixed greens (I used spinach and rocket) 1 zucchini, julienned or spiralised 1/2 avocado, thinly sliced 1-2 tbsp nuts or seeds 1 tsp chilli flakes Method 1. Preheat oven to 180C. 2. Remove seeds and skin from jap pumpkin and cut into medium-sized wedges. Add to a lined baking tray and drizzle with 1 tbsp olive oil. Season with salt, pepper and chilli flakes and add to oven. Roast for 30-35 minutes or until golden and starting to caramelise. 3. Meanwhile, heat remaining olive oil in a non-stick pan. Fry haloumi slices in batches, until golden on each side (about 2-3 minutes). Set aside. 4. Divide mixed greens between two bowls and top with avocado and zucchini. Top with avocado, grilled haloumi, roasted pumpkin and nuts or seeds of your choice. Advertisement

To finish, pulse 1/2 head of cauliflower into rice. chop up 10 cherry tomatoes and combine all the elements together in a bowl.

Season with coriander and serve with two wedges of sliced lime.

The recipe serves two and is the perfect guilt-free dinner to enjoy on a cold winter evening.

You can follow Jessica Sepel's Instagram account here or view more of her recipes on her website.
An unlikely location in the remote wilds of Western Australia has emerged as the top domestic holiday destination while Australia's international borders remain closed.

Broome may not be the first place that springs to mind when you think of a tropical paradise, but that's exactly where thousands of travel-starved Australians are flocking for white sandy beaches and warm turquoise water.

The sleepy Outback town of just 4,402 residents on Western Australia's north coast, which at 24 hours' drive from Perth and a 19-hour journey from Darwin is one of the most isolated in the country, has become a vibrant beach resort in recent years.

Visitors can watch one of Australia's 'best sunsets' over the pristine sands of Cable Beach or hitch a ride on a camel along the shore.

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An unlikely location in the remote wilds of Western Australia has emerged as the top domestic holiday destination while Australia's international borders remain closed

A woman poses for a photo on Cable Beach in Broome, a sleepy Outback town on the north coast of WA that has emerged as Australia's top domestic holiday destination

Visitors to the isolated outpost can watch Australia's best sunsets from the pristine sand beach or hitch a ride on a camel

Broome is known as the 'Gateway to the Kimberley' (pictured), one of the oldest and largest wilderness landscapes in the world

Broome boasts a plethora of eclectic bars and restaurants for travellers to unwind in after a long day of exploring the wilderness beneath the hot desert sun.

It is known as the 'Gateway to the Kimberley', one of the oldest and largest wilderness landscapes in the world.

Photos on Instagram capture the breathtaking landscape and hypnotic colours that paint the sky around dawn and dusk.

One woman said catching one single sunset on the beach was worth the 12-hour drive.

Photos on Instagram capture the breathtaking landscape characterised by rich red sand

This traveller said the 12-hour drive was worth it once she saw the sunset over Cable Beach

Qantas run return flights from Sydney to Broome from $1,447 (AUD) and from Melbourne's Tullamarine airport to Broome from $1,122 (AUD).

Travellers could also avoid the day-long drive from Perth by flying direct, but it will set you back a minimum of $1,278 return.

Last year research from Skyscanner revealed that more Australians booked flights to Broome for 2021 than any other destination in the country.

A survey by TripAdvisor also found Broome was the most popular holiday destination for Australians looking to get away after experiencing months of lockdowns and interstate travel bans.

Broome boasts pristine beaches and warm, turquoise ocean (pictured)

More tourists booked flights to Broome (pictured) than anywhere else in Australia for 2021

Meanwhile 10 hours' drive south, another location in Western Australia is drawing record droves of visitors.

Adventure-seekers are heading to Karijini National Park, an enormous site sprawled over 627,422 hectares just north of the Tropic of Capricorn.

Karijini is Australia's second largest national park, only behind Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory.

Often described as a semi-tropical desert, the park offers spectacular scenery, ancient valleys and gorges, thundering waterfalls as well as a variety of ecosystems found nowhere else on earth.

'Karijini has a special place in my heart. It is one of the most beautiful national parks I ever visited,' one visitor wrote on Instagram.

Adventure-seekers are heading to Karijini National Park (pictured), an enormous site sprawled over 627,422 hectares just north of the Tropic of Capricorn

Often described as a semi-tropical desert, the park offers spectacular scenery, ancient gorges, thundering waterfalls and a variety of ecosystems found nowhere else on earth

Perhaps the main drawcard are the sparkling swimming holes hidden inside the gorges, which millennials are using as backdrops for social media photos

But perhaps the main drawcard are the sparkling swimming holes hidden inside the gorges, which millennials are using as backdrops for social media photos.

The images have drawn stunned responses online, with many saying they are determined to visit Australia just to experience the north coast of WA.

'I need to go here,' one woman wrote.

'The colours in these shots are unbelievable,' said another, while a third added: 'Next year I will be here.'

Others said the photos had prompted them to put WA top of their bucket lists.
A self-taught jewellery designer who had her work featured in Vogue made almost $7,000 in less than 24 hours after her latest creation went viral on TikTok.

Samantha Rose, 28, left her graphic communications agency to launch Rapunzille the Label in July 2019 and now earns an average of $12,000 a month by selling 'affordable fine' earrings, rings and necklaces online.

Friends and relatives insisted she was setting herself up for failure, but the Melbourne businesswoman used her millennial instinct to market her accessories exclusively on social media and has never looked back.

Her latest product, $79 (AUD) 'Ear Stack Mystery Packs', raked in $6,800 in a single day after customers saw them in a TikTok video that has attracted more than 2million views since it was uploaded on June 9.

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Self-taught jewellery designer Samantha Rose (pictured) understands the power of social media

Her latest product, $79 (AUD) 'Ear Stack Mystery Packs' (pictured), raked in $6,800 after launching on June 9

'We didn't use any ads for the launch, it was all just organic traffic,' Samantha told Daily Mail Australia.

The packs, which include four earrings that are either pairs or mixed singles which can be used to build a trendy stack of bling, are made from 925 grade sterling silver with gold plating that is suitable for sensitive skin and won't tarnish in water.

Fans have been raving about the earrings, with many saying they would get their ears pierced again just to wear them.

'This is making me want to go and get more piercings in my ears,' one woman said.

Another added: 'Stop, this will hurt my bank account.'

Samantha (pictured) left her graphic communications agency to launch Rapunzille the Label in July 2019

Samantha's designs (pictured) are made from a combination of semi-precious stones with a mix of low carat gold and metals like sterling silver

Others praised their value and quality compared to similar styles on the market.

Less than one year after launching her label, Samantha had already bagged three features in Vogue Australia.

She now ships around 150 units a month, netting an average of $12,000 every 30 days - three times more than she would be making if she had continued to work as a graphic designer.

While making the leap to self-employment came with a 'fair share of failure', Samantha previously told Daily Mail Australia that she learned more in a year of business than she ever would have working a nine-to-five job.

'I've always been a jewellery lover, but I found that any items made from quality metals all had very generic designs that were mass produced,' she said.

'You'd see the same things everywhere. If you wanted something a little different you'd have to purchase fast fashion jewellery that had appalling quality and turned your skin green after one wear! It wasn't sustainable.'

Samantha (left) designs timeless pieces like her $179 gold padlock necklaces and $110 twisted hoop earrings (right) in the hopes that they never go out of fashion

That lack of quality led Samantha to a relatively untapped section of the accessories industry: demi-fine jewellery, which combines semi-precious stones with a mix of low carat gold and metals like sterling silver.

'It's affordable fine jewellery,' she said.

'Rapunzille is kissing brass goodbye and the green skin that goes along with it, and saying hello to timeless luxury pieces that are suitable for sensitive skin. It's jewellery that our customers will want to wear season after season.'

Prices range from $35 for sterling silver rings to $179 for gold padlock necklaces.

Her nod from Vogue came less than a month after the launch of her online store in July 2019, with buyers from the esteemed fashion bible reaching out over email.

'I honestly thought it was a fake email, I almost deleted it without opening it,' Samantha said.

'I never expected them to contact me, I just couldn't believe they'd stumbled across my small business. It kept me motivated to work harder.'

Her best-seller is the 'Star Struck Ear Threaders', delicate drop earrings made from 18 carat gold plating, sterling silver and cubic zirconia stones.

A TikTok video of Samantha wearing the earrings has been viewed 1.1million times since it was posted on June 18, prompting repeated sell-outs.

'It went completely viral! We've been selling out pre-order after pre-order,' she said.

Samantha's four tips for success 1. Preparation meets opportunity is the key to success. 2. You can learn something from every job you have. 3. Make sure you have some savings to live on if you decide to quit your job to pursue your business, as success is slow and steady. 4. Be ready to love learning new skills and to go outside your comfort zone. Source: Rapunzille Advertisement

'We weren't expecting such an influx, so I didn't order enough initially. We've sold out three times and are heading for the fourth in the space of a few months.'

One American customer called them 'by far the best jewellery purchase' she has ever made in a review on the brand's website.

What started as a range of six simple pieces has grown to 19 in less than a year, but Samantha insists it took 'nine months' to build a consistent customer base.

'It was very slow at the start. We went from a few orders a month to over a hundred a month between April and June 2020,' she said.

And despite grave reservations from loved ones, the move to self-employment ironically sheltered Samantha from the economic aftershocks triggered by the pandemic.

'We've been selling between $10,000 and $12,000 since COVID hit in March, which is crazy. Business grew exponentially during lockdown,' Samantha said.
A dessert business has captured the attention of thousands online with their unique 'cake explosion boxes'.

Inside the gift boxes awaits a delicious cake and unexpected surprise, as once the lid is removed a kaleidoscope of gorgeous fake butterflies burst out from the box.

The gift idea from Goldeluck's Desserts in Melbourne would be perfect to give to friends, partners or loved ones on their birthday or special occasion.

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While the gift looks like an ordinary box from the outside, after the lid is removed the box collapses and a kaleidoscope of gorgeous fake butterflies burst out

The surprise boxes retail for $40 and customers can choose from a variety of cakes to include in the gift

The surprise boxes retail for $40 and customers can choose from a variety of cakes to include in the gift, such as chocolate mud cake, chocolate peanut butter, white chocolate and raspberry, M&Ms, Snickers or Biscoff.

The boxes also comes with the option to include four photos to sit around the dessert, so you can customise the gift even further for someone you love.

The boxes themselves are created by one of Goldeluck's packaging partners and are packed and customised by the brand's team each day to be shipped out to customers.

The box also comes with the option to include four photos to sit around the dessert, so you can customise the gift even further for someone you love

The boxes themselves are created by one of Goldeluck's packaging partners and are packed and customised by the brand's team each day to be shipped out to customers

Phillip Kuoch, founder of Goldeluck's, spoke to Daily Mail Australia about the praise the cake explosion boxes have received from customers.

'During lockdown, our business boomed because people were looking for fun gifts to send their loved ones to show them they were thinking of them,' he said.

'We started thinking about other 'out of the box' ways that we can make the gifting experience that little bit more special - and the cake explosion boxes were born!'

Phillip Kuoch, founder of Goldeluck's, (pictured) spoke to Daily Mail Australia about the praise the cake explosion boxes have received from customers

The brand is currently looking at expanding the offer to include a range of explosion options in addition to butterflies

Earlier this year the business posted a video on TikTok revealing how the boxes are made, packed and opened - which has since gone viral and been watched more than 10.3 million times.

'The response to the Cake Explosion Boxes has been more than we ever could have imagined, we're struggling to keep them in stock!' Phillip said.

'Since our TikTok videos have gone viral globally, we have had lots of requests to send our Cake Explosion Boxes internationally.'

The brand is currently looking at expanding the offer to include a range of explosion options in addition to butterflies.

The brand also delivers desserts nationwide and orders can be placed via the website.
She is well-known for being partial to a fierce Twitter exchange and presenter Kirstie Allsopp has sparked yet another heated debate on the social media platform.

The Location, Location, Location host, 45, from London, found herself embroiled in a Twitter debate over supermarkets selling pre-cut fruit in plastic tubs yesterday.

The Channel 4 presenter tweeted a photograph of a box of pre-chopped apple from Tesco, writing: 'We deserve to die on a barren, boiling hot planet, we are too stupid to deserve this planet.'

Her comments stunned other users, who slated her views online, with one saying: 'This always gives me mixed feelings... yes, it's wasteful in terms of packaging, but it's also rather useful for people with disabilities who hate having to ask for assistance with everything... stuff like this gives them independence us able-bodied folks take for granted.'

Kirstie Allsopp, 45, from London, found herself embroiled in a Twitter debate over supermarkets selling pre-cut fruit in plastic tubs yesterday

In several tweets shared after her original post, Kirstie said a colleague had purchased the box of pre-cut apple, but said it 'wouldn't happen again.'

Twitter users fiercely contested Kirstie's comments and were quick to share their views.

'As someone who has a friend who cannot cut such items due to severe arthritis but lives alone with no care its isnt a bad thing surely to help those less abled,' one person commented.

A second added: 'It's useful for feeding small children, if you're not at home, and need to buy something "on the go", but for adults with good teeth its a nonsense.'

The Channel 4 presenter tweeted a photograph of a box of pre-chopped apple from Tesco and said humankind 'deserves to die on a barren, boiling hot planet'

Another wrote: 'A bit extreme no? My disabled Dad relies on prepared fruit and vegetables he'd never be able to do it himself. He recycles the packaging.

'Just because you don't see the need doesn't mean it doesn't exist.'

One added: 'Personally I find biting into an apple quite painful so if I wasnt at home this would be quite convenient.

Twitter users fiercely contested Kirstie's comments and were quick to share their own uses for the pre-cut fruit and vegetables

Are your ready prepared fruit & veg as healthy as you think? Tests show far lower levels of vitamin C than unprepared produce According to a Mintel survey, every week one in five adults purchases ready-to-eat fruit portions. A similar number buy ready-to-cook vegetables, such as sliced carrots, chopped onions and pre-prepared stir-fry packs. That number doubles when it comes to bagged or prepared salads. Their popularity is highest among the under-45s. Be they singletons with busy lives or rushed-off-their-feet parents, all are desperate to save time while still eating healthily. Levels of nutrients in fruit and vegetables decrease after they're harvested and further processing like cutting or peeling can accentuate this even more. Past research has shown levels of Vitamin C in prepared packs of fruit and vegetables were far lower than what might be found in fresh, unprepared produce. Advertisement

'But if I was in a fruit aisle Id end up choosing a banana so I wouldnt buy it anyway - but sometimes people have reasons.'

A fifth wrote: 'These are designed for people with mobility issues/fatigue issues who cant chop fruit and veg themselves, so elderly people and disabled people primarily!

'They have to be sold to a mainstream market to be accessible to those people and also unfortunately to be profitable.'

Another person wrote: 'Someone in the comments of your tweets has said their autistic son requires those very same pre-sliced apples.

'To suggest that those who need them are lazy and there's no need for them whatsoever is well... ableist.'

Kirstie responded, saying: 'Its not a good enough reason, Im sorry but that is the truth.

'No condition, disability or illness could justify this level of packaging for an apple.

'Lines have to be drawn somewhere, otherwise we will destroy our planet and the suffering will be endless.'

Kirstie is known for being outspoken on social media and previously caused controversy when she questioned whether washing machines belong in the kitchen.

The 45-year-old Channel 4 presenter tweeted to express how 'disgusting' she finds it when people have a washing machine in their kitchen, and added that her 'life's work' is in part dedicated to getting the appliance out of the room dubbed the heart of the home.

Her comments prompted a huge debate on the social media site, with users dubbing her a 'snob' for her remarks - and Kirstie responding by branding critics 'f*** wits'.
The Prince of Wales promised to try a jar of anti-wrinkle cream made from honey, and share it with his wife, as he opened a new education centre for farmers wanting to adopt greener methods.

Prince Charles, 72, was presented with the gift yesterday as he toured FarmED in Oxfordshire which aims to show farmers and the public how diverse and sustainable farming systems can help reverse climate change and increase biodiversity.

Donning a dapper grey suit with a pink shirt and patterned tie, as well as a swish pair of Serengeti shades, the heir to the throne took time to learn about the eco-friendly initiatives happening at the forward-thinking project.

Before leaving the prince was given a jar of anti-wrinkle cream, with Charles joking hed received the gift just in time before asking how much honey was in the mixture.

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The Prince of Wales (pictured receiving the gift) promised to try a jar of anti-wrinkle cream made from honey, and share it with his wife, as he opened a new education centre for farmers wanting to adopt greener methods

Prince Charles, 72, was presented with the gift yesterday as he toured FarmED in Oxfordshire which aims to show farmers and the public how diverse and sustainable farming systems can help reverse climate change and increase biodiversity. Pictured: The Prince of Wales speaks with beekeepers Tanya Hawkes and her daughter Esme

During his tour the prince met two professional beekeepers, mother and daughter Tanya, 56, and Esme Hawkes, 30, who produce honey commercially but also keep 60,000 bees in old tree trunks at FarmEd to encourage people to think about the environmental benefits of the pollinators.

The pair kept Charles away from the bees as they were misbehaving a little bit erratic today. Tanya Hawkes said: I think it's the wind and the fact they've been cooped up with the wind and the cold weather.

Charles, laughing at the prospect of being photographed getting stung, said: Erratic may be a slight euphemism.

Before leaving the prince was given a jar of anti-wrinkle cream made from the honey the two women produce commercially nearby and the 56-year-old told Charles: I'm actually 150. Her daughter joked: She's my grandma.

Tanya said afterwards: He said he would give it a try and share it with his other half and let us know how he got on.

Time for tea: The Prince of Wales visited farm and food education centre in Oxfordshire, sporting a dapper grey suit with a pink shirt and patterned tie, as well as a swish pair of Serengeti shades

The royal, who has a keen interest in the environment and sustainable farming, looked in good spirits as he headed out into a meadow at FarmED, a new center for farm and food education in Oxfordshire

The centre aims to inspire, educate, and connect people to build sustainable farming and food systems

Checking out the soil bio-diversity in a sample, the Prince leaned forward to take in the aroma of the land

Charles has a keen interest in the environment and sustainable farming and appeared to take particular interest in soil samples from the farm.

After a table with different samples of earth was set up in the midst of a field of long grass, the Prince leaned in to sniff the soil.

The FarmED centre provides learning spaces and events that inspire, educate, and connect people to build sustainable farming and food systems - something which healthy soil is crucial to, say experts.

Wandering the meadows of the pastoral land in the Oxfordshire countryside, Charles learned how the farm aims to reverse climate change and increase biodiversity while feeding everyone healthy food.

The royal learned how the Oxfordshire farm is aiming to reverse climate change and increase biodiversity while feeding everyone healthy food

A chance to wander: the Prince of Wales walks in a wild meadow as he tours the farm

Wearing expensive sunglasses and a smart suit, the Prince appeared to enjoy the chance to be in the countryside. Right: Prince Charles looks in reflective mood as he looks out across the land

In London, Camilla was on a more urban adventure. The Duchess of Cornwall showed off her love of reading again yesterday, joining primary school pupils to open a new library in the capital.

Camilla, 72, headed to Nine Elms to open the Life Changing Library at Griffin Primary School in South London before heading for a picnic lunch in St James Park with the excited pupils to launch their Story Trail.

The Royal, who has her own Instagram reading group and is a patron of BookTrust and the National Literacy Trust, looked relaxed in a navy blue shirt dress adorned with a feather design, as she made the morning visit.

A right royal lesson! The Duchess of Cornwall, 72, looked relaxed as she took part in a literary picnic in St James Park with the pupils of Griffin Primary School in Nine Elms
A new mother has claimed the police wouldn't intervene when she reported that a 'creepy' man had taken photos of her breastfeeding in public and refused to delete the snaps after being confronted.

Julia Cooper, 32, from Chorlton, Greater Manchester, explained that despite 'being discrete' and wearing a large coat when she breastfed her nine-month-old daughter on a bench while out for a walk with friends in Sale, Greater Manchester, she noticed a man staring a her.

She claims the man, who was sat at a nearby picnic table, attached a zoom lens to his camera and began taking pictures of her, while trying to get a close-up of 'what was going on'.

After confronting the onlooker, the designer says he admitted taking the intimate snaps but refused to delete them - leading her to believe he was taking them for 'sinister' purposes.

Julia Cooper, 32, (pictured) from Chorlton, Greater Manchester, claims a man refused to delete photographs that he took while she was breastfeeding her daughter in public

Julia said she was left too uncomfortable to breastfeed in public after being informed by Greater Manchester Police that the man was acting within the law as she was out in public.

She has since launched a Change.org petition that has racked up more than 25,300 signatures, in which she calls for a change in law that would make the 'disturbing, intrusive act' illegal.

Julia said: 'It felt horrible. I was being discrete about feeding her and I think that's why he attached a zoom lens, because he wanted to get as close-up a shot as possible of what was going on.

'After feeding my daughter, I went over and asked him if he was taking photos of us.

'He confirmed he was and refused to delete the photos, and he said it was his right because we were in public.

'He didn't explain why he'd taken the pictures and I didn't think to ask. In a way, I didn't want to know.

'It was obviously a sinister reason. I would guess it was for sexual gratification. It was a cold April day, and I was wearing a big coat.

'It was only when he saw me breastfeeding that he decided to get his camera out, so I'm guessing it was [for] some sort of pleasure. I went away, went home and felt really angry and disgusted.'

Julia (pictured) who had only ever breastfed once before in public, said the man placed a zoom lens on his DSLR camera before he began taking photographs

Julia had only ever breastfed in public once before stopping to sit on the bench, where she claims she spotted the picnicker across from her 'staring' during the incident in April.

Julia said: 'At the end of the walk, I just sat on a bench and was breastfeeding my daughter and noticed the man staring.

'As I was feeding her, I noticed him staring at me for a long time before he got the camera out. When he noticed what I was doing, he put the zoom lens on.

'He got his DSLR camera and attached a zoom lens and started photographing us, even though I was looking at him and he knew I could see what he was doing.

'There was no chance he was trying to take shots of the car park behind me. He was definitely trying to take photos of me.

'I do feel sad that [breastfeeding is] something that's been ruined for me.

'I've tried to do it a couple more times, but I feel like I'm really aware of who's around and if they look like the kind of person who'd take a photo of me.

'That's not something I should have to think about while feeding my daughter.

'This has changed how I feel breastfeeding in public. I take a bottle out and feed her with a bottle.

Julia contacted Greater Manchester Police about the incident, however they were unable to intervene because the man had acted within the law. Pictured: Julia and her daughter

'Before, I just thought breastfeeding in public was something normal and I'd expect maybe a glance from a passer-by, but since it happened, I've gradually stopped breastfeeding in public.'

When Julia left the park, she called Greater Manchester Police and claims she was told the man had acted within the law.

After reaching out to her local MP Jeff Smith and Labour MP Stella Creasy, Julia's case has now been discussed in parliament and the pair are tabling an amendment to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill.

Julia said: 'I spoke to Greater Manchester Police and they confirmed he had acted within the law. Even the man at the police control room said 'I don't agree with this, but it is legal at the moment'.

'They couldn't do anything about it. I then got in touch with my MP Jeff Smith and his team have been great. They've taken it up and brought it up in parliament a week later.

'I got in touch with Stella Creasy on Twitter knowing she's a mum and a campaigner for women's rights. The same thing happened to her on a train in Wimbledon.

'Stella Creasey and Jeff Smith are tabling an amendment to the Police, Crime, Sentencing [and Courts] Bill which is going to be debated in parliament over the next week, I think.

'It's at committee stage and that means there's a committee of MPs that are going line by line through all the amendments.

Julia, who has set up a petition calling for change, claims other women have come forward with their experiences since she spoke out. Pictured: Julia with her daughter

'The up skirting [Voyeurism (Offences) Act 2019] bill in 2019 just covers images taken below the waist. The amendment that the two MPs have proposed is that it would also include images and photos taken of breastfeeding.

'The petition has really taken off and I've spoken to Change.org and we're talking about when to deliver the petition to the Ministry of Justice. I'm really glad that someone positive is happening out of what happened to me.'

Since speaking out about her own experience, Julia claims other women have come forward with their own stories, but none have felt comfortable to share in more detail.

Julia said: 'I've had other women come to me with their stories. What's strange about my situation is he admitted taking the photos and said he wouldn't delete them, whereas the women I've spoken to aren't sure if it happened.

'They saw someone take a photo and didn't feel they could ask.'

The Voyeurism (Offences) Act 2019 states a person commits an offence if he or she 'operates equipment' or 'records an image' beneath the clothing of another person and does so with the intention of viewing their genitals or buttocks, or underwear, where they would not otherwise by visible.

Someone convicted of upskirting can face up to a two year jail term.

The Met Police's website also states: 'Members of the public and the media do not need a permit to film or photograph in public places and police have no power to stop them filming or photographing incidents or police personnel.'
A 5ft 4in teacher and her 3ft 7in husband have won the Guinness World Record for the couple with the biggest height difference.

James Lusted, 33, and wife Chloe, 27, who live in Wales, are standing tall in the record books because of their 1ft 10in height difference.

Guinness World Records has revealed the couple have the greatest height differential of a married couple in the different sexes/taller woman category.

Pantomime actor TV presenter James, who has a rare type of dwarfism known as Diastrophic Dysplasia, met Chloe through mutual friends at a local pub.

James Lusted, 33, and wife Chloe, 27, (pictured) who live in Wales, have the greatest height difference of any married couple according to Guinness World Records

James who has a rare type of dwarfism known as Diastrophic Dysplasia, is 3ft 7in, meanwhile his wife is 5ft 4in. Pictured: Couple at their wedding

James admits that he doubted whether he would ever get married while growing up and longed to be the same as everyone else. Pictured: James and Chloe

James and Chloe were married in 2016, with the groom using a stepladder in order to kiss his bride at the altar. They have since had a daughter named Olivia, two.

Chloe admitted that in the past she would usually have said she was attracted to taller men - however that changed when she met James.

She said: 'There is someone out there for everyone, and it perhaps won't be who you imagine.

'I hope that our love story teaches others that you can never judge a book by its cover and everyone has their own personal story underneath what they look like.'

James, who is known as Jay to his family, was born with a type of genetic dwarfism called diastrophic displasia but has not handed the condition down to his daughter.

Chloe who had previously been attracted to taller men, said she has learned there is someone for everyone and it perhaps won't be who you imagine. Pictured: The couple with their Guinness World Records award

Chloe said she hopes their love story will teach others not to judge a book by its cover. Pictured: Chloe and James on their wedding day

James, who has not handed diastrophic displasia down to his daughter, said he felt 'ten feet tall' when he found out that Chloe was expecting. Pictured: James with his daughter in 2019

James said holding his daughter and marrying Chloe are among the two best days of his life. Pictured: The family

What is Diastrophic Dysplasia? Diastrophic Dysplasia is a rare condition, which results in deformities and a short stature. According to The Portal For Rare Diseases, the disorder affects males and females but has a prevalence of just 1-1.3 in 100,000 people. Those who have Diastrophic Dysplasia may often at birth have a clubfoot, short limb deformation of the wrists and abducted thumbs. Deformations of joints can limit movement, however the severity of the condition varies. Despite the impact on quality of life, Diastrophic Dysplasia has a good life expectancy and surgical corrections can be beneficial. Advertisement

He said he felt 'ten feet tall' when he found out teacher Chloe was expecting while on a trip to Disney World, Florida.

James said: 'Holding my daughter in my arms is definitely in the top two of the best things I've ever done. Marrying Chloe was the other best day of my life.'

Also a Conservative county councillor in Rhos-on-Sea, North Wales, James was featured on the Sunday Songs of Praise last year where he discussed his faith helping him to cope with his disability.

Chloe was a student living in Cardiff when she first dated James.

On one date, he was handed a children's colouring book and crayons by a waitress who mistook him for a child.

It was only when the waitress at the Harvester restaurant heard James's deep voice that she realised her embarrassing blunder.

James admits that when he was growing up, he initially doubted whether he would ever get married, but says now that their relationship proves there is someone out there for everyone.

He added: 'I came to a point where I had to say to myself that dwarfism doesn't own me, I own dwarfism. I just wanted to be the same as everyone else and I just wanted to live my life in a big way, in a little body'.

James appeared on Sunday Songs of Praise last year to discuss how his faith has helped him to cope with his disability. Pictured: Chloe and James

James was once handed a children's colouring book and crayons by a waitress who mistook him for a child. Pictured: James and Chloe on their wedding day
Bill Clinton has revealed that when he left office he had 'more nightmares on what could happen' to his country but said it's 'foolish wishing you can do something you can't do anymore.'

Ross King interviewed the former US President on ITV's Lorraine today and spoke about life after the White House and his latest novel The President's Daughter with best-selling author James Patterson.

'After I left office, when I had more free time, I had more nightmares thinking about what else could go wrong with our country,' explained Bill Clinton. 'I occasionally have them now but not so much as before.'

'By and large, I've been really happy. I think it's a foolish thing to spend a day wishing you could do something you can't do any more. I made a promise to myself when I was president, I wouldn't do that. It's been an eventual 20 years since I left office, I've been very fortunate because under President Bush and President Obama, I've been given a lot of chances to help.

He continued: 'I'm happy for President Biden because I think he's fortunate to be serving at a time when the challenges meet his skill set.'

Bill Clinton appeared on ITV's Lorraine today and revealed that when he left office he had 'more nightmares on what could happen' to his country but added it's 'foolish wishing you can do something you can't do anymore.' Pictured, with author James Patterson

Former US President Bill Clinton (L) and his wife, US Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY), attend Nelson Mandela's 85th birthday party in Johannseburg 19 July 2003

Ross King interviewed the former US President on ITV's Lorraine (pictured) today and spoke about life after the White House and his latest novel The President's Daughter with best-selling author James Patterson

Speaking on his latest book being number one, author James Patterson said: 'That's as good as it gets,' to which Bill Clinton added: 'I'm really thrilled.'

'This one is about a former president and is much more emotional because we get much more into this man as a human being,' explained James. 'One of the worst nightmares anyone can have whether you're a President or a writer like me is having a loved one disappear.'

Bill Clinton's latest novel The President's Daughter with best-selling author James Patterson is currently number 1

Bill continued: 'What we illustrate here is where a former President keeps secret service protection - although nowhere near as extensive as when you're in there.

'But your adult children lose it and so they become attractive targets to people who are mad at something you did when you were in office.

James added: 'This book is fiction. The President is not President Clinton and the daughter is not Chelsea or Ivanka...'

Interviewee Ross King went on to say how Bill's wife Hilary Clinton branded the novel 'thrilling fun - perfect for summer.'

Commenting on whether he pays attention to critics such as his wife Hillary, Bill joked: 'I always pay attention to her criticism it's how I survived the last 45 years.'

Bill Clinton said Daniel Day Lewis' Lincoln was the best portrayal of a President in a movie that he has seen. Pictured left, Ross King and far right, James Patterson

Bill Clinton joked that he always pays attention to critics such as his wife Hillary, adding it's how he 'survived the last 45 years.' Pictured, with author James Patterson

Ross King went on to say how the book would make the most sensational movie.

'I think we're about to see a script so fingers crossed,' said author James Patterson.

When asked of his favourite President portrayal in a movie, Bill Clinton responded: 'By far the best portrayal ever was Daniel Day Lewis' Lincoln because he played Lincoln as an old-time politician.

'It's very important when you portray the president to portray him in a context where there are other actors.'

You can make Churchill centre of the action but if you look at all the really great movies with Churchill in it, you see all the other great stuff too.'
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Once the wife of a multi-millionaire baron and a successful actress after being taken under the wing of Monty Python legend John Cleese, Lisa Hogan has lived and travelled all over the world.

But these days the Dublin-born former model and artist, 51, spends most of her time gallivanting around fields in muddy boots and running the shop on boyfriend Jeremy Clarkson's Diddly Squat Farm in the Cotswolds.

It was Lisa who, due to the pandemic, ended up filming much of Clarkson's Farm, the new Amazon Prime series which documents the ex-Top Gear presenter's frequently failed attempts to run his 1,000-acre farm, much to the bemusement and exasperation of the locals.

Mother-of-three Lisa is 10 years younger than twice-divorced Clarkson, 61, whom she has been dating since 2017, but almost matches him in height at a statuesque 6ft 2in beside his 6ft 5in frame. And if you thought Clarkson had led a colourful life, his girlfriend's is equally as eventful.

Educated at the prestigious Alexandra College in Ireland, she got her big break in acting in the early 1990s, when John Cleese employed her as a researcher. She was later cast as a sea lion keeper in the 1997 comedy flick Fierce Creatures, starring alongside Cleese, Michael Palin and Jamie Lee Curtis.

Mother-of-three Lisa is 10 years younger than twice-divorced Clarkson, whom she has been dating since 2017, but almost matches him in height at a statuesque 6ft 2in beside his 6ft 5in frame (pictured together on holiday in Asia in 2019)

These days Dublin-born former model and artist Lisa, 51, spends most of her time gallivanting around fields in muddy boots and running the shop on boyfriend Jeremy Clarkson's Diddly Squat Farm in the Cotswolds

Lisa was cast as a sea lion keeper in the 1997 comedy flick Fierce Creatures, starring alongside John Cleese, Michael Palin and Jamie Lee Curtis

Lisa was once referred to as John Cleese's muse, but denied any suggestion they were romantically involved, telling Irish Independent journalist Barry Egan: 'We certainly didn't have an affair. We were seen quite a lot but we used to work together. We got on well.' Pictured together in 2008

Jeremy Clarkson and Lisa Hogan, pictured attending The Sunday Times AA Gill Award for emerging food critics at The River Cafe on June 16, 2019, have been dating since 2017

It was Lisa who filmed much of Clarkson's Farm, the new Amazon Prime series which documents the ex-Top Gear presenter's frequently failed attempts to run his 1,000-acre farm, much to the bemusement and exasperation of the locals

She was once referred to as Cleese's muse, but denied any suggestion they were romantically involved, telling Irish Independent journalist Barry Egan: 'We certainly didn't have an affair. We were seen quite a lot but we used to work together. We got on well.'

In August 1997, Lisa - then aged 25 - had a near-death experience when her partner's 1million private Lear jet crash-landed on the A40 dual-carriageway after it overshot the runway at RAF Northolt in London.

Lisa was the only passenger on board, travelling from Palma to rehearse for Fierce Creatures in the UK, and told how she was 'almost a goner' after the captain had tried to make her sit in a certain part of the plane.

'I insisted on sitting where I was, which was just as well because that was the area where the van came through when we crashed and I would have been killed instantly,' she told Egan. 'When the plane crashed I phoned the production office [of the film] and told them I was stuck in a traffic jam. They were like, "Everybody's late because a bloody plane landed on the motorway". I was embarrassed.'

Lisa married Baron Steven Bentinck, a Madrid based billionaire and private art collector, in the late 1990s and had three children - Wolfe, Alice and Lizzy. Pictured together at the premier of Fierce Creatures at the Empire Cinema Leicester Square in 1997

Lisa and Bentinck split in 2005 and Lisa allegedly employed Prince Charles's divorce lawyer, Fiona Shackleton. They officially separated in 2011

'Baroness Bentick' Lisa pictured in November 2009 at the Red Cross Ball 2005 'H20 the Element of Life' at the Room by the River Upper Ground

Her partner at the time was Baron Steven Bentinck, a Madrid based billionaire and private art collector, and nephew of the late steel tycoon Baron Hans Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza de Kaszon Heini, who once boasted he had 50m of annual disposable income.

The couple married in the late 1990s and had three children - Wolfe, Alice and Lizzy - with Lisa dividing her time between London, New York, a mansion in Klosters - the exclusive Swiss ski resort - Norris Castle on the Isle of Wight, and Moyns Park - a Grade I listed Elizabethan country house on Lord Ivar Mountbatten's 444 acre stately pile in Essex. They'd also holiday on Bentinck's 5million Zaca A Te Moana yacht - a 150ft replica of Errol Flynns famous yacht Zaca.

Lisa and Bentinck split in 2005 and Lisa allegedly employed Prince Charles's divorce lawyer, Fiona Shackleton. They officially separated in 2011. By this point Lisa was a fully fledged member of high society, counting the likes of AA Gill and Bryan Ferry as friends.

Lisa, who lost her father Maurice Hogan, an architect, when she was 14 after he dropped dead of a heart attack, is the step-daughter of Raymond Keaveney, former director of the National Gallery in Dublin.

Her mother is ex-model Arlene Underwood, whose 'grit' Lisa has inherited; at 41 she was widowed with four young daughters and enrolled at Trinity College for four years studying for a doctorate before setting up Friends of the National Gallery.

'I saw her pushing through and going into a lot of zones that she'd never been in before. I'd come home with my sisters after school and mum would just be writing these essays. She'd say, "I haven't used my brain for so long, and I can't ever remember writing anything like this", and she'd just be sobbing,' Lisa recalled. 'I'm so proud of her.'

She's also inherited her parents' artistic skills; Lisa runs a studio in London where she crafts figurative and animal sculptures which are much admired on Instagram.

In an interview with Amazon about running Diddly Squat Farm, Lisa said she's 'learned a lot' - largely as her boyfriend 'didn't have a clue' while she's 'quite practical'.

Clarkson - who has three children, Katya, Emily and Finlo - praised his partner for 'working her socks off' on their new endeavour, adding: 'I think she's really enjoying doing that, because she's even less of a country girl than I am  though she'll probably say different'

In an interview with Amazon about running Diddly Squat Farm, Lisa said she's 'learned a lot' - largely as her boyfriend 'didn't have a clue' while she's 'quite practical'

'He knows roads, but he doesn't know land that much,' she said. 'There was a big learning curve, but he's such a prolific character, once he puts his head to something it's just full-on.'

She added that she keeps trying to move to London but 'must be a country girl at heart' because she 'always seems to end up there'.

'And that's where I seem to be happiest,' she admitted. 'I have a studio in London that I try to go to once a week, and Jeremy calls it "pavement-itis" where I just need the pavement under my feet.'

Meanwhile Clarkson - who has three children, Katya, Emily and Finlo - praised his partner for 'working her socks off' on their new endeavour, adding: 'I think she's really enjoying doing that, because she's even less of a country girl than I am  though she'll probably say different.

Like the show's farmhands, Lisa is not one to be cowed by the bombastic presenter in the show. In one scene she gives him short shrift when she discovers that rather than a pond to attract more animal life to the farm, Clarkson has, in fact, created a muddy quagmire

Lisa inherited her parents' artistic skills; Lisa runs a studio in London where she crafts figurative and animal sculptures which are much admired on Instagram

'She was born in Dublin and has lived in Switzerland, Majorca, and London and yet there she is with her filthy Doc Martens on, stomping around, running that farm shop and loving it.'

Like the show's farmhands, Lisa is not one to be cowed by the bombastic presenter in the show. In one scene she gives him short shrift when she discovers that rather than a pond to attract more animal life to the farm, Clarkson has, in fact, created a muddy quagmire.

'What the f*** are you doing up here?' she erupts. 'It's a wetland area,' retorts Clarkson.

'Holy s***, Jeremy! What are you gonna do with all this soil? Nothing's going to come and live here!' she responds. She also witnessed both the moment Clarkson gets stung on the bottom by a bee, and when a truculent sheep catches him with a well-aimed kick to the groin.
A trailer has been released for a bizarre new dating show on Netflix which sees singletons don elaborate costumes to woo potential matches.

Sexy Beasts, which will be released in the streaming service in the US and the UK on 21 July, is a six-part series that promises to take looks completely out of the equation for daters using fantastical, cutting edge prosthetics to transform and conceal their faces - giving them a chance to find love purely based on personality.

Each singleton will only get the chance to see the real face of their chosen match after they have made their final decision, which will be based entirely on their feelings about the other person's personality.

Netflix bosses are no doubt hoping that the series will follow in the success of previous dating shows that have been streamed on the platform, including Love is Blind and Too Hot to Handle.

Sexy Beasts, which is set to arrive on the streaming service on 21 July, is a six-part series that promises to take looks completely out of the dating equation with fantastical costumes

The singles will see the real face of their chosen match only after theyve made their final decision, based entirely on their personality

The stars go on a variety of dates during the show, including drinks and dinner

In a first-look trailer for the quirky new show, British and American singletons can be seen wearing the unusual prosthetics which completely disguise their appearance.

From beaver costumes to alien masks and shark fins, the daters are left with no idea what their potential match really looks like and must therefore judge their compatibility on personality alone.

Despite the daters' weird and wacky appearances, the meet-ups themselves are rather more traditional, with the singles seen heading out for drinks, going bowling, and even enjoying some axe-throwing together - all while modeling their beast-like costumes.

However there is certainly some apprehension on the part of the daters as far as physical attraction in concerned, with one woman - who is dressed as a panda - asking her date: 'So what if I pick you, and I'm not what you expected underneath?'

Other singletons were even more forward with their dates - and one woman cut right to the chase during drinks with her match, blurting out: 'I want to get married, I want to have babies before I'm, like, 26. Do you have health insurance?'

In the trailer for the quirky new show, British and American singletons can be seen wearing the unusual prosthetics which completely disguise their appearance

In the trailer for the quirky new show, British and American singletons can be seen wearing the unusual prosthetics which completely disguise their appearance

The costumes range from easily-identifiable animals and insects to fantastical creatures, like a scarecrow or an alien

After going on dates with three different men, the single women then sit down with them and open up about their experiences, before picking one ultimate match

Candid: During the trailer, one woman who was dressed as a panda expressed her fears that her potential match might not like what he sees when she removes her costume

At the end of the show, daters must choose one of three potential matches to see again, before their true appearance is unveiled.

The series is being released amid ongoing success for two other dating shows that aired on the steaming site - Love Is Blind and Too Hot to Handle.

Love Is Blind launched on the streaming service in February 2020. The hit Netflix series followed 30 men and women as they built connections in different pods without ever seeing each other; during that speed dating-process, the contestants were allowed to propose to each other whenever they chose.

Once couples became engaged, they were allowed to meet for the first time, resulting in a romantic getaway to Mexico, moving into their own apartment together and meeting each other's families ahead of their wedding in days.

At the end of the show, daters must choose one of three potential matches to see again, before their true appearance is unveiled

Over two seasons of the unusual show set to be released this year, 48 unique makeup designs were created (pictured, three daters)

Some of the daters tried to compliment their matches on their costumes, with one guy telling his dolphin-esque date that he 'like her fin'

During the show, the single stars get the chance to go on dates with three different people - and they must then pick their chosen match from that line-up

Quirky! One couple eschewed traditional drinks and dinner in favor of axe throwing - which they did while dressed in their impressive costumes

Meanwhile Too Hot to Handle, which was also launched last spring, was another runaway dating show success for Netflix.

In the first series, competitors from across the globe entered a luxury villa in Mexico and 10 stars of the show managed to make it to the final and split the $75,000 prize.

While the total dwindled thanks to a number of rule breaks from randy contestants, the singletons were later given the chance to win back the money.

The cast hailed from the UK, US, Ireland, Canada, and Australia and have kept in touch since the show ended.

Netflix co-CEO previously hailed Too Hot To Handle as the streaming service's 'biggest competition show ever', with the first series the number one show on Netflix during the week of April 20 after it premiered.
The Prince of Wales has hosted the first major investiture ceremony since the pandemic began at St James's Palace.

Scaled back due to Covid, Prince Charles, 72, presented honours to 32 recipients - including CEO of the environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy, Mrs Allison Ogden-Newton - rather than the 100 guests it would've been in pre-pandemic times.

Other significant changes brought in to keep the event Covid secure included the insignia being collected by the recipients from a cushion rather than being pinned on by the prince.

Those being honoured with knighthoods and MBEs also had to wear masks as they move around the Palace, but can remove their face coverings in the Throne Room where the actual ceremony is taking place.

Buckingham Palace - the Queen's official London residence - is normally the venue for many of the ceremonies - but the event took place at St James's Palace because of on-going work to update the services at the royal residence.

The Prince of Wales has hosted the first major investiture ceremony since the pandemic began at St James's Palace (pictured)

Scaled back due to Covid, Prince Charles, 72, presented honours to 32 recipients - including CEO of the environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy, Mrs Allison Ogden-Newton (pictured) - rather than the 100 guests it would've been in pre-pandemic times

Recipients were only permitted to bring one guest, but the family member, partner or friend also had the chance to meet heir-to-the-throne Charles.

During traditional investitures, each recipient would have approached the prince or hosting royal on their own, and up to three guests would have watched, seated at a distance with scores of other spectators.

But during the pandemic, those being honoured entered the Throne Room one at time, joined by their guest who was also greeted by the prince.

There was no audience present but the investiture is thought to have been shown on large screens to those waiting their turn in the adjacent Queen Anne room  another of the State Rooms.

Those attending are required to bring proof of a negative lateral flow Covid test to ensure entry and be subject to a temperature check on arrival.

Other significant changes brought in to keep the event Covid secure included the insignia being collected by the recipients from a cushion rather than being pinned on by the prince. Pictured, Mrs Allison Ogden-Newton from London is made an OBE

Those being honoured with knighthoods and MBEs also had to wear masks as they move around the Palace, but can remove their face coverings in the Throne Room where the actual ceremony is taking place. Pictured, Mrs Susan Williams from Hook Norton is made an OBE

There will also be no hanging around and mingling afterwards. Those attending will depart after collecting their honour, and seating will be socially distanced.

There will also be reduced numbers of ceremonial and support staff present, and family portrait and media facilities remain, but in more limited numbers.

Investitures are usually a key part of the royal calendar, but there have been no major ones for 15 months, since before the start of England's first national lockdown.

Today's ceremony took place despite the delay to the June 21 easing of restrictions following concerns over the rapidly spreading Delta variant first identified in India.

Art director Peter Saville with his CBE medal, pictured left, and Kathleen Mohan with her OBE medal, pictured right

Major General Paul Nanson pictured after being made a Companion of the Order of the Bath

Allison Ogden-Newton (pictured) with her OBE medal, following an investiture ceremony at St James's Palace

'The arrangements have been made in full consultation with Public Health England and Government to ensure they are Covid compliant, in line with current guidelines,' a Buckingham Palace spokeswoman said.

In March 2020, the Queen was pictured wearing gloves for the first time at a palace investiture, when the total number of people diagnosed with Covid-19 in the UK was 51.

It was before the UK was in the grip of coronavirus, and the head of the World Health Organisation was advising people over the age of 60 to avoid crowded areas.
A five-year-old girl from Georgia ended up in a pediatric intensive care unit where she was treated with 41 vials of anti-venom after sustaining life-threatening bites from a timber rattlesnake.

Recent kindergarten graduate Maisy Lamica was playing in her dad's backyard on Friday, June 18 when her cat cornered a rattlesnake  but when Maisy got near them, the snake pounced, biting her leg three times.

After a 911 call, Maisy was rushed to a local hospital and then airlifted to one in another state, where doctors rushed to help her through anaphylactic shock.

Scary! A five-year-old girl ended up in a pediatric intensive care unit where she was treated with 41 vials of anti-venom after sustaining life-threatening bites from a rattlesnake

Bitten: Maisy Lamica from Georgia was playing in her backyard when the snake bit her leg three times

Timber rattlesnakes, also called canebrake rattlesnake, have gray or tan bodies with black, chevron-like bands and a reddish-brown stripe down the middle.

They measure 36 to 60 inches, and while venomous, aren't aggressive unless provoked  which Maisy's cat seemed to do.

When Maisy was bitten, her dad was nearby and immediately called 911, and Maisy was taken by ambulance to a nearby hospital.

But she was also going into anaphylactic shock, so she was soon air-lifted to Shands Children's Hospital in Gainesville, Florida, where doctors in the pediatric ICU got her up to 41 vials of anti-venom, as well as antibiotics, steroids, and fluids.

Because Maisy's lungs started to close up, doctors also intubated her while they worked to save her leg.

'The amount of times that snake bit her was enough to kind of sedate an elephant at this point basically,' her mother, Cyndi Spell, told Gray News/WALB.

She was soon air-lifted to Shands Children's Hospital in Gainesville, Florida, where doctors in the pediatric ICU got her up to 41 vials of anti-venom, as well as antibiotics, steroids, and fluids

'The amount of times that snake bit her was enough to kind of sedate an elephant at this point basically,' her mother, Cyndi Spell, said

'We got to the hospital, they were trying to reassure us she was going to be OK, but she just did not look anything OK at all. She was pale, vitals were immediately going down very fast. A very scary situation.'

In the days since, Maisy's condition has improved, and her mother has shared her relief over her progress.

'She's a lot better,' she told Today. 'The doctors are blown away at how she has pulled through. Her leg finally quit swelling... there was a moment we were unsure if orthopedic doctors would need to cut it open to relieve the swelling.

'Aside from her puffy leg, the bite marks that are still prominent and five days in pediatric intensive care, she's her same silly smiling self,' she added.

On Monday, Maisy was moved to the pediatric recovery unit, and next she will get physical therapy to help her get back up and moving.

'The leg that was bit is still so very tender/somewhat swollen and she will need a good bit of time to bear full weight on it, and walk normally again,' Spell wrote on Facebook.

Getting better: In the days since, Maisy's condition has improved, and her mother has shared her relief over her progress

On her way back to health: On Monday, Maisy was moved to the pediatric recovery unit, and next she will get physical therapy to help her get back up and moving

'We still dont have a date on when she will be released but we pray its soon,' she added.

Spell, who has five other children, said that she is speaking out to stress the importance of children learning about snakes and the dangers they pose.

'I don't know if it would have changed much, but I look back and wonder instead of telling my child, "Beware of snakes, snakes are scary and snakes are dangerous," maybe informing her more of what to do when she actually came across one might have helped some,' she said.

'My kids will know snakes are not some imaginary boogie man. They are real, they are powerful and they can kill you. We know this firsthand because we almost lost Maisy,' she added.
Prince Charles had a busy day of events today as he attended the first investitures since lockdown before heading to the West End and Hyde Park with wife Camilla, and finishing the day off by accepting an award from the Council of Christians and Jews.

The Prince of Wales was presented with an award recognising his efforts to build bridges and understanding between communities.

Earlier to day, he an Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall met theatre royalty as they headed to the West End to reopen the Theatre Royal Drury before travelling to Hyde Park for an official visit.

The couple, who have spent most of the last year at Clarence House in London, were joined by Lord Andrew Lloyd-Webber, 73, who gave the pair a personal tour of the venue, before Charles officially reopened the historic theatre.

Charles, 72, sported his signature blue pinstripe suit and light polka dot tie as he sipped on tea and ate scones on the terrace of the theatre.

Meanwhile, Camilla, 73, opted for a belted green shirt dress with a trendy dotted pattern and nude heels for the sunny day out.

Clearly enjoying the June weather, the The Duchess of Cornwall beamed as she picked up an ice cream from a royal parks ice cream van.

Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall met theatre royalty today as they headed to the West End to reopen the Theatre Royal Drury.Clearly enjoying the June weather, the The Duchess of Cornwall beamed as she picked up an ice cream from a royal parks ice cream van.

Charles, 72, sported his signature blue pinstripe suit and light polka dot tie as he sipped on tea and ate scones on the terrace of the theatre.

The couple, who have spent most of the last year at Clarence House in London, were joined by Lord Andrew Lloyd-Webber who gave the pair a personal tour of the venue, before Charles officially reopened the historic theatre

Camilla looked delighted to chat to Andrew Lloyd-Webber, who has written more than 21 musicals

A busy day! After his trip to the theatre and the park Charles met with the Council of Christains and Jews to receive a CCJ Bridge Award

Pictured: The Council of Christians and Jews (CCJ) of the Prince of Wales receiving the CCJ's Bridge Award during a ceremony at Spencer House in central London, attended by leading figures from the organisation including one of its presidents the Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis

Prince Charles receives an award from Council of Christian's and Jews Charles received the Council of Christian and Jews' (CCJ) Bridge Award during a ceremony at Spencer House in central London, attended by leading figures from the organisation including one of its presidents the Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis. The Right Reverend Michael Ipgrave, Bishop of Lichfield and the CCJ's chair, said: 'We are delighted to present our Bridge Award to the prince. 'Since 1942, CCJ has been building bridges between peoples and communities. In a similar vein, His Royal Highness has been a bridge builder extraordinaire, supporting diverse faith and ethnic communities over several decades. 'He has been a steadfast friend of all the faith communities, reflecting the duality of the monarchy's role as Supreme Governor of the Church of England but also at the helm of a multi-faith country and Commonwealth. 'To borrow the words of the famous American Jewish folk duo Simon and Garfunkel, the prince has been a Bridge over Troubled Water.' Introduced in 2017 for CCJ's 75th anniversary, the Bridge Award is an annual honour for someone who has made an exceptional and leading contribution to building bridges between peoples, in a Christian-Jewish or wider setting. Charles received the award for 2020, but the presentation was delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic. Zaki Cooper, CCJ trustee and founder of the Bridge Award, said: 'The task of building bridges remains as necessary as ever, as an antidote to polarisation, division and ignorance. 'The prince has been a long-standing champion of this important work between different religious groups, and also as a particularly steadfast friend to minority faith and ethnic groups. 'Whilst diversity and inclusion has become a buzzword recently, the prince has been championing this agenda over many years, out of a sense of humanity and the common good. 'He not only has an acute understanding of the value of faith in theory, but is also a friend of all the faiths in practice.' Advertisement

The oldest theatre site in continuous use in the world, the stage has been entertaining Londoners since 1812, and every reigning British monarch since has attended performances there.

In 2000 Lord Lloyd Webber bought the theatre and in 2019 along with his wife Madeleine, 58, embarked on a two year project to completely restore it.

Today, the owner sported a light grey suit and red, flower-patterned tie as Prince Charles officially reopened it, unveiling a plaque that read: 'Theatre Drury Lane Restored 2019-2021, By Lord and Lady Lloyd Weber.

'Opened by Prince Charles and Duchess of Cornwall, 23rd June 2021'

Sporting a slick light blue trouser suit, Lady Lloyd Webber, 58, looked elegant as she joined the royal couple.

It comes as the Prince of Wales today hosted the first major investiture ceremony since the pandemic began at St James's Palace.

Scaled back due to Covid, Prince Charles presented honours to 32 recipients - including CEO of the environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy, Mrs Allison Ogden-Newton - rather than the 100 guests it would've been in pre-pandemic times.

Other significant changes brought in to keep the event Covid secure included the insignia being collected by the recipients from a cushion rather than being pinned on by the prince.

Those being honoured with knighthoods and MBEs also had to wear masks as they move around the Palace, but can remove their face coverings in the Throne Room where the actual ceremony is taking place.

Buckingham Palace - the Queen's official London residence - is normally the venue for many of the ceremonies - but the event took place at St James's Palace because of on-going work to update the services at the royal residence.

Recipients were only permitted to bring one guest, but the family member, partner or friend also had the chance to meet heir-to-the-throne Charles.

During traditional investitures, each recipient would have approached the prince or hosting royal on their own, and up to three guests would have watched, seated at a distance with scores of other spectators.

But during the pandemic, those being honoured entered the Throne Room one at time, joined by their guest who was also greeted by the prince.

There was no audience present but the investiture is thought to have been shown on large screens to those waiting their turn in the adjacent Queen Anne room  another of the State Rooms.

Those attending are required to bring proof of a negative lateral flow Covid test to ensure entry and be subject to a temperature check on arrival.

In 2000 Lord Lloyd Webber (second left) bought the theatre and in 2019 along with his wife Madeleine (left), 58, embarked on a two year project to completely restore it. Charles and Camilla re pictured right

Today, the owner sported a light grey suit and red, flower-patterned tie as Prince Charles officially reopened it, unveiling a plaque that read: 'Theatre Drury Lane Restored 2019-2021, By Lord and Lady Lloyd Weber. 'Opened by Prince Charles and Duchess of Cornwall, 23rd June 2021'

Sporting a slick light blue trouser suit, Lady Lloyd Webber, 58, looked elegant as she joined the royal couple.

Charles (left) and Camilla (right) both sported facemasks for the day out at the theatere

Camilla opted for a trendy midi green dress (left) while Charles dressed in a pinstripe suit

The Prince of Wales is shown the auditorium during a visit to the Theatre Royal Drury Lane

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall are shown around the auditorium by Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber and Lady Madeleine Lloyd Webber during a visit to the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, central London, to hear about the restoration of the thea

Friendly Charles spoke to members of the public during his tour of the theatre today

Britain's Prince Charles pets a horse as he visits the Royal Parks in Hyde Park

Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, pose as they meet with staff looking after the Royal Parks in Hyde Park

There will also be no hanging around and mingling afterwards. Those attending will depart after collecting their honour, and seating will be socially distanced.

There will also be reduced numbers of ceremonial and support staff present, and family portrait and media facilities remain, but in more limited numbers.

Investitures are usually a key part of the royal calendar, but there have been no major ones for 15 months, since before the start of England's first national lockdown.

Today's ceremony took place despite the delay to the June 21 easing of restrictions following concerns over the rapidly spreading Delta variant first identified in India.

Lady Madeleine Lloyd Webber, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall during a visit to Theatre Royal

Beaming in the sunshine, Charles wore sunglasses as he enjoyed an afternoon tea on the terrace

All sunshine! Enjoying the British summer, Charles looked delighted to sit outside with Camilla

Madeleine Lloyd Webber, Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Charles, Prince of Wales during a visit to Theatre Royal on June 23, 2021 in London, England. Theatre Royal Drury is

'The arrangements have been made in full consultation with Public Health England and Government to ensure they are Covid compliant, in line with current guidelines,' a Buckingham Palace spokeswoman said.

In March 2020, the Queen was pictured wearing gloves for the first time at a palace investiture, when the total number of people diagnosed with Covid-19 in the UK was 51.

It was before the UK was in the grip of coronavirus, and the head of the World Health Organisation was advising people over the age of 60 to avoid crowded areas.
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The Queen held her weekly audience with Prime Minster Boris Johnson at Buckingham Palace today for the first time in 18-months.

Standing on a French carpet from the 17th century beneath a glittering chandelier, Her Majesty certainly pulled out all the stops for the politician as he attended the palace for the first time since the coronavirus lockdown.

In an unusual step, the palace released photos of the pair meeting, showing the audience room is full of rich, historical mementos and sweet family pictures.

Showing her affection for her grandchildren, pictures of several of them took pride of place on her desk.

Among them is the engagement photos of both Prince William and Kate Middleton and Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, as well as a wedding photo from granddaughter Zara's marriage to Mike Tindall.

Also shown was pictures of the Queen with Prince Charles and Princess Anne with her husband Sir Timothy Laurence, scattered among 18th century artwork believed to be worth more than 2million and surprisingly a two-bar fireplace which cost just 29.99.

Pictured, the Queen meets Boris Johnson today. 1. The Thames from Somerset House Terrace towards the City by Canaletto 2. Princess Anne and Sir Timothy Laurence. 3. Engagement photo of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle 4. Zara and Mike Tindall's wedding photo 5. William and Kate's engagement photo 6. Queen with Prince Charles 7. 18th Century English porcelain pheasants valued at 20,000 8. English gilt mirror, from the 19th Century, valued at 30,000 9. White marble and gilt bronze clock, valued at 4,000 10. Two-bar electric fire, approx. cost 29.99 11. French carpet from the 18th Century, value unknown

1. 18th Century Art

On the wall behind the the Queen and Prime Minster is a painting by Canaletto that is dated circa 1750-51. The piece, titled The Thames from Somerset House Terrace towards the City, is part of a pairing created by the Italian artist during his time in London

On the wall behind the the Queen and Prime Minster is a painting by Canaletto that is dated circa 1750-51. The piece, titled The Thames from Somerset House Terrace towards the City, is part of a pairing created by the Italian artist during his time in London. It recently replaced another painting by the same artist, which hung in the room for years, and is believe to be worth upwards of 2million.

The Queen's closeness to her only daughter is well-documented, so it's no surprise a snap of her with husband Sir Vice-Admiral Timothy Laurence is on display among bouquets of bright fresh flowers. The photo shows them both in military regalia. Sir Admiral was a Vice Admiral in the navy before retiring, while Anne holds various positions.

2. Photo of Princess Anne and Sir Timothy Laurence

The Queen's closeness to her only daughter is well-documented, so it's no surprise a snap of her with husband Sir Vice-Admiral Timothy Laurence is on display among bouquets of bright fresh flowers.

The photo shows them both in military regalia. Sir Admiral was a Vice Admiral in the navy before retiring, while Anne holds various positions.

3. Engagement photo of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

Perhaps showing that there's no bad blood with her grandson, The Queen also keeps a picture of Harry and Meghan in her living room.

The couple, who left The Firm last year and now live in California, recently named their first daughter Lilibet, in a tribute to the Queen's childhood nickname. The photo appears to be from their engagement in 2017.

4. Zara and Mike Tindall wedding photo

As well as William and Harry, the Queen also has a wedding shot of her eldest granddaughter Zara, in what appears to be her first dance at her wedding with husband Mike Tindall.

The couple, both professional sportspeople, married in 2011 in Edinburgh, and now have three children together.

Perhaps showing that there's no bad blood with her grandson, The Queen also keeps a picture of Harry and Meghan in her living room. The couple, who left The Firm last year and now live in California, recently named their first daughter Lilibet, in a tribute to the Queen's childhood nickname. The photo appears to be from their engagement in 2017.

5. William and Kate engagement photo

The clearest shot on display is the engagement photo of second-in-line Prince William and future Queen consort Kate Middleton.

The 2010 engagement photo shows the pair, then aged 29, at St James' Palace.

The clearest shot on display is the engagement photo of second-in-line Prince William and future Queen consort Kate Middleton. The 2010 engagement photo shows the pair, then aged 29, at St James' Palace.

6. Queen with Prince Charles

The only photo of the Queen herself in the room shows her with Prince Charles in images captured for her 90th birthday.

The portrait, fashion photographer Nick Knigh, shows the monarch her eldest son and heir in the White Drawing Room at Windsor Castle.

7. Porcelain birds

A pair of colourful 18th Century English porcelain pheasants valued at 20,000 are a standout element of the room.

8. English gilt mirror

Above the porcelain birds is an English gilt mirror, believed to be valued upwards of 30,000. Reflected in the mirror is a late 18th century chandelier and curtains.

A pair of colourful 18th Century English porcelain pheasants valued at 20,000 are a standout element of the room (left) and above the porcelain birds is an English gilt mirror, believed to be valued upwards of 30,000. Reflected in the mirror is a late 18th century chandelier and curtains (right)

In front of the mirror is a white marble and gilt bronze clock, valued at at least 4,000.

9. Clock

In front of the mirror is a white marble and gilt bronze clock, valued at at least 4,000.

10. Fireplace

In the fireplace there is a two-bar electric fire. Similar models can be bought on the high street for 29.99. The Royals are known to face the cold with fortitude, with the dated rooms in their various haunts known for their draughts and difficulty to heat. The Queen has similar budget heaters in fireplaces in all of her residences

In the fireplace there is a two-bar electric fire. Similar models can be bought on the high street for 29.99. The Royals are known to face the cold with fortitude, with the dated rooms in their various haunts known for their draughts and difficulty to heat

11. French carpet from the 17th century
A man who walks 17 miles to and from work has been gifted a bike and is now studying to get his driver's license after receiving $26,000 in donations to buy a car thanks to a kindhearted stranger who offered him a ride last week.

Donte Franklin, 20, from Oklahoma, has to trek more than eight miles to get to his job as a cook at Buffalo Wild Wings, which requires him to leave his house three hours early to make it to his shifts on time.

'I really dont care if it gets tiring. I just have to keep pushing,' Franklin told Fox affiliate KOKH. 'I walk just to make my family proud.'

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Dedicated: Donte Franklin, 20, from Oklahoma, has to leave his house three miles early and trek more than eight miles to get to his job as a cook at Buffalo Wild Wings

Good Samaritan: Franklin's life changed forever last week when Michael Lynn (pictured) saw him walking in the scorching heat and offered him a ride

'I havent missed a shift at all,' he added.

Franklin credited his late mother with giving him the motivation and strength to go on and make the difficult journey each day.

'She passed away when I was 16-years-old. She had Hepatitis C. After she passed away its just been hard for me,' he said.

Franklin's life changed forever last week when Michael Lynn saw him walking in the scorching heat and offered him a ride.

Touched: Lynn was so moved by Franklin's dedication to his job that he shared the cook's story on Facebook

Amazing: A local bike group gifted Franklin a new bicycle to ride to work after an administrator came across Lynn's Facebook post

'I was going down 12th Street and I saw him,' Lynn told ABC affiliate KOCO. 'I was thinking, "Boy it's a hot day." One thing led to another, and I'm finding out he's [walking to work] I just couldn't believe it.'

The Good Samaritan was so moved by Franklin's dedication to his job that he shared the cook's story on Facebook, where it was seen by Kerri Collins.

Collins is the administrator of My Riding Buddies Oklahoma (MRBO) and Bikers for Elves, a biker charity group that her husband founded.

'Anytime I see something posted concerning anybody anywhere in Oklahoma, I immediately jump in and we do whatever we can do as a group,' she told KOCO.

'It just touched me that this man is only 20 years old and is walking to two different jobs with nothing in the heat. It opened my heart, because kids his age don't do that.'

Heartwarming: A GoFundMe page was also set up in his name to raise money for him to buy a car. As of Wednesday, the fundraiser has received more than $47,000 in donations

Life-changing: Franklin, who is studying to become a welder, still has to get his driver's license, but he plans on riding his new bike to work in the meantime

'I love this guy like my own': Lynn has kept in touch with Franklin since he gave him a ride, and he hopes that they stay in each other's lives

The local bike group surprised Franklin with a new bicycle to ride to and from work.

There has also been a GoFundMe page set up in his name to raise money for him to buy a car. As of Wednesday, the fundraiser has received more than $47,000 in donations.

Franklin, who is studying to become a welder, still has to get his driver's license, but he plans on riding his new bike to work in the meantime.

'I can really help my family with this,' he told KOKH. 'Its just a really good blessing.'

Lynn has kept in touch with Franklin since he gave him a ride, and he hopes that they stay in each other's lives.

'I think we need to keep each other,' he told KOKH. 'I love this guy like my own.'
Bianca and Vinny Smith went through their packing checklist one last time. There was the paperwork, of course, all carefully ordered, double-checked and labelled. Foreign currency, phrasebooks and medical kits.

Then, neatly stacked side by side, tiny Babygros and vests, packs of newborn nappies, bottles, teats and tins of powdered baby milk. For tomorrow, they would fly out to the Ukraine as a childless married couple and return a few weeks later as parents, to twin boys, born via a surrogate.

After eight failed rounds of IVF and years of heartbreak  plus thousands of pounds spent  theyd almost given up on their dream of becoming parents. Now they were buzzing with excitement and nerves that finally their dream was about to be realised.

Bianca heard about the biggest surrogacy company in the Ukraine on a Facebook group. They were offering a take-home baby guarantee, she says. You pay around 40,000 and you keep going until you get a baby. Theyll swap out egg donors or surrogates until they get it right. And we thought, well, perfect.

Bianca, 45, and Vinny Smith, 40, from Cheltenham, (pictured) said their surrogacy dream turned into a 'nightmare' after the couple paid 40k to a surrogacy company in the Ukraine

But author Bianca, 45, claims their surrogacy dream turned into a nightmare after they flew into the Ukraine for the birth of their sons, Max and Alex, now nearly four.

There she saw, first hand, the true scale of the countrys shocking surrogate baby trade: women kept on a sweltering maternity ward with no air conditioning like cattle.

Surrogates forced to wash with bottles of water in filthy toilets, as there were no showers and they were too terrified to complain through fear of reprisals against their families.

The Smiths have since discovered that their surrogate, an unmarried mother-of-two from rural Ukraine, was rushed into emergency surgery for several blood transfusions after giving birth to their twins. They still feel guilty about what the surrogate went through on their behalf.

Its very difficult for us to find out exactly how the surrogates were treated because of the language barrier, says Bianca. But everyone I know who has been through the same firm as us has not been happy.

The unavoidable fact is the couple, who are originally from Cheltenham, unwittingly fuelled a scandalous billion-pound international surrogacy trade in the Ukraine.

We adore our boys, but we are always thinking about our surrogate, Bianca says. If only we had known about how she was treated, we would have done everything we could to make her experience better.

After eight failed rounds of IVF, the couple contacted a surrogacy company in the Ukraine and their twin sons, Max and Alex, now nearly four, were conceived (Pictured: The Smiths)

While surrogacy is legal in the UK, the only payments allowed are expenses, i.e. those incurred as a result of the pregnancy, such as medical bills and compensation for time off work. Consequently, the number of UK women volunteering as surrogates is small which drives many couples abroad.

The Ukraine is one of the few places in the world where commercial surrogacy is allowed, since Cambodia, India, Nepal and Thailand all banned it in recent years owing to the abusive treatment of women.

Some countries, such as Spain, refuse to register children born from surrogates in the Ukraine because of similar concerns.

With no such restrictions here, dozens of highly organised Ukrainian companies are free to target the UK market. Through slick, promotional events, they use marketing videos featuring happy British couples with their babies. Their surrogates,they assure customers, are treated like diamonds.

But the brutal reality is that women are frequently kept under surveillance during the final weeks of their pregnancies, banned from having contact with partners or other loved ones and forced to live under curfew, facing hefty fines if they break rules.

However, after they flew into the Ukraine for the birth they saw, first hand, the true scale of the country's shocking surrogate baby trade, with women kept on a sweltering maternity ward with no air conditioning 'like cattle' (file photo)

Some were abandoned while in terrible pain, left with huge medical bills and are unable to have children of their own following complications in pregnancy.

One who had been through open-heart surgery was allowed to bear a child despite the risk and was forcibly separated from her own son. Another woman revealed the clinic had missed her now incurable cervical cancer in pre-pregnancy checks.

While the women are paid around 10,000 to carry babies for foreign couples  more than twice the average annual salary  the mental and physical cost is painfully high.

Meanwhile, there seems to be no age restriction to couples who want a surrogate child. One agency told of a UK couple who wanted an heir for their property empire so had a child in their late 60s using the fathers sperm and a donor egg. When our undercover reporters posed as an elderly couple, they were told by several agencies it would be no problem.

Bianca, who lives in Cozumel, Mexico, where Vinny is stationed as a military consultant, says the couple had tried to accept being childless. Then Bianca found out about the Ukrainian guaranteed baby VIP programme for 43,000. They flew out in July 2016 for a consultation, and Bianca says: Everything seemed perfect  we were excited.

Their surrogate was a 29-year-old unmarried mother-of-two who was rushed into emergency surgery for several blood transfusions after giving birth to their twins

Three months later, they returned to Kiev for Vinnys sperm deposit and to choose their egg donor from a database that included pictures and videos of the Ukrainian women, and details such as eye colour, height and weight, education and occupation.

Their surrogate, a 29-year-old baker, was found within a week. I knew she was doing it for the money but that didnt alarm me. I have a friend in the U.S. who has been a surrogate four times and does it for the money. I didnt see it as exploitation, Bianca says.

They then met the surrogate, signed the paperwork and paid the deposit. The next month, the donor had her egg retrieval and by December the surrogate was pregnant with twins. For the next few months, their only contact with her was via Skype with a translator employed by the clinic.

We found out only her boyfriend and two kids knew about the surrogacy  a lot of them do it in secret because its frowned upon by the locals, Bianca says.

As the babies due date approached, in July 2017, everything started unravelling.

The Smiths say they 'love their boys more than anything' but they still feel guilty for what their surrogate went through on their behalf

It began with the service we were given when we arrived for the birth, says Bianca. We were told we would have a luxury apartment but it was filthy  absolutely disgusting. It was definitely not an environment for a newborn baby.

The couple complained to the agency and asked for a cleaner  but they did such a terrible job they were forced to buy cleaning products and scrub down the apartment themselves.

Bianca and Vinny, 40, had also paid for a private hospital for their surrogate, but were told she was going to the public hospital.

It was filthy and reeked of cigarette smoke, Bianca says. The private hospital is used to surrogates, but in the public hospital, we were screamed and shouted at. They didnt want us there.

Theyd also been told their surrogate would live in an apartment in Kiev for the last few weeks of the pregnancy so they could keep an eye on her and ensure her pregnancy was going well.

SURROGACY IN THE UKRAINE: THE RULES Only married heterosexual couples are allowed to use surrogates in the Ukraine and they must have a medical reason why they cannot carry their own children. There has to be some genetic link between the prospective parents and the child, either through the sperm or the egg. The surrogate cannot use her own eggs. For the surrogates in the Ukraine, the rules are much more strict. Women must sign contracts waiving their right to even hold the baby after the birth  and are hit with hefty penalties for infringements, as seen by our undercover reporters. The contract states if the surrogate is left infertile due to the pregnancy or childbirth, she is only entitled to 5,700 in compensation from the prospective parents. If the child is born with abnormalities through the fault of the surrogate she must pay the parents 11,500 in compensation. She will also have to pay a 17,000 fine for the refusal to issue documents confirming the parental rights of the intended parents. She is not permitted to pick up the child(ren) at the hospital and cannot object to the potential parents picking up their child(ren) immediately after birth. The largest possible fines which can be issued to a surrogate include for a breach of confidentiality  speaking to the Press, human rights or public organisations which would see a surrogate fined 22,000. The surrogate must reimburse the parents for all medical expenses if she refuses to have an abortion if the child(ren) is found to have abnormalities and the potential parents opt to terminate the pregnancy. The contract also states she must: Strictly follow the diet, lifestyle and regime of work, rest, physical and emotional stress that is recommended to her. She cannot even swim or sunbathe without the consent of the parents, agency and a physician. Advertisement

Again, not the case. Turns out, she was on a maternity ward where they keep all the surrogates before they give birth like cattle, says Bianca. We only discovered this after our babies were born.

The birth was natural and Bianca was able to be in the room with their surrogate.

The staff took the babies straight away. Neither the surrogate nor Bianca held them at first. I was scared to hold them in case I broke them, she says.

Although the babies were in perfect health, we were told we had to stay for the weekend. We only found out afterwards from the surrogate that this was because she needed several blood transfusions.

The couple were put up in a makeshift room with the babies.

We stayed on the surrogate ward, so thats how we saw the surrogates all crammed together. It was boiling and there was no air conditioning  in the middle of summer.

When it was time for the couple to leave with the babies, Bianca says she and the surrogate wept.

I was extremely grateful to her, but I could also imagine how empty she must feel after carrying the boys for nine months and then giving them up, she explains.

Becoming tearful, Bianca recalls: She left the hospital crying. I asked her if she would do it again, and she said: No, it hurts my heart too much. 

The agency had told us we would get someone who was used to surrogacy, but this was her first time and it tore her apart emotionally.

Back in the UK, like all parents having children via surrogates, the Smiths had to apply for a parental order from a British court. This transfers legal parenthood from the surrogate to the parents.

Settling into life as a new parent, Bianca started a blog describing her surrogacy experience.

To her shame, before the birth, Bianca had been so impressed with the process shed offered to act as a intermediary between the clinic and prospective parents. She says now that she had been absolutely naive.

Right up until we got to the apartment in Ukraine to get ready for the boys birth, we kept singing their praises because all we could think about was our dream of parenthood about to come true.

Im so unhappy I sent couples their way  if wed had more information back then, I would have warned people not to go anywhere near that clinic, she says.

Theyre not thinking about peoples lives, or the emotional aspect of these intended parents who just want a child.

MPs are now calling for urgent reforms to deter British couples from going to the Ukraine. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian Presidential Commissioner for Childrens Rights called for the baby trade to be banned.

We love our boys more than anything, says Bianca. But if we had our time again, we would try to fly our surrogate out to live with us while she was pregnant. Then we could make sure she was looked after properly.
She's been dubbed Britain's most beautiful royal and is often spotted in ballgowns and glamorous gear.

And today was no exception for Lady Amelia Windsor who sported an edgy look to join a flurry of high society beauties at the Victoria & Albert Museum in South Kensington, London.

The model, 25, who is 41st in line to the throne, looked cool in a midi black and starry dress and green rubber boots.

Lady Amelia Windsor sported an edgy look to join a flurry of high society beauties at the Victoria & Albert Museum in South Kensington, London tonight

Amelia, who is the granddaughter of the Queen's first cousin Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, paired the look with a red and white leather jacket, six gold rings, and an edgy choker.

Completing the look was a simple green velvet bag with a pretty daisy detail.

Showing off her natural beauty, Amelia kept her make-up to a minimum, with just a light layer of foundation and clear balm on her lips.

She kept her blonde hair long and straight, stylishly showing her darkened roots.

The model, 25, who is 41st in line to the throne, looked cool in a midi black and starry dress and green rubber boots

Showing off her natural beauty, Amelia kept her make-up to a minimum, with just a light layer of foundation and clear balm on her lips

Also at the event was Sabine Getty, sported a cool monochrome look a vampish floor-length black skirt with a high slit.

She paired the look with a white shirt and stilettos, perfectly complementing her icy blonde hair and chunky jewellery.

Sabine is married to financial analyst Joseph, the great grandson of oil baron J. Paul Getty.

The exhibition was also attended by Donna Air, Dominic West and V&A director and former MP Tristam Hunt.

Also at the event was Sabine Getty, sported a cool monochrome look a vampish floor-length black skirt with a high slit

It explores the origins, adaptations and reinventions of Alices Adventures in Wonderland over 157 years.

Amelia has modelled for the likes of Dolce & Gabbana and designed her own range of accessories in collaboration with Penelope Chilvers.

She is signed to Storm models, which represents the likes of Kate Moss and Cara Delevingne.

She is also a contributing editor in Tatler Magazine, and reportedly interned at jewellery house Bulgari, during her time studying at Edinburgh University.

Her appearance comes after she revealed she spent the first national lockdown working on jewellery designs for a collaboration with a high-end brand - admitting it was the perfect 'distraction'.
Southern U.S. states are severely lagging behind the rest of U.S. in vaccinating their residents against COVID-19.

The struggle to get people to roll up their arms is these regions is part of the reason the White House conceded it won't meet its goal of having 70 percent of adult Americans with at least one dose by July 4.

Of the 10 states with the lowest rates, eight are in the South and, four - Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Wyoming - have yet to partially vaccinate half of those aged 18 and older.

Daily doses administered have fallen by as much as 90 percent since the spring.

As of Wednesday, 65.5 percent of adults in the U.S. have received at least an initial dose, and experts say boosting rates in the Southern states will be key to beating back the virus.

Doctors say vaccine hesitancy is playing a key role in the low rates in the South with patients often making the choice to not get jabbed due to misinformation, general fears about vaccines and worries over rare side effects.

Eight of the 10 U.S. states with the lowest COVID-19 vaccination rates are in the South, and are one of the reasons why Biden will not his July 4th goal of partially vaccinating 70% of U.S. adults

Four of those states - Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Wyoming - have yet to give 50% of their adult residents at least one dose

Mississippi has consistently led the nation with some of the lowest vaccine rates.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), just 35.7 of the total population has been given at least one dose and 29.1 percent are fully vaccinated.

When looking at just adults, these figures increase to 45.6 percent partially dosed and 34.4 percent who have completed their series.

What's more, the number of doses administered each week has severely fallen from a peak of 132,042 the week of February 27 to 24,737 the week of June 19, representing a drop of 81 percent.

The concerning figures have led to First Lady Jill Biden traveling to the Magnolia State to convince people to roll up their sleeves.

'I'm here today to ask all of the people who can hear my voice, who can see my face, to get their shot,' Biden said after visiting a clinic at Jackson State University,

'The president, the White House, our administration - we care about you, we care about the people of Mississippi. We want them to be safe. We want them to be healthy.'

In Mississippi, the state with the worst rates, 45.6% of residents have been partially vaccinated (left) and 34.4 percent are fully vaccinated (right), with low rates in most counties

Weekly vaccinations decline from 132,042 the week of February 27 to 24,737 the week of June 19, a drop of 81%

Mississippi State Health Officer Dr Thomas Dobbs told Bloomberg that one of the biggest factors driving vaccine hesitancy is misinformation.

One resident, Angel Devine of Jackson, told the news organization that she hadn't been vaccinated because she's worried that the shot won't be effective against variants.

Studies have shown that two doses of Pfizer and Moderna are protective against the Alpha variant, that originated in the UK, and the Delta variant that originated in India.

Devine said she is now considering getting the vaccine due to the urging of her 18-year-old daughter, who is studying nursing at the University of Southern Mississippi.

'She wants to get it, and she wants me to get it with her,' Devine told Bloomberg.

'I'm still concerned, but it does want me to take it a little more. We'll have to wait and see.'

In Alabama, 39.1% of the population has had at least one dose and 32% are fully immunized with daily shots falling more than 90% since mid-March.

In nearby Alabama, vaccination rates are also lagging, with CDC data showing just 39.1 percent of the population has had at least one dose and 32 percent are fully immunized.

Daily shots administered fell from around 44,000 per day in late March to 4,000 per day in mid-June, a drop of 90 percent.

The low rate of vaccination was initially linked to a slow rollout, but experts now say the main factor is vaccine hesitancy.

'I think what it is boiling down to now is the political resistance,' Dr Michael Saag, a infectious diseases researcher at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, told The Guardian.

Alabama is a state that is very conservative and went to Donald Trump handily in the last presidential election.

Although Trump has encouraged his supporters to get vaccinated in a Fox News interview, he never received the jab in public like other political lead and declined to record a commercial to persuade people to get immunized.

In Tennessee, just 41.3% of residents have at least one shot and 36% are fully vaccinated, and, in most counties, 80% of vaccine appointments are available

Tennessee is yet another state with one of the worst vaccination rates in the country.

According to the state's health department, just 41.3 percent of residents have had at least one shot and 36 percent are fully vaccinated, both well below the national average

The data also shows that in most counties, more than 80 percent of appointments are available.

Dr William Schaffner, a professor of preventive medicine and infectious diseases at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center, said doses are being sent back to the CDC before they expire.

[When once there were long lines for vaccines for COVID-19, now infectious disease experts are asking people in Tennessee to step up and get vaccinated.

'There has been a heterogeneity of responses across our whole country. I would have loved to see everybody espouse vaccination no question. That would've helped a lot,' he told WTFV.

The First Lady also travelled to Nashville and made an appearance at a distillery that hosts a pop-up vaccination site.

'The vaccines are the only way to get back to the open mics, and the music festivals and the concerts that make this town so very special,' she said.

In Louisiana, just 37.5% of the population given at least one dose and 33.8% are fully immunized with no region fully vaccinating more than 50% of its residents

Vaccination rates in Louisiana have also been low since the start of the rollout with just 37.5 percent of the population given at least one dose and 33.8 percent fully immunized.

According to the state health department dashboard, no region has fully vaccinated more than 50 percent of its residents.

The highest rate is in Region 1, where New Orleans is located, and only 43.31 percent of people have completed their vaccine series.

KTAL reported that in Region 7, more than 1,000 vaccinations per day were being administered in the spring. This has since fallen to between 300 and 400 per week.

'We would love to see more people come in,' Chris Mangin, director of Ochsner LSU Health St Mary Medical Center, told the station.

'Again, we've got plenty of vaccinations. It's just a matter of getting people to roll up their sleeves and get the shot.'
A new coronavirus variant carrying a mutation that appears to make it more transmissible has been detected in the U.S.

The variant, called AY.1 or 'Delta plus,' is a sub-lineage of the mutant strain that was first detected in India and is spreading across the globe.

It has acquired the spike protein mutation called K417N, which is also found in the Beta variant first identified in South Africa.

Some scientists worry that the mutation, coupled with other existing features of the Indian 'Delta' variant, may lead to it spreading more easily.

It is currently unclear where the variant originated with some researchers saying it may have come from Nepal, others saying it first cropped up in India and a few suggesting Europe is the origin point.

According to a recent report from the UK government, at least 85 cases have been found in America, but there is no evidence that Delta plus is rapidly spreading across the country.

As of June 16, at least 85 cases of the 'Delta plus' coronavirus variant - which has a mutation that makes it more transmissible - have been detected in the U.S.

Samples have been found in California, Connecticut, Maryland, New York, Tennessee, Vermont and Washington as early as April 22, but there is no evidence the variant is rapidly spreading

'We need to determine how susceptible it is to neutralization,' Dr David Montefiori, a professor in surgery at Duke University, told DailyMail.com.

'The key feature of every new variant that everyone wants to know right away is neutralization. Neutralizing antibodies are the primary way that the vaccines work.

'I would predict this new mutation is not going to change things much bu we dont know until it's tested.'

As of June 16, at least 197 cases has been found in 11 countries: Britain, Canada, India, Japan, Nepal, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Switzerland, Turkey and the U.S.

The earliest case in India is from a sample taken on April 5 and health ministers say around 40 cases have been observed in the states of Maharashtra, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh, with 'no significant increase in prevalence'.

Britain said its first five cases were sequenced on April 26 and they were contacts of individuals who had travelled from, or transited through, Nepal and Turkey.

No deaths were reported among the UK and Indian cases.

Meanwhile, according to outbreak.info, the variant was first detected in the U.S. on April 22 and it makes up less than 0.5 percent of cases.

The website lists California, Connecticut, Maryland, New York, Tennessee, Vermont and Washington as the states where samples have been identified.

Dr Peter Chin-Hong, a professor of medicine and infectious disease specialist at the University of California, San Francisco, says there is no evidence Delta plus is spreading yet, but that the U.S. needs to stay vigilant.

'The backend of this variant is Delta, which is the scariest one so far,' he told DailyMail.com.

'The "plus" gives it even more superpowers than Delta, which is potentially even a scarier situation. It gives the virus an advantage to live.

'So I think it follows the same playbook [as Delta] We'll have to see what the rate of increase is, which we don't know yet.'

Studies are ongoing in India and globally to test the effectiveness of vaccines against this mutation.

'WHO is tracking this variant as part of the Delta variant, as we are doing for other Variants of Concern with additional mutations,' the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a statement sent to Reuters.

'For the moment, this variant does not seem to be common, currently accounting for only a small fraction of the Delta sequences...Delta and other circulating Variants of Concern remain a higher public health risk as they have demonstrated increases in transmission.'

A virologist in India said the Delta plus variant may reduce the effectiveness of COVID-19 antibody treatments due to the K417N mutation. Pictured: A student is vaccinated in Mumbai, June 22

But India's health ministry warned that regions where it has been found 'may need to enhance their public health response by focusing on surveillance, enhanced testing, quick contact-tracing and priority vaccination.'

Shahid Jameel, a top Indian virologist, told Reuters the K417N was known to reduce the effectiveness of a cocktail of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies.

There are worries Delta plus would inflict another wave of infections on India after it emerged from the world's worst surge in cases only recently.

'The mutation itself may not lead to a third wave in India - that also depends on COVID-appropriate behavior, but it could be one of the reasons,' said Tarun Bhatnagar, a scientist with the state-run Indian Council for Medical Research, in a statement.

Chin-Hong said it's important not to panic, but that the public should remain vigilant.

'This is a wake up call that virus is continuing to be a shapeshifter,' he said.

'Don't put off your vaccine or encourage the people in your community to get it. If we are afraid of Delta, Delta plus is potentially scarier. If there was ever a time to get it, now is the time.'

Montefioiri added: ' My biggest fear is variant like Delta variant which spreads very fast and will acquire mutations in the spike protein which would make it evade our vaccines.'
An advisory group for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say there is a 'likely link' between rare cases of heart inflammation in adolescents and young adults and the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines.

In a presentation released on Wednesday, the COVID-19 Vaccine Safety Technical (VaST) Work Group discussed nearly 500 reports of the heart inflammation, known as myocarditis, in vaccinated adults under age 30.

The group of doctors said he risk of myocarditis or pericarditis following vaccination with the mRNA-based shots in adolescents and young adults is notably higher after the second dose and in males

It comes as the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) is set to meet this week to assess the possibility of a link between the heart condition and the mRNA vaccines.

The CDC's COVID-19 Vaccine Safety Technical Work Group said Wednesday that there is a 'likely link' between rare heart inflammation and vaccines, especially after the second dose in adults under age 30

Young males were up to seven times more likely to report heart inflammation, known as myocarditis, than young women

According to the presentation, there have been 484 preliminary reports of myocarditis or pericarditis in young people under age 30 as of June 11.

So far, 323 have been confirmed by CDC and 148 are still under review.

In total, 309 patients were hospitalized, of which 295 were discharged and 79 percent have since recovered.

Nine patients are still hospitalized with two in intensive care units. There was no data available for five patients.

Males were much more likely to report heart inflammation after receiving a second dose than women.

As of June 11, there were 9.1 per million reported cases of myocarditis/pericarditis in females ages 12-to-17 compared to 66.7 per million in males of that age group.

What's more, rates among females ages 18-to-24 and ages 25-to-29 were 5.5 per million and 2.6 per million respectively.

So far, 484 cases have been reported out of 90.6 million doses, which means the risk occurs in 0.000534% of young adults. Pictured: Max Zito, age 13, is inoculated by Nurse Karen Pagliaro at Hartford Healthcares mass vaccination center at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford, Connecticut, May 13

Among males, rates were 56.3 per million for the 18-to-24 age group and 20.4 per million in the 25-to-29 group.

This type of heart inflammation can be caused by a variety of infections, including a bout of COVID-19, as well as certain medications.

With more than 90.6 million young Americans under age 30 who have received one or both doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, it means just 0.000534 percent of people who have been administered the shots have reported such an effect.

The ACIP will discuss the benefits of the mRNA vaccines versus the potential risk to adolescents and young adults from the heart condition, according to the agency's agenda.

The group is not expected to cast a vote on any issues regarding the vaccine rollout, but may issue an update on vaccine safety, the odds of myocarditis and a risk-benefit of analysis of vaccines in teens and young adults.

The CDC earlier this month said it was still evaluating the risk from the condition and did not confirm a causal relationship between the vaccines and the heart issue.

The agency, however, said a higher-than-expected number of young men have experienced heart inflammation after their second dose of the mRNA COVID-19 shots, with more than half the cases reported in people between the ages of 12 and 24.

Dr Tom Shimabukuro, deputy director of the CDC's Immunization Safety Office, said in a presentation that data from one of the agency's safety monitoring systems - Vaccine Safety Datalink (VSD)  suggests a rate of 12.6 cases per million in the three weeks after the second shot in 12- to 39-year-olds.

Pfizer, whose vaccine has been authorized for use in Americans as young as 12, previously said it had not observed a higher rate of heart inflammation than would normally be expected in the general population.

Moderna had said it could not identify a causal association with the heart inflammation cases and its vaccine.

Although health officials in Israel have also determined that there is likely a link between vaccination and the heart inflammation, concerns about the more infectious Indian 'Delta' variant have prompted the country to urge 12-to 15-year olds get vaccinated.
The U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA) defended its controversial decision to approve the first new Alzheimer's drug since 2003 this week.

Aducanumab, which was developed by Biogen and will be sold under the name Aduhelm, received FDA approval at the start of the month, kicking off a tumultuous few weeks.

In the time since, three members of am FDA advisory panel related to the drug's approval stepped down in protest, and it was revealed the drug will end up being the largest liability of any drug for Medicare.

But the federal agency said that clinical trial data showed it was 'reasonably likely' to help patients

'FDA has heard the voices of many patients afflicted with [Alzheimer's disease] who express a desperate desire for an effective treatment,' Peter Stein, director of the FDA's Office of New Drugs, told the Washington Post.

'In summary, the medical need for new therapies to treat [Alzheimer's disease], especially ones that target the underlying disease pathology, is substantial and urgent.'

Aduhelm (aducanumab) is the first Alzheimer's to receive FDA approval since 2003, and is the only drug on the market that could potentially slow down the cognitive decline caused by the disease. Many experts doubt its ability after a rocky trial process, though

Biogen suffered a rocky trial process with Aducanumab, with two trials both being cut short after failing to hit goals. They still managed to get approval for their drug, though, as some data showed it could slow cognitive decline by up to 22%

Aduhelm has been shown to remove the amyloid beta plaques from the brain that some believe cause the cognitive decline associated with Alzheimer's.

Because of this, the drug - which has already been used to treat some patients - has received some support from the Alzheimer's community, though.

Some experts doubt that removing the amyloid beta plaques will do much to slow down cognitive decline, though.

Aduhelm received accelerated approval from the agency rather than full approval, meaning Biogen will still need to perform ongoing clinical trials on the drug.

If data show the drug has value in combatting Alzheimer's it will receive full approval, but a failed trial could see it pulled from the market.

Janet Woodcock, acting commissioner of the FDA, told The Post on Tuesday that she was 'fairly confident 'that the removal of the plaques will help patients and that it is 'reasonably likely' the drug will produce clinical benefit.

'I feel it is a very solid accelerated approval,' she said.

HOW TO DETECT ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE Alzheimer's disease is a progressive brain disorder that slowly destroys memory, thinking skills and the ability to perform simple tasks. It is the cause of 60% to 70% of cases of dementia. The majority of people with Alzheimer's are age 65 and older More than six million Americans have Alzheimer's. It is unknown what causes Alzheimer's. Those who have the APOE gene are more likely to develop late-onset Alzheimer's. Signs and symptoms: Difficulty remembering newly learned information

Disorientation

Mood and behavioral changes

Suspicion about family, friends and professional caregivers

More serious memory loss

Difficulty with speaking, swallowing and walking Stages of Alzheimer's: Mild Alzheimer's (early-stage) - A person may be able to function independently but is having memory lapses

Moderate Alzheimer's (middle-stage) - Typically the longest stage, the person may confuse words, get frustrated or angry, or have sudden behavioral changes

Severe Alzheimer's disease (late-stage) - In the final stage, individuals lose the ability to respond to their environment, carry on a conversation and, eventually, control movement Advertisement

Biogen, which is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, launched two clinical trials for aducanumab in 2016, according to The Post.

Both were stopped midway because researchers concluded that neither trial would end up reaching its goal.

Later, the company revealed updated data from the second study that showed patients had 22 percent decrease in speed of their cognitive decline.

Advocates say that while the drug is not perfect, it can be the help delay the cognitive decline in the more than six million Americans who have Alzheimer's.

The drug getting approval could also be a foothold for future research into developing treatments for the condition.

'This will give us a new biological foothold to build on,' Stephen Salloway, director of neurology and the Memory and Aging Program at Butler Hospital, told The Post.

'To get the best in class, you have to have the first in class.'

The Alzheimer's Association is supportive of the drug as well, hoping that it can provide temporary relief for patients while further drugs are developed.

'We don't think this is the end all or be all,' Harry Johns, president and chief executive of the Alzheimer's Association, told The Post.

'It will take more advances, but it does appear from the science that people, especially at early stages, could be real beneficiaries and that the benefits accumulate over time.'

If it does work as advertised, Aduhelm will be the only drug on the market that is able to slow the cognitive decline related to Alzheimer's.

Critics of the drug say that giving the drug approval too early will hurt patients more than it will help, due to the wasted time and resources that may go into delivering a product that does not work.

They also criticize Biogen's data conclusion of the second trial, describing it as finding a conclusion then building the process to get there backwards in order to get the results they wanted.

'The worst thing for people with Alzheimer's would be to put out a product that doesn't work,' Aaron Kesselheim, a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, told the newspaper.

'It will be sold at an extremely high price and waste resources that could go to other things.'

Biogen is selling the drug for $56,000 for a year of treatment, a huge price tag for a drug that was expected to have a cost between $10,000 and $20,000.

An analysis published by the Kaiser Family Foundation estimated that if just 500,000 Medicare recipients are prescribed Aduhelm, it would cost Medicare nearly $29 billion a year, far more than any other medication.

Dr David Knopman (pictured) has been one of aducanumab's biggest critics, saying that Biogen's trials of the drug do not show that the drug is effective in combatting Alzheimer's

'At this price, the cost of this one drug alone could top all others covered by Medicare, if it is used widely,' said Tricia Neuman, coauthor of the report.

The drug's approval came as congressional Democrats are trying to build consensus around legislation that would empower Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices.

The chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Democratic Sen Ron Wyden of Oregon, said Thursday the list price for Aduhelm was 'unconscionable.'

Vermont Sen Bernie Sanders, chair of the Senate Budget Committee, criticized Biogen for the price of their drug as well on Wednesday.

'There's absolutely no way Biogen should be allowed to charge patients $56,000 for the new Alzheimer's drug  costing Medicare up to $29 billion a year. We must take on the greed of the pharmaceutical industry,' Sanders wrote in a tweet.

Although President Joe Biden has called for granting Medicare negotiating authority, prospects for the bill are uncertain.

Medicare has not made a formal determination on covering the Alzheimer's drug, but cost traditionally does not enter into such considerations.

The drug's controversial rollout has also caused three few members of an FDA advisory board to step down from their positions.

David Knopman of the Mayo Clinic, Aaron Kesselheim of Harvard University and Joel Perlmutter of Washington University St Louis all walked away from the board after the drug was given accelerated approval.

'[Aducanumab] probably the worst drug approval decision in recent U.S. history,' Kesselheim wrote in a letter to FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock on Thursday, per Stat News.

Dr Aaron Kesselheim (pictured) called the approval of Aducanumab the 'the worst drug approval decision in recent U.S. history'

'It is clear to me that FDA is not presently capable of adequately integrating the Committee's scientific recommendations into its approval decisions.'

Knopman authored a study in November which analyzed the results of the clinical trials, and said he disagreed with Biogen's claim that the drug was effective.

All three men were among the 10 of 11 members of the advisory board that voted against the drug's approval in November.

Recommendations from the board are not binding, though, and the FDA is allowed to, and often does, make decisions that go against the boards vote.

It is rare that a near unanimous decision by the board is ignored, though, and the agency is generally more conservative that experts on the board - which was not the case with aducanumab.

Many experts recommend for the drug to go through a third trial before gaining approval, but that may take years.
Communications guru Sir Alan Parker will net 70million from the sale of a stake in public relations giant Brunswick.

Parker, 65, co-founded Brunswick in 1987 and turned it into a global firm that represents more than a fifth of the companies on the FTSE 100.

Under the deal American merchant bank BDT will buy an 11 per cent stake in Brunswick, which Parker chairs.

Sir Alan Parker (pictured) co-founded Brunswick in 1987 and turned it into a global firm that represents more than a fifth of the companies on the FTSE 100

The investment values the PR firm at 500million. It plans to hand a 140million payout to its 200 partners who own Brunswick shares when the investment completes later this summer.

Parker is set to receive 70million from this pot. But Brunswick will also distribute 18million among virtually everyone in the firm who is not a partner, according to a letter sent to staff seen by the Daily Mail.

Parker launched the firm  which he co-founded with Louise Charlton and Andrew Fenwick  during Margaret Thatchers time as Prime Minister when the City of London was rapidly becoming a global financial centre.

He is one of the most connected men in Britain, counting celebrities, businessmen and politicians on both sides of the political divide among his friends.

Gordon Brown  whose wife Sarah once worked at Brunswick  is the godfather to his son William. And when David Cameron left Number 10, he stayed in Parkers west London mansion.

Brunswick employs 1,300 in 27 cities around the world. Its core expertise is in political lobbying and traditional corporate communications. But it now also advises on areas including cybersecurity and climate change.

Under the BDT deal, Parker, Charlton and Fenwick will sell additional shares worth about 4 per cent of the company to free them up for other people.

But Parker does not intend to step down as chairman.

He wrote in the letter: I have always believed that as the firm grows, my shareholding should be diluted to provide new equity to the expanding partnership.

One thing that is certainly not diluted is my commitment and enthusiasm for the firm.

He added: As you probably know I am as energised as ever and I want to play my part in fulfilling the potential that I can see and what should be a great next step for all of us.

Parker describes Brunswick as an idea drawn up on the table in my mums kitchen.

The businessman has worked on controversial deals and crises  such as representing Pfizer in its botched attempt to buy Astrazeneca.

But his reputation was knocked when he was forced to resign earlier than planned as the international chairman of Save the Children in 2018, following a scandal into sexual harassment complaints lodged against two members of staff.

The deal with BDT means the company will restructure from a limited liability partnership and incorporate as a private company.
Lloyds Banking Group is shutting 44 more bank branches for good across England and Wales this year, it has announced today.

Looking to ramp up numbers banking online, the group said it was closing 29 Lloyds Bank branches and 15 Halifax sites.

In a bid to justify the move, Lloyds' retail director, Vim Maru, said the lender had seen 'significantly fewer transactions' at the 44 branches over the last five years.

Banks have stepped up branch closures after many paused restructuring for much of last year to focus on responding to the pandemic.

One affected branch user, Duncan Edwards, a former managing director at a global bank, told This is Money: 'In reality, the key reason banks are closing branches is purely and simply to save costs.

'Digital banking reduces their costs, but offers a lesser service to customers with a maze of menu options and poorly designed apps.'

Closing: Lloyds Banking Group is shutting 44 more bank branches for good across England and Wales this year

Another Lloyds customer, who is disabled and wished to remain anonymous, said: 'I'm disabled and the Lloyds in Tadley is my closest branch with adjacent parking.

'It is over an hour round trip but worth it for me. Not anymore apparently! It drives me mad this, it's all about the money and stuff loyal customers.'

So far in 2021 the group has announced 100 branch closures for this year. Fifty-six closed in March and April and the 44 announced today will shut between September and November.

Mr Maru said: 'Of the closures the Group has announced today, over a third are branches situated in or around cities and large towns, with another branch very close by.

Where are branches closing? Lloyds closures Berkeley Square Bournemouth Westbourne Brighton Preston Circus Brixham Bromborough Cardiff Rumney Cheltenham Bath Rd Church Village Faversham Gants Hill Halstead Haslemere Hendon Henley-on-Thames Holsworthy Kempston Kentish Town Leeds Horsforth London Regent St Mildenhall Morley Newport Maindee Northwood Oakham Quinton Sedgley Dudley Stony Stratford Tadley Towcester Halifax closures Chertsey Chesham Fleet Harpenden Hinckley Kenilworth Manchester Cross St Market Harborough Plaistow West Ham Potters Bar Rugeley Upminster

'All closures have been made in line with the Access to Banking Standard and FCA guidance.

'In line with previous branch closures, there are no compulsory redundancies and the Group's unions, Accord and Unite, were consulted.'

He said the group would 'continue to invest' in its high-street presence. This week the lender is opening a 'new concept' Bank of Scotland branch in Edinburgh.

It said: 'Importantly, we'll continue to give our customers a choice in how they bank with branches sitting alongside telephone banking, online and mobile banking, our video appointment services, our cashback through local shops programme, our participation in the industry BankHUB cash initiative and 11,500 Post Offices, at which our customers can bank and access cash.'

Shutting: So far in 2021 Lloyds Banking Group has announced 100 branch closures for this year

Mr Maru said the group had seen its digital banking customers grow by over 4million in five years, to almost 18million, of which 13.6million 'also choose to be active app users.'

'This means that, like many businesses on the high street, we must change for a future where branches will be used in a different way, and visited less often', he added.

Union Unite said it had told Lloyds that branches continued to provide an essential service for communities.

'In recent times LBG has spent significant resource to sell its message of 'Helping Britain Recover', Unite national officer Caren Evans said.

She added: 'Unite seriously question how this decision to walk away from local communities promotes this message at a time when the customers will rely on the financial services sector support more than ever.'

Lloyds said that across all its branches transactions had dropped by 10 per cent a year in the five years to March 2020, and 'significantly' further in the year since.

It added: 'Today, 90 per cent of customers have a branch within 5 miles of their home and over 80 per cent of products are opened online, meaning customers are able to make use of a number of different ways to do their day to day banking.'

Once these closures are complete the group will have 779 Lloyds Bank branches, 560 Halifax branches, alongside 184 Bank of Scotland branches.

The latest closure announcement by Lloyds will spark fears that many vulnerable and elderly people are being left with sparse options for cash access and banking, with some having to travel long distances to get to another open branch.

Many banks have also been operating with reduced hours and services during the pandemic, often forcing customers to queue up for lengthy periods to see a member of staff or get help using in-branch machines.

In March, Santander announced it was closing 111 branches up and down the country. At the time, it said that all of the 111 closing branches were within half a mile of at least two free-to-use cash machines.

Santander branches in New Malden, Marlow, Leatherhead, Sale, Surbiton, Twickenham and Wickford were just some of the swathes being axed.

According to consumer group Which?, banks and building societies have closed, or scheduled the closure, of around 4,299 branches since January 2015, at a rate of around 50 each month.

The NatWest Group, which comprises of NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland and Ulster Bank, closed 1,086 branches during this period, Which? added.
Fears house buyers will permanently shun London for the countryside after the pandemic have been over-egged  at least according to the boss of Berkeley Group.

Rob Perrins, chief executive of the upmarket property developer, hailed the capital as the FTSE 100 firm unveiled bumper results.

Berkeley specialises in building houses and flats in London and the South East.

It has a knack for building high-end projects on brownfield sites, such as around the old Battersea Power Station and the Nine Elms development south of the Thames.

Profits up: Housebuilder Berkeley specialises in building houses and flats in London and the South East

The company rode the wave of the property price boom in the year to April, revealing yesterday that its homes sold on average for 770,000  almost 100,000 more than the year before.

In addition to the price jump, more houses were sold than in 2020. This sent revenues 15 per cent higher to 2.2billion and profits up 3 per cent to 518million.

From the first lockdown, the received wisdom quickly became that Britons would be keen to uproot themselves from cities and move out to the suburbs and beyond.

Stock Watch - Anexo Anexo jumped after its largest shareholder, asset manager Dbay, said it was considering a 150p per share takeover offer. AIM-listed Anexo offers a credit hire service to no-fault drivers who have been in car accidents but cannot not afford a replacement vehicle. The company has a legal team which can help these customers recover the insurance money  and use that cash to pay the credit back. Founder Alan Sellers and others might take part as co-offerers with Dbay, which has a 29 per cent stake in Anexo. Shares in Anexo rose 5.8 per cent, or 8p, to 145p.

Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, described the companys exposure to the capital as both a blessing and a curse.

But Perrins does not believe Covid has brought on any fundamental structural shifts that would harm a city like London, where people thrive on its energy, opportunity and unparalleled attributes.

There will also still be a continuing under-supply of homes in London and the Home Counties that should keep demand robust.

Enquiries about properties in London, Perrins also noted, are at a higher level than before Covid struck.

As well as selling houses and acquiring ten new sites, Berkeley also handed back 334million to shareholders last year through a mix of dividends and buybacks.

But there was a muted response from investors, with the stock down 0.5 per cent, or 21p, to 4619p.

Other major house builders, however, had a much harder day after the Competition and Markets Authority made more progress tackling unfair leasehold policies.

The regulator struck a deal with Persimmon (down 1.7 per cent, or 52p, to 2975p) and insurer Aviva (down 0.3 per cent, or 1.3p, to 414.9p), which is a large freehold owner, that includes removing contract terms that allow ground rents to double every ten to 15 years.

Other Footsie firms the regulator has had in its sights also fell with Taylor Wimpey down 2.3 per cent, or 3.7p, to 160.6 and Barratt Developments falling 1.8 per cent, or 12.4p, to 696.8p.

FTSE 250-listed Countryside Properties was the outlier, rising 1.3 per cent, or 6.2p, to 498.2p.

The tumble among house stocks helped drag the wider Footsie into the red  even though oil companies BP (up 0.5 per cent, or 1.5p, to 324.2p) and Shell (up 1.5, or 21.6p, to 1421.8p) surged again as oil prices climbed above $75 a barrel.

Miners were higher too as copper prices rose for the third straight day. Anglo American advanced 1.1 per cent, or 30p, to 2822p, as it also reported diamond sales at its prestigious De Beers business were rocketing.

The value of precious stones sold in its fifth auction of the year increased to 337million  up from 275million in the previous round.

Overall, the FTSE 100 was down 0.2 per cent, or 15.95 points, to 7,074.06, while the FTSE 250 fell 0.09 per cent, or 20.22 points, to 22,659.42.

Shareholders cheered a turnaround plan at funeral director Dignity. Boss Gary Channon  who ousted Clive Whiley in a boardroom coup earlier this year  said he wanted the company to have a 20 per cent share of the funeral market in ten years time.

It has about 12 per cent. Dignity shot up 13.3 per cent, up 85p, to 724p, despite warning profits will be down slightly because of a marked drop in UK deaths since April, as Covid deaths fell.
Glaxosmithkline boss Emma Walmsley has promised a new era of blockbuster sales and profits as the drugs giant prepares for a historic split.

On what was seen as a make-or-break day for her career, the embattled chief executive vowed a 'step-change' at the British company after years of lacklustre performance.

She said the separation of GSK's consumer arm next year will galvanise a decade of growth at the remaining pharmaceutical and vaccine businesses, leading to annual sales of at least 33billion.

On what was seen as a make-or-break day for her career, Glaxo chief exec Emma Walmsley (pictured) vowed a 'step-change' at the British company after years of lacklustre performance

And amid claims that activist investor Elliott Advisors is seeking to oust her, the 52-year-old also insisted she was going nowhere.

The Wall Street raider took a major stake in GSK, putting Walmsley's strategy under fresh scrutiny. But she said: 'New GSK will deliver a step-change in performance.

'Over the next five years and beyond we have the portfolio and the pipeline to deliver meaningful new growth.

'We are confident we can deliver the targets we have set.'

Asked about whether she was the right person to lead the company into the future, she replied: 'I am a change agent, I am a business leader and I am very excited about the new plans we are laying out today.'

Shares have fallen by 15 per cent since she took over in 2017, with the firm dogged by concerns about patents expiring and fears its pipeline in areas such as cancer is poor compared to rivals.

But Walmsley sought to put those concerns to bed yesterday by setting out her vision for the company over the next decade, pointing to 42 medicines and 20 vaccines that are in development.

Investors approved the news with shares up 1 per cent, or 14.4p, at 1409.2p. At the centre of Walmsley's plan is the separation of GSK's consumer healthcare arm next year.

GSK will offload 80 per cent of its stake in the division by listing it on the London Stock Exchange, holding on to 20 per cent which it will sell later.

Existing investors will receive shares in the new company, which will be one of the biggest over-the-counter drugs producers in the world  boasting annual sales of 10billion and products such as Sensodyne toothpaste and Panadol pain tablets.

The separation will also hand GSK's remaining pharmaceutical and vaccines businesses, dubbed 'New GSK', a massive cash injection that Walmsley has promised to plough into drugs research.

Make or break for boss Walmsley Fixing her audience with a determined smile, Glaxosmithkline boss Emma Walmsley yesterday launched into the most important pitch of her career. In presentations to investors and journalists, she set out plans to turbocharge sales and profits at GSK and batted away questions about her leadership. The 52-year-old was made chief executive of GSK in 2017, succeeding Sir Andrew Witty. Under fire: Walmsley was made chief executive of GSK in 2017, succeeding Sir Andrew Witty She lives with husband David and their three children in London. She had been head-hunted by Witty to run GSKs consumer healthcare division and previously worked at beauty giant LOreal. She grew up in Cumbria, the daughter of Sir Robert Walmsley, a retired vice admiral. She attended all-girls boarding school St Swithuns, in Winchester, where she took part in public speaking and once played Prince Charming in an opera. After studying classics and languages at Oxford University, she became a consultant. She joined LOreal in 1994 where a colleague suggested she had been theatrically trained because of the way she spoke with effect during meetings. Walmsley drew on this dramatic flair yesterday as she set out an action plan for GSKs future  and will be hoping for good reviews from the critics.

This will be accomplished by the consumer arm paying New GSK an 8billion dividend before the break-up and assuming a bigger proportion of debts. On top of this, Walmsley will free up extra cash by slashing the dividend.

GSK as a group has paid an 80p per share dividend for its most recent financial year and the divis paid by the newly separated companies next year is expected to total 55p. New GSK is then expected to pay 45p in 2023.

Walmsley said the division is expecting to increase sales by 5 per cent every year and profits by 10 per cent.

She shrugged off suggestions that the expiry of patents in the late 2020s will cause major issues, saying drugs in the late stages of development could yield sales of as much as 20billion more.

Despite GSK's failure to develop a coronavirus vaccine so far, the firm is collaborating with France's Sanofi and Germany's Curevac.

Morgan Stanley analysts said Walmsley's plans amounted to 'an ambitious set of targets which were ahead of consensus'.

But Chris Beckett, of investment firm Quilter Cheviot, warned the consumer separation 'will not be a completely clean break' because of the 'ongoing investment'.
It was a submission hold so barbaric it is now banned in the UFC and every other mixed martial arts competition in the world.

Even in the days when the sport was billed as 'no holds barred', nobody even dared to try and pull off the horrifying technique.

But in the late 1990s, Australian MMA pioneer Chris 'The Hammer' Haseman became the first and only fighter in history to win a professional bout with the chin-to-the-eye socket.

The legendary martial artist applied the dreaded lock by pinning his opponent to the mat, wrapping his arm around their neck, and jamming the point of his chin into the eye socket until his opponent tapped out.

Now 52 and living in Brisbane, Haseman spoke to Daily Mail Australia about taking on the world's best in the 'crazy' early days of MMA - and what it's like to be synonymous with the most infamous submission of all time.

He also opened up about losing his 'beautiful' wife Diana Saffigna, 51, in 2017 after she was diagnosed with terminal cancer just 12 weeks after they got married.

In the late 1990s Australian MMA pioneer Chris 'The Hammer' Haseman (pictured training Jiujitsu) became the first and only fighter in history to win a professional bout by way of chin-to-the-eye socket

To this day, Haseman (pictured) remains a fitness fanatic and has worked with some of Australia's most successful sporting identities - including the Brisbane Broncos, QLD Reds and Australian Wallabies

CHIN-TO-THE-EYE SOCKET SUBMISSION

Although the submission can crush the eyeball and drive the optical nerve back towards the brain, that's not actually the aim of the hold.

Haseman casually explained the real goal is to apply so much pressure to the eye socket it caves in the orbital bone.

While Daily Mail Australia strongly recommends you do not try this at home, if you want to get an idea of just how much force can be generated by a 100kg MMA fighter's chin, try this.

What is the dreaded chin-to-the-eye socket submission? The horrifying technique originates from the little-known grappling art of catch wrestling. Australian Chris Haseman remains the only fighter in history to win a professional bout with the submission. It was immediately banned in the UFC and every mixed martial arts competition in the world. Although the hold can crush the eyeball and drive the optical nerve back towards the brain, the real purpose is to apply so much pressure to the eye socket it caves in the orbital bone. While Daily Mail Australia strongly recommends you do not try this at home, if you want to get an idea of just how much force can be generated by a 100kg MMA fighter's chin, try this. Place your arm on a table with your thumb facing up and force your chin into the bone of your forearm - you'll be surprised how much it hurts. Now imagine that force is being applied to your eye socket. Advertisement

Place your arm on a table with your thumb facing up and force your chin into the bone of your forearm - you'll be surprised how much it hurts.

Now imagine that force is being applied to your eye socket.

Haseman had a background in traditional Japanese Jujitsu under the tutelage of his legendary father Mark, but he learned the bizarre technique after training in the little-known grappling art of catch wrestling.

'It's not so much that the chin in the eye is the art, it's about the technical aspects of control,' Haseman explained.

'It's skillful, very skillful, because you have to control their arms while holding them down on the ground.'

In the earliest days of the UFC before the sport's unified ruleset was adopted worldwide, there were officially no rules and events were promoted as a Mad Max-style 'two men enter (the cage), one man leaves'.

But behind the scenes, competitors had a gentlemen's agreement not to intentionally maim their opponent with low blows, biting, attacks to the spine, and eye gouging.

When Haseman stood in the cage in 1997 in Sydney against his opponent Hiriwa Te Rangi for an eight-man tournament, there was no such agreement.

In fact, Bill Turner, the Scottish-born catch-wrestler who first showed him the technique, urged him to go for it at the earliest possible chance because they 'won't have seen it before'.

Not only did he pull it off once that night, he would repeat the victory moments later in his second bout against Elvis Sinosic - another Australian MMA legend who later went on to fight for a UFC world title against Tito Ortiz.

Haseman made the final of the Caged Combat 1 tournament that night, but before he was set to take on a feared Brazilian Jiujitsu phenom Mario Sperry, he was told the chin-to-the-eye socket submission was now banned.

'Mario Sperry refused to fight the rest of the tournament if the chin-to-the-eye socket submission was allowed,' Haseman said.

'He was very tough, so I took that as a compliment.'

Pictured: Haseman lands a right roundhouse kick to the head of former UFC champion Matt Hughes while fighting in Japan in 2000

Pictured: Haseman is victorious after beating his Japanese opponent in the fighting organisation Rings

Legendary Australian cage fighter dons the cover of an Australian martial arts magazine

EARLY DAYS OF MMA AND TAKING ON FEDOR EMELIANENKO

It might seem like a man who built a reputation crushing the eyes of cage fighters in the 90s would be a bit rough around the edges.

But the laid-back fitness fanatic said he was never a hothead and was actually slightly embarrassed to be associated with the fledgling sport.

I had cauliflower ears from a young age and people would ask me if I played rugby and I just said 'yeah' because if you told someone, they either didn't believe you or they thought you were a thug.

'In those days I didn't tell a lot of people because it was looked upon as very bogan, very brutal,' Haseman said.

'I had cauliflower ears from a young age and people would ask me if I played rugby and I just said "yeah" because if you told someone, they either didn't believe you or they thought you were a thug.'

At the height of his illustrious career which featured 37 pro fights, Haseman was working for the Queensland prison system, training staff on restraint and control techniques.

He later went on to work as an operational skill instructor for the Queensland police force between 1996 to 2004, preparing rookie cops for what lay ahead.

'I taught everything from wrist locking, cuffing and restraints all the way to capsicum spray,' he said.

'I was not a hothead, I was using martial arts in a professional way.'

Haseman (right) is pictured in 2002, shaping up against Russia's 'Last Emperor' Fedor Emelianenko - a heavyweight universally considered to be one of the greatest and most dominant fighters the sport has ever seen

After making a name for himself in 'all-styles' tournaments on the Gold Coast he was offered matches in the Japanese MMA organisation Rings, where he would take on the world's elite fighters.

Competitors from Russia, the US, Netherlands and Brazil would bring managers, trainers, and cornermen and have three or four fighters on the same card.

But on many occasions it would just be Haseman travelling over to Tokyo by himself, standing in the centre of the historic Budokan Arena in front of 20,000 fans with nobody in his corner to offer advice.

In 2002, he even locked horns with Russia's 'Last Emperor' Fedor Emelianenko - a heavyweight universally considered to be one of the greatest and most dominant fighters the sport has ever seen.

Haseman would also go on to fight in the UFC against middleweight world title-winner Evan Tanner.

Although he lost both of those gruelling contests, his most painful battle was yet to come.

Haseman tragically lost his 'beautiful' wife Diana Saffigna, 51 (pictured together), in 2017 after she was diagnosed with terminal cancer just 12 weeks after they got married

DEALING WITH TRAGEDY AND LIFE AFTER FIGHTING

After 37 professional MMA bouts, Haseman (pictured) eventually hung up the gloves in 2012

'I'm keeping fit, living a healthy life with a fair bit of wine and surfing,' Haseman said

Haseman hung up the gloves in 2012 to concentrate on his business, Fitness Industry Training.

As well as helping some of Australia's most successful sporting identities into shape - including players on the Brisbane Broncos, Queensland Reds and the Wallabies - the fitness empire also trains and accredits fitness professionals.

He worked alongside his newfound flame Diana Saffigna and in 2013 the couple tied the knot in Italy.

But the fairytale soon turned into a nightmare when Ms Saffigna was diagnosed with terminal cancer just 12 weeks later.

'I'm on my still on my own, but I've got a free spirit and I've learned to enjoy being on my alone,' Haseman said

She died in 2017 and Haseman has been trying to cope with losing her ever since.

He has two daughters, Jasmine, 15, and Kristen, 21, from a previous relationship who give him strength.

'She was the most beautiful girl and she put up one hell of a fit,' Haseman said.

'It's hard, I'm on my still on my own, but I've got a free spirit and I've learned to enjoy being on my alone.

'I'm keeping fit, living a healthy life with a fair bit of wine and surfing.'

By the end of this year he also hopes to his memoir - From the Cradle to the Cage - ready for publication.

Haseman may not have received the fame and fortune of today's MMA superstars, but he helped pave the way for the likes of Australian UFC world champions Robert Whitaker and Alexander Volkanovski - as well as Israel Adesanya across the ditch in New Zealand.

And although he may not be a household name in Australia, among hardcore MMA circles across the globe, he will always be remembered for that brutal chin-to-the-eye socket submission.

'I guess it's a legacy not many dads can leave with their kids,' he joked.
Social media was ablaze over the weekend after Michael B. Jordan trademarked the word 'J'Ouvert' - which is deeply rooted in Trinbagonian and Caribbean culture - for his new rum line.

The Creed and Black Panther star launched his new venture this weekend, and it was met with accusations of 'cultural appropriation' and an online petition to stop the trademark, which has nearly 10,000 signatures in two days.

The name J'Ouvert originates from the French word 'jour ouvert', meaning day break or morning, and signals the start of Carnival, which began in the 1800s and is still practiced globally by people in and from the Caribbean.

Brooklyn and Boston are the among the largest Carnival celebrations in the Northeast United States.

Many critics on social media took offense to Jordan's trademark filing and took aim at one particular line that says, 'The wording 'J'OUVERT' has no meaning in a foreign language.'

Scroll down for video.

Actor Michael B. Jordan launched his 'J'Ouvert' rum line over the weekend which was critcized for cultural appropriation

Michael B. Jordan, picuted here at the BACARDI Mixology Lab on February 13, 2019 in New York City, announced his new venture in an Instagram story over the weekend

An online petition to stop the trademark of the word 'J'Ouvert' has almost 10,000 signatures

Twitter user @lesliemac said, 'Michael B Jordan has launched a rum brand called J'ouvert & has filed a trademark for the word J'ouvert. In his filing he says the word 'has no meaning in any language.' I am livid. Black Capitalism is still Capitalism.'

The petition calls for the filing to be dismissed, and for Jordan 'to do the right thing by calling this a loss.'

In the online petition on change.org, organizer Jay Blessed said, 'We are not a powerless people! We are a people rich in culture, history and love.'

'It's time we love ourselves enough to stop the sale of our culture to foreign entities that do not respect or value our global contributions, and who do not support and uphold our countries in respectful, long-lasting, tangible and verifiable ways!'

Twitter user @ashoncrawley said, 'You cannot own a tradition. You cannot trademark a tradition. capitalism pretends that these things can be private property and attempts to manage and financialize tradition. and it will always always always be vulgar to do so.

Many people took to Twitter to vent their anger over Jordan's new venture

Jordan, pictured here at the 51st NAACP Image Awards at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in February 2020, has starred in many movies included Creed and Black Panther

Minister of Trade and Industry Paula Gopee-Scoon told Trinidad and Tobago Newsday the issue was 'of extreme concern' owing to the intellectual property question.

Gopsee-Scoon told the news outlet that they'll gather information first and then work with the intellectual property office of the Ministry of the Attorney General.

'We'll do the necessary investigation and, as always, seek to support anything that is Trinidad but at the same time protect what is ours,' Gopsee-Scoon told Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.

'This is of keen interest, not only to the Ministry of Trade and Industry but also to the intellectual property office of the Ministry of the Attorney General, and the Ministry of Tourism and Culture. We all have an interest. Trinidad and Tobago is our interest.'

Jordan hasn't made any public comments on social media or news outlets since the launch.
A terrifying altercation between two 'tinny rats' almost resulted in one of them being forced to swim through shark-infested waters.

A video showing the frightening confrontation on the Coomera River, on the Gold Coast, was uploaded to TikTok by Tallis Roseneder, 15, and has been seen a massive 3.7 million times.

The clip shows one boy ram a dinghy with his inflatable, then lunge at a smaller boy in the boat before the pair start arguing.

The viral video, now seen over 3.7 million times, shows a bigger boy apparently trying to force a smaller boy out of his boat and into the Coomera River

The bigger boy, who can be heard saying 'I'm going to make you swim' lunges at the smaller boy and shakes his boat. Tinny-racing teens in Gold Coast canals have been dubbed 'tinny rats' by locals

Mr Roseneder told Daily Mail Australia the smaller lad in the lifejacket is his friend, and just 12 years old, and the bigger boy was 18, but not a friend of either of them.

He claimed the younger boy was being ordered to get out of his dinghy and swim, even though the river is a hotspot for bull sharks.

Mr Roseneder said he didn't appear in the clip.

'The guy trying to take it said "get out of the boat and swim" and kept constantly saying that, he said it a good four times, just saying, "you're swimming, get out",' Mr Roseneder told Daily Mail Australia.

'Then he tried to shake the boat to make him fall out.'

Music playing on one of the boats makes it difficult to hear all of what is being said, but at one point the older boy does seem to say 'I'm going to make you swim'.

The bigger boy tries to reach into the smaller boy's boat in the video, which was seen over 3.7 million times on TikTok

The younger boy replies 'let me go'.

Mr Roseneder claimed the clip followed an incident in which the older man was 'sprayed' by him and his friends on the river.

He uploaded a second clip of the altercation to TikTok, in which the bigger boy shook the smaller boy's boat before letting him go.

Mr Roseneder's TikTok account has several videos showing so-called 'tinny rats' speeding and performing dangerous-looking stunts in their boats.

In 2018, Gold Coast residents called on police after claiming their communities were being terrorised by 'tinny rats' hooning through canals.
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Brothers For Life founder Bassam Hamzy's brother is the 'next' to be targeted in an underworld war according to a secret police intelligence document handed to a judge.

But the marked man, who goes by the name Ghassan Amoun, brushed off NSW Police fears he was 'at risk' and attended his executed cousin Bilal Hamze's funeral with grieving family members on Wednesday.

Hamze, 34, was shot dead six days ago after a date with a woman at trendy Japanese restaurant Kid Kyoto on Bridge Street, near Circular Quay, about 10.30pm.

More than a hundred mourners including Amoun and Bilal's brother Ibrahem gathered to wash the crime boss's bullet-riddled body, pray for it at Lakemba mosque and bury it under a mound of soil at Rookwood.

At one point Ibrahem knelt by his brother's grave, surrounded by family.

Just 24 hours earlier, he and Amoun had secretly fought police at the NSW Supreme Court court for the very right to be at the funeral.

Daily Mail Australia can now reveal details of an extraordinary police warning about a threat to Amoun, which was disclosed in court on Tuesday but kept secret until after the funeral concluded.

Police intelligence obtained earlier this week 'suggests that (Ghassan Amoun) is said to be the next person to be targeted,' Justice David Davies told the court.

About a hundred men gathered at Rookwood necropolis to bury Bilal Hamze, 34, who was shot dead last Thursday evening in the Sydney CBD after dining at a trendy Japanese eatery

Bilal Hamze's brother Ibrahem crouched by his brother's grave. He was one of two relatives who successfully fought a secret court battle to have strict court orders curtailing their freedoms relaxed, so they could attend the service

Hamze sinks to the ground by his sibling's grave, surrounded by family members

'Ibby' Hamze hugs a mourner at a burial service which was closely monitored by NSW Police on Wednesday evening

As is customary, Bilal Hamze's body was buried under a mound of soil and palm fronds placed in the ground

A group of women, believed to include Bilal Hamze's mother Maha, sat off to one side while men attended to the burial

Ghassan Hamze (pictured above) is a marked man, according to details of a police intelligence read in the NSW Supreme Court on Tuesday. The intelligence findings were kept secret until after the funeral on Wednesday

Family members, many of them masked, are seen carry the coffin of slain gangster Bilal Hamze following his funeral prayer service at Lakemba mosque on Wednesday

On Tuesday, a lawyer for Police Commissioner Mick Fuller told Justice David Davies officers feared Amoun could be 'at risk' if he attended the funeral service with his grieving family.

However, despite police fears, Amoun attended today's service with family - but was believed to have kept his face hidden behind a mask throughout the proceedings.

The service was closely monitored by uniformed and plain-clothed police, including the gang-busting Raptor Squad, with officers performing drive-bys every few minutes in the lead-up.

Few at the service would have known of the drama about the funeral that has unfolded behind closed doors in a Sydney courtroom this week.

Lawyers for Amoun and Ibrahem applied for the court to relax serious crime prevention orders which banned them from associating with two cousins, Haissam and Tareek, for the duration of the funeral.

But their plea was furiously opposed by NSW Police. 'Police received late this morning intelligence that suggests that there is a level of threat against Mr Amoun,' barrister Christine Melisa said on Tuesday.

Ms Melis said officers had warned Amoun that the threat may be 'real' and his movements at the funeral may be monitored by 'people who are a threat to him'.

However, Ertunc Ozen SC for Amoun argued the funeral would be the subject of a heavy police and media presence. 'It would seem to me the safest place for Mr Amoun to be is, in fact, if this intelligence is correct, at the funeral,' Mr Ozen said.

Ms Melis argued that allowing Amoun to speak with family at the funeral could give him and his associates the opportunity to plot a retaliatory attack on Alameddine associates.

But Mr Ozen said it was 'abhorrent' to suggest his client would use the opportunity to plot a criminal conspiracy.

The judge eventually varied the orders so Amoun and Ibrahem Hamze could console their relatives at the service.

But Judge Davies suppressed the hearing until 4pm on the day of the funeral out of concern for Amoun's safety.

The procession from the funeral parlour to the mosque was led by a young man in a Milano Di Rouge balaclava

Dozens of men carried the coffin from the wash bay - where the body is washed - into the mosque for prayers in a bright green coffin

The funeral service was closely monitored by uniformed and unmarked police officers, including this Raptor Squad enforcer (left)

Female mourners were ushered into a separate area of the mosque as they arrived for Hamze's funeral

A heavy police presence was seen around the mosque amid fears of tensions between mourners or even retaliation

Hoodie-wearing mourners make their way into the mosque for the funeral of Bilal Hamze

Bassam Hamzy (seen more recently) was 'upset and distressed' at the news of Bilal's death, lawyer Mohammad Khan told Daily Mail Australia

Amoun's has a relatively short criminal record.

He has previously served jail time for assaulting a police officer and drug supply.

He has disavowed Brothers 4 Life - the notorious street gang founded by his cousin Bassam Hamzy while behind bars.

The judge repeatedly asked the parties if Bassam Hamzy would be attending the service, and was assured that he would remain at Goulburn Supermax.

Ahead of Wednesday's service, Bilal Hamze's body was washed in private and by relatives only.

In a social media post, the family said it was of 'extreme importance' that no mourners attended the body washing, an Islamic funeral tradition, aside from relatives.

Ahmed Elomar, the brother of notorious ISIS terrorist Mohammed Elomar, was spotted attending the washing of the body.

Dozens of male mourners carried the crime boss's green coffin emblazoned with Arabic writing into the mosque just after 11am.

Women were ushered to a separate area of the mosque.

Following prayers, the casket was placed in the back of a waiting hearse and taken to Rookwood cemetery, where men buried it under soil and women rested palm fronds on top.

Ibrahem Hamze hugged friends and family members and knelt by his brother's grave. At one point, members of the Hamze clan were also seen inspecting the gravesite of another relative suspected of losing his life in the gang war with the rival Alameddine clan - that of Bassam Hamzy's other brother, Mejid.

Hamze was shot dead in Sydney's CBD on Thursday night after dining at a Japanese restaurant. Friends gathered on Wednesday to pay respects for the cousin of Brothers For Life founder Bassam Hamzy
Ministers faced renewed calls yesterday to end lockdown curbs two weeks early after yet more 'encouraging' Covid data.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said hospitalisation and death rates remain low  meaning England is 'on track' to lift restrictions on July 19.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak agreed, saying it was now his 'hope and expectation' that this date would mark the end of coronavirus curbs.

But former Cabinet minister Liam Fox pressed the Government to go faster. He said that given the latest data, the new target for scrapping Covid restrictions should be July 5  the 'review point' set by Boris Johnson when he delayed the initial unlocking from this past Monday.

Matt Hancock said hospitalisation and death rates remain low  meaning England is 'on track' to lift restrictions on July 19

Dr Fox said there was mounting evidence that the successful vaccine rollout has broken the link between Covid cases and deaths. 'All along we have been told it is about data, not dates,' he said.

'We need to look at that data, and if we can relax earlier  and get some of those industries like weddings and travel moving earlier  then we should.'

He called on ministers to move 'as soon as possible', adding: 'A fixation with dates is not sensible.'

Official UK figures yesterday showed daily Covid cases have risen to 11,625  up almost a third in a week, and the highest figure since mid-February.

Rishi Sunak said it was now his 'hope and expectation' that July 19 would mark the end of coronavirus curbs

However, other key figures remain very low. Although another 225 Covid patients were admitted to hospital, this remains far below the figures seen at the start of the year, which regularly topped 4,000 each day.

Yesterday's Covid-related death toll was 27  but the average figure has been just 13 over the past seven days, compared with a peak average of 1,281 in January.

Mr Hancock said yesterday: 'We are seeing that growth in case rates is slowing. Thankfully, the number of hospitalisations, whilst rising, is not rising very quickly. And thankfully, even more, the number of people dying from Covid remains very, very low.'

He added: 'We are on track for the opening on July 19 and we will watch vigilantly, we will look at the data in particular at the start of next week.

Liam Fox argues the new target for scrapping Covid restrictions should be July 5

'The data over the last week or so has been encouraging, especially looking at the number of people who are dying  that is staying very, very low.'

Mr Hancock refused to rule out the return of curbs this winter, saying the possible combination of flu and Covid posed a challenge for the NHS. However, the Health Secretary claimed booster Covid jabs would greatly reduce the risk of further lockdowns.

Mr Sunak also raised hopes for next month. Speaking in the Commons, the Chancellor said: 'My hope and expectation is that we lift... restrictions on July 19. By that point, we will have done what we set out to do, which is to get extra jabs in more people's arms to provide us with that extra level of protection.'

Downing Street confirmed yesterday that ministers will review the latest Covid data this weekend before announcing next Monday whether Freedom Day can be brought forward to July 5. Mr Johnson postponed it from June 21 amid rising numbers of Delta variant cases.

The four-week delay was designed to allow time for more vaccinations  and to gather more data on whether our inoculation programme has broken the link between cases and hospitalisations.

The Prime Minister told Cabinet yesterday that he was 'constantly reviewing the data'  but stressed that he wanted the lifting of restrictions to be 'irreversible'.

A Whitehall source said it remained 'unlikely' that restrictions would be lifted as early as July 5, as ministers want to have offered vaccinations to all over-18s before unlocking. That process is not likely to be complete until the middle of next month.
The wealthy socialite accused of shooting dead a top Belizean police officer lashes out at her partner and accuses him of denying her access to their kids in explosive video obtained by DailyMail.com.

Jasmine Hartin - charged with manslaughter by negligence in the shooting death of Superintendent Henry Jemmott - filmed on her cell phone as she chased Andrew Ashcroft, the son of influential British billionaire, Lord Michael Ashcroft.

Jasmine Hartin - charged with manslaughter by negligence in the shooting death of Superintendent Henry Jemmott - filmed on her cell phone as she chased the father of her children Andrew Ashcroft

Why wont you let me see the kids Andrew? Why wont you let me see the children? Hartin, 32, says as she confronts Ashcroft in a hotel kitchen.

Why are you stopping me from being at my house and seeing my kids Andrew? You dont want to be on camera? Why are you keeping my children from me Andrew? You lied to my whole family. Let me see my children.

Hartin continues to pursue the dad of her two young twins, Charlie and Elle, out of the restaurant as he repeatedly pleads stop, stop.

Another female voice from off camera adds: Its going in the newspaper Andrew. You lied to my family Andrew.

DailyMail.com understands the clash took place Tuesday afternoon at the luxurious Alaia Hotel which Hartin ran with her common law husband before she accidentally gunned down Jemmott, 42, last month on a secluded pier in San Pedro island.

Jasmine Hartin filmed on her cell phone as she chased Andrew Ashcroft, the son of influential British billionaire, Lord Michael Ashcroft. Why wont you let me see the kids Andrew? Why wont you let me see the children? Hartin, 32, says as she confronts Ashcroft in a hotel kitchen

Hartin and Ashcroft with their children in happier times at Belize's first Marriott Luxury Resort

The couples apartment is next door in another swank complex called the Grand Colony but Hartin, a Canadian national, has been living in Cayo, on the opposite side of Belize, since she was released two weeks ago on bail of 30,000 Belizean dollars ($15,000).

In a second video recorded Tuesday she is seen being confronted by guards as she walks towards Andrew in the distance. Im walking up right now to try to see my kids and all of the girls are on standby. And theres Andrew too, Andrews running so I cant see my children, Hartin says.

Security is literally stopping me from seeing my children right now. Wow, so youve been instructed by Andrew to stop me from seeing my children? Thats correct?

Referring to Ashcroft, she adds: Hes gonna rot in hell for this. Like Im not going through enough.

Hartin was arrested in the early hours of May 28 after Jemmott, a father of five, was found floating dead beside a pier on the upscale vacation island of San Pedro.

A security guard heard a loud bang at 12:45am and police arrived to find Canadian national Hartin covered in red substance as that of blood and Jemmott floating dead on his back 30ft from the shore.

The blonde socialite was holed up in a tiny concrete cell at the stiflingly hot police and magistrates court complex in San Pedro, the tropical resort's only town. She was pictured behind bars by local media after her arrest

Hartin was moved to Belize Central Prison after being charged with manslaughter by negligence

An expended shell casing was still lodged inside the gun which was found on the Mata Rocks hotel pier along with a magazine, live bullets and a pool of blood.

Hartin was taken to the nearby San Pedro police station where she allegedly told another inmate that she was not responsible for the killing and that the fatal shot was fired from a passing boat.

Hartin was arrested for 'accidentally' shooting dead police superintendent Henry Jemmott with his own service weapon

But after spending the weekend behind bars, Hartin gave a statement in the presence of her attorney, Godfrey Smith, saying the off-duty officer was showing her how to handle his firearm as the pair drank and hung out.

Investigators accepted her claim that she fired accidentally and charged the mother-of-two with manslaughter by negligence, the least serious charge she could have faced and one that will likely result in just a fine.

In the wake of the shooting, Hartin was refused bail and transferred to mainland Belize, where the so-called Queen of the Alaia spent eight days at notorious Hattieville prison, which once featured on the Netflix documentary Inside the Worlds Toughest Prisons.

She was eventually free, however, when Smith convinced a Supreme Court judge that it would defy logic for Hartin to flee the Central American country when she was facing a relatively mild punishment.

Hartin left her luxury hotel, Alaia (pictured) and walked a short distance down a beach to a small wooden jetty to meet Jemmott

DailyMail.com revealed in the wake of the shooting that Jemmott had boasted to a friend that he had a date on the night of his death but wouldnt tell him who it was. He said he would take his secret to the grave when the curious pal asked for details of the mystery woman.

Hartin is required to check in daily with cops and surrender her passport while she waits for the courts to determine her fate. Shes believed to be staying at a secure retreat in the Cayo region of western Belize, close to the border with Guatemala, which is close to where Jemmott lived with his long-term partner, Romit Wilson.

Lord Ashcroft, 75, is a former deputy chairman and key financial backer of the UKs ruling Conservative Party. He also holds Belizean citizenship, has invested heavily in the country and has represented it at the United Nations.

'
The Government's new Online Safety Bill will be 'catastrophic' for ordinary people's freedom of speech, former minister David Davis warned today.

The Conservative MP said forcing social networks to take down content in Britain they deem unacceptable 'seems out of Orwell's 1984'.

Mr Davis, 72, slammed the idea Silicon Valley firms could take down posts they think are 'not politically correct - even though it is legal'.

The backbencher's calls were echoed by the Index on Censorship magazine and a top media barrister.

They have launched the 'Legal to Say. Legal to Type' campaign to scrutinise and push back against the bill.

Tory MP David Davis, pictured on June 8 in the House of Commons, said forcing social networks to take down content in Britain they deem unacceptable 'seems out of Orwell's 1984'

Mr Davis said: 'The Online Safety Bill is a Censor's Charter. Lobby groups will be able to push social networks to take down content they view as not politically correct, even though the content is legal.

'The idea we should force Silicon Valley companies to police Briton's speech online, seems out of Orwell's 1984, and is not what our voters expect of us.'

The proposed Online Safety Bill is intended to make tech giants accountable for 'harmful' content on their platforms.

It hands more power to Ofcom, Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden and social media platforms to regulate what news users see on social media.

It says platforms have a duty to protect journalistic content but can still take down or block content if it generates complaints.

Ofcom will be in charge of regulating social media firms, with the power to issue fines up to 18million and block access for repeat offences.

The aim is to make Britain one of the safest places to be online in the world - especially for children.

But its implications for the press have prompted a backlash from free-speech campaigners, civil liberties groups and media organisations.

The proposed Online Safety Bill gives more power to Ofcom, Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden (pictured in May) and social media platforms to regulate what news users see on social media

The coalition of Mr Davis, Index on Censorship and Gavin Millar QC is trying to push back against it.

They say the bill will create two tiers of free speech online - free speech for journalists and politicians and censorship for ordinary citizens.

A report by Index On Censorship warned the 'Duty of Care model' in the bill is overly simplistic.

It says the new rule would force tech platforms to delete posts that are legal under laws passed by Parliament but considered 'harmful'.

The group say the bill does not define what is and is not 'harmful' which will see legal posts being banned online.

They also warned the proposals would outsource internet policy from the law, courts and Parliament to Silicon Valley.

Mr Millar QC said the Duty of Care framework will see free speech online deleted and suggests it will likely be challenged in the courts.

He said: 'The bill proposed by the government is likely to lead to perfectly legal speech being removed from the internet and it seems inevitable that this will be challenged in the courts.

Top media barrister Gavin Millar QC (file picture) said the Duty of Care framework will see free speech online deleted and suggests it will likely be challenged in the courts

'The scale of the task given to platforms, and the vagueness of wording in the legislation will force broad ''technical'' solutions to content moderation - such as overly restrictive algorithms which will make decisions without context, nuance and an understanding of our laws and culture.

'This could lead to large quantities of content being blocked wrongly. Judgments that should be reserved for UK prosecutors and the courts will be outsourced to global tech companies.

'As someone who has undertaken many free speech missions for international organisations to countries with repressive free speech regimes such as China, Turkey, Azerbaijan there is a real risk that this legislation, if passed, will be used to justify repressive measures aimed at closing down free speech on the internet in these countries.'

The coalition also slammed the government's bill for making it harder for police to properly hold online abusers accountable.

The bill forces platforms to delete evidence before the victims of harassment or threats to kill can see the criminal content and ensure it is reported to the police.

The group say the bill in its current form protects trolls and allows them to abuse online because the platforms are the ones punished instead.

They are calling for the government to prosecute people who break the law - rather than just force social media platforms to delete their posts.

The Index on Censorship report also slammed the role of Ofcom as the final adjudicator as 'highly problematic'.

Ruth Smeeth, chief executive of Index on Censorship, said: 'The Government's bill is catastrophic for freedom of speech'

It said it could lead to the over-censorship of free speech by the Silicon Valley giants as they attempt to avoid huge fines.

By turning Ofcom into a 'super regulator' of free speech, the government is imposing a state regulator over the written word for the first time in over 300 years, it says.

The fines it will be able to levy will be eye-watering, with the potential to take 10 per cent of turnover.

Index on Censorship said it would create a commercial incentive to over-censor and to remove acceptable content to starve off any financial risk.

The coalition also argued there could be implications for black and ethnic minority Britons.

It said they could be censored by artificial intelligence which does not understand human language, such as irony.

It cites an example of a 2019 Washington University study that used tweets from African-American users.

They were two times more likely to be labelled as offensive than tweets from other users.

Ruth Smeeth, chief executive of Index on Censorship, said: 'The Government's bill is catastrophic for freedom of speech.

'Its plan to force tech platforms to delete 'harmful' content or face big fines will lead to many legal posts being deleted.

'At Index on Censorship we work with people across the globe who are being censored by oppressive regimes.

'It might not be the UK Government's intention but this bill sets a worrying international precedent.

'Dictators around the world will be taking notes. Also as someone who has experienced online abuse, I am dismayed that the bill would force platforms to delete offending comments.

'These comments are vital evidence for law enforcement and will make it harder for the authorities to catch people who actually break the law online.'
An Australian fisherman is lucky to be alive after a massive, angry crocodile bit a hole in his boat while he was sleeping on it.

Steve Georgonicas was on a fishing trip on the Cato River near Arnhem Bay in the Northern Territory when the 'large lizard' took several bites at his 200-horsepower outboard motor and left a large hole in it.

He shared the photos on social media, which showed a big hole in the fibreglass motor plus several other scratches and bite marks.

Northern Territory fisherman Steve Georgonicas showed off the damage to his outboard motor after a crocodile mistook it for its dinner on the Cato River while he was asleep on board

Mr Georgonicas said the photos of his damaged outboard motor show where the croc left deep gouges with its teeth

'You can see teeth marks drag down the motor as it let go,' wrote Mr Georgonicas, who said it was his first such run-in with a croc since living on the Gove Peninsula at East Arnhem.

Mr Georgonicas regularly goes crabbing and rod fishing on the Cato River, which is around 600km east of Darwin.

He told a friend on Facebook the crocodile probably thought the motor 'was an animal'.

'I never keep bait or fish near the transom to attract them, it must have just been angry or mistook the motor for something else,' the NT News reported.

One of Mr Georgonicas's friends said she'd seen the images shared to an American boating site and the gun-obsessed members were convinced it was a bullet hole.

'None of the yanks believe your story,' she wrote.

'Dont think you would be driving the boat home if was a bullet hole!' he responded, adding he doesn't own a gun.

Mr Georgonicas and his family regularly go fishing on the Cato River (pictured), around 600km east of Darwin in the Northern Territory

Mr Georgonicas warned people with smaller boats than his that they should be careful of saltwater crocodiles (stock image)

Mr Georgonicas said he wasn't in danger as his boat is six metres long 'with high sides'.

'The bite mark is very high up on motor so it must have also came out the water to bite that high up.'

He warned boaties on smaller craft without much height between their deck and the water to 'be careful'.

This is at least the second time a croc has launched itself at a boat in the Northern Territory this year.

In April, another fisherman narrowly survived almost being eaten after a monster five-metre crocodile jumped into his boat and attacked him in front of his three mates.

The shocking attack took place inside Kakadu National Park.

NT Health said the man, 32, from Wollongong, NSW, had minor injuries after the reptile launched itself into the boat and attacked a seat he had been using.
A tradie has been accused of verbally abusing a teenage girl before spitting on her in a random attack on a Melbourne train.

The disgusting incident occurred just before 7.30am during the peak-hour morning commute in the city's south-west.

CCTV images show the ciggie-smoking, coffee-drinking man in a high-vis hoodie and cargo pants with a backpack strapped over one shoulder entering Footscray station on May 19 before boarding a train.

The schoolgirl and her friend had boarded the same train at Newport station just 15 minutes earlier.

The suspect (pictured) approached two teens on a city-bound Melbourne train before allegedly verbally abusing the pair and spitting at one

The tradie allegedly proceeded to stare at the victim and her friend for an uncomfortable length of time before approaching them.

He allegedly verbally abused the teenagers before spitting at the girl.

'The teenager and her friend quickly moved carriages to avoid any further confrontation.' police said in a statement.

The man involved is described as unshaven, with short brown hair, 180cm tall and was wearing a fluorescent green hoodie.

Police have asked for anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
The U.S. Justice Department on Tuesday seized 33 websites it said were linked to Iranian disinformation efforts.

The sites were taken down using rules that sanction Iran: In this case, sanctioned entities can't obtain services in the U.S. - including website and domain name services - without special permission, which hadn't been requested.

The 33 domain names were owned by a U.S. company, which the DOJ didn't name in a statement.

The sites were 'disguised as news organizations or media outlets,' the DOJ said, and 'targeted the United States to with disinformation campaigns and malign influence operations.'

The take-downs mark a far-reaching crackdown on Iranian media amid heightened tensions between the two countries after the election of new Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi.

Among the websites targeted was that of Iran's state broadcaster, Press TV. There are no private television or radio stations in Iran - and satellite dishes are also illegal, so the U.S.'s move was seen as a sharp slap-down.

Meanwhile, the U.S. government also took over the domain name of the news website Palestine Today, which reflects the viewpoints of Gaza-based Islamic militant groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

Domains tied to Iran-backed groups in Iraq and to Hezbollah, the Lebanese military-political faction, were also frozen.

The takedowns come as world powers scramble to resurrect Tehran's tattered 2015 nuclear deal and just days after Raisi's election victory.

On Monday, Raisi, known for his hostility to the West, staked out a hardline position in his first news conference.

He ruled out the possibilities of meeting with President Joe Biden or negotiating over Tehran's ballistic missile program and expressed support for regional militias - concerns the Biden administration wants addressed in future talks.

Federal takedown notices also appeared on Iran state television and other news websites linked to the Iranian government

Relations between Iran and the U.S. have been poor for years, but following then-President Donald Trump's withdrawal from Tehran's nuclear deal and return of devastating sanctions on the country, they have worsened.

That decision has seen Iran, over time, gradually abandon every limit on uranium enrichment. The country is now enriching uranium to 60%, its highest level ever, though still short of weapons-grade levels.

Iran provides support to militant groups in the region, such as Lebanon's militant Hezbollah and Yemen's Houthi rebels, as it seeks to wield its influence far afield and counter its foes.

Iranian state-run news agency IRNA announced the U.S. government seizures without providing further information, the Associated Press reported.

The move appeared to be a far-reaching crackdown on Iranian media amid heightened tensions between the two countries after the election of new Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi

Notices appeared earlier on Tuesday on a number of Iran-affiliated websites saying they had been seized by the U.S. government as part of law enforcement action, Reuters reported.

Iranian news agencies said that the U.S. government had seized several Iranian media websites and sites belonging to groups affiliated with Iran such as Yemen's Houthi movement. Some sites later started to display as normal.

The website of the Arabic-language satellite news channel Masirah TV, which is run by Yemeni Houthis, read: 'The domain almasirah.net has been seized by the United States Government in accordance with a seizure warrant ... as part of a law enforcement action by the Bureau of Industry and Security, Office of Export Enforcement and Federal Bureau of Investigation.'

The site quickly opened up a new, working website. That Al-Misrah website address is now filled with news articles about groups condemning the seizures by the U.S. government.

Yemen's Houthi rebel group announced that its Al-Masirah channel would continue its mission of 'confronting the American and Israeli acts of piracy against our nation, by any means.'

Iran's Arabic language Alalam TV said on its Telegram channel: 'U.S. authorities shut down Al-Alam TV's website.'

Iran's President-elect Ebrahim Raisi delivers speech at the Imam Reza shrine in the city of Mashhad in northeastern Iran on June 22

Most of the domains seized appeared to be '.net' and '.com' domains, which are generic top-level domains as opposed to country-specific domains. Seizing a country-specific domain such as Iran's '.ir' would be apt to produce widespread international condemnation as a violation of sovereignty.

Press TV, launched in June 2007, is the English-language service of the state-run Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB). Its Iran-based website, PressTV.ir, was not affected but PressTV.com.au - an Australia-registered site - was among those apparently seized. It redirected to PressTV.com, which bore the takedown notice.

Responsibility for providing name service for the domain name presstv.com was apparently switched to Amazon name servers on Tuesday at mid-afternoon European time, said internet infrastructure expert Ron Guilmette. That suggests the domain was indeed wrested from its previous owner.

'In what seems to be a coordinated action, a similar message appears on the websites of Iranian and regional television networks that claims the domains of the websites have been 'seized by the United States Government',' Press TV said on Twitter.

The semi-official Iranian news agency YJC agency said on Tuesday the U.S. move 'demonstrates that calls for freedom of speech are lies'.

Supporters of Iran's President-elect Ebrahim Raisi cheer at the Imam Reza shrine in the city of Mashhad in northeastern Iran, on June 22

Marzieh Hashemi, a prominent Press TV anchorwoman who, in 2019, was arrested as material witness in an unspecified criminal case and has appeared before a grand jury in Washington, told the Associated Press that the channel was struggling to 'figure out the reasons' for the seizure.

While airing in Iran, Press TV focuses predominantly on international affairs through the lens of how leaders in the Islamic Republic see the world. Fierce criticism of British and American foreign policy is common. Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, IRIB has been in the hands of hard-liners who back Iran's government.

Press TV has previously run into trouble with Western authorities over its reporting. The Anti-Defamation League has criticized the channel as 'one of the worlds leading dispensers of conspiratorial anti-Semitism in English.'

The seizures were also not the first time that the U.S. has seized domain names of sites it accuses of spreading disinformation.

Last October, the Justice Department announced the takedown of nearly a hundred websites linked to Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard which officials said were used to spread political disinformation around the world.

The U.S. Justice Department said then that it had taken control of 92 domains used by the IRGC to pose as independent media outlets targeting audiences in the United States, Europe, Middle East and Southeast Asia.

The U.S. said the sites, operating under the guise of genuine news outlets, were waging a 'global disinformation campaign' to influence U.S. policy and push Iranian propaganda around the world.

The Department of Justice, seen here, has not officially announced the seizures of the sites

The Iranian takedowns show the United States' resolve in combatting disinformation and cyber attacks - particularly in the wake of hacking attacks linked to Russia.

In a press conference following Biden's meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin in Geneva last week, Biden said attacks on U.S. infrastructure is 'off-limits to attack, period,' Forbes reported.

Biden said he gave Russia a list of unacceptable targets for cyberattacks, according to the outlet. He also said Putin and him agreed to assign experts in both countries to 'work on specific understandings about what's off-limits.'

Biden told reporters earlier in June that he was 'looking closely' at retaliating against Russia for the attack on meat processor JBS.

'We have significant cyber capability, and [Putin] knows it. If, in fact, they violate these basic norms, we will respond  in a cyber way,' Biden said.
Caged hens could soon be banned under a new proposal which could see the price of bakery items and bacon and egg rolls climb as a result.

An independent panel has put forward new standards for poultry welfare and are pushing for the federal government to scrap caged eggs by 2036.

While the majority of eggs sold in supermarkets are free range, some businesses like bakeries and restaurants use caged eggs because they're lower in price - meaning prices may be ramped up if they have to switch to the alternative.

Animal groups have criticised the proposal for taking too long, saying it shouldn't take 15 years to make battery cages a thing of the past.

An independent panel has put forward new standards for poultry welfare and are pushing for the federal government to scrap caged eggs by 2036

Australia is one of the last countries to make a move on caged eggs (pictured farm in Bungendore, New South Wales)

Australia is one of the last countries to make a move on caged eggs, with places like Europe, New Zealand and some states of the US already banning them.

McDonald's restaurants around the globe all use free range eggs, along with other big brands like Nando's and 7-Eleven.

RSCPA senior policy officer Jed Goodfellow said while it was 'pleasing' to see Australia finally making some progress, it was being carried out too slowly.

'It is impossible to meet the welfare needs of hens inside these cage systems,' he told the ABC.

'We would like to see the transition timeline shortened considerably. Ten to 15 years is far too long.'

While the majority of eggs sold in supermarkets are free range, some businesses like bakeries and restaurants use caged eggs due to their lower costs - meaning prices may be ramped up if they have to switch to the alternative

The RSPCA described keeping hens in battery cages as the 'worst animal welfare issue in Australia today'

Greens senator Dr Mehreen Faruqi had pushed for the new standards to be discussed in federal parliament and said she was 'not convinced' the poultry industry needed 15 years to go cage less.

'We know the vast majority of people have been really concerned about hens being kept in such cruel and inhumane conditions,' she told the publication.

The RSPCA described keeping hens in battery cages as the 'worst animal welfare issue in Australia today'.

Hens kept locked up in cages all day suffer bone fractures and feather loss.

They can also endure problems with their feet from the wire cages and feel high levels of stress, the RSPCA says.

Just over half of all hens in Australia are kept in cages, according to the Department of Primary Industries.
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England could be free of all Covid restrictions by July 19, as the country moves towards herd immunity despite rising infection numbers.

Ministers hope to lift rules such as social distancing, face masks in public spaces and work-from-home guidance - and could even allow nightclubs to reopen - in the comings weeks.

'Encouraging data', such as the 'very, very low' number of Covid deaths is said to be driving the move towards a new 'Freedom Day' date, reports the Times.

It comes after Boris Johnson sensationally scrapped June 21 as England's previously set 'Freedom Day', amid concerns about cases of the Delta (Indian) variant in the UK.

Ministers hope that the extra four weeks will buy enough to time to get more Britain's double-jabbed before the final set of restrictions are lifted.

And, so long as the current trends continue, the Government believes it can lift more restrictions next month. A senior Government source told the Times that ministers 'get as close to normal as possible' on July 19.

Instead of restrictions, the Government will push an emphasis on 'personal responsibility' to help limit the spread of the virus.

It comes as Britain today recorded 11,625 coronavirus cases  the most since mid-February  and deaths may have finally started creeping upwards following the rapid spread of the Indian variant.

Other promising data today revealed the country has moved one step closer to herd immunity, with nearly nine in 10 adults now having antibodies against Covid.

The major Office for National Statistics (ONS) blood testing survey highlighted the success of the UK's mammoth vaccination campaign, which is now open to every adult in all four home nations. Almost 60 per cent of over-18s (31.5million) are now fully jabbed.

But only 60,000 jabs were recorded as being dished out yesterday because of an 'IT issue' affecting England. The problem resulted in clinicians having to log who received their vaccine with pen and paper.

England could be free of all Covid restrictions by July 19, as the country moving towards herd immunity - despite rising infection numbers

Ministers hope to lift rules such as social distancing, face masks in public spaces and work-from-home guidance - and could even allow nightclubs to reopen - in the comings weeks

'Encouraging data', such as the 'very, very low' number of Covid deaths is said to be driving the move towards a new Freedom Day date, reports the Times

The PC Agency travel consultancy has suggested that 14 countries currently on Britain's amber list could be moved to green

Antibody positive levels are highest among older age groups who have had two doses but rising fast in younger adults, too. In those who were first to get vaccinated the rate of immunity has flattened off at over 99 per cent, showing almost everyone has at least some protection against the virus

HAS BRITAIN'S THIRD WAVE ALREADY PEAKED? Britain is recording nearly 10,000 daily infections now compared to 2,000 in late April when the 'Delta' variant was first seeded in the country. But the speed at which cases are increasing every week has slowed to nearly 30 per cent, down from 65 per cent earlier this month, suggesting the outbreak had peaked by the first week of June

Nicola's never-ending lockdown? Sturgeon delays Scotland's 'Level 0' Freedom Day until July 19 with social distancing, masks and WFH until AUTUMN Nicola Sturgeon raised the prospect of some Scottish Covid restrictions remaining in place into the autumn today as she postponed ending the country's lockdown by three weeks. The First Minister brought her country into line with England by pushing the country's downgrading to Level Zero back to July 19 because of the spread of the Indian variant. She pledged to scrap all laws covering Covid restrictions by August 9 - but admitted that Scots might well be asked to voluntarily continue social distancing and wear masks in some situations after that date. Scotland was meant to have its own relative Freedom Day on June 28, but rates of infection, particularly across the most populous central belt, led to today's announcement. Ms Sturgeon told Holyrood that life would feel 'much, much less restrictive' after August 9. She also pledged to 'encourage support' for continued home working after workplaces are fully able to reopen. The setting of these dates is likely to raise pressure on Boris Johnson to set out what measures might remain in place after England's Freedom Day on July 19. Advertisement

Meanwhile, Department of Health figures show daily infections have risen by 51.5 per cent in a week, with today's count the most since February 19 (12,027).

Hospitalisations  which lag behind cases by several weeks because of how long it takes for infected patients to fall severely ill  have jumped up by a fifth. But there are still just 1,380 Covid inpatients across the UK.

Deaths have nearly tripled in the last week, with 27 victims recorded today compared to 10 last Thursday. But the average number of daily fatalities is currently 13 and figures can fluctuate day-to-day because of recording lags.

Deaths had remained flat in recent weeks despite cases quadrupling since late April  but No10's top scientists expected deaths to eventually nudge upwards because of the spike in infections.

Even though figures show the outbreak is still growing in the face of the mutant Delta strain, Matt Hancock today claimed England was 'on track' for Freedom Day of July 19 to go ahead as planned. But he ruled out bringing the unlocking forward to July 5.

The Health Secretary argued there were signs the speed of growth was 'slowing' for the first time since the Indian variant took off. He also said hospitalisations were rising but not quickly and deaths were still 'very, very low'.

Britain is recording nearly 10,000 daily infections now compared to 2,000 in late April when the 'Delta' variant was first seeded in the country.

But the speed at which cases are increasing every week has slowed to around 35 per cent, down from 65 per cent earlier this month.

Just 1,290 people are currently being treated in hospital for Covid now, compared to nearly 40,000 at the peak of the second wave. The current figure is significantly better than even the best case scenarios modelled by some scientific groups within SAGE.

Weekly coronavirus deaths are also continuing to fall. A Office for National Statistics' weekly report today found that there were 84 deaths registered across England and Wales in the past seven days, the lowest figure recorded since September last year.

The same set of statistics also showed Covid accounted for just 0.8 per cent of all deaths recorded across the two countries in the most recent week  with flu and pneumonia now killing 10 times as many patients as coronavirus.

And analysis of the data by MailOnline revealed more than a third of all 300-plus councils across the two nations have not suffered a Covid fatality since April.

Britain's impressive vaccination programme is the driving force behind the surging numbers of people who are showing signs of immunity and the low hospitalisation figures.

Across the whole of the UK, 43.1million people have had at least one dose of a jab.

The UK was expected to hit another milestone in the roll-out today, with ministers hoping to pass figure of 60 per cent of adults fully vaccinated.

But an IT system crash on Monday afternoon has caused a delay to the daily vaccination numbers, according to NHS England.

The issue resulted in clinicians being unable to log who had received their jab via the usual digital method, and instead had to record it with pen and paper.

Now the system is back up and running the data needs to be manually entered, which will be time consuming given that several hundred thousand doses are being administered each day.

'Following the IT issue that was reported to the NHS yesterday (21 June), the daily Covid statistics will be updated tomorrow, while vaccinations recorded yesterday are updated to the digital system,' the NHS England website said.

'The issue is now resolved and there has been no impact on vaccinations taking place.'

People were still urged to get their jab if they had a booking, as it would cause no difference to the service. The problem was also an isolated incident, meaning the public could still access the booking site as normal.

On top of the vaccine effect, there are also positive signs that the new Delta variant can be controlled without lockdowns. Hotspots Bolton and Blackburn managed to get cases under control with extra testing and contact tracing.

This appears to have given No10 confidence it can push ahead with its July 19 planned unlocking, despite the Indian variant now accounting for almost every new infection.

Mr Hancock told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme: 'We are seeing that growth in case rates is slowing. Thankfully the number of hospitalisations, while rising, is not rising very quickly and thankfully even more is that the number of people dying from Covid remains very, very low.'

He added: 'So I'd say we're on track for the opening on the 19th of July, and we will watch vigilantly and we'll look at the data in particular at the start of next week.

'But I'd say the data has since, over last week or so, been encouraging, and especially looking at the number of people who are dying, that is staying very, very low and shows the vaccines are working and getting us out of this.'

Today's ONS antibody report was based on random blood tests of around 18,000 adults across the UK between June 7 and June 10.

It showed that all the age groups over 34 in England had antibodies were estimated to have 90 per cent of people with antibodies, which independent scientists described as 'remarkable'.

Overall, 86.6 per cent of the results in England were positive, with rates mostly even between regions. Wales had the highest proportion of positive tests at 88.7 per cent, but its results were based on just 654 samples.

Boris Johnson, pictured returning to Downing Street this morning following a run, said yesterday he expected it to be a 'difficult year' for the travel industry

How close is Britain to achieving herd immunity? Experts cannot pinpoint an exact percentage threshold when country's achieve herd immunity, when so many people are immune that the virus can no longer spread. At the start of the pandemic it was thought that if 70 per cent of the population were immune then the strategy could be achieved. But new variants like the Indian 'Delta' strain, which find it far easier to infect people, are thought to have pushed up that threshold. Experts now say about 80 per cent of the population will need to have protection against Covid for Britain to get to herd immunity. Currently about 83 per cent of UK adults have had one jab, and 60 per cent two doses. But that means there are still 14million children and teenagers under 18 who are not routinely being vaccinated and are still spreaders of Covid. The detection of antibodies does not always guarantee immunity either, and a small number of double-jabbed people will still catch the virus and an even smaller number will fall ill. The risks are greater after one vaccine. That puts the country still someway off achieving herd immunity status, but ministers are mulling controversial plans to jab children in order to get there faster. Advertisement

The number of adults with antibodies in Northern Ireland was estimated to be 85.4 per cent and Scotland had the lowest rate at 79.1 per cent.

Experts believe about 80 per cent of a population need to have protection against Covid to reach herd immunity  when so many people are immune that the virus can no longer spread.

But there are still 14million children and teenagers under 18 who are not routinely being vaccinated and are still spreaders of Covid.

The detection of antibodies does not always guarantee immunity either, and a small number of double-jabbed people will still catch the virus and an even smaller number will fall ill. The risks are greater after one vaccine.

That puts the country still someway off achieving herd immunity status, but ministers are mulling controversial plans to jab children in order to get there faster.

There had been fears immunity triggered by jabs or older variants of the virus would not work as well against the now-dominant Indian variant, which MailOnline yesterday revealed is now dominant in almost every single council area in England.

While it is true that the mutant strain finds it easier to infect vaccinated people, jabs currently being deployed are still extremely effective at preventing serious illness and deaths.

Public Health England's best guess is that two doses of AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines prevent up to 96 per cent of people from being admitted to hospital and they are even better at reducing fatalities. One jab is significantly weaker, however, giving around 70 per cent protection.

The ONS said: 'Across all four countries of the UK, there is a clear pattern between vaccination and testing positive for Covid antibodies but the detection of antibodies alone is not a precise measure of the immunity protection given by vaccination.'

Most people develop antibodies after being vaccinated but some will have them from having been infected with Covid in the past.

Antibodies are proteins that the body makes in response to a virus so they can stick to the viruses and prevent them from causing infection.

Weekly Covid deaths have fallen again in England and Wales by 14 per cent to just 84  the lowest figure recorded since September last year  Office for National Statistics data showed today

Analysis of data released by the Office for National Statistics today revealed more than a third of all 300-plus councils across the two nations have not suffered a Covid fatality since April

Holidays 'back on by August': Double-jabbed Brits will find out on THURSDAY if amber list quarantine rules will be dropped Hopes are rising for a foreign summer holiday season in August as ministers are 'working on' plans to exempt fully vaccinated Britons from quarantine rules. Matt Hancock confirmed ministers are looking at how to scrap the requirement for people to isolate for 10 days on return from an amber list country. The Health Secretary said he is 'in favour of moving forward in this area' and replacing quarantine with daily testing. Ministers will unveil an overhaul of international travel restrictions on Thursday this week, according to The Times, but the number of countries on the green list is not expected to change significantly. It came as travel bosses warned ministers 'the wolves are at the door' as they issued a 'heartfelt plea' to simplify the traffic light rules and make it easier for Brits to go on holiday. Mark Tanzer, the chief executive of the ABTA travel association, channelled Winston Churchill as he told a conference this morning: 'The darkest hour is right before the dawn'. But he said the travel industry 'desperately needs to see day breaking soon' as he called for quarantine-free travel to be introduced for people who have had both coronavirus vaccinations amid fears of another brutal summer holiday season for the sector. Advertisement

They are super-specific and antibodies for one type of virus generally don't work for another type, and they only start to be made when someone is infected or given a vaccine.

The immune system then stores the memory of how to fight the virus and maintains its ability to mass-produce the antibodies at the drop of a hat in case the body is faced with the same bug in the future.

Testing positive for antibodies does not make someone completely immune, however, and people who have them can still get sick. Getting a positive test result means only that there were a certain amount of them in their body at the time of the test.

Scientists say antibody levels dip naturally after peaking in the weeks following an infection or first vaccine, and people may not have detectable levels of antibodies now  even if they did so earlier in the year.

And likewise, people who test negative for antibodies may still be protected from the virus because there are other types of immunity such as T-cell immunity which is based on white blood cells.

Studies have suggested that virtually everyone infected with Covid seems to develop T-cell responses, though these don't show up on antibody tests.

The ONS report found higher rates of antibodies in middle-aged and older people who have for months and weeks been coming forward for their vaccines, and lower ones among younger people who were only recently invited.

In over-35s in England, for example, more than 92 per cent of people showed signs of immunity. In those aged25 to 34-year-olds it was 69 per cent and in under-25s it was 55 per cent.

The report explains: 'In March 2021, antibody positivity decreased among people aged 80 years and over and has since increased as a result of second doses.

'A similar decrease and subsequent increase was seen in those in their 70s at the end of March 2021, and for those in their 60s and 50s antibody positivity flattened before increasing in April 2021 and May 2021 respectively.

'The percentage of adults testing positive for antibodies varies by age group between the four nations of the UK.

'This could be explained by different historical trends in COVID-19 infection rates and the approaches to vaccine distribution in different nations.'

Professor Paul Hunter, an epidemiologist at the University of East Anglia, said: 'The latest report from ONS on the antibody prevalence survey covers the period 7th to 10th June and so lags behind the current situation by about a week or two.

'The most obvious findings are that in all the age groups over 34 for England the modelled percentage of people with antibodies is over 90 per cent and in the 60 to 79 age groups it is over 95 per cent.

'This is remarkably high rate and most of this will be due to the impact of vaccine. What is perhaps even more reassuring is that in the rate of people aged 25 to 34 is 69 per cent and aged 16 to 24 is 56 per cent.

'Given than vaccination has only been offered to all adults in the past few days much of the 16 to 24 age group will have acquired their antibodies from natural infection, only 25 per cent of this group has had a single dose vaccine by the 10th June and somewhat fewer of those would have had their dose long enough ago to have generated antibodies.

'Whilst immunity to COVID infection is not guaranteed in people with antibodies the presence of antibody is strongly correlated with at least some degree of protection.

'So this is very good news, even for younger age groups in that a substantial proportion (probably even the majority) of those younger age groups already have some degree of protection.'
CNN's Brian Stelter's ratings continue to plummet after his Father's Day episode of 'Reliable Sources' drew only 656,000 viewers in his least-watched showing of 2021.

It marks the the 12th consecutive week Stelter's show failed to hit one million views.

In comparison, Fox News, which Stelter has been critical of, airs 'MediaBuzz' during Stelter's direct timeslot. That show averages 1.14 million viewers to top 'Reliable Sources' by 74 percent, Fox News reported.

Reliable Sources, which airs weekly on Sundays, has suffered a disastrous ratings drop since interest from early this year peaked for all cable news amid the Capitol riot and Inauguration Day.

So far in June, Stelter's ratings are down 57 percent overall since January, and 67 percent in the key age demographic prized by advertisers, 25-54, according to Nielsen data reviewed by DailyMail.com.

Brian Stelter, host of CNN's 'Reliable Sources,' hasn't hit the one-million viewer mark for 12 straight weeks

Stelter (left) took flack for his interview with White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki (right) which critics called 'fawning' and 'sycophantic'

Reliable Sources has shed 57 percent of its viewers overall (left) since January, and 67 percent in the key age demographic prized by advertisers; 25-54 (right)

Biden's presidency has seemingly zapped CNN's ratings.

The Washington Times reported CNN as a whole lost 44 percent of its total audience since the last week of January, but Stelter in particular has been the target of scrutiny.

In early June, he was ripped for lobbing softball questions to White House press secretary Jen Psaki in an exclusive one-on-one interview.

Stelter's first question was, 'What does the press get wrong when covering Biden's agenda?'

Psaki replied: 'Some of our muscles have atrophied a little bit over the last few years, and there isnt a lot of memory  recent memory or longer memory  on how long it takes to get legislation forward or how messy the process of negotiating and the process of getting legislation across the finish line can be.

'So we know, we understand everybody is always looking for a deadline, a timeline, things like that,' she continued. 'I dont know if thats the press getting it wrong. Ill leave you to the critique of that, Brian.'

Afterward, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Glenn Greenwald, who broke one of the Edward Snowden stories, tweeted it was 'one of the most sycophantic interviews of a state official you'll ever see.'

Former press secretary for President Donald Trump Kayleigh McEnany also blasted Stelter's interview with Psaki for not asking pertinent questions about Dr. Anthony Fauci in the wake of his email dump.

McEnany maintains that during a one-on-one interview Stelter conducted with Psaki, the issue was never mentioned either during the CNN interview or by the White House press pool during a daily press briefing.

Last week, Stelter came under fire again after Joe Rogan blasted Stelter on his podcast 'The Joe Rogan Experience' after Stelter lamented that some YouTubers draw more viewers than cable networks.

'They were describing it as if they were entitled to viewers,' Rogan said. 'This is because the market has spoken and your show's f**ing terrible.

'Brian Stelter's show keeps slipping and slipping and slipping in the ratings. Same with Don Lemon's. It's the same thing. Everybody knows they're not real. They're not real humans,' he continued.

Rogan piled on with more criticisms of Stelter's interview with Psaki saying, 'How about Brian Stelter talking to the press secretary saying, 'What are we doing wrong? What are we doing wrong?' Like, hey motherf***er, you're supposed to be a journalist.

Podcast host Joe Rogan has slammed CNN host Brian Stelter, mocking his falling ratings and slamming his show Reliable Sources as 'terrible'

'They're obviously being told a certain amount of what to do,' said Rogan of Stelter and other cable news hosts.

'Maybe he'd be an interesting guy if he had his own f**in' podcast, if he could just rely on his own personality and be himself. I don't know. I can't imagine doing that gig. Any of those guys. That gig is a strange gig,' he said.

As pointed out by Mediaite, Rogan's talk may have been spurred in part by a segment Stelter did last month mocking Rogan's 'overreaction' to 'woke cancel culture.'

Stelter played clips of Rogan expressing fears that eventually 'straight white men' would be forbidden from speaking or going outside if woke culture took its course, remarks that Stelter sneered were 'crazy'.

Stelter continued: 'On one level it's just comical hearing this rich and famous guy express worries even though he's paid to talk for a living, he's going to be silenced in the future.'
Iran's new president should face an international inquiry over the massacre of thousands of political prisoners, campaigners said yesterday.

Ebrahim Raisi, who won a landslide election victory at the weekend, was on a four-man 'death commission' that oversaw the execution of regime opponents in the late 1980s.

More than 150 former United Nations officials, human rights authorities and legal experts have demanded that the UN open an inquiry into the killings they say 'may amount to crimes against humanity'. It is estimated 4,000 to 30,000 people were condemned to death in 1988 by then-supreme leader Ruhollah Khomeini in two separate waves.

Ebrahim Raisi (pictured), who won a landslide election victory at the weekend, was on a four-man 'death commission' that oversaw the execution of regime opponents in the late 1980s

Tahar Boumedra, of the Justice for the Victims of the 1988 Massacre in Iran campaign group, said: 'The massacre is an ongoing crime against humanity. The families of the victims continue to receive heavy sentences simply for asking the authorities where their loved ones have been buried. It's time the UN conducts its own investigation into these mass executions.'

Agnes Callamard, of Amnesty International, said: 'That Ebrahim Raisi has risen to the presidency instead of being investigated for the crimes against humanity of murder, enforced disappearance and torture, is a grim reminder that impunity reigns supreme in Iran.'

Asked about executions after his election win, Raisi, 60, replied: 'If a judge, a prosecutor, has defended the security of the people, he should be praised. I am proud to have defended human rights in every position I have held so far.'

Agnes Callamard (pictured), of Amnesty International, said: 'That Ebrahim Raisi has risen to the presidency instead of being investigated for the crimes against humanity of murder, enforced disappearance and torture, is a grim reminder that impunity reigns supreme in Iran'

Iran yesterday accused Washington of meddling in its poll after the US state department decried the process as 'pretty manufactured'.

The Biden administration insists Raisi's victory will not kill off hopes of reviving the faltering 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran. Raisi is likely to raise Iran's demands for sanctions relief in return for compliance with the deal, as he himself is subject to US human rights penalties.

Monster who 'had enemies hurled over clifftops'

By Mark Almond

Survivors of the savage purges that engulfed Iran after the revolution in 1979 recall a very young prosecutor in charge of their interrogations.

Ebrahim Raisi was in his early twenties and looked more like a student with his wavy hair than an avenging angel of the new Islamic Republic.

But anyone thinking that this bearded youth would be merciful to the endless queue of suspects brought before him in the 1980s was soon brutally disillusioned. Many of those he found guilty were blindfolded and ordered to form a line that went straight to the gallows.

Raisi's election as president of Iran in a rigged election on Saturday has re-awakened nightmare memories for Iranians. It should also serve as a warning to anyone in the West who is hoping that this hardline, ultra-conservative with blood-soaked hands will be a friend.

Ebrahim Raisi (pictured) was in his early twenties and looked more like a student with his wavy hair than an avenging angel of the new Islamic Republic

Raisi played a key role in the 1980s in purging any dissidents who had dared to protest against the Ayatollah Khomeini's religious dictatorship. Survivors of these purges allege that Raisi ordered some of his victims to be tossed off cliffs. He personally supervised torture in order to get confessions and even pregnant women were beaten to get incriminating material on their husbands and family members.

It was this utter ruthlessness  and his loyalty to a state in which protest is met with a bullet  that earned him approval at the top. And gave him the name the Butcher of Tehran.

This mega-purge killed 4,000 prisoners according to quasi-official Iranian sources dismayed by the massacre. But relatives and human rights groups charge that as many as 30,000 critics of the regime 'disappeared' in the frenzy of killing.

London-based human rights lawyer, Geoffrey Robertson, described the slaughter as the worst crime against humanity since the concentration camps of the Second World War. The victims, he said, 'were hanged from cranes four at a time, or in groups of six some were taken to army barracks at night, directed to make their wills, and then shot by firing squad. Their bodies were doused with disinfectant, packed in refrigerator trucks and buried at night in mass graves'.

It was this utter ruthlessness  and his loyalty to a state in which protest is met with a bullet  that earned him approval at the top. And gave him the name the Butcher of Tehran

To this day, relatives have not been told where their loved ones lie. Amnesty International has said that the new Iranian president should face trial for his brutalities over the years, rather than enjoying 'sovereign immunity' as a head of state.

The dissident Ayatollah Montazerim, who remains in Iran, warned Raisi and his henchmen that their bloody past was 'a stain they could never wash off'. But to Raisi, victims of the Islamic Republic's cruel courts were 'corrupt in the face of God'. He regards his barbaric purges and torture sessions as a badge of honour, proof of his utter reliability to the regime in Iran.

Raisi's election was monstrously unfair. From the beginning of the campaign, the supreme leader Ali Khamenei and the brutal Revolutionary Guard were determined to rig the vote in favour of someone who would protect their interests.

The turnout was pitifully low, almost certainly because so many were so disgusted at the prospect of such an extremist leader  and their only safe means of protest was abstaining from voting.

Even if Raisi was by no means alone in running Iran's kangaroo courts in the 1980s, he is the only hanging judge to have used the scaffold as the launching pad for a successful campaign for the country's presidency.

In the run up to the elections, Raisi presented himself as the pitiless opponent of the corruption making life an expensive misery for so many Iranians. A couple of years ago, he told an audience of Iran's deeply crooked Revolutionary Guard: 'We will not only cut off the fingers but chop off the arms of the corrupt.'

Tahar Boumedra (pictured), of the Justice for the Victims of the 1988 Massacre in Iran campaign group, said: 'The massacre is an ongoing crime against humanity. The families of the victims continue to receive heavy sentences simply for asking the authorities where their loved ones have been buried. It's time the UN conducts its own investigation into these mass executions

Given his extensive and brutal track record, the chorus of siren voices in the Western media depicting Raisi as a new broom to clean up Iranian politics and open a fresh chapter in dealings with America are naive at best.

Raisi's soft-spoken post-election press conference led some to see him as a moderate under his turban. In fact, in Iranian culture men of authority speak quietly and coldly. The notorious 'Butcher' of the 1980s doesn't need to bellow to intimidate.

He is the ultimate hardliner and the regime's trusted insider. His father-in-law after all is an ayatollah, a member of Iran's ruling religious oligarchy. Will the West talk to this killer and torturer now he is president? When asked this week whether he would be willing to meet President Biden, Raisi replied 'No', and made clear that Iran's ballistic missile programme and its role in the Middle East are not subject to negotiation. But the truth is Raisi may be forced to negotiate in order to lift the sanctions crushing his country.

Mr Biden has indicated he might lift some of the sanctions to revive the Obama-era nuclear deal that President Trump abandoned. The danger is, though, that with revenues from energy exports flowing again Raisi will have the cash to ramp up efforts to radicalise the Middle East and attack Israel and Jewish targets across the world.

From Hezbollah in Lebanon on Israel's northern border, to Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Iran funds and arms Israel's terrorist opponents.

For its part, Israel's new government is already threatening to send in warplanes to Iran to attack its nuclear plants  which could easily provoke massive retaliation.

At home a hanging judge, abroad the paymaster of terrorists, President Raisi shares the ayatollahs' ambitions to eliminate Israel and re-shape the Middle East in Iran's image. His election could not be more inflammatory in the tinderbox of the Middle East.

Mark Almond is director of The Crisis Research Institute, Oxford.
A dedicated sister hid in the cramped bottom-deck of a yacht to film the moment her older sibling got engaged.

Adelle Cerna and her sister's boyfriend Daniel hatched a plan for her to lie in wait to capture him proposing to her sister Alice on a romantic boat trip off the coast of Adelaide.

Ms Cerna recreated in a TikTok video how she carried out her covert mission to snap the perfect shot on Alice and Daniel's special day in November last year.

After she sneaking onto the boat, Ms Cerna peers out the lower cabin's window to catch a glimpse of the view as the yacht heads from the pier out to sea.

Adelle Cerna (pictured) has shared footage of her hiding in a yacht's bottom deck to photograph the moment her older sister and soon-to-be brother-in-law got engaged

As the loved-up couple dance and drink champagne on the top deck, Ms Cerna passes time by dancing, trying to eavesdrop through the door, and sitting on the bed twiddling her thumbs.

Finally, Daniel pays her a visit in the lower deck to fetch the ring and a letter, with the pair excitedly hugging as he braces to return upstairs to Alice and pop the question.

Ms Cerna secretly inches her head up through a door in the cabin to photograph Daniel on one knee as he offers his girlfriend a diamond-studded ring.

Excitedly proclaiming 'yes', Alice clasps her face with both hands as she sheds happy tears, before the newly-engaged couple embrace, slowly dancing on the spot.

But the romantic moment is abruptly interrupted by laughter after Alice turns to see her sister behind a camera lens, hovering above the cabin door.

Ms Adelle inched her head up through a cabin roof-top door to photograph Daniel proposing to Alice (pictured)

'Is that my sister?!' Alice laughs as she points at Adelle, who remains professional, photographing away.

The clip ends with Adelle filming her self sipping on a glass of champagne in the bottom-deck, trying to be discrete, as the betrothed pair continue their date.

The video racked up more than 3.7million views, with many praising Adelle's heartwarming bond with her sister and future brother-in-law.

'You were so committed!' one person wrote.

'This is the best! You're such a good sibling!' another added.

'The way you and your brother in law hugged when he grabbed the ring,' a third wrote alongside love eyes emojis.

'This is so magical. What a wonderful sister you are,' a fourth person wrote.
Queensland has slammed its borders shut to people travelling from Sydney's hotspots after the coronavirus outbreak in Bondi Junction skyrocketed to 21 cases on Tuesday.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk confirmed in a press conference on Wednesday morning that anyone who had been in the seven Sydney councils designated as high-risk will be forced to enter hotel quarantine from 1am Thursday.

Those areas include the City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick - about 782,000 residents.

'We cannot afford to have this Delta variant out in the community,' Palaszczuk said as the state recorded another case transmitted in hotel quarantine.

'We have serious concerns. We will be easing restrictions across Queensland this weekend but we cannot have the Delta variant out in our community.

She said Queensland will be following Victoria's lead overnight by banning anyone entering from the seven-exposed areas.

'We're focusing on those council areas at the moment but this advice could change, that's dependent on what we see in the next few days.'

There were no community transmissions of the virus recorded in Queensland overnight.

Queensland has slammed its borders shut to Sydney hotspots after the coronavirus outbreak in Bondi Junction skyrocketed to 21 cases on Tuesday

Anyone entering Queensland who had been in the seven Sydney councils designated as high-risk will be forced to enter hotel quarantine from 1am Wednesday

Chief Health Officer Dr Jeanette Young says the extreme risk of the Delta variant has forced the state to immediately introduce the measures. The state recorded one new case of the variant overnight.

'The risk is so much higher now than it was only a year ago,' she said.

Anyone currently in Queensland who had visited any of the seven suburbs after June 12 must immediately seek a test and isolate.

More than 15,000 vaccines were administered on Tuesday in Queensland.

The Queensland government also turned blame on Scott Morrison's federal government and their refusal to introduce regional or national quarantine centres to combat the increased threat to hotel quarantine.

'Hotel quarantine is not proving as effective as it was. We're seeing that with room to room transmission, and that just underlines what we've been saying for a very long time now,' Deputy Premier Steven Miles said.

'There has been a very long time we could have built and maintained regional quarantine facilities.'

The decision comes after Mark Kilian and his wife Anneli flew from Los Angeles to Sydney on June 15 after being granted a travel exemption by the federal government and NSW Health attempting to say goodbye to his dying father

Mr Kilian's 80-year-old father Frans weighs just 44kg and is dying of pancreatic cancer in a hospital on the Gold Coast

The decision comes after Mark Kilian and his wife Anneli flew from Los Angeles to Sydney on June 15 after being granted a travel exemption by the federal government and NSW Health attempting to say goodbye to his dying father.

The Kilians then tried to leave NSW on a $15,000 private charter plane but were refused a quarantine exemption by Queensland Health officials.

Mr Kilian's 80-year-old father Frans weighs just 44kg and is dying of pancreatic cancer in a hospital on the Gold Coast.

Queensland Health has rejected the couple's quarantine exemption application four times even though they are both fully vaccinated and even offered to wear hazmat suits and tracking devices during their visit.

'Dr Young and i have had a lengthy discussion - what we'd like to see from the New South Wales government, if they want to break the 14-day hotel quarantine for the couple, they can provide how they safely transfer the couple from Sydney to the Gold Coast,' Palaszczuk said during Wednesday morning's press conference.

When told her New South Wales counterparts had proposed a plan, she said it needed to be put to the state's Chief Health Officer before being decided.
More than half of all exemption applications by Australians attempting to leave the country are being rejected under the world's strictest border regime.

Australia's Border Force approved just 11,867 applications out of 25,233 lodged in May, with no timeline in place for the lifting of the nation's hard border.

Politicians including Scott Morrison and Annastacia Palaszczuk have drawn criticism from the public for granting themselves exemptions to travel to events like the G7 Summit and Tokyo Olympics while Australians are stuck at home since March 2020.

More than half of all exemptions being applied for by Australians attempting to leave the country are being rejected as the world's strictest borders remain enforced

'The worst thing is that government officials are granting themselves exemptions and holding back the same thing for tens of thousands of Aussies,' LibertyWorks President Andrew Cooper told the Telegraph.

The right-wing organisation recently sued the government attempting to overturn the travel ban for Australians, but was unsuccessful.

'While the rest of the world s opening up and letting families getting back together, we are maintaining these strict measures that have terrible impacts on families,' Mr Cooper said.

There are still 36,000 Australians still stranded overseas who are awaiting flights back home, either from repatriating flights or on airlines.

Tens of thousands of others have been denied the chance to be reunited with family, absent from weddings, births, and funerals for the past 15 months.

Australia's Border Force approved just 11,867 applications out of 25,233 lodged in May, with no timeline in place for the lifting of the nation's hard borders

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk drew particular criticism for a tweet she made earlier this month after receiving her vaccine.

'Today I got the Pfizer vaccine in the event I need to travel to Tokyo for the Olympics,' she said.

'So you can go to Tokyo for absolutely no reason whatsoever, but vaccinated parents of a newborn can't visit their baby in QLD?' one person responded.

'It took me over 6 months, 7 cancelled flights and $10k+ to fly back to Australia to hug my terminally ill mum one last time and you are talking about ''needing'' to go to the Olympics? Absolute joke and a kick in the guts to stranded Aussies,' another added.
More than 150 employees at a Houston hospital resigned or were fired Tuesday after they refused to follow a hospital policy requiring they get vaccinated against Covid-19.

A spokesperson for the hospital, Houston Methodist Baytown, said that among 200 employees who were told they needed to be vaccinated by June 7 or face a two-week suspension, 153 either resigned or were terminated.

The departures came after a judge dismissed an employee lawsuit over the vaccine requirement.

Hospital workers protested outside of Houston Methodist Baytown Hospital on June 7 in response to a requirement that they be vaccinated against Covid-19. More than 150 workers resigned or were fired on Tuesday after refusing to get vaccinated

The case over how far health care institutions can go to protect patients and others against the coronavirus has been closely watched. It's is believed to be the first of its kind in the US But it won't be the end of the debate.

In the suit, filed by 117 Houston Methodist employees over the requirement, they likened their situation to medical experiments performed on unwilling victims in Nazi concentration camps during World War II.

In his June 12 US District Judge Lynn Hughes of Houston called the comparison 'reprehensible,' and deemed lead plaintiff Jennifer Bridges' contention that the vaccines are 'experimental and dangerous' to be false and otherwise irrelevant.

The judge said that if employees of the hospital system didn't like the requirement, they could go work elsewhere.

Bridges, 39, vowed to take the case to the Supreme Court if necessary.

Nurse Jennifer Bridges (second from left) led the protests, and was lead plaintiff in an employee lawsuit against the hospital vaccination policy

Bridges in the suit likened Houston Methodist's vaccine policy to the Nazi's forced experiments during World War II. A district judge dismissed the suit on June 12

'This is only the beginning,' she said. 'We are going to be fighting for quite a while.'

Houston Methodists decision in April made it the first major US health care system to require COVID-19 vaccinations for workers.

Houston Methodists president and CEO, Marc Boom, has said nearly 25,000 of the systems more than 26,000 workers have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

'You did the right thing. You protected our patients, your colleagues, your families and our community. The science proves that the vaccines are not only safe but necessary if we are going to turn the corner against COVID-19,' Boom said in a statement to employees.

Houston Methodist protesters waved at cars on June 7. The Houston Methodist Hospital System was among the first in the country to require its employees be vaccinated

Bridges, who had worked at the hospital for 6-and-a-half years, had contended that the vaccines were unsafe because they do not have full approval from the US Food and Drug Administration, and led a walkout on June 7 with fellow employees.

The vaccines currently have emergency authorization from the FDA.

'I don't think anyone should ever lose their job just because they do not want to get an injection that they are not comfortable with. They should have at least compromised with us and given us a chance since it is just emergency use authorization right now,' she told ABC 13.
Sunak is concerned about the huge cost, which could reach 10billion a year

Campaigners want billions set aside to ensure everyone has the help they need

Hundreds of thousands of pensioners are being denied vital help every year while Boris Johnson puts off publishing his long-promised reforms for social care.

Of 1.37million requests for support last year, only 548,450 were granted, new figures show  a gap of 822,000.

And, while demand for social care has risen over the past two years, the number of over-65s receiving it has fallen.

Applications increased by more than 50,000 between 2017/18 and 2019/20 while approvals fell by almost 17,000, according to analysis by the Labour Party.

It means there are more than 67,000 people who would have received care in 2017 that are not getting it.

The full extent of the scale of the social care crisis emerged after Mr Johnson cancelled a crunch meeting with Chancellor Rishi Sunak yesterday to decide whether to fund a lifetime cap on the amount individuals must pay toward their own care.

Campaigners want billions more pounds ploughed into the system to ensure that everyone has the help they need.

But Mr Sunak is concerned about the huge cost, which could reach 10billion a year.

Hundreds of thousands of pensioners are being denied vital help every year while Boris Johnson puts off publishing his long-promised reforms for social care. Of 1.37million requests for support last year, only 548,450 were granted, new figures show  a gap of 822,000 [Stock image]

It is understood that the Prime Minister wants a cap set at around 50,000, but the Treasury is pushing for it to be set higher, at around 86,000.

This would be cheaper but fewer families would be helped.

Liz Kendall, Labour's social care spokesman, said her party's research highlighted the growing numbers in need of social care support.

She added: 'After a decade of Tory cuts, the shocking fact is that our care workers can't deliver services to all those who need it. This provides neither the dignity nor security that Boris Johnson promised for older and disabled people.

'Almost two years after he promised to fix this crisis, too many people are being left alone and distressed, families are providing even more hours of care, and care workers are stretched to breaking point.

It is understood that the Prime Minister (pictured) wants a cap set at around 50,000 for social care spending, but the Treasury is pushing for it to be set higher, at around 86,000

'As we live for longer, we need a social care system that is fit for purpose and tackles the long-standing, deep-rooted problems in the sector. The Government now must bring forward plans for social care reform as a matter of urgency.'

According to the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, 8billion has been cut from adult social care budgets since 2010.

Labour's analysis shows that the situation is even worse if the whole adult social care system, which covers working-age people with disabilities as well as retirees, is considered.

The figures show that two million people asked their council for help last year, but just 830,000 received it.

Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK, said: 'Until the Government fulfils the Prime Minister's promise to fix social care, too many older people are doomed to go on suffering.'

Health minister Nadine Dorries yesterday told the Commons health and social care committee that the Government was committed to providing reform to social care before the end of this year.
A gang of youths hurled rocks on a busy motorway and abused a mother and her children on a walkway when she walked past them.

Ammara Kashif, 37, was approached by the teenagers while in the company of her two sons Rayyan and Muaaz, aged 11 and 9, in Quakers Hill, Sydney, on Monday.

The mother-of-two was walking next to the M7 motorway near the Quakers Hill Public School when the group of teens started to abuse her.

The Quakers Hill mother recorded the teens hurling rocks at passing cars on the busy M7 motorway and posted the video to a local Facebook group to warn other residents

She told Daily Mail Australia the boys appeared to be between 14 and 18 and started to call her rude names as she and her sons tried to pass them.

'They said "you dump-looking old lady, get your face out of here. You grinch-looking witch",' she recalled.

'I said excuse me, what did you say? To which they replied "get your f**king face out of here, f**k off you a**hole".'

Ms Kashif said she was appalled by the teens behaviour and attempted to discipline the young boys.

'They reverted back with F-words and more abusive language', she said.

She started to move away from the group after her eldest son Rayyan warned they could be armed with a knife.

However, the boys soon turned their attention to their next victim, a little girl riding her bicycle along the walkway.

Ammara Kashif, 37, was approached by the group while on a walk with her two sons Rayyan and Muaaz aged 11 and 9 (pictured) who she said felt scared of the teenagers

'They grabbed her belongings on the front of her bike, probably her project she was bringing from school. She was scared and came up to me', Ms Kashif said.

The mother-of-two posted footage of the teenagers throwing rocks at passing vehicles to a local Facebook group.

Her post was quickly flooded with comments from angry residents, who thanked Ms Kashif for making her community aware of the 'disgusting behaviour'.

'Their parents must be so proud', one resident wrote, sarcastically.

'I'm going to take a wild guess that this is probably the result of not disciplining your offspring', another woman wrote.

'I also walked past these boys with my dog, they tried giving her a rock to eat. I just quickly pulled her along and kept walking', another resident shared.

Ms Kashif assured her community she reported the incident to police, and would try and get a photo of the boys' faces if she saw them again.

The mother-of-two said the boys appeared to be between 14 and 18 and started to call her rude names as she and her sons tried to pass them

She said the interaction with the teenagers made her angry, because in her culture children are taught to respect their elders.

'We have migrated from Pakistan and we have respect for elders no matter what age we belong to', she sais.

'I told my boys this is not an appropriate language to respond to elders.'

The Sydney mother said that as a respectable, law-abiding citizen she refused to tolerate such behaviour.

'Instead I feel sorry for the teenagers, I can intervene to help them to be respectful,' she said.
Schools are being encouraged to adopt a bizarre song to celebrate a One Britain One Nation day this Friday.

The song, which appears to have Government backing, provoked ridicule after it went viral online, with critics calling it ridiculous and an embarrassment.

Its creators say it promotes love and unity and encourages all pupils to show love for our great nation.

Schools are being encouraged to adopt a bizarre song to celebrate a One Britain One Nation day this Friday. OBON wants schools to hold a minutes applause on Friday and sing the song. Pictured: People hold up a OBON flag

The song is called We are Britain and we have one dream, to unite all people in one great team, which are also the words of the chorus.

It also includes the lines: Our nation survived through many storms and many wars/Weve opened our doors, and widened our islands shores/We celebrate our differences with love in our hearts/United for ever, never apart.

The tune was composed by St Johns CofE Primary in Bradford, and adopted by the One Britain One Nation campaign, set up by former police officer Kash Singh.

On Monday the Department for Educations official Twitter account promoted the OBON day and linked to its website. OBON wants schools to hold a minutes applause on Friday and sing the song.

The One Nation campaign lists its aim as being to create, a strong, fair, harmonious and a proud British Nation, celebrating patriotism and respect for all our people.

OBON day is scheduled for Friday, June 25, and the campaign wants children to sing the official song.

On Monday the Department for Educations official Twitter account (pictured) promoted the OBON day and linked to its website. OBON wants schools to hold a minutes applause on Friday and sing the song

The One Britain One Nation campaign was set up by former police officer Kash Singh (pictured, file photo)

It calls on schools to hold a minutes applause on the designated day - June 25 - and sing the official song or play it through the schools tannoy system.

Schools are also encouraged to dress children in red, white and blue for the day and allow children to unpack the meaning of shared values of British Citizenship.

However, yesterday there was derision on Twitter after a clip of school children singing went viral.

One user said: To what terrible parallel universe have I been transported? Another said: They should put that song into Eurovision. They hate us as it is, so we might as well go for broke.

A third said: Its just so bad. It still manages to gets worse every single time you hear it. A fourth said: Anyone who tweets that ridiculous One Britain song in my timeline earns an automatic block.

Another added: Please dont tell me the Tories really turned our country into such an embarrassment?
More than half of teachers in England are in favour of teaching children to take direct action against climate change, according to a survey.

The research, led by the University of Bristol, involved asking 626 primary and secondary school teachers across England for their views on climate change education.

Teachers believed almost unanimously in an action-focused climate change curriculum incorporated across subject, beginning with conservation projects in early primary school.

Results also showed 54 per cent of those surveyed believed this should extend to participation in civil disobedience at secondary school.

Professor Paul Howard-Jones, the study's lead author, said children have been 'inspired' by Swedish teenage climate change campaigner Greta Thunberg.

Thunberg, 18, whose activism has inspired a global movement, shot to fame after launching a solo 'school strike' outside the Swedish parliament aged just 15.

More than half of teachers in England are in favour of teaching children to take direct action against climate change, according to a survey. Pictured: Environmental campaigners block London's Oxford Circus during a coordinated protest by the Extinction Rebellion group on April 15, 2019

The study, published in the journal Environmental Education Research, found that 72 per cent of respondents were already teaching or talking about climate change with their students.

Children had been 'inspired' by teenage climate activist Greta Thunburg, lead author Professor Paul Howard-Jones said.

Professor Paul Howard-Jones, lead author of the work, said: 'Teachers want their students to be informed in how they think and what they do about the climate emergency.

'They are ready and willing to move forward with radical, action-oriented programmes of education that can help students drive our response to climate change.'

Police officers remove an Extinction Rebellion protester from Victoria Street, London, on Thursday September 3

A recent Ipsos survey found only 42 per cent of teachers in the US were teaching or talking about climate change with their students.

In total, 97 per cent of teachers surveyed in England believed climate change was caused by humans, compared with 39 per cent of respondents in the US.

In England, 19 per cent of teachers thought climate change was more important for further funding than science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects.

However, only 5 per cent of teachers in the US would prioritise climate change.

Greta Thunberg and other climate protesters gather for a protest against climate change outside the Swedish parliament building in Stockholm, Sweden

Professor Howard-Jones, of Bristol University's School of Education and Cabot Institute for the Environment, added: 'Despite being under-represented in the National Curriculum, climate change is something many young people feel passionate about.

'School children have been inspired by Greta Thunberg, who has demonstrated the importance of peaceful protest to raise awareness of the climate crisis and spur individual as well as large-scale change.

'They have also seen the tactics of groups like Extinction Rebellion and many have become activists already.

'Our research indicates that teachers are prepared to support their activism through an action-oriented approach to Climate Change Education.

'With COP26 being hosted in the UK in November, there has never been a better time to reflect on how we're preparing young people for the defining issue of today.

The study, 'The views of teachers in England on an action-oriented climate change curriculum', is published in Environmental Education Research.
A stock market salesman who lost his $200,000-a-year job and moved into backpackers accommodation groped a fellow guest then masturbated in front of a family on a picnic while he was high on LSD.

A Gold Coast court has heard Samuel Nathan Sandford had gone to Budds Beach at Surfers Paradise with a group from the backpackers hostel on the afternoon of December 5 last year.

He put his hand under the shirt of a British backpacker who was part of the group and grabbed her breast, to which she said: 'That is not okay. I can laugh at a lot of things but that is not okay,' the Gold Coast Bulletin reports.

The former stock market salesman had gone to Budds Beach at the Gold Coast (pictured) with a group from the backpackers where he was staying

However, he grabbed her breast again and then her leg as she tried to push him off - prompting her friends to step in and pull her away from him.

She told the court after he then took off his pants and began to masturbate in front of a nearby family having a picnic, then kicked a passing car, damaged another car, and tried to climb a tree but fell out.

When police later arrived at the backpackers accommodation Sandford resisted arrest and was pepper sprayed.

In a victim impact statement to the court, the British backpacker said she had always felt safe in Australia before the incident.

'Although I am strong enough to be okay afterwards, I will never forget how one person's actions have been able to impact on my life,' she said.

Sandford's defence lawyer said her client lost his $200,000-a-year job when his stockmarket sales firm shut down in 2020 and had to move into the backpackers.

She added he had also consumed LSD before his erratic behaviour at the beach.

His defence lawyer said he consumed LSD before his erratic behaviour (stock image)

In Southport Magistrates Court on Tuesday Sandford pleaded guilty to sexual assault, wilful damage, indecent act in a public place, and obstructing police.

Sandford was sentenced to 12 months jail suspended after 39 days - which he had already served awaiting his court appearance.

Magistrate Cameron McKenzie called his actions 'appalling behaviour and a breach of trust of someone you knew and in particular someone you knew to be a backpacker and a visitor to this country'.

He was also ordered to pay the woman more than $2,000 in compensation and was placed on probation for two years.
Confusing rules have been blamed for a superannuation fund awarding a young woman's $180,000 death benefit to her much older lover instead of her mum.

Magistrate Rodney Higgins, a 70-year-old grandfather-of-eight, has sparked outrage for claiming fiance Ashleigh Petrie's superannuation and life insurance payout after his 23-year-old girlfriend was fatally run over in country Victoria in October 2019.

Before her tragic death, the young court clerk had struggled with publicity surrounding the revelation she was in a live-in relationship with Mr Higgins, who was 45 years her senior.

Her mother took industry fund Rest Super to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority arguing her deceased daughter had named her as the sole beneficiary.

A massive public campaign is underway to have one of Australia's biggest super funds hand over a $180,000 death benefit to a young woman's mother. Magistrate Rodney Higgins, a 70-year-old grandfather-of-eight, has sparked outrage for pocketing a superannuation and life insurance payout after his fiance Ashleigh Petrie, 23, was fatally run over in October 2019

With a decision still pending more than 12,500 people, by early Wednesday afternoon, had signed a petition calling on the the industry super fund to give that $180,000 to Ms Petrie's mother instead of Mr Higgins, a Victorian magistrate on a $324,000 salary package

With a decision still pending, more than 12,500 people have so far signed a petition calling on Rest Super to give that $180,000 to Ms Petrie's mother instead of Mr Higgins, a Victorian magistrate on a generous $324,000 salary package.

'We call on Rest Super to return Ashleigh Petries super where it belongs - with her mother who is suffering from financial hardship and definitely not earning $300,000+ a year,' it said.

Under the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993, a young worker can typically nominate a parent as the 'non-binding' beneficiary who would receive their super and life insurance should they die.

Should that worker later get into a relationship, the law considers the partner or spouse to be a dependent.

Rest Super said it had obeyed the law when it awarded the payment to Mr Higgins but it declined to provide more details

Federal Labor's superannuation frontbencher Stephen Jones said there was a lot of confusion around superannuation life insurance arrangements, especially among the young

Rest Super said it had obeyed the law when it awarded the payment to Mr Higgins but it declined to provide more details.

'Rest has every sympathy for Ms Petrie's loved ones and all those grieving her tragic passing,' a spokesman told Daily Mail Australia.

'The process of paying a death benefit can involve contested claims and disputes between potential dependents.

'Rest always endeavours to handle situations like these with the utmost sensitivity and sympathy.'

Federal Labor's superannuation frontbencher Stephen Jones said there was a lot of confusion around superannuation life insurance arrangements, especially among the young.

'It's certainly confusing to the average person, particularly when they're young, the last thing they are thinking about is their will and their estate,' he told Daily Mail Australia.

'A lot of people are even unaware that they have a significant asset in their life insurance policy and there's a lack of financial literacy about these things.

'There needs to be a lot greater awareness and a lot greater explanation about these life insurance policies.'

Highly-paid magistrate Rod Higgins fought to win the $180,000 super and life insurance payout of his young fiancee, who was 45 years his junior

The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia noted Rest Super would be legally obliged to pay Ms Petrie's mother if the Australian Financial Complaints Authority found in her favour.

'In instances where the Australian Financial Complaints Authority makes a determination, super funds are legally obliged to abide by the determination and make member beneficiary payments accordingly,' ASFA chief executive Martin Fahy told Daily Mail Australia.

Mr Higgins - who bizarrely referred to himself as Rocketman Rod in an online alias obtained by Daily Mail Australia - previously ran as a state and federal Labor candidate, unsuccessfully in northern Victoria.

Magistrate Rodney Higgins referred to himself as Rocketman Rod in online profile obtained by Daily Mail Australia

'I also love diamonds': Lurline Le Neuf - the longtime partner of Mr Higgins - was labelled the 'Queen of Bling' in home renovation magazine. She is spotted wearing an apron from luxury London department store Harrod's paired with a pair of yellow boots in Shepparton on Tuesday

Miss Petrie,23, excitedly accepted and called him 'the love of her life' after he proposed to her in Fiji in 2019. The couple is pictured together just weeks before her untimely death

Mr Higgins had reportedly inquired about securing his fiancee's superannuation death benefit within 24 hours of her tragic death.

After Ms Petrie's death, Mr Higgins moved back to the riverside home in Shepparton he shared with his former partner, Lurline Le Neuf, to resume their 18-year relationship.

On Tuesday, the pair were seen sauntering about town in pricey duds looking every inch the millionaire couple.

Daily Mail Australia can reveal Mr Higgins and Ms Le Neuf appeared in a feature article in 'Our Home' magazine in 2013 where they discussed their good fortune.

Mr Higgins had reportedly inquired about securing his fiancee's superannuation death benefit within 24 hours of her tragic death. After Ms Petrie's death, Mr Higgins moved back to the riverside home in Shepparton he shared with his former partner, Lurline Le Neuf, to resume their 18-year relationship

In it, Ms Le Neuf was described as 'The Queen Of Bling' and had appeared on the front cover.

'It is everywhere, from jewellery encrusted with precious stones and bracelets laden with rhinestones, to glitter glued onto shoes to add flair and the bling artwork she weaves into the home she shares with partner Rod Higgins,' the article read.

'I also love diamonds,' Ms Le Neuf told the publication.

Mr Higgins' proud partner talked of her troubles at finding the perfect chandelier for their home and bragged about her time working with fashion gurus in London.

'I have always been bling and people just expect it of me,' she said.

I'm a rocketman: Controversial magistrate Rod Higgins referred to himself as Rocketman Rod on a social media profile

The 'Rocketman's' expansive home in Shepparton, in Victoria's north, which sits just a stone's throw from a tranquil river

The wealthy magistrate's partner Lurline Le Neuf got about town in posh yellow boots and a Harrod's apron on Tuesday morning

Lurline Le Neuf, who once worked in fashion in London, changed into another pair of fancy boots before leaving her home on Tuesday afternoon (above)

Ms Petrie posted on Instagram just days before here death

Photographed beaming on a Vespa motor scooter, Higgins told the magazine he was loving life.

'He has a natural tendency to take care of the down and out,' it stated.

When not scooting about town, Mr Higgins professed a love of chomping down on fancy chocolates from Haigh's.

The couple had met through mutual friends in 2003 and two years later had a commitment ceremony in Bali.

'We love to cook and entertain and we have a great time together,' they gushed.

Daily Mail Australia can further reveal Mr Higgins had a bizarre alias on social media.

When news of his relationship with Ms Petrie broke in October 2019, Mr Higgins had still operated a Facebook page under the name Rod Rocketman.

His profile claimed the magistrate worked at 'Queen' and he had attended 'The school of hard knocks'.

One photo posted to his page showed a smiling Mr Higgins beside a woman declaring 'Happy Birthday Mr Lawman' followed by a dozen kisses.

Rod Rocketman's friend list made for colourful reading, not often associated with a dealer of justice.

Grandfather-of-eight Rodney Higgins prepares to run errands on Tuesday after a day off his role as a magistrate

Mr Higgins proposed to Ashleigh Petrie (pictured together), from Mirboo North in Victoria, during a romantic trip to Fiji months before she died

In happier days: Ashleigh Petrie and Rod Higgins at the local pub. She often took to social media to inform friends of her love

Ashleigh Petrie's last post on Instragram. She stated she had been in Metung in East Gippsland- posting a peaceful photo of her view. She would be dead hours later.

Timeline of a doomed romance 2016-17: Rod Higgins and Ashleigh Petrie meet living next door to each other in Shepparton, Victoria 2017: She is a guest at a party celebrating his appointment as magistrate 2018: The two start a secret relationship under the nose of his second long-term partner Early 2019: Court colleagues are shocked to discover the relationship and raise concerns. Mr Higgins is moved to another court far away September: Mr Higgins proposes during a romantic trip to Fiji October 9: News of their relationship, engagement, and colleague concerns breaks in the media October: Mr Higgins' ex-partner controversially gets a restraining order against Ms Petrie with allegations of bias against chief magistrate who granted it October 28: Ms Petrie is killed when she is hit by a car as a pedestrian. Her death is later found to be a suicide Advertisement

While Mr Higgins is due to retire within a month, he has told friends he plans to continue working as a reserve magistrate where he would be paid $1,380 a shift.

Ms Petrie was struck by a vehicle and killed on Metung Road near Lakes Entrance in eastern Victoria about 1am the night she died.

Her death sparked an outpouring of emotion and anger at the fact her relationship was made public shortly before her death.

The news reports saw Victorian opposition attorney-general Ed O'Donohue write to the Judicial Commission of Victoria about Mr Higgins' suitability as a magistrate.

Daily Mail Australia was told that rather than dreading the revelations, Ms Petrie was 'excited' about the prospect of further stories exposing the inner workings of the court.

A source told Daily Mail Australia at the time Ms Petrie had spoken candidly about approaching the media herself to expose the 'toxic' culture of the court.

Mr Higgins had come a long way from the tough days toiling on the wharves of Melbourne where he spent 22 long years.

Back then, he was married, had three kids and was the union representative on the docks.

During the infamous Australian waterfront dispute in 1998 Mr Higgins picketed Patrick Stevedores for months.

He dabbled in politics in the 1980s and Prime Minister Bob Hawke would encourage him to chase a degree in the field.

Ashleigh Petre, 23, was engaged to 68-year-old magistrate Rob Higgins. Her relationship raised eye brows and created headlines

Ashleigh Petrie showed off a huge sparkler after Rod Higgins popped the question

Ashleigh Petrie was said to be enthusiastic about damning news reports unveiling the grubby underbelly of the justice system

Mr Higgins completed a politics and law degree during the 1990s.

In 2000 he started practicing law in the Victorian country town of Shepparton in northern Victoria - the hometown of a young Ashleigh Petrie.

In 2014 he ran for a Labor seat there in a state seat, a year after unsuccessfully contesting the overlapping federal electorate of Murray.

Mr Higgins settled back into practicing law and by 2017 was elevated to the bench as a magistrate.

Rod Higgins, 68, has been slammed by ordinary Australians after getting the super payout of Ashleigh Petrie, which she had asked to go to her struggling mum

Ashleigh Petrie and Rod Higgins in happier times

He was still attached to his second long-term partner when he fell head over heels for a young court clerk who just happened to be dating the bloke next door.

Ms Petrie was a bubbly and popular Shepparton local.

While her friends chased locals lads their own age in the often tough, working-class town, the vivacious Ms Petrie was interested in more mature men.

Some were known to want to fight over her.

Ms Petrie had been in a five-year relationship with the 48-year old next door neighbour of Mr Higgins when she hooked up with the even older beau.

Outwardly, the fractured Ms Petrie seemed on top of the world.

There was no hiding that she was in love with her older work colleague.

Ashleigh Petrie and Rodney Higgins in social media posts before her death

On September 5, with a little over a month of her short life left ahead, she took to social media to poke fun at her relationship with Mr Higgins, captioning a photograph of him holding a senior citizens card.

'Dating a senior citizen  my community work is done,' was written over the photo.



Mr Higgins whisked her away to Fiji where he popped the question.

The clerk excitedly accepted and called him 'the love of her life' in a gushing Facebook post where she showed off pictures of her sparkly new ring.

'What an amazing 10 days it has been here in Fiji! Firstly, I arrived as Rod's girlfriend and I leave as rod fiance! I cannot wait to become Mrs Higgins!' she wrote online.

'It started with a crush and now I have a ring on my finger. The love of my life asked me to marry him and I said YESSSS.'

During their trip, the pair went zip lining, met a Fijian tribe and swam in the sea together.

When the happy couple arrived home, a storm was about to smash them both.

It was October 10 when the first story about the pair opened the floodgates.

Ms Petrie would be dead a little over two weeks later.

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But sources insist the plans to introduce new laws will be pushed back yet again

He first made the pledge to the Northern Ireland affairs committee in January

Veterans groups and MPs claimed ministers are now in the last chance saloon

A renewed Government pledge to introduce legislation protecting Northern Ireland soldiers within four weeks is unlikely to be fulfilled, senior sources have said.

Veterans groups and MPs warned the Government against making any more broken promises  claiming ministers are now in the last chance saloon.

Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis yesterday told the Commons that the Government maintains its ambition of bringing in laws to prevent the prosecution of soldiers during the Troubles before Parliaments summer break next month  scheduled for July 22.

He first made the pledge to the Northern Ireland affairs committee in January and his office confirmed it last month following the collapse of the landmark trial of two elderly paratroopers accused of killing an IRA man in 1972.

But sources familiar with the discussions insist that the plans to introduce new laws  part of the 2019 Conservative manifesto  will be pushed back yet again because of difficulties in obtaining Irish approval and resistance from nationalists in Northern Ireland.

Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis (pictured above) yesterday told the Commons that the Government maintains its ambition of bringing in laws to prevent the prosecution of soldiers during the Troubles before Parliaments summer break next month

Any such delay would anger Northern Ireland veterans, who were told by Boris Johnson following the election that legislation preventing vexatious claims against British troops without fresh evidence would be introduced within 100 days of government.

Asked during the second reading of the Northern Ireland Bill yesterday when the proposed legislation would be brought forward, Mr Lewis said: I had an ambition to bring something before this House before the summer recess, I still have that ambition.

But he added: It is right we take the time to do that properly and methodically.

At a meeting last week in Belfast, when veterans minister Leo Docherty, Northern Ireland minister Robin Walker and Veterans Commissioner for Northern Ireland Danny Kinahan were pressed on whether the legislation would be set out by the summer recess, Mr Walker instead said it would be enacted by the end of the parliamentary session.

Former veterans minister Johnny Mercer (above, during a march on May 8) has accused the Government of repeatedly lying over its pledge to stop Troubles prosecutions

The current parliamentary session will run until at least May next year and potentially into 2023.

Former Ulster Unionist MP Mr Kinahan said: With Mr Lewis reiterating this pledge I think if this promise is broken then veterans will be absolutely furious. We cant go on waiting. Now is the time to do it. I dont want to see any more broken promises and I want to see veterans looked after.

Paul Young, of Justice for Northern Ireland Veterans, added: If the Government does not produce draft legislation, the veterans community will have no confidence in them and any trust will be lost and gone for ever. This is the last chance saloon to make good on those promises.

Former veterans minister Johnny Mercer has accused the Government of repeatedly lying over its pledge to stop Troubles prosecutions.

Last night he said: The Prime Minister and the Secretary of State have missed seven of their own deadlines already I hope he comes good on this one.

The Daily Mail has campaigned for an end to legacy investigations against Troubles soldiers.
Women should always be offered pain relief when the contraceptive coil is fitted, a minister suggested yesterday.

Nadine Dorries said 'no woman should suffer' from such procedures  and that she was 'appalled' to hear reports of women in agony.

The patient safety minister told the health and social care committee she wanted to reverse the 'assumption that pain should be part of a woman's existence' and said past health scandals show that women's voices are ignored.

The level of pain relief offered for coil fittings varies at NHS clinics. Many advise taking painkillers before fittings.

The minister's comments came after the BBC's Naga Munchetty described on her Radio 5 Live show on Monday how she screamed and fainted twice when she had a coil fitted without anaesthetic.

Guidelines from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists say that local anaesthetic is not routinely required for coil fittings but it should be offered during 'difficult' insertions or extractions.

The IUD, a small, T-shaped copper device that is inserted in the uterus, creates a hostile environment for sperm, preventing pregnancy

Yesterday Conservative MP Laura Trott told the Health and Social Care Committee that a number of women are now coming forward to share their own experiences.

She said: 'Since then we've heard of horrific experiences of women shared across social media, I've certainly had a number of people come forward in my own constituency.'

Miss Dorries replied: 'No woman should suffer as a result of having an IUD or other scopes procedures.

'I believe there are scope procedures where no pain relief is offered.

'I don't have the words that I can use to describe just how appalling that is.

'I'm given the lines constantly that "most women don't feel pain" and "many women go through this" and "women are given a leaflet, where they told on that leaflet if they want pain (relief)", but I hear that they are told: "Oh no, you'll just be fine."

Nadine Dorries said 'no woman should suffer' from such procedures  and that she was 'appalled' to hear reports of women in agony

'I hope we can use the Women's Health Strategy to absolutely reverse this assumption that because you're a woman and because you might have been through labour or because you're going to go through labour, then therefore pain is a part of your existence.

'I hope we can use the Women's Health Strategy to totally reverse that wrong thinking that takes place today.'

On the strategy, Miss Dorries added that when looking at previous health scandals, is a 'constant theme that 'women's voices are not listened to'.
A zoo has launched an investigation after one of its bull elephants fatally injured another in a brutal night-time attack.

M'Changa, a 12-year-old African elephant, had been sleeping when the other bull struck in the early hours.

He died shortly after the incident at Noah's Ark Zoo Farm, near Wraxall, North Somerset.

On Saturday, the Mail told of the Government's plans to ban keeping elephants in zoos or safari parks.

Noah's Ark has three bull elephants as part of its 20-acre Elephant Eden facility.

The elephants have 24-hour access to the outside areas and the zoo has previously won awards for best practice.

A zoo has launched an investigation after one of its bull elephants fatally injured another in a brutal night-time attack. M'Changa (pictured), a 12-year-old African elephant, had been sleeping when the other bull struck in the early hours

M'Changa was transferred to the UK from Boras Zoo in Sweden in 2014. Noah's Ark is also home to males Janu, 16, and Shaka, 29.

Shaka arrived from a zoo in Vienna in 2018. It was the first time he had been successfully integrated into another group of elephants.

At the time zookeepers hoped the move would see Shaka act as a 'dominant bull' and a mentor to the two younger males.

Zoo officials said Janu and Shaka were not injured but declined to name the attacker.

Larry Bush, managing director of Noah's Ark Zoo Farm, said: 'The Noah's Ark team are incredibly passionate about all the animals at the zoo and M'Changa's loss will be felt very deeply.

M'Changa was transferred to the UK from Boras Zoo in Sweden in 2014. Noah's Ark is also home to males Janu, 16, and Shaka, 29. Pictured: Elephants at Noah's Ark [File photo]

'He will be missed dearly by all staff as well as our members and visitors. We will continue to help promote and contribute to the conservation of elephants into the future.'

Noah's Ark's elephants have been key in conservation efforts and the bulls can be transferred to other zoos to contribute to breeding programmes.

In the wild, male elephants often leave their family herd in adolescence and club together with other solitary bulls to form bachelor groups.

Typically the group has one large dominant bull who will sort out any disputes and can put on displays of dominance.

The Government is due to receive the results of a report on the welfare of elephants in captivity and is expected to block any additions to the current population.

There are 50 elephants in 11 zoos and safari parks in the UK, including Woburn, Whipsnade, Colchester and Chester.
The owner of a dog which viciously mauled her onetime friend has mysteriously had her beloved pet put down ahead of a court case over the terrifying attack.

For more than a year Wendy Ho had insisted her Akita was not dangerous, despite it tearing chunks of flesh off the friend's body and previously biting two strangers.

Ms Ho, who runs Wendy Ho Optique and describes herself as 'one of Australia's leading optometrists', had the dog destroyed before a court order could be imposed.

Seven-year-old Hachi savaged Neal Alexander at Bondi Junction in Sydney's eastern suburbs on April 22 last year after the dog jumped out of Ms Ho's Land Rover.

The imposing animal did so much damage to Mr Alexander the sunglass wholesaler spent a week in hospital and remains physically and emotionally scarred.

Akitas are a powerfully-built large breed of dog originating from the mountainous regions of northern Japan trained to hunt elks, wild boar and brown bear.

Optometrist Wendy Ho had for months insisted her Akita was not dangerous, despite it tearing chunks of flesh off her friend's body and biting two strangers in earlier attacks. She was fighting a council declaration the dog was dangerous but has now had him put down

Seven-year-old Hachi (pictured) savaged Neal Alexander at Bondi Junction last year after he jumped out of Ms Ho's Land Rover. Akitas are a powerfully-built breed of dog originating from the mountainous regions of northern Japan trained to hunt elks, wild boar and brown bear

Mr Alexander, who had warned a smaller adult or child might not have survived the attack he endured, said he was surprised to learn Hachi had been put down. 'I think it was unfortunate but necessary,' he said. 'I think she did the right thing in the end'

Ms Ho and Mr Alexander are no longer friends and she was due to face a magistrate in September to contest a $1,320 fine for owning a dog that attacks.

Daily Mail Australia has learnt Ms Ho unexpectedly had Hachi put down a week ago but Waverley Council still intends to go ahead with the fine.

'A penalty notice was issued to the owner of the dog and a dangerous dog declaration was also issued,' a council spokeswoman said.

'Council will defend the infringement as it is our position that it was issued correctly.

'Council has been advised that the dog was euthanised by the owner. The owner was not subject to any court or council order to do so.'

Mr Alexander, who had warned a smaller adult or child might not have survived the attack he endured, said he was surprised by Hachi's sudden demise.

'I think it was unfortunate but necessary,' he said. 'I think that dog was a real liability to the community and the owner herself. I think she did the right thing in the end.'

Ms Ho, who had fought so hard to stop Hachi being declared dangerous, did not respond to requests for comment.

Waverley Council wrote to Ms Ho in May stating a dangerous dog declaration against Hachi was invalid - meaning she did not have to abide by a string of restrictions. It later issued a new declaration which it was going to seek a court to enforce. Hacchi is pictured

Mr Alexander's injuries (pictured) were so severe he spent a week in hospital followed by six more as an outpatient. He is still in pain a year after he was mutilated and suffers from PTSD

Waverley Council had written to the 53-year-old in May to state a dangerous dog declaration it made against Hachi was invalid.

The council later issued a new dangerous dog declaration, meaning Ms Ho had to abide by a string of restrictions on Hachi.

The owner of a dangerous dog must keep the animal in a secure purpose-built enclosure at home and muzzled at all times when in a public place.

Warning signs must be placed at the owner's home and the dog must wear a distinctive red and yellow striped collar.

Downing Centre Local Court heard in May that Ms Ho would be calling three witnesses to attest to Hachi's good nature for an estimated five-hour hearing in September.

Mr Alexander had only seen pictures of Hachi as a pup and was under in the impression he was a 'large, placid Saint Bernard-type animal'. Hachi is pictured in Mr Alexander's home

Mr Alexander says Ms Ho attempted to pull Hachi off him but was at first unable to do so because of her small stature and the dog's large size. Witnesses called Triple Zero. Mr Alexander's gruesome wrist injury is pictured

Mr Alexander's injuries were so severe he spent seven nights in hospital followed by six more weeks as an outpatient.

He has permanent nerve damage, is still in pain more than a year after he was mutilated and suffers from post traumatic stress disorder.

Following the attack, Mr Alexander learnt Hachi had previously set upon two other victims when Ms Ho was living in Sydney's inner-west at Marrickville.

Mr Alexander and Ms Ho had once been work colleagues and were friends before his brutal encounter with Hachi.

He says he had suggested Ms Ho move into his apartment after she sold her home at Marrickville and needed somewhere to stay temporarily.

Dangerous dog declaration rules The owner of a dangerous dog must:  Desex, microchip and register the dog  Keep the dog, whilst at the property it is ordinarily kept, inside a secure purpose-built enclosure  Display warning signs at the property  Ensure the dog wears a securely fitted muzzle when outside its enclosure at home or in a public place  Ensure the dog wears a distinctive red and yellow striped collar and be walked on a secure chain or lead  Not walk the dog off-leash, including in a designated off-leash park  Pay an annual permit fee of $195 each year to keep the animal It is illegal to give away or sell a declared dangerous dog. It is also illegal to accept ownership of such a dog. If such dogs are surrendered to a shelter, they will be put down. A dog declared dangerous or menacing cannot be owned by, or left in the care of, anyone under the age of 18 years. Source: Waverley Council Advertisement

Mr Alexander had only seen pictures of Hachi as a pup and was under in the impression he was a 'large, placid Saint Bernard-type animal'.

He said on the day he was attacked Ms Ho brought Hachi around to his house about 11.30am with instructions to be cautious and for the dog to be muzzled at all times.

After spending some hours with Hachi, Mr Alexander said he called Ms Ho to say her pet appeared agitated and asked her to collect him as soon as possible.

He said when Ms Ho arrived at his house about 4.30pm they had a glass of wine together and while chatting she told him Hachi was a 'trained personal protection dog'.

Mr Alexander said after leaving his house Ms Ho ushered Hachi into the back of her Range Rover, closed the bottom back door and left the top-half glass window open.

He stepped off the curb to wave goodbye to Ms Ho and Hachi, unaware she had removed his muzzle, and when he raised his left hand she screamed, 'NEEEEAAL!'

Ms Ho, who runs Wendy Ho Optique and describes herself as 'one of Australia's leading optometrists', was challenging a fine and disputing her pet was dangerous. Ms Ho is pictured

Hachi's head whipped around and he bit down on Mr Alexander's wrist, tearing open a 5cm gash and leaving deep punctures in his palm. As the dog prepared to bite down again Mr Alexander turned and ran.

Hachi then leapt out of the vehicle and dragged Mr Alexander to the ground. The dog bit into Mr Alexander and ripped open his lower back, tearing chunks of flesh from his body.

Mr Alexander said Ms Ho attempted to pull Hachi off him but was at first unable to do so because of her small stature and the dog's large size. Witnesses called Triple Zero.

Heavily bleeding and in shock, Mr Alexander locked himself in his house before an ambulance took him to St Vincent's Hospital where the next morning he underwent surgery.

So much tissue was missing from Mr Alexander's lower back the stitches were later removed, the wound stuffed with sponge and a negative pressure bandage applied.

Hachi's head whipped around and he bit down on Mr Alexander's wrist, tearing open a 5cm gash and leaving deep punctures in his palm. As the dog prepared to bite down again Mr Alexander turned and ran

Hachi then leapt out of the vehicle and dragged Mr Alexander to the ground. The dog bit into Mr Alexander and ripped open his lower back, tearing chunks of flesh from his body

For six weeks after his discharge Mr Alexander had to return to hospital every second day to have the pressure bandages replaced and was prescribed the powerful painkiller Endone.

Mr Alexander said police told him Hachi would have to be put down because 'he'd now have a taste for blood' and he would have to contemplate whether he wanted to press charges against the dog's owner.

He said a Waverley Council ranger told him when she attempted to contact Ms Ho a barrister called back and requested she refer all communications to him.

Mr Alexander said when he called Ms Ho to ask why she had engaged legal counsel she responded in a distressed state: 'They'll take my Hachi, he's attacked two other people.'

Council records showed a penalty infringement notice was issued to Ms Ho after Hachi attacked a dog and its owner on May 6, 2014 at Marrickville Oval.

Mr Alexander (pictured) says police told him Hachi would have to be put down because 'he'd now have a taste for blood' and he would have to contemplate whether he wanted to press charges against the dog's owner

On that occasion Hachi had rushed at and bit a Weimaraner and it owner was bitten while trying to separate the dogs.

Another fine was issued four months after Hachi injured a man on December 10, 2015 in Livingstone Road, Marrickville.

That time Hachi had jumped up and bit a pedestrian on the upper right arm when a woman walking her dog passed by him.

After the attack on Mr Alexander a Waverley ranger issued a fine and notice of intention to declare Hachi dangerous about June 1 last year.

On June 29 the ranger reported to council she would no longer be trying to have the dog declared dangerous but would still be imposing the fine.

A second investigation resulted in the $1,320 fine and a dangerous dog declaration in October, before that notice was withdrawn on May 17, then reinstated.

Barrister Scott Corish, for Ms Ho, said on May 21 that Waverley Council intended to seek a court-ordered dangerous dog declaration in September.
Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who wrote critically of the kingdom's policies and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. Turkish officials say a 15-men team tortured, killed and dismembered the writer, while Saudi Arabia says he died in a 'fistfight.'

Here are some key moments in the slaying of the Washington Post columnist:

BEFORE HIS DISAPPEARANCE

September 2017: The Post publishes the first column by Khashoggi in its newspaper, in which the former royal court insider and longtime journalist writes about going into a self-imposed exile in the U.S. over the rise of Prince Mohammed. His following columns criticize the prince and the kingdom's direction.

September 28, 2018: Over a year after the Post published his first column, Khashoggi visits the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, seeking documents in order to get married. He's later told to return October 2, his fiancee Hatice Cengiz says. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says a plan or a 'road map' to kill Khashoggi was devised in Saudi Arabia during this time.

September 29: Khashoggi travels to London and speaks at a conference.

October 1: Khashoggi returns to Istanbul. At around 4.30pm, a three-person Saudi team arrives in Istanbul on a scheduled flight, checks in to their hotels then visits the consulate, according to Erdogan. The Turkish president says another group of officials from the consulate travel to a forest in Istanbul's outskirts and to the nearby city of Yalova on a 'reconnaissance' trip.

Jamal Khashoggi (right) arriving at the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul on October 2

THE DAY OF HIS DISAPPEARANCE

3.28am, October 2: A private jet arrives at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport carrying some members of what Turkish media will refer to as a 15-member Saudi 'assassination squad.' Other members of the team arrive by two commercial flights in the afternoon. Erdogan says the team includes Saudi security and intelligence officials and a forensics expert. They meet at the Saudi Consulate. One of the first things they do is to dismantle a hard disk connected to the consulate's camera system, the president says.

11.50am: Khashoggi is called to confirm his appointment at the consulate later that day, Erdogan says.

1.14pm: Surveillance footage later leaked to Turkish media shows Khashoggi walking into the main entrance of the Saudi Consulate. No footage made public ever shows him leaving. His fiancee waits outside, pacing for hours.

3.07pm: Surveillance footage shows vehicles with diplomatic license plates leaving the Saudi Consulate for the consul general's home some 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) away.

5.50pm: Khashoggi's fiancee alerts authorities, saying he may have been forcibly detained inside the consulate or that something bad may have happened to him, according to Erdogan.

7pm: A private plane from Saudi Arabia carries six members of the alleged Saudi squad from Istanbul to Cairo, the next day returning to Riyadh.

11pm: Seven members of the alleged Saudi squad leave on another private jet to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, which the next day returns to Riyadh. Two others leave by commercial flights.

Erdogan confirms reports that a 'body double' - a man wearing Khashoggi's clothes, glasses and a beard - leaves the consulate building for Riyadh with another person on a scheduled flight later that day.

CCTV images showed a a private jet alleged to have been used by a group of Saudi men suspected of being involved in Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi's death

INITIAL REACTION

October 3: Khashoggi's fiancee and the Post go public with his disappearance. Saudi Arabia says Khashoggi visited the consulate and exited shortly thereafter. Turkish officials suggest Khashoggi might still be in the consulate. Prince Mohammed tells Bloomberg: 'We have nothing to hide.'

October 4: Saudi Arabia says on its state-run news agency that the consulate is carrying out 'follow-up procedures and coordination with the Turkish local authorities to uncover the circumstances of the disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi after he left the consulate building.'

October 5: The Post prints a blank column in its newspaper in solidarity with Khashoggi, headlined: 'A missing voice.'

October 6: The Post, citing anonymous Turkish officials, reports Khashoggi may have been killed in the consulate in a 'preplanned murder' by a Saudi team.

October 7: A friend of Khashoggi tells the AP that officials told him the writer was killed at the consulate. The consulate rejects what it calls 'baseless allegations.'

October 8: Saudi Arabia's ambassador to Turkey is summoned over Khashoggi's disappearance and alleged killing.

LEAKED FOOTAGE

October 9: Turkey says it will search the Saudi Consulate as a picture of Khashoggi walking into the diplomatic post surfaces.

October 10: Surveillance footage is leaked of Khashoggi and the alleged Saudi squad that killed him. Khashoggi's fiancee asks President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump for help.

October 11: Turkish media describes Saudi squad as including royal guards, intelligence officers, soldiers and an autopsy expert. Trump calls Khashoggi's disappearance a 'bad situation' and promises to get to the bottom of it.

October 12: Trump again pledges to find out what happened to Khashoggi.

October 13: A pro-government newspaper reports that Turkish officials have an audio recording of Khashoggi's alleged killing from his Apple Watch, but details in the report come into question.

INTERNATIONAL UPROAR

October 14: Trump says that 'we're going to get to the bottom of it, and there will be severe punishment' if Saudi Arabia is involved. The kingdom responds with a blistering attack against those who threaten it, as the manager of a Saudi-owned satellite news channel suggests the country could retaliate through its oil exports. The Saudi stock exchange plunges as much as 7 percent at one point.

Khashoggi (pictured), went missing after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul

October 15: A Turkish forensics team enters and searches the Saudi Consulate, an extraordinary development as such diplomatic posts are considered sovereign soil. Trump suggests after a call with Saudi King Salman that 'rogue killers' could be responsible for Khashoggi's alleged slaying. Trump says Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will travel to the Mideast over the case. Meanwhile, business leaders say they won't attend an economic summit in the kingdom that's the brainchild of Prince Mohammed.

October 16: A high-level Turkish official tells the AP that 'certain evidence' was found in the Saudi Consulate proving Khashoggi was killed there. Pompeo arrives for meetings in Saudi Arabia with King Salman and Prince Mohammed. Meanwhile, Trump compares the case to the appointment of now-Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his confirmation hearing, saying: 'Here we go again with you're guilty until proven innocent.'

October 17: Pompeo meets with Turkey's president and foreign minister in the Turkish capital, Ankara. Turkish police search the official residence of Saudi Arabia's consul general in Istanbul and conduct a second sweep of the consulate.

October 18: A leaked surveillance photograph shows a member of Prince Mohammed's entourage walked into the consulate just before Khashoggi vanished there.

October 20: Saudi Arabia for the first time acknowledges Khashoggi was killed in the consulate, claiming he was slain in a 'fistfight.' The claim draws immediate skepticism from the kingdom's Western allies, particularly in the U.S. Congress.

October 22: A report says a member of Prince Mohammed's entourage made four calls to the royal's office around the time Khashoggi was killed. Police search a vehicle belonging to the Saudi consulate parked at an underground garage in Istanbul.

CCTV emerges showing a Saudi intelligence officer dressed in a fake beard and Jamal Khashoggi's clothes and glasses on the day he went missing.

October 23: Erdogan says Saudi officials murdered Khashoggi after plotting his death for days, demanding that Saudi Arabia reveal the identities of all involved.

October 25: Changing their story again, Saudi prosecutors say Khashoggi's killing was a premeditated crime.

November 2: Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan claims the order to kill Khashoggi came from the highest levels of the Saudi government. Earlier the same day, Yasin Aktay, a ruling party adviser to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said he believed the body had to have been dissolved in acid.

November 4: Khashoggi's sons Salah and Abdullah Khashoggi issue appeal for his remains to be returned so that he may be buried in Saudi Arabia.

November 10: President Erdogan says Turkey gave the audio recordings linked to the murder to 'Saudi Arabia, to Washington, to the Germans, to the French, to the British'.

November 13: Turkish media reports that the luggage carried by the Saudi 'hit squad' included scissors, defibrillators and syringes that may have been used against Khashoggi.

November 15: Saudi Arabia's public prosecutor announces that he is seeking the death penalty for five out of 11 suspects charged in the murder. Shalaan al-Shalaan said the person who had ordered the killing was the head of the negotiating team sent to repatriate him, and exonerated Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman. On the same day, the U.S. Treasury announces sanctions against 17 Saudi officials, including the Consul General in Turkey, Mohammed Alotaibi.

November 16: A CIA assessment reported in the Washington Post finds that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the assassination.

November 18: Germany bans 18 Saudi nationals believed to be connected to the murder from entering Europe's border-free Schengen zone. Berlin also announces it has as halted previously approved arms exports to Saudi Arabia amid the fallout.
A Scottish independence vote will not happen before the next general election, Michael Gove has declared.

The Cabinet Office minister said Boris Johnson wanted instead to focus on recovery from the pandemic and economic opportunity. Its foolish to talk about a referendum now, he added.

It seems to me to be at best reckless, at worst folly, to try to move the conversation on to constitutional division when people expect us to be working together in order to deal with these challenges.

A Scottish independence vote will not happen before the next general election, Michael Gove (pictured) has declared, saying Boris Johnson wanted instead to focus on recovery from the pandemic and economic opportunity

In the interview with the Daily Telegraph he said he did not think there was any circumstance in which Mr Johnson would approve a vote being held any time before the 2024 election.

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon stepped up calls for a second referendum on independence after she was formally reappointed last month.

She claimed her Holyrood election victory was a clear mandate to hold one while admitting the country was divided on the issue.

Miss Sturgeon insisted she would demand a referendum only when the crisis of Covid has passed and said her focus would be on unity.

She has pledged to hold a rerun of the 2014 vote in the first part of the Scottish parliamentary term, which could mean as early as 2023.

But Mr Goves comments go further than previous statements by UK ministers, who have said another referendum will not be granted for now.

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon (pictured on Tuesday) stepped up calls for a second referendum on independence after she was formally reappointed last month

He said he did not think there was any circumstance in which Mr Johnson would approve a vote being held any time before the next general election, scheduled for May 2024.

Mr Gove added: The Prime Minister is completely focused on making sure that, for the lifetime of this parliament, we increase economic opportunity, we provide people with the chance to make more of their lives, take control of their futures.

He also said the Prime Minister should spend more time in Scotland debunking the myth that Mr Johnson doesnt go down well in Scotland.
New South Wales has recorded 13 cases of Covid-19 community transmission overnight but Premier Gladys Berejiklian has stopped short of sending Sydney into a hard lockdown.

Ms Berejiklian said health officials had found 10 local cases from 44,000 tests in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday night - seven of which had already been announced.

Since that cut-off, she said another 13 cases were found in the community, with eight attending the same party at West Hoxton in Sydney's far-west.

Contact tracers are investigating four cases with no known source, although all are in close proximity to a cluster in the city's east which has now reached 31 cases.

For the next week from 4pm on Wednesday, household gatherings will be limited to five visitors and masks will be compulsory in all all indoor venues, including workplaces and gym classes.

Drinking while standing in pubs and bars will also be banned and those who live and work in seven hotspot council areas will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason.

Those council areas are the City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick - home to about 782,000 residents.

The tightened rules - which also include a 50 per cent capacity restriction for outdoor seated events - will apply to Sydney, the Blue Mountains and Central Coast and Shellharbour regions.

Ms Berejiklian said the growth of 'unlinked cases' in the state meant she needed to take proportionate action to stop the highly-contagious Delta variant from spreading.

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A worker directs traffic along Campbell Parade at the Bondi Beach drive-through Covid-19 Clinic on Wednesday. New South Wales has recorded 13 cases of Covid-19 community transmission overnight

WHAT ARE THE NEW COVID RESTRICTIONS? From 4pm Wednesday for one week: Visitors to households will be limited to 5 guests  including children; Masks will be compulsory in all indoor non-residential settings, including workplaces, and at organised outdoor events; Drinking while standing at indoor venues will not be allowed; Singing by audiences at indoor shows or by congregants at indoor places of worship will not be allowed; Dancing will not be allowed at indoor hospitality venues or nightclubs however, dancing is allowed at weddings for the bridal party only (no more than 20 people); Dance and gym classes limited to 20 per class (masks must be worn); The one person per four square metre rule will be re-introduced for all indoor and outdoor settings, including weddings and funerals; Outdoor seated events will be limited to 50% seated capacity; Previous public transport capacity limits, represented by green dots, will be reintroduced Advertisement

'If you live or work in any of those impacted LGAs we don't want you moving outside of metropolitan Sydney other than for one of four essential purposes,' she said.

'Unless you are visiting a relative in care or have to go to work you should not be going outside the city for the next week.'

She clarified the boundaries of metropolitan Sydney were the city itself, the Blue Mountains, Shellharbour, Wollongong and the Central Coast.

The one person per four square metre rule will also come back into force.

WHAT IS METROPOLITAN SYDNEY? Metropolitan Sydney includes: Sydney Blue Mountains Shellharbour Central Coast Wollongong Advertisement

NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said it is believed about 30 people attended the party in West Hoxton.

She said 10 cases were now linked to the western Sydney gathering and that the Delta strain had accelerated transmission of the virus at the event.

'There are two cases on day two after the exposure,' she said. 'Those test results indicate how rapidly the virus was transmitted.'

Queensland slammed its borders shut to people travelling from Sydney's hotspots on Wednesday morning after the coronavirus outbreak in Bondi Junction skyrocketed to 21 cases on Tuesday.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk confirmed on Wednesday morning anyone who had been in the seven Sydney councils designated by both state governments as high-risk will be forced to enter hotel quarantine from 1am Thursday.

'We cannot afford to have this Delta variant out in the community,' Palaszczuk said as the state recorded another case transmitted in hotel quarantine.

Those who live and work in seven hotspot suburbs will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason

Health workers are pictured at the Bondi Beach Drive-through Covid-19 clinic in Sydney's eastern suburbs on Wednesday. Contact tracers are scrambling to trace four cases with no known source

'We have serious concerns. We will be easing restrictions across Queensland this weekend but we cannot have the Delta variant out in our community.

She said Queensland will be following Victoria's lead overnight by banning anyone entering from the seven-exposed areas.

'We're focusing on those council areas at the moment but this advice could change, that's dependent on what we see in the next few days.'

There were no community transmissions of the virus recorded in Queensland overnight.

Fears the Bondi Covid cluster has spread 60km away as a childcare centre in Sydney's south-west is forced to close after a positive case spent a day there Health officials fear the Bondi Covid cluster has spread 60km south after a childcare centre was forced to close following a visit from a positive case. Little Zak's Academy at Narellan Vale, in Sydney's southwest, revealed late on Tuesday that a young girl with the virus visited the centre. 'It has come to our attention from the NSW Health Department and Liverpool Health that we have a confirmed Covid-19 case from one of our children in our centre that attended yesterday (Monday),' the centre said in an email sent to parents. The infected girl was in room '2-3' between 9am and 5.15pm. 'The girl and her family are doing well and resting at home,' the centre said. 'By 6pm the centre was closed and our Covid action plan was put in place. 'All staff were personally called and notified within 60 minutes of that happening and all parents were notified within 90 minutes of that happening.' Little Zak's Academy at Narellan Vale, in Sydney's southwest, revealed late on Tuesday that someone with the virus visited the centre The childcare centre is currently closed while it undergoes a deep clean. Advertisement

Chief Health Officer Dr Jeanette Young says the extreme risk of the Delta variant has forced the state to immediately introduce the measures. The state recorded one new case of the variant overnight.

'The risk is so much higher now than it was only a year ago,' she said.

Anyone currently in Queensland who had visited any of the seven suburbs after June 12 must immediately seek a test and isolate.

More than 15,000 vaccines were administered on Tuesday in Queensland.

Queensland has slammed its borders shut to Sydney hotspots after the coronavirus outbreak in Bondi Junction skyrocketed to 21 cases on Tuesday

Anyone entering Queensland who had been in the seven Sydney councils designated as high-risk will be forced to enter hotel quarantine from 1am Wednesday. Pictured is a commuter on a bus in Bondi on Monday

The Queensland government also turned blame on Scott Morrison's federal government and their refusal to introduce regional or national quarantine centres to combat the increased threat to hotel quarantine.

'Hotel quarantine is not proving as effective as it was. We're seeing that with room to room transmission, and that just underlines what we've been saying for a very long time now,' Deputy Premier Steven Miles said.

'There has been a very long time we could have built and maintained regional quarantine facilities.'

The decision comes after Mark Kilian and his wife Anneli flew from Los Angeles to Sydney on June 15 after being granted a travel exemption by the federal government and NSW Health attempting to say goodbye to his dying father

The decision follows Mark Kilian and his wife Anneli flying from Los Angeles to Sydney on June 15 after being granted a travel exemption by the federal government and NSW Health attempting to say goodbye to his dying father.

The Kilians then tried to leave NSW on a $15,000 private charter plane but were refused a quarantine exemption by Queensland Health officials.

Mr Kilian's 80-year-old father Frans weighs just 44kg and is dying of pancreatic cancer in a hospital on the Gold Coast.

Mr Kilian's 80-year-old father Frans weighs just 44kg and is dying of pancreatic cancer in a hospital on the Gold Coast

Queensland Health has rejected the couple's quarantine exemption application four times even though they are both fully vaccinated and even offered to wear hazmat suits and tracking devices during their visit.

'Dr Young and i have had a lengthy discussion - what we'd like to see from the New South Wales government, if they want to break the 14-day hotel quarantine for the couple, they can provide how they safely transfer the couple from Sydney to the Gold Coast,' Palaszczuk said during Wednesday morning's press conference.

When told her New South Wales counterparts had proposed a plan, she said it needed to be put to the state's Chief Health Officer before being decided.
Health officials fear the Bondi Covid cluster has spread 60km south after a childcare centre was forced to close following a visit from a positive case.

Little Zak's Academy at Narellan Vale, in Sydney's southwest, revealed late on Tuesday that a young girl with the virus visited the centre.

'It has come to our attention from the NSW Health Department and Liverpool Health that we have a confirmed Covid-19 case from one of our children in our centre that attended yesterday (Monday),' the centre said in an email sent to parents.

The infected girl was in room '2-3' between 9am and 5.15pm.

'The girl and her family are doing well and resting at home,' the centre said.

'By 6pm the centre was closed and our Covid action plan was put in place.

'All staff were personally called and notified within 60 minutes of that happening and all parents were notified within 90 minutes of that happening.'

Little Zak's Academy at Narellan Vale, in Sydney's southwest, revealed late on Tuesday that someone with the virus visited the centre

The childcare centre is currently closed while it undergoes a deep clean

The infected girl was in room '2-3' of Little Zak's Academy between 9am and 5.15pm

NEW COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS FOR GREATER SYDNEY From 4pm Wednesday for one week: Visitors to households will be limited to 5 guests  including children; Masks will be compulsory in all indoor non-residential settings, including workplaces, and at organised outdoor events; Drinking while standing at indoor venues will not be allowed; Singing by audiences at indoor shows or by congregants at indoor places of worship will not be allowed; Dancing will not be allowed at indoor hospitality venues or nightclubs however, dancing is allowed at weddings for the bridal party only (no more than 20 people); Dance and gym classes limited to 20 per class (masks must be worn); The one person per four square metre rule will be re-introduced for all indoor and outdoor settings, including weddings and funerals; Outdoor seated events will be limited to 50% seated capacity; Previous public transport capacity limits, represented by green dots, will be reintroduced Advertisement

The childcare centre is currently closed while it undergoes a deep clean.

New South Wales recorded 13 cases of Covid community transmission overnight but Premier Gladys Berejiklian has stopped short of sending Sydney into a hard lockdown.

Ms Berejiklian said health officials had found 10 local cases in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday night - nine of which had already been announced.

Since that cut-off though, she said an additional 13 infections had been found in the community - eight of whom were at the same party.

From 4pm on Wednesday, household gatherings will be limited to five visitors and masks will be compulsory in all all indoor non-residential settings including workplaces.

Drinking while standing at indoor venues will also be banned once again and those who live and work in seven hotspot suburbs will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason.

Meanwhile, thousands of NSW families' school holiday plans are in chaos with most states and New Zealand blocking travellers from much of Sydney.

Just two days before public schools break for two weeks, Queensland has followed Victoria and New Zealand by imposing bans on travellers from much of Sydney.

From 1am Thursday, the state will close its border to people from the City of Sydney and the Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West, and Randwick local government areas. Waverley was already on the list.

'To keep Queenslanders safe, we will be following exactly what Victoria has announced last night,' Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said on Wednesday.

'This advice may have to be updated during the course of the day or into the evening.

'NSW is treating this seriously and we are treating it seriously.'

A worker directs traffic along Campbell Parade with long lines waiting to enter the Bondi Beach Drive-through COVID-19 Clinic

Meanwhile, thousands of NSW families' school holiday plans are in chaos with most states and New Zealand blocking travellers from much of Sydney

Other Australian states have imposed border restrictions for people from the hotspot areas, with Victoria on Tuesday declared seven Sydney local government areas 'red zones'.

Earlier on Wednesday, NSW Health issued a health alert after a person infected with the virus flew from Sydney to New Zealand and back.

The alert was for passengers travelling on Qantas flight QF163 on Friday night to Wellington, and anyone who flew on Monday morning on Air New Zealand flight NZ247 from Wellington to Sydney.

Passengers on board those flights must contact NSW Health immediately, get tested and isolate for 14 days regardless of the result.

The scare comes after New Zealand health authorities closed the trans-Tasman bubble with NSW for at least 72 hours after the state recorded 10 new cases on Tuesday, lifting the so-called Bondi COVID-19 cluster to 21.
Priti Patel has today claimed that British citizens living in the EU are being denied work and healthcare, five years after the UK's Brexit vote.

The Home Secretary said some expats were being subjected to over-the-top border checks.

She said others were facing short windows to submit residency applications and issues with paperwork.

Today she called for British citizens living in EU countries to be treated 'fairly', as 'the UK has done for EU citizens'.

Speaking to the Telegraph, on the day that Britain marked five years since it voted to leave the EU, Ms Patel said: 'We are aware that some UK nationals in the EU have faced disruption on boarding and entry to the EU...

'...And there have been a number of reported instances of UK nationals in the EU being asked for residence documents they do not need to hold, being prevented from accessing benefits and services, and having trouble with their right to work.

The Home Secretary (pictured) took aim at European countries who she claiming are making life difficult for individual expats with over-the-top border checks and paperwork issues

Boris Johnson says leaving the EU will help us bounce back from Covid pandemic Brexit will help us to bounce back from the pandemic, Boris Johnson has vowed in a statement to mark the five-year anniversary of our vote to leave the EU. The Prime Minister pledged to 'seize the true potential of our regained sovereignty' to 'unite and level up' the UK. The referendum saw 52 per cent vote to Leave, prompting the resignation of Remain-backing prime minister David Cameron. The wrangling that followed brought down his successor, Theresa May. But Mr Johnson's offer of an 'oven-ready' deal helped him to secure an 80-seat majority in the 2019 election. Marking the occasion that began his journey to No 10, he said: 'Five years ago the British people made the momentous decision to leave the European Union and take back control of our destiny. 'We've already reclaimed our money, laws, borders and waters. 'We've installed a new points-based system for immigration, delivered the fastest vaccine rollout anywhere in Europe, negotiated trade deals with the EU and 68 other countries  including our first post-Brexit free trade agreement with Australia  and we've just begun negotiations to join the 9trillion Pacific trade area. 'Now, as we recover from this pandemic, we will seize the true potential of our regained sovereignty to unite and level up our whole United Kingdom. 'With control over our regulations and subsidies... we will spur innovation, jobs and renewal across every part of our country. 'The decision to leave the EU may now be part of our history, but our clear mission is to utilise the freedoms it brings to shape a better future for our people.' Not everyone marked the anniversary with such warm words. The pro-European Tory grandee Lord Heseltine claimed the outlook for Britain was 'ominous', with the Northern Ireland peace process under real threat. 'As we attempt to recover from the worst financial crisis for 300 years, the reality of Brexit is starting to hit home,' he said. Advertisement

'It is only right that the EU uphold their obligations on citizens' rights, just as the UK has done for EU citizens in the UK.'

It comes after reports last month revealed how Britons in Europe are being denied access to bank accounts, jobs, healthcare and university places due to post-Brexit red tape - even though access to those services is guaranteed under the withdrawal agreement.

Those living in Spain, Italy and France say they have been hit by new rules which are poorly understood by local officials who are now demanding they produce documents which are difficult or impossible for them to obtain.

One expat living in Spain who spoke to MailOnline said people applying for new TIE residency cards are having to wait seven months to get one. While stuck in the queue, they are told the application forms can be used in place of the card itself.

But in one case, a bank refused to let a newly-arrived Briton open an account using the application form - meaning he was unable to get a phone contract or rent a property.

The delay lasted for around a month before he was able to open an account with a different bank.

The source added that many Britons are also experiencing problems at the UK border while trying to depart for Spain because British guards do not recognise the new residency applications and are refusing to accept them as proof.

Earlier this year, a group of Spanish officials in Alicante airport turned 40 British expats around and sent them home because of the same issue.

The Britons had boarded a flight in Manchester - which is permitted under Covid rules which allow people to travel to their country of residence - on March 29 expecting to be allowed to enter Spain using their application papers.

But upon arrival, officials at the Spanish border told them the applications did not count and sent them home on the same plane they had arrived on.

Passengers said 'obstructive' border guards flanked by armed police had insisted that only the card itself was valid for entry.

The concern among ex-pats in EU countries is not a new one, and was the subject of a protest in Malaga in 2019.

British people living in the Spanish city took to the streets that year claiming they had been 'forgotten about' in Brexit, as they raised concerns about losing access to services such as healthcare.

Spain is home to around 300,000 British citizens.

Meanwhile, Ms Patel, in her interview with the Telegraph, spoke about the UK's own EU Settlement Scheme, which allows EU citizens living in the UK to apply to stay in the wake of Brexit.

Around 5.6million EU citizens have already applied for residency rights since it was launched two years ago, with around 95 per cent granted the right to stay.

The concern among ex-pats in EU countries is not a new one, and was the subject of a protest in Malaga in 2019 (pictured)

However the deadline for the scheme is now fast approaching, with applications having to be made by June 30.

In her interview with the Telegraph, she said: 'The UK's approach is very generous.

'Our EU settlement scheme has been open for more than two years. Many EU countries have an application window of 12 months or less; France's is currently open for less than nine months.'

She also urged EU citizens wishing to apply to stay in the UK to apply for the scheme within seven days.

However she promised a 'compassionate and proportionate' approach for those who missed the deadline due to a 'reasonable' explanation.

It comes as Boris Johnson vowed that 'Brexit will help us to bounce back from the pandemic' in a statement to mark the five-year anniversary of our vote to leave the EU.

The Prime Minister pledged to 'seize the true potential of our regained sovereignty' to 'unite and level up' the UK.

The referendum saw 52 per cent vote to Leave, prompting the resignation of Remain-backing prime minister David Cameron.

The wrangling that followed brought down his successor, Theresa May.

Brexit will help us to bounce back from the pandemic, Boris Johnson has vowed in a statement to mark the five-year anniversary of our vote to leave the EU

The referendum saw 52 per cent vote to Leave, prompting the resignation of Remain-backing prime minister David Cameron

But Mr Johnson's offer of an 'oven-ready' deal helped him to secure an 80-seat majority in the 2019 election.

Marking the occasion that began his journey to No 10, he said: 'Five years ago the British people made the momentous decision to leave the European Union and take back control of our destiny.

'We've already reclaimed our money, laws, borders and waters.

'We've installed a new points-based system for immigration, delivered the fastest vaccine rollout anywhere in Europe, negotiated trade deals with the EU and 68 other countries  including our first post-Brexit free trade agreement with Australia  and we've just begun negotiations to join the 9trillion Pacific trade area.

'Now, as we recover from this pandemic, we will seize the true potential of our regained sovereignty to unite and level up our whole United Kingdom.

'With control over our regulations and subsidies... we will spur innovation, jobs and renewal across every part of our country.

'The decision to leave the EU may now be part of our history, but our clear mission is to utilise the freedoms it brings to shape a better future for our people.'

Not everyone marked the anniversary with such warm words.

The pro-European Tory grandee Lord Heseltine claimed the outlook for Britain was 'ominous', with the Northern Ireland peace process under real threat.

'As we attempt to recover from the worst financial crisis for 300 years, the reality of Brexit is starting to hit home,' he said.
Long-time Gladys Berejiklian supporter Kyle Sandilands has shocked listeners after praising the New South Wales premier's biggest challenge - new Labor leader Chris Minns.

Kyle told listeners on of his influential breakfast radio program he's a big fan of Minns campaign to bring back speed camera warning signs after NSW Labor revealed fines had soared by a staggering 1,500% since they were scrapped in November.

Long-suffering NSW motorist are furious at continuously being pinged by the hidden cameras - losing points and cash with no demonstrable change in the road toll.

Prior to their removal the 'your speed has been checked' warning signs had been placed 250m before and 50m after each mobile speed camera.

Mr Minns said NSW residents are now forking out a staggering $7million a month in speeding fines - up from just $800,000 - adding if he was voted into power he'd return the warning signs to the roads.

Long-time Gladys Berejiklian supporter Kyle Sandilands has shocked listeners after praising the New South Wales opposition leader over his campaign to bring back speed camera warning signs

Prior to their removal, the warning signs had been placed 250m before and 50m after each mobile speed camera

'Speeding signs in the last month used to book around 1,500 people but now they're getting 27,000 a month because they've got rid of the warning signs,' he told KIISFM hosts Kyle and Jackie O.

'And it's coming out of the pockets of mums and dads and working families and it's only a little bit over the [speed] limit.

'So I thought better to have the signs in place and more cops on the beat and make sure people don't commit the offence in the first place rather than getting a fine in the mail two weeks later.'

The number of motorists being stung with speeding fines has soared more than 1,500 per cent after the NSW government removed warning signs.

Sandilands said he 'liked' Mr Minns' idea and noted some families would struggle to get by from week to week if they were constantly being hit with fines.

Ms Berejiklian has regularly appeared on the KIISFM breakfast show with Sandilands often declaring his support for her.

NSW Labor leader Chris Minns (pictured with wife Anna) said the amount of money people are forking out for speeding fines has grown from around $800,000 a month to about $7million since the warning signs were removed

Sandilands said he supported the opposition leader's campaign despite being an avid Gladys Berejiklian fan

In further bad news for NSW motorists, it was recently revealed that the number of hidden speed cameras in NSW is set to triple.

Mobile speed cameras in NSW scan 7,000 hours of footage a month, but this will jump to 21,000 hours under the current government's proposal.

In March alone fines handed out to drivers travelling less than 10km over the speed limit sky-rocketed, with 27,760 given out.

Before the controversial removal of warning signs less than 2,000 drivers a month were being fined.
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Gangster Bilal Hamze has been laid to rest six days after he was gunned down in a hail of bullets after taking a woman on a date in Sydney's CBD.

Family and about 100 associates, most wearing hoodies and sneakers, watched on as Hamze's green coffin was carried into Lakemba Mosque on Wednesday morning, ahead of midday prayers.

Hamze, the cousin of notorious Brothers 4 Life gang leader Bassam Hamzy, was shot dead as he left trendy Japanese restaurant Kid Kyoto on Bridge Street, near Circular Quay, just before 11pm.

Ahead of his funeral, which was closely monitored by dozens of uniformed and plain-clothed police inluding the gang-busting Raptor Squad, Hamze's body was washed in private and by relatives only.

In a social media post, the family said it was of 'extreme importance' that no mourners attended the body washing, an Islamic funeral tradition, aside from relatives.

Family members carry the coffin of slain gangster Bilal Hamze ahead of his funeral prayer service at Lakemba mosque

Hamze's green coffin was carried into the wash bay area of the mosque ahead of his funeral

Mourners in hoodies filed into Lakemba Mosque for the funeral of the slain crime boss

Hamze, the cousin of notorious Brothers 4 Life gang leader Bassam Hamzy, was shot dead in a brazen drive-by shooting in Sydney's CBD on Thursday night after an underworld contract was placed on his head. Photo courtesy of News Corp

The procession from the funeral parlour to the mosque was led by a young man in a Milano Di Rouge balaclava

Among the mourners was Ahmed Elomar (left), the brother of notorious ISIS terrorist Mohammed Elomar

Female mourners were ushered into a separate area of the mosque as they arrived for Hamze's funeral

A heavy police presence was seen around the mosque amid fears of tensions between mourners or even retaliation

Dozens of male mourners carried the crime boss's green coffin emblazoned with Arabic writing into the mosque just after 11am.

Women in burqas were seen entering the mosque and were ushered to a separate area.

Among the mourners was Ahmed Elomar, the brother of notorious ISIS terrorist Mohammed Elomar.

Following the funeral, Hamze's body was taken to Rookwood Cemetery for burial.

Hamze was shot dead in Sydney's CBD on Thursday night after dining at a Japanese restaurant. Friends gathered on Wednesday to pay respects for the cousin of Brothers For Life founder Bassam Hamzy

Hoodie-wearing mourners make their way into the mosque for the funeral of Bilal Hamze

Police say Hamze's execution is the result of an escalating feud between the Alameddine and Hamze clans, and underworld conflict between associates of the two families

Among the mourners was Hamze's mother Maha who was shot herself up to eight times in a drive-by shooting at her Auburn home in 2020. Pictured are mourners arriving at the mosque

Hamze, who had a distinctive tear-shaped tattoo under his right eye, was walking along Bridge St when up to 10 shots were fired at him from a stolen black Audi.

He died a short time later in St Vincent's Hospital.

Police say Hamze's execution is the result of an escalating feud between the Alameddine and Hamze clans, and underworld conflict between associates of the two families.

Hamze is his third close relative to die in the past 12 months. His younger brother Mejid was gunned down at his Condell Park home last October and his father Khaled died of illness in August.

Women were ushered into a separate area of the mosque ahead of the funeral

Relatives arriving at the mosque for the washing of Hamze's body

The underworld boss, who had a distinctive tear-shaped tattoo under his right eye, was walking along Bridge St after leaving trendy Japanese restaurant Kid Kyoto when up to 10 shots were fired at him from a stolen black Audi

A steady stream of luxury cars arrived at the mosque on Wednesday morning for the funeral

The service at Lakemba Mosque, in Sydney's south west, comes amid police fears of trouble from the rival Alameddine clan, amid an escalating underworld conflict between associates of the two families

A burnt out Audi was found a few hours later in Northwood, on Sydney's lower north shore

Detectives from the NSW Police State Crime Command's Homicide Squad have established Strike Force Englorie to investigate the 'brutal execution-style murder'.

Homicide Squad Commander Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty said a 'major line of inquiry' would be whether the murder was linked to rising tensions between warring Middle Eastern crime families or the recent Operation Ironside busts last week.

'Police were told a number of shots were fired by a per or persons  more than one person anyway, who was passing in a black vehicle,' Superintendent Doherty said.

'This was a brutal execution-style murder that was carried out in a busy street in the middle of Sydney CBD.'

'It was extremely fortunate that no members of the public were injured.

'We believe he left an establishment nearby and as he walked onto Bridge Street he was shot down in a hail of bullets.'

Criminal Groups Squad Detective Superintendent Robert Critchlow said Hamze had been warned he was a target of a rival.

Hamze will then be buried in the Islamic section of Rockwood cemetery following the service at Lakemba Mosque

'He has been warned that he is at risk, he has been given advice as to his safety,' Mr Critchlow said on Friday.

'That advice was not received in the sense it was given. He sought to live his life the way he wanted to and made some choices.

Mr Critchlow said police were 'certainly concerned' and had been monitoring the situation.

'There are regular things that arise in the criminal space that that we act upon quietly and in a way that doesn't attract attention and we avert a lot of these crimes,' he said.

'But ultimately if a violent criminal group wishes to use violence towards another person to achieve their own goals, they will do it.

'What we do now is gather the evidence and lock them up.'
German leader Angela Merkel has mixed and matched her Covid jabs.

The 66-year-old Chancellor had the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine in April, soon after Germany recommended it only for people aged 60 and over.

Yesterday her spokesman said she had the Moderna jab 'a few days ago'.

Germany now practises 'vaccine crossing' which allows people to have a cutting-edge mRNA shot, such as Moderna's, as a second dose if their first was an AstraZeneca jab.

Trials are underway to see if there are benefits or downsides to mixing.

German leader Angela Merkel (pictured) has mixed and matched her Covid jabs. The 66-year-old Chancellor had the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine in April, soon after Germany recommended it only for people aged 60 and over. Yesterday her spokesman said she had the Moderna jab 'a few days ago'

Merkel, pictured on Tuesday with EU chief Ursula von der Leyen, is stepping down this year after 16 years in power

A German study suggested mixing could boost the immune system but said more research was needed.

Germany's jab rollout has accelerated sharply, with 51 per cent of adults having had a first dose compared with 80 per cent in the UK.

As was the case in April, Mrs Merkel was not pictured rolling her sleeves up to get the injection like some other world leaders.

Merkel is stepping down this year after 16 years in power.

In 2019, she sparked concerns for her health with a series of shaking spells in public but has appeared to be in good condition since then.
There were heart-breaking scenes at Sydney's International Airport on Wednesday as the departure gates were slammed shut after New Zealand closed its borders to New South Wales.

A picture showed one family leaving the airport with their belongings after failing to board their Air New Zealand flight.

Despite the pause one family were still hopeful to make their flight out of the country as they are seen waiting at the Air New Zealand check-in line before they were turned away.

New South Wales residents were left in shock after New Zealand's COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins put the brakes on hotel quarantine-free travel after NSW recorded 10 new locally-acquired infections on Tuesday.

The total has since climbed to 13 cases since 8pm.

He said the decision was made because there are still 'several unknowns' about the growing outbreak.

The heart-broken family (pictured) leaving Sydney Airport's as New Zealand shuts its travel bubble to New South Wales residents

The family (pictured) linger at the check-in gates as they are turned away from their Air New Zealand flight

He said: 'As with previous pauses, it will be under constant review.'

The decision had been made after revelations several infections in Sydney were unlinked to the Bondi outbreak.

This includes a case that was infectious while in the Sydney community and a primary school age child.

On Tuesday, three more exposure sites were also added to the extensive list, including Italian restaurant Totti's Bondi, The Roya Bondi and Woolworths at Spring Farm.

Kiwi health authorities also urged anyone in New Zealand that has been to Westfield's Bondi Junction - including the car park - between June 12-18 to immediately get tested and self-isolate until they receive a negative result.

The New Zealand government on Thursday will revaluate the decision.

The tough news for NSW holidaymakers comes on the same day New Zealand is set to reinstate quarantine-free travel with Victoria, after the state experienced its fourth lockdown since the pandemic began.

Airport check-in kiosks are left unattended as New Zealand shuts its border to New South Wales residents for 72 hours after Sydney covid cluster

Pictured: Departure gates for Air New Zealand flights remain empty as passengers are not allowed to enter the country

NEW EXPOSURE SITES IN SYDNEY Call NSW Health immediately, gest tested and isolate regardless of the result: QF163 (Qantas) - June 18 from Sydney to Wellington, NZ NZ247 (Air New Zealand) - June 21 from Wellington, NZ to Sydney Bondi: Totti's Bondi - Saturday June 19, 5pm - 6.30pm Mascot: Wallabies Thai Restaurant - Saturday June 19, 11.30am - 12pm (anyone who dined outside) Bondi Junction: Chanel fragrance and beauty - Friday June 18, 12pm - 12.25pm Sydney: ANZ Martin Place - Thursday June 17, 11.45am - 3.15pm (anyone on level 2) Get tested and isolate until a negative test is received: Bondi: The Royal Bondi - Saturday June 19, 5pm - 6.30pm Spring Farm: Woolworths - Sunday June 20, 9.30am - 10am Mascot: Wallabies Thai Restaurant - Saturday June 19, 11.30am - 12pm (anyone who dined inside) Bondi Junction: Starbucks - Friday June 18, 11am - 12pm Sydney: ANZ Martin Place - Thursday June 17, 11.45am - 3.15pm (anyone on ground and level 1) Mascot Central Shopping Precinct - Anytime between Friday June 18 and Tuesday June 22 Advertisement

The travel bubble between Victoria and the land of the long white cloud is set to re-established at 11.59pm on Tuesday.

Of the 10 new infections announced in NSW today, one of them remains a mystery.

A student at Saint Charles' Primary School in Waverley, Sydney's east, returned a positive result but contact tracers are still scrambling to find out where she may have contracted the virus.

The current outbreak hitting Sydney is particularly hard to trace because it is the highly infectious Delta variant which originated in India.

'Literally people not even physically touching each other but fleetingly coming into the same airspace has seen the virus transfer from one person to another,' Premier Gladys Berejiklian said.

'That's how contagious it is.'

There has been close liaison between the health agencies of NSW and New Zealand. Pictured: NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian (left) and NZ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern (right)

New Zealand have pulled up the draw bridge to Western Australia and Victoria on one occasion and slammed the door shut on NSW twice since the Trans-Tasman travel bubble came into effect on April 19. Pictured: Departure passengers to New Zealand wait to check in at Sydney International Airport, Sydney, Monday, April 19

Since Australian and New Zealand trans-Tasman travel bubble came into effect on April 19, there have been numerous occasions where it has been halted due to outbreaks.

New Zealand have pulled up the draw bridge to Western Australia and Victoria on one occasion and slammed the door shut on NSW twice.

At the time of the announcement New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern warned that the rules could be subject to rapid change if an outbreak occurs in either country.

'Those undertaking travel on either side of the ditch will do so under the guidance of flyer beware,' Ms Ardern said.

'People will need to plan for the possibility of travel being disrupted if there is an outbreak.'
A Covid-infected Bondi Junction worker who attended a house party with 30 people spread the virus to at least nine others without realising she was infected.

NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant announced on Wednesday that 13 new cases were recorded overnight, bringing Sydney's Bondi cluster to 31.

The majority of the new cases stem from a birthday party on Saturday in West Hoxton, in western Sydney, which included the Bondi Junction Westfield worker.

The woman was not suffering any symptoms but was tested the next day when they developed and received a positive result on Monday.

Eight of the 13 new cases announced on Wednesday are linked to a birthday party in Sydney's west that was attended by an unknowingly infectious worker from Bondi Junction Westfield (pictured)

All party attendees were ordered into self-isolation, with eight partygoers who came forward for testing on Tuesday found to have contracted the virus.

A day before, a two-year-old child who attended Little Zaks childcare in Narellan Vale, near Campbelltown, on Monday.

Dr Chant said the outbreak demonstrated how quickly transmission could occur.

'There were about 30 people at that gathering in a house and the person was unknowingly infectious, did not have symptoms, and had not attended venues,' Dr Chant said.

'What you can see is that those test results indicate how quickly the virus was transmitted in that circumstance... And that is on day two after exposure.

Those who live and work in seven hotspot suburbs will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has introduced a raft of new restrictions across Sydney in light of the growing outbreak

'All those individuals would have unknowingly had the infection on Monday.'

Contact tracers are scrambling to determine exposure sites visited by the positive cases.

The Bondi cluster began last week after a Sydney Airport limousine driver tested positive to the highly-infectious Delta variant, which started spreading at Bondi Junction's busy Westfield shopping centre.

In light of the additional 13 cases, Ms Berejiklian introduced new restrictions across the city and surrounds to contain the outbreak.

Ms Berejiklian said the restrictions are 'effective immediately' for Sydney, the Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong, and Shellharbour - though they begin at 4pm.

'Please abandon non-essential activities, please don't attend social gatherings unless you absolutely must,' the premier said on Wednesday.

'I am not going to rule out further action.'

Residents who live or work in the City of Sydney, Waverley, Randwick, Canada Bay, Inner West, Bayside, and Woollahra local government areas cannot travel outside the metropolitan area unless it's absolutely essential.

The man, aged in his 30s, attended a birthday party in West Hoxton on Monday while unknowingly infectious

WHAT IS METROPOLITAN SYDNEY? Metropolitan Sydney includes: Sydney Blue Mountains Shellharbour Central Coast Wollongong Advertisement

'We don't want the virus to spread to the regions,' Ms Berejiklian said.

NSW recorded 10 locally-acquired cases to 8pm on Tuesday, seven of which were already announced.

Of those 10 cases, Dr Chant said only two were not in isolation - the Bondi Junction worker and a nine-year-old child who attends the Saint Charles Catholic primary School in Waverley.

The school has closed for three days for contact tracing and cleaning, with students and staff identified as close contacts now isolating.

The additional 13 cases were reported after 8pm, and will be counted in Thursday's official tally.

Overall, there have been 16 new cases taking the total number of infections to 31, up from 21 on Tuesday.

Under the new restrictions, household visitors are limited to five people, including children, and masks are now compulsory in non-residential indoor settings - including workplaces - and at large outdoor events.

Sydney's eastern suburbs cluster has ballooned to 31 after 13 new Covid cases were recorded overnight. Pictured: The Bondi Beach Drive-through COVID-19 Clinic with long lines stretching along Campbell Parade on June 23

Masks must also be worn to gym classes, which limited to 20 people.

More than 44,000 tests were completed in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday.

The rise in infections is a blow for the city and many school holiday plans are now in chaos.

Just two days before public schools break for two weeks, Queensland followed Victoria and New Zealand by imposing bans on travellers from much of Sydney.

From 1am Thursday, Queensland will close its border to people from the City of Sydney and the Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West, and Randwick local government areas. Waverley was already on the list.

'To keep Queenslanders safe, we will be following exactly what Victoria has announced last night,' Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said.

'This advice may have to be updated during the course of the day or into the evening.'

Other Australian states have imposed border restrictions for people from the hotspot areas, with Victoria on Tuesday declared seven Sydney local government areas 'red zones'.

Earlier on Wednesday, NSW Health issued a health alert after a person infected with the virus flew from Sydney to New Zealand and back.

The alert was for passengers travelling on Qantas flight QF163 on Friday night to Wellington, and anyone who flew on Monday morning on Air New Zealand flight NZ247 from Wellington to Sydney.

Passengers on board those flights must contact NSW Health immediately, get tested and isolate for 14 days regardless of the result.

Meanwhile, a childcare centre 60km southwest of Sydney's CBD, confirmed in a Facebook post it was closed for deep cleaning after a child who attended the centre on Monday tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday night.

'The girl and her family are doing well and resting at home,' Little Zak's Academy in Narellan Vale posted on Wednesday.
A wealthy magistrate who fought to strip his dead fiance's grieving mother of her daughter's super payout will now likely miss out on millions.

Grandfather-of-eight Rod Higgins, 70, faces being overlooked for a lucrative post-retirement gig that would have netted him as much as his ill-gotten super payout each and every year for at least a decade.

The magistrate - who bizzarely referred to himself as Rocketman Rod in an online alias - has been slammed by ordinary Australians after receiving the $180,000 super and life insurance payout intended for Ashleigh Petrie's struggling mum.

Highly-paid magistrate Rod Higgins (above on Tuesday) fought to win the $180,000 super and life insurance payout of his young fiancee, who was 45 years his junior

Magistrate Rodney Higgins referred to himself as Rod Rocketman in online profile obtained by Daily Mail Australia

Miss Petrie,23, excitedly accepted and called him 'the love of her life' after he proposed to her in Fiji in 2019. The couple is pictured together just weeks before her untimely death

How $180,000 was awarded to an older lover By Stephen Johnson, Economics Reporter for Daily Mail Australia Under the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993, a young worker can typically nominate a parent as the 'non-binding' beneficiary who would receive their super and life insurance should they die Should that worker later get into a relationship, the law considers the partner or spouse to be a dependent Rest Super said it had obeyed the law when it awarded the payment to Mr Higgins but it declined to provide more details 'Rest has every sympathy for Ms Petrie's loved ones and all those grieving her tragic passing,' a spokesman told Daily Mail Australia 'The process of paying a death benefit can involve contested claims and disputes between potential dependents 'Rest always endeavours to handle situations like these with the utmost sensitivity and sympathy' Federal Labor's superannuation frontbencher Stephen Jones said there was a lot of confusion around superannuation life insurance among the young Federal Labor's superannuation frontbencher Stephen Jones said there was a lot of confusion around superannuation life insurance arrangements, especially among the young 'It's certainly confusing to the average person, particularly when they're young, the last thing they are thinking about is their will and their estate,' he told Daily Mail Australia 'A lot of people are even unaware that they have a significant asset in their life insurance policy and there's a lack of financial literacy about these things 'There needs to be a lot greater awareness and a lot greater explanation about these life insurance policies' Advertisement

But court sources have told Daily Mail Australia Mr Higgins stood to earn that amount each and every year upon retirement acting as a reserve judge.

Daily Mail Australia can reveal Mr Higgins' behaviour in his home town remains the subject of some scrutiny.

Sources have told Daily Mail Australia the elderly lawman's erratic behaviour before and after Ms Petrie's tragic death would be long remembered.

Mr Higgins and Ms Petrie had been living together in Mirboo North, four hours from Shepparton in northern Victoria.

Ms Petrie was struck by a vehicle and killed on Metung Road near Lakes Entrance in eastern Victoria about 1am the night she died.

Her death sparked an outpouring of emotion and anger at the fact her relationship was made public shortly before her death.

Sources have claimed Mr Higgins had asked Ms Petrie's family to destroy her phone shortly after she was killed.

He was later accused of performing a 'bizarre' eulogy at her funeral which left already shocked mourners beside themselves with anger.

Mr Higgins had been living with the 23-year-old for about 12 weeks when she was hit and killed by the car in October 2019.

Mr Higgins had reportedly inquired about securing his fiancees superannuation death benefit within 24 hours of her tragic death.

He remains employed as a magistrate earning $324,000 each year until he retires in the next few weeks.

Like many judges and magistrates, Mr Higgins has indicated his desire to continue working as a reserve magistrate, earning $1,380 a shift.

Retired magistrates continue working for years, covering weekend and fill-in positions for as long as they are physically able.

Over the course of a year, a reserve magistrate could earn more than $180,000.

Calls from angry Australians to have the magistrate removed soared upon news of the grubby cash grab breaking.

In Victoria, only Parliament has the power to sack judges and magistrates.

The Magistrates' Court Of Victoria did not respond to Daily Mail Australia's inquiries about Mr Higgins' future on Wednesday.

Sources have said pulling the magistrate's lucrative retirement plans from underneath him could be considered the next best option.

'Going on the reserve list is not assured,' a court insider told Daily Mail Australia.

'If you're (trouble), the appointment won't happen. So while it's not a sacking, you can take away a good five-to-10 years of continued earnings, which is a pretty good result. '

By Wednesday morning, more than 12,000 Australians had signed a petition demanding the super fund give the cash to Ms Petrie's mother, as per her wishes.

Controversial magistrate Rod Higgins asked about securing Ms Petrie's superannuation and life insurance payout within 24 hours of her tragic death

Ms Petrie posted on Instagram just days before her death

Mr Higgins proposed to Ashleigh Petrie (pictured together), from Mirboo North in Victoria, during a romantic trip to Fiji months before she died

Timeline of romance 2016-17: Rod Higgins and Ashleigh Petrie meet living next door to each other in Shepparton, Victoria 2017: She is a guest at a party celebrating his appointment as magistrate 2018: The two start a secret relationship under the nose of his second long-term partner Early 2019: Court colleagues are shocked to discover the relationship and raise concerns. Mr Higgins is moved to another court far away September: Mr Higgins proposes during a romantic trip to Fiji October 9: News of their relationship, engagement, and colleague concerns breaks in the media October: Mr Higgins' ex-partner controversially gets a restraining order against Ms Petrie with allegations of bias against chief magistrate who granted it October 28: Ms Petrie is killed when she is hit by a car as a pedestrian. He death was ruled a suicide by a coroner. Advertisement

She had bequeathed the entire balance and death benefit to her mum, but Mr Higgins successfully argued he was her 'dependent' and therefore entitled to her super payout upon her death.

After Ms Petrie's death, Mr Higgins moved back to the riverside home in Shepparton he shared with his former partner, Lurline Le Neuf, to resume their 18-year relationship.

On Tuesday, the pair were seen sauntering about town in pricey duds looking every inch the millionaire couple.

It is understood Mr Higgins had become aware in her final days that his young fiance had been the unnamed source in articles surrounding their own relationship.

A coronial inquest later ruled Ms Petrie had taken her own life, but the investigating coroner determined that the finding would not be published.

News of the couple's relationship had only become public weeks earlier, which saw the nation's left-leaning press blame the Melbourne tabloid that broke the story for Ms Petrie's tragic demise.

But the young clerk had not only been in on the story, she had been actively feeding the journalist information on a court workplace she had described as 'toxic'.

Ms Petrie had been in close contact with the reporter up until just days before her death on October 28, 2019.

In happier days: Ashleigh Petrie and Rod Higgins at the local pub. She often took to social media to inform friends of her love

Ashleigh Petrie's last post on Instagram. She stated she had been in Metung in East Gippsland and posted a peaceful photo of her view. She died hours later

Ashleigh Petrie was said to be enthusiastic about damning news reports unveiling the grubby underbelly of the justice system

'I'm looking forward to reading more of your articles,' she texted him on October 25.

'I've loved working with you,' she wrote.

The editor of the Melbourne newspaper would later tell ABC's Media Watch Ms Petrie had been helping it research angles and 'was encouraging us to report on her concerns about the culture within the court'.

Ms Petrie had made it clear in correspondence following the publication of the articles that she was not concerned with the coverage and importantly did not indicate she was suffering any ill-effects as a result of any articles or was in a fragile state, the newspaper argued.

Victoria's court system had come increasingly under scrutiny at the time.

Ms Petrie had told the publication she had been sleeping with another elderly magistrate for up to a month before she moved onto Mr Higgins.

That magistrate would later hook up with yet another glamorous, young clerk.

Ashleigh Petrie and Rodney Higgins in a social media post before her death

The wealthy magistrate's partner Lurline Le Neuf got about town in posh yellow boots and a Harrod's apron on Tuesday morning

Just weeks before Ms Petrie's death the Childrens Court of Victoria was forced to investigate after a clerk boasted to friends that she had been intimate with a magistrate in a courtroom and also in another magistrates chambers.

In January 2018, it was reported a magistrate was accused of groping a young womans buttocks and saying he 'loved her' after a night of drinking at a Christmas party for court staff.

In September 2018, a solicitor at the Coroner's Court of Victoria took her life.

WorkSafe launched a probe into that court's allegedly 'toxic culture' in February that year.

The then Chief Magistrate Peter Lauristen was replaced by Judge Lisa Hannan in November 2019 after he retired.

For confidential support call the Lifeline 24-hour crisis support on: 13 11 14

Kids Helpline: 1800 55 1800
A career criminal allegedly burgled $75,000 from a supermarket just days after being given a shot at rehabilitation following his conviction for crimes including aggravated robbery.

Peter Michael Crawford was handed a suspended sentence in September 2020 in the Australian Capital Territory Supreme Court - on the condition he complete a drug and alcohol program in a residential rehab.

When acting Justice Richard Refshauge suspended his four-year sentence, Crawford had 202 convictions recorded.

ACT Magistrates Court heard Peter Michael Crawford was identified by police on CCTV footage and a thumbprint found at the scene, over his alleged involvement in the robbery at Canberra university. Just days earlier Crawford had been granted a suspended four year sentence over a series of other crimes, including aggravated robbery

But just days later he left and allegedly wheeled a safe containing $74,800, including cash, cigarettes and whisky, out of the Canberra university supermarket, the Canberra Times reported.

Crawford was recognised from CCTV footage of the September 15 break-in, while his thumbprint was also retrieved from the a door handle inside the store, ACT Magistrates Court heard.

It is alleged Crawford and another man searched the store for cigarettes, then later returned, when Crawford took the safe while an accomplice stole a case of Jack Daniels whisky.

Police alleged Crawford was spotted amongst burglars 'walking away from the UC supermarket carrying a number of things and pulling a safe which was on wheels with a handle'.

The court was also told Crawford, 38, who couldn't be found by detectives investigating the robbery, was later tracked to Victoria where he was in jail for unrelated offences since February.

The court heard he travelled to Victoria initially because his father was sick.

He was later extradited to the ACT and charged with aggravated robbery and theft.

A tearful Crawford did not enter a plea when he appeared on Tuesday.

Crawford's Legal Aid lawyer, Tanja Cobden, proposed he be released on 'a 24-hour home curfew' in order to care for his sick partner, who had recently had surgery, but the application was opposed.

A tearful Peter Crawford did not enter a plea when he appeared before the ACT Magistrates Court. He was denied bail

Special Magistrate Jane Campbell refused bail and agreed Crawford could fail to appear at a later date.

Prosecutor Claire Daly said an application would be made to cancel the previous drug and alcohol treatment order.

It is understood to be likely the remainder of Crawford's suspended sentence, imposed in September 2020, would become a custodial term.

Crawford is due back in court regarding the treatment order on Friday and again next month in relation to the new aggravated robbery charges.
Navy Cmdr. Frank Azzarello was relieved of his duty as commanding officer of a destroyer in January

A fired Navy commander's abusive language and insults towards his subordinates 'crossed professional lines and constituted harassment,' a recently released command investigation found.

Commander Frank Azzarello, who was relieved of his command of the Navy destroyer USS Forrest Sherman in January, routinely referred to his junior officers as 'fking retarded,' 'useless' and 'stupid,' according to an investigation that was reported by Task and Purpose.

'One second he may be asking about your family, and the next time he will be telling you that he hates the sound of your voice, that you're fking retarded, or threatening an LOI [letter of instruction] for calling him too many times for mandatory reports while he's getting a haircut,' one crew member said in the investigation, according to Task and Purpose.

'The more stress he was under and less sleep he got the worse it was.'

On at least one occasion, the verbal abuse nearly became violent when Azzarello raised his hand to a junior officer but didn't follow through, Task and Purpose reported.

Azzarello's lawyer Timothy Parlatore disputed the investigation's findings and accused officers aboard the USS Forrest Sherman of 'making up stories,' Task and Purpose reported. Azzarello's age is unclear; it wasn't disclosed in the report.

Azzarello degraded his subordinates during his command of the USS Forrest Sherman, according to a recent report

Azzarello (right) took command of the USS Forrest Sherman in September 2019

'At times though he seemed to just want to break people down and see how far he could push people before they would break,' an officer said, according toTask and Purpose. 'Once he found that limit, he would walk that line.'

'There were times where I felt sick walking to the bridge just because of my nerves on what I would be yelled at for today,' the officer added.

'His actions are rough but it can help shape you. Sometimes it would destroy people though. I've seen several JOs [junior officers] break down and almost give up. Some people get it worse than others on the ship or just because of his mood that day.'

The command investigation was also reported by the The Navy Times, which said Azzarello belittled some officers, mocked the voices of female members and overused letters of instruction.

Azzarello, who took command of the USS Forrest Sherman in September 2019, was reportedly relieved of his duty on January 27 for taking home a seized enemy rifle that he intended to turn into a trophy for his ship's wardroom without following procedure.

That issue is not being disputed.

The USS Forrest Sherman, which Azzarello was a commanding officer of, is pictured hear in Norfolk, Virginia in 2019

A separate Naval Criminal Investigative Service investigation said Azzarello did take home the weapon with the aim of turning it into a war trophy for his ship but failed to follow military guidelines, Azzarello's lawyer Parlatore told the Navy Times.

The separate command investigation, which outlines the commanding officer's behavior towards his junior officers, started a day earlier, according to the Navy Times.

Parlatore, told Task and Purpose that his client was relieved of his duty because of the rifle; not the 'false allegations' made in the command investigation.

He told Task and Purpose that Azzarello was tough on his subordinates because because they were 'inadequately trained before the ship's deployment.'

Azzarello ultimately accepted nonjudicial punishment for charges related to the war trophy and how he handled his crew, receiving a letter of reprimand in the process, Parlatore told Navy Times.
Health officials reject comparisons between Bondi's coronavirus cluster with the outbreak that locked down the Northern Beaches over Christmas and the New Year.

Sydney's latest cluster increased to 31 on Wednesday, with another three recorded after Tuesday's 8pm cut-off that will be included in Thursday's report.

The first reported case, which originated in Avalon, was reported on December 16 and spanned until January 14 - with 151 cases linked to the cluster.

Dr Kerry Chant dismissed comparisons between the Beaches outbreak and Bondi Junction's situation, saying in a press conference on Wednesday morning that the Delta variant added increased headaches.

'Every cluster has a unique characteristic and what we saw with the Northern Beaches cluster was a super-spreader event that there were two different values that amplified the transmission and then we were able to get on top of it,' she said.

Bondi Junction's cluster skyrocketed to 31 on Wednesday, with a further three recorded after Tuesday's 8pm cut-off which will be included in Thursday's report

The Northern Beaches cluster, that originated in Avalon, was reported on December 16 and spanned until January 14 - with 151 cases linked to the cluster

'We're not dealing with Delta at that time. What is particularly concerning is usually we would have seen a retail environment as low risk settings.

'If you are shopping in the department store, they are generally not crowded places. They are not when walking around, generally people do try to keep some distance.'

Dr Chant said the 'surprising element' posed is the Delta variant needed only 'inadvertent contact' to transmit, which increased the threat to the community.

She also described a West Hoxton party, which has resulted in 10 cases so far, as a 'super-spreader event' and expected further cases to come as a result.

'Under my definition, I would say that that is a super spreader,' she said. 'I think it's important not to label individuals as... I am cautious with the tide.

'Clearly having 10 people test positive in such a short timeframe, and I would expect over coming days we will announce further cases.'

Health workers are pictured at the Bondi Beach Drive-through Covid-19 clinic in Sydney's eastern suburbs on Wednesday. Contact tracers are scrambling to trace four cases with no known source

NSW recorded 13 cases of Covid-19 community transmission overnight but Premier Gladys Berejiklian has stopped short of sending Sydney into a lockdown.

Ms Berejiklian said health officials found 10 local cases from 44,000 tests in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday night - nine of which had already been announced.

Since that cut-off, she said another 13 infections were found in the community - eight of whom were at the same party at West Hoxton in Sydney's far-west.

For the next week from 4pm on Wednesday, household gatherings will be limited to five visitors and masks will be compulsory in all all indoor non-residential settings including workplaces.

Drinking while standing at indoor venues will also be banned once again and those who live and work in seven hotspot suburbs will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason.

The tightened rules - which include a 50 per cent capacity restriction for outdoor seated events - will apply to Sydney, the Blue Mountains and Central Coast and Shellharbour regions.
The husband of the policewoman killed in a horror smash when she stopped 'Australia's most hated man' for speeding has broken his silence on his wife's death as he campaigns for the law to be changed.

Stuart Schulze, the husband of Senior Constable Lynette Taylor who died in the Eastern Freeway car crash in April 2020, described the actions of Richard Pusey in filming his wife's death instead of coming to her aid as 'a dog's act'.

'I was shattered,' he told the Herald Sun.

'It is incomprehensible. People should be afforded decency. He destroyed all of that.'

Stuart Schulze the husband of Senior Constable Lynette Taylor, said Pusey's act in filming his dying wife was 'incomprehensible'

Mr Schulze and Ms Taylor pictured during a holiday to central Australia

Richard Pusey was sentenced to 10 months jail in April after pleading guilty to the offences of outraging public decency and reckless conduct endangering persons

Now Schulze is seeking a tougher sentence for the offence of 'outraging public decency'.

Ms Taylor died alongside three other police officers when a drugged-up truck driver, Mohinder Singh, crashed into them in the emergency lane of the freeway.

The officers had stopped Porsche driver Richard Pusey for speeding at 149km/h before Singh ploughed into them.

Pusey subsequently became known as Australia's most hated man when it was revealed he filmed the last moments of Ms Taylor.

'That is f***ing justice, absolutely amazing, that is f***ing amazing,' Pusey had said as he walked around filming the crash site instead of helping the dying officers.

'All I wanted to do was go home and have some sushi and now you f***ed my f***ing car.'

Drugged-up truck driver, Mohinder Singh, crashed into the four officers in the emergency lane of the Eastern Freeway in April 2020

Mr Schulze is campaigning for a sentence of 10 years prison for the offence for which Pusey was convicted

Ms Taylor was killed alongside fellow officers, Constable Glen Humphris, Senior Constable Kevin King and Constable Joshua Prestney

Pusey was sentenced to 10 months jail after pleading guilty to the offences of outraging public decency and reckless conduct endangering persons, backdated to account for the time Pusey had already served in custody.

After the sentencing, Mr Schulze described it as 'too lenient' and 'totally inappropriate'.

Mr Schulze wants the offence of outraging public decency to which Pusey pled guilty to be included under the Crimes Act with a punishment of up to 10 years jail.

Currently, the rarely prosecuted offence is a common law offence with no legislated minimum sentence. Pusey was the first person convicted of the offence since 1963.

Mr Schulze told 3AW that the judge had described Pusey as probably the most hated person in Australia but 'then only delivered a three-month sentence, reduced to two months - that really hurt.'

'I want the government to enact legislation to cover this type of offending.

'There's no control over it, there's no accountability for what they do.'

Mr Schulze, a former policeman, contends the law had failed to keep up with the ability of people to record and share harmful content.

'With the advent of smartphones, two clicks can launch anything anywhere with no filters and with it can go our own humanity and decency,' he told the Herald-Sun.

Pusey did not post the footage to social media but showed it to a doctor's receptionist and two staff at a pharmacy soon after the tragedy.

Mr Schulze had expressed surprised that the Office of Public Prosecutions in Victoria would not be appealing the 10-month sentence handed to Pusey.

After negative reaction to Pusey's sentencing, Victorian County Court chief judge Peter Kidd took the unusual step of issuing a public statement on the deaths of Ms Taylor and fellow officers, Constable Glen Humphris, Senior Constable Kevin King and Constable Joshua Prestney.

'It is important to remember that Mr Pusey did not stand to be sentenced for their deaths,' he said.

'It is a fundamental principle of the rule of law that a person is only sentenced on the basis of the offences for which they have been found guilty, or for which they have pleaded guilty.'
Four politicians and some of their staff have been thrown into isolation after dining at a restaurant at the same time as a patron infected with Covid.

NSW Agriculture Minister Adam Marshall and three of his Nationals colleagues - Trevor Khan, Steph Cooke and Ben Franklin - enjoyed a meal together on Monday night at a pizza restaurant.

The quartet were alerted by NSW Health on Tuesday they may have been exposed to the virus through casual contact at the unnamed eatery.

The MPs were told they all needed to get tested and self-isolate until they receive a negative result.

NSW Agriculture Minister Adam Marshall (pictured) is currently isolating after dining at a Sydney restaurant on Monday where a person believed to be infected with Covid was at the same venue

Nationals MP Steph Cook (pictured) was at the same restaurant as NSW Agriculture Minister Adam Marshall on Monday. She is also now isolating

Staff of the MPs have also been forced into isolation before receiving their test results, according to news.com.au.

The alert from NSW Health came just hours after parliament met to outline the state budget on Tuesday.

Mr Khan and Mr Franklin are members of the upper house and Mr Marshall and Ms Cooke take their seats in the lower house.

All four MPs sat in parliament on Tuesday, according the Hansard records.

They were caught up in Sydney's outbreak that added 13 new cases of Covid-19 on Wednesday.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian stopped short of sending Sydney into lockdown as seen in other states recently.

For the next week from 4pm on Wednesday, household gatherings will be limited to five visitors and masks will be compulsory in all all indoor venues, including workplaces and gym classes.

Drinking while standing indoors will also be banned and those who live and work in seven hotspot council areas will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason.

Trevor Khan (pictured) and Ben Franklin were the two other National MPs at the Sydney restaurant who are now isolating following advice from NSW Health

The identified hotspot council areas are City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick - home to about 782,000 residents in the Harbour City.

The tightened rules - which also include a 50 per cent capacity restriction for outdoor seated events - will apply to Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Central Coast and Illawarra regions.

Ms Berejiklian added the growth of 'unlinked cases' in the state meant she needed to take proportionate action to stop the highly-contagious Delta variant from spreading.

'If you live or work in any of those impacted LGAs we don't want you moving outside of metropolitan Sydney other than for one of four essential purposes,' the premier said.

'Unless you are visiting a relative in care or have to go to work you should not be going outside the city for the next week.'
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The Loudoun County School Board in Virginia cut off public comment during a meeting on Tuesday as residents debated contentious transgender policy proposals and Critical Race Theory.

County residents arrived early to pack the auditorium as 259 residents signed up to speak during the public comment session before the debates became so heated that at least two men were eventually arrested for refusing to leave the building. The men were protesting the policy.

The parents debated a draft of the proposed 8040 policy on restrooms that reads that 'students should be allowed to use the facility that corresponds to their gender identity,' as school district leaders say they are moving to make schools more inclusive for transgender students - something that is considered by some parents as challenging traditional religious beliefs.

According to Fox News, the comments went rather smoothly through the first half-dozen speakers who supported the 8040 proposal until the seventh speaker was booed for insulting Christian parents in the district who oppose the policy.

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A man is detained after a fight broke out during a Loudoun County School Board meeting which included a discussion of Critical Race Theory and transgender students

A man is detained after a fight broke out during a Loudoun County School Board meeting which included a discussion of Critical Race Theory and transgender students

A man is detained after a fight broke out during a Loudoun County School Board meeting which included a discussion of Critical Race Theory and transgender students

Shelley Slebrch and other angry parents and community members protest after a Loudoun County School Board meeting was halted by the school board because the crowd refused to quiet down, in Ashburn, Virginia

Angry community members and parents sing the Star Spangled Banner after a Loudoun County School Board meeting was halted by the school board because the crowd refused to quiet down, in Ashburn, Virginia

Jon Tigges is detained following a controversial Loudoun County School Board meeting which included discussion of Critical Race Theory

The woman, who identified herself as the mother of a transgender Loudoun student, had said that 'hate' was 'dripping from the followers of Jesus in this room' - which promoted the board to call a five-minute recess for parents to cool down.

Brenda Sheridan, the board chair, warned residents after the recess that members of the board had voted unanimously to end public comment if the room again became disruptive.

'The board is here to hear from everyone,' she said.

'We started our meeting early because we knew we would have a large crowd and we had a large agenda. We ask again that you respect each other, and everyone is allowed to speak.'

Parents in the audience were also protesting recent moves by the board to promote critical race theory, which they said was racist indoctrination.

Over the past year, numerous public and private schools across the US have opted to incorporate CRT into their teachings - sparking a nationwide debate in which Loudoun County has emerged as a flashpoint.

Critical race theory asserts US institutions are inherently racist The fight over critical race theory in schools has escalated in the United States over the last year. The theory has sparked a fierce nationwide debate in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests around the country over the last year and the introduction of the 1619 Project. The 1619 Project, which was published by the New York Times in 2019 to mark 400 years since the first enslaved Africans arrived on American shores, reframes American history by 'placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the center of the US narrative'. The debate surrounding critical race theory regards concerns that some children are being indoctrinated into thinking that white people are inherently racist or sexist. Those against critical race theory have argued it reduces people to the categories of 'privileged' or 'oppressed' based on their skin color. Supporters, however, say the theory is vital to eliminating racism because it examines the ways in which race influence American politics, culture and the law. Advertisement

The theory asserts that 'institutions are inherently racist and that race itself... is a socially constructed concept that is used by white people to further their economic and political interests at the expense of people of color', according to Texas A&M University professor Tommy Curry.

Meanwhile, during the public comments, some parents also brought up another topic of debate in the community - the suspension and reinstatement of Tanner Cross - and asked the board not to appeal the court order reinstating him.

A judge ordered the Leesburg Elementary gym teacher to be reinstated after he was suspended last month after giving a speech opposing the transgender policy claiming it went against his religion.

Earlier this month, an eighth grader slammed Loudoun County Public Schools for a policy she claimed lets boys use girls locker rooms, putting female students in danger.

Jolene Grover, 14, spoke at the school district's board meeting in early June to address the proposed policy 8040.

She was pulled from a LCPS school last year by her mother, Fox News reported.

'Two years ago, I was told policy 1040 was just an umbrella philosophy and you weren't going to allow boys into the girls' locker rooms. But here you are doing just that,' Grover said while wearing a shirt that read 'Woman is female.'

Some on the board, which has sparked controversy with its embrace of CRT and the transgender policy, is now facing recall efforts.

One woman at Tuesday's meeting urged several board members, facing a recall effort, to resign and save taxpayers even more money.

Others blasted a district official who allegedly made threatening Internet searches on a district smartphone.

Dick Black, a former state senator, ripped the board for its treatment of Cross - which prompted the chamber to erupt into cheers, Fox News reported.

The board then unanimously voted to end public comment after only 51 parents were heard.

Parents then led loud chants of 'Shame on you!' directed at the board.

Some demanded that the board members resign while some parents in the room sang The Star-Spangled Banner, according to Fox News.

Others of the parents who had not been able to speak before the board attempted to remain in the room to give their opinions before the crowd.

Opponents of an academic doctrine known as Critical Race Theory attend a packed Loudoun County School board meeting until the meeting erupted into chaos and two people were detained, in Ashburn, Virginia

Opponents of the academic doctrine known as Critical Race Theory protest outside of the Loudoun County School Board headquarters, in Ashburn, Virginia

Opponents of the academic doctrine known as Critical Race Theory enter a school board meeting at the Loudoun County School Board headquarters, in Ashburn, Virginia

Concerned community members and parents wait to enter a controversial school board meeting at the Loudoun County School Board headquarters, in Ashburn, Virginia

Opponents of the academic doctrine known as Critical Race Theory protest outside of the Loudoun County School Board headquarters, in Ashburn, Virginia

Amy Jahr sings the Star Spangled Banner after a Loudoun County School Board meeting was halted by the school board because the crowd refused to quiet down, in Ashburn, Virginia

Angry parents and community members protest after a Loudoun County School Board meeting was halted by the school board because the crowd refused to quiet down, in Ashburn, Virginia

Supporters of the academic doctrine known as Critical Race Theory and transgender students meet outside the Loudoun County School Board headquarters before a school board meeting, in Ashburn, Virginia

Amy Jahr sings the Star Spangled Banner after a Loudoun County School Board meeting was halted by the school board because the crowd refused to quiet down, in Ashburn, Virginia

Elicia Brand leads a crowd of angry parents and community members in the singing of the Star Spangled Banner after a Loudoun County School Board meeting was halted by the school board because the crowd refused to quiet down

Opponents of an academic doctrine known as Critical Race Theory attend a packed Loudoun County School board meeting until the meeting erupted into chaos and two people were detained, in Ashburn, Virginia

Opponents of an academic doctrine known as Critical Race Theory attend a packed Loudoun County School board meeting until the meeting erupted into chaos and two people were detained, in Ashburn, Virginia

Opponents of an academic doctrine known as Critical Race Theory attend a packed Loudoun County School board meeting until the meeting erupted into chaos and two people were detained, in Ashburn, Virginia

Fox News reported that deputies told one of the men who refused to leave he would be arrested for trespassing if did not exit the room. He was ultimately issued a trespassing summons and released.

A second man was also arrested for 'acting disorderly and displayed aggressive behavior towards another attendee', a spokesperson for the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office told Fox News.

'A second adult male was acting disorderly and displayed aggressive behavior towards another attendee,' the spokesperson said.

'A deputy intervened and the subject continued to be disorderly with the deputy. LCSO Deputies attempted to take him into custody and he physically resisted arrest. The subject was charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.'
Virgin Australia will give away prizes including a million frequent flyer points to residents willing to roll up their sleeves and get the jab.

The airline announced a Covid-19 vaccination competition 'VA-X & WIN' would be launched later this year, when most adults will be eligible for vaccination.

The program will give one Australian a million Velocity frequent flyer points, with other prizes including dozens of business class flights up for grabs.

Australians over the age of 18 who have received two doses of a Covid-19 vaccination are eligible to enter the raffle to win a million frequent flyer points

A spokesperson from the Virgin Australia Group said the airline had a responsibility to use its voice to encourage more Australians to roll up their sleeves

The airline is not the first to offer incentives to adults unwilling to get the jab, with Qantas announcing a similar program would launch in July.

An online survey of unvaccinated Australians found they would be more motivated to get vaccinated for travel-based incentives.

For those 'hesitant' to get the jab, unrestricted travel (24 per cent), exemption from quarantine (23 per cent), paid time off work (22 per cent) a free return flight (22 per cent) and discounted flights (21 per cent) were all incentives to get vaccinated, in a survey conducted by the Growth Intelligence Centre.

Virgin will also run a separate competition for employees who get the jab, after an internal survey revealed 65 per cent of their front line team were vaccinated.

This is despite all airline workers being eligible for vaccination across Australia from early in the rollout, regardless of age.

The program will give airline staff the chance to win additional annual leave, lounge memberships, and dozens of business class flights.

With a million points, one lucky Australian could fly between every capital city seven times, or use the points for an international flight when borders reopen

The raffle will give one lucky Australian a million Velocity Frequent Flyer Points, with a range of other prizes including dozens of Business Class flights up for grabs.

Virgin said the airline had a responsibility to use its voice in the community to encourage people to get vaccinated.

'What the latest lockdown in Melbourne and the evolving situation in Sydney has taught us, is the sooner we can all get vaccinated, the sooner we can get on with our lives, without the constant fear and uncertainty that come with lockdowns, restrictions and closed borders', it said.

'Most importantly, the sooner all Australians are vaccinated, the sooner our most vulnerable members of society will be protected.'

A million frequent flyer points is enough to fly between every capital city seven times, or a long-haul an international flight when borders reopen.

Residents over the age of 18 who received both doses of a Covid-19 vaccine are eligible to win.

Qantas boss Alan Joyce said he hoped his own airlines incentives program would bolster the vaccine effort and encourage travel without snap border closures.

Last month, Qantas boss Alan Joyce said he hoped his own airlines incentives program, launching in July, would bolster the vaccine effort and see Australians travelling without snap border closures.

Ten lucky families, at least one from each state and territory, will win free travel for a year and receive one million Qantas points.

Mr Joyce weighed into the vaccination debate by urging more companies to call for Australians to roll up their sleeves for the jab.

'I'm encouraging a 'Team Australia' moment where every corporate out there helps with this vaccine rollout and to reward people that have had the vaccine,' he said.

'I think that's what we all should be doing, is really encouraging it.'
A lockdown confining Sydneysiders to their homes and closing businesses school and other services to to stem an outbreak of the Delta Covid-19 strain would be premature given the minimal level of mystery transmission in the city, a leading epidemiologist has warned.

Health officials on Wednesday said they detected 13 new cases across New South Wales overnight - eight of whom went to the same 'super-spreader' party at West Hoxton in the city's west.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian tightened household gathering limits to five visitors and made masks compulsory in all indoor venues, including workplaces and gyms.

But New South Wales leader refused to lockdown the city's five million residents and at this stage, only those who have visited a hotspot with an infected person are being required to isolate for 14 days.

'We have always said we will not burden our citizens unless we absolutely have to,' Ms Berejiklian insisted after one TV journalist demanded to know why Sydney's wasn't in lockdown.

'We know basically where the super spreading events have been, we know where the virus is circulating, and we don't want to take any further action than what we have now,' she explained.

'This relies on all of us reining in our behaviour, all of us following the health orders that are coming into place.'

Her adamant declaration follows calls by experts such as World Health Organisation adviser Professor Mary-Louise McLaws to mandate stay-at-home orders in Sydney to reduce transmission.

Professor McLaws on Wednesday morning said authorities may be able to handle the outbreak more efficiently with a 'quick, sharp stay at home order'.

'We may need to think about a stay home order for a couple of days. I'm sure the authorities will feel quite confident by Saturday,' the UNSW epidemiologist told ABC News Breakfast.

NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet earlier warned against 'knee-jerk lockdowns' and called for the states to set a target for the total reopening of the domestic borders.

Infectious disease expert Peter Collignon also told Daily Mail Australia a full-scale circuit-breaker lockdown would be excessive given the limited spread of untraced infections in New South Wales.

A staff member in a hi-vis jacket is pictured at St Charles Primary School at Waverley in Sydney after a child at the school contracted Covid-19. Premier Gladys Berejiklian has tightened Covid-19 restrictions but stopped short of introducing a full lockdown

Premier Gladys Berejiklian on Wednesday refused to ban all of Sydney's five million residents from regional travel

Four infections are now unlinked to existing outbreaks as the number of cases in the latest NSW outbreak grew to 31.

There was only one mystery case announced on Tuesday.

'The real risk at all times is the number of mystery cases in the community. You put these kind of rules in when you have a lot of it circulating around,' Professor Collignon said.

'Outbreaks are still an ongoing issue, but so far in New South Wales we have been good at testing and contact tracing and these clusters tend to peter out.'

NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard has previously called the state's contact tracing system the 'diamond standard'.

Professor Collignon said the state government should show even more restraint than they showed over Christmas when an outbreak was discovered on Sydney's northern beaches.

NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet has warned against 'knee-jerk lockdowns' as a response to Covid-19 outbreaks and called for the states to set a target for the total reopening of the domestic borders. Pictured is a passenger at Sydney's Kingsford Smith Airport on May 6

Cars line up for Covid-19 testing at Bondi in Sydney on Tuesday. World Health Organisation adviser Professor Mary-Louise McLaws had called for a 'quick, sharp stay at home order'

A worker directs traffic along Campbell Parade at the Bondi Beach drive-through Covid-19 Clinic on Wednesday. New South Wales has recorded 13 cases of Covid-19 community transmission overnight

'Admittedly, it was summer rather than winter [when the spread of viral particles is lower] but there were more than 200 cases between the Avalon and Berala cluster,' he said.

'There are precedents where we've been able to control this lockdown with higher cases and haven't gone into lockdown.'

Mr Perrottet said before Ms Berejiklian's press conference on Wednesday morning his government would follow a 'balanced and proportionate' approach to the latest outbreak.

'[Testing and isolation orders] have worked very well in this state and we will continue that approach going forward,' he told Sky News.

'We need to set a target for all the borders reopening because it's very clear Covid is not going away - we can't keep having knee-jerk lockdowns.'

Those who live and work in seven hotspot suburbs will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason

Her comments come as the Australian Medical Association vice-president Dr Chris Moy said the 'worrying numbers' may mean it's time to go into lockdown.

He told the NCA Newswire that the Delta strain was a lot more concerning and not even the diamond standard contact tracers in New South Wales may be able to nip it in the bud.

He said: 'The bottom line is, if it keeps on escalating like this, it doesn't matter how good your contact tracing is, they will be looking at pulling the lever on a lockdown.'

For the next week from 4pm on Wednesday, household gatherings will be limited to five visitors and masks will be compulsory in all all indoor, including workplaces and gym classes.

Drinking while standing at indoor venues will also be banned and those who live and work in seven hotspot council areas will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason.

Those council areas are the City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick - home to about 782,000 residents.

The tightened rules - which also include a 50 per cent capacity restriction for outdoor seated events - will apply to Sydney, the Blue Mountains and Central Coast and Shellharbour regions.

WHAT ARE THE NEW COVID RESTRICTIONS? From 4pm Wednesday for one week: Visitors to households will be limited to 5 guests  including children; Masks will be compulsory in all indoor non-residential settings, including workplaces, and at organised outdoor events; Drinking while standing at indoor venues will not be allowed; Singing by audiences at indoor shows or by congregants at indoor places of worship will not be allowed; Dancing will not be allowed at indoor hospitality venues or nightclubs however, dancing is allowed at weddings for the bridal party only (no more than 20 people); Dance and gym classes limited to 20 per class (masks must be worn); The one person per four square metre rule will be re-introduced for all indoor and outdoor settings, including weddings and funerals; Outdoor seated events will be limited to 50% seated capacity; Previous public transport capacity limits, represented by green dots, will be reintroduced Advertisement

Ms Berejiklian said the growth of 'unlinked cases' in the state meant she needed to take proportionate action to stop the highly-contagious Delta variant from spreading.

'If you live or work in any of those impacted LGAs we don't want you moving outside of metropolitan Sydney other than for one of four essential purposes,' she said.

'Unless you are visiting a relative in care or have to go to work you should not be going outside the city for the next week.'

WHAT IS METROPOLITAN SYDNEY? Metropolitan Sydney includes: Sydney Blue Mountains Shellharbour Central Coast Wollongong Advertisement

She clarified the boundaries of metropolitan Sydney were the city itself, the Blue Mountains, Shellharbour, the Central Coast and Wollongong.

The one person per four square metre rule will also come back into force.

NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said it is believed about 30 people attended the party in West Hoxton.

She said 10 cases were now linked to the western Sydney gathering and that the Delta strain had accelerated transmission of the virus at the event.

'There are two cases on day two after the exposure,' she said. 'Those test results indicate how rapidly the virus was transmitted.'

Queensland slammed its borders shut to people travelling from Sydney's hotspots on Wednesday morning after the coronavirus outbreak in Bondi Junction skyrocketed to 21 cases on Tuesday.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk confirmed on Wednesday morning anyone who had been in the seven Sydney councils designated by both state governments as high-risk will be forced to enter hotel quarantine from 1am Thursday.

'We cannot afford to have this Delta variant out in the community,' Ms Palaszczuk said as the state recorded another case transmitted in hotel quarantine.

Health workers are pictured at the Bondi Beach Drive-through Covid-19 clinic in Sydney's eastern suburbs on Wednesday. Contact tracers are scrambling to trace four cases with no known source

'We have serious concerns. We will be easing restrictions across Queensland this weekend but we cannot have the Delta variant out in our community.

She said Queensland will be following Victoria's lead overnight by banning anyone entering from the seven-exposed areas.

'We're focusing on those council areas at the moment but this advice could change, that's dependent on what we see in the next few days.'

There were no community transmissions of the virus recorded in Queensland overnight.

Fears the Bondi Covid cluster has spread 60km away as a childcare centre in Sydney's south-west is forced to close after a positive case spent a day there Health officials fear the Bondi Covid cluster has spread 60km south after a childcare centre was forced to close following a visit from a positive case. Little Zak's Academy at Narellan Vale, in Sydney's southwest, revealed late on Tuesday that a young girl with the virus visited the centre. 'It has come to our attention from the NSW Health Department and Liverpool Health that we have a confirmed Covid-19 case from one of our children in our centre that attended yesterday (Monday),' the centre said in an email sent to parents. The infected girl was in room '2-3' between 9am and 5.15pm. 'The girl and her family are doing well and resting at home,' the centre said. 'By 6pm the centre was closed and our Covid action plan was put in place. 'All staff were personally called and notified within 60 minutes of that happening and all parents were notified within 90 minutes of that happening.' Little Zak's Academy at Narellan Vale, in Sydney's southwest, revealed late on Tuesday that someone with the virus visited the centre The childcare centre is currently closed while it undergoes a deep clean. Advertisement

Chief Health Officer Dr Jeanette Young said the extreme risk of the Delta variant has forced the state to immediately introduce the measures. The state recorded one new case of the variant overnight.

'The risk is so much higher now than it was only a year ago,' she said.

Anyone currently in Queensland who had visited any of the seven suburbs after June 12 must immediately seek a test and isolate.

More than 15,000 vaccines were administered on Tuesday in Queensland.

Queensland has slammed its borders shut to Sydney hotspots after the coronavirus outbreak in Bondi Junction skyrocketed to 21 cases on Tuesday
A Stanford University professor with a distinguished background in business has told of his dismay at the 'cancel culture' on campuses, telling how he was labelled a racist for standing for the United States' flag.

Joel Peterson, professor of management at the California university and a former chairman of JetBlue Airways, said students at elite institutions were ignorant of history in their rush to 'cancel' perceived oppressors.

Peterson said that he had been reported to the dean for 'triggering' students.

'It all started when President Trump was elected,' Peterson told Tucker Carlson on Fox News on Tuesday.

'I had several students come to me and say they needed time off. They'd been triggered by the election, and they couldn't take their exams.

Peterson, a professor of management at Stanford university, appeared on Tucker Carlson's show on Tuesday night to explain an op ed he had written in Deseret News, discussing cancel culture on campuses

Peterson appeared on Carlson's show to discuss his op ed in Deseret News

'At first, was a little disappointed that I hadn't thought of that when Nixon was elected president when I was at college. But I got over that.

'Then one thing happen to her, and another where they started feeling triggered for various things.

'Finally it culminated in them reporting me to the dean, the dean calling me in.'

Peterson, who has taught at Stanford since 1992, said that the drama quietened down, until this spring when a student wrote on Twitter that 'white people should be eradicated.'

The tweets were posted in July 2020 by Gabby Crooks, who was running for re-election to student government. The tweets were dug up in April of this year by Stanford College Republicans, The Federalist reported.

Crooks has since made her account private.

The campus of Stanford University, including Hoover Tower and buildings of the Main Quadrangle. Peterson has taught at Stanford since 1992

Peterson (center) is seen in photos from his professional Facebook page. His group holds up copies of his book, The 10 Laws of Trust

The professor told Carlson: 'That troubled me a little bit.

'I still didn't say anything until a Jewish student came to me and said that he felt kind of threatened by claims of racism.

'I thought, somebody has to speak out.'

Peterson published an op ed in Deseret News, entitled: 'My road to cancellation'.

He wrote: 'A Black Lives Matter advocate asked, of all things, whether I would stand for the American flag.

'To provide context for my decision, I shared a story. As a toddler, I'd seen my mother take a call from the Department of Defense announcing that her fighter-pilot brother had been killed.

'Honoring her grief, I'd chosen to stand for the flag under which my only uncle had offered the ultimate sacrifice.

'The student's response was presented as an irrefutable argument; my choice was 'racist.''

He said that Condoleeza Rice, the Secretary of State under George W. Bush, who now teaches at Stanford, recounted how she told her students that capturing 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, while in office, felt like 'having Erwin Rommel under lock and key.'

Peterson wrote: 'The blank looks on the faces of her very bright students revealed that they had never heard of WWII's famous Desert Fox.'

Peterson is seen teaching on Zoom during the pandemic. He said on Tuesday night that he was left dismayed by the attitude of some of his students

He concluded that it 'stemmed from students having swapped an education for indoctrination.'

Peterson added: 'Those enlisted as social justice warriors had avoided the lessons of history, missed out on refining skills that might have allowed them to judge assertions and denied themselves the insights required to make wise trade-offs.'

The businessman, who co-founded a $1 billion investment management firm, Peterson Partners, has taught courses in real estate, entrepreneurship, and leadership at the Graduate School of Business.

He said that his voicing of concerns about the tweet were greeted with criticism from Twitter, but support from other faculty members.

'I think people are taking it seriously and seeing the problem that's a real one,' Peterson told Carlson.

He said 200 faculty members signed a letter in his defense.

'They wrote a letter that reflects what they decided in Chicago, at the University of Chicago, as an anti-triggering warning where they say to students: if you are here, and you don't feel your views threatened, you are in the wrong place. You should go somewhere else.'

Peterson was referring to an August 2016 letter from John Ellison, dean of students at the University of Chicago, which set off a firestorm.

Ellison wrote: 'Our commitment to academic freedom means that we do not support so-called trigger warnings, we do not cancel invited speakers because their topics might prove controversial and we do not condone the creation of intellectual safe spaces where individuals can retreat from ideas and perspectives at odds with their own.'

Peterson continued: 'Rather than protect students, they are actually willing to have them be triggered - to have open and free debate, exchanges of ideas.'
Western Australia has closed its border with NSW after sweeping restrictions were brought in across Sydney to contain its coronavirus update.

WA Premier Mark McGowan said his state would erect its hard border with the whole of NSW from 11am on Wednesday.

The hard border means travel through or from NSW is no longer permitted, except for exempt travellers and returning residents.

The premier explained NSW is now considered 'medium risk' under WA's controlled interstate border.

WA Premier Mark McGowan said his state would erect its hard border with the whole of NSW from 11am on Wednesday

The restrictions apply to anyone who may have been in NSW since June 11, and has not subsequently been in a 'very low risk' state or territory in the last 14 days.

This also applies to any person travelling from the ACT who has entered NSW during that time.

WA residents in NSW and need to return home can seek an exemption for compassionate reasons.

'These people will be assessed on a case-by-case basis by WA Police and arrivals will be required to complete 14 days of self-quarantine and be tested for COVID-19 on arrival and on day 11', the Facebook post read.

Mr McGowan urged anyone who has recently arrived from NSW in the past two weeks to continue to monitor symptoms and get tested if any develop.

The premier explained NSW is now considered 'medium risk' under WA's controlled interstate border with travel through or from NSW is no longer permitted

The hard border means travel through or from NSW is no longer permitted, except for exempt travellers and returning residents

'In line with previous advice, anyone who has recently arrived from NSW and was at an exposure site are required to get tested and self-quarantine for 14 days from the date of exposure.'



The border closure comes as NSW records 13 cases of coronavirus overnight, with a series of heightened restrictions to hit the state from 4pm on Wednesday.

State Premier Gladys Berejiklian said health officials had found 10 local cases from 44,000 tests in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday night - seven of which had already been announced.

Since that cut-off, she said another 13 cases were found in the community, with eight attending the same party at West Hoxton in Sydney's far-west.

Contact tracers are investigating four cases with no known source, although all are in close proximity to a cluster in the city's east which has now reached 31 cases.

WHAT ARE THE NEW COVID RESTRICTIONS? From 4pm Wednesday for one week: Visitors to households will be limited to 5 guests  including children; Masks will be compulsory in all indoor non-residential settings, including workplaces, and at organised outdoor events; Drinking while standing at indoor venues will not be allowed; Singing by audiences at indoor shows or by congregants at indoor places of worship will not be allowed; Dancing will not be allowed at indoor hospitality venues or nightclubs however, dancing is allowed at weddings for the bridal party only (no more than 20 people); Dance and gym classes limited to 20 per class (masks must be worn); The one person per four square metre rule will be re-introduced for all indoor and outdoor settings, including weddings and funerals; Outdoor seated events will be limited to 50% seated capacity; Previous public transport capacity limits, represented by green dots, will be reintroduced Advertisement

For the next week household gatherings will be limited to five visitors and masks will be compulsory in all all indoor venues, including workplaces and gym classes.

Drinking while standing indoors will also be banned and those who live and work in seven hotspot council areas will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason.

Those council areas are the City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick - home to about 782,000 residents.

The tightened rules - which also include a 50 per cent capacity restriction for outdoor seated events - will apply to Sydney, the Blue Mountains and Central Coast and Shellharbour regions.

Queensland has also slammed its borders shut to people travelling from Sydney's hotspots on Wednesday morning after the coronavirus outbreak in Bondi Junction skyrocketed to 21 cases on Tuesday.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk confirmed on Wednesday morning anyone who had been in the seven Sydney councils designated by both state governments as high-risk will be forced to enter hotel quarantine from 1am Thursday.

Those areas include the City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick - about 782,000 residents.

'We cannot afford to have this Delta variant out in the community,' Palaszczuk said as the state recorded another case transmitted in hotel quarantine.

She said Queensland will be following Victoria's lead overnight by banning anyone entering from the seven-exposed areas.

There were no community transmissions of the virus recorded in Queensland overnight.
As many as 40,000 Native American children may have died from care at government-run boarding schools around the US, a researcher has claimed, prompting a federal investigation to address the trauma's 'intergenerational impact.'

US Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a June 22 memo that her department will prepare a report that identifies federal boarding school facilities, map out the locations of known and possible student burial sites, and learn the identities and tribal affiliations of the children.

In her memo, Haaland - a member of the Laguna Pueblo tribe and first Native American Cabinet Secretary - said most indigenous parents could not visit their children at these schools, where some were abused, killed and buried in unmarked graves.

'Survivors of the traumas of boarding school policies carried their memories into adulthood as they became the aunts and uncles, parents, and grandparents to subsequent generations,' Haaland wrote in her memo.

'The loss of those who did not return left an enduring need in their families for answers that, in many cases, were never provided. Distance, time, and the scattering of school records have made it more difficult, if not impossible, for their families to locate a loved ones final resting place and bring closure through the appropriate ceremonies.'

US interior secretary Deb Haaland said in a June 22 memo that the US federal government will investigate US-run boarding schools for Native Americans following a Dartmouth scholar's grim discovery that 'it's quite likely 40,000 children died ' in these insituations

That's why she's directing the Department of the Interior to undertake this investigation and address the 'intergenerational impact' of Indian boarding schools 'to shed light on the traumas of the past.'

'While it may be difficult to learn of the traumas suffered in the boarding school era, understanding its impacts on communities today cannot occur without acknowledging that painful history,' she said.

The investigation comes after Preston McBride, a Dartmouth College scholar, documented at least 1,000 deaths from 1879 to 1934 at just four of the over 500 schools.

He offered his grim estimate for total deaths at government-run schools - which came about in the early 19th century and still exist today - in a Reuters report published Tuesday.

'It's quite likely that 40,000 children died either in or because of these institutions,' said McBride, who estimates that tens of thousands more children were simply never again in contact with their families or their tribes after being sent off to the schools.

Founded by Army veteran General Richard Pratt in 1879, the Carlisle Indian Industrial School (pictured) in Pennsylvania was among the 367 original government-operated institutions for Native American children

A team of archaeologists began work Saturday at the cemetery on the grounds of the Carlisle Barracks (pictured) to unearth the remains of 10 more Native American children who died more than a century ago at the Carlisle school

'This is on the order of magnitude of something like the Trail of Tears,' he added, referring to the government's forced displacement of Native Americans between 1830 and 1850. 'Yet its not talked about.'

McBride's comments came after a team of archeologists began exhuming the remains of ten Native American children who died more than a century ago at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania.

Of the ten deceased children, nine were from the Rosebud Sioux tribe in South Dakota and one was from the Alaskan Aleut tribe.

This is the Army's fourth disinterment project at the school in as many years.

Founded by Army veteran General Richard Pratt in 1879, Carlisle was among the 367 original government-operated institutions for Native American children. It's cemetery contains 180 graves of former students.

Preston McBride (pictured) a Dartmouth College scholar, has documented at least 1,000 deaths from 1879 to 1934 at just four of the over 500 schools that have existed in the United States, including the non-boarding schools on Indian reservations

The federal government does not know or is unwilling to say how many children even attended the schools, how many died in or went missing from them, or even how many schools existed.

Native Americans have watched with horror and a sorrowful sense of recognition as news unfolded in Canada of the discovery of the bodies of 215 children in unmarked graves at one of what were known as indigenous residential schools.

The Canadian government said its indigenous residential schools, the last of which closed in 1996, carried out 'cultural genocide.' Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission has found at least 4,100 students died in the schools.

Among those who have called for a commission to fully investigate the legacy of Indian boarding schools is Interior Secretary Deb Haaland (pictured)

Haaland, in an essay published on June 11 in the Washington Post, said the news from Canada made her 'sick to my stomach.'

'Many Americans may be alarmed to learn that the United States also has a history of taking Native children from their families in an effort to eradicate our culture and erase us as people,' wrote Haaland.

For over 150 years, hundreds of thousands of Indigenous children were uprooted from their communities and forced into US government-operated boarding schools that focused on assimilation.

Before shutting down in 1918, the Carlisle school housed some 10,000 indigenous children.

Many students were forced to cut their braids, dress in uniforms, speak English and adopt European names. Infectious diseases and harsh conditions claimed the lives of many children buried there.

The deaths were primarily from diseases made far more lethal in many of the schools because of poor treatment.

Marsha Small, a Montana State University doctoral student, is part of a team that has worked to locate unmarked graves at the Chemawa Indian School cemetery in Salem, Oregon, using ground-penetrating radar.

So far, Small has located 222 sets of remains, but says additional work is required to have a full accounting.

For over 150 years, hundreds of thousands of Indigenous children (pictured) were uprooted from their communities and forced into US government-operated boarding schools that focused on assimilation.

Since 2016, dozens of Native American and Alaskan Native families have requested that their ancestors be returned from Carlisle school (pictured)

As many as 40,000 Native American children (pictured) may have died from poor care at government-run boarding schools around the US, McBride claims

'Until we can find those kids and let their elders come get them or know where they can pay respects, I don't think the native is going to heal, and as such I don't think America is going to heal,' Small said.

Chemawa, founded in 1880, is still operating.

Native Americans acknowledge that the schools still operating have transformed in important ways.

Many are now under tribal oversight and children are taught their native languages instead of being punished for speaking them. However, the schools have yet to acknowledge their pasts, said the coalition's McCleave and others.

'Before we can move forward, they have to recognize that legacy,' she said.
A fired-up Anthony Albanese tore into Scott Morrison over the slow coronavirus vaccine rollout and repeated hotel quarantine leaks as five million Sydneysiders stared down the barrel of another hard lockdown.

The Labor leader said there have been at least 25 outbreaks of Covid-19 from the hotel quarantine system since the start of the pandemic and called on the Prime Minister to set up a 'safe national system'.

He also slammed Mr Morrison over the vaccine rollout which is lagging well behind other developed nations with only three per cent of adults fully vaccinated.

People are seen queuing to enter a mass COVID-19 vaccination hub in Sydney in May

Poll Has Scott Morrison bungled the vaccine rollout? Yes No Undecided Has Scott Morrison bungled the vaccine rollout? Yes 91 votes

No 40 votes

Undecided 5 votes Now share your opinion





Mr Albanese - who has struggled to dent Mr Morrison's popularity - said these two failures meant the federal government is to blame for the latest outbreak in Sydney which has caused 31 infections and prompted Premier Gladys Berejiklian to mandate mask wearing indoors.

'How many outbreaks will it takes before the government fixes the bungled vaccine rollout and creates a safe, national quarantine system,' the Opposition leader said.

The Sydney cluster, which involves the Indian Delta variant of the disease, has prompted other states and New Zealand to slam their borders shut to New South Wales residents, throwing school holidays into chaos.

Mr Albanese has heavily criticised the government for only signing vaccine deals with two suppliers while France, Germany and Italy have four vaccines, and the US, UK and Canada have three.

Those nations are all relaxing restrictions because of their successful vaccine roll-outs while Australians are trapped in the country and some are now facing another lockdown.

In Question Time on Wednesday, Mr Albanese moved a motion slamming the government.

Taroi Black, Miria Black and Rosina Pukeroa with children Whitirangi and baby Waiparera are seen at Sydney International Airport after being turned away from their flight to New Zealand on Wednesday

Residents who live and work in seven hotspot suburbs are not allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason

He said: 'The House notes A, There is a global pandemic. B, there have been at least 25 COVID outbreaks from hotel quarantine. C, fewer than three per cent of Australians are fully vaccinated.

'D, the Prime Minister had two jobs this year: To roll vaccine and establish a safe national system of quarantine and he has bungled both jobs. E, the outbreak in Sydney is worsening by the hour.

'F, new restrictions are being imposed on businesses and households. G, borders are slamming shut as Australia heads into school holidays. H, the Prime Minister says the vaccine rollout is not a race.

'And I, the New South Wales Premier said today, ''New South Wales has had a real sense of urgency in relation to the vaccine rollout. Until the vast majority of our population is vaccinated, these threats will be real and ongoing''.'

The Opposition leader then called on on the Prime Minister to 'urgently fix his bungled vaccine rollout and establish a safe, national system of quarantine.'

As Labor members cheered him on, Mr Albanese made reference to the overthrowing of former Nationals Leader Michael McCormack by Barnaby Joyce on Monday.

'Mr Speaker, we needed more jabbings and less stabbings,' he said.

Health Minister Greg Hunt said the vaccine rollout was progressing well, with half of Australians over 50 having had a first dose and 99 per cent of aged care residents fully vaccinated.

Mr Morrison defended the hotel quarantine system and said national facilities such as Howard Springs will continue to operate alongside hotels.

Health workers are pictured at the Bondi Beach Drive-through Covid-19 clinic in Sydney's eastern suburbs on Wednesday. Contact tracers are scrambling to trace four cases with no known source

It come as New South Wales recorded 13 cases of Covid-19 community transmission overnight, forcing additional restrictions for the Sydney area.

Ms Berejiklian said health officials had found 10 local cases from 44,000 tests in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday night - seven of which had already been announced.

Since that cut-off, she said another 13 cases were found in the community, with eight attending the same party at West Hoxton in Sydney's far-west.

Contact tracers are investigating four cases with no known source, although all are in close proximity to a cluster in the city's east which has now reached 31 cases.

For the next week from 4pm on Wednesday, household gatherings will be limited to five visitors and masks will be compulsory in all all indoor venues, including workplaces and gym classes.

Drinking while standing indoors will also be banned and those who live and work in seven hotspot council areas will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason.

Those council areas are the City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick - home to about 782,000 residents.
Travellers have flocked to Sydney Domestic Airport in the hopes to get away before state borders slam shut amid the worrying coronavirus outbreak.

The city's growing Covid-19 cluster grew by 13 cases on Wednesday prompting several states to ban certain Sydney or NSW residents from entering.

From 4pm on Wednesday those who live and work in seven hotspot council areas will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason.

Those council areas are the City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick - home to about 782,000 residents.

Thousands of passengers raced to the airport before the 4pm cut off on Wednesday hoping to flee the city in time.

Eager travellers have flocked to Sydney Domestic Airport in the hopes to get away before state borders slam shut amid the worrying coronavirus outbreak

The city's growing Covid-19 cluster grew by 13 cases on Wednesday prompting several states to ban certain Sydney or NSW residents from entering

Queensland slammed its borders shut to people travelling from Sydney's hotspots on Wednesday morning after the coronavirus outbreak in Bondi Junction skyrocketed to 21 cases on Tuesday.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk confirmed on Wednesday morning anyone who had been in the seven Sydney councils designated by both state governments as high-risk will be forced to enter hotel quarantine from 1am on Thursday.

Anyone currently in Queensland who had visited any of the seven suburbs after June 12 must immediately seek a test and isolate.

People who had lived in or been in the Waverley council were already barred from entering the sunshine state.

Returning Queenslanders who visited the hot spots will have to quarantine for two weeks upon arrival.

Photos taken at Sydney Airport earlier on Wednesday show countless travellers armed with suitcases hoping to get away for the weekend or to return to their home states.

Travellers are seen at Sydney Domestic Airport before several states announced they would shut their borders to the NSW city

Western Australia and South Australia have shut their borders to all of NSW effective immediately

New Zealand also paused its quarantine-free travel from NSW (pictured travellers at Sydney Domestic Airport)

The same rules apply to Sydneysiders living in those councils who are wanting to enter Victoria.

Victorians returning home from these areas can apply for an exemption to return to the state but will need to quarantine upon arrival for 14 days.

Meanwhile Western Australia announced its borders will close effective immediately to anyone from the entire state of NSW from 11am on Wednesday.

The hard border means travel through or from NSW is no longer permitted, except for exempt travellers and returning residents.

WA Premier Mark McGowan explained NSW is now considered 'medium risk' under WA's controlled interstate border.

The restrictions apply to anyone who may have been in NSW since June 11, and has not subsequently been in a 'very low risk' state or territory in the last 14 days.

Passengers are seen lining up to check in at Sydney Domestic Airport on Wednesday

Health workers are pictured at the Bondi Beach Drive-through Covid-19 clinic in Sydney's eastern suburbs on Wednesday. Contact tracers are scrambling to trace four cases with no known source

This also applies to any person travelling from the ACT who has entered NSW during that time.

WA residents in NSW and need to return home can seek an exemption for compassionate reasons.

'These people will be assessed on a case-by-case basis by WA Police and arrivals will be required to complete 14 days of self-quarantine and be tested for COVID-19 on arrival and on day 11', the Facebook post read.

South Australia also shut its borders to all of NSW and anyone who's been in the state within the last 14 days effective immediately.

Those with exemptions and returning travellers can enter the state but will have to undergo quarantine.

A flight from Sydney to Adelaide arrived at around 3pm with SA Police Commissioner Grant Stevens saying the circumstances of those on board would be worked through on an 'exemption basis'.

'It may be that they have to quarantine or return,' he said.

Sydneysiders from the seven councils listed as hot spots have also been banned from entering Tasmania.

New Zealand has also paused quarantine-free travel with NSW while the Northern Territory has declared the Waverley and Woollahra areas as hotspots meaning those arriving from those areas will have to isolate for 14 days.
Sydney's coronavirus outbreak could be a blessing in disguise as millions of Australians will feel compelled to get vaccinated.

The outbreak rose to 31 on Wednesday, mostly linked to the Bondi Junction epicentre, prompting sweeping restrictions across Sydney.

Residents will have to wear masks indoors and not see more than five mates at a time for the next week - or longer if the cluster spreads and grows.

However, this temporary pain could be a net benefit to NSW and the whole country by shocking complacent Australians procrastinating their vaccinations.

A leading Australian doctor says Sydney's new harsh restrictions could be a blessing in disguise as the latest outbreak skyrockets to 31 cases

Australian National University professor Peter Collignon said the measures being taken by the NSW Government could see a spike in vaccinations.

'If more people get vaccinated, particularly those over 70, it's a good thing,' he told Daily Mail Australia just after the restrictions were announced.

'If we look in Victoria with two their separate outbreaks, it did increase vaccination markedly. I think it'll have the same effect in NSW.'

Dr Collignon said though 'it's not the way' he'd be pushing vaccines, the move could prove to be a positive thing for Australia's battle with the virus.

'The benefits of the vaccine so far outweigh the other side,' he said.

'The perception of risk is out of proportion to the benefits. There's a one in two million chance you'll die as a result of the [AstraZeneca] vaccine from clots.'

He said the added motivation of having rights removed can often convince people who were on the fence about getting the jab.

'As soon as Covid spreads and it means restricting your life, that shows more people the benefits of the vaccine,' he said.

Dr Collignon said while 'it's not the way' he'd be pushing vaccines, the move could prove to be a positive thing for Australia's continued battle with the virus

Dr Peter Collignon, a professor of microbiology at the Australian National University, says the extreme measures being taken by the NSW government could see a spike in vaccinations

Following Victoria's fourth lockdown, which began on May 28, vaccine rates in that state surged, according to the University of Melbourne.

In the first week of lockdown the proportion of people vaccinated in the state jumped from 17.7 per cent to 22.3 per cent.

The rest of Australia increased from 17.1 per cent to 18.7 per cent in the same week.

This translates to Victoria's most recent outbreak and lockdown causing people to get vaccinated twice as fast as the rest of the country.

The university also noted the number of adults in Victoria who claimed they wanted to wait to get vaccinated dropped from 37.4 per cent to 29.1 per cent during the lockdown.

For over 50s the effect was even more apparent with the number plunging from 39.4 per cent to 21.6 per cent.

Department of Health and Human Services' Jeroen Weimar (right) is seen at the mass vaccination hub at the Royal Exhibition Building in Melbourne, Saturday, May 1, 2021

Dr Collignon believes the restrictions put in place by NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian were 'proportionate' and a lockdown is not yet necessary.

'The good news is there isn't too many cases out there in the community,' he said.

'There are some community transmissions, but while that's the case we have to do what we can to stop its spread.'

Australians over 60 are urged to roll up their sleeves for the AstraZeneca vaccine rather than waiting for alternatives.

Medical experts are worried Australia's success in controlling coronavirus could be put at risk if vaccinations are not rolled out quickly enough.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison encouraged older Australians to get a vaccine and told younger people to convince their older relatives.

Acting Victorian Premier James Merlino receives a COVID-19 vaccine at the Royal Exhibition Building vaccination hub in Melbourne, Friday, May 28, 2021

Earlier this week Mr Morrison said he was not focused on people who were vaccine hesitant, instead focusing his efforts on those willing to get one.

'I encourage all those that are over 50 to go and get the jab, and particularly if you are over 70 which is our strong focus. I would very much encourage you to do it,' he told reporters in Launceston, Tasmania, on Friday.

There are concerns some older Australians are reluctant to get the AstraZeneca jab because of its link to a tiny number of rare blood clots.

Health Department secretary Brendan Murphy said a 'complete overview' of the vaccine rollout was needed to ensure the substantial ramp-up in the second half of the year went smoothly'.

He told the committee 48 per cent of over-50s received a first jab, as had 65 per cent of over-70s.

However, Professor Murphy added: 'Hardly anyone has had their second shot because the AstraZeneca has a 12-week schedule.

'It only started second shots in the last two weeks.'
Commonwealth Bank appears to be suffering its second major service outage within a week.

The bank said on Wednesday about 1.40pm there was an issue affecting some of their 'merchant' systems and they were 'urgently' investigating the issue.

Customers have reported having they were also having difficulty logging in to the NetBank website, mobile app and some ATMs were offline.

'We are currently working to fix this and apologise for the inconvenience to your afternoon,' the company tweeted.

Commonwealth Bank customers have been unable to access their accounts online due to a technical outage on Wednesday (stock image)

'I can't get out of a parking building because I can't use my card,' one person said on Twitter in response to Thursday's outage.

'I run a cafe and most of my customers are paying with card. I had to turn away people because the eftpos is not working,' another said.

'Come on CommBank. It's not even a week yet,' added a third.

Just last Thursday Commonwealth Bank was affected by an Australia-wide system outage that also hit a number of other banks as well as airlines and Australia Post.

That disruption was caused by United States based content delivery company Akamai Technologies' infrastructure temporarily failing.

Akamai customers such as the Commonwealth Bank, ANZ, Telstra, and Virgin Australia airlines went offline for between one and four hours as engineers raced to repair the problem.

More than 1600 Commonwealth Bank outages were reported by website downdetector on Wednesday at about 2pm with the majority affecting NetBank.
A Sydney pizza shop has given away dozens of free pizzas to people waiting in line at a drive-thru Covid testing site.

The tasty surprise was delivered by Site Pizza Bar who handed out the free pizzas to everyone waiting to be tested at Chifley Park drive-thru clinic on Tuesday afternoon.

The heartwarming gesture was announced via the business' Facebook page.

'To all that are being patient and are waiting to be tested at Chifley Park we are on our way to say thank you with some pizza to share' the post read.

The pizza bar surprised people waiting in line for a covid test by announcing the giveaway over Facebook

Pictured: a worker is busily preparing multiple pizzas ready to be delivered to people waiting in line at a Covid drive-thru testing clinic

In images shared to the Facebook post, mask-clad workers are seen frantically preparing the pizzas for delivery while they comply with the latest covid restrictions.

The act of kindness comes as people are subjected to long wait times across Sydney as the demand for covid testing increases, with active cases in New South Wales growing from 10 to 13 overnight.

Site pizza bar has venues in both Little Bay and Maroubra.

New South Wales has recorded 13 cases of Covid-19 community transmission overnight but Premier Gladys Berejiklian has stopped short of sending Sydney into a hard lockdown.

Ms Berejiklian said health officials had found 10 local cases from 44,000 tests in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday night - seven of which had already been announced.

Since that cut-off, she said another 13 cases were found in the community, with eight attending the same party at West Hoxton in Sydney's far-west.

Contact tracers are investigating four cases with no known source, although all are in close proximity to a cluster in the city's east which has now reached 31 cases.

For the next week from 4pm on Wednesday, household gatherings will be limited to five visitors and masks will be compulsory in all all indoor venues, including workplaces and gym classes.

The images which were shared to Facebook were a way to thank the community for their patience during long wait times for Covid testing

Drinking while standing in pubs and bars will also be banned and those who live and work in seven hotspot council areas will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason.

Those council areas are the City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick - home to about 782,000 residents.

The tightened rules - which also include a 50 per cent capacity restriction for outdoor seated events - will apply to Sydney, the Blue Mountains and Central Coast and Shellharbour regions.

Ms Berejiklian said the growth of 'unlinked cases' in the state meant she needed to take proportionate action to stop the highly-contagious Delta variant from spreading.
Limousine drivers ferrying air crew between NSW airports and hotel quarantine are reportedly not required to be vaccinated against Covid or wear masks.

Sydney's coronavirus outbreak was sparked by an unvaccinated Sydney Airport driver last week tested positive to the highly-infectious Delta variant.

The outbreak reached 31 on Wednesday and prompted sweeping restrictions on the city including mask wearing indoors, travel limits, and gatherings capped at five.

SkyNews Politicial Editor Andrew Clennell (pictured) has claimed the NSW government has no rules for limousine drivers transporting international passengers

Sky News political editor Andrew Clennell raged at the 'incompetent' state government, claiming the driver was not required to be vaccinated or wear PPE.

Clennell while discussing the new restrictions on Wednesday said public health orders only require limousine drivers to undergo Covid-testing.

'It makes no sense whatsoever. It is clearly a failure of government - let alone the driver - that someone could be ferrying international aircrews without being vaccinated,' he said.

'We know you can still get the virus and pass it on if vaccinated, but there is a much less chance, around 70 per cent, that would occur.'

That the driver was unvaccinated, and not required to be, was revealed last week when his case was made public, but the clamed lack of PPE mandate was not.

Police have for the past week investigated whether the driver, aged in his 60s, breached any health orders, which require those working around the hotel quarantine system to be tested for the virus daily.

During the press conference, NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard was asked why the driver was not vaccinated and if police determined whether any Covid breaches occurred.

Mr Hazzard did not respond directly to his question, instead reiterating that the man had been co-operative with health authorities.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has introduced a raft of new restrictions across Sydney in light of the growing outbreak

'The limousine driver has been very helpful, in the sense that he has helped the tracers. Anything beyond that, in terms of enforcement, are matters for the police,' he said.

The Bondi man was first tested for the virus on June 15, when he returned a positive reading. It is unclear when he began working in the system or if he only sought Covid-19 testing when his employer requested he do so.

It is unclear if the man was wearing personal protective equipment as required for most frontline workers.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted NSW Police and NSW Health for further comment.

Thousands of Sydneysiders won't be allowed to travel beyond the metro area as part the restrictions imposed following a 'super-spreader event' in the city's west.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian said restrictions were 'effective immediately' for Greater Sydney, the Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Shellharbour.

'Please abandon non-essential activities, please don't attend social gatherings unless you absolutely must,' the premier said on Wednesday.

'I am not going to rule out further action.'

Sydney's eastern suburbs cluster has ballooned to 31 after 13 new Covid cases were recorded overnight. Pictured: The Bondi Beach Drive-through COVID-19 Clinic with long lines stretching along Campbell Parade on June 23

Those who live or work in the City of Sydney, Waverley, Randwick, Canada Bay, Inner West, Bayside, and Woollahra local government areas cannot travel outside the metropolitan area unless it's absolutely essential.

The metro area is defined as the Hawkesbury/Nepean River in the north/north west and the outer boundaries of the City of Penrith, Camden Council, the City of Campbelltown and Sutherland Shire.

'We don't want the virus to spread to the regions,' Ms Berejiklian said.

NSW recorded 10 locally acquired cases to 8pm on Tuesday, seven of which were already announced.

An additional 13 cases were reported after 8pm, which will be counted in Thursday's official tally. Four of these cases are currently unlinked to existing cases.

Overall, there have been 16 new cases taking the total number of infections to 31, from 21 on Tuesday.

Eight of the 13 new cases announced on Wednesday are linked to a birthday party in Sydney's west that was attended by an unknowingly infectious worker from Bondi Junction Westfield (pictured)

Health workers are seen at Bondi Beach Drive-through COVID-19 Clinic on Wednesday, as the Bondi cluster grew to 31

Under the new restrictions, household visitors are limited to five people, including children and masks are now compulsory in non-residential indoor settings - including workplaces - and at outdoor events.

Masks must also be worn to gym classes, which limited to 20 people.

More than 44,000 tests were completed in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday.

Eight of the 13 cases confirmed overnight had attended a birthday party attended by about 30 people in West Hoxton on Saturday, which NSW Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant described as a 'super spreader event'.

She warned there were people 'unknowingly' infected in the community.

An asymptomatic worker from Bondi Junction went to the party as did a father and a daughter.

The child then went to her childcare centre 60km southwest of Sydney's CBD on Monday.

Just two days before public schools break for two weeks, Queensland followed Victoria and New Zealand by imposing bans on travellers from much of Sydney.

From 1am Thursday, Queensland will close its border to people from the City of Sydney and the Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West, and Randwick local government areas. Waverley was already on the list.

Masks are now compulsory in non-residential indoor settings - including workplaces - and at outdoor events. Pedestrians are seen at Bondi Junction on June 21 as the city battles another Covid outbreak

'To keep Queenslanders safe, we will be following exactly what Victoria has announced last night,' Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said.

'This advice may have to be updated during the course of the day or into the evening.'

Other Australian states have imposed border restrictions for people from the hotspot areas, with Victoria on Tuesday declared seven Sydney local government areas 'red zone'.

Earlier on Wednesday, NSW Health issued a health alert after a person infected with the virus flew from Sydney to New Zealand and back.

The alert was for passengers travelling on Qantas flight QF163 on Friday night to Wellington, and anyone who flew on Monday morning on Air New Zealand flight NZ247 from Wellington to Sydney.

Passengers on board those flights must contact NSW Health immediately, get tested and isolate for 14 days regardless of the result.
The enduring rivalry between Sydney and Melbourne was reignited when a Victorian woman posted a TikTok video wondering why her state's Covid-19 rules were tougher despite more cases in NSW.

Melburnian @gracemckinnonjournalist posted: "Why?I Sydney has more Covid-19 cases than Melbourne BUT Melbourne has stricter Covid-19 rules than Sydney?'

Melbourne journalist Grace McKinnon's post drew a mixed response in the comments

Some Sydney people commented they do 'the right thing' while some Melburnians thought the NSW Government cared more about 'the interests of big business'

Reaction to Ms McKinnon's video revealed the age-old Sydney-Melbourne rivalry is alive and well.

'Funniest thing is we have always has less restrictions and way less cases and deaths.. better management and tracing system,' a Sydney resident commented on the video.

'That's the difference between a government that cares about its people, and not just the interests of big business,' a Victorian posted.

'That's because Victoria has better leadership,' commented another.

'Because Sydney is managed by competent people, Melbourne run by morons,' another person countered.

'Because we mostly do the right thing when we are asked to by wearing masks and whatnot,' wrote a Sydney resident.

'You say that as if Melbourne doesn't?' responded a Melburnian.

A number of other Victorians complained about their state being a 'control state' after the state's numerous lockdowns to combat the virus, the most recent imposed for seven days on May 27.

Police and defence personnel guard a Covid isolation hotel in Melbourne on June 18 as people return to the city centre after an easing of restrictions on travel and mask wearing

Masked health workers working at the Bondi Beach Drive-through Covid-19 Clinic on June 23

The online sniping between residents of Australia's two biggest cities come as Victoria banned visits from Sydneysiders who live in one of seven LGAs - City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick.

The LGAs are considered red zones under Victoria's travel permit system, meaning non-Victorian residents who have been in the areas in the past two weeks are banned from entering the state.

Victorians will have to get a red zone permit and quarantine at home for 14 days.

Wollongong had also been classified as an orange zone, requiring arrivals in Victoria to get tested and isolate until they receive a negative result.

Queensland today followed Victoria's restrictions regarding Sydney residents.

New South Wales announced today that it had recorded 13 new cases of Covid-19 community transmission since yesterday evening but Premier Gladys Berejiklian stopped short of sending Sydney into a hard lockdown.

Eight of the new cases had attended the same party at West Hoxton in Sydney's far-west.

Pedestrians walking at Bondi Junction, Sydney, on June 21. A cluster of Covid-19 cases in Sydney's eastern suburbs had now caused seven Sydney LGAs to be named as hotspots

Ms Berejiklian announced, however, new restrictions including limiting household visitors to five guests, including children, and compulsory mask-wearing in all indoor non-residential settings, including workplaces, and at organised outdoor events.

The announcement contrasted with the press conference held by Victoria's Acting Premier James Merlino, who detailed a relaxation of restrictions in Melbourne and regional Victoria from 11.59pm this Thursday.

Key among the changes was that marks are no longer required outdoors unless you cannot social distance. Masks must continue be carried at all times and worn indoors, including at work, for everyone aged 12 years and older.
A Sri Lankan asylum seeker family who were detained for three years on Christmas Island have been granted bridging visas which allow them to work and study in Perth for three months.

Last week the Murugappan family were reunited on the Australian mainland after being granted a community detention order by Immigration Minister Alex Hawke.

Father Nadesalingam 'Nades' Murugappan and his daughter Kopika, six, flew to Perth to meet mother Priya and their four-year-old daughter Tharnicaa who was receiving medical care at a Perth Hospital for a blood infection.

A heartwarming photograph showed the family together with friends and supporters.

On Wednesday Mr Hawke revealed he had granted the parents and eldest daughter Kopika bridging visas so they can work and study while their legal battle to stay in Australia is ongoing.

Pictured: The Tamil asylum-seeker family of four are pictured with family and friends in Perth

'Yesterday at the request of the Sri Lankan family formerly resident in Christmas Island, I exercised my power under section 195A of the Migration Act, granting members of the family 3 month Bridging Visas, providing work and study rights,' he said in a statement.

'Under section 195A a Minister can intervene to grant a person a visa if it is in the public interest to do so.

'This decision allows three members of the family to reside in the Perth community on bridging visas while the youngest child's medical care, and the family's legal matters, are ongoing. The fourth family member's visa status is unchanged.

'The family will continue to have access to health care, support services, housing and schooling in the Perth community.'

The Tamil couple arrived in Australia separately by boat in 2012 and 2013, during their country's civil war.

They met in Sydney and later settled in Biloela, Queensland where they had two daughters and Nades worked in a meat factory.

They were detained three years ago when their bridging visas ran out but their lawyers have been fighting deportation since, claiming they will be persecuted in Sri Lanka.

It has been almost three years since they saw their friends on the mainland of Australia

Nades and Kopika of the Biloela family board a plane on Christmas Island bound for Perth on Tuesday (pictured at the airport) to be reunited with her sister and mother

Kopika was born in 2015 and Tharnicaa in 2017 - both in Australia.

In 2018 the family were removed from Biloela and placed in the Broadmeadows detention centre in Melbourne, before being taken to the offshore detention centre at Christmas Island in 2019.

They were detained on Christmas Island for more than two years and reunited at Perth Hospital this week, where Tharnicaa was being treated.

The federal government is under mounting pressure to let the Sri Lankan asylum seeker family stay in Australia, where both children were born.

There was widespread outrage across the country after it was revealed Tharnicaa was sent to the mainland with her mother for treatment while her father and sister remained at the detention centre.

The Biloela family have been detained on Christmas Island for more than two years (pictured, Nades and Kopika wave goodbye to the island)

The federal government has been weighing up what to do with the Sri Lankan asylum seeker family as it faces mounting pressure to let them stay in Australia, where both of their children were born. Pictured: Nades and Kopika of the Biloela family prepare to board a plane to Perth

The decision allows the family to earn and study while they pursue ongoing litigation before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, Federal Court and High Court.

But the decision does not create a pathway for a permanent visa.

'The Government's position on border protection has not changed. Anyone who arrives in Australia illegally by boat will not be resettled permanently,' Mr Hawke said last week.

'Anyone who is found to not be owed protection will be expected to leave Australia.'

Family friend Angela Fredericks said the decision to let the family off Christmas Island was a welcome one for the long-suffering asylum seekers, but called for more to be done to bring the family back to their North Queensland home, Biloela.

'Bringing this family back together is the first important step in getting them home to Bilo,' Ms Fredericks said.

'We are pleased that the Department of Home Affairs is finally taking this family off Christmas Island, after more than three years of sub-standard care in immigration detention in Melbourne and on Christmas Island.

'Nades is keen to get back to work in Biloela to support his young family, which he cannot do while the family is forced into community detention.

'Priya wants to enrol Kopika at Biloela State School to continue her education. And we promised little Tharni a big birthday party when she got home.

'Australia knows this family's home is in Biloela.'

Tharnicaa Murugappan (pictured) was medically evacuated to Perth after being hospitalised on Christmas Island with a suspected blood infection

Pressure has been mounting on Scott Morrison Morrison to let the family stay in Australia, with politicians from across the spectrum calling for them to be allowed to return to their adopted home of Biloela in Queensland.

He has signalled the government could finally back away from its hardline stance and allow the family to stay in Australia, at least on a temporary basis.

'There are options that are being considered that are consistent with both health advice and the humanitarian need and the government's policy,' Mr Morrison said last week.

Kopika (left) gets taken to school by guards while Priya stays inside to look after four-year-old Tharunicaa (right)

However, the prime minister said permanent resettlement was out of the question.

'That wouldn't be government policy for a pathway to permanent settlement - that is not the government's policy.'

Nine health organisations representing tens of thousands of medical professionals across Australia have signed an open letter calling for the family's release.

Paediatrician Jacqueline Small from the Royal Australasian College of Physicians said the children must be allowed to develop and grow in the community.

Tharnicaa reads a book from her bed in Perth hospital on Thursday where she is being treated for sepsis. The announcement comes amid growing calls for the federal government to resettle the family

'We feel very strongly keeping these children in held detention, particularly offshore detention, represents an extreme and unacceptable risk to the children's health, development and mental wellbeing,' she told ABC radio.

'Given both children were in held detention from their toddlerhood, the risks are even higher.'

Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce - who reclaimed leadership this week - has supported calls for the family to stay in Australia for more than two years.

'Tharnicaa and Kopika were born in Australia,' he told Network Seven.

'Now, maybe if their names were Jane and Sally and they were playing in their local netball side, we'd think twice about sending them back to another country which they're not from.'

Father Nades and Kopika, six, are set to reunite with mother Priya and Tharnicaa in Perth

Mr Joyce also argued Mr and Mrs Murugappan had jobs and were valued members of their local community.

'In regional Australia, we need people who have jobs. These people should be staying here.'

Labor leader Anthony Albanese rejected the argument showing the family compassion and exercising discretion would somehow restart the people-smuggling trade.

'This is about a family who are here, this is not a threat to our national sovereignty,' he said.
Millions of Sydneysiders have been banned from leaving the city amid a spiralling Covid outbreak, with Queensland, Victoria, SA and WA rushing to slam their borders shut as the city sits on the edge of a wider lockdown.

There were 16 new cases announced on Wednesday - bringing the total to 36 new community infections in Sydney - including four worrying mystery cases with no known source.

The outbreak forced Gladys Berejiklian to bring in new restrictions, including banning people from metropolitan Sydney from leaving the city, but she stopped short of shutting down businesses.

However, a senior health source says Sydney is looking down the barrel of further restrictions as the number of infections continue to rise.

While the source had no specific information about further restrictions or a lockdown, they admitted: 'The trend is not looking good.'

'[Lockdown] Is where we look like heading, however hard the government tries to hold out,' they said.

Queensland's premier Annastacia Palaszczuk rushed to declare all of Sydney a Covid-19 hotspot, slamming the borders shut to millions.

Queues grew at Sydney Airport on Wednesday (pictured) as people rushed to leave the state before domestic borders slammed shut

Those who live and work in seven hotspot suburbs will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason

The majority of the new cases stem from a birthday party on Saturday in West Hoxton, in western Sydney, which included the Bondi Junction Westfield worker (pictured, a Sydney shop worker on Wednesday)

Even more extreme is Western Australia and South Australia, which have shut the border to the entire of New South Wales.

In Victoria, people from seven local government areas are banned from the state - City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick.

It comes as an urgent alert has been put out for bus passengers on four Sydney routes on Sunday plus diners at restaurants across the city who must be tested and self isolate.

Five bus journeys were added to the close contact list on Wednesday evening with alerts for anyone who was on specific trips on the 600 or 665 buses on Sunday June 20.

Anyone who travelled on bus 333 between 1.07pm and 1.12pm on Tuesday June 22 is also considered a casual contact and should get tested and self-isolate immediately.

Sydneysiders who were at the Tropicana Cafe in Darlinghurst between 12pm and 2pm on Friday 18 June, or Ikaria Bondi between 5pm and 7pm on Sunday June 20 have been told to contact NSW Health immediately and isolate for two weeks.

Shoppers at Coles Express on Birrell Street in Bondi Junction in the half an hour after 7.15pm on June 18 should get tested an isolate immediately, along with anyone who was at Wooworths Metro at Bondi Beach between 1 and 1.30pm on June 20.

Visitors at to Coles Kings Cross in Potts Point between 8pm and 9pm on Monday June 21 should also get tested and isolate, along with anyone who was at the Transport NSW Training Centre in Petersham between 4 and 4.10pm on Monday.

Those who live or work in metropolitan Sydney have been ordered to not leave the area under tough new restrictions likely to impact thousands as the school holidays begin

Specific bus trips between Bankwest Stadium and Pennant Hills Station and Parramatta Station and Rouse Hill Station were added to the danger list on Wednesday evening. (Pictured, a masked passenger on a Sydney bus)

Bondi Beach Woolworth's Metro (pictured) was identified as a Covid exposure site on Wednesday, adding to Sydney's growing list

Three trains lines are also on the list, including one that travelled from Bondi Junction to Mascot on Friday June 18 between 6.55pm and 7.22pm.

Another travelled from Mascot to Central on Saturday June 19 between 5.26pm and 5.35pm, and the third went from Central to Glenfield on the same day between 5.53pm and 6.38pm.

Likewise, anyone who was at Nando's at Wetherill Park Shopping Centre on Sunday June 20 between 6pm and 7pm, Lumiere Cafe in Surry Hills between 1pm and 2pm on Monday June 21 or Bamboo Thai restaurant in Redfern on Monday between 6.15pm and 7.10pm.

NSW Health has also upgraded a previous warning about Woolworth's in Spring Farm. Anyone who was in the supermarket between 9.30am and 11.30am should also be tested and self isolate for 14 days now.

Anyone who has been to the venues are considered a close contact and must call NSW Health immediate, get Covid test and isolate for 14 days, regardless of the result.

Three more locations were identified as potentially casual contact sites with anyone affected told to get tested and self isolate until they get a negative result.

Anyone who was in the new alert zones should also be tested and self isolate for 14 days now. (Pictured, Sydney commuters wearing masks under the new Covid public transport regulations)

It affects anyone at Woolworths Metro in Bondi Beach on Sunday June 20 between 1pm and 1.30pm, Coles in Willowdale in Denham Court on Sunday between 4.45pm and 5pm and also on Monday between 5pm and 5.05pm.

The same applies for the Ampol service station on Old South Head Road in Bondi North between 8am and 8.10am on Tuesday June 22.

Two venues in the ritzy suburb of Double Bay have now been added to the city's growing list of exposure sites, including restaurant Matteo and the salon of renowned stylist, Joh Bailey.

New exposure sight: On Wednesday, it was announced the Joh Bailey salon was exposed from June 17 to June 19

NEW COVID-19 RULES FOR GREATER SYDNEY From 4pm Wednesday for one week: Visitors to households will be limited to 5 guests  including children; Masks will be compulsory in all indoor non-residential settings, including workplaces, and at organised outdoor events; Drinking while standing at indoor venues will not be allowed; Singing by audiences at indoor shows or by congregants at indoor places of worship will not be allowed; Dancing will not be allowed at indoor hospitality venues or nightclubs however, dancing is allowed at weddings for the bridal party only (no more than 20 people); Dance and gym classes limited to 20 per class (masks must be worn); The one person per four square metre rule will be re-introduced for all indoor and outdoor settings, including weddings and funerals; Outdoor seated events will be limited to 50% seated capacity; Previous public transport capacity limits, represented by green dots, will be reintroduced Advertisement

Joh's owns three other salons across the city and boasts elite clientele, including Olivia Newton-John, Kylie Minogue, Eva Longoria, Elle Macpherson and most notably the late Princess Diana.

A public health warning has also been issued Christo's Pizzeria in nearby Paddington.

The majority of the new cases stem from a birthday party on Saturday in West Hoxton, in western Sydney, which included the Bondi Junction Westfield worker.

A man in his 30s was not suffering any symptoms but was tested the next day when they developed and received a positive result on Monday.

All party attendees were ordered into self-isolation, with eight partygoers who came forward for testing on Tuesday found to have contracted the virus.

This includes a two-year-old child who attended Little Zaks childcare in Narellan Vale, near Campbelltown, on Monday.

A public health warning has also been issued Christo's Pizzeria in near Paddington (pictured)

Double Bay restaurant Matteo (pictured) has also been added to the list of exposure sites

WHAT IS METROPOLITAN SYDNEY? Metropolitan Sydney includes: Sydney Blue Mountains Shellharbour Central Coast Wollongong Advertisement

Dr Chant said the outbreak demonstrated how quickly transmission could occur.

'There were about 30 people at that gathering in a house and the person was unknowingly infectious, did not have symptoms, and had not attended venues,' Dr Chant said.

'What you can see is that those test results indicate how quickly the virus was transmitted in that circumstance... And that is on day two after exposure.

'All those individuals would have unknowingly had the infection on Monday.'

Contact tracers are scrambling to determine exposure sites visited by the positive cases.

The Bondi cluster began last week after a Sydney Airport limousine driver tested positive to the highly-infectious Delta variant, which started spreading at Bondi Junction's busy Westfield shopping centre.

For the next week from 4pm on Wednesday, household gatherings will be limited to five visitors and masks will be compulsory in all all indoor venues, including workplaces and gym classes.

Health workers are pictured at the Bondi Beach Drive-through Covid-19 clinic in Sydney's eastern suburbs on Wednesday. Contact tracers are scrambling to trace four cases with no known source

Drinking while standing in pubs and bars will also be banned and those who live and work in seven hotspot council areas will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason.

Those council areas are the City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick - home to about 782,000 residents.

The tightened rules - which also include a 50 per cent capacity restriction for outdoor seated events - will apply to Sydney, the Blue Mountains and Central Coast and Shellharbour regions.

Ms Berejiklian said the growth of 'unlinked cases' in the state meant she needed to take proportionate action to stop the highly-contagious Delta variant from spreading.

Four bus journeys were added to the close contact list on Wednesday evening with alerts for anyone who was on specific trips on the 600 or 665 buses on Sunday June 20 (pictured, a woman getting on a bus in Sydney)

'If you live or work in any of those impacted LGAs we don't want you moving outside of metropolitan Sydney other than for one of four essential purposes,' she said.

'Unless you are visiting a relative in care or have to go to work you should not be going outside the city for the next week.'

She clarified the boundaries of metropolitan Sydney were the city itself, the Blue Mountains, Shellharbour, Wollongong and the Central Coast.

The one person per four square metre rule will also come back into force.
This is the dog that was brutally slain by the husband of Briton Caroline Crouch as part of his elaborate ruse to make it appear that she had been killed in a botched burglary.

After suffocating Caroline, 20, as she slept, Babis Anagnostopoulos, 33, smothered Roxy and hanged the pup's lifeless body on the banister of their home in Athens.

He killed the one-year-old dog that Caroline adopted when he was only two months old to make his story more credible that burglars had burst into the home and murdered his wife and her beloved pet.

Roxy was strung up by his lead and his hanging body was the first thing horrified police officers saw when they stormed the house after Anagnostopoulos alerted them, claiming gun-wielding gangsters had made of with cash and jewellery.

Anagnostopoulos appeared in court for the first time since being charged with Caroline's murder on Tuesday. In an attempt to explain Caroline's death, he claimed her behaviour had become 'aggressive' after she had a miscarriage.

In addition to murder, the helicopter pilot has also been charged with animal abuse for Roxy's killing.

Neighbours today told MailOnline how much Caroline adored the rescue dog and took him out for walks every day accompanied by her 11-month-old daughter.

She adopted Roxy from the Marathon Animal Association, which rescues animals and tries to find new owners for them.

Releasing a picture of the dog on social media, the Association wrote: 'We are devastated because Caroline adopted Roxy from our Association at the age of two months and in the process, we met a highly animal loving girl who loved the puppy and gave him a special place in her family.'

After suffocating Caroline, 20 as she slept, Babis Anagnostopoulos, 33 then smothered Roxy (pictured) and hanged the pup's lifeless body on the banister of their first floor flat in Athens

The living room of the house where Caroline Crouch was killed, including 'clues' planted by husband Babis Anagnostopoulos as he tried to convince police they had been burgled

A CCTV camera which Babis said masked raiders had disabled is seen on the floor, with police now saying he disabled it himself in evidence he planned Caroline's killing

A Monopoly box where Babis claimed to have been hiding a large amount of cash which the burglars wanted, but which police now say never existed

The Association said that it wanted to declare its 'immense sorrow and disgust' at the murder of Caroline and Roxy.

It added: 'Once again we express our sincere condolences to her familyOur thought is constantly in her daughter who so unfairly lost her mother's embrace.'

The photo of the pup was revealed as Anagnostopoulos appeared in court Tuesday for his first hearing since being charged with Caroline's murder - giving a self-pitying apology in which he talked about ruining his own life while asking to be allowed out on bail so he can go back to his child.

In an attempt to explain the killing, he also revealed that Caroline had suffered a miscarriage before their daughter was born - something he blamed for a 'change in her behaviour' which made her 'aggressive' and ultimately led him to kill her.

'I really regret this act, I ruined my life and my family,' he told the judge. 'I wish I could go back in time, but unfortunately I cannot.'

Anagnostopoulos is currently facing life in jail for Caroline's murder along with three lesser charges including the death of the couple's Husky puppy.

He does not dispute that he is responsible for Caroline's death, but says she was killed in the heat of an argument and that he should be given a reduced sentence.

Prosecutors say the killing was premeditated - pointing to a CCTV camera which they say Anagnostopoulos disabled hours before the killing and smartwatch data that suggests Caroline was asleep when she was smothered as evidence.

Speaking about the moment he smothered Caroline in court yesterday, Anagnostopoulos described it as a 'hug' - saying she was trying move away from him as they lay in bed so he held her tight.

'At one point, as her face was shaking on the pillow, I mean her mouth and her nose were resting on the pillow, I kept holding her in my arms until she stopped rocking,' he said, according to Greek news site Protothema.

'It all lasted about five minutes from the time I hugged her until the moment she stopped rocking. I tried to wake her, rocked her, but it was in vain. Then I realized what had happened.'

He also recounted the story of his relationship with Caroline, saying he met her on the island of Alonissos where she had lived since childhood and where his parents owned a holiday home and which he visited as a young man.

The pair began dating, fell in love, and in September 2018 they decided to get married - a celebration which took place the following year.

By that point they had already been living for a month in the house in Glyka Nera, a suburb of Athens, where the killing would later take place.

Babis Anagnostopoulos pictured arriving at court on Tuesday where he recounted a confession he gave to police last week that he smothered wife Caroline Crouch to death

Prosecutors argue Caroline's murder was premeditated and Babis should go to jail for the rest of his life, while his lawyers are fighting for a reduced sentence

A few weeks after the wedding, Anagnostopoulos said Caroline found out that she was pregnant - something he said would 'complete our family and happiness'.

But after three months, Caroline miscarried and Anagnostopoulos claims this is when their relationship started going downhill.

According to his interpretation of events, Caroline became aggressive and argumentative so he suggested they both go into therapy to save their marriage.

Greek police had previously revealed the couple had been seeing a psychologist, but said they attended the sessions separately.

Meanwhile entries from Caroline's diary collected by police and leaked to the press also paint the picture of an unhappy union and violent mood swings.

In the pages, she confesses to hitting Anagnostopoulos, says she is 'not well' and recounts having emotional 'meltdowns' which she blamed on hormones.

It is thought that some diary entries were even written in code to hide their contents from Anagnostopoulos and which police have yet to decipher.

Judges are thought to be keeping the pages secret out of fear that they could harm the ongoing trial.

Anagnostopoulos says Caroline then fell pregnant again and gave birth to their daughter who they were both infatuated with.

'The love I feel for her is impossible for me to describe in words,' he said.

But Caroline continued 'to show aggressive outbursts and outbursts towards me', Anagnostopoulos claims, saying her 'psychology was constantly changing'.

She began to find reasons to skip therapy sessions and in the end stopped going altogether, he claims, leading their marriage to deteriorate.

Referring to the alleged murder, he added: 'Other events triggered the situation, and nothing had been pre-decided.

'Again, I apologize and I would like to point out that my only thought and guide to what happened next was my only daughter.'

Babis argued in court that he should be freed on bail so he can continue looking after his daughter with Caroline, an argument the judge rejected

Throughout the hearing, Anagnostopoulos made no reference to the elaborate hoax he staged in order to hide his involvement in Caroline's death - nor did he mention drowning the couple's dog as part of the plot.

In fact, he tried to make a virtue of the fact that he regularly sat down with police for interviews 'without creating the slightest problem or obstructing the criminal process', despite using those interviews to spin an elaborate web of lies.

Following the hearing, judges refused Anagnostopoulos's request for bail and remanded him in Korydallos prison where he arrived shortly after 8pm local time, Greek site Ta Nea reports.

He was taken to a VIP ward of the prison where he will be kept out of reach of violent inmates for his safety, and was instead placed with three low-level offenders - one of them a prison officer serving time on drug charges.

Another of his new cellmates is serving time for smuggling, while the third is also convicted of drug offences.

He is reported to be 'very happy' with the jail conditions and has requested to go straight to work in the hopes he will be released early for good behavior.

Anagnostopoulos took and passed a Covid test as he was taken to jail, meaning he will not have to undergo mandatory isolation.

Reacting to his court testimony, the lawyer for Caroline's family rejected the claim that he had acted in the heat of the moment and without planning.

'The heat of the moment is to see your child being killed and you shooting his killer, that is, the sudden arousal of an emotion,' he said. 'There was also no erotic passion.

'People who kill in the heat of the moment surrender. They do not hide or deceive the authorities for 37 days.

'They call the police and say 'I surrender', they do not hug the mother of the child who they killed and add to their hypocrisy.'
The remains of missing mother Ju 'Kelly' Zhang have been found by missing persons detectives at a rubbish dump, four months after her boyfriend was charged with murder.

The grim discovery was made at the Wollert tip in Melbourne's north on Friday, with post-mortem DNA analysis confirming on Wednesday the bones belong to the 33-year-old Chinese national.

She went missing on February 1 after leaving her Epping home wearing a pink nightgown and slippers.

Her boyfriend, Joon Seong Tan, 35, was charged with her murder on February 11, a day after he was arrested at Melbourne Airport.

Kelly 'Ju' Zhang, 33 (pictured), was last seen leaving her Epping home on February 1, wearing a pink nightgown - but her body has now been found

Missing persons detectives began searching the Wollert Waste Management Centre last week (pictured)

Police began a four-day search at the Wollert Waste Management Centre last week after investigations led them to the landfill site.

A number of searches were conducted for the mother-of-one earlier this year, including in bushland in Heidelberg West and Alphington.

Police also searched an area of Darebin Creek Reserve as part of their investigation.

Missing Persons Squad Detective Inspector Andrew Stamper said police wanted to provide Ms Zhang's China-based family with some answers.

'We're hopeful that the search... will give her family even a small amount of comfort that she's been located,' he said in a statement.

'This has been an incredibly difficult few months for them, however, our investigators are as tenacious and committed as ever.'

Her boyfriend, Joon Seong Tan, 35 (pictured), was charged with her murder on February 11

The remains of missing mother Ju 'Kelly' Zhang (pictured) have been found by missing persons detectives at a rubbish dump, four months after her boyfriend was charged with murder

He urged anyone with information about Ms Zhang's disappearance to come forward.

Tan is due to face court again on July 16.

The 35-year-old appeared in court in February where it was revealed detectives were looking into 3,500 hours of CCTV footage in relation to Ms Zhang's disappearance.

The pair are believed to have been together for just weeks before Ms Zhang vanished.

Ms Zhang's parents flew to Melbourne earlier this week to take care of their daughter's primary school aged son.
The socialist prime minister of Spain has said the 650billion Covid fund distributed by the EU to help rebuild the economy will help create a 'United States of Europe'.

Pedro Sanchez believes the stimulus package offered by Brussels will deepen integration across the bloc during a speech in Barcelona on Tuesday.

He said: 'It has accelerated European integration towards a future United States of Europe.'

Pedro Sanchez said the 650billion Covid fund distributed by the EU to help rebuild the economy will help create a 'United States of Europe'

The leader added the superstate would have a 'threefold integrational vision along social, territorial and intergenerational lines'.

He previously said that 'Europeanism means erasing borders while separatism means putting up borders'.

The huge rescue fund ended an EU convention against the raising of debt among its member states.

Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron agreed to the debt mutualisation in negotiations last July after drawn out negotiations between the union's two most influential leaders.

A number of the more financially prudent economies in the EU had previously resisted making their taxpayers pay for the perceived profligacy of others in the bloc, such as Spain.

Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron agreed to the debt mutualisation in negotiations last July

In the deal, around 450billion will be provided in grants to the countries most affected by the pandemic, while the reminder will be offered as loans.

The European Commission approved Spain's proposals to spend $70billion in grants over the period from 2021 to 2026 from the Recovery and Resilience Facility.

The country has been hit hard by Covid-19 with its economy shrinking by 11 per cent last year, The Telegraph reported.

President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has travelled to member states to announce Brussels' approval for their spending plans and to gain credit for the fund.

The money will be kept off the balance sheets of national budgets, the Commission has confirmed.

A number of the more financially prudent economies in the EU had previously resisted making their taxpayers pay for others

Von der Leyen previously said a United States of Europe was her 'aim' before she toned down her rhetoric once in power.

She later said: 'In the European Union, there is unity in diversity. That's different from federalism. I think that's the right way.'

Sanchez's comments came as he pardoned all nine separatist leaders jailed for their role in Catalonia's failed 2017 independence bid.

His comments on the EU may have been motivated by a desire to quell the separatist movement by promising a superstate that would diminish Spain's power and notions of national identity.

The prime minister's left-wing government relies on support from Basque and Catalan separatist parties in parliament.

The government hopes its pardoning gesture will foster dialogue to keep Catalonia part of Spain, deflating its push for self-determination.

President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has travelled to member states to announce Brussels' approval for their spending plans (pictured with Italian prime minister Mario Draghi)

The politicians and activists were sentenced in 2019 to between nine and 13 years for sedition and misuse of public funds, after a referendum on a breakaway that courts banned but which led to a short-lived declaration of independence, triggering Spain's worst political crisis in decades.

'With this act we want to open a new phase of dialogue, of reconciliation, and to stop, once and for all, all the divisions and confrontation,' Sanchez said in a televised address.

He added: 'Spanish society wants a Catalonia that is European, prosperous, pluralistic, and sharing, and with a high degree of self-government.'

Surveys show that a majority of Spaniards oppose the pardons.

Sanchez is betting they will eventually weaken the pro-independence drive in the wealthy northeastern region.

The government is convinced there will be no new unilateral moves toward independence and the release of the prisoners will end a 'toxic' climate that hampered dialogue and marred Spain's international image.
India has declared the Nepal 'Delta plus' Covid strain a variant of concern amid fears it may evade vaccines more than the Indian strain now dominant in the UK

Scientists today called for calm over the emergence of the potentially vaccine-resistant 'Delta plus' variant, claiming that there are no signs it will take off in the UK.

India upgraded the strain  sometimes known as AY.1, or the Nepal variant  to a 'variant of concern' amid fears it is better at escaping jabs than the original Delta version.

But one of the UK's top genetics experts said the development was not a 'particular cause of concern' because the mutant strain has been in Britain for months and has shown no signs of outcompeting other strains.

Professor Francois Balloux, director of University College London's Genetics Institute, said: 'Cases of Delta+ in the UK remain at a very low level.

'The first case was observed on April 28th 2021. The lineage has remained at very low frequency since with no sign of expansion.

'It has been found in several countries but has remained at extremely low frequency, with the exception of Nepal.'

He admitted that 'nothing' is known about how transmissible, vaccine-resistant or deadly the new strain is.

But he added: 'Given that it has remained at very low frequency everywhere where it has been identified strongly suggest it is not more transmissible than its Delta progenitor [the original Indian variant].'

Delta plus carries the K417N mutation  also seen in the South Africa 'Beta' variant  which can help the virus dodge immunity from vaccines and natural infection.

The evolved virus  which has the same features of the original highly-transmissible Indian type  has been spotted up to 52 times in the UK.

On Monday, India vaccinated a record 8.6million people as it began offering free shots to all adults. Pictured: A student is vaccinated in Mumbai yesterday

Experts doubt India can maintain its vaccine rollout pace. Pictured: A man is given a jab at a vaccination centre in a Mumbai shopping mall today

Professor Francois Balloux, director of University College London's Genetics Institute, said: 'Cases of Delta+ in the UK remain at a very low level'

But experts have cast doubts on whether Delta plus should even be considered its own variant.

SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus behind Covid, is constantly evolving as it spreads, and most mutations it picks up tend to have little effect.

However, if it finds one that offers it a benefit  such as making it extra infectious or better equipped to dodge the immune system  it can crop up repeatedly.

Professor Balloux said none of the variants carrying the K417N have been particularly successful so far, other than the South Africa variant.

The current crop of vaccines in use are less effective against the 'Beta' variant, data has shown but AstraZeneca is developing a vaccine specifically designed to counter the strain which the UK is in negotiations for.

There is no proof Delta plus  spotted in five countries so far  poses any greater threat than the strain it evolved from.

Experts believe the original Indian variant is around 60 per cent more transmissible than the previously dominant Kent 'Alpha' strain.

It also makes people more likely to be hospitalised, according to Public Health England.

Vaccines are still effective against the variant but one dose is less so at blocking symptoms and severe illness.

Writing on social media today, Professor Balloux said the Nepal strain has only been sequenced 160 times across the world so far.

He said: 'It's not a proper "variant". It's the Delta B.1.617.2 strain carrying the K417N mutation in the spike protein.

What do we know about the 'Nepal variant'? Real name: Delta+K417N, Delta plus, or AY.1 When and where was it discovered? The mutant strain is thought to have first emerged in Nepal after the Indian variant mutated. Scientists believe the country is the most likely origin of the virus because of its similarities to the Indian variant, and the detection of so many cases on flights from the Himalayan nation. Only one case has been identified in Nepal, but the country carries out very little Covid surveillance. What mutations does it have? The variant is a mutated version of the Indian type but with a new mutation  called K417N  which has also been spotted on the South African variant. Is it more infectious and can it evade vaccines? There are no studies at present showing whether it is more infectious or can evade vaccines compared to other variants. But scientists fear it has combined the worst features of the the Indian and South African variants, making it more transmissible and more resistant to vaccines. Some experts have warned, however, that Britain must stop 'scampering down rabbit holes' every time a new variant is detected. Professor Lawrence Young, a virologist at Warwick University, said: 'We need to change our attitude to variants and not panic every time a new variant is identified. 'Virus variants are generated by every one who is infected and this will continue as more people are infected around the world.' How deadly is it? It is not clear whether the mutant strain is more deadly, but it is being watched closely by scientists. Studies suggest the Indian variant is not more deadly than the original virus  but it may raise the risk of infected patients being hospitalised. How many cases have been detected in the UK? The variant has been spotted 52 times in the UK, according to the Covid-19 Genomics UK Consortium. However, that reflects the number of times the strain has been sequenced, meaning the same person testing twice would come up as two counts. The variant had arrived on British soil by April 24, sequencing data suggests. Advertisement

'There have been around 160 strains sequenced to date. The first was found on April 5, 2021, in India.

'Delta plus represents 0.00002 per cent of all delta variants sequenced to date. There is no evidence the strain is currently expanding in any country.'

Professor Balloux added: 'The K417N mutation has arisen independently in several viral lineages  at least twice in Delta.

'It was observed on the March 27, 2020, in a strain found in Qatar.

'K417N is generally present in the Beta variant. It seems to contribute to immune escape.

'Its impact on transmissibility is not clear-cut. None of the lineages carrying it bar Beta  have been particularly successful so far.'

Professor Able Lawrence, an immunologist at the Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences in Lucknow, said the the current data did not seem to indicate the variant was spreading.

But he warned the strain could pose a threat to India and other countries around the world.

Professor Lawrence told The Times: 'There are too few cases to be able to say if it is more transmissible but it is showing the potential to evade vaccines so it has to be watched carefully.'

India's Federal Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan yesterday told a news conference the Delta plus variant has infected 16 people in the state of Maharashtra.

Some 28 cases have been found in total across Maharashtra, Kerala and and Madhya Pradesh.

The Indian ministry said Delta plus showed increased transmissibility and advised states to increase testing.

On Monday, India vaccinated a record 8.6million people as it began offering free shots to all adults but experts doubted it could maintain that pace.

Chandrakant Lahariya, an expert in public policy and health systems, said: 'This is clearly not sustainable'.

'With such one-day drives, many states have consumed most of their current vaccine stocks, which will affect the vaccination in days to follow.'

With the currently projected vaccine supply for the next few months, the maximum daily achievable rate is four to five million doses, Dr Lahariya added.

The effort has so far covered about 5.5 per cent of the 950million people eligible, even though India is the world's largest vaccine producer.

A devastating second wave during April and May overwhelmed health services, killing hundreds of thousands. Images of funeral pyres blazing in car parks raised questions over the chaotic vaccine rollout.

Since May, vaccinations have averaged fewer than three million doses a day, far less than the 10million health officials say are crucial to protect the millions vulnerable to new surges.

Over the past 24 hours India reported 42,640 new infections, the lowest since March 23, and 1,167 deaths.

Infections now stand at 29.98million, with a death toll of 389,302, health ministry data showed.
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More signs that England's Covid crisis may be slowing down emerged today as data revealed hospital admissions are no longer spiralling out of control.

In another boost for hopes of Freedom Day going ahead as planned, NHS statistics show the number of infected patients needing hospital care now stands at 183.7 per day, on average.

This was up by 20.6 per cent on the figure the week before, with admissions jumping because of the explosion in cases throughout June which was fuelled by the rampant spread of the Indian variant.

But the speed at which hospitalisations are rising has dropped considerably over the past week, with the week-on-week growth rate peaking at 48.7 per cent on June 14.

With data now also showing the speed of infections is slowing, experts are confident that England will be able to unlock fully on July 19.

Ministers are preparing to axe virtually all coronavirus curbs next month. Social distancing, face masks and work-from-home guidance are all expected to be ditched as England makes a dramatic push back towards normality.

A Cabinet source told the Mail there was now clear evidence vaccinations were working. 'It's all over, even if not everyone in Government has realised it yet,' the insider said.

Even 'Professor Lockdown' Neil Ferguson today said the situation was 'encouraging', while another top scientist said the third wave felt more like a 'bump' and there was a 'certain amount of coronamania going on' and that reopening on July 5 was possible.

Meanwhile, other academics said they are 'incredibly optimistic' about the outbreak and 'don't see any real need' to push back Freedom Day again, after the original date of June 21 was delayed by four weeks to ensure millions more adults were fully vaccinated.

However, it is understood there is almost no chance the date will be brought forward to July 5 despite immense pressure from Tory MPs.

The plan to reopen could put England on a significantly different course from Scotland, after Nicola Sturgeon yesterday delayed the latest phase of its loosening for another three weeks and suggested that mask-wearing is likely to continue into the autumn.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock, pictured leaving 10 Downing Street today, told Radio 4's Today programme yesterday that the latest hospitalisation and death data was 'encouraging' and the country is 'on track' for easing restrictions on July 19

The seven-day average of patients admitted to hospital with Covid is rising and hit 183.7 on June 20. But the rate at which this number is increasing has dropped. The number of patients in hospital peaked at 34,336 in January at the peak of the second wave and was falling steadily until it reached 730 in May before beginning to rise as restrictions were eased and the Indian 'Delta' variant - which is thought to be 80 per cent more infectious than the Kent mutation - spread across the country

The number of people who have been moved onto a ventilator continues to rise. By June 22, 229 patients were using the machines to help them breathe. In January, the number of patients using ventilators hit 3,736, before dropping to 113.6 in May

Those aged over 85 have made up the highest proportion of hospital admissions, with 6,129.5 admitted per 100,000 This is followed by 65 to 84-year-olds, with 1,869.2 of them per 100,000 being admitted to the hospital since last March. Meanwhile, 3,005 children aged below five, 2,962 people between six and 17-years-old and 144,289 people aged between 18 and 64 have gone to hospital with the virus

Professor Neil Ferguson said the situation was 'encouraging', while Professor Brendan Wren said the third wave felt more like a 'bump' and there was a 'certain amount of coronamania going on'

India declares 'Nepal variant' - or 'Delta plus' - to be of concern amid fears it may evade vaccines more than original strain... and it's already been spotted in Britain India has declared a 'Delta plus' Covid variant to be of concern, amid fears it may evade vaccines more than the original variety. The mutant strain  sometimes known as AY.1, or the Nepal variant  has already spread to three states, despite attempts to suppress it. Health chiefs in India who are assessing the country's coronavirus crisis have now elevated it from being a variant of 'interest' to one of 'concern'. It carries the K417N mutation  also seen in the South Africa 'Beta' variant  which can help the virus dodge immunity from vaccines and natural infection. The evolved virus  which has the same features of the original highly-transmissible Indian type  has been spotted in 52 times in the UK. But experts have cast doubts on whether Delta plus should even be considered its own variant. Professor Francois Balloux, head of University College London's Genetics Institute, said the K417N had cropped up in several different lineages. SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus behind Covid, is constantly evolving as it spreads, and most mutations it picks up tend to have little effect. However, if it finds one that offers it a benefit  such as making it extra infectious or better equipped to dodge the immune system  it can crop up repeatedly. Professor Balloux said none of the variants carrying the K417N have been particularly successful so far, other than the South Africa variant. The current crop of vaccines in use are less effective against the 'Beta' variant, data has shown but AstraZeneca is developing a vaccine specifically designed to counter the strain which the UK is in negotiations for. There is no proof Delta plus  spotted in five countries so far  poses any greater threat than the strain it evolved from. Experts believe the original Indian variant is around 60 per cent more transmissible than the previously dominant Kent 'Alpha' strain. It also makes people more likely to be hospitalised, according to Public Health England. Vaccines are still effective against the variant but one dose is less so at blocking symptoms and severe illness. Writing on social media today, Professor Balloux said the Nepal strain has only been sequenced 160 times across the world so far. He said: 'It's not a proper "variant". It's the Delta B.1.617.2 strain carrying the K417N mutation in the spike protein. 'There have been around 160 strains sequenced to date. The first was found on April 5, 2021, in India. 'It has been found in several countries but at extremely low frequency, with the exception of Nepal where it has been estimated at around four per cent  but based on a tiny sample size of three in 70. 'Delta plus represents 0.00002 per cent of all delta variants sequenced to date. There is no evidence the strain is currently expanding in any country.' Professor Balloux added: 'The K417N mutation has arisen independently in several viral lineages  at least twice in Delta. 'It was observed on the March 27, 2020, in a strain found in Qatar. 'K417N is generally present in the Beta variant. It seems to contribute to immune escape. 'Its impact on transmissibility is not clear-cut. None of the lineages carrying it bar Beta  have been particularly successful so far.' Professor Able Lawrence, an immunologist at the Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences in Lucknow, said the the current data did not seem to indicate the variant was spreading. But he warned the strain could pose a threat to India and other countries around the world. Professor Lawrence told The Times: 'There are too few cases to be able to say if it is more transmissible but it is showing the potential to evade vaccines so it has to be watched carefully.' India's Federal Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan yesterday told a news conference the Delta plus variant has infected 16 people in the state of Maharashtra. Some 28 cases have been found in total across Maharashtra, Kerala and and Madhya Pradesh. The Indian ministry said Delta plus showed increased transmissibility and advised states to increase testing. On Monday, India vaccinated a record 8.6million people as it began offering free shots to all adults but experts doubted it could maintain that pace. Chandrakant Lahariya, an expert in public policy and health systems, said: 'This is clearly not sustainable'. 'With such one-day drives, many states have consumed most of their current vaccine stocks, which will affect the vaccination in days to follow.' With the currently projected vaccine supply for the next few months, the maximum daily achievable rate is four to five million doses, Dr Lahariya added. The effort has so far covered about 5.5 per cent of the 950million people eligible, even though India is the world's largest vaccine producer. A devastating second wave during April and May overwhelmed health services, killing hundreds of thousands. Images of funeral pyres blazing in car parks raised questions over the chaotic vaccine rollout. Since May, vaccinations have averaged fewer than three million doses a day, far less than the 10million health officials say are crucial to protect the millions vulnerable to new surges. Over the past 24 hours India reported 42,640 new infections, the lowest since March 23, and 1,167 deaths. Infections now stand at 29.98million, with a death toll of 389,302, health ministry data showed. Advertisement

Data shows two vaccines work against the Indian variant, which makes up almost 99 per cent of cases spotted across the country. But one dose is much less effective at blocking symptoms or preventing severe illness.

Britain yesterday recorded 11,625 positive tests  the highest daily toll since mid-February, with the Indian strain now dominant in almost every corner of the country.

Deaths also jumped to 27, almost triple the figure the week before, while hospitalisations crept up again. Both of the measures lag behind cases because of how long it can take for infected patients to fall seriously ill.

But the vaccine roll-out, which has now reached 43.15million adults and seen nearly 60 per cent of over-18s fully jabbed, has drastically cut the once-impenetrable link between cases and hospitalisations.

NHS bosses also say patients are younger, less ill and staying for shorter periods of time, with jabs already easing pressure on hospitals.

Hospitalisation data for England shows that the weekly average number of people being admitted with Covid dropped to 74.4 on May 17, but this number has been rising since then.

Coronavirus admissions each day between June 14 and June 20 varied between 171 and 202. This is up from the 131 to 187 daily admissions from June 7 to June 13.

But promisingly, the rate at which hospitalisations is increasing is slowing.

The number of hospital admissions on June 13 was 48.06 per cent higher than the week before, while on June 20 it was just 20.64 per cent higher than one week earlier.

Figures also show that 1,301 people were in hospital on June 22. At the height of the second wave in January, this number reached 34,336.

The number of people who have been moved onto a ventilator is also rising. By June 22, 229 patients were using the machines to help them breathe. In January, the number of patients using ventilators hit 3,736.

Professor Paul Hunter, an infectious disease expert at the University of East Anglia, told MailOnline: 'I am incredibly optimistic and I personally do not see any real need for any further extensions to lockdown.'

He said he would not argue for bringing Freedom Day forward to July 5  like some Tory MPs have called for  'but would not lose any sleep if that happened'.

'Hospitalisations are going up but not anywhere near as quickly as wave two', Professor Hunted added. He also said the data showed they 'seem to have slowed'.

'The other thing to note is that those who do go into hospital seem to be staying somewhat shorter,' Professor Hunter said.

'If we manage the autumn booster campaign well then we should have very few hospitalisations for that, but all sorts of things can happen to that balance. But we are getting to the point that this will be part of our history, rather than our present.'

Meanwhile, Professor Ferguson told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the overall picture is 'encouraging', with all the data streams pointing the same way.

'We are seeing as we expected rises in case numbers across the country, but they have slowed slightly compared with a couple of weeks ago,' the Imperial College London expert added.

'And we're seeing rises in hospitalisations and indeed in deaths but again they're at a much lower level compared with cases than they were previously, demonstrating the high effectiveness of vaccines at protecting people particularly against severe illness.'

Professor Ferguson  who warned the third wave will unfold over the next couple of months  claimed 'it is clear' that having two doses of vaccine offers a high level of protection.

Professor Brendan Wren, a vaccinologist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said the nation is in a third wave but 'it's more like a bump'.

He told Sky News: 'We are in a third wave but it's not as bad, it's more like a bump rather than a huge increase. We have a different population to what we had in the first or second wave so we shouldn't be so fearful.

'My concern is the psychological damage it's doing to many people who hear these scary variant stories that they're frightened to go outdoors. And I think we need a positive message now and a simple message that if we open up sooner then there'd be less confusion about what to do.'

But he said that it was likely there would be more variants, 'we'll be up to an Omega variant, it's just nature taking its course'.

He said that mitigations such as masks and distancing should be voluntary, adding: 'I'm a bit sceptical about masks  they don't act as a physical barrier to the tiny, tiny viral particles.

'And if people do handle masks I would urge them where possible not to reuse them, and sanitise hands after use, because a lot of people are overusing them and with their hands they are potentially transmitting the virus. Personally I think masks are of dubious value.'

Professor Wren also said there was 'a certain amount of coronamania going on' as he accused the Government of being a bit 'overcautious'.

Asked if it would be possible for the end of social restrictions to occur sooner than July 19, he said: 'I think it could be possible.

'I think the Government has been a bit overcautious, there's a certain amount of coronamania going on and we do need to take a wider view of society as a whole, and a wider view of the fact that excess deaths for the past few months are less than in previous years because, for example, many other infectious diseases are far lower now.'

He added: 'We're approaching the summer months now, we know from scientific work that the virus, and its variants, are less transmissible during heat and longer daylight hours.

'And we are in a stronger position, certainly in terms of not just vaccination, but in terms of testing and tracing and treating the virus, so that's partly why I believe that we could open up sooner.'

Dr Michael Head, a senior research fellow in global health at the University of Southampton, told MailOnline: 'Thanks to the huge public enthusiasm for the vaccine rollout, the pool of susceptible people who may become ill from Covid is now much smaller.

'The case and hospitalisation numbers are still on the rise, but hopefully the rate of growth is slowing and we can reach the peak of those graphs soon.

Double-jabbed Brits could go to 'amber list' countries quarantine-free from July 19... but who will let us in? Holidaymakers face tough rules in US, Italy and Germany even if minister ease curbs - amid signs Malta and Ibiza might go 'green' tomorrow Fully vaccinated Britons could enjoy quarantine-free holidays from as early as July 19 as ministers scramble to save the summer season - but will still face tough entry restrictions in many countries. Boris Johnson is under huge pressure from senior ministers to sign off a 'big bang' reopening on so-called 'Freedom Day' with travel curbs eased at the same time as restrictions are lifted at home. Formal advice against trips to 'amber list' countries would be dropped for those who have been double-jabbed under the plans  opening up summer breaks in Spain, France, Italy, Greece and the United States. Children would also be able to avoid quarantine if travelling with their parents. Meanwhile, Malta and Spain's Balearic Islands are on track to be added to the 'green list' tomorrow, offering more options for people desperate for some sunshine. However, those taking advantage of the loosening still face tough restrictions on entry to major destinations. The US has a complete travel ban in place on Britons, while Italy requires five-day self-isolation on arrival. Germany only accepts people for 'humanitarian reasons' and has mandatory 14-day quarantine for arrivals. Tomorrow's ministerial meeting on foreign travel is expected to be followed by a further session on Monday. Ministers are expected to sign off the plans to allow the double jabbed to travel to amber list countries without the need for quarantine on return. Downing Street is targeting August for the change. But ministers including Transport Secretary Grant Shapps and Chancellor Rishi Sunak are pushing for curbs on international travel to be lifted from July 19. This would allow families and the battered travel sector to make the most of the summer. Health Secretary Matt Hancock is said to be 'sympathetic' to the move because of the effectiveness of Covid jabs and yesterday he confirmed that ministers were 'working on' plans for quarantine-free travel. However the Prime Minister and Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove are said still to be cautious. The World Travel & Tourism Council wrote to Mr Johnson yesterday to say that maintaining restrictions on the sector through July would cost the UK 639million a day. Advertisement

'An early return to the government's roadmap is unwise, but there remains a possibility that it may be reasonable to progress later in July.

'There will still be concerns in the months ahead, as people return from abroad after summer holidays and the scenarios we may face in the winter. While most of the world remains unvaccinated, the UK cannot be complacent.'

But David Nabarro, a special envoy on Covid-19 for the World Health Organisation, suggested mask wearing and keeping apart would still be needed in areas of high infection.

Dr Nabarro told Sky News there was a need to 'maintain defences against the virus to stop it welling up more and more, and that's going to be the life to come, at least until there's enough vaccine, and enough certainty, to be sure that vaccination will protect us. Right now we can't say that.'

Dr Nabarro said that due to variants 'as well as using vaccine as part of our defence, we're going to have to continue by keeping a bit of a distance from each other and then I'm going to suggest that the physical distancing part of one metre plus and mask wearing will be necessary, particularly in places where there's a lot of virus. We can't just simply ignore that.'

On workplaces, he said: 'There will be a need for every single workplace to be asking, 'is it right that we stop wearing masks and stop maintaining distance?'

Covid advisor to the British Medical Association, Dr David Strain, said: It is promising that the rate of hospitalisation is not rising at the same rate as the number of new cases in the community, as this demonstrates that the vaccine is effective in its primary role of preventing severe illness and ultimately death.'

He said current ONS estimates are that one in 9 people are being left with long COVID, with 869,000 remaining unwell for more than 3 months  650,000 of whom have their day to day activities significantly affected and 376,000 for more than a year.

Dr Strain said: 'Long Covid is not directly proportionate to the severity of the initial infection, and although vaccination does appear to reduce the risk of getting it, does not ameliorate the risk completely.

'With two thirds of a million people potentially unable to contribute to restoring the economy, the risk of long Covid from relatively minor non hospitalised cases will be a consideration.'

'Within the first and second wave, it was apparent that recent infection with Covid adversely affected outcomes from other conditions, for example complications after otherwise routine surgery were much higher.

'Again this was unrelated to severity of initial condition therefore will need to be considered as we create a roadmap to catch up with the backlog of NHS work that has built up whilst all resources were Covid facing.'

Additionally, the higher the amount of Covid in the community, the higher the risk of new variants occurring that could be vaccine resistant, more transmissible or more deadly, Dr Strain said.

'This will be a particular concern when the government are considering restarting international travel, remembering that one of the reasons the UK was hit so bad in the first wave has been attributed to [more than] 1,300 separate seeding points in February 2020,' he added.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock told Radio 4's Today programme yesterday that the latest hospitalisation and death data was 'encouraging' and the country is 'on track' for easing restrictions on July 19.

He said: 'We are seeing that the growth in case rates is slowing. Thankfully, the number of hospitalisations, whilst rising, is not rising very quickly. And thankfully even more, the number of people dying from Covid remains very very low.'

Chancellor Rishi Sunak said it was his 'hope and expectation' that restrictions would be eased next month.

But former Cabinet minister Liam Fox said the new target for scrapping Covid restrictions should be July 5, due to low hospitalisation and death data.

Boris Johnson delayed Freedom Day from June 21 to July 19 amid concerns about cases of the Indian variant in the UK.

He insisted that the extra four weeks was needed to buy time to get more people double-jabbed before the final set of restrictions are lifted.

Other promising data yesterday revealed the country has moved one step closer to herd immunity, with nearly nine in 10 adults now having antibodies against Covid.

The major Office for National Statistics (ONS) blood testing survey highlighted the success of the UK's mammoth vaccination campaign, which is now open to every adult in all four home nations. Almost 60 per cent of over-18s (31.5million) are now fully jabbed.
A heart patient left 'awake' and 'paralysed' meaning she couldn't call for help during surgery after she was given the wrong medication has agreed to a 32,000 payout.

Patricia Otty, 77, was admitted to Derriford Hospital in Plymouth, Devon, in April 2017 and given half the usual dose of the general anaesthetic thiopentone for a woman of her age and size.

She was then mistakenly injected with the Death Row lethal injection ingredient potassium chloride, which stopped her heart.

And no painkiller fentanyl was administered at all, meaning Ms Otty was in agony during the procedure.

During the operation Ms Otty, from Paignton, would have been unable to move 'or otherwise indicate she was awake' because of use of the muscle relaxant rocuronium.

When Ms Otty's heart stopped she was resuscitated but when the surgeon cut through her breastbone it is thought she would have been 'wide awake' as the anaesthetic had worn off, according to legal documents.

Patricia Otty (pictured with her son Andrew), 77, was admitted to Derriford Hospital in Plymouth, Devon, in April 2017 and given half the usual dose of the general anaesthetic thiopentone for a woman of her age and size

Ms Otty told the Mirror she has since been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and regularly suffers from nightmares where she is 'choking and experiencing excruciating pain'.

Hospital staff realised a serious mistake had been made when two ampules of potassium chloride were missing while fentanyl remained unused.

And Ms Otty was never told she could have been conscious during the operation.

She said she 'implicitly' recalls the prodecure, but cannot explicitly remember because of the effects of a sleeping pill.

But the effects of her trauma are stark, with Ms Otty vomiting before her heart scan following the operation. She also 'lost confidence and cried all the time'.

Hospital staff realised a serious mistake has been made when two ampules of potassium chloride were missing while fentanyl remained unused. Pictured, Derriford Hospital

She has a 'constant sense of dread and anxiety' and has been 'terrified of everything' following the mistake.

University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust admitted breaching its duty of care in 2018 over the wrongful administration of the medicine. It has made 11 learning recommendations.

A 32,000 out-of-court settlement has now been agreed and the Trust said they realised she had suffered 'moderate' injuries.

But her son Andrew said his mother's injuries met the criteria for 'severe'/

The Trust said: 'We're truly sorry, nobody should go through an experience like this. That's why we accepted liability and made the payment.'

The mistake made during Ms Otty's operation is not the first blunder for the hospital.

It comes seven years after an 80-year-old patient died days after he was given a penicillin-based injection despite being allergic.

John Dudding, of Plymouth, Devon, suffered a severe reaction after being given the wrong medication at Derriford Hospital. He died a week before his daughters wedding.

And in 2013, Patricia Prowse, aged 78, went into hospital for a minor operation but died after a succession of blunders left her without essential anti-stroke drugs for three days.

The sprightly grandmother died a day after collapsing over her breakfast at Derriford Hospital, which admitted a catalogue of errors and apologised to her family.
Wildlife officials have removed 250 alligators from Disney properties in the five years since a 2-year-old boy was killed by an alligator at the Grand Floridian Resort and Spa.

The company has worked with trappers contracted through the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to remove the gators, according to the Orlando Sentinel.

Most of the gators taken from Disney properties are euthanized and sold for their hide and meat, Tammy Sapp, spokeswoman for the wildlife agency, said.

Wildlife officials have removed 250 alligators from Disney properties in the five years since a 2-year-old boy was killed by an alligator at the Grand Floridian Resort and Spa

: The Walt Disney World's Grand Floridian resort hotel is seen where a 2-year-old boy was taken by an alligator as he waded in the waters of the Seven Seas Lagoon on June 15, 2016 in Orlando, Florida

Lane Thomas Graves was killed in June 2016 by an alligator at Walt Disney World

Some are also transferred to alligator farms, animal exhibits and zoos, she said. Those less than 4 feet are relocated, she said.

Trappers receive $30 for every captured gator, plus the proceeds from any leather and meat sold, the newspaper reported.

After Lane Thomas Graves was killed in June 2016, Disney installed a wall and put up reptile warning signs along waterways throughout its resorts.

Disney guests said they're glad the resort is proactively removing gators from its properties. A biology expert agreed, adding that the removals should have a minimal impact on the Florida alligator population.

Gina Parsley, a travel agency owner, told the Sentinel that her family stayed at Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort last month and her 9-year-old daughter Gabriella spotted an alligator in the water. They told a campground employee and were informed that traps had been placed to trap the gator.

'We did not feel like it was a surprise to them,' Parsley said. 'I would have been more concerned if my daughter had brought it to their attention and they were like, `Oh my gosh, where?''

Parsley said she understands how difficult it is to keep the property free of alligators.

A Florida gator guards a pond in front of the tenth green during a practice round before the start of the Funai Classic at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. Wildlife officials have removed 250 alligators from Disney properties in the five years

'You see neighborhoods where a gator just strolls across someone's lawn and rings the doorbell,' she said. 'It's Florida: They do that. So, there's definitely fighting against nature with that one.'

Florida's alligator population is about 1.3 million, the newspaper reported. To be considered a nuisance within the Statewide Nuisance Alligator Program, an alligator must be least 4 feet (1.2 meters) long and pose a threat to people, pets and property.

The wildlife agency has removed close to 8,000 alligators annually over the past five years throughout the state of Florida.

Removing nuisance gators from Disney doesn't have much of an impact on the population since they're already living on developed land there, Deby Cassill, the integrative biology associate campus chair at the University of South Florida, told the Sentinel.

'It's already been compromised by development,' Cassill said.

Sapp said there have been three fatal alligator attacks since 2016 in Florida and no reported bite incidents at Disney since Lane's death.

Signs warn of alligators and snakes on a closed section of beach following the death of a 2-year-old boy who was killed by an alligator near a Walt Disney World hotel on June 18, 2016

Cassill said the attack that killed the toddler happened during alligator mating season. As waters warm, males scan for females and females search for food. She said it was wise for Disney to place the barriers on the property and uproot the reptiles.

'I don't see a harm in removing and euthanizing some of the alligators that are in positions to do what they normally do and that is to find food,' Cassill said. 'We want to keep them away from children and pets as much as possible.'

The boy's parents, Matt and Melissa Graves of Omaha, Nebraska, founded the Lane Thomas Foundation to help families with children in need of live-saving organ transplants.
A journalist and newspaper editor who 'broke' the story of a woman who claimed to have given birth to ten babies in South Africa has issued an apology after she was admitted to a psychiatric ward.

Piet Rampedi, the editor of Pretoria News, said he was 'full of sadness and regret' over a story he first ran two weeks ago claiming that mother Gosiame Sithole had given birth to a record-breaking brood which made headlines around the world.

But doubts were immediately raised about the tale after politicians and medics said they had no record of the birth and Pretoria News failed to produce any evidence that the children actually existed.

Now, Rampedi - who lost a previous job after failing to properly corroborate stories - has all-but admitted Sithole's tale was a fiction, though he continues to insist that she 'was pregnant and did give birth' - just not to ten children.

Sithole is currently being treated in a hospital near her Pretoria home, complaining that she is sane and is being held against her will.

She continues to insist that all ten children are real, though has vowed 'never' to give up their location.

Gosiame Sithole (left and right), a South African woman who claimed to have given birth to ten children, is now being treated at a psychiatric hospital after weeks in hiding

Piet Rampedi, the newspaper editor and journalist who ran the story, has been forced to issue an apology - all-but admitting the tale was a fiction (pictured, Sithole while 'pregnant')

In a letter to the editor-in-chief of the group which owns his newspaper, Rampedi wrote: 'Let me start by stating from the onset that I stand by the fact that Gosiame Sithole was pregnant, and that she did give birth. I dont doubt it and never have.

'Be that as it may, I am sorry for the reputational damage the aftermath of the story has caused for the group, the company and my colleagues in general.'

He goes on to admit: 'I never demanded documentary proof of the pregnancy, such as scanners and clinic cards, for instance, as I would normally do with an investigative story. There was nothing to investigate, I thought.'

By the time the news had spread across the world, he said he was 'blocked' from collecting the evidence he needed to stand up his claims.

Even before this story, Rampedi was notorious within journalism circles in South Africa for having been part of a team which led investigations into a rogue unit within the tax service for a reputable South African newspaper.

But after several reports that alleged the unit was spying on people, it emerged the story was fictitious and had been fed to reporters by a politician looking to purge personnel from the tax service.

The Times was forced to issue a series of apologies and Rampedi - along with several others - lost his job, while insisting he was the victim of a cover-up.

Referencing that episode in his apology, he added: 'It seems the reaction was more about how some of my mainstream media colleagues felt about me rather than the story itself.

'I doubt the reaction, and the level of sustained attacks on the group, would have been the same had the story been authored by someone else.'

Rampedi's story finally fell apart after days of scrutiny when the supposed father of the children - Tebogo Tsotetsi - publicly voiced doubts about their existence.

Tsotetsi said he had not seen Sithole since she left home to give birth and had also not seen pictures of the children while asking police to investigate.

Sithole was subsequently detained by officers at a relative's house in the northern township of Rabie Ridge in the early hours of June 17.

She was then transported to a police station in the nearby suburb of Chloorkop before being handed over to social workers and admitted to Tembisa Hospital's psychiatric ward for a mental health assessment.

Lawyer Refiloe Mokoena, who is representing Sithole, claimed she is being held against her will and called for her to be released.

Rampedi was forced into the apology after weeks of media scrutiny that reached a peak when even Sithole's boyfriend Tebogo Tsotetsi (right) admitted the children might not be real

The lawyer told reporters: 'She declined that she should be taken to Tembisa Hospital for a psychiatric evaluation because she felt strongly that she is of sound mind.'

Since being admitted to the hospital's psychiatric ward, Sithole has been subjected to 'mental torture' and 'starvation' and she has also been 'handcuffed', claims news site IOL.

The lawyer added: 'When I left Tembisa Hospital, she made it clear that seeing that she is now being held against her will, I should please move an urgent court order for her to be released.'

A protest against her internment was due to be held by relatives, friends and activists outside the hospital on Friday 18th June, though it was not reported if it went ahead.

Dalian Mboweni, one of the march organisers, claimed that Ms Sithole said she was being 'mistreated' by hospital staff, reports Pindula News.

The activist said: 'Sithole told us that she was being mistreated by staff as if she is mentally disturbed. She says she was being shouted at and... she was handcuffed. This is breaking her, we want her released because she is held against her will.'

The development comes after Ms Sithole, who had not been seen since the alleged birth, accused Tsotetsi of trying to become a 'millionaire' from the story.

She claimed that he was 'expecting to be rich' from the birth and was only concerned about the donations coming from people across the world.

She also slammed Mr Tsotetsi for saying he did not believe the decuplets exist, accusing him of trying to 'hurt' and 'ruin' her.

The 'mother' had said she will continue to keep her children's whereabouts secret, adding that 'no-one can force her to' disclose their location.

Her comments come after Mr Tsotetsi said on Tuesday he had not seen Ms Sithole or the alleged children since her incredible claims which made headlines worldwide.

His family released a statement which said they do not believe there are decuplets until it is proven otherwise.

In videos shared by Pretoria News editor Piet Rampedi on Tuesday night, Ms Sithole refuted Mr Tsotetsi and his family's claims and constantly refers to 'my babies' without directly confirming the number, reports TimesLive.

Ms Sithole, wearing a large brown coat over a patterned dress at an undisclosed location, said: 'They are unfair because they are doing things and they are trying to hurt me.

'I speak to Tsotetsi now and then. I feel that they never loved me; I was just forced to be with him.'

Speaking about Mr Tsotetsi and his family's statement, she said: 'What they are doing shows me that they wanted to ruin something with my babies.

'That is why they are crying so much for them. The children are mine and no-one else's. Why are they after me?

'They were looking at the donations coming from people and wanting to be millionaires from the births. They were expecting to be rich. That is why I have [my babies] where they are.'

Gosiamo #Sithole responds to the Tsotetsi family statement. She denies she's missing, and that did not deliver the babies. She says the was released after the Tsotetsis met some politicians. Says they are angry because they wanted to benefit financially from the public donations. pic.twitter.com/YCNs14ezYC  Mr Putin (@pietrampedi) June 15, 2021

Ms Sithole remained adamant that she would not disclose the location of her children and said 'no-one is going to force me... I will do it on my own time'.

She also questioned whether Mr Tsotetsi and his family were really sure in their claims that the decuplets do not exist.

'Are they sure with what they are saying? I want to know if they are sure of what they are saying. I will do what I want, and on my own time and not on their time.

'I won't do it for them, I will do it for my sake because they never loved me,' she said.

Her comments come in response to a statement by Mr Tsotetsi's family on Tuesday which read: 'Tebogo confirmed he had not seen the deculplets and relied on his girlfriend who called to inform him of their birth.

'He made several attempts to visit his girlfriend and the babies but she has failed to disclose her whereabouts and the condition of her babies.

'The current uncertainties and public disclosure about the decuplets is of major concern to the family, especially in the absence of any proof of the decuplets' existence other than telephonic and WhatsApp messages from the mother.'

The statement concluded with the family saying they believe there are no decuplets until it is proven otherwise as they apologised and appealed for help in finding Ms Sithole.

It comes after Mr Tsotetsi earlier asked the public to stop donating money to the alleged mother.

Rampedi continues to insist that Sithole was pregnant and did give birth, just not to a world-record brood as she had claimed

HOW CAN A WOMAN GIVE BIRTH TO TEN BABIES? Women giving birth to multiple children is not uncommon, with cases of twins and triplets occurring relatively frequently with no scientific intervention. But high-order multiple pregnancies - four children and above - are extremely rare naturally, and almost always occur as a result of fertility treatment. That is because such treatment - which includes IVF - is expensive and the chances of success are relatively slim. This incentivises some unscrupulous medics to implant large numbers of fertilized eggs into a woman's womb to increase the chances that one will develop into a foetus. But in rare cases several of the embryos - or all of them - will start developing into foetuses, creating extreme cases of multiple pregnancy. Halima Cisse, 25, from Timbuktu, spent two weeks in hospital in the Malian capital of Bamako before being flown to Morocco in March to give birth in a specialist hospital via cesarean section. Pictured: Ms Cisse arrives in Morocco In theory there is no limit to how many children a woman can carry at once, though risks to the health of both mother and babies increases with each additional child. Women with extreme multiple pregnancies are more likely to develop anaemia - a lack of iron in the blood that can damage the immune system and make other complications worse. Cases of pre-eclampsia - a condition that can cause severe headaches and potentially-deadly fits - and gestational diabetes - high blood sugar that has been linked to post-natal depression - also increase in such cases. Babies born of high-order multiple pregnancies are almost always delivered early, and tend to be both under-weight and malnourished. Cases of infant mortality in the days and weeks after birth are also not uncommon. Nadya Suleman, or 'Octomom' made headlines in the United States on January 26, 2009, when she gave birth to six boys and two girls in California. The largest set of babies to be born in one go and to survive past infancy is eight - born to 'Octomum' Natalie Suleman in California in 2009. Ms Suleman, who already had six children through IVF, had 12 embryos leftover. Her doctor implanted all of them inside her womb at once. Her case sparked a fierce debate over IVF regulation, with the fertility specialist who carried out the procedure stripped of his medical licence. Nine children were also born to Halima Cisse - a Malian woman - at a hospital in Morocco last month, where they remain under constant care. While all five girls and four boys are said to be 'doing fine' and putting on weight, doctors say it will be at least another six weeks before they can consider sending them home. Cisse is also still recovering from a torn artery she suffered during the birth, which almost caused her to bleed to death. Advertisement

He said in a message, according to Pretoria News: 'I appreciate the financial support that we have been getting from members of the public, but I also would like to appeal to the public to stop making money deposits into our accounts until members of the community have seen the babies.'

According to South Africa's Sunday Times newspaper, the Mediclinic Medforum Hospital in Pretori - where Ms Sithole is claimed to have told her partner she gave birth - said it had not treated her.

While the clinic said it was aware of the publicity around the birth of the babies, spokesperson Tertia Kruger told the newspaper following the Pretoria News report on Monday: 'We can confirm that none of our facilities were involved in the obstetric care of this patient or her decuplets.'

Mr Tsotetsi is also quoted in the Pretoria News story as saying that Ms Sithole had been moved to the Steve Biko Academic Hospital on Friday, but the Sunday Times reported that Gauteng health and provincial authorities were unable to trace her at any of their public or private health facilities.

CEO of the Hospital, Dr Mathabo Mathebula, told Radio 702 that Ms Sithole had arrived at the hospital saying she was the woman who had given birth to 10 babies, but said she was not at the hospital.

'She's not at the hospital as we speak. We don't know the background ... on Saturday afternoon she appeared, being accompanied by security, [and said] she wants to go to the NIU (neonatal inpatient unit) because she wants to see her babies.

'She said she gave birth at Louis Pasteur and they told her they will transfer the babies to the hospital [Steve Biko],' Mathebula told the radio station.

Meanwhile, Mr Tsotetsi flew to Cape Town on Wednesday to accept a 50,000 donation for the children's care while insisting the world will get to see them 'at the right time'.

Tsotetsi originally said his girlfriend gave birth to decuplets - seven boys and three girls - after a 'natural' 29-week pregnancy, even though such births are almost always the result of fertility treatments.

Since then a number of relatives have come forward to insist that the birth is genuine, even as local officials say they have no record of the delivery taking place at any hospital in Guateng state, where Pretoria is located.

No doctor has yet come forward to verify the delivery and no pictures of the infants have been published - ostensibly for cultural and religious reasons.

If the birth is confirmed as genuine, it would be a world record - coming just a month after a Malian woman, Halima Cisse, gave birth to nine children in Morocco.

Last week, the infant's aunt claimed that the ten babies were fighting for their lives at a hospital in South Africa.

The aunt, who has not been publicly identified, said Ms Sithole is also recovering in the same Pretoria hospital after giving birth to five of the children naturally and another five by Caesarean section on Monday.

'[The babies] are still in incubators fighting for their lives. They came at 29 weeks; the mother is still weak... This is a sensitive issue,' the woman told TimesLIVE.

Tsotetsi told Pretoria News last week 'They are premature, they are still incubated. Very small as you can think  10 children in one womb that normally carries one baby.

'They are very small, so the sensitivity that goes into that, even the doctors, they don't want to risk that.'

He claimed that five babies were born naturally and another five were delivered by c-section, saying a team of six doctors, two gynecologists and two nurses helped.

Tsotetsi said his partner was exhausted after the birth, but that she had managed to get out of bed and take a short walk on Wednesday.

'She is doing very well.' he added.

Tsotetsi was the first to break the news of the apparent birth to reporters last Monday, telling the Pretoria News that his girlfriend had given birth to seven boys and three girls.

'I am happy. I am emotional. I can't talk much,' he said at the time.

The news quickly spread around the world, followed by a scramble for official information on the pregnancy and birth that has so-far proved elusive.

South African media have been at loggerheads over the story, with some outlets rushing to confirm the news while others quickly derided it.

Government officials have gone so far as to confirm they are aware of the case and have been in contact with the family before, after Sithole gave birth to twins in 2016.

But Feziwe Ndwayana, a spokesman for the Department of Social Development, said yesterday that she cannot confirm the birth of 10 children because nobody has been in contact with Sithole recently.

Ms Ndwayana added that a social worker was to be sent to the family home last week to try and confirm the authenticity of the delivery.

Pretoria News claims to have been in touch with the family for months over the pregnancy, but held on to the story until after the birth.

The newspaper claims it is not publishing all the details it has about the delivery because of 'cultural and religious reasons'.

Alongside news of the birth, which first appeared in Tuesday's paper, the outlet also ran an interview with Sithole and Totetsi that they said was conducted several months ago.

At the time, Sithole believed she was pregnant with eight children - having initially been told she was carrying six before two more were discovered on a later scan.

It was only during the birth itself that the remaining two children were discovered, according to the newspaper.

Sithole said she suffered through the complicated pregnancy, experiencing morning sickness early on followed later by pain in her leg.

Meanwhile Tsotetsi revealed that he initially could not believe his wife with pregnant with six children, thinking it was medically impossible.

'But after I found out that these things do happen, and saw my wife's medical records, I got excited. I can't wait to have them in my arms,' he said at the time.

The condition of the children following the birth was not made clear by Pretoria News, which was the first to report the case.

Children of such extreme multiple pregnancies are almost always born under-weight and can often be malnourished as the mother's body struggles to provide nutrients for so many infants.

Halima Cisse (right) and husband Kader Arby (left) welcomed five girls and four boys on May 4 after a pregnancy that is thought to have been the result of fertility treatments

Cisse's children are still being cared for at a specialist hospital in Morocco more than a month after their birth (pictured) after they were born premature and malnourished

Cases of infant mortality are also not uncommon following large multiple births.

Sithole's case comes just a month after the world's first live nonuplets were born in Morocco to Malian woman Halima Cisse.

Cisse, 25, from Timbuktu, was taken to hospital in the Malian capital of Bamako in March to be kept under observation before being flown to Morocco to be cared for at a specialist hospital after the country's president intervened.

The children - five girls and four boys - were then delivered by a team of 10 doctors and 25 nurses via Caesarean on May 4, in a complicated operation that almost caused Cisse to die of blood loss.

Doctors later revealed the babies were born significantly underweight and had 'deficiencies in everything', but are now in a stable condition.

As of last week, the children were still being cared for around the clock in Morocco with doctors saying their weight has increased significantly.

But medics said they will still need to be kept under observation for at least another six weeks before they can consider sending them home.

Cisse is thought to be staying nearby after coming out of intensive care, where she was recovering from a ruptured artery during the birth.

Ms Cisse's pregnancy was just the third reported instance of nonuplets in history.

The first recorded case of nonuplets came in Sydney in the 1970s, although sadly none of the babies survived, according to The Independent.

In March 1999, a set of nonuplets was born in Malaysia to a woman named Zurina Mat Saad, though none of them survived for more than six hours.

In January 2009, Nadya Suleman - dubbed Octomum - gave birth to octuplets including six boys and two girls at a hospital in California.

All survived the birth, and recently celebrated their 12th birthdays.

Ms Suleman is still the official world record holder for the largest live birth.

The babies were a result of IVF treatment, and were nine weeks premature when they were delivered via c-section.
An Instagram star has been reunited with his beloved pooch Kobie after he was stolen by callous thieves outside a busy Sydney shopping centre.

The musclebound content creator who posts under the name nonworldon said dognappers struck when he ducked into his local Woolworths supermarket at Green Square in Zetland between 7:15pm and 7:30pm on Monday.

He had tied the social media star husky up outside the store but when he returned Kobie was nowhere to be found.

But two days later, he finally found the adorable pooch wandering a Zetland park, likely let free by his worried captors when the dog became too hot to handle.

Nonworldon offered up a 'no questions asked' $1000 reward for anyone who could bring the dog back

Nonworldon said the incident had been devastating and took a huge emotional toll.

'It's been over 36 hours. I just want my Kobie back,' he wrote on Instagram earlier today.

He even offered up a 'no questions asked' $1000 reward for anyone who could bring the dog back.

'A lot of people told me to wait because this is what the people who took him would have wanted,' Nonworldon said.

'But I'm so exhausted. This has been a nightmare.'

He notified the police and Woolworths management who examined camera footage from that day, but there was still no sign of the adorable pet.

Nonworldon (right) said the incident was devastating and took a huge emotional toll

The musclebound content creator (pictured with Kobie) said dognappers struck when he ducked into his local Woolworths supermarket at Green Square in Zetland between 7:15pm - 7:30pm on Monday

'I'm just worried he's not getting fed, being beaten or even thinking I've abandoned him,' Nonworldon told his legion of followers.

'To some of you he may just be a dog but anyone who has had their own pet, you'd understand that this is a big deal.'

Nonworldon spent the past two days putting up posters, scouring local Facebook groups, driving around the neighbourhood and even peering over fencing as he frantically searched his stolen pup.

Kobie is and Insta-famous dog who is known to have a fondness for ice cream - winning him a legion of online followers

Kobie (pictured with Nonworldon) was a little worse for wear after being found, and 'smelled' terribly, but he seemed to be in good spirits despite his ordeal

But on Wednesday evening he was finally reunited with the lost canine, finding him roaming around a park in Redfern.

Kobie was a little worse for wear and 'smelled' terribly but he seemed to be in good spirits despite his ordeal.

'I am so happy, you have no idea,' Nonworldon said.

'Thank you so much everyone, he is back!'
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Holiday destinations such as the US, Italy, Germany and Poland are against British tourists returning, it emerged today as the Government considers moving countries with low coronavirus case rates to the travel 'green list'.

Travel experts have suggested the four countries could be among a host of popular 'amber list' locations - also including Malta, Croatia, Finland and the Balearic Islands - that could be opened up for quarantine-free travel.

Others that could be added include Grenada, Barbados and Jamaica along with Canada, Morocco and Croatia, according to travel consultancy the PC Agency which based its research on case rates per 100,000 people.

It comes as fully vaccinated Britons could enjoy quarantine-free holidays from as early as July 19 as ministers scramble to save the summer season - but will still face tough entry restrictions in many countries.

Boris Johnson is under huge pressure from senior ministers to sign off a 'big bang' reopening on so-called 'Freedom Day' with travel curbs eased at the same time as restrictions are lifted at home.

Formal advice against trips to 'amber list' countries would be dropped for those who have been double-jabbed under the plans  opening up summer breaks in Spain, France, Italy, Greece and the United States. Children would also be able to avoid quarantine if travelling with their parents.

Meanwhile, Malta and Spain's Balearic Islands are on track to be added to the 'green list' tomorrow, offering more options for people desperate for some sunshine.

However, those taking advantage of the loosening still face tough restrictions on entry to major destinations. The US has a complete travel ban in place on Britons, while Italy requires five-day self-isolation on arrival. Germany only accepts people for 'humanitarian reasons' and has mandatory 14-day quarantine for arrivals.

Tomorrow's ministerial meeting on foreign travel is expected to be followed by a further session on Monday. Ministers are expected to sign off the plans to allow the double jabbed to travel to amber list countries without the need for quarantine on return.

Downing Street is targeting August for the change. But ministers including Transport Secretary Grant Shapps and Chancellor Rishi Sunak are pushing for curbs on international travel to be lifted from July 19. This would allow families and the battered travel sector to make the most of the summer.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock is said to be 'sympathetic' to the move because of the effectiveness of Covid jabs and yesterday he confirmed that ministers were 'working on' plans for quarantine-free travel.

However the Prime Minister and Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove are said still to be cautious.

The World Travel & Tourism Council wrote to Mr Johnson yesterday to say that maintaining restrictions on the sector through July would cost the UK 639million a day.

Its warning came as:

Ministers agreed with Uefa a deal that will see 60,000 fans pack Wembley for the final of the Euros, in the biggest trial of Covid passports to date;

The Prime Minister faced renewed pressure to bring forward Freedom Day to July 5, as Covid data continued to improve;

Nicola Sturgeon warned that Covid restrictions could remain in place in Scotland until August 9;

The head of a government taskforce on the future of work suggested Britain could move towards a four-day week;

Matt Hancock said Britain was on track to reopen on July 15 following 'encouraging' data on hospitalisations and deaths;

Daily cases rose to 11,625, the highest figure since mid-February, but deaths are averaging just 13 per day.

UK tourists are currently banned from the US - and for business travellers allowed in, a pre-departure test or proof of recovery from Covid-19 is required, before they quarantine for at least seven days and take a further test.

And Dr Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease expert in the US, said the Indian variant of Covid-19 which has become widespread in Britain - is now the greatest threat to the US's efforts to eradicate the virus in its borders.

The PC Agency travel consultancy has suggested that 14 countries currently on Britain's amber list could be moved to green. Separately, there are also suggestions that the bottom two countries, France and Greece, could also make it onto the list

Fully vaccinated Britons could enjoy quarantine-free holidays from as early as July 19, the Mail can reveal today. Pictured: People sunbathe on the beach on the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, as a flow of migrants arriving on the Mediterranean island, in Lampedusa, Italy, June 22

The variant, also known as Delta, accounted for 20 per cent of Covid-19 infections in the US over the last two weeks - and Dr Fauci warned the US could be following Britain's course where it has become the dominant strain.

The US has been gradually reopening, with New York City allowing drinking at an indoor bar for the first time in months on May 3, days after Mayor Bill de Blasio said the city should reopen in full on July 1.

Which countries are against British tourists returning at the moment? USA UK tourists are currently banned from the US - and for business travellers allowed in, a pre-departure test or proof of recovery from Covid-19 is required, before they quarantine for at least seven days and take a further test. The variant, also known as Delta, accounted for 20 per cent of Covid-19 infections in the US over the last two weeks - and Dr Fauci warned the US could be following Britain's course where it has become the dominant strain. Italy Health Minister Roberto Speranza introduced mandatory testing and a five-day quarantine for all visitors from Britain from Monday, which was announced last Friday as concerns grow there over the variant's spread. Italy was following in the footsteps of France, Austria and Germany, which have already also introduced varying curbs on those entering from Britain. Italy had lifted quarantine restrictions for travellers arriving from European and Schengen countries, as well as Britain and Israel, from May 15. Germany Germany is also against UK tourists entering, with Chancellor Angela Merkel criticising the Portuguese government after it allowed Britons to come in and is now facing a spike in Covid-19 infections. She said yesterday: 'What I regret is that we have not yet been able to achieve a uniform behaviour among the member states (in the European Union) in terms of travel restrictions. That is backfiring. 'We now have a situation in Portugal that could perhaps have been avoided, and that's why we have to work even harder on this. We've made pretty good progress in recent months, but we're not yet where I would like the European Union to be.' Poland Poland is now introducing a mandatory seven-day quarantine for all UK travellers to curb the Indian variant spreading, with the country's health ministry saying it 'must take care of our citizens and their security'. Health Minister Adam Niedzielski said: 'The decisions made on quarantine for travelers arriving from Great Britain are intended to reduce the risk of transmission of the Delta coronavirus variant from the endangered area.' Finland The Ministry for Foreign Affairs is recommending against all unnecessary travel to the UK to avoid the spread of the Indian variant. Britons are only allowed in for limited essential or compassionate reasons with evidence. They must then self-isolate for 14 days, although the period is reduced if you provide two negative tests. Advertisement

Then on June 15, the state of New York lifted all state-mandated restrictions, including capacity limits of 50 per cent for retailers and 33 per cent for gyms - with mitigation measures required on public transport and healthcare.

New York joined California, where most remaining crowd-capacity limits and physical distancing requirements were also lifted on June 15. New York City and Los Angeles plan to fully reopen schools from September.

Chicago and Illinois fully reopened on June 11, while the states of New Jersey and Connecticut lifted most capacity restrictions on businesses, including retail stores, food services and gyms, on May 19.

In Italy, Health Minister Roberto Speranza introduced mandatory testing and a five-day quarantine for all visitors from Britain from Monday, which was announced last Friday as concerns grow there over the variant's spread.

Italy was following in the footsteps of France, Austria and Germany, which have already also introduced varying curbs on those entering from Britain.

Italy had lifted quarantine restrictions for travellers arriving from European and Schengen countries, as well as Britain and Israel, from May 15.

Its Italian coffee bars, restaurants, cinemas and theatres partially reopened in most regions on April 26. Indoor service at restaurants resumed from June 1. A nightly curfew was scrapped from Monday, and wearing masks outdoors will not be mandatory from June 28.

As for Germany, it is also against UK tourists entering, with Chancellor Angela Merkel criticising the Portuguese government after it allowed Britons to come in and is now facing a spike in Covid-19 infections.

She said yesterday: 'What I regret is that we have not yet been able to achieve a uniform behaviour among the member states (in the European Union) in terms of travel restrictions. That is backfiring.

'We now have a situation in Portugal that could perhaps have been avoided, and that's why we have to work even harder on this. We've made pretty good progress in recent months, but we're not yet where I would like the European Union to be.'

Germany eased restrictions on those fully vaccinated or recovered from the virus from May 9, lifting curfews as well as the obligation to provide a negative test result to visit a hairdresser, a zoo or to go shopping.

General travel warning for risk regions that have a seven-day coronavirus incidence of below 200 will be lifted from July 1. A rule which forces companies to allow working from home will be lifted on June 30.

Germany is also on target for outdoor concerts this summer, with social distancing and COVID-19 testing for attendees, and fans should be back at soccer matches in August.

Meanwhile Poland is now introducing a mandatory seven-day quarantine for all UK travellers to curb the Indian variant spreading, with the country's health ministry saying it 'must take care of our citizens and their security'.

Health Minister Adam Niedzielski said: 'The decisions made on quarantine for travelers arriving from Great Britain are intended to reduce the risk of transmission of the Delta coronavirus variant from the endangered area.'

The quarantine rules will not apply to travellers who have been fully vaccinated when arriving in Poland, which has reported 2,879,030 cases of coronavirus and 74,858 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

Senior ministers are pressing Boris Johnson (pictured during his visit to a Covid-19 vaccination centre temporarily set up at StoneX Stadium, home of English rugby union club Saracens, in north London, on June 21, 2021) to sanction a 'big bang' reopening with travel curbs eased at the same time as restrictions are lifted at home

Poland reopened shopping centres, hotels, restaurants cinemas, theatres and concert halls in May, before indoor dining, indoor sports facilities and swimming pools reopened on May 28.

What is on Britain's green list - and what could be added in latest review? The 11 countries currently on Britain's green list: Australia

Brunei

Falkland Islands

Faroe Islands

Gibraltar

Iceland

Israel

New Zealand

Singapore

South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands

St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha The 14 c ountries that could be added to the green list due to low case rates, according to the PC Agency: Grenada

Barbados

Malta

Morocco

Poland

Finland

Jamaica

Mexico

Balearic Islands

Germany

Italy

Canada

Croatia

USA And two further countries that it is now claimed could also be moved to the green list: France

France Greece Advertisement

Large indoor events with up to 50 people were allowed from May 28, a number that was tripled on June 6. From June 13, churches can be filled up to 50 per cent of capacity.

Limits for concerts and sports events will be raised from June 26 to 50 per cent of seats, while hotels can be filled to up to 75 per cent capacity. People who have been vaccinated are not counted in the capacity limits.

In Finland, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs is recommending against all unnecessary travel to the UK to avoid the spread of the Indian variant.

However other countries which could be moved to the 'green list' have been more welcoming, including the Carribean island of Grenada which has zero active Covid-19 cases at the moment.

Its Tourism Minister Clarice Modeste Curwen said earlier this month: 'We strongly believe that Grenada should be added to the UK's green list as we have taken all the necessary measures to ensure the islands are safe and ready for visitors.'

A Cabinet source told the Mail there was clear evidence vaccinations were working.

'It's all over, even if not everyone in Government has realised it yet,' the source said. 'The link between cases and deaths is broken. We know that double jabs work to protect people so why delay the resumption of international travel? There is no reason not to go ahead now  every day counts.'

Mr Hancock said the Government was being 'cautious about international travel' in order to protect the progress made at home. But he added: 'Having said that, the whole point of the vaccine programme is to be able to remove restrictions, and for people to be able to be kept safe by the vaccine, rather than by these rules.'

Huw Merriman, Tory chairman of the Commons transport committee, welcomed plans to lift quarantine requirements for the fully vaccinated, but said they should be brought in immediately.

'There's no reason to hold back or delay until August,' he said. 'The vaccine is effective and the NHS app provides proof for the millions who have received it. The industry has been working for months to make this vaccine dividend operational.

'We now look to the Government to give the green light and let the industry crack on with making it work.'

Andrew Flintham, managing director of travel giant Tui, warned that many companies were 'perilously close to failing', adding that 'every week that goes by just pushes those people closer to that very sad outcome'. The Business Travel Association said that, up to mid-June, GDP had taken a 3.18billion hit from the decline of business travel in the pandemic.

The World Travel & Tourism Council warned up to 218,000 UK jobs could be lost if no action was taken. This is in addition to the 307,000 travel-related posts lost last year.

A Government source said August was the most likely start date for the new travel system. The source said that although people can already prove vaccine status with the NHS app, it would 'take time' to implement the change.

Quarantine free holidays to Ibiza and Mallorca could resume within days after Government scientists advised that they can be moved to the travel green list. Pictured: Menorca

Quarantine free holidays to Ibiza and Mallorca could resume within days after Government scientists advised that they can be moved to the travel green list.

It comes as a welcome small relief for the travel industry  with tourism chiefs warning they face their 'darkest hour'.

Industry leaders have pleaded with ministers to lift Covid travel curbs to save them from going bust this summer.

Ministers will meet tomorrow to decide which  if any  countries should be added to the tiny list of destinations where foreign holidays are currently permitted.

But scientists have advised ministers that the Balearic Islands off the coast of Spain are now safe to be given green status.

If agreed, British holidaymakers could travel to Ibiza, Mallorca, Menorca and Formentera without the need to quarantine on return.

Malta, which was approved by scientists but controversially rejected by ministers last month, is also expected to be added.

They would be the first mainstream holiday destinations on the list since the controversial removal of Portugal last month.

However, mainland Spain will remain on the amber list, meaning that travel is advised against, and quarantine is required on return.

Mark Tanzer, chief executive of the UK's largest travel association Abta, led calls yesterday for restrictions to be eased amid the success of the vaccine rollout. He warned 'the wolves are at the door' for thousands of businesses.

Industry leaders have pleaded with ministers to lift Covid travel curbs to save them from going bust this summer. Ministers will meet tomorrow to decide which  if any  countries should be added to the tiny list of destinations where foreign holidays are currently permitted. Pictured: Prime Minister Boris Johnson

Opening the Travel Matters conference of industry bosses, organised by Abta, Mr Tanzer said: 'They say the darkest hour is right before the dawn. This dawn has been a long time coming, and we desperately need to see day breaking soon.

Tui, Virgin Atlantic and IAG in legal action against Government travel rules Tui has announced it has joined Virgin Atlantic and British Airways' parent company IAG in supporting legal action against the Government's coronavirus travel restrictions. The UK's largest tour operator said the three firms have become interested parties in a challenge launched by Ryanair and Manchester Airports Group last week. The legal bid is an attempt to get the Government to be more transparent in relation to how it determines which countries are on the green, amber and red lists under the traffic light system for international travel. There are currently no major viable tourist destinations on the quarantine-free green list. Speaking at the Travel Matters conference organised by industry association Abta, Tui managing director Andrew Flintham said: 'At the time of the last country review, many destinations such as Malta, the Greek islands and the Balearics had much lower rates (of infection) than the UK. 'It was inexplicable as to why these were not added and instead Portugal was moved straight from green to amber, without the slightest sign of stopping at the much-vaunted green watchlist. 'We must understand the criteria we are all working towards so we can pre-empt when countries may move into different categories and help our customers with that challenge, and we must understand how the framework is being applied.' Advertisement

'And yet at our hour of greatest need the Government seems intent on looking away. We're desperate. We have members on the point of failure, of losing their businesses, in some cases their homes.'

Hundreds of industry bosses and employees will descend on Parliament Square today as part of a 'Travel Day of Action' in protest at the Government's handling of the issue.

Tim Alderslade, chief executive of Airlines UK, said: 'It is now or never for the Government to reopen travel and save what is remaining of the summer season  not just for families desperate to get away but the tens of thousands of jobs which rely upon this once thriving sector.'

Ministers will also consider on Thursday whether quarantine rules for double-jabbed holidaymakers from medium-risk amber nations should be dropped. As it stands, all amber arrivals must quarantine for at least five days regardless of whether they have been jabbed.

Mr Tanzer said his organisation was considering legal action against the Government over its traffic light system. He accused ministers of failing to share the data upon which the decisions are made.

Mr Tanzer added: 'Outbound travel is the sort of naughty child of everyone... that's a bias we have to overcome.'

Meanwhile, Tui announced it was joining Virgin Atlantic and British Airways' parent company IAG in supporting legal action already launched against the Government.

The UK's largest tour operator said the three firms have become interested parties in a challenge launched by Ryanair and Manchester Airports Group last week. The legal bid is an attempt to force ministers into being more transparent over how countries are ranked green, amber and red.

Tui's Europe boss, Andrew Flintham, called some decisions 'inexplicable' and said the action was a last resort as 'we've reached the end of our tether'.

He added: 'We have the world's best vaccination programme, maybe bar Israel, yet we have one of the world's most restrictive travel programmes, maybe bar Australia.'

Both the US and European Union are allowing fully vaccinated citizens to sidestep testing or quarantine measures for holidays.

Huw Merriman MP, Tory chairman of the Commons transport committee, told delegates that the Government's travel policy had been 'shambolic'.

Antibody positive levels are highest among older age groups who have had two doses but rising fast in younger adults, too. In those who were first to get vaccinated the rate of immunity has flattened off at over 99 per cent, showing almost everyone has at least some protection against the virus

He said: 'It's been the sector that really has become the poster child for having been treated the most miserably in terms of the rules, restrictions and support from the Government.'

A Government spokesman said: 'We recognise the challenging times facing all sectors of transport as a result of Covid-19, which is why we put in place an economy-wide support package.'

Other promising data today revealed the country has moved one step closer to herd immunity, with nearly nine in 10 adults now having antibodies against Covid.

The major Office for National Statistics (ONS) blood testing survey highlighted the success of the UK's mammoth vaccination campaign, which is now open to every adult in all four home nations. Almost 60 per cent of over-18s (31.5million) are now fully jabbed.

But only 60,000 jabs were recorded as being dished out yesterday because of an 'IT issue' affecting England. The problem resulted in clinicians having to log who received their vaccine with pen and paper.

Britain is recording nearly 10,000 daily infections now compared to 2,000 in late April when the 'Delta' variant was first seeded in the country.

But the speed at which cases are increasing every week has slowed to around 35 per cent, down from 65 per cent earlier this month.

Just 1,290 people are currently being treated in hospital for Covid now, compared to nearly 40,000 at the peak of the second wave. The current figure is significantly better than even the best case scenarios modelled by some scientific groups within SAGE.

Weekly coronavirus deaths are also continuing to fall. A Office for National Statistics' weekly report today found that there were 84 deaths registered across England and Wales in the past seven days, the lowest figure recorded since September last year.

The same set of statistics also showed Covid accounted for just 0.8 per cent of all deaths recorded across the two countries in the most recent week  with flu and pneumonia now killing 10 times as many patients as coronavirus.

And analysis of the data by MailOnline revealed more than a third of all 300-plus councils across the two nations have not suffered a Covid fatality since April.

Britain's impressive vaccination programme is the driving force behind the surging numbers of people who are showing signs of immunity and the low hospitalisation figures.

Across the whole of the UK, 43.1million people have had at least one dose of a jab.

The UK was expected to hit another milestone in the roll-out today, with ministers hoping to pass figure of 60 per cent of adults fully vaccinated.

HAS BRITAIN'S THIRD WAVE ALREADY PEAKED? Britain is recording nearly 10,000 daily infections now compared to 2,000 in late April when the 'Delta' variant was first seeded in the country. But the speed at which cases are increasing every week has slowed to nearly 30 per cent, down from 65 per cent earlier this month, suggesting the outbreak had peaked by the first week of June

But an IT system crash on Monday afternoon has caused a delay to the daily vaccination numbers, according to NHS England.

Nicola's never-ending lockdown? Sturgeon delays Scotland's 'Level 0' Freedom Day until July 19 with social distancing, masks and WFH until AUTUMN Nicola Sturgeon raised the prospect of some Scottish Covid restrictions remaining in place into the autumn today as she postponed ending the country's lockdown by three weeks. The First Minister brought her country into line with England by pushing the country's downgrading to Level Zero back to July 19 because of the spread of the Indian variant. She pledged to scrap all laws covering Covid restrictions by August 9 - but admitted that Scots might well be asked to voluntarily continue social distancing and wear masks in some situations after that date. Scotland was meant to have its own relative Freedom Day on June 28, but rates of infection, particularly across the most populous central belt, led to today's announcement. Ms Sturgeon told Holyrood that life would feel 'much, much less restrictive' after August 9. She also pledged to 'encourage support' for continued home working after workplaces are fully able to reopen. The setting of these dates is likely to raise pressure on Boris Johnson to set out what measures might remain in place after England's Freedom Day on July 19. Advertisement

The issue resulted in clinicians being unable to log who had received their jab via the usual digital method, and instead had to record it with pen and paper.

Now the system is back up and running the data needs to be manually entered, which will be time consuming given that several hundred thousand doses are being administered each day.

'Following the IT issue that was reported to the NHS yesterday (21 June), the daily Covid statistics will be updated tomorrow, while vaccinations recorded yesterday are updated to the digital system,' the NHS England website said.

'The issue is now resolved and there has been no impact on vaccinations taking place.'

People were still urged to get their jab if they had a booking, as it would cause no difference to the service. The problem was also an isolated incident, meaning the public could still access the booking site as normal.

On top of the vaccine effect, there are also positive signs that the new Delta variant can be controlled without lockdowns. Hotspots Bolton and Blackburn managed to get cases under control with extra testing and contact tracing.

This appears to have given No10 confidence it can push ahead with its July 19 planned unlocking, despite the Indian variant now accounting for almost every new infection.

Mr Hancock told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme: 'We are seeing that growth in case rates is slowing. Thankfully the number of hospitalisations, while rising, is not rising very quickly and thankfully even more is that the number of people dying from Covid remains very, very low.'

He added: 'So I'd say we're on track for the opening on the 19th of July, and we will watch vigilantly and we'll look at the data in particular at the start of next week.

'But I'd say the data has since, over last week or so, been encouraging, and especially looking at the number of people who are dying, that is staying very, very low and shows the vaccines are working and getting us out of this.'

Today's ONS antibody report was based on random blood tests of around 18,000 adults across the UK between June 7 and June 10.

It showed that all the age groups over 34 in England had antibodies were estimated to have 90 per cent of people with antibodies, which independent scientists described as 'remarkable'.

Overall, 86.6 per cent of the results in England were positive, with rates mostly even between regions. Wales had the highest proportion of positive tests at 88.7 per cent, but its results were based on just 654 samples.
A father who claimed he was barely able to walk due to delays in NHS treatment is facing jail for a 1.5million compensation scam after he was filmed lifting furniture out of a van.

Darren Dommett, 49, is accused of making 'false statements' in a claim over delays in treatment for a back problem he reported in 2013, which he alleged left him disabled for life.

The father claimed his disability meant he would never work again as he could barely walk and needed a wheelchair or a walking frame to get around.

But a court heard his 'lies' unravelled when NHS investigators discovered social media snaps of him on holiday in Spain with his family, with no chair or frame in sight.

Secretly recorded footage then captured him out shopping - walking with no appearance of disability - and even unloading flatpack furniture from a van.

This led to Mr Dommett accepting just 60,000 to settle his seven-figure claim - and he could now face up to two years in jail for contempt of court.

Darren Dommett, 49, is accused of making 'false statements' in a claim over delays in treatment for a back problem he reported in 2013, which he alleged left him disabled for life

Lawyer James Todd told the court Mr Dommett had admitted and apologised for making 'false statements' in his initial claim.

The 'lies' had wasted vital NHS resources and could have resulted in him getting a payout he did not deserve, said Mr Todd.

The case reached court earlier this month, but a decision on whether to jail him, and for how long, has been delayed until later in the summer after he did not turn up.

Mr Dommett claimed he suffered a fall when he was struck by a nerve condition affecting his back - cauda equina syndrome - when at home in Grimsby in 2013.

The condition causes a compression of the nerves and, without prompt treatment, can have catastrophic results.

He went to A&E at the Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital in Grimsby, but doctors were slow to recognise the signs of the condition and he was not initially treated.

The father was diagnosed nearly a week later after going to his GP and was treated for the condition.

The Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust accepted liability for the delayed diagnosis, but contested the size of Mr Dommett's claim, which was for at least 1.5million.

In his claim, he said he needed a wheelchair or a wheeled walking frame when out, including when on holiday, and that he was so badly disabled that he would never be able to work full-time again.

But Mr Todd said Mr Dommett made a 'good recovery' and by 2017 was 'grossly exaggerating' or 'fabricating' symptoms to boost his claim.

'On 2 and 5 July 2017, the defendant posted photographs of himself and his family on his Facebook page while on holiday in Spain,' he said.

'He is pictured with a walking stick in his hands. There is no sign of a walker or rollator.'

The father claimed his disability meant he would never work again as he could barely walk and needed a wheelchair or a walking frame to get around

In October 2017, Mr Dommett told a physiotherapy expert that he was still so badly affected that he needed his wife to be a full-time carer, he continued.

'He described a life of sitting on the sofa watching TV with visits to the shops with his wife on alternate days,' said the barrister.

'He said that on those visits he waited in a cafe for his wife or in the car if they visited the supermarket.

'He said that on their holiday to Spain he predominantly used a walker when out and about.'

But Mr Todd said covert surveillance of Mr Dommett in Grimsby revealed a completely different picture.

The footage shows him unloading three packs of flatpack furniture from a delivery van, getting in an out of his Land Rover and going shopping with his wife.

'The defendant carries a stick in his left hand but walks with a normal gait,' he continued.

'For most of this period of surveillance, the defendant is either walking or standing.

'Throughout this period of surveillance, there is no sign of fatigue or a change in the defendant's gait.'

Although he was claiming over 1.5million, when presented with the footage and other evidence, Mr Dommett promptly settled his claim for 60,000, the court heard.

But he faces potentially losing a lot more for contempt of court, said Mr Todd.

'His true level of disability was very minor, if there was any disability at all,' said the barrister.

'When making those statements and representations, he was fabricating and/or grossly exaggerating his symptoms and disability for the purposes of the claim.

'When he made those statements and representations, he was not suffering from significant pain and disability.

'He had made a very good recovery from his cauda equina syndrome.

'He could sit, stand, walk and move freely, normally and for long periods - and without the need for support or the use of a walking stick.

'He had absolutely no need for a wheelchair.'

He said Mr Dommett had apologised through his lawyers for his 'false statements' at a previous hearing.

'The defendant accepts by his admissions that the false statements made by him have interfered with the course of justice in some material respects,' he said.

'They caused the original claim to continue far longer than it needed to and very large amounts of resources to be expended unnecessarily.

'Had the defendant not been confronted with the surveillance and other evidence of his dishonesty, and had he persisted in his dishonest statements, it is inevitable that there would have been continuing interference with the course of justice.

'He may have been awarded a greater sum in damages than that to which he was properly entitled.'

Mr Dommett was due to be sentenced earlier this month, but the case was put off by Judge Nigel Lickley QC until later in the summer.
Hong Kong's pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper will publish its final edition on Thursday after police arrested five editors and executives and froze 1.65million in assets.

The paper will stop publishing online from midnight tonight with the final print edition running tomorrow, while the digital version will no longer be accessible after Saturday.

The end of the popular 26-year-old tabloid, which mixes pro-democracy discourse with racy celebrity gossip and investigations of those in power, has escalated alarm over media freedom and other rights in the Chinese-ruled city.

Hong Kong's pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper will publish its final edition on Thursday after police arrested five editors and executives and froze 1.65million in assets

The paper's newsroom was raided by 200 police in August last year when owner and staunch Beijing critic Jimmy Lai was arrested on suspicion of colluding with foreign forces, and again by 500 police last week when five other executives were detained.

Pictures of police officers sitting at reporters' desks and footage of them loading trucks with journalistic materials have sent chills through the media in the former British colony.

'Thank you to all readers, subscribers, ad clients and Hong Kongers for 26 years of immense love and support. Here we say goodbye, take care of yourselves,' Apple Daily said in an article on its website.

It said the decision was 'based on employee safety and manpower considerations'.

The paper will stop publishing online from midnight tonight with the final print edition running tomorrow

The paper's publisher, Next Digital, said in a statement the decision to close the newspaper, which employs about 600 journalists, was taken 'due to the current circumstances prevailing in Hong Kong'.

Police cited more than 30 articles published by the paper as evidence of an alleged conspiracy to impose foreign sanctions on Hong Kong and China.

It was the freezing of assets that spelled the paper's demise.

The board of directors had earlier this week written to Hong Kong's security bureau requesting the release of some of its funds so that the company could pay wages.

The police operation against Apple Daily drew criticism from the UK, US and EU, which said Hong Kong and Chinese authorities are targeting the freedoms promised to the city when the former British colony was returned to the control of Beijing in 1997.

Police escort chief executive Cheung Kim-hung from the Apple Daily headquarters in Hong Kong last week

Chief Editor Ryan Law, 47, (pictured being arrested on June 17) and Cheung Kim-hung, 59, were denied bail on Saturday after being charged with collusion with a foreign country

Chinese and Hong Kong officials have said the media must abide by the law, and that press freedom cannot be used as a 'shield' for illegal activities.

Chief Editor Ryan Law, 47, and Chief Executive Cheung Kim-hung, 59, were denied bail on Saturday after being charged with collusion with a foreign country.

Three other executives were also arrested last week when 500 police officers raided the newspaper's offices, drawing condemnation from Western nations, global rights groups and the UN spokesperson for human rights.

Those three are still under investigation but were released from police detention.

Rights groups, media organisations and Western governments have criticised last week's police raid on the newspaper.

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam said on Tuesday criticism of the raid and arrests amounted to attempts to 'beautify' acts that endangered national security.

Pro-Beijing newspapers Wen Wei Po and Ta Kung Pao published special pages on Wednesday, portraying Lai as a 'dog-like animal', a 'traitor' and a shoe-shiner doing the bidding of the United States.

Police officers raided the newspaper's office on June 17 in Hong Kong with 500 officers in attendance

Apple Daily has come under increasing pressure since Lai was arrested last year under the security legislation, which was introduced after months of at times violent pro-democracy protests.

Hong Kong and Chinese officials said press freedom cannot be used as a 'shield' for those who commit crimes, and slammed the criticism as 'meddling.'

In May, Reuters reported exclusively that Hong Kong's security chief had sent letters to tycoon Mr Lai and branches of HSBC and Citibank threatening up to seven years' jail for any dealings with the billionaire's accounts in the city.

A Hong Kong-based spokesperson for Citibank said at the time the bank did not comment on individual client accounts. HSBC declined to comment.

Authorities are also prosecuting three companies related to Apple Daily for alleged collusion with a foreign country and have frozen HK$18 million ($2.3 million) of their assets.

Mr Simon told Reuters it had now become impossible to conduct banking operations in the global financial hub.

'We can't bank. Some vendors tried to do that as a favour ... and it was rejected.'

The newspaper has come under increasing pressure since owner and Beijing critic Lai, who is now in jail, was arrested under the national security law last August and has since had some of his assets frozen.

Mr Simon said some reporters had received threatening phone calls from unknown sources.

Police have said dozens of Apple Daily articles were suspected of violating the national security law, the first case in which authorities have cited media articles as potentially violating the legislation.

'After all this is said and done, the business community is going to look up and recognise that a man's company was gutted and stolen by a communist regime in Hong Kong,' he said.

'That's a big deal.'
Officials in Snowdonia National Park were left red-faced after a mistranslation of Welsh saw tourists told it is a popular - 'sex area'.

The social media post was trying to ask if people intended to visit Ogwen Valley 'in the near future.'

It read: 'Ydych chi'n bwriadu ymweld ag ardal Ogwen rhyw ben?' (are you intending to visit the Ogwen area in the near future?).

Facebook's automatic translation service made an error when attempting to bring the question into the English language

Snowdonia National Park Authority responded online, saying: 'Oh dear! Seems that the Facebook translate version has come up with something a bit different to the original Welsh version! Apologies for any offence caused!'

But Facebook's translation software was apparently confused by the word rhyw - which when used as a stand alone word means sex.

Facebook's automatic translation meant that English-speaking visitors saw 'are you intending to visit the Ogwen area sex?'

Snowdonia National Park Authority responded online, saying: 'Oh dear! Seems that the Facebook translate version has come up with something a bit different to the original Welsh version!

'Apologies for any offence caused!'

Facebook users saw the funny side with one person commenting: 'There'll be a welcome in the hillsides...'

Another said: 'I had no idea that was the expected code of behaviour in the area. I will take note.'

A third added: 'I wasn't intending on visiting soon but I'm considering it now, sounds interesting.'
William and Harry appearing together at the unveiling of Princess Diana's statue would be nothing more than 'a superficial gesture' if the warring brothers don't also hold serious talks, a royal expert has claimed.

The pair will both appear at a ceremony at Kensington Palace next Thursday to commemorate their mother, but the event has been overshadowed by the growing tension between them.

The row has intensified in recent weeks following the birth of Harry and Meghan's daughter, Lilibet - the name Prince Philip affectionately used for the Queen.

Claims from the BBC then followed that the monarch had not been consulted, but the couple's lawyers said it was 'false and defamatory' to suggest they did not discuss using the name with Her Majesty.

Lilibet has not been seen in public yet, although the Queen has reportedly met her over a video call.

Other recent family rows include Meghan's revelation that Kate Middleton made her cry, plus recent reports that William 'threw his brother out' following an angry phone conversation over claims Meghan was bullying palace staff in 2018.

It was claimed last night that Kate will help the brothers put on a united front, having been involved in the project since the beginning.

But historian and royal expert Robert Lacey says the meeting needs to have far more substance than just appearing for the cameras if the rift is to begin to heal.

He told ITV's Good Morning Britain: 'Surely when they're gathered together to honour their mother and what Diana stood for, that will be the time when we can hope for some sort of reconciliation and serious talk.

'Otherwise if they just appear together in public in front of the statue and there's nothing more, I think we would rightly conclude that it's a superficial gesture.'

Prince William and Harry will put differences aside to attend the unveiling of a new statue of their mother next week

It comes after it was claimed Kate and William did not have a sit-down conversation with Harry after Prince Philip's funeral because they feared details would be leaked

Mr Lacey also reflected on the brothers' recent appearance at their grandfather, Prince Philip's funeral, and how their relationship has altered since Harry and Meghan's bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey.

'A funeral would be when you would hope brothers thinking of other things, honouring their grandfather, would come together,' he said.

'I'm not saying when they walked together across that courtyard it was fake. As we saw, Kate rather skillfully brought the two together, but apparently nothing came of it once they got inside.

'Certainly the reports they had a big family sit down were sadly denied on both sides.'

The Duke of Cambridge and the Duke of Sussex have barely spoken over the last few months but have called a truce ahead of the Diana statue unveiling.

The two of them, plus Kate, are reportedly going to talk together on what would have been the Princess of Wales' 60th birthday.

Harry and William will make separate speeches as they pay tribute to their mother's legacy.

They will also thank sculptor Ian Rank-Broadley for creating the statue, which has been in progress since 2017.

A royal source told the Mirror: 'The Duchess has seen this project evolve from its conception and now to the finished article and undoubtedly wants to be there to support her husband.

'No doubt there will be tensions between the Cambridges and Harry, but they all recognise that despite the obvious and deep rooted issues between them, they want the day to be solely about the Princess of Wales's enduring legacy.'

The pair will both appear at a ceremony at Kensington Palace next Thursday to commemorate their mother, pictured

The Duchess of Cambridge (pictured at the Natural History Museum on Tuesday) reportedly agreed to attend the ceremony at Kensington Palace next Thursday

Harry made clear to the world in his interview with Oprah Winfrey he considered his family's response to Meghan to have been essentially 'racist'

Next Thursday will be just the second time the Cambridges have come face to face with the Duke of Sussex since the bombshell Oprah Winfrey interview.

They shared a brief word straight after Prince Philip's funeral in April but only touched on the service to the Queen's husband.

Mr Lacey claimed in his new biography the three did not have a sit down chat because they feared what was said would be leaked to the US press.

The Royal historian made the revelation in an updated version of Battle of the Brothers.

Mr Lacey wrote: 'They told friends that they could see no point in talking to Harry since any discussion of substance would go straight back to Meghan to be leaked via Oprah [Winfrey] or some other tentacle of the Sussex network.'

Instead, Prince Charles is said to have gone back to his home in Wales whilst Kate and William went to Kensington Palace to put their children to bed.

Mr Lacey also said it was 'not by accident' neither Princess Anne nor the Countess of Wessex - Prince Edward's wife - spoke in public with Prince Harry at the funeral.

Meanwhile, it was claimed yesterday that Harry could arrive in the UK in the next few hours, and will stay at a 'Covid-secure' Frogmore Cottage with Princess Eugenie and her family.

It is understood that the Duke, 36, will stay in self-contained accommodation at the royal home in Windsor when he jets back from the US.

Prince William and Prince Harry during the ceremonial procession at the funeral of their grandfather

Historian and royal expert Robert Lacey says next week's meeting needs to have far more substance than just appearing for the cameras if the rift is to begin to heal

Harry is leaving wife Meghan Markle, who has recently given birth, back at their 11million California mansion to take part in the unveiling of the statue.

He could make the journey within the next 24 hours, in order to serve out his 'amber list' quarantine at Frogmore ahead of the unveiling, on July 1.

Frogmore Cottage was initially gifted to Harry and Meghan by the Queen after the couple's wedding.

But they gave up the property after dramatically quitting frontline royal duties and moving to the US.

The keys were later handed to Princess Eugenie, who is living there with husband Jack Brooksbank and their recently born first child August.

According to the Sun, the house has been divided into two parts to make it Covid safe for Harry's arrival.

A source told the paper: 'Eugenie and Jack were handed the keys last year and told they could use it while Harry and Meghan were in America.

'The cottage is now literally split into two, meaning Harry can isolate in one half of the house without ever coming into contact with his cousin and her family.'
The abuse inflicted on Myanmar national Piang, 24, was captured on CCTV installed in family home and culminated in her death in 2016

Gaiyathiri Murugayan abused her maid Piang Ngiah Don for more than 14 months

A woman who starved, tortured and then killed her maid in Singapore has been sentenced to 30 years in prison, with the judge describing the case as 'horrific'.

Singaporean Gaiyathiri Murugayan pleaded guilty to culpable homicide among 28 charges related to her abuse of Myanmar national Piang Ngiah Don, who was subjected to 14 months of beating that culminated in her death in 2016.

The abuse inflicted on Piang, 24, was captured on CCTV installed in the family home. She was stamped on, strangled, choked, battered with brooms and burnt with an iron, according to court documents.

Singaporean Gaiyathiri Murugayan subjected her maid Piang Ngiah Don, 24, to 14 months of abuse - including torture and beatings - that culminated in her death in 2016. Pictured: Police officers escort Murugayan (centre) to her home for investigations in Singapore in 2016

The domestic worker was only allowed to sleep for five hours a night and was provided very little food meaning she lost about 38 per cent of her body weight during her employment.

When Piang died in July 2016 after being assaulted over several hours by Murugayan, she weighed just 24 kilograms (53 pounds), which is the average weight of a seven-year-old girl.

Murugayan, 40, appeared in Signapore's High Court on Tuesday wearing glasses and a black mask, and sat silently with her eyes closed and head bowed as the judge read his decision.

After hearing an additional plea of mitigation submitted by Murugayan in a bid to avoid the life sentence sought by the prosecution, Justice See Kee Oon sentenced her to 30 years in prison starting from the date of her arrest in 2016.

'The extremely aggravated and horrific circumstances of the offences are crucial considerations that tip the scales towards retribution and deterrence,' the judge said in sentencing.

'She was cognisant of her actions and purposeful in her conduct. She did not lack capacity to comprehend what she was doing.'

Murugayan abused her maid for 14 months

Justice See cited the 'abject cruelty of the accused's appalling conduct' in his sentencing, which he added must signal 'societal outrage and abhorrence' at the crime.

But taking into account the defendant's obsessive compulsive disorder and the depression she developed around the time she gave birth, See said he did not think that life imprisonment was 'fair and appropriate'.

The prosecution had sought a reduced charge of culpable homicide rather than murder - punishable with the death penalty in Singapore - after taking into account her mental health.

The maid was employed by Murugayan and her husband, a police officer, in 2015 to help take care of their four-year-old daughter and one-year-old son.

But Murugayan physically assaulted the victim almost daily, often several times a day, with her 61-year-old mother sometimes joining in, according to court documents.

Piang, who had been employed by the family for over a year at the time of her death, was only allowed to sleep for five hours a night, and was forced to shower and relieve herself with the door open.

Provided very little food, she lost about 38 percent of her body weight during her employment, and only weighed 24 kilograms (53 pounds) at the time of her death.

Murugayan's lawyer Joseph Chen had asked for a sentence of eight to nine years, arguing that a 'combination of stresses' had turned the struggling mother into an abuser.

Chen said a family member of his client had asked him to file an appeal seeking a shorter prison term of 15 to 16 years so she could still spend time with her children upon her release.

'People with psychiatric disorder look at things differently, they cannot pull themselves out of the situation,' he told Reuters.

'To the family member, the 30 years sentence is as bad as life imprisonment.'

Chen argued that a harsh sentence would deter mothers in a similar situation from asking for help - an argument that the prosecution called 'disingenuous'.

Singapore is home to about 250,000 domestic workers who mostly come from poorer Asian countries, and stories of mistreatment are common.
The Royal Academy of Arts has apologised to a feminist artist after her work was withdrawn from its gift shop following furious backlash over comments she made in a blog post about sex and gender in 2019.

The institution pulled the work of Jess de Wahls, a textile artist born in East Berlin, from its store after activists accused her of expressing 'transphobic views' in an essay posted to her website two years ago.

Miss de Wahls had criticised 'gender identity ideology' and Stonewall, the controversial LGBT organisation which has been accused of fostering a climate of intolerance in workplaces across the UK.

She also warned that the 'ideology' of gender politics enforced censorship akin to that found in her birthplace - the East German police state - and had a detrimental impact on the rights of women and girls.

The RA was later accused of breaching the Equality Act by removing the embroidered flowers from sale following backlash to the essay, in which the artist called a woman 'an adult human female'.

Miss de Wahls condemned the institution as 'insane' and claimed it had 'dumped' her in the 'centre of a s***storm'.

However, the RA has since accepted it 'should have handled [the situation] better' and confirmed it has issued an apology to Miss de Wahls.

The Royal Academy of Arts pulled the work of Jess de Wahls (above), a textile artist born in East Berlin, from its gift shop after activists accused her of expressing 'transphobic views' in an essay posted to her website two years ago

In a statement, it said: 'There has been a great deal of debate around the RA's recent communication about no longer stocking the work of Jess de Wahls in the Royal Academy shop.

'We have thought long and hard since then about this and the wider issues it raises.

'One thing is clear to us now - we should have handled this better. We have apologised to Jess de Wahls for the way we have treated her and do so again publicly now. We had no right to judge her views on our social media.

'This betrayed our most important core value - the protection of free speech.

'There was also a failure of communications internally which resulted in Jess de Wahls first hearing via social media that we would no longer stock her product in the RA shop. We will now reopen discussions with her regarding the restocking of her work.

'Plurality of voices, tolerance and free thinking are at the core of what we stand for and seek to protect.

Miss de Wahls had criticised 'gender identity ideology' and Stonewall, the controversial LGBT organisation which has been accused of fostering a climate of intolerance in workplaces across the UK. Pictured: The RA in London

The Royal Academy earlier posted a message on its Instagram stories saying: 'Thank you to all those for bringing an item in the RA shop by an artist expressing transphobic views to our attention'

'These events raise some fundamental issues. Freedom of expression can open up debate, create empathy or respect for difference, it can also at times cause hurt and outrage.

'This has confirmed to us our commitment to freedom of expression and to addressing complex issues through engagement and debate.

'We will continue to reflect on this and to look at our internal processes to ensure we learn from it. We want to make sure we navigate this better in future'.

Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden today said it was a 'welcome apology from the Royal Academy'.

He added: 'Freedom of expression is central to great art and culture and should always be protected.'

It comes after the artist said earlier this week that she had noticed 'a mob' being 'mounted against' her on social media following a blog published in 2019.

The comments led to accusations of transphobia, which the artist denied.

Her embroidery work was removed from the Royal Academy gift shop, with the artist saying she was contacted by officials from the academy, who told her they were investigating, and she had responded.

The Royal Academy had posted a message on its Instagram stories saying: 'Thank you to all those for bringing an item in the RA shop by an artist expressing transphobic views to our attention.'

It also confirmed it had received complaints for selling works 'by an artist expressing transphobic views' and said that Miss de Wahls's work 'will not be stocked in future'.

The academy added: 'The RA is committed to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and does not knowingly support artists who act in conflict with these values. We would like to reiterate that we stand with the LGBTQ+ community'.

Earlier this week, De Wahls told BBC Radio 4: 'They contacted me the day after they posted it on social media. There was no point to that conversation... I don't know what they were looking for.'

In the blog post on her website, written in 2019 and headlined 'Somewhere over the rainbow, something went terribly wrong...', the artist wrote she wanted to 'articulate my personal beliefs, so that I can defend and advocate for them.

The RA has since accepted it 'should have handled [the situation] better' and confirmed it has issued an apology to Miss de Wahls (above)

'I feel no animosity towards people who hold different beliefs to me, be they religious, gender identity ideology or any other kind of faith, and I hope you can extend the same courtesy to me'.

In the lengthy post, she explained: 'I have no issue with somebody who feels more comfortable expressing themselves as if they are the other sex (or in whatever way they please for that matter).

'However, I cannot accept people's unsubstantiated assertions that they are in fact the opposite sex to when they were born and deserve to be extended the same rights as if they were born as such.'

The campaign groups Sex Matters later called on the director of the RA to reinstate Miss de Wahls' works and apologise to the artist.

In a letter, they claimed the decision to pull her work came after a 'handful of coordinated complaints', adding: 'The Royal Academy is carrying out an egregious and blatant belief discrimination against textile artist Jess de Wahls.'

Miss de Wahls is a textile artist who makes embroidered portraits, often dealing with feminism. Her work was sold in the RA gift shop, where prints of controversial artists have previously been made available for sale.

Prints of the work of Paul Gauguin, who reportedly had sexual relationships with young girls, were sold during the 2020 exhibition Gauguin and the Impressionists.

Eric Gill, an artist and sculptor now known to have sexually abused his daughters, was an associate of the RA during his lifetime.
Brexiteers today warned the EU's ambassador that meddling in British politics is 'counterproductive' after he suggested the UK may not exist in 20 years' time.

Tory MPs hit back at Joao Vale de Almeida after he used an interview on the fifth anniversary of the referendum to say that both sides have to be 'ready for change'.

In remarks that are likely to infuriate Downing Street the Portuguese, 64, also voiced his pride at the support for the EU in Scotland - which voted Remain in 2016.

The country's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon also used the anniversary today to reiterate her determination to lead an independence Scotland back into the bloc.

But Cabinet minister Michael Gove last night said he 'can't see' Boris Johnson granting a new referendum on Scottish independence before the next general election.

Tory MP Mark Francois, chair of the Eurosceptic ERG group, said: As today is the fifth anniversary of the EU referendum we all recall the intervention by Barack Obama in that campaign, which was completely counterproductive and only encouraged more people to vote Leave.

Now we have an EU ambassador attempting to follow his example by intervening in internal UK politics as well - I hope with similar results.

Speaking to the Times today Mr Vale de Almeida questioned whether Brexit had actually been completed, despite the agreements which severed the UK after more than 40 years in December.

He told the paper Brexit had been 'done, in a way, but not done, in another way'.

And discussing bilateral relations he said: 'I don't know what our relationship will be in 20 years' time. I don't know what the EU will be like in 20 years.

'And maybe I don't know what your Union here will be like in 20 years' time. Who knows? So we have to be ready for change.'

Joao Vale de Almeida used an interview on the fifth anniversary of the referendum to say that both sides have to be 'ready for change'.

In remarks that are likely to infuriate Downing Street the Portuguese, 64, also voiced his pride at the support for the EU in Scotland - which voted Remain in 2016.

The country's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon also used the anniversary today to reiterate her determination to lead an independence Scotland back into the bloc.

On Scotland he added: 'I'm proud of the support the EU has and the European project has in Scotland.'

Ms Sturgeon used an op-ed for the website Politico to play up the benefits of EU membership and migration for Scotland.

She attacked Boris Johnson for souring relations with the EU and urged him to 'look not for conflict but cooperation, which is essential as we tackle global goals such as the climate emergency'.

'Like all countries, we are thinking deeply about how to build a better society and a better world after the crisis is over,' she wrote.

'And for Scotland, I firmly believe our best future lies in once again joining the EU, which we were a part of for 47 years  this time as an independent country fully committed to the shared endeavor of EU membership and to our common European values.

'The people of Scotland may have lost  for now  the rights and responsibilities that come with EU citizenship, but we have not lost our commitment to European values.'

But Mr Gove - who is responsible for countering the push for independence - said the Prime Minister's focus was completely focused on recovery from the pandemic 'for the lifetime of this parliament'.

His comments - which are likely to infuriate the SNP - appear to go further than other ministers who have said that this is the wrong time for another referendum.

Under the Fixed Term Parliaments Act, the next general election is not due until May 2024 - although Mr Johnson is committed to repealing the act which could allow him to go to the country before then.

Asked in an interview with The Daily Telegraph whether there was 'any circumstance' in which Mr Johnson would approve a referendum before a May 2024 election, Mr Gove said: 'I don't think so.'

Asked whether his position was that 'there will be no referendum before the 2024 election', he replied: 'I can't see it.'

After pro-independence parties won a majority in the elections to the Scottish Parliament in May, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said it was 'a matter of when, not if' there would be a second referendum.

Mr Gove's intervention may heighten the chances that the SNP could try to hold a unilateral referendum without the approval of Westminster, which would almost certainly result in a legal battle through the courts.

Mr Gove however insisted that it was 'foolish' to talk about a referendum at a time when the country was still recovering from the coronavirus pandemic.

'The Prime Minister is completely focused on making sure that, for the lifetime of this parliament, we increase economic opportunity, we provide people with the chance to make more of their lives, take control of their futures. And that's quite rightly what the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom's focus should be,' he said.

'It seems to me to be at best reckless, at worst folly, to try to move the conversation on to constitutional division when people expect us to be working together in order to deal with these challenges.'
The family of a 'strong and happy' man who was put into an induced coma due to coronavirus have revealed how he was left unable to walk or talk by the disease and could be in hospital until Christmas.

Mark Moore, 59, tested positive for the virus in January and was taken to Nottingham City Hospital during the second wave triggered by the so-called Kent variant.

After being sent home, he was taken place to hospital after his condition worsened - forcing doctors to put him into an induced coma on January 14.

His devastated wife Kelly and daughter Paighton told Nottinghamshire Live this week how Mr Moore, from Gedling, is now relearning how to walk and talk - and is expected to remain in hospital until Christmas.

Miss Moore, who has two older brothers Jordan and Brandon, said their lives had been 'changed forever' by their father's illness and is urging people to be cautious despite the low death rate and vaccine roll-out.

Mark Moore, 59, tested positive for the virus in January and was taken to Nottingham City Hospital during the second wave triggered by the so-called Kent variant

His devastated wife Kelly and daughter Paighton told Nottinghamshire Live this week how Mr Moore, from Gedling, is now relearning how to walk and talk

After being sent home, he was taken place to hospital after his condition worsened - forcing doctors to put him into an induced coma on January 14

Mr Moore's daughter told the website that he was just 'seconds away from life and death' and said hospital staff refused to allow them entry.

'We even asked for a photo but they couldn't do that,' she said.

'While he was in a coma we received three phone calls saying choose two people to come in because they were going to turn [his life support] off. He was seconds away from life and death. But he was a fighter.

'The real long-Covid has not kicked in yet. We were given a date to say when he was going to come out and that was next year, but now they have brought it forward to Christmas.

'It is going to be a long journey. He is learning how to eat again and he is having to learn how to stand up.'

His wife added: 'It has been awful thinking someone you love is going to die and planning for his funeral. You can push him to do something but the next three days he is in bed again because it takes it out of him.

'Just talking takes it out of him.'

The family said doctors reduced Mr Moore's sedation from February 25 to March 3, but he did not fully regain consciousness for another few days

Mr Moore had only just recovered from a heart attack in 2020, making him highly vulnerable

The family said doctors reduced Mr Moore's sedation from February 25 to March 3, but he did not fully regain consciousness for another few days.

Two weeks after he had come out of the coma, he could not move by himself.

Mr Moore had only just recovered from a heart attack in 2020, making him highly vulnerable to coronavirus. His battle with the disease caused a number of life-threatening complications, including bleeding on his lungs.

On June 22, Mr Moore was finally able to walk with support for the very first time.

His daughter added: 'Your body just shuts down, it does not cope at all. We've had over 100,000 deaths in this country and people do not think it is real.

'It is happening, just look around you.

They are all fantastic at City Hospital, they are the most fantastic and caring nurses and they asked us if we were okay every day.

'Just stay safe. It is not worth whatever it is that you are doing. It is going to change our lives forever.'
Irish nationalists Sinn Fein would probably take power in Northern Ireland for the first time if there was an election today, outgoing DUP leader Edwin Poots warned today.

He used an exit interview to warn that the party 'probably would have the largest number of votes and seats as things stand', making its leader in Ulster Michelle O'Neill the first republican First Minister.

His comments come against a backdrop of serious unrest among unionists, with the Democratic Unionist Party itself fragmented for the first time in its 50-year history.

It is rallying against the Brexit deal agreed at the end of the last year which introduced customs checks on goods crossing the Irish Sea, to the fury of loyalists.

The power-sharing Stormont Assembly is at risk of collapsing over a deal to allow Irish language teaching in the province, something seen by Unionists as a step towards reunification of Ireland.

Speaking to BBC Ulster today, who was leader for just 21 days before being replaced by Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, said: 'I think if there was an election today - thankfully there isn't - it wouldn't be a good election for unionism.

'They (Sinn Fein) probably would have the largest number of votes and seats as things stand.'

An opinion poll for the Belfast Telegraph last month put Sinn Fein ahead on 25 per cent of first-preference votes if there was an election, with the DUP tied on 16 per cent with the non-sectarian Alliance.

However, Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis today warned that people will not 'thank or forgive' politicians who threaten to bring down the Executive.

Mr Poots' comments come against a backdrop of serious unrest among unionists, with the Democratic Unionist Party itself fragmented for the first time in its 50-year history.

He used an exit interview to warn that the republican party 'probably would have the largest number of votes and seats as things stand', making its leader in Ulster Michelle O'Neill the First Minister.

An opinion poll for the Belfast Telegraph last month put Sinn Fein ahead on 25 per cent of first-preference votes if there was an election, with the DUP tied on 16 per cent with the non-sectarian Alliance.

The Stormont institutions have been rocked by a recent row over Irish language legislation and incoming DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has warned there can be no stability under the current terms of the Northern Ireland Protocol.

During an appearance before the Northern Ireland Affairs Select Committee, Mr Lewis was asked what his message was to political leaders about threats to bring down the Executive.

He said: 'My position on this has been pretty consistent for a very long time now, my point to anybody making that is I don't think the public of Northern Ireland will thank you or forgive you for that.

'I think the public of Northern Ireland, after the impasse of three years, want to see the Executive, particularly at a time of a pandemic.

'They want to see the Executive up and running and I think there will be very low levels of tolerance if they believe people are going out of their way to take Stormont away as the Northern Ireland Executive and Assembly for the people.'

The DUP faces problems because it is leaking support to the Alliance from its more moderate supporters, while more hardline unionists are moving to support the Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV).

Mr Lewis today said it is reasonable to take the view that changes will be made to the Northern Ireland Protocol as it is 'not sustainable' in its current form.

The comments came after Mr Poots this week claimed he had received a personal assurance from the UK Government that significant changes will be made to the Protocol.

The UK Government and the EU are locked in a dispute over the implementation of the Protocol, the part of the Brexit divorce deal aimed at avoiding a hard border with Ireland.

Appearing before the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee on Wednesday, Mr Lewis was asked what he had told Mr Poots.

It came as Northern Ireland Secretary of State Brandon Lewis today said it is reasonable to take the view that changes will be made to the Northern Ireland Protocol as it is 'not sustainable' in its current form.

He said: 'We are very clear that the current position of the Protocol is not sustainable, it is causing issues for businesses and consumers and citizens in Northern Ireland and we need to rectify that.

'Ultimately for us there is a very core point about the Protocol, which is about protecting and respecting the UK's internal market and not disrupting everyday lives of people in communities.

'We want to get that rectified and we are determined to do so, so I think it is reasonable for anybody to take the view that we have said that there will be changes because there has to be, the current status quo is not sustainable.'

Mr Lewis continued: 'At the moment it's very questionable whether it's going to be sustainable in its current format and I think that's why it's in everybody's interests to see it rectified.'
Gavin Williamson today slammed secondary schools for closing 'far too early' as he hinted at a crackdown.

The Education Secretary said he is 'very concerned' at some schools which send pupils home as early as 2.45pm or 3pm.

Mr Williamson told MPs 'I dont want to see that continue' as he appeared to pave the way for Government action on the issue and said 'I would like to see secondary schools going a bit further'.

His comments came as ministers continue to consider rolling out a longer school day across the country to help pupils catch up on learning after the disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Mr Williamson told MPs 'I dont want to see that continue' as he appeared to pave the way for Government action on the issue

The schools catch up tsar, Sir Kevan Collins, quit earlier this month with a stinging condemnation of the Government's 1.4billion education recovery fund which he said 'falls far short of what is needed'.

One of his recommendations was that schools should be given extra funding to pay for a flexible extension to school time, the equivalent to 30 minutes extra every day, as part of a long-term shake-up. The Government is still considering the proposal.

Mr Williamson was asked during an appearance in front of the Education Select Committee this morning to give his view on a longer school day.

He replied: I think there are some schools that currently close far too early.

I think that actually I want to see, I think lots of schools do it brilliantly and we musnt forget this because actually the examples we pick on are schools that are doing exactly what we want to actually see where you have got the enrichment, the extra academic time, you have children with the opportunity to play at lunchtime, being with their friends, do other activities.

So we have got so many schools doing it, but we do have, sadly, a number of schools that are finishing too early in my view and I dont want to see that continue.

MPs asked Mr Williamson how many schools currently remain open beyond 3.30pm.

He replied: Historically there has been very little, there has been very little information actually sort of published on the actual sort of school day.

As I am sure you are aware, it has not been actually as part of something that has been looked at as part of an accountability measure by Ofsted.

So, we have been doing over the last six months more and more work looking at this and we are continuing to do a lot more evidence, build up a lot more evidence of the real benefits of the long school day.

But I think there is real benefits of actually a school, I feel very concerned when I see secondary schools closing at 2.45pm, sometimes even earlier, sometimes at 3 oclock. I would like to see secondary schools going a bit further.

Mr Williamson was also grilled by MPs on whether exams will definitely return next year, with teacher assessed grades due to be awarded again this summer.

The Education Secretary failed to give a firm guarantee but insisted we very much hope and intend for exams to go ahead in 2022.

He told the committee: 'I far prefer to see children sitting exams than having to be in the situation of having teacher assessment in terms of the determinants of their grades but we very much recognise that we cant predict what we are going to be facing over the coming years.

But we do have the systems and we have much better understanding of the disease and much more developed scientific and medical understanding of the disease in terms of how to cope with it.
Professor Jesse Bloom found dozens of test samples from the earliest confirmed Covid patients in epicentre Wuhan had been pulled by Chinese scientists from an international database

Chinese scientists have deleted crucial data from the earliest confirmed Covid patients, it emerged today amid intense scrutiny about the true origins of the disease.

Dozens of test samples from patients in epicentre Wuhan were found to have been wiped from an international database used to track the virus' evolution.

The files could have provided vital clues about how the virus originated and how long it had been spreading before the seafood market outbreak in December 2019.

The American professor who spotted their deletion and managed to recover some of the data said they suggested Covid was circulating long before China's official timeline.

He found the early samples of the virus were more evolved than would be expected of a pathogen that had recently jumped from animals to humans  but did not say it gave more weight to the 'lab leak' theory.

Professor Jesse Bloom, a virologist from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, said he believed China had removed the files to 'obscure their existence'.

British scientists told MailOnline the findings confirm Covid was spreading in people before being linked to wet markets, 'perhaps months before'.

The latest cover-up comes amid mounting suspicion the virus may have accidentally leaked from a high-level biosecurity laboratory in Wuhan.

Boris Johnson's former chief aide Dominic Cummings said Professor Bloom's find pointed further 'towards' the 'lab leak' theory.

Giving evidence to a House of Lords select committee today, the UK's chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance said there was a 'real need to make sure that we understand whats going on' in high-grade virology labs.

The files (shown to have been removed, above) could have provided vital clues about how the virus originated and how long it had been spreading before the outbreak was reported in December 2019

While China has tried to insist the virus originated elsewhere, academics, politicians and the media have begun to contemplate the possibility it leaked from a high-level biochemical lab in Wuhan - raising suspicions that Chinese officials simply hid evidence of the early spread

The cover-up was detailed in a scientific paper titled 'Recovery of deleted deep sequencing data sheds more light on the early Wuhan SARS-CoV-2 epidemic' today.

Forty-five positive samples had originally been uploaded to the National Institute of Healths (NIH) Sequence Read Archive by the Wuhan University in early March 2020.

The NIH is a US Government agency responsible for biomedical and public health research.

The samples were published as part of a study into diagnosing Covid patients using PCR tests  just days before the Chinese Government issued an order requiring approval of the publication of all coronavirus data.

Professor Bloom noted all 45 samples have since been pulled from the database, with 'no plausible scientific reason for the deletion'.

He said the most likely explanation was to 'abuse' and 'obscure' the truth about the origins of the pandemic.

The professor explained scientists can get their genetic samples removed from the NIH's database with relative ease, normally via an email request.

He said that while there were often legitimate and valid reasons for having them deleted, there was no evidence of any in the case of the Wuhan samples.

'The current study suggests... the trusting structures of science have been abused to obscure sequences relevant to the early spread of SARS-CoV-2 in Wuhan,' he wrote.

However, he defended staff at the NIH's Sequence Read Archive, explaining that they have to manage more than 13million samples, 'making it infeasible for its staff to validate the rationale for all requests'.

The virologist was able to partially recover 13 of the samples using Google Cloud and then sequence the viruses.

He noted several genetic differences between the strains in the deleted samples and the virus that eventually spread around the world.

In a tweet this morning, Boris Johnson's former chief aide Dominic Cummings said Professor Bloom's find pointed further 'towards' the 'lab leak' theory

The latest cover-up comes amid mounting suspicion that the virus may have accidentally leaked from the Wuhan Institute of Virology (pictured)

Wuhan lab at centre of Covid origin cover-up is nominated for China's top science award The Wuhan Institute of Virology at the centre of the Covid-19 lab leak theory has been nominated for China's top science award for its work during the pandemic. The laboratory was put forward for the Chinese Academy of Sciences' 2021 Outstanding Science and Technology Achievement Prize. The country's 'bat woman' scientist, Shi Zhengli, who leads research into the animal at the lab, also received a special mention from the committee. A description posted by the Chinese Academy of Sciences said it had carried out 'comprehensive' research into Covid that have laid the foundation for scientists around the world to study the virus. Ironically, the lab was praised for 'follow-up research on the origin' of Covid. A full description seen by The Times said: 'The research group collectively has completed the most comprehensive and systematic identification research on the aetiology of Covid-19, and the results of the project have laid an important foundation and technology platform for the follow-up research on the origin, epidemiology and pathogenic mechanism of the Covid-19 virus, as well as the research and development of drugs and vaccines. 'It provided key scientific and technological support for epidemic prevention and control.' The nomination comes despite growing speculation that the virus did not occur naturally but escaped from the lab located just a few miles away from the Wuhan wet market where the outbreak was first identified. Critics have lashed back against scientists who last year refused to entertain the idea which was dismissed as a conspiracy theory. Advertisement

In a Twitter thread detailing his findings today, Professor Bloom said: 'Although events that led to emergence of #SARSCoV2 in Wuhan are unclear (zoonosis vs lab accident), everyone agrees deep ancestors are coronaviruses from bats.

'Therefore, wed expect the first #SARSCoV2 sequences would be more similar to bat coronaviruses, and as #SARSCoV2 continued to evolve it would become more divergent from these ancestors. But that is *not* the case!

'Instead, early Huanan Seafood Market #SARSCoV2 viruses are more different from bat coronaviruses than #SARSCoV2 viruses collected later in China and even other countries.'

British experts commenting on the study said it confirmed long-held suspicions that Covid was spreading before December 2019.

They also warned that it highlighted the flaws in the World Health Organization's investigation into Covid's origins, which is being carefully supervised by China.

Professor Lawrence Young, a molecular biologist at the University of Warwick, told MailOnline: 'The study further cements the fact the virus was circulating in Wuhan before the outbreak in December.

'It highlights and reinforces the inadequacy of the original WHO investigation, which was compromised by not being able to access data.

'This just shows how important it is to understand the early spread of the virus and any future investigation really does need to look seriously at the whole issue.

'It's particularly worrying that crucial data was uploaded and then deleted - it's odd behaviour.'

Asked about what the findings reveal about the origins of the virus, Professor Young said: 'It doesn't tell you where the virus came from.'

But he added that it 'raises suspicions' and will fuel the the theory that it might have emerged from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, which many have suggested.

He added: 'It [the study] certainly suggests the Covid virus or a very close precursor virus [a less mutated version] was circulating before it started to take off.

'It could've jumped to humans much earlier than the consensus thinking, perhaps even months before.'

The study was shared by former No10 aide Mr Cummings today who said evidence was moving 'towards' the China lab leak theory. However, he stressed that the idea was still 'unproven'.

Mr Cummings, responding to another scientist who endorsed Professor Bloom's research, tweeted: 'Yuri has uncovered lots of evidence on this, as he says this deletion is *clear evidence of coverup by China*.

'Seems to me reasonable to update further towards lab leak hypothesis, though obviously this also remains unproven...'

The Prime Minister has said that the government's central theory is that the virus was 'zoonotic' in origin, and jumped to humans from another species.

But Mr Johnson has said that the possibility that it escaped from the viral institute in Wuhan has not been ruled out.

Top scientists and Government officials in the UK and globally had publicly written off the 'lab leak' hypothesis as a conspiracy until recently.

But recent developments and revelations about the type of research that went on at the Wuhan lab has led to growing doubts about the virus' origin.

Sir Patrick Vallance was asked about the likelihood of the lab leak theory at the House of Lords' Risk Assessment and Risk Planning Committee.

He said the biggest risk 'by far' is natural infection spreading from animals into humans. But he admitted there should be tighter regulations placed on labs carrying out risky viral research.

Daszak is seen at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in 2020. His close ties to the lab, his fierce rejection of the idea that COVID-19 could have escaped from its walls, and his absolute rejection of the 'lab leak' theory have raised eyebrows

British doctor who tried to gag Wuhan lab leak theory is FIRED from UN commission investigating COVID origins over conflict of interests British scientist Peter Daszak has been removed from the COVID commission looking at the origins of the pandemic after helping secretly denounce the lab leak theory while failing to mention his close ties to the same facility. The scandal-hit scientist's departure from the UN-backed Lancet commission into the virus's origins was revealed on its website. It added a sentence in brackets under his photo and above his biography, saying 'recused from Commission work on the origins of the pandemic.' No further information on Daszak's departure was given - but he has faced conflict of interest claims after his close ties to the Wuhan Institute of Virology were revealed last month. Daszak, 55, president of the New York-based EcoHealth Alliance, was one of 28 experts from around the world asked to analyze how best to respond to the pandemic. The panel comprised leading global figures in public health, economics, philanthropy, diplomacy and politics. It is organized by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network, which, according to its website, 'operates under the auspices of the United Nations to mobilize scientific and technical expertise in support of the Sustainable Development Goals.' Advertisement

Sir Patrick said: 'The issue in biosecurity in general is that many of these amendments to organisms are actually quite easy these days, its not that difficult to do things in labs, so there is a real need to make sure that we understand whats going on...

'So there is I think a rather important need for the world to think about what systems are to keep an eye on this and to make sure that the level four labs are appropriately regulated and looked after.

'And I think most of them you know about and some of them you dont know about I suspect, we dont know. But there is absolutely a need to keep an eye on that.

'There is a need to understand the risks of things happening... in places that are less well regulated and I think that is a very real area of future concern.

'Now, it is still the case that the biggest risk by far is natural infection spreading from animals into humans. That remains by far the risk, but the labs of course do need to be looked at in terms of their security.'

US infectious diseases boss Dr Anthony Fauci has faced calls to resign over the scandal after he last year dismissed the theory as nonsense but appeared to be considering it behind closed doors.

And scientists who put their names to a letter denouncing the 'lab leak' theory last year have since changed their minds and said a full inquiry is required.

President Joe Biden has ordered a full investigation into the origin of the pandemic virus and demanded scientists work out whether there is truth to the theory.

The head of the World Health Organization insisted just a day earlier that the theory that Covid emerged from a Wuhan lab has not been ruled out  as he said China should help solve the mystery out of 'respect' for the dead.

The body's director-general, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, suggested that Beijing had not cooperated fully as he urged more 'transparency' in the continuing investigation.

There has been mounting controversy over how the virus first emerged - whether through animal contact at a 'wet' market in Wuhan or leakage from a highly secure research laboratory in the same city as some have suggested.

China says it is not responsible for the pandemic and has dismissed theories about the disease being manmade.

The latest twist in the lab leak theory saga came yesterday when British scientist Peter Daszak had been removed from a commission looking at the origins of the pandemic.

Professor Daszak secretly denounced the lab leak theory while failing to mention his close ties to the same facility.

The scandal-hit scientist's departure from the UN-backed Lancet commission into the virus's origins was revealed on its website.

It added a sentence in brackets under his photo and above his biography, saying 'recused from Commission work on the origins of the pandemic.'

No further information on Daszak's departure was given - but he has faced conflict of interest claims after his close ties to the Wuhan Institute of Virology were revealed last month.

Daszak, 55, president of the New York-based EcoHealth Alliance, was one of 28 experts from around the world asked to analyze how best to respond to the pandemic.

The panel comprised leading global figures in public health, economics, philanthropy, diplomacy and politics.
The founder of the controversial 1619 Project Nikole Hannah-Jones is refusing to teach at UNC Chapel Hill after she claims a 'powerful donor' blocked her from a tenured position, according to a letter from her lawyers.

Hannah-Jones won a Pulitzer Prize for her work on the 1619 Project, named for the year that the first African slaves were brought to the English colony of Virginia.

Published in The New York Times Magazine in August 2019, it frames American history through the lens of slavery. It sold better than anything put out by the Times since its historic 2008 Obama presidency edition, but also drew fierce criticism from academics who claimed it clouded historical fact with left-wing ideology.

In the latest success for Hannah-Jones, she was invited to teach at her alma mater the UNC's Hussman School of Journalism and take the Knight Chair in Race and Investigative Journalism from July 1.

But her lawyers claim that in a break from tradition she was blocked from holding a tenured position  a permanent paid post  because of a 'powerful donor' whose influence at UNC 'contributed to the Board of Trustees' failure to consider her tenure application.'

Walter E. Hussman Jr., a news mogul who has donated $25 million to the journalism school named after him, was among the donors who raised concerns about Hannah-Jones' hiring last summer.

Author Nikole Hannah-Jones speaks on stage during the 137th Commencement at Morehouse College on May 16, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia

Hannah-Jones won a Pulitzer Prize for her work on the 1619 Project, named for the year that the first African slaves were brought to the English colony of Virginia (pictured: speaking at a tribute to MLK in New York in January 2020)

The South Building at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in Chapel Hill, North Carolina is adorned with banners (stock photo)

'I worry about the controversy of tying the UNC journalism school to the 1619 project,' he wrote to Susan King, dean at the Hussman School of Journalism. But King went on to hire Hannah-Jones anyway.

Every Knight Chair since 1980 has been appointed with tenure, but instead Hannah-Jones was offered a five-year contract by trustees as a 'work-around' to prevent an ugly political clash if her application proceeded to a vote by the board.

But Hannah-Jones' lawyers said information was withheld when she signed the fixed-term contract and that she never withdrew her tenure application, according to the letter dated Monday obtained by NC Policy Watch.

The letter said: 'Since signing the fixed-term contract, Ms. Hannah-Jones has come to learn that political interference and influence from a powerful donor contributed to the Board of Trustees' failure to consider her tenure application.

'In light of this information, Ms. Hannah-Jones cannot trust that the University would consider her tenure application in good faith during the period of the fixed-term contract.

'Such good faith consideration for tenure was understood to be an essential element of the fixed-term contract when Ms. Hannah-Jones agreed to enter into it. In light of the information which has come to her attention since that time, she cannot begin employment with the University without the protection and security of tenure.'

The letter also laid out the legal framework through which Hannah-Jones sought to challenge the decision not to grant her tenure.

The NAACP lawyers wrote: 'The inferior terms of employment offered to Ms. Hannah-Jones in the fixed-term contract resulted from viewpoint discrimination in violation of the freedom of speech and expression, secured by the United States and North Carolina Constitutions; race and sex discrimination and retaliation in violation of federal and North Carolina state law; unlawful political influence in violation of North Carolina state law 

'Under these circumstances, any appointment of Ms Hannah-Jones without tenure is unacceptable.'

Private emails reveal that UNC Chapel Hill megadonor Walter Hussman (right) had objected to the university's hiring of New York Times reporter Nikole Hannah-Jones as a Knight Chair professor at the school last summer

After a $25 million donation to the college, UNC named its journalism school after Hussman

Teachers and students at UNC have rallied around Hannah-Jones since it came to light that the board was going to break from tradition and not offer her a tenured position.

A two-page ad appearing in The News & Observer of Raleigh last month featured 1,619 alumni and students at UNC-Chapel Hill who offered their support of Hannah-Jones and called on the school to grant the tenure request.

A letter signed by professional athletes, writers and academics also assailed the university, saying the trustees 'failed to uphold the first order values of academic freedom and the free exchange of ideas.'

Hussman, who has criticised the 1619 Project in emails to university chiefs, told The New York Times this month that he did not want to influence the board.

'I really wanted to make them more knowledgeable about the 1619 Project,' Hussman told the paper. 'And I thought, I'm now a lot more knowledgeable about it, having read it  not cursory but carefully.'

Referring to the board members, he said, 'They're going to have to make their own decision.'

Hussman told the paper that the board's decision would not affect any future donations.
Britons have blasted an 'insane' and 'bloody awful' One Britain song after it went viral online ahead of so-called One Britain, One Nation day.

The song, which appears to have Government backing, provoked ridicule after it went viral online, with critics calling it 'ridiculous' and 'an embarrassment'.

Parents have pointed out the irony of Scottish children being unable to join in because schools there break up before One Britain One Nation day on June 25.

Others questioned whether teachers had been given enough notice to teach children the words.

On Monday the Department for Education's official Twitter account promoted the OBON day and linked to its website. OBON wants schools to hold a minute's applause on Friday and sing the song.

The song's creators say it promotes 'love and unity' and encourages all pupils to show 'love for our great nation'.

But the video soon went viral online as the nation appeared to unite against the song, calling it 'ridiculous', 'pernicious dross' and 'a party political move'.

Schools are being encouraged to adopt a bizarre song to celebrate a 'One Britain One Nation' day this Friday. OBON wants schools to hold a minute's applause on Friday and sing the song. Pictured: People hold up a OBON flag

On Monday the Department for Education's official Twitter account (pictured) promoted the OBON day and linked to its website. OBON wants schools to hold a minute's applause on Friday and sing the song

The song is called 'We are Britain and we have one dream, to unite all people in one great team', which are also the words of the chorus.

Lyrics: One Britain One Nation We are Britain and we have one dream; To unite all people in one great team. We are Britain and we have one dream; To unite all people in one great team. Our nation survived through many storms and many wars; We've opened our doors, and widened our island's shores; We celebrate our differences with love in our hearts; United forever, never apart. We are Britain and we have one dream; To unite all people in one great team. We are Britain and we have one dream; To unite all people in one great team. So many different races, standing in the same place; So many different faces, moving at the same pace; We all stand together with pride in our hearts; United forever, never apart. We are Britain and we have one dream; To unite all people in one great team. We are Britain and we have one dream; To unite all people in one great team. Strong Britain, Great nation Strong Britain, Great nation Strong Britain, Great nation Strong Britain, Great nation Advertisement

It also includes the lines: 'Our nation survived through many storms and many wars/We've opened our doors, and widened our island's shores/We celebrate our differences with love in our hearts/United for ever, never apart.'

The tune was composed by children and their music teacher at St John's CofE Primary in Bradford, and adopted by the One Britain One Nation campaign, set up by former police officer Kash Singh.

The idea has been derided by one of the Conservative Party's own MPs, Caroline Nokes.

The MP for Romsey and Southampton North retweeted a preview of the OBON song saying: 'I can't unhear this (however fervently I wish I could).'

Meanwhile, actress Joanna Lumley has expressed strong support for the organisation, according to the OBON website.

In a statement on the site, she said: 'The aims and aspirations of OBON are extremely impressive and timely.

'I wish the project all the success it so richly deserves and I support its vision of one nation with all my heart.'

A slew of derision has been posted online since yesterday.

One user said: 'To what terrible parallel universe have I been transported?'

Another said: 'They should put that song into Eurovision. They hate us as it is, so we might as well go for broke.'

A third said: 'It's just so bad. It still manages to gets worse every single time you hear it.' A fourth said: 'Anyone who tweets that ridiculous One Britain song in my timeline earns an automatic block.'

Another added: 'Please don't tell me the Tories really turned our country into such an embarrassment?'

Others complained One Britain One Nation day was leaving out Scottish children, who will have broken up for their summer holidays by then.

Most Scottish schools will end term on June 23, two days before the national day.

One said: 'Scotland's schools finish before the 25th of June ! Do some some research.'

Another added: 'This uniting song to be sung by all kids in the great one nation on 25th is when Scots kids are on holiday. How can u not see this constant flag waving is odd?'

'Apart from the fact that this nation within your 'one nation' is on summer holiday, that song is just down right creepy. Sack whoever had that idea,' said another.

Others just hated the song itself, while a few tried to stick up for the children who wrote it.

One said: 'I know people have been having fun about the One Nation song but this song was written by schoolchildren. It isn't their fault is has been used by adults to impose it on the rest of us. Be kind and remember how you would feel if you were one of those children.'

But others were less diplomatic.

One added: 'This song is pernicious dross. Idiotic sentiments and a crap tune. And 'one nation' is a longstanding Conservative slogan, so it's an unambiguous party political move.'

A slew of derision has been posted online since the song went viral yesterday

Another said: 'My youngest who is still at school will not be singing this. Like most things the government come up with nowadays, it's abhorrent.'

One added: 'I think One Britain One Nation should be cancelled on the grounds it's a bloody awful song.'

Another wrote: 'I had absolutely, genuinely assumed this 'One Nation' song thing was a spoof. It's not? What the hell?! That's insane.'

Others doubted teachers' ability to teach the song to children with such short notice.

One wrote: 'Do they expect primary school kids to learn a song in the space of a week? They start rehearsing the nativity in Sept.'

The One Nation campaign lists its aim as being 'to create, a strong, fair, harmonious and a proud British Nation, celebrating patriotism and respect for all our people'.

'OBON day' is scheduled for Friday, June 25, and the campaign wants children to sing the official song.

It calls on schools to hold a minute's applause on the designated day - June 25 - and sing the official song or play it through the school's tannoy system.

Schools are also encouraged to dress children in red, white and blue for the day and 'allow children to unpack the meaning of shared values of British Citizenship'.

No 10 said the Department for Education (DfE) had not asked anyone to sing songs for One Britain One Nation Day (OBON).

Asked whether it was sensible for the department to encourage schoolchildren to sing the OBON patriotic song on Friday, the Prime Minister's official spokesman said: 'The Prime Minister supports schools promoting fundamental British values, including tolerance and respect, and we endorse One Britain One Nation's aims to help children learn about equality, kindness, pride, but I will point out the department has not asked people to sing songs or promoting any specific materials for One Britain One Nation day.'

Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she first assumed the UK Government's backing for the idea was a 'spoof' when she saw it on social media.

The One Britain campaign was set up by former police officer Kash Singh (pictured)

Speaking after meeting with EU citizens living in Scotland and organisations supporting people to apply for settled status to remain in the UK, she said: 'I'm trying to imagine the outrage there would be if the Scottish Government was insisting or even encouraging Scottish school kids to sing some song about how great Scotland is.

'People would be - and rightly so - up in arms about it.

'It's ludicrous and it perhaps says everything about the disinterest the UK Government has in Scotland that they're asking this to happen on the day Scottish schools go off on their holiday.

'Every aspect of it is ludicrous and I think it says sadly so much that we know about the misguided priorities, the hypocrisy and just the ridiculous nature of a lot of what this UK Government is doing.

'Meanwhile, EU citizens that have been here for most of the lives and are working so hard to help make the country what it is are having to jump through hoops to stay here.'

Mr Singh said the concept was 'born from my dream as a police officer' after coming to the UK as a six-year-old boy who 'couldn't speak a word of English'.

He said he set up the campaign in Bradford, West Yorkshire, in 2013 after retiring from the police force in 2012.

Mr Singh told Times Radio: 'We started the concept in Bradford and West Yorkshire, and it's been very, very successful indeed, so what we want to look at is taking it across the nation.

'It was something that was born from my dream as a police officer, in terms of what I'd see, in terms of my passion, pride and frustration, and something that I feel needed to be done in this country.

'This country is a brilliant country. I came to this country as a six-year-old kid who couldn't speak a word of English. My parents were labourers, they worked in a factory and foundry, and there are fantastic people in this country.

'One of the things that was missing for me was what we need to do, is we need an organisation that the people of this country can align themselves to, to showcase their passion, pride and love for this great nation.

'Some people may have this perception that not everybody is proud of this country - let me tell you, people like me, and the millions of people who've settled in this country from other parts of the world, are so proud of this country.

'I think we need to celebrate that and create this spirit of oneness and togetherness, and showcase that we're all one people of this country regardless of where you're from.'
An 'intoxicated' cruise ship passenger kicked a man in the face 'like he was taking a penalty' as he and his YouTuber girlfriend attacked a family at a late night buffet, a court heard.

Andrew Irving was enjoying a meal onboard the P&O Royal Britannia with his granddaughter, Elsie-Mai, 10, and his wife Gaynor Abrams when a fight broke out involving several guests.

'Horrified' by the brawl, he intervened only to get a knee in the face from Paul Evans, 45, who also kicked him during the 'violent and chaotic' attack, the court heard.

The fight onboard P&O's Royal Britannia ship was allegedly sparked when a family asked Evans to stop swearing at their daughter as they dined late that evening.

The defendant is accused of assaulting Justin Gardner, his nurse wife Sarah and daughter Alice, 21, after he was overheard saying he wanted to 's***' and 'f***' in front of their 16-year-old daughter Amelia, the court heard.

Paul Evans (above outside court) is accused of one count of robbery and three counts of actual bodily harm following the extraordinary scenes on the P&O Royal Britannia

Andrew Irving was enjoying a meal onboard the P&O Royal Britannia with his granddaughter, Elsie-Mai, 10, and his wife Gaynor Abrams (above outside court with Mr Irving) when a fight broke out involving several guests

His girlfriend Tabatha Young, 43, who interviews boxers on YouTube and has admitted to causing actual bodily harm, was also involved in the brawl as she started shoving and eventually punching Alice, jurors were told.

Evans is accused of one count of robbery and three counts of actual bodily harm following the extraordinary scenes on the 16th floor of the cruise ship during the early hours of July 2019.

The Gardners had attended a family disco with their two daughters when they retired to the buffet, but became upset by language coming from the neighbouring table.

Mr Irving told Southampton Crown Court how he intervened in the fight after seeing things grow 'heated' between Evans' girlfriend Ms Young and Mrs Gardner.

He said: 'I had seen [Evans] earlier - he had a tea bag in a pint glass. I thought it was bizarre.

'It was a heated exchange. I remember thinking this is not good. Evans was a few metres away. At first, I thought they were just arguing and then they were grappling and fighting.'

Families ran to hide during the late-night buffet fight that broke out aboard the P&O Royal Britannia ship (pictured)

Tabatha Young, 43 of Chigwell, Essex, (above) was also accused of attacking the Gardner family during the late-night brawl

Mr Irving added he had a feeling of 'dread' when Evans came over and started 'throwing punches' at Alice, who was with her sister and parents at the Horizon buffet.

He said: 'It was the sort of punch that would would knock me down. To my memory, she was cowering. I was horrified.'

Mrs Abrams told the court she became aware of what was happening when her granddaughter saw her husband intervening and shouted 'no grandad, no'.

Mr Irving added: 'I tried to grab hold of Evans from behind. I could not stand by and see a man grab what I thought was a child [Alice].

'I could not stand by and let that happen. She posed no threat to him at that time.

'We were grappling. I slipped and injured my knee. Then I was in a headlock because I had gone so far down and then had a knee to the face.

Sarah Gardner said Young, (above) 'punched and attacked' her 21-year-old daughter during the late-night buffet

'I saw him step back and then he kicked me in the head. I was helpless. I was unable to defend myself and was pretty vulnerable.'

Jurors were shown photographs taken that evening of bruising to Mr Irving's face and lip. He also suffered a torn ligament in his knee.

In a witness statement, Mr Irving described the incident on the ship's 16th floor as 'bedlam'.

He told the court: 'It is actually a moment that terrifies me now - seeing [Evans'] leg swing back like he was taking a penalty. It was a horrible situation.'

Mrs Abrams told the jury Evans was like 'someone possessed - it was like he was high'.

She said: 'He seemed to find things quite funny. [Evans] said to me "look at you, you fat, s****y b***h". He threw a plastic glass. It hit me in the face. I have never been hit so hard in my life.

'It was chaos. I did not know what he would have done. I do not know what would have happened to that family. It was frenzied, it was crazy.'

The Gardners had attended a family disco with their two daughters when they retired to the buffet, but became upset by language coming from the neighbouring table.

After Alice asked Evans to stop swearing, the court heard a fight quickly broke out, instigated by Evans' former girlfriend Ms Young.

Mrs Gardner tried to film Evans on a phone for 'evidence' as he held one hand around her daughter's neck and punched her 'continuously' with the other, the jury was told.

But he then turned his 'rage' on Mrs Gardner by 'rugby tackling' her to the ground, snatching the mobile phone and hurling it into the sea, the court heard.

Mr Gardner previously described Evans as 'the catalyst for everything' that happened on board the cruise through the Norwegian fjords on July 26, 2019.

'I tried to run away. I absolutely did not want to be involved,' he said.

'I tried to leave the room. Then he caught up with me - it didn't take him very long. He punched me square on the back of the head from behind and that put me on the ground again.

'I went straight down. I curled myself up into a foetal position and he continued to rain blows on me. I believe [he did it] with his fists only.

The scrap came during the final leg of a week long cruise to Norway's fjords that was returning back to the UK

The defendant (left outside court today) is accused of assaulting Justin Gardner, his nurse wife Sarah and daughter Alice, 21, after he was overheard saying he wanted to 's***' and 'f***' in front of their 16-year-old daughter Amelia, the court heard

'I was effectively doing all I could to protect myself. That is all I could do but I still received numerous blows.'

The ship had just left Bergen, Norway, a few hours earlier and was five days into a seven-night tour of the country's famous fjords.

Southampton Crown Court yesterday heard that the Gardners headed to the buffet as their daughter Amelia wanted something to eat before going to bed at 1am.

Prosecutor Mark Ashley said: 'Mr Evans was intoxicated and when he was near their table, he was using language which a number of people found offensive.'

Mrs Gardner explained: 'We went up for dinner at 8pm.

'I drank about three glasses of wine and my husband had had about three pints. Alice drank but I cannot remember how much - she was not drunk.'

She then wept as she recalled sitting in the Horizon buffet and hearing Evans say 'I want to s*** her' and 'I would like to f*** her' in what she believes were comments directed at 16-year-old Amelia.

Mrs Gardner, a mother-of-three whose son had already gone to bed, said: 'I felt very anxious. We carried on ignoring him and then my eldest daughter said "please can you stop talking like that".

'Then [Tabatha Young] flew up from another table and started attacking my daughter Alice by pushing her.

In a witness statement, Mr Irving described the incident on the ship's 16th floor as 'bedlam'. Pictured left: Evans outside court today

'I tried to separate Tabatha and Alice. I was trying to calm the situation down but Tabatha punched her and attacked Alice.

'Then Mr Evans flew up from his seat and punched my husband who had been standing at the table with my other daughter who was very upset.'

Evans, of Clayhall, Essex, was taken into custody by police when the ship docked at Southampton. He denies one charge of robbery and three of actual bodily harm.

Young, who interviews boxers on YouTube, has pleaded guilty to actual bodily harm.

The trial continues.
Donald Trump said he hoped coronavirus would kill his former national security adviser John Bolton, according to excerpts from an upcoming book on the former president's handling of the pandemic.

'Trump had tried to joke about the virus for months, sometimes even mocking people who had become ill,' reads the excerpt from 'Nightmare Scenario', which was obtained by Axios.

'At one meeting several months [before Trump got sick], NEC director Larry Kudlow had stifled a cough. The room had frozen,' the book continues.

'Trump had waved his hands in front of his face, as if to jokingly ward off any flying virus particles, and then cracked a smile. 'I was just kidding,' he'd said. 'Larry will never get COVID. He will defeat it with his optimism.''

'John Bolton,' he said. 'Hopefully COVID takes out John.'

Although the book notes the comment was likely a joke, Axios reveals the authors' sources believed Trump was serious.

'Fooled me  I thought he was relying on his lawyers,' Bolton told Axios when he was asked about the quote.

Donald Trump told aides that he hoped former national security adviser John Bolton would get coroanvirus and die, according to excerpt from an upcoming book on his pandemic response. Here Trump (left) and Bolton (right) are pictured after a press conference at the G7 summit in June 2018 in Quebec, Canada

Trump and Bolton had differing opinions on how to deal with foreign relations and national security  especially in regards to North Korea  and had an intense falling out in 2019.

The then-president's comments about Bolton falling fatal to COVID-19 came just after he released an explosive tell-all about his time in the White House.

'Nightmare Scenario: Inside the Trump Administration's Response to the Pandemic That Changed History' will officially hit shelves on Tuesday, the book was authored by Washington Post journalists Yasmeen Abutaleb and Damian Paletta.

An excerpt from the book revealed earlier this week notes that Trump considered quarantining Americans infected with COVID on Guantanamo Bay when the pandemic first started to take hold in February 2020.

The book 'Nightmare Scenario' details the workings inside the White House before infections spread across the country and is based off interviews with 180 people

'Don't we have an island that we own? What about Guantanamo?' the president asked when White Officials debated where to send US citizens who had the virus in February 2020, according to the new book.

'We import goods,' Trump told his staff in the Situation Room. 'We are not going to import a virus.'

Trump then brought up the idea a second time, forcing aides to quash the plan fearing a backlash over putting members of the public on the same island as terrorism suspects, according to an excerpt published in the Washington Post.

The book details the workings inside the White House before infections began spreading rapidly across the country at the end of February and start of March 2020 and is based off interviews with 180 people.

It also details how Trump allegedly fumed at US infections doubling from 14 to 28 when infected Americans were evacuated from the Diamond Princess and returned home and his anger over the CDC taking over testing.

'Testing is killing me!' Trump reportedly shouted in a March 18 phone call to then-Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar.

'I'm going to lose the election because of testing! What idiot had the federal government do testing?' the president added.

The book claims Trump considered quarantining Americans with COVID on Guantanamo Bay when the pandemic first started. 'Don't we have an island that we own? What about Guantanamo?' the president asked in the Situation Room in February 2020. Guantanamo Bay detainees are pictured in a yard in August 2009

Trump frequently stated during the pandemic that the number of infections in the US were so high because the rate of testing was higher than anywhere else in the world.

'Uh, do you mean Jared?, Azar responded according to Abutaleb and Paletta.

The phone call came five days after Trump's son-in-law Kushner took over management of national testing with the help of the private sector.

'This was gross incompetence to let CDC develop a test,' Trump told Azar in the heated phone call.

Kushner, according to the book, also called Robert Kadlec, the HHS emergency preparedness chief, a 'f***ing moron' when he found out an order of 600 million masks would not arrive in the US until June.

'We'll all be dead by June,' Kushner said.

Mark Meadows also attacked Kadlec when the government was slow in handing out the antiviral treatment remdesivir after it was approved by the FDA.

'I'm going to fire your a** if you can't fix this!' Meadows said in a phone call to Kadlec.

According to the book, Trump's comments on the call were so loud that Azar's aides could hear him.

Trump comments about COVID-19 taking out Bolton came shortly after the former aide released a bombshell book about his time in the Trump White House

Trump also reportedly told his aides to fire a senior State Department official who allowed 14 Americans infected with COVID to get off the Diamond Princess on US soil.

The Americans were among the hundreds of people evacuated from the quarantined cruise ship in Yokohama on February 17, 2020.

They were taken off the vessel and repatriated back to the US on two chartered flights that landed at Travis Air Force Base, California, and Lackland Air Force Base, Texas.

The State Department deemed that all the infected passengers were asymptomatic and cleared to fly.

Trump complained to Azar that it 'doubled his infections overnight', with the total number of cases in the US rising to 28.

Abutaleb and Paletta write that the aides balked at the idea and instead said that bringing back the sick Americans meant it saved their lives.

Trump also called for firing Kadlec after he signed off on the Diamond Princess evacuation.

Later on in the response he pushed to oust Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen Hahn because he refused to speed up vaccine approvals before the election.

The officials Trump wanted to fire managed to survive the administration.

Dr Anthony Fauci, who had a contested relationship with Trump, also stayed in his position even though staff looked to Kushner and other economic advisors when deciding on the response, the book claims.

'That was what the response had turned into: a toxic environment in which no matter where you turned, someone was ready to rip your head off or threatening to fire you,' Abutaleb and Paletta write.

Their book also lays out the tensions in the White House when Mike Pence was chosen to head up the COVID response, essentially replacing Azar.

Pence's chief of staff Marc Short criticized Trump for extending a a 'pause' on the economy through Easter 2020 and said it was a 'gift' to Democratic governors.

Short also slammed the plan to send free masks to every American household, with some officials comparing them to 'underwear on your face' and a 'training bra'.
While Jeremy Clarkson might hog the limelight in his new Amazon farming show, two of his right-hand women have also become overnight stars.

Ellen Helliwell and Georgia Craig have emerged as fan favourites, due to their no-nonsense attitude and refusal to coddle the celebrity.

Ms Helliwell, a shepherdess and stockman, and was brought onto the series to help Clarkson during lambing.

It had been intended she would have a more hands on role, but Covid restrictions meant he had to do it himself on the Cotswolds grounds.

Meanwhile Ms Craig, who is an NFU representative, was seen exasperated as she tried to give him a tractor driving lesson.

The pair's appearances have gone down a storm with fans but they both have important backgrounds behind the camera.

Ellen Helliwell, a shepherdess and stockman, and was brought on to help Clarkson do lambing

Ms Craig, an NFU rep, was seen exasperated as she tried to give him a tractor driving lesson

Jeremy Clarkson's new Amazon farming show has been a huge hit with viewers in the UK

Ms Helliwell is a young ambassador of the National Sheep Association and grew up on her parents' farm in Derbyshire.

She entered the Young Shepherd of the Year competition at the NSA Central Region Winter Fair in 2013 and scooped the top prize.

The shepherdess has also spent time farming in Australia and a bit closer to home in Wales.

She also was featured on BBC show Countryfile shearing a sheep.

In February she spoke to the Pub Yields podcast about her role and history in the industry as well as nights out with the NSA.

Ms Helliwell said: 'I remember one night, I cant remember where we were and me and my friend Hannah were proper game for getting on it and you lot all p***** off to bed.

Georgia Clarke seemed bewildered by Jeremy Clarkson's choice of tractor in the show

Georgia looked bemused and aghast by the former Top Gear host's selection of vehicle

Despite the on-screen rows, Kaleb and Clarkson have also become great friends

An exasperated Kaleb Cooper, 21, has to deal with one of Mr Clarkson's farming blunders on the show

'If one of us were spewing there were at least five others who were as well.'

The podcast also featured the sound of her downing a pint in 11.6 seconds.

Ms Craig is the county advisor for the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire areas on behalf of the National Farmers Union.

Her LinkedIn profile says previously she worked at estate agents Savills in their Agribusiness arm.

And before that she worked at various farms as a worker and tractor driver.

MailOnline told yesterday how nn exasperated young tractor driver who regularly shouts at the star and tells him he has 'f***ed up' had also become an unlikely hero of the show.

Straight-talking Kaleb Cooper, 21, is filmed repeatedly giving Mr Clarkson, 61, a dressing down during the hit Amazon Prime series Clarkson's Farm, freely admits his millionaire employer 'really annoys me' and declared today: 'I'm the boss really'.

Mr Cooper, who was born and bred in the Cotswolds and hadn't left the area until the show was made, couldn't be further from the Chipping Norton set Mr Clarkson is a member of. But he has helped the former Top Gear presenter and amateur farmer get to grips with his 1,000 acre farm in Oxfordshire, with the pair becoming an unlikely TV double act.

The Manchester United fan, who recently had a baby son Oscar with his girlfriend Taya, Ieft school at 16 and did four years as an apprentice on a cow farm before moving to Clarkson's Diddly Squat Farm to drive tractors.

But such is his success, and thanks to the army of 80,000 loyal Instagram fans built since the show began, Kaleb's is now being tipped for his own TV career - and he admits he would even consider going on I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!.

Speaking yesterday Kaleb told ITV's This Morning: 'I'm the boss really. It's very difficult to work with him - he doesn't listen to me - but the good thing is he does have a genuine interest in the farming. But yeah he don't (sic) listen, that's why you see me shout at him, and I do get genuinely angry when he does make a mistake'.
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This is the moment a Russian jet buzzed low over HMS Defender as it sailed past Crimea on Wednesday, before warning shots and bombs were allegedly fired in the Royal Navy destroyer's path after it was accused of crossing into territorial waters.

The British Type 45 destroyer was told, 'If you don't change course I'll fire,' after it entered the 12-mile limit of Crimea's territorial waters near Cape Fiolent in the Black Sea.

Moscow boasted that an Su-24 dropped four bombs in the vessel's path after it refused to back down and warning shots were fired from their patrol ship, but Britain has flatly denied the claims, saying the destroyer stayed in international waters and no shots were fired.

Two Black Sea Fleet coastguard ships continued to shadow HMS Defender from 100 yards away while 20 military aircraft patrolled it from the skies as it charted its course from Odessa in Ukraine to Georgia past Crimea, which Russia has annexed but the West refuses to recognise.

It was the first time since the Cold War that Moscow acknowledged using live ammunition to deter a NATO warship, reflecting the growing risk of military incidents amid soaring tensions between Russia and the West, as Ukraine's foreign minister appealed for further NATO help.

Tonight, Russia released footage filmed from one of its Su-24M attack jets which showed HMS Defender sailing off Crimea - but evidently not the moment it alleges shots were fired and four bombs were dropped.

BBC defence correspondent Jonathan Beale, who is on board the British vessel, said HMS Defender's crew were primed and weapons systems loaded as they approached the southern tip of the peninsula.

He said: 'Increasingly hostile warnings were issued over the radio - including one that said 'if you don't change course I'll fire'. We did hear some firing in the distance but they were believed to be well out of range.'

Captain Vincent Owen said his mission was confident but non-confrontational and insisted he was maintaining course on an internationally recognised shipping lane but Mr Beale said it was a 'deliberate move to make a point to Russia'.

Moscow has now summoned Britain's military attache and ambassador Deborah Bronnert to explain why the destroyer entered the waters.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova also denounced what she called 'rude British provocation that defies international law'.

The Ministry of Defence and Number 10 insist the incident never happened, adding that Russia was carrying out pre-arranged exercises and Defender was conducting an 'innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters'.

This is the moment a Russian jet buzzed low over HMS Defender as it sailed past Crimea on Wednesday, before warning shots and bombs were fired in the Royal Navy destroyer's path after it was accused of crossing into territorial waters

Russia claimed an Su-24 dropped four bombs in the path of HMS Defender in the Black Sea after accusing it of entering its waters near Cape Fiolent on Wednesday

A picture taken on Friday shows a ship from the Russian Black Sea Fleet (circled) shadowing USS Laboon , HMS Defender and the Dutch frigate HNLMS Evertsen

Releasing the new footage of HMS Defender from the air, Russian defence ministry's TV channel Zvezda said: 'In the footage can be seen the culprit of the incident, the destroyer Defender.

'It is not known at what moment the footage was shot, either before or after the warning shots which forced the ship to change course and leave the territory of the Russian Federation.'

Some footage was allegedly shot from the Su-24M which is said to have dropped four bombs to deter the Royal Navy vessel.

Other footage may have been from a military drone.

A caption said the footage showed a joint operation by the FSB Border Service and the Black Sea Fleet 'uppressing violations of the Russian state border by the British destroyer HMS Defender'.

In an unusual move, Russia also released footage of Britain's defence attache being summoned in Moscow.

Such meetings are normally private but a video was released to state media fuelling the assumption that Moscow was using the alleged incident for propaganda.

'In the wake of a violation of the Russian Federation's border by a Royal Navy destroyer, the defence attache at the UK embassy in Moscow has been summoned to the Russian Defence Ministry,' said a statement.

The Russian defence ministry had claimed a patrol ship first opened fire at 12.06pm and shot again two minutes later at HMS Defender after it refused to listen to radio warnings about entering its territorial waters.

Around ten minutes later, the Su-24 dropped four OFAB-250s in the path of the British vessel, forcing it to retreat after venturing two miles inside their waters, Russia said.

But the MoD issued a swift response to the claims, saying: 'No warning shots have been fired at HMS Defender.

'The Royal Navy ship is conducting innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law.

'We believe the Russians were undertaking a gunnery exercise in the Black Sea and provided the maritime community with prior-warning of their activity.

'No shots were directed at HMS Defender and we do not recognise the claim that bombs were dropped in her path.'

Tom Tugendhat, chair of the UK's Foreign Affairs Committee slammed the government of Russia's Vladimir Putin in a pair of tweets on Wednesday.

'Firing shots at ships in international waters is criminal. Putin's regime has: Used chemical weapons in the UK, Murdered opponents across Europe, Set explosions in Prague, Invaded and illegally occupied Ukraine and Georgia, Kept the Russian people hostage for a generation,' he wrote.

'Now it appears they lied about it,' Tugendhat said in a second tweet.

'For a mafia regime they really are pretty rubbish. But then they've so robbed the people and stripped out the country that there's nothing left. Russia deserves better than these thieves.'

Two Black Sea Fleet coastguard ships continued to shadow HMS Defender from 100 yards away

Releasing the new footage of HMS Defender from the air, Russian defence ministry's TV channel Zvezda said: 'In the footage can be seen the culprit of the incident, the destroyer Defender

Some footage was allegedly shot from the Su-24M which is said to have dropped four bombs to deter the Royal Navy vessel. Above: Su-24Ms seen in the Russian video

Moscow has summoned Britain's military attache and ambassador to explain why the Royal Navy's HMS Defender allegedly crossed into their waters (pictured)

In an unusual move, Russia released footage of the defence attache being summoned in Moscow

The Ministry of Defence has flatly denied Russia's claims, saying no warning shots were fired

HMS Defender is armed with missiles, an air defence system, an armed Lynx Wildcat helicoper, Westland Merlin helictopers and various naval guns. Russia's Su-24 jets are equipped with 23mm cannon, laser-guided air-to-surface and air-to-air missiles and can also carry tactical nuclear bombs

The Royal Navy said earlier in June that the HMS Defender had 'peeled away' from its strike group conducting NATO operations in the Mediterranean to carry out 'her own set of missions' in the Black Sea.

A spokesman for Boris Johnson said this morning: 'We saw the reports this morning. It's incorrect to say that Defender was fired upon or was in Russian waters.

'Defender was taking the most direct and internationally recognised route between Ukraine and Georgia.'

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said it was not the first time the Russians had made false claims about British warships operating in the area, having previously claimed to have 'chased out' another Type 45 destroyer, HMS Dragon.

'These are the things that come an go with Russia. Disinformation, misinformation is something that we have seen regularly. We are not surprised by it,' he said.

'We plan for it and we take all steps to make sure we are not escalatory or provocative.

'However we will not shy away from upholding international law and our rights on the sea.'

He had earlier said: 'This morning, HMS Defender carried out a routine transit from Odessa towards Georgia across the Black Sea.

'As is normal for this route, HMS Defender entered an internationally recognised traffic separation corridor.

'She exited that corridor safely at 9.45 BST. As is routine, Russian vessels shadowed her passage and she was made aware of training exercises in her wider vicinity.'

But Lisa Nandy MP, Labour's Shadow Foreign Secretary, said: 'The Foreign Secretary must urgently come to the House to confirm the validity of these deeply concerning reports and outline what steps the UK is taking to ensure the safety of British forces in the Black Sea.'

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said it was 'clear proof of Ukraine's position: Russia's aggressive and provocative actions in the Black and Azov seas, its occupation and militarization of Crimea pose a lasting threat to Ukraine and allies.'

'We need a new quality of cooperation between Ukraine & NATO allies in the Black Sea,' Kuleba tweeted.

The British military attache to Moscow has now been summoned to the Russian defence ministry after the alleged incident.

'The destroyer had been warned that weapons would be used if it trespasses the border of the Russian Federation. It did not react to the warning,' the Russian ministry said.

Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine in 2014 in a move condemned by the West which still considers it Ukrainian territory.

Britain has previously claimed its warships ships stationed in the Black Sea are in international or Ukrainian waters.

The Russian ministry's TV channel Zvezda reported: 'The Black Sea Fleet together with the FSB (security service) stopped a violation of the Russian border by a British destroyer Defender.

'Today, at 11:52, the Defender crossed the state border of Russia in the northwestern part of the Black Sea.

A map shows the route taken by HMS Defender during the alleged incident near the south coast of Crimea

Footage filmed by the BBC shows the crew of HMS Defender readying weapons after the earlier threats made by Russia

Captain Vincent Owen, pictured on HMS Defender today, said his mission was confident but non-confrontational and insisted he was maintaining course on an internationally recognised shipping lane but Mr Beale said it was a 'deliberate move to make a point to Russia'

The HMS Defender crew readied for a potential confrontation after Russia claimed to have fired warning shots and dropped bombs

Members of the ship's crew were pictured wearing anti-flash gear, which protects them from flame exposure and heat

Another image taken from BBC footage showed a strip of bullets on the deck of HMS Defender

'It entered the territorial waters for three kilometres, in the area of Cape Fiolent.

'Previously warned about the use of weapons in the event of a violation of the border, the British ship did not react to this in any way.

'At 12:06 and 12:08, a Russian border patrol ship fired a warning shot.

'At 12:19, the Su-24M aircraft of the Black Sea Fleet performed a warning bombing, dropping 4 OFAB-250 bombs on the course of the destroyer.

A Russian military ship allegedly fired warning shots at British Royal Navy destroyer HMS Defender after it entered Russian waters (file image)

Russia claimed an Su-24 (pictured) dropped four bombs in the path of the vessel in the Black Sea

Vladimir Putin is pictured on Wednesday amid the dispute over whether Russia fired at the British vessel

OFAB 250 fragmentation bomb Caliber: 250kg Length: 1.4m Diameter: 33cm Explosive weight: 92kg Bomb weight: 268kg OFAB 250 bomb Advertisement

'At 12:23 the British destroyer left the borders of the territorial sea of Russia.'

The Defender had earlier visited Ukrainian Naval port Odessa.

The destroyer had been on operations in the Black Sea with American navy guided missile destroyer USS Laboon and Dutch warship HNLMS Evertsen in a show of support for Ukraine following Putin's recent vast military build up close to Ukrainian borders.

Russia has said in recent days that it was closely monitoring HMS Defender.

Earlier on Wednesday, President Vladimir Putin said Russia is 'concerned' about the NATO build-up near Russian borders.

Addressing an international security conference in Moscow, Putin said the alliance 'refuses to constructively consider our proposals to de-escalate tensions and reduce the risk of unpredictable incidents'.

The US periodically sends warships to the region in a show of support for Ukraine, often drawing protests from Russia.

An earlier image taken from Royal Navy destroyer HMS Defender showed Russian frigate Admiral Essen 'shadowing' USS Laboon.

Russia's national defence control centre said: 'Forces and systems of the [Russian] Black Sea Fleet have started monitoring the movements of the Royal Navy HMS Defender and the Dutch Navy's Evertsen frigate.'

The fleet's former commander Admiral Vladimir Komoyedov said: 'Those ships will definitely not be welcome here.

'No-one is going to greet them as guests of honour, while their actions will definitely be monitored.

'They will be put under direct surveillance, technically, from the air and from outer space.'

The Russian fleet was enhancing 'its combat preparedness, especially the readiness of air defence crews and particular standby forces' with the presence of the NATO ships, he said.

On Tuesday, HMS Defender sent a messages of thanks to Odessa as it continued its operations in the Black Sea

Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat, the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the House of Commons, condemned Russia's actions, which he called 'criminal'

The destroyer (pictured) had been on operations in the Black Sea with American navy guided missile destroyer USS Laboon and Dutch warship HNLMS Evertsen

They were being subjected to 'close monitoring'.

'Their visits to the Black Sea have become too frequent,' said Komoyedov. 'Their intensified presence has gone too far.

'They are complying with the Montreux Convention, but the activity of ships from non-Black Sea countries has never been so intensive before, even in the Soviet period.'

The USS Laboon is in the Black Sea 'to conduct maritime security operations in the region', the United States Sixth Fleet said on Twitter.

The destroyer is capable of carrying up to 56 Tomahawk cruise missiles.

In a blast last month General Vladimir Kulishov, deputy director of the FSB security service, claimed that Royal Navy destroyer HMS Dragon had to be 'expelled' by the Russians 'warnings' not to enter 'Russian territorial waters' off annexed Crimea.

'The destroyer Dragon of the British Navy crossed the state border of the Russian Federation in the area of Cape Khersones in the Black Sea,' said the counterintelligence chief.

'The destroyer's captain responded with a poor signal to the demand to immediately leave Russian territorial waters,' he said.

'As a result of the joint actions with the Russian Navy and the Russian Aerospace Forces, the warship was expelled into neutral waters.'

British sources flatly denied the FSB claim which related to an incident in October last year.

'The Russian Federation Navy did not impede HMS Dragon's passage. She navigated without incident, exercising our right of innocent passage under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea,' said a Ministry of Defence spokesperson in London.

'HMS Dragon was taking the most direct route between two port visits, navigating a recognised safe route for all international shipping within Ukrainian waters.'

Russia is known to have deployed submarine Veliky Novogorod to track HMS Dragon.
Steve Bouquet allegedly killed nine cats and stabbed seven others in spate of attacks

A professor has today told the trial of an alleged cat killer that he found his pet Kyo stabbed to death by the side of the road.

Steve Bouquet, 54, knifed seven cats, killing two of them, during a month-long stabbing spree, Chichester Crown Court has heard.

He allegedly approached the pets near their homes and showed them affection before pulling out a knife from his rucksack and stabbing them.

The court was told Bouquet would then walk off and leave the animals to either die or crawl home, where many later succumbed to their horrific injuries.

The security guard at the Churchill shopping centre in Brighton, East Sussex, is accused of carrying out a spate of stabbings between October 2018 and June 2019, and allegedly killing nine cats and seriously injuring seven more.

He is charged with 16 offences of criminal damage, because cats like other pets are deemed property, and is also charged with unlawful possession of a Leatherman multi-tool in public.

Bouquet, who is being tried in his absence, denies the charges.

At court, one owner, Professor Paul Tofts, told of the moment he came across his pet Kyo 'by accident' lying dead down the side of his house in May 2019.

He said: 'I had to go out to meet someone and I came upon him by accident. There was blood all over the place and a trail of blood from the pavement leading to the front.'

And another described blood spurting out of a deep wound after she picked up her cat Gideon, who had been found limping on his return home.

At court, one owner, Professor Paul Tofts (pictured left), told of the moment he came across his pet Kyo (right) 'by accident' lying dead down the side of his house in May 2019

Professor Tofts said that Kyo, who had a white mark on his throat, spent much of his time roaming outside and he had been brought to the UK from Germany some years before by his wife where he had been almost 'feral.'

The professor initially told police he last saw his cat at around 10pm the previous evening.

The cats Bouquet is accused of killing Hendrix, who belonged to Stewart Montgomery, in May 2019. Tommy, who belonged to Carolyn Green in November 2018. Hannah, who belonged to Alan Levy in October 2018. Alan, who belonged to Katherine Maddock in February 2019. Nancy, who belonged to Jeff Carter in March 2019. Gizmo, who belonged to Emma O'Sullivan in March 2019. Kyo, who belonged to Paul Tofts in May 2019. Ollie, who belonged to Suzanne McKenzie in May 2019. Cosmo, who belonged to Lucy Kenward in June 2019. Advertisement

But he later changed that in a second statement where he told police he may not have seen his cat at all the previous evening.

Meanwhile, Tina Randall said she spotted a wound on her pet Gideon's shoulder and immediately thought it was a stab wound.

She said: 'Gideon came in through front door. He seemed to flop down and I noticed there something wrong with him.

'It was was a three-quarter inch straight wound. It did not look like a bite. I immediately thought it was a stab wound. He was fading and as I picked him up blood spurted out.'

Miss Randall, a former veterinary assistant, took him to the vets, where Gideon, 11, survived emergency surgery and treatment costing more than 1,600.

In total, seven cats - Hannah, Wheatley, Alistair, Rigby, Gideon, Tommy and Samson - were stabbed in October-November 2018. Tommy and Hannah died from their injuries.

Ravi Dogra, defending, accused Professor Tofts of changing his statement after finding out that police had evidence which connected a suspect to the attack at an earlier time that evening.

Professor Tofts denied lying, saying the police statement was taken down inaccurately and that the officer taking it down had done so from memory sometime later.

He said he corrected his initial error when he made a second statement to police about the attack.

The first victim of the alleged cat killer - Hannah - died from blood loss before she could be saved by a vet.

Hannah, who was 14 months, had last been seen sitting up a neighbour's palm tree by her owner Alan Levy as he headed off to work that October.

The court heard that vets treating the cats had ruled out car accidents or falling from trees as the possible cause of the injuries. Pictured: Samson, who was injured

Bouquet was charged with 16 offences of criminal damage between October 2018 and June 2019, as under current legislation, cats and other animals are deemed to be property. Nine of the pets were killed, seven were injured

But just 30 minutes later he received a call form his distraught partner telling him their beloved pet had been seriously injured.

He returned home and the couple raced Hannah to Coastways Vets in Brighton. The jury was told the cat had such a deep laceration to her leg she could not be saved, and she later died of blood loss.

In a statement read to court, the vet who treated Hannah on her arrival said she remembers the case because the owner's partner was 'absolutely distraught'.

Sharon Dunworth said there was a deep wound to the cat's thigh which had penetrated the whole muscle and severed her femoral artery.

She said there were no bruises or grazing, but a single penetrative wound consistent with being stabbed.

Miss Dunworth said: 'She had a lacerated femoral artery and would have died form the blood loss.'

Giving evidence, Mr Levy agreed the loss of the beloved cat in such a shocking manner had been very 'upsetting'.

The court was told that after the tragedy, he installed CCTV on his house in order to protect their other cat, Gerry.

One victim, Alistair, had to undergo 2,500 worth of veterinary treatment after he was allegedly stabbed by Bouquet.

In a statement read to court, Carolyn Green described the moment she discovered her cat Tommy bleeding on her front doorstep.

The wave of stabbings swept through central Brighton between October 2018 and June 2019, leaving pet owners upset. Pictured: Bouquet outside court in 2019

Pictured: Nancy, who belonged to Jeff Carter in March 2019

She said she received a knock on the door on at 6.15pm on November 8 and saw a neighbour who told her she thought her pet had been knocked down by a car.

She said: 'I saw my cat Tommy lying on doorstep clearly injured. I only let him out a few minutes previously. I picked him and noticed blood on my T-shirt.'

She took him to New Priory Vets in Brighton and they treated Tommy and then sedated him.

They called Mrs Green later to tell her that her cat had been stabbed and that he would have to undergo emergency surgery. She said: 'I was shocked and they said they were operating as his injuries were serious.'

At around 11.45pm that night Mrs Green received another call form the vets to tell her that Tommy had died from his injuries.

The jury was told the alleged killer was only caught after being captured on CCTV which had been installed by the owner of the first victim, Hannah.

Seven months later, Bouquet was allegedly caught on a CCTV camera attacking and killing Hendrix, a nine-month-old black kitten, who sitting on a wall near his house.

Two days later, when Bouquet was allegedly later spotted walking past the house on live CCTV by his partner, Mr Levy called police and he was stopped by police and arrested.

The jury have been shown the footage of the moment Bouquet allegedly stabbed Hendrix in the side.

Seanin Mouland, whose cat Samson was injured in November 2018, told the court she found her cat dragging his back legs after being stabbed.

She said: 'I heard him growling from the patio at around 10.30pm' - as if he was in confrontation with another cat.

The cat came inside at 11.50pm and she said that he was unable to walk properly and was dragging his back legs.

Pictured: Alan, who belonged to Katherine Maddock in February 2019

Bouquet, who is being tried in his absence, has denied the charges. Pictured: Samson

In a statement read to the court, she said: 'He came to bedroom door. I saw his back legs weren't working. He was growling and hissing. It was clear something was wrong, He then threw up. I found a small blood spot on the floor beneath him.'

When her husband turned him over they could see an inch-long slit on his left hip near his belly.

He was rushed to a vets and underwent surgery to repair a puncture to his abdomen which had damaged his colon. He was given intensive post-operative care and survived.

In another statement read to court, Katherine Mattock said she noticed a large cut near her cat Alan's lung area which was 'bleeding profusely'.

She said: 'I was still in a state of shock. I picked him up and he was limp but warm. I looked at my hands which had blood on them.'

The owner said police were called and she ran over to a nearby pub and asked the manager come and see if her cat was dead.

She said: 'I didn't want to believe he was dead.' However she was told her cat was dead and the body was taken to vets for examination.

A vet, Megan Prendergast, later confirmed Alan had been killed by a single, deep knife wound which had pierced his lung.

The trial continues.
This brave boy's face was savagely mauled by his babysitter's dog and it took more than an hour for a ambulance to be called.

The whole right side of five-year-old Liam Pruitt's face was swollen and covered in blood after being savagely mauled by the terrier-mix dog.

His right eye was bleeding and in need of extensive surgery, his cheeks were punctured by teeth, and his lips and throat were heavily damaged and bleeding following the attack on April 28.

Now, Liam, from Walbridge, Ohio, is too scared of dogs to go to his friends' houses, where he lashes out by throwing things, screaming and growling.

This brave boy's face was savagely mauled by his babysitter's dog and it wasn't until an hour had passed that someone thought to call an ambulance

Stay-at-home-mum Tristin Pruitt, 31, and iron worker Jeff Pruitt, 33, from Walbridge, Ohio, are parents to Liam Pruitt, 5, along with his three siblings - Jailynn, 14, Ryan, 8, and Knox, 2

When Liam was savagely attacked by a terrier-mix dog on April 28, the family's life was turned upside down

Stay-at home mum Tristin, who was 13 weeks pregnant at the time of the attack, left Liam and his brother Knox, 2 at the house of his babysitter to wait for the morning school bus while she attended an ultrasound.

The babysitter was the mother of one of Liam's classmates and so Tristin, who has three other children with iron worker husband Jeff felt happy leaving her sons there.

Unknown to her, the babysitter's husband kept a terrier-mix dog kenneled. The dog had previously attacked two other children - despite this, they still kept it at the property and did not alert Liam's parents to this fact.

It was when the babysitter's husband decided he wanted to introduce Liam to the dog that the dog lashed out from his grip and brutally attacked Liam's face, leaving him bleeding and in agony.

Tristin hadn't been away long when she received a call from the babysitter informing her that Liam was at the emergency room.

Liam's injuries bleeding heavily before surgery. When Liam was savagely attacked by a terrier-mix dog on April 28, 2021, the family found their life turned upside-down

Liam is pictured with two dogs prior to the incident. The whole of the right-hand side of Liam's face was swollen and covered in blood where the dog had mauled him

It took eight nurses to subdue Liam enough that they could irrigate and clean his tear duct which had been severely damaged. After cleaning, it took another three-and-a-half hours of sutures and plastic surgery to close all the wounds on his face and neck.

After the initial surgery and time in hospital, Tristin and Jeff learned the full extent of Liam's gruelling recovery process. Not only does he require further plastic surgery, steroid injections and laser treatment, but the success of his healing relies heavily on staying out of direct sunlight.

Liam pictured prior to the incident. After the initial surgery and time in hospital, Tristin and Jeff learned the full extent of Liam's gruelling recovery process

Not only does Liam require further plastic surgery, steroid injections and laser treatment, but the success of his healing relies heavily on staying out of direct sunlight

Doctors expect Liam to need three to five years of possible treatment and in the meantime, Tristin and Jeff are paying for the medical bills out of their own pocket.

As it was a third party that was at fault for the injuries, the insurance company claimed it was 'similar to a car accident' and it was the job of the other party's insurance to cover the costs.

The cost of pain medication alone at the first two hospitals came to over $15,000.

'When I saw his actual injuries my world shattered,' said Tristin.

'I pulled into the hospital and the babysitter pulled in after me. She was covered in blood and Liam was alone in the back of her van screaming.

'While I was trying to get Liam into the hospital and find Knox, she chatted away to me like nothing was wrong.

'She told me she hated the dog and it was the third time it had bitten a child but her husband wouldn't let her get rid of it. I didn't say a word to her, I just grabbed my baby and ran.

'Liam had no idea how bad it was and I held it together for him. I played it very calm and soothed him but on the inside I was terrified.

'I was so angry at myself for allowing her to babysit and never asking if she had a dog because I never let people with dogs babysit.

'I didn't cry or let Liam see me upset until they took him away for surgery. When they took my boy, I couldn't comfort him anymore and I lost it. I was terrified and livid, I was so angry that these three adults had put my baby in this danger.

'They left him to lie on the floor bleeding for nearly an hour while they cleaned - the babysitter is a surgical technician with medical experience so she must have known that it was bad.

'To rub salt into my wounds, when Liam was lying there on the operating table the babysitter and her husband were making posts on Facebook about how they were 'living their best life'.

'In between my emotions for Liam, I was calling my other kids and trying to hold it together for them too. It was Knox's first time with a babysitter and he'd been a witness to this attack and now his mummy hadn't come home - I was so worried about how it would affect him.

'It was during this time that I found out via a text from the babysitter that the dog was unvaccinated so Liam was at risk of a number of diseases including rabies.

Doctors expect Liam to need three to five years of possible treatment and in the meantime, Tristin and Jeff are paying for the medical bills out of their own pocket

Doctors expect Liam to need three to five years of possible treatment and in the meantime, Tristin and Jeff are paying for the medical bills out of their own pocket

'I was so angry at the whole situation that when I found out the dog was unvaccinated I wasn't so upset until I had to take Liam to get his shots. It was like reopening the terror that he'd just endured.

'Even then, finding out the dog had bitten two other children before Liam and they still chose to try and introduce the dog to Liam is what infuriated me the most.'

The dog was later euthanized.

After initially being taken to the local emergency room, he was transferred by ambulance to Toledo's Children's Hospital and then by life flight ambulance to Mott Children's Hospital at the University of Michigan.

Tristin worries that the effect of the attack on Liam will be long-lasting. Since it happened, he has developed intense mood swings and a fierce temper, lashing out angrily by throwing things, screaming and growling. She and Jeff worry they won't be able to break this anger cycle and it will continue to affect their son throughout his life.

'I remember Liam's smile and eyes lighting up the room and how he used to love running around outside, especially with his friends in the summer. He loved school and learning and when it was time to sit down he could focus so well,' said Tristin

'However, so much changed after he was attacked. A few months ago he didn't have an angry bone in his body but now he has nasty mood swings he never had before and we can't even go out to dinner without him acting out.

'I fear that if his scars don't fade away it will be the first thing everyone sees, besides his smile and beautiful eyes. I fear he may want a beard one day and not be able to grow one due to the scarring.

'There is the fear that his scars will harden and alter his face, but we're all praying so hard that it doesn't happen and trying to keep that fear out of our minds.

'The extreme stress has taken a toll on my pregnancy also as constant worries and stress have taken over, I haven't even been able to enjoy my last pregnancy.

'We're having such a difficult time playing catch-up financially too. I had to drop out of school because I missed too many hours and lost the financial aid I received. Jeff missed a few weeks of work as well.

'We're two weeks late with our rent every month and our bills are getting paid the day they're due to shut off. We've lived cheque to cheque before but even that wasn't as hard as this.

'We haven't even received his financial statements from the University of Michigan yet and that's where the most extensive treatment took place.

'The treatment is expected to take three to five years and we can't settle the lawsuit until the treatment is done or near done, so in the meantime we have to pay all the costs out of our own pockets.

'That's not to mention that even when I called the police, nothing was done with the dog! No one came to take it or did anything. We didn't even find out if it had rabies or not until it had been euthanised.

'We're so thankful that those tests came back negative.

'I just wish that I'd asked if the babysitter had a dog before I left Liam and Knox there.'

A GoFundMe page set up in the wake of the incident has so far raised $4,500.
Channel 4 should be sold off having 'sealed its own fate' with years of 'one-sided' news coverage, a leading Tory MP told MailOnline today.

The Government is to launch a consultation into the privatisation of Channel 4 after tensions between No 10 and executives at the television station over its finances and alleged woke agenda.

Channel 4 News, presented by Jon Snow, has repeatedly been branded left-wing and accused of unfairly trashing the Conservatives, reportedly sparking complaints from its own journalists about the programme's 'anti-Tory bias'.

In 2017 it was even claimed that Mr Snow joined in a chant of 'F*** The Tories' while attending the Glastonbury festival and in 2019 there was a grovelling apology after the veteran presenter said he had 'never seen so many white people in one place' while reporting on a pro-Brexit rally.

And after an attack on two gay women on a London bus, a reporter was accused of 'coaxing' the couple into blaming Boris Johnson for the homophobic crime and saying that he was 'not fit to lead the UK'.

In 2019 Ofcom rejected a Conservative complaint over Channel 4's use of an ice sculpture to stand in for the PM during a debate on climate change, after a subtitler mistakenly reported him saying 'people of colour' when he said 'people of talent' at a rally.

The channel, owned entirely by the taxpayer, was set up in 1982 by Mrs Thatcher as Britain's fourth channel, but has been dogged by claims its coverage wasn't balanced for years, accused of a string of 'partisan stunts' and faced thousands of complaints to Ofcom about alleged bias.

Tory MP Craig Mackinlay suggested Channel 4 had 'sealed its own fate' with 'one-sided' news coverage.

'It has always occupied a very strange location being under public ownership and it being a commercial enterprise,' he told MailOnline, adding: 'I don't think it should be in public ownership. It should be out surviving on its own.'

The Channel 4 news presenter Jon Snow was accused of apparently joining in a chant of 'F*** The Tories' while attending Glastonbury music festival in 2017 (pictured)

Channel 4 was slammed last year for mistakenly captioning the footage of Boris Johnson in an election year, which mistakenly reported him saying 'people of colour' when he said 'people of talent'

A reporter was accused of 'coaxing' a couple attacked on a bus into blaming Boris Johnson for the homophobic crime and saying that he was 'not fit to lead the United Kingdom'.

There was more fury when an ice sculpture was put in place for Prime Minister Boris Johnson when he failed to attend a climate change debate amid Tory concerns the show would not be balanced

Mr Mackinlay pointed to the coverage of the US election as an example of the way Channel 4 took sides in politics. It was like a party political broadcast against Trump for weeks and weeks and weeks. Which seemed rather bizarre because funnily enough we didn't have a vote on that one,' he said.

How Channel 4 was set up in 1982 by Mrs Thatcher and is 100% owned by the taxpayer Channel 4 launched in 1982, to provide a fourth television service to Britain, alongside BBC1, BBC2 and ITV. It has been funded by advertising and sponsorship deals since the outset. It made its debut with an episode of Countdown, presented by Carol Vorderman and Richard Whiteley and has become known for its left-leaning coverage, programming for young people and 'property porn' shows such as Grand Designs and Location, Location, Location. It is also home of the Great British Bake Off and known for its groundbreaking drama, most recently: It's A Sin. Channel 4 is commercially funded. It raised revenues of 985million in 2019, but a pre-tax loss of 26million. The process will be overseen by Media Minister John Whittingdale, who advocated privatisation of Channel 4 as long ago as 1996. Selling Channel 4 could be seen as something of an easy win for the Government, as it seeks to find new savings. The taxpayer has a 100 per cent shareholding in Channel 4 but relatively few viewers are even aware that it is state-owned. Advertisement

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) announced the move on Wednesday after bosses at the broadcaster were quizzed on the issue by MPs on the previous day.

The consultation will also review regulation of streaming services such as Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video, who have been snaffling more TV advertising from the British terrestrial broadcaster.

Channel 4, launched in 1982, is a Government-owned but commercially funded public service broadcaster, with a remit to broadcast 'diverse, alternative and challenging programming that appeals to a younger audience'.

One example of such output was the much criticised spoof Queen's Christmas Day speech, with jibes aimed at Harry and Meghan and Prince Andrew, which was branded 'woke rubbish', 'disgusting' and 'mean-spirited' by viewers.

But supporters of Channel 4 has suggested that the sale comes after repeated attacks from senior Tories who consider their output left-wing, and suggest the process is politically-motivated to stifle a critical voice of the Government.

Channel 4 has also come under repeated attacks from Conservatives who complain that some of its output is biased against the Tories, leading to suspicions that there is a political motivation to the government's move.

Moving Channel 4 into private ownership and changing its remit could ensure its 'future success and sustainability', the DCMS said in a statement.

It will consider whether new rules around impartiality and accuracy are needed for documentaries and news content on the platforms to 'level the playing field' with broadcasters, who are regulated by the watchdog Ofcom.

Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said: 'Technology has transformed broadcasting but the rules protecting viewers and helping our traditional channels compete are from an analogue age.

'The time has come to look at how we can unleash the potential of our public service broadcasters while also making sure viewers and listeners consuming content on new formats are served by a fair and well-functioning system.

'So we'll now be looking at how we can help make sure Channel 4 keeps its place at the heart of British broadcasting and level the playing field between broadcasters and video-on-demand services.'

The Government is to launch a consultation into the privatisation of Channel 4 after rows over funding and the balance of its coverage

Channel 4 chair Charles Gurassa told the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee on Tuesday that 'big American conglomerates' would be among the potential investors in Channel 4 if it was to be privatised

But Sir David Attenborough has called for an end to 'short-sighted political and financial attacks' on public service broadcasters as ministers begin moves towards privatising Channel 4.

The 95-year-old presenter has given his backing to a campaign group which has warned that ministers should not try to 'diminish' these broadcasters.

The Government will today reveal details of a consultation on the sale of Channel 4.

Sir David's name has been added to a group of public figures that have backed an open letter sent to Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden.

Other names understood to have signed include Sir Lenny Henry, Sir Salman Rushdie, Lord Mandelson and actor Adrian Lester.

It comes after Netflix was the centre of a huge row over the treatment of certain members of the Royal Family in the most recent series of The Crown.

A Whitehall source said: 'It's about levelling the playing field with broadcasters - if we think content and audience protection standards are important for broadcasters we should want these to apply equally to other platforms watched in an increasingly similar way too.'

From Jon Snow caught on camera chanting 'F*** the Tories' at Glastonbury to manipulating Boris's subtitles to THAT melting ice sculpture stunt  all the times Channel 4 proved its anti-Tory credentials

2020

Channel 4 was criticised for its 'deepfake' version of The Queen's Christmas Day speech in 2020, which saw the monarch discussing Harry and Meghan as well as her son Prince Andrew.

The channel produces a light-hearted alternative to the annual Christmas address but last year's offering has angered viewers, some of which branded it 'woke rubbish', 'disgusting' and 'mean spirited'.

It made a mockery of the Queen - with jibes aimed at Prince Andrew, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Boris Johnson - 25 minutes after the Queen's BBC broadcast at 3pm.

The digitally-created 'deepfake', played by actress Debra Stephenson, was filled with gags, including jokes about the toilet roll shortage at the beginning of the pandemic and saw the monarch perfecting her moves for a dance on Tik Tok.

But not all the viewers were impressed, including politician Nigel Farage who tweeted 'How dare they' in response to the video. Others took to Twitter to share their outrage, with one writing: 'Disgusting. The Queen has been steadfast in her duty and still going strong. God save the Queen.'

2019

Krishnan Guru-Murthy with (rear left to right) Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson, SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon, Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price, Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn and Green Party Co-Leader Sian Berry, standing next to ice sculptures representing the Brexit Party and Conservative Party who didnt appear at the event

The broadcaster was also slammed for wrongly captioning a video of Boris Johnson with subtitles referring to the race of immigrants.

Mr Johnson made a speech in which he said new immigration controls would ensure 'people of talent' still come to Britain.

But in Channel 4's subtitles of the speech, the phrase was changed to become 'people of colour'.

Channel 4 was forced to apologise after news anchor Jon Snow said he had 'never seen so many white people in one place' while reporting on a pro-Brexit rally

In the same year Ofcom rejected a Conservative complaint over Channel 4's use of an ice sculpture to stand in for Boris Johnson during a debate on climate change

The Tories complained that the broadcaster failed to allow the former environment secretary Michael Gove to be its representative for the debate, which saw party leaders face questions over how they would tackle climate change. But the regulator rejected the Tories' complaint.

The Conservative response was incendiary. An unnamed source threatened to review Channel 4's public service broadcasting licence when it expires in 2024. The Conservatives complained to Ofcom about what they termed a 'partisan stunt'.

Channel 4 News also apologised for Jon Snow's 'unscripted observation' after the broadcaster said he had 'never seen so many white people in one place' while reporting on a pro-Brexit rally.

In a statement, Channel 4 News said it 'regrets' any offence caused by the presenter's remarks, which came as protesters brought Westminster to a standstill on what was supposed to be the day the UK exited the European Union.

2017

Jon Snow branded a Channel 4 News panellist 'a b***end' after being reprimanded on live TV for an alleged four-letter attack on the Tories.

It was in relation to claims that Mr Snow joined in a chant of 'F*** The Tories' while attending Glastonbury music festival.

But the presenter was reportedly left lost for words when a right-wing think-tank's spokesman quipped 'not everyone hates the Tories as much as you do.'

It was in relation to claims that Mr Snow joined in a chant of 'F*** The Tories' while attending Glastonbury music festival at the weekend. While Mr Snow has said he has 'no recollection' of the Glastonbury incident, he was nonetheless taken to task live on air by Matt Kilcoyne of the Adam Smith Institute.

2015

A Channel 4 docudrama about an imagined Ukip victory at the general election was to be investigated by Ofcom

Ofcom launched an investigation into a Channel 4 docudrama which led to more than 6,500 complaints after it depicted people rioting in the streets following an imagined Ukip election win.

The broadcaster was accused election bias and scaremongering after it painted a country marred by race riots and mass unemployment under an imagined leadership by Nigel Farage in 'Ukip: The First 100 Days'.

2014

Backbench Tory MP Philip Davies was involved in a heated exchange with veteran broadcaster Jon Snow on a tour of Channel 4 News's studios

Jon Snow became embroiled in a furious shouting match with Tory Mp Philip Davies, the Channel 4 newsroom turned into their unlikely sparring arena after Channel 4 was accused of biased coverage.

The row  played out in front of 50 journalists  began when 'playground bully' Mr Snow confronted Mr Davies, who was on a tour of the studio, about accusations of political bias.

They traded insults for ten minutes  with Mr Davies saying Mr Snow was 'past it'  before fellow presenter Krishnan Guru-Murthy waded in and told their visitor to 'clear off'.

According to witnesses, he argued with Mr Davies over accusations the MP had made that he was 'biased' to the Left.

And some of the other controversies

2008

President Ahmadinejad's Christmas speech In the Alternative Christmas address of 2008, a Channel 4 tradition since 1993 with a different presenter each year, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made a thinly veiled attack on the United States by claiming that Christ would have been against 'bullying, ill-tempered and expansionist powers'.

2004

A documentary showing a woman undergoing an abortion caused upset while Channel 4's digital offshoot More 4, made headlines of its own by staging the assassination of George W Bush in its film Death of a President.

2002

Gunther von Hagens performed a public autopsy in the UK - the first one for 170 years.

Despite the furore, he was invited back for 2012's Crucifixion on Easter Sunday, in which he mapped out his own interpretation of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
A landmark ruling on the use of puberty-blocking drugs for children 'undermined' their rights dating back decades, the NHS's child gender clinic argued at the Court of Appeal today.

In December, the High Court ruled that children under 16 with gender dysphoria can only consent to the use of hormone blocking treatments if they are able to understand the 'immediate and long-term consequences'.

The court also said it was 'highly unlikely' that a child 13 or under would be able to consent to the treatment, and that it was 'doubtful' a child aged 14 or 15 would understand the consequences.

The case was brought by Keira Bell - a 24-year-old woman who began taking puberty blockers when she was 16 before later 'detransitioning' - against the Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust, which runs the UK's only gender identity development service for children.

A mother of an autistic teenager who was on the waiting list for treatment, only known as Mrs A, supported Ms Bell in their successful legal challenge.

Tavistock began its appeal against the ruling on Wednesday and Fenella Morris QC, for the trust, said the decision 'reset almost half a century of established law' and caused 'serious distress to many young people and their families'.

Keira Bell seen here arriving at the Royal Courts of Justice today. She is a 24-year-old woman who began taking puberty blockers when she was 16 before later 'detransitioning'

The Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust (file picture) runs the UK's first gender clinic in London

Supporters of Gendered Intelligence at the Royal Court of Justice. They are one of several LGBT groups supporting an appeal against the court's decision

In written arguments, she said: 'The effect of the court's judgment is to deny trans children and young people access to treatment which they desperately want and need. It is unclear what 'benefit' there is to be gained from this.'

She continued: 'It undermined the entitlement of children under the age of 16 to make decisions for themselves when they have been assessed individually as competent to do so by their treating clinicians.

'It intruded into the realm of decisions agreed upon by doctors, patients and their parents where the court had not previously gone.'

At the start of the hearing, Ms Morris told the court that puberty blockers are used 'to reduce distress' for children with gender dysphoria, allowing them to make decisions about their bodies in the future.

She continued: 'Having reduced that distress, it creates the possibility to take time to consider options ... it allows the child to make the choice.

'If puberty progresses without pause, then the distress which is caused by the progress of puberty inhibits the thinking which allows the child to make an informed choice.'

She added: 'Not providing treatment means that the child remains in a position of distress and difficulties in making choices about what to do next.'

In their ruling, the High Court judges said children and young people wishing to start puberty blockers would also have to understand the implications of taking cross-sex hormones.

Ms Bell's lawyers previously argued there is 'a very high likelihood' that children who start taking hormone blockers will later begin taking cross-sex hormones, which they say cause 'irreversible changes'.

However, the Court of Appeal heard that it is not inevitable that a young person will move from puberty blockers to cross-sex hormones - which will only be prescribed to those over 16 - with even fewer going on to have surgery.

Ms Morris later said that puberty blockers are said to be 'fully reversible' in international guidelines relied upon by the trust.

Also, according to the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) guidelines, very few people regret treatment of their gender dysphoria, the court heard.

'They refer to satisfaction rates across studies ranging from 87% in male to female patients and 97% of female to male patients and regrets were extremely rare,' Ms Morris said.

What are puberty blockers and how can children transition gender? If a child is under 18 and may have gender dysphoria, they'll usually be referred to the Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS) at the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust. GIDS has 2 main clinics in London and Leeds. The team will carry out a detailed assessment, usually over 3 to 6 appointments over a period of several months. Young people with lasting signs of gender dysphoria may be referred to a hormone specialist (consultant endocrinologist) to see if they can take hormone blockers as they reach puberty. These hormone, or 'puberty' blockers (gonadotrophin-releasing hormone analogues) pause the physical changes of puberty, such as breast development or facial hair. Little is known about the long-term side effects of hormone or puberty blockers in children with gender dysphoria. Although the Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS) advises this is a physically reversible treatment if stopped, it is not known what the psychological effects may be. It's also not known whether hormone blockers affect the development of the teenage brain or children's bones. Side effects may also include hot flushes, fatigue and mood alterations. From the age of 16, teenagers who've been on hormone blockers for at least 12 months may be given cross-sex hormones, also known as gender-affirming hormones. These hormones cause some irreversible changes, such as breast development and breaking or deepening of the voice. Long-term cross-sex hormone treatment may cause temporary or even permanent infertility. Source: NHS Advertisement

The barrister later said that children or young people who are considering going on to puberty blockers are told about the effects on their fertility that may be caused by later stages of transition.

Highlighting that it is not inevitable that a young person will continue on to cross-sex hormones after puberty blockers, she added: 'The question is whether a child is counselled about fertility implications at the next stage and you can see from the material ... all of that is explained at the initial stage.

'There is no suggestion anywhere that this is one pathway ... there is no shying away from explaining to children and young people what the possibilities are.'

Jeremy Hyam QC, for Ms Bell and Mrs A, argued that the appeal should fail as it did not find any 'material errors' in the original ruling.

In written arguments, he said: 'There is no proper basis for overturning these findings, which were reached by a highly experienced court after careful consideration of a significant body of evidence.'

He added: 'The need for a child to understand, retain and weigh up the salient facts is all the more important because, unlike life-saving cancer treatment, there is much uncertainty as to what the benefits of puberty blockers actually are.'

The hearing before Lord Chief Justice Lord Burnett - sitting with Sir Geoffrey Vos and Lady Justice King - is expected to last two days, with judgment given at a later date.

In the wake of December's judgment, the Tavistock paused new referrals to endocrinology services.

The barrister told the Court of Appeal that the ruling challenged the established rights of children and young people to make informed decisions regarding their medical treatment.

She said: 'The courts have recognised since the 1950s that a child who is capable of appreciating fully the nature and consequences of a particular operation or of particular treatment can give an effective consent.'

LGBT campaigners raised concerns about all young people's access to other forms of healthcare, including contraception, after the judgment.

The Tavistock's lawyers said the ruling was 'inconsistent' with a long-standing concept that young people may be able to consent to their own medical treatment, following an appeal over access to the contraceptive pill for under 16s in the 1980s.

Ms Morris said: 'It will be appreciated that there were in 1986 both known and unknown risks inherent in the use of the contraceptive pill, far greater than any physical risks that are known to be inherent in the prescription of puberty blockers which have been in use for a far longer period of time.'

The three High Court judges also said in December that children and young people wishing to start puberty blockers would also have to understand the implications of taking cross-sex hormones.

Ms Bell's lawyers previously argued there is 'a very high likelihood' that children who start taking hormone blockers will later begin taking cross-sex hormones, which they say cause 'irreversible changes'.

Keira Bell outside the Royal Courts of Justice in central London after December's ruling. The 23-year-old, who began taking puberty blockers when she was 16 before 'detransitioning', brought legal action against the Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust

However, the Court of Appeal heard that it was not inevitable that a young person would move from puberty blockers to cross-sex hormones - which will only be prescribed to those over 16 - with even fewer going on to have surgery.

Ms Morris argued the judgment 'saw fit to prescribe a one-size-fits-all checklist of relevant information that the child or young person would have to understand. This was wrong'.

She continued that there is no clinical evidence that puberty blockers have irreversible effects on fertility or sexual functioning.

In the previous judgment, the High Court said the use of hormone blockers was 'innovative and experimental'.

This was rejected by Ms Morris, who said the treatment had been in 'mainstream usage for decades', including to treat early puberty.

She added: 'The use of puberty blockers in precocious puberty and in the treatment of gender dysphoria is the same. The conditions which the drugs are used to treat are different, but the way in which the drugs are used and their purpose is identical.'

She also told the court that puberty blockers were prescribed 'to reduce distress' for children with gender dysphoria, allowing them to make decisions in the future.

She continued: 'Then, having reduced that distress, it creates the possibility to take time to consider options ... it allows the child to make the choice.'

She added: 'Not providing treatment means that the child remains in a position of distress and difficulties in making choices about what to do next.'

Ms Morris said that puberty blockers are deemed fully reversible in international guidelines.

She later told the Court of Appeal that children or young people who may go onto puberty blockers are told about the potential implications on their fertility from later stages of transition.

Miss Bell (pictured as a five-year-old) had treatment which began at the Tavistock in London

Miss Bell (pictured left, and right as a man), took testosterone, which left her with a deep voice and possibly infertile, and had a double mastectomy - but later realised she had 'gone down the wrong path'. Right, She changed her name and sex on her driving licence and birth certificate, calling herself Quincy (after musician Quincy Jones)

The barrister said that while puberty blockers are reversible and that it is not inevitable that a young person will go onto cross sex hormones at a later stage, they are still advised at the early stage.

She said: 'The question is whether a child is counselled about fertility implications at the next stage and you can see from the material ... all of that is explained at the initial stage.

'There is no suggestion anywhere that this is one pathway ... there is no shying away from explaining to children and young people what the possibilities are.'

Jeremy Hyam QC, for Ms Bell and Mrs A, argued the appeal should fail as it did not find any 'material errors' in the original ruling.

In written arguments, he said: 'There is no proper basis for overturning these findings, which were reached by a highly experienced court after careful consideration of a significant body of evidence.'

He added: 'The need for a child to understand, retain and weigh up the salient facts is all the more important because, unlike life-saving cancer treatment, there is much uncertainty as to what the benefits of puberty blockers actually are.'

The hearing before the Lord Chief Justice Lord Burnett - sitting with Sir Geoffrey Vos and Lady Justice King - is expected to last two days with judgment at a later date.

Speaking outside the Royal Courts of Justice at the start of the NHS trust's appeal on Wednesday, Ms Bell said: 'I'm always hopeful, but the result could go any way.'

She added: 'It's a global case ... it's definitely had a big impact.'

Discussing the previous judgment, Ms Bell said: 'It makes me feel very positive because it has been recognised around the world and people are becoming more and more aware of what's going on.'

Later asked about puberty blockers, she added: 'Children can't consent to it ... it has complex repercussions that children can't understand.'

Nine organisations or individuals - including human rights group Liberty and professional body The Endocrine Society - have intervened in the case.

Liberty director Gracie Bradley said: 'Liberty has a long and proud history of standing up for trans rights - and today is no different. This case has implications for trans children not just in the UK, but also all over the world.

'Other countries have already started using the UK ruling to restrict trans rights - we now have a chance to stop that.

'This case could also impact the ability of all children and young people to choose and receive healthcare - something which would be a regressive step that any rights' respecting society should be loudly and fiercely rejecting.'
Nationals senator Sam McMahon has denied claims she was 'trolleyed' after she was helped out of Parliament, after colleagues anonymously claimed she was 'intoxicated'.

Ms McMahon, 53, was escorted from the federal Upper House in Canberra on Tuesday during a late-night sitting after colleagues allegedly said she was disorientated, barely awake and struggling to walk.

Reports say 10 senators, including some from the Coalition, claim the Northern Territory senator was 'heavily intoxicated'.

Some added that she appeared 'trolleyed', 'off her head', 'embarrassing' and 'maggoted', according to reports.

Vision shows her walking unsteadily across the floor after speaking to colleagues.

Senator Sam McMahon, 53, (pictured) was escorted from a sitting of the federal Upper House after colleagues allegedly said she was disorientated, barely awake and struggling to walk

One Coalition colleague told The Age: 'I've never seen anything like it.'

Another added: 'It was totally inappropriate.

'This is a place of work, we all have a social drink from time to time but this was on another level.'

Footage from inside the chamber from around 10.45pm on Tuesday appeared to show the former veterinarian drinking from a water bottle alongside Nationals Senate leader Bridget McKenzie and Attorney-General Michaelia Cash.

The video shows her being directed across the chamber where she again sits down alongside Senator Cash and resumes drinking from her bottle before Nationals whip Perin Davey becomes involved.

Senator McMahon is seen being helped to her feet by Senator Cash (pictured with Senator McMahon in black) before appearing to stumble on her way out of the chamber

Senator McMahon is then seen being helped to her feet by Senator Cash before appearing to stumble on her way out of the chamber.

The Country Liberal MP sits with the Nationals in Parliament but is facing a preselection battle for her seat at the next election, just two years after she was first elected to sit in Canberra.

Her fragile political future is said to have played a key role in the recent leadership coup which saw Michael McCormack replaced by returning Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce.

Mr McCormack is said not have shown sufficient support for Senator McMahon, which helped seal his downfall, while Mr Joyce is said to have a 'very close relationship' with the senator.

The Country Liberal MP sits with the Nationals (as pictured above) in Parliament but is facing a preselection battle for her seat at the next election

On Wednesday, Senator McMahon insisted she was not intoxicated, and told The Age the allegations were 'incorrect'. She said she had only drunk one glass of wine.

Instead, she said, she had received 'sad personal news' that evening and had asked to leave the chamber because she was 'not coping'.

The incident comes amid rising demands for an alcohol ban and breathtesting in Parliament following a series of scandals.

Senator McMahon (pictured above being shown the exit) insisted she had not been drunk on duty, and said the allegations were 'incorrect'. She said she had only drunk one glass of wine

'The Parliament is an unusual working place. Its had long hours, its particularly intense and we have very important work to undertake,' said Treasurer Josh Frydenburg in March in the wake of the Brittany Higgins rape allegations.

'But the behaviour and the conduct and the culture that we have seen exhibited by revelations of what has taken place in the Parliament ... falls well below community standards and it has to change and it has to change fast.'
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Forty eight people have been charged after a 'Redneck Rave' in Kentucky descended into chaos as one man had his throat slit, a woman was choked in a fight over a blanket and another man became impaled on a log.

Tens of thousands of people attended the five-day Redneck Rave festival at Blue Holler Offroad Park in the small town of Mammoth Cave, 90 miles south of Louisville, last week.

Dozens of attendees were charged with a range of offenses from drug trafficking to felony assault.

Some were left seriously injured as grisly scenes unfolded at what organizers billed as 'America's wildest and craziest country party'.

Of the more violent incidents, one man had his throat slit by a friend after a drunken fight.

Tens of thousands of people attended the five-day Redneck Rave festival in the small town of Mammoth Cave in Kentucky last week

Dozens of attendees were charged with a range of offenses from drug trafficking to felony assault. Some were left seriously injured as grisly scenes unfolded at what organizers billed as 'America's wildest and craziest country party'

'They were intoxicated, they got into a fight, one of them slit the other one's throat and then fled into the park,' Edmonson County Sheriff Shane Doyle told the Lexington Herald-Leader.

The throat-slasher still hadn't been arrested by Wednesday.

In a separate incident, 29-year-old Lancer Hodges was arrested after he allegedly strangled a woman until she passed out when they got into a fight over a blanket.

The victim, who told police she couldn't breathe and blacked out during the ordeal, was left with scratches on her neck and fingerprints behind her ears.

Hodges denied choking the woman but was charged with strangulation, wanton endangerment and fourth-degree domestic violent assault.

A man driving a side-by-side at the festival also ended up with a log impaled in his abdomen.

Authorities say the man drove over the log but it broke through the floorboard of his recreational vehicle and stabbed him in the abdomen.

'When it tried to come out through his back it was stopped by a steel plate behind his seat,' Sheriff Doyle said.

First responders were forced to leave the log in the man's abdomen while they airlifted him to hospital.

Organizers said prior to the event that they'd sold 20,000 tickets to the Redneck Festival, which promised to be 'America's wildest and craziest country party'

A car with a 'F**k Biden' flag is pictured above trying to get out of a muddy ditch at the Redneck Rave

The sheriff said he ended up making the decision to contain the illegal activity to the park because he did not have enough staff to try and stop it

A woman chugs her drink as she stands on top her muddy side-by-side at the Redneck Rave last week

Hundreds of side-by-side recreational vehicles were spotted at the festival. A man driving a side-by-side at the festival ended up with a log impaled in his abdomen

Dozens of attendees were charged with a range of offenses from drug trafficking to felony assault as the festival descended into chaos

There were multiple others who suffered severed fingers, broken bones, dislocated joints and severe lacerations at the festival.

Medics also treated dozens more who had become ill because they were so drunk.

'There were so many intoxicated people, we just decided, 'If dispatch sends an ambulance in, we're sending a deputy in with them,' Doyle said.

The sheriff said he knew the event would cause problems and had desperately tried to plan for adequate policing in the park where the festival was held.

He ended up making the decision to contain the illegal activity to the park because he did not have enough staff to try and stop it.

Law enforcement were told to crack down on any illegal activity happening outside the park and set up checkpoints outside the festival.

'The first vehicle that came through, we found meth, marijuana, and an open alcohol container,' Doyle said.

'And then one of the occupants had two active warrants... 'We were like 'well, this doesn't bode well for the weekend'.'

By the end of the festival, 48 people were charged with varying offenses.

By the end of the festival, 48 people were charged with varying offenses

The sheriff said he knew the event would cause problems and had desperately tried to plan for adequate policing in the park where the festival was held

By the end of the festival, 48 people were charged with varying offenses. There were 30 charges involving drugs or alcohol-related offenses, 63 traffic-related offenses and two arrest warrants were served on a fugitive

The local sheriff said he ended up making the decision to try and contain the illegal activity to the park because he did not have enough staff to try and stop it. Pictured is an aerial view of the festival

Fourteen people were arrested and the others received citations. Those who were arrested were from Kentucky, Michigan, Indiana, Missouri and Tennessee

Redneck Rave organizer Justin Stowers boasted that the festival was the 'coolest thing I've ever seen in my life'. Despite the havoc the event caused, Stowers thanked the police and fire departments for 'working with us to make every thing run as smooth as we can'

There were 30 charges involving drugs or alcohol-related offenses, 63 traffic-related offenses and two arrest warrants were served on a fugitive.

There was also six felony charges including assault, strangulation and wanton endangerment.

Fourteen people were arrested and the others received citations.

Those who were arrested were from Kentucky, Michigan, Indiana, Missouri and Tennessee.

Redneck Rave organizer Justin Stowers boasted that the festival was the 'coolest thing I've ever seen in my life'.

Despite the havoc the event caused, Stowers thanked the police and fire departments for 'working with us to make every thing run as smooth as we can'.

'We can definitely improve on a lot of things to make the one in October run a lot better... we are listening to all your suggestions,' he said in a Facebook post.

'This was the biggest event we've ever done and with as many people and random things that popped up unexpectedly I feel like we all handled it very well.'
EU citizens living in the UK who have not yet applied to the Government for the post-Brexit right to remain in the country are to be given a 28-day warning to do so.

The EU Settlement Scheme opened for applications back in March 2019 and the formal deadline is June 30 - now just one week away.

EU citizens and their families have been asked by the Home Office to apply to the scheme in order to continue living and working in the UK now the Brexit transition period and freedom of movement have ended.

Ministers are adamant that the end of the month deadline for normal applications will not be extended.

However, people who can demonstrate they have 'reasonable grounds' for missing the deadline will still be allowed to apply and they will be granted an indefinite amount of time to complete their application.

Immigration enforcement officials are due to start issuing the notices to people advising them to seek settled status.

The 'reasonable grounds' for missing the deadline will include where a parent, guardian or council has failed to apply on behalf of a child or where a person has a serious medical condition preventing them from applying in time.

Campaigners had called for the normal deadline to be pushed back because of disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

But Immigration Minister Kevin Foster has ruled out an extension, insisting that people have had 'plenty of time to apply'.

Ministers have ruled out extending the deadline for EU citizens to apply for the post-Brexit right to stay in the UK

Immigration Minister Kevin Foster said people have had 'plenty of time to apply' to the Home Office-run scheme

Mr Foster said pushing the date back would lead to more uncertainty and was not a 'solution'.

Speaking to reporters a week before the cut-off for applications, Mr Foster said: 'The EUSS has been open publicly since March 2019. We believe this has given people plenty of time to apply.

'The sheer fact there have been over 5.6 million applications by the end of last month is testament to this.

'I want to be clear  we will not be extending the deadline. Put simply, extending the deadline is not a solution in itself to reaching those people who have not yet applied and we would just be in a position further down the line where we would be asked to extend again, creating even more uncertainty.'

His comments came after Downing Street said it was trying to identify tens of thousands of Europeans living in the UK who are yet to apply for the post-Brexit residency scheme.

This followed concerns that many EU citizens  as well as nationals of Iceland, Lichtenstein, Norway and Switzerland  could have their benefits cut off if they miss the deadline.

Number 10 insisted only a 'small minority' are yet to come forward but initial official estimates on the number of anticipated applications have already been exceeded.

Ultimately it is not known how many people who are eligible to apply are living in the UK, or how many could remain in the country undocumented.

Around 400,000 applications are still waiting to be processed and the Home Office is receiving between 10,000 and 12,000 applications a day.

Mr Foster said he was 'concerned' over claims that outstanding cases were facing a legal limbo or facing a cliff edge  dismissing them as 'just untrue'.

The Government has pledged that anyone who applies by the deadline will have their existing rights protected, subject to the decision and any appeal.

Those who have made a valid submission will have access to a certificate of application while they await their decision, Mr Foster said.

It typically takes around five working days for complete applications to be processed, but it can take longer than a month if more information is needed.

The Home Office has not committed to completing all applications by June 30 and is allowing people to make a late application if they meet 'reasonable grounds' for missing the deadline.
Surveillance footage captured the moment a cop tasered a biracial teenager outside his girlfriend's home in Florida, causing him to fall back and hit his head on a brick fountain.

Jack Rodeman, 16, was confronted by Florida Highway Patrol Trooper George Smyrnios in the backyard of his girlfriend's house in the upscale neighborhood of Indian Laurel Way, Fort Meyers, on June 16.

Smyrnios claimed in an arrest report that the teen - who has dark skin and was dressed all in black - looked 'suspicious.'

Rodeman's mom accused the officer of racially profiling her son, who she said posed no danger and had permission to be in the backyard of his girlfriend's home.

The teen was arrested for loitering, possession of medical marijuana and a criminal traffic violation and was sent to a juvenile detention center for 21 days.

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Surveillance footage captured the moment a cop tasered a biracial teenager outside his girlfriend's home in Florida, causing him to fall and hit his head on a brick fountain

Jack Rodeman, 16, was arrested for loitering, possession of medical marijuana and a criminal traffic violation. His mom (pictured together) says he was racially profiled

In an arrest report Florida Highway Patrol Trooper George Smyrnios (left) said he confronted Rodeman because he looked 'suspicious'. The incident is under review by the department

Rodeman was walking through the Indian Laurel Way neighborhood to visit his girlfriend when the trooper started to tail him, according to WINK.

Smyrnios, who lives in the area, followed the teen into the backyard as Rodeman texted his girlfriend to say he had arrived and was waiting outside.

The home security footage shows Rodeman standing on the back deck of his girlfriend's house in the daylight.

The trooper is seen on the lawn a few feet away pointing his taser at the teen.

Rodeman appears to be looking down at his phone in his hands as Smyrnios orders the teen to put his hands behind his head.

'I didn't do nothing' Rodeman replies, continuing to look down at his phone.

The cop then discharges his taser which strikes the teen, causing him to fall back and smack his head off a brick fountain in the yard.

The force of Rodeman's head striking the fountain dislodges a brick.

The 16-year-old is heard screaming in pain and shouting: 'I didn't do nothing.'

The trooper edges closer to him with his taser still pointed at the teen, warning that he will taser him again.

'Put your hands behind your back or I will do it again,' he tells him.

Rodeman is seen raising his hands and putting them behind his head.

Rodeman was walking through the neighborhood to visit his girlfriend when the trooper started to tail him. Rodeman texted his girlfriend to say he had arrived

The cop discharges his taser which strikes the teen, causing him to fall back and smack his head off a brick fountain in the yard. The force of Rodeman's head striking the fountain dislodges a brick

The 16-year-old is heard screaming in pain. The footage then shows Rodeman lying on his front with his hands behind his back while the officer cuffs him as his girlfriend comes out

The footage then shows Rodeman lying on his front with his hands behind his back while the officer cuffs him.

At this point, Rodeman's girlfriend comes out of the back door of the home.

She told the officer her boyfriend had permission to be in her backyard yet he was arrested anyway, reported WINK.

Smyrnios claimed in an arrest report that the teen had 'darted' through shrubs to enter the backyard and that his behavior was 'suspicious.'

The trooper, who lives in the community, said he 'has personal knowledge that this neighborhood has had several burglaries.'

He tasered the teen when he refused to comply with his verbal commands, he said.

In a second, amended arrest report, Smyrnios claimed to be 'concerned that he might have a weapon.'

There is no mention of a weapon in the first report, WINK reported.

Rodeman's mom Kristina Rodeman said the trooper targeted her son because of his race and has hired an attorney to fight the charges and the cop's use of force.

She told CBS the incident had left both her son and his girlfriend 'traumatized.'

'I think something should have been done, he shouldn't have done that to my kid,' she said.

'His girlfriend is traumatized, her mother is traumatized and I am traumatized,' adding that her son was 'absolutely not a threat.'

Attorney Derek Tyler told WINK Rodeman needs to undergo an x-ray to look for any vertebral fractures following the heavy fall.

'We are going to vigorously defend all of the charges and we are also going to vigorously pursue every legal avenue available regarding the unmitigated, unjustified torture that he was subjected to by the officer involved,' he said.

Rodeman, who was on probation at the time of the incident, remains behind bars at the juvenile assessment center facing multiple charges.

The incident is currently under review by the Florida Highway Patrol.

Under department policy, troopers are permitted to deploy a taser in the event of a 'sudden attack or when 'active resistance or greater is offered by a subject who is about to be taken into custody for any reason.'

But officers are not permitted to deploy a taser solely to prevent someone from fleeing or in response to the individual not complying with verbal commands.

'[It] must involve a custodial situation when the subject is actively physically resisting,' the policy states, per WINK.

A former police officer told the local outlet that Rodeman was displaying 'passive' rather than 'active' resistance as he 'refuses to move at the member's direction'.

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who represented the family of George Floyd, tweeted Tuesday calling for the trooper to be held accountable

'The most egregious part to me is here's a kid who was offering no active resistance but passive resistance by being on his phone and texting and because he failed to comply with your lawful order you shot him with a Taser and he fell and hit his head on a brick,' said David J. Thomas, who is now a professor of forensic studies at FGCU.

'If he goes and says let's put handcuffs on, then the kid starts to fight and resist, then you have a legitimate reason to use a Taser but you don't have a legitimate reason to use a Taser because the kids ignoring him and on his phone,' Thomas reportedly said.

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who represented the family of George Floyd, also tweeted Tuesday calling for the trooper to be held accountable.

'FHP trooper George Smyrnios repeatedly tased 16yo Jack Rodeman as he waited for his girlfriend on her back deck!' Crump tweeted.

'Smyrnios hasn't been suspended or punished for his unlawful actions against this teen who posed NO THREAT! He should be held accountable for his egregious actions!'

DailyMail.com has reached out to the Florida Highway Patrol for comment.
A huge number of busy supermarkets, cafes and bus routes have been added in a late night drop to the relentlessly growing Covid exposure list, as Sydney teeters on the edge of a city-wide lockdown.

NSW Health added 12 venues, a busy bus route and three train lines to the list of exposure sites in the city, including three eastern suburbs supermarkets, a TAFE building in Meadowbank, and an office building on Pitt Street in the CBD.

A BWS store in Mascot is also on alert, along with United Cinemas in Narellan, and three trendy eastern suburbs cafes.

The state confirmed 16 new infections on Wednesday - bringing the total to 36 new community infections in Sydney, including four worrying mystery cases with no known source.

Pictured: Passengers wearing face masks alight from a metro in Sydney on June 23

Sydneysiders who were at the Tropicana Cafe in Darlinghurst (pictured) between 12pm and 2pm on Friday 18 June old to contact NSW Health immediately and isolate for two weeks

Sydneysiders who were at the Tropicana Cafe in Darlinghurst between 12pm and 2pm on Friday 18 June, or Ikaria Bondi between 5pm and 7pm on Sunday June 20 have been told to contact NSW Health immediately and isolate for two weeks.

Shoppers at Coles Express Shell Petrol station on Birrell Street in Bondi Junction in the half an hour after 7.15pm on June 18 should get tested an isolate immediately, along with anyone who was at Wooworths Metro at Bondi Beach between 1 and 1.30pm on June 20.

Visitors at to Coles Kings Cross in Potts Point between 8pm and 9pm on Monday June 21 should also get tested and isolate, along with anyone who was at the Transport NSW Training Centre in Petersham between 4 and 4.10pm on Monday.

Five bus journeys were added to the close contact list on Wednesday evening with alerts for anyone who was on specific trips on the 600 or 665 buses on Sunday June 20.

Sydneysiders who were at Ikaria Bondi (pictured) between 5pm and 7pm on Sunday June 20 have been told to contact NSW Health immediately and isolate for two weeks

A BWS store in Mascot is also on alert (pictured), along with United Cinemas in Narellan, and three trendy eastern suburbs cafes

Shoppers at Coles Express on Birrell Street in Bondi Junction in the half an hour after 7.15pm on June 18 should get tested an isolate immediately (pictured)

Anyone who travelled on bus 333 between 1.07pm and 1.12pm on Tuesday June 22 is also considered a casual contact and should get tested and self-isolate immediately.

Three trains lines are also on the list, including one that travelled from Bondi Junction to Mascot on Friday June 18 between 6.55pm and 7.22pm.

Another travelled from Mascot to Central on Saturday June 19 between 5.26pm and 5.35pm, and the third went from Central to Glenfield on the same day between 5.53pm and 6.38pm.

The outbreak forced Gladys Berejiklian to bring in new restrictions, including banning people from metropolitan Sydney from leaving the city, but she stopped short of shutting down businesses.

However, a senior health source says Sydney is looking down the barrel of further restrictions as the number of infections continue to rise.

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While the source had no specific information about further restrictions or a lockdown, they admitted: 'The trend is not looking good.'

'[Lockdown] Is where we look like heading, however hard the government tries to hold out,' they said.

Queensland's premier Annastacia Palaszczuk rushed to declare all of Sydney a Covid-19 hotspot, slamming the borders shut to millions.

Even more extreme is Western Australia and South Australia, which have shut the border to the entire of New South Wales.

In Victoria, people from seven local government areas are banned from the state - City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick.

Earlier on Wednesday, alerts were issued for Nando's at Wetherill Park Shopping Centre on Sunday June 20 between 6pm and 7pm, Lumiere Cafe in Surry Hills between 1pm and 2pm on Monday June 21 or Bamboo Thai restaurant in Redfern on Monday between 6.15pm and 7.10pm.

NSW Health has also upgraded a previous warning about Woolworth's in Spring Farm. Anyone who was in the supermarket between 9.30am and 11.30am should also be tested and self isolate for 14 days.

Sydney's Covid outbreak is likely to grow again with the city on the edge of lockdown

Specific bus trips between Bankwest Stadium and Pennant Hills Station and Parramatta Station and Rouse Hill Station were added to the danger list on Wednesday evening. (Pictured, a masked passenger on a Sydney bus)

Anyone who has been to the venues are considered a close contact and must call NSW Health immediate, get Covid test and isolate for 14 days, regardless of the result.

Three more locations were identified as potentially casual contact sites with anyone affected told to get tested and self isolate until they get a negative result.

It affects anyone at Woolworths Metro in Bondi Beach on Sunday June 20 between 1pm and 1.30pm, Coles in Willowdale in Denham Court on Sunday between 4.45pm and 5pm and also on Monday between 5pm and 5.05pm.

The same applies for the Ampol service station on Old South Head Road in Bondi North between 8am and 8.10am on Tuesday June 22.

Two venues in the ritzy suburb of Double Bay have now been added to the city's growing list of exposure sites, including restaurant Matteo and the salon of renowned stylist, Joh Bailey.

A public health warning has also been issued Christo's Pizzeria in nearby Paddington.

Queues grew at Sydney Airport on Wednesday (pictured) as people rushed to leave the state before domestic borders slammed shut

Pictured: SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - JUNE 23: People wearing masks wait to cross the road in Bondi Junction on June 23

The majority of the new cases stem from a birthday party on Saturday in West Hoxton, in western Sydney, which included the Bondi Junction Westfield worker.

Dr Chant said the outbreak demonstrated how quickly transmission could occur.

'There were about 30 people at that gathering in a house and the person was unknowingly infectious, did not have symptoms, and had not attended venues,' Dr Chant said.

'What you can see is that those test results indicate how quickly the virus was transmitted in that circumstance... And that is on day two after exposure.

'All those individuals would have unknowingly had the infection on Monday.'

Contact tracers are scrambling to determine exposure sites visited by the positive cases.

Bondi Beach Woolworth's Metro (pictured) was identified as a Covid exposure site on Wednesday, adding to Sydney's growing list

The majority of the new cases stem from a birthday party on Saturday in West Hoxton, in western Sydney, which included the Bondi Junction Westfield worker (pictured, a Sydney shop worker on Wednesday)

The Bondi cluster began last week after a Sydney Airport limousine driver tested positive to the highly-infectious Delta variant, which started spreading at Bondi Junction's busy Westfield shopping centre.

For the next week from 4pm on Wednesday, household gatherings will be limited to five visitors and masks will be compulsory in all all indoor venues, including workplaces and gym classes.

Drinking while standing in pubs and bars will also be banned and those who live and work in seven hotspot council areas will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason.

Those council areas are the City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick - home to about 782,000 residents.

The tightened rules - which also include a 50 per cent capacity restriction for outdoor seated events - will apply to Sydney, the Blue Mountains and Central Coast and Shellharbour regions.

Ms Berejiklian said the growth of 'unlinked cases' in the state meant she needed to take proportionate action to stop the highly-contagious Delta variant from spreading.
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US warplanes have flown their first combat missions off a foreign aircraft carrier since World War II, as Marine Corps fighter jets launched from the UK's HMS Queen Elizabeth for operations against ISIS.

Ten F-35Bs from the Marines' Fighter Attack Squadron 211 are aboard the Royal Navy's new flagship, joining eight RAF F35B jets from the Royal Air Force's 617 Squadron.

It is the most 35Bs ever deployed together on one ship, and air operations over the Middle East began on June 18.

US planes haven't flown combat missions from a foreign warship since 1943, when they took off from Britain's HMS Victorious in the South Pacific during World War II.

The combat missions against ISIS are part of the United States' Operation Inherent Resolve, as well as the UK's Operation Shader. Military officials did not specify the location or target of the combat strikes.

Britain's Capt. James Blackmore, who commands the air wing aboard the Queen Elizabeth, celebrated the partnership between the US and UK.

'The level of integration between Royal Navy, Royal Air Force and US Marine Corps is truly seamless, and testament to how close we've become,' Blackmore stated.

Marine Corps Colonel Simon Doran, the US representative to the UK Carrier Strike Group said: 'U.S. Marine Corps aircraft supporting Operation Inherent Resolve from a Royal Navy aircraft carrier demonstrates how effectively interoperable our combined naval forces are.'

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The HMS Queen Elizabeth has 10 US F-35 jets from the Marine Corps' Fighter Attack Squadron 211 aboard

The Royal Navy flagship HMS Queen Elizabeth (pictured) is carrying out the majority of the missions to wipe out the remnants of ISIS in Iraq, while US forces focus on withdrawing from Afghanistan after two decades

A crew member makes a signal to F-35 aircraft for take off on the U.K.'s aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth in the Mediterranean Sea on Sunday, June 20, 2021

F-35 aircraft takes off from the U.K.'s aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth in the Mediterranean Sea on Sunday

The $5billion, 65,000-ton HMS Queen Elizabeth is Britain's newest aircraft carrier and is also carrying out her first combat mission. Britain has previously been without an aircraft carrier since the HMS Illustrious was decommissioned in 2014.

The state-of-the art F35B stealth aircraft - which have the ability to land vertically - are being used over Iraq to look for other aircraft or unmanned drones and support troops on the ground.

The jets are also being used in anti-ISIS operations to carry out surveillance with its sophisticated sensor and radar systems.

The HMS Queen Elizabeth and its support ships, which include the US destroyer USS The Sullivans, departed the UK in May for its first operational deployment in a move that was set to outrage Russia and China.

It was also accompanied by six Royal Navy ships including HMS Defender and HMS Diamond, a submarine, 14 Royal Navy helicopters and a company of Royal Marines.

The carrier will remain in the eastern Mediterranean for two to three weeks before moving through the Suez Canal to continue with a seven-and-a-half-month deployment to India, South Korea and Japan.

The Carrier Strike Group will visit India, Singapore and then to Japan via the South China Sea.

US F-35B jets took off from the HMS Queen Elizabeth this weekend in the Middle East

The 65,000-ton Queen Elizabeth has piqued the interest of Russian warplanes, who have been keeping tabs on its cutting-edge F-35 jet (pictured) in a 'cat-and-mouse' game with British and US pilots

Pictured: F-35 jet on HMS Queen Elizabeth. This weekend, F-35 jets took off from the carrier to a mission unspecified

Operation Inherent Resolve was established in October 2014 to formalize military efforts against the rising threat of ISIS.

The mission is to 'defeat ISIS in designated areas of Iraq and Syria and set conditions for follow-on operations to increase regional stability.'

British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace also released a statement, saying, 'The ability to operate from the sea with the most advanced fighter jets ever created is a significant moment in our history, offering reassurance to our allies and demonstrating the UK's formidable air power to our adversaries.'

Royal Navy Commodore Steve Moorhouse said the UK is carrying out the majority of the missions to wipe out the remnants of ISIS in Iraq while US forces focus on withdrawing from Afghanistan after two decades.

Last month, President Joe Biden said all remaining troops will be pulled out before September 11 this year, the 20th anniversary of the Al Qaeda attacks on the US in 2001.

The HMS Queen Elizabeth is part of The Carrier Strike Group, which will visit India, Singapore and then to Japan via the South China Sea as part of a seven-month deployment. Pictured: F-35 aircraft takes off from the Royal Navy warship

The F-35s (pictured), armed with air-to-air missiles and laser-guided bombs, are being used over Iraq to look for other aircraft or unmanned drones and support troops on the ground

The 65,000-ton carrier has piqued the interest of Russian warplanes, who have been keeping tabs on its cutting-edge F-35 jet in a 'cat-and-mouse' game with British and US pilots.

Speaking aboard the ship on its first-ever deployment, Commodore Moorhouse said: 'At the moment, we're taking on the lion's share of that operation over Iraq, which is a fantastic, say, feather in our cap.

'But an achievement that 'A', we're trusted and 'B', that we're able to do that.'

Commodore Moorhouse said the carrier offers flexibility in how to conduct military operations abroad and 'keeps those that wish to cause us harm on their toes.'

He said the eastern Mediterranean has become more 'congested and contested' over the last decade in light of the heavier Russian military presence in Syria, which has resulted in regular encounters with Russian ships and warplanes.

Commodore Moorhouse said that a Russian warship has come within 16 miles of the flagship but added that the encounters were not 'dangerous or aggressive.'

Commodore Moorhouse said that a Russian warship has come within 16 miles of the flagship (pictured: F-35 aircraft onboard the HMS Queen Elizabeth) but added that the encounters were not 'dangerous or aggressive'

Pictured: Crew walk by F-35 aircraft onboard. The aircraft carrier started anti-ISIS operations on June 18

Captain James Blackmore, who commands the eight British F-35 jets (pictured) and the 10 helicopters aboard the warship, said UK and Russian pilots have come within 'visual distance' of each other

He continued: 'We're rubbing up against Russian activity, not in a you know, in a dangerous or aggressive manner, but you've just got other people out here playing in what is a fixed piece of water and airspace.'

He insisted that Russian, British and US pilots have a 'healthy respect for one another' and their conduct has been 'absolutely professional' since the aircraft carrier started anti-ISIS operations on June 18.

'But there is a reality when you buy yourself a fifth-generation aircraft carrier and you take it around the world  people are interested in it,' he added.

Blackmore explained: 'It's that cat-and-mouse posturing, it's what we expect in this region of world. And as you can imagine, it's the first time for F-35s into the eastern Mediterranean.

'So, of course Russia wants to look at what they're like, they want to look at what our carriers are like.'

HMS Queen Elizabeth (pictured: crew walk by F-35 aircraft onboard) and its support ships, which include the US destroyer The Sullivans, departed the UK in May for its first operational deployment in a move set to outrage Russia and China

The carrier will remain in the eastern Mediterranean for two to three weeks before continuing with a seven-and-a-half-month deployment to India, South Korea and Japan. Pictured: Crew signals to F-35 aircraft after landing on HMS Queen Elizabeth

In April, the U.S. Air Force grounded its entire fleet of B1-B bombers - involved in Operation Inherent Resolve missions - after finding a problem with the plane's fuel system.

The decision was made after a 'ground emergency' on April 8 at Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota - one of two bases where the B1-B is currently housed. The other is Dyess Air Force Base, in Texas.

The B1-Bs were heavily used in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Flying missions against ISIS in the opening days of Operation Inherent Resolve, they were able to carry more munitions than that delivered by an entire carrier air wing.
Residents in a quiet California neighborhood caught an udderly wild sight when roughly three dozen cows stampeded past their homes after escaping from a slaughterhouse.

At least 34 cows somehow managed to break free from a Manning Beef Company facility on Tuesday evening before making their way through the streets of Pico Rivera.

Video posted to social media shows the cows appearing to follow traffic laws and trotting on the right side of the street, before ducking into someone's backyard.

Residents were also filmed trying to herd one of the cows, which started bucking and knocked one man to the ground.

The herd eventually lost steam and began grazing on people's lawns in a cul-de-sac, where local law enforcement tried to wrangle them before the group split up and tried to flee again.

Video posted to social media shows the moment three dozen cows made their way down a residential Pico Rivera street on Tuesday night after they broke free from a slaughterhouse

At one point in the video, the cows decide to turn into somebody's backyard

A man is seen filming the cows as they made their way through a backyard

The Los Angeles Sheriff's Department said that at about 7.35pm they started to receive reports of about 20 cows making their way through Pico Rivera, about 10 miles southeast of Los Angeles.

About an hour later, the sheriff's department warned people to avoid the area, saying they were police activity in the neighborhood as several cows became loose.

The LA County Sheriff's Department said the cows were running around the streets, before settling into a cul-de-sac surrounded by deputies at around 9pm.

Footage of the encounter showed the cows calmly munching on people's front lawns in the neighborhood.

Deputy Tracy Kroener said the deputies were trying to keep the cows together in the cul-de-sac late Tuesday night while waiting for the department's mounted enforcement detail to arrive with horse trailers, and by 10pm, most of the cows had been loaded onto two trailers.

Several, though, managed to elude authorities and continue their voyage through the suburbs, with Kroener noting to the Los Angeles Times late Tuesday night, 'There's still a few out and about.'

The cows reportedly escaped from a nearby slaughterhouse

Residents tried to wrangle one of the cows, causing it to buck and knock a man to the ground

At around 8.45pm, the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department warned people to avoid the area

At one point, Kroener said, the cows began to charge, and one was fatally shot by law enforcement.

Kroener told the LA Times he did not know what or whom the creature was charging at, but FOX 11 reported that the cow appeared to be running towards a child when it was shot and killed.

Another was reported injured after being hit by a car, and one resident was taken to a local trauma center for injuries sustained in the stampede.

It is unclear whether that is the same man who was filmed falling to the ground while trying to herd a cow who started bucking.

It also remains unclear how the cows escaped, and where they would be brought after being caught.

'They were just going all over the place,' one resident told FOX 11.

At one point, the herd split up and tried to flee from the authorities

Some managed to elude authorities well into Tuesday night, with Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Deputy Tracy Kroener telling the Los Angeles Times that some were still on the loose after they wrangled some into two trailers

By Wednesday morning, 'Pico Rivera' was trending on Twitter, with many people sharing their thoughts on the cows' great escape.

One user, Buddybud, said they were rooting for the cows, and Razor Ramone joked that Chick-Fil-A was filming a commercial in the area. The fast food company uses cows asking people to eat more chicken as its mascot.

Sheba Turk, a morning news anchor in New Orleans wrote, 'This story had me feeling so bad about that burger I ate this week.'

'If they made it that far, let them go! They deserve their freedom,' she continued.

Jocelyn also said she felt bad for the cows, who seemed to just want to be free.

'I am legit crying,' she wrote. 'Those animals escaped on their own because they wanted to live. This world is cruel.'
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez rebuked the legislative process on Tuesday as she went after Republicans for blocking the Senate from beginning debate on Democrats' voting rights bill.

'Call me radical, but I do not believe a minority of Senators should be able to block voting rights for millions of people,' the New York progressive congresswoman tweeted Tuesday evening.

'But I guess I'm just from that far-left school of thought that legislation should pass when a majority of legislators vote for it.'

Ocasio-Cortez also included a video of Vice President Kamala announcing from the Senate floor that the motion failed.

In her tweet, Ocasio-Cortez is arguing against the filibuster and the American legislative process in the Senate.

For the Senate to get a bill to the floor for debate, the measure must earn 60 votes in order to avoid a filibuster. Currently, the upper chamber is split 50-50 between the two parties and Harris holds the tie-breaking vote.

Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez rebuked the legislative process on Tuesday by claiming a split Senate shouldn't allow Republicans to block Democrats' voting rights legislation. AOC speaks with reporters at the Capitol on June 17

'Call me radical, but I do not believe a minority of Senators should be able to block voting rights for millions of people,' the New York progressive tweeted

The Senate vote on the Democrats' voting rights legislation was split 50-50 between along party lines. Sixty votes were needed to break a GOP-led filibuster

Progressives are trying to get rid of the filibuster as lumping it into other legislation, but Republicans and centrist Democrats are not on board. Democratic Senators Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona have both notably spoken out against nixing the filibuster, claiming it could be used against them in the future.

Manchin has also said he won't support any major legislation that doesn't include at least some attempts at bipartisanship.

All 50 Democratic lawmakers, including Manchin, voted to progress the For the People Act on Tuesday evening, but not one Republican voted along with them.

H.R. 1, or the For the People Act, passed in the House in March on a party-line vote.

While Schumer was able to persuade Manchin on Tuesday to get on board with the party, he was not able to convince a single Republican to bring the current version of the bill to the floor for debate.

President Joe Biden accused Republicans of supporting 'a Jim Crow era in the 21st Century' after every single GOP senator voted against the electoral overhaul bill.

Republicans claim the Democrat bill is a federal takeover of voting.

'A Democratic stand to protect our democracy met a solid Republican wall of opposition,' Biden said.

'Senate Republicans opposed even a debate  even considering  legislation to protect the right to vote and our democracy.'

President Joe Biden, seen on Tuesday in the White House, insisted the fight for the For The People Act - which he said was designed to end voter suppression - was just beginning

He described their vote as 'the suppression of a bill to end voter suppression  another attack on voting rights that is sadly not unprecedented.'

Republicans labelled the bill a 'power grab' and a bid to orchestrate the 'federal takeover of elections'.

But Biden told them the fight was just beginning.

'The creed 'We Shall Overcome' is a longtime mainstay of the Civil Rights Movement,' he said in a statement.

'By coming together, Democrats took the next step forward in this continuous struggle  not just on Capitol Hill, but across the country  and a step forward to honor all those who came before us, people of all races and ages, who sacrificed and died to protect this sacred right.

'This fight is far from over  far from over.

'I've been engaged in this work my whole career, and we are going to be ramping up our efforts to overcome again  for the people, for our very democracy.'

Harris had earlier insisted: 'The fight is not over.'

Harris, immediately after the Republican block, insisted that the fight was not over

She said: 'It is clear, certainly for the American people, that when we talk about the right to vote it is not a Republican concern or a Democratic concern - it is an American concern.

'This is about the American people's right to vote, unfettered. It is about their access to the right to vote, in a meaningful way.

'The issue here is: is there actually access to the voting process, or is that being impeded.'

Harris said that she and Biden had been 'very clear' that they back the bill.

'Today every single Democratic senator stood together in the fight to protect the right to vote in America,' Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said after the vote, also vowing to explore 'every last one of our options.'

'Voter suppression has become part of the official platform of the Republican Party', he added, and attacked Donald Trump's 'big lie' on election fraud.

Harris, on the Hill to make another tie-breaking vote, stayed on the Capitol and chaired the debate and vote.

She has been tasked by Biden to lead the administration's voting rights push.

Tuesday's result was a foregone conclusion with party leaders digging in on the legislation that would have been the basis of the sweeping voting reforms.

It was a bid to counteract Republican voter overhaul bills across the country that Biden has compared to Jim Crow-era laws.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell criticized the proposal earlier on Tuesday, calling it a 'transparently partisan' effort that shows the left's 'disdain' for Americans.

'Many Democrats would pass [H.R.1] with the slimmest possible majority, even after its companion faced bipartisan opposition over in the House,' McConnell said in remarks from the Senate floor.

Vice President Kamala Harris, on the Hill to make another tie-breaking vote, stuck around and chaired the debate and vote

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said voting rights legislation was needed thanks to the 'big lie' that was pushed by former President Donald Trump

'What a craven political calculation. What a way to show your disdain for the American people's choices,' the Kentucky Republican added.

GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham called it 'the biggest power-grab in modern American history.'

For two days straight, Schumer used the coming vote as a way to bash former President Donald Trump.

'Donald Trump, fresh off a resounding loss in the 2020 presidential election, cried foul and lied  lied  that the election was stolen from him, like a petulant child,' the New York Democrat said.

'There is a rot at the center of the modern Republican Party,' he continued. 'Donald Trump's big lie has spread like a cancer and threatens to envelop one of America's major political parties.'

'Even worse, it has poisoned our democracy, eroded faith in our elections, which is so detrimental to the future faith people need to have in our democracy,' Schumer said.

'And of course, it became the match that lit a wildfire of Republican voter suppression laws sweeping across the country. Because of one man's lie, Republicans are now doing the dastardly act of taking away voting from millions of Americans, making it much harder for them to vote, and many, many will not.'

He repeated the sentiment on Twitter and added: 'Republicans claim they're making it easier to vote and harder to cheat in an election. But in reality, they are making it harder to vote and easier to steal an election.'

Without filibuster reform, Democrats need 10 Republicans to defect in order to get legislation passed in the U.S. Senate.

Sixty votes are needed in the Senate to override a filibuster.

On Tuesday morning, after a Monday meeting with Biden, Sinema announced she was against getting rid of it.

Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin (left) has been working on a proposal that could get GOP support and voted in favor of starting debate on a voting rights package, something that President Joe Biden (right) backs

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said from the Senate floor Tuesday that Democrats' voting rights bill is 'transparently partisan' and shows the left's 'disdain' for Americans

'My support for retaining the 60-vote threshold is not based on the importance of any particular policy. It is based on what is best for our democracy,' Sinema wrote in an op-ed in The Washington Post.

'The filibuster compels moderation and helps protect the country from wild swings between opposing policy poles.'

Sinema urged her colleagues to see that if the filibuster is revoked, it could be used against them in the future when Republicans once again hold a majority in the Senate.

But Sinema expressed that she was against using the filibuster on an early procedural vote, like the one senators took Tuesday, to merely open debate.

She welcomed full debate on the voting bill 'so senators and our constituents can hear and fully consider the concerns and consequences.'

Manchin, who previously said he was against H.R. 1, the House-passed voting rights bill, voted yes to start debate on an amended version he's been working on.

Manchin suggested making voter registration automatic, setting Election Day as a holiday, requiring at least 15 days of early voting for federal elections and reducing partisan gerrymandering.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Biden would continue to push for voting rights legislation even if a test vote fails in the Senate Tuesday

But he also said voter ID regulations should be stricter  a measure most of his Democratic colleagues oppose, though some prominent voting rights activists have softened on.

Stacey Abrams, a former Democratic Georgia gubernatorial candidate credited for her state's voting rights push, slapped down the idea that Democrats were against voters having to prove their identity.

'That's one of the fallacies of Republican talking points that have been deeply disturbing,' Abrams said last week on CNN.

'No one has ever objected to having to prove who you are to vote. It's been part of our nation's history since the inception of voting.'

Abrams said that she's been against Republican-pushed voter ID provisions that would restrict voting - such as limiting the kinds of ID to only driver's licenses and not, for example, student IDs.

The Manchin proposal, however, is less strict than most backed by Republicans in recent years.

A White House official said that during the meeting on Monday, Biden 'expressed his sincere appreciation for Senator Manchin's efforts to achieve reform.'

'The President conveyed that he sees voting rights as one of the most urgent issues facing our nation during his administration, and made it clear how important he thinks it is that the Senate find a path forward on this issue,' the official continued, in a statement on the meeting between the two.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki called Manchin's proposal a 'step forward' during Monday's press briefing.

'We don't expect there to be a magical 10 votes. I'm not suggesting that. But just two weeks ago, there were questions about whether Democrats would be aligned,' she added.

'If the vote is unsuccessful tomorrow, we suspect it will prompt a new conversation about the path forward and we'll see where that goes,' Psaki predicted.
A Minnesota man has been charged with murder for allegedly shooting and killing his Air Force veteran ex-wife who had remarried just four days earlier, citing his disdain for her 'hillbilly' new husband.

Robert McCloud, 64, is charged with intentional second-degree murder in last weeks killing of 48-year-old Lauri Deatherage inside her Robbinsdale home.

Police said McCloud mailed flash drives containing videos to family members before killing Lauri.

McCloud said that he planned to commit suicide and that he knew it was wrong to involve his ex-wife, but she had just remarried and he wasnt going to let 'that hillbilly' - apparently meaning her new husband - 'get all his stuff and his wife,' a criminal complaint said.

Robert McCloud, 64 (left), has been charged with intentional second-degree murder for the shooting death of his ex-wife, Lauri Deatherage, who had just married Bill Deatherage on June 13 (pictured on their wedding day, right)

Civil court records show that Lauri, a medically-retired disabled veteran who served her country in the early 1990s, finalized a divorce with McCloud about three years ago.

She married fellow Air Force veteran Billy Deatherage on June 13 - which was also her 48th birthday - and the couple was in the process of moving to Arkansas.

On June 18, McCloud allegedly traveled to Lauri's home armed with a gun. He later told police that he was standing over his ex-wife while she was lying on a bed and when she reached for the phone, he shot her because he thought she was going to call 911.

McCloud was said to have told the police he knew it was wrong to involve Lauri (pictured) in his suicidal plans, but he wasnt going to let 'that hillbilly get all his stuff and his wife'

Police were called to the scene at 9.15am after getting a request for a welfare check. The person who made that call told a 911 dispatcher that McCloud had recently bought a gun, reported KARE11.

When officers forced their way inside Lauri's home in Robbinsdale, they found the woman lying on the floor of the master bedroom with a gunshot wound to the head.

Police soon tracked McCloud to his home on Utility Avenue in Brooklyn Center home, where a 10-hour stand-off ensued, according to the Star Tribune.

Negotiators from several agencies contacted him by phone, and he surrendered at about 9pm that night.

During the negotiations, McCloud was said to have admitted that his 'plan was to take care of business with [Lauri] then myself but I took care of business with her and I left,' the complaint stated.

Lauri and Billy first met about 30 years ago when they were stationed at Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota

Deatherage, 48, has spent the past 20 years designing costumes for the Minnesota Renaissance Festival and is described as a woman who would help others in need. Her newlywed husband-turned-widower said his time with his wife was cut short

A search of the suspect's home turned up a pistol, a key to his ex-wife's home and clothes stained with what appeared to be blood.

McCloud was booked into the Hennepin County jail and was ordered held on $2million bail.

Billy Deatherage said he met his newlywed wife 30 years ago, when they were each 18 years old and stationed at Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota. They reconnected as friends about four years ago and he proposed this spring.

'Our time was cut short by an atrocious act,' Deatherage, 53, told the Star Tribune. 'We had been married for less than one week before she was taken from me.'

On Facebook, she posted that she could not wait to see who showed up to attend her wedding on June 13 to Billy Deatherage

She spent the past 20 years designing costumes for the Minnesota Renaissance Festival, Billy Deatherage told the Tribune, and even took up professional modeling at one point in her life.

On Facebook, she posted that she could not wait to see who would show up to her wedding to Billy Deatherage on June 13.

Deatherage said he has been a 'train wreck' since he learned of her passing, and described his wife as an artist, seamstress and sister who would often take people under her wing and offer them help if they were struggling.

'Lauri was loved by literally hundreds and hundreds of people, and she touched so many lives in so many positive ways,' he said. 'She was a good soul.'
A woman has gone missing after climbing Britain's highest mountain Ben Nevis and taking a selfie at the peak.

Police are searching for Sarah Buick, 25, a keen walker, who disappeared on a hike in the north west Highlands in Scotland, and say they are 'concerned for her welfare'.

She took a selfie as she reached the summit of the 1,345 metre mountain at 5am yesterday.

Ms Buick has not been seen since and has not been in contact with any friends and family.

Police Scotland has issued an urgent appeal to try and trace the walker in the north west Highlands.

It said: 'Police Scotland are appealing for witnesses that can assist in tracing Sarah Buick in the Lochaber area.

Police are searching for Sarah Buick, 25, a keen walker, who disappeared after sharing a selfie of herself at the peak of Ben Nevis at 5am on Tuesday (pictured)

'Sarah is a keen walker and was last known to be, as pictured at the summit of Ben Nevis at 5am on June 22.

'However she may have moved on to other locations within the area.

'If you have sighted Sarah at any time on or after June 22 please contact the police straight away.'

Inspector Nick Hough, of Fort William Police Office, said: 'As time goes on we are becoming increasingly concerned for Sarah.

'She is an experienced walker and often makes trips alone, but it is very unlike her to be out of contact with friends and family for this length of time.

'We are appealing to anyone who may have been in the Ben Nevis or Glen Nevis area over the last 36 hours and has seen anything which may help our searches to please get in touch.'

Ms Buick has not been seen since posting the selfie at the peak and has not been in contact with any friends and family

Officers say Ms Buick is around 5ft 3ins tall, and of a slim build with long brown hair

Police say Ms Buick walked to the summit from the Lower Falls area of Glen Nevis, which is to the south.

She may have walked to other locations after her summit of Ben Nevis, or intended to return using a similar route to descend to Glen Nevis.

Officers say she is around 5ft 3ins tall, and of a slim build with long brown hair.

At the time she went missing she was wearing a light green jacket and carrying an orange rucksack.

According to Ms Buick's social media profile, she is from Dundee, in Fife, Scotland.

At the time she went missing she was wearing a light green jacket and carrying an orange rucksack

Police Scotland has issued an urgent appeal to try and trace the walker in the north west Highlands

She appears to be an experienced walker, and regularly posts snaps climbing Scotland's magnificent mountains.

Earlier this month, she uploaded snaps from a successful ascent of Bidean nam Bian and Stob Coire Sgreamhach in Glen Coe.

In May and April, she hiked up Glen Lyon and Glen Nevis.

Around 150,000 people ascend Ben Nevis each year as it is a popular tourist destination.

The mountain's weather is 'arguably the most ferocious to be found anywhere in the UK' and 'even the most experienced climbers and walkers have been caught out', according to walking site Ben-Nevis.com.
Bitcoin has rebounded after a volatile session in which it fell below $30,000, recovering losses sparked a day earlier when China's central bank deepened a crackdown on cryptocurrencies.

On Wednesday morning, Bitcoin rose as much as 17 percent, to $34,818, surging a day after hitting its lowest level since January.

Bitcoin supporters said that the correction was simply weeding out weak-willed investors with so-called 'paper hands,' but a third of institutional investors told JPMorgan that cryptocurrency was 'rat poison' or believe it is a temporary fad.

Only 10 percent of institutional investment firms surveyed by JPMorgan trade cryptocurrencies, however, asked about their personal investments, 40 percent of the investors said they were active in cryptocurrencies.

On Wednesday morning, Bitcoin surged a day after hitting its lowest level since January

Billionaire investor Warren Buffett has in the past characterized Bitcoin as 'rat poison squared'. One third in the JPM survey agreed with that view. Another 16% thought it was a temporary fad.

Four-fifths of investors also expected regulators to get tougher on the asset class, while a whopping 95 percent of them believed fraud in crypto world was 'somewhat or very much prevalent', the survey released late on Tuesday found.

Meanwhile, crypto supporters said that the bounce-back was evidence of Bitcoin's resilience, mocking panicked investors who sold during yesterday's lows.

'We had 200 days of market expansion. You can't have a number go up forever. That doesn't happen in any market,' crypto bull Meltem Demirors told CNBC.

'What we're seeing is a correction, a contraction, and a lot of what is getting shaken out is what we call the 'paper hands,' the 'weak hands,' she added.

'Paper hands' is slang for investors who are scared off by fluctuating prices, the opposite of 'diamond hands' who hold on to assets despite headwinds.

During Tuesday's sell-off, CNBC host Jim Cramer announced that he had sold 'nearly all' of his Bitcoin, citing the China crackdown and fears of greater U.S. regulation.

During Tuesday's sell-off, CNBC host Jim Cramer announced that he had sold 'nearly all' of his Bitcoin, citing the China crackdown and fears of greater U.S. regulation

Crypto supporters said that the bounce-back was evidence of Bitcoin's resilience, mocking panicked investors who sold during yesterday's lows

Bitcoin's Tuesday fall also pressured smaller coins such as Ether. It tumbled 11 percent on Monday, its largest one-day drop in over a month, with losses of roughly 56 percent since hitting an all-time high of just under $65,000 in mid-April.

The earlier sell-off was sparked by the People's Bank of China urging China's largest banks and payment firms to crack down harder on cryptocurrency trading, the latest tightening of restrictions on the sector by Beijing.

'The underlying fundamentals of the crypto-asset world have not changed and this correction was more of a when, not if,' said Iqbal Gandham, vice president of transactions at Ledger, a digital asset management solution.

'Any asset class which sees a meteoric rise in the same way as we have seen in crypto is expected to correct. The situation in China has perhaps exacerbated this, along with the increased rate of adoption of altcoins by new users, following tweets of various crypto personalities.'

Bitcoin's chart outlook has darkened after it broke below the neckline of a massive head-and-shoulders top formation at $30,393, bringing closer a test of key chart support that could potentially wipe roughly 40 percent off its current value.

After Monday's PBOC statement, banks including Agricultural Bank of China and Ant Group's payment platform Alipay said they would step up monitoring to root out crypto transactions.

Bitcoin remained nearly 50% off its peak price in May, but found support at $30,000

Ethereum also rebounded on Tuesday but remained well off its May peak price

Ether, the token used for the Ethereum blockchain and the second-largest cryptocurrency, last traded up 14 percent at $1,985. It earlier dropped to $1,700, its lowest in a month.

It broke through key structural support in a sign that longs could be capitulating as China's crackdown rippled through the cryptocurrency universe.

Evidence of the impact of the mining curbs is emerging. The so-called hash rate of the bitcoin network - a measure of its processing power that shows how much mining is taking place, on Monday hit its lowest level since late 2020.

Authorities in major bitcoin mining hubs including Sichuan, Xinjiang, and Inner Mongolia have issued their own curbs with greater details on the restrictions.

Iran in late May also banned the energy-intensive mining of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin for nearly four months, as the country faces major power blackouts in many cities.

On Tuesday, state media reported that police have seized 7,000 computer miners at an illegal crypto farm, their largest haul to date of the energy-guzzling machines.

The crackdown on miners will likely hit prices in the short-term, market players said.

Mike Novogratz, founder and chief executive officer at Galaxy Digital, a crypto-focused financial services firm, and one of the largest crypto investors, told CNBC on Tuesday that China's actions has created 'a retail deleveraging.'

'A lot of crypto happens in Asia, a lot of it is Chinese focused. So were seeing big liquidations, so it's hard to call a bottom.'

Three industry associations in China last month issued a similar ban on crypto-related financial services, though market players said it would be hard to enforce as banks and payment firms could struggle to identify crypto-related payments.

Beijing's targets are crypto miners, but China's State Council, or cabinet, said last month it would tighten restrictions on producers as well as traders of bitcoin.
Educators around the country have come out to condemn a 'Dismantling Racism in Mathematics' program which tells teachers not to push students to find the correct answers to math problems because doing so promotes white supremacy.

The program is centered around a workbook for teachers entitled 'A Pathway to Equitable Math Instruction' which asserts that America's education system  even mathematics instruction  reinforces the dominant power structures of white colonizers.

Grading students, asking them to show their work, requiring participation and even pushing them to get the right answer are depicted in the workbook as harmful to minorities.

The workbook was created by Oakland, California-based advocacy group The Education Trust-West under its 'Dismantling Racism in Mathematics Instruction' initiative, which is funded through a $1million grant from The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

So far, the workbook is being used by school districts in Georgia, Ohio, California and Oregon, according to education news site The 74 Million.

It's part of a larger push nationwide to have students learn about critical race theory, which teaches that racism against minorities is embedded in every aspect of life - even in something as seemingly cut-and-dry as math.

But many critics of the workbook say it actually reinforces negative stereotypes and drives wedges between students according to their race.

'The workbook's ultimate message is clear: Black kids are bad at math, so why don't we just excuse them from really learning it,' Erec Smith, a professor of rhetoric and composition at York College of Pennsylvania and co-founder of Free Black Thought, told The 74 Million.

The pictured workbook has drawn criticism from educators for claiming that it's racist to expect students to get the right answer to a math problem

Critics of the workbook say that it contradicts its goal of combatting racism by doubling down on harmful stereotypes about black children's performance in math (file photo)

Despite its use by districts in California, state board members recently voted against using it in the redesign of the state's math curriculum.

And while The 74 Million reported that Georgia schools have used it in, the state's board of education recently passed a resolution banning critical race theory from being taught in its schools.

Supporters of critical race theory say it helps illuminate the obstacles faced by BIPOC (black, indigenous and people of color) individuals in every aspect of life, including the classroom, which their white counterparts do not have to worry about.

Rachel Ruffalo, the director of educator engagement at The Education Trust-West, defended the workbook as using math as a means to attack racism

But critics claim it is unnecessarily divisive, and teaches children that they are either victims or oppressors from an early age.

Georgia joined Florida, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Montana and Idaho in banning the teaching of the theory. There are 10 other states discussing a ban, including Texas, Arizona, Iowa, Missouri, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, West Virginia, San Dakota, North Carolina and Louisiana.

Meanwhile, the Oregon Department of Education hosted a seminar on antiracism in education in February, which featured the controversial math workbook.

'The concept of mathematics being purely objective is unequivocally false,' reads the manual. 'Upholding the idea that there are always right and wrong answers perpetuates "objectivity." '

Instead, it encourages teachers to have more than one answer for math problems, refrain from calling on students to answer problems for the class, relate math to minority students' experiences and provide examples of how math is used by political revolutionaries.

'Identify and challenge the ways that math is used to uphold capitalist, imperialist, and racist views.' The workbook reads.

'Math enjoyed this notion that it was somehow above the influence of the cultural and political issues of our time,' Rachel Ruffalo, the director of educator engagement at The Education Trust-West, told The 74 Million.

'We live in a toxic culture that affects us all; one dynamic of the culture is that we are discouraged from seeing it,' reads a stand-out introduction to the book. 'One of our tasks is to learn to see our culture and how it teaches us to make normal that which is not and should never be normal.'

The workbook encourages teachers to 'identify and challenge the ways that math is used to uphold capitalist, imperialist, and racist views'

A stand-out introduction explains the book's goal of deconstructing how teachers approach math in order to meet the needs of minority students

Williamson Evers, who worked for the U.S. Department of Education under George W. Bush, wrote an article in the Wall Street Journal after the workbook started trending among educators in California, shortly before state board members recommended nixing it.

If adapted into curriculum, Evers said that it would discourage students from succeeding in math class and put them behind students in other countries.

'If California education officials have their way, generations of students may not know how to calculate an apartment's square footage or the area of a farm field, but the 'mathematics' of political agitation and organizing will be second nature to them,' he wrote.

Erec Smith, the co-founder of Free Black Thought, slammed the workbook for contradicting the ideas its trying to promote

But even proponents of teaching antiracism have said that the book contradicts the very ideas it's trying to promote.

John McWhorter, a Free Black Thought contributor and professor of linguistics and music history at Columbia University, recently published a blog post denouncing the workbook.

'It claims to be about teaching math while founded on shielding students from the requirement to actually do it,' he wrote. 'Humans may sacrifice the black kid from the work of mastering the gift of math, in favor of showing that they are enlightened enough to understand that her life may be affected by racism and that therefore she should be shielded from anything that is a genuine challenge . . . this is not pedagogy; it is preaching.'

David Barnes, the associate executive director of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, also shared reservations about the workbook.

'Are we building bridges or throwing grenades?' he asked. 'When you get to page two and what's bolded is "dismantling white supremacy," there are some people that cannot read past that.'

But supporters of the workbook say that its message is being taken out of context.

They argue that its teachings are more about making math more relatable and understandable to every student in the classroom.

Josie McSpadden, a spokeswoman at the Gates Foundation, defended the project in an interview with The 74 Million.

'At times, research has shown that racial bias and student mindsets can affect student academic achievement,' she said, adding the workbook, 'highlights a critical discussion  how students arrive at answers and demonstrate their understanding and conceptual grasp of important math concepts.'
This is the moment a Zambian TV anchor interrupted his live news bulletin to complain that he and his colleagues had not been paid.

Presenter Kabinda Kalimina caused a stir during the KBN TV news programme on Saturday night when he said staff had not received their wages and insisted they 'must be paid'.

Mr Kalimina had started the show as normal and was giving a roundup of the top stories when he suddenly stopped to make the complaint live on-air.

Speaking to the camera, he said: 'Away from the news, ladies and gentleman, we are human beings. We have to get paid.

This is the moment a Zambian TV anchor Kabinda Kalimina interrupted his live news bulletin to complain that he and his colleagues had not been paid

'Unfortunately, on KBN we haven't been paid... Sharon and everyone else haven't been paid, including myself. We have to get paid.'

Mr Kalimina was then cut off by the station and the producers quickly began the opening trailer again.

The presenter has been condemned by KBN TV who described Mr Kalimina's actions as a 'One-Night stunt of Fame' as they urged members to treat the interruption with 'the contempt it deserves.

The TV station said Mr Kalimina had exhibited 'drunken behaviour' and said they would investigate how a 'drunken part-time presenter found himself on air unabated'.

But Mr Kalimina has since refuted their claims that he was drunk and questioned how he could have been under the influence when he had presented three other shows before the news bulletin.

He shared the now viral video to his Facebook page and said: 'Yes I did that on live TV, just because most journalists are scared to speak out doesn't mean journalists shouldn't speak out.'

Presenter Kabinda Kalimina caused a stir during the KBN TV news programme on Saturday night when he said staff had not received their wages and insisted they 'must be paid'

KBN TV's chief executive Kennedy Mambwe said in a statement: 'As KBN TV, we are appalled with the drunken behaviour exhibited through a video clip that has gone viral on social media and staged by one of our part-time presenters during what should have been the main news bulletin.

'As a young television station, we work with a very highly talented and professional team, with a noble character and we owe the success of unbroken broadcasting for the last two years to such gallant men and women.

'Members of the public may wish to know that KBN TV like any other institution, has very well-established grievance procedures for all members of staff through which they can channel their complaints.

'Therefore, last night's behaviour by Kabinda Kalimina is out of character and does not represent who we are as a station. We strongly condemn that despicable behaviour and urge members of the public to treat that 'One-Night stunt of Fame' with the contempt it deserves.

'As management, we are carrying out investigations to determine how a drunken part-time presenter found himself on air unabated and disciplinary action will be taken against anyone who may have been party to the scheme.'
A prominent statue of Theodore Roosevelt at the entrance of The American Museum of Natural History will be removed after years of criticism that it symbolizes colonial subjugation and racial discrimination.

The New York City Public Design Commission voted unanimously Monday to relocate the statue, which depicts the former president on horseback with a Native American man and an African man walking along side.

Some have said the depiction is racist, promoting a hierarchy that puts a white man above a Native American man and African man.

Roosevelt has long been associated with the Museum of Natural History.

His father was one of the founders of the museum, and more recently Robin Williams played a wax statue version of the president in the 2006 movie 'Night at the Museum', which was set at the AMNH.

The New York Times reports the bronze statue - which was erected in 1940 - will go to a yet-to-be-designated cultural institution dedicated to Roosevelt's life and legacy.

Roosevelt's legacy has been cast in a new light in recent years, with his support of eugenics entering the spotlight as anti-racism protests took hold of the country following the killing of George Floyd.

The New York City Public Design Commission voted unanimously to relocate this statue to a yet-to-be-designated cultural institution dedicated to Roosevelt's life and legacy

Recently Robin Williams played a wax statue version of the president in the 2006 movie 'Night at the Museum', which was set at the AMNH

The statue's removal comes as monuments to figures now deemed racist or problematic by activists have been removed from sites across the country.

In particular, statues of Confederate figures in the South have been toppled in the wake of the police killing Floyd, which sparked nationwide protests demanding an end to systemic racism.

Statues that paid tribute to the likes of Christopher Columbus, Robert E. Lee and George Washington were among those removed or defaced during anti-racism protests.

While there's no official number of statues taken down over the last year, the Southern Poverty Law Center previously revealed that 168 Confederate symbols were removed in 2020, including 94 monuments.

The statue has been a site of controversy in recent years and has even been defaced

The bronze statue of Roosevelt was designed by James Earle Fraser and has stood at the museum's Central Park West entrance since 1940.

Fraser said the statue could represent 'Roosevelts friendliness to all races,' but recent public perception has warped that view.

The city and museum previously agreed to remove the statue, but because of its place on city land, a public hearing was required on the manner.

The statue was the last item on the agenda from the New York City Public Design Commission's Monday meeting.

The controversial statue has been defaced at least twice, including once in 2017, when it was doused with red liquid representing blood.

In 2017, the statue was doused with red liquid representing blood, with activists demanding its removal from the site

How about replacing it with a statue of Robin Williams. He deserves one.  Ben Stiller (@RedHourBen) June 21, 2020

In the 1970s, it was also defaced amid protests against Roosevelt's foreign policy that led to interventions in Central America and the Caribbean.

A mayoral commission in 2017 discussed the statue, but failed to decide on removing it from the premises. About half wanted the statue removed, while others proposed to leave it with added context or conduct more research for it.

Nevertheless, the commission wrote, 'Height is power in public art, and Roosevelts stature on his noble steed visibly expresses dominance and superiority over the Native American and African figures.'

In 2019, the museum ran an exhibit about the statue and how it was perceived by the public.

'Cowboy' president who set up America's first National Park but has been blasted by anti-racism activists for his support of eugenics Theodore Roosevelt was the 26th president of the United States from 1901 to 1909. The Republican, whose face is depicted on Mount Rushmore alongside George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln, is credited with laying the groundwork for the modern Democratic party. His progressive policies leveled the playing field between rich and poor, and this mantle would be carried forward in the modern liberalism of his cousin, Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidency. Teddy Roosevelt called himself a 'new nationalist,' and believed strongly in egalitarianism. The equestrian statue of the 33rd governor of New York outside the American Museum of Natural History was erected in 1939. Roosevelt had developed a 'cowboy' image and that of a brave, masculine warrior during his presidency. He was a great conservationist, setting up America's first National Parks, and also a foreign policy interventionist who proudly built up the US Navy with the Great White Fleet. It is through this context that we can see Roosevelt depicted as the bold colonialist explorer, guided through the wilderness by one figure representing Native America and the other, Africa. Roosevelt's legacy has been cast in a new light in recent years, with his support of eugenics entering the spotlight as anti-racism protests took hold of the country following the killing of George Floyd. Advertisement

The 'Addressing the Statue' exhibition opened up a conversation with museum attendees about the place of the statue in today's world.

Objections to the statue grew more forceful in recent years, especially after the murder of George Floyd that sparked a racial reckoning and a wave of protests across the U.S.

In June 2020, museum officials proposed removing the statue. The museum is on city-owned property and Mayor Bill de Blasio supported removal of the 'problematic statue.'

'The American Museum of Natural History has asked to remove the Theodore Roosevelt statue because it explicitly depicts Black and Indigenous people as subjugated and racially inferior,' de Blasio said at the time.

'The City supports the Museums request. It is the right decision and the right time to remove this problematic statue.'

That decision came around the same time that Americans were reckoning with the existence of other statues around the country.

The museum released a statement at the time, saying, 'Over the last few weeks, our Museum community has been profoundly moved by the ever-widening movement for racial justice that has emerged after the killing of George Floyd.

'We also have watched as the attention of the world and the country has increasingly turned to statues and monuments as powerful and hurtful symbols of systemic racism.

'While the Statue is owned by the City, the Museum recognizes the importance of taking a position at this time. We believe that the Statue should no longer remain and have requested that it be moved.'

Theodore Roosevelt IV, a great-grandson of the former president, released a statement to the New York Times last June as well.

'The world does not need statues, relics of another age, that reflect neither the values of the person they intend to honor nor the values of equality and justice, the museum trustee said.

'The composition of the Equestrian Statue does not reflect Theodore Roosevelts legacy. It is time to move the statue and move forward.'

Governor Andrew Cuomo also backed the decision to remove the statue.

Donald Trump was among those opposed to the removal of the statue at the time, tweeting, 'Ridiculous, dont do it!'

Last June, a rally called for the Equestrian Statue of Theodore Roosevelt to remain in place

More than 150 protesters gathered outside New York's Museum of Natural History last June in an effort to save a statue of President Theodore Roosevelt from being removed.

During the hour-long demonstration speakers made the case for keeping the bronze effigy of Roosevelt firmly in its place at the Museum's entrance.

A group of counter-protesters arrived soon after, organized by a black Evangelical group from Georgia, to support the removal of the statue which they called 'glorified colonialism.'

Counter protesters carried 'Black Lives Matter' signs and also had speakers make their argument for the removal of the statue.

Museum officials said they were pleased with the commission's vote in a prepared statement emailed Wednesday and thanked the city.

Sam Biederman of the New York City Parks Department said at the meeting Monday that although the statue 'was not erected with malice of intent,' its composition 'supports a thematic framework of colonization and racism.'

Roosevelt, a pioneering conservationist, was a founding member of the institution.

Gothamist previously asked the Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace in Manhattan about taking on the statue.

'At this moment, the National Park Service has no comment,' was the given response.

Roosevelt also has a presidential library in North Dakota, which could potentially serve as a new site for the statue.
Morgan Stanley is planning to block unvaccinated staff and clients from entering the bank's New York offices if they are not fully vaccinated after the CEO issued a stark warning that employees are expected back after Labor Day.

Employees, clients and visitors will be required to be fully vaccinated in order to access the bank's offices in New York and Westchester.

From July 12, those who don't attest to being fully vaccinated will lose building access, according to an internal memo obtained by the Financial Times.

Those who are not fully vaccinated will need to work remotely.

'Starting July 12 all employees, contingent workforce, clients and visitors will be required to attest to being fully vaccinated to access Morgan Stanley buildings in New York City and Westchester,' the memo, signed by chief human resources officer Mandell Crawley, says.

Employees, clients and visitors will be required to be fully vaccinated in order to access the bank's offices in New York City (pictured above) and Westchester

The memo goes on to say that the 'overwhelming majority of staff' have already attested to being vaccinated.

The new policy will allow removal of COVID-related restrictions on face coverings and maintaining physical distancing inside office premises.

Morgan Stanley's strict vaccine policy comes about a week after CEO James Gorman warned that he expects all staff to return to the company's Times Square home office by Labor Day

It was designed to speed up the process of returning the office to normal.

From Wednesday, the bank is also getting rid of the daily health check form vaccinated employees have been required to fill out that scans for COVID-19 symptoms.

Morgan Stanley had already implemented 'vaccine-only' workspaces in some divisions including institutional securities and wealth management.

The bank's vaccine policy is among the strictest on Wall Street.

Goldman Sachs has made it compulsory for employees to disclose if they have been vaccinated. Unvaccinated employees are allowed in the office but are required to wear face masks.

Vaccine disclosure at JPMorgan Chase is voluntary.

Morgan Stanley's strict vaccine policy comes about a week after CEO James Gorman warned that he expects all staff to return to the company's Times Square home office by Labor Day - and they may risk salary cuts if they refuse.

The bank is currently not dictating how many days a week staff should come in.

The new vaccine policy, which will be implemented from July 12, also applies to the bank's offices in Westchester (pictured above)

From July 12, those who don't attest to being fully vaccinated will lose building access. Those who are not fully vaccinated will need to work remotely

Speaking at the bank's annual US Financials, Payments & CRE Conference, Gorman said that may will if people don't choose to return to their office in Times Square by the end of the summer.

'I would call it directionally strong without dictating - yet. But Labor Day, I'll be very disappointed if people haven't found their way into the office and then we'll have a different kind of conversation,' he said.

Gorman currently goes into the office four days a week and has been in at least one day a week since last summer.

'Make no mistake about it - we do our work inside Morgan Stanley offices and that's where we teach, that's where our interns learn, that's where you build all the soft cues that go with building a successful career that aren't just about Zoom presentations.

'When will that occur? My leadership style has been very deliberate. I went from one day a week from July to Labor Day last year, two days Labor Day until the end of the year, three days the beginning of this year until March and now I am at four days.

'If you can go into a restaurant in New York City, you can come into the office. We want you in the office.'
Police in California have released footage of the moment an officer was shot dead by a domestic violence suspect who starting firing immediately without warning when opening his front door.

Jimmy Inn, 30, arrived at the Stockton home on the morning of May 11 after 911 received calls that a woman had been beaten at the home.

She was seen leaving with her shirt in tatters and covered in blood from the property on the 4400 block of La Cresta Way.

Inn is heard shouting, 'Hey police,' as he stands outside the door to the home. Yelling is heard from within before the suspect, Lance Lowe, pushes the door ajar and immediately starts firing shots at the cop from point blank range.

The officer is hit and can be heard crying out in agony as he falls onto the front lawn as further gunfire reverberates around him.

A second piece of video, from his partner Pancho Freer's bodyworn camera, shows the other officer springing into action from their patrol car.

He swings open the driver's side door and takes aim over the window frame, shooting towards Lowe who returns fire before re-entering the property.

Inn is heard shouting, 'Hey police,' as he stands outside the door to the home. Yelling is heard from within before the suspect, Lance Lowe, opens the door and immediately starts firing shots at the cop

Lowe points a pistol out of the door and fires several shots at Inn from point blank range

Stockton police officer Jimmy Inn, 30, was shot dead by Lance Lowe, also 30, while responding to reports of domestic violence in Stockton on May 11

'Shots fired, shots fired. Partner down,' Freer says into his radio.

Crouching behind a parked car with his weapon drawn, he shouts: 'Jimmy. Jimmy, stay with me.'

At some point, off camera, Lowe re-emerges from the home holding his eight-year-old son around the neck as neighbours watching scream in terror.

'Don't do it, let the kid go man,' Freer tells Lowe. 'I don't want to kill you.'

Lowe can be seen with his arm around his son's neck who struggles to break free with both of his legs kicking in the air.

'He's strangling the kid and my partner is down,' Freer tells the dispatcher as he crouches behind the car.

A mystery hero then runs out and tackles Lowe to the ground off camera.

Freer sprints towards Lowe and fires what sounds like seven shots at close range.

Inn and the gunman were rushed to a nearby hospital where they were both pronounced dead.

Lowe can be seen with his arm around his son's neck who struggles to break free with both of his legs kicking in the air

The driver's side window of the patrol car is shattered after being struck by gunfire

Inn's partner Pancho Freer points his gun towards Lowe

Stockton Police Department released the body camera footage on Tuesday as 'part of its principles of transparency.'

Chief Eric Jones called it a 'very traumatic incident for everyone.'

Inn joined the Stockton Police Department in 2015 and was a member of the Field Operation Division.

He left behind his wife, Tela, who is also a Stockton police officer, and three children.

A Stockton Police evidence technician photographs the scene of the officer-involved shooting on May 11

Police cordon off the scene of the fatal shooting in Stockton on May 11

'He gave the ultimate sacrifice,' Jones said of Inn last month. 'He came to work every day putting his life on the line.'

Lowe, 30, was jailed for five years in 2018 for grand theft auto with the use of a firearm in Los Angeles County.

He received 820 pre-sentencing credits, according to California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and 37 post-sentencing credits while awaiting transfer.

In April last year, CDCR said Lowe was released to parole supervision.
Ministers are set to approve a new North Sea oilfield off the coast of the Shetland Islands months before Britain hosts a global climate change summit, reports say.

Those behind the Cambo oilfield plan to extract 150 million barrels of oil under proposals handed to Downing Street by Siccar Point Energy, the Times reported.

The oilfield, which will emit more than three million tonnes of carbon during its lifespan, could operate until 2050 - by which time Britain has vowed to be net carbon neutral.

But the Cambo development will not be included in Boris Johnson's 'climate compatibility checkpoint', which will decide whether new projects are 'compatible with the UK's climate change objectives.'

Environmental activists have already called on the Government to block the proposal, which comes just months before the UN's Cop26 climate conference in Glasgow.

Those behind the Cambo oilfield plan to extract 150 million barrels of oil under proposals handed to Downing Street by Siccar Point Energy. Pictured: Offshore drilling rig in Scotland

They claim it does not fit with the Government's plan to help limit global emissions and keep a worldwide temperature increase to 1.5C by 2050.

It also contradicts findings by the International Energy Agency, who recently said no new oil and gas fields should be developed if we are to reach this goal.

However, the Cambo development remains subject to a consultation by the Oil and Gas Authority.

The oilfield, discovered in 2002 by Hess, is approximately 125km north-west of the Shetland Islands and is one of the deepest fields ever to be discovered in Northern Europe.

It is located 30km south-west of the Rosebank field and 50km north of the Schiehallion field.

Environmental campaigners have today reacted with fury to the proposal.

The Scottish Government hasn't yet objected to the plans, despite the project leaders aiming to keep extracting oil until 2050 - five years after Scotland has committed to reach net-zero emissions.

Friends of the Earth Scotland Climate Campaigner Caroline Rance said: 'Burning fossil fuels is the key driver of climate breakdown and every extra barrel of oil and gas produced speeds us closer to greater devastation.

'The climate impact from producing and burning the oil and gas from the Cambo field alone is equivalent to ten times Scotland's annual emissions.

'It would be completely indefensible for the UK Government to approve this development, and would further damage the UK's credibility on climate action ahead of the UN climate conference COP26 later this year.

'Both the UK and Scottish Governments must end their hypocritical support for drilling for every last drop of climate-wrecking oil and gas, and instead develop a clear plan for winding down fossil fuel extraction while building up support for retraining workers and supporting communities.

'That has to start with saying no to Cambo.

The oilfield, which will emit more than three million tonnes of carbon during its lifespan, could operate until 2050 - by which time Britain has vowed to be net carbon neutral. Pictured: Another oil rig

Prime Minister Boris Johnson (pictured left with Attenborough in February 2020) said there was 'no better person to build momentum for further change' than Sir David Attenborough

'The UK's drilling plans in already operating oil and gas fields will far exceed the UK's share under the Paris climate goals - further extraction will blast through safe climate limits.

'A managed phase out of oil and gas is necessary to protect people who work in this industry, their communities and the climate. This means no new oil and gas licences and a plan for a rapid and fair transition away from fossil fuels.'

'It is an obscenity that these plans are being progressed just months before the UN climate talks are due to take place in Glasgow.'

Rachel Kennerley, international climate campaigner at Friends of the Earth England, Wales and Northern Ireland added: 'Continuing to allow the North Sea to be drained of oil and gas would be yet another hammer blow to the UK government's international leadership ambitions ahead of this year's crucial summit.

'Ministers must ensure a fair transition for workers and communities reliant on these industries as part of a strategy to rapidly shift to clean energy from the sun, wind and tides.

'If ministers are serious about facing up to the climate crisis they must end their support for climate wrecking fossil fuels at home and abroad.'

A BEIS spokesperson said: 'We are working hard to drive down demand for fossil fuels, but we also know there will continue to be ongoing demand for oil and gas over the coming years, as recognised by the independent Climate Change Committee.

'As part of the UK's shift towards green energy, through our landmark North Sea Transition Deal, we are backing the decarbonisation of the oil and gas sector to support high-value jobs and safeguard the skills necessary to develop new, low carbon industries across the country.'

It comes as the UN's Cop26 climate conference in Glasgow in November will bring together world leaders to try to agree a plan to tackle climate change.

Sir David Attenborough, 95, has been named the summit's People's Advocate and will address political leaders at the event.

In a video message released last month, Sir David said: 'The epidemic has shown us how crucial it is to find agreement among nations if we are to solve such worldwide problems.

'But the problems that await us within the next five, ten years are even greater.

'It is crucial that these meetings in Glasgow, Cop26, have success, and that at last the nations will come together to solve the crippling problems that the world faces.'
Two young girls were found dead in a South Florida canal just hours apart on Tuesday in what police are treating as a homicide.

The body of the first girl was spotted shortly after 12pm outside the Habitat II Condominiums in the Broward County city of Lauderhill by a woman who called 911.

The Lauderhill police and fire departments arrived at the scene and retrieved the body from the canal. The girl was believed to be between the ages of nine and 12.

Eight hours later the second body was found in the same canal just before 9pm.

Autopsies are underway to determine the girls' cause of death as investigators work to identify them.

The bodies of two young girls were discovered, hours apart, floating in a canal behind a condominium in Lauderhill, Florida, on Tuesday. One of the bodies is seen under a tarp after investigators recovered it from the water

The body of the first girl was spotted shortly after 12pm outside the Habitat II Condominiums

Detectives are uncertain how long both girls were in the water before pulling them out.

The first victim was wearing jean shorts and a gray shirt that had rainbow lettering of the word 'Dance.' She wore her hair in twists and did not have on shoes.

The second victim was wearing a tan shirt and flowered pajama bottoms.

Lauderhill Police Lt. Michael Santiago said the characteristics of the girls found do not match any of the characteristics in any of the missing persons reports that we have cross referenced thus far

Lawna Johnson, 51, told the Sun Sentinel she was sitting near the canal on Tuesday when she spotted first body in the water.

'It's just upsetting,' she said. 'I see things on TV; I ain't never seen something real like that.'

Police said no parents had come forward to say their child was missing by late Tuesday night.

At first, authorities did not suspect foul play because the first girl showed no signs of trauma. The second girl's body was still in the water late Tuesday night as detectives continued their investigation.

Because there were no missing persons reports on either of the girls, investigators have not been able to confirm their identities.

Investigators taped off the parking lot at the Habitat II Condominiums (pictured)

'The characteristics of the girls found do not match any of the characteristics in any of the missing persons reports that we have cross referenced thus far,' Lauderhill Police Lt. Michael Santiago told DailyMail.com.

Santiago said it's possible both girls lived in the condos nearby the canal.

'There's always that possibility because it's a very small city, and it's a close-knit city, so there is a possibility those girls live in that area,' he said. 'Right now detectives are canvasing that area, they're knocking on doors trying to determine if anyone has seen these girls before.'

Neighbors said they saw a woman swimming in the canal Monday night and reading the Bible not far from the spot where the first body was found.

Santiago confirmed the witness accounts, the Sun Sentinel reported. He said investigators are tracking down all leads.
Fears are mounting that millions of Sydneysiders may soon be confined to their homes as the highly infectious Indian strain of Covid spreads across the city, as an expert revealed the three key factors that could keep the city out of lockdown.

The uncertainty gripping the Government comes as NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard and four other MPs are forced into isolation after being close contacts of Agriculture Minister, Adam Marshall, who has tested positive to Covid.

Mr Hazzard believes Premier Gladys Berejiklian is 'fairly safe' from becoming infected, although discussions were underway about closing Parliament. The parliament's whips sent notes to MPs members urging them not to bring in staff before both houses sit on Thursday.

Epidemiologist Dr Abrar Chughtai said whether Sydney would be sent into lockdown would hinge on three key factors - vaccination levels, the nature of the Covid-19 strain being spread and how active the cases were in the community.

'If all cases are close contacts and you are able to trace all contacts of those cases, then you probably don't need lockdown,' he told ABC News.

Queensland on Thursday recorded three new local cases after an infected woman in her 30s visited the Portuguese Family Centre restaurant in Ellen Grove in Brisbane's south-west.

Sixteen new infections were announced in NSW on Wednesday, bringing the total to 36 new community cases in the Harbour City after a super spreader event saw 10 people infected at a birthday party, which was attended by 30 people.

Ms Berejiklian said on Wednesday she did not want to impose a debilitating lockdown unless she had no other option.

'I am not going to rule out further action, I am not going to rule out what happens beyond a week,' she said.

But sources close to the Berejiklian government have hinted Thursday will see 'big numbers' of new infections, with Sydneysiders ordered not to leave the city.

Covid cases are on the rise in Sydney with sources saying Thursday will bring 'big numbers' (pictured, a couple in mandatory masks in Manly)

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian (pictured on Wednesday) has so far managed to fend off a lockdown, instead bringing in restrictions including limited visitors to the home and mandatory masks - even in offices

Lockdown-happy premiers in other states including Western Australia, Victoria and Queensland have already slammed their borders shut, disrupting school holiday plans for thousands.

Ms Berejiklian, who has always strived to take a measured approach to outbreaks, has so far stood firm by refusing to lock down Sydney, instead bringing in a number of restrictions including limits of five visitors to a household and mandatory masks.

In the face of a growing number of cases, a senior health source admitted to Daily Mail Australia that the trend of infections is 'not good'.

When asked about a potential lockdown, the source said: 'It certainly looks like that's where we are heading.'

Four new mystery infections have contributed to widespread speculation that the city will be locked down by the end of the week, with sources telling the ABC and 7 News such restrictions could be imminent with a big spike in cases to be announced.

THE THREE FACTORS THAT COULD SEND SYDNEY INTO LOCKDOWN The city's vaccination levels The transmissibility of the Covid-19 variant How active the cases were in the community while they were infectious Source: UNSW epidemiologist Dr Abrar Chughtai Advertisement

The Indian variant is so contagious that two people in Bondi this week caught Covid by momentarily brushing past each other.

While other premiers have locked down state capitals after just two cases, Ms Berejiklian has always tried to strike a balance between public health and economic and mental wellbeing.

But she conceded that approach may have to change if cases begin to spiral out of control, particularly those not linked to known outbreaks.

'We have always said we will not burden our citizens unless we absolutely have to,' she said on Wednesday.

'If we need to take further action within the week or after the week, we are open to that.'

Her close ally NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard has rubbished claims that a lockdown is imminent, saying they have 'zero' truth to them.

'No plan to lockdown contrary to reports this evening,' Mr Hazzard told news.com.au on Wednesday night.

'Measures implemented this afternoon are proportionate and appropriate. Reports of a lockdown are greatly exaggerated.'

Those who live and work in seven hotspot suburbs will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason

Prime Minister Scott Morrison praised the NSW's premier's approach.

'She hasn't gone to lock down Australia's biggest city,' he said.

'But has taken the positive decision to keep Sydney and NSW open for its residents and to continue to rely on what is Australia's best contact tracing system.'

On Wednesday evening, NSW Health added 12 stores, a busy bus route and three train lines to the burgeoning list of exposure sites in the city. Pictured: Passengers at Sydney Domestic Airport

The outbreak has forced Ms Berejiklian to bring in new restrictions, including banning people from metropolitan Sydney from leaving the city, but she stopped short of shutting down businesses.

Her interstate counterparts were quick to slam their borders shut to residents amid the latest outbreak, ruining travel plans for many over the school holidays, which begin on Friday.

Queensland's premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has rushed to declare all of Sydney a Covid-19 hotspot, slamming the borders shut to millions.

Lockdown-happy premiers in other states including Western Australia , Victoria and Queensland have already slammed their borders shut, disrupting school holiday plans for thousands (inset, the Sydney suburbs deemed 'hotspots')

The move came after draconian moves by Western Australia and South Australia, which have shut the border to the entire of New South Wales.

In Victoria, people from seven local government areas are banned from the state - City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick.

The majority of the 16 new cases stem from a birthday party on Saturday in West Hoxton, in western Sydney, which included an infected Bondi Junction Westfield worker.

The woman was not suffering any symptoms at the time, but was tested the next day when they developed and received a positive result on Monday.

Passengers are seen lining up to check in at Sydney Domestic Airport on Wednesday as states rushed to shut their borders

All party attendees were ordered into self-isolation, with eight partygoers who came forward for testing on Tuesday found to have contracted the virus.

This includes a two-year-old child who attended Little Zaks childcare in Narellan Vale, near Campbelltown, on Monday.

NSW Health added 12 stores, a busy bus route and three train lines to the burgeoning list of exposure sites in the city late on Wednesday evening.

New venues included three eastern suburbs supermarkets, a TAFE building in Meadowbank, and an office building on Pitt Street in the CBD.

NEW COVID-19 RULES FOR GREATER SYDNEY From 4pm Wednesday for one week: Visitors to households will be limited to five guests  including children; Masks will be compulsory in all indoor non-residential settings, including workplaces, and at organised outdoor events; Drinking while standing at indoor venues will not be allowed; Singing by audiences at indoor shows or by congregants at indoor places of worship will not be allowed; Dancing will not be allowed at indoor hospitality venues or nightclubs however, dancing is allowed at weddings for the bridal party only (no more than 20 people); Dance and gym classes limited to 20 per class (masks must be worn); The one person per four square metre rule will be re-introduced for all indoor and outdoor settings, including weddings and funerals; Outdoor seated events will be limited to 50 per cent seated capacity; Previous public transport capacity limits, represented by green dots, will be reintroduced Advertisement

A BWS store in Mascot is also on alert, along with United Cinemas in Narellan, and three trendy eastern suburbs cafes.

Sydneysiders who were at the Tropicana Cafe in Darlinghurst between 12pm and 2pm on Friday 18 June, or Ikaria Bondi between 5pm and 7pm on Sunday June 20 have been told to contact NSW Health immediately and isolate for two weeks.

Shoppers at Coles Express Shell Petrol station on Birrell Street in Bondi Junction in the half an hour after 7.15pm on June 18 should get tested and isolate immediately, along with anyone who was at Wooworths Metro at Bondi Beach between 1 and 1.30pm on June 20.

Visitors at to Coles Kings Cross in Potts Point between 8pm and 9pm on Monday June 21 should also get tested and isolate, along with anyone who was at the Transport NSW Training Centre in Petersham between 4 and 4.10pm on Monday.

New exposure sight: On Wednesday, it was announced the Joh Bailey salon was exposed from June 17 to June 19

A public health warning has also been issued Christo's Pizzeria in near Paddington (pictured)

STATES THAT HAVE BANNED SYDNEYSIDERS: Queensland: Sydney declared a hotspot, banning entry into the Sunshine State WA: All of NSW banned SA: All of NSW banned Victoria: Sydney hotspots banned- Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick Tasmania: Sydney hotspots banned Northern Territory: Anyone from Sydney hotspots must quarantine for 14 days. ACT: Sydney hotspots banned Advertisement

Five bus journeys were also added to the close contact list, with alerts for anyone who was on specific trips on the 600 or 665 buses on Sunday June 20.

Anyone who travelled on bus 333 between 1.07pm and 1.12pm on Tuesday June 22 is also considered a casual contact and should get tested and self-isolate immediately.

Three trains lines are also on the list, including one that travelled from Bondi Junction to Mascot on Friday June 18 between 6.55pm and 7.22pm.

Another travelled from Mascot to Central on Saturday June 19 between 5.26pm and 5.35pm, and the third went from Central to Glenfield on the same day between 5.53pm and 6.38pm.

Two venues in the ritzy suburb of Double Bay have now been added to the city's growing list of exposure sites, including restaurant Matteo and the salon of renowned stylist, Joh Bailey.

A public health warning has also been issued Christo's Pizzeria in nearby Paddington.

Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said the outbreak demonstrated how quickly transmission could occur.

'There were about 30 people at that gathering in a house and the person was unknowingly infectious, did not have symptoms, and had not attended venues,' Dr Chant said.

A number of bus journeys were added to the close contact list on Wednesday evening with alerts for anyone who was on specific trips on the 600 or 665 buses on Sunday June 20 (pictured, a woman getting on a bus in Sydney)

The majority of the 16 new cases stem from a birthday party on Saturday in West Hoxton, in western Sydney, which included an infected Bondi Junction Westfield worker (pictured, testing at Bondi Beach)

'What you can see is that those test results indicate how quickly the virus was transmitted in that circumstance... And that is on day two after exposure.

'All those individuals would have unknowingly had the infection on Monday.'

Contact tracers are scrambling to determine exposure sites visited by the positive cases, as well as trying to trace the four new mystery infections.

The Bondi cluster began last week after a Sydney Airport limousine driver tested positive to the highly-infectious Delta variant, which started spreading at Bondi Junction's busy Westfield shopping centre.

For the next week from 4pm on Wednesday, household gatherings are limited to five visitors and masks are compulsory in all indoor venues, including workplaces and gym classes.

Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said the outbreak demonstrated how quickly transmission could occur (pictured, women leaving Westfield Bondi Junction on Wednesday amid a wave of new infections)

Drinking while standing in pubs and bars is also banned and those who live and work in seven hotspot council areas are not allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason.

Those council areas are the City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick - home to around 782,000 residents.

The tightened rules - which also include a 50 per cent capacity restriction for outdoor seated events - applies to Sydney, the Blue Mountains and Central Coast and Shellharbour regions.

Ms Berejiklian said the growth of 'unlinked cases' in the state meant she needed to take proportionate action to stop the highly-contagious Indian Delta variant from spreading.

'If you live or work in any of those impacted LGAs we don't want you moving outside of metropolitan Sydney other than for one of four essential purposes,' she said.

'Unless you are visiting a relative in care or have to go to work you should not be going outside the city for the next week.'

She clarified the boundaries of metropolitan Sydney were the city itself, the Blue Mountains, Shellharbour, Wollongong and the Central Coast.

The one person per four square metre rule in indoor venues has also come back into force.
With all 50 Senate Democrats voting Tuesday in favor of starting debate on a revised version of the 'For the People' voting rights act, the party showed that it's shifting on a key issue: voter ID.

Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin, a key swing vote, included a voter ID provision in the compromise he came up with in hopes of attracting some Republican support.

The GOP has long been pro-voter ID, while Democrats have been against, over concerns it could burden poor or urban voters, who'd be less likely to have a driver's license.

Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin included a voter ID provision in his compromise on voting rights legislation. While Republicans didn't bite, it shows that Democrats could be open to some sort of voter ID in future legislation

The vote to begin debate on voting rights legislation was split 50-50 between Democrats and Republicans. Sixty votes were needed to break a GOP-led filibuster

Manchin's enticement didn't work, with zero Republicans voting in favor of starting debate on the voting rights bill. Ten Republicans needed to defect in order to override the filibuster.

But the Democrats' concession, that they could support some form of voter ID, potentially opens the door to compromise legislation in the future.

Manchin's voter ID proposal was less strict than the GOP-supported laws in some states.

The Manchin compromise would require all states to verify a voter's identification, but various documents could be used, including utility bills.

The Senate bill also allowed voters in states with ID laws to cast a ballot without identification if they signed an affidavit under penalty of perjury.

Democrats have called out Republicans in the past for voter ID provisions that allowed IDs like a gun license - something a GOP-leaning voter might have - but not student IDs - as younger voters lean Democratic - as unfairly targeting Democratic voters.

But public polling on the issue finds that a majority of Americans support voters showing some form of ID.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki wouldn't specifically say whether Biden approved of the voter ID provision in Manchin's compromise bill during conversations about the bill earlier this week.

'I'm not going to go through different individual pieces of the package,' she answered when asked Monday about it specifically. 'It's a compromise.'

'The president - there are components out there of course that I think universally among most Democrats in the country - an extension of early voting, making Election Day a law, we would support,' she continued.

'This is a step forward. It should be seen as an incremental step forward. We'll see what's the next step in Congress,' Psaki added.

After the test vote failed Tuesday night in the Senate, President Joe Biden sent out a statement vowing to try again.

'This fight is far from over - far from over. I've been engaged in this work my whole career, and we are going to be ramping up our efforts to overcome again - for the people, for our very democracy,' the president said.
A jealous man high on cocaine has confessed to stabbing his lover and her roommate to death in their Manhattan apartment because she told him she didn't love him, according to court documents.

Kelvin Valdez, 27, of Inwood, is accused of murdering Jaslynn Pena, 37, and her 51-year-old roommate, Belkis Cruz, in a jealous fit of rage at their apartment on Sherman Avenue in Inwood on April 27.

The bodies of the two women were discovered by police when a neighbor noticed blood pooling out from under the apartment door.

Valdez was arrested later that day and appeared in court Tuesday to face an indictment on two counts of first-degree murder.

The alleged killer, who authorities said had a history of violence toward his girlfriend and was arrested back in 2013 for stabbing a man multiple times with a kitchen knife, pleaded not guilty on both counts.

A jealous man high on cocaine has confessed to stabbing his lover and her roommate to death in their Manhattan apartment because she told him she didn't love him, according to court documents. Kelvin Valdez pictured appearing in court Tuesday

Authorities on the scene of the double murder in April. Kelvin Valdez, 27, of Inwood, is accused of murdering Jaslynn Pena, 37, and her 51-year-old roommate, Belkis Cruz, in a jealous fit of rage at their apartment on Sherman Avenue in Inwood on April 27

Court papers, filed Tuesday and obtained by NY Daily News, showed Valdez confessed on tape to committing the grisly double murder less than 12 hours after his arrest on April 27.

The 27-year-old allegedly told cops he stabbed the two women because Pena had told him she wanted to leave him.

'Jaslynn wanted to leave me,' Valdez allegedly told detectives at the 34th Precinct station.

'I stabbed her because she didn't want to be with me.'

Valdez said he first attacked her roommate Cruz before then slashing his girlfriend, documents show.

'[Pena] tried to push me away, I took out the knife. I stabbed the lady [Cruz],' he allegedly recalled.

'Jaslynn started screaming for help. She told me to leave, we talked, we started to argue, she told me she didn't love [me]. I stabbed her, too.'

In the taped confession, Valdez admitted to killing the two women, before trying to clean up after the attack and fleeing down the fire escape.

'The other woman tried to tell me to leave. I stabbed the older woman first. I stabbed Jaslynn second. I stabbed both of them,' Valdez allegedly said.

'I went into the bathroom and washed the blood up, I went out the fire escape. I tried to clean up.'

Valdez appeared in court Tuesday indicted on two counts of first-degree murder (above)

The alleged killer pleaded not guilty on both counts. He was ordered to be held without bail

The suspect also confessed that he had bought two knives the day before to carry out the attack, the documents show.

Police were called to the apartment building around 10am on the morning of April 27.

The building's super had called 911 after a neighbor reported hearing screams from the apartment and noticed blood seeping under the door into the hallway.

The super told NBC New York he had knocked on the door and a voice told him everything was fine.

It is not clear if this was the killer or one of the victims whose voice he reportedly heard.

Police arrived on the scene and broke into the apartment to find the two women unresponsive with multiple stab wounds.

One of the victims was lying facedown with stab wounds to her neck, stomach, and face while the other was lying on her back, with slashes to her stomach, arms and neck.

The bodies of the two women were discovered by police when a neighbor noticed blood pooling out from under the apartment door (pictured)

Valdez was arrested later that day and allegedly confessed to the double murder, telling cops: 'I stabbed her because she didn't want to be with me'

The scene of the grisly murders on April 27. Valdez said he first attacked her roommate Cruz before then slashing his girlfriend, documents show

The two women were rushed to hospital where they were both pronounced dead from their injuries.

Police located Valdez just 45 minutes after the brutal stabbing spree less than one block from the crime scene.

He was found in possession of cocaine, a knife, Cruz's cell phone and five bottles of prescription medication, according to police.

Valdez was arrested and charged with murder and weapon possession.

Police said Valdez had a history of physical violence with Pena.

In July 2013, Valdez was arrested after stabbing a man several times during an argument, according to court documents.

One of the victims was lying facedown with stab wounds to her neck, stomach, and face while the other was lying on her back, with slashes to her stomach, arms and neck

Crime scene tape fenced off the apartment building where the two women had lived together for many years

Police said Valdez had a history of violence toward Pena and was also arrested back in 2013 for stabbing a man multiple times with a kitchen knife

Valdez allegedly told investigators he was 'so angry' he couldn't remember how many times he stabbed the man.

His relationship to that alleged victim - known only as Chris - is not known.

'We started arguing, he came up to me. He grabbed a chair and hit me with it. I picked up a knife in the kitchen and stabbed him,' he said, according to Daily News.

'A kitchen knife. I don't remember how many times I stabbed him. I was so angry in the moment.'

Pena and Cruz women had lived together for a number of years, shocked neighbors told Daily News back in April.

Cruz owned the apartment in Inwood and started renting a room to Pena after the 37-year-old moved out from living with Valdez and the 51-year-old had gone through a divorce.

Cruz's brother Vincio Cruz told ABC7 his sister had recently fallen in love and was planning to get married when she was murdered.

Valdez was ordered to be held without bail Tuesday. He is scheduled to next appear in court in September.


Nicola Sturgeon railed at Michael Gove today after he vowed her 'reckless' dream of a fresh independence referendum will not happen until 2024 at the earliest.

The First Minister branded the Cabinet minister 'sneering and arrogant' after he insisted there is no chance of another vote on splitting the UK before the next general election.

Mr Gove demanded that the SNP focuses on recovery from the pandemic instead of its 'foolish' separatist obsession.

But Ms Sturgeon said the UK government was merely 'building support for independence' by refusing to authorise a referendum.

'Every time we hear that kind of sneering, arrogant condescension from Michael Gove  or whatever UK Government minister it may be  completely refusing to accept Scottish democracy, actually the more they just build support for independence,' he said.

A Scottish independence vote will not happen before the next general election, Michael Gove (pictured) has declared, saying Boris Johnson wanted instead to focus on recovery from the pandemic and economic opportunity

In an interview with the Daily Telegraph Mr Gove said he did not think there was any circumstance in which Mr Johnson would approve a vote being held any time before the 2024 election.

'It seems to me to be at best reckless, at worst folly, to try to move the conversation on to constitutional division when people expect us to be working together in order to deal with these challenges,' he said.

Ms Sturgeon has stepped up calls for a second referendum on independence after she was formally reappointed last month.

She claimed her Holyrood election victory was a clear mandate to hold one while admitting the country was divided on the issue.

She has pledged to hold a rerun of the 'once in a generation' 2014 vote in the first part of the Scottish parliamentary term, which could mean as early as 2023.

But Mr Gove's comments go further than previous statements by UK ministers, who have said another referendum will not be granted for now.

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon (pictured on Tuesday) stepped up calls for a second referendum on independence after she was formally reappointed last month

He said he 'did not think' there was any circumstance in which Mr Johnson would approve a vote being held any time before the next general election, scheduled for May 2024.

Mr Gove added: 'The Prime Minister is completely focused on making sure that, for the lifetime of this parliament, we increase economic opportunity, we provide people with the chance to make more of their lives, take control of their futures.'

He also said the Prime Minister should spend more time in Scotland debunking the 'myth' that Mr Johnson 'doesn't go down well in Scotland'.
Court of Appeal announced ruling had been overturned and case would face a re-trial

The former Labour peer went on trial in Sheffield in February last year

A former peer will face trial over allegations of child sex abuse after the Court of Appeal ruled criminal proceedings against him should continue.

Nazir Ahmed, a former Labour peer before he resigned from the House of Lords last year, went on trial at Sheffield Crown Court earlier this year accused of sexually abusing a younger boy and girl when he was a teenager in the early 1970s.

Judge Jeremy Richardson QC halted the trial in February and stayed the case as an abuse of process the following month.

But earlier today the Court of Appeal announced that it had overturned that ruling made on March 8.

At a brief hearing at the Royal Courts of Justice in London, Lord Justice Fulford said: 'The case will now be retried at a future date in the crown court.'

Former Labour peer Lord Nazir Ahmed (pictured) will face trial over allegations of child sex abuse after the Court of Appeal ruled criminal proceedings against him should continue

The judge added: 'These proceedings should continue before a different judge.'

Ahmed, 64, previously known as Lord Ahmed of Rotherham, was charged with two counts of attempting to rape a girl under 16, indecent assault of a boy under 14 and raping a boy under 16, all said to have occurred in the early 1970s.

His brothers Mohammed Farouq and Mohammed Tariq were accused of indecent assault of a boy under 14, but were deemed unfit to plead and faced a trial of the facts during the previous criminal proceedings.

Ahmed went on trial in Sheffield in February accused of sexually abusing a boy and girl 50 years ago when he was a teenager.

Ahmed went on trial at Sheffield Crown Court earlier this year accused of sexually abusing a younger boy and girl when he was a teenager in the early 1970s. But Judge Jeremy Richardson halted the trial in February and stayed the case as an abuse of process

But the trial was then halted by Judge Jeremy Richardson QC with an order of a permanent stay on proceedings, bringing the prosecution to a halt.

It was then revealed that a large amount of important evidence had not been disclosed by the prosecution to the defence until after the trial had started.

In an explosive ruling, Judge Richardson said the 'lamentable' errors sabotaged the trial and a new one should not take place.

The judge recognised his decision might make the two complainants  now middle-aged adults  'feel cheated' and the public might demand the defendants be 'brought to judgment'.

However he said his decision did not mean Ahmed was not guilty of the offences he was charged with. This material should have been disclosed ages ago, he said. Its disgraceful it has not. I have been given no adequate explanation for this calamity.

The case was originally supposed to start 13 months ago but had been delayed by a number of factors including the pandemic.

The Crown Prosecution Service announced that it was seeking a challenge to his ruling in the Appeal Court.
Guards at one of Texas' largest migrant children's shelters have banned pencils, pens, nail clippers and tooth brushes because desperate kids were using them to try to commit suicide.

The children at Fort Bliss, Texas, which is just north of El Paso, are so distressed that some require 24 hour care from guards, according to a new damning report from CBS citing unnamed volunteers and workers that shed more light on the worsening border crisis.

There are currently, 1,600 migrant teens at Fort Bliss but it can hold up to 10,000.

There are widespread complaints about the conditions there, with kids in court documents describing the food as inedible and their living conditions as cramped, with limited access to water.

Since President Biden took office and loosened the rhetoric on migrants coming to America, the number of dangerous, illegal border crossings have soared.

At the heart of the problem is a spike in the number of kids being sent alone because their parents think they'll get a better shot at staying in America if they are caught by Customs and Border Protection.

But the kids are being put in perilous danger on their journeys and many are suffering huge mental health problems once they are in the care of CBP.

The children at Fort Bliss, Texas, which is just north of El Paso, are so distressed that some require 24 hour care from guards, according to a new damning report from CBS citing unnamed volunteers and workers that shed more light on the worsening border crisis

This is how total land border crossings have soared in 2021 compared with 2020 and 2019

This is the number of unaccompanied minors who have crossed over the border in 2021 compared with other years

CBS reports that at Fort Bliss, staff were even instructed to remove the metal nose clips in N-95 masks because kids were using them to hurt themselves.

Workers at the site said they were even instructed to remove the metal nose clips from N95 face masks.

The volunteers and workers say the kids are mostly frustrated because of the long periods of time they have to stay at the camp.

'There's very little communicated to these kids about the process and amount of time they'll be here.

'So they live in constant doubt, uncertainty and fear about what's gonna happen to them,' one federal volunteer said.

In May, several boys protested about their conditions inside a tent and another group tried to runaway.

A court filing on Monday included testimony from some of the children who said they'd been giving rotting food.

A worker also said they had seen kids having panic attacks so severe that their bodies 'start to twist'.

'I have panic attacks and I understand panic attacks. You get shortness of breath, and you kind of feel like, "Oh my God, I'm going to die,' and everything is sort of doom and gloom. These girls are having it exponentially worse.

Protesters outside the Fort Bliss migrant center which is one of the largest for kids along the border

'Their bodies start to twist. They can't take it anymore,' they said.

The filing was part of an ongoing case involving a team of lawyers who have been tasked with visiting migrant kids' camps to ensure the government is maintaining living conditions.

In one testimonial, a 13-year-old girl from Honduras said she had been placed on a suicide watch list while at an emergency shelter at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas.

The girl, who had spent nearly two months at the facility as of June 4, said she was separated from her father when crossing a river into the United States.

'The food here is horrible. Yesterday we were given hamburgers but I couldnt eat it because there was a foul odor coming from the bread... I really only eat popsicles and juice because that is the only food that I can trust,' she said.

These five little girls from Honduras and Mexico were found by a Texas onion and watermelon farmer last month. They are among the hundreds who have been passed through the system

A 14 year old Guatemalan girl who was detained at an emergency facility in Houston in April said it was very hot and that she was often thirsty.

'She said the girls had to drink expired milk when they ran out of water. She saw eight girls faint because of the heat and the lack of water, she said, and staff took them to a nearby hospital.

A 17-year-old girl from Guatemala detained at Fort Bliss described sleeping in a large white tent with about three hundred girls, on cots stacked on top of each other.

She said it was hard to sleep due to the rattling noise the tents metal beams made at night, according to a declaration dated April 28.

She said it was cold and that dirt came into the tent.

The girl said she had not been able to get information on her case and that she had struggled to get an appointment with a counselor to talk about her depression.

'A lot of the girls here cry a lot,' she said.

'A lot of them end up having to talk to someone because they have thoughts of cutting themselves.'

A 17-year-old teen from Honduras said they slept in a large area in the Dallas convention center, in which they had been told there were 2,600 kids.

'I feel asphyxiated having so many people around me," the teen said in a declaration dated March 29.

'There is no one here I can talk to about my case. Theres also no one here I can talk to when Im feeling sad. Theres no one here; I just talk to God. It helps me and I cry. It would help if I could have a Bible.'
Three cruise ships appear to be hovering off the coast of Cyprus in an amazing trick of the light which makes it seem they are floating in mid-air above the water.

The bizarre optical illusion has made the trio of vessels look as if they are flying above the horizon as they formed a line just east of the southern city of Limassol.

The phenomenon, known as Fata Morgana, creates a mirage when the sun heats up the atmosphere above the land or the sea, which creates a gradient of temperatures.

A layer of warm air sits on top of a layer of cold air, causing the light from the ship to bend as it passes through gaps in air currents.

The bizarre optical illusion has made the trio of vessels look as if they are flying above the horizon as they formed a line just east of the southern city of Limassol

The brain assumes that light travels in a straight paths, so when it bends, it thinks the object is where it would be if the light's path runs straight.

Michalis Michael, from the south-eastern city Lancarna, pictured the rare optical illusion on Wednesday morning off the coast of Limassol and said it was a Fata Morgana mirage.

In March, a series of boats were spotted 'floating in mid-air' off the coast of Britain in Cornwall, Devon and Aberdeenshire as a result of the phenomenon.

The Anthem of the Seas cruise ship, an 168,000-tonne Royal Caribbean liner, looked like it was hovering above the water

The most recent sighting was off the coast of Bournemouth, Dorset, when Ryan Rushforth pictured The Anthem of the Seas cruise ship, an 168,000-tonne Royal Caribbean liner, appearing to hover above the water.

The 347-metre ship has a capacity of 4,180 and was spotted near Bournemouth Pier.

Mr Rushforth said: 'Is it me or is this boat floating? Was really, really amazing to see it in person, it looked incredible I must say.'

While sightings of superior mirages are often seen in the Arctic, they are uncommon elsewhere.

In March, a series of boats were spotted 'floating in mid-air' off the coast of Britain in Cornwall, Devon and Aberdeenshire as a result of the phenomenon. Pictured a 'floating' ship in Banff, Aberdeenshire

David Braine, BBC meteorologist explained that the Fata Morgana phenomenon is caused by conditions in the atmosphere which bend light.

'Superior mirages occur because of the weather condition known as a temperature inversion, where cold air lies close to the sea with warmer air above it,' he said.

'Since cold air is denser than warm air, it bends light towards the eyes of someone standing on the ground or on the coast, changing how a distant object appears.'

While there have been many examples of people spotting objects floating above the water, Mr Morris noted people have also witnessed items below the horizon which have then become visible due to the optical illusion.


A Brazilian Military Police officer has been cleared of rape charges by a judge who said his alleged victim did nothing to do to stop the cop during the alleged assault.

Officer Danilo was accused of sexually assaulting the woman inside a Military Police vehicle while its sirens were blaring when she was 19 years old in Sao Paulo in June 2019.

Military judge Ronaldo Roth acquitted Danilo and his partner, who was driving the vehicle, this month, ruling that the victim had actually consented to having sex after the officers offered to give her a ride.

'She did not offer any physical resistance, nor did she say anything, nor did she ask for help or help from the driver of the police vehicle,' Roth wrote in a copy of the court ruling that was obtained by Brazilian online news portal G1.

'But it appears from her version that the victim was intimidated by the fact that the SD Danilo ... was armed, with the gun in the holster that carried.'

Military judge Ronaldo Roth (pictured) shamed a woman after he acquitted a cop of raping her inside a Military Police vehicle two years ago in Sao Paulo, Brazil. 'She did not offer any physical resistance, nor did she say anything, nor did she ask for help or help from the driver of the police vehicle,' Roth wrote in a copy of the court ruling

Investigators at the Praia Grande (Brazil) Municipal Police Headquarter discovered semen on the clothes of a police officer who was cleared of raping a 19-year-old woman in June 2019

Furthermore, Roth opined that 'considering that the acts were carried out in a consensual manner and there was also no serious threat, since there was no threat, and the fact of SD PM Danilo is armed, as he was on duty, should not be confused with the use of a firearm for the crime, nor admit the presumption of embarrassment by the exclusive interrelationship of the victim and dissenting evidence that was limited to the defendant and the eyewitness of the facts ...'

The teen, whose name was redacted from the court document, approached the cops on the evening of June 12, 2019, outside a mall in Praia Grande, Sao Paulo, and asked for directions after getting off at the wrong bus stop.

Court records show that the police officers offered to take her to the Tude Bastos Bus Terminal in Praia Grande. Surveillance footage showed the woman getting in the vehicle and tracked its movement through the city.

Officer Danilo sat with the victim in the rear seat of the police car while his partner, whose name was been redacted in court documents, drove the vehicle.

Instead of driving directly to bus station, the driver changed his route before Officer Danilo introduced his penis to the woman's vagina.

Officer Danilo then forced her to have oral sex and made her swallow his semen.

Investigators discovered semen on officer Danilo's clothing and also located the woman's cellphone in the back seat of the police vehicle.

Lawyers for the officers pointed out that after the incident, the woman went to a party, as evidenced by social media posts that they were able to access.

The victim told the court that she felt pressured and intimidated because the cops were armed and believed the cops planned to rape her before she stepped into the vehicle.

The police officer who was driving the vehicle was cleared of any wrongdoing.

However, Roth did convict officer Danilo of having sex in a police car. The offense is punishable by seven months in prison, but Roth suspended the sentence.
Two men are dead after a light plane crashed in bushland on Queensland's Sunshine Coast.

The aircraft was reported missing on Wednesday about 5.30pm after it failed to return to the Sunshine Coast Airport at Maroochydore.

Following a multi-agency search, the plane was found at Peachester three hours later, with the two occupants, aged 46 and 30, found dead at the scene.

Authorities are investigating after a plane crashed in bushland on Queensland's Sunshine Coast, leaving two men dead

Queensland Police's Forensic Crash Unit and the Australian Transport Safety Bureau are investigating.
Two high schools in Washington state have come under fire for using anti-police and pro-Black Lives Matter imagery in their yearbooks.

Officials at Woodinville High School and Bonney Lake High School were forced to defend themselves this week after critics attacked them for publishing the politically-charged yearbooks.

The controversy at Woodinville High School centered around a photo of students at a BLM rally holding an array of signs condemning white supremacy - including one with the word 'ACAB', which stands for 'all cops are b*****ds'.

At Bonney Lake High School, critics took issue with a two-page spread about BLM which featured a drawing of a police officer attempting to assault a black person and encouraged readers to donate to the organization.

A picture appearing in a Woodinville High School yearbook featured seven students at a Black Lives Matter rally, one of whom was holding a sign reading 'ACAB,' an acronym for 'All cops are bastards.' School officials said the yearbook staff did not know what the acronym meant and apologized for it

The inflammatory photo in the Woodinville yearbook showed seven students proudly displaying pro-BLM signs at a protest which featured phrases including: 'Use your white privilege to end white privilege' and 'Why is ending racism so controversial?'

But it was a sign the acronym ACAB that provoked the most uproar, according to Jason Rantz, a conservative radio talk show host in Seattle.

The acronym has been used by BLM and ANTIFA activists in protest of police brutality.

The image was also shown in a photo montage at the school's graduation ceremony earlier this month, Rantz said, even after some parents complained about it.

Northshore School District spokeswoman Lisa Youngblood Hall said the staffers who put together the yearbook were unaware what 'ACAB' meant.

'Honestly many other staff members had to ask what it meant once the concern was brought to our attention,' she told Rantz in an email.

'The situation was addressed with staff, who are embarrassed and apologetic about including the image, and the unintended impact of this lack of oversight.'

She promised to be 'more vigilant in our review of future presentations to better represent our core values.'

The Bonney Lake High School included an entire spread on the Black Lives Matter movement, with a timeline and student artwork showing a riot officer about to strike a kneeling black woman while a white woman interferes

School district officials defended the artwork saying it is representative of the school year

And in Bonney Lake, about 50 miles south of Woodinville, the yearbook contained an entire two-page spread devoted to the BLM movement, which it called: 'The protests that changed the world.'

The spread included a timeline of significant events in the movement and a line directing people to donate to the organization on its website.

The opposite page, the New York Post reports, included a student's artwork entitled 'Liberty and Justice for All,' featuring Black Lives Matter protestors in front of the Statue of Liberty holding signs saying 'Silence is violence' and 'Stop killing us.'

On the right of the image, a riot officer could be seen raising his baton to hit a kneeling black woman while a white woman tries to protect her.

Sumner-Bonney Lake School District spokeswoman Elle Warmuth defended the image in an email to Rantz.

'With the purpose, in part to chronicle events, issues, pop culture and student life during any given school year, yearbooks often serve as a historical publication,' she wrote.

'Our yearbook standards reflect this purpose in highlighting a variety of topics written in either fact-based or opinion-based formats. The Black Lives Matter message presented a factual background on the movement and timeline of events.'

She added that the yearbook included a 'balance' in political content, with an interview about election integrity with the school's conservative student body president, a survey of student's political beliefs and a critique of the divisive nature of politics.

But, she said, the line soliciting donations should not have been included.

'We apologize for this oversight,' Warmuth said. 'To ensure this doesn't happen in the future, we will be reviewing our editing procedures and implementing a new process.'

Two stickers on the back of a middle school yearbook - 'Science is real, Black Lives Matter, no human is illegal, love is love, women's rights are human rights, kindness is everything;' the other sticker was a closed fist with the words 'I can't breathe' - riled parents up in North Texas

Kayla Mick, a middle school art teacher in Texas, was placed on administrative leave

The outcry comes after a middle school teacher in Texas was put on leave after ordering yearbooks decorated with the slogans 'Black Lives Matter' and 'I can't breathe.'

One of the controversial slogans was included in a larger sticker which read: 'Science is real, Black Lives Matter, no human is illegal, love is love, women's rights are human rights, kindness is everything;' the other sticker was a closed fist with the words 'I can't breathe' - a nod to George Floyd's dying words as he was murdered by Derek Chauvin in Minneapolis in May 2020.

Those two stickers were mixed in with dozens of other stickers referencing recent events and pop culture, like the 2020 election, Baby Yoda, TikTok and popular games.

The Lewisville ISD said they had taken the decision to place art teacher Kayla Mick on leave 'to ensure we fully review the circumstances surrounding the design of the yearbook and that we have all the facts before any further action is considered.'

Three Republican-led states have now signed laws banning critical race theory in public schools and nearly a dozen others are currently trying to pass similar bills that block or limit it from becoming part of curriculums

Meanwhile, school and government officials throughout the country are continuing to debate whether to allow the teaching of critical race theory in schools, in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests around the country over the last year and the introduction of New York Times' 1619 Project.

Its opponents claim the theory indoctrinates children into thinking that white people are inherently racist or sexist.

They argue it reduces people to the categories of 'privileged' or 'oppressed' based on their skin color.

Four states - Montana, Tennessee, Oklahoma and Idaho - have banned critical race theory from school.

A handful of other states  including North Carolina, Texas, Arizona, Louisiana, Iowa, Missouri, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and West Virginia  are currently debating, or in the process of approving, similar bills.
Shocking video captured the moment a wooden plank flew off the back of a truck and pierced the windshield of a car behind it on a highway in Ohio.

The incident unfolded last Thursday in Streetsboro when Kim Awada was driving home with her friend and a truck loaded with slabs of wood sped by her Mitsubishi Outlander Sport.

Footage recorded by Awada's dashboard camera shows two of the planks flying off the back of the truck as she swerved to avoid them.

One of the planks narrowly missed her car while the other landed directly in her windshield, slicing between the two women.

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Shocking video captured the moment a wooden plank flew off the back of a truck and pierced the windshield of a car behind it on a highway in Ohio

The plank is seen embedded in the windshield of Kim Awada's car after it flew off a truck on a highway in Streetsboro

Recounting the ordeal to news outlet WJW, Awada said: 'All the sudden you see this wood flying and just smashed right through our window.

''[I'm] just thankful to be alive honestly. And that my friend was not injured. That's cuz God was there. God was there.'

The driver of the truck carrying the planks apparently didn't notice what had happened and continued on his way.

Ohio State Highway Patrol Sgt. Ray Santiago said troopers caught up with the truck shortly after the incident.

'He was cited,' Santiago said of the driver, who was not named. 'He did secure his load with additional strapping that was available to us at the time.'

Drivers carrying unsecured loads can be cited up to $150 under Ohio law.

One of the planks narrowly missed Awada's car when she swerved to avoid it

The plank sliced between Awada and her friend, miraculously leaving neither of them injured

Awada said she would like to see police give more citations for unsecured loads because accidents like this could be a matter of life and death.

'I think they need a whole new law or at least revise this one and make it stronger penalties and make people more accountable,' she said.

District 7 State Representative Thomas Patton introduced a bill in Columbus where this sort of citation could go up to $500.

'Most of the states around us have a minimum penalty of $500,' he said.

It can also be a third-degree misdemeanor if someone is injured or their property is damaged. In that case, the fine would go up to $2500 and subject to any penalty given by courts.

'In the past like four years, 1,750 and 50 people were seriously injured and six people were killed,' Patton said, citing Ohio statistics.
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Britain today hit another Covid vaccination milestone, with 60 per cent of adults now fully vaccinated against the disease.

More than 31.7million over-18s have already had both doses, while 43.4million  or 82.5 per cent  have had their first jab, official statistics show.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock hailed the figures, claiming the UK was now 'so close to ensuring the entire adult population is protected'.

No10's vaccine chief Nadhim Zahawi  who will likely brag about the achievement at a 5pm Downing Street press conference tonight  hailed the 'extraordinary feat'.

Ministers have once again urged Brits to come forward for their vaccines, with the roll-out now on the final phase with all over-18s able to book an appointment.

Mr Zahawi said getting two doses was 'absolutely vital' because of the rapid spread of the Indian variant, adding: 'I urge everyone eligible to get their jab and help us get back to normality.'

More than 31.7million over-18s have already had both doses, while 43.4million  or 82.5 per cent  have had their first jab, official statistics show

Health Secretary Matt Hancock, pictured leaving 10 Downing Street today, told Radio 4's Today programme yesterday that the latest hospitalisation and death data was 'encouraging' and the country is 'on track' for easing restrictions on July 19

Now Covid hospitalisation rates are slowing, data shows More signs that England's Covid crisis may be slowing down emerged today as data revealed hospital admissions are no longer spiralling out of control. In another boost for hopes of Freedom Day going ahead as planned, NHS statistics show the number of infected patients needing hospital care now stands at 183.7 per day, on average. This was up by 20.6 per cent on the figure the week before, with admissions jumping because of the explosion in cases throughout June which was fuelled by the rampant spread of the Indian variant. But the speed at which hospitalisations are rising has dropped considerably over the past week, with the week-on-week growth rate peaking at 48.7 per cent on June 14. With data now also showing the speed of infections is slowing, experts are confident that England will be able to unlock fully on July 19. Ministers are preparing to axe virtually all coronavirus curbs next month. Social distancing, face masks and work-from-home guidance are all expected to be ditched as England makes a dramatic push back towards normality. A Cabinet source told the Mail there was now clear evidence vaccinations were working. 'It's all over, even if not everyone in Government has realised it yet,' the insider said. Even 'Professor Lockdown' Neil Ferguson today said the situation was 'encouraging', while another top scientist said the third wave felt more like a 'bump' and there was a 'certain amount of coronamania going on' and that reopening on July 5 was possible. Meanwhile, other academics said they are 'incredibly optimistic' about the outbreak and 'don't see any real need' to push back Freedom Day again, after the original date of June 21 was delayed by four weeks to ensure millions more adults were fully vaccinated. Advertisement

Boris Johnson last week delayed the original June 21 Freedom Day by four weeks, buying the NHS crucial time to dish out millions more top-up jabs and bolster the nation's immunity.

A single jab is less effective at preventing symptoms and serious illness in patients infected with the Delta strain  which makes up 99 per cent of all cases in England.

But rigorous analysis of the UK's actual roll-out has shown the double-dose of jabs made by either AstraZeneca or Pfizer work just as well against the variant.

No10 has now pledged to offer a first dose of a jab to all over-18s by the new 'terminus day' of July 19, and have a separate goal of fully vaccinating two-thirds of adults by the same date.

Although the target is not a pre-requisite of easing lockdown, the Prime Minister stressed the urgent need to jab as many people as possible to finally end restrictions.

Ministers are preparing to axe virtually all coronavirus curbs next month. Social distancing, face masks and work-from-home guidance are all expected to be ditched as England makes a dramatic push back towards normality.

However, it is understood there is almost no chance the date will be brought forward to July 5 despite immense pressure from Tory MPs.

The plan to reopen could put England on a significantly different course from Scotland, after Nicola Sturgeon yesterday delayed the latest phase of its loosening for another three weeks and suggested that mask-wearing is likely to continue into the autumn.

It comes as MailOnline today revealed there were more signs that England's Covid crisis may be slowing down, with data showing hospital admissions are no longer spiralling out of control.

In another boost for hopes of Freedom Day going ahead as planned, NHS statistics show the number of infected patients needing hospital care now stands at 183.7 per day, on average.

This was up by 20.6 per cent on the figure the week before, with admissions jumping because of the explosion in cases throughout June which was fuelled by the rampant spread of the Indian variant.

But the speed at which hospitalisations are rising has dropped considerably over the past week, with the week-on-week growth rate peaking at 48.7 per cent on June 14.

With data now also showing the speed of infections is slowing, experts are confident that England will be able to unlock fully on July 19.

A Cabinet source told the Mail there was now clear evidence vaccinations were working. 'It's all over, even if not everyone in Government has realised it yet,' the insider said.

Even 'Professor Lockdown' Neil Ferguson today said the situation was 'encouraging', while another top scientist said the third wave felt more like a 'bump' and there was a 'certain amount of coronamania going on' and that reopening on July 5 was possible.

Meanwhile, other academics said they are 'incredibly optimistic' about the outbreak and 'don't see any real need' to push back Freedom Day again, after the original date of June 21 was delayed by four weeks to ensure millions more adults were fully vaccinated.
A CBS meteorologist has been fired after she interrupted her live forecast to accuse her bosses of discriminating against her for questioning COVID-19 policies and 'segregating' her because she isn't vaccinated.

April Moss, 38, first dropped the bombshell while delivering the weather forecast for Detroit's CBS affiliate WWJ-TV on Sunday night.

Moss, who has been with the network for a decade, told viewers that she would be sitting down with Project Veritas to reveal the 'discrimination CBS is enforcing upon its employees'.

Moss is the second news reporter in a week to be fired for interrupting a broadcast. Ivory Hecker, a Fox News reporter in Houston, was terminated after she claimed on air that her bosses were 'muzzling' her.

In her interview with Project Veritas that aired on Tuesday night, the mother-of-four claimed CBS was discriminating against employees who had questioned protocols, including mask wearing.

She also accused CBS of pressuring unvaccinated employees into getting the vaccine and that the company was 'segregating coworkers' based on their vaccine status.

April Moss, 38, interrupted her live weather forecast for Detroit's CBS affiliate WWJ-TV on Sunday night to accuse her bosses of discrimination over its COVID-19 and vaccine policies

Moss said she had been complying with the company's policy to be tested weekly for COVID throughout the pandemic because she was among the 20 people who were deemed essential and were still coming into the studio.

She said she complied because she didn't want to lose her job.

'CBS actually started to ask for access to data from the lab where we were getting our COVID testing. I, of course, checked no. They do not need to know my personal COVID testing information. That to me, felt like an overreach,' Moss said.

When Michigan Gov Gretchen Whitmer announced last month that vaccinated residents no longer needed to wear a mask indoors, Moss said she contacted CBS to say she no longer wanted to comply with weekly testing.

Moss shared an email response that detailed the company's policy that unvaccinated employees were still required to wear masks inside the building.

'Essentially what that's saying is that you're an essential employee, we really want you to get vaccinated. You're setting a standard within the workplace already of segregating coworkers and I should not be discriminated against,' Moss said.

'This issue is not just about me. I'm watching our whole nation suffer because they're put underneath these policies that are enacted by corporations and this is a human rights issue.

'Every American and every person on earth has the right to breathe fresh air.

'To segregate someone is completely inhumane.'

Moss claimed that her unvaccinated status was being made clear to employees and viewers because she was not broadcasting from the studio and is always on air from her house

Moss, who has been with the network for a decade, told viewers that she would be sitting down with Project Veritas to reveal the 'discrimination CBS is enforcing upon its employees'. She is pictured above with Project Veritas founder James O'Keefe for their interview

Moss claimed that her unvaccinated status was being made clear to employees and viewers because she was not broadcasting from the studio and is always on air from her house.

'As an on air personality, it's very obvious to the viewers: 'She's never in the studio, she's always at her house working',' she said.

Moss went on to accuse CBS of using its brand power to influence Americans to get vaccinated.

She said she received a corporate email from CBS that included the following sentence: 'Vaccine hesitancy - we are using the power of our brands to encourage viewers to get the vaccine when available.'

Moss argued that mindset meant CBS was putting out propaganda instead of news.

'I don't think this is news at all. I think this is propaganda being pushed on people,' she said.

CBS, however, quickly hit back and denied Moss' allegations.

'April Moss objected to WWJ-TV's policies regarding COVID-19 testing and wearing masks inside our station, which are based on CDC, state and local guidelines,' the statement said.

'Any suggestion that she was in any way a victim of 'discrimination' due to her concerns about these policies is completely false. In fact, we allowed April to perform her weather anchor duties from home as we explored her concerns.

'While we respect and support our employees' freedom to have their own opinions, they are not entitled to use our station news broadcast as a platform for sharing personal views.'

Ivory Hecker was fired from Fox 26 KRIV-TV in Houston after she revealed during a broadcast that she planned to expose her bosses for allegedly 'muzzling' her

An online fundraiser set up by Moss after she was fired has already received more than $75,000.

Moss is the second news reporter in a week to be fired after revealing on air that they would be speaking to Project Veritas about their news networks.

Ivory Hecker was fired from Fox 26 KRIV-TV in Houston after she revealed during a broadcast that she planned to expose her bosses for allegedly 'muzzling' her.

Hecker recorded conversations with two of her supervisors at the local station in which they warned her off certain subjects.

The conversations include warnings to stop mentioning hydroxychloroquine, the controversial generic drug that Donald Trump touted as a possible treatment for COVID-19, and warning her that 'poor African Americans' don't care about coverage of Bitcoin.

Hecker accused station management of catering to top advertisers, including the CDC, rather that pursing the unvarnished truth on certain matters, saying massive ad spending had driven a push to advocate for COVID-19 vaccines in news coverage.

'It affects the viewers, that's why I'm doing this. The viewers are being deceived by a carefully crafted narrative in some stories,' Hecker told Project Veritas. 'I want out of this narrative news-telling, of this corruption.'

A Fox 26 spokesperson blasted Hecker as a 'disgruntled former employee' and claimed the secret recordings used 'selective editing' to misrepresent newsroom bosses.
Tory MPs today demanded GB News is added to the parliament's TV service.

Conservatives have written to the Commons authorities pointing out that 'propaganda' like Russia-backed channel RT is available on the estate.

But they said they are unable to watch the fledgling broadcaster at work, insisting the situation must be 'put right soon'.

The news network, which is fronted by former BBC interrogator Andrew Neil and launched earlier this month, has promised to take on so-called 'cancel' and 'woke' culture.

However, it has been hit with the withdrawal of advertising from companies such as Ikea, cider firm Kopparberg and Octopus Energy.

Conservatives have written to the Commons authorities pointing out that 'propaganda' like Russia-backed channel RT is available on the estate

Tory MP Paul Bristow tweeted a copy of the letter he has sent to the cross-party Administration Committee calling for the channel to be added.

'The news channels available to MPs and their staff include propaganda like @RT.com,' he wrote.

'But as of yet, we cant get the new entrant in proper broadcasting @GBNews. I am sure this will be put right soon.'

In the letter to the committee, which is responsible for overseeing facilities on the estate, Mr Bristow said: 'The status of propaganda stations like Russia Today as suitable ''news'' for Parliamentarians is debatable.

'The relevance of GB News is not.

'It is somewhat disappointing that no provision has yet been made for this important entrant to UK news broadcasting.'

Tory MP Craig Mackinlay told MailOnline he backed the move. Id rather have GB News on the ticker all day long rather than Sky News, he said.
Yasmin Perez, 25, died on Tuesday morning, days after her boyfriend Gyovanni Arzuaga

The mother of two who was shot and beaten in the street in Chicago while celebrating Puerto Rican Day has died from her injuries.

Yasmin Perez, 25, passed away on Tuesday morning, days after her boyfriend Gyovanni Arzuaga perished from injuries sustained during the brutal ambush on Saturday, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

The attack unfolded during Chicago's Puerto Rican Day parade, which Perez and Arzuaga participated in, flying a large Puerto Rican flag from their vehicle.

That previously-planned celebration happened to fall on June 19 this year, which days earlier had been declared a federal holiday celebrating the end of slavery in the U.S.

Though the motive in the attack was unclear, police said that the couple were involved in a minor car crash of some kind, and that a crowd surrounded their vehicle and attacked them.

The couple had two children: Sofiya and Jaden, who will be 1 year old on Friday

Mourners gather to remember Gyovanni Arzuaga, 24, and Yasmin Perez, 25, at a makeshift memorial at the location where both were shot during an altercation

The attack unfolded during Chicago's Puerto Rican Day parade, which Perez and Arzuaga participated in, flying a large Puerto Rican flag from their vehicle

The couple had two children: Sofiya and Jaden, who will be 1 year old on Friday, according to WFLD-TV.

'They first met each other at a party and it was over with from there. They fell in love with each other and they spent years together. They made a family together,' the couple's friend Jae Pacheco told the station.

Friends have launched a GoFundMe campaign to help support the couple's young children.

Video that circulated on social media appears to show the couple being dragged from the car and shot as they lay in the street.

The attack occurred around 9.15pm on Saturday near the 3200 block of West Division in the Humboldt Park neighborhood.

The Puerto Rican Day parade had taken place earlier in the evening on West Division, which forms the boundary between several census tracts that are overwhelmingly Hispanic, and several that are majority black.

Video that circulated on social media appears to show the couple being dragged from the car and shot as they lay in the street

The attack occurred around 9.15pm on Saturday near the 3200 block of West Division in the Humboldt Park neighborhood

It came during a weekend of shocking violence in Chicago, with 38 shooting incidents, 54 shooting victims and eight murders from 6pm Friday to midnight on Sunday, according to police.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Monday vowed to hunt down everyone involved in the 'horrific' weekend shooting that left Perez and Arzuaga dead.

'You know who you are. People know who you are,' Lightfoot said in a warning to the perpetrators.

'You need to turn yourself in because we are gonna spare no resource whatsoever to find them and you and bring you to justice and make sure that these people who created such brazen chaos and harm are held in custody 'til they see their day in court,' the mayor said.

Lightfoot speculated that the attack 'started with a car accident'.

Mourners gather to remember the couple at a makeshift memorial at the location where both were shot during an altercation as they celebrated their Puerto Rican heritage Saturday

Community members are seen mourning the senseless attack at a makeshift memorial

The mayor said police have 'promising leads' after tips from the community and have identified a suspect who 'did the shooting,' adding that she hopes he will soon be in custody.

But the mayor vowed that the others involved in the attack would also be held accountable.

'As you saw from the horrific video, it wasn't just one person. There's one person who dealt the fatal shot,' the mayor said.

'But there were others who were standing by who dragged that poor woman out of the car. The man who was killed literally used his body as a shield and paid for that with his life,' the mayor said.
A practice manager at a GP surgery has won almost 300,000 in a discrimination claim against her doctor bosses after they sacked her for falling pregnant and referred to her as 'mother hen'.

Naomi Hefford overheard the practice partners at Queensway Surgery, Southend, Essex, secretly hatching a plan to axe her, just three days after she told them she was pregnant.

She heard the GPs discussing what 'excuse' they could use to get away with sacking her - they then launched a bogus misconduct investigation into her.

Mrs Heford was fired by email whilst in hospital shortly before giving birth to her daughter.

The practice manager sued the doctors for pregnancy discrimination and has now been awarded 294,000 after a tribunal ruled that they had victimised her.

A hearing in East London was told that the practice manager began work at Queensway Surgery in November 2017 following an interview with partners Dr Michael Jack, Dr Ajith Sivaprasad, Dr Jamil Sorouji, Dr Olanike Aderonmu and Dr Sajid Azeem.

During the application process Mrs Hefford said she was asked whether she had children or was planning to have them. Although Dr Jack denied this, the tribunal concluded that he had childbearing 'in his mind'.

A year later she informed them that she was pregnant and that she had been deemed 'high risk'.

A hearing in East London was told that the practice manager began work at Queensway Surgery, Southend, Essex, in November 2017 (pictured)

Three days later the practice manager was left in tears when she overheard Dr Sivaprasad, Dr Azeem and Dr Aderonmu declaring they needed to 'focus on sacking her' and calling her a 'mother hen'.

The tribunal judgements states: 'Her recollection was that the words were these: 'We need to focus now. We need to focus on sacking her and then steadying the ship because that's going to take up an awful lot of time'.

'(She) also explained that she had heard the female voice saying that 'If we are going to do this what will be our excuse?'.

'It was that point (she) says she became very upset and ran away because she was scared that the people in the room were going to hear her.

'She added that after the comment made by the female voice (Dr Aderonmu) she also heard the phrase 'mother hen' and it was after these words that she left the vicinity.'

Mrs Hefford - who had a habit of using her phone to record meetings so she could accurately write up minutes - later realised the conversation had been accidentally recorded on her phone.

The hearing was told that by January 2019 the GPs had decided to sack her and launched an investigation into her conduct, claiming she had been rude in her 'abrasive' emails to staff, undermined colleagues and that feedback had 'no effect' on her.

They launched an investigation into her conduct and abruptly invited her to a 'heavy-handed' meeting without notice.

Mrs Hefford later complained of pregnancy discrimination to HR advisors, who ruled against her, and she was dismissed for gross misconduct last June - while she was in hospital.

Tribunal judges concluded that the misconduct allegations were exaggerated and that the real reason she had been sacked by the doctors was because she was pregnant.

The panel's judgement continued: 'The principal reason for (her) dismissal was her pregnancy. We have found that the concerns about the (her) conduct were trivial up to the date on which she announced her pregnancy.

'Thereafter, a meeting took place which discussed her potential dismissal. The process from then on which ultimately led to her dismissal was connected to her pregnancy.

'This was the catalyst that started the chain of events.'

Mrs Hefford won her claims against the doctors of unfair dismissal, pregnancy discrimination, victimisation and breach of contract.

The tribunal awarded her a total of 294,372.72 in compensation.
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One of the world's largest luxury sailing ships has been forced to delay a 'dress rehearsal' voyage around the south coast of England following Boris Johnson's decision to delay Freedom Day.

Golden Horizon, a steel-hulled, five-mast cruise ship, was due to arrive in Portsmouth on Monday but the trip has now been cancelled over Covid fears.

The 525ft vessel, a near-replica of the 1913 ocean ship France II, was expected to arrive on England's south coast ahead of a six-day 'dress rehearsal' cruise before it set sail for Scotland from Harwich, Essex, on July 1.

However, a spokeswoman for Tradewind Voyages said it has taken the decision 'not to operate the dress rehearsal' which was set to take place from yesterday, adding it was now working hard to 'redesign our UK season.'

Instead, the Golden Horizon will embark on two 'dress rehearsal' voyages in line with current Covid restrictions, which will depart from Portland on July 1 and 7.

Golden Horizon (above), a steel-hulled, five-mast cruise ship, was due to arrive in Portsmouth on Monday but the trip has now been cancelled over Covid fears

The 525ft vessel, a near-replica of the 1913 ocean ship France II, was expected to arrive on England's south coast ahead of a six-day 'dress rehearsal' cruise before it set sail for Scotland from Harwich, Essex, on July 1. Pictured: The dining room

However, a spokeswoman for Tradewind Voyages said it has taken the decision 'not to operate the dress rehearsal' which was set to take place from yesterday, adding it was now working hard to 'redesign our UK season'

The ship, which arrived in Weymouth Bay today and will move to Portland at 7am tomorrow, will then depart on its inaugural cruise to Plymouth on July 19 - earmarked as the delayed Freedom Day.

It will then continue on its UK season based from Dover, with the Golden Horizon's final UK voyage now being from Harwich, taking in the Cowes Week Regatta on August 4.

A statement said: 'The Dress Rehearsal Voyage due to depart on June 22 was at full capacity which did not meet the Government's latest rules.

'Tradewind Voyages have been overwhelmed by the support from the Dress Rehearsal guests, it would have been unfair to reduce numbers to remain on the single voyage.

Instead, the Golden Horizon will embark on two 'dress rehearsal' voyages in line with current Covid restrictions, which will depart from Portland on July 1 and 7

The ship, which arrived in Weymouth Bay today and will move to Portland at 7am tomorrow, will then depart on its inaugural cruise to Plymouth on July 19 - earmarked as the delayed Freedom Day

It will then continue on its UK season based from Dover, with the Golden Horizon's final UK voyage now being from Harwich, taking in the Cowes Week Regatta on August 4

Golden Horizon has two outside bars and a piano bar, alongside an on-board spa, gym and even a library

'The decision has been made to offer two Dress Rehearsal voyages to comply with restrictions these will depart Portland on the 1st and 7th of July respectively.'

The ship, which previously had its inaugural voyage delayed from May due to the pandemic, has 140 outside-facing cabins with 'traditional features and furnishings' and is capable of carrying some 272 guests.

Guests in the high-end cabins - or Owner's Suites - have access to a private living room, dining area, walk-in wardrobe and are able to order 24-hour complimentary room service.

The ship, which previously had its inaugural voyage delayed from May due to the pandemic, has 140 outside-facing cabins with 'traditional features and furnishings' and is capable of carrying some 272 guests

Guests in the high-end cabins - or Owner's Suites - have access to a private living room, dining area, walk-in wardrobe and are able to order 24-hour complimentary room service

Golden Horizon arrives in Weymouth today ahead of moving onto Portland tomorrow to prepare for its 'dress rehearsal'

Golden Horizon, the world's largest tall ship which is used as a cruise ship, has had her inaugural voyage from Portsmouth delayed due to Covid-19 restrictions

Golden Horizon: The world's largest square rigged tall ship Golden Horizon arrived in Weymouth today ahead of her inaugural voyage on July 19, which will follow two 'dress rehearsal' trips around the UK. When she is fully rigged, the ship has 42 sails covering an area of 6,347 square metres. Golden Horizon, built in Croatia for Star Clippers Ltd, measures 525ft in length and has a 60ft beam. She is currently being chartered by Tradewind Voyages, who renamed her the Golden Horizon instead of the Flying Clipper. Advertisement

Tradewind says: 'All 140 cabins are outside facing, so guests can enjoy the breath-taking views. Cabins evoke the luxury and facilities expected of a boutique cruise ship, whilst retaining charm, adventure and romance of a truly historic sailing vessel.

'Our ship uses the wind and currents and follows the sun to allow adventure seekers to travel the world in a unique way.

'Our philosophy is to be powered by nature whenever possible and we intend to sail, without using propulsion, for around 70 per cent of each season.'

Golden Horizon has two outside bars and a piano bar, alongside an on-board spa, gym and even a library.

Cruise operator Tradewind Voyages describes the ship as 'relaxed, casual, elegant and without unnecessary formality,' adding: 'We have created an environment which will encourage our guests to return to time and time again, and to share their stories and experiences.'

Tradewind Voyages Head of Sales Mark Schmitt said: 'It is of course upsetting to have to change our itineraries again due to the restrictions imposed to combat the global pandemic, I am hopeful that the new voyages sailing along our beautiful English South Coast will be of interest to our guests and travel agent partners.

'All the team at Tradewind Voyages are very excited to be taking delivery of the Golden Horizon in Portland before she starts her global journey.'
A 13-year-old boy grabbed his four-year-old sibling and jumped from a window to escape a murder-suicide as their father shot their mother dead before killing himself in the Boston area on Tuesday.

Police officers who raced to the scene then rescued a third child - a three year-old girl - from the home in Oxford, Massachusetts.

The 34-year-old woman's body was found in the kitchen, while the man's body was found outside in the backyard, according to NBC 10 Boston. Neither have been named by police.

The couple - who were not married - had two of the children together, while one is from a previous marriage, according to police.

The eldest of the three kids is being commended for his courageous act that got his other sibling to safety.

'The 13-year-old is a pretty courageous young kid.' Worcester District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr. told reporters on the scene. 'He took the 4-year-old in his arms, opened the window, and ran out the window to a neighbor's house.'

The eldest of the couple's three children got his younger sibling safely away from the house when he heard the sound of gunshots

Police officers who raced to the scene then rescued a third child - a three year-old girl - from the home in Oxford, Massachusetts

He added: 'This appears to be a tragic case of domestic violence within the house.'

Authorities said they received a 911 call from the woman, and then soon after got another from a man who lived at the same house.

The man's call was transferred to the state police because dispatchers were on the call with the woman.

In one of the calls, gunshots could be heard ringing out, WBZ-TV reported.

A third call was made to police after the 13-year-old child arrived at the neighbors' home with his sibling.

A couple were found dead by police in their Oxford home after the man shot his girlfriend and then shot himself

Authorities received calls at the same time from both the man and woman as the shooting occurred

Worcester District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr. (pictured) praised the 13-year-old's bravery

The children were taken to a nearby police station and are receiving trauma-related services.

Neighbors told how the youngest child was screaming for her mother as she was removed from the home by police.

'I heard the girl carried out by the police and she was screaming for her mommy,' said one neighbor to WCVB-TV. 'You know, it's heartbreaking.'

Officers retrieved a firearm from the scene. They said both of the adults were licensed to own guns.

Oxford Police Chief Anthony Saad the shooting was a isolated incident.

'We're in the process of trying to determine the activity at this home as far as officers responding in the past to see if there is anything that could assist us with this investigation,' Saad told The Boston Globe.
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The Queen today expressed her sympathy for Matt Hancock as she welcomed Boris Johnson back to Buckingham Palace for her first in-person weekly audience with the Prime Minister since March last year.

Mr Johnson met with the monarch at the palace after more than a year of conducting the audiences by telephone, with the pair last meeting face-to-face 15 months ago on March 11, just before the first coronavirus lockdown.

This afternoon's meeting got off to a surprising start as the Queen immediately talked to Mr Johnson about the Health Secretary, referring to him as 'poor man'.

The monarch told Mr Johnson it was 'very nice to see you again' and the premier replied: 'Lovely to see you again. It has been 15 months

The Queen then said: Has it really? It is most extraordinary, isnt it? I have just been talking to your Secretary of State for Health, poor man, he came to the privy council. He is full of

Mr Johnson interrupted and suggested 'full of beans' as the Queen then continued: He thinks that things are getting better.'

Mr Johnson replied: Well, they are

The expression of sympathy from the monarch comes after Mr Hancock found himself at the centre of a political firestorm after Dominic Cummings published text messages from the PM in which Mr Johnson referred to the Cabinet minister as 'totally f****** hopeless'.

The Queen welcomed Boris Johnson back to Buckingham Palace today as she held her first in-person weekly audience with the Prime Minister since before the first coronavirus lockdown

Mr Johnson met with the monarch at the palace this afternoon after more than a year of conducting the audiences by telephone

The Queen told Mr Johnson at the start of their meeting she had 'just been talking to your Secretary of State for Health, poor man, he came to the privy council'

The Queen has held a weekly audience with the prime minister of the day throughout her reign to discuss Government matters.

The audience, which is held in an 'Audience Room' in the palace, is entirely private.

The in-person meetings were cancelled in March last year as the pandemic worsened. From March 18 the Queen and Mr Johnson switched to speaking on the phone as she prepared to socially distance herself at Windsor Castle.

The Queen retreated to her royal residence in Berkshire just before the first lockdown at the end of the month in what was dubbed HMS Bubble.

Mr Johnson and the Queen were pictured speaking by phone from Downing Street and Windsor on March 25 last year.

The pair had seen each other at the G7 summit in Cornwall earlier this month but today's meeting represented a significant moment as one of the fixtures of modern British political life resumed.

Today's meeting is believed to be the first time the Queen has been at Buckingham Palace for six weeks since she attended the State Opening of Parliament in May.

In a 1992 documentary filmed to mark her 40th year on the throne, the Queen  the nation's longest reigning sovereign  gave her view on the importance of her meetings with her prime ministers.

'They unburden themselves or tell me what is going on or if they have any problems, and sometimes I can help in some way as well,' she said.

'They know I can be impartial and it is rather nice to feel one is a sponge.

'Occasionally one can put one's point of view and perhaps they have not seen it from that angle.'

As head of state, the Queen is politically neutral and acts on the advice of her Government in political matters, but her political knowledge is immense.

US President Joe Biden and Jill Biden joined the Queen and other senior members of the Royal Family at a G7 summit earlier this month

The leaders of the G7 posed with the monarch for a tradition G7 family photo when they met at the Eden Project in Cornwall

Throughout her reign, she has received weekly briefings from the prime minister of the day, and dozens of government documents pass across her desk every week for formal approval.

The meeting with Mr Johnson comes after the Queen played a prominent role at the G7 summit in Carbis Bay near St Ives earlier this month.

The monarch, 95, and other members of the royal family hosted a glitzy reception for world leaders at the Eden Project as she welcomed the likes of US President Joe Biden and US First Lady Jill Biden.

The Bidens had spoken at length with the Queen at the reception, with both parties smiling broadly at one another.

Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall, Prince William and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, also joined the G7 leaders at the reception.

The leaders of the G7 nations also joined the Queen for a socially-distanced family photo.

A few days later the Queen then welcomed Mr and Mrs Biden to Windsor Castle for tea before the US President then headed to Brussels for a Nato summit.

The US President and First Lady were welcomed with a reduced parade in the grounds of the castle.

President Joe Biden and Jill Biden speak with Queen Elizabeth II. Mr Biden previously met with The Queen in 1982, according to the White House

The Queen later welcomed the US President and the First Lady to Windsor Castle for tea after the G7 summit in Cornwall

They then entered the castle through the Sovereign's Entrance to enjoy tea with the Queen.

Mr Biden told reporters after the meeting that the 'very gracious' Queen 'reminded me of my mother'.

'I don't think she'd be insulted but she reminded me of my mother, the look of her and just the generosity,' he said.

'We had a long talk and she was very generous.'
The mother of a French woman on trial for her husband's murder has testified that the pair wanted to be together and she did not have to kill him to escape the marriage in testimony that could see her daughter jailed for life, if the jury agree.

Joelle Aubague - the mother of Vaerlie Bacot who is on trial for the murder of Daniel Polette - took to the stand today and launched a defence of her actions, having been painted as a neglectful drunk who turned a blind eye to Daniel's abuse.

Joelle - who was married to Daniel when he began abusing Valerie - insisted she knew nothing of the attacks until he was jailed, took Valerie to see him behind bars only because she wanted to go, and that it was her daughter's own decision to run off with him when she later fell pregnant with his child.

Asked whether Valerie could have escaped the relationship without killing Daniel, she said: 'There were other solutions'.

She was followed on the stand by Alain Polette, Daniel's younger brother who gave a very different account, telling the court his elder sibling was 'the devil' - a vile and abusive character for whom the term 'monster' was too kind.

Valerie does not contest killing Daniel with a single gunshot to the back of the head in 2016, but says she did it to escape 25 years of horrifying mental, physical and sexual abuse which should qualify her for a reduced sentence.

The case has sparked debate in France about how the legal system deals with abused women, and more than 600,000 signing a petition calling for all charges against Valerie to be dropped.

Valerie Baco is on trial for the 2016 murder of Daniel Polette in France after what she says was 25 years of abuse suffered at his hands

On March 13, 2016, Bacot shot Polette (pictured) - then aged 61 - in the back of the neck with his gun after, she claims, he threatened to prostitute their 14-year-old daughter

Opening the case on Monday, Valerie recounted abuse she suffered at Polette's hands - saying he had beaten her unconscious with a hammer, prostituted her out to other truck drivers, and threatened to kill their four children if she refused

The second day of the trial saw Valerie's three eldest children testify about their family life, saying their mother is 'not guilty' and had only killed Polette to 'protect us' after police refused to help.

Day three began today with Valerie's mother Joelle arriving at court where she launched a defence of her own actions and contradicted her daughter's earlier testimony, according to local site La Journal de Saone-et-Loire.

Previously, Valerie had told the court that Joelle had turned a blind eye when Polette - then her husband - began following her into the toilet aged 12 to sexually abuse her.

Joelle rejected that allegation, saying the abuse had happened behind her back while she was at work.

She claimed to have noticed that Valerie often sat on Daniel's lap, but assumed the pair were simply 'close'.

In 1996 Polette was jailed for sexually abusing Valerie after one of his sisters reported the abuse to police, but Joelle continued to visit him in jail.

According to Valerie's account, she was forced to attend the visits with her mother.

But Joelle rejected that, saying that Valerie had insisted on coming along with her - though admitted she had made a 'mistake' by visiting Polette in the first place.

When Polette was released from jail, Joelle invited him back into the family home where he quickly began abusing Valerie again - in court, Joelle was asked why she accepted him back.

'He needed a base, we gave him a second chance, which maybe wasn't normal...' she said.

A short time later, Valerie fell pregnant and the family collapsed - Valerie claims her mother threw her out and she ended up living with Polette because she had nowhere else to turn - another claim Joelle disputed.

Valerie and Daniel were in a 'romantic relationship', she insisted, adding that Valerie wrote a letter saying she wanted 'to live my life [and] stay with my man' while petitioning a court to be allowed to live with Polette - something Joelle had opposed.

After some legal wrangling, Valerie was granted her request. Joelle said that, from then on, she watched their marriage from a distance and assumed they were happy.

Asked whether she had ever been jealous of her daughter, she responded: 'Absolutely not, I'm not jealous by nature.'

Next to take the stand was Daniel's brother Alain, who described his elder sibling as 'despicable' - a violent thug with ready access to weapons who fought with his father and kept the whole family in a state of terror.

'I hid with one of my brothers one day, between the wall and a cupboard, because I thought he was going to kill us,' he said.

'I can't say anything positive about him. I lived in the devil's house because the devil was in it. What he did to Valerie, he's not the victim, it's her.'

That assertion was backed up by Regine and Josiane - two of Daniel's former lovers who said he was also controlling and abusive towards them.

When asked in turn whether he would have been capable of killing Valerie while they were married, each of them replied: 'Yes.'

Bacot, now aged 40, says Polette began abusing her aged 12 when he was her stepfather - but later forced her into marriage and had four children with her

Valerie had previously testified that she had no choice but to kill Polette to escape their marriage, fearing that he would kill her or her children otherwise.

'I wanted to save me, and my children,' Bacot said.

In a book published ahead of the trial, Bacot says she was abused from a young age - first by her older brother when she was aged five and then by Polette, who was initially her mother's partner.

Speaking to Le Parisien ahead of the trial, Bacot said the abuse began 'very quickly' after mother Joelle brought truck-driver Polette home when she was aged 12.

He initially played the doting stepfather but then began sexually abusing her - abuse which lasted for two years before she alerted police and Polette was arrested.

When Bacot was aged 14 he was jailed for four years for sexual abuse, but Bacot said her mother never cut off contact and would even take her to visit him in jail.

After two and a half years, Polette was released and immediately returned to the family home where the abuse resumed.

Bacot said she often thought about running away, but had nowhere to go - her grandparents would simply return her home, she believed, and her biological father wanted nothing to do with her. So she stayed.

Then, at the age of 17, Bacot fell pregnant with Polette's child and the family quickly fell apart.

Bacot says her mother kicked her out of the house, forcing her to go and live with Polette because she did not know where else to go.

She said Polette began physically and mentally abusing her shortly after their first child - a boy - was born.

'The first time it was because he thought I hadn't put the baby's toys away properly,' she said. 'But very quickly it became commonplace.

'If the coffee took too long to arrive, if it was too hot or too cold, he would get angry.

Janine Bonaggiunta, one of the laywers defending Bacot, speaks outside the court in Chalon-sur-Saone where she went on trial for murder today

'Everything became a pretext for blows. You live with the idea that you deserve it because you are not doing things right.'

She said Polette controlled every aspect of her behaviour, forbidding her to go out except to shop or take the children to school, and would check her receipts when she got home to make sure she wasn't lying.

When he was unable to keep an eye on her, he would get others in the village where they lived to do it for him, she claims.

He chose her hairstyle, her clothes, and the names for their children - which eventually totalled four.

Bacot says she wanted to take contraceptive pills or get abortions so she would stop falling pregnant, but was forbidden from going to the doctor.

The pair married in 2008, but that did little to end the abuse, Bacot says.

Polette began using weapons in his assaults - at one point knocking her out with a hammer over the Christmas holidays, and routinely threatened her with a gun.

He also began prostituting her out to other truck drivers.

Operating out of the back of a Peugeot people-carrier under the name of Adeline, Bacot says Polette watched the acts and dictated her movements via an earpiece.

But, so as to leave clients in no doubt about who she 'belonged' to, he had his initials tattooed near her genitals.

'He wanted to mark his territory, show others that I belonged to him,' she added.

Bacot says her children contacted police twice on her behalf but were brushed off, with officers telling them that their mother needed to come to the station herself.

Things came to a head in 2016 as Polette routinely questioned Bacot's 14-year-old daughter about her sexuality - leading her to fear that he would start prostituting the teenager out as well.

Then, on March 13, came a visit from a violent client. Bacot said she refused to carry out a certain sex act for him, so he forced her into it - leaving her bleeding.

Afterwards, she claims Polette criticised her, telling her the man would refuse to come back and that she would have to make up for it.

Journalists wait outside the courtroom in Chalon-sur-Saone, France, where Bacot is standing trial for Polette's murder

Having tried to drug Polette using sleeping pills crushed into his coffee, Bacot then went for a revolver that she knew her husband kept between the seats in the back of the car.

While he was sitting in the front seat, she drew the handgun and fired it once through the back of his neck, killing him instantly.

Bacot then buried the body in a forest with the help of her two eldest sons and her daughter's boyfriend, who she says offered to help so police wouldn't take her away.

But in 2017, cops were alerted to the killing after the boyfriend confessed to his own mother - prompting her to call gendarmes.

They arrested Bacot who subsequently confessed to the killing, but was released on bail one year later pending trial.

Bacot's sons and the daughter's boyfriend were subsequently jailed for six months each for concealment of a corpse for the part they played in the cover-up.

Bacot now faces life in jail for murder. Her lawyers want the sentence reduced to 10 years in jail due to the abuse she suffered.

She made no comment as she arrived at the courthouse Monday, appearing intimidated by the crowd of reporters awaiting her.

Her lawyers said ahead of the trial that 'the extreme violence that she suffered for 25 years and the fear that her daughter would be next' pushed her to kill Polette.

The same lawyers, Janine Bonaggiunta and Nathalie Tomasini, had already defended Jacqueline Sauvage, a French woman who was sentenced to 10 years in prison for killing her abusive husband but won a presidential pardon in 2016 after becoming a symbol for the fight against violence directed at women.

'These women who are victims of violence have no protection. The judiciary is still too slow, not reactive enough and too lenient towards the perpetrators who can continue to exercise their violent power,' Bonaggiunta told AFP.

'This is precisely what can push a desperate woman to kill in order to survive,' she said.

Bacot was 'certain that she needed to commit this act to protect her children', a court evaluation found.

More than 500,000 people have signed a petition demanding that Bacot, who risks life in prison for murder, be cleared of the charge.
The Transport Secretary's decision to approve a tunnel under Stonehenge was unlawful and had 'no proper evidential basis', a High Court judge has heard.

The campaign group Save Stonehenge World Heritage Site (SSWHS) challenged Grant Shapps' decision to green-light the 1.7 billion project in court today because it says advice from experts was ignored.

Plans to turn eight miles of the A303 into a dual carriageway, with a two-mile tunnel, were given the go-ahead in November.

This was despite advice from Planning Inspectorate officials who said the construction would cause 'permanent, irreversible harm' to the Unesco World Heritage Site in Wiltshire.

The three-day hearing before Mr Justice Holgate, which is taking place at the Royal Courts of Justice in London, began on Wednesday.

The campaign group Save Stonehenge World Heritage Site (SSWHS) challenged Grant Shapps' decision to green-light the 1.7 billion project in court today because it says advice from experts was ignored. Pictured, demonstrators supporting SSWHS at court today

In his skeleton argument David Wolfe QC, barrister for the SSWHS group, said: 'The Secretary of State disagreed with the assessment of his expert panel, without - unlawfully - there being any proper evidential basis for doing so.'

He claimed Mr Shapps 'misconstrued the advice of Historic England'.

'In any event, the Secretary of State's reasons for disagreeing with the advice of his expert panel were unlawfully inadequate and unintelligible,' he added.

A panel of expert inspectors recommended development consent should be withheld because the project would substantially and permanently harm the integrity and authenticity of the site, which includes the stone circle and the wider archaeology-rich landscape.

In a report to the minister, officials said permanent, irreversible harm would be caused by construction under the current plans. It said the changes would 'affect not only our own, but future generations'.

Plans to turn eight miles of the A303 into a dual carriageway, with a two-mile tunnel, were given the go-ahead in November. Pictured, Mr Shapps

SSWHS also argued Mr Shapps did not consider the damage that would be done to a number of other prehistoric sites and ancient artefacts in the area. The group claims the minister's approach to the World Heritage Convention, which calls for preservation of nature, was unlawful.

But lawyers defending Mr Shapps said SSWHS's claim was 'unarguable' and should be thrown out.

In the defence's skeleton argument Mr Shapps' legal team said: 'Stripped to its essentials, the claim simply reflects disagreement with the defendant's legitimate planning judgment that the scheme should be approved.'

It added that Mr Shapps concluded the road plans would cause less harm to the landscape in comparison to the benefit it would bring drivers.

'The public benefits of the project outweighed the harm,' it said.

Mr Justice Holgate stressed the court will not be considering the merits of the project but only whether the Transport Secretary had acted unlawfully.

SSWHS also argued Mr Shapps did not consider the damage that would be done to a number of other prehistoric sites and ancient artefacts in the area. Pictured,an artist's impression of the planned tunnel

Campaigners supporting SSWHS lined up outside the court buildings carrying banners and playing drums alongside a model of Stonehenge.

Senior druid Arthur Uther Pendragon said: 'I am here to show druid support for the challenge to the Secretary of State's stupidity in granting planning permission for what is effectively the wrong tunnel - it's too short and it's doing too much damage.

'Not only are the archaeologists against it and the local people against it but the druids are against it.'

John Adams, a director of SSWHS, added: 'This is crucial, this might be our last opportunity to stop this road going through the world heritage site.'

The Stonehenge site, together with Avebury, was declared by Unesco to be a World Heritage Site of Outstanding Universal Value in 1986.

The decision to hand it the accolade was made because of the size of the megaliths, the sophistication of the position of the stones and the complexes of Neolithic and Bronze Age sites and monuments surrounding the site.

The Stonehenge site (pictured), together with Avebury, was declared by Unesco to be a World Heritage Site of Outstanding Universal Value in 1986

The proposed tunnel is part of a 1.7 billion investment in the A303 between Amesbury and Berwick Down.

The road, which is a popular route for motorists travelling to and from the South West, is often severely congested on the single carriageway stretch near the stones.

Highways England says its plan for a two-mile tunnel will remove the sight and sound of traffic passing the site and cut journey times, but some environmentalists and archaeologists have voiced their opposition to the plan due to its potential impact on the area.

The project is classified as nationally significant, which means a development consent order is needed for it to go ahead.

It comes after Unesco warned the road plans could threaten Stonehenge's World Heritage Site status.

The Unesco heritage committee said 'the proposed tunnel length remains inadequate to protect the outstanding universal value'. Instead, the organisation suggests a longer tunnel with an entrance and exit far enough away from Stonehenge to prevent a 'highly adverse and irreversible impact'.

A 1.7billion plan to build a tunnel diverting traffic away from Stonehenge was given the green light. Pictured: An artist's impression of the plans

The tunnel is part of a 27billion masterplan to improve the nation's roads, which was announced in March

It wants the Government to provide an updated plan by February.

Salisbury MP John Glen, who is also a Treasury minister, told MailOnline: 'If we did the cheap option we would create a bigger visual blight. And if we do the tunnel option it is never long enough. It is an incredibly difficult choice.'

He added: 'This has been an ongoing conversation with Unesco. We have worked very hard to accommodate their concerns and adjusted it throughout the process.

'We will continue that dialogue. We have made significant changes to the original plans to try and accommodate the concerns around the environment and heritage. This will reunite the landscape and is a significant investment.'

Kate Fielden, of the Save Stonehenge World Heritage Site campaign, told the Times: 'You cant quantify the value of a world heritage site like Stonehenge and for that to go on the list of "world heritage in danger" would be a massive national disgrace . . . One would hope it will make the government think again.'
A massive manhunt is underway in central India after a gang of robbers stole nearly a tonne of cow dung from a village, police said.

Locals from Dhurena village in the central state of Chhattisgarh complained to police last week after more than 800kg (1,770lbs) of cow poo disappeared from their storehouse.

Police said the gang struck at night, breaking into the depository in Dhurena in the Korba district and fleeing with their pungent plunder estimated to be worth some 1,600 rupees (15).

A massive manhunt is underway in central India after a gang of robbers stole nearly a tonne of cow dung from a village, police said. (File image of a woman clearing cow dung in Allahabad, India)

'We have questioned some suspects but no arrests have been made yet,' local police officer Harish Tandekar said on Wednesday.

He added that it was not clear how the suspects had been able to transport such a large amount of faeces, or why they had stolen it.

'Investigations are continuing and every effort is being made to find the culprits,' Tandekar said.

Chhattisgarh buys bovine dung from dairy farmers at 200 rupees per 100 kilogrammes under a state scheme to produce vermi-compost.

In recent years, many Indian states have been encouraging farmers to sell cow poo for organic farming.

An Indian villager makes cow dung cakes which will be sold to devotees to be used as fuel for clay stoves in Allahabad, India, in 2017

Cow dung cakes are also made by mixing fresh cow faeces with hay and then dried in the sun or on walls (pictured). They have long been used in India's farming communities to fuel fires

There has also been an increased demand for cattle waste for eco-friendly products such as earthen lamps and for religious purposes.

Cow dung cakes are also made by mixing fresh cow faeces with hay and then dried in the sun. They have long been used in India's farming communities to fuel fires.

Some Hindus consider cows sacred and use the animals' dung and urine for medicines and other holy practices.

In May, it emerged that Hindus in western Gujarat state have been visiting cow shelters once a week to douse themselves in excrement, which is then washed off with milk.

People cover themselves in a mixture of cow dung and urine at a Hindu school in Gujarat state, India, believing it is an alternative cure for Covid

While waiting for the dung packs to dry, devotees hug the cows or perform yoga - believing it will further boost their immunity

They believe feces from a cow - a holy animal to Hindus - will boost their immune systems, helping to both prevent and cure Covid.

But Dr JA Jayalal, president of the Indian Medical Association, warned the 'cure' doesn't work and may actually help to spread the virus as often sick people gather in groups to undergo the treatment.

The visitors to the shelter use both cow dung and urine - which has been used in Hindu rituals for centuries for its supposed therapeutic and antiseptic properties - and then cover their bodies in the mixture.

As participants wait for the dung and urine mixture on their bodies to dry, they hug or honour the cows at the shelter, and practice yoga to boost energy levels.

The packs are then washed off with milk or buttermilk.

In 2019, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu-nationalist government invested five billion rupees into research into developing medicines and personal-hygiene products from cow dung and urine.

The government is looking to encourage the production of toothpaste, shampoos and mosquito repellents from cow dung and urine.
Subway's tuna sandwiches have been found to contain zero traces of tuna DNA, according to a new lab study.

The research, commissioned by the New York Times, sent more than 60 inches worth of tuna sandwiches to a lab after ordering them from the fast food franchise at various Los Angeles locations.

The sandwiches were ordered without cheese or vegetables to avoid contaminating the test.

The reporter proceeded to remove the tuna meat from the sandwiches before freezing it, then sending it to a commercial food testing lab.

The latest blow to the fast food chain comes just months after a class-action lawsuit was filed against the fast food franchise alleging misrepresentation of the fish in their sandwiches.

A tuna sandwich from Subway is displayed in San Anselmo, California. A recent lab analysis of tuna used in Subway sandwiches commissioned by the New York Times did not reveal any tuna DNA in samples taken from Subway tuna sandwiches

The lab involved in the latest tests declined to be named, citing concern about jeopardizing future professional opportunities.

The lab conducted a $500 PCR test to determine if the Subway tuna was one of five different species.

They found 'no amplification products from the DNA' and so they 'cannot identify the species.'

A spokesman from the lab hinted at two possible conclusions.

'One, its so heavily processed that whatever we could pull out, we couldnt make an identification. Or we got some and theres just nothing there thats tuna.'

However, it was also taken into consideration that when tuna is cooked and seasoned, its DNA is more difficult to locate.

Subway is the fast food chain with the largest number of restaurants both in the United States and worldwide

That is because cooked tuna becomes denatured, destroying its characteristics and making it difficult to identify.

There are 15 species of fish that can be considered tuna, but Subway states they sell skipjack and yellowfin tuna, which a lab would know as Katsuwonus pelamis and T. albacares, respectively.

'It is sourced from fisheries with non-threatened stock levels,' the company's Tuna and Seafood Sourcing statement says.

Subway does not comment on where they get their tuna from, but a California store manager revealed the 'tuna comes in a case and inside the case, there are six aluminum pouches and its just like a pressed, vacuum sealed slab of tuna.'

She described it as 'flaky' and 'clearly soaked in water' when it arrives, before it is spread out and mixed with mayo.

Tuna can stay in the refrigerated sandwich bar located in stores for up to 72 hours, she added, per corporate guidelines.

A former employee told the Times that she didn't believe the company was swapping tuna out.

'I personally have a really weak stomach to fish, which is how we know the tuna is real,' she stated.

Additionally, a recent Inside Edition investigation found that specimens taken from Queens Subway locations were actually tuna.

Still, many people on social media couldn't help but to rag on Subway for the latest hit to the company.

'There is about as much courage DNA in the Republican Party as there is tuna DNA in a Subway sandwich,' Dan Rather sarcastically tweeted.

One user tweeted, 'the subway tuna fish sandwich is most likely people and i think that's fine.'

'Something fishy going on here,' tweeted another user, pun clearly intended.

The testing comes five months after two Bay Area residents, Karen Dhanowa and Nilima Amin of Alameda County, filed a lawsuit in San Francisco federal court, accusing the American fast food restaurant franchise of misrepresenting its tuna sandwich.

The plaintiffs claim that they performed independent lab tests of samples of tuna taken from several Subway locations in California.

The tests prove that the tuna is actually a mixture of various concoctions that do not constitute tuna, yet have been blended together by [Subway] to imitate the appearance of tuna, according to the complaint.

The complaint does not specify what the lab tests revealed or what the tuna is actually made of.

A lab found 'no amplification products from the DNA' and so they 'cannot identify the species' (Pictured: A Subway employee prepares a sandwich in Moscow, Russia)

Subway has denied the claims, telling DailyMail.com that the tuna is real and from fish caught in the wild.

A Subway representative told DailyMail.com: These claims are meritless.

'There simply is no truth to the allegations in the complaint that was filed in California,' a company spokesperson told DailyMail.com.

'Subway delivers 100 per cent cooked tuna to its restaurants, which is mixed with mayonnaise and used in freshly made sandwiches, wraps and salads that are served to and enjoyed by our guests.

'The taste and quality of our tuna make it one of Subway's most popular products and these baseless accusations threaten to damage our franchisees, small business owners who work tirelessly to uphold the high standards that Subway sets for all of its products, including its tuna.'

Dhanowa and Amin want to have their claim certified as a class action, which would allow thousands of other potentially dissatisfied customers to join in the legal action.

Anyone wishing to join the lawsuit would have had to purchase a tuna sandwich or tuna wrap sometime after January 21, 2017.

Dhanowa and Amin are suing Subway for fraud, intentional misrepresentation, unjust enrichment, and other civil violations.

They recently issued a new filing, however, seemingly retreating slightly from their original claim and alleging their lawsuit is about if Subway uses '100% sustainably caught skipjack and yellowfin tuna.'

Subway is the fast food chain with the largest number of restaurants both in the United States and worldwide.

According to its website, there are more than 22,000 Subway franchises in the US; more than 2,800 in Canada; 1,674 in Brazil; more than 1,200 in Australia; and thousands more combined in Europe, Russia, and China.

There are more than 40,000 Subway locations worldwide, with tuna sandwiches proving to be one its best sellers. It's the only seafood sandwich they sell.

'Subways tuna sandwich ranks among our guests favorite sandwiches,' a spokeswoman from the company said.

Tuna is very popular in the United States, with Nielsen Holdings reporting around 700 million cans sold in 2020.

Grand View Research claims the canned tuna market in 2020 was valued at $8.57 billion, likely due to the rush for canned food during the coronavirus pandemic.
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Britain's daily Covid infections hit a four-month high today, despite leading scientists and senior ministers insisting the outbreak was finally slowing down.

Department of Health bosses posted 16,135 positive tests, up by almost 80 per cent on last week's figure and larger than yesterday's 11,625, which was the worst toll since mid-February.

Today's infections are at their highest since February 6 (18,262), but health chiefs blamed the massive increase on surge-testing carried out across Scotland to flush out the Indian variant and stop it spreading. Day-to-day figures can fluctuate drastically.

Dr Mary Ramsay, head of immunisation at Public Health England, told a Downing Street press conference tonight that the jump in cases was actually a 'positive' because it meant the testing blitz in Scotland was working.

Meanwhile, the explosion in cases throughout June, fuelled by the rapid spread of the mutant strain, is now translating into deaths, with the number of fatalities having doubled in a week. Another 19 victims were registered today, up from nine last week.

Hospitalisations have also risen by a fifth, with pressure growing on the NHS because of the spiralling outbreak over the past month.

But the true state of Britain's crisis remains a mixed picture, with top scientists  including 'Professor Lockdown' Neil Ferguson  and senior ministers hailing 'encouraging' data this week that showed the speed of the outbreak was decelerating, that the third wave was more like a 'bump' and the worst of the crisis was 'over'.

Separate promising NHS statistics today showed pressure on hospitals was also beginning to slow down, even though the actual number of infected patients needing medical treatment is still increasing.

No10 is confident England will be able to unlock fully on July 19, with Boris Johnson preparing to axe virtually all curbs next month and make a huge push back towards normality. Social distancing, face masks and work-from-home guidance are all set to be ditched, and fully vaccinated Brits may be able enjoy quarantine-free holidays.

It comes as Britain hit a major milestone in its vaccination campaign today, with 60 per cent of adults now fully vaccinated against the disease. More than 31.7m over-18s have already had both doses, while 43.4m  or 82.5 per cent  have had their first jab, official statistics show.

Today's case-load is the most since February 6 (18,262), but health chiefs blamed the massive increase on surge-testing carried out across Scotland to flush out the Indian variant and stop it spreading. Pictured, a graph showing how cases have increased in Scotland over the past month. Figures in grey are incomplete because of a recording lag

More than 31.7million over-18s have already had both doses, while 43.4million  or 82.5 per cent  have had their first jab, official statistics show

Britain hits another Covid vaccine milestone with 60% of over-18s now fully jabbed Britain today hit another Covid vaccination milestone, with 60 per cent of adults now fully vaccinated against the disease. More than 31.7million over-18s have already had both doses, while 43.4million  or 82.5 per cent  have had their first jab, official statistics show. Health Secretary Matt Hancock hailed the figures, claiming the UK was now 'so close to ensuring the entire adult population is protected'. No10's vaccine chief Nadhim Zahawi  who will likely brag about the achievement at a 5pm Downing Street press conference tonight  hailed the 'extraordinary feat'. Ministers have once again urged Brits to come forward for their vaccines, with the roll-out now on the final phase with all over-18s able to book an appointment. Mr Zahawi said getting two doses was 'absolutely vital' because of the rapid spread of the Indian variant, adding: 'I urge everyone eligible to get their jab and help us get back to normality.' Advertisement

It comes as:

It emerged today Chinese scientists deleted crucial data from the earliest confirmed Covid patients amid intense scrutiny about the true origins of the disease;

Boris Johnson criticised an anti-vaxxer protester today who filmed himself yelling abuse at Jonathan Van-Tam while accusing him of 'genocide' and lying to Britons;

Official figures suggested people working from home spend 45 minutes fewer on their job each day;

Scientists called for calm over the emergence of the potentially vaccine-resistant 'Delta plus' variant, claiming that there are no signs it will take off in the UK;

Ministers prepared to axe virtually all virtually all curbs on July 19.

Speaking at tonight's Downing Street press conference, Dr Ramsay pointed to a UK-wide deaths chart and said the numbers 'are so small on this graph that you can't even see any increase'.

She said 'although every death is a terrible tragedy' the data suggests the vaccination programme is working to suppress serious illness.

On cases, Dr Ramsay attributed the daily figure to surge testing in Scotland.

A total of 42,310 people were tested in Scotland in the previous 24 hours, which is the highest number carried out in Scotland in a single day since the pandemic began. Roughly 7 per cent of tests came back positive.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the unusually high case figures were in part because of increased testing, but she said they should be taken seriously if they continue to grow unchecked.

SAGE member and behaviour expert Professor Stephen Reicher suggested that men meeting up to watch Scotland in the Euro 2020, the country's first major international football competition in 23 years, was behind the rise.

Meanwhile, almost half of all adults aged 25 to 29 in England and a third of those aged 18 to 24 have received their first dose of a coronavirus jab, according to the vaccines minister.

Nadhim Zahawi defended the Government's decision to delay the final stage of the road map, as he said the additional four weeks to July 19 would give the NHS more time to get 'those remaining jabs in arms'.

He told the Downing Street press conference that more than 14,000 lives had been saved by the vaccination programme, while 44,500 hospital admissions had also been averted in England - 2,500 in the past two weeks.

Referring to younger adults coming forward to be vaccinated, he told the press conference: 'The enthusiasm is making a huge difference.

'We have already given first doses to almost half of all 25 to 29-year-olds in England and only a week after the programme opened to all adults on Friday, one-third of people aged between 18 and 24 have had their first dose.

'To all of the young people who have stepped up, I want to say a huge thank you. You have protected yourself, you have protected your families, and you have protected your communities.'

Mr Zahawi said that more than a million people aged over 50 in England had received their second dose in the past two weeks as he defended the delay to the end of restrictions.

He told the press conference: 'Our mission is now to get as many people protected as we can and to protect them as quickly as we can.

'Last week we took the difficult but I think essential decision to pause Step 4 in our road map for four weeks with a review of the data after two weeks - and we will absolutely have that review and share the data with the nation.

'We're going to use these four weeks to give our NHS that bit more time so we can get those remaining jabs in arms of those who really do need them.'

Health Secretary Matt Hancock, pictured leaving 10 Downing Street today, told Radio 4's Today programme yesterday that the latest hospitalisation and death data was 'encouraging' and the country is 'on track' for easing restrictions on July 19

The seven-day average of patients admitted to hospital with Covid is rising and hit 183.7 on June 20. But the rate at which this number is increasing has dropped. The number of patients in hospital peaked at 34,336 in January at the peak of the second wave and was falling steadily until it reached 730 in May before beginning to rise as restrictions were eased and the Indian 'Delta' variant - which is thought to be 80 per cent more infectious than the Kent mutation - spread across the country

The number of people who have been moved onto a ventilator continues to rise. By June 22, 229 patients were using the machines to help them breathe. In January, the number of patients using ventilators hit 3,736, before dropping to 113.6 in May

Those aged over 85 have made up the highest proportion of hospital admissions, with 6,129.5 admitted per 100,000 This is followed by 65 to 84-year-olds, with 1,869.2 of them per 100,000 being admitted to the hospital since last March. Meanwhile, 3,005 children aged below five, 2,962 people between six and 17-years-old and 144,289 people aged between 18 and 64 have gone to hospital with the virus

Professor Neil Ferguson said the situation was 'encouraging', while Professor Brendan Wren said the third wave felt more like a 'bump' and there was a 'certain amount of coronamania going on'

India declares 'Nepal variant' - or 'Delta plus' - to be of concern amid fears it may evade vaccines more than original strain... and it's already been spotted in Britain India has declared a 'Delta plus' Covid variant to be of concern, amid fears it may evade vaccines more than the original variety. The mutant strain  sometimes known as AY.1, or the Nepal variant  has already spread to three states, despite attempts to suppress it. Health chiefs in India who are assessing the country's coronavirus crisis have now elevated it from being a variant of 'interest' to one of 'concern'. It carries the K417N mutation  also seen in the South Africa 'Beta' variant  which can help the virus dodge immunity from vaccines and natural infection. The evolved virus  which has the same features of the original highly-transmissible Indian type  has been spotted in 52 times in the UK. But experts have cast doubts on whether Delta plus should even be considered its own variant. Professor Francois Balloux, head of University College London's Genetics Institute, said the K417N had cropped up in several different lineages. SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus behind Covid, is constantly evolving as it spreads, and most mutations it picks up tend to have little effect. However, if it finds one that offers it a benefit  such as making it extra infectious or better equipped to dodge the immune system  it can crop up repeatedly. Professor Balloux said none of the variants carrying the K417N have been particularly successful so far, other than the South Africa variant. The current crop of vaccines in use are less effective against the 'Beta' variant, data has shown but AstraZeneca is developing a vaccine specifically designed to counter the strain which the UK is in negotiations for. There is no proof Delta plus  spotted in five countries so far  poses any greater threat than the strain it evolved from. Experts believe the original Indian variant is around 60 per cent more transmissible than the previously dominant Kent 'Alpha' strain. It also makes people more likely to be hospitalised, according to Public Health England. Vaccines are still effective against the variant but one dose is less so at blocking symptoms and severe illness. Writing on social media today, Professor Balloux said the Nepal strain has only been sequenced 160 times across the world so far. He said: 'It's not a proper 'variant'. It's the Delta B.1.617.2 strain carrying the K417N mutation in the spike protein. 'There have been around 160 strains sequenced to date. The first was found on April 5, 2021, in India. 'It has been found in several countries but at extremely low frequency, with the exception of Nepal where it has been estimated at around four per cent  but based on a tiny sample size of three in 70. 'Delta plus represents 0.00002 per cent of all delta variants sequenced to date. There is no evidence the strain is currently expanding in any country.' Professor Balloux added: 'The K417N mutation has arisen independently in several viral lineages  at least twice in Delta. 'It was observed on the March 27, 2020, in a strain found in Qatar. 'K417N is generally present in the Beta variant. It seems to contribute to immune escape. 'Its impact on transmissibility is not clear-cut. None of the lineages carrying it bar Beta  have been particularly successful so far.' Professor Able Lawrence, an immunologist at the Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences in Lucknow, said the the current data did not seem to indicate the variant was spreading. But he warned the strain could pose a threat to India and other countries around the world. Professor Lawrence told The Times: 'There are too few cases to be able to say if it is more transmissible but it is showing the potential to evade vaccines so it has to be watched carefully.' India's Federal Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan yesterday told a news conference the Delta plus variant has infected 16 people in the state of Maharashtra. Some 28 cases have been found in total across Maharashtra, Kerala and and Madhya Pradesh. The Indian ministry said Delta plus showed increased transmissibility and advised states to increase testing. On Monday, India vaccinated a record 8.6million people as it began offering free shots to all adults but experts doubted it could maintain that pace. Chandrakant Lahariya, an expert in public policy and health systems, said: 'This is clearly not sustainable'. 'With such one-day drives, many states have consumed most of their current vaccine stocks, which will affect the vaccination in days to follow.' With the currently projected vaccine supply for the next few months, the maximum daily achievable rate is four to five million doses, Dr Lahariya added. The effort has so far covered about 5.5 per cent of the 950million people eligible, even though India is the world's largest vaccine producer. A devastating second wave during April and May overwhelmed health services, killing hundreds of thousands. Images of funeral pyres blazing in car parks raised questions over the chaotic vaccine rollout. Since May, vaccinations have averaged fewer than three million doses a day, far less than the 10million health officials say are crucial to protect the millions vulnerable to new surges. Over the past 24 hours India reported 42,640 new infections, the lowest since March 23, and 1,167 deaths. Infections now stand at 29.98million, with a death toll of 389,302, health ministry data showed. Advertisement

Double-jabbed Brits could go to 'amber list' countries quarantine-free from July 19... but who will let us in? Holidaymakers face tough rules in US, Italy and Germany even if minister ease curbs - amid signs Malta and Ibiza might go 'green' tomorrow Fully vaccinated Britons could enjoy quarantine-free holidays from as early as July 19 as ministers scramble to save the summer season - but will still face tough entry restrictions in many countries. Boris Johnson is under huge pressure from senior ministers to sign off a 'big bang' reopening on so-called 'Freedom Day' with travel curbs eased at the same time as restrictions are lifted at home. Formal advice against trips to 'amber list' countries would be dropped for those who have been double-jabbed under the plans  opening up summer breaks in Spain, France, Italy, Greece and the United States. Children would also be able to avoid quarantine if travelling with their parents. Meanwhile, Malta and Spain's Balearic Islands are on track to be added to the 'green list' tomorrow, offering more options for people desperate for some sunshine. However, those taking advantage of the loosening still face tough restrictions on entry to major destinations. The US has a complete travel ban in place on Britons, while Italy requires five-day self-isolation on arrival. Germany only accepts people for 'humanitarian reasons' and has mandatory 14-day quarantine for arrivals. Tomorrow's ministerial meeting on foreign travel is expected to be followed by a further session on Monday. Ministers are expected to sign off the plans to allow the double jabbed to travel to amber list countries without the need for quarantine on return. Downing Street is targeting August for the change. But ministers including Transport Secretary Grant Shapps and Chancellor Rishi Sunak are pushing for curbs on international travel to be lifted from July 19. This would allow families and the battered travel sector to make the most of the summer. Health Secretary Matt Hancock is said to be 'sympathetic' to the move because of the effectiveness of Covid jabs and yesterday he confirmed that ministers were 'working on' plans for quarantine-free travel. However the Prime Minister and Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove are said still to be cautious. The World Travel & Tourism Council wrote to Mr Johnson yesterday to say that maintaining restrictions on the sector through July would cost the UK 639million a day. Advertisement

A Cabinet source told the Mail there was now clear evidence vaccinations were working. 'It's all over, even if not everyone in Government has realised it yet,' the insider said.

Even 'Professor Lockdown' Neil Ferguson today said the situation was 'encouraging', while another top scientist said the third wave felt more like a 'bump' and there was a 'certain amount of coronamania going on' and that reopening on July 5 was possible.

Other academics said they are 'incredibly optimistic' about the outbreak and 'don't see any real need' to push back Freedom Day again, after the original date of June 21 was delayed by four weeks to ensure millions more adults were fully vaccinated.

However, it is understood there is almost no chance the date will be brought forward to July 5 despite immense pressure from Tory MPs.

The plan to reopen could put England on a significantly different course from Scotland, after Nicola Sturgeon yesterday delayed the latest phase of its loosening for another three weeks and suggested that mask-wearing is likely to continue into the autumn.

Data shows two vaccines work against the Indian variant, which makes up almost 99 per cent of cases spotted across the country. But one dose is much less effective at blocking symptoms or preventing severe illness.

NHS bosses also say patients are younger, less ill and staying for shorter periods of time, with jabs already easing pressure on hospitals.

Hospitalisation data for England shows that the weekly average number of people being admitted with Covid dropped to 74.4 on May 17, but this number has been rising since then.

Coronavirus admissions each day between June 14 and June 20 varied between 171 and 202. This is up from the 131 to 187 daily admissions from June 7 to June 13.

But promisingly, the rate at which hospitalisations is increasing is slowing.

The number of hospital admissions on June 13 was 48.06 per cent higher than the week before, while on June 20 it was just 20.64 per cent higher than one week earlier.

Figures also show that 1,301 people were in hospital on June 22. At the height of the second wave in January, this number reached 34,336.

The number of people who have been moved onto a ventilator is also rising. By June 22, 229 patients were using the machines to help them breathe. In January, the number of patients using ventilators hit 3,736.

Professor Paul Hunter, an infectious disease expert at the University of East Anglia, told MailOnline: 'I am incredibly optimistic and I personally do not see any real need for any further extensions to lockdown.'

He said he would not argue for bringing Freedom Day forward to July 5  like some Tory MPs have called for  'but would not lose any sleep if that happened'.

'Hospitalisations are going up but not anywhere near as quickly as wave two', Professor Hunted added. He also said the data showed they 'seem to have slowed'.

'The other thing to note is that those who do go into hospital seem to be staying somewhat shorter,' Professor Hunter said.

'If we manage the autumn booster campaign well then we should have very few hospitalisations for that, but all sorts of things can happen to that balance. But we are getting to the point that this will be part of our history, rather than our present.'

Despite the encouraging hospitalisation figures, infections appear to be increasing at a faster rate again, with today's week-on-week increase of 78.2 per cent the highest since June 8, when cases first started exploding again because of the Indian Covid variant.

The seven-day average rate of increase had been slowing from a high of around 65 per cent on June 9 down to 31 per cent on June 20 but increased today to 43.95 per cent.

Before today's case figures were announced, Professor Ferguson told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the overall picture is 'encouraging', with all the data streams pointing the same way.

'We are seeing as we expected rises in case numbers across the country, but they have slowed slightly compared with a couple of weeks ago,' the Imperial College London expert added.

'And we're seeing rises in hospitalisations and indeed in deaths but again they're at a much lower level compared with cases than they were previously, demonstrating the high effectiveness of vaccines at protecting people particularly against severe illness.'

Professor Ferguson  who warned the third wave will unfold over the next couple of months  claimed 'it is clear' that having two doses of vaccine offers a high level of protection.

Professor Brendan Wren, a vaccinologist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said the nation is in a third wave but 'it's more like a bump'.

He told Sky News: 'We are in a third wave but it's not as bad, it's more like a bump rather than a huge increase. We have a different population to what we had in the first or second wave so we shouldn't be so fearful.

'My concern is the psychological damage it's doing to many people who hear these scary variant stories that they're frightened to go outdoors. And I think we need a positive message now and a simple message that if we open up sooner then there'd be less confusion about what to do.'

But he said that it was likely there would be more variants, 'we'll be up to an Omega variant, it's just nature taking its course'.

He said that mitigations such as masks and distancing should be voluntary, adding: 'I'm a bit sceptical about masks  they don't act as a physical barrier to the tiny, tiny viral particles.

'And if people do handle masks I would urge them where possible not to reuse them, and sanitise hands after use, because a lot of people are overusing them and with their hands they are potentially transmitting the virus. Personally I think masks are of dubious value.'

Professor Wren also said there was 'a certain amount of coronamania going on' as he accused the Government of being a bit 'overcautious'.

Asked if it would be possible for the end of social restrictions to occur sooner than July 19, he said: 'I think it could be possible.

'I think the Government has been a bit overcautious, there's a certain amount of coronamania going on and we do need to take a wider view of society as a whole, and a wider view of the fact that excess deaths for the past few months are less than in previous years because, for example, many other infectious diseases are far lower now.'

He added: 'We're approaching the summer months now, we know from scientific work that the virus, and its variants, are less transmissible during heat and longer daylight hours.

'And we are in a stronger position, certainly in terms of not just vaccination, but in terms of testing and tracing and treating the virus, so that's partly why I believe that we could open up sooner.'

Dr Michael Head, a senior research fellow in global health at the University of Southampton, told MailOnline: 'Thanks to the huge public enthusiasm for the vaccine rollout, the pool of susceptible people who may become ill from Covid is now much smaller.

'The case and hospitalisation numbers are still on the rise, but hopefully the rate of growth is slowing and we can reach the peak of those graphs soon.

'An early return to the government's roadmap is unwise, but there remains a possibility that it may be reasonable to progress later in July.

'There will still be concerns in the months ahead, as people return from abroad after summer holidays and the scenarios we may face in the winter. While most of the world remains unvaccinated, the UK cannot be complacent.'

But David Nabarro, a special envoy on Covid-19 for the World Health Organisation, suggested mask wearing and keeping apart would still be needed in areas of high infection.

Dr Nabarro told Sky News there was a need to 'maintain defences against the virus to stop it welling up more and more, and that's going to be the life to come, at least until there's enough vaccine, and enough certainty, to be sure that vaccination will protect us. Right now we can't say that.'

Dr Nabarro said that due to variants 'as well as using vaccine as part of our defence, we're going to have to continue by keeping a bit of a distance from each other and then I'm going to suggest that the physical distancing part of one metre plus and mask wearing will be necessary, particularly in places where there's a lot of virus. We can't just simply ignore that.'

On workplaces, he said: 'There will be a need for every single workplace to be asking, 'is it right that we stop wearing masks and stop maintaining distance?'

Covid advisor to the British Medical Association, Dr David Strain, said: 'It is promising that the rate of hospitalisation is not rising at the same rate as the number of new cases in the community, as this demonstrates that the vaccine is effective in its primary role of preventing severe illness and ultimately death.'

He said current ONS estimates are that one in 9 people are being left with long COVID, with 869,000 remaining unwell for more than 3 months  650,000 of whom have their day to day activities significantly affected and 376,000 for more than a year.

Dr Strain said: 'Long Covid is not directly proportionate to the severity of the initial infection, and although vaccination does appear to reduce the risk of getting it, does not ameliorate the risk completely.

'With two thirds of a million people potentially unable to contribute to restoring the economy, the risk of long Covid from relatively 'minor' non hospitalised cases will be a consideration.'

'Within the first and second wave, it was apparent that recent infection with Covid adversely affected outcomes from other conditions, for example complications after otherwise routine surgery were much higher.

'Again this was unrelated to severity of initial condition therefore will need to be considered as we create a roadmap to catch up with the backlog of NHS work that has built up whilst all resources were Covid facing.'

Additionally, the higher the amount of Covid in the community, the higher the risk of new variants occurring that could be vaccine resistant, more transmissible or more deadly, Dr Strain said.

'This will be a particular concern when the government are considering restarting international travel, remembering that one of the reasons the UK was hit so bad in the first wave has been attributed to [more than] 1,300 separate seeding points in February 2020,' he added.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock told Radio 4's Today programme yesterday that the latest hospitalisation and death data was 'encouraging' and the country is 'on track' for easing restrictions on July 19.

He said: 'We are seeing that the growth in case rates is slowing. Thankfully, the number of hospitalisations, whilst rising, is not rising very quickly. And thankfully even more, the number of people dying from Covid remains very very low.'

Chancellor Rishi Sunak said it was his 'hope and expectation' that restrictions would be eased next month.

But former Cabinet minister Liam Fox said the new target for scrapping Covid restrictions should be July 5, due to low hospitalisation and death data.

Boris Johnson delayed Freedom Day from June 21 to July 19 amid concerns about cases of the Indian variant in the UK.

He insisted that the extra four weeks was needed to buy time to get more people double-jabbed before the final set of restrictions are lifted.

Other promising data yesterday revealed the country has moved one step closer to herd immunity, with nearly nine in 10 adults now having antibodies against Covid.

The major Office for National Statistics (ONS) blood testing survey highlighted the success of the UK's mammoth vaccination campaign, which is now open to every adult in all four home nations. Almost 60 per cent of over-18s (31.5million) are now fully jabbed.
A white supremacist who posted racist videos wearing Joker make-up and Nazi swastikas online is facing 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to weapons charges on Tuesday.

Paul Miller, 32, was arrested in March on a single charge for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon stemming from a separate case in 2018.

After he was indicted the FBIs Joint Terrorism Task Force raided Miller's home in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and found an unregistered rifle and 400 rounds of ammunition - resulting in two more weapons charges.

Prosecutors asserted that Miller was stockpiling weapons for 'a coming civil war' and was 'on the precipice' of doing something with them.

The evidence against him includes a series of videos he filmed of himself approaching black individuals and calling them the N-word and threatening to attack them.

Paul Miller, 32, a white supremacist, pleaded guilty to weapons charges on Tuesday after being arrested in early March

Miller has became increasingly popular on Omegle, an online chat app where he harasses women and minorities while dressed as Batman's nemesis, the Joker

In a videos described in his indictment, Miller is seen wearing body armor, flashing weapons and giving Hitler salutes while delivering an ideological lecture urging for a race war

During a court hearing on Tuesday, Miller pleaded guilty from his jail cell via Zoom. He is currently being held there due to his history of threatening behavior.

In 2007 and 2009, Miller was convicted of drug manufacturing and distribution, according to New Jersey records.

In 2018, he fired a gun at a shooting range, then applied for a concealed carry permit that year. He was denied because of his felon status.

The FBI s Joint Terrorism Task Force raided Miller's home in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and found an unregistered rifle and 400 rounds of ammunition - resulting in two more weapons charges

During a court hearing on Tuesday, Miller pleaded guilty from his jail cell via Zoom. He is currently being held there due to his history of threatening behavior

The current case against Miller came as the FBI's ramped up efforts to detect and combat domestic terrorism following the January 6 insurrection on the U.S. Capitol. Officials warn that far-right extremism poses the greatest threat of violence.

Miller, who goes by the name 'Gypsy Crusader', has amassed more than 40,000 followers on Telegram, a messaging app and social media network popular with far-right extremists.

In one of the videos posted online and included in the indictment, Miller is seen donning body armor, flashing weapons and giving Hitler salutes while delivering an ideological lecture urging for a race war.

In another video previously uploaded to Bitchute, an internet video sharing platform, Miller unveils a pistol and said: 'I am armed to the teeth tonight...I have two new guns.'

'I hate the Jews. I want to gas 'em,' he added.



When a follower asked if Miller had an army ready, Miller replied, 'I'm trying to build one.'

Several months ago, ADLs Center on Extremism identified Paul Miller as a volatile white supremacist-accelerationist. COE tracked him to Fort Lauderdale and shared significant intelligence with federal law enforcement before today's arrest. https://t.co/aH6nCYPVNR  ADL (@ADL) March 2, 2021

In a October 8, 2020 video posted on Telegraph, Miller (pictured) claimed he was 'doxed' by antifa and the Black Lives Matter movement, furiously blaming them for his radicalization

Miller (right) standing with Ian Smith (left) a Bellmawr, New Jersey, gym owner who has attracted media attention for violating New Jersey coronavirus orders

In a October 8, 2020 video posted on Telegram, Miller claimed he was 'doxed' by ANTIFA and the Black Lives Matter movement, furiously blaming them for his radicalization.

'I'm done with them. I don't want to talk any more. There is no more debate. Alright? There's no more b******t, yeah let's talk it out, yeah let's give them some rights. F**k them. F**k these (N-words). F**k these Jews.'

The current case against Miller came as the FBI's ramped up efforts to detect and combat domestic terrorism following the January 6 insurrection on the U.S. Capitol. Officials warn that far-right extremism poses the greatest threat of violence.

Prosecutors (pictured) asserted that Miller was stockpiling weapons for 'a coming civil war' and was 'on the precipice' of doing something with them

In a October 9 video, Miller is seen attending a New Brunswick, New Jersey, Trump rally, where he approaches a black woman holding a 'Black Lives Matter' poster and says, 'only white lives matter' and 'Heil Hitler.'

Miller also became increasingly popular on Omegle, an online chat app where he harasses women and minorities while dressed as Batman's nemesis, the Joker.

He also began selling white supremacist patches to his online followers.

Miller faces 10 years for each of his three charges and will be sentenced on August 30.
Televangelist Jim Bakker and his Missouri church will have to pay back $156,000 to followers to settle a lawsuit that accused him of selling a fake COVID-19 cure called Silver Solution for $125 each.

The settlement agreement, which was filed in a Missouri court on Tuesday, calls for the 81-year-old TV pastor to refund people who paid money or gave contributions to obtain Silver Solution in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bakker and his Morningside Church Productions Inc. were sued by Republican Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt in March last year after he claimed on-air that the health supplement could cure COVID.

The settlement prohibits Bakker and Morningside from advertising or selling Silver Solution 'to diagnose, prevent, mitigate, treat or cure any disease or illness'.

Bakker, in the agreement, does not admit wrongdoing.

Televangelist Jim Bakker and his Missouri church will have to pay back $156,000 to followers to settle a lawsuit that accused him of selling a fake COVID-19 cure called Silver Solution for $125 each

When Schmitt filed the lawsuit last year, he sought an injunction ordering Bakker to stop selling Silver Solution as a treatment for COVID-19 on his streaming TV program: The Jim Bakker Show.

The lawsuit said Bakker and a guest made the cure claim during 11 episodes in February and March of 2020.

Schmitt said on Wednesday that Bakker has already made restitution to many consumers and must pay back another $90,000 to others.

The consent agreement notes that during the program, Silver Solution was offered to those who agreed to contribute $80 to $125.

To use, consumers were instructed to 'apply generously to skin as needed to help promote natural healing'. The gel was said to help boost immune systems.

Bakker's attorney, former Democratic Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon, had previously claimed that Bakker was being unfairly targeted 'by those who want to crush his ministry and force his Christian television program off the air.'

Nixon, who served two terms as governor from 2009 to 2017 and is now a partner at the Dowd Bennett law firm in St. Louis, said Bakker did not claim that Silver Solution was a cure for COVID-19.

The lawsuit cited a discussion on the program on February 12, 2020, in which Bakker spoke with Sherrill Sellman, referring to her as a 'naturopathic doctor' and a 'natural health expert.'

'This influenza that is now circling the globe, you're saying that Silver Solution would be effective?' Bakker asks.

Bakker and his Morningside Church Productions Inc. were sued by Republican Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt in March last year after he claimed on-air that the health supplement could cure COVID. Bakker is pictured with his wife Lori Bakker in 2018

The lawsuit said Bakker and guest Sherrill Sellman (above together) made the cure claim during 11 episodes in February and March of 2020

Sellman, according to the lawsuit, replies: 'Well, let's say it hasn't been tested on this strain of the coronavirus, but it has been tested on other strains of the coronavirus and has been able to eliminate it within 12 hours.'

'Yeah,' Bakker says.

'Totally eliminate it, kills it. Deactivates it,' Sellman replies, according to the lawsuit.

Also in March 2020, US regulators warned Bakker's company and six others to stop selling items using what the government called false claims that they could treat the coronavirus or keep people from catching it.

Letters sent jointly by the Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission warned the companies that their products for treating COVID-19 were fraudulent, 'pose significant risks to patient health and violate federal law.'

Nixon said Bakker immediately complied with orders to stop offering Silver Solution on his show and ministry website after receiving the warning letters from the FDA and FTC.

Meanwhile, Arkansas' attorney general filed a lawsuit similar to Missouri's in June 2020.

That case is still pending.

Bakker gained notoriety in the late 1980s and 1990s as a result of his trial and financial fraud conviction relating to Heritage USA, his TV studio, Christian-oriented theme park and water park attraction with shopping, hotels and condominiums in Fort Mill, South Carolina.

After serving five years in federal prison, he shifted from preaching the prosperity gospel to an apocalyptic end-times message.
Donald Trump said that Vice President Kamala Harris would not have finally scheduled a trip to the U.S.-Mexico border on Friday unless he announced his own trip there next week.

'After months of ignoring the crisis at the Southern Border, it is great that we got Kamala Harris to finally go and see the tremendous destruction and death that they've createda direct result of Biden ending my very tough but fair Border policies,' Trump celebrated in a statement from his Save America political action committee email on Wednesday.

'Harris and Biden were given the strongest Border in American history. And now, it is by far the worst in American history,' he continued. 'If Governor Abbott and I weren't going there next week, she would have never gone!'

Harris announced Wednesday that she will head to the border after 90 days of criticism from Republicans and Democrats over her handling of the crisis, a bungled trip to the Northern Triangle and five straight months of increases in migrant crossings.

The White House announcement came eight days after Trump announced he accepted Texas Governor Greg Abbott's invitation to survey the southern border the Lone Star State shares with Mexico  and where the majority of encounters occur.

Vice President Kamala Harris is heading to the U.S.-Mexico border on Friday

Immigrants walk toward border patrol after crossing the Rio Grande into the U.S. on Monday

Former President Donald Trump will visit Texas next Wednesday alongside Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and GOP House members

President Joe Biden put Harris in charge of dealing with the root causes of the migration crisis, which quickly turned her into the person to blame for the spike in migrants coming into the U.S.

Harris will make a trip to the border in El Paso, Texas alongside Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, her office announced Wednesday.

The vice president will beat Trump to the region by five days.

But just two days ahead of the trip, 21 House Republicans, led by Colorado's Lauren Boebert, introduced a bill to censure Biden over his failure to secure the U.S. border in his more than five months as president.

'President Biden passed the buck to cackling Kamala, when he tapped Ms. Harris as border czar. Her work on the border is nonexistence, it's a joke  and even she laughs. But it's not funny,' Republican Congresswoman Lauren Boebert said in announcing the censure on Wednesday.

'This administration has not lifted a finger to end this crisis and secure our southern border,' she continued. 'They must be held accountable.

He claimed in a statement Wednesday that Harris is only giving into pressure to visit the border now because he announced his own impending trip.

About a dozen members of the Republican Study Committee, the largest group of House Republicans, will also join Trump on the trip, Politico reported.

Representative Jim Banks, the head of the Republican Study Group and a lawmaker joining Trump in Texas said: 'The dual trips offer a great split-screen.'

'President Trump is the greatest immigration president of our lifetime who devoted four years to fixing the border to protect Americans' lives and livelihoods,' he wrote in a Wednesday statement. 'Kamala Harris is the border czar for an administration that created a national embarrassment and has taken no effort to stop it.'

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters during a briefing Wednesday that the trip is part of a 'coordinated effort' to address 'root causes' of mass migration from Northern Triangle countries to the U.S.

'Earlier this year, as you all know, the president asked the vice president to oversee our diplomatic efforts to address the root causes of migration from El Salvador, to Guatemala and Honduras and as a part of this work she recently traveled to Guatemala and Mexico last month. This trip to the border on Friday will be a part of this effort,' Psaki said.

She also reiterated previous comments where she and Harris have both said that the vice president would make a trip to the border when the timing was 'appropriate.'

A migrant family seeking asylum arrives on U.S. soil after crossing the Rio Grande on June 19, 2021 in Roma, Texas

Harris' senior advisor and Chief Spokesperson Symone Sanders said in a statement on the visit: 'Vice President Harris will travel to El Paso, Texas on Friday, June 25,' 'She will be accompanied by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.'

'Vice President Harris will travel to El Paso, Texas on Friday, June 25,' Harris' senior advisor and Chief Spokesperson Symone Sanders said in a statement on the visit on Wednesday. 'She will be accompanied by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.'

'Earlier this year, the President asked the Vice President to oversee our diplomatic efforts to address the root causes of migration from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras,' she continued. 'As a part of this ongoing work, the Vice President traveled to Guatemala and Mexico earlier this month and will travel to El Paso on Friday.'



Republicans have slammed Harris for not making the trip yet.

'It reminds me of that old show, 'Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?' She'll go everywhere except the border because she's afraid of what's going on down there, and they have no solutions,' Republican Sen. Ted Cruz told Fox & Friends.

Harris took her first trip abroad earlier this month to Guatemala and Mexico to meet with government and community leaders about the migrants flowing into the U.S.

In an interview with NBC's Lester Holt from Guatemala, Harris was asked why she hadn't visited the border. 'Why not see what Americans are seeing in this crisis?' the newsman asked.

She first answered that why there's 'no question' about the White House having to deal with what's happening at the border 'we have to understand that there's a reason people are arriving at our border and ask what is that reason and then identify the problem so we can fix it.'

This chart shows how 2021 border crossings - pictured in blue - rocketed on crossings made in 2020, represented by the brown line (2018 is pictured in gray, with 2019 in orange)

This graph shows the number of migrants caught by the Office of Field Operation (OFO) and US Border Patrol agents in April and May

Holt then asked if Harris had any plans to visit the border.

'At some point, you know, we are going to the border. We've been to the border. So this whole thing about the border, we've been to the border. We've been to the border,' she responded.

Holt pointed out, 'You haven't been to the border.'

'And I haven't been to Europe,' the vice president said. 'And I mean, I don't understand the point that you're making. I'm not discounting the importance of the border.'

The response was widely panned.

Harris later snapped at Univision reporter Ilia Calderon, the day after she returned from the trip, telling her 'I've not finished,' as Calderon pressed when there might be a border trip.

Harris has been given seven roles in Biden's administration  including the border crisis

'I've said I'm going to the border. And also, if we are going to deal with the problems at the border, we have to deal with the problems that cause people to go to the border - to flee to the border. And that is the root causes,' Harris said, justifying her first foreign trip being to Guatemala and Mexico.

Biden has loaded Harris down with seven jobs - including running point on migration.

On Monday, Harris was tasked with selling Biden's Child Tax Credit, with a trip to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

In early June, the vice president received her fifth and sixth jobs, as the president asked her to go on a vaccine education tour and handle the administration's efforts to protect voting rights.

Harris was on Capitol Hill Tuesday and presided over Senate Democrats' failed vote to start debate on a voting rights measure.

Migrant embrace relatives in 'Hugs, No Walls' at the border between El Paso, Texas and Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico on June 19, 2021

She's also handling the issues of broadband and space and also leading a pro-union taskforce that would take a 'whole-of-government approach to empower workers.'

In late March, Biden announced he had tapped Harris to lead the effort to stem migration coming from the Northern Triangle countries - El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras - and up through Mexico.

Harris, he said, 'agreed to lead our diplomatic effort to work with those nations.'

Very quickly Harris became a target for Republicans as border crossings soared and she didn't travel to the border to see the conditions on the ground.

In mid-April, Psaki said the 'confusion' surrounding Harris' role with the migrant crisis is 'perplexing,' arguing immigration policy has never been a 'one-woman' job.

Psaki also pointed out that Biden, as vice president, had essentially played the same role during the Obama years.

Migrant children are being kept in Biden's border camps for up to 60 DAYS, are 'sad every day' and have limited access to showers and cooked meals, lawsuit claim

Migrant children housed in U.S. pop-up shelters reported overcrowding and long stay times, spoiled or undercooked food and lack of access to showers or clean clothes, according to testimonials filed in court Monday.

Seventeen minor migrants shared accounts with lawyers of their time in emergency shelters after crossing into the U.S. unaccompanied by adults. Some reported depression while others described trouble sleeping with round-the-clock bright lights.

A 13-year-old girl from Honduras wrote that she was placed on the suicide watch list at a shelter in El Paso, Texas set up at Fort Bliss. As of June 4, the girl spent nearly two months at the facility after being separated from her father when crossing a river into the U.S.

'The food here is horrible,' she wrote. 'Yesterday we were given hamburgers but I couldn't eat it because there was a foul odor coming from the bread.'

'I really only eat popsicles and juice because that is the only food that I can trust.'

Migrant children in emergency holding facilities, including a massive one at Fort Bliss in Texas, detailed deplorable living conditions including spoiled or undercooked food in testimonials as part of a court filing Monday

Demonstrators outside Fort Bliss on June 8 demand the children be let out of the facilities as more details emerge of long stay times  sometimes exceeding several months  and limited communication with family

The shocking declarations come as hundreds of illegal crossers continue to flow over the southern border from Mexico. Here migrants board a bus oJune 21 to be taken to a processing facility after crossing the Rio Grande into the U.S.

Joe Biden's administration promised in March that migrant families won't spend more than 72 hours in U.S. facilities, but unaccompanied minors, on the other hand, shared declarations of months inside emergency shelters in deplorable conditions.

Several claim they have been at the shelters for 60 days or longer.

Lawyers were given access to speak with children in these facilities as they monitor government compliance with the Flores Settlement  a 1997 agreement governing conditions for which detained immigrant children can be kept.

The team of attorneys have interviewed children and conducted site visits at the emergency shelters, which were originally intended for short stays.

'Every day, I feel really sad. I keep seeing other kids leave,' a 16-year-old from Guatemala being housed at a facility in Pecos, Texas said in a declaration filed Monday.

She has been at the site for 62 days waiting for reunification with her uncle in Maryland.

'There are some other kids who have been here for about the same time as me, and there is just a lot of sadness among us,' she said in a testimonial on her time in an emergency facility.

One Houston site set up by the National Association of Christian Churches was abruptly closed shortly before attorneys were set to visit. More than a dozen girls who were at the site were relocated upon its closure

One 17-year-old girl from Honduras wrote: 'The food was horrible. There was chicken that was boiled and when we opened the chicken it was raw inside.' They also detailed fainting spells, lack of clean clothes and restrictions from using the bathroom after 10 p.m.

The Biden administration has sped up processing in Border Patrol detention facilities, more quickly transferring children to Health and Human Services facilities, where there is staff and resources better equipped to deal with the housing the children and working on reunifying them with family.

The children, however, have detailed conditions that are just as bad as when they were being held in detention facilities along the border.

There were nearly 14,500 children in HHS custody as of Sunday, down from the 22,000 in late April. Several hundreds of these nine through 17-year-old children have spent 60 days or more in the department's emergency intake sites, according to the Monday court filing.

Most children in custody are from Northern Triangle countries  Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador.

Children generally reported in their testimonials that they were only permitted outdoor recreation for 'as little as one hour daily.'

They also reported little to no privacy, limited calls to family and extreme boredom to the point of sleeping during the day to pass the time.

The Military built six large tents at For Bliss in El Paso, Texas to house migrant children

Testimonials from some children detail that they are only permitted outdoor recreation for 'as little as one hour daily'

One Houston site, set up by the National Association of Christian Churches, was abruptly closed shortly before attorneys were set to visit, according to National Center for Youth Law immigration director Neha Desai.

More than a dozen girls who were at the site were relocated upon its closure.

One 17-year-old girl from Honduras wrote in her declaration: 'The food was horrible. There was chicken that was boiled and when we opened the chicken it was raw inside.'

The girls also detailed in testimonials to lawyers that they had fainting spells, inadequate food, lack of clean clothes and restrictions from using the bathroom after 10 p.m.

'During the day and night, we were told that we had to stay on our beds and could only get up to go to the bathroom and to shower' a 17-year-old El Salvadorian girl described. 'We had to eat on our beds because there was no other place to eat.'

She also said she had to wear the same clothes for 15 days and described staff members directing them 'to wear the same underwear and just turn it inside out, because there wasn't any laundry to clean our clothes.'

A border patrol officers processes a young man and child on June 21, 2021 after they crossed into the U.S. illegally

Migrant families wait in La Joya, Texas to be taken to border patrol processing facilities

A migrant mother and her son board a border patrol bus to be taken to a processing facility on June 21

Another 17-year-old Guatemalan girl at the Fort Bliss emergency facility said in a declaration dated April 28 that she sleeps on a stacked cot in extreme close quarters under a large white tent with about 300 other girls.

She detailed sleeping difficulties due to rattling noises from the tent's metal beams and said the tents are cold at night and filled with dirt.

'A lot of the girls here cry a lot,' she said. 'A lot of them end up having to talk to someone because they have thoughts of cutting themselves.'

The testimonials offer a deeper look into the conditions of emergency shelters set up by Biden's administration to deal with the continuing migration crisis at the southern border.

Since the start of his administration, there has been a sharp influx of migrants crossing illegally into the U.S.  in particular unaccompanied minors, who Biden promised not to turn away at the border.

In May, U.S. Customs and Border Protection encountered 180,034 illegal crossers at the southern border, the most of any month so far and an uptick from the previous high of 178,854 who were encountered in April.

In recent months, children have been more swiftly removed from CBP custody into these emergency shelters in an effort to more quickly reconnect them with family members or others in the U.S.
Joel Davis was sentenced to 13 years in prison on Tuesday for 'enticing a child to engage in illegal sexual activity,' and possession and distribution of child pornography charges. He is seen here taking a selfie for his Instagram

The founder of an organization dedicated to ending child sex abuse has been sentenced to 13 years in prison on child rape and child pornography charges.

Joel Davis, 25, was convicted of 'enticing a child to engage in illegal sexual activity,' possession and distribution of child pornography, US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Audrey Strauss announced on Tuesday.

He is set to spend the first five years following his prison sentence on 'supervised release.'

Davis, who had founded the nonprofit Youth to End Sexual Violence in 2014, had previously pleaded guilty to the rape and pornography charges.

In his plea Davis 'admitted to engaging in the very abhorrent behavior he had pledged to fight,' Strauss said.

'Davis, who also claims to be a Nobel Prize nominee for his work with his organization, engaged in sex acts with a minor, recording them and distributing that recording to others - including an undercover FBI agent.

'Sex with minors is obviously never permissible, acceptable or justifiable,' she continued, 'and by virtue of his nonprofit work, Joel Davis was acutely aware of the irreparable harm these crimes inflict on victims.'

Davis had previously said he had been sexually assaulted as a child and spoke about the psychological impact it had in a 2017 op-ed for the Columbia Spectator

Davis has previously claimed to be a child sexual abuse victim himself, writing in a 2017 op-ed for the Columbia Spectator about the psychological damage it inflicted on him.

He wrote that when he had learned he was nominated for a Nobel Prize for his work with the Youth to End Sexual Violence organization, he had to take a break from the Columbia University School of General Studies, where he majored in Ancient Studies.

'It was another year before I attended my first class,' Davis wrote at the time. 'Without having established any roots, I returned to Columbia unnerved.

'Those of us who have experienced such trials usually have gravitated toward people like us for support, validation and collective identity,' he explained, 'but because the indicators of trauma are invisible, we're often forced to cope with its psychological shadow alone.'

Prior to the arrest, he was a featured speaker at a Columbia University Ted Talk

Davis founded the nonprofit Youth to End Sexual Violence in 2014

Just one year later, though, the Federal Bureau of Investigation began investigating Davis, after he answered an advertisement officials posted on a fetish website with the username 'yngperv22.'

He then began talking to an undercover FBI agent, authorities report, sending him explicit images of infants and toddlers engaged in sexual acts with adults, and telling him he was interested in children '0+,' Buzzfeed News reported at the time.

He was also alleged to have told the undercover agent he once tried to have sex with a seven-year-old boy, but ultimately didn't, but had once sexually assaulted a three-year-old girl.

The 2018 indictment claimed Davis then asked the undercover agent to set up his nine-year-old daughter with the agent's purported girlfriend's two-year-old daughter and take sexually explicit pictures of them.

In June 2018, officials said, he used a dating application on his phone to entice a 15-year-old boy to engage in sexual activity with him at his Manhattan apartment, and used the phone to film part of the encounter, which he then sent to at least two others - including the undercover FBI agent.

By the time he was arrested on June 26, 2018, officials said he had more than 3,700 images and more than 330 videos of child pornography including 'numerous' images of prepubescent minors under the age of 12, which he received and distributed to others.

'Having started an organization that pushed for the end of sexual violence, Davis displayed the highest degree of hypocrisy by his alleged attempts to sexually exploit multiple minors,' FBI Assistant Director in Charge William F. Sweeney Jr. said in a statement at the time.

Davis pleaded guilty to the charges in January 2020.
A senior Met Police chief today became the latest to reject the findings of a damning report into the force's handling of the unsolved murder of Daniel Morgan.

Deputy Commissioner Sir Stephen House continued the force's bullish stance in the wake of the report, telling London Assembly members he 'did not accept' accusations of institutional corruption leveled at Scotland Yard.

He did, however, admit the force could at times be 'overly defensive' in the face of criticism of its work.

It comes after the report - into the Met's handling of Morgan's 1987 unsolved murder - found that the force had concealed or denied failings in the case to protect its reputation.

It said this was 'dishonesty on the part of the organisation for reputational benefit and constitutes a form of institutional corruption'.

In the wake of the report both Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick and Assistant Commissioner Nick Ephgrave rejected the stinging accusation. Now Sir Stephen is the latest senior Met figure to speak out.

Speaking to the London Assembly Police and Crime Committee: 'The National Police Chiefs' Council defines corruption as the improper exercise of power or privilege for the purpose of achieving a personal benefit or a benefit or detriment for another person.

Deputy Commissioner Sir Stephen House (pictured left) continued the force's bullish stance in the wake of the report into the Met's handling of the unsolved murder of Peter Morgan (pictured right)

In the wake of the report both Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick (pictured) and Assistant Commissioner Nick Ephgrave rejected the stinging accusation

The report that shames the Met: Key findings from eight-year, 16million inquiry into murder of Daniel Morgan The report criticised 'dishonesty' by the Metropolitan Police for 'reputation benefit' which it said 'constitutes a form of institutional corruption'

The police's handling of the murder scene in 1987 was 'totally inadequate' as it was not secured and was left unguarded;

Alibis were not sought for all suspects, search warrants were 'seriously inadequate' and many opportunities lost were not retrievable;

Evidence of a culture within the Met at the time which allowed 'very close association' between police officers and 'individuals linked to crime' which included them drinking in pubs together;

Officers who were involved in 'lucrative corrupt practices' such as selling confidential details may have been concerned by indications that Mr Morgan was going to report corruption;

Some ten officers involved in the police investigations were Freemasons, which had aroused suspicions of conflicting loyalties;

Mr Morgan's family 'suffered grievously' because of the failure to bring his murderer or murderers to justice, 'misinformation' and a 'denial of the failings' in the investigations;

A later probe by an external force, Hampshire, was found to have been compromised by the inclusion of a senior Met officer on the team

Also criticised the Met for then Assistant Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick's initial refusal to grant access to a police internal data system called HOLMES and the most sensitive information; Advertisement

'The Metropolitan Police Service does not accept that we are institutionally corrupt in this way.

'We don't accept that we don't have the necessary framework to identify and bring to book those who abuse the privilege of wearing a police uniform.

'And we don't accept that corruption followed this case throughout the decades that we've been trying to find the offenders.'

However, he admitted that 'occasionally we may be overly defensive' and said the force could do more to explain what it does and why.

Father-of-two Mr Morgan was murdered with an axe in the car park of the Golden Lion pub in Sydenham, south-east London, on March 10 1987.

Despite a string of police investigations and an inquest no-one has been brought to justice for his murder or for alleged corruption.

The report criticised the initial woefully inadequate inquiry, which saw the murder scene unsearched and left unguarded, and said that corruption had continued beyond the first investigation.

Sir Stephen said: 'We accept and we deeply regret that corruption played a major part in the failure of the first investigation into Daniel Morgan's murder.

'It's quite clear that the acts of individual police officers undermined the investigation.

'As a senior police officer of 37 years' service I deeply, deeply regret that. It's a source of anger and sadness for all right-thinking police officers.'

Mr Morgan's brother, Alastair, who has campaigned for justice for his brother for decades, said on Tuesday that he has still not received a written apology from Dame Cressida.

Sir Stephen told the committee: 'It's quite clear that our failings compounded the pain suffered by Daniel Morgan's family. For this we profoundly apologise.

'As the Commissioner has said, we recognised that the family has shown incredible grit, determination and courage over the years since the terrible murder.

'I hope the report provides the family with some of the answers to questions that have arisen over the past 34 years.

'I know from speaking to her yesterday that the Commissioner will shortly be writing directly to the Morgan family to set out the next steps that we as an organisation will be taking.'

Mr Morgan was killed with an axe outside the Golden Lion pub in Sydenham, south London

Alastair Morgan (right), the brother of murdered private investigator Daniel Morgan, with his family solicitor Raju Bhatt (centre) speaking to the media following the publication of the report

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Barbara Grey has been appointed to lead the Met's response to the report.

The force is carrying out a forensic review of the case and Sir Stephen insisted that there may be a chance 'however remote' of solving the killing.

The report recommended that the Met ask a handwriting expert to examine a diary found in Mr Morgan's desk to ensure that written entries were made by him.

It also said that the force should take DNA from relatives of a late police officer identified only as Z31, to compare with samples found on the handle of the axe used to murder Mr Morgan.

It comes as a private detective who was a prime suspect during inquiries into the murder of former business partner Morgan has denied allegations that Metropolitan Police corruption hindered its inquiries.

In a bombshell report, an independent panel last week found that Jonathan Rees drank in pubs with officers close to the investigation even after he became a suspect.

In a bombshell report, an independent panel last week found that Jonathan Rees drank in pubs with officers close to the investigation even after he became a suspect

Though it said it had not found enough evidence to prove police involvement in Mr Morgan's death, it said five inquiries into the murder were all flawed or compromised by police corruption.

Speaking to the BBC, Mr Rees said he did not consider exchanging information with police as being corrupt. He also denied involvement in the murder, calling Mr Morgan 'my friend' and saying that the death of his former business partner had caused him 'financial and business grief'.

Mr Rees and Mr Morgan ran a small private investigation agency, Southern Investigations, in the 1980s. Mr Rees concentrated on investigations for defence lawyers, while Mr Morgan specialised as a bailiff and debt collector.

According to the report, police became suspicious after seeing Mr Rees's 'extremely nervous' behaviour on the night of the murder. An inquest witness later alleged he had been told that Mr Rees had paid to have Mr Morgan murdered because the partners had fallen out over the running of the business.

When asked by the BBC if he had killed Mr Morgan, Mr Rees replied: 'No. For what motive? Danny was my friend... he taught me a lot and earned the firm a lot of money. It was a partnership.

'And so the more he brings in, the more I bring in, the more profits we get to share at the end of the year. And it worked well. So him dying caused me a massive amount of grief, financially and business-wise, because the partnership ceased to exist.'
Bosses at Ipswich Museum have ordered a review into 'problematic' artefacts in the hope of 'improving diversity'.

Staff at the venue, in Suffolk, have already labelled some of its artefacts as being 'of questionable provenance' and will now re-examine how it acquired some of its exhibits.

A newly approved plan promises new research into the history of the artefacts it holds, along with a re-examination of how came to possess them.

The document is also said to acknowledge that the people who visit the museum do not reflect the local 'diverse' demographic.

Ipswich Museum holds objects from around the world and its collections cover both human and natural history.

The review comes amid a wider national debate on Britain's colonial past.

It was sparked by the Black Lives Matter protests last year, which saw the toppling of 18th century slave trader Edward Colston in Bristol.

Staff at Ipswich Museum - which is one of six sites run by the Colchester and Ipswich Museums Service - are said to have already identified some artefacts of 'questionable provenance'.

Bosses at Ipswich Museum have ordered a review into 'problematic' artefacts in the hope of 'improving diversity'

Staff at Ipswich Museum - which is one of six sites run by the Colchester and Ipswich Museums Service - are said to have already identified some artefacts of 'questionable provenance'. Pictured: Artefacts from Nigeria which are on display at Ipswich Museum

The institution's review was approved by the join museums committee of Ipswich and Colchester borough councils, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The review will also involve the Norman-era Colchester Castle and the nearby Hollytrees Museum, which is based at an 18th century house.

Ipswich Art Gallery and the museum Christchurch Mansion, which is based in a country home dating from the Tudor period, is also included.

Frank Hargrave, Colchester and Ipswich Museums manager, said: 'It is about better engagement and improving diversity.

The gold death mask which was made for Roman citizen Titus Flavius Demetrius, who died in Egypt between AD 80-120. The mask is on display at Ipswich Museum. The mask was excavated by archaeologist Flinders Petrie at Hawara in Egypt in 1888

On Colchester and Ipswich Museums' website, a message apologises for some of the 'historic terminology' used on its database

'It's not about being unnecessarily provocative, it's about finding long term solutions and working with people to find solutions without being tokenistic or overly antagonistic.

'It is not about taking stories away or hiding things - we will be looking at the holdings of human remains and religious artefacts, as well as those acquired by those with imperial agendas of their time such as colonial officers, expedition captains and missionaries.'

On Colchester and Ipswich Museums' website, a message apologises for some of the 'historic terminology' used on its database.

It says: 'Historic terminology for cataloguing objects and belongings are recorded on this database and some of the language is discriminatory, offensive and upsetting.

'We keep the historic terminology to allow us to see how people in the past perceived the world around them.

'We are working towards ensuring voices other than the Museums are reflected in the database.'

Ipswich Museum holds objects from around the world and its collections cover both human and natural history

Earlier this month, the statue of slave trader Colston which was torn down in Bristol last year was put on display in the city.

It is now shown lying flat at the M Shed museum, alongside placards from the original protest and a timeline of events.

Art critic Alastair Sooke branded the public display a 'partisan act'.

He said: 'Dredged from the riverbed, Colston's effigy has been kept out of sight in storage, like a disgraced celebrity awaiting trial. Colston lies flat, overturned like a vanquished chess piece.

'Presented alongside BLM placards, he's still covered with graffiti, too. According to the authorities, the display is only temporary, designed to canvas public opinion about what should happen to the statue.

'Moreover, it would, they say, be too costly for now to stand Colston upright again safely - hence, his supine position.

'But that strikes me as mealy-mouthed. Let's not pretend that presenting the statue horizontally is impartial, when, really, it's a partisan act,' he told the Telegraph.

The bronze memorial to the 17th century merchant had stood in the city since 1895, but was pulled from its plinth during the demonstration on June 7 last year.

It was damaged as it was dragged through the city to the harbourside, where it was thrown in the water at Pero's Bridge, which is named in honour of enslaved man Pero Jones who lived and died in the city.

Days later, the statue was recovered from the water by Bristol City Council.
Spain's National Court has approved the extradition of detained antivirus software entrepreneur John McAfee to the United States, where he is wanted on tax-related criminal charges that carry a prison sentence of up to 30 years.

The decision can be appealed and the final extradition will need to be approved by the Spanish Cabinet.

Tennessee prosecutors charged 75-year-old McAfee with evading taxes after failing to report income made from promoting cryptocurrencies while he did consultancy work, as well as income from speaking engagements and selling the rights to his life story for a documentary.

The charges refer to the three fiscal years from 2016 to 2018, according to the Spanish court's ruling on Wednesday.

John McAfee appears via videoconference during his extradition hearing at Audiencia Nacional court, in Madrid, Spain earlier this month

McAfee is seen in Cuba in 2019. Spain has approved his extradition to the US on tax charges, which he argues are politically motivated

The entrepreneur was arrested last October at Barcelona's international airport. A judge ordered at that time that McAfee should be held in jail while awaiting the outcome of a hearing on extradition.

McAfee's wife Janice said in a statement on Sunday that he had been targeted by prosecutors 'for speaking out against the corruption within their government agencies.'

'These eight months John has spent in prison in Spain have been especially hard on his overall health both mentally and physically, as well as financially, but he is undeterred from continuing to speak truth to power,' she added.

In a hearing held via videolink earlier this month, McAfee also argued that the charges against him were politically motivated and said he would spend the rest of his life in prison if he was returned to the U.S.

McAfee linked the charges filed by the Internal Revenue Service to his failed bid to run as a Libertarian Party candidate in the 2020 U.S. presidential election, a second such attempt.

A view of the courtroom during the extradition hearing of John McAfee (not pictured), in Madrid earlier this month.

Spain's National Court has approved the extradition of detained antivirus software entrepreneur John McAfee to the United States

'In late 2018, I announced I would run again and I also announced I would target the IRS and its corruption and two months later the IRS filed charged against me,' he told the Spanish High Court during the first hearing of his extradition trial.

'I believe the charges are politically motivated.'

McAfee added that that given his age, almost 76, he would spend the rest of his life in jail if he were to be convicted in the United States.

'I am hoping that the Spanish court will see the injustice of this,' he said, adding 'the United States wants to use me as an example.'

In Washington, the IRS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Spanish prosecutor, Carlos Bautista, dismissed the claim of political motivations, insisting the Libertarian Party rarely gains more than 1 percent of votes in U.S. elections.

'He is a tax rebel, nothing else. A millionaire who doesn't want to pay taxes,' Bautista said. 'He will benefit from all guarantees of due process.'

In a prior arrest in Norway, McAfee was cited for refusing to wear a medical mask at an airport when he used one made from a thong instead

McAfee was arrested at Barcelona airport in early October when he was about to board a flight to Istanbul with a British passport.

U.S. federal prosecutors unsealed an indictment in October against McAfee over charges that he evaded taxes and wilfully failed to file returns.

That came shortly after the Securities and Exchange Commission revealed it had brought civil charges against McAfee, alleging he made over $23.1 million in undisclosed income from false and misleading cryptocurrency recommendations.

The Spanish prosecutor said McAfee could be extradited, but only to face charges related to his tax returns of 2016, 2017 and 2018.

US authorities also accused McAfee and his bodyguard, Jimmy Gale Watson Jr., of exploiting McAfee's large Twitter following to artificially inflate prices of obscure cryptocurrencies through a so-called pump-and-dump scheme, and concealing payments McAfee received from startup businesses to promote initial coin offerings.

The Justice Department said McAfee and his accomplices reaped more than $13 million from the schemes. The charges were brought in Manhattan federal court.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission filed related civil charges concerning the alleged pump-and-dump scheme.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said in a statement: 'As alleged, McAfee and Watson exploited a widely used social media platform and enthusiasm among investors in the emerging cryptocurrency market to make millions through lies and deception.'

Lawyers for McAfee could not immediately be identified. McAfee is being detained in Spain following his arrest there on tax evasion charges announced in October, the Justice Department said.

Watson was arrested in Texas in October. He has since pleaded not guilty and is on pretrial release.

Watson's attorney Arnold Spencer said in a statement: 'Jimmy Watson is a decorated veteran and former Navy Seal. He fought for other people's rights and liberties, and he is entitled to and looks forward to his day in court to exercise some of those very rights.'
A drunk passenger who had to be locked in a plane toilet after fighting with female cabin crew and shouting sectarian slurs at an Irish couple on a Jet2 flight from Glasgow was jailed today for 20 months.

David Lauriston, 39, addressed an Irish couple as 'Fenian b***ards' during the journey to Bodrum in Turkey and made punching motions before violently turning on three air hostesses who intervened.

Flight attendant Nicola McDonagh was poked in the face and shoulder as she tried to calm Lauriston, who had been drinking heavily ahead of the flight.

Lauriston threatened to bite her colleague Debra Watson, poking her ten times in the face and making a growling motion towards her.

He then needed to go to the toilet with staff locking him inside. The passenger was later released and placed in restraints when he began kicking at the door and trying to smash the window.

As he struggled violently to free himself from the restraints, the pilot diverted to Manchester Airport where police were waiting to arrest Lauriston.

At Manchester Crown Court, Lauriston, of South Lanarkshire, Scotland, admitted assault and being drunk on an aircraft. He was sentenced to 20 months in prison.

David Lauriston (pictured left and right), 39, violently turning on three air hostesses who intervened during the flight to Turkey. At Manchester Crown Court, he admitted assault and being drunk on an aircraft and was sentenced to 20 months in prison

In a statement, Ms Watson, who suffered bruising to her leg and arm during the incident, said: 'I've been in the industry 15 years and I have considerable experience dealing with difficult passengers, but this incident was by far the worst.

'I've never experienced this level of violence towards me and others. I've never had to use restraining tactics before. I hope this male understands the level of fear that he caused to me, the crew and passengers.

'As the crew manager, I feel compelled to keep the crew safe at all times. It left me questioning my future. I returned home last night with my family very distressed, specifically because of the flight.

'All member of staff were put on leave by Jet2.com. I'm unsure whether I will return to flying. It's been really hanging over my head. I will never forget the crying children and the frightened look on passengers faces.'

Ms McDonagh added: 'This is the worst experience I have ever had. I feel that the behaviour of the accused was inexcusable. I have never had to physically restrain a passenger.

'This incident will stay with me and affect how I deal with people in the future.'

And a third flight attendant, Bethany Amour, said: 'I have worked as cabin crew for the last five years. I have never had to experience such vile behaviour towards me, passengers and crew.

'I have never been kicked or spat at for just doing my job. I am proud of how me and the crew dealt with it. It was a traumatic experience.'

The incident occurred just 30 minutes into the 3.40pm flight on September 21 last year.

Prosecutor Ms Megan Tollit said: 'There were 165 passengers on the flight including young children. The cabin crew started the inflight meal service but a number of passengers described seeing the defendant sitting at the back towards the rear of the plane and raising his voice towards other passengers.

As Lauriston (above) struggled violently to free himself from the restraints, the pilot diverted to Manchester Airport where police were waiting to arrest him

'He was verbally abusive towards an Irish couple. Passengers described him shouting that the people were "Fenians" and "Fenian b***ards."

'Staff intervened trying to direct him back to his seat and were trying to calm him down but he attempted to push past. Nicola McDonagh described him repeatedly poking her in the face and pushing her shoulder.

'Debra Watson also intervened and says the defendant appeared to be under the influence of alcohol. He was making punching actions towards passengers and she put one hand on his shoulder and used the other to restrain him behind his back.

'She directed him to the rear of the plane but when she let go of the defendant's arm, he took a mobile phone from his back pocket and pushed it into her face. He was jabbing her forehead with his right hand and described being poked in the face by him about ten times.'

Ms Tollit continued: 'The defendant said: "You are a f***ing f****t! Do you support Jimmy Savile?" He threatened to bite Debra Watson and made a growling motion towards her and the cabin crew and the captain prepared to divert the plane to Manchester Airport.

'The defendant said that he needed to use the toilet and while inside, staff made the decision to try to lock him in the toilet area. But he started kicking the bottom of the toiled door and kicking at the window and staff then cleared three seats to the back of the plane. They opened the door and directed him towards the seats.

'He continued to be abusive towards staff. He called them 's***s' and 'cows'. They had to physically restrain him using restraining straps. He then grabbed Debra Watson neck scarf and pulled it down. He punched the right-hand side of Mrs Watson's face and she described him making contact with her nose.'

The prosecutor added that Ms Watson was left with bruising to her right hand, the top of her right forearm and upper leg.

One passenger, Mary Knight, later told police: 'This experience totally traumatized me. It made me stay in my hotel and completely avoid experiencing the wonders of Turkey. I still have nightmares.'

Sentencing Lauriston, Judge Hilary Manley told him: 'Passengers were terrified, in particular children and ultimately, you had to be restrained' (file photo of Manchester Crown Court)

Pilot Steve Anderson added: 'There were complications with diverting and landing a fuel-laden plane. There was a real risk to the safety of the aircraft.'

The court heard the total costs to Jet2 for diverting the aircraft was 7611. Lauriston later claimed he had been drinking on the plane when he a fellow passenger he shared alcohol with began making suggestive comments towards him and he subsequently 'blacked out.'

Lauriston said he remembered nothing of the incident, later adding: 'I feel disgusted with myself. I am sorry, and I would like to apologise to all concerned. I need help with my alcohol and mental health issues.'

In a letter addressed to Jet2 staff, he wrote: 'I am writing this letter to say how sorry I am to all the crew members, staff and passengers that I caused distress and alarm.

'My mental health had deteriorated. I know it's no excuse, but I offer my deepest apologies to all.'

In mitigation, defence counsel Martin Callery said: 'There was no doubt this man was very, very drunk indeed and there is absolutely no doubt he was very, very aggressive towards cabins staff and others.

'There is absolutely no doubt that he was abusive. He recognizes that his behaviour was abominable. He recognizes that his behaviour was disgraceful. He is deeply ashamed of the way he has behaved.'

Sentencing Lauriston, Judge Hilary Manley told him: 'Passengers were terrified, in particular children and ultimately, you had to be restrained. You kicked and spat at staff causing bruising. You assaulted a third crew member, kicked a window and smashed a tray table.

'Because of your behaviour, the captain had no choice but to divert the aircraft to Manchester Airport. Your behaviour caused those on the aircraft to be endangered, the aircraft having to land when there was far more fuel on board than was intended for landing. This was made worse because of the pandemic.

'You say that you need help with your mental health difficulties, and say that you are sorry. But what you did caused much more than distress and alarm. You caused real terror.

'People need to understand that if they behave like this on an aircraft, they will go to prison.'
Donald Trump's relationship with Jared Kushner has started to sour according to a Wednesday report that reveals the former president is jealous of his son-in-law's book deal and is worried he will take credit for his accomplishments.

'He's always been suspicious of Jared,' a source told CNN.

The source noted that Trump has previously discounted Kushner's role during his administration  especially in regards to some key policies like with criminal justice reforms and the Middle East peace deals.

'It is not a secret President Trump doesn't like when he thinks other people are getting attention for something he feels he has facilitated,' a former Trump White House official said. 'There's a sweet spot between saying nothing about work you did and saying too much that everyone has to find -- or else he gets triggered.'

Kushner, 40, is married to Trump's eldest daughter Ivanka Trump, 39. The couple has three children together, Arabella, 9, Joseph, 7, and Theodore, 5.

New reports show that Donald Trump's view toward son-in-law Jared Kusher (right) is souring. Kushner and wife Ivanka Trump (left) take a way in Miami on June 12, 2021

Trump, according to sources, is jealous of Kushner's 'seven-figure book deal' and is worried he could take credit for his accomplishments. The former president leaves Trump Towter in New York City on Tuesday

After Trump left office January 20, 2021, Jared and Ivanka moved into a condo in Miami after purchasing a $30 million-plus lot of land on Indian Creek Island.

The former president has questioned whether Kushner really 'accomplished peace in the Middle East after all', according to two people familiar with conversations Trump had at his Bedminster, New Jersey resort since arriving in May.

He specifically started questioning Kushner's work in that region after tensions between Israel and Hamas spiked into violent airstrikes last month.

The sources also claim that Trump has expressed jealousy about Kushner landing a 'seven-figure book deal' with Broadside Books, which is the conservative wing of the publisher HarperCollins.

Trump has yet to announce a book deal of his own, but has worked with several journalists on their books about his presidency.

Trump also questions whether Kushner really acheived peace in the Middle East, according to the report. Ivanka and Jared walk with children Arabella, 9, (left), Joseph, 7, (center right) and Theodore, 5 (right) as they ride their bikes

One person who spoke with Trump recently told CNN that Trump is worried that Kushner could try to take credit for his achievements as president.

Some close to Kushner say there is no estrangement between him and his father-in-law.

'He knows Trump acknowledges his successes,' a person close to Kushner said.

The new report, however, comes just a few weeks after another report revealed that Kushner is stepping back from politics as he aims to establish a 'simpler' relationship with Trump.

Other than his son-in-law, Kushner, who is Jewish, also served as Trump's senior adviser, specifically working on peace deals between Middle Eastern entities and Israel. He also oversaw his 2020 reelection campaign.

The former Trump adviser told a small circle of advisers, according to The New York Times, that he wants to focus on writing his book.

Those people told the New York Times that Kushner wants to end his professional relationship with Trump and instead just be his son-in-law.
A woman has been apprehended by the US Marshals after a three-week manhunt stemming from the deadly shooting of a former Florida state senator's son, which prosecutors say was the result of a twisted love triangle involving the suspect's ex-girlfriend.

Lakoria Washington, 24, was arrested in suburban Daytona Beach on Monday on an out-of-county warrant charging her with first-degree murder, armed burglary and possession of a weapon by a felon.

Washington is suspected of breaking into her ex-girlfriend's apartment at the Monte Carlo Condominiums on Northwest 165th Street in Miami on the night of June 1, and fatally shooting 23-year-old Jason Campbell, whom she had found in bed with her former lover.

Lakoria Washington, 24 (left), faces charged of first-degree murder, armed burglary and possession of a weapon by a felon in connection with the June 1 fatal shooting of Jason Campbell, 23 (right)

Campbell was gunned down while in bed with Washington's ex-girlfriend inside her apartment at the Monte Carlo Condominiums in Miami

Police found Campbell's lifeless body in the parking of the apartment complex, and then followed a trail of blood to the crime scene

Campbell, the son of former State Senator Daphne Campbell, was said to have been dating Washington's ex-girlfriend at the time of his death.

According to court documents cited by Miami Herald, the woman who was sleeping with Campbell narrowly escaped death by running out of her apartment and hiding in a laundry room.

She later told police she heard a gunshot but did not witness the shooting.

Police were called to the scene at around 8.30am on June 1 and found Campbell dead from gunshot wounds in the parking lot of the building at 494 NW 165th Street.

Officers following a trail of blood, which led them to the apartment where the attack happened.

Campbell was the son of former Florida State Senator Daphne Campbell

Ex-Senator Campbell mourned her son's death on Facebook a day after the shooting

Jason was a father of three young children (pictured with his son, left). He had been seeing Washington's ex-girlfriend around the time of his death

Campbell's mother, a Democrat who served in the Florida Senate for two years and was a three-term state representative, wrote on her Facebook at the time: 'I did not know a mother should bury a child rather a child should bury their parents.'

Prior to Washington's arrest, Daphne Campbell called on her son's alleged killer to turn herself in

Campbell leaves behind three young children.

Prior to Washington's capture, Daphne Campbell told NBC Miami she did not know the suspect and tearfully called on her to turn herself in.

Miami-Dade Police last week identified Washington, who has an extensive criminal record, as the suspect in the killing after reviewing surveillance video that allegedly showed her enter the apartment complex minutes before the shooting.

US Marshals on Monday tracked her down to Port Orange, located some 250 miles away from the scene of the crime.

As of Wednesday afternoon, she remained at the Volusia County jail pending her extradition to Miami-Dade County.

Washington has an extensive criminal history (pictured in her old mugshots). She spent a year in jail on a 2015 grand theft auto conviction

Court records reveal that the 24-year-old suspect spent a year in jail on a 2015 grand theft auto conviction, followed by two years of probation that had run out in 2018.

In 2016, Washington was found guilty of cannabis possession but got off with a fine.

Her record also includes arrests on counts of robbery and probation violation, but it is unclear how those cases have been resolved.

Upon learning of Washington's arrest, Daphne Campbell wrote on Facebook Wednesday: 'To God Be The Glory. Justice is on the way for my baby boy....RIP my loving and handsome son. Mommy loves so much and miss you. Have your time with your master.'
A real-life hero who dresses as Spider-man when visiting sick hospitalised children wore his costume as he was greeted by Pope Francis at the Vatican on Wednesday.

While Francis is usually the star at Vatican gatherings, Matteo Villardita was the attention-grabber among the public lined up during the pontiff's weekly audience.

Mr Villardita, 28, dons the comic-book and movie super-hero outfit to cheer up hospitalized children, like those at the Vatican's pediatric hospital which he planned to visit later on Wednesday.

Sweating under his costume in Rome's heat wave, Villardita said he asked Pope Francis to pray for the children and their families.

Pictured: Pope Francis shaking hand with Matteo Villardita - a man wearing a costume of the Spider-Man fantasy character - who performs in hospitals for sick children, at the end of the weekly general audience on June 23, 2021

The man told AP TV that he gave Francis a spare mask, 'as a sign, to tell him that through these eyes I daily see pain from sick children in hospitals.'

Villardita, with a costumed arm, reached out and touched Francis, who wore no mask against COVID-19, on the back on an arm as he greeted the pontiff.

Said Villardita: 'It was very exciting because Pope Francis immediately understood my mission.'

Villardita, 28, dons the comic-book and movie super-hero outfit to cheer up hospitalized children, like those at the Vatican's pediatric hospital which he planned to visit later on Wednesday. Pictured: Pope Frances is given a Spider-man mask on Wednesday

Sweating under his costume in Rome's heat wave, Villardita said he asked Pope Francis to pray for the children and their families. Pictured: 'Spider-man' waves to the Vatican crowd

Villardita, with a costumed arm, reached out and touched Francis, who wore no mask against COVID-19, on the back on an arm as he greeted the pontiff

Villardita took selfies with youngsters attending the audience in a Vatican courtyard.

'But the real superheroes are the children who are suffering and their families who are fighting with so much hope,' Villardita told the Vatican's media outlet, Vatican News.

The Vatican described Villardita as 'really a good super-hero' and quoted him as saying that during Italy's long months of pandemic lockdown he made more than 1,400 videocalls, since he wasn't able to visit in person, to help ailing children smile.

Villardita, who has a day job in a terminal shipping company in Italy's northwestern Liguria region, leads an association for other hospital volunteers who dress up as superheroes. Pictured: Villardita waits for Pope Francis to arrive on Wednesday

The man told AP TV that he gave Francis a spare mask, 'as a sign, to tell him that through these eyes I daily see pain from sick children in hospitals'

Villardita, who has a day job in a terminal shipping company in Italy's northwestern Liguria region, leads an association for other hospital volunteers who dress up as superheroes.

Even during the Covid-19 pandemic, they continued their work. 'I did more than 1,400 video-calls, as I could not go in person,' Villardita told Vatican News.

A former paediatric patient who underwent several surgeries to treat a congenital disease, Villardita was awarded an honorary knighthood in December by Italian President Sergio Mattarella.

The super-hero first appeared in 1962 in comic books published by Marvel Comics, and has gone on to be one of the most popular and commercially successful super-heroes, and one of the most recognisable.

Spider-man has featured in multiple blockbuster movies, many with him as the titular character, and is very popular among children.
Joel Arciniega-Saenz, 25, (pictured) was charged with the murder James Garcia, 51, in Las Cruces, New Mexico, on Sunday

A known criminal in New Mexico has been charged with murder after he allegedly admitted to decapitating a man and then kicking his severed head against cars.

Joel Arciniega-Saenz, 25, was arrested on Sunday for killing James Garcia, 51, at Apodaca Park in Las Cruces.

Police responding to calls from witnesses about a body in the middle of a road across from the park arrived to find Arciniega-Saenz with a bloody knife and dried blood on his hands.

The suspect told investigators that he was homeless and lived at the park.

He said he killed Garcia because he claimed - without apparent evidence - that Garcia had robbed him and raped his wife.

Records showed Arciniega-Saenz had been released from jail just last month and was previously accused but later cleared of fatally shooting a man in 2017.

Law enforcement officers are seen investigating the crime scene where Arciniega-Saenz, 25, allegedly admitted to murdering Garcia at Apodaca Park on Sunday

Police responding to calls from witnesses about a body in the middle of a road across from the park arrived to find Arciniega-Saenz with a bloody knife and dried blood on his hands

The Las Cruces Police Department said it has been unable to confirm Arciniega-Saenz's allegations against Garcia.

'We have not been able to verify the allegations or determine if the suspect is/was married,' Public Information Officer Dan Trujillo told DailyMail.com on Wednesday.

The suspect had said that he, his unidentified wife and Garcia had been hanging out at the park four days prior to the incident.

They all fell sleep, Arciniega-Saenz said, and when he woke up he found that Garcia had left with their belongings.

He claimed Garcia had raped his wife several years earlier but did not offer any details.

The suspect said he went to confront Garcia on Sunday, chasing him down before stabbing him several times and cutting off his head.

The suspect dragged his decapitated body to the street and kicked his head at 14 oncoming cars. Arciniega-Saenz had also cut off Garcia's middle finger.

Officers found a shoe print next to a pool of blood at the park where the victim's finger was also found.

Officers from Las Cruces Police Department were dispatched to Apodaca Park in New Mexico where Joel Arciniega-Saenz, 25, murdered James Garcia

Garcia's sister, Krystal Montoya, became furious when she heard the news about the suspect.

'I prayed he wouldn't do it again and ruin someone else's family,' she said. 'I just was very angry because they let a monster out.'

'I don't want this guy to be released again and go do something stupid again and go hurt another family again,' said Montoya. 'No matter how much I hurt from my brother, I can say that I hurt for this person's family. He needs to be put away, period.'

Arciniega-Saenz has a history of criminal charges.

He faced First Degree Murder (Willful & Deliberate) on April 22 in 2017 in the death of 21-year-old Benjamin Montoya, but he was released when a key witness was found with a gun of the same caliber as the one used to kill Montoya, Fox News reported.

He was also arrested and charged with Criminal Damage to Property (Over $1000), Burglary of a Vehicle and Non-Residential Burglary on April 24 of that same year too.
Dominic Cummings tonight defended his attempt to swerve Govrnment procurement rules to hand 530,000 to a team of data experts at the height of the pandemic, saying that the system 'was killing people'.

Emails released last night suggested the former No 10 chief aide bypassed normal Whitehall procedures to get money to an external data team in March 2020.

Boris Johnson's former top adviser urged civil servants to issue the payment with 'no procurement, no lawyers, no meetings, no delay', according to the messages.

But amid criticism today Mr Cummings robustly defended himself. Writing on Substack he said it was a 'relatively trivial' story and he had sent many such emails.

'Tellingly, a ''Whitehall source'' says this is ''so damaging'' for Cummings because he ''is just being very blatant that due process, and procedures, are being thrown out the window'',' he wrote to subscribers.

'I do not regard it as ''damaging'' that I tried to throw ''due process'' out the window. Sticking with ''due process'' was killing people.

'I was right to send this email, I sent many other similar messages on PPE, testing, the Vaccine Task Force, and my interventions saved lives/reduced suffering/ speeded vital projects like vaccines. I think that if I had NOT acted like this, it would been unprofessional and unethical.'



Boris Johnson's former top adviser (pictured) urged civil servants to issue the payment with 'no procurement, no lawyers, no meetings, no delay', according to the messages

What is Our World in Data? Oxford University project that created data system used by the UN, US and WHO Our World in Data is a research project run by a not-profit organisation and Oxford academics. The scientific online publication focuses on large global problems such as poverty, disease, hunger, climate change, war, existential risks, and inequality. It was created by Oxford University researcher Max Roser - a social historian and development economist - in 2011 but gained fame during the pandemic. It started publishing global data on Covid-19 and founded the worldwide database on testing for coronavirus. This was used by the UN, the US government and the WHO. It did the same for vaccinations this year, which has also been used by the WHO. Advertisement

Mr Cummings' intervention, in March 2020, followed a request from Our World in Data  a research project run by a not-profit organisation and Oxford academics  which said it needed funding to retain staff generating data on the pandemic.

The request was said to have been passed to Health Secretary Matt Hancock who emailed Matthew Gould, the head of NHSX  the unit responsible for the digital transformation of the NHS  saying he supported the grant.

It was then followed by an email to Mr Gould from Mr Cummings stating: 'Someone please ensure that they have the 530k within 24 hours from now and report back to me it's been sent.'

According to seen by The Guardian, the BBC's File on 4 and Source Material, it said: 'No procurement, no lawyers, no meetings, no delay please  just send immediately.'

Mr Gould expressed concern, saying his team could meet the request through the DHSC and 'have the money in place by tomorrow', but it would mean 'waiving the normal grant-giving process'.

He wrote to another official: 'I don't want to do anything untoward, but given the secretary of state's and Dom Cumming's strong steer I'd really welcome your help/advice/green light.'

The grant was subsequently issued in four instalments from summer 2020.

DHSC insisted that due diligence had been followed in issuing the grant.

But Labour said it was another example of the Government's 'disdain' for the rules governing the use of taxpayers' money under Mr Johnson's leadership.

Earlier this month a High Court judge ruled a decision to award a contract to a firm whose bosses were friends of Cummings was unlawful.

Mr Cummings left the No 10 in November amid the fallout of an internal power struggle and has become a critic of the Government's handling of the pandemic.

Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner said: 'This Government under Boris Johnson's leadership clearly think the rules do not apply to them.

'Time after time the Tories have shown a disdain for the rules and laws governing how taxpayers' money is spent.

'Emergency suspension of procurement rules needs to end and due process must be followed.'

The request was said to have been passed to Health Secretary Matt Hancock who emailed Matthew Gould (pictured), the head of NHSX  the unit responsible for the digital transformation of the NHS  saying he supported the grant

A Government spokesman said: 'The Government has done everything it could to stop the spread of infection and to save lives, while following proper processes.

'Every contract agreed by the Government with partners has proper due diligence carried out on it, with these checks taken extremely seriously to ensure our contracts deliver results and value for money.

'As part of this national effort, we harnessed the best of the public and private sectors to develop the tools to keep people safe including the NHS Covid-19 app which is estimated to have stopped 600,000 infections and saved more than 8,700 lives.'

Earlier this month a High Court judge ruled a decision to award a contract to a firm whose bosses were friends of Cummings was unlawful.

Campaigners took legal action against the Cabinet Office over the decision to pay 560,000 of taxpayers' money to market research firm Public First, following the start of the coronavirus crisis in March 2020, and questioned the involvement of Mr Cummings.

Lawyers representing the Good Law Project said Mr Cummings wanted focus group and communications support services work to be given to a company whose bosses were his friends.

Ministers and Mr Cummings - who left Downing Street late in 2020 - disputed the Good Law Project's claim.

Mrs Justice O'Farrell, who is based in London, considered rival arguments at a virtual High Court hearing in February and delivered a ruling on Wednesday.

She said: 'The claimant is entitled to a declaration that the decision of 5 June 2020 to award the contract to Public First gave rise to apparent bias and was unlawful.'

The Guardian and the BBC said Mr Cummings had been contacted for comment on the latest revelations - but he had not responded.
A man has been charged with murder after a 53-year-old woman was found dead in a Lewisham home.

Marlene Coleman was found unresponsive by officers last Wednesday at a house on Cressingham Road, south-east London.

Franklin McLeod, 54, was arrested in the early hours of Thursday morning and was charged with Ms Coleman's murder on Saturday.

Marlene Coleman (pictured) was found unresponsive by officers last Wednesday at a house on Cressingham Road, south-east London

Franklin McLeod, 54, was arrested in the early hours of Thursday morning and was charged with Ms Coleman's murder on Saturday. Pictured: Cressingham Road

He appeared at Bromley Magistrates Court on Monday and was remanded in custody.

He was due to appear at the Old Bailey earlier today.

A formal identification is yet to take place but officers are confident that the deceased is Marlene Coleman and her next of kin have been informed.

Detectives are continuing to appeal for anyone who has information about this incident or who knew Marlene Coleman or Franklin Mcleod to call the investigation team on 020 8721 4005 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111 providing the reference Operation Tallangatta.
Authorities in Mexico have arrested a campaign manager in connection with the murder of a mayor-elect, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador revealed.

Omar Ramirez was recently detained in Coatzintla, Veracruz, for reportedly orchestrating the June 4 assassination of his boss, Rene Tovar.

Tovar was shot dead two days before being elected as mayor of Cazones de Herrera.

Prosecutors said Ramirez plotted Tovar's murder because he wanted to replace his boss after he was elected.

The Attorney General's Office for the state of Veracruz obtained an arrest warrant after investigators found inconsistencies with Ramirez's testimony.

'According to the investigations, one of the possible (suspects) involved was his campaign manager, who himself wanted to stay as a candidate and win,' Lopez Obrador said during a press conference Tuesday at the National Palace in Mexico City. 'We don't want those horrors. How can we confront this? With principles, with ideals, strengthening cultural (and) spiritual values.'

Tovar, who was running for mayor of Cazones de Herrera under the Citizen's Movement ticket, was approached by a group of armed men who attempted to kidnap moments after arriving home following appearances at campaign events.

Mexico President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said during his daily press conference Tuesday that Omar Ramirez (pictured) was recently arrested in connection to the murder of Rene Tovar on June 4. Ramirez was the campaign chief for Tovar, who ran under the Citizen's Movement ticket and was elected mayor of Cazones de Herrera, Veracruz, on June 6. Ramirez was then chosen by the party to replaced Tovar as mayor-elect

Rene Tovar was one of 90 politicians murdered since September 7, 2020 when campaigning began in Mexico for midterm elections, which were held June 6. Tovar accepted the nomination from the Citizen's Movement party and was elected mayor of Cazones de Herrera in Veracruz

Tovar struggled with the suspects before he was shot at least eight times.

Family members and campaign staffers placed him in the back of a pickup truck and rushed him to a Fausto Davila Hospital in Poca Riza, where he was declared dead.

Mexican newspaper Vanguardia reported that those close to Tovar said he had received threats in the days leading up to the June 6 midterm elections.

Despite the tragic incident, voters showed up the polls and elected Tovar as mayor of Cazones de Herrera.

On June 7, Ramirez was tabbed by the Citizen's Movement party to replaced Tovar as the incoming mayor, a move that became official June 11.

Rene Tovar (pictured standing to the left of the woman with the purple polo) was still elected mayor of Cazones de Herrera two days after he was shot dead

On June 7, Omar Ramirez was chosen by Citizen's Movement party to replaced Rene Tovar as the incoming mayor, a move that became official June 11. He was recently arrested for reportedly orchestrating the murder of Tovar, who had employed him as campaign manager

DailyMail.com reached out to the Citizen's Movement for comment.

Mexico City-based consulting Etellekt found that 91 politicians who sought or held office were killed after campaigning for the midterm elections started in September 7, 2020.

The firm registered more than 900 violent incidents against political party members during midterm election campaign season. At least 172 criminal acts were reported in over 100 cities on election day.

Security analysts believe the violence around the election season was limited to the local level as criminal organizations sought to influence the results with the goal of gaining control of drug trafficking and other illicit activities.
Six people have been injured after a 14-foot-high pedestrian bridge collapsed onto truck and caused it to leak gallons of fuel on a Washington DC highway.

The bridge collapsed across all three lanes of the I-295 in Northeast Washington, DC at about 12.00pm on Wednesday.

Authorities say five people were taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, while one other was treated at the scene.

The bridge collapse caused multiple vehicles to collide.

All of the people who were injured were in those vehicles. No pedestrians were harmed.

No one was trapped as a result of the incident.

At least six people were injured after a 14-foot-high pedestrian bridge collapsed onto a truck in Washington DC on Wednesday

Five people were rushed to hospital, while one other was treated at the scene when the pedestrian bridge collapsed on Wednesday

The bridge collapsed across all three lanes of the I-295 in Northeast Washington, DC at about 12.30pm on Wednesday

The truck caught underneath the bridge, which is located at Kenilworth Ave and Polk St, subsequently started leaking gallons fuel. Authorities, including fire and hazmat crews, worked to contain the fuel leak.

Authorities don't yet know what caused the bridge to crumble.

Preliminary investigations show the collapse could be the result of a crash that potentially pulled the bridge off its support structures.

Crash scene investigators are currently trying to determine if the truck, or its height, had anything to do with it.

Slabs of concrete and metal fencing could be seen strewn across the highway. The staircases on both sides appeared to be in tact.

In the immediately aftermath of the collapse, traffic was backed up on the interstate for more than three miles.

Authorities say it could take until tomorrow to fully clear the debris.

Fire and hazmat crews were working to contain the fuel leak after the truck was caught under the collapsed bridge

The truck caught underneath the bridge, which is located at Kenilworth Ave and Polk St, subsequently started leaking fuel
A Senate Judiciary Committee hearing turned testy on Wednesday, as senators clashed and Sen. Mazie Hirono accused Sen. Ted Cruz of 'mansplaining' during an argument about the U.S. Constitution, originalism and judicial rulings.

It occurred as they quizzed District Court Judge Gustavo Gelpi, picked by President Biden to take a seat on the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals.

Cruz was asking the nominee which historical cases he believed had been wrongly decided as he tried to unpick his legal philosophy.

'Sen Hirono just offered a defense of you, saying that you refuse to commit to originalism because originalism would prevent outcomes that she supports,' said Cruz, saying that it would have given her the wrong result in a case such as Roe v Wade.

Sen. Ted Cruz clashed with Sen. Mazie Hirono in a bad-tempered session of the Senate Judiciary Committee. He expressed irritation when he was cut off by the chairman and then Hirono accused the Texas senator of 'mansplaining'

Hirono, he continued, did not want judges who followed originalist interpretations of the U.S. Constitution, before asking: 'Is it right that you don't intend to follow the original understanding of the constitution?'

After Gelpi addressed the question, saying he will follow originalism where appropriate, Cruz tried to ask a follow-up question.

Sen. Ossoff, who chaired the session, told him his time had expired.

'This is a committee where we have had a little bit of comity and I recognise Sen Ossoff is new,' said an exasperated Cruz, 'but we generally don't have the chairman trying to jump in thirty seconds in and I recognize the chairman does not want these questions answered...'

His bluster triggered confusion as senators talk over each other and the chairman struggled for control.

Sen. Alex Padilla: 'Sen. Cruz, the floor is mine.'

Ossoff banged the gavel. 'There will be order,' he said.

The clash happened as senators were quizzing District Court Judge Gustavo A. Gelpi on how he would adjudicate cases before the appeals court and whether he would consider originalist interpretations of the Constitution

As proceedings calmed, Hirono asked to make a 'point of personal privilege' during which she took exception to the way Cruz had represented her position.

'I would request that my colleague Sen. Cruz not misstate what I'm saying. You know what, all this mansplaining, please stop.'

'What was mischaracterized Sen. Hirono? You just said I mischaracterized something,' he said above the sound of frantic gavel hammering, before turning his attention to Ossoff.

'I'm very proud you have the gavel, but a point of personal privilege, Sen. Hirono just said I mischaracterized something she said, so I am asking her: What was mischaracterized?'

'Mr Chairman, very briefly... the thing with my colleague is he always has to get the last word and that is a fact,' she said.

The pair have history.

Last year she snapped back at Cruz after he accused Democrats of 'facilitating' riots and violence in US cities.

'Sometimes I don't think you listen,' said Hirono as she walked out of the Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing on Antifa.
The Supreme Court has ruled that a decades-old California regulation that allows union organizers to enter agricultural properties without an employer's consent violates constitutional property rights.

The Wednesday decision tightened the reins on organized labor as the court sided with two fruit companies who brought the case.

The 6-3 ruling, with the court's conservative justices in the majority, overturned a 2019 lower court decision which threw out the challenge to the regulation by the companies in the most populous U.S. state.

The court's three liberal justices dissented from the decision.

The court found that the regulation, which gave union organizers access to the companies' workers, was akin to the government taking private property for public use without just compensation in violation of the U.S. Constitution's Fifth Amendment.

The challenge was brought by Dorris, California strawberry producer Cedar Point Nursery and Fresno-based Fowler Packing Company, which ships grapes and mandarin oranges. The justices made clear that any limitation on the ability of owners to exclude others from their property without compensation is unconstitutional.

'The access regulation grants labor organizations a right to invade the growers' property. It therefore constitutes a per se physical taking,' Chief Justice John Roberts said.

The California Agricultural Labor Relations Board regulation, in place since 1975, had allowed union organizers, with notice to regulators and the employer, to enter agricultural premises to talk with employees for three non-working hours per day during four 30-day periods each year. The organizers did not require an employer's consent.

The US Supreme Court ruled in favor 6-3 that union organizers entering agricultural properties without the right consent a violation

The California Agricultural Labor Relations Board regulation allowed union organizers to peruse around agricultural properties and talk to its workers with prior notice

It marked the latest setback for unions at the Supreme Court, which in 2018 ruled in another case that non-members cannot be forced, as they are in certain states, to pay fees to unions representing public employees such as police and teachers that negotiate collective bargaining agreements with employers.

'Today's ruling is a huge victory for property rights,' said Joshua Thompson, an attorney with the Pacific Legal Foundation, a conservative legal group that represented the companies.

Cedar Point owner Mike Fahner said, 'This decision protects everyone's freedom to decide for themselves who is - and is not - allowed on their own property.'

The regulation's defenders had argued that such a sweeping ruling could hurt not just union organizing but also food, factory and social work inspections, or even Border Patrol entries onto private property to enforce immigration laws.

In a dissenting opinion, liberal Justice Stephen Breyer emphasized the temporary nature of the union activity in this case.

'The regulation does not appropriate anything. It does not take from the owners a right to invade (whatever that might mean),' Breyer wrote.

Breyer also said the ruling could undermine other regulations requiring government officials or others to enter a property.

'Most such temporary-entry regulations do not go 'too far.' And it is impractical to compensate every property owner for any brief use of their land,' Breyer added.

Strawberry producer Cedar Point Nursery and Fowler Packing Company, both based out of California, were the two companies which brought the case of the long-used regulation to the Supreme Court

The two fruit companies had sought to halt enforcement of the regulation. They challenged it after disputes with the United Farm Workers, a union whose history traces back to the famous labor leader and civil rights activist Cesar Chavez, who died in 1993.

On Twitter, the union said the ruling failed to balance farmers' property rights with farm workers' civil rights.

'Farm workers are the hardest-working people in America. This decision denies workers the right to use breaks to freely discuss whether they want to have a union,' it said.

Unions have said the rule in practice afforded them little time to reach workers during the narrow window of seasonal farm work either before or after work. They have said that farm workers often are migrants who change job sites frequently and may not understand English or Spanish, making work site access one of the only ways to inform them of their labor rights.

Both companies called the regulation outdated. They said farm employees are easier to reach than ever, including through smartphones and radio stations, and that nearly all of their 3,000 workers can communicate in English and Spanish.

Organizers disrupted work on Cedar's property with bullhorns, while Fowler was accused of denying organizers access, drawing a complaint with regulators, according to the lawsuit.

The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals threw out the challenge.

Former President Donald Trump's administration had backed the companies. Democratic President Joe Biden's administration reversed the government's position.
The Baltimore Police Department is facing a staffing shortage of about 230 officers amid a nationwide spike in shootings and violent crime, including 18 homicides in the Maryland city over the past 10 days.

Police Commissioner Michael Harrison addressed the staffing issues in an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper on Tuesday, during which he noted that the department was at its biggest last year and budgeted for 2,648 this year. However, they had an approximate 10 percent decline and are now at 2,400.

According to the Baltimore Sun, the city has experienced 162 homicides so far in 2021  10 more than this time last year. Another 329 non-fatal shootings have been investigated, compared to 280 at this time last year, according to the police department.

Baltimore's staffing shortage is part of a larger trend in cities across the country, as officers have been leaving departments in droves amid protests calling to defund the police and an uptick in crimes against cops.

The Baltimore Police Department is short about 230 officers below its budgeted 2,648, Police Commissioner Michael Harrison (pictured) said Tuesday

Harrison addressed the staffing issues in an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper

The New York Police Department is down about 1,500 officers after 350 left last month and retirements jumped to 2,600 in 2020 as opposed to 1,509 in 2019, a department spokesperson told The Epoch Times.

The Chicago Police Department lost over 700 officers since 2019, according to data The Epoch Times obtained from the department. In Minneapolis, 105 officers left the department last year, which is more than double the average attrition rate, according to city records. The Los Angeles Police Department lost nearly 600 officers since 2019.

And in San Francisco, Mayor London Breed said last month that she will fund at least 1,224 full-duty officers to patrol the city despite that number hovering in the mid-900s and continuing to drop with officers retiring, leaving for other police departments or simply leaving the profession altogether, Tony Montoya, head of the citys police union, told Fox News.

As for Baltimore, Harrison told Tapper: 'We're using every resource available, we're using all the time to force up and plus up the numbers so we could have more officers,' Harrison told Tapper. 'It's not just about law enforcement; it's community engagement. We need to build those relationships because we need the community's help to help us solve these murders so we could hold these bad actors accountable for terrorizing our community. That has been working better this year, but we need more of it now.'

Harrison, who became the department's 41st commissioner in 2019, has pioneered a number of community policing programs in Baltimore.

While acknowledging the nationwide spike in crime, Harrison said that Baltimore is seeing a unique uptick in the amount of domestic violence and close acquaintance shootings. 'People just have absolutely poor or no conflict resolution skills and are using guns to solve their conflicts,' he said.

This includes an early May crime in which a man burned down his house and shot dead three of his neighbors. It is still not clear what led to the violence on the residential street in suburban Baltimore, authorities said. The shooter, Everton Brown, 56, was fatally shot by police after killing Sara Alacote, 36, Sagar Ghimire, 24, and Ismael Quintanilla, 41.

Harrison spoke on CNN ahead of President Joe Biden's Wednesday announcement of a crackdown on guns that the administration believes is driving the crime surge sweeping the nation.

Asked what he would like to see Biden address, Harrison said, 'I would like to hear about more resources and actual boots on the ground in our big cities.' He added that Biden should take a multi-faceted approach to combatting the crime wave as opposed to pinning it on one issue. 'It's not just one thing,' he said. '. . . it's programs, it's money, it's resources, it's technical assistance . . . '

Biden already announced plans to ramp up gun control laws as he unveils a 'zero tolerance' policy to firearm dealers who fail to comply with federal law - their license to sell will be revoked on the first offense.

Baltimore far outpaces the national average in violent crimes and murder, according to the latest data released by the FBI in September 2020

There were 17 homicides in the first few months of 2021, according to the most recent statistics from the Baltimore Police Department. There were 18 homicides in the past 10 days

Crime fluctuated in the beginning of 2021, as seen in Baltimore Police Department statistics

Homicides rose 30 percent and shootings spiked by eight percent in large cities last year and the problem remains rife. In New York, shootings are up 188 percent compared to his time last year, while homicides are up by 750 percent.

There have also been more than 230 mass shootings this year, including at a Fedex facility in Indianapolis and at massage parlors in Atlanta. Biden has addressed the nation after these shootings, calling violence 'an epidemic in America' and promising to take action against it.

Hank Sheinkopf, a New York-based Democratic consultant, told the Hill that crime 'could be the issue that, frankly, makes it impossible for Democrats to hold on to the House next year.' She argued that too many on the left 'don't understand that crime and disorder are unacceptable to the entire population. People will lie to pollsters and go into the voting booth and vote for the person they think is going to protect them.'

In early May, Everton Brown, 56, burned down his house and shot dead three of his neighbors in a residential street in Baltimore

Two others were injured in the fire that Brown set, destroying his house

And while Democrats blame guns and restlessness from the coronavirus pandemic for the rise in crime, Republicans blame the 'defund the police' movement and calls to from progressives to redistribute funding from law enforcement toward social services and community engagement programs.

Erich Pratt, senior vice president of Gun Owners of America said: 'It is the height of hypocrisy for Joe Biden to demonize guns, gun dealers, and gun owners. For the past year, the anti-gun Left looked the other way when rioters were destroying cities and murdering civilians and cops.'

'Not only that, the anti-gun Left began releasing criminals early from jail and started defunding the police in several big cities. The police were vilified so badly that they began retiring early in droves. Others took extended time off work or suffered from the 'blue flu', he added when speaking to the Washington Examiner.

But the White House said on Tuesday that Biden's Wednesday address will most likely not clash with ongoing negotiations over police reform legislation.

'Yes, there needs to be reforms of police systems across the country, the president is firm believer in that,' White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters. 'But there are also steps he can take as president of the United States to help address and hopefully reduce that crime.'

The president is also announcing plans to let cities and states use $350billion of COVID funds to hire more law-enforcement, even if it raises the total beyond levels from before the pandemic. The funds set aside from the $1.9trillion American Rescue Plan can also be used to invest in new technologies and crack down on gun traffickers.
A heavily modified drone which led helicopters from Customs and Border Protection and the Tuscon Police Department on a high-speed chase through the skies of Arizona was able to 'perform like no other [drone]' at speeds of up to 100mph, an official report says.

The report from Tucson police reveals how the drone flew into the path of a US Customs and Border Protection helicopter on at 10:30pm on February 9, and orbited it several times.

It then fled at high speed, leading the CBP chopper and another brought in from the Tuscon Police Department in a circular, hour-long chase.

At one point it even entered into restricted military airspace at the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, which is about five miles outside of Tucson.

The FBI are now investigating the incident.

The drone never hit the CBP chopper but it 'was flying dangerous close', and sparked a chase as multiple law enforcement agencies tried to track it to find the people who were piloting it.

FBI officials told KOLD that the drone was capable of reaching 14,000 feet and speeds over 100mph with a range of 70 miles.

The CBP was using an Airbus AS350 that night, while sources close to The Drive said the Tucson PD Air Support was flying a Bell 206B-3 Jet Ranger helicopter.

Following a records request, The Drive obtained the Case Summary Report of the incident from the Tucson Police Department, which goes into more detail about what happened.

FBI officials told Tucson TV station KOLD that the drone 'orbited' the helicopter several times and led the copter on a circular, hour-long chase

The tactical flight officer on the Tucson PD helicopter said in the report that the drone 'maneuvered all over the city' at over 10,000 feet (file image)

The report reveals the drone was first seen by the police at the corner of East Ajo Way and South Palo Verde Road, which is next to a fuel terminal operated by Kinder Morgan.

The tactical flight officer on the Tucson PD helicopter said in the report that the drone 'maneuvered all over the city' at over 10,000 feet.

The officer also said the drone moved 'in a manner to hamper [the TPD crews] ability to track it visually.'

It then 'appeared to move in an erratic pattern as if the signal with its home station was getting weaker' when it was leaving northwest of the city.

The FBI previously said the drone made 'erratic maneuvers' and strayed into military airspace above fuel tanks at the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base.

From there, drone flew towards the Tucson International Airport as the Tucson Police Department and CBP pursued the drone.

It then flew northwest out of the city and into the clouds, where it vanished into the night.

It was last seen over 12,000 feet high, traveling over 74mph according to the police report. At that point, the police and CBP needed to refuel their vehicles.

In another section of the report, the Tucson PD's pilot expressed hope that the drone would run out of battery and land, but 'unfortunately, this was not the case.'

The drone also strayed into military airspace above fuel tanks at the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base

The drone that flew into the path of a US Customs and Border Protection helicopter on at 10:30pm on February 9 (file image)

The pilot said the drone 'was very sophisticated/specialized and able to perform like no other uas [unmanned aircraft system].'

They added that it was 'obvious that the controller had clear sight of both the helicopters tracking it by the way it would orbit us and abruptly fly behind us and attempt to avoid our visual contact.'

Police tracked the drone for over an hour, but never were able to get a reliable visual on it.

The intentions of the drone and where it came from remain unclear.

Officials previously described the drone as 'high-powered' and 'heavily-modified' but did not explain what modifications had been made to it.

The drone is said to have a single green light on its underbelly, which was confirmed by the Case Summary Report.

That made it challenging for the drone to be seen by the police department's helicopter spotter, who was using night vision goggles.

It is also estimated to be between four and six feet in diameter and could have a four- or six-rotor configuration, KOLD reported.

The drone's ability to fly as high as 14,000 feet suggests it uses advanced technology not available on the commercial market, according to The Drive.

The drone appeared to launch from an area about five miles south of Tucson and flew across Tucson and north over Marana, Arizona, the FBI said.

While the FBI is leading the investigation, it's not clear if the US military was involved in any way in the initial incident or in the ongoing probe, The Drive reported.

No video was recorded of the incident by the police department.

Similar incidents happened in the area have been reported in 2018 and 2019, according to The Drive.

In 2018, a Learjet reported a drone flying at 40,000 feet above Southern Arizona, and in 2019, a drone was reported flying over Arizona's Palo Verde nuclear power plant, The Drive reported.

The FBI said no one was injured and no other similar incidents have been reported involving this specific drone, but the operator(s) will likely face a federal criminal charge.

'While the drone did not come into direct contact with an airplane or cause a pilot to make an evasive maneuver, the actions are illegal and extremely dangerous,' the FBI said in its statement.

The 'unsafe operation of unmanned aircraft' became a federal offense in 2018 - with the passage of the The Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Act.

Andrew Rene Hernandez, a 22-year-old Hollywood man, became the first person charged under this law last year after he accidentally slammed his drone into an LAPD helicopter, forcing it to make an emergency landing.

In January, he pleaded guilty, and in April, he was sentenced to probation and fined $500.

The Federal Aviation Administration has noted evidence of a 'considerable increase in the unauthorized use of small, inexpensive [drones] by individuals and organizations.'

Drone operators are required to register any drones that weigh more than 250 grams with the FAA, according to the agency's website.

Drones under that weight limit and that are being used recreationally or as a hobby do not need to be registered with the FAA.

Federal law requires drone operators who are required to register to show their certificate of registration to any law enforcement officer if asked, the FAA said.

Failure to register a drone can result in civil penalties up to $27,500 or criminal fines up to $250,000 and up to three years in prison.
A manhunt has been launched after four men allegedly kidnapped and raped a pregnant woman in Greece.

Three of the men, aged 19, 21 and 27, have been arrested by Greek police but one suspect remains at large.

The men are accused of abducting the 25-year-old Greek woman from Omonia and transporting her by taxi to an underground apartment in central Athens where she was raped.

Local media reported that the woman, who has not been named, told police that she was three months pregnant.

The alleged assault took place on Wednesday morning in Agios Panteleimon, Protothema.gr reported.

It is not clear whether the driver of the taxi was one of the four alleged attackers, all of whom are described in local media as being from Pakistan.

The woman escaped and reported the incident to police, resulting in the arrest of three of the four suspected attackers.

A manhunt has been launched after four men allegedly kidnapped and raped a pregnant woman in Greece

Last month, a 34-year-old Pakistani man was arrested on suspicion of attempting to rape several underage girls and a 22-year-old.

In 2012, the brutal beating and rape of a young girl on the island of Paros drew widespread attention.

The teenager was found unconscious with a severe head injury that has resulted in permanent damage.

Her attacker was later identified as Ahmed Waqas, an undocumented migrant from Pakistan, who was arrested in Athens. He was later sentenced to life in prison.

The case prompted a crackdown on undocumented migrants in the Greek capital, with some 4,500 police arresting 7,000 people in just 72 hours.

It also led to a series of violent racist attacks against migrants in Greece, including the murder of a 19-year-old Iraqi man in Athens by assailants on motorcycles who had reportedly earlier targeted two foreigners who managed to escape.

Greece has a relatively low rate of violent crimes for a large European country and is frequently featured on lists of safest destinations for solo female travellers.
A Washington, DC, police officer who was beaten as he tried to prevent rioters from entering the Capitol on January 6 has said he and his colleagues feel abandoned by the lawmakers they tried to protect.

Michael Fanone was on the front lines when a group of far-right protesters descended on the Capitol on January 6 in an effort to prevent Congress from certifying the results of the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Body camera footage from the riot showed a large group of protesters pulling Fanone into the crowd, as one man yelled 'I got one,' before protesters were seen beating him.

Last month, Senate Republicans blocked a proposal to create an independent commission to investigate the events of that day, and in recent weeks, several members of Congress have promoted conspiracy theories that the FBI was involved in the attack and that it was a 'normal tourist visit.'

And just last week, 21 House Republicans voted against a measure to award Capitol Police a Congressional Gold Medal for their work in the riots. The bill ultimately passed, however, 406 - 21.

'My initial feelings were feelings of abandonment,' Michael Fanone told CBS This Morning on Wednesday.

'I speak to a lot of police officers,' he said, 'and that's the overwhelming feeling is that we've been abandoned.'

Michael Fanone, a D.C. police officer who was injured in the January 6 riots, said in an interview with CBS This Morning he feels 'abandoned' by members of Congress, who voted last month to deny a proposal that would create an independent commission to study the events of the day

Describing the moment he was attacked at the Capitol, Fanon said: 'All holy hell broke loose. The next thing you know, we were just in a hand-to-hand battle.'

He was ultimately forced to the ground and yelled 'I have kids' as he feared for his life.

'I was tortured, I was beaten, I was, you know, struck with a taser numerous times at the base of my skill,' he said in the interview Wednesday. 'And I posed no threat.'

In the end, he said, he suffered a mild heart attack and a brain injury.

Body camera footage shows the moment far-right protesters started pushing and grabbing at Fanone as they tried to enter the Capitol on January 6

Eventually, one man grabs him and he is forced to the ground and beaten

Fanone, center, was surrounded by protesters that day, and ultimately suffered from a heart attack and a brain injury

Fanone is now calling for Congress to approve an independent commission to investigate the events of January 6, and has been trying to meet with Congress members to discuss the proposal.

He has already gained support from Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger and Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell, who joined him in the interview.

'I'm done tiptoeing through the tulips here,' Fanone said. 'The questions I have are to what extent - if any- did our political leaders involve themselves in the events of January 6?'

'If there was participation from members of Congress, from their staff, as an officer that served that day, I would certainly like to know that.'

There has been no evidence provided to suggest any member of Congress was involved in the riot, and Kinzinger and Swalwell are now pressuring their colleagues to create the commission.

'The bottom line of all of this is cowardice. Because it takes strength to tell the truth,' said Kinzinger, a Republican from Illinois. 'If you believe Antifa and BLM actually attacked the Capitol, you should want a January 6 commission. If you think the FBI organized the Capitol riots, you should certainly want a January 6th commission.

'But if you believe that you've been lying about it the whole time, then you don't want a January 6 commission,' he said. 'That's why we have to do it.'

Swalwell, a Democrat from California, also said the commission should be bipartisan and independent to establish its credibility.

'If you're going to enact policies to make sure this never happens again as the independent, bipartisan September 11 commission did, it has to be independent, bipartisan, and as far away from this building as possible,' he said.

Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger and Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell joined Fanone in the interview Wednesday to express their support for an independent commission

Fanone, center, said he has tried to meet with members of Congress to discuss the issue. He is pictured here with Sandra Garza, the girlfriend of deceased Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick and Republican Senator Susan Collins

The riot began as an attempt to prevent members of Congress from certifying the results of the 2020 presidential election

But some Republican members of Congress have tried to downplay the insurrection in recent weeks.

Paul Gosar, a Republican from Arizona, for example, claimed the FBI has been 'harassing peaceful patriots across the country' in its arrests of those who have participated in the insurrection, and Andrew Clyde, of Georgia, said that if you did not know the footage was from January 6 'you would actually think it was a normal tourist video.'

And Jody Hice, also of Georgia, wrongfully claimed 'it was Trump supporters who lost their lives that day, not Trump supporters who were taking the lives of others.'



'As an American, I believe very strongly in a two-party system,' Fanone said on Wednesday, but added: 'Right now, one of those parties has a cancer, and we've got to cut it out, and until we do that, we're not going to be able to move forward as a nation.'

He said he would like to meet with Congressmembers who have made comments downplaying the events of the day, and would also like to sit down with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to discuss an independent commission.

Representatives from his office told CBS This Morning McCarthy would be 'happy' to meet with Fanone, but has not received a meeting request from him.

Meanwhile, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is reportedly planning to name a Democrat-led select committee to investigate the Capitol riot, reports suggested.

Pelosi made the announcement of her intentions during a closed-door meeting of the Steering and Policy Committee on Tuesday evening, according to two sources familiar with the discussions who spoke to Politico.

CNN reported Tuesday night that she would set up the panel after Republicans blocked the 9/11-style commission in the Senate.
The White House said Wednesday it's doing 'extensive planning for potential evacuation' of Afghans who have worked as translators, drivers, cooks and in other positions helping the U.S. war effort.

More than 18,000 are stuck trying to apply for Special Immigrant Visas, with the U.S.'s involvement in Afghanistan ending in 80 days. If left in Afghanistan, those allied with the U.S. could be murdered by the Taliban.

'These are individuals who have played an incredibly courageous role in helping the United States at various times over the course of our recent history,' White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday. 'We are processing and getting people out at a record pace.'

'We are working with Congress right now to streamline some of the requirements that slow this process down and we're doing the kind of extensive planning for potential evacuation should that become necessary,' Psaki continued.

'So we're continuing to evaluate what are options are there, continuing to take steps foward and certainly we want to take every step we can take from the federal government to treat all these courageous individuals as they deserve,' she added.

Psaki also confirmed that the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks remains the Afghanistan drawdown deadline.

'I would say I don't anticipate, the timeline for withdrawal is not going to change, by September, which of course is overseen by our Department of Defense,' she said during Wednesday's press briefing.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the U.S. government is doing 'extensive planning for potential evacuation' of the 18,000 Afghans stuck in the visa process who have aided the U.S. war effort

When President Joe Biden withdraws the final American troops from Afghanistan, up to 18,000 who risked their lives for the US could be left behind. These are the Afghan translators and interpreters who have worked alongside all military branches and against the insurgents for the last 20 years throughout America's longest war. One is pictured in Afghanistan with US troops

Afghans applying for the visas are are under constant fear of deadly attacks from the Taliban and have been run out of their homes, with their families of young children, because of their support for the American government.

These are the Afghan translators and interpreters who have worked alongside all U.S. military branches and against the insurgents for the last 20 years throughout America's longest war.

They have served with the CIA, the State Department, the Army and the Marines on the frontlines in one of the most dangerous battle zones in the world - but have been left in limbo by the slow process to get accepted for a Special Immigrant Visa (SIV).

They are the cooks, drivers and cultural advisors who were essential in supporting ground operations - even though they knew siding with American military would put their livelihoods in imminent danger.

Now, they are stranded and begging for visas to let them escape the hell they face, with just 80 days until all troops are gone.

They are all under threat, and when the U.S. ends its military presence on September 11, they will be even more exposed to the violence of the Taliban, who have grown increasingly aggressive since Biden announced he was pulling out U.S. forces.

Many have already seen relatives killed and others fear they will be decapitated. They are now reaching out to Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to give them safe haven in the United States.

All linguists are in a very bad situation. If the Taliban or Sisi see us, they will cut our heads from our bodies. Help us please Visa application from one of the 18,000 stranded Afghan translators as the US withdraws forces

Some have been waiting years to have their application approved, with the longest dating back to 1981, according to No One Left Behind, the non-profit charity fighting to make sure the U.S. government keeps their promise to those who supported the military during some of the most intense fighting in Helmand Province.

The organization says 300 Afghan interpreters have been killed in targeted attacks while waiting to secure their visas since 2014, but the exact numbers are unknown.

The process should take nine months, but has been hampered by a myriad of setbacks including the pandemic and the need for translators to get paperwork.

SIVs are available to those who have helped the U.S. military and now face serious threats as a result of their employment.

The U.S. has handed out 50 special visas per year to be issued to Afghan and Iraqi interpreters and translators.

There have also been 26,500 visas allocated to Afghans employed by the government since December 2014, but the process for those who haven't had their applications accepted is slow.

It has been delayed even further by the pandemic and the State Department's administrative backlogs, and time is running out with Biden looking to pull all troops out by September 11, 2021.

On Sunday, the Kabul embassy suspended all visa operations because of a third wave of COVID that is sweeping the country. This is after embassy, like most other U.S. outposts around the world, that has severely limited appointments because of pandemic restrictions.

There is also a staff shortage that is hampering the speed of which these applications are handled.

Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has said half of the 18,000 SIV applicants waiting for approval are in the early stages of the application and require more paperwork. He is also considering bringing the Afghans into the U.S. as refugees.

But many are stuck. They require supporting documents from their supervisors in the military. Sometimes they have no means of contacting them, simply because they don't know their personal email addresses.

The translators who served alongside Americans are stranded and begging for visas to let them escape the hell they face, with just 80 days until all troops are gone. They are all under threat, and when the US ends its military presence on September 11, they will be even more exposed to the violence of the Taliban, who have grown increasingly violent since Biden announced he was pulling out US forces

Around 300 Afghan interpreters are believed to have been killed in targeted attacks while waiting to secure their visas since 2014, but the exact numbers are unknown. Their faces have been blurred to protect their identity because of Taliban threats

They also need evidence that shows they worked for the U.S. government for two years.

According to a database held by No One Left Behind, the Afghan applicants have taken to pleading to Biden and Harris.

In their applications they detail the threats they face and beg for the process to be sped up. Some insist they still support the American and hope for better lives if they are welcomed into the U.S., but believe they have betrayed by the bureaucratic logjam.

There is now a bipartisan push to pressure the State Department into accelerating the process as the Pentagon quickly pulls troops out.

The date of full withdrawal is September 11, but many have already left and operations are rapidly drawing to a close.

If we abandon them, we are signing their death warrants. - Republican Rep. Michael McCaul

The U.S. has said it will maintain a diplomatic presence in Kabul, which could help the visa applications, but the lack of troops will mean the translators aren't protected.

Rep. Michael Waltz told DailyMail.com: 'Afghan translators have been vital American partners on the ground and their lives are in danger if we can't get them out soon.

'The military has testified that they are ready to evacuate but the Biden Administration must make it a priority to green light their extraction.

'I can't emphasize how detrimental it would be to our national security interests if we signaled to the rest of the world that we are willing to leave those who help us against the enemy behind to die.'

Sen. Angus King, an Independent from Maine, told reporters last week that Biden's hair 'should be on fire' over the Afghans he is leaving behind.

'I want the White House's hair on fire. I want them to do everything within their power to solve this problem.Im not being critical of the administration, but I think its time to step up their game,' King said.

'Much of whats needed could be done by the administration. It can't be business as usual.'

Rep. Michael McCaul, the ranking Republican on the House Foreign Affairs said earlier this month: '[The Afghan interpreters] have a bull's eye and a target on their back from the moment we leave the country.

'If we abandon them, we are signing their death warrants.'

James Miervaldis, from the Board of Directors of No One Left Behind, told DailyMail.com: 'We received over 1,200 signatures from SIV applicants complete with NVC case numbers, the amount of time they have been waiting, and personal statements to President Biden.

They have worked for the CIA, the State Department, the Army and the Marines on the frontlines in one of the most dangerous battlezones in the world - but have been left in limbo by the slow process to get accepted for a Special Immigrant Visa (SIV)

A State Department spokesperson told DailyMail.com they are constantly working to improve the SXIV program while ensuring the integrity of the program and safeguarding national security

75 percent of applicants would still work with the U.S. knowing what they know now about how they've been treated. Twenty-five percent regret they worked with U.S. troops.

Sergeant William Bee, the Marine behind one of the most iconic photos from the War On Terror, told DailyMail.com that getting the translators out safely would be the 'best thing to come out of all of it'.

'I have been waiting 14 years and I am still waiting to get my visa. The guys running the SIV program are not working as much as they should. I wish you were in my position, so they could feel what I am. Then you would have to run the system like hell to save us Afghan translator applying for an immigrant visa

He worked frequently with translators during his tours in Helmand Province and believes the Biden administration desperately needs to help the Afghan people who served America.

A State Department spokesperson told DailyMail.com they are constantly working to improve the SIV program while ensuring the integrity of the program and safeguarding national security.

'Approximately 30 percent of applications are awaiting a decision at the Chief of Mission stage. The final 20 percent were approved by the Chief of Mission and are moving through the immigration process, either in the petition or visa processing stages,' the spokesperson said.

They said 9,000 of the applicants need to 'take action' before the U.S. government can being processing their cases.

They have also identified ways to try and improve the program, such as using staff in Washington to process the applications.

'The Department also approved a temporary increase in consular staffing at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul to conduct interviews and process visa applications, which allowed the Embassy to address cases that were delayed due to COVID-19 related closures earlier this year.'

However they mentioned that the COVID outbreak in Afghanistan has stifled their attempts.

'We acknowledge and regret the inconvenience to applicants as we seek to protect the health of our staff and applicants to ensure we can fully support visa and other consular services going forward,' the spokesperson said.

'We are continuing to make every effort to move SIV applicants through the process quickly. Most applicants are pending completion of much earlier steps in the SIV process and are not yet ready for an interview.'

In the past year, the USAID has provided more than $39million to directly help Afghanistan respond to the COVID-19 outbreak, expedited $90million in other COVID-related development assistance through the World Bank, and reoriented other U.S. assistance to support Afghan efforts to deal with the pandemics consequences.

'If the Taliban see us they will cut off our heads': The pleas of stranded Afghan translators to the Biden administration Below are some of the requests in SIV applications from Afghan translators and interpreters. They detail their threats, some simply say 'help' and others reach out directly to the White House in hopes of staying alive. Some of the passages have been paraphrased. None have been identified because of the ongoing safety concerns they face in Afghanistan. 'SIV is our last hope of staying alive.' 'I have served for more than two years as an interpreter/translator and more than seven years on the USAID funded projects in Afghanistan. My visa is pending administrative processing for no reason besides waiting for my recommendation letter.' 'I did my medical on September 16, 2020 , but am still waiting for issues to be resolved.' 'The embassy has cancelled my application for (unfaithful services), a general term they are putting for thousands of translators to cancel their petitions. Contrary to the fact that we risked our lives, our entire family and could have been killed.' 'I have worked with oil companies as an supervisor also worked with US army and coalition forces as an translator. 'I applied for SIV in August 2014. I was finally down to my interview at the Kabul US Embassy September 2018. Then the Console Section gave me a yellow card and told me to bring a new recommendation from my supervisor. I haven't been able to find him in two years because his email is not working and I don't have his personal email address. My family is in trouble. I am still receiving threats from ISIS and the Taliban. I don't know where I can go or or to whom I can tell my problems.' 'Kindly pass our message on that we have suffered a lot for American soldiers. We have worked with them honestly for a bright future. Now we have been left behind, and no excuses have been given.' 'Me and my family are living under serious threat in Afghanistan.' 'I want to speed up our case. We are still living in fear and we have been waiting for asylum into the US for so long.' 'I have been waiting for my visa since 2016. I started working for the US Special Forces in 2009 until 2013.Then our program closed in 205. Since then I have been working with US ASS Mentors at COB Morehead in Kabul. I am still an interpreter, and as you know we are at risk of threat and violence in Afghanistan. It's very hard to live any more because of my work for the US government. Please save my life, my two children and my wife.' 'In April 2020, the State Department Consular section in Baghdad refused my SIV case. It seems loyalty to U.S. goals are not appreciated, just like 100s of American soldiers who returned home and were not taken care of. No surprise at all.' 'I have been waiting for my SIV case to process for four years. More than four of my close friends have lost their lives. After our work with the US, we have put the lives of our family members in great danger and the future for us is uncertain.' 'Please save our lives. We risked our lives for your forces. 'We have given our time, our life, and our integrity. Please expedite the process.' 'I worked with US special forces as interpreter, but I have still been left behind.' 'My life is really in danger due to working with US forces in Afghanistan. I have been followed by the Taliban. My house is under the threat of attack. I applied for an SIV when I got married. My daughter is five and my son is two, and I am still waiting for an interview.' 'I have been waiting 14 years and I am still waiting to get my visa. The guys running the SIV program are not working as much as they should. I wish you were in my position, so they could feel what I am. Then you would have to run the system like hell to save us. Thank you.' 'All linguists are in a very bad situation. If the Taliban or Sisi see us, they will cut our heads from our bodies. Help us please.' 'Please resume interviews at the US Embassy in Kabul.' 'We interpreters need your consideration for speeding up the process because our security is getting worse by the day.' 'Mr. President, every day in Kabul is deadly, and we can not live in our villages. We are very happy that you were elected. These are the real values of the United States. We want an executive order to move all barriers of employment.' 'President Biden, we hope we can see changes in the SIV program and an easier way to facilitate the process, especially for the ones who been waiting for years.' 'I have been attacked couple times. The first attack was by ISIL, but, I managed to flee. The second attack was an IED at my house door. It exploded and destroyed most of my home, but God saved me. Since then I flee from one place to another. 'Mr. Biden please help me.' 'Everybody knows that here in Afghanistan the conditions are getting worse day by day, so we are humbly requesting from the new elected US president Joe Biden and vice president Harris to speed up our all SIV applicant's cases.' 'The Taliban killed my brother while working with Chemonics in Helmand in 2005. They have been treating me since then, but I could not go my village in Paktia from 2006. But I do not know why my application has been rejected where I had worked with the USAID. 'I know that president-elect Biden and Vice president- elect Harris have the kind of personalities that believe 'nothing makes them happier than making someone else happy, especially for those who really needs help and assistant'. The kindness we put out into the world always finds a way of coming back to us.' 'I request to the respected President-Elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Harris to keep our families safe.' 'Mr. Biden. For more than eight years I have been employee on behalf of the US government here in Afghanistan. I have been known as US government supporter in the region and I have suffered several threats as a result. My US supervisor recommended me for the SIV program, but all his contacts are off. I don't know whether my supervisor is alive or not, but one thing is clear is that we have truly supported and helped the U.S. government. Every moment for us we live under threat. Please resolve the issue or me and my family will be killed one day.' 'I've been waiting all these years. I wish President Biden would make my dreams come true.' Advertisement

An Afghan interpreter is seen on patrol with US troops in Helmand Province. They have been essential troops for the last 20 years

Many Afghan translators are stuck. They require supporting documents from their supervisors in the military. Sometimes they have no means of contacting them, simply because they don't know their personal email addresses

A State Department spokesperson told DailyMail.com they are constantly working to improve the SIV program while ensuring the integrity of the program and safeguarding national security

The US has said it will maintain a diplomatic presence in Kabul, which could help the visa applications, but the lack of troops will mean the translators are left to fend for themselves

75 percent of SIV applicants would still work with the U.S. knowing what they know now about how they've been treated. 25% regret they worked with U.S. troops.
A police officer had his bodycam turned off when he went to check on a woman he is accused of sexually assaulting, a court has heard.

Rudvelle Walters, 48, said it was the woman who was being 'friendly, jovial' towards him, and that he had not done anything wrong.

He denies one count of sexual assault, after the complainant - a Polish woman in her 20s, who cannot be identified for legal reasons - said Walters put his hand into her underwear after earlier saying he would only leave her hotel room if her friend, who was also present, gave him a kiss.

He had been called to her room at the Best Western in Wembley, north-west London, in February 2019 after she was reported missing by her husband following an argument.

Rudvelle Walters (pictured outside Southwark Crown Court on Monday), 48, said it was the woman who was being 'friendly, jovial' towards him, and that he had not done anything wrong

Giving evidence in his trial at Southwark Crown Court, Walters said he had not touched the complainant during the 20-minute welfare check, at which he said she was 'being difficult' and not answering his questions.

He said: 'I did not touch her in any way, she touched me. She tried to give me a high five. But I didn't touch her.'

Defence counsel Richard Morris said: 'It is alleged you put your hand into her underwear.'

Walters replied: 'Not at all, that did not happen at all.'

He said the woman seized his phone and called her telephone number from it, and then added her as a friend on Facebook.

He said any subsequent message sent to her from his account was sent in error, due to his 'fat fingers' pressing the 'send' button instead of deleting the prompt.

He denies one count of sexual assault, after the complainant - a Polish woman in her 20s, who cannot be identified for legal reasons - said Walters put his hand into her underwear after earlier saying he would only leave her hotel room if her friend, who was also present, gave him a kiss

Prosecutor Abigail Husbands accused Walters of changing details in his various accounts of that night.

She said: 'Mr Walters, when you went into that hotel room, you were faced with a very attractive woman with not many clothes on.'

Walters replied: 'I didn't look at their appearance, it wasn't of any interest to me.'

Ms Husbands said: 'You knew nobody could see what you were doing in that bedroom because you had your (police body-worn) camera off.'

Walters replied: 'I forgot to put my camera on.

'And if I had my camera on, I wouldn't be here now, because it would show what I was accused of was not true.'

Walters, of Luton, Bedfordshire, denies the single charge against him.

The trial, and Walters' cross-examination, continues on Thursday.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday put limits on when police officers pursuing a fleeing suspect can enter a home without a warrant, adding to the country's ongoing discussion of the extent of police powers.

In a 7-2 decision, the high court ruled that when officers are pursuing someone suspected of a misdemeanor, a less serious crime, they cannot always enter a home without a warrant if a suspect enters.

The court had previously given police greater freedom to enter homes in cases involving more serious crimes. In a 1976 case, the justices said that police in 'hot pursuit' of a suspect believed to have committed a felony can enter a home without a warrant.

The case the justices decided Wednesday is important both to law enforcement and to groups concerned about privacy.

But it doesn't give police a bright line for when they can and cannot enter a home to pursue someone suspected of committing a misdemeanor.

Justice Elena Kagan wrote in the majority opinion: 'The flight of a suspected misdemeanant does not always justify a warrantless entry into a home. An officer must consider all the circumstances in a pursuit case to determine whether there is a law enforcement emergency. On many occasions, the officer will have good reason to enter - to prevent imminent harms of violence, destruction of evidence, or escape from the home. But when the officer has time to get a warrant, he must do so - even though the misdemeanant fled.'

The case the justices decided Wednesday is important both to law enforcement and to groups concerned about privacy

The majority opinion for seven members of the court that included both liberals and conservatives.

The minority, Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito, said in their view a suspect's choice to flee alone should give police the ability to pursue that person into a home.

They suggested the majority's opinion leaves too much for officers in the field to consider in the midst of a chase, providing 'no guidance at all.'

'The Constitution does not demand this absurd and dangerous result,' Roberts wrote.

Police experts cautioned that the ruling could complicate matters for police officers, who may not know the extent of a suspect's background or crimes during a pursuit, and endager the public.

'When someone flees from the police, the police officer is always wondering "why are they running?" Frequently, it's because they have committed a more serious offense not yet known to the officer,' retired police Sergeant Betsy Brantner Smith, a spokeswoman for the National Police Association, told DailyMail.com.

'It seems as though in the Lange case the Supreme Court put the onus back on the individual police officer to decide what constitutes an "emergency," and very often the officer doesn't immediately have all the facts,' she added.

'This ruling may make people more likely to flee the police, an issue we already are seeing on the rise in the United States, which creates more dangerous situations not only for the police officer, but for the public and even for the suspect,' Smith added.

Elizabeth Wydra, president of the liberal Constitutional Accountability Center, said it remains to be seen how the decision will play out in the real world. The decision does not bar police from homes when they are chasing a misdemeanor suspect, but it does not give them free reign to enter either.

'As our country continues to grapple with the limits and problems associated with law enforcements powers, the Courts refusal to allow police unfettered entry into the home is welcome,' she wrote in a statement.

Larry H. James, general counsel for the National Fraternal Order of Police, which filed a brief in the case, said he does not see much changing for police as a result of the ruling. The decision tells police to do what they always do, he said, which is 'use your common sense, use your training.' He said the guidance for police from the ruling is: 'When the situation warrants immediate action, take it. When it doesn't, get a warrant.'

The case before the justices involved California resident Arthur Lange. One evening in 2016, an officer saw Lange driving his station wagon in Sonoma County, playing music loudly and honking his horn several times.

The officer believed those were noise violations punishable by small fines and followed Lange.

The officer later turned on his cars lights to get Lange to stop. But Lange continued driving for about four seconds, turned into his driveway and entered his garage without stopping.

The officer got out of his car and, as Langes garage door was closing, stuck his foot under the door so it would re-open. Lange was ultimately arrested after the officer smelled alcohol on his breath, and he was charged with driving under the influence as well as an excessive noise offense.

Lange argued that the officers entry into the garage without a warrant violated his Fourth Amendment right to be free of 'unreasonable searches and seizures.' The justices sent his case back to lower courts to be reevaluated in light of their decision.
Police in New York City are searching for a man who is accused of yelling anti-Muslim epithets and physically attacking two couples an hour apart in Queens, leaving one woman with a broken nose.

The assaults took place on Sunday night amid skyrocketing crime rates across the city.

The NYPD has released surveillance video showing the suspect in the back-to-back Queens hate crime attacks.

This man is being sought in connection with two back-to-back hate crimes attacks that took place an hour apart in Queens on Sunday night

In the first attack, the suspect allegedly yelled 'Muhammad is a liar' before punching a man in the back and pulling on a woman's hijab near Liberty Avenue and Lefferts Boulevard

According to investigators, the first attack took place near Liberty Avenue and Lefferts Boulevard where a 31-year-old man and a 24-year-old woman were taking an evening stroll at around 9.15pm.

The suspect was said to have followed the couple while hurling anti-Muslim slurs at them.

A police source quoted the bigot to the New York Post as yelling at the couple: 'Muhammad is a liar!'

The incident escalated when the man punched the male victim in the back and grabbed and pulled on his female companion's hijab. He also punched the woman in the arm before running away.

An hour later, the same man allegedly followed an older couple while yelling anti-Muslim slurs and punched a 56-year-old woman in the face, leaving her with a broken nose

The suspect was seen on surveillance video wearing a black do-rag and red shoes

Both victims complained of pain and bruises, but refused medical attention, police said.

About an hour later near Inwood and Liberty avenues, which is a mile away from the first crime scene, the same suspect was spewing anti-Muslim hate while following a 64-year-old man and a 56-year-old woman.

The assailant then allegedly punched the woman several times in the face and head, and fled the scene.

The victim was taken to an area hospital to be treated for a fractured nose and cuts.

Video released by the police shows an unidentified black man with a beard. He was last seen wearing a dark-blue jacket, a matching do-rag and red sneakers.

The twin attacks are being investigates by the NYPD Hate Crime Unit. As of Wednesday afternoon, no arrests have been made.

New York City has been overwhelmed by violence since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Less than 24 hours after the assaults in Queens, a 27-year-old tourist from Colombia was struck in the head with a glass bottle on the subway in Midtown Manhattan, leaving her bloodied.

In May, crime rates were up 22 per cent over last year, with a 15.6 per cent increase in murder, 46.7 per cent increase in robbery and a 35.6 per cent increase in grand larceny, according to NYPD data.

Crimes have been rising throughout New York City, according to the NYPD

Shootings increased to 173 in May 2021, compared to 100 in May 2020

Felony assault saw a 20.5 per cent increase, and were up eight per cent for the first six months of this year compared to the same period last year.

Shootings also increased to 173 in May 2021, compared to 100 in May 2020.

Hate crimes have jumped 98 per cent this year, compared with January through May of 2020, recent statistics show.

People of Asian descent and Jewish-Americans have been most frequently targeted for abuse in New York in re cent months, with anti-Asian hate crimes jumping 335 per cent and anti-Semitic attacks increasing by 37 37 per cent compared to last year.
O2 has announced plans reintroduce roaming charges for Britons travelling to the EU.

From August, the network's customers will face a 3.50 bill for every gigabyte used over 25GB.

In an email to customers on Wednesday O2 said there would be 'changes to our roaming fair usage policy' from August 2.

'As your monthly UK data allowance is over 25GB, you can still use your data in our Europe Zone,

'But it's now subject to a Roaming Limit of 25GB. Once you've reached this limit you'll be charged an additional cost of 3.50/GB', the email, seen by the Independent, said.

O2 has announced plans reintroduce roaming charges for Britons travelling to the EU. From August, the network's customers will face a 3.50 bill for every gigabyte used over 25GB

An O2 spokesperson said: 'Less than one per cent of our Pay Monthly customers reach anywhere near 25GB during occasional travel to Europe.

If a customers UK monthly data allowance is over 25GB, from August 2 they will have a Roaming Limit of 25GB when roaming in our Europe Zone.

This means they can use up to 25GB of their allowance at no extra cost  well text them if they get close to the limit, and again if they reach it.

A customer can still use data if they reach our Roaming Limit, but will be charged 3.50/GB.'

It is the latest fallout from Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Brexit deal, agreed on Christmas eve last year, which left open the option to reintroduce data tariffs in the EU.

The agreement only stated operators should have 'fair and transparent rates for international mobile roaming'.

'It also covers obligations on net neutrality, which fulfils the UKs dual aims of securing commitments towards an open internet and protecting the safety of users online,' the government said in a statement.

At the time, ministers were clear they had no intention of preventing the reintroduction of roaming charges.

Following the Christmas Eve deal, mobile network providers O2, EE, and Vodafone, reassured customers they would not immediately re-introduce roaming tariffs in Europe after December 31, 2020.

It had previously been unclear whether those travelling to the continent after the Brexit transition period ends would be subject to roaming charges.

An O2 spokesperson said at the time: 'Were committed to providing our customers with great connectivity and value when they travel outside the UK.

'We currently have no plans to change our roaming services across Europe.'

Since June 2017, all European citizens within the European Economic Area have benefited from the abolition of roaming charges when temporarily visiting other countries within the continent.

Since June 2017, all European citizens within the European Economic Area have benefited from the abolition of roaming charges when temporarily visiting other countries within the continent

Because of this, UK citizens have been able to enjoy, for example, checking their email in France and making a video call home from Germany for the same prices under their contract as if they were doing so within Britain.

The government has passed legislation making it mandatory for users to be told when they reach 80 and 100 per cent of their data allowance.

The new laws also put at 45-a-month limit on overseas roaming fees. Customers must then opt-in and accept extra charges to continue using data.

Providers must also take 'reasonable steps' to avoid users receiving unfair charges for accidentally roaming on Irish Republic networks while in Northern Ireland.
The partner of Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick has blasted Republican members of Congress who refuse to recognize his heroism after he died the day after defended the building from MAGA rioters on January 6.

On the evening of the riots, Sicknick returned to his division office, and collapsed at about 10pm. He died the following day after suffering two strokes.

Police initially said that Sicknick, who joined the force in 2008, had been injured while engaging with protesters, but the District of Columbia's chief medical examiner ruled in April that he died of natural causes.

On Wednesday, his partner of 13 years Sandra Garza wrote an op-ed for CNN telling how they met, how she found out he had died, and her fury that Republicans in Congress had blocked a commission to investigate the riots.

She wrote: 'To know that some members of Congress  along with the former President, Donald Trump, who Brian and I once supported but who can only now be viewed as the mastermind of that horrible attack  are not acknowledging Brian's heroism that day is unforgivable and un-American.'

Last month, Senate Republicans blocked a proposal to create an independent commission to investigate the events of that day, and in recent weeks, several members of Congress have promoted conspiracy theories that the FBI was involved in the attack and that it was a 'normal tourist visit.'

Pictured: Brian Sicknick with partner Sandra Garza, who wrote an op-ed for CNN Wednesday

Police initially said that Sicknick (pictured during the riots) had been injured while engaging with protesters, but the District of Columbia's chief medical examiner ruled in April that he died of natural causes

And just last week, 21 House Republicans voted against a measure to award Capitol Police a Congressional Gold Medal for their work in the riots. The bill ultimately passed, however, 406 - 21.

Garza blasted: 'As the months passed, my deep sadness turned to outright rage as I watched Republican members of Congress lie on TV and in remarks to reporters and constituents about what happened that day. Over and over they denied the monstrous acts committed by violent protesters.'

Garza's words came on the same day that an Indiana woman became the first defendant to be sentenced in the Capitol riots - but avoided jail time.

Anna Morgan Lloyd was ordered by a federal judge to serve three years of probation, perform 120 hours of community service and pay $500 in restitution. She pleaded guilty to a single misdemeanor charge under a deal with prosecutors.

Garza, a clinical social worker, wrote about how she met Sicknick on a dating website in 2008

Garza, a clinical social worker, said Sicknick was 'a proud American and loved his country', and told how they met on a dating website in 2008.

They lived together for 11 years, she wrote, though they took a break in July while remaining 'incredibly close.'

Garza told how on the day of the pro-Trump protests on January 6, Sicknick had warned her he probably wouldn't be home until late.

She says she received a call from Sicknick's mother, worried about her son, but that Sicknick had assured them he was OK.

But she later received 'the worst phone call of my life' from a US Capitol Police Officer telling her that Sicknick was in the hospital after collapsing.

Garza says Sicknick warned her he probably wouldn't be home on the day of the pro-Trump protests on January 6

An ER physician then told her that Sicknick was on a ventilator and that she couldn't see him due to COVID-19 restrictions, Garza wrote. He died a day later.

Garza says she didn't watch the footage of the riot initially because she 'didn't think I could psychologically handle it.'

The District of Columbia's chief medical examiner ruled in April that Sicknick died of natural causes after suffering two strokes following the Capitol riots

Eventually, she did choose to watch it and was shocked to see 'officers being brutalized and beaten, and protesters defying orders to stay back from entering the Capitol.'

Garza said that she was compelled to speak up when a commission to investigate the Capitol riot was proposed.

'I knew it would not be comfortable or easy being in the public eye, but my desire for justice outweighed any discomfort I felt,' Garza wrote.

She met with many Republican senators, but 'only a handful of Republican senators showed that they possessed the moral compass to do the right thing by voting yes, putting America first, and showing warmth and compassion for the officers (as well as their families) who protect them daily.'

A bill to form the commission passed the House, but failed to pass in the Senate after Republicans blocked the bill, which fell six votes short of clearing the filibuster.

'By denying or downplaying the viciousness and trauma that occurred on January 6, members of Congress and the people who continue echoing their false narrative are engaging in a specific kind of psychological harm that is familiar to people who work in mental health,' Garza wrote, referring to it as 'secondary wounding.'

'Make no mistake: All of the officers and people who were physically harmed, terrified, psychologically destabilized or lost loved ones due to that day are literally being re-traumatized every time someone speaks untrue words to describe what happened on January 6,' she wrote.

'Brian was a proud American and loved his country. He continued his service long after his time in the military by becoming a US Capitol Police Officer, serving the American people and members of Congress -- and protecting democracy,' she continues.

Garza added that she and Sicknick were supporters of Donald Trump, but she now views him 'as the mastermind of that horrible attack.'

On the day of the riots, Sicknick returned to his division office that evening and collapsed at about 10pm. Police initially said that Sicknick had been injured while engaging with protesters

It was widely assumed at the time of his death that Sicknick had died from injuries sustained during the January 6 attack.

Investigators initially believed he had been struck by a fire extinguisher but that was later disproven.

But the strokes he suffered weren't related to any injuries he might have sustained during the riots, according to the examiner's determination.

Washington DC Chief Medical Examiner Francisco J. Diaz found no evidence that Sicknick suffered any adverse reactions to chemical irritants that he was sprayed with by some of the rioters.

His official cause of death was ruled as acute brainstem and cerebellar infarcts due to acute basilar artery thrombosis.

His manner of death was ruled 'natural,' which is used when a disease alone causes the death. The examiner's office clarified that the manner of death is not considered natural if it is hastened by an injury.

After his death, Sicknick was given full state honors and was brought to lie in state in the Capitol's historic Rotunda.

Garza's op-ed was published on the same day that the first rioter was scheduled to be sentenced. Pictured: Insurrectionists breach the Capitol in Washington on January 6

Anna Morgan Lloyd was on Wednesday the first of nearly 500 defendants to be sentenced for the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol.

Lloyd, 49, apologized to the court, 'the American people' and her family.

'I'm ashamed that it became a savage display of violence that day,' Lloyd said at her sentencing.

In seeking probation for Lloyd, prosecutors noted that she was not involved in any violence and destruction or preplanning and coordination of the Capitol breach.

Lloyd was invited by her hairdresser to drive to Washington to hear then-President Donald Trump speak, her attorney wrote in court documents.

U.S. District Court Judge Royce Lamberth said he was giving her a 'break,' but didn't want others to think that probation - and not a stiffer sentence - would be the norm.

'Legally, I could give you the six months, but is that what really we want our judiciary to do?' the judge asked.

Also Wednesday, Graydon Young, a member of the Oath Keepers extremist group, pleaded guilty to charges in the insurrection and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in a major step forward for the massive investigation into the insurrection.

It was also the first guilty plea in the major conspiracy case brought against members of the Oath Keepers.

More than 480 people have been arrested and charged with taking part in the unrest, which saw rioters smash windows, battle police inside and outside the Capitol and sent lawmakers and then-Vice President Mike Pence into hiding.

The riot followed a fiery speech in which Trump repeated his false claims that his election defeat was the result of widespread fraud and disrupted the formal count by Congress of electoral votes in the race.
Senator Joe Manchin, a key moderate Democrat, said Wednesday he was open to passing a major reconciliation bill on infrastructure without Republican support, a process the White House is considering should negotiations with Republicans fall apart.

Manchin is one of 21 senators working on an $1.2 trillion bipartisan plan to rebuild roads, bridges and other traditional infrastructure.

However, he suggested he was open to passing a bigger package without Republican support, a pronouncement that came ahead of Wednesday's negotiations between White House staff and the lawmakers.

President Joe Biden would need Manchin's vote if he wanted to pass his infrastructure proposals through a process known as reconciliation, which allows the Senate to bypass its usual 60-vote threshold to advance legislation. In the 50-50 Senate, Biden can't lose a single member of his party.

Manchin offered words of hope to the White House when he said he was open to passing Biden's 'human' infrastructure plan without Republican support.

And he suggested he supported reversing some of the tax cuts made under Donald Trump, an option Biden wants to use to pay for his American Families Plan, which includes those 'human' infrastructure items: free community college, universal preschool and a comprehensive, nationwide paid leave program.

'I've come to the knowledge, basically, that budget reconciliation is for reconciling budgets. So it's money matters,' Manchin told NBC News, calling for bolstering 'human infrastructure.'

He also said some of Trump's 2017 tax cuts should be reversed.

'Republicans have drawn a line in the sand on not changing anything, and I thought the 2017 tax bill was a very unfair bill, and weighted to a side that basically did not benefit the average American. So I voted against it,' Manchin said. 'I think there are some adjustments that need to be made.'

Senator Joe Manchin, a key moderate Democrat, said he was open to passing a major reconciliation bill on infrastructure without Republican support

The White House has been on a two-track strategy when it comes to infrastructure.

The first track involves White House staff negotiating with Republicans on a deal involving traditional infrastructure items. A 'human' infrastructure package would come separately.

The second track would see infrastructure pass through reconciliation - and therefore without any GOP support. It would include traditional items and the 'human' infrastructure items that Republicans object to but liberal Democrats are demanding.

'We've been saying two tracks,' White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday. 'Today is an example of two tracks actually moving forward at one time and one day.'

'They're both moving at a rapid pace,' she said when asked which was moving faster.

'We're at a later stage, obviously in the bipartisan negotiations, you all know that, and obviously we want to make progress over the next couple of days,' she added. 'We're in an earlier stage of the budget reconciliation progress process. That's because that's how that process works, but it's important to keep both tracks going.'

White House officials will set down with nine Democrats, one independent and 11 Republicans in the Senate on Wednesday afternoon, before meeting with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi this evening.

The target date for a deal is said to be Thursday evening.

A sticking point is how to pay for a bipartisan plan.

Biden wants to increase taxes for corporations and those households making more than $400,000 a year.

Republicans want to increase the user fee that has traditionally funded road and bridge construction - the federal gas tax. The federal gas tax has not increased since 1993.

Biden is arguing against the gas tax, claiming it will go against his pledge not to increase taxes on Americans earning less than $400,000 a year. Republicans, meanwhile are determined to protect Trump's 2017 cut in corporate taxes.

'The bottom line it's it's pretty clear and simple to the president, the choice for him on the pay fors is are you going to ask Americans who are just trying to go to work, just trying to drive their cars to work, drop their kids off at school, to pay more, through a gas tax, or should the wealthiest Americans pay what they owe in taxes? To him, that's a pretty clear, no brainer choice,' Psaki said.

Senator Joe Manchin gave words of hope to President Joe Biden with his signal he was open to passing a major infrastructure deal without Republicans and that he supported repealing part of Donald Trump's 2017 tax cuts

Progressive Senator Bernie Sanders said that liberals in the Democratic Party would not support a bipartisan infrastructure deal without a guarantee that a separate Democrats-only package could also move forward

The White House has been playing both sides, trying to get moderate lawmakers in both parties to agree on a general infrastructure plan - which would give them a bipartisan win - while assuring progressive Democrats the rest of their agenda can be taken care of without a GOP filibuster.

The filibuster refers to the 60-vote threshold required to move legislation forward in the Senate.

There are ways to get around the filibuster in the Senate through a process called budget reconciliation - which requires just 51 votes to advance legislation. But the legislation in question must deal with some budget-related matter.

Senate Democrats used it to Biden's advantage in March to pass the president's $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package when all Republicans voted no.

Progressive Senator Bernie Sanders said that liberals in the Democratic Party would not support a bipartisan deal without a guarantee that a separate Democrats-only package could also move forward.

'There cannot be a bipartisan bill which only deals with physical infrastructure unless it's very clear that there's going to be a major reconciliation bill which deals with the needs of working families, climate change and progressive tax reform,' he told reporters. 'And I think we can, we can make that happen. It's going to be either both or nothing.'
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John McAfee, the pioneer creator of popular computer antivirus software, has died in an apparent suicide at a Spanish prison, on the day that a court approved his extradition to the U.S. on tax evasion charges.

McAfee, 75, was found dead on Wednesday afternoon in his cell in Brians 2 Prison in Barcelona, with officials saying that the early investigation points to a suicide, the Catalan justice department said.

It came just hours after a Spanish court approved McAfee's extradition to the United States, where he is wanted on tax-related criminal charges that carry a prison sentence of up to 30 years.

McAfee still had opportunities to appeal his conviction but could not stand more time in jail, his lawyer Javier Villalba told Reuters.

'This is the result of a cruel system that had no reason to keep this man in jail for so long,' Villalba said.

Villalba said that McAfee had committed suicide by hanging himself in his cell.

McAfee had been held in Spanish prison since his arrest in October, when the U.S. Justice Department announced charges that McAfee and his supporters insisted were politically motivated.

His death follows a wild, controversial life filled with legal issues and foreign adventures, including allegations that McAfee murdered his American neighbor in Belize, a claim that was never proven in criminal court.

John McAfee appears via videoconference during his extradition hearing at Audiencia Nacional court, in Madrid, Spain earlier this month. He has died behind bars at 75

A cell at the Brians 2 Prison in Barcelona is seen in a file photo. McAfee was found dead in his cell on Wednesday afternoon in a suspected suicide

Final Tweet: In one of his final tweets, presumably dictated to his wife from behind bars, McAfee said 'I have nothing. Yet, I regret nothing.'

Soon after his arrest last year, McAfee's Twitter account posted a dark hint suggesting that if he died in an alleged suicide, a conspiracy would be to blame.

'I am content in here. I have friends. The food is good. All is well. Know that if I hang myself, a la Epstein, it will be no fault of mine,' he tweeted referring to persistent theories that sex predator Jeffrey Epstein did not take his own life, as authorities ruled.

In one of his final tweets, presumably dictated to his wife from behind bars and posted on June 16, McAfee denied having any hidden assets, claiming the fortune he made in an alleged cryptocurrency scam had 'evaporated.'

'I have nothing. Yet, I regret nothing,' the tweet stated.

McAfee had praised conditions at the prison where he was being held in Spain, though his Twitter account sometimes complained about the food.

McAfee had praised conditions at the prison where he was being held in Spain (above), though his Twitter account sometimes complained about the food

Soon after his arrest last year, McAfee's Twitter account posted a dark hint suggesting that if he died in an alleged suicide, a conspiracy would be to blame

'Life in Spanish prisons is like the Hilton compared to the abject surrealism and dehumanization of American prisons. Here I am treated as a human being instead of a number,' McAfee said in a letter written to his wife, according to El Diario.

For years, McAfee had been living in self-imposed exile, fleeing what he claimed was a vast web of corruption and conspiracy in the U.S.

In January 2019, McAfee fled his heavily fortified Tennessee compound with wife Janice, 38, claiming a grand jury was preparing to indict him on tax-related charges and taking to the high seas to escape.

Touring the Caribbean on his 'Freedom Boat' also allowed McAfee to avoid a $25million judgement in a wrongful death lawsuit over the 2012 murder of his neighbor in Belize, Gregory Viant Faull.

McAfee is seen aboard his 'Freedom Boat' in the Caribbean in 2019, fleeing a pending indictment on tax-related charges in the U.S.

McAfee is seen with wife Janice. They freely admit that Janice was working as a prostitute in Miami Beach when McAfee hired her for a night, before rescuing her from a violent pimp and falling madly in love. They were married for eight years before his death

The charges against John McAfee: Antivirus software pioneer John McAfee was facing 10 counts of tax evasion in Tennessee and seven counts of fraud and money laundering conspiracy in New York when he was found dead in a Spanish jail. Tennessee prosecutors charged him with five counts of tax evasion and five counts of willful failure to file a tax return in a June 2020 indictment unsealed in October. Prosecutors alleged he had earned more than $12 million between 2014 and 2018 - but failed to file any tax returns during this time. If convicted, he faced 30 years in prison. In March, McAfee and his bodyguard Jimmy Gale Watson Jr were both charged with seven counts of securities fraud by Manhattan federal prosecutors. These are: conspiracy to commit commodities and securities fraud, conspiracy to commit securities and touting fraud, wire fraud conspiracy and substantive wire fraud, and money laundering conspiracy offenses. The two men allegedly promoted cryptocurrencies to McAfee's more than one million Twitter followers in order to inflate prices and then sell the cryptocurrencies when prices rose, earning them and other McAfee Team members more than $11 million in payments. Both McAfee and Watson faced up to 100 years in prison on these charges if convicted as well as financial penalties. The Spanish prosecutor said Wednesday McAfee could be extradited, but only to face charges related to his tax returns of 2016, 2017 and 2018 in the tax evasion case. These charges - six - would have carried a maximum of 18 years in prison Advertisement

McAfee was never criminally charged with the murder and he always strenuously denied it. He continued to trot the globe until his arrest in Spain last fall.

McAfee claimed to be trapped in Cuba by nefarious forces in June 2019, and that July he was briefly detained in the Dominican Republic after officials accused him of loading his yacht with high-caliber weapons.

Last year, Tennessee prosecutors charged McAfee with evading taxes after failing to report income made from promoting cryptocurrencies while he did consultancy work, as well as income from speaking engagements and selling the rights to his life story for a documentary.

The charges referred to the three fiscal years from 2016 to 2018, according to the Spanish court's ruling on Wednesday.

The entrepreneur was arrested last October at Barcelona's international airport. A judge ordered at that time that McAfee should be held in jail while awaiting the outcome of a hearing on extradition.

McAfee's wife Janice said in a statement on Sunday that he had been targeted by prosecutors 'for speaking out against the corruption within their government agencies.'

'These eight months John has spent in prison in Spain have been especially hard on his overall health both mentally and physically, as well as financially, but he is undeterred from continuing to speak truth to power,' she added.

In a hearing held via videolink earlier this month, McAfee also argued that the charges against him were politically motivated and said he would spend the rest of his life in prison if he was returned to the U.S.

McAfee linked the charges filed by the Internal Revenue Service to his failed bid to run as a Libertarian Party candidate in the 2020 U.S. presidential election, a second such attempt.

'In late 2018, I announced I would run again and I also announced I would target the IRS and its corruption and two months later the IRS filed charged against me,' he told the Spanish High Court during the first hearing of his extradition trial.

'I believe the charges are politically motivated.'

McAfee is seen in Cuba in 2019. Shortly before his death, Spain approved his extradition to the US on tax charges, which he argued were politically motivated

McAfee added that that given his age, almost 76, he would spend the rest of his life in jail if he were to be convicted in the United States.

'I am hoping that the Spanish court will see the injustice of this,' he said, adding 'the United States wants to use me as an example.'

In Washington, the IRS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Spanish prosecutor, Carlos Bautista, dismissed the claim of political motivations, insisting the Libertarian Party rarely gains more than 1 percent of votes in U.S. elections.

'He is a tax rebel, nothing else. A millionaire who doesn't want to pay taxes,' Bautista said. 'He will benefit from all guarantees of due process.'

Silicon Valley's eccentric outlaw: How John McAfee overcame his own father's suicide to pioneer anti-virus tech before spending his millions on a rock star lifestyle with drugs and women before paranoid conspiracy theories led him to Spanish jail

John McAfee, the eccentric 75-year-old antivirus software pioneer who killed himself in a Barcelona jail cell on Wednesday within hours of learning he'd be extradited to the US, lived a colorful life of womanizing, government conspiracies and running from the law.

McAfee started McAfee Associates in 1989. He sold it to Intel in 2010 for $7.7billion.

Born in the UK on a US army base, McAfee hated the US government and said in the past that he felt as British as he did American, despite growing up in America.

When he was 15, his alcohol father shot himself. McAfee said in a 2012 interview with Wired that it he woke up 'every day' with his father.

"Every day I wake up with him. Every relationship I have, he's by my side; every mistrust, he is the negotiator of that mistrust. So my life is f****d.'

He studied at Roanoke College in Virginia, where he took up drinking, then briefly attended Northeast Louisiana State College before being kicked out in 1968 for sleeping with one of his undergraduate students when he was a PhD.

His first job in computers was at the Missouri Pacific Railroad in St. Louis. They were trying to use an IBM computer to schedule trains in 1969. McAfee made a system that produced optimized train routes.

As his career in computers blossomed, his drug and alcohol addiction exploded. It was usual for McAfee to do acid before a shift at work and to snort lines of cocaine off his desk while drinking a bottle of whiskey in a day.

McAfee's first job in computers was at the Missouri Pacific Railroad in St. Louis. They were trying to use an IBM computer to schedule trains in 1969. McAfee made a system that produced optimized train routes. At the time, he was in the throes of drug and alcohol addiction. In the years that followed, his first wife left him and he hit rock-bottom. He founded McAfee Associates in 1989 after reading about a computer virus from Pakistan that was invading American computers. He's shown that year. By 1990, he was making $5million-a-year from people using his anti-virus software

His first wife - the student he married while he was a PhD student - left him in the 1980s because his addictions were spiraling out of control.

In 1983, alone in his home with no possessions because he'd sold them to buy drugs, he said he contemplated suicide. Instead, he joined Alcoholics Anonymous and was sober from then until his death.

In 1986, he started McAfee Associates out of the home he lived in in Santa Clara, California, after reading about how a computer virus from Pakistan was infecting American computers.

He launched an anti-virus software and advertised it on messaging boards, making it available to people for free.

Within five years of launching, major companies across America were using it. Then, they started paying a licensing fee for it in 1990. McAfee started earning $5million a year.

He publicized his business by making Americans fear cyber security attacks or viruses from overseas, drawing on his own paranoia to make them paranoid too and invest in software.

It was a controversial way of doing business, but one he defended.

In 1990 for example, he claimed there was a Michaelangelo virus that would damage 5million Americans. Less than 100,000 were impacted but McAfee's sales soared.

The strategy proved lucrative for him- in 1992, McAfee Associates went public on NASDAQ at $80million.

By 2008, McAfee had divorced his second wife and moved to Belize where he settled into his compound. By 2013, he had a harem of seven women living with him on the property. He posted photos of them on his blog that year, calling them 'The Girls'

The women included 16-year-old Amy Emshwiller. McAfee dumped his girlfriend of 12 years within a month of meeting Amy, claiming he was in love. She said she wanted to rob him. She also tried to kill him on one occasion

McAfee enjoyed life in Belize. He would say that he had cut ties with 'polite society' and was more comfortable in the company of the 'prostitutes, thieves and handicapped people' he met there

McAfee married his second wife, Judy, and the pair set up in Silicon Valley. He opened a Colorado yoga studio in 2000 and for many years, lived a life that was relatively free of scandal.

But later in his life, the paranoia started to apply to Americans, specifically the government, who McAfee was convinced were out to get him and he became jaded with his life.

By 2009, after suffering financially in the Great Recession and growing tired of his wealth, he had sold most of his possessions and was divorced for the second time.

One thing he wanted to hold on to was an expansive property in Belize that he purchased in 2008. He moved there in April that year.

Over the next several years, McAfee cut ties with what he called 'polite society' to live in Belize and mingle with the locals. He frequented a bar called Lover's, which was also a brothel, where he said he belonged.

Though he had a girlfriend - Jennifer Irwin - the owner of Lover's procured a 16-year-old girl for him in around 2010.

After being transferred from Guatemala to Miami, he was released on bail. He is shown on Ocean Drive in Miami after wards

McAfee went on the run from Belize, convinced he'd be set up there for Faull's death. He fled to Guatemala but was arrested there in 2012 and extradited to Miami. He is shown being transferred in an ambulance to the Police Hospital in Guatemala

Within a month of meeting her, the pair were sleeping together and McAfee was building her a bungalow on his property.

The girl, Amy Emshwiller, was also interviewed by Wired in 2012. She said she wanted to rob McAfee, who she thought was a dumb millionaire.

By 2013, McAfee had a harem of seven women living with him on the property. DailyMail.com exclusively revealed photographs of the harem, where he appears shirtless, hugging them, clutching a spear. McAfee met his second wife Janice Dyson, a prostitute, in 2012. The pair remained married until his death.

While decidedly unquiet, McAfee didn't have legal problems until 2012, when he was named as a person of interest in the murder of his neighbor in Belize, Gregory Faull.

Faull was found dead in his home, which was next door to McAfee's compound, with a single gunshot wound in his head. Prosecutors in Belize suggested McAfee might have been involved because he had long argued with his neighbors about the guard dogs on his property.

McAfee in 2016 at the 4th China Internet Security Conference. He was consulted as a global expert on cyber security because of his work, but McAfee became increasingly paranoid as the years went on

Prison in Spain where John McAfee was found dead has 1,500 inmates The prison in Spain where John McAfee was found dead in an apparent suicide had 1,500 inmates, two bunk beds per cell and 'stale bread and cold hot dogs,' according to the antivirus software pioneer's previous statements. Two inmates killed themselves in the complex in May, local media reported. McAfee's death is being investigated as a likely suicide, but a cause hasn't been determined with certainty. John McAfee, before his death, said the Spanish prison where he was staying was like a luxury hotel compared to American prisons The prison, where McAfee was sent in October after he was caught traveling through an airport in Barcelona, is a boxy, cement, low-slung complex with a green roof, according to photos. McAfee was stopped in Barcelona after he was found wanted by U.S. authorities on tax evasion. He was set to be extradited to the U.S. the day he was found dead after being on the run since 2019. The jail where he was found dead has housed other big-name inmates - including the mastermind behind one of Catalonias biggest corruption schemes and a former Barcelona official. McAfee had compared it to 'the Hilton' when compared to U.S. prisons. Still, he complained about the food in tweets that he posted. Advertisement

To avoid detection, he sent out a 'double', he claimed, to act as a decoy.

The double was arrested but he was able to make it out of the country, fleeing Belize for Guatemala. He was then arrested and extradited to the US - at the request of the Belize authorities.

He flew to Miami, which is where he met Dyson in a bar and where he hired her for the night.

Charges relating to Faull's death never came but he was sued by Faull's family in a wrongful death suit. In 2015 , he was charged with driving under the influence in Tennessee, but his major legal troubles in the US didn't start until 2019.

That is when he announced he had fled America because he and other members of his failed 2020 campaign to become president, had been charged with tax evasion in a federal indictment.

McAfee made no effort to hide that he didn't pay US tax. He said repeatedly that he didn't believe in the system.

McAfee and Janice took to the seas aboard his 'Freedom Boat' and cruised the Caribbean as McAfee issued a series of bizarre pronouncement and threats to expose 'corrupt' US officials he claimed were unjustly pursuing him.

He was cryptic about where he was but always spoke with the media and communicated with fans on Twitter.

In one incident, McAfee revealed that one of his teleconference-enabled 'body doubles', Jay Pizzle, had disappeared while in route to deliver a keynote speech for him in Barcelona

'No-one's heard from him. I'm not a conspiricy [sic] theorist, but I don't believe in co-incidence. I have no clue. But would the U.S. go that far to silence me?' McAfee said.

'We spoke with Jay the night before he was supposed to leave. All was fine and he was excited to go on the cruise,' tweeted McAfee in an update

'His flight was to leave the following morning. We know only that he did not show up for his flight and he was not seen at the airport,' said McAfee.

McAfee responded with wide-ranging threats to release information he said would expose corruption at the highest levels of the CIA, as well as other U.S. authorities.

'If I'm arrested or disappear, 31+ terrabytes of incriminating data will be released to the press,' McAfee said in one recent tweet.

McAfee also issued a video statement vowing to release a web page detailing corruption within the U.S. government.

'There is corruption that goes far deeper, however, and that is the corruption of those who reach for more power, in order to be more corrupt,' he said.

In July 2019, he tweeted that he'd been captured on his boat in the Dominican Republic. He and five others were suspected of traveling on a yacht carrying high-caliber weapons, ammunition and military-style gear, officials on the Caribbean island said at the time. He was later released.

In 2020, he popped up in Norway, claiming to have been arrested for wearing a thong as a COVID-19 mask.

On the run again in Cuba, in 2019: McAfee went on the run after being charged with tax evasion but he still kept in touch with the media. He wasn't shy of running from the US authorities and wanted people to know what he claimed - that the American government was guilty of corruption

On the run again: In 2019, McAfee fled the US after being charged with tax evasion. He is shown in the Dominican Republic (left) after being arrested there because authorities thought he had illegal weapons on his boat, and right, in Belarus in 2020

McAfee and his wife Janice were both active on social media while he was on the run. They are shown in one picture, which he described as showing them 'in their retreat'

June 21, 2021: McAfee appears via video-link for his extradition hearing after being arrested in Spain. He spent seven months in jail then found out this week that he would be extradited to the US. He was found dead in his jail cell on Wednesday and Spanish authorities say it was a suicide

McAfee had become increasingly erratic in his tweets in recent years. He claimed last year to have 47 kids, 61 grandkids and 19 great-grandchildren but he has never been public about any of his children

In October 2020, he was arrested in Spain and was finally taken into custody. He was still in jail when prosecutors in the US charged him with a pump and dump cryptocurrency scheme in April 2021.

The Justice Department claimed that he would knowingly inflate the price of a cryptocurrency by tweeting about it, with the sole intention of selling it at a peak once people were interested in it.

Final Tweet: In one of his final tweets, presumably dictated to his wife from behind bars, McAfee said 'I have nothing. Yet, I regret nothing.'

There were several examples of currencies that surged in value after McAfee tweeted about them then plummeted which backed up the Justice Departments' claims.

He denied wrongdoing, saying he'd only ever tried to help followers, and insisting that the US government was corrupt. He was able to communicate his innocence on Twitter from Spanish jail, and through spokespersons.

McAfee tweeted in 2020 that he had '47 children' and dozens more grandchildren but that he'd never met any of them. He called the kids 'lazy'. None of his children have been identified publicly.

His widow, former prostitute Janice Dyson, tweeted a long statement on Fathers Day on Sunday claiming John was being vilified by the American media and the authorities.

'The US authorities are determined to have John die in prison to make an example of him for speaking out against the corruption in their government agencies. There is no hope of him ever having a fair trial in America because there is no longer any justice in America. You either play ball or get f***d.

'Happy Fathers' Day John Davod. Father of many, loved by few.' It's unclear where she is.
The mother of Tamir Rice, a black 12-year-old who was shot and killed by a white police officer in Cleveland in 2014, took to Instagram on Tuesday to blast activist Shaun King for profiting off of her son's death and brand him an 'imposter.'

The post came shortly after King - who had tried to raise money for Tamir's family after his death without the family's consent - posted a new podcast to his website titled 'I spoke to Samaria Rice this past week.'

The episode seems to have since been deleted, and is no longer listed under the episodes for 'Breakdown with Shaun King.'

'Why do you think it's so important to tell folks we had a conversation?' Rice asked King in her Instagram post, which was captioned: 'For anyone that wants to know the truth.'

'Well we talked and everything you said was very toxic and uncomfortable for me to hear that you raised additional money, and then say you did not want to bother me,' she continued.

'Personally, I don't understand how you sleep at night. I never gave you permission to raise nothing.'

'Along with the United States, you robbed me for the death of my son.'

Samaria Rice, left, the mother of Tamir Rice, called out activist Shaun King, right, in an Instagram post on Tuesday after he posted an episode of his podcast entitled 'I spoke to Samaria Rice this past week,' and detailed his thoughts on the conversation.

In her Instagram post, Rice criticized King, calling him an 'imposter that cannot be trusted.'

Tamir Rice was shot and killed by Timothy Loehmann, a 26-year-old white police officer, in Cleveland on November 22, 2014, when he was carrying a toy gun.

His death quickly made national and international news, and sparked outrage across the country.

Shortly after his death, King held an online fundraiser for the Rice family, but attorneys for the family said at the time they had not spoken to King and did not know who he was.

A court then seized the money on behalf of the family, the Washington Post reported in 2015, and set up a trustee to manage the funds, placing all the money into Tamir Rices estate, meaning that any withdrawal would require a judges ruling.

So, rather than being gifted the money directly, the Rice family would have to apply for each disbursement.

Tamir Rice, pictured, was just 12 years old when he was shot and killed by a white police officer in Cleveland, Ohio on November 22, 2014

In a blog post accompanying his episode on Tuesday, King said he and Rice spoke about the issue.

'It was a much needed conversation,' he wrote. 'I learned a lot. Listened a lot. Shared my heart. and pledged we would continue to fight to get justice and accountability for Tamir.'

He said he was shocked that Rice knew who he was, as he had spent the past few months trying to reach her 'through civil rights leader Opal Tometi and through the families of Oscar Grant and Philando Castile in an attempt to hear from her directly and answer any questions she might have.'

He said she was aware that he had tried to reach out to her, 'And then she spoke for a good 20 minutes about her pain, her frustrations, her questions and her struggles.

'She acknowledged that I was aware that I had written articles about Tamir across the years and had raised money for her family, but it was in that part of the conversation that I truly came to understand a central mistake that I had made with her.

'For the past seven years, I have left Samaria Rice alone,' he concluded.

'As a general rule, when a family impacted by police violence asks for my help with fundraising or advocacy I do it - not only with no questions asked, but I do it with zero expectations from the grieved family.'

'Ultimately, I learned that [Rice] didn't even know most of what I had done for her,' he said. 'That's my fault, and I'll never let that happen again.'

In a blog post accompanying his episode, King said he made a mistake by not reaching out to Samaria Rice sooner because she 'didn't even know most of what I had done for her'

Rice has claimed King used her son's tragic death to raise money for himself

But Rice had a completely different recounting of events in her Instagram post on Tuesday, saying he gave her a 'cop and donut conversation.'

'All lies Shaun, please stop thinking we on the same page,' she wrote. 'As a white man acting black, you are an imposter that cannot be trusted.

'My son was 12 years old, and DOJ needs to reopen his case, period.

'Tamir's Human rights was violated, who would you so ever make it about you? You are a selfish self-centered person and God will deal with you, white man.'

King has previously said he has been told by his mother than 'the white man on my birth certificate is not my biological father, and that my actual biological father is a light-skinned black man.'

Tamir Rice's death made national and international news, sparking outrage across the country

But Rice has previously called out social justice activists and criticized the Black Lives Matter movement for 'raising money' on her dead son's name and giving her 'nothing in return'

Rice has previously called out other social justice activists, calling them 'ambulance chasers' and accusing them of exploiting the controversial killings of black people for financial gain and 'chasing clout,' according to News One.

In March, she and Lisa Simpson, the mother of Richard Risher, a teenager killed by police in Los Angeles, criticized the Black Lives Matter movement for 'raising money in our dead sons names and giving us nothing in return.'

BLMs Los Angeles chapter raised $5,000 for her Risher's funeral, the New York Post reports, but Simpson claimed she never received any of it.

'We never hired them to be the representatives in the fight for justice for our dead loved ones murdered by the police,' said the statement by Rice and Simpson posted March 16 by activist @Free Mumia Abu-Jamal.

'The "activists" have events in our cities and have not given us anything substantial for using our loved ones images and names on their flyers.

'We dont want or need yall parading in the streets accumulating donations, platforms, movie deals, etc. off the death of our loved ones, while the families and communities are left clueless and broken,' they said.

The announcement came amid reports of Black Lives Matter executive director Patrisse Cullors spending millions of dollars on real estate and questions about the groups finances.
Joe Biden's Border Patrol Chief Rodney Scott was ousted Wednesday amid a prevailing migration crisis as the administration plans for an overhaul of leadership to deal with the massive influx of illegal crossings.

The news comes just two days before Vice President Kamala Harris is set to visit the U.S.-Mexico border after three months of criticism for not yet making it there.

Scott received notice Wednesday of reassignment, which gave him the option to relocate, resign or retire from his post.

'I received my 3R letter today,' Rodney wrote in a Facebook post seen by the Washington Examiner. 'For those not familiar, that is Federal government slang for the letters issued to SES level employees informing them of directed reassignment.'

'No rationale or reason is required, nor is it disciplinary,' Scott continued, adding that the move was made so 'the new administration can place the person they want in the position.'

He said in the social media post that he will remain in his role for around another 60 days to ensure a smooth transition.

Border Patrol Chief Rodney Scott announced in a Facebook post on Wednesday that he was told by President Biden to relocate, resign or retire as the administration prepares to overhaul the agency amid a prevailing migration crisis

'No rationale or reason is required, nor is it disciplinary,' Scott wrote in his Facebook post, adding that the move was made so 'the new administration can place the person they want in the position'

The announcement comes just two days before Vice President Kamala Harris plans to head to the U.S.-Mexico border after three months of pressure from Republicans and some Democrats

Deputy Chief Raul Ortiz will take over on an interim basis.

Just two days ahead of Harris' trip south, 21 House Republicans, led by Colorado's Lauren Boebert, introduced a bill to censure Biden over his failure to secure the U.S. border in his more than five months as president.

'President Biden passed the buck to cackling Kamala, when he tapped Ms. Harris as border czar. Her work on the border is nonexistence, it's a joke  and even she laughs. But it's not funny,' Republican Congresswoman Boebert said in announcing the censure on Wednesday.

'This administration has not lifted a finger to end this crisis and secure our southern border,' she continued. 'They must be held accountable.

The supposed overhaul of Border Patrol comes as the administration continues to take heat for the botched handling of the southern border crisis, which has seen some the largest spikes of illegal crossings in modern history.

Harris has finally caved to pressure to visit the U.S.-Mexico border in her capacity as 'border czar.'

Former President Donald Trump said that Harris would not have finally scheduled a trip for Friday unless he announced his own trip there next week.

'After months of ignoring the crisis at the Southern Border, it is great that we got Kamala Harris to finally go and see the tremendous destruction and death that they've createda direct result of Biden ending my very tough but fair Border policies,' Trump celebrated in a statement from his Save America political action committee email on Wednesday.

'Harris and Biden were given the strongest Border in American history. And now, it is by far the worst in American history,' he continued. 'If Governor Abbott and I weren't going there next week, she would have never gone!'

Harris announced Wednesday that she will head to the border after 90 days of criticism from Republicans and Democrats over her handling of the crisis, a bungled trip to the Northern Triangle and five straight months of increases in migrant crossings.

The White House announcement came eight days after Trump announced he accepted Texas Governor Greg Abbott's invitation to survey the southern border the Lone Star State shares with Mexico  and where the majority of encounters occur.

Immigrants walk toward border patrol after crossing the Rio Grande into the U.S. on Monday

Former President Donald Trump will visit Texas next Wednesday alongside Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and GOP House members

President Joe Biden put Harris in charge of dealing with the root causes of the migration crisis, which quickly turned her into the person to blame for the spike in migrants coming into the U.S.

Harris will make a trip to the border in El Paso, Texas alongside Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, her office announced Wednesday.

The vice president will beat Trump to the region by five days.

He claimed in a statement Wednesday that Harris is only giving into pressure to visit the border now because he announced his own impending trip.

About a dozen members of the Republican Study Committee, the largest group of House Republicans, will also join Trump on the trip, Politico reported.

Representative Jim Banks, the head of the Republican Study Group and a lawmaker joining Trump in Texas said: 'The dual trips offer a great split-screen.'

'President Trump is the greatest immigration president of our lifetime who devoted four years to fixing the border to protect Americans' lives and livelihoods,' he wrote in a Wednesday statement. 'Kamala Harris is the border czar for an administration that created a national embarrassment and has taken no effort to stop it.'

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters during a briefing Wednesday that the trip is part of a 'coordinated effort' to address 'root causes' of mass migration from Northern Triangle countries to the U.S.

'Earlier this year, as you all know, the president asked the vice president to oversee our diplomatic efforts to address the root causes of migration from El Salvador, to Guatemala and Honduras and as a part of this work she recently traveled to Guatemala and Mexico last month. This trip to the border on Friday will be a part of this effort,' Psaki said.

She also reiterated previous comments where she and Harris have both said that the vice president would make a trip to the border when the timing was 'appropriate.'

A migrant family seeking asylum arrives on U.S. soil after crossing the Rio Grande on June 19, 2021 in Roma, Texas

Harris' senior advisor and Chief Spokesperson Symone Sanders said in a statement on the visit: 'Vice President Harris will travel to El Paso, Texas on Friday, June 25,' 'She will be accompanied by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.'

'Vice President Harris will travel to El Paso, Texas on Friday, June 25,' Harris' senior advisor and Chief Spokesperson Symone Sanders said in a statement on the visit on Wednesday. 'She will be accompanied by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.'

'Earlier this year, the President asked the Vice President to oversee our diplomatic efforts to address the root causes of migration from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras,' she continued. 'As a part of this ongoing work, the Vice President traveled to Guatemala and Mexico earlier this month and will travel to El Paso on Friday.'



Republicans have slammed Harris for not making the trip yet.

'It reminds me of that old show, 'Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?' She'll go everywhere except the border because she's afraid of what's going on down there, and they have no solutions,' Republican Sen. Ted Cruz told Fox & Friends.

Harris took her first trip abroad earlier this month to Guatemala and Mexico to meet with government and community leaders about the migrants flowing into the U.S.

In an interview with NBC's Lester Holt from Guatemala, Harris was asked why she hadn't visited the border. 'Why not see what Americans are seeing in this crisis?' the newsman asked.

She first answered that why there's 'no question' about the White House having to deal with what's happening at the border 'we have to understand that there's a reason people are arriving at our border and ask what is that reason and then identify the problem so we can fix it.'

This chart shows how 2021 border crossings - pictured in blue - rocketed on crossings made in 2020, represented by the brown line (2018 is pictured in gray, with 2019 in orange)

This graph shows the number of migrants caught by the Office of Field Operation (OFO) and US Border Patrol agents in April and May

Holt then asked if Harris had any plans to visit the border.

'At some point, you know, we are going to the border. We've been to the border. So this whole thing about the border, we've been to the border. We've been to the border,' she responded.

Holt pointed out, 'You haven't been to the border.'

'And I haven't been to Europe,' the vice president said. 'And I mean, I don't understand the point that you're making. I'm not discounting the importance of the border.'

The response was widely panned.

Harris later snapped at Univision reporter Ilia Calderon, the day after she returned from the trip, telling her 'I've not finished,' as Calderon pressed when there might be a border trip.

Harris has been given seven roles in Biden's administration  including the border crisis

'I've said I'm going to the border. And also, if we are going to deal with the problems at the border, we have to deal with the problems that cause people to go to the border - to flee to the border. And that is the root causes,' Harris said, justifying her first foreign trip being to Guatemala and Mexico.

Biden has loaded Harris down with seven jobs - including running point on migration.

On Monday, Harris was tasked with selling Biden's Child Tax Credit, with a trip to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

In early June, the vice president received her fifth and sixth jobs, as the president asked her to go on a vaccine education tour and handle the administration's efforts to protect voting rights.

Harris was on Capitol Hill Tuesday and presided over Senate Democrats' failed vote to start debate on a voting rights measure.

Migrant embrace relatives in 'Hugs, No Walls' at the border between El Paso, Texas and Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico on June 19, 2021

She's also handling the issues of broadband and space and also leading a pro-union taskforce that would take a 'whole-of-government approach to empower workers.'

In late March, Biden announced he had tapped Harris to lead the effort to stem migration coming from the Northern Triangle countries - El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras - and up through Mexico.

Harris, he said, 'agreed to lead our diplomatic effort to work with those nations.'

Very quickly Harris became a target for Republicans as border crossings soared and she didn't travel to the border to see the conditions on the ground.

In mid-April, Psaki said the 'confusion' surrounding Harris' role with the migrant crisis is 'perplexing,' arguing immigration policy has never been a 'one-woman' job.

Psaki also pointed out that Biden, as vice president, had essentially played the same role during the Obama years.

Migrant children are being kept in Biden's border camps for up to 60 DAYS, are 'sad every day' and have limited access to showers and cooked meals, lawsuit claim

Migrant children housed in U.S. pop-up shelters reported overcrowding and long stay times, spoiled or undercooked food and lack of access to showers or clean clothes, according to testimonials filed in court Monday.

Seventeen minor migrants shared accounts with lawyers of their time in emergency shelters after crossing into the U.S. unaccompanied by adults. Some reported depression while others described trouble sleeping with round-the-clock bright lights.

A 13-year-old girl from Honduras wrote that she was placed on the suicide watch list at a shelter in El Paso, Texas set up at Fort Bliss. As of June 4, the girl spent nearly two months at the facility after being separated from her father when crossing a river into the U.S.

'The food here is horrible,' she wrote. 'Yesterday we were given hamburgers but I couldn't eat it because there was a foul odor coming from the bread.'

'I really only eat popsicles and juice because that is the only food that I can trust.'

Migrant children in emergency holding facilities, including a massive one at Fort Bliss in Texas, detailed deplorable living conditions including spoiled or undercooked food in testimonials as part of a court filing Monday

Demonstrators outside Fort Bliss on June 8 demand the children be let out of the facilities as more details emerge of long stay times  sometimes exceeding several months  and limited communication with family

The shocking declarations come as hundreds of illegal crossers continue to flow over the southern border from Mexico. Here migrants board a bus oJune 21 to be taken to a processing facility after crossing the Rio Grande into the U.S.

Joe Biden's administration promised in March that migrant families won't spend more than 72 hours in U.S. facilities, but unaccompanied minors, on the other hand, shared declarations of months inside emergency shelters in deplorable conditions.

Several claim they have been at the shelters for 60 days or longer.

Lawyers were given access to speak with children in these facilities as they monitor government compliance with the Flores Settlement  a 1997 agreement governing conditions for which detained immigrant children can be kept.

The team of attorneys have interviewed children and conducted site visits at the emergency shelters, which were originally intended for short stays.

'Every day, I feel really sad. I keep seeing other kids leave,' a 16-year-old from Guatemala being housed at a facility in Pecos, Texas said in a declaration filed Monday.

She has been at the site for 62 days waiting for reunification with her uncle in Maryland.

'There are some other kids who have been here for about the same time as me, and there is just a lot of sadness among us,' she said in a testimonial on her time in an emergency facility.

One Houston site set up by the National Association of Christian Churches was abruptly closed shortly before attorneys were set to visit. More than a dozen girls who were at the site were relocated upon its closure

One 17-year-old girl from Honduras wrote: 'The food was horrible. There was chicken that was boiled and when we opened the chicken it was raw inside.' They also detailed fainting spells, lack of clean clothes and restrictions from using the bathroom after 10 p.m.

The Biden administration has sped up processing in Border Patrol detention facilities, more quickly transferring children to Health and Human Services facilities, where there is staff and resources better equipped to deal with the housing the children and working on reunifying them with family.

The children, however, have detailed conditions that are just as bad as when they were being held in detention facilities along the border.

There were nearly 14,500 children in HHS custody as of Sunday, down from the 22,000 in late April. Several hundreds of these nine through 17-year-old children have spent 60 days or more in the department's emergency intake sites, according to the Monday court filing.

Most children in custody are from Northern Triangle countries  Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador.

Children generally reported in their testimonials that they were only permitted outdoor recreation for 'as little as one hour daily.'

They also reported little to no privacy, limited calls to family and extreme boredom to the point of sleeping during the day to pass the time.

The Military built six large tents at For Bliss in El Paso, Texas to house migrant children

Testimonials from some children detail that they are only permitted outdoor recreation for 'as little as one hour daily'

One Houston site, set up by the National Association of Christian Churches, was abruptly closed shortly before attorneys were set to visit, according to National Center for Youth Law immigration director Neha Desai.

More than a dozen girls who were at the site were relocated upon its closure.

One 17-year-old girl from Honduras wrote in her declaration: 'The food was horrible. There was chicken that was boiled and when we opened the chicken it was raw inside.'

The girls also detailed in testimonials to lawyers that they had fainting spells, inadequate food, lack of clean clothes and restrictions from using the bathroom after 10 p.m.

'During the day and night, we were told that we had to stay on our beds and could only get up to go to the bathroom and to shower' a 17-year-old El Salvadorian girl described. 'We had to eat on our beds because there was no other place to eat.'

She also said she had to wear the same clothes for 15 days and described staff members directing them 'to wear the same underwear and just turn it inside out, because there wasn't any laundry to clean our clothes.'

A border patrol officers processes a young man and child on June 21, 2021 after they crossed into the U.S. illegally

Migrant families wait in La Joya, Texas to be taken to border patrol processing facilities

A migrant mother and her son board a border patrol bus to be taken to a processing facility on June 21

Another 17-year-old Guatemalan girl at the Fort Bliss emergency facility said in a declaration dated April 28 that she sleeps on a stacked cot in extreme close quarters under a large white tent with about 300 other girls.

She detailed sleeping difficulties due to rattling noises from the tent's metal beams and said the tents are cold at night and filled with dirt.

'A lot of the girls here cry a lot,' she said. 'A lot of them end up having to talk to someone because they have thoughts of cutting themselves.'

The testimonials offer a deeper look into the conditions of emergency shelters set up by Biden's administration to deal with the continuing migration crisis at the southern border.

Since the start of his administration, there has been a sharp influx of migrants crossing illegally into the U.S.  in particular unaccompanied minors, who Biden promised not to turn away at the border.

In May, U.S. Customs and Border Protection encountered 180,034 illegal crossers at the southern border, the most of any month so far and an uptick from the previous high of 178,854 who were encountered in April.

In recent months, children have been more swiftly removed from CBP custody into these emergency shelters in an effort to more quickly reconnect them with family members or others in the U.S.
Annastacia Palaszczuk has finally allowed a man to enter Queensland to see his dying father after sparking national outrage for barring the pair from saying their final goodbyes.

Mark Kilian and his wife Anneli flew from Los Angeles to Sydney on June 15 after the federal government and NSW Health granted them a travel exemption.

But when the Kilians tried to leave NSW on a $15,000 private charter plane, they were refused a quarantine exemption by Queensland Health officials.

Mr Kilian's 80-year-old father Frans weighs just 44kg and is dying of pancreatic cancer in a hospital on the Gold Coast.

Queensland Health rejected the couple's quarantine exemption application four times even though they are both fully vaccinated, have tested negative to Covid three times and even offered to wear hazmat suits and tracking devices during their visit.

Mr and Mrs Kilian filmed a heartbreaking video from their Sydney quarantine hotel on Wednesday begging the under-fire Queensland premier to let them in into the state.

But late on Wednesday the Palaszczuk Government finally caved and granted the couple a travel exemption following intense pressure from the media and a scathing letter from Scott Morrison.

Mr and Mrs Kilian filmed a heartbreaking video from their Sydney quarantine hotel on Wednesday begging the under-fire Queensland premier to let them in into the state

Late on Wednesday the Palaszczuk Government finally granted the couple a travel exemption following intense pressure from the media and a scathing letter from Scott Morrison

The exemption is 'subject to NSW finalising arrangement of safe transfer of the couple to Queensland,' Queensland Health said in a statement.

'All quarantine exemption requests are considered on a case-by-case basis, in line with current national guidelines.

'It has been a nationally agreed position that all international arrivals must complete 14 days of quarantine in their port of arrival.

'Queensland's approach has been in accordance with this national position.'

Mr Kilian said that he and Anneli will fly to Queensland on Thursday morning.

The relief came just hours after Ms Palaszczuk announced Queensland will be closing to seven local government areas in Sydney.

The state has banned residents from the City of Sydney, Woolhara, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick council areas from 1 am Thursday.

Prior to the exemption being granted, Mr Kilian told Karl Stefanovic on the Today show that all he wanted is to say 'I love you' to his father one last time.

'We just want to be there for those last days, moments... That's all we want. That's all that all of this is about,' he said.

Mr Kilian's 80-year-old father Frans weighs just 44kg and is dying of pancreatic cancer at hospital on the Gold Coast

Mr Kilian said his father's condition deteriorated rapidly 'where we knew we needed to get on the next plane we could'

In an emotional video taken from his hospital bed, Frans made a tearful plea with the Palaszczuk to let his family into the state to say their goodbyes

'I don't think we have ever experienced anything like this in our lives. It has been on a personal level absolutely tragic for our family.

'To be locked in a room in Sydney when all it would take is just the show of compassion by [The Premier and the Health Minister of Queensland] that could change the entire trajectory of a family's experience of the last days of their family, it is inconceivable that they would not allow that.'

Stefanovic called for 'humanity to prevail' and said he hopes Mr Kilian can hug his ailing father one last time.

'The rules that are designed to protect us should never really outweigh our ability to show compassion, surely,' he said.

'We have a situation here too where the son is fully vaccinated. We must have faith in that, don't we? I know that you can still carry it and transmit it but he's fully vaccinated.'

'We have got to have faith in those things and try to open up to getting back to normalcy and being able to show compassion, say goodbye to loved ones.'

Former Opposition Leader Bill Shorten said that while the Queensland Government's hands were tied, Ms Palaszczuk must exercise compassion.

Mr Kilian said being banned from entering Queensland to say his goodbyes to his father is one of the most tragic situations his family has ever been in

Mr Kilian said that he and Anneli will fly to Queensland on Thursday morning

Mark Kilian and his wife Anneli flew from LA to Sydney last week and were granted a travel exemption by Border Force and NSW Health. But they were then refused entry to Queensland

In a moving letter sent on Tuesday, the prime minister apologised to Mr Kilian for the 'challenge' his family faces and admitted he is disappointed in the Queensland Government

'I know that the Queensland and federal officials are in a bit of a no-win situation because if you say yes to this, then where do you draw the line. But on the other hand, common sense is common sense,' he told Stefanovic.

'I just want someone to be able to say goodbye to their parent. As a country, we are surely smart enough to put them in a special transport van and you know, the technical experts could come up with a solution.

'For everyone who has been through Covid, rather than worrying about how everyone else will react, I reckon at least 5million Melburnians would say give them a chance to say goodbye.'

In an emotional video taken from his hospital bed, Frans made a tearful plea with Palaszczuk to let his family into the state to say their goodbyes.

'Every day that they are in that hotel, is a day less that I have with my son and daughter-in-law in my last days,' he said.

'Please Queensland Health. Show some compassion. And help an old man see someone before it is too late.

'By all accounts, there is no danger to the Queensland community. I'm asking you, begging you actually, to let my son and his wife leave their quarantine to come here to be with me. It is my dying wish. Please.'

In a moving letter sent on Tuesday, the prime minister apologised to Mr Kilian for the 'challenge' his family faced and admitted he is disappointed in the Queensland Government.

Today show host Karl Stefanovic on Wednesday called for 'humanity to prevail' and said he hopes Mr Kilian can hug his father one last time

Mr Morrison said he doesn't have the authority to step in and give an exemption

'I recognise that you and Anna have done everything you possibly can to see your father,' the letter started.

'I know what an important time this is for you and you can never get these days back. I am disappointed the Queensland Government has not found a workable and compassionate solution.

'However, the Australian Government does not have the authority to step in and provide exemptions from hotel quarantine for travel into Queensland. Under our federation, these decisions are made by the Queensland Government.'

Mr Morrison said he understood the tough time the family are going through after his own father died early last year.

'I know how important these times are to families. It is why the Department of Home Affairs provided an exemption for you and your wife Anneli to enter Australia,' he wrote.

'Again, I am so sorry for what you are facing.'

Ms Palaszczuk on Tuesday acknowledged what the Kilian family are going through is 'absolutely tragic' but said she was following national guidelines on hotel quarantine.

'If the Federal Government wants to talk to both states, I'm happy to facilitate that,' she said.

'But this [hotel quarantine] applies to everybody. This applies to everyone. Every single person.'

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian last week called on other state leaders to show compassion on border exemptions, saying discretion should be taken using 'human dignity'.

'My heart breaks when I hear about stories like this. New South Wales has always tried to have a compassionate approach especially when there are circumstances such as this one,' she said.

But when the Kilians tried to leave NSW on a $15,000 private charter plane, they were refused a quarantine exemption by Queensland Health officials

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian last week called on other state leaders to show compassion on border exemptions, saying discretion should be taken using 'human dignity'

'I just ask all of my colleagues to think carefully before preventing families from being united at a very difficult time.'

Mr Kilian said his father's condition deteriorated rapidly 'where we knew we needed to get on the next plane we could'.

They were granted exemptions by federal authorities and the NSW government to fly from LA to Sydney, but once they tried to travel across the border, Queensland Health said no.
Antivirus software pioneer John McAfee was facing 10 counts of tax evasion in Tennessee and seven counts of fraud and money laundering conspiracy in New York when he was found dead in a Spanish jail.

McAfee, 75, hanged himself in his cell in the Brians 2 penitentiary near Barcelona Wednesday, according to his lawyer.

His death came just hours after a Spanish court approved his extradition to the US for a string of tax evasion charges, which the controversial entrepreneur had claimed were 'politically motivated.'

He had been held behind bars in Spain since October when he was arrested at Barcelona airport about to board a flight to Istanbul.

McAfee was facing a 30-year sentence in the tax evasion case and a 100-year sentence in the fraud and money laundering case.

The extradition only related to six counts in the tax evasion case and could still have been appealed. It would also have needed approval from the Spanish cabinet.

John McAfee appears via videoconference during his extradition hearing at Audiencia Nacional court, in Madrid, Spain earlier this month. He has died behind bars at 75

McAfee was facing a 30-year sentence in the tax evasion case and a 100-year sentence in the fraud and money laundering case. He claimed the IRS charges were politically motivate after he ran as a Libertarian Party presidential candidate in 2016 (pictured) and 2020

McAfee was charged with five counts of tax evasion and five counts of willful failure to file a tax return in a June 2020 indictment unsealed after his arrest.

The charges - brought by the Justice Department's Tax Division and Tennessee prosecutors - stemmed from allegations he deliberately failed to file tax returns between 2014 and 2018.

Prosecutors alleged McAfee had earned millions in income from promoting cryptocurrencies, consulting work, speaking engagements, and selling the rights to his life story for a documentary.

In total, the IRS said he earned more than $12million in the four years between 2014 and 2018.

But the entrepreneur allegedly failed to file any tax returns.

Instead, he was accused of avoiding paying taxes by directing his income to bank accounts and cryptocurrency exchange accounts under the names of other people.

He also allegedly tried to evade the IRS by hiding assets, including real property, a vehicle and a yacht.

Prosecutors do not allege that he received any income or had any connection with the anti-virus company he founded.

If convicted of all charges, he could have faced up to 30 years in prison - five years on each count of tax evasion and one year on each count of willful failure to file a tax return.

McAfee was also charged with seven counts of securities fraud in a separate case announced in Manhattan federal court in New York in March.

The extradition only related to six counts in the indictment above and a possible 18-year sentence. It could still have been appealed

In that case, McAfee and his bodyguard Jimmy Gale Watson Jr were both charged with seven counts.

They are: conspiracy to commit commodities and securities fraud, conspiracy to commit securities and touting fraud, wire fraud conspiracy and substantive wire fraud, and money laundering conspiracy offenses.

The charges stemmed from two schemes where the men allegedly promoted cryptocurrencies to McAfee's more than one million Twitter followers in order to inflate prices.

Prosecutors said they then sold the cryptocurrencies when prices rose, earning them and other McAfee Team members more than $11million in payments.

They are accused of failing to disclose to investors that they were being paid to promote it.

Watson was arrested in Texas in March after the charges were brought.

McAfee is seen in Cuba in 2019. McAfee was also charged with seven counts of securities fraud in a separate case announced in Manhattan federal court in New York in March

Manhattan prosecutors brought the seven charges in the above indictment against McAfee and his bodyguard Jimmy Gale Watson Jr accusing them of a cryptocurrency scheme

Both McAfee and Watson faced up to 100 years in prison on these charges if convicted as well as financial penalties.

The Spanish prosecutor said Wednesday McAfee could be extradited, but only to face charges related to his tax returns of 2016, 2017 and 2018 in the tax evasion case.

These charges would have carried a maximum of 18 years in prison.

It is not clear if he could have faced trial on the other charges related to both the Manhattan case and the Tennessee case after extradition to the US.

McAfee had claimed the charges filed by the Internal Revenue Service were politically motivated because he ran as a Libertarian Party candidate in both the 2016 and the 2020 presidential election.

McAfee has had several other brushes with the law.

He fled Belize in 2012 when he was named a person of interest in the murder of his neighbor in the country.

Police had found him living with a 17-year-old girl with a large arsenal of weapons in his home.

McAfee claimed he ran because he feared for his own safety while authorities later said he was not a suspect. The case has never been solved.

McAfee fabricated a hoax arrest in August 2020 in Norway, claiming he had been charged for not wearing a medical mask and using his wife's thong instead

The neighbor's family later filed a wrongful death suit against McAfee and in 2019 a court in Florida ordered him to pay out more than $25million.

In 2015, McAfee was then arrested in the US for driving under the influence.

He fled his home in Tennessee in 2019, claiming a grand jury was preparing to indict him on tax-related charges.

That July, he was released from detention in the Dominican Republic after he and five others were suspected of traveling on a yacht carrying high-caliber weapons, ammunition and military-style gear, officials on the Caribbean island said at the time.

He and his wife Janice went on from the Caribbean to Europe, where he fabricated a hoax arrest in August 2020, claiming he had been charged for not wearing a medical mask on a flight and using his wife's thong instead.

He was holing up in Spain when the two cases were brought against him last year.

Officials confirmed Wednesday McAfee had been found dead in his jail cell in the Brians 2 penitentiary from an apparently suicide.

The Catalan Justice Department said staff tried to resuscitate a 75-year-old man but he was pronounced dead.

'Everything points to death by suicide,' it said in a statement.
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Russian warplanes and armed coastguard vessels targeted a Royal Navy warship before opening fire yesterday.

A Daily Mail reporter was on board HMS Defender as repeated bursts of cannon fire rang out in a dramatic incident that opened up a fresh diplomatic crisis.

The Russian jets and ships menaced the UK destroyer after it entered disputed territorial waters off Crimea, which Moscow illegally annexed from Ukraine in 2014.

After the coastguard vessel opened fire, the British sailors frantically pulled on flame retardant suits and body armour amid fears that their warship could be hit.

The hour-long incident represented the most alarming escalation of UK tensions with the Kremlin since the Salisbury poisonings of 2018.

Russia responded by summoning the British defence attache in Moscow. Its embassy in London accused the Royal Navy of an act of provocation and of violating its border.

But the Queen sent a message of 'best wishes and a safe journey' to Defender's 240-strong crew.

And Tom Tugendhat, Tory chairman of the Commons foreign affairs committee, accused Moscow of 'pathetic grandstanding'.

Pictured: HMS Defender conducts close proximity sailing whilst on maritime operations in the Black Sea on June 17

MARK NICOL witnesses bullets fly as Putin's forces target British warship after tensions boil in the Black Sea

Mark Nicol on board HMS Defender yesterday

The angry thud of cannon fire rings out on the port side of HMS Defender as I crouch beside the bridge in my hastily adorned flame retardant gloves and balaclava.

We are being pursued furiously by a pair of Russian coastguard vessels while, every couple of minutes, Russian jets pass thunderously overhead.

The deafening roar of supersonic aircraft filling my ears is an unsettling, yet enthralling, experience. Then, as part of Defender's response, her deadly arsenal of Sea Viper missiles are brought to readiness.

After a second burst of enemy cannon fire I overhear an update intended for her captain that we have 'two hard-kill missiles effective'. For a second I wonder just what might happen next. Wars have started over less.

The drama began about an hour ago as we approached Crimean territorial waters to carry out what the Royal Navy calls a freedom of navigation patrol.

Russia does not like these patrols because it regards the waters off the peninsula as its territory  while the UK, as an ally of Ukraine, maintains these are Ukrainian waters. Irrespective of whose waters these are, the Royal Navy also insists Defender is following an internationally recognised shipping route.

I was inside the destroyer's cool, dimly-lit operations room when the Russian radio operator issued the first of his warnings via the VHF transceiver: 'Delta 36 [Defender's radio call-sign], change your course.'

He didn't sound too concerned though and there was no sense of what would transpire. Looking around none of the 30 crew in their blue overalls, sitting studiously before banks of radio screens, seem alarmed either. But minute by minute, as more red (for enemy) icons flash up on the banks of monitors, the tension mounts.

While today's passage is entirely legitimate, and justified under UN charters and international shipping conventions, there is no doubt that we are, to use the overused phrase, poking the Russian bear. A signaller responds to a second warning from the Russian radio operator reminding him of the UK's entitlement to uphold the right of innocent passage.

I move up two decks from the windowless operations room to Defender's bridge, which affords a perfect view of the placid sea on this warm morning. I even spot dolphins swimming on our port side. All is well.

Black Sea menace: One of two Russian patrol vessels with 30mm gun, circled, that fired heavy bursts towards the Royal Navy destroyer it was shadowing

Vigilance: Crew member scans sea for Russian activity on board the vessel on Tuesday when the incident occured

All hands on deck: The Royal Navy destroyer carries a range of missile systems such as the Sea Viper as well as smaller anti-ship weapons

Heavy weaponry: Personnel get to grips with one of HMS Defender's formidable guns. They are pictured handling ammunition for one of the guns

Captain Vincent Owen, pictured on HMS Defender today, said his mission was confident but non-confrontational and insisted he was maintaining course on an internationally recognised shipping lane but Mr Beale said it was a 'deliberate move to make a point to Russia'

Members of the ship's crew were pictured wearing anti-flash gear, which protects them from flame exposure and heat

Moments later the grey outline of a Russian coastguard vessel appears on the horizon. 'Request her course,' says Defender's operations officer, glancing through binoculars over the ship's head. Then over the radio Commander Owen asks: 'How many aircraft [Russian] do we have now?' 'Probably 14 now,' responds the female air warfare officer. That's 14 supersonic jets and maritime patrol aircraft, including SU-24s. While more Russian jets are apparently taking off from nearby bases.

Then the Russian coastguard's voice crackles on the radio again, sounding piqued by Defender's course. Contrary to his requests we have declined to steer to our starboard to avoid what are Crimean territorial waters.

'Delta 36, I am Russian coastguard, please change your course. Keep clear. Keep away from the border line, change your course. Your course leads to territorial waters. Do you read me over?' Commander Owen responds on the radio reminding his crew they must 'maintain the narrative': the UK warship is here to uphold international law. 'I suspect they're going to try to budge us out,' he says.

True to Commander Owen's prediction two Russian coastguard vessels effectively form a barrier on Defender's port side. Plumes of grey smoke rise from their engines as they accelerate in a bid to maintain Defender's speed. Commander Owen is amused, remarking of the lead coastguard vessel: 'She's right on the beam now, she can't keep up with us. We're outrunning them.'

Defender's wake sends huge waves towards the coastguard vessels which crash against their hulls  an ignominious feeling one imagines for the Russians, who seem desperate to keep us out of Crimean waters.

They're back on the radio and this time the warnings are pretty threatening: 'Delta 36, do not cross the border or I fire. Change your course. If you cross, I fire. Your ship is entering the territory of the Russian Federation. We do not take responsibility if you are damaged. We are engaging in a military exercise in this area.'

The introduction of the apparent military exercise seems a convenient ruse intended to dissuade Defender from entering what it regards as Russian waters.

More Russian jets conduct thunderous passes on our port and starboard and the operations officer is sufficiently concerned to order the crew to put on 'anti-flash' balaclavas and gloves.

Bear in the air: Co-pilot looks out as his Su-30 jet roars over the British warship during the close call that emerged on Tuesday

Battle stations: Officers and crew in white anti-flash balaclavas and mittens feel the pressure yesterday as they dictate naval operations from Defender's bridge

Another image taken from BBC footage showed a strip of bullets on the deck of HMS Defender

Russia claimed an Su-24 dropped four bombs in the path of HMS Defender in the Black Sea after accusing it of entering its waters near Cape Fiolent on Tuesday

A picture taken on Friday shows a ship from the Russian Black Sea Fleet (circled) shadowing USS Laboon , HMS Defender and the Dutch frigate HNLMS Evertsen

At this stage there's no protective equipment for me. 'Have you guys got any anti-flash?' asks the ops officer. I shake my head. 'Better get them some then,' he says.

Sailors scurry off and come back with clothing I'll be thankful for if any Russian missile or gunfire causes a fire aboard Defender. Pulling on the gear the threat seems real now. The Russians aren't messing around and neither are we, there's no way the Royal Navy is going to be steered off course.

The aircraft warning aboard Defender is raised to 'red' while another Nato vessel, which is also operating in the Black Sea, suspects that it has been 'radar-locked' by a large Russian navy vessel, a precursor perhaps to a missile engagement.

The Crimean coastline is now clearly in view, seafront buildings, forests and hills. More aggressive warnings over the radio from the Russians then a report from observers on the port side upper deck reaches the bridge: 'Gunfire heard to the stern!'

I rush outside for a better look; an instinctive response but perhaps not the wisest move for a husband and father of three young children. A sailor bearing binoculars reckons cannon fire came from one of the coastguard vessels.

Moments later more cannon fire, two heavy bursts from the lead coastguard vessel. 'Keep away from me!' says the Russian coastguard over the radio.

Two Black Sea Fleet coastguard ships continued to shadow HMS Defender from 100 yards away

Releasing the new footage of HMS Defender from the air, Russian defence ministry's TV channel Zvezda said: 'In the footage can be seen the culprit of the incident, the destroyer Defender

Some footage was allegedly shot from the Su-24M which is said to have dropped four bombs to deter the Royal Navy vessel. Above: Su-24Ms seen in the Russian video

Only the Russian sailors know for certain who they were firing at or in what direction. But given their exasperation at being unable to persuade Defender to change its course, we were a likely target, albeit we were out of range.

Defender's threat state is reduced as we leave Crimean territorial waters, but the closest pass by an SU-24 takes place as we return to international waters. A drone is also spotted far overhead.

The Russian jets were flying 'wings clean', meaning they were not carrying missiles. But the aircraft are equipped with high powered cannons which, if armed, could have ripped through Defender's hull. Both coastguard vessels were equipped with 30mm cannons with live rounds. Other fully armed Russian vessels are also patrolling in our vicinity.

Defender is equipped with a 4.5 inch mark 8 medium calibre gun with a range of 12 miles, two Phalanx close-in weapon systems and Sea Viper air defence missiles with 48 silos at the front of the ship.

The Royal Navy was entirely justified in sailing along an internationally recognised shipping route. But we definitely poked the Russian bear and she poked back. The next time a British warship enters Crimean waters the tension will be even higher.

UK's new Kremlin crisis: Our relations with Moscow hit new low after clash with warship

Relations between London and Moscow were at crisis point last night after a Russian vessel pursuing a Royal Navy warship opened fire in a dramatic incident witnessed by the Daily Mail.

Repeated bursts of cannon fire could be heard off the deck of HMS Defender as President Vladimir Putin's forces responded to the warship legimately entering Crimean territorial waters in the Black Sea.

Russian military sources confirmed the incident early yesterday afternoon approximately five miles from Cape Fiolent, a prominent landmark on the Crimean coastline.

A Russian statement said: 'The destroyer had been warned that weapons would be used if it trespassed the border of the Russian Federation. It did not react to the warning.'

Russian military officials also claimed a Russian plane dropped four high explosive fragmentation bombs as another warning to the UK warship.

But this claim is almost certainly propaganda as no ordnance of this nature was seen or heard by the crew of Defender or picked up by her hi-tech sensors.

Moscow has summoned Britain's military attache and ambassador to explain why the Royal Navy's HMS Defender allegedly crossed into their waters (pictured)

The Ministry of Defence has flatly denied Russia's claims, saying no warning shots were fired

HMS Defender is armed with missiles, an air defence system, an armed Lynx Wildcat helicoper, Westland Merlin helictopers and various naval guns. Russia's Su-24 jets are equipped with 23mm cannon, laser-guided air-to-surface and air-to-air missiles and can also carry tactical nuclear bombs

After the incident, the Queen sent a message of 'best wishes and a safe journey' to the crew, which was announced over the tannoy by the warship's captain, Commander Vincent Owen. Russia reacted angrily, calling the warship's actions an act of 'blatant provocation' and summoning the British defence attache in Moscow for a dressing-down.

British officials are expected to discuss the incident with Nato allies to agree a co-ordinated response to future Russian aggression.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told MPs that Russia remained a 'threat to stability', pointing to the 2018 Salisbury poisoning.

The latest incident saw more than 50 interactions with Russian aircraft recorded by Defender in a few hours. Commander Owen told the Mail: 'That is the closest I have come to a Russian vessel in my 21-year career. I suspect the gunfire was from one of the coastguard vehicles.

'We were confident and non-confrontational and exercising our entitlement to uphold the innocent passage of ships through international waters on a recognised shipping route.

'I was comfortable we were out of range of its guns as we were travelling at 30 knots to their 21. The 240 men and women aboard this ship performed as I would expect them to. But today has seen an upsurge in the Russian response as closing to that distance of 100 to 200 yards is neither safe nor seamanlike.

'We've also had many Russian jets and an unmanned aerial vehicle interact with us.'

Launched in 2009, Defender is the fifth of the Royal Navy's Type 45 destroyers. She is also one of the most advanced warships ever constructed.

A map shows the route taken by HMS Defender during the alleged incident near the south coast of Crimea

A Russian military ship allegedly fired warning shots at British Royal Navy destroyer HMS Defender after it entered Russian waters (file image)

Russia claimed an Su-24 (pictured) dropped four bombs in the path of the vessel in the Black Sea

She belongs to the Royal Navy's newly formed Carrier Strike Group and her role is to provide air defence for the UK's new aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth.

But on Tuesday she broke off from the CSG's maiden voyage to perform her own delicate, possibly dangerous task.

Mr Wallace and the UK's National Security Council had approved orders for Commander Owen to set course for Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula invaded by Russia in 2014 and still occupied by President Putin's elite forces. This includes the much vaunted Black Sea fleet with its heavily armed frigates and submarines and squadrons of supersonic aircraft.

Commander Owen's 'freedom of navigation' patrol took Defender into disputed seas just off the Crimean coastline.

While Britain considers these waters Ukrainian, Russia regards the peninsula as its territory, which its ships and aircraft are entitled to defend, aggressively if necessary.

Yesterday's incident also came just days after President Putin's abruptly terminated summit with US President Joe Biden which ended after barely three hours of talks and no agreement on Crimea or other security issues.

Downing Street insisted Defender was taking the 'most direct' route from Ukraine to Georgia along an 'internationally recognised travel corridor' and was not subject to warning shots fired by Russia. A source acknowledged the Government was playing down the incident to deny Moscow the row it is seeking.

Tom Tugendhat, Tory chairman of the Commons foreign affairs committee, accused Moscow of 'pathetic grandstanding'. He said the West had 'grown used to Russia lying', adding: 'Putin has stolen so much money from the Russian navy that most of their ships are rust buckets.'

The Russian embassy in London tweeted: 'HMS Defender turns HMS Provocateur and violates Russian border. Not exactly a 'routine' transit.'

EDWARD LUCAS: We're paying the price for years of blind complacency

Vladimir Putin's regime feeds on conflict. It systematically bullies its neighbours, while hypocritically denouncing anyone who resists it as an aggressor. More than anything, it knows how to wield the element of surprise.

In 2006, the West was caught off-guard when Kremlin-appointed thugs murdered the fugitive dissident Alexander Litvinenko with radioactive polonium in central London.

War in Georgia came as another shock in 2008, just as we were stunned when Russian troops half-wittedly shot down a passenger plane over Ukraine in 2014 or when Russian thugs used a lethal nerve agent in Salisbury in 2018.

That is why yesterday's events off the coast of Crimea must be seen in context: as part of a pattern of Putin being deliberately unpredictable  attempting to wrong-foot us.

The West is scrambling to reassert its presence in the Black Sea, a vital crossroads for our interests in trade, energy, counter-terrorism and fighting organised crime.

Russia  which still regards its former empire with proprietorial arrogance  is furious about this.

Vladimir Putin is pictured on Wednesday amid the dispute over whether Russia fired at the British vessel

It is no coincidence that yesterday's events took place days before the start of Sea Breeze, a major naval exercise led by America to try to bolster Nato's fraying presence in the region.

What incenses Putin is that a key participant in the drills will be Ukraine. Russia's illegal seizure of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 was followed by a separatist war in the east of the country. The fighting continues  and has killed thousands.

Britain does not recognise Russia's seizure of Crimea, which is why the Ministry of Defence pointedly said HMS Defender was travelling through 'Ukrainian territorial waters' yesterday.

Boosting Ukraine's sovereignty and security is a key part of attempts by Britain and the West to constrain the bullying, thieving regime in Russia. Only two days ago, Britain signed a defence deal with Ukraine at a ceremony on board HMS Defender, and hours before the incident, Ukrainian special forces were conducting exercises with the British warship.

The feints and wargames could yet escalate into a terrifying east-west confrontation. Will that happen? Much depends on how Joe Biden responds to Putin.

Washington has been increasingly disappointed with its bickering and feckless European allies: France and Germany have just announced plans to restart EU-Russia summits, jeopardising the united front embodied in Nato.

Some wonder if America really has the stomach for any kind of confrontation with Russia. But make no mistake: to ignore Putin and his sabre-rattling would spell disaster for Britain and her allies, particularly the brave frontline states in eastern Europe that have entrusted their future to us and Nato.

The credibility of Western military defence on the continent is threadbare. Decades of underspending in countries such as Germany have taken a grievous toll. Stocks of fuel, ammunition and spare parts are perilously low, while plans for defending Europe exist mainly on paper and are rarely rehearsed.

What many do not (or will not) see is that Russia is boosting its arsenal of modern, high-tech weapons. Most worryingly, it expertly plays divide and rule, exploiting the complacent, greedy and spineless mentality of decision-makers in Berlin, Brussels, Paris and  I am sorry to say  London.

At best we pay lip-service to the threat from Russia. But we are not willing to pay the military, financial and diplomatic price of dealing with it. The bill for years of neglect of our defence and security is coming due.

The daunting task for Britain is to rally our allies to stand firm in the face of Russian intimidation, without allowing the roiling Black Sea to boil over into war.
A Tennessee nurse has been charged with mailing a sanitary napkin drenched in human blood and dog feces to her husband's ex-wife, after allegedly keying the woman's car and sending her teenage daughter a letter calling the child 'poor white trash.'

Della Marie Gibson Lathum, 37, from Oak Ridge, had a federal complaint filed against her earlier this month, charging her with two counts of sending biohazardous materials through the mail.

Gibson Lathum, a married mother-of-three who until recently had worked as a registered nurse at Parkwest Medical Center, also faces state charges of harassment and stalking in connection with this case.

Married mom-of-three Della Gibson Lathum, 37, faces state harassment and stalking charges, and federal counts of sending biohazardous materials through the mail

According to court documents obtained by DailyMail.com, on April 5, Gibson Lathum sent through the US Postal Service a soft package containing dog excrement to her rival, identified as Melanie Lathum.

The parcel also contained a letter with derogatory statements.

Four days later, Gibson Lathum allegedly mailed an envelope to her husband's former spouse carrying a blood-stained sanitary napkin.

When she was interviewed at her place of work on April 19, Gibson Lathum initially denied any wrongdoing but later admitted to sending the packages, according to an affidavit from a USPS postal inspector.

She said the blood found on the feminine hygiene product came from a patient at the hospital where she worked, according to arrest warrants cited by WBIR.

'Gibson advised she mailed the letter because she wanted "the kids" to know the truth about Lathum,' stated the federal filing.

The 37-year-old Gibson Lathum, who is currently married to Melanie Lathum's ex-husband, Dan, claimed that her predecessor 'was lazy, didn't work and lived off the system, however, Gibson worked hard for everything she had.'

Gibson Lathum had been arrested on the federal charges on June 11. A judge has since released her from custody on condition that she not contact the victim and not work in the medical field.

A spokesperson for the Parkwest hospital stated that Gibson Lathum is no longer employed there.

Aside from the federal charges, Gibson Lathum also faces a slew of state charges, including five counts of harassment, two of stalking and one count of vandalism.

Arrest warrants alleged that in late March, Gibson Lathum scratched Melanie Lathum's car, causing more than $1,000 worth of damage, while the woman and her two children were attending a school banquet.

On the same day, the nurse allegedly left a rock on her rival's doorstep, which had a red 'A' for adultery painted on it.

Gibson Lathum is suspected of using blood from a patient at Parkwest Medical Center in Tennessee, where she had worked as a registered nurse until recently, and pouring it onto a sanitary napkin, which she then mailed to her husband's ex-wife

In April, Gibson Lathum allegedly mailed a card to Melanie's 13-year-old daughter, which contained disparaging comments about the family, including 'You are poor white trash faking a fancy life,' and 'Your mom is broke and lazy & wont pay her bills,' reported WJHL.

Melanie Lathum addressed the incidents involving her ex-husband's new wife, and the media attention the case has garnered, in a Facebook post on Wednesday, calling the situation a 'train wreck you can't help but watch.'

'Yall just became aware of the situation with my ex husbands wife yesterday,' the divorced mom-of-two wrote. 'My kids and I on the other hand have been living this nightmare for a long time.'

Gibson Lathum is due back in county court on July 28.
Relations between London and Moscow were at crisis point last night after a Russian vessel pursuing a Royal Navy warship opened fire in a dramatic incident witnessed by the Daily Mail.

Repeated bursts of cannon fire could be heard off the deck of HMS Defender as President Vladimir Putin's forces responded to the warship legitimately entering Crimean territorial waters in the Black Sea.

Russian military sources confirmed the incident early yesterday afternoon approximately five miles from Cape Fiolent, a prominent landmark on the Crimean coastline.

A Russian statement said: 'The destroyer had been warned that weapons would be used if it trespassed the border of the Russian Federation. It did not react to the warning.'

Russian military officials also claimed a Russian plane dropped four high explosive fragmentation bombs as another warning to the UK warship.

But this claim is almost certainly propaganda as no ordnance of this nature was seen or heard by the crew of Defender or picked up by her hi-tech sensors.

After the incident, the Queen sent a message of 'best wishes and a safe journey' to the crew, which was announced over the tannoy by the warship's captain, Commander Vincent Owen. Russia reacted angrily, calling the warship's actions an act of 'blatant provocation' and summoning the British defence attache in Moscow for a dressing-down.

British officials are expected to discuss the incident with Nato allies to agree a co-ordinated response to future Russian aggression.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told MPs that Russia remained a 'threat to stability', pointing to the 2018 Salisbury poisoning.

The latest incident saw more than 50 interactions with Russian aircraft recorded by Defender in a few hours. Commander Owen told the Mail: 'That is the closest I have come to a Russian vessel in my 21-year career. I suspect the gunfire was from one of the coastguard vehicles.

Repeated bursts of cannon fire could be heard off the deck of HMS Defender (pictured) as President Vladimir Putin's forces responded to the warship legimately entering Crimean territorial waters in the Black Sea

'We were confident and non-confrontational and exercising our entitlement to uphold the innocent passage of ships through international waters on a recognised shipping route.

'I was comfortable we were out of range of its guns as we were travelling at 30 knots to their 21. The 240 men and women aboard this ship performed as I would expect them to. But today has seen an upsurge in the Russian response as closing to that distance of 100 to 200 yards is neither safe nor seamanlike.

'We've also had many Russian jets and an unmanned aerial vehicle interact with us.'

Launched in 2009, Defender is the fifth of the Royal Navy's Type 45 destroyers. She is also one of the most advanced warships ever constructed.

She belongs to the Royal Navy's newly formed Carrier Strike Group and her role is to provide air defence for the UK's new aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth.

But on Tuesday she broke off from the CSG's maiden voyage to perform her own delicate, possibly dangerous task.

Two Russian Coast Guard Vessels shadow HMS Defender closely whilst she conducts Freedom Of Navigation Operations

Mr Wallace and the UK's National Security Council had approved orders for Commander Owen to set course for Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula invaded by Russia in 2014 and still occupied by President Putin's elite forces. This includes the much vaunted Black Sea fleet with its heavily armed frigates and submarines and squadrons of supersonic aircraft.

Commander Owen's 'freedom of navigation' patrol took Defender into disputed seas just off the Crimean coastline.

While Britain considers these waters Ukrainian, Russia regards the peninsula as its territory, which its ships and aircraft are entitled to defend, aggressively if necessary.

Yesterday's incident also came just days after President Putin's abruptly terminated summit with US President Joe Biden which ended after barely three hours of talks and no agreement on Crimea or other security issues.

Downing Street insisted Defender was taking the 'most direct' route from Ukraine to Georgia along an 'internationally recognised travel corridor' and was not subject to warning shots fired by Russia. A source acknowledged the Government was playing down the incident to deny Moscow the row it is seeking.

Tom Tugendhat, Tory chairman of the Commons foreign affairs committee, accused Moscow of 'pathetic grandstanding'. He said the West had 'grown used to Russia lying', adding: 'Putin has stolen so much money from the Russian navy that most of their ships are rust buckets.'

The Russian embassy in London tweeted: 'HMS Defender turns HMS Provocateur and violates Russian border. Not exactly a ''routine'' transit.'
The United States' top military officer on Wednesday hit back against growing criticism over teaching critical race theory in the military and said recruits should be 'open-minded and be widely read.'

Army General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was grilled by Republican Congressmen over claims the US military is becoming more 'woke'.

He did not endorse critical race theory but strongly condemned those who say it shouldn't be taught.

'What is wrong with understanding - having some situational understanding - about the country for which we are here to defend?' Milley asked before the House of Representatives Armed Services Committee.

'And I personally find it offensive that we are accusing the United States military, our general officers, our commissioned and noncommissioned officers, of being, "woke" or something else, because we're studying some theories that are out there.'

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Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Mark Milley hit back against growing criticism over teaching critical race theory in the military and said recruits should be 'open-minded and be widely read'

The general stressed the need for greater understanding of the driving forces behind the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by former President Donald Trump's supporters, including white supremacists, who tried to stop Congress from certifying Democrat Joe Biden's election win.

'I want to understand white rage, and I'm white and I want to understand it,' Milley said.

'What is it that caused thousands of people to assault this building and try to overturn the Constitution of the United States of America? What caused that? I want to find that out. I want to maintain an open mind here.'

He was responding after a Republican, U.S. Representative Michael Waltz, a former Army Green Beret, produced a letter from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point acknowledging teaching about critical race theory.

The theory maintains that racism is ingrained in U.S. law and institutions and that legacies of slavery and segregation have created an uneven playing field for Black Americans.

What is wrong with understanding - having some situational understanding - about the country for which we are here to defend?' Milley asked before the House of Representatives Armed Services Committee

Controversy surrounding the theory has mushroomed into a national debate over how - and which version of - U.S. history is taught in schools.

'This came to me from cadets, from families, from soldiers, with their alarm, with their concern, about how divisive this teaching is,' Waltz said, adding it was rooted in Marxism.

Milley tried to respond to Waltz directly but only got the opportunity later, when a Democratic lawmaker gave him a chance.

He noted that university graduates should be aware of all kinds of theories and that just because he read about Marxism didn't make him a Communist.

'Ive read Mao Zedong. Ive read Karl Marx. Ive read Lenin. That doesnt make me a communist, he told the lawmakers.

'I do think it's important, actually, for those of us in uniform to be open-minded and be widely read,' Milley said.

Milley's comments came a week after Navy admiral faced tough grilling from Republican lawmakers on his inclusion of the controversial book How To Be An Antiracist on a recommended reading list for sailors.

Admiral Mike Gilday, the chief of Naval operations, stood his ground at Tuesday's House Armed Services Committee hearing on Capitol Hill, defending the book's inclusion on the list.

The general stressed the need for greater understanding of the driving forces behind the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by former President Donald Trump's supporters, including white supremacists, who tried to stop Congress from certifying Democrat Joe Biden's election win. 'I want to understand white rage, and I'm white and I want to understand it,' Milley said

GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz was one of the lawmakers who questioned Milley over the teaching of critical race theory in the military

Gilday added the 2019 book by Ibram X. Kendi, which is popular with proponents of critical race theory, to the Navy's optional reading checklist in February, listing it as a 'foundational' work for sailors.

Kendi's book proposes that any system that produces different average outcomes for people of different skin colors is racist and should be destroyed, and argues that discrimination that 'creates equity' is antiracist and should be lauded.

At the hearing, which was ostensibly on the Navy's budget, questions from Rep. Doug Lamborn, a Colorado Republican, who cited passages in Kendi's book arguing that only 'present discrimination' can make up for 'past discrimination'.

'How does exposing our sailors to the idea that they are either oppressors or oppressed, and that we must actively discriminate in order to make up for past discrimination, improve our Navy's readiness and lethality?' Lamborn asked.

'You mentioned critical race theory -- I'm not a theorist, I'm the chief of Naval operations,' Gilday responded.

'There is racism in the Navy just like there's racism in our country, and the way we're going to get after it is to be honest about it, not to sweep it under the rug, and talk about it,' he said.

Admiral Mike Gilday, the chief of Naval operations, stood his ground last Tuesday's House Armed Services Committee hearing on Capitol Hill when he was questioned on his inclusion of the controversial book How To Be An Antiracist on a recommended reading list for sailors

'It doesn't mean I have any expectation that everybody believe, or support, everything that Mr. Kendi states in his book. I don't support everything that Kendi says. The key thing is that sailors have to be able to think critically,' Gilday argued.

Rep. Jim Banks, an Indiana Republican, also lashed out at Gilday, contrasting his reading list choice with the Navy's recent vow to root out any 'extremism' in the ranks.

The 2019 book is popular with proponents of critical race theory

'Do you consider opposition to interracial adoption an extremist belief?' Banks asked, referring to Kendi's September 2020 tweet suggesting Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett is a 'white colonizer' for adopting two Haitian children.

Gilday's mic was off, making his response unclear, but Banks pressed on.

'Do you personally consider advocating for the destruction of American capitalism to be extremist?' Banks asked, referring to Kendi's assertion that capitalism and racism are 'conjoined twins' that must be eliminated together to root out racism.

Gilday fired back: 'I'm not forcing anybody to read the book, it's on a recommended reading list.'

Pressed by Banks on whether he supported Kendi's controversial views, Gilday went on: 'I'd have to consider the context of the statement he made, I'm not going to sit here and defend cherry-picked quotes from somebody's book.'

'This is a bigger issue than Kendi's book, what this is really about is trying to to paint the United States military, and the United States Navy as weak, as woke,' Gilday said. 'We are not weak, we are strong.'

Last month, Republican Senator reignited the attack against the 'woke' military by sharing a U.S. Army recruiting video that told the story of how a 'little girl raised by two moms' grew up to become a soldier.

The Texas senator triggered online fury after questioning the role of what he called an 'emasculated military' and comparing it with a video that appeared to show a rugged, shaven-headed Russian recruit parachuting into combat.

'The job of the military is to kill the bad guys. And it is to strike fear in the enemies of America,' he told Fox News as he defended himself from accusations that he was unloading on serving U.S. troops.

'People sign up to join the military because they want to keep us safe, they don't want to sit around a circle, emoting and passing daisies back and forth.'

His comments highlight fears America's armed forces are being softened by 'woke' principles and follows similar criticism of a CIA advert.

The advertising campaign shows an animated Corporal Emma Malonelord (pictured) attending a gay rights parade in a video that sparked a row about the future of the American military. Sen. Ted Cruz said it showed how Democrats and the 'woke media' were turning soldiers into 'pansies' in comments that triggered accusations that he was trolling America's troops

The new Army ad shows Corporal Emma Malonelord's mothers getting married after one suffered serious injuries following a car accident

In contrast, the Russian video shows a bare chested recruit leaping from his bed, working out and then leaping from a plane with a parachute

The Russian soldier is shown taking up a prone firing position, staring down his rifle scope in wintry, arctic conditions

The latest controversy features an American video telling the story of Cpl. Emma Malonelord, a serving soldier who describes how she came to choose a life in the military.

The colorful, animated recruiting video describ es how she defended freedom by attending LGBTQ marches and grew up to join the U.S. Army.

It achieved notoriety when Cruz tweeted out a TikTok clip, that opened with the Russian soldier leaping out of a plane before cutting to the animated story of Malonelord.

'Holy crap,' he wrote in a tweet.

'Perhaps a woke, emasculated military is not the best idea....'

Cruz's words quickly went viral, unleashing an angry torrent of accusations that he was trolling his own country's American armed forces and had been suckered by an adversary's propaganda.

And veterans expressed fury that he could criticise the Army and target a real-life serving soldier.
Wellingtonians will today return to a daily ritual they thought they'd left in the past: monitoring briefings for new Covid cases, as the threat of a lockdown looms.

The New Zealand capital is on edge after a traveller, believed to infectious with the deadly virus, visited from Sydney on the weekend.

The man travelled to the national museum, Te Papa, and a string of cafes and restaurants, meaning thousands in Wellington have been asked to isolate and get tested.

University of Otago professor Michael Baker said the man could have unwittingly produced 'the worst-case scenario'.

The New Zealand capital is on edge after a traveller, believed to infectious with the deadly virus, visited from Sydney on the weekend

Unlike Auckland, which has returned to lockdown three times since New Zealand's major lockdown, Wellington has not done so since the nationwide clampdown which ended in May 2020

Genomic testing, expected on Thursday, should show a link to Sydney's Bondi cluster, and whether he had the infectious Delta variant

'They spent the whole weekend in indoor venues and literally have contact with thousands of people,' Dr Baker said.

'This can cause huge amounts of transmission of the virus. That's a big threat.'

Jacinda Ardern's government raised its Covid alert level for the Wellington region from one to two on Wednesday.

The new rules - which will last until Sunday at the earliest - include social distancing, limits on gathering sizes and work from home arrangements.

The next step, should new cases emerge, would be level three: a lockdown.

The first hint as to whether that will be necessary will come at 1pm NZST, when health officials announce their daily case numbers - a Covid-era custom in New Zealand.

Some, including University of Auckland medicine professor Des Gorman, believe the capital should already be in lockdown.

'Once there were a few cases (in NSW) which weren't easy to account for the bubble should've been closed,' he told Newshub.

Genomic testing, expected on Thursday, should show a link to Sydney's Bondi cluster, and whether he had the infectious Delta variant.

Covid Minister Chris Hipkins said a move to lockdown was not yet necessary to contain the virus.

'We're not seeing any positive results,' he said.

'This is the first time we've escalated alert levels without there being a single new positive result in New Zealand. So this is a precautionary measure.'

Unlike Auckland, which has returned to lockdown three times since New Zealand's major lockdown, Wellington has not done so since the nationwide clampdown which ended in May 2020.

On Tuesday evening, New Zealand also paused quarantine-free travel from New South Wales until Friday.

It is expected to lengthen that ban as soon as today.
NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard and four other MPs are in isolation after coming into close contact with a possible Covid case while working.

Mr Hazzard, who currently doesn't have any symptoms, believes the suspected positive case is someone who works in NSW Parliament.

'When I woke up at about 5.30am there was a text message that had come in sometime during the night telling me that a case had been detected as a likely positive and that I was a possible close contact,' he told the ABC Radio.

'I'm talking about somebody who works for NSW Parliament who may be a positive case. We (in Sydney) have obviously a clear danger ... and now I'm on the receiving end.'

It comes after NSW Agriculture Minister Adam Marshall, who is potentially the link between the five ministers, tested positive for Covid on Thursday at 8am.

'I have been in isolation in Sydney since late Tuesday night, when I received a text message from NSW Health advising of my attendance at a close contact venue on Monday evening, and the need to present for testing,' Mr Marshall said in a statement on Thursday.

'I'm doing fine and will continue to strictly follow the advice of health authorities.'

Mr hazzard said discussions were underway about potentially closing parliament following Mr Marshall's positive test.

However, he believes NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian is 'fairly safe' from becoming infected.

'I think think the premier is fairly safe. From my point of view at the moment obviously I have a tricky situation which I am trying to work through,' he told the Today show.

NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard is in isolation after potentially coming into close contact with a Covid-infected person

Mr Hazzard believes NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian is 'fairly safe' from contracting Covid

Mr Hazzard said NSW Health are currently waiting on the test results from the person, who identified him as a close contact

'It's still being worked through and NSW Health asked me to obviously be cautious until they are able to give me further advice.'

NSW Parliament Whips sent notes to members urging them not to bring in staff before both houses sit on Thursday.

The amount of MPs and staffers will be cut to a minimum.

Mr Hazzard said it is 'likely' more MPs have possibly been exposed to the virus.

'It is a little early to be able to get all of the necessary information, but I would imagine that the majority of people will be casual contacts or perhaps no contact at all. It is a big place,' he said.

'I'm quite confident that the majority of people in NSW Parliament will be either no contact or casual contact so that won't be a major issue.'

Mr Hazzard said the situation emphasises how dangerous the Delta variant of Covid is.

The Bondi cluster now stands at 31 case after an unvaccinated Sydney airport limousine driver earlier this month tested positive to the highly infectious Delta variant, which quickly started spreading at Bondi Junction's busy Westfield shopping centre.

Mr Hazzard said he is 'quite confident' the NSW Government will impose a 'proportionate response' to the latest outbreak.

'We have never, ever been keen to lockdown our state. We have struck the right balance as a result,' he said.

'I just emphasise to the community that the restrictions that were put in place are proportionate, they are sensible.

'We can expect more [Covid cases] today but I don't think they will be dramatic but we will see how it plays out today.'

NSW recorded 10 locally acquired cases to 8pm on Tuesday, seven of which were already announced.

An additional 13 cases were reported after 8pm, which will be counted in Thursday's official tally.

Overall, there were 16 new cases reported on Wednesday, taking the total number of infections to 31.

Ms Berejiklian is urging people to 'abandon non-essential activities' after introducing new rules for residents in Greater Sydney, the Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Shellharbour on Wednesday.

Overall, there were 16 new cases reported on Wednesday, taking the total number of infections to 31

Residents who live or work in the City of Sydney, Waverley, Randwick, Canada Bay, Inner West, Bayside, and Woollahra local government areas cannot travel outside the metropolitan area unless it's absolutely essential

NSW recorded 10 locally acquired cases to 8pm on Tuesday, seven of which were already announced

A household guest limit of five, including children, and the four-square-metre rule indoors and outdoors were introduced alongside mandatory masks in all indoor non-residential settings, including workplaces.

'The NSW government will not hesitate to go further and harder if we have to,' she said.

Residents who live or work in the City of Sydney, Waverley, Randwick, Canada Bay, Inner West, Bayside, and Woollahra local government areas cannot travel outside the metropolitan area unless it's absolutely essential.

Masks must also be worn to gym classes, which are now limited to 20 people.

Other states have hardened their borders days before NSW public schools break for two weeks.

WA has closed its border to NSW for anyone who had been in the state since June 11 or in the 14 days prior to travel.

SA has also closed its border with NSW, excluding a 100km buffer zone for cross border communities.

Tasmania has declared seven Sydney local government areas as high risk.

Queensland has closed its border to people from Greater Sydney, the Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Shellharbour.

Victoria has also already banned people from the seven 'hot zones'.

New Zealand has paused its travel bubble with NSW.
America's latest big to increase coronavirus vaccination rates comes with a side of fries.

The California Department of of Health teamed up with McDonald's this week to provide free COVID-19 shots.

McDonald's on Monday opened pop-up clinics at more than 70 of the company's locations in the Golden State to ensure employees, their families and the general public get vaccinated.

Individuals who get vaccinated at any of the 70 locations - which offer Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson - can receive a coupon for one free menu item.

The initiative appeared to be a success in its first three days as customers were seen lining up for their turn in the vaccination tent.

In an attempt to persuade Americans to get vaccinated, the California Department of of Health is teaming up with McDonald's to provide free COVID-19 vaccinations (file photo)

McDonald's on Monday opened pop-up clinics at more than 70 of the company's locations in the Golden State to ensure employees, their families and the general public get vaccinated

The initiative appeared to be a success in its first three days as customers were seen lining up for their turn in the vaccination tent

Since spring, vaccine doses administered in the US have slowed by as much as 90 percent - particularly among young adults.

On Monday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said there 'is a big gap' in vaccination rates between people aged 18-25 and those older than 25.

'As we dig into the data, we know that what we're seeing is a lower rate among young people,' Psaki said. 'That's concerning, especially with the variant being on the rise.'

In California, only 48.3 residents have fully been vaccinated with 60.1 receiving their first dose.

The alarming figures led to First Lady Jill Biden traveling to Mississippi to convince people to roll up their sleeves.

'I'm here today to ask all of the people who can hear my voice, who can see my face, to get their shot,' Biden said after visiting a clinic at Jackson State University,

'The president, the White House, our administration - we care about you, we care about the people of Mississippi. We want them to be safe. We want them to be healthy,' she added.

In addition, Southern U.S. states are severely lagging behind the rest of U.S. in vaccinating their residents against COVID-19.

In Alabama, 39.1% of the population has had at least one dose and 32% are fully immunized with daily shots falling more than 90% since mid-March

Since spring, vaccine doses administered in the U.S have slowed by as much as 90 percent - particularly among young adults

Of the 10 states with the lowest rates, eight are in the South. States including Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Wyoming have yet to partially vaccinate half of those aged 18 and older.

It's because of these regions why the White House is concerned it won't meet its goal of having 70 percent of adult Americans with at least one dose by July 4.

What's more, health experts are worried about the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant, which is said to be 60% more contagious than the Alpha variant discovered in the U.K.

Mississippi State Health Officer Dr Thomas Dobbs told Bloomberg that one of the biggest factors driving vaccine hesitancy is misinformation.

One resident, Angel Devine of Jackson, told the news organization that she hadn't been vaccinated because she's worried that the shot won't be effective against variants.

Studies have shown that two doses of Pfizer and Moderna are protective against the Alpha variant, that originated in the UK, and the Delta variant that originated in India.

Perhaps this is why companies, such as McDonald's, are getting creative.

To receive a vaccine at a local McDonald's, no appointment or health insurance is required, and walk-ups are welcomed.

To check for participating McDonald's restaurants in your area, click here.
Angela Merkel yesterday called on other European countries to force UK travellers to quarantine on arrival in a major threat to ministers plans to reopen foreign travel.

The German Chancellor said she would like other European nations to require travellers from countries with a high prevalence of the Indian variant, like Britain, to go into quarantine.

Mrs Merkel told the Bundestag lower house of parliament: In our country, if you come from Great Britain you have to go into quarantine  and thats not the case in every European country, and thats what I would like to see.

Angela Merkel yesterday called on other European countries to force UK travellers to quarantine on arrival in a major threat to ministers plans to reopen foreign travel. Pictured: German Chancellor Angela Merkel attends the Second Berlin Conference on Libya, in Berlin, Germany on June 23, 2021

Berlin has banned travellers from Britain entering unless they are a German citizen, have residency rights or if there is an urgent humanitarian reason like a family death.

But those allowed in still have to register to get permission to visit and quarantine for two weeks with no option for early release after a negative test.

It comes after Italy reintroduced quarantine and testing requirements for all UK arrivals amid growing concerns in Europe about the spread of the Indian, or Delta, variant, now dominant in the UK.

Health minister Roberto Speranza said on Friday that Italy will require all travellers from Britain to quarantine for five days upon arrival.

A negative test is required at the end of the five-day period. America currently still bans UK tourists amid the surge in Delta cases. Dr Anthony Fauci, the USs top infectious diseases expert, last week suggested that UK-US travel would only reopen in September as a result.

Mrs Merkels call came ahead of the Government today being expected to announce plans for fully vaccinated Britons to be able to visit amber countries without having to self-isolate for ten days on return.

The German Chancellor said she would like other European nations to require travellers from countries with a high prevalence of the Indian variant, like Britain, to go into quarantine

It is expected to take effect in August, although some ministers are pushing for this to be brought forward to July 19. The move will effectively turn destinations that are amber into green for fully vaccinated people.

But if other European countries listen to Mrs Merkels call then UK holidaymakers options could be limited even further this summer.

Portugal, Spain and Greece are still allowing UK holidaymakers to visit with proof of a negative test and no quarantine. France is also allowing in fully vaccinated Britons with a negative test.

But European health officials say further action is needed to curb the spread of the Delta variant as it gains a hold on the Continent.

This month it accounted for 70 per cent of sequenced cases in the greater Lisbon region of Portugal, more than 20 per cent in Italy and about 16 per cent in Belgium. It has also been detected in clusters in Germany, France and Spain.
John McAfee's death sparked conspiracy theories just minutes after his death was reported when his official Instagram account posted an image of the letter 'Q' - in an apparent reference to QAnon.

The conspiracy-related chatter came after the antivirus pioneer said eight months ago he would never take his own life 'a la Epstein.'

McAfee, the pioneer creator of popular computer antivirus software, died on Wednesday behind bars in a Spanish prison at the age of 75.

He was found dead in his cell in Brians 2 Prison in Barcelona and officials said that the early investigation points to a suicide.

McAfee had tweeted on October 15, 2020: 'I am content in here. I have friends. The food is good. All is well. Know that if I hang myself, a la Epstein, it will be no fault of mine.'

Jeffrey Epstein, who had been charged with sexually abusing dozens of young girls in the early 2000s, died in 2019 - sparking a number of conspiracy theories and hashtags alleging 'Epstein didn't kill himself.'

The death of John McAfee, left, sparked conspiracy theories after antivirus pioneer said he would never take his own life like Jeffrey Epstein, right, who died by suicide in a federal jail cell in New York City

McAfee had tweeted on October 15, 2020: 'I am content in here. I have friends. The food is good. All is well. Know that if I hang myself, a la Epstein, it will be no fault of mine'

McAfee got a tattoo in 2019 saying 'Whackd' - after he said the US government was after him and that he would never kill himself; his comments have now sparked conspiracy theories

In another post from November 2019, McAfee suggested that he if died by suicide then he was really 'whacked' by U.S. government officials. There is no evidence to support the claims that McAfee was killed by the U.S. government.

'Getting subtle messages from U.S. officials saying, in effect: 'We're coming for you McAfee! We're going to kill yourself.' 'I got a tattoo today just in case. If I suicide myself, I didn't. I was whacked. Check my right arm,' McAfee tweeted with a picture of a tattoo on his arm at the time.

As for the 'Q' post, it was not immediately clear who had access to his account.

The QAnon conspiracy theory, which came about during the presidency of Donald Trump, holds a wide range of odd beliefs including that Trump was secretly battling cannibalistic pedophiles who worship Satan.

John McAfee tweeted a shirtless photo in 2019 from the Spanish prison

The jailhouse photos from 2019 showed McAfee smiling

Just minutes after his death was reported, his official Instagram account posted a plain image of the letter 'Q' in an apparent reference to the QAnon conspiracy theory

In the weeks before his death, McAfee had tweeted how despite the 'sorrow in prison' he indicated he was 'content with food and a bed.'

His wife Janice McAfee further fueled the conspiracy theories with a Father's Day post made just days before his death in which she speculated that 'US authorities are determined to have John die in prison.'

The charges against John McAfee: Antivirus software pioneer John McAfee was facing 10 counts of tax evasion in Tennessee and seven counts of fraud and money laundering conspiracy in New York when he was found dead in a Spanish jail. Tennessee prosecutors charged him with five counts of tax evasion and five counts of willful failure to file a tax return in a June 2020 indictment unsealed in October. Prosecutors alleged he had earned more than $12 million between 2014 and 2018 - but failed to file any tax returns during this time. If convicted, he faced 30 years in prison. In March, McAfee and his bodyguard Jimmy Gale Watson Jr were both charged with seven counts of securities fraud by Manhattan federal prosecutors. These are: conspiracy to commit commodities and securities fraud, conspiracy to commit securities and touting fraud, wire fraud conspiracy and substantive wire fraud, and money laundering conspiracy offenses. The two men allegedly promoted cryptocurrencies to McAfee's more than one million Twitter followers in order to inflate prices and then sell the cryptocurrencies when prices rose, earning them and other McAfee Team members more than $11 million in payments. Both McAfee and Watson faced up to 100 years in prison on these charges if convicted as well as financial penalties. The Spanish prosecutor said Wednesday McAfee could be extradited, but only to face charges related to his tax returns of 2016, 2017 and 2018 in the tax evasion case. These charges - six - would have carried a maximum of 18 years in prison Advertisement

'I know John is an extremely polarizing individual. Believe me, I know this better than most! But I also know, as well as any of you who follow him on Twitter, that he has always been honest about who he is. ALWAYS. Sometimes too honest, sometimes sharing more than any of us cared to know about him!' Janice tweeted.

'John's honesty has often gotten him in trouble with corrupt governments and corrupt government officials because of his outspoken nature and his refusal to be extorted, intimidated or silenced.'

She added: 'Now the US authorities are determined to have John die in prison to make an example of him for speaking out against the corruption within their government agencies.'

'The media continues to vilify him, per their narrative, and there is no hope of him ever have a fair trial in America because there is no longer any justice in America. You either play ball or get f**Ked. Those are literally the only options now.'

In the post, Janice also slammed the criminal justice system.

'Before you were innocent until proven guilty but somehow that has changed to guilty until proven innocent,' Janice wrote. 'Now anyone can level the most heinous accusations against you without any proof and having no basis in reality but in the court of public opinion, you are tried, convicted, found guilty and your life irreparably destroyed, all before having your day in court.'

She added: 'These eight months John has spent in prison in Spain have been especially hard on his overall health both mentally and physically, as well as financially, but he is undeterred from continuing to speak truth to power. Happy Father's Day John David, Father of many, loved by few.'

Some people took to Twitter to react to the tweets from McAfee about Epstein, suggesting that the post was evidence that he also did not kill himself.

'MCAFEE DIDN'T KILL HIMSELF.' Twitter user @politi_cal wrote.

Another Twitter user wrote: 'They killed him.'

Twitter user @FrederickRecio tweeted that McAfee 'appeared dead' after Bloomberg reported in 2019 he had backed off from allegedly planning to 'unmask' the person who created Bitcoin.

McAfee has previously been tied to conspiracy theories and spread some of his own.

According to The Sun, McAfee spoke to the outlet from a 'tin foil-covered hideout in Lithuania' to claim Janice, a former prostitute, spied on him for 'crime lords.'

'I am John McAfee, the founder of Internet security. You must believe there's nothing that happens electronically that I can't find out about, I'm the best in the world,' he told the outlet.

He added: 'She was doing that for a couple of years actually. For me I did not mind. She was in a hard place but when she finally came clean it was a beautiful moment.'

People took to Twitter to quote McAfee's conspiratorial tweets and suggest he didn't kill himself

In 2019, the internet culture news website Daily Dot reported that conspiracy theorists were convinced he was trying to expose convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein through a secret YouTube channel.

In a post to the 4Chan message board at the time, an anonymous user had claimed that McAfee was responsible for a YouTube channel going by the name 'Rusty Shackleford' that was created in April of 2018.

The YouTube channel posted high-definition drone footage of Epstein's private island Little Saint James on July 10, 2019  just four days after Epstein's arrest and before Epstein himself died in a New York City federal jail from suicide.

There has been no further evidence to support the conspiracy theory that McAffee was behind the account or attempts to expose Jeffrey Epstein.
President Joe Biden on Wednesday nominated Cindy McCain as his ambassador to the UN food agency in Rome.

'I am deeply honored and look forward to the work ahead,' she wrote on Twitter in response.

The position must be confirmed by the Senate. McCain was part of a slate of 17 nominations Biden announced, including Claire Cronin as his ambassador to Ireland. Cronin serves as a state representative in the Massachusetts state house.

Cronin, 61, was a leading surrogate and a fundraising bundler for Bidens presidential bid in Massachusetts. She also appeared on national television during last summers Democratic National Convention when she cast the states official nominating votes for him.

McCain was also a top Biden surrogate in the 2020 presidential contest and a major factor in his victory in Arizona, after she endorsed him over Donald Trump.

Her nomination comes as the president has emphasized the importance of bipartisanship in a deeply divided Washington.

President Joe Biden nominated Cindy McCain as his ambassador to the UN food agency in Rome - the two are seen above at the 54th Munich Security Conference in Munich in February 2018

Cindy McCain endorsed Joe Biden over Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential race

The World Food Program, based in Rome, works with U.S. policymakers, corporations, foundations and individuals to help provide financial and in-kind resources and develop policies needed to alleviate global hunger, according to its website.

As chair of the McCain Institute board of trustees, Cindy McCain has worked on curbing world hunger and human trafficking, among other issues.

McCain, the widow of the late Senator John McCain, campaigned with Biden in Arizona and helped him win that state. Biden became the second Democrat in 70 years to win Arizona. He beat Trump by 10,457 votes, or 0.3 percent of the nearly 3.4 million ballots cast.

She also attended Biden's inauguration in January. Biden and John McCain became friends when they served together in the Senate. Biden spoke at one of the late senator's funeral services.

Cindy McCain endorsed Joe Biden in the 2020 election and helped him win Arizona - above the two visit the American Indian Veterans National Memorial in October 2020

Cindy McCain attended Joe Biden's inauguration in January

Trump, in contrast, disparaged John McCain, saying of the late senator, who was a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War: 'I like people who weren't captured.'

Trump also was furious when McCain gave a thumbs' down to the Republican attempt to undo Obamacare, ending their effort to try and repeal the Affordable Healthcare Act.

On Wednesday, Biden also announced Jack Markell - a former governor of Biden's home state of Delaware - as his pick for the U.S. representative to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, with the rank of ambassador.

But some of his selections for the most significant ambassador posts abroad - including the United Kingdom, Israel and China - have yet to be announced.
For generations, the people of Tabora in what is now Tanzania told stories of the legendary Scottish explorer, Christian missionary and anti-slavery hero, Dr David Livingstone.

How, in 1855, he had discovered a spectacular waterfall which he named 'Victoria Falls', and subsequently reached the mouth of the Zambezi on the Indian Ocean to become the first European to cross the width of southern Africa.

'Livingstone was like a man that had three wives, and yet none of them were women,' they liked to say. 'One was a river. The river they call the Nile. The second was the struggle against slavery. The third, religion.'

But there was also a real wife, whom Livingstone once described in a letter to a friend as 'a little thick-black-haired girl, sturdy and all I want'; and, to another, as 'like an Irish manufactory' in her ability to produce children.

For generations, the people of Tabora in what is now Tanzania told stories of the legendary Scottish explorer, Christian missionary and anti-slavery hero, Dr David Livingstone. Mary Moffatt (pictured) however, was far, far more than that

Mary Moffatt, however, was far, far more than that. She was strong, educated, fearless, spoke six African languages and was a seasoned traveller. Crucially, as the daughter of missionaries, she was renowned in South Africa.

In fact, it was her father, Robert Moffatt, famed translator of the Bible into Setswana (spoken in Botswana and South Africa), who inspired Livingstone to become a missionary in the first place.

So it was Mary who, in remote areas, opened doors for her singularly driven husband with her languages and connections. And Mary to whom tribal leaders would often insist on addressing first.

And, of course, Mary who, as well as running a home and an infant school, was by her husband's side  with their young children  as they crossed the Kalahari desert, not once, but twice, surviving for months on biscuits and beans and once even going for an entire week with no water at all.

She endured appalling hardship, long separations, a sporadic paralysis caused by a post-natal stroke, and a final battle with malaria.

But none of that, for one minute, dimmed her adoration for her husband. So what a shame this amazing woman  once described as 'Livingstone's greatest asset'  was all but wiped from the annals of history by macho biographers.

'Livingstone (pictured) was like a man that had three wives, and yet none of them were women,' they liked to say. 'One was a river. The river they call the Nile. The second was the struggle against slavery. The third, religion'

They, instead, created the myth of the fearless lone expeditionist, the single man missing in the African bush until, one day in 1871, he was supposedly rediscovered by Welsh cartographer and explorer Henry Stanley with the words: 'Dr Livingstone, I presume?'

Happily, not for much longer. Because when the David Livingstone Birthplace museum in Lanarkshire reopens next month after a 9.1 millon revamp, Mary's contribution will finally be given due credit.

As Dr Kate Simpson, a Glasgow University academic and museum trustee, puts it: 'She was determined and independent and had a rod of iron. She did everything Livingstone did, and a lot more.'

Such as keeping house, producing baby after baby, running a school  as well as being the first European woman to cross the Kalahari Desert.

Mary was always going to be a bit different from her Victorian peers. The eldest of nine children born to Scottish missionaries, she grew up on a station in South Africa where she was encouraged to be independent from a young age  travelling hundreds of miles alone to school in Cape Town. She was 23 and training to become a teacher when she met Livingstone at the Moffatt missionary station in South Africa, where he  a 31-year-old medical missionary  was recovering after being bitten by a lion.

'Sturdy' Mary may not have been a great beauty, but she clearly had something special, because Livingstone wooed her with letters detailing his 'strong desire to become better acquainted', all signed 'your confiding lover'.

Within weeks, his lifelong vow never to marry went up in smoke.

How, in 1855, he had discovered a spectacular waterfall which he named 'Victoria Falls' (pictured), and subsequently reached the mouth of the Zambezi on the Indian Ocean to become the first European to cross the width of southern Africa

They wed in 1845 and, in just seven years, built their own house, created three mission stations from scratch and weathered two years of droughts, failed crops and the constant threat of lions.

Through it all, the children came thick and fast while Livingstone took himself off on solo expeditions and started obsessing about crossing the Kalahari and single-handedly opening up Africa to trade and Christianity.

Of course, many wives would happily have waved him off. But not Mary. 'She did it willingly. She wasn't forced on expeditions,' says Dr Simpson. 'She loved him. And he loved her, very much.'

Crucially, Livingstone also realised how much he relied on his wife  not just for food, comfort and making his pants (or 'my inexpressibles' as he called them), but to smooth his passage. Some tribal leaders refused to speak to him, unless Mary was present.

So when, in 1849, he set off on a 1,500-mile trek across the Kalahari, she went, too  pregnant and with three children in tow.

It was a disaster. One of their ox wagons overturned, the children needed constant supervision and they all lived on rations and dangerously muddy water.

They were plagued by tsetse flies, bitten by mosquitoes, and soon two of the three children were suffering from malaria.

Just when it seemed things couldn't get any worse, Mary gave birth in the bush, in a procedure so traumatic it caused a stroke and partial paralysis. Her poor, malnourished baby, Elizabeth, survived just six weeks.

When the family limped home, suffering etched on their skinny frames, Mary's parents finally lost all patience with their son-in-law and his reckless endeavours.

But Livingstone was insulated by his godly zeal, and Mary by love. In April 1851, once again, they all set off back across the Kalahari and as far as the Zambezi River.

This time, they were so dehydrated their tongues turned black. Again Mary gave birth, 'quietly and without complaint', to Oswell. And so it continued. Because the further Livingstone travelled, the greater his ambition. 'He'd justify it by saying 'I'm doing God's work', but he chose to travel above being a missionary,' says Dr Simpson.

Which meant that, having encountered the Zambezi, he was desperate to explore it fully: a trip he realised would take at least two years and was better done alone.

So this time Mary and the children were sent to Scotland to stay with his elderly parents while he set off with his team.

Two years stretched to four-and-a-half, as Livingstone forged through Africa. Mary, meanwhile, struggled in Lanarkshire with her in-laws and four children.

Despite endless entreaties to the missionary society for funding (and to her husband to come home), she was penniless and lonely, finding comfort in alcohol.

Yet when her husband eventually turned up, instead of threatening him with divorce, Mary wrote him this poem:

'Do you think I would reproach you with the sorrows that I bore?

Since the sorrow is all over, now I have you here once more.

There's nothing but the gladness, and the love within my heart.

And the hope so sweet and certain, that again we'll never part.'

Then  after leaving the four children and yet another new baby, Anna Mary  she followed him back to Africa to accompany him on his second Zambezi trip.

This time, sadly, the joy had gone. Still drinking heavily, struggling with her faith and thousands of miles from her beloved children, Mary contracted malaria.

Aged just 41, she died under a baobab tree in her husband's arms. Bowed by grief, he dedicated the rest of his life to exploration. 'I am left alone in the world by one whom I felt to be a part of myself,' wrote Livingstone. 'The loss of my ever dear Mary lies like a heavy weight on my heart.'

Theirs was an unusual union. Mary adored Livingstone and there is no doubt that he loved his 'thick-black-haired girl', too. He just loved exploration and adventure a bit more.
osiame Sithole said she had seven boys and three girls in Pretoria

A South African mother who said she had given birth to a world record-breaking ten babies fabricated the pregnancy, it emerged yesterday.

Gosiame Sithole, 37, said she had seven boys and three girls in Pretoria this month.

But doubts emerged when the father, Teboho Tsotetsi, said he had yet to meet his children and accused his lover of a hoax to make money. Miss Sithole was then admitted to a psychiatric hospital.

Yesterday an investigation into the dectuplets mystery concluded. It was revealed that doctors at Tembisa Hospital near the South African capital found Miss Sithole 'did not give birth to any babies in recent times'.

The report conducted by local government officials added: 'It has also been established that she was not pregnant in recent times.' Miss Sithole remains in hospital for observation.

Gosiame Sithole (pictured above), 37, said she had seven boys and three girls in Pretoria this month. But it was revealed that doctors at Tembisa Hospital near the South African capital found Miss Sithole 'did not give birth to any babies in recent times

The government also announced legal action against Piet Rampedi, the news editor who first covered the story with Pretoria News.

Rampedi had stood by the report and accused the government of a 'cover-up' when they questioned if the tale was true.

In a statement, the Gauteng Provincial Government said: 'Miss Sithole was admitted to Tembisa hospital on 18 June 2021, and various medical tests were conducted on her to determine her state of health.

'Initially, she was meant to be kept at the hospital for 72 hours, which lapsed on Tuesday.

'Upon completing their preliminary examination, her doctors recommended that she be kept at the hospital for a further seven days for further observation, in accordance with the Mental Healthcare Act.

'It has now been established by medical practitioners that Miss Sithole did not give birth to any babies in recent times. It has also been established that she was not pregnant in recent times.'

The statement added that the government had 'instructed the state attorney to institute legal action against Mr Rampedi and the Independent Group [which owns Pretoria News].'

The editor Rampedi has apologised for not checking Miss Sithole's claims.

He sent his staff an email which said he knew the couple involved and had no reason to doubt them. It read: 'I used no investigative tool or checklist.

Doubts emerged when the father, Teboho Tsotetsi (pictured with Miss Sithole), said he had yet to meet his children and accused his lover of a hoax to make money

'They had no reason to lie to me about the pregnancy. For me, it was a story of celebration.

'Hence, I never demanded documentary proof of the pregnancy, such as scanners and clinic cards, for instance, as I would normally do with an investigative story.

'However, judging by the sudden turn of events and the reaction from the government and our detractors, I was wrong.'
Chinese attitudes towards Australia have plummeted amid souring tensions between the two nations, according to a new poll released by Beijing.

The poll conducted by state-controlled newspaper The Global Times found China's impression of Australia has fallen by 9.7 per cent in the past year.

More than 40 per cent of the 2,067 respondents considered Australia to be a military, political or ideological threat.

Beijing has in the past 12 months launched a series of damaging trade strikes against Australia after Prime Minister Scott Morrison called for an independent inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic.

'The average Chinese attitude toward Australia turned out to be 55.6 points  on a scale of 0 to 100  in the poll,' the report said.

China's impression of Australia has fallen by 9.7 per cent in the past year, according to a new poll conducted by a state-controlled newspaper. Pictured a queue of people on their phones in Hong Kong on Thursday

The poll surveyed 2,067 respondents across 10 Chinese cities between the age of 18 and 70 on a range of China-Australia diplomatic issues

Chinese soldiers during a parade in Beijing's Tiananmen Square in 2019. Beijing and Canberra have been at the centre of a tense trade dispute in the past 12 months after Prime Minister Scott Morrison called for an independent inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic

'[That figure dropped] from 65.3 points from 2020 when the Global Times Research Center did a similar survey for the first time.'

The poll surveyed 2,067 respondents across 10 Chinese cities between the age of 18 and 70.

When asked to name the biggest obstacle affecting China-Australia relations, 45.6 per cent blamed factors involving the US.

Another 35.4 per cent said ideological differences between China and Australia were the cause of the rift.

Australian Studies Center of East China Normal University director Chen Hong hit out at the Morrison government's rhetoric for inflaming public opinion.

'Australian media and politicians have been smearing and criticising China on every front, be it economy, Covid-19 or other issues,' he said.

'Yet Australia has been less frequently mentioned in Chinese publications.'

Fewer than one in five Australians trust China to act responsibly in the world and even fewer endorse the leadership of Xi Jinping, new polling shows

The figures mirror souring attitudes towards China among 2,200 Australians surveyed by The Lowy Institute's 2021 annual poll, the results of which were released this week.

Fewer than one in five Australians trust China to act responsibly in the world and even fewer endorse the leadership of Xi Jinping, the poll showed.

More than 60 per cent of Australians also see Beijing as an increasing security threat, responding negatively to Chinese investment in Australia and Chinese environmental policies, governance and military activity.

The poll of more than 2200 Australians found 16 per cent of respondents trusted China 'a great deal' or 'somewhat' in its international conduct - almost 40 percentage points lower than in 2018.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison in London on June 15. Australian Studies Center of East China Normal University director Chen Hong said the Morrison government had inflamed public opinion

Likewise, just one in 10 Australians professed 'a lot' or 'some' confidence in Mr Xi to do the right thing regarding world affairs, halving in 12 months.

Some 63 per cent of respondents said they now see China as 'more of a security threat' to Australia than an economic partner, while more than half said Australia-China relations pose a critical national security threat.

Chinese investment in Australia (79 per cent), Chinese environmental policies (79 per cent), China's autocratic governance model (92 per cent) and China's assertive regional military activity (93 per cent) were viewed unfavourably.

China also remains angry with Australia over foreign interference and investment laws and the decision to ban Huawei from the country's 5G rollout

Almost half of respondents said Australia should boycott the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing due to China's human rights record in places like Xinjiang.

China's trade restrictions on Australian produce include bans and tariffs on exports including coal, grain and seafood.

China also remains angry with Australia over foreign interference and investment laws and the decision to ban Huawei from the country's 5G rollout.
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Prince Charles bankrolled the Duke and Duchess of Sussex by a 'substantial sum' in the months following Megxit, despite Harry claiming to Oprah that his family 'literally cut me off financially'.

Royal accounts made public for the first time yesterday show that the future king continued to fund Harry and Meghan until the summer of last year from a 4.4million Clarence House pot used to support his two sons and their families.

This contradicts Harry's remarks when he told Oprah Winfrey that he stopped getting financial support from his family in the 'first quarter' of last year. He even claimed he and his wife were reduced to living off what 'my mother had left me'.

What is clear from the independently audited accounts is that Harry and Meghan were still listed as receiving money from Charles's Duchy of Cornwall income, despite quitting the monarchy at the end of March last year.

A senior Clarence House spokesman said: 'As we'll all remember, in January 2020 when the duke and duchess announced that they were going to move away from the working Royal Family, the duke said that they would work towards becoming financially independent. The Prince of Wales allocated a substantial sum to support them with this transition. That funding ceased in the summer of last year. The couple are now financially independent.'

The spokesman added: 'I betray no confidence when I say they've been very successful in becoming financially independent.' And when quizzed on the discrepancy in Harry's remarks, the spokesman said: 'I wouldn't acknowledge that they are dramatically different. All I can tell you are the facts.'

Details of Charles's continued financial support for his estranged younger son emerged as:

Accounts for the Sovereign Grant show the monarchy cost the taxpayer 87.5 million during 2020/21  an increase of 18.1 million from 69.4million on the previous financial year - up 26%;

The Queen's accounts also show she has been left with a 10million shortfall in her finances as a result of the pandemic. Buckingham Palace lost just over half its annual income outside of Government funding after closing to visitors;

For the first time, officials yesterday unveiled figures showing how many staff are from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds. Just 8.5 per cent of those working for the Queen come from ethnic minority backgrounds, while the figure is 8 per cent at Clarence House, where the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall live;

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle did not want to use the Earl of Dumbarton title for their son Archie because it contained the word 'dumb' - and his parents feared the young royal might be mocked, the Telegraph reports;

A trailer of a new movie about Megxit has been released and includes recreation of notorious Oprah interview;

Prince Charles bankrolled the Duke and Duchess of Sussex by a 'substantial sum' in the months following Megxit, despite Harry claiming his family 'literally cut me off financially'. Pictured L-R: Charles, Meghan and Harry during Trooping the Colour in 2018

Royal accounts made public for the first time yesterday contradict Harry's remarks when he told Oprah Winfrey that he stopped getting financial support from his family in the 'first quarter' of last year. He even claimed he and his wife were reduced to living off what 'my mother had left me'. Pictured: Harry (left) and Meghan (centre) with Oprah Winfrey (right) during their explosive interview which aired in March

The newly-public accounts show that Charles continued to fund Harry and Meghan until the summer of last year from a 4.4million Clarence House pot used to support his two sons and their families. Pictured: Prince Charles at a roundtable event for The Prince's Trust Group in June 2021

Pandemic saw cost of royal travel plummet 40% The cost of royal travel to the taxpayer plummeted over the past year as, along with the rest of us, the family's wings were clipped. Spending on official trips fell from to 5.3million to 3.2million, a reduction of almost 40 per cent. The most expensive single trip was a 58,993 overnight visit by the Prince of Wales who flew by private jet to pay the nation's condolences following the death of the Emir of Kuwait last October. Second was the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's 47,965 Christmas UK tour on the Royal Train to thank frontline staff and those who had gone above and beyond for their communities during the pandemic. Charles and Camilla's official visit to Germany amounted to 42,486, while the Queen ran up a bill of 32,791 flying to and from Balmoral, her Scottish home, by private jet last summer. Royal aides point out that foreign tours are conducted at the request of the British Government, which sees the Royal Family as an important tool in its use of 'soft diplomacy'. Officials warned yesterday that, while the bill would rise again when travel restrictions eased, there would be more of an emphasis on having a 'blend' of in-person and virtual engagements in the future. One senior royal aide said building relationships in person still very much mattered, but, in terms of both costs and the environment, it made sense to adapt to a more digital way of working where possible. Advertisement

Clarence House's annual review revealed that Charles's bill for the activities of both the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex  plus other expenditure including the prince's capital expenditure and transfer to reserves in 2020/2021  was 4.4million.

This was a fall of 1.15million  around 21 per cent  from 5.6million in 2019/2020  the last year the Sussexes were working royals.

The report provided no detailed breakdown of the figures and royal aides declined to elucidate further.

Harry and Meghan have signed multi-million-pound deals with Netflix and Spotify, with the duke telling Miss Winfrey he secured these to pay for his family's 'security'.

Yet he claimed that when the couple moved to North America, he only had what Diana had left him  7million at the time  and 'without that we would not have been able to do this'.

In the couple's explosive interview with Miss Winfrey in March, Harry gave a typically emotional description of his situation, saying: 'My family literally cut me off financially and I had to afford security for us... in the first quarter of 2020.

'But I've got what my mum left me  without that we would not have been able to do this.

'I think she [my mother] saw it coming. I certainly felt her present throughout this whole process.'

The couple emigrated first to Canada and then to California, where  despite their apparent penury  they bought an 11million family home in Montecito.

They have also set up their own film and audio company, as well as their Archewell Foundation, which branding experts believe is part of a plan to build a $1billion brand in the US.

But over the past 18 months or so Harry has become more distant from his family, especially after the Sussexes' series of bombshell interviews in the US starting in March with Oprah.

Their 'truth bombs' included accusing the Royal Family of racism towards their son Archie because he is mixed race and ignoring Meghan when she was suicidal while six months pregnant.

Harry said his family 'literally cut me off financially' in the first quarter of 2020 and he went for the Netflix and Spotify deals to pay for his security. He said he had what Diana left him and 'without that we would not have been able to do this.'

Harry and Meghan have signed multi-million-pound deals with Netflix and Spotify, with the duke telling Oprah Winfrey he secured these to pay for his family's 'security'. Pictured: Harry and Meghan appear on his AppleTV+ show with Winfrey

Harry and Meghan's 2.4m to the taxpayer included 18 months rent The Duke and Duchess of Sussex's 2.4 million reimbursement of the taxpayer for renovating Frogmore Cottage also included more than 18 months' rent, royal accounts have revealed. Critics had urged Harry and Meghan to pay back the millions spent refurbishing the property after they stepped down as working royals for financial and personal freedom and moved to the US early in 2020. It was thought the substantial sum covered just the updating of the period home close to Windsor Castle, but the annual report on royal finances appears to indicate that it included rental costs as well. A senior royal source said: 'The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have paid 2.4 million and we're satisfied that, on the basis of that payment, it satisfies all their current obligations.' Advertisement

Princes William and Harry received most of a 13m fortune left by their mother Princess Diana. Harry is also thought to have had millions left to him by the Queen mother.

Speaking to the couple's friend Oprah in March, Harry described himself, the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge as being 'trapped' within the system of the monarchy.

In his bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey, Harry sensationally revealed his family 'literally cut me off financially' and said he was only able to break away from royal life thanks to his inheritance from his late mother Princess Diana.

He claimed he was 'trapped' before he met Meghan as he revealed his father Charles 'stopped taking my calls' during the build-up to the announcement that he and Meghan were leaving the royal family.

Asked by Winfrey why they stepped back from the Royal Family to forge their own family life, Harry blamed a 'lack of support and lack of understanding'.

Winfrey asked 'did you blindside the Queen?' with the announcement they were leaving the family. Harry replied: 'No, I would never blindside my grandmother, I have too much respect for her.'

Asked where that story came from, Harry said he could 'hazard a guess' that it may have come 'from within the institution'.

Harry said while in Canada he had 'three conversations with my grandmother and two conversations with my father, before he stopped taking my calls'.

He also revealed Charles had asked for him to put his plan 'in writing'.

Harry said he had to act for the wellbeing of himself, Meghan and Archie, adding: 'He asked me to put it in writing, and I put all the specifics in there, even the fact that we were planning on putting the announcement out on the 7th of January.'

Meghan 'bullying probe' will NOT be paid for by the taxpayer The investigation into alleged bullying by the Duchess of Sussex is being paid for privately by the Royal Family, it has emerged. Buckingham Palace declined to confirm whether it was the Queen who was footing the bill, but said no taxpayers' money was being spent on the probe. It is likely a senior member of the royal family has taken on the costs, but it is unclear when or even if the privately funded inquiry will be published. Clarence House declined to comment as to whether the Prince of Wales was paying for the investigation. As the palace released its Sovereign Grant financial accounts, details of the ongoing investigation were expected to be included in the annual report, but were not. The palace said earlier this year that any changes in policies or procedures borne out review would appear in the accounts. But a senior palace source said: 'There is no Sovereign Grant money spent on this review. It is being met privately and not out of public money.' The source declined to confirm if the investigation would be published, saying: 'I have nothing further to add whilst this review is in progress. I have not seen the results of the review by independent lawyers, and I can't comment further at this stage.' The royal household tasked an external legal team to assist its human resources team into looking at allegations made against former Suits star Meghan. The Times reported in March that the duchess allegedly drove out two personal assistants and 'humiliated' staff on several occasions, which she denies. The palace declined to give further details as to why the decision was made to privately pay for the HR inquiry. It is believed to be the first time the actions of a member of the royal family have been investigation by the royal household's HR department. The Sussexes were not expected to be asked to contribute to the review, but it was previously reported the duchess had written to the palace asking for any documents, emails or texts relating to the allegations against her. Lawyers for the duchess have denied the bullying allegations. Advertisement

Oprah asked: 'So, you just said that your dad stopped taking your calls. Why did he stop taking your calls?'

Harry replied: 'Because... by that point, I took matters into my own hands. It was like, I need to do this for my family. This is not a surprise to anybody.

'It's really sad that it's gotten to this point, but I've got to do something for my own mental health, my wife's, and for Archie's, as well, because I could see where this was headed.'

He added: 'I feel really let down because he's been through something similar, he knows what pain feels like, (and) Archie's his grandson.

'But at the same time - I will always love him - but there's a lot of hurt that's happened and I will continue to make it one of my priorities to try and heal that relationship.

'But they only know what they know, or what they're told.'

In January last year it said they would 'work to become financially independent' as they stepped back.

They said 95 per cent of their income had come from the Duchy of Cornwall, an amount known to total some 2.5million.

The couple had said the remaining 5 per cent had come from the taxpayer-funded Sovereign Grant, although it has previously been stated that they got 2.5million from the fund.

They also committed to pay back the 2.4m cost of renovating their home, Frogmore Cottage in Windsor, a bill initially footed by the UK taxpayer.

The large sum also appears to cover a 22-month rental period - from June 2020 until March 2022 when the couple's annual licence to occupy their private UK home is up for renewal.

The source said: 'The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have paid 2.4 million, which covers the rental income in 2020/21, rental income in 2021/22... So all of the payments are reflected in the accounts.'

In the 2018/19 royal financial report the work to renovate Frogmore Cottage was listed as costing 2.4 million, with the document adding: 'The scheme consisted of the reconfiguration and full refurbishment of five residential units in poor condition to create the official residence for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and their family.

'The works started on site in November 2018 and were substantially completed by the end of March 2019.'

A spokesperson for the Sussexes said: 'The duke made a substantial contribution to the Sovereign Grant last year to support necessary and existing refurbishments to Frogmore Cottage, which specifically included essential structural updates to the building.

'As part of this agreement, all tenant obligations are being met. The duke and duchess continue to operate with no money being drawn from the UK taxpayer.'

Harry and Meghan, who recently added baby daughter Lili to their family, now live in the exclusive community of Montecito in Santa Barbara after buying a property reportedly worth 11 million.

Meghan and Prince Harry 'did not want to use Earl of Dumbarton title for Archie because it contained the word 'dumb' Prince Harry and Meghan Markle did not want to use the Earl of Dumbarton title for their son Archie because it contained the word 'dumb', it has been reported. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are said to have not been keen on the title because they feared the young royal might be mocked, the Telegraph reports. Harry and Meghan were given the titles of Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Earl and Countess of Dumbarton and Baron and Baroness Kilkeel by the Queen on their wedding day. However, they have rarely used the two other titles, with the couple instead going by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Sources meanwhile have reportedly told the Telegraph that the couple were not keen on using the Earl of Dumbarton - a title of Scottish nobility - for Archie because it began with the word 'dumb' and they were 'worried about how that might look'. Another insider reportedly told the paper: 'It wasn't just Meghan who pointed out the potential pitfalls, it also bothered Harry.' Advertisement

Sir Michael Stevens, Keeper of the Privy Purse, said: 'In the year covered by this report, we actually spent more than our grant and the supplementary income we earned, with total net expenditure of 87.5 million, a 26% increase on the previous year.

'This was largely driven by a significant increase in the reservicing spend from 21.2 million to 38.8 million, an 83% increase on the year.'

The overspend of 2.3 million was met from funds drawn from the Sovereign Grant reserve.

The 369 million reservicing programme is updating the electrical cabling, plumbing and heating at Buckingham Palace over 10 years and is running to time and budget.

Income supplementing the Sovereign Grant fell 53% to 9.4 million largely reflecting the impact of Covid-19 on the ability of Royal Collection Trust to open royal palaces for visitors.

Sir Michael said: 'As we said we would, we tightened our belts, we cut costs across all areas and managed to deliver savings to cover this anticipated reduction in supplementary income.

'These cost reductions did not involve job losses but did come from all areas including the pay and recruitment freeze we spoke about, general reductions in the areas of travel, housekeeping and IT and a reduction in some property backlog maintenance.'

Graham Smith, chief executive officer of the organisation Republic - which campaigns for an elected head of state, said:' Once again the Sovereign Grant goes up, once again the royals cost the taxpayer more year on year while the country faces unprecedented pressures on public spending.'

He added: 'Of course the real cost of the royals is closer to 345 million a year when security, costs to local authorities and lost revenue from the two Duchies is taken into account.

'It's time the palace finances were brought into line with those of other public bodies, with annual budgets agreed by parliament, properly scrutinised and published independently, not by the royal household.'

Buckingham Palace also confirmed yesterday that the probe into allegations of bullying against Meghan was still being investigated. It stressed that no money from the public purse was being used to finance the review but refused to confirm where that money was coming from.

The Clarence House accounts also showed that Charles's annual income from the Duchy of Cornwall profits fell this year to 20.4million  a drop of 1.8million or 8 per cent  as a result of the pandemic.

The prince also voluntarily paid more tax, an increase of 3 per cent from 4.86million to 5.02million.

No visitors at palace left the Queen 10m out of pocket

Royal Family's accounts 85.9 million - The total taxpayer-funded Sovereign Grant, made up of 51.5 million for the 'core' funding and an extra 34.4 million for the reservicing of Buckingham Palace. 87.5 million - Taxpayer funds spent by the monarchy - a rise of 18.1 million or 26% from 69.4 million in 2019/2020. 1.29 - Cost per person in the UK of funding the total Sovereign Grant. 77p - Cost per person of the 'core' part of the Sovereign Grant for official duties - not including funds for the long-term Buckingham Palace works. 2.4 million - Amount the Sussexes paid back with regard to Frogmore Cottage. 113 - Official engagements carried out by the Queen in the last financial year - 183 less or a decline of 62% compared to the 296 carried out in 2019-2020. Almost 1,470 - Official engagements by the royals in the UK and overseas. 508 - Full-time equivalent staff paid for from the Sovereign Grant, with the wage bill coming to 24.1 million. 900,000 - Cost of housekeeping and hospitality for the Royal Household - a fall of 1.7 million or 65%. 3.2 million - Cost of official royal travel, a fall of 2.1 million - 40% - from 5.3 million the previous year. 4.452 million - The Prince of Wales's bill for the Sussexes and the Cambridges' activities, plus Charles's other expenditure including his capital expenditure and transfer to reserves - a drop of 1.2 million in the year after Harry and Meghan quit. 20.4 million - Charles's annual private income from the Duchy of Cornwall landed estate. 3.063 million - Charles's non-official expenditure for himself and his family including salary costs of valets and farm workers and a proportion of costs for chefs and gardeners. 172,000 - Official costs of Charles's London office and official residence Clarence House. 5 million - Charles's tax bill. 47,965 - Cost of travel for William and Kate's royal train tour to Scotland. 42,486 - Travel costs for the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall's official visit to Germany. Advertisement

The Queen has been left with a 10million shortfall in her finances as a result of the pandemic.

Buckingham Palace revealed yesterday that it had lost just over half its annual income outside of Government funding after closing to visitors.

It meant the royal household was forced to break into its savings.

Income plunged from 20.2million in 2019/20 to 9.4million in 2020/21. Meanwhile, its property maintenance bill soared from 38.4million to 49.5 million as part of its planned upgrade of the Queen's official residence.

The sovereign grant, the pot of money given to the monarch by Government which is based on the income surplus from The Crown Estate two years ago, increased by 3.5million to 85.9million during 2020/21.

It was comprised of a core element of 51.5million that funds the Queen's official duties and her household, plus an additional 34.4million to pay for reservicing costs at the palace.

In all, the monarchy cost the taxpayer 87.5million in 2020/21  an increase of 18.1million on the previous financial year. This was because of the ramping-up of palace building works.

An unexpected payment from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex saved the palace from having to dip into its savings more than it feared.

Their unplanned decision to pay back 2.4million of public money spent on the refurbishment of Frogmore Cottage was described by senior royals aides as a 'good deal' for taxpayers.

Harry and Meghan announced last year that they had decided to reimburse the cost of turning five staff cottages into their family home at Windsor as part of their 'clean break' with the Royal Family and to prevent further public criticism.

The financial report further suggested that the Sussexes paid five months of rent on the property after stepping down as working royals and have the lease at least until March 2022. As a result, Buckingham Palace needed to 'draw down' on its reserves only to the tune of 2.3million.

Sir Michael Stevens, keeper of the privy purse, said yesterday: 'We will not be going into the detail of the commercial arrangement for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's use of the house but please remember the payment covers all their current obligations.

'We are confident that it represents a good outcome for the sovereign grant. The return on investment in the refurbished property has been determined with reference to independent property specialists and the accounting treatment signed off by Her Majesty's Treasury and the National Audit Office.'

The palace also had to 'borrow' an extra 6million from savings, specifically for the palace refurbishment works.

Sir Michael also said staff had 'tightened their belts', cutting costs across all areas without job losses, including a pay and recruitment freeze.

Staff diversity 'not what we'd like it to be'

Buckingham Palace has admitted it needs to do more to promote staff diversity in the wake of Harry and Meghan's claims of racism within the Royal Family.

Honours in the flesh After waiting more than a year, dozens of recipients were finally given their honours yesterday at the first major royal investiture ceremony since the pandemic began. The events are normally attended by up to 100 recipients, joined by their families. But the number at yesterday's event at St James's Palace, overseen by Prince Charles, was slimmed down to 32 to reduce the potential spread of coronavirus. Rather than receiving their insignia directly from the prince, the awards were instead picked up from a cushion as he looked on. The guests, whose honours were announced in 2019, had to wear masks, present a negative Covid test and pass a temperature check. Advertisement

For the first time, officials yesterday unveiled figures showing how many staff are from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds.

Just 8.5 per cent of those working for the Queen come from ethnic minority backgrounds, while the figure is 8 per cent at Clarence House, where the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall live.

This compares with 13 per cent of the UK, according to the 2011 census.

A senior Buckingham Palace source openly admitted it 'must do more' and is 'not where it would like to be' in terms of diversity.

It has set a target of 10 per cent for 2022.

The palace's decision to voluntarily reveal its figures comes after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex sensationally accused Royal Family members and the monarchy of racism in their Oprah Winfrey interview in March.

Meghan accused a senior royal of expressing 'concern' about the colour of her baby's skin. Harry also claimed racism was a 'large part' of why the couple left Britain.

The Queen issued a statement at the time saying: 'The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning.

'While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately.'

The Queen's household brought in a change to its diversity strategy in early 2020, before the Oprah interview, to emphasise inclusion.

A senior aide at Clarence House said they also accepted they needed to do more on the issue of diversity. Kensington Palace did not publish its figures.
Modern science is being used to uncover the secrets of an ancient Egyptian mummy buried about 3,000 years ago.

Researchers at Milan's Policlinico hospital are studying the remains of Ankhekhonsu, believed to have been an Egyptian priest, with a CT scanner to shed light on his life and the burial customs used after his death.

The team says the scan will show a complete biological and pathological profile of the individual: his age at death, his stature and all the diseases or wounds he may have suffered during his life.

'The mummies are practically a biological museum, they are like a time capsule,' said Sabina Malgora, the director of the Mummy Project Research, in an interview with Reuters.

Along with learning more about Ankhekhonsu, Malgora and her team hope to identify diseases that may have led to his death, which could be used in modern research.

Scroll down for video

Researchers at Milan's Policlinico hospital are studying the remains of Ankhekhonsu, believed to have been an Egyptian priest, with a CT scanner to shed light on his life and the burial customs used after his death

Malgora said the mummy's name comes from the sarcophagus, which is engraved five times with 'Ankhekhonsu' - it means 'the god Khonsue is alive.'

Khonsue was revered by ancient Egyptians as the god of the moon and time, who was believed to influence fertility of both humans and livestock.

Mythology says that Khonsue played a role in creating the universe, thus he had the ability to heal and used that power to cure pharaoh Ptolemy IV.

Ankhekhonsu's sarcophagus is dated between 900 and 800 BC and was initially being held at the Civic Archaeological Museum in Bergamo, Italy.

Malgora said the mummy's name comes from the sarcophagus, which is engraved five times with 'Ankhekhonsu' - it means 'the god Khonsue is alive'

The team says the scan will show a complete biological and pathological profile of the individual: his age at death, his stature, and all the diseases or wounds he may have suffered during his life

The sarcophagus appears to have been constructed from wood and is decorated with colorful hieroglyphics.

A face is at the top with large, black eyes and hands are laid across the chest.

After Malgora and her team conducts a further chemical and physical analysis, they will be able to confirm the remains in face belong to an ancient Egyptian priest, The National News reports.

However, based on the sarcophagus and how the body was prepared for burial, researchers are sure the person was of a high social class.

With this in mind, it is believed that Ankhekhonsu may have once been disturbed by thieves in the past who stole amulets and jewels off the dead body.

The sarcophagus appears to have been constructed from wood and is decorated with colorful hieroglyphics. A face is at the top with large, black eyes and hands are laid across the chest

Along with learning more about Ankhekhonsu, Malgora and her team hope to identify diseases that may have led to his death, which could be used in modern research

'Studying ancient diseases and wounds is important for modern medical research ... we can study the cancer or the arteriosclerosis of the past and this can be useful for modern research,' Malgora said.

Using CT scans and X-rays to study are becoming a popular way of studying ancient Egyptian mummies.

This method allows researchers to see inside mummy wrapping or within the bones without destroying the integrity of the object.

In December 2020, Northwestern University used powerful X-rays for the first time in the scientific community to see through the wrapping of a 1,900-year-old mummy.

In December 2020, Northwestern University used powerful X-rays for the first time in the scientific community to see through the wrapping of a 1,900-year-old mummy

Researchers used a combination of computed tomography (CT) and CT-guided synchrotron X-ray diffraction mapping, which is capable of identifying different materials, objects and bones

Researchers used a combination of computed tomography (CT) and CT-guided synchrotron X-ray diffraction mapping, which is capable of identifying different materials, objects and bones.

The examinations provided a number of details about the mummy  the person was a girl about five years old and buried with a scarab amulet that was meant to spiritually protect the body as it travels to the afterlife.

The analysis also revealed that the young girl's skeleton was still well preserved and showed no sign of trauma, which suggested she likely died from disease.

The analysis revealed that the young girl's skeleton is still well preserved and shows no sign of trauma, suggesting she likely died from disease

This is the first time an intact mummy had been analyzed with such techniques, which the team said 'will draw a lot of excitement from the archaeological community.'

Stuart Stock, research professor of cell and molecular biology at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine and the first author on the papery, said in a statement: 'We knew there were objects within the mummy, and we wanted to find out which materials were present.'

'Short of opening the mummy, there's no way other than X-ray diffraction to identify those materials.'
The ozone layer above the Arctic is under threat from human-created greenhouse gases despite a ban on ozone-depleting chemicals over a decade ago, study finds.

A new study led by the University of Maryland found that extremely low winter temperatures high in the atmosphere over the Arctic are becoming more frequent as a result of changes to climate patterns due to climate change.

Those extreme low temperatures are causing reactions among chemicals humans pumped into the air before the 2010 ban on chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), which can take up to 100 years to leave the atmosphere.

The reaction is leading to further depleting of the ozone layer and so a race has started between the chemicals leaving the atmosphere and ozone depletion.

The ozone layer that protects Earth from damaging ultraviolet (UV) radiation will lose the race if greenhouse gas emissions aren't reduced quickly enough, the team said.

Study author Ross Salawitch told MailOnline the findings present more evidence of the need to slow human production of greenhouse gas emissions such as CO2.

The ozone layer above the Arctic is under threat from human-created greenhouse gases despite a ban on ozone depleting chemicals over a decade ago, study finds. Stock image

LAYERS OF THE ATMOSPHERE Troposphere is where humans live and weather exists, the lowest layer stretching up to about six miles. Stratosphere extends up to about 40 miles and contains much of the ozone in the atmosphere. Mesosphere sits just above the stratosphere where temperature decreases with height, reaching -130F. Thermosphere is where temperatures begin to increase with height, caused by the absorption of UV and X-rays. Exosphere starts at 310 miles and contains oxygen and hydrogen atoms, but in very low numbers. Magnetosphere features charged particles along magnetic field lines in two bands at 1,800 and 10,000 miles above the surface. Advertisement

The new findings call into question the commonly held assumption that ozone loss would grind to a halt in just a few decades following the 2010 global ban.

This ban was on the production of chemicals called chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and halons that had been proved to be depleting the ozone layer.

'We're in a kind of race between the slow and steady decline in CFCs, which take 50 to 100 years to go away, and climate change, which is causing polar vortex temperature extremes to become colder at a rapid pace,' said Salawitch.

The study author, added: 'The increasingly cold temperatures create conditions that promote ozone depletion by CFCs. So, even though these compounds are slowly going away, Arctic ozone depletion is on the rise as the climate changes.'

Their new data revealed that 2020 saw the lowest Arctic polar vortex temperatures and the highest ozone losses on record, beating the previous record from 2011.

The polar vortex is a relatively self-contained, low-pressure system that forms in the stratosphere - at an altitude of about 7.5 to 31 miles.

It forms over the Arctic every autumn and stays for varying durations throughout the winter and on through to the spring.

The pattern of warm and cold winter temperatures in the polar vortex is very irregular, so not every winter is extremely cold.

But the trend toward more frequent and more extreme low temperatures in the polar vortex concerns the researchers.

They say this is because those conditions promote the formation of clouds, and that promotes ozone loss in the polar stratosphere.

Most of the chlorine and a significant amount of the bromine in the stratosphere comes from the breakdown of CFCs, halons and other ozone-depleting substances.

These substances were put in the atmosphere through various human activities up until 2010 when their use was banned - but they take decades to disappear.

Normally within the Arctic polar vortex the chlorine is non-reactive, but clouds provide the right conditions for the chlorine to change form and react with bromine and sunlight to destroy ozone.

Study author Ross Salawitch told MailOnline the findings present more evidence of the need to slow human production of greenhouse gas emissions such as CO2

WHAT ARE CHLORO-FLUOROCARBONS (CFCS)? Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) are nontoxic, nonflammable chemicals containing atoms of carbon, chlorine, and fluorine. They are used in the manufacture of aerosol sprays, blowing agents for foams and packing materials, as solvents, and as refrigerants. CFCs are classified as halocarbons, a class of compounds that contain atoms of carbon and halogen atoms. Individual CFC molecules are labelled with a unique numbering system. For example, the CFC number of 11 indicates the number of atoms of carbon, hydrogen, fluorine, and chlorine. Whereas CFCs are safe to use in most applications and are inert in the lower atmosphere, they do undergo significant reaction in the upper atmosphere or stratosphere where they cause damage. Advertisement

Despite drastic reduction of the industrial production of CFCs and halons since the Montreal Protocol in 1987 and the global ban that followed in 2010, these long-lasting compounds are still abundant in the atmosphere.

According to the World Meteorological Organization, atmospheric chlorine and bromine produced by humans is not expected to fall below 50 per cent of their highest levels until 2100.

To determine what this situation means for the future, the researchers projected ozone loss out to the year 2100 based on the long-term temperature trend in the polar vortex and the expected decline in chlorine and bromine compounds.

They based their predictions on the output from 53 top climate models used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

'All but one of the climate models we looked at show that exceptionally cold winters in the polar vortex will get colder over time,' Salawitch said.

'And the more greenhouse gas emissions there are, the steeper the trend, which means greater ozone depletion.'

They combined these projections with an analysis of meteorological data from the past 56 years.

This allowed them to confirm that the Arctic is already experiencing a significant trend towards lower stratospheric temperatures and the associated increase in ozone loss.

The observations also allowed the researchers to determine that these trends are occurring at a rate consistent with the 'worst case' climate models.

Salawitch said there has been a 'train coming' for a number of years thanks to earlier studies showing extreme Arctic winters were getting colder.

'We've now seen the train whizzing by with record ozone loss in 2011 and now in 2020,' he explained, adding this is a 'wake-up call' that something is happening in the atmosphere that is really important for ozone.

A new study led by the University of Maryland found that extremely low winter temperatures high in the atmosphere over the arctic are becoming more frequent as a result of changes to climate patterns due to climate change

WHAT IS THE POLAR VORTEX? The polar vortex is an atmospheric circulation pattern that sits high above the poles, in a layer of the atmosphere called the stratosphere. This structure can weaken as a result of abnormal warming in the poles, causing it to split off into smaller sister vortices that may travel outside of their typical range. The split higher up in the atmosphere could eventually cause a similar phenomenon to drip down to the troposphere  the layer of the atmosphere closest to the surface, where most of our weather takes place. A split in the polar vortex can give rise to both sudden and delayed effects, much of which involves declining temperatures and extreme winter weather in the Eastern US along with Northern and Western Europe. Advertisement

He said it looks like greenhouse gasses are driving this atmospheric change.

Salawitch and his colleagues do not yet fully understand how increasing greenhouse gas emissions are causing the extreme cold winters in the stratospheric layer of the polar vortex.

But some of the underlying mechanisms are understood.

Global warming occurs in part because greenhouse gases trap heat closer to Earth's surface, which allows cooling of the upper layers in the stratosphere, where the ozone layer is located.

Warming at the surface causes changes to prevailing wind patterns, and these also produce lower temperatures.

The researchers also note that recent years have seen a rapid increase in methane, a more powerful greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide, in the lower atmosphere.

As this gas travels to the stratosphere, it increases humidity, which also leads to conditions that promote ozone-destroying chemical reactions.

Because ozone filters much of the sun's potentially harmful UV radiation, a depleted ozone layer over the Arctic can result in more UV radiation reaching the surface of the Earth over Europe, North America and Asia when the polar vortex dips south.

But there is hope for avoiding future ozone depletion, according to the researchers.

Their study shows that substantial reductions in greenhouse gas emissions over the coming decades could lead to a steady decline in conditions that favour large ozone loss in the Arctic stratosphere.

The findings have been published in the journal Nature Communications.
If you've ever tried to throw a beer mat in the pub, you'll know they only glide for a few feet before flipping in the air and falling to the ground.

Now, a group of scientists in Germany have revealed the aerodynamic shortcomings of the beer mat's shape that makes it such a useless frisbee.

The physicists, from the University of Bonn, fired a load of beer mats from their own home-built shooting apparatus and filmed the process with a high speed camera.

Analysing the results, the experts found that the mat stays stable in the air for only a meagre 0.45 seconds on average.

Ever wondered why beer mats don't fly very far when thrown in pubs? German scientists say they always tilt into backspin position shortly after being thrown

Once thrown, the beer mat's trajectory starts off horizontal, but in just a fraction of a second, gravity tilts the front edge upwards slightly, they found.

As a result, the incoming flow of air tilts the front-facing edge of the mat upwards even further, tipping it into a vertical orientation.

This gives the beer mat backspin  meaning it spins backwards in relation to its direction of travel  and causes it to flop pathetically to the ground, assisted by gravity.

Overall, the physicists recommend throwing the mat in a vertical orientation to hit a target precisely, which should help prevent it from initial tilting.

The study was conducted by Johann Ostmeyer, Christoph Schurmann and Carsten Urbach at the University of Bonn.

They've published their results in a research paper entitled, 'Why Beer Mats Make Bad Frisbees'  making it a contender for this year's Ig Nobel awards.

The beer mat shooting apparatus used in the team's experiments, consisting of two electric motor powered treadmills

The trio had originally discussed why beer mats and other flat discs are so bad for throwing at a pub in Munich in 2017.

'In the hotel room later we made a great beer mat fight. We tried to throw with every possible angle and velocity,' Ostmeyer told the Times.

'It was great fun. But we were no wiser.'

Deciding to take the investigation to the lab, the researchers built a beer mat shooting apparatus, consisting of two electric motor powered treadmills programmed to move at a given speed up to 16 metres per second.

Scattering pattern of the beer mats. Each folding ruler is two meters long. Flight started horizontally 38 inches above ground exactly above the unseen end of the yellow ruler

'A beer mat put between these treadmills is accelerated until the edges assume the speed of the respective treadmill,' the team explain in their paper.

Beer mats shot from the device 38 inches above the ground. They followed the same trajectory and generally hit the same point on the floor, marked with rulers.

After looking at the video results, researchers found that there were some deviations in beer mat momentum, however.

In one example, when the front of the mat was tilted up by air, it proceeded to perform an impressive acrobatic rotating flip and steadily climbed towards the ceiling, before losing momentum and falling.

In another example, the incoming air pushed down on the front of the mat, rather than up, causing it to perform a swift downwards flip towards the floor.

Researchers say: 'Flying and rotating beer mats, CDs, or other flat disks will eventually flip in the air and end up flying with backspin, thus, making them unusable as frisbees'

These random deviations accounted for different beer mats ending up on different areas of the floor.

Based on their calculations, the researchers say similarly flat objects would spent even less time in the air than a beer mat.

A standard playing card would be stable in the air (level to the ground, before starting to tilt) for only 0.24 seconds  nearly half the time of the beer mat (0.45 seconds).

Meanwhile, a CD would hold out for twice a beer mat's time  around 0.8 seconds. The researchers said their predictions would have to be tested experimentally.

Researchers concluded by offering sincere apologies 'to everyone hit by a beer mat, be it through inaccurate aim or due to us instigating others to perform silly experiments'.

The trio have detailed their results in a pre-print paper, yet to be peer reviewed.
Thousands of people have applied to become a European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut including nearly 2,000 from the UK after the call for applications closed.

ESA is looking for six full time astronauts and up to 20 reservists that will travel to the International Space Station (ISS) and one day on to the NASA Lunar Gateway.

A total of 22,589 people have applied, and submitted a valid medical certificate, in the hope of going into the next round. The six will be confirmed late in 2022.

Individuals with missing feet or lower legs, either from amputation or birth defects, were eligible for the first time, as were people who are shorter than 130 cm (4ft 3in).

France had the highest number of applications, at 7,137 and a quarter of all applicants were women, up from 15 per cent during the last round in 2008.

If one of the British candidates is successful they will be the third British astronaut after Helen Sharman and Tim Peake - who was the first British ESA-astronaut.

Peake is expected to return to the ISS in the coming years, so the succesful candidates could be sent to the station at the same time.

If one of the British candidates is successful they will be the third British astronaut after Helen Sharman and Tim Peake - who was the first British ESA-astronaut

Thousands of people have applied to become a European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut including nearly 2,000 from the UK after the call for applications closed

France had the highest number of applications, at 7,137 and a quarter of all applicants were women, up from 15 per cent during the last round in 2008. The brighter the colour in this graphic the more applications from that country

Astronaut criteria The UK Space Agency hopes the next professional UK astronaut will be selected through this recruitment drive. To be eligible to file an application, an individual must: have a master's degree (or higher) in Natural Sciences, Medicine, Engineering, Mathematics or Computer Sciences

OR be qualified as an experimental test pilot

be fluent in English

Good knowledge of a second language

be calm under pressure and be willing to participate in life science experiments

Flexible with regards to place of work Advertisement

These are just preliminary numbers and those that have applied will go into the next selection round when claims in their application will be verified and numbers cut.

Applications to become an astronaut closed on June 18 and the total number applying, and able to provide a medical certificate, was up from 8,413 in 2008.

The 2021 astronaut selection is the first time ESA has issued a vacancy for an astronaut with a physical disability and 200 applied.

It is anticipated that the successful candidate will work with ESA to determine the adaptations required for such an astronaut to serve as a professional crew member on a future space mission, working on scientific research on an equal footing.

Applications have been received from all Member and Associate Member states including 80 from Lithuania who only joined ESA early in 2021.

There were also 367 applications from 'non-eligible countries' which were rejected, including four from the US to become a para-astronaut.

Libby Jackson, Human Exploration Programme Manager at the UK Space Agency, said it was 'fantastic' to see so many UK citizens apply.

'I am particularly pleased that the UK represented one of the highest entries from any single country for the para astronaut programme.

'Together with ESA the successful candidate will determine the adaptations required for future space missions to be more inclusive.

'While we were also one of three countries with the smallest gender divide, there is clearly more work to do to achieve balance, with women representing 28 per cent of UK applicants in the main call and 35 per cent in the para astronaut call.

'The next part of the application process will see 1,500 people going through the psychological test stage. I wish all the UK applicants the best of luck as anyone of them could be our next British astronaut.'

In total 31 of the 257 applicants to the para astronaut pilot programme are from the UK. 20 applications were from men and 11 from women.

ESA's astronaut selection process consists of six key stages, the first stage involves more detailed screening of the thousands of applicants.

During this phase, applications will be assessed on the basis of all documents submitted, the application form and the screening questionnaire completed as part of the application process.

Future astronauts may travel to the ISS on the SpaceX Crew Dragon (pictured), the Soyuz, the Boeing Starliner or some future spacecraft yet to be confirmed

Applications for the astronaut (with a physical disability) position will also undergo medical screening.

Candidates will be notified at the end of each stage as to whether their application has been successful in progressing to the next step. However, patience is a virtue because the entire selection process will take one and a half years.

The screening process will verify qualifications, experiences and skills claimed during the initial application process.

For example, people are only eligible if they are either qualified as an experimental test pilot or hold a master's degree or higher in Natural Sciences, Medicine, Engineering, Mathematics or Computer Sciences.

A number of European Space Agency astronauts have already been to the ISS and the new cohort will also travel to a new space station around the Moon within the decade

Astronauts launching for space will be expected to be able to participate in space science missions and may one day travel to the lunar gateway

PARASTRONAUT: ESA SEARCHING FOR DIFFERENTLY ABLED CANDIDATE The European Space Agency is looking for a parastronaut that could travel to the ISS in the future. The person selected will join the reserve crew while ESA work with partners to find a safe way to travel. Individuals with missing feet or lower legs, either from amputation or birth defects, are eligible, as too are people who are shorter than 130 cm (4ft 3in). Tim Peake says he 'wouldn't have any reservations travelling to space with someone with disabilities'. ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti said we 'didn't evolve to be in space'. She said we're 'all disabled in space' and it is just a case of perfecting the technology to take candidates who would otherwise be selected to be an astronaut if it were not for a disability. Advertisement

Fluency in English is essential, as too is the ability to be calm under pressure and a willingness to participate in life science experiments.

ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher says the Agency sought to attract a wide range of applicants through its recruitment campaign and looks forward to the challenge of selecting Europe's best-suited candidates.

'The establishment of an astronaut reserve, alongside the selection of four staff astronauts and an astronaut with a physical disability, provides more opportunities for our applicants than ever before,' Aschbacher explained.

'However, as can be seen from initial numbers, there is still huge competition for these coveted roles in space.'

He said anyone with an interest in space to keep looking at the ESA website, as there are lots of opportunities to work fro the agency beyond the role of astronaut.

'In the coming years we will be seeking a wide range of space professionals and I encourage you to view these opportunities on the ESA Careers website.'

ESA Director of Human and Robotic Exploration David Parker said having a quarter of applications from women was an improvement but there was still work to be done.

'The numbers also show there is more to be done to achieve gender balance in the space sector,' he explained.

'Representing all parts of our society is a concern that we take very seriously. I'm looking forward to seeing which of these applicants will join our existing astronaut corps and help contribute to that representation both on Earth and in space.'

There will be a rigorous training regime for the handful of potential astronauts selected from the thousands of applications

ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet is currently on the ISS, becoming the first European to fly to the station on a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule

The International Space Station (pictured) will be the main location for astronaut visits, but future missions could see crew visit the upcoming Lunar Gateway

ESA have secured three astronaut trips to the Lunar Gateway due to be built in orbit around the Moon and hope to be able to send European's to the surface of our natural satellite in the future.

'Astronauts will fly further away from Earth than anybody has ever been' when they go to the Gateway as it will be further from Earth than the Moon, says Frank De Winne from the ESA astronaut training centre.

'The first five to ten years will see astronauts fly to the ISS, but after that there will be opportunities to fly to the Moon and further than the Moon.'

There will then be a 17-month process of screening, psychological, practical, and psychometric testing, medical selections and two interview selections until the final applicants will be appointed and announced in October 2022.

ESA have purchased a number of flights to the upcoming NASA Lunar Gateway (artist impression) - a project it has partnered on with NASA, JAXA and CSA

Candidates will go through a rigorous selection process including screening, psychological testing, medical testing and interviews

'It is a tough process, I found it tough going through but just took it one step at a time. A large number won't make it through the application phase to round one, so an attention to detail is very important,' said British astronaut Tim Peake.

'Becoming an astronaut has been a dream come true. It brings together many of my passions,' Samantha Cristoforetti, current ESA astronaut said of the opening.

She said it covers 'science and technology, complex machines, demanding operational environments, international teams, physical fitness, public outreach. And of course, occasionally you get to ride a rocket to work!'

LIST OF APPLICANTS TO BE AN ESA ASTRONAUT BY COUNTRY Country Male Female Total Austria 349 115 464 Belgium 785 234 1019 Czech Republic 165 37 202 Denmark 110 36 146 Estonia 35 22 57 Finland 248 59 307 France 5475 1662 7137 Germany 2663 1037 3700 Greece 220 60 280 Hungary 116 34 150 Ireland 194 76 270 Italy 1507 353 1860 Latvia 60 21 81 Lithuania 62 18 80 Luxumberg 53 12 65 Netherlands 698 300 998 Norway 258 55 313 Poland 421 128 549 Portugal 256 61 317 Romania 199 56 255 Slovenia 49 13 62 Spain 1045 299 1344 Sweden 232 52 284 Switzerland 551 119 670 UK 1419 560 1979 Total 17170 5419 22589
If you've noticed you're losing your natural hair colour, you can make the grey go away by living a less stress-filled life, a new study shows.

Scientists in New York found that when people with grey hairs avoided stress, new hair growth was closer to their natural colour.

The team took hairs from the heads of volunteers and created an imaging method that detects pigment throughout a hair, from base to tip.

Stress-induced changes in the mitochondria  the 'powerhouse' of each human cell  causes changes to hundreds of proteins in the hair, causing greying, they say.

The study has been led by experts at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center in Manhattan, New York, who claim to have provided the first quantitative evidence linking psychological stress to greying hair in humans.

'Understanding the mechanisms that allow "old" grey hairs to return to their "young" pigmented states could yield new clues about the malleability of human ageing in general and how it is influenced by stress,' said senior author Professor Martin Picard.

'Our data add to a growing body of evidence demonstrating that human ageing is not a linear, fixed biological process but may, at least in part, be halted or even temporarily reversed.'

The researchers noted that reducing stress won't necessarily turn your hair to a normal colour if you're very young or very old.

'We don't think that reducing stress in a 70-year-old who's been grey for years will darken their hair or increasing stress in a 10-year-old will be enough to tip their hair over the grey threshold,' said Professor Picard.

Hair starts growing at the bottom of a hair follicle  the tunnel-shaped structure in the epidermis, the outer layer of the skin.

When we are young, our hair is coloured by the pigments produced by cells in the hair follicle known as melanocytes.

3D illustration of hair cross section. Hair starts growing at the bottom of a hair follicle - the tunnel-shaped structure in the epidermis (the outer layer of the skin)

As we grow older, the melanocytes gradually become less active, so less pigment is produced, the colour fades, and grey hair grows instead.

'When hairs are still under the skin as follicles, they are subject to the influence of stress hormones and other things happening in our mind and body,' said Professor Picard.

WHY DOES HAIR GO GREY? Grey hair is hair without pigment, and it could be regarded as the hairs' 'natural state'. When we are young, our hair is coloured by the pigments produced by cells in the hair follicle known as melanocytes. As we grow older, the melanocytes gradually become less active, so less pigment is produced, the colour fades, and grey hair grows instead. The process can be accelerated by factors such as stress and genetics. Advertisement

'Once hairs grow out of the scalp, they harden and permanently crystallise these exposures into a stable form.'

Hair that has already grown out of the follicle does not change colour, however.

For their study, the researchers analysed individual hairs from 14 volunteers  seven females and seven males  with an average age of 35.

The team captured highly detailed images of tiny 'slices' of human hairs to quantify the extent of pigment loss (greying) in each of those slices.

Each slice, measuring about one 20th of a millimetre in width, represents about an hour of hair growth.

'Just as the rings in a tree trunk hold information about past decades in the life of a tree, our hair contains information about our biological history,' said Professor Picard.

'If you use your eyes to look at a hair, it will seem like it's the same colour throughout unless there is a major transition.

'Under a high-resolution scanner, you see small, subtle variations in colour, and that's what we're measuring.'

The results were compared with the contents of a stress diary completed by each volunteer. The individuals were asked to review their calendars and rate each week's level of stress in the diary.

When hairs were aligned with stress diaries, striking associations between stress and hair greying were revealed.

Hair colour can be restored when stress is eliminated from our lives, reveal experts at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York (stock image)

Some grey hairs were shown to naturally regain their original colour with the lifting of stress, the team found.

'There was one individual who went on vacation, and five hairs on that person's head reverted back to dark during the vacation, synchronised in time,' Professor Picard said.

To better understand how stress causes grey hair, the researchers also measured levels of thousands of proteins in the hairs and how protein levels changed over the length of each hair.

Changes in 300 proteins occurred when hair colour changed, and the researchers developed a mathematical model that suggests stress-induced changes in mitochondria may explain how stress turns hair grey.

'We often hear that the mitochondria are the powerhouses of the cell, but that's not the only role they play,' Professor Picard said.

Hair pigmentation patterns of 100 hairs from a male and female study participant. Darker hair colors represented in red; lighter in blue

'Mitochondria are actually like little antennas inside the cell that respond to a number of different signals, including psychological stress.'

Last year, a study in mice found that stress-induced greying was caused by an irreversible loss of stem cells in the hair follicle.

But authors of this new study, published in eLife, believe the impact of mitochondria is a more accurate explanation.

'Our data show that greying is reversible in people, which implicates a different mechanism,' said co-author Ralf Paus, a professor of dermatology at the University of Miami.

'Mice have very different hair follicle biology, and this may be an instance where findings in mice don't translate well to people.'
As the public eagerly awaits a US government report including declassified information about alleged UFO encounters, at least one expert is skeptical.

Texas A&M University astronomer Nick Suntzeff, who has been involved with space research for almost 50 years, says he doubts the report will include evidence where an unidentified aerial phenomenon (UAP), the preferred alternative to UFO, 'is clearly resolved.'

'I am not optimistic that we will be shown extraordinary evidence where there is no natural explanation for what is seen,' Suntzeff said in a recent university release, adding that most UAP images and videos 'are usually out of focus.'

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Texas A&M University astronomer Nick Suntzeff says most 'evidence' of UFOs can be explained by out-of-focus cameras or witnesses misjudging the size and speed of the object. Pictured: A still from a video released in May 2021, appearing to show a UFO buzzing a US stealth ship near San Diego

In a Q&A with Texas A&M, Suntzeff discussed footage of the 'Triangle' UAP posted online and confirmed by the Navy in April, saying other objects in the video also appear as triangles.

'What this means is that the camera was out of focus and the camera pupil [shutter] was triangular,' Suntzeff said. 'It is an out-of-focus video taken with an infrared camera.'

Expert analysis has also shown the additional objects mirror the positions of the stars near Jupiter and the constellation Taurus, Suntzeff said.

'Also, this UFO blinks in the same way a commercial aircraft does,' he added. 'It was taken off the coast of Los Angeles where there is lots of air traffic.'

Often what excited spectators swear is a UFO is really just the planet Venus, twinkling in the night sky. Pictured: An image from a Department of Defense video from 2015, labelled 'Gimbal,' that shows an unexplained object high among the clouds

Suntzeff criticized the Navy for not checking with an astronomer before releasing the video 'because they could have quickly shown that this is an out-of-focus image.'

Another viral video of a UAP, from 2004, depicts what former Navy pilot Cmdr. David Fravor called a 'white Tic Tac' defying the laws of physics.

'The problem here is that we don't know how far away it was,' Suntzeff said. 'If it was high above the ocean, then the apparent motion is likely due to the airplane and not the object,' a phenomenon called parallax.

'You can often find answers like this,' Suntzeff said of alleged alien spacecraft.

'There are often simple, but boring answers.'

While even military personnel will report a UFO is a certain size and moving at a certain speed, 'If you don't know what the object is, you can't know how far away it is, or how big it is,' Suntzeff said.

Texas A&M University astronomer Nick Suntzeff is dubious the government's impending UFO report will 'clearly resolve' the existence of extraterrestrial life or spacecraft

Often what excited spectators swear is a UFO is really just the planet Venus, twinkling in the night sky, he said.

He also doesn't hold much faith in the long-held conspiracy theory that the US government has spaceships that have crashed on Earthand even alien remainson ice at Area 51.

'If they do, this is the best kept secret ever,' Suntzeff said. 'Our government is not great at keeping secrets, and this one would be a doozy.'

And any intelligent civilization that could travel thousands of light years to Earth wouldn't just crash their rocket, he added. 'If they can travel that distance, I seriously doubt they would be this careless.'

Graduating with a degree in mathematics from Stanford University (where he built the school's student observatory), Suntzeff earned a Ph.D. in astronomy and astrophysics from the University of California, Santa Cruz.

In the 1980s, he worked in the University of Washington's astronomy department and the observatories at the Carnegie Institution for Science, and, relocating to Chile, conducted groundbreaking research into supernovae.

More recently he was the associate director of science at the US National Optical Astronomy Observatory and served as vice president of the American Astronomical Society.

'Tic Tac' UFO: US Navy pilot made visual contact with the object on November 14, 2004 At least six Super Hornet pilots made visual or instrument contact with the UFO on November 14, 2004. The encounters, which are documented in numerous interviews with first-hand witnesses, remain a mystery, and the object's incredible speed and movements have led to speculation that it was extraterrestrial in origin. The original FLIR video from the USS Nimitz encounters leaked online as early as 2007. Witnesses say that clips of the video had been circulated widely on the Navy's intranet - used to communicate between ships in the carrier group - and an unknown sailor in the group likely first leaked it. The clip became one of the most-touted pieces of evidence in the UFO community when the Pentagon confirmed its authenticity in 2017. In January, Chad Underwood, the former Navy aviator who shot the famous leaked video clip, broke his silence in an interview with New York Magazine. Chad Underwood, the former Navy aviator who shot the famous leaked video clip, broke his silence in an interview with New York Magazine in January He said the oblong, wingless 'Tic Tac' shaped object was spotted off the coast of Mexico over the Pacific. He also revealed that for about two weeks, the Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser USS Princeton, part of Carrier Strike Group 11, had been tracking mysterious aircraft intermittently on an advanced AN/SPY-1B passive radar. The radar contacts were so inexplicable that the system was even shut down and restarted to to check for bugs - but operators continued to track the unknown aircraft. Then on November 14, Commander David Fravor says he was flying in an F/A-18F Super Hornet when he made visual contact with the object, which seemed to dive below the water, resurface, and speed out of sight when he tried to approach it. As Fravor landed on the deck of the Nimitz, Underwood was just gearing up to take off on his own training run. Fravor told Underwood about the bizarre encounter, and urged Underwood to keep his eyes open. He recalls how he suddenly saw a blip on his radar before tracking it on his FLIR camera. Underwood was flying in an F/A-18F Super Hornet as part of the USS Nimitz (above) carrier group when he encountered an 'unidentified aerial phenomena' 'The thing that stood out to me the most was how erratic it was behaving,' Underwood told the magazine. 'And what I mean by 'erratic' is that its changes in altitude, air speed, and aspect were just unlike things that I've ever encountered before flying against other air targets.' Underwood said the object wasn't obeying the laws of physics and dropped from 50,000 feet altitude to 100 feet in seconds, which he says, 'isn't possible'. He added that he saw no signs of an engine heat plume or any sign of propulsion. The pilot refuses to speculate as to whether the object is an alien spacecraft or not, however. 'That's not my job. But I saw something. And it was also seen, via eyeballs, by both my commanding officer, Dave Fravor, and the Marine Corps Hornet squadron commanding officer who was out there as well.' Advertisement

Suntzeff can't rule out that our planet has been visited by creatures from other planets. 'But we need clear evidence,' he said. 'A clear photo, for instance. So far, we do not have such evidence.'

The Director of National Intelligence has until June 25 to present the report, which will be available to the public.

A poll from May found that nearly two-thirds of all Americans believe extraterrestrial life exists and that the US government isn't telling the public the full truth.

In April 2020, the Pentagon declassified three videos previously acknowledged as authentic by the Navy that captured what pilots recorded on their video sensors during training flights in 2004 and 2015.

Two of the clips were first published in 2017 by the New York Times and the third in 2018 by the To The Stars Academy, a group that specializes in unexplained phenomenon founded by Blink-182 guitarist Tom DeLonge.
The calls of more than a dozen songbird species follow patterns that are similar to those used in human speech, a new study claims.

Zoologists at McGill University in Canada analysed calls of 15 bird species, including the wild canary, zebra finch, common chaffinch, swamp sparrow and sedge warbler.

The longer the phrase, the shorter the individual sounds within, they found  a pattern already observed in humans and known as Menzerath's law.

Menzerath's law, named after the German phonetician Paul Menzerath, says that larger linguistic structures are made up of shorter parts.

As the law goes, longer words contain extra syllables, but these syllables tend to be briefer.

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Adult male zebra finches (left) learn their songs and use them during courtship interactions with females (right).

WHAT IS MENZERATH'S LAW? Menzerath's law says that larger linguistic structures are made up of shorter parts. The law says: 'Increase of the size of a linguistic construct results in a decrease of the size of its constituents and vice versa.' Taking one example, longer words contain extra syllables, but these syllables tend to be briefer. The law was named after the German phonetician Paul Menzerath (18831954). Advertisement

Likewise, the longer a sentence, measured in terms of the number of clauses, the shorter the clauses.

Amazingly, the study shows that birdsong follows Menzeraths law  in that the greater the whole, the smaller the individual constituents.

Study author Logan James at McGill University explains Menzerath's law in simple terms: 'When I say the words "linguist" and "linguistics", we have words with two and three syllables, respectively.

'If I pay attention, I can notice that I say the first two syllables in linguistics faster than in "linguist"  i.e., the more syllables a word has, the shorter those syllables tend to be.

'Other examples might be even more obvious: "resolve" versus "resolution", the syllables are faster in "resolution" than in "resolve".'

Linguists speculate the law may make communication more efficient by making things easier to understand or say  not just for humans, but for other animals too.

The McGill researchers found negative relationships between the number and duration of constituents in all 15 species  showing evidence of the law in birds.

'Although we see Menzerath's Law in all the songbird species we looked at, and others have seen it among primates and penguins, we aren't sure this necessarily reflects enhanced communication efficiency in non-human animals,' said study author Jon Sakata, a professor in McGill's Biology Department.

'It is possible that these patterns of communication that we saw in songbirds are caused by physical predispositions and constraints.'

When we listen to songbirds, we can hear repeated melodies or phrases. Each phrase is made up of distinct sounds, strung together.

The wild canary (Serinus canaria). The relationship between the number and duration of syllables in a phrase was steeper (more negative) than expected by chance for repeat phrases in canaries, swamp sparrows, canyon towhees, Oregon juncos, and northern mockingbirds

Graphical abstract from the team's research paper. The team found negative relationships between the number and duration of constituents in all 15 species - showing evidence of the law in birds

WHAT BIRD SPECIES WERE ANALYSED? The 15 species were: - Zebra finch - Bengalese finch - Java sparrow - House finch - Canary - Common chaffinch - Swamp sparrow - Canyon towhee - Red fox sparrow - White-crowned sparrow - Oregon junco - Icterine warbler - Sedge warbler - Common blackbird - Northern mockingbird The Menzeraths law patterns were strongest in the five species within the family Passerellidae: - Oregon junco - White-crowned sparrow - Red fox sparrow - Canyon towhee - Swamp sparrow Advertisement

A well-known example of bird song found around the UK is that of the common wood pigeon (Columba palumbus), which has a distinct five note call.

The research, detailed in the journal Current Biology, found the songbird species tended to use shorter 'elements' (in this case sounds rather than spoken words) when they were putting together longer phrases.

In humans, Menzerath's Law may just make communication more efficient by making things easier to understand or say.

However, in the case of birds, it could be the case that their vocal sounds are just constrained by the physiology of their syrinx, the avian vocal organ at the top of the windpipe.

Interestingly, the study also found the brain mechanisms regulating breathing and vocal muscles seem to be organised in similar ways in birds and humans.

Also, when the researchers compared the song patterns of birds that had been typically reared and tutored by their parents with those that had not been taught to sing by their parents (untutored birds), they found the same patterns.

'The individual units of sound made by untutored birds were very different from those made by the typically raised birds,' said James, now a post-doctoral Fellow at the University of Texas at Austin.

'However, the "rules" by which they organise these aberrant elements is indistinguishable from typically raised birds.

'These results suggest that physical predispositions or limitations may play a role in producing these song patterns.'
Apple CEO Tim Cook called House Speaker Nancy Pelosi earlier this month to warn over 'rushed' antitrust bills that are circulating throughout the House, according to a new report.

Cook called Pelosi and other members of Congress to 'deliver a warning' that the antitrust bills were 'rushed,' would hurt innovation and hurt consumers by disrupting Apple's services, according to The New York Times, which first reported the news.

Two sources familiar with the call told the Times that Cook asked Pelosi to delay the process of considering the bills.

Pelosi reportedly pushed back against Cook's concerns, asking him to identify a specific policy objection.

Apple CEO Tim Cook called House Speaker Nancy Pelosi earlier this month to warn over 'rushed' antitrust bills that are circulating throughout the House, according to a new report

Pelosi reportedly pushed back against Cook's concerns, asking him to identify a specific policy objection

But both parties are divided on how far to go. And Pelosi has been warned by opponents inside her own party that the proposals could have a damaging impact on the U.S. economy.

In a letter obtained by DailyMail.com, Timothy Powderly, Apple's Senior Director of Government Affairs, Americas, told the House Judiciary Committee that a number of provisions would create a race to the bottom for security and privacy.

'The App Store creates competition, and it is a place where all developersno matter their sizecan turn their passion and creativity into a thriving business,' Powderly wrote in the letter.

'The App Store offers customers access to nearly 2 million apps, and it supports more than 2.1 million jobs across all 50 states. We are concerned that many provisions of the recent package of antitrust reform legislation would create a race to the bottom for security and privacy, while also undermining innovation and competition.'

'Apple is concerned that current proposals would harm consumer privacy, device security, and innovation,' Powderly added.

'We urge the Committee not to approve the proposed legislation in its current form, and we look forward to engaging with the Committee going forward.'

The Times added that lobbyists and more than 12 think tanks and advocacy groups with funding from tech companies have called, emailed or visited Capitol Hill lawmakers and their staff expressing their deep concerns about the bills.

The proposals have attracted broad support across the political spectrum, from the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, including Rep. Pramila Jayapal, to Trump loyalists, such as Rep. Matt Gaetz.

But both parties are split on the issue.

Members of the New Democrat Coalition - made up of moderate Democratic Representatives - wrote to their party leadership urging deeper scrutiny of the proposals.

'The scope and impact of these bills could have a tremendous impact on the products and services many American consumers currently enjoy and the competitiveness of our innovation economy,' wrote the members, who included Rep. Suzan DelBene, a former Microsoft executive, and Rep. Scott Peters.

'Notably, stakeholders and policy experts are raising concerns these proposals may weaken personal privacy protections, cybersecurity, and increase the spread of dangerous conspiracy theories and misinformation.'

Amazon's vice president of public policy, said that the company is still analyzing the various bills, but that they may have a 'significant negative effect' on consumers and small and medium-sized businesses

Others in the tech industry have made their voice heard about the six pieces of legislation that are making their way through the House, including tech execs from Amazon and Google.

In a statement, Brian Huseman, Amazon's vice president of public policy, said that the company is still analyzing the various bills, but that they may have a 'significant negative effect' on consumers and small and medium-sized businesses.

'The Committee is moving unnecessarily fast in pushing these bills forward,' Huseman wrote.

'We encourage Chairman [David] Cicilline and committee members to slow down, postpone the markup, and thoroughly vet the language in the bills for unintended negative consequences.'

Google's Mark Isakowitz, VP of Government Affairs and Public Policy, said it is not opposed to antitrust scrutiny or regulations on certain issues, but 'American consumers and small businesses would be shocked at how these bills would break many of their favorite services.'

'This would all dramatically undermine US technology leadership, damage the way small businesses connect with consumers, and raise serious privacy and security concerns.

Thirteen advocacy groups, including the TechNet, which calls itself a 'bipartisan network of technology CEOs and senior executives,' wrote a letter on Monday noting that two of the bills, one written by Rep. Cicilline, D-R.I. and the other by Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., would have grave impacts on consumer apps.

'Rep. Cicilline's bill would ban Google from displaying YouTube videos in search results;ban Alexa users from ordering goods from Amazon; block Apple from preinstalling 'Find My Phone' and iCloud on the iPhone; ban Xbox's Games Store from coming with the Xbox; and ban Instagram stories from Facebook's newsfeed,' the group of 13 wrote in the letter.

'Rep. Jayapal's bill would force free apps like Google Maps, YouTube, WhatsApp, Instagram, LinkedIn, iMessage, and FaceTime to be divested from their parent companies, putting at risk these free services and making them less accessible to the public.'

A Facebook spokesman told DailyMail.com that these bills 'underestimate the relenting competition' both domestically and abroad, within the tech sector.

'The proposed bills arent a solution to the ever-changing challenges of the consumer internet; they are a poison pill for Americas tech industry at a time our economy can least afford it,' a Facebook spokesperson said via email.

DailyMail.com has reached out to Microsoft and with a request for comment for this story.
Mongooses have evolved into a 'fairer society' because mothers cannot tell which pups are their own, forcing them to help the most 'needy' instead, researchers claim.

They say a 'veil of ignorance' over parentage is created because groups of banded mongoose give birth on the same night and do not know which offspring is theirs.

It means they cannot give them extra care but instead look after the smallest pups in the community.

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Looking out for each other: Mongooses have evolved into a 'fairer society' because mothers can't tell which pups are their own, forcing them to help the most 'needy', researchers claim

'In most of the natural world, parents favour their own young,' said Dr Harry Marshall, of the University of Roehampton, which led the study with the Exeter University.

'However, in banded mongooses, the evolution of remarkable birth synchrony has led to the unusual situation that mothers don't know which pups are their own, and therefore cannot choose to give them extra care.

'Our study shows that this ignorance leads to a fairer allocation of resources - in effect, a fairer society.'

In the study, half of the pregnant mothers in wild mongoose groups were regularly given extra food.

This led to increased inequality in the birth weight of pups.

But after giving birth, the well-fed mothers gave extra care to the smaller pups born to the unfed mothers - rather than their own pups. This led to the differences in size quickly disappearing.

Researchers looked at seven groups of banded mongooses in Uganda.

Experts say a 'veil of ignorance' over parentage is created because groups of banded mongoose (pictured) give birth on the same night and do not know which offspring is theirs

Half of the pregnant females in each group were given 50g of cooked egg each day, while the other half were not given extra food.

They found that inequality at birth (measured by weight) was wider in breeding periods when food was provided than in periods where no extra food was given.

Professor Michael Cant, of the University of Exeter, said: 'We predicted that a "veil of ignorance" would cause females to focus their care on the pups most in need - and this is what we found.

'Those most able to help offer it to the most needy, and in doing so minimise the risk that their own offspring will face a disadvantage.

'This redistributive form of care "levelled up" initial size disparities, and equalised the chances of pups surviving to adulthood.

'Our results suggest that the veil of ignorance, a classic philosophical idea to achieve fairness in human societies, also applies in this non-human society.'

The study is published in the journal Nature Communications.
There could be as many as 29 potentially habitable worlds 'perfectly positioned' to observe the Earth if they hold an intelligence civilisation, according to a new study.

Exploring ways in which we find exoplanets, that is worlds outside the solar system, the team from Cornell University reversed the process to see which could spot us.

Working alongside the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, astronomers identified 2,034 star-systems in our galactic neighbourhood - within 326 light years of the Earth - that could watch our planet cross the sun.

Out of those stars, 1,715 could have spotted Earth since human civilisation blossomed about 5,000 years ago, and 319 will be added over the next 5,000 years.

The number of stars varies depending on their location in space relative to the solar system and changes due to the fact we live in a dynamic universe.

While exoplanets haven't been detected around all of the stars that can observe the Earth, the team estimate 29 will have a rocky world in the habitable zone that are well positioned to also detect radio waves emitted by humans over 100 years ago.

A view of Earth and Sun from thousands of miles above our planet. Stars that enter and exit a position where they can see Earth as a transiting planet around our Sun are brightened

Working alongside the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, astronomers identified 2,034 star-systems in our galactic neighbourhood - within 326 light years of the Earth - that could watch our planet cross the sun

WHAT IS THE TRANSIT METHOD? The transit method is a technique in astronomy used to detect exoplanets or study more about objects within the solar system. As a planet transits in front of its host star it blocks a portion of the light and when observed from Earth this change can be measured. Astronomers produce a light curve that can provide physical characteristics of both the planet and host star including density. Hot Jupiters - that is Jupiter-sized worlds orbiting very close to their host start - are most likely to be detected, but it has also been used to find Earth-sized worlds orbiting red dwarf stars. The transit method is the most prominent technique for detecting exoplanets and was first used in 1999 to confirm the existence of HD209458b, previously detected using the radial velocity method. The first new detection using the transit method came four years later with the detection of OGLE-TR-56b in 2003. Transit can be used to determine the radius of the planet and its period of revolution. Advertisement

Current telescopes aren't able to detect signs of life within an exoplanet atmosphere or whether it is truly habitable, but future observatories including the NASA James Webb space telescope will delve deeper into these distant worlds than ever before.

'From the exoplanets' point-of-view, we are the aliens,' said Lisa Kaltenegger, professor of astronomy and director of Cornell's Carl Sagan Institute.

'We wanted to know which stars have the right vantage point to see Earth, as it blocks the Sun's light,' she said.

Because stars move in our dynamic cosmos, this vantage point is gained and lost over time, so they were able to pin-point specific star systems.

The transit method is one of the main ways astronomers use to detect planets in other star systems - they look for 'dips' in the light coming from the star.

It requires specific positioning for the exoplanet the star it is orbiting and the Earth for us to be able to view it as it passes by and this changes over time.

Kaltenegger and astrophysicist Jackie Faherty, a senior scientist at the American Museum of Natural History used positions and motions from the European Space Agency's Gaia catalog to determine which stars enter and exit the Earth Transit Zone.

'Gaia has provided us with a precise map of the Milky Way galaxy,' Faherty said, 'allowing us to look backward and forward in time, and to see where stars had been located and where they are going.'

Of the 2,034 star-systems passing through the Earth Transit Zone over the 10,000-year period examined, 117 objects lie within about 100 light-years of the sun.

Of these 75 objects have been in the Earth Transit Zone since commercial radio stations on Earth began broadcasting into space about a century ago.

The Kepler mission has spotted thousands of exoplanets since 2014, with 30 planets less than twice the size of Earth now known to orbit within the habitable zones of their stars

Out of those stars, 1,715 could have spotted Earth since human civilisation blossomed about 5,000 years ago, and 319 will be added over the next 5,000 years

Current telescopes aren't able to detect signs of life within an exoplanet atmosphere or whether it is truly habitable, but future observatories including the NASA James Webb space telescope will delve deeper into these distant worlds than ever before

'Our solar neighbourhood is a dynamic place where stars enter and exit that perfect vantage point to see Earth transit the Sun at a rapid pace,' Faherty said.

Included in the catalog of 2,034 star-systems are seven known to host exoplanets.

Each one of these worlds has had or will have an opportunity to detect Earth, just as Earth's scientists have found thousands of worlds orbiting other stars.

By watching distant exoplanets transit - or cross - their own sun, Earth's astronomers can interpret the atmospheres backlit by that sun.

If exoplanets hold intelligent life, they can observe Earth backlit by the sun and see our atmosphere's chemical signatures of life including oxygen.

The number of stars varies depending on their location in space relative to the solar system and changes due to the fact we live in a dynamic universe

While exoplanets haven't been detected around all of the stars that can observe the Earth, the team estimate 29 will have a rocky world in the habitable zone that are well positioned to also detect radio waves emitted by humans over 100 years ago

HOW THEY ESTIMATE THE NUMBER OF ALIEN WORLDS THAT CAN VIEW THE EARTH Astronomers identified 2,034 star-systems in our galactic neighbourhood - within 326 light years of the Earth - that could watch our planet cross the sun - also known as a transit. Out of those stars, 1,715 could have spotted Earth since human civilisation blossomed about 5,000 years ago. Another 319 will be added over the next 5,000 years as the various stars move into viewable range - known as the Earth Transit Zone (ETZ). But the team had to then determine how many of those stars might have rocky Earth-like planets orbiting in the habitable zone - where liquid water can flow freely on the surface. Estimates of the number of rocky planets in the habitable zone of their star depend on the radius of the planet and the size and type of the host star. New estimates place the number of planets per star within the habitable zone at 1.28. The team predict about 25 per cent of all stars will have potentially habitable worlds in this zone. This led to the figure of 508 rocky worlds in the habitable zone of the full sample of more than 2,000 star systems able to view the Earth within 100 light years. Within that limit they determined there would be about 29 potentially habitable worlds that 'could' host an alien civilisation capable of listening in since Marconi invented the radio. However, communication could be difficult as a civilisation 82 light years away would just be hearing broadcasts from the start of WW2, and we wouldn't get a reply until 2101 if they sent it today. Advertisement

The Ross 128 system, with a red dwarf host star located in the Virgo constellation, is about 11 light-years away and is the second-closest system with an Earth-size exoplanet - its world is about 1.8 times the size of our planet.

Any inhabitants of this world could have seen Earth transit our own sun for 2,158 years, starting about 3,057 years ago but lost that ability 900 years ago.

The Trappist-1 system, at 45 light-years from Earth, hosts seven transiting Earth-size planets - four of them in the temperate, habitable zone of that star.

While we have discovered the exoplanets around Trappist-1, they won't be able to spot us until their motion takes them into the Earth Transit Zone in 1,642 years.

Potential Trappist-1 system observers will remain in the cosmic Earth transit stadium seats for 2,371 years once they finally enter the cosmic vantage point.

Whether humans will still be on Earth, or whether Earth is still habitable for humans by that point is unknown.

'Our analysis shows that even the closest stars generally spend more than 1,000 years at a vantage point where they can see Earth transit,' Kaltenegger said.

'If we assume the reverse to be true, that provides a healthy timeline for nominal civilisations to identify Earth as an interesting planet.'

Estimates of the number of rocky planets in the habitable zone of their star depend on the radius of the planet and the size and type of the host star.

New estimates place the number of planets per star within the habitable zone at 1.28 - or between one and two per system.

This matches the Solar System with the Earth as the only habitable planet, but Venus and Mars both at the outer edge of the habitable zone.

The concept of an empirical habitable zone limit is actually based on the amount of sunlight a young Venus and Mars would have received early in the solar system.

As we haven't identified habitable worlds or even rocky worlds around all nearby stars, the team decided to estimate how many there would likely be.

The discussion on the occurrence rate of rocky planets surrounding other stars is ongoing, according to the researchers.

However, they wanted to estimate how many there would be so used pessimistic predictions of 25 per cent of all stars having at least one rocky world to create a rough estimate.

The Ross 128 system, with a red dwarf host star located in the Virgo constellation, is about 11 light-years away and is the second-closest system with an Earth-size exoplanet - its world is about 1.8 times the size of our planet

Estimates of the number of rocky planets in the habitable zone of their star depend on the radius of the planet and the size and type of the host star

THE JAMES WEBB SPACE TELESCOPE CAN PEER INTO ALIEN ATMOSPHERES NASA and the European Space Agency plan to launch their next major space telescope this year and it will serve as the natural successor to Hubble. Primarily an infrared telescope, it will have a wider spectrum view than Hubble and operate further out from the Earth, in a solar orbit. Research by Ohio State University claims that within five years of it coming online, James Webb will have found signs of alien life. Graduate student Caprice Phillips calculated it could detect ammonia created by living creatures around gas dwarf planets after just a few orbits. The James Webb has been described as a 'time machine' that could help unravel the secrets of our universe. The telescope will be used to look back to the first galaxies born in the early universe 13.5 billion years ago. It will also observe the sources of stars, exoplanets, and even the moons and planets of our solar system. ESA said 30 per cent of the first 18 months of observations will focus on alien worlds and their atmosphere. Advertisement

This led to the figure of 508 rocky worlds in the habitable zone of the full sample of more than 2,000 star systems able to view the Earth within 100 light years.

That is roughly the area radio waves will have travelled - so at the outer edge people living on that world may be hearing test messages from Guglielmo Marconi.

Within that limit they determined there would be about 29 potentially habitable worlds that 'could' host an alien civilisation capable of listening in to our radio.

However, communication could be difficult as a civilisation 82 light years away would just be hearing broadcasts from the start of WW2, and we wouldn't get a reply until 2101 if they sent it today.

The James Webb Space telescope - expected to launch later this year - is set to take a detailed look at several transiting worlds to characterise their atmospheres.

Doing so will allow astronomers to ultimately search for signs of life as we may be able to spot tell-tale chemical signatures only created by living creatures.

The Breakthrough Starshot initiative is an ambitious project underway that is looking to launch a nano-sized spacecraft toward the closest exoplanet detected around Proxima Centauri - 4.2 light-years from us - and fully characterise that world.

'One might imagine that worlds beyond Earth that have already detected us, are making the same plans for our planet and solar system,' said Faherty.

'This catalog is an intriguing thought experiment for which one of our neighbours might be able to find us.'

The 29 world estimate is also heavily human centric, based on the idea of life as we know it - requiring water and a rocky world.

However, despite the prediction of 29 planets, we don't actually know if those stars have worlds capable of housing intelligent civilisations.

Study author, Lisa Kaltenegger told MailOnline: 'There are not stars with known exoplanets that could have seen us in the last 100 years - we have not found them yet because we have not searched this region of the sky for them yet.'

It doesn't mean they are not there, just that the number of star systems visible from the Earth is so vast that we haven't got round to looking yet.

The findings have been published in the journal Nature.

THE 20 NEAREST STAR SYSTEMS ABLE TO VIEW THE EARTH Star name Known planets Light years away Wolf359 0 7.9 Ross128 1 11 Teegardens star 2 12.5 Wolf 28 0 14.1 GJ 9066 2 14.6 SIMP0136 0 19.9 Wolf 358 0 22.7 G 157-77 0 23.4 1507-1627 0 24.2 HD 4628 0 24.2 Ross 64 0 27.7 EGGR453 0 27.8 LP 469-206 0 29.6 L 768-119 0 31.6 LP 867-15 0 34.6 HD 28343 0 36.6 Ross85 0 37.6 Wolf 918 0 38.6 TRAPPIST 7 40.6 G 85-19 0 41.2
The Hubble Space Telescope has been offline for more than a week because of a problem with a 1980s-era computer on the telescope and now NASA says the issue may be bigger than first believed.

'After performing tests on several of the computers memory modules, the results indicate that a different piece of computer hardware may have caused the problem, with the memory errors being only a symptom,' the US space agency wrote in an update on Tuesday.

'The operations team is investigating whether the Standard Interface (STINT) hardware, which bridges communications between the computers Central Processing Module (CPM) and other components, or the CPM itself is responsible for the issue.

'The team is currently designing tests that will be run in the next few days to attempt to further isolate the problem and identify a potential solution.'

The Hubble Space Telescope has been offline for more than a week; NASA says the issue may stem from the Standard Interface (STINT) hardware on the 1980s era computer onboard Hubble

Initially, it was believed that a memory module on the NASA Standard Spacecraft Computer-1 (NSSC-1) system was failing

Launched in 1990, Hubble is showing more and more signs of ageing, despite a series of repairs and updates by spacewalking astronauts during NASA's shuttle era

DailyMail.com has reached out to the agency with a request for comment for this story.

Initially, it was believed that a memory module on the NASA Standard Spacecraft Computer-1 (NSSC-1) system was failing.

The Hubble Space Telescope is partnership between NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA).

If the main payload computer can't be fixed, NASA said it will switch the STINT and CPM hardware to the backup payload computer, albeit with one very large caveat.

It hasn't been powered on since it was installed in 2009 during Hubble's last servicing mission.

Earlier this week, a spokesperson for the ESA told MailOnline that 'Hubble is in safe mode, restoration work in progress, no back-to-service date given yet.'

On June 14, flight controllers at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland tried to restart the computer after they noticed it stopped working on June 13, but they ran into the same issue and could not get it to operate normally.

NASA says the telescope itself and scientific instruments that accompany it are 'in good health,' adding the issue is with payload computer that controls and coordinates the scientific instruments and monitors their health and safety.

Launched in 1990, Hubble is showing more and more signs of ageing, despite a series of repairs and updates by spacewalking astronauts during NASA's shuttle era.

The Hubble recently marked its 31st anniversary in space, doing so with an image of a giant star that is 'on the edge of destruction'.

The US space agency is going to replace the Hubble with $10 billion James Webb Telescope, however it has run into delays recently.

Earlier this month, said it would delay James Webb because the European Space Agency-funded Ariane 5 rocket to launch it isn't ready.

A NASA spokesperson told DailyMail.com earlier this month the launch of the successor to the Hubble Space Telescope will happen 'no earlier than October 31.'

It is still expected to launch for space this year and James Webb will spent at least 30 per cent of its first year studying exoplanets.
Jose Mourinho has delivered a withering assessment of Luke Shaw's corners in his breakdown of England's 1-0 victory against Czech Republic at Wembley.

An early header from Raheem Sterling was the decisive goal for England on Tuesday night, meaning they've finished top of Group D and will be watching things unfold in the so-called 'Group of Death' to learn their last-16 opponents.

Mourinho, speaking to talkSPORT, said that overall he was impressed with England but suggested that, whoever they come up against next out of France, Germany, Portugal or Hungary, Gareth Southgate should take Shaw off corner duty.

Jose Mourinho criticised Luke Shaw's corner taking in England's win over Czech Republic

Mourinho said the corner delivery was 'dramatically bad' and could hinder England later on

Mourinho and Shaw had a fractious relationship in their time together at Manchester United

'The negative thing I would say is once more they were very poor on attacking corners,' Mourinho explained.

'The service was dramatically bad. They have so many good players to attack corners. The crosses are not passing the first man.

'Luke Shaw, in my opinion, very good tonight but very poor on the corner. Phillips, the same.

'England has great power at this level and going to knockouts, one corner can decide a game.'

Mourinho previously said that Ben Chilwell should start ahead of Shaw for England

Mourinho and Shaw endured a difficult relationship when the Portuguese was the Manchester United manager. Mourinho infamously once said Shaw was 'playing with my brain' because he needed constant instructions from the touchline.

Speaking prior to England's opening Euro 2020 match against Croatia, Mourinho also delivered a thinly-veiled barb in Shaw's direction when picking his own Three Lions starting line-up.

'Left-back I would go with Chilwell, I wouldn't think twice,' Mourinho told talkSPORT.

'I know that he plays normally at Chelsea with five (in defence) but he is intelligent, he covers the space and the diagonals inside very well.

'He is dangerous in attack, he is good in the air, he is good at set-pieces, he can defend well the possible long build-up from Croatia in the first phase.'

Asked why he wouldn't pick Shaw, Mourinho added: 'I think he has had a good season. Clearly an evolution in terms of emotion and professionalism.

Mourinho said that corners aside, Shaw played well for England against Czech Republic

Shaw and his England team-mates are now preparing for the last-16 round of Euro 2020

'But I think Chilwell has something more, especially with the ball, the way he thinks and how he is calm under pressure. I like Chilwell.'

Chilwell is currently in isolation alongside Chelsea team-mate Mason Mount after coming into close contact with Billy Gilmour, who has since tested positive for Covid-19, following the 0-0 draw with Scotland.

Chilwell hasn't played at all in the tournament yet, while Mount had played every minute for England until the Czech Republic match.

Under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Shaw has produced his best ever form at United and speaking earlier this year admitted he was low on confidence under Mourinho.

Shaw has said he has more confidence since he has been playing for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer

'I don't want to come across like I was a little kid who could not deal with being put under pressure because at a big club like Manchester United you are always going to be under pressure and under the spotlight. That makes you mentally stronger,' Shaw told Sky Sports.

'But I had no confidence at that time. I was losing my belief. I think that is what changed with Ole. He managed me right and I got my confidence back and I am really enjoying it at the moment.

'Enjoyment and confidence. For me, they are the two biggest things you need on the pitch. You need that belief in your ability to perform at the highest level. I feel I have that now.'
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The inaugural International Portrait Photographer of the Year competition has hit the ground running.

The winning and commended images - those ranked in the top 101 - have been revealed and they are truly mesmerising.

Peter Eastway, Chairman of Judges, said: 'Who are the world's leading contemporary portrait photographers? The aim of the International Portrait Photographer of the Year awards is to invite photographers from around the world to present their best work. In turn, we engage six acclaimed portrait photographers  this year David Burnett, Charmaine Heyer, Rocco Ancora, Martina Warenfeldt, Sanjay Jogia and Sarah Ferrara  to assess and deliberate, curating a body of work that is not only representative of the portrait art in 2021, but is inspirational for us all.

'Our philosophy embraces the idea of a collection of photographs, putting as much emphasis on the Top 101 portrait photographs as the small number of prize winners. While our esteemed judges are undoubtedly experts in their field, even they acknowledge that the prize winners are a matter of opinion or choice, whereas the Top 101 portraits exhibit a level of quality and imagination that transcends personal bias. There is something for all tastes within this collection.

'This is the first International Portrait Photographer of the Year awards. We hope you will enjoy viewing a very special collection of the best contemporary portrait photography of 2021.'

An e-book of the Top 101 photos will be available to order from internationalportraitphotographer.com. Scroll down to see MailOnline Travel's pick of the bunch...

A stunning 'Top 101 Award' image by Jatenipat Ketpradit, from Thailand. He said: 'I took this picture when I was in Ethiopia to visit the Suri tribe, who have lived in the Ethio-Sudan border area for many generations. This picture shows the whole family of their clan in their habitat'

American photographer John Powers is behind this ethereal picture of a trio of cormorant fishermen gliding down the River Li in Guilin, China. The image is ranked as a 'Top 101 Award'

Sujon Adhikary, from Bangladesh, earns a 'Top 101 Award' with this striking picture of a chilli picker in an unnamed location. He said of the scene captured: 'Women each with their own wooden bowl were examining thousands of chillies to weed out bad ones before they were sent to market. Some workers carry a radio with them so that they can hear religious songs while working and they can keep their minds away from boredom'

An incredible image of a kebab being cooked that the judges have rewarded with a Top 101 Award commendation. It was taken in Srinagar in the Jammu and Kashmir union territory by Debdatta Chakraborty, from India, who said: 'Khayyam Chowk is a mundane alleyway in Srinagar. But with the sundown, this area bustles to life with the aroma of the wazwan-style kebabs, atypical of Kashmiri traditions. Kebabs are slow-cooked over a charcoal fire and the chefs take care to make them in the most succulent way'

This mesmerising picture of a cattle herder in South Sudan is the winner of the Environmental Portrait category. It was taken by Swiss photographer Josef Burgi

A Top 101 Award accolade goes to Australian photographer Jarrod Vero for this breathtaking picture of a fisherman defying wild weather in Merewether, New South Wales

A heart-wrenching Top 101 Award image by Australian Suzanne O'Connell entitled Till Death Do Us. She said of the picture: 'Mother, always the watchful caregiver, together with Father, built a life. And towards the end of his, her greatest strength was called upon. This image, days before my Father died, typifies their devotion - ever-present. They once said "till death do us part" and they stayed together until it did'

Another stunning Top 101 image by Jatenipat Ketpradit, this time of a Karo tribe family in Ethiopia that includes the father, mother, two brothers and two sisters. Ketpradit said: 'The Karo tribe live along the Omo River [and] incorporate rich, cultural symbolism into their rituals by using ornate body art, headdresses, and body scarification to express beauty and significance within their community'

The judges have rustled up a Top 101 Award ranking for this picture of Irish-born Hell's Kitchen chef Declan Horgan looking like he means business. The photographer is American Jonathan Thorpe

LEFT: Another beautiful Top 101 picture by John Powers. This entry shows novice monks in a temple in Myanmar. RIGHT: A Top 101 image called The Mystical Stare. It was taken by Indian photographer Sanjay Patil and shows a ritualistic performance at the Theyyam Festival in the state of Kerala in India

A heartwarming Top 101 photo by Swedish photographer Hanna Neret, which she called Nobody's Watching

An amazing picture by Azim Khan Ronnie from Bangladesh. Describing his Top 101 Award image, he said: 'Workers appear to be wearing large golden wigs as they carry a heavy bundle of jute fibre. Their bodies are enveloped with the heavy natural fibres, with only their faces visible as they each carry around 50kg of jute on their shoulders'

A poignant Top 101 image by Bangladeshi photographer Md Saud Faisal. He said: 'My grandmother was posing with a framed photo of herself at a young age. She died during the pandemic when many families saw the loss of their family members'

Zay Yar Lin from Myanmar is behind this Top 101 image of a young Suri boy in Ethiopia's Omo Valley surrounded by Suri women, their hands decorated with bronze bracelets

A Top 101 entry called Paradise Lost taken by Indian photographer Sandeep Mathur. Explaining the title, he said: Kashmir may be a lost paradise. One of the most militarised places in the world and considered one of the most dangerous places in India, it is also commonly referred to as heaven on earth. There has been strife and tragedy. We hope for peace in the valley'

A poignant Top 101 Award entry by Norwegian photographer Arvid Fimreite, titled Terrified. The photographer said: 'This is about Emily and all the other kids and teenagers who were terrified when the world shut down during the pandemic. Covid-19 hurts in many ways'

'Dirty with ash from the severe Australian bush fires of 2019/20, Max Kennedy enjoys a moment of silent reflection as he rides an inflatable flamingo down a river surrounded by a blackened landscape,' said Australian photographer Todd Kennedy of this image, which is ranked Top 101

The runner-up prize in the Environmental Portrait category goes to this image of 'Ern' and a cat. The picture was taken by Australian photographer Karen Waller on the verandah of Ern's home in Point Turton on Yorke Peninsula in South Australia
Georgia Toffolo put on a leggy display in a high neck pastel dress at a star-studded book launch in London on Tuesday night.

The Made In Chelsea star, 26, posed up a storm in the stunning pink long sleeve mini dress which had pink feather cuffs.

Georgia, nicknamed Toff, was invited to the event to celebrate the release of Poppy Jamie's first book, Happy Not Perfect.

Beautiful: Georgia Toffolo, 26, put on a leggy display in a high neck pastel dress at a star-studded book launch in London on Tuesday night

The reality star wore nude pointed high heels which highlighted her toned legs and paired them with a matching padded leather bag.

She joined other famous faces, including a royal appearance from new mother Princess Eugenie, 31, and her husband Jack Brooksbank, 35.

The couple welcomed their first child August Philip Hawke Brooksbank on February 9 at the Portland Hospital in London.

Eugenie wore an all black dress with tassels at the bottom and covered up with a green satin jacket.

Glam: The reality star wore nude pointed high heels which highlighted her toned legs and paired them with a matching padded leather bag

Chic: The Made In Chelsea star posed up a storm in the stunning long sleeve mini dress which had pink feather cuffs

The new father cut a more casual figure, wearing a white shirt with a blue jumper over the top and a black jacket.

He also donned a pair of jeans and some blue lace up trainers.

Model Suki Waterhouse, 28, also attended the glitzy event with her sister Immy, and both wore casual chic outfits for the outing.

Suki, who is currently dating actor Robert Pattinson, 35, and is Poppy's best friend and business partner, flashed her washboard abs in a beige crop top.

Royal guests: Georgia joined other famous faces, including a royal appearance from new mother Princess Eugenie, 31, and her husband Jack Brooksbank, 35

Parents night out: Eugenie wore an all black with tassels at the bottom and covered up with a green satin jacket and Jack cut a more casual figure in jeans and some trainers

Family night out: Model Suki Waterhouse, 28, (pictured with sister Immy and Poppy Jamie) also attended the glitzy event with her sister Immy, who both wore casual chic outfits for the outing

She wore a pair of wide leg blue jeans, belted at the waist, and covered up with a floor-length beige trench.

To finish off the look she wore a pair of black and white pointed heels and draped a Christian Dior handbag, retailing at 3,600, over her arm.

Her sister opted for a more casual look, wearing a pair of green striped corduroy trousers, a long-sleeve jumper and a pair of Nike Air Force 1s.

The outing comes amid rumours that Suki and Robert have 'discussed' getting engaged, although they are said to not be planning on walking down the aisle just yet.

Cheeky: Suki, who is currently dating actor Robert Pattinson, 35, flashed her washboard abs in a beige crop top

Designer: To finish off the look, Suki wore a pair of black and white pointed heels and draped a Christian Dior handbag, retailing at 3,600, over her arm

The pair posed for pictures with the author Poppy Jamie, 30, who wore a patterned beige suit.

She accessorised the V-neck co-ord with a pair of white pointed-toe heels.

Writer and model Jack Guinness, 38, was also snapped at the luxury event, wearing a dapper tweed suit with a burgundy tie.

Actor and fiction writer Sebastian De Souza, who played Matty in the third generation of hit Channel 4 series Skins, was spotted at the event.

Suave: Writer and model Jack Guinness, 38, was also snapped at the luxury event, wearing a dapper tweed suit with a burgundy tie

Happy: Actor and fiction writer Sebastian De Souza, who played Matty in the third generation of hit Channel 4 series Skins, also attended the event

The 28-year-old, who also hosts the History of the Future podcast, beamed from ear to ear as he posed for pictures with Jamie wearing an all black outfit.

Actress Pom Klementieff, 35, who plays Mantis in Guardians of the Galaxy, also turned up the star-studded event, donning a matching pink trouser and jacket look.

Other people in the industry, including actress Margo Stilley, 38, and 36-year-old entrepreneur Sharmadean Reid showed up to support Poppy.

Edgy: Actress Pom Klementieff, 35, who plays Mantis in Guardians of the Galaxy, also turned up the star-studded event, donning a matching pink trouser and jacket look

Networking: Other people in the industry, including actress Margo Stilley, 38, (pictured) and 36-year-old entrepreneur Sharmadean Reid attended the event

The group were all attending the launch of Poppy's book - a guide to the challenges of mental health and teaching other how to overcome their anxieties.

The author is also a British entrepreneur and former television presenter. In 2016, she launched an accessories brand Pop & Suki, with her best friend Suki Waterhouse.

Poppy also launched an app, named Happy Not Perfect in 2017, which focuses on improving mental health and positive wellbeing.
Chrishell Stause continued to move on from her divorce from This Is Us star Justin Hartley when she purchased a $3.3 million Los Angeles home for herself.

The 39-year-old Selling Sunset star's new pad is located high in the Hollywood Hills and features plenty of space with four bedrooms and four-and-a-half bathrooms, according to the New York Post.

The reality star realtor's profession seems to have helped her secure a great deal, as the house was originally listed for $4 million when it first went on the market in October.

Oasis: Chrishell Stause continued to move on from her divorce from This Is Us star Justin Hartley when she purchased a $3.3 million Los Angeles home for herself

Chrishell signed a contract on the home back in May, and property records show that the sale was finalized on June 10.

Stause - who is an Oppenheim Group member - has put her real estate experience to good use as she has represented herself as the agent in the transaction.

The house dates back to 1964, but it has had plenty of renovations in subsequent decades to give it a modern feel.

The interior features 3,300 square feet of space, and there's plenty of room in back to cool down in the pool or entertain friends.

Home sweet home: The 39-year-old Selling Sunset star's new pad is located high in the Hollywood Hills and features plenty of space with four bedrooms and four-and-a-half bathrooms, according to the New York Post

Dinner is served: Chrishell will be able to prepare just about any meal she sets her heart on thanks to the home's fully stocked chef's kitchen, which includes top-of-the-line appliances from Wolf and Sub-Zero

No bad view: The interior features 3,300 square feet of space, and there's plenty of room in back to cool down in the pool or entertain friends

The house features elegant European wood flooring for a crisp look.

Chrishell will be able to prepare just about any meal she sets her heart on thanks to the home's fully stocked chef's kitchen, which includes top-of-the-line appliances from Wolf and Sub-Zero.

The kitchen also has a tasteful gray island that's ideal for preparing meals or just hanging around for a snack.

The room includes tasteful light fixtures and plenty of windows on every wall for abundant natural light.

Chrishell will have an office to herself for her to get some work done when she's not filming her popular real estate series.

Although the house doesn't have much in the way of a back yard, it boasts stunning views of LA and the Hollywood Hills that can't be beat.

Smart: Stause - who is an Oppenheim Group member - has put her real estate experience to good use as she has represented herself as the agent in the transaction

Make it work: Chrishell will have an office to herself for her to get some work done when she's not filming her popular real estate series

Impressive: Both the bedroom and living room feature sliding floor-to-ceiling French doors that provide abundant light and can be slid open to reveal the pristine view

The luxury continues in the primary bedroom, which is decked out with pricey Italian Calacatta marble.

The reality star will be able to have a spa day in the comfort of her own home with her steam shower and a soaking spa tub for extra pampering.

Both the bedroom and living room feature sliding floor-to-ceiling French doors that provide abundant light and can be slid open to reveal the pristine view.

Outside the home is a large kidney-shaped heated pool that the realtor can unwind in.

Anyone who doesn't mind heights can relax on sofas on a wooden balcony overlooking the hills, which would make a perfect spot to enjoy a gorgeous sunset or do some reading on a lazy Sunday.

Relax: The reality star will be able to have a spa day in the comfort of her own home with her steam shower and a soaking spa tub for extra pampering

Outdoor space: Anyone who doesn't mind heights can relax on sofas on a wooden balcony overlooking the hills, which would make a perfect spot to enjoy a gorgeous sunset or do some reading on a lazy Sunday

There's also a covered cabana next to the house and by the pool, which could be a perfect spot to serve drinks to guests when entertaining outdoors.

She or her guests won't have to bother tracking in water when they're enjoying time in the pool, as the back area features a bathroom for easy access.

There are also two outdoor fireplaces to keep people nice and toasty on breezy nights.

A Sonos sound system is perfect to keep the tunes going when Chrishell wants to rock out around her new property.

Her home is also wired with a Door Bird security entry, so she can rest easy about intruders popping in unannounced.

Chrishell's new home won't be far from the smaller house she's been living in since her divorce from Justin, which is also located in the Hollywood Hills.

Staying safe: Her home is also wired with a Door Bird security entry, so she can rest easy about intruders popping in unannounced

Chrishell went into contract on the 3,300-square-foot house last month and closed on June 10. She's moving into the new space following her divorce from This Is Us star Justin Hartley; seen in May in LA

In March, she spoke to People about renovating the more modest space after moving out of the $4.65 million home she shared with her ex-husband.

'We've all been living in it a lot lately [because of the pandemic], and I really wanted to just love it and enjoy the space. I absolutely love what TJ Maxx and Marshalls helped me do,' she said of her renovations on the already furnished house. 'I really just feel like it looks like a breath of fresh air, and that's exactly what I was going for.'

Since the divorce, her actor ex has retained ownership of their old home in Encino, with boasts an enormous six bedrooms and eight bathrooms.

The former couple tied the knot back in October of 2017, but Hartley suddenly filed for divorce in November 2019 over irreconcilable differences, and the divorce was finalized in January of this year.

Although she's ready to settle into her own home, Chrishell is still looking to help other high-profile buyers find their dream homes.

Earlier this month, she commented on a new story on Instagram and offered her services to Jennifer Lopez, who is reportedly looking to move back to Los Angeles amid her renewed romance with her former fiance Ben Affleck.

'Jenny, call me if you need a realtor,' she wrote playfully.
They spent a rumoured $6.5million on a mansion in Sydney's Rose Bay three years ago.

And Nova FM radio presenter Michael 'Wippa' Wipfli and his wife Lisa have been finessing their dream home ever since.

On Tuesday, house-proud Lisa revealed a glimpse of the latest addition to her suburban palace: a huge, self-playing piano worth about $100,000.

Home, sweet home! Take a look inside Michael and Lisa Wipfli's $6.5million Rose Bay mansion - including a spiral staircase, harbour views and a self-playing piano

'We finally found the perfect work of art for underneath the stairs. This is our new @yamahamusicau Disklavier Player Piano,' she cooed on Instagram.

'Thank you to the team at Australian Piano Warehouse for taking care of us. Now we all have to learn how to play like Lang Lang.'

She accompanied the post with a photo of the piano sitting beneath the grand spiral staircase.

'The perfect work of art for under the stairs': On Tuesday, house-proud Lisa revealed a glimpse of the latest addition to her suburban palace: a self-playing piano worth about $100,000

Baby's first piano! She accompanied the post with a photo of her youngest child, one-year-old Francesca, perched in front of the piano on a stool

A subsequent image showed Lisa and Michael's youngest child, one-year-old Francesca, perched in front of the piano on a stool.

The Wipflis' three-storey property includes six bedrooms, four bathrooms, and a glass-fenced swimming pool.

Making the most of its harbourside location, the home also has balconies from every level - and no doubt some enviable views.

Mansion: The Wipflis' three-storey property includes six bedrooms, four bathrooms, and a glass-fenced swimming pool

The balconies feature grand arches and Roman columns.

Lisa and Wippa have created a parents' retreat on the top floor, complete with an outdoor entertaining area boasting ultra-modern white and black furniture.

'Our little own parents' retreat. We probably won't get the chance to use it for at least the next five years but our intentions were good,' Lisa previously wrote on Instagram.

Lavish: The balconies feature grand arches and Roman columns

Nice! Lisa and Wippa have created a parents' retreat on the top floor, complete with an outdoor entertaining area boasting ultra-modern white and black furniture

The master bedroom has a walk-in wardrobe, which is filled with Lisa's collection of designer goods, including Chanel and Hermes handbags.

The home also features a spiral staircase, dark wooden floors and beige carpets.

There are white walls throughout, as well as floor-to-ceiling windows and a marble kitchen.

Expensive taste! The master bedroom has a walk-in wardrobe, which is filled with Lisa's collection of designer goods, including Chanel and Hermes handbags

Sleek: The home also features a spiral staircase, dark wooden floors and beige carpets

The dining room has a round wooden table, which overlooks their backyard.

The Wipflis moved in shortly before the birth of their third child, daughter Francesca Vera Alice, in March last year.

The couple also share sons Theodore, five, and Jack, four.

They previously sold their Queens Park cottage for a reported $2.4million before moving into their Rose Bay home.

Stunning: There are white walls throughout, as well as floor-to-ceiling windows and a marble kitchen
As an Instagram influencer, her phone is her livelihood.

So Ruby Tuesday Matthews was in a spot of bother on Tuesday, when the power was cut to her Byron Bay home, leaving her stranded on a scant seven percent battery life.

However the 26-year-old model still managed to post about her perilous situation in her Instagram Stories, before fleeing to a luxury hotel to charge her phone.

Uh-oh: Ruby Tuesday Matthews (pictured) was in a spot of bother on Tuesday, when the power was cut to her Byron Bay home, leaving her stranded on a scant seven percent battery life

Matthews began her post, 'This may be the last time you hear from me. I have seven percent phone battery.'

Revealing that her neighbours had also had their power disconnected, the Byron Bay beauty griped that the power company had informed her 'it should be reconnected between tomorrow 7am and midnight, ta!'

'All my food is pretty much ruined now,' she continued, as one of her sons proceeded to the fridge in the background of the video.

'The fridge is broken,' she informed him.

Keep calm and carry on posting: However the 26-year-old model still managed to post about her perilous situation in her Instagram Stories, before fleeing to a luxury hotel to charge her phone

White on! Ruby's next post came from a luxury hotel, in which she could be seen wearing only a towel

Ruby's next post came from a luxury hotel, in which she could be seen wearing only a towel.

'[We are] checked in [and] kids are showered,' she announced, before plunging into a long-overdue sponsored post for moisturiser.

Later, she detailed her plans for the evening, which included getting 'into bed, with a cup of tea, and [eating] a pumpkin cheesecake that I got myself, because today is just one of those days.'

Doing what she does best: '[We are] checked in [and] kids are showered,' she announced, before plunging into a long-overdue sponsored post for moisturiser

Simple pleasures: Later, she detailed her plans for the evening, which included getting 'into bed, with a cup of tea, and [eating] a pumpkin cheesecake'

The power emergency comes after Matthews announced her engagement to partner Shannan Dodd over the weekend.

And the social media star has been taking every opportunity to show off her new diamond ring on social media.

Posting to Instagram Stories on Tuesday, Ruby uploaded a video of herself showing off her fresh manicure while conspicuously flashing her sparkler.

No one's looking at the manicure! Matthews showed off her diamond ring after a visit to the nail salon on Tuesday, after getting engaged to her partner Shannan Dodd

'These are my real nails,' she said while waving her hands in front of the camera.

'It was well overdue for me to get them done', the Byron Bay model sighed.

Ruby's ring appears to feature a baguette-cut diamond set on a slender and elegant white gold or platinum band.

'It was well overdue for me to get them done': The Byron Bay influencer waved her hands in front of the camera as she showcased her new manicure

She announced her engagement on Saturday by uploading a photo of herself locking lips with Shannan to Instagram.

She placed her left hand on his neck, drawing attention to the diamond sparkler on her ring finger.

'My favourite person,' the Bryon Bay based beauty wrote in the caption, along with a white love heart.

Meanwhile on her Instagram Story, she shared a post showing a plate of oysters and another angle of her ring.

She's engaged! Ruby announced her engagement to Shannan (left) on Saturday. She placed her hand on his his face drawing attention to the stunning diamond ring

Wow: Meanwhile, on her Instagram Story, Ruby shared a post showing a plate of oysters and another angle of her ring

Among those who were quick to respond was Real Housewives of Melbourne star Jackie Gillies, who commented: 'Congratulations, beauty.'

Her manager Roxy Jacenko shared a series of flame emojis, and Not So Mumsy blogger Marcia Leone wrote 'Omgggggg' with heart-eyes emojis.

Meanwhile, a fan wrote: 'He liked it and he put a ring on it.'

It's not known exactly when Ruby and Shannan began dating, but she started posting loved-up Instagram photos with him in May.

Loved up: It's not known exactly when Ruby and Shannan began dating, but she started posting loved-up Instagram photos with him in May

Sharing the joy: Among those who were quick to respond was Real Housewives of Melbourne star Jackie Gillies, who commented: 'Congratulations, beauty'

Shannan also happens to be the ex-boyfriend of P.E. Nation founder Pip Edwards.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Ruby Tuesday Matthews for comment.

Ruby is a doting mother to two sons, Rocket, four, and Mars, three, whom she shares with her ex-partner Ryan Heywood.

While Ruby has been a social media influencer for many years, she made headlines in October last year for holding up a Jetstar flight to eat a plate of oysters.

Motherhood: Ruby is a doting mother to two sons, Rocket, four, and Mars, three, whom she shares with her ex-partner Ryan Heywood

She was due to fly from Byron Bay to Sydney on a Thursday at 5pm, but a technical issue caused the flight to be delayed.

The budget airline asked travellers to stay put while waiting for an engineer, and told passengers the new departure time would likely be about 7.30pm.

But Ruby and her travel companion left the airport to grab a bite to eat at a beachside restaurant, holding up the plane an extra 30 minutes as it waited on the tarmac for them to return.

Scandal: Ruby made headlines in October last year for holding up a Jetstar flight because she left the airport to eat oysters as they plane waited for an engineer

In videos exclusively taken by Daily Mail Australia, frustrated passengers could be heard heckling Ruby as she boarded half an hour after the plane was due to take off.

They shouted 'how were the oysters?' and 'what a day to be pretty'.

When the plane touched down in Sydney, Ruby wasted no time in calling out Jetstar on Instagram, slamming the airline for its handling of the incident.

'Flight delayed f**k my life': While most other travellers remained at the terminal and purchased food from the cafe at the airport, Ruby and her travel companion decided to leave the airport to grab a bite to eat instead

Heckled: The plane waited an extra 30 minutes on the tarmac for the pair to return. In videos taken by Daily Mail Australia, frustrated passengers heckled Ruby as she boarded

She blamed Jetstar for what had happened and told the passengers to 'grow up'.

She also claimed she was met with 'very personal comments' when she got on the plane.

'I was basically bullied by about seven to 10 to 14 people at different times, then they made comments about my children. No Jetstar staff stopped this at any time. I copped it hard for about 15 minutes,' she said.

'I was scared for myself because number one, I was by myself... number two, no one else who was later than me copped any abuse, it was just me alone.'
Radio host Kyle Sandilands has come out swinging against Channel 10's The Project over a discussion the panellists had about Barnaby Joyce this week.

Sandilands said he was outraged watching the hosts analyse Monday's leadership spill that saw Joyce reinstated as Deputy Prime Minister and leader of the Nationals.

On Wednesday, the 50-year-old blasted the current affairs show and its 'lefty bloody panel' for their take on the recent change and the man himself.

Slammed: Radio host Kyle Sandilands has come out swinging against Channel 10's The Project over a discussion the panellists had about Barnaby Joyce this week

Sandilands' defence of Joyce is notable as they previously clashed over the politician's hardline response to Johnny Depp's dogs unlawfully entering Australia in 2015.

'I even allowed Barnaby Joyce on yesterday,' the shock jock began.

He added: 'Then I saw on the Project last night, because I thought, "Good on Barnaby, Barnaby's back". Well, The Project had a different idea.

'They had all these women on who said, "Oh, it's alright he left a woman behind and her family." Oh, here we go, the lefty bloody panel. What's it called?'

'Yeah, The Project,' responded his co-host Jackie 'O' Henderson.

'Lefty': Sandilands, 50, said he was outraged watching the panel analyse Monday's leadership spill that saw Joyce reinstated as Deputy Prime Minister and leader of the Nationals. Pictured from left: Peter Helliar, Waleed Aly, Lisa Wilkinson and Kate Langbroek

'Such a s**t name, I can never understand it,' Sandilands said. 'They're all hating on this bloke.'

'Oh he's a big, fat, swollen misogynist-looking type, so he's got to be an a**ehole does he?' he added, before stating that Joyce represents 'country folk'.

Sandilands then referred to Joyce's press conference in which he claimed to be a 'changed man'.

'A changed man': Sandilands' defence of Joyce is notable as they previously clashed over the politician's hardline response to Johnny Depp's dogs unlawfully entering Australia in 2015

'He's learnt from his mistakes, and he's a changed man,' said Sandilands. 'You've got to give him the benefit of the doubt.'

Joyce returned to the top job on Monday after sitting on the back bench for three years.

He initially lost his position as Nationals leader after it was revealed he was having an affair with former staffer Vicki Champion, with whom he shares a child.

The latest spill overthrew former leader Michael McCormack, who has faced three spills during his time in office due to his supposed 'lacklustre performance'.
Prosecutors in Arkansas are objecting to a request by accused pedophile Josh Duggar to delay his child pornography trial to next year.

On Monday, prosecutors told the court they would agree to a 'reasonable continuance' of three months but said postponing the trial to next year 'would result in unnecessary delay.'

The prosecution also denied allegations by the defense that the Government had not turned over all the evidence it has in the case.

In Monday's filing, according to People, prosecutors stated that there has been 'timely and complete disclosure of all discovery material.'

Prosecutors are objecting to a request by Josh Duggar to delay his criminal trial on child pornography charges, set for July 6, to February 2022 or later (Josh is pictured in an April 29 mug shot following his arrest)

Josh, 33, was charged in May with receiving and possessing child sexual abuse material, including some that Homeland Security special agent Gerald Faulkner described as 'in the top five of the worst of the worst that I've ever had to examine.'

The former 19 Kids And Counting reality star is asking that his trial, originally scheduled for July 6, be pushed back to February 2022 or later.

The defense has hired a computer forensic expert to examine Josh's electronic devices and in a motion filed last week, stated that it needed more time for that work to be completed.

His lawyers also want more time to review evidence and conduct their own investigations.

In addition, Josh's lead attorney Justin Gelfand said he has other criminal trials scheduled for September, October and November that he needs to prepare for.

A three month delay would allow Gelfand to complete those trials but, prosecutors argued, 'there exists no legally or factually valid reason supporting a continuance until February of 2022.'

The court has yet to rule on the opposing arguments about rescheduling the trial.

The accused pedophile, 33, is free on bail after being charged in May with receiving and possessing child sexual abuse material. His defense team have hired a computer forensics expert and want more time to review evidence and conduct investigations

Prosecutors filed a motion Monday denying defense claims they haven't turned over all evidence in the case and argued that pushing Josh's trial to next year constitutes an 'unnecessary delay' (Josh is pictured in 2014)

On April 29, Josh was arrested on federal charges following a 2019 Homeland Security raid on his property.

According to the indictment, he is alleged to have downloaded child sexual abuse material online in May 2019. Some of the material he is accused of possessing shows children under the age of 12.

His computer was reportedly equipped with a dark web browser that could have let him anonymously search for child porn. The 'Tor' browser would have allowed the him to bypass anti-porn software called 'Covenant Eyes' that his wife Anna installed to monitor what her husband downloaded.

If convicted, Duggar faces up to 20 years in prison.

Josh found fame on the TLC reality show 19 Kids And Counting which followed the lives of his evangelical Christian parents Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar and their large family

The reality star, who is expecting his seventh child with wife Anna, was revealed in 2015 to have sexually abused four of his younger siblings, as well as a fifth minor, when he was a teenager (pictured with Anna in 2015)

On May 8, he was released on bail, with the condition that he stay with a third party, family friends LaCount and Maria Reber.

In court documents, his lawyers had argued that he 'poses no flight risk' because of his 'deep roots' in the community and his 'widely recognizable face.'

Despite the seriousness of his charges, Josh is allowed to see his own six children  Mackynzie Renee, 11, Michael James, 10, Marcus Anthony, 7, Meredith Grace, 5, Mason Garrett, 3, and Maryella Hope, 18 months  with supervision.

According to People, his wife Anna, 32  who is pregnant with their seventh child  has already visited with the kids.

'[Josh] has seen [his] children with Anna there. She has to be there,' an insider claimed.

The insider also said that Anna is convinced that her husband is innocent.

'She's standing by him,' the source said. 'She thinks Josh is innocent.'

Meanwhile, a source told The Sun that soon-to-be-mother-of-seven is in 'denial' and blames Josh's parents, Jim Bob and Michelle.

'Jim Bob is telling people she is defending Josh and no longer speaking to most of the family,' the source said.

'Jim Bob said she blames him and wife Michelle for Josh's arrest. Anna feels it all stems from how they dealt with his previous molestation scandal after he assaulted his sisters.'

She is also pointing a finger at the President.

'She also thinks that this case is a conspiracy theory against her husband set up by the Biden administration,' the source said. 'She believes that if Donald Trump was still in power this would not be happening, and refuses to believe he's done anything wrong.'

Anna, 32, is standing by her husband and insists he is innocent. Despite the serious charges against him, he has been allowed supervised visitation with his children who range in age from 11 to 18 months

Anna has stuck by Josh through sexually deviant behavior in the past.

In 2015, an unearthed police report revealed that Josh had sexually abused four of younger siblings, as well as a fifth minor, when he was a teenager.

Josh had gone to a faith-based rehab facility in Little Rock, Arkansas in 2003 after his parents learned of the molestation, and spent three months in the facility, which was owned by the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP), a Christian ministry and training program founded by Bill Gothard.

While little has been revealed about the program, people associated with IBLP have claimed that Josh was required to do manual labor and was not allowed to speak during that time.

He was also allegedly required to shave his head, the results of which can be seen in the Duggars' first TV special on Discovery Health, 14 Children and Pregnant Again.

The abuse was kept a secret until 2015  and just months after it came to light, Josh was discovered to be using the adultery website Ashley Madison.

Josh confessed to being unfaithful and having an 'addiction' to pornography, and went away for several months to a $7,500-per-month Christian treatment center for addiction.

During that time, Anna stuck by him, too, even flying up to the Christian treatment center for visits.

In 2015, she called the ordeal 'heartbreaking' in an episode of Counting On.

'It was definitely hard, and I think it is such a betrayal for a spouse to go through what were walking through' she said. 'It was hard to realize that it was such a public [ordeal].'

'Here we were as a Christian couple, everyone was able to see us get married and vow before God to be loyal to each other, and that loyalty was broken.

'For my heart it was just like, "How could this happen in our marriage? Josh is my first love, my one and only."

In 2016, she wrote about moving forward in a blog post, saying: '2015 was the most difficult year of my life. Yet, amazingly Ive found that in my own life crisis God has drawn near to me ("Hes near to the brokenhearted Psalms 34:18) and my faith has been more precious to me than ever before.'

For some time after, Anna refrained from posting pictures of Josh on Instagram, but with time, she was back to including him on social media.

'Redemption is a beautiful thing!' she told a fan who commented on Josh's presence in Instagram photos.
Spencer Pratt was forced to hang up on The Kyle and Jackie O Show on Wednesday after the radio duo kept him waiting on a Zoom call.

The Hills star was on hold for thirty minutes past the scheduled time before finally calling it quits and hanging up.

In a series of Instagram Stories, the 37-year-old explained that he'd specifically carved out time in his schedule for the interview while son Gunner was at a speech therapy class.

Snubbed: Spencer Pratt (pictured) was forced to hang up on The Kyle and Jackie O Show on Wednesday after the radio duo kept him waiting on a Zoom call

'Australian radio just had me waiting thirty minutes on a Zoom link,' he said to his almost 500,000 followers.

'I'm at Gunner's speech therapy, now speech therapy's ending and that was your window. Sorry Australian fans, I love you guys over at KIIS,' he continued.

'I waited thirty minutes. The Zoom was supposed to start at 3:10, it's 3:41. Sorry Australians.'

Forget the time? The Hills star was on hold for thirty minutes past the scheduled time so Kyle Sandilands and Jackie 'O' Henderson could discuss cinnamon donuts on-air

He added: 'I still love you but that's shady to make me sit here in this little cabin because it has the best wi-fi at speech therapy.

'For 31 minutes you played me. I'm hoping this is one of your Australian pranks.'

Kyle Sandilands and Jackie 'O' Henderson later admitted that they'd messed up by keeping Spencer on hold too long.

'I still love you but that's shady': The reality star had specifically set time aside for the interview during son Gunner's speech therapy class

The radio duo had been discussing Tip Top's new Golden Cinnamon Donut Loaf, which caused the interview to get pushed back.

'We were gonna have Heidi [Montag] and Spencer on, they were sitting on Zoom for what felt like 45 minutes,' Kylie said.

'I just left them sitting there on hold, on hold, on hold... anyway, they must've had jack of it and hung up,' he continued.

'They're fine, we love watching [The Hills], they're a nice couple, but they can't sit around in America waiting to do world press and we just keep them on hold for 45 minutes.'

Jackie added: 'That is fair enough. Can't blame them.'

Happy family: Spencer and wife Heidi Montag are parents to son Gunner (pictured together)

Spencer and wife Heidi Montag are currently starring on the second season of The Hills: New Beginnings.

Outside of TV, Spencer is focused on running his successful crystal business, Pratt Daddy Crystals.

In addition to selling crystals and jewellery, the company also has clothing, masks, and a number of organic wellness products.

'I think thats why we have so much success; because people know Im just trying to get the best crystals at all times,' he told Hypebae last year.
Big Sky actress Kylie Bunbury is expecting her first child with spouse Jon-Ryan Alan Riggins.

The Canadian-American actress, 32, took to Instagram Tuesday with a montage of shots in which she held her baby bump on the beach alongside her husband in Maui.

'Life is a series of awakenings, this is our greatest one yet,' the actress captioned the post.

Happy news: Big Sky actress Kylie Bunbury, 32, is expecting her first child with spouse Jon-Ryan Alan Riggins. She announced the news Tuesday on Instagram

In the shots, Bunbury donned a long-sleeved creme skirt with earrings and a necklace and her hair pulled back. Riggings was clad in a button-up white top with black pants.

Bunbury and Riggins, a designer, exchanged vows on January 1, 2020, in Madeira Island, Portugal. The beauty, who's been seen on Game Night and Under The Dome, announced her engagement to Riggins in April of 2018.

Bunbury opened up to the New York Daily News last November about playing the part of Cassie Dewell, a private investigator located in Montana, on the ABC series.

'What drew me was that (Cassie's) biracial, and so am I, and she's growing up in this small town that is overwhelmingly white and is conservative,' said Bunbury, who grew up between Canada and Minnesota.

Beautiful: In the shots, Bunbury donned a long-sleeved creme skirt with earrings and a necklace and her hair pulled back

Romantic: The actress was seen leading her head back amid a stunning Maui backdrop

Background: Bunbury and Riggins, a designer, exchanged vows on January 1, 2020, in Madeira Island, Portugal

She said she 'really' understands 'what that feels like, 'the vulnerability in it,' and 'also the strength that comes along.'

She added of her character: 'With Cassie, you find a lot of instinct. She leads with instinct and has more of a ... not necessarily a stoic disposition, but she's grounded. She's gone through a lot ... and given what she has been through, she's developed certain ways to protect herself.'

The David E. Kelley-created series, which was inspired by the 2013 book The Highway, also features Ryan Phillippe, Kathryn Winnick and John Carroll Lynch.
The Irwin family feud was blasted wide open on Sunday, after Bindi Irwin claimed her grandfather Bob Snr had 'ignored her' since she was a little girl and 'returned gifts' the family had sent him.

And now Bindi's mother Terri - Bob's daughter-in-law - has waded into the rift, sharing a cryptic message on Twitter about 'avoiding certain people'.

Just a day after Bindi shared her scathing Facebook comment about Bob, Terri, 56, posted a quote by author and military veteran Steve Maraboli which read: 'Avoiding certain people to protect your mental health is not weakness its wisdom.'

Wading in: Terri Irwin (pictured in December) shared a cryptic quote on Twitter about 'avoiding certain people', a day after her daughter Bindi claimed her grandfather Bob Snr had 'ignored her' since she was a little girl and 'returned gifts' the family had sent him

Terri captioned the quote: 'Thank you @SteveMaraboli. Another jewel. Caring for others seems to be easier than caring for ourselves.

'It takes courage to follow through on what we know is the right thing to do. Wishing everyone the best to be brave and wise. Its worth it!'

New mum Bindi, 22, announced on Tuesday she was taking a break from social media after her Facebook comment made headlines globally.

She wrote: 'Hi guys, Just a note to say thank you for your support. I'm taking a break from social media and most of my work in the public eye for a month to be with my beautiful daughter and my wonderful family.'

Plot thickens: Terri, 56, shared a quote by author and military veteran Steve Maraboli which read: 'Avoiding certain people to protect your mental health is not weakness its wisdom'

Sweet: Chandler Powell shared his support for wife Bindi on Twitter, writing: 'You inspire me with your unwavering kindness and your ability to stand up for what is right'

Sibling love: Her brother Robert Jnr also wrote: 'So proud of you, Bindi!'

Her husband, Chandler Powell, was quick to share a message of support for his wife.

The American former wakeboarder wrote: 'You inspire me with your unwavering kindness and your ability to stand up for what is right. You are the strongest and most beautiful person inside and out. Grace has an amazing mama to look up to.'

Her brother Robert Jnr added: 'So proud of you, Bindi!'

While Bob Snr, 82, has yet to respond to Bindi's claims himself, his friend spoke on his behalf during an interview with B105s Stav, Abby and Matt on Tuesday.

Amanda French, who co-authored Bob's 2016 autobiography The Last Crocodile Hunter, claimed he has said 'nothing but great things' about his grandchildren  before confirming he hasnt seen the pair since leaving Australia Zoo in 2008.

She also said Bob has not been able to visit his son Steve's grave at Australia Zoo in 13 years, which has been 'hard' for the grieving father.

Inner circle: Amanda French (right), who co-authored Bob's (left) 2016 autobiography The Last Crocodile Hunter, said on Tuesday that the 82-year-old has said 'nothing but great things' about Bindi and Robert  before confirming he hasnt seen them since leaving the zoo in 2008

'Steve's burial place is inside the zoo... That's hard for him, not to be able to return to his son's resting place. He hasn't been back to Australia Zoo since 2008, she said.

In her Facebook comment on Sunday, Bindi had claimed that Bob had returned some of the gifts she'd sent over the years.

And while Ms French acknowledged this was true, she offered 'context' as to why Bob Snr decided to give back some of the gifts to the family.

'They haven't had a relationship since 2007 or 2008, which was the last time he saw the kids,' she said.

'The gifts were returned were because they were odd. I've been there when he's been sent an anniversary gift for example, which was a shower cap.'

Sadness: 'Steve's burial place is inside the zoo... That's hard for him, not to be able to return to his son's resting place. He hasn't been back to Australia Zoo since 2008, Amanda said of Bob

Confusion: Ms French added that Bob always says positive things about Bindi and Robert, adding: 'He says they're always welcome if they ever turned up. But I think it would be hard for Bob to ring up Australia Zoo and be like - can we fix this?' Pictured from left: Robert, Terri and Bindi Irwin

She added that Bob always says positive things about Bindi and Robert, adding: 'He says they're always welcome if they ever turned up. But I think it would be hard for Bob to ring up Australia Zoo and be like - can we fix this?'

The feud exploded Sunday when Bindi responded to a fan on Facebook who criticised her decision to exclude Bob from a post she'd written about 'the fathers in [her] life'.

Bindi had uploaded a post celebrating Father's Day in the USA, saying she was thankful for the 'three most incredible fathers in her life': her late father Steve Irwin, her husband Chandler Powell and her father-in-law Chris.

When one fan asked why she hadn't included her grandfather Bob, Bindi gave an uncharacteristically raw account of their relationship, claiming he'd ignored her since she was a 'little girl'.

Speaking out: Bindi wrote, 'I really wish that my entire family could spend time with Grace. Unfortunately, my grandfather has shown no interest in spending time with me or my family'

The mother of one wrote: 'I really wish that my entire family could spend time with Grace. Unfortunately, my grandfather Bob has shown no interest in spending time with me or my family.'

She went on to claim that Bob had 'returned gifts I've sent after he opened them', and ignored any letters sent from her.

'From the time I was a little girl he has ignored me, preferring to spend time doing anything else rather than being with me,' she continued.

'He has never said a single kind word to me personally. It breaks my heart.'

Thankful: Bindi had commented on a Father's Day post celebrating the 'three most incredible fathers in her life', her late father Steve, her husband Chandler and her father-in-law Chris

She went on to say that her mother Terri still writes to him and sends birthday cards and Christmas gifts, but claims they have received no reply.

'We have also been his financial support since 1992 when he retired from Australia Zoo, sending him funds every week,' she added.

'We built him a house on a beautiful property and will always do our best to ensure his wellbeing.

'I hope everyone remembers to be kind to one another but most of all care for your own mental health.

'I have struggled with this relationship my entire life and it brings me enormous pain.'

Bindi, who welcomed her daughter Grace in March, concluded by saying she had to 'choose to care for her own mental health now'.
She's 30 weeks pregnant and currently undergoing her mandatory 14-day quarantine in a Sydney hotel with her husband and their four children.

So Australian actress Teresa Palmer can be forgiven for having a little rest on the hotel bed.

On Wednesday, the heavily pregnant star appeared a little tired as she shared a picture on Instagram of herself showing off her baby bump and enjoying a little sleep-in at their hotel.

She must be exhausted! On Tuesday, heavily pregnant Teresa Palmer rested on the bed as she completes the mandatory 14-day hotel quarantine with her husband Mark Webber and their FOUR children in Sydney

In the image, the Discovery of Witches star can be seen resting on the bed and wearing a pair of black pyjamas, pulling up her shirt to show off her belly.

'Day eight #hotelquarantine,' Teresa captioned the image.

Teresa recently jetted back to her native Australia with her family ahead of the birth of her fourth child.

Like many celebrities stuck in Australian hotel quarantine, Teresa has been documenting her day-to-day life on social media. She is quarantining in her Sydney hotel with husband Mark Webber and their four children.

Keeping herself occupied: Like many celebrities stuck in Australian hotel quarantine, Teresa has been documenting her day-to-day life on social media

The actress arrived in Sydney with her family last week after a flight from the U.S.

After landing, they were whisked away to a nearby hotel to begin their 14 days of quarantine, which is mandatory for all international arrivals.

Teresa and Mark are parents to three children, sons Bodhi Rain, seven, and Forest Sage, four, and daughter Poet Lake, one.

Family: Teresa and Mark are parents to three children, sons Bodhi Rain, seven, and Forest Sage, four, and daughter Poet Lake, one. Film director Mark is also father to son Isaac Love, 13, whom he shares with his ex-partner Frankie Shaw

Film director Mark is also father to son Isaac Love, 13, whom he shares with his ex-partner Frankie Shaw.

After completing quarantine, the family will head to Teresa's home state of Adelaide, where she plans to give birth to her fourth child in August.

Teresa announced her pregnancy on her 35th birthday in February.
They welcomed their first child August in February.

And new parents Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank enjoyed a rare baby-free outing as they made a special appearance at the launch of Poppy Jamie's Happy Not Perfect book launch on Tuesday night.

The royal couple, who tied the knot in 2018, smiled widely as they made the most of a baby-free evening at the star-studded event.

Baby free: New parents Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank made a special appearance at the launch of Poppy Jamie's Happy Not Perfect book launch on Tuesday night

Eugenie, 31, looked glamorous in a black 279 Sandro dress with fringing at the bottom and a pair of strappy black heels.

She also showed her support to the host by wearing a 111 Pop & Suki bag - the fashion accessories brand by friends Suki Waterhouse and Poppy Jamie.

Covering up from the chillier English weather, she layered up with a green crushed satin jacket and accessorised with her sapphire and diamond engagement ring.

New father Jack, 35, cut a more casual figure, wearing a white shirt with a blue jumper over the top and a black jacket.

He also donned a pair of jeans and some blue lace up trainers.

Royal appearance: The couple, who tied the knot in 2018, smiled widely as they made the most of a baby-free evening at the star-studded event

Glam: Eugenie looked glamorous in an all black dress with tassels at the bottom and a pair of strappy black heels while Jack donned a pair of blue jeans and lace up trainers

The couple were joined at the event by Made in Chelsea star Georgia Toffolo, 26, who put on a leggy display in a high neck pastel dress at the book launch.

She posed up a storm in the stunning pink long sleeve mini dress which had pink feather cuffs.

The reality star wore nude pointed high heels which highlighted her toned legs and paired them with a matching padded leather bag.

Beautiful: Georgia Toffolo, 26, put on a leggy display in a high neck pastel dress at a star-studded book launch in London on Tuesday night

Family night out: Model Suki Waterhouse, 28, (pictured with sister Immy and Poppy Jamie) also attended the glitzy event with her sister Immy, who both wore casual chic outfits for the outing

Model Suki Waterhouse, 28, also attended the glitzy event with her sister Immy, and both wore casual chic outfits for the outing.

Suki, who is currently dating actor Robert Pattinson, 35, and is Poppy's best friend and business partner, flashed her washboard abs in a beige crop top.

She wore a pair of wide leg blue jeans, belted at the waist, and covered up with a floor-length beige trench.

To finish off the look she wore a pair of black and white pointed heels and draped a Christian Dior handbag, retailing at 3,600, over her arm.

Sweet: The event comes after Eugenie shared an adorable set of photos of her husband with their baby to mark Father's Day on Sunday

The event comes after Eugenie shared an adorable set of photos of her husband with their baby to mark Father's Day on Sunday.

The proud mother, based at Frogmore Cottage, in Windsor, took to Instagram to reveal the four images.

One showed a tired Jack with August lying on his chest as he slept. In another, the proud father smiled for the camera while holding his son.

Family time: The proud mother, based at Frogmore Cottage, in Windsor, took to Instagram today to reveal the four images

Father son bond: Jack was seen holding August close to his chest as he posed for one of the pictures revealed by Eugenie on Instagram

Jack was also seen smiling widely as he pushed August's pram, whilst the fourth image showed the husband and wife posing together for a photo with August in the countryside.

In the caption she wrote: 'Happy Father's Day to you my love... you are the ultimate father to our boy!!'

Eugenie and husband Jack Brooksbank welcomed their son - his full name August Philip Hawke Brooksbank - on February 9 at the Portland Hospital in London.
Erika Jayne has hit back after she was spotted at a gas station with messy hair and no makeup amid her divorce from disgraced former lawyer Tom Girardi and mounting legal woes.

Not long after pictures emerged of the ordinarily glammed up reality star pumping gas in a dressed down outfit on Sunday, The Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills star took to Twitter to defend herself against the scrutiny.

'Goodnight Twitter, please be in full glam when pumping gas. Apparently it's a big deal,' Erika, 49, tweeted on Monday, along with a rolling eyes emoji.

'Please be in full glam when pumping gas': Erika Jayne has hit back after she was spotted at a gas station wearing no makeup and with messy hair amid her divorce from disgraced former lawyer Tom Girardi and mounting legal woes

She also replied to several Twitter users earlier sticking up for her and the dressed down look.

Twitter user Mackenzie. tweeted 'My thoughts every time I pump gas' along with a meme of Erika saying on RHOBH, 'It ain't glamorous, man.'

Meanwhile, @hausofchelsea tweeted of the photos, 'yall dont know s**t about erika cause this has always been her when she's just hanging with her friends. but go off i guess.'

'Exactly,' Erika wrote in her response.

'Apparently it's a big deal': Jayne sarcastically hit back at the photos of her at the gas station

'It ain't glamorous, man': Jayne replied to a fan sticking up for her amid the scrutiny

Erika is in the middle of a messy divorce from her ex Tom Girardi after more than 20 years of marriage and facing a slew of controversies including allegations of embezzlement.

The gas station sighting was one of her first public outings since the new documentary The Housewife and the Hustler aired earlier this week.

Jayne had been dropped by her legal team from the firm Dinsmore & Shohl LLP Monday amid the release of the new Hulu doc (though they later reinstated themselves.)

The legal firm said 'the relationship of trust and confidence that is essential to a properly functioning attorney-client relationship has broken down and, in the good faith assessment of counsel, the relationship is irreparable,' Page Six reported Tuesday, citing court docs it reviewed.

The firm, which was representing Jayne in the bankruptcy of her estranged husband, said it had informed the Atlanta-born reality star of its decision on Monday.

The firm said it had advised the Bravo personality of 'the potential consequences of not timely securing replacement counsel' if she did not retain a new attorney in a timely fashion.

On Thursday, 'just two days after asking a judge to sign off on their exit' her lawyers ended up filing 'legal papers to remain as her counsel' according to the outlet.

The Housewife and the Hustler featured interviews with former clients accusing Girardi, 82, of financial theft in their cases, and noted Jayne's involvement in an LLC he had, with some funds allegedly being routed to her company EJ Global.

Controversy ridden: Erika is in the middle of a messy divorce from her ex Tom Girardi after more than 20 years of marriage and facing a slew of controversies including allegations of embezzlement

Out now: Jayne and her estranged husband are the subject of a new documentary, The Housewife and the Hustler, which examines Tom's alleged financial misdoings

Tom was diagnosed with Alzheimer's and dementia in March, the same month his legal license in California was revoked.

Tom faces a litany of legal problems, including a $2 million class action lawsuit claiming fraud and embezzlement from the firm Edelson PC in connection with the 2018 Lion Air Flight 610 crash, in which all 189 people onboard died.

He and Erika were sued for allegedly embezzling funds meant for families of victims, while Edelson PC, a firm for their ex clients, said in court docs their divorce last fall was orchestrated to 'fraudulently protect Tom and Erika's money' as they're 'on the verge of financial collapse.'

In the Hulu doc, attorney Sunny Hostin pointed out that Erika is seeking to have her high-dollar items classified as 'separate property' in their split, claiming they were 'gifts to her.'

In a preview for the show's 11th season, Jayne said of the accusations, 'No one knows the answer but him'

Reporter Brandon Lowrey of Law360 said in the doc that the estranged couple is 'together in these bankruptcy proceedings' and that 'it's going to be hard for her to say she didn't know that anything was going on.'

In a preview for the show's 11th season, Jayne said of the accusations, 'No one knows the answer but him.'

Meanwhile, the investigation in Erika's assets has allegedly uncovered loans she received from her estranged husband's law firm Girardi Keese.

According to a motion filed by the bankruptcy trustee investigating Girardi's law firm, Erika's businesses received over $20 million in loans from Girard Keese in recent years.

A trustee's special litigation counsel is working to investigate what happened to millions of dollars in settlement funds that Girardi's clients never received after Girardi successfully won cases for them.
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Alec Baldwin and his wife Hilaria rounded up all six of their children on Tuesday to attend the premiere for The Boss Baby: Family Business at SVA Theater in NYC.

The Baldwin gang looked sharp on the red carpet in matching black suits, complete with silk neck ties and white button up shirts.

Alec and Hilaria cradled their nine-month old son Eduardo and three-month old daughter Lucia in their arms, while the couple's four older children wielded briefcases.

Gang's all here! Alec Baldwin and his wife Hilaria rounded up their children (pictured from left to right: Maria Lucia Victoria, four months, Rafael Thomas, six, Eduardo Pau Lucas, 21 months, Leonardo Angel Charles, four, Romeo Alejandro David, three, and Carmen Gabriela, seven) on Tuesday to attend the premiere for The Boss Baby: Family Business at SVA Theater in NYC

Despite managing six children under the age of seven, Alec and Hilaria looked calm and collected as they posed for pictures with their brood.

They were often seen bursting into laughter as they attempted to capture the perfect family portrait with all of their 'Baldwinitos' by their side.

Hilaria, 37, wore her neck tie slightly undone and slipped her feet into a pair of black patent leather stilettos for her husband's big night.

Affection: Alec and Hilaria, who wed in 2012, put on an affectionate display, cozying up to one another and sharing a kiss or two on the red carpet

Matching: The Baldwin gang looked sharp on the red carpet in matching black suits, complete with silk neck ties and white button up shirts

The Boston-born beauty rocked a head of noticeably lightened hair, which was styled in curls and parted down the middle.

Alec, who had his salt-and-pepper hair slicked back, looked every bit the doting father as he effortlessly toted his youngest son.

The couple's eldest daughter Carmen, seven, proved to be a natural in front of the camera, while sons Rafeal, six, Leonardo, four, and Romeo, three, displayed a bit more hesitance.

Growing up: The couple's eldest child, daughter Carmen, seven, cozied up to her mom on the red carpet

Got it covered: Despite managing six children under the age of seven, Alec and Hilaria looked calm and collected as they posed for pictures with their brood

Personal touches: Hilaria, 37, wore her neck tie slightly undone and slipped her feet into a pair of black patent leather stilettos

Fatherly: Alec, who had his salt-and-pepper hair slicked back, looked to be in pure bliss as he held onto his youngest son Eduardo

Romeo and Rafeal accessorized their matching ensembles by throwing on a pair of aviator shades.

Alec and Hilaria, who wed in 2012, put on an affectionate display, cozying up to one another and sharing a kiss or two on the red carpet.

Continuing the love, Hilaria and Carmen made sure to pose for some mother-daughter snapshots, including one that showed the pair puckering up.

Jovial: They were often seen bursting into laughter as they attempted to capture the perfect family portrait with all of their 'Baldwinitos'

Giggly: As he cradled newborn son Eduardo, Alec could be seen letting out some laughs

After posing together as a family, the Baldwins welcomed actress Amy Sedaris in on the red carpet fun.

The 60-year-old, who voices Tina Templeton in the animated features' sequel, modeled a chic black ruffled dress and a pair of slingback flats with silver bows.

Although the Baldwins stole the show, there were plenty of other famous faces in attendance during Tuesday night's The Boss Baby: Family Business premiere in the Big Apple.

Mother-daughter duo: Hilaria and Carmen made sure to pose for some mother-daughter snapshots, including one that showed the pair puckering up

Growing boy: Alec and Hilaria welcomed Eduardo (pictured in Alec's arms) in September 2020, just six months prior to the birth of their daughter Lucia via surrogate

Sharing the spotlight: After posing together as a family, the Baldwins welcomed actress Amy Sedaris in on the red carpet fun

Impractical Jokers star Joe Gatto, who brought along his darling six-year-old daughter Milana Francis, looked casual cool in a crisp button up shirt and bright white sneakers.

Gatto's Impractical Jokers costar James Murray rode up to the event sol in a pale pink suit jacket and matching trousers layered over a black graphic tee featuring a colorful parrot.

Hans Zimmer, who composed the film's score, attended the premiere with his wife Suzanne, who stunned a marigold wiggle dress.

Chic: The 60-year-old, who voices Tina Templeton in the animated features' sequel, modeled a chic black ruffled dress and a pair of slingback flats with silver bows

All together, now! Jeff Hermann, Amy Sedaris, Alec Baldwin, Hilaria Baldwin, their children and Tom McGrath beamed for shutterbugs before heading into the SVA Theater in NYC

Pop of color: Giving her look a pop of color, Amy rocked a pair of bold red earrings that matched her pout

Steve Mazzaro, who collaborated with Zimmer to bring the film to life, also brought along his significant other Stephanie Olmanni.

Producer Dina De Luca coordinated with the Boss Baby blue theme by wowing in a fitted number complete with powder blue stiletto heels.

The Boss Baby: Family Business, which officially hits theaters on July 2, is the highly-anticipated sequel to 2017's Boss Baby.

Sweet: Impractical Jokers star Joe Gatto, who brought along his darling six-year-old daughter Milana Francis, looked casual cool in a crisp button up shirt and bright white sneakers

Date night: Hans Zimmer (left) and his musical collaborator Steve Mazzaro (right) brought their significant others to the night's big premiere

The animated feature's infant protagonist is voiced by Baldwin, with the likes of Lisa Kudrow, Jimmy Kimmel, and more lending their voices to the star-studded cast of characters.

Alec and Hilaria's first red carpet as a family of eight comes just weeks after the 37-year-old yoga instructor announced that she and her husband would be launching a parenting podcast.

The podcast, titled 'What's One More?,' will focus on 'relationships, parenting, philanthropy & inspiring others to be better.'

Beauty in blue: Producer Dina De Luca coordinated with the Boss Baby blue theme by wowing in a fitted number complete with powder blue stiletto heels

Spiffy: James Murray (left) and Steve Mazzaro (right) rocked their best fitted suits for the big premiere in NYC

Celebratory: Suzanne Zimmer, Hans Zimmer, Steve Mazzaro and Stephanie Olmanni gather around for a celebratory snap

'Introducing Whats One More?, a new podcast with @alecbaldwininsta and @hilariabaldwin,' captioned Hilaria, who made the announcement via Instagram on June 3.

The podcast comes just months after the couple welcomed their sixth child, daughter Lucia, via surrogate in late February.

It was a surprise announcement, with an insider telling People at the time: 'It's no one's business about a woman's right to choose how and when she expands her family.'

Sharing secrets: Alec and Hilaria's first red carpet as a family of eight comes just weeks after the 37-year-old yoga instructor announced that she and her husband would be launching a parenting podcast

Another one! The podcast comes just months after the couple welcomed their sixth child, daughter Lucia, via surrogate in late February; Hilaria pictured with all six of her children

Lucia's arrival came just six months after Hilaria gave birth to her and Alec's fifth child, son Eduardo, in September 2020. Eduardo's birth occurred after Hilaria had suffered two tragic miscarriages.

Earlier this year, Hilaria apologized for faking her Spanish heritage after it was revealed her real name was Hillary Hayward-Thomas and she was from Boston, not Majorca.

She atoned on Instagram for misleading her followers and noted that she 'should have been more clear' about her past.

Hilaria insisted she was brought up 'with two cultures, American and Spanish' and feels 'a true sense of belonging to both.'
Strictly Come Dancing judge Bruno Tonioli's appearance in the 2021 series has remained in the balance due to ongoing travel restrictions.

According to head judge Shirley Ballas, bosses are 'still deciding' whether Bruno, 65, who appeared on the last series virtually, could return to the judging panel.

It comes after it was reported on Saturday that bosses had already secured star Motsi Mabuse to reprise her role on the judging panel, after she reportedly pulled out of a German stage tour to take part.

Will he be back? Strictly Come Dancing judge Bruno Tonioli's appearance in the 2021 series has remained in the balance due to ongoing Covid travel restrictions

Speaking on GB News, Shirley confirmed that Motsi would be flying back to the UK for the 2021 series, to appear alongside herself and Craig Revel Horwood.

She said: 'I do believe that Motsi is back, Bruno they are still deciding depending on the rules flying in and flying out. I know Bruno, if he can make it he will.'

MailOnline has contacted representatives for Strictly Come Dancing for comment.

The dancer added that some of the most beloved Strictly elements will be back for the upcoming series, after the show was drastically scaled-back last year due to Covid restrictions.

Fears: According to head judge Shirley Ballas (second right), bosses are 'still deciding' whether Bruno could return to the judging panel (Bruno pictured far right)

'Be prepared for 13 weeks of pure joy there will be some tweaks here and there and the line up sounds like it's going to be absolutely off the chart,' Shirley added.

'Just when you think it couldn't get any better it does and Sarah our exec just goes for it and she just finds all sorts of different things that are going to entertain the people in the autumn winter months so we are very very excited.'

It comes after Bruno was reported to have ruled out a return to the 2021 judging panel after he missed last year's show due to his commitments on the judging panel for the US version Dancing With The Stars.

Will it happen? It comes after Bruno was reported to have ruled out a return after he missed last year's show due to his commitments on US version Dancing With The Stars

Bruno is said to have told friends he 'can't commit' to the upcoming series.

He appeared on last year's Strictly via video link after being unable to return to the UK during the Covid crisis, and has previously travelled across the Atlantic to simultaneously film both shows.

A source told The Sun: 'Bruno can't commit to both shows right now and is staying put in LA  it's a better lifestyle there, with great weather, which is good for his health.

'He earns close to 1 million a series in America, so he has to prioritise that.

'Of course, he's still very much part of the Strictly family and is keen to appear on a video link several times through the series.'

Return? He appeared on last year's Strictly via video link after being unable to return to the UK during the Covid crisis

Elsewhere it was reported on Saturday that Motsi will return for the 2021 series after pulling out of a German stage tour.

The judge had signed up for Germany's Let's Dance tour but would have missed the first four weeks of Strictly had she honoured the commitment.

An inside source told The Sun on Sunday: 'Her diary clash has been a real headache for everyone. There was no way she could have done both.'

They continued: 'When push came to shove she passed on the tour and signed a new contract. The Strictly bosses are thrilled to have her back on board.

'Their main aim for this year was to get all four of the judges back on the panel, and Motsi has been the biggest question mark.'
She was presented a large diamond ring when Hamish Blake got down on one knee and proposed to her back in 2012.

And it appears Zoe Foster-Blake has changed up her bling - with the beauty entrepreneur sporting a rather different style on her wedding finger of late.

The 40-year-old Go-To founder has been sporting a thick gold unique band containing two huge diamonds.

New bling! Zoe Foster-Blake sported a large unique diamond ring on her engagement finger on Tuesday, after wearing her more traditional rock from husband Hamish Blake for years

She flaunted the modern design on Tuesday, when she visited her good pals Joel Edgerton and Christine Centenera following the birth of their first child.

The brunette also wore her favourite $1500 Camilla & Marc trench coat over a cashmere sweater and a pair of baggy trousers.

Zoe, who is known for her love of colourful sunglasses, shaded her eyes with orange-coloured frames and wore patent New Balance sneakers on her feet.

Funky: The 40-year-old Go-To founder has recently been sporting a thick gold unique band containing two huge diamonds

The author was also adorned with a custom designed heart necklace, which features the first initial of her husband, and two children, as well as her own.

It appears Zoe has been wearing the large bling for some time, as it was also firmly on her finger as she attended the 2019 TV Week Awards.

Zoe and Hamish married in December 2012 in front of friends and family at the Wolgan Valley resort in the Blue Mountains.

She met Hamish, a successful comedian, radio presenter and host of Nine's Lego Masters, at a media event when they were both in their early twenties.

They didn't start dating for a while but remained friends while they saw other people. They even penned a dating book together, Textbook Romance, in 2009.

They both found themselves single in 2010 and quickly became more than just friends.

'You know, we'd both had partners and I'd been single for a year, out of a relationship for a few months, and it was quite organic I think,' Zoe told Show and Tell in 2013.

Zoe and Hamish share two children together, Sonny, six, and Rudy, three. They are now joint ambassadors for Tourism Australia's 'Holiday Here This Year' campaign.

Meanwhile, Zoe is one of Australia's most successful female entrepreneurs, with an estimated fortune of $36million.

She became a multi-millionaire before the age of 40 thanks to her Go-To beauty empire.

There it is! It appears Zoe has been wearing the large bling for some time, as it was also firmly on her finger as she attended the 2019 TV Week Awards

Engagement ring: Zoe is pictured wearing the engagement ring Hamish proposed to her with on the red carpet at the Logie Awards in 2019

Traditional design: Zoe's engagement ring is a more traditional design, and appears to be a large emerald or cushion cut diamond surround by several small diamonds

She launched the brand in 2014, and almost seven years later, Go-To now sells one unit of Transformazing Face Masks every 90 seconds, and has sold more than 200,000 bottles of Face Hero face oil in the last year.

In 2018, Go-To was stocked in 400 Sephora stores in the United States, and about 120 stores in Australia.

In her early career, Zoe worked at magazines such as Mania and Smash Hits. She later became a beauty editor at Cosmopolitan, a beauty director at Harper's Bazaar and editor in chief of beaut
Former ABC radio host Lawrence Mooney has said the public broadcaster is 'trying to be too many things for too many people' rather than focusing on its strengths.

The 56-year-old comedian told Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday the ABC 'doesn't have its own direction' and has 'tried to please too many masters' in the past.

'I thought the ABC started to run scared for a while,' he said, adding that despite external pressures the quality of its programming has improved over the past year.

Speaking out: Former ABC radio host Lawrence Mooney has said the public broadcaster is 'trying to be too many things for too many people' rather than focusing on its strengths

'I thought it didn't have its own direction,' added Lawrence, who last year slammed the broadcaster for being 'elitist' and 'tone deaf' in its response to budget cuts.

'But having said that the one show I watch every night is the 7.30 Report. It's the only thing I would watch on a daily basis.'

Lawrence also discussed ABC's diversity and inclusion commissioning guidelines for on-screen content.

'You should use as much gender and age mix as possible, but as long as it serves the script and the show,' he said.

Opinion: The 56-year-old comedian told Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday the ABC 'doesn't have its own direction' and has 'tried to please too many masters' in the past

The ABC last year was allocated $1.062billion from taxpayers, a slight increase from the $1.046billion set aside in the 2018-19 financial year - but still many staffers thought it wasn't enough.

At the time, Lawrence pointed out how ABC presenters hadn't been forced to take pay cuts, despite falls in government revenue due to the coronavirus recession.

Journalists at commercial news outlets, however, had to take pay cuts as advertising revenue plunged, with some newsrooms even closing down.

Slammed: 'I thought the ABC started to run scared for a while,' he said, adding that despite external pressures the quality of its programming has improved over the past year. Pictured with actress Brooke Satchwell

'Thousands of businesses are struggling to survive and government debt is spiralling out of control,' Lawrence told his Triple M listeners.

'[We have] had to take drastic measures to survive. Here at Triple M, we've all taken a pay cut.

'Yes it sucks but it is what it is but there's a group of people doing plenty of bellyaching, and it's the ones who have been least affected by this global crisis, the ABC.

'Oh, dear old Aunty. ABC, you can't pretend to be the victims here. ABC, you can't.

'At a time of crisis with so many people out of work, whining about budget cuts seems pretty tasteless in itself but what makes it worse is it's not even true.'
Jen Harley was seen in a mug shot on Saturday after her beau Joseph Ambrosole said she vowed to kill him and used the n-word while holding him at gunpoint.

Harley, 34, was booked in connection with assault with a deadly weapon and domestic battery in the incident, and Ambrosole told police she told him, 'I'll shoot you n****' and 'I'll kill you right f****** now', TMZ reported Tuesday after reviewing the arrest report.

Police told the outlet that the incident initially occurred at the Crazy Horse 3 gentlemen's club, as Harley and Ambrosole argued over her alcohol consumption as well as the location of where they would park their vehicle.

The latest: Jen Harley, 34, was seen in a mug shot taken after her arrest Saturday in Las Vegas

The couple took their row into the establishment, where they were asked to leave by club security, authorities said.

Ambrosole told police that amid their tense ride home, she began hitting him in the head and tossed his smartphone out of the window, leading him to pull over to retrieve it.

Ambrosole told authorities Harley subsequently jumped into the driver's seat and drove away, leading him to find another ride home.

Police said that Ambrosole said that when he arrived to their residence, they continued to exchange words, at which point Harley threatened him with the firearm, before leaving the home.

Incident: Her boyfriend Joseph Ambrosole told police she vowed to kill him and used the n-word while holding him at gunpoint, Harley posted a snap prior to the violent exchange

Details: Harley is accused of hitting her boyfriend and tossing his phone out the vehicle, then taking off in it

Authorities were notified to the incident and located Harley, arrested he and held her at the Clark County Detention Center with her bond set at $5,000.

Harley, who shares three-year-old daughter Ariana with her ex, Jersey Shore star Ronnie Ortiz-Magro, who made headlines of his own when he proposed to girlfriend Saffire Matos in Los Angeles on Saturday.

Both Harley and Ortiz-Magro have past had legal problems stemming from their relationship, and other relationships.

Location: Police told the outlet that the incident initially occurred at the Crazy Horse 3 gentlemen's club (pictured there in 2019)

In January last year, Harley entered Ortiz-Magro's Las Vegas home before she allegedly tried to gouge out his eye with eyeliner, after finding make-up belonging to another woman in his trash can, according to TMZ.

Jen was reportedly ordered to stay 100 yards away from Ronnie until his legal protection expires on February 25 despite her already having a restraining order against him.

'You ask a good question, and there is a good answer, but we will be presenting her position in court, not in the media,' Harley's attorney Lisa Bloom told TMZ.

'She has not been served with any restraining order, and any contact the two had in recent weeks would be a clear violation of the restraining order against Ronnie.'

Family: Harley shares three-year-old daughter Ariana with her ex, Jersey Shore star Ronnie Ortiz-Magro

Harley, a real estate agent, was arrested in 2019 in an incident in which she launched a glass ashtray toward Ortiz-Magro in Las Vegas.

She was also arrested in Vegas in June of 2018 in an incident in which she faced allegations she had dragged Ortiz-Magro with her vehicle; authorities later said there was 'insufficient evidence' to press charges on her.

Ortiz-Magro was arrested in Los Angeles April 22 in connection with suspicion of intimate partner violence.

Background: Ortiz-Magro has also past had a litany of legal problems involving violent incidents, including an April arrest in Los Angeles in connection with domestic violence

Despite feeling the need to call the police, Matos posted a statement to her Instagram stories four days later in which she tried to downplay the whole thing while calling reports of the arrest 'false accusations.'

Matos took to Instagram Stories, Page Six reported, saying there was 'a lot of misleading information floating around out there' about the incident.

'With anybody who reached out with concern I appreciate it with all my heart, but everything that's being portrayed out there are not facts,' Matos said.

Claims: In January last year, Harley entered Ortiz-Magro's Las Vegas home before she allegedly tried to gouge out his eye with eyeliner, after finding make-up belonging to another woman

'I don't think it's fair that people are using false accusations to gain attention. Please leave Ron and I alone. You don't know what someone is going through at the end of the day.'

Ortiz-Magro, who was on probation prior to the incident, is expected to appear in court later this month to address it.

An insider told US that Harley 'has been concerned about his behavior in front of Ariana and its been an issue shes been worried about,' adding that 'she knows he always has this pattern and that he does not change.'

In October of 2019, Ortiz-Magro was arrested in connection with kidnapping following an incident with Harley in which he was accused of hitting her, brandishing a knife and locking himself in an Airbnb they'd rented. Ortiz-Magro eventually made a plea deal in the incident.

The couple ceased dating in the wake of the incident, but continue to share custody of Ariana.

Ortiz-Magro - who also had a New Year's Eve 2019 fight with Jen - had a similarly volatile relationship with his prior girlfriend Sammi 'Sweetheart' Giancola, whom he dated on and off between 2009-2014.
Philly DA: Breaking The Law

Rating:

Spying On The Royals

Rating:

You can imagine Larry Krasner as the hero of an imported American political drama, along the lines of The West Wing.

He is an activist liberal lawyer who unexpectedly joined the heart of the Establishment after winning an election to become district attorney in one of the country's biggest cities.

Larry Krasner: even the name sounds right.

And there's a Hollywood-worthy back story too, because he is driven by childhood anger at the injustices faced by his disabled father.

Can he shake up the system? Can he defeat fierce opposition from the police and political rivals? And what was he thinking of with that ponytail he wore when younger?

Yet Philly DA: Breaking The Law (BBC4) is actually a documentary set in Philadelphia, which we are told is 'the most incarcerated big city' in the United States. Most incarcerated city? Truly we are two nations divided by a most mangulated common language.

Larry Krasner pictured celebrating alongside his wife Judge Lisa Millett Rau after being elected Philadelphia District Attorney in Philly DA: Breaking The Law

Larry is built up straight away as a great liberal hero of the people.

He has sued the police 75 times during his career, and has a bevy of adoring followers who love to chant anti-police slogans, moving the leader of the police union to observe: 'The bottom-feeders of the city are all gathered in one place.' This is an officer, a man of considerable bulk, that you definitely wouldn't care to meet down a dark alley while in possession of liberal views and a ponytail.

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Larry wins the DA election by a landslide, and  in true dramatic fashion  discovers that running stuff isn't easy. There is a wonderful moment when he addresses his new staff, and gets a reception that's about 20c below lukewarm.

Next we see a line of staff members being escorted from the premises, trudging into snow-covered streets with their belongings in cardboard boxes. Even at the office, the U.S. is a nation divided.

So will Larry succeed in bringing down crime while keeping minor offenders out of jail? We have seven more episodes to find out.

However, look away now if you don't wish to know that last year homicide rates in the city reached a 30-year high.

Spying On The Royals (More4) was supposedly about a surveillance operation against the exiled Duke and Duchess of Windsor.

At one point, both the British and the Americans were listening to their private conversations during a trip to Florida. Their phones were tapped, and their hotel rooms were bugged.

But with new revelations about tensions between William and Harry hitting the news, the main point of interest was that bitter fraternal royal feuds are nothing new. Indeed, King George VI personally paid for the MI6 operation against his brother.

When Edward and Wallis visited Germany in 1937, George ordered the Berlin embassy to ignore them.

Spying On The Royals was supposedly about a surveillance operation against the exiled Duke and Duchess of Windsor (pictured: Prince Edward and Wallis Simpson in the 1950s)

Edward fled from France to neutral Portugal, but George quashed any hope of a return to Britain. It might have helped if Edward  not a man who would have been headhunted by Mensa  hadn't told a Daily Herald reporter that he'd consider replacing his brother and becoming president of a republic if Labour came to power.

That particular part of the interview never made it into the paper.

'Edward was disgruntled, he was angry with the Royal Family,' said one historian.

'He wanted to make the point: 'Look, I'm important.'

'He was playing a very dangerous game.'

Does that sound at all familiar?

Christopher Stevens is away.
Sharon Stone was the talk of Twitter on Tuesday after she went viral for suggesting three-time Oscar winner Meryl Streep was overrated in an interview last month.

The Basic Instinct star, 63, who was nominated for the Best Actress Oscar for Casino in 1996, spoke to Everything Zoomer, where she claimed there were many actresses who were the equal of Meryl, 72, but they never achieved her fame or acclaim.

Twitter users and film fans were quick to join in with praise for Sharon's own acclaimed career, though Meryl's body of work had plenty of defenders - despite Sharon stating: 'You say Meryl and everyone falls on the floor'.

She went on to boast in the interview: 'Im a much better villain than Meryl and Im sure shed say so. Meryl was not gonna be good in Basic Instinct or in Casino. I would be better. And I know it. And she knows it.'

Not holding back: Sharon Stone was the talk of Twitter on Tuesday after an interview snippet of her suggesting three-time Oscar winner Meryl Streep was overrated went viral

While Sharon was making bold claims about their comparative skills, the awards seem to speak for themselves with their contrasting success.

She was nominated fir the Best Actress gong in 1996 for Casino, while Meryl won the award in 1983 for Sophie's Choice and 2012 for The Iron Lady. She scored the gong for Kramer vs. Kramer in 1979 for Best Supporting Actress.

Sharon's comments came after interviewer Johanna Schneller brought up her memoir The Beauty Of Living Twice, released in March, and referenced a line about how Hollywood forces women to compete for a small number of roles.

She wrote in her book: 'It was put to us that there could be room for only one.'

Schneller then asked about when Sharon 'finally got to work with Meryl Streep' on Steven Soderbergh's Netflix film The Laundromat, but she thought the question illustrated her point.

She said: 'I like the way you phrase that, that I finally got to work with Meryl Streep. You didnt say, 'Meryl finally got to work with Sharon Stone." Or we finally got to work together.'

Starring role: Sharon was nominated for the Best Actress Oscar for Casino in 1996 (pictured, left, in the film) and Meryl won in 1979 for Kramer vs. Kramer (pictured, right, accepting her award)

The record: Sharon's comments came after interviewer Johanna Schneller brought up her memoir and referenced a line about how Hollywood forces women to compete for a small number of roles; Streep seen in The Laundromat

SHARON'S AWARDS GOLDEN GLOBES 1996 Best Actress - Casino EMMYS 2004 Outstanding Guest Actress - The Practice GOLDEN RASPBERRY AWARDS 1995 Worst Actress - Intersection & The Specialist 1995 Worst Screen Combo - The Specialist 2007 Worst Actress - Basic Instinct 2 STINKERS BAD MOVIE AWARDS 1993 Worst Actress - Sliver 1994 Worst Actress - Intersection & The Specialist Advertisement

MERYL'S AWARDS OSCARS 1979 Best Supporting Actress- Kramer vs. Kramer 1982 Best Actress - Sophie's Choice 2012 Best Actress - The Iron Lady GOLDEN GLOBES 1979 Best Supporting Actress- Kramer vs. Kramer 1981 Best Actress - The French Lieutenant's Woman 1982 Best Actress - Sophie's Choice 2002 Best Supporting Actress - Adaptation 2003 Best Actress - Angels In America 2006 Best Actress - The Devil Wears Prada 2009 Best Actress - Julie & Julia 2012 Best Actress - The Iron Lady 2016 Cecil B. DeMille EMMYS 1978 Outstanding Lead Actress - Holocaust 2003 Outstanding Lead Actress - Angels In America 2017 Outstanding Supporting Actress - Five Came Back SCREEN ACTORS GUILD 2003 Outstanding Lead Actress - Angels In America 2008 Outstanding Lead Actress - Doubt Advertisement

Sharon continued: 'Because thats the way her life went, she got built up to be, Everyone wants to work with Meryl." I wonder if she likes that?'

The Casino star added that she thought other actresses were constantly pitted against Meryl.

She said: 'The business was set up that we should all envy and admire Meryl because only Meryl got to be the good one. And everyone should compete against Meryl.

'I think Meryl is an amazingly wonderful woman and actress. But in my opinion, quite frankly, there are other actresses equally as talented as Meryl Streep. The whole Meryl Streep iconography is part of what Hollywood does to women.'

To prove her point that Streep wasn't necessarily the top star in her field, Sharon listed off other actress that she considered her equal.

Meaningful phrasing: Schneller asked about when Sharon 'finally got to work with Meryl Streep' on Steven Soderbergh's The Laundromat, but she thought the question illustrated her point; Sharon and Meryl in The Laundromat

Awkward: 'I like the way you phrase that, that I finally got to work with Meryl Streep,' Stone said. 'You didnt say, 'Meryl finally got to work with Sharon Stone." Or we finally got to work together'

'Viola Davis is every bit the actress Meryl Streep is. Emma Thompson. Judy Davis. Olivia Colman. Kate Winslet, for f***s sake. But you say Meryl and everybody falls on the floor,' she said.

That portion of the interview was shared on Tuesday by a Twitter user who captioned the shot: 'Sharon stone out there ending her own career'

But plenty of people defended Sharon's statements about Meryl and how Hollywood treats other actress, even though it's rare for stars to so openly express any negative sentiment about another actor.

Sharing the news: That portion of the interview was shared on Tuesday by a Twitter user who captioned it, 'sharon stone out there ending her own career'

On her side: 'Sharon Stone is right and she should say it,' tweeted writer and film critic Kyle Turner. 'Streep is overrated and has barely done any even okay work in over a decade.'

Supportive: Writer and critic Juan Barquin agreed. 'sharon stone is right and she should say it,' they wrote.

Famous role: Another person added their support for Stone with a short clip of her in Martin Scorsese's Casino, which earned the actress her only Academy Award nomination

'Sharon Stone is right and she should say it,' tweeted writer and film critic Kyle Turner. 'Streep is overrated and has barely done any even okay work in over a decade.'

Writer and critic Juan Barquin agreed. 'sharon stone is right and she should say it,' they wrote.

Another person added their support for Stone with a short clip of her in Martin Scorsese's Casino, which has seen renewed praise from critics and viewers in recent years and earned the actress her only Academy Award nomination.

'We are not dealing with Sharon Stone slander on the timeline today,' they tweeted.

Didn't see that coming: The television critic and New Yorker staff writer Emily Nussbaum joked the stars were actually playing each other

Having a laugh: Another person wrote Stone's name and posted a humorous GIF of Hannibal Buress caption, 'Why are you booing me? I'm right.'

Not her fault: One user tried to redirect some of the vitriol aimed at Streep toward screenwriters and the executives who weigh in on casting

The television critic and New Yorker staff writer Emily Nussbaum joked, 'What most people don't understand is that Sharon Stone is actually a Meryl Streep character and vice-versa.'

Another person wrote Stone's name and posted a humorous GIF of Hannibal Buress caption, 'Why are you booing me? I'm right.'

One user tried to redirect some of the vitriol aimed at Streep toward screenwriters and the executives who weigh in on casting.

'I hate the nasty narrative that somehow Meryl works TOO much and steals roles. Maybe the conversation should be we don't write enough roles for people like Sharon Stone and Judy Davis to thrive in.'

Check the record: Journalist and film writer Mark Harris said Streep simply has more great films that Stone and wrote that it wasn't her fault if other actresses were undervalued

Journalist and film writer Mark Harris also defended Streep's career.

'I love Sharon Stone, but on this one, I am a "Let me check this against the historical record" Film Gay, not a "Tell your messy chaotic truth, gurl!" Film Gay. Sorry!'

He argued that Streep's successes and acclaim have nothing to do with other stars being overlooked.

'There are actresses who are underappreciated, and the fact that Meryl Streep is widely and justly appreciated has nothing to do with it, and people who insist that one actress's success must by definition deprive other actresses of their due NEVER discuss men that way,' he continued.

'Streep is now wrapping up her fourth decade of "She's not all that!"' he wrote, adding that, 'A good way to celebrate other actresses is to celebrate other actresses, not gripe about one.'

So far, Sharon hasn't weighed in on the online discussion, though she posted unrelated tweets on Tuesday.
Gabi Grecko has hinted she's unlikely to get any money from her late husband Geoffrey Edelsten because he was in such a dire financial situation when he died.

The New York-based model, 32, suggested she may not have a claim to Edelsten's estate after an Instagram troll accused her on Tuesday of only posting about the late businessman on social media because she was after his fortune.

'It's interesting that you didn't speak about him for years, had other relationships and yet now you're posting about him non-stop and saying you still love him and were still married? Make it make sense,' the troll commented, alongside a string of dollar-sign emojis.

'The last thing on my mind': Gabi Grecko has hinted she's unlikely to get any money from her late husband Geoffrey Edelsten because he was in such a dire financial situation when he died

Grecko responded: 'You don't know s**t about my relationship with Geoff. Just because it wasn't in the news, doesn't mean we didn't speak. And he was in debt.'

She added: 'F**king dumb b**ch, money is the last thing on my mind. I just lost one of the biggest influences in my life so you can shut the hell up.'

'How dare you. Okay, I'm a public figure but you're a human being - act like one. Make that make sense. My husband just died. Stay off my page. So mean and unneeded. Disappointed in people.'

Grecko and Edelsten married at a Melbourne registry office in June 2015 - when he was 72 and she was 26 - before announcing their separation just months later.

'He was in debt': The New York-based model, 32, suggested she may not have a claim to Edelsten's estate after an Instagram troll accused her on Tuesday of only posting about the late businessman on social media because she was after his fortune

The Allied Medical Group founder was found dead at the age of 78 by a cleaner at his Melbourne apartment on Friday, June 11 - which coincidentally was the anniversary of his wedding to Grecko.

For the last three years of Edelsten's life, the couple - who were separated but, according to Grecko, not legally divorced - lived in different countries, with Edelsten based in Australia while Grecko resided in New York City.

The death of Edelsten, who had been declared bankrupt in Australia and the U.S., revealed a messy financial and personal situation, with multiple parties expected to make a claim on his estate.

One of those people is his former U.S. business partner Rafael 'Alfie' Mawardi, whom Edelsten met at Mawardi's House of Nurielle fashion boutique in Las Vegas when his then-wife Brynne Gordon bought an $8,500 lace jumpsuit in the store.

Fact check: 'You don't know s**t about my relationship with Geoff. Just because it wasn't in the news, doesn't mean we didn't speak. And he was in debt,' Grecko responded to the troll

The meeting with Mawardi led to Edelsten investing more than $20million into House of Nureille, two apartment complexes in the U.S., a jet and a casino in the Dominican Republic.

But Mawardi said he never saw a cent from Edelsten.

'I'm sure there is still money out there,' he told the Herald Sun.

'He had all the cars, he had 10 to 15 cars  are you going to tell me that it all just disappeared?

'I think that now that he has passed away, I have legal rights to go after him.'
He went viral after slamming Beyonce and her singing abilities on the app Clubhouse.

But Trick Daddy was not backing down on his controversial opinion when speaking about the clip during an appearance on the radio station 99Jamz Miami.

'What I said was I don't think Beyonce could sing which is my opinion, and opinions [are] like buttholes,' the rapper, 46, said.

'I don't think Beyonce could sing': Trick Daddy did not back down when speaking about the clip on 99Jamz Miami

'Without them, you'll be full of doo-doo. That's my unpopular opinion. Who are you? How you feel? If you gotta walk around here worried about how somebody else feel about how you feel, then you ain't who you are. That's my opinion,' Trick, whose radio show The Trick and Trina Morning Show is also on the station, said.

'But if you've got a problem with speaking your own mind and [thinking] I was a sucker, I apologize. I ain't him. That's not me. That ain't what I do.'

Trick Daddy enraged Beyonce fans after claiming on Clubhouse the Crazy In Love chart-topper could not sing and that her husband Jay-Z was just an easy replacement for the late rapper Biggie Smalls.

In the clip, Trick told listeners Beyonce has not 'tried to give back to music or nothing, she don't write music and barely can sing her own motherf***ng self.'

'Barely can sing her own motherf***ng self': The rapper went viral after expressing his opinion on Beyonce and her husband Jay-Z on Clubhouse

'Beyonce can't sing,' he said. 'I'ma say my unpopular opinion right now. Beyonce is to R&B what Jay-Z is to New York. That's why they're together. Jay-Z ain't never won "The Greatest Rapper Alive." Whoever put him on a level of that?'

'New York lost Biggie, they needed a hero, they wanted a "mega" of Hip-Hop and they just handed it over to Jay-Z.'

Needless to say, fans of the couple disagreed with the rapper on social media.

Queen Bey: Needless to say, fans of the couple disagreed with the rapper on social media (pictured 2018)

Not backing down: 'What I said was I don't think Beyonce could sing which is my opinion, and opinions [are] like buttholes,' the rapper, 46, who also has his own show on the station, said

Beyonce first found fame as a member of the mega popular girl group Destiny's Child, before launching her even more successful solo career.

The songstress made Grammys history earlier this year when she broke the record for most wins ever by a female artist with 28 trophies.

And in addition to her chart-topping music career, Beyonce has also ventured into fashion with her Ivy Park line.

Jay-Z meanwhile also boasts an equally impressive resume with numerous Grammy awards, business ventures, and acclaimed albums under his belt.

Adding to his impressive achievements, the rapper was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame earlier this year.
She's an acclaimed actress and director with an Oscar and four Emmys to her name.

And on Tuesday in New York City, Regina King was the honoree at the 2021 Moth Ball.

The star, 50, put on quite a show in a gorgeous black mini dress with dramatic sleeves.

Dazzling: Regina King put on quite a show in a gorgeous black mini dress with dramatic sleeves as she arrived at the 2021 Moth Ball in New York City on Tuesday night

King's off-the-shoulder frock was a mix of brocade and semi-sheer fabric that formed horizontal lines across her body and it had a slightly ruffled neckline.

The If Beale Street Could Talk actress wore her hair piled on top of her head and she went bare-legged in pointy toe black heels.

Joining King at the red carpet event was Kemp Powers who wrote the screenplay, adapted from his own play, for her directorial feature debut One Night In Miami.

Both were selected to be honored at the charity gala for elevating 'more inclusive and diverse stories through their brilliant and important work.'

Stylish star: The actress and director, 50, wore her hair piled on top of her head and she went bare-legged in pointy toe black heels

In the spotlight: King, who won an Oscar for If Beale Street Could Talk and made her directorial debut last year with One Night In Miami was the charity gala's honoree

Big night: Joining King at the red carpet event was fellow honoree Kemp Powers who wrote the screenplay, adapted from his own play, for One Night In Miami

Guest: Actor and director Bradley Cooper was among those who came out to support the event

Famous faces: Cooper posed for photos with King and Kemp

One Night In Miami, which premiered on Amazon Prime Video in January, imagines what might have happened had Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X, Sam Cooke and Jim Brown met up and talked about their parts in the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s.

King is following it up by directing a film adaptation of the comic book series Bitter Root, about a family of Black monster hunters.

The film, set amid the Harlem Renaissance, will be produced by Black Panther director Ryan Coogler, according to Variety.

The Image Comics story is set in 1924 in Manhattan's Harlem neighborhood and follows a fractured family of once-great monster hunters confronted with an overwhelming evil force that arrives in New York City.
Many followed Sam Frost's journey to find love on both The Bachelor and The Bachelorette.

But now the Home and Away star has revealed why she's choosing to keep her love life under wraps these days.

Speaking to TV Week, the 32-year-old admitted: 'I have at times talked about things prematurely.'

Keeping it under wraps: Home and Away star Sam Frost revealed this week why she'll never speak about her dating life again - after sparking rumours she had reconciled with her ex Dave Bashford (pictured)

'I think I have tried to keep that [her love life] a bit more private while I figure things about myself, and I have at times talked about things prematurely, and people will be like what is going on,' she said.

'I understand why people are interested in my dating life because I was on The Bachelor and The Bachelorette but I don't really have much to say at the moment anyway.'

Sam sparked rumours she was back together with her ex-boyfriend Dave Bashford when they enjoyed a romantic getaway just after Christmas last year.

'I think I have tried to keep that [her love life] a bit more private while I figure things about myself, and I have at times talked about things prematurely, and people will be like what is going on,' she reportedly said with a laugh

In February, The Daily Telegraph reported that the Home and Away star enjoyed a date with her beau in Coogee, Sydney, and had also been bonding with his family members.

The pair reportedly dined at a sushi restaurant after taking a stroll around the beachside suburb with her beau.

However, it remains unclear if they are still together or not.

Making headlines: Sam sparked rumours she was back together with her ex-boyfriend Dave Bashford when they enjoyed a romantic getaway just after Christmas last year. In February, The Daily Telegraph reported that the Home and Away star enjoyed a date with her beau in Coogee, Sydney, and had also been bonding with his family members

Case of the ex: Sam went through two public splits before ending things with Dave: the first was with Blake Garvey in 2014

Back in September, Sam told TV Week Dave still held a special place in her heart, even after their breakup.

'Dave's an amazing person and that's never going to change,' she said.

'It wasn't an ugly or messy break-up; it was just two people who love each other dearly as friends, and we promised to look after each other.'

Sam went through two public splits before ending things with Dave: the first was with Blake Garvey in 2014, and the second was with Sasha Mielczarek in 2016.

Unlike those splits, Sam said she did not care about any media backlash this time.

'Dave is one of my best friends and for me, we will always support each other, so it was easy. We knew there was a lot of speculation,' she said.
The financial settlement offered to Australia Zoo founder Bob Irwin Snr when he quit the family business 13 years ago has been revealed.

The revelation comes amid a bitter family feud involving the 82-year-old conservationist - the father of the late Steve Irwin - and his granddaughter Bindi, 22, who claims he has 'ignored' her since she was a child.

In January 2008, Bob received a $1million package when he departed the zoo - which he had founded as Beerwah Reptile Park in 1970 - plus a $100,000-per-year pension.

Money matters: The financial settlement offered to Australia Zoo founder Bob Irwin Snr (pictured) when he quit the family business 13 years ago has been revealed

An earlier financial arrangement had been reached in 1992 when Bob and his first wife, Lyn, handed over ownership of the zoo to son Steve and daughter-in-law Terri.

Because Steve and Terri were unable to afford the $300,000 required to purchase Australia Zoo, they instead agreed to a retirement package for Bob and Lyn whereby they would pay them a wage for the rest of their lives.

Lyn died in the year 2000 in a single-vehicle accident.

An Australia Zoo spokesperson said in 2008: 'Australia Zoo, under instruction from Terri Irwin, will continue to provide financial assistance to Bob with a retirement package worth over $1million, plus an ongoing annual pension of $99,840 per year.

'The $1million package includes the purchase of Mr Irwin's 632-hectare property near Kingaroy, and the construction of a new home, a car each for him and his [second] wife [Judy] plus a bulldozer and other equipment.'

Agreement: In January 2008, Bob received a $1million package when he departed the zoo - which he had founded as Beerwah Reptile Park in 1970 - plus a $100,000-per-year pension. Pictured: Steve, Terri and Bindi Irwin

Australia Zoo was opened by Bob and Lyn Irwin in 1970 under the name Beerwah Reptile and Fauna Park.

Their son Steve and his American wife, Terri, eventually transformed the wildlife park into the modern Australia Zoo.

Bolstered by Steve's television fame as 'The Crocodile Hunter', the park became an extremely popular tourist destination.

Terri became the sole owner of the zoo in September 2006 after Steve died aged 44 in a freak accident while filming a wildlife documentary in Batt Reef, Queensland.

It comes after the Irwins' daughter, Bindi, addressed her relationship with her estranged grandfather Bob in a scathing Facebook comment on Sunday, and claimed her family had been supporting Bob financially since 1992.

Financial arrangement: An earlier financial arrangement had been reached in 1992 when Bob and his first wife, Lyn, handed over ownership of the zoo to Steve and Terri Irwin. Because Steve and Terri were unable to afford the $300,000 required to purchase Australia Zoo, they instead agreed to a retirement package for Bob and Lyn whereby they would pay them a wage for the rest of their lives. Pictured: Robert Jnr, Terri and Bindi Irwin

The mother of one wrote: 'I really wish that my entire family could spend time with Grace [her baby daughter]. Unfortunately, my grandfather Bob has shown no interest in spending time with me or my family.'

She went on to claim that Bob had 'returned gifts I've sent after he opened them', and ignored any letters sent from her.

'From the time I was a little girl he has ignored me, preferring to spend time doing anything else rather than being with me,' she continued.

'He has never said a single kind word to me personally. It breaks my heart.'

She went on to say that her mother Terri still writes to him and sends birthday cards and Christmas gifts, but claims they have received no reply.

Feud: It comes after the Irwins' daughter, Bindi, addressed her relationship with her estranged grandfather Bob in a scathing Facebook comment on Sunday, and claimed her family had been supporting Bob financially since 1992. Pictured: Bindi and her husband, Chandler Powell

'We have also been his financial support since 1992 when he retired from Australia Zoo, sending him funds every week,' she added.

'We built him a house on a beautiful property and will always do our best to ensure his wellbeing.

'I hope everyone remembers to be kind to one another but most of all care for your own mental health.

'I have struggled with this relationship my entire life and it brings me enormous pain.'

Claims: The mother of one wrote: 'I really wish that my entire family could spend time with Grace [her baby daughter]. Unfortunately, my grandfather Bob has shown no interest in spending time with me or my family.'. Pictured from left: Bindi, Robert Jnr, Terri and Bob Snr in 2007, one year after Steve's death

Statement: 'We have also been his financial support since 1992 when he retired from Australia Zoo, sending him funds every week,' Bindi said in her Facebook post. 'We built him a house on a beautiful property and will always do our best to ensure his wellbeing'

Following her harsh post, members of Bob's inner circle fired back at Bindi.

Bethany Wheeler, another granddaughter of Bob's by marriage, declared on Facebook: 'The time has come to speak up.'

Ms Wheeler, whose stepmother Mandy is Bob's daughter, defended her grandfather's character, calling him 'one of the most genuinely beautiful humans on this planet' who has 'never spoken out or put down anybody'.

Amanda French, a family friend who co-wrote Bob's 2016 autobiography The Last Crocodile Hunter, also accused Bindi of assassinating her grandfather's character.

'To read the sad comments online today has sickened me, and people who are closest to him,' Ms French wrote on Facebook.

She described Bob as 'kind, gentle, generous and extremely f**king introverted'.
They may have relocated from Hollywood to Australia last year.

But Rose Byrne, 41, and her partner Bobby Cannavale, 51, oozed tinsel town glamour as they attended a $500-per-ticket charity dinner in Sydney's CBD on Tuesday night.

The couple were spotted arriving at the venue in matching black-and-white outfits, with Rose turning heads in a sleek black blazer and netted mini dress.

Stylish couple alert! Rose Byrne, 41, and her partner Bobby Cannavale, 51, (both pictured) looked glamorous as they attended a $500-per-ticket charity dinner in Sydney's CBD on Tuesday night

The Bridesmaids star completed her look with a pair of black platform heels, a white Chanel handbag worth around $6,000, gold hoop earrings, several rings and a chain necklace.

She wore her chestnut locks out in a dramatic side-parting, and enhanced her age-defying complexion with a light dusting of makeup.

Her American beau meanwhile strutted his stuff in a suave black BOSS suit and tie.

The couple that dresses together, stays together! The long-term lovebirds were spotted arriving at the venue in matching black-and-white outfits, with Rose turning heads in a sleek black blazer and netted mini dress

Stylish: The Bridesmaids star completed her look with a pair of black platform heels, a white Chanel handbag worth around $6,000, gold hoop earrings, several rings and a chain necklace

He topped off his look with a white button-up shirt and black dress shoes.

Looking relaxed, the pair were seen holding hands as they made their way towards the philanthropic event.

Also attending the event was Roslyn Packer, 83, the widow of media mogul Kerry Packer.

United: Looking relaxed, the pair were seen holding hands as they made their way towards the philanthropic event

VIP guest: Also attending the event was Roslyn Packer, 83, (left) the widow of media mogul Kerry Packer

Roslyn, a noted philanthropist, looked stylish in a blazer and floral dress as she left the event arm-in-arm with a suited gentleman.

The mother of casino magnate James Packer completed her look with a pearl necklace and low heels.

Also in attendance was Roslyn's granddaughter Francesca Packer Barham, but the heiress was not pictured outside the venue.

Charitable and chic! Rosylin, a noted philanthropist, looked stylish in a blazer and floral dress as she left the event arm-in-arm with a suited gentleman

The outing comes after Rose sent her fans into a frenzy by calling Bobby her 'husband', sparking speculation the pair have secretly wed.

The actress made the statement during an interview with Shape magazine in May.

While discussing her time in hotel quarantine, she told the publication: 'I got into being an artisanal cocktail waitress, but I'm really slow at it. My husband will be like, I've been waiting for 25 mins.'

Details: The mother of casino magnate James Packer compelted her look with a pearl necklace and low heels

The Two Hands star has been dating Bobby since 2012 and often refers to him as her husband - despite never announcing an engagement or marriage.

However, they may secretly be engaged as Rose has been sporting a diamond ring on her left hand wedding finger for years.

Rose and Bobby, who have worked together onscreen in Annie, Spy and Adult Beginners, share two sons, Rocco, five, and Rafa, three.

Pet name? The Two Hands star often refers to Bobby as her husband, but the pair have never in fact married
Michael B. Jordan announced Tuesday night on Instagram that he would be finding a new name for his recently launched rum line, originally named J'Ouvert.

The 34-year-old actor swiftly came under fire from social media users over the weekend after he was accused of cultural appropriation for using the term, despite not being Trinbagonian or Caribbean.

Nicki Minaj, 38, joined the fray earlier on Tuesday when she urged him to change the 'offensive' name, even though she wished him well.

Letting go: Michael B. Jordan, 34, announced Tuesday night on Instagram that he was changing the name of his J'Ouvert rum line after social media users claimed it was an example of cultural appropriation because it's also the name of a Caribbean tradition

Jordan shared a simple text post to his Instagram Stories responding to the torrent of criticism.

'I just wanna say on behalf of myself & my partners, our intention was never to offend or hurt a culture (we love & respect) & hoped to celebrate & shine a positive light on,' he wrote. 'Last few days has been a lot of listening. A lot of learning & engaging in countless community conversations...'

The Black Panther star made it clear that the rum would no longer be named J'Ouvert.

'We hear you. I hear you & want to be clear that we are in the process of renaming. We sincerely apologize & look forward to introducing a brand we can all be proud of,' he concluded.

Looking for a name: : The Black Panther star made it clear that the rum would no longer be named J'Ouvert and said it wasn't his 'intention' to 'offend'

Standing out: Earlier in the day, Nick Minaj became one of the highest-profile people criticizing him when she reposted the history of J'Ouvert and asked him to change the name; seen in 2019 in NYC

Earlier in the day, Nick Minaj became one of the highest-profile people criticizing the alcohol label when she shared a a post from another account describing the history of the J'Ouvert tradition and its roots in Trinidadian and Caribbean culture.

She singled out the actor specifically in her caption.

'I'm sure MBJ didn't intentionally do anything he thought Caribbean ppl would find offensive  but now that you are aware, change the name & continue to flourish & prosper,' she wrote, adding an emoji for the flag of Trinidad and Tobago.

Minaj (given name: Onika Maraj-Petty) was born in Saint James in Trinidad and Tobago, and she later moved to New York City when she was five.

She and others criticized the brand name, which they saw as cultural appropriation, shortly after the Without Remorse star launched the brand over the weekend and filed for a trademark.

Measured response: 'I'm sure MBJ didn't intentionally do anything he thought Caribbean ppl would find offensive  but now that you are aware, change the name & continue to flourish & prosper,' she wrote

Social media users were up in arms over the name J'Ouvert, which originates from the French word 'jour ouvert', meaning day break or morning, and signals the start of Carnival, which began in the 1800s and is still practiced globally by people in and from the Caribbean.

Brooklyn and Boston have some of the largest Carnival celebrations in the Northeastern United States.

Many critics on social media took offense to Jordan's trademark filing and took aim at one particular line that says, 'The wording 'J'OUVERT' has no meaning in a foreign language.'

Twitter user @lesliemac said, 'Michael B Jordan has launched a rum brand called J'ouvert & has filed a trademark for the word J'ouvert. In his filing he says the word 'has no meaning in any language.' I am livid. Black Capitalism is still Capitalism.'

Scroll down for video.

Going live: Jordan launched his 'J'Ouvert' rum line over the weekend which was criticized for cultural appropriation

Bad timing: Michael B. Jordan, pictured here at the BACARDI Mixology Lab on February 13, 2019 in New York City, announced his new venture in an Instagram story over the weekend

Not fans: An online petition to stop the trademark of the word 'J'Ouvert' has nearly 12,000 signatures as of Tuesday

The petition calls for the filing to be dismissed, and for Jordan 'to do the right thing by calling this a loss.'

In the online petition on change.org, organizer Jay Blessed said, 'We are not a powerless people! We are a people rich in culture, history and love.'

'It's time we love ourselves enough to stop the sale of our culture to foreign entities that do not respect or value our global contributions, and who do not support and uphold our countries in respectful, long-lasting, tangible and verifiable ways!'

Twitter user @ashoncrawley said, 'You cannot own a tradition. You cannot trademark a tradition. capitalism pretends that these things can be private property and attempts to manage and financialize tradition. and it will always always always be vulgar to do so.

Not having it: Many people took to Twitter to vent their anger over Jordan's new venture

Minister of Trade and Industry Paula Gopee-Scoon told Trinidad and Tobago Newsday the issue was 'of extreme concern' owing to the intellectual property question.

Gopsee-Scoon told the news outlet that they'll gather information first and then work with the intellectual property office of the Ministry of the Attorney General.

'We'll do the necessary investigation and, as always, seek to support anything that is Trinidad but at the same time protect what is ours,' Gopsee-Scoon told Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.

'This is of keen interest, not only to the Ministry of Trade and Industry but also to the intellectual property office of the Ministry of the Attorney General, and the Ministry of Tourism and Culture. We all have an interest. Trinidad and Tobago is our interest.'
You never know who you will see wandering the streets of Sydney after a slew of new film and television productions hit Aussie shores.

Sam Worthington, 44, was spotted in Sydney's eastern suburbs on Wednesday while shooting the Stan original movie Transfusion.

Transfusion is being filmed entirely in Sydney and also stars local actress Phoebe Tonkin, 31.

Caught: Aussie actor Sam Worthington, 44, was spotted in Sydney's eastern suburbs while filming the Stan original film Transfusion

The Avatar actor was sporting a very unique look - showing off a new head of long blonde hair tucked behind his ears.

He wore a long-sleeved button-up blue shirt, jeans and brown shoes.

Sam appeared to be in a solemn mood as he was walking on the set of the film.

A unique style: The Avatar actor was sporting a very unique look - showing off a new head of long blonde hair tucked behind his ears

He was then pictured talking to the director of the film (and fellow actor) Matt Nable.

Transfusion is Nable's directorial debut. He was most recently seen in the latest season of the Aussie hit crime show, 'Mr Inbetween.'

In Transfusion, Sam will star as Ryan Logan, a former special forces operative, who is battling to cope with life after the loss of his wife.

Flashback: Sam looked much different with shorter hair in 2017 (pictured above)

Buddies: Sam was pictured talking to the director of the film (and fellow actor) Matt Nable

Ryan is soon thrust into the criminal underworld to keep his only son from being taken from him.

Phoebe will portray Logan's wife Justine in the film, while Nable will play Johnny.

Stan's Chief content officer Cailah Scobie said that viewers would be in for a 'powerful, thought-provoking Australian thriller'.

Watch the Stan Original Film Transfusion, exclusively on Stan next year.
Former Married At First Sight star Amanda Micallef has been rushed to hospital.

Early Wednesday morning, the brunette shared a harrowing update from the emergency room and said she was suffering 'the worst pain' she's experienced in years.

Posting a photo of herself looking worse for wear in her hospital bed, she wrote: 'Currently in emergency, can't talk my throat has blown up over night, fever is high!'

Struggling: Former Married At First Sight star Amanda Micallef has been rushed to the hospital with a fever

Amanda added: 'Worst pain I've been in for a good 4-5 years.'

In an earlier post, Amanda said she was suffering from rhinovirus, which is a form of cold.

Later that day, the former reality star said that she was recovering at home with 'strong meds' to help.

She also thanked her thousands of fans for their support and messages.

Thankful: Later that day, the former reality star said that she was recovering at home with 'strong meds' to help and thanked her fans for their support

Meanwhile, Amanda's former Married At First Sight partner and co-star Tash Herz has recently found love with a new girlfriend.

The tattooed bartender is now dating Canadian screenwriter Stephanie Fabrizi, who is best known for penning the erotic lesbian film Below Her Mouth.

The couple recently made their relationship Instagram official and have been posting photos together all over their respective accounts.

Happy ending: Amanda's Married At First Sight ex Tash Herz has found love with Canadian screenwriter Stephanie Fabrizi (pictured together)

According to Stephanie, they met online and spent nine months conversing long-distance due to COVID-19 travel restrictions.

Tash has already posted countless images of herself and Steph cuddling and canoodling.

Both Tash and Amanda found fame as the first-ever lesbian couple on Married At First Sight last year.
One of Paris Hilton's longtime goals of being being a billionaire will seemingly go unfulfilled, as the socialite has more important goals these days: having babies.

The 40-year-old spoke with Variety to promote her new YouTube documentary This Is Paris, which was filmed just two years ago.

The reality star had a longtime goal of becoming a billionaire before production started, but now she's focused on starting a family.

New goal: One of Paris Hilton's longtime goals of being being a billionaire will seemingly go unfulfilled, as the socialite has more important goals these days: having babies

'It was such a goal of mine before because I wasnt happy in my personal life,' Hilton revealed during the podcast interview.

'And also just going through what I went through, I always saw money as freedom and independence, and not being controlled,' she added

'And I think thats why I just had that as my focus in life. And now that I am so incredibly happy and in love in my personal life Im not really interested in billions anymore. Im more interested in babies,' Hilton continued.

Interview: 'It was such a goal of mine before because I wasnt happy in my personal life,' Hilton revealed during the podcast interview

The blonde bombshell has been dating entrepreneur Carter Reum since December 2019, with the couple getting engaged in February.

It isn't immediately clear when the wedding will take place, though Hilton is clearly focused on starting a family after tying the knot.

The wedding planning will be chronicled in a new series entitled Paris in Love, debuting on the Peacock streaming service.

Engaged: The blonde bombshell has been dating entrepreneur Carter Reum since December 2019, with the couple getting engaged in February

Hilton insisted in another interview, 'Its not reality television. Its a docuseries,' though it's unclear when the project will air.

Hilton revealed in the documentary that she was mentally and physically abused at the Provo Canyon School in Utah.

She has since gone on to become an activist for legislation to regulate boarding schools, speaking at the Utah Senate.

Docuseries: Hilton insisted in another interview, 'Its not reality television. Its a docuseries,' though it's unclear when the project will air

'I totally felt like Elle Woods when I was speaking at the [Utah] senate,' Hilton said, referring to Reese Witherspoon's character in Legally Blonde.

'When I went and signed the bill with them I literally felt like I had that Elle Woods moment,' she added.

She added the documentary was a 'healing' experience for her, as she realized she needs to cut certain people out of her life.

'I'm sick of people using me. Im just not going to have negative people in my life anymore. Ive wasted too much time having bad people in my life who were only trying to use me,' she said.
In recent years she's become known for her wavy strawberry blonde tresses.

But on Wednesday, Nicole Kidman, 54, put her natural curls on display, as the actress left a soundstage in Sydney.

It was a throwback to the look the Australian star adopted in her early movies like Days of Thunder and Far and Away.

Back to her roots: On Wednesday, Nicole Kidman, 54, put her natural curls on display, as the actress left a soundstage in Sydney

The Undoing actress was her usual chic self in a double-breasted coat worn over a white blouse and a black turtleneck.

On her lower half the ex-wife of Tom Cruise wore grey check pants and low-heeled patent leather shoes.

Last year Kidman - who recently returned to Australia from a brief visit to the United States - courted controversy by avoiding Australia's mandatory hotel quarantine on multiple occasions.

In December, the Moulin Rouge star was allowed to skip hotel quarantine for the second time, both times bunkering down at her $6.5million Southern Highlands estate.

Something old, something new: It was a throwback to the look the Australian star adopted in her early movies like Days of Thunder and Far and Away

The look: The Undoing actress was her usual chic self in a double-breasted coat worn over a white blouse and a black turtleneck

Nicole completed her 14 days of mandatory quarantine at her 45 hectare NSW property after a short trip to Ireland.

The actress was required overseas to shoot scenes for Robert Eggers Viking epic, The Northman, alongside Alexander Skarsgard and Ethan Hawke.

Nicole flew to Belfast to shoot her part after wrapping on-camera work for HBO's new series, Nine Perfect Strangers, in the NSW coastal town of Byron Bay.

Outcry: Last year Kidman - who recently returned to Australia from a brief visit to the United States - courted controversy by avoiding Australia's mandatory hotel quarantine on multiple occasions

History repeating: In December, the Moulin Rouge star was allowed to skip hotel quarantine for the second time

According to The Daily Telegraph, the A-list star was allowed to self-isolate at home again instead of staying at a state-approved hotel for 14 days, which is what the vast majority of international arrivals must do amid the coronavirus pandemic.

According to the NSW Government website, people returning from overseas are only exempt from staying at a quarantine hotel if there are 'strong medical, health or compassionate grounds'.

It is unclear under which grounds Nicole was granted her exemption.

By contrast, her Australia co-star Hugh Jackman completed his quarantine in a Sydney hotel, entertaining his fans with many amusing posts of his boredom killing exercises like catching blueberries in his mouth.
Tom Gleeson has been refused entry into Western Australia after the state immediately shut their border to NSW, following a spike in infections in Sydney.

Tom, 47, shared a post on Wednesday with the screenshot of the text message that refused him entry into WA - after he had already arrived in Perth.

He also posted an image of his 'COVID-19 digital certificate,' which acknowledges that he's been vaccinated for the disease.

Locked out! Tom Gleeson has been refused entry into Western Australia after the state immediately shut their border to NSW, following a spike in infections in Sydney

In the caption for the post, the comedian wrote: 'Just arrived in Perth to be told NSW residents arent allowed in.'

'I've visited no exposure sites, no hotspots and heres the fun part  IM FULLY VACCINATED! LOL!' he continued, bemused.

He then added in brackets, 'Sorry for cancelled gigs Perth. I did my best.'

'IM FULLY VACCINATED!': Tom shared a post on Wednesday with the screenshot of the text message that refused him entry

Tom's followers appeared dismayed by the news in the comments.

One fan said, 'What! But you're from Victoria?' while another simply wrote, 'Crazy!!'

One follower poked fun at the situation, refencing Tom's show, Hard Chat, and catchphrase by commenting, 'We're playing HARD.'

Not a laughing matter: Tom's followers appeared dismayed by the news in the comments

According to Tom's vaccination certificate, he received the Pfizer jab on the 25th of May and his second dose on the 17th of June.

The certificate also states it's 'valid' from the date of his second shot.

However, it has not been made clear by the government whether or not the certificate can be used as a 'vaccine passport,' so travellers can move freely without being impeded by restrictions.

Western Australia, along with Tasmania and South Australia, shut their border to NSW this afternoon after the state recorded 16 new coronavirus cases.
Joh Bailey hair salon in Double Bay has been added to Sydney's growing list of Covid exposure sites, just days after former WAG-turned-influencer Phoebe Burgess visited for a blow-dry.

The venue was exposed from June 17 to June 19.

The 32-year-old ex wife of former NRL star Sam Burgess shared a series of photos from inside the salon on her Instagram page on Tuesday.

New alert: Joh Bailey hair salon in Double Bay is added to Sydney's list of Covid exposure sites - just days after Phoebe Burgess (pictured) visited for a blow-dry

Phoebe visited Joh Bailey on June 22, days after the exposure.

Double Bay's Matteo restaurant has also been added to Sydney's exposure list, as well as Paddington's Christo's Pizzeria.

Anyone who has been to the venues are considered a close contact and must get tested immediately.

Celebrity hairstylist Joh Bailey opened the doors to his first hair salon in Double Bay in 1985.

He currently owns three other salons in New South Wales in Sydney's CBD, Bondi Junction and Bowral.

Over the past 35 years, Joh's clientele has included Olivia Newton-John, Kylie Minogue, Eva Longoria, Elle Macpherson and most notably the late Princess Diana.

New exposure sight: On Wednesday, it was announced the Joh Bailey salon was exposed from June 17 to June 19

Phoebe visited to the hair salon on June 22, days after the exposure

WHAT ARE THE NEW COVID RESTRICTIONS? From 4pm Wednesday for one week: Visitors to households will be limited to 5 guests  including children; Masks will be compulsory in all indoor non-residential settings, including workplaces, and at organised outdoor events; Drinking while standing at indoor venues will not be allowed; Singing by audiences at indoor shows or by congregants at indoor places of worship will not be allowed; Dancing will not be allowed at indoor hospitality venues or nightclubs however, dancing is allowed at weddings for the bridal party only (no more than 20 people); Dance and gym classes limited to 20 per class (masks must be worn); The one person per four square metre rule will be re-introduced for all indoor and outdoor settings, including weddings and funerals; Outdoor seated events will be limited to 50% seated capacity; Previous public transport capacity limits, represented by green dots, will be reintroduced Advertisement

Those who were at the salon during the affected times received a text message from NSW Health.

'You have been exposed to the COVID-19 virus at Joh Bailey Double Bay on 17 June 2021,' began the message.

'You may have COVID-19 and could give it to others.'

It then orders the recipient to 'self-isolate until 11.59pm on 1 July 2021', and informs them that they will receive a second text with 'information about getting a COVID-19 test'.

Health scare: Those who were at the salon during the affected times received a text message from NSW Health

It comes as Sydney's Covid outbreak rose to 31 on Wednesday, mostly linked to the Bondi Junction epicentre, prompting sweeping restrictions across the city.

New South Wales has recorded 13 cases of Covid-19 community transmission overnight but Premier Gladys Berejiklian has stopped short of sending Sydney into a hard lockdown.

For the next week from 4pm on Wednesday, household gatherings will be limited to five visitors and masks will be compulsory in all all indoor venues, including workplaces and gym classes.

Drinking while standing in pubs and bars will also be banned and those who live and work in seven hotspot council areas will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason.

Those council areas are the City of Sydney, Waverley, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick - home to about 782,000 residents.

Celebrity hairstylist Joh Bailey owns fours salons in New South Wales in Sydney's CBD, Bondi Junction, Double Bay and Bowral. Pictured Roxy Jacenko visiting the salon

Success: Over the past 35 years, celebrity hairstylist Joh Bailey's (right) clientele has included Olivia Newton-John, Kylie Minogue, Eva Longoria (left), Elle Macpherson and most notably the late Princess Diana

The tightened rules - which also include a 50 per cent capacity restriction for outdoor seated events - will apply to Sydney, the Blue Mountains and Central Coast and Shellharbour regions.

The majority of the new cases stem from a birthday party on Saturday in West Hoxton, in western Sydney, which included the Bondi Junction Westfield worker.

A day before, a two-year-old child who attended Little Zak's childcare in Narellan Vale, near Campbelltown, on Monday.

The Bondi cluster began last week after a Sydney Airport limousine driver tested positive to the highly-infectious Delta variant, which started spreading at Bondi Junction's busy Westfield shopping centre.

It comes as Sydney's Covid outbreak rose to 31 on Wednesday. Those who live and work in seven hotspot suburbs will not be allowed to leave metropolitan Sydney unless they have an essential reason
It was revealed in May that Elsa Pataky and Chris Hemsworth had hired a former Bachelorette star as their new manny.

And on Wednesday, Courtney Dober was pictured arriving in Sydney alongside the Spanish actress and her children India Rose, eight, and twin sons Sasha and Tristan, six, after the team flew in from Byron Bay.

A beaming Elsa, 44, had wrapped up to avoid the winter chill as she headed to an awaiting vehicle with Courtney, wearing a thick brown jumper and long flared trousers.

New gig! On Wednesday, Elsa Pataky was spotted landing in Sydney alongside her new manny Courtney Dober and her children India Rose, eight, and twin sons Sasha and Tristan, six after flying in from Byron Bay

She wore minimal makeup on her face, and whisked her brunette locks into a casual ponytail.

Elsa looked in high spirits as she smiled at passers-by while carrying her hand luggage to the car, at one point placing her hand on her chest while grinning widely.

She then appeared in deep conversation with another male, presumed to be her driver, where she was seen pointing her hands in the air emphatically.

Winter beauty: A beaming Elsa, 44, had wrapped up to avoid the winter chill as she headed to her vehicle with Courtney, wearing a thick brown jumper and long flared trousers for the occasion

Pretty: Elsa looked in very high spirits as she smiled at passers-by while carrying her bags to the car, at one point placing her hand on her chest while grinning widely

Natural beauty: She wore minimal makeup on her face, and whisked her brunette locks into a casual ponytail

Helping hand: Courtney, who appeared in the 2016 season of the Bachelorette franchise with Georgia Love, helped stack the luggage in the car as the group headed into the city

Direction: Courtney, who appeared in the 2016 season of the Bachelorette franchise with Georgia Love, helped stack the luggage in the car as the group headed into the city

Courtney, who appeared in the 2016 season of the Bachelorette franchise with Georgia Love, helped stack the luggage in the car as the family headed into the city.

He wore a blue jumper, navy trousers and white trainers for the outing.

The reality star had first been spotted working with the Hemsworth clan on the set of Elsa's upcoming move Interceptor in May, where he was seen playing with Sasha and Tristan while she prepared for her next scene in the trailer.

Big break: Courtney, whose last job was on US renovation show The Fixers, was working as a builder when he was cast on Bachelorette. Seen here in 2016

Attentive: Courtney was seen packing everything into the car before the group made their way into the city

Welcome to the family! The reality star had first been spotted working with the Hemsworth clan on the set of Elsa's upcoming move Interceptor, where he was seen playing with Sasha and Tristan while she prepared for her next scene in the trailer

Mystery: It's not known exactly why Elsa has returned to Sydney, as filming for Interceptor wrapped up weeks ago

Home away from home: Elsa has been in Sydney a lot recently, while she and husband Chris both filmed different projects in the city

It's not known exactly why Elsa has returned to Sydney, as filming for Interceptor wrapped up weeks ago.

Meanwhile Courtney, whose last job was on US renovation show The Fixers, was working as a builder when he was cast on Bachelorette.

He was ultimately rejected by star Georgia Love in the tenth episode of the popular reality TV franchise.
The Fast and the Furious franchise has always been about family, but that may have been truer than ever in the upcoming F9: The Fast Saga.

Vin Diesel stopped by The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Tuesday to promote the new film, in theaters June 25, where he opened up about working with his 10-year-old son Vincent in the movie.

The xXx star got emotional when talking about working alongside his son, along with his co-star Jordana Brewster's son Jordan in the high-octane sequel.

Family: The Fast and the Furious franchise has always been about family, but that may have been truer than ever in the upcoming F9: The Fast Saga

Fallon: Vin Diesel stopped by The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Tuesday to promote the new film, in theaters June 25, where he opened up about working with his 10-year-old son Vincent in the movie

When Fallon mentioned his son Vincent, he leapt out of his seat, dabbing tears from his eyes, before saying that it actually wasn't his idea to put Vincent in the movie.

'First off, it wasn't my idea, it was Justin Lin, the director. We've been making these movies for so long that every time one of my children were born, I was usually working on a Fast & Furious movie.'

'The thing I remember the most was coming home that day, because when you see the movie, its kind of a deep scene so Dom is in a deep state of mind,' Diesel adds.

Crowd: When Fallon mentioned his son Vincent, he leapt out of his seat, dabbing tears from his eyes, before saying that it actually wasn't his idea to put Vincent in the movie

Coming home: 'The thing I remember the most was coming home that day, because when you see the movie, its kind of a deep scene so Dom is in a deep state of mind,' Diesel adds

'My son was watching me work the whole day and it wasnt until I got home that I saw a twinkle in his eye because he had finally seen his father come home, opposed to being with Dom Toretto the whole day.

Tuesday also marked the exact 20th anniversary of the franchise's first film, 2001's The Fast and the Furious, hitting theaters, which was astonishing to Diesel.

'If you would have told me 20 years from now we'd be here, 20 years ago I would have thought you were crazy,' Diesel said.

Work: 'My son was watching me work the whole day and it wasnt until I got home that I saw a twinkle in his eye because he had finally seen his father come home, opposed to being with Dom Toretto the whole day'

Crazy: 'If you would have told me 20 years from now we'd be here, 20 years ago I would have thought you were crazy,' Diesel said

Diesel has been dating Mexican model Paloma Jimenez since 2007, and the couple share three kids together, 13-year-old daughter Hania, 10-year-old Vincent and six-year-old Pauline.

The action star made headlines earlier today as well when he opened up about his feud with Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, which boiled over in The Fate of the Furious.

'It was a tough character to embody, the Hobbs character,' Diesel told Men's Health of The Rock's character, Luke Hobbs.

Headlines: The action star made headlines earlier today as well when he opened up about his feud with Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, which boiled over in The Fate of the Furious

'My approach at the time was a lot of tough love to assist in getting that performance where it needed to be,' he added.

'As a producer to say, "Okay, we're going to take Dwayne Johnson, who's associated with wrestling, and we're going to force this cinematic world, audience members, to regard his character as someone that they don't know' - Hobbs hits you like a ton of bricks,' he said.

'That's something that I'm proud of, that aesthetic. That took a lot of work. We had to get there and sometimes, at that time, I could give a lot of tough love. Not Felliniesque, but I would do anything I'd have to do in order to get performances in anything I'm producing,' he added.
Actress Jessica Marais is mourning the death of her family dog, Ollie.

Announcing the sad news to her Instagram on Wednesday, the 36-year-old shared a picture of her beloved pooch.

'Go run through the never-ending dog park (where there are no rules) with the wind behind your ears like falcor and make mum chase you!' she wrote.

Heartbreaking news: Actress Jessica Marais is mourning the death of her family dog, Ollie. Pictured at the TV Week Logie Awards on April 23, 2017 in Melbourne

Touching tribute: On Wednesday, Jessica paid tribute to her pet pooch, writing: 'Ollie, what a gift and a loss and a teacher'

'You brought us all together and always gave unconditional and beautiful love in that very special way sometimes only animals can,' she continued.

'Thank you especially for all the joy and mateship you brought Opah Pete. Ollie, what a gift and a loss and a teacher.'

Jessica's heartache comes less than a year after the death of her mother, Karen.

In August, Jessica's friend and Packed to the Rafters co-star Hugh Sheridan confirmed the heartbreaking news in an Instagram post.

'I'm grieving for my dearest and sweetest friend, who has now lost both of her parents far too young,' he wrote at the time.

Rest in peace: Jessica is pictured with her late mother (left) at the Logie Awards on May 1, 2011

Three days earlier, Jessica had hinted at a death in the family when she shared a childhood photo to Instagram of herself with her mother and sister at the beach.

While she did not disclose her mother's death in the caption, several of her friends understood the significance of the post and offered their condolences.

Jessica was just nine years old when she watched her father, university dean Tony Marais, collapse and die of a heart attack.

Tribute: Jessica had shared this childhood photo to Instagram of herself with her mother and sister at the beach. She did not disclose her mother's death in the caption, but several of her friends understood the significance of the post and offered their condolences

Actor Hugh, who has known Jessica since their university days, shared his memories of Karen and said how proud she was of her daughter.

'We've helped each other through our lives changing in so many ways. Our wins and highs met extreme lows sometimes, but we always made it through,' he wrote.

'I can't tell you how s**t I feel knowing I can't hug you right now. To have distance between us when I want to be with you,' added Hugh, who living in Los Angeles at the time.

'I love you, Jess. I'll be back very soon and I will hug you for a very long time (after I get lot of quarantine).'

Sharing the love: Jessica's friend and Packed to the Rafters co-star Hugh Sheridan confirmed the heartbreaking news in an Instagram post on Tuesday
Big Brother star Tilly Whitfeld has hit back at online trolls and disgruntled co-stars who have accused the reality show of being rigged.

Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, the 21-year-old said that her housemates knew to expect twists and turns on the reality show.

'This is what we signed up for, obviously it was quite frustrating, but we all signed a contract,' she explained.

Outspoken: Big Brother star Tilly Whitfeld, 21, (pictured) has hit back at online trolls and disgruntled co-stars who have accused the reality show of being rigged

'Big Brother is no way rigged, we knew what we were coming in to,' she continued.

Tilly said that fans shouldn't be slamming the reality show, because Big Brother was always going to surprise the housemates when they least expect it.

'There was always going to be secret rooms and people going back into the show,' she said.

'This is what we signed up for': Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, the 21-year-old said that her housemates knew to expect twists and turns on the reality show

Earlier this month, fans took to social media to vent their frustrations after Charlotte McCristal was sent packing based on Daniel Hayes and Sarah Jane Adams' ability to vote her out - despite placing her up for nomination.

It comes as Tilly admitted it took her 'months' to get over her 'traumatic' exit from the show.

She went on the show with the motto 'act dumb, play smart' - breaking a record with her number of challenge wins.

Speaking out: Tilly said fans shouldn't be slamming the reality show, because Big Brother was always going to surprise the housemates when they least expect it. Pictured in the mirror room

But despite her best efforts, Tilly was ultimately sent home during a game of Russian Roulette against housemate Ari Kimber.

'I don't know if you could see my face, I just went numb. I couldn't even cry,' she said.

Big Brother continues Wednesday at 7.30pm on Seven
Things got very personal on Tuesday's Loose Women when the panel picked apart a new Norwegian sex guide.

Ruth Langsford, Carol McGiffin, Gloria Hunniford and Denise Welch examined explicit images from the guide, which showed couples in different sexual positions.

They then talked about their own love-making experiences.

Afternoon delight: Things got very personal on Tuesday's Loose Women when the panel picked apart a new Norwegian sex guide

'The people in these pictures are not actually having sexual intercourse, but they are real life couples,' Ruth explained.

But Carol insisted she didn't need a guide.

'Look I read the joy of sex when I was 17, so I don't need to, frankly. I think a lot of people do prefer to sort these things out by themselves,' she said.

Denise added: 'When we talk about sex on this show, because we're all older women, the amount of comments afterwards of people not wanting us to talk about it because we're older.

Raunchy: Ruth Langsford, Carol McGiffin, Gloria Hunniford and Denise Welch examined explicit images from the guide, which showed couples in different sexual positions

Intimate chat: They then talked about their own love-making experiences. 'The people in these pictures are not actually having sexual intercourse, but they are real life couples,' Ruth explained

Denise added: 'When we talk about sex on this show, because we're all older women, the amount of comments afterwards of people not wanting us to talk about it because we're older'

'Well, I enjoy sex now more than ever.'

Gloria chimed in: 'Obviously I'm the oldest on the panel today, and if you think I'm going to talk about my sex life you have another thing coming.'

The book features 60 positions that are intended for people with knee and hip replacements, pregnant women, and those with back trouble.

The black and white images had the intimate areas of the models blocked out by a giant Loose Women logo.
Phoebe Tonkin is one of Australia's most well-known acting exports.

And on Wednesday, the 31-year-old actress looked radiant as she shared a gallery of photos of herself soaking up the sun in Sydney.

Phoebe showed off her incredibly fit physique dressed in a chic high-waisted polka dot bikini while she sat by the edge of a pool.

Natural beauty! Phoebe Tonkin, 31, looked radiant while enjoying the sunshine on Wednesday

In one photo, Phoebe can be seen sitting on the floor while leaning on her thigh.

The brunette beauty wore her long tresses out and relaxed.

Phoebe showed off her natural complexion, styling her look with some pink lipstick.

Loving it! The Vampire Diaries beauty looked to be making the most of her time off during a filming break in a new gallery of photos

A second photograph, also shared to her Instagram stories, sees the beauty flaunt her taut midriff in a white crop top and grey coloured tracksuit pants.

The Vampire Diaries actress is back in Australia filming new Stan series Transfusion alongside Avatar star Sam Worthington.

In the series, Sam will star as Ryan Logan, a former special forces operative, who is battling to cope with life after the loss of his wife.

New gig: The Vampire Diaries actress is back in Australia filming new Stan series Transfusion alongside Avatar star Sam Worthington

Meanwhile, Phoebe will portray his wife Justine.

Stan's Chief content officer Cailah Scobie said that viewers would be in for a 'powerful, thought-provoking Australian thriller'.

'We're delighted to welcome Matt Nable as actor, writer and director, along with the star-studded cast of Sam Worthington and Phoebe Tonkin,' she said.
Good Morning Britain ratings have begun picking up again, but is still a far cry away from its average of 1.1 million prior to Piers Morgan's departure in March.

Viewership for the ITV breakfast show reached an average of 620,000 on Tuesday June 22, with 22.7 per cent viewership over the past month.

Tuesday's episode also saw a peak of 940,000 viewers watching the programme at 8.15 AM, and the show had an average share of 20.1 per cent of viewership.

Better: Good Morning Britain ratings pick up to 620,000 average viewers on June 22 (pictured) but is still far cry away from peak of 1.1 million prior to Piers Morgan's exit

Good Morning Britain shares of viewing remains up since January 2021, averaging a 22.7 per cent share which is 0.7 per cent more than the show's share in 2020, and 1.9 per cent more than in 2019.

A spokesperson for ITV told MailOnline: 'Good Morning Britain is currently seeing its highest share of viewing in a decade alongside ITV's other flagship Daytime shows Lorraine and This Morning.'

It is understood the show has seen an almost 20 per cent rise in viewers of house people with children, which is a key commercial demographic for breakfast audiences for the programme.

Dropping: The show had an average of 1.1 million viewers days before Piiers left the show (pictured on March 2)

Improvement: Tuesday's episode also saw a peak of 940,000 viewers watching the programme at 8.15 AM, and the show had an average share of 20.1 per cent of viewership

From January to May, the demographic makes up an average 27.4 per cent shares for the programme which is 4.2 per cent more than 2020.

Meanwhile, viewers in the 16-34 age bracket has also seen a rise, with over 49 per cent tuning into the show from January to May, and averaging a 25.4 per cent share of viewership, an 8.4 per cent increase since 2020.

On June 1, Good Morning Britain's ratings plunged to just 450,000 viewers on Tuesday's episode.

It comes after Piers claimed ITV bosses had been in touch asking him to return to the show, after he sensationally quit following his comments about Meghan Markle and subsequent onscreen clash with co-star Alex Beresford.

Statement: A spokesperson for ITV said the show 'is currently seeing its highest share of viewing in a decade alongside ITV's other flagship Daytime shows Lorraine and This Morning'

Disappointing: On June 1, GMB's ratings plunged to just 450,000 viewers (pictured)

The June 1 edition of GMB was hosted by Adil Ray and Ranvir Singh, with a small number of viewers watching following the May Bank Holiday.

A mere 450,000 viewers tuned into the programme, one of the lowest figure in the show's seven-year history, and a far cry from the heyday when Piers was on the panel.

It was just twelve weeks earlier that GMB brought in its highest ever viewership, with a peak of 1.9 million viewers watching the panel react to the Megan and Harry Oprah interview which had aired overnight. Its viewership averaged out at 1,151,400 million.

Departure: It comes after Piers claimed ITV bosses had been in touch asking him to return to the show, after he sensationally quit following his comments about Meghan Markle

The following day, March 9, an average of 1.29 million viewers saw Piers storm off GMB after clashing with Alex Beresford about the Meghan and Harry interview following its broadcast on UK screens.

That programme ended up being Piers' last, as just hours later he announced he'd quit the show.

Following news that Piers had quit, the first show following his exit on March 10 saw ratings quickly take a hit, with an average of 1.24 million viewers watching Susanna react to her presenting partner's exit alongside stand-in Ranvir.

At odds: Piers stormed off GMB in March as he discussed the Harry and Meghan interview, where he expressed his belief that Meghan was lying during the chat with Oprah Winfrey

Numbers continued to slide as the week went on, and by the week's end ratings had slipped to just 850,000 viewers.

By Monday March 15, average viewers were down by 255,700 compared to the previous Monday.

Since then numerous presenters have filled Piers' spot, while producers reportedly search for a permanent replacement to begin work in September.

Last week Piers claimed ITV bosses had been in touch asking him to return to GMB, telling The Sun he believes he could 'take the ratings back to where he left them' after a slump in viewing figures.

A return? Last week Piers claimed ITV bosses had been in touch asking him to return to GMB, telling The Sun he believes he could 'take the ratings back to where he left them'

He said: 'They reached out  there have been approaches. Never say never.

'I have no doubt I could take the ratings back to where I left them  but the doubt is, would anyone be allowed to do it that way again?

'I was hired to give very strong, honestly held opinions, which I did. But in the end I was asked to apologise for a genuinely held opinion.'

He added: 'I have had some quite random third-party feelers put out to see if I would consider a return to the show.'

Piers stormed off GMB in March as he discussed the Harry and Meghan interview, where he expressed his belief that Meghan was lying during the chat with Oprah Winfrey and that the couple damaged the royal family's reputation.

The outspoken host left the daytime series after he insisted he 'didn't believe a word' of Meghan's account of suffering suicidal thoughts and experiencing racism at the hands of the royal family.

Decline: Piers' final episode was a ratings hit, beating BBC Breakfast's viewing figures for the first time ever, prompting him to thank the 'hard work and dedication' of the production team

Piers then walked off set after a fierce debate with Alex, in which the weather presenter accused Piers of unfairly 'trashing' Meghan, and branded him 'diabolical'.

When Piers walked off screen, Alex continued: 'I'm sorry but Piers just spouts off on a regular basis and we have to sit there and listen.'

Piers, who refused to apologise, later announced his resignation and tweeted his thanks to the GMB team, praising them for their 'hard work and dedication' that led to them beating their main breakfast TV rival.

And Piers shared his own reflections on the events of that fateful week in a piece for the Mail On Sunday shortly afterwards.

Piers called Alex 'GMB's occasional stand-in weatherman' and 'uptight' in the telling account, adding that the presenter hasn't messaged him since his exit unlike others on the show.

Shares in ITV also plunged in the wake of his resignation with almost 200million wiped off the company's value overnight and share prices dropping by 3.8 per cent.

A TV insider also said a bidding war is now on to secure the services of Piers, who is also Editor at Large for MailOnline.

ITV was also said to be interested in the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire as Piers' replacement, according to reports.

Derbyshire - who appeared on ITV's I'm a Celebrity last year - currently presents the news for the BBC after her award-winning current affairs programme was axed last March.

A source told The Sun: 'ITV producers have been looking for the right platform for Victoria for a while.

'They think she is a real talent and one of the few opinionated TV journalists who could be a real powerhouse addition to GMB.

'She's not afraid to challenge guests, ask tough questions, get straight to the point and wax lyrical about what she believes in. They're using Piers' exit as an opportunity to trial new faces.'

Meghan is said to have raised concerns with ITV about the effect Piers's comments may have on the issue of mental health generally and those attempting to deal with their own problems.

But Piers later repeated his condemnation of her interview when he told reporters outside his West London home: 'If I have to fall on my sword for expressing an honestly held opinion about Meghan Markle and that diatribe of bilge that she came out with in that interview, so be it.'

He said: 'I won't be going back, but thanks to everyone who has signed these petitions. Normally, people start petitions to have me fired or deported, so this is a pleasant surprise.'

In a 332-word statement shared on Instagram, the tough-talking journalist thanked his supporters and declared he was 'willing to stand my ground'.

He wrote: 'To all my supporters, I just wanted to drop you a note of thanks. (To all my haters, whatever.)

'It has been an extraordinary week for me, for Britain, for our monarchy and for our future.

'Those of you that know me well enough know that, despite my many faults, I'm always willing to stand my ground for the things that I think matter most.

Decline: Shares in ITV also plunged in the wake of his resignation with almost 200million wiped off the company's value overnight and share prices dropping by 3.8 per cent

'My fervent opposition to the Iraq War led to my demise from the Daily Mirror. My outspoken views on the insanity of American gun laws led to the end of my time at CNN.

'And now I've lost my job at Good Morning Britain because I chose not to apologise for disbelieving Meghan Markle's claims in her interview with Oprah Winfrey.'

He added: 'I thus became the latest ''victim'' of the cancel culture that is permeating our country, every minute, of every hour, of everyday. Though of course, I consider myself to be neither a victim, nor actually cancelled.

'However, I do believe the defence of free speech and the right to express honestly held opinions, is the most important issue of my career, and the most important issue in British society.'
Suki Waterhouse flashed a glimpse of her toned midriff in a cream knitted crop top as she left a star-studded book launch in London on Tuesday night.

The model, 29, looked incredible as she left Isabel's club, where she had joined her pals to celebrate the release of Poppy Jamie's first book, Happy Not Perfect.

Suki looked incredible as she left the venue, teaming her revealing top wide leg blue jeans, belted at the waist, and a floor-length beige trench.

Stunner: Suki Waterhouse flashed a glimpse of her toned midriff in a cream knitted crop top as she left a star-studded book launch in London on Tuesday night

To finish off the look, she wore a pair of black and white pointed heels and draped a Christian Dior handbag, retailing at 3,600, over her arm.

Suki, who is currently dating actor Robert Pattinson, 35, and is Poppy's best friend and business partner, was in good company at the bash as she was earlier joined by lookalike sister Immy, 27.

Immy opted for a more casual look, donning a pair of green striped corduroy trousers, a knitted black jumper with white lace cuffs and a pair of Nike Air Force 1s.

Looking good: The model, 29, looked incredible as she left Isabel's club, where she had joined her pals to celebrate the release of Poppy Jamie's first book, Happy Not Perfect

The pair posed for pictures with the author Poppy Jamie, 30, who pulled out all the stops in a patterned beige suit.

She accessorised the V-neck co-ord with a pair of white pointed-toe heels.

The outing comes amid rumours that Suki and Robert have 'discussed' getting engaged, although they are said to not be planning on walking down the aisle just yet.

Siblings: Suki, who is currently dating actor Robert Pattinson, 35, and is Poppy's best friend and business partner, was in good company at the bash as she was earlier joined by sister Immy, 27

Strike a pose: The pair posed for pictures with the author Poppy Jamie, 30, (middle) who pulled out all the stops in a patterned beige suit

Style: Immy opted for a more casual look, donning a pair of green striped corduroy trousers, a knitted black jumper with white lace cuffs and a pair of Nike Air Force 1s

Meanwhile, also in attendance at the event was Georgia Toffolo, who put on a leggy display in a high neck pastel dress.

The Made In Chelsea star, 26, posed up a storm in the stunning pink long sleeve mini dress which had pink feather cuffs.

The reality star wore nude pointed high heels which highlighted her toned legs and paired them with a matching padded leather bag.

Fabulous: Meanwhile, also in attendance at the event was Georgia Toffolo, who put on a leggy display in a high neck pastel dress

Radiant: The reality star wore nude pointed high heels which highlighted her toned legs and paired them with a matching padded leather bag

Chic: The Made In Chelsea star posed up a storm in the stunning long sleeve mini dress which had pink feather cuffs

She joined other famous faces, including a royal appearance from new mother Princess Eugenie, 31, and her husband Jack Brooksbank, 35.

The couple welcomed their first child August Philip Hawke Brooksbank on February 9 at the Portland Hospital in London.

Eugenie wore an all black dress with tassels at the bottom and covered up with a green satin jacket.

The new father cut a more casual figure, wearing a white shirt with a blue jumper over the top and a black jacket.

Royal guests: Georgia joined other famous faces, including a royal appearance from new mother Princess Eugenie, 31, and her husband Jack Brooksbank, 35

Parents night out: Eugenie wore an all black with tassels at the bottom and covered up with a green satin jacket and Jack cut a more casual figure in jeans and some trainers

He also donned a pair of jeans and some blue lace up trainers.

Writer and model Jack Guinness, 38, was also snapped at the luxury event, wearing a dapper tweed suit with a burgundy tie.

Actor and fiction writer Sebastian De Souza, who played Matty in the third generation of hit Channel 4 series Skins, was spotted at the event.

Suave: Writer and model Jack Guinness, 38, was also snapped at the luxury event, wearing a dapper tweed suit with a burgundy tie

Happy: Actor and fiction writer Sebastian De Souza, who played Matty in the third generation of hit Channel 4 series Skins, also attended the event

The 28-year-old, who also hosts the History of the Future podcast, beamed from ear to ear as he posed for pictures with Jamie wearing an all black outfit.

Actress Pom Klementieff, 35, who plays Mantis in Guardians of the Galaxy, also turned up the star-studded event, donning a matching pink trouser and jacket look.

Other people in the industry, including actress Margo Stilley, 38, and 36-year-old entrepreneur Sharmadean Reid showed up to support Poppy.

Edgy: Actress Pom Klementieff, 35, who plays Mantis in Guardians of the Galaxy, also turned up the star-studded event, donning a matching pink trouser and jacket look

Networking: Other people in the industry, including actress Margo Stilley, 38, (pictured) and 36-year-old entrepreneur Sharmadean Reid attended the event

The group were all attending the launch of Poppy's book - a guide to the challenges of mental health and teaching other how to overcome their anxieties.

The author is also a British entrepreneur and former television presenter. In 2016, she launched an accessories brand Pop & Suki, with her best friend Suki Waterhouse.

Poppy also launched an app, named Happy Not Perfect in 2017, which focuses on improving mental health and positive wellbeing.
She's the Irish rose who was left heartbroken after being rejected by Matt Agnew on The Bachelor in 2019.

But fans of the show would be forgiven for not recognising Emma Roche after she debuted her latest transformation on Wednesday.

Uploading a selfie to her Instagram, the 33-year-old looked worlds away from her time on the Channel 10 dating show.

Is that you? Former Bachelor star Emma Roche, 33, looks totally unrecognisable in a new Instagram selfie

Emma appears to have dyed her natural hair peroxide blonde, wearing her hair in a high ponytail.

The beauty angled the camera front on, showing off a much plumper pout, defined cheekbones, and an enviable line-free visage.

In October 2019, the fashion brand manager admitted to getting 'subtle filler' to create the perfect jawline.

New look: Emma appears to have dyed her natural hair peroxide blonde, wearing her hair in a high ponytail. The Irish beauty angled the camera front on, showing off a much plumper pout, defined cheekbones, and an enviable line-free visage

'A pleasure welcoming @thebachelorau's @miss_emma_roche back to the clinic recently!' the Cosmos Clinic wrote on Instagram.

'A subtle treatment of dermal filler to the chin enhanced her profile, created a more defined jawline, and achieved a more balanced overall appearance. Looking forward to seeing you again soon, Emma!'

Emma made it to the top four on season seven of The Bachelor, before she was eliminated by astrophysicist Matt Agnew.

Changes: In October 2019, she admitted to getting 'subtle filler' to create the perfect jawline

Flashback: Emma was known for her natural beauty on Matt's season of The Bachelor in 2019

She was known as a 'stage-five clinger' on the show after becoming the first contestant to use the L-word.

Emma is now a successful social media influencer.

She routinely promotes everything from vodka to fake tanning products to her 32,600 Instagram followers.
Following EastEnders' announcement that Charlie Brooks will be returning to the show to reprise her role as Janine Butcher, the soap star was seen on Wednesday out and about in London.

Stepping out to run errands, the actress, 40, spoke on her phone while walking through the leafy suburbs.

She wore a sweeping beige trench over a taupe baggy shirt and black slacks.

Spotted: Following EastEnders' announcement that Charlie Brooks will be returning to the show to reprise her role as Janine Butcher, the soap star was seen on Wednesday

She completed the look with multicoloured trainers and dark shades.

Charlie swept her blonde locks up and added a wash of foundation to her features, with a red burst to her lips.

The actress, who departed the soap in 2014, is set for a rollercoaster comeback, with bosses hinting she'll take centre stage in the soap's 'biggest storyline of the year'.

Announcing the news, the bosses assured fans of the show that 'drama and scandal' are never far behind Janine, and she'll make a stormy return to the soap in the coming months.

Stroll: She was seen out and about in London, running errands

Out and about: The actress, 40, spoke on her phone while walking through the leafy suburbs

Speaking about returning to the role, actress Charlie, 40, said: 'I am beyond excited to be slipping back into Janines shoes and returning to The Square.

'The time feels right and I cant wait to find out what shes been up to for the last seven years! She is and always has been SO much fun to play.

'Feels a bit like coming home. Its good to be back.'

Jon Sen, executive producer for EastEnders, added: 'Janine is one of EastEnders most iconic characters who is loved, and often despised, in equal measure by viewers and all those in Walford.

'Charlies portrayal of Janine over the years has created some of EastEnders most memorable moments and we are all really excited to see Charlie bring her incredible portrayal of Janine back again.'

Big news: The actress, who departed the soap in 2014, is set for a rollercoaster comeback, with bosses hinting she'll take centre stage in the soap's 'biggest storyline of the year'

Announcing the news: Bosses assured fans of the show that 'drama and scandal' are never far behind Janine, and she'll make a stormy return to the soap in the coming months

Speaking about returning to the role, actress Charlie, 40, said: 'I am beyond excited to be slipping back into Janines shoes and returning to The Square'

Appearing to provide a hint for fans about future story lines, he continued: 'We have lots of drama in store for Janine, in fact it may be wise for some of the residents of Walford to invest in some slip on shoes'

Viewers were quick to comment about their excitement for her return, with one writing: 'SHE IS COMING TO SAVE 2021.'

Another said: 'Omg we NEED Janine. The best character ever!.

One remarked: 'yesss!!!! weve been waiting for this announcement. im so excited for her to come back.'

She added: 'Feels a bit like coming home. Its good to be back'

Rumours of Charlie's return to the show have been circulating in recent weeks and it appeared they were confirmed when she was spotted on the set at Elstree Studios in Hertfordshire earlier this week.

The actress was taken to set in a blacked out people carrier as show bosses aimed to keep her return top secret.

It was previously 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.

Return: She is pictured on the soap in 2008

Giddy: Rumours of Charlie's return to the show had been circulating and it appeared they were confirmed when she was spotted on the set recently

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.'

Plot details of her return 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.

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.

Jon Sen, executive producer for EastEnders, said: 'We are all really excited to see Charlie bring her incredible portrayal of Janine back again'

Shocking: Most notably, Janine married Barry Evans  played by Shaun Williamson  for his money before pushing him off a cliff

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.
1948-70 - Nearly half a million people moved from the Caribbean to Britain, which in 1948 faced severe labour shortages in the wake of the Second World War. The immigrants were later referred to as 'the Windrush generation'.

Working age adults and many children travelled from the Caribbean to join parents or grandparents in the UK or travelled with their parents without their own passports. Since these people had a legal right to come to the UK, they neither needed nor were given any documents upon entry to the UK, nor following changes in immigration laws in the early 1970s. Many worked or attended schools in the UK without any official documentary record of their having done so, other than the same records as any UK-born citizen.

2012 - The hostile environment policy, which came into effect in October 2012, comprises administrative and legislative measures to make staying in the UK as difficult as possible for people without 'leave to remain', in the hope that they may 'voluntarily leave'. The policy was widely seen as being part of a strategy of reducing UK immigration figures to the levels promised in the 2010 Conservative Party Election Manifesto.

Measures introduced by the policy include a legal requirement for landlords, employers, the NHS, charities, community interest companies and banks to carry out ID checks and to refuse services if the individual is unable to prove legal residence in the UK. Landlords, employers and others are liable to fines of up to 10,000 if they fail to comply with these measures.

The policy led to a more complicated application process to get 'leave to remain' and encouraged voluntary deportation.The policy coincided with sharp increases in Home Office fees for processing 'leave to remain', naturalisation and registration of citizenship applications.

2013 - The Home Office received warnings that many Windrush generation residents were being treated as illegal immigrants and that older Caribbean born people were being targeted. The Refugee and Migrant Centre in Wolverhampton said their caseworkers were seeing hundreds of people receiving letters from Capita, the Home Office's contractor, telling them that they had no right to be in the UK, some of whom were told to arrange to leave the UK at once. Roughly half the letters went to people who already had leave to remain or were in the process of formalising their immigration status.

People considered illegal were sometimes losing their jobs or homes as a consequence of having benefits cut off and some had been refused medical care under the National Health Service (NHS), some placed in detention centres as preparation for their deportation, some deported or refused right to return to the UK from abroad.

Caribbean leaders had put the deportations on the agenda at the Commonwealth meeting in Sri Lanka and in April 2016 Caribbean governments told Philip Hammond, the foreign secretary, that immigrants who had spent most of their lives in the UK were facing deportation and their concerns were passed on at the time to the Home Office. Shortly before the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in April 2018, twelve Caribbean countries made a formal request for a meeting with the British Prime Minister to discuss the issue, which was rejected by Downing Street.

2017 - Newspapers reported that the British government had threatened to deport people from Commonwealth territories who had arrived in the UK before 1973, if they could not prove their right to remain in the UK. Although primarily identified as the Windrush generation and mainly from the Caribbean, it was estimated in April 2018 on figures provided by the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford that up to 57,000 Commonwealth migrants could be affected, of whom 15,000 were from Jamaica. In addition to those from the Caribbean, cases of people affected who had been born in Kenya, Cyprus, Canada and Sierra Leone were identified in the press.

The press coverage accused Home Office agencies of operating a 'guilty until proven innocent' and 'deport first, appeal later' regime; of targeting the weakest groups, particularly those from the Caribbean; of inhumanely applying regulations by cutting off access to jobs, services and bank accounts while cases were still being investigated; of losing large numbers of original documents which proved right to remain; of making unreasonable demands for documentary proof - in some instances, elderly people had been asked for 4 documents for each year they had lived in the UK and of leaving people stranded outside the UK because of British administrative errors or intransigence and denial of medical treatment.

Other cases covered in the press, involved adults born in the UK, whose parents were 'Windrush' immigrants and who had been threatened with deportation and had their rights removed, because they were unable to prove that their parents were legally in the UK at the time of their birth.

The Home Office and British government were further accused of having known about the negative impacts that the 'hostile environment policy' was having on Windrush immigrants since as early as 2013 and of having done nothing to remedy them.

2018 - Questions were raised in Parliament about individual cases that had been highlighted in the press. On March 14, when Opposition Leader Jeremy Corbyn asked May about an individual who had been refused medical treatment under the NHS during Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons, Theresa May initially said she was 'unaware of the case', but later agreed to 'look into it'. Parliament thereafter continued to be involved in what was increasingly being referred to as 'the Windrush scandal'.

On April 16, David Lammy MP challenged then Home Secretary Amber Rudd in the House of Commons to give numbers as to how many had lost their jobs or homes, been denied medical care, or been detained or deported wrongly. Lammy called on Rudd to apologise for the threats of deportation and called it a 'day of national shame', blaming the problems on the government's 'hostile environment policy'.

Rudd replied that she did not know of any, but would attempt to verify that. In late April, Rudd faced increasing calls for her to resign and for the Government to abandon the 'hostile environment policy'. There were also calls for the Home Office to reduce fees for immigration services.

On May 2, Labour introduced a motion in the House of Commons seeking to force the government to release documents to the Home Affairs Select Committee concerning its handling of cases involving people who came to the UK from Commonwealth countries between 1948 and the 1970s. The motion was defeated by 316 votes to 221.

On April 25, in answer to a question put to her by the Home Affairs Select Committee about deportation targets, Rudd said she was unaware of such targets, saying 'that's not how we operate'.

The following day, Rudd admitted in Parliament that targets had existed, but characterised them as 'local targets for internal performance management' only, not 'specific removal targets'. She also claimed that she had been unaware of them and promised that they would be scrapped.

Two days later, The Guardian published a leaked memo that had been copied to Rudd's office. The memo said that the department had set 'a target of achieving 12,800 enforced returns in 2017-18' and 'we have exceeded our target of assisted returns'. The memo added that progress had been made towards 'the 10% increased performance on enforced returns, which we promised the Home Secretary earlier this year'.

Rudd responded by saying she had never seen the leaked memo, 'although it was copied to my office, as many documents are'.

The New Statesman said that the leaked memo gave, 'in specific detail the targets set by the Home Office for the number of people to be removed from the United Kingdom. It suggests that Rudd misled MPs on at least one occasion'. Diane Abbott MP called for Rudd's resignation: 'Amber Rudd either failed to read this memo and has no clear understanding of the policies in her own department, or she has misled Parliament and the British people.'Abbott also said, 'The danger is that (the) very broad target put pressure on Home Office officials to bundle Jamaican grandmothers into detention centres'.

On April 23, Rudd announced that compensation would be given to those affected and, in future, fees and language tests for citizenship applicants would be waived for this group.

On April 29, The Guardian published a private letter from Rudd to Theresa May dated January 2017 in which Rudd wrote of an 'ambitious but deliverable' target for an increase in the enforced deportation of immigrants. Later that day, Rudd resigned as Home Secretary.

Parliamentary committees - On June 29, the parliamentary Human Rights Select committee published a 'damning' report on the exercise of powers by immigration officials. MPs and peers concluded in the report that there had been 'systemic failures' and rejected the Home Office description of a 'a series of mistakes' as not 'credible or sufficient'. The report concluded that the Home Office demonstrated a 'wholly incorrect approach to case-handling and to depriving people of their liberty', and urged the Home Secretary to take action against the 'human rights violations' occurring in his department.

On July 3, the Home Affairs Select Committee (HASC) published a critical report which said that unless the Home Office was overhauled the scandal would 'happen again, for another group of people'.

The report found that 'a change in culture in the Home Office over recent years' had led to an environment in which applicants had been 'forced to follow processes that appear designed to set them up to fail'. The report questioned whether the hostile environment should continue in its current form, commenting that 'rebranding it as the 'compliant' environment is a meaningless response to genuine concerns'.

Home Office replies - On June 28, a letter to the HASC from the Home Office reported that it had 'mistakenly detained' 850 people in the five years between 2012 and 2017. In the same five-year period, the Home Office had paid compensation of over 21million for wrongful detention.

Compensation payments varied between 1 and 120,000; an unknown number of these detentions were Windrush cases. The letter also acknowledged that 23 per cent of staff working within immigration enforcement had received performance bonuses, and that some staff had been set 'personal objectives' 'linked to targets to achieve enforced removals' on which bonus payments were made.

National Audit Office report - In a report published in December 2018, the UK's National Audit Office found that the Home Office 'failed to protect [the] rights to live, work and access services' of the Windrush scandal victims, had ignored warnings of the impending scandal, which had been raised up to four years earlier, and had still not adequately addressed the scandal.

'Windrush Lessons Learned Review' - On March 19, 2020, the Home Office released the Windrush Lessons Learned Review. This study, described by the Home Secretary as 'long-awaited', was an independent inquiry managed and conducted by Wendy Williams, an inspector of constabulary.

The report was a scathing indictment of the Home Office's handling of Windrush individuals, and concluded that the Home Office showed an inexcusable 'ignorance and thoughtlessness', and that what had happened had been 'foreseeable and avoidable'. It further found that immigration regulations were tightened 'with complete disregard for the Windrush generation', and that officials had made irrational demands for multiple documents to establish residency rights. The study recommended a full review of the 'hostile environment' immigration policy.
Ranvir Singh has admitted she struggles with mum guilt after her son FaceTimed her live on air on Wednesday's edition of Good Morning Britain.

The TV presenter, 43, was interrupted by her son Tushaan, eight, partway through the show and made sure to answer it after she was concerned 'something terrible' happened.

And then appearing on Lorraine afterwards, where she was promoting her new show Eat, Shop, Save, Ranvir reflected on the incident and said she often dealt with guilt over not being 'perfect', though she reassured viewers that he'd only called her to ask about his iPad.

'You enter catastrophe mode': Ranvir Singh admitted on Wednesday's Lorraine that she struggles with 'mum guilt' after her son FaceTimed her live on air during Good Morning Britain

On GMB, she laughed as she told Susanna Reid and Adil Ray: 'My son is FaceTiming me while I'm on air! Sorry, I'm just going to have to answer my son now just to see if everything is okay at home.'

Speaking to Lorraine Kelly afterwards, Ranvir said: 'Everything was fine, do you know what it was? When your child rings you and you're at work, you just think something terrible has happened and you enter catastrophe mode.

'It turns out it was an urgent enquiry about his iPad. This is what happens when you're at work and your kids are at home, you know that guilt about how you're not perfect and your life isn't perfect.

Oops: During GMB, Ranvir laughed as she told Susanna Reid and Adil Ray: 'My son is FaceTiming me while I'm on air! Sorry, I'm just going to have to answer my son now'

Worry: Speaking to Lorraine Kelly afterwards, Ranvir said: 'Do you know what it was? When your child rings you and you're at work, you just think something terrible has happened'

'Nobody's life is perfect, don't believe what you see on Instagram, we're all just struggling in our own small way.'

Ranvir shares her son with ex-husband Ranjeet Dehal, she confirmed their split in September 2020 prior to making her Strictly Come Dancing debut.

She also spoke about how much she missed dancing since her stint on the competition show, saying she does 'a little bit around my kitchen'.

Worries: She said 'Turns out it was an urgent enquiry about his iPad. This is what happens when you're at work and your kids are at home, you know that guilt about how you're not perfect'

The presenter went on: 'I'd love to do ballroom again, I'd be sad not to have that feeling again. It would be so nice for us to have some lessons together.'

When Lorraine claimed they'd just laugh if they went together for a lesson, Ranvir added, 'No I recommend this, it's the most lovely feeling, it's like you're floating, you're being led.'

And, after Lorraine praised her performances on the show, Ranvir gushed: 'I didn't know I could do it, that's what I've learned in this last year, might as well have a go!'

In December last year, Ranvir discussed her home life and said her focus is currently on her son and new dog Shmizzels.

Honest: Ranvir added, 'Nobody's life is perfect, don't believe what you see on Instagram, we're all just struggling in our own small way'

She told Prima magazine: 'Will there ever be any room for another person with my son and I? We have a dog now, too!

'We got him in lockdown; hes a little cockapoo called Shmizzels. Hes so cute and needy, the poor little thing. I love him and I cant imagine life without him now.'

Ranvir also discussed how her work is hugely important to her and with being a single mother, she has little room in her life for much else.

Speaking of her successful broadcasting career, she said: 'I've achieved loads and it's been amazing, but it all takes it out of you. It leaves very little room for anything else, especially when you're a single mum.'

Eat, Shop, Save starts airing on ITV on Thursday June 24 at 7.30PM.
As an A-list British star, he's often dressed to impress on the red carpets of glitzy movie screenings and premieres.

But Rowan Atkinson, 66, cut an incredibly casual figure in a dressing gown on the set of upcoming Netflix series Man vs Bee on Wednesday.

The legendary funnyman is making his comedy comeback in the show that tells the story of a man who finds himself at war with a bee while house-sitting in a mansion.

Cutting a very casual figure: Rowan Atkinson, 66, was spotted wearing a dressing gown on the set of upcoming Netflix series Man vs Bee in the UK on Wednesday

Star power: The actor is usually seen dressed up in a suit on the red carpets of glitzy movie screenings and premieres, (pictured in 2018)

Rowan looked very relaxed as he went about his business during a break from filming this week.

The actor could be seen wearing a navy blue dressing gown with a green T-shirt underneath.

He had on a pair of green and blue socks and some comfortable slide-on slippers as he walked outside in the sunshine.

New beginnings: The legendary funnyman is making his comedy comeback in the Netflix show that tells the story of a man who finds himself at war with a bee whilst house-sitting

That's a wrap! Rowan cut a very casual figure as he went about his business during a break from filming this week

Eye spy: The actor could be seen wearing a navy blue dressing gown with a green T-shirt underneath

National treasure: Rowan (pictured in 1995) is known around the world for playing hilarious character Mr Bean, with his last outing in the role being in 2007 in Mr Bean's Holiday

Earlier in the day Rowan was seen arriving for work as he stepped out of a chauffeur driven car.

He donned a green jacket and a pair of grey trousers while wearing a clear plastic visor to cover his face in a bid to protect himself and others from coronavirus.

Rowan plays a character who is at war with an irritating bee that buzzes around his head in a stately home in the comedy.

Keeping it simple: He had on a pair of green and blue socks and some comfortable slide-on slippers as he walked outside in the sunshine

Acting out: Rowan is playing a character who is at war with an irritating bee that buzzes around his head in a stately home

The series is set out over 10 short episodes at 10 minutes each.

It is expected Rowan, who is known around the world for playing Mr Bean, will bring an international audience to the show.

Netflix said in a statement: 'Renowned actor and comedian Rowan Atkinson plays a new character in this riotous comedy.

Dream team: Man vs Bee was co-created by Rowan and Will Davies, who previously worked on the Johnny English film franchise which also starred Rowan

'A man finds himself at war with a bee while house-sitting a luxurious mansion.

'Who will win, and what irreparable damage will be done in the process?'

Man vs Bee was co-created by Rowan and Will Davies, who previously worked on the Johnny English film franchise which Rowan starred in as the title character.

Making an entrance: Earlier in the day on Wednesday Rowan was seen arriving on set after stepping out of a chauffeur driven car

The show was announced by Netflix in December last year after a UK team was set up by company bosses to develop production in the country.

A total of seven shows were announced as a result, including a series based on comedian Richard Gadd's live show Baby Reindeer.

In addition there will be a horror show called Cuckoo Song, teen witch series Half Bad, ghost-hunting tales Lockwood & Co, and a murder mystery called The Seven Deaths Of Evelyn Hardcastle.

Vice President, Original Series Anne Mensah said: 'Setting up a team entirely based in the UK was always about being able to better connect to the fantastic programme makers we have here - to provide a space for writers, producers, directors and actors that feels local, friendly and familiar but also provides talent the opportunity to make shows that will impact on a global scale.

'UK-made stories really do speak to the world.'

Rowan's last outing as Mr Bean was 14 years ago in 2007 in Mr Bean's Holiday.

He also voices the character in an animated sitcom version.
Adrien Brody finally made his long-awaited red carpet debut with his girlfriend Georgina Chapman in New York on Saturday evening.

And just days later, the suave actor, 48, was spotted enjoying a jaunt on Lake Como with his mother, the photographer Sylvia Plachy and Roberta Armani on Wednesday.

Looking dashing in white trousers and a stylish blue blazer both by Giorgio Armani, the actor arrived via helicopter before hopping on a boat following his red carpet appearance with his girlfriend, who is the ex-wife of Harvey Weinstein.

Slick: Adrien Brody, 48, was spotted enjoying a jaunt on Lake Como his mother, the photographer Sylvia Plachy and Roberta Armani on Wednesday

Adrien looked relaxed and at ease as he hit the shores via the two swanky methods of transport, with his helicopter followed by a speedboat ride.

Days before, Adrien and Georgina attended the premiere of his crime thriller Clean.

The 45-year-old ex-wife of convicted sex offender and former film producer Weinstein walked the red carpet at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City with the Oscar-winning actor by her side.

The pair reportedly began their relationship in March of 2020, with the ongoing coronavirus having kept them out of the spotlight until now.

Fresh start: Adrien finally made his long-awaited red carpet debut with his girlfriend Georgina Chapman in New York on Saturday evening

The Darjeeling Limited star and his fashion designer partner looked loved-up on the red carpet as she locked her arm in his and affectionately embraced him.

Georgina's relationship with Adrien appears to be her first major coupling since she divorced Weinstein in 2018.

Although their relationship was first confirmed in March 2020, the two have been together 'for a while,' People reported that same month. A source said the duo work well together because they share 'many of the same interests.'

Sleek: Looking dashing in white trousers and a stylish blue blazer both by Giorgio Armani, the actor arrived via helicopter before hopping on a boat following his red carpet appearance with his girlfriend, who is the ex-wife of Harvey Weinstein

'She thinks hes unusual and interesting,' the source continued, adding that Georgina is drawn to Adrien's 'deep passion for his work,' which reminds her of her own dedication to her fashion label.

The Pianist star also 'diverts her attention from the pain of her situation and subsequent split.' Her divorce from Weinstein was finalized in January of 2018.

By May the disgraced producer had been charged with 'rape, criminal sex act, sex abuse and sexual misconduct for incidents involving two separate women' by the New York District Attorney's Office.

He was convicted in February 2020 of two of the five charges: one count of sexual assault in the first degree and one count of rape in the third degree.

Here he comes! He landed on a helicopter

Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years in prison the following month.

His legal troubles have only multiplied, as a judge in New York ruled this week that he could be extradited to California, where he faces 11 additional counts of sexual assault.

The former film mogul is currently appealing his New York convictions. Despite being married to the convicted criminal for more than a decade, Georgina seems to be trying to hold her head high.

Friends say that the fashion designer 'does not want to be seen as a victim,' a right she reserves for the women abused by her ex-husband.
Jennifer Aniston has been a public figure for 30 years now thanks to the success of Friends and her movie career that includes hits Bruce Almighty and Marley & Me, as well as her Apple TV+ series The Morning Show with Reese Witherspoon.

And over the years the beauty, 52, has been plagued by rumours about marriage and babies that has been so intense even her very own family demands to know the truth.

That level of attention has caused the ex-wife of Brad Pitt and Justin Theroux to seek therapy, she told the new issue of People, which has been a tremendous help, the star added.

Smart cookie: Jennifer Aniston told People this week that the way she deals with constant rumours about her personal life is through therapy

'Sometimes you can't help family members or people sending stuff over going, "What is this? You're having a baby? Are you getting married?"' said the actress who has never had children.

Her family members include soap opera star father John Aniston and half brother Alexander John Aniston who goes by the name Aja. Her mother Nancy Dow passed away in 2016.

Certain publications over the past few decades have consistently claimed she is pregnant, sometimes even with twins.

'It's like, "Oh, good gosh, when and how many years will it take for you to ignore that silliness?"' the Murder Mystery star added of her family members.

Her ex files: Jen was married to Brad Pitt from 2000 to 2005, seen left in 2001, and has been linked to him in the past few years. And she was wed to Justin Theroux, right, from 2015 until 2017, but she does not seem to have dated anyone since him

Daddy: 'Sometimes you can't help family members or people sending stuff over going, "What is this? You're having a baby? Are you getting married?"' said the actress who has never had children. Her family members include soap opera star father John Aniston (pictured in 2012) and half brother Alexander John Aniston. Her mother Nancy Dow passed away in 2016

The looker, who is the new face of Vital Proteins, has not been linked to anyone romantically since she split from Theroux though several magazines push she had a romantic reunion with Pitt after he split from Angelina Jolie, a rumour that seems to be unfounded.

ANISTON'S TIPS TO FINDING PEACE THERAPY 'I've really gotten a lot out of therapy,' she admitted WATCHING THE SUNSET 'It's my favorite moment,' she said. 'I wish we could freeze time in that magic hour because there's a lot of taking it all in, the appreciation of the day and what's happening' MEDITATION 'For me, I meditate every day - and sitting quietly, writing,' said the Friends vet YOGA 'Any kind of yoga practice is my meditation. I just have faith in a bigger picture, I guess,' the star shared DOGS She has a schnauzer mix Clyde, pit-bull mix Sophie and rescued Great Pyrenees mix named Lord Chesterfield. 'I have beautiful dogs,' she added Advertisement

Jennifer also told the magazine that dating apps are out of the question: 'Absolutely no. I'm going to just stick to the normal ways of dating. Having someone ask you out. That's the way I would prefer it.'

Marriage is not on her 'radar' she added - 'It doesn't have to be etched in stone in legal documents,' she said - as she is more focused on 'finding a fantastic partner and just living an enjoyable life and having fun with one another.'

But she has found a way to deal with the constant scrutiny over her personal life.

'I've really gotten a lot out of therapy,' said the Emmy winner.

'Just being a public person, there's a lot of amazing things that come with that. But there's also a lot of tough stuff, because we're only human, and we tend to walk around with bulls-eyes on our heads,' she noted.

She also said 'self-awareness is key.'

And there are many simple things that give her peace, like taking in the sunset from her Bel-Air, California mega mansion.

'It's my favorite moment,' said the cover girl.

'I wish we could freeze time in that magic hour because there's a lot of taking it all in, the appreciation of the day and what's happening.'

And meditation works for her too.

'For me, I meditate every day - and sitting quietly, writing,' said the Friends vet.

'That's enough. And any kind of yoga practice is my meditation. I just have faith in a bigger picture, I guess.

'And I believe in humanity, even though there's so much to discourage us from believing in it - but I do.'

Her dogs also bring her great joy.

She has a schnauzer mix Clyde, pit-bull mix Sophie and rescued Great Pyrenees mix named Lord Chesterfield.

Back at it: The second season of her Apple TV+ series The Morning Show debuts in September. Seen here with Billy Crudup and Reese Witherspoon

And Hollywood's A lister is content.

'I'm in a really peaceful place,' shared the blonde siren who still tops Most Beautiful lists.

'I have a job that I love, I have people in my life who are everything to me, and I have beautiful dogs. I'm just a very fortunate and blessed human being,' said the Los Angeles native.

And she pointed out her positive attributes: 'I have a good heart, and I'm a great friend. I lead with love.'

The second season of her Apple TV+ series, The Morning Show debuts in September.
They are currently enjoying a sun-soaked getaway in the Balearic Islands.

And Bernie Ecclestone and his wife Fabiana Flosi were seen walking hand-in-hand after enjoying lunch with friends at fish resturant Es Xarcu in Ibiza.

The former Formula One boss, 90, and his Brazilian wife, 44, were pictured leaving the eatery and boarding a Rib back to shore.

Romantic: Bernie Ecclestone and his wife Fabiana Flosi were seen walking hand-in-hand after enjoying lunch with friends at fish resturant Es Xarcu in Ibiza

Fabiana looked seriously chic in a printed summer dress which she teamed with a pair of simple flip flops, while she toted a red shopper bag on her shoulder.

She wore her raven locks slicked back into a sleek ponytail, while covering her face with a pair of reflective shades.

Fabiana could be seen carrying a couple of life jackets and also aided her husband as he hopped out of the boat and onto the jetty.

Chic: She wore her raven locks slicked back into a sleek ponytail, while covering her face with a pair of reflective shades

Glam: Fabiana looked seriously chic in a printed summer dress which she teamed with a pair of simple flip flops, while she toted a red shopper bag on her shoulder

Easy does it: The former Formula One boss, 90, and his Brazilian wife, 44, were pictured leaving the eatery and taking a Rib back to shore

Bernie was smartly dressed in a short-sleeved polo shirt, tucked into a pair of blue jeans with brown trainers.

The racing mogul also sported a pair of signature shades for the outing.

Bernie and Fabiana welcomed their son Ace last July, however it appeared to be a child free lunch as they took an afternoon off parenting duties.

Dressed to impress: Bernie was smartly dressed in a short-sleeved polo shirt, tucked into a pair of blue jeans with brown trainers

Helping hand: Fabiana pushed her husband up the step as they returned to shore

Sweet: Fabiana could be seen supporting the father of four

Bernie, who became a father for the fourth time when Ace was born, is already dad to daughters Deborah, 65, Tamara, 35, and Petra, 31.

His eldest, Deborah was born to his first wife Ivy Bamford before he welcomed socialites Tamara and Petra with his second wife Slavica Radic.

He married Fabiana in 2012 three years after he divorced Croatian model Slavica.

Hello? Bernie took a call on his mobile phone

Easy rider: The group headed out to sea on the motor boat

Ahoy there: The group crowded onto the Blue Malin boat

Bernie confirmed he and his wife were expecting a child to Swiss newspaper Blick last April.

'Yes, it is due in the summer,' Mr Ecclestone told the publication. 'Hopefully he'll learn to play backgammon soon!'

Afterwards, he told the Daily Mail: 'There's nothing that unusual is there? I haven't had a job for a little while so I have had plenty of time to practise!'

Bernie hit back at claims he was too old to become a father after Ace's birth, saying he wants even more children.

Aw! Another member of the group carried Fabiana's bag as she helped Bernie

He told The Sun on Sunday: 'Now I have more time on my hands and I hope I can spend it with my son as he grows up. I don't know if we will stop here. Perhaps he should have a little brother or sister.

Discussing his first chats with his now-wife about starting a family when they first met eight years ago, he said: 'Fabiana said she wanted a family, and I told her, "That's no problem for me. Half a dozen kids is great".'

The couple met through the World Motor Sport Council, where she regularly attended meetings.

Cruising: The couple looked relaxed as they chilled out on the boat
Phillip Schofield has vented over lockdown restrictions and insisted he is at breaking point due to the 'inconsistent' guidelines from the government.

The host, 59, spoke alongside co-host Holly Willoughby and regular guests Nick Ferrari and Nicola Thorpe on the show as they reflected on the daily numbers and the country's increasing frustration over lockdown.

He said: 'Then as you begin to move out of it with everybody else, you feel the way everyone else does. And I am not prepared to do this for much longer.'

Anger: Phillip Schofield has vented over lockdown restrictions and insisted he is at breaking point due to the 'inconsistent' guidelines from the government

Phillip admitted he is fast approaching breaking point over COVID restrictions after the so-called 'freedom day' has been delayed to 19 July.

Phillip said: 'Tragically, tragically, yesterday there were 27 deaths from Covid, yesterday there were 1,163 deaths involving flu and pneumonia, and we haven't shut the country down for those...

'You have to live with that and you have to decide for yourself how you want to play this, but you want the ability to be able to decide how you want to play this.

'Holly was saying it's like being a 16-year-old and having parents who seem overly strict for no good reason, and who are rather inconsistent.'

Upsetting: The host, 59, spoke alongside co-host Holly Willoughby and regular guests Nick Ferrari and Nicola Thorpe on the show as they reflected on the daily numbers and the country's increasing frustration over lockdown

Nick said: 'And then you look at fellow 16-year-olds or you look at how you are being treated in countries in Europe where nightclubs are open in Berlin, they are opening in Spain.

'You look at the United States where all but about two states are moving, and you feel like a 16-year-old who is not allowed, it just doesn't seem fair.'

Phil replied: 'Well, there were nine pilot schemes in sport ,music, theatre events, they did the FA Cup Final in front of 20,000 fans, the Culture Minister said there had been no outbreaks at the nine pilots.'

Tough times: Phillip admitted he is fast approaching breaking point over COVID restrictions after the so-called 'freedom day' has been delayed to 19 July (Boris Johnson pictured on Monday)

Holly said: 'If this whole thing was the experiment, they did all these events to get the data - they have got the data now, can't they act on it?

'There will be people watching this, the theatre industry, nightclubs, you now know that it's okay!'

Phil said: 'The government could lose the people on this, we have been very compliant. As a show, we have been very strident, in our view we should be very compliant, all the way through...

'Then as you begin to move out of it with everybody else, you feel the way everyone else does. And I am not prepared to do this for much longer. '

Fury: Phil said: 'The government could lose the people on this, we have been very compliant. As a show, we have been very strident, in our view we should be very compliant, all the way through'

It comes after it was claimed that ministers are preparing to axe virtually all virtually all coronavirus curbs on July 19 as the country moves towards herd immunity despite rising infection numbers.

Social distancing, face masks and work-from-home guidance are all expected to be ditched as England makes a dramatic push back towards normality on so-called 'Freedom Day'.

Boris Johnson is getting ready to give the green light for the sweeping unlocking after internal government assessments warned that keeping even limited restrictions for longer would spell disaster for the hospitality industry and thousands of jobs.

England could be free of all Covid restrictions by July 19, as the country moving towards herd immunity - despite rising infection numbers

However, it is understood there is almost no chance the date will be brought forward to July 5 despite immense pressure from Tory MPs.

The plan could put England on a significantly different course from Scotland, after Nicola Sturgeon yesterday delayed the latest phase of its loosening for another three weeks and suggested that mask-wearing is likely to continue into the autumn.

Boris sensationally delayed Freedom Day from June 21 amid concerns about cases of the Indian - or Delta - variant in the UK.
Irina Shayk looked stylish in New York City on Wednesday morning.

The 35-year-old star was with her mini-me daughter Lea De Seine, who was being pushed around in a stroller, before the model walked alone.

This sighting comes a week after it was claimed Kim Kardashian's estranged husband Kanye West plans on seeing the model again after they spent time together in France.

Getting some fresh air: Irina Shayk was seen taking her mini-me daughter Lea for a walk around New York City's bustling streets on Wednesday morning

Shayk was outfitted in an oversized white t-shirt that featured rolled-up sleeves and an eye-catching crop that exposed a small portion of her impressively toned midsection.

The runway regular contrasted her top with a pair of straight-fitting leather pants that obscured her sculpted legs, as well as a set of matching sandals.

The Russian native accessorized with a stylish pair of sunglasses and silver earrings while keeping a black purse slung over her left shoulder.

Her normally free-flowing brunette hair remained tied back in a tight bun for the duration of her time in public.

Dressed to impress: The supermodel wore a white shirt that featured rolled up sleeves and an interestingly cut midsection that exposed part of her toned tummy

Color coordination: The runway regular contrasted her top with a stylish pair of straight-fitting leather pants and a matching set of sandals

Her child wore pink with black sandals as her stroller had a tag attached that said LSC for Lea De Seine Shayk Cooper.

Shayk shares Lea with her former partner Bradley Cooper to whom she was initially linked in 2015.

Prior to becoming involved with the A Star Is Born director, she dated star athlete Cristiano Ronaldo for several years before the two split up in 2015.

The supermodel began seeing the 46-year-old actor later that year, and the two went on to welcome Lea, currently aged four, in 2017.

Although the couple was spotted with their daughter on several occasions following her birth, they eventually separated in 2019, although they remain on good terms and co-parent their child.

Former couple: Shayk shares her daughter with her past partner Bradley Cooper, to whom she was first connected in 2015; they are pictured with Lea earlier this month

Shayk is currently 'dating' West, whom she has been connected to ever since she appeared in the 44-year-old rapper's music video for his track Power, which debuted in 2010.

According to People, he is excited to see Irina again.

'Kanye is doing well. He had a great trip to France with Irina. They will date long distance,' said the source.

New prospect: Shayk is currently dating rapper Kanye West, whom she initially met when she worked on the 2010 music video for his track Power; he is pictured in 2020

'Kanye will continue to be L.A.-based. He has no plans to move to NYC. His kids live in L.A,' it was added; they have daughters North and Chicago, aged eight and three, and sons Saint and Psalm, aged five and two.

'He is very focused on business in LA too. He likes spending time with Irina though and plans to see her soon again.'

The Bound 2 songwriter wed Kardashian in 2014.

Although the two went strong for several years, they eventually separated earlier this year, when the 40-year-old reality television personality filed for divorce.
Chris Hemsworth recently returned to Sydney to attend the star-studded Gold Dinner 2021 where he helped raise $60,000 for charity.

And now, the 37-year-old Hollywood star's selflessness is shining through once more following reports he donated 'thousands of dollars worth' of equipment to a small medical centre in Armidale, NSW.

Rachael Kliendienst, who works as a clinical coordinator for Armajun Aboriginal Health Service, posted the news to the Facebook on Wednesday.

Thor to the rescue! Hollywood heartthrob Chris Hemsworth, 37, has donated 'thousands of dollars worth' of much-needed equipment to a medical centre in Armidale, NSW

'A lovely man named Harry walked into our clinic asking for the manager,' Rachael wrote on the Facebook group, The Kindness Pandemic,

'Harry went on to tell me he had just finished shooting a documentary nearby with Chris Hemsworth and the National Geographic about the brain and had a truck full of medical supplies they wanted to donate.'

She continued: 'Turns out he was sent by Chris Hemsworth and the National Geographic team to find a worthy little clinic who may benefit and Harry found us.'

'I walked outside to a truck full of stuff I had to grab the side of the van to literally hold myself up.'

Thankful: Rachael Kliendienst, who works as a clinical coordinator for the not-for-profit medical clinic, Armajun Aboriginal Health Service, posted the news to the Facebook on Wednesday

Secret act of kindness! 'I walked outside to a truck full of stuff I had to grab the side of the van to literally hold myself up,' wrote Rachael

The truck contained an electric bed, a stainless steel medical trolley, an X-ray light, thermometers, weight and height machine, and an observation stool.

'I hope Chris, National Geographic and 'our Prince Harry' get to read this as you have no idea what you've done,' the coordinator added.

'Stop by anytime and I'd be happy to share stories about what my amazing staff achieve and what your generous support has done to help continue to do what great work they do for our community.'

Generous: The truck contained an electric bed, a stainless steel medical trolley, an X-ray light, thermometers, weight and height machine, and an observation stool

Giving back: Chris' generous donation comes weeks after he pledged two tickets for the Sydney premiere of Thor: Love and Thunder, scheduled to be released in 2022. Pictured with wife Elsa Pataky

It's understood the Hollywood heartthrob has been working on a project called Limitless with National Geographic, which sees him 'embark on an epic mission to transform himself by training for six extraordinary challenges, showing how to fight ageing and every stage of life'.

Chris' generous donation comes weeks after he donated two tickets for the Sydney premiere of Thor: Love and Thunder, scheduled to be released in 2022, at the Gold Dinner 2021.

The tickets went under the hammer for $60,000, which helped raise a record setting $4.4million for the Sydney Children's Hospital foundation
The Handmaid's Tale returned to Channel 4 for it's fourth season on Sunday.

And O. T. Fagbenle heaped praise on his co-star Elisabeth Moss for her 'incredible' acting and directing as he promoted the show on Wednesday's This Morning, and called her 'a maestro' of the industry.

The actor, 40, discussed how the actress, 38, not only stars as lead character June Osborne in the drama, but has also directed episodes in the current season and is an executive producer.

'Watching her is like watching a maestro': The Handmaid's Tale star O. T. Fagbenle heaped praise on Elisabeth Moss for her 'incredible' acting and directing on Wednesday's This Morning

He gushed: 'You know I imagine at some point someone was Quincy Jones or Salvador Dahli and think "this person is a genius".

'I work with Lizzie Moss, she's a savant of television, her ability not just to act but her directing is incredible her understanding of the actors process visually.

'She's an executive producer not just a name. watching her is like watching a maestro, she's just incredible!'

O. T. plays June's husband Luke Bankole from before Gilead was established and she was forced into becoming a Handmaid, while June believed Luke had died it was later revealed he had managed to escape to Canada.

Busy: The actor discussed how she not only stars in the drama, but has also directed episodes in the current season and is an executive producer (pictured in character in the show)

High praise: O.T. said, 'She's a savant of television, her ability not just to act but her directing is incredible her understanding of the actors process... watching her is like watching a maestro'

Teasing what was to come, he told Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield: 'Its kind of come out a bit earlier in the States and the reaction has been insane, theyve switched things up this season.

'They've had characters doing things you'd never imagine, characters meet other characters you wouldn't imagine they'd meet, things like that.'

He went on: 'I think June has always had this revolutionary, stand up to the way things are and make a change, you get to see her tear things apart in a way that's mind-blowing and tragic.'

Filming for the fourth season had to be delayed amid the coronavirus crisis, and O. T. admitted he felt it was a 'blessing' they could go back to shoot even if it meant doing lots of tests.

Role: O. T. plays June's husband Luke Bankole from before Gilead was established and she was forced into becoming a Handmaid (Elisabeth pictured in season four)

He explained: 'It was pretty weird, you have to wear a mask, we were having tests, so much testing, I think I had at least 300 tests!

'But it was a blessing, other people havent been able to do that... we had a lot of gratitude and purpose.'

The dystopian tragedy series takes place in the Republic of Gilead, a brutal regime that replaced the United States government after a worldwide fertility crisis emerged.

Since June was among the few remaining fertile women, she became a Handmaid named Offred in the Waterford home where she was routinely raped by Fred in order to conceive his child. She later escaped to Canada.

Watch The Handmaid's Tale on Stan in Australia.

Exciting: Teasing what was to come, he said: 'Its kind of come out a bit earlier in the States and the reaction has been insane, theyve switched things up this season'
Guy Ritchie's pub was left with a huge hole in the roof after a fire broke out on Wednesday, with a witness saying the smoke was so intense that it caused first responders to vomit.

Around 70 firefighters and 10 fire engines attended the Lore of the Land pub in Conway Street, Fitzrovia, at 12.15pm, where the fire is said to have started in an extraction system from the first floor to the roof vent.

In pictures taken during the incident, smoke can be seen coming from the venue while firefighters continue working to make the brick pub safe.

Guy Ritchie's Camden Pub was left holes in the roof after a fire broke out on Wednesday and 70 firefighters battled the blaze, with a witness saying the 'smoke was so intense'

A eyewitness whose property backs onto the pub saw the smoke billowing from their fifth floor balcony and described the moment firefighters battled the blaze.

The neighbour told MailOnline: 'At one stage the roof had smoke coming out of every tile, it was quite a scene.

'The chimneys, which I don't think are fully functioning, had smoke coming out too and firefighters had to pour water down them.

The Lore Of The Land pub opened in 2019 and is one of many of the director's hospitality ventures (pictured in 2016)

'I saw one firefighter being sick because the smoke was so intense, which was why they all had breathing equipment.'

After getting the blaze under control, firefighters were then seen pulling off the tiles on the roof leaving the property with gaping holes.

The neighbour added: 'They were clipping them off one by one to let air through. So now you can see into the top floor through the roof.

'It's going to be quite a repair job. But thankfully it's seems like nobody was injured. It could have been a lot worse.'

Pictures taken by an eyewitness show white smoke coming out of the chimney and a door

Firefighters poured water on the roof in an attempt to put out the blaze, which is said to have started in an extraction system from the first floor to the roof vent

The witness described how they saw saw 'one firefighter being sick because the smoke was so intense'

Speaking on Wednesday, London Fire Brigade station commander Jason Fisby said: 'Access to the seat of the fire is challenging and very labour intensive.

'The number of fire engines at the scene is a reflection of the need for a high turn over of firefighters wearing breathing apparatus. Firefighters are carrying out salvage work and trying to prevent water damage on the floors below.'

No injuries have been reported since the blaze broke out. MailOnline has contacted representatives for Guy and London Fire Brigade for comment.

A blaze broke out at Guy Ritchie's Camden pub on Wednesday (pictured the front of the venue)

The top floor fire was tackled by over 70 firefighters who arrived at the scene in 10 engines

Dozens of firefighters were seen close by to the pub and getting their uniforms on

The Lore Of The Land secretly opened its doors in 2019, marking Guy's return to pub ownership for the first time since he and Madonna owned the Punch Bowl in Mayfair.

The swanky menu features venison, which is brought in from Guy's Wiltshire estate, Ashcombe, where Cecil Beaton lived.

Beer served is from his Gritchie Brewing Company alongside bar snacks including Jerusalem artichoke pate with crispy chicken skin and a seed cracker.

When the pub opened, it was revealed that Guy took incredible care to make sure that every plate, glass and picture in the pub was handpicked by him.

While trying to stop the flames, firefighters ripped off dozens of roof tiles to let the smoke out, according to an eyewitness

One section of the roof seemed to be worse hit, missing dozens of tile (right) by the time the firefighters were back on the ground following the fire (left, pictured with smoke out the door)

Firefighters rose above the building to pour water on the blaze, appearing to focus their efforts on the chimney area

70 firefighters were needed due to them having to wear breathing apparatus and the seat of the fire being difficult to access

MailOnline has contacted representatives for Guy for comment.

The blaze comes after Guy's 10m home was targeted by burglars in December  in an echo of one of his crime films. Raiders rifled through rooms in the director's Georgian house in London but left empty-handed as police rushed to the scene.

It is not known if Madonna's ex-husband  whose films include Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch  was home at the time of the raid.

The burglars were 'seen by an occupant,' said a source, adding: 'Shortly afterwards the police turned up and the suspects legged it up the street and got away.'

Firefighters descended on the blaze that raged on Wednesday afternoon (pictured)

Several firefighters were also seen outside the pub with hoses while working at the building

Another snap from the scene showed a firefighter spraying water onto a burnt roof

The fire, which broke out at around 12.15pm, is said to have started in an extraction system from the first floor to the roof vent

The London fire brigade station commanded said firefighters were doing 'salvage work and trying to prevent water damage on the floors below' (pictured are two men at the scene)

Police also attended the scene during the afternoon

Several members of the public stopped to have a look from a cordon while the firefighters worked at salvaging the building

Guy shares the eight-bedroom home in Fitzrovia with wife Jacqui Ainsley, 39. They split their time between the London home and their 18th-century estate in Wiltshire which was given to him as part of his divorce with Madonna in 2008.

A burglar broke into the country mansion in 2010. A neighbour said at the time: 'This is shocking and always a worry when you hear of an incident like that...

'We all hire private security companies to protect us. I pay 3,700 a month. That's for private security to do walks at night and keep an eye out. They monitor the area.'

Beer served is from his Gritchie Brewing Company alongside bar snacks including Jerusalem artichoke pate with crispy chicken skin and a seed cracker

Guy shares his eight-bedroom home in Fitzrovia with wife Jacqui Ainsley, 39

The neighbour told The Sun: 'We believe organised criminals operate in the area and target these homes. It's a very nice area. We know we're going to be a target. I hope the police can find the people responsible. We need to feel safe.'

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: 'Detectives are investigating following a report of a burglary at a residential address in Fitzrovia.

'It is not believed anything was taken.'
She works hard to maintain her figure, often sharing posts of her gruelling workouts on social media.

And Vogue Williams looked radiant on Wednesday as she headed to the Global radio studios in London.

The Irish presenter, 35, who hosts Heart FM on Sundays, displayed her toned figure in a pair of high-waisted beige shorts and white vest top.

Radiant: Vogue Williams looked radiant on Wednesday as she headed to the Global radio studios in London

Adding some glamorous touches, Vogue opted for a white Chanel handbag and quilted heeled sandals.

The mother-of-two added a collection of gold necklaces, white bracelets and black Prive Revaux sunglasses to her look.

Vogue styled her blonde locks into a sweptback hairdo, she added a slick of radiant make-up to her look.

The beaming Irish presenter appeared in great spirits as she flashed a smile while making her way to the studios.

Chic: The Irish presenter, 35, who hosts Heart FM on Sundays, displayed her toned figure in a pair of high-waisted beige shorts and white vest top

It comes after Vogue celebrated her third wedding anniversary with her beloved husband Spencer Matthews earlier this month, sharing a series of heartwarming throwback snaps.

The couple penned a declaration of love to one another on social media and reflected on their four and a half year relationship.

Spencer uploaded a photo sporting a navy tuxedo blazer while Vogue wowed in a strapless red dress.

She looked radiant as she raised a glass of champagne while the former Made In Chelsea star looked off into the distance.

Glamorous: Adding some glamorous touches, Vogue opted for a white Chanel handbag and quilted heeled sandals

He captioned the upload: 'In the four and a half years weve been together and the three years (today) that weve been married, Ive never been happier and more in love.

'You inspire me daily with your warm open heart and rigorous work ethic. Its really no surprise to me that everybody loves you.

'You deserve all of your success, now and forever and our kids are lucky to have you as their mother. HAPPY ANNIVERSARY '.

Vogue responded on the post: 'Aw thats very sweet my love '.

Sweet: It comes after Vogue celebrated her third wedding anniversary with her beloved husband Spencer Matthews earlier this month, sharing a series of heartwarming throwback snaps

Taking to her own Instagram account, the mother-of-two shared additional throwback photos with Spencer.

In one upload, she wore a textured cream dress as she planted a kiss on her husband's cheek.

In a second photo, Vogue rested her head on Spencer's shoulder after taking a dip in the ocean.

Her water-drenched tresses were swept back and she wore Ray-Ban shades.

Love is in the air: The couple penned a declaration of love to one another and reflected on their four and a half year relationship

Mark the occasion: Spencer wrote: 'In the four and a half years weve been together and the three years (today) that weve been married, Ive never been happier and more in love'

Vogue captioned the post: 'Happy Anniversary to my gorgeous husband and very best pal @spencermatthews 

'Three years married today, what an incredible time that has been. Thank you for always making us happy, we love you!'

Vogue and Spencer met when they both signed up to compete in the Channel 4 reality series, The Jump.

'We love you': Taking to her own Instagram account, Vogue shared additional throwback photos with Spencer as she thanked him for making her and their two children happy

They exchanged vows on the 8 June 2018 at Spencer's family estate in Scotland which spans 3000 acres.

They organised a second wedding celebration a year later at Westminster Boating Base on the bank of the River Thames

Spencer and Vogue share son Theodore, two, and Gigi, ten months, and live together in London.
Angelina Jolie gave a rare glimpse into her life as the mother of six children in a new piece that she penned for Time Magazine in her capacity as a contributing editor.

The 46-year-old interviewed medical student Malone Mukwende about his initiative to bridge the gap of medical knowledge when it comes to people of color as most medical books neglect to teach about ailments on black and brown skin.

During her piece, Angelina sympathized with the issue, explaining that she struggled to find medical advice for her children 'of different backgrounds' when they all came down with the same rash. She also revealed that her daughter Zahara, 16, recently underwent surgery.

Parenting: Angelina Jolie says struggled to find medical advice for her children 'of different backgrounds' and revealed that her daughter Zahara recently underwent surgery in a new piece that she penned for Time Magazine (Pictured in June)

'I have children from different backgrounds, and I know when there was a rash that everybody got, it looked drastically different depending on their skin color,' the activist said.

'But whenever I looked at medical charts, the reference point was always white skin,' she added.

Mukwende's handbook, Mind the Gap, addresses those types of issues by aggregating photos and information about various medical conditions on different, non-white skin tones.

'Recently my daughter Zahara, whom I adopted from Ethiopia, had surgery, and afterward a nurse told me to call them if her skin "turned pink," Angelina said.

'I have children from different backgrounds, and I know when there was a rash that everybody got, it looked drastically different depending on their skin color,' the activist said. 'But whenever I looked at medical charts, the reference point was always white skin,' she added.

'Thats the kind of thing I started to notice very early on. Almost the entirety of medicine is taught in that way,' Mukwende responded.

Adding: 'Like youve just illustrated, thats a very problematic statement for some groups of the population because its just not going to happen in that way and if youre unaware you probably wont call the doctor.'

The actress has three biological children with her ex-husband Brad Pitt, Shiloh, 15 and 12-year-old twins Knox and Vivian, as well as three adopted children 19-year-old Maddox from Cambodia, 17-year-old Pax from Vietnam and 16-year-old Zahara from Ethopia.

The Maleficent star, meanwhile, is back home with her family after doing some charitable work with the United Nations.

Her first order of business when she was back in Los Angeles was heading out to grab a gourmet bite to eat with a few of her children at Baltaire in Brentwood.

Using her platform: Angelina just returned back to the states after working in her capacity as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Special Envoy in Burkina Faso for World Refugee Day

Jolie was seen Monday night heading into the hot spot with 17-year-old Pax and 16-year-old Zahara following her trip to Burkina Faso for World Refugee Day.

Angelina just returned to the states after working in her capacity as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Special Envoy in Burkina Faso for World Refugee Day.

Highlighting how the number of displaced people in the world has doubled in the past year, she said in the West African nation: 'There is nowhere I would rather be today than here, with refugees, the people I admire most in the world.'

Back home: Jolie's personal life has been in headlines quite a bit recently as she has been spending time with her ex-husband Jonny Lee Miller at his apartment in New York during a recent visit (seen in 1999)

More than 1.2million people in the Sahel region of West and Central Africa have been forced to flee their homes since 2019, according to the United Nations.

Speaking in Burkina Faso's Goudoubo refugee camp, in the central city of Kaya, Ms Jolie added that she had 'never been as worried' about displaced people as she is now.

'We have to wake up to the track we are on globally, with so many conflicts raging and the very real possibility that climate change will force tens if not hundreds of millions of people to have to leave their homes in the future, with no possibility of return,' she warned.

Jolie's personal life has been in headlines quite a bit recently as she has been spending time with her ex-husband Jonny Lee Miller at his apartment in New York during a recent visit.

Angelina and Jonny were married in 1996 after meeting on the set of their movie Hackers a year prior, but separated shortly after and officially divorced in 1999.

The actress and Pax were spotted heading into Miller's Brooklyn home last week for a visit. And, a day prior Jolie spent hours with her former flame at home enjoying dinner and wine.

The visits came after Angelina was reportedly left 'bitterly disappointed' after a court awarded joint custody to her ex Brad Pitt with the star allegedly set to appeal the decision with a hearing due for July 9.
Jennifer Aniston revealed during the Friends Reunion in May that she had a crush on David Schwimmer during season one of the hit show and he had one on her.

And on Wednesday Howard Stern asked the 52-year-old actress during his SiriusXM show if they ever 'banged.'

The Morning Show star, who had Friends vets Courteney Cox and Lisa Kudrow by her side while chatting with Stern, shared that they never did. 'I would proudly say I banged Schwimmer if that happened but no,' said the beauty.

Where did this go? Jennifer Aniston revealed during the Friends Reunion in May that she had a crush on David Schwimmer during season one of the hit show and he had one on her. And on Wednesday Howard Stern asked the actress during his SiriusXM show if they ever 'banged'

Nope: The Morning Show star shared that they never did. 'I would proudly say I banged Schwimmer if that happened but no,' said the beauty.

'We were in relationships and it was always never the right time and it wouldn't have worked,' shared the blonde.

'The beauty of that was that whatever feelings we had we just literally channeled everything into Ross and Rachel and I think that's maybe why it resonated the way it did,' added the We're The Millers star.

'But no, we never, on my life [got together]. And Courteney and Lisa would know if it did because they would've heard about it. They can vouch for me,' she said as Cox, 57, added it was 'true.'

Bad timing: 'We were in relationships and it was always never the right time and it wouldn't have worked,' shared the blonde; this was their first kiss on Friends

It was good for their chemistry: 'The beauty of that was that whatever feelings we had we just literally channeled everything into Ross and Rachel and I think that's maybe why it resonated the way it did'

'Howard's not going to believe me,' Aniston then replied. 'No, I would proudly say I banged Schwimmer if that happened. But no.'

Jennifer also said of David: 'He was lovely, David was great.'

This comes after the former co-stars shocked fans on the Friends Reunion by saying they once had crushes on each other as they played Ross Geller and Rachel Green.

'At some point, we were crushing hard on each other,' Schwimmer said. 'But it was like two ships passing, because one of us was always in a relationship and we never crossed that boundary. We respected that.'

All six in one room: The cast was seen together at the Friends reunion in May: Matthew Perry, Matt LeBlanc, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Jennifer Aniston and David Schwimmer

Co-star Matt LeBlanc said under his breath that was 'bullsh*t,' which won laughs.

Aniston added, 'Honestly, I remember saying one time to David, "It's going to be such a bummer if the first time you and I actually kiss is going to be on national television." Sure enough, first time we kissed was in that coffee shop.'

Later creators Marta Kauffman and David Crane, as well as executive producer-director Kevin Bright told The Hollywood Reporter: 'It was a very hot topic on the set because the electricity between them in the scenes was like, "Oh my God, they can't be acting that, there's got to be something!"

His take: 'At some point, we were crushing hard on each other,' Schwimmer said. 'But it was like two ships passing, because one of us was always in a relationship and we never crossed that boundary. We respected that.' LeBlanc said 'bullsh*t'

Her take: Aniston added, 'Honestly, I remember saying one time to David, "It's going to be such a bummer if the first time you and I actually kiss is going to be on national television." Sure enough, first time we kissed was in that coffee shop'

'Everybody was suspicious that something was going on,' said Bright. 'People made up their own rumors at a certain point.

'But we all thought something might have been going on because they were just so good together,' he continued. 'We were so invested in Ross and Rachel, like the rest of you. There was something about them. But like the show, in a certain way, you had to wait a long time and then it never happened. The happy ending is in the show.'

Kauffman added: 'We didn't know for sure because we never asked either of them, but yes, we thought that perhaps might be going on,' she said.

'It did not wind up inspiring [Ross and Rachel's storyline] honestly at all. If anything, their ability to channel those feelings into Ross and Rachel just made the longing all the more relatable.'

Her last love: Aniston (L) and Justin Theroux attend the 21st Annual Critics' Choice Awards at Barker Hangar in 2016 in Santa Monica, California

His ex: Schwimmer was married to Zoe Buckman from 2010 until they split in 2017; the share daughter Chloe. Seen in 2016

They never inserted themselves.

'You don't want to get involved in actors' personal lives, then you're really in trouble as a producer,' he explained.

'We never did because nobody saw anything, nobody found anything; it was just rumors that were all based on how good they were as actors.'

Schwimmer was married to Zoe Buckman from 2010 until they split in 2017; the share daughter Chloe.

Aniston was married to Brad Pitt from 2000 to 2005 and later wed Justin Theroux from 2016 until 2018 .
Sammy Kimmence's sentencing date has been delayed until July 14.

The new dad, 25, had been due to appear at Portsmouth Crown Court on June 11 to hear his sentence, however his case was administratively adjourned until June 25 before being pushed back even further on Tuesday until next month.

In April, Kimmence made a last-minute change to plead guilty to scamming two men out of 34,000 and was told he could face jail time.

New date: Dani Dyer's beau Sammy Kimmence's sentencing date has been delayed until July 14, with the new dad waiting to hear if he'll be jailed in his fraud case (pictured in April)

In March last year, the crown court backlog stood at around 40,000, but was hit by court closures and the delays triggered by the pandemic.

Ministry of Justice figures revealed that towards the end of April this year, more than 57,000 crown court cases were outstanding  with some trials listed for 2023.

The new court date means that Kimmence was able to spend Father's Day, June 20, with his five-month-old son Santiago, who he shares with girlfriend Dani Dyer.

A source told The Sun: 'Shortly before he was informed that his sentencing was going to be delayed. The pandemic has done this to a number of cases in court.

Waiting: In April, Kimmence, 25, made changed his plea guilty after scamming two men out of 34K and was due to appear back in court on June 11 (pictured with Dani and Santi in April )

'The delay meant he was able to spend this special day with Dani and their baby son Santiago.

'Sammy put his hands up and admitted his crime and he will take his punishment when the time comes.'

MailOnline contacted Dani Dyer's representative for further comment at the time.

At the time of his last court appearance, Kimmence was granted conditional bail until the hearing of his case on June 11 where he was at 'risk of a custodial sentence'.

Counting down: Kimmence's sentencing was first administratively adjourned until June 25 before being pushed back even further on Tuesday until next month (pictured in March)

Earlier this year, Dani reportedly vowed to stand by her boyfriend as he faces jail after pleading guilty to fraud.

In a statement, the star's representative confirmed they are 'still together' after he appeared at Portsmouth Crown Court and admitted duping two men out of 34,000.

When asked whether they were still in a relationship, Dani's representative told The Sun they are 'still together.'

A source close to the star, who welcomed her first child with him in January, added: 'She's vowed to stand by him, he's the father of her baby.'

Parents: The couple, who rekindled their relationship after Dani's winning stint in the Love Island villa, welcomed their little boy Santiago in January (pictured on Tuesday)

MailOnline contacted representatives for Dani Dyer for further comment at the time.

It comes after Kimmence was warned in April that he faces jail after he admitted scamming two elderly men out of 34,000 by posing as a financial investor.

The entrepreneur duped Peter Martin, 90, and Peter Haynes, 80, between 2016 and 2018 by persuading the vulnerable pensioners to allow him to invest their money.

The 25-year-old's victims were said to have been clients at a legitimate investment company, S&S Trading Ltd, where Kimmence previously worked.

A previous hearing was told Kimmence took the clients on when the business stopped operating, falsely claiming he was authorised to provide financial services.

Now Kimmence, who had denied all the charges and first pleaded not guilty, faces a possible prison sentence after a last-minute change of plea.

Kimmence, appearing at Portsmouth Crown Court, Hampshire, as his trial was expected to start, pleaded guilty to five counts of fraud, totalling 33,919.

The judge warned him his offences were so serious they crossed the custody threshold and he could be sent to jail.

Standing in the dock, Kimmence, dressed in a black suit with a blue tie, spoke only to confirm his name and plead guilty to each charge.

The court heard Kimmence, who announced the birth of his and Dani's son Santiago in January, used one of his victims' bank cards to withdraw more than 1,200 for himself and also racked up credit card charges of more than 1,300.

He also admitted to getting Peter Martin to transfer him 22,912 on one occasion, and 400 on another. He conned Peter Haynes in a similar way to the tune of 7,927.

Martin died in November last year aged 91 while Haynes suffers from Alzheimer's.

Defending, Craig Harris asked for a pre-sentence report to be made and said: 'He is a relatively young man of previous good character, the offences go back into his late teenage years.

'This is a case that crosses the custodial threshold but might be within a range which I argue could be suspended.'

He added: 'Quite a lot has gone into this young man's life in the last few years. He is seeking to reimburse the losses he has caused so some time is also needed to allow him to do that.'

The court previously heard how Mr Haynes was diagnosed with Alzheimer's last year and has moved from Okehampton, Devon, to live closer to his daughter in Leeds.

Still together: Earlier this year, Dani reportedly vowed to stand by her boyfriend as he faces jail after pleading guilty to fraud (pictured with her son in May)

Adjourning the hearing for sentencing, Recorder Nicholas Haggan, QC, said: 'The offences to which you have pleaded guilty are serious offences, it's accepted they cross the custodial threshold and you are at risk of receiving a custodial sentence.

'Given you are young man of no previous convictions, I am going to order a sentencing report. I am going to grant you conditional bail.'

He ordered a pre-sentence report and added: 'I am going to grant conditional bail until the hearing of your case which is on 11 June. The fact I am granting bail affords no indication of what the sentence will be. You are at risk of a custodial sentence.'

Dani, who is the daughter of EastEnders star Danny Dyer, shot to fame on Love Island in 2018. She had previously been in a relationship with Kimmence but struck up a new partnership with Jack Fincham in the villa before going on to win the show.

But the 24-year-old rekindled her romance with Kimmence shortly afterwards and there have been rumours that the pair may be getting married in the near future.
He is the owner of confectionary company Candy Kittens.

Yet Jamie Laing, 32, has revealed how he lost 70,000 on expensive set up costs in the early days of the business.

Speaking to Emily Austen on The Busi-Ness Podcast the former Made In Chelsea star said: We had a crazy bill. Something like 70,000 pounds.'

Teething problems: Jamie Laing, 32, revealed on Wednesday how he lost 70,000 on expensive set up costs in the early days of the business

In 2012 alongside Managing Director Ed Williams, Jamie launched Candy Kittens, an innovative, gourmet sweet range.

The entrepreneurs had a candid chat to host Emily about the initial hiccups and the reality of running a business.

Ed said: In the early early days, to be honest, we made a lot of mistakes when registering the business and setting up the share structure and all of that sort of stuff.

Mainly because we just paid London accountants and lawyers to do that work for us, because we just thought, okay, that's what you have to do.

Businessman: The entrepreneur's had a candid chat to host Emily about the initial hiccups and the reality of running a business

Business partner: In 2012 alongside Managing Director Ed Williams,(pictured) Jamie launched Candy Kittens, an innovative, gourmet sweet range

The MD explained how they managed to rack up huge bills in the first year of Candy Kittens.

You get recommended to people through others, that probably don't run their own business, but actually just work at big businesses. Oh, yeah, we use this accountant.

'Well, of course you do, youre a 100 million dollar company, of course you use that, but we didnt need to. So we ended up with huge bills.

Jamie went onto say: 'Yeah, it was ridiculous for our first year of accounting, and I know now we're paying a lot, lot less than that nine years later, with a significantly bigger business.

The reality TV star also spoke about romanticising entrepreneurship and how some people just like the 'image of it.'

He said: Becoming an entrepreneur is a really sexy term. So everyone wants to do it.

I think what's also important is that this sort of romance of becoming an entrepreneur is always what people like. And, for me, particularly in the beginning, it was fun, right?'

'I like dressing up in a suit and going to an accountancy firm. And being like, yeah, we have this business.

People like the image of it, which is fine, but its not theatre, its actually a real life thing so you kind of have to start to realise that.

Pose: The reality TV star also spoke about romanticising entrepreneurship and how some people just like the 'image of it'

Earlier this month Jamie admitted he'd quit Made In Chelsea to focus on his sweet business that was hit during the pandemic.

The former Strictly Come Dancing star told MailOnline he's 'all or nothing' and wouldn't have enjoyed doing cameo appearances on the E4 series.

In an exclusive interview, Jamie, who hosts podcast Private Parts with Francis Boulle, admitted while he's loved being a cast member for ten years, 'there's no longer a reason for him to do the show'.

He said: Becoming an entrepreneur is a really sexy term. So everyone wants to do it'

'It's a classic statement but I am stepping back 100 per cent. I love that show but also I'm 32.

'With a reality show you've got to really throw yourself into it and whatever I do I want to do it to my best ability and put my all into it and at the moment I can't do that and I have other things I need to do.

'I would just be on the side and truthfully I don't enjoy doing that, I want to be in the thick of things and I can't do that with Chelsea at the minute so for me there isn't a reason to do it.

'I am so all or nothing and I hate doing things halfheartedly. I got to hang out with my best friends and film and I don't regret any of it. We were so lucky in so many ways.'
Laura Anderson was forced to hit back at a vile troll on Wednesday after she was 'skinny-shamed' for sharing pictures of herself performing yoga.

The former Love Island star, 32, had posted a collection of stunning photos of herself holding a series of impressive poses at The View at The Palm in Dubai.

In the snaps, Laura displayed her toned figure in an olive green crop top and matching leggings.

Hitting back: Laura Anderson was forced to hit back at a vile troll on Wednesday after she was 'skinny-shamed' for sharing pictures of herself performing yoga

And despite being praised for her impressive yoga moves by her 1.4m followers, one vile troll 'skinny-shamed' the star and even cruelly said: 'Get some curves on you love'.

They cruelly wrote: 'You look so skinny, and not in a healthy way. Almost bulimic or anorexic. I say this with love, but get some curves on you girl. Doesnt harm to have abit of wobble' followed by a heart emoji.

To which a shocked Laura replied back with: 'Wow.'

The Scottish reality star's 1.4m followers were also quick to hit back at the troll and support Laura.

Gorgeous: The former Love Island star, 32, had posted a collection of stunning photos of herself holding a series of impressive poses at The View at The Palm in Dubai

Vile: And despite being praised for her impressive yoga moves by her 1.4m followers, one vile troll 'skinny-shamed' the star and even cruelly said: 'Get some curves on you love'

One person said: 'Your words are harmful. She is naturally skinny, and women come in all shapes and sizes. Stop commenting on other people's bodies it is not OK.'

While a different follower put: 'Why do you feel the need to pass judgment on another womens body.

'Honestly we as women are all different and all perfect in our own way and no one should ever feel the need to drag another women down, there are enough men out there doing that for us!

'#supportwomen #bekind #perfectthewayweare. You look fantastic Laura,fit, healthy and happy.'

While a different fan added: '@lauraanderson1x I personally think she looks absolutely stunning! But the most important thing, is HAPPY!!!! She look so Happy and that what matters most.'

Support: The Scottish reality star's 1.4m followers were also quick to hit back at the troll and support Laura with one person saying: 'Your words are harmful'

Earlier this year, Laura, who propelled to fame on the 2018 series of Love Island as a 29-year-old air hostess, spoke about the trolling she has received since the show.

The reality star, who was one of the oldest singletons on the series, said she has also been trolled relentlessly about her age.

In an interview with The Sun, the television personality revealed the fickle side of fame and detailed how she's lost out on jobs to her peers due to being 'past it'.

Speaking about the hate she gets regarding her age, Laura said: 'I get called a "wrinkly, washed-up has-been" or they'll say, "You dont look a day over 50", tell me I'm "past it" or ask, "Why are you in a club? Go home, Grandma".

Tough: Earlier this year, Laura, who propelled to fame on the 2018 series of Love Island as a 29-year-old air hostess, spoke about the trolling she has received since the show

'If I'm pictured with a guy, theyll say I look like I could be his mum. There is this obsession with age and so much judgment over a womans appearance, which men simply dont get.'

Laura continued: 'I just hadn't experienced ageism before. But on the island it became very apparent that I was the older girl.'

During her stint on the ITV2 show, the Scottish beauty said she was horrified when her father had to get her birth certificate to prove she wasn't lying about her age.

Hurtful: The reality star, who was one of the oldest singletons on the series, said she has also been trolled relentlessly about her age (pictured on the show in 2018)

And following her exit, Laura said she was constantly compared to her female co-stars who 'would definitely get jobs over me because they were younger'.

Laura said she was dropped from a high fashion brand campaign, which many Love Islanders go on to work with, because her 'age didn't fit the demographic' and because she 'wouldn't get any younger' the retailer couldn't commit to working with her.

The reality star admitted the feedback, delivered by her agent, made her feel 'ashamed of my appearance and years on this planet'.

Only recently, Laura moved into a new home with her boyfriend Dane Bowers in Dubai after the couple rekindled their romance.
Elton John has announced the final dates for his farewell tour, which includes stops at big stadiums in the U.S.

However, he won't reach Down Under until 2023.

Elton John Farewell Yellow Brick Road: The Final Tour will visit Frankfurt, Germany, on May 27, 2022 and will make several stops throughout Europe, including Milan, Liverpool and Paris.

Waiting game: Elton John has announced the final dates for his farewell tour, which includes stops at big stadiums in the U.S. However, he won't reach Down Under until 2023

John also announced dates in North America, kicking off those shows on July 15, 2022, at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.

He will perform at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey; Soldier Field in Chicago; Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta; Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee; and Minute Maid Park in Houston.

He will wrap the North American trek with two shows at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on November 19 and 20, 2022.

Stadium shows: In 2023 he will play in New Zealand and Australia before wrapping up the tour, which began in 2018

In 2023 he will play in New Zealand and Australia before wrapping up the tour, which began in 2018.

John's last 'appearance' Down Under was in a video package for the state funeral of late music industry executive Michael Gudinski in March.

He recorded a tribute, alongside the likes of Taylor Swift and Bruce Springsteen.
Bindi Irwin might be in the middle of a family rift with her estranged 82-year-old grandfather Bob.

But it seems the drama was the last thing on her mind when she spoke to Australia's Who magazine this week.

The wildlife warrior, 22, said she was in her element as a new mother and gushed over her newborn daughter Grace Warrior, who will turn three months old on Friday.

'She's definitely an Irwin': Bindi shrugged off her family rift as she gushed over her wildlife-loving daughter Grace in an interview with Who magazine. Pictured with Chandler Powell

Bindi said her daughter 'is definitely an Irwin' because she loves animals, nature and adventuring around Australia Zoo.

'Grace loves adventures and she's such a happy, inquisitive little person,' she said.

'We can already tell she's definitely an Irwin.'

Cute: Bindi said her daughter 'is definitely an Irwin' because she loves animals, nature and adventuring around Australia Zoo

Bindi added that after giving birth on March 25, she's already back at work.

She said she was able to return to work so quickly because she lives at Australia Zoo and can bring Grace with her.

'It makes me so happy because she's always by my side,' she added.

Making headlines: The Irwin family feud was blasted wide open on Sunday, after Bindi claimed her grandfather Bob Snr had 'ignored her' since she was a little girl and 'returned gifts' the family had sent him

The Irwin family feud was blasted wide open on Sunday, after Bindi claimed her grandfather Bob Snr had 'ignored her' since she was a little girl and 'returned gifts' the family had sent him.

The mother of one wrote on Facebook: 'I really wish that my entire family could spend time with Grace. Unfortunately, my grandfather Bob has shown no interest in spending time with me or my family.'

She went on to claim that Bob had 'returned gifts I've sent after he opened them', and ignored any letters sent from her.

'From the time I was a little girl he has ignored me, preferring to spend time doing anything else rather than being with me,' she continued.

'He has never said a single kind word to me personally. It breaks my heart.'

She went on to say that her mother Terri still writes to him and sends birthday cards and Christmas gifts, but claims they have received no reply.

Claims: She went on to say that her mother Terri still writes to him and sends birthday cards and Christmas gifts, but claims they have received no reply. Pictured in 2007

'We have also been his financial support since 1992 when he retired from Australia Zoo, sending him funds every week,' she added.

'We built him a house on a beautiful property and will always do our best to ensure his wellbeing.

'I hope everyone remembers to be kind to one another but most of all care for your own mental health.

'I have struggled with this relationship my entire life and it brings me enormous pain.'

Bindi, who welcomed her daughter Grace in March, concluded by saying she had to 'choose to care for her own mental health now'.

She announced on Tuesday she was taking a break from social media after her Facebook comment made headlines globally.

She wrote: 'Hi guys, Just a note to say thank you for your support. I'm taking a break from social media and most of my work in the public eye for a month to be with my beautiful daughter and my wonderful family.'

Taking a break: She announced on Tuesday she was taking a break from social media after her Facebook comment made headlines globally

Meanwhile, an Irwin family friend has said Bob Snr is 'deeply upset' by his granddaughter Bindi's claims he's 'ignored' her since she was a child - leading those close to him to fear the rift may have tragic consequences.

Amanda French, who co-authored Bob's 2016 autobiography The Last Crocodile Hunter, said on Monday that family members have tried to shield Bob, 82, from 'the full extent' of what Bindi, 22, has said about him.

But he's nonetheless devastated and feels confused as to 'where this all came from'.

Ms French told Seven's The Latest on Monday: 'Naturally Bob's quite upset about it, and to be perfectly honest we haven't told him the full extent of the comments because we're quite concerned about how he might take that.'

She also claimed Bindi's harsh Facebook comment about her grandfather on Sunday was particularly unfair given how Bob has always maintained a dignified silence on the circumstances of his exit from Australia Zoo in 2008.

'Bob's always been quite neutral about the reason why he left the zoo and that's something he'll probably take to his grave,' Ms French said.
He knows a thing or two about the world of comedy.

And Jerry Seinfeld is taking a bit to the next level as he signed on to direct and star in the new Netflix film about the creation of the Pop-Tart.

The 67-year-old comedian is also set to produce Unfrosted, a film he co-wrote with Spike Feresten and Barry Marder which was inspired by a joke he later deconstructed in a piece for The New York Times.

Funny guy: Jerry Seinfeld is taking a bit to the next level as he signed on to direct and star in the new Netflix film about the creation of the Pop-Tart; seen in 2019

'Stuck at home watching endless sad faces on TV I thought this would be a good time to make something based on pure silliness,' he told Deadline.

'So we took my Pop-Tart stand up bit from my last Netflix special and exploded it into a giant, crazy comedy movie.'

Seinfeld's no stranger to the streaming giant as he signed a lucrative deal with Netflix in 2017 for his Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee series.

His Jerry Before Seinfeld show and 23 Hours to Kill were also released on Netflix.

Jerry recently made a global deal to stream his most famous work to date, his self-titled 30-minute sitcom Seinfeld, for five years beginning later this year.

Sweet treat: The 67-year-old comedian is also set to produce Unfrosted, a film he co-wrote with Spike Feresten and Barry Marder which was inspired by a joke he later deconstructed in a piece for The New York Times

Legend: Seinfeld's no stranger to the streaming giant as he signed a lucrative deal with Netflix in 2017 for his Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee series

In the NYT video, Jerry briefly discussed his writing style and offered a glimpse into the process of creating the perfect joke.

'In comedy, what you do is you think of something that you think is funny and then you go from there,' he said.

'When I was a kid and they invented the Pop-Tart, the back of my head blew right off and that got the whole thing started. That specific part of my head blew off, not just my head but just the back.'

He continued: 'It was the '60s and we had toast, we had orange juice that was frozen years in advance that you had to hack away at with a knife to get a couple of drops and it felt like you were committing a murder before you got on your school bus.'

Friends forever: Jerry recently made a global deal to stream his most famous work to date, his self-titled 30-minute '90s sitcom Seinfeld, for five years beginning later this year

He went on to talk about his least favorite breakfast foods and what spawned the idea for the questionable pastry.

'How did they know that there would be a need for a frosted fruit-filled heatable rectangle in the same shape as the box it comes in, and with the same nutrition as the box it comes in?' Seinfeld said at the time.

'In the midst of that darkness and hopelessness, the Kellog's Pop-Tart appears,' he said as he broke down how to present the joke for the best laughs.

'They can't go stale because they were never fresh,' he added. 'In my world- the wronger something feels, the righter it is. So to waste this much time on something this stupid, that felt good to me.'
Filming is well and truly underway on Stan's Original Series, The Tourist.

On Monday, Jamie Dornan and co-star Shalom Brune-Franklin were spotted shooting dramatic scenes in Adelaide.

The Fifty Shades of Grey star, 39, dressed in blue jeans, a brown T-shirt and sported a rugged beard as he filmed scenes at a motel in the suburb of Frewville.

Coming soon: Line of Duty star Shalom Brune-Franklin (left) and Jamie Dornan (right) filmed scenes for Stan's outback thriller The Tourist in Adelaide on Monday

Shalom wore blue jeans, a striped T-shirt and green jacket as she joined Jamie on set.

The Line of Duty actress, 26, was seen standing at the door and eating a pear before returning back into the room.

In the six-part thriller, Jamie's character is known as 'The Man' and is pursued in the Australian outback.

His character is driven off the road by a tank trunk and ends up in hospital.

In character: The Fifty Shades of Grey star, 39, dressed in blue jeans and a brown T-shirt

New look: He also sported a rugged beard as he filmed scenes in Adelaide

On set: Scenes were being filmed at a motel in Frewville, a small suburb of Adelaide

Upon waking, he struggles to make sense of his identity as those from his past continue to hunt him down.

Jamie will star alongside Danielle Macdonald as Helen Chambers, a fledgling Probationary Constable, and Shalom, who is set to play Luci, a waitress who's swept into The Man's journey for answers.

Damon Herriman has replaced Hugo Weaving's role as Agent Lachlan Rogers. Hugo pulled out of the project due to scheduling issues.

New role: Shalom wore blue jeans, a striped T-shirt and green jacket as she joined Jamie on set

Lights, camera, action! The Line of Duty actress, 26, was seen standing at the door and eating a pear before returning back into the room

Storyline: In the six-part thriller, Jamie's character is known as 'The Man' and is pursued in the Australian outback. His character is driven off the road by a tank trunk and ends up in hospital

Jamie previously said of the role: 'The Tourist are some of the most exciting scripts I've ever read. I can't wait to go to Australia with such a talented group of people.'

He is best known for playing Christian Grey in the Fifty Shades of Grey franchise, and for his star turn in TV series The Fall.

Stan Original series The Tourist is coming soon, exclusively on Stan in Australia.

Thriller: Upon waking, he struggles to make sense of his identity as those from his past continue to hunt him down
Her love life has always been in the spotlight since she found fame as Rachel on Friends in 1994.

And after two failed marriages, Jennifer Aniston tells People she's still open to sharing her life with that special someone.

'I'm interested in finding a fantastic partner and just living an enjoyable life and having fun with one another. That's all we should hope for,' she told the publication.

Open to finding love again: Jennifer Aniston has admitted to People magazine that she's looking for 'a fantastic partner' but getting married again is not a priority

As for exchanging vows for a third time, the actress, 52, admitted getting married again is not a priority in her search for love.

'It doesn't have to be etched in stone in legal documents,' she said of embarking on a new relationship.

As for finding a new man, Aniston insists she won't be turning to dating apps.

'Absolutely no,' she told People.

She explained: 'I'm going to just stick to the normal ways of dating. Having someone ask you out. That's the way I would prefer it.'

Old-fashioned: The actress revealed she won't use dating apps to find her next Mr. Right. She explained: 'I'm going to just stick to the normal ways of dating. Having someone ask you out'

First husband: Aniston, who found fame on Friends in 1994, was married to Hollywood star Brad Pitt from 2000 to 2005 (pictured in 2000)

She wed second husband Justin Theroux in 2016 after five years of dating but they broke up in 2018 (pictured in 2014)

The star's first marriage to Brad Pitt ended in 2005 after five years.

She wed second husband Justin Theroux in 2016 after five years of dating but they broke up in 2018.

For now, Aniston says she's in 'a really peaceful place' sharing her life with her beloved dogs - schnauzer mix Clyde, pit-bull mix Sophie and newly rescued Great Pyrenees mix Lord Chesterfield.

'I have a job that I love, I have people in my life who are everything to me, and I have beautiful dogs. I'm just a very fortunate and blessed human being,' she said.
John Boyega has been hit by claims that he abruptly pulled out of movie Rebel Ridge without telling execs about his plan to leave.

The actor, 29, was revealed to no longer be working on the thriller at the start of June, with Netflix citing 'family reasons' were behind his shock mid-shoot exit.

However, several insiders have now claimed that the Small Axe star was dealing with a 'myriad of issues' and filmmakers didn't know he had left until they discovered he'd checked out of his hotel room, reports The Hollywood Reporter.

Allegations: John Boyega has been hit by claims that he abruptly pulled out of movie Rebel Ridge without telling execs or the filmmakers about his plan to leave (pictured in 2020)

Speaking with the publication, one source alleged that John was dealing with issues ranging 'from the script to his accommodations'.

And another detailed his reported unannounced exit, claiming that the actor left his hotel without telling anyone of his intention to bow out of the movie.

John's agent Femi Oguns vehemently denied the claims, saying: 'The rumours are completely untrue. People will form their opinions often rooted from boredom.

'As stated John unfortunately left due to family reasons which in truth is none of anyone's business except his own.

Quit: The actor, 29, was revealed to no longer be working on the movie at the start of June, with Netflix citing 'family reasons' were behind his shock mid-shoot exit (pictured in 2019)

'John and Netflix have a wonderful relation which will continue to grow for years to come whether that be through his acting or through [his production company] UpperRoom.'

MailOnline has contacted Netflix and John's representatives for further comment.

Industry sources expressed their surprise to THR at a leading star actually stepping down from a movie role once the shoot starts, saying the move is very rare.

It is thought that Rebel Ridge, which reportedly has a $25m budget, has now paused production while Netflix finds a new lead, with some crew reportedly being laid off.

It was reported at the start of June that the Star Wars: The Last Jedi actor had pulled out of filming mid-shoot.

Denial: John's agent vehemently denied the claims, saying: 'The rumours are completely untrue. People will form their opinions often rooted from boredom' (pictured in 2018)

Filming started at the beginning of May in Louisiana and John was the leading part in the film created by Green Room director Jeremy Saulnier.

A spokesperson for Netflix told Deadline: 'Rebel Ridge is pausing temporarily as we look to re-cast John Boyega who needed to leave the project for family reasons.

'We remain committed to Jeremy Saulnier 's extraordinary film and look forward to resuming production.

'We look forward to continuing our partnership withJohn Boyega's UpperRoom Productions, in addition to our upcoming film They Cloned Tyrone in which he also stars.'

The film was originally set to shoot in April 2020 but was delayed because to the pandemic.

The movie has been described as 'a high-velocity thriller that explores systemic American injustices through intense action sequences, suspense and dark humor'.

The remaining cast includes Don Johnson, AnnaSophia Robb, James Cromwell and Emory Cohen.

John recently finished filming the sci-fi comedy They Cloned Tyrone for Netflix, starring alongside Jamie Foxx, Teyonah Parris and Brian Tyree Henry.
Local

Memorial approves deal with Lion Star

Nacogdoches Memorial Hospital finally found its partner.

After a lengthy closed session that capped nearly three years of searching, the hospital board unanimously approved a partnership deal with Lion Star Group, LLC during Tuesday nights meeting.

Lion Star will take over hospital operations July 1.

The hospital district will retain ownership and operations of the Nacogdoches County Emergency Medical Services, but all other eligible employees will be offered the opportunity for employment with Nacogdoches Memorial Health, hospital officials said in a written statement.

They deserve an atmosphere of stability as to continued employment, general working conditions and compensation and Lion Star has shown a commitment to that initiative throughout our negotiations, board president Lisa King said in the emailed statement.

Further details were not disclosed during Tuesdays meeting. The Daily Sentinel has requested copies of documents approved during the board meeting but was not immediately granted the opportunity to review them.

A spokeswoman for the hospital said she forwarded the request for documents to hospital administrators. Agreements approved by governmental entities that receive public funding, such as Nacogdoches Memorial Hospital, are subject to the Texas Open Records Act and are required to be available for public viewing.

The deal was largely hashed out behind close doors, and little has been mentioned publicly.

Sale of the hospital facilities to Lion Star does not spell an end for the hospital board.

The district will not go away. We will still have a hospital district as mandated by legislation, King said during Tuesdays meeting.

Board members appointed accounting director Lynn Lindsey as interim director of the hospital district, taking the reins from chief financial officer Rhonda McCabe. McCabes future with the hospital was unclear after Tuesdays meeting.

Details of Lindseys 30-day contract were not discussed in public.

Lion Stars managing partner is Sean Fowler, according to information released by the hospital. Fowler, who is a graduate of Texas A&M and has business interests in Texas, is also listed as president and chief operating officer of Halsen Healthcare in California and CEO of South Texas Associates and Resources, which is based in California.

Searches for Lion Star Group LLC in databases of both California- and Texas-based businesses turned up no active results.

Halsen Healthcare purchased Watsonville Community Hospital in California in October 2019 for $30 million. It then sold the building and property back to Alabama-based Medical Properties Trust for $39 million and leased the property from the other company. The Watsonville hospital fired Halsen from its leadership role in January for failing to meet financial obligations to various stakeholders, according to The Pajaronian newspaper in Watsonville.

Nacogdoches community members have wondered privately about Lion Stars intentions with Memorial after learning of the deal in California. However, many have said Lion Star is the hospitals best option for survival.

The partnership is the final solution for ongoing debt reorganization that began in June 2018 when Memorials board hired the law firm Dykema to solve its financial crisis.

The following January, the board hired Juniper Advisory to act as its agent in a partnership search. The firm was fired in April 2020 after no serious interest in the publicly funded hospital materialized.

The list of suitors narrowed during the coronavirus pandemic as companies either lost interest or were eliminated from contention.

In October, the hospital identified two prospective partners  Canyon Atlantic-Texas LLC and ULIVVO, LLC  before signings an exclusive letter of intent with Lion Star in March.
WASHINGTON (AP)  A House panel pushed ahead Wednesday with ambitious legislation that could curb the market power of tech giants Facebook, Google, Amazon and Apple and force them to sever their dominant platforms from their other lines of business.

Conservative Republican lawmakers haggled over legislative language and pushed concerns of perceived anti-conservative bias in online platforms but couldnt halt the bipartisan momentum behind the package.

The drafting session and votes by the House Judiciary Committee are initial steps in what promises to be a strenuous slog through Congress. Many Republican lawmakers denounce the market dominance of Big Tech but dont support a wholesale revamp of the antitrust laws.

Work on the massive bipartisan legislation stretched into the night. The session pushed beyond the 12-hour mark as lengthy debate ensued over a complex bill that would require online platforms to allow users to communicate directly with users on rival services. Proponents said the measure also would give consumers more power to determine how and with whom their personal data is shared.

Earlier, the Democratic-majority committee made quick work of arguably the least controversial bills in the package, which were approved over Republican objections. A measure that would increase the budget of the Federal Trade Commission drew Republican conservatives ire as an avenue toward amplified power for the agency. The legislation, passed 29-12 and sent to the full U.S. House, would increase filing fees for proposed tech mergers worth more than $500 million and cut the fees for those under that level.

A second bill would give states greater powers over companies in determining the courts in which to prosecute tech antitrust cases. Many state attorneys general have pursued antitrust cases against big tech companies, and many states joined with the U.S. Justice Department and the FTC in their antitrust lawsuits against Google and Facebook, respectively, last year. The measure drew many Republican votes and was approved 34-7.

The advance of the legislation comes as the tech giants already are smarting under federal investigations, epic antitrust lawsuits, near-constant condemnation from politicians of both parties, and a newly installed head of the powerful FTC who is a fierce critic of the industry.

The legislative package, led by industry critic Rep. David Cicilline, D-R.I., targets the companies structure and could point toward breaking them up, a dramatic step for Congress to take against a powerful industry whose products are woven into everyday life. If such steps were mandated, they could bring the biggest changes to the industry since the federal governments landmark case against Microsoft some 20 years ago.

The Democratic lawmakers championing the proposals reaffirmed the case for curbing Big Tech as the committee began digging into the legislation.

It will pave the way for a stronger economy and a stronger democracy for the American people by reining in anti-competitive abuses of the most dominant firms online, said Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., the Judiciary Committee chair. Each bill is an essential part of a bipartisan plan to level the playing field for innovators, entrepreneurs and startup  and to bring the benefits of increased innovation and choice to American consumers.

Conservative Republicans laid down their markers. They insisted that the proposed legislation doesnt truly attack anti-competitive abuses by the tech industry because it fails to address anti-conservative bias on its social media platforms.

And they previewed a fight over legislative definitions. The legislation as drafted would apply to online platforms with 50 million or more monthly active users, annual sales or market value of over $600 billion, and a role as a critical trading partner.

The new proposals make it worse," insisted Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, the panel's senior Republican. They dont break up Big Tech. They dont stop censorship.

The legislation's definition of which online platforms would fall under stricter antitrust standards could mean that companies such as Microsoft, Walmart and Visa would soon be included, Jordan suggested. Who knows where it will end?" he said.

President Joe Bidens surprise move last week elevating antitrust legal scholar Lina Khan to head the FTC was a clear signal of a tough stance toward the tech giants. It was top of mind for the conservative Republicans objecting to the new legislation. Khan played a key role in the Judiciary Committees sweeping 2019-20 investigation of the tech giants market power.

The four companies deny abusing their dominant market position and assert that improper intervention in the market through legislation would hurt small businesses and consumers.

Lauded as engines of innovation, the Silicon Valley giants for decades enjoyed minimal regulation and star status in Washington, with a notable coziness during the Obama administration, when Biden was vice president. The industrys fortunes abruptly reversed about two years ago, when the companies came under intense federal scrutiny, a searing congressional investigation, and growing public criticism over issues of competition, consumer privacy and hate speech.

Biden said as a presidential candidate that dismantling the big tech companies should be considered. He also has said he wants to see changes to the social media companies long-held legal protections for speech on their platforms.

The legislative proposals also would prohibit the tech giants from favoring their own products and services over competitors on their platforms. The legislation was informed by the 15-month Judiciary antitrust investigation, led by Cicilline, that concluded the four tech giants have abused their market power by charging excessive fees, imposing tough contract terms and extracting valuable data from individuals and businesses that rely on them.

The legislation also would make it tougher for the giant tech companies to snap up competitors in mergers, which they have completed by scores in recent years.

Democrats control the House, but they would need to garner significant Republican support in the Senate for legislation to pass. The chamber is split 50-50 with the Democrats one-vote margin depending on Vice President Kamala Harris being the tiebreaker.

___

Follow Marcy Gordon at https://twitter.com/mgordonap.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)  Iran likely conducted a failed launch of a satellite-carrying rocket in recent days and now appears to be preparing to try again, the country's latest effort to advance its space program amid tensions with the West over its tattered nuclear deal.

Satellite images, a U.S. official and a rocket expert all confirmed the failed launch, earlier this month, at the Imam Khomeini Spaceport in Iran's Semnan province. The attempt comes as Iran's space program has suffered a series of high-profile losses, while its paramilitary Revolutionary Guard runs its own parallel program that launched a satellite into orbit last year.

Irans Telecommunications Minister Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi later Wednesday denied Tehran had a failed satellite launch, but offered no explanation for the activity at the spaceport. Iran's mission to the United Nations did not respond to a request for comment.

Satellite photos from Planet Labs Inc. and Maxar Technologies show preparations at the spaceport on June 6. Those images include what appears to be fuel tanks alongside a massive white gantry that houses a rocket, while scientists fuel it and prepare for launch. Before the launch, workers tow the gantry away to expose the rocket.

The number of fuel tanks, based on their size, appear to have been enough to fill the first and second stages of an Iranian Simorgh rocket, said Jeffrey Lewis, an expert at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies. The Simorgh is a satellite-carrying rocket that has been launched from that same area of the spaceport, he said.

Later satellite images on June 17 showed a decrease in activity at the site. Lewis said analysts believe Iran launched the rocket at some point in that window.

Nothing had blown up. There wasnt a giant stain  like they had dumped the fuel  and the vehicles had kind of just moved around," he said. "The overall level of activity at the site was much lower. So to our mind, that looked like a launch.

Air Force Lt. Col. Uriah Orland, a Pentagon spokesman, said in a statement that U.S. Space Command is aware of the Iranian rocket launch failure which occurred early June 12. He did not elaborate on the failed launch, first reported by CNN.

It wasn't immediately clear why Iran would have picked June 12 for a launch as Tehran typically schedules such launches for national commemorations. However, it did come in the run-up to Iran's presidential election last week, in which the Islamic Republic had hoped to boost turnout.

On Sunday, a new satellite image from Planet Labs showed renewed activity at the site. The image shows a mobile platform previously used to secure a Simorgh rocket at the gantry, a support vehicle seen at previous launches and a new line of fuel containers lined up at the site. Lewis said the equipment suggests that another launch is imminent.

Over the past decade, Iran has sent several short-lived satellites into orbit and in 2013 launched a monkey into space. The program has seen recent troubles, however. A failed launch this month would be the fourth in a row for the Simorgh program. A separate fire at the Imam Khomeini Spaceport in February 2019 also killed three researchers, authorities said at the time.

A rocket explosion in August 2019 drew even the attention of then-President Donald Trump, who later tweeted what appeared to be a classified surveillance image of the launch failure. The successive failures raised suspicion of outside interference in Irans program, something Trump himself hinted at by tweeting at the time that the U.S. was not involved in the catastrophic accident. But Lewis said such failures are common, especially when trying to put objects carefully into orbit around the Earth.

Meanwhile, the Guard in April 2020 revealed its own secret space program by successfully launching a satellite into orbit. The head of the U.S. Space Command later dismissed the satellite as a tumbling webcam in space that wouldn't provide Iran vital intelligence  though it showed Tehran's ability to successfully get into orbit.

The launch comes after the landslide election of Iranian President-elect Ebrahim Raisi, the country's hard-line judiciary chief tied to the mass execution of thousands in 1988. The vote saw the lowest turnout in a presidential election since Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Raisi will take over from Iran's outgoing President Hassan Rouhani, a relative moderate who guided Tehran into its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. Trump unilaterally withdrew America from the accord in 2018, setting in motion months of tensions in the wider Mideast that continue today. Diplomats in Vienna now are negotiating a way for both Iran and the U.S. to re-enter the deal, which saw Iran agree to limit its nuclear enrichment in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions.

The U.S. has alleged such satellite launches defy a U.N. Security Council resolution and called on Iran to undertake no activity related to ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons.

Iran, which long has said it does not seek nuclear weapons, previously maintained that its satellite launches and rocket tests do not have a military component. U.S. intelligence agencies and the International Atomic Energy Agency say Iran abandoned an organized military nuclear program in 2003.

The Simorgh, however, is far too large and too slow to fuel to be a good carrier for a nuclear-tipped weapon, Lewis said.

Its a butter knife," he added. "Could you stab someone with a butter knife? Yeah, but thats not really the tool.

___

Follow Jon Gambrell on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jongambrellAP.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Joe Lieberman was back on Capitol Hill on Tuesday testifying in support of the Democratic push for Washington, D.C., statehood. Then he met privately with Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of the many Republicans who fiercely oppose such a move.

It was a classic agenda for Lieberman, the former Democratic  and later independent  senator from Connecticut who made his reputation building relationships with Republicans. But in a hyperpartisan era, the approach is becoming a relic, a risk underscored later in the day when the GOP united to block a voting rights bill that Democrats say is essential for democracy.

Still, Lieberman was undeterred.

There have to be people in both parties who talk to each other, negotiate, compromise, he insisted.

The debate over whether and how the parties should cooperate is coming to a head as a summer legislative flurry intensifies in Congress. The infrastructure package that is one of President Joe Biden's top priorities may suffer the same fate as the voting bill, emboldening Democrats to move on their own. Many progressives want Democratic leaders to end the procedural hurdle known as the filibuster that allows the GOP to stymie the majority's priorities.

Amid the tension, a small group of lawmakers has huddled privately on infrastructure in recent months to test a different approach. Led by GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana along with Reps. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., they have focused on bridging both the partisan divide and the cultural hurdles in Congress that often prevent members of the House and Senate from working together.

This is a great example of finding common ground, Cassidy said during a Wednesday meeting. We've still got obstacles, let me just say that, but I am just hopeful that we can do this.

Their success is far from certain. Already, a group of 21 senators from both parties is working with the White House to finalize an infrastructure deal. The senators reached a tentative framework for a deal Wednesday, and Biden invited members of the group to the White House on Thursday.

Heading into next year's congressional primaries, there's not much energy in either party's base for centrist politics. But the effort is notable for its buy-in from both ends of Capitol Hill.

In one of the bizarre truisms of Washington, as divided as Democrats and Republicans may be, the deeper split can often be between rank-and-file members of the House and Senate. They work in the same building but belong to chambers with different customs.

In the House, the majority almost always carries the day and political pressures are never far away, with members facing an election every two years. The Senate in modern times typically requires the consent of 60 members to accomplish almost anything and members face voters every six years.

The result is a legislative body that is often at odds.

Even though we're just a few feet away from each other, it's like you're in two different universes, Gottheimer said.

That began to change last year when some members of the House and Senate collaborated to reach an agreement on coronavirus relief. With that experience in mind, Cassidy, Gottheimer and Fitzpatrick found themselves among dozens of governors and members of Congress from both parties who descended on Annapolis, Maryland, in April for an infrastructure summit hosted by Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican who has decried intense partisanship.

The No. 1 problem we face in America is really the toxic politics, Hogan, who may eye a run for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, said in an interview. We're so far divided, and nobody seems to ever want to work together to get things done.

After the gathering, No Labels, a political group focused on bipartisanship, facilitated additional conversations among Cassidy, Gottheimer and Fitzpatrick. While other talks, including those between Biden and GOP Sen. Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, garnered more attention, the other group kept in touch largely out of sight.

Although the House-Senate conversations are limited to just a few members, those lawmakers are connected to larger groups that could prove important in determining whether an infrastructure bill advances in a narrowly divided Congress or remains a punchline for dysfunction.

Cassidy is among the 21 senators involved in negotiations with the White House while Gottheimer and Fitzpatrick are members of the Problem Solvers Caucus, a group of 56 lawmakers in the House made up of 28 Democrats and 28 Republicans. Gottheimer and Fitzpatrick have participated in meetings with the 21 senators and have shepherded information back to their House colleagues.

Its really fair to say, yes, we were both reporting back to our respective groups and kind of helping negotiate a package, Gottheimer said.

For now, it's unclear whether anything that his group has discussed will become law.

Over the past decade, much-heralded bipartisan pairings have failed to deliver on such issues as immigration and government spending. The Trump era deepened the split between the parties, and mistrust among lawmakers has soared in the aftermath of the deadly Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol by the former president's supporters.

Theyre in a much tougher environment than we were in 30 years ago, said former Democratic Rep. Dick Gephardt, who was the House Democratic leader from 1995 to 2003.

And while bipartisan groups can garner attention, they also attract suspicion, conjuring images of backroom deals being made without much scrutiny.

That's especially true after The Intercept reported leaked audio earlier this month of a meeting hosted by No Labels in which Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., seemed to suggest to donors that they should try to persuade Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., to vote to support an independent commission to probe the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.

Manchin's representatives have denied that he was seeking donations and Blunt joined every other Senate Republican in opposing the commission. Lieberman, a co-chair of No Labels, told reporters that he's never heard the organization's members raise a question related to their business.

Regardless of whether the conversations that Gottheimer, Fitzpatrick and others are having result in provisions that become law, those involved say there are bigger issues at stake. Fitzpatrick framed the work as a way to push back against ideological extremes in both parties.

If we can get a win here, I think it will send a very loud message that if the centrists stick together we can overcome the fringes, he said. The battle is not between Democrats or Republicans; its centrism versus extremism.
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The division bench comprising Chief Justice Hima Kohli and Justice B. Vijaysen Reddy was dealing with the PILs filed by parents association and others. (DC)

HYDERABAD: As the state government informed that it was taking stringent action against private schools which collected more than prescribed fees, the Telangana High Court closed two PILs on higher fees and online classes.

The division bench comprising Chief Justice Hima Kohli and Justice B. Vijaysen Reddy was dealing with the PILs filed by parents association and others, who brought to the notice of the court about the violations of government orders regarding school fees for the academic year 2020-21.

The government had issued GO 46 restraining all private schools from collecting any fee other than admission fee for the academic year. The GO says there should not be any fee hike for that academic year and the fee shall be collected only on a monthly basis.

The government counsel submitted that the education department had already issued show cause notices to the schools, which violated the GO 46. He submitted that some schools had collected various fees, apart from admission fees. After the replies to the show cause notices, action would be taken, the counsel stated.

Noting the government counsels statement, the court closed the PILs.
Government special counsel Suman explained to the court that bifurcation of some institutes including SHRC was yet to be completed as per the Reorganisation Act. (DC)

Vijayawada: The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Tuesday asked the YSRC government to explain why the state Human Rights Commission has been operating from Hyderabad and to submit details of the office, staff and infrastructure provided for the commission.

A division bench of Chief Justice A.K. Goswami and Justice N. Jayasurya stressed that people should find it convenient to approach the SHRC. It is desirable that the commissions office is located within the state.

The bench was dealing with a petition filed by civil liberties activist Malleswara Rao complaining against the inaccessibility of the office and inability of the petitioners to file complaints since the panel sat in Hyderabad.

Petitioners counsel Suresh Kumar said the government constituted the SHRC only after a contempt casewas filed in the court, and it failed to provide staff and infrastructure to the commission members. There is no mechanism as of now to receive complaints and process them, he said.

Government special counsel Suman explained to the court that bifurcation of some institutes including SHRC was yet to be completed as per the Reorganisation Act. The commission has taken up cases online and issued interim directions also, he said.

Advocate General S. Sriram claimed before the court that Lokayukta and AP state electricity regulatory commission had also been working from Hyderabad and their location away from the state did not impact their functioning.
Visakhapatnam: The state president of BJP, Somu Veerraju, said the AP government should appoint a sitting judge of high court to probe all the aspects of land grabbing in Visakhapatnam that has been projected as the administrative capital.

Addressing a press conference here on Tuesday, Veerraju said political leaders irrespective of party affiliation indulged in land grabbing. He blamed revenue officials who helped the leaders and took favours.

To get clarity on the issue, the government should constitute an inquiry by a sitting high court judge and hand him the reports of both the SITs. The judge should take the opinions of all the political parties, individuals and officials before coming to a conclusion, he said.

Coming down on YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government, he said the administration was not going in the right direction. He said the CM gave away Rs 4,000 cash as welfare scheme but dragged his feet on paying the farmers the minimum support price for paddy, which required just `3,000 crore.

He said the CM was harassing the farmers and joining hands with rice millers who were jacking up the price of the rice in the retail market. He said on one hand the CM was giving thousands of crores as cash installments to the people and on the other was unable to pay `900 crore for the development of the industrial zone sponsored by the Central government.

Administration means not borrowing and doling out cash in the name of welfare schemes, he said

On the mortgage of government buildings to raise funds for the Build AP mission, Veerraju strongly condemned the idea stating that it was a faulty policy to mortgage heritage structures for the sake of building new capital.

Taking strong objections to the comments made on TD leader P. Ashok Gajapati Raju, the BJP leader said the YSRC leaders were stooping low to pass remarks on Ashok Gajapati Raju who happened to be a gentleman to the core and was respected by all.
Vijayawada: Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has welcomed the judgement of Vamsadhara Tribunal permitting Andhra Pradesh to construct Neradi barrage across the Vamsadhara river and directed the officials to focus on the construction of the barrage once the gazette is released.

The Chief Minister instructed the officials to prepare an action plan for the construction. He said the judgement would be beneficial to both Andhra Pradesh and Odisha states. He would invite Odisha Chief Minister and other public representatives for the foundation ceremony of the barrage. He said the policy of Andhra Pradesh government is to move forward with mutual cooperation.

Vamsadhara is a 254-km river that originates in the Kalahandi district of Odisha and gets drained in the Bay of Bengal at Kalingapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. Of the 265-km stretch of the river, it flows for 154 km in Odisha, forms the border between two states for 29 km, and completes the remaining 82 km stretch in AP. It receives an average rainfall of 1,400mm of which an estimated 115 tmcft water is available for use. Under an agreement between the two states, the water is used by the two states on 50:50 basis.

The AP government in order to utilise its share of water proposed to construct Gotta reservoir and Neradi barrage. Gotta barrage was completed in 1977. Neradi barrage was proposed to be constructed 48 km upstream of the Gotta barrage. But as the proposed project will submerge parts of farmland on the eastern bank of the river, Odisha raised objections.

As an attempt to resolve the issue, the two states tried to resort to mutual discussions that lasted over five decades. But as these discussions were fruitless, Odisha demanded a tribunal to resolve the matter. It filed a complaint against AP in the tribunal and the tribunal gave its verdict in favour of AP towards the construction of Neradi Barrage, which has come as a big relief to the Jagan Mohan Reddy government.
Mamidipelly Rachana has been working as a delivery executive for the last month. (Photo: ANI)

Hyderabad: In an inspiring example of determination and hard work, a young woman in Hyderabad has taken up a job as a food delivery executive in order to support her studies and parents.

The daughter of daily wage labourers from Hanamkonda of Telangana's Warangal district, the young woman, Mamidipelly Rachana, came to Hyderabad to pursue her studies in Hotel Management.

"I studied for free till Class 12 in a government school. I had a very strong will to continue further studies and with the advice of my school teachers, I was able to get admission in a Hotel Management Diploma course in Hyderabad," Rachana told ANI.

Her family, however, did not have the means to fund her studies, nor her needs in the city. In order to make ends meet, she took up a milk delivering job.

"When I came to Hyderabad, with the help of a friend I started to work at a milk shop. I would get up at 4 am to distribute milk to people's doorstep and then attend classes. At the end of the month, I used to take home Rs 9,000, of which, Rs 3,000 would go as my room rent and the rest would go back home to support my parents," she said.

With only Rs 1,000 left for groceries she was unable to gather enough to sustain herself.

When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, she had a lot of time on her hands and decided to take up a job as a food delivery executive, a job usually seen being taken up by men.

"I came to know about this job in online food delivery platforms and was able to join in as a food delivery executive. Though I do not have a bike, I used to use the bike of the owner of the bike, without his notice," she said.

For the last month, she has been working as a delivery executive and has managed to sustain herself as well as her family.

"As soon as I will complete this Hotel Management course, I will undergo training for another two months and after that, I will hold a job in my hand. I did this all for myself and to make sure my parents have a better life," she added.
London: Nirav Modi has lost the first stage of his extradition appeal in the High Court here, just over two months after the wanted diamond merchant's extradition to India was ordered by UK Home Secretary Priti Patel in the estimated USD 2-billion Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam case.

The case was before a High Court judge for a decision "on the papers" submitted for the appeal to determine if there are any grounds for an appeal against the Home Secretary's decision on April 16 or the Westminster Magistrates Court February ruling in favour of Modi's extradition to India to face charges of fraud and money laundering.

A High Court official confirmed that the permission to appeal was "rejected on paper" on Tuesday, which leaves the 50-year-old jeweller with a chance for his lawyers to make his case at a brief oral hearing in the High Court with a renewed "leave to appeal" application for a judge to determine if it can proceed to a full appeal hearing.

Under the legal guidelines, Modi, as an appellant, has five business days to apply for such an oral consideration, giving him time until next week. If a renewal application is made, it will be listed before a High Court judge for a hearing. It is understood that Modi plans to make such an application.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which appears in court on behalf of the Indian authorities, said it is waiting for the next stage in the process.

"If they are allowed to appeal then we would contest any appeal proceedings on behalf of the GOI [government of India]," the CPS had said last month.

Meanwhile, Modi remains behind bars at Wandsworth Prison in south-west London since his arrest over two years ago on March 19, 2019.

In his ruling in February, District Judge Sam Goozee concluded that the diamond merchant has a case to answer before the Indian courts and that the bars to extradition under UK law do not apply in his case.

As part of a very comprehensive judgment, the judge concluded that he was satisfied that there is evidence upon which Modi could be convicted in relation to the conspiracy to defraud the PNB.

"A prima facie case is established, he said, in relation to all counts of charges brought by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED)  including money laundering, intimidation of witnesses and disappearance of evidence.

The court had also accepted that while Modi's mental health had deteriorated due to the lengthy incarceration in a London prison, exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, his risk of suicide did not meet the high threshold to conclude that it would be "unjust or oppressive" to extradite him.

Modi is the subject of two sets of criminal proceedings, with the CBI case relating to a large-scale fraud upon PNB through the fraudulent obtaining of letters of undertaking (LoUs) or loan agreements, and the ED case relating to the laundering of the proceeds of that fraud.

He also faces two additional charges of "causing the disappearance of evidence" and intimidating witnesses or criminal intimidation to cause death, which were added on to the CBI case.

"I do not accept the submissions that NDM [Nirav Deepak Modi] was involved in legitimate business and using the LoUs in a permissible fashion, notes the magistrates' court judgment forwarded to the Home Secretary.

India is a designated Part 2 country by virtue of the Extradition Act 2003, which means it is the Cabinet minister who has the authority to order a requested person's extradition after considering all issues. The Home Secretary's order rarely goes against the court's conclusions, as she has to consider only very narrow bars to extradition, which do not apply in Modi's case.

The case will now go through the next stage of the High Court appeals process, with a renewed application expected to lead to a hearing in which Modi's lawyers will argue in favour of a full appeal hearing against the extradition order.

As witnessed in the extradition case of former Kingfisher Airlines chief Vijay Mallya - who remains on bail in the UK while a confidential matter, believed to relate to an asylum request, is resolved  there is still some way to go before Modi can be moved from Wandsworth Prison in London to Barrack 12 Arthur Road Jail in Mumbai and face trial in India.
HYDERABAD: While dealing with Covid-19 related PILs, the Telangana High Court directed the state government to file a detailed reply throwing light on the preparedness of the government to tackle the Delta Plus variant of the novel Coronavirus.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Hima Kohli and Justice B. Vijaysen Reddy directed the state government to file a detailed cogent and cohesive affidavit explaining its preparedness to tackle the Delta Plus variant which is expected to have more serious effect on people.

Showing concern over the plight of children, who lost their parents due to Covid-19, the court directed the government to appoint one nodal officer for every 10 children to take care of their necessities, more importantly to concentrate on their mental impact. The government submitted that it had identified 170 orphans, who lost their parents due to the pandemic.

Noting the reports that domestic violence has increased during the pandemic period, the court directed the government to assist the women, who are victims of domestic violence. It also asked the government to provide psychiatric assistance to Covid -19 patients, who feel lonely during quarantine.

The bench also asked the director for public health to file a fresh status report giving details of beds allocated to the Niloufer Hospital as there are differences in the information provided on the government website and in the affidavit placed before the court.

N.S. Arjun Kumar, counsel for one of the petitioners in the batch of PILs, brought to the notice of the court that there was no word from the Telangana government about imposing of fine or any stringent action against erring corporate hospitals, who fleeced Coronavirus affected patients. He explained the Kerala governments notification imposing 10 times fines for charging exorbitant rates to treat Covid patients.

The bench then directed the government to consider adopting the same policy to control private hospitals from collecting excessive fees. Quoting the GO issued on June 22, prescribing the Covid -19 treatment, the bench asked the government to explain actions against the hospitals, if they collected more than the fees mentioned in the GO. It directed that the GO should be displayed at every hospital reception and at the seat of hospital accountant, billing and payments.

PILs were adjourned to July 8.
Subsidiaries of Google have suggested that soft rebooting the phone can act as a potential remedy. (Photo: AP)

Washington: If you are an android user who is struggling with the Google app on your phone, then you are not the only one who is complaining and here's the reason why.

The search engine giant usually keeps updating all its app and the 'Google' app is no different, but Mashable India reported that several people on the internet appear to be going through an annoying issue with the app which constantly makes it crash.

Users on Twitter highlighted the issue until the officials from the Android Authority took note and figured out that an update to the app- 'version 12.23.16.23.arm64 and 12.22.8.23', is the reason behind the same.

Mashable India learnt that according to the note, there is "no easy way to check if you have an affected version of the app, but if you do have an affected version of the app, you will see repeated notifications that the app has stopped working."

The issue is reportedly "reminiscent of a recent issue with Android System WebView, which caused Gmail and other Google apps to crash".

There has been no official fix reported to fix this crash but the subsidiaries of Google have suggested that soft rebooting the phone can act as a potential remedy. Other suggestions include installing the latest beta version of the app, or reverting to a previous version.

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With the FATF set to discuss a report on the progress made by Pakistan on the implementation of a 27-point action plan this week, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has alleged that previous governments did not take steps to curb money laundering and terrorist financing in the country.

The Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) placed Pakistan on the grey list in June 2018 and asked Islamabad to implement a plan of action to curb money laundering and terror financing by the end of 2019 but the deadline was extended later on due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Qureshi said on Tuesday that the previous government of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) was responsible for the country being placed on the grey list of the FATF, The Express Tribune reported.

When PTI (Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf) came to power, Pakistan had already gone into the (FAFT) grey list, Qureshi said.

Holding the PML-N responsible for the tough conditions set by FATF, he said that no previous government took steps to curb money laundering and terrorist financing. The minister said that nations faced pressures in these situations so we should (also) bear this pressure.

Also Read | India slams Pakistan for providing pensions to dreaded and listed terrorists

Qureshi said Pakistan had fulfilled the 27 conditions of the FATF, therefore, there are no grounds to keep Pakistan into the grey list. The gift of the grey list was also given by the PML-N, he said, adding: Now there is no justification for keeping Pakistan into the grey list.

The statement came as the global anti-money laundering watchdog is set to discuss a preliminary report on the progress made by Pakistan on the implementation of a 27-point action plan in its plenary meeting being held from June 21 to 25.

The report has been prepared by the FATF's International Cooperation Review Group (ICRG), which includes China, the USA, UK, France and India.

Pakistan has been scrambling in recent months to avoid being added to a list of countries deemed non-compliant with anti-money laundering and terrorist financing regulations by the global watchdog, a measure that officials here fear could further hurt its economy.

In February, the FATF gave a fourth extension to Pakistan to fully implement a 27-point action plan and 'strongly urged' it to meet the remaining three conditions about terror financing investigations and the United Nations Security Council resolutions.

Against the governments hopes of exiting the grey list, the FATF plenary found the countrys progress on three out of the remaining six points were less than satisfactory. Pakistan would remain on the grey list till June 2021, a statement issued by the FATF from Paris had said.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday parried questions on opposition leaders holding a meeting and efforts to form a possible third front, saying today is not the time to discuss politics.

Gandhi, who held a virtual press conference on the pandemic situation, said he wanted to focus on Covid and how to save the country from the third wave of coronavirus which may hit soon.

"On the political aspect, my intention here is to bring focus on Covid. My intention here is to point clearly in the direction where we think the government should act," said the Congress leader who released a white paper of the party on Covid management.

"So, I am not going to distract you or myself by getting into, you know, what is going on in the politics and what is going on here and there.

Also Read | NCP leaders discuss party's future policies, role in 2024 Lok Sabha polls at its executive meeting

"There is a time and place for that discussion and I am happy to talk to you at that time," he said when asked about a meeting of opposition leaders convened at the residence of NCP supremo Sharad Pawar here.

Pawar is meeting leaders from several opposition parties and eminent personalities at his residence to discuss the current scenario in the country amid speculation about the possible formation of a third front against the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The meeting hosted by Pawar has been organised by Rashtra Manch convenor and Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Yashwant Sinha.

Samajwadi Party's Ghanshyam Tiwari, Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) president Jayant Chaudhary, National Conference (NC) leader and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah, Sushil Gupta from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Binoy Viswam from the Communist Party of India (CPI) and Nilotpal Basu from the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) were among those who attended the meet.
The differences within the Maha Vikas Aghadi seems to be widening with Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray temporarily staying the decision of an NCP ministers decision to transfer 100 flats of MHADA for the accommodation of cancer patients and their relatives.

In May, state Housing Minister Dr Jitendra Ahwad decided to transfer 100 flats of Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) to the Tata Memorial Hospital (TMC) at Parel.

The MHADA flats, each measuring 300 square feet, in the Haji Kasam Chawl redevelopment project in Lalbaug were made available to the hospital for a 30-year period at a nominal rate of Rs 1 per year.

These flats were being given to cancer patients/relatives on rent-basis  and TMC manages it.

Read more: All is not well as war of words rocks Maha Vikas Aghadi

NCP supremo Sharad Pawar had handed over the keys to TMC Director Dr Rajendra Badwe.

Thackeray took the decision after Shiv Sena MLA from Sewree Ajay Chaudhary wrote to him.

Principal Secretary (Housing) will investigate and submit report. Till then it is stayed, Thackeray noted in the file.

Chaudhary in his plea to Thackeray said: "700 Maharashtrian families staying in the vicinity objected to the disturbance created by outsiders arriving there temporarily.

According to him, since the patients/relatives moved in during the time of the Covid-19 pandemic, there is a fear among the relatives of neighbouring buildings.

"We have no objection to tenements in transit camps being given to the hospital,'' he said, pointing out that there are MHADA tenements in the Bandra-Kurla Complex. "One entire building can be given to the hospital, but not where locals are residing," he said.

Chaudhary also said his wife succumbed to cancer four years ago, and he set up a trust in her name with his own money and is helping the needy cancer patients to get medical treatment.

Dr Awhad said the doubt that Chaudhary has his own interest needs to be cleared. There is no vested interest. The decision was taken so that the relatives get some relief, he said.

The decision was taken by Dr Awhad as he was moved by patients spending days and nights on the footpaths and below the flyover.
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Opal Lee, 94, walks towards downtown during the first nationally recognized Juneteenth holiday on Saturday, June 19,in Fort Worth, Texas. Lee makes the 2.5-mile walk to symbolize the two and a half years it took for slaves in Texas to realize they had been freed.
Lamar Griffin is facing a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to 30 years on all charges if convicted.
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Exposing the hypocrisy of Flowers and the bishops
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Ulster University (UU) has received 1.2million in funding for medical education and research from a global healthcare company.

The donation from Randox Laboratories - the largest healthcare diagnostics company from the UK and Ireland - means the University will create its first Professor of Medicine post, to be titled, the Randox Professor of Medicine.

The first cohort of 70 medical students will commence their studies at Magee's Graduate Entry Medical School (GEMS) in September.

UU says this will be a clinical and academic post so the appointee to the Randox Professorship will provide educational leadership, teaching and training thus 'inspiring the next generation of doctors and researchers' in the area.

Alongside education, the post holder will develop a research portfolio in line with the research strategy of the School of Medicine and ambitions included in the Health Research Institute-THRIVE (HRI-THRIVE) project as part of the Derry and Strabane City Deal.

The successful appointee to the Randox Professorship is expected to have an 'outstanding track-record' in medical research with the experience, vision and enthusiasm 'to build on current strengths in the University and develop a leading research presence in the School of Medicine'.

The Randox Professor will have the opportunity to collaborate with existing researchers in personalised medicine and influence the research and innovation direction of the proposed THRIVE Research Units that currently include: Blood Cancer; Cardiovascular Research and Improvement Science; Neuromuscular Health (Motor Neuron Disease, MS, Parkinsons Disease) and Brain Health (Depression, psychosis, Alzheimers Disease).

The Randox professor will also deliver clinical care within the Western Trust, contributing directly to patient care and improving health outcomes for the local community.

Dr Catherine McDonnell, Medical Director at the Western Trust, said of the new appointment: This is a unique opportunity, and shows what can be achieved with collaborative working and by forging partnerships between organisations.

The Randox Professorship will play a crucial role in the delivery of patient care in the months and years ahead, and will help us bring in fresh expertise to what is already a very strong team on the ground.

We would like to thank both Ulster University and Randox Laboratories for partnering in this exciting venture, which we believe will have a very positive impact on our patients and the Western Trust overall.

The post will report into the Foundation Dean of the School of Medicine and recruitment will commence in the coming weeks.

The role will be supported by Randox Laboratories for a period of 5 years.

Dr Peter FitzGerald, Managing Director, Randox Laboratories said: At this time of rapid and significant change within medicine, it is imperative that industry, academia and medical education are aligned to improve both patient outcomes and the efficiency of healthcare services.

"The announcement of the new post of Randox Professor of Medicine within the new Ulster University School of Medicine shows our commitment to these critical national priorities. Ulster University and Randox are both renowned globally for healthcare research and education, particularly in the field of diagnostics, and together provide a vital platform to support the next generation of aspirational clinicians - to develop critical skills, make a positive difference to patient healthcare around the world, and cement Northern Irelands reputation as a global hub for life sciences.

The long-awaited Magee medical school was seen as a significant milestone for the city.

Health Science courses will bring a further 800 students to Magee in the coming years with Vice Chancellor Paul Bartholomew saying growth to 6,000 students is 'broadly achievable' by 2022/23.

With student numbers totalling 4,098 at present - 1,000 fewer than 2015 - campaigners have called for the New Decade, New Approach commitment to deliver 10,000 students to be honoured.

This week at Westminster SDLP leader Colum Eastwood repeated that call.

SHORTAGE OF DOCTORS

Professor Paul Bartholomew, Vice-Chancellor at Ulster University said that by opening the School of Medicine in August UU is committed to addressing the acute shortage of doctors in Northern Ireland and to recruit students and staff who will be locally focused yet globally ambitious.

He added: "The appointment of the Randox Professor of Medicine will enable us to further this ambition and allow us to enhance the Universitys existing expertise and research excellence in personalised medicine diagnostics and contribute to expanding the medical diagnostics sector.

"With the strong emphasis on personalised medicine in the Derry and Strabane City Deal, the Randox Professor of Medicine will join us at an exciting time for the region.

The University sees the ground-breaking Randox Professorship as an opportunity to further our long standing partnership with Randox so that we might together have a unique opportunity to support clinical medicine, enhance the quality of patient care through highly relevant translational research and inspire the next generation of doctors.

Meanwhile, Professor Louise Dubras, Foundation Dean, School of Medicine at Ulster University, welcomed the news as UU looks forward to its first students arriving in August this year.

"We are excited to be progressing this role, the first of our 'second wave', to complement the exceptional staff team in place to deliver the first year of the programme.

"This is a unique and exciting opportunity for an inspirational academic clinical leader to shape the direction of clinical and translational research within the School of Medicine.

"Im looking for an outstanding candidate with a wealth of teaching experience and a passion for related research which will inform teaching. This candidate will join me and the incredible team we have put together to teach the doctors of the future.

In 2020 Randox manufactured 4.2 billion tests and operated in 145 countries.

The company employs over 2,000 staff, including 450 research scientists and engineers, key facilities are located in Co Antrim, Co Donegal, London, Liverpool and Dublin.

Randox focuses on the provision of timely and accurate testing in order to identify risk to health, improve clinical diagnoses and promote preventative healthcare; aiming to achieve better healthcare outcomes whilst reducing the burden on clinical services.

The companys comprehensive portfolio includes tests for cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, Alzheimers disease and stroke.
Free transport to Derry's main Covid vaccination centre is to be offered to people tomorrow.

The free taxi service will operate as part of a Covid-19 vaccination clinic at the Healthy Living Centre in Creggan.

The clinic will operate from 11am to 7pm.

It is part of new push to get more people vaccinated.

Priority will be given to people living in the Creggan and Brandywell areas of the city.

At the clinic, people aged 40+ can receive their first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine.

Anyone aged 18-39 can register for the Pfizer and get free return transport through Glassagh Taxis across to the Foyle Arena for their vaccination.

The new clinic is being organised by the Health and Social Care Board amid concerns about the uptake of the Covid vaccine in some areas of Derry.

The current Covid case rate in the Derry City and Strabane District Council is the highest of the 11 councils in Northern Ireland.

Organisers of the Creggan clinic have stressed:

 The initiative is aimed at increasing access to the vaccine for adults over 40 years

 Adults aged 18-39 are still encouraged to book an appointment at the local Mass Vaccination Centre

 There is a small taxi provision available for use only when mobility issues or other such barriers are present

 The purpose of the programme is to address areas where low uptake and/or high prevalence of Covid exists

 This is the beginning of a rolling programme that can move to areas of need as/when required.
Police in Derry say they have attended 'several sudden deaths' in the city in recent days.

This follows concerns raised today by an addiction counsellor in Derry about a 'bad batch' of prescription drugs circulating in the city.

Liam Stewart, who set up and runs the Heal the Hurt support group, said a number of the recent deaths had been linked to the drugs.

He said it was vital that people were warned about the 'very dangerous' situation in Derry.

A PSNI spokesperson told the Derry News that they have attended several sudden deaths in the city in recent days.

Post mortem examinations and toxicology tests will be carried out to determine the cause of death in each case, the spokesperson said.

Urging drug-users in Derry to be careful, Mr Stewart said that prescription drugs such as Diazepam and Xanax are being illegally online.

People keep talking about drug dealers but I tell them that the biggest drug dealer we face is the internet, said Mr Stewart.

These drugs are being laced with God knows what and they are killing people and destroying families.

We need to make people aware of this to warn people about these drugs.

On Tuesday, a judge in Derry also highlighted the link between prescription drugs illegally purchased and recent deaths in the city.

Speaking at Derry Magistrates Court during a case which involved a man charged with bringing a large quantity of Diazepam tablets from Belfast to Derry, Judge Barney McElholm said there had been 'quite a few' recent deaths as a result of drugs in the local area.

However, he said the deaths were not being caused by so-called hard drugs such as heroin.

It is prescription medication illegally obtained and people overdosing on them, said Judge McElholm.

Following the concerns in Derry, a spokesperson for the Public Health Agency tonight urged people not to take anything unless it has been prescribed by a medical professional and in accordance with their prescription.

If it is not clinically prescribed for you, then it could also be lethal, the spokesperson said.
Minissha Lamba opens up about being cheated on by someone from the industry and casting couch experience she had faced

Minissha Lamba had been grabbing headlines for a while now after she opened up about her divorce and also talked about finding love once again. However, she kept the identity of this man a secret. And guess what- this might be a result of past experiences. In a recent interview, the actress opened up about being cheated by someone from the industry. She also revealed that she had faced casting couch!

Talking to radio host Siddharth Kannan, Minissha Lamba revealed she was cheated on by an actor. She wrote, In one relationship which I had with an actor, yes. But I think only because the personality of the person was such that they were a big flirt.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Minissha (@minissha_lamba)

The actress also opened up about her casting couch experience and revealed, I definitely have faced things like the person not confirming for the film and saying, Why dont you meet for dinner? Lets talk. And I am like, No, why dont we meet in the office? I dont know about dinner but I am definitely free, we can set up a time and meet in the office tomorrow, if you want to discuss further. I have handled it like that. It has not happened much to me to my face. But whenever it has happened, I have handled it in a way where I have pretended not to understand what you are saying. She also added that when she refuted the advances, they did stop calling. She said, "Yes, one or two times, it happened. And then those projects didnt take off only.

Minissha is all set to make her digital debut soon.
Ram Setu: Akshay Kumar to resume shoot from September? Read deets

Akshay Kumar is on a roll. The actor has several films in his kitty and as soon as the lockdown was lifted, he resumed with the shoot of Aanand L. Rai's Raksha Bandhan. Before the lockdown happened, he had contracted COVID and this was while shooting for Ram Setu. So when would he shoot for this film then? We might have an answer.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Akshay Kumar (@akshaykumar)

If reports are to be believed, then Akshay would resume the shoot of Ram Setu in September. According to a report in ETimes, the makers are choosing post-monsoon since the shoot would mostly be in the open. The source also added that the film might not be shot in Sri Lanka as had been planned earlier because of the country's quarantine rules. It is definitely a challenge for any actor to stay locked up without work in isolation. Akshay is raring to go, so there is every chance the shooting may take place soon and to avoid quarantine related delays, the film might be shot in cheat locations that could make up for Sri Lanka, the source added.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Akshay Kumar (@akshaykumar)

Akshay Kumar had announced Ram Setu on Diwali last year. The film, which also stars Nushrrat Bharuccha and Jacqueline Fernandez was being shot in Mumbai, before Akshay Kumar contracted Covid. The sets were also dismantled.
What? Prabhas rejected brand endorsements of over 150 crores in the last one year

Celebrities and brand endorsements usually go hand in hand. A lot of actors associate with big brands to stay visible and to get big bucks. On the other hand, Baahubali actor Prabhas has rejected large brand endorsement offers in recent times. From apparel to electronics to FMCG, all categories of brands, prestigious and coveted have offered the actor to come on board as their ambassador for big bucks.

An industry source reveals, Prabhas is a household name and his popularity cuts across the length and breadth of not just the country but even overseas. So the value that he is capable of bringing to a brand is humongous. And he has declined brand endorsement offers worth over 150 crores in just the past one year."

The source further adds, The reason he has rejected all these brand endorsements is not because he is not open to endorsing. He has endorsed brands in the past and will continue to do so, but he is selective and particular about who he chooses to associate with. He understands the position he is at and therefore prefers using it wisely. All this makes it difficult to get him on board and also makes him exclusive.

So when Prabhas is endorsing a brand, we know that the collaboration is very special. In the past, his director also spilled the beans on how Prabhas let go of brand endorsements worth 10 crores to focus on his film. It is refreshing to see an actor who is not selling different categories of products on our screens just for the sake of it.
The top school for aspiring business founders in the U.S.

What other schools in the U.S. produce the most founders?

Which US schools have produced the most founders in the last few years?

Increasing your chances of becoming a business founder





Whether you've got a $1million in seed funding or nothing except a great idea and a garage office to work in, getting a new business off the ground is one of the hardest things anyone can do. It requires time, resilience, self-confidence, and a little bit of luck. In other words, it's going to be a long and challenging journey.But every journey starts somewhere, and giving yourself the best possible start is a sure-fire way to increase your chances of getting to where you want you to beSo to help you find the best launchpad for your business ideas, Resume.io decided to compile a few lists of the US schools that have produced the most founders. Using data collected from LinkedIns Alumni Search, Resume.io outlined what schools have produced the most founders overall, which are producing the most founders right now, and the schools that give you the best chance of becoming a business founder.Established in 1868, The University of California, Berkeley, refers to itself as "a place where the brightest minds from across the globe come together to explore, ask questions, and improve the world." And this prestigious university is certainly living up to its lofty ideals. Berkeley has produced over 44,000 business founders during its illustrious history, which is more than any other school in the USA.Apple co-founder Stephen Wozniak is one of Berkeley's most famous former students, although it wasn't his first choice school. Wozniak enrolled at Berkeley in 1971 after being expelled from the University of Colorado for hacking into the school's computer system. MySpace founder Tom Anderson also studied at Berkeley, majoring in English Literature. He later returned to do a master's degree in Film. Anderson is another tech founder with a mischievous side. As a teenager, Anderson prompted an FBI investigation when he hacked into the Chase Manhattan Banking system using the pseudonym Lord Flathead.Former Berkeley student Jason Oppenheim has had a more conventional career. The law graduate worked as a corporate attorney for international law firm OMelveny & Myers from 20032007. He then left to set up the Oppenheim Group, a premier realtor company representing buyers and sellers of luxury properties in Los Angeles and Orange County. His list of clients includes Orlando Bloom, Nicole Scherzinger, and Jessica Alba.Stanford University has produced its fair share of founders - 38,969, to be exact. But while Stanford's quantity doesn't quite stack up to Berkley's, the quality of its graduates and founders is just as impressive.While studying for a Ph.D. at Stanford, Sergey Brin met a fellow computer science student called Larry page. The pair didn't get along at first. In fact, they disagreed about practically everything. But they soon developed a close friendship and began co-authoring papers, including "The Anatomy of a Large-Scale Hypertextual Web Search Engine." That paper became the blueprint for a PageRank algorithm, which Brin and Page used to create a new web search engine. You'll probably recognize the name; it's called Google.Brin and Page are Stanford's most successful former students. However, another member of Stanford's Alumni could also stake a credible claim to the title. Billionaire entrepreneur Peter Thiel studied philosophy at Stanford University, graduating with a B.A. in 1989. He then earned his J.D. from Stanford Law School in 1992.Thiel ditched a promising career in law to start his own venture capital firm. In 1998, Thiel co-founded PayPal, serving as CEO until the company was sold to eBay for $1.5billion. Theil then launched Clarium Capital, a global macro hedge fund based in San Francisco, and Valar Ventures, a US-based venture capital fund investing in technology start-ups based outside of Silicon Valley. Thiel is also the founder of Palantir Technologies, a public software company specializing in big data analytics.Thiel's close friend and former business partner Elon Musk also went to Stanford. And if the Tesla and SpaceX founder does put humans on Mars, he could become the most famous person to ever study at Stanford. Although saying that Musk studied at Stanford is a bit of a stretch. He dropped out of a Ph.D. program in materials science after just two days.Historically, Berkeley and Stanford have produced the most business founders. But during the past three years, they've both been outdone by Harvard. Since 2018, 6,914 Harvard graduates have gone on to start successful companies. And they're following in some pretty big footsteps. Harvard is the alma mater of several of today's most famous founders, including Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg.As a world-leading technology and science school, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a hotbed of innovation. It's also a fertile starting ground for any aspiring business leader or founder. The active companies formed by living MIT alumni produce annual revenues equal to the gross domestic product of the 10th-largest economy in the world!Stripe co-founder and CEO Patrick Collison attended MIT. Gabriel Weinberg is another former MIT student. Weinberg became interested in ideas around internet privacy and anonymity during his time at MIT. These became the foundation for DuckDuckGo, an internet search engine that emphasizes user privacy.Many MIT graduates are continuing to turn their dissertation projects into successful businesses. Since 2018, former MIT students have founded over 5,400 new companies and start-ups. Only Harvard, Berkeley, and Stanford's alumni have started more. But that could change over the next few years. MIT is leading the research into many of today's most exciting and revolutionary fields, including artificial intelligence, automation, biometrics, and cryptocurrency. It means that today's MIT students are studying the technologies that will dominate (and shape) the industries of tomorrow. Current MIT student Yichen Shen recently received funding for his new company, Lightelligence. It makes high-tech semiconductor chips that can process the computation power required to fuel a rapid rise in data processing and artificial intelligence.Unsurprisingly, all the Ivy League schools produce a lot of founders. But you don't need to go to a prestigious (and costly) school to boost your chances of success. Because in terms of founder density, several public schools score higher than both Stanford and MIT. The Hult International Business School tops the list, with 16.9% of its recent graduates now heading up their own companies. The California Institute of Integral Studies comes next (15.12%), followed by Babson College (14.80%), Fielding Graduate University (14.80%), and Naropa University (14.24%).The Juilliard School proves that plenty of creative types also have a good head for business. Almost 1,000 of its performing arts graduates have gone on to start their own companies since 2018. That doesn't sound like much, but this exclusive institution accepts less than 900 students every year. As such, almost 13% of former Juilliard Students are now business founders.These are just some of the best US schools for future business founders. You can find more information on all the other schools in the infographic below. So take a look and find the best place to start your journey toward business success.
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DETROIT (AP)  Oshkosh Defense will make new delivery vehicles for the U.S. Postal Service in Spartanburg County, South Carolina, creating 1,000 new jobs.

The Wisconsin company on Tuesday said that it will reconfigure a warehouse with features needed to do large-scale manufacturing. Parts supply companies are expected to create more jobs in the area.





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BOISE, Idaho (AP)  The mayor of Boise has proposed a budget adding 17 workers to the police department, including 11 officers.

The Idaho Statesman reported Tuesday that Mayor Lauren McLean's budget also includes three training instructors, an evidence analyst, a civilian investigator and an information technology worker.





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Photo by Benjamin Minnick [enlarge] Tents fill up spaces in and around City Hall Park.





King County Councilmember Reagan Dunn on Tuesday introduced legislation to condemn City Hall Park in Seattle as a threat to public health, safety and welfare. The park is adjacent to the King County Courthouse and is under the jurisdiction of the city.





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There has been a lot of noise surrounding Australias vaccine situation. From your local silver foxes and vixens proudly posting prick pics to Facebook (not that kind) to your local politicians defending the slow nature of the rollout (or criticising it, depending on your electorate), to conspiracy theorists babbling about Bill Gates plan to rule the world via an incredibly inefficient distribution program its been a whirlwind year and a half.

But now, as we start to realise getting vaccine rates up is key to allowing people other than Scott Morrison to make ancestral trips overseas, business people back to drinking champagne at exotic conferences, influencers back sipping cocktails abroad and international students to once again come and prop up our universities, we are realising we probably ought to speed things up.

As The New York Times wrote in its weekly newsletter on June the 17th, Australia and so many of the countries in Asia that led the world in containing the coronavirus are now stuck languishing in the race to put it behind them.

RELATED: Australia Risks Becoming One Giant Retirement Home With Its Vaccine Rollout

Unfortunately, this is proving difficult as we were relatively slow, compared to many other countries, to secure vaccine deals. On top of that, the main vaccine we have secured access to (the AstraZeneca vaccine) has suffered some hiccups around public messaging.

A leading health expert recently told Weekend Today that there has been a great failure in the procurement and supply of vaccines in Australia. 9News reports that these comments come amid reports of bungles in distribution leading to vaccines going to waste, while other distributors are unable to meet their demand.

The expert  adjunct Professor at UNSW and Strategic Health Consultant, Professor Bill Bowtell  also told Weekend Today that since the announcement that the AstraZeneca vaccine was no longer recommended for Australians under 60s, the rate of those getting the jab has fallen just at the time when we need the vaccine rate to be going up, 9News reports.

Unfortunately were seeing very low vaccination rates. The rate has fallen in the last few days since the change in advice.

Were going into winter with Australians three-point-something totally vaccinated.

Weve got this dangerous Delta variant coming in through the airport that we saw the other day in Sydney. This is very serious, he added.

We need to put the risk of death from AZ vaccine into better perspective compared to benefits of the vaccine. If you are over >70 yrs and get infected with Covid, you have a higher that 1 in a 100 chance of dying compared to 1 in 2 million chance of dying after AZ vaccine. pic.twitter.com/aUtAaqZZMy  Peter Collignon (@CollignonPeter) June 21, 2021

Bowtell also said: Weve got a real lack of confidence in whats been said by the various authorities and that he thinks thats increasing vaccine hesitancy.

The problem is one of supply. Of course, the best thing would be if we could have a vaccination rate that was remotely similar to the vaccination rates now in the UK, the US, Canada, Spain and so on, but we dont.

The latest statistics from The New York Times vaccine tracker paint a picture much in need of improvement.

Last updated at the time of writing (June the 22nd), the tracker shows that Australia has a puny percentage of fully vaccinated people when compared to other countries.

As was pointed out on the ABCs Q&A program in May, Australia had at the time vaccinated roughly 1.7% of its population against COVID-19. That paled in comparison to the United States 40% and even lesser developed nations like Kazakstans 5% vaccination rates, as they stood at the time.

Though we are now, at the time of writing, up to 3.4% fully vaccinated, the point still stands. Kazakstan is now up to 8.9% fully vaccinated (with 15% having had their first jab). The US is now up to 45% fully vaccinated, with 53% of their population having had their first jab.

One positive sign is that 22% of Australians have had one jab. So  barring a sudden change of heart  we should soon see that fully vaccinated 3.4% start climbing. The bad news? With only 22% having had one jab, were not going to see much more than 22% of people fully vaccinated at least for the next couple of months.

For the full breakdown in national vaccine rates, head on over to The New York Times.

Jumping back to Australia, a recent ABC article cleared up a few misconceptions around Australias response to COVID, and vaccine rollout, which we think are worth re-iterating.

On Friday the 4th of June the ABC wrote that Australia is underperforming when it comes to the vaccine rollout when you compare us to the global average, sitting at around number 113 in the world on May the 26th.

However, that statistic, which has come under the microscope since Labors spokesman for Health, Mark Butler brought it up on the ABCs RN Breakfast program on May the 26th (and then Tweeted about it), does not quite give a full picture of how fully vaccinated a population is, given some vaccines require two shots to work, while others just need one prick of the needle, the ABC reports.

Australia is ranked 113th in the world in the vaccine rollout. Scott Morrison said we were at the front of the queue but were so far back we cant even see the front of the queue. pic.twitter.com/oboqCrZQWh  Mark Butler MP (@Mark_Butler_MP) May 26, 2021

As the ABC reports, According to Our World in Data, Australia ranked 105th when it came to the share of the population who had received at least one vaccine dose.

As for the share of the population who had been fully vaccinated, Australia  which had fully vaccinated just under 2 per cent of people at the time of Mr Butlers claim  ranked 124th.

Recent data from Johns Hopkins University, meanwhile, puts Australia in 84th place when it comes to the percentage of the population that is fully vaccinated.

With close to 500,000 people having had both jabs, Johns Hopkins rates Australias vaccination effort as being below the global average (ABC).

In other words: were not doing quite as badly as 113th anymore, but were still performing below the global average.

The ABC has also debunked the myth that 210 Australians have died as a result of getting vaccinated, a claim that has been shared on social media.

According to the TGA report, the 210 deaths in question occurred following immunisation, not necessarily as a direct result of it, (ABC).

The April death of a 48-year-old woman, who died in hospital after developing thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS), is the only death which has been linked to COVID-19 vaccines in Australia.

The ABC also shared a quote from the TGAs latest safety report: Apart from the single Australian case in which death was linked to TTS, COVID-19 vaccines have not been found to cause death.

The ABC also pointed out that the TGA uses its adverse event-reporting system to closely monitor reports of death following COVID-19 vaccination.

The TGA compared expected natural death rates to observed death rates following immunisation, the reports adds, stating: To date, the observed number of deaths reported after vaccination is actually less than the expected number of deaths.

Some argue what Australia is missing right now is the same level of diligence and enthusiasm about getting vaccinated as we have about contact tracing, getting tested and isolating.

The New York Times Sydney bureau chief Damien Cave made this argument on June the 17th in The Australia Letter, talking about his familys experience of being caught up in Sydneys latest COVID outbreak.

The good news is that Australia (at the state level) has become extremely sharp when it comes to outbreak management, Cave wrote. I was able to get tested late Wednesday night in a suburb of Canberra, and my negative result arrived a few hours later with a text message at 3:07 a.m.

In Sydney, my wifes visit to a busy pop-up clinic had her in and out in record time.

The health workers we called to report ourselves as potential contacts were also polite and reasonable. They all seemed to have the same matter-of-fact tone of Gladys Berejiklian, the New South Wales premier, tamping down panic while pleading for patience.

But then an interaction Cave had with a contract tracer called Andrew opened his eyes to, in his view, Australias problem.

But at one point, while talking to Andrew, the friendly and thorough contact tracer in New South Wales whom my wife and I both spoke to Wednesday night, I started to see the problem, Cave wrote. It was when he asked me if I had been vaccinated.

No, I said. I have an appointment for next month.'

What I immediately thought (but did not say) was that I could have had a shot sooner. Because of an error with the states online registration process that had allowed anyone to sign up, Id made an earlier appointment before I was technically eligible. I canceled a few minutes later. It didnt feel right.

Id given up my spot (which would have made me fully vaccinated by now) for the same reason I was talking to Andrew: I wanted to do my part, to keep the system fair, to serve that same collective spirit that made Australia do so well with Covids first phase.

Andrew seemed to share that mateship ethos. He told me, with the cheer of a music lover who had just scored concert tickets, that he had just gotten an AstraZeneca jab. He was quite happy to hear that I had signed up for a vaccination of my own, in my case, the Pfizer shot.

He was so happy in fact that it made me realize what was missing from the public debate. Enthusiasm for the promise of a vaccinated community  thats what he exuded.

Its what animated our conversation even at 10:30 p.m., and it is what Australian officials, from the prime minister on down, have somehow lost the ability to conjure up.

Where are the officials and celebrities, I wondered, rallying Team Australia, asking everyone to pitch in by embracing vaccinations? Where is the cheer squad shouting how great is this, crowing about how vaccines can bring countries and the world back together?

A question we all need to answer. Maybe we shouldnt be mocking those silver foxes after all?

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Editor's note: The King's Portion name change was incorrectly written in the print article of the Douglas Budget today, June 23. The correct new name is the King's Portion Community Compassion Center. The reporter and Budget regret the error.

The Kings Portion food pantry is closing their doors at their Madora Plaza location the end of July, but they are opening right back up in a newer, bigger and better location off of West Richards Street to provide additional, much-needed services to people in need at numerous levels.

Theyre also undergoing a name change which better encompasses everything the Kings Portion does. The gregarious group will now be known as the Kings Portion Community Compassion Center and will be opening at 809 S. 9th Street Aug. 2.

But, dont worry  food bank pickup will continue at the old Madora Plaza location until further notice.

Sheila Harr is founder, president and intrepid leader behind the Kings Portion. Sitting comfortably at a card table in the middle of pallets of food stacked high in the Madora Plaza Kings Portion offices, Sheila begins to tell the story of a God-given vision she had to help the people throughout the county.

SEE A NEED

A decade ago  on April 7, 2011, to be precise  The Kings Portion was born. As she started to share the vision brought to her by God, a beatific smile lights up her face. Her eyes twinkle, crinkling up at the corners. Shes beaming with excitement.

In the years since the Kings Portion began, the community food pantry incorporated other programs under their umbrella, such as Blessings in a Backpack, which provides students with food on the weekends; they also serve hot, homemade meals during fall and winter months for those people who are picking up food from the pantry.

We offer food delivery services to the homebound, and we offer prayers to anyone who comes to us with requests, Sheila said.

Just a couple of years into providing some food stability to community members, she was struck by an even bigger vision than the first one.

Little did I know just two years after the birth of Kings Portion, God would give me a vision for the further expansion of our programs  hot meals not only for our clients but for anyone in the community who would like to come in, relax and enjoy a meal; groups for addictions, marriage and self-esteem. And the best part of it is, we already have everyone in place! So many people have come to us wanting to help, who see this vision, too, she said.

And, in the not-too-distant future, the new center will offer transitional housing, filling a much-needed role in our community, she said.

Transitional housing is a supportive, yet temporary, type of housing which is meant to bridge the gap as someone leaves jail or prison, or to families needing time to save enough money up for a deposit on rent. We will bridge the gap to permanent housing by offering structure, supervision, support for addictions, life skills and counseling, including mental health counseling. We will be a safe place in a supportive environment to begin addressing the issues which led them into financial struggles, addictions, low self esteem, and to begin to rebuild their support network, she explained.

COVID-19 & FOOD INSECURITY

The coronavirus pandemic hit in March 2020. People were laid off from their jobs by the millions. Some had savings, but the savings quickly ran out as parents, without work, struggled to support their families. People who had never experienced food insecurity suddenly found themselves without groceries.

Those people needing our food pantry services skyrocketed by 300%. And, although COVIDs a horrible virus afflicting many lives, good also came out of the pandemic for The Kings Portion. I was able to apply for several COVID relief grants for infrastructure, Shelia said.

Those grants allowed her to follow Gods plan for a bigger Kings Portion, a place where, as the name suggests, receiving care and compassion are part of walking through the doors, she said.

The Kings Portion received $157,000 in relief grants. With it, Sheila said they have purchased a 2017 model van for deliveries to school kids and homebound clients. They were able to buy a new walk-in freezer and commercial refrigerator so they could eliminate their 13 old freezers, many secondhand and often on their last legs.

Plus, we were able to find a much larger facility with over 4,200 extra square feet more than our original location, she said.

Can I say God? Because this . . . this is all God, she said. This isnt me . . . its God, working through all of us at Kings Portion. This is a God thing. If its not, I dont know what is, she said firmly, still smiling broadly.

IT TAKES A VILLAGE

Shelias husband, Jeff, and eldest son, Gyce, are in the process of remodeling the care and compassion center on 9th Street, she said, so we can have more space for our current operations as we expand our services.

With more space comes more expenses  increased rent, increased utility bills, and higher costs of food as Kings Portion continues to feed, at last count, 1,409 people  this year alone.

In 2020 Kings Portion provided food to 4,439 people.

Kings Portion appealed for help from Douglas City Council, under their Aid to Others program, asking for $53,000 to help offset operating costs.

According to the City of Douglas budget for FY 2021-2022, the city has allocated Kings Portion $20,000. In FY20-21, the city gave Kings Portion $25,000.

Sheila, always upbeat and positive, said she is thankful, as it all helps us help people.

Our monthly average of families and individuals served is 235 people. The community of Douglas and companies are absolutely amazing supporting us with monetary donations. Many individuals and small business owners have said to me, We need you. We need your plans for the expansion, the hot meals, counseling, transitional housing, and groups in our community. Douglas needs this, Sheila said.

LOVE THY NEIGHBOR

The 69-year-old man was trying to keep warm as he huddled in his car down by the river. It was snowing sideways and blowing to beat the band outside, during Douglas last big winter blizzard earlier this year.

Shelia was driving by the park in town when she suddenly had an overwhelming feeling she needed to turn around and go talk to the person in that car.

God told me to turn around and go back, so thats exactly what I did, she said.

The man was cold. She bought him breakfast. Then she invited him home to a warm house. The elderly man spent a couple of nights with them.

Then, he moved on, saying he could manage, but noted he was appreciative of Sheilas and Jeffs kindness, helping him get out of the blizzard and feeding him hot meals.

This isnt the first time Sheila and Jeff have housed people in their home. During the last handful of years theyve brought more than a dozen people home  often people in transition.

We want to be here for people. Thats exactly what were doing. Its what Jesus did. He saw a need. He stepped up. We want people to know the care center is a safe place. Its a supportive environment which will help people to rebuild their lives and relationships, she said.

COME IN, FEEL LOVED

An open house is set for Aug. 2 from 4-7 p.m. at Kings Portion Community Compassion Center, and everyone in the community is welcome.

Come on in, come see our new home, visit and ask questions. We want you to feel loved here. We want to be that place for folks . . . that bridge, she said.
Duncan, OK (73533)

Today

Partly cloudy this evening followed by increasing clouds with showers developing after midnight. Low near 70F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 40%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening followed by increasing clouds with showers developing after midnight. Low near 70F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 40%.
A new walk-in Covid-19 test centre is set to open in Dundalk this afternoon, due to an increase in Covid-19 cases in Dundalk.

Midlands Louth Meath Community Healthcare says that the centre has been established due to small workplace outbreaks alongside family clusters.

The walk-in centre will operate at car park 1 on Marshes Avenue in Dundalk until Sunday.

There are also a number of unrelated cases, which the community healthcare group says indicates a degree of community transmission.

Dr Augustine Pereira, Director of Public Health North East said that there had been an increase in the number of Covid-19 cases detected in Dundalk in recent weeks.

"There has been a concerning increase in the detection of the Delta variant in Ireland and the department is also investigating probable Variants Of Concern of the delta clade in the county," said Dr Pereira.

Dr Pereira encouraged people in Dundalk, particularly anyone under the age of 40 who has not been vaccinated, to attend the facility for testing.

"Increased community testing is vital to help identify those who are infected and infectious, but unaware that they might be spreading the virus."

The centre will operate as a walk-in, no appointment necessary facility, with members of the public only required to bring a photo ID and provide a mobile phone number to receive their results.

A free walk-in #COVID19 testing site will open at the Marshes Shopping Centre Car Park 1, Marshes Avenue, Dundalk, Co Louth, A91 XD65 for 5 days. Opening hours are:

Wed June 23 - 1pm-7pm

Thurs June 24 - 11am-8pm

Fri June 25 - 11am-8pm

Sat June 2 - 10am-6pm

Sun June 27 - 10am-6pm pic.twitter.com/efWU72Vxqq  Midlands Louth Meath Community Healthcare (@MLMCommHealth) June 22, 2021

The centre is set to operate within car park 1 and will open at 1pm this afternoon and run until 7pm.

The centre is currently set to run until Sunday evening.

This is the second Covid-19 test centre that has been established in Louth, with the other located in St Brigid's Campus in Ardee.
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Claremont, NH (03743)

Today

Considerable cloudiness with occasional rain showers. Low near 55F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Considerable cloudiness with occasional rain showers. Low near 55F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%.
In this photo provided by Cianbro Corp., a 5,000-ton concrete entrance structure is towed out of the harbor, Sunday, June 20, 2021, in Portland, Maine. The structure, built by Cianbro in Portland, will be used by the Navy at the "Superflood Basin" project at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, in Kittery, Maine. The structure will allow submarines easier access to dry docks.
Fiddler David Kaynor teaching at the Ashokan Center in upstate New York in 2017. Kaynor, who led the Montpelier Fiddle Orchestra from 2013 to 2019, died June 1 of ALS.
Where are the best places to shop? Who gives the best haircut? Who cooks the best burger? Join our readers in selecting the "Best of Windham."

Make your picks!
Clovis native Sandy Massey received an email Jan. 19 that shed light on a mystery she had wondered about since July 1966.

A story about the young womans death, and the 55-year effort to identify her, is featured in the most recent issue of Texas Monthly.

Every summer Sandy, then 15, would stay with her grandparents in Pecos, Texas, where they owned The Ropers Motel.

On July 5, 1966, in the morning her granddad checked in a young man and a young woman, Massey said. Her granddad said the girl was so young and (the man) looked a lot older.

She said her granddad thought it was a little strange, the age difference.

Massey, then under her maiden name of Moore, said she first saw the man and woman who had checked in as husband and wife, sitting by the swimming pool. The man was drinking a beer and the young woman was drinking a soda.

Massey said she noticed the young woman was younger than the man and thought she was probably 18 or 19 years old and that he looked 25.

That was quite a bit of age difference in that time, she said. In those days, a girl that young would not have gone with someone that much older.

A couple of hours later the maid came in and was hysterical and directed she and her granddad to the swimming pool where a girls body had sunk to the bottom at the 12-foot deep end, she said.

I jumped into the pool and tried to bring her up two times but she was too heavy  I couldnt bring her up by myself, she said. A guest helped her lift the girls body and put it on the side of the pool. She started CPR on her, when the ambulance arrived and took the young woman away.

One of the controversies (about this) is there was a broken bottle on the side of the pool at the deep end, she said. When they brought her body up, they noticed a knot on her ... "I think it was the front of her head.

She said she and her granddad thought that was suspicious and that maybe there had been foul play involved. They thought someone might have hit her with the bottle and she became unconscious and pushed her into the pool.

The police were talking about this too, she said.

After the ambulance took the young woman away, Massey said she went back to the office and was by herself when the man who was staying with the young woman came in and asked for their registration card. He said he needed it for identification to bring to the hospital.

She said she gave him the registration card. The man was supposed to follow the police and everybody to the hospital.

But someone noticed the man took off in the opposite direction, she said. He never showed up at the hospital.

She said without any proof to the contrary, the young womans death was ruled a simple drowning. The police checked on the name the man gave to stay at the motel and it belonged to a person stationed on a military base in North Carolina. It was a fake name.

Massey said the town collected donations to bury the young woman, with nobody knowing next of kin.

I went back two more summers and I would visit her grave and put flowers on it, she said.

On January 19th, Massey received an email from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The center told her the young woman she pulled out of the pool 54 years ago had been identified. The people at the center wanted permission to give her contact information to the police in Pecos, who wanted to talk to her about what happened that day.

The police wanted my side of the story as to what happened, she said. The case about the young womans drowning was still open and they are trying to find the man.

The identity of the young woman was discovered through the DNA in her skeletal remains, according to the Pecos Police Department. The young womans name is Jolaine Hemmy of Kansas. She was 17 at the time of her death.

Pecos Police Chief Lisa Tarango told The News she was contacted by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which had the young womans case in their files. From there, the chief decided to look into the case and visited the funeral home where the young womans body was prepared.

Chief Tarango said an elderly gentleman pointed her to the young womans file. She got a judge to authorize the exhumation of her body. The University of North Texas did an identification of the DNA from her remains.

The police department then partnered with several organizations who using skeletal DNA and family tree genealogy were ultimately able to find some of the young womans siblings and identify the name of the young woman.

Massey, who moved from Clovis to Lubbock in 2001, said she was surprised to hear that the young womans identity had been discovered after all these years.

I was relieved when I found out, she said. She said it relieved some of the guilt she felt for giving the man the registration card, which made it difficult to find his identity.

She said two of the womans sisters have since contacted her and thanked her for trying to save their sisters life that day.

She said the Pecos police contacted her three times since. They wanted to know what the man traveling with Jolaine looked like. She told them he was about 510 and had light brown hair, more brown than blond. He was Caucasian.

Her grandparents, Paul and Garnett Rooks, moved away from Pecos three years after the drowning, she said. They sold the motel and bought another in Albuquerque.

Massey said she has not been back to Pecos since her grandparents left and does not know anyone there.
Dick Mason is a reporter with The Observer primarily covering the communities of North Powder, Imbler, Island City and Union, education, Union County veterans programs and local history. Dick joined The Observer in 1983, first working as a sports and outdoors reporter.
SALEM  In the 1950s, when University of California forestry professor Harold Biswell experimented with prescribed burns in the state's pine f


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A configuration error in the systems of a content delivery provider knocked out numerous websites and apps around the globe Tuesday.

The provider, Fastly, which supports brands like CNN, The Guardian, the New York Times, Hulu, Reddit, HBO Max and Spotify, experienced the outage at about 5:49 a.m. Eastern time in the U.S. and began to recover at 6:39 a.m.

According to National Public Radio, during the outage visitors trying to access CNN.com received the message "Fastly error: unknown domain: cnn.com." At the New York Times and UK government's website, an "Error 503 Service Unavailable" notice appeared, along with the line "Varnish cache server." Varnish is a technology used by Fastly.

When reached by TechNewsWorld about the outage, a Fastly spokesperson responded with the following statement: "All Fastly cache nodes have now been restored across our global network. We identified a service configuration that triggered disruptions across our points of presence globally and have disabled that configuration."

Content Delivery Networks

Fastly is what's known as a content delivery network. CDNs have been around for more than 20 years, although they've evolved and expanded over that time.

"Most content on the internet that users interact with is getting served to them by content delivery networks," observed Doug Madory, director of internet analysis at Kentik, a network observability company in San Francisco.

"There's been some consolidation in the industry; so when there's an outage, it can take out a lot of stuff," he told TechNewsWorld.

Andy Champagne, senior vice president in the office of the CTO at Akamai, a content delivery and cloud security provider in Cambridge, Mass. explained that pumping out content from one location won't physically work for content providers.

"You can't build a location big enough, connected enough, and close enough to everything," he told TechNewsWorld. "That's why we have around 300,000 servers around the world to distribute content."

"Anybody that's a big brand today and even smaller brands are using content delivery networks to distribute their content," he continued.

"One of challenges of the internet is that scale can catch you off guard," he said. "All of a sudden something can become extremely popular. People all of sudden may want to download it, listen to it, play it, watch it, buy it. That's where CDNs can really help. They can scale up instantly."

Lowering Latency

Jonathan Tanner, a senior security researcher at Barracuda Networks, a security and storage solutions provider based in Campbell, Calif. explained that content delivery networks typically host frequently-loaded content, such as images for other websites or even entire websites, in a distributed manner to enable faster load times.

"Essentially, they will host the same content in multiple data centers across the world, and when a user goes to a website that loads content from the CDN, they will load that content from the closest data center to that user," he told TechNewsWorld.

"That takes the bandwidth load off of their customer by not having larger files loading from the CDN customer's own servers, and also enables lower latency for the users by serving content from a geographically closer location to that user than where the website of the CDN customer is being hosted," he said.

"The CDN customer could host copies of their entire site in multiple data centers to achieve the same effect," he added, "but this would require a lot more overhead than simply hiring a company like Fastly that does this at scale."

Multiplying Disaster

Although details about the service configuration that caused the outage at Fastly haven't been made public yet, CDNs can have a lot of moving parts, and the systems are constantly being updated.

"A provider usually tests the updates in stages to make sure an update isn't going to cause a problem," Madory explained. "Sometimes, for the sake of expediency, they make changes on the fly that don't go through the same rigorous testing."

A bad configuration can cause the software to crash entirely, or it might block necessary resources for the software to function properly -- either of which would cause an outage, noted Tanner.

"By the very nature of how CDNs work, the same code and content is being hosted in many different data centers across the world," he said. "So, if a bad configuration goes out it will possibly be distributed to all of those data centers and cause an outage."

He explained that CDNs can be more resilient to outages than other kinds of systems because if one data center goes down, users will be directed to the next-closest data center for content.

"However," he added, "a problem with the core software across all data centers will undoubtedly cause the entire service to go down."

Upgrade Slowly

If there's anything to be learned from the Fastly outage, it's certainly how distributed networks play a critical role in the internet today and how important it is to make sure that the software in distributed systems is running properly.

"It also hopefully illustrated an important point about how to better handle updates in the future," Tanner said. "That is, to not target every data center at once but rather slowly roll out software and verify it is working properly prior to pushing a major change."

"For CDNs or any other distributed architectures, ensuring that updates to software and configurations are done in a phased manner, rather than to all data centers at once, will certainly help avert these sorts of outages in the future," he observed.

"For those utilizing CDNs, having an action plan in the event of such an outage would also be helpful so as to reduce downtime," he added.

Fastly isn't alone in experiencing a headline-grabbing outage.

In October 2019, a cyberattack on Amazon Web Services left its customers without access to critical information for more than 10 hours. Meanwhile, last year IBM Cloud customers suffered a service disruption in June, Cloudflare customers complained about visitors having problems accessing their websites and services in July and in November, another AWS snafu disrupted service for its U.S. East Coast customers.

John P. Mello Jr. has been an ECT News Network reporter since 2003. His areas of focus include cybersecurity, IT issues, privacy, e-commerce, social media, artificial intelligence, big data and consumer electronics. He has written and edited for numerous publications, including the Boston Business Journal, the Boston Phoenix, Megapixel.Net and Government Security News. Email John.




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Travel after the pandemic is not going to be quite the same as it used to be, but it's definitely coming back.

As people emerge from lockdowns and limitations in the coming months, and look toward getting out and exploring the world again, travel is anticipated to become a popular and valued activity.

The E-Commerce Times spoke with several industry experts to get their perspective on new trends in travel and tourism.

"In the short term, travel has become more complex," Christina Pedroni, senior vice president with Liberty Travel, told the E-Commerce Times. "It's not as easy as just booking a flight and grabbing your passport, given various Covid-19 testing requirements in place for almost every destination."

Because of all the changes in the world over the last year, travelers -- or those helping them to plan their itineraries -- must do a fair amount of research before heading out.

"There is a lot to know and understand about travel in the current environment," explained Pedroni. "The value of a travel agent has never been more obvious as navigating entry, testing, quarantine and government requirements are still very fluid."

It's not just leisure travel that will be increasing, either. Business travel is already starting to tick upward, as people seek to return to in-person meetings.

"As Covid slows, a significant number of people are returning to business travel," Mike Putman, CEO of Custom Travel Solutions, told the E-Commerce Times. "While Zoom has been an exceptional substitute, it doesn't provide the level of relationship [an in-person] face-to-face meeting does."

Pent-Up Demand

Because of all the suppressed energy out there, as people begin to break loose and travel, this increased demand is likely to limit availability of rooms, cars, flights and other amenities.

"Of course, there is a tremendous pent-up demand," explained Putman. "Still, some services are limited due to capital restraints -- not enough rental cars -- and service restraints -- restaurants haven't been able to rehire employees, causing limited dining capacity."

This increased demand will affect availability and pricing.

"In the medium term, there will be tremendous demand for travel and the most popular hotels, resorts and destinations will have limited availability, and, as a result, prices will rise with this demand," said Pedroni.

Priorities Changed

Travel itself has changed because of the pandemic, and one of the primary changes has been an increased concern with health, wellness and cleanliness.

"First and foremost, health and safety protocols are important to all travelers and have become a must-have for travel providers rather than a nice-to-have," explained Pedroni.

"People are willing to pay more for that peace of mind. Travelers are looking to escape beyond their four walls, and although destination is important, it's likely not as important as it was pre-Covid. It really is the journey, not the destination -- the 'act of travel' -- whether for relaxation, for a new experience, or for an adventure," she added.

Also as a result of the pandemic, travelers are looking for new kinds of amenities -- including often the ability to work remotely even while they're on vacation.

"There is a growing demand for privacy and exclusivity, as well as longer vacations and remote working scenarios," Juan Vela Ruiz, vice president of Velas Resorts, told the E-Commerce Times.

In response, Velas Resorts released its Home to Grand program. Privacy features include an area set aside for a private beach and another for a private office, as well as personalized classes and exclusive dining experiences.

Loyalty Rewards

Travelers have also become concerned with maintaining points status and other perks that might have dropped off with decreased usage during the pandemic -- in part because they hope to use those points as the pandemic wanes.

"Prior to the pandemic, program members were looking for greater convenience and ease of use when it comes to booking travel, more redemption options with reasonable rates of redemption, and an overall more personalized experience," Len Covello, CTO for Engage People, told the E-Commerce Times.

"These all remain a top priority, but as travel restrictions begin to ease, program members also are seeking ways to retain their hotel and airline statuses, despite a significant decrease in use -- just as many airlines and hotels lower their qualifying thresholds for particular loyalty levels," he remarked.

Even paying for travel -- especially in emerging markets -- has been affected by the pandemic.

"The travel industry is one of the industries most impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic," Sue Ann Seet, head of Asia for dLocal, told the E-Commerce Times. "It is also one of the first to respond to the changes that the situation demanded. Dlocal has seen an increase in domestic flights versus international flights.

"When it comes to payments in emerging markets, we see an unprecedented move into the digitalization of payments. While this might be no surprise in more mature countries, emerging markets are still very cash-based and are still in the middle of their digital transformation. The pandemic accelerated the process," she observed.

Responsible Travel

It's not only travel that has changed, but the kind of shopping that people do while traveling. People increasingly want, for instance, to bring home luxury souvenirs that they will actually use -- including wine -- and they're looking for luggage to keep it safe during the journey.

"Tourists want to buy wine and get it home to enjoy the memories of their travels," Ron Scharman, CEO of FlyWithWine, told the E-Commerce Times.

"We are in the fourth generation of VinGardeValise wine suitcases, as we have added features to improve the product and consumer experience while traveling to make sure their wines travel safely, regardless of the deteriorating baggage handling situation in today's airports," he noted.

Finally, travelers are more environmentally conscious than ever, and they're looking for sustainable alternatives to traditional travel.

"Ongoing, there is a new focus on sustainability in travel, both for travelers and for destinations," explained Pedroni. "There are incredible initiatives happening throughout the travel industry that showcase exactly how we can travel responsibly throughout the world, and this will become the norm and the expectation as the next generation becomes the dominate travelers."

Vivian Wagner has been an ECT News Network reporter since 2008. Her main areas of focus are technology, business, CRM, e-commerce, privacy, security, arts, culture and diversity. She has extensive experience reporting on business and technology for a variety of outlets, including The Atlantic, The Establishment and O, The Oprah Magazine. She holds a PhD in English with a specialty in modern American literature and culture. She received a first-place feature reporting award from the Ohio Society of Professional Journalists, and is the author of Women in Tech: 20 Trailblazers Share Their Journeys, published by ECT News Network in May 2020. Email Vivian.


Escriva dice que estamos en niveles de empleo superiores a la pre-crisis
"When you consider the ultimate sacrifice that the officers who are being recognized today have paid, I know that thank you could never be enough," said Gary Mayor Jerome Prince.
Nature writer to judge Young Nature Blogger 2021

An award-winning young nature writer will judge the UNESCO Biospheres Young Nature Blogger 2021 overall prize.



Autistic naturalist Dara McAnultys first book, Diary of a Young Naturalist was published when he was just 16.



The book has won high-profile plaudits. It saw him named the youngest ever winner of The Wainright Prize for nature writing and, most recently, earned him British Book of the Year in the non-fiction (narrative) category, where it was shortlisted with titles by Sir David Attenborough, Barack Obama and Captain Tom Moore.



Dara, who is now 17 and lives in Northern Ireland, has appeared on BBC1 TVs Countryfile and Springwatch programmes and his book was Radio 4s Book of the Week. He has featured in national newspapers.



His next book, Wild Child: a Journey Through Nature, will be published in July.



Dara is also the youngest recipient of the RSPB Medal for Conservation.



Young Nature Blogger began in 2020 as an initiative by UNESCO Biosphere Isle of Man. This year, Galloway and South Ayrshire, Dublin Bay and Kerry Biospheres are joining in, running their own local challenges, with entrants aged 21 and under invited to submit up to 500 words by 12th August.



Each Biosphere will put forward their winner for an overall prize, which Dara and Professor Martin Price, Chair of the UK Man and the Biosphere Programme, will judge.



Prior to his book success, when already an established voice for nature via his own blog, Dara visited the Isle of Man at the invitation of UNESCO Biosphere Isle of Man in 2019 to speak at the Voices of Our Future event, part of Manx Wildlife Week.



Dara said: Im so delighted to be judging this wonderful competition.



I was welcomed by children from the Isle of Man in 2019 and I was so impressed by their care, compassion and sense of place.



In a world that is so fast-paced, writing is an important way to connect with ourselves and all the people and creatures we share our lives with. It can expand the mind and imagination and grounds our hopes, dreams, knowledge.



Deeper understanding of our place in the world is generated when we search for words to express our curiosity and emotions. Im very excited to read the entries. I know they will be amazing.



Geoffrey Boot MHK, Minister for Environment, Food and Agriculture, said: Dara is an inspiration to young people who are interested in, care for and are inspired by nature.



Daras beautiful first book has, rightly, received incredible praise and he has a brilliant future ahead of him as a voice for nature.



Since we met Dara in 2019, we have proudly watched his achievements and we are thrilled that, at a time when he has such prominence and is so busy, he has agreed to renew his link with UNESCO Biospheres and encourage our own young nature writers.



We had some fantastic entries last year and we hope young people will again take advantage of the Manx summer to get out and about and get blogging, inspired by Dara.



For information about Young Nature Blogger 2021, visit https://www.biosphere.im/news-details/enter-young-nature-blogger-2021/



The Isle of Man challenge is run with Manx Wildlife Trust (MWT) and Isle of Man Newspapers and winners will have their work published in the newspapers and in MWTs Manx Nature magazine. They will receive MWT goody bags.



The four Biospheres overall winner will receive a nature experience in their Biosphere and a signed copy of Diary of a Young Naturalist and matching notebook in which to record their blogs.



The UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Programme celebrates its half century this year and Young Nature Blogger 2021 is an accredited 50th anniversary event.
Ricky VanHoozer, 65, of Athens, Alabama, died Tuesday, June 29, 2021, in Madison Hospital. A 2 p.m. graveside service will be Saturday at Bottom Cemetery with son-in-law Billy Sims officiating. Visitation is from noon until 1:30 p.m. Saturday at Spry Funeral Home in Athens. Pallbearers will 
Apple has today published a 16-page report that essentially explains why it would be a bad idea to open up its mobile App Stores. The report, dubbed Building a Trusted Ecosystem for Millions of Apps, sets out the companys defense of the status quo. It says that, should the US force Apple to let third parties load apps onto iPhones and iPads, it would irrevocably harm the app market.

As CNBC reports, the timing of this publication coincides with the US plan to debate a series of antitrust bills looking to curb Big Techs power. These bills will look at a wide variety of topics, from unspooling Facebooks acquisitions of WhatsApp and Instagram to Apples App Store. Lobbyists for rival companies, led by Epic Games, have said that the way Apple runs its developer platform is unfair, and monopolistic.

Currently, the only way any user can install an app on their iOS (or iPad OS and WatchOS) device is through Apples App Store. The company charges developers a flat fee of 15 percent on their first $1 million of sales, with that figure rising to 30 percent afterward. Buyers are also restricted to using Apples secure payment platform, and each App is vetted by the company before sales. There are a number of extra rules around this, each with the stated aim of reducing the risk of scammers to defraud, cheat or otherwise harm iPhone users.

Apple justifies this by saying that its mobile devices are repositories of information that can never be left exposed. Unlike, say, the Mac, which it treats as a more open general-purpose computing platform, which can install apps from any developer without restriction. It says that the trust people place in their iPhones is paramount, and cites advice from the US Department of Homeland Security to avoid side-loading apps onto their devices.

(The company knows only too well what happens when ecosystems, or at least accounts on those platforms, are breached. In 2014, hackers were able to gain access to accounts hosted on iCloud through spear phishing, and published images from those accounts online.)

By comparison, Apple says that Android  which does allow the side-loading of apps and is regarded as a more open platform  is riddled with security holes. It said that Android apps aimed at children were discovered to be engaging in data collection practices that violated kids privacy and that malicious actors have placed inappropriate or obscene ads on apps targeted at kids. The company added that side-loaded games can circumvent parental controls, trigger ransomware attacks or trick people into handing over cash.

Apple sums up its position by saying that, opening up the platform would put all users at greater risk, since it would encourage malicious actors to find holes in the platform. Users who had grown to take the safety and protection of iPhone and the App Store for granted would have to constantly be on the lookout for the ever-changing tricks of cybercriminals and scammers. And, consequently, users would be more reticent to download apps altogether, which could harm the developer community.

Of course, Apples detractors would take issue with much of what the company has outlined here, and even some of its fans. For instance, Apples apparently rigorous system for screening and blocking scam apps is sufficiently lax that a large number have reached the storefront. Developer Kosta Eleftheriou, as explained in a lengthy piece at The Verge, has identified a number of scam apps which are defrauding users but somehow made it through Apples review process. There are questions, too, about the fact that Apple makes money on these fraudulent transactions. (As TechCrunch reported at the time, the company's Kyle Andeer said that tracking such scams was a "cat-and-mouse game" and that Apple acts to "rectify" app scams "very quickly.")

Developers, too, are chafing at the idea that they should be liable for such a large commission given Apples size and wealth. At the start of 2021, CNBC reported that the store earned gross sales of around $64 billion, and developers are asking what can justify that sort of cash. Until November 2020, the cut was a flat-rate of 30 percent, although the company halved it for smaller companies making under $1 million in sales.

The row over Apples insistence that in-app purchases must use its platform to guard against fraud came to a head in mid-2020. Epic Games, makers of smash hit Fortnite, pushed an update to the app which circumvented the ban on third-party payments. Apple duly responded by blocking the app for violating its policies, and Epic retaliated by taking the company to court. A similar situation occurred when email app Hey was approved, and then pulled, from the App Store for requiring users to pay for the service on its website.

There has also been a number of objections raised to the way that Apple can make exemptions for some businesses, but not others. Documents published during the Epic / Apple trial seemed to indicate that the iPhone maker made several overtures to Netflix, offering perks to prevent the streamer from dropping in-app purchases. Similarly, Apple seemed to give Amazon more favorable terms to get the Prime Video app onto the platform than it does for other so-called reader apps.

And situations where Apple both restricts how rival companies operate on the App Store and competes with them applies to businesses like Spotify. The Sweden-based audio streaming giant raised a complaint to the European Union which then opened one of several antitrust investigations into the iPhone maker. This was mirrored by a number of investigations across the world, with regulators promising to examine how exactly Apple keeps its App Store house in order.

In its 16-page missive, Apple said that it is a combination of hardware, software and oversight that makes its devices so secure. Apples many layers of security provide users with an unparalleled level of protection from malicious software, giving users peace of mind. Some developers, however, feel that Apples devices are sufficiently secure that side-loading would not as catastrophic as the company is making out. Last year, GK8s Yair Ivnitsky told Engadget that iOS was sufficiently secure that its too time-and-money-consuming for hackers to even bother with it.
Lenovo has unveiled its 4th-generation flagship ThinkPad X1 Extreme laptop with the latest Intel and NVIDIA components stuffed into that famous thin and lightweight carbon fiber body. The company also revealed a new AMD-powered ThinkPad Yoga, a pair of new Chromebooks and a host of accessories including webcams, mice, keyboards and chargers.

Lenovo

The ThinkPad X1 Extreme is certainly the high point of the new launch. As usual, it's housed in a reinforced carbon fiber body to keep the weight down and it's indeed very thin and light at just 17.7mm and 1.81 kg (just under four pounds, depending on the configuration). For the latest model, Lenovo added a new hybrid cooling system with traditional heat pipes, a large vapor chamber, keyboard air intake and dual bypass design meant to improve air circulation.

And why is this extra cooling needed, you may ask? The X1 Extreme now comes with some pretty powerful components, including 11th-generation Intel Core i9 H-series processors along with up to NVIDIA RTX 3080 graphics (starting at RTX-3050 Ti). The latter powers a new 16-inch, 16:10 display with either a QHD+ or UHD+ panels. The higher-resolution displays (both touch and non-touch) offer Dolby Vision HDR support and 600 nits of peak brightness. While not full 10-bit screens, they offer 8+2 bit (FRC dithered) color to simulate 10-bit, for any display nerds out there.

Lenovo

It can be configured with up to 64GB of DDR4 memory, two 2TB M.2 PCIe Gen4 SSDs and a 90 Wh battery that delivers up to 10.7 hours of battery life. Other features include WiFi 6E and optional 5G Wireless WAN, an FHD or FHD infrared webcam with a physical camera shutter, Dolby Atmos Speakers, a fingerprint reader and a larger 115mm touchpad (along with a trackpoint).

In other words, this looks like a potent system for creators on the go or even gamers who want to keep things light and low-profile. Flagship laptops don't come cheap, though: the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 4 starts at $2,150 and arrives in August 2021.

Lenovo

To go with the ThinkPad X1 Extreme, Lenovo announced a pair of mobile monitors. The ThinkVision M15 (above) nearly doubles the screen area available but is very portable at just 1.9 pounds  and it can even connect to a phone via the full-function USB Type-C port. It could potentially be a great option for video creation on the go, for example.

The ThinkVision T24m-20 is designed more for dedicated workspaces, with a USB Type-C docking solution that provides 90 watts of power delivery to compatible devices. It also supports multi-monitor configurations and more. The M15 Mobile Monitor starts at $230, while the T24m-20 starts at $300. Both arrive in Q3 2021.

Lenovo

Lenovo also revealed a pair of AMD Ryzen 5000 series ThinkPad L13 laptops, the L13 Yoga Gen 2 and L13 Gen 2 models. Both feature AMD Radeon graphics, up to 16GB of DDR4 memory, HD webcams with privacy shutter (including an IR option), 1TB of PCIe SSD storage and 13.3-inch, 300 nit FHD displays. Naturally, the Yoga model has a flip-around display with touch capability and weighs in a bit more at 3.17 pounds, while the standard L13 model offers touch or non-touch, and tips the scales at 3.06 pounds. The L13 starts at $800 and the Yoga at $1,000, with both expected to arrive in August 2021.

Lenovo

If it's a Chromebook you're after, Lenovo launched two new models, the 5i-14 and Flex 5i-13 Chromebooks. Both feature Intel Core i5 processors with up to 512GB of SSD storage, along with WiFi 6, webcams with privacy shutters, two USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type C ports, a single USB 3.1 type A port and ten hours of battery life. The Flex model offers a 13.3-inch FHD IPS touchscreen and even an optional OLED display with 400 nits of brightness. The 5i-14 Chromebook, meanwhile, comes with a 14-inch FHD 300 nit IPS touchscreen. Both models start at $440, with the Flex model arriving in June 2021 and the 5i-14 coming in July 2021.

Lenovo

Finally, Lenovo unveiled a truckload of new accessories, starting with the ThinkVision MC50 Monitor 1080p webcam, with features like built-in dual noise cancelling and a swivel function. Other highlights include the Lenovo Go wireless multi-device mouse, the Lenovo Go wireless charging kit for laptops up to 14 inches, several Lenovo Go charging kits and power banks, Lenovo Go wired and wireless headsets and Lenovo Go ANC in-ear headphones, all aimed at business types. For more information and prices on all those products, check out Lenovo's website.
An expletive-filled Snapchat Story has become the basis for a Supreme Court ruling on free speech. The Supreme Court ruled that a Pennsylvania public school violated the First Amendment rights of one of its students after suspending her from the cheerleading squad as a result of a Snapchat post in which she said f school f softball f cheer f everything.

At first glance, the case sounds like the kind of disciplinary action that likely happens at most schools: A student, identified in court documents as B.L., didnt make the varsity cheerleading squad and took to Snapchat to blow off steam as Justice Brett Kavanaugh described. The post eventually made its way beyond her Snapchat friends, ultimately resulting in her suspension from the cheerleading squad.

But in its decision, the Supreme Court made clear that even off-color speech is protected by the First Amendment. It might be tempting to dismiss B. L.s words as unworthy of the robust First Amendment protections discussed herein. But sometimes it is necessary to protect the superfluous in order to preserve the necessary, Justice Stephen Breyer wrote in his majority opinion.

The case is also unique because its one of the first times the nations highest court has weighed in on student speech on the internet, says Jeffrey Rosen, CEO of the National Constitution Center. One reason this case is so important is because it's the court's first opportunity to grapple with the question of where to draw the line between on-campus and off-campus speech in an online world, Rosen told Engadget ahead of the ruling.

In its decision, the Supreme Court left open questions about exactly how social media affects how those lines should be drawn. The ruling made more of the fact that the speech took place off-campus and not during a school function, rather than how the comments were made. Though in a separate, concurring opinion, Justice Samuel Alito noted that a school would have authority over what students say while participating in online learning or other online school activities.

Notably, in his lone dissent, Justice Clarence Thomas did raise the role that social media might play in these decisions. The majority fails to consider whether schools often will have more authority, not less, to discipline students who transmit speech through social media, he wrote. Because off campus speech made through social media can be received on campus (and can spread rapidly to countless people), it often will have a greater proximate tendency to harm the school environment than will an off-campus in-person conversation.

Even so, the ruling could still influence how future cases are handled. Students will be continued to be disciplined for stuff they post online and lower courts will, once again, disagree, and at some point, the Supreme Court will be asked to come back in, Rosen says.

B.Ls case is hardly the only high-profile debate about free speech and social media. But it has the distinction of being one of the few cases where the First Amendment applies to social media. Much online speech isn't covered by the First Amendment, Rosen said. The private companies themselves are not bound to respect the First Amendment. This case was an exception because it involved a public school, which therefore was acting as an arm of the State, as Justice Alito wrote.

But most of us cant claim that what we say on social media is protected by the First Amendment, despite what some politicians claim. As private companies, Facebook and YouTube and Snapchat and Twitter are free to set their own rules around content moderation. And major questions about, say, what a president can or cant say on social media will  barring regulation from Congress  be left to the platforms themselves or industry-created groups like the Oversight Board.

So much of the action when it comes to free speech will take place outside of the Supreme Court, Rosen said. And Mark Zuckerberg and the heads of the platforms have more power over free speech in some ways than any king or president or even Supreme Court justice.
The Supreme Court ruled today that a high school in Pennsylvania violated a student's First Amendment rights by suspending her from the cheerleading team, following Snapchat posts where she criticized the school with expletives. The judgement sets a stronger standard for how schools can punish students for off-campus speech, something that's all the more common these days with social networks like Snapchat. The Supreme Court upheld a lower court ruling, which also found that the school, Mahoney Area High School, violated Brandi Levy's First Amendment rights.

After failing to make the school's varsity cheerleading team in 2017, Levy posted two Snapchat messages with a friend while hanging out at a local store. F school f softball f cheer f everything, she wrote in her first message, according to CNBC. She captioned her follow-up message with "Love how me and [another student] get told we need a year of jv before we make varsity but tha[t] doesnt matter to anyone else? And of course, it was accompanied by an upside down smiley face emoji.

"While public schools may have a special interest in regulating some off-campus student speech, the special interests offered by the school are not sufficient to overcome B. L.s [Brandi Levy's] interest in free expression in this case," Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer wrote in the ruling. While the Court says schools have some ability to regulate a student's off-campus speech, including situations like teacher harassment and severe bullying.

But when it comes to this case, Breyer wrote the school didn't overcome three measures for regulating off-campus speech. First, schools rarely take the place of parents when students are away from campus. Additionally, courts need to be extra skeptical of when schools try to regulate off-campus speech, because it essentially allows them to find issues with anything a student says throughout the day. Finally, Breyer wrote that public schools also have an interest in protecting Free Speech, because they serve as "nurseries of Democracy."
Enid, OK (73701)

Today

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 63F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 63F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph.
While people think Lilibet Diana can be a gamechanger in the relationship between Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, and the Queen, a royal expert claims that this is true but not on a positive note.

According to the royal expert, Lilibet Diana might even be the reason why Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will ultimately lose their titles. Allegedly, if the Queen finds out the two is using Lilibet for their own commercial interests, she will find it imperative to strip them of whatever remaining royal titles they have.

If she so much as find out that her granddaughter is being exploited, the expert claimed that this could be the trigger for a final break between Harry and Her Majesty the Queen.

The Australian-based royal watcher Daniela Elser, claimed that the existence of several website domain names registered by Harry and Meghan that incorporate little Lilibet's name is already raising some eyebrows in the palace.

ALSO READ: Nicolas Cage Heartbreak: Actor's Mother Died, Cause of Death Tragic

Some are said to be already worried that the young child's undeniable royal connections could be exploited for commercial gain. This would be a big no-no for the Queen and she would be compelled to act out.

The royal watcher is not imagining things.

According to Daily Star UK, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle already snapped up website domains for "Lilibet Diana" and "Lili Diana" even before Queen gave approval to the child's name. This was done just days after the tot was born.

At the time, an expert claimed that the Queen might not even like the fact that her granddaughter has her nickname as her name.

"I'm not getting the impression there's much happiness at Windsor Castle about the choice of Lilibet as the baby's name," Richard Palmer wrote. He shared that majority thought this was an olive branch on the part of Markle and Prince Harry, but the Queen is likely to view it as a potential exploitation move.

"It may have been an olive branch but there's sensitivity because of any perceived attempt to use the Queen as part of the Sussex brand," he added.

Other royal experts claimed that there were talks of Markle and Prince Harry being quite shameless in naming their kid Lilibet Diana - after all the bombshell tidbits they dropped about their time back in the palace.

One more expert, Sarah Vine shared that, "A lot of people - a lot of readers - emailed me to say they thought it was really shameless that they had done this almost to stamp the royal name on this child's head, however much they fell out with the family."

ALSO READ: Olivia Rodrigo Fans Did Not Know This About Her and Are Beyond Proud To Find Out

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Jennifer Aniston and John Mayer reportedly began meeting up in secret again, giving birth to dating rumors.

Woman's Day reported this quarter that Aniston and her ex-boyfriend started catching up before the coronavirus pandemic happened. A source reportedly told the tabloid that the ex-couple met up at Sunset Tower - the actress' favorite bar.

The same insider pointed out that the two have always been friendly despite their breakup. Thus, the chemistry between them reportedly continues to exist.

The magazine also took the chance to bring back what Mayer said after they broke up in 2009. At that time, the actor said that he would always feel sorry that they did not last.

"In some ways, I wish I could be with her. But I can't change the fact that I need to be 32." The publication suggests Mayer has grown a lot in their time apart and is finally ready to be with Aniston again," he said, as quoted by Marie Claire.

Meanwhile, Aniston reportedly always noted that if they end up becoming single, there might be a chance for them.

However, the romance rumors are not true - not at all.

Jennifer Aniston, John Mayer NOT Dating

In a new report by GossipCop, it found out that Aniston and Mayer indeed met up at the Sunset Tower. However, there were with their mutual friends during that time.

This debunked the claims about a possible romantic meeting going on between them.

In addition, Aniston has always been in good terms with her exes. In fact, she keeps in touch with her former partners including Brad Pitt.

It was not the first romance rumor Aniston got involved in this year.

Following the "Friends" reunion on HBO Max, multiple news outlets alleged that the actress began dating David Schwimmer in hopes for a second chance.

READ ALSO: 'Jeopardy!' Under Fire Again After Inaccurate, Derogatory Medical Answer

According to Life & Style, the on-screen couple reportedly wanted to take their crush to the next level after they kept in touch soon after the reunion happened.

"They've been talking, FaceTiming and are planning to meet up," the source said. "Maybe that ship hasn't sailed after all."

The insider added that Schwimmer regretted not pursuing her before and that he never really got over Aniston.

However, the colleagues have nothing but professional relationship toward each other. The fact that they also went on to marry different people only proved that what they felt was not enough to begin a relationship.

READ MORE: Jennifer Lopez, Ben Affleck's Relationship Gets Complicated As Alex Rodriguez Makes Shocking Move

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Justin Bieber and wife Hailey are under fire over their outfit choices for their meeting with the French President.

Page Six reports that Justin Bieber and Hailey Baldwin met with the President and his wife at Macron's elysee Palace just this week.

There are no official statements yet on why President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Marie-Claude Macron decided to meet the American stars.

However, TMZ re-posted the picture that Justin uploaded on his Instagram, which garnered people's attention for the wrong reasons.

One of the comments said, "The fact that she [Hailey] went to meet a president in that outfit? Girl you really are out of touch with reality. You wouldn't even wear that to work, let alone to meet a president."

The fact that she went to meet a president in that outfit? Girl you really are out of touch with reality. You wouldnt even wear that to work, let alone to meet a president.  the fact that justin didnt even pull her aside   Mavisko (@mavisko87) June 22, 2021

"No class at all... didn't they get the memo they were meeting The president and wife?" another person commented under the tweet.

Ugh such immature outfits by these naive idiots  no class at all didnt they get the memo they were meeting The President and wife?   Lynn Straight (@LynStraight) June 23, 2021



The revealing outfits and shoes were deemed "immature."

Hailey Baldwin Meets Up with Justin in Paris After A Week with Friends in Mexico

The criticisms on outfit came as a surprise since the model has been spotted worldwide within the past week sporting the trendiest looks and turning heads wherever she goes.

According to sources, Hailey left Mexico to reunite with her husband, Justin, in the city of love.

Before that, she was accompanied by Kendall Jenner and their other model friends in Cabo, Mexico, during the weekend where the "girls' getaway" was held.

The model shared snapshots of her short trip in Paradise on her Instagram with the caption "gals weekend "



Hailey then transformed her outfits from relaxed-girl-on-the-beach to fashion-model-it-girl when she arrived in France.

The model opted to change her strappy bikini for some strapped sandals as she walked the streets of Paris, holding hands with Bieber.

READ ALSO: Justin Bieber Discloses Life-Threatening Event He Faced Due to Drug Overdose

Mr. & Mrs. Bieber Enjoy Roaming Around the City

Paparazzi heavily tracked the celebrity couple during their date.

Based on this article, the two were first spotted having a romantic dinner at the 1st Arrondissement, located in the old city of Paris.

The next day, the married couple was seen at Kith for a shopping spree before meeting with President Emmanuel Macron and his wife.

The couple has yet to return home to the States after celebrating Fete de la Musique with French politicians.

READ MORE: Lorde Shares Why Her Merchandise Prices Higher Than Usual, Details About New Album And Tour Dates Revealed

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"Jersey Shore" star Jenn Harley is facing big trouble with her side hustle- Instagram sponsorship deals- after her endorsements were reportedly dropped following her domestic violence arrest.

According to TMZ, Harley's recent sponsor Bellesa- a womens' adult toy company- is cutting all of their connections with the reality TV star after news of her allegations broke out.

Her recent post connected with the company was during mother's day, where she offered gift cards to her followers.

Another famous brand that dropped her is Bentley Trike- a company that offers childrens' toy vehicles- according to a representative, they temporarily suspended their deal with Harley. They assured her that her contract would be terminated if she's proven guilty.

Posh Baby and Kids president Deepak Raghavan shared his sentiments with the outlet, "These incidents go against the values of our company. We don't condone this behavior," he stated.

Jenn Harley's Domestic Violence Arrest

More recently, Harley's boyfriend, Joseph Ambrosole, revealed that the TV star allegedly dropped a racial slur while pointing a gun at him; he also claims that Harley is threatening to shoot him.

READ NOW: Michael B. Jordan Accused of Stealing From Caribbean People; Nicki Minaj Came To Actor's Defense

According to authorities, the couple argued about Harley's drinking problem in a bar in Las Vegas. The fight got to a point where security personnel asked them to leave the premises.

Harley allegedly threw her boyfriend's phone out of the window on their way home, forcing him to stop the vehicle to find it. The fight continued as they reached their house, where Harley allegedly pointed a gun at him.

As we previously reported, the MTV star was arrested for domestic violence and assault with a deadly weapon. She was taken by authorities on Saturday and had her bond set at $5,000.

Not the first time Harley was arrested

In 2019, when she was still in a relationship with her co-star Ronnie Ortiz-Magro, Harley was reportedly arrested for battery after allegedly throwing an ashtray at her ex-boyfriend, which hit him, causing it to have cut all over his face.

Jenn Harley has not publicly addressed the recent issue with her brand deals.

Her Instagram account remains private at the time of this writing.

There is no follow-up information on her court appearance last June 20.

READ ALSO: Jordyn Woods Trending Amid Khloe Kardashian, Tristan Thompson Drama; Fans Reveal Which Side They're On

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2021-06-23

Maeci

The Foreign Ministry strongly welcomes the approval of Italys National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP)  announced by President of the European Commission Ursula Von der Leyen, during her recent visit to Rome  to which the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation is fully committed, offering a valuable contribution that aims to further strengthen the subsidised financial tools within the framework of the Pact for Export, as a privileged platform for guiding Italian exports in line with the twofold urgent green and digital transition.

As part of the NRRP, the Foreign Ministry has promoted a new action to support exports by Italian SMEs, in this delicate phase of post-pandemic economic recovery, which envisages allocating Eur 1.2 billion to internationalisation processes. The initiative provides for refinancing of Fund 394/81, managed by SIMEST, which in this case aims to combine support for exports by Italian companies with the objectives of the Next Generation EU, fostering the processes of digitalisation, innovation and sustainability of our companies to strengthen their presence and competitiveness on international markets.

No less than 4,000 companies will benefit from this new initiative spearheaded by the Foreign Ministry, which will pay special attention to projects received from Southern-Italian-based companies and to female and young entrepreneurs.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, in partnership with SIMEST, is already at work to kickstart this initiative, aimed at allowing companies to present their proposals as soon as the Italian NRRP is formally approved, in all likelihood at the next ECOFIN Council in mid-July.
2021-06-22

Maeci

This morning, Deputy Minister Manlio Di Stefano chaired the 3rd Economic and Technical Commission and the Italy-Mongolia Political Consultations on the Italian side. On the Mongolian side, the Minister of Agriculture and Light Industry Mendsaikhan and the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Munkhjin attended by video conference.

Inevitably, the pandemic that has struck the world has also impacted trade between Italy and Mongolia, but the great complementarity between our production systems allows us to look to the future of bilateral relations with optimism, the Deputy Minister said at the opening. We have important ongoing collaborations with Mongolia in sectors such as agro-industry, energy, infrastructure, textiles, tanning, inter-university cooperation, as well as in the field of archaeology and research.

At the end of the Economic and Technical Commission meeting, Deputy Minister Di Stefano signed with his Mongolian counterpart a Joint Communique on cooperation, which reports on the concrete results achieved so far and provides a roadmap for the development of relations between the two countries in the near future.

We see a wide margin for development in view of the potential of this vast country, its spaces and resources. We believe that, thanks also to bilateral cooperation, we can contribute to the responsible use of resources and to the transition towards sustainable energy sources, while also making an important contribution to environmental protection, the Deputy Minister concluded. The interconnected energy-environmental issues were also addressed in speeches by the representatives of ICE, CNR and SACE.
Estes Park, CO (80517)

Today

Partly cloudy skies. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 53F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 53F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph.
Analyses of genomic data suggest that the little-studied Chinese mountain cat, which has held a controversial taxonomic status, is a subspecies of wildcat and was not involved in feline domestication in China. The findings support the theory that housecats originated solely from the domestication of the African wildcat. The study also found that the genetic integrity of the Chinese mountain cat may have been disrupted through ancient introgression with the Asiatic wildcat and modern-day mixing with domestic cats. This raises conservation concerns that the Chinese mountain cat could become less suited to its local environment - a crisis that has already befallen the European wildcat. Scientists have been unsure whether the Chinese mountain cat, which is endemic to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, is a true species or a wildcat subspecies, as well as whether it may have contributed to the domestication of cats in East Asia. While previous research has suggested that a single domestication event from the African wildcat (Felis silvestris lybica) was the origin of tame felines, a lack of sampling in East Asia has left room for uncertainty. To uncover these mysteries, He Yu and colleagues collected samples from 27 Chinese mountain cats (F. s. bieti), 4 Asiatic wildcats (F. s. ornata), and 239 domestic cats (F. s. catus). The Chinese mountain cat specimens - the largest-ever collection from across the species' range - included feces, blood, skin tissues, dry pelts, and skulls, while the Asiatic wildcat samples included blood or dry skin and the domestic cat samples consisted of cheek swabs, blood, or skin tissues. The researchers extracted genomic DNA from the specimens, generating whole genome sequence data for 51 high quality samples, including 4 Chinese mountain cats, 1 Asiatic wildcat, and 46 domestic cats. Yu et al. then reconstructed the cats' phylogenies, determining that the Chinese mountain cat is a wildcat subspecies.

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Adult corals that survive high-intensity environmental stresses, such as bleaching events, can produce offspring that are better suited to survive in new environments. These results from a series of experiments conducted at the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences (BIOS) in 2017 and 2018 are deepening scientists' understanding of how the gradual increase of sea surface temperatures and other environmental disturbances may influence future coral generations.

Researchers on the project included BIOS marine ecologists Samantha de Putron and Gretchen Goodbody-Gringley (now with the Central Caribbean Marine Institute), ecophysiologist Hollie Putnam at the University of Rhode Island (URI), and Kevin Wong, then a first-year doctoral student at URI. Primary funding came from the Heising-Simons Foundation International, Ltd. with additional funding from the National Geographic Society and the Canadian Associates of BIOS (CABIOS).

The team spent last year working the data into a manuscript, which was published this month in the journal Global Change Biology and listed Wong as the first author. Wong, now nearing the end of his fourth year of studies at URI under the mentorship of Putnam, plans to graduate in May 2022.

"We know parental history influences the characteristics of offspring in corals, however the experimental design used in this study provides us with a unique perspective on how multiple types of thermal events can accumulate over time and have lasting consequences across generations," Wong said.

Coral Collection and Study The multi-year field and lab-based study began in the summer of 2017. Departing from BIOS on a small boat with diving gear, the team collected 40 adult Porites astreoides (mustard hill) corals from two different reef sites northwest of Bermuda: a patch reef (Crescent Reef), which is located in a shallower lagoon environment, and a rim reef (Hog Reef) which is a barrier reef more exposed to open ocean conditions.

They next placed the live corals in the then newly-constructed BIOS mesocosm facility, where large outdoor aquaria "flow-through" seawater systems allowed researchers to control and adjust water temperature in the tanks for completing the study.

A variety of baseline data were collected on the corals in each colony, such as metabolic rates and the density of Symbiodinaceae, the symbiotic algae that live within the coral tissues. To simulate a thermal stress event, the adult corals were exposed to two different temperature treatments--ambient (84F or 29C) or heated (88F or 31C)--for a period of 21 days over their reproductive period. Afterward, the team assessed the physiology of the adult corals, looking at key functions such as respiration and photosynthetic rates. They also monitored the release of coral larvae and assessed its physiology, measuring the larval size and density of Symbiodinaceae within each larva, among other factors.

Upon completion of the experiment, the adult corals were divided in half and reciprocally transplanted, with half of the fragments positioned in the new environments and half returned to their originating environments. All of the fragments remained in place until the summer of 2018, when they were re-collected, and the physiologies of both adult corals and coral larvae were assessed in the same manner as in 2017.

A Stronger Coral Generation The results of this two-year investigation showed that adult corals that experienced the thermal stress event produced offspring more capable of thriving in their current environment. This means that parent corals that experience stressors may be able to "pre-condition" their offspring to survive in new environments in the following year. The results also indicate that high-intensity environmental stress events, such as bleaching, can have lasting impacts on adult colonies and how they produce their offspring.

"The coral used in this study is a notoriously resilient coral and these findings potentially demonstrate how this species is so persistent across the Caribbean," Putnam said. "Not all coral species are this robust to environmental stressors. However, this system allows us to unravel the mechanisms leading to resilience and identify which corals are most sensitive to climate change."

Long-time Member of BIOS Community Wong, 27, is a familiar face at BIOS, having first arrived on campus in the summer of 2014 as a CABIOS intern when he spent 12 weeks working with de Putron on a research project investigating the role of temperature and light on the growth and survivorship of juvenile mustard hill corals from two different reef zones. The following year, he received CABIOS funding to work with then-faculty member Gretchen Goodbody-Gringley on a project focused on the reproductive ecology of corals from mesophotic reef ecosystems, deeper-water reefs which typically extend from 100 to almost 500 feet (30 to 150 meters) in depth.

While presenting the results of his research at the 2016 International Coral Reef Symposium meeting in Hawaii, he had the opportunity to interview with Putnam for URI's Biological and Environmental Sciences doctoral program. Wong then returned to BIOS to spend six months in 2016 as a teaching assistant for several summer and fall courses. He also received BIOS Grants-in-Aid funding for a research project with Goodbody-Gringley and de Putron focused on the reproductive ecology of mustard hill coral from various reef sites around Bermuda, resulting in a publication in the journal Coral Reefs.

"It is wonderful to see an undergraduate intern progress to a successful graduate student who is publishing manuscripts," de Putron said. "Many years of hard work and plenty of exhausting, yet fun, days in the field and laboratory all culminated in interesting and critically relevant discoveries that further our understanding of coral resilience."

Now, a year from graduation, Wong is diving deeper into the mechanisms that drive environmental memory within and across coral generations at a molecular level. By using approaches such as metabolomics (the identification and quantification of metabolic by-products), transcriptomics (quantification of gene expression), and epigenetics (features that regulate gene expression), Wong aims to determine the key linkages between metabolism and coral bleaching phenotypes at a cellular level.

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WACO, Texas (June 23, 2021) - When an organization supports its employees who choose to adopt children, the employees, their families, the adopted children and the organization itself experience positive benefits and outcomes, according to new research from Baylor University.

The study, "It Takes a Village: How Organizational Support for Adoption Positively Affects Employees and Their Families," is published in the Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology. Researchers from Baylor's Hankamer School of Business include Matthew J. Quade, Ph.D., associate professor of management; Kaylee J. Hackney, Ph.D., assistant professor of management; and Dawn S. Carlson, Ph.D., professor of management.

"This research provides empirical evidence of specific outcomes for something that organizations have been doing with increasing frequency in recent years," said Quade, who led the study and is an adoptive parent. "Such support has primarily come via financial reimbursement or leave policies. Our research provides evidence of specific ways that employees and their families benefit from such support."

The study included surveys of 592 married couples (1,184 total surveyed participants) who had adopted a child within the past two years. The results show:

Commitment to the organization for adoptive employees as well as their spouse is greater when their organization supports their adoption of a child.

Adoptive employees who work in organizations that support their adoption of a child have positive effects spill over into their family such as increased family functioning and reduced relationship tension.

Spouses experience greater levels of family functioning and lower levels of relationship tension when the other spouse's employing organization supports their adoption of a child.

Adopted children benefit indirectly from their parents' organization if the organization supported their adoption. This benefit comes in the form of a stronger attachment to the adoptive parents.

"A child's attachment to the adoptive parent(s) is obviously a key metric in the adoption community," Quade said, "and we found this to be positively impacted as a result of organizational support for adoption."

Percentage of U.S. employers offering adoption assistance grows

The United States historically accounts for nearly half of all adoptions that take place worldwide each year. In 2014, more than 110,000 children were adopted by parents in the U.S., according to the study.

"With each adoption, there is presumably one working parent, and in many cases, there are two working parents who must navigate balancing work demands alongside an extremely complex, new and unique family-life demand - the adoption of a child," researchers wrote. "Organizations have identified that they can play a role in supporting employees who are adopting a child and they have increasingly responded."

The study points to an annual survey by the Society for Human Resource Management that shows the percentage of U.S. employers offering adoption assistance had risen from 7% in 2015 to 10% in 2019.

The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, which is referenced in the study, produces a list of the 100 Best Adoption-Friendly Workplaces. The foundation measures adoption assistance through activities such as financial reimbursement for adoption-related expenses, paid or unpaid leave, flexible work arrangements or managerial support for employees during and after the adoption process.

The researchers define this support as "the intentional effort on the part of an organization, through financial, environmental or procedural means, to support an employee who is in the process of adopting or has recently adopted a child."

The organization's commitment to assist with adoption can result in reciprocal feelings from the employees who've been helped, as well as spouses. Quade said that commitment to the organization could range from a sense of belonging or emotional attachment to the organization to a desire to spend the rest of one's career with that organization.

"Alternative form of corporate social responsibility"

The researchers found that adoption-friendly benefits offered by organizations are a worthwhile investment for employees and their families.

"Support for employees who are adopting a child can be strengthened when everyone within the organization is supportive," Quade said. "More specifically, direct supervisors and coworkers of those employees who are adopting a child can stand to contribute a great deal to the level of support an employee feels when going through an adoption process."

Quade said, based on this study, more organizations should consider enacting policies that support employees who are using an alternative, untraditional way of building a family (i.e., adoption).

"Organizational support for adoption can be an alternative form of corporate social responsibility as its offering could have indirect effects on the communities in which they operate and around the world by helping reduce the number of children needing to be adopted," he said.

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ABOUT THE STUDY

The study, "It Takes a Village: How Organizational Support for Adoption Positively Affects Employees and Their Families," is published in the Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology. Researchers at Baylor University's Hankamer School of Business include Matthew J. Quade, Ph.D., lead researcher and associate professor of management; Kaylee J. Hackney, assistant professor of management; and Dawn S. Carlson, professor of management.

BAYLOR UNIVERSITY'S COMMITMENT TO ADOPTION ASSISTANCE

Baylor University is listed on the 2020 Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption 100 Best Adoption-Friendly Workplaces. In 2017, the University approved an adoption assistance program for full-time Baylor faculty and staff to help defray expenses associated with the adoption process and affirm the choice by staff and faculty to grow their families.

ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY

Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked research institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for more than 19,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 90 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions.

ABOUT HANKAMER SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY

At Baylor University's Hankamer School of Business, top-ranked programs combine rigorous classroom learning, hands-on experience in the real world, a solid foundation in Christian values and a global outlook. Making up approximately 25 percent of the University's total enrollment, undergraduate students choose from 16 major areas of study. Graduate students choose from full-time, executive or online MBA or other specialized master's programs, and Ph.D. programs in Information Systems, Entrepreneurship or Health Services Research. The Business School also has campuses located in Austin and Dallas, Texas. Visit baylor.edu/business for more information.
Researchers from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (IVPP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have discovered a 120-million-year-old partial fossil skeleton of a tiny extinct bird that fits in the palm of the hand and preserves a unique skull with a mix of dinosaurian and bird features.

The two-centimeter-long (0.75 inch) skull of the fossil shares many structural and functional features with the gigantic Tyrannosaurus rex, indicating that early birds kept many features of their dinosaurian ancestors and their skulls functioned much like those of dinosaurs rather than living birds.

Their findings were published in Nature Communications on June 23.

The bird was deposited 120 million years ago in a shallow lake in what is today Liaoning Province in northeastern China.

Through detailed reconstruction of the bird family tree, the researchers demonstrated that the new fossil bird species belongs to an extinct group of birds called enantiornithines, or "opposite birds." They are the most diverse group of birds from the time of the dinosaurs in the Cretaceous and have been found all over the world.

In living birds, the quadrate is one of the most movable bones in the skull and allows for the unique feature of living birds known as "kinetic skull," which allows the upper jaw to move independently of the brain and the lower jaw.

In contrast with living birds, however, the skull of this new "opposite bird", as well as those of dinosaurs like Tyrannosaurus rex and the close dinosaurian relatives of birds (e.g., troodontids and dromaeosaurs), is not kinetic. Instead, its bones are "locked up" and unable to move.

The temporal regions (sides) of the skull of this bird fossil are very different from living birds. This new species has two bony arches for jaw muscle attachment like those found in reptiles such as lizards, alligators, and dinosaurs, making the rear of the skull rigid and resistant to movement among the bones.

"When reconstructing all parts of the skull three-dimensionally from the high resolution CT scans of the fossil, I had a problem figuring out one bone in particular," said Dr. WANG Min, the lead and corresponding author of the study. He said his colleague Dr. Thomas Stidham proposed that the bone was the pterygoid and looked "exactly like that of the dromaeosaur Linheraptor." The fossil has the first well-preserved pterygoid bone found in an early bird.

The researchers compared CT scans of the bird skull to scans of the skull of the well-known dromaeosaur Linheraptor from Inner Mongolia, China. The results showed that many other features of the rear portion of the skull, including the shape of the basisphenoid bone and its connections with other skull bones, also resemble dromaeosaurs rather than living birds.

"The fossil bird and dinosaurs also lack the discrete contact between the pterygoid and quadrate near the palate that is used in skull kinesis in living birds. In combination with the 'locked up' temporal bones, the difference in the palate structure also points to the absence of kinesis among early birds," said Dr. Stidham, co-author of the study.

Furthermore, the team's discovery and meticulous anatomical research help to reinforce the already well-supported contention, based on many different lines of evidence, that birds are not only living dinosaurs, but evolved from the branch of dinosaurs that includes troodontids and dromaeosaurs like the "four-winged" Microraptor and swift Velociraptor.

"Having a 'dinosaur' skull on a bird body certainly did not stop the enantiornithines, or other early birds, from being highly successful in places all around the world for tens of millions of years during the Cretaceous," said Dr. WANG.

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Grant from California Institute for Regenerative Medicine supports new testing of potential gene and stem cell therapy for incurable disease

Los Angeles (June 23, 2021) --

ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that damages nerve cells known as motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord that control voluntary muscle movement. It affects an estimated 16,000 people in the U.S. and is usually fatal within five years of diagnosis. There is no known cure and only limited treatments that may slow progression in a subset of patients.

The award from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) builds on earlier support from the stem cell agency enabling Cedars-Sinai to investigate the use of stem cells delivered to the spinal cord to treat ALS patients.

"We are extremely grateful for CIRM's support of our ALS work over many years," said Clive Svendsen, PhD, executive director of the Cedars-Sinai Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute and professor of Biomedical Sciences and Medicine. "This disease remains a remarkably stubborn and heartbreaking disorder. The new grant allows us to follow the science wherever it takes to best serve our patients."

Svendsen leads this new project, which is designed to transplant neural progenitor cells secreting a powerful growth factor into the brain cortices of ALS patients. Aided by the CIRM grant, Cedars-Sinai plans to enroll 16 patients in the clinical trial to demonstrate the safety and preliminary efficacy of using the neural progenitor cells to slow progression of ALS.

The neural progenitor cells for the trial have been genetically reprogrammed to express GDNF, a protein that promotes survival of special cells called astrocytes that support motor neurons. In ALS patients, astrocytes may become sick and provide less support to motor neurons, which then gradually die, leading to paralysis.

The trial's investigators, from the Regenerative Medicine Institute and the departments of Neurology and Neurosurgery at Cedars-Sinai, hypothesize that the engineered neural progenitor cells, when introduced into the brain cortices of ALS patients, will differentiate into astrocytes and secrete GDNF locally to keep the motor neurons healthy and ultimately slow the progression of ALS. The trial's clinical leads are Adam Mamelak, MD, professor of Neurosurgery, and Richard Lewis, MD, professor of Neurology. The project leader is Pablo Avalos, MD, a research scientist in Svendsen's laboratory.

The design of the trial builds on many years of research at Cedars-Sinai that demonstrated a similar technique delayed disease progression and extended survival in rodent models of ALS.

Currently, investigators from the Cedars-Sinai Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute are analyzing data from a Food and Drug Administration-approved clinical trial that infused these same cells into the spinal cords of ALS patients. That trial, and the research that laid the groundwork for it, also was funded by CIRM.

"This new major CIRM award recognizes and supports Cedars-Sinai's decade-long drive to create ALS therapies using unique methodologies developed at our institution," said Jeffrey A. Golden, MD, vice dean of Research and Graduate Education and director of the Burns and Allen Research Institute at Cedars-Sinai. "Our innovative effort now includes production of clinical-grade therapeutic cells at the new Cedars-Sinai Biomanufacturing Center."

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Disclosure: Pablo Avalos, MD, is an inventor on a patent application filed by Cedars-Sinai Medical Center related to the device (injection cannula) being used in this study.

Read more from Discoveries: Understanding Molecular Secrets of ALS
ITHACA, N.Y. - COVID-19 infection rates in New York state have plummeted in recent months, thanks in large part to the development and deployment of several safe and effective vaccines.

But reaching population-wide protection from the virus means getting the vaccine into the arms of as many people as possible - including farmworkers and other traditionally vulnerable, marginalized populations in New York's cities and rural areas.

"Catastrophic health disparities have been a long-standing reality for many communities in New York state and globally," said Jennifer Tiffany, executive director of Cornell University Cooperative Extension's New York City Programs.

"The COVID pandemic deepened these health disparities," she said, "and shed light on them in a way that can spark sustained action to build health equity - long lives and optimal well-being for all."

In an effort to address these disparities, Tiffany is lead investigator on a two-year, $200,000 grant that stems from an effort between the Extension Committee on Organization and Policy and the Extension Foundation, called the Extension Collaborative on Immunization Teaching & Engagement (EXCITE). This initiative, which serves all land-grant universities, is part of an interagency agreement between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture - National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

The grant, "NY Cornell Cooperative Extension Adaptive Intervention Partnership to Vaccinate Marginalized Populations Including Farmworkers," was selected for funding through EXCITE. The project aims to help promote vaccine confidence and uptake in vulnerable communities in eight New York counties, both upstate and downstate.

Neil Lewis Jr., assistant professor in the Department of Communication in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, joins Tiffany in leading the grant, the goal of which is to engage socially vulnerable, marginalized communities - including farmworkers - in effective vaccine intervention partnerships to enhance uptake of COVID-19 and other vaccinations.

"It is important to remember that this pandemic is not over," Lewis said. "Although we have made great progress, the benefits of that progress have not been shared by all. While the more privileged members of our society have been able to get vaccinated and return to their 'normal' lives, many of the people on the margins who are doing the essential work required to sustain this nation have not. This partnership is about changing that."

The project team includes the Cornell Farmworker Program, CCE programs in Suffolk, Delaware and Cayuga counties as well as NYC, and their extensive networks of community partners including Finger Lakes Community Health, the NYC Community Healthcare Network, and county health departments. Both Lewis and Tiffany work intensively with Weill Cornell Medicine, the Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research and the Cornell Center for Health Equity.

Priority populations, according to Tiffany and Lewis, include sub-groups experiencing high levels of health disparities, social vulnerability, physical isolation and reduced vaccine access in high-inequality rural, urban and suburban communities in New York state.

Populations are identified through their social vulnerability index (SVI) score, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) measure of a community's ability to prevent human suffering and financial loss in a disaster.

More than 30,000 people throughout NYS will be reached through this pilot project. They include people from all five counties in New York City; Cayuga County, which has a sizable migrant farmworker population; plus Delaware and Suffolk counties.

Cornell Cooperative Extension programs in each county will support this project.

"The communities and organizations engaged in this initiative reflect the deep diversity, strength and demand for health equity of New York state," Tiffany said. "Because this is part of a national initiative, what we learn and do here will inform work far beyond state borders."

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Berkeley Lab researchers are developing a family of cathode materials that have all of the advantages of conventional lithium batteries but without the supply constraints

In our future electrified world, the demand for battery storage is projected to be enormous, reaching to upwards of 2 to 10 terawatt-hours (TWh) of annual battery production by 2030, from less than 0.5 TWh today. However, concerns are growing as to whether key raw materials will be adequate to meet this future demand. The lithium-ion battery - the dominant technology for the foreseeable future - has a component made of cobalt and nickel, and those two metals face severe supply constraints on the global market.

Now, after several years of research led by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), scientists have made significant progress in developing battery cathodes using a new class of materials that provide batteries with the same if not higher energy density than conventional lithium-ion batteries but can be made of inexpensive and abundant metals. Known as DRX, which stands for disordered rocksalts with excess lithium, this novel family of materials was invented less than 10 years ago and allows cathodes to be made without nickel or cobalt.

"The classic lithium-ion battery has served us well, but as we consider future demands for energy storage, its reliance on certain critical minerals exposes us not only to supply-chain risks, but also environmental and social issues," said Ravi Prasher, Berkeley Lab's Associate Lab Director for Energy Technologies. "With DRX materials, this offers lithium batteries the potential to be the foundation for sustainable battery technologies for the future."

The cathode is one of the two electrodes in a battery and accounts for more than one-third of the cost of a battery. Currently the cathode in lithium-ion batteries uses a class of materials known as NMC, with nickel, manganese, and cobalt as the key ingredients.

"I've done cathode research for over 20 years, looking for new materials, and DRX is the best new material I've ever seen by far," said Berkeley Lab battery scientist Gerbrand Ceder, who is co-leading the research. "With the current NMC class, which is restricted to just nickel, cobalt, and an inactive component made of manganese, the classic lithium-ion battery is at the end of its performance curve unless you transfer to new cathode materials, and that's what the DRX program offers. DRX materials have enormous compositional flexibility - and this is very powerful because not only can you use all kinds of abundant metals in a DRX cathode, but you can also use any type of metal to fix any problem that might come up during the early stages of designing new batteries. That's why we're so excited."

Cobalt and nickel supply-chain risks

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has made it a priority to find ways to reduce or eliminate the use of cobalt in batteries. "The battery industry is facing an enormous resource crunch," said Ceder. "Even at 2 TWh, the lower range of global demand projections, that would consume almost all of today's nickel production, and with cobalt we're not even close. Cobalt production today is only about 150 kilotons, and 2 TWh of battery power would require 2,000 kilotons of nickel and cobalt in some combination."

What's more, over two-thirds of the world's nickel production is currently used to make stainless steel. And more than half of the world's production of cobalt comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo, with Russia, Australia, the Philippines, and Cuba rounding out the top five producers of cobalt.

In contrast, DRX cathodes can use just about any metal in place of nickel and cobalt. Scientists at Berkeley Lab have focused on using manganese and titanium, which are both more abundant and lower cost than nickel and cobalt.

"Manganese oxide and titanium oxide cost less than $1 per kilogram whereas cobalt costs about $45 per kilogram and nickel about $18," said Ceder. "With DRX you have the potential to make very inexpensive energy storage. At that point lithium-ion becomes unbeatable and can be used everywhere - for vehicles, the grid - and we can truly make energy storage abundant and inexpensive."

Ordered vs. disordered

Ceder and his team developed DRX materials in 2014. In batteries, the number and speed of lithium ions able to travel into the cathode translates into how much energy and power the battery has. In conventional cathodes, lithium ions travel through the cathode material along well-defined pathways and arrange themselves between the transition metal atoms (usually cobalt and nickel) in neat, orderly layers.

What Ceder's group discovered was that a cathode with a disordered atomic structure could hold more lithium - which means more energy - while allowing for a wider range of elements to serve as the transition metal. They also learned that within that chaos, lithium ions can easily hop around.

In 2018, the Vehicle Technologies Office in DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy provided funding for Berkeley Lab to take a "deep dive" into DRX materials. In collaboration with scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, and UC Santa Barbara, Berkeley Lab teams led by Ceder and Guoying Chen have made tremendous progress in optimizing DRX cathodes in lithium-ion batteries.

For example, the charge rate - or how fast the battery can charge - of these materials was initially very low, and its stability was also poor. The research team has found ways to address both of these issues through modeling and experimentation. Studies on using fluorination to improve stability have been published in Advanced Functional Materials and Advanced Energy Materials; research on how to enable a high charging rate was recently published in Nature Energy.

Since DRX can be made with many different elements, the researchers have also been working on which element would be best to use, hitting the sweet spot of being abundant, inexpensive, and providing good performance. "DRX has now been synthesized with almost the whole periodic table," Ceder said.

"This is science at its best - fundamental discoveries that will serve as the bedrock of systems in future homes, vehicles, and grids," said Noel Bakhtian, director of Berkeley Lab's Energy Storage Center. "What has made Berkeley Lab so successful in battery innovation for decades now is our combination of breadth and depth of expertise - from fundamental discovery to characterization, synthesis, and manufacturing, as well as energy markets and policy research. Collaboration is key - we partner with industry and beyond to solve real-world problems, which in turn helps galvanize the world-leading science we do at the Lab."

Fast progress

New battery materials have traditionally taken 15 to 20 years to commercialize; Ceder believes progress on DRX materials can be accelerated with a larger team. "We've made great progress in the last three years with the deep dive," Ceder said. "We've come to the conclusion that we're ready for a bigger team, so we can involve people with a more diverse set of skills to really refine this."

An expanded research team could move quickly to address the remaining issues, including improving the cycle life (or the number of times the battery can be recharged and discharged over its lifetime) and optimizing the electrolyte, the chemical medium that allows the flow of electrical charge between the cathode and anode. Since being developed in Ceder's lab, groups in Europe and Japan have also launched large DRX research programs.

"Advances in battery technologies and energy storage will require continued breakthroughs in the fundamental science of materials," said Jeff Neaton, Berkeley Lab's Associate Lab Director for Energy Sciences. "Berkeley Lab's expertise, unique facilities, and capabilities in advanced imaging, computation, and synthesis allow us to study materials at the scale of atoms and electrons. We are well poised to accelerate the development of promising materials like DRX for clean energy."

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Founded in 1931 on the belief that the biggest scientific challenges are best addressed by teams, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and its scientists have been recognized with 14 Nobel Prizes. Today, Berkeley Lab researchers develop sustainable energy and environmental solutions, create useful new materials, advance the frontiers of computing, and probe the mysteries of life, matter, and the universe. Scientists from around the world rely on the Lab's facilities for their own discovery science. Berkeley Lab is a multiprogram national laboratory, managed by the University of California for the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science.

DOE's Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States, and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, please visit energy.gov/science.
A joint research team led by Prof. LIU Zhongmin, Prof. WEI Yingxu, and Prof. XU Shutao from the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) revealed the mechanism underlying the formation of the first carbon-carbon (C-C) bond formation during the methanol-to-olefins (MTO) process.

This study was published in Chem on June 23.

Prof. ZHENG Anmin's group from Innovation Academy for Precision Measurement Science and Technology of CAS was also involved in the study.

The first C-C bond in the MTO process is formed at the initial stage of the reaction. There is no direct method to elucidate the bond formation /reaction mechanism due to the difficulty in capturing intermediate species.

"We investigated the direct C-C bond formation mechanism during the initial MTO reaction over HSSZ-13 zeolite with an 8-membered ring and a chabazite topological structure," said Prof. XU.

They detected the evolution of the organic species on the SSZ-13 catalyst surface during the methanol conversion. For the first time, they directly captured the surface ethoxy species (SES), the critical species containing the initial C-C bond under real MTO reaction conditions at the initial reaction stage.

Moreover, the researchers employed the ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) theoretical calculation simulation to predict and present the visualized and complete process of initial C-C bond formation starting from the C1 reactants and C1 intermediates.

Based on the experimental and theoretical evidence, they established the complete and feasible initial C-C bond formation routes, namely, surface methoxy species (SMS)/trimethoxyonium (TMO) mediated methanol/dimethyl ether (DME) activation with a synergistic effect from SMS and the negatively charged framework oxygen atoms to form SES.

"Our study not only sheds light on the controversial issue of the first C-C bond formation in the MTO process, but also enriches the fundamental theory of C1 catalytic chemistry," said Prof. WEI.

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This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, iChEM, the Youth Innovation Promotion Association of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Liaoning Revitalization Talents Program.
In the European Year of Rail 2021, Austria's key players in the rail sector will come together even more closely. Graz University of Technology (TU Graz), voestalpine, OBB, Siemens Mobility Austria and Virtual Vehicle will in future be working closely together on an even more efficient and competitive rail system of the future. To this end, the partners have founded the Research Cluster Railway Systems (RCRS) research initiative at TU Graz. The spotlight is on rail vehicle technology, rail infrastructure and rail operations in this project, with a focus on synergy potential and on digital transformation. Accredited testing, inspection and simulation facilities are on the agenda at RCRS, as is the interdisciplinary training of the next generation of engineers for tomorrow's rail technology.

New professorships, joint COMET project

Railway-related research and innovation has been a fixture at TU Graz for many decades. In order to further anchor this focus at TU Graz, two new professors have been appointed for Structural Durability and Railway Technology (at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Economic Sciences) and for Railway Infrastructure Design (at the Faculty of Civil Engineering). The professorships are held by Martin Leitner and Ferdinand Pospischil, and they also head the institutes of the same name. In addition, the RCRS partners want to promote joint research projects and apply to appropriate funding programmes. The first project is the FFG-funded COMET project Rail4Future, which started under the lead of OBB in spring 2021. The project involves working on a new virtual platform that can be used to simulate new scenarios and developments in the rail sector under operational and environmental conditions. In addition to the RCRS consortium, other partners from science and industry are on board, such as TU Wien, TU Munchen, Wiener Linien and Plasser & Theurer - the world market leader for track construction machines. Together on track

The COMET project Rail4Future

and the RCRS research initiative both count towards the ultimate goal of the five partners, which is to work closely together to develop innovative system solutions for an even more efficient and competitive rail system. In the future, other domestic companies, rail operators and scientific institutions are to join this endeavour in order to jointly create a beacon of Austrian rail competence that is visible throughout Europe. "We all want to make the rail system better. This will only work with intensive exchange and a collaboration of equals. This is a project which the five partners are firmly committed to and for which we want to bring our respective expertise along a common track, so to speak," says Harald Kainz, Rector of TU Graz, on behalf of all project partners.

Barbara Eibinger-Miedl, state minister for economic affairs and research affirms: "Rail plays an essential role in the mobility of the future. Styria has made a name for itself in this field in recent years thanks to innovative companies and outstanding research institutions. The new research initiative will consolidate our position as an internationally visible innovation and research country. We will also strengthen the mobility sector, which is a particular economic strength of Styria." Sustainable, safe, intelligent and convenient

Rail is among the most sustainable forms of passenger and freight transportation. Around 75 per cent of all EU-wide rail kilometres are electrified, and the trend is rising. Rail thus accounts for only 0.4% of greenhouse gas emissions from the transport sector, which together account for about a quarter of the EU's total emissions. Furthermore, rail is the only mode of transport that continually reduced its emissions and energy consumption between 1990 and 2017, while increasingly relying on renewable energy sources. (Source: https:/ / europa. eu/ year-of-rail/ why-rail_de )

Harald Kainz, Rector of TU Graz: "Rail is indisputably a particularly sustainable, intelligent, safe and also convenient means of transport that will make a major contribution to the goal of the European Green Deal - climate neutrality by 2050. It is a matter close to the heart of TU Graz to make the entire railway system even more competitive through appropriate research, innovation and cooperation work together with high-calibre and powerful partners from research, rail operation and industry and to train engineers for the future railway system. The two new professorships set further research accents at TU Graz and at the same time increase our Europe-wide visibility in railway-related research."

Mark Topal-Gokceli, CTO OBB: "In terms of climate protection, there is no way around rail. In the transport sector alone, Austria has to save an additional 8 million tons of CO2 by 2030. And OBB is clearly part of the solution here. That is why every step we take today for the mobility of tomorrow is enormously important. We need to rethink mobility so that networked systems push competitiveness; cooperation helps here. The Research Cluster Railway Systems research initiative represents the concentrated know-how of the railway industry. A clear distribution of roles for successful and efficient cooperation is of great importance here, in order to be able to contribute individual strengths and expertise accordingly. The role of the railway is in the active area - from current challenges and support for RTI development to testing and validation under real operating conditions."

Franz Kainersdorfer, member of the Management Board of voestalpine AG: "In order to meet the requirements for 24/7 availability while at the same time increasing the stress on the railway, precise knowledge of the reciprocal effects of vehicle and track is essential. With the help of digital twins of the entire real system, simulations and analyses can be accelerated and insights for the design of the entire system can be derived. This requires the cooperation of all partners. Not only do they share their knowledge in this collaboration, but also work together on the future of rail.

Arnulf Wolfram, CEO Siemens Mobility Austria: "Research and development have traditionally been very important to us. In Austria alone, we apply for around 30 patents for rail vehicles and rail infrastructure every year. We are already connected with our partners at the VIF competence centre, which we are now leading into the future with RCRS. In this way, we want to contribute to a major goal: an innovative and strong railway that is also essential globally in the fight against climate change."

Jost Bernasch, CEO Virtual Vehicle: "In its railway systems research area, Virtual Vehicle focuses on virtualization and digital operation, and has attracted international attention. Our research focuses on simulation, artificial intelligence and digital twins. With the help of digital twin networks, elementary decision-making bases for the design of chassis and vehicle components can already be created in the development phase. A key driver of this development is also our involvement in Shift2Rail - the first and only European initiative for focused research and development in the field of market-oriented rail solutions. In summary, the Virtual Vehicle, as Europe's largest research centre for virtual vehicle development, is thus also a central key enabler in the rail sector for sustainable, resilient and green technologies in mobility."

Further information on Research Cluster Railway Systems https:/ / www. tugraz. at/ go/ rcrs

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Compares mutations to mortality in order to identify variants that should be monitored and contained

Boston, MA - Using genome-wide association studies (GWAS) methodology to analyze whole-genome sequencing data of SARS-CoV-2 mutations and COVID-19 mortality data can identify highly pathogenic variants of the virus that should be flagged for containment, according to Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and MIT researchers.

Using this biostatistical methodology, the researchers pinpointed a mutation in the variant known as P.1, or Gamma, as being linked to increased mortality and, potentially, greater transmissibility, higher infection rates, and increased pathogenicity before the P.1 variant had been identified.

The team's methodology is described online on June 23, 2021 in the journal Genetic Epidemiology.

"Based on our experience, GWAS methodology might provide suitable tools that could be used to analyze potential links between mutations at specific locations in viral genomes and disease outcome," said Christoph Lange, professor of biostatistics at Harvard Chan School and senior author of the paper. "This could enable better real-time detection of novel, deleterious variants/new viral strains in pandemics."

The first patients in Brazil with the P.1 variant were documented in January 2021 and within a few weeks the variant caused a spike in cases in Manaus, Brazil. The city had already been hard hit by the pandemic in May 2020, and researchers thought that the city's residents had achieved population immunity because so many people in the area had developed antibodies for the virus during that initial wave. Instead, P.1, which has several mutations in the spike protein the virus uses to attach to and invade a host cell, caused a second wave of infections and seemed to have higher transmissibility and be more likely to cause death than the earlier variants seen in the area.

In September 2020, several months before the first P.1 patient was documented, the Harvard Chan School and MIT team repurposed methodology used in GWAS, which are widely used to link certain genetic variations with specific diseases, to tease apart the relative pathogenicity of various SARS-CoV-2 mutations. The team looked for links between each mutation of the SARS-CoV-2 virus's single-stranded RNA and mortality in 7,548 COVID-19 patients. Data for the study came from the global initiative on sharing avian influenza data (GISAID) database, which contains the genetic sequence and related clinical and epidemiological data associated with SARS-CoV-2 and influenza viruses.

The researchers found one mutation--at locus 25,088bp in the virus's genome--that alters the spike protein and was linked to a significant increase in mortality in COVID-19 patients. The team flagged the variant with this mutation, which was later identified as part of P.1.

The team's biostatistical methodology should have broader applications beyond the P.1 variant and SARS-CoV-2, according to the researchers.

"We expect that this approach would work in similar scenarios involving other diseases, provided the quality of the data collected in public databases is sufficiently high," said Georg Hahn, research associate and instructor of biostatistics at Harvard Chan School and co-first author of the paper.

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Others from Harvard Chan School who contributed to the study included Sanghun Lee, Sharon Lutz, Sebastien Haneuse, and Nan Laird.

This study was funded by the National Institutes of Health (1R01AI154470-01, 2U01HG008685, R01HG008976, U01HL089856, U01HL089897, P01HL120839, P01HL132825, 2U01HG008685), and the National Science Foundation (NSF PHY 2033046 and NSF GRFP 1745302), and NIH Center grant P30-ES002109.

"Genome-wide association analysis of COVID-19 mortality risk in SARS-CoV-2 genomes identifies mutation in the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein that colocalizes with P.1 of the Brazilian strain," Georg Hahn, Chloe M. Wu, Sanghun Lee, Julian Hecker, Sharon M. Lutz, Surender Khurana, Lindsey R. Baden, Sebastien Haneuse, Dandi Qiao, Dawn L. DeMeo, Rudolph E. Tanzi, Manish C. Choudhary, Behzad Etemad, Abbas Mohammadi, Elmira Esmaeilzadeh, Michael H. Cho, Jonathan Z. Li, Adrienne G. Randolph, Nan M. Laird, Scott T. Weiss, Edwin K. Silverman, Katharina Ribbeck, and Christoph Lange, Genetic Epidemiology, online June 23, 2021.

Visit the Harvard Chan School website for the latest news, press releases, and multimedia offerings.

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health brings together dedicated experts from many disciplines to educate new generations of global health leaders and produce powerful ideas that improve the lives and health of people everywhere. As a community of leading scientists, educators, and students, we work together to take innovative ideas from the laboratory to people's lives--not only making scientific breakthroughs, but also working to change individual behaviors, public policies, and health care practices. Each year, more than 400 faculty members at Harvard Chan School teach 1,000-plus full-time students from around the world and train thousands more through online and executive education courses. Founded in 1913 as the Harvard-MIT School of Health Officers, the School is recognized as America's oldest professional training program in public health.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

STUDY SUGGESTS THAT SMOOTHER SILICONE BREAST IMPLANTS REDUCE SEVERITY OF IMMUNE SYSTEM REACTIONS

According to researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Rice University in Houston, silicone breast implants with a smoother surface design have less risk of producing inflammation and other immune system reactions than those with more roughly textured coatings. Results of the experiments using mice, rabbits and samples of human breast tissue advance knowledge of how the body responds to such implants, providing new information to physicians and affirming the benefits of certain smoother surfaces, the researchers say.

A summary of the experiments, funded by an implant manufacturer, are published June 21 in Nature Biomedical Engineering.

Breast implants, surgically inserted following mastectomies or to augment breast size, can be filled with either saline or silicone, but both types have a silicone outer shell. Previous studies showed that most of the 400,000 women each year in the U.S. who receive silicone implants will need to have them replaced within 10 years because of pain and shape shifting of the implant caused by immune system cells that contribute to scarring and fibrous tissue.

"Our aim is to provide patients with as much information as possible so they can make informed decisions to guide their own personal health," says Joshua Doloff, Ph.D., assistant professor of biomedical engineering at The Johns Hopkins University and a first author of the research, which began during his postdoctoral training at MIT.

Doloff, whose research overall focuses on the interface between implantable devices and the human body, says scientists have long known that the immune system biologically walls off foreign objects in the body by creating inflammation and scarring that can be disfiguring and painful.

For the past decade, scientists have been examining how to design implant surfaces in ways that reduce such effects.

Previous studies found that implants with absolutely smooth coatings produce strong immune rejection responses over time, and according to Doloff, they may also more easily "flip" inside the body and contribute to a higher rate of replacement. So, manufacturers also marketed implants with textured surfaces to try to address immune system rejection and to "stick" like Velcro to human tissue, enabling better and more stable positioning in the body. More than 90% of breast implants used in the U.S. are characterized as smooth, according to the researchers, whereas most implants used outside of the U.S. .

An implant with the highest degree of textured surface was taken off the U.S. market in 2019 because of its links to higher rates of a type of cancer called breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma among patients with these "macrotextured" implants.

In the current study, the researchers analyzed outcomes of placing in mice tiny versions of implants with five different surface designs. The implants included one with a completely smooth surface, one slightly contoured at the level of an individual human cell, as well as others with different surfaces. Of note, they also implanted one with the 90-micron macrotextured surface like the implants taken off the market.

Establishment Labs helped manufacture the mini-implants, using similar manufacturing methods used in the market. Two of the full scale commercial implants, including one with a surface design that includes a roughness of approximately 4 microns on average as well as other characteristics including skewness and the number, distribution and size of contact points, are also manufactured by Establishment Labs, which funded the research.

Among human-scale size implants used in rabbits, the implant with design features that include a 4 micron surface roughness resulted in the least fibrous tissue surrounding it -- about 10 times less -- at three weeks and six months post-implantation when compared with the 90 micron implant.

Tissue surrounding implants in mice and rabbits with the specific design that includes a 4 micron roughness had the highest activity of the gene FOXP3, suggesting the production of more immune cells called Tregs, which act as traffic police to reduce the amount of inflammation and fibrous tissue created by immune system cells.

The research team also sequenced genetic expression levels from specific cell types in the tissue surrounding implants in mice to find that genes associated with pro-inflammatory responses, including STAT1 and CXCL10, increase about fivefold to tenfold with more highly textured implants.

Among tissue collected from implants removed from 15 healthy patients at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston and the Costa Rican Institute for Research and Teaching on Nutrition and Health Foundation, patients with implants with design features that include a 4 micron surface roughness had the most significantly reduced fibrous tissue formation surrounding the implants compared to the more heavily textured devices or to completely smooth ones.

Doloff says other areas of active research for implantable devices include development of biosensors that can detect rupture, leakage or inflammation of surrounding tissue. He says the surface design that includes roughness of 4 microns may be worth studying in biomaterials other than breast implants. He also plans to study the amount of immune response, inflammation and fibrous tissue among implants in women following cancer diagnosis and treatment.

"Engineers should know how something works, not just that it works, so we can improve on existing technologies, says Doloff.

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Doloff has served as a past consultant to Establishment Labs, which supported this work.

In addition to Doloff, researchers who conducted the study include Omid Veiseh, Amanda Nash and Samira Aghlara-Fotovat at Rice University; Roberto De Mezerville, Tracy Ann Perry, John Hancock, Natalia Araujo Romero, Yessica Elizondo Hidalgo and Isaac Mora Leiva from Establishment Labs; Marcos Sforza from Dolan Park Hospital, Birmingham, England; Courtney Chambers and H. Courtney Hodges from Baylor College of Medicine, Houston; Stuart Bauer, Jessica Stelzel and Sarah Neshat from Johns Hopkins; Alexandre Mendonca Munhoz from the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil; Ardeshir Bayat from the University of Manchester, England; Brian Kinney from the University of Southern California; Roberto Miranda and Mark Clemens from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center; and Jennifer Haupt, Morgan Jamiel and Robert Langer from MIT.
Research Associate Artyom Gusarov studied a vast array of erosion data to make a general takeaway that soil erosion and river sediment load in the aforementioned region has significantly decreased throughout the post-Soviet period.

"The decrease has been especially profound in the forest steppe, a part of which covers the Republic of Tatarstan, because of the combined influence of climate change and land cultivation," explains Gusarov. "To the north of the forest steppe, in the southern part of the boreal zone, the anthropogenic factor was the primary influence on the changes in soil erosion, at least in the east of the East European Plain. Here, the reduction of cultivated land was the biggest in the post-Soviet time. In the steppes, the primary role can be attributed to climate change, especially the warming of the near-soil air, which led to decreased frosting of soils during winters, and, therefore, decreased erosion-inducing sediment from tillage."

The research shows that there is a complex intertwining between seemingly negative socio-economic developments and environmental conditions.

"The recession of agriculture in contemporary Russia, including decreases in tillage areas, numbers of agricultural machines, livestock population, etc., led to decreased soil and ravine erosion in the region, decreased river sediment load and concomitant pollution," says Gusarov.

The results are very important for the comprehensive planning of soil preservation, hydrogeological construction, and artificial water bodies. Artyom Gusarov aims to continue this research, now moving to the northern part of the East European Plain and the rivers running into the Arctic Ocean.

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Previous research was falsely reassuring; captured only 2% of cirrhosis patients

Findings underscore lack of access to health care for Black patients

Cirrhosis is leading cause of death and affects more than 600,000 people in U.S.

CHICAGO --- Black patients with cirrhosis - late-stage liver disease - are about 25% more likely to die compared to non-Hispanic white patients and four times less likely to receive a liver transplant, reports a new Northwestern Medicine study.

Estimates of racial disparity in cirrhosis have been limited by a lack of large-scale longitudinal data, which track patients from diagnosis to death and/or transplant.

The paper is one of the first to link all seven large liver centers in Chicago with the death registry and transplant registry to examine racial disparities in cirrhosis on a population level. Previous surveillance of outcomes by race has been through the transplant registry alone, which only captures about 2% of those with cirrhosis, and therefore does not lend itself to understand the true disparity affecting patients with cirrhosis.

"The findings underscore broader societal issues of access to health care for our Black patients," said senior study author Dr. Daniela Ladner, professor of surgery at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and a Northwestern Medicine transplant surgeon. "We need to support our Black community to find the way to optimal care, including offering transplants at the same rate as all other patients."

The study did not examine the cause of the disparity, but other research has shown the reasons are a combination of structural (lack of resources such as medical specialists, pharmacies, transportation, safe housing) and institutional (policies and practices that disadvantage or prioritize certain groups over others).

The paper was published recently in Hepatology.

Cirrhosis is a common disease thought to affect more than 600,000 people in the U.S. and is a leading cause of death in adults. It is caused by chronic viral infections of the liver (hepatitis B and hepatitis c), fatty liver disease and alcohol use disorder.

Previous research has addressed the small group of patients who are listed for liver transplant (<2% of patients with cirrhosis) and found there were no disparities in outcomes by race. The new study results encompass a broader group, specifically patients in Chicago with cirrhosis regardless of transplant eligibility. The study found persistent issues with patient outcomes by race. This finding persisted despite controlling for severity of liver disease and complications, co-morbidities (such as heart disease, kidney disease, cancers) and socioeconomic factors.

"The findings from this study should prompt quality initiatives at each of the liver centers in this study to examine what barriers to care are contributing the most to the disparities we found," said co-lead author Dr. Nikhilesh Mazumder, a Northwestern Medicine transplant hepatology fellow. "Further research is needed to verify these results on a national level, so we can address this disparity nationwide."

One remedy, the authors said, is targeted interventions to facilitate health care access for Black patients such as the African American Transplant Access Program at Northwestern Medicine. This program is directed by transplant surgeon and co-lead author Dr. Dinee Simpson, assistant professor of surgery at Feinberg and a Northwestern Medicine transplant surgeon.

"We must recognize that health equity is not attainable for everyone if we treat them the same, because different groups face different barriers," Simpson said. "We must research the barriers our Black patients face and be willing to address them with creative solutions. This must happen at the institutional level and the structural level for better health to be realized in this community."

Among patients listed for liver transplants, there were no differences among patient outcomes, the study found.

It is also important to continue to study Black disparities to find the best solutions to resolve them, the authors said. Population-based cohorts such as the Chicago Area Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Network, spearheaded by co-author Dr. Abel Kho, that combine electronic health records from 10 health care systems, allow for these population-based studies.

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Other Northwestern authors are Dr. Kofi Atiemo, Kathryn Jackson, Lihui Zhao, Dr. Amna Daud, Lauren Gabra, Dr. Juan C. Caicedo and Dr. Joshua Levitsky.

The paper is titled "Black Patients with Cirrhosis have Higher Mortality and Lower Transplant Rates: Results from a Metropolitan Cohort Study."

The study was supported by grant T32DK077662 from the National Institute of Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the National Institutes of Health.
When a pregnant person declines a recommended treatment such as prenatal testing or an epidural, tension and strife may ensue between the patient and provider, according to a new analysis by researchers at NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing and the University of British Columbia.

"People should feel safe, respected, and engaged in their maternity care, but our findings suggest that when providers do not listen to patients, it can foster mistrust and avoidance," said P. Mimi Niles, PhD, MPH, CNM, assistant professor at NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing and the lead author of the study, which is published in the journal PLOS ONE. "These situations deprioritize a person's autonomy and preferences."

In recent years, the World Health Organization and the Lancet have published frameworks about quality of care during pregnancy, birth, and the period after birth. Notably, they emphasize not just physical outcomes, but also a person's psychosocial experiences. These experiences are greatly influenced by interactions with healthcare providers--including physicians, midwives, and nurses--and factors such as respect, trust, agency, and autonomy have emerged as critical aspects of maternity care.

"Providing care is an act of respect and regard, and how we provide care is just as important as what care we provide," said Niles, a practicing midwife.

But many times, healthcare interactions fall short--or worse--and patients report dismissive, disrespectful behavior by providers. Participants in the study described not having choice in their treatment and experiencing a lack of respect when asserting their autonomy, which can hurt their self-efficacy, mental health, and willingness to engage with healthcare in the future.

These interactions are particularly fraught when a pregnant person declines or refuses care that is offered or recommended by healthcare providers. In maternity care, this may include foregoing certain prenatal testing (e.g. gestational diabetes or genetic testing), medications (e.g. epidural or other pain relief), or childbirth interventions (e.g. inducing labor), as University of British Columbia researchers and Niles demonstrated in a recent study in Reproductive Health.

To better understand the experience of childbearing women, Niles and her colleagues conducted a qualitative content analysis of 1,540 written accounts from more than 1,000 women in the Canadian province British Columbia. The accounts were part of the Changing Childbirth in British Columbia study, conducted in 2014 using an online survey with open-ended questions, including those about the experience of declining care.

Four themes emerged:

Contentious interactions: In interactions fraught with tension, participants described "fighting" for the kind of care they wanted and the right to refuse a procedure or intervention.

Knowledge as control and power: Knowledge was viewed as a source of power both for providers, considered keepers of medical knowledge, and for patients, who found strength in knowing about the procedures or interventions they were declining.

Morbid threats: Providers made extreme threats--for instance, "Do you want your baby to die?"--when pregnant people declined interventions. These were particularly powerful during labor and were often experienced as coercion or manipulation to accept the procedures being offered.

Compliance as valued: Many recounted the sense that obedience to clinical recommendations--being a "good client"--was valued in their healthcare experience, but it could also suppress their questions or desire to decline care.

"Our findings demonstrate the complex experiences that patients have when declining care in a traditional, gendered healthcare system," said Niles. "As providers, learning how to support our patients' autonomy and decision-making process means that we must understand how to interact and continue to provide care when what we suggest is not in alignment with what the patient wants."

The researchers write that supporting patient autonomy requires bringing their values into care planning--not as an event, but as an ongoing process reflected in the idea of person-centered care.

While the study focused on childbearing people in British Columbia, the researchers note that their findings are part of a global phenomenon and likely translate to other populations.

"In the U.S., one in six people report being mistreated during childbirth, which includes feeling threatened or coerced in their care. Among women of color, this increases to one in three," added Niles, citing the Giving Voice to Mothers study. "Healthcare exists in relationships, not just as a service. We're not auto mechanics. The same things we value in our relationships--trust, autonomy, respect--are what should be valued and supported by providers and the healthcare system."

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In addition to Niles, study authors include Kathrin Stoll, Jessie J. Wang, Stephanie Black, and Saraswathi Vedam of the University of British Columbia. The analysis was supported by the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research.

About NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing (@NYUNursing)

NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing is a global leader in nursing and health. Founded in 1932, the College offers B.S., M.S., DNP and Ph.D. degree programs providing the educational foundation to prepare the next generation of nursing leaders and researchers. NYU Meyers has several programs that are highly ranked by U.S. News & World Report and is among the top 10 nursing schools receiving NIH funding, thanks to its research mission and commitment to innovative approaches to health care worldwide.
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Americans consistently believe that poor African Americans are more likely to move up the economic ladder than they actually are, a new study shows.

People also overestimate how likely poor white people are to get ahead economically, but to a much lesser extent than they do for Black people.

"It's no surprise that most people in our society believe in the American Dream of working hard and succeeding economically," said Jesse Walker, co-author of the study and assistant professor of marketing at The Ohio State University's Fisher College of Business.

"But many people don't know how much harder it is for African Americans to achieve that dream than it is for white people."

The good news in the study was that making people aware of economic racial disparities, or merely having them reflect on the unique challenges that Black Americans face in the United States, helped people calibrate their beliefs about economic mobility.

Walker conducted the study with Shai Davidai, assistant professor of management at Columbia Business School at Columbia University. Their findings were published this week in the journal Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin.

The researchers conducted six studies with a total of 1,761 U.S. adults, who participated online.

In one study, they asked participants to estimate the chances that a randomly selected child born to a family in the lowest income quintile (0 to 20%) would rise to one of the four higher income quintiles. They made two predictions, one for a white child and one for a Black child.

Results showed that participants overestimated upward mobility for the white child by about 5%, but overestimated mobility for the Black child by about 16%. white Americans' actual likelihood of moving up from the bottom quintile is 69%, compared to 52% for Black Americans.

The researchers also measured how likely the participants thought the randomly selected poor child would be able to rise to the top of the economic heap - one of the two highest income quintiles (those in the top 40% in terms of income). Here participants again overestimated the odds of the Black child reaching those heights, but actually underestimated the chances of the white child doing so.

It wasn't just white Americans who held these misperceptions. A separate study found that Black participants were similarly inaccurate in their estimation of a Black child's probability of moving out of poverty.

While the results cannot say why this happened, Davidai said it may be that Black Americans - particularly those in the lower economic groups themselves - want to believe in their chance at economic success.

"No one wants to believe there is no American Dream out there for them," Davidai said.

Results from other studies in the series suggested that people can more accurately assess the chances of poor Black people moving up if they are reminded of economic racial disparities or even just think about the problems Black people face in the United States.

In one study, participants were shown one of two graphs before they estimated the probability of poor white or Black Americans moving up economically. One showed the distribution of wealth by income quintiles, revealing that the richest 20% of Americans own 81% of private wealth.

The remaining participants were shown a graph of the distribution of wealth in the United States by ethnicity, revealing that white people own 89% of private wealth, compared to Black people, who own 1.3%.

In this study, those who were shown the graph highlighting general economic inequality overestimated a poor Black person's chances of moving up the economic ladder by about 20%. But those who were shown the graph revealing racial economic inequality were quite accurate in their beliefs about economic mobility.

"Making people think about the racial economic disparities in this country made them much better able to estimate the real chances of Black Americans getting ahead economically," Davidai said.

Another study showed that considering the general social challenges that Black Americans face in the United States - without any reference to economics - made people more accurate in their mobility estimates.

But it wasn't just information about the current situation of African Americans that influenced how participants viewed the possibility that a Black child could get ahead economically.

In one study, participants read one of two short articles: one discussing the amount of progress Black people have made in the United States in the past century, or one about how much progress still needs to be made toward racial equality. Both focused on social rather than economic progress.

People who read the positive story about racial progress believed that a Black child born to a family in the poorest 20% of Americans was more than twice as likely to move up the economic ladder than those who read about the lack of progress.

Still, people who read either article overestimated the chances of the Black child from a poor family achieving more economic success. Reading either article didn't change what people thought about the white child's chance of moving up.

"Because people think Black people have made progress toward social equality, they assume that there must have been positive changes in economic mobility, too," Davidai said.

In this study, participants who were Black showed the same tendencies to overestimate the Black child's chances of success as did white participants, no matter which article they read - but they were much more accurate than the white people.

Overall, the results of the six studies have important implications, Walker said.

"If you think someone is more likely to move up the economic ladder than they actually are, it is a lot easier to blame them for not being successful," he said.

"These misperceptions may make people less likely to support policies that may actually help African Americans move up and address the large racial wealth gap that exists in America."

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Contact: Jesse Walker, Walker.2320@osu.edu Shai Davidai, sd3311@columbia.edu

Written by Jeff Grabmeier, 614-292-8457; Grabmeier.1@osu.edu
The ancestry of early Anglo-Saxons, a subject of some debate, included immigrants from continental Europe as well as people indigenous to Great Britain, according to a study published June 23, 2021 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Kimberly Plomp of Simon Fraser University, British Columbia and colleagues.

Between the 5th and 7th centuries CE, Germanic-speaking people from continental Europe settled across the island of Great Britain, leading to the formation of the Anglo-Saxon ethnic group, and eventually to the development of the English language and the Kingdom of England. Historical texts describe this event as an invasion, where continental immigrants replaced indigenous people, but some archaeological evidence contradicts this story, indicating that many early Anglo-Saxons in Great Britain were of local origin.

In this study, the authors sought to determine the ancestry of Anglo-Saxons by comparing their skull anatomy to that of indigenous and continental individuals. They used 3D shape analysis to compare 236 individuals from Early and Middle Anglo-Saxon cemeteries (410-899 CE), pre-Medieval sites in England (800 BCE-410 CE), and Iron Age sites in Denmark (800 BCE-399CE). The results indicate that, among Early Anglo-Saxon skeletons, 25-33% were of local ancestry, while among Middle Anglo-Saxon skeletons, 50-70% were local.

Thus, this study finds that Anglo-Saxons comprised individuals of both local and continental ancestry, and that the ratio between the two changed over time, possibly due to variations in immigration patterns. These results conflict with some previous data from historical texts, as well as isotopic and genetic analyses. The authors propose that future studies, sampling a wider selection of skulls and examining more regions of the skull, might provide more information to resolve these questions of Anglo-Saxon ancestry.

"Palaeoanthropologists have found that when the base of the human skull is analysed in 3D, it can be used to track relationships among human populations in a similar way to ancient DNA," explains Dr Plomp. "Based on this, we collected 3D data from suitably dated skeletal collections from Britain and Denmark, and then analysed the data to estimate the ancestry of the Anglo-Saxon individuals in the sample."

Professor Collard adds, "these findings tell us that being Anglo-Saxon was a matter of language and culture, not genetics".

According to Professor Dobney, the team's results indicate that "the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of early Medieval Britain were strikingly similar to contemporary Britain--full of people of different ancestries sharing a common language and culture."

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Press-only preview: https:/ / plos. io/ 3q18HvE

Contact: Kimberly Plomp, kplomp@sfu.ca, (236)-991-3638; Mark Collard, mcollard@sfu.ca, (778)-782-8166; Keith Dobney, keith.dobney@sydney.edu.au, +61 2 9351 5658

Image Caption: Photogrammetry with skull

Image Credit: Kimberly Plomp

Citation: Plomp KA, Dobney K, Collard M (2021) A 3D basicranial shape-based assessment of local and continental northwest European ancestry among 5th to 9th century CE Anglo-Saxons. PLoS ONE 16(6): e0252477. https:/ / doi. org/ 10. 1371/ journal. pone. 0252477

Funding: The study was supported by the European Union's Marie Sk?odowska-Curie Actions program (Horizon 2020 - 748200), the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (895-2011-1009), the Canada Research Chairs Program (228117 and 231256), the Canada Foundation for Innovation (203808), the British Columbia Knowledge Development Fund (862-804231), and Simon Fraser University (14518).

Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
A new study by Penn State researchers, who looked at emergency room admissions across the U.S. over a recent five-year period in a novel way, suggests that the agriculture industry is even more dangerous than previously believed.

The research revealed that from Jan. 1, 2015, to Dec. 31, 2019, more than 60,000 people were treated in emergency departments for nonfatal, agricultural-related injuries. Significantly, nearly a third of those injured were youths, according to study author Judd Michael, Nationwide Insurance Professor of Agricultural Safety and Health and professor of agricultural and biological engineering, College of Agricultural Sciences.

"This study revealed the true magnitude of the agricultural-related injury problem," he said. "We were slightly surprised at the sheer number of farm-related injuries and concerned by the high number of youths who were injured."

Before this research, knowledge of nonfatal agricultural injuries was somewhat limited by the available sources of information, Michael noted. Existing data are based mostly on regional or national periodic surveys, he added. The Bureau of Labor Statistics captures only nonfatal occupational injuries through its Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, often called the SOII.

That survey collects data on work-related nonfatal injuries and illnesses among employees in all industries in the U.S. But its data exclude self-employed farmers and family members as well as workers on farms with fewer than 11 employees.

"It has been estimated that the SOII was undercounting occupational injuries and illnesses in agriculture by about 78%," Michael said.

To reach their conclusion, researchers conducted a cross-sectional study using data from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's National Electronic Injury Surveillance System -- or NEISS -- for patients treated in emergency departments over the five-year period. By querying all cases in the NEISS database using the location code "farm," and with a narrative search using relevant key words, they created a unique view of one of the country's most dangerous occupations.

Over the period, an estimated 62,079 people were treated in an emergency department for agricultural-related injuries. The mean age estimate in this population was 39 years old, with ages ranging from 1 to 95. Almost two-thirds of patients were male, and almost 80% were white. Approximately 30% and 22% of those injured were youth and elderly patients, respectively. These age groups are usually not present in the typical workforce but are involved in agriculture.

According to findings recently published in the Journal of Agromedicine, most injuries occurred from April through September. The most common injury was fracture, followed by open wound or amputation. The primary source of injury was in the "vehicles" category, with tractors being the dominant vehicle type.

Historically, researchers have known that youth are at greater risk than adults for injury around a farm or ag environment, but it is not necessarily because they are working, Michael noted. Rather, in family farm environments where the kids are present, they are exposed to dangers.

"Small farms are family-oriented businesses, and often they have all their family members helping out," he said. "And the kids who are helping out or visiting the farm are exposed to hazards that they may not understand or know how to react to. They're not mature enough to foresee hazardous situations. And that leads to injuries or worse, in some cases, fatalities."

Getting a better handle on the number of agriculture-related injuries and how they occur is important, Michael pointed out, because that knowledge may lead to a reduction in accidents.

"Agriculture and forestry are among the most hazardous industries in the U.S., and part of our overall goal here at Penn State in the ag safety and health program, and certainly within my role as the Nationwide Insurance Professor, is to conduct research that will help us understand the causes of injuries and fatalities," he said. "Because we know that if we understand why they happen, it's much easier to prevent them."

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Serap Gorucu, assistant professor of risk analysis, safety, and health of agricultural systems at the University of Florida; and Kelly Chege, doctoral degree student in the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering at Penn State, contributed to this research.

This work was supported in part by the Nationwide Insurance Endowment for Agricultural Safety & Health and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
HOUSTON - (June 23, 2021) - Bone cancer is hard to treat and prone to metastasis. Research teams at Rice University and Baylor College of Medicine have a new strategy to attack it.

Chemist Han Xiao at Rice and biologist Xiang Zhang at Baylor and their labs have developed an antibody conjugate called BonTarg that delivers drugs to bone tumors and inhibits metastasis.

Their open-access study, which appears in Science Advances, shows how Xiao's pClick technology can be used to link bone-targeting antibodies and therapeutic molecules.

In experiments, they used pClick to couple a molecule used to treat osteoporosis, alendronate, with the HER2-targeting antibody trastuzumab used to treat breast cancer and found it significantly enhanced the concentration of the antibody at tumor sites.

They reported the combination also inhibited secondary metastasis from infected organs seeded by bone tumors.

"Bone cancer is really challenging to treat, and clinical trials of different treatments have been disappointing for people with bone metastasis," said Xiao, who joined Rice in 2017 with funding from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT). "We feel our strategy is a real game changer."

"Getting effective concentrations of drugs to bone tumors has been challenging because bones are hard, their networks of blood vessels is limited and drugs have tended to attach to adjacent healthy tissues," Zhang said.

The new strategy employs bisphosphonates, a class of drugs typically used to treat osteoporosis. Bisphosphonates have a high binding affinity for hydroxyapatite, the main component of hard bone, and help overcome physical and biological barriers in the bone microenvironment.

They're also amenable to binding with drugs through pClick, which uses a cross-linker to snap to specific sites on antibodies without having to re-engineer them with harmful chemicals, enzymes or ultraviolet light.

The result is a molecule that seeks out bone tumors and stays put, giving the drug time to kill tumor cells. It helps that bisphosphonate molecules prefer acidic sites like bone tumors, keeping the drug concentration higher there than in surrounding healthy tissue.

The researchers chose breast cancer drugs because while many recover from the disease, 20 to 40% of breast cancer survivors eventually suffer metastases to distant organs, with metastasis to bone occurring in about 70% of these cases, significantly increasing mortality, they said.

While chemotherapy, hormone and radiation therapy used to treat women with bone metastatic breast cancers can shrink or slow bone metastasis, they usually do not eliminate the metastases, Xiao said.

"Bone is kind of a fertile soil for cancer cell," Xiao said. "If a cancer cell reaches it, then it has a really good chance to grow and to further migrate, for example to the brain, the heart, the liver or to other tissues. That's a really bad situation for a patient."

Xiao hopes to get the compound into a clinical trial, and sees potential for custom conjugates that treat other tumors prone to metastasis, including prostate cancer.

Postdoctoral researchers Zeru Tian of Rice and Ling Wu of Baylor are co-lead authors of the paper. Co-authors are graduate students Chenfei Yu, Yuda Chen, Axel Loredo and Kuan-Lin Wu and postdoctoral researcher Lushun Wang of Rice; and postdoctoral fellows Zhan Xu, Igor Bado and Weijie Zhang and instructor Hai Wang of Baylor.

Xiao is the Norman Hackerman-Welch Young Investigator, the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) Scholar in Cancer Research and an assistant professor of chemistry, bioengineering and biosciences. Zhang is the William T. Butler, M.D., Endowed Chair for Distinguished Faculty, McNair Scholar, associate director of the Lester and Sue Smith Breast Center, professor of molecular and cellular biology and member of the Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center.

The research was supported by CPRIT, the National Institutes of Health, the Robert A. Welch Foundation, the U.S. Department of Defense, the John S. Dunn Foundation, the Hamill Foundation, the Breast Cancer Research Foundation and the McNair Medical Institute.

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Read the abstract at https:/ / advances. sciencemag. org/ lookup/ doi/ 10. 1126/ sciadv. abf2051 .

This news release can be found online at https:/ / news-network. rice. edu/ news/ 2021/ 06/ 23/ drug-doubles-down-on-bone-cancer-metastasis/

Follow Rice News and Media Relations via Twitter @RiceUNews.

Related materials:

Antibodies get easy upgrade with pClick: http://news. rice. edu/ 2018/ 11/ 05/ antibodies-get-easy-upgrade-with-pclick-2/

Rice lab turns fluorescent tags into cancer killers: http://news. rice. edu/ 2020/ 06/ 11/ rice-lab-turns-fluorescent-tags-into-cancer-killers-2/

Xiao Lab: https:/ / xiao. rice. edu/ People/ hanxiao/ hanxiao. html

Xiang Zhang Lab: https:/ / www. bcm. edu/ research/ labs-and-centers/ faculty-labs/ xiang-zhang-lab

Images for download:

https:/ / news-network. rice. edu/ news/ files/ 2021/ 05/ 0517_BONE-1-WEB. jpg

Scientists at Rice University and Baylor College of Medicine are using pClick conjugation to create therapeutic antibodies that target bone cancers. The conjugate incorporates bisphosphonate molecules that bind to the bone hydroxyapatite matrix. (Credit: Baylor College of Medicine/Rice University)

https:/ / news-network. rice. edu/ news/ files/ 2021/ 05/ 0517_BONE-2-WEB. jpg

MicroCT scans of rodents show those treated with the conjugate of trastuzumab and alendronate (far right), created at Rice University and Baylor College of Medicine, fared far better than those treated with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) or alendronate (ALN) or trastuzumab (Tras) alone 82 days after tumor implantation. (Credit: Baylor College of Medicine/Rice University)

https:/ / news-network. rice. edu/ news/ files/ 2021/ 05/ 0517_BONE-34-WEB. jpg

Xiang Zhang, left, at Baylor College of Medicine, and Han Xiao at Rice University have developed an antibody conjugate called BonTarg that delivers drugs to bone tumors and inhibits metastasis. (Credit: Rice University/Baylor College of Medicine)

Located on a 300-acre forested campus in Houston, Rice University is consistently ranked among the nation's top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has highly respected schools of Architecture, Business, Continuing Studies, Engineering, Humanities, Music, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences and is home to the Baker Institute for Public Policy. With 3,978 undergraduates and 3,192 graduate students, Rice's undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio is just under 6-to-1. Its residential college system builds close-knit communities and lifelong friendships, just one reason why Rice is ranked No. 1 for lots of race/class interaction and No. 1 for quality of life by the Princeton Review. Rice is also rated as a best value among private universities by Kiplinger's Personal Finance.
In a first-of-its-kind study in the world conducted at Tel Aviv University, researchers found that water generated from the air in the heart of an urban area, the city of Tel Aviv, complied with all of the strict drinking water standards set both by the State of Israel and by the World Health Organization. The researchers examined the quality of the water produced from the water vapor in the urban atmosphere, which is characterized by industry and massive construction, and found that it was suitable for drinking. The test was performed using a dedicated facility of the Israeli company Watergen, which partnered in the study.

The study was conducted by a team of experts from the hydrochemistry laboratory at the Porter School of Environment and Earth Sciences at Tel Aviv University, led by graduate student Offir Inbar and supervised by Prof. Dror Avisar, Head of TAU's Moshe Mirilashvili Institute for Applied Water Studies. Also participating in the study was Watergen's research and development team, Prof. Alexandra Chudnovsky, and leading researchers from Germany. The study's results were published in two leading journals: Science of the Total Environment and Water.

The researchers explain that the growing global shortage of clean drinking water requires thinking outside the box and developing new technologies for producing potable water. The Earth's atmosphere is a vast and renewable source of water, which may be an alternative drinking water resource. Our atmosphere contains billions of tons of water, 98% of which is in a gaseous state - that is, water vapor.

Offir Inbar explains that this is the first study in the world to examine air pollution from another angle - its effect on drinking water generated from the air. According to Inbar, no filtration or treatment system was installed in the device used in the study; the water that was produced was the water that was obtained from the air. The researchers performed a wide range of advanced chemical analyses of the water, and found that in the vast majority of cases, including during different seasons and at different times of the day, the water extracted from the air in the heart of Tel Aviv was safe to drink. In addition, with the help of a variety of innovative technologies for monitoring the composition of the atmosphere and by applying advanced statistical methods, for the first time the researchers were able to quantitatively link the process the air goes through in the days leading up to the point of water production and the chemical composition of the dew.

Offir Inbar explains: "The study showed that wind direction greatly affects water quality, so for example when the wind comes from the desert we find more calcium and sulfur, that is, residues of desert dust aerosols, in the water. However, when the wind comes from direction of the sea, we find higher concentrations of chlorine and sodium, which are found in the sea. Moreover, we found that the distant sources from which the air came before it reached the point of water production can be identified in the water. For example, water produced from air coming from the Sahara region differs in composition from water produced from air coming from Europe."

The researchers note that water quality is also affected by anthropogenic pollution from transportation and industry. "Using advanced methods, we found a direct link between the concentrations of ammonia, nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide in the air and the concentration of their decomposition products in water," says Inbar. "We found low concentrations of copper, potassium, and zinc in the water, which probably come from man-made pollution. From a research point of view, the chemical link we found between the meteorological parameters and the composition of the water makes it possible for the first time to study the atmosphere using water extracted from it. And environmentally speaking, this link allows us to know what minerals should be added to water extracted from air in order to provide people with quality drinking water. In general, we found that potable water from air does not contain enough calcium and magnesium - and it is advisable to add these minerals to the water, as they are added to desalinated drinking water in some countries."

A significant portion of the water we drink today in Israel is desalinated seawater. According to Inbar, this is only a partial solution, and not one that can provide drinking water to the vast majority of the world's population. "In order to desalinate seawater, you need a sea, and there isn't access to the sea from every place in the world," says Inbar. "After desalination, a complete infrastructure must be built that will carry the desalinated water from the waterfront to the various towns, and large parts of the world don't possess the engineering and economic means to build and maintain such infrastructure. Water from the air, however, can be produced anywhere, with no need for expensive transport infrastructure and regardless of the amount of precipitation. From an economic perspective, the higher the temperature and humidity, the more cost-effective the production of water from the air is."

Devices for generating water from the air that include water purification and treatment systems can already be found in a large number of countries in the world, where they provide quality drinking water to people living in distressed areas.

"The concern was that water produced from air in the heart of an urban area would not be suitable for drinking - and we proved that this is not the case," Inbar concludes. "We are currently expanding our research to other areas in Israel, including Haifa Bay and agricultural areas, in order to investigate in depth the impact of various pollutants on the quality of water extracted from the air."

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Three members of the University of Colorado Cancer Center and a longstanding supporter of the campus are part of a group of more than 200 researchers nationwide who were recognized in April with the Team Science Award from the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR).

The CU researchers -- Terry Fry, MD, Lia Gore, MD, and Amanda Winters, MD, PhD, all of whom practice at Children's Hospital Colorado, along with patient advocate Kevin Reidy -- are part of the St. Baldrick's Foundation Stand Up To Cancer Pediatric Cancer Dream Team, a group of some 200 researchers across 10 leading children's hospitals and childhood cancer-focused research programs who are helping to develop new immunotherapy approaches for high-risk childhood cancers. The collaboration has resulted in 319 peer-reviewed published manuscripts, 44 patent applications, the generation of more than $118 million in additional grant funding, the creation of a new pediatric clinical trials network, and the treatment of more than 1,113 children through early-phase clinical trials.

"I have been privileged to be a member of the Stand Up To Cancer Pediatric Cancer Dream Team since its inception and am delighted to partner with Dr. Gore in leading efforts at Children's Hospital Colorado, CU Cancer Center, and CU Anschutz," says Fry, who is an expert in CAR T-cell therapy, a process by which a cancer patient's immune cells are extracted, genetically modified and stimulated to recognize tumors and to fight cancer when reinfused into the patient's body. Fry is also the mentor to the newest CU Dream Team member, M. Eric Kohler, MD, PhD, who is working to develop CAR T-cells for several different cancers.

"As a group of leading pediatric cancer programs, the SU2C Pediatric Dream Team has been able to ensure the rapid translation of immune-based therapies from Dream Team laboratories into children with cancer facilitated by innovative science and a highly collaborative spirit," Fry says. "I am proud of the major contributions the CU campus has made to these efforts."

Winters' research focuses on pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a type of blood cancer, and how to detect and target a disease that persists after therapy. Using a technology called digital PCR, Winters can detect AML-specific gene mutations to identify persistent disease down to one leukemia cell in 1,000 to 10,000 normal cells. She also is focused on identifying pediatric AML cells that are therapy-resistant through single cell analysis technologies in order to design targeted therapies, including immunotherapies, against these cells.

"For me, being a part of this team has enabled me to learn from really smart and successful scientists and to see the power of collaboration," Winters says. "When all of us are focused on developing better therapies for children with cancer, we can accomplish much more than any of us can alone. The AACR Team Science Award is a recognition of the successful outcome of these collaborations."

Gore, co-director of the CU Cancer Center's Developmental Therapeutics Program and section head of pediatric hematology/oncology/bone marrow transplant-cellular therapeutics at Children's Hospital Colorado, has had great success in developing trials for children using monoclonal antibodies and immunotherapies that target leukemia cells.

She was senior author of a paper that described the first use of a bi-specific T-cell engaging strategy to treat the most common form of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia and has led the development of that strategy in the Children's Oncology Group for the past few years. She also mentored the development of two other antibodies for leukemia and lymphomas for other uses in different childhood cancers.

Gore says the AACR award is a testament to the true team nature of the group. "This is another milestone in the mark we are making as a campus in immunotherapy."

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Best known for its presence in house cats and a tendency to infect and alter the behaviors of rodents and humans, the parasite Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) is also associated with bold behavior among wild hyena cubs and risk of death during interactions with lions, finds new research from the University of Colorado Boulder.

The findings, published this week in Nature Communications, reinforce previous research which has found the parasite can prompt profound behavioral changes in its hosts, and potentially in the 2 billion people worldwide estimated to be infected by it. While T. gondii has been well studied in laboratory settings with humans and wild-caught rodents, this is one of the first studies to examine how the parasite affects wild host behavior during interactions with wild cats.

The research uses a rich data set from more than three decades of continuous field research in the Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. It reveals that hyena cubs, but not subadult or adults, infected by T. gondii behave more boldly in the presence of lions, and that infected cubs have a greater risk of being killed by lions.

"This project is one of a handful of long-term continuous studies on a long-lived mammal," said Zach Laubach, co-lead author on the study and postdoctoral fellow in ecology and evolutionary biology. "Our findings suggest that infection early in life leads to bolder behavior and is particularly costly for young hyenas."

Multiple strains of T. gondii are found throughout the world, infecting warm blooded animals--including humans who have house cats--during different life stages through contaminated soil, drinking water or eating meat of other infected animals. It can also be passed down from mother to baby.

The researchers found that in the hyena populations they studied, infections are widespread but more common in older animals, meaning that it's most likely that they become infected by consuming contaminated meat or water.

For infected cubs--hyenas up to one year old--they found infected animals are bolder, approaching lions from closer distances than uninfected cubs, and that infection among cubs also corresponds to a higher probability of being killed by lions. In this study, lions were responsible for all hyena cub deaths among infected animals, but only 17% of uninfected cubs died before the age of one due to lion attacks.

This is a vulnerable time in the life cycle of spotted hyenas, who despite being proficient hunters, take a long time to develop and rely on support and protection from their mothers, according to Laubach.

"Hyena moms invest a ton of both time and resources into their offspring. They nurse until they're about a year old and don't reach independence until they're about two or more years old," said Laubach. "But after they're one year old, we found no difference in how close they got to lions, regardless of infection status."

Some scientists theorize that this parasite manipulates its hosts' behavior (whether that host is a hyena or human) in order to get back to cats, where it can sexually reproduce. But the data from this study doesn't provide enough evidence to disentangle the theory supporting an adaptive mechanism for the parasite from other plausible alternative theories. It does, however, show that T. gondii has a direct and detrimental impact on hyena fitness.

Measuring the cost of confidence

Maasai Mara National Reserve is a biological hot spot in southwestern Kenya, between Lake Victoria and the bustling city of Nairobi. For more than 30 years now, the Mara Hyena Project, led by co-author Kay Holekamp, has been gathering data on the health and behavior of spotted hyenas in one of the best places in the world to study a diverse array of large, carnivorous mammals.

"It's really a one-of-a-kind system, especially for studying large carnivores in a natural setting, which is a rare opportunity," said Laubach. "I can't think of another place in the world where you can see the same numbers and diversity of species of large mammalian carnivores, it's pretty spectacular."

Laubach notes there are many misconceptions about hyenas. They're quite social and live in large groups, some with more than 120 individuals. They're also formidable in size and strength, at up to a 170 pounds when full grown (twice the size of a large dog) and they have one of the strongest jaws in the animal kingdom.

"They can eat bone, their bite can crack the femur of a giraffe," said Laubach.

Yet hyenas and lions compete with one another for territory and food, and these interactions with lions are the leading natural cause of hyena injuries and mortality.

Because previous research has shown that T. gondii can impact behavior in animals in laboratory settings, what the researchers wanted to know was: How does T. gondii affect wild hyenas' behaviors around lions, and what are the consequences?

Laubach and co-lead author Eben Gering analyzed archived data collect by numerous research assistants and graduate students. They gathered blood samples and documented the hyenas' interactions with each other and when they interacted with lions. From the safety of their vehicle, researchers Benson (Malit) Pioon and Holekamp of the Mara Hyena Project administered tranquilizers to 166 hyenas, in order to draw and test their blood for the parasite. They found 108, or 65%, had been previously exposed.

Over the years, researchers spent many hours each morning and evening out in the field, recording hyena behaviors of individuals that can be identified by their unique spot patterns on their coats. The data revealed that infection with the parasite T. gondii was related to boldness and greater risk of lion mortality among hyena cubs but not older animals. The lack of an effect in older animals could be because they've had time to learn, while cubs have less than one year of experience to compete with the influence of the parasite.

"One limitation of this work is that it was an observational study. But limitations are interesting, because it points to what one might do next," said Laubach. "We'd like to go back and tease apart how behaviors change in individuals by comparing how their behaviors differ before versus after infection."

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Additional authors on this publication include Eben Gering of Michigan State University and Nova Southeastern University; Patty Sue Weber, Gisela Soboll Hussey and Thomas Getty of Michigan State University; Kenna Lehmann and Kay Holekamp of Michigan State University and the Mara Hyena Project; Tracy Montgomery of Michigan State University, the Mara Hyena Project and the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior; Julie Turner of Michigan State University, the Mara Hyena Project and the Memorial University of Newfoundland; Wei Perng of the Colorado School of Public Health, CU Denver Anschutz Medical Campus; and Malit Pioon of the Mara Hyena Project.
A rare genetic defect that affects the so-called ALG2 gene can cause serious metabolic diseases in humans. It does so through the defective formation of proteins and sugar molecules. Until now, its rareness and complexity made it difficult to study this congenital glycosylation disorder. A research team led by Prof. Dr Joachim Wittbrodt and Dr Thomas Thumberger from the Centre for Organismal Studies (COS) of Heidelberg University has finally succeeded in introducing the underlying mutation in the ALG2 gene in a fish model, thus allowing the causes of these complex diseases to be studied at the molecular level.

Human cells are kept alive by the activity of millions of proteins. As they mature, these proteins must be modified in a myriad of ways, such as through the addition of sugar molecules - a crucial change for proper function. Defects in this sugar-adding process, also known as sugar decoration, are often lethal at the very early stages of development. As Prof. Wittbrodt explains, in rare cases a genetic defect causes sugar-addition deficiencies, which then manifest as congenital disorders of glycosylation. "Correct protein glycosylation requires a number of enzymes functioning together like clockwork," states the researcher. The ALG2 gene has an especially important task in this process. It codes an enzyme needed for the correct branching of the sugar chain. If this process is disturbed, patients appear unaffected at birth but develop problems in different organs, such as the eyes, brain, and muscles, during early childhood.

The team led by Prof. Wittbrodt and Dr Thumberger used the CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing scissors to introduce an ALG2 mutation in a fish model, the Japanese rice fish or medaka. "Fish are particularly good models for these disorders because they develop outside the mother, making them very suitable for studying early embryonic defects," explains Dr Thumberger. In addition, the genome of the Japanese rice fish can be edited efficiently and precisely. "Our fish are genetic twins, so to speak, so the effect of individual changes can be directly identified as compared to non-genetically altered fish."

Although the evolutionary distance between humans and fish is vast, the researchers report many of the same symptoms in the fish model that appear in ALG2 patients, including specific neuronal defects. They were surprised by the results yielded by the analysis of the total medaka organism, which took into account the full spectrum of different cell types. "Although all cells of the fish showed the same reduced ALG2 activity, some cell types were more affected than others," states Prof. Wittbrodt. In the retina of the fish eye, cone cells needed for colour-sensing were unaffected, but there was a progressive loss of rod cells needed for vision in low light, thus rendering the fish night-blind. Now the researchers hope to identify the proteins that cause the rod cells to die off because of diminished sugar binding.

"Our studies on the medaka fish model showed that all symptoms could be prevented by supplying fully functional ALG2 mRNA - the blueprint for producing the correct ALG2 enzyme. We were able to effectively reverse the genetic defect in the fish model. That means that we can now systematically analyse the individual function areas of the ALG2 enzyme. We are particularly interested in the cell type-specific response in the context of the whole organism," stresses Joachim Wittbrodt. Building on this research, the Heidelberg research team plans to study the molecular mechanisms and causes for the development of such complex metabolic diseases in humans.

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In addition to the Heidelberg team at the COS, researchers from the Center for Molecular Biology of Heidelberg University (ZMBH), Heidelberg University Hospital, and the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics of Complex Technical Systems in Magdeburg joined in the study. The research work was funded by the German Research Foundation. The results of the study were published in the journal "Development".
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UJ researchers take a novel step to change hydrogenation into a safe, low energy process. They use a very stable three phase emulsion to transform a toxic waste product into valuable feedstock. The process does not need flammable, compressed hydrogen gas.

The emulsion catalysis hydrogenates nitrobenzene efficiently at room temperature to output aniline. Aniline is widely used in the pharmaceutical industry. The bi-metallic hydrogenation catalyst is fully recovered afterwards.

Without hydrogenation, it would not be possible to manufacture many of today's medicines. It is a backbone process for the pharmaceutical and chemical industries. But hydrogen is expensive. The safety measures to prevent explosions in factories and laboratories are costly also.

However, if compressed hydrogen is not needed at all, significant savings are possible. It also means that many chemical processes can be much safer and easier to work with.

Chemists from the University of Johannesburg have demonstrated this, in research published in Colloids and Surfaces.

They converted nitrobenzene into aniline, using a catalyzed hydrogenation process in a Pickering emulsion.

The emulsion process has the potential to be a much safer industrial hydrogenation process than those currently in use.

"Pickering emulsions have been around for 150 years. But using them for catalysis only emerged in 2014," says Prof Reinout Meijboom. Meijboom is a researcher at the department of Chemical Sciences.

Like yoghurt, a Pickering emulsion is an emulsion. Such an emulsion is a mix of particles that readily dissolve in water, and particles that readily dissolve in oil. What makes yoghurt a Pickering emulsion is that it also contains enzymes, which are solid particles that do not dissolve.

Nitrobenzene is produced in huge amounts globally as waste from chemical manufacturing. It is a highly toxic, persistent organic pollutant described by the WHO, EPA and CDC, among others.

The manufacture of polyurethanes uses nitrobenzene as an intermediate. It is also used as a solvent in petroleum refining. The wastewater of dye manufacturers often contains nitrobenzene. It is an oily liquid and presents a fire hazard.

Aniline is an industrially significant commodity. It is a feedstock for a vast number of chemical products, including many medicines.

The process the researchers designed uses toluene to dissolve nitrobenzene. This forms the first, organic or toluene phase of the process. For the second aqueous phase, they dissolved sodium borohydride in water.

The catalyst is the third phase in the process. It consists of modified silica microspheres and Palladium. They also used a bimetallic catalyst, where Palladium is combined with Cobalt or Nickel.

If the three phases are added together, but not mixed into an emulsion, the combination can be stored for days or weeks, says Meijboom. A small amount of hydrogenation takes place, but the process only really gets going once a proper emulsion is formed.

The catalyst also acts as a stabilizing emulsifier.

When the three phases are mixed into an emulsion, the catalyst kick-starts the hydrogenation process. The formation of the emulsion takes a few seconds. The reaction takes about two hours at laboratory scale.

The hydrogen needed for hydrogenation is supplied by the dissolved sodium borohydride. Hydrogenation happens efficiently at room temperature, which saves energy.

There is no need for stored or piped hydrogen. This removes most of the explosion risk from the process.

The three-phase process in a Pickering emulsion has the advantage of a much bigger catalytic surface, compared to a single phase or two phase process, says Meijboom.

The catalytic efficiency can be tuned by adjusting the volume ratio of the toluene and water phases in the Pickering emulsion system.

"Each drop of toluene and nitrobenzene solution in the emulsion effectively becomes a microreactor. This is how the process can be tuned to be efficient at room temperature," he adds.

After the hydrogenation completes, the resulting emulsion is stable enough for storage for a few days, before separating out the aniline.

The study is the first efficient use of a bimetallic palladium catalyst for the hydrogenation of an aromatic compound in a water-based Pickering emulsion system, says Mr. Peter Dele Fapojuwo. He is a Postgraduate researcher at the department.

"By adding Nickel or Cobalt to the catalyst, we improved the dispersion of the Palladium on the surface of the emulsifier," he adds.

Palladium is much more expensive than Nickel or Cobalt, so the use of the bimetallic catalyst further reduces costs.

"The use of solid particles as both catalysts and emulsifier, or stabilizer, poses less threat to the environment compared to conventional surfactant. Their composition is less toxic," says Fapojuwo.

The reaction platform is significantly safer when using sodium borohydride as the reductant, rather than hydrogen, he adds.

"Hydrogenation using petroleum-derived hydrogen is neither totally environmentally-friendly nor economically viable. It requires high-pressure hydrogen, which demands expensive reactor equipment. That increases process costs," he adds.

"In theory, this process can be adapted to keeping one phase in a fixed-bed reactor and doing flow synthesis. The result would be a continuous process for catalytic reactions between two immiscible phases," says Meijboom.

"This is proof of principle phase. We're working towards generalizing the process," he says.

"We have designed a process that can be expanded to a range of industrially important reactions.

"By using emulsion chemistry, we have one system where catalyst, emulsifier, aqueous and organic phase all mix up into an extremely stable system," says Meijboom.

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A new University of Kentucky College of Medicine study will examine how policies that restrict the sale of flavored tobacco products including menthol cigarettes impact health disparities among vulnerable populations.

A five-year, $2.8 million grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) will support the study on how local policies impact at-risk groups -- including communities of color, low-income populations and youth -- that are more likely to use flavored tobacco products.

The results could help lawmakers create policies that are more equitable, says the study's principal investigator Shyanika Rose, Ph.D., a faculty member of the Center for Health Equity Transformation (CHET), assistant professor in the Department of Behavioral Science and member of the Markey Cancer Center Cancer Prevention and Control Program.

"We already know that stopping the sale of these products can reduce their availability and use in these communities," said Rose. "But understanding the impact of policies across race and socioeconomic status will give guidance about what kinds of policies work and have the most equitable benefits."

Rose says flavored tobacco products, which are more appealing, easier to use and more addictive, have a long history of being disproportionately marketed toward vulnerable communities, particularly African Americans. According to the Truth Initiative, nearly 90% of all Black smokers use menthol cigarettes, and more than 39,000 African Americans die from tobacco-related cancers each year.

Currently, federal laws only prohibit the sale of certain flavored tobacco products. The sale of menthol cigarettes and all flavors of smokeless tobacco, cigars and hookah is still permitted. While the Food and Drug Administration recently announced new steps to implement a ban on the sale of menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars, the proposal will not eliminate all flavored tobacco products from the market, specifically flavored e-cigarettes and e-liquids.

In the absence of broad-based federal laws, several state and local jurisdictions across the country have enacted their own policies. Rose says about 30% of localities with a policy have a comprehensive one that prohibits the sale of all flavors, including menthol, across all tobacco products.

"While the FDA is moving federal policy in the right direction, comprehensive policies that restrict the sale of all flavored tobacco products may be more likely to protect the health of the most vulnerable populations and this is something this project will investigate," Rose said.

Rose's team will examine these local policies and expand the evidence base about how well they work to decrease access to flavored tobacco products, exposure to associated marketing materials and ultimately reduce tobacco use. Their findings will be used to help inform community leaders about how policies can help to eliminate health disparities.

The project will use a large longitudinal national cohort of youth and young adults to identify tobacco use outcomes among those exposed to local policies and those who are not. The team will also explore the relationship between flavored tobacco marketing exposure and initiation of use among young non-tobacco users and continued use among young tobacco users who will be tracked in real time in eight communities with different types of flavor policies.

Marketing exposure and tobacco use outcomes in both the national dataset and the local data collection will then be evaluated based on socioeconomic status and race/ethnicity of respondents.

Rose's research team is composed of UK experts across several disciplines including W. Jay Christian, Ph.D., assistant professor in the UK College of Public Health's Department of Epidemiology; Mary Kay Rayens, Ph.D, professor in the UK College of Nursing; and Melinda Ickes, associate professor and director of Graduate Studies in the UK College of Education's Department of Kinesiology and Health Promotion.

Ickes, who will be leading the outreach and dissemination component of the study, says the lessons learned will be shared in an ongoing dialogue with community partners. The partners will help develop tailored messages about the risks of flavored tobacco products to generate broader public policy support and deter use among youth in their communities.

"I am truly excited to work with Dr. Rose on this innovative and meaningful project," Ickes said. "Engaging community members and ensuring their voices are heard throughout the research process will enhance the quality and meaning of the research. We also know that through participatory and inclusive efforts, community members can be change-makers to affect policy change in the direction of health for all people."

The team will partner with the Truth Initiative, experts from Stanford University and the University of Southern California, national flavored tobacco policy experts and an advisory committee of local representatives from eight communities with different types of flavor policies. Findings will be shared with those communities and others that are considering a local policy restricting the sale of flavored tobacco products.

Rose says engagement with the community partners is beginning, secondary analysis on national data will start this year and recruitment of youth and young adults in the eight communities will begin in 2022.

Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number 1R01CA251478. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

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University of Maryland researchers created the first high-resolution image of an expanding bubble of hot plasma and ionized gas where stars are born. Previous low-resolution images did not clearly show the bubble or reveal how it expanded into the surrounding gas.

The researchers used data collected by the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) telescope to analyze one of the brightest, most massive star-forming regions in the Milky Way galaxy. Their analysis showed that a single, expanding bubble of warm gas surrounds the Westerlund 2 star cluster and disproved earlier studies suggesting there may be two bubbles surrounding Westerlund 2. The researchers also identified the source of the bubble and the energy driving its expansion. Their results were published in The Astrophysical Journal on June 23, 2021.

"When massive stars form, they blow off much stronger ejections of protons, electrons and atoms of heavy metal, compared to our sun," said Maitraiyee Tiwari, a postdoctoral associate in the UMD Department of Astronomy and lead author of the study. "These ejections are called stellar winds, and extreme stellar winds are capable of blowing and shaping bubbles in the surrounding clouds of cold, dense gas. We observed just such a bubble centered around the brightest cluster of stars in this region of the galaxy, and we were able to measure its radius, mass and the speed at which it is expanding."

The surfaces of these expanding bubbles are made of a dense gas of ionized carbon, and they form a kind of outer shell around the bubbles. New stars are believed to form within these shells. But like soup in a boiling cauldron, the bubbles enclosing these star clusters overlap and intermingle with clouds of surrounding gas, making it hard to distinguish the surfaces of individual bubbles.

Tiwari and her colleagues created a clearer picture of the bubble surrounding Westerlund 2 by measuring the radiation emitted from the cluster across the entire electromagnetic spectrum, from high-energy X-rays to low-energy radio waves. Previous studies, which only radio and submillimeter wavelength data, had produced low-resolution images and did not show the bubble. Among the most important measurements was a far-infrared wavelength emitted by a specific ion of carbon in the shell.

"We can use spectroscopy to actually tell how fast this carbon is moving either towards or away from us," said Ramsey Karim (M.S. '19, astronomy), a Ph.D. student in astronomy at UMD and a co-author of the study. "This technique uses the Doppler effect, the same effect that causes a train's horn to change pitch as it passes you. In our case, the color changes slightly depending on the velocity of the carbon ions."

By determining whether the carbon ions were moving toward or away from Earth and combining that information with measurements from the rest of the electromagnetic spectrum, Tiwari and Karim were able to create a 3D view of the expanding stellar-wind bubble surrounding Westerlund 2.

In addition to finding a single, stellar wind-driven bubble around Westerlund 2, they found evidence of new stars forming in the shell region of this bubble. Their analysis also suggests that as the bubble expanded, it broke open on one side, releasing hot plasma and slowing expansion of the shell roughly a million years ago. But then, about 200,000 or 300,000 years ago, another bright star in Westerlund 2 evolved, and its energy re-invigorated the expansion of the Westerlund 2 shell.

"We saw that the expansion of the bubble surrounding Westerlund 2 was reaccelerated by winds from another very massive star, and that started the process of expansion and star formation all over again," Tiwari said. "This suggests stars will continue to be born in this shell for a long time, but as this process goes on, the new stars will become less and less massive."

Tiwari and her colleagues will now apply their method to other bright star clusters and warm gas bubbles to better understand these star-forming regions of the galaxy. The work is part of a multi-year NASA-supported program called FEEDBACK.

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Additional co-authors of the research paper from UMD's Department of Astronomy include Research Scientists Marc Pound and Mark Wolfire and Adjunct Professor Alexander Tielens. This work was supported by the NASA-funded FEEDBACK project (Award No. SOF070077). The content of this article does not necessarily reflect the views of this organization.

The research paper, "SOFIA FEEDBACK Survey: Exploring the Dynamics of the Stellar-wind-driven Shell of RCW 49" and the author list is: Tiwari, M., Karim, R., Pound, M. W., Wolfire, M., Jacob, A., Buchbender, C., Gusten, R., Guevara, C., Higgins, R. D., Kabanovic, S., Pabst, C., Ricken, O., Schneider, N., Simon, R., Stutzki, J., Tielens, A. G. G. M., was published on June 23, 2021, in The Astrophysical Journal.

Media Relations Contact: Kimbra Cutlip, 301-405-9463, kcutlip@umd.edu

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About the College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences

The College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences at the University of Maryland educates more than 9,000 future scientific leaders in its undergraduate and graduate programs each year. The college's 10 departments and more than a dozen interdisciplinary research centers foster scientific discovery with annual sponsored research funding exceeding $200 million.
Newspapers regularly carry stories of terrifying shark attacks, but in a paper published today, Oxford-led researchers reveal their discovery of a 3,000-year-old victim - attacked by a shark in the Seto Inland Sea of the Japanese archipelago.

The research in Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, shows that this body is the earliest direct evidence for a shark attack on a human and an international research team has carefully recreated what happened - using a combination of archaeological science and forensic techniques.

The grim discovery of the victim was made by Oxford researchers, J. Alyssa White and Professor Rick Schulting, while investigating evidence for violent trauma on the skeletal remains of prehistoric hunter-gatherers at Kyoto University. They came upon No24, from the previously excavated site of Tsukumo, an adult male riddled with traumatic injuries.

'We were initially flummoxed by what could have caused at least 790 deep, serrated injuries to this man,' say the Oxford pair. 'There were so many injuries and yet he was buried in the community burial ground, the Tsukumo Shell-mound cemetery site.'

They continue, 'The injuries were mainly confined to the arms, legs, and front of the chest and abdomen. Through a process of elimination, we ruled out human conflict and more commonly-reported animal predators or scavengers.'

Since archaeological cases of shark reports are extremely rare, they turned to forensic shark attack cases for clues and worked with expert George Burgess, Director Emeritus of the Florida Program for Shark Research. And a reconstruction of the attack was put together by the international team.

The team concluded that the individual died more than 3,000 years ago, between 1370 to 1010 BC. The distribution of wounds strongly suggest the victim was alive at the time of attack; his left hand was sheared off, possibly a defence wound.

Individual No 24's body had been recovered soon after the attack and buried with his people at the cemetery. Excavation records showed he was also missing his right leg and his left leg was placed on top of his body in an inverted position.

According to the pair, 'Given the injuries, he was clearly the victim of a shark attack. The man may well have been fishing with companions at the time, since he was recovered quickly. And, based on the character and distribution of the tooth marks, the most likely species responsible was either a tiger or white shark.'

Co-author Dr Mark Hudson, a researcher with the Max Planck Institute, says, 'The Neolithic people of Jomon Japan exploited a range of marine resources... It's not clear if Tsukumo 24 was deliberately targeting sharks or if the shark was attracted by blood or bait from other fish. Either way, this find not only provides a new perspective on ancient Japan, but is also a rare example of archaeologists being able to reconstruct a dramatic episode in the life of a prehistoric community.'

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Notes for Editors

The paper can be seen here: https:/ / www. sciencedirect. com/ science/ article/ abs/ pii/ S2352409X21002777?dgcid= author

A novel method of 3D analysis in development by Alyssa White, John Pouncett, and Rick Schulting was used to visualise the wounds found, which can be explored at Tsukumo 24 BodyMap 3D.

Authors: J. Alyssa White, George H. Burgess, Masato Nakatsukasa, Mark J. Hudson, John Pouncett, Soichiro Kusaka, Minoru Yoneda, Yasuhiro Yamada, Rick Schulting

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Oxford University has been placed number one in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings for the fifth year running, and at the heart of this success is our ground-breaking research and innovation. Oxford is world-famous for research excellence and home to some of the most talented people from across the globe. The breadth and interdisciplinary nature of our research sparks imaginative and inventive insights and solutions.
Humans perceive the world around them with five senses - vision, hearing, taste, smell and touch. Many other animals are also able to sense the Earth's magnetic field. For some time, a collaboration of biologists, chemists and physicists centred at the Universities of Oldenburg (Germany) and Oxford (UK) have been gathering evidence suggesting that the magnetic sense of migratory birds such as European robins is based on a specific light-sensitive protein in the eye. In the current edition of the journal Nature, this team demonstrate that the protein cryptochrome 4, found in birds' retinas, is sensitive to magnetic fields and could well be the long-sought magnetic sensor.

First author Jingjing Xu, a doctoral student in Henrik Mouritsen's research group in Oldenburg, took a decisive step toward this success. After extracting the genetic code for the potentially magnetically sensitive cryptochrome 4 in night-migratory European robins, she was able, for the first time, to produce this photoactive molecule in large quantities using bacterial cell cultures. Christiane Timmel's and Stuart Mackenzie's groups in Oxford then used a wide range of magnetic resonance and novel optical spectroscopy techniques to study the protein and demonstrate its pronounced sensitivity to magnetic fields.

The team also deciphered the mechanism by which this sensitivity arises - another important advance. "Electrons that can move within the molecule after blue-light activation play a crucial role", explains Mouritsen. Proteins like cryptochrome consist of chains of amino acids: robin cryptochrome 4 has 527 of them. Oxford's Peter Hore and Oldenburg physicist Ilia Solov'yov performed quantum mechanical calculations supporting the idea that four of the 527 - known as tryptophans - are essential for the magnetic properties of the molecule. According to their calculations, electrons hop from one tryptophan to the next generating so-called radical pairs which are magnetically sensitive. To prove this experimentally, the team from Oldenburg produced slightly modified versions of the robin cryptochrome, in which each of the tryptophans in turn was replaced by a different amino acid to block the movement of electrons.

Using these modified proteins, the Oxford chemistry groups were able to demonstrate experimentally that electrons move within the cryptochrome as predicted in the calculations - and that the generated radical pairs are essential to explain the observed magnetic field effects.

The Oldenburg team also expressed cryptochrome 4 from chickens and pigeons. When studied in Oxford, the proteins of these species, which do not migrate, exhibit similar photochemistry to that of the migratory robin, but appear markedly less magnetically sensitive.

"We think these results are very important because they show for the first time that a molecule from the visual apparatus of a migratory bird is sensitive to magnetic fields" says Mouritsen. But, he adds, this is not definitive proof that cryptochrome 4 is the magnetic sensor the team is looking for. In all experiments, the researchers examined isolated proteins in the laboratory. The magnetic fields used were also stronger than the Earth's magnetic field. "It therefore still needs to be shown that this is happening in the eyes of birds" Mouritsen stresses. Such studies are not yet technically possible.

However, the authors think the proteins involved could be significantly more sensitive in their native environment. In cells in the retina, the proteins are probably fixed and aligned, increasing their sensitivity to the direction of the magnetic field. Moreover, they are also likely to be associated with other proteins that could amplify the sensory signals. The team is currently searching for these as yet unknown interaction partners.

Hore says "if we can prove that cryptochrome 4 is the magnetic sensor we will have demonstrated a fundamentally quantum mechanism that makes animals sensitive to environmental stimuli a million times weaker than previously thought possible".

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The cooperation between Oldenburg and Oxford is funded by a 6-year Synergy Grant from the European Research Council (ERC) with the title 'QuantumBirds'. The collaboration is also a key part of the Collaborative Research Center, 'Magnetoreception and Navigation in Vertebrates' (SFB 1372) funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG), and Ilia Solov'yov is a Lichtenberg Professor funded by the VolkswagenStiftung.
As the first university to establish a presence in Kanata North, uOttawa joins as a founding Academic Partner and Shared Anchor in Hub350

uOttawa will join Hub350, a new state-of-the-art global technology centre in Canada's largest technology park. Located at 350 Legget Drive, home of the original Mitel Networks, Hub350 will serve as a gateway to the world-class tech, finance and academic research ecosystem that is thriving in Kanata North. Set to open this fall, Hub350 is powered by the Kanata North Business Association (KNBA) and will be a mixed-use innovation district activity centre with ecosystem partners collaborating in the shared space.

In 2018, uOttawa established its Kanata North satellite campus at 535 Legget Drive, just down the road from the new Hub350 space. uOttawa Kanata North currently offers 4,000-square-feet of research, training and collaboration space which brings industry, researchers, students and alumni together to advance learning, research, innovation and commercialization. uOttawa continues to consult and collaborate with industry and ecosystem partners to provide a broad spectrum of talent, learning and research solutions that help Kanata North companies accelerate their success and scale growth.

uOttawa's research strengths in ICT, 5G+ networking, IoT and sensors, photonics, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, transportation and healthcare align well with the needs of tech companies in the Tech Park. Responding to demand for research expertise and talent development from the Connected Car and Autonomous Vehicles (CAV) ecosystem, the uOttawa Kanata North campus has doubled its footprint by building its Faculty of Engineering's new Smart Connected Vehicles Innovation Centre.

Open in late summer 2021, this shared research infrastructure will enable partnerships with industry to co-create innovation, de-risk tech development, and accelerate prototyping for faster time-to-market.

Working with different uOttawa faculties and groups, several specialized professional development and micro-education programs have been created in consultation with tech companies. uOttawa's Faculty of Engineering and Professional Development Institute (PDI) in partnership with the Centre for Excellence in Next Generation Networks (CENGN) and FX Innovation offers a skills critical cloud computing program to help develop the next-generation of cloud systems specialists. An Advanced Certificate in Information and Cyber Security was launched in March 2021 and combines information and cybersecurity technical skills with communication, management and leadership skills. And, to further develop engineers and those in technical positions to improve their communications and sales skills for increased revenues, uOttawa's Engineering Sales School (uOESS) successfully piloted a modular Business Communication and Influence program.

Hub350 offers an opportunity to build on uOttawa's existing partnerships and collaborations with Wesley Clover, Alacrity Ottawa, L-SPARK, CENGN, Invest Ottawa, Area.XO, Carleton University, Queen's, and others. uOttawa continues to consult on many strategic initiatives to implement the University's vision to drive greater innovation through industry partnerships.

Each year hundreds of uOttawa graduates are hired as well as students placed in Kanata North companies on coop work terms or internships; a broad range of specialized and micro-education programs are offered, and millions of dollars in research projects are signed. uOttawa alumni have a strong presence with over 6,000 alumni living in and around Kanata North with many choosing to be among the over 1,800 tech sector based alumni working for companies located in the Kanata North Tech Park.

Veronica Farmer, Director Partnerships & Commercialization at uOttawa Kanata North: "uOttawa made the strategic decision several years ago to be physically present in Kanata North. As an academic institution we recognized the importance of co-locating with industry. We look forward to the new synergies that will be created through Hub350 and working with the ecosystem partners to further position Kanata North as a living lab for a highly educated and tech-oriented workforce to live, work, play and learn."

Jamie Petten, President & Executive Director, Kanata North Business Association: "We have worked in close partnership with the University of Ottawa since their initial move into the tech park in 2018. Their support of Hub350 will further strengthen Kanata North's profile as a world-class hub for innovation and will inevitably create greater opportunities for collaboration between uOttawa and our tech community. I look forward to continuing to work together to foster deeper connections for students, faculty and researchers with our business community. Together we will build the profile and recognition of Canada's largest technology park on a world stage."

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For more information, visit uOttawa Kanata North and Hub350.

About the University of Ottawa

The University of Ottawa is home to over 50,000 students, faculty, and staff, who live, work and study in both French and English. Our campus is a crossroads of cultures and ideas, where bold minds come together to inspire game-changing ideas. We are one of Canada's top 10 research universities--our professors and researchers explore new approaches to today's challenges. One of a handful of Canadian universities ranked among the top 200 in the world, we attract exceptional thinkers and welcome diverse perspectives from across the globe.

About Kanata North Business Association
New evidence to answer the question 'who exactly were the Anglo-Saxons?'

A new study from archaeologists at University of Sydney and Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, has provided important new evidence to answer the question "Who exactly were the Anglo-Saxons?"

New findings based on studying skeletal remains clearly indicates the Anglo-Saxons were a melting pot of people from both migrant and local cultural groups and not one homogenous group from Western Europe.

Professor Keith Dobney at the University of Sydney said the team's results indicate that "the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of early Medieval Britain were strikingly similar to contemporary Britain - full of people of different ancestries sharing a common language and culture".

The Anglo-Saxon (or early medieval) period in England runs from the 5th-11th centuries AD. Early Anglo-Saxon dates from around 410-660 AD - with migration occurring throughout all but the final 100 years (ie 410-560AD).

Studying ancient skulls

Published in PLOS ONE, the collaborative study by Professor Dobney at University of Sydney and Dr Kimberly Plomp and Professor Mark Collard at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, looked at the three-dimensional shape of the base of the skull.

"Previous studies by palaeoanthropologists have shown that the base of the human skull holds a shape signature that can be used to track relationships among human populations in a similar way to ancient DNA," Dr Plomp said. "Based on this, we collected 3D data from suitably dated skeletal collections from Britain and Denmark, and then analysed the data to estimate the ancestry of the Anglo-Saxon individuals in the sample."

The researchers found that between two-thirds and three-quarters of early Anglo-Saxon individuals were of continental European ancestry, while between a quarter and one-third were of local ancestry.

When they looked at skeletons dated to the Middle Anglo-Saxon period (several hundred years after the original migrants arrived), they found that 50 to 70 percent of the individuals were of local ancestry, while 30 to 50 percent were of continental European ancestry, which probably indicates a change in the rate of migration and/or local adoption of culture over time.

"These findings tell us that being Anglo-Saxon was more likely a matter of language and culture, not genetics," Professor Collard said.

The debate about Anglo-Saxons

Although Anglo-Saxon origins can clearly be traced to a migration of Germanic-speaking people from mainland Europe between the 5th and 7th centuries AD, the number of individuals who settled in Britain is still contested, as is the nature of their relationship with the pre-existing inhabitants of the British Isles, most of whom were Romano-Celts.

The ongoing and unresolved argument is whether hordes of European invaders largely replaced the existing Romano-British inhabitants, or did smaller numbers of migrants settle and interact with the locals, who then rapidly adopted the new language and culture of the Anglo-Saxons?

"The reason for the ongoing confusion is the apparent contradiction between early historical texts (written sometime after the events that imply that the newcomers were both numerous and replaced the Romano-British population) and some recent biomolecular markers directly recovered from Anglo-Saxon skeletons that appears to suggest numbers of immigrants were few," said Professor Dobney.

"Our new data sits at the interface of this debate and implies that early Anglo-Saxon society was a mix of both newcomers and immigrants and, instead of wholesale population replacement, a process of acculturation resulted in Anglo-Saxon language and culture being adopted wholesale by the local population."

"It could be this new cultural package was attractive, filling a vacuum left at the end of the Roman occupation of Britain. Whatever the reason, it lit the fuse for the English nation we have today - still comprised of people of different origins who share the same language," Professor Dobney said.

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Our homes and offices are only as solid as the ground beneath them. When that solid ground turns to liquid -- as sometimes happens during earthquakes -- it can topple buildings and bridges. This phenomenon is known as liquefaction, and it was a major feature of the 2011 earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand, a magnitude 6.3 quake that killed 185 people and destroyed thousands of homes.

An upside of the Christchurch quake was that it was one of the most well-documented in history. Because New Zealand is seismically active, the city was instrumented with numerous sensors for monitoring earthquakes. Post-event reconnaissance provided a wealth of additional data on how the soil responded across the city.

"It's an enormous amount of data for our field," said post-doctoral researcher, Maria Giovanna Durante, a Marie Sklodowska Curie Fellow previously of The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin). "We said, 'If we have thousands of data points, maybe we can find a trend.'"

Durante works with Prof. Ellen Rathje, Janet S. Cockrell Centennial Chair in Engineering at UT Austin and the principal investigator for the National Science Foundation-funded DesignSafe cyberinfrastructure, which supports research across the natural hazards community. Rathje's personal research on liquefaction led her to study the Christchurch event. She had been thinking about ways to incorporate machine learning into her research and this case seemed like a great place to start.

"For some time, I had been impressed with how machine learning was being incorporated into other fields, but it seemed we never had enough data in geotechnical engineering to utilize these methods," Rathje said. "However, when I saw the liquefaction data coming out of New Zealand, I knew we had a unique opportunity to finally apply AI techniques to our field."

The two researchers developed a machine learning model that predicted the amount of lateral movement that occurred when the Christchurch earthquake caused soil to lose its strength and shift relative to its surroundings.

The results were published online in Earthquake Spectra on April 2021.

"It's one of the first machine learning studies in our area of geotechnical engineering," Durante said.

The researchers first used a Random Forest approach with a binary classification to forecast whether lateral spreading movements occurred at a specific location. They then applied a multiclass classification approach to predict the amount of displacement, from none to more than 1 meter.

"We needed to put physics into our model and be able to recognize, understand, and visualize what the model does," Durante said. "For that reason, it was important to select specific input features that go with the phenomenon we study. We're not using the model as a black box-- we're trying to integrate our scientific knowledge as much as possible."

Durante and Rathje trained the model using data related to the peak ground shaking experienced (a trigger for liquefaction), the depth of the water table, the topographic slope, and other factors. In total, more than 7,000 data points from a small area of the city were used for training data -- a great improvement, as previous geotechnical machine learning studies had used only 200 data points.

They tested their model citywide on 2.5 million sites around the epicenter of the earthquake to determine the displacement. Their model predicted whether liquefaction occurred with 80% accuracy; it was 70% accurate at determining the amount of displacement.

The researchers used the Frontera supercomputer at the Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC), one of the world's fastest, to train and test the model. TACC is a key partner on the DesignSafe project, providing computing resources, software, and storage to the natural hazards engineering community.

Access to Frontera provided Durante and Rathje machine learning capabilities on a scale previously unavailable to the field. Deriving the final machine learning model required testing 2,400 possible models.

"It would have taken years to do this research anywhere else," Durante said. "If you want to run a parametric study, or do a comprehensive analysis, you need to have computational power."

She hopes their machine learning liquefaction models will one day direct first-responders to the most urgent needs in the aftermath of an earthquake. "Emergency crews need guidance on what areas, and what structures, may be most at risk of collapse and focus their attention there," she said.

Sharing, Reproducibility, and Access

For Rathje, Durante, and a growing number of natural hazard engineers, a journal publication is not the only result of a research project. They also publish all of their data, models, and methods to the DesignSafe portal, a hub for research related to the impact of hurricanes, earthquakes, tsunamis, and other natural hazards on the built and natural environment.

"We did everything on the project in the DesignSafe portal," Durante said. "All the maps were made using QGIS, a mapping tool available on DesignSafe, using my computer as a way to connect to the cyberinfrastructure."

For their machine learning liquefaction model, they created a Jupyter notebook -- an interactive, web-based document that includes the dataset, code, and analyses. The notebook allows other scholars to reproduce the team's findings interactively, and test the machine learning model with their own data.

"It was important to us to make the materials available and make it reproducible," Durante said. "We want the whole community to move forward with these methods."

This new paradigm of data-sharing and collaboration is central to DesignSafe and helps the field progress more quickly, according Joy Pauschke, program director in NSF's Directorate for Engineering.

"Researchers are beginning to use AI methods with natural hazards research data, with exciting results," Pauschke said. "Adding machine learning tools to DesignSafe's data and other resources will lead to new insights and help speed advances that can improve disaster resilience."

Advances in machine learning require rich datasets, precisely like the data from the Christchurch earthquake. "All of the information about the Christchurch event was available on a website," Durante said. "That's not so common in our community, and without that, this study would not have been impossible."

Advances also require high-performance computing systems to test out new approaches and apply them to new fields.

The researchers continue to refine the machine learning model for liquefaction. Further research, they say, is needed to develop machine learning models that are generalizable to other earthquake events and geologic settings.

Durante, who returned to her native Italy this year, says one thing she hopes to take back from the U.S. is the ability for research to impact public policy.

She cited a recent project working with Scott Brandenberg and Jonathan Stewart (University of California, Los Angeles) that developed a new methodology to determine whether a retaining wall would collapse during an earthquake. Less than three years after the beginning of their research, the recommended seismic provisions for new buildings and other structures in the U.S. included their methodology.

"I want my work to have an impact on everyday life," Durante said. "In the U.S., there is more of a direct connection between research and real life, and that's something that I would like to bring back home."

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COVID-19 has widened the life expectancy gap across racial groups and between the US and peer countries

RICHMOND, Va., (June 23, 2021) -- U.S. life expectancy decreased by 1.87 years between 2018 and 2020, a drop not seen since World War II, according to new research from Virginia Commonwealth University, the University of Colorado Boulder and the Urban Institute.

The numbers are even worse for people of color. On average, whereas life expectancy among white Americans decreased by 1.36 years in 2020, it decreased by 3.25 years in Black Americans and 3.88 years in Hispanic Americans.

The data will be released June 23 in The BMJ, a journal published by the British Medical Association.

Other countries also saw declines in life expectancy between 2018 and 2020, but the loss of life expectancy in the U.S. was 8.5 times that of the average for 16 peer countries. The declines for minority populations were 15 to 18 times larger than other countries.

"When the pandemic came, my naive assumption was that it would not have a big impact on the preexisting gap between the U.S. and peer countries," said Steven Woolf, M.D., the study's lead author and director emeritus of VCU's Center on Society and Health. "It was a global pandemic, and I assumed that every country would take a hit. What I did not anticipate was how badly the U.S. would fare in the pandemic and the enormous death toll that the U.S. would experience."

The U.S. death toll has surpassed 600,000, according to Johns Hopkins University's Coronavirus Resource Center. Excess deaths, which exceed the official count, may contribute to the impact of the pandemic, according to previous research led by Woolf.

Life expectancy trends in the U.S. were already "very worrying," Woolf said. Since the 1980s, improvements in life expectancy in the U.S. have not kept pace with peer countries. Around 2010, life expectancy in America plateaued and then decreased for three consecutive years. It continued to climb in other countries.

"The gap has been widening for some time," Woolf said. Then COVID-19 hit, and the United States had among the world's highest per-capita mortality rates. Black and Hispanic communities were hit harder than white populations. Woolf's paper is the first to show the significance of the widening life expectancy gaps. Previous reports only included data from the first half of 2020 and did not provide the comparison to peer countries.

"To give some perspective, when the decline in life expectancy was happening a few years ago, it was a decrease of about 0.1 years each year that was making front-page news," said Woolf, VCU's C. Kenneth and Dianne Wright Distinguished Chair in Population Health and Health Equity. "That's the kind of increase or decrease that we're accustomed to each year."

Woolf called the 1.87-year decline in life expectancy "massive" by comparison.

"It's like nothing we've seen since World War II," he said. "1943 was the last time the US had such a large decrease in life expectancy."

Six countries in the authors' comparison group saw their life expectancy increase during 2020 -- places like New Zealand, Finland and Norway. Other countries did poorly: Italy and Spain saw losses in life expectancy. But none came close to the U.S.

"The disorganized handling of the pandemic in the U.S. had a lot to do with governance," said Woolf, a professor in the Department of Family Medicine and Population Health at VCU School of Medicine. "Our Constitution delegates public health authority to states, so we had 50 response plans. Many lives were lost because so many decisions were driven by politics and ideology. COVID-19 exposed a lot of the systemic problems that have been fueling the long-term decline in the health of Americans.

"And when vaccination gets us past the pandemic, and COVID-19 is in the rear view mirror, those systemic issues will still be with us," Woolf said.

Included in those issues are racial health inequities and the role of systemic racism. The most jarring statistic for Woolf was the data on life expectancy for Black and Hispanic Americans. It's well-known that COVID-19 had a disproportionate impact on people of color, but the effect on life expectancy for those groups was "jolting," he said.

Life expectancy in Black men in particular reached its lowest level since 1998.

"It's a big setback because, for many years, the U.S. had been making progress in closing the Black-white mortality gap," Woolf said. "And Hispanic Americans, for many years, enjoyed higher life expectancies than whites, but that advantage was almost completely erased by COVID-19."

Data on Native Americans, who also experienced very high death rates during the pandemic, was not examined in the study because of inadequate data.

"In many ways, the U.S. has turned a corner in its response to COVID-19, but the data emerging on pandemic health disparities is urgent and valuable in helping understand the impact on our communities," said Peter Buckley, M.D., dean of the VCU School of Medicine. "The life expectancy gaps between America and other countries and between racial groups reported in Dr. Woolf's paper are worrisome, and I hope the numbers serve as a wake-up call for the health care community and beyond."

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Co-authors on the paper are Ryan Masters, Ph.D., assistant professor at the University of Colorado Boulder, and Laudan Aron, a senior fellow at the Urban Institute.

Woolf receives partial funding from the National Institutes of Health's National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, which supports the Wright Center for Clinical Translational Research where Woolf serves in a community engagement role.

About VCU and VCU Health

Virginia Commonwealth University is a major, urban public research university with national and international rankings in sponsored research. Located in downtown Richmond, VCU enrolls more than 30,000 students in 233 degree and certificate programs in the arts, sciences and humanities. Twenty-two of the programs are unique in Virginia, many of them crossing the disciplines of VCU's 11 schools and three colleges. The VCU Health brand represents the VCU health sciences academic programs, the VCU Massey Cancer Center and the VCU Health System, which comprises VCU Medical Center (the only academic medical center in the region), Community Memorial Hospital, Children's Hospital of Richmond at VCU, and MCV Physicians. The clinical enterprise includes a collaboration with Sheltering Arms Institute for physical rehabilitation services. For more, please visit http://www. vcu. edu and vcuhealth.org.

About the VCU C. Kenneth and Dianne Wright Center for Clinical and Translational Research

The Wright Center fosters and supports interdisciplinary human health research at Virginia Commonwealth University and VCU Health by providing the infrastructure and resources that researchers need to accelerate the translation of scientific discoveries into patient care. Through funding, mentorship, training and education, regulatory compliance and data support, the center helps researchers bring treatments to patients and health care providers safely and efficiently. It especially serves to guide and grow a diverse workforce of junior faculty into experienced, multidisciplinary health researchers. In collaboration with those across campus and across the state, the Wright Center also engages the community in clinical research, bridging the gap between the public and health research. The center is funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Wright Foundation, other private donors and VCU. For more, please visit cctr.vcu.edu.
For children diagnosed with severe and debilitating epileptic brain disorders, the prognosis is often grim. Babies born with a rare form of CASK-linked epileptic encephalopathy called Ohtahara syndrome suffer seizures soon after birth. No treatment or cure exists, and children with the disorder typically don't survive beyond infancy. Those who do have severe neurological, cognitive, and behavioral impairments.

Sarika Srivastava, a research assistant professor at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, believes the loss of CASK gene function could cripple the ability of brain cells to produce much-needed energy and trigger the progressively worse seizures.

Srivastava, who also holds an appointment as an assistant professor in the Department of Internal Medicine in the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, is undertaking a five-year study to investigate the mechanisms of CASK loss-of-function mutation associated epileptic encephalopathy, funded by a $2 million grant from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, a part of the National Institutes of Health.

Researchers are still learning the diverse functions of the CASK gene. The gene is found across the animal kingdom, and its dysfunction is associated with neurological, cognitive, and developmental problems. Because the CASK gene is located on the X-chromosome in mammals, the loss-of-function mutations more severely affect males, who have one copy of the X-chromosome. Females have two copies of the X-chromosomes, so as long as the gene is normal in one copy of the chromosome, they are less severely affected.

Srivastava hypothesizes that one of CASK's roles is to control the function of mitochondria - tiny structures that serve as energy powerhouses of the cell. Mitochondria convert chemical energy from the food we eat into an energy form that the cell can use. When mitochondria stop functioning, the cell is starved of energy. Neurons require large amounts of energy and are affected the most by defective mitochondria.

"No one has studied this connection," Srivastava said. "It's completely unknown how CASK controls or regulates mitochondrial function."

To conduct the research, Srivastava's laboratory developed a new mouse model in which the CASK gene is deleted from neurons. These mice lacking CASK gene in brain cells mimic the human disease state, including severe underdevelopment, seizure-like characteristics, and early death.

Srivastava's preliminary research with the mouse model found that deleting CASK from neurons impaired the function of mitochondria and reduced their number in the brain. That impairment diminishes the supply of energy to the brain, potentially causing a complete energy failure and triggering the seizures that characterize a rare disorder like Ohtahara syndrome.

She aims to confirm if the CASK deletion mutation affects mitochondrial function, determine the effects on energy metabolism, and test whether drugs known to boost mitochondrial energy production can mitigate the disease onset or its progression, or both.

Srivastava will conduct the key parts of the study in her laboratory, but studies of the brain's electrical signals will be carried out by her collaborators on the grant, including Howard Goodkin, professor of neurology who studies pediatric epilepsy at the University of Virginia School of Medicine, and Konark Mukherjee, assistant professor at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC who researches the effects of CASK mutations.

"Our goal is to find a potential treatment strategy for a highly devastating neurological disease, for which there is no cure," Srivastava said, "but it could help to alleviate these patients' symptoms and prolong their lives."

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Written by Matt Chittum
Talks between the EU and UK on the Northern Ireland protocol are not making much headway and the EU has insisted that issues of trust will need to be resolved before any UK access to EU financial services will be considered.

The EU and UK are also struggling to make any headway on talks surrounding the Northern Ireland protocol.

Markets will be looking at the Bank of England policy statement on Thursday for any commentary on trade friction and the potential impact on the UK economy. Any reservations over the impact would be likely to hamper the Pound Sterling.

EU Demands UK Brexit Compliance before City of London Talks

Mairead McGuinness, EU commissioner for financial services insisted in comments on Tuesday that Brussels is not trying to steal market share from the City of London.

Our goal is not to move or steal away from London, but to build our own infrastructure,

She also insisted that the EU is not pursuing a protectionist policy on financial services.

The drive toward open strategic autonomy does not mean navel gazing or protectionism. It is not a zero-sum game where someone elses gain does not mean someone elses loss.

McGuiness added that equivalence for the City will be looked at again later this year with the EU examining whether it can restart its review of UK financial services access, but that any decision will be based on the EUs interests.

McGuiness also warned over the impact of wider political tensions and focussed on the issue of trust. Financial services in the EU are not insulated from larger political connections between the EU and UK.

She also commented that Britains avoidance of unilateral acts would benefit financial services co-operation and the EU was waiting to see which path Britain chose: sticking to obligations agreed when it left the EU, or continuing to act on a unilateral basis.

"We hope that the UK will choose the first, more appropriate and sustainable path. When you sign up to international agreements and make commitments, partners need to be able to count on your word and your signature."

Daniel Hodson, founder of TheCityUnited lobby group, said McGuinness comments show the inability of the commission to speak for 27 disparate nations on many key policy issues.

He added; McGuinnesss statement is probably a mainstream Commission view, whereas Macron undoubtedly has more competitive ambitions.

Northern Ireland Friction Continues

In testimony to the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee, Cabinet Minister Frost stated that were trying to find solutions on the Northern Ireland protocol, but there is not an enormous amount of involvement from the EU. He added that; We have an issue if the EU is not more pragmatic.

Jonathan Portes, of the UK in a Changing Europe think-tank warned that the EU could shut off the flow of security and business data. He also noted that; There are other non-tariff barriers the EU could use to disrupt trade. Its not hard to slow things down at Calais simply by imposing extra bureaucratic procedures.

Although Portes considers that Northern Ireland is insignificant for the overall UK economy, he added; The consequences of a wider trade conflict with the EU would certainly not be insignificant for the UK economy.

Danske Bank commented; it is worth keeping an eye on the EU-UK negotiations on the implementation of the Northern Ireland protocol, which is a political risk to look out for near term, now that the grace period is expiring.

Nevertheless, it expects only limited impact; We have learned that they will reach a compromise eventually.
Wednesday, June 23, 2021

To see what is in front of ones nose needs a constant struggle.

George Orwell

The QUICK article clearly demonstrates that Jim Garrison, in late February and early March 1967, put homosexuality at the heart of his investigation into the JFK assassination. It's consistent with what Garrison told journalists like Hugh Aynesworth, James Phelan, Jack Anderson, Merriman Smith, and Art Kevin.

Garrison repeated the same nonsense to the Los Angeles Times:

Los Angeles Times, March 26, 1967

The interest in homosexuality went beyond what Garrison told a few journalists. The journals of Richard Billings and the diary of Tom Bethell are rife with references to homosexuals and homosexuality. As we have shown on this blog, Garrison even sent Assistant D. A. John Volz to talk to Dr. Robert E. Heath at Tulane University about Clay Shaw:

What's interesting is that Volz went to Heath with Garrison's suggestion about Shaw's motive.

Conspiracy theorists like James DiEugenio not only do not discuss the issue of homosexuality in the case, they deny it was ever a factor. Here's James DiEugenio from a review of my book, On The Trail of Delusion:

For the record, there is not one memo I have read that shows Garrison ever outlined such a homosexual-oriented plot. At the beginning of the inquiry, there is evidence that Garrison was suspecting a militant rightwing plot. And as Garrison developed cases against Shaw and Ferrie, he was checking out leads that would connect them in the gay underworld. But nothing that either Peter Vea or Malcolm Blunt ever uncovered shows what Litwin is trying to impute to Garrison. Those two men are the two best pure archival researchers ever on the JFK case. And Vea specialized in the Garrison files.

Here is his reaction to the QUICK articles :

Litwin has gone off the rails. He needs an intervention. No one but him could take this seriously. There is no evidence for what Litwin is talking about, and to actually rely on Aynesworth and Phelan, two FBI stoolies, in order to start your argument shows how desperate the man is. That article is a piece of sensationalism, bordering on pulp. Compare it to any of the interviews Garrison did around that time and you will see the difference. But Litwin does not do that does he? Because that is textual analysis. Relational analysis is comparing what is in an article or essay with the database it comes from.

Ridiculous. Fred, ever hear of textual and relational analysis? The first is where you compare what has been written around that time to the object of inquiry. In that regard, the idea that Garrison ever said anything about this or wrote anything like it amounts to zero. Relational analysis is when you compare the database with the article. Again, zero. Marina drove Oswald to be a homosexual? Clay Shaw was the brains behind the plot? Oswald was in love with Ferrie? Ferrie ordered Ruby to kill LHO? Please Fred.

BTW, anyone who is familiar with Garrisons' files knows what Garrison suspected early on. He thought it was a rightwing, Minuteman kind of a plot. There is evidence of this in the files which Litwin does not want to tell you about. Because it defeats his cheap smear, and politically he does not like it. Which tells you all you need to know. That article is a piece of pulp which is so different than anything Garrison ever wrote or spoke about that only Litwin could think differently. For example, compare it to the Playboy interview of 1967. That Fred could maintain that idea in the face of all this says much more about him than it does about Garrison.

And, of course, he is right that there is no such memo from Jim Garrison about a homosexual plot. But, as seen above, Garrison did discuss such a plot with many people. And the concept of homosexuality animated his investigators who probed people's sexuality and fed Garrison a steady stream of gossip, innuendo and rumors about gay people in New Orleans.

And DiEugenio cannot hide from the fact that Clay Shaw was targeted because he was a homosexual. Here is an excerpt from a paper written by Richard Billings, "The Power of Public Disclosure," complete with an annotation from Jim Garrison.

Here we see Garrison's favorite investigative technique, propinquity, at play. The notation refers to a paragraph on what "convinced Garrison that Shaw and Ferrie were acquainted."

"This plus Marochini plus mutual homosexuality plus C.A.P. + I.T.M. correlations."

Marochini refers to Dante Marochini who had the misfortune of knowing Ferrie and working for Reily Coffee, when Oswald was there greasing the machines. Garrison subpoenaed Marochini for questioning, but he knew nothing.

All throughout Garrison's investigation, homosexuality kept popping up. Here are several examples:

Garrison's investigators knew what he was interested in, and made sure to emphasize any homosexual angle. I've previously posted a memo written by Roger Craig telling Garrison that Marina Oswald's doctor was a homosexual .

Here's a memo with important information on Gordon Novel:

Here's a letter from Garrison to William Turner that borders on the ridiculous:

And they knew where to get leads:

The Mattachine Society was started in 1950 to bring together isolated homosexuals and to assist gay people in need.

Here's a good example of how Garrison focused on homosexuality. Richard Giesbrecht supposedly saw David Ferrie at the airport in Winnipeg, Canada. Here is a memo from William Turner; look at Garrison's interest:

Garrison's notation reads: "Tom: Let me look at the Giesbrecht interview, + see if this adds meaning."

After Clay Shaw's acquittal, Garrison's attention turned to trying to find new evidence regarding his purported perjury. And that meant a new look at many gay leads. The fag ball from 1962 was reexamined .

And here's an important memo:

Even as late as 1977, Garrison was still interested in homosexuality - he gave a list of suggested questions that the HSCA should ask of Thomas Beckham. Here's one about Fred Crisman:

I don't know if James DiEugenio has seen these documents (and many more like them) in the various files. I suspect he has but has ignored them because they don't fit in with his image of Jim Garrison as the brave, swashbuckling District Attorney who battles the powers-that-be.

Jim Garrison ran a sham investigation that was marred by homophobia. There's nothing to be proud of at all.

By the way, the $64 challenge still stands:

What serious evidence did Garrison have, at the time Shaw was arrested, that he had conspired with anybody to kill JFK?

Winner will receive $64, and a signed copy of On The Trail of Delusion.

A Hearty Thank You

Paul Hoch has helped shape this series on QUICK and I am grateful for his incredible research, his terrific copy-editing, and his brilliant insights.

The QUICK Blog Posts

Did a Homosexual Conspiracy Kill JFK?

Was the QUICK article about a homosexual conspiracy written by Jim Garrison? (Part One)

Was the QUICK article about a homosexual conspiracy written by Jim Garrison? (Part Two)

Was the QUICK article about a homosexual conspiracy written by Jim Garrison? (Part Three)

Garrison Disavows the QUICK article

Jim Garrison Does it Again - Claims Ruby and Oswald Were Homosexuals

Jim Garrison Feigns Indication at the Mention of Clay Shaw's Homosexuality

Did Lawrence Schiller Write the QUICK article?
The Need For Digital Distance Education During And After The Pandemic

Introduction

Digital education has been shown to be a necessity due to the COVID 19 pandemic and in view of the existing technological advances. We had other pandemics but our time is unique. Numerous platforms, interfaces and digital media are available to take education anywhere on the planet without us having to be stuck in a classroom.

Education in the Black Death Period

Digital Education has become a great need for the pandemic times in which we live. In the past we have had pandemics like the case of the Black Death. Even mail deliveries were hampered at that time. The Black Death is estimated to have killed between 30% and 60% of Europe's population. It took place between 1347 and 1351.

The result was catastrophic, as the disease affected virtually the entire continent and resulted in the death of millions of people. More traditional estimates say that around 1/3 of the European population died as a result of the Black Death crisis, but some statistics suggest that the death toll may have exceeded half of the European population.

In this period, education has roots in monasteries and churches in a general way. There was no press that was only created by Gutemberg in the 15th century. But there was the exchange of information by letters that had been common in Christianity since the first century. We could call the exchange of letters as the prehistory of distance education. Resources for education at that time were greatly limited compared to what we have today. Looking from this perspective, we are advancing in world education.

Education during the COVID Pandemic 19

According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the UN agency responsible for monitoring and supporting education, communication and culture in the world, the COVID-19 pandemic has already impacted more studies. 1.5 billion students in 188 countries  representing around 91% of the total number of students on the planet.

In the midst of this frightening and troubled panorama, not only in terms of health but also in terms of learning for children and young people, the impacts on education are many. While some open up some problems in the area of Education, others can be opportunities for growth and evolution, it is enough that we know how to work in a coordinated, collaborative and innovative way.

Educational Institutions were forced to change their modalities so that they could offer education using resources offered by current technology in order to cause the least possible damage to education.

The birth of Distance Education and digital education

Education was advancing giving birth to the Distance modality. In the distance modality its repercussion starts with the courses known as postal box. With the birth of radio, distance education was using this electronic medium for later courses broadcast on television. With the birth of the computer, we began to envision digital education.

As a result, we now have numerous interfaces and many of them are free for schools, colleges, universities and even companies to use. This technology reduces costs, optimizes time and can be very enjoyable and fun.

Technology evolved very quickly but everyone had time to apply and master the technology. Those who have not adapted to current technology will be doomed to be left out in many areas of the job market and have trouble adapting to this new world.

We are experiencing a time when many professions and companies ceased to exist. An example of this are video stores in many parts of the world.

The fact is that everyone had an average of 20 years to start adapting to this new world. And now is the time to chase lost time. Even universities that are generally under the same standard as 16th century universities will have to broaden their vision for these facts or they will be left behind in an era where we are struggling for survival. Companies and schools will have to hire people with expertise in digital platforms. Current employees must qualify to hold their positions.

Overcoming prejudice against Distance Education and Digital Education

During the pandemic period, much of the prejudice that existed against distance education had to diminish as the distance modality was put to the test during the pandemic period. Those who had never experienced distance education are experiencing it through interfaces and digital media. These are recognizing its importance. Universities such as Harvard, EBWU, Oxford, MIT have been using the distance modality using the available resources of digital education.

Digital education has proven that many areas of human knowledge can be taught through its interfaces without the need for the presence of the student in the classroom with the teacher.

That's because all human beings learn through their senses. Most senses are sharpened in an online class or even through digital platforms. Digital education today is a necessity and there is no more room for silly prejudices, after all today we are fighting for survival. Interfaces and platforms can no longer be seen as a luxury item for schools, colleges, universities and companies. They have become essential in current times. There is no way to teach without digital media.

Dr. Italu Colares

Theologian, Degree in Philosophy, Psychoanalyst, Psychopedagogist, Writer and Post Doctorate in E-Learning
Internal strife between CPS Energys chief executive and three of the utilitys top lawyers over its winter storm-related legal strategy led to the attorneys resignations, documents obtained by the Express-News indicate.

On Tuesday, CPS confirmed the attorneys had lodged what it called complaints against CEO Paula Gold-Williams in the days leading up to their departures.

Former General Counsel Carolyn Shellman resigned from the utility this month along with former Deputy General Counsels Abigail Ottmers and Zandra Pulis.

In her resignation letter, Ottmers referenced claims the attorneys had made against Gold-Williams. Ottmers last day with CPS was June 4.

As you know, I attempted to resign several weeks ago, but delayed my resignation when certain Board members pleaded for me to stay while the Board addressed certain claims lodged against the CEO, Ottmers wrote in a May 25 letter to Shellman. It is clear to me now that I am not able to fulfill my professional duties to the organization under the working conditions that exist today.

On ExpressNews.com: As CPS Energy names interim general counsel, it says outside lawyer tab to hit $10 million this year

John Davenport, STAFF / San Antonio Express-News

Utility officials previously alluded to disagreements between Gold-Williams and employees as the reason for the resignations.

The attorneys departures came as the utility is waging a massive legal battle against 17 natural gas suppliers over about $700 million in charges stemming from Februarys winter storm. CPS has accused the companies of price-gouging.

CPS has also sued the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, the states electrical grid operator.

On Tuesday, the utility confirmed the lawyers earlier had filed complaints against Gold-Williams, but said, There are always two sides to every story.

Former internal attorneys lodged complaints with the Board of Trustees. Those complaints and related counter-complaints arose primarily from differences in execution style that were brought to the forefront by the intensity and complexity of Winter Storm Uri and its financial aftermath, CPS said in a statement. The Board of Trustees opted to engage an independent legal firm to review those complaints and related counter-complaints. Ultimately, as reported previously, three attorneys resigned, and CPS Energy wishes them the best in their future endeavors.

Pulis and Shellman sent brief letters to CPSs board also confirming their resignations.

About a week after Ottmers and Pullis left  Shellman remained on the job through June 16  CPS Energy promoted former Vice President Shanna Ramirez to interim general counsel. It also promoted Kip Giles, Luis Garcia and Devi Kumar-Nambiar to serve as Ramirezs top deputies.

On ExpressNews.com: With utility eyeing rate increase, new CPS Energy Rate Advisory Committee begins biweekly meetings

The utility didnt publicly discuss the internal turmoil during a board meeting Tuesday.

Instead, staffers laid out plans to close several of CPSs natural gas-fired power plants and one of its two coal-fired plants in the coming years.

During a special meeting of its board of trustees, the utility said it is considering closing the gas-fired Braunig and O.W. Sommers power plants between 2024 and 2027. All three Braunig units and the two Sommers units are located at Calaveras Power Station in Southwest Bexar County.

The Spruce 1 coal unit, meanwhile, will likely be shuttered in about 2028, CPS officials said. The publicly owned utility could be forced to invest more than $150 million to make environmental upgrades at the coal-fired plant to keep it operating beyond 2028, officials said.

There are significant investments beyond our ongoing annual capital (operations and maintenance) spend we would need to make to ensure continued environmental compliance, said Kevin Pollo, CPS vice president of energy supply.

The future of the newer Spruce 2 unit, which was completed in 2010, is fuzzier. CPS officials said the coal-fired plant could be shuttered before 2030 or as late as the early 2040s. The utility could also switch Spruce 2 from coal to run on natural gas, a fuel that emits less pollution.

We could retire that unit or potentially ... convert that to a gas operation, Pollo said. There are some options we have around Spruce.

The utilitys so-called FlexPower Bundle strategy will replace the aging gas-fired and coal plants, though the details arent set. CPS is seeking to add 900 megawatts of solar power, 50 megawatts of battery storage and 500 megawatts from another energy source, probably in the form of a new natural gas-fired power plant.

Over 10 years, building a new gas plant would cost $86 million more than building additional solar farms, CPS said. And a new gas plant would emit 900,000 tons of carbon dioxide annually  or nearly 2,500 tons each day.

The gas-fired power plant would also emit 66 tons annually of nitrous oxide, a harmful compound that forms ozone and acid rain.

But CPS could better predict the amount of power a gas-fired plant would produce. Solar power production, meanwhile, depends on the weather.

Utility officials earlier this spring solicited proposals for new power generation  in the form of renewables, a power plant or another technology. CPS said it would receive an update on the FlexPower Bundle next month.

diego.mendoza-moyers@express-news.net
The California-to-Texas migration continues.

Japan-based Nissei Plastic Industrial Co. said Wednesday it will move its U.S. headquarters to San Antonio from Anaheim, California, next month.

Nissei first expanded to San Antonio in 2016, when it invested $21 million to build a manufacturing facility at Brooks on the Southeast Side. The company produces injection molding machines.

San Antonios location and burgeoning manufacturing industry drove Nissei to consolidate its U.S. Operation here.

San Antonios central location offers easy and quick access to other areas in the U.S., rapidly growing markets in Mexico, and its close proximity to the Port of Houston opens broader access to Central and South America as well as Europe, Nissei President Hozumi Yoda said in a statement.

In addition, the region has one of the largest concentrations of employment in the manufacturing and plastic industry in the U.S., he said.

On ExpressNews.com: Accelerator: SAEDF goes 'all in' on regional strategy

Nissei, which was founded in 1947 and trades on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, said it plans to hire more workers at its new headquarters. The company didnt say how many new jobs it expects to create, however.

Currently, Nissei employs 15 workers at its San Antonio manufacturing facility, officials said.

The San Antonio facility is Nisseis third manufacturing site outside of Japan. The company also operates one plant in China and another in Thailand.

Construction began on the 115,000-square-foot factory at Brooks in late 2016 and opened in May 2018.

Our communitys strategic focus on adding quality manufacturing jobs and educating our workforce to take those great jobs initially brought Nissei to San Antonio, Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff said in a statement.

San Antonios manufacturing industry has largely rebounded from the pandemic-driven downturn in spring 2020. There were more area workers employed in manufacturing earlier this spring than in any time since 2001, according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Even though the number of manufacturing jobs in the city fell slightly in May, employment in the industry was on par with May 2019, prior to the pandemic.

On ExpressNews.com: 'We've been disappointed': Job forecast weakening

Nissei is the second company that has unveiled plans to move its operation to Brooks this year.

Cuisine Solutions, an international food manufacturer, announced in May it will move its global headquarters from Virginia to the business park, the former Brooks Air Force Base. The company spent $200 million to build its production facility there.

We are building a global business hub on San Antonios South Side, said Leo Gomez, president and CEO of Brooks.

diego.mendoza-moyers@

express-news.net
The Hells Angels famously said if you had to ask how to join their biker gang, you didnt belong. The same principle applies to accessing the dark web, that shady internet hideout where all sorts of illegal activity occurs.

But thats not stopping thousands of San Antonians who are intrigued by the webs evil twin.

San Antonio ranked No. 8 among 10 U.S. cities with the most browser searches for information about the dark web, according to a report by Uswitch, a U.K. website that helps people find deals on utilities, broadband, mobile phones, banking and insurance.

This listing obviously isnt one to celebrate. Its more like the early 2000s when San Antonio consistently landed on Old Spices top 10 list of sweatiest cities.

The difference is this new problem requires more than soap and deodorant to clean up.

Thats problematic, said Elias Bou-Harb, director of the University of Texas at San Antonios Cyber Center for Security and Analytics. I would say the majority of people on the dark web are there for what we call an illicit task.

The dark web is a hidden version of the internet that requires special web browsers and search engines to access. Websites on the dark web require encryption so users can remain anonymous and veil their location.

On ExpressNews.com: Are out-of-state takeovers changing the nature of San Antonios nascent cyber industry?

The realm is home to all manner of illegal activity, including sales of drugs, firearms, pornography, passwords, usernames, banking info and Social Security numbers. Many of the transactions rely on untraceable cryptocurrency.

The National Institute of Justice calls the dark web a hub of criminal commerce, a fully functional marketplace where hidden customers can buy from hidden sellers with relative confidence.

The dark web isnt entirely bent on crime and mayhem. The NIJ pointed out that some entities use it for non-illicit activities as well.

It enables anonymous, highly secure communication channels to shield classified government activity and protect reform agents such as human rights activists and journalists opposed by oppressive foreign regimes, the NIJ said.

Nevertheless, UTSAs Bou-Harb finds it troubling that San Antonio has high numbers of people dabbling in the dark web.

I think a minority of those people are just curious about what is out there, he said. Thats why I said its quite worrisome to see a person in San Antonio looking for this.

The U.S. leads the world in the most dark web queries, with India and the United Kingdom rounding out the top three, the report said.

On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio College named NSA cybersecurity hub

Uswitch researchers used Googles Keyword Planner to establish the average monthly search volume in each country and city for the terms dark web and how to access the dark web over the last 12 months.

San Antonio averaged 1,950 monthly dark-web queries, according to the report. New York was No. 1 with 10,220 instances. Los Angeles landed second with 5,610 monthly hits and Houston ranked third with 5,540.

The survey results track closely with cities populations. New York is the largest U.S. city and had the highest number of dark web-related searches, for example; San Antonio is the seventh largest city and placed eighth on the list.

Normally, to really get good or sound numbers on this, you have to communicate with an Internet Service Provider, or ISP, because the Google query is normally passed through some sort of an ISP, like Comcast or whatever, to actually get good numbers, Bou-Harb said. And normally ISPs are hesitant to share this information, so I wonder how they collected the data.

Considering this new sketchy ranking, San Antonios place as a sweaty city wasnt so bad.

Brandon Lingle writes for the Express-News through Report for America, a national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms. ReportforAmerica.org. brandon.lingle@express-news.net
There are some in-person Pride events this year, but the big Pride San Antonio celebration will remain virtual.

A lot of people are calling and asking why its virtual when Fiestas wide open, said James Poindexter, parade director and secretary for Pride San Antonio Inc. Fiesta is not wide open. And it takes so long to produce our event  its like turning a ship to suddenly make changes.

It takes a year to pull together the full, in-person celebration, Poindexter said. Plans are underway now for 2022.

This years event, which will be streamed live from the Bonham Exchange, will include a panel discussion of legal issues impacting the LGBTQ community and videos in which people talk about how they celebrate Pride.

Judge Ron Rangel will conduct a mass wedding of five or six couples. The ceremony has been part of Pride every year since the 2015 Supreme Court ruling upholding same-sex marriage.

On ExpressNews.com: SA writers debut novel is a Latino coming-out story

The Vela Award, which Pride gives each year to a trailblazer, will go to Maria Chavez, a dressmaker who creates ensembles for drag artists. A fashion show spotlighting her work will be part of the festivities.

Pride also will pay tribute to two members of the community who died this past year. Nickie Valdez, who died on Christmas Day, co-founded Dignity San Antonio, which aims to fully involve LGBTQ Catholics in the church. She also helped organize the first conference held in San Antonio for the gay community in 1976, according to her obituary in the Express-News.

Pride also will honor theater artist Greg Hinojosa, who died in April. Hinojosa was involved in Pride, helping with costumes and makeup, among other things. And Fiesta Frenzy, the annual unofficial Fiesta event he staged with his husband Daniel Acosta, raised money for Pride and other organizations that help the LGBTQ community, including the Gay and Lesbian Community Center.

The live stream of the celebration runs from 6 to 10 p.m. June 26 on the Pride San Antonio YouTube page, tinyurl.com/mmadxx48. It is free to watch, though donations will be taken and an online auction will be held to raise money for the Lone Star Chapter of American Veterans for Equal Rights, BEAT AIDS, Fiesta Youth, Metropolitan Community Church, Rape Crisis Center, LGBTQ Coalition of Texas A&M University  San Antonio, the Living Church at Woodlawn Pointe and We Are Alive.

Heres a look at other Pride events:

Fiesta Frenzy: The unofficial Fiesta event has been going on for more than 20 years, spotlighting drag and burlesque artists and other performers. It was created by the late actor and director Greg Hinojosa and his husband Daniel Acosta. Before Hinojosas death in April, he talked to Acosta and others about making sure that the event continued.

This years outing, the first to take place during Pride month, will include several drag performers, including Eryca Daniels (Acosta) who will co-host with Autumn Summers.

Acosta also is directing, taking over Hinojosas behind-the-scenes role for the production. Ill ask, How would Greg put this in the show?  Acosta said. But also, Greg always told me, Daniel, youre a closeted artistic person. Dont just rely on me; rely on your own intuition as well. 

It is the first in-person performance at The Public Theater of San Antonio since March of 2020 because of the pandemic.

Doors open at 6 p.m. and showtime is 7 p.m. June 23, The Public Theater of San Antonio, San Pedro Park at Ashby. $25 at the door.

On ExpressNews.com: Greg Hinojosa, influential San Antonio theater actor and director, dies at 57

Night Out at the Zoo: This is the first year that the San Antonio Zoo has had a Pride event, said Catherine Lorenzo, vice president of revenue. It is the product of the zoos Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council, which was formed six months ago.

Hopefully, well get to do this every year, Lorenzo said. The all-ages event will include food trucks, music, animal encounters and vendors.

6-9 p.m. June 26, San Antonio Zoo. $10, facebook.com/SanAntonioZoo.

Family Pride Night: Centro San Antonio once again is teaming up with San Antonio Lovelist, Gabriela Matas food and lifestyle blog, for a family-themed celebration. The first was held in 2019. The hope is for it to be an annual affair, said Matthew Sirgo, director of storytelling at Centro.

The idea is to fill in a gap in the citys Pride lineup, Sirgo said.

We have this awesome level of Pride every year, and we asked, what is the missing piece? he said. We didnt see that many family Pride events happening around town.

The event will include music by Alyson Alonzo; booths selling wares, including food, from LGBTQ-owned businesses; craft projects; a performance and story time by drag artist Kristi Waters; and a mini-Pride parade around the perimeter of the park led by retired Express-News fashion writer Michael Quintanilla. In addition, information on resources for families and youths will be available.

4:30-7:30 p.m. June 29, Madison Square Park, 400 Lexington. Free.

dlmartin@express-news.net | Twitter: @DeborahMartinEN
The opening of Night in Old San Antonio almost felt like celebrations past for Elsa Trevino-Garrett, chair of the cascarones booth.

Its good to see everyones smile, she said, looking at a crowd spread along Villita Street inside La Villita who were there Tuesday for the kickoff of the four-day celebration.

Crowds of people wearing bright pink, blue and yellow colors appeared to be smaller than in years past with around 50 people accumulating in any given portion of the grounds. But as the evening progressed, the crowd was growing.

San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg, Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff, Rey Feo Thomas Aguillon and King Antonio Phillip Peacock Bakke were greeted with cascarones smashed on their heads by NIOSA organizers as part of the opening ceremony for the 72nd NIOSA.

This is a very special Fiesta this year, Nirenberg said, encouraging people to have a good time and enjoy themselves. Thank you to San Antonio Conservation Society, Judge Nelson Wolff, all of our colleagues and all of the front-line workers, health care workers who worked so hard to get us to this point today.

During a short opening parade through the grounds, rhythmic sounds from the Brackenridge High School drum line got volunteers dancing while preparing their booths and the sounds of Mick Hernandez and the Silverado Band singing a country music rendition of God Bless Fiesta joined with the smell of grilling chicken.

Kin Man Hui /Staff photographer

Tye Wichert and Guy Pritchard wore large, ornate Fiesta hats themed after H-E-B and Fiesta itself, which Wichert fashioned himself.

And of course, there was a line of more than 100 people at Mr. Chicken, the booth of the much-hyped chicken on a stick.

Clarissa Gonzalez, 32, said it was a juicy treat she missed last year.

Its awesome. Weve been through a lot this year, said Gonzalezs aunt Diane Rivera, 54, who has been attending the celebration since 1981.

She and many others missed last years NIOSA, which was postponed and then canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. This years Fiesta was pushed back from April to June.

Almost all attendees had chosen not to wear a mask, but some, like Rivera, kept one in their pockets just in case they ran into a big crowd.

This years NIOSA did have some hiccups, however, as long lines began to develop at the BlastPass stations where people purchase credits to spend at the various booths.

The BlastPass is a wristband that acts as a credit card of sorts to let people quickly pay for food at any booth. People can load any dollar amount onto the wristband at one of the stations at La Villita.

NIOSA Chairman Terry Schoenert said there were not enough volunteers to help prepare the signage for the BlastPass booth. People who had QR codes to pick up their wristbands and credits ended up waiting in lines that were otherwise meant for people who were using other forms of payment.

We will have many improvements tomorrow because we will be better prepared as a whole, Schoenert said.

She said the event was not overly crowded, in part because organizers had limited ticket sales for each night. As of Tuesday night, she said they were at 65 percent of their maximum capacity of more than 30,000 people.

Indeed it was not difficult for people to trek through each of the 14 culturally themed areas or to find an open space among the crowds.

Kevin Scott, 35 of Cincinnati, was holding his daughter as they dance-skipped through Sauerkraut Bend, one of the themed spots, to the sounds of German folk music played by Eurofest.

Im surprised at how extravagant the parade was and just how all-out the whole community goes with all the medals, Scott said.

He said NIOSA was his wifes favorite tradition about coming down to San Antonio. Having the celebration in June made it possible for them to bring the family without their son missing school, he said.

The party, which costs $20 to enter except for children 12 and under, continues from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. nightly through Friday.

Entrance tickets may be purchased online at www.niosa.org/p/tickets or in person at two gates of NIOSA including the CPS gate at the intersection of Villita and St. Marys streets, and the Hilton gate at Villita and South Alamo streets.
With its intense saltiness, bright, acidic tang and fiery sting of chile, its hard to imagine a more puro San Antonio flavor than chamoy. The brilliant red sauce can be found rimming countless glasses and beer cans, drizzled over all forms of fruit and vegetables, doused over snow cones and more in scores of restaurants and homes across the city.

But that wasnt always the case. Chamoy is a relative newcomer to the Mexican and Texan culinary canon with roots half a world away, and initially, the word chamoy meant something entirely different from the intensely flavorful condiment we consume today.

Like many iconic foods, chamoys precise origins are somewhat cloudy, but this much is certain: it was a candy long before it became a condiment.

If you grew up in South Texas anytime before the 1990s, you likely knew chamoy as this: an intensely salty and sometimes chile-coated candy made from dehydrated apricots that would simultaneously turn your mouth a shocking vermilion and stun most of your taste buds with salinity. You may have purchased them under the name saladitos or Chinese candy  the moniker preferred by San Antonio confection manufacturer Alamo Candy.

So how did that candy chamoy become the saucy chamoy of today?

Food historian Rachel Laudan says chamoys roots are almost certainly Chinese, noting Asian immigrants have been arriving in Mexico since the 1560s. Those migrants would have been quite familiar with a cured stonefruit known in China as crack seed  pronounced see-MOY in Cantonese  often made from a type of apricot that had its seed split to impart flavor into the preserved fruit.

And that technique spread throughout Asia, with kindred versions of of salt-cured stonefruit finding traction in Japan, Korea and Vietnam. Their versions all were given names that sound similar to see-MOY. .

The guy who popularized the candy chamoy likely was Teikichi Iwadare, who arrived in Mexico from Japan with his wife in 1923.

After the WWII, Iwadare settled in Mexico City and began producing Japan-style see-MOY from apricots. Iwadare called the product chamoy, a term that would have been recognizable as a reference to salt-cured fruit by speakers of several Asian languages.

On ExpressNews.com: South Texans and San Antonians love their pickles. Danke schon, German immigrants

Iwadare also launched a product dubbed Brinquitos  a tangy candy made from chile, sugar, ascorbic acid and other ingredients  that became a popular topping on fresh fruit. Iwadares blend of palate-teasing flavors that lit up every corner of the mouth with sweetness, saltiness, acidity and spice quickly took hold across Mexico and spread into Texas and the Southwest, although remains an acquired taste in other parts of North and South America.

Its been argued that Brinquitos and chamoy were combined and transformed into the modern chamoy sauce.

Paul Stephen /Staff

While chamoy the condiment  the term is sometimes confusingly used to refer to both the dried fruit and sticky, sweet sauce  was being produced for the mass market by a company named Dulces Miguelito in the 1970s, Laudan says it didn't gain widespread popularity until the 1990s.

Since then, that habit-forming amalgamation of salt, spice, sweetness and tang has been put to countless culinary applications, and judging by the numerous places we can find chamoy used today, that evolution isnt likely to slow down any time soon.

On ExpressNews.com: 4 places for the most puro San Antonio pickle treats

Many commercially produced chamoy sauces, while full of intense tongue-tingling flavor, are also loaded with corn syrup, preservatives and artificial colors. Fortunately, its not hard to make an impressive and widely applicable version of the sauce at home.

Our recipe starts with dried apricots and adds the smokiness of pickled chipotle chiles (the onion-heavy flavor of chipotles packed in adobo sauce is too intense) blended into a condiment perfect for cocktails, fruit or any other use where a commercially produced chamoy might be desired. The color isnt as bright red, but the flavor is even more lively than the already potent sauce weve come to love in San Antonio.

Recipe: Homemade Chamoy Sauce

pstephen@express-news.net | Twitter: @pjbites | Instagram: @pjstephen
BANGKOK (AP)  Britain's top diplomat met Wednesday with his Cambodian counterpart as he pushed for closer economic relations to Southeast Asia, part of the U.K.'s new emphasis on the region.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab met with Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn in Phnom Penh in what his office said was the first visit by a British foreign secretary to Cambodia since the British Embassy was reopened 30 years ago.

Cambodia is to take over the rotating annual chairmanship next year of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, and Raab's office said he would make the case for Britain to attain dialogue partnership with the 10-nation bloc, the closest relationship for non-member countries.

Here to boost trade, support Cambodias energy transition, expand UK ASEAN cooperation  and as a force for good in the Indo-Pacific, Raab tweeted ahead of his meetings.

Following the meeting, Cambodia's Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying the country was strongly supportive of Britain's aspirations for dialogue partnership, taking into consideration its already very active engagement with ASEAN.

Britain is currently pursuing a tilt toward the Indo-Pacific region that was recommended by a recent British government review of defense and foreign policy in response to Chinas growing influence on the world stage.

Beyond trade, Britain earlier this year dispatched a strike group led by the Royal Navys flagship aircraft carrier the HMS Queen Elizabeth on a 28-week deployment to Asia.

As Raab met with officials, human rights observers noted that Cambodia has recently arrested and imprisoned environmental activists and urged the foreign secretary to call for their release, as well as some 70 other political prisoners.

Foreign Secretary Raabs visit comes in the midst of a human rights crisis in Cambodia, and both his talking points and public pronouncements need to reflect that," said Phil Robertson, Human Rights Watch's deputy Asia director.

The U.K. should also ensure any future trade preferences granted to Cambodia be firmly based on improvements in civil and political rights," he said.

Following his meeting with Prak Sokhonn, Raab tweeted that the two had talked about our shared priorities such as trade, human rights & #Myanmar, but did not elaborate.

Raab also met with Environment Minister Say Sam Al. Ministry spokesperson Neth Pheaktra said in a tweet that the two talked about joint priorities including human rights, trade, COVID-19 and Myanmar. He did not provide further details.

The Foreign Ministry did not comment on the issue of human rights.

Raab started his three-country trip in Vietnam and is to head to Singapore after his visit to Cambodia.

It is his fifth visit to Southeast Asia as foreign secretary.
AUSTIN, Texas (AP)  Prosecutors are dropping criminal charges against two juveniles after police identified a different gunman in a mass shooting in downtown Austin that killed a tourist and wounded more than a dozen others, authorities said Tuesday.

Authorities have said the June 12 shooting on Austin's Sixth Street arose after an argument between two groups of teenagers from the nearby city of Killeen. Douglas John Kantor, 25, was killed by gunfire.

Police initially arrested 17-year-old Jeremiah Tabb on an aggravated assault charge and another juvenile, whose name wasn't released. Tabb was charged as an adult.

On ExpressNews: New York tourist dies after shooting in downtown Austin

Austin Interim Police Chief Joseph Chacon said Tuesday that investigators identified a different person, 19-year-old De'ondre White, as the shooter and a warrant for murder has been issued for his arrest.

White is not yet in custody, Chacon said.

Chacon said Tabb and the arrested juvenile were both involved in the dispute and had guns, but ballistics evidence determined that the shot that killed Kantor came from White's gun.

These two individuals were involved. This is not people who were innocent bystanders or somehow incorrectly identified in this case, he said.

Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza said his office chose to dismiss the charges against Tabb and the juvenile because they wanted to focus on the murder case.

When the time comes we will evaluate the totality of the evidence in this case. If the evidence bears it out, both people will be appropriately charged, Garza said.

Tabb was still jailed in Travis County on Tuesday morning and it wasn't clear whether he had an attorney who could speak on his behalf.
More than 150 Houston Methodist Hospital employees resigned or have been fired as of Tuesday over a recent policy that required hospital employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 by Monday.

All told, 153 people are no longer employees of the Houston health care chain, Methodist spokesperson Patti Muck said. The hospital has about 25,000 employees, nearly all of whom have abided by the policy, Methodist leaders have said previously.

The firings follow a contentious few weeks in which hospital employees staged protests and filed a lawsuit against the hospital, claiming the policy, announced in April, violated their rights. Methodist was one of the first large health care providers in the country to announce vaccine requirements.

Im so happy and relieved, Jennifer Bridges, the lead plaintiff in the suit, said Tuesday. I dont want any part of Methodist.

Earlier this month, a federal judge tossed the lawsuit filed by more than 100 Methodist employees, most of whom were not doctors or nurses. In it, the plaintiffs argued Methodists policy violated the Nuremberg Codes, a World War II- era agreement that bans involuntary participation in medical trials.

Bridges said Tuesday that she and others planned to protest outside Methodist on Saturday, and that conspiracy theorist Alex Jones will be in attendance.

COVID HELP DESK: Do vaccines directly correlate to lowering case counts?

In a ruling earlier this month, U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes disagreed with claims made by Bridges and others.

Methodist is trying to do their business of saving lives without giving them the COVID-19 virus, the judge wrote. It is a choice made to keep staff, patients and their families safer.

Hughes also denied a request for a temporary restraining order to block the hospital from suspending the 178 employees who have not received a shot.

Equating the injection requirement to medical experimentation in concentration camps is reprehensible, Hughes said. Nazi doctors conducted medical experiments on victims that caused pain, mutilation, permanent disability, and in many cases, death.

Twenty-seven of the 178 employees who were suspended for two weeks without pay as a result of the requirement earlier this month had already received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. The hospital said then that those employees would no longer be at risk of termination if they receive their second during the suspension.

On Tuesday, a Methodist spokesperson said a portion of the employees became compliant with the policy.Some chose to resign during the two-week suspension period, the spokesperson said.

MORE HEALTH NEWS: For Houston's doctors, a new toll of the pandemic has arrived: burnout

Jared Woodfill, the longtime conservative activist and politician who represented the plaintiffs in that suit, criticized the hospital on Tuesday.

I just think its outrageous that (hospital leaders) would send this message to people who sacrificed so much, Woodfill said.

In May, federal regulators issued guidance allowing employers to require proof of vaccination as a condition of employment.

Under Texas law, health care workers are not required to receive specific vaccines. Hospitals in the state must offer hepatitis vaccines to employees and allow for religious exemptions, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The U.S. government allows employers to craft their own vaccine policies, giving them broad authority when it comes to asking about employees vaccination statuses, provided that information is kept confidential, Susan Bickley, a labor and employment attorney at Houstons Blank Rome, told the Chronicle last month.

Last month, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said that employers can mandate employee vaccinations, provided they don't violate provisions of the American with Disabilities Act or religious exemptions.

When asked if she plans to continue fighting her former employer, Bridges answer was succinct: Hell yes.

robert.downen@chron.com; julian.gill@chron.com
U.S. Army North has a new manager for the 925 homes on Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston  a company fighting lawsuits alleging it was a poor steward of military housing at JBSA-Randolph and other bases.

Hunt Military Communities, which is based in El Paso, will take over asset and property management from Lincoln Military Housing, the command said. The deputy assistant secretary of the Army for installations, energy and environment approved the transfer of Lincolns interest to Hunt on June 15.

Some details of the deal werent immediately available from the Army or the companies, including the value of the transaction. The transfer took place Tuesday.

Hunt, Lincoln and a third company, Balfour Beatty Communities, which all have long-term Pentagon contracts to manage base housing, have been dogged by residents claims of problems, the biggest of which JBSA leaders have said is timely completion of housing maintenance work orders.

The firms also have been lambasted by residents and in lawsuits about the quality of maintenance work being performed, and humidity and mold issues.

Problems with privatized housing in military communities have brought not only lawsuits but intense scrutiny from the government. The myriad complaints from residents, typically uniformed personnel and their dependents, prompted the Pentagon to craft a Resident Bill of Rights.

Claims of ill-managed privatized housing also have the attention of the Justice Department, which last week said two former employees of Balfour Beatty pleaded guilty to their roles in a scheme to defraud the Air Force in connection with privatized military housing contracts between 2013 and 2016 at JBSA-Lackland and other Air Force bases.

On ExpressNews.com: Pair admit housing fraud conspiracy at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland and Air Force bases across the nation

The lawsuits include a pair lodged by San Antonio and Houston attorneys against Balfour Beatty and Hunt, which manages 317 units at Randolph. Balfour Beatty oversaw around 885 homes at Lackland in 2019.

Army North said in a press release that as part of its acquisition, Hunt would assume a partnership interest with the Army on management of the 925 homes that dot eight neighborhoods at Fort Sam.

Lt. Gen. Laura Richardson, U.S. Army North commander, said Hunt is committed to putting our people first and ensuring a seamless transition for residents, employees and partners, and committed to preserving Fort Sams legacy as one of the oldest posts in the Army, the release said.

Hunt will be responsible for housing repairs and maintenance, the Army Installation Management Command said, adding in a statement that the local commands were all aware of the potential transaction for planning purposes, but not directly involved in negotiating it. Private partners, IMCOM added, coordinate such transactions with Army headquarters.

A Lincoln representative would not comment on the value of the deal but said the majority of the firms 36,000 homes in 40 locations are concentrated on the East and West coasts, and that with Hunt already the largest provider of military housing in the San Antonio area, this transaction made sense for both parties.

JOHN DAVENPORT /JD

A Hunt spokeswoman, Brenda Christman, also would not comment on the cost of the deal, but said it was limited to Fort Sam.

This is good for the Army because Hunt Military Communities, the Department of Defenses largest private housing partner with over 165,000 residents in approximately 52,000 homes at 41 installations in 21 states, brings economies of scale, as well as depth and breadth of experience to its management of housing here, IMCOMs commander, Lt. Gen. Douglas M. Gabram, said in the Army North release.

IMCOM is headquartered at Fort Sam and will oversee the partnership. IMCOM is a major subordinate command of Army Material Command, which took the lead on housing for the service two years ago.

Since IMCOM took over that task in the wake of lawsuits and widespread criticism of some companies management of Pentagon properties, the Army and other services have created complaint hotlines and mobile apps that allow residents to submit and track work orders. Commanders have held town hall meetings for troops and their families living in privatized homes.

The Residential Communities Initiative, which includes Hunt and other firms that manage housing on Army installations, is working with the services to invest in major renovations and new construction in a bid to improve on-base housing.

In one of the most notorious San Antonio cases, a historic stucco and clay tile-roofed home at Randolph got the nickname the poop house because of the foul odor caused by raw sewage that swirled beneath a crawl space's wooden trap door.

The family that lived there had to flee the house. The couple joined a lawsuit against Hunt that alleges military families were harmed while living in homes at Randolph and Laughlin AFB in Del Rio.

Hunt also is being sued by military families at Keesler AFB in Boloxi, Miss., attorney Ryan Reed of San Antonio said.

On ExpressNews.com: Family fled sewage-contaminated house on San Antonio base

These companies have a remarkable lack of concern for these military members, said Houston attorney Jim Moriarty, who along with a San Antonio firm recently filed suit against Balfour Beatty on behalf of 10 families, alleging exposure to mold, mildew and asbestos.

They treat them with contempt, they treat their complaints with contempt, they train their people to lie, they train their people to never write down mold, and the problem is the culture is set at the top, and that culture permeates the entire organization.

sigc@express-news.net
A 33-year-old woman accused of ramming into a police patrol car and several other vehicles was arrested Tuesday at a Southwest Side gas station.

Officers were assisting another San Antonio Police Department unit in the 3600 block of Fredericksburg around 1 p.m. when they encountered the woman who became belligerent with officers, police said.

Police said they asked the woman to leave after she began impeding traffic. She left but then returned and continued to be belligerent, police said. In addition, she committed several traffic violations, police added.

Express Briefing: Get the morning headlines in your inbox

The woman then rammed into a police patrol car and other vehicles before fleeing the scene, police said.

Police said officers followed at a safe distance through the West Side and South sides before arresting the woman at a 7-Eleven gas station in the 2600 block of Zarzamora.

Rodriguez said this was not a chase or pursuit but rather a follow.

Police said the woman is facing charges for aggravated assault against a peace officer and evading arrest.

According to SAPD public information officer Jennifer Rodriguez, the officer in the vehicle was not hurt by the collision.

Police said they are currently investigating whether there were other possible offenses committed by the woman.

NOTE: This report has been updated to correct the womans age.

gabriella.ybarra@express-news.net
Over the span of about a week, Texas received $459,000 in private donations for the states planned wall at the southern border, the governors office said Wednesday.

This comes after Gov. Greg Abbott said he would reallocate $250 million in state funds as a down payment for the project  while crowdfunding some of the remaining costs.

The identities of the donors and how much they donated to the wall construction are not readily available and can only be obtained through public information requests, a spokesperson for Abbott said. Eventually, Abbotts office said, the total donations figure will be available online on a website that currently solicits people to donate.

Abbott has not given an estimate of the projects total costs or details of how long the wall will be or where it will be located but said he expected it to be hundreds of miles long. He directed the Texas Facilities Commission to hire a program manager who will lead efforts to determine those factors.

The commission said in a June 17 statement it began work on creating a request for proposal for the program manager position, saying it would remain transparent and compliant with State competitive bidding standards.

Abbott also said he expects Texans to volunteer their land for the project and said he would send a letter to President Joe Biden asking the federal government to return land the Trump administration took from private property owners in Texas to build a border wall.

The Trump administration had met fierce resistance from private property owners unwilling to allow the federal government to build on their land. Land Commissioner George P. Bush said last week he would grant emergency authorization for the building of the wall on state lands, which makes up about 591,595 surface acres along the border.

Promises and calls for a border wall between Mexico and the U.S. were a hallmark of former President Donald Trump and his supporters, both during his campaigns and his presidency. Trumps administration built about 450 miles of barrier, mostly in Arizona, according to the Washington Post. Trump is set to tour the border with Abbott next week. Vice President Kamala Harris will head to the U.S.-Mexico border on Friday.

Construction on the federal wall largely stopped after Biden in January ordered federal agencies to pause construction on the barrier where possible. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told House lawmakers DHS is not requesting further border wall funding in its 2022 budget proposal to Congress.

Tensions over border security have risen between the Democrat president and the two-term Republican governor.

Abbott has blamed Bidens immigration policies for the increase of immigrants on the states southern border, saying in a disaster declaration that new federal policies have paved the way for dangerous gangs and cartels, human traffickers, and deadly drugs like fentanyl to pour into our communities. Abbott has announced a partnership with the state of Arizona calling for other states to send law enforcement officials to help border states arrest and jail immigrants crossing the border.

There were 180,034 border crossings last month, compared with fewer than 25,000 border crossings in late 2020, according to data from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection. During the Trump administration, the highest recorded number of apprehensions was nearly 150,000.

Portions of the existing wall in Texas cost $26.5 million per mile to construct, federal lawmakers have said. The Biden administration has said building the wall cost taxpayers $46 million per mile in some areas along the border.

Texas border fundraiser has already surpassed a similar effort in 2011 by the Arizona Legislature. That effort received almost $270,000 by 2014, but the attempt was abandoned and the money reallocated after estimates for the final project stretched into the billions, according to the Arizona Republic.

The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Learn more at texastribune.org.
Eight years ago next month, Rick Perry stood in the middle of San Antonios Holt Cat dealership on a Monday afternoon and announced that his long tenure as Texas governor was coming to an end.

Six days later, then-Attorney General Greg Abbott officially launched his campaign to succeed Perry.

The whole thing felt so perfectly coordinated. There was barely a moment for any doubt or uncertainty to creep in about who the GOPs gubernatorial nominee would be in 2014.

Texas Democrats, as a rule, dont work like that.

In late 2009, as Perry prepared to run for his third complete term, Democrats were still scrambling for a viable challenger. They found one only after then-Houston Mayor Bill White decided in early December to abandon his campaign for the U.S. Senate and pivot to the governors race.

Four years later, Democrats were devoid of serious gubernatorial prospects until an 11-hour abortion-rights filibuster from state Sen. Wendy Davis electrified progressive activists across the country. Three-and-a-half months later, Davis declared her candidacy for governor.

Davis wound up losing to Abbott by more than 20 percentage points, but in November 2017, she indicated that she hadnt completely shut the door on running again.

Ive ruled it out 99 percent, she told Texas Tribune co-founder/CEO Evan Smith. When Smith asked why she was leaving that 1 percent chance of running, Davis said, Because no one is stepping forward.

A month later, Lupe Valdez, then the sheriff of Dallas County, entered the race. In a 2018 election which saw Democrats come within five percentage points of victory in four statewide races, Valdez lost to Abbott by 13.3 percent.

Nick Wagner, POOL / Associated Press

Strong gubernatorial coattails could have put Gina Ortiz Jones over the top in U.S. District 23 (where she lost to Republican incumbent Will Hurd by only 926 votes out of more than 200,000 cast). Such coattails also could have swung nine or 10 tight Texas House races, enough to give Democrats control of the House.

These days, Texas Democrats are confined to the same box where theyve resided since Ann Richards lost her 1994 re-election bid to George W. Bush. Were in the early days of summer, the year before a gubernatorial election, and Democrats have no idea who their candidate will be.

It wouldnt be fair to say they have no plan. Its just that the plan is a sketchy one. Its called Beto or Bust.

Either former El Paso Congressman Beto ORourke follows through on hints that he may challenge Abbott or the party will be left with a late-starting, obscure slate of candidates with no demonstrated fundraising muscle.

It might be a stretch to say that if ORourke bows out, Democrats will concede the governors race. But it wouldnt be much of a stretch.

The problem for Democrats is a chronic one. The last two Republican governors in this state set themselves up by winning other statewide offices. Democrats, who have not won a statewide race in 27 years, dont have candidates positioned in that way.

Legislative seats currently constitute the ceiling for Texas Democrats in state government and its a major sacrifice for a promising young state senator or representative to give up a seat for a long-shot bid at the governors office.

Im sure many Texas Democrats would love the thought of San Antonio Congressman Joaquin Castro going up against Abbott. But would they like to see Castro relinquish his congressional seat, and his growing influence on Capitol Hill, to do it?

Cal Jillson, Political Science professor at Southern Methodist University, captured this dilemma in 2013. Jillson said Democrats wouldnt want to squander their best future candidate in a futile race.

ORourke wouldnt have to give up an elective office to run for governor. He would bring undeniable star power and wouldnt have problems raising money.

On the other hand, as a gubernatorial candidate, he would face the possibility of his third losing campaign in four years.

His 2018 loss to U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz qualified as a moral victory of sorts, because he came closer  and did more to get people to the polls  than any Texas Democrat in a generation.

His 2020 presidential candidacy, however, never found its footing and it diminished his political luster.

In 2022, Abbott wouldnt let voters in this gun-loving state forget ORourkes stated support for a mandatory assault-weapon buyback program.

Nonetheless, ORourke might have the best chance of prosecuting the case against Abbott at a time when the governor is vulnerable on a wide range of issues: the shakiness of the states electric grid, the GOPs determination to restrict voter rights (a pet issue for ORourke), Abbotts stubborn refusal to accept a Medicaid expansion deal that would bring coverage to 1.4 million uninsured Texans and the governors wishy-washy handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

For now, Democrats can only wait to see what ORourke decides. They have no choice.

ggarcia@express-news.net | Twitter: @gilgamesh470
Saturday marked the sixth time this year the state environmental agency alerted San Antonio residents that smog levels would reach unsafe levels. With the summer smog season fully underway, were sure to see many more of these so-called Ozone Action Days. Unfortunately, a bill Gov. Greg Abbott recently signed will make it harder for Texas to fight dangerous air pollution.

Air pollution is a serious problem in Texas. Major metro areas such as Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, San Antonio and Beaumont-Port Arthur have such chronic smog problems they fail to meet the standards of the Clean Air Act.

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality warns that smog can cause decreased lung function and pain with deep breaths, and aggravated asthma symptoms. The American Lung Associations 2021 State of the Air report ranked Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth and El Paso among the 25 most-polluted cities, and found communities of color are significantly more likely to be exposed to polluted air. Every year, 17,000 Texans die from air pollution, according to a recent study from Harvard University.

In 2001, the Legislature formed the Texas Emissions Reduction Plan, or TERP, to fight air pollution. TERP offers grants to replace old, dirty engines in vehicles, reducing air pollution. Texas school districts, for example, can apply for state assistance to reduce school bus exhaust and emissions. Its a public health no-brainer, especially for children who spend a lot of time on the bus.

Addressing school bus pollution is popular. Last year, school districts requested more than $18 million in grants for clean buses. However, the state provided only about one-third of the funding because the Legislature has never fully funded TERP. Each year, Texans pay around $260 million in vehicle title transfer and other fees. That money is supposed to be dedicated to the TERP clean air fund, but for years, the Legislature has used it to balance the budget. In the past 20 years, the state has hoarded almost $2 billion that was supposed to go to clean air programs.

In an attempt to address the states air quality crisis and provide transparency, the Legislature passed a law in 2019 guaranteeing all clean air funds would go to fund clean air efforts. Before the law could take effect, however, this Legislature passed another bill that redirected at least 35 percent of the clean air funds to the Texas Department of Transportation for Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality, or CMAQ. In theory, CMAQ could support programs that help clean air, for example, by investing in bike lanes or sidewalks. In Texas, however, the funds are primarily used to build or expand roads, which can create a greater pollution problem.

Texas is facing a deadly air pollution problem, placing the health of residents at risk, especially older adults, children and people with lung disease. Its unconscionable the Legislature chooses to not fully fund clean air. The Legislature has largely refused to make industry and vehicle manufacturers reduce their pollution, instead providing grants to encourage companies to clean the air. But now the state is not even fully funding those grants  and Texans are left with dirty air.

Texas is famous for its wide open spaces and big, blue skies. Our children will inherit the state we choose to leave them. For their sake, lets make sure the future of Texas is a clean one.

Luke Metzger is executive director of Environment Texas, a nonprofit advocate for clean air, clean water and open spaces. Charlie Gagen is the Texas director of advocacy for the American Lung Association.
From an innovating jobs creator to sad eyesore and source of controversy, the complicated story of the once-bustling 1923 Friedrich Air Conditioning Co. factory site on the East Side is adding more chapters.

At its peak in the 1950s and 1960s, the landmark building at 1617 E. Commerce St. was one of the worlds largest manufacturers of commercial refrigeration equipment and air-conditioner units in the United States, employing more than 600 people. On weekdays, 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. were announced by its blaring whistle.

On ExpressNews.com: Despite opposition, housing trust approves plans to redevelop East Side's Friedrich complex

When the business, founded in 1883 as a furniture company, was shut down in 1990, the Friedrich factory became a vacant, brooding building. For decades there have been serial fantasies of resurrecting it into a catalyst for economic development for Denver Heights, Dignowity Hill and the East Side.

One afternoon in 2010, then-Mayor Julian Castro and Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff stood with other city and county officials in the Friedrich to announce new ordinances meant to encourage investment in the East Side.

Later that year, the city considered buying the building to house the San Antonio Independent School District headquarters.

But converting it into lofts and apartments has been the most frequent proposal. Nothing happened, and the Friedrich remained vacant, becoming more dilapidated and depressing, pockmarked with dark and broken windows.

Now, finally, this will change.

Courtesy of Provident Realty Advisors /

On June 14, the San Antonio Housing Trust Public Facility Corp., or PFC, voted to allow Dallas-based Provident Realty Advisors, through a partnership with the PFC, to build 358 apartments and to demolish most of the buildings occupying East Commerce, North Pine, North Olive and Gibbs streets. In exchange for the developers agreeing that half of its units would be affordable, PFC will provide them with a full property tax exemption for 75 years.

What should be welcome news  finally, the Friedrich building will be replaced with something beneficial  is tempered by a rushed vote and the question of whether enough affordable housing will be included.

A vote had been scheduled June 8 for a proposal that would have included 14 units priced for residents making 60 percent of the area median income, but it was delayed after District 9 Councilman John Courage objected because there were not more affordable units. Outgoing District 5 Councilwoman Shirley Gonzales unfairly attributed Courages objection to racism.

The vote was delayed, and the new proposal, passed last week, increased the number of lower-income units to 24.

There also will be 155 units priced for people making 80 percent or less of the area median income, or AMI. The remaining 179 units will be rented at market rate. But the 155 units for people making 80 percent or less of the area median income will come with a monthly rent of $1,100, far from affordable for many people.

On ExpressNews.com: 'Flat-out racism': Councilmembers spar over East Side Friedrich building redevelopment

Aside from the issue of what affordable means, we agree with Express-News columnist Gilbert Garcia that the hurried vote displayed an awful disregard for process. Of the five council members on the PFC, three of them, including Gonzales, left office the day after the vote. New District 2 Councilman Jalen McKee-Rodriguez, in whose district the Friedrich site sits, was denied input for a significant project he inherits.

San Antonio Housing Trust Executive Director Pete Alanis said that had the vote not been taken last week, funding could have been pulled before the PFC reconvened in August. A project three years in the making for a site dormant for 31 years couldnt wait another two months?

Concerns about gentrification and the need for more affordable housing underlined Courages initial objection to the project.

Broken promises are nothing new for East Side residents, who never saw the economic revitalization that the Alamodome and AT&T Center were supposed to deliver. They are right to be skeptical about the Friedrich projects impact on their neighborhoods.

Newly built apartments and lofts are preferable to what has sat forlornly for three decades. That means this new chapter will be a story of progress. But at whose cost?
Two years ago, a city-commissioned report revealed a stunning reality: A San Antonio nonprofit created to provide affordable housing was in shambles and barely producing apartments for the citys poorest residents.

The San Antonio Housing Trust approved deals that took housing developments worth tens of millions of dollars off the tax rolls in exchange for apartments out of reach for the neediest households. The trust lacked the affordable housing expertise to make the deals, the report found.

As a result, the trust  once an obscure tendril of the citys acronym-laden housing bureaucracy  turned into a lightning rod for housing advocates who accused the trust and its most active arm, the Public Facility Corp., of prioritizing wealthier households as the citys housing crisis worsened.

I think the more people learn about this tool, the more unfair they realize it is, said Sofia Lopez, a former San Antonio Housing Authority commissioner.

Lopez added, People see their rents going up. People see their taxes going up. They dont see anything thats making that situation any better.

Now, trust officials and city leaders have made moves to clean up the nonprofits act. Many leaders now acknowledge the trust went astray  focusing more on economic development than affordable housing. For much of the past decade, city officials broadly focused on subsidizing apartments in the urban core aimed at well-to-do households rather than poorer residents. Thats shifted in the past few years.

Mayor Ron Nirenberg chalked up the trusts dysfunction to a lack of a broader affordable housing strategy over the years. Often, the citys various housing entities pursued their own projects without talking to each other  something Nirenberg and city staff have tried to improve.

The controversies and projects that didnt have community support, I think, were largely symptomatic of the fact that the entire ecosystem of housing needed to be aligned and coordinated, Nirenberg said. And outside of that, each individual entity became ships without rudders.

This month, the City Council made a slew of oversight changes to the trust in an effort to bring more coordination and housing expertise into the fold. Before, five council members appointed by the mayor sat on two of the trusts four boards, including the PFC. Now, they will sit on all four. The boards will also have an array of nonvoting housing experts and community advocates to weigh in on each project that council members vote on.

Shuffling and streamlining the trusts oversight doesnt solve the issue of how to use the trust to create affordable housing, said Pedro Alanis, the trusts executive director. But what it does is it provides us with the unified strategic thinking to get us there.

To Lopez, having housing experts on hand means little if they cant vote.

I think its kind of absurd to include people in a really kind of ceremonial role  and not give them any meaningful voice in how those votes turn out, Lopez said.

On ExpressNews.com: Failings of San Antonio affordable housing trust revealed in report

The exact makeup of the trusts oversight hasnt been decided. A panel made up in part of former council members who worked on the PFC is fielding nonvoting applicants to serve on the four boards, which the council will later vote on. Meanwhile, the mayor is expected to name a slate of five council members in July, when he figures out who will sit on council committees.

Up in the air is which council members Nirenberg will name. Traditionally, council members from the East, West and South sides plus downtown have sat on the boards. But Nirenberg partially bucked that tradition in his last term by swapping out the District 2 seat for Councilman John Courage of District 9 on the North Side.

Now, a pair of young progressives critical of the citys past approach to housing deals and the influence of developers occupy council seats in Districts 2 and 5: Jalen McKee-Rodriguez and Teri Castillo. Past council members in those districts have taken spots on two of the trusts arms, including the PFC.

The PFC drew scrutiny from community activists for recently approving a controversial East Side development the day before McKee-Rodriguez was sworn in and could have had a formal say in the matter. Proponents contended the project had been thoroughly vetted in a years-long process.

Its unclear whether Nirenberg will pick McKee-Rodriguez and Castillo to sit on the PFC.

Were trying to align the committees with the interest level of council members and also where the need for perspective is, Nirenberg said.

Nirenberg would be wise to pick the two newcomers, Lopez contended.

We know that there are two people who have said theyre much more interested in fighting for development that meets this communitys needs, Lopez said. If (Nirenberg) chooses to ignore that, itll be a very obvious and very intentional decision on his part.

McKee-Rodriguez and Castillo did not return calls and text messages seeking comment.

On ExpressNews.com: Despite opposition, housing trust approves plans to redevelop East Side's Friedrich complex

Courage is optimistic the oversight changes will lead to more affordable housing no matter which council members are in the mix  but its possible the PFC could still pursue market-rate housing in some fashion.

Im pretty sure were going to see some new initiatives to try and find the partners who can truly build more affordable properties in many parts of the city, Courage said.

Still, the trust is looking for ways to finance affordable housing. Alanis and Courage each floated the idea of using a potential housing bond  a power given to the city by voters in November  to create a pool of funds to back affordable developments. The idea would be to wean developers who come before the PFC off private equity to finance their projects, which makes it more difficult to bring rents down.

Its not that we dont have the will, Alanis said. We dont have the tools.

Affordability

Nearly half of the 11,656 apartments created or in the works with backing by the PFC are aimed at families making 60 percent of the area median income.

The area median income stood at $74,100 for a family of four in the San Antonio-New Braunfels metropolitan area this year. Housing activists have long warned that those income figures  set by the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department  are too high for San Antonio, the poorest major U.S. city.

For more than a fifth of those units, developers can charge whatever rents the market can fetch. An additional 18 percent are geared toward households making 80 percent of the area median income  which some have argued isnt affordable.

The number of apartments for needier families subsidized by the PFC has ticked up slightly in recent years but is still fairly low. More than 5 percent of the PFCs housing units are set aside for those making 50 percent of the area median income.

Housing for the citys poorest families  those making 30 percent of the area median income  stands at 2.5 percent.

To date, the PFC has backed about $1.9 billion in apartment complexes that have been finished, are under construction or are in the planning stages. In exchange for total property tax and sales tax breaks, developers must rent at least half the units to tenants making 80 percent of the area median income or less.

This year, those developments are slated to get property tax breaks worth more than $43 million that would otherwise go to the city, Bexar County, local school districts and other taxing entities, according to a San Antonio Express-News estimate.
Vice President Kamala Harris is returning to the Texas border just days before former President Donald Trump is expected to hold an event with Gov. Greg Abbott at the border.

Harris, who has been tapped by the Biden administration to deal with surging border crossings, will visit El Paso on Friday, the White House announced. The exact location has not been disclosed.

She will be joined by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on the visit.

Harris has been under intense criticism from Republicans for putting off a visit to the border as record numbers of migrants are crossing and encountering Border Patrol. Last week, Sen. Ted Cruz blasted Harris in a Fox News interview for not visiting the border to get a firsthand account of the situation.

Shell go everywhere except the border because shes afraid of whats going on down there, and they have no solutions, Cruz said.

Earlier this month, Harris traveled to Guatemala and Mexico for a two-day trip aimed at tackling the root causes of the mass migration coming from Central America. During the stop in Guatemala, Harris told Guatemalans thinking of migrating to the United States: Do not come.

Watch the latest video at foxnews.com

Harris last visited the border in October when she stopped in Hidalgo County days before the 2020 election.

The Friday visit will be just five days before Trump returns to Texas with Abbott for their own tour of the Texas border. Details about that trip are expected to be released later this week.

TEXAS WALL: Top Texas Republicans plan to spend $250M for border wall, crowdsource other funds

It didnt take Trump long to take credit on Wednesday for pushing President Joe Biden to send Harris to the border.

After months of ignoring the crisis at the Southern Border, it is great that we got Kamala Harris to finally go and see the tremendous destruction and death that theyve created  a direct result of Biden ending my very tough but fair Border policies, Trump said in a statement to the media.

He added: If Governor Abbott and I werent going there next week, she would have never gone!

Since February, Bidens first full month as president, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has reported 633,342 encounters with illegal border crossings  more than 200,000 more incidents during the record surge in 2019 during Trumps tenure.

Just in May, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported more than 172,000 encounters with people crossing the border illegally. More than half of those occurred between Del Rio and Brownsville.

TEXAS TAKE: Get political headlines from across the state sent directly to your inbox

Last week, Abbott announced that Texas is going to put $250 million toward the construction of more border wall.

In the Biden Administrations absence, Texas is stepping up to get the job done by building the border wall, Abbott said last week.

Texas already has more than 112 miles of border fencing in El Paso and along stretches of the Rio Grande Valley near places like McAllen.

During Trumps four years, the U.S. refurbished or rebuilt more than 400 miles of existing border fencing and put up an estimated 30 new miles of fencing. One of those new sections is just south of San Juan in Hidalgo County where Trump made his last visit to Texas in January before leaving office.

After Trump left office in January, Biden halted the border wall construction.

Abbott on Wednesday took issue with Harris going to El Paso, which already has miles of border fencing that has been there for decades, as opposed to other sectors of the Texas.

Vice President Harris is ignoring the real problem areas along our southern border that are not protected by the border wall and are being overrun by the federal governments ill-thought-out open border policies, Abbott said. She will fail in her mission if she refuses to speak to residents of the Del Rio sector whose homes and ranches are being overrun by gangs and smugglers.

U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, has been pushing Harris to visit the border to see what is happening firsthand.

By understanding the challenges faced on the ground, our government will be able to effectively address the pull factors leading migrants to make this dangerous journey, Cuellar said.

jeremy.wallace@chron.com
WASHINGTON (AP)  With one week to go before the nationwide ban on evictions expires, the White House is acknowledging that the emergency pandemic protection will have to end at some point. The trick is devising the right sort of off-ramp to make the transition without massive social upheaval.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday that the separate bans on evictions for renters and mortgage holders were always intended to be temporary.

Both will expire on June 30 unless extended. But Psaki would not say whether the administration was planning another extension. That decision, she said, lies with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which imposed the bans on the rationale that allowing people to lose their housing during a pandemic was an unacceptable public health risk.

Psaki said the decision on the moratorium will be made by the CDC, based on public health conditions.

The White House, she said, "wouldnt get ahead of their assessment"

Psaki added that President Joe Biden remains focused on ensuring that Americans who are struggling, through no fault of their own, have an off-ramp once it ends.

But even as the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic gradually recedes, there remains pressure on Biden to maintain the eviction moratorium for nonmedical reasons.

This week, dozens of members of Congress wrote to Biden and CDC Director Rochelle Walensky calling for the moratorium to be not only extended but also strengthened in some ways.

The letter, spearheaded by Democratic Reps. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Jimmy Gomez of California and Cori Bush of Missouri, called for an unspecified extension in order to allow the nearly $47 billion in emergency rental assistance included in the American Rescue Plan to get into the hands of tenants.

Ending the assistance too abruptly, they said, would disproportionately hurt some of the same minority communities that were hit so hard by the virus itself. They also echoed many housing advocates by calling for the moratorium's protections to be made automatic, requiring no special steps from the tenant in order to gain its protections.

The impact of the federal moratorium cannot be understated, and the need to strengthen and extend it is an urgent matter of health, racial, and economic justice, the letter said.

Diane Yentel, president of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, called an extension of the eviction ban the right thing to do  morally, fiscally, politically, and as a continued public health measure.

But landlords, who have opposed the moratorium and challenged it in court, are against any extension. They have argued the focus should be on speeding up the distribution of rental assistance.

With each passing month, we are at risk of losing an ever-increasing amount of rental housing  jeopardizing the availability of safe, sustainable and affordable housing for all Americans, Bob Pinnegar, the president and CEO of the National Apartment Association, said in an email interview. "The mounting housing affordability crisis is quickly becoming a housing affordability disaster fueled by flawed eviction moratoriums, which leave renters with insurmountable debt and housing providers holding the bag."

___

Casey reported from Boston.
FAIRFIELD  Fairfield University is renaming its Graduate School of Education and Allied Professions.

We believe the name School of Education and Human Development aligns us with peer institutions and will draw the attention of prospective students and partners, said Dean Laurie Grupp, in a news release.

Fairfield dropped the word graduate as it continues to grow and enrich undergraduate programs housed within the school.

The renaming coincides with the launch of the schools latest doctorate program  a Doctor of Education degree in educational leadership.

Grupp told Hearst Connecticut Media that its an area the school has wanted to expand into for some time, and felt appropriate right now as teachers have answered a call to action throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

She said theres also an increased need for leadership as schools emerge from the health crisis and implement cutting-edge teaching practices.

The EdD in Educational Leadership for Teacher Leaders targets a long-standing need in Connecticut for an advanced degree program specifically for teachers, said Emily Smith, professor of English education, in the release. Many of our alums have returned to Fairfield seeking ways to advance their careers while continuing to live out their commitments to their students and schools. This program provides a way for both our alums and graduates of other programs to further develop their skills and commitments as advocates for equity and inclusion in public education.

According to the school, the degree is tailored to educators who have taken on new roles and responsibilities in their grade-level teams, departments, schools or districts.

These teacher-leaders will learn about the theoretical and practical foundations of the profession, and learn to shape teaching and learning practices on a larger scale.

One of the core goals of the program is to prepare candidates to be advocates for social justice and anti-racist policies and practices, and catalysts for transformative change, according to the release.

The health and racial pandemics shined a light on the need for teachers who can recognize and respond to policies and practices in schools that lead to unequal academic and social outcomes for students, said Stephanie Burrell Storms, associate dean and associate professor of multicultural education. We believe this program will prepare teachers to become leaders for equity and racial justice in education.

Those are lessons Fairfield leadership said teachers can take back to Connecticut classrooms.

Of course we would love for people who participate (in the program) to stay in Connecticut or come to Connecticut, said Grupp.

We want to... continue to put out really excellent people to serve the needs of students in the state of Connecticut and beyond, said Christine Siegel, provost of the university.

The doctorate program is three years in a hybrid, low residency format. Students will complete two residencies, and write and defend a dissertation in the third year.

Applications are open now for the fall.
How can Fairfield celebrate a possible Chick-Fil-A?

How in heavens name can this town celebrate the proposed opening of a Chick-Fil-A restaurant in Fairfield? This ultra-far-right organization is one of the most anti-human rights companies in the country (OK, count in the Kochs). Chick-Fil-A has openly opposed all protection for LGBTQ+ individuals by fighting against the Equality Act, has campaigned against marriage equality and is pushing anti-trans laws in states across the country. Reproductive freedom? Forget it.

Chick-Fil-As CEO Dan Cathy is a high-quality donor to the National Christian Charitable Foundation among other groups that are anti-...well, almost anything giving humans the right to be themselves.

With a copy of this letter to Fairfield First Selectwoman Brenda Kupchick and Mark Barnhart, Director of Community and Economic Development for Fairfield, I ask them to consider at what price we sell our communitys soul.

Rita Ortiga Waterman, Fairfield
Longtime GOP operative Ben Proto, a lawyer from Stratford, was elected chairman of the state Republican party Tuesday night.

In a speech after his win, Proto pledged to unite and rebuild the party, which saw losses in the General Assembly in 2018 and 2020.

Were not going to leave any stone unturned. Come next year we will have, if I have anything to say about, 151 candidates for the state House and 36 candidates for the state Senate, Proto said.

He will serve a two-year term, serving a key role to help Republicans in 2022 gubernatorial and state legislative races.

Proto received overwhelming support from delegates to beat out three other candidates. Former GOP state Rep. Gary Byron, of Newington, a talk show host, got the second most votes, followed by Greenwich Republican Town Committee Chairman Jim Campbell.

Jennifer Cusato, of Fairfield, who worked as a senior staffer for state House Republicans, was also nominated to serve as chair but was disqualified from running because she lives and is registered to vote in Florida.

The election was held at Anthonys Ocean View in New Haven. The election came five months after the abrupt resignation of former GOP party chair, J.R. Romano, a strong Trump supporter, who cited fundraising issues as the reason for his stepping down.

Republicans have not won the governorship nor any statewide race, nor a congressional contest in 15 years since 2006, when Gov. M. Jodi Rell was reelected and U.S. Rep. Chris Shays won the 4th Congressional District seat.

We cant win if were not working together, he said.

Proto was a delegate for then-candidate Donald Trump in 2016 and led the former presidents campaign in Connecticut. He also helped to run the gubernatorial campaign of businessman Steve Obsitnik in 2018.

What was really wonderful about this chairmans race was that it was about each of us. There was no negativity. There was no attacking. There was no going after each other, which has not always been the case, Proto said in a brief interview after his election.

Im hopeful thats a sign we can stop the circular firing squads and turn our fire on the Democrats and really move forward, he said.

Proto got 69.5 votes; Byron 11.5 and Campbell 8.

Proto attributed lack of Republican success on statewide level in recent years to lack of unity among the party.

We havent worked as well together as we could. My goal is to really work to create a better unified party, getting people to work together, he said.

Late June before an election year is early enough for Proto to be solidly in place for the elections but not too early for that 2018 GOP gubernatorial candidate Bob Stefanowksi and former House GOP leader Themis Klarides, who has announced she is considering a run for governor, to work the room Tuesday night.

Stefanowksis wife, Amy, a member of the Republican State Central Committee and chair of the Madison Republican Town Committee, voted for Proto.

Protos strength is his established relationships with state and national party members, said state Rep. Rosa Rebimbas, R-Naugatuck, who nominated him for the chairmanship.

We need someone who is willing to dive into the difficult topics and persuade people that the Republican party is their party of choice, if they want the opportunity to prosper, if they want the opportunity to preserve and exercise their freedoms. If they want to build a safe and stable environment for theIt families in the state that we all love, Rebimbas said.

State prosecutor and vice chair of the party, Sue Hatfield was tapped in February to finish Romanos term, but did not seek the chairmanship after that.

julia.bergman@hearstmediact.com
Under an Obama-era consent decree, Seattle was powerless to defund police last year. More such surrenders of local control to federal judges are likely as the Biden administration revives decrees.

By Eric Felten, RealClearInvestigations

June 23, 2021

When Seattles City Council voted unanimously to cut millions of dollars from its police budget amid the uproar over the murder of George Floyd, it ran into an unlikely roadblock: the federal government. U.S. District Judge James Robart ruled that the city couldnt defund its own police department without his permission.

The judge was acting under the mandate granted him by a 2012 consent decree put in place after John T. Williams, a native American woodcarver, was shot four times by a Seattle police officer in 2010. The killing was ruled unjustified. The consent decree -- a sort of civil plea bargain -- was one of several with police departments across the country arranged under pressure from the Obama Justice Department as it sought to end alleged civil rights abuses by police in cities from Baltimore to Cleveland to Ferguson, Mo.

And now, after being sharply curtailed by the Trump administration, consent decrees are back. In one of his first major actions as President Bidens Attorney General, Merrick Garland in April rescinded the Trump policy limiting them. Days later he announced an investigation into Floyds death, which is expected to result in a consent decree with Minneapolis.

That raises the question: Do consent decrees work? Do they help or hinder police in providing public safety? Do they protect citizens from abusive police practices?

The answer is necessarily subjective, in part because its hard to isolate the factors affecting crime and policing. Still, it seems clear that the record of consent decrees is mixed at best, and the surrender of local control, as in Seattle, may have a good deal to do with it.

Seattle has seen a marked increase in violent crime between 2013, the first full year its cop shop came under consent decree, and 2020. There were 52 homicides in 2020, compared with 19 in 2013. The total number of violent crimes rose by nearly 25% over that time. The increase in violent crime holds even accounting for the growth in Seattles population over the last decade.

Los Angeles, on the other hand, showed improvement, according to researchers from Harvard Universitys Kennedy School of Government. After nearly a decade under a pre-Obama consent decree, according to the researchers, The quality of service to residents is higher, the perception of the LAPD as fair has risen, and the use of force is down. The LA consent decree was finally lifted in 2013.

The judge overseeing the Ferguson decree -- imposed after the 2014 police killing of a young black man, Michael Brown -- said at a status conference last year that things have not gone as quickly as we had hoped and as the Consent Decree anticipated, but I believe that great progress has been made.

A study of the Baltimore police by the American Civil Liberties Union was less positive about results of the decree imposed after the 2015 death of Freddie Gray in police custody. Aggressive cops get caught and they pretend to go into reform mode, said one lawyer interviewed for the report. Soon people forget about it and they do it again.

This month, the head of Clevelands police union blamed that citys consent decree for growing gun crime and other lawlessness. The homicide rate is up crazy, union president Jeff Follmer said. [H]ow about let the police do their job and maybe some of these numbers go down?

Follmer might be onto something: The loss of local control, a defining characteristic of consent decrees, means that one of the fundamental responsibilities of local government is handled at a distance. Do police departments improve under federal control? Do citizens get the sort of policing they think is best for their communities? One might consider the recent experience of the Seattle Police Department, as effectively presided over by Judge -- and de facto Police Commissioner -- Robart.

Critics of consent decrees say the court-governed agreements hinder reform by taking responsibility away from democratically elected officials, whether a given decree has to do with law enforcement or any other issue, such as environmental regulations or the provision of special education. With authority in the hands of unelected, unaccountable judges, monitors, and commissions, change can take years, even decades -- if there is change at all.

Decrees may appear democratic, even if a federal judge does have the ultimate say-so over a department covered by one  from training policies and use of force standards, to accountability measures and when to lift a decree altogether. Thats because the judges rulings are usually informed by a monitor. The monitor, in turn, listens to the recommendations of a commission made up of community stakeholders.

Seattles consent decree did indeed establish a Community Police Commission, whose membership was supposed to be representative of the many and diverse communities in Seattle, including members from each precinct of the City, police officer unions, faith communities, minority, ethnic, and other community organizations, and student or youth organizations.

But it turns out that diverse membership does not a democracy make. Community representatives do not bear the same burdens as elected leaders. And their power relative to the judge is still limited, which may be an understatement. The Commissions reports and recommendations, the consent decree promises, will be posted to the Citys Website.

David Schoenbrod, a professor at New York Law School, and co-author of the book Democracy by Decree, an influential critique of What Happens When Courts Run Government, argues that authority must be tied to representation. The way democracy is supposed to work, he told RealClearInvestigations, is for key policies to be made by elected officials. They are responsible.

Advocates for consent decrees, by contrast, argue that local police departments cant reform themselves, as Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of Berkeley Law, put it in the Los Angeles Times. Bring on the feds.

Bring on the feds they did in Seattle, but in practice, the feds may well halt reform -- cementing long-standing police practices, and hindering lawmakers ability to make timely changes.

The federal investigation into Seattles policing that resulted in its consent decree was led by a U.S. attorney, Jenny Durkan. She came from a prominent political family in Washington state described as West Coast Kennedys. Durkans federal Department of Justice experience and political ambitions came together when she successfully ran for mayor of Seattle in 2017, trumpeting her role in putting the Seattle Police Department (SPD) under the consent decree. Durkan's tenure as U.S. attorney for the Western District of Washington, the Seattle Times wrote in an election season profile, is the cornerstone of her campaign.

But the city arguably paid a price for the consent decree Durkan helped secure, and then ran on  the city lost control of its ability to respond to crises involving its police department. Years of training in Use of Force Principles, and Weapon-Specific Policies mandated by the decree left law enforcement unprepared for the protests and riots of last summer. Local officials were appalled at the SPDs use of tear gas, blast balls and other crowd-control weapons, and last July the Seattle City Council voted 9-0 to ban them.

The council also took up the call to defund the police, voting to shift millions of dollars out of the police budget. Mayor Durkan opposed the action, but the lawmakers overruled her veto. And yet, they were stonewalled. It was not police who found themselves hobbled by federal oversight. Instead, the uniformly liberal city council was. It was repeatedly blocked in its efforts to defund the police and limit the weapons that could be used for crowd control as a consequence of the consent decree.

When Seattle copped to a consent decree rather than fight the DOJs determination that its policing was discriminatory, violent, and unconstitutional, its police department found itself answering to Judge Robart. (Judge Robart would become nationally known for halting President Donald Trumps executive order temporarily suspending immigration from terrorism-linked countries.)

Judge Robart declared Seattle couldnt make changes to policing in the city without his permission, even though he admitted he might not have been an infallible expert on the issues: I cant tell you today if blast balls are a good idea or a bad idea, Robart said in July 2020, but I know that sometime a long time ago I approved them. This matter of expertise alone is one of the problems with consent decrees.

Last summer we asked the court to maintain the consent decree in the face of outsized police response to mostly peaceful protests, councilmember Lisa Herbold recently wrote in a newsletter to her constituents. Now we are faced with a consent decree that is a barrier to passage of policy regulating the use of weapons like blast balls and tear gas. The consent decree had also become a barrier, Herbold said, to the Council fulfilling our commitment to reduce [the Seattle Police Departments] budget to hold them accountable.

Judge Robart went still further. He not only blocked lawmakers from implementing policy reforms, but dressed them down for not recognizing his authority. I have some rather harsh words for the City Council over the last six months or so, Robart declared this past February. I think they have lost sight of the fact that the 100 paragraphs in the consent decree are not 100 paragraphs. They are not even commitments. They are obligations, orders from this court of things that will be done, Robart said. And when they decide to take matters into their own hands in contravention of the Consent Decree, then they drag me into a situation that I dont want to be in, which is telling them, No, you cant do that.'

RCI submitted questions to Judge Robart about his control over Seattle police operations. A clerk replied: Judge Robart does not respond to media inquiries on active matters before the court. That may be a reasonable judicial policy, but it also means an individual governing a big city police department might go years without taking questions on how hes doing the job.

According to Seattles consent decree monitor, Antonio Oftelie, the important thing is that local governments abide by the terms of their commitments. If budget cuts erode the ability of the City to meet its basic obligations, the city may fall out of compliance with the consent decree, Oftelie told RealClearInvestigations.

Adrian Diaz, who became Seattles new police chief in September, made it clear he embraces the consent decree. In February, Diaz declared that the SPD had collaborated in developing the ongoing monitoring plan under which the departments adherence to the consent decree would be judged. He made it clear that he answered to federal authorities: This plan formalizes SPD deliverables.

But where does federal authority leave room for local lawmakers preferred policies to be tested? Defunding the police may be a good idea; it may be a terrible idea. But without responsibility for the outcome, legislators dont have to answer for their role in the policy chosen. With judges dictating policy, Schoenbrod says, accountability is lost. Elected officials can say The court made us do it.

Michael Morley, professor at Florida State University College of Law, contends that -- consistent with Seattles experience -- consent decrees tend to entrench one or another set of policies and stifle change, rather than spur reforms. Such decrees in effect represent the consent not of the governed, but of the government.

Morley told RCI that state and local government entities enthusiastically embrace decrees because the decrees guarantee spending. Rather than being punitive, consent decrees often lead cities to increase the budgets of problem departments, spending millions on training and new technologies. The targets of consent decrees, Morley said, regularly use the agreements to secure and protect resources.

As for Seattle Mayor Durkan, her tenure having been a muddle, she announced she will not seek reelection in November. But she doesnt blame her lame duck status on her entanglement with the consent decree. While Mayor Durkans office did not answer questions from RealClearInvestigations, she applauded, in an open letter to the Attorney General, his decision to rescind the Trump Administrations limits on consent decrees. Even though the decree she had imposed on Seattle thwarted democratic decision-making and accountability in the city, Durkan declared such decrees had been critical to creating new policies, more training, new investigative oversight, new civilian oversight, and more transparency in data and reporting.

But not more democracy.
Good morning, it's Wednesday, June 23, 2021, a lovely day on the East Coast and the 73rd birthday of Clarence Thomas.

In a less polarized world, the accomplishments of this man would be universally acclaimed, irrespective of one's politics: Thomas was born into grinding poverty in a small Georgia town and raised by a single mother and her parents. His maternal grandfather emphasized the value of physical labor -- Thomas began working on the family farm when he was 10 -- and education. Raised Catholic, he attended parochial schools, went to college at Holy Cross and Yale Law School and, in 1991, became the second African American to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

By that time, however, Roe v. Wade had turned high court appointments into pitched battles between Republicans and Democrats. Until that 1973 decision, abortion had not been a partisan issue. But by the time George H.W. Bush announced his intentions to elevate Clarence Thomas from the First Circuit Court of Appeals, both major political parties -- and the Supreme Court itself -- occupied opposing warring camps over it. It didn't help that the relatively inexperienced Thomas was being named for the seat vacated by a liberal hero, Thurgood Marshall, a lawyer who had achieved fame and legal acclaim even before being named to the nation's highest court.

As if that wasn't enough, at the 11th hour, accusations of sexual harassment were leveled at Thomas, allegations that Judiciary Committee Chairman Joe Biden handled with uncertainty. And so even today, when Clarence Thomas' name is mentioned, many liberals think "Anita Hill," while the phrase that runs through conservatives' minds is "high-tech lynching."

But that was three decades ago, so let's look ahead. Sooner or later, the Supreme Court will be forced to tackle the question of censorship by monopolistic tech giants Facebook, Twitter, Apple, and Amazon.

Until now, most legal scholars have understood the First Amendment to mean protections against government, and not private companies, curbing free speech. "The bottom line remains that Facebook is a private company, and it has its own First Amendment rights to decide what it wants to put on its service," free speech scholar Ken Paulson recently told USA Today.

But there are exceptions here and there: The Supreme Court itself has carved out exemptions for company towns (a 1946 ruling known as Marsh) and shopping malls (a 1980 case). As Facebook and Twitter ban a former U.S. president from their platforms -- while censoring discussion of issues ranging from election integrity to COVID treatments -- the issue of free speech appears once again to be headed for judicial oversight.

That's where Clarence Thomas comes in. In an October 2020 case and again two months ago while weighing a case brought by critics whom President Trump had blocked on Twitter, Thomas has wondered aloud whether the social media giants wield too much control over America's political discourse.

"Today's digital platforms provide avenues for historically unprecedented amounts of speech, including speech by government actors," he wrote. "Also unprecedented, however, is the concentrated control of so much speech in the hands of a few private parties. We will soon have no choice but to address how our legal doctrines apply to highly concentrated, privately owned information infrastructure such as digital platforms."

Carl M. Cannon is the Washington bureau chief for RealClearPolitics. Reach him on Twitter @CarlCannon.
A farmer in his 30s has died following a slurry pit incident on a Derbyshire farm, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has confirmed.

The man fell into a slurry pit and was overcome by poisonous gas in the incident, the safety watchdog said.

The tragedy happened on a farm near Elton, Derbyshire on 14 June.

He was taken to a hospital, where he sadly died.

Derbyshire Police confirmed the incident: We were called just before 8pm on 14 June by our colleagues in the fire service, who reported that a man had fallen into a slurry pit at a farm near Elton.

The man, who was in his 30s, was taken to hospital but sadly died.

"We contacted the Health and Safety Executive and are preparing a file for the coroner.

According to the Health and Safety Executive, incidents involving slurry occur regularly on farms in the UK.

It said there were two main dangers with slurry pits: drowning and exposure to poisonous gases.

Slurry is broken down by bacterial action which produces gases, including methane, carbon monoxide, ammonia and hydrogen sulphide.

The HSE said all of these gases created a risk to human and animal health.

The safety watchdog has advice on its website for farmers and farm workers who work with slurry.
British sheep producers have issued a stark warning of the potential consequences the UK-Australia trade deal could have on the sector.

The National Sheep Association (NSA) has warned of 'damaging consequences' for the industry if there was no 'proper scrutiny' of the recently announced trade agreement.

The body said there was 'still time' for government to consider safeguards and to ensure measures in the FTA to avoid market disruption and the undermining of standards.

Following the agreement in principle (AIP), the NSA has urged ministers - before it is converted into legal text - to 'heed the warnings' of farmers and consumer groups.

The AIP outlines the tariff rate quotas (TRQs), which for lamb will more than triple immediately from roughly 8,000 tonnes annually to 25,000, and then grow over ten years to 125,000 tonnes.

At current consumption rates, the NSA said that was equivalent to more than 40 percent of the UKs total sheepmeat needs.

In addition, the New Zealand's Trade Minister recently stated that they expected their FTA to be treated similar to that of Australia.

The New Zealand quota is already currently 110,000 tonnes. The NSA said this was a 'stark reminder of the dangers of a precedent being set'.

It added the 'worst-case scenario' was that more than 80% of sheepmeat consumed in Britain could be imported - 'produced in ways that wouldnt be allowed by farmers here'.

With such pressure from the two biggest exporting sheepmeat nations, the body said there would 'inevitably be times when a price war comes into play'.

Chief executive Phil Stocker said: NSA warned from day one that the UK sheep sector could end up being the sacrificial lamb for the benefit of other industries in a trade deal and ministers could still step in to ensure this doesnt happen.

"We should be looking at carcase equivalent volumes rather than the option to fill quota with a limited range of cuts, and we should also consider seasonal limits to avoid clashing with our peak production months."

Mr Stocker said that sheep farmers also needed assurances that in case of market disruption quotas could be halted.

At a time when farmers are being required to be more profitable, maintaining good and stable prices would be an 'important part' of achieving this.

"There is also very different understanding of the meaning of equivalence of standards and NSAs view is that this should boil down to what the public and the government want and expect of our farmers," Mr Stock added.

"If there are things required of us here, then its not unreasonable to require the same from those entering our market."
2020 was a year marked by hardships and challenges, but the Fauquier community has proven resilient. The Fauquier Times is honored to serve as your community companion. To say thank you for your continued support, wed like to offer all our subscribers -- new or returning --

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We are dedicated to providing the reliable, local journalism you have come to expect. We are committed to serving you with renewed energy and growing resources. Let the Fauquier Times be your community companion throughout 2021, and for many years to come.
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One of the most enduring experiences the couple went through last year, under the intriguing circumstances was when they received a call from the COVID war room that over 30,000 people had shown up at the Bengaluru railway station one morning owing to certain false rumours of trains being operational. The people just wanted to get home. Although the police were able to swiftly go out and transport all of them to Freedom Park, there was an SOS call that they were without food and water. We just had to shift whatever we had in our fulfilment centres and contact our vendors. We got the call about 10 am and we needed to do something until lunch. That was the day that none of us in the system could worry about social distancing or masks because we were focused on feeding them, they reveal.
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Bedford, Nova Scotia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 22, 2021) - Sylla Gold Corp. (TSXV: SYG.H) (the "Company") is pleased to announce that, further to its press release of February 19, 2021, the Company has closed a non-brokered private placement through the issuance of 10,000,000 units (each, a "Unit") at a price of $0.10 per Unit for aggregate gross proceeds of $1,000,000 (the "Offering"). The net proceeds of the Offering will be used by the Company for working capital and the extinguishments of debts.

Each Unit is comprised of one Common Share and one-half of one Common Share purchase warrant of the Company (each whole warrant, a "Warrant"). Each Warrant shall entitle the holder thereof to acquire one Common Share for a period of twelve (12) months from the closing date of the Offering at an exercise price of $0.15 per Common Share.

In connection with the Offering, the Company paid certain eligible finders (the "Finders") a cash commission of $23,520.

In addition, the Company is please to announce that, further to its press releases of February 19, 2021, April 9, 2021 and May 28, 2021, it has settled an aggregate of $410,000 of indebtedness owed to certain arm's length and non-arm's length creditors through the issuance of an aggregate of 1,640,000 Common Shares of the Company at a price of $0.25 per Common Share (the "Debt Settlement"). The Debt Settlement received disinterested shareholder approval at the special meeting of shareholders of the Company held on June 4, 2021.

All securities issued pursuant to the Offering and Debt Settlement are subject to a hold period of four months plus a day from the date of issuance and the resale rules of applicable securities legislation. The closing of the Offering is subject to certain conditions including, but not limited to, the receipt of all necessary regulatory and other approvals, including final approval of the NEX.

Pursuant to the Debt Settlement, Gregory Isenor acquired 820,000 Common Shares of the Company. Prior to the completion of the Debt Settlement, Mr. Isenor beneficially owned or controlled 1,227,100 Common Shares of the Company, representing approximately 23.37% of the Company's issued and outstanding Common Shares on a non-diluted basis. Upon completion of the Debt Settlement, Mr. Isenor will beneficially own or control 2,047,100 Common Shares of the Company, representing approximately 12.12% of the Company's issued and outstanding Common Shares on a non-diluted basis. Depending on market and other conditions, or as future circumstances may dictate, Mr. Isenor may from time to time increase or decrease his holdings of Common Shares or other securities of the Company. A copy of the early warning report will be available on the Company's issuer profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

In connection with the Debt Settlement, a written resolution of the board of directors was executed by all of the directors of the Company, with Mr. Isenor's signature being necessary to ensure compliance with Section 117(1) of the Canada Business Corporations Act (the "Act"), and not a vote in favour of the resolution in accordance with Section 120(5) of the Act. No materially contrary vote was expressed by any of the directors who executed the resolution. The board of directors, including the independent directors, acting in good faith, determined that the terms of the settlement of the debt are reasonable in the Company's circumstances.

Pursuant to Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"), the portion of the debt settlement involving Mr. Isenor, who is the Chief Financial Officer and a director of the Company, is a "related party transaction" as he received Common Shares in settlement of the debt owing to him. Accordingly, pursuant to MI 61-101, the Debt Settlement is subject to the minority shareholder approval and the formal valuation requirements of MI 61-101. The Company has not received any valuations with respect to the indebtedness and is relying on the exemption from the valuation requirement set out in Section 5.5(b) of MI 61-101, due to the fact that that the Company is not listed on one of the specified markets set out in Section 5.5(b) of MI 61-101. As set out above, the Company received approval of disinterested shareholders at the special meeting of shareholders held on June 4, 2021. Pursuant to the minority shareholder approval requirements of MI 61-101, the votes attached to Common Shares held by Mr. Isenor or his associates were excluded from voting on the settlement of indebtedness. Based on information provided to the Company, the votes attached to an aggregate of 1,227,100 Common Shares, representing approximately 23.37% of the issued and outstanding Common Shares, were excluded from voting on the settlement of indebtedness. Pursuant to MI 61-101, the resolution approving the settlement of the indebtedness was approved by a simple majority of affirmative votes cast by the shareholders, other than votes attaching to Common Shares held by Mr. Isenor and his associates. In addition, under the policies of the TSXV, the votes attached to Common Shares held by Mr. John Cummings, an arm's length creditor of the Company, were excluded from voting on the settlement of debt due to the fact he was an insider of the Company at the time his indebtedness arose.

It was previously contemplated that Mr. Gregory Isenor would participate in the Offering, which, along with the Debt Settlement, would make him a "control person" of the Company, as such term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange. Mr. Isenor did not participate in the Offering.

The Offering constituted a "related party transaction" as defined in Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Securityholders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"), as insiders of the Company acquired 960,000 Units. The Company is relying on the exemptions from the formal valuation and minority shareholder approval requirements of MI 61-101 contained in sections 5.5(b) and 5.7(1)(b) of MI 61-101, as the Company is not listed on a specified market and the fair market value of the Units being issued to insiders in connection with the Offering does not exceed $2,500,000, as determined in accordance with MI 61-101. In connection with the Offering, a written resolution of the board of directors was executed by all of the directors of the Company, with Messrs. J. Francois Lalonde and Regan Isenor signatures being necessary to ensure compliance with Section 117(1) of the Act, and not a vote in favour of the resolution in accordance with Section 120(5) of the Act. No materially contrary vote was expressed by any of the directors who executed the resolution. A material change report will be filed not less than 21 days before the closing date of the Debt Settlement. This shorter period was reasonable and necessary in the circumstances, as it was necessary for the Company to complete the Offering to immediately improve the financial position of the Company.

For more information, please contact:

J. Francois Lalonde

Chief Executive Officer

Tel: (902) 832-5555

Email: lalondejf@atlanticindustrialminerals.ca

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release contains forward-looking information which is not comprised of historical facts. Forward-looking information is characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. Forward-looking information involves risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events, results, and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking information include, but are not limited to, changes in the state of equity and debt markets, fluctuations in commodity prices, delays in obtaining required regulatory or governmental approvals, and includes those risks set out in the Company's management's discussion and analysis as filed under the Company's profile at www.sedar.com. Forward-looking information in this news release is based on the opinions and assumptions of management considered reasonable as of the date hereof, including that all necessary governmental and regulatory approvals will be received as and when expected. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking information in this news release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, other than as required by applicable securities laws.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88359
- Enterprise Ireland uncovers APAC regtech landscape in new 'The State of Regtech in APAC' report.

- Developmental divide between developed and developing economies cited as key area of concern for regtech sector in the future.

BEIJING, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Regtech in Asia Pacific (APAC) faces the difficult challenge of bridging the divide between developed and developing economies in the region, according to a report released today by the Irish government's trade and innovation agency Enterprise Ireland, ranked one of the world's most active VC investors, including fintech. The divide was particularly highlighted as the effects of Covid-19 accelerated the demand for the adoption of regtech solutions in the region.

The report, entitled The State of Regtech in APAC, provides the most comprehensive, independent analysis available on the adoption of regtech across 10 key APAC markets of Australia, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. Enterprise Ireland commissioned Kapronasia, a leading Asian financial technology market research and consulting firm, to develop the report which identifies the latest opportunities and roadblocks facing regtech players in each of these markets.

Launching the report today, Ireland's Minister of State for Financial Services Sean Fleming said: "I welcome this comprehensive regtech report from Enterprise Ireland. It captures the essence of what the Ireland for Finance Strategy is looking to achieve and the unique value proposition that Ireland offers to firms in Asia Pacific and across the globe. As Minister with responsibility for International Financial Services, I want to consolidate and accelerate our position as one of the world's leading locations for fintech and regtech development. I look forward to working with the Enterprise Ireland firms and their partners in Asia as together they deliver value and bring innovative responses to global compliance challenges."

It has been forecasted that the global regtech market will grow from USD$6.3 billion in 2020 to USD$16.0 billion by 2025, a rate of over 20% per year, with APAC expected to have the highest growth rate over this period.[1] The projected growth of the sector is in tandem with the booming fintech scene in the region, particularly in Southeast Asia which saw an estimated USD$1 billion worth of investments in 2019.[2]

While APAC is home to some of the world's major financial centres, the non-homogenous region demonstrates varying levels of market development. In developed economies such as Hong

Kong, Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo, regtech uptake is driven by a sophisticated financial ecosystem and a complex regulatory environment. The need for governance and accountability, the emergence of new market participants and security concerns arising from disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence and distributed ledger technology give regulatory impetus for regtech adoption.

This contrasts with developing economies where regtech uptake is driven by the sector's promise in helping to create financial inclusion. Uptake is also reliant on business cases and under-resourced regulators in these markets. With that said, market interest for regtech solutions in these economies is not as strong as their developed counterparts. This can be attributed to regulatory inertia and a marked difference in fundamental behaviours and attitudes towards regtech.

Developing economies however stand to mature over time - while technology ecosystems in developed and developing economies will continue to evolve at an increasingly varying pace, given differing regulatory drivers for regtech adoption. This is especially evident in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic that has further reinforced differing domestic priorities and exacerbated the economic and technology gap in APAC.

"Covid-19 compelled financial services sector to see the value of digitalisation as a necessity. It has become a way for organisations to improve their services in response to changing business and consumer needs. The need for regtech solutions also expands far beyond the financial services sector which is why this sector is growing so rapidly. This report is a compendium for anyone in the regulatory, risk or compliance functions of any company in the region, as well as for regtech companies which are looking to scale and expand into Asia Pacific," explained Mo Harvey, Enterprise Ireland's Financial Services and Fintech Lead (Asia Pacific).

"Asia Pacific continues to be a strategic region, not only to Ireland which is home to many regtech specialist companies but to the world. At Enterprise Ireland, we share the commitment to support the development of a vibrant global regtech segment and contribute to the global regtech ecosystem, and we hope that this report will provide valuable insights into the complexity of the sector as we continue to prime many companies for success and long-term growth in the region," she added.

Brian Tang, co-chair of the Fintech Association of Hong Kong's Regtech Committee and co-convener of the APAC RegTech Network that brings together the Regtech committees of the fintech associations of Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan and Malaysia said, "Regtech is a secret sauce that empowers financial institutions, fintechs, virtual asset service providers and beyond. All such institutions, and their regulators and users, across the Asia-Pacific benefit from innovative, efficient and cost effective regtech solutions to combat financial crime and drive efficiencies and financial inclusion, regardless of origin of such technology solutions."

"However, the journey to adoption is certainly not a straightforward one. We congratulate Enterprise Ireland for making this comprehensive report on the state of Regtech in APAC publicly available so that Regtech solution providers from across the globe, as well as APAC policy makers, can benefit from its findings to help drive further regtech adoption in the region," he added.

Key Regional Highlights:

Some insights from the report's overview include:

 Impact of Covid-19

Covid-19 accelerated the transition to digitisation of financial services, particularly in the regulatory, risk and compliance sectors.

Compliance Costs Expected to Rise

The projected cost of AML compliance across Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Singapore combined is estimated at US$6.09 billion annually, with more than half of it in Singapore.

Impact of Regulators Across APAC

Country-specific regulators have the most impact on regulatory compliance, but Singapore's regulators also have substantial impact across APAC study countries.

Regtech Adoption

Progress in regtech solutions in Developed APAC countries is starting to gain speed, driven by regulators' need for greater oversight and a tighter regulatory environment.

Promising Areas for Regtechs

Market and industry drivers such as the rise of digital banks, P2P lending, digital assets and remote onboarding present an opportunity for regtechs to fill the need for specialised solutions.

Changes in Regulation

Changes in regulatory stance puts increased focus on compliance and using new technology to meet standards more efficiently and effectively.

Roadblocks and Challenges

Long sales cycles challenge regtech adoption in Developed APAC while regulatory inertia and lack of proper regulatory processes can hinder regtech adoption in Developing APAC.

The State of Regtech in APAC report is available to download here

[1] https://a-teaminsight.com/a-new-frontier-of-regulation-asia-takes-the-lead

[2] https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/wdr2016/Digital-Adoption-Index

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1538668/Enterprise_Ireland_Mo_Harvey.jpg

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1538666/The_State_of_Regtech_in_AsiaPac.jpg












TOKYO, June 23, 2021 - (JCN Newswire) - Fujitsu Limited successfully leveraged on the world's fastest supercomputer, Fugaku, to demonstrate the feasibility of high performance, large-scale, very high-definition analyses with commercial applications widely used in the industrial field for simulations including fluid dynamics. The trials were conducted in collaboration with a number of application vendors between November 2020 and May 2021. Fujitsu and the participating vendors have additionally collaborated to validate operations and conduct performance tuning for commercial applications in high demand with manufacturers for Fugaku as well as the Fujitsu Supercomputer PRIMEHPC series, which draws on technology developed for the Fugaku project. Application vendors will begin to offer these commercial applications starting in June 2021.Going forward, Fujitsu will continue to validate commercial applications using its PRIMEHPC series and will market these to manufacturers and other companies engaged in product development and technical research, contributing to the development of the industrial field as a whole.BackgroundRecently, companies in areas including the manufacturing industry increasingly rely on commercial applications for x86 cluster systems (1) to perform simulations including fluid dynamics and structural analysis in product development and technical research. However, the growing demand for increasingly complex simulations presents challenges for users requiring rapid calculation results. The availability of these kinds of commercial applications used as is on supercomputers like Fugaku and Fujitsu's PRIMEHPC series, which boast large-scale, high-speed computing capabilities, could offer many potential benefits by allowing companies to continue using already-familiar applications and make use of their industry and process-specific expertise.To expedite the availability of these kinds of commercial applications, Fujitsu has provided a number of application vendors with development environments and testing environments for the PRIMEHPC series, working alongside these vendors. In large-scale simulations, Fujitsu analyzed the performance of commercial applications, did performance tuning to eliminate bottlenecks and applied parallel processing technology so that they could run efficiently with highly parallel processing. As a result, Fujitsu has successfully verified the operation of eight commercial applications. Fugaku was used for three of these applications to obtain high-speed, high-definition simulation results for large-scale analysis.Verification and results of large-scale analysis using commercial applicationsIn collaboration with various vendors, Fujitsu conducted a large-scale, high definition simulation for improving the energy efficiency and safety of aircraft and automobiles, which represents an increasingly important priority from the viewpoint of reducing environmental impact making use of commercial applications that have been tested for the PRIMEHPC series. Using the computing resources of Fugaku (2), Fujitsu conducted simulations with highly parallel processing, validating the feasibility of performing analyses within the amount of time required by companies for practical application in the real-world.1. Improvement of aircraft safetyDuring flight, an aircraft may experience a vibration phenomenon called buffet, which affects its safety and flight stability. Predicting buffet vibration is an important issue for aircraft safety design. This time, by executing the thermal fluid analysis application Cradle CFD | scFLOW (3) in parallel using the maximum possible 192,000 out of Fugaku's total number of CPU cores (4) of Fugaku and analyzing a high-definition model of 237 million elements with LES (5), which is an analysis method capable of expressing fine vortexes, it was possible to observe a phenomenon whereby pressure vibration and fine vortexes are generated on the surface of the blade. This makes it possible to predict the buffet effect in greater detail than the conventional RANS (6) analysis method using a coarse calculation grid. This proved that large-scale analyses leading to the safe design of aircraft taking into account the buffet could be calculated.2. Improvement of energy efficiency of automobile enginesImproving the energy efficiency of engines is an important issue for improving the fuel efficiency and environmental performance of automobiles. A combustion analysis that takes into account a series of chemical reactions, such as combustion inside a cylinder caused by piston action in the engine, was performed in two hours with parallel calculation using the thermal fluid analysis application CONVERGE (7) using up to 4,620 CPU cores of Fugaku's cores. In this analysis, the entire region was divided by a high-precision calculation grid (up to 6.67 million grids) of 0.5 mm units, and the use of LES made it possible to successfully obtain high-precision results showing a wrinkled flame structure, which would prove difficult with conventional RANS analysis. As a result, highly accurate analysis can be performed even during the limited time required for design work in the manufacturing industry, which is expected to lead to improvements in engine energy efficiency and reductions in abnormal combustion.3. Reduction of energy loss in driving motors for electric vehiclesTo improve the energy efficiency of electric and hybrid vehicles, it is necessary to reduce energy loss in the driving motor. One of the methods to calculate the loss generated by IPM motors (8) used in electric vehicles, etc., with high accuracy is to model the steel sheet of the iron core constituting the motor one by one, and to use the method to input the current containing harmonics. Conventional x86 clusters require several weeks to complete the calculation, but using Fugaku's 8,192 CPU cores and running them in parallel in the electromagnetic field analysis application JMAG (9), it can be done in a day (10). As a result, it is expected that analysis leading to improved energy efficiency in electric vehicles can be performed in a shorter time.Commercial applications to be verified operations on Fugaku and PRIMEHPC FX1000By providing vendors with development environments and technical support for Fugaku and PRIMEHPC FX1000, Fujitsu and application vendors have collaborated to newly validate operations for eight commercial applications, beginning with the structural analysis application LS-DYNA from Ansys (11), which is widely used in the manufacturing industry to improve collision safety for automobiles. Application vendors will begin to offer these commercial applications starting in June 2021.Future PlansFujitsu will continue to validate the operation of commercial applications for the PRIMEHPC series to meet the unique, real-world demands of its customers across a variety of industries, including manufacturers and other companies engaged in product development and technical research that want to conduct large-scale, high-definition simulations. Leveraging its industry-leading capabilities in high performance computing and its applications, Fujitsu will continue to contribute to the active development and innovation of technology development and research.Comments from Mr. Makoto Shibahara, President of Software Cradle Co., Ltd.Thanks to the efforts of Fujitsu Limited, we have confirmed that our thermal fluid analysis software can be used on the supercomputer Fugaku through this verification. Cradle CFD has been used in a wide range of industries for nearly 40 years, demonstrating the importance of large-scale computing resources in the field of thermo-fluid analysis, and this validation is a major milestone for us. This verification marks a major milestone in the field of thermal fluid analysis, and we believe that the use of Fugaku and our products will enable us to challenge the world's leading supercomputers, which were previously thought to be impossible. As part of the Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence Group's efforts, we plan to offer Cradle CFD to the general public for use with Fugaku and Fugaku equivalent computing environments.Comments from Siddharth Shah, Principal Product Manager, AnsysAnsys is excited to announce the support of LS-DYNA for Fugaku and PRIMEHPC series hardware. LS-DYNA is widely used for its multi-physics capabilities including crash simulations which often requires high computational power. Ansys looks forward to working in close cooperation with Fujitsu to bring to market LS-DYNA for the PRIMEHPC series. Ansys is working to bring other flagship technologies such as Fluent to support Fujitsu PRIMEHPC series in the near future.(1) x86 cluster systems:A computer system configuration that connects multiple x86 servers for parallel processing.(2) Using the computing resources of Fugaku:This research was carried out by receiving the computational resources of the supercomputer Fugaku of RIKEN through the HPCI System Utilization Research Project (Issue No.: hp200209, hp200302).(3) Cradle CFD | scFLOW:Thermal fluid analysis software developed by Software Cradle Co., Ltd.https://www.cradle-cfd.com/product/scflow.html(4) CPU Cores:The Fugaku and PRIMEHPC series have 48 CPU cores of operation per node (1 CPU).(5) LES:Abbreviation for Large Eddy Simulation. A method of fluid analysis. It is possible to calculate even a fine vortex structure, but it requires a fine computational cells to express a fine vortex structure, and the calculation time is long.(6) RANS:Abbreviation for Reynolds-averaged Navier -- Stokes equations. A method of fluid analysis. This is a method commonly used in the industrial world because even a rough grid can be calculated and the calculation time can be shortened, but it cannot express complicated phenomena such as fine vortices.(7) CONVERGE:Thermal fluid analysis software developed by Convergent Science. The distributor in East Asia is IDAJ Co., Ltd.https://convergecfd.com/(8) IPM Motors:Embedded structure permanent magnet (Interior Permanent Magnet) synchronous motor.(9) JMAG:Electromagnetic field analysis software developed by JSOL Corporation for the design and development of electrical equipment.https://www.jmag-international.com/(10) Done in a day:Previously, it took several weeks to perform the calculation in 100 parallel, which is often performed in the industry, but it was shortened to one day by 8,192 parallel calculations using Fugaku. Note that 8,192 parallelism exceeds the maximum number of parallelism that has been calculated in JMAG.(11) LS-DYNA from Ansys:A structural analysis software developed by Ansys. The system has been provided to some customers in advance for PRIMEHPC FX1000, and operation verification was also conducted for Fugaku. General availability will begin from June.https://www.ansys.com/products/structures/ansys-ls-dyna(12) Explicit Method:An analysis method that directly (explicitly) solves equations that represent the motion of an object. It is suitable for problems in which large deformation and destruction occur instantaneously and is widely used in the manufacturing industry for uses cases including crash analysis of automobiles and fall analysis of electronic devices.(13) Implicit Method:An analysis method that indirectly (implicit) solves equations that represent the motion of an object. It is suitable for problems in stamping simulation or strength of static structures like a building, etc.Fujitsu's Commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the United Nations in 2015 represent a set of common goals to be achieved worldwide by 2030. Fujitsu's purpose -- "to make the world more sustainable by building trust in society through innovation"--is a promise to contribute to the vision of a better future empowered by the SDGs.About FujitsuFujitsu is the leading Japanese information and communication technology (ICT) company offering a full range of technology products, solutions and services. Approximately 126,000 Fujitsu people support customers in more than 100 countries. We use our experience and the power of ICT to shape the future of society with our customers. Fujitsu Limited (TSE:6702) reported consolidated revenues of 3.6 trillion yen (US$34 billion) for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2021. For more information, please see www.fujitsu.com.Source: Fujitsu LtdCopyright 2021 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved.
Due Diligence Completed on Shipit.to and FOOi Transactions; Definitive Agreements In Progress

Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - Xigem Technologies Corporation (CSE: XIGM) (FSE: 2C1) ("Xigem" or the "Company"), a technology provider for the emerging remote economy, today provided updates on the status of its proposed and previously announced strategic investment and strategic acquisition. Due diligence has been completed for both the Alperton Ltd. (doing business as "Shipit.to") and FOOi Inc. transactions. The parties to each transaction are working to finalize the definitive agreements. Subject to the execution of the definitive agreements and the receipt of any regulatory approvals, both transactions are expected to be completed within twenty-one to thirty days, if not sooner.

The Company announced on April 20, 2021 that it had entered into a letter of intent to acquire a 21% interest in Shipit.to for US$1.1 million, to be satisfied through a mix of cash and common shares of Xigem. Privately owned and based in Israel, Shipit.to is a digital logistics platform with a mission to create supply chain clarity for its customers. The platform uses IoT and machine learning to analyze the needs of the supply chain, predict the risks to its goals, and aid in the decision-making process required to avoid hazards along the entire supply chain. More information is available at www.shipit.to.

On May 10, 2021, the Company announced that it had signed a letter of intent with FOOi Inc. contemplating the acquisition of substantially all of the assets of FOOi Inc. for consideration of $500,000, to be satisfied in common shares in the capital of Xigem on the basis of a deemed price equal to $0.40 per share. The primary asset to be acquired is a commercialized, software-as-a-service, cloud-based, and peer-to-peer payment application ("FOOi"). FOOi is a mobile app that was built to facilitate all digital payments and was successfully commercialized, having effectively acquired and processed transactions for tens of thousands of users. More information is available at www.fooi.ca.

About Xigem Technologies Corporation

Established in Toronto, Ontario, Xigem Technologies Corporation (CSE: XIGM) (FSE: 2C1) is positioned to become a leading SaaS technology platform for the emerging near trillion dollar remote economy, with software capable of improving the capacity, productivity, and overall remote operations for businesses, consumers and other organizations. iAgent, the Company's patented technology, will provide organizations, businesses and consumers with the tools necessary to thrive in a vast array of remote working, learning and treatment environments.

www.xigemtechnologies.com

Instagram: @xigemtechnologies

Twitter: @XigemTech

Facebook: @xigemtechnologies

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/xigem-technologies

CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Certain information in this news release constitutes forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws. Any statements that are contained in this news release that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Forward looking statements are often identified by terms such as "may", "should", "anticipate", "expect", "potential", "believe", "intend" or the negative of these terms and similar expressions. In particular, forward-looking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to (i) the execution of definitive agreements and regulatory approvals required to complete the Company's strategic investment in Shipit.to; (ii) the execution of definitive agreements and any necessary regulatory approvals required to complete the Company's acquisition of the assets of FOOi Inc. Forward-looking statements necessarily involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. Such risks and factors include, but are not limited to (i) unanticipated events that could arise following the date hereof, which could affect the Company's plans to pursue a strategic investment with Shipit.to or the acquisition of the assets of FOOi Inc., and (ii) the Company's inability to secure or maintain regulatory, exchange and/or other approvals necessary to continue its business operations as proposed. Although the management believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward looking information is based are reasonable, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which they are placed will occur. Such information, although considered reasonable by management at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect and actual results may differ materially from those anticipated. The forward-looking statements included in this news release are made as of the date of this news release and the Company does not undertake an obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements to reflect new information, subsequent events or otherwise unless required by applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements, forward-looking financial information and other metrics presented herein are not intended as guidance or projections for the periods referenced herein or any future periods, and in particular, past performance is not an indicator of future results and the results of the Company in this news release may not be indicative of, and are not an estimate, forecast or projection of the Company's future results. Forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Xigem Technologies Corporation

On behalf of the Company:

Brian Kalish, Chief Executive Officer

For further information:

Phone: (647) 250-9824 ext.4

Investors: investors@xigemtechnologies.com

Media: media@xigemtechnologies.com

Twitter: @XigemTech

Instagram: @xigemtechnologies

Facebook: @xigemtechnologies

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/xigem-technologies

www.xigemtechnologies.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88342
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - Los Andes Copper Ltd. (TSXV: LA) ("Los Andes" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that as a part of the ongoing Pre-Feasibility Study ("PFS") at the Vizcachitas Project in Chile ("Vizcachitas" or the "Project"), it has received molybdenum flotation results for the first 12 year samples, confirming the molybdenum recovery assumptions formed in the 2019 Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") and confirming that the Vizcachitas operation will produce clean concentrates.

As a part of the PFS metallurgical test work, representative samples of the first 12 years of operation were sent to SGS Minerals for rougher, cleaner-scavenger, and selective rougher copper-molybdenum flotation.

Based on the PFS test work results and for the first 12 years of operation, the molybdenum recoveries are 90.3% in the rougher stage, 95.8% in the cleaner-scavenger stage, and 90.6% in the copper-molybdenum selective flotation; resulting in a projected overall molybdenum recovery of 76%, a slight improvement from the 75% recovery assumed in the PEA.

Furthermore, analysis for the final copper concentrates confirmed that Vizcachitas will produce clean concentrates. Projected results show that final copper concentrate grades are between 22.9% and 24.4% copper, and a credit may be obtained for silver at grades between 46 to 65 grammes per tonne. No elements are present at penalty levels in the copper concentrates as the grades for antimony and bismuth are below 0.04% and 0.01% respectively, first 12 year weighed average of arsenic grades is 0.16% and mercury grades are approximately 5.2 ppm.

Fernando Porcile, Executive Chairman of Los Andes, commented:

"We are delighted with the results of the PFS metallurgical test work as they have confirmed and improved the economical assumptions made in the PEA report. The results represent yet another accomplishment for the development of Vizcachitas, following the recent investment from Queen's Road Capital, the award of the environmental approvals for the drilling programmes and further metallurgical test work confirming a copper recovery rate of 91.4%. These updates illustrate the asset's significant potential.

"The outcome of this metallurgical study has shown an improvement in the overall recoveries and it is encouraging to see that it has also confirmed the use of eco-friendly technologies such as HPGR and dry-stacked tailings, which are important in the development of sustainably produced copper for the green transition. We look forward to providing advancements as we move to complete our PFS at Vizcachitas."

About Los Andes Copper Ltd.

Los Andes Copper Ltd. is a development company with a 100% interest in the Vizcachitas project in Chile ("Vizcachitas" or the "Project"). The Company is focused on progressing the Project, which is located along Chile's most prolific copper belt, into production.

Vizcachitas is a copper-molybdenum porphyry deposit, located 120 km north of Santiago, in an area of good infrastructure. The N.I. 43-101 compliant Preliminary Economic Assessment, delivered in June 2019, highlights that the Project has a post-tax NPV of USD$1.8 billion and an IRR of 20.77%, based on a USD$3 per pound copper price. The Project has a Measured Resource of 254.4 million tonnes at a grade of 0.439% copper and an Indicated Resource of approximately 1.03 billion tonnes at a grade of 0.385% copper. Please refer to the technical report dated June 13, 2019, titled "Preliminary Economic Assessment of the Vizcachitas Project", prepared by Tetra Tech.

The PEA is preliminary in nature, it includes inferred mineral resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves, and there is no certainty that the PEA will be realized.

The Company is currently advancing the Pre-Feasibility Study of the Project. With the incorporation of a highly experienced management team, the Project is incorporating changes to position itself on the forefront of global environmental trends for mining. The conversion to dry-stacked filtered tailings will result in a substantial reduction in water consumption and will discard the use of tailings dams, thus reducing the Project's footprint, environmental impact and seismic risks.

Additionally, there is significant exploration upside at Vizcachitas with the potential to increase the resource base beyond the initial 45-year mine life modelled in the PEA. Part of this upside has been further delineated in the geological mapping and geophysics work program completed during the 2020 Chilean winter season.

Los Andes Copper Ltd. is listed on the TSX-V under the ticker: LA.

Qualified Persons

Antony Amberg CGeol FGS, the Company's President and CEO and Magin Torres, the Company's Senior Metallurgist who is a Qualified Person in Extractive Metallurgy under the Chilean Mining Commission, QP Registration No. 0409, are the qualified persons under N.I 43-101 who have reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information contained in this news release.

For more information please contact:

Fernando Porcile, Executive Chairman

Tel: +56 2 2954-0450

Antony J. Amberg, President & CEO

Tel: +56 2 2954-0450

Blytheweigh, Financial PR

Megan Ray

Rachael Brooks

Tel: +44 207 138 3203

E-Mail: info@losandescopper.com or visit our website at: www.losandescopper.com

Follow us on twitter @LosAndesCopper

Follow us on LinkedIn Los Andes Copper Ltd

Certain of the information and statements contained herein that are not historical facts, constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of the Securities Act (British Columbia), Securities Act (Ontario) and the Securities Act (Alberta) ("Forward-Looking Information"). Forward-Looking Information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect" and "intend"; statements that an event or result is "due" on or "may", "will", "should", "could", or might" occur or be achieved; and, other similar expressions. More specifically, Forward-Looking Information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such Forward-Looking Information; including, without limitation, Spinnaker's ability to raise capital, target and attract institutional and retail investors and focus on developing and expanding the network of investors, analysts and financial intermediaries who are interested in Los Andes. Such Forward-Looking Information is based upon the Company's assumptions regarding global and Chilean economic, political and market conditions and the price of metals and energy, and the Company's production. Among the factors that have a direct bearing on the Company's future results of operations and financial conditions are changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined, a change in government policies, competition, currency fluctuations and restrictions and technological changes, among other things. Should one or more of any of the aforementioned risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from any conclusions, forecasts or projections described in the Forward-Looking Information. Accordingly, readers are advised not to place undue reliance on Forward-Looking Information. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise Forward-Looking Information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88344
Not for distribution, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States or any jurisdiction in which such distribution would be unlawful.

Landwirtschaftliche Rentenbank /ISIN TBD

Pre-stabilisation Period Announcement

Landesbank Baden-Wurttemberg (contact: Torsten Zittlau; telephone: +49 711 127 74640)

hereby gives notice, as Stabilisation Coordinator, that the Stabilisation Manager(s) named

below may stabilise the offer of the following securities in accordance with Commission

Delegated Regulation EU/1052/2016 under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU/596/2014).

The securities: Issuer: Landwirtschaftliche Rentenbank

(AAA (S&P), Aaa (Moody's), AAA (Fitch)) Guarantor (if any): Federal Republic of Germany Aggregate nominal

amount: EUR Benchmark Description: []% June-2031 EUR BMK, Reg S Bearer Bonds,

TEFRA C, New Global note

listing: Luxembourg Green Exchange, Regulated Market Offer Price: [XX.XXX] Other offer terms: NA Stabilisation: Stabilisation

Manager(s): Commerzbank, Danske Bank, DekaBank, LBBW Stabilisation period

expected to start on: 23 June 2021 Stabilisation period

expected to end no

later than: 30 days after the proposed issue date of the securities Existence, maximum

size and conditions of

use of over?allotment

facility: The Stabilisation Manager(s) may over?allot the securities to the extent permitted in accordance with applicable law. Stabilisation trading

venue: Over the counter (OTC)

In connection with the offer of the above securities, the Stabilisation Manager(s) may

over?allot the securities or effect transactions with a view to supporting the market price of

the securities during the stabilisation period at a level higher than that which might otherwise prevail. However, stabilisation may not necessarily occur and any stabilisation action, if begun, may cease at any time. Any stabilisation action or over?allotment shall be conducted in accordance with all applicable laws and rules.

This announcement is for information purposes only and does not constitute an invitation or offer to underwrite, subscribe for or otherwise acquire or dispose of any securities of the

Issuer in any jurisdiction.

This announcement and the offer of the securities to which it relates are only addressed to

and directed at persons outside the United Kingdom and persons in the United Kingdom who have professional experience in matters related to investments or who are high net worth persons within Article 12(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial

Promotion) Order 2005 and must not be acted on or relied on by other persons in the United Kingdom.

In addition, if and to the extent that this announcement is communicated in, or the offer of

the securities to which it relates is made in, any EEA Member State that has implemented

Directive 2003/71/EC, as amended (together with any applicable implementing measures in

any Member State, the "Prospectus Directive") before the publication of a prospectus in

relation to the securities which has been approved by the competent authority in that

Member State in accordance with the Prospectus Directive (or which has been approved by a competent authority in another Member State and notified to the competent authority in that Member State in accordance with the Prospectus Directive), this announcement and the offer are only addressed to and directed at persons in that Member State who are qualified

investors within the meaning of the Prospectus Directive (or who are other persons to whom the offer may lawfully be addressed) and must not be acted on or relied on by other persons in that Member State.

This announcement is not an offer of securities for sale into the United States. The securities have not been, and will not be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933 and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an exemption from registration. There will be no public offer of securities in the United States.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - CARLYLE COMMODITIES CORP. (CSE: CCC) (FSE: 1OZA) (OTC Pink: DLRYF) ("Carlyle" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has engaged RockRidge Consulting based in Maple Ridge, BC, Canada.

RockRidge was born out of GeoLogix Mineral Resource Consulting (Pty) Ltd., originally established in South Africa in 2001. The Company consults in Canada, USA, Africa, Asia, Oceania and Europe. Their team has a broad range of geological experience, knowledge and expertise and complete or assist in projects from early-stage exploration through to development and operations. The team comprises of highly experienced resource geology consultants, data management professionals, contract geologists and mining engineers. They have established key global alliances with other independent industry professionals allowing them to offer clients an all-round geological consulting and exploration management experience. Their technical excellence is at the foundation of everything they do and aim to exceed all expectations as they offer full transparency and customized geological services.

Morgan Good, President and Chief Executive Officer of Carlyle, commented, "Carlyle is thrilled to have brought RockRidge and their team of world-class experts into the fold as the Company furthers its understanding and strategy at The Newton Gold Project. Their team has historical ties working with not only The Hunter Dickinson Group, who vended the Newton to Carlyle, but some of its principals also performed work on the property itself during the years of its most recent exploration between 2009-2012, lending both RockRidge and Carlyle invaluable insight to the merits, history, potential and future success as the Company advances its 2021 objectives."

Newton Gold Project

The Newton Gold Project contains an historical estimated mineral resource of 1.6 million ounces gold and 7.7 million ounces silver, at the inferred confidence level as reported in a NI 43-101 technical report dated effective December 19, 2012, entitled "Technical Report on the Initial Mineral Resource Estimate for the New Project, Central British Columbia, Canada", prepared by Reno Pressacco, M.Sc.(A), P.Geo., of Roscoe Postle and Associates Ltd.

Highlights

The Newton Project is a large, bulk tonnage, low - to intermediate-sulphidation, epithermal gold deposit with nearly 30,000 m of drilling exploring and developing the historical resource, primarily between 2009-2012.

exploring and developing the historical resource, primarily between 2009-2012. Newton encompasses more than 24,000 Ha and contains an historical resource of 1.6 million oz Au & 7.7 million oz Ag estimated at the inferred confidence level. Carlyle believes Newton represents an outstanding development project.

Mineralization occurs within an 800 x 400 m area defined by drilling to depths of 560 m, with the majority of holes not exceeding 300m depth.

Underlying the deposit, a large IP anomaly measures 4 km x 2 km and covers an area greater than 7 sq/km - yet the historical resource occupies slightly over 0.5 sq/km or just 7% of the anomaly.

Gold and associated base metal mineralization precipitated in extensive zones of strong quartz-sericite alteration as well as in mafic volcanic and clastic sedimentary rocks and along fault and fracture zones.

The alteration types and metal associations at Newton are similar to large epithermal gold deposits elsewhere in British Columbia including Blackwater (Artemis Gold Inc), New Prosperity (Taseko Mines Ltd) and Brucejack (Pretium Resources Inc) deposits. The very large Blackwater Gold Project is the most proximal of those deposits located approximately 185 km northeast of Newton, where it is one of Canada's largest open-pit gold deposits and one of the world's largest environmental assessment (EA) approved gold development projects. Blackwater has a measured+indicated resource estimated at 11.7 million ounces Au and 122 million ounces of Ag (Blackwater Gold Project British Columbia NI 43-101 Technical Report on Pre-Feasibility Study: authored by Sue Bird, Daniel Fontaine, Tracy Meintjes, Marc Schulte and John Thomas, August 26, 2020; www.artemisgoldinc.com).

The Newton Technical Report historic estimate is the most recent mineral resource estimate for the Newton Gold-Silver Project and was prepared by Amarc. No qualified person ("QP") (as such term is defined in NI 43-101) working for the Company has done sufficient work to classify the historic estimate as a current mineral resource, and the Company is treating the estimate as an historical mineral resource. The Company also does not imply that information or results from the Newton Gold-Silver Project, either at present or in the future, will be similar to that of Artemis' Blackwater project or other large epithermal projects.

Qualified Person

Jeremy Hanson, P.Geo., a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101"), has reviewed the scientific and technical information that forms the basis for this news release and has approved the disclosure herein. Historical information contained in this news release cannot be relied upon as the Company's Qualified Person, as defined under NI 43-101 has not prepared nor verified the historical information.

About Carlyle

Carlyle is a mineral exploration company focused on the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral resource properties. Carlyle owns 100% of the Newton Gold-Silver Project in the Clinton Mining Division of B.C., as well has formed a strategic partnership with The Hunter Dickinson Group ("HDI") and has formed a 50-50 joint venture with HDI affiliate United Mineral Services Ltd. on the Mack Project located in B.C. The Company has an option to earn a 100% interest in the Cecilia Gold-Silver Project located in the State of Sonora, Mexico. Carlyle owns 100% of the Owl Lake Property located in the Hemlo-Schreiber Greenstone Belt in Ontario, and also holds an option to earn a 100% interest in the promising Sunset property located in the Vancouver Mining Division near Pemberton, B.C. Carlyle is based in Vancouver, B.C., and is listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange ("CSE") under the symbol "CCC".

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF

CARLYLE COMMODITIES CORP.

"Morgan Good"

Morgan Good

Chief Executive Officer

For more information regarding this news release, please contact:

Morgan Good, CEO and Director

T: 604-715-4751

E: morgan@carlylecommodities.com

W: www.carlylecommodities.com

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information (collectively, "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian legislation. All statements in this news release that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements and include statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations and orientations regarding the future including, without limitation, the exercise of the Company's option on Cecilia Project, the expected results of the Program, and any plans for further exploration of the Cecilia Project. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable and reflect expectations of future developments and other factors which management believes to be reasonable and relevant, the Company can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as: "believes", "expects", "anticipates", "intends", "estimates", "plans", "may", "should", "would", "will", "potential", "scheduled" or variations of such words and phrases and similar expressions, which, by their nature, refer to future events or results that may, could, would, might or will occur or be taken or achieved. In making the forward-looking statements in this news release, the Company has applied several material assumptions, including without limitation, that the Company will exercise its option on the Mack Project and form the joint venture with UMS (or its assigns), that the results of the work to be conducted on the Cecilia Project will be satisfactory to warrant further exploration, that market fundamentals will support the viability of gold and other precious mineral exploration of the Cecilia Project, the availability of the financing required for the Company to carry out its planned future activities, and the Company's ability to retain and attract qualified personnel.

Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such risks and other factors include the inability of the Company to exercise its option on the Cecilia Project, execute its proposed business plans, and carry out planned future activities. The novel strain of coronavirus, COVID-19, also poses new risks that are currently indescribable and immeasurable. Other factors may also adversely affect the future results or performance of the Company, including general economic, market or business conditions, future prices of gold or other precious metals, changes in the financial markets and in the demand for gold or other precious metals, changes in laws, regulations and policies affecting the mineral exploration industry, and risks related to the Company's investments and operations in the mineral exploration sector, as well as the risks and uncertainties which are more fully described in the Company's annual and quarterly management's discussion and analysis and other filings made by the Company with Canadian securities regulatory authorities under the Company's profile at www.sedar.com. Readers are cautioned that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance or events and, accordingly, are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements due to the inherent uncertainty of such statements.

These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and, unless required by applicable law, the Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those projected in these forward-looking statements.

Historical information contained in this news release cannot be relied upon as the Company's Qualified Person, as defined under NI 43-101 has not prepared nor verified the historical information.

Neither the CSE nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release).

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88374
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - Moovly Media Inc. (TSXV: MVY) (OTC Pink: MVVYF) (FSE: 0PV2) ("Moovly" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has signed a reseller and partnership agreement with UAE based SFA Dubai.

SFA Dubai is specialized in business support and market access services focusing on Arabic speaking countries e.g., United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Egypt.

SFA accelerates international client access across several industries in gulf region with more than three decades of expertise and offices in both Dubai and Cairo.

Their business can be summarized under three main categories:

financial advisory in both Islamic & conventional finance;

market access; and

business support.

Through this business relationship Moovly is working with Ms. Janina Shen (SFA's Dubai Team leader) and the Global Schools Program, an initiative of the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) with 170 advocates / educators in over 70 countries.

SFA Managing Partner Amr Arafa said, "Together, working with Moovly as one team, we will unlock the full potential of visualized presentations, which will place everyone on the best path for success in the digital era."

Moovly CEO Brendon Grunewald said, "Through the partnership with SFA Dubai, Moovly has gained a partner to help accelerate our sales and market presence in the GCC countries and assist with localization like language and cultural adaptations - especially given the recent growth in demand for our platform in Arabic."

The Company also announces that it has granted an aggregate of 2.5 million incentive stock options to directors and officers of the Company at an exercise price of $0.45, and has granted an additional 1.1 million incentive stock options to certain employees of the Company at an exercise price of $0.185. All of the stock options granted are exercisable for a period of 5 years and subject to regulatory approval.

Looking for more info.

SFA Dubai Website [www.strategyFA.com]

Global Schools Program [https://www.globalschoolsprogram.org/]

Moovly [www.Moovly.com]

About Moovly:

Moovly is the leading provider of creative cloud-based tools to create compelling marketing, communications and training videos and video presentations. Moovly's advanced Studio Editor with millions of assets seamlessly integrated (via partnerships with Getty Images & Storyblocks) is all you need to create engaging video content to promote, communicate or explain your product, service or message. Moovly's API and Automator technologies allow third parties to automate parts or all of the content creation process, including mass video customization, personalized videos (video version of mail merge), automatic content creation or updating by connecting data sources. With clients including users from over 300 of the Fortune 500, small businesses, freelancers and Ivy league universities, Moovly is an intuitive, cost effective choice for DIY creation of engaging video-based content.

"Your story begins with Moovly"

Files are available for download in our press room at www.moovly.com/pressroom.

For additional information about Moovly, please visit www.moovly.com.

Brendon Grunewald

President, CEO and Director

Email: press@moovly.com

Kelsey Chin

CFO and Company Secretary

Email: press@moovly.com

Reader Advisory

This press release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. The use of any of the words "expect", "anticipate", "continue", "estimate", "objective", "ongoing", "may", "will", "project", "should", "believe", "plans", "intends" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking information or statements. More particularly and without limitation, this news release contains forward looking statements and information with respect to Moovly's future business plans and the expected benefits of its products. The forward-looking statements and information are based on certain key expectations and assumptions made by the Company. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward-looking statements and information are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward looking statements and information because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct.

By its nature, such forward-looking information is subject to various risks and uncertainties, which could cause the actual results and expectations to differ materially from the anticipated results or expectations expressed. These risks and uncertainties, include, but are not limited to, Moovly's inability to continue to commercialize its products or demand for its products decreases or disappears. Other risk factors are set forth in detail in the Company's Management Discussion and Analysis dated March 31, 2021 which is available for review under the Company's corporate profile at www.sedar.com. Some other risks and factors that could cause the results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information also include, but are not limited to: general economic conditions in Canada, the United States and globally; industry conditions, unanticipated operating events; failure to obtain any necessary third party consents and approvals, if and when required; the availability of capital on acceptable terms; the need to obtain required approvals from regulatory authorities; stock market volatility; competition for, among other things, capital and skilled personnel; changes in tax laws; and the other factors. Readers are cautioned that this list of risk factors should not be construed as exhaustive.

The forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on this forward-looking information, which is given as of the date hereof, and to not use such forward-looking information for anything other than its intended purpose. The Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88393
The Institut Superieur de l'Aeronautique et de l'Espace (ISAE-SUPAERO) in Toulouse now offers a professional certification in Artificial Intelligence and Data Science, based on the Specialized Master's Degree AIBT (Artificial Intelligence Business Transformation. Offered in partnership with TBS Education and IRT Saint-Exupery, this part-time training program prepares professionals, apprentices and young graduates for this new profession that is in high demand on the job market.

Admissions are open until September 15, 2021.

This certification will be offered from the beginning of the new academic year to professionals, apprentices aged 25 to 30 and young graduates (Bac+5) wishing to prepare for the job of "Project Manager in Artificial Intelligence and Data Science (MS)". Certified by the RNCP number 35609, this training is entirely taught in English. This registration in the National Directory by France Competences allows professionals to mobilize their CPF (Personal Training Account) to finance their skills development.

The new MS AIBT (Artificial Intelligence Business Transformation) of ISAE-SUPAERO presents an alternating rhythm with the possibility of an apprenticeship in a company until October 2022. Composed of 12 modules, 3 of which are taught by TBS Education and 2 by IRT Saint-Exupery, the training lasts 13 weeks, spread over 9 months, from October 2021 to June 2022. The program for this master's degree includes an increase in technical skills in artificial intelligence (168 hours of classes), business transformation through and for AI (119 hours of classes), an application project (63 hours) and 60 hours for apprentices and students dedicated to project management.

A certification that meets the needs of industry

Jobs related to artificial intelligence and robotics are on the rise. Despite this fact, manufacturers are still struggling to recruit this type of profile.

The AIBT Specialized Master prepares trainees precisely for these market needs. At the end of the program, equipped with a solid culture of AI, candidates will be able to manage projects involving these new technologies at the operational, intermediate or strategic level, as well as teams working in the new jobs associated with them, such as Big Data engineers, data analysts, data miners and data scientists.

This training program has the Artificial and Natural Intelligence Toulouse Institute label and benefits from the support of major industrial companies such as Airbus, Apsys, Continental, Dassault Aviation and Safran.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005019/en/

Contacts:

Leila Colaud

leila.c@oxygen-rp.com
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 23, 2021 / Goldplay Mining Inc. (TSXV:AUC)(FRA:9FY), (the "Company" or "Goldplay"),is pleased to announce that it has signed a definitive agreement the "Agreement" to acquire up to 100% equity interest in a private Portuguese company Indice Crucial Lda ("Indice Crucial") that holds exploration rights on several past producing copper and gold projects as well as other advanced gold exploration applications in Portugal.

Under the terms of the Agreement, Goldplay will acquire up to a 100% equity interest in Indice Crucial by making the following cash and share payments:

Timing Cash in Euro Goldplay Shares Ownership Upon Signing 100,000 100,000 20% Within 2 Years 150,000 500,000 50% Within 4 Years 100,000 750,000 85%

Goldplay, can acquire the remaining 15% equity interest, for a total of 100%, at any time, for 2M Euro. There are no additional contractual spend commitments and there are no NSR being granted on the projects. The Agreement is subject to acceptance by the TSX Venture Exchange.

Barrancos Copper-Gold Properties

The Barrancos properties ("Barrancos") are located in south Central Portugal, near the Spanish border and cover an area of 74 square kilometers. Exploration rights were secured by Indice directly form the Portuguese Government Mining division in 2020. The exploration licence, allows the exploration work on Barrancos to be undertaken (including drilling) for a period of up to 5 years. Barrancos includes several past producing gold and copper mines, including two more advanced drill ready copper and gold projects as follows.

1. Aparis Copper Mine

The Aparis Copper Mine ("Aparis") is a past producing underground copper mine that produced until 1975 when copper averaged just $0.55 per pound. The plant buildings and flotation mill remain on site.

The mine contains an extensive vein system. The system extends for over 3 km along strike and remains open for exploration. Historical underground results include:

47 metres averaging 3.09% Cu

40 metres averaging 3.04% Cu

62 metres averaging 2.21% Cu

The historic mine has been developed to a depth of just 150m and produced copper concentrate averaging up to 35% Cu. Along with Aparis, the area includes multiple other small scale copper and gold showing that deserve further investigation and modern exploration.

The planned drilling and exploration work will be focused on expanding and better defining the mineralization for a wider copper zones within the Aparis shear zone that currently averages more than 10m in true thickness.

2. The Lirio Gold Project

The Lirio Gold Project ("Lirio") is a very prospective and under explored gold system which has indications of being an extensive volcanic breccia gold system based on historical drilling, detailed surface sampling and the general geology of the area.

Historical sampling at Lirio have returned results of:

up to 125g/t Au from chip samples and up to 7.7g/t Au from channel samples

drill hole KBL-01 intersected 7.19 g/t Au and 0.63% Cu over 5.52 metres, including 17.8 g/t Au and 0.25% Cu over 2.03 metres

A very limited drilling campaign was carried out in 2008 by the Rio Narcea/Kernow joint venture, that intersected the mineralized zone below the main zone of the shallow underground workings.

Bigorne Gold Exploration Application

The Bigorne Gold Exploration Application ("Bigorne") is an exploration/concession application made by Indice directly with the Portuguese Government Mining Division. Bigorne is situated in northern-central part of Portugal and covers an area of 24 km2. The main prospect includes a wide sheeted vein system, oriented N-S to NNE-SSW, hosted in Variscan granites from a suite of syn-to pos-tectonic intrusions.

A total of 15 historical holes have been drilled in several sections of the shear corridor with an indication of a bulk mineable potential as suggested by some of the best intercepts including:

40.2m grading 1.10 g/t Au from 35m, Including 10m grading 2 g/t Au in hole BI-1;

13m grading 1.66 g/t Au from 53m, including 6m grading 2.32 g/t Au in hole BI-3;

27m grading 1.0 g/t Au from 36m, including 5m grading 1.53 g/t Au in hole BI-4 and

13m grading 1.61 g/t including 4m grading 2.48 g/t Au from 39m in hole BI-5.

Vilarica Gold Exploration Application

The Vlarica Gold Exploration Application ("Vilarica") is an exploration/concession application made by Indice directly with the Portuguese Government Mining Division. The project covers a total of 178 km2 is situated approximately 200 km east of Porto and 450 Km northeast of Lisbon. The area is covered by an alloctonous sequence of metasediments and metavolcanics that have been extensively intruded by Variscan granites. These are in contact with a mafic/ultramafic complex in the NE.

Numerous vein and disseminated type showings and small diggings for Gold, Silver, Lead and Zinc occur thoroughly associated with intrusion/volcanic activity together with Tin and Tungsten respectively in greisen and skarn deposits. All these are spatially related with deep-seated post-Variscan structures with the Vilarica fault interpreted to represent the main structural feature. This area is adjacent to a gold mining district including Latadas and Freixeda mine areas located only a few kilometers to the west of the permitted mine owned by the Minaport group.

Catalin Kilofliski, Goldplay Mining President & CEO stated: "I am very pleased that in just two months from our initial listing on TSXV, our ambitious growth objectives are starting to materialize. Today's acquisition in Portugal, marks an important and concrete step forward in Company's growth plans. With the exploration plans on the Scottie West Project finalized and the BC fieldwork expected to begin in August, led by our BC based Exploration Manager, Andrew Wilkins, we are also looking forward to begin the exploration work in Portugal led by our Portugal based Exploration manager Jose Mario Castelo Branco this summer."

Qualified Person

The scientific and technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Mr. Jose Mario Castelo Branco, Golplay's Portugal Exploration Manager and Qualified Person within the context of Canadian Securities Administrators' National Instrument 43-101; Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

About Goldplay Mining

Goldplay Mining is a newly listed Canadian public company which is focused on exploring and advancing gold-copper projects located in top mining jurisdictions with potential for world class mineral discovery.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

"Catalin Kilofliski"

Catalin Kilofliski

President, CEO & Director

For further information please contact:

Goldplay Mining Inc.

Mr. Catalin Kilofliski, President & CEO

Suite 650 - 1021 West Hastings Street

Vancouver, BC V6E 0C3

T: (604) 655-1420

E: catalin@goldplaymining.ca

www.goldplaymining.ca

Forward Looking Information

This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws relating to the potential listing of the company on a stock exchange, and other associated matters. Generally forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of terminology such as "anticipate", "will", "expect", "may", "continue", "could", "estimate", "forecast", "plan", "potential" and similar expressions. Although the Company believes current conditions and expected future developments and other factors that have been considered are appropriate and that the expectations reflected in this forward-looking information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on them because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct or enduring. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The statements in this press release are made as of the date of this release. Except as required by law, the Company does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or to revise any forward-looking statements that are contained or incorporated in this press release. All forward-looking statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

SOURCE: Goldplay Mining Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/652793/Goldplay-Strengthens-Portuguese-Portfolio-Signs-Definitive-Agreement-To-Acquire-Past-Producing-Copper-Mine-and-Highly-Prospective-Gold-Projects
Ultra's range of advanced man portable and flyaway satellite terminals, designed to meet the demands of secure government and military SATCOM, have been accredited for operations on Avanti Communication's fleet of high-throughput satellites. Avanti's high-capacity Ka-spectrum satellites provide fixed beams covering the EMEA region and steerable beams spanning from the Americas to Asia. Merging this capability with Ultra's range of terminals, specially designed to operate in the harshest environments, means that end users will have continuous access to reliable communications regardless of where they are operating.

Using Avanti's high throughput beams, trials across Ultra's line of terminals showed outstanding throughputs in excess of 150Mbps in the Forward and Return routes. This capability means government customers now have the ability to provide headquarters-levels of capacity through a terminal that can fit on their back. The efficiency of these terminals, coupled with the high capacity of Avanti's high throughput steerable beams, will allow government customers to deploy multiple terminals operating simultaneously on one of Avanti's steerable beams all delivering in excess of 100Mbps per terminal.

Donald Walker, Director of Government Sales at Avanti Communications commented, "Avanti's high throughput satellites deliver high levels of capacity making them ideally suited to maximise the benefit of small terminals. Utilising Ultra's ULV-45, MicroVSat and Fa100 terminals, users can achieve connectivity levels far in excess of that available on conventional satellite networks. We're delighted that together we can deliver the capacity and reliability that early entry forces and first responders need."

NOTES TO EDITORS

About Avanti Communications

Avanti Communications is the leading Ka-band high throughput satellite capacity partner to the communications industry in EMEA extending and guaranteeing coverage for defence missions, enterprise solutions and critical public services.

Through the HYLAS satellite fleet and partners in 118 countries, Avanti provides dedicated fixed and flexible-beam satellite connectivity, with extensive coverage across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The Group has invested $1.2bn in a network that incorporates orbital slots in Ka-band spectrum, satellites, ground stations, datacentres and a fibre ring.

www.avantiplc.com

About Ultra

Ultra provides application-engineered solutions in the key elements of mission critical and intelligent systems. Through innovative problem solving, using sustainable capabilities and evolving technologies, we deliver outstanding solutions to our customers' most complex problems in defense, security, critical detection and control environments.

The Intelligence Communications strategic business unit of Ultra provides a wide range of Communications, Specialist Radio Frequency, Command Control and Cyber solutions.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005387/en/

Contacts:

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

Avanti Communications: avanti@threesixtycomms.com

Ultra.group

Trevor Vizard

Trevor.vizard@ultra-gigasat.com
NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Due to the rising prevalence of neurological diseases such as epilepsy, essential tremors, Parkinson's disease, and Alzheimer's disease, surging healthcare costs, mushrooming aging population, and rapid product development, the global brain implant market is booming. Furthermore, the market is expected to generate nearly $9.5 billion revenue in 2030.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the governments of many countries have imposed social distancing protocols and lockdowns, as these measures break the transmission chain of the virus and mitigate the spread of the infection. Although the healthcare expenditure of many countries has increased significantly because of the pandemic, most of the funds and resources, including both financial resources and healthcare professionals, are being allocated to COVID-19 management. This is hampering other medical services, which is negatively impacting the brain implant market.

Get the Sample Copy of this Report at @ https://www.psmarketresearch.com/market-analysis/brain-implant-market-outlook/report-sample

Depending on type, the global brain implant market is classified into spinal cord simulation, vagus nerve stimulation, and deep brain stimulation. Out of these, the deep brain stimulation category is expected to dominate the market during the forecast period. This is credited to the various advantages of deep brain stimulation over other treatment procedures such as less difficulties in walking and reduction in slowness and stiffness problems, because of neurological disorders such as Parkinson's disease, essential tremors, and dystonia. This treatment is usually recommended for patients who show no major improvement in their condition from conventional medication.

On the basis of application, the brain implant market is divided into Parkinson's disease, epilepsy, chronic pain, essential tremor, Alzheimer's disease, and depression. Amongst these, the chronic pain category dominated the market during the historical period (2015-2020), and it is predicted to retain its market lead during the forecast period. With the growing incidence of chronic pain because of cervical and lumbar radiculitis, neuropathy, and failed back surgery, the requirement for stimulators is surging. This is, in turn, predicted to propel the expansion of the chronic pain category in the market. As geriatric people usually suffer from neurological diseases, their growing population is propelling the growth of this category.

Browse detailed report with COVID-19 impact analysis on Brain Implant Market Research Report: By Type (Deep Brain Stimulation, Spinal Cord Stimulation, Vagus Nerve Stimulation), Application (Chronic Pain, Epilepsy, Parkinson's Disease, Depression, Essential Tremor, Alzheimer's Disease)- Global Industry Revenue Estimation and Demand Forecast to 2030 @ https://www.psmarketresearch.com/market-analysis/brain-implant-market-outlook

Globally, North America dominated the brain implant market in 2020, because of the booming geriatric population, rapid technological advancements, existence of several major industry players, and increasing number of product launches in the region. Further, the increasing incidence of neurological diseases and soaring investments being made in the development of brain implant devices are driving the growth of the market in the continent.

Make enquiry about this report at @ https://www.psmarketresearch.com/send-enquiry?enquiry-url=brain-implant-market-outlook

Medtronic plc, Aleva Neurotherapeutics SA, Abbot Laboratories, Nevro Corporation, Inspire Medical Systems Inc., Synapse Biomedical Inc., NeuroPace Inc., and Boston Scientific Corporation are some of the major brain implant market players.

Browse Other Related Reports

Neurostimulation Device Market Report - The U.S. is currently the biggest and the most lucrative market for neurostimulation devices in North America and the industry is predicted to demonstrate huge growth in the country in the forthcoming years. Furthermore, the market is expected to exhibit rapid advancement in the country in the years to come.

Medical Bionics Market Report - Globally, the North American medical bionics market generates the maximum revenue, due to rising population of the elderly, surging expenditure in the healthcare sector, increasing cases of amputees, and rapid economic growth. The cases of amputees are increasing due to the surge in road accident cases, which generate high demand for medical bionics.

About P&S Intelligence

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NAIROBI, Kenya, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A national motorcycle helmet coalition is to be established in Kenya as part of a major effort to increase motorcycle and motorised three-wheeler safety for riders and their passengers. It follows research which shows that a motorcycle helmet can reduce the risk of death by 42 per cent and risk of head injury by 69 per cent in a crash.

The project was announced today as part of the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile's (FIA) Safe and Affordable Helmet Programme - which has seen the creation of an innovative new high-quality motorcycle helmet which meets UN safety standard 22.05, is comfortable in hot and humid climates, and available at a target selling price of around 20 USD.

Independent global road safety philanthropy the FIA Foundation will provide ongoing support for the initiative and has appointed Transaid to lead an initial 18-month project to build a national network of stakeholders to improve safety and reduce injury nationally. Transaid is an international development organisation with extensive experience in motorcycle and three-wheeler safety and has worked in Kenya previously.

Sam Clark, Head of Programmes at Transaid, says: "The FIA and FIA Foundation are committed to achieving large-scale deployment of their Safe and Affordable Helmet Programme, and we believe strongly that a national helmet wearing coalition has the potential to deliver transformational change. We are going to be engaging with government, police, hospitals, private sector, transport associations and communities to develop the solutions which make Kenyan journeys safer."

Kevin Mubadi, President of the Boda Boda Safety Association, Kenya, explains: "Our industry is an essential and growing element of Kenya's transport system, but the challenge to access safe, affordable and appropriate helmets means that the number of riders suffering from serious head injuries is on the rise.

"We are committed to taking a leading role in the national helmet coalition implementation and we welcome the FIA Foundation's funding for the multi-sectoral approach which will seek to advocate for greater use of helmets to deliver safer Kenyan roads."

The majority of the estimated 1.4 million* motorcycles in Kenya are used as "boda bodas" - and whilst compulsory motorcycle helmet use laws exist, enforcement is currently inconsistent and helmet use is low.

Saul Billingsley, Executive Director for the FIA Foundation, says: "Use and access to affordable yet quality helmets in low- and middle-income countries such as Kenya has historically been low making riders vulnerable to serious injury, in particular head injuries. More than a quarter of global road traffic deaths represent motorised two or three wheelers and the rate is rising rapidly.

"Establishing a national helmet wearing coalition, with Transaid's support, helps to address the need for greater awareness of road safety amongst riders, and lay the groundwork for the cross-sectoral cooperation and active engagement of civil society and communities."

[Tomorrow] FIA President Jean Todt will meet with His Excellency Uhuru Kenyatta, President of the Republic of Kenya, to showcase the new helmets and discuss road safety.

Kenya currently has amongst the highest road traffic death rates in Africa, with 12,463* road traffic-related deaths reported in 2018.

*Source: Directorate of Registration and Licensing at the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), reported there were 1,393,290 registered motorcycles in Kenya, in February 2018.

**Source: WHO estimated



Note to Editor:

About Transaid

Transaid transforms lives through safe, available, and sustainable transport.

Transaid's core work includes creating transport management systems for the public sector and assisting with the provision of professional driving qualification development and the training of driver trainers. It also assists with teaching preventive vehicle maintenance management and introducing local, low cost transport solutions including its innovative bicycle ambulance. Transaid also helps promote road safety awareness and shares its specialist knowledge with the humanitarian aid sector.

About the FIA Foundation

The FIA Foundation is an independent UK registered charity which supports an international programme of activities promoting road safety, the environment and sustainable mobility. Our aim is to ensure "Safe, Clean, Fair and Green" mobility for all.
- Pulpex is the world's first widely recyclable, PET-free paper bottle

- BASF, the world's largest supplier of sustainable chemistry, collaborates with Pulpex to help scale paper bottling technology

- The eco-friendly paper bottle is designed to hold a wide range of liquids

LONDON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- BASF, the world's leading supplier of innovative materials for the packaging industry, has forged a collaboration with Pulpex Ltd and its global partners to develop proprietary, food-grade barrier technologies for the eco-friendly Pulpex paper bottle.

Pulpex Ltd. ( www.pulpex.com ) is a new world-leading sustainable packaging technology company established by venture management firm Pilot Lite and spirits producer Diageo. The company has developed the world's first 100% PET-free paper bottle. Made from sustainably sourced pulp, Pulpex bottles meet food safety standards and can be recycled in standard paper waste streams, which have a far higher yield than plastic waste streams.

Scott Winston, CEO, Pulpex, said: "We're proud to be working alongside a world-leading, innovative company like BASF. Their strategic intent and track record of advancing chemical sciences to deliver a more sustainable future makes the company an ideal partner for Pulpex."

BASF has a long tradition as a supplier of innovative solutions for the packaging industry and has an expert network of highly experienced technicians that support customers in product development and process optimization.

Victoria Callaghan, Packaging Project Manager at BASF plc, said: "We are helping to drive positive innovation in the packaging industry and are determined to help deliver sustainable packaging materials where we can, while ensuring the quality, safety and efficacy of our products. It's great to be working with Pulpex to continue developing its paper bottling technology for the world."

The wide range of applications for the Pulpex technology include alcohol and non-alcohol beverages, liquid foods, homecare, personal care and consumer healthcare. The company is also working toward adding the capability of holding hot-fill and carbonated products by the end of 2022.

About BASF

At BASF, we create chemistry for a sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. More than 110,000 employees in the BASF Group contribute to the success of our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio is organized into six segments: Chemicals, Materials, Industrial Solutions, Surface Technologies, Nutrition & Care and Agricultural Solutions. BASF generated sales of 59 billion in 2020. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchange in Frankfurt (BAS) and as American Depositary Receipts (BASFY) in the U.S.

Further information at www.basf.com.

About Pulpex

Pulpex is a collaboration between Pilot Lite and Diageo. Pilot Lite is a pioneer and international leader in venture management with a successful track record helping Fortune 500/FTSE 100 corporates accelerate the commercialization of innovation. Through its Pilot Lite Capital arm, Pilot Lite directly invests in and converts corporate IP into free-standing, revenue-generating businesses. Diageo is a global leader in beverage alcohol with an outstanding collection of brands sold in more than 180 countries around the world. The company is listed on both the London Stock Exchange (DGE) and the New York Stock Exchange (DEO).

Further information at www.pulpex.com.
The emirati developer behind the nation's first private utility scale solar project cited the financial certainty offered by the host government under its national development plan.With numerous investors and clean energy developers having stressed how more renewables-friendly regulations could unlock Africa's clean power potential, the developer of Togo"s first private utility scale solar park has praised the policies brought in by the government. Emirati energy company AMEA Power yesterday held an inauguration ceremony for its 50 MW Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed solar park at Blitta, in the center ...

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 23, 2021 / Tsodilo Resources Limited ("Tsodilo" or the "Company") (TSX-V:TSD) (OTCQB:TSDRF) (FSE:TZO) is pleased to provide an update on its wholly owned Xaudum Iron Project. The Company has entered into a research collaboration endeavor with the Department of Chemical, Materials and Metallurgical Engineering at the Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST) and Morupule Coal Mine (MCM) to undertake metallurgical studies with respect to the potential of generating a Pellet Feed and Direct Reduced Iron (DRI) product from the Xaudum Iron Formation (XIF) utilizing its magnetite and MCM's coal as a reductant. Commercially, these high-grade pellets and DRI product would be used to produce steel within Botswana, the region and internationally.

There is currently a fundamental shift under way within the steel industry with steel producers under pressure to reduce their carbon footprint and produce steel with lower carbon emissions. Carbon emissions (CO2) account for around 80% of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), where the steel making market contributes to roughly 6% of global CO2 emission. Major corporations including steel producers are focusing on decarbonizing as they target carbon neutrality (Fan and Friedmann, 2021). Climate change issues globally and smog lowering related steel mill curbs on sintering and coal usage in China in particular have focused investors towards projects with higher-grade iron content driving the change that is occurring in the type of iron ore consumed by steel mills from lower-grade energy intensive fines that require sintering towards higher-grade ores and steel making products such as pellet feed and DRI materials.

Blast furnace - basic oxygen furnace (BF-BOF) dominate production but are particularly stubborn to decarbonization technology. Direct reduced iron to electric arc furnace (DRI-EAF) production is growing and has far better decarbonization potential. Emission controls and demand for less carbon intensive steel production will become the norm and steel producers demands for DR quality pellet feed will continue to increase. This shift represents significant opportunities for high-grade magnetite projects like the XIF project.

The Company's Metallurgical results show that the XIF magnetite product is expected to be a premium high-grade product containing +67% iron magnetite that will be ideal pellet feed material (see, Press Release of 12/17/2013 on the Company's website). This quality grade will place the XIF in the top 4-5% of producers in the world by Fe grade. High-grade magnetite pellet feeds at 67% Fe and above have been shown to lower GHG emissions compared to standard feed of 62% iron hematite fines (Herbertson and Strezov, 2011). The collaboration study with BIUST and MCM will identify if the XIF magnetite can be further beneficiated to a pellet feed and upgraded to a DRI pellet or similar product using Botswana coal as the reductant. MCM coal has proven to be a viable substitute for reductants in metalliferous ores processing, hence the confidence that it can be viable in the DRI process. This DRI product can then be used to produce steel in electric arc furnaces in Botswana, the region and international markets.

High-grade concentrates and pellets of 67% Fe, such as the XIF products, offer a net environmental benefit over its life-cycle compared to classic lower grade, Direct Shipping Ores (DSO) ~62% Fe hematite fines, by saving carbon emissions in steel production. Where this carbon saving is derived from the inherent differences in the chemical make-up of magnetite vs. hematite, where magnetite is exothermic (adds heat to the reaction); has a higher iron content (higher grade); lower impurities; and, reduces fluxing. High-grade ores over 65% Fe currently command larger price premiums over standard ores (62% Fe) resulting in higher margins for suppliers of high-grade products. The current global drive for lower emission steel production results in steel producers dramatically increasing their demand for these high-grade ores. Converting to pellets and DRI only increases the benefits over sinter feed, as pellets are of uniform size melt at a more equal rate which significantly reduce the time, energy and as such the resultant emissions to produce steel. There will likely be a significant under supply of high purity pellet feed as demand for these high-end materials increases dramatically by steel producers looking to reduce emission output. This demand increase for these high-end materials will also include steel mills that use DRI products as contemplated by the Company. This continued shift towards low emission steel globally means that the high- grade XIF magnetite project is uniquely placed to meet these emerging markets.

The business case for generating pellet feed, DRI products, and low emission steel from the XIF magnetite is just one of the scenarios that are to be evaluated in the Company's current Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA).

Tsodilo's Chairman and CEO, James M. Bruchs, commented "We are excited by this research collaboration with BIUST and MCB to evaluate the capabilities of generating pellet feed and DRI products for low emission steel production from the XIF magnetite. This extra level of beneficiation within Botswana will create added value and benefits in the form of increased revenue and employment for Botswana. This is just one scenario option amongst several that our PEA will evaluate. The PEA will be a road map for the development of the Xaudum Iron Formation towards production".

About Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST)

The Botswana International University of Science and Technology is a Government of Botswana supported institution established as a research-intensive University that specializes in Engineering, Science and Technology at both undergraduate and graduate (Master's and Doctoral) levels. It aims to increase competitiveness, economic growth and sustainable development; address the shortage of skilled scientists and technologists; increase movement of skilled people across national and boundaries international boundaries; stimulate research, innovation, and technology transfer; improve society's aspirations to improve health, wealth and well-being; address increased demand for access to tertiary education; and enable a more competitive and innovative tertiary education sector.

The University is a national strategic initiative that is intended to serve as one of the key platforms for transforming Botswana's economy and because of its research emphasis, BIUST works with the private sector to meet emerging skills needs of the industry, as well as identifies challenges that can be solved through applied research. (www.biust.ac.bw).

About Morupule Coal Mine (MCM)

Morupule Coal Mine (initially known as Morupule Colliery) was established in 1973 by Anglo American. MCM is currently 100% owned by the Minerals Development Company Botswana (MDCB), itself 100% owned by the government of the Republic of Botswana.

MCM operates a 3 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) mine within a 4 billion tonne classified semi-bituminous thermal coal resource in a fairly favorable geological setting. Current activities exploit reserves of in situ cv of 22-23MJ/kg (adb), supplying mine mouth power plants and other customers. The mine operates its own railway siding that links into the national rail line which transports products to the north and south of the country and into the SADC region. MCM coal has proven to be a viable substitute for reductants in metalliferous ores processing, hence the confidence that it can be viable in the DRI process (www.mcm.co.bw).

Overview

Preliminary work on the Xaudum Iron project has defined a CIM compliant Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate of 441 million tonnes (Mt) with an average grade of 29.4% Fe, 41.0% SiO2, 6.1% Al2O3 and 0.3% P for the Block 1 magnetite XIF. Block 1 is a fraction of the potential XIF magnetite resource. An extrapolated exploration target has defined the XIF to be in the order of 5 to 7 billion tonnes at 15-40% Fe. This exploration target was generated by inversion modelling of ground magnetic geophysical data which was compared and moderated to volumes from drilling data within Block 1 and its potential quantity and grade is conceptual in nature. To date, there has been insufficient exploration to define a mineral resource other than in Block 1 and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the target being delineated as a mineral resource.

About the XIF Project

the project is located in the North-West District of Botswana and is proximate to the Namibian boarder and lies thirty (30) miles from the town of Divundu in Namibia. The Trans Caprivi Railway (TCR) line linking Zambia and Namibia is planned to pass through Divundu providing access to Walvis Bay, Namibia's deep-sea port. The project is also located within forty-three (43) miles of the proposed Mucusso line to Angola's Namibe Port;

preliminary work on the Xaudum Iron project has defined a CIM compliant Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate of 441 million tonnes (Mt) with an average grade of 29.4% Fe, 41.0% SiO2, 6.1% Al2O3 and 0.3% P for the Block 1 magnetite XIF;

Block 1 is a fraction of the potential XIF magnetite resource. An extrapolated exploration target has defined the XIF to be in the order of 5 to 7 billion tonnes at 15- 40% Fe. This exploration target was generated by inversion modelling of ground magnetic geophysical data which was compared and moderated to volumes from drilling data within Block 1 and its potential quantity and grade is conceptual in nature. To date, there has been insufficient exploration to define a mineral resource other than in Block 1 and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the target being delineated as a mineral resource. See, Press Release of 9/14/2014 on the Company's website for further details;

on the Company's website for further details; metallurgical magnetic separation results (Davis Tube Recovery) show an average concentrate of 67.2% Fe, 4.2% SiO2, 0.5% Al2O3, 0.07% P is obtained at P80 grind size of 80 microns, although higher grades are possible at finer P80's. See, Press Release of 12/17/2013 on the Company's website ;

on the Company's website further exploration will be focused on Block 2 where the Company expects an increase in the resource;

the XIF Project is a potential large and long-life Tier 1 mining project;

the PEA will evaluate a number of options for development of the project at a variety of scales including: non-traditional but potentially profitable small-scale startup mining production options such as Ferrosilicon (FeSi) production from a magnetite concentrate, mid-size scenarios, whereby magnetite concentrate would be processed through a concentrator and transported to railhead and onto port facilities; large-scale mining options where full-scale mining would produce a magnetite concentrate processed by a concentrator plant with further potential modification to a pellet which would then be transported to port facilities;

Botswana has significant coal reserves which can be a major advantage for the Xaudum Iron project, allowing for coal to be used in the beneficiation process to generate iron products such as iron pellets, sponge iron, pig iron, and also steel; and,

the project would represent the first iron deposit to be considered for development in Botswana. Gcwihaba has identified the project as having the potential to positively impact the future economy of Botswana as the country looks to diversify its economy, and help Botswana to reach its goal of moving away from a dependence on diamond revenues.

For more information, refer to the technical report prepared by SRK Consulting (UK) Ltd. for Gcwihaba Resources (Pty) Ltd. titled "Mineral Resource Estimate for the Xaudum Iron Project (Block 1), Republic of Botswana" with an effective date of August 29, 2014 and filed on SEDAR under the Company's profile at www.sedar.com .

An informational presentation of the project can be found on the Company's website at www.tsodiloresources.com/i/pdf/3)-Tsodilo-Iron-Project-Overview_March-2021.pdf.

References

Z. Fan and S. J. Friedmann, 2021. Low-carbon production of iron and steel: Technology options, economic assessment, and policy. Joule, Volume 5, Issue 4. Columbia SPIA, Center on Global Energy Policy article.

J. Herbertson and L. Strezov, 2011. Implications for Australian Magnetite Industry of the Introduction of a Price/Tax on Carbon. The Crucible Group, June 2011. Submitted to the Joint Select Committee on Australia's Clean Energy Future Legislation by the Magnetite Network (MagNet).

About Tsodilo Resources Limited

Tsodilo Resources Limited is an international diamond and metals exploration company engaged in the search for economic diamond, metal deposits and industrial stone at its Bosoto (Pty) Limited ("Bosoto"), Gcwihaba Resources (Pty) Limited ("Gcwihaba") and Newdico (Pty) Ltd. ("Newdico) projects in Botswana and its Idada 361 (Pty) Limited ("Idada") project in Barberton, South Africa. The Company has a 100% stake in Bosoto (Pty) Ltd. which holds the BK16 kimberlite project in the Orapa Kimberlite Field (OKF) in Botswana and the PL216/2017 diamond prospection license also in the OKF. The Company has a 100% stake in its Gcwihaba project area consisting of seven metal (base, precious, platinum group, and rare earth) prospecting licenses all located in the North-West district of Botswana. The Company has a 100% interest in its Newdico industrial stone project located in Botswana's Central District. Additionally, Tsodilo has a 70% stake in Idada Trading 361 (Pty) Limited which holds the gold and silver exploration license in the Barberton area of South Africa. Tsodilo manages the exploration of the Newdico, Gcwihaba, Bosoto and Idada projects. Overall supervision of the Company's exploration program is the responsibility of Dr. Alistair Jeffcoate, Project Manager and Chief Geologist of the Company and a "qualified person" as such term is defined in National Instrument 43-101.

This press release may contain forward-looking statements. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, that address activities, events or developments that the Company believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future (including, without limitation, statements pertaining to the use of proceeds, the impact of strategic partnerships and statements that describe the Company's future plans, objectives or goals) are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect the current expectations or beliefs of the Company based on information currently available to the Company. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual results of the Company to differ materially from those discussed in the forward- looking statements, and even if such actual results are realized or substantially realized, there can be no assurance that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on the Company. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations include, among other things, changes in equity markets, changes in general economic conditions, market volatility, political developments in Botswana and surrounding countries, changes to regulations affecting the Company's activities, uncertainties relating to the availability and costs of financing needed in the future, exploration and development risks, the uncertainties involved in interpreting exploration results and the other risks involved in the mineral exploration business. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, the Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise. Although the Company believes that the assumptions inherent in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of future performance and accordingly undue reliance should not be put on such statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein.

Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual results of the Company to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements and, even if such actual results are realized or substantially realized, there can be no assurance that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on, the Company. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations include, among other things, uncertainties relating to availability and cost of funds, timing and content of work programs, results of exploration activities, interpretation of drilling results and other geological data, risks relating to variations in the diamond grade and kimberlite lithologies; variations in rates of recovery and breakage; estimates of grade and quality of diamonds, variations in diamond valuations and future diamond prices; the state of world diamond markets, reliability of mineral property titles, changes to regulations affecting the Company's activities, delays in obtaining or failure to obtain required project approvals, operational and infrastructure risk and other risks involved in the diamond exploration and development business. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, the Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise. Although the Company believes that the assumptions inherent in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of future performance and accordingly undue reliance should not be put on such statements due to their inherent uncertainty.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange ("TSXV") nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. This news release may contain assumptions, estimates, and other forward-looking statements regarding future events. Such forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties and are subject to factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control, which may cause actual results or performance to differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

James M. Bruchs Chairman and Chief Executive Officer JBruchs@TsodiloResources.com Dr. Alistair Jeffcoate Project Manager and Chief Geologist Alistair.Jeffcoate@tsodiloresources.com Head Office Telephone +1 416 572 2033 Facsimile + 1 416 987 4369 Website http://www.TsodiloResources.com

SOURCE: Tsodilo Resources Limited

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/652818/Correcting-and-Replacing-Tsodilo-Resources-Limited-Initiates-Collaboration-to-Study-the-Production-of-a-Pellet-Feed-Direct-Reduced-Product-Using-Botswana-Coal-for-Steel-Generation
EQS Group-Ad-hoc: Zublin Immobilien Holding AG / Schlagwort(e): Generalversammlung/Dividende

Zublin Immobilien Holding AG: Generalversammlung genehmigt Antrage des Verwaltungsrates



22.06.2021 / 18:01 CET/CEST

Veroffentlichung einer Ad-hoc-Mitteilung gemass Art. 53 KR

Fur den Inhalt der Mitteilung ist der Emittent / Herausgeber verantwortlich.



Anlasslich der gestrigen 32. Generalversammlung, die infolge der COVID-19 Pandemie erneut ohne Teilnahme von Aktionarinnen und Aktionaren abgehalten wurde, waren 71.5% des Aktienkapitals vertreten. Allen Antragen des Verwaltungsrates wurde zugestimmt: Genehmigung des Geschaftsberichts 2020/21 sowie Kenntnisnahme der Berichte der Revisionsstelle;

Verwendung des Bilanzverlusts und Vortrag auf neue Rechnung;

Ausschuttung von CHF 1.00 pro Namenaktie aus Kapitaleinlagereserven (ex-Datum 24.06.2021);

Entlastung der Mitglieder des Verwaltungsrats und der Geschaftsleitung

Wiederwahlen des bestehenden Verwaltungsrats sowie des Prasidenten;

Wiederwahl der bestehenden Mitglieder sowie Zuwahl von David Scharli in den Vergutungsausschuss;

Wahl der neuen Revisionsstelle PwC und des unabhangigen Stimmrechtsvertreters;

Ermachtigung des Verwaltungsrats zur Ausgabe von Aktien aus genehmigtem Kapital um weitere zwei Jahre bis zum 22. Juni 2023 durch Anpassung von Artikel 4b Absatz 1 der Statuten;

Genehmigung der Vergutungen fur Verwaltungsrat und Geschaftsleitung. Die Amtsdauer aller gewahlten Vertreter betragt ein Jahr und endet an der nachsten ordentlichen Generalversammlung 2022.

Ende der Ad-hoc-Mitteilung
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - INCA ONE GOLD CORP. (TSXV: INCA) (OTCQB: INCAF) (FSE: SU92) ("Inca One" or the "Company"), a gold producer, operating two, fully permitted, mineral processing facilities in Peru, is pleased to provide an update on its US$2.5 million gold pre-payment facility (the "Facility") from OCIM Precious Metals SA ("OCIM").

Since drawing on the Facility at the end of March 2021, the Company is now more than half-way through the initial term of the Facility and has successfully deployed all the funds. In addition, the first payment of gold to OCIM was made ahead of schedule.

To highlight the success of the Facility so far, the following table lays out the incremental increase in deliveries since January 2021, including a record month of May for both deliveries and gold production:





Figure 1. Ore supply

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2645/88349_760c719774a3eb3a_001full.jpg

As a result of satisfying the terms of the Facility ahead of schedule, the Company is now in discussions with OCIM for a significantly larger and longer-term pre-payment facility.

"We are pleased with the initial success of our OCIM gold pre-payment facility," stated Edward Kelly, President and CEO of Inca One. "It has allowed us to demonstrate that the supply of ore from our small-scale mining clients is sufficient to ramp up production to full capacity."

About Inca One

Inca One Gold Corp is a TSXV listed, gold producer operating two, fully permitted, gold mineral processing facilities in Peru. The Company has produced more than 92,000 ounces of gold, generating over US$125 million in revenue from its first 6 years of operations. Inca One is led by an experienced and capable management team that has established the Company as a trusted leader in servicing government permitted, small-scale miners in Peru. Peru is the world's seventh-largest producer of gold, and its small-scale mining sector is estimated by government officials to be valued in the billions of dollars annually. Inca One possesses a combined 450 tonnes per day permitted operating capacity at its two fully integrated plants, Chala One and Kori One. To learn more visit www.incaone.com.





Figure 2. Inca One's gold processing facilities in Peru (left: Chala One facility; right: Kori One facility)

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

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On behalf of the Board,

Edward Kelly,

President and CEO

Inca One Gold Corp.

For More Information Contact:

Konstantine Tsakumis

Inca One Gold Corp.

ktsakumis@incaone.com

604-568-4877

NEITHER THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS NEWS RELEASE.

Statements regarding the Company which are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks and uncertainties. Such information can generally be identified by the use of forwarding-looking wording such as "may", "expect", "estimate", "anticipate", "intend", "believe" and "continue" or the negative thereof or similar variations. Since forward-looking statements address future events and conditions, by their very nature, they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results in each case could differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements due to factors such as: (i) fluctuation of mineral prices; (ii) a change in market conditions; and (iii) the fact that future operational results may not be accurately predicted based on this limited information to date. Except as required by law, the Company does not intend to update any changes to such statements. Inca One believes the expectations reflected in those forward-looking statements are reasonable but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward-looking statements included herein should not be unduly relied upon.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state in which such offer, solicitation, or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88349
TATU CITY, Kenya, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Investment by South African companies has topped USD 100 million at Tatu City. The 5,000-acre Special Economic Zone - located 30 minutes from central Nairobi - represents one of the largest concentrations of South African foreign direct investment in Kenya and East Africa.

South Africa's High Commissioner to Kenya, Mninwa Johannes Mahlangu, toured investments by leading South African companies at Tatu City on Tuesday. His stops included Crawford International school, a 20-acre, multi-billion-shilling investment by ADvTECH, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed education group; Kenya Wine Agencies Ltd (KWAL), which is majority owned by South African beverage conglomerate Distell; and Cold Solutions, an investment by ARCH Emerging Markets Partners, which is backed by South African businessman Patrice Motsepe.

"I am delighted to witness these transformational investments South African businesses are making in Kenya," High Commissioner Mahlangu said at a ceremony to mark the naming of Crawford Road, which leads to Crawford International School in Tatu City. "The South African and Kenyan governments are committed to strong bilateral trade and investment, and our private sector businesses are natural partners to grow capital flows and knowledge exchange."

Jenny Coetzee, Managing Director, Crawford International, said that ADvTECH's first Crawford International school had experienced a surge in enrolment in Kenya since opening in 2019 in Tatu City.

High Commissioner Mahlangu visited the site of Cold Solutions, a 15,000 sqm flagship facility, which will improve food and pharmaceutical security and promote economic development in Kenya and the region. ARCH's Cold Chain Solutions East Africa Fund, which is undertaking the investment, is jointly owned by Africa Rainbow Capital, which is backed by South African entrepreneur Motsepe.

"Cold Solutions' first facility in Kenya is on track to open next year and experiencing strong demand from tenants ranging from food to pharmaceutical companies," said Jared Irving, Managing Director.

The high commissioner concluded his visit at KWAL, which broke ground on a USD 40 million production and distribution facility at Tatu City on 12 February 2021. In addition to Distell, the Kenyan Government is a significant shareholder through the Industrial and Commercial Development Corporation.

Currently at Tatu City Special Economic Zone, more than 60 local, regional and multi-national businesses have opened or started development. These include industry leaders such as Dormans, Cooper K-Brands, KWAL, Cold Solutions, Chandaria Industries, Kim-Fay, Davis & Shirtliff, Copia, FFK, Twiga Foods and Stecol, among others.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1549660/Tatu_City.jpg
IHS Markit (NYSE: INFO), a world leader in critical information, analytics and solutions, today reported results for the second quarter ended May 31, 2021.

Revenue of $1.181 billion, with 13 percent total organic revenue growth

Net income of $159 million and diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.40

Adjusted EBITDA of $517 million and Adjusted earnings per diluted share (Adjusted EPS) of $0.81

Cash flow from operations of $372 million and free cash flow of $301 million

Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EPS, and free cash flow are non-GAAP financial measures used by management to measure operating performance. These terms are defined elsewhere in this release. Please see schedules appearing later in this release for reconciliations of non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures.

Second Quarter 2021 Financial Performance

Three months ended May 31, Change Six months ended May 31, Change (in millions, except percentages and

per share data) 2021 2020 2021 2020 Revenue 1,181.4 1,026.6 154.8 15 2,301.3 2,107.4 193.9 9 Net income attributable to IHS Markit* 159.0 71.7 87.3 122 308.3 556.7 (248.4) (45) Adjusted EBITDA 517.4 454.0 63.4 14 984.2 885.6 98.6 11 GAAP EPS 0.40 0.18 0.22 122 0.77 1.38 (0.61) (44) Adjusted EPS 0.81 0.69 0.12 17 1.51 1.35 0.16 12 Cash flow from operations 372.0 278.2 93.8 34 616.5 397.7 218.8 55 Free cash flow 301.4 208.6 92.8 44 473.3 326.0 147.3 45 Net income attributable to IHS Markit for the six months ended May 31, 2020 includes an approximate $372 million gain on sale related to the A&D business line divestiture in December 2019.

"We had another strong quarter as all of our end markets continue to recover and our teams execute at a high level," said Lance Uggla, chairman and chief executive officer at IHS Markit.

"Our strong Q2 and first half results were in-line with our expectations and we remain on track to deliver strong full year results," said Jonathan Gear, chief financial officer at IHS Markit.

Second Quarter 2021 Revenue Performance

Second quarter 2021 revenue increased 13 percent organically compared to the second quarter of 2020. The following table provides additional revenue information by transaction type.

Three months ended May 31, Percentage change Six months ended May 31, Percentage change (in millions, except percentages) 2021 2020 Total Organic 2021 2020 Total Organic Recurring fixed 836.0 755.2 11 9 1,661.6 1,559.3 7 6 Recurring variable 182.6 158.0 16 11 355.5 304.8 17 14 Non-recurring 162.8 113.4 44 41 284.2 243.3 17 15 Total revenue 1,181.4 1,026.6 15 13 2,301.3 2,107.4 9 8

The components of revenue growth are described below by segment and in total.

Change in revenue Change in revenue Second quarter 2021 vs. Second quarter 2020 Year to date 2021 vs. Year to date 2020 (All amounts represent

percentage points) Organic Acquisitive Foreign

Currency Total Organic Acquisitive Foreign

Currency Total Financial Services 9 1 2 11 9 1 11 Transportation 39 2 41 20 2 21 Resources 1 1 (5) (5) Consolidated Markets Solutions 1 (1) 2 2 (1) 1 Total 13 2 15 8 1 9

Second Quarter 2021 Operating Performance

Segment results were as follows (additional segment information is included later in this release):

Financial Services. Second quarter revenue for Financial Services increased $50 million, or 11 percent, to $493 million, and included 9 percent total organic growth. Second quarter Adjusted EBITDA for Financial Services increased $7 million, or 3 percent, to $238 million.

Transportation. Second quarter revenue for Transportation increased $101 million, or 41 percent, to $344 million, and included 39 percent total organic growth. Second quarter Adjusted EBITDA for Transportation increased $69 million, or 68 percent, to $171 million.

Resources. Second quarter revenue for Resources increased $2 million, or 1 percent, to $221 million, with flat total organic growth. Second quarter Adjusted EBITDA for Resources decreased $5 million, or 5 percent, to $91 million.

Consolidated Markets Solutions (CMS). Second quarter revenue for CMS increased $2 million, or 2 percent, to $123 million, and included 1 percent total organic growth. Second quarter Adjusted EBITDA for CMS decreased $6 million, or 18 percent to $29 million.

Outlook

IHS Markit will provide a fiscal year 2021 guidance update and supplemental information deck as part of its previously announced second quarter 2021 results conference call on June 23, 2021, at 8:00 a.m. ET. The conference call will be simultaneously webcast on the Investor Relations section of the company's website: investor.ihsmarkit.com. A replay of the earnings webcast will be available approximately two hours after the conclusion of the live event. The webcast recording will be available for one year on the Investor Relations section of the company's website.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

Non-GAAP results are presented only as a supplement to our financial statements based on U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"). Non-GAAP financial information is provided to enhance the reader's understanding of our financial performance, but none of these non-GAAP financial measures are recognized terms under GAAP and should not be considered in isolation from, or as a substitute for, financial measures calculated in accordance with GAAP. Definitions and reconciliations of the non-GAAP measures, such as EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted net income, Adjusted EPS, and free cash flow, to the most directly comparable GAAP measures are provided within the schedules attached to IHS Markit's quarterly earnings releases on the Investor Relations section of the company's website. This communication also includes certain forward-looking non-GAAP financial measures. IHS Markit is unable to present a reconciliation of this forward-looking non-GAAP financial information because management cannot reliably predict all of the necessary components of such measures. Accordingly, investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on this information.

We use non-GAAP measures in our operational and financial decision-making. We believe that such measures allow us to focus on what we deem to be a more reliable indicator of ongoing operating performance and our ability to generate cash flow from operations. We also believe that investors may find these non-GAAP financial measures useful for the same reasons, although investors are cautioned that non-GAAP financial measures are not a substitute for GAAP financial measures or disclosures. None of these non-GAAP financial measures are recognized terms under GAAP and do not purport to be an alternative to any other GAAP measure.

Non-GAAP measures are frequently used by securities analysts, investors, and other interested parties in their evaluation of companies comparable to IHS Markit, many of which present non-GAAP measures when reporting their results. These measures can be useful in evaluating our performance against our peer companies because we believe the measures provide users with valuable insight into key components of GAAP financial disclosures. However, non-GAAP measures have limitations as an analytical tool. Because not all companies use identical calculations, our presentation of non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies. They are not presentations made in accordance with GAAP, are not measures of financial condition or liquidity, and should not be considered as an alternative to profit or loss for the period determined in accordance with GAAP or operating cash flows determined in accordance with GAAP. As a result, you should not consider such performance measures in isolation from, or as a substitute analysis for, results of operations as determined in accordance with GAAP.

Forward-Looking Statements

This communication contains "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements, which express management's current views concerning future business, events, trends, contingencies, financial performance, or financial condition, appear at various places in this communication and use words like "aim," "anticipate," "assume," "believe," "continue," "could," "estimate," "expect," "forecast," "future," "goal," "intend," "likely," "may," "might," "plan," "potential," "predict," "project," "see," "seek," "should," "strategy," "strive," "target," "will," and "would" and similar expressions, and variations or negatives of these words. Examples of forward-looking statements include, among others, statements we make regarding: guidance and predictions relating to expected operating results, such as revenue growth and earnings; strategic actions such as acquisitions, joint ventures, and dispositions, the anticipated benefits therefrom, and our success in integrating acquired businesses; anticipated levels of capital expenditures in future periods; anticipated levels of indebtedness, capital allocation, dividends, and share repurchases in future periods; our belief that we have sufficient liquidity to fund our ongoing business operations; expectations of the effect on our financial condition of claims, litigation, environmental costs, contingent liabilities, and governmental and regulatory investigations and proceedings; our strategy for customer retention, growth, product development, market position, financial results, and reserves; the completion of the merger with S&P Global Inc. ("S&P Global") on anticipated terms and timing, including unforeseen liabilities, future capital expenditures, revenues, expenses, earnings, synergies, economic performance, indebtedness, financial condition, losses, future prospects, business and management strategies for the management, expansion and growth of the combined company's operations and other conditions to the completion of the merger; the ability of S&P Global and IHS Markit to integrate the business successfully and to achieve anticipated synergies; potential litigation relating to the proposed transaction that could be instituted against S&P Global, IHS Markit or their respective directors; the risk that disruptions from the proposed transaction will harm S&P Global's and IHS Markit's business, including current plans and operations; potential adverse reactions or changes to business relationships resulting from the announcement or completion of the merger; rating agency actions; potential business uncertainty, including changes to existing business relationships, during the pendency of the merger that could affect IHS Markit's financial performance; and certain restrictions during the pendency of the merger that may impact IHS Markit's ability to pursue certain business opportunities or strategic transactions. Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on management's current beliefs, expectations, and assumptions regarding the future of our business, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy, and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks, and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control. Important factors that could cause our actual results and financial condition to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements are more fully discussed under the caption "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, along with our other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). However, those factors should not be considered to be a complete statement of all potential risks and uncertainties. Unlisted factors may present significant additional obstacles to the realization of forward-looking statements. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which are based only on information currently available to our management and speaks only as of the date of this communication. We do not assume any obligation to publicly provide revisions or updates to any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, should circumstances change, except as otherwise required by securities and other applicable laws. Please consult our public filings with the SEC or on our website at investor.ihsmarkit.com

About IHS Markit (www.ihsmarkit.com

IHS Markit (NYSE: INFO) is a world leader in critical information, analytics and solutions for the major industries and markets that drive economies worldwide. The company delivers next-generation information, analytics and solutions to customers in business, finance and government, improving their operational efficiency and providing deep insights that lead to well-informed, confident decisions. IHS Markit has more than 50,000 business and government customers, including 80 percent of the Fortune Global 500 and the world's leading financial institutions. Headquartered in London, IHS Markit is committed to sustainable, profitable growth.

IHS Markit is a registered trademark of IHS Markit Ltd and/or its affiliates. All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners 2021 IHS Markit Ltd. All rights reserved.

IHS MARKIT LTD. CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (In millions) As of May 31, 2021 As of November 30, 2020 (Unaudited) (Audited) Assets Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents 217.4 125.6 Accounts receivable, net 870.9 891.7 Deferred subscription costs 99.7 84.3 Assets held for sale 865.3 Other current assets 129.5 131.7 Total current assets 2,182.8 1,233.3 Non-current assets: Property and equipment, net 683.0 724.8 Operating lease right-of-use assets, net 280.1 296.8 Intangible assets, net 3,389.6 3,846.1 Goodwill 9,778.5 9,908.7 Deferred income taxes 27.1 27.1 Other 253.5 98.4 Total non-current assets 14,411.8 14,901.9 Total assets 16,594.6 16,135.2 Liabilities and equity Current liabilities: Short-term debt 333.1 268.1 Accounts payable 34.6 48.2 Accrued compensation 143.6 206.1 Other accrued expenses 389.3 477.6 Income tax payable 19.4 29.1 Deferred revenue 1,009.5 886.2 Operating lease liabilities 59.9 63.5 Liabilities held for sale 103.1 Total current liabilities 2,092.5 1,978.8 Long-term debt, net 4,643.8 4,641.7 Deferred income taxes 467.0 543.4 Operating lease liabilities 284.5 297.7 Other liabilities 178.0 130.4 Commitments and contingencies Redeemable noncontrolling interests 13.1 13.8 Shareholders' equity 8,915.7 8,529.4 Total liabilities and equity 16,594.6 16,135.2

IHS MARKIT LTD. CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (In millions, except for per-share amounts) (Unaudited) Three months ended May 31, Six months ended May 31, 2021 2020 2021 2020 Revenue 1,181.4 1,026.6 2,301.3 2,107.4 Operating expenses: Cost of revenue 425.8 388.3 841.0 804.1 Selling, general and administrative 283.3 258.1 585.5 574.3 Depreciation and amortization 150.5 149.4 302.1 294.7 Restructuring and impairment charges 7.7 81.3 8.7 85.8 Acquisition-related costs 33.3 6.6 46.4 7.5 Other expense (income), net 5.2 (1.2) 8.6 (374.0) Total operating expenses 905.8 882.5 1,792.3 1,392.4 Operating income 275.6 144.1 509.0 715.0 Interest income 0.2 0.1 0.6 Interest expense (55.4) (60.0) (110.9) (121.2) Net periodic pension and postretirement expense (8.9) (30.4) Non-operating expense, net (55.4) (68.7) (110.8) (151.0) Income from continuing operations before income taxes and equity in income

of equity method investees 220.2 75.4 398.2 564.0 Provision for income taxes (57.6) (4.7) (87.9) (9.0) Equity in (loss) income of equity-method investees (3.7) 0.1 (2.7) (0.2) Net income 158.9 70.8 307.6 554.8 Net loss attributable to noncontrolling interest 0.1 0.9 0.7 1.9 Net income attributable to IHS Markit Ltd. 159.0 71.7 308.3 556.7 Basic earnings per share attributable to IHS Markit Ltd. 0.40 0.18 0.77 1.40 Weighted average shares used in computing basic earnings per share 398.8 397.0 398.1 396.4 Diluted earnings per share attributable to IHS Markit Ltd. 0.40 0.18 0.77 1.38 Weighted average shares used in computing diluted earnings per share 400.7 400.1 400.8 402.1

IHS MARKIT LTD. CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (In millions) (Unaudited) Six months ended May 31, 2021 2020 Operating activities: Net income 307.6 554.8 Reconciliation of net income to net cash provided by operating activities: Depreciation and amortization 302.1 294.7 Stock-based compensation expense 115.7 153.8 Gain on sale of assets, net (0.2) (370.9) Impairment of assets 3.9 Payments for acquisition-related performance compensation (75.9) Net periodic pension and postretirement expense 30.4 Undistributed earnings of affiliates, net 2.7 0.5 Pension and postretirement contributions (31.1) Deferred income taxes (20.4) (10.8) Change in assets and liabilities: Accounts receivable, net (0.3) 7.0 Other current assets (19.9) (51.2) Accounts payable (8.4) (22.5) Accrued expenses (177.0) (119.9) Income tax (7.4) (70.1) Deferred revenue 119.5 78.7 Other assets and liabilities (1.4) 30.2 Net cash provided by operating activities 616.5 397.7 Investing activities: Capital expenditures on property and equipment (143.2) (147.6) Acquisitions of businesses, net of cash acquired (46.9) (3.2) Payments to acquire equity investments (156.3) (7.2) Proceeds from sale of assets 466.2 Change in other assets 0.6 (0.9) Settlements of forward contracts 11.8 (20.0) Net cash (used in) provided by investing activities (334.0) 287.3 Financing activities: Proceeds from borrowings 565.0 541.4 Repayment of borrowings (500.0) (283.9) Contingent consideration payments (1.0) Dividends paid (159.0) (135.3) Repurchases of common shares (750.0) Proceeds from the exercise of employee stock options 2.2 177.2 Payments related to tax withholding for stock-based compensation (110.3) (111.7) Net cash used in financing activities (203.1) (562.3) Foreign exchange impact on cash balance 12.4 (26.4) Net increase in cash and cash equivalents 91.8 96.3 Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the period 125.6 111.5 Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period 217.4 207.8

IHS MARKIT LTD. SUPPLEMENTAL REVENUE DISCLOSURE (In millions) (Unaudited) Three months ended May 31, Percent change Six months ended May 31, Percent change 2021 2020 Total Organic 2021 2020 Total Organic Recurring revenue: Financial Services 278.3 262.2 6 5 563.6 529.5 6 5 Transportation 261.6 186.8 40 38 508.2 414.5 23 21 Resources 183.5 197.5 (7) (8) 366.1 398.0 (8) (8) CMS 112.6 108.7 4 2 223.7 217.3 3 2 Total recurring fixed revenue 836.0 755.2 11 9 1,661.6 1,559.3 7 6 Financial Services variable 182.6 158.0 16 11 355.5 304.8 17 14 Total recurring revenue 1,018.6 913.2 12 10 2,017.1 1,864.1 8 7 Non-recurring revenue: Financial Services 32.5 23.3 39 36 58.8 45.2 30 27 Transportation 82.5 56.4 46 41 147.6 125.9 17 14 Resources 37.3 21.5 73 73 57.4 46.6 23 23 CMS 10.5 12.2 (14) (10) 20.4 25.6 (20) (18) Total non-recurring revenue 162.8 113.4 44 41 284.2 243.3 17 15 Total revenue: Financial Services 493.4 443.5 11 9 977.9 879.5 11 9 Transportation 344.1 243.2 41 39 655.8 540.4 21 20 Resources 220.8 219.0 1 423.5 444.6 (5) (5) CMS 123.1 120.9 2 1 244.1 242.9 Total revenue 1,181.4 1,026.6 15 13 2,301.3 2,107.4 9 8

IHS MARKIT LTD. RECONCILIATION OF CONSOLIDATED NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES TO MOST DIRECTLY COMPARABLE GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES (In millions, except for per-share amounts) (Unaudited) Three months ended May 31, Six months ended May 31, 2021 2020 2021 2020 Net income attributable to IHS Markit Ltd. 159.0 71.7 308.3 556.7 Interest income (0.2) (0.1) (0.6) Interest expense 55.4 60.0 110.9 121.2 Provision for income taxes 57.6 4.7 87.9 9.0 Depreciation 59.3 56.4 115.4 107.5 Amortization related to acquired intangible assets 91.2 93.0 186.7 187.2 EBITDA (1)(6) 422.5 285.6 809.1 981.0 Stock-based compensation expense 49.9 71.2 115.7 153.8 Restructuring and impairment charges 7.7 81.3 8.7 85.8 Acquisition-related costs 29.4 2.1 38.6 2.8 Acquisition-related performance compensation 3.9 4.5 7.8 4.7 Gain on sale of assets (0.1) 1.4 (0.2) (370.9) Pension mark-to-market and settlement expense 8.8 30.0 Adjusted EBITDA impacts from equity-method investments and

noncontrolling interest 4.1 (0.9) 4.5 (1.6) Adjusted EBITDA (2)(6) 517.4 454.0 984.2 885.6 Three months ended May 31, Six months ended May 31, 2021 2020 2021 2020 Net income attributable to IHS Markit Ltd. 159.0 71.7 308.3 556.7 Stock-based compensation expense 49.9 71.2 115.7 153.8 Amortization related to acquired intangible assets 91.2 93.0 186.7 187.2 Restructuring and impairment charges 7.7 81.3 8.7 85.8 Acquisition-related costs 29.4 2.1 38.6 2.8 Acquisition-related performance compensation 3.9 4.5 7.8 4.7 Gain on sale of assets (0.1) 1.4 (0.2) (370.9) Pension mark-to-market and settlement expense 8.8 30.0 Income tax effect of above adjustments (20.9) (55.7) (61.6) (105.1) Adjusted earnings impacts from equity-method investments and

noncontrolling interest 2.8 (0.7) 2.7 (1.4) Adjusted net income (3) 322.9 277.6 606.7 543.6 Adjusted EPS (4)(6) 0.81 0.69 1.51 1.35 Weighted average shares used in computing Adjusted EPS 400.7 400.1 400.8 402.1 Three months ended May 31, Six months ended May 31, 2021 2020 2021 2020 Net cash provided by operating activities 372.0 278.2 616.5 397.7 Payments for acquisition-related performance compensation 75.9 Capital expenditures on property and equipment (70.6) (69.6) (143.2) (147.6) Free cash flow (5)(6) 301.4 208.6 473.3 326.0

IHS MARKIT LTD. SUPPLEMENTAL SEGMENT OPERATING PROFIT MEASURE DISCLOSURE (In millions) (Unaudited) Three months ended May 31, Six months ended May 31, 2021 2020 2021 2020 Adjusted EBITDA by segment: Financial Services 237.8 231.3 470.7 436.7 Transportation 170.7 101.6 317.4 219.6 Resources 91.4 96.2 165.6 186.4 CMS 28.7 35.0 54.8 64.4 Shared services (11.2) (10.1) (24.3) (21.5) Total Adjusted EBITDA 517.4 454.0 984.2 885.6 Adjusted EBITDA margin by segment: Financial Services 48.2 52.2 48.1 49.7 Transportation 49.6 41.8 48.4 40.6 Resources 41.4 43.9 39.1 41.9 CMS 23.3 28.9 22.4 26.5 Total Adjusted EBITDA margin 43.8 44.2 42.8 42.0

(1) EBITDA is defined as net income plus or minus net interest, plus provision for income taxes, depreciation, and amortization. (2) Adjusted EBITDA further excludes primarily non-cash items and other items that we do not consider to be useful in assessing our operating performance (e.g., stock-based compensation expense, restructuring charges, acquisition-related costs and performance compensation, exceptional litigation, net other gains and losses, pension mark-to-market, settlement, and other expense, the impact of equity-method investments and noncontrolling interests, and discontinued operations). All of the items included in the reconciliation from net income to Adjusted EBITDA are either non-cash items or items that we do not consider to be useful in assessing our operating performance. In the case of the non-cash items, we believe that investors can better assess our operating performance if the measures are presented without such items because, unlike cash expenses, these adjustments do not affect our ability to generate free cash flow or invest in our business. For example, by excluding depreciation and amortization from EBITDA, users can compare operating performance without regard to different accounting determinations such as useful life. In the case of the other items, we believe that investors can better assess operating performance if the measures are presented without these items because their financial impact does not reflect ongoing operating performance. (3) Adjusted net income is defined as net income plus primarily non-cash items and other items that management does not consider to be useful in assessing our operating performance (e.g., stock-based compensation expense, amortization related to acquired intangible assets, restructuring charges, acquisition-related costs and performance compensation, acquisition financing fees, net other gains and losses, pension mark-to-market, settlement, and other expense, the impact of noncontrolling interests, and discontinued operations, all net of the related tax effects). (4) Adjusted EPS is defined as Adjusted net income (as defined above) divided by diluted weighted average shares. (5) Free cash flow is defined as net cash provided by operating activities plus payments for acquisition-related performance compensation minus capital expenditures. (6) EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EPS, and free cash flow are used by securities analysts, investors, and other interested parties to assess our operating performance. For example, a measure similar to Adjusted EBITDA is required by the lenders under our revolving credit agreement.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005255/en/

Contacts:

Investor Relations Contact:

Eric Boyer

+1 303 397 2969

eric.boyer@ihsmarkit.com
Drilling Intersects 11.25gt Au over 3.8m

TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 23, 2021 / Jaguar Mining Inc. ('Jaguar' or the 'Company') (TSX:JAG)(OTCQX:JAGGF) is pleased to announce that reconnaissance drilling at its Corrego Brandao discovery project ("CB"), has intersected a significant sulphide mineralized zone grading 11.25gt Au over 3.8m within a wider mineralized zone grading 4.63gt Au over 12.45m. CB is located near the Caete Complex "CCA Plant" in Minas Gerais, Brazil where ore from its operating mine, Pilar is processed (please see Press Release dated 15th February 2021 and Figure #1).

To date, 38 reconnaissance phase diamond drillholes (4,820m) have been completed at CB. This drilling has broadly defined, though a series of step out holes, a mineralized trend defined by a consistent surface Au in soil anomaly (> 100ppb Au) and broad zones of oxide mineralization within a profile averaging 30-40m in thickness, extending along a strike length of some 500m. Drilling is now testing the potential for structurally controlled sulphide mineralization beneath the oxide zone to approximately 100m depth. The mineralized trend remains open on strike and dip.

Assay results have been received for 27 holes, highlights of which are reported below.

Sulphide Intersection (0.5gt Au cut-off grade)

4.63gt Au over 12.45m* (including 11.25gt over 3.80m*)

*Note: Estimated True Width is 10.24m for full interval and 3.12m for sub interval

Oxide Intersections (0.25gt Au cut-off grade)

4.2gt Au over 40.00m (including 15.81gt Au over 6.10m, 33.60gt Au over 1.5m)

1.41gt Au over 40.05m (including 3.38gt Au over 7.50m)

0.78gt Au over 46.15m (including 0.94gt Au over 22.50m)

1.84gt Au over 25.55m (including 2.41gt Au over 6.15m)

Significant drilling results and hole locations are tabulated in Appendix 1, 2 and 3 of this news release.

Jon Hill, VP Exploration and Geology for Jaguar Mining commented: "We continue to be very encouraged by the early exploration results at CB. In particular, the recent sulphide intersection in hole FCB017 has confirmed our expectation that the potential for higher-grade, structurally controlled, plunging mineralization was likely to be encountered, via an extension beneath the outcropping and near surface oxide mineralization. Drilling at CB will continue to target extensions within the currently defined mineralized envelopes as well as a number of other priority targets associated within the regional structure."

Vern Baker, CEO of Jaguar Mining commented: "Since late 2020, we have successfully accelerated exploration activities across our exceptional portfolio of properties within the Iron Quadrangle of Minas Gerais and, in particular, we have focused our efforts on in-mine and near-mine exploration targets, such as the CB discovery project. The early positive results from CB may have the potential to add to our current oxide resources. All positive results achieved across our portfolio of projects in the IQ support our organic growth objectives leveraging available excess milling capacity from three mills."

Figure 1 - Location of the Corrego Brandao Discovery relative to the Jaguar CCA Mine and Plant Infrastructure.

Geology at Corrego Brandao

At CB, mineralization is hosted within a 10-20m thick interval of altered mafic volcanic rocks within in a regionally prospective folded and sheared Archean greenstone sequence. Fine grained sulphides in the mineralized zone are predominately pyrrhotite and subordinate pyrite with minor arsenopyrite and associated with an "exotic" mineral assemblage comprising biotite-garnet-magnetite, calcite and ankerite. Higher grades appear to be spatially associated with higher percentages of disseminated fine magnetite and discrete veinlets of quartz.

Figure 2 - Plans showing Corrego Brandao drill hole locations relative to A - Gold in soil anomaly - Au > 100ppb contour; and B - Analytical Signal Magnetic Image.

Figure 3 - North - South Cross Sections through Corrego Brandao showing mineralized intersections; broad envelope of oxide mineralization is 30-40m in thickness. Cut-off grade: 0.25 g/t (oxide - dark gray box); 0.50 g/t (sulphide - brown box). Note: All widths are drilled widths. A - Section A-A'; B - Section B-B'; C - Section C-C' (See Figure 2 for section location).

The area drilled to date at CB has tested a relatively restricted portion of the regional scale fold structure originally identified and targeted by Jaguar. Drilling has intersected very complex fold geometries associated with the interpreted hinge zone of the major fold structure with orientations consistent with "M-Type" asymmetries and associated parasitic folding. Mineralization appears where intersections are focused locally within synclinal structures with axes dipping to the south. The limbs show a sub-vertical dip which is seen to be discordant with typical regional foliation. The high-grade zones are associated with secondary (or second-order) folds shown in Figures 4 and 5. It is anticipated, and is consistent with many of the larger known gold deposits in the Iron Quadrangle that mineralized shoots will plunge to depth with the same orientation as that of the interpreted fold axes.

Figure 4 - East West Strike Section along approximately 500m strike section drill tested to date at Corrego Brandao. Cut-off grade: 0.25 g/t (oxide - dark gray box); 0.50 g/t (sulphide - brown box). Note: All widths are drilled widths.

Figure 5 - Schematic showing semi-regional structural context with deposit scale synformal (fold) structure hosting mineralized shoots that plunge to depth with the same orientation of the interpreted fold axis. The hinge zone of the fold structure shows "M-Type" asymmetries and associated parasitic folding.

Qualified Person

Scientific and technical information contained in this press release has been reviewed and approved by Jonathan Victor Hill, BSc (Hons) (Economic Geology - UCT), FAUSIMM, Vice President Geology and Exploration, who is also an employee of Jaguar Mining Inc., and is a "qualified person" as defined by National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101").

Quality Control

All sampling and samples utilized at Jaguar for Mineral Resource and or Mineral Reserves estimation uses a quality-control program that includes insertion of blanks and commercial standards in order to ensure best practice in sampling and analysis.

HQ, NQ, and BQ size drill core is sawn in half with a diamond saw. Samples are selected for analysis in standard intervals according to geological characteristics such as lithology and hydrothermal alteration. Rock channel sampling of the underground development follows the same standard intervals as for the drill core.

Half of the sawed sample is forwarded to the analytical laboratory for analysis while the remaining half of the core is stored in a secure location. The drill core and rock chip samples for resource-reserve conversion and grade control samples are transported for physical preparation and analysis in securely sealed bags to the Jaguar in-house laboratory located at the company's Caete Complex, Caete, Minas Gerais. Growth exploration samples are sent to the independent ALS Brazil (subsidiary of ALS Global) laboratory located in Vespasiano, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The analysis of these exploration samples is conducted at ALS Global's respective facilities (fire assay is conducted by ALS Global in Lima, Peru, and multi-elementary analysis is conducted by ALS Global in Vancouver, Canada). ALS has accreditation in a global management system that meets all requirements of international standards ISO/IEC 17025:2005 and ISO 9001:2015. All major ALS geochemistry analytical laboratories are accredited to ISO/IEC 17025:2005 for specific analytical procedures.

For a complete description of Jaguar's sample preparation, analytical methods and QA/QC procedures, please refer to "Technical Report on the Roca Grande and Pilar Operations, Minas Gerais State, Brazil", a copy of which is available on the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com.

The drilling results presented on this news release are from drill holes completed by contractors Major Drilling and Jaguars own fleet of underground diamond drilling rigs.

For a complete description of Jaguar's sample preparation, analytical methods and QA/QC procedures, please refer to the "Technical Report on the Roca Grande and Pilar Operations, Minas Gerais State, Brazil", dated August 17th 2020, a copy of which is available on the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com.

About Jaguar Mining Inc.

Jaguar Mining Inc. is a Canadian-listed junior gold mining, development, and exploration company operating in Brazil with two gold mining complexes and a large land package with significant upside exploration potential from additional mineral claims. The Company's principal operating assets are located in the Iron Quadrangle, a prolific greenstone belt in the state of Minas Gerais and include the Turmalina Gold Mine Complex and Caete Mining Complex (Pilar Mine and Caete Plant). The Company also owns the Paciencia Gold Mine Complex, which has been on care and maintenance since 2012. The Roca Grande Mine has been on care and maintenance since April 2018. Additional information is available on the Company's website at www.jaguarmining.com.

For further information please contact:

Vernon Baker

Chief Executive Officer

Jaguar Mining Inc.

vernon.baker@jaguarmining.com

416-847-1854 Hashim Ahmed

Chief Financial Officer

Jaguar Mining Inc.

hashim.ahmed@jaguarmining.com

416-847-1854

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this news release constitute 'forward-looking information' within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements and information are provided for the purpose of providing information about management's expectations and plans relating to the future. All of the forward-looking information made in this news release is qualified by the cautionary statements below and those made in our other filings with the securities regulators in Canada. Forward-looking information contained in forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as 'are expected,' 'is forecast,' 'is targeted,' 'approximately,' 'plans,' 'anticipates,' 'projects,' 'anticipates,' 'continue,' 'estimate,' 'believe' or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results 'may,' 'could,' 'would,' 'might,' or 'will' be taken, occur or be achieved. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, may be considered to be or include forward-looking information. This news release contains forward-looking information regarding, among other things, expected sales, production statistics, ore grades, tonnes milled, recovery rates, cash operating costs, definition/delineation drilling, the timing and amount of estimated future production, costs of production, capital expenditures, costs and timing of the development of projects and new deposits, success of exploration, development and mining activities, currency fluctuations, capital requirements, project studies, mine life extensions, restarting suspended or disrupted operations, continuous improvement initiatives, and resolution of pending litigation. The Company has made numerous assumptions with respect to forward-looking information contained herein, including, among other things, assumptions about the estimated timeline for the development of its mineral properties; the supply and demand for, and the level and volatility of the price of, gold; the accuracy of reserve and resource estimates and the assumptions on which the reserve and resource estimates are based; the receipt of necessary permits; market competition; ongoing relations with employees and impacted communities; political and legal developments in any jurisdiction in which the Company operates being consistent with its current expectations including, without limitation, the impact of any potential power rationing, tailings facility regulation, exploration and mine operating licenses and permits being obtained and renewed and/or there being adverse amendments to mining or other laws in Brazil and any changes to general business and economic conditions. Forward-looking information involves a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties, including among others: the risk of Jaguar not meeting the forecast plans regarding its operations and financial performance; uncertainties with respect to the price of gold, labour disruptions, mechanical failures, increase in costs, environmental compliance and change in environmental legislation and regulation, weather delays and increased costs or production delays due to natural disasters, power disruptions, procurement and delivery of parts and supplies to the operations; uncertainties inherent to capital markets in general (including the sometimes volatile valuation of securities and an uncertain ability to raise new capital) and other risks inherent to the gold exploration, development and production industry, which, if incorrect, may cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by the Company and described herein. In addition, there are risks and hazards associated with the business of gold exploration, development, mining and production, including environmental hazards, tailings dam failures, industrial accidents and workplace safety problems, unusual or unexpected geological formations, pressures, cave-ins, flooding, chemical spills, procurement fraud and gold bullion thefts and losses (and the risk of inadequate insurance, or the inability to obtain insurance, to cover these risks). In addition, the Company's principal operations and mineral properties are located in Brazil and there are additional business and financial risks inherent in doing business in Brazil as compared to the United States or Canada. In Brazil, corruption represents a challenge requiring extra attention by those who conduct business there. Corruption does not only occur with the misuse of public, government or regulatory powers, it also can occur in a business's supplies, inputs and procurement functions (such as illicit rebates, kickbacks and dubious vendor relationships) as well as the inventory and product sales functions (such as inventory shrinkage or skimming). Employees as well as external parties (such as suppliers, distributors and contractors) have opportunities to commit theft, procurement fraud and other wrongs against the Company. While corruption, bribery and fraud and theft risks can never be fully eliminated, the Company reviews and implements controls to reduce the likelihood of these events occurring. The Company's present and future business operations face these risks. Accordingly, for all of the reasons above, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information.

For additional information with respect to these and other factors and assumptions underlying the forward-looking information made in this news release, see the Company's most recent Annual Information Form and Management's Discussion and Analysis, as well as other public disclosure documents that can be accessed under the issuer profile of 'Jaguar Mining Inc.' on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. The forward-looking information set forth herein reflects the Company's reasonable expectations as at the date of this news release and is subject to change after such date. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law. The forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

Appendix 1

Drill hole location data for Corrego Brandao holes reported in this Press Release

Hole ID Easting (m) Northing (m) Elevation (m) Total Depth (m) Collar Azimuth () Collar Dip () Drilling situation Drilling Company Start Date End Date FCBR001 640028.41 7798106.61 1073.68 79.25 0.00 90.00 Concluded Energold 7-Dec-20 12-Dec-20 FCBR002 640028.19 7798106.78 1073.62 58.70 330.00 60.00 Concluded Energold 12-Dec-20 14-Dec-20 FCBR003 639988.14 7798100.32 1067.66 59.75 340.00 85.00 Concluded Energold 15-Dec-20 17-Dec-20 FCBR004 639988.27 7798100.10 1067.67 82.75 310.00 50.00 Concluded Energold 11-Jan-21 14-Jan-21 FCBR005 640052.35 7798076.08 1071.38 87.50 310.00 50.00 Concluded Energold 15-Jan-21 19-Jan-21 FCBR006 640070.73 7798050.61 1066.33 68.05 310.00 50.00 Concluded Energold 20-Jan-21 21-Jan-21 FCBR007 640010.61 7798070.45 1066.37 63.60 310.00 60.00 Concluded Energold 23-Jan-21 26-Jan-21 FCBR008 640036.37 7798047.69 1069.38 65.00 310.00 60.00 Concluded Energold 27-Jan-21 28-Jan-21 FCBR009 640044.51 7798007.16 1073.58 110.05 310.00 60.00 Concluded Energold 29-Jan-21 4-Feb-21 FCBR010 640106.50 7798031.88 1060.03 124.90 310.00 60.00 Concluded Energold 4-Fev-21 10-Feb-21 FCBR011 640106.39 7798076.50 1058.91 87.40 310.00 60.00 Concluded Energold 10-Fev-21 12-Feb-21 FCBR012 640073.10 7798092.74 1071.71 64.90 330.00 50.00 Concluded Energold 15-Fev-21 16-Feb-21 FCBR013 640104.64 7798075.70 1068.52 135.40 270.00 50.00 Concluded Energold 17-Fev-21 20-Feb-21 FCBR014 640064.63 7798137.10 1070.39 75.40 270.00 50.00 Concluded Energold 23-Fev-21 24-Feb-21 FCBR015 640015.82 7798024.67 1069.15 109.60 310.00 50.00 Concluded Energold 1-Mar-21 3-Mar-21 FCBR016 639995.25 7798086.36 1067.38 84.35 280.00 45.00 Concluded Energold 4-Mar-21 6-Mar-21 FCBR017 639956.70 7797823.01 1099.85 157.90 290.00 50.00 Concluded Energold 9-Mar-21 15-Mar-21 FCBR018 639993.12 7797883.26 1093.17 169.50 290.00 50.00 Concluded Energold 18-Mar-21 20-Mar-21 FCBR019 640024.61 7797939.64 1083.13 150.10 290.00 50.00 Concluded Energold 26-Apr-21 3-May-21 FCBR020 640007.13 7797985.99 1073.52 70.60 290.00 50.00 Concluded Energold 4-May-21 6-May-21 FCBR021 639922.00 7797954.00 1070.22 43.30 290.00 50.00 Concluded Energold 7-May-21 8-May-21 FCBR022 639907.04 7797881.96 1088.46 50.70 290.00 50.00 Concluded Energold 10-May-21 11-May-21 FCBR023 639975.87 7798018.39 1058.86 290.00 50.00 Planned Energold FCBR024 639983.82 7797840.32 1098.63 177.40 290.00 70.00 Concluded Energold 12-May-21 18-May-21 FCBR025 640081.00 7798015.98 1068.81 117.40 325.00 75.00 Concluded Energold 19-May-21 24-May-21 FCBR026 640109.00 7798012.00 1058.96 100.90 325.00 75.00 Concluded Energold 25-May-21 28-May-21 FCBR027 640114.24 7798117.64 1057.93 100.90 270.00 50.00 Concluded Energold 28-May-21 1-Jun-21 FCBR028 640085.17 7798169.13 1059.84 100.75 330.00 50.00 Concluded Energold 2-Jun-21 6-Jun-21 FCBR029 639956.70 7797823.01 1099.85 190.90 290.00 70.00 Drilling Energold 8-Jun-21 14-Jun-21 FCBR030 639943.28 7797869.90 1093.20 290.00 50.00 Planned Energold FCBR031 639971.39 7797925.61 1081.96 290.00 50.00 Planned Energold FCBS001 639908.32 7797739.72 1082.56 168.30 310.00 60.00 Concluded MAJOR 5-Dec-20 12-Dec-20 FCBS002 639908.79 7797740.15 1082.74 183.45 340.00 60.00 Concluded MAJOR 12-Dec-20 17-Dec-20 FCBS003 639913.21 7797734.94 1082.29 191.85 280.00 60.00 Concluded MAJOR 13-Jan-21 19-Jan-21 FCBS004 639875.29 7797511.56 1101.11 195.05 340.00 60.00 Concluded MAJOR 20-Jan-21 26-Jan-21 FCBS005 639874.38 7797511.18 1101.16 252.70 280.00 60.00 Concluded MAJOR 26-Jan-21 3-Feb-21 FCBS006 639874.84 7797511.20 1101.18 180.15 310.00 60.00 Concluded MAJOR 3-Fev-21 9-Feb-21 FCBS007 639819.91 7797490.15 1092.47 275.65 270.00 60.00 Concluded MAJOR 10-Fev-21 18-Feb-21 FCBS008 639819.88 7797489.06 1092.49 261.10 230.00 60.00 Concluded MAJOR 19-Fev-21 3-Mar-21 FCBS009 639925.54 7797700.68 1079.85 224.60 270.00 60.00 Concluded MAJOR 3-Mar-21 12-Mar-21 FCBS010 639926.02 7797703.72 1080.08 291.35 320.00 65.00 Concluded MAJOR 12-Mar-21 23-Mar-21

Appendix 2 - Corrego Brandao- Significant Oxide Drilling Intersections reported at 0.25gt Au cut-off grade

Summary of Oxide Significant Intersections, Drilling Program

Jaguar Mining Inc. - Corrego Brandao Target Hole ID From (m) To (m) DownHole Interval (m) Gold Grade (g/t Au) Redox Laboratory FCBR001 0 40 40.00 4.20 oxide ALS Including 10.4 16.5 6.10 15.81 oxide ALS 27 28.5 1.50 33.60 oxide ALS 35.5 37.75 2.25 1.69 oxide ALS FCBR002 0.00 40.05 40.05 1.41 oxide ALS Including 8.50 10.25 1.75 6.29 oxide ALS 18.00 25.50 7.50 3.38 oxide ALS 29.50 35.50 6.00 2.56 oxide ALS FCBR003 13.50 25.50 12.00 1.75 oxide ALS Including 17.35 20.85 3.50 4.73 oxide ALS FCBR004 0.00 19.95 19.95 0.91 oxide ALS Including 10.05 12.85 2.80 2.95 oxide ALS 14.80 19.95 5.15 1.18 oxide ALS FCBR005 0.00 46.15 46.15 0.78 oxide ALS Including 9.25 12.35 3.10 2.45 oxide ALS 16.55 39.05 22.50 0.94 oxide ALS FCBR006 32.75 34.55 1.80 1.98 oxide ALS FCBR007 5.50 31.05 25.55 1.84 oxide ALS Including 10.65 16.80 6.15 2.41 oxide ALS 19.65 22.10 2.45 1.59 oxide ALS 24.15 25.25 1.10 14.35 oxide ALS 29.25 31.05 1.80 4.83 oxide ALS FCBR007 32.15 39.65 7.50 0.57 oxide ALS Including 32.15 34.15 2.00 1.06 oxide ALS FCBR008 30.35 49.15 18.80 0.84 oxide/sulphide ALS Including 33.75 35.90 2.15 0.90 oxide ALS FCBR009 4.05 7.30 3.25 0.66 oxide ALS FCBR010 18.00 21.00 3.00 1.59 oxide ALS Including 19.00 20.00 1.00 3.91 oxide ALS FCBR011 0.00 8.25 8.25 0.90 oxide ALS Including 1.50 6.40 4.90 1.14 oxide ALS FCBR012 0.00 13.85 13.85 0.79 oxide ALS Including 0.00 4.15 4.15 1.17 oxide ALS 9.20 13.00 3.80 1.10 oxide ALS FCBR012 17.40 25.05 7.65 0.25 oxide ALS FCBR013 15.00 21.20 6.20 0.63 oxide ALS Including 15.00 19.20 4.20 0.90 oxide ALS FCBR014 19.00 20.00 1.00 0.57 oxide ALS FCBR017 47.00 49.50 2.50 0.77 oxide ALS FCBR018 12.60 13.85 1.25 3.62 oxide ALS FCBS006 61.60 63.90 2.30 1.09 oxide ALS FCBS007 52.70 58.55 5.85 0.37 oxide ALS Including 53.65 54.65 1.00 0.85 oxide ALS

Appendix 3 - Corrego Brandao- Significant Sulphide Drilling Intersections reported at 0.5gt Au cut-off grade.

Summary of Sulphide Significant Intersections, Drilling Program

Jaguar Mining Inc. - Corrego Brandao Target Hole ID From (m) To (m) DownHole Interval (m) Estimated True Width (m) Gold Grade (g/t Au) Redox Laboratory FCBR005 49.55 50.70 1.15 1.15 1.22 sulphide ALS FCBR006 42.00 48.40 6.40 6.40 0.73 sulphide ALS Including 42.00 42.85 0.85 0.85 3.62 sulphide ALS FCBR006 52.55 58.60 6.05 6.05 0.87 sulphide ALS Including 54.55 55.55 1.00 1.00 1.12 sulphide ALS 57.55 58.60 1.05 1.05 2.42 sulphide ALS FCBR008 41.90 46.00 4.10 4.10 2.13 sulphide ALS FCBR009 54.55 55.60 1.05 1.05 0.68 sulphide ALS FCBR009 103.90 107.95 4.05 4.05 1.23 sulphide ALS FCBR010 34.45 41.40 6.95 5.51 2.11 sulphide ALS FCBR010 49.40 50.50 1.10 1.10 0.51 sulphide ALS FCBR010 86.40 87.40 1.00 1.00 0.66 sulphide ALS FCBR010 98.65 99.75 1.10 1.10 0.50 sulphide ALS FCBR011 78.80 79.90 1.10 1.10 0.55 sulphide ALS FCBR013 62.90 64.00 1.10 0.92 0.86 sulphide ALS FCBR013 81.00 82.00 1.00 0.84 0.83 sulphide ALS FCBR013 99.70 103.40 3.70 3.10 1.90 sulphide ALS Including 99.70 100.60 0.90 0.76 1.71 sulphide ALS 102.45 103.40 0.95 0.80 5.12 sulphide ALS FCBR013 116.30 117.20 0.90 0.76 0.83 sulphide ALS FCBR015 77.75 91.70 13.95 13.95 0.90 sulphide ALS Including 77.75 83.20 5.45 5.45 1.10 sulphide ALS 89.50 90.60 1.10 1.10 3.32 sulphide ALS FCBR017 72.50 84.95 12.45 10.24 4.63 sulphide ALS Including 73.50 80.00 6.50 5.34 2.13 sulphide ALS 81.15 84.95 3.80 3.12 11.25 sulphide ALS FCBR017 108.85 109.50 0.65 0.53 0.80 sulphide ALS FCBR018 84.25 85.25 1.00 1.00 2.75 sulphide ALS FCBR018 98.40 99.40 1.00 1.00 0.50 sulphide ALS FCBS001 99.65 100.65 1.00 0.46 1.68 sulphide ALS FCBS001 108.90 110.50 1.60 0.74 1.12 sulphide ALS FCBS001 119.95 125.75 5.80 3.41 2.17 sulphide ALS Including 119.95 121.35 1.40 1.17 5.48 sulphide ALS FCBS002 79.15 80.10 0.95 0.83 1.40 sulphide ALS FCBS002 99.40 101.40 2.00 1.07 0.82 sulphide ALS FCBS002 117.35 123.80 6.45 3.29 3.11 sulphide ALS Including 119.50 123.80 4.30 2.24 4.22 sulphide ALS FCBS002 164.75 165.55 0.80 0.70 1.50 sulphide ALS FCBS003 78.50 79.60 1.10 0.80 0.52 sulphide ALS FCBS003 88.80 89.90 1.10 0.82 0.89 sulphide ALS FCBS003 114.70 123.85 9.15 5.70 2.96 sulphide ALS Including 114.70 116.80 2.10 1.26 2.58 sulphide ALS 118.80 123.85 5.05 3.33 4.24 sulphide ALS FCBS003 131.05 145.05 14.00 9.84 1.09 sulphide ALS Including 132.05 133.95 1.90 1.20 2.03 sulphide ALS 137.75 141.25 3.50 2.16 1.33 sulphide ALS FCBS003 145.95 147.10 1.15 0.67 0.98 sulphide ALS FCBS004 79.90 82.95 3.05 3.05 0.63 sulphide ALS Including 81.95 82.95 1.00 1.00 1.06 sulphide ALS FCBS004 121.90 122.90 1.00 1.00 1.34 sulphide ALS FCBS005 126.65 127.60 0.95 0.89 1.60 sulphide ALS FCBS005 139.30 143.20 3.90 3.67 0.85 sulphide ALS Including 139.30 140.30 1.00 0.95 1.76 sulphide ALS 142.30 143.20 0.90 0.85 1.41 sulphide ALS FCBS005 164.30 165.30 1.00 0.95 0.78 sulphide ALS FCBS005 187.80 188.85 1.05 1.00 0.75 sulphide ALS FCBS006 88.20 94.55 6.35 6.35 0.94 sulphide ALS Including 88.20 89.25 1.05 1.05 1.92 sulphide ALS 92.40 94.55 2.15 2.15 1.78 sulphide ALS FCBS006 102.90 109.40 6.50 6.50 0.89 sulphide ALS FCBS007 139.80 140.90 1.10 0.92 0.66 sulphide ALS FCBS008 80.00 81.30 1.30 1.00 1.34 sulphide ALS FCBS008 93.45 94.75 1.30 1.20 0.57 sulphide ALS FCBS008 177.40 185.05 7.65 7.06 0.55 sulphide ALS Including 177.40 179.35 1.95 1.80 1.20 sulphide ALS 184.10 185.05 0.95 0.87 1.30 sulphide ALS FCBS008 214.30 220.65 6.35 5.84 0.86 sulphide ALS FCBS009 107.05 123.70 16.65 13.00 0.71 sulphide ALS Including 111.35 113.40 2.05 1.60 1.08 sulphide ALS 115.40 117.40 2.00 1.56 1.94 sulphide ALS FCBS009 152.35 162.35 10.00 6.92 1.62 sulphide ALS Including 152.35 155.35 3.00 2.34 0.89 sulphide ALS 158.35 162.35 4.00 2.78 3.20 sulphide ALS FCBS010 132.50 133.50 1.00 0.75 0.83 sulphide ALS FCBS010 181.05 189.55 8.50 6.40 0.56 sulphide ALS Including 182.90 183.75 0.85 0.66 1.35 sulphide ALS Including 187.35 189.55 2.20 1.68 1.01 sulphide ALS FCBS010 195.80 196.85 1.05 0.80 0.81 sulphide ALS FCBS010 283.10 284.10 1.00 0.78 0.51 sulphide ALS FCBS010 290.25 291.35 1.10 0.82 1.69 sulphide ALS SOURCE: Jaguar Mining Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/652663/Jaguar-Intersects-Significant-Sulphide-Mineralization-at-Corrego-Brando
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - Ridgestone Mining Inc. (TSXV: RMI) (OTCQB: RIGMF) (FSE: 4U5) ("Ridgestone" or the "Company") is pleased to announce assays results from the recently completed mapping and routine sampling program at its wholly-owned Rebeico copper-gold project in Sonora State, Mexico. The program, which was comprised of geologic mapping, prospecting and sampling, was completed in May 2021. The program focused on an area around the past producing El Cobre copper mine as well as an approximately 5.25 square-kilometre area within the Rebeico concessions.

Highlights:

El Cobre: sampling from the mineralized structure outcropping on surface returned up to 3.5% copper over 1.0 metres, with sampling from the historic dumps ranging from 2.01 to 2.65% copper.

sampling from the mineralized structure outcropping on surface returned up to 3.5% copper over 1.0 metres, with sampling from the historic dumps ranging from 2.01 to 2.65% copper. Regional: Multiple mineralized structures and artisanal workings were encountered, with sampling returning up to 3.11% copper and up to 3.45 g/t gold from surface.

Multiple mineralized structures and artisanal workings were encountered, with sampling returning up to 3.11% copper and up to 3.45 g/t gold from surface. Permitting: Permitting underway for a drill program to test the high-priority copper targets, including the El Cobre mine.

Permitting underway for a drill program to test the high-priority copper targets, including the El Cobre mine. Geological Model: Geological mapping has revealed mineralized breccias within and peripheral to volcanic intrusive rocks, contact skarns and hornfels within the sedimentary carbonate and siltstone rocks where they were in contact with volcanic intrusive rocks which are typical for a copper-gold porphyry system.

"We are highly encouraged by the work completed on our Rebeico claims with significant copper/gold/silver results sampled on surface from the breccia zones and around the El Cobre mine, in addition to geological mapping results, geophysical results and alteration associated with the volcanic intrusions" commented Jonathan George, CEO. "We believe that these aggregated results indicate the possible presence of a sub-surface copper porphyry system. The upcoming drill program will follow-up on the high-grade copper mineralization encountered on surface to determine the source of and potential extensions of the mineralization. The majority of the targets have not seen any follow-up or investigated by modern-day exploration."

El Cobre Mine

A total of fourteen (14) samples were collected around the historic mine, nine (9) of which were along a 200-metre-long structure exposed at surface with the balance taken from outcrops and historic dumps. Highlights from sampling of the main mineralized structure exposed on surface included 3.5% copper plus 0.32 g/t gold over 1.0 metre and 1.5% copper plus 0.44 g/t gold over 1.5 metres. Additionally, sampling from waste dumps from historical mining included 2.65% copper over 3.0 metres, 2.62% copper over 1.0 metre, 2.21% copper over 1.5 metres, and 2.01% copper over 3.0 metres.

The El Cobre mine was put into production by Asarco during the sixties and was developed on two levels, with the upper level having over 230 metres of drift development and the lower level having over 100 metres long of drift development at a depth of 180 metres below surface. The main structure, with widths varying from 1 to 5 metres, has been emplaced within a granodiorite intrusive and remains open along strike and at depth. There has been no modern-day exploration at the El Cobre mine or surrounding area since production ceased, making it an ideal target for future exploration. Significant results are presented in Figure 1 below.

Figure 1: El Cobre Sampling Highlights (rock-chips except where noted)

Sample# Description Width (m) Cu (%) Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) Mo (%) 616903 Main Structure 1.0 3.50 0.32 32 0.136 63058 Dump 3.0 2.65 0.17 27 0.220 616905 Dump 1.0 2.62 0.12 49 0.333 63064 Dump 1.5 2.21 0.17 37 0.205 63059 Dump 3.0 2.01 0.18 43 0.522 63061 Main Structure 1.5 1.54 0.44 49 0.167 63063 Intrusive 1.5 1.51 0.01 7 0.005 63056 Main Structure 5.0 1.45 0.46 53 0.303 63060 Main Structure 2.0 1.32 0.42 30 0.174 63057 Main Structure 3.0 1.20 0.02 7 0.024 63062 Intrusive 1.5 1.04 0.67 36 0.206

Regional Geophysical Anomalies

A detailed mapping and sampling program was conducted over a 5.25 square kilometre area, focusing on geophysical anomalies identified by past surveys. In 2018 and 2019 the Company completed 31 line-kilometres of Induced Polarization/ Resistivity surveys covering an area of approximately 9 sq kilometres. The surveys outlined a significant chargeability anomaly over an 800 metre by 1,200 metre area with depths ranging from near surface to 300 metres. The Alaska Vein, the mineralized New Year Breccia Zone and artisanal Elena copper workings all occur within the surveyed area. A total of eighteen distinct geophysical anomalies were identified, mapped, and sampled. Multiple mineralized structures and numerous artisanal workings were encountered and sampled during the program. Significant results from the program are highlighted in Figure 2 below.

From the completed program, the results of the geophysical survey, geological mapping, prospecting, sampling and the field results between alteration assemblages and assay results, the results may indicate the presence of a copper porphyry system below the surface of the property.

Figure 2: Regional Sampling Highlights (rock-chips except where noted)

Sample# Description Width (m) Cu (%) Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) 63119 Old Working (grab) - 3.11 2.46 3 63114 Sed/And Contact 0.0 1.70 0.37 10 63189 Breccia 1.5 1.60 0.63 8 63184 Vein (2 m wide) 0.8 1.37 0.04 22 63116 Vein Quartz 1.2 1.06 2.40 6 63179 Breccia 1.0 0.76 0.08 3 63193 Breccia 1.0 0.67 0.01 25 63190 Breccia 1.5 0.51 1.10 7 63168 Breccia 1.5 0.08 3.45 5 63187 Intrusive 2x2 (panel) 0.07 1.72 1 63076 Skarn 1.0 0.04 2.44 <0.5

Qualified Persons

Noris Del Bel Belluz, P. Geo., Vice-President of Exploration, is a "qualified person" as defined under NI 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the content of this news release.

About Ridgestone Mining Inc.

Ridgestone Mining has assembled a highly-experienced and dynamic team to explore and advance its projects in Mexico. The Guadalupe y Calvo gold-silver project, for which Ridgestone can earn a 100% interest, is host to an Indicated Resource of 356,000 gold-equivalent ounces plus an Inferred Resource of 460,000 gold-equivalent ounces. Ridgestone's 100%-owned Rebeico copper-gold project has high-grade copper and gold pervasive throughout the property with highlights including 1.56% copper plus 1.80 g/t gold intersected over 19.3 metres from surface at the New Year Zone and 2.78% copper plus 8.69 g/t gold over 2.0 metres from the Alaska Vein.

For further information, please contact:

Rad Rajaram - Manager Corporate Relations and Business Development

Telephone: 416-732-0604

This news release contains forward-looking statements or information (collectively referred to herein as "forward-looking statements"). Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance or developments to differ materially from those contained in the statements and are not guarantees of future performance of the Company. In this news release such statements include but are not limited to any ongoing drilling programs, timing of such programs, or exploration results. No assurance can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will occur or, if they do occur, what benefits the Company will obtain from them. These forward-looking statements reflect management's current views and are based on certain expectations, estimates and assumptions which may prove to be incorrect. A number of risks and uncertainties could cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including those described in the Company's regulatory filings available on www.sedar.com. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of the Company's assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material respects from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of risks, uncertainties and other factors is not exhaustive. Unpredictable or unknown factors not discussed could also have material adverse effects on forward-looking statements. The impact of any one factor on a particular forward-looking statement is not determinable with certainty as such factors are dependent on other factors, and the Company's course of action would depend on its assessment of the future considering all information then available. All forward-looking statements in this news release are expressly qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements. Except as required by law, the Company assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements should circumstances or management's estimates or opinions change.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88341
Neptune One spaceship test launch in Florida showcases dazzling views from space and heralds the opportunity to reserve your seat now for 2024

NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Introducing a new era in luxury travel experiences: Space Perspective is the world's most radically gentle voyage to space. Travel adventurers can now reserve a seat on Spaceship Neptune and savor 360-degree views of planet Earth from 20 miles/30 km above in a luxurious six-hour trip. Up to eight guests can enjoy a beautifully appointed capsule, complete with a bar and a bathroom, for $125,000 each.

The brainchild of space travel experts Jane Poynter and Taber MacCallum, Space Perspective wants more people to experience the life-changing views from space that to date have only been accessible to astronauts - making it possible by applying flight technology used extensively by NASA for many years.

This transformative opportunity, taking reservations now for flights as soon as late 2024, extends the possibility of exploring space to a wider audience than has historically been possible. The space curious who would have considered it too risky or expensive can now experience the exhilaration of traveling to space with a safe and gentle ascent. The ground-breaking pressurized Spaceship Neptune gently lifts passengers to space to be immersed in breath-taking views of the curvature of Earth.

History-making Space Explorers will ascend in Spaceship Neptune from a launch pad at the iconic Kennedy Space Center. Eight guests, accompanied by a pilot, will soar above 99% of Earth's atmosphere and then glide for two hours to uniquely enjoy our planet's biosphere from the comfortable capsule's vast viewing windows.

Unlike grueling, expensive space rockets, Spaceship Neptune rewrites the engineering playbook: it doesn't use rocket propulsion nor engender g-force acceleration. Exhilarating in its own right, this experience invites a profoundly different perspective through atmospheric layers, framed by the thin blue line below and the blackness of space above. This visceral reminder of how interconnected we are with all living organism is - according to most astronauts who have experienced it - profoundly life-changing; boundaries and differences disappear.

Each flight will be personally curated with end-to-end bespoke experiences, from meeting Hall of Fame astronauts to taking nuptials to new heights.

Space Perspective is the first space launch operator to fly from Space Coast Air and Spaceport, located adjacent to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Their Neptune One inaugural Test Flight kicks off an extensive testing program that makes Spaceship Neptune an extremely safe way to go to space. Space Perspective ensures safety by applying flight technology used for decades by NASA and global government entities, supported by a world class, hand-picked crew integral to all human spaceballoon flights for the last 50 years.

Jane Poynter and Taber MacCallum, the husband-and-wife team behind Space Perspective, are on a mission to invite more people - including scientists and artists - to ride the wave of space history and be transformed by seeing our beautiful Earth from space.

The couple has been responsible for some of the most remarkable breakthroughs in space innovation and exploration in the last 20 years: perfecting technologies seen on the International Space Station, acting as technical advisors in human spaceflight to Elon Musk pre-SpaceX, and Google executive Alan Eustace's world record for human spaceflight - 136,000 ft propelled by a spaceballoon in 2014.

Traveling where few have gone before in an entirely accessible format, Space Perspective sets a new bar in out-of-this-world luxury experiences. Please visit www.spaceperspective.com to reserve your seat.

Instagram @thespaceperspective

Twitter @SpacePerspectiv

Facebook @TheSpacePerspective

Space Perspective

Space Perspective is the world's first luxury spaceflight experience. It invites more people than has historically been possible to experience a thrillingly new and visceral perspective that expands the human consciousness - the incredibly exhilarating panoramas and scale of Earth in space. Our atmosphere stretches for hundreds of miles into space, Spaceship Neptune flies above 99% of it.

Setting a new bar in out-of-this-world thrilling experiences, as soon as late 2024 Space Perspective will escort Space Explorers gently to space inside Spaceship Neptune's pressurized capsule propelled by a high-performance spaceballoon that doesn't use rocket fuel and Explorers see the world anew through its vast windows. The ultra-comfortable, accessible, and six-hour journey redefines what space and wonder travel means for the modern traveler.

Based out of Kennedy Space Center, Space Perspective is led by industry luminaries Jane Poynter and Taber MacCallum, and their expert crew who have been integral to all human spaceballoon flights in the last 50 years. Poynter and MacCallum have been dubbed "masters of the stratosphere" by Bloomberg Businessweek, and MacCallum served as Chairman of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation.

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Extends FM:Systems Solutions and Provides Unprecedented Digital Workplace Experience for Employees, Contractors, Suppliers and Visitors

RALEIGH, N.C., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- FM:Systems , a dominant provider of digital workplace solutions globally, announced today that it has acquired WizzPass , a rapidly growing leader in the visitor management system and workplace management market. Earlier this year, independent research and advisory firm Verdantix identified that 24% of firms globally plan to invest in visitor management systems ("Smart Buildings Software: Market Size And Forecast, January 2021). Used and trusted by leading companies across multiple continents, the WizzPass system is efficient, easy to use and can be configured to suit any facility or organization.

"We are excited to build on our strategy of providing comprehensive digital workplace solutions with the addition of WizzPass' leading visitor management technologies," said Kurt von Koch, CEO of FM:Systems. "This acquisition deepens our offerings in visitor management, which is an important aspect of delivering productive, safe, and enriched workplace experiences. With customers that include many marquee companies, WizzPass is recognized as a leader across the industry. We look forward to welcoming and continuing to support existing WizzPass customers as part of the FM:Systems family."

Founded in 2015 and based in Johannesburg, South Africa, WizzPass focuses on improving the often manual and insecure processes and systems involved with traditional facility visitor management. The WizzPass Visitor Management System revolutionizes the experience, security, convenience and safety of visitors to offices and other buildings, creating improved communications and interactions between businesses and their visitors, be they contractors, suppliers, employees or others. WizzPass is trusted by blue-chip companies at over 300 locations, across 4 continents, and has processed over 10 million secure events.

FM:Systems provides a strategic, end-to-end solution suite that transforms the digital workplace into a self-sustaining ecosystem and establishes a rich foundation of workplace data that informs decisions as the organization grows and times change. Intuitive, user-friendly interfaces create a fluid workplace experience in the office, at home or anywhere else in the world an employee might choose to work. The WizzPass acquisition increases the already commanding breadth of the FM:Systems portfolio of products, ensuring that clients can continue to tackle the most daunting real estate and facilities challenges with a single, trusted vendor.

"It is with great enthusiasm that we join forces with an outstanding company like FM:Systems," said Ulrich Stark, co-founder of WizzPass. "This will facilitate exactly the kind of valuable workplace solution combination our customers have been asking for."

"We see great potential to jointly drive innovation and market expansion with FM:Systems, continuing to bring an incomparable full realm of unique digital workplace solutions to market together," said Bradley Hornby, co-founder of WizzPass.

About FM:Systems

More than 1,500 organizations worldwide trust FM:Systems to transform their workplace experience and bring employees together in exceptional, healthy workplaces that enhance productivity and delight occupants. Recognized as a market leader by industry analysts, our suite of digital workplace solutions provides actionable insights to optimize every facet of your real estate portfolio and ensure your ever-ready workplace is prepared for the unexpected. With customers representing half of the Fortune 50, - of top 25 US banks, 150+ government institutions, 350+ universities, over 200 hospital and healthcare organizations and 50% of the leading pharmaceutical firms, our market leading solutions manage over 3 billion square feet across 80 countries. FM:Systems is headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina and conducts business globally. For more information about FM:Systems, please visit www.fmsystems.com .

About WizzPass

WizzPass provides a variety of visitor management, parcel management, Covid-19 screening and workspace reservation solutions for corporate offices, industrial & manufacturing facilities, and multi-tenant office buildings and office parks. The WizzPass Visitor Management System revolutionizes the experience, convenience, security and safety of visitors to offices to create a much-improved environment and way that businesses, visitors, contractors, employees and clients interact. WizzPass is trusted by blue-chip companies at over 300 locations, across 4 continents, and has processed over 10 million secure events. The startup is an alumnus of both Techstars Cape Town (2016) and the Grindstone Accelerator (2019/20) that helped advance its growth journey. WizzPass is headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa. For more information about WizzPass, please visit www.wizzpass.com.

Contact:

Andrea Oliveira

(512) 922-7505

andrea@oliveirahousepr.com

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TORONTO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Payfare (TSX: PAY) today announced that it will integrate Mastercard Send into Payfare's financial technology platform, expanding real-time payment options for the gig economy. Payfare, who powers digital banking and instant payout solutions for some of the world's largest on-demand platforms will leverage Mastercard's full-service disbursements and person-to-person platform to further its mission in supporting financial inclusion for all gig workers and offer a differentiated payment experience.

Mastercard Send allows people and organizations to send and receive money how, where and when they choose. With Mastercard Send, Payfare can send gig worker earnings payouts to virtually all consumer and small business debit cards in the United States and other countries. Gig workers will also be able to send domestic and international money transfers in the Payfare-powered digital banking apps.

"We are thrilled to add Mastercard Send capabilities to our existing payout and digital banking solutions," said Marco Margiotta, CEO and Founding Partner of Payfare. "This partnership will open up new revenue streams for Payfare while providing more choice for our corporate clients and cardholders."

"As we continue to watch the pace of change accelerate around digital payments, it's become clear that waiting days to receive a payment is no longer working," said Chiro Aikat, Executive Vice President, North America Products & Innovation at Mastercard. "Through the integration of Mastercard Send, Payfare can now better meet the needs of the gig and independent economy by offering greater choice and efficiency."

About Payfare (TSX:PAY)

Payfare is a global financial technology company powering digital banking and instant payment solutions for today's gig workforce. Payfare partners with leading platforms and marketplaces, such as Uber, Lyft and DoorDash, to provide financial security and inclusion for their workforce.
Pre-Release Chapters That Dive into The Benefits of a Modern Data Mesh Are Available Now

BOSTON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Starburst , the analytics anywhere company, today announced its sponsorship of a new O'Reilly book called Data Mesh: Delivering Data-Driven Value at Scale by Zhamak Dehghani. Today marks the early-release chapters from the book which dive into the shift from monolithic data architecture towards a modern data mesh. A free copy can be downloaded here .

"Many enterprises are investing in a next-generation data lake, hoping to democratize data at scale to provide business insights and ultimately make better decisions," according to O'Reilly. "In this practical book, Dehghani reveals that, despite the time, money, and effort poured into them, data warehouses and data lakes fail when applied at the scale and speed of today's organizations. A distributed data mesh is a better choice."

Dehghani guides architects, technical leaders, and decision makers on their journey from monolithic big data architecture to a sociotechnical paradigm that draws from modern distributed architecture. A data mesh considers domains as a first-class concern, applies platform thinking to create self-serve data infrastructure, treats data as a product, and introduces a federated and computational model of data governance. This book helps readers understand how to:

Examine the current data landscape from the perspective of business and organizational needs, environmental challenges, and existing architectures

Analyze the landscape's underlying characteristics and failure modes

Get a complete introduction to data mesh principles and its constituents

Learn how to design a data mesh architecture

Move beyond a monolithic data lake to a distributed data mesh.

"We are at an inflection point. The complexity of our businesses, our audacious goals to use data for our day to day operations combined with volatility of our markets, demand a new approach to managing and getting value from data," said Zhamak Dehghani, Director of Emerging Technologies at ThoughtWorks and Data Mesh Founder. "Data Mesh is what comes after this inflection point. It's an approach that embraces the realities of business complexities and data-driven ambitions today, while learning from the limitations of the past paradigms. I'm fortunate to be part of this magical moment in time for change."

This comes on the heels of Starburst's recent release of Stargate, a new product offering that is intended to serve as a single point of access to data across borders, with fast query performance, while meeting data privacy and sovereignty requirements. Available for Starburst Enterprise customers, Stargate is supported by data governance partnerships with Alation , Immuta , Okera , and Privacera .

"Data Mesh is about the acknowledgement and embrace of data decentralization." Said Justin Borgman, Starburst Co-Founder & CEO. "When Zhamak first started writing about Data Mesh, it perfectly aligned with our view that the enterprise data warehouse era, or more generally an approach to big data analytics that requires extensive data movement, has to end. Companies today realize that it's a fool's errand to try to consolidate all of your data into a single data store, and that sentiment is driving the shift to a Data Mesh architecture. Starburst aims to be the de facto query engine for the Data Mesh paradigm."

To learn more, visit Starburst's Data Mesh Resource Center , where you can enjoy exclusive access to additional Data Mesh content, including on-demand talks and panel discussions featuring Zhamak Dehghani and more. Additionally, on July 14th, you can join Datanova for Data Scientists for a panel discussion with Zhamak, Daniel Abadi, Darnell-Kanal Professor of Computer Science at University of Maryland, College Park and Max Schultze, Data Engineering Manager at Zalando as they discuss what Data Mesh means for data scientists.

About Starburst

Starburst is the analytics engine for the data mesh. We unlock the value of distributed data by making it fast and easy to access, no matter where it lives. Starburst queries data across any database, making it instantly actionable for data-driven organizations. With Starburst, teams can lower the total cost of their infrastructure and analytics investments, prevent vendor lock-in, and use the existing tools that work for their business. Trusted by companies like Comcast, FINRA, and Conde Nast, Starburst helps companies make better decisions faster on all data.

For more information, press only:

Jill Creelman

Inkhouse

starburst@inkhouse.com

781-966-4100
Programme aims to support students from under-represented ethnic groups

London, UK - 23 June 2021

COMPASS Pathways plcwhich aims to support students from under-represented ethnic groups to thrive in neuroscience, and build a supportive community through networking opportunities, bursaries and mentorship.

COMPASS's involvement is part of its ongoing commitment to fostering, cultivating and preserving a bold culture of equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) within the company and in the wider neuroscience and health care communities.

George Goldsmith, CEO and Co-founder of COMPASS Pathways, said: "COMPASS Pathways is proud to be a Founding Supporter of the BNA's Scholars programme. We are fully committed to equitable access in all areas of our research and our work, and we are excited about driving this agenda forward with the BNA and other founding partners, in support of neuroscience students."

COMPASS is one of eight Founding Supporters, alongside Bristol Neuroscience , Gatsby Foundation , Guarantors of Brain , International Brain Research Organization and the UK Dementia Research Institute .

BNA President, Rik Henson, said: "Our Founding Supporters represent the breadth of the neuroscience sector, covering academic, commercial, and third sector organisations, all united in the goal of improving EDI in neuroscience. We are delighted to welcome COMPASS Pathways to the programme, given its leadership in mental health care, as well as our close alignment to its values and its approach to EDI."

The cohort of seven students accepted onto the BNA Scholars programme was announced in March 2021. Each student will be matched with a mentor and remain on the programme for three years.

-Ends-

About COMPASS Pathways

COMPASS Pathways plc

Availability of other information about COMPASS Pathways

Investors and others should note that the Company communicates with its investors and the public using its website (www.compasspathways.com), its investor relations website (ir.compasspathways.com), and on social media (LinkedIn), including but not limited to investor presentations and investor fact sheets, US Securities and Exchange Commission filings, press releases, public conference calls and webcasts. The information posted on these channels and websites could be deemed to be material information. As a result, we encourage investors, the media, and others interested in the Company to review the information that is posted on these channels, including the investor relations website, on a regular basis. This list of channels may be updated from time to time on our investor relations website and may include additional social media channels. The contents of the Company's website or these channels, or any other website that may be accessed from the website or these channels, shall not be deemed incorporated by reference in any filing under the Securities Act of 1933.



Forward-looking statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "may", "might", "will", "could", "would", "should", "expect", "intend", "plan", "objective", "anticipate", "believe", "contemplate", "estimate", "predict", "potential", "continue" and "ongoing," or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. Forward-looking statements include express or implied statements relating to, among other things, the safety profile of COMP360 and the efficacy of COMP360 psilocybin therapy as a treatment for depression, COMPASS's business strategy and goals, COMPASS's ability to continue to advance its research, including COMP360, and COMPASS's expectations regarding the benefits of its COMP360 psilocybin therapy. The forward-looking statements in this press release are neither promises nor guarantees, and you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements because they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which are beyond COMPASS's control and which could cause actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements.

These risks, uncertainties, and other factors include, among others: preclinical research and clinical development is lengthy and uncertain, and therefore our preclinical studies and clinical trials may be delayed or terminated, or may never advance to or in the clinic; and those risks and uncertainties described under the heading "Risk Factors" in COMPASS's annual report on Form 20-F filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on 9 March 2021 and in subsequent filings made by COMPASS with the SEC, which are available on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Except as required by law, COMPASS disclaims any intention or responsibility for updating or revising any forward-looking statements contained in this press release in the event of new information, future developments or otherwise. These forward-looking statements are based on COMPASS's current expectations and speak only as of the date hereof.

Enquiries

Media: Tracy Cheung, tracy@compasspathways.com, +44 7966 309024

Investors: Stephen Schultz, stephen.schultz@compasspathways.com, +1 401 290 7423
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - Tembo Gold Corp. (TSXV: TEM) ("Tembo" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that pursuant to a price reservation filed with the TSX Venture Exchange (the "Exchange") on June 7th 2021, the Company proposes to complete a non-brokered private placement (the "Private Placement") consisting of 20,000,000 common shares, at a price of $0.15 per share, for total gross proceeds of up to $3,000,000. The proceeds will be used for general working capital, and project related costs including drilling and operational field expenses to complete the drilling proposed for 2021. The Company may pay a finder's fee in connection with the Private Placement in accordance with the policies of the Exchange. There will be insider participation in this financing.

The Private Placement is subject to acceptance by the Exchange. All securities issued will be subject to a four-month hold period from the date of closing.

Highlights

Tembo will raise an amount of $3,000,000 to fund the 2021 drilling programme.

Drilling will be carried out on the Tembo Project, located adjacent to the Bulyanhulu underground mining operation of Barrick Gold.

The drilling is a follow-up to previous drilling programmes that intersected highly significant gold mineralization with exceptional grades.

The re-interpretation of Tembo's extensive database of previous exploration through the GoldSpot collaboration project highlighted the characteristics of the known targets previously drilled and identified at least 54 potential targets with these and similar characteristics commonly associated with gold mineralization in greenstone terranes.

Drilling will focus around earlier boreholes with good results, with the aim of achieving a detailed structural understanding of the mineralization so that further targeted follow-up drilling can follow the mineralisation along strike and downdip with the goal of defining a maiden resource.

Testing of two newly defined targets will commence with a staged drilling programme consisting of diamond, RC and RAB drilling.

A total of 15,000m is planned comprising 2,000m of diamond drilling, 5,500m of RC drilling and 7,500m of RAB drilling.

It is anticipated that this programme will be completed by the end of Q4 2021.

David Scott, President & CEO of Tembo, stated: "We are extremely happy to be re-mobilising onto the Tembo project and eagerly await the outcomes of this programme. Through our recent re-interpretation we are further convinced of the quality of the project and the potential for a significant gold discovery and anticipate a protracted period of resource and new target drilling beyond 2021."

About Tembo Gold Corp.

Tembo is a Canadian publicly-listed mineral exploration company with a 100% interest in the Tembo Gold Project which is located adjacent to African Barrick's 14Moz Bulyanhulu Gold Mine in the prolific Lake Victoria Greenstone belt in Tanzania. Tembo's focus is the discovery and development of gold projects in Africa. The Company has assembled a highly experienced team with a proven history of developing, financing, and operating mining projects in Africa. The Company's exploration strategy is to discover mineral resources as well as continue to look for additional opportunities that can bring value to the Company and shareholders.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors of Tembo,

David Scott

President & CEO

For more information please contact:

Simon Benstead

Director & VP Corporate Development

Phone: 604-685-9316

Email: investors@tembogold.com

NEITHER THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS NEWS RELEASE.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Certain information set out in this news release constitutes forward-looking information. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate; "plan", "continue; "estimate; "expect", "may, "will", "intend", "could", "might", "should", "believe" and similar expressions. This news release contains forward-looking statements in respect of certain anticipated goals and expectations in connection with the Financing, including, without limitation, the use of the net proceeds from the Financing, the receipt of applicable shareholder approval in connection with the change of control of the Company, the anticipated lock-up and voting arrangements to be entered into by the Investor Group, the anticipated reconstitution of the board of directors of Tembo, the anticipated approval of the TSXV for the Financing and the expectation that Tembo will remain a public company following the change of control. Forward-looking statements are based upon the opinions and expectations of management of the Company as at the effective date of such statements and, in certain cases, information provided or disseminated by third parties. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, and that information obtained from third party sources is reliable, they can give no assurance that those expectations will prove to have been correct. The forward-looking statements contained herein after provided for the purpose of providing readers with the Company's expectations and goals in connection with the Financing, and may not be suitable for other purposes. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88322
Victoria, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - Plurilock Security Inc. (TSXV: PLUR) (OTCQB: PLCKF) and related subsidiaries ("Plurilock" or the "Company"), an identity-centric cybersecurity solutions provider for workforces, has received a purchase order worth US$120,000 from a county government in California.

Plurilock secured the order in a competitive open market due to the team's exceptional track record for quality products and customer service. The Company will provide the county government entity with cybersecurity software and maintenance support per the purchase order.

Government entities at all levels have seen an increase in cybercrime, impacting networks and critical infrastructure. Since 2017, cyber-attacks against state and local governments have risen an average of almost 50%.1 This has proven costly for them, with recent data showing that ransomware attacks cost local and state governments over $18 billion in 2020.2

Cyber-attacks against government entities have been a significant talking point in recent days, with U.S. President Joe Biden speaking with Russian President Vladimir Putin about setting parameters to protect against these types of attacks on infrastructure and government agencies.3 Along with increased pressure due to the surge in attacks, state and local governments often face the challenge of limited resources and extended procurement timelines, underscoring the importance of vendors they select for cybersecurity products.

This order demonstrates the Company's continued efforts to expand and serve organizations within the government vertical at the local, state, and federal levels.

About Plurilock

Plurilock provides identity-centric cybersecurity for today's workforces. Plurilock offers world-class cybersecurity solutions paired with AI-driven, cloud-friendly security technologies that deliver persistent identity assurance with unmatched ease of use. The Plurilock family of companies enables organizations to operate safely and securely while reducing cybersecurity friction.

For more information, visit https://www.plurilock.com or contact:

Ian L. Paterson

Chief Executive Officer

ian@plurilock.com

416.800.1566

Roland Sartorius

Chief Financial Officer

roland.sartorius@plurilock.com

Prit Singh

Investor Relations

prit.singh@plurilock.com

905.510.7636

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements and forward-looking information (collectively, "forward-looking statements") related to future events or Plurilock's future business, operations, and financial performance and condition. Forward-looking statements normally contain words like "will", "intend", "anticipate", "could", "should", "may", "might", "expect", "estimate", "forecast", "plan", "potential", "project", "assume", "contemplate", "believe", "shall", "scheduled", and similar terms. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, actions, or developments and are based on expectations, assumptions, and other factors that management currently believes are relevant, reasonable, and appropriate in the circumstances. Although management believes that the forward-looking statements herein are reasonable, actual results could be substantially different due to the risks and uncertainties associated with and inherent to Plurilock's business. Additional material risks and uncertainties applicable to the forward-looking statements herein include, without limitation, the impact of general economic conditions, the success of the Company in obtaining new or extended contracts or orders; the Company's ability to maintain existing customers or develop new customers; the Company's ability to successfully integrate acquisitions of other businesses and/or companies or to realize on the anticipated benefits thereof; and unforeseen events, developments, or factors causing any of the aforesaid expectations, assumptions, and other factors ultimately being inaccurate or irrelevant. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect the Company's forward-looking statements. Many of these factors are beyond the control of Plurilock. All forward-looking statements included in this press release are expressly qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as at the date hereof, and Plurilock undertakes no obligation to update publicly or to revise any of the included forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable securities laws. Risks and uncertainties about the Company's business are more fully discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in its most recent Annual Information Form. They are otherwise disclosed in its filings with securities regulatory authorities available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

https://gcn.com/articles/2020/09/04/cyberattacks-state-local-government-climbing.aspx https://www.americancityandcounty.com/2021/03/22/report-ransomware-attacks-cost-local-and-state-governments-over-18-billion-in-2020/ https://www.reuters.com/technology/biden-tells-putin-certain-cyber-attacks-should-be-off-limits-2021-06-16/

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88353
BH MACRO Limited

(an authorised closed-ended collective investment scheme established as a company with limited liability under the laws of Guernsey with registration number 46235)

LEI Number: 549300ZOFF0Z2CM87C29

(The "Company")

23 JUNE 2021

RESULT OF EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETING

At the Extraordinary General Meeting of the Company held today, the Special Resolution set out in the Extraordinary General Meeting Notice sent to Shareholders dated 2 June 2021 was duly passed.

Details of the proxy voting results which should be read along side the Notice are noted below:

Special Resolution For Against Abstain 1 12,966,831 0 443

Note -A vote withheld is not a vote in law and has not been counted in the votes for and against a resolution.

The above figures aggregate the proxy votes received on the US Dollar shares and Sterling shares in accordance with the respective voting rights applicable to each US Dollar share and Sterling share on a poll, being 0.7606 votes per US Dollar share and 1.471 votes per Sterling share.

SPECIAL RESOLUTION

THAT, without prejudice to any subsisting authority conferred on the Company, the Company be and is hereby generally and unconditionally authorised in accordance with The Companies (Guernsey) Law 2008, as amended (the "Law"), to make market purchases (as defined in the Law) of each class of its shares (the "Shares") pursuant to the tender offer to all of the Company's shareholders (excluding certain overseas shareholders) to be made by J.P. Morgan Securities plc (which conducts its UK investment banking activities as J.P. Morgan Cazenove) on the terms and subject to the conditions set out in the circular of the Company dated 2 June 2021 (the "Circular"), PROVIDED THAT:

the maximum number of Shares authorised to be purchased shall be 6,033,030 Shares designated as Sterling Shares and 838,411 Shares designated as US Dollar Shares; the price which may be paid for a Share of a specific class shall be the Tender Price for that class of Share, as defined in the Circular (the lowest of which shall be the minimum price, and the highest of which the maximum price, for the purposes of The Companies (Guernsey) Law 2008, as amended); and the authority hereby conferred shall expire on 31 August 2021 , save that the Company may, prior to such expiry, enter into a contract to purchase Shares which will or may be completed or executed wholly or partly after such expiry and make a purchase of such Shares pursuant to any such contract.

Enquiries:

Northern Trust International Fund Administration Services (Guernsey) Limited

The Company Secretary

Trafalgar Court

Les Banques

St Peter Port

Guernsey

GY1 3QL

Tel: 01481 745001
TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 23, 2021 / Lahontan Gold Corp. (the "Company" or "Lahontan") is pleased to announce the results of a detailed drone magnetic survey at its 100% owned flagship Santa Fe Gold and Silver Project located in Nevada's prolific Walker Lane. Key findings of the survey include:

The new magnetic data, when combined with a historic EM survey and geologic mapping, outline the southeast extension of the BH zone from the Santa Fe open pit a distance of over 1,000 meters and corresponds to areas where historic reverse-circulation drilling intercepted 16.8 meters grading 6.10 gpt Au including 3.3 meters grading 11.65 gpt Au (CSF-89-19, please see map below). This area shows the exact same geophysical signature as the Santa Fe, Slab, Calvada and York open pit mines that yielded 345,000 ounces of gold and 710,000 ounces of silver production between 1988 and 1992 (Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, 1996).

In the area of the Slab open pit, the magnetic anomaly associated with previously mined gold mineralization extends north of the pit into virgin ground and also to the west, opening up large areas for resource expansion drilling.

Along the prominent east-west structure that connects the Slab pit to the Calvada pit, strong magnetic contrast and historic EM anomalies confirm the interpreted structural orientation and highlight the importance of this drill target.

In the northwest portion of the 19 km2 Santa Fe Project, in the Pinnacles target area, the magnetic data outline in detail the classic Walker Lane orientation of key structures as well as north-south oriented conjugate shears, generating high quality drill targets in this untested portion of the property.

Kimberly Ann, Chairman, President and CEO of Lahontan Gold Corp. commented: "We are excited to have these results from the detailed drone-mag survey. The close spacing of the flight lines and high quality of the data acquired by our instruments has produced a high-resolution model of the magnetic signature of the Santa Fe Project. The geologic team will integrate this data with our geologic mapping, surface geochemistry, our internal mineralization model, and the historic EM survey to generate literally dozens of new drill targets in under-explored parts of the Santa Fe Project".

Survey Procedures: Lines are oriented N35E and spaced 50 m apart. A total of 393 line-km and 265534 magnetic readings comprise the data resource with stations spaced approximately 1.5 meters along the flight lines. The total magnetic intensity (TMI) data were diurnally corrected by the contractor. The TMI data were gridded with a kriging algorithm at a spacing of 10 m. Such grid spacing is 20 % of the line spacing. The gridded TMI data were reduced-to-the-pole (RTP) with a USGS algorithm. The RTP grid was upward continued 500 m to generate a regional (RTP_UC), which subtracted from the RTP grid produced a residual (RTP_RES). In addition, the RTP data were further processed to yield a first vertical derivative (RTP_VD) and total horizontal derivative (RTP_HG). The Reduced to Pole map with Regional Residual Separation is shown below.

Summary interpretive Magnetic map for the Santa Fe Project, Nevada. Red dots are drill holes, the subtle pale pink and purple colors reflect the magnetic response in areas of significant gold mineralization as indicated by the more dense drill hole spacing. This magnetic signature extends from the Santa Fe pit into the BH Zone and is possibly indicative of widespread alteration within carbonate rocks of the Luning Formation, the principal host rock for the project. Similar relationships can be seen in the area of the Slab and Calvada pits.

About Lahontan Gold Corp:

Lahontan Gold Corp. is a privately held Canadian mineral exploration company that holds, through its US subsidiaries, three top-tier gold and silver exploration properties in the Walker Lane of mining friendly Nevada. Lahontan's flagship, the 19 km2 Santa Fe Project, is a past producing gold and silver mine with excellent potential to host significant gold and silver resources (past production of 345,000 ounces of gold and 710,000 ounces of silver between 1988 and 1992; Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, 1996). Modeling of over 110,000 meters of historic drilling, geologic mapping, and geochemical sampling outline both shallow, oxidized gold and silver mineralization as well as deeper high grade potential resources. The Company plans an aggressive 25,000 meter drilling program with the goal of a NI 43-101 resource estimate in Q4 2021. For more information, please visit our website: www.lahontangoldcorp.com

All scientific and technical information in this press release has been reviewed and approved by Quentin J. Browne, P.Geo., Consulting Geologist to Lahontan Gold Corp., who is a qualified person under the definitions established by National Instrument 43-101.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

Kimberly Ann

Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Lahontan Gold Corp.

Kimberly Ann, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer

Phone: 1-530-414-4400

Email: Kimberly.ann@lahontangoldcorp.com

Website: www.lahontangoldcorp.com

Cautionary Statement:

Certain disclosure in this release, could constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and Canadian securities legislation. In making the forward-looking statements in this release, the Company has applied certain factors and assumptions that the Company believes are reasonable. However, the forward-looking statements in this release are subject to numerous risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause future results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. Such uncertainties and risks are detailed from time to time in the Company's filings with the appropriate securities commissions, and could include, among others, market conditions, and delays in obtaining or failure to obtain required regulatory approvals or financing. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company does not intend, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to, update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

SOURCE: Lahontan Gold Corp.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/652758/Detailed-Magnetic-Survey-Outlines-Multiple-Drill-Targets-at-Santa-Fe
Ensuring continuing medical treatment for patients has been top priority during Covid-19 pandemic.

Focus on Diversity Inclusion in the workplace: 53% of all employees are women ratio of female workers even higher in R&D (64%).

All the company's 2020 activities, data and figures are available in the Chiesi Group's Annual Sustainability Report 2020.

Chiesi, the international research-focused pharmaceutical and healthcare Group (Chiesi Group), further accelerated its path toward becoming a fully sustainable company, despite an extremely challenging 2020, which was overshadowed by the Covid-19 pandemic. This is the thread running through Chiesi's Annual Sustainability Report 2020

The Group in 2020 turned in a robust financial performance, with revenues amounting to 2,229 million, up by 11.8% compared to 2019. It provides Chiesi with impetus to continue its transformational journey to become the world's first fully sustainable pharmaceutical company, in which value generation for the planet and for society enables the creation of innovation, progress and prosperity.

Transparent impact measurement methodology that integrates ESG (environmental, social, and corporate governance) topics and impact frameworks

As in previous years, Chiesi is reporting how it operates in accordance with a comprehensive combination of multiple tools and frameworks. This includes the methodology pioneered by renowned economist Professor Jeffrey Sachs of the Columbia Center on Sustainable Development, which assesses Chiesi's business impact through an analysis of products, processes, global value chain and corporate citizenship, in full alignment with the United Nations 2030 Agenda of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Chiesi's Annual Sustainability Report further meets the standards of the Global Reporting Initiative, a non-profit organisation set up to support companies when reporting on sustainable performance, the B Impact Assessment created by B Lab, the non-profit organisation behind the B Corp certification, and the SDG Action Manager from UN Global Compact and B Lab.

Patients' medical treatment top priority during pandemic

In a year unlike any other in the Group's history, Chiesi worked relentlessly to protect patients and ensure their unhindered access to life-saving medical treatments despite the disruptions to supplies and public healthcare services caused by the pandemic. The company established a dedicated team to coordinate the collection and deployment of financial and in-kind donations to support communities during the Covid-19 emergency. In addition, Chiesi maintained the production of medical products, especially those which were essential or needed to treat rare diseases. Overall, the company directly donated or raised more than 10.6 million, of which over 3.5 million contributed to charitable projects in the Parma area and Italy nationwide.

"The pandemic has changed the world with full force in what were already transformative times. Within this context of adversity and the need to manage the unknown, I am grateful for the organisation that we have demonstrated to be. The mobilisation of Chiesi's people has gone beyond the scope of our business and attested the values we share together. Our shared value approach, as a certified B Corp and a Benefit Corporation, demonstrates that the values we stand for represent the solid foundation our company needs for the challenges of our time," said Ugo Di Francesco, CEO of Chiesi Group

From product focus to full patient-centricity

In 2020 Chiesi dedicated more than 20% of its revenues to R&D, which placed Chiesi as the top Italian pharmaceutical company for number of patents filed. A commitment was also put in place to accelerate the transformation of its business and corporate culture towards adopting a holistic and patient-centric perspective at every stage of the product development cycle. The streamlining of the Group's brand architecture with the three areas Air, Rare and Care inspired by the non-medical language patients use, and the re-launch of the Chiesi visual identity in early 2021 are direct outcomes of the Group's ongoing evolution of embedding empathy with the patient experience into all business processes.

Several new strategic collaborations with external partners that Chiesi entered into in 2020 will help to further bolster this patient-oriented approach. This includes the partnerships with Moderna, a biotechnology company pioneering messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics, to develop new therapies against pulmonary arterial hypertension. Another example of the Chiesi patient-centric innovation approach is its investment in Cyclica. The Canadian neo biotech company is working on decentralising the discovery of drugs through an innovative supervised learning AI technology for predicting molecular properties in the R&D phase to reduce attrition rates and the time from bench to patient.

Continued focus on Diversity Equality in the workplace

Despite the challenges for workplace organisation as a result of the pandemic, Chiesi further increased the number of employees to 6,389 in 2020, a growth of around 9% on the previous year. Around 53% of the Group's workforce, and more than a quarter of executives and senior managers, are women. The ratio of female employees is even higher in the Research Development area (64%).

Chiesi's leadership in diversity and equality in the workplace was once again demonstrated by the Financial Times's annual Diversity Leaders ranking, in which the company was ranked 10th worldwide. The ranking assesses 850 European employers on the diversity of gender, age, ethnicity, disability and sexual orientation in their workforces. Chiesi is one of only two Italian companies in the top 10 and ranked 1st within the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry.

Chiesi remains committed to enhancing diversity and equality in the workplace. Following the creation of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee in 2019, the company established a Gender Equality Committee in 2020. In 2021, Chiesi is developing and implementing an action plan for improved female talent development practices to close the gender gap.

Chiesi raises the level of ambition towards carbon neutrality

Following the first announcement in 2019, in May 2021, Chiesi unveiled its plan to become carbon neutral by 2030 with regard to direct greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and indirect GHG emissions from purchased electricity and heat (scopes 1 and 2) and by 2035 on all the other indirect GHG emissions (scope 3) on www.actionoverwords.org. This will include a 90% reduction of emissions from Chiesi's inhaler devices compared to 2019, thanks to the planned introduction of an innovative low global warming potential propellant.

Chiesi's green energy transition on a global scale

In 2020, all of Chiesi's Italian sites, representing around 80% of its total energy consumption, were powered by 100% renewable energy. The Group signed a new contract for its 2021 and 2022 energy supply from the wind farm MELFI II, a new wind farm located in a high wind area in Puglia region (Italy). 100% of the electricity used at the Parma sites comes from high-quality renewable sources; 2.6% is generated from Chiesi's own plants (self-production) with a total capacity of 780 kW (+670 kW compared to the previous year). In 2021, Chiesi intends to complete the transition to 100% renewable electricity at all manufacturing sites.

Total energy consumption in 2020 decreased by 15% compared to 2019. This was mainly driven by a reduction in energy use from the car fleet due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The Group's new Headquarters in Parma (Italy), inaugurated in 2020, is also a totally green building and is LEED Platinum certified, the highest level of the international building sustainability rating system promoted by the Green Building Council.

About Chiesi Group

Based in Parma, Italy, Chiesi is an international research-focused pharmaceuticals and healthcare group with over 85 years' experience, operating in 30 countries with more than 6,000 employees (Chiesi Group). To achieve its mission of improving people's quality of life by acting responsibly towards society and the environment, the Group research, develops and markets innovative drugs in its three therapeutic areas: AIR (products and services that promote respiration, from new-born to adult populations), RARE (treatment for patients with rare and ultra-rare diseases) and CARE (products and services that support special care and consumer-facing self-care). The Group's Research and Development centre is based in Parma and works alongside 6 other important research and development centres in France, the U.S., Canada, China, the UK, and Sweden to promote its pre-clinical, clinical, and regulatory programmes. Chiesi, since 2019, is the world's largest B Corp certified pharmaceutical group. Chiesi Farmaceutici S.p.A. has changed in 2018 its legal status to a Benefit Corporation, by incorporating a double purpose for the creation of shared value, and to generate value for its business, for society and the environment. The global B Corp movement promotes business as a force for good. Moreover, as a Benefit Corporation, Chiesi Farmaceutici S.p.A. is required by law to include objectives of common benefit in its bylaws and to report annually in a transparent way. The Group is committed to becoming carbon neutral by the end of 2035.

For further information: www.chiesi.com

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005531/en/

Contacts:

Alessio Pappagallo

Press Office Manager

Phone +39 339 589 483

Email a.pappagallo@chiesi.com
Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
NEW YORK CITY (dpa-AFX) - Investment banking major Morgan Stanley plans to block employees and clients who are not fully vaccinated against COVID-19 from entering its New York offices, the Financial Times reported citing an internal memo. The policy is expected to come into effect on July 12, and all unvaccinated employees will lose building access from then onwards. All employees, contingent workforce, clients and visitors will be required to attest to being fully vaccinated to access Morgan Stanley buildings in New York City and Westchester, the company said. As per the report, the unvaccinated employees will need to work remotely. The company would also maintain some flexibility in terms of working from home. The bank has already implemented vaccine-only work areas in some divisions. With the policy changes, the company aims to create a normal office environment avoiding face masks and social distancing. Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman reportedly said recently that he expects employees at their New York branch to return to work soon. According to him, more than 90 percent of employees back in the offices were already vaccinated. Gorman then said, 'By Labor Day, I'll be very disappointed if people haven't found their way into the office, and then we'll have a different kind of conversation. If you want to get paid New York rates, you work in New York.' As per reports, BlackRock Inc. and Bank of America Corp. are also planning to allow only fully vaccinated employees to their offices. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
New Program Helps Managed Service Providers Improve Operational Efficiency and Accelerate Customer Cloud Adoption without Complexity of Infrastructure

Druva Inc., the leader in Cloud Data Protection and Management, today announced the launch of its new Managed Service Provider (MSP) program. Part of the Druva Compass Partner Program, the new program is designed to empower MSPs and accelerate their customers' cloud transformation with a resilient, simplified data protection service.

Over the last 12 months, enterprises have accelerated and expanded the shift of operations to the cloud and according to a recent survey by Gartner, Inc., 68 percent of global respondents indicate that their organizations plan to increase spending on cloud computing in the next year.* MSPs are increasingly relied upon to help customers navigate these challenges, reduce operational complexity, and eliminate costly hardware. However, current data protection offerings demand significant infrastructure, requiring MSPs to make capital investments, manage complex environments, delay sales cycles, and compress operational margins.

"Customers are moving to the cloud at a breakneck pace, and managed service providers are an important resource to guiding organizations successfully through this transition," said Robert Brower, Senior Vice President of Global Partners and Alliances, Druva. "At Druva, we have a cloud-first mentality whereby we ensure our partners have the tools to succeed, and have developed a multi-tenant SaaS solution tailored to their needs cutting out time-consuming processes of managing hardware and streamlining the entire deployment. Now, they can focus on delivering the service and bringing value to their customers immediately, not running the backend."

Druva's new MSP program brings partners a SaaS-based delivery model which offers a zero-touch onboarding experience and no infrastructure to maintain. Instead, MSPs can now help customers thrive through their cloud journey while accelerating sales cycles, improving time to revenue, and maintaining high, recurring margins. The purpose-built service center console brings partners the ability to manage unique service levels with customizable plans, gain detailed visibility into storage consumption across customer accounts, and review customer health in real-time. Only Druva's MSP program offers partners the opportunity to become high value cloud consultants while delivering industry-leading cloud data protection.

Benefits for MSP Partners

In joining Druva's new program, MSPs will realize immediate benefits such as:

Improved time to revenue: Through a zero-touch, fully-SaaS experience, MSPs can onboard new customers in as little as 15 minutes, meet new tenant workloads quickly, and efficiently scale customer needs up or down.

Through a zero-touch, fully-SaaS experience, MSPs can onboard new customers in as little as 15 minutes, meet new tenant workloads quickly, and efficiently scale customer needs up or down. Higher operating margins: No hardware to maintain or support, less front-end design expense, and no stranded assets means minimal investment and maintenance for MSP partners, and an agile, cloud-first solution for customers.

No hardware to maintain or support, less front-end design expense, and no stranded assets means minimal investment and maintenance for MSP partners, and an agile, cloud-first solution for customers. Reduced operational complexity : MSPs avoid supply chain challenges with no hardware or asset management required, manage unique service levels with customizable MSP service plans, improve operational efficiencies, avoid missed SLA penalties, and run their business more strategically.

: MSPs avoid supply chain challenges with no hardware or asset management required, manage unique service levels with customizable MSP service plans, improve operational efficiencies, avoid missed SLA penalties, and run their business more strategically. Market differentiation: Make customer trust a priority with a platform that meets the industry's most stringent security and compliance requirements such as SSAE18 SOC2 Type II compliance, FedRAMP, FIPS, HIPAA, GDPR, TRUST-E, and APPI.

"The ecosystem a provider and its partners build around a data protection solution are just as important as the technology itself," said Phil Goodwin, Research Director, IDC. "The value partners can bring, through additional services and closer customer engagement can make all the difference in a successful project. Druva's new program and its simplified MSP approach is designed to help MSPs not only efficiently scale in their own cloud data protection practice, but help deliver a better overall experience for the customer."

"With Druva's MSP offering, we're able to very quickly and easily not only ramp up multiple customers but monitor those customers across one platform," said Scott Plamondon, Co-Founder and Vice President Cloud Architecture, Observian. "The single pane of glass view gives us everything we need to know that our customers are safe, secure and we have all of their data backed up and available. Their data is ready to go, in the event they need it."

"Druva has improved our time to revenue by dramatically improving the onboarding process of new customers," said Matt Bratlien, Managing Partner, Net-Tech. "The Managed Service Center has been a game changer for our business. Having a service-plan oriented catalog in the portal allows me to package different offerings to my clients tailored to their needs, which enhances customer satisfaction and accelerates the sales process."

"Druva's MSP platform not only simplifies the sales and onboarding process, but it enables us to provide more support and deliver value to our customers rather than focusing on the backend," said Nick Barron, Chief Technology Officer, Harbor Solutions. "Druva has thought, listened, and engaged with us around how we work, and has baked our needs into the platform. The single pane of glass dashboard provides real-time insights into our customers' data, which helps us better manage these relationships on a long-term basis. Our customers were already asking for Druva's technology, so our partnership was a no-brainer."

Availability

The Druva MSP partner program is immediately available in North America and EMEA regions. MSPs interested in joining the program can submit an application on the Druva partner portal here.

Additional Information:

Webpage: Learn more about the program and receive an overview here

Learn more about the program and receive an overview here Video: Hear from some of Druva launch partners: Harbor Solutions, Observian and Net-Tech on how they accelerate their customers cloud transformations

Hear from some of Druva launch partners: Harbor Solutions, Observian and Net-Tech on how they accelerate their customers cloud transformations Blog: Read how Druva is powering the next-generation of managed services

Gartner, Tech CEO Cloud MSPs Are Crucial Partners for Hyperscale Cloud Providers' Growth Strategy and Success, ID G00747439. Published 21, May 2021.

About Druva Cloud Platform

Built for the public cloud with a microservices architecture, Druva Cloud Platform is secure by design, always up-to-date, and offers all-inclusive, consumption-based pricing. The industry's largest cloud-native SaaS platform operating at scale, Druva Cloud Platform enables organizations to centrally protect data, no matter where it lives: cloud environments, leading SaaS applications such as Microsoft 365, Google Workspace and Salesforce, hybrid environments, or endpoint devices. Leveraging this innovative SaaS platform, organizations can reduce the cost and complexity of data protection, accelerate and protect cloud projects and increase cyber resilience and regulatory compliance.

About Druva

Druva delivers Data Protection and Management for the cloud era. Druva Cloud Platform is built on AWS and offered as-a-Service; customers drive down costs by up to 50 percent by freeing themselves from the burden of unnecessary hardware, capacity planning, and software management. Druva is trusted by thousands of companies worldwide, including over 50 of the Fortune 500. Druva is a privately held company headquartered in Sunnyvale, California and is funded by Sequoia Capital, Viking Global Investors, CDPQ, Neuberger Berman, Tenaya Capital, Riverwood Capital and Nexus Partners. Visit druva.com and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005063/en/

Contacts:

Jesse Caputo

Director of Corporate Communications Analyst Relations

Druva Inc.

+1.516.815.2836

jesse.caputo@druva.com
A Feature Article In Social Life Magazine, The Luxury Magazine For The Hamptons

NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 23, 2021 / Green Stream Holdings Inc. (OTC PINK:GSFI) ("the Company") (http://www.GreenRainSolar.com), an emerging leader in the solar utility and finance space, which recently announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary Chuck's Vintage (https://chucksvintageoriginal.com), an iconic brand and retail location renown among celebrity elite and fashion enthusiasts alike, that has opened a new retail location in New York City at 173 East 91st Street, Basement, New York, NY 10128 as of 5/21/2021, today announced there will be a full two page layout titled: "Chuck's Vintage Meets Gotham."

The very favorable article leaves off saying: "For those in the fashion-know, a recent announcement was more than welcome news: Chuck's Vintage, an iconic brand renown among celebrity elite and fashion enthusiasts alike, is heading to New York City. Setting up its new headquarters, with plans for a flagship retail outlet in North America's premier luxury district, Chuck's will soon become a New York City Favorite."

The layout has pictures of the original shop in California and Dolly Parton with Madeline Cammarata, the founder, and mention of other celebrity customers like, Steve Jobs, Morrisey and Robert Plant are contained in the two page layout.

The company also recently announced that it will be a sponsor for the Polo Hamptons Polo Match and Event. Being a sponsor, the magazine also included the article in its July 4th issue. This match and event are produced each summer in the Hamptons by Social Life Magazine, the Luxury Magazine for the Hamptons, the top luxury publication in the world-renowned Hamptons. https://sociallifemagazine.com

The clientele attending will include some of the country's most important influencers and the owners of international trend setting fashion houses. The Polo Match & Cocktail Party, held in Bridgehampton, 900 Lumber Lane, on July 24, 2021, will offer the Company's executive team the opportunity to gain new inroads for the company in both the Chuck's Vintage and the Company's cutting-edge solar technologies.

CEO James DiPrima said; "The events surrounding the Polo Match and the article in one of the most prestigious fashion/social magazines will undoubtedly help launch the new New York City location."

Established in 2006, Chuck's Vintage is a store unlike any other; a true American original. The moment you step over the threshold at 16618 Marquez Ave, Pacific Palisades 90272, you find yourself amid abundant treasure. The selection of vintage denim has to be seen to be believed. The blue jeans in her store range from Strongholds found in the California Gold Rush mines to World War II-Era Levi's, Lees, and Wranglers, as well as 1960's ladies high-waisted and groovy deadstock Levi's bells. Come to Chuck's for the denim, but stick around and complete your look with the founder's sampling of vintage American workwear: rugged military and work boots, buttery leather bomber jackets, and soft, perfectly worn-in vintage 70's rock tees. Classic American Cool.

Chuck's Vintage was founded by GSFI former CEO Madeline Cammarata (fka Madeline Harmon), who hailed from an illustrious background in fashion. Her career began as a fashion model, where she was soon discovered by the iconic and provocative fashion photographer Helmet Newton, launching Cammarata to the runways of Europe. Returning to the US, Madeline found a powerful niche in the high fashion world of denim, where she was instrumental in providing fabric development for powerful brands like 7 For All Mankind and provided thousands of pieces to celebrity and business elites from Steve Jobs to Morrisey and everywhere in between.

?About Green Stream Finance, Inc.

Green Stream Finance, Inc., a solar utility and finance company with satellite offices in Malibu, CA and New York, NY, is focused on exploiting currently unmet markets in the solar energy space, and is currently licensed in California, Nevada, Arizona, Washington, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Colorado, Hawaii, and Canada. The Company's next-generation solar greenhouses constructed and managed by Green Rain Solar, LLC, a Nevada-based division, utilize proprietary greenhouse technology and trademarked design developed by world-renowned architect Mr. Antony Morali. The Company is currently targeting high-growth solar market segments for its advanced solar greenhouse and advanced solar battery products. The Company has a growing footprint in the significantly underserved solar market in New York City where it is targeting 50,000 to 100,000 square feet of rooftop space for the installation of its solar panels. Green Stream is looking to forge key partnership with major investment groups, brokers, and private investors in order to capitalize on a variety of unique investment opportunities in the commercial solar energy markets. The Company is dedicated to becoming a major player in this critical space. Through its innovative solar product offerings and industry partnerships, the Company is well-positioned to become a significant player in the solar space.

Forward-Looking Statements:

This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and is subject to the safe harbor created by those sections. This material contains statements about expected future events and/or financial results that are forward-looking in nature and subject to risks and uncertainties. That includes the possibility that the business outlined in this press release cannot be concluded for some reason. That could be as a result of technical, installation, permitting or other problems that were not anticipated. Such forward-looking statements by definition involve risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Green Stream Finance, Inc. to be materially different from the statements made herein. Except for any obligation under the U.S. federal securities laws, Green Stream Finance, Inc. undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

For All Inquiries Contact:

+1 (424) 280-4096

president@greenstreamfinance.com

SOURCE: Green Stream Holdings Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/652783/Chucks-Vintage-Inc-A-Wholly-Owned-Subsidiary-Of-Green-Stream-Holdings-Inc-Is-Featured-In-July-4th-Issue-of-Social-Life
Led first-of-its-kind study of group psilocybin therapy for cancer patients with depression

Co-Investigator on a study to evaluate ketamine as a treatment for opioid use disorder

Will lead Novamind's clinical research arm focused on psychedelic medicine

TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 23, 2021 / Novamind Inc. (CSE:NM)(OTC PINK:NVMDF)(FSE:HN2) ("Novamind" or the "Company"), a leading mental health company specialized in psychedelic medicine, is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Paul Thielking as Chief Scientific Officer and Principal Investigator of Novamind.

In his new role, Dr. Thielking will oversee all aspects of the Company's investigator-led studies, originating within Novamind's best-in-class research sites, and leveraging its contract research organization (CRO) expertise to pursue additional clinical trial mandates from leading psychedelic drug developers. He will also lead the development of Novamind's psychedelic therapy protocols for conditions including cancer-related depression and end-of-life anxiety, available as treatments for clients and educational programs for clinicians.

Dr. Thielking is board certified in psychiatry and hospice & palliative medicine and has an outstanding track record in innovative clinical program development and research initiatives.

Dr. Thielking led the Huntsman Cancer Institute's ("HCI") psycho-oncology service at the University of Utah, where he also taught medical students, psychiatry residents and palliative care physicians. At HCI, he successfully integrated ketamine-assisted psychotherapy services within an outpatient oncology clinic.In his previous role as Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Utah, Dr. Thielking developed the foundation for a new psychedelic-assisted therapy and research program. In 2020, Dr. Thielking completed the California Institute of Integral Studies' Certification of Psychedelic Therapy and Research.

"There is an urgent need to find better solutions for the millions of people who are suffering from mental health disorders. Advancing clinical research for psychedelic medicine to address treatment-resistant mental illnesses and supporting patients by developing novel approaches to care for underserved conditions like cancer-related depression, is the next step in my life's work," said Dr. Thielking. "Novamind's growing network of clinics and clinical research sites will accelerate efforts to reach more people with more effective treatment options. I am thrilled to join Novamind's senior leadership team."

Dr. Thielking is uniquely positioned to lead Novamind in the role of Chief Scientific Officer. He is currently leading exciting new research initiatives, including a first-of-its-kind pilot study to administer psilocybin in a group setting for cancer patients with depression. Cancer patients have significantly higher rates of depression than the general population, and depression is associated with reduced quality of life, increased physical distress, increased desire for hastened death, and higher suicide rates. He is also the Co-Investigator on a study to evaluate the potential role of ketamine in opioid use disorder. In what's been referred to as a "silent epidemic," 70 percent of worldwide deaths attributed to drug use are related to opioids, according to the World Health Organization1.

Yaron Conforti, Novamind CEO and Director said: "Dr. Thielking brings world-class leadership to Novamind's contract research organization. His expertise in clinical research and his track record for developing innovative treatments in psychiatry and hospice and palliative care will greatly enhance Novamind's capabilities to scale access to psychedelic medicine."

About Novamind

Novamind is a leading mental health company enabling safe access to psychedelic medicine through a network of clinics, retreats, and clinical research sites. Novamind provides ketamine-assisted psychotherapy and other novel treatments through its network of Cedar Psychiatry clinics and operates Cedar Clinical Research, a contract research organization specialized in clinical trials and evidence-based research for psychedelic medicine. Both Cedar Psychiatry and Cedar Clinical Research are wholly owned subsidiaries of Novamind. For more information on how Novamind is enhancing mental wellness and guiding people through their entire healing journey, visit novamind.ca.

CONTACT:

Novamind

Yaron Conforti, CEO and Director

Telephone: +1 (647) 953 9512

Bill Mitoulas, Investor Relations

Email: bill@novamind.ca

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this release are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company's expectations including the risks detailed from time to time in the Company's public disclosure. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking information. Forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date of this news release and the Company will update or revise publicly any of the included forward-looking statements as expressly required by applicable laws.

1: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/opioid-overdose

SOURCE: Novamind

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/652784/Novamind-Welcomes-Dr-Paul-Thielking-as-Chief-Scientific-Officer
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 23, 2021 / FinCanna Capital Corp. ("FinCanna") (CSE:CALI)(OTCQB:FNNZF), a royalty company for the U.S. licensed cannabis industry is pleased to announce that four client brands of its investee company QVI, Inc. doing business as "The Galley", a cannabis infused product manufacturer located in Sonoma County, California recently won "Best of" in four separate categories at leading industry event, WEEDCon 2021.

The WEEDCon awards were judged entirely by dispensary buyers with QVI manufacturing clients delivering an exceptionally strong showing claiming top honors in four separate categories; Best product F.A. Ninos, Smokin' Green Pot Sauce, Best Ratio Tincture, Purablis, Best Beauty Product - Green Bee Botanicals, Best Confection Tossed, Sauced & Baked , caramel sauce. Winning top honors in several categories underscores the best in class, "one stop shop" value proposition of QVI's versatile production capabilities at its 8,300 sq. ft. state of the art cannabis co-manufacturing facility, known as the "The Galley", located in Santa Rosa, CA.

Annie Holman, CEO of QVI said, "We are thrilled that four of our clients were recognized as 'best in show' for product excellence at WEEDCon. Certainly, that reflects on each brand's care and attention to detail and it is also significant validation for our production expertise. Even though there was not an award for 'best co-manufacturer', with top honors in four categories, we feel that it was a resounding win for "The Galley". The word is getting out. We are being increasingly recognized as "the" manufacturing solution for Brands who recognize that in a competitive marketplace, only the 'best' will do".

The WEEDCon Cup Awards is a two-day B2B, invitation only, cannabis industry event that took place late last month in Los Angeles that attracted more than 200 dispensary buyers as well 60 plus exhibitors. The well-regarded industry event is designed specifically for the recognition of excellence in cannabis products, including, Flower, Concentrates, Extracts, Edibles, Beverages, Tinctures and Topicals.

Andriyko Herchak, CEO of FinCanna Capital said, "We've always had great faith in Annie and her team as the best in the business, which is continually being confirmed by their growing list of client testimonials. And now with QVI's clients winning top awards in four categories at a premier industry event further validates The Galley as becoming the leading co-manufacturer in California."

QVI's 8,300 sq. ft. state of the art co-manufacturing facility located in Santa Rosa, California is built to FDA and CDPH standards. QVI management attributes the acceleration of customer demand to its automated manufacturing expertise, superior production quality and its "one stop shop" capability to produce virtually all high-value cannabis products including, Edibles, Topicals, Tinctures, Chocolate, Hard Candies, Gummies and Beverages under one roof. Additionally, its outstanding R&D team has the ability to assist brands in launching not only new individual products but whole new product lines. The Galley's operational design also positions the business to rapidly scale production as demand escalates towards its annual operating capacity of approximately US$45 million. For more information about "The Galley" please visit www.thegalleysr.com

QVI's immediate goal is to become the premier contract cannabis manufacturer in California, the largest single market in North America and, upon success, to license products nationally and globally.

The legal U.S. cannabis market is expected to reach more than US$41 billion in annual sales by 2025 with California, the single largest market in North America, representing an estimated 20% market share or US$8.2 billion. (New Frontier Data)

About FinCanna Capital Corp.

FinCanna is a royalty company that provides growth capital to rapidly emerging private companies operating in the licensed U.S cannabis industry. The company earns its revenue from royalties paid by its investee companies that are calculated based on a percentage of their total revenues.

FinCanna's scalable royalty model provides an attractive alternative or complement to debt or equity financing for its investee companies. FinCanna is focused on delivering high-impact returns to its shareholders by way of a strategically diversified investment portfolio.

For additional information visit www.fincannacapital.com and FinCanna's profile at www.sedar.com

FinCanna Capital Corp.

Andriyko Herchak, CEO

Investor Relations:

Kin Communications

1-866-684-6730

CALI@kincommunications.com

Forward-Looking Information

Information set forth in this news release may involve forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements are statements that relate to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as 'anticipate', 'believe', 'plan', 'estimate', 'expect', and 'intend', statements that an action or event 'may', 'might', 'could', 'should', or 'will' be taken or occur, or other similar expressions. All forward looking statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein include but are not limited to the statements relating to the effectiveness of QVI's products or services, the ability of QVI to continue and expand operations and the timing thereof, the success of sales and other marketing plans, the size, expected capacity, success of operations and future revenues and timing thereof, QVI's ability to obtain financing for the development of its business and its ability to pay FinCanna royalties or other amounts when due. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements, or other future events, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others, the risks identified in the CSE listing statement available at www.SEDAR.com and other reports and filings with the applicable Canadian securities regulators. Forward-looking statements are made based on management's beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date that statements are made, and the respective companies undertake no obligation to update forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change, except as required by applicable securities laws. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements.

SOURCE: FinCanna Capital Corp.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/652795/FinCanna-Portfolio-Company-QVI-Incs-Clients-Win-Top-Awards-at-WEEDCon-2021
MB097 is a consortium of bacteria at the core of the microbiome signature predictive of patient response to Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor therapy

Data show potent anti-tumour efficacy in vivo and in vitro

MB097 is in manufacturing process development for Ph1b study expected to start next year

MB097 is the first microbiome precision medicine in immuno-oncology, clinically designed in the same patient cohort in which it will be tested

Microbiotica, a leading player in microbiome-based therapeutics and biomarkers, today announces that MB097 is now in pre-clinical development for treatment of patients not responding to anti-PD1 therapy. Clinical trials are due to begin in 2022. MB097 is clinically designed and experimentally validated.

Studies have shown that the gut microbiome plays a critical and causative role in determining which cancer patients respond to Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor (ICI) therapy. However clinical translation of this ground-breaking discovery has been hampered by large inconsistencies between studies in the intestinal bacteria associated with anti-PD1 efficacy. The Microbiotica platform is unrivalled in the comprehensiveness and precision by which it can profile the microbiome of patients. It has enabled the Company to identify the first microbiome signature predictive of response to ICI therapy across four independent melanoma studies, by analysing MELRESIST, a melanoma study conducted in collaboration with Cambridge University Hospitals. This microbiome signature is a highly predictive clinical biomarker in advanced melanoma and is also predictive in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

The bacteria most significantly linked to outcome are all elevated in patients that respond to anti-PD1 based therapy, suggesting that gut microbes drive ICI efficacy by enhancing the anti-tumour immune response. MB097 is a Live Bacterial Therapeutic (LBT) comprising nine key species from the signature, and is being developed as a co-therapy with ICI in advanced melanoma and NSCLC. MB097 has shown potent anti-tumour efficacy in a mouse syngeneic tumour model. The bacteria also demonstrate multiple immuno-stimulatory mechanisms in primary human immune cell assays, leading to Cytotoxic T Lymphocyte activation and tumour cell killing in vitro

Clinical testing of MB097, in combination with anti-PD1, will begin in 2022 with a Phase 1b study conducted in the same melanoma patient population that the microbiome signature was derived from. This is precision medicine enabled by the precise microbiome profiling of Microbiotica's platform.

ICIs have transformed oncology, having increased the range of cancers that can be treated as well as improving levels of efficacy, including complete remission in some cases. However, response rates tend to be low, typically in the range 10%-40% of patients. Consequently, there is a major unmet need for co-therapies to increase the number of responders and for biomarkers to stratify patients for treatment.

Mike Romanos, Co-founder and CEO, Microbiotica, said:

"Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors have had a major impact on the lives of many cancer patients, however fewer than half respond to this type of immunotherapy. This has driven us to design a microbiome therapeutic to improve patient response rate. Through our MELRESIST study data and our platform, we have been able to identify a consistent bacterial signature predictive of drug response in advanced melanoma and NSCLC.

"The Live Bacterial Therapeutic, MB097, arising from this signature, aims to tap into this predictive signature of ICI therapy response. Preclinical in vivo data and mechanistic in vitro human cell data generated thus far have been hugely encouraging. Coupled with our ongoing collaboration with Cancer Research UK and Cambridge University Hospitals, our IO program is now a significant focus for the Company going forward. The aim is for us to enter the clinic in 2022 with this programme."

Microbiotica's platform comprises the world's leading Reference Genome Database and Culture Collection of gut bacteria, and an unrivalled capability to culture and characterise all gut bacteria from patients at scale. This is complemented by a suite of bioinformatic and machine learning tools that enable the identification of previously undetectable gut bacterial signatures linked to patient phenotype.

-ENDS-

NOTES TO EDITORS

About Microbiotica

Microbiotica is a leading player in the field of microbiome-based therapeutics, biomarkers and targets. The Company is building a growing pipeline of best-in-class differentiated products based on high quality clinical datasets and unique bacterial signatures that drive biology, identified by its proprietary platform.

Consisting of a world leading microbiome Reference Genome Database, Culture Collection, mass culturing technology (Personalised Bacterial Bank) and proprietary bioinformatic tools, Microbiotica's platform enables unrivalled strain-level microbiome analysis linked to patient phenotypes. The Company has used this capability to build a pipeline of highly differentiated clinically-derived products including Live Bacterial Therapeutics and Biomarkers in Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), Immuno-oncology and Gut Epithelial Barrier Repair. Microbiotica has clinical and research collaborations with Cancer Research UK, Cambridge University Hospitals, Genentech/Roche and the University of Adelaide.

Spun out of the Sanger Institute in 2016 by Dr Mike Romanos, Dr Trevor Lawley and Professor Gordon Dougan, the Company is based at Chesterford Research Park near Cambridge, UK. Microbiotica's investor syndicate includes Cambridge Innovation Capital, IP Group plc and Seventure Partners.

For more information, please visit www.microbiotica.com, LinkedIn and Twitter.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005539/en/

Contacts:

Microbiotica:

Ro Gardner

T: +44 1223 869302 M: +44 7801 480569

E: rgardner@microbiotica.com

Microbiotica (Media relations):

Melanie Toyne-Sewell Agnes Stephens Phil Marriage Nathan Billis

T: +44 20 7457 2020

E: microbiotica@instinctif.com
SIAL America to become the first-ever large scale, generalist food show to stage in the United States

Emerald Holding, Inc. (NYSE:EEX) and Comexposium today announced they will join forces in a strategic partnership to launch SIAL America. Comexposium, one of the world's leading event organizers and owner of the established and successful SIAL brand, will unite with Emerald, a leader in providing market-driven, business-to-business platforms that integrate live events with a broad array of media, to produce and stage what is expected to be the first large-scale, generalist food show focused on supporting the US $1.5 trillion Food and Beverage market.

SIAL America is planned to launch at the Las Vegas Convention Center, 22 to 24 March 2022 and will be co-located with Emerald's International Pizza Expo and International Artisan Bakery Expo.

"This partnership underscores the ever-increasing importance of creating a single event for the food industry. Emerald and Comexposium share a vision of providing new opportunities for our customers to grow and innovate, which is very exciting for our industry as a whole," said Jessica Blue, EVP, Emerald.

Importantly, the partnership is intended to leverage the respective strengths of Emerald's leading live events footprint in the United States and Comexposium's preeminent SIAL global food brand and network. A 50-year-old generalist food show, the SIAL brand includes ten international food events in France, Canada, the UAE, India, China, Algeria and Indonesia that deliver more than 700,000 attendees and 16,000 exhibitors annually.

"We are very excited to partner with Emerald to launch SIAL America. We plan to bring to life in Las Vegas a new international food exhibition to enable comprehensive sourcing of new products. We look forward to welcoming guests to share our vision, and spark new and exciting connections in the food industry," said Nicolas Trentesaux, SIAL Network Global CEO.

Serving as an international business hub for the food and beverage industry, SIAL's philosophy is to include all food categories in the same event while uniting the industry and driving solutions to tomorrow's food challenges. SIAL America is expected to emulate and amplify this philosophy and serve as the #1 large-scale food and beverage event in the United States, connecting an exhibitor base of food and drink manufacturers with retailers, importers, exporters, distributors, and wholesalers of food products.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005555/en/

Contacts:

Jean-Gabriel Mollard, Global Marketing Communications Director, Sial Network

jean-gabriel.mollard@Comexposium.com

+33 (0)1 76 77 16 24
New York, New York--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - To allow bibliophiles of all stripes to partake in Pride Month 2021, from June 21 - 27 Aesop presents an ephemeral queer library in three of its stores: Aesop Bleecker Street (New York City), Aesop West 3rd Street (Los Angeles) and Aesop Queen Street West (Toronto). To give the featured authors the prominence they deserve, all shelves will be cleared of Aesop products and stocked entirely with books elevating the voices and stories of LGBTQIA+ individuals from around the world.





Aesop, Bleeker Street



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Each visitor entering the store will be able to take home the book of their choice-whether they are a decade-old Aesop customer or a passer-by who happened to be intrigued by the window display. While this gesture will be limited to one book per visitor while supplies last, that book will be complimentary, with no purchase required: this initiative is intended as a moment of generosity and celebration, rather than a profitable endeavor.

As explained by Adam Kakembo, Aesop's Chief Marketing Officer: "The way Aesop has chosen to celebrate Pride in the Americas is one of our most unique activations yet. We are not simply changing our logo or launching a Pride-themed collection, this multilayer gesture of generosity is aimed at supporting our LGBTQIA+ staff, customers, independent queer-owned books stores and the communities within these three cities. As a company committed to building a diverse, inclusive, and equitable culture, we are mindful of the heinous crimes, discrimination, and oppression of the LGBTQIA+ spectrum."

To compose the selection, Aesop's retail and office teams across the US and Canada were asked to recommend their favorite queer authors and titles. As a way of supporting independent queer bookstores in North America, over 3,000 volumes were purchased from Glad Day Bookshop in Toronto-the longest surviving LGBTQIA+ bookstore worldwide-and Women & Children First in Chicago. The latter's mission is very much in keeping with the spirit of the Aesop Queer Library, as explained by co-owner Sarah Hollenbeck: "I strive to create a bookstore where underrepresented folks see their lives reflected in the books we carry and their voices and experiences are respected."

To complement these purchases, Penguin Random House has made a generous donation of 2,350 books by such authors as Bryan Washington and Ocean Vuong. Overall, the collection features over 150 titles spanning fiction, nonfiction and poetry, with a focus emphasis on BIPOC authors and on the trans community-including Akwaeke Emezi, Brandon Taylor, and Samantha Irby. A list of other worthy independent bookstores located in the US and Canada, each boasting a thoughtful collection of queer writing, can be found on aesop.com-along with the full list of featured titles, and exclusive playlists by queer artists Chrysanthe Tan and Beverly Glenn-Copeland.





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Aesop USA

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Press Contact

Cynthia Leung

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Contact

Aesop USA

Jillian Romero

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Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - Golden Independence Mining Corp. (CSE: IGLD) (OTCQB: GIDMF) (FSE: 6NN) (the "Company") is pleased to announce results from the initial six drill holes of the recently completed 12 hole 7,425 foot Phase II RC drill program at the Independence project, south of Battle Mountain, Nevada. Six holes of the Phase II RC drill program targeted the main oxide gold zone and six holes targeted the intrusive gold target. Results for two holes from the main oxide zone and four holes from the intrusive gold target include:

0.66 g/t gold and 7.2 g/t silver over 195 feet (59.4 metres) including 1.89 g/t gold and 6.9 g/t silver over 50 feet (15.2 metres)

0.68 g/t gold and 5.0 g/t silver over 150 feet (45.7 metres) including 1.52 g/t gold and 8.0 g/t silver over 45 feet (13.7 metres)



"The highlight results above are the first two of six holes testing the main oxide zone in the area of AGEI-32 from the Phase I RC drill program. As expected, we are seeing good long intervals in excess of 0.5 g/t gold with shorter +1 gram intervals within it: 195 feet of 0.66 g/t gold containing a shorter 50 foot interval of 1.89 g/t gold and 150 feet of 0.68 g/t gold containing a shorter 45 foot interval of 1.52 g/t gold," commented Golden Independence President Tim Henneberry.

"Golden Independence continues to intercept both plus half-gram plus gold and higher-grade material in the main oxide gold zone," stated Golden Independence CEO Christos Doulis. "The results of all 12 holes from our recently completed Phase II RC drill program will be incorporated into a resource update as part of an upcoming PEA on the 537,300 ounces of gold in the Measured and Indicated categories and 147,300 ounces of gold in the Inferred category that make up the near-surface portion of our recently released maiden NI 43-101 compliant Mineral Resource Estimate," he continued.





Figure 1

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Table 1. 2021 Reverse Circulation Drill Results

Hole target ft from ft to ft length m length g/t gold g/t silver AGEI-49 intrusive 0 405 405 123.4 0.257 4.3 including 380 405 25 7.6 0.756 12.9 AGEI-50 intrusive 10 510 500 152.4 0.252 6.2 including 35 125 90 27.4 0.448 6.3 AGEI-51 intrusive 125 595 470 143.3 0.216 5.8 including 130 155 25 7.6 0.552 3.5 AGEI-52 intrusive 0 400 400 121.9 0.300 4.4 AGEI-54 oxide 180 375 195 59.4 0.655 7.2 including 235 285 50 15.2 1.893 6.9 AGEI-59 oxide 195 345 150 45.7 0.680 5.0 including 210 255 45 13.7 1.518 8.0

All assay results are drill widths not true widths, which is undetermined at this time.





Figure 2

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Figure 3

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Quality assurance

All samples were shipped to the ALS Minerals prep lab in Elko, Nevada with analyses completed at the ALS Minerals Lab in Reno, Nevada. Both facilities are ISO 9001:2015 and ISO/IEC 17025:2017 certified. All samples are analyzed utilizing ALS ME-ICP41 procedure, an aqua regia digestion with ICP-AES finish, with gold determined by the Au-AA23 procedure, a 30-gram fire assay with AAS finish. ALS Minerals is independent from Golden Independence. Golden Independence institutes a rigorous QA/QC program of duplicate samples, blanks and standards. Based on a review of the QA/QC data is not aware of any other factors that could materially affect the accuracy or reliability of the data referred to herein.

R. Tim Henneberry, PGeo (British Columbia), President and Director of Golden Independence Mining Corp., is the qualified person who has reviewed and approved the technical content of this news release on behalf of the company.

About Golden Independence Mining Corp.

Golden Independence Mining Corp. is an exploration company currently focused on exploring the advanced-stage Independence property located adjacent to Nevada Gold Mine's Phoenix-Fortitude mine in the Battle Mountain-Cortez Trend of Nevada. The Independence property hosts an M&I resource of 537,300 ounces of gold and Inferred resource of 943,500 ounces of gold with a substantial silver credit. The Company is actively advancing the near-surface resource towards a production decision with a PEA anticipated in late 2021.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

Christos Doulis, Chief Executive Officer

Telephone: 1.647.924.1083 Email: christos@goldenindependence.co

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88315
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - Permex Petroleum Corporation (CSE: OIL) (OTCQB: OILCF) ("Permex" or the "Company"), announced today that it has closed on multiple non-operated royalty interest ("RI") acquisitions in 29 oil and gas wells located in the Permian Basin of west Texas, all of which have established long-term production.

In addition to its own working interest ownership and operations across 4,000 acres in the Basin, Permex now holds royalty interests ownership in a total of 73 wells and 5 permitted wells across 3,800 acres within the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeast New Mexico.

The recently acquired oil and gas royalty interest properties are located in Howard, Martin, Midland and Reeves counties. The operators on file for these properties include EOG Resources and Chevron with primary production coming from the Wolfcamp Shale.

"There are numerous catalysts in the oil sector which we believe will push oil prices much higher over the next few quarters," said Mehran Ehsan, President & CEO. "Our strategic business shift to have continuously acquired royalty interest ownership in oil and natural gas properties during the downturn has positioned us for exceptional returns on these investments. We continue to monitor the market for additional non-operating working interest and royalty interest acquisitions and partnerships."

CAUTIONARY DISCLAIMER STATEMENT:

Neither Canadian Securities Exchange, OTCMarkets nor their Regulation Services Providers (as that term is defined in their respective policies) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

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, OTC Markets nor their Regulation Services Providers (as that term is defined in the policies of either exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Mehran Ehsan

President, Chief Executive Officer & Director

(214) 459-2782

Scott Kelly

CFO, Corporate Secretary & Director

(778) 373-2525

Or for Investor Relations, please contact:

admin@permexpetroleum.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88318
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - PORTOFINO RESOURCES INC. (TSXV: POR) (OTCQB: PFFOF) (FSE: POTA) ("Portofino" or the "Company") is pleased to announce it has mobilized a geological crew to the Allison Lake North lithium and rare elements ("Property"). The Property comprises 1,618 hectares (ha) and is located 100 kilometers ("km") east of the town of Red Lake in northwestern Ontario. The Property is accessible by well-established logging roads and a hydro-electric power line transects the claim group. The geological crew has commenced mapping and sampling on the property.

David Tafel, CEO of Portofino Resources states; "Securing strategic national supplies of critical metals such as lithium and rare elements is being prioritized by Canadian and U.S. governments. The Allison Lake region has been identified by the Ontario Geological Survey as an important new exploration target area for lithium and rare-element mineralization and we are excited to have "boots on the ground" and our exploration program underway."

The Allison Lake North Property

The Property contains significant attributes that are key to the formation of lithium-bearing pegmatite dykes. It is positioned along the contact between the Allison Lake pegmatite granite batholith and the Jubilee Lake metasedimentary rocks of the Uchi Subprovince in northwestern Ontario (Figure 1).

The 2003 Ontario Geological Survey ("Breaks") report described the Allison Lake batholith as the largest known peraluminous granitic body in northwestern Ontario. Breaks concluded that, "The Allison Lake batholith represents an important new exploration target for rare-element mineralization and is the largest such granite thus far documented in Ontario. This area has high potential for further discoveries of rare-element mineralization."

Based upon samples analyzed and included in the Breaks report, the outer rim of the Allison Lake batholith possesses anomalously high concentrations of rare elements including lithium ("Li").

Northwestern Ontario is host to several well-known Li and rare earth elements deposits that have delineated resources and preliminary economic assessment studies (Figure 2). Of note is the PAK Li deposit along the 'Electric Avenue' which contains one of North America's highest-grade, large tonnage hard-rock Li resources. The PAK deposit has a mineral reserve in the proven and probable categories of 5.77 MT averaging 2.06% Li 2 O. The Spark Deposit, located 2.5km northwest of the PAK, was winner of the "2019 Discovery of the Year Award." Frontier Lithium recently announced drill results from the Spark Deposit with hole PL-048-21 reporting 340 metres of 1.68% Li 2 O (TSXV: FL news - June 1, 2021).





Figure 1. Allison Lake North property regional geological location.

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Also notable in northwestern Ontario is the Separation Rapids lithium deposit owned by Avalon Advanced Materials which has an estimated resource of 9.4Mt grading 1.35% Li 2 O; the Georgia Lake pegmatite deposit owned by Rock Tech Lithium with an estimated resource of 13.3 Mt grading 1.09% Li 2 O; two deposits owned by Infinite Ore containing historical resources of 2M tons grading 1.09% Li 2 O and 750,000 tons grading 1.38% Li 2 O and the Seymour Lake lithium deposit owned by Ardiden Ltd. and having an estimated resource of 4.8 Mt grading 1.24% Li 2 O.





Figure 2. Major lithium deposits of northwestern Ontario.

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Qualified Person

Mike Kilbourne, P. Geo, an independent qualified person as defined in National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical contents of this news release on behalf of the Company.

About Portofino Resources Inc.

Portofino is a Vancouver-based Canadian company focused on exploring and developing mineral resource projects in the Americas. Its South of Otter and Bruce Lake projects are in the historic gold mining district of Red Lake, Ontario, Canada proximal to the high-grade Dixie gold project owned by Great Bear Resources Ltd. In addition, Portofino holds three other northwestern Ontario gold projects; the Gold Creek property located immediately south of the historic Shebandowan Nickel-Copper mine, as well as the Sapawe West and Melema West properties located in the rapidly developing Atikokan gold mining camp.

In addition to maintaining a 100% interest in the Allison Lake North Li project, the Company also controls a 100% interest in the Yergo lithium (salar) property located within the world-renowned "Lithium Triangle" in Argentina.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

"David G. Tafel"

Chief Executive Officer

For Further Information Contact:

David Tafel CEO,

Director 604-683-1991

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release may contain forward-looking statements concerning future operations of Portofino Resources Inc. (the "Company"). All forward-looking statements concerning the Company's future plans and operations, including management's assessment of the Company's project expectations or beliefs may be subject to certain assumptions, risks and uncertainties beyond the Company's control. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and that actual performance and exploration and financial results may differ materially from any estimates or projections.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88346
Val-d'Or, Quebec--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - Bonterra Resources Inc. (TSXV: BTR) (OTCQX: BONXF) (FSE: 9BR2) ("Bonterra" or the "Company") is pleased to announce updated mineral resource estimates ("MREs") for the Gladiator, Barry, and Moroy deposits, and Bachelor mine (the "2021 MREs") prepared by independent firm, SLR Consulting (Canada) Ltd. ("SLR"). The 2021 MREs in this news release have been classified in accordance with CIM Definition Standards on Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves (CIM, 2014).

Following successful exploration and infill drilling programs, comprehensive mineralization modeling and higher gold prices, Bonterra is pleased to report an increase over the mineral resource estimates for the Gladiator, Barry and Moroy deposits prepared by SGS Canada Inc. ("SGS") and dated July 11, 2019 ("2019 MREs") of 78% and 27% in gold ounces ("oz") for Measured and Indicated ("M&I") and Inferred Mineral Resource categories, respectively.

The 2021 MREs benefited from nearly 130,000 metres ("m") of drilling across the deposits since the 2019 MREs. The average drilling discovery rate resulted in approximately 7.1 oz/m drilled across all the deposits in the last two years. Bonterra plans to continue expansion drilling in the coming months on all deposits to support the Company's growth strategy.

Table 1: Comparison of Mineral Resources in 2019 MREs with 2021 MREs

2019 MREs 2021 MREs % Change Category Tonnage Grade Contained Metal Tonnage Grade Contained Metal Contained Metal (000 t) (g/t Au) (000 oz Au) (000 t) (g/t Au) (000 oz Au) (%) Measured 302 5.66 55 2,202 3.18 225 309% Indicated 3,160 6.33 643 5,203 6.08 1,017 58% Measured + Indicated 3,462 6.27 698 7,405 5.21 1,242 78% Inferred 6,201 7.05 1,405 9,167 6.05 1,781 27%

Notes:

2019 MREs are estimated using gold cut-off grades of 3.0 g/t at Moroy and 3.5 g/t at Gladiator and Barry. 2019 MREs do not include the Bachelor Mine or crown pillars at either Moroy and Gladiator and do not consider an open pit mining scenario at Barry. 2021 MREs are estimated using gold cut-off grades of 1.0 g/t and 2.60 g/t for open pit and underground, respectively. 2019 MREs and 2021 MREs are estimated using long-term gold prices of US$1,300 per oz, and US$1,600 per oz, respectively. Both the 2019 and 2021 MREs use a US$/C$ exchange rate of 0.75. Numbers may not add due to rounding.

Pascal Hamelin, CEO commented: "The significant growth in estimated mineral resources across all categories supports Bonterra's view that the Urban-Barry Camp has the potential to host multi-million oz gold deposits much like other camps within Canada's Abitibi Greenstone Belt. The completion of the 2021 MREs sets the stage for a preliminary economic assessment ("PEA") expected later this year. The PEA will examine the viability of a hub-and-spoke operation leveraging our existing Bachelor mill and associated infrastructure. Importantly, the permitting process to allow for an expansion of the Bachelor mill to 2,400 tonnes-per-day ("tpd") from the current 800 tpd is approximately 75% complete."

Cesar Gonzalez, Executive Chairman commented: "I would like to thank Pascal, Bonterra's exploration team, board members on the Technical, Safety and Sustainability committee, and SLR that worked tirelessly to deliver the 2021 MREs on the timeline promised to our shareholders. The next milestone is the delivery of a PEA that is expected to demonstrate the economic potential of leveraging Bonterra's existing infrastructure and permits with its rapidly growing estimated mineral resources."

Bonterra will provide an update on its activities in a webinar, June 23, 2021 at 2:00 pm EST hosted by Adelaide Capital.

Registration link: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Pi5uj3zHQxWCZGsMpJHYWA

Table 2: Summary of MREs for Gladiator, Barry and Moroy Deposits, and Bachelor Mine - Effective June 1, 2021

Category Tonnage Grade Contained Metal (000 t) (g/t Au) (000 oz Au) Open Pit Measured 1,732 2.66 148 Indicated 184 2.87 17 Measured + Indicated 1,916 2.68 165 Inferred 15 2.36 1 Underground Measured 470 5.06 77 Indicated 5,019 6.20 1,000 Measured + Indicated 5,489 6.10 1,077 Inferred 9,152 6.05 1,780 Combined Open Pit and Underground Measured 2,202 3.17 225 Indicated 5,203 6.08 1,017 Measured + Indicated 7,405 5.21 1,242 Inferred 9,167 6.05 1,781

Notes:

CIM (2014) definitions were followed for Mineral Resources. Bachelor and Moroy underground Mineral Resources are estimated at gold cut-off grades of 2.40 g/t or 3.0 g/t, domain dependent. Gladiator and Barry underground Mineral Resources are estimated at a gold cut-off grade of 2.60 g/t. Open pit Mineral Resources at Barry are estimated at a gold cut-off grade of 1.0 g/t. Mineral Resources are estimated using a long-term gold price of US$1,600 per oz, and a US$/C$ exchange rate of 0.75. A minimum mining width of 1.2 m was used. Bulk density varies by deposit and lithology and ranges from 2.70 t/m 3 to 2.83 t/m 3 . Open pit and underground Mineral Resources at Barry, Gladiator, and Bachelor Mine, are reported within a conceptual open pit (Barry only) and underground constraining shapes, respectively. All blocks within the underground constraining shapes have been included within the Mineral Resource estimate. Underground Mineral Resources at Moroy are reported above cut-off grade as well as above grade-thickness values of 2.88 g/t m and 3.60 g/t m, domain dependent. Crown pillars of 50 m were applied at Moroy and Gladiator. Numbers may not add due to rounding.

Table 3: MREs for Gladiator, Barry and Moroy Deposits, and Bachelor Mine - Effective June 1, 2021

Category Tonnage Grade Contained Metal (000 t) (g/t Au) (000 oz Au) GLADIATOR Underground Measured - - - Indicated 1,413 8.61 391 Measured + Indicated 1,413 8.61 391 Inferred 4,174 7.37 989 BARRY Open Pit Measured 1,732 2.66 148 Indicated 184 2.87 17 Measured + Indicated 1,916 2.68 165 Inferred 15 2.36 1 Underground Measured 344 4.94 55 Indicated 2,839 5.15 470 Measured + Indicated 3,183 5.12 524 Inferred 4,364 4.90 687 Combined Open Pit and Underground Measured 2,076 3.04 203 Indicated 3,023 5.01 487 Measured + Indicated 5,099 4.21 689 Inferred 4,379 4.89 689 MOROY Underground Measured 36 6.01 7 Indicated 615 5.64 112 Measured + Indicated 651 5.66 118 Inferred 570 5.37 98 BACHELOR Underground Measured 90 5.13 15 Indicated 152 5.52 27 Measured + Indicated 243 5.37 42 Inferred 44 4.36 6

Notes:

CIM (2014) definitions were followed for Mineral Resources. Bachelor and Moroy underground Mineral Resources are estimated at gold cut-off grades of 2.40 g/t or 3.0 g/t, domain dependent. Gladiator and Barry underground Mineral Resources are estimated at a gold cut-off grade of 2.60 g/t. Open pit Mineral Resources at Barry are estimated at a gold cut-off grade of 1.0 g/t. Mineral Resources are estimated using a long-term gold price of US$1,600 per oz, and a US$/C$ exchange rate of 0.75. A minimum mining width of 1.2 m was used. Bulk density varies by deposit and lithology and ranges from 2.70 t/m 3 to 2.83 t/m 3 . Open pit and underground Mineral Resources at Barry, Gladiator, and Bachelor Mine, are reported within a conceptual open pit (Barry only) and underground constraining shapes, respectively. All blocks within the underground constraining shapes have been included within the Mineral Resource estimate. Underground Mineral Resources at Moroy are reported above cut-off grade as well as above grade-thickness values of 2.88 g/t m and 3.60 g/t m, domain dependent. Crown pillars of 50 m were applied at Moroy and Gladiator. Numbers may not add due to rounding.

Figure 1: Gladiator

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Figure 2: Barry

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Figure 3: Bachelor-Moroy

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Mineral Resource Estimate Approach and Parameters

GLADIATOR DEPOSIT

The Gladiator Mineral Resource estimate is based on over 150 vein structures and clusters within seven structural groups. Block model grade estimates are controlled by the geological/vein interpretations and were completed using a three-pass inverse distance cubed ("ID3") interpolation and capped 1 m composites. Indicated Mineral Resources were defined using drill hole spacing of up to approximately 40 m, a distance equal to the modeled variogram range. Inferred Mineral Resources are constrained by the vein wireframes and are supported by wider spaced drilling. Mineral Resources are reported within underground reporting shapes defined using a minimum thickness of 1.2 m and a gold cut-off grade of 2.6 g/t, limited to areas of continuous mineralization. All blocks within the underground constraining shapes have been included within the Mineral Resource estimate. A 50 m crown pillar below the base of overburden has been excluded from the Mineral Resources.

BARRY DEPOSIT

The Barry Mineral Resource estimate is based on over 70 veins grouped within six shallow to steeply dipping vein sets from surface to 650 m in depth, within which 1 m composites have been estimated in a multi-pass ID3 interpolation approach. Vein orientations are confirmed through mapping of surface exposure in the Barry historic pits and observed vein angles in drill core. Measured Mineral Resources were defined where proximal to historic pits and defined using drill holes spaced up to 20 m apart. Indicated Mineral Resources are limited to areas defined using drill holes spaced up to 50 m apart. Inferred Mineral Resources represent areas with drill hole spacing up to 100 m. Open pit Mineral Resources are reported within an optimized pit at a gold cut-off grade of 1.0 g/t, and below, underground Mineral Resources are reported within underground reporting shapes defined using a minimum thickness of 1.2 m and a gold cut-off grade of 2.6 g/t, and limited to areas of continuous mineralization. All blocks within the underground constraining shapes have been included within the Mineral Resource estimate.

BACHELOR MINE AND MOROY DEPOSIT

The Bachelor mine Mineral Resource estimate is defined by four wireframes representing mineralization extension just below and adjacent to existing mine workings. A total of 11 wireframes in four groups define the Moroy deposit domain extents. Vein orientations at Moroy have been confirmed through underground mapping and sampling, as well as vein orientations observed in drill core. At Bachelor, veins mimic overlying mined out areas in both orientation and form. For both Bachelor and Moroy, gold grades have been estimated using full width drill hole and channel sample intercepts within a multi-pass ID3 interpolation approach.

Measured Mineral Resources have been defined where proximal to development. Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resources were defined where drill hole spacings of up to approximately 35 m and 70 m were achieved, respectively, and modified to consider geological understanding and grade continuity. Mineral Resources at Bachelor are reported within underground reporting shapes defined using a minimum thickness of 1.2 m and a gold cut-off grade of 2.4 g/t. All blocks within the underground constraining shapes have been included within the Mineral Resource estimate. Mineral Resources at Moroy are reported using gold cut-off grades of 2.4 g/t and 3.0 g/t, as well as above grade-thickness values of 2.88 g/t m and 3.6 g/t m, domain dependent. A 50 m crown pillar below the base of overburden has been excluded from the Moroy Mineral Resources and existing mine workings have been excluded from both the Moroy deposit and Bachelor mine.

SUMMARY AND VALIDATION

All Mineral Resource domains were defined within Leapfrog Geo software and sub-block model estimates were completed within Leapfrog Edge or Datamine software. Underground constraining shapes at Gladiator, Barry and Bachelor Mine were optimized using Deswik stope optimizer software. The limit of the open pit Mineral Resource shell was optimized using Geovia Whittle software, and was determined with consideration to underground mining costs. In addition to standard database validation techniques, wireframe and block model validation procedures including wireframe to block volume confirmation, statistical comparisons with composite and nearest neighbour estimates, swath plots, visual reviews in 3D, longitudinal, cross section, and plan views, as well as cross software reporting confirmation were completed for all deposits. In addition to SLR's internal peer and senior review processes, Bonterra's technical team and external consultants SGS have reviewed the MREs.

These MREs will form the basis for a PEA, to be released in Q4, 2021.

The MREs were completed in accordance with CIM (2014) incorporated, by reference, into National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101"). The results of the MREs will be fully documented in an independent Technical Report prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 and to be filed on the Company's SEDAR profile within 45 days of the disclosure of this news release.

Qualified Persons Statement

The MREs were prepared by Ms. Valerie Wilson, M.Sc., P.Geo., Consultant Geologist at SLR, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Ms. Wilson is an Independent Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101. Ms. Wilson has read and approved the contents of this news release as it relates to the disclosed MREs.

Allan Armitage, Ph.D., P.Geo. and Rohan Millar, B.Sc., P.Geo. acted as Independent Qualified Persons as defined by NI 43-101 on behalf of SGS in connection with the peer review of the MREs presented in this release.

Marc Ducharme, B.Sc., P.Geo. and Bonterra's Exploration Manager, has reviewed and approved the information contained in this press release. Mr. Ducharme is a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101.

About Bonterra Resources Inc.

Bonterra is a Canadian gold exploration company with a large portfolio of advanced exploration assets anchored by a central milling facility in Quebec, Canada. The Company has four main assets, Gladiator, Barry, Moroy, and Bachelor that collectively have a total of 1.24 million ounces in Measured and Indicated categories, and 1.78 million ounces in Inferred category. Importantly, the Company owns the only permitted and operational gold mill in the region that is currently estimated at 75% through the permitting process to expand from 800 to 2,400 tonnes-per-day. Bonterra is focused on graduating from advanced exploration to a development company over the next 18-24 months to deliver shareholder value.

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Pascal Hamelin, President & CEO

ir@btrgold.com

2872 Sullivan Road, Suite 2, Val d'Or, Quebec J9P 0B9

819-825-8678 | Website: www.btrgold.com

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary and Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking information" and "estimates" that is based on Bonterra's current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections. This forward-looking information includes, among other things, statements with respect to Bonterra's exploration and development plans. The words "will", "anticipated", "plans" or other similar words and phrases are intended to identify forward-looking information. This forward-looking information includes namely, information with respect to the planned exploration programs and the potential growth in mineral resources. Exploration results that include drill results on wide spacings may not be indicative of the occurrence of a mineral deposit and such results do not provide assurance that further work will establish sufficient grade, continuity, metallurgical characteristics and economic potential to be classed as a category of mineral resource. The potential quantities and grades of drilling targets are conceptual in nature and, there has been insufficient exploration to define a mineral resource, and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the targets being delineated as mineral resources. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause Bonterra's actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such factors include but are not limited to: uncertainties related exploration and development; the ability to raise sufficient capital to fund exploration and development; changes in economic conditions or financial markets, environmental and other judicial, regulatory, political and competitive developments; technological or operational difficulties or inability to obtain permits encountered in connection with exploration activities; and labour relations matters. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect our forward-looking information. These and other factors should be considered carefully and readers should not place undue reliance on such forward-looking information.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88406
- FinancialNewsMedia.com News Commentary

PALM BEACH, Fla., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- According to some gold professionals there are many benefits to buying gold stocks instead of the physical metal. The main draw is that these companies offer the potential of leveraged upside to the price of gold. When prices rise, these companies can increase their gold production and grow their total sales. Gold stocks are the publicly trading stocks of companies and funds focused on gold. The industry mainly comprises mining companies that dig up and sell gold. But it also includes gold streaming and royalty companies, which act as middlemen in the sector. These companies pay an up-front fee to a mining company in exchange for a percentage of the mine's revenue or the right to purchase its future production at a fixed cost. Finally, gold investors can also purchase shares in gold-focused exchange-traded funds (ETF), which hold either physical gold or shares of mining companies. Buying and selling physical gold in any form -- bars, coins, medals, or even jewelry -- is the most direct way to participate in the gold market. However, buying physical gold also means you have to pay relatively high commissions due to the market being less liquid than the stock market and also bear additional costs and risks related to the transportation, storage, and insurance of the precious metal. An article in Motley Fool spoke to this issue saying: "Gold stocks - especially gold streaming stocks offer the highest return potential among gold investment options because, in theory, a company's share price should eventually reflect its operational and financial growth. That means that shares of a fundamentally strong gold company that's maximizing returns on invested capital and is committed to shareholders can earn strong returns for investors, even in low-price environments for gold. Of course, investing in stocks is itself risky, and gold stocks are no different. Active stocks in the mining markets this week include Golden Independence Mining Corp. (OTCQB: GIDMF) (CSE: IGLD), Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE: GOLD) (TSX: ABX), Hecla Mining Company (NYSE: HL), Kirkland Lake Gold Ltd. (NYSE:KL) (TSX:KL), Franco-Nevada Corporation (NYSE: FNV) (TSX: FNV).

Gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are a more convenient and cost-effective means of investing in gold stocks, especially for those who lack the inclination or time to research specific gold companies. A gold ETF offers broad exposure to the sector by holding either shares of gold companies or physical gold. Because of the availability of ETFs, you don't have to be a stock-picking guru to participate in the gold industry's upside." It concluded: "Given these differences, investors need to weigh the rewards against potential risks to choose the right gold stock or ETF for their situation."

Golden Independence Mining Corp. (CSE: IGLD.CN) (OTCQB:GIDMF)BREAKING NEWS:GOLDEN INDEPENDENCE INTERSECTS 1.89 G/T GOLD AND 6.9 G/T SILVER OVER 50 FEET AT INDEPENDENCE PROJECT- Golden Independence (the "Company") is pleased to announce results from the initial six drill holes of the recently completed 12 hole 7,425 foot Phase II RC drill program at the Independence project, south of Battle Mountain, Nevada. Six holes of the Phase II RC drill program targeted the main oxide gold zone and six holes targeted the intrusive gold target. Results for two holes from the main oxide zone and four holes from the intrusive gold target include:

0.66 g/t gold and 7.2 g/t silver over 195 feet (59.4 metres)

including 1.89 g/t gold and 6.9 g/t silver over 50 feet (15.2 metres)

0.68 g/t gold and 5.0 g/t silver over 150 feet (45.7 metres)

including 1.52 g/t gold and 8.0 g/t silver over 45 feet (13.7 metres)

"The highlight results above are the first two of six holes testing the main oxide zone in the area of AGEI-32 from the Phase I RC drill program. As expected, we are seeing good long intervals in excess of 0.5 g/t gold with shorter +1 gram intervals within it: 195 feet of 0.66 g/t gold containing a shorter 50 foot interval of 1.89 g/t gold and 150 feet of 0.68 g/t gold containing a shorter 45 foot interval of 1.52 g/t gold." commented Golden Independence President Tim Henneberry.

"Golden Independence continues to intercept both plus half-gram plus gold and higher-grade material in the main oxide gold zone." stated Golden Independence CEO Christos Doulis. "The results of all 12 holes from our recently completed Phase II RC drill program will be incorporated into a resource update as part of an upcoming PEA on the 537,300 ounces of gold in the Measured and Indicated categories and 147,300 ounces of gold in the Inferred category that make up the near-surface portion of our recently released maiden NI 43-101 compliant Mineral Resource Estimate. " he continued.CONTINUEDRead this entire release for the Golden Independence news at:https://www.financialnewsmedia.com/news-igld/

Other recent developments in the mining markets include:

Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) (TSX:ABX) recently confirmed that the per share amount of the first $250 million tranche of a return of capital distribution totaling $750 million to be paid on June 15, 2021 will be $0.1405117, based on the number of issued and outstanding shares as of the May 28, 2021 record date.

This follows the approval by shareholders at Barrick's Annual and Special Meeting on May 4, 2021, of the total $750 million return of capital distribution. The remaining distribution of $500 million is expected to be effected in two equal tranches to shareholders of record on dates to be determined in August and November 2021.

On June 15, 2021, Barrick will also pay a previously declared dividend of $0.09 per share for the first quarter of 2021 to shareholders of record at the close of business on May 28, 2021. "Our overall return to shareholders for 2021 is one of the highest in the industry and marks another milestone in our journey towards our objective of building the world's most valued gold company," said senior executive vice-president and chief financial officer Graham Shuttleworth.

Kirkland Lake Gold Ltd. (NYSE:KL) (TSX:KL) recently announced that it has entered into an automatic share purchase plan (the "ASPP") with its designated broker to facilitate repurchases of Kirkland Lake Gold's common shares (the "Shares") under its previously announced normal course issuer bid ("NCIB"). The ASPP is intended to allow for the purchase of Shares under the NCIB at times when the Company may not ordinarily be permitted to purchase its shares due to regulatory restrictions and self-imposed blackout periods.

Under the current terms of the NCIB previously announced which commenced June 9, 2021, Kirkland Lake Gold can purchase up to 26,694,051 Shares until the expiry of the NCIB on June 8, 2022.

Pursuant to the ASPP, the designated broker may purchase up to 5,000,000 Shares until the expiry of the NCIB on June 8, 2022. Such purchases will be determined by the broker at its sole discretion based on the purchasing parameters set out by the Company in accordance with the rules of the Toronto Stock Exchange (the "TSX"), applicable securities laws and the terms of the ASPP. The ASPP has been pre-cleared by the TSX and shall be implemented effective today, June 21, 2021. The ASPP will terminate on the earlier of the date on which: (i) the NCIB expires; and (ii) the Company terminates the ASPP in accordance with its terms.

Franco-Nevada Corporation (NYSE: FNV) (TSX: FNV) had previously acquired 14.7% of Vale's outstanding Participating Debentures ("Royalty Debentures") from the Brazilian Development Bank ("BNDES") and the Government of Brazil for $538M. The Royalty Debentures provide holders with life of mine net sales royalties on Vale's Northern and Southeastern Iron Ore Systems and on certain copper and gold operations (together, the "Royalty"). This transaction provides royalty exposure to some of the world's largest and most profitable integrated iron ore mines with reserve weighted mine lives of 30 years and potential for multiple additional decades through reserve growth. The Royalty covers a total of 15.6 thousand square kilometers of mineral properties held by Vale in Brazil, also offering exposure to a number of development properties. The Royalty currently generates an annualized pre-tax cash yield of 10% based on acquisition cost and the most recent semi-annual Royalty Debenture payment. The amount of production capacity subject to the Royalty is expected to grow by approximately +60% by 2026 which would imply an 8% yield on investment at that time, assuming consensus long term iron ore prices.

Franco-Nevada has also accumulated a 9.9% equity investment in Labrador Iron Ore Royalty Corporation ("LIORC"). The position was acquired over a number of years for a total investment of C$93M, representing an average cost of C$14.72/share, versus recent trading of approximately C$38/share. An investment in LIORC functions as a flow through of income from its royalty and equity interest in the Iron Ore Company of Canada's("IOC") Carol Lake mine operated by Rio Tinto in Labrador. Reserves at Carol Lake are sufficient to sustain mining for 24 years and resources indicate potential for further multi-decade extensions. Since starting to accumulate the position, Franco-Nevada has recouped more than 95% of its original investment (inclusive of Q1 2021 dividends declared and to be paid April 26, 2021). Our LIORC investment is generating an annualized cash yield of 27% based on acquisition cost and the most recent dividend payment. Franco-Nevada has no intention of increasing the position at current prices.

Hecla Mining Company (NYSE: HL) recently released its Q1 2021 exploration results. Highlights Were: Midas exploration at Green Racer Sinter intercepted high-grade gold and silver mineralization over a 1,000-foot strike length and a 1,250-foot dip extent in the Sinter Vein, as well as two new mineralized footwall structures. Significant intercepts include more than 5 oz/ton gold over 13 feet estimated true width (see Table A for full results). All are open for expansion; Midas' plan of operations amendment expands to allow greater access to multiple targets on the Green Racer Sinter and East Graben Corridor; and San Sebastian exploration drilling on the El Bronco Vein expanded mineralization over a strike length of 1,500 feet. While at the El Tigre Vein, vein textures indicate drilling was high in the epithermal system, warranting further deeper drilling.

"Our early exploration results, just two miles from the mine portal, validates our thesis that despite its long high-grade production history, there remains significant untouched potential at Midas," said Phillips S. Baker, Jr., President and CEO. "The recent high-grade intercept grading 5.52 oz/ton gold and 8.9 oz/ton silver over 20.3 feet drilled (13.1 feet estimated true width) is one of the best exploration drillholes in North America in the past year."

DISCLAIMER: FN Media Group LLC (FNM), which owns and operates Financialnewsmedia.com and MarketNewsUpdates.com, is a third party publisher and news dissemination service provider, which disseminates electronic information through multiple online media channels. FNM is NOT affiliated in any manner with any company mentioned herein. FNM and its affiliated companies are a news dissemination solutions provider and are NOT a registered broker/dealer/analyst/adviser, holds no investment licenses and may NOT sell, offer to sell or offer to buy any security. FNM's market updates, news alerts and corporate profiles are NOT a solicitation or recommendation to buy, sell or hold securities. The material in this release is intended to be strictly informational and is NEVER to be construed or interpreted as research material. All readers are strongly urged to perform research and due diligence on their own and consult a licensed financial professional before considering any level of investing in stocks. All material included herein is republished content and details which were previously disseminated by the companies mentioned in this release. FNM is not liable for any investment decisions by its readers or subscribers. Investors are cautioned that they may lose all or a portion of their investment when investing in stocks. For current services performed FNM has been compensated forty six hundred dollars for news coverage of the current press releases issued by Golden Independence Mining Corp. by a non-affiliated third party. FNM HOLDS NO SHARES OF ANY COMPANY NAMED IN THIS RELEASE.

This release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. "Forward-looking statements" describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as "may", "future", "plan" or "planned", "will" or "should", "expected," "anticipates", "draft", "eventually" or "projected". You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, and other risks identified in a company's annual report on Form 10-K or 10-KSB and other filings made by such company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You should consider these factors in evaluating the forward-looking statements included herein, and not place undue reliance on such statements. The forward-looking statements in this release are made as of the date hereof and FNM undertakes no obligation to update such statements.

Contact Information:

Media Contact email: editor@financialnewsmedia.com

- +1(561)325-8757
- Investment aims to broaden expertise and service offerings of custom turnkey ASICs and semiconductors for customers worldwide

- Increase presence in industrial, automotive, medtech markets across Central Europe

HYDERABAD, India, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- AnSem, a Cyient company, announced the first anniversary of the acquisition of an integrated circuit (IC) design center in Duisburg, Germany. By delivering innovation on chip, AnSem has always supported its global customers across industrial, automotive, medical, and semiconductor industries by revolutionizing their respective markets. The addition of another facility further strengthens AnSem's capability in the digital design flow for large System on Chip (SoCs) and production test development.

These acquisitions are a reflection of Cyient's ambition to grow exponentially in the Semiconductor industry. Cyient's design and delivery centers are recruiting in the US, Germany, Belgium, and India to strengthen their teams in order to meet the needs of their customers.

At present, the Duisburg center has over 25 highly skilled ASIC and semiconductor design engineers, with an average experience of 20 years. Further, it houses all disciplines to execute standalone ASIC projects successfully, remain a trusted turnkey design and development partner for its customers, and provide semiconductor design services, including physical design custom layout, test, and verification and validation through proven in-house capabilities as well as robust ecosystem partnerships.

Commenting on the occasion, Andrew Smith, Head of the Semiconductor Business, Cyient, and General Manager of Ansem, said, "Our best guarantee for excellence in customer service, project execution, and a faster time-to-market is by being closer to our customers. This design center with highly experienced design engineers is embedded within the network of Cyient semiconductor design centers and perfectly located to serve key customers in the region."

With three different locations in Europe-Leuven (Belgium), Enschede (The Netherlands), and Duisburg (Germany)-and three locations in India (Hyderabad, Pune, and Bangalore), Cyient can now seamlessly deliver turnkey ASIC solutions, digital verification, and back-end/custom analog services worldwide.

"We are pleased to expand our footprint in Duisburg. This additional design center reaffirms Cyient's ambition to remain the leading custom turnkey ASIC supplier. With our strong momentum and growth, including in our semiconductor business, we look forward to leveraging our presence in Germany to support customers globally," said Karthik Natarajan, Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer at Cyient.

Germany is the heart of R&D and manufacturing for global industrial and automotive markets. Duisburg's strategically located design center brings AnSem even closer to industry leaders in these segments and strongly underlines Cyient's commitment to serving these markets with custom turnkey mixed-signal ASIC solutions.

About AnSem-A Cyient Company

AnSem is Cyient's center of excellence for providing custom turnkey mixed-signal ASICs and managing the complete life cycle-from design requirements to high-volume production until end-of-life. AnSem specializes in advanced analog, digital, RF, and mixed-signal integrated circuit design and provides custom turnkey ASICs for global customers across industries, including automotive, medical, industrial, consumer, and communications.

AnSem is Europe's leading fabless custom turnkey ASIC company with global reach. Founded in 1998, it specializes in the custom development of ASICs for wired and wireless communications, sensor and MEMS, ultra-low power, and high-voltage applications.

The company is an approved ARM Design partner and TSMC Design Center Alliance partner. AnSem is IS9001- and ISO13485 (MedTech)-certified and a proven partner for visionary customers reaching global leadership in the industrial, medical, automotive, and IoT markets.

To find out more, please visit www.ansem.com or www.cyient.com.
Integrated solution delivers more secure, seamless boarding experience

IDEMIA is facilitating a facial recognition system to help U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) increase air passengers' security and border control at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), one of the busiest airports in the world. The technology has been deployed in LAX's new West Gates at Tom Bradley International Terminal and is a one-stop safety solution for passengers, airlines, and airports alike.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005420/en/

(Photo: Business Wire)

The deployment is part of a contract awarded by Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) to EASIER, a leader in e-gate technology. In alignment with protection measures defined by the U.S. Congress, passengers will now get to experience a faster, more accurate, and touchless boarding experience. LAX is just one of multiple airports where IDEMIA's facial recognition technology is deployed in conjunction with CBP and an example of the long-term commitment to provide secure and effective passenger facilitation technologies.

"With IDEMIA's advanced facial recognition technology, which was ranked #1 in the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) latest Face Recognition Vendor Test (FRVT), airports will be equipped to deliver the best-in-class passenger experience utilizing our accurate and responsible system." Lisa Sullivan, VP Travel and Transport of IDEMIA North America.

"We are delighted to support LAWA, U.S. Customs and more than 50 airlines in achieving their goal of helping passengers travel safely," explains Ludovic Libeski, Managing Director of EASIER. "Faced with an unprecedented health crisis, EASIER teams and our partner IDEMIA mobilized to ensure a large-scale deployment of solutions at the largest Origin Destination airport in the United States and to improve the passenger experience."

IDEMIA does not store private passenger information and CBP conducts biometric matching in the cloud. U.S. citizens can choose to opt out of the facial image capture and instead be processed by airline agents with a passport and boarding pass.

About IDEMIA

IDEMIA, the global leader in Augmented Identity, provides a trusted environment enabling citizens and consumers alike to perform their daily critical activities (such as pay, connect and travel), in the physical as well as digital space. Securing our identity has become mission critical in the world we live in today. By standing for Augmented Identity, an identity that ensures privacy and trust and guarantees secure, authenticated and verifiable transactions, we reinvent the way we think, produce, use and protect one of our greatest assets our identity whether for individuals or for objects, whenever and wherever security matters. We provide Augmented Identity for international clients from Financial, Telecom, Identity, Public Security and IoT sectors. With close to 15,000 employees around the world, IDEMIA serves clients in 180 countries.

For more information, visit www.idemia.com/usa Follow @Idemia_NA on Twitter

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005420/en/

Contacts:

Press contact

James Fuller, James.Fuller@hkstrategies.com +1 240 393 1369
WASHINGTON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Urban Air Mobility Division of Hyundai Motor Group announced today a new partnership with ANRA Technologies - a leading international provider of end-to-end drone operations and traffic management solutions for unmanned system operators and airspace managers - to begin developing the operating environment for the advanced air mobility (AAM) industry.

This is the first in a series of air traffic management partnerships Hyundai plans to establish in the development of an industry consortium building the AAM operating ecosystem.

"We are pleased to partner with ANRA Technologies to begin building toward the safe and efficient integration of AAM into existing airspace," said Pamela Cohn, chief operating officer, Urban Air Mobility Division of Hyundai Motor Group. "As an emerging mobility solution, it is critical diverse parties work together to co-create the AAM ecosystem, including its necessary digital and physical infrastructure. ANRA brings a unique background of operational history in the drone services sector that will help define the operating environment for all AAM vehicles."

As part of the partnership, ANRA will provide strategic insight on Hyundai's concept of operations (ConOps) for AAM airspace management and ground mobility integration. The two companies will also identify research opportunities to help inform regulatory decisions and advance infrastructure projects.

"ANRA's SmartSkies family of airspace management solutions have been proven worldwide and provide the critical support required for complex AAM operations at scale," said Amit Ganjoo, founder and CEO, ANRA Technologies. "We take a long-term view in everything we do as a company and are looking forward to integrating our advanced technologies with the Urban Air Mobility Division of Hyundai Motor Group's AAM ecosystem and sharing our knowledge and experience to ensure the success of our partnership and help move our industry safely forward."

AAM aircraft operators require airspace management support to ensure safe and compliant operations at scale and conform to national and international regulatory requirements. SmartSkies microservices architecture enables AAM airspace management for urban air mobility aircraft to easily scale and adapt to any region in the world. The comprehensive platform includes mission planning, strategic deconfliction, tracking and monitoring, constraints management, authorization, and registration. Today, SmartSkies is the only airspace solution providing commercial AAM services for both NASA and European Union/EASA AAM initiatives.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1549649/ANRA_GAM_Black__1.jpg
Phoenix, Arizona--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - The Stock Day Podcast welcomed Q BioMed Inc. (OTCQB: QBIO) ("the Company"), a biotech acceleration and commercial stage company. CEO of the Company, Denis Corin, joined Stock Day host Everett Jolly.

Jolly began the interview by asking about the Company's background and current projects. "Q BioMed is what we like to call a biotechnology development and acceleration company," said Corin. "Our plan, goal, and vision is to find interesting assets in the biotechnology that we think are underserviced, underfunded, and underdeveloped in certain disease stakes and therapeutics that we can bring in, develop, and accelerate to a point where we can either commercialize them, license them out, sell them, or bring them closer to the patients that need them."

"Over the last five years since our inception, we have developed what I think is a very valuable pipeline of several assets in different therapeutic areas that all service patients that I think are lacking therapeutic alternatives that may make a big difference in their lives," continued Corin.

"Could you provide a brief update on your pipeline of development drugs?", asked Jolly. "We have a liver cancer drug that is being developed in partnership with the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation and the Rajiv Gandhi Centre," shared Corin. "We have spent the last two years perfecting the synthesis of that product," he added. "We are thrilled with our partners and team to have been able to complete that synthesis work, and we are now scaling that up," said Corin, adding that this will help the Company prepare for pre-clinical testing and eventually human clinical trials. "That would be a very unique therapeutic for the treatment of liver cancer." The company also recently received Orphan Drug Designation for this potential treatment.

"We have several products that we are working on in conjunction with our partner Mannin Research," said Corin. "The most prominent of those is a COVID-19 therapeutic," he shared, adding that the therapeutic is designed to treat ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome). "We've just had an amazing amount of support now from international governments," said Corin. He went on to explain that this Mannin platform has several drugs in development including for glaucoma and kidney diseases.

Jolly then asked about the Company's bone cancer pain commercial focus. "We have been really focused on the launch of Strontium89, which is a radiopharmaceutical for the treatment of pain associated with cancer that has spread to the bone or metastatic cancer," said Corin. "This is a non-opiate therapeutic that is an injectable drug that acts like calcium in the bone," he explained. "It is a very important therapeutic and has actually been around for a very long time, but has been quite neglected," said Corin. "At the beginning of this year, we got approval from Medicare and Medicaid payers in the US. So, the drug is now fully imbursed and can be marketed to patients and covered by insurance companies, as well as Medicare and Medicaid," he explained, adding that the Company has also been approved as a federal supplier. "I feel like we have put all of the building blocks in place for a real concerted effort to start to drive revenues for the second half of this year."

Corin then elaborated on the Company's marketing efforts. "We have been working on a digital platform for the last several months to build awareness and get our brand out there," said Corin. "We will be in the field with the government hospitals in the next couple of weeks and then the commercial hospitals will follow."

Jolly then asked about the Company's recent funding announcements where he explained that the company has built a very valuable pipeline with what would be considered a small amount of dilutive capital raised. He went on to explain, "Recently, we have received some great support from the German government, which has agreed to fund in excess of $5 million euros to the development of the Mannin pipeline," he shared. "Canada has now also given Mannin a $1.7 million grant for the development of the COVID therapeutic," said Corin, adding that the Company has also announced an investment from a company insider, which may represent $30 million over the next few months.

To hear Denis Corin's entire interview, follow the link to the podcast here: https://audioboom.com/posts/7892052-q-biomed-inc-discusses-progress-of-covid-19-therapeutic-and-30-million-potential-investment-wit

Investors Hangout is a proud sponsor of "Stock Day," and Stock Day Media encourages listeners to visit the company's message board at https://investorshangout.com/.

About Q BioMed Inc.

Q BioMed Inc is a biotech acceleration and commercial stage company. Q BioMed is focused on licensing and acquiring undervalued biomedical assets in the healthcare sector. Q BioMed is dedicated to providing these target assets the strategic resources, developmental support, and expansion capital needed to ensure they meet their developmental potential, enabling them to provide products to patients in need .

Please visit http://www.QBioMed.com and sign up for regular updates.

Forward-Looking Statements:

This press release may contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such statements include, but are not limited to, any statements relating to our growth strategy and product development programs and any other statements that are not historical facts. Forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could negatively affect our business, operating results, financial condition and stock price. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those currently anticipated are: risks related to our growth strategy; risks relating to the results of research and development activities; our ability to obtain, perform under and maintain financing and strategic agreements and relationships; uncertainties relating to preclinical and clinical testing; our dependence on third-party suppliers; our ability to attract, integrate, and retain key personnel; the early stage of products under development; our need for substantial additional funds; government regulation; patent and intellectual property matters; competition; as well as other risks described in our SEC filings. We expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in our expectations or any changes in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based, except as required by law.

Q BioMed Media Contact:

Denis Corin

CEO

Investor Relations:

Keith Pinder

+1(404) 995-6671

ir@qbiomed.com

About The "Stock Day" Podcast

Founded in 2013, Stock Day is the fastest growing media outlet for Nano-Cap and Micro-Cap companies. It educates investors while simultaneously working with penny stock and OTC companies, providing transparency and clarification of under-valued, under-sold Micro-Cap stocks of the market. Stock Day provides companies with customized solutions to their news distribution in both national and international media outlets. The Stock Day Podcast is the number one radio show of its kind in America.

SOURCE:

Stock Day Media

(602) 821-1102

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88409
Crossfuze, a ServiceNow Elite partner, will host a virtual event aimed at university graduates who are interested in a career in the information technology field. Women Fuzed in Tech will take place on 6th July 2021 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Interested attendees who match our values will be invited to explore the opportunity of enrolling into our 3 Months to NOW Program our (paid) fast-track to consulting program.

This virtual event features an introduction to digital transformation, ServiceNow and Crossfuze. Participants will have a chance to network with their peers, hear from an inspiring panel of women in tech, including female leaders at Crossfuze and ServiceNow, and get hands-on experience with the ServiceNow platform. Integrated Marketing Specialist, Dalin Murad, developed the event and will serve as its host. Additionally, Nick McGillivray, vice president, Crossfuze Europe, will welcome attendees.

"I'm hugely looking forward to our inaugural Women Fuzed in Tech event. Diversity in the workplace is not just about ticking a box," McGillivray siad. "It's about fresh perspectives and opportunities to drive growth with diverse mindsets. That Crossfuze has the opportunity to offer young women through this initiative education, experience and for some even a career path is really exciting and having some of our customers and ServiceNow join us on the day should make this an unforgettable experience for all those lucky enough to attend."

"It's not uncommon to be the only woman in the room when working in the IT industry," said Crossfuze Managing Consultant and Women Fuzed in Tech careers panelist, Allison Walker. "I have been fortunate to meet some incredible women in my career who not only served as mentors, but also shared their experiences throughout the years. These women helped pave the way and created a better space for me and all young women who will come after them. Because of them, we're helping create spaces where young women can explore, learn, create and be their authentic selves. Connections like these help young women not only in their careers, but in every aspect of their lives."

The Women Fuzed in Tech event aligns with Crossfuze's Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging initiative aimed at including underrepresented groups as valuable members of the team. Women are historically underrepresented in technology and Crossfuze hopes to change that.

For more information, or to register to attend this event, visit pages.crossfuze.com/en-gb/women-fuzed-in-tech.

About Crossfuze

Crossfuze, a ServiceNow Elite Partner, is a four-time ServiceNow award recipient for customer service excellence and rapid account growth. With over 2,500 implementations, 20 years of enterprise service management experience and a global reach, Crossfuze is known for providing superior service and in-depth knowledge that enables business and IT leaders to achieve their ServiceNow vision. For more information about the Women Fuzed in Tech event or Crossfuze services, visit Crossfuze.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005645/en/

Contacts:

Kaitlyn Frank

612-431-2741

kaitlyn.frank@crossfuze.com
Carnival Corporation Brands Resume Cruising in US, Caribbean and Europe

Eight of the corporation's world-leading cruise line brands - including US-based brands Carnival Cruise Line, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises and Seabourn, as well as UK-based brands Cunard and P&O Cruises - are resuming guest operations with gradual, phased-in voyages and enhanced health protocols

Lineup of currently planned sailings represents 52% of corporation's total capacity and builds on recent restarts of its Germany-based AIDA Cruises and Italy-based Costa Cruises brands

MIAMI, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Eight cruise line brands from Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), the world's largest cruise company, have announced plans to resume guest cruise operations, with AIDA Cruises, Carnival Cruise Line, Costa Cruises, Cunard, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, P&O Cruises (UK) and Seabourn sailing in the United States, the Caribbean and Europe.

The brands are resuming operations using a gradual, phased-in approach, with sailings announced on 42 ships to date through the end of fiscal year 2021 (Nov. 30), representing 52% of the company's total capacity across its global fleet of 91 cruise ships. The initial cruises will take place with enhanced health protocols developed in conjunction with government and health authorities, and informed by guidance from the company's public health, epidemiological and policy experts.

Carnival Corporation's most recent brand restart announcements are summarized directly below, with a full list of initial restart plans by brand, ship and expected start date available further below. Additional brand updates on the resumption of guest cruise operations for the remainder of fiscal year 2021 will be announced as further restart plans are finalized.

North America Brands:

Carnival Cruise Line has announced it will resume guest cruise operations with eight ships by the end of August, including sailings out of Galveston, Miami , Port Canaveral, Long Beach and Seattle (to Alaska ). Included in that roster is Mardi Gras , the line's newest and most innovative ship, and first cruise ship in North America powered by eco-friendly liquefied natural gas (LNG), with sailings from Port Canaveral starting on July 31 .

has announced it will resume guest cruise operations with eight ships by the end of August, including sailings out of Galveston, , Port Canaveral, and (to ). Included in that roster is , the line's newest and most innovative ship, and first cruise ship in powered by eco-friendly liquefied natural gas (LNG), with sailings from Port Canaveral starting on . Princess Cruises expects to resume guest cruise operations in July with Alaska sailings and a series of cruises around UK coastal waters, as well as cruises out of Los Angeles , San Francisco and Fort Lauderdale to the Caribbean , Panama Canal, Mexico , Hawaii and California coast starting in September.

expects to resume guest cruise operations in July with sailings and a series of cruises around UK coastal waters, as well as cruises out of , and to the , Panama Canal, , and coast starting in September. Holland America Line expects to resume guest cruise operations in July with Alaska sailings, followed by sailings from Greece in August, and from Italy and Spain in September, as well as sailings to Mexico , Hawaii , the California coast and the Caribbean this fall.

expects to resume guest cruise operations in July with sailings, followed by sailings from in August, and from and in September, as well as sailings to , , the coast and the this fall. Seabourn expects to resume guest cruise operations in July sailing from Greece and Barbados , along with the beginning of the Antarctica season in November.

Europe & Asia Brands:

Costa Cruises resumed guest cruise operations in May with sailings in Italy and Greece , and is now offering sailings to France and Spain in July, followed by Portugal and Turkey in September.

resumed guest cruise operations in May with sailings in and , and is now offering sailings to and in July, followed by and in September. AIDA Cruises resumed guest cruise operations in March sailing in the Canary Islands, in May with sailings in Greece and Germany , and is now offering additional sailings out of Germany as well as sailings in Spain , Italy , Portugal and Malta from July, and the Persian Gulf from November.

resumed guest cruise operations in March sailing in the Canary Islands, in May with sailings in and , and is now offering additional sailings out of as well as sailings in , , and from July, and the Persian Gulf from November. P&O Cruises (UK) will offer a series of cruises this summer sailing around UK coastal waters beginning in June, expanding to the Mediterranean and the Atlantic coast starting in September.

will offer a series of cruises this summer sailing around UK coastal waters beginning in June, expanding to the Mediterranean and the Atlantic coast starting in September. Cunard will offer a series of cruises this summer sailing around UK coastal waters in July, followed by voyages to the Iberian coast and Canary Islands. In November, Queen Mary 2 returns to service with a combination of transatlantic crossings and Caribbean cruises.

Additionally, Holland America Line and Princess Cruises are offering land-based vacation options this summer for travelers to experience Alaska through a combination of escorted, explorer and rail tours, as well as lodging and sightseeing.

The newly announced voyages build on recent restarts from the company's AIDA Cruises and Costa Cruises brands, which have been sailing in Europe since March and May, respectively. In addition to dozens of successful sailings between both brands in 2020, the most recent 2021 sailings from AIDA Cruises and Costa Cruises have demonstrated the effectiveness of enhanced health protocols developed in conjunction with local, national and global experts, and have generated high guest satisfaction scores, as measured by net promotor surveys.

"For all of our brands, our highest responsibility and top priorities are always compliance, environmental protection, and the health, safety and well-being of our guests, our shipboard and shoreside employees, and the communities we visit," said Roger Frizzell, chief communications officer for Carnival Corporation. "We are excited to see eight of our world-leading cruise line brands sailing this summer, and to date, we've announced over half of our capacity returning by the end of the fiscal year, as we work to meet significant pent-up demand for cruising and get back to what we do best - serving our guests with one of the world's most popular vacations."

Added Frizzell: "The broader restart of cruising marks a critical step in the recovery of our brands and the industry as a whole, which provides a major economic impact and supports jobs across multiple sectors around the world. As our cruise line brands collaborate closely with our port, destination, supply chain and travel agent partners on a responsible resumption of cruise operations, we will ensure we continue working together across the industry in the best interest of public health."

In working with global and national health authorities and medical experts, as well as authorities in destination countries, the company's brands have developed a comprehensive set of health and safety protocols for protection and mitigation across the entire cruise experience for its initial cruises. This includes cross-industry learnings and best practices based on the proven health and safety record of industrywide sailings and input from top science and health experts and health authorities.

Cautionary Note Concerning Factors That May Affect Future Results

Some of the statements, estimates or projections contained in this document are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions with respect to us, including some statements concerning our resuming of cruise operations in the US, Caribbean and Europe. These statements are intended to qualify for the safe harbors from liability provided by Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements other than statements of historical facts are statements that could be deemed forward-looking. These statements are based on current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about our business and the industry in which we operate and the beliefs and assumptions of our management. We have tried, whenever possible, to identify these statements by using words like "will," "may," "could," "should," "would," "believe," "depends," "expect," "goal," "anticipate," "forecast," "project," "future," "intend," "plan," "estimate," "target," "indicate," "outlook," and similar expressions of future intent or the negative of such terms.

Because forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, there are many factors that could cause our actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by our forward-looking statements. This note contains important cautionary statements of the known factors that we consider could materially affect the accuracy of our forward-looking statements and adversely affect our resuming of risk operations. Such risks, uncertainties and factors include the risk factors discussed in Item 1A of our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC").

Forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as a prediction of actual results. Subject to any continuing obligations under applicable law or any relevant stock exchange rules, we expressly disclaim any obligation to disseminate, after the date of this document, any updates or revisions to any such forward-looking statements to reflect any change in expectations or events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements are based.

About Carnival Corporation & plc

Carnival Corporation & plc is one of the world's largest leisure travel companies with a portfolio of nine of the world's leading cruise lines sailing to all seven continents. With operations in North America, Australia, Europe and Asia, its portfolio features Carnival Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, Seabourn, P&O Cruises (Australia), Costa Cruises, AIDA Cruises, P&O Cruises (UK) and Cunard.

Additional information can be found on www.carnivalcorp.com , www.carnival.com , www.princess.com , www.hollandamerica.com , www.seabourn.com , www.pocruises.com.au , www.costacruise.com , www.aida.de , www.pocruises.com and www.cunard.com .

Ships in Service and Announced Restarts by Brand for Fiscal Year End 2021 Number of Ships Passenger Capacity

(Lower Berths) % of Brand Capacity % of Total Capacity (a) North America and Australia ("NAA") Brands Carnival Cruise Line 8 29,630 41 % Princess Cruises 8 26,350 58 % Holland America Line 6 14,140 62 % P&O Cruises (Australia) - - - Seabourn 3 1,520 59 % 25 71,640 49 % Europe and Asia ("EA") Brands Costa Cruises 6 20,650 53 % AIDA Cruises 6 18,380 60 % P&O Cruises (UK) 3 11,920 63 % Cunard 2 4,760 70 % 17 55,710 58 % 42 127,350 52 % (a) NAA Brands capacity for 57 ships, EA Brands capacity for 34 ships, total company capacity for 91 ships

Ships in Service and Announced Restarts by Ship for Fiscal Year End 2021 in Order of Actual or Announced Restart Date Ship Name Passenger Capacity

(Lower Berths) March AIDAperla 3,280 May Costa Smeralda 5,220 Costa Luminosa 2,260 AIDAsol 2,190 AIDAblu 2,200 June Costa Deliziosa 2,260 Britannia 3,640 July Seabourn Ovation 600 Carnival Vista 3,930 Costa Firenze 4,240 Carnival Horizon 3,960 AIDAprima 3,280 Carnival Breeze 3,690 Seabourn Odyssey 460 Queen Elizabeth 2,080 Nieuw Amsterdam 2,100 Majestic Princess 3,560 Carnival Miracle 2,120 AIDAstella 2,200 Regal Princess 3,560 Mardi Gras 5,250 August Iona 5,200 Carnival Magic 3,690 Carnival Sunrise 2,980 Eurodam 2,100 Carnival Panorama 4,010 Sky Princess 3,660 September Zuiderdam 1,960 Costa Fascinosa 2,980 Grand Princess 2,600 Costa Diadema 3,690 October Ventura 3,080 Koningsdam 2,650 Rotterdam 2,670 Ruby Princess 3,080 November AIDAnova 5,230 Crown Princess 3,090 Seabourn Quest 460 Enchanted Princess 3,660 Queen Mary 2 2,680 Nieuw Statendam 2,660 Caribbean Princess 3,140

CONTACT: Roger Frizzell, Carnival Corporation, rfrizzell@carnival.com, (305) 406-7862; Mike Flanagan, LDWW, mike@ldwwgroup.com, (727) 452-4538
Financialnewsmedia.com News Commentary

PALM BEACH, Fla., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Although many investors look at the metals market of being solely populated by silver and gold. Copper should also be in their sights. Its uses are more than what the average person assumes. Copper was one of the first metals ever extracted and used by humans, and it has made vital contributions to sustaining and improving society since the dawn of civilization. Copper is an excellent conductor of electricity. Most copper mined today is used to conduct electricity - mostly as wiring. It is also an excellent conductor of heat and is used in cooking utensils, heat sinks, and heat exchangers. Large amounts are also used to make alloys such as brass (copper and zinc) and bronze (copper, tin, and zinc). Copper is also alloyed with precious metals such as gold and silver. Copper is easily stretched, molded, and shaped; is resistant to corrosion; and conducts heat and electricity efficiently. As a result, copper was important to early humans and continues to be a material of choice for a variety of domestic, industrial, and high-technology applications today. Presently, copper is used in building construction, power generation and transmission, electronic product manufacturing, and the production of industrial machinery and transportation vehicles. Copper wiring and plumbing are integral to the appliances, heating and cooling systems, and telecommunications links used every day in homes and businesses. Copper is an essential component in the motors, wiring, radiators, connectors, brakes, and bearings used in cars and trucks. The average car contains 1.5 kilometers (0.9 mile) of copper wire, and the total amount of copper ranges from 20 kilograms (44 pounds) in small cars to 45 kilograms (99 pounds) in luxury and hybrid vehicles. Active mining stocks mentioned in today's commentary include: Ridgestone Mining Inc. (OTCQB: RIGMF) (TSX-V: RMI), Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE: FCX), Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO), Vale SA (NYSE: VALE), Teck Resources Limited (NYSE: TECK) (TSX: TECK.A).

The excellent alloying properties of copper have made it invaluable when combined with other metals. For example, copper-nickel alloy is applied to the hulls of ships because it does not corrode in seawater and reduces the adhesion of marine life, such as barnacles, thereby reducing drag and increasing fuel efficiency. Brass is more malleable and has better acoustic properties than pure copper or zinc; consequently, it is used in a variety of musical instruments, including trumpets, trombones, bells, and cymbals. The world's production (supply) and consumption (demand) of copper have increased dramatically in the past 25 years. As large developing countries have entered the global market, demand for mineral commodities, including copper, has increased. The risk of disruption to the global copper supply is considered to be low because copper production is globally dispersed and is not limited to a single country or region. Because of its importance in construction and power transmission, however, the impact of any copper supply disruption would be high.

Ridgestone Mining Inc. (TSX-V: RMI) (OTCQB: RIGMF) (FSE: 4U5) BREAKING NEWS - RIDGESTONE TO DRILL EL COBRE TARGET ON ITS REBEICCO COPPER - Ridgestone Mining ("Ridgestone") is pleased to announce a maiden drill program on the El Cobre copper target on its wholly-owned Rebeico copper-gold project in Sonora, Mexico.

The program will be comprised of 14 reverse circulation (RC) drill holes for a total of approximately 2,700 metres and will be conducted along the main El Cobre structure, where recent rock-chip sampling returned up to 3.5% copper, 53 g/t silver and 0.52 % Mo over widths of up to 5.0 metres. Historical records of past mining by Asarco in the 1960's show that high- grade copper was extracted from two levels to a depth of 180 metres, and that the structure remains open along strike and to depth.

In preparation for the drill program, permits have been applied for with approval anticipated within the upcoming weeks, after which drill pads will be constructed and road improvements undertaken. Drill quotes have also been solicited.

Highlights:

El Cobre: sampling from the mineralized structure outcropping on surface returned up to 3.5% copper over 1.0 metres, with sampling from the historic dumps ranging from 2.01 to 2.65% copper.

Regional: Multiple mineralized structures and artisanal workings were encountered, with sampling returning up to 3.11% copper and up to 3.45 g/t gold from surface.

Permitting: Permitting underway for a drill program to test the high-priority copper targets, including the El Cobre mine.

Geological Model: Geological mapping has revealed mineralized breccias within and peripheral to volcanic intrusive rocks, contact skarns and hornfels within the sedimentary carbonate and siltstone rocks where they were in contact with volcanic intrusive rocks which are typical for a copper-gold porphyry system.

"We are highly encouraged by the work completed on our Rebeico claims with significant copper/gold/silver results sampled on surface from the breccia zones and around the El Cobre mine, in addition to geological mapping results, geophysical results and alteration associated with the volcanic intrusions" commented Jonathan George, CEO. "We believe that these aggregated results indicate the possible presence of a sub-surface copper porphyry system. The upcoming drill program will follow-up on the high-grade copper mineralization encountered on surface to determine the source of and potential extensions of the mineralization. The majority of the targets have not seen any follow-up or investigated by modern-day exploration."CONTINUED.Read this full release and more news for Ridgestone Mining by visiting: https://www.financialnewsmedia.com/news-rmi/

In other mining news of note:



Vale SA (NYSE:VALE) one of the largest mining companies in the world, has recently chosen Nextracker to supply its NX Horizon bifacially optimized smart solar trackers for the Sol de Cerrado solar project in Minas Gerais, Brazil. The 766 megawatt (MWp) solar complex, which will be one of the largest in Brazil, will help power Vale's mining operations in the Jaiba area of Minas Gerais and will be interconnected to the regional transmission grid. Initial construction will begin later this year, with the project scheduled for completion in 2022.

The project will play a major role in Vale's efforts to achieve its corporate sustainability goals. Once operational, the Sol de Cerrado solar project will provide 13 percent of the company's total energy needs in Brazil and offset GHG Protocol Scope 2 emissions by up to 136,407 tons of CO2/ year. The company plans to produce 100 percent of the energy needed for its Brazilian operations by 2025 and reach carbon neutrality across its global footprint by 2050.

Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO) recently announced that it will deploy the world's first fully autonomous water trucks at its $2.6 billion Gudai-Darri iron ore mine in Western Australia's Pilbara region. The new vehicles, primarily used for dust suppression on site, will enhance productivity by enabling mine operations to digitally track water consumption and reduce waste.

Developed through a successful collaboration with leading equipment manufacturer, Caterpillar, three water trucks will join Gudai-Darri's fleet of Caterpillar heavy mobile equipment including autonomous haul trucks and production drills. The vehicle's intelligent on-board system detects dry and dusty conditions on site, triggering the application of water to roads to keep them in good condition.

The refilling process is also completely automated with the water trucks recognizing when it is time to refill, prompting them to self-drive to the water stand, park and top-up before returning to the field. They boast a 160,000-litre tank capacity, a 33 per cent increase on Rio Tinto's largest water truck which has a tank capacity of 120,000-litres.

Teck Resources Limited (TSX: TECK.A) (NYSE: TECK) recently announced its unaudited first quarter results for 2021.

"Strong first quarter operational performance, in line with plan, and higher commodity prices contributed to a very solid start to 2021," said Don Lindsay, President and CEO. "We achieved major milestones for our priority projects, including surpassing the half-way point at our flagship QB2 copper growth project and moving into the commissioning phase of our Neptune steelmaking coal terminal upgrade. We remain absolutely focused on implementing the necessary protocols to mitigate transmission of COVID-19 and protect the health and safety of our people and local communities."

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE: FCX) recently announced that it has posted its first-quarter 2021 financial and operating results.

They were: Net income attributable to common stock in first-quarter 2021 totaled $718 million, $0.48 per share, and adjusted net income attributable to common stock totaled $756 million, or $0.51 per share, after adjusting for net charges totaling $38 million, $0.03 per share; Consolidated sales totaled 825 million pounds of copper, 258 thousand ounces of gold and 21 million pounds of molybdenum in first-quarter 2021. Consolidated sales for the year 2021 are expected to approximate 3.85 billion pounds of copper, 1.3 million ounces of gold and 85 million pounds of molybdenum, including 975 million pounds of copper, 330 thousand ounces of gold and 21 million pounds of molybdenum in second-quarter 2021; Average realized prices in first-quarter 2021 were $3.94 per pound for copper, $1,713 per ounce for gold and $11.62 per pound for molybdenum; Average unit net cash costs in first-quarter 2021 were $1.39 per pound of copper and are expected to average $1.33 per pound of copper for the year 2021; Operating cash flows totaled $1.1 billion (net of $0.3 billion of working capital and other uses) in first- quarter 2021. Based on current sales volume and cost estimates, and assuming average prices of $4.00 per pound for copper, $1,750 per ounce for gold and $11.00 per pound for molybdenum for the remainder of 2021, operating cash flows are expected to approximate $6.5 billion (net of $0.1 billion of working capital and other uses) for the year 2021; Capital expenditures totaled $0.4 billion (including approximately $0.3 billion for major projects) in first-quarter 2021. Capital expenditures for the year 2021, excluding Indonesia smelter expenditures, are expected to approximate $2.3 billion, including $1.4 billion for major projects primarily associated with underground development activities in the Grasberg minerals district in Indonesia; At March 31, 2021, consolidated debt totaled $9.8 billion and consolidated cash totaled $4.6 billion. FCX had no borrowings and $3.5 billion available under its revolving credit facility at March 31, 2021; in February 2021, FCX's Board of Directors (Board) adopted a financial policy aligned with strategic objectives of maintaining a strong balance sheet, increasing cash returns to shareholders and advancing opportunities for future growth; and FCX added two new independent directors in April 2021, David P. Abney, retired Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of United Parcel Service, Inc., and Robert W. "Bob" Dudley, retired Group Chief Executive of BP, p.l.c.

DISCLAIMER: FN Media Group LLC (FNM), which owns and operates Financialnewsmedia.com and MarketNewsUpdates.com, is a third party publisher and news dissemination service provider, which disseminates electronic information through multiple online media channels. FNM is NOT affiliated in any manner with any company mentioned herein. FNM and its affiliated companies are a news dissemination solutions provider and are NOT a registered broker/dealer/analyst/adviser, holds no investment licenses and may NOT sell, offer to sell or offer to buy any security. FNM's market updates, news alerts and corporate profiles are NOT a solicitation or recommendation to buy, sell or hold securities. The material in this release is intended to be strictly informational and is NEVER to be construed or interpreted as research material. All readers are strongly urged to perform research and due diligence on their own and consult a licensed financial professional before considering any level of investing in stocks. All material included herein is republished content and details which were previously disseminated by the companies mentioned in this release. FNM is not liable for any investment decisions by its readers or subscribers. Investors are cautioned that they may lose all or a portion of their investment when investing in stocks. For current services performed FNM was compensated forty five hundred dollars for news coverage of the current press releases issued by Ridgestone Mining Inc. by a non affiliated third party. FNM HOLDS NO SHARES OF ANY COMPANY NAMED IN THIS RELEASE.



This release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. "Forward-looking statements" describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as "may", "future", "plan" or "planned", "will" or "should", "expected," "anticipates", "draft", "eventually" or "projected". You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, and other risks identified in a company's annual report on Form 10-K or 10-KSB and other filings made by such company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You should consider these factors in evaluating the forward-looking statements included herein, and not place undue reliance on such statements. The forward-looking statements in this release are made as of the date hereof and FNM undertakes no obligation to update such statements.



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Salt Lake City, Utah--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - Ms. Kristy Hunt, President of Green Star Products, Inc. (OTC PINK: GSPI) remarked, "this is the first time a high-ranking member of the medical and research community, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases confirmed effective antiviral pills are possible!"

"I look forward to a time when COVID-19 patients could pick up antiviral pills from a pharmacy as soon as they are tested positive for the coronavirus or develop COVID-19 symptoms. I wake up in the morning, I don't feel very well, my sense of smell and taste go away, I get a sore throat," Dr. Fauci said in an interview. "I call my doctor and say,'I have COVID-19 and I need a prescription.'"

It was announced on June 16, 2021, the United States is now betting 3.2 billion dollars to create a pill to treat COVID-19. Thank you for confirming this possibility Dr. Fauci. However, you don't have to spend 3.2 billion dollars yet! Just review our bonafide reports from your own Federally Accredited Laboratory, Midwest Research Institute (MRIGlobal), who are also performing COVID-19 testing for the Federal Government. In fact, over a 10-year period MRIGlobal has successfully tested our Broad-Spectrum Antiviral VSS formula. Specifically, it was tested in 2009 and again in 2020 against four different viruses in vitro including COVID-19, and it has shown high efficacy against all these viruses, namely, A/H1N1, A/H2N3, B/H2N3, and SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19 virus). NO ONE ELSE CAN MAKE THAT STATEMENT!

In fact, in vitro testing confirmed, when the VSS formula is used as a preventative, it had 99.9% efficacy against the COVID-19 virus. Also, testing showed it to be non-toxic at normal dosage levels.

Human volunteer testing over the past 15 months has also been successful. All volunteers were very sick with the flu, many of them tested positive for COVID-19, no one went to the hospital or died and all recovered very quickly usually within 24 to 48 hours depending on how long they had the virus before they took our antiviral formula, now called "Viro Spectrum Shield (VSS)".

Please Dr. Fauci, we have been trying to provide this information to you for the last 15 months through every avenue we had available. Yet we have not received any confirmation from anyone. We hope this press release reaches you so you can at least investigate the antiviral data from one of your own Accredited Facilities.

In conclusion, we are now in production of the VSS formula and we have facilities to ramp up to more than one million doses a month within 90 days, even more with some federal help. Our present wholesale price is less than 5% of your projected cost, which you estimated at $1.2 billion for the first 1.7 million doses which equals $700 per dose.

Please see USA Today publication, Special Edition, AMERICA FORWARD, "There is more than a vaccine to fight against this pandemic" (May 30, 2021) at https://gspiusa.com/

Also see press release dated May 21, 2021 titled "Green Star Products Releases COVD-19 Efficacy Data."

About Green Star Products

Green Star Products, Inc. (OTC PINK: GSPI) is an environmentally friendly Public Company creating innovative and cost-effective products to improve the quality of life and the environment. For more information, please go to our website https://gspiusa.com/

Forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned that such statements involve risks and uncertainties, including without limitation, continued acceptance of the Company's products, its dependence on third-party suppliers, and other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's periodic filings.

CONTACT:

Kristy Hunt, President

Green Star Products, Inc.

kristy@gspiusa.com

https://gspiusa.com/

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88395


WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The White House declared that The Biden administration has already met President Joe Biden's goal of 70 percent of U.S. adults 30 and older covered under at least one shot of anti-corona vaccine.



'We got here because the President treated this as a wartime effort; built a whole-of-government response to defeat the pandemic; and mobilized state and local governments, the private and non-profit sectors, and asked every American to join this fight,' COVID-19 Response Coordinator Jeff Zients said at a briefing by White House COVID-19 Response Team.



The Biden administration achieved the goal within the past 150 days by administering 300 million shots through more than 81,000 convenient vaccination sites. Today, 90 percent of Americans live within five miles of a vaccine site. Tens of thousands of sites offer walk-in vaccinations, and thousands are open 24 hours a day on Fridays in June.



'Instead of hitting the major milestone of 300 million shots in June, we would have hit it in December - six months from now. And America would have looked a lot different than it does today. We would have lost more lives; more people would have gotten sick; and many of our businesses, restaurants, and schools would still be closed,' Zients told reporters.



More than 177 million Americans have received at least one vaccine shot, and more than 150 million are now fully vaccinated, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's latest data.



77 percent of people 65 and older are fully vaccinated.



Zients noted that where the country has more work to do is particularly with 18- to 26-year-olds. 'The reality is: Many younger Americans have felt like COVID-19 is not something that impacts them and they've been less eager to get the shot'. 'However, with the Delta variant now spreading across the country and infecting younger people worldwide, it's more important than ever that they get vaccinated,' he added.



Zients said that based on latest estimates, the country is on track to meet the 70 percent goal for ages 27 and older by the end of July 4th weekend, with a few extra weeks needed for people in the 18-26 age category to get vaccinated.



Zients said that as the Biden administration push to get more Americans vaccinated, it is also focused on leading the efforts to vaccinate the world.



Chief Medical Advisor to the President Dr. Anthony Fauci said the endgame is to go well beyond July 4th, 'into the summer and beyond, with the ultimate goal of crushing the outbreak completely in the United States.'



There are 16 states, plus the District of Columbia, that have vaccinated more than 70 percent of their population; 4 U.S. states vaccinated less than 50 percent while 30 states have between 50 and more than 70 percent of their people vaccinated.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

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WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV) said Wednesday that Chairman and chief executive officer Gary Kelly will transition roles in early 2022, becoming the airline's Executive Chairman with the desire to serve in that role through at least 2026 at the discretion of the board. Executive Vice President Corporate Services Robert Jordan will become Kelly's successor as chief executive officer effective February 1, 2022. Jordan also will join the Board at that time. Jordan, 60, is a long-time Southwest Executive. Joining the airline in 1988, he has served in roles including Director of Revenue Accounting, Corporate Controller, Vice President Procurement, Vice President Technology, Senior Vice President Enterprise Spend Management, Executive Vice President Strategy and Technology, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer, AirTran President and Executive Vice President Corporate Services. Before Southwest, Jordan worked for Hewlett-Packard as a programmer and financial analyst. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
BROOMFIELD, Colo., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Mile High Labs is pleased to announce the launch of the Mile High Innovation Lab, a product development platform purpose-built to give brands the confidence to develop, launch and scale new products in the health and wellness industry. Select Partners join the Innovation Lab to leverage Mile High Labs' R&D and manufacturing expertise, Royal DSM's global library of unique vitamin and mineral combinations and Brightfield Group's in-home consumer surveys to bring innovative product concepts to life.

"Think of the Mile High Innovation Lab as a virtualized R&D and consumer panel platform," said Jon Hilley, CEO, Mile High Labs. "It's a way for our Partners to leverage the unique strengths of the world's leading cannabinoid manufacturer in Mile High, the world's leading ingredient company in DSM and the industry's leading consumer insights platform in Brightfield Group. You come with the consumer product ideas, we prototype them, consumers test and you get actionable insights that give you the confidence to commercialize your product."

The Innovation Lab concept is born from the need in the market for a stage-gated, standardized product development process that accelerates the discovery of novel consumer products. It applies lessons learned from established global CPG companies to the cannabinoid market, creating a framework for more precision early in the product development process. Mile High's innovation journey carries each Partner's product ideas all the way from concept to prototype, to consumer testing and feedback, to commercialization with every Partner retaining the intellectual property of their discoveries.

Once concepts are prototyped, samples will be distributed to consumers enrolled in each Partner's virtual consumer panel. After consumers try each sample, Brightfield Group will follow up with In-Home User Testing surveys (IHUTs) which are designed to gauge consumer reactions to the product concept, measure satisfaction levels based on a variety of attributes and identify willingness to purchase. The actionable product insights produced from Brightfield Group's IHUTs help Partners minimize the risk of failure and maximize the commercial opportunity of each new product concept.

"The pace of innovation in CBD is accelerating, giving way to the next generation of products that include additional functional ingredients, minor cannabinoids and need-state focused positionings," said Bethany Gomez, Brightfield Group's Managing Director. "As CBD heads into this next chapter, with retail rebounding and regulatory guidance on the horizon, it will be critical for the industry to apply more discipline and rigor to succeed. The Brightfield/Mile High partnership will put consumers at the heart of the innovation process to create innovative CBD solutions rooted in high-quality data and insights."

"The novel consumer products that will define the next phase of this industry are waiting to be made, and the Mile High Innovation Lab exists to bring these innovations to life," adds Hilley. "I'm excited to see what magic we create together."

The Mile High Innovation Lab is limited to 10 partners. Apply to join by visiting milehighlabs.com/innovation/innovation-lab

About Mile High Labs

Mile High Labs powers the world's novel consumer packaged goods. Our portfolio of legal cannabinoid ingredients and market-ready solutions is trusted by leading global brands, and our formulation and rapid prototyping capabilities are creating the next generation of innovative consumer products. We specialize in the production of hemp cannabinoid-based powders, capsules, tablets and gummies, along with other value-added capabilities. With 400,000 square feet of research and manufacturing facilities in Broomfield, Colorado, as well as third-party fulfillment services to more than 35 countries, we empower customers to confidently develop, launch and scale new products backed by science and integrity. Learn more at milehighlabs.com.

About Brightfield

Brightfield Group is a leading research firm for emerging categories including CBD, Cannabis, and Wellness. Their multi-source methodology integrates artificial intelligence with research expertise into a single platform, powering deeper and more responsive insights for these dynamic industries. Since 2015, Brightfield has helped Marketing, Innovation, and Insights leaders drive customer-centric strategies for their brands. Learn more at brightfieldgroup.com.

Contact:

John Husak

j.husak@milehighlabs.com
CHICAGO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- According to a new market research report "Critical Infrastructure Protection Market by Component, Solution (Physical Safety and Security (Video Surveillance Systems, Screening and Scanning) and Cybersecurity (Encryption, Threat Intelligence)), Vertical, and Region - Global Forecast to 2026", published by MarketsandMarkets, post-COVID 19, the Critical Infrastructure Protection Market size to grow from USD 133.3 billion in 2021 to USD 157.1 billion by 2026, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 3.3% from 2021 to 2026.

Browse in-depth TOC on "Critical Infrastructure Protection Market"



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Increasing stringent government regulations to increase the adoption of CIP solutions, rising security breaches and attacks pose a threat to physical systems and growing need to secure OT networks to boost the growth of Critical Infrastructure Protection Market across the globe during the forecast period. Moreover, enhancing next-generation technologies and availability of wireless broadband in rural areas would provide lucrative opportunities for Critical Infrastructure Protection Market vendors.

By solution, physical safety and security segment to hold the largest market size during the forecast period

Physical safety and security is the protection of physical assets, such as hardware, programs, premises, and personal data, from physical threats. Ignoring these threats can lead to serious damages or losses to owners and users. Any critical infrastructure requires multiple physical barriers to ensure physical protection. Terrorism and natural disasters remain the biggest challenges for CIP. For example, in September 2019, Saudi Arabia suffered the deadliest attack on its oil facilities named Saudi Aramco. A small army of drones attacked two major oil plants in Abqaiq and Khura, destroying nearly 50% of the countrys global supply of crude oil. Therefore, enterprises need to think beyond traditional perimeter security, clearly define security perimeters, and protect secured areas with entry controls to ensure authorized personnel entry. In November 2018, US president Donald Trump established the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) that co-ordinates security and resilience efforts using trusted partnerships across private and public sectors and delivers technical assistance and assessments to federal stakeholders as well as infrastructure owners and operators. Secure and robust security systems such as high-quality video surveillance systems and perimeter security systems are integrated in premises to monitor ongoing activities in and around the premises. With the inception of video analytics as well as technologies, such as thermal cameras and biometric authentication, video surveillance has improved drastically. Some systems now use micro waves and radio waves to create perimeters that can alert security teams about threats. Video surveillance devices supported by video analytics software help monitor crowds in public areas and enterprises. The increased adoption of video surveillance supported by the facial recognition technology is observed in various application areas, including border control, law enforcement, and government and public utilities. The physical safety and security segment includes physical identity and access control systems, perimeter intrusion systems (RADARs and sensors), video surveillance systems, screening and scanning, and others (facility management systems, emergency response, and disaster management).s

In vertical, commercial sector to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period

The commercial sector includes sensitive areas, such as hospitals, stadiums, theatres, auditoriums, malls, offices, and holy places. Protecting these facilities becomes extremely important for countries' security and economy. People are present in huge numbers in these places. Even with the deployment of CCTV cameras as well as checking passes of people entering premises is followed, it is still not sufficient to ensure proper security. A minor neglect can result in huge losses. For example, on 25th March 2020, Islamic jihadist suicide bombers and assailants armed with guns attacked Gurudwara Har Rai Sahib (Sikh shrine) in Kabul, Afghanistan, resulting in the death of 25 people and leaving many wounded. These challenging environments need to be secured by deploying the right technology and providing the best possible information to decision makers. These critical infrastructures typically cover large areas, and thus, the need to achieve full coverage and better operational efficiencies drives the growth of this vertical.

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North America to hold the largest market size during the forecast period

The North American region consists of developed countries that are technologically advanced with well-developed infrastructures. Being the strongest economies in North America, the US and Canada are the top contributing countries to the North American CIP market. North America is the most advanced and adaptable region in terms of the adoption of security infrastructure and technological development.

The North American region comprises the country-wise analysis of the US and Canada. Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and international collaborations have led to effective critical infrastructure security and resilience in the region. As per the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), 85% of the US' critical infrastructures such as oil and gas, banking and finance, transportation, utilities, electric power grids, and defense are owned by the private sector and the rest is regulated by the public sector. The National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP) enables state, regional, federal, local, and international governments to work within and with their private partners for a networked community to maintain effective risk management and security of the region's critical infrastructure. For example, the energy and power grid sector in the region requires public, private, and regulatory co-operation among DHS, Department of Energy (DOE), and the Department of Defense (DOD) for protecting their Operational Technology (OT) systems from cyber threats. International co-operation among Public Safety (PS) Canada and the US DHS has facilitated real-time collaborations for critical infrastructure cybersecurity issues.

The North American Electric Reliability Council (NERC) and Canadian Electricity Association (CEA) seek to safeguard critical infrastructures from both physical and cyber threats. The NERC is a not-for-profit regulatory authority to protect the North American bulk electric power system. On 5th March 2019, North America experienced the first ever attack on the country's power grid. The interrupted Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack hampered the utility and reliability of grids. Therefore, it is necessary to regulate and monitor industrial infrastructures, and perform risk assessments for analyzing potential vulnerabilities in the critical infrastructure system.

Major vendors in the global Critical Infrastructure Protection Market include BAE Systems (UK), Lockheed Martin (US), General Dynamics (US), Northrop Grumman (US), Honeywell (US), Airbus (France), Raytheon (US), Thales (France), Hexagon AB (Sweden), Johnson Controls (US), Huawei (China), Optasense (England), Teltronic (Spain), Motorola Solutions (US), Axis Communications (Sweden), Waterfall Security Solutions (Israel), Rolta (India), SCADAfence (Israel), Tyco International (Ireland), and 3xLogic (US), Sightlogic (US), Accritical Infrastructure Protectioniter Radar (US), etc.

Browse Adjacent Markets: Information Security Market Research Reports & Consulting

Related Reports

Threat Intelligence Market by Application (SIEM, Security Analytics, Security and Vulnerability Management, Risk and Compliance Management, Incident Response), Deployment Mode, Organization Size, Vertical, and Region - Global Forecast to 2025

https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/threat-intelligence-security-market-150715995.html

Physical Security Market by Component (Systems (PACS, PSIM, PIAM, Video Surveillance, Fire and Life Safety) and Services (ACAAS, VSAAS, Remote Monitoring, Security Systems Integration)), Organization Size, Vertical, and Region - Global Forecast to 2025

https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/physical-security-market-1014.html

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WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Former presidential candidate Andrew Yang conceded defeat after he was placed a distant fourth in the Democratic Party's New York City mayoral primary.



'I am a numbers guy. And I am not going to be the next mayor of New York city based on upon the numbers that have come in tonight. I am conceding this race,' Yang said in a speech as the results from early and primary day in-person voting came in.



With about 85 percent of the results of the election held on Tuesday came in, no candidate is assured of outright victory.



Eric Adams, Maya Wiley and Kathryn Garcia are in the first three positions.



The mayoral primary winner is likely to be determined using ranked-choice voting tabulation. The absentee ballot deadline is June 29. It may take weeks for the winner is announced, reports say.



Yang, once seen as the front-runner in the New York City mayoral primary, had promised to launch a $1 billion cash relief program; reopen the city and bring back tourism; and make the city safer, cleaner, and healthier during his election campaign. He also vowed to create good jobs, improve wages, and expand economic opportunity.



The son of immigrants from Taiwan, 46 year -oldYang qualified for and participated in seven of the first eight Democratic debates in the 2020 US presidential election.



Andrew Yang was the first candidate to concede, and ranked-choice voting was used for the first time - which is expected to delay final results.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

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The Tent Partnership for Refugees' "Business for Refugees" awards recognize companies that have gone above and beyond to include refugees in their new communities. Teleperformance recognized for its efforts in outstanding leadership in integrating refugees into the workforce

Regulatory News:

Teleperformance (Paris:TEP), a leading global group in digitally integrated business services, today announced it has been recognized for its outstanding efforts to include refugees in its new host communities. Teleperformance received the Outstanding Leadership in Integrating Refugees into the Workforce Award, recognized for its efforts to hire over 2,000 Venezuelan refugees in Colombia, during Refugee Week 2021, at a virtual awards ceremony in New York.

The inaugural "Business for Refugees" Awards, hosted by the Tent Partnership for Refugees (Tent) a global network of more than 170 major companies committed to supporting refugees around the world recognizes businesses that have made extraordinary efforts to support refugees.

During the virtual awards ceremony, CEO of Chobani and Founder of Tent, Hamdi Ulukaya said: "As we emerge from this pandemic, it's amazing to see so many businesses going above and beyond to include refugees. We must continue to create opportunities for everyone while we rebuild our economies and our societies we must not leave refugees behind."

With an extensive, global presence in 83 countries, Teleperformance serves as a strategic partner to the world's largest companies across many industries. Core to the company's values is a desire to improve people's lives and pave the way to a better and more equitable tomorrow for all.

"We are pleased to support such an incredible and noble cause, and be recognized by Tent, alongside our esteemed colleagues, who are also doing incredible work to help those in need," commented Juan Carlos Hincapie, CEO Teleperformance Ibero-Latam, who accepted the award. "This is an incredible honor."

Alongside Teleperformance, Tent's "Business for Refugees" Awards recognized the following companies for their programs to integrate refugees:

Airbnb.org and Airbnb won the award for Outstanding Leadership in Tailoring Products to Meet Refugees' Needs

- DoorDash won the award for Outstanding Leadership in Storytelling about Refugee Integration

- IKEA won the award for Outstanding Leadership in Integrating Refugees in the Supply Chain

- Ben Jerry's won the award for Outstanding Leadership in Supporting Refugee Entrepreneurs

Daniel Julien, Chairman and CEO, Teleperformance, said: "For many years now, we have supported global impact sourcing initiatives all around the world to provide aid and help disadvantaged people realize their self-potential. We are very proud of the refugee workforce integration efforts of our team in Colombia, and it is also great to see so many other organizations doing their part to make this critical Tent refugee initiative successful. Together, we really can make a positive difference in millions of lives everywhere."

ABOUT TELEPERFORMANCE GROUP

Teleperformance (TEP ISIN: FR0000051807 Reuters: TEPRF.PA Bloomberg: TEP FP), a leading global group in digitally integrated business services, serves as a strategic partner to the world's largest companies in many industries. It offers a One Office support services model combining three wide, high-value solution families: customer experience management, back-office services and business process knowledge services. These end-to-end digital solutions guarantee successful customer interaction and optimized business processes, anchored in a unique, comprehensive high tech, high touch approach. The Group's 380,000+ employees, based in 83 countries, support billions of connections every year in over 265 languages and over 170 markets, in a shared commitment to excellence as part of the "Simpler, Faster, Safer" process.This mission is supported by the use of reliable, flexible, intelligent technological solutions and compliance with the industry's highest security and quality standards, based on Corporate Social Responsibility excellence. In 2020, Teleperformance reported consolidated revenue of 5,732 million (US$6.5 billion, based on 1 $1.14) and net profit of 324 million.

Teleperformance shares are traded on the Euronext Paris market, Compartment A, and are eligible for the deferred settlement service. They are included in the following indices: CAC 40, CAC Support Services, STOXX 600, S&P Europe 350 and MSCI Global Standard. In the area of corporate social responsibility, Teleperformance shares are included in the CAC 40 ESG index, the Euronext Vigeo Eurozone 120 index, the FTSE4Good index and the Solactive Europe Corporate Social Responsibility index (formerly Ethibel Sustainability Excellence Europe index).

For more information: www.teleperformance.com Follow us on Twitter: @teleperformance

ABOUT THE TENT PARTNERSHIP FOR REFUGEES

With more and more refugees displaced for longer periods of time, businesses have a critical role to play in helping refugees integrate economically in their new host communities. The Tent Partnership for Refugees mobilizes the global business community to improve the lives and livelihoods of 30 million refugees who have been forcibly displaced from their home countries. Founded by Chobani's founder and CEO Hamdi Ulukaya in 2016, we are a network of over 170 major companies committed to including refugees. Tent believes that companies can most sustainably support refugees by leveraging their core business operations by engaging refugees as potential employees, entrepreneurs, and consumers. Find out more at www.tent.org

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005731/en/

Contacts:

FINANCIAL ANALYSTS AND INVESTORS

Investor relations and financial

communication department

TELEPERFORMANCE

Tel: +33 1 53 83 59 15

investor@teleperformance.com

PRESS RELATIONS

Europe

Laurent Poinsot Karine Allouis

IMAGE7

Tel: +33 1 53 70 74 70

teleperformance@image7.fr

PRESS RELATIONS

Americas and Asia-Pacific

Mark Pfeiffer

TELEPERFORMANCE

Tel: 1 801-257-5811

mark.pfeiffer@teleperformance.com
STOCKHOLM, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- TECHNIA, the #1 knowledge leaders in PLM and Engineering, announced today that they will release a B2B Partner Collaboration Solution to the market. Exchange Hub, developed by TECHNIA Software, is a cloud-first solution providing secure, affordable, real-time supply chain management as a standalone cloud - Software as a Service (SaaS) - solution, or integrated into existing enterprise systems such as PLM.

Exchange Hub streamlines business operations in real-time, regardless of data volume, sources, systems or formats. The new software offering from TECHNIA addresses security, licensing, usability, communication, and time management issues which may arise when OEMs and suppliers must share data between multiple systems. Exchange Hub delivers a Partner Collaboration Solution capable of Data Integration of Enterprise Systems, whether on Premise, on Cloud or Hybrid. Find details of all TECHNIA Software & Expert Solutions products here.

"A few years back, we undertook this challenge for our customers. Based on their input, we went about creating a solution that addressed their most challenging needs when working with extended partner communities. We needed to streamline partner collaboration while ensuring that the latest, most relevant data would be available to their partners. We also knew that IP security and process control are both key to reducing our customers overall success and time to market. Today, TECHNIA is very excited to make Exchange Hub available to our customer community."

James Goodale, Product Manager | TECHNIA

"I think that TECHNIA are truly unique in that we work so closely with our customers that we become an extension of their teams. In doing so, we're better able to identify their requirements and develop new solutions to meet those challenges. TECHNIA Exchange Hub is one such example, as part of the Experience Packaged portfolio."

Magnus Falkman, CEO | TECHNIA

For more information:

Magnus Falkman, CEO of TECHNIA

phone: +46 (0)733 77 24 14

e-mail: magnus.falkman@technia.com

About TECHNIA

At TECHNIA, we pave the way for your innovation, creativity, and profitability. We combine industry-leading Product Lifecycle Management tools with specialist knowledge, so you can enjoy the journey from product concept to implementation.

Our experience makes it possible to keep things simple, personal and accessible so that together, we transform your vision into value. With over 30 years' experience, more than 6000 customers worldwide and world-class knowledge in PLM & Intelligent Engineering, we work together as true partner and extension of your team to create an exceptional PLM experience.

Our team of more than 680 people work from 32 locations around the world, across vertical industries, delivering a premium service with a global infrastructure and a local presence. We adopt the latest technology and agile methodologies so, even as technology changes, our relationships last a lifetime.

Media Enquiries:

For any media enquiries please contact:

Ghassan Sultan, CMO

e-mail: ghassan.sultan@technia.com

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

https://news.cision.com/technia/r/technia-meet-demand-with-b2b-partner-collaboration-solution,c3373226

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Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - ScreenPro Security Inc. (CSE: SCRN) ("ScreenPro" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update and testing numbers for the month of May on film and television industry testing.

The Company provided services to production companies in Toronto and Vancouver and completed over 19,000 tests in May.

The company continues to have success with the 1copy COVID-19 qPCR Multi Kit, ("1drop") supplied by Datametrex AI Limited (TSXV: DM). The manufacturer, 1drop Inc., has confirmed that the 1drop can identify the new variants of the coronavirus including the Delta variant that is spreading in Canada.

"With multiple mutant variants spreading rapidly around the World, ScreenPro believes that it will continue expanding the COVID-19 screening business. Productions will need to protect actors and crew and will need to be viligant and test regularly to minimize the threat," said Andrew Ryu, CEO of the Company.

Though Canada is banking on herd immunity, it may not be achieved by the end of 2021 if vaccine hesitancy is high, if we experience disruptions in vaccine supply, or if variants may also reduce vaccine efficacy or enable reinfection and enable new variants to spread widely. Bending the curve in many areas of the country is delicate and with transmission still high in areas, unequal access to vaccines, and the many variants of concern threatening to undo progress to date.

About ScreenPro

ScreenPro is a Screening and Medical Technology company. ScreenPro provides turnkey screening solutions with alerting software, GoStop. ScreenPro's unique access to multiple manufacturers of high quality test kits and its strategic partnership with Labs in Vancouver and Ontario allows ScreenPro to be a nationwide provider of a full-service testing solutions across Canada. In addition, ScreenPro has its own nursing professionals, and access to high quality PPEs to ensure that its clients are protected in all aspects of their testing needs. GoStop's passport was developed with a privacy preserving approach that will enable individuals to use the alerting software and downloadable app with authentication certificates. The alerts can be scheduled on an on-demand, daily, weekly, or monthly basis and can be used also for vaccine scheduling.

For additional information on ScreenPro and other corporate information, please visit the Company's website at www.screenprosecurity.com

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange (the "CSE") nor it's Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

For further information please contact:

Jamie Hyland, Director

Email: info@screenprosecurity.com

P. (604) 442-2425

Forward Looking Statements:

Certain statements contained in this news release may constitute forward-looking information, including statements relating to expectations regarding the future development of ScreenPro's business. Forward-looking information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "anticipate", "plan", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "intend", "should", and similar expressions. Forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking information. The actual results of ScreenPro could differ materially from those anticipated in this forward-looking information as a result of regulatory decisions, competitive factors in the industries in which ScreenPro operates, prevailing economic conditions, changes to ScreenPro's strategic growth plans, and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of ScreenPro. Management of ScreenPro believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information herein are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward-looking information should not be unduly relied upon. Any forward-looking information contained in this news release represents ScreenPro's expectations as of the date hereof and is subject to change after such date. ScreenPro disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities legislation.

###

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88419
DGAP Voting Rights Announcement: Leifheit Aktiengesellschaft

Leifheit Aktiengesellschaft: Release according to Article 40, Section 1 of the WpHG [the German Securities Trading Act] with the objective of Europe-wide distribution



23.06.2021 / 17:31

Dissemination of a Voting Rights Announcement transmitted by DGAP - a service of EQS Group AG.

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.



Notification of Major Holdings



1. Details of issuer Name: Leifheit Aktiengesellschaft Street: Leifheitstrae 1 Postal code: 56377 City: Nassau

Germany Legal Entity Identifier (LEI): 529900DBX574P554QO57

2. Reason for notification X Acquisition/disposal of shares with voting rights Acquisition/disposal of instruments Change of breakdown of voting rights Other reason:



3. Details of person subject to the notification obligation Legal entity: Alantra EQMC Asset Management SGIIC, S.A.

City of registered office, country: Madrid, Spain

4. Names of shareholder(s)

holding directly 3% or more voting rights, if different from 3.

EQMC ICAV



5. Date on which threshold was crossed or reached: 14 Jun 2021

6. Total positions % of voting rights attached to shares

(total of 7.a.) % of voting rights through instruments

(total of 7.b.1 + 7.b.2) Total of both in %

(7.a. + 7.b.) Total number of voting rights pursuant to Sec. 41 WpHG New 15.42 % 0.00 % 15.42 % 10000000 Previous notification 10.17 % 0.00 % 10.17 % /

7. Details on total positions

a. Voting rights attached to shares (Sec. 33, 34 WpHG) ISIN Absolute In % Direct

(Sec. 33 WpHG) Indirect

(Sec. 34 WpHG) Direct

(Sec. 33 WpHG) Indirect

(Sec. 34 WpHG) DE0006464506 0 1541640 0 % 15.42 % Total 1541640 15.42 %

b.1. Instruments according to Sec. 38 (1) no. 1 WpHG Type of instrument Expiration or maturity date Exercise or conversion period Voting rights absolute Voting rights in % 0 0.00 % Total 0 0 %

b.2. Instruments according to Sec. 38 (1) no. 2 WpHG Type of instrument Expiration or maturity date Exercise or conversion period Cash or physical settlement Voting rights absolute Voting rights in % 0 0.00 % Total 0 0 %

8. Information in relation to the person subject to the notification obligation

X Person subject to the notification obligation is not controlled nor does it control any other undertaking(s) that directly or indirectly hold(s) an interest in the (underlying) issuer (1.). Full chain of controlled undertakings starting with the ultimate controlling natural person or legal entity:

Name % of voting rights (if at least 3% or more) % of voting rights through instruments (if at least 5% or more) Total of both (if at least 5% or more)

9. In case of proxy voting according to Sec. 34 para. 3 WpHG

(only in case of attribution of voting rights in accordance with Sec. 34 para. 1 sent. 1 No. 6 WpHG)



Date of general meeting:

Holding total positions after general meeting (6.) after annual general meeting:

Proportion of voting rights Proportion of instruments Total of both % % %

10. Other explanatory remarks:

The shares in Leifheit Aktiengesellschaft held by EQMC ICAV are allocated to the following sub-fund of EQMC ICAV: EQMC Europe Development Capital Fund

Date

21 Jun 2021

holding directly 3% or more voting rights, if different from 3.(only in case of attribution of voting rights in accordance with Sec. 34 para. 1 sent. 1 No. 6 WpHG)Date of general meeting:Holding total positions after general meeting (6.) after annual general meeting:Date

23.06.2021 The DGAP Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases.

Archive at www.dgap.de


Regulatory News:

AKKA Technologies (Paris:AKA) (BSE:AKA) (ISIN:FR0004180537), a European leader in engineering consulting and R&D services, is proud to announce its selection by a major Telecoms operator to provide assistance in the migration of their Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system, from an obsolete server to a latest generation server, the JBoss (WildFly)/JBPM.

AKKA has been entrusted with this high-stakes migration, on the basis of its strong domain expertise, as full twenty-four seven availability of the service and overall performance must be maintained, with response times reduced to a minimum.

In order to maintain the availability of the services for the users, migrations will be launched, functionality by functionality, to a new target architecture compatible with the old architecture.

This migration will need to be carried out at isoperimeter and iso-functionalities, excluding applications or functionalities not used by the operator. Connectors, webservices, batches and workflows will be migrated to the new architecture based on JBoss (WildFly) JBPM, the goal being to no longer have applications based on the old technology by 31 March 2022. The maintainability, scalability and operability of the new system will also allow better responsiveness and a higher level of service than the one used today.

Consultants from the French BU will be mobilized, mainly in Ile-de-France for nearly a year, on this project.

Luigi Boggione, Sales Director and Executive Vice-President of Digital Diversification Business Line, comments: "We are delighted to reaffirm our long-standing relationship with this major player, and to have been chosen to support them in this important transition. Our expertise in the software used, as well as our proximity to this customer, has enabled us to meet their needs perfectly, offering innovative solutions for their target architecture. "

ABOUT AKKA

AKKA is a European leader in engineering consulting and R&D services. Our comprehensive portfolio of digital solutions combined with our expertise in engineering, uniquely positions us to support our clients by leveraging the power of connected data to accelerate innovation and drive the future of smart industry. AKKA accompanies leading industry players across a wide range of sectors throughout the life cycle of their products with cutting edge digital technologies (AI, ADAS, IoT, Big Data, robotics, embedded computing, machine learning, etc.) to help them rethink their products and business processes. Founded in 1984, AKKA has a strong entrepreneurial culture and a wide global footprint. Our 21,000 employees around the world are all passionate about technology and share the AKKA values of respect, courage and ambition. The Group recorded revenues of 1.5 billion in 2020. AKKA Technologies (AKA) is listed on Euronext Paris and Brussels segment B ISIN code: FR0004180537.

For more information, please visit: https://www.akka-technologies.com/

Follow us on: https://twitter.com/AKKA_Tech

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005764/en/

Contacts:

Stephanie Bia

Group Communications Investor Relations Director

Tel: +33(0)6 47 85 98 78

stephanie.bia@akka.eu

Media Relations France

Alexandra Paleologue

Director Communications France

Tel: +33(0)6 03 33 10 48

alexandra.paleologue@akka.eu
New additions reflect the diverse, global perspective of the business school community

RESTON, Va., June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC), a global association of leading graduate business schools, today announced the addition of four new members to its board of directors. Katy Montgomery, Associate Dean, Degree Programmes, INSEAD; Francois Ortalo-Magne, Dean, London Business School; and Giuseppe Soda, Dean, SDA Bocconi School of Management, Bocconi University, will begin their terms on July 1. In addition, Yuan Ding, Vice President and Dean of China Europe International Business School (CEIBS), was appointed as a board director in January this year to fill the seat vacated by Enase Okonedo of the Pan-Atlantic University.



"GMAC's new board of directors represent leading business schools with campuses located in 10 countries across Europe, Asia, North America, Africa, and the Middle East," said Sangeet Chowfla, president and CEO of GMAC. "As student mobility returns and regains in the post-pandemic world, I look forward to working alongside this diverse group of leaders - and the rest of the GMAC board - to continue to advance GMAC's vision to ensure that all talented individuals can benefit from the best business education for them."

New GMAC Board Members

Yuan Ding, Vice President and Dean, Cathay Capital Chair in Accounting, CEIBS

Yuan Ding is Vice President and Dean and the Cathay Capital Chair Professor in Accounting at CEIBS, where he has been honored three times with the CEIBS Teaching Excellence Award. Prior to joining CEIBS, he was a tenured faculty member of the HEC School of Management, Paris, France. He is a member of the European Accounting Association, French Accounting Association and American Accounting Association. He holds a PhD in Accounting from the Institute of Enterprises Administration at the University Montesquieu Bordeaux IV, France, as well as a Master's in Enterprises Administration from the University of Poitiers, France. Ding is the author of multiple books on financial reporting and his research appears in leading academic journals.

Katy Montgomery, Associate Dean, Degree Programmes, INSEAD

As the INSEAD Associate Dean of Degree Programmes, Montgomery is responsible for the commercial leadership of the INSEAD Degree Programme portfolio across four campuses: Fontainebleau, Singapore, Abu Dhabi, and San Francisco. Her functional responsibilities include strategy, marketing, sales, admissions, financial aid and scholarships, programme operations, student life, psychological services, and career services. Prior to joining INSEAD, she served as Associate Dean of Student Development at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School. Montgomery holds a degree in Political Science from Loyola University New Orleans and a Juris Doctor degree from Georgetown University Law Center.

Francois Ortalo-Magne, Dean, London Business School

Francois Ortalo-Magne is the ninth Dean of London Business School (LBS), a position he has held since August 2017. He is leading a strategy focused on (1) academic research and its impact, (2) learning innovations and alumni engagement and (3) inclusion, striving for gender parity and greater socio-economic and ethnic diversity. Since taking up the role, Ortalo-Magne has led the relaunch of the LBS brand, the growth of degree programmes and a significant increase in philanthropic support for scholarships. His research on the economics of land and housing markets has been published in leading academic journals. He has built on his research and leadership experiences to advise a broad range of private, governmental and multi-lateral organisations and share his insights in leading media outlets and at conferences around the world. Prior to his appointment, Ortalo-Magne was the Albert O. Nicholas Dean and Robert E. Wangard Professor of Real Estate at the Wisconsin School of Business. His first academic appointment was at the London School of Economics.

Giuseppe Soda, Dean, SDA Bocconi School of Management, Bocconi University

Giuseppe "Beppe" Soda is the Dean of SDA Bocconi School of Management and Full Professor of Organization Theory and Network Analysis at Bocconi University. Before becoming Dean in 2016, his roles have included serving as the Associate Dean for Research (2007-2013), Director of the Department of Management and Technology (2013-2016) and Head of Organization and HRM Department (2001-2006). He is also serving EFMD as member of the EQUIS Accreditation Board. Soda's research investigates the performance consequences of the interplay between organizational architectures and organizational networks and his work has been published in top academic management journals.

Besides the aforementioned newly elected board members, Martin Boehm, Professor of Marketing and former Dean of IE Business School and soon the new Rector of EBS Universitat fur Wirtschaft und Recht, and Themin Suwardy, Dean of Postgraduate Professional Programmes, Singapore Management University, were re-elected for a second term.

GMAC also recognizes its outgoing board members, Leila Guerra, Vice Dean (Education) of Imperial College Business School, and Peter Tufano, Peter Moores Dean and Professor of Finance of Said Business School, University of Oxford. GMAC thanks them for their service in the past nearly four years to our organization and contributions to the graduate management education community.

About GMAC

The Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) is a mission-driven association of leading graduate business schools worldwide. Founded in 1953, GMAC creates solutions and experiences that enable business schools and candidates to better discover, evaluate, and connect with each other.

GMAC provides world-class research, industry conferences, recruiting tools, and assessments for the graduate management education industry, as well as tools, resources, events, and services that help guide candidates through their higher education journey. Owned and administered by GMAC, the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) exam is the most widely used graduate business school assessment.

GMAC also owns and administers the NMAT by GMAClast year to explore business school options, prepare and register for exams, and get advice on the admissions process. BusinessBecauseand The MBA Tourare subsidiaries of GMAC, a global organization with offices in China, India, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

To learn more about our work, please visit www.gmac.com.

Media Contact:

Teresa Hsu

Sr. Manager, Media Relations

202-390-4180
KARACHI, PAKISTAN / ACCESSWIRE / June 23, 2021 / JS Bank partners with Zameen.com to provide easy and convenient home and solar financing solutions at flexible markup rates.

This collaboration will serve as a touchstone, allowing the existing clientele of Zameen.com to opt for the affordable and conventional solar financing services offered by JS Bank. The agreement was signed by Zulfiqar Ali Lehri - Head of Distribution, Consumer Lending of JS Bank and Sheikh ShujaUllah Khan - Senior Director Sales of Zameen.com.

Speaking at the occasion, Zulfiqar Ali Lehri, said, 'This partnership with Zameen.com is meant to serve as a one window solution to assist clients in both property search and financing solutions, hence making it one of our most valued external partnerships. Not only does it have the capability of bringing a much-needed vibrant change in the role of the real estate entities in facilitating their clientele for their betterment but also in furthering its own objective of making this process hassle-free and seamless. I look forward to developing this mutually beneficial relationship.'

While Fahad Siddiqui, Head of Secured Lending, JS Bank, said, 'This renewed partnership between JS Bank and Zameen will enable both organizations to serve our respective valued clients in their housing and financing needs in a more holistic manner. JS Bank and Zameen's aspirations and growth trajectory, particularly in the housing and construction sector, are aligned with the vision of the Government of Pakistan and State Bank of Pakistan in driving economic prosperity by facilitating and offering innovative product solutions to enable our citizens in becoming proud home owners.'

Sharing his thoughts, Ahmad Bhatti, Country Head, Zameen.com, said, 'We are delighted to enter this agreement with JS Bank, with the belief that it will significantly bridge home financing needs in the real estate sector. Zameen's mission has always been to empower the people of Pakistan with home ownership and JS Bank's innovative offerings, which includes attractive home loans, rates and faster approvals that make the journey towards the goal easier. This collaboration with JS Bank is also vital in sending our message to the key international audience as well.'

Also present on location were Adil Maqsood - Channel Head and Zahid Gilani - Optimization Manager from JS Bank while Zameen.com was represented by Muhammad Hassan - Associate Director Sales and Umar Hussain - Corporate Manager.

JS Bank has taken this step to provide flexible loans to the home buyers of today, making it possible for them to borrow as much as 90% of the property's value, and hence bringing home ownership within the reach of many who would not be able to afford it otherwise.

- End -

About JS Bank:

JS Bank is amongst the fastest-growing Banks in Pakistan, with both a domestic and an international presence. The Bank is a leader in the SME space and has a substantial footprint in Digital Banking and Consumer Loans. JS Bank has been recognized on multiple international and national forums, including the prestigious AsiaMoney, Asian Banking and Finance, DIGI and Pakistan Banking Awards. The Bank is part of JS Group, one of Pakistan's most diversified and progressive financial services groups. For more information, please visit http://www.jsbl.com

Media Contact:

Hasan Saeed

Chief of Staff to COO

Phone:+92 302 2331518

Email: Hasan.Saeed@jsbl.com

SOURCE: JS Bank

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/652841/JS-Bank-Zameencom-Collaborate-to-Provide-Home-Solar-Financing-to-Its-Customers
KATY, TX / ACCESSWIRE / June 23, 2021 / Neutra Corp. (OTC PINK:NTRR) has announced it is acquired Deity Wellness, a company focused on the recreational use of hemp-based products. Deity has developed a Delta-8 gummy, which Neutra will bring to market within this week of the acquisition. This will be Neutra's first foray into Delta-8 THC products, a move made possible after the Texas Legislature declined to ban the substance earlier in June.

'This acquisition enables us to quickly get into the potentially lucrative Delta-8 market,' said Sydney Jim. 'Instead of having to developing an entirely new brand, we get a product ready to hit the shelves, giving us a big jump on the competition. Delta-8 THC and recreational hemp-based CBD should open a strong new source of sales and revenues as we can now serve those wanting medicinal relief and those seeking pleasure.'

Neutra intends to keep the Deity Wellness brand name as its already well established in the recreational marketplace. Neutra will henceforth have two product lines: VIVIS for medical CBD users and Deity Wellness (http://www.deitywellness.com) for the Delta-8 recreational market. Neutra believes the brands will complement each other and make it easier to get shelf space in stores as the company can now serve many types of consumers.

Delta-8 THC enthusiasts have found it produces a mild euphoria, relaxation, calmness and a sense of delight. Consumers can use Delta-8 products by themselves or in conjunction with CBD ones, like those Neutra already sells under the VIVIS brand name.

Analysts estimate the CBD market enjoyed just over $4 billion in sales in 2019. Predictions are that it will grow to more than $25 billion by 2025. These same analysts expect the market to see a 49 percent CAGR by 2024.

About Neutra Corp.

Neutra Corp. (OTC PINK:NTRR) is an early-stage research and development company with a focus on bringing modern healthy living solutions to a multibillion-dollar market. Cutting-edge technologies within the nutraceuticals, food, and drug, and environmental purification sectors are creating a new kind of world culture-one where in which consumers are demanding access to products that promote health and stave off potential health dangers. One of the nutraceutical sub-markets is the new thriving hemp-based CBD market, in which the Company intends to participate. For more information, visit the Company's website at http://www.NeutraInc.com.

NOTICE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This news release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, including statements that include the words 'believes,' 'expects,' 'anticipate' or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of the company to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.

Neutra Contact:

Sydney Jim

888-433-4033

info@neutrainc.com

SOURCE: Neutra Corp

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/652740/Neutra-Acquires-Recreational-Hemp-Product-Brand-Deity-to-Launch-Delta-8-Product-Line
Consolidated Profit & Loss statement (M) 2019-2020 2020-2021 Change Turnover 290.3 272.8 -6.0% O/w Closures 195.3 185.7 -4.9% O/w Winemaking 95.0 87.1 -8.3% Recurring operating profit 44.3 46.0 +3.9% O/w Closures 36.2 37.8 +4.3% O/w Winemaking 11.7 10.5 -10.7% O/w Corporate (3.6) (2.2) N/A Non-recurring operating profit/(loss) (1.8) (1.2) Operating profit 42.5 44.8 +5.4% Financial profit/(loss) (1.8) (1.9) Tax (11.2) (11.3) Net profit/(loss) from continuing operations 29.5 31.5 +7.0% Net profit/(loss) from discontinued operations (1.2) - Consolidated net profit/(loss) 28.3 31.5 +11.5% Consolidated net profit/(loss), Group share 28.3 31.5 +11.2% Shareholders' equity 286.8 319.5 +11.4% Net debt 54.3 5.1 N/A

Oeneo's consolidated statements for financial year 2020-2021 ended March 31, 2021 were approved by its Board of Directors on June 22, 2021. The consolidated financial statements have been audited in full. The auditors' report will be published once the procedures required for the publication of the annual financial report have been completed.

Oeneo Group delivered a very strong performance in financial year in 2020-2021, posting resilient turnover despite the health crisis and the California wildfires. Thanks to its operational reactivity and agility, the Group also demonstrated the resilience of its model with an improvement in profitability indicators, strong free cash-flow generation and a sharp reduction in its net debt.

Oeneo Group delivered turnover of 272.8 million in 2020-2021, down by just 6.0% (down 5.1% at constant exchange rates), against a backdrop characterized by the caution exercised by winegrowers, most of whom have reduced their investments during the health crisis, in particular those involved in the cafe, hotel and restaurant (CHR) business, which has been heavily impacted by restrictions. The Closures division returned to near-normal business levels at the end of the year, confirming its strong sales momentum. The decline is slightly sharper for the Winemaking division, due to the delay in investments as a result of the economic environment.

During the year, the Group took measures to control and optimize its raw materials costs as well as its operating expenses. Oeneo Group reaped the rewards of these measures, with recurring operating profit coming in at 46.0m, 1.7m higher than the previous year (+3.9%). The lower absorption of fixed costs linked to the decline in business was offset by effective control over production costs and a reduction in marketing costs (fewer trade shows and less travel). This performance also factors in a decrease in the cost of long-term incentive plans, in the form of performance shares, from 3.6 million in 2019-2020 to 2.6 million in 2020-2021, and the payment of an exceptional "Covid" bonus of 1.2 million for the Group's employees. Recurring operating margin stood at 16.9% (17.8% excluding performance share costs).

After non-recurring expenses of 1.2 million, operating profit increased 5.4% to 44.8 million. The financial loss was virtually stable at 1.9 million, with the one-time cost of setting up the syndicated loan at the start of the year offset by positive currency effects in the Americas. The amount of tax also remained stable and discontinued operations (discontinued at the start of the year) no longer impacted net profit which came in at 31.5 million, up 11.5%.

Shareholders' equity amounted to 319.5 million, versus 286.8 million at March 31, 2020. Cash flow from operations rose sharply to 68.9 million, thanks to improved results and a significant reduction in working capital of 17.9 million, partly due to the adjustment of inventory levels. It more than covered net investments for the year, which totaled 15.5 million. Free cash flow therefore amounted to more than 53 million, and was directly allocated to servicing debt, reducing gross debt and strengthening the amount of available cash.

Net debt (including 6.1 million in debt linked to leases - IFRS 16 "Leases") decreased sharply to 5.1 million at March 31, 2021 (versus 54.3 million in the prior-year period), representing a very low gearing ratio of 1.6%. Available cash amounted to 80.3 million, consolidating the Group's sound financial position.

In light of these good results, the Board of Directors will propose the payment of a dividend of 0.20 per share at the next Annual General Meeting.

The Group has started 2021-2022 with strengthened fundamentals and market shares. In addition to a favorable basis for comparison, the Group will benefit from a more dynamic business climate from the first quarter, with the recovery in the cafe, hotel and restaurant business giving its customers better visibility.

2020-2021 performance review by division

CLOSURES: Current operating margin of over 20%

In 2020-2021, turnover for the Closures division amounted to 185.7 million, a slight decline of 4.9%. Nearly 2.3 billion cork-based closures were sold over the year, a performance consolidated by higher market shares in the Americas, particularly in South America, and by very strong sales resilience in France.

Despite the decrease in business, recurring operating profit for the division increased by 4.3% to 37.8 million. Recurring operating margin came in at a high 20.3% (21.1% excluding performance share costs). This remarkable performance, exceeding initial expectations, is based in particular on the price of the cork used, effective production cost management and the decrease in business expenses. The division also continues to reap the benefits of its Opticork plan and the resulting productivity gains.

In 2021-2022, the division aims to return to growth and exceed the 200-million mark while maintaining a recurring operating margin of 20%.

WINEMAKING: Stable recurring operating margin

The Winemaking division posted turnover of 87.1 million, down 8.3% (down 7.4% at constant exchange rates) in a market heavily impacted by the effects of the health crisis and the postponement of investments. However, the Group's diverse offering and its commercial presence across all continents enabled it to mitigate the impact of the economic situation.

Against this backdrop, the Winemaking division succeeded in maintaining a recurring operating margin of 12.0% (12.9% excluding performance share costs) thanks to productivity gains and yield, as well as tight control of expenses, particularly commercial costs. The turnaround in the performance of Etablissements Cenci (renamed Seguin Moreau Ronchamp) also continued, with the operating loss reduced to 1.7 million over the year (from 2.8 million in 2019-2020), of which only 0.7 million was incurred in the second half of the year.

In 2021-2022, the division will continue to focus on measures to optimize productivity and increase profitability in a market where visibility is still uncertain. The wait-and-see approach adopted by customers continues to prevail, due to environmental factors in Europe (spring frost) and the delayed effect of the California wildfires on customers' investments.

Oeneo Group will publish its turnover for the first quarter of 2021-2022 on July 22, 2021 after trading.

About OENEO Group

Oeneo Group is a major wine industry player with high-end and innovative brands. Present around the world, the Group covers each stage in the winemaking process through two core and complementary divisions:

Closures, involving the manufacture and sale of cork closures, including high value?added technological closures through its Diam and Pietec ranges.

Winemaking, providing high-end solutions in winemaking and spirits for leading market players through its cooperage brands Seguin Moreau, Boise, Millet, Fine Northern Oak and Galileo, and developing innovative solutions for the wine industry with Vivelys (R&D, consulting, systems).

Oeneo prides itself in offering solutions in the production, maturing, preservation and enhancement of wines or spirits that faithfully convey all of the emotion and passion of each winegrower and improve their performance.

WE CARE ABOUT YOUR WINE

INFORMATION AND PRESS RELATIONS

Oeneo Actus Finance Philippe Doray

Chief Administrative and

Financial Officer

+33 (0)5 45 82 99 93

Guillaume Le Floch

Analysts - Investors

+33 (0)1 53 67 36 70 Anne-Catherine Bonjour

Media Relations

+ 33 (0) 1 53 67 36 90

APPENDICES

BALANCE SHEET

In thousands of euros March 31, 2021 March 31, 2020 Goodwill 47,416 47,469 Intangible assets 5,163 4,697 Property, plant & equipment 139,022 138,039 Financial assets 1,903 916 Deferred tax assets and other long-term assets 1,928 1,724 Total non-current assets 195,432 192 845 Inventories and work in progress 129,297 138,253 Trade and other receivables 80,199 93,926 Tax receivables 467 1,299 Other current assets 2,470 2,765 Cash and cash equivalents 80,315 53,474 Total current assets 292,748 289,718 Assets held for sale 366 582 Total assets 488,546 422,072 In thousands of euros Paid-in capital 65,052 65,052 Share premium 35,648 35,648 Reserves and retained earnings 187,32 157,802 Profit for the period 31,518 28,331 Total shareholders' equity (Group share) 319,570 286,833 Minority interests (82) (9) Total shareholders' equity 319,488 286,823 Borrowings and debt 65,158 83,294 Employee benefits 3,068 3,318 Other provisions 35 145 Deferred taxes 2,152 2,827 Other non-current liabilities 10,871 8,280 Total non-current liabilities 81,284 97,864 Borrowings and short-term bank debt

(portion due in less than 1 year) 20,266 24,458 Provisions (portion due in less than 1 year) 266 471 Trade and other payables 63,994 70,869 Other current liabilities 3,248 2,643 Total current liabilities 87,774 98,441 Liabilities related to operations held for sale - - Total liabilities 488,546 483,144

PROFIT & LOSS

In thousands of euros March 31, 2021 March 31, 2020 Turnover 272,815 290,258 Other operating income 140 176 Cost of goods purchased and change in inventories (107,777) (123,753) External costs (43,391) (45,966) Payroll costs (55,682) (55,360) Tax (2,957) (3,268) Depreciation and amortization (15,677) (14,345) Provisions (1,598) (1,860) Other recurring income and expenses 130 (1,608) Recurring operating profit 46,003 44,274 Results from the disposal of consolidated companies. 387 Other non-recurring operating income and expenses (1,624) (1,816) Operating profit 44,766 42,459 Income from cash and cash equivalents 61 35 Cost of gross debt (2,270) (1 234) Cost of net debt (2,209) (1 199) Other financial income and expenses 358 (608) Profit before tax 42,915 40,651 Income tax (11,284) (11,164) Profit after tax 31,632 29,481 Profits/ losses of associates (88) (5) Minority interests (26) 36 Group net profit from continuing operations 31,518 29,517 Group net profit from discontinued operations - (1,186) Net profit from consolidated operations 31,544 28,295 Group net profit 31,518 28,331 Consolidated earnings per share (in euros) 0,49 0,44 Earnings per share from continuing operations (in euros) 0,49 0,46 Diluted earnings per share from consolidated operations (in euros) 0,48 0,43 Diluted earnings per share from continuing operations (in euros) 0,48 0,45

CASH FLOW STATEMENT

In thousands of euros March 31, 2021 March 31, 2020 CASH FLOW LINKED TO OPERATIONS Consolidated net profit 31,544 28,295 Profit/(loss) from discontinued operations - (1,186) = Consolidated net profit from continuing operations 31,544 29,481 Elimination of the share in profit of companies accounted for by the equity method 88 5 Elimination of amortization and provisions 15,323 13,434 Elimination of profit from disposals and gains and losses on dilution (232) (3) Elimination of dividends (202) - Expenses and income linked to share-based payments 2,085 3,178 Other income and expenses with no impact on cash flow (50) (52) = Cash flow after cost of net debt and tax 48,556 46,043 Tax expense 11,284 11,164 Cost of net debt 2,209 1,199 = Cash flow before cost of net debt and taxes 62,049 58,406 Tax paid (11,040) (12,903) Change in WCR linked to operations 17,908 (10,688) Net cash flow linked to continuing operations 68,917 34,815 Net cash flow linked to discontinued operations - (206) = Net cash flow linked to operations 68,917 34,609 CASH FLOW LINKED TO INVESTMENTS Impact of changes in scope 543 - Acquisitions of property, plant & equipment and intangible assets (15,478) (18,458) Acquisitions of financial assets (1,075) - Disposals of property, plant & equipment and intangible assets 243 475 Disposals of financial assets 108 - Dividends received 202 - Change in loans and advances (73) (24) Net cash flow linked to investment activities from continuing operations (15,530) (18,007) Net cash flow linked to investment activities from discontinued operations - 488 = Net cash flow linked to investments (15,530) (17,519) CASH FLOW LINKED TO FINANCING ACTIVITIES Acquisitions and disposals of treasury shares - 156 Loans issued 529 73,242 Repayment of loans (12,643) (80,799) Net interest paid (1,843) (1,198) Parent company dividends - (970) Minority interest dividends - (102) Net cash flow linked to financing activities from continuing operations (13,957) (9,671) Net cash flow linked to financing activities from discontinued operations - (283) = Net cash flow linked to financing activities (13,957) (9,954) Impact of changes in foreign exchange rates (21) (355) Change in cash from continuing operations 39,409 6,782 Opening cash (net of bank overdrafts) 38,281 31,500 Closing cash (net of bank overdrafts) 77,690 38,281 Change in cash (net of bank overdrafts) 39,409 6,781 Net Debt 5,109 54,278 Change in net debt (49,169) (5,943)

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Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - S2 Minerals Inc. (CSE: STWO) ("S2" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has received confirmation from the Canadian Securities Exchange (the "CSE") that the conditions for listing have been satisfied and the CSE issued its listing bulletin on June 23, 2021 confirming the approval of the listing of the common shares of S2 (the "S2 Shares") on the CSE. Accordingly, the S2 Shares will commence trading on the CSE on June 24, 2021 under the ticker symbol "STWO".

A copy of the listing statement that the Company filed with the CSE is available for review under the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

The Company also announces that it has filed an independent technical report prepared by Micon International Limited for the Sandy Lake Project (the "Technical Report") in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. The Technical Report is available for review under the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

About S2 Minerals Inc.

S2 Minerals Inc. is a Canadian mineral exploration company and holds the Sandy Lake project in Ontario. The Sandy Lake project comprises approximately 167,000 acres of contiguous mineral claims in the Sandy Lake Archean Greenstone Belt, located approximately 140 miles north of Red Lake, Ontario. S2 beneficially holds a 100% interest in the mineral rights to approximately 137,000 acres, and holds a 50.1% interest in the approximately 15,000 acres of the "Weebigee Joint Venture" claims and a 50% interest in a further 15,000 acres of the Southern Block claims in joint ventures with Goldeye Explorations Limited, now part of Treasury Metals Inc. It is expected that over time, S2 may add new Canadian-focused exploration stage projects to its portfolio.

All scientific and technical information in this news release has been prepared under the supervision of Dan Noone (CEO of S2 Minerals Inc.), a "qualified person" within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Noone (B.Sc. Geology, MBA) is a Member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists.

For further information please contact:

Dan Noone

CEO

+1.416.628.5904

Email: info@s2minerals.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains certain forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the expected trading date. Wherever possible, words such as "may", "will", "should", "could", "expect", "plan", "intend", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "predict" or "potential" or the negative or other variations of these words, or similar words or phrases, have been used to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements reflect management's current beliefs and are based on information currently available to management as at the date hereof.

Forward-looking statements involve significant risk, uncertainties and assumptions. Many factors could cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from the results discussed or implied in the forward-looking statements. These factors should be considered carefully and readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon what management believes to be reasonable assumptions, the Company cannot assure readers that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. The Company assumes no obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88436
Symp2Pass by SmartCone has partnered with the HEPRU in offering the first ever personal advanced COVID screening process using ScentsiBLE, a patent pending smell test process

Ottawa, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - SmartCone Technologies, Canada's leader in IoT (Internet of Things) solutions and developer of Symp2Pass is proud to announce a strategic partnership with Innovations Canada and Dr. Glen P. Kenny, Director of the HEPRU at the University of Ottawa, Canada to further develop technologies and proprietary processes to help strengthen the return-to-work solution for COVID-19.

For the past 27 years, the HEPRU has been leading innovative and cutting-edge research on the assessment of the environmental and human factors affecting health and performance (www.hepru.ca ) . This includes the development of sophisticated heat protection technologies to safeguard health and safety in partnership with SmartCone Technologies. SmartCone Technologies and its strategic partners (like Disney SyncLink) have many valuable screening, monitoring and cleaning patents and processes that will be integrated into Symp2Pass and other processes to help in the prevention and spread of COVID-19 and protect the health and wellbeing of the general population and workers.

Symp2Passes by SmartCone is a personal and private advanced screening process that uses a patent pending smell test (ScentsiBLE) along with a key symptom survey and required government COVID questions to quickly test individuals for key symptoms of COVID. Symp2Pass is currently being tested by Disney, Ontario Tech University (funded by the Canadian Government) and a leading nuclear power company which, will increase safety for employees, site visitors and protect the assets (buildings, complexes etc.) so that everyone carry work responsibilities and socialize safely.

"We are excited to work with Symp2Pass and SmartCone to help test, verify and finalize their COVID back-to-work screening process. In combination with a COVID self- assessment questionnaire, the system offers individuals a rapid screening test that can help stop the spread of COVID and keep individuals safe and workplaces open," Dr. Gen P. Kenny, Director of the HEPRU uOttawa.





Symp2Pass DAY PASS



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About SYMP2PASS Powered By SmartCone

SYMP2PASS, developed in conjunction with doctors and researchers, is the first anonymous end-to-end advanced health screening web process. Using our patent pending ScentsiBLE scent test paired with multi-symptom survey, SYMP2PASS will help reduce the spread of COVID and save businesses and countries millions of dollars. Learn more at www.symp2pass.com.

About SmartCone Technologies, Inc.

SmartCone Technologies Inc. (SCTI) is a unique data sensory company that commercializes new Internet-of-Things (IoT) technologies powering a wide array of sensors, edge computing, sensor fusion and artificial intelligence (AI). TheSmartCone solutions have been used most recently in "Return to Work" solutions during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as securing dangerous work sites, controlling bicycle lane traffic, managing vehicle fleets, smart warehouses, crowd control, and more. Visit us at www.thesmartcone.com.

###

For more information, please contact Richard Harris: 604-808-2124, ric@symp2pass.com





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TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 23, 2021 / IC Capitalight Corp. (CSE:IC) ('Capitalight' or 'the Company'), is pleased to announce the results of the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders (the 'Meeting') held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on June 23, 2021.

As of the May 17, 2021, the record date for the Meeting, there were 89,649,915 common shares of the Company outstanding and entitled to vote at the Meeting. Of this amount, there were 30,440,980 common shares (33.95%) represented in person or by proxy at the Meeting.

The final voting results of the Meeting are set out below:

Set the number of Directors at six (6) . The Company's shareholders approved a resolution to set the number of Directors of the Company at six (6). The following table sets forth the voting results with respect to this resolution:

For Withheld 100.0% 0.0%

2. Election of Directors . Each of the nominees were elected as directors and will serve and hold office until the next annual meeting of shareholders, unless they cease to hold office. The following table sets forth the voting results with respect to the election of each director:

Nominee For Withheld Brian Bosse 100.0% 0.0% Marc Johnson 100.0% 0.0% Bryan Loree 100.0% 0.0% Douglas MacQuarrie 100.0% 0.0% Veronika Hirsch 100.0% 0.0% Elliot Beutel 100.0% 0.0%

3. Appointment of Auditors . The Company's shareholders approved that MNP LLP, Chartered Professional Accountants be appointed auditors of the Company to hold office until the close of the next annual meeting of shareholders of the Company at such remuneration as may be fixed by the directors of the Company and the directors be and they are hereby authorized to fix such remuneration. The following table sets forth the voting results with respect to this resolution:

For Withheld 100.0% 0.0%

Grant of LTIP Awards

The Company also announces the grant of 1,230,771 restricted share units ('RSUs') under the Company's long-term incentive plan (the 'LTIP') pursuant to the execution of an employment agreement. A total of 769,231 RSUs were granted that will vest on July 31, 2021, provided the individual remains employed with the Company on that date. These RSUs will expire on December 31, 2021. A total of 461,540 RSUs were granted that will vest on December 31, 2023, if certain gross sales milestones relating to research publications have been achieved between January 1, 2021, and December 31, 2023. These RSUs will expire on December 31, 2024.

ABOUT IC CAPITALIGHT CORP.

The Company operates as a merchant bank that pursues value-based investment opportunities in accordance with its internal investment policies. The Company currently holds an investment portfolio consisting of debentures, common shares, and the Blue Lake mineral exploration property in Quebec. The Company also owns Capitalight Research Inc., which operates a subscription research business focused on providing gold, silver, copper and nickel, lithium, and rare earth price forecasts as well as Canadian preferred share and economic research.

To learn more about the Company, please contact us at info@capitalight.co or visit our websites at www.capitalight.co or www.capitalightresearch.com

This press release was approved by:

Brian Bosse

CEO and Director

P: 866.653.9223

SOURCE: IC Capitalight Corp.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/652862/Capitalight-Announces-Results-of-2021-Annual-General-Meeting-of-Shareholders-and-Grant-of-LTIP-Awards
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 23, 2021 / NeutriSci International Inc. ("NeutriSci" or the "Company") (TSXV:NU) (OTCQB:NRXCF)(FRANKFURT:1N9), an innovative technology company developing products for the nutraceutical industry, in conjunction with its partner, Tabletz LLC, is pleased to update details regarding the Biople launch of the TABLETZ brand in Japan.

Biople @biople and Tabletz LLC @tabletzcbd will be holding an 'Insta Live' and interview session with Masa Ikeda, CEO Tabletz Brand LLC, to discuss the Tabletz brand and the Biople partnership on June 24th at 6pm Tokyo time. Among the topics to be discussed will be positioning of the product, sales strategies, Biople direction, and information on the product itself.

Biople by CosmeKitchen (biople.jp) has 22 locations in Kanto, Tokai, Kinki, Chugoku/Shikoku, Kyushu-Okinawa; specializing in a line of organic cosmetics, beauty products, fashion accessories, mail-order business and organic food sales.

Biople is regarded as the #1 seller of CBD and CBD related products in Japan. Their prestigious reputation among the retail community is that of the industry leader.

The entire TABLETZ product line will be sold and distributed throughout Japan; a country with more than 126 million people. Distribution into over 46,000 stores will include renowned retailers such as 7-Eleven, K.K. Lawson and Biople.

Tabletz LLC, has worked hard over the past few months to implement the necessary roll out of initiatives to handle the expected demand. Distribution networks are currently in place and ready for immediate placement on the store shelves; this signifies the start of the 'first-to-market' strategy for the Tabletz brand and its partner relationship with Biople.

As previously stated, both NeutriSci and Tabletz LLC are planning to include the roll out of the new bulk bottle. This new SKU will contain (35) 14 mg Tabletz containing 500mg of CBD.

Glen Rehman, CEO of NeutriSci, stated: "The start of sales in the Biople network completes the loop from concept to reality, signifying the start of an extremely promising future for the brand and for our Company. We look forward to the exciting future ahead."

About NeutriSci International Inc.

NeutriSci specializes in the innovation, production, and formulation of nutraceutical products. Established in 2009, NeutriSci's is building sustainable sales models with Convenience, Chain Drug, and Mass Market and Supermarket retailers for neuenergy, the Company's natural energy and focus supplement that has at its core, the beneficial effects of blueberries. For more information, please visit: www.neutrisci.com.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors of

NEUTRISCI INTERNATIONAL INC.

Glen Rehman

CEO

Tel: (403) 264-6320

For investor inquiries, please contact investors@neutrisci.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release may include forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. All statements within, other than statements of historical fact, are to be considered forward-looking. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include market prices, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. There can be no assurances that such statements will prove accurate and, therefore, readers are advised to rely on their own evaluation of such uncertainties. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements except as required under the applicable laws.

Statements in this press release have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Products or ingredients are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

SOURCE: NeutriSci International Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/652870/NeutriSci-Provides-Update-On-Biople-Product-Launch-In-Japan
SENS ANNOUNCEMENT

(the "Notice" or "Announcement")

ISSUER

ZCCM INVESTMENTS HOLDINGS PLC ("ZCCM-IH")

[Incorporated in the Republic of Zambia]

Company registration number: 119540000771

Share Code: ZCCM-IH

ISIN: ZM0000000037

Authorised by: Chabby Chabala - Company Secretary

SPONSOR

Stockbrokers Zambia Limited

[Founder Member of the Lusaka Securities Exchange]

[Regulated and licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Zambia]

Contact Person: Natasha Nelson

Contact Number: +260-211-232456

Website: www.sbz.com.zm

APPROVAL

The captioned Notice or Announcement has been approved by:

the Lusaka Securities Exchange ("LuSE") the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") Stockbrokers Zambia Limited ("SBZ")

RISK WARNING

The Notice or Announcement contained herein contains information that may be of a price sensitive nature.

Investors are advised to seek the advice of their investment advisor, stockbroker, or any professional duly licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Zambia to provide securities advice.

ISSUED: 23 June 2021

ZCCM INVESTMENTS HOLDINGS PLC

[Incorporated in the Republic of Zambia]

Company registration number: 771

Share Code: ZCCM-IH

ISIN: ZM0000000037

["ZCCM-IH" or "the Company"]

FURTHER CAUTIONARY ANNOUNCEMENT

Shareholders of ZCCM Investments Holdings Plc ("ZCCM-IH") are referred to the announcement dated 23 May 2019 concerning the following:

ZCCM-IH filed a petition in the High Court of Zambia for the winding up of Konkola Copper Mines PLC ("KCM") on 21 May 2019 (the "Petition"), the appointment by the Court of Mr Milingo Lungu as provisional liquidator of KCM (the "Provisional Liquidator").

The legal proceedings commenced on 2 July 2019 in the High Court of South Africa and applications made to the Zambian High Court by Vedanta Resources Limited and Vedanta Resources Holdings Limited (together "Vedanta") to stay the liquidation proceedings and refer the matter to arbitration.

Shareholders are informed that the High Court of Zambia ruled against Vedanta on 7 August 2019. On 13 August 2019 Vedanta appealed to the Court of Appeal of Zambia against the decision of the High Court of Zambia which denied them their application to stay the liquidation proceedings and refer the matter to arbitration. The Court of Appeal on 20 November 2020 ruled in favour of Vedanta and stayed the liquidation proceedings and referred the matter to arbitration.

The Court of Appeal refused the ZCCM-IH application for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court and ZCCM-IH has since made an application for leave before the Supreme Court. ZCCM-IH awaits the decision of the Supreme Court.

ZCCM-IH will provide details on this matter, as it progresses, in due course.

In the meantime, Shareholders of ZCCM-IH are advised to exercise caution when dealing in securities of the Company until further information is published.

By Order of the Board

Chabby Chabala

Company Secretary

Issued in Lusaka, Zambia on 23 June 2021

Lusaka Securities Exchange Sponsoring Broker T | +260-211-232456



E | advisory@sbz.com.zm



W | www.sbz.com.zm



Stockbrokers Zambia Limited (SBZ) is a member of the Lusaka Securities

Exchange and is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Zambia

First Issued on 23 May 2019

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MCLEAN, VA / ACCESSWIRE / June 23, 2021 / Gladstone Securities LLC ("Gladstone" or the "Company"), an affiliated broker-dealer of The Gladstone Companies, that acts as dealer manager on alternative investment offerings for certain affiliated Gladstone funds, including Gladstone Land Corporation (LAND) ("Gladstone Land") and Gladstone Commercial Corporation (GOOD) ("Gladstone Commercial"), has hired Jade Clark as its External Wholesaler for the Northeast United States.

Mr. Clark becomes the Company's fourth External Wholesaler, joining Vincent Centineo, Geoff Ihm and Michael Kerrigan to complete Gladstone's wholesaling team. The team reports to Gladstone's National Sales Manager, John Sabey. They join previously announced key hires, Sean Boyd (National Accounts) and Zach Adams (Operations), and their hirings represent an important milestone as the Company continues its buildout. Gladstone Securities previously engaged third party vendors and their wholesaling and national accounts teams to distribute preferred stock offerings for Gladstone Land and Gladstone Commercial, both publicly traded REITs.

Jade Clark, based in New Jersey, will be the Northeast Region External Wholesaler for the Company. Mr. Clark adds significant industry and regional experience, with over 12 years of experience in alternative investments covering the Northeast. Most recently, he was Senior Vice President at Griffin Capital Securities where he raised equity for their real estate and credit Interval Funds, non-traded REITs, Delaware Statutory Trusts, and Qualified Opportunity Zone offerings through the independent broker dealer and registered investment advisor channels. Mr. Clark graduated from Arizona State University with a Bachelor of Science in Economics.

Vincent Centineo, based in Chicago, serves as the External Wholesaler in the Central Region. In this role, he is responsible for distribution of Gladstone's non-traded preferred investment offerings. Mr. Centineo has over 30 years of experience in the financial services industry with the last 25 years expanding distribution and market share for some of the top companies in the industry. Mr. Centineo prides himself on helping financial advisors build better portfolios for their clients with risk management strategies and dependable solutions. Mr. Centineo has a bachelor's degree in Business Administration from the University of Illinois.

Geoff Ihm is the Western Region External Wholesaler and is based in Denver, Colorado. Mr. Ihm has been in the ?nancial services industry for over 20 years and for 14 of those, served as Senior Vice President, Director of Internal Sales at Black Creek Group where he was responsible for the sales management of the internal wholesale team. During his time with Black Creek Group, the ?rm raised over $9 billion of equity capital for its diverse suite of commercial real estate offerings, including REITs, closed-end funds, private equity funds and a 1031 exchange program. Mr. Ihm holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Iowa.

Michael Kerrigan serves as the External Wholesaler in the Southeast Region and is based in Tampa, Florida. In this role, he is responsible for distribution of Gladstone's non-traded preferred investment offerings that are available to independent and registered investment advisors. Mr. Kerrigan has more than 14 years of experience in the financial services industry with a solid background in distribution sales and marketing. Previously, he represented several Gladstone offerings through a third-party distributor. Mr. Kerrigan has a strong knowledge of the alternative investment space and has been involved in many areas of distribution. Mr. Kerrigan has a bachelor's degree in Business Management.

Gladstone Securities specializes in fundraising and strategic advisory services for affiliated funds of The Gladstone Companies. Gladstone Securities, LLC is the investment banking affiliate of Gladstone Management Corporation, an investment adviser headquartered in the Washington, DC area, with offices in New York, Texas, Washington, Illinois, Florida and California.

For further information:

Gladstone Securities, LLC, info@gladstonesecurities.com or (703) 287-5900

SOURCE: Gladstone Securities, LLC

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/652827/Gladstone-Securities-Hires-Northeast-Region-Wholesaler-Announces-Completion-of-External-Wholesaling-Team
CPATA's Coming into Force Date Announced

Ottawa, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - The Intellectual Property Institute of Canada (IPIC) is pleased to announce an important milestone has been reached in a decades long effort to establish a College of Patent Agents and Trademark Agents (CPATA) to regulate the agency profession in Canada. Today, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) published the final regulations to guide the work of the CPATA within Canada Gazette Part II. Additionally, an Order in Council has been passed concerning the College's coming into force date. As of this Monday, June 28th, 2021, Patent Agents and Trademark Agents will have a regulatory body and self-governance framework within Canada.

"These Regulations mark the culmination of a long journey towards self-regulation for the IP agency profession, a journey which began some 20 years ago. Throughout this time, IPIC has been at the forefront of advocating on behalf of the profession, working tirelessly with government towards a self-regulatory regime. Thanks to the dedication of IPIC staff and countless hours of volunteer work by members, CPATA is now, finally, a reality," said Stephanie Chong, President of the Intellectual Property Institute of Canada.

The new framework will ensure a robust highly trained community of IP professionals within Canada that will support our economy while holding its members to the highest development and ethical standards. The opening of the CPATA is a key step that will solidify the excellence of the IP profession in Canada and support a strong IP system.

"Intellectual property is vital to driving our innovation economy forward. I am pleased that the College of Patent Agents and Trademark Agents will soon be coming-into-force. It has been a pleasure working with IPIC through this process and I am looking forward to the new College governing the profession and promoting the highest quality of IP support in Canada," said the Honourable Francois-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry.

This long-awaited announcement is welcomed by IPIC leadership and the volunteers from our Professional Regulation, Patent, and Trademarks Committees who have been working closely with Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) policy officials in making significant changes to the draft regulations that were originally published by ISED in March 2021. The amendments being sought by IPIC were a result of the excellent feedback we received from our members about the impact the draft regulations could have on their practice.

"On June 28th, the College of Patent Agents and Trademark Agents (CPATA) will officially begin their journey as one of only a few professional self-regulatory bodies that operate at a federal level in Canada. IPIC would like to thank the Minister of Industry, Science and Innovation, The Honourable Francois-Philippe Champagne for bringing this important initiative over the finish line just in time to ensure trust remains high in the IP profession as they support Canada's innovative companies in our post-COVID economic recovery," said Adam Kingsley, CEO of the Intellectual Property Institute of Canada.

Upon opening, CPATA will continue to be led by the steady hand of CEO and Registrar Darrel Pink, who has a long history in the regulation of legal professions in Canada, as well as a highly qualified Board of Directors with representatives from various regulated professions and Canada's innovative industries. For more information about CPATA's structure and processes, please visit their website: www.cpata-cabamc.ca

To provide more information about the regulations and the impacts of the new system on agency practice IPIC is offering a FREE webinar for all IPIC members on Tuesday July 13th from 1:00pm to 2:30pm ET. The webinar will be presented by IPIC President Stephanie Chong, the CEO/Registrar of CPATA Darrel Pink, and IPIC Patent Committee Practice Lead, Jenna Wilson and will be an excellent opportunity for members to hear directly from IPIC leadership and the leadership of CPATA. Please click here to register.





Intellectual Property Institute of Canada Logo

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The Intellectual Property Institute of Canada (IPIC) is the professional association of patent agents, trademark agents and lawyers practicing in all areas of intellectual property law. Our membership totals over 1700 individuals, consisting of practitioners in law firms and agencies of all sizes, sole practitioners, in-house corporate intellectual property professionals, government personnel, and academics. Our members' clients include virtually all Canadian businesses, universities and other institutions that have an interest in intellectual property (e.g., patents, trademarks, copyrights, and industrial designs) in Canada or elsewhere, as well as foreign companies that hold intellectual property rights in Canada.

www.ipic.ca

-30-

For more information please contact:

Christina Locmelis

Director of Communications & Member Services

Intellectual Property Institute of Canada

613-234-0516 x 31

clocmelis@ipic.ca

Source: Intellectual Property Institute of Canada (IPIC)

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88447
PHILADELPHIA, PA / ACCESSWIRE / June 23, 2021 / Aberdeen Income Credit Strategies Fund (NYSE:ACP) (the 'Fund'), a closed-end fund, announced today, in furtherance to its press release dated June 17, 2021, the issuance of shares in connection with the successful completion of its transferable rights offering (the 'Offer'). The Offer commenced on May 20, 2021 and expired on June 16, 2021 (the 'Expiration Date').

The Offer entitled rights holders to subscribe for up to an aggregate of 5,812,247 of the Fund's common shares of beneficial interest, par value $0.001 per share ('Common Shares'). The final subscription price was $10.20 per Common Share and was determined based upon a formula equal to 92.5% of the average of the last reported sales price of a Common Share on the New York Stock Exchange ('NYSE') on the Expiration Date and each of the four (4) preceding trading days.

As a result of high investor demand, the Offer was over-subscribed. Accordingly, the shares issued pursuant to the over-subscription privilege of the Offer were allocated pro rata among those fully exercising record date shareholders who over-subscribed based on the number of rights originally issued to them by the Fund. The Fund issued all of the 5,812,247 Common Shares offered pursuant to the Offer, with a majority of those Common Shares issued pursuant to the primary subscription and the remaining Common Shares issued pursuant to the over-subscription privilege. The gross proceeds of the Offer were $60 million. The Common Shares subscribed for were issued today.

This communication is not an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these securities, in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale is not permitted.

The Fund is managed and advised by Aberdeen Asset Managers Limited. The Fund's Common Shares trade on the NYSE under the symbol 'ACP.'

In the United States, Aberdeen Standard Investments is the marketing name for the following affiliated, registered investment advisers: Aberdeen Standard Investments Inc., Aberdeen Asset Managers Ltd., Aberdeen Standard Investments Australia Ltd., Aberdeen Standard Investments (Asia) Ltd., Aberdeen Capital Management, LLC, Aberdeen Standard Investments ETFs Advisors LLC and Aberdeen Standard Alternative Funds Limited.

Closed-end funds are traded on the secondary market through one of the stock exchanges. The Fund's investment return and principal value will fluctuate so that an investor's shares may be worth more or less than the original cost. Shares of closed-end funds may trade above (a premium) or below (a discount) the net asset value (NAV) of the fund's portfolio. There is no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective.

If you wish to receive this information electronically, please contact Investor.Relations@aberdeenstandard.com

aberdeenacp.com

For More Information Contact:

Aberdeen Standard Investments Inc.

Investor Relations

1-800-522-5465

Investor.Relations@aberdeenstandard.com

SOURCE: Aberdeen Income Credit Strategies Fund

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/652890/Aberdeen-Income-Credit-Strategies-Fund-Announces-Issuance-of-Shares-After-Completion-of-Rights-Offering
Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - June 23, 2021) - Athabasca Minerals Inc. (TSXV: AMI) ("Athabasca" or the "Corporation") is pleased to announce the voting results of the Annual General and Special Meeting (the "Meeting") of Shareholders of the Corporation which was held on June 22, 2021 in Calgary, Alberta.

The total number of votes represented at the Meeting was 17,730,534, being 26.1% of the total Common Shares of the Corporation. A full report of voting results is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

The following six nominees were elected as directors of Athabasca. The results of the vote for the election of directors are set out below:

Election of Directors Votes For Votes Withheld Don Paulencu 99.4% 0.6% Terrance Kutryk 99.6% 0.4% Neil Manning 99.4% 0.6% Jon McCreary 99.6% 0.4% Dale Nolan 99.6% 0.4% Robert Beekhuizen 99.3% 0.7%

The shareholders voted in favour of all matters brought before the Meeting. The results of the other matters considered at the Meeting including fixing the number of directors to six, the appointment of auditors, re-approval of the Corporation's stock option plan, the approval of the restricted share unit and deferred share unit plans, and the approval of the Corporation's employee share purchase plan.

An archive of the webcast of the meeting and the corporate update are available on the Athabasca website: https://www.athabascaminerals.com/investor-relations/.

ABOUT ATHABASCA MINERALS INC.

Athabasca Minerals is an integrated group of companies capable of full life-cycle development and supply of aggregates and industrial minerals. The Corporation is comprised of the following business units:

AMI Aggregates division produces and sells aggregates out of its corporate pits and manages the Coffey Lake Public Pit on behalf of the Government of Alberta.

division produces and sells aggregates out of its corporate pits and manages the Coffey Lake Public Pit on behalf of the Government of Alberta. AMI Silica division (www.amisilica.com) is positioning to become a leading supplier of premium domestic silica sand with three regional deposits located in Alberta and NE-BC (White Rabbit, Firebag and Montney), and holds a 5-year purchase agreement with Shell Canada for the supply of proppant. Privco1 & Privco2 are private Alberta corporations owned by AMI that hold the Montney and White Rabbit domestic sand deposits respectively, which are strategically located in relation to the Montney and Duvernay sedimentary basins. Privco2 supports the 'Prosvita Sand Project' (formerly called the Duvernay Sand Project). AMI is finalizing FEED (Front-End Engineering & Development) for the project, while continuing discussions with an international industrial corporation who brings access to rail, power, industrial water and heat recovery with green benefits, utilities and infrastructure.

division (www.amisilica.com) is positioning to become a leading supplier of premium domestic silica sand with three regional deposits located in Alberta and NE-BC (White Rabbit, Firebag and Montney), and holds a 5-year purchase agreement with Shell Canada for the supply of proppant. AMI RockChain division (www.amirockchain.com) is a midstream, technology-enabled business that deploys its proprietary RockChain digital platform, associated industry econometrics, supply-chain algorithms, quality-assurance & safety programs to bring customers integrated supply-delivery solutions of industrial minerals to industry, infrastructure and construction sectors. TerraShift Engineering (www.terrashift.ca) was acquired by AMI RockChain in June 2020. TerraShift offers engineering and project services, proprietary technology applications such as TerraMaps, with expertise in resource exploration & development, mine planning, environmental reclamation and remediation, regulatory approvals, and compliance reporting, serving a growing customer base across Western Canada and Ontario.

division (www.amirockchain.com) is a midstream, technology-enabled business that deploys its proprietary RockChain digital platform, associated industry econometrics, supply-chain algorithms, quality-assurance & safety programs to bring customers integrated supply-delivery solutions of industrial minerals to industry, infrastructure and construction sectors.

For further information, please contact:

Tanya Finney, Director, Investor and Stakeholder Relations

Tel: 587-391-0548 / Email: tanya.finney@athabascaminerals.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

This news release contains certain statements or disclosures relating to Athabasca that are based on the expectations of its management as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to Athabasca which may constitute forward-looking statements or information ("forward-looking statements") under applicable securities laws. All such statements and disclosures, other than those of historical fact, which address activities, events, outcomes, results or developments that Athabasca anticipates or expects may, or will occur in the future (in whole or in part) should be considered forward-looking statements. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of the words "would", "will", "anticipates", believes", "explores" and similar expressions.

Athabasca believes the material factors, expectations and assumptions reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable at this time but no assurance can be given that these factors, expectations and assumptions will prove to be correct. The forward-looking statements included in this news release are not guarantees of future performance and should not be unduly relied upon. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements including, without limitation: a significant expansion in COVID-19 restricting or prohibiting the operation of the Athabasca's facilities or significantly impacting the Company's supply chain; the duration and extent of the relatively low global oil prices; general economic, market and business conditions including those in the event of an epidemic, natural disaster or other event; increased costs and expenses; reliance on industry partners; and certain other risks detailed from time to time in Athabasca's public disclosure documents including, without limitation, those risks identified in this news release, and in Athabasca's annual information form, copies of which are available on Athabasca's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com. Moreover, the duration and impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is unknown at this time and it is not possible to reliably estimate the length and severity of these developments and the impact on the financial results and condition of the Company.

Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Furthermore, the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as at the date of this news release and the Corporation does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any of the forward-looking statements, except as may be required by applicable securities laws.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/88473
Regulatory News:

Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. (LN:PSH) (LN:PSHD) (NA:PSH) today released its regular weekly Net Asset Value ("NAV") and performance returns on its website, https://www.pershingsquareholdings.com/company-reports/weekly-navs/. The NAV and returns were computed as of the close of business on Tuesday, 22 June 2021.

PSH NAV per share as of close of business on 22 June 2021 was 49.41 USD 35.42 GBP and year-to-date performance was 9.1%.

Weekly net asset value ("NAV") is calculated as of the close of business on each Tuesday and posted on the following business day. In the event that Tuesday is not a business day, the Company will calculate the close-of-business NAV as of the business day immediately preceding that Tuesday. The end-of-month NAV is calculated as of the close of business on the last day of the month and posted on the following business day. For weeks that include a month-end NAV report, PSH will provide only the month-end NAV and not report the Tuesday NAV. Monthly NAVs are published in accordance with the Decree on Conduct of Business Supervision of Financial Undertakings under the Wft (Besluit Gedragstoezicht financiele ondernemingen Wft).

Performance is presented on a net-of-fees basis and reflects the deduction of, among other expenses: management fees, brokerage commissions, administrative fees and accrued performance fees, if any. The performance figure includes the reinvestment of all dividends, interest and capital gains. Depending on the timing of a specific investment, net performance for an individual investor may vary from the net performance as stated herein. Net performance is a geometrically linked time weighted calculation.

Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. All investments involve risk including the loss of principal.

About Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd.

Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. (LN:PSH) (LN:PSHD) (NA:PSH) is an investment holding company structured as a closed-ended fund that makes concentrated investments principally in North American domiciled companies.

Category: (PSH:WeeklyNAV)

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005956/en/

Contacts:

Media

Camarco

Ed Gascoigne-Pees Hazel Stevenson +44 020 3757 4989, media-pershingsquareholdings@camarco.co.uk
33 new or updated O-RAN specifications released since March 2021

First European Open Test and Integration Centers (OTIC) hosted by Deutsche Telekom and TIM

36 new O-RAN demonstrations available at the O-RAN Virtual Exhibition by June 29, 2021

Save the date for the O-RAN ALLIANCE Industry Summit on June 29, 2021

O-RAN ALLIANCE welcomes stc as its new operator member, building up the world-wide community of 29 mobile network operators committed to deployment of open and intelligent Radio Access Networks (RAN).

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005961/en/

O-RAN Logical Architecture (Graphic: Business Wire)

33 New or Updated O-RAN Specifications Released since March 2021

On June 17, 2021, the O-RAN ALLIANCE published another 33 specification documents, including 11 new titles. Among others these new specifications include:

Management interface, timing and synchronization for Transport

The baseline for Non-Real-Time Radio Intelligent Controller (Non-RT RIC) and Near-Real-Time RIC Architecture and interfaces (E2, A1, F1/X2/Xn)

Certification and badging guidelines and parts of end-to-end, inter-operability and conformance testing

For more details on the new specifications, please check this O-RAN blog post. To download O-RAN specifications, please proceed to www.o-ran.org/specifications.

First European Open Test and Integration Centers Hosted by Deutsche Telekom and TIM

The O-RAN ALLIANCE approved the first two European Open Test and Integration Centers (OTIC):

European OTIC in Berlin hosted by Deutsche Telekom

European OTIC in Torino hosted by TIM

OTICs provide a collaborative, open, and impartial working environment to ensure consistency and quality of testing of O-RAN products and solutions.

"It is great to see the momentum in adoption of O-RAN based solutions," said Alex Jinsung Choi, COO of the O-RAN ALLIANCE and SVP Technology Strategy Technology Innovation, Deutsche Telekom. "OTICs will play an important role in managing the complex interoperability scenarios and related integration cost, and accelerate O-RAN product commercialization in large network solutions."

36 New O-RAN Demonstrations

O-RAN ALLIANCE is excited to announce the release of 36 demos to be showcased at the O-RAN Virtual Exhibition by June 29, 2021. Five of these demos will also be presented at the MWC Barcelona exhibition by:

Parallel Wireless at Hall 5, Booth 515

at Rohde Schwarz at Hall 6, Booth B30

at Sageran, presenting 3 demos at Hall 7, Booth 7N50

More companies are presenting their demos in the virtual form: Analog Devices, Arm, Astri, Baicells, Capgemini, China Mobile, CIG, Comba Telecom, H3C, Intel, IS-Wireless, ITRI, Juniper Networks, Keysight, Lenovo, NEC, Netcracker, Nokia, Nvidia, NXP, O-RAN Software Community, Parallel Wireless, Pegatron, Radisys, Rohde Schwarz, Qualcomm, Sageran, Siemens EDA, TIM, T&W, VIAVI Solutions, WindRiver.

For more details on these demos, please read our blog post.

O-RAN ALLIANCE Industry Summit on June 29, 2021

O-RAN ALLIANCE plans to hold its next Industry Summit on June 29th. The 90 minute live virtual session will provide exclusive insights from top executives that are driving the rapid advances in the O-RAN space. During the panel discussion speakers from AirHop Communications, AT&T, Deutsche Telekom, Facebook, Mavenir, Nokia, Rakuten Mobile, TIM, VIAVI and VMware will share their views on key topics including Open RAN Commercialization, Open RAN Security and Performance. The summit will conclude with a live Q&A where the audience can submit their questions for the panelists. Join the event at www.o-ran.org/events.

About O-RAN ALLIANCE

The O-RAN ALLIANCE is a world-wide community of 300 mobile operators, vendors, and research academic institutions operating in the Radio Access Network (RAN) industry. As the RAN is an essential part of any mobile network, the O-RAN ALLIANCE's mission is to re-shape the industry towards more intelligent, open, virtualized and fully interoperable mobile networks. The new O-RAN standards will enable a more competitive and vibrant RAN supplier ecosystem with faster innovation to improve user experience. O-RAN based mobile networks will at the same time improve the efficiency of RAN deployments as well as operations by the mobile operators. To achieve this, the O-RAN ALLIANCE publishes new RAN specifications, releases open software for the RAN, and supports its members in integration and testing of their implementations.

For more information please visit www.o-ran.org.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005961/en/

Contacts:

O-RAN ALLIANCE PR Contact

Zbynek Dalecky

pr@o-ran.org

O-RAN ALLIANCE e.V.

Buschkauler Weg 27

53347 Alfter/Germany
Zenger News Logo

Zenger News, an Austin, Texas-based digitally native wire service, closed a $10m seed funding round.

Backers included Jean-Guillaume de Tocqueville and Andre M. Johnson.

The company intends to use the funds to enhance its propriety software and onboard a number of news outlets, within the United States, Mexico, Central America, South Asia, and the Middle East.

Led by CEO Richard Miniter, Zenger is a B2B news wire, delivering both print and video news, in both English and Spanish languages, to publicly traded and privately held news outlets around the world.

The service supplies its news content at no cost to news outlets with its software attaching advertising to its news stories. That advertising creates a revenue stream for both Zenger and news outlets that carry its content. Zenger has more than 2,300 registered journalists reporting from 109 countries. Its customers include Forbes, Newsweek, and hundreds of newspapers, radio, and television stations across the United States.

The company has more than 40 full-time editors spread across New York, Washington, Los Angeles, Mumbai, Vienna, and Nairobi.

FInSMEs

23/06/2021
A federal jury in Pensacola, Fla., on Friday awarded $1.7 million to Lloyd Baker, one of more than 230,000 military personnel or veterans who have sued 3M over allegedly defective earplugs. Pictured is 3M headquarters in Maplewood, Minn. (Anthony Souffle/Star Tribune/TNS)
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Residents are encouraged to get ready for the unexpected with a disaster "go bag." (Contributed photo by Jehovah's Witnesses)
BUTLER COUNTY, Ala (WALA) -- The heartbreak on the highway in Butler County is growing.

We are learning more about 29-year-old Cody Fox and his 9-month-old daughter Ariana who were killed in the I-65 crash on Saturday.

It has hit everybody hard, everybody has been affected by it and overwhelmed by the situation, said Corey Comstock, Fire Chief at South Pittsburg Volunteer Fire Department in Tennessee.

Fox volunteered at the South Pittsburg Volunteer Fire Department. He also volunteered at the Marion County EMA for the last 6 years.

Its hard to lose somebody in the community, but its especially hard to lose somebody as young and full of life and energetic as he is, dedicated to the community, he really loved the community and the whole county, Comstock said.

Saturdays fiery crash north of Greenville was a chaotic scene. At least 17-vehicles were involved.

First responders rushing to the area to try and save as many people as possible. The Burkeville Volunteer Fire Department pulling Fox out using the jaws of life. For those on the call that day, it had a different meaning.

Its more personal as a volunteer out here to help a fellow man, said Dustin Casey, Fire Chief at the Burkeville Volunteer Fire Department.

Codys fiance and Arianas mother, Hayle Anderson was also in the car at the time. She survived the crash.

Comstock says people in the area are coming together to give the family support because they were well known in their Tennessee community.

All of them are willing to jump in and do whatever they needed to do, but its hard to lose somebody like that especially as active as he is, he said.

Funeral arrangements have just been announced. The service will be up in Tennessee on Saturday.

There is also a GoFundMe, you can donate here.
SPARTANBURG, SC (FOX Carolina) - The Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office confirmed Friday that there were two people who died in the multi-agency, officer-involved shooting spree that happened in Spartanburg Thursday afternoon.
Looking for a great franchise attorney? Look no further than the Franchise Times Legal Eagles. After a year of chaos and uncertainty, these exceptional professionals are more necessary than ever.
My Eyelab Signs Agreement to Open Nine New Stores in Alabama with Multi-Unit Franchise Group

Successful My Eyelab Franchisees Investing in More Units in Multiple New Markets

June 23, 2021 // Franchising.com // BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - My Eyelab, a retail brand of Now Optics, announced today it has signed an agreement which will bring nine new franchise stores to Alabama, marking the brands debut in the state. Growth in the coming months will be driven by business partners Zain Attawala and Sagar Panjwani, current My Eyelab franchisees with 17 open locations in the Atlanta, Georgia market. Attawala and Panjwani also signed an agreement to open two additional stores in Atlanta.

The Alabama deal will bring nine new locations to the Birmingham, Huntsville, and Montgomery markets. The new stores will feature an experience focused on convenience and ease with a contemporary design that highlights the latest technology - offering stylish glasses at an affordable price and an experience that makes shopping for prescription eyewear fun and easy.

We feel so grateful to be a part of My Eyelab franchising and were incredibly excited to bring affordable eye care to the people of Alabama, said Zain Attawala, My Eyelab franchisee. The success weve had in Atlanta exceeded our expectations, and with how great the unit economics are combined with low start-up and operational costs, investing further in My Eyelab and expanding our reach into several untapped markets was a no-brainer.

Under the leadership of founder and CEO Daniel Stanton, My Eyelab has led the retail eye care industry in ocular telehealth by leveraging proprietary innovative telehealth technology to provide patients with affordable and convenient eye exams. An assortment of over 2,000 frames to fit both style and budgets allows consumers the ultimate freedom to experiment with unique, stylish designs that fit their personal style. To date, the company has conducted more than 1 million telehealth eye exams, something no other retail eye care franchise can offer.

In addition to Birmingham, Huntsville and Montgomery, My Eyelab recently signed deals to bring locations to the Acworth and Peachtree City areas in Atlanta. The company currently has 62 franchise stores open and is on track to have 70 franchise units operating by year end. The new openings and signings in 2021 so far mark a 40 percent year-to-date growth rate over last year for My Eyelab, with 21 units currently in development.

SOURCE Now Optics

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93% of Security Leaders Do Not Report to the CEO, According to New Research From LogRhythm
The organizers of the 2021 IGF Awards are pleased to announce the host for this years annual show!

This year Innersloth Games Community Director Victoria Tran will be hosting the 2021 Independent Games Festival Award Ceremony.

This year's nominees include Paradise Killer, Teardown, Genesis Noir, and a host of other excellent independently made games.

Were exceptionally pleased to have Tran joining us for this years show.

For a few words from her (and several of our nominees), check out the trailer for the 2021 IGF Awards ceremony, seen below!

The 2021 IGF Awards will be broadcast on July 21st at 4:30PM PST. Attendees of the GDC 2021 Game Developers Conference which will be able to watch the awards for free, along with the 2021 Game Developers Choice Awards.

The 2021 IGF Awards will also be broadcast on the GDC Twitch Channel.

Register for GDC 2021 today and get ready to celebrate this years fantastic indie games!

For more details on GDC 2021 visit the show's official website, or subscribe to regular updates via Facebook, Twitter, or RSS.

Gamasutra and GDC are sibling organizations under Informa Tech




[This unedited press release is made available courtesy of Gamasutra and its partnership with notable game PR-related resource Games Press.]

June 23, 2021 - KEMCO is proud to announce that 3 titles for PlayStation join the Mid-Year Deals on the North American and European PlayStation Store with up to 50% off discount. Alphadia Genesis 30% off (PS+ 10% off)

Engage in intense 3D turn-based battles with beautifully rendered character visuals, vibrant Energi and Break Skills! Characters outside the party can cooperate in various ways through the use of Assists. Not to mention the rest of the huge content packed in one in the well-known RPG saga, immerse yourself in challenging subquests, arena battles, bosses around the world and more!



PS4 Asdivine Dios 40% off

After suddenly losing his magic to a powerful force known as Murk, Izayoi, the deity of Asdivine himself sets off for a globe-spanning journey along with a trio of spirits in an effort to save the very world he created. Yet, despite his disdain for humans and their society, will his companions be able to convince him how similar they and the divine really are?



PS4 Illusion of L'Phalcia 50% off

The Sword of Amal, a legendary treasure said to grant any wish. Ryser is traveling around the world as a seeker with his buddy, Cougar, from the Leopard clan, in search of this artifact of legend. Their journey will lead them into fateful encounters with both allies and rivals only to find a mysterious truth awaiting at the end of their adventure.




[This unedited press release is made available courtesy of Gamasutra and its partnership with notable game PR-related resource Games Press.]

SEATTLE (June 23, 2021) - TiMi Studio Group, a subsidiary of Tencent Games and global video game development and operations team behind major titles like Call of Duty: Mobile, Honor of Kings, the upcoming Pokemon UNITE, and many others, announced today the official opening of TiMi Seattle, a North American office located in one of the worlds premier creative hubs. The team is being led by industry veterans Scott Warner and Rosi Zagorcheva and is tasked with creating an original, AAA, service-driven shooting game for multiple platforms. The team has made considerable progress and is actively adding to its team of 25 and interested candidates can learn more here . The office, scheduled to open later in 2021, is located in Bellevue, Wash., a major technology hub for the Pacific Northwest. The location will feature a state-of-the-art playtest lab to assure the team can consistently leverage player feedback to improve their services. We want to exceed the AAA expectations of players today and this team will have the resources and talent to make it happen, TiMi international director Vincent Gao said. Through collaboration and access to TiMis global resources, this team in Seattle can make AAA console games ready for global audiences on multiple platforms. Since joining TiMi as a design and studio director in May of 2020, Warner has been actively recruiting and the existing team has been working remotely. Warner is a world-renowned game designer who will lead the Seattle team. His prior work in successful franchises, including Battlefield and Halo, helped create several fan favorite titles. Opportunities to have the creative freedom to make new games with the support of a leading development studio like TiMi just is not the norm, Warner said. Usually, the best talent is offered a choice between making another sequel or taking a personal risk to make a smaller-scale game. Zagorcheva joins TiMi following a decorated career at EA, where she most recently served as the head of development and operations for DICE LA studio. Her initial work will be to enable the team to capitalize on the creative freedom the team has to make new experiences for players around the world. Players deserve new and exciting experiences and those come from the best teams, Zagorcheva said. Our opportunity at TiMi gives us the conditions to be an innovative, ambitious and creative team capable of making new and exciting games. As the team grows, Zagorcheva said it will maintain the hybrid, distributed model after the office opens later this year. TiMi Seattle is hiring for a variety of positions including art, design, engineering and production. The new TiMi Los Angeles office will also house some team members who work with the Seattle team. About TiMi Studios Group TiMi Studio Group, a subsidiary of Tencent Games, is a leading global video game development and operations team headquartered in Shenzhen, China, with offices in Los Angeles, Seattle, Shanghai and Chengdu, China. TiMi strives to create high quality, high fidelity and highly accessible games across a wide variety of genres. Founded in 2008, TiMi has developed a string of hit titles including Honor of Kings, Speed Drifters, Saint Seiya: Awakening, CrossFire: Legends, and most recently, Call of Duty: Mobile. TiMi is working on several new titles, including with The Pokemon Company on Pokemon UNITE, the first strategic Pokemon team battle game. To learn more about TiMi, follow @timistudios on Twitter and on LinkedIn .
The Pacific Northwest chlorine shortage, stemming from a plant shutdown in Longview, Washington, so far is having just a minor affect on mid-valley water systems and public pools.

Most city water systems have enough supply in reserve to ride out the shortage, given that officials at the Westlake chemical plant in Longview say they hope to resume production by the end of the month. The plant, which services clients through the Northwest, experienced a major electrical failure.

There is good news for pool operators and users as the weather heats up. The chemical compounds that pools use to treat their water are not related to those produced in Longview and no shortages are foreseen.

The biggest impact so far of the shortage has been in Albany and Corvallis, where city officials are asking the community to voluntarily conserve water through actions such as limiting outdoor use, taking shorter showers, only running full loads of dishes and laundry and using a broom instead of a hose to clean driveways.

Albany water utility superintendent Scott LaRoque said that the city has about a 20-day supply, which he described as in the normal range.
Cordier told his attorney he received an email from the school district saying the draft contract addendum was reviewed by board members during the executive session that preceded the public portion of the June 7 meeting.

Quality journalism doesn't happen without your help Support local news coverage and the people who report it by subscribing to the Albany Democrat-Herald.

State law allows executive sessions, which are closed to the public, only under limited circumstances. While meeting members may come to consensus on a decision during an executive session, making a final decision is not allowed.

"Clearly, the board had to agree to the contract before placing it on the Consent Agenda. That agreement occurred during executive session and no separate, final vote was taken during the regular meeting," Gibson wrote in Cordier's complaint.

"Placing an item on the Consent Agenda in executive session and later passing the Consent Agenda without a vote does not satisfy the final decision requirement," she went on. "The public did not know that Ms. Goff's contract had been extended and that she had been given a raise until June 8, the day after the school board meeting."

GAPS spokesman Andrew Tomsky said Tuesday the district had no comment on Cordier's complaint.
Quality journalism doesn't happen without your help Support local news coverage and the people who report it by subscribing to the Corvallis Gazette-Times.

Jefferson, Klamath and Marion counties moved from high risk to moderate risk in the level ratings issued Tuesday. The new ratings go into effect Friday.

Six counties remain in the high risk level, currently the state's most restrictive: Columbia, Crook, Douglas, Linn, Malheur and Umatilla.

Brown said Clatsop County's cases and rates would have qualified it for high risk level, but the state would allow it a caution week at its current lower risk level ranking in order to try to get its infection rate back down.

Josephine County also met the criteria for high risk, but would be given a caution week at moderate risk to work on dropping its case rates.

As of Friday, 23 counties will be at lower risk, seven at moderate risk and six at high risk.

Polk County became the ninth county to move to the lower risk level regardless of the county's infection rates due to meeting the goal of having 65% of residents with at least one shot of vaccine. It's status is effective immediately.

Brown asked Oregon residents to encourage friends and family to get the vaccine as the best way to protect themselves, their families and communities from COVID-19.
With hearts of gratitude, congregants of Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church, Corvallis, bid a loving farewell to Lisa Boylan, whose faithful service to our community concludes this month.

Lisa, a gifted and acclaimed Oregon pianist and organist, graced our worship services for over 15 years. Her preludes and postludes have touched and thrilled us. She taught new liturgies and complex hymnody with patience and kindness. Enjoying her talents during hundreds of church services has been a blessing beyond measure.

Additionally, four years ago Lisa became the church office manager. Her creativity in matters of church administration provided information with wit and beauty. Church bulletins and newsletters were works of art. Lisas connections with homebound members, responsiveness in handling prayer requests, cooperative spirit with church work groups, and welcoming approach to guests are witness to her loving spirit. We pray all good things for Lisa and husband Brads next adventure.

Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church

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New York, June 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Switzerland Data Center Market - Investment Analysis and Growth Opportunities 2021-2026" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p05934699/?utm_source=GNW





Switzerland is a major and mature data center market, which ranks 12th across the globe in terms of mobile internet speed and 4th in fixed broadband services. The internet penetration in the country is over 95%. Telecommunication service providers, enterprises, government agencies, and cloud and colocation service providers are the major data center investors in Switzerland. IT companies account for over 50% of data center service demand in Switzerland.

The report considers the present scenario of the Switzerland data center market and its market dynamics for the forecast period 2021?2026. It covers a detailed overview of several growth enablers, restraints, and trends in the market. The study includes the demand and supply aspects of the market.



KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF THE REPORT:

 Server systems suitable for machine learning and artificial intelligence workloads are likely to observe growth during the forecast period.

 The adoption of 200/400 GbE ports is likely to increase, significantly impacting data center interconnection solutions.

 Mission-critical and high-performance server systems are likely to dominate the market owing to the increase in IoT-related technology.

 The majority of facilities are built to be Tier III standards, with N+1 redundant configuration across UPS systems.

 In terms of electrical infrastructure, generators with N+1 redundant configuration expect to observe growth during the forecast period.

 Data center operators in Switzerland are to procure generators with at least 48 hours of on-site fuel backup.

 Free cooling techniques and chillers are the most adopted cooling systems in facilities.

 The use of 45U-48U rack units expects to grow during the forecast period; however, 42U rack units are likely to observe a decline.



SWITZERLAND DATA CENTER MARKET INSIGHTS

 The growing demand for smart devices and analytics cloud adoption and the growth of wireless networking technologies have led several Switzerland-based organizations to invest in Big data and IoT technology.

 Over 90% of the population in Switzerland is covered under 5G. The deployment of 5G across the country will enable IoT devices to communicate and share data at a faster speed.

 The adoption of cloud-computing technology in 2020 grew by around 30%. The adoption of cloud computing technology has experienced considerable growth in Switzerland over the last few years.

 The revenue from the public cloud expects to reach over $10 billion by 2026.

 Cities such as Zurich and Geneva lead the colocation market. Zurich is considered one of the largest Tier III colocation markets in Europe.

 The share of wholesale colocation will increase in the coming years, with increased investments by cloud service providers.

 The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the shift from on-premise to colocation facilities by enterprises and the government are increasing the data center service demand.

 The country has a high internet penetration at around 96% of the overall population, with around 7.33 million active mobile internet users.

 Smart city initiatives and 5G deployment will increase the number of connected devices during the forecast period, leading to edge data center deployments across the country.



SWITZERLAND DATA CENTER MARKET VENDOR LANDSCAPE

The Switzerland data center market comprises several IT infrastructure providers, construction contractors, support infrastructure providers, and investors. Vendors have involved a flurry of infrastructure and construction activities. They are at the forefront of several innovations that aim to enhance the operational efficiency of facilities, reduce power consumption, and decrease carbon emissions. Renewable energy sources power multiple hyperscale facilities. The adoption of cloud-based services, big data analytics, and IoT services has been driven by local enterprises, boosting local colocation and managing host services demand in the market.



IT Infrastructure Providers

 Arista Networks

 Atos

 Broadcom

 Cisco Systems

 Dell Technologies

 Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)

 Huawei Technologies

 IBM

 Lenovo

 NetApp



Construction Service Providers

 Arup

 Basler & Hofmann

 cpcm (construction project cost management)

 DPR Construction

 ffbk Architekten

 Gruner

 ISG

 Steiger Concept

 Turner & Townsend



Support Infrastructure Providers

 ABB

 Caterpillar

 Cummins

 Eaton

 KOHLER-SDMO

 Legrand

 Rittal

 Rolls-Royce Power Systems

 Schneider Electric

 Socomec

 STULZ

 Trane Technologies

 Vertiv



Data Center Investors

 Digital Realty

 Equinix

 ewl (energie wasser luzern)

 Green Datacenter

 Safe Host

 Vantage Data Centers



REPORT COVERAGE:

This report on the Switzerland Data Center market offers an elaborative analysis of the existing and upcoming facilities, datacenter investments in terms of IT, electrical, mechanical infrastructure, general construction, and geography. It discusses market sizing and investment estimation for different segments. The segmentation includes:



Existing Vs. Upcoming Data Centers

 Existing Facilities in the region (Area and Power Capacity)

 List of Upcoming Facilities in the region (Area and Power Capacity)



SWITZERLAND DATA CENTER INVESTMENT COVERAGE

 Infrastructure Type

o IT Infrastructure

o Electrical Infrastructure

o Mechanical Infrastructure



 IT Infrastructure

o Server

o Storage

o Network



 Electrical Infrastructure

o Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS)

o Generators

o Transfer Switches and Switchgears

o PDUs

o Other Electrical Infrastructure



 Mechanical Infrastructure

o Cooling Systems

o Rack Cabinets

o Other Mechanical Infrastructure



 General Construction

o Building Development

o Installation & Commissioning Services

o Building Design

o Physical Security

o DCIM



 Tier Segments

o Tier I & Tier II

o Tier III

o Tier IV



 Geography

o Zurich

o Geneva

o Lausanne

o Lucerne

o Wolhusen

o Bern

o Lupfig

o Steinhausen

o Satigny



WHY SHOULD YOU BUY THIS RESEARCH?

 Market size available in the area, power capacity, investment, and colocation revenue.

 An assessment of the investment in Switzerland by colocation, hyperscale, and enterprise operators

 Data center investments in terms of area (square feet) and power capacity (MW) across cities in the country

 A detailed study of the existing market landscape, an in-depth industry analysis, and insightful predictions about the Switzerland data center market size during the forecast period

 Snapshot of existing and upcoming third-party facilities in Switzerland

o Facilities Covered (Existing): 31

o Facilities Identified (Upcoming): 9

o Coverage: Over 11 Regions

o Existing vs. Upcoming (Data Center Area)

o Existing vs. Upcoming (IT Load Capacity)

 Data center colocation market in Switzerland

o Market Revenue & Forecast (2020-2026)

o Retail Colocation Pricing

o Wholesale Colocation Pricing

 Classification of the Switzerland data center market investments into multiple segments and sub-segments (IT, power, cooling, and general construction services) with market sizing and forecast

 A comprehensive analysis of the latest trends, growth rate, potential opportunities, and growth restraints, and market prospects for the industry

 Business overview and product offerings of prominent IT infrastructure providers, construction contractors, support infrastructure providers, and data center investors operating in the market

 A transparent research methodology and the analysis of the demand and supply aspect of the market



KEY QUESTIONS ANSWERED:

1. How big is the Switzerland data center market?

2. What is the number of existing data centers in Switzerland?

3. How many new facilities are expected in Switzerland during the forecast period?

4. What is the growth rate of the Swiss Data Center Colocation Market?

5. Who are the key IT infrastructure players in Switzerland Data Center Market?

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Acumen Research and Consulting, a global provider of market research studies, has recently published a report titled Dental Tweezers Market - Global Industry Analysis, Market Size, Opportunities and Forecast 2021 - 2030 which offers detailed insights on the market entailing insights on its different market segments.

LOS ANGELES, June 22, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dental tweezers help the doctor in placing small objects inside the mouth and in retrieving small objects from the mouth during the surgery of dental care. This dental instrument comes in either locking or non-locking types.

Market Dynamics

Rising number of cases identified with dental issues and request from medical services experts for cutting edge instruments are main considerations expected to drive the development of worldwide dental tweezers market. There is increase in number of patients in medical clinics identified with dental issues. In 2016, there were almost 45,000 new instances of malignant growth of the oral hole and pharynx analyzed in the United States and in excess of 10,000 deaths. Around one-fourth of little youngsters, half of teenagers and over 90% of grown-ups experienced tooth rot. Untreated tooth rot influenced 10% of little youngsters to 26% of grown-ups matured 20-64. Shoppers are spending high in dental consideration.

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The US spends more than US$124 billion on costs identified with dental consideration every year. Accessibility of cutting edge medical care framework to give progressed care and approach towards expanding mindfulness among purchaser identified with oral consideration is relied upon to affect the development of dental tweezers market. Significant players are centered on improving the business through essential securing and organizations. This is relied upon to assist them with expanding the client base and increment the income share which is required to increase the development of dental tweezers market

In 2019, Directa, a worldwide dental item maker gained Golden Dent. The securing was centered on getting the Golden Dent extraction instrument line. The procurement assisted the organization with expanding the item portfolio and increment the income share.

In 2019, Cantel Medical Corp., a worldwide organization committed to conveying imaginative contamination anticipation items and administrations obtained Hu-Friedy Mfg. Co. The obtaining was centered on upgrading the organization item offering. This securing assisted the organization with expanding the income.

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Players are engaged in upgrading the item contributions to draw in clients. Their concentration towards following the undiscovered market in agricultural nations is acquiring foothold. What's more, significant players approach towards presentation of new arrangements and tendency towards item advancement exercises are factors expected to expand the dental tweezers market development. In 2021, Dentsply Sirona, a worldwide dental item maker marked an essential association with 3Shape. The organization centers around a worked with joint effort between 3Shape's intraoral scanner 3Shape TRIOS and Dentsply Sirona's SureSmile Clear Aligners. This is required to help organization in getting worldwide acknowledgment.

Factors, for example, significant expense of assembling related to items and rigid and complex item endorsement measure by the public authority are required to hamper the development of worldwide dental tweezers market. Furthermore, fluctuating crude material costs is affecting the final result which is relied upon to challenge the development of target market.

In any case, expanding venture for R&D exercises by significant players and presentation of inventive arrangements are factors expected to set out new open doors for players working in the dental tweezers market over the estimate time frame. Also, expanding public-private association is required to help the income exchange of the objective market.

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Market Segmentation Analysis

The global dental tweezers market is segmented into product, shape, application, and end use. The product segment is divided into locking type and non-locking type. Among product the locking type segment is expected to account for significant revenue share in the global dental tweezers market. The end use segment is divided into dental clinics, hospitals, and others. The players profiled in the report are A. Schweickhardt, Accesia, Carl Martin GmbH, DEPPELER, Guilin Woodpecker Medical Instrument Co., Ltd, Hu-Friedy, Institut Straumann AG, B. Braun Melsungen AG, PRODONT-HOLLIGER, and Dentsply Sirona.

Regional Analysis

The market in North America is relied upon to represent significant income share in the worldwide dental tweezers market because of high expenditure of customers on dental wellbeing. Moreover, ascend in number of dental medical procedures, accessibility of good repayment approaches and presentation of new items structure players working in the nation are factors expected to affect the development of dental tweezers market.

Competitive Landscape

The worldwide dental tweezers market is profoundly aggressive because of quality of enormous number of players and imaginative item contributions. Moreover, business development exercises through organizations and arrangements are factors expected to additional expansion the opposition.

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San Francisco, June 22, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pipefy, the workflow management software that empowers doers and transforms the way teams work, today announced it was named #1 in G2s Best Business Process Management Software category and a leader in the Best Workflow Management Software category for the Summer 2021 Grid. Pipefy was also recognized in the Best No-Code Development Platforms Software for Enterprise Businesses and Best Low-Code Development Platforms categories.

We are humbled that our users have rated us once again as a leader in G2s BPM and Workflow categories, said Alessio Alionco, Founder and CEO at Pipefy. Our goal at Pipefy is to constantly improve our solutions to empower doers to automate and centralize their work, improve user experience and become more efficient. 

As a citizen developer tool, we certainly hold G2 quarterly grids in high regard, said Ananth Avva, President and COO at Pipefy. Its important for us to be in tune and get unfiltered perspectives with what our customers are looking for in no-code/low-code solutions. Were excited to unveil whats in store for our customers, our partners, and our organization.

Pipefy achieved Leader rankings on the Summer 2021 reports by receiving positive reviews from verified users compared to similar products in the Best Business Process Management Software and Best Workflow Management Software categories. Here how their customers rated them:

95% of users rate Pipefy either 4 or 5 stars.

92% of users would be likely to recommend Pipefy.

91% of users are satisfied with Pipefy's ease of use.

89% of users are satisfied with Pipefy's ease of set-up.

89% of users believe Pipefy is easy to do business with.

The Summer 2021 G2 grid release comes on the heels of three major announcements for Pipefy. In late 2020 they rolled out Pipefy 2.0, a major refresh of their platform, which included such updates as providing users with customized dashboard capabilities, improving the service management experience, new portals for optimized request tracking and the ability to integrate their solution with over 500 apps - from spreadsheets to complex ERPs and legacy systems. More recently they announced two new offers - Forms, a solution that turns smart forms into workflows and Shared Inbox, that enables users to automate responses and improve shared email visibility. A new product focused on databases is expected to launch this fall.

Ranking with G2, the worlds leading business solutions review website, represents the democratic voice of real software users. G2 rates products in each category based on data sourced from product reviews shared by users and data aggregated from online sources and social networks.

To view the G2 Best Business Process Management Software Grid, please visit: https://www.g2.com/gated_content/tokens/dd15def3-6940-4560-9030-a4a940f300aa

To view the G2 Best Workflow Management Software Grid, please visit: https://www.g2.com/gated_content/tokens/2949bd2a-9ebc-4ac9-8c8b-e3665eb4cf26

Share this on social: @Pipefy named a leader in G2s Best Business Process Management Software and Best Workflow Management Software categories. #workflowmanagement #automation #bpm #nocode #citizendeveloper

About Pipefy

Pipefy is the workflow management software that increases team productivity, centralizes data and standardizes processes for teams like Finance, HR, Customer Service, and more so those requesting services, those processing the requests and those managing the operation are more efficient. Through automated workflows and a no/low-code platform, Pipefy enhances speed, increases visibility, and delivers higher quality outcomes with ready-to-use, customizable workflows. Digitally transform your team in a matter of hours, not weeks or months. The company is headquartered in San Francisco, CA. Try Pipefy today!

About G2

G2, the worlds leading business solution review platform, leverages 1M+ user reviews to drive better purchasing decisions. Business professionals, buyers, investors, and analysts use the site to compare and select the best software and services based on peer reviews and synthesized social data. Every month, more than three million people visit G2s site to gain unique insights.

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Coffs Harbour, Australia , June 22, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --

Integrity Franchising, a national residential franchise group based in Australia, has announced the availability of additional Integrity New Homes territories for those who would like to own a profitable local independently-owned licensed building franchise.

For more details, please visit https://www.integrityfranchising.com.au

The latest announcement provides an efficient and effective solution for skilled building and construction professionals who need help with builders licensing requirements, as well as business and management training and software solutions.

Integrity New Home franchisee owners get lifetime exclusive territory rights and can operate their building franchise under the umbrella of the Integrity Franchising license until they can get their license.

Integrity offers new building franchisees the ability to remain competitive by keeping their costs down and systematizing their business operations, which is simply put in their mission statement, We help builders be successful.

With over 1,600 steep and flat block house residential designs on offer, Integrity Franchising has seen rapid growth in new home developments and recognised as one of the most profitable franchises to own in Australia. They achieve increased revenue and profitability through their rapid estimation and construction management software, national supplier and purchasing agreements and ready-made sales and marketing material.

No prior experience or knowledge within the housing or building industry is required to own an Integrity New Homes franchise. With forty franchises already in operation, available locations include Dubbo, Orange and Adelaide. Additionally Mildura, Shepperton and Bendigo are also available as well as Townsville, Mackay, Gladstone, and Darwin.

With the latest announcement, Integrity Franchising continues to invest in high-quality construction management software and building solutions to help new residential building franchise owners improve their service offerings, keep their costs down and increase their revenue.

Interested parties can follow Integrity Franchising via social media at https://www.facebook.com/integrityfranchisingptyltd

A company spokesperson said, You maintain all the benefits of an independent business owner but with the support and resources of a large successful residential building franchise. We guarantee that our building designs, business systems and marketing never stop improving and that if you have a desire to have a building business that is a market leader in your community you will achieve it with our help.

To enquire about available territories visit: https://www.integrityfranchising.com.au or call Glenn Leet on 0428 536 021

Website: https://www.integrityfranchising.com.au/
KANSAS CITY, Mo., June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Vytelle, with their network partners, announce the release of the Top 150 Proven Bulls. These high accuracy bulls have risen to the top of more than 81,000 animals of 25 different breeds and more than 262,000 residual feed intake (RFI) EPDs.



There are two high-stake producer decisions that drive genetic progress in the global cattle industry: mating selection and reproduction method. By publicly sharing this list of feed efficient bulls, were able to assist cattle producers in identifying elite animals that drive a more accurate mating selection, said Kerryann Kocher, Chief Executive Officer for Vytelle. Producers can accelerate genetic progress to meet the global demand for high-quality and nutritious protein by utilizing the most modern hormone-free, in vitro fertilization to multiply offspring from their elite-performing animals.

The 2021 Top 150 Bulls list was compiled using data collected by Vytelle SENSE systems and Vytelle INSIGHT analytics services, formerly known as GrowSafe Systems. All tested animals include at least three generations of pedigrees and all animals must have at least a 0.6 accuracy rating on their RFI EPD to be eligible for the list. Each phenotyped animal strengthens the database providing producers insight to make profit-bearing decisions regarding selection for feed efficiency and performance. With the permission of each network member, Vytelle shares this information publicly to collectively advance feed efficiency improvements across the industry.

Feed is 70 percent of a beef producers total production costs, said Lisa Rumsfeld, Vice President of International Commercial Operation for Vytelle. Whether breeders are looking to impact their direct feed cost, achieve marketing premiums or underpin methane emissions reduction claims with evidence-based metrics this database offers selection possibilities across breeds globally.

Phenotypic data is captured through the use of Vytelle SENSE systems. The Feed Intake Nodes measure feed disappearance every second an animal is feeding, each time an animal feeds, to a 10-gram resolution. The In-Pen Weighing Position measures individual animal partial body weight and growth. It weighs every second an animal is standing at the water trough, which can equate up to 450 weights a day.

To find the full listing of the 2021 Top 150 Proven Bulls, visit https://vytelle.com/breeding-values/.

About Vytelle

Vytelle is a precision livestock company reshaping how cattle producers worldwide optimize their herds. Through Vytelles integrated technology platform, generations of genetic gains can be made in just a few years. This allows producers to sustainably deliver more protein with fewer inputs, helping to ensure meat and milk are viable, competitive food choices for future generations.

Media Contact

Danielle Starr

Global Marketing and Communications Manager

+1 816-886-8363

danielle.starr@vytelle.com

Vytelle.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/0c99216d-b5c8-4e0c-a1cc-36de76ab3196
Pune, India, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The global 5G infrastructure market size is projected to reach USD 80.06 billion by the end of 2027. The presence of several large-scale companies in this sector will emerge in favor of market growth. According to a report published by Fortune Business Insights, titled 5G Infrastructure Market Size, Share & COVID-19 Impact Analysis, By Communication Infrastructure (RAN, Transport Technologies, and Core Technologies), By Spectrum Band (Low Band (<1 GHz), Mid Band (1-6GHz), And High Band (24-40 GHz)), and Regional Forecast, 2020-2027 the market was worth USD 1.25 billion in 2019 and will exhibit a CAGR of 71.0% during the forecast period, 2020-2027.

5G infrastructure is a network that comprises of several small-scale micro base stations. Variations in 5G infrastructure suggestion stand alone and non-standalone have widened the application scope of this concept. The massive investments in 5G infrastructure setups are consequential to the massive potential held by the concept across the world. The presence of several large-scale companies in this sector will emerge in favor of growth of the overall market. Despite the barriers and debates that have raised concerns regarding the implementation of 5G and their impact on human life, the concept will be integrated on a large scale in the coming years. The growing demand for seamless network and internet connectivity will create a massive platform for the companies operating in this network.

Covid-19 Pandemic to Delay Proposed 5G Infrastructures Set-ups

The recent coronavirus outbreak has had a massive impact on several economies across the globe. Due to the rapid spread of the disease, several companies are looking to implement strict measures with a view to controlling the spread of the disease. However, these measures have ultimately proven damaging for businesses that fall in the SME sector. Companies who have been able to seamlessly sustain the effects of the pandemic are mostly large-scale organizations or established businesses. The delays in installation and test procedures during the pandemic is due to the lack of labor and resources; a factor that is consequential to the hesitancy among [people as well as the risks associated with working during the pandemic.

Click here to get the short-term and long-term impact of COVID-19 on this market: https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/industry-reports/5g-infrastructure-market-100869

Increasing Number of Company Mergers will Emerge in Favor of Market Growth

The report encompasses several factors that have contributed to the growth of the overall market in recent years. Accounting to the increasing demand for the product, companies are looking to adopt strategies such as collaborations and mergers with other businesses in this sector with the aim of establishing a strong brand presence. In March 2020, Nokia Network announced that it has collaborated with Intel Corporation for the development of a new 5G radio and cloud infrastructure. Evidently, both the companies have a well-established consumer coverage and brand presence on the global stage. This collaboration will be a statement of intent as far as competition in the 5G infrastructure space is concerned. Increasing number of such large-scale collaborations is a primary factor why this market is projected to exhibit an elliptical CAGR in the coming years.

Asia Pacific to Emerge Dominant; Presence of Several Large Scale 5G Providers will Emerge in Favor of Market Growth

The report analyzes the ongoing market trends across North America, Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East & Africa, and Latin America. Among all regions, the market in Asia Pacific is projected to emerge dominant in the coming years. The presence of numerous large scale 5G providers in countries such as India, China, and Japan will contribute to the growth of the regional market. The rising demand for 5G networks and the constantly rising population in this region will be pivotal to the growth of the regional market. The increasing number of smartphone users has certainly facilitated the implementation of 5G networks in this region. As of 2019, the market in Asia Pacific was worth USD 590.9 million and this value is projected to rise at a considerable pace in the coming years.

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List of the Key Companies Profiled:

 AT&T (California, United States)

 Verizon Ltd. (New York, United States)

 CommScope Inc. (North Carolina, United States)

 Corning Incorporated (New York, United States)

 Nokia Network (Espoo, Finland)

 ZTE Corporation (Shenzhen, China)

 Cisco System, Inc. (California, United States)

 NEC Corporation (Tokyo, Japan)

 Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) (California, United States)

 Belden Inc. (Missouri, United States)

 Dell EMC (Massachusetts, United States)

 Intel Corporation (California, United States)

 Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (Stockholm, Sweden)

 Qualcomm Technologies (California, United States)

 Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Shenzhen, China)

 Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (Seoul, South Korea)

 Fujikura Ltd. (Tokyo, Japan)

 Comba Telecom Systems Holdings Ltd. (Hong Kong)

 Alpha Networks Inc. (Hsinchu, Taiwan)

Quick Buy: 5G Infrastructure Market Research Report: https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/checkout-page/100869

Major Table of Contents:

Introduction Definition, By Segment Research Methodology/Approach Data Sources

Executive Summary

Market Dynamics Macro and Micro Economic Indicators Drivers, Restraints, Opportunities and Trends Impact of COVID-19 Short-term Impact Long-term Impact

Competition Landscape Business Strategies Adopted by Key Players Consolidated SWOT Analysis of Key Players Porters Five Force Analysis Global Market Share Analysis and Matrix, 2019

Key Market Insights and Analysis, By Segments

Companies Profiled (Covered for 10 players only) Overview Key Management Headquarters etc Offerings/Business Segments Key Details (Key details are subjected to data availability in public domain and/or on paid databases) Employee Size Past and Current Revenue Geographical Share Business Segment Share Recent Developments

Annexure Global 5G Infrastructure Market Size Estimates and Forecasts (Quantitative Data), By Segments, 2016-2027 By Communication Infrastructure (Value) RAN (Radio Access Network) C-Ran/V-Ran Small Cell MassiveMIMO Transport Technology Software-Defined Networking (SDN) Network Slicing Core Technology Network Function Virtualization (NFV) Mobile Edge Computing By Spectrum Band (Value) Low Band (<1 GHz) Mid Band (1-6GHz) High Band (24-40GHz) By Region (Value) North America Europe Asia Pacific Middle East & Africa Latin America North America 5G Infrastructure Market Size Estimates and Forecasts (Quantitative Data), By Segments, 2016-2027 By Communication Infrastructure (Value) RAN (Radio Access Network) C-Ran/V-Ran Small Cell MassiveMIMO Transport Technology Software-Defined Networking (SDN) Network Slicing Core Technology Network Function Virtualization (NFV) Mobile Edge Computing By Spectrum Band (Value) Low Band (<1 GHz) Mid Band (1-6GHz) High Band (24-40GHz) By Country (Value) United States Canada Europe 5G Infrastructure Market Size Estimates and Forecasts (Quantitative Data), By Segments, 2016-2027 By Communication Infrastructure (Value) RAN (Radio Access Network) C-Ran/V-Ran Small Cell MassiveMIMO Transport Technology Software-Defined Networking (SDN) Network Slicing Core Technology Network Function Virtualization (NFV) Mobile Edge Computing By Spectrum Band (Value) Low Band (<1 GHz) Mid Band (1-6GHz) High Band (24-40GHz) By Country (Value) U.K. Germany France Italy Spain Rest of Europe Asia Pacific 5G Infrastructure Market Size Estimates and Forecasts (Quantitative Data), By Segments, 2016-2027 By Communication Infrastructure (Value) RAN (Radio Access Network) C-Ran/V-Ran Small Cell MassiveMIMO Transport Technology Software-Defined Networking (SDN) Network Slicing Core Technology Network Function Virtualization (NFV) Mobile Edge Computing By Spectrum Band (Value) Low Band (<1 GHz) Mid Band (1-6GHz) High Band (24-40GHz) By Country (Value) China Japan India South Korea Southeast Asia Rest of Asia Pacific Middle East & Africa 5G Infrastructure Market Size Estimates and Forecasts (Quantitative Data), By Segments, 2016-2027 By Communication Infrastructure (Value) RAN (Radio Access Network) C-Ran/V-Ran Small Cell MassiveMIMO Transport Technology Software-Defined Networking (SDN) Network Slicing Core Technology Network Function Virtualization (NFV) Mobile Edge Computing By Spectrum Band (Value) Low Band (<1 GHz) Mid Band (1-6GHz) High Band (24-40GHz) By Country (Value) GCC South Africa Rest of Middle East and Africa Latin America 5G Infrastructure Market Size Estimates and Forecasts (Quantitative Data), By Segments, 2016-2027 By Communication Infrastructure (Value) RAN (Radio Access Network) C-Ran/V-Ran Small Cell MassiveMIMO Transport Technology Software-Defined Networking (SDN) Network Slicing Core Technology Network Function Virtualization (NFV) Mobile Edge Computing By Spectrum Band (Value) Low Band (<1 GHz) Mid Band (1-6GHz) High Band (24-40GHz) By Country (Value) Brazil Mexico Rest of Latin America



TOC Continued!

Industry Developments:

March 2020  Nokia Network announced that it has collaborated with Intel Corporation for the advancement of 5G New Radio and cloud infrastructure. Through this collaboration, Nokia Network aims to develop custom ASIC solutions to enhance 5G ReefShark radio portfolio.

Speak To Our Analyst: https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/enquiry/speak-to-analyst/5g-infrastructure-market-100869

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Cyber Security Market Size , Share & COVID-19 Impact Analysis, By Component (Solution and Services), By Deployment Type (Cloud and On-Premise), By Enterprise Size (Small & Medium Enterprise and Large Enterprise), By Industry (BFSI, IT and Telecommunications, Retail, Healthcare, Government, Manufacturing, Travel and Transportation, Energy and Utilities and Others) and Regional Forecast, 2021-2028

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Our reports contain a unique mix of tangible insights and qualitative analysis to help companies achieve sustainable growth. Our team of experienced analysts and consultants use industry-leading research tools and techniques to compile comprehensive market studies, interspersed with relevant data.

At Fortune Business Insights, we aim at highlighting the most lucrative growth opportunities for our clients. We therefore offer recommendations, making it easier for them to navigate through technological and market-related changes. Our consulting services are designed to help organizations identify hidden opportunities and understand prevailing competitive challenges.

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First of its kind global analysis of climate risks to cotton production published

By 2040, half of the worlds cotton growing regions will face drastic exposure to high temperatures, changes to water availability, and extreme weather events if carbon emissions stay high

Cotton 2040 initiative calls on industry actors to take urgent, interlinked action on climate adaptation as well as mitigation, with climate justice at the core.



LONDON, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The first ever global analysis of climate risks to global cotton production reveals that runaway climate change could expose half of all global cotton growing regions to high risks from temperature increases, changes to rainfall patterns and extreme weather events by 2040.

Titled Adapting to climate change - physical risk assessment for global cotton production , the analysis was commissioned by the Cotton 2040 initiative, which is facilitated by international sustainability non-profit Forum for the Future and supported by Laudes Foundation. The analysis was conducted by Cotton 2040 partner and climate-risk specialists Acclimatise, part of Willis Towers Watsons Climate and Resilience Hub.

Under a worst-case climate scenario, the analysis highlights that all global cotton growing regions will be exposed to increased risk from at least one climate hazard by 2040. While this increase ranges from very low to very high risk, half of the worlds cotton growing regions will face drastic changes with high or very high-risk exposure to at least one climate hazard.

Other key findings include:

All six highest cotton-producing countries  India, USA, China, Brazil, Pakistan and Turkey  are exposed to increased climate risk, particularly from wildfire, drought and extreme rainfall.

The highest climate risk overall is projected for two regions of the world; northwestern Africa, including northern Sudan and Egypt, and western and southern Asia.

Some regions are set to face high or very high exposure to up to seven climate hazards

Cotton exposure to heat stress (defined as temperatures above 40C) will be an increased risk across 75% of cotton growing regions, with the risk being high or very high across <5% of regions.

40% of global cotton growing regions are projected to experience a decrease in growing season as temperatures increase beyond the optimum temperature range for cotton growing.

Water scarcity and extremes in rainfall, from insufficient in some regions to extreme and more intense in others, will present increased risk for the worlds most productive cotton growing regions. This will add extra pressure to a fibre already under scrutiny for its water footprint, affecting yields and potentially threatening to cause conflict and societal unrest.

Exposure to increased risk from drought will impact ~50% of cotton.

20% of the worlds cotton growing regions will be exposed to increased risk from fluvial flooding by 2040, and 30% of cotton growing regions will be exposed to increased risk from landslides.

All cotton growing regions will be exposed to increased risk from wildfires.

60% of cotton will be exposed to increased risk from damaging wind speeds, and up to 10% will be exposed to increased risk from storms.

Sally Uren, Chief Executive, Forum for the Future, said: This analysis is a wake-up call for the cotton industry, on which much of the apparel sector is currently hugely reliant. In order to build resilience for a highly disrupted and uncertain future, the widespread shifts to sustainable forms of cotton production must be bolstered by ambitious and aligned action to reduce carbon emissions while also preparing the industry to operate in a very different world.

Alastair Baglee, Director, Corporates - Climate & Resilience Hub, Willis Tower Watson, said: As it stands, emission reduction commitments and targets are being missed by the majority of countries, meaning that warming of more than 3C is probable by the end of this century. However successful we are with decarbonisation, we will face decades of unavoidable climate change and disruption. Preparing today is essential if we are to limit the impacts of climate change on society.

Climate change impacts not just cotton but also the inter-connected agriculture system and related supply chains. In order to mitigate these risks, we need to catalyse sector-wide dialogue for proactive changes. Our partnership with Cotton 2040 accelerates this opportunity, said Anita Chester, Head of Materials, Laudes Foundation.

Cotton has a market worth of about $12 bn [1], makes up about 31% of all raw material used in the global textile market with a yearly economic impact of over $600 billion [2] and supports the livelihoods of around 350 million who cultivate or process cotton. Approximately 90% of farmers grow cotton on less than 2 hectares (ha) of land and are located in developing countries, mainly in Central and West Asia, Southeast Asia, and Africa [3].

The global analysis is complemented by an in-depth analysis of physical climate risks and socio-economic vulnerabilities to the cotton value chain in India. This highlights that climate impacts extend beyond direct impacts to cotton production, affecting the entire value chain, including workers involved in harvesting and processing, as well as supply chains.

Allan Williams, General Manager for R&D Investment at the Australian Cotton Research & Development Corporation, said: Cotton growers around the globe are already feeling the impacts of climate change, with direct effects on cotton production, and knock-on effects for the wider cotton value chain. For many, the future looks uncertain. Creating a cotton sector in which people and planet can thrive will require collective, responsible action to drive climate adaptation. But it must happen in a way that ensures that cotton producers and their communities dont get left behind.

Phil Townsend, Senior Technical Manager - Environmental Sustainability, Primark, said: Primark is working hard to scale up its Sustainable Cotton Programme and to accelerate decarbonisation across our supply chain. However, we recognise we need to work with the industry to drive collective action on climate adaptation  while ensuring that cotton producers and their communities dont get left behind. The new data from Cotton 2040 helps us all to understand the climate risks to our supply chains and develop responsible responses.

Investing in climate justice and socio-economic resilience must be at the heart of the cotton sectors efforts, said Dr Uren. Now is the time to proactively plant the seeds for the deep transformation needed to stay below 1.5C and deliver a just, regenerative and resilient global cotton industry.

Methodology

This study provides a high-level analysis of physical climate risks across global cotton growing regions for the 2040s under a high emission scenario (RCP 8.5, equivalent to 4.3C warming by 2081-2100) [4]. This is done by using the latest, internationally recognised climate projections from an ensemble of global circulation models to capture an array of projected climate hazards. These hazards are tailored specifically to cottons key climate sensitivities and thresholds based on a thorough literature review and expert advice. Relative risk scores have been produced for each climate hazard, identifying cotton growing regions exposed to very low to very high climate risk relative.

The climate indicators and climate-related hazards covered were: length of the cotton growing season (effective growing degree days); heat stress; total rainfall during the cotton growing season; extreme rainfall events; long-term drought; short-term drought; fluvial flooding; coastal flooding; damaging winds; storms; wildfire; and landslides.

Access the reports, interactive Climate Risk Explorer tool supporting resources here: https://www.acclimatise.uk.com/collaborations/cotton-2040/

Additional partner quotes

Kai Hughes, Executive Director, International Cotton Advisory Council (ICAC), said: Cotton is the worlds most widely produced natural fibre and touches all of our lives every day. And yet, the cotton sector is currently unprepared for the climate crisis, and many of the pre-existing vulnerabilities and inequalities in its supply chains are likely to be intensified and accelerated. This work by Cotton 2040 is an important step in improving the sectors resilience and making it truly future-fit.

Holly Browne, Principal Consultant in the Sustainable Apparel team at Anthesis Group, said: Despite being one of the worlds leading commodities, the Cotton 2040 report reveals how unprepared the cotton industry is to react to a changing climate. To implement sustainable performance, it is imperative to unite the cotton sector and drive collective action in order to achieve climate goals which work to reduce emissions fast. Anthesis is determined to deliver change in the apparel industry by using this report to support clients in understanding their exposure to these climate risks and drive sustainable impact across resilient supply chains.

Simon Ferrigno, author of the Inside Guide to Cotton and Sustainability 2020, said: Addressing climate change and mitigating its impact on cotton, as this report shows, will not only help the industry meet its climate targets but will also avoid the potentially enormous impact on those who work in the cotton industry, which can also exacerbate global instability. Investing urgently in addressing climate change is a no-brainer for businesses who need dependable supplies of raw material, and for governments who surely do not want more unplanned disruptions to the global economy.

References

[1] and [2] Khan, M.A., Wahid, A., Ahmad, M., Tahir, M.T., Ahmed, M., Ahmad, S. and Hasanuzzaman, M., 2020. World Cotton Production and Consumption: An Overview. In Cotton Production and Uses (pp. 1-7). Springer, Singapore. Available from: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-15-1472-2_1

[3] Vivek Voora, Cristina Larrea, and Steffany Bermudez, 2020. Global Market Report: Cotton. International Institute for Sustainable Development. Available from https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/ssi-global-market-report-cotton.pdf

[4] Collins et al., 2013.

https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/2018/02/WG1AR5_Chapter12_FINAL.pdf Collins, M., R. Knutti, J. Arblaster, J.-L. Dufresne, T. Fichefet, P. Friedlingstein, X. Gao, W.J. Gutowski, T. Johns, G. Krinner, M. Shongwe, C. Tebaldi, A.J. Weaver and M. Wehner, 2013: Long-term Climate Change: Projections, Commitments and Irreversibility. In: Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Stocker, T.F., D. Qin, G.-K. Plattner, M. Tignor, S.K. Allen, J. Boschung, A. Nauels, Y. Xia, V. Bex and P.M. Midgley (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom and New York, NY, USA.

About Cotton 2040

Convened by Forum for the Future with support from Laudes Foundation, Cotton 2040 is a multi-stakeholder initiative to facilitate the shift to a sustainable global cotton industry which is resilient in a changing climate; which uses business models that support sustainable production and livelihoods; and where sustainably produced cotton is the norm. Find out more: https://www.forumforthefuture.org/cotton-2040

The global analysis is made up of two reports published as part of the Cotton 2040 Climate Adaptation workstream. The two studies provide in-depth analysis of physical climate risks and socio-economic vulnerabilities to the cotton value chain in India and the U.S. Both reports, alongside an interactive climate impacts map and supporting resources are available at http://www.acclimatise.uk.com/collaborations/cotton-2040/. Over the next 18 months, Cotton 2040 will bring the sector together to dive deeper into the data, understand implications and identify potential industry responses.

What is sustainable cotton?

The Cotton 2040 initiative defines sustainable cotton as follows: Sustainable cotton is grown and produced in a way that can maintain levels of production with minimal environmental impact, can support viable producer livelihoods and communities, and can do so in the face of long-term ecological constraints and socio-economic pressures.

Defining characteristics of sustainable cotton agreed on by Cotton 2040 partners (and reflected through the Delta Framework of common impact metrics ) encompass social, environmental, and economic sustainability. The overarching objectives are to ensure sustainable cotton farming creates sustainable livelihoods and reduces poverty, protects and restores the environment, and promotes equality and empowerment.

About Forum for the Future

Forum for the Future is a leading international sustainability non-profit. For 25 years weve been working in partnership with business, governments and civil society to accelerate the transformation toward a just and regenerative future. We use our systems change and futures expertise to help tackle critical global challenges: the climate emergency, transforming our food and farming systems, and ensuring supply chains are more resilient and more equitable. We also enable long-term, transformative change by equipping individuals and organisations to act more systemically. Find out more at www.forumforthefuture.org or by following @Forum4theFuture on Twitter.

About Acclimatise

Since November 2020 Acclimatise is wholly owned by leading global advisory, broking and solutions company Willis Towers Watson. The Acclimatise team is now part of Willis Towers Watsons Climate and Resilience Hub (CRH) . The CRH is a market leading centre of climate adaptation expertise, supported by the Willis Research Network, a network of more than 60 organisations in science, academia, think tanks and the private sector working to improve the understanding and quantification of risk, with the aim to improve the resilience of our clients and society as a whole.

About Willis Towers Watson

Willis Towers Watson (NASDAQ: WLTW) is a leading global advisory, broking and solutions company that helps clients around the world turn risk into a path for growth. With roots dating to 1828, Willis Towers Watson has 45,000 employees serving more than 140 countries and markets. We design and deliver solutions that manage risk, optimize benefits, cultivate talent, and expand the power of capital to protect and strengthen institutions and individuals. Our unique perspective allows us to see the critical intersections between talent, assets and ideas  the dynamic formula that drives business performance. Together, we unlock potential. Learn more at willistowerswatson.com.

Media contacts

Andrew Collis +44 (0) 7932 725267 | andrew@acolliscommunications.com

Ulrike Stein | U.Stein@Forumforthefuture.Org
Sydney, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Proactive, provider of real-time news and video interviews on growth companies listed in Australia, has covered the following companies:

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Auroch Minerals Ltd (ASX:AOU) plans to undertake a 3,000-metre drill program at its Nepean Nickel Project near Coolgardie in Western Australia starting in late July. Click here

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Latitude Consolidated Ltd (ASX:LCD) (FRA:1KX) has received further strong gold assay results from the Phase 1 drill program underway at the Murchison Gold Project in Western Australia. Click here

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Calima Energy Ltd (ASX:CE1) (OTCMKTS:RLTOF) (FRA:R1Y) has added debt and equity market, mergers and acquisitions, joint venture management and operational experience to its executive team with the appointment of Mark Freeman as finance director. Click here

White Rock Minerals Ltd (ASX:WRM) (OTMKTS:WRMCF) and AuStar Gold Ltd (ASX:AUL) are one step closer to merging after the Federal Court of Australia approved the despatch of AuStars scheme booklet. Click here

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New York, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Global Alarm Monitoring Industry" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p087370/?utm_source=GNW

Security systems are currently a vital component in the safety and security plans of homeowners and organizations across the globe. Incremental technology development induced rise in product sophistication, and fall in prices have additionally helped expand demand in the market. The market has also benefited from the rising frequency of terrorist attacks, and the resultant increases in government expenditures on public safety. With businesses prioritizing safety and security of physical assets, it`s opportunities galore in the market in the upcoming years. The growing realization of the fact that alarm monitoring systems/services have a relatively faster and higher return on investment than employing manned guards also bodes well for the market.



- Amid the COVID-19 crisis, the global market for Alarm Monitoring estimated at US$43.7 Billion in the year 2020, is projected to reach a revised size of US$57.7 Billion by 2026, growing at a CAGR of 4.8% over the analysis period. Software, Services & Solutions, one of the segments analyzed in the report, is projected to grow at a 5.2% CAGR to reach US$38.3 Billion by the end of the analysis period. After a thorough analysis of the business implications of the pandemic and its induced economic crisis, growth in the Systems & Hardware segment is readjusted to a revised 4.3% CAGR for the next 7-year period. This segment currently accounts for a 38.5% share of the global Alarm Monitoring market.



- The U.S. Market is Estimated at $17.1 Billion in 2021, While China is Forecast to Reach $6.3 Billion by 2026



- The Alarm Monitoring market in the U.S. is estimated at US$17.1 Billion in the year 2021. The country currently accounts for a 38.45% share in the global market. China, the world second largest economy, is forecast to reach an estimated market size of US$6.3 Billion in the year 2026 trailing a CAGR of 6.8% through the analysis period. Among the other noteworthy geographic markets are Japan and Canada, each forecast to grow at 3.3% and 4.7% respectively over the analysis period. Within Europe, Germany is forecast to grow at approximately 3.9% CAGR while Rest of European market (as defined in the study) will reach US$6.9 Billion by the close of the analysis period.



- Software, solutions and services represent major source of income, as companies generate regular streams of revenues through monitoring fees that is charged on a monthly basis. Most companies do not charge for equipment and installation in order to widen their customer-base. With respect to communication technologies used for existing alarm monitoring systems, the wired telecommunication network dominates the alarm monitoring market, owing to the reliability of this communication technology. And, of all the end-use applications, the market remains the largest for building alarm monitoring systems, of which residential buildings comprise a major part.



Wired Telecommunication Network Segment to Reach $26.5 Billion by 2026



- Global Wired Telecommunication Network segment is estimated at US$20.2 Billion in 2020, and is projected to reach US$26.5 Billion by 2026 reflecting a compounded annual growth rate of 4.8% over the analysis period. United States constitutes the largest regional market for Wired Telecommunication Network segment, accounting for 35.7% of the global sales in 2020. China is poised to register the fastest compounded annual growth rate of 6.7% over the analysis period, to reach US$3.5 Billion by 2026.

Select Competitors (Total 269 Featured)



Ademco (Far East) Pte Ltd.

ADT LLC

Bosch Security Systems

Chubb Community Care

G4S PLC

Global Security Solutions

Guardian Protection Services, Inc.

Honeywell Access

Honeywell International, Inc.

ISONAS

Johnson Controls International Plc

MONI Smart Security

Prosegur compania de Seguridad

Secom Co., Ltd.

Securitas AB

Slomin`s, Inc.

Stanley Convergent Security Solutions, Inc.

Swann Communications Pty. Ltd.

UTC Climate

Vector Security, Inc.

Verisure Holding AB

Vivint, Inc.







Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p087370/?utm_source=GNW



CONTENTS



I. METHODOLOGY



II. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY



1. MARKET OVERVIEW

Impact of COVID-19 and a Looming Global Recession

EXHIBIT 1: COVID-19 Leaves the World in Shambles & Industries

and Markets Upended: World Economic Growth Projections (Real

GDP, Annual % Change) for 2019E to 2022F

COVID-19 Pandemic Drives Down Demand for Security Solutions and

Alarm Monitoring Business

An Introduction to Alarm Monitoring

Central Station (Alarm Monitoring Center)

How Does Alarm Monitoring Work?

Technology in Use

Note on Alarm Monitoring Software

Alarm Monitoring - A Prelude

Global Market Prospects & Outlook

EXHIBIT 2: World Alarm Monitoring Market by Application (2020 &

2027): Percentage Breakdown of Revenues for Building Alarm

Monitoring, Equipment Monitoring, Vehicle Alarm Monitoring,

and Environmental Monitoring

North America: A Strong R&D Base for Alarm Monitoring

EXHIBIT 3: World Alarm Monitoring Market by Region (2020 &

2027): Percentage Breakdown of Revenues for Developed and

Developing Regions

Developing Markets to Turbo Charge Future Growth in the Market

EXHIBIT 4: Global Alarm Monitoring Market: Geographic Regions

Ranked by CAGR (Value) for 2020-2027: China, Asia-Pacific,

Latin America, Middle East, Africa, USA, Canada, Europe, and

Japan

Alarm Monitoring in Commercial Sector Gains Share

Attractive Discounts Attract Customers to Insurance Policies

Widespread Consumer Awareness: A Crucible for Success

False Alarms: Major Deterrent for Alarm Monitoring Systems

Adoption

Competitive Scenario

Alarm Monitoring Lures IT and Telecom Companies

Recent Market Activity

Select Global Brands



2. FOCUS ON SELECT PLAYERS



3. MARKET TRENDS & DRIVERS

Growing Importance of Electronic Security Systems Creates

Fertile Ground for Alarm Monitoring Market

Surge in Crime Rates Propels Uptake of Alarm Monitoring Solutions

Smart Homes & Home Automation Unveil New Opportunities

EXHIBIT 5: Global Smart Homes Market by Category in US$ Billion

for the Years 2020 and 2022

EXHIBIT 6: Number of Smart Homes in Select Countries

(in Thousands) for the Years 2015 & 2020

Remote Activation of Intelligent Home Alarm Systems

Cloud-Based Home Security Solutions Gain Demand

Security in Smart Cities Receives Undivided Focus

EXHIBIT 7: Number of Smart Cities Worldwide (2013-2020)

EXHIBIT 8: Number of Smart Cities Worldwide by Geographic

Region (2025)

Burglar Alarms Market: Growing Need to Safeguard Assets and

People Drives Growth

Burglar Alarm Systems Market Gains from Technological Advancements

Building Codes & Feature Rich Models Sustain Momentum in Fire

Alarms Domain

A Review of Current Trends in the Fire Alarm Systems Market

Product Innovation Paves the Way for Advanced and Sophisticated

Services

New Technologies Influence Design & Functioning of Alarm Systems

Modern Mobile Devices Augment Alarm Monitoring Ecosystem

EXHIBIT 9: Global Market for Smartphones in Billions: 2016-2021

EXHIBIT 10: Smartphone Penetration Rate as Share of Total

Population: 2016-2021

EXHIBIT 11: World Tablet PCs Market: Breakdown of Annual Volume

Sales (in Million Units) for the Years 2013, 2018 & 2019

Outdoor Alarms Facilitate Mobility

Wireless Alarm Monitoring Continues to Make Big Gains

PERS to Become an Integral Part of Aging-in-Place Solutions

Advanced Technologies to Foster PERS Adoption

mPERS Seeks Mainstream Role

Speech-Triggered Alarms: Simplify Usage

Reimbursement Scenario Calls for Attention

Alarm Management Dashboards Enable Quick and Easy Data Access

Remote Video Monitoring Services Grow in Demand

Trends in the Construction Industry Influence Market Uptake

EXHIBIT 12: World Construction Industry (in US$ Trillion) for

the Years 2020, 2021 & 2022

EXHIBIT 13: Global Infrastructure Spending in US$ Billion:

(2014, 2016, 2018, 2020 & 2022)

EXHIBIT 14: Global Infrastructure Spending Estimates by Sector

(2015-2030) (in US$ Trillion)

Urbanization Steers Momentum in the Alarm Monitoring Market

EXHIBIT 15: World Urban Population in Million and as Percentage

of Total Population for the Period 1950-2050

EXHIBIT 16: Degree of Urbanization Worldwide: Urban Population

as a % of Total Population by Geographic Region for the Years

1990, 2014 & 2050

Burgeoning Middle Class Population Spurs Market Growth

EXHIBIT 17: Global Middle Class Population (in Millions) and as

a Percentage of Total Population: 2005, 2015, 2025 & 2035

Aging Population: The Fastest Growing Demographic

EXHIBIT 18: Global Population Statistics for the 65+ Age Group

in Million by Geographic Region for the Years 2019, 2025, 2035

and 2050

EXHIBIT 19: Elderly Population (65+ Years) as a % of Total

Population by Developed, Less Developed and Least Developed

Regions: 2019 & 2030

False Alarms: A Challenge to Reckon With

Growing Competition from Substitute Technologies Niggle Prospects

High Costs Remain a Major Issue

Low Awareness Levels Hamper Uptake

Downward Pressure on Selling Prices Impacts the Market



4. GLOBAL MARKET PERSPECTIVE

Table 1: World Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring

by Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe,

Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 2: World Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe,

Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 3: World 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Geographic Region - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for

USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America,

Middle East and Africa Markets for Years 2012, 2020 & 2027



Table 4: World Current & Future Analysis for Software, Services &

Solutions by Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China,

Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa

Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 5: World Historic Review for Software, Services &

Solutions by Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China,

Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa

Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 6: World 15-Year Perspective for Software, Services &

Solutions by Geographic Region - Percentage Breakdown of Value

Revenues for USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe, Asia-Pacific,

Latin America, Middle East and Africa for Years 2012, 2020 &

2027



Table 7: World Current & Future Analysis for Systems & Hardware

by Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe,

Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 8: World Historic Review for Systems & Hardware by

Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe,

Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 9: World 15-Year Perspective for Systems & Hardware by

Geographic Region - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for

USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America,

Middle East and Africa for Years 2012, 2020 & 2027



Table 10: World Current & Future Analysis for Wired

Telecommunication Network by Geographic Region - USA, Canada,

Japan, China, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East

and Africa Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in

US$ Thousand for Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 11: World Historic Review for Wired Telecommunication

Network by Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China,

Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa

Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 12: World 15-Year Perspective for Wired Telecommunication

Network by Geographic Region - Percentage Breakdown of Value

Revenues for USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe, Asia-Pacific,

Latin America, Middle East and Africa for Years 2012, 2020 &

2027



Table 13: World Current & Future Analysis for Cellular Wireless

Network by Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China,

Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa

Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 14: World Historic Review for Cellular Wireless Network

by Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe,

Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 15: World 15-Year Perspective for Cellular Wireless

Network by Geographic Region - Percentage Breakdown of Value

Revenues for USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe, Asia-Pacific,

Latin America, Middle East and Africa for Years 2012, 2020 &

2027



Table 16: World Current & Future Analysis for Wireless Radio

Network by Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China,

Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa

Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 17: World Historic Review for Wireless Radio Network by

Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe,

Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 18: World 15-Year Perspective for Wireless Radio Network

by Geographic Region - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues

for USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin

America, Middle East and Africa for Years 2012, 2020 & 2027



Table 19: World Current & Future Analysis for IP Network by

Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe,

Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 20: World Historic Review for IP Network by Geographic

Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin

America, Middle East and Africa Markets - Independent Analysis

of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for Years 2012 through 2019

and % CAGR



Table 21: World 15-Year Perspective for IP Network by

Geographic Region - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for

USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America,

Middle East and Africa for Years 2012, 2020 & 2027



Table 22: World Current & Future Analysis for Building Alarm

Monitoring by Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China,

Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa

Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 23: World Historic Review for Building Alarm Monitoring

by Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe,

Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 24: World 15-Year Perspective for Building Alarm

Monitoring by Geographic Region - Percentage Breakdown of Value

Revenues for USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe, Asia-Pacific,

Latin America, Middle East and Africa for Years 2012, 2020 &

2027



Table 25: World Current & Future Analysis for Equipment

Monitoring by Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China,

Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa

Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 26: World Historic Review for Equipment Monitoring by

Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe,

Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 27: World 15-Year Perspective for Equipment Monitoring by

Geographic Region - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for

USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America,

Middle East and Africa for Years 2012, 2020 & 2027



Table 28: World Current & Future Analysis for Vehicle Alarm

Monitoring by Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China,

Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa

Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 29: World Historic Review for Vehicle Alarm Monitoring by

Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe,

Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 30: World 15-Year Perspective for Vehicle Alarm

Monitoring by Geographic Region - Percentage Breakdown of Value

Revenues for USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe, Asia-Pacific,

Latin America, Middle East and Africa for Years 2012, 2020 &

2027



Table 31: World Current & Future Analysis for Environmental

Monitoring by Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China,

Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa

Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 32: World Historic Review for Environmental Monitoring by

Geographic Region - USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe,

Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 33: World 15-Year Perspective for Environmental

Monitoring by Geographic Region - Percentage Breakdown of Value

Revenues for USA, Canada, Japan, China, Europe, Asia-Pacific,

Latin America, Middle East and Africa for Years 2012, 2020 &

2027



III. MARKET ANALYSIS



UNITED STATES

Market Overview

Residential Sector: Growing Use of Security Systems

EXHIBIT 20: US Electronic Security Systems Market by End-Use:

(2021E): Percentage Breakdown of Revenues for Residential and

Non-Residential

High Priority for Fire Alarm Monitoring Systems

IP-based Home Monitoring Services: On the Rise

Integrated Remote Monitoring and Control to Replace

Conventional One-Way Systems in Residential Security

Carbon Monoxide Alarm Installations Made Mandatory in California

Replacement of CO alarms in New York

US Commercial Monitoring Market

A Snapshot of American PERS Market Opportunity

Bright Future on the Cards

Aging Population: A Key Driving Factor

EXHIBIT 21: Population of the US (2010, 2030 & 2050):

Percentage Breakdown by Age Groups - Under 18, 18-64 years &

65+ years

Rising Costs of Patient Falls to Drive Adoption of PERS

mPERS: Transforming Elderly Care Provision

Service Bundling: A Likely Trend in Future

Combating Challenges Posed by False Alarms against Security

Systems Malfunction

US Construction Sector: A Brief Review

EXHIBIT 22: US Monthly Construction Spending in US$ Billion:

Dec 2019-November 2020

EXHIBIT 23: US New Construction Starts in US$ Billion by

Sector: 2020

EXHIBIT 24: Housing Starts in US in Thousands: 2015-2019

EXHIBIT 25: Housing Starts in US: Jan-Oct 2020

EXHIBIT 26: Percentage Change in Construction Starts by Select

States: 1H2020 Vs 1H2019

Competitive Landscape

EXHIBIT 27: Leading Players in the US Security Market (2019E):

Percentage Breakdown of Revenues by Company

Market Analytics

Table 34: USA Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring by

Offering - Software, Services & Solutions and Systems &

Hardware - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for the Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 35: USA Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by Offering -

Software, Services & Solutions and Systems & Hardware Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 36: USA 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Offering - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for Software,

Services & Solutions and Systems & Hardware for the Years 2012,

2020 & 2027



Table 37: USA Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring by

Technology - Wired Telecommunication Network, Cellular Wireless

Network, Wireless Radio Network and IP Network - Independent

Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for the Years 2020

through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 38: USA Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Technology - Wired Telecommunication Network, Cellular Wireless

Network, Wireless Radio Network and IP Network Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 39: USA 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Technology - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for Wired

Telecommunication Network, Cellular Wireless Network, Wireless

Radio Network and IP Network for the Years 2012, 2020 & 2027



Table 40: USA Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring by

Application - Building Alarm Monitoring, Equipment Monitoring,

Vehicle Alarm Monitoring and Environmental Monitoring -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for the

Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 41: USA Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Application - Building Alarm Monitoring, Equipment Monitoring,

Vehicle Alarm Monitoring and Environmental Monitoring Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 42: USA 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Application - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for

Building Alarm Monitoring, Equipment Monitoring, Vehicle Alarm

Monitoring and Environmental Monitoring for the Years 2012,

2020 & 2027



CANADA

Construction Market: An Insight

EXHIBIT 28: Housing Market in Canada (2010-2019): Breakdown of

Number of Housing Starts in Thousands

Market Analytics

Table 43: Canada Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring

by Offering - Software, Services & Solutions and Systems &

Hardware - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for the Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 44: Canada Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Offering - Software, Services & Solutions and Systems &

Hardware Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in

US$ Thousand for Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 45: Canada 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Offering - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for Software,

Services & Solutions and Systems & Hardware for the Years 2012,

2020 & 2027



Table 46: Canada Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring

by Technology - Wired Telecommunication Network, Cellular

Wireless Network, Wireless Radio Network and IP Network -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for the

Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 47: Canada Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Technology - Wired Telecommunication Network, Cellular Wireless

Network, Wireless Radio Network and IP Network Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 48: Canada 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Technology - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for Wired

Telecommunication Network, Cellular Wireless Network, Wireless

Radio Network and IP Network for the Years 2012, 2020 & 2027



Table 49: Canada Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring

by Application - Building Alarm Monitoring, Equipment

Monitoring, Vehicle Alarm Monitoring and Environmental

Monitoring - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for the Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 50: Canada Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Application - Building Alarm Monitoring, Equipment Monitoring,

Vehicle Alarm Monitoring and Environmental Monitoring Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 51: Canada 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Application - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for

Building Alarm Monitoring, Equipment Monitoring, Vehicle Alarm

Monitoring and Environmental Monitoring for the Years 2012,

2020 & 2027



JAPAN

Market Overview

Market Analytics

Table 52: Japan Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring

by Offering - Software, Services & Solutions and Systems &

Hardware - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for the Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 53: Japan Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Offering - Software, Services & Solutions and Systems &

Hardware Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in

US$ Thousand for Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 54: Japan 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Offering - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for Software,

Services & Solutions and Systems & Hardware for the Years 2012,

2020 & 2027



Table 55: Japan Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring

by Technology - Wired Telecommunication Network, Cellular

Wireless Network, Wireless Radio Network and IP Network -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for the

Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 56: Japan Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Technology - Wired Telecommunication Network, Cellular Wireless

Network, Wireless Radio Network and IP Network Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 57: Japan 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Technology - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for Wired

Telecommunication Network, Cellular Wireless Network, Wireless

Radio Network and IP Network for the Years 2012, 2020 & 2027



Table 58: Japan Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring

by Application - Building Alarm Monitoring, Equipment

Monitoring, Vehicle Alarm Monitoring and Environmental

Monitoring - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for the Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 59: Japan Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Application - Building Alarm Monitoring, Equipment Monitoring,

Vehicle Alarm Monitoring and Environmental Monitoring Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 60: Japan 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Application - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for

Building Alarm Monitoring, Equipment Monitoring, Vehicle Alarm

Monitoring and Environmental Monitoring for the Years 2012,

2020 & 2027



CHINA

Brief Overview

Market Analytics

Table 61: China Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring

by Offering - Software, Services & Solutions and Systems &

Hardware - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for the Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 62: China Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Offering - Software, Services & Solutions and Systems &

Hardware Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in

US$ Thousand for Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 63: China 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Offering - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for Software,

Services & Solutions and Systems & Hardware for the Years 2012,

2020 & 2027



Table 64: China Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring

by Technology - Wired Telecommunication Network, Cellular

Wireless Network, Wireless Radio Network and IP Network -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for the

Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 65: China Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Technology - Wired Telecommunication Network, Cellular Wireless

Network, Wireless Radio Network and IP Network Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 66: China 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Technology - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for Wired

Telecommunication Network, Cellular Wireless Network, Wireless

Radio Network and IP Network for the Years 2012, 2020 & 2027



Table 67: China Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring

by Application - Building Alarm Monitoring, Equipment

Monitoring, Vehicle Alarm Monitoring and Environmental

Monitoring - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for the Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 68: China Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Application - Building Alarm Monitoring, Equipment Monitoring,

Vehicle Alarm Monitoring and Environmental Monitoring Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 69: China 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Application - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for

Building Alarm Monitoring, Equipment Monitoring, Vehicle Alarm

Monitoring and Environmental Monitoring for the Years 2012,

2020 & 2027



EUROPE

Market Overview

Construction Industry in Europe: A Brief Review

PERS Market Bodes Healthy Prospects

Market Analytics

Table 70: Europe Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring

by Geographic Region - France, Germany, Italy, UK, Spain,

Russia and Rest of Europe Markets - Independent Analysis of

Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for Years 2020 through 2027 and

% CAGR



Table 71: Europe Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Geographic Region - France, Germany, Italy, UK, Spain, Russia

and Rest of Europe Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual

Revenues in US$ Thousand for Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 72: Europe 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Geographic Region - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for

France, Germany, Italy, UK, Spain, Russia and Rest of Europe

Markets for Years 2012, 2020 & 2027



Table 73: Europe Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring

by Offering - Software, Services & Solutions and Systems &

Hardware - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for the Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 74: Europe Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Offering - Software, Services & Solutions and Systems &

Hardware Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in

US$ Thousand for Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 75: Europe 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Offering - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for Software,

Services & Solutions and Systems & Hardware for the Years 2012,

2020 & 2027



Table 76: Europe Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring

by Technology - Wired Telecommunication Network, Cellular

Wireless Network, Wireless Radio Network and IP Network -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for the

Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 77: Europe Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Technology - Wired Telecommunication Network, Cellular Wireless

Network, Wireless Radio Network and IP Network Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 78: Europe 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Technology - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for Wired

Telecommunication Network, Cellular Wireless Network, Wireless

Radio Network and IP Network for the Years 2012, 2020 & 2027



Table 79: Europe Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring

by Application - Building Alarm Monitoring, Equipment

Monitoring, Vehicle Alarm Monitoring and Environmental

Monitoring - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for the Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 80: Europe Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Application - Building Alarm Monitoring, Equipment Monitoring,

Vehicle Alarm Monitoring and Environmental Monitoring Markets -

Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$ Thousand for

Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 81: Europe 15-Year Perspective for Alarm Monitoring by

Application - Percentage Breakdown of Value Revenues for

Building Alarm Monitoring, Equipment Monitoring, Vehicle Alarm

Monitoring and Environmental Monitoring for the Years 2012,

2020 & 2027



FRANCE

Table 82: France Current & Future Analysis for Alarm Monitoring

by Offering - Software, Services & Solutions and Systems &

Hardware - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in US$

Thousand for the Years 2020 through 2027 and % CAGR



Table 83: France Historic Review for Alarm Monitoring by

Offering - Software, Services & Solutions and Systems &

Hardware Markets - Independent Analysis of Annual Revenues in

US$ Thousand for Years 2012 through 2019 and % CAGR



Table 84: France 15-Year

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__________________________
Toronto, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Even after a year of unprecedented and continuing disruption to workplaces everywhere, both Canadian and U.S. employees give their employers strong marks for their management during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new North American study.

In the Argyle Public Relationships Index, a Leger survey conducted for Argyle, a leading North American engagement, communication and reputation advisory firm, 77 percent of Canadians and 83 percent of Americans agree that my employer has managed the COVID-19 crisis well, compared with just 19 percent and 1 percent who disagree in the respective countries.

Whether youre confronting the complexities of a virtual workplace or the stressful safety protocols of a physical one, the pandemic has turned the working world upside down, said Argyle CEO Daniel Tisch. As employers and employees navigate and negotiate whatever comes next, they do so on a surprisingly strong foundation of respect and trust.

IT, manufacturing sectors lead; construction, accommodation and food service lag in Canada

In Canada, workers in the information and communications technology sector give their employers the strongest vote of confidence for pandemic performance (95 percent agree), followed by manufacturing (89 percent), finance and insurance (83 percent), retail, wholesale and real estate (81 percent), and professional services (78 percent).

Employees in the health care and social assistance sector mirrored the national average, with 77 percent agreement. Lower scores came from workers in construction (64 percent), accommodation and food services (67 percent) and transportation and warehousing (69 percent).

While we expected the tech, finance and professional services sectors to do well because of lower safety risks, the high satisfaction of manufacturing and retail workers shows that overcoming adversity together can often create a stronger bond, said Dave Scholz Legers Executive Vice President.

Employee/employer relationships improve across the board

Using Argyles six research-tested dimensions of a healthy relationship, Canadians give their employers similar or slightly higher marks than when the survey was last conducted in March 2020, although most results are within the margin of error:

72 percent are satisfied with their employer (27 percent strongly agree), the same as a year ago. 71 percent agree their employer takes care of people who work here (28 percent strongly agree), up two percent from 2020. 70 percent trust their employer (27 percent strongly), up two percent. 65 percent agree their employer is committed to meeting my expectations (22 percent strongly agree), up two percent. 61 percent agree their employer is concerned about people like me (24 percent strongly agree), down from 65 percent. 44 percent believe they can influence their employers decisions or direction (12 percent strongly), up five percent.

The weakest finding for employers is also their greatest opportunity: engaging employees about the future  and giving them some visible influence on the decisions you make today, Tisch said. While higher turnover is inevitable after such as stressful year, those who invest in these essential relationships will inevitably be better positioned for renewed growth.

Interestingly, the data suggest Americans have even stronger relationships with their employers, exceeding the scores Canadians give their employers on every metric.

About the study

The Argyle Public Relationships Index is based on a survey of 934 employed Canadians and 548 employed Americans, completed between April 30-May 2, 2021, using Legers online panel. Legers online panel has approximately 400,000 members and a retention rate of 90%. No margin of error can be associated with a non-probability sample (i.e. a web panel in this case). For comparative purposes, though, a probability sample of 934 respondents would have a margin of error of +/- 3.2%, 19 times out of 20. A probability sample of 548 respondents would have a margin of error of +/- 4.2%, 19 times out of 20.

Public relations research suggests there are six dimensions of relationships between organizations and their internal or external publics: trust; satisfaction; perceived commitment to meet expectations; caring for those with whom you work or do business (exchange relationship); concern for people like me (communal relationship); and peoples perception of their ability to influence the organization. Argyle expresses its appreciation to Dr. Alex Sevigny of McMaster University for his counsel in the development of the model for this ongoing research.

About Argyle (www.argylepr.com)

For 40 years, Argyle has been chosen by the worlds biggest brands, put big ideas onto the public agenda, and grown to become one of Canadas largest and most acclaimed communications and public engagement firms. Argyles clients span many sectors, including finance, technology, health care, agri-food, travel, professional services, infrastructure, government, non-profits and many more.

Argyle has more than 120 full-time employees in Toronto, Vancouver, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary, Victoria, Ottawa, and Washington, D.C., with affiliates in Montreal and Quebec City, and in more than 40 countries around the world.

About Leger

Leger is Canadas largest independent full-service research firm, with over 600 employees in Montreal, Quebec City, Toronto, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary, and Vancouver in Canada, and Philadelphia in the United States. The LEO (Leger Opinion) panel is the largest Canadian panel with over 400,000 representative panelists from all regions of Canada. Leo was created by Leger based on a representative Canadian sample of Canadian citizens with Internet access.

Poll aggregator 338Canada.com gave Leger the highest rating among all polling firms in Canada for the accuracy of its studies. See https://338canada.com/pollster-ratings.htm.

Attachments
Washington, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Even after a year of unprecedented and continuing disruption to workplaces everywhere, U.S. employees give their employers strong marks for their management during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new North American study.

In the Argyle Public Relationships Index, a Leger survey conducted for Argyle, a leading North American reputation, communication, engagement advisory firm, 83 percent of Americans and 77 percent of Canadians agree that my employer has managed the COVID-19 crisis well, compared with just 13 percent and 19 percent who disagree in the respective countries.

Whether youre confronting the complexities of a virtual workplace or the stressful safety protocols of a physical one, the pandemic has turned the working world upside down, said Argyle CEO Daniel Tisch. As employers and employees navigate and negotiate whatever comes next, they do so on a surprisingly strong foundation of respect and trust.

IT, finance & insurance sectors lead the way

American workers in the information and communications technology sector give their employers the strongest vote of confidence for pandemic performance, with 91 percent agreeing their employer had managed the COVID-19 crisis well. The finance and insurance sector was closely behind at 88 percent, followed by government/non-profit (81 percent), and educational services (80 percent).

While sectors with greater safety risks performed less strongly, ratings of employers were nonetheless high in retail (78 percent), manufacturing (77 percent) and health care and social assistance (76 percent).

Employee/employer relationships strong across the board

The data reflect a larger trend showing the strength of Americans relationships with their employers. In Argyles six research-tested most dimensions of a healthy relationship, Americans give their employers high marks in all but one category:

80 percent of Americans are satisfied with their employer (40 percent strongly agree), compared to 72 percent in Canada. 77 percent agree their employer takes care of people who work here (36 percent strongly agree) compared to 71 percent in Canada. 76 percent trust their employer (38 percent strongly), compared to 70% in Canada. 70 percent agree their employer is committed to meeting my expectations (31 percent strongly agree), compared to 65 percent in Canada. 69 percent agree their employer is concerned about people like me (32 percent strongly agree), compared to 61 percent in Canada. 54 percent believe they can influence their employers decisions or direction (12 percent strongly), compared to 44 percent in Canada.

The weakest finding for employers is also their greatest opportunity: engaging employees about the future  and giving them some visible influence on the decisions you make today, Tisch said. While higher turnover is inevitable after such as stressful year, those who invest in these essential relationships will inevitably be better positioned for renewed growth.

About the study

The Argyle Public Relationships Index is based on a survey of 934 employed Canadians and 548 employed Americans, completed between April 30-May 2, 2021, using Legers online panel. Legers online panel has approximately 400,000 members and a retention rate of 90%. A probability sample of 934 respondents would have a margin of error of +/- 3.2%, 19 times out of 20. A probability sample of 548 respondents would have a margin of error of +/- 4.2%, 19 times out of 20.

Public relations research suggests there are six dimensions of relationships between organizations and their internal or external publics: trust; satisfaction; perceived commitment to meet expectations; caring for those with whom you work or do business (exchange relationship); concern for people like me (communal relationship); and peoples perception of their ability to influence the organization. Argyle expresses its appreciation to Dr. Alex Sevigny of McMaster University for his counsel in the development of the model for this ongoing research.

About Argyle (www.argylepr.com)

For 40 years, Argyle has been chosen by the worlds biggest brands, put big ideas onto the public agenda, and grown to become one of North Americas most acclaimed reputation, communications and public engagement firms. Argyles clients span many sectors, including finance, technology, health care, agri-food, travel, professional services, infrastructure, government, non-profits and many more.

Argyle has more than 120 full-time employees in Washington, D.C., Toronto, Vancouver, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary, Victoria, Ottawa, with affiliates in Montreal and Quebec City, and in more than 40 countries around the world.

Attachment
Dublin, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "AI in Computer Vision Market With Covid-19 Impact by Component, Machine Learning Models, Function, Application (Industrial, Non-Industrial), End-Use Industry (Security & Surveillance, Consumer Electronics) and Geography - Global Forecast to 2026" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The AI in computer vision market is estimated to be valued at USD 15.9 billion in 2021 and reach USD 51.3 billion by 2026, at a CAGR of 26.3% between 2021 and 2026.

The growing need for quality inspection and automation, increasing demand for computer vision systems in non-traditional and emerging applications, and rising need for ASICs are the key factors driving the growth of the market. Likewise, government initiatives to support industrial automation and integration of AI into the edge devices are expected to create lucrative opportunities for the players in the AI in computer vision market. However, rising security concerns related to cloud-based image processing and analytics are expected to restraint market growth.

Supervised Learning will have the highest growth in the coming years

Supervised learning is expected to account ~84% share of the overall AI in computer vision market by 2026. The growing adoption of supervised learning in various healthcare applications, especially medical imaging, and the use of different sensors and devices in modern facial recognition algorithms supplement the growth of this segment. Learning models are currently being implemented to develop various AI products and services. Some recent applications of these models are in autonomous vehicles/connected cars, virtual assistants (Apple's Siri, Microsoft's Cortana, and Google's Google Now), expert systems, drones, computer-aided diagnostics, video games, and image recognition systems.

Consumer Electronics is expected to hold the largest share in 2026

There is an increasing demand for AI-enabled computer vision systems in consumer electronics such as smartphones, desktops, and laptops is driving the growth of the AI in computer vision market. Healthcare, however, is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period as AI-enabled computer vision technology plays a vital role in applications like radiology, medical imaging. Apart from this, increasing participation of various automotive and IT giants to develop autonomous cars is driving the growth of the AI in computer vision market for the automotive industry. In the security & surveillance industry, AI-enabled computer vision systems are increasingly being used to identify threats and people, thus boosting the adoption of AI-enabled computer vision solutions in this industry. Further, advancements in machine vision technology, such as smart cameras and automation, have increased the scope of AI in computer vision market in the manufacturing industry, which is expected to grow at the second-highest CAGR by 2026.

APAC is attributed to growing at the highest CAGR in AI in computer vision market during the forecast period (2021-2026)

APAC is expected to grow at the highest CAGR in the AI in computer vision market. Countries such China, Japan, and South Korea are expected to be the major contributors to the market in APAC. Increased manufacturing operations contribute mainly to the economic development in China, while the rising demand to incorporate Industry 4.0 and advanced manufacturing techniques for increasing automation across various applications in India is contributing to the tremendous growth of AI in computer vision in APAC.

Key Topics Covered:

1 Introduction

2 Research Methodology

3 Executive Summary

4 Premium Insights

4.1 Attractive Opportunities in AI in Computer Vision Market

4.2 AI in Computer Vision Market, by Application

4.3 AI in Computer Vision Market, by Hardware Processor Component

4.4 AI in Computer Vision Market, by End-Use Industry

4.5 AI in Computer Vision Market, by Region

5 Market Overview

5.1 Introduction

5.2 Market Dynamics

5.2.1 Drivers

5.2.1.1 Growing Need for Quality Inspection and Automation

5.2.1.2 Increasing Demand for Computer Vision Systems in Non-Traditional and Emerging Applications

5.2.1.3 Growing Impact of AI on Machine Vision

5.2.1.4 Rising Need for Application-Specific Integrated Circuits (Asics)

5.2.2 Restraints

5.2.2.1 Increasing Security Concerns Related to Cloud-Based Image Processing and Analytics

5.2.2.2 Low Awareness and Technical Knowledge

5.2.2.3 Lack of Skilled Professionals in Manufacturing Factories

5.2.3 Opportunities

5.2.3.1 Increasing Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Cars

5.2.3.2 Government Initiatives to Boost Development of AI-Related Technologies

5.2.3.3 Increasing Demand for Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Machine Vision

5.2.3.4 Development of Machine Learning Pertaining to Vision Technology

5.2.3.5 Increased Computing Capacity of AI-Based GPUS

5.2.3.6 Integrating AI into Edge Devices

5.2.4 Challenges

5.2.4.1 Premium Pricing of AI Hardware

5.2.4.2 Lack of User Awareness Pertaining to Rapidly Changing Machine Vision Technology

5.3 Value Chain Analysis

5.4 Revenue Shift and New Revenue Pockets for AI in Computer Vision Market

5.5 Ecosystem

5.6 Porter's Five Forces Analysis

5.7 Use Cases

5.8 Technology Analysis

5.9 Industry Trends

5.10 Pricing Analysis

5.11 Patents Analysis

5.12 Market Regulations

5.13 Trade Analysis

6 AI in Computer Vision Market, by Component

7 AI in Computer Vision Market, by Machine Learning Model

8 AI in Computer Vision Market, by Function

9 AI in Computer Vision Market, by Application

10 AI in Computer Vision Market, by End-Use Industry

11 Geographic Analysis

12 Competitive Landscape

13 Company Profiles

13.1 Key Players

13.1.1 Nvidia

13.1.2 Intel

13.1.3 Microsoft

13.1.4 Ibm

13.1.5 Qualcomm

13.1.6 Aws

13.1.7 Xilinx

13.1.8 Google

13.1.9 Facebook

13.1.10 Basler

13.1.11 Groq

13.1.12 Hailo

13.2 Other Company Profiles

13.2.1 Ceva, Inc.

13.2.2 Amd

13.2.3 Graphcore

13.2.4 Groopic

13.2.5 Leap Motion

13.2.6 Algolux

13.2.7 Athena Security

13.2.8 Lionbridge AI

13.2.9 Vizseek

13.2.10 OculUS

13.2.11 Curemetrix

13.2.12 Trivision

13.2.13 Robotic Vision Technologies

13.2.14 Amp Robotics

13.2.15 Zivid

13.2.16 Inspekto

13.2.17 Creative Virtual

14 Appendix

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/kkjhdv
TORONTO, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Clear Blue Technologies International Inc. (Clear Blue) (TSXV: CBLU) (FRA:0YA) (OTCQB: CBUTF), the Smart Off-Grid Company, today announced a partnership with Parallel Wireless, Inc. (Parallel Wireless), the leading U.S.-based O-RAN compliant, Open RAN company, enabling ALL Gs. This partnership will utilize Clear Blues Smart Off-Grid power and Parallel Wireless leading OpenRAN technology to deploy a cost-effective, high-performance telecommunications solution for a telecom operator in Africa. Consistent with Clear Blues prior Q1 guidance for Large-Scale Rollouts in the first half of 2021, the partnership will involve a new Large-Scale Rollout with product shipments scheduled to begin in the next two quarters.



Clear Blue and Parallel Wireless will be working in partnership to provide a total all-in-one telecommunications and power solution with the highest level of uptime availability. With reliability designed into the system and active power management, solar off-grid and hybrid solar/grid power alternatives are now hitting the mainstream market. In doing so, Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) get the highest performance and uptime at the lowest upfront and ongoing cost while at the same time using Cleantech to deliver on global ESG targets, including climate change mitigation.

Clear Blues product architecture which uniquely meets the five 9s high availability requirements for this project, demonstrates Clear Blues ability to support the most mission-critical of applications. With Clear Blues Smart Off-Grid solution, maximum uptime and high availability are integral to the system, says Miriam Tuerk, CEO and co-founder of Clear Blue Technologies. Combining the Smart Off-Grid power of Clear Blue with the innovative Open RAN technology from Parallel Wireless, we can provide a solution that meets the needs of mainstream, primetime telecom applications in even the harshest of environments.

Project Requirements

This partnership supports numerous different site configurations, including multiple backhaul and cell radio configurations. The size of the sites varies significantly from the very smallest of configurations to the most extensive system ever deployed by Clear Blue. Clear Blues modular design that uses standard components across this highly varied deployment is a key advantage in the initial deployment and the ongoing operation. As with all telecom projects, capacity will grow over time, and the system is specifically designed to support this easily. Clear Blues Smart Off-Grid systems are controlled over the cloud to manage high usage periods and adverse weather conditions. This ability is enabled by the systems advanced energy and weather forecasting, along with its active power management capabilities.

Africa is the highest growth market

The potential for this partnership is substantial, and there are a number of follow-on expansion opportunities. As of 2019, areas such as Sub-Saharan Africa and the Central African Republic had 58-59% of their population living in rural areas. With the overall population of Africa expected to double by 2050, this very young and growing population will be high demand users of cellular, satellite and internet connectivity. With only 10-60% of Africa's population connected, there were an estimated 871 million people across Africa without access to the internet in 2020. And those with connections are severely underserved. With Clear Blue established and proven as a strong telecom power provider of mission-critical off-grid power, there is significant potential for opportunities in this market over the coming years.

Parallel Wireless is working with many partners in a broad telecom ecosystem to deliver rapid innovation across hardware and software domains for the industry, stated Yisrael Nov, VP, Sales, Parallel Wireless. The main challenges in powering telecommunications for rural areas have been the availability and cost. Being able to comply with the industrys availability requirement with an off-grid power source that is cost-effective, is one of those innovations that will change the industry. We are proud to partner with Clear Blue for their innovative Smart Off-Grid power solution to help enable greater connectivity.

Continues Tuerk, We are thrilled to work with Parallel Wireless to rise to this challenge and look forward to growing this partnership.

About Clear Blue Technologies International

Clear Blue Technologies International, the Smart Off-Grid company, was founded on a vision of delivering clean, managed, wireless power to meet the global need for reliable, low-cost, solar and hybrid power for lighting, telecom, security, Internet of Things devices, and other mission-critical systems. Today, Clear Blue has thousands of systems under management across 37 countries, including the U.S. and Canada. (TSXV: CBLU) (FRANKFURT: 0YA) (OTCQB: CBUTF)

Investor Relations:

Miriam Tuerk

CoFounder & CEO

Miriam@clearbluetechnologies.com

+1-416-433-3952

Press Contact

Rebecca Bender

Montieth & Company

rbender@montiethco.com

+1 347-768-1818
TORONTO and KNOXVILLE, Tenn., June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Solar Alliance Energy Inc. (Solar Alliance or the Company) (TSX-V: SOLR) is pleased to announce it has signed a Letter of Intent (the Agreement) with Abundant Solar Power Inc. (Abundant) to build, own and operate a 389 kilowatt (kW) solar project in New York State (the Project).



This is the second construction-ready project Solar Alliance will own and operate in New York and will generate a recurring revenue stream over its 30-year life, supported by a power purchase agreement. These two projects represent the initial stages of a longer-term relationship with Abundant to build out a robust portfolio of assets Solar Alliance will own and operate.

Solar Alliance continues to execute on our aggressive growth strategy with this second project in New York State, said CEO Myke Clark. Similar to the first project we signed an agreement with Abundant Solar to own and operate, this 389 kW project is construction ready and is backed by a power purchase agreement that will provide a recurring revenue stream to Solar Alliance. Working closely with Abundant, we are confident we can continue to aggressively grow our portfolio of projects that we will own and operate. This ownership strategy is combined with our growing solar system sales to third party customers, which allows us to generate revenue to support our operations while we grow our portfolio of assets under ownership.

Solar Alliance anticipates signing an Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contract with Abundant for the Project. Construction on the Project is expected to commence this fall and is anticipated to be in operation by the end of 2021.

The net capital cost for the project is expected to be approximately US$640,000 and will be financed by Solar Alliance either through equity or a combination of debt and equity. As part of the Companys expansion strategy, Solar Alliance is also assessing opportunities to acquire or partner on earlier stage development projects that would eventually be built, owned and operated by the Company. This complements Solar Alliances growing business of designing, engineering and installing solar systems for third party owners.

350 kW Project Update

On May 26, 2021 the Company announced it had signed an agreement with Abundant to build, own and operate a 350 kW solar project (Project 1) in New York State. Final design and engineering work on Project 1 is currently being completed and it remains on schedule to be built this year and placed into operation by the end of 2021. A definitive construction timeline will be finalized when an EPC contract is signed with Abundant.

Myke Clark, CEO

For more information:

Solar Alliance Sales

(865) 309-4674

info@solaralliance.com



Investor Relations

Myke Clark, CEO

416-848-7744

mclark@solaralliance.com



About Solar Alliance Energy Inc. (www.solaralliance.com)

Solar Alliance is an energy solutions provider focused on residential, commercial and industrial solar installations. The Company operates in Tennessee, Kentucky, North/South Carolina and Illinois and has an expanding pipeline of solar projects. Since it was founded in 2003, the Company has developed $1 billion of renewable energy projects that provide enough electricity to power 150,000 homes. Our passion is improving life through ingenuity, simplicity and freedom of choice. Solar Alliance reduces or eliminates customers' vulnerability to rising energy costs, offers an environmentally friendly source of electricity generation, and provides affordable, turnkey clean energy solutions.

Statements in this news release, other than purely historical information, including statements relating to the Company's future plans and objectives or expected results, constitute forward-looking statements. The words would, will, expected and estimated or other similar words and phrases are intended to identify forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the Companys actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different than those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such factors include but are not limited to: uncertainties related to the ability to raise sufficient capital, changes in economic conditions or financial markets, litigation, legislative or other judicial, regulatory and political competitive developments and technological or operational difficulties. Consequently, actual results may vary materially from those described in the forward-looking statements.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release."
English French

Quebec students entering post-secondary studies recognized for community leadership and volunteerism

Nearly three-quarters of all scholarships nationally awarded to youth from equity-seeking communities

More than $406,000 in scholarships awarded to over 250 youth across Quebec in the five-year history of the program

MONTREAL, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Congratulations, Class of 2021! Last night at a virtual ceremony, Rogers Communications surprised 26 Quebec youth with a Ted Rogers Scholarship to support their post-secondary studies this fall, and in recognition of their community leadership and volunteerism. These scholarships help young leaders and changemakers overcome financial barriers to post-secondary education and achieve their highest potential.

For the second year in a row, traditional rites of passage for high school students  including in-person proms, seniors trips, and graduation ceremonies  have been muted by the COVID-19 pandemic. But for young Quebeckers, there are vaccines, acceptance letters, scholarshipsand possibilities. And for 26 deserving students in the province awarded a Ted Rogers Scholarship, last nights virtual celebration was a moment to recognize their achievements and look forward to an exciting future.

Reports show youth from low-income households, equity-seeking groups, or remote communities are less likely to pursue post-secondary studies due to barriers like affordability. Ted Rogers Scholarships help reduce those education barriers, offering $2,500 renewable scholarships for up to four years or $10,000 to recognize young leaders nominated by our 18 community partnership organizations, including YMCA, Indspire, and GRIS-Montreal. The program also offers entrance scholarships of $2,500 to eligible Rogers employees or their children.

Collectively, our Class of 2021 recipients represent more than 12 communities across Quebec including Brossard, Cote Saint-Luc, Gatineau, Laval, Longueuil, Montreal, Pierrefonds, Quebec, Rosemere, Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, St-Colomban and Terrebonne.

Nearly three-quarters of recipients nationally self-identifying as members of equity-seeking groups including Black, Indigenous, People of Colour, LGBTQ2S+, and young women. These scholars reflect a vibrant and diverse generation which will propel Canada forward with ideas and innovation, and power our growth and economy.

Ted Rogers believed that investing in youth and education is one of the most powerful ways we can build a stronger Canada. Since launching Ted Rogers Scholarships in 2017, Rogers has invested more than $406,000 to support over 250 Quebec youth attending post-secondary studies, with the program now celebrating its first cohort of university and college graduates. Additionally this year to create more opportunities for young Canadians, OMNI Television launched a national scholarship program for post-secondary students pursuing third-language and ethnic journalism, Cityline created a new scholarship for BIPOC women, and we evolved the Rogers New Grad Leadership Development Program.

Rogers is proud to help remove barriers to education and keep young Canadians connected throughout their journey. In addition to scholarships, we empower youth through Ted Rogers Community Grants which provide mentoring and leadership programs for students in grades 7-12, have provided hundreds of devices and plans to Big Brothers Big Sisters Canada and Pflag to keep youth connected to mentors, and are the largest funder for Jays Care Foundation programs like Rookie League which helps more than 14,000 kids facing barriers develop important life skills, through the power of baseball.

QUOTES:

We are proud to support the next generation of Quebec leaders and changemakers by giving them well-deserved encouragement to achieve their highest potential. By recognizing their volunteerism and community leadership, we know this investment in their future is an investment in the future of our province.

Edith Cloutier, President of Quebec Region, Rogers Communications



The recipients of this award have shown their commitment to support and develop their communities and it is wonderful to see their contributions recognized. Our youth have shown incredible resilience this past year and it is inspiring to know that Canada will move forward and grow with young leaders who have a vision for community, inclusivity and diversity.

Paul Davidson, President, Universities Canada



Since the 1970s, PFLAG chapters across North America, have assisted LGBTQ2S people and their families by offering peer support and other resources. In 2017 this tradition of helping evolved when Pflag Canada became a community partner in the Ted Rogers Scholarship Program. Everyone at Pflag Canada is proud of our four recipients for 2021. We wish all recipients of the 2021 awards every success in their post-secondary studies.

Ross Wicks, Secretary, Pflag



About Rogers

Rogers is a proud Canadian company dedicated to making more possible for Canadians each and every day. Our founder, Ted Rogers, purchased his first radio station, CHFI, in 1960. We have grown to become a leading technology and media company that strives to provide the very best in wireless, residential, sports, and media to Canadians and Canadian businesses. Our shares are publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: RCI.A and RCI.B) and on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: RCI). If you want to find out more about us, visit about.rogers.com.

For more information:

Rogers, media@rci.rogers.com, 1-844-226-1338
NOT FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES OR FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER OF THE SECURITIES DESCRIBED HEREIN

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Golden Sky Minerals Corp. (AUEN.V) OTC (LCKYF) (the Company or Golden Sky) is pleased to announce that, subject to TSX Venture Exchange (the Exchange) approval, it intends to complete a private placement financing (the  Private Placement ) of up to 3,571,428 non-flow-through units (the  NFT Units ) at a price of CAD$0.42 per NFT Unit and up to 2,884,615 flow-through units (FT Units), priced at $0.52 per FT Unit for total gross proceeds of up to $3,000,000. The Private Placement is expected to close July 8th, 2021.

The non-flow-through funding will consist of up to 3,571,428 $0.42 NFT Units for gross proceeds of up to $1,500,000.00. Each NFT Unit will consist of one common share plus one common share purchase warrant entitling the holder to purchase an additional common share at $0.60 for a twenty-four-month period.

The Company anticipates that Crescat Capital LLC ("Crescat") will make a strategic investment in the non-flow-through portion of the Private Placement, representing a 7.6 % - ownership of the Company on a non-diluted bases and a 11.5 % ownership on a partially diluted basis after the Private Placement. The Company anticipates it will also enter into an agreement with Crescat granting it an option to participate in future financings to maintain its pro rata interest in the Company, until such time as Crescat holds 3% of the issued and outstanding shares of Golden Sky. On closing, Crescat will hold 1,430,000.00 NFT Units, representing 1,430,000 common shares and 1,430,000.00 common share purchase warrants, or 11.5% of the outstanding shares.

The flow-through funding will consist of up to 2,884,615 $0.52 FT Units for gross proceeds of up to $1,500,000.00. Each FT Unit will consist of one flow-through common share plus one common share purchase warrant entitling the holder to purchase an additional common share at $0.80 for a twelve-month period.

The Company anticipates that Cordillera Minerals Group Ltd. (Cordillera) will make a strategic investment in the flow-through portion of the Private Placement, representing a 7.50% per-cent ownership of the Company on a non-diluted bases and a 11.00% ownership on a partially diluted basis after the Private Placement. On closing, Cordillera would hold 1,400,000.00 FT Units representing 1,400,000.00 flow-through shares and 1,400,000.00 common share purchase warrants or 11% of the outstanding shares.

All securities issued will be subject to a four month hold period pursuant to securities laws in Canada.

The Company intends to use the proceeds from the Private Placement for exploration of the Companys portfolio of resource properties and for general working capital. Proceeds from the Private Placement will be used for a 2000-metre diamond drill program at Golden Skys British Columbia flagship Rayfield Copper-Gold Project, located in the Quesnel Trough, British Columbia. In addition, proceeds will be used to further advance the Companys Hotspot Property in the Yukon Territory and for general working capital. The Company expects that the drill program at Hotspot will commence on or around August 1st, 2021, and a year-round exploration program at Rayfield will commence sometime in June 2021.

Golden Sky Minerals President and CEO, John Newell, commented, We are very pleased to welcome Crescat Capital LLC. and Cordillera Minerals Group Ltd. as strategic investors as exploration and drilling ramps up at our Hotspot, Luckystrike, and Bullseye Properties in the Yukon Territories and as we advance our Rayfield Copper Gold Exploration Property in South Central British Columbia during the second half of the year.

Kevin Smith, Crescats founder and Chief Investment Officer stated.

We are excited to help finance further drilling at the companys recent gold discovery in the Yukon as well as their newly acquired copper gold project in BC.

Dr. Hennigh also commented stating Golden Sky has two projects that caught our attention, Hotspot and Rayfield. Hotspot, Yukon, is a newly discovered epithermal gold system hosted by Eocene volcanic rocks. Last season, Golden Sky drilled a 100 gram-meter hole making this an incipient discovery in our view, one in need of immediate follow up. The newly acquired Rayfield project, BC, encompasses an intrusive center displaying multiple prospective alkaline porphyry targets. Historic drilling has encountered narrow intervals of high grades of Cu and Au. We are keen to see the proceeds from this financing used to hit both projects hard this year."

About Crescat Capital LLC

Crescat is a global macro asset management firm headquartered in Denver, Colorado. Crescats mission is to grow and protect wealth over the long term by deploying tactical investment themes based on proprietary value-driven equity and macro models. Crescats goal is industry leading absolute and risk-adjusted returns over complete business cycles with low correlation to common benchmarks. The companys investment process involves a mix of asset classes and strategies to assist with each clients unique needs and objectives and includes Global Macro, Long/Short, Large Cap and Precious Metals funds.

About Dr. Quinton Hennigh

Crescat is advised by its technical consultant, Dr. Quinton Hennigh on investments in gold and silver resource companies. Dr. Hennigh became an economic geologist after obtaining his PhD in Geology/Geochemistry from the Colorado School of Mines. He has more than 30 years of exploration experience with major gold mining firms that include Homestake Mining, Newcrest Mining and Newmont Mining. Recently, Dr. Hennigh founded Novo Resources Corp (TSXV: NVO) and is serving as Chairman. Among his notable project involvements are First Mining Golds Springpole gold deposit in Ontario, Kirkland Lake Golds acquisition of the Fosterville Gold Mine in Australia, the Rattlesnake Hills gold deposit in Wyoming.

About Cordillera Minerals Group Ltd.

The Cordillera Minerals Group Ltd. creates tax advantaged flow-through limited partnerships and invests in Canadian junior mineral issuers who have an experienced and strong management team, and prolific assets and exploration drill targets that offer their investors upside potential and capital appreciation on their investment. www.cordilleramineralsgroup.com

Mr. Bruce Fair, President and CEO, Cordillera Minerals Group Ltd., added, Our Partnerships goal is to look for companies with projects in British Columbia but who also have geographical diversification and assets in other provinces or territories. We anticipate a flow-through investment in a company like Golden Sky Minerals with 100 percent owned Yukon and British Columbia assets, along with a growth-focused management team makes Golden Sky Minerals an attractive company for our Flow-Through Limited Partnership at a very modest current valuation.

The Financing may be affected with insiders of the Company subscribing for Flow-Through Units and/or Hard Dollar Units, that portion of the Financing being a related party transaction as such term is defined under Multilateral Instrument 61-101  Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions (MI61-101). The Company relies on exemptions from the formal valuation and minority approval requirements set out in MI 61- 101. The Company is exempt from the formal valuation requirement of MI 61-101 under sections 5.5(a) and (b) of MI 61-101 in respect of both transactions as the fair market value of each transaction, insofar as it involves the interested part and is not more than the 25% of the Companys market capitalization. Additionally, the Company is exempt from minority shareholder approval under sections 5.7(1)(a) and (b) of MI 61-101 as, in addition to the foregoing, (i) neither the fair market value of the units nor the consideration received in respect thereof from interested party exceeds $2,500,000, (ii) the Company has one or more independent directors who are not employees of the Company, and (iii) all of the independent directors have approved the transaction. Material change reports were not filed prior to the closing of the financing as insider participation had not been established at the time the financing was announced.

About Golden Sky Minerals Corp.

Golden Sky Minerals Corp. is a well-funded junior grassroots explorer focused on the discovery of new precious metal and copper projects through systematic exploration in metal endowed terranes, located in tier-one mining jurisdictions. Golden Sky's focus is to develop their portfolio of projects to resource stage. Currently, the company has three drill ready projects in the Yukon; this includes the Hotspot, Bullseye, and Luckystrike properties. In addition, the recent property purchase of the Rayfield Copper-Gold Project in southern British Columbia adds to the company's substantial early-stage project pipeline in Canada.

The company was incorporated in 2018 and is headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. More information can be found at the Companys website at www.goldenskyminerals.com .

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

John Newell, President and Chief Executive Officer

For new information from the Company's programs, please visit Golden Sky's website at www.GoldenSkyMinerals.com or contact John Newell by telephone (604) 568-8807 or by email at info@goldenskyminerals.com or john.newell@goldenskyminerals.com .

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements contained in this news release that are not historical facts are forward-looking information or forward-looking statements (collectively, Forward-Looking Information) within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. In certain cases, Forward-Looking Information can be identified by the use of words and phrases such as anticipates, expects, understanding, has agreed to or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results would, occur or be achieved. Although Golden Sky has attempted to identify important factors and risks that could affect Golden Sky and may cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in Forward-Looking Information, there may be other factors and risks that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended, including, without limitation: inherent risks involved in the exploration and development of mineral properties; the uncertainties involved in interpreting drill results and other exploration data; the potential for delays in exploration or development activities; the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with Golden Skys expectations; accidents, equipment breakdowns, title and permitting matters; labour disputes or other unanticipated difficulties with or interruptions in operations; fluctuating metal prices; unanticipated costs and expenses; uncertainties relating to the availability and costs of financing needed in the future, including to fund any exploration programs on its projects; that Golden Sky may not be able to confirm historical exploration results and other risks set forth in Golden Sky's public filings at www.sedar.com. In making the forward-looking statements in this news release, Golden Sky has applied several material assumptions, including the assumption that general business and economic conditions will not change in a materially adverse manner. There can be no assurance that Forward-Looking 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. Except as required by law, Golden Sky does not assume any obligation to release publicly any revisions to Forward-Looking Information contained in this news release to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.




DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER OF THE SECURITIES DESCRIBED HEREIN



BROSSARD, Quebec, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Windfall Geotek (TSX-V: WIN, OTCQB: WINKF, FSE: L7C2) a leader in the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) with advanced knowledge-extraction techniques since 2005 in the mining sector is pleased to announce that it will provide AI Gold targets on Dios Explorations K2 project located in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region, Quebec (Figures 1-3).

News Highlights

The largest Windfall Geotek AI target covers an area of 0.87 km 2 on the DIOS K2 Property

on the DIOS K2 Property The AI analysis area of 148, 969 km 2 in the James Bay Region includes four geological sub provinces the Minto, La Grande, Opinaca-Opatica subprovince, and Ashuanipi complex (from north to south), consisting of volcano-plutonic and sedimentary assemblages

in the James Bay Region includes four geological sub provinces the Minto, La Grande, Opinaca-Opatica subprovince, and Ashuanipi complex (from north to south), consisting of volcano-plutonic and sedimentary assemblages Geology indicates a contact between basalts & felsic tuffs, highlighted also by DIOSs VLF anomalies within the AI target

The area is well known for its emerging potential for gold and base metal mineralization

Dinesh Kandanchatha, Chairman of Windfall Geotek commented: We are pleased to announce this agreement with Dios Exploration where we are able to take advantage of our history of work in that region having done the Elmer project in the past which has had positive results. We are excited to be working with Dios Exploration in a Win-Win scenario at a strategic time with the upcoming field work Dios is undertaking over summer 2021.

Marie- Jose Girard, President & Geologist of Dios Exploration Inc commented: We are thrilled to have acquired this high probability target ahead of our Summer 2021 campaign in the same region. We have seen positive results with our neighbour (Elmer project) in the same geological context and we feel this target has good potential to be incorporated into our drilling program.

The scientific and technical data contained in this press release was reviewed and prepared under the supervision of Grigor Heba, Ph.D., P.Geo., Principal Geologist and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101.



About Windfall Geotek  Powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI) since 2005

Windfall is an Artificial Intelligence company that has been in business for over 15 years developing its proprietary CARDS analysis (AI) and data mining techniques. Windfall Geotek can count on a multidisciplinary team that includes professionals in geophysics, geology, Artificial Intelligence, and mathematics. It combines available public and private datasets including geophysical, drill hole and surface data. The algorithms designed and employed by Windfall are calculated to highlight areas of interest that have the potential to be geologically similar to other gold deposits and mineralization. The Company's objective is to develop a new royalty stream by significantly enhancing and participating in the exploration success rate of mining and to continue the Land Mine detection application as a high priority. Windfall has played a part in numerous past discoveries utilizing its methodology as described at: https://windfallgeotek.com/ .

For further information, please contact:

Simran Kamboj

President and CTO of Windfall Geotek

Email: simran@windfallgeotek.com

Website: www.windfallgeotek.com

Phone: 1-855-946-5145

Additional information about the Company is available under Windfall Geoteks profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor does its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS: This news release contains forward-looking statements, which relate to future events or future performance and reflect managements current expectations and assumptions. Such forward-looking statements reflect managements current beliefs and are based on assumptions made by and using information currently available to the Company. Investors are cautioned that these forward-looking statements are neither promises nor guarantees, and they are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause future results to differ materially from those expected. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and, except as required under applicable securities legislation, the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances. All forward-looking statements made in this press release are qualified by these cautionary statements and by those made in our filings with SEDAR in Canada (available at WWW.SEDAR.COM).

Figures accompanying this announcement is available at

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c024b479-13a2-46ca-8a40-e1ab03e77748

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/76b02947-e4f5-4c99-9e28-d963cd499190

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/3ddef79a-882e-4b18-9a6c-996bd2c9ba83
Michigans First Licensed Adult-Use Dispensary Launches New Headquarters in Livonia and Celebrates Executive Teams Hometown Heritage



Ann Arbor, Michigan, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NewMediaWire -- Exclusive Brands (Exclusive Brands or Exclusive), Michigan's premier, vertically integrated cannabis company composed of state-of-the-art retail locations, a processing and manufacturing facility, and licensed grow operations, as well as Michigans home to a breadth of iconic cannabis brands, announced today the opening of its new headquarters in Livonia, Michigan. The new headquarters location will allow the Company to be more centralized to its retail partners, and is also the hometown of numerous Exclusive Brands executives.

Exclusive Brands headquarters in Livonia will feature aesthetically pleasing lounge areas, a fully updated kitchen, energy efficient motion detection lighting, collaborative workspaces, and increased COVID-19 protocols to ensure the safety of its corporate employees and ensure all team members feel the new HQ is like their home away from home. The team looks forward to holding events like expungement fairs at the facility through the Companys Social Equity Program. Through partnerships with organizations like the National Birth Equity Collaborative and the Last Prisoner Project through Exclusives retail stores, Exclusive Brands plans to give back to the community by prioritizing social equity in the cannabis space. Exclusive is also excited to open new retail locations across the state of Michigan in the coming years.

We are very excited to announce the opening of our new headquarters in Livonia. The community and city have been very open and fantastic partners in getting our new location off the ground, said Omar Hishmeh, President of Exclusive Brands. I am especially excited about our social equity programs and other initiatives this year that will further position our strong team at Exclusive Brands as industry leaders.

Along with the opening of Exclusive Brands new headquarters in Livonia, the Company is also launching their newest product line, Nenos Naturals. Created by Exclusive Brands Chief Development Officer Narmin (Neno) Jarrous with a specific focus on wellness, Nenos Naturals offers topical patches, tinctures, capsules and vaporizers available to both medical and adult use consumers.

As Michigans top-selling cannabis company, were so proud to be opening our new location in Livonia to continue innovating for our customers looking for superior quality products they can trust, said Narmin Jarrous, Chief Development Officer at Exclusive Brands. Were working to make a difference in the industry by following best practice standards both in cannabis operations and helping promote education and social equity in our community.

The 10,000-square-foot headquarters will hold offices for Exclusives 25 corporate employees managing Exclusive Brands diverse range of cannabis products such as Kushy Punch, Strain Kings, Platinum Vape, Terpene Tanks, Church Cannabis Co., Nenos Naturals and more.

As organizations across America reopen in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Exclusive Brands plans to keep staff as safe as possible by holding temperature and symptom screenings upon entrance to the office, requiring face masks be worn at all times inside the building, and daily disinfecting of all common workspaces and areas. It is also important to the team that each employee receives their COVID-19 vaccination as soon as they are eligible.

For more information about Exclusive Brands, company developments, and the ever-growing portfolio of brands Exclusive works with visit www.exclusivebrandsmi.com. To learn more about Exclusives retail shops, visit www.exclusivemi.com. Follow Exclusive Brands on Instagram at @exclusivebrandsmi.

About Exclusive Brands

Exclusive Brands is Michigan's premier, vertically integrated cannabis company with a flagship retail location in Ann Arbor, the first recreational marijuana retailer in the state. Exclusive places the utmost importance on premium genetics and effectual grow techniques to provide Michigan with the highest quality cannabis products. Exclusives cultivators maintain and manicure cannabis to the highest standards in the market. A portion of the fresh flower is processed by extraction artists in Exclusive Brands state of the art lab for premium Terp Sugars, Sauce, Shatter, Budder, Batter, RSO and Distillate. Exclusive Brands is committed to providing high-quality cannabis accessible and is driven by excellence.

Media Contact:

Cassandra Dowell

CMW Media

Phone: 858-264-6601

cassandra@cmwmedia.com

www.cmwmedia.com
Commits to Offset Three Million Metric Tons of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Over Three Years to Bridge Gaps in Decarbonization Efforts



Climate Action Strategy to Reach Carbon Neutrality Includes Focus on Reducing Carbon Intensity, Investing in Technology and Implementing Carbon Offset Program

MIAMI, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (the Company) (NYSE: NCLH), a leading global cruise company which operates the Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises brands, today announced the creation of its long-term climate action strategy and goal to reach carbon neutrality through reducing carbon intensity, identifying and investing in technology including exploring alternative fuels and implementing a voluntary carbon offset program. In addition to ongoing initiatives to reduce its emissions rate, the Company has committed to offset three million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MTCO 2 e) over a three-year period beginning in 2021 to help bridge the gap in its decarbonization efforts until new technology becomes available. As part of the Companys global sustainability program, Sail & Sustain, combating climate change is a material focus and the Company previously signed the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) historic commitment to reduce the carbon emissions rate industry-wide by 40% by 2030 from a 2008 baseline.

We take climate change very seriously and have proactively developed a long-term strategy with an ambitious goal of reaching carbon neutrality through three action areas including reducing carbon intensity, identifying and investing in technology and implementing a carbon offset program. Our commitment to purchase three million metric tons of carbon credits is a measurable step in near-term emissions reductions which allows us to take action today and helps bridge the gap in our decarbonization efforts as we prepare for a lower-carbon future, said Frank Del Rio, president and chief executive officer of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. Our global sustainability program, Sail & Sustain, is centered around our commitment to drive a positive impact on society and the environment and our long-term climate action strategy reinforces this commitment and aligns with the vision of the Paris Agreement to achieve a climate neutral world.

Long-Term Climate Action Strategy

The three focus areas of the Companys long-term climate action strategy include:

1) Reduce Carbon Intensity. The Company continually seeks opportunities to reduce its overall footprint by minimizing fuel consumption and increasing energy efficiency. Ongoing investments in systems and technologies have resulted in a reduction of fuel consumption per capacity day of approximately 17% from 2008 to 2019 for the entire 28-ship fleet. In addition, the Company achieved an estimated approximately 14% reduction in CO 2 emissions per capacity day across its fleet between 2015 and 2019. As nine new and more fuel-efficient vessels are introduced to the fleet through 2027, this rate is expected to further decrease.

2) Invest in Technology & Explore Alternative Fuels. The Company has partnered with CLIA and other maritime organizations to propose the establishment of a collaborative shipping research and development fund dedicated to the ultimate goal of eliminating CO 2 emissions from international shipping. If approved, funding would come from a contribution per tonne of marine fuel purchased for consumption and is expected to amount to $5 billion over a 10-year period. These funds will be used to finance the development of zero and near-zero GHG fuels and propulsion technologies. As new alternative fuel sources become available at sufficient scale in the future, the Company will evaluate how these can accelerate its long-term carbon reduction strategy.

3) Implement Voluntary Carbon Offset Program. Today, the Company announced its commitment to purchase carbon credits to offset three million MTCO 2 e over a three-year period to help bridge the gap in decarbonization efforts until new technology becomes available. Offset purchases are expected to ramp up in future years to reach the goal of carbon neutrality.



The Company has a strong focus on addressing climate change and partners with CLIA, domestic and international governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to contribute to global efforts to combat climate change. Key initiatives include the Companys participation in CLIAs historic commitment to reduce the carbon emissions rate industry-wide by 40% by 2030, which was created as the first step to contribute to the International Maritime Organizations (IMO) vision of a carbon-free shipping industry by the end of the century. The Company also complies with applicable regulations, quantifies and reports its greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and seeks new cost-effective ways to reduce or minimize its footprint.

Voluntary Carbon Offset Program

As part of its long-term climate action strategy, the Company has launched a voluntary carbon offset program in collaboration with World Kinect Energy Services, the sustainability division of World Fuel Services. The Company has committed to voluntarily offset at least three million MTCO 2 e through 2023. This is the equivalent of 7,539,593,613 miles driven by an average passenger car or the amount of carbon sequestered in 3,675,533 acres of forests in one year. The Company plans to gradually increase voluntary offset purchases in future years to reach its goal of carbon neutrality based on Scope 1 emissions, which typically account for ~95% of its footprint. This initiative allows the Company to take action immediately and further demonstrates its commitment to addressing climate change even while facing the unprecedented impact on profitability due to the COVID-19 related global voyage suspension.

A carbon offset represents one tonne of greenhouse gas emissions that has been avoided or reduced in the atmosphere. Purchasing carbon offsets allows companies to compensate for their residual carbon footprint by supporting projects worldwide that reduce carbon emissions.

Through World Kinect, the Company is investing in high-quality, trusted carbon offsets that have been independently verified and meet the highest international standards such as the Gold Standard or the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS). The offsets are from a mixed project portfolio that includes renewable energy, forestry, energy efficiency, and waste to energy projects.

Each organization has a unique journey to sustainability, but it starts with vision combined with action. We applaud Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings thoughtful approach and leadership, said Michael Kasbar, chairman and chief executive officer, World Fuel Services. Our experts at World Kinect developed a tailored carbon offset solution that enables Norwegian to make immediate progress towards their long-term sustainability goals.

About Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: NCLH) is a leading global cruise company which operates the Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises brands. With a combined fleet of 28 ships with approximately 60,000 berths, these brands offer itineraries to more than 490 destinations worldwide. The Company has nine additional ships scheduled for delivery through 2027, comprising approximately 24,000 berths.

About Sail & Sustain

Sail & Sustain is Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings global sustainability program centered around its commitment to drive a positive impact on society and the environment while delivering on its vision to be the vacation of choice for everyone around the world. This program is structured around five pillars developed through cross-functional collaboration with key internal and external stakeholders. The pillars include: Reducing Environmental Impact, Sailing Safely, Empowering People, Strengthening our Communities and Operating with Integrity and Accountability.

About World Fuel Services

Headquartered in Miami, Florida, World Fuel Services is a global energy management company involved in providing supply fulfillment, energy procurement advisory services, and transaction and payment management solutions to commercial and industrial customers worldwide. World Fuel Services sells and delivers liquid fuels, natural gas, electricity, renewable energy, and other sustainability solutions to its clients at more than 8,000 locations in more than 200 countries and territories through its Marine, Aviation, and World Kinect Energy Services divisions.

For more information visit www.wfscorp.com or www.world-kinect.com.

Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

Some of the statements, estimates or projections contained in this release are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws intended to qualify for the safe harbor from liability established by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this release, including, without limitation, those regarding our business strategy, financial position, results of operations, plans, prospects, actions taken or strategies being considered with respect to our liquidity position, valuation and appraisals of our assets and objectives of management for future operations (including those regarding our expectations, plans or goals for our sustainability program and decarbonization efforts, expected fleet additions, our voluntary suspension, our ability to weather the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the length of time we can withstand a suspension of voyages, our expectations regarding the resumption of cruise voyages and the timing for such resumption of cruise voyages, the implementation of and effectiveness of our health and safety protocols, operational position, demand for voyages, financing opportunities and extensions, and future cost mitigation and cash conservation efforts and efforts to reduce operating expenses and capital expenditures) are forward-looking statements. Many, but not all, of these statements can be found by looking for words like expect, anticipate, goal, strategy, project, plan, believe, seek, will, may, forecast, estimate, intend, future and similar words. Forward-looking statements do not guarantee future performance and may involve risks, uncertainties and other factors which could cause our actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from the future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied in those forward-looking statements. Examples of these risks, uncertainties and other factors include, but are not limited to the impact of: the spread of epidemics, pandemics and viral outbreaks and specifically, the COVID-19 pandemic, including its effect on the ability or desire of people to travel (including on cruises), which are expected to continue to adversely impact our results, operations, outlook, plans, goals, growth, reputation, cash flows, liquidity, demand for voyages and share price; our ability to comply with the CDCs Framework for Conditional Sailing Order and any additional or future regulatory restrictions on our operations and to otherwise develop enhanced health and safety protocols to adapt to the pandemics unique challenges once operations resume and to otherwise safely resume our operations when conditions allow; legislation prohibiting companies from verifying vaccination status; coordination and cooperation with the CDC, the federal government and global public health authorities to take precautions to protect the health, safety and security of guests, crew and the communities visited and the implementation of any such precautions; our ability to work with lenders and others or otherwise pursue options to defer, renegotiate or refinance our existing debt profile, near-term debt amortization, newbuild related payments and other obligations and to work with credit card processors to satisfy current or potential future demands for collateral on cash advanced from customers relating to future cruises; our need for additional financing, which may not be available on favorable terms, or at all, and may be dilutive to existing shareholders; our indebtedness and restrictions in the agreements governing our indebtedness that require us to maintain minimum levels of liquidity and otherwise limit our flexibility in operating our business, including the significant portion of assets that are collateral under these agreements; the accuracy of any appraisals of our assets as a result of the impact of COVID-19 or otherwise; our success in reducing operating expenses and capital expenditures and the impact of any such reductions; our guests election to take cash refunds in lieu of future cruise credits or the continuation of any trends relating to such election; trends in, or changes to, future bookings and our ability to take future reservations and receive deposits related thereto; the unavailability of ports of call; future increases in the price of, or major changes or reduction in, commercial airline services; adverse events impacting the security of travel, such as terrorist acts, armed conflict and threats thereof, acts of piracy, and other international events; adverse incidents involving cruise ships; adverse general economic and related factors, such as fluctuating or increasing levels of unemployment, underemployment and the volatility of fuel prices, declines in the securities and real estate markets, and perceptions of these conditions that decrease the level of disposable income of consumers or consumer confidence; any further impairment of our trademarks, trade names or goodwill; breaches in data security or other disturbances to our information technology and other networks or our actual or perceived failure to comply with requirements regarding data privacy and protection; changes in fuel prices and the type of fuel we are permitted to use and/or other cruise operating costs; mechanical malfunctions and repairs, delays in our shipbuilding program, maintenance and refurbishments and the consolidation of qualified shipyard facilities; the risks and increased costs associated with operating internationally; fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; overcapacity in key markets or globally; our expansion into and investments in new markets; our inability to obtain adequate insurance coverage; pending or threatened litigation, investigations and enforcement actions; volatility and disruptions in the global credit and financial markets, which may adversely affect our ability to borrow and could increase our counterparty credit risks, including those under our credit facilities, derivatives, contingent obligations, insurance contracts and new ship progress payment guarantees; our inability to recruit or retain qualified personnel or the loss of key personnel or employee relations issues; our reliance on third parties to provide hotel management services for certain ships and certain other services; our inability to keep pace with developments in technology; changes involving the tax and environmental regulatory regimes in which we operate; and other factors set forth under Risk Factors in our most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Additionally, many of these risks and uncertainties are currently amplified by and will continue to be amplified by, or in the future may be amplified by, the COVID-19 pandemic. It is not possible to predict or identify all such risks. There may be additional risks that we consider immaterial or which are unknown. The above examples are not exhaustive and new risks emerge from time to time. Such forward-looking statements are based on our current beliefs, assumptions, expectations, estimates and projections regarding our present and future business strategies and the environment in which we expect to operate in the future. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date made. We expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement contained herein to reflect any change in our expectations with regard thereto or any change of events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement was based, except as required by law.

Investor Relations & Media Contact



Andrea DeMarco

(305) 468-2339

InvestorRelations@nclcorp.com



Jessica John

(786) 913-2902






NEW YORK, NY, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NewMediaWire -- Tauriga Sciences, Inc. (OTCQB: TAUG) (Tauriga or the Company), a New York based diversified Life Sciences Company, today announced the appointment of Dr. Craig Loucks (Dr. Loucks) as a member of the Companys Advisory Board. Dr. Loucks is an accomplished orthopedic surgeon, based in Englewood, Colorado. Dr. Loucks is a strong believer in Cannabidiol (CBD) based products and has pre-ordered the Companys enhanced 25mg CBD and CBG infused Tauri-Gum products. Dr. Loucks will mainly assist the Company in generating Tauri-Gum product sales, from both Medical Practices and Dispensaries. He will also provide his expertise to the Company, with respect to its ongoing Pharmaceutical development efforts.



Link to Personal Bio  Craig Loucks, MD:

Link: https://www.peakorthopedics.com/craig-loucks-peak-orthopedics-spine.html

Dr. Craig Loucks stated, I am both pleased and excited to join Tauriga Sciences, Inc. as a member of the Companys advisory board. The Tauri-Gum product line is of outstanding quality and incorporates sublingual absorption delivery method. There is a significant opportunity for Tauriga to market this product line to both medical practices and dispensaries throughout the state of Colorado. I look forward to working closely with Taurigas management team as well as its Chief Medical Officer.

ABOUT TAURIGA SCIENCES INC.

Tauriga Sciences, Inc. (TAUG) is a revenue generating, diversified life sciences company, engaged in several major business activities and initiatives. The company manufactures and distributes several proprietary retail products and product lines, mainly focused on the Cannabidiol (CBD) and Cannabigerol (CBG) Edibles market segment. The main product line, branded as Tauri-Gum, consists of a proprietary supplement chewing gum that is Kosher certified, Halal certified, and Vegan Formulated (CBD Infused Tauri-Gum Flavors: Mint, Blood Orange, Pomegranate), (CBG Infused Tauri-Gum Flavors: Peach-Lemon, Black Currant), (Vitamin C + Zinc Infused Tauri-Gum Flavor: Pear Bellini), (Caffeine Infused Tauri-Gum Flavor: Cherry Lime Rickey), & (Vitamin D3 Infused Tauri-Gum Flavor: Golden Raspberry). The Companys commercialization strategy consists of a broad array of retail customers, distributors, and a fast-growing E-Commerce business segment (E-Commerce website: www.taurigum.com). Please visit our corporate website, for additional information, as well as inquiries, at http://www.tauriga.com

Complementary to the Companys retail business, is its ongoing Pharmaceutical Development initiative. This relates to the development of a proposed Pharmaceutical grade version of Tauri-Gum, for nausea regulation (specifically designed for the following indication: Patients Subjected to Ongoing Chemotherapy Treatment). On March 22, 2021, the Company announced that it had Converted its U.S. Provisional Patent Application (filed on March 17, 2020) into a U.S. Non-Provisional Patent Application. The Patent, filed with the U.S.P.T.O. is Titled MEDICATED CBD COMPOSITIONS, METHODS OF MANUFACTURING, AND METHODS OF TREATMENT. On December 18, 2020 the Company disclosed that it had entered into a Master Services Agreement with CSTI to lead the Company's clinical development efforts.

The Company is headquartered in Wappingers Falls, New York. In addition, the Company operates two full time E-Commerce fulfillment centers: one located in Montgomery, Texas and the other in Brooklyn, New York.

DISCLAIMER -- Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 which represent managements beliefs and assumptions concerning future events. These forward-looking statements are often indicated by using words such as may, will, expects, anticipates, believes, hopes, believes, or plans, and may include statements regarding corporate objectives as well as the attainment of certain corporate goals and milestones. Forward-looking statements are based on present circumstances and on managements present beliefs with respect to events that have not occurred, that may not occur, or that may occur with different consequences or timing than those now assumed or anticipated. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed in forward looking statements due to known and unknown risks and uncertainties, such as are not guarantees of general economic and business conditions, the ability to successfully develop and market products, consumer and business consumption habits, the ability to consummate successful acquisition and licensing transactions, fluctuations in exchange rates, and other factors over which Tauriga has little or no control. Many of these risks and uncertainties are discussed in greater detail in the Risk Factors section of Taurigas Form 10-K and other periodic filings made from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Such forward-looking statements are made only as of the date of this release, and Tauriga assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.

Contact:

Tauriga Sciences, Inc.

4 Nancy Court, Suite 4

Wappingers Falls, NY 12590

Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Seth M. Shaw

Email: sshaw@tauriga.com

cell # (917) 796 9926

Company Instagram: @taurigum

Personal Instagram: @sethsms47

Twitter: @SethMShaw

Corp. Website: www.tauriga.com

E-Commerce Website: www.taurigum.com

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Mississauga, Ontario, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, Revera, a leader in the senior living sector, is releasing Unforgettable Ian, a film about a remarkable resident at Reveras Stoneridge Manor Long Term Care Home in Carleton Place, Ontario.

In 2019, prior to the onset of the pandemic, Revera set out to produce a film about life in long term care as part of our Age is More program to celebrate older adults and combat ageism. The story focuses on one resident, Ian Doig, who has lived an extraordinary life as a Veteran in the Canadian military and later in the Canadian diplomatic service. The film chronicles his journey as he learns to live with dementia and his experiences after moving into the Ottawa-area long term care home.

Unforgettable Ian provides Canadians the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of life in long term care. To watch the premiere, join us today at 12 p.m. ET on Facebook or watch the film at Reveraliving.com.

Although Ians individual story is unique and his life adventurous, how he and his family face changes and challenges is universally familiar, says Thomas Wellner, President and CEO, Revera. Reveras long term care homes and retirement residences are full of amazing people with incredible stories of their own. Every day, we strive to make our residents lives meaningful and provide opportunities to help them lead a life of purpose.

Some of Ians greatest challenges would lay ahead as the pandemic arrived in Canada and entered his home, Stoneridge Manor. Ian himself is a survivor of COVID-19. This documentary is unique in capturing life in a Canadian long term care home during the pandemic.

The film is dedicated to Reveras employees, including those at Stoneridge Manor who cared for Ian and his fellow residents as they battled the pandemic. The film recognizes the compassion and commitment senior living sector employees have demonstrated under the most trying of circumstances. Revera joins Canadians in mourning the long term care and retirement residents who were lost to the pandemic.

The impacts of the pandemic have been incredibly difficult for our residents, their families and our team members and their families. Unforgettable Ian provides a glimpse into Ians life as he learns to live with dementia amid the pandemic, says Wellner. We hope this film will strengthen viewers understanding of long term care as they see the beautiful and challenging moments our residents and their families navigate, with the support of our staff, every day.

About Revera

Revera is a leading Canadian-owned and -headquartered, owner, investor, developer and operator in the senior living sector. Through its portfolio of partnerships, Revera owns or operates more than 500 properties across Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom serving more than 55,000 seniors. The company offers seniors apartments, independent living, assisted living, memory care, and long term care. With approximately 50,000 employees dedicated to providing exceptional care and service, Revera is helping seniors live life to the fullest. Through Age is More, Revera is committed to challenging ageism, the companys social cause of choice. Find out more at ReveraLiving.com, Facebook.com/ReveraInc or on Twitter @Revera_Inc.

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WEST CHESTER, Pa., June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Key Financial, Inc. a financial planning and wealth management firm that oversees over $1.6 billion of assets under management, today announced that Patti Brennan, President and CEO has moved up the ranks from #25 last year to the #23 spot this year in Barrons Top 100 Womens Advisors in the Nation. Americas top female advisors, as identified by Barrons, was published on Monday June 21, 2021. The ranking reflects assets overseen by the advisors and their teams, the revenues generated for the firms and the quality of the advisors practices. Brennan has consistently remained on this exclusive list, including being ranked earlier this year as the #6 Advisor in Pennsylvania, as well as being inducted into the Barrons Hall of Fame in the Fall of 2019, a distinction held only by a handful of advisors in America.



The annual ranking is assembled from extensive research examining assets under management, revenue generated by advisors for their firms, and quality of the advisors' practices. Investment performance is a case by case basis; however, evaluations include examination of regulatory records, internal company documents, and 100-plus points of data provided by the advisors themselves.

While I owe so much of the success of my firm to every hardworking individual on my team  I would like to give recognition back to Barrons who continues its steadfast commitment to raise the bar for excellence in the financial services industry. Through their conferences and summits, with their podcasts and through their publication, Barrons has tirelessly worked to provide best practices to Advisors nationally  and for that, I am grateful! Every member of my team strives to provide our client family with a steadfast commitment to exemplary service in these best practices that has been the hallmark of our practice for over 30 years.

On a local level, Brennan proudly serves on the Board for the Penn Medicine Chester County Hospital, the YMCA of Greater Brandywine and Cuddle My Kids. She has formerly served on the Boards of the Chester County Economic Development Council and SEEDCO. As the President and CEO of Key Financial for over 30 years, Brennan provides comprehensive wealth management with integrated strategies that are unique to each client. Known for her ability to see the impact of the little details on the big picture, Brennan is known for communicating complex financial concepts in simple, understandable and meaningful terms. Brennan has guided standing room only audiences with her wisdom, perspective and practical advice through some of the most challenging times in our country. Brennan and her team have also launched The Patti Brennan Show, a podcast dedicated to helping improve the listener's net worth. It can be found on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. The show is biweekly and covers timely financial topics as well as economic forecasts and market discussions.

With assets under management of over $l Billion, Key Financial, Inc. provides comprehensive financial planning and wealth management services and is located at 1045 Andrew Drive Suite A West Chester, PA. For information about the firm's planning services or to speak with Patti Brennan, call (610)429-9050 or visit www.keyfinancialinc.com.

Securities offered through Royal Alliance Associates, Inc., member FINRA/SIPC. Insurance services offered through Patricia Brennan are independent of Royal Alliance Associates, Inc. Advisory services offered through Key Financial, Inc., a registered investment advisor not affiliated with Royal Alliance Associates, Inc.

The Barrons Winners Circle Top 100 and the Barrons Winners Circle Top 1200 are select groups of individuals who are screened on a number of different criteria. Among factors the survey takes into consideration are the overall size and success of practices, the quality of service provided to clients, adherence to high standards of industry regulatory compliance, and leadership in best practices of wealth management. Portfolio performance is not a factor. Please see www.barrons.com for more information.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c004bd4a-00a0-4cd0-8162-5ea5eaffcaac
Toronto, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TORONTO, June 23, 2021Jag Sharma will be Toronto Community Housings next President and Chief Executive Officer.

The Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC) Board of Directors today announced the appointment of Mr. Sharma following an extensive executive search process led by the Board. He will join the company on August 3, 2021.

In his new role, Mr. Sharma brings exceptional private and public sector experience from top-tier organizations such as the Ford Motor Company, Maple Leaf Foods and Canada Post Corporation. He served eight years with the City of Oshawa as Commissioner of the Community Services Department and then as City Manager. He joins TCHC from the Town of Newmarket, where he is currently Chief Administrative Officer reporting to the Mayor and Council and leading a team of close to 700 employees.

At the Town of Newmarket, Mr. Sharma drove the organizations success in key areas such as customer service excellence; establishing Councils strategic priorities and related public reporting; delivering the Towns first Financial Strategy; overseeing its pandemic response; championing Newmarkets digital transformation strategy; and establishing an emerging leaders development program. He was instrumental in establishing the Newmarket Task Force to address anti-Black racism, supported by the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion staff committee. The task force is working to encourage positive race relations with a focus on racial equity opportunities in Newmarket and on issues or activities that impact the Black community.

Acting CEO Sheila Penny will return to her role as TCHCs Chief Operating Officer when Mr. Sharma joins TCHC on August 3, 2021.

The board began the search process in June 2020 after former chief executive Kevin Marshman announced his decision to retire on March 31, 2021. The board established a search committee led by Vice Chair Brian Smith and selected LHH Knightsbridge Executive Search to assist the committee.

Quotes

Jag Sharma is a passionate and strategic leader with proven success in driving customer service excellence. The Board is confident that Jags unwavering commitment to service excellence and exemplary leadership skills, experience and genuine interest and empathy for the tenants we support will enable TCHC to build on our strengths and empower employees to make a difference in the lives of our tenants. His leadership experience in equity, diversity and inclusion, and in addressing anti-Black racism, will be invaluable as we implement the TCHC Confronting Anti-Black Racism Strategy that the Board approved earlier this year.

I want to thank the Search Committee led by Board Vice Chair Brian Smith for their dedication to the search process and tireless efforts in meeting with a strong field of candidates to select an outstanding new leader for the corporation. I also want to express the Boards gratitude and appreciation to Sheila Penny for her contributions in serving as Acting President and CEO and her continuing contributions as Chief Operating Officer.

Tim Murphy, Chair, TCHC Board of Directors

I commend the TCHC Board for their selection of Jag Sharma as the corporations next President and CEO. Toronto Community Housing is tasked with delivering the quality homes and services that TCHC tenants want and need. I believe Mr. Sharma is an outstanding choice to continue moving TCHC forward.

Toronto Mayor John Tory

Joining TCHC at this time is an incredible honour. In learning about TCHC and its mandate over the past few months, I have been inspired by the passion and commitment of its employees to deliver services and support tenants through one of the most difficult times in societys history. A key priority for me will be to connect with tenants to understand their needs and the ways we can continue to support them.

Jag Sharma

Bio: https://www.torontohousing.ca/about/executive-leadership-team/Pages/Jag-Sharma.aspx

About Toronto Community Housing

Toronto Community Housing (www.torontohousing.ca) is Canada's largest social housing provider. Toronto Community Housing provides homes for 58,500 low- and moderate-income households in neighbourhoods across the city. Toronto Community Housing is wholly owned by the City of Toronto and its 2,100 buildings represent a $10-billion public asset.

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HOUSTON, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Audubon Companies, a global provider of engineering, consulting, construction, fabrication, and technical services supporting the energy, power, and industrial markets, announced today the appointment of Bill White to the position of Director of Advanced Facilities. This announcement comes as Audubon Companies continues to ramp up its advanced facility offerings while focusing on long-term sustainability and carbon reduction.



With nearly 30 years of global technology industry experience, Mr. White is an expert in advanced facilities, mission-critical infrastructure, and technology solutions. Prior to joining Audubon Companies, Mr. White served as Mission Critical and Technology Director for Jacobs Engineering and Construction, LLC. His previous roles include leading projects for the Department of Homeland Security, Anadarko Petroleum, and CenterPoint Energy.

In his new role, Mr. White is responsible for the growth and development of emerging technology-related portfolios of advanced facilities, including data centers, technical operations centers, network operation centers, and other complex-built environments.

I am thrilled to join the Audubon team at such an exciting time. Audubon Companies is an industry leader because of its extraordinary team of professionals who are passionate about developing innovative solutions that support the significant demand for data center infrastructure. I look forward to being a part of its continued success, said Mr. White.

Ryan Hanemann, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Audubon Companies, adds, Mr. Whites appointment is an exciting step as we continue to grow our capabilities and further establish Audubon as a leader in critical infrastructure and technology. His extensive experience in these areas, as well as across markets and industries, provides a well-rounded perspective that will benefit our mission-critical clients.

As the global data center market continues to grow, Mr. White will further expand Audubon Companies comprehensive services for mission-critical projects. Part of a complete lifecycle of solutions that can be customized to each clients unique requirements, our portfolio of services includes strategic planning; consulting; engineering and design; project delivery; automation; OT Cybersecurity; modular fabrication; mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP); construction; facility commissioning; and operations and maintenance.

Mr. White graduated from Texas A&M University in 1997 with a Bachelor of Science in Marine Science Engineering and Maritime Administration. He is a member of the Association for Computer Operations Management (AFCOM), Infoguard Cyber Security, and Building Industry Consulting Service International (BICSI).

On Twitter: @audubonco

About Audubon Companies

Audubon Companies is a leading provider of engineering, consulting, construction, fabrication, and technical services supporting the energy, power, infrastructure and industrial markets. Together with our family of companies  Audubon Engineering, Audubon Field Solutions, Audubon Industrial Solutions, Audubon Inspection Solutions, Audubon Carbon, Audubon Construction, Opero Energy, and Affinity  we deliver repeatable project success  safely, on-schedule, and within budget.

For more information, please visit auduboncompanies.com.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/80a66ff6-8f16-456e-bbef-98e7fe67f897
Linthicum Heights, MD, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The National Fire Sprinkler Association (NFSA) and UL Firefighter Safety Research Institute (FSRI) are grateful to be able to share a sprinkler save that truly exemplifies the difference fire sprinklers and closing the door make when a fire occurs. Thanks go to the Lakeland, Florida Fire Department for their effective response to this incident and for issuing an incident report that reinforces the lifesaving properties of fire sprinklers and how the simple act of closing a door can mean the difference between life and death or serious injury.

This is why all new construction, all new homes, should have fire sprinklers, explains NFSA President Shane Ray. As more buildings are built, this is going to happen more and more. Without fire sprinklers this would have been a tragedy that firefighters faced instead of a save. This was a great example of the combination of smoke alarms, fire sprinklers, firefighters and the closing of a door.

On June 19th, the Lakeland, Florida Fire Department responded to a fire at a three-story, 48-unit apartment complex. The unit involved was on the third floor of the building.

This save validates that synthetic furnishings like this sofa can create a significant amount of smoke, even when fire sprinklers are present and controlling the fire, added Stephen Kerber, vice president, research and director, FSRI. Lakeland Fire Department provided a great narrative of the life-saving impact that fire sprinklers coupled with a closed door can make!

At the time of the incident, the apartment was occupied by a 13yr-old boy and 9yr-old girl who were home alone. The cause of the fire was determined to be a candle that was knocked over. After the fire ignited, the boy ran outside to get help. The girl ran into a bedroom and locked herself in. As the fire grew, it produced heavy smoke and enough heat to activate two fire sprinklers, which extinguished the fire except for smoldering fire within the couch.

Upon LFD arrival, the crew entered the apartment and was met with heavy smoke causing limited visibility. The crew made their way through the structure, unable to locate the fire. They came upon the locked bedroom door and found the girl inside. They safely rescued the girl, who suffered no injuries. They then found and extinguished the smoldering within the couch.

The LFD points out that this incident would have turned out much worse had the building not been protected by an automatic sprinkler system. Given the larger than normal fire load in the apartment, the location of the girl and the construction type, this incident could have had a deadly ending. Instead, the building suffered no fire damage and other damage was limited to water damage and fire department access during primary searches of neighboring units.

About the National Fire Sprinkler Association (and information, visit www.nfsa.org for the latest material, statistics and a dedicated team of fire safety advocates ready to serve all stakeholders in order to fulfill the vision of a safer world. NFSA): NFSA was founded in 1905 and wants to create a more fire safe world, and works to heighten the awareness of the importance of fire sprinkler systems from homes to high-rise and all occupancies in between. The Association is an inclusive organization made up of dedicated and committed members of a progressive life-saving industry. This industry manufactures, designs, supplies, installs, inspects, and services the worlds most effective system in saving lives and property from uncontrolled structural fires.

About UL Firefighter Safety Research Institute

UL Firefighter Safety Research Institute (FSRI) advances fire research knowledge and develops cutting edge, practical fire service education aimed at helping firefighters stay safe while more effectively protecting people and property. Guided by a global advisory board comprised of fire service personnel, UL FSRI investigates residential, commercial, and industrial fires through full-scale testing, field-testing, and modeling to replicate actual fires faced by firefighters. Research results are shared through interactive training courses that have reached hundreds of thousands of firefighters globally. To learn more, visit ULFirefighterSafety.org. Follow UL Firefighter Safety Research Institute on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Lima, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Credicorp Ltd. (NYSE: BAP) announces that the Board of Directors, in its session held on June 23rd, 2021, has appointed Gianfranco Ferrari as the new CEO of Credicorp, effective January 2022. Today, Mr. Ferrari is Deputy CEO and Head of Universal Banking, the main Line of Business at Credicorp.

Gianfranco Ferrari will succeed Walter Bayly, who decided to retire at the end of 2021 after an extraordinary 28 year career at the Group, including the last three years as CEO of Credicorp and the previous 10 years as CEO of our main subsidiary, Banco de Credito del Peru (BCP).

Gianfranco Ferrari, the right person to take the lead

Gianfranco is the right person to guide Credicorp in this new era  said Luis Romero, Executive Chairman of the Board. He will run Credicorp, not only because of his outstanding and inspiring 25-year path within our Group, but also because he is the right leader to steer Credicorps businesses towards two main goals: First, to be a role model creating a more sustainable and inclusive economy in Latin America, focused on creating value for all our stakeholders. Second, to further develop our transformation process at the Group level. Given that Gianfranco has successfully led the digital transformation process at BCP and drives today its sustainability program, we are very pleased to have him as the next CEO of Credicorp.

Mr. Ferrari is also member of the Board of Mibanco, and through his career within the Group, has led Digital Transformation, Retail Banking and the Wealth Management business at BCP, and was CEO of BCP Bolivia. He holds an undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Universidad del Pacifico and has an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Alvaro Correa will also step down

The Board has also accepted the resignation of Alvaro Correa, who decided to retire by the end of 2021. Mr. Correa has had an exceptional 24 year career within the Group, including the last three years as Deputy CEO overseeing Insurance, Pensions, Investment Banking and Wealth Management and six years as CEO of Pacifico. Mr. Correa will continue as Chairman of the Board at Prima AFP and as a member of the Board at Credicorp Capital and Atlantic Security Bank (ASB).

As a result, Cesar Rivera and Guillermo Garrido Lecca, in their roles leading the Insurance and Health Businesses, respectively, will report directly to Mr. Ferrari. In addition, Mr. Rivera will oversee the Pensions business to steer the integration of our Insurance and Pensions businesses.

Diego Cavero will head Universal Banking

In addition, the Board of Credicorp has appointed Diego Cavero Belaunde as Head of Universal Banking. Moreover, the Board of BCP decided that Mr. Cavero will succeed Mr. Ferrari as CEO of BCP in January 2022. It is a pleasure to rely on Diego, who has worked at the Group for the last 27 years said Luis Romero, who also chairs the Board at BCP. He is one of the most experienced professionals in Wholesale Banking in Peru. His knowledge and relationship development with different industries will drive our leadership in the financial sector and will be key to helping other sectors and clients to foster a greater social impact in their activities. Diego deeply knows the organization, given that he successfully led the operational re-organization of BCP six years ago and has also been the CEO of BCP Bolivia.

Mr. Cavero is currently Deputy CEO of Wholesale Banking at BCP, and prior to that held positions as Head of Wholesale Banking, Head of Operations, Processes and Efficiency, and has been a member of the Boards of Credicorp Capital, Credibolsa, Bolivia, Credifondos Bolivia, and Crediseguros. He holds an undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Universidad del Lima and an MBA from The University of Texas at Austin.

New Chief Operating Officer (COO) position is created

Moreover, the Board approved the creation of the position of COO from January 2022, to be held by Alejandro Perez-Reyes and who will report to the CEO. This new position will oversee the corporate functions of: Sustainability, Open Innovation (Krealo), Corporate Strategy and Development, M&A and Human Development.

Mr. Perez-Reyes is currently Credicorp Capitals COO and Peru Country Head since July 2018. Prior to these positions, he was the Head of Asset Management of Credicorp Capital for six years. He has worked at Credicorp since 1999, where he has previously held the positions of Chief Investment Officer at Prima AFP and Head of Derivatives and Structured Products at BCP. Mr. Perez-Reyes holds a bachelor's degree in Economics from Universidad de Lima, and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Luis Romero thanks Walter Bayly and Alvaro Correa

We profoundly thank Walter and Alvaro for their invaluable time at Credicorp. They are genuine leaders who have transformed our business, driven our success and inspired our teams remarked Luis Romero. Moreover, Mr. Ferrari added: Credicorp would not be where it is had Walter and Alvaro not marked a transition in our history. Thanks to them, we have broadened our vision and now look for opportunities to strengthen our foundations as a regional financial services leader as we contribute to generating greater social impact and a more sustainable future.













About Credicorp

Credicorp Ltd. (NYSE: BAP) is the leading financial services holding company in Peru with presence in Chile, Colombia and Bolivia. Credicorp has a diversified business portfolio organized into four lines of business: Universal Banking, through Banco de Credito del Peru  BCP and Banco de Credito de Bolivia; Microfinance, through Mibanco in Peru and Colombia; Insurance & Pension Funds, through Grupo Pacifico and Prima AFP; and Investment Banking & Wealth Management, through Credicorp Capital, Wealth Management at BCP and Atlantic Security Bank.




Houston-based iCRYO was recently featured in the 2nd Annual Financial Times: Fastest Growing Companies list.

United States, Texas, Houston, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- iCRYO ranked number 189 (14th in Health) as one of the top 500 fastest growing companies by Financial Times. The list features brands heavily from the tech space, with 5.8 percent of the mentioned companies in the health community. You can find brands such as SmileDirectClub, Sedera, Beyond Meats, and many more. Financial Times created the rankings based on the companies' strength of the business ecosystem and transparent financial information.

"The journey of launching the iCRYO brand across the nation has been one for the books. It's been even more meaningful to do it alongside my father. As we Co-Founded the franchise together, it was truly a blessing to work at ensuring the Jones family core values stayed intact during the process of expansion," said COO, Kyle Jones.

Over the past year, iCRYO has sold more regions for future locations, and in the coming months, it will open locations faster than ever. With society getting back to the everyday norm, wellness is on the top of individuals' minds for themselves and their families. The "family" concept has been one thing that has been instilled in the iCRYO culture since day one. Jones continued with, "The mindset of "family first" is how we've instilled such an amazing culture within the iCRYO, organization and quite honestly, I believe that's how we've attracted some of the franchisees we could of ever want. This brand might be growing fast or slow to some people, but one thing I can assure you is it'll grow with the right people and the right way."

iCRYO CEO Bill Jones mentioned, "Necessity is the Mother of Invention, Truly a proverb that resonates when you think about one's health and wellness. iCRYO was founded on creating a company that offered affordable holistic services readily available to the masses. With the current unhealthy state of the average person, and the desire to live healthier, longer pain-free lives without taking pharmaceutical drugs to mask the pain and discomfort." He continued with, "We recognized the need for alternative solutions to recovery, anti-aging, and pain management. Hence, the "NEED," the solution, has become iCRYO; our proven systems and personal services have become a way of life for many. Our company is snowballing due to a movement in the health and wellness space around the world. iCRYO is disrupting the marketplace because we have the solution people are looking for, our culture, and our passion for helping others elevate their lifestyles, feel better and live longer. Here we grow again."

About iCRYO

Headquartered in Houston, TX, iCRYO is setting the standard for health and wellness nationwide. As the leading franchise in the industry, iCRYO is an affordable, convenient and professional franchise that offers Cryotherapy, iV Infusions, and additional wellness services to the communities they are located. iCRYO offers a turnkey franchise system for business owners. Whether it be a retail location or an addition to a gym or existing business, we have the systems and comprehensive training in place to provide safe wellness services in your area. Its mission is to elevate the lifestyle of our team members and guests while raising the bar in the health and wellness market. To learn more, visit www.icryo.com.

Connect / Follow iCRYO: LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram

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GOSHEN [mdash] Thomas went to be with his Lord and Saviour early July 2. He was born to John W and Elizabeth (McNeilly) Detwiler on Jan. 14, 1949. He married D Sue (Shaum) on Nov. 27, 1969. He is survived by his wife, three children Thomas Edward (Wendy), Audra J (Scott) Hoover, and Anthony 
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Honda is looking forward to the Austrian GP. In the preview on the official website of Honda Technical Director Toyoharu Tanabe shares how they are looking at the upcoming races in Austria.

"In France last Sunday, Max took a brilliant win, with all four of our cars performing well and now we are now in Austria for a double-header, something we already tackled last year at this track." Verstappen crashed out in the first race in Austria last year, while in the second race he managed to finish in third place.

Read more Verstappen strengthens his lead in the Power Rankings with a big win

Tanabe continues: "The Red Bull Ring provides a beautiful mountain setting and the track features many changes of gradient. Its a really nice circuit, one of the shortest of the year, with just ten corners, most of them high speed and it is the shortest in terms of lap time."

Red Bull is in top form

"This is a home race for Red Bull and it is special for all of us, as it was here in 2019 that Honda secured its first win of the hybrid era, again with Max, so we have good memories. It means everyone is very motivated to get the best possible result this weekend," he writes on the website.

"We come here off the back of three consecutive wins and it is encouraging that we won at a conventional race track like Paul Ricard, as well as at the two street circuits prior to that. The nature of this track means it usually produces exciting racing and, as our rivals are still very strong, we can expect a very close fight in qualifying and the race." With the high speed of the circuit and the two straights, Honda's engine power will play an important role. We'll see if Red Bull can continue the series of victories.
In the preview from AlphaTauri Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda look ahead to the upcoming Steiermark GP. Expectations are high on Red Bull Racing's home circuit.

Last year Pierre Gasly finished seventh and fifteenth at the Red Bull Ring. He says: "After my home race in France, now one week later its a home circuit for all of us as a Red Bull team. A lot will be expected of us there from Red Bull, from AlphaTauri and all the teams partners."

"We have to keep pushing like that. We already saw last year that with two races on the same track, the gaps are very close, especially on what is a very short track, and you have to look to improve from one weekend to the next. Staying there two weekends in a row means the cars are optimised and of course we drivers have found out how to be on the absolute limit. It means that in Qualifying especially, it will be extremely tight."

Qualifying is tight in Austria

Like Gasly, Tsunoda is also looking forward to the races in Austria. He has not driven a Formula 1 car there before, but he did race there in Formula 2. Austria is another circuit where I have raced before. In fact, last year in Formula 2, I took pole and finished second in the feature race of the second weekend we had there. That is good for my confidence, but in a Formula 1 car, it will be a quite different experience, so I will need to gradually build up my pace in practice and make progress through the sessions."

For Qualifying, its going to be very tight, because it is such a short lap and very quick, so you have to put it all together to nail your lap and have a good result. It will be an important couple of weekends for all of us in the Red Bull family and it will be nice to race in front of a crowd for another race," he concluded.

Read more Honda takes strong Mercedes into account during races in Austria
After growing up in Grand Coulee, Michael Thomas now jumps out of helicopters in Bahrain.

After graduating from Lake Roosevelt High School in 2016, Thomas went to Western Washington University to pursue a computer science major.

But after a semester there, Thomas headed in another direction.

His father Dale Thomas had been in the Navy, and friends had joined other branches of the military, so Thomas spoke to a recruiter who showed him the path to becoming an aviation rescue swimmer, someone who jumps from a helicopter into the ocean to rescue those in danger.

"I just wanted a challenge," Thomas said over the phone June 11.

The path to becoming an aviation rescue swimmer took Thomas to Chicago, Illinois for basic training, then to Pensacola, Florida for naval candidate and aviation rescue swimmer schooling, and then to Norfolk, Virginia for flight school.

The path to becoming an aviation rescue swimmer takes one-and-a-half to two years as a student, and then another year or two before becoming fully qualified. Thomas achieved that goal earlier this month.

A large part of the job is performing medical evacuations, he said.

"If somebody on a ship broke their arm or something, we would pick them up," he said. "Any medical situations, we could tend to those, and fly them from a ship to a medical center."

People with medical emergencies at sea could range from civilians to those on commercial boats or other military personnel.

"Literally anybody," Thomas said.

He said he has been on 10 missions involving different types of situations.

"We don't just do search and rescue," he said, "we also do close air support, non-combative environment operations, humanitarian aid/disaster relief, combat search and rescue, and maritime interdiction operations, just to name a few. A lot of the stuff we do is involving working with other assets like marines, Coast Guard, SEAL teams, even foreign ally special forces."

A mission might include jumping out of a helicopter while attached to it with a gunner's belt, a two-inch strap with heavy-duty carabiners on each end.

After jumping out, the helicopter pilot either hovers it above the water without moving, or moves slowly above the water; then the crew chief tells the aviation rescue swimmer when he or she is good to detach and jump into the water.

"Then the helicopter will get out of the hover and go into a forward flight, basically fly in circles, called an overhead," Thomas explained. "Once the swimmer is done with the survivor, we signal the helicopter to pick us up."

"There's a high adrenaline rush, but throughout the training you're put in stressful situations constantly," he said about the intensity of the work. "The road to getting to your squadron, it kind of prepares you for being in the stressful environment, being in control, and making smart decisions. There are a lot of options as to how to get the survivor out of the water depending on their injuries, and you have to make those decisions smartly while in that environment."

Thomas has spent months at a time in Bahrain, an island country in the Persian Gulf east of Saudi Arabia.

With people he knows there and almost everyone speaking English, he feels comfortable there.

"It's a melting pot," he said. "The majority of the population is from outside the country trying to get work. ... We can eat at local restaurants, there's grocery stores. We can cook home-cooked meals."

Thomas said you could eat pizza one day and curry the next.

The variety of the lifestyle of an aviation rescue swimmer suits him just fine.

"I'm the type of person that's always changing what I'm doing and I get into a lot of different things," he said, "and with my job we have like 20 different missions we can do. My schedule changes every single day. It keeps it exciting. ... I love it, it's a good time. Growing up, I always wanted to fly in a helicopter, but it was never my intention to do this."

Thomas' parents, Dale and Sabine, whom he visited earlier this month while on leave, are supportive of him being an aviation rescue swimmer.

"They're on board with it, they're all about it," Thomas said.
Fairs_and_festivals

top story

Coast Guard Festival

Smith: CG Fest to include parade, fireworks and more

Tribune file photo Coast Guard Festival Executive Director Mike Smith, left, said this years festival is ready to go, pending approval by the Grand Haven City Council, which is scheduled for July 6. The 2021 festival begins July 30. mdeyoung / Tribune file photo / Matt DeYoung The Scottville Clown Band ride toward the start of the Coast Guard Festivals Grand Parade in 2016.

The 2021 Grand Haven Coast Guard Festival is nearly ready to set sail.

The final approval for this summers festival is expected to come at the July 6 meeting of Grand Havens City Council, or only about three weeks before it begins.

However, Mike Smith, executive director of the festival, said hes now confident the plans hes put together over the past few months will come to fruition.

Essentially, what has been approved verbally  although theres been no vote  is that we will have everything from a carnival downtown to the Grand Parade and fireworks, he told the Tribune.

This years festival is scheduled to run from July 30 through Aug. 8. Last years festival was canceled due to the pandemic.

Missing from this years event lineup will be the Kids Parade, which typically takes place on the opening Saturday of the festival.

I felt it distracted from the YMCA run a little bit  theyre running into each other, literally, Smith said. And also, this was a good year to step away, breathe, and not add another layer that our local law enforcement would have to add on more hours on that first Saturday.

Also, the Coast Guard Festival quilt show will be held virtually instead of in person  a decision that was made several months ago.

Otherwise, Smith said the festival will feature all the usual events, with a few small changes.

Were still piecing together sponsors for some of the events that we werent sure we could have, he said. The parade will be smaller. Well keep the footprint the same, but the total number of bands and floats will be lower than it has been in quite a while.

Smith said theyre still accepting applications to participate in the Grand Parade. And while there wont be any specific rules for those lining the parade route, he did say the festival will ask spectators to be respectful of current Michigan health standards.

The carnival will return to downtown Grand Haven, although details are still being worked out on exactly where each piece will fit.

The fireworks show is planned for the evening of Aug. 7.

It will be that night, as always, but better than ever, Smith said.

The National Memorial Service, scheduled for Friday, Aug. 6, will take on special meaning this year after Coast Guard Ensign Morgan Garrett died in a training crash in 2020.

Sadly, we have an operational death, so the mother of our young pilot who died will be coming as our guest, Smith said.

Four Coast Guard cutters will visit Grand Havens port as part of this years festival, including the Mackinaw, which is currently under command of Cmdr. Kristen Serumgard. Her presence will help highlight the theme of this years festival  Women in the Coast Guard: Strength Within.

Smith said 26 women who have received various Coast Guard awards will be special guests at this years festival, along with a group of women called the Pioneers, who achieved various firsts for women in the Coast Guard, including the first female master chief petty officer.

Were trying to share their stories, Smith said.

The challenges of organizing this years festival were immense, as Smith and his team had to wait until the last minute to see where Michigans rules in regards to indoor and outdoor gatherings would stand.

This year really took on two years worth of planning, because we always start a full year before, he explained. And its been difficult keeping track of all the associated groups of women from across the world who will be in attendance  that was a challenge, finding them and acknowledging them.

The second part is that there are so many different pandemic things, he added. The city was pushing us to share what we had planned early, but I didnt want to plan early because of pandemic rules, so I was dragging my feet to present to the city.

For a full list of festival events, see the festivals website at coastguardfest.org.
Hyundai Motor Group and Grab Holdings Inc. are enhancing their ongoing strategic partnership in mobility services to focus on accelerating EV adoption in Southeast Asia. The Groupincluding Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Corporationand Grab will further develop new pilots and initiatives that lower the barriers of entry for Grab driver and delivery-partners to adopt EVs, such as lowering the total cost of ownership and reducing range anxiety.

Survey results from an initial EV pilot in Singapore found that high costs, lack of charging locations and long waiting times for charging are top barriers hindering Grab driver-partners from adopting EVs (based on a survey done with driver-partners who rent vehicles from GrabRentals in 2020).

Hence, the enhanced partnership will focus on addressing some of these barriers by piloting new EV business models such as leasing EVs with a battery-as-a-service model or car-as-a-service model, and EV financing. Both parties will also develop a joint EV roadmap to accelerate adoption in Southeast Asia. The pilot programs will start in 2021, beginning in Singapore, and expand to Indonesia and Vietnam.

As part of the roadmap development, the two parties will also conduct an EV feasibility study. The intent is to gain a deeper understanding into the gaps and barriers to wider EV ownership and adoption, then translating the findings from the study into practical ways to further develop the EV ecosystem. These insights will provide governments and ecosystem partners with ideas and best practices on how EV policies can be shaped to better address the day-to-day operational routines of ride-hailing drivers and delivery-partners.

This comes at a critical time as last-mile logistics and deliveries continue to experience unprecedented growth, and EVs can play a huge role in reducing carbon emissions from vehicles.

In addition, in line with Hyundai Motor Groups latest future strategy, both parties will explore collaboration in new business opportunities and technologies such as smart city solutions.

Since the initial partnership was announced in 2018, both parties have launched a series of EV pilots in Southeast Asia, starting with Singapore in 2019 and Indonesia in 2020. The pilots saw the deployment of 200 Hyundai Kona EVs in Grabs GrabRentals fleet in Singapore, which has consistently recorded a high utilization rate.

Customized maintenance packages and incentives were also rolled out to support Grab driver-partners who are renting the Hyundai EVs. In Indonesia, Grab launched its GrabCar Elektrik fleet of Hyundai IONIQ vehicles at Jakartas Soekarno-Hatta airport.

While EVs are relatively nascent in Southeast Asia, Grab plans to play a vital role in working with partners and governments to accelerate EV adoption. As government EV policies and incentives are implemented and essential infrastructure like charging stations continue to be built, this partnership will provide insights and best practices on the usage of EVs as part of the day-to-day operations of driver and delivery-partners. For example, weve piloted ways to reduce driver-partners downtime by enabling them to swap their e-moped batteries at GrabKitchen while they wait to collect food orders. Successful EV adoption is a multi-stakeholder effort, particularly in Southeast Asia, and well continue to leverage our technology and operational leadership to build a fleet for the future. Russell Cohen, Group Managing Director of Operations, Grab

Hyundai Motor Group has expanded its presence in Southeast Asia to foster new mobility innovation. The Group held a virtual groundbreaking ceremony for HMGICS (Hyundai Motor Group Innovation Center in Singapore) in October last year and construction is ongoing. The center will act as a testbed for a human-centered intelligent manufacturing platform with a small-scale EV production facility on site. The center also will explore new business concepts, including BaaS (battery-as-a-service) to enhance customers experiences of EV ownership.

The Hyundai partnership is part of a range of ongoing EV-related initiatives from Grab to support the EV goals of governments in Southeast Asia. In Singapore, Grab has a partnership with SP Group, the largest government-owned electricity and gas distributor in the country. Grab has leveraged driving data from this partnership to advise on ideal charging locations, based on driver locations and demand heatmaps.

In Indonesia, Grab launched the Electric Vehicle Ecosystem Roadmap in 2019 with the Indonesia government to support EV policies, and help achieve the governments target of 20% of Indonesian transportation being EVs by 2025.
Following the announcement by solid-state battery company Solid Power that it will become a publicly listed company through a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), materials technology company Umicore announced that it holds a stake in Solid Powers pre-SPAC transaction. This stake was built through two successive investment rounds (series A and B) which Solid Power raised before launching the next phase of its growth through a public listing.

Founded in 2012, Solid Power is a Colorado-based developer of next-generation all-solid-state batteries for electric vehicles. With eight years of technology development and three years of manufacturing development, Solid Power has been working to deliver better performing all-solid-state batteries using low-cost, industry standard processes.

Solid Powers all-solid-state batteries alleviate the two largest concerns for passenger EV adoption: cost and range anxiety, with an expected 50 to 75% increase in energy density compared to any commercially available lithium-ion battery today.

The safety profile of Solid Powers batteries also exceeds that of traditional lithium-ion as a result of its truly all-solid cell architecture. Several leading car manufacturers and cell makers such as Ford, BMW, Hyundai and Samsung have invested in Solid Powers promising technology.

Umicore is a leading producer of cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles and is committed to developing materials that deliver higher energy density, faster charging times and lower costs. Its technology roadmap spans short-, mid- and long-term research horizons for cathode and composite anode materials including those used in solid-state technologies.

Alongside its own research programs, Umicore promotes open innovation and supports the development of promising technologies by start-up companies such as Solid Power.

The SPAC business combination values Solid Power at an implied $1.2 billion pro forma enterprise value. Upon closing of the transaction, Solid Power is expected to have approximately $600 million in cash, including a $165-million fully committed PIPE transaction anchored by investors Koch Strategic Platforms, Riverstone Energy Limited, Neuberger Berman funds and Van Eck Associates Corporation. Cash proceeds to Solid Power will be used to fund operations and support Solid Powers growth.
VivoPower International has entered into a binding Letter of Intent with Toyota Motor Corporation Australia Limited to create a program for the electrification of Toyota Land Cruiser vehicles using conversion kits designed and manufactured by VivoPowers wholly-owned electric vehicle subsidiary, Tembo e-LV B.V.

The binding LOI sets out the terms for the purchase of preliminary goods and services and the basis upon which a Master Services Agreement (MSA) is expected to be finalized to govern an electric vehicle conversion partnership between VivoPower and Toyota Australia. Final terms of the MSA are under negotiation, but upon completion, it is intended that VivoPower would become Toyota Australias exclusive partner for Land Cruiser 70 electrification for a period of five years, with a further two-year option (seven years in total).

We are extremely pleased to be collaborating with Toyota Motor Company Australia, part of the worlds largest original equipment manufacturer on the electrification of their Land Cruiser vehicles with our Tembo conversion kits. The Land Cruiser is the vehicle of choice worldwide for mining and other ruggedized industries. This partnership with Toyota Australia is a testament to the outstanding potential of Tembos technology to decarbonize transportation in some of the worlds toughest and hardest to decarbonize industries. More importantly, it is a tremendous opportunity for us to work directly with Toyota Australia to optimize the Tembo product and deliver it to more customers around the world, helping them to achieve their net zero carbon objectives in the process. Kevin Chin, Executive Chairman and CEO of VivoPower

While the MSA is still to be finalized, the LOI is a binding agreement between VivoPower and Toyota Australia to begin collaboration on Land Cruiser electrification efforts. VivoPower and Toyota Australia intend to finalize the MSA as soon as practicable.

For the Electric Cruiser, the diesel engine and gearbox are replaced with an electric motor fitted with a newly designed Tembo 1:3 reduction gearbox. The 110/65 kW motor offers 250 Nm torque, regulated by the EVCU for a smooth and predictable ride. With permanent 4WD and a central differential the power goes to both front and rear wheels.

The Land Cruiser 70 Series (J70), in production since 1984, is the off-road model of the Land Cruiser lineup, and is exceptionally popular in Australia.
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GREENWICH  The third-, fourth- and fifth-graders from North Mianus School in Greenwich will be relocated to the former Trinity Catholic School in Stamford for the fall semester, the school district announced.

The Board of Education is expected to approve a lease contract for use of the building, which housed the Catholic high school until it closed in 2020, at Wednesday nights special meeting.

While nothing can replace our beloved North Mianus, we are confident that this space will meet our needs, while keeping our students and staff together, Superintendent of Schools Toni Jones and North Mianus Principal Angela Schmidt said in a Tuesday night letter to families.

The Trinity Catholic site appears to work quite well for the needs of the North Mianus community while work is underway on the building, Board of Education Chair Peter Bernstein said. The layout, proximity and green spaces all support a positive learning environment.

North Mianus students have been displaced since February, when a ceiling collapse caused a burst pipe, which flooded the oldest wing of the building, built in the 1930s. Some classes returned to the undamaged part of the building in March, but others had to be bused to other schools throughout the district.

This spring, it became evident that repairs on the damaged part of the building would not be finished in time for the fall. So district administrators set out to find an alternate location for North Mianus students. At a May school board meeting, Jones said the district had found a tentative location. A total of $170,000 per month, or $850,000 for five months from August through December, had been budgeted for the rental, she said.

On Tuesday, in addition to the letter to parents, Jones and Schmidt sent a YouTube virtual tour of the former Trinity Catholic space to parents. According to the district, kindergarten and Grades 1 and 2 will remain in the undamaged portions of the North Mianus building through the fall semester. Grades 3, 4 and 5 will be bused to Stamford.

North Mianus students will share the facility, which includes two separate buildings, with the newly founded Cardinal Kung Academy, a college-preparatory junior and senior high school, at the campus located at 948 Newfield Ave. North Mianus students will share the main Trinity building with Cardinal Kungs newly launched early childhood school, which will open in September 2021 with about 120 students enrolled.

According to Jones and Schmidt, Trinity Catholic is about 4.5 miles from North Mianus School, or about a 15-minute drive.

It was our priority to find a space that was relatively close to NMS, could accommodate all of our displaced students and staff, and provide the space and accommodations of a school site, Jones and Schmidt said in the statement.

North Mianus Parent Teacher Association co-Chair Sarah Klocinski said she was personally pleased that the district had found a beautiful building to house students while North Mianus is repaired. Klocinski, who has three children at North Mianus, said she showed the virtual tour video to her rising fifth-grader and his friend and both were excited about the new space.

The location, however, is a minor worry.

I am a little concerned that, although it is close in mileage, it is a busy area to commute through with lots of traffic lights, Klocinski said. Hopefully it wont take the buses too long to take the kids to/from the school.

justin.papp@scni.com; @justinjpapp1; 203-842-2586
Caviar is not known for its patience  it is, however, known for creating luxury versions of smartphones covered with as many precious metals and precious stones as they can hold. The latest line-up has a cosmic theme and it comes from the future.



Caviar's Parade of the Planets Golden, based on iPhone 13 Pro

Okay, these are just prototypes, but Caviar plans to customize iPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max (which are, of course, months away from announcement). A couple of these have enough meteorites on them to make even Bruce Willis break a sweat.

They are called Parade of the Planets and are covered with blackened titanium, a material used in the space industry. The Golden version also features decorative elements with double gold plating (999 gold, 7 microns thick) and starts at $14,290. The Titanium model is a tad more affordable at $12,750.



Caviar's Parade of the Planets Titanium, based on iPhone 13 Pro

The rear design for these phones lives up to the name with representations of the six planets from Mercury to Saturn along with some satellites like the Moon and Mars Phobos and Deimos. Some of these (like the Moon and Mars) are represented in more than just as stylized representations.

Both designs have pieces of six meteorites embedded in the back  one from the Moon, one from Mars, plus two pieces from the Tsarev meteorite and the Chelyabinsk meteorite (thats the one from all the dash cam videos).

Both also have mechanical watches on the back with a tourbillon movement with 19 stones (CVR ELT3350A). But theres also a stylized hourglass with silvery sand, because having only one mechanical timekeeping device is not enough.

There are two more designs, based on blackened titanium again, but with gold decorations. One is dubbed Starfall (it starts at $6,950), the other is called Moon and Sun ($7,030). 99 units will be made of each version.



Caviar's custom iPhone 13 Pro (Max) designs: Starfall  Sun and Moon

You can check out the Parade of the Planets page for more details.

You know who loves Mars? Thats right, Elon Musk. Though were not sure if the leader of Tesla will love the Model Excellence  a Tesla Model S (Plaid configuration), which has had its front grille and other elements plated with 24k gold.



Caviar's Tesla Model Excellence concept (based on a Model S Plaid)



Caviar's iPhone 12 Pro design that goes with the Tesla Model Excellence

Caviar will even even sell you a matching iPhone  a mere iPhone 12 Pro this time around  for a price, of course. But whats 6,150 more over the $299,000 price tag of the Tesla? Note that Caviar lists the car as a concept, so we cant promise you can actually buy one.
These are the best offers from our affiliate partners. We may get a commission from qualifying sales.
The Project Gutenberg eBook of Speech of the Right Honourable William Pitt, in the House of Commons, Thursday, January 31, 1799, by William Pitt

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org . If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook.

Title: Speech of the Right Honourable William Pitt, in the House of Commons, Thursday, January 31, 1799

On offering to the House the resolutions which he proposed as the basis of an union between Great Britain and Ireland: Fifth Edition.

Author: William Pitt

Release Date: June 22, 2021 [eBook #65670]

Language: English

Character set encoding: UTF-8

Produced by: Charlene Taylor and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK SPEECH OF THE RIGHT HONOURABLE WILLIAM PITT, IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, THURSDAY, JANUARY 31, 1799 ***

Fifth Edition.

SPEECH

OF THE

Right Hon. William Pitt,

&c. &c.

(ONE SHILLING AND SIXPENCE.)

SPEECH

OF THE

RIGHT HONOURABLE

WILLIAM PITT,

IN THE

HOUSE OF COMMONS,

THURSDAY, JANUARY 31, 1799,

On offering to the House the Resolutions which he proposed

as the Basis of an Union between

Great Britain and Ireland.

Fifth Edition.

LONDON:

PRINTED FOR J. WRIGHT, OPPOSITE OLD BOND-STREET,

PICCADILLY.

1799.

[1]

SPEECH

OF THE

Right Hon. William Pitt,

&c. &c.

The Speaker having read His Majestys Message, viz.

GEORGE REX. His Majesty is persuaded that the unremitting industry with which our enemies persevere in their avowed design of effecting the Separation of Ireland from this Kingdom, cannot fail to engage the particular attention of Parliament; and His Majesty recommends it to this House to consider of the most effectual means of counteracting and finally defeating this design; and he trusts that a review of all the circumstances which have recently occurred (joined to the sentiment of mutual affection and common interest), will dispose the Parliament of both Kingdoms to provide, in the manner[2] which they shall judge most expedient, for settling such a complete and final adjustment as may best tend to improve and perpetuate a Connection essential for their common security, and to augment and consolidate the Strength, Power, and Resources of the British Empire. G. R.

Mr. Pitt rose, and spoke as follows:

SIR,

When I proposed to the House, the last time this subject was before them, to fix this day for the further consideration of His Majestys Message, I certainly indulged the hope that the result of a similar communication to the Parliament of Ireland would have opened a more favourable Prospect, than at present exists, of the speedy accomplishment of a measure which I then stated, and which I still consider, to be of the greatest importance to the power, the stability, and the general welfare of the Empire; to the immediate interests of both Kingdoms; and more particularly to the peace, the tranquillity, and the safety of Ireland: in this hope, I am sorry to say, I have for the present been disappointed, by the proceedings of the Irish House of Commons, of[3] which we have been informed since this subject was last under consideration.

I feel and know that the Parliament of Ireland possesses the power, the intire competence, on the behalf of that country, alike to accept or reject a proposition of this naturea power which I am by no means inclined to dispute. I see that at the present moment one House of Parliament in Ireland has expressed a repugnance, even to the consideration of this measure. Feeling, Sir, as I have already stated, that it is important, not only as it tends to the general prosperity of the Empire of Great Britain, but (what, under every situation, must always be to me an object of the greatest moment) feeling that it was designed and calculated to increase the prosperity and ensure the safety of Ireland, I must have seen with the deepest regret that, at the very first moment, and before the nature of the measure could be known, it was so received.

But whatever may have been my feelings upon this subject, knowing that it is the undoubted[4] right of the Legislature of Ireland to reject or to adopt such measures as may appear to them injurious or beneficial, far be it from me to speak of its determination in any other terms but those of respect. Let it not, therefore, be imagined that I am inclined to press any sentiment, however calculated it may appear to me to benefit every member of the Empire, in any manner which may lead to hostile discussion between two Kingdoms, whose mutual happiness and safety depend upon their being strictly and cordially united. But while I admit and respect the rights of the Parliament of Ireland, I feel that, as a Member of the Parliament of Great Britain, I also have a Right to exercise, and a Duty to perform. That Duty is to express, as distinctly as I can, the general nature and outline of the Plan, which, in my conscience, I think would tend in the strongest manner to ensure the safety and the happiness of both Kingdoms.

While I feel, therefore, that as long as the House of Commons of Ireland view the subject in the light they do at present, there is no chance[5] of its adoption, I do not think that I ought on that account to abstain from submitting it to the consideration of this Parliament; on the contrary, I think it only the more necessary to explain distinctly the principles of the Measure, and to state the grounds upon which it appears to me to be entitled to the approbation of the Legislature.

If Parliament, when it is in possession of the basis upon which this Plan is founded, and of its general outline, should be of opinion with me, that it is founded upon fair, just, and equitable principles, calculated to produce mutual advantages to the two Kingdomsif Parliament, I say, upon full explanation, and after mature deliberation, should be of that opinion, I should propose that its determination should remain recorded as that by which the Parliament of Great Britain is ready to abide, leaving to the Legislature of Ireland to reject or to adopt it hereafter, upon a full consideration of the subject.

There is no man who will deny that in a great question of this nature, involving in it objects[6] which, in the first instance, are more likely to be decided upon by passion than by judgment; in a question in which an honest but, I must be allowed to say, a mistaken sense of National Pride is so likely to operate, that much misconstruction and misconception must inevitably happen. It therefore becomes the more necessary that the intentions of the Government which proposes the Measure, and the principles of the Measure itself, should be distinctly understood. But, Sir, in stating that intention and those principles, I look to something more than a mere vindication of Government for having proposed the Measure. I do entertain a confidence, even under the apparent discouragement of the opinion expressed by the Irish House of Commons, that this Measure is founded upon such clear, such demonstrable grounds of utility, is so calculated to add to the strength and power of the Empire, (in which the safety of Ireland is included, and from which it never can be separated) and is attended with so many advantages to Ireland in particular, that all that can be necessary for its ultimate adoption is, that it should be stated distinctly, temperately, and fully, and that it should be left to the unprejudiced,[7] the dispassionate, the sober judgment of the Parliament of Ireland. I wish that those whose interests are involved in this measure should have time for its considerationI wish that time should be given to the Landed, to the Mercantile, and Manufacturing Interest, that they should look at it in all its bearings, and that they should coolly examine and sift the popular arguments by which it has been opposed, and that then they should give their deliberate and final judgment.

I am the more encouraged in this hope of the ultimate success of this measure, when I see, notwithstanding all the prejudices which it has excited, that barely more than one-half of the members that attended the House of Commons were adverse to it; and that in the other House of Parliament in Ireland, containing, as it does, so large a portion of the property of that kingdom, it was approved of by a large majority.When I have reason to believe that the sentiments of a large part of the People of that Country are favourable to it; and that much of the Manufacturing, and of the Commercial Interest of Ireland are already sensible[8] how much it is calculated to promote their advantage, I think, when it is more deliberately examined, and when it is seen in what temper it is here proposed and discussed, that it will still terminate in that which can alone be a fortunate result.

It would be vain indeed to hope that a proposition upon which prejudices are so likely to operate, and which is so liable to misconception, should be unanimously approved. But the approbation I hope for is, that of the Parliament of Ireland, and of the intelligent part of the Public of that Country. It is with a view to this object that I think it my duty to bring this measure forward at present; not for the sake of urging its immediate adoption, but that it may be known and recorded; that the intention of the British Parliament may be known, in the hope that it will produce similar sentiments among our Countrymen in Ireland. With this view it is my intention not to go at present into any detailed statement of the plan, because should it ultimately be adopted, the minuter parts must necessarily become the objects of much distinct discussion; but to give such a general statement of the nature of[9] the measure as will enable the House to form a correct judgment upon it.

I shall therefore, Sir, before I sit down, open to the House a string of Resolutions, comprising the general heads of this plan. It will be necessary for me, for the purpose of discussing those Resolutions with regularity and convenience, to move that the House should resolve itself into a Committee. And I have already stated, that it is not my intention then to press the Committee to come to an immediate decision upon the Resolutions; but if, upon full and deliberate examination, the Resolutions which I shall have the honour to propose, and which contain as much as is necessary for an outline of the plan, shall be approved, my opinion is, that nothing can contribute more to obviate any doubts and dissatisfaction which may exist, than that Parliament should adopt those Resolutions, and that it should then humbly lay them at the foot of the Throne, leaving it to His Majestys wisdom to communicate them to the Parliament of Ireland, whenever circumstances should appear favourable to such a Measure. I shall therefore, Sir, proceed as[10] shortly as I can to state to the House the nature, of the Resolutions, and of the Address which I shall propose to accompany them, if it should be the pleasure of the House to adopt them.

Having now, Sir, explained to the House the mode I mean to pursue, and my reasons for persisting, under the present circumstances, in submitting this Measure to the consideration of Parliament, I will endeavour to state the general grounds on which it rests, the general arguments by which it is recommended, and to give a short view of the outline of the Plan.

As to the general principle upon which, the whole of this Measure is founded, I am happy to observe, from what passed upon a former occasion, that there is not a probability of any difference of opinion. The general principle, to which both sides of the House perfectly acceded, is, that a perpetual Connection between Great Britain and Ireland is essential to the interests of both. The only Honourable Gentleman who, when this subject was before the House on a[11] former day, opposed the consideration of the Plan altogether, stated, in terms as strong as I could wish, the necessity of preserving the strictest Connection between the two Countries. I most cordially agree with him in that opinion, but I then stated, that I do not barely wish for the maintenance of that Connection as tending to add to the general strength of the Empire, but I wish for the maintenance of it with a peculiar regard to the local interests of Ireland, with a regard to every thing that can give to Ireland its due weight and importance, as a great member of the Empire. I wish for it with a view of giving to that Country the means of improving all its great natural Resources, and of giving it a full participation of all those blessings which this Country so eminently enjoys.

Considering the subject in this point of view, and assuming it as a proposition not to be controverted, that it is the duty of those who wish to promote the Interest and Prosperity of both Countries, to maintain the strongest connection between them, let me ask, what is the situation of Affairs that has called us to the discussion of this[12] subject? This very connection, the necessity of which has been admitted on all hands, has been attacked by Foreign Enemies, and by Domestic Traitors. The dissolution of this connection is the great object of the hostility of the common Enemies of both Countries, it is almost the only remaining hope with which they now continue the contest. Baffled and defeated as they have hitherto been, they still retain the hope, they are still meditating attempts, to dissolve that connection. In how many instances already the defeat of their hostile designs has been turned to the confirmation of our Strength and Security, I need not enumerate. God grant that in this instance the same favour of Divine Providence, which has in so many instances protected this Empire, may again interpose in our favour, and that the attempts of the Enemy to separate the two Countries, may tend ultimately to knit them more closely together, to strengthen a Connection, the best pledge for the happiness of both, and so add to that power which forms the chief barrier to the civilized world, against the destructive principles, the dangerous projects, and the unexampled usurpation of France. This Connection has been attacked not only by the avowed Enemies of both[13] Countries, but by internal Treason, acting in concert with the designs of the Enemy. Internal Treason, which ingrafted Jacobinism on those diseases which necessarily grew out of the State and Condition of Ireland.

Thinking, then, as we all must think, that a close Connection with Ireland is essential to the interests of both Countries, and seeing how much this Connection is attacked, let it not be insinuated that it is unnecessary, much less improper, at this arduous and important crisis, to see whether some new arrangements, some fundamental regulations, are not necessary, to guard against the threatened danger. The foreign and domestic Enemies of these Kingdoms have shewn, that they think this the vulnerable point in which We may be most successfully attacked; let us derive advantage, if we can, from the hostility of our Enemieslet us profit by the designs of those who, if their conduct displays no true wisdom, at least possess in an eminent degree that species of wisdom which is calculated for the promotion of mischief. They know upon what footing that Connection rests at this moment between[14] the two Countries, and they feel the most ardent hope, that the two Parliaments will be infatuated enough not to render their designs abortive, by fixing that Connection upon a more solid basis.

These circumstances I am sure will not be denied. And if upon other grounds we had any doubt, these circumstances alone ought to induce us, deliberately and dispassionately, to review the situation of the two Countries, and to endeavour to find out a proper remedy for an evil, the existence of which is but too apparent. It requires but a moments reflection, for any man who has marked the progress of events, to decide upon the true state and character of this Connection. It is evidently one which does not afford that security which, even in times less dangerous and less critical than the present, would have been necessary, to enable the empire to avail itself of its strength and its resources.

When I last addressed the House on this subject, I stated that the settlement, which was made in 1782, so far from deserving the name of a Final Adjustment, was one that left the Connection[15] between Great Britain and Ireland exposed to all the attacks of Party, and all the effects of accident. That Settlement consisted in the demolition of the System which before held the two Countries together. Let me not be understood as expressing any regret at the termination of that System. I disapproved of it, because I thought it was one unworthy the liberality of Great Britain, and injurious to the interests of Ireland. But to call that a System in itselfto call that a glorious fabric of human wisdomwhich is no more than the mere demolition of another Systemis a perversion of terms which, however prevalent of late, can only be the effect of gross misconception, or of great hypocrisy. We boast that we have done every thing, when we have merely destroyed all that before existed, without substituting any thing in its place. Such was the Final Adjustment of 1782; and I can prove it to be so, not only from the plainest reasoning, but I can prove it by the opinion expressed by the British Parliament at that very time. I can prove it by the opinion expressed by those very Ministers by whom it was proposed and conducted. I refer, for what I have said, to proofs which they will find it[16] very difficult to answer; I mean their own acts, which will plainly shew that they were of opinion that a new System would be necessary. But, Sir, I will go fartherI will also produce the authority of one of those whose influence, on the present occasion, has been peculiarly exerted to prevent the discussion of the question in Irelandof one, of whom I do not wish to speak but with respect, but for whom, nevertheless, I should convey an idea of more respect, than I can now feel to be due to him, if I were merely to describe him as the person who fills the same situation, in the House of Commons of Ireland, which you, Sir, hold among us, and of which on all occasions you discharge the duties with a dignity and impartiality which reflects so much credit on yourself, and so well supports the character and authority of the House.

On a former night, I read an Extract from the Journals, to shew what was the opinion even of those by whom the Final Adjustment was proposed on that Measure. It would there appear, that the Message was sent to the Parliament of Ireland, recommending to them the adoption of[17] some Plan for a Final Adjustment between the two Countries, and wishing to know what were the grounds of the grievances of which they complained. In answer to this Message, the Parliament of Ireland stated certain grievances, the principal of which was, the power claimed by the Parliament of Great Britain of making Laws to bind Ireland; but, with respect to that part of the Message which related to the propriety of adopting some Measures for a Final Adjustment between the two Countries, they were wholly silent. This Address was laid before the Parliament of Great Britain, to whom a similar Message had been previously sent, and on that ground was moved the Repeal of what was called the Declaratory Act, which Motion was assented to by the British Parliament. This satisfaction was compleat to Ireland, as far as related to the grievance of which her Parliament had complained, viz. the Power of the British Parliament of making Laws for Ireland, because, by the Repeal of the Declaratory Act, that power was given up. But so far was the Minister of that day from considering that the Repeal of that Law finally terminated all differences, and established the Connection between the two Countries[18] upon a solid basis, that he thought it necessary to move that a farther Settlement was indispensable for the maintenance of that Connection.

[Mr. Sheridan across the Table, desired that that part of the Journals to which Mr. Pitt alluded, might be read.]

Mr. Pitt continued. Sir, I have stated the substance of the Journals correctly; they were read on a former night, and the Honourable Gentleman may, if he chooses, have them read again.[1] If he does he will find that they fully justify the statement I have made, but I beg that at present I may not be interrupted. I do maintain, that upon a reference to the Journals of the period to which I have alluded, it will appear that a farther agreement between Great Britain and Ireland is there dated, in the opinion of the Administration of the day, to be absolutely necessary.

I beg farther to state, that after the motion for the Bill of which so much has been said, was passed, an Address to His Majesty was moved and carried, praying him to take such further measures as to him seemed proper, to strengthen the Connection[19] between the two Countries. His Majestys most Gracious Answer, stating, that in compliance with the Address, he would immediately take such measures as might be necessary for that purpose, was delivered to the House by an Honourable Gentleman who then filled the office of Secretary of State, and whom we have not lately seen in the House, though he still continues to be a Member of it. I do assert, without the least fear of contradiction from any Gentleman whatever, that it was in the contemplation of the Government of that day, to adopt some measures of the nature alluded to in the Address; since that period, however, no such measure has been taken. I do also maintain, that that very system which by these very Ministers who brought it forward was found to be imperfect, even for the purpose of maintaining the Connection between the two Countries, remains at this moment in the same imperfect state. It leaves the two Countries with separate and independent Legislatures, connected only with this tie, that the Third Estate in both Countries is the samethat the Executive Government is the samethat the Crown exercises its power of assenting to Irish Acts of Parliament[20] under the Great Seal of Great Britain, and by the advice of British Ministers.

This is the only principle of Connection which is left by the Final Adjustment of 1782. Whether this is a sufficient tie to unite them in time of Peace; whether in time of War it is sufficient to consolidate their strength against a Common Enemy; whether it is sufficient to guard against those local jealousies which must necessarily sometimes exist between countries so connected; whether it is calculated to give to Ireland all the important commercial and political advantages which she would derive from a closer Connection with Great Britain; whether it can give to both Nations that degree of strength and prosperity which must be the result of such a Measure as the present, I believe needs only to be stated to be decided.

But I have already said, that I have upon this point, the authority of an opinion to which I before alludedan opinion delivered upon a very important Measure, very soon after the Final Adjustment of 1782. The Measure to which I refer, was that of the Commercial Propositions which[21] were brought forward in 1785. I am not now going to enter into a discussion of the merits of that Measure. The best, perhaps, that can be said of it is, that it went as far as circumstances would then permit, to draw the two Countries to a closer Connection. But those who think that the Adjustment of 1782 was final, and that it contained all that was necessary for the establishment of the Connection between the two Countries upon a firm basis, can hardly contend that the Commercial Propositions of 1785 were necessary to prevent the danger of separation between the two Countries, and to prevent the conflicting operation of Independent Legislatures. Yet, if I am not mistaken, there will be found, upon a reference to better Records than those in which Parliamentary Debates are usually stated (I mean a statement of what passed in the discussion upon those Propositions fourteen years ago, made, as I have understood, by some of the principal parties themselves) that the Chancellor of the Exchequer of that day in Ireland, in a Debate upon the Irish Propositions, held this languageIf this infatuated Country gives up the present offer, she may look for it again in vain. Here the[22] Right Honourable Gentleman was happily mistaken; Ireland has again had the offer of the same advantages, but more compleat, and in all respects better calculated to attain their object; and this offer the Right Honourable Gentleman has exerted all his influence to reject. But he goes on to saythings cannot remain as they areCommercial jealousy is rousedit will increase with two independent Legislaturesand without an united interest in commerce, in a commercial Empire, political Union will receive many shocks, and separation of interest must threaten separation of Connection, which every honest Irishman must shudder to look at, as a possible event.

Gentlemen will have the goodness to observe, that I am not now quoting these expressions as pledges given by that Right Honourable Gentleman that he would support a proposal for a Union between the two Countries, but I am adducing them to prove that the situation of the two Countries after the Final Adjustment of 1782, was such, in his opinion, as led to the danger of a separation between them. I am not now arguing[23] that a Legislative Union is the only measure which can possibly be adopted, but I am contending that the Adjustment of 1782 was never considered as final, by those who now state it to be so as an argument against the consideration of the present measure. How the Honourable Gentleman on the other side of the House will evade this authority I do not know;an authority too, which, I must observe, he seems much more inclined to treat with respect than he was formerly.

But, Sir, it does not stop there. What is the evil to which he alludes? Commercial jealousies between two Countries acting upon the laws of two independent Legislatures, and the danger of those Legislatures acting in opposition to each other.How can this evil be remedied? By two means only; either by some Compact entered into by the Legislatures of the two Countries respecting the mode of forming their commercial regulations, or else by blending the two Legislatures together; these are the only two means. I defy the wit of man to point out a third. The mode of compact was proposed in 1785, but unfortunately, in spite of that Right Honourable[24] Gentlemans eloquence and authority, who then stated the importance of guarding against the evil, it so happened that doctrines, derived chiefly from this side of the water, succeeded in convincing the Parliament of Ireland, that it would be inconsistent with their independence, to enter into any compact whatever. We have then the authority of that Right Honourable Gentleman to whom I have so often alluded, that the unsettled state in which the matter was left, would give Political Union many shocks, and lead to a separation of Connection. The experiment of a mutual Compact has been tried without success; the arrangement of that sort, which was proposed in 1785, in order to obviate the inconveniences stated by the Right Honourable Gentleman, was then attacked with the same success against his authority, as another and more effectual remedy has recently experienced under his auspices. The result then isyou must remain in the state which that Right Honourable Gentleman has described, with the seeds of separation in the system now established, and with the Connection, on which the mutual prosperity of both countries depends in danger of being hourly dissolved, or you must again[25] recur to the proposal of a compact similar to that rejected in 1785, or you must resort to the best and most effectual remedy,a Legislative Union.

I have dwelt longer, perhaps, upon this part of the subject than was absolutely necessary, because I believe there is scarcely any man who has ever asked himself, whether there is a solid, permanent system of Connection between the two Countries, who could, upon reflection, answer the question in the affirmative. But besides the authorities of the persons who made the arrangement in 1782, and of those who have since treated of it, to shew that it was not deemed to be final and complete; I have further the test of experience to shew how imperfect it was, and how inadequate in practice to the great object of cementing the Connection, and placing it beyond the danger of being dissolved. In the single instance, which has occurred, (and that a melancholy one which all of us deplored,) in which we could feel the effects of two jarring Legislatures, We did feel it. On that occasion, it might have produced the most signal calamities, had we not[26] been rescued from its danger by an event, to which no man can now look back without feeling the utmost joy and exultation; feelings, which subsequent circumstances have served to heighten and confirm. Every Gentleman will know, that I must allude to the Regency. With two independent Legislatures, acting upon different principles, it was accident alone that preserved the identity of the Executive Power, which is the bond and security of the Connection: And even then the Executive authority, though vested in one person, would have been held by two different tenures, by one tenure in England, by another in Ireland, had not the interposition of Providence prevented a circumstance pregnant with the most imminent perils, and which might have operated to a separation of the two kingdoms.

After seeing the recorded opinion of Parliament, of those who made the arrangement of 1782, and after the decided testimony of experience on the subject, within the short period of sixteen years, perhaps, it is hardly necessary to appeal to farther[27] proofs of its inadequacy, or to desire Gentlemen to look forward to possible cases, which I could easily put, and which will naturally suggest themselves to the minds of all, who chuse to turn their attention to the subject.

But when we consider the distinct powers possessed by the two Legislatures on all the great questions of Peace and War, of alliances and confederacies,(for they each have in principle, a right to discuss them and decide upon them, though one of them has hitherto been wisely restrained by discretion, from the exercise of that right),have we not seen circumstances to induce us to think it possible, at least, that on some of these important questions the opinions and decisions of the two Parliaments might have been at variance? Are we talking of an indissoluble Connection, when we see it thus perpetually liable to be endangered? Can we really think that the interests of the Empire, or of its different branches rest upon a safe and solid basis at present? I am anxious to discuss this point closely with any man, either here, or in Ireland. Will[28] it be said, that the Parliament of the latter Country is bound by our decision on the question of Peace or War? And if not so bound, will any man, looking at human Nature as it is, contend, that there is a sufficient certainty that the decision on that important subject will always be the same in both countries? I should be glad to receive a distinct answer to this question, from the Honourable Gentleman who has declared himself to be as warm a friend to the Connection between the two Countries as I am.

Suppose, for instance, that the present war, which the Parliament of Great Britain considers to be just and necessary, had been voted by the Irish Parliament, to be unjust, unnecessary, extravagant, and hostile to the principles of humanity and freedom.Would that Parliament have been bound by this Country? If not;what security have we, at a moment the most important to our common interest and common salvation, that the two Kingdoms should have but one friend and one foe? I repeat it; I am eager to hear what can be said in justification of a basis so imperfect and unsound,[29] and liable to be shaken by so many accidents. I have already observed, that in the peculiar circumstances of the present moment, we may find stronger reasons to prove the necessity of correcting the system of Connection between this Country and Ireland, of supplying its imperfections, and strengthening its weakness, than are to be found at any former period.

Having thus stated, Sir, and I think sufficiently proved, that the Settlement of 1782, in every point of view in which it can be considered, is imperfect, and inadequate to the object of maintaining the connection between the two kingdoms, I proceed next to the circumstances which peculiarly call upon us at the present moment to remedy that imperfection.

This Country is at this time engaged in the most important, and momentous conflict, that ever occurred in the History of the World; a conflict in which Great Britain is distinguished for having made the only manly and successful stand against the common enemies of civilized society. We see the point in which that Enemy think us the[30] most assailableAre we not then bound in policy and prudence, to strengthen that vulnerable point, involved as we are in a contest of Liberty against Despotismof Property against Plunder and Rapineof Religion and Order against Impiety and Anarchy? There was a time when this would have been termed declamation; but, unfortunately, long and bitter experience has taught us to feel that it is only the feeble and imperfect representation of those calamities (the result of French Principles and French Arms), which are every day attested by the wounds of a bleeding world.

Is there a man who does not admit the importance of a measure which, at such a crisis, may augment the strength of the Empire, and thereby ensure its safety? Would not that benefit to Ireland be of itself so solid, so inestimable, that, in comparison with it, all Commercial Interests, and the preservation of local habits and manners, would be trifling, even if they were endangered by the present measure;which they undoubtedly are not? The people of Ireland are proud, I believe, of being associated with us in the great contest in which we are engaged, and must feel[31] the advantage of augmenting the general force of the Empire. That the present measure is calculated to produce that effect, is a proposition which I think cannot be disputed. There is not in any Court of Europe a Statesman so ill informed as not to know, that the general power of the Empire would be increased to a very great extent indeed, by such a consolidation of the strength of the two Kingdoms. In the course of the Century every writer of any information on the subject has held the same language, and in the general strength of the Empire both Kingdoms are more concerned than in any particular interests which may belong to either. If we were to ask the Ministers of our Allies, what measure they thought the most likely to augment the power of the British Empire, and consequently increase that strength by which they were now protectedif we were to ask the Agent of our Enemies, what measure would be the most likely to render their designs abortivethe answer would be the same in both cases, viz. the firm consolidation of every part of the Empire.

[32]

There is another consideration well worth attention. Recollect what are the peculiar means by which we have been enabled to resist the unequalled and eccentric efforts of France, without any diminution, nay, with an increase, of our general prosperitywhat, but the great Commercial Resources which we possess? A Measure, then, which must communicate to such a mighty Limb of the Empire as Ireland, all the Commercial advantages which Great Britain possesses, which will open the markets of the one Country to the other, which will give them both the common use of their Capital, must, by diffusing a large portion of wealth into Ireland, considerably increase the Resources, and consequently the strength, of the whole Empire.

But it is not merely in this general view, that I think the Question ought to be considered.We ought to look to it with a view peculiarly to the permanent interest and security of Ireland. When that Country was threatened with the double danger of hostile attacks by Enemies without, and of Treason within, from what quarter did she[33] derive the means of her deliverance?from the Naval Force of Great Britainfrom the voluntary exertions of her Military of every description, not called for by Lawand from her pecuniary resources, added to the loyalty and energy of the Inhabitants of Ireland itself;of which it is impossible to speak with too much praise, and which shews how well they deserve to be called the Brethren of Britons. Their own courage might, perhaps, have ultimately succeeded, in repelling the dangers by which they were threatened, but it would have been after a long contest, and after having waded through seas of blood. Are we sure that the same ready and effectual assistance which we have happily afforded, on the present occasion, will be always equally within our power? Great Britain has always felt a common interest in the safety of Ireland; but that common interest was never so obvious and urgent as when the Common Enemy made her attack upon Great Britain, through the medium of Ireland, and when their attack upon Ireland went to deprive her of her Connection with Great Britain, and to substitute in stead, the new Government of the French Republic. When that danger threatened Ireland,[34] the purse of Great Britain was open for the wants of Ireland, as for the necessities of England.

I do not, Sir, state these circumstances, as upbraiding Ireland for the benefits we have conferred; far from it; but I state them with pleasure, as shewing the friendship and good will with which this Country has acted towards her. But if struggles of this sort may and must return again, if the worst dangers are those which are yet to come, dangers which may be greater from being more disguisedif those situations may arise when the same means of relief are not in our power, what is the remedy that reason and policy point out? It is to identify them with usit is to make them part of the same Community, by giving them a full share of those accumulated blessings which are diffused throughout Great Britain; it is, in a word, by giving them a full participation of the Wealth, the Power, and the Stability, of the British Empire. If then this Measure comes recommended not only by the obvious defects of the system which now exists, but that it has also the pre-eminent recommendation of increasing the general power of the Empire, and of guarding[35] against future danger from the Common Enemy, we are next to consider it as to its effects upon the internal condition of Ireland.

I know perfectly well, that as long as Ireland is separated from Great Britain, any attempt on our part to provide measures which we might think salutary, as respecting questions of contending sects or parties, of the claimed rights of the Catholics, or of the precautions necessary for the security of the ProtestantsI know that all these, though they may have been brought forward by the very persons who are the advocates of the Final Adjustment in 1782, were, in fact, attacks upon the Independence of the Irish Parliament, and attempts to usurp the Right of deciding on points which can only be brought within our province by Compact. Until the Kingdoms are united, any attempt to make regulations here for the internal state of Ireland must certainly be a violation of her Independence. But feeling as I do, for their interests and their welfare, I cannot be inattentive to the events that are passing before me; I must therefore repeat, that whoever looks at the circumstances to which I have alludedwhoever considers that the Enemy[36] have shewn by their conduct, that they considered Ireland as the weakest and most vulnerable part of the Empire; whoever reflects upon those dreadful and inexcusable cruelties instigated by the Enemies of both Countries, and upon those lamentable severities by which the exertions for the defense of Ireland were unhappily, but unavoidably, attended, and the necessity of which is itself one great aggravation of the Crimes and Treasons which led to them, must feel that, as it now stands composed, in the hostile division of its Sects, in the animosities existing between ancient Settlers and original Inhabitants, in the ignorance and want of Civilization, which marks that Country more than almost any other Country in Europe, in the unfortunate prevalence of Jacobin Principles, arising from these causes, and augmenting their malignity, and which have produced that distressed state which we now deplore; every one, I say, who reflects upon all these circumstances, must agree with me in thinking, that there is no cure but in the formation of a General Imperial Legislature, free alike from terror and from resentment, removed from the danger and agitation, uninfluenced by the prejudices and uninflamed by the passions of that distracted Country.

[37]

I know that it is impossible, if we wish to consider this subject properly, to consider it in any other point of view than as it affects the Empire in general. I know that the interests of the two Countries must be taken together, and that a man cannot speak as a true Englishman, unless he speaks as a true Irishman, nor as a true Irishman, unless he speaks as a true Englishman: But if it was possible to separate them, and I could consider myself as addressing you, not as interested for the Empire at large, but for Ireland alone, I should say, that it would be indispensably necessary, for the sake of that Country, to compose its present distractions, by the adoption of another system:I should say, that the establishment of an Imperial Legislature was the only means of healing its wounds and of restoring it to tranquillity. I must here take the liberty of alluding to some topics which were touched upon during the discussion of the former night.

Among the great and known defects of Ireland, one of the most prominent features is, its want of industry and a capital; how are those wants to be supplied, but by blending more closely with[38] Ireland, the industry and the capital of this Country. But, above all, in the great leading distinctions between the People of Ireland, I mean their religious distinctions, what is their situation?The Protestant feels that the claims of the Catholics threatens the existence of the Protestant ascendancy; while, on the other hand, the great body of Catholics feel the establishment of the National Church, and their exclusion from the exercise of certain rights, and privileges, a grievance. Between the two, it becomes a matter of difficulty in the minds of many persons, whether it would be better to listen only to the fears of the former, or to grant the claims of the latter.

I am well aware that the subject of religious distinction is a dangerous and delicate topic, especially when applied to a country such as Ireland; the situation of which is different in this respect from that of every other. Where the established religion of the State is the same as the general religion of the Empire, and where the property of the Country is in the hands of a comparatively small number of persons professing that established religion, while the religion of a great[39] majority of the people is different, it is not easy to say, on general principles, what system of Church Establishment in such a Country would be free from difficulty and inconvenience. By many I know it will be contended, that the religion professed by a majority of the people, would at least be entitled to an equality of Privileges. I have heard such an argument urged in this House; but those who apply it without qualification to the case of Ireland, forget surely the principles on which English Interest and English Connection has been established in that Country, and on which its present Legislature is formed. No man can say, that, in the present State of things, and while Ireland remains a separate kingdom, full concessions could be made to the Catholics, without endangering the State, and shaking the Constitution of Ireland to its centre.

On the other hand, without anticipating the discussion, or the propriety of agitating the question, or saying how soon or how late it may be fit to discuss it; two propositions are indisputable: First, When the conduct of the Catholics shall be such as to make it safe for the Government to[40] admit them to the participation of the privileges granted to those of the Established Religion, and when the temper of the times shall be favourable to such a measure;When these events take place, it is obvious that such a question may be agitated in an United, Imperial Parliament, with much greater safety, than it could be in a separate Legislature. In the second place, I think it certain that, even for whatever period it may be thought necessary, after the Union, to withhold from the Catholics the enjoyment of those advantages, many of the objections which at present arise out of their situation would be removed, if the Protestant Legislature were no longer separate and local, but general and Imperial; and the Catholics themselves would at once feel a mitigation of the most goading and irritating of their present causes of complaint.

How far, in addition to this great and leading consideration, it may also be wise and practicable to accompany the measure by some mode of relieving the lower orders from the pressure of Tithes, which in many instances operate at present as a great practical evil, or to make, under[41] proper Regulations, and without breaking in on the security of the present Protestant Establishment, an effectual and adequate provision for the Catholic Clergy, it is not now necessary to discuss. It is sufficient to say, that these, and all other subordinate points connected with the same subject, are more likely to be permanently and satisfactorily settled by an United Legislature, than by any local arrangements. On these grounds I contend, that with a view to providing an effectual remedy for the distractions which have unhappily prevailed in Ireland, with a view of removing those causes which have endangered, and still endanger its security, the measure which I am now proposing promises to be more effectual than any other which can be devised, and on these grounds alone, if there existed no other, I should feel it my duty to submit it to the House.

But, Sir, though what I have thus stated relates most immediately to the great object of healing the dissentions, and providing for the internal tranquillity of Ireland; there are also other objects which, though comparatively with this of inferior importance, are yet in themselves[42] highly material, and in a secondary view, well worthy of attention.

I have heard it asked, when I pressed the measure, what are the positive advantages that Ireland is to derive from it? To this very question I presume the considerations which I have already urged afford a sufficient answer. But, in fact, the question itself is to be considered in another view; and it will be found to bear some resemblance to a question which has been repeatedly put, by some of the Gentlemen opposite to me, during the last six years. What are the advantages which Great Britain has gained by the present war with France?

To this, the brilliant successes of the British arms by sea and land, our unexampled naval victories over all our enemies, the solid acquisition of valuable territory, the general increase of our power, the progressive extension of our commerce, and a series of events more glorious than any that ever adorned the page of our history, afford at once an ample and a satisfactory answer. But there is another general answer which we[43] have uniformly given, and which would alone be sufficient; it is, that we did not enter into this war for any purpose of ambition; our object was not to acquire, but to preserve; and in this sense, what we have gained by the war is, in one word, all that we should have lost without it: it is, the preservation of our Constitution, our Independence, our Honour, our Existence as a Nation.

In the same manner I might answer the question with respect to Ireland; I might enumerate the general advantages which Ireland would derive from the effects of the Arrangement to which I have already referred: The Protection which she will secure to herself in the hour of danger. The most effectual means of increasing her Commerce and improving her Agriculture, the command of English Capital, the infusion of English Manners and English Industry, necessarily tending to ameliorate her Condition, to accelerate the progress of internal civilization, and to terminate those feuds and dissentions which now distract the Country, and which she does not possess, within herself, the power either to controul or to extinguish. She would see the avenue to Honours, to Distinctions,[44] and exalted Situations in the general seat of Empire, opened to all those whose abilities and talents enable them to indulge an honourable and laudable ambition.

But, independent of all these advantages, I might also answer, that the question is not what Ireland is to gain, but what she is to preserve; not merely how she may best improve her situation, but how she is to avert a pressing and immediate danger. In this view, what she gains is the preservation of all those blessings arising from the British Constitution, and which are inseparable from her Connection with Great Britain. Those Blessings of which it has long been the aim of France, in conjunction with domestic traitors, to deprive her, and on their ruins to establish (with all its attendant miseries and horrors) a Jacobin Republic, founded on French Influence, and existing only in subserviency to France.

Such, Sir, would be the answer, if we direct our attention only to the question of general advantage. And here I should be inclined to stop; but since it has also been more particularly asked,[45] what are the advantages which she is to gain, in point of Commerce and Manufactures, I am desirous of applying my answer more immediately and distinctly to that part of the subject: and, as I know that the statement will carry more conviction with it, to those who make the inquiry, if given in the words of the Right Honourable Gentleman, to whom, and to whose opinions, I have had more than one occasion to advert in the course of this night, I will read you an extract from his recorded sentiments on the subject, in the year 1785, on this same memorable occasion of the Commercial Propositions. Speaking of a solid and unalterable Compact between the two Countries, speaking expressly of the peculiar importance of insuring the continuance of those Commercial benefits, which she at that time held only at the discretion of this country, he saysThe exportation of Irish Products, to England, amounts to Two Millions and a Half annually; and the exportation of British Products, to Ireland, amounts to but One Million.

He then proceeds to reason upon the advantage which Ireland would derive, under such circumstances,[46] from guarding against mutual prohibitions; and he accompanies the statement, which I have just read, with this observation

If, indeed, the Adjustment were to take away the Benefit from Ireland, it would be a good cause for rejecting it; but, as it for ever confirms all the Advantages we derived from our Linen Trade, and binds England from making any law that can be injurious to it, surely Gentlemen who regard that trade, and whose fortunes and rents depend on its prosperity, will not entertain a moments doubt about embracing the offer.

Such was the reasoning of the Irish Chancellor of the Exchequer; which I consider to have been perfectly just. With reference to his late opinions, I do not think I can more forcibly reply, to a person who signs his name to Propositions which declare that the ruin of the Linen Trade of Ireland is likely to be the consequence of an Union, than by opposing to him his own opinion. I shall be able to strengthen the former opinion of that Gentleman, by stating, that the progress[47] that has been made in Commercial advantages to Ireland, since 1785, has been such as to render his argument still more applicable. What is the nature of that Commerce, explained by the same person in so concise and forcible a manner, that I am happy to use his own statement? He does not confine himself to the gross amount, but gives the articles in detail:

Britain, he says, imports annually from us Two Million Five Hundred Thousand Pounds of our products, all, or very nearly all, duty free, and covenants never to lay a duty on them. We import about a Million of hers, and raise a Revenue on almost every article of it, and reserve the power of continuing that Revenue. She exports to us Salt for our Fisheries and Provisions; Hops, which we cannot grow; Coals, which we cannot raise; Tin, which we have not; and Bark, which we cannot get elsewhere: and all these without reserving any duty.

I will not tire the patience of the House, by reading farther extracts; but the Right Honourable[48] Gentlemans whole Speech, in like manner, points out the advantages of the Commercial Propositions (at that time under consideration) as a ground-work of a Compact between the two Countries, in 1785, on Commercial subjects.But how stands the case now? The trade is at this time infinitely more advantageous to Ireland. It will be proved, from the documents which I hold in my hand, as far as relates to the mere interchange of manufactures, that the manufactures, exported to Ireland from Great Britain, in 1797, very little exceeded a Million sterling (the articles of produce amount to nearly the same sum) while Great Britain, on the other hand, imported from Ireland to the amount of near Three Millions in the manufactured articles of Linen and Linen Yarn, and between Two and Three Millions in Provisions and Cattle, besides Corn and other articles of produce.

In addition to these Articles, there are other circumstances of advantage to Ireland. Articles which are essential to her trade and to her subsistence, or serve as raw materials for her manufactures, are sent from hence free of duty. It is expressly[49] stated on the same authority, that all that we take back from Ireland was liable to a Duty in that Country on their exports: The increasing produce of the chief article of their manufacture, and four-fifths of her whole export trade, are to be ascribed, not to that Independent Legislature, but, to the liberality of the British Parliament. It is by the free admission of Linens for our market, and the Bounties granted by the British Parliament on its re-export, that the Linen-Trade has been brought to the height at which we now see it. To the Parliament of this Country, then, it is now owing, that a Market has been opened for her Linen to the amount of three millions. By the Bounty we give to Ireland, we afford her a double market for that article, and (what is still more striking and important) we have prevented a competition against her, arising from the superior cheapness of the Linen-Manufactures of the Continent, by subjecting their importation to a Duty of thirty per cent. Nothing would more clearly shew what would be the danger to Ireland from the Competition in all its principal branches of the Linen-Trade, than the simple[50] fact, that we even now import foreign Linens, under this heavy duty, to an amount equal to a seventh part of all that Ireland is able to send us, with the preference that has been stated. By this arrangement alone, we must therefore be considered, either as foregoing between seven and eight hundred thousand pounds per annum in revenue, which we should collect if we chose to levy the same duty on all Linens, Irish as well as Foreign, or on the other hand, as sacrificing perhaps at least a million sterling in the price paid for those articles, by the subjects of this Country, which might be saved, if we allowed the importation of all Linen, Foreign as well as Irish, equally free from Duty.

The present measure is, however, in its effects calculated not merely for a confirmation of the advantages on which the person to whom I have alluded has insisted. It is obvious that a fuller and more perfect Connection of the two Countries, from whatever cause it may arise, must produce a greater facility and freedom of commercial intercourse, and ultimately tend to the advantage of[51] both. The benefits to be derived to either Country from such an arrangement must indeed, in a great measure, be gradual; but they are not on that account the less certain, and they cannot be stated in more forcible language than in that used in the Speech to which I have referred.

Gentlemen undervalue the reduction of British Duties on our Manufactures. I agree with them it may not operate soon, but we are to look forward to a final settlement, and it is impossible but that in time, with as good climate, equal natural powers, cheaper food, and fewer taxes, we must be able to sell to them. When commercial jealousy shall be banished by final settlement, and Trade take its natural and steady course, the Kingdoms will cease to look to rivalship, each will make that fabrick which it can do cheapest, and buy from the other what it cannot make so advantageously. Labour will be then truly employed to profit, not diverted by Bounties, Jealousies, or Legislative Interference, from its natural and beneficial course. This system will attain its real object,[52] consolidating the strength of the remaining parts of the Empire, by encouraging the communications of their market among themselves, with preference to every part against all strangers!

I am at least, therefore, secure from the design of appearing to deliver any partial or chimerical opinion of my own, when I thus state, on the authority of a person the best informed, and who then judged dispassionately, both the infinite importance to Ireland of securing permanently the great commercial advantages which she now holds at the discretion of Great Britain, and the additional benefit which she would derive from any settlement which opened to her gradually a still more free and compleat commercial intercourse with this Country. And while I state thus strongly the commercial advantages to the sister Kingdom, I have no alarm left I should excite any sentiment of jealousy here. I know that the inhabitants of Great Britain wish well to the prosperity of Ireland;that, if the Kingdoms are really and solidly united, they feel that to increase the commercial wealth of one Country is not to diminish[53] that of the other, but to increase the strength and power of both. But to justify that sentiment, we must be satisfied that the wealth we are pouring into the lap of Ireland is not every day liable to be snatched from us, and thrown into the scale of the enemy. If therefore Ireland is to continue, as I trust it will for ever, an essential part of the integral strength of the British Empire; if her strength is to be permanently ours, and our strength to be hers, neither I, nor any English minister, can ever be deterred by the fear of creating jealousy in the hearts of Englishmen, from stating the advantages of a closer Connection, or from giving any assistance to the Commercial Prosperity of that Kingdom.

If ever indeed I should have the misfortune to witness the melancholy moment when such principles must be abandoned, when all hope of seeing Ireland permanently and securely connected with this country shall be at an end, I shall at least have the consolation of knowing, that it will not be the want of temper or forbearance, of conciliation, of kindness, or of full explanation on our part,[54] which will have produced an event so fatal to Ireland, and so dangerous to Great Britain. If ever the over-bearing power of prejudice and passion shall produce that fatal consequence, it will too late be perceived and acknowledged, that all the great commercial advantages which Ireland at present enjoys, and which are continually increasing, are to be ascribed to the liberal conduct, the fostering care, of the British Empire, extended to the Sister Kingdom as to a part of ourselves, and not (as has been fallaciously and vainly pretended) to any thing which has been done or can be done by the independent power of her own separate Legislature.

I have thus, Sir, endeavoured to state to you the reasons, why I think this Measure advisable; why I wish it to be proposed to the Parliament of Ireland, with temper and fairness; and why it appears to me, entitled at least to a calm and dispassionate discussion in that Kingdom. I am aware, however, that objections have been urged against the Measure, some of which are undoubtedly plausible, and have been but too successful[55] in their influence on the Irish Parliament. Of these objections I shall now proceed, as concisely as possible, to take some notice.

The first is, what I heard alluded to by the Honourable Gentleman opposite to me, when his Majestys Message was brought down; namelyThat the Parliament of Ireland is incompetent to entertain and discuss the question, or rather, to act upon the Measure proposed, without having previously obtained the consent of the People of Ireland, their Constituents. But, Sir, I am led to suppose from what the Honourable Gentleman afterwards stated, that he made this objection, rather by way of deprecating the discussion of the question, than as entertaining the smallest doubt upon it himself.If, however, the Honourable Gentleman, or any other Gentleman on the other side of the House, should seriously entertain a doubt on the subject, I shall be ready to discuss it with him distinctly, either this night or at any future opportunity. For the present I will assume, that no man can deny the competency of the Parliament of Ireland (representing as it does, in the[56] language of our Constitution, lawfully, fully, and freely, all the estates of the people of the realm) to make Laws to bind that People, unless he is disposed to distinguish that Parliament from the Parliament of Great Britain; and, while he maintains the Independence of the Irish Legislature, yet denies to it the lawful and essential powers of Parliament.No man, who maintains the Parliament of Ireland to be co-equal with our own, can deny its competency on this question, unless he means to go the length of denying, at the same moment, the whole of the authority of the Parliament of Great Britainto shake every principle of legislationand to maintain, that all the Acts passed, and every thing done by Parliament, or sanctioned by its authority, however sacred, however beneficial, is neither more nor less than an act of usurpation. He must not only deny the validity of the Union between Scotland and England, but he must deny the authority of every one of the proceedings of the united Legislature since the Union; nay, Sir, he must go still farther, and deny the authority under which we now sit and deliberate here, as a House of Parliament. Of course, he must deny the validity of the adjustment of 1782, and call[57] in question every measure which he has himself been the most forward to have enforced. This point, Sir, is of so much importance, that I think I ought not to suffer the opportunity to pass, without illustrating more fully what I mean. If this principle of the incompetency of Parliament to the decision of the Measure be admitted, or if it be contended, that Parliament has no legitimate authority to discuss and decide upon it, you will be driven to the necessity of recognizing a principle, the most dangerous that ever was adopted in any civilized State. I mean the principle, that Parliament cannot adopt any measure new in its nature, and of great importance, without appealing to the constituent and delegating authority for directions. If that doctrine be true, look to what an extent it will carry you. If such an argument could be set up and maintained, you acted without any legitimate authority when you created the representation of the Principality of Wales, or of either of the Counties Palatine of England. Every Law that Parliament ever made, without that appeal, either as to its own Frame and Constitution, as to the qualification of the electors or the elected, as to the[58] great and fundamental point of the succession to the Crown, was a breach of Treaty, and an Act of Usurpation.

If we turn to Ireland itself, what do Gentlemen think of the power of that Parliament, which, without any fresh delegation from its Protestant constituents, associates to itself all the Catholic electors, and thus destroys a fundamental distinction on which it was formed? God forbid, that I should object to or blame any of these Measures! I am only stating the extent to which the principle (that Parliament has no authority to decide upon the present Measure) will lead; and, if it be admitted in one case, it must be admitted in all. Will any man say, that (although a Protestant Parliament in Ireland, chosen exclusively by Protestant Constituents, has by its own inherent power, and without consulting those constituents, admitted and comprehended the Catholics who were till then, in fact, a separate community) that Parliament cannot associate itself with another Protestant community, represented by a Protestant Parliament, having one interest with itself, and similar in its Laws, its Constitution, and its[59] Established Religion? What must be said by those who have at any time been friends to any plan of Parliamentary Reform, and particularly to such as have been most recently brought forward, either in Great Britain or Ireland? Whatever may have been thought of the propriety of the Measure, I never heard any doubt of the competency of Parliament to consider and discuss it. Yet I defy any man to maintain the principle of those plans, without contending that, as a Member of Parliament, he possesses a right to concur in disfranchising those who sent him to Parliament, and to select others, by whom he was not elected, in their stead. I am sure that no sufficient distinction, in point of principle, can be successfully maintained for a single moment; nor should I deem it necessary to dwell on this point, in the manner I do, were I not convinced that it is connected in part with all those false and dangerous notions on the subject of Government which have lately become too prevalent in the world. It may, in fact, be traced to that gross perversion of the principles of all political society, which rests on the supposition that there exists continually in every Government[60] a Sovereignty in abeyance (as it were) on the part of the People, ready to be called forth on every occasion, or rather, on every pretence, when it may suit the purposes of the party or faction who are the advocates of this doctrine to suppose an occasion for its exertion. It is in these false principles that are contained the seeds of all the misery, desolation, and ruin, which in the present day have spread themselves over so large a portion of the habitable Globe.

These principles, Sir, are, at length, so well known and understood in their practical effects, that they can no longer hope for one enlightened or intelligent advocate, when they appear in their true colours. Yet, with all the horror we all feel, in common with the rest of the World, at the effect of them, with all the confirmed and increasing love and veneration which we feel towards the Constitution of our Country, founded as it is, both in Theory and Experience, on principles directly the reverse; yet, there are too many among us, who, while they abhor and reject such opinions, when presented to them in their naked deformity, suffer them in a more disguised shape[61] to be gradually infused into their minds, and insensibly to influence and bias their sentiments and arguments on the greatest and most important discussions. This concealed poison is now more to be dreaded than any open attempt to support such principles by argument or to enforce them by arms. No society, whatever be its particular form, can long subsist, if this principle is once admitted. In every Government, there must reside somewhere a supreme, absolute, and unlimited authority. This is equally true of every lawful Monarchyof every Aristocracyof every pure Democracy (if indeed such a form of Government ever has existed, or ever can exist)and of those mixed Constitutions formed and compounded from the others, which we are justly inclined to prefer to any of them. In all these Governments, indeed alike, that power may by possibility be abused, but whether the abuse is such as to justify and call for the interference of the people collectively, or, more properly speaking, of any portion of it, must always be an extreme case and a question of the greatest and most perilous responsibility, not in Law only, but in Conscience and in Duty, to all those who either act upon it[62] themselves, or persuade others to do so. But no provision for such a case ever has been or can be made before-hand; it forms no chapter in any known code of laws, it can find no place in any system of human jurisprudence. But, above all, if such a principle can make no part of any established Constitution, not even of those where the Government is so framed as to be most liable to the abuse of its powers, it will be preposterous indeed to suppose that it can be admitted in one where those powers are so distributed and balanced as to furnish the best security against the probability of such an abuse. Shall that principle be sanctioned as a necessary part of the best Government, which cannot be admitted to exist as an established check even upon the worst! Pregnant as it is with danger and confusion, shall it be received and authorized in proportion as every reason which can ever make it necessary to recur to it is not likely to exist? Yet, Sir, I know not how it is, that, in proportion as we are less likely to have occasion for so desperate a remedy, in proportion as a Government is so framed as to provide within itself the best guard and control on the exercise of every branch of authority, to furnish the means[63] of preventing or correcting every abuse of power, and to secure, by its own natural operation, a due attention to the interest and feelings of every part of the community, in that very proportion persons have been found perverse enough to imagine, that such a Constitution admits and recognizes, as a part of it, that which is inconsistent with the nature of any Government, and, above all, inapplicable to our own.

I have said more, Sir, upon this subject than I should have thought necessary, if I had not felt that this false and dangerous mockery of the Sovereignty of the People is in truth one of the chief elements of Jacobinism, one of the favourite impostures to mislead the understanding, and to flatter and inflame the passions of the mass of mankind, who have not the opportunity of examining and exposing it, and that as such on every occasion, and in every shape in which it appears, it ought to be combated and resisted by every friend to civil order, and to the peace and happiness of mankind.

Sir, the next and not the least prevalent objection, is one which is contained in words which are an appeal to a natural and laudable, but what[64] I must call an erroneous and mistaken, sense of national pride. It is an appeal to the generous and noble passions of a nation easily inflamed under any supposed attack upon its honour. I mean the attempt to represent the question of a Union by compact between the Parliaments of the two Kingdoms as a question involving the Independance of Ireland.It has been said, that no compensation could be made to any country for the surrender of its National Independance. Sir, on this, as well as on every part of the question, I am desirous Gentlemen should come closely to the point, that they should sift it to the bottom, and ascertain upon what grounds and principles their opinion really rests. Do they mean to maintain that in any humiliating, in any degrading sense of the word which can be acted upon practically as a rule, and which can lead to any useful conclusion, that at any time when the Government of any two separate Countries unite in forming one more extensive empire, that the individuals who composed either of the former narrow societies are afterwards less members of an independant country, or to any valuable and useful purpose less possessed of political freedom or[65] civil happiness than they were before? It must be obvious to every Gentleman who will look at the subject, in tracing the history of all the countries, the most proud of their present existing independance, of all the nations in Europe, there is not one that could exist in the state in which it now stands, if that principle had been acted upon by our forefathers; and Europe must have remained to this hour in a state of ignorance and barbarism, from the perpetual warfare of independent and petty states. In the instance of our own Country, it would be a superfluous waste of time to enumerate the steps by which all its parts were formed into one Kingdom; but will any man in general assert, that in all the different Unions which have formed the principal states of Europe, their inhabitants have become less free, that they have had less of which to be proud, less scope for their own exertions, than they had in their former situation. If this doctrine is to be generally maintained, what becomes of the situation at this hour of any one county of England, or of any one county of Ireland, now united under the independant Parliament of that Kingdom? If it be pushed to its full extent, it is obviously incompatible with all civil society. As the former[66] principle of the sovereignty of the people strikes at the foundation of all governments, so this is equally hostile to all political confederacy, and mankind must be driven back to what is called the state of nature.

But while I combat this general and abstract principle, which would operate as an objection to every union between separate states, on the ground of the sacrifice of independance, do I mean to contend that there is in no case just ground for such a sentiment? Far from it: it may become, on many occasions, the first duty of a free and generous people. If there exists a country which contains within itself the means of military protection, the naval force necessary for its defence, which furnishes objects of industry sufficient for the subsistence of its inhabitants, and pecuniary resources adequate to maintaining, with dignity, the rank which it has attained among the nations of the world; if, above all, it enjoys the blessings of internal content and tranquillity, and possesses a distinct constitution of its own, the defects of which, if any, it is within itself capable of correcting, and if that constitution be equal, if not superior, to that of any other in the world, or (which is nearly the same[67] thing) if those who live under it believe it to be so, and fondly cherish that opinion, I can indeed well understand that such a country must be jealous of any measure, which, even by its own consent, under the authority of its own lawful government, is to associate it as a part of a larger and more extensive empire.

But, Sir, if, on the other hand, it should happen that there be a country which, against the greatest of all dangers that threaten its peace and security, has not adequate means of protecting itself without the aid of another nation; if that other be a neighbouring and kindred nation, speaking the same language, whose laws, whose customs, and habits are the same in principle, but carried to a greater degree of perfection, with a more extensive commerce, and more abundant means of acquiring and diffusing national wealth; the stability of whose governmentthe excellence of whose constitutionis more than ever the admiration and envy of Europe, and of which the very Country of which we are speaking can only boast an inadequate and imperfect resemblance;under such circumstances, I would[68] ask, what conduct would be prescribed by every rational principle of dignity, of honour, or of interest? I would ask, whether this is not a faithful description of the circumstances which ought to dispose Ireland to a Union? Whether Great Britain is not precisely the nation with which, on these principles, a Country, situated as Ireland is, would desire to unite? Does a Union, under such circumstances, by free consent, and on just and equal terms, deserve to be branded as a proposal for subjecting Ireland to a foreign yoke? Is it not rather the free and voluntary association of two great Countries, which join, for their common benefit, in one Empire, where each will retain its proportional weight and importance, under the security of equal laws, reciprocal affection, and inseparable interests, and which want nothing but that indissoluble Connection to render both invincible.

Non ego nec Teucris Italos parere jubebo Nec nova regna peto; paribus se legibus amb Invict gentes terna in fdera mittant.

Sir, I have nearly stated all that is necessary for me to trouble the House with; there are, however, one or two other objections which I[69] wish not entirely to pass over: One of them is, a general notion that a Union with Great Britain must necessarily increase one of the great evils of Ireland, by producing depopulation in many parts of the Country, and by increasing greatly the number of absentees. I do not mean to deny that this effect would, to a limited extent, take place during a part of the year; but I think it will not be difficult for me to prove, that this circumstance will be more than counterbalanced by the operation of the system in other respects.

If it be true that this measure has an inevitable tendency to admit the introduction of that British Capital which is most likely to give life to all the operations of Commerce, and to all the improvements of Agriculture; if it be that which above all other considerations is most likely to give security, quiet, and internal repose to Ireland; if it is likely to remove the chief bar to the internal advancement of wealth and of civilization, by a more intimate intercourse with England; if it is more likely to communicate from hence those habits which distinguish this Country, and which, by a continued gradation, unite the[70] highest and the lowest orders of the community without a chasm in any part of the system; if it is not only likely to invite (as I have already said) English Capital to set Commerce in motion, but to offer it the use of new markets, to open fresh resources of wealth and industry; can wealth, can industry, can civilization increase among the whole bulk of the people without much more than counterbalancing the partial effect of the removal of the few individuals who, for a small part of the year, would follow the seat of Legislation? If, notwithstanding the absence of Parliament from Dublin, it would still remain the centre of Education and of the internal commerce of a country increasing in improvement; if it would still remain the seat of legal discussion, which must always increase with an increase of property and occupation, will it be supposed, with a view even to the interests of those whose partial interests have been most successfully appealed to; with a view either to the respectable Body of the Bar, to the Merchant, or Shopkeeper, of Dublin (if it were possible to suppose that a transaction of this sort ought to be referred to that single criterion) that they would not find their proportionate share of advantage in the general[71] advantage of the State? Let it be remembered, also, that if the transfer of the Seat of Legislature may call from Ireland to England the Members of the United Parliament, yet, after the Union, property, influence and consideration in Ireland will lead, as much as in Great Britain, to all the objects of imperial ambition; and there must, consequently, exist a new incitement to persons to acquire property in that Country, and to those who possess it, to reside there and to cultivate the good opinion of those with whom they live, and to extend and improve their influence and connections.

But, Sir, I need not dwell longer on argument, however it may satisfy my own mind, because we can on this question refer to experience. I see every Gentleman anticipates that I allude to Scotland. What has been the result of the Union there? A Union, give me leave to say, as much opposed, and by much the same arguments, prejudices, and misconceptions, as are urged, at this moment, creating too the same alarms, and provoking the same outrages, as have lately taken place in Dublin. Look at the metropolis of[72] Scotland: the population of Edinburgh has been more than doubled since the Union, and a new city added to the old. But we may be told, that Edinburgh has engrossed all the commerce of that country, and has those advantages which Dublin cannot expect. Yet while Edinburgh, deprived of its Parliament, but retaining, as Dublin would retain, its Courts of Justice; continuing, as Dublin would continue, the resort of those whose circumstances would not permit them to visit a distant metropolis; continuing, as Dublin would continue, the seat of national education, while Edinburgh has baffled all the predictions of that period, what has been the situation of Glasgow? The population of Glasgow, since the Union, has increased in the proportion of between five and six to one: look at its progress in manufactures; look at its general advantages, and tell me what ground there is, judging by experience in aid of theory, for those gloomy apprehensions which have been so industriously excited.

There remains, Sir, another general line of argument, which I have already anticipated, and I hope answered, that the commercial privileges[73] now enjoyed by Ireland, and to which it owes so much of its prosperity, would be less secure than at present. I have given an answer to that already, by stating that they are falsely imputed to the independence of the Irish Parliament, for that they are in fact owing to the exercise of the voluntary discretion of the British Parliament, unbound by compact, prompted only by its natural disposition to consider the interests of Ireland the same as its own; and if that has been done while Ireland is only united to us in the imperfect and precarious manner in which it is, while it has a separate Parliament, notwithstanding the commercial jealousies of our own manufactures; if under these circumstances we have done so, if we have done so with no other connection than that which now subsists, and while Ireland has no share in our representation; what fresh ground can there be for apprehension, when she will have her proportionate weight in the Legislature, and will be united with us as closely as Lancashire or Yorkshire, or any other county in Great Britain.

Sir, I have seen it under the same authority to which I am sorry so often to advert, that the[74] Linen Trade would be injured, and that there will be no security for its retaining its present advantages. I have already stated to you (and with that very authority in my favour) that those advantages are at present precarious, and that their security can only arise from Compact with Great Britain. Such a Compact, this Measure would establish in the most solemn manner; but besides this, Sir, the natural policy of this Country, not merely its experienced liberality, but the identity of Interests after a Union, would offer a security worth a thousand Compacts.

Sir, the only other general topic of objection is that upon which great pains have been taken to raise an alarm in Irelandthe idea that the main principle of the Measure was to subject Ireland to a load of Debt and an increase of Taxes, and to expose her to the consequences of all our alleged difficulties and supposed necessities.

Sir, I hope the zeal, the spirit, and the liberal and enlarged policy, of this Country, has given ample proof that it is not from a pecuniary motive that we seek an Union. If it is not[75] desirable on the grounds I have stated, it cannot be recommended for the mere purpose of Taxation; but to quiet any jealousy on this subject, here again let us look to Scotland: is there any instance where, with 45 Members on her part and 513 on ours, that part of the United Kingdom has paid more than its proportion to the general burdens?Is it then, Sir, any ground of apprehension, that we are likely to tax Ireland more heavily when she becomes associated with ourselves?To tax in its due proportion the whole of the Empire, to the utter exclusion of the idea of the predominance of one part of society over another, is the great characteristic of British Finance, as Equality of Laws is of the British Constitution.

But, Sir, in addition to this, if we come to the details of this proposition, it is in our power to fix, for any number of years which shall be thought fit, the proportion by which the Contribution of Ireland, to the expences of the State, shall be regulated; that these proportions shall not be such as would make a contribution greater than the necessary amount of its own present necessary[76] expences as a separate Kingdom; and, even after that limited period, the proportion of the whole contribution, from time to time, might be made to depend on the comparative produce, in each Kingdom, of such general taxes as might be thought to afford the best criterion of their respective wealth. Or, what I should hope would be found practicable, the system of internal taxation in each country might gradually be so equalized and assimilated, on the leading articles, as to make all rules of specific proportion unnecessary, and to secure, that Ireland shall never be taxed but in proportion as we tax ourselves.

The application of these principles, however, will form matter of future discussion; I mention them only as strongly shewing, from the misrepresentation which has taken place on this part of the subject, how incumbent it is upon the House to receive these propositions, and to adopt, after due deliberation, such resolutions as may record to Ireland the terms upon which we are ready to meet her. And, in the mean time, let us wait, not without impatience, but without dissatisfaction, for that moment, when the effect of reason and[77] discussion may reconcile the minds of men, in that Kingdom, to a Measure which I am sure will be found as necessary for their peace and happiness, as it will be conducive to the general security and advantage of the British Empire.

Sir, it remains for me only to lay these Resolutions before the House, wishing that the more detailed discussion of them may be reserved to a future day.

RESOLUTIONS.

FIRST.

That in order to promote and secure the essential Interests of Great Britain and Ireland, and to consolidate the Strength, Power, and Resources of the British Empire, it will be advisable to concur in such measures as may best tend to unite the two Kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland into one Kingdom, in such manner, and on such Terms and Conditions as may be established by Acts of the respective Parliaments of His Majestys said Kingdoms.

SECOND.

That it appears to this Committee that it would be fit to propose as the first Article to serve as a Basis of the said Union, that the said Kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland shall, upon a day to be agreed upon, be united into one Kingdom, by the name of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

[78]

THIRD.

That for the same purpose it appears also to this Committee, that it would be fit to propose that the Succession to the Monarchy and the Imperial Crown of the said United Kingdoms, shall continue limited and settled, in the same manner as the Imperial Crown of the said Kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland now stands limited and settled, according to the existing Laws, and to the Terms of the Union between England and Scotland.

FOURTH.

That for the same purpose it appears also to this Committee, that it would be fit to propose that the said United Kingdom be represented in one and the same Parliament, to be stiled the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and that such a number of Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and such a number of Members of the House of Commons as shall be hereafter agreed upon by Acts of the respective Parliaments as aforesaid, shall sit and vote in the said Parliament on the part of Ireland, and shall be summoned, chosen and returned, in such manner as shall be fixed by an Act of the Parliament of Ireland previous to the said Union; and that every Member hereafter to sit and vote in the said Parliament of the United Kingdom shall, until the said Parliament shall otherwise provide, take and subscribe the same Oaths, and make the same Declarations as are by Law required to be taken, subscribed and made by the Members of the Parliaments of Great Britain and Ireland.

FIFTH.

That for the same purpose it appears also to this Committee, that it would be fit to propose that the Churches of England and Ireland, and the Doctrine, Worship, Discipline, and Government thereof, shall be preserved as now by Law Established.

[79]

SIXTH.

That for the same purpose it appears also to this Committee, that it would be fit to propose that His Majestys Subjects in Ireland shall at all times hereafter be entitled to the same privileges, and be on the same footing in respect of Trade and Navigation, in all Ports and Places belonging to Great Britain, and in all cases with respect to which Treaties shall be made by His Majesty, his Heirs or Successors, with any Foreign Power, as His Majestys Subjects in Great Britain; that no Duty shall be imposed on the Import or Export between Great Britain and Ireland of any Articles now Duty free; and that on other Articles there shall be established, for a time to be limited, such a moderate rate of equal Duties as shall, previous to the Union, be agreed upon and approved by the respective Parliaments, subject, after the expiration of such limited time, to be diminished equally with respect to both Kingdoms, but in no case to be encreased; that all Articles which may at any time hereafter be imported into Great Britain from Foreign Parts, shall be importable through either Kingdom into the other, subject to the like Duties and Regulations as if the same were imported directly from Foreign Parts; that where any Articles, the growth, produce, or manufacture of either Kingdom, are subject to any internal Duty in one Kingdom, such countervailing Duties (over and above any Duties on import to be fixed as aforesaid) shall be imposed as shall be necessary to prevent any inequality in that respect: and that all other matters of Trade and Commerce other than the foregoing, and than such others as may before the Union be specially agreed upon for the due encouragement of the Agriculture and Manufactures of the respective Kingdoms, shall remain to be regulated from time to time by the United Parliament.

[80]

SEVENTH.

That for the like purpose it would be fit to propose, that the charge arising from the payment of the Interest or Sinking Fund for the reduction of the Principal of the Debt incurred in either Kingdom before the Union, shall continue to be separately defrayed by Great Britain and Ireland respectively. That for a number of Years to be limited, the future ordinary expences of the United Kingdom, in Peace or War, shall be defrayed by Great Britain and Ireland jointly, according to such proportions as shall be established by the respective Parliaments previous to the Union; and that after the expiration of the time to be so limited, the proportion shall not be liable to be varied, except according to such rates and principles as shall be in like manner agreed upon previous to the Union.

EIGHTH.

That for the like purpose it would be fit to propose, that all Laws in force at the time of the Union, and that all the Courts of Civil or Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction within the respective Kingdoms, shall remain as now by Law established within the same, subject only to such alterations or regulations from time to time as circumstances may appear to the Parliament of the United Kingdom to require.

That the foregoing Resolutions be laid before His Majesty with an humble Address, assuring His Majesty that we have proceeded with the utmost attention to the consideration of the important objects recommended to us in His Majestys Gracious Message.

That we entertain a firm persuasion that a complete and intire Union between Great Britain and Ireland, founded on equal and liberal Principles, on the similarity[81] of Laws, Constitution and Government, and on a sense of mutual Interests and Affections, by promoting the Security, Wealth, and Commerce of the respective Kingdoms, and by allaying the distractions which have unhappily prevailed in Ireland, must afford fresh means of opposing at all times an effectual resistance to the destructive Projects of our Foreign and Domestic Enemies, and must tend to confirm and augment the Stability, Power, and Resources of the Empire.

Impressed with these considerations, we feel it our duty humbly to lay before His Majesty such Propositions as appear to us best calculated to form the Basis of such a settlement, leaving it to His Majestys wisdom, at such time and in such manner as His Majesty, in his Parental Solicitude for the happiness of his People, shall judge fit, to communicate these Propositions to His Parliament of Ireland, with whom we shall be at all times ready to concur in all such Measures as may be found most conducive to the accomplishment of this great and salutary Work. And we trust that, after full and mature consideration, such a Settlement may be framed and established, by the deliberate Consent of the Parliaments of both Kingdoms, as may be conformable to the Sentiments, Wishes, and real Interests of His Majestys faithful Subjects of Great Britain and Ireland, and may unite them inseparably in the full enjoyment of the blessings of our free and invaluable Constitution, in the support of the Honour and Dignity of His Majestys Crown, and in the preservation and advancement of the Welfare and Prosperity of the whole British Empire.

The following Message was presented in the House of Commons by Mr. Fox, Secretary of State, on the 9th of April, 1782.

George R. His Majesty being concerned to find that discontents and jealousies are prevailing among his loyal Subjects in Ireland, upon matters of great weight and importance, earnestly recommends to this House, to take the same into their most serious consideration, in order to such a Final Adjustment as may give mutual satisfaction to both Kingdoms. G. R.

[83]

1st May, 1782.

Mr. Secretary Fox presented to the House, by His Majestys command,

Copy of the Message to the Houses of Lords and Commons in Ireland, from His Grace the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, delivered the 16th April, 1782: And also,

Copy of a Resolution of the House of Lords in Ireland, Mercurii, 17 die Aprilis, 1782: And also,

Copy of a Resolution of the House of Commons in Ireland, Martis, 16 die Aprilis, 1782.

And the Titles of the said Copies were read.

The said Copies are as followeth; viz.

Copy of the Message to the Houses of Lords and Commons in Ireland, from His Grace the Lord Lieutenant, delivered the 16th April, 1782. Portland, I have it in command from His Majesty, to inform this House, that His Majesty being concerned[84] to find that discontents and jealousies are prevailing among his loyal Subjects of this Country, upon matters of great weight and importance, His Majesty recommends to this House to take the same into their most serious consideration, in order to such a Final Adjustment as may give mutual satisfaction to his Kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland. P.

Copy of a Resolution of the House of Lords in Ireland, Mercurii, 17 die Aprilis, 1782. Resolved, By the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament assembled Nemine dissentiente, That an humble Address be presented to His Majesty, to return him our thanks for the most gracious Message sent to this House by His Majestys command, through the medium of His Grace the Lord Lieutenant, and to assure him of our most unshaken loyalty and attachment to His Majestys person and government, and of the lively sense we entertain of his paternal care of his people of Ireland, in thus inquiring into the[85] discontents and jealousies that subsist amongst them, in order to such Final Adjustment as may give mutual satisfaction to his Kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland. That, thus encouraged by His Royal Interposition, we shall beg leave, with all duty and affection, to lay before His Majesty the cause of such discontents and jealousies. To represent to His Majesty, That his subjects of Ireland are entitled to a free constitution; that the Imperial Crown of Ireland is inseparably annexed to the Crown of Great Britain, on which Connection the happiness of both nations essentially depends; but that the Kingdom of Ireland is a distinct dominion, having a Parliament of her own, the sole Legislature thereof. That there is no power whatsoever competent to make laws to bind this nation, except the King, Lords, and Commons, of Ireland; upon which exclusive Right of Legislation we consider the very essence of our liberties to depend, a Right which we claim as the Birth-right of the People of Ireland,[86] and which we are determined, in every situation of life, to assert and maintain. To represent to His Majesty, That we have seen with concern certain claims, both of legislature and judicature, asserted by the Parliament of Great Britain, in an Act passed in Great Britain in the sixth year of George the First, intituled An Act for the better securing the Dependency of Ireland upon the Crown of Great Britain: That we conceive the said Act, and the powers thereby claimed, to be the great and principal causes of the discontents and jealousies that subsist in this Kingdom: To assure His Majesty, That this House considers it as a matter of constitutional right and protection, that all Bills which become Law should receive the approbation of His Majesty, under the Seal of Great Britain; but we consider the practice of suppressing our Bills in the Council of Ireland, or altering them any where, to be a matter which calls for redress: [87] To represent to His Majesty, That an Act intituled An Act for the better Accommodation of His Majestys Forces, being unlimited in duration, but which, from the particular circumstances of the times, passed into a law, has been the cause of much jealousy 




Haiti - FLASH : The USA will donate vaccines to Haiti





Earlier this week, the US government said in a memo that it was "committed to working with our US manufacturers to produce more vaccine to share with the world [...] This vaccine strategy is a vital component of our overall global effort to lead the world in the fight to defeat covid19 and to achieve global health security."



The United States announces a donation of 80 million doses of vaccine of which 75% will be shared via the COVAX mechanism and 25% "will be targeted".



The note specifies that 25 million of the 80 million doses have already started to be shipped to several countries



Distribution 55 million doses remaining



Approximately 14 million doses for Latin America and the Caribbean : Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, Paraguay, Bolivia, Uruguay, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Haiti and other countries from Caricom: Dominican Republic, Panama and Costa Rica.



Approximately 16 million doses for Asia : India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Maldives, Bhutan, Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Laos, Papua New Guinea, Taiwan, Cambodia and the Pacific He is.



About 10 million doses will be shared with the African Union



Approximately 14 million doses will go to "regional priorities" which, again, include Haiti and other Caricom countries.



"Just like we have in our domestic response, we will move as expeditiously as possible, while abiding by US and host country regulatory and legal requirements, to facilitate the safe and secure transport of vaccines across international borders. This will take time, but the president has directed the administration to use all the levers of the US government to protect individuals from this virus as quickly as possible," concludes the note



Find out more about COVAX :

Covax is an initiative led by the World Health Organization (WHO) is the result of an extraordinary and unique global collaboration, with more than two-thirds of the world engaged (Governments, World Health Organizations, laboratories, scientists, the private sector, civil society and philanthropy), with the aim of providing innovative and equitable access to COVID-19 diagnostics, treatments and vaccines regardless of people's wealth.



COVAX has the largest and most diverse portfolio of COVID-19 vaccines in the world, and as such represents the world's best hope for an early end to this pandemic.



To be continued...



See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-34042-haiti-covid-19-haiti-special-report-459.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-34036-haiti-flash-the-3rd-wave-has-already-killed-129-people.html



SL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - News : Zapping...





PNH escorts 109 fuel trucks

On Tuesday, the Haitian National Police (PNH) escorted 109 fuel trucks which were supplied to the Vareux terminal. The police also made sure that the trucks went safely to the various stations in the capital.



Martissant : The Sogebank vandalized

The Sogebank branch located at Martissant 15 (closed since June 4 due to insecurity) was vandalized on the night of June 21 to 22, 2021 according to a note from the Bank. No assessment of the extent of the damage has yet been possible...



End of the run for 4 criminals

Monday June 21, 2021, 4 individuals identified as Jean Moliere Louis Charles, Vile Donald and Jean Baptiste Mackenson were arrested by the Belladere Police when they were trying to cross the border illegally with the Dominican Republic. Two of them were actively wanted by the Police. The first, Vile Donald is a member of the "Nan Remi" gang accused of kidnappings, robberies and assassinations including that of an Inspector assigned to the Traffic Department. The second, Jean Baptiste Mackenson, is accused of involvement in assassinations in downtown Port-au-Prince.



3 defeated crooks arrested

The named Sorry Sedic, Dunel Julien and Frantz Jerome were arrested on June 21, 2021 by police officers assigned to the Camp-Perrin police station for blackmail, followed by death threats on the person of Andre Dorleus from whom they demanded $50.0000 ransom not to be kidnapped. Police apprehended them as they were about to receive the demanded ransom.



A forger escaped from prison arrested in DR

The named Lamartine Jean Glaure, arrested for forgery and use of forgery, escaped from the civil prison of Croix-des-Bouquets, was intercepted in the Dominican Republic and transferred to the Judicial Police via the border of Malpasse on Monday June 21, 2021 and returned to civilian prison on the same day.



PNH : Truck hijacking, 2 arrests, one dead and one injured

The Haitian National Police (PNH), during a strong intervention in Bon Repos (commune of Croix-des-Bouquets), arrested 2 individuals; another was fatally injured and a last shot in the arm in the exchange of fire with the police. These thugs are involved in the hijacking of a freight truck at Croix-des-Missions. Police are actively looking for the suspect with injured arm.



HL/ HaitiLibre


















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By William Schwartz | Published on 2021/06/22

This past June 21st Lee Jae-wook made an hour long broadcast on the Naver application V LIVE. The video can be viewed in its entirity here, and subtitles are available in English, Indonesian, Spanish, Thai, and Vietnamese. According to Lee Jae-wook, he had been eating a lot and sleeping, but also started seriously exercising. He claimed to have no current dramas either shooting or even for script reading, and that he had grown his hair out as he wasn't sure how much he would need for his next project.

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Lee Jae-wook also spoke to foreign fans, apologizing at one point for being unable to converse in English. Instructions given to fans included telling them to study rather than watch his broadcast if they ought to be studying, and to mind traffic signals. Lee Jae-wook also claimed to shower first thing in the morning, and told fans of all his roles, the one in "I'll Visit You When the Weather Is Nice" is closest to his real personality, as he tends to be bright and tell jokes to his friends.

This was similar to Lee Jae-wook's behavior in the V LIVE broadcast, where fans also encouraged him to try and do a VLOG. But Lee Jae-wook demurred, citing COVID-19 concerns and specifically the logistical issue of having to wear a mask as an issue for him to do such a project. When fans asked since when Lee Jae-wook got so handsome, he expressed skepticism on the subject, saying there were far more handsome people than him. He thanked fans when they persisted in the compliment.

Lee Jae-wook expressed much appreciation to his fans, mentioning how he didn't even want to do his first V LIVE broadcast because he was convinced no one would come. In the end over fifteen thousand fans watched. The latest broadcast had over thirty-five thousand. Despite the lack of upcoming work, Lee Jae-wook was clearly emboldened by the support of his fans. His most recent project "Move to Heaven" started airing this past May 14th on Netflix.

Written by William Schwartz
Published on 2021/06/22 | Source

New poster and stills added for the upcoming Korean omnibus movie "An Ordinary Day"

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"An Ordinary Day" (2021)

Directed by Kim Ye-na-III, Lee Mi-so-II, Park Gyu-eun

Synopsis

"Pollen" (, kkot-ga-ru)

Ye-na is being outcasted by the drama club. Not only her seniors, but her juniors ignore her as well, as they prepare for the play. Even her freshmen juniors would make her sprinkle flowers on stage. It's a low-key role, but Ye-na tries her best to work hard for it, but her seniors try to stop her, and covers her spotlight. Eventually, she sprinkled pollen on stage and when she was praised by the people for the beautiful pollen, her seniors take the credit.

"Insecurity" (  , gae-in-jeok-in bul-o-ham-e dae-ha-yeo)

Jeong-in, who works part-time at a gas station, has not been receiving any pay for several weeks. One day, he discovers a flyer from Shin (God) Company that says he can do anything with the trash thrown away by the customers, and No-eul who is not a believer of God, sees the flyer and applies for a free trial of the Shin Company instead of Jeong-in. At first, Jeong-in, who did not believe in the existence of God, sees that his problems are solved after the phone call, and suddenly believes in the existence of Shin Company. Eventually, Jeong-in goes back to the gas station to get revenge on Byeong-hyeon, who does not even try to pay his part-time job.

"So Do You" ( , neo-do geu-reoh-da)

Eun-gyoo, a runaway teenager who thinks all grown-ups are old-school, steals a cigarette on payday after getting a part-time job. At the police box where she was arrested for that, she reunites with Seok-hwan, who dreams of becoming a youth counselor. Seok-hwan, who wants to renew Eun-gyoo's life for her own benefit, and Eun-gyu, who wants to protect her life started a conversation.

Release date in Korea : 2021/07/01
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Mohave County Supervisors deserve a vote of thanks for refusing to go along with a
Havre Police Department

Tayla Wren Overlie of Havre, 32, was arrested on charges of aggravated driving under the influence, driving with a suspended or revoked driver's license, obstructing a peace officer or other public servant and resisting arrest after officers stopped Tuesday at 6:04 a.m. on Fifth Street to investigate suspicious activity involving a woman running.

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Someone turned in to the police station Tuesday at 8:25 a.m. a set of keys with a Dodge fob.

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A Tuesday 10:35 a.m. caller at a First Street business reported a crash from earlier in the morning.

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Colette Cecelia La Pointe of Fargo, North Dakota, 65, was arrested on a disorderly conduct charge after a caller on Second Street reported a woman passed out on the sidewalk at 1:26 p.m. Tuesday.

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A summons was issued after a Fifth Street caller reported Tuesday at 4:10 p.m. a dog had bitten the caller's daughter. No details were provided on the charges.

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A vehicle crash into a mailbox was reported on Boulevard Avenue Tuesday at 9:10 p.m.

Hill County Sheriff's Office

Deputies investigated an 11:55 a.m. Tuesday report of a shoplifter at a U.S. Highway 2 West business.

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Deputies investigated an assault reported Tuesday at 2:08 p.m. at a U.S. Highway 87 establishment in Box Elder.

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A warrant was served at Hill County Detention Center Tuesday at 3:38 p.m., but no details on the charges were provided.

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An arrest was made after deputies stopped to assist someone on U.S. Highway 87 south of Havre at 2:26 a.m. today. No details were provided on the charges.

Havre Fire Department

Emergency medical personnel responded to two calls Tuesday and two calls early this morning.

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Firefighters responded to a carbon monoxide alarm in a camper on Lila Drive at 3:27 p.m. Tuesday. The alarm was a notification that the CO detectors had expired and needed to be replaced.

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After responding to a fire alarm at 6:51 this morning on the 800 Block of Fourth Street, firefighters could find no smoke or fire signs so reset the alarm and cleared the scene.

Havre Animal Shelter

The shelter this morning held six female cats and seven male cats.

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The shelter also held a male 7-month-old hound puppy, female 11-month-old mixed breed puppy, two male 9-month-old mixed-breed puppies, one male and two female mixed-breed dogs, and a male and a female 10-month-old mixed-breed puppies.
From USDA Farm Service Agency

BOZEMAN  The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency began accepting nominations for county committee members on June 15.

Elections will occur in certain Local Administrative Areas  LAA for these members who make important decisions about how federal farm programs are administered locally. All nomination forms for the 2021 election must be postmarked or received in the local FSA office by Aug. 2.

We need enthusiastic, diverse leaders to serve other agricultural producers locally on FSA County Committees, said Les J. Rispens, acting state executive director for FSA in Montana. Nows your time to step up and truly make an impact on how federal programs are administered at the local level to reach all producers fairly and equitably.

Rispens said agricultural producers who participate or cooperate in a USDA program, and reside in the LAA that is up for election this year, may be nominated for candidacy for the county committee. A cooperating producer is someone who has provided information about their farming or ranching operation to FSA, even if they have not applied or received program benefits. Individuals may nominate themselves or others and qualifying organizations may also nominate candidates. USDA encourages minority producers, women and beginning farmers or ranchers to nominate, vote, and hold office.

Nationwide, more than 7,700 dedicated members of the agricultural community serving on FSA county committees. The committees are made up of three to 11 members who serve three-year terms. Producers serving on FSA county committees play a critical role in the day-to-day operations of the agency. Committee members are vital to how FSA carries out disaster programs, as well as conservation, commodity and price support programs, county office employment and other agricultural issues.

LAAs are elective areas for FSA committees in a single county or multi-county jurisdiction. This may include LAAs that are focused on an urban or suburban area.

Producers should contact their local FSA office today to register and find out how to get involved in their countys election. They should check with their local USDA Service Center to see if their LAA is up for election this year. To be considered, a producer must be registered and sign an FSA-669A nomination form. The form and other information about FSA county committee elections are available at fsa.usda.gov/elections .

Election ballots will be mailed to eligible voters beginning Nov. 1, 2021. To find the local USDA Service Center, people can visit http://farmers.gov/service-locator .
The kindness of the people of Havre made such an impact on a Pennsylvania man, Robert Bob Tassinari, he is the largest donor to the Hill County Community Foundation despite never living in the region.

Foundation board chair Pam Veis said Tassinari reached out to her after she sent an article to the Havre Daily News about the transfer of wealth in Montana.

He contacted me by phone about five years ago. Im not certain, but I think he read an article I submitted to the Daily about the transfer of wealth in Montana. Shortly after that time, I received a call from him and he told me a check will be in the mail soon, Veis said in an email to the Havre Daily News.

Since that time, I believe the grand total hes donated to our foundation is $15,000. Our largest donor by far. Ive had several phone conversations with him and hes told me that his dream was to retire and live in Havre, but that health problems have prevented him from doing so, Veis added.

Tassinari, originally from a suburb of Boston, said he first came to Havre while on a business trip to Seattle. He spent 20 years in the Navy before spending 20 years with the Federal Bureau of Prisons, part of the Justice Department, which required him to visit a Seattle area facility.

I remember the train was late, as always, about four hours. It was about 5:30, in the afternoon, when it stopped at Havre and I stepped off the train to smoke. And I looked around from the platform, looking at 5:30 in the evening, and I thought, `I wonder what life is, like, out here for these people going home from work or wherever, Tassinari said.

Tassinari picked up a copy of the newspaper then decided if he had to come out to the area again the next year, which he did, he would stop in Havre for a couple of days.

Somebody suggested after the first bar I stopped at, Id probably enjoy myself more at the Shanty Bar and they were right. I just met a number of people I thought were nice, interesting people and Ive never looked back after that, Tassinari said

He initially made the trip annually before doing so twice a year until he was no longer able to about four years ago due to those health issues.

Its a progressive neurological disease, Im becoming more and more paralyzed, home healthcare, things like that, Tassinari said.

Tassinari, now retired, said his condition wont improve to a point he can move to Havre. He added that he remains subscribed to the Havre Daily News.

Veis wrote in the June 16 email he has been a subscriber for 15 years. Tassinari said he is also subscribed to the Blaine County Journal News-Opinion.

There was something in the Havre Daily News about the Hill County Community Foundation, making a donation to whatever, I dont remember at the time. I thought thats a good organization to make a contribution to whatever it was in the paper I had read about, and so thats why I sent them the first check, Tassinari said.

Tassinari said he has donated, just a few thousand.

Knowing he wont be able to relocate to Havre and visit with community members, Tassinari said, I found that almost everyone, there were certain exceptions, but almost everybody I met was pleasant. Being called pleasant I consider quite a compliment, myself.

The foundation website says, Through the power of permanently endowed funds, the Hill County Community Foundation is able to award the annual interest of the endowment fund to local projects as grants. This annual grant cycle allows HCCF to fund local projects that might otherwise go unfunded.

The Hill County Community Foundations 2020 grantees included CASA of Hill County, the Associated Students of Montana State University-Northern, the Hill County 4-H Foundation, the Havre Eagles Manor, Roses Helping Hands in partnership with Bear Paw Development Corp. and Havre Trails Inc.

Each organization received a $500 grant, resulting in a total of $3,000. The foundation website said each grantee was awarded for their respective projects in one of three HCCF focus areas, basic human needs, arts and culture, and community beautification.

For more on how each organization will use the grant funds, people can visit https://hillcountycommunityfoundation.org/grant-cycle .
Masks optional, emergency declaration continues

Miranda Frye speaks Tuesday in Havre Middle School in favor of Havre Public Schools making masks optional in the upcoming school year.

The Havre Public Schools Board of Trustees during a special meeting in Havre Middle School Tuesday unanimously approved a series of motions including plans on how to handle the upcoming school year.

The board followed the recommendations of Superintendent Craig Mueller, including on extending the district's declaration of emergency, making masks optional during the next school year and amending requirements on physical distancing to three feet and amending requirements on playgrounds, removing the requirement of staff having to greet children outside of the schools as they arrive, removing the authorization of testing the temperatures of students, and a plan of return to schools and continuity of services listing the actions taken over the past 15 months.

The actions taken in the past year have been in accordance with government and health agency requirements and recommendations.

Audience member Scott Adams, who briefly served on the board this year, spoke against the continuation of the declaration of emergency, saying he believed Havre and Hill County are not under a state of emergency.

The city and county are still under declarations of emergency, they confirmed this morning.

Montana and the United States also still are in emergency conditions.

Mueller told the board the continued declaration would allow the district to adapt as needed as conditions change. The declaration is through June of next year unless the board votes to rescind it previously.

Board member Tim Scheele asked if the declaration would allow the district to continue to use provisions such as counting remote learning time toward enrollment and budgets.

Mueller said that is correct.

Several audience members spoke in favor of adjusting policies including to allow masks to be optional, although several also said the actions of the district in the past year have made it difficult for students.

Mueller said masks will be available at all the schools for people to use, but the district will not push people to wear masks and will not encourage people to wear masks.

"They will be provided," he said.

When asked if the district had enough masks, he said it did.

"We have thousands of masks," he said.

"We will never have to buy masks again," district clerk and business manager Shanna Flores said, adding, "We didn't buy these."

Jill Cammon said, as a teacher and a parent, she supported the changes.

"I think it's time to get back to school," she said.

In his superintendent's report, Mueller said he has some good news for the district.

He said the district will be interviewing a number of teacher applicants this Thursday, and Monday is interviewing a candidate for assistant superintendent, which has been empty since he took over as interim superintendent last summer and was selected as superintendent this year.

He said the district also will be holding job fairs Monday, Aug. 2 from 4-7 p.m. and Tuesday, Aug. 3, from 8 a.m. to noon where local residents can come "in a speed dating game format," Mueller said, to learn about positions available in the district. He said the district wants to attract more people to be involved and to be more involved with the people in the community.

Wednesday, Aug. 4, will have new teacher orientation, and the return to school for teachers and staff will be Aug. 23.

He said the district is hopeful that will be the start to "a really normal approach to the year."
LIBATION NATION: D9 Brewing Co. aspires to be 'Unquestionably Original'

Scott Hettig, head brewer and general manager of the new D9 Brewing Co. at 425 N. Main St., says patrons often race to save a seat in the street-facing tables as soon as they step in.



I would say its one of the best selling points, he says. Other than the beer, the location and this building is what sells.

D9, the fast-growing seven-year-old craft brewery originally from the Charlotte area, sank $1.7 million into the purchase and renovation of the old Swansons organ and piano space, stripping the interior walls down to original brick, installing new flooring and making the towns only Main Street brewpub a showcase.

Like a lot of brewers, D9 founder Andrew Durstewitz and a partner started modestly.

Ten years in his garage, two years in my garage and two years in a little commercial garage where we just gave away free beer because we didnt have a permit, Durstewitz said during D9s grand opening earlier this month. Then we decided in 2014 to build a real business. Were the seventh largest brewery in North Carolina and the 11th fastest growing on the East Coast.

Durstewitz, who has a broad and varied background in software development, health care and human resources, boasts a record, according to his LinkedIn profile, of engineering transformative and complex software solutions focused on customer needs and sustainable operational improvements.

He has built a multilayered complex that includes a development company, Iconic Holdings, that buys and renovates properties for new brewpubs and a distribution network that reaches 14 states. Usually, when he scouts a new location, he spends time kicking the tires and considering other options. He shed those details when his developer summoned him to look at the Main Street storefront here.

I usually have to spend time walking around the building, he says. I used to go down to Greenville (South Carolina) all the time for business. You can sit there on the street and talk to people as they walk by. This town needs that kind of vibe because its got that culture already here. That was my big plan. I want that garage door, I want those seats up front.

He recalls his first visit, when I went upstairs and the whole second story shimmied back and forth. The developer renovated the upstairs for an Airbnb.

We put a lot of love into this building because we thought this really could be something special, Durstewitz adds. I think you can see it turned out really, really well. We put a ton of money into this, wanting to invest in the community.

D9 opened two other brewpubs the same day it opened its Hendersonville taproom, April 15  one in uptown Charlotte and one in Newton.

This brew system can only fill half the tap lines, Durstewitz says. (There are 15 tapes.) D9s a bigger company so we can fill the other tap lines with our core beer. If we came up here and we didnt have our sours, people would be like, Where are your sours? Were known for them. We cant produce them here. This is not a sour brewing facility. We have a sour brewery in Newton, North Carolina, and we bring it up here.

As head brewer, Hettigs job is to discover the beer the Hendersonville patron wants and then develop recipes, Durstewitz says.

Those beers will only be here, he says. But if he finds a beer that the community loves and it takes off, well scale it to the R&D facility and put it statewide.

Durstewitz takes pride in liberating local brewers to tailor the product to the community.

Our model  were able to run these breweries a little bit more lightly (in a way) that gives all the power and control to the head brewer, he says. So he doesnt have any oversight and control coming in from us. Were trying to support him and have him build the identity of the local business. The only thing we say is our motto is Unquestionably Original  just be original. Thats the thing that D9 Brewing Co. was built on.

D9s hours are 2 p.m.-10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 2 p.m.-11 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 1-8 p.m. Sunday. D9 also operates Main Street Coffee from 8 a.m.-noon.
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Henry schools to open District Welcome Center

McDONOUGH  Henry County Schools is set to launch the newest phase of the Henry County Learning and Support Center with the official opening of the Henry County Schools Welcome Center.

The center will be a new service experience for families as they arrive in Henry County and enroll their children in the school district.

We want all families, especially our first-time families, to be ready for school on day one, and that means making the enrollment and registration process a smooth one for families entering our school district, said Superintendent Mary Elizabeth Davis. All processes that are vital to complete the registration process will be available in one location along with assistance from our personnel there on site.

Registration paperwork, Parent Portal sign-up, transportation needs, language services, school nutrition forms, and community resources will all be addressed for every family arriving at the welcome center. Families in the district have always had the opportunity to complete the enrollment process through the district website, but this latest service will provide direct support to all families in need of in-person assistance.

Our goal at the welcome center is to ensure families are supported and provided individualized services that meet their needs so that students arrive on Aug. 4 ready to learn and parents feel an authentic sense of welcome when they step into our center, said Chief Family and Student Support Services Officer April Madden. When families leave the center, we want them to know and feel that they are a part of the Henry County Schools family.

In addition to the districts #BeReadyDayOne campaign, school district officials are looking forward to getting this school year started on time and bringing a sense of normalcy back to learning. District officials had to delay the start of school last year due to the rising numbers of COVID-19 cases in Henry County. District officials will welcome back students to the districts 52 schools this fall.

Current families and new families should know that all campuses will be open and ready for full in-person learning starting on the first day of school on Aug. 4. Families who choose the virtual option of Impact Academy will also be starting on the same date. In order to participate in virtual learning this year, families made their intentions known to school district officials during a declaration window in February.

Normal operations for all schools will resume once again, including visitor and volunteer access and field trips. The 2021-2022 school year will be mask-optional on all Henry County Schools property. Masks are still encouraged as a safety precaution for individuals wanting to wear one. This important update was shared in a previous announcement earlier in June.

We want all families to feel welcomed from the start of their enrollment in Henry County Schools, and that starts with making the process as easy as possible, said Board Chair Holly Cobb. There is no better place to learn than in Henry County Schools, and we cant wait for our current students to return and our new students to see how exceptional our district truly is.

Community members can find the latest back-to-school information, along with our COVID-19 mitigation efforts and health metrics on the district website. These items are regularly updated with the latest information.

For more information on Henry County Schools, visit www.henry.k12.ga.us.
John McAfee, the controversial antivirus software magnate who'd had multiple recent run-ins with the US law, has died at 75. McAfee was awaiting extradition in a Spanish prison after being charged with tax evasion in the United States last year.

McAfee was found dead in his cell in a prison near Barcelona on Wednesday around 1 p.m. ET and a medical examiner is on the scene, a spokeswoman for the Superior Court of Catalonia told CNN. She said the cause of death is under investigation.

Earlier Wednesday, a three-judge panel at Spain's National Court in Madrid ruled that McAfee could be extradited to the United States to face charges there, a National Court spokesman told CNN.

McAfee was arrested in Spain in October after being indicted in the United States for tax evasion months earlier. He allegedly failed to file taxes for four years despite earning millions in income between 2014 and 2018 from promoting cryptocurrencies, consulting work, speaking engagements, and selling the rights to his life story for a documentary, according to court documents. The amount he owed was not specified in the indictment.

In a virtual hearing in Spanish court earlier this month, McAfee argued that the US tax evasion charges against him were politically motivated, the Associated Press reported.

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McAfee  founder of the eponymous antivirus software firm, with which he is no longer affiliated  was also indicted in March on separate fraud and money laundering charges. The US Department of Justice alleged that he and a business partner participated in a scheme that earned more than $13 million by falsely promoting cryptocurrencies to unwitting investors.

The final two decades of McAfee's life included a somewhat bizarre series of events.

In 2012, McAfee briefly vanished after fleeing his home in Belize because local police tried to question him on the death of his neighbor. (He has denied involvement in the death and claimed he fled because he feared for his life.)

He spent time in Guatemala, and then moved to Montreal, Canada, where he worked on a documentary about his life. He ran for US president in 2016 as a Libertarian, and launched a new security product that he called "a f---ing game changer."
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The lawmakers in Pennsylvania are reaching a consensus to conduct an Arizona-style 2020 election audit. Pennsylvania state Sen. David Argall, one of the top GOP senators, seemed to convince the other members of the senate when he delivered his opinions about the said election audit, reported the Epoch Times.

Vote audit, a way to check on irregularities

In recent news, there were reports that said the results of the Pennsylvania elections needed investigation. Being the chair of the Senate State Government Committee, Argall sees the Arizona-style audit as a good option to take.

The audit will be a meticulous recount that will involve all returns and vote tabulating machines. In a report from The Hill, he is quoted as saying that there is no danger to a forensic audit.

An independent audit is necessary

The Republican senator stated that there have been numerous audits on the contested results of the Nov. 3 election, where Joe Biden emerged as the winner of the presidential election. However, a number of people, including those who are in office and those who are not, still think that another audit should be done. Argall said his constituents are not convinced so they want a new audit done.

"I am not hung up on how exactly the audit is completed. I just think that we should complete one," Argall told the reporters. "I think it needs to be independent. I think there is going to be mistrust if the same people who conducted the election conduct the audit," he added, reported the Hill.

As of now, they are just waiting for the approval of the audit.

Read also: Democrats Attempting To Stop Vote Audit Find Way for Judge Coury to Recuse

A week before, they were subjected to the scathing rebuke of ex-president Trump who alleged that the state Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman and Argall were not doing anything to check the election results.

The former president called out State Senator Jake Corman, who was allegedly trying to block a forensic audit of the failed 2020 elections. Trump called him a left-wing Democrat. He also labeled David Argall as another Republican playing the same corrupt game.

Trump suggested that Corman should help GOP candidates before the upcoming elections. Argall's representative said that the ex-president's allegations had no basis while Corman just kept quiet in his office, leaving no comment about Trump's scathing review, cited Nation World News.

After the state Senate authorized the audit in April, auditors headed by Florida-based technology firm Cyber Ninjas began checking 2.1 million ballots cast in Maricopa County, Arizona. Officials said last week that the last report will be published in August.

Not all GOP members support the audit of votes. Rep. Seth Grove, who serves as the head of the House State Government Committee, opposed this proposition. He made it clear that the House will not allow audits anymore. He suggested that the House should work on election reform laws instead. Argall had no further comment to give on the issue.

Many states have authored the election integrity bill to push cleaner and safer polls that should be free of fraud. For some states, auditing the votes like in Maricopa was a start to reach this goal.

Related article: New Judge Appointed To Sit On the 2020 Election Audit Case After Resignation of Coury

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People have searched for the fountain of youth, but aging is an intricate process that is absolutely inescapable no matter how long we live.

Even long-lived humans will go grey

Over decades and even centuries, people have tried to expand the average life expectancy. There have been scientific studies, offering ways to rejuvenate aging cells and indicating a longer lifespan. These findings made people consider that immortality could be possible, per Sciencealert.

According to Fernando Colchero, an Associate Professor at the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science from the University of Southern Denmark, "Human death is inevitable. No matter how many vitamins we take, how healthy our environment is, or how much we exercise, we will eventually age and die."

Study shows telltale clues

Colchero, along with 39 colleagues, is conducting a study that aging is fixed in any species. Even if humans can increase survival that will mean more years on the average life span, cited Nature.

One example is how long people have to live. Data shows that an average of three months was added to the initial lifespan from the 1850s.

But this does not mean it is the answer to slowing how we age biologically, or if we can exceed what nature has determined for human life expectancy. More than one scientist says that aging is part of the process of living.

Read also: Man Gains Partial Eye Sight After 40-Years of Blindness, Can He Fully See After Treatment?

One suggestion is called the "invariant rate of aging hypothesis." which says species have aging already determined from the start. In short, having more years is not a sign of slowed aging. Instead, the more years given to live is just reducing the death of younger individuals in periods.

Demography expert from the Oxford University, Jose Manuel Aburto, says that in comparison to now those living in the 1900s or below, those living now live longer. The factors that cause this, according to him, are medical, social, and environmental so that fewer younger individuals end up dying. But that everyone will get old and die is something that could not change.

A relationship was drawn with the average age when one dies, and the lifespan equality that counted how many would pass away at certain ages. Based on the data, the mortality rate is constant and life span expectancy and equality are pushed by the variations in age.

It translates to better lifespan equality rather than living to old age, which the study says is not enough to say longer life expectancy will be the result.

Susan Roberts from Duke University says populations get older when most of the people survive until later years. She said it was normal for early life to hazardous, unlike now where early death is preventable.

One impact of improved living is better medicine and food that improves our chances at better health and living longer. But, some of the findings might lead to something else, which is significant. More than one scientist says that aging is part of living but future studies might surpass the limitations in cells, and be like immortals.

Related article: Fountain of Youth: Bacteria and Butyratem Hormone Can Help Prevent Aging

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Almost three dozen of Iran's state-linked website domains were seized on Tuesday for alleged misinformation. American authorities took the action that is seemingly a massive crackdown on Iran's media websites amid a rising dispute between the two countries.

The US took down websites, the majority of which were related to Iranian misinformation, according to an official who suggested anonymity as the government had not yet disclosed the case to the public. Iran's state-run news agency, IRNA, reported the seizures but did not give further details.

The reason for the Iran-linked websites crackdown remains unclear

According to ABC News, the massive crackdown comes as other nations try to resurrect the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran and days after Iran's hard-line judiciary head Ebrahim Raisi was elected. Raisi is known for his anti-Western stance and he took a tough tone during his first news conference on Monday.

He has made it clear that he will not meet with President Joe Biden, discuss Tehran's ballistic missile program, or provide aid to regional militias. These are all issues that the Biden administration wants to address in the future.

Iran is a major issue for the Biden administration. The Iranian government is currently enriching uranium to 60%. It is the highest level it has achieved. Although it is far from being weapons-grade, the country has abandoned all limits on improving uranium. Iran also supports terrorist organizations in the area, such as Yemen's Houthi and Lebanon's Hezbollah rebels, to expand its influence and oppose its rivals.

Relations between Iran and the United States have deteriorated for years as a result of then-President Donald Trump's withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal and the ethical breach of sanctions imposed on the country.

After Trump's withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in 2018, Biden made re-entry into the Iran nuclear agreement a major element of his campaign. Despite Raisi's opposition to a nuclear deal, the Biden administration is hopeful that talks will continue, underlining that Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who signed the 2015 agreement, will have the last say.

Read Also: Boris Johnson Faces Fury Over Postponed Meeting to Fix Social Care System

Biden administration may struggle to put back US-Iran ties

The Justice Department has yet to comment on the site seizures, and it is unclear what misinformation was conveyed. With the election of court chief Ebrahim Raisi, the Biden administration's effort to re-enter Iran into a nuclear weapons deal may become more difficult. Raisi declared in his inauguration address on Monday that he had no intention of engaging with President Biden and that he would reject any future nuclear discussions, Fox News reported.

On Tuesday, after viewing the addresses of a few websites, including Iran state television's English-language arm Press TV, Yemeni Houthi-run Al-Masirah satellite news station, and Iranian state TV's Arabic-language program, Al-Alam, a federal takedown notice was sent. The websites were taken down as part of a law enforcement effort by the Office of Export Enforcement, the Bureau of Industry and Security, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, according to the statement.

The US government also acquired control of the domain name PalestineToday.com. This news website promotes the Gaza-based Islamic terrorist organizations Hamas and Islamic Jihad, and it was referred to the same takedown notice.

Notices were also placed on Iran's English-language Press TV and Lualua TV, a Bahraini independent channel broadcasting from the UK. Last October, US officials seized a network of web domains allegedly used by Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

Per Reuters, the US Justice Department said at the time that it had taken control of 92 domains used by the IRGC to portray independent media outlets in the United States, the Middle East, Europe, and Southeast Asia. According to the semi-official Iranian news source YJC, the US decision proves that calls for freedom of expression are false.

The White House was unavailable for comment on how the Tuesday seizures could affect US-Iran ties. The DOJ is expected to release a statement justifying the suspension of media sites.

Related Article: UN Nuclear Watchdog Says Iran Is Enriching Uranium to 60 Percent

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United States President Joe Biden's administration recently announced it will not meet its goal of vaccinating at least partially inoculating 70% of American adults against the COVID-19 virus by July 4.

When the Democrat announced his objective, he admitted it was going to be a challenge to reach the desired numbers, and on Tuesday, the White House acknowledged the fact it would need more time to reach its goals. However, some age groups will reach the target number of vaccinations by the deadline.

The Biden administration has tracked that the age group of 30 and older has already reached the milestone of being at least 70% partially vaccinated. White House estimates also suggest the age group of 27 and older will be able to hit the mark by the Fourth of July weekend.

Meeting the Vaccination Goal

Jeff Zients, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, said the government needed a few more weeks to meet its objective of at least partially vaccinating 70% of American adults. He said the initial deadline was set as a motivational banner to shoot for, which they have exceeded for most of the adult population, USA Today reported.

The numbers show that Biden's administration has fully vaccinated 150 million American adults, which is expected to reach 160 million no later than mid-July. Zients noted that the focus is now on the age group of 18 to 26 years old. To reach its goal, the White House would be working closely with local and state leaders to provide opportunities for residents to be vaccinated.

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The majority of younger Americans felt like the coronavirus pandemic did not affect them as much as it did older folks who are more at risk of contracting severe symptoms. This meant that they are less motivated to get vaccinated compared to the older population, Zients said.

On Tuesday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the failure of Biden's administration to meet the set goal was not due to something in the process going wrong. She noted it was due to setting an ambitious goal and falling short of that objective. The official noted the government only needs a couple more weeks after the Fourth of July to meet the desired numbers.

Despite the public acknowledgment of the failure to reach the vaccination goal, the White House is already moving forward with plans to celebrate the Fourth of July on the South Lawn. It is estimated that 1,000 guests will attend the event. It would celebrate the majority of the country going back to a sense of normalcy since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, CNN reported.

Dangers of Missing Vaccinations

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country's top infectious disease expert, warned officials of the potential threat that residents not wanting to get vaccinated would pose to the health and safety of the whole nation. Localized surges could result from hesitating to gett the COVID-19 vaccine, he said.

The medical expert's worries have been fueled by the sudden surge of the Delta variant, which is much more transmissible than the original COVID-19 strain. The new variant is linked to 20% of all new infections across the country. Data showed that the Delta variant will become the most dominant strain of the coronavirus in the United States, the New York Times reported.

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Related Article: Anthony Fauci Fires Back at Critics Over Accusatory Emails; Reveals Wife, Daughters Receive Death Threats

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US Prosecutor's Official David Clay Fowlkes refused Duggar's plea to delay his trial until February 2022. Duggar requested for the postponement of the trial so a freestanding forensic computer specialist could look into his computer, where the suspected evidence is saved. Fowlkes immediately turned down Duggar's request and resolved not to prolong the proceedings until fall 2021.

The prosecutors informed the court that they agreed to acceptable three-month proceedings and stated that delaying the trial till next year would lead to unnecessary delays. The prosecution also denied the defense accusations that the government did not submit all the evidence for this case.

Josh Duggar requested to delay trial on or before February 2022

The authorities claimed that all discovery information was made available in a timely and comprehensive manner. In May, Josh Duggar was charged for receiving and having child sexual abuse material, including those characterized as the five worst of the worst ever to be examined by Homeland Security Special Agent Gerald Faulkner.

The former reality star requested to postpone his trial, initially set on July 6, and have it rescheduled on or before February 2022. However, in a petition last week, he said that it took extra time to do that work and that hiring a computer forensic expert was necessary, Daily Mail reported.

His attorneys also wanted additional time to examine the materials themselves. Josh Duggar's lead attorney Justin Gelfand has also stated that he needs to prepare for further criminal proceedings in September, October, and November.

A postponement of three months will permit the completion of those cases by Gelfand; but according to prosecutors, there is no legitimate legal or factual justification for the continuation until February 2022. The court still needs to decide on the reasons against rearranging the trial.

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Arkansas prosecutors claim there are no reasonable grounds to delay Duggar's trial

In an article published by The Sun, a description of the filing was included. It says, "The US does not oppose an approximate period of three months to allow a defense expert engaged to evaluate the digital evidence in this case and to afterward offer an opinion." The submission revealed the evidence consists of two separate computers, one with a Child Sexual Abuse Material charged with the indictment and the other with relevant factual support, such as text messages and digital images, that places Duggar near a CSAM-containing computer during the applicable timeframes.

The computer assessment of Duggar's defense team is expected to take place on or before Wednesday, June 23. They said that there are no reasonable legal or factual grounds to warrant prolongation till February 2022.

The United States has argued that Josh's lawyers have had the evidence since May. Three extra months should allow sufficient time to finish its assessment and locate any presumed favorable defense witnesses. In Josh's motion, the government did not provide any papers concerning the role of the Little Rock Police Department in the case. However, the filings state that the United States had turned over all reports.

Josh Duggar is now living with another couple on a court-mandated arrangement in a house in Washington County, and he must remain in their home until the trial begins. According to a social media statement issued by the couple, the former reality star and his wife Anna expect their seventh child in the fall. In 2015, the TLC network canceled the "19 Kids and Counting" show when it was reported that Duggar abused five girls; four were his sisters, per NWAHomepage.

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The largest police union in the United States criticized politicians and media outlets on Tuesday for allegedly fueling anti-police propaganda across the country after the series of cop killings in months since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

Lawmakers and some media outlets are using the surge of violent crimes in the country to push propaganda urging the public to believe police are the main source of the problem, the National Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) said in a Twitter post.

The social media account also revealed homicide and shooting statistics in major cities across the United States. The numbers showed that Portland recorded an increase of 533% in homicides and 126% in shootings between 2020 and 2021.

Defund the Police Movement

Protests have erupted in various parts of the country in recent months. In some instances, these protests turned violent. The circumstances have forced police departments to thin out their officers in order to cover multiple areas at any given time. The resulting fewer officers was an open invitation for criminals and violent crime instigators, MSN reported.

Recently, an MSNBC contributor was the subject of criticism from police unions for claims on Monday that the crime surge in New York City and across the country is a result of police-related mistakes.

Read Also: White House Acknowledges Failure to Reach Vaccination Milestone by Fourth of July

Brittany Packnett Cunningham, An MSNBC contributor and former Obama-era task force member, said many law enforcement personnel and GOP operatives are blaming the "Defund the Police" movement for the surge of violent crimes. However, she noted the defund action has not been implemented in many areas where violent crime has since skyrocketed.

The Washington Examiner via Yahoo reported that Cunningham said that across the country, 50 of the largest cities where police continue to receive funding, where some even got an increase from 13.6% to 13.7% for general expenditure. Cunningham said the movement had little to do with the surge of crime compared to the fault of the police. She argued that institutions and systems that do not meet their objectives should be given continued funding.

A Surge of Violent Crime

Cunningham said there are several ways to reduce the number of violent crimes, including gun laws, liveable wages, fair housing, and educational opportunities. Money from the police should be allocated to these areas instead, she said.

However, Cunningham received criticism for her statements from Detectives' Endowment Association President Paul DiGiacomo, who said the comments did not make sense. He argued that even before the "Defund the Police" movement, the streets were safer. Crime rates have skyrocketed afterward.

Additionally, Blue Lives Matter NYC founder Joseph Imperatrice called Cunningham's statements irresponsible. He continued to argue that police should be allowed to do their jobs and proactively patrol the streets to arrest criminals and put them behind bars.

Police Benevolent Association of the New York State Troopers Thomas Mungeer blamed the "so-called reformers" for causing the massive surge in violent crimes across the country, the New York Post reported.

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Polls have closed in NYC's first ranked-choice mayoral election. Voters may have to wait for weeks for the results.

New York City Democrats picked their candidates for mayor on Tuesday. The primary race is regarded as an indicator of how voters balance priorities involving police reform and crime. The diverse field also entails the possibility of New York City sending its second African-American candidate or its first woman candidate into the office of the mayor.

Primaries

Citizens of New York cast their ballots to determine who will be the next mayor of NYC. However, the results will not be immediately known. This could be one of the most consequential elections in the recent history of NYC. With an increased number of absentee ballots in the tightly contested Democratic race and the new ranked-choice voting system, locals will perhaps have to wait until July for a full count, reported USA Today.

The primaries are the largest test yet of the city's new ranked-choice voting system. The system allows voters to list up to five candidates in a race in favored order, reported The Wall Street Journal.

As ranked-choice voting was conducted in New York City, there were a number of hiccups. The process of ranked-choice voting is fairly straightforward. However, according to voters, figuring out how to rank very similar candidates is not, reported CNN.

Tuesday's Democratic primary's winner is nearly certain to become mayor in NYC's November general election at a time of unique challenges: Flattened tourism, recuperating from high unemployment, and a chaotic school year of remote learning prompted by the novel coronavirus pandemic. Simultaneously, if a consistent rise in violent crime continues to take place, Mayor Bill de Blasio's successor will confront a series of gunnings and hate crimes that continue to threaten the city's recuperation.

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Mayor Bill de Blasio is on a term-limited tenure and will be exiting following eight years in office. This leaves the door of Gracie Mansion open for newcomers who would like to lead the United States' largest city. Due to the fact that New York City leans Democratic, the two GOP candidates have not attracted as much attention as the Democrats.

The Democratic mayoral primary listed 13 candidates on the ballot. The GOP race has a mere two. The Democratic winner on Tuesday is all but sure to conquer the general November election.

According to some voters' reflection, the election was counterproductive for smaller down-ballot races, and "overwhelming." However, they also noted, for the first time, a feeling of obligation to do some research regarding the races that are not getting top news billing and a sense of opportunity.

Crime frequently topped polls as a primary concern among voters. It is an issue that bolstered Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, an ex-police captain who ran nearly singularly on avow of the restoration of safety to the city, into first place.

Related Article: New York City Subway Crew Shortage Forced the Cancellation of 5,355 Trains

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Scientists will start administering Ivermectin to those with COVID-19 symptoms to see if it can help treat infected individuals at home. Oxford University researchers are pioneering the use of the antiparasitic drug, which can cost $2.09 for the treatment.

The University of Oxford aims to aid recoveries in non-hospital settings. It investigates antiparasitic Ivermectin as a potential treatment for COVID-19 as part of government-funded research. The University claims that Ivermectin reduced virus replication in laboratory tests, which might lower the viral load and duration of symptoms in certain individuals with moderate COVID-19.

A trial called "Principle" will assess Ivermectin as COVID-19 treatment

In a British-led study conducted in January, antibiotics Doxycycline and Azithromycin medicines were ineffective against COVID-19, Reuters via MSN reported. Although the World Health Organization (WHO), European and American regulators have advised against using Ivermectin in COVID-19 patients, it is used to treat the disease in several countries, including India.

People with severe liver disease, those using the blood thinner Warfarin, and those taking other medications known to interact with Ivermectin are excluded from the analysis, said the University. Ivermectin is the trial's seventh drug, and it's being tested with the antiviral medicine Favipiravir.

The trials, called "Principle," are recognized as the "gold standard" since they may be considerably more certain of assessing the drug's effects than those of other factors. Despite the absence of solid evidence, doctors and individuals self-medicating in Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, and South Africa have prescribed Ivermectin, as per the BBC.

In the United States, provider SingleCare said that in January and February, 817 prescriptions for Ivermectin were issued, compared to 92 in the same period last year. Only the inhaled steroid budesonide, one of the six other medicines in the Principle trial of COVID-19 treatments to be administered at home, has thus far shown beneficial. However, another steroid, dexamethasone, was found to treat COVID-19, which credited with saving more than 20,000 lives in the UK, as part of the Recovery trials of medications for hospital patients.

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Ivermectin found to reduce risk of fatality, helps COVID-19 patients recover

According to an analysis of 11 trials, it reduces the risk of fatality in infected patients and aids their recovery. However, experts believe the findings are preliminary, and that additional data is needed before any firm conclusions can be formed.

So far, the vast majority of scientific medication trials have centered on saving lives. The National Health Service (NHS) does not presently use any at-home treatments for the infection. Rest and paracetamol or ibuprofen are recommended for those who are not highly sick. The Oxford researchers leading the trial want to find at-home treatments that will keep infected patients out of the hospital.

Ivermectin has been shown in lab tests to inhibit COVID-19 from spreading. In addition, several small trials have shown that taking the medication soon after contracting the virus might lower the viral load and the length of time patients' symptoms endure.

Meanwhile, the researchers claim that there is limited evidence that it helps based on large-scale randomized controlled trials. Indian health officials also suggested Ivermectin for people with a mild case of COVID-19.

"Ivermectin is readily available globally, has been widely used for many other infectious conditions so it's a well-known medicine with a good safety profile. And because of early promising results in some studies, it's already being widely used to treat COVID-19 in several countries," said Professor Chris Butler, co-chief investigator of the Principle trial, Daily Mail reported.

Participants who did not get the medication will be compared to those who did. More than 5,000 participants from around the UK have already signed up for the research, which is the world's largest for finding new treatments for recovering from coronavirus outside of the hospital.

Related Article: Ivermectin To Undergo COVID-19 Drug Trial in the University of Minnesota as Online Interest Surges



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US forces were readied when Russians were spotted about 35 miles from Hawaii. There were reportedly 20 warships and 20 fighter jets as well as submarines and auxiliary vessels in what is being described as Moscow's biggest war games since the Cold War ended, reported the Sun UK.

First chill after the Cold War

According to Russia's defense ministry, the naval drills were conducted 300 miles from the coast of Hawaii. A satellite photo dated June 19 showed the Moscow fleet 35 miles from Hawaii. The photo supposedly shows an aircraft carrier being destroyed.

There is footage of Russian destroyers and fighter jets engaged in drills, with several assets of the Russian force that included a sub, two Tu-142MZ Bear-F Mod with 4 long-range anti-submarine aircraft originating from Yelizovo Air Base located at Kamchatka Peninsula. They also had MiG-31BM Foxhound interceptors with them. More exercises were held showing the takeoff and refueling with a tanker aircraft.

The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that two units from the force package were practicing how to attack a carrier strike group effectively. While the drills were in progress, Tu-142 aircraft were in flight for 14 hours and went 6,200 miles in one sortie. Refueling was done with the assistance of Il-78 Midas aerial refueling aircraft, aerial tankers.

On the Russian side, the Former Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Navy, Admiral Viktor Kravchenko called the exercises one that was not undertaken since 1991.

The US has sent F-22 fighter jets over Hawaii for such second time this month as a response to Russian military maneuvers in the Pacific, cited the Drive. Although the Russians were in the vicinity on those two occasions, none of their vessels went within the US Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).

American launch their own operation

Last June 17, the Navy informed that a strike force that included the USS Carl Vinson and Dewey were in maneuvers close to Hawaii, conducting a combined operation with the U.S. Army, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard, to conduct a series of missions from long range striking attack including sub-hunting exercises, cited Nairaland.

Read also: US Navy Wants a Next-Generation Destroyer Designed From the Ground Up

An official from the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, spokesman Captain Mike Kafka made it clear that the Russian entities are monitored by the military constantly.

He added that the US works with the limits of the international law of the sea and air, to make sure that all nations will do the same without limitations, to keep a secure and free, open Indo-Pacific.

Kafka said that Russia should abide by the same laws in the region, and follow international law.

Early this month, the US Air Force sent F-22 Raptors to intercept Russian warplanes a distance of Hawaii. This time, Russian destroyers and fighter jets are engaged in drills that are flexing Moscow's might sending a message to the US.

Related article: A Lethal Russian Stealth Corvette Might Be Sailing Soon, a Reminder To Other Nations It Can Search and Destroy Subs

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Lawyers of a Canadian national accused of leading a worldwide multibillion-dollar methamphetamine cartel have claimed that he was illegally transferred to the Netherlands. He also said that it was a part of a plot to affirm that he stays in custody for as long as possible. Tse Chi Lop, 57, was arrested in January 2021 following his landing on a flight from Taiwan to Amsterdam's Schipol International Airport.

The alleged leader of the Asian drug syndicate has been compared to Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman. He is battling extradition to Australia, saying that he would not get a fair trial there.

Denying Allegations

Tse has denied allegations and is contesting extradition with his attorney. He contended that Australian authorities primarily concocted his expulsion from Taiwan to Canada on a flight with a stopover in the Netherlands in order for him to be arrested there.

Dutch authorities took Tse into custody on a warrant from the Australian Federal Police (AFP) issued in 2019 in association with an operation targeting the drug-trafficking syndicate, Sam Gor, that he is accused of heading.

According to Tse's attorney, Andre Seebregts, he was put on the plane to the Netherlands against his own accord and in contravention of Taiwanese law. The law necessitated the island's authorities to deport him to his home nation unless he agreed otherwise. Seebregts stated there was a direct flight to Canada less than one hour prior to Tse's plane's departure at about 1 AM, reported ABC 17.

Australia seemingly played a role in having Tse transferred to the Netherlands, a nation where he has no family or friends. This could be attributed to favorable Dutch extradition laws, Seebregts contended in court in Rotterdam on Tuesday. The AFP refused to comment on the proceedings of extradition, reported CNN.

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According to Seebregts after the hearing, "If Australia was involved in inappropriately turning my client over to the Netherlands, his fair trial rights have already been violated," reported Reuters. He appealed to judges to probe into the circumstances of the arrest prior to concluding on a decision on extradition.

Australia's Attorney General and the Dutch National Prosecutor's Office had no comments. The Ministry of Justice of Taiwan referred to its Immigration Department, which does not respond to an individual case due to privacy reasons. On July 2, the case of Tse will next appear before a Dutch court.

According to prosecutors, the circumstances of Tse's expulsion from Taiwan are irrelevant. Australian investigators indicate Tse's organization corners the $70 billion-a-year Asia-Pacific drug trade.

A majority of extradition agreements between two states necessitate that the nation appealing for custody merely prosecute the suspect for the crime that he or she is extradited for. The stipulation is designated to shield the rights of the defendant. Therefore, they are not in the future charged with anything that could have not been illegal in the nation where they were imprisoned.

Related Article: Germany, Australia Sign Hydrogen Deal, Aims to Produce the Cheapest Clean Hydrogen in the World

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It has been reported in the media that Google gave funds for the research done by Wuhan-linked scientist Peter Daszak and his foundation for more than a decade. Google.org, the tech giant's charitable arm, allegedly financed the research and studies conducted by Daszak and his New York-based EcoHealth Alliance.

Through its president, Peter Daszak, the Google-backed EcoHealth Alliance allegedly played a crucial part in the cover-up of COVID-19's origins. The Wuhan-linked scientist was a World Health Organization's (WHO) COVID-19 investigative team member. Despite growing support for the allegation initially made on Steve Bannon's War Room: Pandemic podcast in early January 2020, Daszak encouraged efforts to debunk the Wuhan lab origin theory of the COVID-19.

Google's charity funds EcoHealth Alliance

A report in the National Pulse details the allegations. Some believe that leading world scientists and intelligence officials' left-wing websites are posing as "fact checkers" who continue to label the lab theory "false." They also allege that Dr. Anthony Fauci's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) also directed thousands of dollars to EcoHealth Alliance's research partner, the Wuhan Institute of Virology, to study "killer" bat coronaviruses.

Since 2010, Google, the company's charity arm, has also sponsored studies by EcoHealth Alliance experts, notably led by Peter Daszak. A 2010 study on bat flaviviruses, which identifies Daszak and EcoHealth Alliance Vice President Jonathan Epstein as authors and acknowledges Google for financing, demonstrates the decade-long link. Daszak's 2014 study on henipavirus spillover also admits that Google partially funded it.

According to a former political advisor Steve Hilton, the latest investigation detailing Google and USAID-funded Wuhan scientist Peter Daszak's viral studies for over a decade has discovered one of the "biggest scandals" of our time. During an appearance on "Fox News Primetime," Hilton said, "It's honestly one of the biggest scandals for, I don't know, a hundred years. I can't think of a bigger one."

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Google, Daszak's financial ties add to mounting concerns on COVID-19 origins

The revelation further adds to his view that Big Tech was personally engaged in putting an end to discussion about COVID-19's origins and other concerns, said Hilton. As the lab-leak theory gains momentum among health professionals and lawmakers, Hilton explained that Google has been working around the clock to squash that explanation and attempt to lead people towards what they dub as the natural origin theory, for which there is practically zero evidence.

Google.org, the Skoll Foundation, and the US Agency for International Development were acknowledged in the study. It also recognized the generous support of the American people through the USAID Emerging Pandemic Threats PREDICT program, according to the acknowledgment section of the study.

Peter Daszak was mentioned in a 2015 study on herpes, and Google.org was credited for its support, Daily Mail reported. EcoHealth Alliance researchers recently published a report on a 2018 study that examined 'perceptions associated with transmission of pathogens with pandemic potential in highly exposed human populations at the animal-human interface.'

It was made possible by Google's funding, the report noted. Daszak was one of 28 experts from across the world tasked to determine the best course of action in the event of a pandemic. Worldwide leading personalities in public health, diplomacy, economics, philanthropy, and politics made up the panel.

Related Article: Lawsuit That Accuses Google of Gender Pay Discrimination Granted With Class-Action Status



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The Iranian election was mired in controversy following a number of probable candidates' disqualification. It yielded the victory of Ebrahim Raisi, a hard-liner who has a firm stance regarding US-Iran ties.

Critics of the Iran nuclear negotiation entered into by former President Barack Obama and withdrawn by former President Donald Trump cited its failure to address issues including Iran's ballistic missile program. Raisi has made it apparent that discussions regarding this issue will not be on the table soon.

Landslide Victory

Ebrahim Raisi won a massive victory in the June 18 Iranian presidential election. Among a total of 28,933,004 ballots counted, Raisi won a landslide total of 17,926,345 votes. According to the Iranian Interior Ministry's election headquarters, Raisi's opponents, Mohsen Rezaei, Abdolnasser Hemmati, and Amir Hossein Qazizadeh Hashemi, secured 3,412,712 votes, 2,427,201 votes, and 999,718 votes respectively, reported Caspian News.

The hard-liner won the Iranian presidential election in the midst of a historically low voter turnout due to voter apathy. He has major influence over domestic policy and foreign affairs and will be inaugurated in August, reported the United States Institute of Peace.

The victory at the polls was reportedly not a surprise. Raisi, 60, may well shape Iran's political landscape far beyond his presidency and holds deeply conservative views on numerous social issues, reported DW.

Raisi garnered 61.95 percent of the votes in the election. According to the announcement of the interior ministry regarding the result on Saturday, the voter turnout was at 48.8 percent, which was the lowest turnout for a presidential election in the history of the country.

Read Also: Iran Nuclear Deal: Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett Cautions US to Wake Up Before Returning to Nuclear Agreement

The 60-year-old has the advantage of a wide backing from the conservative and hardline revolutionary camp and their base. He will remain chief justice until he takes over from moderate outgoing President Hassan Rouhani as he was not able to resign to run for the presidency.

Much like Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Raisi dons a black turban. It symbolizes that he is a sayyid or a descendent of the Prophet Muhammad.

Raisi also firmly declined the idea of meeting with President Joe Biden. Simultaneously, Raisi underscored the significance of a deal, stating that sanctions relief was central to their foreign policy.

He has been a leader of Iran's judiciary since he was appointed by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in March 2019. He is regarded to be among the potential successors of Khamenei.

According to an Amnesty report in 2018, at least 5,000 regime opponents were killed. The real number could be higher in reality, since several prisoners who were released were then taken into custody again and furtively executed. The Trump administration and the European Union responded by sanctioning him back in 2019.

Raisi's induction comes as the Biden government is working with other significant powers to bring the US and Iran into full compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal. He has communicated interest in reviving it to take advantage of its economic benefits.

Related Article: Iran Presidential Vote Defined by Voter Apathy Due to Low Turnout, Frontrunner Under US Sanctions

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Princess Diana's death was a tragic event that prompted strong emotions all across the world. There were many multiple theories about what caused the accident that killed Diana at the height of that emotional moment.

There has long been suspicion that someone orchestrated Princess Diana's death. Members of the royal family have been suspected of being involved. However, no formal information has ever surfaced. There are now claims that in 2005, Prince Charles was questioned by police. It was allegedly based on fears in writing that Princess Diana wrote down, expressing concern her husband might try to kill her in a car accident.

Former member of the police says he secretly interviewed Prince Charles over Princess Diana's note

Lord Stevens, the former commissioner of London's Metropolitan Police, told the Daily Mail that he spoke to the prince about a note that Diana had written in 1995 saying she would die due to "brake failure."

He said that on December 6, 2005, he questioned Prince Charles at St. James Palace, a royal residence, as part of Operation Paget, a three-year inquiry into the princess' death. Dave Douglas, a senior police investigator, and Sir Michael Peat, Charles' private secretary, were both alleged to be present.

In 1995, Princess Diana supposedly wrote a note and hid it in a Kensington Palace pantry, where it was discovered by her butler, Paul Burrell. In 1996, Diana and Charles divorced. In the letter, Princess Diana stated that Prince Charles would stage a vehicle accident so that he can marry Tiggy Legge-Bourke, his son's former nanny.

Princess Diana and Dodi Al-Fayed died in a car accident in Paris in 1997, sparking a slew of conspiracy theories, with some accusing the British royal family of orchestrating her tragedy. This assertion, however, is unsupported by evidence.

The Prince of Wales had a long-term relationship with Camilla Parker-Bowles, whom he married in 2005. Although the message's existence was first reported in a newspaper report in 2003, Stevens has only now verified that Prince Charles was questioned about it. Meanwhile, the police interview took place two years after the inquiry began.

Although his father, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, opted not to talk to the authorities, Charles chose to comply. Mohamed Al-Fayed, Dodi Al-Fayed's father, had accused Prince Philip of being involved in his son's death; but no evidence for this accusation was ever produced. The Duke died at the age of 99 earlier this year.

After the note was made public in 2003, Prince Charles was interviewed as a witness at St. James's Palace two years into the inquiry. The interview with Prince Charles was kept under wraps, and Stevens gave him Princess Diana's note and questioned why she could have written it.

Per Newsweek, Charles said he was unaware of the note until it was released and that he had never discussed it with her. The Prince Wales' witness statement was uncommon in that it excluded the usual notice that he may face criminal prosecution for intentionally submitting false information.

Instead, it was a factual statement. According to UK legislation, the written copy of Prince Charles' interview will not be made public until 2038, when he will be 90 years old.

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Princes Charles' alleged relationship with Tiggy Legge-Bourke

Tiggy Legge-Bourke was employed as a nanny for William and Harry by Prince Charles in 1993, shortly after the Prince of Wales and Diana divorced. She went on vacations with the princes and kept in touch with them, with both attending her wedding in 1999. Tiggy was a guest at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's 2018 wedding. She was reportedly chosen a godmother for their first child, son Archie, although the couple hasn't publicly confirmed Archie's godparents, The Sunday Times reported.

Princess Diana's 1995 BBC Panorama interview with Martin Bashir brought Tiggy Legge-Bourke back into the spotlight this year due to an investigation undertaken by the Queen's private secretary, Sir Robert Fellowes. To get the interview, the journalist allegedly faked an abortion "receipt" for Tiggy. Following a months-long investigation, Scotland Yard said that Bashir would not face criminal charges for allegedly falsifying financial records to obtain the sit-down in early March.

Related Article: Prince Charles Won't Let Grandson Archie be a Prince, Source Close to Meghan Markle, Harry Reveals



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Various rights groups are arguing that Facebook's recommendation algorithm strengthened Myanmar's military propaganda and other materials aimed at spreading violent views online, which breach the social media platform's policies.

It has been a month since Myanmar's military took control over the country, ousting elected officials from their seats. However, Facebook's algorithm still continued to suggest pro-military pages with posts that incited and threatened violence, "prompting users to view and "like" pro-military pages."

Many rights groups argued the incident could result in misinformation, leading to physical harm while praising the military instead of condemning its actions. The situation comes despite Facebook's commitment to remove all content regarding the coup in Myanmar and military-controlled pages from its platform and from Instagram.

Military Coup

The social media platform has also implemented various other measures to ensure a reduction in online damage in the country. On Tuesday, Facebook officials announced their teams closely monitored the Myanmar situation to be able to immediately react to any post, page, or group that goes against the policies and rules, Washington Post reported.

The Myanmar military temporarily blocked access of the country's residents to Facebook days after the coup, which occurred on February 1. The action was done to prevent anti-coup comments and the organization of protests against the military. They later restored access to the social media platform.

In the following weeks after the coup, Facebook continued to increase its security policies regarding the Myanmar military. All military entities on the social media platform were banned, arguing it would not continue to allow posts that praise or support violence against the country's citizens and their arrests.

Read Also: Pelosi Proposes House-Led Commission to Investigate January 6 Capitol Siege

Former Facebook data scientist and whistleblower Sophie Zhang noted that Facebook was amazing at announcing proper decisions while being bad at enforcing them in real life. She said the social media platform had years to prepare for Myanmar but did not take action immediately.

In recent months, the power struggle between the military that stripped Aung San Suu Kyi of her position and the elected government continues to escalate. Numerous protesters have been killed by police and military violence. The United Nations' office in Myanmar expressed its concern about human rights abuses in the country last week, US News reported.

Social Media Presence

In January 2020, Myanmar had more than 22.3 million users on Facebook, which made up about 40% of its entire population, told NapoleonCat, a social media management platform. The organization noted how important the role of social media platforms is, especially in the case of Myanmar presently.

Global Witness, a human rights group, set up a new Facebook account on March 23, shortly before the peak of military violence against civilians. The page was set up without a history of liking or following specific topics. It then searched for "Tatmadaw," which is the Burmese name for the armed forces.

What the group discovered was that Facebook showed recommended pages that touted military praise, including one that translated to "a gathering of military lovers." Once the group "liked" the page, the social media platform then recommended other pages containing materials that incited violence, false claims of interference in last year's election, and support of violence against civilians.

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The rapid growth of technology has led us to advancement in the healthcare industry. Interestingly, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has made a significant contribution to it. It has made human supervision highly convenient compared to traditional supervision tactics.

Since the last few years, AI-driven chatbots have replaced humans that have done wonders for the healthcare industry. If we acknowledge the cumulative contribution of conversational AI, we will find a huge impact on human lives, the healthcare industry, pharmacy world and the constantly evolving patient journey.

However, most of you (being not related to the healthcare industry) are unaware of some essential things about AI chatbots and how they can take care of human beings.

They can Help in Symptom Checking and Information Dissemination:

There is tons of content available over the internet, and interestingly, you have an answer to almost every burning healthcare issue. However, a patient never searches for one. Instead, (s)he looks for the right guidance to follow and get relief. Conversation with an AI is similar to talking to a professional doctor.

The AI Chatbot has the answers to almost all health issues. It helps in checking your symptoms and sharing the right remedy at the initial level. Initial remedies are highly beneficial to get short-term relief and enough time to reach the doctor physically.

They can Easily Handle the Cases of Medical Triaging:

AI Chatbot is not built to handle basic healthcare issues. Instead, it's uncertain about finding the medical status of any patient at the initial stage. In numerous cases, the symptoms are severe, and the patient needs immediate medical assistance. Chatbot AI has the power to acknowledge such cases through initial checks and quickly escalate the emergency cases.

The same process is also effective during the COVID-19 outbreak. With the step-by-step diagnostic tool, AI can identify the symptoms and analyze the most expected health issues. Based on your current situation, your medical triaging and escalation of the emergency case are decided.

They can Book Appointment Instantly:

Technology has made it easy for mankind to do any task within a short period. The same is with booking an appointment. Many patients still face issues since they follow the traditional format of appointment booking. That's where AI Chatbot comes into play.

Chatbot helps the patients with a step-by-step appointment booking process that makes the process convenient and quick.

They can Serve & Engage Multiple Patients Simultaneously:

Keeping the patients engaged and providing them with the most possible answers is tough for human telesales. Moreover, it's inconvenient to handle multiple patients at a single time. AI-driven chatbots wholly overcome this issue. They have the advanced technology to respond to multiple patients simultaneously.

It is an excellent remedy to the long waiting time for every query. It further degrades the user experience. With AI chatbots, this issue is completely resolved. Additionally, it ensures a high engagement rate with the patients. It provides the proper consultation (at the initial level), set reminders wherever possible, and many more.

Store Complete Information of Patients:

Every patient has a medical history, but it's unclear when they visit a hospital after a long time. This issue occurs even after frequent visits of any patient. AI chatbots are the answer to such checks. Chatbots can store complete information of every patient and recall them whenever needed.

It is a convenient way to retrieve a patient's information (based on medical history) and provide the right assistance afterward. Your historical data helps the chatbots in prioritizing your health issue and schedule the best assistance.

They can Work with 100% Accuracy:

Maintaining 100% accuracy isn't possible with human work. However, AI-driven chatbots are strictly made to maintain accuracy and keep accurate information for future reference. Data is further stored for future reference, which is an intelligent way to serve every patient smartly, still maintaining their medical card for the future. Accuracy in a patient's data is crucial in deciding the proper medication and treatment.

So, these are six essential things that you should know about AI chatbots w.r.t. healthcare. With the advancement of AI-driven chatbots, handling patience has become highly convenient. The use of chatbots (with AI) will further increase to multiple folds in the near future.

@ 2021 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Leishmania, a flesh-eating parasite usually found in South America, may soon make its presence felt in the US because of climate change. The organism that causes this parasitic disease is normally found in the tropics, subtropics, and southern Europe. But, a warning has been raised that by 2080, it might be a risk for 27 million Americans who might be exposed to the disease this parasite brings, reported the Daily Mail.

A terrible disease

Victor Sanchez-Cordero, a researcher and ecology professor at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, was cited by UnDark as saying that this particular skin disease is connected to the change in the climate. Climate change can also bring the threat of even more zoonotic diseases. He added that an increasing number of cases of leishmaniasis in humans residing in the US will become more possible than before.

It coming across to the US is a serious matter. This is because according to researchers, the disease causes skin sores and can even result in damage to the organs.

What causes the skin affliction

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says the infection spreads through the sand fly, which is smaller than the mosquito. Researchers say the parasite will not be causing multiple infections just yet and it will take decades for it to reach critical mass.

Read also: Discovery of the First Case of Bird Flu H10N3 Strain, Will It Be the Next Pandemic?

One of the first patients was detected in 2014. A 27-month-old in perfect health had a lesion growing on the right upper eye and lower eyelids, cited in a study published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases. It took about a month of testing before the patient was diagnosed as having been infected by leishmania.

The parasite has been known to researchers since 2010, but it was only a rare occurrence and not spread in the general population. However, researchers have also given the warning that it should be treated seriously if it spreads in the US.

One study implicated climate change as the reason the parasite is spreading, slowly increasing the range where it is normally found. The most important factor is how the flesh-eating disease can spread, which usually entails what animals or insects can act as its carrier.

Leishmaniasis has been seen in the US, Mexico, and Canada. Mexico is generally recognized as the main source for its slow movement north. Carriers of the disease are mosquitoes, ticks, triatomine bugs, sandflies, and blackflies. A 2010 study, done at the University of Texas at Austin and the National Autonomous University of Mexico, used data from sandflies and rodents from Texas and northern Mexico with South America flesh-eating parasites.

One of the predictions by the scientists is that by 2020, rats and flies with the parasite will make headway to Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas, and Missouri. Another author of the study, Sahotra Sarkar, who studies integrative biology at the University of Texas, said more information is needed but the 2020 predictions are generally accurate about the South America flesh-eating parasites.

Related article: Two Britons From North Wales Are Afflicted With Monkeypox Which They Got Abroad

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Like many things related to mental health and well-being, misconceptions and myths abound when talking about PTSD. These misconceptions can be hurtful and perplexing to those living with post-traumatic stress disorder and should be countered with facts and understanding when necessary. Below are 6 common misconceptions about PTSD in veterans.

PTSD Makes it Hard to Have Meaningful Relationships

One common misconception is that veterans suffering from PTSD are incapable of maintaining many of the relationships they had prior to their military service or forming new ones. While PTSD often goes undiagnosed, the vast majority of people who leave the military do not have PTSD.

Suffering from PTSD does not preclude a person from keeping old relationships or forming new ones and healthy interpersonal relationships, including those with friends, family, coworkers and support workers are crucial for helping veterans transition back into civilian life and even deal with PTSD symptoms.

Military Vets Are The Only Ones Who Get PTSD

Post-traumatic stress disorder has, unfortunately, come to be associated, while perhaps not exclusively, to a very disproportionate degree with military combat veterans. While PTSD is a real and common phenomenon among those who have served in combat roles, and the diagnosis was first given to military veterans following the Vietnam war, it applies to a wide range of people and scenarios.

PTSD is experienced by those who have lived through natural disasters, violent crime, sexual assault, and by people who have lost friends and family. The idea that people live with the after-effects of traumatic emotional experiences is an intuitive and self-evident one and PTSD should certainly not be thought of as something that one can only experience if they have served on the front lines of a war.

PTSD Cannot be Overcome

Another common myth that many people who may not have a veteran in their life or family believe is that PTSD is an indelible mark on a person and will impact their life forever. While PTSD is something that can linger for a long time in people, veteran or otherwise, especially if it is not addressed, treated and managed, people who, at one point, suffer from PTSD can move past it psychologically.

There are five stages to PTSD: the impact or emergency stage, the denial or numbing stage, the rescue stage, the short-term recovery stage, and the long-term recovery stage. The final stage is where people learn to reconstruct their lives and develop important coping mechanisms that they can use in the future when they feel stressed or overwhelmed or find themselves facing a triggering event.

PTSD Manifests The Same

Each person experiences PTSD in their own way with varying symptoms and severity. Some vets suffer from nightmares and have difficulty concentrating. Others relive their trauma through constant intrusive thoughts and flashbacks. If you are working with a healthcare provider, they will not take a one-size-fits-all approach and instead will come up with something tailored to your unique needs as a veteran.

PTSD Is Only Experienced By Vets With Combat Experience

There are many occasions during which a traumatic experience might occur and they are not exclusive to combat. It is possible for traumatic events to happen during training, deployment and even while at home. A traumatic experience might involve an injury sustained while completing training or a near-death experience that occurred. It could involve a tragic experience with a loved one prior to deployment that is then experienced as post-traumatic stress while overseas and a wide variety of other potential experiences.

The bottom line is that it is a myth to assume that PTSD can only be real for those who have had harrowing and traumatic combat experiences. Veterans go through a wide range of intense experiences both during, before and after deployment, all of which could potentially lead to the development of PTSD symptoms.

PTSD Makes a Person Unhirable

While veterans face many job market difficulties following their discharge from the military, and PTSD can often be part of a much larger and more complicated dynamic, having PTSD in no way precludes a vet from finding and holding down meaningful work. When veterans seek treatment and work towards a path of recovery and good mental health, they are perfectly capable of leveraging the many useful skills and experiences from their military careers to find rewarding careers and financial stability.

Conclusion

Post-traumatic stress disorder can be debilitating and life-altering but its effects are often exacerbated by the persistence of the various myths surrounding it. You don't need to have served in combat to be affected by it and your life doesn't end if you suffer from it.

Popular media has stigmatized and misconstrued PTSD in various ways and the end result is a civilian populace that is largely uninformed on the matter. Whether you are a veteran, someone who knows one, or simply a concerned citizen, keep the above misconception in mind and help dispel them when and where you encounter them.

@ 2021 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Deerfield

Jensen said the school board has yet to make a decision on the continued wearing of face masks and other COVID-19 safety measures for fall; she said she expects that decision to come later in the summer.
Lakers guard Alex Caruso, an unrestricted free agent this offseason, was arrested in Texas on Tuesday and charged with possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia, both misdemeanors, according to KJ Hiramoto of Fox 11 Los Angeles.

Caruso, who played his college ball at Texas A&M, tried to board a flight on Tuesday afternoon at Easterwood Airport in College Station, Texas, which is on A&M property, local police told Ramona Shelburne of ESPN. In the process of searching Carusos bags, the TSA found a herb grinder that contained marijuana.

Caruso, who was arrested by Texas A&M police for possession of less than two ounces of marijuana, was released after posting bond, per ESPNs report.

Given that marijuana has been decriminalized and/or legalized in many parts of the country, Carusos run-in with the law will likely be viewed as a careless mistake rather than as any sort of major transgression that will affect his stock in free agency this summer.

Caruso has been a key part of the Lakers rotation over the last four years. In 2020/21, he averaged 6.4 PPG, 2.9 RPG, and 2.8 APG in 58 games (21.0 MPG), knocking down 40.1% of his three-point attempts and playing tough perimeter defense.
Appointment

23 June 2021

McKibbon Hospitality, an award-winning leader in hotel management, today announced the appointment of Shane Aldridge as General Manager of the new AC Hotel by Marriott Jackson Ridgeland opening this fall in The Township at Colony Park. Upon completion, Aldridge will be responsible for overseeing all operations for the 132-room European-inspired hotel, being developed by Ridgeland's Kerioth Corporation.

A sea soned general manager with more than 20 years of experience and an extensive background in the hospitality field, Aldridge most recently served as General Manager of the McKibbon-managed SpringHill Suites by Marriott in Pensacola, Florida. In addition to the property winning numerous brand and industry awards recognizing excellence in guest service under his leadership, Aldridge was recognized as McKibbon's Regional General Manager of the Year in 2017 for his impeccable work ethic and dedication. Prior to his time at SpringHill Suites Pensacola, Aldridge spent 13 years as the General Manager of a Courtyard by Marriott in Mobile, Alabama. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management from the University of West Florida.
Appointment

23 June 2021

MEININGER hotels are pleased to welcome Marcus Grebenstein as Head of Development D-A-CH. Marcus's appointment is part of MEININGER's intention to drive its development strategy to establish a presence in all key European cities within the next four years. MEININGER hotels currently have 16 hotels in 10 European cities.

Marcus previously worked as Director Development Germany for Regus where he spearheaded the company's expansion in Germany from 2010 to secure and negotiate over 30 transactions. Marcus is highly familiar with the German real estate market, where he has worked in various capacities over the past 17 years and has developed a wide network of contacts with agents, asset managers, developers and investors within the D-A-CH region.

Marcus graduated as a Business Administrator (Diplom - Kaufmann) from the FU Berlin and trained at the Hotel Seehof in Berlin.

Married with one child Marcus lives in Berlin and speaks German, French and English.
Appointment

23 June 2021

Cayuga Hospitality Consultants is delighted to announce the addition of new hospitality consultant, Jens Busch. With the addition of the new consultant, Cayuga Hospitality Consultants can continue to provide unique and unequaled solutions to any challenge for its clients.

Jens Busch brings over 20 years of experience in hotel and resort operations with Hyatt Hotels, Marriott International, Jumeirah Hotels and Sands China. His consulting services include management operations review, quality assurance and analysis, hotel and resort rooms operations support, hotel pre-opening support and rooms task force, organizational development, and staffing solutions. He is also a part of CTC Consulting Group in Hong Kong, providing support and advice for Hotel Owners and Operators in Asia. In 2019 he completed the SC Johnson College of Business General Managers program at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.
Appointment

23 June 2021

Located in the south of Mahe island and nestled into the hillside overlooking Petite Anse bay, Four Seasons Resort Seychelles welcomes Apostolos Dimou as its new Executive Chef.

Following his tenure of five years with Four Seasons Hotel Beirut, Dimou joins the property with a vast experience in managing fast-paced kitchens in luxury properties. Born in Greece, Dimou's passion for cooking came from the simplicity of his home food and the love of travel and culture. Having spent much of his career in the kitchens of five-star resorts in Greece, Portugal and Beirut, Dimou will lead the culinary team to ensure each outlet and event is carefully executed and uniquely considered.
Appointment

23 June 2021

Located in the south of Mahe island and nestled into the hillside overlooking Petite Anse bay, Four Seasons Resort Seychelles welcomes David Peduzzi as the new Executive Pastry Chef to its culinary team.

Peduzzi, on the other hand, started his journey with Four Seasons 17 years ago where he began his career working as a Commis at what was then Four Seasons Resort Provence at Terre Blanche. What started as a job to make ends meet, soon became a passion as he went on to work with acclaimed properties worldwide such as Four Seasons Resort Bora Bora, Armani Hotel Dubai, Four Seasons Resort Sharm el Sheikh and Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach. Born in France yet having explored the world, Peduzzi brings classic French techniques and a fusion of creativity to the table, making him the perfect fit to enhance the Resort's pastry offerings.
Supplier News

23 June 2021

MUNICH - Today, apaleo published a new resource for hoteliers considering a cloud migration in Get Your Head in the Clouds: How to Move Your Accommodation Business into the Cloud.

Open cloud technology is the key to fulfilling guest expectations. The question that remains is how to make cloud technology actively work best for hoteliers. Whether it's managing guest expectations through integrated functions, or a complete overhaul of legacy systems, digitalization ensures that every aspect of the hospitality industry can work seamlessly.

To set our customers up for cloud success, weve compiled our findings into a free eBook, which sets out to:

Showcase the ways cloud tech has revolutionized the day-to-day of real-world hoteliers, including GINN City and Smartments

Clarify how efficient cloud tech can innovate the traditional tender process

Illuminate the links between open APIs and transparent (and lower!) costs

"Still today, it's vital to continue providing educational content about the benefits of moving away from property management systems toward cloud-based technology," states Uli Pillau, CEO and Co-founder of apaleo. "apaleo is not only a way to manage your property from the cloud through a 100% web-based solution, but it is the only digital transation platform built to navigate the future of hotel technology."

Download the free eBook now for full access to exclusive content.
Press Release

23 June 2021

On the occasion of World Refugee Day, we look back at the partnerships and local initiatives launched by our Group in order to make our teams aware of the cause of refugees and to encourage their recruitment.

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There is a significant number of refugees throughout the world (26 million at the end of 2019*) and businesses have a role to play in promoting their access to employment and enabling them to integrate into society on a long-term basis. Recruiting refugees not only allows companies to take concrete action in favor of the diversity of talents and profiles within their teams, but also to enrich their corporate culture. Refugees are a talent pool and real assets for their employers.

With more than 260,000 employees distributed around the world, Accor takes action to encourage openness and prevent discrimination wherever we are present. More than a social responsibility, our open and inclusive business approach is part of our DNA. Throughout the world, our Group encourages the recruitment of refugees through partnerships and dedicated initiatives.

Refugees: key talent for our teams  Photo: Accor

Accor collaborates internationally with Tent Partnership for Refugees, a non-profit organization that mobilizes the global business community to include refugees.

In France, Accor organized a Job Dating event dedicated to the employment of refugees in the Group's hotels in Ile-de-France, in partnership with the association Action Emploi Refugies. This day was an opportunity for the candidates to meet the HR teams of the hotels (15 hotels were represented) that have considerable recruitment requirements. Accor is also committed to the professional integration of refugees alongside nine other companies  Barilla, BNP Paribas, IKEA France, Ipsos, Keolis, L'Oreal Groupe, Michelin, Sodexo and The Adecco Group. This "Refugees Are Talents" collective aims to share best practices, increase awareness among staff and promote the process of integrating statutory refugees in France. On the occasion of World Refugee Day on June 20, a "Refugees Are Talents" opinion column was published by a French media, supported by Sebastien Bazin, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Accor, and by the managers of the collective's member companies.

In England, Accor has developed a partnership with GROUNDWORK. The "ELEVATE" program has also been created. Two awareness-raising open days were organized as part of the partnership. These open days were an opportunity to carry out interviews and recruit employees.

Finally, in South America, the "Refugees Conversation Circle" event is an opportunity to tackle different subjects linked to the coexistence of different ethnic groups. Accor also contributes towards the inclusion of Venezuelan refugees in the labor market (Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Peru and Colombia).

*Source: UNHCR  June 18, 2020
Supplier News

23 June 2021

Todays guest demands more from hotel restaurants - so should hoteliers of their systems. Clio OGara, Country Manager Ireland at Guestline discusses how hoteliers should expect as much from their PMS as they do their beef supplier!

Todays guest demands more from hotel restaurants. They imagine succulent specials, premium beef, and they expect it to be supplied from Mr Smith down the road with his award-winning sustainability practices. Hoteliers are proud to ensure the guests expectations are met. The chefs have a passion for quality and use only the finest cuts of beef, it is cooked to absolute perfection and it has prime placement on the menu next to the Bord Bia Made in Ireland stamp of approval.

The beef of your operations

Why is it that hoteliers put their beef supplier on a pedestal, not just taking into account the sourcing and quality of the beef that it serves, but also how to make the best environmentally responsible decisions and the impact its taste has on the customer experience. But, when it comes to their PMS, the system that runs the operations for the entire hotel, why do they expect less than the best and dont demand the same level of expectations from their technology partner?

A recent (March 2021) survey by the Irish Hotels Federation examining satisfaction levels with Property Management Systems (PMS) showed 46% of respondents have considered alternative options to their current PMS providers with the vast majority (76%) of properties being with their current provider for over 3 years. With the challenges presented by Covid-19, now more than ever will be the time for hoteliers to review their hotel technology solutions to create an agile environment that sets a higher bar of technological excellence moving into the future. After all, a hotel PMS is the beef of your operations.

Evaluate your partner's support

Guestline are encouraging todays hoteliers to demand more from their PMS in a bid to make it work harder for the hotel, personnel and the guest. Clio OGara, Country Manager Ireland at Guestline adds, Since Covid-19 hit, hoteliers have become more involved in their business than ever before. They have been on the floor supporting their teams, understanding their guest needs and are perhaps finding some of their processes and procedures heavy and time consuming. They are examining and dissecting front and back-office processes and are for the first time perhaps witnessing the frustrations that their staff have been dealing with for some time. They need to pull it apart, investigate new processes and procedures and explore evolved technology to help them make improvements. If their technology stack is outdated or simply does not meet their expectations, the cost of ignoring could be more critical to the long-term bottom line of the business. My one piece of advice would be for hoteliers to evaluate how their partners are supporting them, open their minds to adopting new technology and come to terms with how it can actually improve their overall business model through the entire customer journey. If they go and look at what they are currently spending on products that are frustrating them they can be clever and re-spend the money theyve already got on a fully integrated platform where all the solutions works seamlessly together.

Relieve frustrations and stresses

Gone are the days of unnecessary firefighting and manual uploading, there are tools and processes that can help relieve some frustrations and stresses whilst also boosting a hotels bottom line. For example, automation doesnt remove the personal if it is built properly, its faster, more efficient and by recording your guests history, can add simple birthday and anniversary touches, offer increased upselling opportunities and ensures the guest remains informed. There is also time and money savings to be had by introducing an integrated payment solution, such as Guestlines GuestPay, that offers best value by processing all payments together in one place. The more processes a hotelier can leave in the capable hands of its PMS, the more GuestTime this brings.

Clio adds: Hoteliers need to ask themselves questions such as How easy is my direct booking processes?, How well are we handling our payment processes? etc. Its about being smarter, more adaptable, choosing better and more effective integrations and core products that can really drive the business forward. Independent products can be somewhat redundant by themselves; they need the right integrations (CRM, Channel Manager, Tills etc) to really enhance the guest journey. A two-way integration to your PMS is imperative to ensure you are maximising the yield from each product. Hoteliers are very smart in understanding their beef margins and its time to apply that same mentality to their technology.

Accessible, functional and intuitive PMS

The 18th century 4-star Fitzpatricks Castle Hotel in Killiney, Co. Dublin is an ideal venue and location for businesses and families. Having had problems with an old server-based system which was not very intuitive, they had time management issues accessing data, limited access to their systems when off site and required a PMS that was accessible, functional and intuitive. They required a PMS they could demand more of:

Mark Scott-Lennon, Director & General Manager of Fitzpatrick Castle Hotel in Dublin said, "We are delighted that we migrated to the cloud and implemented Guestlines Property Management System. The remote access and automated processes are key in helping us deliver efficiencies and enhance the guest experience. Not only has it made us more productive, it has enabled our staff to be more guest facing and spend less time on the systems. Its intuitive and easy to access all the data and reports remotely which allows me to make informed decisions with the enhanced business intelligence I now have access to, from wherever I am, be it at home, off site or at the hotel. Weve also got peace of mind that our systems are safe and secure.

Transform the guest experience

Over the years, PMS systems have become much more advanced with cloud offerings, open APIs, and the ability to transform the guest experience. In addition, hoteliers are learning to become more demanding of their providers and are now privileged with the option of being able to select the perfect combination of software functionality that complements the propertys specific needs, which is fully integrated and provides value for money. Guestline has a helpful checklist to assist in reviewing your hotel technology solutions. From implementing a technology strategy and the impacted cost of ignoring, to the affordability of acquiring a new system and a guide to getting your strategy to the boardroom and over the decision line. As the future becomes more technologically advanced, now more than ever it is time to research, instil change, embrace it, and invest in it. Access your free Guide to choosing the right PMS for your property here.
Press Release

23 June 2021

In October 2019, Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group (MOHG) pledged to eliminate all single-use plastic (SUP) across its portfolio of luxury hotels by the end of March 2021.

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Three months on from that deadline, the Group has made significant progress towards meeting the goal, despite ongoing challenges. By the end of Q1 2021, the Group had achieved nearly 70% reduction in this annual plastic footprint. Based on estimated plastic stock depletion timelines and supplier delivery commitments, it is expected that all hotels will eliminate SUP by the end of Q1 2022, avoiding 930 tonnes of plastic waste each year. The principal reason for the Group not hitting the target date is the delay in usage of existing SUP supplies due to the low business levels caused by the pandemic.

The Group has been committed to eliminating SUP across all areas of its hotels, including rooms, spa, transport, restaurants and bars as well as in back-of-house areas not seen by guests, such as offices, colleague areas and kitchens. To help colleagues work through their efforts to eliminate SUP, the most common SUP items were identified across the three main operational departments: F&B, Spa and Rooms. Of these, six high-impact items accounted for 81% of annual SUP waste generated:

Garbage bags (294 tonnes per year)

Water bottles (7.7 million bottles per year)

Slippers (816,000 pairs per year)

Vacuum bags for food (88 tonnes per year)

Cling film (80 tonnes per year)

Amenities - shampoo, conditioner and shower gel (4.9 million bottles per year)

The pandemic has led to temporary hotel closures and low occupancies, thereby slowing the depletion of existing stocks of plastic products by up to 12 months in some markets.

The Group has not used the pandemic as a reason to relax its focus on the elimination of SUP. For example, We Care packages for guests include reusable fabric facemasks that are plastic free as the Group firmly believes that hygiene and the highest sanitary standards can be maintained without SUP.

Moreover, the Group has consistently sought to use eco-alternatives that are completely plastic free, however, where none are available in the market, some exceptions to its commitment to eradicate SUP have been made. Examples include toothbrush bristles that are still plastic, while in the view of health and safety, hygiene seals for F&B items such as plastic seals for beverages or candy jars have not been removed to make them free of SUP. Likewise medical items, especially hygienic wrapped medical grade kit, are exempted in first aid kits.

Although supplier packaging is excluded from these calculations, as MOHG does not have direct operational control, hotels continue to tackle this through collaborative actions with suppliers.

Colleagues from every hotel continue to focus on finding solutions and alternatives to SUP as the Group collaborates to drive further responsible procurement and provide alternative products that are viable for the luxury hotel environment.

The Group will progressively phase out the use of synthetic materials made with plastic fibres given their contribution to microplastics in the environment. Eco-alternatives are reviewed with circular economy considerations in mind in order to identify materials with a lower environmental impact, thus avoiding the transfer of environmental cost from plastics to another system.

The Group remains committed to contributing to the communities in which it operates and responsibly managing its environmental impacts and social commitments. Corporate responsibility values are deeply ingrained in MOHGs culture, and sustainability implications are carefully considered with each and every decision across the Group. As the Group grows its portfolio of hotels and residences around the world, great importance is placed on operating hotels sustainably over the long term.

Although our ambitious timeline to eliminate all single-use plastic from our premises by the end of March 2021 has been deferred by one year, largely as a consequence of the pandemic, we have made massive progress, with a majority of our hotels expected to reach the elimination goal by the end of July this year, said James Riley, Group Chief Executive. Despite the ongoing challenging conditions, our colleagues have continued to embrace our commitment to deliver on the Groups sustainability responsibilities, he added.

The Group will issue a further report on progress in Q4 2021.

Mandarin Orientals Sustainability Objectives

Mandarin Oriental is well recognised for delivering service excellence across its portfolio of luxury hotels and is committed to operate its hotels and residences in a responsible and sustainable way. As a supporter of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the Group seeks to contribute to the communities in which it operates and responsibly managing its environmental impact and social commitment. The elimination of single-use plastic is only one part of the Groups range of initiatives. These other initiatives are outlined in the companys latest Sustainability Report, and are supported by the dedication and hard work of Mandarin Orientals colleagues who continue to identify impactful ways to respond to local community and environmental needs. Information on the individual hotels own initiatives towards sustainability  for the environment, for their communities and for their guests  is recorded in the Groups Naturally Better campaign on each hotels website.
Press Release

23 June 2021

Pebblebrook Hotel Trust (NYSE: PEB) (the Company) today provided an update on recent operating trends, which continue to improve each week. The Company expects to achieve positive Adjusted EBITDAre in the second quarter of 2021 and positive Adjusted Funds from Operations (FFO) in the third quarter of 2021.

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Please visit https://investor.pebblebrookhotels.com/investor-presentations-1/ to view the updated presentation the Company issued on its website with additional details on the current operating trends.

The Company also announced that it executed a contract to acquire the 369-room Margaritaville Hollywood Beach Resort in Hollywood, Florida for $270.0 million. The acquisition is anticipated to be funded from existing cash on hand and is targeted to be completed by the end of the third quarter of 2021. As part of the acquisition, the Company may assume up to $161.5 million of secured, non-recourse debt currently in place. The purchase is subject to normal closing conditions, and the Company offers no assurances that this acquisition will be completed on these terms or at all.

The Company also announced that it intends to market for sale the 189-room Villa Florence San Francisco on Union Square in San Francisco, California. However, the Company offers no assurances that a sale will be completed.
Press Release

23 June 2021

Hilton (NYSE: HLT) has signed an agreement for the development of two new hotels totalling 577 guest rooms in a prime beachfront location in Tel Aviv. The ambitious new development will see the introduction of Hiltons LXR Hotels & Resorts and Curio Collection by Hilton to the dynamic Israel market, joining Hilton Tel Aviv, Vista at Hilton Tel Aviv and Waldorf Astoria Jerusalem.

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Patrick Fitzgibbon, Senior Vice President, Development, EMEA, Hilton said: For more than half a century, Hilton has played a critical role in hosting both local and international visitors at our iconic Hilton Tel Aviv. During that time the city has become a thriving cosmopolitan destination and were pleased to be building on Hiltons legacy in Israel by introducing two extraordinary hotels on Tel Avivs beachfront.

LXR Hotels & Resorts

The 176-room hotel, inclusive of 40 elegant guest suites with balconies overlooking the Mediterranean, will become the latest member of Hiltons exclusive collection of independent luxury hotels. Guests will be able to take in panoramic views of the Tel Aviv horizon from multiple points throughout the property including the hotel sky lobby located a staggering 20 floors above the coastline, the destination restaurant and bar serving world-class cuisine as well as from the hotels rooftop pool overlooking Tel Avivs idyllic beachfront. This property will be Hiltons first under LXR Hotels & Resorts in Israel and joins several recent additions in the Seychelles, Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Kyoto. Each LXR property represent its unique location and offers a singular travel experience native to its place, history, and traditions in alluring destinations around the world.

Curio Collection by Hilton

Hiltons first hotel in Tel Aviv under Curio Collection by Hilton will be one of the largest in the region when it welcomes guests in 2026, with 401 stylish guest rooms. The hotel will include a spa, state of the art fitness facilities, a 1300 square meter ballroom, indoor and outdoor swimming pools and will house five new restaurants and bars, adding to Tel Avivs vibrant restaurant scene. For business travellers and corporate events, there will be a large number of private meeting facilities. Curio Collection by Hilton is a collection of more than 100 hand-picked hotels across the globe, each unique hotel weaving the distinctive local culture into every element, from design, to amenities and service. Recent signings include The Royal Senses Resort Crete and Legacy Hotel Cascais, Portugal.

Tourism in Tel Aviv has been growing steadily, with passenger numbers at Ben-Gurion International airport increasing by 7.5% from 2018 to 2019. Warm weather, increasing international flight routes and a lively culture to suit all interests make Tel Aviv a much-loved destination for many. Tel Aviv also plays host to many business travellers as the high-tech business hub is home to the majority of Israeli corporates. Israels successful deployment of the vaccination programme has led to increases in market confidence, and Tel Aviv is on track to return to growth as international travel resumes.

The hotels will be located on the waterfront next to Independence Park on HaYarkon Street, moments from an impressive array of Mediterranean bistros and beachfront cocktail bars. The fashion boutiques of Dizengoff Street are a short walk away, as well as the iconic Bauhaus architecture of The White City of Tel Aviv, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. For those wishing to see more of the city, Tel Avivs Old Port is minutes away and boasts a wide selection of shops, cafes, restaurants and nightlife on its wooden boardwalk.

The new hotels will join the award-winning Hilton Honors guest loyalty programme, allowing more than 115 million members who book directly with Hilton to earn Points for hotel stays and experiences, plus instant benefits including contactless check-in with room selection, Digital Key and Connected Room.

Hilton has two trading hotels in Israel under the brands, Waldorf Astoria and Hilton Hotels & Resorts.
Kin Cheung/AP

The Bitcoin Fund listed on the Nasdaq Dubai exchange Wednesday, the first of its kind to trade in the Middle East as cryptocurrencies grab attention globally.

The stock closed at $38.30, up 10% for the day, according to prices on Nasdaq Dubais website.
A string of nations across Africa, Asia and other regions have run out of Covid-19 vaccines or are on the brink of doing so, months after receiving first shipments from a global program meant to equitably distribute the lifesaving shots.

When the supplies arrived in developing countries earlier this year through the Covax effort, they were seen as an important step in narrowing a glaring gap in global access. Today, many of those same countries are facing vaccine shortages and are unsure when they will receive donations from wealthy countries.

A World Health Organization adviser on Monday said that of 80 lower-income countries that have received vaccines through the program, about 40 are either out of vaccines or on the verge.

Well over half of countries have run out of stock and are calling for additional vaccine, the adviser, Bruce Aylward, told reporters. But in reality it's probably much higher."

In the race to end the pandemic, its vaccine against virus. Slowdowns in inoculation programs can leave room for problematic new variants to emerge that could reignite infection counts or put already vaccinated people back at risk. Countries without rich health budgets can be forced onto the more-expensive private market. And if supplies dont get restocked, vulnerable populations of older people and health workers can be left only partially vaccinated while awaiting the delivery of second doses.

Seven countries in Africa, including Ivory Coast, Gambia and Kenya, have used all of their Covax stocks, according to the WHO, while others in Asia, Latin America and beyond are at risk of exhausting their supplies. In response, many are slowing or halting vaccine programs while they await new shipments or look for alternate sources.

Covax was set up last year to ensure equitable access to vaccines around the globe, and was organized by the vaccine-access nonprofit Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, another group known as CEPI, or the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, and the WHO. It established a global purchasing and distribution pool, particularly for less-wealthy nations that were unable to strike large pre-purchase deals or manufacture their own vaccines.

Its goal is to deliver 1.8 billion doses to more than 90 lower-income economies by early 2022. So far, it has shipped only 88 million  about as many as the number of doses already administered in the U.S. states of California, Texas and New York, according to Bloombergs Vaccine Tracker. The program is heavily reliant on AstraZeneca Plcs two-dose vaccine, but has been hamstrung by delays in shipments from a key manufacturer of those shots, the Serum Institute of India, after the country halted exports to tackle a devastating outbreak at home.

In Africa, Ivory Coast has used about 730,000 doses of AstraZenecas vaccine and is now relying on about 100,000 doses of the Pfizer Inc. vaccine it received last week. The country is looking to acquire millions of additional doses to maintain public faith in the program and ensure it can complete protection for those who received the initial dose.

In Ghana and Ivory Coast, the start of Covax rollouts on March 1 marked a key moment that Unicef Executive Director Henrietta Fore called a hopeful light at the end of the tunnel. Ghana has since used more than 90% of its doses. While the country has signed pacts with a number of suppliers, including an agreement for Russias Sputnik V vaccine, supply challenges have hampered deliveries. Another West African country, Gambia, said last week it has run out of AstraZeneca shots. The country is turning to Sinopharm Group Co. and plans to introduce the Chinese companys vaccine next month.

Elsewhere in Africa, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi and Rwanda have exhausted all the vaccines they received through Covax. Seven more, including Angola, Uganda, Ethiopia and Egypt, have used more than 80% of supplies, according to the WHO.

Its not just an issue in Africa. Vaccination has slowed to a crawl in Bangladesh, and the government has turned to China and Russia to secure more supplies. Sri Lanka is awaiting health ministry approval to give people Pfizers vaccine as the second dose amid a shortfall in AstraZeneca shots.

In Nepal, supply shortages have slowed the vaccine program, and the country has managed to fully vaccinate less than 3% of the population.

Vaccination to the entire population is a dream that is quite far off, said Tara Nath Pokhrel, the family welfare director at Nepals health ministry.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has welcomed the donation of vaccines from wealthy countries, but has also urged them to increase and accelerate their contributions to help regions confronting a surge in cases. The Group of Seven earlier this month pledged to donate vaccine doses to developing nations, while President Joe Biden announced that the U.S. would begin shipping a half-billion donated doses of Pfizer vaccines to countries in dire need in August. On Monday, the U.S. delayed a separate shipping target for 80 million donated vaccine doses, many of which are meant for developing nations.

Many of the nations running short face another problem: After giving the first dose of shots to priority populations like the elderly or health workers, theyre not receiving enough to give the second shot, Kate OBrien, who heads the WHOs vaccination division, told reporters last week.

They just dont have more doses that are coming at this point, OBrien said.

A huge number of countries will need to suspend second doses, Aylward, the WHO adviser, said last week. Countries including Nepal and Sri Lanka are very desperate in trying to access doses, he said. We have quite a substantial problem.

Vaccine Gap

The supply shortages have exacerbated vaccine inequality. Wealthy countries have administered 68 doses per 100 people on average, compared with just 2 doses per 100 in Africa, according to the WHO. Disease experts have warned that as long as the coronavirus continues to circulate widely, it will have more opportunities to mutate into new variants that could be more transmissible or evade vaccines.

The delta variant, the fast-spreading version first identified in India, has been reported in 14 African countries, and Covid cases across the continent are nearing the peak of more than 120,000 weekly cases seen in July 2020.

Supply uncertainty could undermine confidence in vaccine programs in countries that are struggling to fight Covid-19 on top of other health threats.

It takes so much effort to put in place a vaccination program, it doesnt help peoples trust in their government and health systems, said Els Torreele, a health researcher at University College London. Youre talking about countries where theres already a lot of fragility.

Other countries in Africa face a different dilemma and are grappling with logistics challenges, hesitancy and misinformation. Almost two dozen nations have used less than half of the doses they have received so far, and almost 1.3 million AstraZeneca doses in 18 countries must be used by the end of August to avoid expiration, according to the WHO.

Its not just having the vaccines, its rolling them out, Torreele said. In poor countries they may not have additional money for that..
BP has started production from two new deepwater wells in the Gulf of Mexico, furthering its plans to add 900,000 barrels of oil and natural gas production per day by year-end.

The two wells, at the Manuel project site about 140 miles off the coast of New Orleans, are expected to boost production from the Na Kika platform by an estimated 20,100 barrels of oil and gas per day. The British oil major on Wednesday said it added a new subsea production system to the platform, which will extract oil and gas from reservoirs 21,000 feet below the gulf. BP and Shell each hold a 50 percent working interest in the Manuel project.

Manuel is exactly the type of high-value project that is critical to growing our business here in the Gulf of Mexico, said Starlee Sykes, BPs senior vice president of the Gulf of Mexico and Canada. BPs focused and resilient hydrocarbons business is a key pillar of our strategy.

BP's additional oil production comes on the heels of a rapid rise in the price of crude, which just a year ago, during the pandemic, had sunk below zero. The price of West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark, on Wednesday settled at $73.08. Global benchmark Brent was trading above $75.

Although BP has moved aggressively into wind and solar projects over the past year, the company plans to expand its traditional oil and gas business in the Gulf of Mexico, where BP is a leading producer. BP operates four production platforms in the gulf: Thunder Horse, Atlantis, Mad Dog and Na Kika, with a fifth platform, Argos, expected to come online in 2022.

BP expects to increase its Gulf of Mexico production to more than 400,000 barrels of oil per day by the middle of this decade, up from more than 300,000 barrels of oil per day in 2019.

BP TRANSITION: Millions of dollars later, oil giant BP is prepping its next step toward cleaner energy

The oil giant has said it plans to use its revenue from its oil and gas business to help fund its pivot from an international oil company into an international energy company. It announced plans last year to become a net-zero emissions company by 2050 or sooner, promising to gradually reduce its oil and gas production as it shifts toward renewable and green energy sources.

BP next year expects to launch its new Argos platform, which in April was transported from a South Korea manufacturer to a fabrication yard near Corpus Christi where it is being finished. The 27-story-tall floating semi-submersible, one of BPs largest, is expected to produce up to 140,000 barrels of oil and gas per day, boosting BPs output in the Gulf by about a quarter. The platform is BPs first addition to the Gulf since 2008, before the deadly Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil leak in 2010.

The safe production of resilient hydrocarbons in the basins we know best is core to advancing our strategy to transform into an integrated energy company, said Ewan Drummond, BPs senior vice president of projects.
Colonial Pipeline Co. was sued by a gas station seeking to represent thousands more over the ransomware attack in May that paralyzed the U.S. East Coasts flow of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel.

EZ Mart 1, a two-pump station in Wilmington, North Carolina, buys its fuel from a distributor supplied by Colonial, according to a complaint filed Monday in federal court in Georgia. Colonials headquarters, in Alpharetta, is the site of the control center where the electronic ransom note was discovered, EZ Mart says in the lawsuit, in which it seeks to represent more than 11,000 gas stations and asks for unspecified monetary damages.

The hack occurred despite advance knowledge and warnings, and in the lead-up to the attack Colonial repeatedly ignored and rejected efforts by the applicable regulatory agency to meet with it so as to check on its cybersecurity, EZ Mart alleges.

A spokesperson for Colonial said the company doesnt comment on pending litigation but worked around the clock to safely restart our pipeline system following the cyberattack against our company.

Hackers gained entry to Colonials networks on April 29 through a virtual private network account, or VPN, through which employees could remotely access the companys computer network, a cybersecurity official who responded to the attack has said. The VPN account, which has since been deactivated, didnt use multifactor authentication, a basic cybersecurity tool, so the hackers could breach the network using just a compromised username and password. It isnt clear how they came up with the right credentials.

The hack affected 45 percent of the East Coasts fuel supply, driving up gasoline prices and sparking shortages at filling stations after the company shut down the roughly 5,500-mile pipeline on May 7.

Colonial had no plan in place for ransomware attacks and had left up a legacy VPN system without shutting off logins and passwords for old employees, which its own experts called a basic failure, the gas station alleges.

While apologizing for the massive disruption, Colonials chief executive officer, Joseph Blount Jr., has defended the companys response, including his decision to pay the hackers -- an affiliate of a Russia-linked cybercrime group known as DarkSide -- $4.4 million in ransom.

I believe with all my heart it was the right choice to make, Blount told U.S. lawmakers this month. In a hearing on Capitol Hill, they criticized Colonials cybersecurity practices, asking Blount why the company hadnt hardened its systems before an attack occurred.

In addition to the Colonial hack, Russia-linked criminal gangs have recently been blamed for a ransomware attack against meat supplier JBS SA, which disrupted operations in the U.S., Canada and Australia.

President Joe Biden last week said after a summit in Geneva that he warned Russian President Vladimir Putin against further cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure. In the lawsuit, EZ Mart claims it has been clear for years that the sector is especially vulnerable to both conventional and cyber criminals. The complaint details a history of such warnings and attacks.
Supplying Asia with liquefied natural gas has become costlier for U.S. producers, but strong demand has resulted in export records.

U.S. LNG exports climbed to a record monthly high of 6.5 million tons in May and may keep rising, according to Norwegian research firm Rystad Energy.

LNG: Tellurian files application for new pipeline project to serve Southwest Louisiana

The growth is in contrast to last years downturn as economies shut down and energy demand plummeted amid the pandemic. Rystad estimates that about 12 metric tons of U.S. LNG exports were shut-in last year as a result of the market crash.

Global demand for LNG has rebounded to strong levels as the industry began to recover from the pandemic in September 2020, bouncing back faster than the oil industry.

Rystad estimates that U.S. LNG production will reach 72 metric tons in 2021, its highest annual level on record, under an assumption of no shut-ins this year.

U.S. export costs have risen, with the variable cost of U.S. LNG exports to the Asian market at about $5.60 per British thermal unit this month, up 65 percent from $3.40 per British thermal unit in mid-2020 and 30 percent higher than last years average of $4.30 per British thermal unit, according to Rystad.

The increase is due to a jump in transportation costs for LNG that is being driven by higher charter rates and fuel costs as well as a recovery in domestic gas prices.

The rising costs in the short term could be offset, in part, by increasing LNG demand in Asia and Europe, supported by the need to restock supplies, high carbon dioxide prices and lower-than-expected Russian pipeline gas exports to Europe, Rystad said.
At best, a power outage can turn comfort into discomfort; at worst, it can be a matter of life and death. When the lights go off, people want to know the extent of the issue, whether or not others are affected, and when theyll have power again.

Following Februarys epic freeze and the early June energy conservation alert, that information is more crucial to Texans than ever.

Thats why the Houston Chronicle is launching our real-time Power Outage Tracker to provide details about power outages across the state in real time.

The interface is simple to use: The map view gives readers an instant evaluation of each Texas countys power situation. Updated with new data in real-time, the map shows the percentage of electric customers who are experiencing an outage. The darker a county, the greater the percentage of local customers currently without power.

Interact with a county to see more specific data, including the percentage and exact count of outages, and the number of customers tracked per county. Switch to the list view to see that same data in a searchable, sortable format.

The Power Outage Tracker will continue to live on this page and on various other articles that deal with Texas power grid issues. We will also make the tracker available via the home page of the Houston Chronicle website whenever there are serious power outage issues.

In the coming weeks and months, we will be adding more features to the Tracker to provide readers with even more information about power outages across the state and within their communities. Sign up for breaking news alerts and follow us on Twitter and Facebook to stay up-to-date.

The data comes from PowerOutage.us, a website that collects, records and aggregates live power outage data from utility companies across the country.

Please share your feedback about the tracker and let us know if you see a bug or have suggestions for improving it. You can email Daniel Simmons-Ritchie at daniel.simmons-ritchie@chron.com or Alexandra Kanik at alexandra.kanik@chron.com.
Texas traffics in big and bold. It has an outsize history, unmatched iconography, unparalleled cultural diversity. And it also enjoys a global reputation for food. The state is home to iconic foods that make it a culinary powerhouse. From beloved mom-and-pop eateries to fine-dining meccas, the Lone Star States food scene prove everythings bigger  and tastier  in Texas. Here are 10 of the best.

Houstonians love their day trips and antique treks to Round Top, and no visit would be complete without a stop at this iconic cafe known for its comfort-food menu dishes served with homey sides of jalapeno cheese grits or mashed potato casserole. Royers is known far and wide for its pies, though. Eat there, take to go, or order online  Royers is a slice of pie heaven full of Texas charm. 105 Main, Round Top, 979-249-3611; royersroundtopcafe.com

Snows BBQ

How can a Texas barbecue joint be world famous if its open only one day a week? Well, thats just one of the many delicious idiosyncrasies of this Lexington smoked-meat shrine that Texas Monthly named the best barbecue in Texas. Since that 2008 distinction, Snows has been mobbed by global barbecue enthusiasts who wait in line for those precious few hours on Saturday mornings to savor smoked brisket, ribs, chicken and sausage. Owner Kerry Bexley had the good sense to hire Tootsie Tomanetz as pitmaster; she has since become the much beloved and most famous face in Texas barbecue. 516 Main, Lexington, 979-542-8189; snowsbbq.com

Christies Seafood & Steaks

Greater Houstons oldest restaurant  founded in Galveston in 1917, it moved to Houston in 1934  has been under the ownership of the same Greek family since 1967. The Christies continue to excel at the fried fish sandwich that made the restaurant famous, but the menu offers so much more: seafood platters, steaks, gumbo, Gulf shrimp in many guises and the oyster stew that was President George H.W. Bushs favorite. 6029 Westheimer, 713-978-6563; christies-restaurant.com

The Big Texan Steak Ranch

This Amarillo restaurant takes to heart the bigger and better in Texas motto with a menu of giant steaks, including the original 72-ounce Steak Dinner Challenge (you eat the meal in an hour and its free). Founded in 1960, the Big Texan is a tourist destination thanks to its brewery, motel, RV ranch and the restaurant where diners feast on platters of mountain oysters, slabs of ribs and plate-defying chicken-fried steak. 7701 Interstate 40 East, Amarillo, 806-372-6000; bigtexan.com

Patillos Barbecue

Central Texas great sausage traditions were brought by German, Czech and Polish immigrants, but the Cajun and Creole influences of sausage making can be found at this Beaumont institution. Its the oldest Black-owned barbecue joint in Texas. Founded in 1912, Patillos serves iconic beef hot links, also known as greaseballs or garlic bombs  spicy handmade lanks that ooze molten-red liquid fat. A true taste of Southeast Texas barbecue traditions. 2755 Washington, Beaumont, 409-833-3156; patillosbbqtx.com

Matts El Rancho

Classic Tex-Mex restaurants can be found in every corner of the state, but the legacy created in 1952 by Matt and Janie Martinez lives large in Texas culinary history. The menu offers a full lineup of combo-plate staples, but it is the houses Bob Armstrong Dip that has made Matts world famous. Named for the former Texas Land Commissioner, the dip is a bowl of queso heaped with taco meat and guacamole  a much-copied invention that will forever make Matts a Tex-Mex destination. 2613 S. Lamar, Austin, 512-462-9333; mattselrancho.com

Fearings Restaurant

James Beard Award-winning chef Dean Fearing isnt known as the father of Southwestern cuisine for nothing. Beginning at The Mansion on Turtle Creek and then at his signature restaurant at the Ritz-Carlton Dallas, Fearing, along with a handful of other regional chefs, pioneered a style of cooking that would distinguish Texas for generations. His menu feels at once nostalgic and new, with dishes such as tortilla soup, barbecue shrimp tacos, short rib enchiladas and mesquite-fired Texas steaks. 2121 McKinney, Dallas, 214-922-4848; fearingsrestaurant.com

Gaidos Seafood Restaurant

Galvestons legendary restaurant has been dishing up seafood to the beach-going public since 1911, and it remains must-do Texas dining. Perched on the Seawall, the rambling restaurant continues to offer oysters, shrimp cocktail, shrimp scampi, shellfish towers, fried seafood platters, gumbo and cast iron-seared steaks in an atmosphere both joyous and reverential. In Galveston, all roads lead to Gaidos, Texas quintessential seafood restaurant. 3802 Seawall, Galveston, 409-761-5500; gaidos.com

Rays Drive Inn

The history of the San Antonio-born puffy taco can be complicated, but even locals will defend the supremacy and originator history of this hole-in-the-wall mecca for the citys beloved, iconic creation. Here at this Westside landmark, the puffy taco (deep-fried masa dough shell) can be stuffed with chicken, carne guisada, shrimp or beans but the old-school beef picadillo is the best. The cheese enchiladas, nachos and fried fish plates are also beloved. But the puffy taco is the glorious star, and rightly so. 822 SW 19th, San Antonio, 210-432-7171; raysdriveinn.net

Blue Bonnet Cafe

This Marble Falls restaurant has been serving homey fare and Texas hospitality since it opened in 1929. Today, the cafe, once considered a townie gathering place, is known far and wide as a culinary legend where diners can get breakfast all day and heaping slices of mile-high pie. The cafes menu is a study in Lone Start State foodways: chicken-fried steak, burgers, pot roast with brown gravy, chicken and dumplings, cheese enchiladas and crispy beef tacos, fried catfish and malted milkshakes. 211 N. U.S. 281, Marble Falls, 830-693-2344; bluebonnetcafe.net
Josh Weisman had built enough modern, sexy clubs and restaurants to know what he wanted when it came time to build his house. He knew how to dream.

The home he and his wife, Trisha, built in Braes Heights is sleek and stylish, full of edgy design and high-contrast black and white.

For the past 10 years, his Construction Concepts company has built or built out some 400 restaurants and bars in the Houston area. His projects include 51fifteen at Saks Fifth Avenue, Ume Sushi in the Heights and Doris Metropolitan on South Shepherd.

Every now and then he gets a knock on the door from a curious neighbor or passerby who watched his house go up wondering if he has time for another project.

Both Josh and Trisha want their home to be warm and sexy  and sexy isnt a scary word in design anymore, said their interior designer, LeTricia Wilbanks of The WM design studio and modern furniture showroom on Washington. As a designer, I want to create an environment where they feel beautiful just by being in the space. It makes them want to have friends over for dinner and makes them want to entertain, pour a martini and put on some music.

Josh, 44, and Trisha, 36, first met when he was 28 and she was 20 and using a fake ID to get into the club he was managing. They laugh about it now, but it was love at first sight for Josh and much too early in life for Trisha.

Years went by, and Trisha found herself in need of a job. Someone told her they were hiring at The Marque, a members-only club of which Weisman was a part owner. She got the job, and then when he first asked her out, she turned him down because she liked the work and wanted to stay.

Theyve been married eight years now and just had their second child, River, a daughter who was born in April. Their son, Sage, is 2.

Before building this new 4,900-square-foot house, the couple lived in an older home in Meyerland, which Josh bought years ago so he could live near his grandmother and help look after her.

It was less than 1,800 square feet, but they remodeled it to their liking and were happy there until they had their first child and realized theyd need more room.

Their street in Braes Heights flooded, so the original home on their lot suffered a good deal of damage. They demolished it and started over, elevating the home 6 feet, 8 inches off of the ground as city code changed in the aftermath of the storm.

Architect Isaac Levy designed the house, and Wilbanks helped the Weismans finish out the interiors, keeping contemporary and modern design at the forefront. They spent a year designing it, a year building it and moved in February 2020, just weeks before the pandemic shutdown.

In the center of the home is a gorgeous bar and grand hall, where the Weismans envision partygoers will mingle soon. The bar is paired with a champagne wall that has a glass front and back. The hall behind it  covered in wallpaper with oversized butterflies  simply looks like a wine room but is actually a passage between the main living area and the bar; a panel pops open as a hidden door that leads to the mudroom and garage.

The grand hall is 10 feet wide and is where the staircase spills out to a beautiful table and a bronze lion that Josh uses as a symbol for his outlook on life.

I wanted a big lion statue because Im a lion and I tell my son to be a lion, Josh says. He searched online auctions to find the piece.

The Weismans connected with Wilbanks when they saw her work on Instagram, liking pretty much everything they saw. When it comes to home design, they all speak the same language.

I went into it with the mindset of how would I want this to look if it were mine. I normally dont get to do that, Wilbanks said. They wanted it to be uber sexy and wanted a clublike environment because thats his business. I was able to push the limits of design.

And since Josh was the builder of his own home, he found a way to implement the things he really wanted.

Whatever I could dream up, he could implement. A lot of times we have the challenge of, This is what I want it to look like, but who is going to build this crazy wall? Wilbanks said. Josh always could figure it out.

When Wilbanks created a black-and-white geometric design for the grand hall, Weisman made a mirror image of it on the ceiling in moulding.

At the front of the home is a dining room with a sleek black table that has a high-gloss piano finish; its surrounded by chairs with decorative floral and geometric fretwork on the back.

Across the hall is an office with geometric wallpaper, a plush contemporary sofa and an acrylic chair tucked under a desk with an acrylic base and cowhide top. Three mirrored panels on a back wall add a Moroccan feel, and one of them pushes open to reveal storage space for office equipment and supplies.

A wall of black-and-white photography showing the Weismans on vacation is a sweet reminder of the young family that lives here.

At the back of the home is a wide open space with the kitchen and family room, and Josh wanted the kitchen to be as fashion forward as the couple is  one that is worthy of his chef friends who stop by.

They planned it with two islands, one as a dining area  with four barstools on each side, eliminating the need for a breakfast area  and one for prep work. Theyre covered with Cambria slabs, installed waterfall style, of black quartz with dramatic white veins drifting across. The back wall has gorgeous black-and-white marble tile with brass inlay  the showstopper in a room of gorgeous things.

The prep island has a sink, two dishwashers and two trash bins.

Wilbanks created a fretwork pattern for the cabinets  a back wall with regular cabinets in white and a side wall paneled in black to hide the refrigerator, freezer and a large walk-in pantry.

I brought in a little bit of Trishas personality in the crystal chandeliers over the islands and gold tones in hardware and trim because its so her, Wilbanks said.

In the family room, floor-to-ceiling marble covers the area where theres a fireplace and TV, flanked by built-in cabinets with walnut doors and black shelving.

Seating consists of an oversized sectional that they opted to have custom made. It has a leather baseand upholstery cushions and is filled with decorative pillows in a black Greek-key design, a chartreuse velvet and a sexy tiger print  following the wild-animal theme.

A gray velvet lounge chair and pair of ottomans covered in zebra-print upholstery finish the room.

Off of this great room is the second living space, a cabana filled with an outdoor kitchen, sectional seating, poufs and Moroccan-style cut-metal pendants.

I love this space for entertaining, says Josh, who does a lot of the cooking at home. I love to cook, so the family room and the outdoor living room are my favorites. The two spaces, when you prop the door open, its nice to have that indoor-outdoor feel.

The home has plenty of square footage, but they planned it with just three bedrooms. When they were building, the third room was a guest room, and when Trisha learned she was pregnant and expecting a daughter, they called Wilbanks and asked her to reinvent the room.

The result is a sweet nursery with a wall covered in oversized flowers  heavy on pink. Sages room is similar in size, and a big, second-floor landing gives him even more room to play.

Theres also a modest upstairs TV room where the family can snuggle in to watch movies. Cabinets hide a microwave oven, small refrigerator and snacks.

Much of the upstairs space is devoted to the primary bedroom suite that has a coffee bar and seating area by a fireplace, an enormous bathroom with his-and-hers everything  vanities, water closets and clothes closets.

Joshs closet is masculine, with plenty of walnut shelving and trim. Trishs was designed to feel like the Chanel boutique in Paris; its filled with designer clothes, handbags and shoes.

Im in love with this house, Josh says. Every inch is functional, usable space. We didnt want to design a five- or six-bedroom house with spaces we dont use.
CAIRO (AP)  The owners and insurers of the giant container ship that blocked the Suez Canal for nearly a week earlier this year have reached an agreement in principle over their dispute with canal authorities, representatives from both sides said Wednesday.

Stann Marine, the lawyers representing the vessels owners and insurers, and the Suez Canal Authority both confirmed the development.

The disagreement centers on the compensation amount the Suez Canal Authority is claiming for the salvage of the vessel Ever Given, which ran aground in March, blocking the crucial waterway for six days. Specialist tugboats and dredgers eventually freed the 400-meter-long (quarter-mile-long) cargo ship carrying some $3.5 billion in cargo.

In an on-air phone call to Egyptian talk show Al-Hiyat Al-Youm on Wednesday the head of Egypts Suez Canal Authority, Lt. Gen. Osama Rabie, said the parties had agreed on a compensation amount. But he said it would not be made public as they had signed a non-disclosure agreement until the signing of the final contract.

The money would cover the salvage operation, costs of stalled canal traffic, and lost transit fees for the week the Ever Given blocked the canal.

At first, the Suez Canal Authority demanded $916 million in compensation, which was later lowered to $550 million.

Since it was freed, the Panama-flagged, Japanese-owned vessel, which carries cargo between Asia and Europe, has been ordered by authorities to remain in a holding lake mid-canal, along with most of its crew, as its owner and the canal authority try to settle the compensation dispute.

In a statement, the UK Club, one insurer for the ship's owners, the Japanese company Shoei Kisen, said it is working with other insurers and the canal authority to sign a final agreement as soon as possible."

Once the formalities have been dealt with, arrangements for the release of the vessel will be made, the statement said.

The two sides have traded blame for the vessels grounding, with bad weather, poor decisions on the part of canal authorities, and human and technical error all being thrown out as possible factors.

On Sunday, the Ismailia Economic Court adjourned a hearing on the case after the Suez Canals attorneys said they were looking into a new offer made by the vessels owners. Lawyers did not share any details of the offer.

The six-day blockage disrupted global shipping. Hundreds of ships waited in place for the canal to be unblocked, while some ships were forced to take the much longer route around the Cape of Good Hope at Africas southern tip, requiring additional fuel and other costs.

About 10% of world trade flows through the canal, a pivotal source of foreign currency to Egypt. Some 19,000 vessels passed through the canal last year, according to official figures.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP)  A Missouri judge on Wednesday ruled that a ballot measure to expand Medicaid is unconstitutional, meaning hundreds of thousands of newly eligible adults won't be able to access the health insurance program July 1 as promised.

Cole County Circuit Court Judge Jon Beetem wrote that the voter-approved amendment unconstitutionally sought to force lawmakers to set aside money for the expansion.

Under the Constitution, lawmakers cant be forced to make appropriations unless the ballot measure includes a funding mechanism.

Beetem wrote that the amendment indirectly requires the appropriation of revenues not created by the initiative and is therefore unconstitutional.

Voters approved Medicaid expansion last August, passing a constitutional amendment by 53% of the vote. It was set to take effect July 1.

But Republican Gov. Mike Parson declined to provide coverage for an estimated 275,000 newly eligible low-income adults after the GOP-led Legislature refused to provide any extra funding to do so in the state budget.

Three low-income women, including two mothers, sued the state to try to force Parson's administration to give them the health insurance coverage. The plaintiffs lawyers said they will appeal Beetems decision.

Beetem's ruling deals a major blow to supporters of Medicaid expansion. It all but guarantees that the thousands of newly eligible low-income adults under the amendment won't have access to the program.

Lawyers for the plaintiffs in a statement wrote that a question over the amendment's constitutionality wasn't even raised before the judge during Monday's trial.

We are disappointed in todays ruling, but believe the Court of Appeals will disagree, the plaintiffs' attorneys wrote in a statement.

Attorneys defending Parsons administration declined to comment, citing an appeal.

During the trial, Solicitor General John Sauer had argued that additional funding approved by lawmakers was needed in order for Parson to enact the amendment.

Missouris Medicaid program currently does not cover most adults without children, and its income eligibility threshold for parents is one of the lowest in the nation, at about one-fifth of the poverty level.
RENO, Nev. (AP)  The state has agreed to pay $175,000 in legal fees to settle a lawsuit with a rural Nevada church over COVID-19 capacity caps on religious gatherings that a U.S. appeals court found illegal in December.

But while no COVID-19 restrictions have been in place since June 1, a second church in Las Vegas is continuing to press for a federal court order declaring Gov. Steve Sisolaks earlier limits unconstitutional.

Lawyers for Calvary Chapel Lone Mountain in Las Vegas filed a motion in U.S. District Court on June 11 seeking permission to amend its complaint against Sisolak, Attorney General Aaron Ford and Justin Luna, chief of the Nevada Division of Emergency Management.

They said a formal ruling is necessary to prevent the state from enacting similar illegal orders in the future and to force compensation for the harm suffered by the churchs parishioners and other businesses deemed non-essential under the governors emergency directives.

Unless and until injunctive relief is granted, plaintiffs will continue to suffer irreparable harm for which they are left without an adequate remedy at law and be fearful of exercising their right to peacefully pray, assemble, engage in business and to be treated for COVID-19," the motion states.

Sisolak lifted all state COVID-19 restrictions on churches, casinos and all other businesses on June 1 and gave the authority to local counties to enforce any limits they saw fit. None currently place any restrictions on religious gatherings.

Last year, indoor religious gatherings in Nevada were subject to a hard cap of 50 churchgoers while attendance limits at many businesses including casinos were based on a percentage of the buildings fire-code capacities.

The different treatment of secular and religious entities drew a sharp rebuke from the conservative justices on the U.S. Supreme Court in June 2020 when the high court was sharply divided in a 5-4 ruling that refused the Nevada churches request for an emergency injunction blocking enforcement of the attendance limit.

There is no world in which the Constitution permits Nevada to favor Caesars Palace over Calvary Chapel, Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote then in one of three strongly worded dissents.

The other church that sued the state, Calvary Chapel Dayton Valley east of Reno, entered into settlement talks soon after the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals struck down Nevadas church attendance cap in December.

The San Francisco-based court directed the judge in Nevada to reconsider the case. In the meantime, the state said it would not enforce any limits on churches more stringent than those on private businesses.

In April, the state and lawyers for Calvary Chapel Dayton Valley filed a joint motion to stay the proceedings until July 8 so the state could obtain necessary approvals to make the payment for legal fees. Two weeks ago, the Nevada Board of Examiners approved a payment of $175,000 to the Georgia-based Alliance Defending Freedom.

The payment was negotiated down from $235,000, Sisloaks budget officer Jennifer Hamilton wrote in a memo.

Sisolak and Ford, both Democrats, declined comment on the Las Vegas churchs latest motion to amend its complaint, their spokespersons said in emails to The Associated Press. The state has until Friday to respond in court.

The motion was filed by attorneys Sigal Chattah of Las Vegas, who argued on Calvary Chapel Lone Mountains behalf before the 9th Circuit, and Joey Gilbert of Reno, who has announced his intention to seek the GOPs 2022 gubernatorial nomination.

It seeks a declaratory judgment nullifying Sisolaks earlier emergency regulations and awarding unspecified damages "in the interest of fair play and substantial justice.

As well intentioned as these orders are with respect to the general publics health, safety and welfare, they have come at a steep price with respect to the complete and utter restraint on Nevadans civil rights and liberties, the motion says.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Top Pentagon leaders on Wednesday passionately defended the military's approach to addressing racism and extremism, pushing back against accusations by Republican lawmakers that the effort is creating division and hurting morale.

The testy exchanges showed that the political dimension of a national debate over racism and extremism weighs on the military even as it attempts to address social problems within its own ranks.

At a House Armed Services Committee hearing, Rep. Michael Waltz, a Florida Republican, said the U.S. Military Academy at West Point offers instruction in critical race theory and on "understanding whiteness and white rage. Critical race theory centers on the idea that racism is systemic in U.S. institutions and that they function to maintain white dominance in society.

Waltz called these offerings at West Point destructive, and he demanded that Pentagon leaders get to the bottom of what is going on.

In an extraordinary response, Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, took direct aim at the accusations by Waltz and similar, separate comments earlier in the hearing by Rep. Matt Gaetz, another Florida Republican. Milley said the military need not apologize for fostering open-mindedness.

I personally find it offensive that we are accusing the United States military, our general officers, our commissioned and noncommissioned officers, of being, quote, woke or something else because we're studying some theories that are out there, Milley said, his voice rising with emotion.

Milley said it is important for military members to be open-minded and to be exposed to unconventional ideas.

Ive read Mao Zedong," he said. "Ive read Karl Marx. Ive read Lenin. That doesnt make me a communist. So whats wrong with understanding, having some situational understanding, about the country for which we are here to defend?

Alluding to Waltz's criticism of the academy for offering instruction on white rage, Milley said, I want to understand white rage, and I'm white. He went on to say that he wants to understand why an overwhelmingly white group of rioters assaulted the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 and tried to "overturn the Constitution of the United States of America. What caused that? I want to find that out. A number of those who participated in the insurrection were current or former members of the military.

West Point doesnt offer a course specifically on white rage, but it does offer an elective social science class for seniors on the politics of race, gender and sexuality, which deals with various racial issues.

Milley went on to say that future military leaders, such as those being educated at West Point, need to understand what is happening in the country and how society might be influenced by various ways of thinking.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, the nation's first Black defense chief, told Gaetz that the issue of critical race theory was not relevant in connection with the Pentagon. We do not teach critical race theory. We do not embrace critical race theory, and I think that's a spurious conversation. We are focused on extremist behaviors and not ideology, not people's thoughts, not people's political orientation.

Gaetz said he had been told by members of the military who participated in group discussions about extremism, which were ordered by Austin in the spring, that the sessions were harmful and counterproductive. He suggested that troops believed they could not complain publicly for fear of retribution.

Austin responded angrily, saying that he had received perhaps 50 times as much feedback as Gaetz and that most had expressed appreciation for the opportunity to discuss extremism with colleagues and superiors. When Gaetz suggested that Austin was only being told what service members thought he wanted to hear, Austin fired back: Maybe they're telling you what you want to hear.

Austin also clashed with Rep. Vicky Hartzler, R-Mo, over the departments effort to combat extremism in the ranks. Hartzler pressed him on his definition of extremism and how the military is screening applicants to weed out those considered extremist. Austin repeatedly explained that the military is focused on rooting out extremist behavior, not political ideas or religious beliefs.

Hartzler demanded to know if a person says they are for President Trump, would that be viewed as extremism?

As I said earlier, this is not about politics, Austin said, with an edge of frustration in his voice. I want our troops to participate in our political system. Thats what theyre fighting to defend.

He added, however, that the military must be a diverse and inclusive organization, and that is what the troop gatherings to discuss extremism were all about.
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP)  An airstrike hit a busy market in Ethiopias northern Tigray village of Togoga on Tuesday and killed at least 51 people, according to health workers who said soldiers blocked medical teams from traveling to the scene.

An official with Tigray's health bureau told The Associated Press that more than 100 other people were wounded, more than 50 seriously, and at least 33 people were still missing. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because of concerns about retaliation.

The alleged airstrike comes amid some of the fiercest fighting in the Tigray region since the conflict began in November as Ethiopian forces supported by those from neighboring Eritrea pursue Tigrays former leaders. A military spokesman and the spokeswoman for Ethiopias prime minister, Billene Seyoum, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Wounded patients being treated at Ayder hospital in the regional capital, Mekele, told doctors and a nurse that a plane dropped a bomb on Togogas marketplace. The patients included a 2-year-old child with abdominal trauma and a 6-year-old, the nurse said. An ambulance carrying a wounded baby to Mekele, almost 60 kilometers (37 miles) away by road, was blocked for two hours and the baby died on the way, the nurse added, speaking on condition of anonymity because of concerns about retaliation.

Hailu Kebede, foreign affairs head for the Salsay Woyane Tigray opposition party and who comes from Togoga, told the AP that one fleeing witness to the attack had counted more than 30 bodies in the remote village that's linked to Mekele in part by challenging stretches of dirt roads.

It was horrific, said a staffer with an international aid group who told the AP he had spoken with a colleague and others at the scene. We dont know if the jets were coming from Ethiopia or Eritrea. They are still looking for bodies by hand.

On Tuesday afternoon, a convoy of ambulances attempting to reach Togoga, about 25 kilometers (15 miles) west of Mekele, was turned back by soldiers near Tukul, the health workers said. Several more ambulances were turned back later in the day and on Wednesday morning, but one group of medical workers reached the site on Tuesday evening via a different route.

We have been asking, but until now we didnt get permission to go, so we dont know how many people are dead, said one of the doctors in Mekele.

Another doctor said the Red Cross ambulance he was traveling in on Tuesday while trying to reach the scene was shot at twice by Ethiopian soldiers, who held his team for 45 minutes before ordering them back to Mekele.

We are not allowed to go, he said. They told us whoever goes, they are helping the troops of the TPLF.

The TPLF refers to the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front, which governed Tigray until it was ousted by a federal government offensive in November. The subsequent fighting has killed thousands and forced more than 2 million people from their homes.

More than 25 of the wounded finally reached Ayder hospital later on Wednesday, a day after the airstrike, the regional health official said.

While the United Nations has said all sides have been accused of abuses in the Tigray conflict, Ethiopian and Eritrean soldiers have been repeatedly accused by witnesses of looting and destroying health centers across the Tigray region and denying civilians access to care.

The European Union strongly condemns the deliberate targeting of civilians" in Togoga, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Wednesday, calling it the latest in a horrific series of abuses committed in Tigray. He again called for an immediate cease-fire and urged the international community to wake up and take action.

This month, humanitarian agencies warned that 350,00 people in Tigray are facing famine. Aid workers have said they have been repeatedly denied access to several parts of the region by soldiers.

The government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed says it has nearly defeated the rebels. But forces loyal to the TPLF recently announced an offensive in parts of Tigray and have claimed a string of victories.

On Wednesday one of the former Tigray leaders, Getachew Reda, asserted that Tigray forces had shot down a C-130 transport plane carrying explosives, military officers and Eritrean camouflage uniforms. The claim could not immediately be verified.

A resident in Adigrat, about 100 kilometers (62 miles) north of Mekele, said a group of Tigrayan fighters briefly entered the town on Tuesday, although he said it had since been retaken by Ethiopian and Eritrean forces. He said federal police had since been seen beating people in the center of the town.

Everybody is staying at home, there is no movement in the town, he said.

Renewed fighting was also reported in Edaga Hamus and Wukro, two towns that sit on the main road to Mekele.

The reports came as Ethiopia held federal and regional elections on Monday. The vote was peaceful in most parts of the country, although there was no voting in Tigray.

The vote was delayed last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, heightening tensions between the federal government and the TPLF, which went ahead with its own regional election in September.
Organizers of a new political party in Texas want to take advantage of voters disgust with partisan politics and turn their anger into a force in upcoming elections.

I think you can have dramatic investment in public schools and have robust school choice; you can see Roe v Wade as protecting a womans right to choose, but also establishing the states interest in viability, said David Jolly, the former Florida congressman and executive director of the nationwide Serve America Movement, when we met on Sunday evening at Maggianos.

Neither party will allow these conversations, he said pointedly

Theres no nuance, agreed Bill King, the former Kemah mayor and businessman whos now the chair of the SAM Party of Texas, the Serve America Movements iteration in this state.

Both are convinced that the problems in our politics have less to do with the Democratic or Republican parties than with the duopoly itself, or the two-party doom loop, as King put it in a recent op-ed. He argued that both parties benefit from the polarization and ideological stridency that left many Texans as exasperated as he was, watching this years edition of the Texas Legislature.

The new SAM Party alternative, they explained, aspires to be a big-tent party, with a platform focused on principlesproblem-solving, transparency, and electoral reformrather than issues per se. Jolly, for his part, reckons that any party defined by ideology is bound to run into trouble, for the simple reason that many voters are interested in results rather than litmus tests and doctrine.

More for you Local Opinion: We need a new, third political party

Our belief is, if you were to pick a dot on the spectrum and say, Everybody come here, youre repeating the failure point that the two major parties are repeating, because what youre doing is prescribing a certain dogma, Jolly said.

Its not only a challenge to bring someone from the left and someone from the right to that spot, but your own politics might be left and right!, he continued, citing himself as an example. A lifelong Republican, he generally agreed with his party when it came to issues of taxes or deregulation, but was prone to break with the party line on questions including climate change, guns, and marriage equality. Jolly formally left the GOP in 2018.

The two were planning to head to Austin the following day, where they filed papers with the Secretary of State. Thats the way to get the ball rolling in Texas, they explained, although there will be more work to do next year to get candidates on the ballot. Under state law, theyll have to get roughly 80,000 people--equivalent to one percent of all the votes cast in the 2018 gubernatorial race--to affiliate with SAM next summer, either by attending a local SAM convention or signing a petition to that effect.

An additional hurdle is that the Texans who back this effort cant already have affiliated with another party by participating in its nominating process. Still, the task at hand is achievable; there are nearly 16 million registered voters in Texas, most of whom dont vote in the Republican or Democratic primary.

Arithmetic similarly suggests that the SAM Party of Texas could make an impact on elections next year. Its leaders, as noted, envision a big tent coalition delineated by a commitment to governing principles, rather than a new center-right party or one delineated by ideology.

But the fact is there are more Republicans in Texas than Democrats. And while the latter routinely have occasion to be demoralized, Republican voters are more likely to be disaffected by the trajectory of their party in recent years. Democrats have shown signs of life in recent cycles, picking up seats in the legislature and flipping key offices in major centers including Harris County. But heading into next years midterms, statewide leaders including Gov. Greg Abbott seem to be jostling for position in the Republican primaries, as if they consider the general election to be a fait accompli.

Its hard to put an exact figure on how many longtime Republican voters in Texas have been left feeling politically homeless as a result. But some, like Jolly and King, would like an alternative to both major parties.

One data point on that front comes from recent presidential elections. In 2012, Gary Johnson, the Libertarian Partys presidential candidate, mustered 2 percent of the vote in Texas; in 2016, Johnson was again the Libertarian nominee, and doubled his vote share statewidepulling support from the Republican side of the aisle.

A third-party candidate that showed such strength could have made a difference in the 2018 midterm elections, which saw several Republicans--U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, Lieutenant Gov. Dan Patrick, and Attorney Gen. Ken Paxton--re-elected statewide after winning by fewer than five points. The latter two are seeking re-election next year, and neither should plan on coasting to re-election, given their 2018 performances. (Paxton, additionally, is being challenged by Land Commissioner George P. Bush and former Texas Supreme Court Eva Guzman in the GOP primary.)

King pulled out his phone to show me a screenshot from an April Dallas Morning News poll, which asked respondents how they would identify themselves ideologically.

52 percent dead in the middle of the spectrum!, he said.

It may be hard to believe that a brand-new third party could fundamentally shake up the Texas political landscape after a generation of GOP hegemony. But there is an audience, for politicians who are committed to tackling the states real problems rather than positioning themselves for the next primary.

erica.grieder@chron.com
A man was found shot to death inside a crashed car late Tuesday at a west Houston apartment complex, police said.

Officers responded around 11:50 p.m. to 8405 Wilcrest Drive in the Alief area where neighbors reported that a driver crashed into a carport at the back of the apartment complex, said Lt. R. Willkens of the Houston Police Department.

One man was dead in the driver's seat of the car, Willkens said. Investigators discovered that the man was shot in his side. A bullet hole pierced the window.

It's unclear where the shooting happened, but Willkens said police believe it took place at the apartment complex.

Homicide detectives arrived on scene and canvassed the area for surveillance video.

Authorities ask anyone with information to contact the HPD homicide division or Crime Stoppers.
A day after Houston Methodist finalized the terminations and resignations of 153 workers who had refused the COVID-19 vaccine, opinions swirled across one of Houston's largest hospital systems: "Dramatic." "Good patient care." "It's their choice."

Although some patients and workers thought the first-in-the-nation firings went too far, they also felt safer going to the hospital knowing that their doctors and nurses were inoculated against the virus.

Alex Chamorro, director of Houston Methodists central business office, was fully vaccinated by mid-January, a choice she made after she was hospitalized for COVID-19 last summer and lost her husband to the infection.

Chamorro said her family would have been among the first to sign up had the vaccine been authorized for emergency use while her husband was alive.

There's layers upon layers upon layers of loss and hurt, Chamorro said. Had the vaccine been available in the summer of 2020, my current reality would be completely different.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Judge tosses Houston Methodist vaccine mandate lawsuit

The 153 former employees represent a small minority of Methodists total payroll, which includes more than 25,000 workers. Many of these former employees had joined a class action lawsuit against the hospital in May, which was tossed by a federal judge this month. The 117 plaintiffs have appealed the ruling.

Patients interviewed Wednesday had mixed feelings about requiring COVID-19 shots. Dimeen Cottrell says while she feels safer knowing the entire hospital staff is vaccinated, she thinks firing them was inappropriate.

Instead, she thinks the hospital should have warned patients about unvaccinated staff members. Cottrell lives in Cleveland, Ohio, but is enrolled in a traumatic brain injury trial study at the hospital, for which she visited the campus on Wednesday.

You're not going to protect your employees by firing them, she said. It's not like they'll run out and get it now.

The mandate did, however, push some employees over the finish line. Just 84 percent of workers had been vaccinated by April. By June, the rate was nearly 99 percent, said Roberta Schwartz, executive vice president of Houston Methodist Hospital.

Of the 178 employees suspended by Houston Methodist, 25  or 14 percent  received their full COVID-19 vaccine or applied for an exemption and kept their jobs, she said.

By the time we got to the day where people were let go, it had caused people to go out and get the vaccine, Schwartz said.

Now that the standards have been set, hospital employees say the patients they treat have high expectations for their medical staff.

Dr. Faisal Masud, medical director of critical care at Houston Methodist, said he and his staff are inundated with questions about their vaccination statuses from patients, family and friends.

Masud has received messages and calls from family in Canada about why the hospital was requiring a vaccine. Physician peers across the U.S. have also asked how the hospital came to that decision.

Theyre asking why and how were doing this, Masud said. The why is very easy. The how is that we are fortunate enough to live in a country where we have access to vaccines. Please ask people around the world who can't even get vaccines. Why is easy because why would I not do it?

But some former workers who previously said they planned to wait until the U.S. Food and Drug Administration fully approved one of the coronavirus vaccines now say they no longer plan to be vaccinated at all.

Former Houston Methodist Baytown nurse Jennifer Bridges, the lead plaintiff, said she no longer plans to sign up for a vaccine after seeing way too many adverse reactions and (talking) to people where their family had loved ones who died after receiving a shot. Eleven out of 1 million people vaccinated against COVID-19 have had an anaphylactic reaction to the shot, according to a January study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Bridges recently began a new nursing job with a private home health care company in Houston, and says she is prepared to take the case up to the Supreme Court.

We are going to be fighting as hard as we can until there's nothing left to fight, she said.

The battle over the vaccine mandate has already drawn national attention to the Houston hospital. Bridges said she will protest the decision on Saturday in a rally at the Medical Center campus attended by conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.

A June study from the American Medical Association found that 96 percent of physicians are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. But other national surveys show higher hesitancy rates among nurses and other frontline health care workers. As of April, nearly one in five said they did not plan on receiving a COVID-19 vaccine, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Vaccinating health care workers is important, experts say, because people are most likely to turn to their medical providers for advice on the COVID-19 vaccine. Inoculation rates have stagnated across the country, including in Houston, as those who have rushed for a Pfizer, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson vaccine have already received theirs and those holding out are slow to come in for a shot.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Unvaccinated Houston Methodist employees appeal judge's ruling on COVID vaccine mandate

Merced Alcala, who is undergoing cancer treatment at Houston Methodist, and her daughter Dorothy Alcala said they feel comfortable coming in for treatments. But Methodists requirement wouldn't have made a difference in their hospital choice because they were vaccinated, they said.

If they don't get vaccinations, it's their choice, Dorothy Alcala said.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued guidance in May allowing private employers to ask for proof of COVID-19 vaccination as a condition of employment, so long as they allow for medical and religious exemptions.

Only two other Texas Medical Center institutions  Memorial Hermann and Baylor College of Medicine  have made public promises to require COVID-19 vaccines. But neither has set a deadline for when staff will need the shots.

Memorial Hermann stands behind the safety and efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccines and we believe that, ultimately, a vaccine will be the only way to control the virus and put an end to this pandemic, said Kathryn Williams, a Memorial Hermann spokesperson.

Nationwide, other hospitals are beginning to follow suit. Most hospitals in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area will require employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19, although some of the health systems that will institute a vaccine mandate said they do not plan to terminate employees who dont comply, instead requiring masks and regular COVID-19 testing.

Deedee Mattoa, a cardiovascular technician at Methodist said she is surprised other hospital systems have yet to join Methodist in its decision.

I thought that every hospital system had to have it. That's crazy, said Mattoa, 58.

I remember a long time ago with polio, they went house by house to vaccinate everyone and they made sure they got it, she added. For those that don't want it, I don't know what to say to them.

gwendolyn.wu@chron.com

charlie.zong@chron.com
RICHMOND _ Jose Angel Ibarra Ruiz spent the last night of his life doing what he loved: dancing and having fun with his relatives at a family quinceanera.

The 24-year-old decided to leave early and slipped out the back door of the Knights of Columbus hall in Needville, said his sister-in-law, Francisca Reyes. She was grabbing her keys when people came running inside  someone had been shot.

In the parking lot, she saw Ibarra Ruiz lying on the ground, losing blood.

Be strong, Jose Angel, dont go, she recalled screaming. We dont know if he heard us or if he was already dying.

The circumstances leading up to the June 5 shooting remain under investigation, but according to a preliminary report, a Fort Bend County sheriffs deputy who was working security at the event shot Ibarra Ruiz three times in the chest. Officials said the young man was wielding a knife at the deputy and other people, but his family says he was holding a box-cutter in self-defense.

Family, attorneys and community activists stood outside the Fort Bend County Sheriffs Office on Wednesday morning asking for answers in the shooting death, which they called needless and avoidable. They called for the release of body camera footage, transparency in the investigation and justice.

This is not something new, said Gerardo Pereira, an attorney representing the mans family, in reference to police shootings. Fort Bend prides itself on progressing and moving forward from its past. This is an opportunity for the officials to prove that to the community.

The Texas Department of Public Safety Texas Ranger Division, Fort Bend County Sheriffs Office and Fort Bend County District Attorneys Office are conducting investigations into the shooting.

Officials have not named the deputy who discharged his weapon, but said he is a veteran sergeant of the agency.

The sheriffs office declined to answer further questions and referred inquiries to the Texas Rangers, which confirmed it was assisting with the investigation but did not answer questions. The district attorneys office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Our office is cooperating fully with our partner law enforcement agencies to investigate this unfortunate situation, said Sheriff Eric Fagan in a statement released the day after the shooting. Our hearts go out to the families and residents who have been affected by this tragedy.

At the quinceanera, someone notified the deputy around 10:45 p.m. about a disturbance in the parking lot of the Knights of Columbus event venue, according to a custodial death report filed with the Office the Attorney General of Texas.

The deputy summoned assistance from nearby peace officers and encountered Ibarra Ruiz brandishing a knife toward several citizens nearby, according to the report. The deputy commanded him to drop the weapon, but Ibarra Ruiz approached the retreating deputy with the knife, officials said. The deputy then shot Ibarra Ruiz three times in the chest, the report said.

The family, however, raised some questions about the official account of the incident. Ibarra Ruiz pulled out a box cutter in self-defense because he was being attacked, Pereira said.

Theres a big difference between a knife and a utility box cutter, he said. If youre a police officer wearing a bullet proof vest, what threat is a box cutter?

While the young man bled out on the ground, the deputies were texting, talking and appeared to be laughing instead of performing life-saving efforts, Reyes said.

The family is questioning why no one helped Ibarra Ruiz in the immediate aftermath of the shooting, why the deputy shot to kill him and what events led up to the deadly encounter.

We want to see the cameras to see exactly what happened that night, Reyes said.

The family encouraged witnesses, regardless of their immigration status, to come forward with information or video of the encounter to assist in the investigation.

Yancy Balderas of a local group called Alianza Latina Internacional said she admires the family for standing up for justice because these deaths are often swept under the rug, she said.

We need changes, she said. We cry out for changes, but you see what happened to Jose Angel Ibarra. Where are the changes? We just marched nationwide for George Floyd. Where are the changes? Its happening here.

Ibarra Ruiz, from the Mexican state of Guanajuato, was a great brother and a responsible son who took care of his parents. He worked hard and loved dancing, hanging out with family and having fun, his brothers said.

At Wednesdays news conference, they wore white T-shirts with a photo of their slain brother and a message on the back: Queremos justicia por la muerte de Jose Angel Ibarra Ruiz.

Every place we went, we were together, said Miguel Angel Ibarra, the young mans twin. We really miss him.

anna.bauman@chron.com
A Harris County grand jury issued indictments accusing a current and former Houston police officer of engaging in organized criminal activity.

The indictments  against former narcotics officer Gerald Goines and officer Felipe Gallegos  are the latest to emerge from a years-long scandal that began with the Harding Street raid in January 2019 which has already led to charges against Goines, Gallegos, and numerous other current and former officers.

Wednesdays indictments against Goines and Gallegos mirror those of eight other officers previously indicted for participating in a long-running overtime theft scheme uncovered following the Harding Street raid, which ended with the deaths of homeowners Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas and four officers wounded. In the aftermath of the raid, Houston police investigators discovered Goines had lied about buying drugs at the home.

The scandal sparked a federal investigation, the DAs probe, a lawsuit, and several past Goines defendants have sought to have their convictions overturned. Goines is now charged in federal court with violating Tuttle and Nicholas civil rights, and with felony murder, records tampering, and overtime theft in state court. All told, 12 current and former officers have been charged with crimes. Goines former partner, Steven Bryant, recently pleaded guilty in federal court to document tampering. Gallegos was previously charged with murdering Tuttle. The scandal also led to four overturned convictions so far and a lawsuit against the city.

The woman whose false 911 calls first led police to Tuttles door, a woman named Patricia Ann Garcia, was sentenced earlier this month to 40 months in federal prison, and three years supervised release.

Houston Police Officers Union President Douglas Griffith declined comment, saying he had not yet had a chance to read the indictments.

Attorneys for the accused officers maintain the men are not guilty, and have accused Ogg of pursuing a political prosecution. Goines attorney Nicole DeBorde Hochglaube said the basis for the charges are based on old information prosecutors had when a grand jury handed down similar indictments against other officers caught up in the scandal.

We remain proud to stand by Mr. Goines, she said. Although we cannot guess at why Mr. Goines was singled out for a a delayed indictment on the same charge as the others, we are eager for a jury to hear the facts in court in the cases this DA has lodged against Gerald.

Gallegos attorney Rusty Harden sharply criticized the timing of the indictments.

Im absolutely dumbfounded that the district attorneys office would wait to indict someone a full year after they indicted other officers for the same offense, he said. Why did they wait just two months until he's going on trial for another allegation?

Felipe is totally not guilty of these most recent charges, which are really an offense invented by DA's office to begin with, he continued, just as he is not guilty in murder charge, where he was trying to save the lives of the four officers shot in the raid.

In a news release, District Attorney Kim Ogg said the charges mark a conclusion into the Offices investigation of Harding Street-related police corruption.

Now it's time to get this case to trial before a jury of Harris county residents, so the public can learn exactly what occurred on January 28, 2019, and determine whether or not these defendants will be held accountable for their crimes, Ogg said.

Mike Doyle, who is representing the relatives of Rhogena Nicholas, said he was disappointed that Oggs prosecutors had not conducted a wider probe into the shooting.

Two years ago, both the Houston Police Department and the District Attorneys office promised a robust investigation of HPDs misconduct uncovered in this case, he said. Why that promise was unrealized and why a number of individuals escaped investigation remain a mystery.

st.john.smith@chron.com
A Bastrop County teenager will soon join the ranks of the select few accepted into a U.S. military academy with future plans to serve the country.

Lake Mills, an 18-year old who lives near Paige, will report June 24 to the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., fulfilling a dream hes had since he was 12 years old.

Mills, whos been homeschooled primarily by his mother Julie Mills, said he was always drawn to the military because military values aligned with his personal values.

He had grandparents who served in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Army, and in September 2016 when he was 14, Mills joined the Civil Air Patrol, a nonprofit that serves as the official auxiliary of the Air Force.

Mills acceptance into the Air Force Academy wasnt just the completion of a tedious, nearly two-year application process that involved nominations, letters of recommendation, interviews, medical tests and essays to get into a school with an acceptance rate hovering around 10 percent, it was also a milestone moment for his family, which has chosen to homeschool all five of its children.

The ability for Julie Mills and her husband Bretts five boys to roam around outside and participate in free play was something that appealed to Julie Mills, a former English teacher who tailored the homeschool curriculum to have a focus on experiential learning.

This meant countless family field trips where the brothers would visit museums and natural and historic sites such as the Great Smoky Mountains, Colonial Williamsburg and Washington, D.C.

Mills said hes enjoyed the environment created through homeschooling, where hands-on application is stressed. For example, he said that after learning about vectors in math he was able to apply what he learned by building an elevator with pulleys. The brothers have also completed work with real-world electricians to aid their study of physics.

In addition to homeschool work, Mills also took dual-credit classes at Austin Community College and courses at One Day Academy.

This came in addition to his Civil Air Patrol activities like serving as the cadet commander for his squadron of more than 60 cadets based at Camp Mabry and remaining on course for the Gen. Carl A. Spaatz Award. The award is the highest cadet honor given by CAP and presented to cadets who have demonstrated excellence in leadership, character, fitness and aerospace education, according to the awards website.

Less than 0.5% of CAP cadets in the nation receive the Spaatz Award each year, and Mills received his this month.

I had a goal in mind. Like the Air Force Academy, that was my goal and that was my vision, Mills said of earning the Spaatz Award. When I have something, Im going to get it done regardless.

Mills said another advantage of being homeschooled was that it allowed him to activelyseek relationships that werent built into a traditional school experience.

He could build bonds while volunteering at the church his family attends  Bastrop Christian Church  where Mills sang in the choir, worked as a sound technician for the choir and served as a junior deacon and as a childrens ministry teacher.

Julie Mills raised each of her five children with the mantra do it scared.

Some people stay in their comfort zones and they never go out and try new things, Mills said. I dont think you get to expand your perspective and learning from that, and Ive always been so thankful for that.

Like his older brother Hudson, Lake Mills received a National Security Language Initiative for Youth scholarship to travel outside the U.S. to study a critical language in a different country. During summer2019 he studied abroad in Moldova for six weeks.

While the U.S. State Department paid for Hudson to study Mandarin in China, Mills went to Moldova to study Russian.

He picked Russian because it was a top critical language listed by the Air Force, and the 120 hours of intensive Russian study he completed added another distinguishing aspect to his military application.

His mother said shes confident that the Air Force Academy is where Lake is supposed to be.

Its kind of like he was made to do that, Julie Mills said, adding that shes excited to maybe help other Central Texas parents with military academy applications for homeschool students.

While Mills doesnt have to select a major until his second year in Colorado, hes eyeing military and strategic studies. The end goal  as it has been since he was 12  is to be a pilot, hopefully flying fighter planes before eventually retiring into the commercial airline business.

Im really looking forward to becoming a better leader, better communicator and working with a bunch of people accomplishing goals. Im ecstatic to head out.
Houston has reached a new agreement with its union of municipal employees, a pact that would give civilian workers 3 percent across-the-board raises each of the next three years and raise the minimum wage.

Mayor Sylvester Turner announced the tentative deal with leadership from the Houston Organization for Public Employees (HOPE) on Wednesday at City Hall. It still must be approved by union members and City Council.

We recognize that 2020 was a hard year for a lot of city employees, Turner said. Despite the challenges, many of them still reported to work every day to support Houstonians and provide basic services that kept our city safe during the pandemic. My hope is that todays agreement demonstrates to our employees that they are valued and appreciated.

The most recent agreement reached in 2018 gave municipal employees raises totaling 6 percent over three years.

If approved, workers would receive 3 percent raises in October 2021, July 2022 and July 2023.

It also would increase the minimum wage for city employees from $13 to $14.25, a 9.6 percent bump. HOPE President Roy Sanchez said he was particularly proud of that.

The new agreement had some of the highest pay increases for some of the lowest-paid workers, Sanchez said.

The contract would make no changes to the unions healthcare system and payments, the officials said.

Turner also said it does not address the citys rising unfunded liability for retiree health costs. That multi-billion-dollar debt applies to the municipal union and the two public safety unions. Turner said he plans to bring a proposal to rein in that cost in the next six months.

The agreement marks the fifth labor contract for the municipal employees union, which first won a pact in 2008. That marked the first time a city in Texas reached a labor agreement with employees who are not police officers or firefighters.

The deal applies to some 11,000 municipal workers represented by the union, from Public Works employees to Solid Waste drivers and Library workers. It does not include police officers or firefighters, whose unions negotiate separate contracts.

The 2018 deal for police officers  which gave them 7 percent raises over two years  expired at the end of last year, but an evergreen provision ensured they got another 2 percent raise this year when they did not reach a new agreement. Turner anticipates a new deal with the police union by the end of the year.

Negotiations with the fire union have been far rockier, resulting in a stalemate throughout Turners tenure. Their last contract expired in 2017, and the two sides have fought in court, at the ballot box and in the public sphere over the dispute for years. Before this year, firefighters had seen their pay rise by 3 percent since 2011, after rejecting offers they say included too many concessions.

Turners administration circumvented the negotiating process to give firefighters a 6 percent raise in this years budget, approved earlier this month. He said he plans to do the same in the subsequent two years, for a total of 18 percent.

The contract stalemate continues in several court cases, and the union also is pushing two charter amendments for a potential November election. One would make it easier to push contract talks to arbitration, in which a panel of judges finalizes a labor deal the city and the union must accept. Another would allow any three City Council members to bring an item to the weekly agenda, a power currently reserved for the mayor.

dylan.mcguinness@chron.com
Dina Jacobs has never hid who she is. Not from her friends, her family or her neighbors in the Orchard at Garden Oaks, a senior living facility where she lived until January, when she moved to the brand new Law Harrington Senior Living Center.

Girl, they would see me going to work and I would be painted out of my mind. Nobody had no qualms about it. One of them thought I was a stripper, said Jacobs, a decorated, longtime drag queen. She caught me by myself and [whispers] are you a stripper?

For Jacobs, 74, who since 1964 has been performing across the country, the move was less about finding acceptance than it was a sign of respect for her generation. Law Harrington, located at 2222 Cleburne St. in Third Ward, is the first LGBTQ-affirming senior center in the South, according to the Montrose Center, which spearheaded its development.

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All these people in here, weve been through it, and this is like a thank you, this is for you, Jacobs said.

Residents began moving into their apartments in early January, but Law Harrington is holding its grand opening Thursday. The senior center offers 112 affordable housing units, with one- and two-bedroom apartments available at 30-60 percent of the average median income in Houston.

Residents do not have to identify as LGBTQ to live at the Law Harrington Senior Living Center. Those who do will have access to the array of services offered by the Montrose Centers SPRY (Seniors Preparing for Rainbow Years) initiative, which includes educational and social activities, case management and counseling.

An LGBT-affirming clinic, run by Legacy Community Health, will also be based at Law Harrington, though it is open to anyone.

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As mainstream acceptance of LGBTQ people continues to gain momentum, some feel that the generation that fought to bring queerness out of the shadows have been left out of reaping the benefits of their own work.

Queer seniors in the United States are twice as likely to age in social isolation and four times as likely to retire with less money than needed to live comfortably, according to Kennedy Loftin, Chief Development Officer at the Montrose Center. The Law Harrington Senior Living Center is an attempt to afford those seniors the safety and acceptance that many younger queer folks feel.

The stories of our community leaders going back into the closet to access affordable housing, hiding photos of lovers that passed away during the HIV epidemic, not allowing their gay and lesbian and bi and trans friends to visit for fear of being outed and not being able to live in the affordable communities they were in, that was the Montrose Centers impetus [for opening the senior center], Loftin said.

He credits former Mayor Annise Parker and State Rep. Garnet Coleman with helping lead the charge in the development of the Law Harrington Senior Living Center, which began about 10 years ago after Parker visited a similar facility in Los Angeles.

The Midtown Redevelopment Authority donated the land for the center, valued at about $5 million, partially in response to the exodus of seniors from Third Ward who were being priced out of their homes due to gentrification in the area.

This is a great milestone and Im so glad it came to fruition. It will be available for all seniors but particularly affirming gay seniors, and its an asset to the Third Ward and to Houston, Coleman said.

The Montrose Center partnered with several Third Ward organizations to hold community meetings in the buildup to the Law Harrington Centers construction. Rev. Marilyn White, pastor at Trinity East United Methodist Church and president of the Third Ward Fund Management, said she was glad to sign a letter of support because of the need for affordable housing, especially here in the Third Ward.

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So many seniors are being displaced because they cannot afford the housing here, and especially when we learned that in addition to affordable housing theyd provide healthcare servicesthat was a major plus for us, White said.

Some of the Law Harrington Senior Living Centers amenities remain under development. When each room is completely finished, the center will feature a community room, a kitchen, a library with movie nights, a business center and a gym. The facade of the building is dotted with tinted windows that pay homage to the Montrose Centers iconic rainbow exterior.

Back in her two-bedroom apartment, Jacobs sifts through a closet full of dazzling, ornate gowns and points out the awards shes won during her decades as a drag performer, the most recent of which was the 2021 Diana Award for Community Achievement. Though she said the kids today have their own audience, she still hosts karaoke at Michaels Outpost and is traveling to Chicago to perform at the birthday party of former mentor Jim Flint, who she says in the early 1970s made me believe in myself.

Jacobs said she spends her free time tending to her apartment and going out with girlfriends for meals. Shes friends with another resident who moved with her from her last home, but said the residents at the recently opened senior center are still learning each other.

Still, Law Harrington feels like a gift to her.

This changes the whole game, this building. It makes people feel that they are loved, and they are worth it. Whether they admit it or not, thats a big deal, Jacob said.

sam.kelly@chron.com
Reminiscing about early-day Texas toward the end of his life, frontiersman Noah Smithwick famously observed that the state was paradise for men and dogs but hell for women and oxen. Maybe Gov. Greg Abbott was thinking of Smithwick this week when he gratuitously vetoed a bill that would have made life a bit easier for neglected and abused dogs, dogs for whom Texas is definitely not paradise.

Perhaps the governor doesnt realize that not all canines in the Lone Star State are real-life versions of tail-wagging, tongue-lolling Ol Yeller, happily gamboling through a Texas Hill Country paradise in the company of his devoted young master. Not all enjoy the pampered life of Pancake, the silky golden retriever who lives in the Governors Mansion with the Abbotts.

The bill Abbott vetoed, Senate Bill 474, was designed to strengthen and clarify protections for dogs that are neglected and abused. Dogs that spend their days chained up outside regardless of winter cold or summer heat. Dogs that arent fed and watered regularly, who dont have adequate shade or shelter. Dogs trapped in standing water when it rains.

Sponsored by state Sen. Eddie Lucio, Jr., D-Pharr, the Safe Outdoor Dogs Act also would have eliminated the 24-hour waiting period that prevents animal control and law enforcement from acting immediately. During legislative hearings, animal control officers testified that the 24-hour rule proved fatal for many dogs during the February winter storm.

The 24-hour waiting period extends the suffering of animals unnecessarily when an officer can see that unsafe conditions are causing harm but cant do anything about it until the next day. Twenty-four hours can be the difference between life or death, Jamey Cantrell, president of the Texas Animal Control Association, told lawmakers.

Lucio has been perfecting his bill for almost a decade. In its final form, the bill did not prevent owners from keeping their dogs outside, but it did outlaw restraining them with chains, short lines or anything that causes pain or injury to the dog. The Rio Grande Valley Democrat also added certain exemptions for dogs dogs directly engaged in farming, ranching, hunting, and other work, as well as dogs that ride in the beds of pickups. Those provisions appeased rural lawmakers who had opposed the bill in previous legislative sessions.

With support this time from animal control professionals, law enforcement, county prosecutors and animal advocates around the state, the bill was a rare exercise in bipartisanship. It passed the House 83 to 32, the Senate 28 to 3.

If theres anything Texans, and Americans of all stripes and partisan persuasions can still agree on, its a love for our pets  as evidenced by the broad outpouring of support for the Bidens following the passing of their beloved, 13-year-old German shepherd, Champ.

None of that mattered to the governor, who maintained that statutes already on the books are adequate. He also said the penalties the bill proposed seemed excessive.

Texas is no place for this kind of micro-managing and over-criminalization, he said in the veto statement, apparently missing the irony.

Micro-managing has never stopped Abbott from nosing into local government affairs with bloodhound persistence, despite his partys long-professed allegiance to local control. We strain to understand how the governor supports over-criminalizing a county clerk, for instance, who wants to send all voters applications to vote by mail, with instructions for determining who qualifies, when he cant bring himself to treat as firmly someone who causes pain or injury to a dog.

According to animal rights advocate Shelby Bobosky, executive director of the Texas Humane Legislation Network, the bill was the product of six years of bipartisan negotiations and was designed to clarify a current law so vague its almost unenforceable. She noted that Lucios bill had support from rural, urban and suburban lawmakers from around the state.

Just a few weeks ago, Stacy Sutton Kerby, director of government relations for the network, told the Chronicle that the session had been a good one for mans best friend. She cited several bills that passed with bipartisan approval, none more important that SB 474. And thats the bill the governor chose to veto. With no warning.

We had no indication at all that he would oppose this, Gloria Medina Zenteno, co-founder of the Houston nonprofit, Barrio Dogs, Inc., told the Chronicle on Tuesday.

This would have helped tremendously, added Zenteno, whose organization works to raise awareness of proper animal care, primarily on the East Side. Im really blown away. Im in shock.

Surely, Abbott knew what was in the bill. Surely, he could have reached out to Lucio and bill supporters, signaling to them earlier any objections he might have had. Given the outrage his veto has provoked  #AbbottHatesDogs quickly began trending on Twitter  Abbott should make sure to include reconsideration of Lucios bill in his call for a special session. A spoken word or two from Pancake is more likely, we regret to say.

Abbott is more interested in dog-whistling to his base, presumably certain rural Texans who, despite Lucios willingness to compromise, cavil at any restrictions on how they treat their animals. A bill dealing with dogs reminds us yet again that this governor has always been more adept at Pavlovian pandering than he is at working to get things accomplished for Texans, including the four-legged variety.
Vice President Kamala Harris met with Democratic Texas lawmakers last week in Washington, but did not discuss the ongoing humanitarian crisis at our border. Instead, the vice president gave lawmakers AOC-style talking points and free media attention to bolster their attacks on Texas Senate Bill 7, last sessions election reform and voting rights legislation. This meeting falls at the nexus of a months-long, two-pronged assault from the left: First, Democratic leaders falsely smeared state election integrity bills as Jim Crow 2.0. Second, they used the anger generated from their smear campaign to strengthen their push for a federal election takeover.

The attacks have dominated the corrupt corporate media, but that has not deterred freedom-loving Americans: they have demanded election integrity reforms in states across the nation to make it easy to vote and hard to cheat.

Thats why Texas Gov. Greg Abbott rightly deemed election integrity an emergency item in February, and thats why the Legislature developed SB 7 in a joint conference between the House and Senate. While Joe Biden and Harris have fear-mongered about the bill, facts tell a different story.

First and most importantly, SB 7 would add voter identification requirements for mail-in ballots, making the requirements consistent with in-person voting. According to University of Houston polling, 58 percent of likely Texas voters surveyed, including 59 percent of independents, are concerned that an increase in mail ballot use will increase election fraud. And the solution, voter ID, has strong support in Texas: An overwhelming 81 percent of Texans support requiring all voters to show government-issued photo identification to vote, according to a 2019 poll by the nonpartisan Texas Lyceum.

Additionally, the bill would prevent ballot harvesting by paid political operatives, the same practice that caused a 2018 North Carolina congressional election to be overturned. SB 7 also helps individuals who require assistance when casting their vote, protecting elderly voters from intimidation from paid campaign operators.

Crucially, SB 7 would protect the ability of poll watchers to observe the election process without obstruction. Poll watchers fill a vital role in our elections, keeping the process transparent and reporting any suspicious activity to proper authorities. This provision is vital in light of news reports of poll watchers being illegally obstructed during the 2020 election.

Thats the truth: SB 7 protects voters while safeguarding against potential fraud. But despite the bills common-sense provisions, the left, aided by their woke corporate allies and willing media partners, pushed a conspiracy theory that Texas legislators were involved in a national voter suppression plot. The left told Texans that voter fraud is a myth (its not) and suggested that fraud doesnt change election outcomes. It does.

Based on those false insinuations, the left took radical action. Hours before the Sine Die of the Texas legislative session last month, the pro-democracy left cheered as Texas House Democrats fled the state Capitol, breaking the needed quorum and blocking elected representatives from voting on the comprehensive election integrity legislation.

The partisan political theater didnt kill SB 7 for good, but it gave Texas Democrats breathing room to prepare for round two of the fight. Theyre now taking marching orders from Democrats in Washington  just last week, they met with the vice president, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and other leaders.

Despite Democrats best efforts, Texas lawmakers working to safeguard elections still have the most significant advantage of all: the people. Provisions in SB 7 are widely popular among Texans, according to a poll released in April: 60 percent of voters support additional requirements to increase election integrity, while only 18 percent thought the changes unnecessary. There is no reason to delay passing the strongest possible election integrity and voting rights legislation. Abbott this week called a special session for July 8 so lawmakers can protect election integrity and ensure our right to vote.

The longer we wait, the more time the left has to prepare an all-out assault on a common-sense election integrity bill and the Texans who support it. Woke corporations, swampy D.C. politicians and the vice president herself are joining the fight against secure elections and against the grassroots of Texas who know how vital this bill is.

Texan legislators should finish the work they began. Texas is counting on it.

Cruz, a Republican, is a U.S. senator from Texas. Anderson is the Heritage Action for America executive director.
Junes record-breaking heat wave left more than 40 million Americans sweltering in temperatures over 100 degrees. Some places reached 120 degrees, and energy grids were struggling to keep people cool. More than half the Western U.S. is now in extreme or exceptional drought, wildfires are already menacing homes and hurricane season is off to another busy start.

This is what climate change looks like, and communities need to be prepared.

Sometimes small adaptations can help reduce the heat or minimize the damage. But when the risks get too high, one strategy that has to be considered is managed retreat  the purposeful movement of people, buildings and other infrastructure away from highly hazardous places.

Managed retreat is controversial, particularly in the United States, but it isnt just about moving  its about adapting to change and building communities that are safer, addressing long-overlooked needs and incorporating new technologies and thoughtful design for living and working in todays world.

We argue in a new special issue of the journal Science that managed retreat is an opportunity to preserve the essential while redesigning high-risk areas in ways that are better for everyone. This week, 600 climate experts, researchers and practitioners are meeting at Columbia University to discuss how to do just that.

What managed retreat can look like

U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Oliver P. Smith famously said of a retreat he led during the Korean War: Retreat! Hell! Were just advancing in a different direction. Like Smiths maneuver, retreat from climate change-related hazards, at its core, is about choosing a new direction.

Managed retreat could involve turning streets into canals in coastal cities. It could mean purchasing and demolishing flood-prone properties to create open spaces for stormwater parks that absorb heavy rains or retention ponds and pumping stations.

In some cases, managed retreat may involve building denser, more affordable housing thats designed to stay cool, while leaving open spaces for recreation or agriculture that can also reduce heat and absorb stormwater when needed.

Managing retreat well is challenging. It affects numerous people  the residents who relocate, their neighbors who remain and the communities where they move  and each may be affected differently. Soldiers Grove, Wis., relocated its flood-prone business district in the late 1970s and used the opportunity to heat the new buildings with solar energy, earning the nickname Solar Village.

The move reinvigorated the local economy, yet while the project is hailed as a success, some residents still miss the old town. For managed retreat to be a viable strategy, relocation plans must not only help people move to safer ground but also meet their needs. This may involve a wide range of social issues, including cultural practices, affordable housing, building codes, land use, jobs, transportation and utilities.

Talking about managed retreat

Since high-risk areas are often home to low-income communities and Black, Indigenous and other communities of color, addressing climate risk in these areas may also require addressing a national legacy of racism, segregation and disinvestment that has put these communities at risk and left many with few choices to address floods, fires and other hazards.

At its simplest, managed retreat can be a lifeline for families who are tired of the emotional and financial stress of rebuilding after floods or fires, but who cannot afford to sell their home at a loss or dont want to sell and put another family at risk.

Even if an individual or community decides not to retreat, thinking critically and talking openly about managed retreat can help people understand why remaining in place is important, and what risks they are willing to face in order to stay.

The losses involved in moving can be obvious, including cost, but there are losses to staying in place, too: physical risk of future hazards, increased emotional and financial stress, potential loss of community if some residents or businesses leave to find safer ground, pain from watching the environment change and lost opportunities to improve.

If people can articulate why it is important to remain in place, they can make better plans.

Maybe it is important to stay because a building is historic and people want to protect that history. That opens up creative conversations about the ways people have preserved risk-prone historic buildings and sites. And it invites others to help document that heritage and educate the community, perhaps though oral histories, video records or 3D models.

Maybe it is important for owners to stay because the land has been in the family for generations. That could kick-start conversations with the next generation about their goals for the land, which may include preservation but may also include changes.

Maybe a deep, emotional attachment to a community or home could make a person want to stay. Conversations could focus on moving nearby  to a new house thats safer but still part of the community  or physically relocating the house to a safer place. It could also mean finding strategies, like life estates, that allow people to stay in their home as long as they want, but that would prevent a new family from moving in and putting their kids at risk.

If staying seems important because the local economy depends on the beach, that could start a conversation about why moving back from the beach can be the best way to save the beach and its ecosystem, to prevent walls from narrowing it and to maintain public access without homes on stilts hovering over the tide.

Thinking carefully about what parts of our lives and communities should stay the same opens space to think creatively about what parts should or could change.

Siders is an assistant professor at the University of Delawares Disaster Research Center. Mach is an associate professor of environmental science and policy at the University of Miami
Donald Trump may be gunning for Congressman Chip Roy, but U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz is making it clear hes going to fight to defend Roy, his former chief of staff.

A month after Trump publicly blasted Roy, an Austin Republican, for having not done a great job and predicting he would probably face a primary challenge, Cruz is coming out with a full-throttled endorsement of Roy and helping him raise money for his 2022 re-election campaign.

I know personally that if theres anyone we can trust in Washington, its Chip Roy, Cruz said. When he was on my team, he worked morning, noon, and night to advance our conservative agenda and protect American liberty. I know he will never stop. We have to support him now.

Cruz remains friends with Roy, who is in his second term representing the 21st Congressional District which runs from Austin to San Antonio.

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Roy became a target of Trumps when he joined a small group of Republicans in Congress who voted against efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Later, Roy made a poignant speech on the House floor that called Trumps actions before the Jan. 6 insurrection impeachable. Roy objected to Trumps demands that Vice President Mike Pence refuse to throw out electoral votes in his loss to Democrat Joe Biden.

The president of the United States deserves universal condemnation for what was clearly, in my opinion, impeachable conduct: pressuring the vice president to violate his oath to the Constitution, Roy said during that January speech before the U.S. House.

When Roy threw his name in as a challenger to replace U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyoming, in a leadership role in the House last month, Trump publicly went after Roy.

Cant imagine Republican House Members would go with Chip Roy  he has not done a great job, and will probably be successfully primaried in his own district, Trump said in a statement to the media.

Just days after Trumps comments, two Republicans  a New Braunfels Army veteran Michael French, and Robert Lowry, a doctor from Boerne  filed to run against Roy in a 2022 GOP primary. Two Democrats have also filed to run against Roy. New Braunfels paramedic Scott Sturm and Blanco Democrat Michael Smith filed to run earlier this year.

But Cruz, who supported delaying the certification of the 2020 presidential election, is sticking with Roy in a big way.

My friend Chip Roy has consistently been one of the strongest conservative fighters in Congress, Cruz said in his letter backing Roy. Without bending and standing firm on our principles, Chip has pushed back against the Swamp  fighting DC Republicans and DC Democrats alike when our liberties are on the line.

Cruz was one of Trumps biggest rivals in the 2016 presidential primary and was slow to endorse Trump for the White House even after he secured the nomination. But during his presidency, Cruz became one of Trumps biggest cheerleaders, and Trump traveled to Texas to defend Cruz during his tight re-election campaign in 2018.

jeremy.wallace@chron.com
SB 474

Anti dog-chain bill

"Pancake" is released to play after Governor Greg Abbott, Lt. Governor Dan Patrick and Speaker Dennis Bonnen speak at the Governor's Mansion on January 9, 2019.

What was in the proposed bill:

The bill, better known as the Safe Outdoor Dogs Act, would have expanded existing animal cruelty laws and made the unlawful restraint of a dog a criminal offense. The measure would have provided greater protections for dogs, including banning the use of heavy chains to tether dogs. It specified that dog owners can have dogs outside but cannot restrain them with chains, short lines or anything that causes pain or injury to the dog. Owners would've face up to a $500 penalty for a first offense class C misdemeanor with the bill's revision, and the penalty would've jumped to a class B misdemeanor, which carries a fine of up to $2,000 and up to 180 days in jail, for those previously cited.

Why Abbott vetoed:

He thinks the existing law is sufficient and already protects dogs by "outlawing true animal cruelty."

"Senate Bill 474 would compel every dog owner, on pain of criminal penalties, to monitor things like the tailoring of the dogs collar, the time the dog spends in the bed of a truck, and the ratio of tether-to-dog length, as measured from the tip of the nose to the base of the tail," Abbott said.

He called it "micro-managing and over-criminalization."
JEFFERSON CITY  A Cole County judge struck down a citizen-led effort to expand Medicaid Wednesday, saying it violated the constitution because the original ballot wording did not include a way to pay for it.

Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem said the August 2020 referendum seeking to make Medicaid available to an additional 275,000 low-income adults required a funding source and therefore wasnt legal.

Beetems decision came in response to a lawsuit filed by expansion supporters who argued that they should be able to enroll in the government-funded health care program on July 1 even though the Republican-led Legislature and Gov. Mike Parson failed to earmark money to pay for additional participants.

The state constitution provides that state revenues may not be expended without an appropriation. Accordingly, this Court declines to order the implementation of Medicaid Expansion as requested in Count 1, Beetem wrote.

The lawsuit brought by three Missouri residents will be appealed, said attorneys for the three women who brought the suit.

The decision marked the first test of the Legislatures refusal to comply with the ballot initiative in which 53% of voters decided that Medicaid should cover adults between the ages of 19 and 65 with incomes below 138% of the poverty level.

Opponents of the expansion argued that proponents should have included a funding mechanism in their ballot proposal.

Attorney Chuck Hatfield, who represented the women, said Beetem agreed with the plaintiffs but ruled on an issue that was not even raised by attorneys for the state.

House Speaker Pro Tem John Wiemann, R-OFallon, called the decision a big win.

Pushers of (expansion) erred when they deceived voters by failing to include a funding mechanism. This unconstitutional initiative would have cost Missourians millions, Wiemann said on Twitter.

The lawsuit filed by Autumn Stultz, Melinda Hille and Stephanie Doyle asked the court to make it clear that they can sign up for benefits beginning July 1, regardless if there is funding for the expansion.

Regardless of whether there is funding available (there is) to pay for coverage, plaintiffs and other similarly situated individuals are entitled to enroll in the MO HealthNet program on July 1, 2021, court filings say.

Doyle, of St. Louis, is a single mother of three children who earns $12 per hour working full time. The lawsuit says she struggles with severe eczema and needs two medications for the ailment but is unable to afford them without health coverage.

Hille, of Fenton, is unable to work because of medical conditions and earns less than 100% of the federal poverty level, the lawsuit says.

She has Type 1 diabetes, thyroid disease, pernicious anemia and a precancerous colon growth, the lawsuit says.

The third plaintiff, Autumn Stultz, of Springfield, is a single mother working a minimum-wage job full time, the lawsuit says.

Hatfield argued Monday that case law allows for the newly eligible to sign up for coverage because the budget doesnt expressly say the rolls are closed.

Assistant Attorney General John Sauer told Beetem that rationale is implausible.

Plaintiffs argument flips basic rules of statutory interpretation on their heads. The plain and ordinary meaning of (the budget) is that it does not fund Medicaid Expansion, Sauer wrote.

Dr. Dwayne Proctor, CEO of the Missouri Foundation for Health, said the organization is deeply disappointed with todays ruling.

It is unfortunate that, yet again, hundreds of thousands of Missourians will have to wait even longer to access the health care they need, Proctor said. We remain steadfast in our commitment to Medicaid expansion, which is an important step toward achieving health equity and ensuring Missourians have access to affordable, high-quality health care.

Emily Kalmer, governmental relations director for the American Cancer Societys Cancer Action Network, said the legal wrangling is hurting cancer patients.

This year alone, 37,390 will hear the words you have cancer and 12,960 Missourians will pass away from cancer. None of them should suffer a day without the Medicaid healthcare coverage that a majority of Missourians voted into the Missouri Constitution, Kalmer said.

Business groups also weighed in on the decision.

Jason Hall, CEO of Greater St. Louis Inc., said expansion would drive economic growth and create jobs.

The Missouri State Motto says that the welfare of the people shall be the supreme law. As such, the Courts ruling today should not be the final word. The people have spoken, and we believe their voice should be heard at the appellate court level so that expansion of Medicaid can move forward and so that we can send a signal that Missouri is open to business and investment, Hall said in a statement.
Houston, MO (65483)

Today

Clear to partly cloudy. Low near 60F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Clear to partly cloudy. Low near 60F. Winds light and variable.
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A fire at 25 Hubbard Ave. seriously injured one of the occupants and sent a firefighter to BMC for treatment.

Pittsfield Firefighters Make Rescue From Burning Hubbard Avenue Home

PITTSFIELD, Mass.  Firefighters rescued an individual from the basement of a burning Hubbard Avenue home shortly after midnight on Wednesday.

The individual, described as the daughter, was taken to Berkshire Medical Center and airlifted to Massachusetts General in Boston with life-threatening injuries. Her current status is not known.

A firefighter was also taken to BMC with lacerations to the knee incurred during the basement search. He was treated, receiving eight stitches, and released.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

According to the report by Deputy Chief Neil Myers, B Company responded to a double alarm structure fire at 25 Hubbard Ave. at approximately 12:30 a.m. Wednesday. Arriving companies confirmed a working fire in the basement.

Three family members escaped but reported that their daughter was still inside and trapped in the basement. Firefighters conducted an aggressive interior search for her. Myers said a search was done of the first and second floors but the Engine 2 crew, "after an aggressive search under extreme conditions, found the seat of the fire and began extinguishment, but couldn't locate the victim."

The E3 and E5 crews at the top of the basement stairs "located the victim in an adjacent first-floor bathroom." She was still breathing and taken outside where County Ambulance emergency medical technicians were standing by.

Damage to the house is estimated at $50,000, mostly from major heat, smoke and fire in the basement. The Red Cross was assisting the family in finding shelter.

Hinsdale, Lanesborough, Dalton, and Lenox Fire Departments provided mutual aid.
BCC Offers GED and HiSET Testing

PITTSFIELD, Mass.  Berkshire Community College offers General Educational Development (GED) and High School Equivalency Test (HiSET) exams, allowing students to earn a Massachusetts High School Equivalency diploma.

The BCC Testing Center also offers College Level Examination Program (CLEP) tests, allowing students to earn college credits by passing a nationally standardized exam.

"BCC offers the GED and HiSET exams because we know that students can experience barriers to finishing high school," said Liz Recko-Morrison, BCC Coordinator, Assessment and Testing. "Some have academic issues, while others face social and family difficulties that interfere with diploma completion. Passing either exam allows a student to remove those barriers toward higher education and employment."

The GED and HiSET tests are both equivalency exams approved by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Although the exams are slightly different in format and delivery, both are computer-based tests.

The GED and HiSET exams are given several days each month at BCC. Students register for the exams at their respective websites: ged.com and hiset.ets.org . Links to the programs can be found on the Testing Center page at the berkshirecc.edu website. When passed, the GED and HiSET exams provide certification that the test-taker has high school-level academic skills, therefore serving as an alternative to a high school diploma. These tests may be taken by individuals age 16 and older who are not enrolled in high school and who have not earned a high school diploma.

A CLEP test measures how much a student knows about certain academic subjects without necessarily having attended college; most students taking the exam have engaged in independent study or have gained knowledge from employment before they take the test. Students can earn college credits by getting a qualifying score on CLEP tests in topics that include composition and literature, world languages, history and social sciences, science and mathematics, and business. As an open CLEP testing site, BCC serves both current BCC students and test-takers from the wider community. Any of the 33 available CLEP exams may be taken at the BCC Testing Center, which offers CLEP exams two to three days per month.

"Berkshire Community College strives to serve the community by offering these testing programs locally. In many ways, the Testing Center is a department that offers options to students so that they can meet their goals," Recko-Morrison said. "We give students alternative pathways into college and the workforce by offering the GED and the HiSET. CLEP allows students to shorten the path to their degrees or certificates and to easily document learning outside the classroom."
Latest issue of SAMUDRA Report No.85, May 2021 published, available for free download

June 22,2021 | Source: ICSF | Alert Type(s): Samudra Exclusive

The International Collective in Support of Fishworkers (ICSF) has just published the latest issue of SAMUDRA Report, its triannual journal on fisheries, communities and livelihoods. The current edition, SAMUDRA Report No. 85, dated May 2021, features a range of articles from Africa, Asia, South America and the Caribbean, specifically from Turkey, Cambodia, South Africa, Brazil, Tanzania, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Mozambique, Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Costa Rica, India, France, the Philippines, Brazil and Thailand. The issue also carries articles that analyze the Blue Economy, destructive fishing, small-scale fisheries (SSF) and the SSF Guidelines, among other topics.



The current issue has three articles on food security (from Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Cambodia) and five articles on social development and sustainable fisheries (from Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Costa Rica, India, the Philippines and Thailand).



The editorial Comment in SAMUDRA Report No. 85 discusses how the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the global inadequacy of social-protection floors in safeguarding marginalized communities, in the process exacerbating poverty and vulnerability.



The article on the Blue Economy focuses on a study that illustrates the deep influences that guide the gilded ocean economy and how a mere 100 companies generated 60 per cent of revenues from the largest ocean-based industries in 2018.



The piece from Turkey highlights the effects of COVID-19 on SSF in Istanbul, bringing out the need to address the structural inequalities and power asymmetries that bind the sector.



A correspondent from South Africa reports on the Regional Small-Scale Fisheries Governance Training Course for Africa, held in February 2021, a week-long virtual course, a collaboration between the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the International Ocean Institute - Southern Africa (IOI-SA), which brought together seven African countries.



Another article explains how the Community Fisheries organizations in Cambodia form a vital framework for collective, rights-based fisheries management that persists and thrives in inland and coastal settings.



A research report, the focus of another piece, uncovers the historical injustice meted out to Indian-origin subsistence fishers in South Africa who have to deal with the COVID-19 restrictions.



According to a report from Brazil, one year after an oil spill hit the Discovery Coast, the COVID-19 pandemic has worsened the lot of the region's indigenous fishing communities.



An early champion of the interests of small-scale fishers, points out another report, the East African nation of Tanzania is among the trailblazers in plans to implement the SSF Guidelines.



As the COVID-19 pandemic ravaged the fisher economy of Sri Lanka, says another article, households were left indebted and distressed, and co-operatives emerged as a beacon for the small-scale fishing sectors well-being.



Through a mix of downplaying, intransparency and undertesting, Indonesia, the largest archipelago nation in the world, paid little heed to its vulnerable fishers during the COVID-19 pandemic, says another article in SAMUDRA Report No. 85.



Natural disasters like cyclones, more than the COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with lack of research on the conditions of the poor, threaten the well-being of small-time fishers in Mozambique, according to another piece in the issue.



The last six articles in SAMUDRA Report No. 85 focus on social development and sustainable fisheries in Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Costa Rica, India, The Philippines and Thailand.



The current issue also carries a review of the much-lauded Pecheurs du Monde film festival in Lorient, France, which had to virtually reinvent itself to produce a rich and intense experience of visual delight.



The Roundup section of SAMUDRA Report No. 85 carries news snippets, event announcements, briefings on fishery-related matters, and more.



SAMUDRA Report No. 85, May 2021 can be accessed at:

https://www.icsf.net/en/samudra/article/EN/85.html?limitstart=0



ICSF is an international NGO that works towards the establishment of equitable, gender-just,self-reliant and sustainable fisheries, particularly in the small-scale, artisanal sector.



For more, please visit www.icsf.net

 2021 ICSF

Theme(s): Fisheries Resources, Communities and Organisations, Freshwater ecosystems and threats, Fishing Craft, Gear and Fishing Methods, Others, Post Harvest Technology and Trade, Fisheries Development and Aquaculture, Landing Centres, Coastal Ecosystems and Threats.
Bid by Bahamas to block foreign fishermen ban fails

by NEIL HARTNELL

June 23,2021 | Source: The Tribune

Top fisheries processors, boat owners and foreign workers in the Bahamas have lost their bid to block the Fisheries Acts implementation despite arguing it would cause the possible collapse or bankruptcy of their businesses.



#Justice Indra Charles, in her ruling yesterday, said that granting the groups request for an injunction to halt the Acts enforcement would cripple Parliament and the governments ability to make and pass laws for the peace, order and good government of the country.



#Her verdict thus gives the go-ahead to today implement an Act that bars foreigners from working in the Bahamian fisheries sector. However, Justice Charles said the way remains clear for the exporters, boat owners and others behind the action to challenge the new law on constitutional grounds now it has been enforced on June 22, 2021.



#Major wholesalers, including Geneva Brass Seafood, Paradise Fisheries, Fish Farmers and Audleys Seafood, had teamed with boat-owning corporate entities and two Dominican fishermen working legally in this nation, together with their Bahamian wives, to challenge the Fisheries Act and accompanying Immigration reforms on the basis that they are unconstitutional and discriminatory.



#While Paradise Fisheries subsequently appears to have been removed as a plaintiff, the remaining members of the alliance and their attorney, Alfred Sears QC, the former attorney general, had initially sought a permanent injunction from the Supreme court to prevent the government from implementing provisions in the new Acts that they deem offensive.



#Their case, in particular, focused on sections 31 and 32 of the Fisheries Act, which bar foreign fishermen - even those in The Bahamas legally with work and spousal permits, or permanent residency - from working on Bahamian-owned fishing vessels.



#However, Justice Charles ruled that Mr Sears and his clients had failed to show the matter was sufficiently exceptional or unusual to warrant the courts intervention - and interference with Parliaments legislative functions - at this early stage of the case.



#Expanding on an earlier oral ruling she gave on June 11, 2021, she noted that the two Dominican fishermen - Morazan Zuniga Jackson and Jaime Reynaldo Perez - were both the breadwinners for their respective families being married to Bahamian citizens and possessing permanent residency status with no restrictions on their right to work.



#The duo were employed as professional divers by the commercial fishing entities that have joined them as plaintiffs in the case, which alleges that the Fisheries Act and associated legal reforms violate numerous provisions of the Bahamian constitution. They are also charging that they breach multiple United Nations (UN) and other treaties/conventions that The Bahamas has ratified.



#The pivotal grievance of Mr Jackson and Mr Perez is that since they are not Bahamian citizens, when the Acts are passed on 22 June, 2021, their right to work in The Bahamas as commercial fishing divers will be infringed, Justice Charles wrote. They say that they hold spousal permits or permanent residency certificates, which give them an unrestricted right to work as commercial fishing divers.



#Now, according to them, that right will be taken away on 22 June, 2021 and, as such, the Acts contravene various articles of the constitution and their unrestricted right to work derived from their spousal permits/residential certificates.



#Mr Sears argued that the case raises serious questions regarding discrimination, constitutional breaches and the right of the two fishermen to work. It also, he added, involved issues concerning whether Geneva Brass Seafood and the other companies were being discriminated against and their reasonable expectation to continue to contract the Dominican duo for the benefit of their businesses.



#He argued that with respect to Mrs Johnson and Mrs Perez, because of the absolute prohibition of their husbands from engaging in their profession as commercial fishing divers, the prohibition will in effect be an arbitrary and unlawful interference with the family life of Bahamian wives and their foreign husbands, Justice Charles said of Mr Sears arguments.



#Mr Sears QC further submitted that Mr Jackson and Mr Perez, as holders of spousal permits or permanent residency certificates, are being deprived of their reasonable expectation to continue to practice their profession as commercial fishing divers in The Bahamas, in breach of their constitutional right to due process and the secure protection of the law.



#However, Luana Ingraham, representing the Attorney Generals Office, rejected Mr Sears assertions by arguing that his clients claim was frivolous and vexatious, and they have failed to prove that their fundamental rights are likely to be infringed with the passing of the Acts.



#While the two Dominicans and their families, together with their employers, would be adversely affected... the Parliament of The Bahamas has made the economic choice that the benefit of the fishing quota should go to genuine Bahamian citizens. And Ms Ingraham argued that the Acts reserved fishing for Bahamian citizens, and so restrict not only Mr Jackson and Mr Perez but everyone who is not a citizen of The Bahamas.



#In any event, says Ms Ingraham, if the Acts are proved to be discriminatory, which the respondents aver they are not, a claim of discrimination does not apply to persons who are not citizens of The Bahamas. Therefore, Mr Jackson and Mr Perezs application must fail. These are powerful arguments, Justice Charles noted.



#Mr Sears argued that passage of the two Acts into law today would cause irreversible prejudice to the two Dominicans by preventing them from earning a living in their chosen profession, but Justice Charles said they have not been deprived of their right to reside and work in The Bahamas.



#The former attorney general also argued that if the injunction was not granted then his clients will face irreparable harm that cannot be remedied by adequate damages.



#The harm includes possible collapse or bankruptcy of their businesses, interruption of third-party contracts, loss of good will and damage to their reputation and creditworthiness, insufficient income to take care of their family, loss of mortgages and the frustration of the desire to maintain marital and family relationships and marital home in The Bahamas, Justice Charles added.



#However, she determined that the Government - despite its present fiscal crisis - has the necessary financial resources to cover any damages should their constitutional claim succeed later. Justice Charles said their ability to bring such a case once the Acts are enforced was a key factor in deciding not to grant the injunction.



#The Applicants have not demonstrated to me that there are any exceptional or unusual circumstances which justified the courts interference with the enforcement of the Acts, she ruled. Presently, there is no exceptional or unusual circumstance which exists for the court to interfere with the legislative process of preventing the Acts from being passed.



#The law is clear that the court should, as far as possible, avoid interfering with the pre-enactment legislative process for to do so would be tantamount to meddling in the affairs of the Parliament. Undoubtedly, such challenges would not only open the floodgates for a litany of unmeritorious actions but, more importantly, they would cripple the executive from passing laws for the peace, order and good government of the country.



#The court does not have jurisdiction to prevent Parliament from making and passing legislation since it is within their purview to do so. The court, as the guardian of the constitution, is charged with the responsibility to interpret and apply enacted laws. Except for that function, the duty of the courts is to administer Acts of Parliaments, not to question them. Our democracy is predicated upon the doctrine of separation of powers.



#Tribune Business previously revealed how the Fisheries Act, and its bar on foreign fishermen working on Bahamian-owned vessels, has caused a split in the fisheries industry. The Coalition For Responsible Fishing (CFRF), a group representing major fisheries wholesalers, processors and exporters, warned that up to $8m would be lost, and some 1,000 persons hurt, if the reforms went through.



#It argued that preventing foreigners working on locally-owned boats in any capacity would result in the unemployment of hundreds of Bahamians at a time when the country could least afford it. The groups October 25, 2020, position paper warned that more fisheries businesses will fail without significant amounts of experienced skilled labour that are presently not available in The Bahamas.



#Arguing that trained potters and divers, in particular, were in short supply, the Coalition warned that the ban on expatriate labour proposed under the Fisheries Bill 2020 was counter-productive and could result in the loss of millions of dollars of export-driven foreign currency earnings just when The Bahamas needed every cent it could get following COVID-19s devastation.



#However, the National Fisheries Association (NFA) said it fully endorsed an Act that represents the will of the majority of law-abiding Bahamian fishermen and puts Bahamians first as the stewards and managers of the fisheries sector.

 Copyright 2021 Ellington. All rights reserved.

Theme(s): Fishing Craft, Gear and Fishing Methods.
France threatens Britain with retaliation for preventing fishermen from reaching fishing grounds

by MEGAN NUNEZ

France threatened the United Kingdom with retaliation to prevent French fishermen from accessing certain fishing grounds.



Maritime Minister Annick Girardin spoke at the National Assembly about the French governments response to the denial of access to British waters. On the Brexit deal Revenge is expected. We are ready to take advantage of it. As for the island of Jersey, let me remind you that France sends electricity through submarine cables. If necessary, we will take appropriate action  assured the Minister.



The politician expressed his dissatisfaction with the decisions of the British authorities issued on April 30 Limited fishing licenses near Jersey. This sparked protests by fishermen who were prevented from doing their normal work.



Earlier, France called on the European Union to take decisive action to persuade Britain to abide by its Brexit trade deal. It stipulates that the French may continue to fish in British waters, provided they obtain a license from the British authorities. However, so far A large percentage of French fishermen have not yet obtained such a permit.

 2020 R&R Magazine (www.randrlife.co.uk) Rest and Relax

Theme(s): Post Harvest Technology and Trade.
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A company's core values inevitably take on extra importance during difficult times. Zoom, the videoconferencing platform that became arguably the most important online tool of the pandemic, is a prime example. Almost overnight, Zoom became more than just another remote meeting app; it connected families and allowed millions of businesses to function normally.

During Inc.'s Purpose Power Summit 2021 stream event on June 15, Roxana Shirkhoda, Zoom's head of social impact, discussed how to make sure a company's values serve as a guide during times of uncertainty.

Zoom CEO Eric Yuan "made it incredibly clear to employees last year that this isn't a time to try and reassemble our business or create some fancy marketing plan," Shirkhoda said. Instead, she added, Yuan stressed that it was time to care for communities and recognize that Zoom's videoconferencing solution was connecting people who couldn't see their family members, attend weddings or birthdays, or visit loved ones in the hospital.

Shirkhoda said that employees were encouraged by the knowledge their company was playing such an important role during the pandemic. During Zoom's biweekly all-hands meetings, for instance, they would share stories from customers.

"I think that sense of purpose and seeing the deep impact of our work and our platform on hundreds of millions of people around the world really helped folks push through," she said. "People showed up, day in and day out, to ensure that our platform was working seamlessly."

Internal chat groups also helped rally employees around Zoom's mission. Shirkhoda said that some groups would feature close to 5,000 employees, with many sharing examples of how the company's work impacted others. She advised other companies to think about how to foster a similar sense of connection.
Small and minority-owned businesses had a brutal year and a half; a new survey shows that consumers around the world--especially younger ones--tried to help out.

Marketing and research firms Sendinblue and Cite Research--based respectively in Paris and Raleigh, North Carolina--released the results of an online poll of 4,199 global consumers taken in June 2021, showing that consumers are prioritizing buying from smaller and minority-owned businesses.

Forty-four percent of total respondents said they worked harder to shop small than before the pandemic, and 31 percent of U.S. consumers said they purchased more from minority-owned businesses in the past 12 months. And younger people powered the trend, the survey says: Forty-six percent of the Generation-Z consumers and 51 percent of the Millennials surveyed said they increased small-business buys.

Of those who said they tried to shop more with minority-owned outfits, African American consumers were the most likely to report having done so intentionally. That was followed by U.S. consumers overall and high-income shoppers.

The top driver globally for people who bought more from small businesses was "contributing to the local economy," followed by feeling a greater bond with small businesses.

Whether the affected businesses did anything special to appeal to consumers is unclear, though the study showed that those deploying marketing communications via email fared well. While Generation-Z consumers tended to prefer Instagram, 27 percent of people reported using email more frequently during the global health crisis. Consumers further reported their top desired feature for small-business e-commerce is free shipping, followed by a wider selection.
The effectiveness of the governments culture recovery fund has been called into question by a new report highlighting how music festivals are currently teetering on the brink of collapse.

The Public Accounts Committee is calling for better support for live music events, which are in peril for a second year due to the lack of government-backed insurance in the event of pandemic-related cancellations.

Concerns were also raised about whether freelancers and supply chains that are essential to the culture sector have been able to access support from the fund.

In March, The Independent reported how many freelance workers in the live music industry such as tour managers and sound technicians had been forced to take on jobs as shelf-stackers in supermarkets to make ends meet.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak announced the 1.57bn support package, dubbed the Culture Recovery Fund, in July 2020. Its primary goal was to rescue 75 per cent of arts, culture and heritage institutions in the UK during lockdown.

While the committee acknowledged the departments efforts to support cultural organisations, it pointed out that there is a survival threat faced by Britains summer music festivals. In the past few months, Glastonbury, Download, Kendal Calling and Boomtown have all been forced to cancel their plans to go ahead in 2021.

The government has ignored repeated calls to implement an insurance scheme so festivals have a safety net should they be forced to cancel due to Covid.

In May, culture secretary Dowden told a DCMS committee meeting that the idea of a government-backed insurance scheme would only be explored once further lockdown restrictions lift, which will not be until 19 July, after Stage 4 of the governments roadmap out of lockdown was delayed.

With the original 19 June date in mind, Conservative MP Heather Wheeler said this would likely be all too late for organisers due to the months of planning required for festivals to take place.

This would have been a very cheap deal to have been done, because the government are confident that 21 June is D-Day... in which case, you didnt need to spend any money on insurance, she said. But its too late for the planning for so many of these summer festivals. Its just too late.

Weve probably lost another summer, she added.

Insurance companies are currently refusing to cover Covid-related cancellations, meaning festivals face massive financial losses and even risk bankruptcy if they are forced to cancel last-minute.

Meg Hillier MP, Chair of the Public Accounts Committee, said in the report: The pandemic has exposed just how poorly departments across Government understand the sectors that they oversee. DCMS was clear that it would not save every organisation but we are concerned about the impact of Covid-19 on those organisations vital to the culture sector  sound engineers, lighting and technical support.

The government must urgently consider support other than cash, such as insurance indemnity or parts of the sector risk as second summer of forced inactivity with all the devastating consequences to their survival.

Ms Hillier said that the sector, known for making the show go on, had been hammered by the pandemic and brought almost to a complete standstill for most of the past 15 months.

If the pandemic is allowed to steal a significant part of our creative and cultural sector it will have impoverished us indeed, she said.

The committee is recommending that the department should respond to its report within three months with details of how it plans to secure longer-term value for money with the cultural recovery fund, and what it intends to do to support overlooked members of the industry, such as festivals and freelance workers.

The Independent has contacted the DCMS for comment.
Former Drake & Josh actor Drake Bell has pleaded guilty to attempted child endangerment.

Bell pleaded guilty on Wednesday via Zoom to felony attempted endangering children, as well as a misdemeanor charge of disseminating matter harmful to juveniles.

According to the Associated Press, the charges are related to a girl he met online, who attended one of his concerts in 2017 in Cleveland at the age of 15.

His sentencing has been scheduled for 12 July in Cleveland.

Defence attorney Ian Friedman told the AP on Wednesday that why Mr Bell chose to enter todays plea will be revealed at sentencing.

Bell, whose legal name is Jared Drake Bell, originally pleaded not guilty in the case. His indictment was announced earlier this month.

He could face probation or up to two years in prison at sentencing.

Bell starred in Drake & Josh, a Nickelodeon sitcom, between 2004 and 2007. He portrayed Drake Parker, while Josh Peck played Parkers stepbrother Josh Nichols.

Additional reporting by the Associated Press
A woman says she was forced to accept a free T-shirt while visiting Disney World Florida because her outfit was deemed inappropriate.

Alyssa Schueller, from Ohio, posted about the ordeal on TikTok, receiving almost 4 million views. In the video, she is seen wearing a cropped bodysuit that exposed part of her midriff as she is escorted to a merchandise store by a Disney worker.

Getting escorted to a free shirt because mine isnt appropriate, she wrote in the caption. The Disney worker then writes her a voucher, before giving Schueller a free yellow T-shirt.

As per Disneys dress code, clothing which, by nature, exposes excessive portions of the skin that may be viewed as inappropriate for a family environment should not be worn at its parks.

It said it reserves the right to deny admission or remove a person who is wearing attire that fits this description.

The video has been inundated with comments from TikTok users, who largely agreed that they dont see anything wrong with her outfit.

Commenting after the incident, Schueller said there was a lack of consistency between different Disney parks on their dress code policies.

I was at Animal Kingdom all morning without an issue. Went to Epcot and this happened. Went back to Animal Kingdom and had no issue once again, she said. If Disney wants to endorse a dress code then they need to do just that, she added.

The incident comes after another woman, Amanda Dimeo shared a hack for receiving free merchandise at Disney on TikTok in May.

In a video that has been viewed more than 27 million times, Dimeo told her followers: If youre wearing a shirt which shows a little underboob, they will write you a ticket so you can get a free shirt at the nearest gift shop. I just got a $75 t-shirt.

Schueller said she had not seen Dimeos video before her visit to the park.

The Independent has contacted Walt Disney World Resort for comment.
Afghanistan's is racing to ramp up supplies of oxygen as a deadly third surge of COVID-19 worsens, a senior health official told The Associated Press in an interview Saturday.

The government is installing oxygen supply plants in 10 provinces where the increase in COVID cases in some areas is hovering around 65%, health ministry spokesman Ghulam Dasigi Nazary said.

By WHO recommendations, anything higher than 5% shows officials arent testing widely enough, allowing the virus to spread unchecked. Afghanistan carries out barely 4,000 tests a day and often much less.

Afghanistan's 24-hour infection count has also continued its upward climb from 1,500 at the end of May when the health ministry was already calling the surge a crisis, to more than 2,300 this week. Since the pandemic outbreak, Afghanistan is reporting 101,906 positive cases and 4,122 deaths. But those figures are likely a massive undercount, registering only deaths in hospitals  not the far greater numbers who die at home.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan received 900 oxygen cylinders from Iran on Saturday, part of 3,800 cylinders Tehran promised to deliver to Kabul last week. The shipment was delayed by Iran's presidential elections, said Nazary.

Afghanistan has even run out of empty cylinders, receiving a delivery of 1,000 last week from Uzbekistan.

Meanwhile hospitals are rationing their oxygen supplies. Afghans desperate for oxygen are banging on the doors of the few oxygen suppliers in the Afghan capital, begging for their empty cylinders to be filled for COVID infected loved ones at home.

Abdul Wasi, whose wife has been sick for nearly 10 days, has been waiting four days for one 45-liter cylinder to be filled at the Najb Siddiqi oxygen plant in east Kabul. Scores of mostly men were banging on the 10-foot steel gate of the oxygen plant. Some rolled their empty oxygen cylinders up against the gate, while others waved small slips of paper carrying the number of their cylinder inside the plant, waiting to be filled.

Wasi said there were no hospital beds for his wife, whose oxygen level hovers around 70-80%. They are rationing her, he said giving her small amounts of oxygen when it drops to around 45 -50%.
Daid al-Kamel was visiting a neighbour when the first round of Grad rockets struck. The frail 60-year-old was not hit, but the impact knocked her out, and when she came to, she was in a state of shock.

Another neighbour took her to the emergency room at nearby Al-Shifaa Hospital, where the injured from the 12 June attack in the northeastern Syrian city of Afrin had been taken. Her 33-year-old son Abdullah had just arrived to attend to her when the second round of rockets landed on them.

Suddenly, the emergency room became a cauldron of smoke, dust, human flesh and twisted metal. The kind neighbour who had brought Daid to the hospital lay dead. One of the wounded screamed at nurse Abdullah Wanusah for help. But the 25-year-old, who had survived several attacks on hospitals in the eastern suburbs of Damascus before being displaced to Afrin in 2018, was also wounded in the head and covered in blood.

Look at me, he recalls saying to her, while being treated for shrapnel wounds at another hospital. I cannot help you.

The rocket attacks on Saturday in the northeast city of Afrin left at least 20 people dead and scores more injured.

The authorities of the Turkish-protected pocket of northwest Syria blamed the attack on the Syrian Democratic Forces, the Kurdish-led militia that controlled the area until it was wrested from them in a 2018 war.

But the SDF has vehemently denied responsibility for the attack on the hospital, which is funded in part by the United States charity, the Syrian American Medical Society. It was among hundreds of bombings of hospitals and clinics mostly carried out by the Syrian regime and its Russian patrons over the last decade of war.

Ali Ali, 21, was among dozens injured in a rocket attack while visiting the hospital in Afrin (Borzou Daragahi)

The SDF categorically denies that any of its forces were responsible for or involved in the tragic attack [on the] hospital in Afrin, Mazloum Abdi, commander of the western-backed force that controls much of northeast Syria, said in a note posted to Twitter. We are deeply saddened by the loss of innocent life. We condemn the attack without reservation. Targeting hospitals is a violation of international law.

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Turkish authorities organised a brief, rare visit to Afrin to visit the bombed-out and now shuttered hospital site for The Independent and the France 24 television network, transporting us into the city and to the hospital in a small convoy of armoured vehicles.

Both Ankara and the Syrian political and security leadership say they believe the SDF was responsible for the attack, noting that the group controls the Tal Rifaat pocket just to the other side of an adjacent mountain. They describe repeated rocket attacks on Afrin, which SDF claims as a canton of its quasi-state, called Rojava. Al-Shifaa is next to a major security installation that is staffed by former Syrian rebel fighters and Turkish security advisers.

Colonel Mohammed al-Hossein, of the Afrin police, assesses the damage done by a 12 June rocket attack on Al-Shifaa Hospital (Borzou Daragahi)

This is not the first time the [SDF] attacks this area, says Mohammed Sheikh-Rashid, head of the local municipal council. They have often attacked the area around the hospital, but never the hospital itself.

Syrian regime forces and allied Iranian-backed Shia militias also lie within rocket range.

Its survivors paint a horrific picture. One rocket struck the triage and emergency annex where patients from the previous attack in the nearby neighbourhood were waiting, along with others seeking medical assistance.

Another hit the delivery room. Among those killed was a woman giving birth to a child and another in labour and waiting to deliver. Both their unborn infants were also killed, as was a midwife serving in the ward.

A child in a wheelchair at the hospital was killed. Among the gruesome finds in the rubble during the visit on Monday was a childs jaw fragment presumed to have been from one of the dead.

Ahlam Aarabi is a 31-year-old nurse who was on duty at the maternity ward when she was summoned to the emergency room to help with the injured and dying from the first attack. Suddenly, it was dark and dust rose around us, she recalls. When I opened my eyes all I could see was flesh. It was horrible, terrifying what I saw.

The badly damaged maternity ward at Al-Shifaa Hospital (Borzou Daragahi)

Ibrahim Khatib, the 40-year-old manager of the hospitals food outlet, hustled his traumatised 11-year-old son Qusay to safety in the main hospital building before rushing to rescue the wounded. I saw body parts on the ground, he recalls.

Kamel and her son are still haunted by the blast that left them with burns, shrapnel wounds, and broken limbs at the main Afrin hospital. They fled to Afrin from Idlib last year, hoping to escape the advancing Syrian regime forces.

Last night I dreamt of the dead man who saved me, and I was back in that horrible place, she says from her hospital bed.

The attack on the hospital is being seen by Turkish authorities and their allies as an attempt to undermine what they describe as progress in providing services and improved quality of life in Afrin. Unlike other Syrian areas, including those under the control of the regime, Afrin receives 24 hours of electricity and has running water. New roadways have been built by Turkish contractors. There are signs of nascent commercial activity.

Ahlam Aarabi, 31, a nurse at Al-Shifaa Hospital, recalls panicked dreadful moments when rockets struck (Borzou Daragahi)

Al-Shifaa hospital was renovated and reopened in 2018, supplementing the main Afrin hospital where Covid patients are treated.

The attempted regeneration of the region is in part a counter-insurgency strategy. Ankara does not want the SDF to win the support of locals. The group is affiliated with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which is deemed a terrorist organisation by Turkey and has been at war with the Turkish state since the 1990s.

Turkey also hopes that improving the quality of life in Afrin and other areas of Syria under its control, including Tal Abyad and Azaz, will draw the return of some of the 3.5 million Syrian refugees living in Turkey.

Many of those living and working in Afrin, including those wounded and killed in the attack, came from other parts of Syria, transported by the infamous green buses the regime uses to relocate those living in areas it has recaptured.

They want to send a message that you cannot live safely here, that you cannot live with security here, that you cannot live without fear Mohammed Sheikh-Rashid, the municipal council chief in Afrin

The SDF and independent human rights groups have accused Turkish authorities and their local Syrian affiliates of social engineering, pushing out ethnic Kurds from Afrin in order to make way for Syrians displaced by the war.

People from other parts of Syria came here and took the empty houses, one pharmacist in Afrin acknowledges.

But others say any human rights abuses took place only in the chaotic early weeks after the capture of Afrin. Sheikh-Rashid, the municipal council chief, noted that he was an ethnic Kurd, and accused the SDF of attempting to undermine the progress that he believes has been made in Afrin.

If they want to fight there is a front line and we have armies and we can fight, he says. But they want to kill as many civilians as possible. They want to send a message that you cannot live safely here, that you cannot live with security here, that you cannot live without fear.
Iran alleged yet another attempted attack on one of its nuclear installations even as international talks to roll back its atomic research and development programmes reached a crucial juncture.

Iranian news websites described an alleged act of sabotage that was thwarted Wednesday morning at a facility belonging to Irans Atomic Energy Organisation.

A report by the Nour news website, which is affiliated with Irans all-important Supreme National Security Council, did not identify the facility. But other news organisations suggested it was a research facility dating back to the 1970s, located just to the west of the capital, Tehran. Social media accounts described a possible attempt to infiltrate the facility using an aerial drone.

No casualties or damage were reported.

Due to measures taken beforehand for protecting buildings belonging to the Atomic Energy Organisation, this mornings act was foiled before damaging the building, said the report by Nour. Those behind the sabotage failed to carry out their plan.

The purported attack came just days after a mysterious shutdown of Irans 1,000MW Russian-built Bushehr nuclear plant, which rests on the northern edge of the Persian Gulf.

Meanwhile, world powers are preparing to gather in Vienna, along with Iran, in an effort to revive a deal to limit the countrys nuclear programme. The deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), was forged in 2015 by Tehran, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, China and Russia.

Irans chief negotiator Abbas Araqchi was quoted by state media as saying that he had briefed both incumbent president Hassan Rouhani and president-elect Ebrahim Raisi ahead of another round of discussions. He added that the Supreme National Security Council, a body which includes supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other leaders of the regime, may decide on whether to return to the deal at an emergency meeting.

Mr Raisi, who was elected Irans next president on Friday, told reporters over the weekend that he was open to the restoration of the deal but rejected the possibility of follow-on negotiations to prolong it, or the inclusion of Irans missile programme or support for militias.

German foreign minister Heiko Maas said on Wednesday that several technical issues needed to be resolved, but sounded upbeat about the restoration of the deal.

They arent easy  thats been clear in recent weeks, he said during a joint press conference with US secretary of state Antony Blinken. Nevertheless we are moving forward step by step in every round of negotiations, and we assume that in the context of the presidential election, theres a good chance to conclude them in the foreseeable future.

In a move that has rankled Tehran, US officials seized 33 websites operated by Iranian and affiliated news outlets, effectively preventing them from being accessed via the internet. They included Irans English-language Press TV, Arabic-language al-Alam, websites run by Iraqi Shia militias, and al-Masirah, a news outlet run by Yemens pro-Iranian Houthi rebels. The US Justice Department said the closures were pursuant to a court order. It described the websites as disinformation campaigns and malign influence operations that were disguised as news organisations or media outlets.

One Iranian official described the confiscation of the domain names as out of line with the spirit of the JCPOA.

This wrong policy of America seems to be unconstructive at a time when the JCPOA is being negotiated, Mahmoud Vaezi, of the Iranian presidents office, was quoted as saying.

The nuclear deal was negotiated by US president Barack Obama and scuttled by Donald Trump, prompting the Iranians to begin upping the output and purity of fissile material that could be used for an atomic weapon.

President Joe Biden vowed in his 2020 campaign to return to the deal as a way to rein in Irans nuclear programme, as well as a step towards addressing its other activities.

We know that as Iran has distanced itself from the nuclear deal, as it has galloped forward with its own nuclear program, our other concerns have not gotten any better, US State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters in Washington on Tuesday. In many cases, they have actually gotten worse.
The controversial decision to scrap a dedicated government department has had a negative effect on overseas aid spending, an official watchdog found.

Bringing overseas aid within the Foreign Office slowed down moves to boost the impact of billions of pounds worth of investment and assure value for money for the taxpayer, a report published today warns.

There was widespread outcry when Boris Johnsons government announced plans to scrap the Department for International Development (Dfid) last June.

Experts warned the move would hit the worlds poorest just as they were facing the challenge of fighting the coronavirus pandemic.

But foreign secretary Dominic Raab pledged that the move would make aid spending more effective.

He said he wanted to improve transparency and accountability and relentlessly focus on areas that would deliver the most value.

In its report the Independent Commission for Aid (Icai) warned that the merger, as well as a subsequent announcement that the UK planned to slash its overseas aid budget in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis, had held back progress.

Icais chief commissioner, Dr Tamsyn Barton, said: On the one hand, we have seen impressive improvements as a result of ICAIs engagement with organisations delivering UK aid.

However, we have also observed that the turbulence created by Covid-19 and two associated processes of major cuts to programmes, together with the merger of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office with the Department for International Development, have set back progress which was under way last year.

She added: A cause for concern in this context has been a reduction in open engagement in the follow-up process. While it may be that this is a result of overload at an exceptionally busy time, transparency is key to learning, and given the increased focus on ICAIs role in enabling UK aid to learn and improve, it is more important than ever before.

The report was part of a follow up process by the Icai, checking on progress one year on from a series of recommendations it made for improvements. Dr Barton said: Since we found inadequate progress... we will return next year in the hope of seeing a more encouraging picture.

Earlier this year the Icai cast doubt on the governments claim to be slashing aid to China by 95 per cent, saying that only a fraction of the budget was being cut.

An FCDO spokesperson said: "We are committed to full transparency, and throughout the pandemic have continued to publish our aid spending for each project online so anyone can see it.

The seismic impact of the pandemic meant we focused resources towards our Covid-19 response to help the most vulnerable. We have provided documents and information to ICAI as part of their follow up review and continue to focus on maintaining spending transparency."
Stars from Radiohead, Blur and The Chemical Brothers have joined a new campaign urging Boris Johnson to fix the touring crisis caused by his Brexit deal.

They are among more than 200 artists demanding help with the daunting barriers  costly visas and work permits, plus equipment red tape  that have put one of UKs finest exports at risk.

In January, the prime minister vowed to solve the crisis but, as The Independent revealed in April, no meaningful talks have taken place and no progress has been made.

Anger was fuelled when Oliver Dowden, the culture secretary, boasted about a deal to rescue visa-free music tours to tiny Liechtenstein  the agreement the UK rejected for the 27-nation EU.

Now the #LetTheMusicMove campaign aims to pile on pressure to end the stalemate and secure financial support for a sector reeling from the twin blows of Covid and leaving the EU.

David Rowntree, the drummer with Blur, said the Britpop band would have been denied the opportunity to tour the EU if the obstacles put up now had existed in the 1990s.

We just jumped on a ferry with no restrictions for us or our gear. If we were starting out today trying to do the same, we simply wouldnt be able to afford it.

The UK government has to take this issue seriously and support touring artists. The future of British music is at stake.

Simone Butler, the bass player with Primal Scream, said: To make it financially and logistically unrealistic to do shows and festivals will be halting the livelihoods and careers of generations of musicians.

And the rock band Skunk Anansie said: After the extreme financial impact of the pandemic, touring can and will be the lifesaver for many bands, artists, and crews. We need action.

Other well-known artists backing the campaign include Bob Geldof, Annie Lennox, Mark Knopfler, Midge Ure, Annie Lennox, New Order, Anna Calvi, Peggy Seeger and Portisheads Beth Gibbons and Pink Floyds Nick Mason.

Launched by the Music Managers Forum and the Featured Artists Coalition, it raises the alarm over:

* The logistical nightmare of musicians and their teams requiring visas and work permits far in advance.

* A three-stop limit on touring vehicles before they must return home from the EU  making the majority of tours that start in the UK impossible.

* A hugely expensive goods passport  a carnet  including a bond for instruments and equipment.

In January, Mr Johnson told MPs that David Frost was in charge of the crisis, but his Brexit negotiator has handed the baton to Mr Dowden, the culture secretary.

This is a DCMS [Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport] lead, Frost told the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee.

The peers responsibility was to maximise the trade-offs if a particular country might be willing to ease some paperwork, and if there was anything else they want from us, he said.

Mr Dowden has claimed that 17 of the 27 EU countries have taken steps to reduce costs and red tape  but has refused to release any details.

A government spokesman said: We recognise the difficulties still being faced by the sector.

That is why we are working closely with individual member states to encourage them to adopt a more flexible approach.
John McAfee, the founder of antivirus company McAfee, has been found dead in a Spanish prison near Barcelona, reports say.

He reportedly died by suicide on Wednesday afternoon in a prison cell, just hours after a preliminary ruling by the Spanish High Court authorized his extradition to the United States on charges of tax evasion.

The Catalan justice department confirmed in a statement that the likely cause of death is suicide, Reuters reported.

Employees at the Brians 2 penitentiary tried to revive the 75-year-old Mr McAfee but were unsuccessful, according to a statement cited by Spanish newspaper El Mundo and reporting by the Associated Press.

According to the newspaper El Pais, the software entrepreneur was arrested in October and was awaiting extradition to the US when he was found dead.

The paper added that police are investigating the circumstances surrounding his death.

Mr McAfee had been charged with several federal financial crimes in two US districts. In the Western District of Tennessee, Mr McAfee was indicted in October on ten counts of allegedly evading taxes on millions of dollars of income.

In a Manhattan federal court in March, he was charged for a scheme involving cryptocurrency, which he was pushing on social media.

The charges carried a prison sentence of up to 30 years.

A statement from the regional Catalan government didnt identify the American tycoon by name but said he was a 75-year-old US citizen awaiting extradition to the country.

A Catalan government source familiar with the event who was not authorized to be named in media reports confirmed to the AP that the dead man was Mr McAfee.

Tennessee prosecutors charged Mr McAfee with evading taxes after he failed to report income made from promoting cryptocurrencies while he did consultancy work, as well as income from speaking engagements and selling the rights to his life story for a documentary.

The charges refer to the three fiscal years from 2016 to 2018, according to the Spanish courts Wednesday ruling.

The entrepreneur was arrested last October at Barcelonas international airport. A judge ordered at that time that McAfee should be held in jail while awaiting the outcome of a hearing on extradition.

In a hearing held via videolink earlier this month, Mr McAfee argued that the charges against him were politically motivated and said he would spend the rest of his life in prison if he was returned to the US.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Nearly 4,000 fully vaccinated people in Massachusetts have tested positive for Covid-19, according to state health officials.

As of 12 June there had been 3,791 cases among more than 3.7m fully vaccinated people in the state, data from the Department of Public Health shows.

That means that around one in 1,000 fully vaccinated people in Massachusetts are still becoming infected despite getting their shots.

Were learning that many of the breakthrough infections are asymptomatic or theyre very mild and brief in duration, Boston University infectious diseases specialist Davidson Hamer told The Boston Herald.

The viral load is not very high. Breakthroughs are expected, and we need to better understand whos at risk and whether people who have a breakthrough can transmit the virus to others, he continued.

In some cases, theyll be shedding such low levels of the virus and wont be transmitting to others.

The Centers for Disease Control has stated that the three vaccines available in the US prevent most people from getting the virus.

But the CDC has also recognised that there will be a small percentage of fully vaccinated people who still get sick, are hospitalised, or die from Covid-19.

Data shows that Moderna and Pfizers vaccines are around 90 per cent effective against infection, two weeks after the final dose.

And the one-shot Johnson & Johnson shot is 72 per cent effective in preventing moderate to severe cases of Covid-19.

All three vaccines completely prevent hospitalisations and deaths, according to their trial results.

The CDC says that more than 150m Americans are now fully vaccinated, and more than 65 per cent of adults in the country have had at least one dose.

More than 33.5m Americans have tested positive for Covid-19, and 602,000 people have died during the pandemic.
Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, reportedly called House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to warn her away from "rushed" antitrust bills moving through the House.

The New York Times reported that Mr Cook called Ms Pelosi and other members of Congress to warn them that the antitrust bills were being "rushed" and that they might hurt innovation and consumers by disrupting Apple's services.

Sources speaking with The Times said the CEO asked Ms Pelosi to delay the bills. She reportedly pushed back against Mr Cook and asked him to cite specific policies that would cause service or innovation disruptions.

Mr Cook is not the only one to try to dissuade Ms Pelosi away from supporting the antitrust legislation; members of her own party have expressed opposition to the regulatory measures. Those opponents have reportedly said that antitrust laws could damage the US economy.

The Daily Mail obtained a letter from Timothy Powderly, the Senior Director of Government Affairs, America at Apple, in which he told the House Judiciary Committe that several provisions in circulation would create a "race to the bottom" for security and privacy. and that they would be "undermining innovation and competition".

"Apple is concerned that current proposals would harm consumer privacy, device security, and innovation," he wrote.

The letter is one part of a network of lobbyists and think tanks funded by tech companies who have been pressuring Congressional lawmakers to reconsider antitrust legislation.

The bills have been popular across both political parties, which includes proponents at separate ends of the political spectrum like progressive Democratic Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal and Trump-imitating conservative Congressman Matt Gaetz.

While the bills have found support among populist lawmakers from either side of the political aisle, politicians from the corporations-to-Congress revolving door end of the spectrum have advised against antitrust legislation.

"The scope and impact of these bills could have a tremendous impact on the products and services many American consumers currently enjoy and the competitiveness of our innovation economy," the members of the New Democrat Coalition, which includes Congresswoman Suzan DelBene, a former Microsoft executive.

Amazon also weighed in on the legislation through its Public Policy account on Twitter.

"We believe they would have significant negative effects on the hundreds of thousands of American small and medium-sized businesses that sell in our store, and tens of millions of consumers who buy products from Amazon," the statement said.

Google's vice president of Government Affairs and Public Policy, Mark Isakowitz, also voiced caution concerning the legislation, claiming "American consumers and small businesses would be shocked at how these bills would break many of their favorite services."
The mayor of a small town in Colorado has declared that the Pledge of Allegiance will not be said at meetings, sparking anger from some residents and lawmakers.

Shane Fuhrman outlined his rationale at the town hall meeting in Silverton, a town with an estimated population of 550 people. It is believed that Mr Fuhrman has intended to get rid the tradition for some time. In the meeting, he justified his decision by saying it was causing threats and general divisiveness, according to a video of the meeting.

He said: Due to direct and indirect threats, inappropriate comments in and out of public meetings, and the general divisiveness this is creating in our community, we will not be doing the Pledge of Allegiance during Town of Silverton board of trustee meetings.

He did not go into detail about the threats that led to this decision, but in 2018 a meeting attendee was charged with verbally harassing another person present who opted not to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance.

Molly Barella, a trustee of the town expressed his displeasure with the decision: We already discussed this as a board, any other unilateral decisions we need to know about?

Mr Fuhrman retorted that he was exercising his mayoral authority by making this announcement, asking Ms Barella if there was something that doesnt permit me to do this? and if so, he asked her to bring it to his attention.

Ms Barella cited convention, saying the Pledge of Allegiance had been recited in meetings for a long time.

We all took an oath and we decided as a board it would be done, she added.

In a statement to KDVR, Ms Barella said Mr Fuhrmans choice scrap it went against her First Amendment rights.

Now Mayor Shane Fuhrman has made this a First Amendment rights issue. To tell members of the public, they are not allowed to say the Pledge of Allegiance during public comment, Ms Barella said.

She also told the news outlet that there had been a prior vote about the Pledge of Allegiance. It was carried out during a board meeting via Zoom in spring 2020, during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. A subsequent vote followed, that her side won narrowly; four votes for versus three against.

It is believed that she stood for the pledge regardless of Mr Fuhrmans ruling, alongside 10 other people. Mr Fuhrman called this out of order, according to reporting by The Journal newspaper.

They also reported that since 3 May, Mr Fuhrman and another unnamed member of the board had both refused to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance.

Conservative congresswoman Lauren Boebert weighed in on the mayors decision online when she posted video footage of the board meeting, calling it anti-American.

She wrote on Twitter, Silverton, COs Mayor unilaterally banned the Pledge of Allegiance at city meetings. Its hard to put into words what kind of anti-American disgrace this is. Mayor Fuhrman should resign and purchase a one-way ticket to China where he wont have worry about hearing the pledge!

She continued, Mayor Fuhrman should resign and purchase a one-way ticket to China where he wont have worry about hearing the pledge!
A small-town Republican official said he made an "honest error" by forging his recently deceased fathers signature to vote twice in the 2020 presidential election.

Edward Snodgrass, of Ohio, told NBC News he was "sleep-deprived and not thinking clearly" but that would not run away from taking responsibility for the apparent voter fraud.

The trustee of Porter township, population 1,800, did not confirm who he voted for but told the outlet it was not "just Trump voter fraud".

I was simply trying to execute a dying mans wishes, Mr Snodgrass said.

His father, Hiram Edward Snodgrass, died on 5 October last year at the age of 78, according to an obituary published in The Columbus Dispatch.

A day later, a mail-in ballot was delivered and Mr Snodgrass, who had power of attorney over his Parkinsons-suffering father, said he signed it among "a pile of other paperwork".

Special Prosecutor for Delaware County, David Homer, told NBC News that Mr Snodgrass is expected to plead guilty to a charge of falsification on 9 July as part of a plea agreement to receive three days in jail and a $500 fine.

The plea reduced the initial charge of illegal voting, a fourth-degree felony that carries a prison sentence of six months and a $5,000 fine.

Ive been doing this since the 1980s, and this is the first one Ive seen like this, Mr Homer told NBC.

It aint over till the guy pleads guilty and thats July the 9th."

According to court records cited by the outlet, the absentee ballot of Mr Snodgrasss father arrived on 15 October, or 10 days after he died. Mr Snodgrass, meanwhile, reportedly cast his own ballot eight days later.
Jared Kushner, Donald Trumps son-in-law, and former senior White House adviser, allegedly lashed out at a former official over the delay of a shipment of PPE during the onset of the pandemic, a report has said.

The Washington Post reports that a new book by journalists Yasmeen Abutaleb and Damian Paletta, featuring interviews with more 180 people, revealed the heated moment and other toxic behaviours within the administration.

Mr Kushner, who was at the time playing a prominent role in the administrations coronavirus response, allegedly lashed out at Robert Kadlec, former assistant secretary of Health and Human Services, in March.

You f***ing moron, Mr Kushner allegedly said to Mr Kadlec in a dispute over an order of 600 million masks that would not arrive until the beginning of summer: Well all be dead by June.

The senior adviser also purportedly threw his pen against the wall in frustration as he exploded in anger over the delay.

The book reportedly describes a host of such chaotic scenes from the Trump administrations handling of the pandemic, which has largely been criticised since the former president left office.

That was what the response had turned into: a toxic environment in which no matter where you turned, someone was ready to rip your head off or threatening to fire you, the authors write.

The book, titled Nightmare Scenario: Inside the Trump Administrations Response to the Pandemic That Changed History, is set to be released in at the end of June.

Mr Kushner has also confirmed to be working on his own memoir of his time in office expected for release in early 2020 which will touch on what happened behind closed doors, Broadside Books, the publisher, said.

Mr Trumps son-in-law was often the target of criticism for the administrations management of coronavirus having taken on such a central role in its handling amid a broad portfolio of other commitments across the White House.

The Independent has reached out to the Kushner company for comment regarding the report.
An Instagram account belonging to cybersecurity entrepreneur John McAfee posted a plain image of the letter Q, an apparent reference to the QAnon conspiracy theory, on Wednesday minutes after it was reported by multiple news organizations that Mr McAfee had been found dead by apparent suicide in his Spanish prison cell.

The post, which depicts a black, capital-letter Q on a white background, went up less than a half hour after English-language news services began reporting Mr McAfees death.

Mr McAfees death came after he received the news on Wednesday that his extradition to the US had been granted, where he was set to face charges of tax evasion. Catalan authorities said that his death appeared to be a suicide.

He faced a possible sentence of more than two decades in prison had he been convicted of the US tax charges, which stemmed from claims that he did not file tax returns between 2014 and 2018.

The QAnon conspiracy theory, which emerged under former President Donald Trumps term in the White House, speculated that the former president was waging a secret war against a global cabal of cannibalistic, Satan-worshipping Democratic pedophiles. The bizarre theory found believers among a sizable chunk of the former presidents fanbase throughout the 2020 election, and still remains prevalent today.

Mr McAfee himself was no stranger to conspiracy theories before his death and his Instagram account in 2019 posted an altered image depicting himself standing in front of Jeffrey Epstein, the multi-millionaire and convicted sex offender who was found dead in a Manhattan prison cell earlier that year, with authorities blaming suicide.

I never said Jeffrey Epstein was murdered. I said he didn't commit suicide. Not the same. Could be alive. Could have never existed. Maybe murdered. I dunno. I only know he didn't commit suicide, Mr McAfee wrote in that photos caption.

Supporters of the QAnon conspiracy theory were seen among the supporters of Mr Trump who stormed the US Capitol earlier this year in an attempt to block the certification of his election defeat.

Despite the courts ruling on Wednesday, Mr McAfees extradition to the US was not a certain prospect at the time of his death. The Spanish Council of Ministers had yet to approve his transfer to the US, and he remained able to appeal the decision.

A political gadfly and outspoken libertarian, Mr McAfee ran for president unsuccessfully in 2020, failing to capture the Libertarian Partys nomination.
Vice PresidentKamala Harris will visit the US-Mexico border next week for her first time as vice president.

She had come under increasing criticism from Republicans over the past few months after she was appointed by President Joe Biden to oversee his administrations handling of the situation at the border and the ongoing surge of northbound migration, due to her lack of physical visits to the border and facilities where migrants, particularly children, are being held.

Ms Harriss press secretary announced the trip in a statement on Wednesday. She will be accompanied by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for the trip.

Vice President Harris will travel to El Paso, Texas on Friday, June 25. She will be accompanied by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Earlier this year, the President asked the Vice President to oversee our diplomatic efforts to address the root causes of migration from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. As a part of this ongoing work, the Vice President traveled to Guatemala and Mexico earlier this month and will travel to El Paso on Friday, said Symone Sanders, the vice presidents press secretary.

Her visit to the border follows a multi-day trip to Guatemala and Mexico, where the vice president met with the countries respective leaders and vowed US support for anticorruption efforts and other work seen as necessary by the administration to address the underlying causes of US-bound Central American migration.

Ms Harris was defensive about her lack of visits to border facilities and migrant detention centres in interviews with reporters during the trip, responding derisively with and I haven't been to Europe," when NBCs Lester Holt noted that she had not yet visited the border.

Listen, I care about what's happening at the border," Ms Harris continued during the interview earlier in June. "I'm in Guatemala because my focus is dealing with the root causes of migration.

There may be some who think that that is not important, but it is my firm belief that if we care about what's happening at the border, we better care about the root causes and address them. And so that's what I'm doing.

The Biden administration has faced criticism in general from Republicans on the issue of immigration for months, many of whom are furious over the quick moves by Mr Biden in the early days of his presidency to roll back policies put in place by his predecessor that many liberal activists called inhumane, such as the so-called remain in Mexico policy that left many asylum seekers in vulnerable or dangerous positions along the US-Mexico border as they waited for asylum claims to be processed.

Left-leaning activists have argued at the same time that the White House must do more to roll back Trump-era immigration policies and ensure that migrants, many of whom are pursuing legal asylum claims, are protected.

Refugee admission rates plunged in the US during former President Donald Trumps term in office, as his administration made drastic cuts to the total number of refugees allowed to be admitted every year.

The Biden administration raised the cap to 62,500 refugees allowed to be admitted this year in May, after initially claiming it would stick with the 15,000 limit placed by the Trump administration. Days later, Mr Biden said that they did not expect to meet that number due to logistical difficulties presented by changes made under the Trump administration.
Brooklyn borough president and former police officer Eric Adams snagged an early lead but fell short of an outright victory in the Democratic primary for New York Citys next mayor, as voters await the results from the citys first-ever ranked-choice voting system that could alter the outcome in the weeks ahead.

After tallying ballots from Election Day and early in-person voting ballots, Mr Adams has a nearly 10-point lead, while progressives have coalesced around Maya Wiley, who stands in second place with more than 22 per cent of the vote.

Former presidential candidate Andrew Yang was the first among early front-runners to concede on Tuesday night after he fell to a distant fourth place.

The primary election marks the debut of the citys first-ever ranked-choice election, in which voters can fill ballots ranking their first, second, third, four and fifth choices in order of preference in citywide races.

Without a clear majority win in the first-choice results, the outcome of the race might not be revealed until several weeks later.

Following the results from Election Day, the last-place candidate is eliminated, and their votes are redistributed, a process that will continue through several rounds until only two candidates remain.

Election officials will finish processing ranked picks on 29 June, and it could take up to 12 July  after processing all absentee ballots  to determine the winner.

Mr Adams told supporters at his election night party on Tuesday night that New York City said our first choice is Eric Adams.

Ms Wiley, buoyed by late endorsements from prominent progressive lawmakers and the Working Families Party, told supporters that she believes there remains a path to victory as votes are counted.

Curtis Sliwa has won the citys Republican Party primary, but the largely Democratic-leaning city all but guarantees a Democratic victory in the race.

The Democratic candidate will face Mr Sliwa in the general election on 2 November.

The coronavirus pandemic  which has killed more than 33,000 New York City residents  has underscored the citys overlapping crises in housing, unemployment, healthcare and education, but public safety became a defining issue in the final weeks of the primary campaign following a spike in violent crime.

Candidates also debated their competing visions for the future of the nations largest and most expensive police force after antiracist uprisings and calls to defund the police to prioritise critical social services.

While speculators have seen Mr Adamss early lead as a sign of winnowing left-wing influence across New York politics, progressive candidates saw several victories in citywide races and in other boroughs and in the states second-largest city of Buffalo.

Early results from Manhattans district attorney show a lead for Alvin Bragg, backed by national progressive groups. Current public advocate and leading New York progressive Jumaane Williams received more than 70 per cent of the vote for his re-election. And Brad Lander, endorsed by Senator Bernie Sanders and New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, also is leading the race for the citys next comptroller. Left-wing candidates in several other city council races, including Tiffany Caban in Queens, also are leading.

In Buffalo, India Walton appears to have defeated the citys four-term mayor Byron Brown in an upset that could see her become the citys first-ever Black woman as mayor.
Nancy Pelosi is to create a select committee on the Capitol riot after Republicans blocked a 9/11-style commission, reports say.

The House speaker told Democratic colleagues of her intent at a private leadership meeting on Tuesday, according to the Associated Press.

The committee will be created after Republican senators refused to back a bipartisan commission to investigate the violent attack by Donald Trumps supporters on 6 January.

Five people, including a US Capitol police officer, died when the one-term presidents supporters tried to prevent the certification of Joe Bidens election victory.

Mr Trump was impeached for a historic second time in the wake of the violence, although he was acquitted in the Senate, despite a bipartisan majority of senators voting to convict.

Ms Pelosi does not need Republican support to establish the committee.

More than 400 people are facing charges in federal court following the insurrection, which left 140 police officers injured. One officer died, while two others took their own lives in the following days.

The bill to create the commission failed last month when only six Republicans voted to support it, falling short of the 10 required to move it forward.

A total of 60 votes was required for it to advance.

Nine Republicans and two Democrats failed to show up for the vote.

The House had voted 252-175 to support the creation of the independent commission.
CNNs Don Lemon has responded to criticism from Tucker Carlson, the outlandish Fox News host, for calling him a successful victim of racism in America.

On Monday, the host of Tucker Carlson Tonight told viewers that the Back CNN broadcaster was failing and was a hypocrite for talking about racism because he did not live in low-income Section 8 housing.

It followed an interview in which Mr Lemon said there were two different realities for Black and white Americans.

Mr Lemon told CNN viewers on Tuesday that while he was against punch[ing] down, he had to call out the Fox News host for his ignorance.

If you think that a Black person who doesn't live in public housing cant experience or understand racism in this country, well, that just says much more about you and your ignorance on these issues than it does about me, said Mr Lemon.

Mr Carlson had ridiculed the CNN broadcaster by asking what on the victim scale, on the scale between Meghan Markle and Michelle Obama was Mr Lemon, and revealed details of his $4.3 million home in Sag Harbor, New York.

No, he does not live in Section 8 housing, the Fox News host went on, he lives in one of the whitest towns in America. In fact, 80 per cent of Sag Harbor is just 3 per cent African-American.

It was also alleged that Mr Lemon had a white supremacist QAnon cookie jar on his counter at home, in remarks that confused critics of Mr Carlson, because they were unfounded.

The object appeared to be a ceramic jar with a caricature of a Black woman on the front, and were first manufactured in the 1930s and 1940s, before falling out of fashion because of accusations of racism.
A group of Buddhist monks traded in their robes for firefighting gear in an effort to protect their worship centre in Big Sur, California from a raging wildfire.

Seven monks from the Tassajara Zen Mountain Centre have taken to cleaning up brush and installing a sprinkler system - dubbed "Dharma rain" - to maintain a layer of moisture around their worship centre.

Sozan Miglioli, the president of San Francisco Zen Centre, which operates the monastery, told The Associated Press that the monks have been lucky so far in their efforts.

"The blaze is about a mile away but we've been lucky with the weather, it has really cooled down," he said.

The fire is destroying land in the rugged mountains around Big Sur, climbing nearby hills by igniting grass and scrub plants dried out by the region's ongoing mega-drought.

More than 500 firefighters are in the area fighting the flames.

The majority of the people at the Buddhist centre evacuated, but the fire crew that stayed was aided by other monk firefighters from the San Francisco Zen Centre and the Green Gulch Farm Zen Centre.

The monks began taking firefighting duties on themselves in the aftermath of a 2008 wildfire reached the Tassajara Centre. A book, called Fire Monks, has been written about their efforts.

Laymen firefighters have existed in California for decades, particularly in rural areas with difficult access. The ranchers who settled in Malibu following the US westward expansion were known to fight fires on their properties using water-soaked burlap sacks.

Firefighting officials have largely warned people away from staying and fighting fires themselves, not only due to the danger posed by doing so, but because citizen firefighters can impede fire officials from reaching the fires or obtaining the necessary water pressure to effective battle the blazes.

Unlike other layman firefighters, however, the fire monks train every year with professional firefighters to ensure their tactics are sound and safe.

The wildfire season began early this year, brought on largely by the mega-drought affecting most of the western US. Lower-than-average rainfall and ground moisture results in dry brush, creating ideal conditions for fueling wildfires.

Multiple wildfires have already sprung up around the west.

In Whitney Portal, near Mt Whitney, the Inyo Creek Fire has obstructed hikers on the popular mountain trails.

Near Flagstaff, Arizona, lighting caused another wildfire to break out, forcing people to flee from their homes. Several other wildfires in the state forced evacuations and closed roads and national forests.
When authorities in Belarus diverted a Ryanair passenger jet to Minsk last month to arrest a dissident journalist who was aboard, their goal may have been to silence a troublesome government critic and send a message to others like him.

Instead, believes opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya it was a panicked miscalculation by authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko that has galvanized the West against him.

It was really a mistake, Tsikhanouskaya said in an interview with The Associated Press. The regime never crossed this red line before, of interfering in a European area. This hijacking touched all the European leaders because their citizens were on this flight.

The European Union the United States, Britain and Canada joined together Monday to impose sanctions on several Belarus officials and organizations in response to the May 23 diversion of Ryanair flight, which was traveling from Greece to Lithuania but was forced to land in Minsk. European officials, who likened the diversion to air piracy, also banned Belarus airlines from EU skies and airports.

Lukashenko won a sixth term as president in an Aug. 9, 2020, election that the EU refuses to recognize as legitimate. The disputed election touched off months of mass demonstrations in Belarus, including some that drew as many as 200,000 people. Authorities there also began a harsh crackdown on protesters, and human rights officials say tens of thousands have been detained, with many brutally beaten by security forces.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said EU countries thought for months that it still might be possible to reason with Lukashenko  until the flight diversion.

The mood is different now, Landsbergis said.

Tsikhanouskaya was a candidate in the election, running in place of her husband, Siarhei Tsikhanouski, a popular opposition figure who had hoped to stand against Lukashenko but was arrested in May 2020.

A day after the vote, Tsikhanouskaya was forced to flee the country to neighboring Lithuania, where the 38-year-old political novice lives in exile with her children and has worked to rally European countries against Lukashenko.

The regime is so frightened by the unity of Belarusians, by the unity of the European Union, the U.S.A., about this situation in Belarus that they stopped to think strategically. They started to think emotionally, Tsikhanouskaya told AP.

On Thursday, her husband's trial is scheduled to begin in the city of Homel on charges of violating public order, inciting hatred and plotting mass disturbances  accusations he rejects. He faces up to 15 years in prison.

The trial will be closed. The trial will be not in the court, it will be right in the prison. Lawyers will not have an opportunity to tell us what is going on, Tsikhanouskaya said.

She expects it to last a month or two, and is not optimistic about the outcome.

We understand that the trial will not be lawful, will not be honest, will not be fair. In reality, judges can write any number of years in prison, she said.

For Tsikhanouskaya, its yet another test of her ability as an accidental politician to avoid putting her own feelings for her husband above those of the many Belarusians who have been jailed for opposing the government.

Hes my beloved. Im thinking about him most of all, because Im talking about him with my children. I have every day to explain to them where their Daddy is, how he is feeling, she said. I assure them that he will come back soon.

She must separate all those feelings from political duties, because your political duty is to release all of them, Tsikhanouskaya said.

This is your personal pain. You can cry into your pillow in the evening. But just imagine in what conditions those people are in, what conditions my husband is (in)  without light, without information, without the normal conditions of life. Of course, its awful," she said. "But again, it gives me strength not to stop, not to think about myself.

Since he was pulled off the Ryanair flight in Minsk, Belarusian journalist Raman Pratasevich has been paraded on state TV, tearfully apologizing for his actions and praising Lukashenko.

His parents, members of the opposition and others in the West believe he spoke under duress, with some saying there were signs he was beaten  a warning that no regime opponent can ignore.

Pratasevichs friends say the 26-year-old journalist, who left his homeland in 2019, believed he was being spied upon by Belarusian authorities before his May 23 arrest. This probably is true for many other political activists from Belarus, said Tsikhanouskaya, who a week earlier had flown Ryanair from Greece to Lithuania, just like Pratasevich.

As she travels Europe to raise awareness about Belarus, she feels more or less in safeness.

People on the ground (in Belarus), they dont have this protection of laws that the European Union has, she said.

Beyond the immediate fate of Pratasevich, her husband Siarhei and others like them, difficult times lie ahead for her country, Tsikhanouskaya said.

This crisis is deepening, she said.

If the authorities in Minsk really cared about people they would start dialogue with Belarusians, they would release political prisoners, and solve this crisis in a civilized way," she added. "I imagine new elections this fall. This is our aim.

-

Associated Press writers Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow and Yuras Karmanau in Kyiv, Ukraine, contributed.
Russian jets and warships were involved in a dramatic confrontation with a Royal Navy destroyer off the coast of Crimea on Wednesday with the British warship being told it would be fired upon unless it changed course.

The skirmish off Cape Fiolent came amid growing tensions in the region. Russia, which was said to be shadowing HMS Defender with more than 20 aircraft and two coastguard ships, claimed the Royal Navy vessel violated territorial waters near the disputed peninsula and opened warning fire.

A BBC journalist who happened to be on board HMS Defender said increasingly hostile warnings were issued over the radio by the Russians, including the threat: If you dont change course, Ill fire.

In an interview with Channel 4 News last night, the Russian ambassador to the UK, Andrei Kelin, said the incident was regrettable and that HMS Defender had gone deep, about three kilometres... into the territorial waters. He added that Britain was in violation of existing territory agreements.

The Russian embassy took to Twitter to tease the UK about the incident, claiming HMS Defender turns HMS Provocateur.

Britain subsequently denied its ship had violated any territory, nor had it been subjected to warning fire, and accused Moscow of disinformation.

Following the incident, the British ambassador and military attache to Moscow were summoned by the Russian foreign ministry.

Both sides were sticking to their version of events  the incident appeared to be a freedom of navigation operation to assert rights to sail in what the West considers are Ukrainian waters  and amid claim and counterclaim, the incident stayed true to the maxim that truth is the first casualty of conflict.

According to a timeline presented by the Russian defence ministry, the British entered disputed territorial waters shortly before noon on Wednesday. A Russian coastguard then allegedly fired two warning shots about a quarter of an hour later.

Ten minutes later, Su-24M fighter jets dropped four high explosive fragmentation bombs in the British ships path. The warship left Russian waters soon afterwards, the ministry said, only having ventured as much as three kilometres (two miles) inside.

The destroyer had been warned that weapons would be used if it trespasses the border of the Russian Federation. It did not react to the warning, a spokesman said.

That version was contradicted in a statement from the British Ministry of Defence. Its message asserted that HMS Defender was in international waters, and claimed the Russians were carrying out a planned military activity.

View more

No warning shots have been fired at HMS Defender, read a tweet from the MoD. The Royal Navy ship is conducting innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law.

It continued: We believe the Russians were undertaking a gunnery exercise in the Black Sea and provided the maritime community with prior-warning of their activity. No shots were directed at HMS Defender and we do not recognise the claim that bombs were dropped in her path.

In another denial, prime minister Boris Johnsons spokesman said: Its incorrect to say either that it was fired upon or that the ship was in Russian waters.

Britains defence secretary Ben Wallace said Moscow had made false claims about the incident and he attacked Russias disinformation.

We are not surprised by it, we plan for it, he told the House of Commons. Disinformation, misinformation is something that we have seen regularly. We will not shy away from upholding international law and our rights on the sea.

The Black Sea has been a regular focus for tensions between Russia and the West since the 2014 annexation of Crimea. Crucially, Russia not only claims the peninsula, but also the waters around it. Neither claim has been recognised internationally.

On Tuesday, Ukraines security chief Alexei Danilov accused Moscow of attempting to turn the Black Sea into an exclusively Russian lake.

One set of geolocation data appeared to indicate HMS Defender may have entered Russias self-proclaimed waters off Crimea. According to a tracker using automatic identification system (AIS) coordinates, the ship sailed just over 10 nautical miles from the Crimean coast at the nearest point.

But a report filed on military websites on Monday suggested unidentified actors were manipulating HMS Defenders geolocation data. The spoofed signals appeared to show the British boat heading for the Russian Black Sea fleet base in Sevastopol, while in dock in Ukrainian Odessa hundreds of miles away.

Phillip Ingram, a former UK intelligence officer and military expert, told The Independent it was highly unlikely the HMS Defender would have strayed into Russian waters accidentally. Its navigation systems were among the most sophisticated in the world, he said  and able to counter attempts to interfere with geolocation signals.

The Defender may not have been pre-warned about the gunnery activity and strayed into an area near where it was happening, he said. The Russians have turned it into an info operation, and one that ties into Putins increasingly aggressive military stance on Ukraine in particular.

Moscow has in recent months upped the rhetoric on US, British and, to a lesser degree, other Nato vessels entering the region. According to international maritime law, non-Black Sea powers can remain in the region for up to three weeks. But Russia has shown increasing irritation at Western presence in what it considers to be its back yard.

HMS Defender was in the Black Sea less than two weeks after another British ship had left the area. Its presence in the area was widely interpreted as a gesture of support for Ukraine and in defiance of Russias increasingly aggressive military posturing.

According to some military sources and analysts who spoke to The Independent, Russia may have wanted to counter a series of highly publicised military exercises undertaken by the UK recently, not only in the Black Sea, but also in Syria and Iraq.

A spokesman for Moscows foreign ministry said it had summoned the UK ambassador and military attache over the incident.

Maria Zakharova said Russia viewed the incident as a crude British provocation, which ran counter to international and Russian law.
John McAfee was found dead in his prison cell on Wednesday (AP)

The anti-virus pioneer John McAfee was found dead on Wednesday in his Barcelona prison cell, where he had been awaiting trial for tax evasion.

Just before his death, Spains high court had authorized his extradition to the United States. According to local reports, Mr McAfee had said in court only a week ago that if he was extradited, he feared he would spend the rest of his life in prison.

If I am extradited, it is almost certain that I will spend the rest of my life in prison because the United States wants to use me as an example, he said, according to the Spanish news outlet Europa Press.

Spanish authorities have said his death was likely a suicide.

Nishay Sanan, the Chicago-based defence attorney representing McAfee, said they had not been formally informed of the cause of death and the legal team was asking Spanish authorities to confirm whether the prison had video cameras on his cell.

McAfee appears to have been increasingly fearful he would be whacked by unnamed government officials; warning in 2019 that US officials said they were coming for him. He posted a photo with a $WHACKD tattoo he says he got following the subtle messages, saying If I suicide myself, I didnt. I was whackd.

In 2020, he told followers that if he died in prison, it would not be by suicide, saying know that if I hang myself, a la Epstein, it will be no fault of mine.

NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden warned that WikiLeakss Australian born founder, Julian Assange, could be next to kill himself as defendants would rather die than be subject to an unfair system of extradition for non-violent crimes.
Antivirus creator John McAfee said he feared spending the rest of his life in prison just days before he was found dead.

The 75-year-old was found dead in a Barcelona prison cell on Wednesday, according to the Catalan justice department quoted by Reuters.

A week earlier, McAfee testified to a Spanish court on 15 June as part of his fight against extradition to the United States on tax charges that carried a prison sentence up to 30 years, according to The Associated Press.

Appearing via videolink, McAfee argued to Spains National Court that the charges were politically motivated and that he would spend the rest of his life in prison if he was returned to the US.

"If I am extradited, it is almost certain that I will spend the rest of my life in prison because the United States wants to use me as an example," he said, according to the Spanish news outlet Europa Press.

McAfee was arrested at Barcelonas international airport in October, with the Spanish court ruling on Monday to extradite the billionaire to face his Tennessee arrest warrant.

Prosecutors allege McAfee didnt report earnings from cryptocurrency and speaking fees, as well as income from selling the documentary film rights to his life story.

The Spanish court found no supporting evidence of political persecution despite McAfees testimony he was a victim for his complaints against corruption within Americas tax agency, Europa Press reported.

The court also rejected the argument to reject extradition on humanitarian grounds given his age, state of health and that a sentence in the US would entail life imprisonment.

The Chamber explains that there is no record that the defendant suffers from serious health problems and there is no evidence that he has suffered any problem related to covid-19, Europa Press reported.

Sources at Penitenciario de Brians confirmed to the outlet that medical services attempted to revive McAfee and that investigators working to determine the cause of death, but that the Ministry of Justice said everything indicates that it could be a death by suicide.
Since 1963, The Independent has helped create a great community!

Since our founding in September of 1963, The Independent has been dedicated to giving Livermore, Pleasanton, Dublin, and Sunol readers the news they need to be in-the-know about what's going on in the Tri-Valley region.
Indiana, PA (15701)

Today

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Mostly cloudy. Low around 55F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Mostly cloudy. Low around 55F. Winds light and variable.
A flesh-eating parasite, known as Leishmania, has been running rampant in South America, and the experts now warn climate change could push the parasite into North America.

The parasite causes the disease Leishmaniasis which is endemic to more than 80 countries in the world with about two million new cases each year, of which 70,000 people die, as per the US National Institutes of Health data.

NIH

The parasites use sand flies as a host, which then bite humans to spread the infection that causes skin sores or even organ damage.



Now, the experts warn that the disease can spread in the North American region as a result of climate change and human disruption of the natural habitat of these parasites. In India, the disease is known as Kala azar (Visceral leishmaniasis).

"Climate change has a strong link with the emergence of zoonotic disease," Victor Sanchez-Cordero, an ecology professor at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, told UnDark.org.

"There is the possibility that there will soon be cases of human leishmaniasis in the US where before [they] did not exist," he added.

Wikipedia

According to UnDark.org, the parasites are currently endemic in Us states of Texas and Oklahoma, and new studies suggest that they might be present in other states, including Florida. While reported cases of leishmaniasis contracted in the US are currently negligible, they may soon be on the rise.



Bridget McIlwee, an Illinois-based dermatologist, has treated patients who contracted leishmaniasis in Texas. She wants her colleagues to be more aware of the parasites expansion into the US.

Representational Image/Shutterstock

Its a pretty striking difference for a disease that we used to think of as limited to South America now extending as far north as Canada, she said, potentially within the next several decades.



While physicians and researchers grapple with the flesh-eating parasite, scientists say additional challenges are on the horizon. As climate change pushes disease-vector species north, said McIlwee, leishmaniasis is just one of a number of different diseases that were going to see more of.



Also read: Rare Genus Of Malaria Parasite, Plasmodium Ovale, Detected In Kerala For The First Time
Hailing from the village of Lamberi, of Border Tehsil of Nowshera in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir, 23-year-old Mawya Sudan has created history and become the first woman from Jammu and Kashmir to join the Indian Air Force (IAF) as a fighter pilot. Mawya had cleared the Air Force entrance exam last year. She has become the 12th woman officer to join the IAF and the first woman officer from the state to join as a fighter pilot:

Combined graduation passing out parade

Mawya Sudan becomes IAFs 1st woman fighter pilot from J&K | Photo : Twitter

Mawya Sudan participated as the only female fighter pilot in the combined graduation passing out parade held on Saturday at the Dundigal Air Force Academy in Hyderabad which was reviewed by Air Chief Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria.



Appointed Flying IAF officer -

Mawya Sudan commissioned as a flying officer in the Indian Air Force | Photo : Twitter/@officeofigjandk

She has been appointed as a Flying Officer in the Indian Air Force (IAF).



Happiness in the family

Mawya sudan belongs to Rajouri district, Jammu and Kashmir | Photo : ANI

There is an atmosphere of happiness and pride in Mawya Sudan's family on her achievement.

Fathers happiness -

Mawya Sudan father. Vinod Sudan (Left), mother Sushma Sudan (center), Sister Manyata Sudan (Right) | Photo : ANI

Mawya's father, Vinod Sudan, expressed his happiness, "I am feeling proud. Now she is not just our daughter but a daughter of this country. We have been receiving congratulatory messages since yesterday," he told ANI.

Always wanted to be a pilot

Mawya sudan childhood dream to become a pilot | Photo : Twitter/@imchetansharma1

"Since her school days, Mawya was inclined towards the Air Force and always wanted to become a fighter pilot", Manyata Sudan, sister of Mawya Sudan, who is a JE in Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board told ANI.

Just a beginning -

Indian air force officers | Photo : ANI

"I am incredibly proud of my younger sister. This was her dream since childhood. I am sure she will add to her laurels soon. This is just the beginning. Everyone is treating her like her own daughter. People from all over the country are supporting and motivating her. It is an inspiring story for everyone," she said.

Year-long training

Indian Air Force (IAF) Surya Kiran aerobatic team performs during a combined graduation parade at the Air Force Academy in Dundigal, on the outskirts of Hyderabad | Photo : AP

For over one year Mavya Sudan will now have to undergo rigorous combat training for over a year before she can become 'fully operational' as a fighter pilot and handle the intricacies of combat flying.



Will join other women Air Force pilots

Avani Chaturvedi with other women pilot | Twitter

Earlier, Flight Lieutenants Avani Chaturvedi who is one of the first woman combat pilot of India, Bhawna Kanth who is one of the first female fighter pilots of India and Mohana Singh who is also first woman combat pilot had joined the fighter stream as flying officers in 2016 after basic training.

11 women fighter pilots -

Indian Air Force (IAF) cadets march during a combined graduation parade at the Air Force Academy in Dundigal, on the outskirts of Hyderabad | Photo : AFP

Mavya Sudan's name has also been included in this list. The Indian Air Force (IAF) currently has 11 women fighter pilots, who have undergone rigorous training to fly supersonic jets.
In a bizarre incident, Japanese authorities rushed to rescue a woman from drowning, before pulling her to safety and discovering it was actually a floating life-size sex doll.

The incident reportedly took place on Friday and was chronicled on Twitter by YouTuber Natsuki Tanaka, who had initially believed she was witnessing a real-life rescue in the city of Hachinohe off Japans northeast coast, Kotaku reported.

"While I was filming for my fishing video, I thought that a corpse had come floating by, but it turned out to be a Dutch wife," using a common name for the dolls," Natsuki tweeted, originally in Japanese and translated by Google.



It all began happening when a good samaritan passerby had mistakenly phoned the authorities over the drowning woman, prompting the police and fire departments  and an ambulance to arrive, ready to rescue what they thought was a person in peril.

As per Natsukis photos, featured above, show multiple fire and rescue brigades, police, and an ambulance working to rescue the dummy from the water in front of a crowd of onlookers.

Twitter/PowerSportsVoW

Thankfully the adult toy was rescued safely, according to Natsuki.

Twitter user @PowerSportsVoW was one of the onlookers at the scene and captured the incident. Off Hachinohe, they wrote alongside an image of the doll being pulled from the water. iIlegal dumping of oversized garbage, they wrote.

Thank you for your hard work, they concluded with a police officer emoji. (Again, in Japanese, yet translated by Google.)

As per the report in Kotaku, this is not the first time a suspiciously placed sex doll has been confused for a corpse. In 2018, a sex doll was mistaken for a body in Colerian Township, Ohio.

Also read: Kazakhstani Bodybuilder In A 'Throuple' With Two Sex Dolls Wants To Introduce A Male Doll In The Relationship
Indian American Dillon Patel, who stars in the Bravo TV reality show, Family Karma, is the 2021 recipient of the Wharton Schools Prism Fellowship, which provides full tuition for an outstanding LGBTQIA+ MBA student. (LinkedIn photo)
New Jersey teen Abinaya Dinesh was highlighted by Apple among its 2021 Swift Student Challenge winners who will be featured during the annual Worldwide Developers Conference. She created an app called Gastro at Home that offers people with gastrointestinal disorders a way to access information and resources, which she plans to launch on the App Store this summer. (Apple photo)
International travelers being vaccinated against Covid-19 at a dedicated vaccination center for this group, at Navyug Sr. Sec School, Mandir Marg, on June 22 in New Delhi, India. India is not listed as a regional priority country in the second round of the U.S. vaccine distribution because it has the capacity to manufacture its own doses, said Dr. Vijay Prabhakar, Indian American national chair of the American Association of Multi-Ethnic Physicians. (Sonu Mehta/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)
We now offer lithium prices and coverage free for reference. Click here to read all about it. Join our growing community of participants who want to learn more about electrification and how this market is developing.
Google is looking for its next group of aspiring journalism entrepreneurs to turn their ideas into real businesses.



Applications are now open to US residents for the 2021 Google News Initiative (GNI) Startups Boot Camp.



The programme will run from September 7 to November 5 (with a one-week break) and aims to accept 24 projects. The application window closes on August 1.



"If you're a journalist who's ready to start a new project, we're here to help," said Phillip Smith, Director and Creator of GNI Startups Boot Camp.



"When you join the Bootcamp, you benefit from the collective experience and wisdom of founders who have very likely faced the challenges you're about to face yourself," Smith added.



The selected journalists will also benefit from a curriculum based on the GNI Startups Playbook.



The Startups Boot Camp provides training, support and funding for the journalists.



Google said that later this year, it will also open applications for its first Startups boot camp dedicated exclusively to Canadian founders.



"We're looking for our next group of aspiring journalism entrepreneurs to mentor every step of the way as they turn their ideas into real businesses," the company said.



*Edited from an IANS report
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With a major research university right in our backyard, a strong military presence and innovative companies throughout the metro region, theres often a plethora of interesting science and technology news to be found in Southern Arizona. Heres a breakdown of the most interesting recent deve
Swiss Re announced the sell of a 6.6% stake in Phoenix Group Holdings plc for 437 million ($608 million).

After the sale, which is expected to close on June 25, Swiss Re will still retain another 6.6% stake in Phoenix, which is the UKs largest long-term savings and retirement business. Swiss Re originally acquired the shares when it sold its UK life subsidiary, ReAssure Group, to Phoenix in 2020.

The sale was done in the context of a regular review and rebalancing of Swiss Res investment portfolio and is consistent with the groups overall investment strategy across equity and alternative investments, said the reinsurer in a statement.

It is currently estimated that the transaction will result in a low single-digit increase in the groups Swiss Solvency Test ratio. The impact of the transaction on Swiss Res U.S. GAAP earnings is not expected to be significant.

The reinsurer has agreed to a lock-up period of 90 days following closing, with respect to its remaining stake in Phoenix (which means that Swiss Re has agreed not to sell these shares for at least three months).

Moodys Investors Service analyst Dominic Simpson commented that the ratings agency views the deal as credit positive because it will reduce Swiss Res asset concentration and have a small positive impact on its solvency.

Source: Swiss Re and Moodys

Topics Mergers Swiss Re
The European Commission proposed on Wednesday to pool resources and expertise from the EUs 27 countries for a joint cyber unit to fight online criminals amid a spate of high-profile hacks in Europe and worldwide.

The EU executive said authorities needed to be able to respond collectively and exchange relevant information on a need to share, rather than a need to know, basis.

Today, we can no longer distinguish between online and offline threats. We need to pool all our resources to defeat cyber risks and enhance our operational capacity, Commission Vice President Margaritis Schinas said in a statement.

The cyber unit aims to be operational by June next year and fully set up in 2023. Funding will come from the Commissions program for digital technology and potentially from its defense research and development fund.

Members of the unit will come from the EU Agency for Cybersecurity, experts from EU countries, Europols European Cybercrime Centre, the EU foreign service EEAS and the European Defence Agency.

Earlier this month, Poland reported an extensive cyber attack on top government officials, which it said came from Russia.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) in December last year said a limited number of documents related to U.S. drugmaker Pfizer and German partner BioNTech had been accessed in a cyber attack.

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; editing by Mark Potter)

Topics Cyber Fraud Europe
These international People Moves detail appointments at three insurance brokers: TigerRisk Partners, Lockton Re and Miller.

A summary of these new hires follows here.

TigerRisk Partners LLC, the Stamford, Conn.-based global insurance and reinsurance broker, announced it will appoint James Loggie to join its global Trade Credit, Surety and Political Risk business.

Based in London, Loggie will take the position of partner and will help drive TigerRisks aspirations to become the global leader in credit and related lines.

His appointment follows TigerRisks recent announcement of a new entry into this specialized class with the hire of Aons respected head of Trade Credit, Surety and Political Risk, Phil Bonner.

Loggie will take up his appointment in 2022 after completing his notice period and will join TigerRisk from his previous position as a leader in Willis Res Trade Credit, Surety and Political Risk division.

Loggie is a law graduate with more than two decades of experience in credit, surety and political risk. He began his career at Euler Hermes, followed by a move to Atradius and then AIG in 2004, where he was senior underwriter. Loggie joined Guy Carpenter in 2009 as vice president, and in March 2011 he moved to Willis Re where he spent more than 10 years, first as an executive director of International Credit, Surety and Political Risk, before moving up to a senior director role in 2019.

We are delighted to bring an industry leader of Jamess standing into the team. TigerRisk is expanding an exciting global division designed to complement our strong growth strategy into specialty lines and capitalize on a dynamic competitive landscape, said Rod Fox, Chief Executive Officer of TigerRisk Partners. The caliber of Phil and James confirms our dedication to this business.

***

Lockton Re, the global reinsurance business of the worlds largest privately held independent insurance broker, announced that Jeremy England Lee has joined Lockton Res Non Marine Retrocession and Property Specialty Division in London.

Lee brings more than four decades of industry experience, starting his career in 1978 at Lloyds D.E. Harman Syndicate. He then moved to Bowring which later became Carpenter Bowring, holding key positions in facultative, North American treaty and retrocession before joining Benfield in 1996 as a director for Retrocession. Most recently, Lee was part of the Global Re Specialty team at Aon.

***

Miller announced the hiring of experienced business development specialist, Safi Mebarki, who will be joining Millers Paris office on July 5, 2021. Mebarkis appointment forms part of Millers wider growth strategy in Europe, aimed at developing the range of re/insurance services available to clients.

A key aspect of Mebarkis role will be sourcing capacity for MGA, broker, and insurtech clients, whether through an insurer directly or through a reinsurance solution. He will also support the Paris and London teams in establishing delegated underwriting agreements, negotiating terms on behalf of clients and placing niche reinsurance treaties.

Mebarki will be joining Miller from Wakam, where he has been an International Business Developer since August 2019, developing delegated underwriting partnerships across Europe for non-life solutions. Prior to joining Wakam, Mebarki worked at Willis as a reinsurance actuary, modeling companies books of business to advise on reinsurance strategies aligned with their appetites. He also spent time as a divisional director for French-speaking cedents, broking and placing reinsurance treaties in the Lloyds and international markets.

Safi brings with him an excellent understanding of the insurtech world, and the new innovation and distribution challenges for re/insurers. He also holds solid relationships with reinsurance underwriters and cedents, commented Pierre Guntzberger, head of Miller Europe, in a statement. This, along with his strong analytical skills, will also strengthen our teams ability to construct optimized reinsurance strategies for our clients.

Topics Aon Willis Towers Watson Lockton
BERLIN  German lawmakers presenting a report Tuesday into the collapse of the payment processing company Wirecard accused the countrys finance minister and auditors Ernst & Young of numerous oversight failings.

Wirecard filed for protection from creditors through insolvency proceedings last year after admitting that 1.9 billion euros ($2.3 billion) supposedly held in trust accounts in the Philippines probably didnt exist.

The companys former chief executive, Markus Braun, is being investigated on suspicion of criminal fraud. Interpol has issued a red notice for Wirecards former chief operating officer, Jan Marsalek, on allegations of violations of the German duty on securities act and the securities trading act, criminal breach of trust (and) especially serious case of fraud.

Read more: German Prosecutors Open Investigation into EY Auditors over Wirecard Collapse

The nine-month parliamentary probe that concluded this week immediately weighed upon Germanys upcoming election, with both opposition parties and Chancellor Angela Merkels Union bloc heavily criticizing the role played by Finance Minister Olaf Scholz in the affair. Scholz is the center-left Social Democrats candidate to replace Merkel in the Sept. 26 vote.

Finance Minister Olaf Scholz and the leadership of the Finance Ministry bear political responsibility for the Wirecard scandal, Union bloc lawmaker Matthias Hauer told reporters. Mr. Scholz presented himself as a silent minister with implausible lapses of memory.

He said the Finance Ministry should have stepped in when the countrys financial regulator in 2019 issued a ban on short-selling Wirecard stock. The ban gave credence to Wirecards claim that its stock was being manipulated at a time when media reports, particularly by Britains Financial Times, indicated the company was cooking the books.

In their 4,500-page report, lawmakers also heavily criticized the auditing company Ernst & Young, also known as EY, for repeatedly approving Wirecards annual accounts.

EY could and should have noticed the accounting fraud, said lawmaker Cansel Kiziltepe of the Social Democrats, who sought to defend Scholz against criticism from the other parties.

Questions have also been raised about political lobbying for Wirecard by Merkel during a 2019 visit to China. Germanys longtime leader, who isnt running for a fifth term, testified before the parliamentary investigations committee that the payments company received no special treatment.

Photograph: The logo of payment company Wirecard is pictured at the headquarters in Munich, Germany, on Monday, July 20, 2020. Photo credit: AP Photo/Matthias Schrader.

Related:

Topics Germany
The latest bankruptcy plan filed by the Boy Scouts of America increases the contributions from the BSA and its local councils to a proposed trust fund for child sex abuse victims while appearing to back away from a controversial settlement with one of the BSAs insurers.

Under a revised plan submitted late last week, the Boy Scouts are offering to issue an $80 million unsecured promissory note to a trust fund for abuse victims. The BSA also is proposing to use restricted assets to help cover post-bankruptcy operational expenses, which would make up to $50 million in unrestricted cash available for abuse survivors. With the changes, the BSAs proposed contribution to the trust fund would increase from about $120 million under a previous plan to as much as roughly $250 million.

The BSA also said its local councils would contribute $500 million into the fund for abuse victims, up from $425 million offered in the previous plan. The new proposal calls for the councils to contribute $300 million in cash and the remainder in property with a combined appraised value of $200 million.

Boy Scouts Lawyers Eye New Reorganization Plan After Criticisms from Abuse Victims The Hartford Offers $650M to Settle Boy Scouts Abuse Claims Insurers Seek to Question Abuse Claimants, Lawyers in Boy Scouts Bankruptcy

The BSA, its 250 or so local councils and hundreds of sponsoring organizations such as churches and civic groups would be released from further liability in exchange for contributions to the trust fund and the transfer of insurance rights.

In a prepared statement, the Boy Scouts described the revised plan as a significant step toward a global resolution of abuse claims.

The BSA is hopeful that this plan, or one very similar to it, will have the support of a supermajority of survivors, the organization said.

A hearing regarding the latest proposal is scheduled for July 20.

Meanwhile, the Boy Scouts appear to be backing way from a previously announced settlement in which one of the groups insurers, The Hartford, agreed to pay $650 million into the victims trust in exchange for being released from any further obligations under policies dating to 1971. The agreement allows The Hartford to pay a lesser amount if the BSA or the settlement trust reaches an agreement with another major BSA insurer, Century Insurance Group, and Centurys settlement amount is less than two times The Hartfords, or $1.3 billion.

The Hartford settlement was roundly criticized by attorneys for abuse victims, who estimate the insurers liability exposure at several billion dollars.

We see dropping Hartford as a positive, Jim Stang, an attorney for the official committee representing abuse victims, said Monday.

The BSA acknowledged in last weeks court filing that it cant win support for a global resolution of the sex abuse claims that drove the organization into bankruptcy if the Hartford settlement is included in its plan. Attorneys representing the official committee, a plaintiffs group called the Coalition of Abused Scouts for Justice, and potential future abuse claimants told BSA lawyers in a letter two weeks ago that abuse survivors would not, under any circumstances, support any plan that includes the Hartford settlement.

It appears the global resolution plan cannot be confirmed to the extent it includes the Hartford insurance settlement agreement unless modifications are made  that are agreeable to the holders of direct abuse claims, BSA attorneys wrote.

Attorneys for the Boy Scouts indicated that they would ask the bankruptcy judge at next months hearing if they are obligated to further pursue the settlement with The Hartford, which requires court approval, given the universal opposition from abuse victims. If not, BSA lawyers intend to drop the settlement from the plan.

The Boy Scouts of America, based in Irving, Texas, sought bankruptcy protection in February 2020, moving to halt hundreds of lawsuits and create a compensation fund for men who were molested as youngsters decades ago by scoutmasters or other leaders.

Attorneys for abuse victims have said they would go after properties and assets owned by the BSAs local councils. The councils, which run day-to-day operations for local troops, are considered legally separate entities by the Boy Scouts, even though they share insurance policies and are considered related parties in the bankruptcy.

Attorneys for the Boy Scouts have said that between $2.4 billion and $7.1 billion, including insurance rights, might be available for abuse victims. The official victims committee, which is known as the tort claimants committee and is charged with acting as a fiduciary for all abuse victims, estimates the value of some 82,500 sexual abuse claims at about $103 billion.

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Carriers
A member of a mens chorus group unintentionally slammed into fellow chorists at the start of a Pride parade in South Florida, killing one member of the group and seriously injuring another, the groups director said Sunday, correcting initial speculation that it was a hate crime directed at the gay community.

Wilton Manors Vice Mayor Paul Rolli and Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis said the early investigation shows it was an accident. The 77-year-old driver was taken into custody, but police said no charges have been filed and the investigation is ongoing.

The elderly driver had ailments that prevented him from walking, according to a statement Sunday from Fort Lauderdale Police, who said he was cooperating with the investigation and there was no evidence drugs or alcohol was involved.

The early investigation now indicates it looks like it was a tragic accident, but nobodys saying finally what it is, Rolli told The Associated Press in a phone interview.

The driver and the victims were a part of the Fort Lauderdale Gay Mens Chorus family, a small 25-member group of mostly older men.

Our fellow Chorus members were those injured and the driver is also a part of the Chorus family. To my knowledge, this was not an attack on the LGBTQ community, President Justin Knight said in a statement Sunday, calling it an unfortunate accident.

Rolli was on the float in front of the chorus truck along with Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis and other city officials at a staging area where the floats were being readied. Trantalis said the driver of a pickup truck suddenly accelerated when he was told he was next in the parade, crashing into the victims.

The driver continued across all lanes of traffic, ultimately crashing into a fence on the other side of the street, police said.

Rolli was on the other side of the float and didnt witness the crash, but jumped off immediately and ran to the victims. In the confusion, it was unclear what happened.

People were really distraught and some people were crying, said Rolli, who explained that the crash happened in an area where the floats were lining up, so there werent as many parade-goers. I was getting phone calls from people I knew at the other end waiting for the parade saying, `Is this true? Is that true, do we have anything to worry about? You dont know at that point.

Fort Lauderdale Police said no arrests have been made saying they are conducting a thorough investigation with the FBI, noting in a statement they are considering and evaluating all possibilities.

Trantalis, who is Fort Lauderdales first openly gay mayor, initially told reporters the act was deliberate, adding to the confusion Saturday night.

It terrorized me and all around me  I feared it could be intentional based on what I saw from mere feet away, he said in a Twitter statement Sunday. As the facts continue to be pieced together, a picture is emerging of an accident in which a truck careened out of control.

Wilton Manors is a tight-knit community near Fort Lauderdale with a vibrant downtown filled with cute shops, where people line up for Rosies famous hamburgers or to gossip and drink at Georgies Alibi Monkey Bar.

Photos and video from the scene showed Democratic U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz in tears while in a convertible at the parade.

In a statement Saturday night, Wasserman Schultz said she was safe but deeply shaken and devastated that a life was lost.

I am so heartbroken by what took place at this celebration, she said. May the memory of the life lost be for a blessing.

A spokesman for the chorus said the director did not want to give interviews, adding that many members of the small group witnessed the fatal crash and were deeply shaken.

The reason people like Wilton Manors is the whole community is one big family and thats how we treat each other  and this has really rattled a lot of people, said Rolli. Even if its an accident, just the loss of a life.

June is Pride Month, commemorating a June 1969 uprising that followed a police raid targeting gay patrons at the Stonewall Inn in New York. It was a catalyst for the gay rights movement.

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Florida
Claudette regained tropical storm status and headed out to sea from the North Carolina coast Monday, less than two days after the system killed 14 people in Alabama, including nine children who died in a highway crash.

Eight of the children who died Saturday were in a van for a home for abused or neglected children when it erupted in flames in the wreck along a wet Interstate 65 about 35 miles (55 kilometers) south of Montgomery. Butler County Coroner Wayne Garlock said multiple vehicles probably hydroplaned.

The crash also claimed the lives of two people in another vehicle a 29-year-old Tennessee man and his 9-month-old daughter. Other people were injured.

Elsewhere, a 24-year-old man and a 3-year-old boy were killed Saturday when a tree fell on their house just outside Tuscaloosa, and a 23-year-old Fort Payne woman died after her car ran off the road into a swollen creek, authorities said.

News outlets reported that search dogs located the body of a man believed to have fallen into the water during flash flooding in Birmingham.

By Monday morning, Claudette had maximum sustained winds of 40 mph (65 kph). The storm was about 90 miles (145 kilometers) south of Ocean City, Maryland, and moving east-northeast at 28 mph (45 kph), the National Hurricane Center said.

The system was expected to pass near or south of Nova Scotia before dissipating late Tuesday.

About 1 to 2 inches (3 to 5 centimeters) of rain was expected in the Carolinas before Claudette moved out to sea.

The storm demolished or badly damaged at least 50 homes in East Brewton, Alabama, according to early reports. Winds topped at 127 mph (204 kph) and the storm stayed on the ground for 22 miles across southwest Alabama.

The system tore through other regions of the southeast, spawning tornadoes and high winds.

Three small twisters hit the Mississippi Gulf Coast, causing damage to cars, homes and apartment buildings in the towns of Long Beach, Pass Christian and Hurley.

A confirmed tornado touched down in southwest Georgia with winds reaching 100 mph (160 kph). Minor structure damage was reported across U.S. 82.

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Burns & Wilcox announced the purchase of an office building located in Morehead City, North Carolina at 800 Arendell. The newly acquired building is already the home of the companys Morehead City-based team.

Formerly owned by Wells Fargo Bank, the two-story building will undergo significant renovations over the next six months.

After renovations are complete, Burns & Wilcox will occupy the second floor, while the first floor will be leased to new tenants. The strategic purchase represents a significant upgrade in terms of office space, accommodating the companys desire to attract top talent and support its growth expectations.

Burns & Wilcox is a specialty insurance broker based in Farmington Hills, Michigan. The North and South Carolina offices are known for their specializations in commercial, professional and personal specialty insurance, and their expertise in coastal and flood business.

Wells Fargo Bank was the owner and seller of the property. The deal was conducted by Kaufman Real Estate Management.

Topics North Carolina
A former South Albany High School principal is suing Greater Albany Public Schools, claiming the district racially discriminated against him and created a hostile work environment.

Nain Nate Munoz filed the suit last month in U.S. District Court in Eugene, The Albany Democrat-Herald reported Monday. Munoz was interim principal and then principal of South Albany from July 2018 to June 2020.

The case is linked to two separate complaints Munoz filed with the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries last year accusing the district of employment discrimination and retaliation.

The state agency co-filed the complaints with the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission. Both issued Munoz a right to sue letter earlier this year in connection with both complaints.

Munoz is identified in the lawsuit as being of Mexican American descent. He contends the district discriminated and retaliated against him based on his race and national origin and for engaging in whistleblowing.

Barrett Mersereau, who is representing Greater Albany Public Schools, told the newspaper last week he could not discuss the case.

Munozs attorney, Dan Snyder, also declined to comment.

While the District cannot comment on pending litigation, GAPS is dedicated to providing a safe and inclusive environment for all students and employees, District Superintendent Melissa Goff said in an email.

In the lawsuit Munoz alleges numerous instances in which he said he either did not receive requested support from the school district, was held to a higher or different standard than other staffers or was reprimanded for matters outside his knowledge or control. He claims he was terminated because he filed complaints about the issues.

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Lawsuits Education Oregon K 12
A lawsuit against seven Los Angeles County sheriffs deputies accused them of beating a man dozens of times in the face, leaving him with broken bones and loss of sight in one eye, his attorneys announced.

Christopher Bailey has filed a civil rights lawsuit against the deputies and the Sheriffs Department over the May 2020 beating in the Los Angeles suburb of Inglewood, KABC-TV reported.

Bailey was returning home from work as a mail-sorting contractor for the U.S. Postal Service when his car was pulled over at around 2 a.m. for allegedly straddling a lane.

Attorneys for Bailey said he was attacked even though he complied with deputies orders, although a police report said he resisted arrest, KABC-TV reported.

I was screaming out (that) I wanted to live. I really feared for my life, I thought I was going to die, Bailey said.

He sustained 64 to 86 total body and face hits. He was pummeled in the face approximately 35 to 44 times, attorney Toni Jaramilla said during a news conference.

Bailey lost teeth, suffered broken bones in his face and cant see out of his left eye, Jaramilla said.

Mr. Bailey recalls that he heard deputies say, Pull his pants down, and he could feel tugging in his pants, and he was Tasered in the lower abdomen near his groin area, Jaramilla said.

Bailey was charged with three felony counts of resisting arrest but the charges were later dropped, his attorneys said. They want the deputies criminally charged.

This was a gang-like beatdown of a Black citizen, Jaramilla said.

All use of force incidents which result in injury are unfortunate, a Sheriffs Department statement said, but added that the department couldnt offer further details because of the pending legal action, KABC-TV said.

Topics Lawsuits California Claims
California wildfires were burning in tinder dry vegetation in rugged central coast mountains and near an Eastern Sierra trailhead where hikers begin treks to the summit of Mount Whitney.

More than 500 firefighters were battling the Willow Fire, which has scorched nearly 41/2 square miles south of Big Sur in Los Padres National Forest.

The blaze posed a threat to the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, a Buddhist monastery located in a remote valley. Crews were setting up defenses to protect structures there and at a recreation center.

On the eastern flank of the Sierra Nevada, the Inyo Creek Fire in the Whitney Portal area near the town of Lone Pine thwarted hikers planning to climb Mount Whitney, the tallest peak in the contiguous United States.

The fire was officially estimated at 410 acres Tuesday, said Inyo National Forest spokeswoman Kirstie Butler.

Hikers were unable to begin treks at Whitney Portal and rangers were in the wilderness to divert returning hikers to other longer egress trails. A plan to escort hikers to about 30 cars they had parked in the portal area was foiled by the fires movement.

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Catastrophe California Natural Disasters Wildfire
Regulators amid much fanfare in early 2020 approved two cannabis lounges in Alaska, making it one of the few states where customers would be allowed to use marijuana at retail pot shops.

Then the pandemic hit.

One of the sites opened briefly in Ketchikan in October, near the start of a statewide COVID-19 surge that an owner said forced it to hit pause. The other, in Fairbanks, hopes to open later this year.

Records show a small number of other shop owners have filed paperwork signaling plans to seek approval for consumption hangouts  where customers can smoke marijuana or eat or drink marijuana products  though the virus has caused some of them to delay their efforts too.

One is Joe McAneney, who owns The High Expedition Co. in the tourist town of Talkeetna. He has long envisioned a two-story lounge behind his shop, with a cigar bar feel and views of the northern lights and Denali, North Americas highest peak. McAneney said he recently considered pursuing an interim plan, such as refurbishing old buses in which private parties could gather to partake for set blocks of time, but thought better of it.

To start a new business and to spend money and create  a new thing during this time, to me, its not very responsible; it doesnt make a lot of sense, he said. McAneney said he aims to return to his original plan, with hopes to open for summer 2022.

He and other business owners say they have been able to weather the pandemic, even with last years crash in tourist numbers. Marijuana businesses were allowed to stay open, and he said he was pleased by the level of support from Alaskans and independent travelers.

The business also has found ways to run more efficiently, such as with online ordering, he said.

Dan Peters, an owner of GoodSinse in Fairbanks, said he was surprised by how many people were buying cannabis. I think maybe even bulk amounts of purchasing were happening, he said.

I just assume that people are stuck at home and needed things to do, he said. Thats something fun that doesnt cause too much trouble.

GoodSinse was one of the first two businesses approved for on-site use by the state Marijuana Control Board in January 2020. Over the last year, Peters said he focused on other aspects of the business, which include retail, cultivation and manufacturing, because the pandemic  and social distancing _ made it hard to create the experience he wanted for the planned cafe-style consumption area.

As more people are vaccinated, he said he expects to resume work on the consumption area and hopes to open it this summer.

Elsewhere in the U.S., a small number of cities, including in California, have authorized marijuana lounges. But Chris Lindsey, director of government relations with the Marijuana Policy Project, said on-site consumption is so new, we dont know yet if its a great business model.

Lindsey said providing a place for people to use cannabis legally has been a driver in the push for these sites.

A major consideration for Alaskas Marijuana Control Board in establishing rules for on-site use, for example, was giving tourists a place to smoke or consume edibles.

Smoking marijuana in public is prohibited in all states. In Colorado, property owners can ban marijuana in rental units.

Brandon Emmett, an executive with Good Titrations in Fairbanks, hopes to be able to open what he calls a cannabis cafe on April 20, a date on which marijuana users have long celebrated a love of cannabis. He said he thinks many residents are ready to come out and have things be normal again.

The business currently suggests patrons wear a mask, and it would most likely encourage people to wear one in the consumption area when they arent eating, drinking or smoking, he said. While some Alaska cities require masks in businesses, Fairbanks does not.

Emmett, a former member of the Marijuana Control Board who strongly advocated for rules to allow on-site use, said he thinks the number of cannabis lounges or cafes in the state will be limited for at least a couple years. He cites rules dealing with ventilation and other building restrictions, which he supported, and what could be a second year without major cruise ships visiting Alaska.

Emmett said he feels a strong sense of accountability in moving forward.

There is very much a light shining on us, and it is imperative that we at Good Titrations set the example for how it could be done responsibly, he said.

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics COVID-19 Cannabis Alaska
As businesses continue to drive forward with IoT, Industrial IoT, automated systems, edge computing programs, and infrastructure innovation, the demand by enterprises for 5G and P-LTE services is surging.

Merging cellular connectivity and the cloud and transforming the traditional SIM card with a focus on IoT connectivity and innovation is making completely new secure and super-fast enterprise networking possible, delivered via virtualization and software that IT teams understand.

One company pushing the boundaries with cloud-based cellular networks is Monogoto, which offers an API-driven Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) model. Monogoto provides a meticulously built global network that integrates cellular connectivity with existing IT infrastructures with hundreds of ready-to-use APIs.

Continuing to develop their offerings, Monogoto unveiled in early June an $11 million investment led by Team8, with participation from Telefonica Tech Ventures and Singtel Innov8, as well as Alter Venture Partners, Triventures, and Planven Entrepreneur Ventures.

Today the companies announced Monogoto has chosen JpU's HyperCore to be part of their IaaS cloud offering.

Established in 2016, JpU is an LTE/5G solution provider offering extensive knowledge of telecom and enterprise solutions as well as experience in building business applications and networks for a variety of organizations.

JpU focuses on delivering end-to-end, wireless communications solutions to enterprises that feature guaranteed quality experiences with optimized private and public clouds that deliver secure and economically efficient services designed to support enterprise digital transformation.

"Together, we are simplifying how enterprises connect and protect IoT and Industrial IoT-based systems, working directly with their developers to design, build, manage, control, and scale their edge applications quickly and securely," said Maor Efrati, Monogoto co-founder, and CTO.

Enterprises are employing and managing cellular-based sensors and devices throughout a variety of smart cities, homes, and manufacturing plants, including:

ATMs

Lighting and environmental control systems

Supply chains

Electric vehicles

Wearables

They can now quickly and efficiently build scalable and affordable virtual networks that leverage hundreds of APIs which address procurement, cybersecurity, and IT monitoring. JpU HyperCore is a cloud-native, virtualized, standard-compliant cellular core network and security platform uniquely designed to serve these enterprises.

Monogoto chose JpU's innovative HyperCore solution to implement an Industry 4.0 private 5G network that enables an end-to-end Enterprise LTE/5G network that can scale to connect multiple locations & devices. The worldwide solution simplifies the process of adoption for companies requiring digital monitoring, management, and maintenance, leading to lower operational costs and better business outcomes.

Jonathan Schwartz, CEO, JpU, stated, "Monogoto is a leading Infrastructure-as-a-Service as we are confident that working together, we will be able to service and lead the ever-growing enterprise cellular networking demands, they were the obvious choice for exciting projects we have underway and continue to be a valuable partner as both companies expand globally, including projects underway in the U.S. market."

"We are working on solutions across many industries, especially those industries which stand to benefit tremendously from the growth of edge computing, QoS requirements, and mobile backhaul as 5G heats up, as more free spectrum becomes available. There is no longer a reason to settle for inflexible fixed networks, limited, less secured, and costly WiFi and WiMAX, and expensive traditional mobile carrier services, all of which have held back the real growth of enterprises' digital transformation," Schwartz continued.

"Together, we are the enterprise solution that seamlessly orchestrates QoS, fast, and resilient data communications at the edge and in the cloud in a way that IT and OT teams understand. This will serve the performance needs and save enterprises millions of dollars and unlock growth for systems integrators, ISVs, OEMs, data centers, edge data centers, and other participants in the Industry 4.0 ecosystem."

Using the funding, Monogoto will expand its presence in the U.S. by acquiring a San Francisco-based office. They will continue to grow product sales and bolster brand awareness with a focus on market penetration. It will also be used to enrich B2D assets with more APIs, documentation, and developer tools; extend its global points of presence (POP), and expedite and strengthen the network's 5G infrastructure.

"The cloud revolution and communications (voice calls/ SMS) revolution demonstrated that infrastructure accessible via APIs can be extensively leveraged to innovate products, optimize solutions and offer new business models. A similar revolution is happening in connectivity," said Itamar Kunik, Monogoto co-founder and CEO.

Monogoto is positioned as the first-ever, cloud-native single cloud for public and private cellular networks and is firm on using this to help enterprises and developers create, monitor, manage and maintain connected systems for transformative 5G and CBRS applications while enabling modern architectures such as Zero Trust and SASE for cellular IoT and connectivity.

The companies will be at this year's Mobile World Congress being held in Barcelona, from Monday, June 28 to Thursday, July 1, and will be located within the Israel Pavilion, sponsored by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and Israel Export Institute (IE32).

Edited by Luke Bellos
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If you have a grievance concerning the content or argument of the Editorial Board, please contact either Opinion Editor Peyton Hamel (peyton.hamel@iowastatedaily.com) or the Editorial Board as a whole (editorialboard@iowastatedaily.com). Those wanting to respond to editorials can also submit a letter to the editor through the Iowa State Daily website or by emailing the letter to Opinion Editor Peyton Hamel (peyton.hamel@iowastatedaily.com) or Editor-in-Chief Sage Smith (sage.smith@iowastatedaily.com).

Column Policy

Columns are hyper-specific to opinion and are written by only columnists employed by the Iowa State Daily. Columnists are unique because they have a specific writing day and only publish on those writing days. Each column undergoes a thorough editing process ensuring the integrity of the writer, and their claim is maintained while remaining research-based and respectful. Columns may be submitted from community members. These are labelled as Guest Columns. These contain similar research-based content and need to be at least 400 words in length. The following requirements should be met: first and last name, email and relation or position to Iowa State. Emails must be tied to the submitted guest column or it will not be accepted or published. Pseudonyms are prohibited and the writer will be banned from submissions.

Read our full Opinion Policies here. Updated on 10/7/2020
Gardai investigating Jihadi terrorist groups arrested 18 individuals in Ireland last year, according to a new report.

The vast majority of these arrests (17) were in connection with the financing of jihadist terrorism.

A foreign terrorist fighter (FTF) in Syria who might return to Ireland is also under investigation.

The previously unpublished figures and details of these investigations have been unveiled as part of Europols European Union Terrorism Situation and Trend report.

The report notes that those arrested on suspicion of financing jihadist terrorist activities include both male and female suspects with Irish nationality, dual nationalities, and foreign nationalities.

Suspects used legal and illegal sources of revenue to generate funds, which were transferred through money service businesses to other countries in Europe, including Turkey, and also to Afghanistan.

The report also notes that Irish authorities indicated a small number of foreign terrorist fighters who fought with or against IS are present in the State.

Only four other EU countries, France (99), Spain (37), Austria (30), and Germany (27) reported more jihadi-terror related arrests than Ireland in 2020.

Dissident republicans

There were six arrests made in Ireland last year for ethno-nationalist and separatist terrorism related to dissident republican groups.

The report also found that, early in the pandemic, Covid-19 restrictions suppressed the activities of dissident republican groups the new Irish Republican Army (NIRA) and the Continuity IRA.

However, the report states that operational activities have started to return to pre-pandemic levels.

A number of attacks involving small improvised explosive devices (IEDs) were reported in 2020 including an attempted attack when an IED was recovered attached to a commercial goods vehicle at Belfast docks.

It was claimed the device, discovered on February 4, had been planted to coincide with the UK leaving the EU.

While issues surrounding Brexit are not believed to be a major factor in the attacks, the international attention brought to such incidents as a result of the current border issues could be exploited by the groups for recruitment purposes.
Burma Around 30 Myanmar Junta Troops Killed in Sagaing

A house after being burned down by junta troops near Bant Bway village in Sagaing Region on Tuesday. / CJ

At least 30 junta troops were reportedly killed during two shootouts with civilian resistance forces in Kani and Yinmabin townships, Sagaing Region, on Tuesday, according to residents.

On Tuesday, around 1,000 civilian resistance fighters using homemade rifles attacked about 60 junta troops deployed at Tayaw Kyin village beside the Monywa-Kalaywa Highway. The village is near the border of Kani and Yinmabin townships in Sagaing Region.

Junta troops remain deployed in the village since the raid.

During the six-hour shootout, about 10 junta troops were killed, a villager who was involved in the fighting told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday.

Other resistance forces from the two townships also ambushed about 60 junta reinforcement from Monywa traveling to Tayaw Kyin village to help their defeated colleagues.

The junta reinforcements also triggered about five landmines on the Monywa-Kalaywa highway between Tayar Kyin and Bant Bway villages.

About 15 to 20 junta troops were killed, according to witnesses. In retribution, the security forces burned about eight houses near Bant Bway.

More than 100 junta reinforcements on Wednesday were searching forests near the villages.

They are searching all houses beside the highway and the forests. They open fire at random, a civilian resistance member said.

Shootouts between the regimes troops and resistance fighters started in the area on April 2.

Several thousand villagers in Kani Township have fled their homes to avoid the fighting and regime raids.

Guerilla attack

Two junta police officers were reportedly killed by the civilian resistance Zero Guerilla Force during a raid on a police outpost in Mandalay Regions Nagzon Township on Tuesday night.

A member of the group told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday that 25 fighters raided the Min Nay Gon outpost in Nganzon Township on Tuesday night.

During the 20-minute firefight, two officers, including a police captain, were killed and the resistance fighters managed to retreat without casualties, the source said. Fifteen police officers were unharmed.

However, The Irrawaddy was not able to independently confirm the police casualties.

Zero Guerilla Force has attacked junta forces in Myingyan Township, Mandalay Region, on several occasions. Last Friday, it shot dead a traffic police officer in Myingyan.

An army major and captain were shot dead by the group in the town on May 27 and June 3.

We are the force to fight injustice. We will never accept the military regime. We have vowed to fight everything junta-related, said the member.

Junta detainees

Nine civilians, including a family of six, were detained by junta forces during a house raid in Monywa Township, Sagaing Region, on Monday.

After being accused of supplying the Peoples Defense Forces, tutor U Tin Myint Soe and his five family members, including a six-year-old girl, were detained along with three house guests by the junta forces during the Aye Tharyar Ward raid.

On Tuesday, the girl was reportedly released but the whereabouts of the other eight are unknown.

Junta-controlled newspapers said all the detainees were planning to supply the PDF in Kani Township.

A source, who knows the family, said they were planning to donate humanitarian aid to Kin Ma village in Pauk Township, Magwe Region, which was burned down after a clash between junta forces and resistance fighters on June 15.

I condemn the junta for seizing people who are trying to help others. Helping each other is not a crime, the source told The Irrawaddy.



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Burma Fear of New COVID-19 Outbreak in Western Myanmar

Sittwe central market. / The Irrawaddy

Sittwe reported a new COVID-19 outbreak on Monday, with residents alarmed at what appears to be the first local transmission of coronavirus in the Rakhine State capital.

A woman from Mingan ward with no recent travel history tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday, along with five crew from a cargo vessel recently returned from Bangladesh.

The womans case is a separate case and nothing to do with cargo vessel crew from the border trade camp. She went to hospital after she fell sick and tested positive for coronavirus, said U Than Tun, a member of the military regimes Rakhine State Administrative Council.

Dr. Kyi Lwin, the medical superintendent of Sittwe Hospital, said: The boat crew did not have symptoms. But the woman from Mingan ward had fever and difficulty breathing. So we tested her for coronavirus.

The woman and 46 cargo vessel crew are receiving treatment at Sittwe Hospital. Four individuals who have come into contact with the woman have been placed under quarantine.

People are worried. The authorities are not in a position to effectively handle COVID-19 at present. So people have to take care of themselves, said U Soe Naing from a Sittwe-based civil society organization.

Since June 16, over 40 cargo vessel crew who returned to Sittwe from Bangladesh have tested positive for coronavirus.

Civil society organizations in Rakhine, western Myanmar have called on authorities to halt the border trade. But the Rakhine State Administrative Council has no plans to do that, said U Than Tun.

For the time being we have no plan to halt the border trade. We have tightened regulations on boat crew. We dont allow them to leave the jetty. And we have started giving COVID-19 jabs to them. And we also disinfect vessels that have come from Bangladesh, he said.

On Sunday, two officers of the Maungdaw District General Administration Department tested positive for COVID-19. So far five COVID-19 cases have been reported in Maungdaw, which borders Bangladesh.

There have also been calls for the authorities to crackdown on illegal border crossings.

Rakhine State reported a total of 77 COVID-19 cases  72 in Sittwe and five in Maungdaw -between January and June 21, according to the Rakhine State Public Health Department.

Myanmar started to see a gradual decline in COVID-19 infections last December, with a few hundred cases being reported each day, down from a daily peak of 1,400 in previous months.

However, far fewer tests have been carried out following the juntas Feb. 1 coup with healthcare workers refusing to work for the military regime. That has resulted in only dozens of new infections being reported daily.

Myanmar has experienced a surge in coronavirus cases since late May after the junta relaxed COVID-19 restrictions in an attempt to normalize the country.



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UPDATED: Two Civilian Fighters Killed Amid Shootout With Myanmar Junta Troops in Mandalay
Burma Four Young Civilians Killed by Myanmar Junta in Mandalay

Four young people killed on Tuesday morning.

Myanmars regime forces killed four young people in a car in Mandalay on Tuesday. Their families deny claims made by regime that they were members of the civilian resistance.

Three ethnic Taang, Ko Mai Chit Swe, 24, Ko Mai Naing Laing and Naing Tun Kyi, were from northern Shan State and a Chinese man, Ko Arr T, were going to a chicken farm in Sintgaing Township, according to their families.

Regime-controlled Myawaddy TV said four terrorists opened fire on security personnel heading to a Peoples Defense Force (PDF) base. Fighting broke out during a search near a PDF base. The regime forces raided the base on Tuesday morning.

The announcement said everyone in the vehicle was killed after it hit a transformer while being chased by the security forces.

Their relatives and residents rejected the regimes claims.

Ko Mai Chit Swes sister told The Irrawaddy that the four were civilians with no connection to guerilla groups.

They were on their way to work at a chicken farm, she said.

They had nothing to do with the PDF. They were workers. They had no weapons, she said, calling for justice.

She said the families were not told that the four died in a car crash but were instead killed by the regime forces as they shot at the vehicle and threw grenades.

Residents contradicted the regimes claims they were killed in a car crash by reporting that they saw that the regime forces opening fire and throwing grenades.

Ko Mai Naing Laings widow rejected the accusation her husband was a resistance member.

The couple married on June 6. She said Ko Mai Naing Laing called that morning to say they were driving to the chicken farm and were caught in a ceasefire.

Their bodies had not been returned to their families by Wednesday.

I dont dare go online and see pictures [of his body]. I just want to say the accusation is wrong and I want the body back, she added.

Regime pictures spreading online showing eight bodies, including Ko Mai Chit Swe and his three friends.

The photographs show gunshot injuries in their heads and injured shoulders.

Myawaddy TV claimed eight PDF fighters, including the four in the car, were killed and eight detained during the shootout, while some junta troops were seriously injured.

However, the Mandalay PDFs commander, who is known as Bo Tun Tauk Naing, told The Irrawaddy that only two resistance fighters were killed and six detained.

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Burma Myanmar Coup Maker Visits Russian Military Aviation Hub

An Su-30SM fighter jet. In 2019, military chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing personally inspected production of six of the jets being assembled for the Myanmar military at the Irkutsk Aviation Plant in Russia. / Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaings website

Coup maker Senior General Min Aung Hlaing and his entourage stopped in Irkutsk, in Russias Siberia region, on his way to Moscow on Sunday, according to an informed source.

The Airbus 319-112 (flight number MMA001) operated by Myanmar Airways International that carried the delegation stopped there for a few hours before heading to the Russian capital, where Min Aung Hlaing is attending a security conference.

Why Irkutsk? Russias 25th-largest city, and the fifth-largest in the Siberian Federal District, is best known as the home of the plant that manufactures the Su-30 family of interceptor/ground-attack aircraft.

The Russian government has merged Irkut, which builds the planes, with Ilyushin, Mikoyan, Sukhoi, Tupolev and Yakovlev to form a new company, United Aircraft Building Corporation.

Myanmar placed an order for six Sukhoi Su-30SM fighter jets under a contract worth about US$204 million signed between the two nations in 2018.

It was not Min Aung Hlaings first stopover in the city. In April 2019 he traveled there to personally inspect production of the planes at the Irkutsk Aviation Plant.

At the time, Yangon-based analysts close to the military said Myanmars Air Force possessed reasonable firepower, sufficient to deter any kind of external invasion. They speculated that the likely aim of buying the expensive Su-30SM multirole fighter jets, which are capable of long-distance operations, was to achieve airspace superiority in the region, particularly in relation to Myanmars neighboring countries in Southeast Asia.



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Burma Myanmar Junta Colonel Killed in Raid on Mandalay Resistance

Lt-Col Aung Myo Kyaw

A lieutenant colonel, captain and an other rank from Myanmars military were killed on Tuesday by the Peoples Defense Force (PDF) formed by civilian resistance fighters in Mandalay.

The three were killed by a small group of poorly armed civilian resistance fighters after junta forces raided a Mandalay PDF base in Hton Tone ward in Chan Mya Thazi Township on Tuesday morning.

Lieutenant Colonel Aung Myo Kyaw was an adjutant staff officer.

The staff officer and captain died before the two sides exchanged fire and another soldier was shot during the shooting. Three died from the military side, said a source in Mandalay.

The colonel and captain entered a two-story building, where the PDF was based, ahead of their troops and without making their weapons ready, said a ward resident.

It appeared that they didnt know there were armed PDF members inside the building. They arrived in a private vehicle and entered the building. They were shot by PDF members inside the building. Military trucks arrived after that, said the resident.

Junta troops threw bombs and used a grenade launcher to assault the building.

The officers were rescued and taken to the military hospital inside the Mandalay Palace, but they died.

Myanmars military never discloses its casualties but there are widespread reports on social media, including in military circles, that the colonel is dead.

The captain is reportedly from the Military Security Affairs Office.

Lt Col Aung Myo Kyaw filed a complaint against monk U Thawbita, the head of the Bawa Alin charity in Mandalay, in 2019 for defaming the military on Facebook. The monk posted that Myanmars military is more destructive than a natural disaster.

He was the highest-ranking junta officer killed since the February coup.

Adjutants are responsible for administrative matters. They barely need to go outside. Military operations are normally supervised by G1 [general staff officer]. The fact that an adjutant came on an operation means the military is overstretched, said an anonymous ex-police officer.

Junta mouthpiece the Myawaddy Television claimed four civilian resistance fighters died and eight others were detained in the clash that lasted about 90 minutes. Mandalay PDF said two of its members were killed and six were detained.

All the detainees were reportedly taken to the Mandalay Palace camp for interrogation.

There are reports that the PDF base was identified by military informants and Tuesdays raid is connected with the previous junta raid on a PDF military training ground on the outskirts of Mandalay on May 21.

Striking military officers Lt. Min Khant Kyaw and Lt. Soe Wai Hlaing were reportedly arrested in the May 21 raid, and another striking military officer Capt. Lin Htet Aung said he had lost contact with the two and warned people to take caution if they were contacted by the officers Facebook accounts.



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Myanmar Junta Forces Torture Civilian to Death
Burma Myanmar Junta Forces Torture Civilian to Death

A Lel Zin villager shows injuries he sustained during military detention. / CJ

A civilian man was tortured to death in military custody on Monday, following a junta forces raid on Lel Zin village in Monywa, Sagaing Region.

Junta troops came to the village and opened fire at random after a fire broke out at the village school around 9pm on Monday, said local residents. At least three villagers were detained by military regime soldiers.

One of the detainees, a 30-year-old man, died in custody and his family members were told to collect his body on Tuesday morning. The body was covered in bruises and the mans skull had been fractured. The two other detainees were reportedly released on Tuesday.

A fire broke out at the school around 9pm but villagers were able to extinguish the fire. Shortly afterwards, three military trucks arrived and soldiers started firing, a villager said.

Local residents fled into the forest following the raid. Many are staying in the forest. Our village is not far from the town, so we are worried that they can come and shoot us anytime, said a villager.

Junta troops also searched houses and stole at least three motorbikes, said Lel Zin residents.

One villager suggested Lel Zin was targeted because of the villages strong support for the National League for Democracy (NLD).

Lel Zin is known for its NLD support. During the campaign period [ahead of the 2020 general elections], we had a billboard erected at the entrance of the village saying the whole village would vote for the NLD. Perhaps they [the junta] were angry with that, said the villager.

Lel Zin is around one mile from Monywa and has over 1,000 households. Junta troops returned to the village on Tuesday at noon, but did not fire shots as almost all the villagers had already fled.



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Burma Myanmars NUG Lauds Norwegian Funds Exit From Juntas Indian Business Partner

Myanmar military chief and coup leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing visits Adani Ports and Logistics in Mundra, India in July 2019. / Office of the Commander-in-Chief of Defense Services

Myanmars civilian National Unity Government (NUG) has welcomed the decision of Norways largest pension fund KLP to divest from Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Limited on the grounds that the Indian companys links with the Myanmar military breach the funds responsible investment policy.

Adani Ports, Indias largest port operator, has been under scrutiny from international investors over its project to build a container terminal in Yangon on land leased from military-owned conglomerate Myanmar Economic Corporation (MEC).

According to a Reuters report published on Tuesday, KLP is divesting from the company because the container terminal is being built on land owned by the Myanmar military and there is an imminent danger the armed forces could use the port to import weapons and equipment, or as a naval base.

In this way, the port could be used by the army to continue its violations of human rights, KLP said.

At the time of its decision, KLPs investment in Adani Ports was worth 9 million Norwegian krone (US$1.05 million), the report said.

U Aung Myo Min, the NUG minister for human rights, said KLPs decision shows that global businesses, in addition to foreign governments, are starting to hear the voices of the people of Myanmar, who have called for a suspension of investment in the country and a halt to economic cooperation with the military, which has been committing atrocities against its own citizens.

The Myanmar military staged a coup on the morning of Feb. 1 and detained civilian leaders including State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and President U Win Myint. The military declared a state of emergency and formed its own governing body. Since then the military regimes forces have killed at least 875 civilians and detained over 5,000 people.

The minister said it was a good move by the KLP to dissociate itself from a company that operates a joint venture with a military-owned business.

We had called for the suspension of foreign companies working with the military. This is just a first step and we are hopeful that other businesses and investments will follow in the steps of the Norwegian pension fund, he added.

Though it is hard to estimate the exact financial cost to the MEC of KLPs move, the pension fund is no longer contributing to the militarys ability to buy ammunition and weapons that will be used against Myanmar civilians, he added.

On March 25, the US imposed targeted financial sanctions on MEC and the militarys other conglomerate, Myanmar Economic Holdings Public Company Limited (MEHL), because of their links to grave human rights abuses.

In the wake of the Feb. 1 coup, Adani Group issued a statement denying it had engaged with military leaders over the 2019 approval of its $290-million port.

Citing leaked Yangon Region Investment Commission documents, Australias ABC News reported in late March that the Adani Group had paid $30 million to MEC in land lease fees.

MEC is likely to get another $22 million as land clearance fees for the port despite human rights groups having called on Adani Ports investors to divest, said a joint report on March 30 by the Australian Centre for International Justice and activist group Justice For Myanmar.

On March 31, Adani issued a statement alleging that media reports had misrepresented its investments in Myanmar. The company said it sought to support job creation and development in the country and to foster a business environment that respects human rights.

Following KLPs divestment from the Adani companys Myanmar project, the Indian companys share price fell more than 2 percent intraday on Wednesday.



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If you thought you were the only one experiencing the frustrating crash on your Google app, you're not. Android users have gone to Twitter to report that their Google app is crashing, and the problem might be traced to a recent app update.

Google App Crashing After Update

The issue seems to be affecting most Android phones, Android Authority reported.

Owners of Sony, Samsung, Google Pixel, Motorola, and other Android-running smartphones are all on the same boat, experiencing the frustrating ordeal. The Google app started crashing after a recent update pushed out by the company. Versions 12.23.16.23.arm64 and 12.22.8.23 of the Google app have been crashing. Users on the beta version 12.24.7.29.arm64 of the app have experienced problems as well.

Depending on your device, the Google app may be a different version, and so you may be experiencing app crashes on a completely different version, Android authority noted.

And according to 9to5Google, it's not just the Google app that has been having problems: Podcasts, Lens, and Assistant seem to be experiencing some issues, too.

The Discover feed, which the Google app is responsible for, of both the Podcasts and Lens app keep closing. Some users also report having trouble with Android Auto. Assistant, as it is no longer launching on voice commands.

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How to Fix the Google App Crash Issue

Google has since replied to the Twitter users' reports, stating that "it's important that we get this sorted."

1. Soft Reboot

In their tweet, Google suggested a soft reboot of your device. To do this, hold down the power button for 30 seconds and release. Wait until the device is turned back on and check if the Google app is working fine again.

Hi Maciej, sorry to know that you are experiencing an issue with your device. It's important that we get this sorted. Could you try a soft reboot by holding down the power button for 30 seconds and see if it works fine? Let us know if that helps. ^Adam  Made By Google (@madebygoogle) June 22, 2021

Some users say that that has worked for them, while others say it hasn't helped. Google will hopefully have a new update released to fix the bug soon.

2. Uninstalling the Update

Android Authority advised to uninstall the Google app update if you're still experiencing issues. You can do this by going to Settings > Apps > Google app > three-dot menu > Uninstall updates.

If you haven't updated your Google app, it is best to wait until the company has rolled out the next update that includes the fix.

3. Google App 12.24 Beta

9to5Google noted that if you're running on the 12.24 beta, some users say updating to it provides a fix for the crashes. Here's how you can do that:

Join the Google app beta. Sign up for the Google app beta and click "become a tester" or you can visit the Play Store listing on your phone and scroll until you see a "Join the beta" card and select "Join."

Google app beta Play Store listing Download the new app update. Tap your profile avatar in the Play Store, go to Manage apps & devices > See recent updates > Updates available > Check for updates. Then tap "Update." The beta route can be considered the least destructive solution compared to installing the bad update and reverting to the Google app version that first came with your device, which may not be the most optimal of versions.

Do not attempt to do any complex software fixes on your own if you are not a professional as you may cause more harm to your device than actually fixing it.

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A new tool is available to file for missing stimulus check payments. This online tool will help you recover and ensure the delivery of the stimulus money to your doorstep. You could also compute for the extra money you should be receiving, including Recovery Rebate Credits.

Unfortunately, there are still many American families who have not received their stimulus check payments--money that should have arrived by the first, second, and third stimulus waves! It might be over a year late, but the government has plans to deliver the money you are entitled to receive.

For reference, you should receive around $1,200 in the first stimulus wave, $600 for the second wave, and $1,400 for the third wave.

You should also look out for financial programs you might qualify to receive:

Any amount received from these financial aid programs would be delivered to your account or address as Recovery Rebate Credit money.

IRS Online Tool to Recover Your Stimulus Check Payment

IRS launched a new non-filer sign-up tool online where you could check on the details and payments listed above. This online tool will also help you manage eligibility and advance payments for other programs you might qualify for. Signing up for this new IRS tool is both quick and easy.

You need to provide personal information such as:

Full name

Date of birth

Email address

Mailing address

Bank account number, type, and routing number, if you have one

Valid Social Security numbers or other taxpayer IDs to identify you and your dependents

Identity Protection Personal Identification Number or IP PIN that you have received from the IRS earlier this 2021 if you have one

Note, however, that this tool is used to automatically create a simplified 2020 tax return (online form). After filing online, you won't be able to e-file your 2020 Form 1040 or 1040-SR tax returns. Duplicate file submissions could delay the IRS in processing your refund money.

The IRS warns users not to use this online tool if you have:

Filed or plan to file a 2020 Federal Income Tax Return

Your 2020 gross income exceeds $12,400 (or $24800 for married couples)

Married at the end of 2020 but does not want to include spouse information

You and your spouse can be claimed as dependents

Your main home is not in the United States

Read Also: Stimulus Check 2021 Update: How to Get Financial Assistance to Help You Pay for Your Mortgage

Stimulus Check Tool: How It Works

After submitting your information and creating the digital 2020 tax return, IRS automatically determines your eligibility status. The process could take somewhere between a few minutes to a few days. You would eventually receive an email notification updating your status and possibly listing the financial aid you are qualified to receive.

The new IRS online tool is highly recommended to be used for filing Recovery Rebate Credit and searching for missing stimulus check payments. However, it could also be used to monitor and receive the recently released Child Tax Credit.

You can start the sign-up process by entering this link.



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Bitcoin is in a slump, thanks to a widened Chinese clampdown on mining the world's top cryptocurrency over the weekend.

Its crash on Monday led to an extended decline on Tuesday momentarily, sending Bitcoin below a symbolic price threshold of $30,000. It also reignited fears of a chilly and gruesome crypto winter as other coins such as Ethereum and Dogecoin experienced steep slides.

But in an interview with CNBC, experts remain confident that Bitcoin and Ethereum will weather this storm, owing to its strong fundamentals and that the market conditions in 2021 is quite different from what transpired during the last crypto crash in 2018.

Bitcoin Value: 'Far From a Bear Market'

Respected on-chain analyst and statistician Willy Woo assured investors that despite the unfortunate developments, Bitcoin is "far from a bear market." Woo said the dismal sentiment is a result of traders "freaking out over technical seen on exchanges like volumes and price action."

After its surge in the last 12 months, peaking at $63,000 in April, Bitcoin took sharp falls in the last two months. China's crackdown led to its worst decline, dropping below $33,000 a coin on Monday.

Beijing officials shut power stations running Bitcoin mining operations in Sichuan, halting 90 percent of Bitcoin production, Forbes quoted Chinese state media Global Times as saying. The disruption decreased Bitcoin's hashrate or the computational power in mining and processing Bitcoin transactions.

China's State Council, in a Reuters report, vowed to shut down cryptocurrency mining and trading to manage financial risks.

Read Also: Ethereum Price Prediction: ETH Value Could Drop Below $1800 After Latest Crypto Crash

China has accounted for 80 percent of global Bitcoin operations, Forbes further reported while citing a 2020 study showing Sichuan as the second most intensive mining region. China has been a choice location for Bitcoin mining due to cheap electricity.

The downward trend, as analyst Jason Deane of Quantum Economics said in the CNBC report, "has been ascribed to China's latest moves with mining that have led to a lower global hashrate." While this uncertainty could frighten short-term investors, Deane said that for Bitcoin investors, "this is an extremely positive move" for the blockchain.

CNBC said a "Fear and Creed Index" bore a reading of 10, indicating "extreme fear," which Deane said reflects the market sentiment at present.

Bitcoin, Ethereum Value: Market Far from a 'Crypto Winter'

Supporting Woo's view that the market is far from bearish, Deane also assured investors that a crypto winter is highly unlikely. According to him, the current sentiment would indicate that the market is headed for "a period of overreaction" but this "will correct itself in due course."

Matt Greenspan, portfolio manager at Quantum Economics, agreed in the CNBC report and emphasizing that the market "will never see another crypto winter again." This is because cryptocurrencies have "more utility, adoption, and diversification in the industry than in 2014 or 2018."

Bitcoin's fundamentals, bullish investors insist, are much stronger this year than its last bearish outcome in 2018. The coin has weathered many storms due to the fundamental network, stability and security it has established. With that, it should bring confidence to the market amid the continuing decline.

The same confidence should also be felt by long-term Ethereum investors, given the blockchain's massive use cases, particularly decentralized finance (DeFi) apps and the trade of non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Not to mention its ongoing upgrade to improve transaction efficiency and security.

Bitcoin is also undergoing its first major upgrade in four years, with added functionality, privacy and efficiency reinforcing the confidence in the cryptocurrency. Because of this, Bitcoin advocates also predict prices that will end up higher than previous levels in the short-term.

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Huntsville, TX (77320)

Today

Partly cloudy this evening with thunderstorms becoming likely overnight. Low 74F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 90%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening with thunderstorms becoming likely overnight. Low 74F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 90%.
Ithaca, NY (14850)

Today

Cloudy this evening with showers after midnight. Low 58F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%..

Tonight

Cloudy this evening with showers after midnight. Low 58F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
Facebook is strengthening its commerce arm, Shops, to help customers make better purchases and businesses sell online. Facebook will launch personalised ads, invest in augmented reality and artificial intelligence, and select countries will now have the option to showcase their goods in WhatsApp.

Facebook introduces new ways to shop across its apps. It also announces solutions for businesses to personalise shopping with ads, and investments in technologies that will shape the future of shopping.

Last year, when COVID-19 shut down local economies, Facebook launched Shops to help businesses sell online. The company believes that the shift to digital was not temporary. One in three shoppers globally say they plan to spend less time in-store even after the pandemic is over, and almost three-quarters say they get shopping ideas from Facebook, Instagram, Messenger or WhatsApp.

Instagram and Facebook are a new Westfield. We are making the online shopping journey more personalised, more entertaining, and more seamless. Capabilities like shoppable media, branded content, social shopping and messenger for customer service are available in Australia, says Facebook Australia director of retail Kate Box.

As todays announcements scale globally, AI and AR will further evolve how customers discover products they love. Australians will be able to find products online, with visual search and try-on immersive experiences available before making a purchase. Shopping across our platforms is brimming with new innovation, she explains.

Todays updates are part of our ongoing work to make shopping easier on our apps for people and businesses, she adds.

Facebook says it will continue to support economic recovery by making further investments in Shops and waiving fees for business sellers through June 2022.

Bringing Shops to more people

Facebook claims it has over 300 million monthly Shops visitors and over 1.2 million monthly active shops.

Facebook will soon give businesses in select countries the option to showcase their Shop in WhatsApp. In the US, Facebook enable them to bring Shops products into Marketplace, helping them reach the more than one billion people globally who visit each month.

The first big announcement for today is [that] we're bringing Shops to more places. So firstly, we're bringing [Shops] to WhatsApp, and we're bringing them to Marketplace on Facebook, which [will] make it easier for people to find [the] products or brands that they want to engage with, explains Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerburg.

Shoppers want to be reassured with their purchases, so Facebook is giving them more information before they buy.

Facebook will expand ratings and reviews to products in Shops on Instagram. Soon shoppers will see photos and videos from the community, too. These changes will help people make more informed decisions on what to buy, and will let businesses know if they are meeting customer expectations.

Personalising the shopping journey with ads

Facebook says it wants to provide a shopping experience that is as personalised like a newsfeed.

Thats why Facebook is introducing Shops ads solutions that provide unique ads experiences based on peoples shopping preferences.

For example, Facebook is testing the ability for businesses to send shoppers to where they are most likely to make a purchase based on their shopping behaviour, such as curated products that they might be interested in from a Shop or a business website.

Instagram and Facebook are also making the shopping journey more personalised. Businesses will be able to offer tailored shopping experiences based on the customers preferences through a curated collection from their Shop, their website, or even through special promotions. Customers will find products they are more likely to love! Box says.

Facebook will explore ways to help brands further personalise their Shops ads by providing special offers or promotions to select shoppers.

This builds on existing tools for business that help them find the right audience like Shopping Custom Audiences and ads with product tags, which enable businesses to send people to their Shop directly from an ad.

Together, this suite of personalised Shops ads solutions can help businesses move customers from discovery to purchase.

The next thing that we're announcing that I think [will] be a pretty big deal here is introducing Shops ads that [will] provide a personalised ads experience based on people's individual shopping preferences. We're launching the ability for a business to send shoppers to where you're going to be most likely to make a purchase based on your shopping behaviour, comments Zuckerberg.

Introducing new technologies to power the future of shopping

Facebook is investing in immersive technologies like augmented reality and artificial intelligence that will be the foundation of shopping online.

With new visual discovery tools on Instagram, Facebook helps shoppers find new products, and with AR experiences, Facebook helps people visualise items before they buy.

Our new innovations in AI and AR will help customers discover and visualise products (Visual Search) with try-on immersive experiences (AR Try On) before making a purchase, notes Box.

This year Facebook will start testing a new visual search powered by AI. Visual search helps people find similar productslike floral print dressesjust by tapping on an image of a dress they like.

Facebook will make it possible for people in the future to take photos from their camera to start a visual search. Facebook thinks visual search will enhance mobile shopping by making every piece of media on Instagram shoppable.

A lot of shopping discovery begins with visual discovery. And then, you know, maybe you want to see other products that are like that, or you want to figure out how to get that product. And this is the type of problem that AI can really help out with. [So] one of the things we are going to do is when you are on Instagram. We are getting ready to start rolling out experience and testing an experience that we're calling visual search, Zuckerberg says.

Even as brick and mortar re-open in many countries, two-thirds of online shoppers say that they want to virtually try on products from the comfort of their home.

To help shoppers get a better feel for the fit of a product before they purchase, Facebook makes it easier for brands to create AR try-on experiences in Shops through new API integrations with Modiface and Perfect Corp.

Facebook launches new tools for brands to include AR product catalogues in ads that will automatically show relevant products to people based on their interests.

Facebook brings some of the biggest brands together to experiment with Live Shopping on Facebook and bringing this personalised shopping experience to viewers through Live Shopping Fridays.

Box concludes: Live Shopping is something small businesses already do in ANZ, but its challenging to handle a large scale of sales while Live. We are bringing new tools to enable large businesses to scale product sales in Live Shopping.
Cloud-based voice platform provider Aircall has raised US$120 million in a series D funding round, bringing the companys total valuation to more than US$1 billion.

The funding round was led by Goldman Sachs Asset Management and joined by most of Aircalls current investors DTCP, eFounders, Draper Esprit, Adams Street Partners, NextWorldCap, Gaia and Swisscom Venutres.

Aircall says that with customers such as Rezdy, Aureus Academy and AgriWebbit, it is now looking to use the funding to expand its influence within the tech & telecommunications scene in APAC.

With the new funding round, Aircall says it will invest in the following:

 Enrich its app ecosystem, specifically with new integrations covering all use cases, from e-commerce to financial services, Sales, Support, etc.

 Expand globally, with new European offices in London and Berlin, and deeper investments in North America and APAC. Aircall plans to recruit more customer-facing teams to come closer to the customer needs, and to form strong partnerships, including with channels and resellers.

 Partner with major telecommunications companies to bring its technology to every professional around the world, by leveraging local networks expertise.

 Improve technology with new AI capabilities, additional productivity features for call centers: transcription & speech analytics for greater depth of productivity features for sales and support. Aircall will also enhance infrastructure capacities by providing additional points of presence to support local usage, while continuing to deliver additional capacity at scale, and provide a global standard of high quality for voice.

Aircall recently structured its team with senior management Fred Viet and Frank Eagleton based in Sydney, and has announced that it is currently hiring local talent to build the team.

Aircall said the channel expansion will continue to add more touchpoints to provide call quality in more areas in Australia plus build its brand within the local market.

Aircall was founded in 2014 with the belief that traditional business phone systems were hard to manage, siloed, and required heavy implementation costs and time.

According to Aircall in an increasingly virtual world, businesses were lacking an easy-to-use solution that could integrate with other critical business applications, and support the communications needs of a dispersed and flexible workforce.

Over the past year, remote workforces accelerated digital transformation for companies of all sizes and, at the same time, their customers increased their expectations around personalised and convenient service, Aircall said in is statement on Wednesday announcing the funding raising.

Aircall helps businesses meet those objectives by integrating its cloud-based solution into leading business softwares like Salesforce, HubSpot, Zendesk, Slack, Intercom and many others. This allows businesses to streamline workflows, providing more efficiency for their teams with better visibility, data and insights into their customers needs and their teams performances.

Ultimately, the solution allows personalised experiences for their customers. Aircall was built to empower any professional to have richer conversations, and to allow the phone channel to be accessible, transparent, and collaborative.

Christian Resch, Managing Director at Goldman Sachs, said, "The past 12 months have been a catalyst for Aircalls cloud based SaaS communication solution.

In a hybrid work environment, users are looking to Aircall to provide an easy to use experience that is highly integrated into their workflows, thereby making the most out of every customer interaction. We are very excited to partner with Aircall, as the company looks to accelerate its growth and expand globally.

Kirk Lepke, Executive Director at Goldman Sachs, added: We have been following Aircalls journey for some time and are delighted to be partnering with Olivier and the Aircall team to lead the Series D. The company has tremendous momentum within a huge category and a differentiated product strategy that will sustain significant growth for many years to come.

Despite the challenges this past year has brought, Aircall achieved record-breaking growth across its business. The company saw more than 65 per cent total customer growth year over year, and now has more than 8,500 customers worldwide. Aircalls development relies strongly on internationalisation, with more than a third of revenue generated in the United States.

With offices in New York, Paris, Madrid, and very recently, opening its Sydney office, Aircall - which says it has achieved record-breaking growth across its businesss - recently passed the 450 employee mark and plans to recruit more than 260 new employees by the end of the year.

Since the beginning of Aircall, weve helped thousands of companies to enrich their customer experience through voice channels, with more empathy than ever in the past year. We also witnessed an increasing demand for visibility and data about teams and performances. said Olivier Pailhes, co-founder and CEO of Aircall.

Now that hybrid, on-site or remote teams are likely here to stay, well continue to work to achieve our vision, and empower every professional to have richer conversations. With that in mind, the investment by Goldman Sachs, and the renewed trust of our current investors validates this vision.

To watch a video about Aircall click here.
Tech companies Over the Wire and Nextdc have extended their partnership to drive growth and deliver next-generation cloud services to businesses in Australia.

ASX-listed IT and telecommunications provider Over the Wire is upgrading core elements of its network and private cloud infrastructure housed in Nextdcs national Tier IV data centre network.

Over the Wire says it now owns and manages an expansive carrier grade network and has more than two dozen points of presence Australia-wide, which includes six Nextdc data centres.

Housing key elements of Over the Wires recently completed Tier 1 voice network, Nextdcs data centres form the backbone for Over the Wires new SuperCore equipment.

The said SuperCore further amplifies Over the Wires already expansive network capacity by delivering multiple ultra-high bandwidth connections, and provides a high-speed backbone to connect businesses and cloud services across the country.

Over the Wire managing director Michael Omeros said the strategic partnership meant they could deliver cutting-edge and fully integrated telecommunications and IT systems for Australian businesses.

Combining our digital network with Nextdcs digital infrastructure platform opens up new opportunities and capabilities for both of us, Omeros said.

Housing our SuperCore equipment in Nextdc market leading data centres enables us to deliver superior connectivity, collaboration, and cloud services to businesses, he explained.

Omeros said Australian businesses are rapidly turning to cloud technology as digital transformation serves as the primary driver behind organisational productivity improvements and customer experiences.

Omeros claimed Nextdc and Over the Wire are at the forefront of helping businesses embrace the cloud and digital transformation.

The partnership, according to Omeros, means that the network is at par with the worlds leading cloud providers and cloud on-ramp services. It supercharges our multi-cloud capability, and strengthens our existing private cloud offering, he says.

Nextdc has data centres in Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Canberra, and Sydney, which, Omeros said, gives Over the Wire access to nationwide consistency across the facilities.

Quality, security, and reliability are crucial when it comes to operating in the digital sphere and Nextdcs hosting infrastructure is second-to-none, Omeros says.

Access to their data centres provides us with many new opportunities including fibre to other facilities and also to other carriers that have equipment there as well.

Nextdc chief customer and commercial officer David Dzienciol noted: The deep networking capabilities of Over the Wire, paired with Nextdcs national digital infrastructure platform, offer enterprises and the government greater choice when it comes to the best of breed infrastructure and capabilities to support their business.

We are very proud of the strong and trusted partnerships we have built within our partner ecosystem. Strategic partnerships like the one we have forged with Over the Wire play a crucial role in providing the much needed access to the cloud platforms and digital services that businesses need to succeed, all of which are accessible from within any of our data centres nationally, Dzienciol said.

We are very fortunate having the opportunity to partner with like-minded organisations like Over the Wire. We share a passion for technology, and a view of always putting customers first. As individual organisations and as a partnership, we are dedicated to playing an important role for our customers and helping to drive the underlying growth of the digital economy here in Australia, Dzienciol concluded.
These take too much time and effort to accomplish, are easy to forget, and often open to human errors leading to inaccurate entries.

The good news is, you can streamline logging and tracking work hours with a reliable timesheet application.

A timesheet app helps you stay on top of your staffs daily activities and output to ensure everyone works efficiently.

With a time tracking solution, you can minimize wasting company resources, improve employee productivity, and even gain quick wins from your next collaboration project.

Read on to learn more about how timesheet apps boost your business process.

Timesheet app: What is it?

A timesheet app allows users to record the amount of time each employee works on projects or tasks.

Managers, human resources, accounting departments, and employees use it to log work hours for payroll, billing, and operations (among others).

Essentially, a timesheet app could help capture the time employees work on assigned tasks and, in turn, streamline workflows.

Time tracking software with robust features can give you business operation insights, including the specific tasks that take up a bulk of your employees time and cost you the most money.

This can help you identify gaps, plan your project budgets, and implement appropriate strategies to improve your business processes.

6 Benefits of using timesheet apps for your business process

A reliable time tracking software offers a myriad of advantages for your business, such as the following.

1. Keep everyone on track

Time tracking software allows everyone across your company to input the hours they take to complete each task and lets them see their performance. This helps your staff stay on track and take ownership of their workload.

The time tracking data from timesheet apps can inspire a sense of urgency, prompting your employees to work more efficiently to meet deadlines.

It can help discourage them from slacking off and motivate them to diligently work better when they see their progress based on their accomplished productive hours.

2. Conduct data-based team workflow assessments

You can get more out of timesheet apps than your employees time logs at the start and end of the workday.

Some timesheet apps have features that allow you to track all your project tasks, meetings, and client feedback sessions (among others).

All this data can give you relevant information to analyze your team workflows and identify gaps. For example, timesheet app data can show you if a specific task should have been accomplished in an hour, but it took your employees three hours.

This can help you drill down on the cause of the delay and identify appropriate solutions, such as additional resources, perhaps, to help streamline their workflow.

3. Track employee work hours anytime and anywhere

A time tracking software that allows employees to log in their hours and lets managers view them anytime and anywhere offers a convenient way to access, monitor, and get data from your timesheets.

For instance, cloud-based timesheet apps ensure efficient and accurate time logging and tracking. This allows your remote teams and field workers to record their work hours using any compatible device regardless of their location.

Cloud or web-based time tracking software can also centralize your timesheet data. This gives you a staff attendance view in real-time and allows you to quickly and easily access the information. It can expedite your data updating and other critical aspects of your operations.

4. Streamline your payroll process

A traditional payroll process includes tons of manual work, from collecting employee time cards from each department to calculating each personnels weekly (or monthly) earnings based on the pay rate.

Time tracking software eliminates these tedious, time-consuming tasks by automating crucial aspects of your payroll process.

You can input the employee details into the software system, such as the hourly wage, and the app can take care of the rest.

Some timesheet apps can automatically calculate employee wages for each shift based on modern awards or Enterprise Bargaining Agreements (EBAs), including penalty rates and overtime pay.

All you need to do is configure the rates for the various roles, and the time tracking software crunches the numbers for you.

With the timesheet app doing all the grunt work, managers can do away with boatloads of manual, time-consuming work, streamlining your payroll process.

5. Get financial oversight

The data you get from timesheet apps can give you a high-level view of your human resource spending versus the amount your company brings through your client invoices.

Your time tracking software data can also give you a better idea of your employees contributions to your bottom line.

For example, timesheet data can tell you if an employee costs an X amount monthly but earns triple that amount in sales.

You can also pull the numbers on individual staff to determine whether they contribute to your bottom line or drain resources without delivering expected or significant results.

With time tracking software, your managers can compare timesheet hours against rostered hours and your wage costs against your sales to help you optimize your budget and resources.

6. Gain accurate data for performance reviews

Time tracking software provides the reliable data crucial to conducting effective employee performance reviews.

For instance, you can get figures of your employees performance from your timesheet app to assess and compare them with the rest of the team.

You can use the time tracking software data for discussion and help you and your employees determine strong points to emphasize and weaknesses to improve.

Remember that the number of accomplished hours alone does not equal excellent performance. However, these do play a crucial role for your employees to deliver quality results and, in turn, boost your workflows and business processes.

Ready to take your business process to new heights with a timesheet app?

Timesheet apps provide convenient and streamlined employee work hours logging, and time tracking for managers.

It also gives you better staff productivity insights to enhance your workflows and automate critical parts of your business processes and operations.

Find a reliable timesheet app that will improve time management across your company and help steer your business to growth and success.
Elegant Media, one of Australia's top app and software development companies, has created what it says is "a revolutionary go-to learning app for tradespersons to successfully qualify for their builders licence without leaving the worksite" called BRIQ.

Anushka Bandara, the CEO and Co-Founder of Elegant Media said in announcing the new app: BRIQ is an intuitive self-training platform housing all the essential resources to guide tradies through all of the knowledge, testing and preparation they need to crush their licence exam. It allows tradespersons to ditch the costly and inconvenient classroom environment and learn at their own leisure.

It has been a pleasure to work alongside brothers, Michael Vernon and Lee Vernon  the cofounders of BRIQ. Their concept for BRIQ is something unmatched in the market, so it has been incredibly rewarding to work collaboratively on such an advanced project. BRIQ is now available to download from the App Store.

Elegant Media reminds us it is "a full-service mobile app development and software solutions provider for businesses, governments, entrepreneurs and corporates of all sizes to develop and deliver cutting-edge tech solutions. With hundreds of mobile app projects completed, their team is one of the most experienced teams in Australia." It says it is also "the only app developer in Australia with ISO accreditation and also hold Apple and Google accreditation."

BRIQ cofounder Michael Vernon said: "Up until recently, electricians and plumbers have pretty much been the only two licenced trades, meaning you can perform the work without being a registered electrical or plumber. Likewise, a builder was required to be registered when conducting work over $10,000 in value or structural work.

"Recent legislative changes, however, are making so building industry trades in Victoria, will in effect be licenced similar to electricians and plumbers. Starting off with carpenters, the format of their assessment will be similar to the DBU. BRIQ is set up and ready to cater for all trades as required.

The idea for BRIQ was born out of my brothers, and now cofounder, frustration. Lee had his sights set on elevating his career and getting his Victorian Builders Licence  but getting there wasnt easy. It was a hard slog. Having only one option for the mandatory education, Lees only choice was to take up an expensive, classroom course, one that seemed designed for people to fail. Most tradies will fail their builders exam the first time they take it and waste thousands of dollars and hours of time in the process.

We knew there had to be a better, easier and more accessible way to study. From there our mission was clear  to take the building industrys learning environment out of the dark ages and into the palm of your hand.

"It is true, the majority of builders fail their Victorian Builders Licence exam the first time around. A Certificate 4 in building and construction simply doesn't teach you to be able to navigate the building rules/regulation books, the result is wasted nights at school and thousands of dollars in enrolment.

Whereas, with BRIQ we have a 100 percent success rate for participants of the Victorian Licence Exam, we're not here to teach you how to do your job, we're here to teach you how to use your books so you can get that pass.

According to Vernon, the Victorian Builders Licence exam is significantly more difficult than people expect, which is why most people need to take expensive night classes. There is an enormous amount of information to learn across a very broad scope of areas and very large regulation manuals to navigate in preparation.

Created right here in Melbourne, BRIQ was designed by tradies, for tradies, with the express purpose of helping you get qualified in the building industry. Unlike a classroom, its individualised learning thats tailored to you. BRIQ gamifies the experience to keep you engaged and practicing anywhere, anytime. We have generated this quiz style app to spruce up the content and help aspiring builders memorise all the content, navigate the manuals and prepare for the exam in their own time using microlearning techniques, Michael Vernon added.

According to Bandara, BRIQ features an AI technology that caters an individualised learning experience for users. The coursework is streamlined to cut out the fluff and fast track each tradespersons route to getting a PASS in their exam by identifying where the holes in each persons learning sit. The app registers where the weak points lay to personalise practice exam questions that target areas the user needs to improve on.

Obviously, lockdowns are another great example of why classroom training isnt always an accessible learning option for tradesmen. This learning environment can also be a struggle for full-time workers to commit to in addition to work, family and other commitments, so bringing the content to the palm of their hand is a great support.

"BRIQ has been built so that it is the most comprehensive and up-to-date destination for all the information you need to know in the lead-up to taking your builders licence exam. We have ensured that if there is any legislation changes, or updates, you dont need to wait for someone to print a new book  it is immediately updated within the app, Bandara said.

BRIQ also offers full support for the application process for your Victorian Builder Licence through our Premium service. In addition to the interview with a panel of Victorian Builders Association members and the formal exam, there is a large amount of paperwork and documentation required to fulfill the application which many aspiring builders find overwhelming and difficult. BRIQ manages this process to ensure tradesman have everything they need to nail it, without having to think about it.

Michael Vernon concluded: Elegant Media have been an absolute delight to work alongside on this project. From our initial meeting, they immediately understood our vision for BRIQ and were able to make it come to life. Anushka was an absolute professional and I would recommend his services to anyone looking to embark on an app journey.

You can download BRIQ from the iOS App Store here.
Today

A few passing clouds, otherwise generally clear. Low 82F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph.

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A few passing clouds, otherwise generally clear. Low 82F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph.

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A few clouds early, otherwise mostly sunny. High 107F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph.
Jacksonville, TX (75766)

Today

Partly cloudy skies this evening will give way to occasional showers overnight. Low 71F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%..

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Partly cloudy skies this evening will give way to occasional showers overnight. Low 71F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%.




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Veteran Wyoming journalist Kerry Drake has covered the state for more than four decades, previously as a reporter and editor for the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle and Casper Star-Tribune. He lives in Cheyenne. The views expressed here are solely his own.
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Chris Powell has worked for the Journal Inquirer since 1967, first as a reporter, then as an editor, and now as a columnist. He was managing editor from 1974 until retiring from that position in 2018.
Interest in environmental, social, and governance (ESG) disclosures has risen dramatically during the past year, presenting great potential for CPAs to provide assurance on these disclosures as they become more common and as stakeholders are focusing on the quality of such disclosures.

Its an area of opportunity for CPAs to meet the public interest and provide value. Although reporting of and assurance on ESG information in the United States is on the rise, this is an evolving area in the United States. In Europe and other parts of the world, many organizations are required to report on ESG information, and a significant portion of ESG assurance is being performed by an audit firm or an affiliated provider, according to The State of Play in Sustainability Assurance: Benchmarking Global Practice, a new report from AICPA & CIMA and the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC).

The report looks at the extent to which companies around the world are reporting and obtaining assurance for sustainability disclosures and the assurance standards they are using. And in the United States, in relation to the limited number of organizations that seek assurance on ESG disclosures, the overwhelming majority of them have their ESG disclosures assured by non-CPAs.

The report found that, in the United States, of the companies included in the study that obtained assurance over their disclosures, nearly 90% of sustainability assurance is done by other service providers. But those outside the CPA profession arent necessarily governed by the same ethics and quality requirements, said Scott Hanson, director, Public Policy & Regulation at IFAC.

That means there are practice opportunities for CPAs in this area. Practitioners can help educate clients about ESG reporting and disclosures, including the consideration of risks related to climate that can be material to the financial statements, said Jennifer Burns, CPA, the AICPAs chief auditor.

CPAs are uniquely qualified, based on their understanding of their clients, to enhance the reliability of ESG-related disclosures. The auditors knowledge should be leveraged to deliver assurance over ESG, she said.

Interest in ESG reporting applies to private companies as well as public companies, since they both will be held accountable by their stakeholders.

Action on several fronts

In the United States, recent actions related to climate change include an executive order from President Joe Biden, legislation passed in the House of Representatives, and a request for input on climate change disclosures from the SEC (see the AICPA comments to the SEC here). State regulators are also becoming active in ESG, and bank regulators are asking lenders to report on climate-related issues, said Ami Beers, CPA, CGMA, AICPA senior directorAssurance & Advisory InnovationPublic Accounting. Governments and companies around the world have made commitments to net-zero emissions goals as well, and new reporting and assurance requirements are being implemented in Europe.

A variety of other interested parties are also calling for improved climate change information. Consistent integrated reporting or an integrated mindset are the hallmarks of successful companies, said David Madon, director, Public Policy & Regulation at IFAC. Whether they are activist investors or shareholders simply seeking better returns, they all want higher-quality information on sustainability, he said.

Benchmarking current practice

The benchmarking report by AICPA & CIMA and IFAC focused on countries that are members of the G20, as well as Spain, Hong Kong, and Singapore. The report examined the top 50 to 100 companies in each jurisdiction.

It found that 90% of the 1,400 companies included had reported some type of ESG disclosure. Much of that reporting was done through stand-alone sustainability reports, with some disclosed in integrated reporting and some within the annual report. There was great diversity in the reporting standards being used, with 68% relying on multiple standards and many using one or more established frameworks.

This lack of consistency can have an impact on the quality of information and its comparability and consistency, Beers said.

The same problem exists when it comes to assurance. Although about 51% of companies globally are obtaining assurance on their sustainability reporting, there is not consistency in the type of assurance involved. The United States is a good example, where non-CPAs dominate the field and different assurance standards are being used on engagements.

Its possible to find reliable and comparable financial information for large companies in the United States, Indonesia, and Brazil because financial reporting practices are harmonized and they are all audited, Hanson said. Thats not the case for ESG disclosures.

AICPA & CIMA and IFAC strongly support global standards for sustainability-related information because they would provide consistent metrics across the globe. The IFRS Foundation may take a step in that direction in the fall, when it is expected to announce a decision on whether to create an international sustainability reporting standards board.

The standards and the expertise

If the new board comes to fruition, the existence of one set of standards could create consistency and comparability that currently is lacking in sustainability reporting. Independent assurance can increase the reliability of this reporting, and CPAs have an opportunity to play a critical role in this process.

As companies develop their reporting and assurance approach, CPAs have the standards and expertise to help them, Burns said. CPAs are independent, follow a consistent set of assurance standards, and are subject to quality control rules and monitoring due to their professional requirements.

AICPA & CIMA have resources to help practitioners as well as accountants in companies who will be developing their organizations metrics and reporting. Organizations can also turn to the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) Framework in considering ESG control and information needs and to the Institute of Internal Auditors Three Lines Model to address related governance and risk management concerns, Burns advised. In addition, COSO and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development have provided guidance for applying enterprise risk management to ESG-related risks, which also may be helpful.

Were experts on what to disclose and how to provide assurance, Burns said. The profession is ready.

 Anita Dennis is a freelance writer based in New Jersey. To comment on this article or to suggest an idea for another article, contact Ken Tysiac, the JofAs editorial director, at Kenneth.Tysiac@aicpa-cima.com.
With their wide eyes, intricate head coverings and elaborate armour, the Benin bronzes are among the most prized possessions of Berlins Ethnological Museum.

But the 16th-18th century metal plaques and sculptures that once decorated the royal palace of the Kingdom of Benin may never see the light of day in a German museum again.

After years of negotiations, Germany announced in April that it will begin returning the bronzes, looted during the colonial era, to what is now Nigeria from next year.

The move is one of a series of recent steps by Germany towards atoning for crimes committed in the colonial era, including the official recognition in May that it committed genocide in Namibia.

I believe that all parts of society are becoming more aware now that Germany has a colonial history, too, said Hermann Parzinger, president of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation (SPK), which runs the Berlin museum.

Awareness (of this period) was somewhat obscured by the great catastrophes of the 20th century  the world wars, the Holocaust. But we are slowly becoming more conscious of this historical period and its implications.

One reason for this, according to Parzinger, is the completion of the Humboldt Forum, a controversial new museum complex housed in a reconstructed Prussian palace in the heart of Berlin.

The complex, which opened in December, has attracted fierce criticism for planning to show colonial artifacts such as the Benin bronzes in what used to be the main residence of the Hohenzollerns, instigators of German colonialism.

Juergen Zimmerer, a professor of history specialising in the colonial era at the University of Hamburg, also believes the Black Lives Matter movement has played a role in mobilising support for a new approach to colonial history in Germany.

 440 bronzes 

The Benin bronzes, among the most highly regarded works of African art, are now scattered around European museums after being looted by the British at the end of the 19th century.

The Ethnological Museum in Berlin has 530 historical objects from the ancient kingdom, including 440 bronzes  considered the most important collection outside Londons British Museum.

Conversations are ongoing about the details of returning the artworks and whether Berlin may still keep some.

We would like to continue showing art from Benin in the Humboldt Forum, Parzinger said. The important thing is that we have a dialogue about this and a common idea with the people in charge in Nigeria.

Theophilus Umogbai, a curator with the National Museum in Benin City, said the plans to return the bronzes were a welcome development for a country that has always clamoured for the repatriation of these stolen artifacts.

We are also calling on other museums in Europe and other nations to return the artifacts to Benin, the original owners of the works, he added.

In particular, Germanys move raises the pressure on the British Museum, which has some 700 Benin bronzes.

Elsewhere in Europe, similar action is underway to return looted artifacts.

The Dutch government in February voted to begin repatriating artifacts to former colonies such as Indonesia, with culture minister Ingrid van Engelshoven declaring there was no place in the Dutch State Collection for cultural heritage objects that were acquired through theft.

In France, following a landmark speech by President Emmanuel Macron in 2017, a plan was approved last year to return 27 pieces of African art to Benin and Senegal.

 Crime against humanity 

Though smaller than those of France and Britain, Germanys colonial empire encompassed parts of several African countries, including present-day Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Namibia and Cameroon.

Long before the advent of Nazi concentration camps, the country was responsible for mass killings of indigenous Herero and Nama people in Namibia that many historians refer to as the first genocide of the 20th century.

Over the last years, Germany has returned skulls and other human remains to Namibia that it had sent to Berlin during the period for scientific experiments.

In May, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas announced that Germany will now officially refer to the killings in Namibia as genocide and promised a billion euros in financial support to descendants of the victims.

But many Namibians have rejected the deal, arguing that descendants of the Herero and Nama were not involved in the negotiations and the Namibian government was strong-armed into the accord.

Historian Zimmerer, too, finds it regrettable that Germany is not going further to truly face up to the atrocities of the colonial period.

In Germany  and this applies to all European societies  there must be a clear acknowledgement that colonialism was a structurally racist system of injustice and a crime against humanity, he said.
CoinJar, a popular Australian Bitcoin/cryptocurrency exchange, announced today that it has listed six new coins, including BAL, ENJ, GRT, MATIC, ESDT and WBTC.Starting today, users will be able to buy and sell all these coins on CoinJar; join 24 cryptocurrencies Users can already trade, store and send.

Six new listings

Balancer (BAL) Enjin (ENJ) Figure (GRT) Polygon/Matic (MATIC) Tether (USDT) Packaging Bitcoin (WBTC)

Balancer (BAL)

An automated market maker (AMM) built on the Ethereum blockchain, similar to Uniswap and Curve. Users earn BAL tokens by creating and maintaining liquidity pools. BAL tokens are governance tokens, which means they give holders the right to participate in network decision-making. Since these decisions usually involve rewards and fees generated by the Balancer agreement, there will be financial incentives to hold and participate.

Enjin (ENJ)

One of the pioneers of non-fungible tokens (NFT). NFT is a unique mark that allows holders to prove the absolute ownership of digital assets.Through a process called casting, Enjin can easily Ethereum blockchainENJ is the currency that facilitates this process, allowing holders to mint and melt NFT.

Figure (GRT)

Graph describes itself as a protocol for organizing blockchain data and making it easily accessible. chart Create an open market where information from different blockchains can be sold to developers who may need it to support their own smart contracts. Graph Token (GRT) is the currency that powers this market and provides incentives for those who index, manage, and sell data.

Polygon/Matic (MATIC)

A fast, cross-blockchain dApp development platform built on Ethereum. Like the ETH token, MATIC is the fuel that powers the Polygon network and facilitates the payment and settlement of transactions. Polygon uses the Proof-of-Stake consensus mechanism, which means that token holders can stake their tokens and get more MATIC returns.

Tether (USDT)

Pegged to the U.S. dollar, Tether allows people to buy and sell cryptocurrencies when it is difficult for exchanges to find reliable banking and fiat currency partners. As of 2021, the stablecoin market is booming, with a circulation of more than 100 billion U.S. dollars. But so far, Tether is still the largest participant, accounting for more than 60% of the market, and basically acting as the reserve currency of the crypto world.

Parcel Bitcoin (WBTC)

The invention of the DeFi movement. Linked to the value of Bitcoin itself, WBTC is a way to represent Bitcoin ownership on the Ethereum network (that is, you lock Bitcoin in a smart contract and get an equivalent amount of WBTC in return). Owning WBTC means that you can use the bitcoins you own on DeFi applications, for example, to buy tokens on Uniswap, or as liquidity pool collateral on platforms such as Compound or Balancer.
British exporters have received more than 12 billion pounds of national financial support to maintain Britains trade with the rest of the world through Brexit and the pandemic.

UK export financingAccording to its annual report released on Wednesday, the governments export credit agency provided British companies with the highest level of financial support in 30 years in the 12 months to the end of March. This is almost three times the amount in the previous fiscal year, helping to export to 77 countries.

The agency aims to support viable UK exports through loan guarantees, insurance and direct loans to help them win, perform and receive compensation for under-supplied international businesses in the private sector.

UKEF has provided more than 7 billion in support to companies affected by the epidemic, such as Rolls Royce, Ford, easyJet and British Airways, while providing trade guarantees and insurance to encourage the private sector to provide loans to exporters.

It also helps exporters facing the risk of Brexit, for example, after a car manufacturer promised to start business in the UK, it provided a guarantee of 480 million pounds for a business loan of 600 million pounds in March 2021.

British exporters, especially small businesses, complain A lot of red tape and cost Trade with the European Union after Brexit.

Many people also warned that the trade agreements reached by the government so far have had little effect, and instead have caused them to readjust their operations and move production and distribution overseas.

Export Minister Graham Stewart said: We are opening up the worlds fastest-growing market through a trade agreement under negotiation so that the UK can recover from the pandemic as soon as possible.

Respected

There were 549 companies supported by financing guarantees, which more than doubled over the previous two years.

The agency also underwritten its largest civil infrastructure project in history, building two monorail lines and providing trains in Cairo with a guarantee of 1.7 billion, the first such export in 12 years.

The export agency is now planning to expand its coverage of companies focused on zero-carbon programs.

Stewart will say on Wednesday that UKEF will set up a renewable energy, energy and carbon management team to underwrite activities in areas such as wind power, solar, green hydrogen, grid resilience and decommissioning. UKEF also pledged to end its support for overseas new fossil fuel projects.

Last year, UKEF launched a new program to encourage post-Brexit trade and small businesses to take advantage of the new trade agreement.

In this case, exporters can apply for larger loans from five main street banks in the UK and receive 80% guarantee support, which can be used to cover export-related costs and expand business operations.

Marcus Dolman, co-chairman of the British Exporters Association, said that such new products have proven their value to British exporters and supporting British employment.
The Supreme Courts nominated Justice Mahmoud Jamal told members of Congress and Senators today that he was nominated as the first person of color to be appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. The trust of the judicial system.

Jamal reflected on his historic nomination during a Q&A session with the Parliamentary Justice and Human Rights Committee on Tuesday afternoon.

I know the responsibility, Jamal told the committee members. I am very, very aware of the responsibilities that this role brings.

Watch: Supreme Court nominee Mahmoud Jamal discusses judicial radicalism

Judge Mahmud Jamal spoke with members of Congress and Senators on Tuesday before being appointed to the court in the next few days. 2:49

Jamal was nominated by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to enter the court on June 18. Since 2019, he has served on the Ontario Court of Appeals.

Jamal was born into an Ismore Muslim family in Kenya. He originally came from India. When Jamal was about 14, his family moved to England and then to Edmonton.

If appointed, Jamal will replace the seat vacated by Justice Rosalie Abella, and she will retire from the court on July 1, which is her 75th birthday.

If his nomination is confirmed, Jamal will become the 88th judge in the courts 140-year history.

Jamal says more diversity will generate trust

In response to a question about the importance of his nomination to the court, Jamal recalled his appointment to the Ontario Court of Appeals in 2019.

He said he was underwhelmed by the reaction of people of color in the legal profession after his appointment.

He said that the response to his latest nomination had multiplied, reflecting the desire for better representation in the judiciary.

Anyone from a racialized community or a minority group has a huge responsibility, so I am very, very aware of this, Jamal said in a virtual appearance with the committee.

What people are saying is that they do see public institutions open to them. They have hope. They can see their faces reflected in the judiciary. I think it gives people a sense of ambition. I think it creates trust in public institutions. .

Reconciliation is respect

Jamal is not allowed to answer questions about his legal opinions or his views on possible cases before the Supreme Court-although members of Congress did comb out some of his broader views on the law and the duties of judges.

He also talked about the role of the judicial system in reconciling with indigenous peoples.

I think reconciliation is respect, Jamal said.

He described a summer when he worked in the Metis Council of Alberta before entering law school, which was a turning point in his understanding of indigenous issues.

It was an eye-opening experience for me, Jamal said. It started to free me from a lot of stereotypes because I think we all have unconscious biases to some degree.

According to his guide, Jamal did not directly answer questions about the recently adopted United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

But in an earlier answer, he promised to make a clear and reasonable brief ruling on the case before the court.

He said: Ordinary Canadians have the right to know what their Supreme Court is saying, what it is deciding and why it decides that way.
Pennsylvania State Police are seeking public help to find the mother and two children who left Chester County home earlier this month and appeared in Philadelphia for the last time on Friday.

According to soldiers at the Avondale Barracks, 30-year-old Shannon Nicole Lake (Shannon Nicole Lake) was last seen at her home in New London Town more than a week ago. The authorities received reports that she was missing, and the last location she knew was in the Kensington area of ??Philadelphia at around 11:30 am on June 18.

Lake is believed to have left the Chester County home with her boyfriend, 31-year-old Daniel Patrick Connors, and her two children-a 2-year-old girl and a 6-month-old boy.

Investigators said that Lake may be riding in a dark gray 2014 Mazda 6 sedan with the Pennsylvania label KMD-8119.

Lake is described as 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighing 115 pounds, and has brown hair and green eyes. Connors is 5 feet 9 inches tall, weighs 175 pounds, has brown hair and blue eyes.

The mother and two children have entered the National Crime Information Center as missing persons, as well as vehicles.

Anyone who knows the whereabouts of Lake and his children should call (610) 268-2022 and refer to PA2021-837097 to contact the State Police Evandale Barracks.
Part of the Trans-Canada highway in Nova Scotia has been closed due to a protest against border restrictions announced by the provincial government on Tuesday.

The Department of Transportation wrote on Twitter that all four lanes at Exit 7 of Cobequid Pass 104, about 50 kilometers from the border between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, were closed and detours were taken.

The RCMP stated that traffic is turning from Exit 7 to Highway 4. The RCMP asks people to avoid the area and if they are in the area, please drive carefully.

Announced on Tuesday, Passengers from New Brunswick still need to self-quarantine after arrival, Even after Nova Scotia opened its borders with PEI and Newfoundland and Labrador, there were no isolation or testing requirements from Wednesday.

New Brunswick Open borders to Canadian tourists They came from outside the Atlantic region last week, but they are not required to self-isolate, provided they have at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. It is the only Atlantic Canadian province to do so.

The Governor of Nova Scotia, Iain Rankin, said at a press conference: Due to the measures taken by New Brunswick on tourists from other parts of Canada, when people enter Nova Scotia from the province, To save time, we need to maintain a certain degree of protection.

Ministry of Justice issued threats

In a Facebook video on Tuesday afternoon, PC MLA Elizabeth Smith-McCrossin, representing Cumberland North, threatened to close the Trans-Canada Highway in protest.

If you dont change your mind and let the people of Cumberland and New Brunswick meet each other without self-isolation, the Trans-Canada Highway will be closed until you open the border for the family. Cumberland, she Say.

At the COVID-19 briefing in Nova Scotia on Tuesday afternoon, Rankin did not explain why he had to wait until the day before the border changes took effect before announcing stricter restrictions on New Brunswick.

More headlines
Meghan Markles Fierce Battle on the Eve of the Wedding

It is alleged that Prince Harry had a fierce fight with William on the eve of his wedding with Meghan Markle and has not spoken before heading to Australia.

According to a source who asked not to be named, the royal brothers are said to have had many fierce quarrels. The quarrel between Harry and Meghan on the eve of their wedding in Windsor Castle was called particularly ferocious.

The exact details of the incident are unclear, according to Mailed on sunday.

However, the day before the wedding, the brothers were all smiling in front of the crowd, and Harry said he felt great.

While walking in Windsor with William, someone asked Harry twice if he was nervous, but the prince replied, Great, thank you. How do you feel?

They added, But its incredible to say Kates name publicly in Oprahs interview because she is the one who made her cry. Megan will be keenly aware that Kate is unable to fight back.
The Secretary of the Interior has launched an investigation into the USs efforts to wipe out the identity and culture of Native American tribes for over 150 years.

The federal government will investigate its past supervision of Native American boarding schools and work to expose the truth about the loss of life and lasting consequences of these institutions, which have forced hundreds of thousands of children to leave their homes and communities for decades. US Secretary of the Interior Deb Harland announced on Tuesday.

She said this unprecedented work will include compiling and reviewing decades of records to identify past boarding schools, find known and possible cemeteries in or near these schools, and reveal the names of students and tribal affiliation.

In order to address the intergenerational impact of Indian boarding schools and promote the spiritual and emotional healing of our community, no matter how difficult the past, we must shed light on the unspoken traumas of the past, Harland said.

As a member of the Laguna Pueblo tribe in New Mexico and the first Native American to serve as cabinet secretary, Harland outlined this in a speech to members of the National Congress of American Indians during the organizations mid-year meeting. initiative.

She said that this process will be long, difficult and painful, and will not eliminate the heartbreak and loss suffered by many families.

The boys dormitory in Lac du Flambeau in northern Wisconsin was built in 1895 as a relic and reminder of the government boarding school there that took young Native Americans from their homes and prevented them from speaking their parents language [Courtesy: Creative Commons]

Beginning with the Indian Civilization Act of 1819, the United States enacted laws and policies to establish and support Indian boarding schools nationwide. For more than 150 years, indigenous children were taken from their communities and forced to enter boarding schools focused on assimilation.

Harland talked about the federal governments attempts to eliminate tribal identity, language and culture, and how it has continued to manifest in the past through long-term trauma, cycles of violence and abuse, premature death, mental disorders, and drug abuse.

This Recently discovered child remains Buried on the site of what was once Canadas largest aboriginal boarding school, this has greatly increased the interest of Canada and the United States in this heritage.

In Canada, more than 150,000 Aboriginal children As part of the plan to integrate them into society, they were required to attend state-sponsored Christian schools. They were forced to convert to Christianity and were not allowed to speak their language. Many people were beaten and verbally abused, and as many as 6,000 were said to have died.

Reading about Unmarked graves in CanadaIn a recent review article published by the Washington Post, Harland told the story of her own family.

The Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland (Deb Haaland) launched a US investigation after reading a report on an unmarked grave in Canada that contained the remains of 215 indigenous children [File: Evan Vucci/AP Photo]

Harland wrote that she was the product of these terrible assimilation policies and described how grandparents were stolen from family members when she was 8 years old.

She cited statistics from the Native American Boarding School Rehabilitation Alliance, which reported that by 1926, more than 80% of Native school-age children were enrolled in boarding schools run by the federal government or religious organizations. In addition to providing resources and raising awareness, the alliance has also been working to compile more studies on American boarding schools and death tolls, which many people believe are very lacking.

Officials from the Ministry of the Interior said that in addition to trying to learn more about the loss of life in boarding schools, they will also work hard to protect school-related cemeteries and will negotiate with the tribe on how to best do this while respecting the family and community.

As part of this plan, the final report of agency staff will be submitted by April 1, 2022.

In his speech, Harland told the story of her grandmother and other children in her village who were loaded onto a train and then sent to a boarding school. She said that the dark history of these institutions has been haunting many families, and the institution has the responsibility to restore this history.

She said: We must reveal the truth about the loss of human lives and the lasting consequences of these schools.
The Democratic Partys efforts to reform voting rights across the country lack the support of the Republican Party.

Republicans in the U.S. Senate are preparing to block the debate on comprehensive election reform legislation proposed by the Democrats and supported by President Joe Biden, which laid the foundation for the confrontation between the two major parties over the U.S. election law.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said on Tuesday that he will submit legislation entitled A Bill for the People to the Senate for debate, a move that requires the consent of 60 senators. However, Republicans who control 50 of the 100 Senate seats have opposed the legislation.

They dont even want to debate, or even debate, because they are afraid, Schumer criticized in his speech in the Senate.

They want to take away the right to vote and make it more difficult for so many Americans to vote. They dont want to talk about it, sweep it under the carpet, and hope that Americans dont hear it, Schumer said.

The For the People Act will require all U.S. states to implement reform measures such as automatic voter registration, provision of mail-in voting, and deployment of new voting machines.

The White House stated that the Democratic Party attaches great importance to this moment and the closeness of the relationship between the two parties in the U.S. Senate, saying that Vice President Kamala Harris will preside over the Senate vote on Tuesday night, allowing the Democrats to obtain a 51-50 majority.

Although the bill was sold by Democrats as an election integrity bill, Republicans opposed the measure, believing that the measure would strengthen the Democratic Partys political power and further weaken the publics confidence in American elections.

Importantly, the bill will Roll back the new voting restriction law Passing in the state legislature controlled by the Republican Party has sparked the anger of voting rights advocates.

Republican leader Mitch McConnell called the bill a transparent partisan plan of the Democratic Party that makes every election in the United States permanently beneficial to them.

Today, the Senate will prevent this dangerous party from taking over our electoral system, said John Thun, the leading Republican Senator.

In a rare step towards todays politics, former President Barack Obama supported a bipartisan bid by the Democratic centrist Joe Manchin to enact a compromise bill with Republicans. But McConnell and others also rejected this.

Republican legislators in politically important states in the United States have New voting restrictions passed After the 2020 general election, the turnout rate reached a record high.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said of the January 6 attack on the U.S. Congress: State legislatures are passing a wave of anti-voter laws across the country, based on lies that have been repeatedly overturned, leading to attacks on our country. Capitol. Trump supporter.

They made these laws because they didnt like the election results, and they continued to lie about the election results, Psaki said.

At least 14 states have enacted 22 new laws restricting voting rights Strongly opposed Biden won the 2020 election with a record turnout.

Former President Donald Trump continues Unsubstantiated claim Although the court dismissed his fraud charges in key states on the grounds of insufficient evidence, the 2020 election was still stolen.

Democratic Senator Martin Heinrich stated that Republicans refused to even debate the For the People Act, which would be seen as a conspiracy theory against former President Trump and his election against us. The attack and the strong support of reality itself.

The Senates failure to debate the bill would expand Washingtons discussions on amending the Senates blocking bill rule to allow for legislation with fewer than 60 votes.

The impasse in the Senate will focus on the public debate about the new, narrower voting rights legislation being enacted by black lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives.
A man appeared in court today and was charged with murdering a father and his young wife at home and making their son an orphan.

Stanley Elliott is accused of killing 61-year-old Jeffrey Hibbert and his 29-year-old wife Michelle on Fathers Day.

6 Jeffrey and Michelle killed in brutal Fathers Day attack Credit: Facebook

The couple has a young son who is about two years old, who is now an orphan.

Elliott appeared in Basingstoke District Court today and was charged with two murders.

During the brief hearing, the 52-year-old short fat man spoke just to confirm his name, date of birth and address.

The unshaven Elliott waved to his younger brother who was sitting in the public gallery.

He was remanded in custody awaiting trial and will appear in Winchester Criminal Court on Friday.

6 In 2008, Fathers 4 Justice protesters climbed the gantry on M25 in Batman Credit: Agence France-Presse

6 The attack happened in the early hours of Sunday morning Credit: Facebook

Jeff is a fathers justice protester. He is famous for climbing the gantry on the M25 in Batman.

The cute hooligan unfolded a banner with a photo of his eight-year-old daughter, and stopped thousands of cars.

At the time he said: I cant describe how it feels to be unable to see her.

If I take her away, I will go to jail for kidnapping, but my ex-partner can do it, and its good. Whats the reason?

Just after 2 oclock in the morning on Sunday, the police were called to his semi-detached bungalow after receiving the report.

6 29-year-old Michelle was also killed in a violent attack Credit: Facebook

They found the bodies of Jeff and Michelle at home, and Elliott was arrested shortly afterwards.

Jeffs brother Frank paid tribute to his father outside the house yesterday.

He said: I planned to come down to visit him yesterday. When I saw many police officers and blue lights and roads were blocked, I immediately knew this was my brothers house.

I want to know what will happen to his son-he is only two or three years old, and he is my biggest concern.

Geoffrey and I have always disagreed, but as brothers and family, we have helped each other in the past. I knew if I asked him to do me a favor, he would do it.

Im dead Charles tears and eagerness to embalm her-Dis surprising insight after his death not in the office The Czar said that after Covid, the four-day work week could become the new normal for Britons Joyful summer Masks, social distancing and the rule of six will be cancelled on July 19 On the edge Barnsley Hospital issued a rare black alert because more than 300 patients were trapped in the emergency room Family killed Murder suicide resulted in the death of four family members, including a 5-year-old girl No worries about Willie Men from this part of the country believe they have the greatest will

Geoffrey was repairing the bicycle, and there was a small herd of sheep somewhere nearby, even though I had never been there.

Now I must go and tell my father who lives in London, but I still dont know anything about what happened.

I just want to know what happened to this little boy. I want to get justice for what happened.

6 Officials blocked the streets around the Buckland Avenue property Credit: Solent
Paris France  Frances far-right National Rally Party failed to win the victory predicted by many pundits and opinion polls in the first round of the regional elections on Sunday. This was a serious setback for Marina Le Pen, because she hopes to be in the next year. Consolidate the legitimacy of her party before her presidential election.

Although regional elections in France usually do not have a major impact, analysts are closely watching this years elections to find clues to key votes next year.

Pre-election polls predict that national gatherings may account for half of the countrys 12 mainland regions.

But the far-right party ended up taking a narrow lead in only one game-Provence-Alpes-Southern Cote dAzur.

Overall, the national rally only won 19% of the nations votes-worse than its performance in the 2015 regional elections.

Our voters have not come out, Le Pen said on Sunday, urging supporters to mobilize their efforts for the runoff next weekend.

Jean-Yves Camus, a political scientist who specializes in the extreme right, told Al Jazeera: Those who plan to vote for the national assembly basically stay at home.

Voter turnout on Sunday hit a record low, with only one-third of voters participating.

Camus warned that comparing regional elections to presidential elections with much higher turnouts would be misleading.

Nearly 78% of voters participated in the 2017 presidential election, when Le Pen entered the final round and eventually lost to Emmanuel Macron.

Since then, the 52-year-old has worked tirelessly to eliminate the image of a far-right party in order to attract more mainstream voters.

The party was founded in 1972 by her father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, and has long been accused of anti-Semitism, racism and xenophobia.

Le Pen publicly distanced herself from her father, who was fined several times for denying the massacre.

In 2018, she changed the name from National Front to National Assembly, calling the old label a mental barrier for voters.

Since then, the image of the party in the eyes of some people has changed.

A study published in April by left-leaning think tank Jean Jaures found that in April 2021, 35% of people had a negative view of the party, compared with 50% in 2019.

This is a complete evolution, Max-Valentin Robert, one of the co-authors of the study, told Al Jazeera.

The report also predicts that Le Pen has the first chance to defeat Macron in 2022.

However, to do this, it believes that she must win the support of most mainstream conservative voters.

If Sundays regional elections provide any clues, it is that Le Pen has not yet wooed these voters.

Macron No Party

The mainstream conservative party Les Republicains performed better than expected, winning 29% of the national vote.

Xavier Bertrand, an incumbent who gained an unexpected health lead in the Hauts-de-France region, told supporters: We have liberated this region from the National Front.

Bertrand, who was initially predicted to be evenly matched, will also run for president next year and won more than 41% of the vote, while the far-right candidate Sebastien Chenu won only 24% of the vote.

Macrons centrist party, La Republique en Marche, withdrew from Sundays first round of voting with a particularly disastrous result. It only won 10% of the countrys votes and was not ahead of any of the 12 regions in the mainland.

Macrons problem is that he is likely to be re-elected next year, but his problem is that he does not have a party, Camus said.

Macron and Le Pen are preparing to re-take the 2017 vote, and both have the opportunity to enter the second round again.

In recent months, both have tried to attract the same conservative voters.

By leaping to the right, Macrons party was accused of helping to eliminate the extreme right and its hardline stance on immigration, Islam, secularism, and crime.

At the same time, in recent months, the issue of identity has played an increasingly important role in the French political arena, discussing the influence of the so-called Islamic Left-a way of linking Muslim activists with the left to promote certain Conspiracy theory of an agenda.  Efforts to ban gender-inclusive language in French classrooms.

Looking ahead, after the recent defeat, both Le Pen and Macron urged voters to go to the polling station for the runoff next weekend and warned of the danger of abstention.

To let abstentions win is to let democracy fail, Prime Minister Jean Castex tweeted Monday morning, adding that voting is the responsibility of every citizen.
Five months after taking a tough stance, President Joe Biden will initiate his next phase of his China policy and promote high-level meetings with Beijing officials.

According to three people familiar with the talks, the United States and China are discussing a possible meeting between Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the G20 meeting in Italy next week.

The Biden administration also told Beijing that it hopes to send Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman to visit China in the summer.

The White House is also considering a phone call with Xi Jinping. This will be Bidens second contact with his Chinese counterpart as the President of the United States.

In the first few months of his presidency, Biden emphasized that he would take a patient attitude toward China while focusing on strengthening the United States and consolidating the alliance.

After Washington has made significant progress in responding to the Covid-19 pandemic and months of negotiations with its allies, it has decided to significantly increase its engagement with China Strong joint statement on Chinas actions At the summit, including G7.

The White House also held preliminary internal discussions on sending Blincoln or National Security Adviser Jack Sullivan to China later this year, which may lay the foundation for Biden and Xi Jinping to hold a bilateral summit during the G20 summit in Rome. In October.

The government planned from the beginning to rank its policies as [first] Bonnie Glaser, a China expert at the German Marshall Fund, said: Focus on revitalizing the United States, controlling the pandemic, and reviving our alliances and partnerships.

Now they think its time to turn to contact, even though they might not call it that, and start a dialogue with China.

This move will arouse criticism from the hawks, who have praised Biden for unexpectedly taking Be tough on BeijingBut it will be welcomed by the business community, which has been worried about the deterioration of relations.

The Blinken-Wang meeting will mark the first high-level contact since Blinken and Sullivan met their colleagues in Alaska in March. A U.S. official said that this would be an opportunity to continue discussing Anchorages closed-door discussions after the fierce publicity began.

At the end of that meeting, Brinken made it clear to Yang Jiechi, Chinas top foreign policy official, that he was not going to go to China for follow-up discussions despite the invitation.

Respected

It is not clear whether Beijing will agree to these meetings. The US official said that China did not say whether it will receive Sherman. Sherman will be the only senior Biden official to visit other than climate negotiator John Kerry. He met with Bidens colleagues in Shanghai in April. .

Emphasizing the challenges facing the relations between the two countries, China continues to Ignore the Pentagons request Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin talks with General Xu Qiliang, Chinas top military officer. The Financial Times reported last month that China had rejected three phone calls. A US defense official said that the situation has not changed.

The White House and the State Department did not comment on the negotiation of diplomatic contacts. But Sullivan said last week that Biden will talk to Xi Jinping soon after the summit between the US president and Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Geneva.

Sullivan said that Biden is committed to talking with Xi Jinping to assess this relationship. We are very committed to this. It is only a matter of time and method, he said.

follow Dmitry Sevastopoulo On twitter
Prosecutors listed the high price of the drug, rapid negotiation and waiting for regulatory approval as red flags for the contract.

According to a document seen by Reuters, Brazilian federal prosecutors have begun investigating a contract worth 1.6 billion reais (320 million U.S. dollars) for a 20 million dose of COVID- produced by Indias Bharat Biotechnology Company. 19 Vaccines.

Before reaching similar deals with Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson, the Office of the Attorney General (PGR) listed relatively high prices, fast negotiations, and waiting for regulatory approval as red flags for the Bharat contract signed in February.

Bharat did not respond to a request for comment outside of working hours in India.

The Bharat contract has also been reviewed by the Brazilian Senate investigation, which requires the head of Bharats intermediary Precisa Medicamentos in Brasilia to testify on Wednesday.

To justify the preliminary investigation, the prosecutor stated in a document dated June 16 that Precisas partners include Global Saude, a company accused of selling drugs to the Ministry of Health but not delivering them to the Ministry of Health in a case investigated by the police. Pharmaceutical company.

Precisa stated that it has no knowledge of prosecutors investigations and is willing to cooperate with Senate investigators. The company said in a statement that its negotiations with the Ministry of Health are transparent and that the price of the Bharat vaccine in Brazil is the same as that in a dozen other countries.

The Ministry of Health said in a statement on Tuesday that it had not paid Precisa of any kind and its legal department is analyzing the case.

Global Saude did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Prosecutors questioned why the Ministry of Health agreed to purchase the Bharat vaccine, which has not passed the regulatory barrier, at a price of about $15 per dose: much higher than it paid for the regulatory-approved Pfizer vaccine.

The prosecutor wrote: Involving the history of violations of Precisas partners and the high price paid for the dose prescribed in the contract In-depth investigations in civil and criminal aspects are required.

In another document seen by Reuters, Senate investigators cited the testimony of a civil servant who did not want to be named, describing the abnormal pressure of senior officials from the Ministry of Health to achieve the Bharat vaccine (Covaxin brand).

In March of this year, Anvisa, the Brazilian health regulatory agency, rejected the governments request to import Covaxin dosages, citing concerns about Bharats manufacturing standards and lack of safety data and other documents.

This month, Anvisas board of directors agreed to allow only 4 million doses of Covaxin to be imported to further study its safety and effectiveness, but the Ministry of Health must first sign an agreement with regulatory agencies on key conditions.
With almost no national welfare system, the elderly in Lebanon can only earn a living amid the countrys deteriorating economic disaster.

In their heyday, they survived 15 years of civil war and several rounds of instability that began in 1975. Now, in the past 150 years, one of the worlds worst financial crises has plunged many people into poverty in their later years.

Lebanon has the largest elderly population in the Middle East-10% of its 6 million population are over 65 years old. According to the United Nations International Labor Organization, about 80% of Lebanese people 65 years of age or older do not have retirement benefits or medical insurance.

As the unemployment rate rises, family members and charities, traditionally the main source of support, are struggling to cope with the increasing demand.

Any dollar savings that the elderly have spent their entire lives working are locked in the bank and cannot be obtained in the banking crisis. As the local currency depreciated against the U.S. dollar, savings lost nearly 90%. Imported medicines and basic commodities are at risk, and the once reliable healthcare system is collapsing.

Joe Taoutel, who runs Rafiq el-Darb or Friends until the End, said that in the past two years, more and more elderly people have taken to the streets, looking for rubbish or begging.

Taoutel provides family meals to more than 60 elderly families, up from five before the crisis.

Those who once gave need help now, Tauter said.

Since the beginning of the crisis at the end of 2019, the government is working hard to provide food for 55% of the population now living below the poverty line.

With the economic downturn, more and more young Lebanese people are migrating, leaving behind elderly parents.
KYLIE Jenners ex-boyfriend Tyga may be engaged to his girlfriend Camaryn Swanson because she was found wearing a huge diamond ring.

There are rumors that the rapper and 22-year-old Kamarin are preparing to get married because she was photographed wearing fireworks worth $150,000.

6 Camaryn shows the ring at a Southern California theme park Credit: SWNS

Taiga, 31 years old, Over the weekend, his girlfriend and his girlfriend went to the Knott Berry Farm in Southern California, where she wore the ring.

Fashion designer Camaryn put the diamond on his left ring finger and waved on the roller coaster, making fans crazy.

A bystander told the photographer that the ring was quite large with a lot of diamonds in it, but jewelry experts valued it at $150,000.

Apeksha Kothari, the jewelers diamond expert Rare carat Tell the Sun that the price has gone up due to the fancy tailoring and relaxed style.

6 She rides the roller coaster with Taiga Credit: SWNS

6 Camaryn displays a huge diamond firework worth $150,000 Credit: SWNS

It looks like she is wearing a very unique ring set in white gold or platinum with two colorless diamonds of about 3 carats, Apeksha said.

It looks like she got a bypass ring with cushion and oval cut diamonds. The color and clarity of both diamonds look very high, which is the standard for fancy cuts set in white metal. 

Perhaps explaining why Camaryn is so keen to show off it, experts continue to reveal that it may cost up to $150,000.

Although their engagement has not been confirmed, Camalin showed the ring, which appeared on her finger for the first time earlier this month.

6 Camaryn and Tyga take their son King Cairo to the theme park Credit: SWNS

The Rack City rapper wore jewelry with Swanson at a party in Delilah, a West Hollywood hotspot, to celebrate a friends birthday.

Camaryn also did not dispel the rumors on social media because she showed off the ring in several photos on her Instagram grid.

Tyga had a great time with his girlfriend and his 8-year-old son King Cairo, which she shared with former Blac Chyna.

The couple officially went online on social media in March, posting a photo of them boarding a private jet and heading abroad.

6 Tyga dated Kylie Jenner before Credit: Instagram

6 Kelly looks to be reunited with little dad Travis Scott Credit: Instagram

Tyga had a relationship with Kylie Jenner before, He dated on and off for two years until they broke up forever in 2017.

The mother recently told Andy Cohen during a reunion with Kardashian that she and the rapper were not friends, but good.

She further explained: If I see him go out or meet him anywhere, you know, I always wish him all the best.

Since breaking up with Tyga, Jenner continues to date Travis Scott, who is also a rapper, and shares a three-year-old daughter Stormi with her.

Double Sambo Towies Shelby Tribble with Sam Mucklow and young son in bikinis on the beach Im a rude person Love Islands first physically disabled star, Hugo, boasted that he was an excellent bastard exclusive I am facing to love Cara Delevingne from the hottest male stripper to breast augmentation and rhinoplasty Leave from my lawn Katherine Ryans husbands ex DM was angry a few days after his birth Picture exclusive BAE-WATCH Lily James fake boobs almost burst from bikini at Pam Andersons wedding scene shattered Internet celebrity Kate Hudson revealed that 2-year-old daughter Eliza died on Fathers Day

Kelly and Travis recently sparked relationship rumors Hug on the red carpet at the New York event earlier this month.

When the 29-year-old rap star Travis received the award at the Parsons Welfare Conference, he shouted to Kelly: My wife, I love you.

Three-year-old Kylie and Stormy flew to new York stand by Travis Because he was commended at the 72nd Annual Parsons Welfare Conference.

The family outing sparked further rumors that the parents formally got back together because the couple had contact with each other during the event.
On June 1, the Israeli Army Reserve Lieutenant Ashag Alaro of Ethiopian Jewish descent posted a video on Instagram with the title My Zionism. In the nearly three-minute clip, Alaro accused those who believed that Zionism was an imperialist ideology to actively delete Brown and the history of black Jews.

She claimed that this stance ignored our story, struggle and survival and ignored the Zionist cause has already [sic] Built a safe home for Jews like us. She explained that opposition to Zionism is especially harmful because people know that when your history is thrown aside, when your hero is not remembered The feeling of staying. 

If you think the video is a harmless statement and one of the black Jewish women is sharing her feelings, especially considering the final peace message, then you will be forgiven. But this video seems to be part of Israels public relations campaign, trying to repair its image after the latest round of brutal violence against the Palestinians has sparked worldwide outrage.

Israeli government officials and military personnel-including Mohammad Kabiya, a Palestinian citizen of Israel, who reposted a video defending the Israeli army-and various supporters of Israel are actively challenging the growing West on social media. Pro-Palestinian sentiment.

Alaros video seems to be specifically aimed at narratives that contrast the Palestinian struggle against Israeli colonialism with the struggles of other indigenous and oppressed peoples facing colonial and neo-colonial forces.

It attempts to end the debate about Israeli settler colonialism through a mixed language of guilt and emotion, which puts Alaros life experience before Palestinian reality.

She opposed the elimination of black and brown Jewish communities by aligning herself with a political ideology based on the elimination of the Palestinian people. She mentioned that Ethiopian Jews immigrated to Israel when facing anti-Semitic persecution to actively portray Zionism, but did not mention that Jewish immigration led to mass deportations, deaths and systematic oppression of Palestinians. She seems to be justifying the cruel conquest of the whole nation, because it is supposed to bring relief to another nation.

Araro relies on lazy identity politics, and it imagines a hierarchy of persecution. She often used the term white to challenge arguments against Zionism and created the illusion that criticism of the Israeli settler colonization project led white activists to oppose the black version of Zionism.

The fact is that even the safe home provided by Zionism for Ethiopian Jews is fragile at best. A brief review of the facts confirms the view she is trying to oppose: Israel is a European, settler-colonized country, and therefore a racist countryeven for its Ethiopian Jewish citizens.

Since the 1980s, more than 80,000 Ethiopian Jews have been brought to Israel in state-sponsored operations to save them from famine and conflict. Although their Jewish identity has been recognized by the Israeli religious authorities, they continue to be questioned because the community faces widespread racism from Israeli institutions and society as a whole.

On July 2, 2019, Israeli police shot and protested against 18-year-old Ethiopian Solomon Tekah in Tel Aviv. A protester stood opposite a policeman [File: Reuters/Corinna Kern]

For example, in the 1990s, the Israeli National Blood Bank was found to destroy Ethiopians blood donations because they feared that as Africans, they were carrying HIV. In the 2000s and early 2010s, Israeli authorities injected contraceptives into Ethiopian Jewish women without their knowledge or full consent. Some people in the transit camp were even threatened that if they did not receive the injection, they would be denied entry into Israel. Others think it is a medicine to prevent diseases.

Today, Ethiopian Jews continue to be discriminated against in education, employment and housing, and suffer high levels of poverty.

As a marginalized community, Ethiopian Jews and other people of African descent in Israel often face police brutality. In recent years, two young Ethiopian Jewish men, 19-year-old Solomon Tekah and 24-year-old Yehuda Biadga, have been killed, triggering a black mans life is also a fate protest in Israel.

This is the end of the safe home that Ethiopian Jews gained when they entered the Israeli border. However, Israel, a country founded on ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people, systematically depriving and oppressing them, is there really any surprise in adopting such racist practices against black Jews?

Araros discourse of identity elevates her personal experience above the evidence of conquering others, but fails to realize that no form of oppression exists in isolation.

Different repulsive structures are interconnected and mutually reinforcing. Ethiopian Jews find themselves at the bottom of Israeli society, but have the right to participate in the occupation and deprivation of Palestinians. The settler colonial state of Israel is responsible for these two realities.

On May 5, 2021, Israeli police arrested a Palestinian protester in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of Occupied East Jerusalem to protest the deportation of Palestinian families from their homes [File: REeuters/Ammar Awad]

Although Israeli supporters like Alaro try to deny the existence of oppressive systems that affect people of color in the same society and around the world, many people have been making these connections. This is why solidarity with the Palestinian cause has increased in recent years.

For example, when the Black peoples fate demonstrations swept the world last summer and raised awareness of the oppression faced by blacks, activists in the United States and Europe actively worked to show the connection between the Wests racist treatment of blacks and colonial occupation. . Palestinians in the Middle East. The collective actions of this period have injected confidence into people, and they need to speak up in the face of defamation campaigns and institutional silence.

Similarly, the tenacity and heroic struggle of the Palestinian people spurred action and prompted countless activists to retake the public space and demand an end to the institutional complicity with Israeli colonial projects.

This is why the recent Israeli attacks on Muslims and Christian worshippers in Jerusalem, the intensified movement to forcibly deport Palestinian Jerusalemites from their homes, and the recent bombing of besieged civilians in Gaza have caused such a strong international response.

Governments failed to take action, but as hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets, people around the world expressed their anger and united in support of Palestines struggle for liberation.

Dockers refused to handle Israeli goods in Italy, South Africa and the United States, and passed numerous BDS motions in the workplace. Even public figures and celebrities who were considered unlikely to comment on such a topic expressed their solidarity with the Palestinian people.

Faced with a growing wave of resistance and solidarity, Israel is waking up the platform to fight for legitimacy, which it may have seen as a threat. Because it has even lost its most mainstream and freest middle ground, it is desperately trying plastic surgery.

The problem with Israel, however, is that it mainly interprets this issue as a battle to control the public narrative  through suppression of Palestinian freedom of speech or a well-planned public image as a savior. It cannot understand  and may not be able to deal with it  that the political order on which Israels legitimacy and support depend is under severe pressure all over the world.

With the massive mobilization of the oppressed and exploited, the empty language of representation, experience, and diversity is swept away, and the Zionist Project is trying to mobilize these tools to justify its continued oppression of the Palestinian people.

Smooth videos, well-crafted scripts and a lot of historical omissions will not be reversed. Token Black, Arabs or LGBTQ faces will not make the world more accepting of apartheid. They will only further expose the hypocrisy of the Israeli state and encourage those who fight back.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance.
Cali, Colombia  When the protests first broke out in Colombia in April, masked demonstrators used a series of stones and temporary shields to drive the police out of the neglected Agua Blanca community in southern Cali.

This six-block district was later renamed Puerto Resistencia and transformed into a focal point of culture, community, and democracy. Only a few steps away from the library converted from the burned police station, dozens of neighbors meet weekly to discuss the causes and solutions of the social crisis. Volunteers teach art courses to local children.

People are awakening, a 25-year-old protest leader and university student said at a recent town hall meeting in the Anti-Hong Kong blockade. They know they need to be heard.

An unpopular tax reform has triggered nationwide protests starting on April 28. Even after the proposal was withdrawn, mass movements of students, union members, indigenous and Afro-Colombian protesters continued to flood the streets, demanding social equality and police reform. Police violence under the pandemic, unemployment and poverty rates have worsened.

The leaders of the strike committee led by the national trade union negotiated a series of requirements with the government, including a universal basic income and free tuition plan. On June 15, after protest leaders accused the government of delaying progress and refusing to discuss key topics, negotiations and weekly protests were temporarily cancelled.

The soldier, a 25-year-old protest leader in the Port of Resistance, leads a town hall meeting in Cali, Colombia [Christina Noriega/Al Jazeera]

Due to the frustration of national negotiations, some communities are engaging in dialogue at the local level, and they hope that city officials can directly listen to their grievances.

Jimena Sanchez-Gazzoli, director of the Andes Mountains in Washingtons Latin American Office, said: What needs to happen is more regional and local negotiations involving these neighborhood committees that are emerging across the country.

They focus on pressing issues in their particular area and have nothing to do with the national agenda. Any negotiation still requires regional and local negotiations, she told Al Jazeera.

Elizabeth Dickinson, a senior analyst at the International Crisis Organization Colombia, said: The democracy in Colombia is extremely centralized, so citizens do not have many opportunities to participate in the future development direction of the country every day. This is one of the rare cases that may happen.

Over the course of a few weeks, town hall meetings were held in several cities, many of them in communities affected by poverty, unemployment, and violence, where citizens often had to deal with structural issues alone.

A group of masked protesters threw stones at a water cannon car in Bogota, Colombia. The protests have been going on since April 28 and some have become violent. [Christina Noriega/Al Jazeera]

Across the country, the polices strong opposition to the initial protests inspired many people to take to the streets. The death toll is controversial: Human Rights Watch reported 21 deaths during the protests, local NGO Temblores found 43 deaths, allegedly by the police, and the Attorney Generals Office verified 20 homicides.

Due to the economic impact of the pandemic, many others have joined the ranks. As of April, the pandemic has plunged 3.5 million Colombians into poverty and the unemployment rate has soared to 15%.

But communities like Puerto Resistencia also face a series of specific problems they want to solve. Cali is the second largest black population city in Latin America. Many residents have been forcibly displaced due to nearby conflict areas. Small-scale drug and weapon trafficking has lured dozens of young people into a life of crime and violence.

The conclusion of the strike committees negotiations with the government will not affect us at all because we feel that they are not represented, Soldier said. We will continue to resist until our request is resolved.

At a recent town hall meeting in Puerto Rico, Stencia, a group of about 80 residents met for several hours. Throughout the evening, people expressed the urgent needs of their communities: better educational opportunities and cultural activities can involve young people at risk. Speakers also set their sights on the 2022 presidential and congressional elections, discussing the launch of independent candidate elections and the formation of new political parties.

Children participate in free art classes offered by volunteers in Puerto Resistencia, Cali, Colombia [Christina Noriega/Al Jazeera]

In Kali, the center of turmoil and police violence, the community set up a cordon and created autonomous areas called resistance points where deprived youths whose faces were covered by ski masks and turbans spontaneously became leaders By.

Earlier this month, the Mayor of Cali, Jorge Ospina (Jorge Ospina) and the Kali Resistance Alliance reached a preliminary agreement, which represents 26 resistance points across the city. The mayor of Ospina promised to take new measures to prevent the death of protesters and to provide institutional support for town hall meetings and cultural events-in return, the protesters promised to end 21 blockades.

Similar talks are going on all over the country.

The Colombian capital, Bogota, provided a space in early June for social organizations and protesters who felt that the strike committee was not represented to express their dissatisfaction directly to officials.

The strike committee does not represent the whole of Colombia. They dont go to our neighborhood. They dont know whats going on here, said Laura, a 26-year-old protest leader in Bogota, who concealed her last name for safety reasons.

The strike committee, which represents major unions such as the Central Workers Union and the Colombian Education Workers Federation, has been criticized by some who claim that union leaders have mastered the movement led by all levels of society.

A police station that was burned down during the protest has been converted into a public library in Puerto Resistencia, Cali, Colombia [Christina Noriega/Al Jazeera]

They dont listen to us, Laura continued. Thats why we want to strengthen our community and listen to each other so that we can create a list of needs.

However, there are still challenges in reaching consensus within the community and finally reaching an agreement with local officials.

When it comes to how to solve systemic problems, there are many differences in priorities, Sanchez-Garzoli said. We are not talking about simple things here. We are talking about people in desperate situations who are facing huge security and humanitarian issues due to the pandemic.

Bences, a 26-year-old protest leader in Hong Kong, fled his hometown in the conflict-torn Narino province nine months ago. He said he hopes to see improved educational opportunities. Specifically, he hopes that the government will help him obtain a high school diploma after dropping out of seventh grade to support his family.

But after several weeks of fighting the police in Puerto Rico, Stencia, he said he had witnessed too many deaths and hoped that the dialogue would bring about the changes his community desperately needed.

We cant beat them with stones, Bucs said. We must win with democracy and unity.
JENELLE Evans husband David collapsed after his daughter Maryssas dark and emotional post attracted fan attention.

This Teen Mom 2 The teenage stepdaughter of the star shared a message about feeling injured and broken, which worries the public.

11 David broke down on his birthday Photo Credit: Jenelle Evans/Instagram

11 His daughter recently shared a worrying post on social media Credit: Instagram

Janelle29 years old, shared a video of her husband in her story on Wednesday David Ethan, He is 33 years old today.

The reality TV star magnified the face of her spouse because he was crying because he was old.

Titles of TV Celebrities Her clips: Its a pity that he is 33 years old today because the father of three children is crying in the background.

Jenelles post was made after a disturbing message shared by Davids 13-year-old daughter in a previous relationship.

11 Image credit: maryssa.eason/Instagram

11 Fans are concerned about this news Image source: maryssa.eason/Instagram

When the child posted a post, it attracted the attention of fans Emotional images about feeling injured and broken.

On Instagram, the teenager wrote: I stopped venting and started praying because I dont need sympathy.

I need strength-scarred but not broken.

Teen mom Followers scrambled Reddit Discuss the mysterious post that has been deleted and they marked it as sad and heartbreaking.

Oh my God. The child begs not to be sent back to the swamp. She is still forced to live in the swamp hell. I hope she will come out as soon as possible and take away all the children and animals, one said.

11 David shares Marissa with his ex Whitney Credit: Instagram

11 Jenelles son comes from two previous relationships Image Credit: Instagram/Jenelle Evans

Its sad. Poor girl:/ another added, and a third user interjected: Poor Maryssa. I cant even imagine her situation.

Oh my God, this is so heartbreaking, the fourth person wrote, and the fifth person agreed: Poor girl. She has been treated very badly in her life, and I hope she can escape safely as soon as possible. The court failed. Lost her and the others.

Fuck, its too dark, poor boy, the last one answered.

At the beginning of this month, Maryssa high school graduation Her father praised her beautiful and smart on Douyin.

11 Maryssa recently graduated from high school Image source: TikTok @easondavid

11 David praises his daughter Image source: TikTok @easondavid

The axed MTV star shared a video of his older child wearing a hat and gown with her classmates, and then walked across the stage to get her diploma.

On Wednesday, Jenelle faced opposition from many people Fans think she left Marissa in the cold In a new video made to commemorate her child.

The mother of three children shared a clip of her back in time on Teenage Moms. She burst into tears and said that she no one, no one cares her, and no one loves her.

My mother never even told me that she loves me, she cried, adding: No one told me they love me.

11 Jenelle shared an emotional old clip Image credit: Jenelle Evans / Tiktok

11 She talks endlessly about how much she loves her child Image credit: Jenelle Evans / Tiktok

Then the video switched to the same day, Jenelle was standing in the swimming pool holding her youngest daughter Ensley, talking endlessly about how much she loves her child.

Controversial parents explained the four-year-old Jess and Caesar Be her best friends and she will love them forever.

However, the North Carolina native did not mention Marissa because fans reminded her of this teenager in the comments.

11 Jenelle did not mention Maryssa in the video Credit: Getty

Dont forget Marisa?! one following fan wrote, while another suggested: I told my bonus kid just like I told my son.

baby face Corrie fans are shocked by the true age of Summer Spellman actress Harriet Bibby Unrestricted Chloe Burrows of Love Island boasted of having an affair with her married father Super hatred Royal experts this morning were shocked by the death threats from Meghan Markle fans Bad hair day Emmerdales Samantha Giles abandoned Bernices wig after being ridiculed by fans Squeeze out Keith Lemon worries that Celebrity Juice will be cut off after no new show orders exclusive Come back with a bang Corrie and Emmerdales Super Soap Week returns with an explosive plot

But maybe its because I have a good relationship with their mother, they argued.

Jenelle made sure to clarify the air by responding: Thank you for your support! I did not forget Maryssa, but I think it is rude to her mother.
Scottus News

after Amy How





3:01 PM

This The Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday A California regulation that allows union organizers to enter the property of agricultural enterprises to discuss support for unions with employees is unconstitutional. The court voted 6 to 3 and agreed that the two companies questioned that the rule violated the provisions of the Fifth Amendment, which prohibits the government from seizing private property without compensation. The ruling is a major victory for property rights advocates and a setback for the union.

The ruling is in a litigation Northern California strawberry grower Cedar Point Nursery and Fresno-based grape and citrus fruit transporter Fowler Packing Co. filed suits in federal court. The two companies challenged a nearly half-century-old state law that allowed union organizers to enter agricultural business premises for up to three hours a day for 30 days, for a total of 120 days a year. Cedar Point and Fowler argued that by allowing union organizers to obtain their property, the provision created a kind of easternitythe legal right to use propertywithout their consent and compensation, violating the Fifth Amendment. After the lower court rejected this argument, these companies went to the Supreme Court, which heard oral arguments in their case in March.

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in an article written for most people that when the government actually acquires private property for public use, the expropriation clause of the Fifth Amendment provides clear and explicit obligations. , To provide fair compensation for the owner. Roberts infers that the access regulations fall entirely into this category: it creates the right to invade the planters property, and therefore is the actual occupation of the property. By granting union organizers the right to physically enter and occupy the growers land for 120 days a year, 3 hours a day, Roberts continued, The most important right of property.

Roberts added that the access rights granted to union organizers are not permanent or constant, and it does not matter. The regulation still qualifies as an acquisition. Roberts observes that the statute does not create a real easement under state law, which is also irrelevant. If there were no regulations, employers could have excluded organizers from their property. Roberts also rejected the baseless suggestion made by the state and judge Stephen Breyer in his objection that the courts ruling would endanger the health and safety inspections of food packaging plants. Roberts pointed out that, among other things, the government may require such inspections as a condition for obtaining permits and licenses??.

Justices Sonia Sotomayor (Sonia Sotomayor) and Elena Kagan (Elena Kagan) joined Breyers objection. In Breyers view, the question before the court is,  temporarily Restrict the owners right to exclude others from the property automatically Equivalent. Breyer believes that the answer is no.

This article is Originally published in Howe on the Court.
Palestinian groups said they rejected the idea of ??linking the reconstruction of Gaza to an exchange agreement with Israeli prisoners.

The Palestinian faction in the Gaza Strip warned Israel not to delay lifting restrictions on Hamas-ruled coastal enclaves and hinder reconstruction. The devastating attack last month.

The warning was issued after leaders of various factions in the Gaza Strip met at the Hamas office to discuss the latest developments surrounding the May ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which ended the 11-day Israeli attack on Gaza.

The Palestinian factions submitted a list of requirements to Israel, including reopening border crossings and allowing transfers Qatars financial aid, And the reopening of Gazas fishing area.

The factions warn that if Israel refuses to comply with their demands, they will resume the launch Burning balloon Enter Israel and organize a rally in front of the fence with Israel.

These groups also secretly threatened to relaunch the rocket.

Prisoner exchange

The Palestinian factions stated that they rejected attempts to link the reconstruction of Gaza with the exchange of prisoners.

We will not accept pressure on our employees or any attempt to link documents to each other, the factions said in a statement.

Israel asked Hamas to hand over the bodies of two Israeli civilians and two soldiers detained by the organization.

The Israeli media also reported that the mediators of the United Nations and Egypt told Hamas that the reconstruction of Gaza should be Prisoner Exchange Agreement With Israel.

Our employees are ready to challenge and impose more equations. Our great people will never be silent, the enemy will see that we are ready to accept all choices, and we will resist it through all popular and other means, each The faction added.

Talal Abu Zarifa, a senior member of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, told the Anadolu News Agency that although Israel hopes to link the reconstruction of Gaza and the opening of its border crossings with the exchange of Israeli soldiers, the Palestinians will not agree.

The soldiers are in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, Abu Zarifa said.

In another statement, the leader of Hamas in Gaza Yahya Sinwar Said: The enemys blackmail and tactical policies will not succeed, and we will not accept pressure on our people or attempt to link files.

In Gaza, Al Jazeera reporter Wael al-Dahdouh stated that the Palestinian factions agreed to give the mediator a chance to find a solution, but they added that the resistance was ready to deal with all options, referring to the possibility of another attack. .

Failed UN talks

The meeting was held at Hamas to express its talks Negotiations with the United Nations on the humanitarian situation in the besieged Gaza Strip failed.

Sinwar said that the meeting with a high-level UN delegation in Gaza City, including the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Winnessland, was completely negative and accused Israel of blackmailing including Hamas. The Palestinian faction inside solves terrible humanitarian problems. The situation in Gaza.

The latest development occurred less than a month after Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire that ended the 11-day Israeli attack on Gaza on May 21.

The Israeli offensive killed at least 256 Palestinians, including 66 children. 13 people were killed in Israel, including two children.

The Israeli attack also destroyed 1,148 housing and commercial units in Gaza, partially damaged another 15,000 units, and caused the displacement of more than 100,000 civilians in UN-run schools and other host communities.
A government report leaked today shows that failure to remove all restrictions on July 19 will have a devastating impact on the event industry.

An analysis made for ministers shows that wearing masks alone will reduce the industrys revenue by nearly one-fifth, leaving companies in trouble.

? Read our Coronavirus Live Blog Get the latest update

3 Failure to abandon all Covid restrictions will have a devastating impact on businesses Credit: Getty

More stringent measures, such as requiring vaccine passports and banning the sale of alcohol and food, will bring even greater catastrophic consequences.

At the same time, the current restrictions have had a devastating effect on trade, and current turnover is only 60% of pre-pandemic capacity.

The results of the investigation will put pressure on Boris Johnson to go all out next month and abandon all remaining Covid containment measures.

They came from a leaked file to review the mass incidents obtained by reopening Politico for No 10 review.

The officials responsible for studying the economic impact of restrictions on the activity industry paint a stark picture.

They listed three situationshigh, medium, and low interventionin which case social distancing would be eliminated, but some other rules would remain.

High intervention will result in venues having to wear masks for up to two hours, requiring Covid passports, and prohibiting food and beverages.

According to the report, in this case, the turnover of the entire industry can only reach 69% of the pre-pandemic.

Theaters, cinemas and commercial activities will be hit even harder, achieving only 59% of normal cash flow and a loss of 4.88 billion pounds.

But the hardest hit are nightclubs and performances, whose income will plummet to 37% of 2019 levels.

Moderate intervention will lift the ban on alcohol sales, but other interventions will still exist and will have severe effects.

3 A government report found that even keeping masks alone would be disastrous for the industry Credit: Getty

3 The results of the investigation will put pressure on Boris Johnson to push for Freedom Day. Credit: Reuters

In this case, the turnover of the industry can only reach 78%, only 71% of indoor venues with seats, and only 48% of non-seat venues.

Even the lowest form of intervention, which will only see the retention of masks, will have a devastating impact on the industry.

The overall turnover will still drop by nearly one-fifth, with indoor seating venues accounting for 72% and non-seat venues accounting for only 65%.

An internal government poll found that maintaining restrictions will significantly reduce customer demand in the industry.

People said that if they are forced to wear masks, their probability of participating in activities will be reduced by 28%, and if food and beverage sales are prohibited, their probability of participating in activities will be reduced by 43%.

But the mandatory testing actually made people feel at ease. Respondents said they were 15% more likely to participate in venues with such testing.

The results of the investigation appeared in a report drafted for the event research program, which is studying how to completely reopen the economy.

The pilot event included the Euro 2020 match at Wembley, where England played against the Czech Republic last night with 25,000 fans.

In the semifinals and finals at the beginning of next month, this number will increase to 60,000.

But under this plan, fans must wear masks and provide proof of double vaccinations or negative tests before they can enter the stadium.

And there is speculation that even after Freedom Day on July 19, the Prime Minister may decide to keep some restrictions.

Joyful summer Masks, social distancing and the rule of six will be cancelled on July 19 On the edge Barnsley Hospital issued a rare black alert because more than 300 patients were trapped in the emergency room Family killed Murder suicide resulted in the death of four family members, including a 5-year-old girl No worries about Willie Men from this part of the country believe they have the greatest will comment Jane Moore Boris, blow the whistle of restriction, let us all enjoy our freedom Phobia pay NHS receptionist with public phobia won 56,000 after being fired

Some have suggested that even if social distancing is abolished, measures such as masks, mass testing and Covid passports may become the norm.

The Minister of Culture, John Whittingdale (John Whittingdale) said that the final report on the reopening of mass activities will be released before Freedom Day.

He added: I hope that we can lift many restrictions before July 19.
The author said that Meghan Markle and Prince Harrys leaks are still a problem because the royal family thinks Oprahs chat will end

One author claimed that although the royal family hopes their public conversation with the American host Oprah Winfrey will mark a new beginning, Meghan and Harrys explosive interview with the royal family is still a problem.

Robert Lacey, a historical consultant for Netflixs The Crown, believes that if the couples friends continue to intervene and continue to leak secrets, the family will not be able to conduct serious negotiations.

Lacey said on the British Good Morning show today: You just let their friend Gail King speak on TV.

I think when it comes to Oprahs interview, that feelingalbeit terrible, but all these family revelations were broadcastthats it, its a new beginning, and then the family suddenly found out, okay In fact, their friend Gail King had more to say, and then Oprah said more, feeling that if you were to talk on American TV the next day, you would not be able to engage in serious family negotiations.

This is still a problem.
Until this year, Graeme Berwicks biggest online shopping was a few pairs of jeans and some household appliances.

Then the Toronto man bought a house 1,200 kilometers away.

We didnt even see it, except in a few videos, he said in an interview with Zoom in the new home he shared with his partner near the Tuskett community in southwestern Nova Scotia. This is a great improvement for us.

Berwick and his partner were two of the tens of thousands who crossed the Nova Scotia border to work, play or move to the province in early 2021, some of which were encouraged by provincial officials and $1 million in work at the time. . The advertising campaign from Nova Scotia is aimed at attracting people to the province.

According to figures provided by the province to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation under the Information Acquisition Act, the number of applicants for entry increased sharply in late March and April.

But after a few months of trying to attract interprovincial immigrants, Nova Scotia suddenly found itself trying to stop them, at least temporarily. New data shows that the outbreak occurred just before the third wave of COVID-19 pandemic hit Nova Scotia, which brought new provincial border restrictions and other public health measures.

A big change in life

If it were not for the pandemic, Berwick would never consider moving to Nova Scotia. He used to live near Toronto Pearson Airport, so he can often fly to Europe, the Middle East and Africa to help him open new hotels.

Berwick, 55, hopes to retire at 60. Most of his work was exhausted during the pandemic, and the rest can be done remotely. Berwick and his partner decided to sell their house in Toronto and move to an area with lower housing prices.

In May of this year, Graeme Berwick moved from Toronto to a lake near NS Tusket. (David Laughlin/Canadian Broadcasting Corporation)

After doing some online research, they looked east towards New Brunswick and then Nova Scotia. A cousin in the United Kingdom noticed the provinces Work from Nova Scotia campaign, which used the trend of working from home to encourage people to move to the province and told Berwick about it.

He said,You know, they have this immigration program and they can work there. I said,This is great. At the time I didnt even think it was aimed at Torontons like me, Berwick Say.

Berwick completed his relocation in May and now lives and works by a lake near Tusket.

I live in a house the size of a house, if its not bigger than our house in Toronto, we now have enough money in the bank  Im 55 years old  we now have enough money in the bank to see me 70 How old is it, he said.

More than 46,000 applications

According to the Information Access Act, CBC requires the province to announce how many people have used the security registration website to apply for entry into the province from the beginning of 2021 to the day when the new border restrictions are announced on April 20.

Only a small percentage of people do not need to use online forms to apply for entry, including truck drivers, people with compassionate exemptions, people who live on one side of the border and work on the other, and basic health care workers.

In addition to the peak of tourism in the week immediately after the Christmas and New Year holidays, this trend also shows a steady increase in the number of arrivals from February to mid-April. Most people answered that they were due to work, personal reasons, returning home or moving. Entry.

A total of 46,607 entry applications were recorded in the province.

The increase in public health was most pronounced at the end of March and early April. At the COVID-19 briefing on April 20, Dr. Robert Strong, Chief Medical Officer of Health, mentioned a significant increase, saying that border officials told him that the land border crossing with New Brunswick had increased by 400 %.

Work from NS events

In early May, as the number of COVID-19 cases surged, the province introduced new regulations that effectively prevented people from another province from moving to Nova Scotia, although within a few days of severe criticism, these regulations have Loosed.

This is a far cry from the provinces active attempt to bring people to live and work in Nova Scotia a few weeks ago.

In December, the province launched the Work from Nova Scotia campaign that lasted until the end of March. At a cost of $1.1 million, the Nova Scotia Tourism Board and other royal companies launched a campaign that included travel-style videos, social media, advertisements and related websites moving to Nova Scotia.

Last week, Statistics Canada released new data showing that between January and April, inter-provincial immigration increased by 1,870 people, of which 4,700 moved to the province and 2,830 moved out. It pushed the population of Nova Scotia to the highest level ever.

Rabbi Kusulis, Minister of Tourism and Minister of Inclusive Economic Growth of Nova Scotia, welcomed the new figures and said last Thursday that the event was very smooth.

This is our most since the early 1980s, so this is a very positive movement, he said of inter-provincial immigration.

When the third wave came, we did suspend it, we will discuss and review the data we have to run it again, because Nova Scotia is an attractive place for people to live and work.

The number of digital advertising views of the campaign was 371 million, the number of video advertising views was 38.9 million, and the number of visits to the relocation guide website was 1.3 million.

In contrast, in the year before the pandemic, the Nova Scotia Tourism Bureau used tourism influencers to showcase its marketing activities to approximately 765 million people.

In February, One of the royal companies behind the Work from Nova Scotia event told CBC The goal is to bring 15,000 people to Nova Scotia within a year.

Finance Minister Labi Kousoulis will present his first budget later this month. (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation)

Kuzulis said that the province is studying issues such as housing and the availability of doctors, and that more people moving to Nova Scotia may put additional pressure on these issues. He also pointed out that as the population has increased, the unemployment rate has fallen.

It is difficult to determine how many of those who entered Nova Scotia this year were directly affected by the campaign. Laurel Broten, head of the Crown Corporation Nova Scotia Commercial Company, said in February The campaign is trying to measure how many people are attracted to the province by advertising.

According to Statistics Canada, since the beginning of 2016, more people have moved in the province every year From other provinces to Nova Scotia than to leave.

In the first three months of 2020, the agency estimates that the total number of inter-provincial immigrants in the province will increase by 573, and the total number will increase by 540 in the first three months of 2019.
After a year of pandemic raging, the Toronto International Film Festival is back.

On Wednesday, the organizers announced that this years music festival, scheduled to be held from September 9 to 18, will once again hold face-to-face events. This means screenings in indoor theatersincluding the Princess of Wales Theatre, Roy Thomson Hall and Cinesphere Theatre in Ontario Plazaplus outdoor cinemas and the drive-through that was used primarily at last years event.

The number of movies included will also increase starting in 2020. Although they have not returned to the pre-pandemic figures, there will be 100 films officially selected by TIFF in 2021-double the number of films that were significantly reduced last year.

On Wednesday, the organizers announced some films that will be screened at the festival.Including Alanis Morissette documentary Jagged Sci-fi thriller with Danis Goulet Night raiders, This part is inspired by the history of the Canadian boarding school system.

In addition, Denis Villeneuve has been procrastinating for a long time dune Approximately a week after the scheduled world premiere at the Venice Film Festival, it will be screened in IMAX for the first time.

The prophecy was fulfilled. Denis Villeneuves DUNE (DUNE) will be #TIFF21 versus @WarnerBrosCA Cooperation> and @Cineplex. pic.twitter.com/9k6FLYP7Im @TIFF_NET

Other announced movies include:

Eric Warin and Tahir Rana Charlotte.

Dave Wolley and David Heilbroner Dion Warwick: Dont let me end.

Crime thriller guilty Director Antoine Fuqua.

Thriller film led by Naomi Watts Lakewood.

British psychological horror Last night in Soho.

Kenneth Branagh Belfast, Starring Judy Dench.

Little mother, Directed by Celine Sciamma.

Comedy Starling.

Highly dependent on digital platforms

The work of Abenaki film producer Alanis Obomsawin will also be celebrated in a retrospective at the film festival celebrate Alanis. Obomsawin, 88, is often described as a radical filmmaker whose documentaries focus on issues of colonization, injustice, and indigenous power and dignity.

Nonetheless, 100 movies are a far cry from the approximately 250 movies seen on TIFF pre-COVID. In an interview with CBC News, festival co-leaders Cameron Bailey and Joana Vicente stated that some of the changes added in 2020 will continue into 2021.

This means theaters with reduced capacity, although the capacity limit is higher than the 50 spectators allowed by TIFF Bell Lightbox last year. Face-to-face audiences must also be blocked, and TIFFs digital screening platform will also return-allowing fans outside of Ontario to watch the screening online.

Bailey said: We invite every film to be shown to the audience in person and on a digital platform. We hope and encourage all of them to ensure that they can provide this opportunity to the audience, whether they are in Toronto or across Canada. Cinema.

This is a mixed holiday, but we like the word mixed  its not necessarily a bad word, Vicente added. We actually think the mixed part of the festival will last for several years so it will continue to exist.

In addition, Vicente and Bailey made fun of the film festivals first coast-to-coast screening series, which will screen some films in selected venues across the country. The location and movie will be announced close to the festival.

No plan for vaccination requirements

Vicente said that there are currently no plans to require spectators to be vaccinated, but the organizers will wait and see whether this situation will change. There will also be a strict no popcorn section, as there will be no franchise services for any screenings.

Although they confirmed the return of the red carpet, it may also look different. As the border restrictions have not yet been fully finalized, Vicente said that they must look at who are in Canada at that time, and the carpet itself will have social distancing and mask requirements.

Vicente also said that unlike the traditional location outside the Princess of Wales Theatre, the red carpet may be performed inside to avoid large crowds.

TIFFs return in 2021 comes from what Vicente called a extremely challenging year. Despite a record year of film sales and attendance-taking into account the number of attendees-the festivals revenue has fallen by half, and as restrictions and guidelines continue to change, planning a return has become extremely difficult. Therefore, all aspects of the festival may still change.

Vicente said, When you dont know all the answers, planning is tricky. Things are uncertain. You are learning every day, you just need to be flexible and adaptable.
According to black health professionals and patients, increasing data on the increased risks faced by black women in the United Kingdom and the United States during pregnancy highlights the failure of color blind health care in Canada.

Black women in United Kingdom. with we. Official statistics show that they are four times more likely to die during pregnancy or childbirth than white women.A study recently published in the UK Lancet It was found that black women had a 40% higher risk of miscarriage than white women. In Canada, this level of demographic tracking is not available.

For our country, we dont have these data. So it is difficult to know exactly what we are dealing with, said Dr. Modupe Tunde-Bias, a Toronto obstetrician and obstetrician and chairman of the Canadian Association of Black Doctors. We can only infer from other countries.

Black babies are more likely to be born prematurely in Canada

Tunde-Byass said that this is Canadas only race-based pregnancy study conducted by researchers from Canada. 2016 McGill University , Showing that 8.9% of black women gave birth to premature babies (premature babies), compared with 5.9% of white peers.

Among the population groups, Canadas premature birth rate is lower than that of the United States, where 12.7% of black women and 8% of white women are born prematurely Yes But the differences between the two populations are roughly the same, which challenges the assumption that Canadas universal healthcare system will bring similar results to all women.

Watch | Canada lacks black maternal health data, experts say:

Dr. Modupe Tunde-Byass, a Toronto obstetrician and chairman of the Canadian Association of Black Physicians, said Canadas lack of key racial data on maternal health affects the care of black Canadian women. 1:09

We are kind of living in this bubble, we think there is no difference within our healthcare system, even more so [because] Our healthcare system is free for everyone and universally applicable, Tunde-Byass said, adding that knowledge gaps have led to unconscious biases within the healthcare system.

For example, she said that black women tend to have Shorter pregnancy And the risk of premature birth is higher. This means that health professionals should pay attention to their pain symptoms, as they may be a sign of childbirth.

Myths about black women and pain

However, Sani Robertson, a midwife in Toronto, said the opposite happens often. There is a myth, really, black women experience less pain than white women.

She said this means that when black women experience pain, there may be a misunderstanding that she should be able to bear it. This may result in black women getting less painkillers, or even no painkillers at all. Sometimes, it depends on their experience rather than believing in their experience, Robertson said.

Blacks and racialized Canadians have been particularly hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. (Evan Mitsui/CBC)

Health Canada documented this phenomenon in a 2001 report, Certain situational issues regarding the fairness and responsiveness of access to health care in Canada, It found that the black community criticized health professionals for ignoring the pain of black women when performing routine procedures during childbirth, which was attributed to health professionals belief that black skin istough.

Robertson attributed this misunderstanding to Racist legacy Dr. J. Marion Sims, an American doctor considered the father of modern gynecology, conducted experiments on black slaves without anesthesia in the 1800s.

Robertson said that collecting racial and ethnic data, as well as other details when the United States and the United Kingdom are already registering births, can help address health inequalities.

People are becoming more aware of the importance of race-based data during the COVID-19 pandemic, which prompted the Canadian Institute of Health Information to propose National Research Standard Race and ethnicity to understand the diversity of patients and measure inequality.

Recently, the Canadian Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recognition There are systemic racism and unfair health outcomes in healthcare.

Invisible, neglected and disrespected

Kimitra Ashman, a Toronto resident, said she felt she was ready to give birth before 40 weeks of pregnancy, which is more common among white women. But she said she was fired, even though black women usually have a shorter gestation period.

She was eventually induced.

If I say at 37 weeks,My body is feeling good. My pelvis is opening. What should I do? I dont believe it will end with an emergency C-section? I was instructed,Oh no, no, No, no, its too early now. Stand up. 

Watch | AI cannot recognize racist language:

Artificial intelligence is used to translate applications and other software. The problem is that the technology cannot distinguish between legitimate terms and terms that may be biased or racist. 2:27

The emergency caesarean section left her with keloids, a raised scar that is more common on black and dark skin and can sometimes be avoided with the correct surgical technique.

I believe that if their training made them sensitive to the unique needs of black womens pregnancy, I think this situation could have been avoided, she said.

Instead, she said that she faced a very painful raised scar that had not been felt for two years.

Ashman said these are not the only experiences she has suffered from prejudice in the healthcare system.

When I came to check in, a nurse at the front desk rolled his eyes at me. When you went to make an appointment, people thought you were not insured. Assume you are not educated. Assume you are a single mother.

I feel neglected, ignored and disrespected.

Eliminate racism in Canadian healthcare

Ashman sought the care of a black doctor during his second pregnancy. I feel very comfortable, she said. I feel understood.

Tunde-Byass said that black womens healthcare experience is different from other Canadians. So these are things that we need to acknowledge that exist in the structure of our system and then find a way to eliminate racism.

She said that part of the problem is that there are not enough black doctors relative to the population.

On October 17, 2020, Sister Jenthia and Dr. Angela Branche distributed a coronavirus survival kit to Natalie Hall as part of a door-to-door outreach program to the black community to increase participation in vaccine trials in Rochester, New York . (Lindsey De Dario/Reuters)

A kind Study in the U.S. Florida birth records show that the mortality rate of black infants is high-but if the patient has a black doctor, the mortality rate will be lower.

Margaret Akuamoah-Boateng gave birth to his second child in a small community in Alliston, Ontario earlier this year without any complications.

But she admitted that she still feels anxious about receiving treatment from the all-white hospital staff. And Im like,Im looking for someone with black experience, just because if the doctor is black, their staff is black, or if they have performed operations on blacks, I would feel comfortable.'

At that time, her doctor brought a black doctor. He doesnt have to be there, but its greatlike having a relative there, Akuamoah-Boateng said.

________________________________________________________________________________________________

For more stories about the experience of black Canadiansfrom anti-black racism to success stories in the black communitycheck out Becoming Black in Canada, a CBC project that Canadian blacks can be proud of. You can read more stories here.
Response string Mass shooting With the rising crime rate in the United States, President Joe Biden is taking new measures to control gun violence, adopting a zero tolerance policy for gun dealers, and providing new funding for the police and the community.

According to White House officials, Biden will announce new gun safety measures in a speech on Wednesday and will reallocate $350 billion in COVID-19 funds to solve crime problems.

Biden government officials involved in the details of the plan told the Associated Press that the city can use the funds to hire law enforcement officers, pay overtime, prosecute gun traffickers, and invest in technology to improve law enforcement efficiency.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters during a preview of the presidential statement on Tuesday that the president believes that gun violence is an important driver of violent crime in communities and cities across our country.

Biden will seek transparency in gun data and better coordination among states, and will meet with state leaders, mayors, police officials and others on Wednesday to discuss ways to make communities safer.

White House officials said that Biden will ask Congress to provide more funding for the Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Administration, which is responsible for enforcing the federal gun law and regulating gun dealers.

The Ministry of Justice is Unleash the strike force In Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., an initiative started last month is the foundation to help combat illegal gun traffickers.

Biden issued an executive order in April directing the Department of Justice Blow On a self-assembled ghost gun that does not have a serial number and cannot be traced back to its owner.

Police all over the U.S. are here Fight against increasing crime According to the Criminal Justice Commission data cited by the White House, as homicides in big cities increased by 30%, gun attacks increased by 8%, and tensions between the police and the community continued.

Many of us-if not most-have seen the crime rate rise, and at the same time, we have heard calls for reform, Baltimore Police Chief Michael Harrison said of the city at a police forum on Tuesday. Shi said.

According to the Associated Press, Harrison said: Some of these calls have reached the extremes of dismantling and divestmentand we vowed to protect the people.

As Biden announces his anti-gun strategy, Congress is debating larger proposals Police reform And the background check requirements for the purchase of firearms.

The President and Congress have limited control over American guns. The Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects citizens right to own weapons.

Biden has long-term political experience in implementing anti-crime and gun control measures, which will help him navigate the current politics of the United States where there are differences on guns and crime issues.

The recent rise in the crime rate in the United States coincides with the coronavirus pandemic, which has become the focus of criticism of Biden by Republican politicians, who quickly characterized the Democrats as weak to crime.

A senior government official told Reuters: The secondary consequences of the pandemic and the proliferation of illegal guns have led to an increase in violence in the past year and a half.

In the April appeal Tighter gun control After a series of mass shootings, the president Ask Congress Offensive weapons are banned nationwide, but they face opposition from the Republican Party.

Biden is a major supporter of the 1994 Crime Act, which expanded federal prisons, imposed a 10-year ban on offensive weapons, and resulted in harsher penalties for gang-related crimes and other crimes.

Over the years, Biden and his Democrats have been criticized by the African-American community because the content of the bill has led to harsher penalties for black American drug offenses. Biden now supports sentencing reforms.

At the same time, after the Black Peoples Fate protests that swept the United States in 2020, negotiations between the two parties in Congress on police reform may be coming to an end.

It is not yet clear whether Republicans and Democrats, who are very different on key issues, can agree on a package of police reforms this year.
Jennings, L.A.  June 17, 2021  A positive sign that theres a light at the end of the pandemic tunnel, COVID-19 restrictions have been lifting around the state of Louisiana as more citizens become fully vaccinated. People across the country are excited to get back to some normalcy, however, staffing troubles place an obstacle in the way.

The words hiring crisis have been a hot topic in the news over the last several months as businesses around the country, specifically restaurants, have faced trouble with staffing as communities reopen.

The 25 Patel family McDonalds have increased their starting pay to $10, in addition to their aggressive benefits offered, in an attempt to encourage folks to reenter the workforce. Staying competitive in the post-COVID job market has been challenging, with businesses across Louisiana offering special incentives to boost applications.

We are so excited to welcome our customers back to the McDonalds dining experience they know and love, said Ricky Patel, owner/operator at Patel McDonalds. We always aim to create a people first atmosphere where we work with you to achieve your educational and career goals. Were looking forward to welcoming new team members to our McFamily!

The Patel group offers employees more than just great pay  they offer comprehensive benefits, employee recognition programs and even educational advancement assistance, which includes career advising and tuition support. Interested applicants can visit www.patelmcdonalds.com to learn more about Patel McDonalds benefits and start their online or text-to-apply application, or simply visit their local McDonalds restaurant.
LAFAYETTE, LA (KADN)- Under a new law signed by Governor John Bel Edwards, all 5 years old in the state will now be required to go to kindergarten.

Kindergarten being a requirement has some mothers on edge. Some feel that it forces them to have time away from their child, while others who support it hope that the curriculum isnt too intense.

Photo courtesy of Chris Granger/The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate via AP Photo courtesy of Chris Granger/The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate via AP

Our best and brightest start when they're infants and toddlers. They're all of our young people, our best and brightest so, with that potential, we really need to make better decisions from the start, Rhonda Kim Gleason, a Lafayette mother and educator, said.

Gleason supports the law but feels the learning structure should be adjusted.

We need to sort of break down the sort of old-fashioned reading, writing, and arithmetic that we've kind of throw into throw students into, Gleason said.

Priscilla Green, a Lafayette mother who doesnt support the law, said that she did not enroll her four children in kindergarten.

According to Green, her children adjusted well when she enrolled them in grade school. She feels that other parents should be able to have the same choice that she did.

I should be able to determine at that moment, whether I want to enroll my son or daughter at the age of five and kindergarten, or do I prefer to have that year, where I can continue to work and continue to pour into that child, Green said.

Charita Roy, the director of education at Bridge Ministry of Acadiana, said that the age of 5 is the prime time for kids to go to school.

That age is so critical, especially if they're not getting those skills at home if that parent is unable to work with them on fine motor skills I say for an example, or learning ABCs even counting then send them to a place where they can, Roy said.

Roy encourages parents that are will be enrolling their children into kindergarten for the first time to research the schools that fit the need of their child.

Look at the experience of the teachers there are their certified teachers there, go to the school, meet the principal meet the faculty and staff, if that's open, and get a feel for the school environment, Roy said.

The law goes into effect for the upcoming 2021-2022 school year. Parents must enroll their children for kindergarten who turn five years old on or before September 30th of each year.
BATON ROUGE  Gov. John Bel Edwards announced that the Advisory Council on Rural Revitalization has released its Strategic Plan Report. Established by executive order in February 2020, the council was created to identify the needs and issues facing Louisianas vital rural communities, as well as solutions to removing any barriers that prohibit them from being more productive, healthy and attractive places to live and work.

Louisianas rural communities are the lifeblood of our state, said Gov. Edwards. Their natural resources feed and fuel the world, yet their citizens bear a disproportionate burden of poverty and lack of adequate access to healthcare, education, broadband and other essential needs. Our work to address these disparities has become even more urgent due to the COVID-19 pandemic, when access to testing, treatment and vaccinations can mean the difference between life and death. The strategic report from the Advisory Council on Rural Revitalization provides coordinated guidance on key issues that will provide the largest good for the greatest number of people in our rural regions.

The councils report identifies four key recommendations for improving quality of life in Louisianas rural regions: expanding broadband access across the state; improving infrastructure; developing and expanding workforce training and higher education opportunities; and maintaining and expanding agriculture centers in the states university systems.

The Advisory Council on Rural Revitalization report provides a well-researched and developed plan that came together through participation by rural stakeholders, the Office of Rural Development and the Resilient Louisiana Commission. Now, with these achievable objectives identified, Louisiana can execute focused work that provides the best outcomes possible for stakeholders in the states rural communities, said former state Sen. Noble Ellington, who serves as the executive director for the Office of Rural Development. Collaborating on identifying these issues has brought forward new ideas, approaches and tactics. Louisiana will continue to provide robust support for its rural communities which are clearly a critical element of our future success.

Chaired by former state Sen. Ben Nevers, the Advisory Council is comprised of 37 key state and local stakeholders appointed by the governor. The council was directed to focus on identifying the needs and solutions in eight areas: economic development, education, healthcare, infrastructure, clean water, agriculture and forestry, workforce development and broadband. The council was divided into nine subcommittees, with the addition of the key issue of finance to address affordable housing and credit opportunities.

The strategic plan breaks down these focus areas into goals and identifiable objectives. The council sought to maximize its efforts by identifying and harnessing state, federal and private resources in new ways.

The complete Louisiana Governors Advisory Council on Rural Revitalization Strategic Plan Report can be found here.
(KADN) - A Lafayette real estate development company announced plans for a new mixed-use development in Downtown Lafayette that would be the biggest project in years.

Plans for the so-called "Seven-16 Lafayette Tower" invision a pair of 20-story tall buildings on the vacant lot on Lafayette Street next to the federal courthouse.

The buildings would be taller than the current tallest building in lafayette, the Chase Tower on Jefferson Street.

About the Developer, Guidry Land Development:

We believe in providing exceptional service while maintaining the highest level of social responsibility on every project. Were defined by our goal of creating a positive impact on the project at hand. And, were committed to ensuring the very best outcome every time. Its part of our goal to ensure we leave the community better off than prior to our entering in. This isnt something we just strive to do, it is something we always ensure.

We take pride in providing transparency and accurate reporting. We are honest, candid, and unwilling to compromise our high standards for any need. When you work with Guidry Land Development, you can trust in our dedication, drive, and compassion.

About the Architect, Forrest Daniell & Associates:

Forrest Daniell is a Principal of Forrest Daniell & Associates, P.C., an architectural firm in Daphne, Alabama. Mr. Daniell specializes in resort architecture, including high-rise condominiums, hotels, restaurants and retail.

Perhaps the best example of this unique design style is a high-rise condominium project in Orange Beach, Alabama, called Turquoise Place. The two luxury towers are the largest multi-family residential project in the state of Alabama, featured on the cover of several publications including Condo Owner Magazine, U.S. Glass, and U.S. Architecture.

Mr. Daniell is a licensed architect in 6 states including Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and Wyoming. He received a Bachelor of Environmental Design from Texas A&M University in 1986 and a Master of Architecture from the University of Texas at Arlington in 1995. The son of Southern Baptist missionaries, Mr. Daniell grew up in Mexico City. He has been married to Emma for 33 years and together they have four children. He enjoys traveling, biking and camping with his family in his spare time.
Song Joong Ki, Lee Hee Joon, Ryu Seung Beom, and Jo Hyun Chul's upcoming film "Bogota" has resumed the filming after being halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to a local news outlet, the thriller-crime movie officially started its production on June 21 and will continue for three months.

In addition, the team will be wrapping up the film in South Korea.

On the other hand, the production company behind the much-anticipated movie, IDIOPLAN, explained that the health and safety of the cast and the whole team is still their number one priority.

"As we restart filming under these difficult conditions, our top priority is to follow the infection prevention guidelines and ensure the safety and health of our cast and crew," a company representative shared, saying that they will do their best to complete the movie in "safe condition."

What You Need to Know about "Bogota's" Delayed Production

To recall, "Bogota" began its filming back in January 2020 in Colombia.

Unfortunately, due to the restrictions brought by the health crisis, the team was forced to delay the shooting and return to South Korea after filming 45 percent of the movie.

At the time, the production team explained that they would only postpone filming to abide by the health protocols but would still continue and finish the project.

"After a lengthy discussion, we've decided to postpone. We already completed about 45% of the filming. We won't be canceling this project in its entirety. We'll resume next year for sure and release it for the audience."

With this, the whole cast and crew returned to Korea in late March and had to go through a two-week quarantine.

In the same month, rumors sparked that "Bogota" is set to finish filming in Colombia; however due to the escalating number of COVID-19 cases it has been decided that they will finish production in South Korea.

"Bogota" Cast and Synopsis

The soon-to-be-released thriller crime movie will be Song Joong Ki's back-to-back project after the Kmovie "Space Sweepers."

In "Bogota," he is set to play the role of Guk Hee, who migrated to Colombia when he was 19. In the foreign country, he experienced numerous struggles and a series of ups and downs in his life.

Moreover, the "Vincenzo" star is joined by top actor Lee Hee Joon, who recently starred in the hit drama "Mouse." He will be portraying Soo Young, an employee of a major corporation who visited South America.

Aside from the "Bogota," cast members also include Jo Hyun Chul, Kwon Hae Hyo as Sergeant Park, and 29-year-old Colombian actress Juana Del Rio.

The forthcoming film not only boasts its powerhouse cast but is also written and directed by renowned filmmaker Kim Sung Je, who is known for his award-winning movie "Minority Opinion,"

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Check Out Song Joong Ki's Charming Behind-the-Scene Campaign for Mom's Touch Commercial









KDramastars owns this article.

Written by Geca Wills




tvN's "Doom at Your Service" Episode 14 made the viewers weep as Seo In Guk and Park Bo Young make their remaining days together count.

In this chapter, Myul Mang (Seo In Guk) and Tak Dong Kyung (Park Bo Young) fight for their love.

Myul Mang Wants to Marry Tak Dong Kyung

After their but meaningful conversation, Myul Mang told Aunt Kang Soo Ja (Woo Hee Jin) that he wanted to marry her niece. Tak Dong Kyung was taken aback.

Tak Sun Kyung (Da Won) and Na Ji Na (Shin Do Hyun), who just arrived at the hospital, were also shocked by Myul Mang's proposal.

Tak Sun Kyung dragged Myul Mang outside to talk to him. He then handed him his savings to as a help to their wedding.

Na Ji Na, on the other hand, told Tak Dong Kyung to do what would make her happy. Being a good friend that she is, she advised her to do everything without regrets.

Lee Hyun Kyu Bids Farewell to His Feelings for Na Ji Na

Lee Hyun Kyu (Kang Tae Oh) already knew that his first love Na Ji Na is in love with his friend, Cha Joo Ik (Lee Soo Hyuk). This time, he wanted to make it right - he finally admitted all his struggles back when he was still in the U.S.

The two decided to end their complicated relationship. While it was hard for Lee Hyun Kyu because he still has feelings for Na Ji Na, he knew that breaking up was the right thing to do. He also decided to move out from Cha Joo Ik's house and start anew on his own.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 'Doom at Your Service' Episode 13: Shin Do Hyun Surprises Lee Soo Hyuk with a Kiss

Tak Dong Kyung Showers Myul Mang with Love

Tak Dong Kyung was finally discharged from the hospital andr returned home to spend more time with her loved ones. While she was arranging her clothes, Myul Mang surprised her with a bundle of roses and gave her a sweet kiss.

Doom at your service ep (14)  pic.twitter.com/1Z3PVsn422  lau | IN PAIN   (@wthdizistyles) June 22, 2021

It was also a perfect time for them to create more memories together. They lived as a happy couple who loved to stay at home and appreciate someone's presence - not until Son Yeo Shin (Jung Ji So) appeared and reminded Myul Mang about his fate.

As he continued to spend his remaining time with Tak Dong Kyung, Myul Mang tried his best to explain his fate of disappearing someday once he fulfills his mission on earth.

Even though he could still choose to continue living on earth, he sacrificed it to protect Tak Dong Kyung.

Heavy rain started to fall and the two couldn't stop their tears.

Tak Dong Kyung almost fainted when Myul Mang already disappeared.

Will this be Myul Mang and Tak Dong Kyung's last moment together? Let's all find out in the remaining two episodes of "Doom at Your Service"!

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
ASHLAND, Ore.  Two California men have been charged under Oregon's hate crime statute after they allegedly assaulted a Black gas station attendant in May, according to the Ashland Police Department.

The incident happened on May 13, when Ashland Police responded to the AM/PM gas station at 2380 Ashland Street for reports of an assault in progress. An investigation into the attack found that two white men had assaulted a Black gas station attendant "while using racist language," the agency said.

Detectives took over the investigation and later identified the two men as 23-year-old Caleb Pierce of Fort Jones and 32-year-old Scott Sutton of Yreka, California.

"The investigation substantiated that Pierce and Suttons action constituted a bias crime under Oregon law," APD said in a statement.

Hate crimes are known as bias crimes under Oregon law, and represent crimes motivated by bias against another persons race, color, disability, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity. Oregon's statute was overhauled by the legislature in 2019, adding gender identity as a protected class.

Court documents indicate that Pierce and Sutton were indicted on June 14 in Jackson County, with warrants issued for their arrest.

Police later arrested Pierce and Sutton on charges for Bias Crime in the First Degree (felony), Bias Crime in the Second Degree, Disorderly Conduct in the Second Degree, Assault in the Third Degree, and Harassment. Both men have since been released pending future court dates.

"The Ashland Police Department has held this incident back as to not alert the suspects that they were being investigated, and until indictments had been secured and the suspects arrested, which recently occurred," the agency said. "The Ashland Police Department will vigorously investigate any bias crimes that are brought to its attention, and will, with the District Attorneys office, pursue all possible charges given the evidence at hand."

This is a developing story and will be updated with more details as they emerge.
EUGENE, Ore.  A Coos Bay man was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison this week after pleading guilty to sexually exploiting a 3-year-old child while producing child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Oregon.

In July of 2018, an undercover agent from Homeland Security Investigations saw a video displaying child sexual abuse streamed on an online video chat, according to federal prosecutors. Less than 24 hours later, federal agents identified 33-year-old Keith James Atherton of Coos Bay and took him into custody.

The investigation into Atherton found that he'd sexually exploited the 3-year-old child, producing explicit images and videos. After searching at least 10 of Atherton's digital devices, investigators found at least 35,000 images and 8,000 videos "depicting the sexual abuse of infants, toddlers, and young children," the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Within days of his arrest, a federal grand jury in Eugene indicted Atherton on three counts of using or attempting to use a minor to produce a visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct and possession and distribution of child pornography.

Atherton pleaded guilty to one of those charges in February of 2021, admitting to the sexual exploitation of a minor.

On Wednesday, Atherton was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison, followed by a lifetime of supervised release.
After working on Darts-ip for nearly four years, De Croo was ready to try out another career change into politics. In his first election as a candidate for the European Parliament for the Flemish Liberals and Democrats party, De Croo set out to lose.

I deliberately said I do not want to get elected because I wanted to try it out and not be in the spotlight, he says. It was a fun thing to do, and actually, I liked it. I did not want to get elected, but I got the taste of it.

In 2009, De Croo decided to run for election again and was elected as the chairman of the Open VLD party until 2012. For the following eight years, he served as deputy prime minister, holding a variety of responsibilities, including minister of development and minister of finance.

I think people that have clear cut career plans for the rest of their lives are actually quite boring, De Croo says. I believe more in going with the flow and using the opportunities that cross your path. I think you should be quite open about what you do in the future.

In his current role as prime minister, De Croo emphasizes the importance of fostering teams with diverse perspectives  a value ingrained in him since his time at Kellogg.

If you look at the innovation that is taking place today, its never one person who is doing it. Its always a team, which often is very diverse, he says. I think the ones who are successful today are the ones who are able to get the strongest team around them, the ones that are not afraid to get people around them that are smarter than them and are comfortable with that.

In building his administration, De Croo felt it was important to achieve gender parity for the first time, which also included naming the first transgender vice prime minister in Belgium. Diversity of thought is also reflected in his administration, which includes representatives from seven of Belgiums political parties.

In dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic in particular, De Croo says he views himself as the coach, not just of his administrative team, but of all Belgium residents as well, who have a role in curbing the spread of the virus.

Its something thats linked to what I learned at Kellogg, he says. Im a big believer in teamwork, and its quite clear if you look at the world today, if everyone brings what theyre best at to the table, we can do incredible things.

He continues, Thats what we did with developing the vaccine, for example. Its private sector, public sector, academia  they all brought to the table, without a lot of questioning, what theyre best at. If you do that, you can do incredible things. Thats what I try to do in my government teams as well.
Business owners in the U.S. can usually find ways to borrow money to fund their good ideas. That is decidedly not the case in much of the rest of the world.

Theres always money in the U.S., explains Jose Liberti, a clinical professor of finance at Kellogg. In other countries, when owners need an infusion of cash to expand or simply survive, It can be a nightmare because theres no money, he says.

This, then, presents the question at the heart of Libertis Global Entrepreneurial Finance course: how can businesses outside the U.S., which are mostly family-run, create partnerships so that they bring in needed capital without losing control of their business?

Do you partner with the government? Do you partner with another family enterprise? Do you partner with an outside investor like a private equity firm, or create joint-ventures with strategic buyers? Liberti says, listing some of the options these companies need to consider.

The course is about the financial and strategic structure of these partnerships, so the family doesnt lose control.

The course also looks at the flip side: how investors in the U.S. can mitigate their risks when partnering with family businesses in countries whose laws and legal environment do not protect these investors as much as U.S. laws do.

Liberti uses a series of 10 cases over the courses 10 weeks to teach a framework that family businesses and investors can use to determine which type of partnership to pursue and how to structure it. Here is a look at four of them:
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The HarborPark Jazz Rhythm & Blues festival will return Aug. 21, with performances by pianist Alex Bugnon and saxophonist Marion Meadows.

Both artists performed individually at the regional festival in prior years, organizers said. Meadows played in 2010 and Bugnon in 2011.

We are so very lucky to have these giants of jazz returning to Kenosha to perform at the festival and help raise funds for the Mary Lou and Arthur F. Mahone Fund, said Tim Mahone.

The festival, he added, has developed a very reputable standing with the touring agents and the musicians they represent. They came through for our fans big time. This will be a very memorable performance.

The festival committee, he said, worked hard to produce something very special for our music fans.

Meadows started playing tenor saxophone in high school and then migrated to soprano sax. During college, he played in several bands including disco, R&B and various jazz ensembles. He earned his big break while playing his horn in Grand Central Station and went on to perform with Eartha Kitt, Brook Benton and The Temptations, before launching his solo career in 1990.
It was fantastic, Martinelli said of news the county is receiving the grant. There are very few grant opportunities, federal, state or private, for this kind of work  they are really the gold standard.

Martinelli said foundation President Thomas Jeffris visited the courtroom in person to see the work that has already been done. Its been a real pleasure working with county officials on this project, Jeffris said.

Three-year window

Although there is a three-year deadline to raise the money to receive the challenge grant, Martinelli said he hopes that the county can raise the funds for the project over the next year. He said that money would go toward the first phase of the restoration, which includes the ceiling, skylight, plasterwork, installation of reproductions of the original lighting, and moving the HVAC equipment.

If the money is secured, he said, that work should take about a year to complete.
When the Kenosha Pops Concert Band opened its 99th season, Greg Berg was looking forward to a beautiful and joyous night.

After the June 16 concert, Berg, the bands longtime master of ceremonies and vocal soloist, was thrilled his prediction had come true.

I dont know if I had ever seen such a big crowd for opening night, he said of the hundreds of fans who crowded onto the hill in Pennoyer Park, overlooking the Sesquicentennial Band Shell and the Lake Michigan shoreline.

The band returns to the stage tonight, for its second concert after canceling its 2020 season.

Our first concert was wonderful, said Craig Gall, the bands musical director. We couldnt have asked for a nicer evening or a better crowd.

Added Assistant Conductor Frank Germinaro, It was amazing to see such an outstanding audience. We hope to see everyone back at the band shell tonight.

In a season of classics and traditional favorites, tonights program features pieces by well-known composers John Philip Sousa, Leroy Anderson and Meredith Willson.

Germinaro is leading the band on Sousas El Capitan; the Anderson selection is The Phantom Regiment.
News

Christian Fiscal Court receives update on fiber broadband expansion

The Christian County Fiscal Court met Tuesday morning to hear an update on the countys fiber internet broadband expansion project and to vote on the 2021-22 fiscal year budget.

At a recent Fiscal Court meeting, magistrates approved an agreement funding $13 million toward a fiber internet broadband expansion in partnership with Pennyrile Rural Electric Cooperative and the Hopkinsville Electric System.

The expansion project is intended to provide fiber internet throughout Christian, Trigg and Todd counties.

Pennyrile Electric CEO Alan Gates provided a brief update on the expansion project to the Fiscal Court explaining that the project is currently in the engineering phase.

Right now, were in the engineering phase of the process, which really includes identifying the best routes moving forward, material needed, getting right-of-way, pole replacements that were going to have to do, Gates said.

Gates added that the project will likely cost Pennyrile Electric and HES over $30 million.

He continued to explain that during this first phase of the project, fiber contractors have been hired by the two electric companies to supply the labor necessary for the expansion through the three counties, with Christian County receiving the majority of the expansion.

Well be bringing in roughly 35 different contract crews, so we plan on attacking this as hard as we can, Gates said.

Gates stated that HES and Pennyrile Electric are currently working to secure the materials from a vendor for the project.

Gates moved on to provide a rough timeline for the expansion project, stating that phase one is projected to take around five years to complete.

But, we will be adding customers as quickly as the first quarter of next year as we start getting this deal growing, Gates said. We are hopeful that by bringing in the amount of contractors that I mentioned that well be able to exceed that timeline.

As of Tuesday, Gates shared that there are three fiber contractors working in Christian County.

Gates encouraged Christian County residents interested in receiving fiber to log on to the HES EnergyNet website, www.goenergynet.com to sign up for its services.

So, as we start building, we can stay in front of this and wont have to go back behind and get people signed up, Gates said.

HES Telecommunications Specialist Richard Shaw also took an opportunity to reiterate the importance of residents who would like to receive fiber internet in the county to sign up at the EnergyNet website.

Residents can go to that website, they can give us their name and address and the website will contact them and let them know when were going to be in that area and ready for install, Shaw said, adding that residents can also keep up with the project on the HES Facebook page.

Following the update on the fiber expansion, Judge-Executive Steve Tribble presented the Fiscal Year 2021-22 Budget second reading.

At a previous Fiscal Court meeting in which the Magistrates voted on the firsting reading, Tribble presented the budget to the court and read several highlights for the next fiscal years funding allocations, including increases to several funds, largely as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tribble shared at that meeting that the Fiscal Year 2021-22 increased by roughly $13.2 million compared to the current years budget. The total overall budget for the next fiscal year is proposed to be at $42,351,221.

Tribble added that almost all of the $13.2 million increase was from the American Rescue Plan Act allocated to local governments by the federal government as part of an economic stimulus package as a result of COVID-19.

Also at that previous meeting, Tribble continued to explain that the countys general fund will increase by $397,853 from last year. Part of that almost $400,000 increase will be used on improvements to the historic Christian County Courthouse, which was not able to be done this year as originally planned due to the COVID pandemic.

The increase to the general fund also includes funding to build a storage building for the Christian County Jail, however, Tribble stated that project has not yet been fully approved.

The general fund increase will also include a 2.4% cost of living increase for all county employees as well as 12% increase of cost of retirement contributions.

Tribble said that $200,000 of the general fund total includes a grant awarded to the county to be used for the Trilogy Center For Women.

Tribble added that the county would be honoring the Hopkinsville-Christian County Public Librarys full funding request and allocating $548,223 to the library. A portion of that will be for the librarys Imagination Library program.

Next years budget includes an increase to the Road and Bridge Fund of $199,768 from the previous year. That increase puts the total Road and Bridge Fund budget to roughly $3.6 million, according to Tribble.

Tribble also shared during the first reading that the Christian County Jails fund had decreased by $363,000 as well as the Health Insurance Fund, which decreased by $79,490, due to the excess funding the county was able to create over the last year.

The Fiscal Court ultimately unanimously voted to approve the second reading of the budget Tuesday.

Magistrate Jerry Gilliam reiterated Tribbles previous statement that the budget has increased substantially due to federal COVID-19 relief funding.

Id just like to say, I know theres some people thinking that weve really increased our budget and looking at it, 25% of our budget is the American Rescue Fund and I think that certainly needs to be noted, Gilliam said.

People need to understand thats money that we maybe not necessarily asked for, but that we received.
Hopkinsville, KY (42240)

Today

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 57F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 57F. Winds light and variable.
NORTH BEND, Ore.  Autopsy results have been released in connection with last weeks triple murder in North Bend, Coos County District Attorney Paul Frasier announced Wednesday.

The autopsies were completed on Tuesday and confirm that all three deaths were homicide, Frasier said.

MORE: OSP SEEKS HELP IDENTIFYING HOW TRIPLE MURDER SUSPECT GOT FROM NOTI TO SPRINGFIELD

According to the results, Charles Nicholson died as the result of multiple sharp force injuries to his neck, chest and abdomen. Nicholson was found dead in his RV trailer at the Mill Casino RV campground on Friday.

Anthony Oyster reportedly died due to massive internal injuries to his chest and abdomen caused by being hit by a pickup truck.

Jennifer Davidson, who was killed at a marijuana dispensary in the area, was determined to have died as a result of multiple bullet wounds in the abdomen and chest.

Suspect Oen Nicholson remains in Wisconsin. Its not yet known when he will be extradited to Oregon.
DRAIN, Ore.  The manager and owner of a strip club in Drain are facing charges after deputies say they violated liquor regulations.

The Douglas County Sheriffs Office said the arrests were made on Saturday just before 3:30 a.m.

Deputies reportedly learned the business had been serving alcohol despite not having a liquor license from the Oregon Liquor Control Commission. The license was surrendered in March after multiple violations and a suspension.



MORE: DOUGLAS COUNTY STRIP BAR SURRENDERS LIQUOR LICENSE, BECOMES PRIVATE CLUB

Manager Rik Marin and owner and bartender Jamie Hennricks were contacted by deputies. Authorities reportedly confirmed that alcohol was being served and tips and donations were being accepted in exchange, but with a suggested amount.

Deputies seized the alcohol at the club.

Marin and Hennricks were taken to the Douglas County Jail on charges of mixing, storing or serving liquor without a license, a misdemeanor.
EUGENE, Ore. -- Restaurant managers and owners are having a hard time recruiting new workers, and Oregon's unemployment rate is still sitting above 6 percent.

Restaurants have been waiting for months for COVID-19 restrictions to end. But now that business is finally picking up again, they have another problem -- not enough staff.

That's caused places like Elk Horn Brewery to raise their pay and add signing bonuses for new employees.

Owner Stephen Sheehan is offering a $300 bonus to anyone that stays for at least three months.

"The money that we do make, we are giving back in overtime," Sheehan said. "Which I don't care, my employees work hard; they deserve it. But, shoot."

Sheehan said he's also had to trim his hours. He blames government benefits, saying they are too generous. He hopes to encourage those to get back into the workforce.

"There's going to come a day when you're going to need a job, and right now is a great time to come into a lot of these little 'Mom and Pops' and work hard and then create that great future because this is all going to be over soon," he said.

Dickie Jo's Burgers in Eugene has not only had to offer a crazy high signing bonus, but has also had to make the tough decision to close their doors early Tuesday night because of insufficient staff. They are offering a $1,000 signing bonus.

"It's tough times," Co-owner Chad West said.

They need about 25 new employees. He said they plan to keep the offer up for as long as it takes.

"We believe that when the significant federal additional unemployment benefits expire in Oregon -- in September as it stands now -- that there is going to be a lot of folks looking for work again," West said.
By Damali Mukhaye

The new Vice President, Jessica Alupo has pledged better service delivery to all Ugandans.

She made the pledge as she officially took over office from Edward Ssekandi this morning at the Office of the Prime Minister.

She says her office, working with other government officials will mobilize Ugandans towards increased household income and moving the economy towards monetization.

Alupo says that once the economy is monetized, there will be creation of jobs, enhanced production of goods, improved technology and a widened tax base.

She also added that she will work closely with her predecessor given his expertise in the politics of this country.

Ssekandi on the other hand says he has written a detailed report to guide Alupo about the functions and roles of this office.

Other ministers who have handed over office today include ICTs Judith Nabakoba to Chris Baryomunsi as well as those under the finance docket.
Weather Alert

...HEAT ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM PDT SATURDAY... * WHAT...Hot temperatures with highs in the mid 90s to near 100. Lows in the mid 50s to upper 60s. * WHERE...Quincy, Pomeroy, Nezperce, Cheney, Hayden, Nespelem, Ephrata, Odessa, Winchester, Worley, Othello, Brewster, Wenatchee, Peck, Moses Lake, Rockford, Cashmere, Coulee City, Spokane, Wilbur, Bridgeport, Coeur d'Alene, Craigmont, Omak, Okanogan, Lapwai, Culdesac, Lewiston, Davenport, Entiat, Grand Coulee, Clarkston, Post Falls, Gifford, Kamiah, Oroville, Chelan, and Ritzville. * WHEN...Until 7 PM PDT Saturday. * IMPACTS...Hot temperatures may cause heat illnesses. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned area, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors that may be sensitive to the heat. &&
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The Canopy Cafe and Jarrow Restaurant in the Castlecomer Discovery Park are the most recent recruits to a new campaign that aims to eliminate single use in the cafe and food-to-go sector.

Nine Kilkenny businesses are now part of the Conscious Cup Campaign, which incentivises customers to bring their own reusable cup.

The Castlecomer Discovery Park is currently working with Kilkenny County Council on an environmental project which will see the park tackling different aspects of their operations and to raise awareness of what their visitors can do before they arrive on site and during their visit to help the environment.

We are delighted to be collaborating with the councils waste prevention programme and we are committed to take steps to improve the sites environmental performance, says Kathy Purcell, manager of the Discovery Park.

We thought the obvious start was tackling some issues at our canopy cafe, as our bins are often full of single use cups. We signed up to the conscious cup campaign and will promote it on our social media channels to encourage those planning a trip to the park to bring along a reusable cup. The advantage of the scheme is that hot drinks served at the canopy cafe in a reusable cup receives a 0.20 discount. While we still tackle the issue of the single use cups on site, weve swapped over to compostable cups at the canopy cafe, so its another positive step for the environment.

Sorcha Kavanagh, the campaigns co-ordinator who recently visited the Discovery Park, says the ultimate objective has always been to increase awareness about waste prevention and conscious consumption thereby changing consumer behaviour.

"Over the years of our campaign many supporters who made the swap to reusables often indicated that this triggered their

journey towards a more sustainable lifestyle," she says.

"Each individuals attitude towards personal responsibility can have a rippling affect to change others and that is our vision, a world where we respect and value our resources. Many cafes temporarily paused accepting reusable cups when Covid started, however a system we call Contactless Coffee is being used by cafes all across the country whereby a customer brings their own cup, holds onto their lid and the barista provides a contactless pour."

Kilkenny County Councils environmental awareness officer Bernadette Moloney says the council is committed to assisting venues like the Discovery Park in reviewing their operations to determine how small steps can be made to enhance their environment performance.

We are mindful that destinations like the Discovery Park are now entering their busiest season, so the greening of the Discovery Park is a long-term project allowing the Park to complete positive environmental changes fitting with their schedule and resources, says Ms Moloney.

Its estimated in Ireland that we dispose over 22,000 of these non-recyclable cups every hour, Id love to see more Kilkenny businesses signing up to the conscious cup campaign as its a sustainable long-term solution to the waste generated by our popular coffee culture.

For more information on the conscious cup campaign check out www.consciouscup.ie.
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Kilkenny's Vicky Phelan is now looking forward to returning to the Emerald Isle following significant progress in her medical treatment in the United States.

The women's health campaigner had a significant setback to return plans recently after developing Bell's Palsy, an unexplained episode of facial muscle weakness or paralysis.

"I had my treatment on Friday and spent most of the weekend in bed sleeping and trying to remain horizontal in order to keep the vomiting at bay," Vicky explained in a social media post.

"It worked! I am going to go for acupuncture twice a week now until I go home to keep my nausea at bay and to help to improve the symptoms of the Bell's Palsy."

After the treatment update, Vicky provided her exciting announcement.

"And so, I can now FINALLY get excited about going home in a little over 2 WEEKS!!!!," she said.

All that Vicky has left to do before she boards that flight to Dublin is to receive a CT scan to check how her tumours look and she remains optimistic.

"I cannot THANK each and every one of you enough for your messages of support which flooded in following my video update last Thursday," she emphasised.

"YOU are what got me through these past two weeks."
ROCHESTER, Minn.  The accused shooters in a Rochester homicide made their initial court appearances Tuesday.

Nautica Deishaun Cox, 22 of Minneapolis, and Derrick Timothy Days, 28 of South St. Paul, appeared in Olmsted County District Court Tuesday afternoon and had their omnibus hearings scheduled. Those hearings are typically where pleas are entered to criminal charges. Cox had a hearing set for August 24 and Days hearing was set for July 20.

They are charged with multiple felonies for the shooting of two men in the area of First Avenue and Third Street SW on June 6. One of the shooting victims, Todd Lorne Banks Jr., was killed and the other suffered critical injuries.

Law enforcement says the shooting resulted from a fight after a dice game.

Days is charged with second-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder, and possession of a firearm after being convicted of a crime of violence. Cox is charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder, and possession of a firearm after being convicted of a crime of violence.
ALBERT LEA, Minn.  A Freeborn County man accused of sexually abusing two children is taking a plea deal.

The trial of Juan Eduardo Rodriguez Morales, 39 of Albert Lea, started Monday. He was arrested in July 2019 and charged with seven counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and three counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct. Albert Lea police say Morales abused two children under the age of 15 and the abuse occurred over the course of five years.

One day after his trial began, Morales entered a guilty plea to two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct. His sentencing is set for September 27.
(ASSOCIATED PRESS) - An Iowa judge has blocked a state law that would have imposed a 24-hour waiting period before women could get abortions, likely setting up a legal battle before the state Supreme Court.

Judge Mitchell Turner ruled Monday that because legislators passed the law last year as an amendment to an unrelated bill, it violated the Iowa Constitutions single-subject rule, which requires amendments and bills to naturally relate to one another. Furthermore, he found that the law also ran afoul of a 2018 Iowa Supreme Court decision that protects abortion rights. Abortion rights advocates celebrated the ruling, saying it would preserve womens access to the procedure.

A spokeswoman for the state attorney general's office says the state expects to appeal.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP)  An Iowa man has been charged with making and placing a pipe bomb that was recently found by a girl in a Des Moines suburb, but investigators do not believe hes linked to the bomb left at a nearby polling place in March.

A spokesman for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives says agents looking into the explosive devices discovered in Ankeny have so far found no connection between the two.

ATF agents on Friday arrested 46-year-old Chad Allen Williams of Johnston, Iowa, in connection with a bomb found June 9 by an 8-year-old Ankeny girl playing outside her home.

The bomb did not explode.
MASON CITY, Iowa - A Mason City man was arrested for allegedly knocking teeth out of a child's mouth.

Carree Young, 23, is being held in the Cerro Gordo County Jail on charges of child endangerment-bodily injury.

Authorities said Young was punishing a 4-year-old child for not listening and "used physical force and struck (the) child in the mouth area knocking two of his teeth out."

He's being held on $2,000 bond.
AUSTIN, Minn.- Austin residents will soon have another option for cable and internet. On Monday, the city officially approved a franchise agreement for Metronet.

"I think it's good to have a little bit of diversity," says Trent Varnadore who lives in the city. "Usually, everyone uses Spectrum around here so it's kind of good to have someone new come into town to see if we can get better internet service."

Metronet will offer fiber internet and cable and benefit local customers. It is expected to arrive in Austin sometime this summer.
NASHUA, Iowa - A Nashua-Plainfield student is receiving a high honor for a project on a U.S. Army tactical deception unit.

Now a high school freshman, Caleb Sinnwell spent the last year researching, documenting and interviewing those who were a part of the Ghost Army during the last year of World War II. The unit impersonated other Allied Army units through tactics like inflatable tanks and vehicles, fake radio traffic, sound effects, even phony generals to fool the enemy.

Sinnwell submitted his project as part of the annual National History Day contest, which includes participants from all across the U.S. and the world, with this year's theme being 'Communication in History.' As part of the contest, Sinnwell won first place in the 'Junior Individual Website' category.

Suzan Turner is a teacher at Nashua-Plainfield and advisor for the National History Day program. She says it's quite encouraging seeing students take interest in history.

"It's an amazing accomplishment. Over 600,000 students each year do National History Day worldwide, and we've had really great success with our program. We've never had anyone win first place, so this was the very first time."

As someone with an extensive military background in his family, Sinnwell says telling the story of these brave soldiers was important, especially as we are losing more soldiers who fought during that era, and that their stories have only been disclosed within the last 25 years.

"We lost one Ghost Army member last week, unfortunately, so now we have 10 left. Which is why I'm really trying to work hard with these Senators to co-sponsor the Gold Medal Congressional Act, Bill S.1404."

Sinnwell has reached out to both Senators Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst regarding the bill, as well as Senators in Indiana, Nebraska, Kansas and Mississippi. So far, Mississippi Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith has signed on to co-sponsor the bill.

In addition, Rick Beyer, the speaker at this year's National D-Day Memorial ceremony in Bedford, Virginia, talked about Sinnwell's work during the keynote address. To view Sinnwell's award winning website, click here.

Sinnwell plans on participating in next year's contest, this time utilizing his agricultural roots while working with the theme 'Debate & Diplomacy in History: Successes, Failures, Consequences.'
OLMSTED COUNTY, Minn. - Calling all licensed peace officers: the Olmsted County Sheriff's Office is on a hiring push.

Olmsted County Sheriff Kevin Torgerson is looking for candidates with not only the right qualifications but the right character. "The slogan 'protect and serve,' it's on squad cars all over the country. Really it should be reversed in my opinion. It's serving and then protecting. Serving people, if they come with that in mind, they come with higher character and that's the kind of people we want. We want people that really care about a community," he says.

The job offers employee benefits, up to 276 hours of earned time off, and between a $60,256 and $70,493 starting salary for entry-level patrol deputies.

The sheriff's office typically hires a couple of new deputies a few times a year but recently, the applicant pool is smaller than in years past. Torgerson says this isn't a problem unique to Olmsted County, but something law enforcement agencies across the state are seeing. He does believe the current national conversation on policing is playing a role in fewer people wanting to enter the field.

Sheriff Torgerson tells KIMT law enforcement is everything to him and his job has been a wonderful experience for not only himself, but his family, and he hopes for the community as well. He believes the criticism of law enforcement on a national level is not representative of Olmsted County.

"It's not the way it is here with Olmsted County Sheriff's office. It's never been that way, and yet things that are happening in other parts of the country are being reflected on us and that's not who we are, that's never been who we are," explains Sheriff Torgerson.

Minnesota requires a college education to become a law enforcement officer. However, if a candidate has on-the-job experience in another state, that can be considered in the application process.
MASON CITY, Iowa - A Mason City neighborhood is voicing concern about an uptick in crime in their backyard.

Mason City Auto Sales owner DaLayne Germundson has seen it all, having captured numerous incidents on camera.

"People coming through with sledgehammers, busting out windows, finding syringes, drive-by shootings right here on the way, shooting back in the alley way, shooting on the corner."

Like many that live in the neighborhood surrounding his car lot, he says the criminal activity needs to stop.

"We need to start doing something to deter these criminals. We can't let them win."

Residents and business owners came to Germundson's lot Tuesday evening to voice their concerns with Mayor Bill Schickel, Police Chief Jeff Brinkley, and councilmember Tom Thoma in the hopes of finding a community solution. Brinkley praises the neighborhood's efforts in the hopes of deterring crime.

"Starting to have that conversation, how do we do that, what that looks like, working with city hall and the police department to build those relationships is a great way to get started."

Germundson notes that there are some ideas being discussed, including forming a neighborhood watch and adding additional lighting.

"I think there's a long road to this problem, there's no quick fix. But we do have some ideas."

Brinkley says if you see something, let law enforcement know.

"I think we have a good record of when we're able to prevent things, we go do that. When people see something brewing, make that call to the police department so we can respond to that incident and maybe prevent something bad from happening."

Brinkley suggests residents and business owners to install a security camera, as it can provide crucial evidence in an investigation.
(ASSOCIATED PRESS) - Fifteen Republican governors sent a letter Tuesday to the U.S. Department of Commerce urging that the U.S. Census Bureau release redistricting data as soon as possible, saying further delays would hurt efforts to redraw congressional and legislative districts.

The letter addressed to Commerce Secretary Gina M. Raimondo said the governors recognize the difficulties associated with completing the decennial Census during the coronavirus pandemic, which has postponed release of redistricting data until mid-August.

But the letter also said the ongoing delay puts states in a nearly impossible situation to redraw lines prior to the 2022 election cycle in U.S. House and state legislative districts.

The governors asked that redistricting data be released this month or as soon as possible.

Further delaying the release of redistricting data negatively impacts redistricting efforts nationwide, places state governments in an unnecessarily precarious position, and presents compounding delays in operations at every level of government, said the letter to Raimondo, an appointee of Democratic President Joe Biden.

The Census is completed every 10 years and is essential for determining population numbers and other key demographics. Census data is used for redrawing congressional and legislative districts, determining how many congressional seats each state gets, and deciding how $1.5 trillion in federal spending is distributed each year.

As part of a settlement agreement in a lawsuit brought by the state of Ohio, the Census Bureau promised in May to release the redistricting data no later than Aug. 16  a date it had previously picked for releasing the numbers in an older format.

Ohio sued the Commerce Secretary earlier this year after the Census Bureau said it would be unable to meet a legal deadline to release the redistricting data to the states by March 31 because of delays caused by the pandemic. The bureau said in February that the data would be available in an older format in mid-August and in a more user-friendly format by the end of September. A federal judge dismissed Ohios case and the state appealed, saying the delay threatened its ability to meet redistricting deadlines approved by voters and set in its state constitution.

An appellate panel later said Ohio had standing to sue the Census Bureau. It sent the case back to the lower court to come up with a solution.

Still pending is a lawsuit filed by the state of Alabama against the Census Bureau in an effort to get the statistical agency to release the redistricting data before August. Alabamas lawsuit also challenges the bureaus use of a statistical method that Census Bureau officials say is needed to protect participants privacy, but which the state says damages accuracy. A three-judge panel could issue a ruling any day.

After the redistricting data is released in August and September, the Census Bureau also plans to release other data sets derived from the 2020 census, including tables on housing, family relationships in households and the age and sex of household members in areas as small as neighborhood blocks.

Republican governors who signed the letter are Asa Hutchinson of Arkansas, Kay Ivey of Alabama, Doug Ducey of Arizona, Ron DeSantis of Florida, Brian Kemp of Georgia, Kim Reynolds of Iowa, Mike Parson of Missouri, Greg Gianforte of Montana, Pete Ricketts of Nebraska, Doug Burgum of North Dakota, Mike DeWine of Ohio, Henry McMaster of South Carolina, Bill Lee of Tennessee, Greg Abbott of Texas and Mark Gordon of Wyoming.
Shenandoah, IA (51601)

Today

Evening clouds will give way to clearing overnight. Low around 65F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Evening clouds will give way to clearing overnight. Low around 65F. Winds light and variable.
LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- The 22-year-old who was killed in a shooting in South Los Angeles last week was the son of a Los Angeles activist who monitors and criticizes police misconduct on social media.
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Weather Alert

...The Flood Warning is extended for the following rivers in Missouri... Osage River near Mari-Osa Campground. Missouri River at St. Charles. Missouri River at Washington. Missouri River at Hermann. Missouri River near Chamois. Missouri River at Jefferson City. River forecasts are based on observed precipitation and forecast precipitation for the next 24 hours. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Turn around, don't drown when encountering flooded roads. Most flood deaths occur in vehicles. Rainfall heavier than forecast could cause river levels to rise even higher than predicted. The National Weather Service will monitor this developing situation and issue follow up statements as conditions change. This product, along with additional weather and stream information, is available at https://water.weather.gov/ahps2/index.php?wfo=lsx. && ...The Flood Warning is now in effect until late Sunday evening... The Flood Warning continues for the Missouri River at Jefferson City. * Until late Sunday evening. * At 7:45 PM CDT Friday the stage was 25.4 feet. * Flood stage is 23.0 feet. * Moderate flooding is occurring and moderate flooding is forecast. * Recent Activity...The maximum river stage in the 24 hours ending at 7:45 PM CDT Friday was 26.1 feet. * Forecast...The river is expected to fall below flood stage tomorrow afternoon and continue falling to 10.3 feet Wednesday evening. && Fld Observed Forecasts (7 pm CDT) Location Stg Stg Day/Time Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed Missouri River Jefferson Cit 23.0 25.4 Fri 7 pm 22.8 19.4 15.3 12.0 10.3 &&
A smartphone with the Huawei and 5G network logo is seen on a PC motherboard in this illustration picture taken Jan. 29, 2020. Reuters-Yonhap




Expert trapper Lesel Reuwsaat is shown with a bobcat. Reuwsaat will be the featured speaker at the 59th Annual Trappers Convention/Outdoor Expo being in Escabana, Michigan, July 9-10.
Weather Alert

...HEAT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM NOON SATURDAY TO 9 PM MDT SUNDAY... * WHAT...Afternoon of 93 to 100 in valley locations each afternoon, with overnight lows only dropping into the low to mid 60s. * WHERE...Southern Snake Plain, Southern Highlands, Albion and Marsh Highlands to include Pocatello, Blackfoot, American Falls, Fort Hall, Albion, Almo, Rockland, Downey, McCammon, Lava Hot Springs, Malad, Thatcher and Preston. * WHEN...From noon Saturday to 9 PM MDT Sunday. * IMPACTS...Hot temperatures, the long duration nature of the heat, and poor overnight relief may cumulatively increase heat stress for humans and pets over time and cause heat illnesses to occur, particularly among those working or recreating outdoors, as well as the homeless, elderly, children, pregnant, and those with health issues. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors. Young children and pets should never be left unattended in vehicles under any circumstances. Take extra precautions if you work or spend time outside. When possible reschedule strenuous activities to early morning or evening. Know the signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Wear lightweight and loose fitting clothing when possible. To reduce risk during outdoor work, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration recommends scheduling frequent rest breaks in shaded or air conditioned environments. Anyone overcome by heat should be moved to a cool and shaded location. Heat stroke is an emergency! Call 9 1 1. &&
Pocatello, ID (83201)

Today

Partly cloudy skies. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low near 60F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low near 60F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph.
(JEFFERSON CITY, Mo.) A Missouri bill to allow HIV prevention medication to be dispensed by pharmacists without a prescription was signed into law by Governor Mike Parson on Tuesday.

According to a press release, under the bill, pharmacists will operate under an established protocol formed with a licensed physician to distribute the drugs to patients in need, similar to how vaccines are administered in pharmacies across the state.

Missouri is the third state in the nation after California and Colorado to allow post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) medications to be dispensed without prescription.

Republican Representative Phil Christofanelli of St. Peters, who sponsored the bill, noted that PEP medications can prevent patients from becoming HIV positive if taken within 72 hours of potential exposure.

Missouri is now helping lead the way in stopping the spread of HIV, Christofanelli said. With the signing of this bill, Missourians exposed to HIV can quickly obtain these life-saving drugs before they contract the virus."

The bill was also sponsored by Democrat Senator Greg Razer of Kansas City and received unanimous support from the House and Senate during the 2021 legislative session.
Weather Alert

...HEAT ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT MDT SATURDAY NIGHT... * WHAT...Dangerously hot temperatures of 96 to 102 degrees are forecast to continue through Saturday. Temperatures will only cool off to around 65 degrees at night. * WHERE...Portions of central, south central, and southeast Montana. * WHEN...Until Midnight MDT Saturday Night. * IMPACTS...The prolonged period of hot temperatures increases the threat of heat related illnesses for those with prolonged exposure. * ADDITIONAL DETAILS...The hottest temperatures are expected on Saturday. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors. Do not leave young children and pets in unattended vehicles. Car interiors will reach lethal temperatures in a matter of minutes. When possible reschedule strenuous activities to early morning or evening. Anyone overcome by heat should be moved to a cool and shaded location. Heat stroke is an emergency! Call 9 1 1. &&
CHEYENNE, Wyo. - Wyoming Congresswoman Liz Cheney (R-WY) discussed telehealth and detailed the "Advancing Telehealth Beyond COVID-19 Act of 2021."

A release from Congresswoman Cheney says the bill would codify critical telehealth policies put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic so that individuals in Wyoming and across the country can continue to take advantage of telehealth technology.

This is vital  especially for our seniors and for anybody living in our rural areas, Cheney said. Instead of having to travel miles to a hospital or a medical center, this legislation would allow those individuals to visit with their doctor or a medical professional by way of a computer, tablet, or phone.

Cheney went on to say telehealth reduces exposure to other patients who might be sick as well as cutting down on wait times while making health care more accessible.

The changes made during COVID-19 to expand this practice were a good start, but we must go further, Cheney said. We must make those changes permanent so that people across Wyoming never have to drive for hours or leave their homes if its difficult simply to see a doctor.

You can watch Congresswoman Liz Cheneys full video discussing the topic here.
SALT LAKE CITY (AP)  A family member has identified the victims of a plane crash in Utah last week as a Montana woman and her 6-year-old granddaughter.

Alexandria Seigel of Havre, Montana, tells KSTU-TV in Salt Lake City that her mother, Virginia Seigel, 51, and her daughter, Elise Lawrence, were in the plane that crashed in the Deseret Peak Wilderness west of Salt Lake City last Thursday, sparking a wildfire.

Seigel and Elise were traveling to California and had made a stop in Idaho Falls, Idaho, about 7 p.m. Thursday. They left about 9 p.m., headed for Cedar City, Utah, Alexandria Seigel said.

When she didn't hear from her mother, Seigel contacted a friend who was helping with their flight planning and the friend alerted the Federal Aviation Administration.

I know that it happened, I understand that it happened, I know that its real, but its so hard for me to even really, really believe that those people arent with me anymore because they were the most alive people Ive ever met, Alexandria Seigel told KSTU in a video interview on Monday. It just seems so wrong that theyre not here with us.

Virginia Seigel flew helicopters in the military for about 15 years, Alexandra Seigel said.

She loved to take the kids, all my kids, flying, Seigel said. She was amazing.

Elise loved to play the piano and was looking forward to starting school in the fall after missing kindergarten last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Probably one of the most vibrant people Ive ever met, she actually reminded me a lot of my mom," Seigel said of her daughter. They had a really close bond."

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause of the crash.
BELGRADE, Mont.  Pack your suitcases Bozeman area graduates because Avelo Airlines is awarding nearly two dozen 2021 grads with a pair of round-trip tickets to Greater Los Angeles to soak up some sun before heading into their next life adventure.

If you reside within 150 miles of the Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport and are graduating or have graduated from one of the areas high schools or colleges you can enter to win.

This includes Montana State University, Bozeman High School, anyone 18 or older graduating from high school, college, university, or trade school are all eligible to enter the giveaway.

Head of Communications Jim Olson said Avelo Airlines has seen an encouraging demand in their flights to and from BZN which began in April but this sweepstakes is for the 2021 grads.

Well 2021 has been a really tough year for students, many have had to study remotely so we thought this would be a great way for us to use our wings for good and reward these graduates with some free flights, Olson said.

The giveaway is part of a larger Avelo program that will give away 500 tickets to graduates across all 12 markets that Avelo serves with two round trip tickets to Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR) located in the heart of Los Angeles.

Bay Area and Sonoma County, Calif.

Bozeman, Mont.

Eugene, Ore.

Grand Junction, Colo.

Humboldt County, Calif.

Los Angeles, Calif.

Medford, Ore.

Pasco and Tri-Cities, Wash.

Phoenix, Ariz.

Redding, Calif.

Redmond and Bend, Ore.

Salt Lake City, Utah

A second entry can be earned increasing a graduates chances of being selected by posting a picture or video related to their graduation on Twitter or Instagram, and tagging @AveloAir and #AveloGradSweepstakes.

The entry deadline is July 20 and winners will be selected at random by Aug. 17.

Travel must be completed by December 31, 2021.

You can find all the details about the Avelo Airlines Grads-On-The-Go Sweepstakes here.
MISSOULA, Mont. - On the heels of history made earlier this week when Las Vegas Raiders player Carl Nassib became the first out gay player in the NFL, the Western Montana LGBTQ+ Community Center is gearing up to celebrate Pride Month with its first Queers and Beers event since the pandemic started.

The event will take place Saturday, June 25 at Imagine Nation Brewing's new extended patio.

On one hand, there's going to be live music, dancing and drag performances by the Imperial Sovereign Court of the State of Montana. On the other hand, there's also going to be free HIV, syphilis and hepatitis C testing by The Montana Gay Health Task Force and COVID-19 vaccines available.

Robert Rivers, co-founder of Imagine Nation Brewing Company said it's a priority for the company to be an ally.

"From six years of being in the business in the community, the Queers and Beers nights are probably the most life-affirming and life-giving nights we have," Rivers said. "I can't quite describe the joy that's palpable in the air when all our friends and all these folks come fill this space."

The brewery will also feature a new twist to its "Never Too Many Rainbows Beer." This year, it's a heavily fruited sour ale.

The Queers and Beers event is an example of the work the center does throughout the year. The center holds peer to peer support groups and puts on events for people to find a community with like-minded friends.

It even got a shoutout when Missoula was featured for being a top 5 LGBTQ-friendly small city by Livability. Missoula was also recognized because of its progressive liberal arts school and the variety of gay-friendly bars and restaurants.

The center's operation administrator Andy Nelson called Missoula an oasis for the LGBTQ community in Missoula.

"For the most part, folks are very open minded and willing to be educated on certain things they might not know about," Nelson said. "Which is really important to the folks in the LGBTQ community because many of us are very different from regular people."

The Queers and Beers: Pride Month Celebration will take place from noon to 8 p.m. on Saturday, June 26. For event details, click here.
ROME, JUN 23 - ANSA remained Italy's top media brand in terms of reliability during the year of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Reuters Institute's Digital News Report 2021, which was released on Wednesday. ANSA came top of the table for brand-trust scores, getting 82%, up from 80% last year. Italy's top news agency was following by the SkyTg24 news channel and financial daily Il Sole 24 Ore in the table. ANSA's website was third in Italy for online reach, behind Mediaset's TgCom24 and SkyTg24. The report looks at news consumption in 46 markets around the world. "This year's survey finds evidence that some brands have benefited from a desire for reliable information around the pandemic - both in terms of higher reach, higher trust, and more paying subscribers," said Professor Rasmus Nielsen, the director of Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism (RISJ). "While the effects are uneven, do not apply to all brands or all countries, and may not last after the crisis is over, these are positive findings from publishers' point of view". Photo. ANSA Editor-in-chief Luigi Contu. (ANSA).
ROME, JUN 23 - A 41-year-old Iraqi man was stabbed to death in a Rome street on Tuesday night, local sources said Wednesday. The man was stabbed in the throat in Piazzale Appio in the central San Giovanni district, police said. The knife has been found. He was standing outside a phone store. The flying squad is investigating. (ANSA).
ROME, JUN 23 - A homophobia bill the Vatican says may breach its concordat with Italy does not curb freedom of expression, centre-left Democratic Party (PD) leader Enrico Letta told an ANSA Forum Wednesday. In an informal communique to the Italian embassy to Holy See, the Vatican said Tuesday the so-called Zan bill could breach the 1929 Lateran Treaty that regulates relations between the Italian State and the Catholic Church if it becomes law. The rightwing League party has been especially active in trying to block the Zan bill, describing it as "divisive and ideological" and arguing it could hamper freedom of expression. Letta reiterated to ANSA that "it is a measure that does not restrict the freedom of expression but has the aim of intervening against hate crimes. "We are strongly convinced of the need for the measure, not to plant a flag but because we believe that the daily lives of so many, too many Italians without this norm is a worse life. "It is a norm of civilisation". Letta said what the Draghi government - which he hoped would stay in office until 2023 - says on the row would be "very important". "We will watch what the government tells us because it is the holder of the relations with the Holy See, it is not a question inherent in Italian debate but (concerns) juridical relations between two States, regulated by the Concordat. "My impressions, having read (the Vatican's) observations is that the bill does not affect the kind of concern on school autonomy and the freedom of expression, it is an intervention against hate crimes but does not limit the freedom of expression". One of the Vatican's strictures about the bill is that it sets up an anti-homophobia and anti-transphobia day which would have to be celebrated in Italy's Catholic private schools too. Earlier Wednesday Lower House Speaker Roberto Fico said that the Italian parliament would not stand for any meddling on the bill against homophobia after the Vatican raised its concerns about it. "Parliament is sovereign," Fico told RAI television. "The parliamentarians decide how they want to vote in independent way. "The Zan bill has been approved by the House and is now in the Senate. "We, as the parliament, do no accept interference. "Parliament is sovereign and will remain so forever". The Zan bill features measures to prevent and combat discrimination and violence based on motives linked to a person's sex, sexual orientation or gender identity. It would make such acts an aggravating factor in felonies, like racism already is. The Holy See's communique reportedly said the bill could affect the religious freedom that the Lateran Treaty guarantees the Catholic church. Several of Italy's centre-right parties oppose the Zan bill and an alternative homophobia bill has been presented by Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia (FI) and Matteo Salvini's League. The League has strongly and repeatedly argued the bill could hamper freedom of expression. The Zan bill's backers say this is not true, arguing the text has safeguards to ensure that, for example, Catholic politicians can still publicly say they think homosexuality is sinful. (ANSA).
ROME, JUN 23 - Acciaierie Italia, the government-controlled company that has taken over the former ILVA steel group, is ready to present a proposal for a "green steel" ecological transition project at its controversial plant at Taranto in Puglia, which has been dogged by cancer-causing pollution woes. The announcement came after the Council of State, Italy's highest administrative court, quashed a regional administrative court's ruling to shut down the plant. Industry Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti welcomed the ruling saying an industrial project to clean up and boost production, saving jobs, could now move forward. A court on May 31 sentenced former steel kings Fabio and Nicola Riva to 22 and 20 years in jail respectively for the "environmental disaster' caused by the then ILVA steelworks in the southern city. The pair are the former owners and directors of the plant, whose emissions have been linked to high cancer rates in the area. They were convicted of criminal association to cause an environmental disaster and poisoning of food substances, among other things. Former Puglia Governor Nichi Vendola was sentenced to a three-year term in relation to the case. The former ILVA plant was once Europe's largest steel works and is still the largest employer in southern Italy. (ANSA).
VATICAN CITY, JUN 23 - Pope Francis on Wednesday met 'Spiderman', a 27-year-old Ligurian man who dons the superhero's costume to cheer up sick children in Italy's hospitals. The man, Mattia Villardita, met the pope after his general audience and gave him one of his masks as a present. Villardita, who takes his 'Superheroes On The Ward" project around Italian paediatric hospitals, was honoured by President Sergio Mattarella in December's New Year honours. Murals in Rome and elsewhere have also depicted Francis as Superman. (ANSA).
NAPLES, JUN 23 - An 18-year-old woman told police Wednesday she had been raped Tuesday night by a 24-year-old man in a public carpark at Torre del Greco near Naples. Police have seized the alleged rapist's car. (ANSA).
ROME, JUN 23 - A homophobia bill currently in the Italian parliament goes against Church freedom, according to a note sent from the Vatican Secretariat of State to the Italian embassy at the Holy See last Thursday, a copy of which has been obtained by ANSA. "The Secretariat of State", the note said, "notes that some content of the (bill), particularly in the part establishing the criminalization of discriminatory conduct for motives based on sex, gender, sexual orientation, and gender identity, would have the effect of negatively impacting the freedoms assured to the Catholic Church and its faithful by the current Concordat regime". The bill, named the 'Zan bill' after its promoter and LGBT activist Alessandro Zan of the centre-left Democratic Party (PD), has been accused by conservatives of curbing the freedom of expression, a charge the PD denies. (ANSA).
ROME, JUN 23 - Italy is a secular State, and parliament is "always free to debate", Premier Mario Draghi said Wednesday on a homophobia bill which the Vatican has raised concerns about. Draghi said he did not want to enter into the merits of the question of the bill, named after centre-left Democratic Party (PD) MP Alessandro Zan, which the Holy See has said infringes the Concordat between Italy and the Vatican, allegedly curbing freedom of expression. But he aid the Italian institutional and judicial system "contains all the guarantees to respect international commitments including the Concordat". "There are preventive controls in the parliamentary committees. There are subsequent controls in the Constitutional Court. "The government does not enter into the merits of the discussion. This is the time of parliament, it is not the time of the government". (ANSA).
Quote "We knew something like this was going to happen." Tracy Vinz, half-sister of Matthew Vinz

ROCHESTER  Before Matthew Vinz killed both of his parents and took his own life in a murder-suicide in January, a family member called police and tried to warn them about him.

Tracy Vinz, a half-sister on the father's side, worried that Matthew Vinz was abusive toward his parents. She asked the Racine County Sheriff's Office to take him into custody and get him out of the house.

But the Sheriff's Office declined, due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic.

Matthew Vinz, 30, was no stranger to law enforcement. He had an arrest record going back more than 10 years, much of it stemming from drug-abuse issues that family members say had long plagued him.

In the months leading up to his deadly rampage at home in Rochester, several police agencies had opportunities to get Vinz behind bars. He had outstanding warrants for his arrest in Racine County, Walworth County and Shawano County.

Helping to keep him out of jail? The COVID-19 pandemic.

With the pandemic driving concerns about health risks inside jails, the Racine County Sheriff's Office and other agencies imposed capacity limits to avoid spreading the virus among inmates and staff. Vinz stayed on the streets partly because law enforcement had nowhere to put him.

Quote "They should have left him in there." Bonnie Lukas, Matthew Vinz's aunt

On those few occasions when he did find himself behind bars, Vinz had two people who would show up with bail money: his parents, Terrence Vinz and Debra Meagher.

Family members say they pleaded with Meagher and Terrence Vinz to not keep bailing out their troubled son. The family hoped that spending time inside a jail cell would help Matthew Vinz set himself straight.

"They should have left him in there," said Bonnie Lukas, Terrence Vinz's sister, who lives nearby in Rochester. "A little more time would've done him some good."

Six weeks after his final arrest, Vinz used a rifle to shoot and kill his mother and father inside the house they shared at 400 N. State St. When police showed up at the house Jan. 22 because the mother had not shown up for work, Vinz took his own life in the basement with a rifle shot to the head.

Newly released police records show that Debra Meagher had instructed co-workers at her place of employment, Gooseberries Fresh Food Market in Burlington: "If she wasn't at work, it was because of her son."

Family members are unsure exactly what that comment meant, or when Debra Meagher made the remark. But they say that Matthew Vinz had exhibited a volatile side before.

Quote "We all knew he was violent. We didn't think it was going to be this extreme." Jennifer Meagher, half-sister of Matthew Vinz

Years of opioid abuse

Jennifer Meagher, another half-sister on the mother's side, said she herself had a physical altercation with Matthew Vinz. She believes he had fought with his father, too. For years, Matthew had abused heroin and other opioids, Meagher said.

"We all knew he was violent," she said. "We didn't think it was going to be this extreme."

Records released by the Racine County Medical Examiner's Office show that Vinz shot his mother five times and his father three times. His mother was 62, his father 65. Both were found dead in the garage of the house, covered with blankets.

Vinz left a suicide note, but investigators have refused to release the contents of the note. The Medical Examiner's Office declined to disclose how long the parents had been dead before police arrived.

Police reports indicate that Vinz's drug use was a persistent source of tension between him and his parents. The parents kept certain rooms in the house locked to keep Vinz from stealing, police reported.

Troubles predate murders

Terrence Vinz and Debra Meagher were married in 1989, one year before Matthew Vinz was born. Both parents had other children from previous relationships.

The couple divorced in 2000, but they agreed to share the house in Rochester. Family members say both parents had their own past drug-abuse problems, and that Vinz lived a troubled childhood.

Lukas called Vinz "a very lost child" who often was seen roaming the neighborhood to escape what she said was turbulent life at home.

"He never had a chance in life," Lukas said. "Trouble always found him."

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First arrested as a teenager

Matthew Vinz was first arrested at age 17 on a misdemeanor charge of receiving stolen property. He pleaded no contest and got one year of probation.

He was later charged with driving without a valid driver's license and misdemeanor bail jumping. It is not clear when or why he lost his driver's license.

During a period when his parents had thrown him out of the house, court records show that Vinz was living in Algoma in 2018 and in East Troy in 2019.

In May 2019, East Troy police were called by a man who had taken in Vinz as a house guest. The friend told police he made Vinz leave because the house started to smell "like smoke and suspected drug use."

Walworth County prosecutors charged Vinz with misdemeanor theft for allegedly stealing tools from the friend's garage and pawning them for cash. Court records show that Vinz's father posted his bail in the Walworth County case.

When family members later learned that Vinz was back living in Rochester, they worried about the parents.

Tracy Vinz, who lives near Madison, called the Racine County Sheriff's Office in April 2020 and asked that police arrest her half-brother on the outstanding warrants against him. She was told they would not arrest Matthew because the COVID-19 pandemic had resulted in jail capacity limitations that prohibited such arrests unless a subject is wanted for a violent crime.

The Sheriff's Office's response left Tracy Vinz angry and worried. Of the deadly violence that erupted nine months later, she said: "To say this was a shock would be a lie. We knew something like this was going to happen."

Racine County Sheriff's Office spokesman Sgt. Michael Luell confirmed that Tracy Vinz called the department on April 27, 2020. Luell said COVID-19 jail capacity restrictions were keeping nonviolent offenders out of jai. That was how authorities viewed Matthew Vinz at the time  nonviolent.

Also, none of Vinz's previous charges were felonies.

"Deputies were not instructed to search for Matthew," Luell said, "because the offenses were not felonies, the offenses were nonviolent, and the offenses did not involve weapons."

Just three days after Tracy Vinz's phone call to the Sheriff's Office, her troubled half-brother had another brush with the law.

Run-in after run-in

Police in Muskego, in Waukesha County north of Wind Lake and Norway, arrested Vinz after finding him sitting alone in a parked car. He was shaking his head violently, in what police identified as a drug-induced outburst.

Vinz gave police a fake name and told them he was en route to a work assignment on his tree-trimming job. He was booked for possession of drug paraphernalia, resisting or obstructing police, and other charges, all misdemeanors.

Muskego police noted the outstanding warrants in Racine County and elsewhere. But the officers wrote of the other police agencies: "They would not request a hold of Vinz due to the current COVID-19 virus."

Police body cam footage of the arrest shows Muskego Police Officer Michael Petz taking a handcuffed Vinz into custody. While leading him to a police wagon, Petz told Vinz that the booking process would be handled differently because of COVID-19, to avoid exposing Vinz to the virus behind bars.

"We want to see you somewhere safe," Petz said.

Muskego police gave Vinz a court date, then released him later that day to his father.

In early December, Vinz was arrested once more.

In the Milwaukee County city of Greenfield, police booked him on suspicion of shoplifting at a Walmart. Police reported that he stole a shopping cart filled nearly $400 worth of food, including steaks, frozen pizzas and ice cream.

Because of the outstanding warrants elsewhere, Greenfield police handed Vinz over to the Waukesha County Sheriff's Department. Court records indicate that either Vinz or his public defender told a Waukesha County judge that he would be "incarcerated in another county."

Vinz spent a week in the Waukesha County Jail before being released Dec. 10 on a signature bond, which means he did not have to post any bail money.

Charges against Vinz were pending in four counties  Racine, Waukesha, Shawano and Walworth  when he killed his parents and himself.

How it could've been different

Family members said that although they had no idea Vinz was capable of such deadly violence, they question whether police and the court system handled him appropriately before the tragedy.

Lukas said she generally is supportive of police departments, and she understands why Vinz was not incarcerated, with his nonviolent arrest record and the COVID-19 pandemic limiting jail populations. Still, considering the violence that occurred later, Lukas said: "I'm sure the ball did get dropped."

Tracy Vinz, who said she was frustrated at how Racine County sheriff's officials handled her call for help in April 2020, said she was indignant when police contacted her in January to report that her half-brother had killed his parents and himself.

"I was pissed," she recalled. "I said, 'You all wouldn't come get him.'"
The only challenge posed by Virginias new wine trail is having the time to taste each award-winning glass.

As part of the 2021 Virginia Governors Cup, the states most rigorous wine competition, judges sampled 544 entries and then awarded 47 wineries, cideries and meaderies with gold medals. Wine enthusiasts can taste the award-winning libations by following the Virginia Governors Cup Gold Medal Wine Trail between northern Virginia, the Shenandoah Valley and the states coastal plain region.

The wines in this years Governors Cup are a testament to the passion and pioneering spirit from which Virginias wine industry thrives, said Gov. Ralph Northam in a press release. As we celebrate these high-quality and distinctive Virginia wines, we also honor the resilience of the farmers and winemakers who grow and craft them across our commonwealth.

Virginia is making its mark in the wine world and is now home to 312 wineries. The states varied climates and planting zones allow growers to cultivate 28 varieties of grapes on more than 4,000 acres.

The gold medal-winning 2017 Petit Verdot from Lake Anna Winery in Spotsylvania County is one of them. Proprietor Ann Heidig said the winerys first-ever petit verdot is rich, dark and full-bodied and expresses blackberry and licorice flavors augmented by two years in French oak barrels.

A previous gold medal winner is Lake Anna Winerys 2018 Barrel Select Chardonnay. Its a classic European-style oak-aged white with hints of English toffee and caramel apples underscored with tropical fruit, containing 5% seyval blanc grapes.

Weve aspired to be recognized for our wines by winning gold in the Governors Cup, said Heidig, who also serves on the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation specialty crops advisory committee. Its really an honor any time you win, and thats a tribute to our winemaker Graham Bell, and our son Eric, our vineyard guy.

Heidig said people tend to think the best grapes and wines comes from Europe, California and Australia.

But we want them to think of Virginia, she said. Its very important to have these competitions to showcase the fact that both our reds and whites are excellent and recognized nationally. Because we use only Virginia grapes, that exposure highlights the quality of our growers.

The Virginia Governors Cup is hosted by the Virginia Wineries Association, in partnership with the Virginia Wine Board and the Virginia Vineyards Association. Visitors to the Gold Medal Wine Trail can utilize a mobile passport on a digital device to access discounts, free tastings and other perks.

Learn more at virginiawine.org.
There are laws that seemingly have no consequences to anyone when they are violated, like driving five miles over the legal speed limit.

However, some laws, when violated, can cause harm to individuals and communities.

Take, for instance, the part of the Pennsylvania Milk Marketing Law that requires that all milk sold in the commonwealth be sold at Pennsylvania minimum prices by area and type of milk. No waivers or exemptions are made for milk sold as part of a federal commodity buying program.

Since January, board staff have been dealing with instances of below minimum bids by several companies for sales to USDA for The Emergency Food Assistance Program.

TEFAP is a program operated by USDA that purchases large quantities of fluid milk and other agricultural products from various producers and processors for delivery to state distributing agencies across the country, including in the commonwealth.

The amount allocated to each state depends on the number of people unemployed and number of people living below the poverty level.

In Pennsylvania, TEFAP is administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.

Board staff became aware of bidding violations when a complaint was filed by a vendor who bid at minimum prices but lost the bid to a processor who bid below minimum.

Upon investigation, the Pennsylvania Milk Marketing Board issued a citation and warning, and immediately sent out a bulletin that reinforced the stipulations of the law.

Within a month, and a new award cycle (contracts are awarded quarterly), there was another violation by another processor. That processor was asked to withdraw the bids, which it did, and was told that the Pennsylvania contracts would be rebid and awarded to others. The specific contracts covered in this cycle were for the period of April through June of 2021.

Who Pays the Price

On the surface it may appear as if the violation only affected the underbidding vendor, and only that vendor suffered consequences. That, unfortunately, was not the case. By USDA regulations, there were no contracts for April, meaning that only May and June would be rebid and awarded, and no TEFAP milk deliveries would be made to the relevant area food banks in April.

To put this into perspective, the Central Pennsylvania Area Food Bank distributes food to local food pantries in 27 counties and serves over 200,000 individuals each month. Individuals and families are served by the food bank through food purchased by USDA, some of which is TEFAP funded. (Note that TEFAP is not the only source of funding for food bank donations or purchases.)

Our board chair and others received phone calls and email messages from food bank officials who were understandably upset that they would not receive any fluid milk deliveries for the month of April, with the potential to leave thousands of individuals and families without wholesome dairy products, including fluid milk, butter and cheese.

Fortunately, I was able to contact the Pennsylvania Association of Milk Dealers, and one of its member dairies located in the central region was able to donate a truckload of milk, half to each of the two distribution sites run by the area food bank.

This donation, which was very much appreciated by the board and staff, ensured that at least some of those individuals and families that depend on local outlets for much of their nutrition would not go without milk for a month.

After breathing a sigh of relief  we felt certain we would not have to deal with this issue in the near future  we learned recently that additional violations occurred as part of the July through September 2021 contract awards, and we would once again have to be involved. We asked the vendor to withdraw the bids, and the potential for the food bank to miss at least a month of milk delivery (maybe multiple months) is a very real possibility.

Milk Marketing Board members and staff dont like being in this situation, but we also know that the only way to combat this problem and be certain that awards are made fairly to bidders under our state law is to monitor and regulate the process.

Pennsylvania processors have the right to bid on the TEFAP contracts, all are required to bid at Pennsylvania minimum, and USDA should have a policy in place to ensure that the awards are fair and unbiased.

When our milk marketing law is broken, there are situations in which the consequences can be severe and harm those who are most vulnerable. The situation with the TEFAP awards is one example.

PMMB is always available to respond to questions and concerns. I can be reached at 717-210-8244 or by email at chardbarge@pa.gov.
Lusaka [Zambia]/ Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], June 23 (ANI/BusinessWire India): Merck foundation "More than a Mother" Ambassadors, African First Ladies of Angola, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Guinea Conakry, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, and Namibia actively participated in the 8th edition of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary which was co-chaired by Zambia First Lady, H.E. ESTHER LUNGU and Merck Foundation CEO, Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej.

Merck Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Merck KgaA, conducted the 8th Edition of "Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary" 2021, through an online video conference.

The conference was inaugurated by the President of the Republic of Zambia, H.E. Dr. EDGAR CHAGWA LUNGU, and Prof. Dr. Frank Stangenberg-Haverkamp Chairman of both of Executive Board of E.Merck KG and Merck Foundation Board of Trustees.

During the Luminary, Merck Foundation CEO & President of Merck Foundation More Than a Mother, Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej emphasized, "I am very proud to have 20 African First Ladies partnered with Merck Foundation and become Ambassadors of our unique and historic campaign "Merck Foundation more than a Mother" to empower infertile women, eliminate the stigma around infertility and empower girls and women in education, in their countries. During the Luminary, the Merck Foundation First Ladies Initiative Committee (MFFLI) was also conducted to discuss, follow up and monitor the ongoing programs that also include healthcare capacity building. We have so far provided scholarships in various medical specialties to 1100 Doctors from 42 countries."

The keynote address at the 8th edition of Merck Africa Asia Luminary was delivered by H.E. Mrs. ESTHER LUNGU, The First Lady of Zambia along with

H.E. Mrs. ANA DIAS LOURENCO, The First Lady of Angola

H.E. Mrs. NEO JANE MASISI, The First Lady of Botswana

H.E. Madam SIKA KABORE, The First Lady of Burkina Faso

H.E. Madam ANGELINE NDAYISHIMIYE, The First Lady of Burundi

H.E. Madam BRIGITTE TOUADERA, The First Lady of Central African Republic

H.E. Madam DENISE NYAKERU TSHISEKEDI, The First Lady of the Democratic Republic of The Congo

H.E. Mrs. REBECCA AKUFO-ADDO, The First Lady of Ghana

H.E. Madam DJENE CONDE, The First Lady of Guinea Conakry

H.E. Mrs. CLAR MARIE WEAH, The First Lady of Liberia

H.E. Mrs. MONICA CHAKWERA, The First Lady of Malawi

H.E. Mrs. ISAURA FERRAO NYUSI, The First Lady of Mozambique and

H.E. Mrs. MONICA GEINGOS, The First Lady of Namibia

During her welcome speech, H.E. Mrs. ESTHER LUNGU, The First Lady of Zambia & Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than A Mother stated, "I am delighted to host this prestigious conference. I am very proud of our partnership with Merck Foundation through which we have been able to achieve many outcomes in the country for the social and economic welfare of our people. Through my ambassadorship of Merck Foundation More than a Mother, we have been able to launch many initiatives to sensitize our communities about the sensitive issue of infertility and the stigma attached to it, and also emphasize on the importance of girls' education. Moreover, we are reshaping the healthcare landscape of Zambia, as together we have enrolled and provided training to more than 90 young doctors from all provinces with specialty training in the fields of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiology, Endocrinology, Respiratory, Acute medicines, Sexual and Reproductive Medicines, Fertility and Embryology. We are scaling up to more doctors and more critical specialties such as; Paediatric, Internal Medicines, and gastroenterology."

Link to her speech: https://youtu.be/R2BBvfxtQns

H.E. Mrs. ANA DIAS LOURENCO, The First Lady of Angola emphasized, "I am happy to virtually meet and join my sisters, First Ladies of Africa, as a Guest of Honour for the 8th edition of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary. we are working with Merck Foundation to shape the "Educating Linda" Program which aims to empower girls through education and eliminate child marriage and early pregnancy, this cause is very close to my heart and I consider it one of my main objectives as I strongly believe that Education is one of the most critical areas of women empowerment."

Link to her speech: https://youtu.be/n_I2618sC1w

H.E. Mrs. NEO JANE MASISI, The First Lady of Botswana & Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than A Mother said, "We started our partnership with Merck Foundation in 2018 and since then we have achieved very important milestones and we made a concrete impact in building quality and equitable healthcare capacity, advocation to break the stigma of infertility, and stopping Gender-Based Violence. Together we provided scholarships to more than 39 local Doctors in Botswana in different critical specialties which improve women's health and advanced reproductive care in addition to advancing healthcare in many critical fields such as: Oncology, Endocrinology, Diabetes, Cardiovascular, Respiratory, Incentive Care and more".

Link to her speech: https://youtu.be/izdwplGtOUk

H.E. Madam SIKA KABORE, The First Lady of Burkina Faso & Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than A Mother stated, "I am also very proud to be appointed the Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than a Mother, to empower infertile women through access to information, education, change of mindset, and economic empowerment and empower our girls through education. I am looking forward to starting our important long-term partnership with Merck Foundation and we are ready to capitalize on these valuable programs by scaling them up nationwide to contribute to the social and economic development of Burkina Faso."

Link to her speech: https://youtu.be/-HPV2DoUD00

H.E. Madam ANGELINE NDAYISHIMIYE, The First Lady of Burundi & Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than A Mother said, "I am very proud of our partnership with Merck Foundation. Through our long-term partnership with Merck Foundation, 33 doctors have benefitted from the scholarships that Merck Foundation is providing in Oncology, Fertility specialty, embryology, and reproductive and sexual medicines, and Diabetes management. We will continue to work closely with Merck Foundation to create a culture shift with the aim to support girl education and empower women through access to education, health, and change of mindset through media training and media awards, children storybooks, songs, and films & fashion awards, and other innovative initiatives."

Link to her speech: https://youtu.be/qjLW7agN4A8

H.E. Madam BRIGITTE TOUADERA, The First Lady of Central African Republic & Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than A Mother emphasized, "We started our partnership with Merck Foundation in 2016, to advance the healthcare sector and empower infertile women in my country. Together, we initiated an important project "Empowering Berna" where we established small businesses for infertile women and train them to run their businesses so they can have income and become independent. Their lives have transformed since then. We are planning to provide school fees for 20 girls every year. Moreover, so far we have enrolled 13 local doctors in specialty training of oncology and diabetes and I will continue working closely with our ministry of health to identify the right candidates who will join the oncology, diabetes and fertility training and fellowship."

Link to her speech: https://youtu.be/inoMNA4Cmb0

H.E. Madam DENISE NYAKERU TSHISEKEDI, The First Lady of the Democratic Republic of The Congo & Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than A Mother said, "I am extremely happy to be a part of this platform. I am happy with the impact we have had in a very short time. We have enrolled more than 40 doctors in various specialties. 7 have been enrolled for fertility and embryology training, 1 for oncology, and more than 32 doctors, representing each province in DRC, have been enrolled for diabetes specialty training. After completing the training, these doctors will transform the Diabetes care in my country."

Link to her speech: https://youtu.be/etMYhI0YuSo

H.E. Mrs. REBECCA AKUFO-ADDO, The First Lady of Ghana & Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than A Mother emphasized, "I have been working closely with Merck Foundation to empower infertile women as the attitude of the people towards these women is not progressive or informed. I am honoured to be the Ambassador of Merck More than a Mother, through this campaign I intend to help the women of my country. Moreover, we have been able to provide more than 60 doctors with scholarships for specialty training in the fields of Cancer, Diabetes, cardiology, endocrinology, respiratory, acute medicines, sexual and reproductive medicines, Fertility and embryology. All these fields are very critical to our country. This will certainly contribute to our battle against coronavirus and other diseases."

Link to her speech: https://youtu.be/5qQGPcrGubU

H.E. Madam DJENE CONDE, The First Lady of Guinea Conakry & Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than A Mother explained, "I am delighted to share the magnificent outcomes of my long-term partnership with Merck Foundation. Together we have been able to empower infertile women through access to information, education, health, and change of mindset and establishing small businesses for them through the "Empowering Berna" program. Also, we have enrolled 18 local doctors into Merck Foundation Scholarship of different specialties; Oncology, Diabetes, and Fertility & Embryology to be the first in the country in these fields. I feel proud to say that we are making history with Merck Foundation in our country at many levels."

Link to her speech: https://youtu.be/zUPyRWW2W0c

H.E. Mrs. CLAR MARIE WEAH, The First Lady of Liberia & Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than A Mother said, "On behalf of people of Liberia, I welcome the long-term partnership with Merck Foundation to build health care capacity, the importance of which we realized more during this uncertain time. We are fortunate to have the programs of Merck Foundation in our country, which strongly focus on building our healthcare capacity and train our healthcare providers at all levels, more than 35 Liberian Doctors have benefited from scholarships of specialty training, of one-year diploma and two-year master degree in many critical and underserved specialties such as: Diabetes, Cardiovascular Preventive, Sexual and Reproductive Medicines, Endocrinology, Respiratory Medicines and Acute Medicines, Oncology and Fertility Specialists & Embryology Training and in the future in Paediatric, Internal Medicine, Advanced Surgery, Orthopedic, Psychiatry, Pain Management, and Opthalmology. This is history in the making."

Link to her speech: https://youtu.be/kf2Hs576HqU

H.E. Mrs. MONICA CHAKWERA, The First Lady of Malawi & Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than A Mother expressed, "I am extremely happy of my partnership with Merck Foundation. Together, we have so far provides more than 16 local doctors with the scholarship of online one-year diploma and two year master degree in many needed medical specialties such as Diabetes, Cardiovascular, Endocrinology, Sexual and Reproductive Medicines, Respiratory Medicines, and Acute Medicines, they are currently undergoing their studies. And we are working with Ministry of Health to select the next batches for more specialities. Also, I am particularly very excited about our joint initiative "Educating Linda" where we are sponsoring the education of 20 best performing girls in their secondary schools till they graduate. I believe that Education is Power, and educating girls is empowering them to make their own decision and be independent."

Link to her speech: https://youtu.be/Ik2RhU-kcAw

H.E. Mrs. ISAURA FERRAO NYUSI, The First Lady of Mozambique & Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than A Mother emphasized, "Together with Merck Foundation, I am fully committed to will work closely to introduce innovative ideas that will engage different sectors to create a culture shift with the aim to break the stigma of infertility and make a great impact in a short time. Currently, we have 14 doctors from each provenance who enrolled in the Diabetes Master Course for the first time in Portuguese, through Merck Foundation Diabetes Blue Points Program. We will soon enroll doctors for training in other specialties too."

Link to her speech: https://youtu.be/aem8BpNiOjk

H.E. Mrs. MONICA GEINGOS, The First Lady of Namibia & Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than A Mother said, "I am very happy to share the impact of our partnership with Merck Foundation, More than 37 local young Namibian doctors will be provided with one-year online diploma from South Wales University, in the fields of Diabetes, Cardiology, Endocrinology, Respiratory Medicines, Acute Medicines and Sexual and Reproductive Medicines. We will establish our first local platform of specialists and experts in those fields which is very important to improve access to quality and equitable healthcare to Coronavirus Patients and risk groups too. For Namibia, 2.4 M population, we will soon have more than 11 skilled and trained doctors to assist couples living with infertility or need any sexual & reproductive help, this will be a significant contribution that I am proud of as an Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than a Mother. We are also worth closely with Merck Foundation to raise awareness about breaking Infertility stigma and encourage couples to support each other's during the journey of making happy family."

Link to her speech: https://youtu.be/vh-FYCsmxc0

About 'Merck Foundation More Than a Mother' campaign

"Merck Foundation More Than a Mother" is a strong movement that aims to empower infertile women through access to information, education and change of mind-sets. This powerful campaign supports governments in defining policies to enhance access to regulated, safe, effective and equitable fertility care solutions. It defines interventions to break the stigma around infertile women and raises awareness about infertility prevention, management and male infertility. In partnership with African First Ladies, Ministries of Health, Information, Education & Gender, academia, policymakers, International fertility societies, media and art, the initiative also provides training for fertility specialists and embryologists to build and advance fertility care capacity in Africa and developing countries.

With "Merck Foundation More Than a Mother", we have initiated a cultural shift to de-stigmatize infertility at all levels: By improving awareness, training local experts in the fields of fertility care and media, building advocacy in cooperation with African First Ladies and women leaders and by supporting childless women in starting their own small businesses. It's all about giving every woman the respect and the help she deserves to live a fulfilling life, with or without a child.

The Ambassadors of "Merck Foundation More Than a Mother" are:

Merck Foundation launched new innovative initiatives to sensitize local communities about infertility prevention, male infertility with the aim to break the stigma of infertility and empowering infertile women as part of Merck Foundation More than a Mother COMMUNITY AWARENESS CAMPAIGN, such as;

'Merck Foundation More than a Mother' Africa Media Recognition Awards and Health Media Training

'Merck Foundation More than a Mother' Fashion Awards

'Merck Foundation More than a Mother' Film Awards

'Merck Foundation More than a Mother' Song Awards

Local songs with local artists to address the cultural perception of infertility and how to change it

Children storybook, localized for each country

Click on the link below to Download Merck Foundation App

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=de.merck.foundation&hl=en

Join the conversation on our social media platforms below and let your voice be heard

Facebook: Merck Foundation

Twitter: @Merckfoundation

YouTube: MerckFoundation

Instagram: Merck Foundation

Flickr: Merck Foundation

Website: www.merck-foundation.com

This story is provided by BusinessWire India. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/BusinessWire India)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi, June 23: A total of 76 per cent parents are not ready to send their children to school till cases in their district go down to zero or children get vaccinated.

According to a survey by Local Circles, the percentage of parents who will send their children to school has reduced from 69 per cent to 20 per cent in 4 months. Economic Survey 2020-21: Online Schooling Has Taken Off in a Big Way During COVID-19 Pandemic

65 per cent parents approve of their children receiving the COVID-19 vaccine if it is made available by September 2021.

As per Local Circles, the government in its daily briefing announced this week that opening schools will be difficult till a major chunk of the population is vaccinated.

With the second wave of COVID-19 seeing even children and infants getting infected with the coronavirus, in such a scenario, the resumption of school according to medical experts may lead to an increase in the number of cases, particularly at the time the imminent threat of the third wave is expected to hit India in less than 2 months.

There is evidence to show that more children were affected in the second wave than the first. 8,000 kids tested positive in May alone in a district in Maharashtra.

Recently, Meghalaya reported 5,000 COVID-19 cases in the age group 0-14. In the first wave, 4 per cent of the infected population were children. This share has increased to about 10 per cent - 20 per cent in the second wave. So far, the mortality rate in children is low.

The concern for the children of the country remains high as the vaccination for them is still in its trial stages. Serum Institute of India is planning to start the trials of Novavax on children in July.

Bharat Biotech has two vaccines that are being tried on children, Covaxin and BBV154, a one-shot nasal vaccine. ZyCov-D, the Zydus' COVID-19 vaccine has also started trials on children in the age group 12-18 years. The Government of India is considering providing legal indemnity to Pfizer and Moderna to roll out their vaccines in India. Pfizer has announced that its vaccine is safe for children above 12 years of age.

Majority of Indian parents are not comfortable sending their children to physical school unless they are vaccinated or the number of cases drops to zero in their district, as found by the LocalCircles survey. To open schools while ensuring safety, children will have to be vaccinated along with staff members and parents.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 23, 2021 12:56 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
New York, June 21: Google on Monday said it is looking for its next group of aspiring journalism entrepreneurs to turn their ideas into real businesses. Applications are now open to US residents for the 2021 Google News Initiative (GNI) Startups Boot Camp. The programme will run from September 7 to November 5 (with a one-week break) and aims to accept 24 projects. The application window will closes on August 1. Google Workplace Now Available for All With a Google Account.

"If you're a journalist who's ready to start a new project, we're here to help," said Phillip Smith, Director and Creator of GNI Startups Boot Camp. "When you join the Bootcamp, you benefit from the collective experience and wisdom of founders who have very likely faced the challenges you're about to face yourself," Smith added. Google Working on 'Find My Device' Network For Android Users.

The selected journalists will also benefit from a curriculum based on the GNI Startups Playbook. The Startups Boot Camp provides training, support and funding for the journalists. Google said that later this year, it will also open applications for its first Startups boot camp dedicated exclusively to Canadian founders. "We're looking for our next group of aspiring journalism entrepreneurs to mentor every step of the way as they turn their ideas into real businesses," the company said.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 21, 2021 10:58 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
The highly-anticipated Vivo V21e 5G smartphone will be launched in India tomorrow. The Chinese smartphone brand will announce prices of the 5G handset at 5 PM IST, as per the companys official announcement on Twitter. Once launched, the V21e 5G phone will be available for online sale via Flipkart and Amazon. Availability, prices and other details will be announced tomorrow. Vivo V21e 5G Price Tipped Ahead of India Launch.

The Vivo V21e will be the latest addition to the popular V21 series. It will be a more affordable version of the Vivo V21, which is priced at Rs 29,990 in India. If the latest reports are concerned, the company might price the phone below Rs 25,000.

Vivo V21e 5G (Photo Credits: Vivo India)

Make room for stylish moments with the new #vivoV21e. Launching tomorrow at 5 PM. Are you ready? #MostStylish5G#DelightEveryMoment pic.twitter.com/obekga9G7e  Vivo India (@Vivo_India) June 23, 2021

In terms of specifications, the Vivo V21e 5G will sport a 6.44-inch FHD+ AMOLED screen with a resolution of 2404X1080 pixels and a standard 60Hz refresh rate. Unlike the V21 which uses MediaTek Dimensity 800U, the handset will come powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 700 chipset. It will be paired with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of onboard storage.

Vivo V21e 5G (Photo Credits: Vivo)

Coming to the camera department, there could be a 44MP snapper up front for selfies and video calls. At the back, it will get a triple camera module comprising a 64MP primary camera accompanied by an 8MP ultra-wide camera and a 2MP macro camera.

Vivo V21e 5G (Photo Credits: Vivo India)

The handset will be fuelled by a 4400mAh battery with 44W fast charging technology. It will also get an extended RAM feature that allows hardware to use up to 3GB of ROM as virtual RAM. The phone boots on FunTouch OS 11.1 based on the Android 11 operating system.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 23, 2021 11:13 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
Residents are starting to complain that California water is starting to taste like dirt as a historic drought continues to plague the state.

Officials say that it might not taste great but the water is still safe to drink, according to a Keyt report.

Sacramento utilities officials said they had to release a statement after receiving numerous calls from residents complaining about the water tasting like dirt.

Carlos Eliason, the city's utilities spokesperson, said that the earthy taste is harmless and can be neutralized by adding some lemon or putting it in the refrigerator.

Eliason noted that they are reviewing different technologies to adapt some of the dry conditions. He also added that the city is adding research programs at water treatment facilities to monitor the effects of climate change.

He said that their goal is always to provide high-quality and good-tasting drinking water. Eliason said they wanted to do it as much as possible.

READ MORE: Water Shortage in Hoover Dam Seen To Fall Below the Federal Threshold This Summer





California Drought

Construction crews are finishing the $10 million emergency project to build a massive rock barrier through part of the Delta in Contra Costa County to save water supplies for millions of people across the state, according to a Mercury News report.

The structure is an 800-foot-long barrier, 120 feet wide, and 35 feet deep built in water. It is the size of San Francisco's Transamerica Pyramid.

The purpose of the construction was to block salt water from the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay from flowing too far east.

Jacob McQuirk, principal engineer for the state Department of Water Resources, said it would be a real bad situation if too much salty water reached the pumps as they might have to be shut down.

He added that the water would be too salty for irrigation and they might have to rely lost supplies from big winter storm and they don't know when those are coming.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has declared a drought emergency in 41 out of the state's 58 counties. The state's 1,500 reservoirs are at only 50 percent of their average levels.

Roger Pulwarty, a senior scientist in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said that they are seeing severe dry conditions in some parts of the west, according to The Guardian report.

In March, conditions were already dire enough, which prompted U.S. agriculture secretary, Tom Vilsack, to designate most of California as primary disaster area.

Two months later, 93 percent of the south-west California was in drought, with 38 percent of the region classified at the highest level.

Impact of California Drought

Dry conditions are seen to spark another possible devastating wildfire season. Last year, around 4.1m acres were consumed by the flames, with 31 people losing their lives and tens of thousands of buildings burned.

Short water supply is also threatening the state's agriculture industry, which grows over a third of the whole country's vegetables. It also supplies two-thirds of the fruits and nuts in the United States.

Karen Ross, California's food and agriculture secretary, said that she projected around 500,000 acres would have to sit idle this year.

READ NEXT: West Coast Wildfires Force Thousands to Evacuate

WATCH: California drought has reservoirs at critically low levels - from ABC News






Latino and Black residents are among those who have yet to see progress in COVID cases in Los Angeles County. The pace was reportedly slower for the said ethnic groups as compared to white and Asian American residents.

Over the past month, COVID cases had dropped by 13 percent for Black residents and 22 percent for Latino residents. White and Asian American residents' COVID cases rates have dropped by 33 percent and 45 percent, respectively, Los Angeles Times reported.

Hospitalization rates have dropped by 11 percent for Black residents, 34 percent for Latinos and whites, and 50 percent for Asian Americans.

Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said they are significant decreases, but they are not distributed equally among racial and ethnic groups in the county.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis echoed Ferrer's sentiments, saying they have seen two very different versions of the county.

Solis said the one version was with higher COVID cases, particularly in the Latino and Black communities, while the other version is the groups who could comfortably stay at home. The mass vaccination rollout had also seen a large disparity among groups.

READ NEXT: White House Partners With Tinder, Bumble, and Other Dating Apps To Encourage COVID Vaccinations

COVID Vaccination Among Latino and Black Communities

Black and Latino communities have also been left behind in vaccination efforts, with vaccination rates among the group lagging behind the general population.

The majority of those who got the COVID vaccine are whites, with only about 15 percent are Hispanic and nine percent are Black. Both of the vaccination rates were lower than their proportion of the U.S. population, The Guardian reported.

The reasons behind the disparities are waning hesitancy towards the vaccine and differences in public health infrastructure.

Dr. Linda Rae Murray, a Chicago physician and former president of the American Public Health Association (APHA), said that structural inequities, particularly in healthcare, play a role.

Georges C. Benjamin, executive director of the APHA, said there are still people who have not yet heard the information they need to make an informed decision.

Another reason was transportation to and from vaccination sites. Many low-income people of color do not have access to a car or live near public transportation to get them to vaccination sites.

U.S. cities such as Chicago, Memphis, and Los Angeles used the term "pharmacy desserts" for a neighborhood with limited pharmacy access.

Efforts to Vaccinate Latino Communities

The federal government is addressing one of the barriers to getting Latino communities from taking the vaccine, which is disinformation being spread in Spanish-speaking social media.

The government has partnered with WhatsApp for the said effort, NBC News reported.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced the effort on Monday, June 21, adding that a COVID vaccine WhatsApp chat in Spanish would help get more Latinos inoculated.

The Department of Health and Human Services is collaborating with WhatsApp's parent company, Facebook, as part of the National Month of Action. The effort aims to get 70 percent of U.S. adults to get at least one COVID vaccine shot by July.

The said Spanish chat is called "Mi Chat Sobre Vacunas COVID," which translates to "My Chat about COVID vaccines." The chatbox is already live.

READ MORE: Drive-Through Vaccination Organized by a Latina to Increase Vaccine Trust in Latino Communities

WATCH: How and Why COVID-19 is Disproportionately Affecting Latinos - From ABC News






House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is planning to create a new panel for the January 6 Capitol riot investigation after Senate Republicans had crossed out creating an independent probe.

According to a person familiar with the matter, Nancy Pelosi has told her colleagues that she would create a select panel after a meeting with Democrats.

The person spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the matter, Fox News reported. However, Nancy Pelosi later denied the said statement. The House Speaker said she did not make that announcement.

The new committee would put the majority of the Democrats in charge of the investigation. More than three dozen Republicans in the House and seven Senate Republicans said they wanted to avoid a partisan investigation.

They also said they supported the legislation to form a commission that would adopt the same model used to investigate the 9/11 terrorist attacks, The Mercury News reported.

Earlier this month, Nancy Pelosi said the House can't wait any longer and will proceed with a probe. Many Republicans have made clear that they want to move on from the Capitol riot, not providing any clear answers on how the insurrection took place.

Some of the questions left unanswered are how the government and law enforcement missed intelligence leading up to the insurrection and former President Donald Trump's role in the event.

READ NEXT: Capitol Attack Suspect Noah Green: A 'Nation of Islam' Follower Who Spoke About Gov't 'Mind Control'

Capitol Riot Violence

The Justice Department recently released a new set of videos, including police body-camera footage, which allegedly shows assaults against police officers defending the U.S. Capitol last January 6.

According to an NPR report, the videos are cited as evidence in the assault cases against Scott Fairlamb and Thomas Webster. The videos were made public after some media organizations filed a motion for their release.

Prosecutor said Webster, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and retired New York City Police Department officer facing seven charges for his alleged involvement in the Capitol riot, could be seen in a red, white, and black jacket approaching a metal barricade.

The video also shows Webster allegedly bursting through the crowd, carrying a large flagpole with a U.S. Marine Corps flag attached to it. He was also reportedly seen shoving the metal gate into an officer and lunging toward him and striking at him with the flagpole a few times.

Prosecutors said Webster charged the officer with clenched fists and knocked him to the ground after breaking through the barricade.

On the other hand, Fairlamb, the owner of the Fairlamb Fit fitness gym in New Jersey, is facing 12 charges related to the insurrection. Fairlamb was also seen shoving an officer away and then punched the officer in his face shield.

Meanwhile, constitutional scholars and lawyers on cases against Donald Trump said they believed that President Joe Biden's administration had paved the way for the Justice Department to defend Trump, Independent reported.

The DOJ said that Donald Trump's comments were without question "unnecessary and inappropriate," but he had been acting within his rights by addressing allegations against him.

Anna Morgan-Lloyd, a woman charged with participating in the Capitol riot, said she felt ashamed that something meant to show support for Donald Trump had turned violent, NBC News reported.

Morgan-Lloyd noted that this is not the way to prove any point. She will plead guilty to one of her charges related to the riot.

Morgan-Lloyd said she has learned that things still need to improve even if they live in a wonderful country. She added that people of all colors should feel as safe as she to walk down the street.

READ MORE: In a 2007 Interview, Biden Said He Was Arrested for Trespassing at the Capitol: Report

WATCH: Nancy Pelosi On Capitol Riot: I Will Never Forgive Those People, President Who Instigated The Insurrection - From MSNBC






After more than a year since California Governor Gavin Newsom directed oil regulators to develop a new health and safety regulation to protect people living near oil and gas drilling sites, the California Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM) has yet to establish a new timeline for the rules.

California is the seventh-largest oil-producing state in the United States. However, the state has no statewide rules on how far the oil and gas wells must be from where people live, work, or go to school, creating health and safety problems.

California Gavin Newsom Wants the New Rules Out to Protect People

Gavin Newsom originally wanted the rules to be out last December. But the oil regulators missed another deadline to release the new health and safety measures on Monday, June 21, and said they would come out in the spring.

According to Los Angeles Times, the delay in releasing the new set of rules frustrates environmental advocates, who stated that communities could not wait any longer.

California has a reputation for being a climate leader. But compared to other oil-producing states, like Pennsylvania and Colorado, the state does not have statewide rules on how far oil and gas wells. Even the state of Texas bans wells within 467 feet or 142 meters of a property line.

Citing several studies, advocacy groups noted that drilling sites could worsen the health risks of those living nearby. Health risks include not only respiratory problems but also birth defects.

A community organizer with Central California Environmental Justice Network, Cesar Aguirre, said it is clear that CalGEM does not respect the urgency needed to prevent further damage and inequity in communities in California.

The group is among the dozens in the Last Chance Alliance that sent Gavin Newsom an open letter calling for an immediate mandate 2,500-foot or 762-meter buffer zone between wells and places like homes and schools.

The alliance also called for the issuance of a moratorium on all new drilling permits in those zones and pointed out that the leadership of Gavin Newsom can deliver equitable and effective relief for California people.

READ NEXT: California Water Starting to Taste Like Dirt as Historic Drought Continues

California Oil Regulators Delay on the Release of New Rules

Lisa Lien-Mager, a spokeswoman for the California Natural Resources Agency, which oversees CalGEM, noted that the issue requires more time because of its complexity.

Lien-Mager said regulators are working towards developing science-based health and safety regulations that will protect communities and workers from the impacts of oil extraction activities.

The camp of Gavin Newsom has yet to comment on whether he would communicate with regulators regarding the delay or respond to advocates' call for immediate action.

The Western States Petroleum Association and the State Building and Construction Trades Council opposed a statewide mandate on buffer zones.

They said that such a rule would hurt not only workers, but also consumers as it would raise the cost of fuel, The Associated Press reported.

READ MORE: California To Settle People's Unpaid Rent During Pandemic; Plans To Utilize Federal Stimulus Surplus

WATCH: Oil and Gas Safety 101:  Being Aware of Hazards While Working in the Oil Field [Training Basics] - From Kimray Inc
Socialite Jasmine Hartin had accused her partner, Andrew Ashcroft, of denying her access to their kids, as caught in video footage.

Hartin was charged with manslaughter by negligence in the shooting death of a Belize cop last month. In a video obtained by Daily Mail, the wealthy socialite can be seen lashing out at Andrew Ashcroft while chasing him.

Jasmine Hartin is accusing her common-law husband of denying her access to their two young twins, Charlie and Elle.

"Why won't you let me see the kids Andrew? Why are you stopping me from being at my house and seeing my kids Andrew? You lied to my whole family. Let me see my children," the 32-year-old socialite can be heard saying in the footage as she confronted Ashcroft in a hotel kitchen.

The video was filmed by Hartin herself using her cell phone. Andrew Ashcroft is the son of influential British billionaire Lord Michael Ashcroft.

The couple's apartment is next door in another complex called the Grand Colony. However, Hartin has been living in Cayo, which is on the opposite side of Belize, since she was released two weeks ago on 30,000 Belizean dollars bail.

In another video filmed Tuesday, June 22, Hartin was also seen being confronted by guards as she walks towards Andrew Ashcroft in the distance.

Jasmine Hartin said the security, instructed by Andrew Ashcroft, is literally stopping her from seeing her children right now. She can also be heard saying that Andrew is "gonna rot in hell for this," adding that "like I'm not going through enough."

Before the shooting incident, Hartin was reportedly a Director of Lifestyle & Experience at the newly opened Alaia Belize Resort developed by her husband.

RELATED ARTICLE: Jasmine Hartin, Daughter-in-Law of British Billionaire Lord Michael Ashcroft, Set To Be Charged Over the Death of Belize Cop

Jasmine Hartin Charged in Belize Cop Death

The Supreme Court of Belize had earlier denied Jasmine Hartin bail after the fatal shooting of a top police officer. The judge had decided to reject the bail application and decided to adjourn the matter earlier this month.

The decision was made after Belize's head prosecutor submitted an objection to the court on the grounds that Hartin posed a "serious flight risk," ABC 7 Chicago reported.

Jasmine Hartin was set free after spending eight days behind bars in Belize's central prison. The daughter-in-law of Lord Michael Ashcroft has to report daily to the San Ignacio town police station and adhere to a night-time curfew. She cannot leave the Central American country without permission from the Supreme Court.

Chester Williams, the commissioner of the Belize Police Department, said that Superintendent Henry Jemmott's injury is not consistent with suicide and the manner of death is homicide.

When police found Hartin near Jemmott's body, she was reportedly in an emotional state walking herself on the pier. Williams noted that they believe she is to some extent affected by it. Williams also said the incident seems rather personal and not an attack on law enforcement.

Henry Jemmott Fatally Shot by Daughter-in-Law of Lord Michael Ashcroft

Investigators believe that Jasmine Hartin and the Belize cop were friends and had been drinking together on a pier on May 28, when Jemmott was also found floating dead beside a pier on the island of San Pedro. But Williams clarified that the two were both fully clothed.

Prosecutors told the judge that Hartin had been under the influence of alcohol when she handled Jemmott's service weapon and did not own a gun license, The Guardian reported.

Hartin admitted that they were sitting on the pier when they started loading and unloading his gun. She also told authorities that she picked up the gun and tried to eject the magazine clip, but it was stuck.

Jasmine Hartin said she was struggling to get the magazine out when the gun suddenly went off, New York Post reported.

READ MORE: Jasmine Hartin: Lord Michael Ashcroft's Daughter-in-Law Could Avoid Jail Time in Belize Cop's Fatal Shooting

WATCH: Partner of British Billionaire's Son Faces Murder Charges in Belize - From GMA






Prosecutors handling the case of Dylan Redwine revealed that his father murdered him after a confrontation, disclosing that the conflict started over fetish photos of the Colorado man wearing lady's underwear that was seen by the boy.

Emotions Sparked by Fetish Photos

The embarrassing, unsavory photos based on the prosecutors caused the confrontation between the father and son on the night of November 18, 2012.

Mark Redwine is on trial in Denver for allegedly murdering his son, the then 13-year-old Dylan Redwine, and hiding the child's remains in the woods. On Monday, prosecutors alleged that the divorced father killed his son after a serious discussion over photos of him dressed in women's underwear while eating feces from a diaper.

According to Crime Online, Prosecutor Fred Johnson stated on Monday that the damaged relationship and the emotions were heightened after the exposure of the compromising photos. Johnson also added the photos that disgusted the 13-year-old boy sparked rage from the defendant.

Moreover, based on the court documents, it was indicated that both Dylan and his older brother Corey had seen the photos before the last visit of Dylan to his father's home in Durango, which is a municipality in Colorado.

Around the same time, Dylan apparently became upset with the way Mark treated his mother. Dylan expressed on numerous occasions that he did not want to visit his father. However, Mark had legal custody visitations with him.

Also, prosecutors stated that, despite his protests, Dylan was sent by plane to spend the 2012 Thanksgiving holiday with his father, Mark Redwine. On November 18, Dylan left the airport with Mark. But they stopped in a McDonald's restaurant and a Walmart, which was confirmed by security footage before going to the pair's final stop, Redwine's residence in Durango.

Meanwhile, at around 10 p.m. on November 18, 2012, Dylan stopped sending text messages and stopped responding on his cellphone. Johnson stated that after 9:56, all communication from Dylan Redwine stopped, and he stated that it was when the defendant murdered 13-year-old Dylan Redwine.

ALSO READ: Former U.S. Marine Catherine Serou Found Dead in Russia 4 Days After She Went Missing

Friends' Revelation

Furthermore, Dylan Redwine's childhood friends testified Tuesday during the murder trial of Mark Redwine. They have emphasized that Dylan did not want to visit his father over the 2012 Thanksgiving holiday, but he couldn't avoid the court-ordered trip.

One by one, on the first day of testimony, Dylan's friends described in their testimony how Dylan spent the day before his Durango visit. They had revealed that Dylan had a sleepover and hung out with friends in the Colorado Springs area before he flew to Durango on November 18, 2012, and he also made plans to get out of his father's house as soon as he could.

One of Dylan's childhood friends, 21-year-old Joseph Ceballos, shared that he remembers it like it was yesterday. He also shared that he could see fear in his eyes of Dylan before going to Durango. A day later, after finding out that Dylan was missing, he said that he was in tears and he just completely broke down, Denver Post reported.

RELATED ARTICLE: Scott Peterson Is 'Anxious' as Retrial Decision With Shot to Become a Free Man Inches Closer

WATCH: Prosecution and defense offer 2 stories in Mark Redwine's murder trial -from

9NEWS


A prisoner appeared, amidst tight security, in Portlaoise District Court on Thursday, facing a number of assault charges.

Brendan Cummins, 25, of Lios Dubh, Armagh Road, Dundalk was charged with assault causing harm and threats to kill at the Midlands Prison Portlaoise on August 14, 2020.

Mr Cummins was sent forward for trial to Portlaoise Circuit Court on June 2 on two counts of Section 5.

One Junior Counsel was assigned.

He was also charged with assault at the Midlands Prison on August 11 2020. He pleaded guilty to the charge.

Sgt JJ Kirby outlined that on August 11, 2020 a prison officer was escorting Mr Cummins back to his cell when he became violent.

The prison officer was at the front side of the formation. Mr Cummins struck him across the left cheekbone with his handcuffs.

He has a number of previous convictions, the court heard and is currently on remand for trial.

Judge Staines said she would need to see a victim impact statement from the prison officer.

The case was adjourned to July 8 for a victim impact statement with Mr Cummins to appear in court via video link from the Midlands Prison for sentence on that date.
The Asthma Society of Ireland has issued some great tips to manage your allergies after sharing the findings of a patient and carer survey, which estimates that a staggering 80% of people in Ireland have hayfever.

Despite experiencing multiple hayfever symptoms, the survey revealed 30% of respondents had not sought advice from their healthcare provider on managing their allergies.

Top Tips to Manage Hay Fever Season include:

Speak to an experienced respiratory nurse from the Asthma Adviceline service on 1800 44 54 64 and put a hayfever management plan in place.

Whatsapp message the Asthma and COPD patient support service on 086 059 0132 for any questions/queries on asthma, hayfever and COVID-19 symptoms.

Speak with a healthcare professional about taking medication to prevent/reduce symptoms. Dont wait until you feel unwell. Early action is key to prevent an escalation of symptoms.

Keep windows closed at night time or when the pollen count is high.

Monitor the pollen tracker and minimize time spent outdoors when the pollen count is high.

Stay away from areas with freshly cut grass and dont keep fresh flowers in the house.

Apply vaseline around nostrils when outdoors in order to trap pollen.

Wear wraparound sunglasses to minimize levels of pollen irritating your eyes. Splash your eyes with cold water to help flush out pollen and soothe and cool your eyes.

Shower, wash your hair and change your clothes if you have been outdoors for an extended period of time.

Exercise in the morning rather than the evening when there are higher rates of pollen falling.

Avoid drying clothes outdoors and shake clothes outside before bringing them inside  particularly bedclothes.

Minimise contact with pets that have been outdoors and are likely to carry pollen.

Ruth Morrow, Respiratory Nurse Specialist at the Asthma Society of Ireland said: The Asthma Society wants to provide practical support for alleviating unpleasant hayfever symptoms. Hayfever is a blanket term used to describe seasonal allergies, often stemming from pollen in the air. It is important to clarify that it is not related to hay and fever is not actually an associated symptom. Usual symptoms include runny nose with clear or pale-coloured mucus, sneezing, red, watery eyes and itching around the nose, mouth or eyes.

"If untreated, it can lead to nasal congestion, postnasal drip, coughing, lower respiratory problems, sore throat, headache, decreased sense of smell, ear or sinus infection, puffiness or dark circles under the eyes, and fatigue.

"Spring and Summer are the peak times for people with hayfever with 51% reporting increased symptoms at this high pollen time, that can really impact on quality of life and asthma management. Lying in bed at night and being close to meadows, fields or trees can further aggravate symptoms.

"The ALK supported pollen tracker on asthma.ie helps us to highlight when periods of high pollen or bad weather are coming up so people with hayfever can better manage their symptoms. We have also put together a number of practical tips for management of hayfever symptoms, she said.

MORE ON THE RESEARCH BELOW LINK

The survey found that of those who have been diagnosed with allergies the most common allergies were to pollen (63%) or house dust mites (56%). Over 33% of respondents reported a diagnosis of allergy to pet or animal hair whilst over a fifth had confirmed allergies to certain foods.

Sneezing, stuffy nose and runny nose were commonly experienced amongst the 655 patients surveyed. Of the symptoms most frequently experienced 92% cited urge to sneeze or sneezing fits, 91% runny nose/rhinitis, 88% stuffy or itchy nose and 74% of respondents reported itchy burning eyes.

79% of respondents also report experiencing fatigue associated with allergies; for some patients, tiredness can be caused by certain antihistamines and not the condition itself.

The findings are concerning for the asthma population in Ireland as while all of those surveyed reported experiencing asthma symptoms, 30% had not sought advice from their healthcare practitioner in managing their symptoms, said Dr Marcus Butler, Respiratory Consultant at St Vincent's University Hospital, and Medical Director at the Asthma Society of Ireland.

While the symptoms are frustrating for many, unmanaged hayfever or allergies can cause asthma symptoms to heighten and escalate into an asthma attack. An asthma attack is a respiratory emergency that should be taken seriously by patients and carers. Allergies and hayfever with asthma can be fatal. At least one person dies every week as a result of asthma.

Our research showed that 50% of those surveyed had had an asthma attack in the past year. 14% had experienced an attack in the past four weeks alone, 19% in the past six months and a further 16% in the past 12 months. So good hayfever management is crucial in preventing an asthma emergency.

We really encourage patients to kickstart an improvement of their hayfever symptoms and better asthma control by flagging these symptoms with their GP. The results of this survey indicate that there would be a real value to all GPs routinely asking the following question with an asthma patient  and, what about the nose. If patients and GPs dont discuss these symptoms, then they cant create a plan for managing them.
A Laois Offaly tourist destination was featured in this year's Leaving Certificate Spanish exam paper.

The Higher Level paper for 2021 had a piece from a Spanish news website all about the development of the Slieve Bloom Bike Trails.

If your Spanish is a bit rusty, here's the translation:

"Ireland has started a construction project of one hundred kilometres of mountain bike trails in the Offaly and Laois counties.

The Irish government will give about five million euros for the financing of the project and the national lottery will also donate half a million euros.

"The Slieve Bloom Mountains will offer two days of tours of sustainable and well-built trails. To be able to go through it all, you will have to spend the night in the area, which will bring money to many local businesses, like hotels, hostels, coffee shops and of course bike shops.

"Coillte plans to open the first fifty kilometers of trail in June 2021, with an expectation of thirty thousand visitors during its first season."

The first sections of the free trails actually opened a year ago, starting from Baunreagh carpark near Mountrath in Laois, and from Kinnitty village in Offaly, already popular with adventure biking visitors. The trails will eventually meet across the centre of the mountains. They are developed in partnership with Offaly and Laois County Councils and are funded by the Dept of Rural and Community Development, with additional funding support from Failte Ireland.

See the website for the trails here.
The Vintners Federation of Ireland has said that "any delay to reopening will devastate pub sector" in Laois and other counties.

"The scheduled full reopening of the hospitality sector on July 5 will mean a return to work for over 25,000 staff and the opportunity for pubs to trade during a busy summer season," the VFI said.

"The eight weeks until the end of August is a vital period for publicans as it remains the only realistic opportunity to salvage something from 2021 and tide them over until next year.

"Therefore, todays briefing there is only a 50-50 chance of reopening proceeding as planned is causing huge concern and stress to publicans and the 25,000 staff who are planning on returning to work in early July."

NPHET has urged caution because of the Delta variant of Covid-19, stressing that the reopening of indoor hospitality on July 5 would be a "recipe for problems." The government will have to now review the NPHET advice before deciding whether or not to stick to the plan in place for July 5 or delay that reopening.

Padraig Cribben, VFI Chief Executive, says: The comments from Government ministers that July 5 reopening may be delayed is causing huge upset and concern in the hospitality sector. With only two weeks to go its not acceptable to treat our members in this manner.

There are just eight weeks in the summer season for pubs to recoup some of the massive losses accumulated over the past 15 months, so to tell publicans they may lose any of those weeks will devastate the trade. The business generated in July and August will sustain most pubs through the winter and into next year so for Government to delay reopening during the summer will impact the sector to a much greater degree than, for instance, a delay in January.

Publicans are busy rehiring staff and ordering stock so this new uncertainty places them in an impossible position. They need immediate confirmation that reopening on 5th July will proceed as planned. The fact Government will not make a final decision until Friday 2nd July  just three days before reopening  illustrates how detached Ministers are from the realities of running a business. The mental stress this uncertainty is placing on our members cannot be overstated.

The easing of restrictions and reopening of society has been a relatively smooth process that publicans support, including the resumption of outdoor trade on 7th June. Its beyond belief we are now thinking of going backwards while the rest of Europe moves forward. Pubs in England reopened indoors on 17th May while pubs in Northern Ireland have been fully open for over four weeks. Denmark is allowing 40,000 spectators attend Euro 2020 matches.

We are also facing the resumption of unrestricted travel to EU countries from July 19. Is the Government seriously suggesting that people can travel to Spain for a pint while pubs back home remain shut?

Were already lagging behind the UK and mainland Europe when it comes to reopening. July 5th must proceed as planned, says Mr Cribben.
A convicted rapist on trial accused of making death threats against the two lawyers who prosecuted him has engaged a new legal team after representing himself last week.

Michael Murray (50) is charged with making threats to kill against senior counsel Dominic McGinn and fellow barrister Tony McGillicuddy.

Its further alleged he created a series of online ads advertising Mr McGinn, the woman he is convicted of raping, and his own former solicitor as prostitutes in late 2014 and early 2015.

Murray denies the charges.

On Friday Mr McGinn described being woken by a ringing phone in the middle of the night, and hearing a mans voice saying bang bang.

He said it had a devastating effect on him and his family, forcing him to change his routine.

Last week, the jury watched a recording of a Garda interview in which Murray admitted he wanted to kill Mr McGinn because he was the prosecutor who secured a conviction of rape against him in 2013.

He also claimed he had cancelled a hit on McGinn that night because he wanted to do it myself.

In a subsequent interview with detectives, read into evidence, he said he had made arrangements with a foreign gang to have his former defence solicitor abducted  a plan he also cancelled, he claimed.

Neither of the two women named in the indictments can be named for legal reasons.

Murray has already pleaded guilty to possessing a Samsung phone seized from him at the Midlands Prison in Portlaoise on May 11, 2015.

He accepts it was given to him by another former solicitor of his during a visit to hospital in October 2014.

The jury was brought out for just a few minutes on Monday, before the trial was adjourned.

At this point, ladies and gentlemen, Mr Murray has engaged a new legal team, Judge Karen OConnor told the jury this afternoon.

She introduced Mr Barry White, SC, along with Niall Storan, BL, and Karl Moran, BL.

The trial is to resume on Wednesday morning.
The death has occurred of Patrick (Pat) Behan

Greenfields Close, Maynooth, Kildare / Johnstown, Kildare



Behan, Patrick (Paddy), Greenfield Close, Maynooth and late of Johnstown, Naas, Co. Kidare, June 20th 2021, suddenly at home, beloved son of the late Patrick and Bridget, deeply regretted by his loving brother Eddie, sister-in-law Brigid, niece Marion, nephew Barry, grandnieces, grandnephews, relatives and friends,.

Rest In Peace

Due to current government guidelines, a private family funeral will take place for Patrick (limited to 50 persons). Those who would have liked to attend the funeral, but due to the current restrictions cannot, please leave a personal message for the family in the condolence's section below.

Patrick's Funeral Mass can be viewed on Saturday at 11am by clicking on the following link :http://maynoothparish.org/live-streaming/

Oliver Reilly Funeral Directors accept no responsibility for any live webcam interruptions or issues.

Patrick's Funeral Cortege will be leaving Reilly's Funeral Home, Leinster St., Maynooth, on Saturday at approx. 10.40am to arrive at St. Mary's Church, Maynooth for 11am Funeral Mass, followed by burial in St. Corban's Cemetery, Naas, travelling via his residence in Greenfield Close, Maynooth. Those who would like to line the route, may do so in a safe and socially distanced manner.

For all enquiries, please contact Oliver Reilly Ltd. Funeral Directors on (045) 868230.

The death has occurred of Mary Conway (nee Dempsey)

Leinster Lodge, Ballyroe, Athy, Kildare



Peacefully, surrounded by her loving family, in the loving care of the staff of Naas General Hospital. Wife of the late Paddy and mother of the late George. Deeply regretted by her loving daughters Teresa, Mary, Joan and Anne, sons-in-law, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews, relatives and friends.

Rest in Peace

Requiem Mass will take place at 2pm on Thursday afternoon (24th June) in St. Michael's Parish Church, Athy, limited to 50 people. The Mass will be livestreamed, see www.parishofathy.ie. Burial afterwards in St. Michael's New Cemetery, Athy.

Those who would have liked to attend the funeral but cannot due to current restrictions may leave a message in the 'Condolences' section below.

The death has occurred of Jean KILGANNON

Moorefield Drive, Newbridge, Kildare / Carlow



KILGANNON Jean (Moorefield Drive, Newbridge, Co. Kildare and late of Carlow) - 21st June 2021 (peacefully) in the wonderful care of the nurses and staff of St Bridgid's Hospice The Curragh. Sadly missed by her loving husband Pat, children Carol, Ger, Mary, Ann, David, grandchildren, brothers and sisters Tom, Tim, Terry, Anna, Mary, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, nieces and nephews, relatives, neighbours and friends.

May Jean Rest In Peace



Due to government guidelines on public gatherings, a private funeral will be held. Removal from Anderson & Leahy's Funeral Home on Thursday to arrive at Cill Mhuire for 10 o'clock Mass. Jean's Funeral Mass will be live streamed on https://www.newbridgeparish.ie/cill-mhuire-church

Funeral afterwards to St Conleth's Cemetery, Newbridge.



Family flowers only please. Donations, if desired, to the Irish Cancer Society.

The death has occurred of Mary McMahon (nee Gourley)

8 Butler's Lane, Athy, Kildare



Peacefully, surrounded by her loving family. Mother of the late Damian and sister of the late Bobby. Deeply regretted by her loving sons Tadhg, Sean, Patrick and Barry, daughter Mary, brother Ian, sister Aileen, daughters-in-law Kuk, Denise and Maggie, grandchildren Ella, Damon, Isabelle, Carrie, Ben, Eamonn, David, Bernice and Laura, relatives and friends.

Rest in Peace

Requiem Mass will take place at 11am on Thursday morning (24th June) in St. Michael's Parish Church, Athy, limited to 50 people. The Mass will be livestreamed, see www.parishofathy.ie. Burial afterwards in St. Michael's New Cemetery, Athy.

Those who would have liked to attend the funeral but cannot due to current restrictions may leave a message in the 'Condolences' section below.

The death has occurred of John Roche

Stony Point New York /, Foxford, Mayo / Newbridge, Kildare



Formerly of Foxford, County Mayo and Milltown, Newbridge, County Kildare. Peacefully surrounded by his family at his home in New York. Deeply regretted by his loving wife Ann, family Glen, Erin, Aidan and Sean, brothers, sisters, his adoring grandchildren, the extended family and friends.

Rest In Peace.

John's Funeral Mass to take place in St Aedan's Church, Pearl River, New York on Friday morning at 10am (3pm Irish Time) and will be streamed live on (link to follow).

You can leave your condolences on the online Condolence Book below.

The family would like to thank you for your help and understanding at this sad and difficult time.

The death has occurred of

The death has occurred of John Shaughnessy

Minches Terrace, Athy, Kildare



John Shaughnessy, late of 2 Minches Tce. Athy. Passed away peacefully on 22nd June 2021, at home surrounded by his loving family after a long illness. Deeply regretted by his partner Mary, much loved dad, daddy of J, Mark, Karen, stepchildren Richard and Anita, adored grandad, gaga and gg by his grandchildren. Loved by his brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, sons-in-law, daughters-in-law, extended family, wide circle of friends, neighbours and work colleagues.

Funeral arrangements to follow shortly.





Funeral Arrangements Later



John Shaughnessy, late of 2 Minches Tce. Athy. Passed away peacefully on 22nd June 2021, at home surrounded by his loving family after a long illness. Deeply regretted by his partner Mary, much loved dad, daddy of J, Mark, Karen, stepchildren Richard and Anita, adored grandad, gaga and gg by his grandchildren. Loved by his brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, sons-in-law, daughters-in-law, extended family, wide circle of friends, neighbours and work colleagues.

Funeral arrangements to follow shortly.





Funeral Arrangements Later
A man who was caught in possession of over 80,000 of cocaine along with drug dealing paraphernalia has been jailed for three years.

Justin Byrne (50) was prevailed upon to allow his premises to be used to store the drugs after he had gotten into debt with certain people.

Byrne of Clarinda Park East, Dun Laoghaire, Dublin, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to possession of cocaine and heroin for sale or supply at his address in Dublin on September 5, 2020. He has one previous conviction for assault.

Garda Shane McGrath told Fergal Foley BL, prosecuting, that on the date in question, gardai searched the accused man's home and that Byrne was the only person present during the search.

Gda McGrath said that during the search, gardai found quantities of both cocaine and heroin. Gardai also discovered a quantity of a cutting agent, a hydraulic press, weighing scales and packages used for the sale or supply of drugs.

The total value of the cocaine was 82,090, while the total value of the heroin was 2,300.

The court heard Byrne has not come to any garda attention since this offence.

Gda McGrath agreed with Paul Carroll SC, defending, that his client made admissions in interview that he had gotten into debt with people and was asked to allow his premises to be used in this way.

Mr Carroll said there was an element of some cocaine abuse. He said his client was in debt and was prevailed upon to use his premises.

Counsel said that as bad as it was, as wrong as it was, as offensive to society as it was, it seems his client's actions were very much out of character going by his past and what has happened since. He asked the court to be as lenient as possible.

Judge Martin Nolan said it seems Byrne was holding the drugs and probably cutting up the drugs for onwards distribution.

Judge Nolan said he accepts that within this drug dealing operation, the accused man was at the lowest level. He said that obviously for this operation to be efficient, it needs people like him holding and cutting drugs.

He said a non-custodial sentence should only be considered for offences of this kind in exceptional cases. He said that Byrne has very good mitigation, but the case is not in the exceptional category and he will have to suffer a custodial term.

Judge Nolan sentenced Byrne to three years imprisonment.
A former Naas businessman who is being prosecuted for allegedly importing cocaine with a street value of 2.5m appeared in court today.

John Quinn, 59, whose address was given on court documents as Woodside House, Dunnstown Wood, Brannockstown, faces an allegation of importing the drug, at Naas District Court.

Det Gda Dave McKinlay told a previous hearing that on November 3, 2018, a container arrived at Rosslare port by ship from Cherbourg, France.

He claimed a search of it revealed a quantity of cocaine.

Read more County Kildare news

The court heard that the cocaine was hidden in a compartment and the container was carrying pallets.

Gda McKinlay said the floor of the container had been altered.

The garda told todays hearing that the book of evidence was not yet ready.

He said there was an issue with a charge sheet being sent from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions to the State Solicitors office.

Defending solicitor Tim Kennelly said that the defendant denies anything to do with the incident and is denying all knowledge of it.

Mr Kennelly successfully sought a reduction in the number of times the defendant is to sign on at a garda station - to once weekly.

Mr Quinn was a joint owner of Jondol Furniture Collection in Naas, which folded early in 2011.

The case was adjourned to July 21 for the preparation of a book of evidence .
Cash and a pump-action shotgun were stolen in an aggravated burglary.

Gardai are investigating the incident that occurred at Gunnings Business Premises, Rathconrath, Co Westmeath on the night of April 17 last.

On the night in question at approximately 20:55pm, a white van travelling from the Ballymahon direction and parked just beyond Gunnings Business Premises.

Shortly after 9pm the injured party served coal to a customer. After the customer left, the injured party went into his premises and was in his kitchen when two male suspects came up behind him. He was told to sit down on the chair where he was tied up by his arms and legs.

The two suspects were carrying holdall bags. The first suspect was armed with a nail bar and searched the premises, discovering a shotgun owned by the injured the party. The second suspect stayed with the injured party throughout. There was a sum of money on the kitchen table, which was also taken. One of the suspects is believed to have been on the phone to another person who was not at the premises.

The two suspects remained in the house for approximately 30 minutes and then left the premises through the back door, leaving the injured party tied up. He managed to free himself and contact Gardai.

The suspects left the scene in a white van which went in the direction of Mullingar. The van is thought to be similar to a Ford Transit Custom van.

Description of Suspects

Suspect 1  Male, approximately 510, heavy set (however, he was the slimmer of the two suspects) wearing all black clothing including a balaclava and possibly a red scarf. He had a local Westmeath accent. He was carrying a nail bar.

Suspect 2  Male, heavy build, approximately 57  58 tall, wearing all black clothing including a balaclava and runners with the toes turned up. He had small feet. He had fair / brown hair which could be seen through a hole in the balaclava and black gloves with a white rim at the cuffs. He had a Dublin accent.

Property Stolen

Mossberg, single barrel, Pump Action Shotgun  Model 500A

Small amount of cash

Vehicle of Interest  White van  similar to a Ford Transit Custom

Appeal:

Can you identify the suspects involved in this crime or have you any information that may assist the investigation?

Do you recognise the white van?

Do you know anything about the movements of this white van in the Rathconrath area of Mullingar on the 17th April 2021?

Have you any information in relation to the whereabouts of the firearm stolen during this incident?

There was a lot of traffic in the area at the time of the incident, did you travel this route on the 17th April 2021 or were you in the area at this time, have you dash Cam footage which may assist the investigation, please contact Mullingar Garda Station or Crimecall.



Anybody with information is asked to contact Gardai Mullingar Garda Station, tel: 044 9384000
The Special Criminal Court trial heard today (WED) from dozens of witnesses from Cavan, Monaghan, Westmeath and Dublin who said they made CCTV footage available to gardai from their business premises.

Each one agreed with lawyers for the defence that if gardai asked for footage they would allow them to take what they wanted.

A number of them also said that they were not familiar with the Data Protection Act and did not question gardai about the reasons why the footage was being sought. In some cases they said they were given copies of section 41b of the Data Protection Act which allows gardai to seize CCTV footage as long as it is "necessary and proportionate" for the investigation of crime.

A 40-year-old man known as YZ, Alan OBrien (40), of Shelmalier Road, East Wall, Dublin 3, Darren Redmond (27), from Caledon Road, East Wall, Dublin 3 and Luke OReilly (67), with an address at Mullahoran Lower, Kilcogy, Co Cavan have all pleaded not guilty to false imprisonment and intentionally causing serious harm to Mr Lunney at Drumbrade, Ballinagh, Co Cavan on September 17, 2019.

Northern Irish police officers have also told the trial that they receive regular training on data protection regulations. Detective Constable Michael Askin told Michael O'Higgins SC, representing the unnamed accused, that members of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) receive "service instructions" from time to time.

He agreed that a service instruction was issued in 2018 following the introduction of the Data Protection Act and circulated to all members. Among the requirements for PSNI officers is that all members carry out data protection training and update their training every three years thereafter.

Mr Lunney has told the court that he was bundled into the boot of a car near his home and driven to a container where he was threatened and told to resign as a director of Quinn Industrial Holdings. His abductors cut him with a Stanley knife, stripped him to his boxer shorts, doused him in bleach, broke his leg with two blows of a wooden bat, beat him on the ground, cut his face and scored the letters QIH into his chest.

They left him bloodied, beaten and shivering on a country road at Drumcoghill in Co Cavan where he was discovered by a man driving a tractor.

The trial continues in front of Mr Justice Tony Hunt, presiding, and Judge Gerard Griffin and Judge David McHugh.
LIMERICK Institute of Technology has confirmed that returning students will begin the 2021/2022 academic year on Monday, September 13 following the summer holidays.

However, students starting college for the first time will not take up their first classes until September 27 as the Leaving Certificate results and CAO offers will be released later than normal.

The new first year students will have an opportunity to take part in an online induction programme on September 23 and 24, 2021.

The LIT return to college dates were announced following the publication of A Safe Return to Campus framework document, developed by the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science in consultation with various stakeholders including the institutes of technology and technological universities.

This framework has outlined the criteria for a safe return to on-site activity in September 2021 and a broad plan for mainly on-site activity for all students, learners, and staff and the return to on-site activity will take place within public health guidelines.

Commenting on the announcement, President of LIT Professor Vincent Cunanne said: Our campuses have been quieter than usual since March 2020. We still had the physical presence of students, learners, researchers, apprentices, and staff although with much lower numbers. From September, under the Safe Return to Campus framework, those numbers will grow very significantly. The return of all our campus communities will be an exciting time for everyone and we will continue to work closely with all our health and education stakeholders to ensure that this happens safely."

Vice President for Academic Affairs & Registrar Marian Duggan paid tribute to the LIT community  staff and students  for meeting the challenges imposed by Coivd-19 while continuing to teach, study and research.

"Our staff and students faced the challenge of remote teaching, learning, and research with strength and determination to complete successfully both the last academic year and this one. Our students have shown remarkable resilience while staff have demonstrated innovation and flexibility throughout this extended period of Covid-19 restriction, she said.

As we begin preparations for the next academic year we wish the health authorities well as they continue to roll out the national vaccination programme, and we remain committed to working closely with the public health and education stakeholders to ensure a safe resumption of on-campus activities, while prioritising the health and safety of all," she added.

This September will be the last time students register for classes at LIT, as from October 1, TUS: Midlands Midwest will come into effect.
FOLLOWING the success of last years biodiversity photo competition - which had almost 600 entries - Team Limerick Clean-Up has launched the wildlife photography competition again this year.

This years theme is Lovely Limerick - The Great Outdoors. Leading environmentalist Eanna Ni Lamhna is onboard again this year as a competition judge.

Joining Eanna as judges this year are photographer Diarmuid Greene, Nigel Dugdale of @LimerickCityBiz and Elaine Houlihan, Munster vice - president of Macra na Feirme.

The campaigns hashtag has been updated to #BiodiversityTLC6 and the organisers are seeking images which showcase the wonderful wildlife in Limerick city and county and the variety of natural habitats where it can be found.

We're thrilled to have the brilliant @limerickcitybiz on board as one of our judges!

Only one week left to take part so get snapping #BiodiversityTLC6 https://t.co/gJhujsEAQA  Team Limerick Clean-Up (@TLC_Limerick) June 23, 2021

This year TLC is asking people to submit photographs and videos under specific category headings to ensure the wide biodiversity of plants, animals and wildlife habitats are noticed, appreciated, and recorded in glorious technicolour. Pictures without humans and pets are preferable.

To enter the competition, you must follow Team Limerick Clean Up on social media (Twitter, Facebook or Instagram) and post your photos using the hashtag #BiodiversityTLC6 and tag Team Limerick Clean-Up. The more creative the photo, the better!

If your account is private, you can screenshot your post and send via direct message to Team Limerick Clean-Ups Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook account. Closing date for entries is Wednesday, June 30.

Full information and terms and conditions can be found at teamlimerickcleanup.ie. TLC reminds people to follow HSE social distancing guidelines when out in public.

Team Limerick Clean-Up is an initiative sponsored by the JP McManus Benevolent Fund and supported by Limerick City and County Council.

Endorsed by Paul OConnell, the official partners include Mr Binman, The Limerick Leader, Limerick Post and Live95.
A COUNTY Limerick man who sustained serious crush injuries in a farming accident earlier this year has praised the service being provided by the Irish Community Air Ambulance

"I'm here because of them," said Tom Quinlan from Galbally when he was reunited with one of the advanced paramedics, Paul Traynor, who attended the scene of the incident.

"Myself and my son we were after cutting a big tree and the tree spun and kicked and all I know is I got a bad belt and it was instantaneous and I was trapped under it," he told reporter Brian O'Connell on RTE Radio One.

"I'm from a rural community and all of us are the same - we love the rural (life) but when you need the services you are a long way away from them and I believe it was the work of these men that made all the difference to me and that's why I am here today," he added.

Tom was speaking in North Cork at the headquarters of The Irish Community Air Ambulance which, this week, has taken delivery of a Leonardo 109S helicopter.

It is the fastest civilian helicopter in the world and is ideally suited to the provision of a rural Helicopter Emergency Medical Service.

The charity heli-med service has responded to almost 1,000 incidents, including dozens in Limerick, from its base in Rathcoole, County Cork since it was established in July 2019.

Cardiac arrests account for the most incidents so far this year, followed by road traffic collisions and farming accidents.

The new aircraft, which will go into full service from this Thursday, offers more speed, greater patient comfort and it has the capacity to take on more fuel increasing endurance and range.

The helicopter can travel up to 300 kilometres per hour and is capable of flying the length of the country in a little over 90 minutes. The same journey would take 8 hours by road.

Speaking at the launch of the new helicopter, Irish Community Air Ambulance Chief Executive Micheal Sheridan said: We are often called to the most serious of incidents, in these situations where youre dealing with a critical patient, the small gains can have the greatest benefit to the patients comfort and outcomes. This new helicopter offers more speed but it also has additional room at the rear. That means that we can transport adult patients more comfortably and we also have space for an additional medic on board, if necessary.

The Community Air Ambulance works in tandem with the National Ambulance Service and brings patients to the hospital that best suits their life-saving needs. While a number of patients have been transferred to University Hospital Limerick, The Mater Hospital in Dublin and Cork University Hospital (CUH) are the two major centres for the provision of trauma care in Ireland.

In recent weeks weve airlifted seriously ill patients to both CUH and the Mater during one shift. That highlights the speed and versatility of our service. Were also called upon to transport paediatric emergency cases to Temple Street Childrens Hospital. Our new helicopter has more space for the parents of children who may need to be transferred over long distances to Dublin and will be able to get them there that bit faster," said Micheal Sheridan.

While the arrival of the new helicopter is welcome, it will cost more to operate than its predecessor. "The Air Ambulance is expected to cost 1.55m to run this year and relies entirely on fundraising. Each mission costs an average of 3,500, we need donations and support to help us go further faster, said Mr Sheridan.
THEY may be political rivals but Limericks two government ministers - Patrick ODonovan and Niall Collins - took to the new Limerick Greenway together this week to mark the completion of a 5m upgrade.

Work on the project began last year and the upgraded Greenway will open to the public next week ahead of an official opening later in the year.

Minister of State Patrick ODonovan says he's delighted to see the work completed on the Greenway, which runs from Rathkeale to the Kerry border.

This is a huge investment by the Government here in County Limerick and will form part of a much bigger Greenway that will link Limerick through to Kerry and onto the sea at Fenit. It will be a massive local amenity and a tourism attraction here in the area. Having secured the completion of major parts of the Old Railway like the Station Houses at Barnagh, and Ardagh, the Tunnel at Barnagh and the Viaduct at Garryduff, with Government funding, it has made the Greenway a major piece of infrastructure here in Limerick," he said.

Minister of State Niall Collins added: This facility and attraction is of a quality and scale similar to Ireland's well known greenways in Waterford known locally as Deise Greenway and The Great Western Greenway in Mayor. Apart from being a significant resource for people here locally in West Limerick, it will also serve as a significant driver in attracting and harnessing tourism potential for West Limerick."

As well as linking to North Kerry there is also plans to link the Limerick Greenway to Limerick city and into East Clare and Killaloe.

"For my own part as a local minister I was glad to be involved in delivering this significant investment into the heart of rural West Limerick, said Deputy Collins.

Both Ministers committed themselves to working to further developing the Greenway in Limerick and to enhancing the offering of the amenity into the future.

They have jointly pointed out that without the 5million in Government funding the project would not have been able to reach its current level.

Details of next week's opening will be confirmed in the coming days.
THE Limerick-based Irish Chamber Orchestra is preparing to perform its first live concert at University Concert Hall since public health restrictions were imposed before Christmas.

The concert, at 2pm this afternoon, is the latest in a series of pilot events which are being supported by Minister Catherine Martin and the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media.

The permitted attendance for today's pilot event has been limited to a third of the venue's capacity meaning just 240 people will be in the audience for the hour-long performance.

The audience members will be required to wear masks throughout and they will be socially distant from each other.

University Concert Hall will have various Covid measures in place and those attending have been asked to arrive and leave at staggered times before and after the performance.

A number of independent observers will attend the pilot event to provide feedback to the department ahead of any further decision to ease public health restrictions further.

Commenting ahead of the performance of Molique & Piazzolla, Gerard Keenan, CEO of the Irish Chamber Orchestra said: We are so delighted to welcome back our audience to University Concert Hall and to be able to share the sheer joy of some fabulous tango music with them. We hope that our patrons will want to come back and experience live music after all this time. We have maintained a strong output of streamed concerts throughout lockdown but there is nothing like the sound of live performance and more importantly, the reaction of the audience. We have really missed that.

For more see uch.ie or irishchamberorchestra.com.
Morgan Stanley has told its employees they must get Covid-19 vaccines before returning to its New York offices.

Staff are required to disclose their vaccination status to the bank by July 1, the Wall Street firm said in a memo to employees. Starting July 12, employees, contingent workers, clients and visitors will be required to confirm that they have been vaccinated before entering Morgan Stanley buildings in New York City and Westchester County.

Unvaccinated employees will work remotely, a person familiar with the matter said. At a conference last week, Chief Executive James Gorman said that well over 90% of employees in its offices had been vaccinated.

Companies are pressuring employees to get vaccinated before their offices fully reopen, but few have gone so far as to require it. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission last month said U.S. employers can require staffers entering a workplace to be vaccinated against Covid-19, although they must accommodate those who are unvaccinated for disability or religious reasons.

Getting workers vaccinated is especially important to Wall Street firms eager to end the work-from-home era. Goldman Sachs Group Inc., which has brought thousands of employees back to its Manhattan headquarters, is requiring U.S. employees to disclose whether they have received a Covid-19 vaccine. Wells Fargo & Co. has asked employees to voluntarily register their vaccination status. Employees are expected to return to the banks offices after Labor Day.

Mr. Gorman said he expects a small percentage of Morgan Stanley staffers to eschew vaccines for health or religious reasons. Well deal with that when we get there," he said at the conference. Right now, Im focused on the 98%, not the 1% or 2%."

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text

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NEW DELHI : The share of Middle Eastern crude in India's oil imports fell to a 25-month low in May, tanker data provided by trade sources showed, as refiners tapped alternatives in response to the government's call to diversify supplies.

India, the world's third biggest oil importer, in March directed refiners to diversify crude sources after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies, led by top exporter Saudi Arabia, ignored New Delhi's call to ease supply curbs.

Asia's third-largest economy imported about 4.2 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil in May, just below the previous month but about 31.5% higher than a year earlier, the data showed.

The Middle East's share dropped to 52.7%, the lowest since April 2019 and down from 67.9% in April, the data showed.

Imports from Saudi Arabia, India's second-largest supplier after Iraq, slipped by about a quarter from a year earlier, while supplies from the United Arab Emirates, which dropped to No. 7 position from No. 3 in April, fell by 39%, the data showed.

This comes after Indian state refiners nominated to lift less oil from Saudi Arabia in May.

Lower purchases of oil from the Middle East dragged OPEC's share of Indian oil imports to a record low.

To replace Middle Eastern oil, refiners hiked imports from Latin America, the United States and the Mediterranean.

Indian refiners bought higher volumes of gasoline-rich U.S. oil in March, expecting a recovery in local gasoline demand to continue in the months ahead, said Ehsan Ul-Haq, lead analyst for Oil Research and Forecasts at Refinitiv.

Strong demand for light crude saw Nigeria improving its ranking by two notches to become the No. 3 supplier to India in May.

Private Indian refiners Reliance Industries and Nayara Energy, however, boosted purchases of Canadian heavy oil to a record 244,000 bpd, equivalent to about 6% of India's overall imports.

"Indians bought Kazakhstan's CPC blend and Canadian oil due to attractive discounts in comparison to dated Brent and WTI, respectively," Ul-Haq said.

Tanker arrival data showed higher imports in contrast to preliminary government data, as cyclones along India's coast line last month delayed discharge of cargoes.

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As fuel prices continue to dent the pockets of all consumers, Dharmendra Pradhan , the Union minister of petroleum and natural gas, has reiterated that the upward trajectory witnessed by petrol is due to global crude prices.

"There has been a jump in crude oil prices in the international market. One of the main reasons behind the rise in fuel prices in India is that we have to import 80% of the oil we consume," Pradhan said on Wednesday.

The minister also launched an attack on the former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh-led UPA regime, stating that the previous government had left oil bonds worth crores for repayment.

The bonds, he says, is what the current government has to repay along with its interest, leading to an increase in petrol rates.

"Economists have raised a point that Congress had left oil bonds worth crores for repayment, due to which we've to now pay both its interest and its principal price, this is also a big reason for the rise in fuel prices," said Pradhan.

The oil minister has time and again blamed the price of crude oil in international markets for the hike in fuel rates in India.

He had earlier said that it is up to the GST Council to decide whether the fuel should be brought under the Goods and Services Tax, which, many believe, would substantially bring down the prices.

Currently, the central and state taxes make up for 60% of the retail selling price of petrol and over 54% of diesel. Centre levies 32.90 per litre of excise duty on petrol and 31.80 a litre on diesel.

In view of this, Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government is under increasing pressure to cut high taxes on fuel.

The Centre has since cited the instrument of oil bond to justify its inability to reduce taxes on petroleum products.

The increased prices of petrol and diesel is a legacy of UPAs mismanagement," BJPs IT cell chief Amit Malviya had alleged earlier this week.

We are paying for the oil bonds that will come up for redemptionissued by UPA to oil companies for not increasing retail prices then!" he added.

Replying to Malviya's argument, Congress leader Amitabh Dubey has said that oil bonds cannot be the sole reason for the skyrocketing prices.

"Indians consumed 30 million MT of petrol and 73 MMT of diesel, or 14,228 crore litres in 2019-20. A 20,000 crore bond payment adds up to *drumroll* 1.40/litre. Meanwhile, the Modi govt has increased fuel prices by 7/litre in just the last six weeks," he wrote on Twitter.

Lame.



Indians consumed 30 million MT of petrol and 73 MMT of diesel, or 14,228 crore litres in 2019-20. A 20,000 crore bond payment adds up to *drumroll* 1.40/litre.



Meanwhile, the Modi govt has increased fuel prices by 7/litre in just the last six weeks. #FuelPriceHike https://t.co/q9WpKCRvpo  Amitabh Dubey (@dubeyamitabh) June 20, 2021

What are oil bonds?

These are long-term special securities issued by the government in place of a cash subsidy. Oil companies are paid interest through it, typically over a term of 15-20 years.

They are issued if the government is in danger of breaching the fiscal deficit target and aims to delay the fiscal burden of such a payout to future years.

Petrol and diesel were being sold at lower than the international market price before the complete deregulation of rates.

To compensate for this, the UPA government issued oil bonds to the companies amounting to 1.4 lakh crore between 2005 and 2010.

About 10,000 crore worth of bonds will mature this year. Interest payment on oil bonds annually over the last decade has been around 10,000 crore rupee. But bond redemption so far has been just 3,500 crore in the last seven years.

According to experts, the central governments income from taxes and surcharges on petrol and diesel topped 3 lakh crore in FY21.

Petrol prices today

According to a price notification by state-owned fuel retailers, a litre of petrol is retailing at 97.50 in Delhi today, while diesel priced at 88.23.

In Mumbai, the petrol price hit an all-time high of 103.63 a litre. Diesel now costs at 95.72 per litre in the financial capital of the country.

The price of petrol was 98.65 per litre and that of diesel was 92.83 per litre in Chennai.









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Twelve-year-old Jair Flores receives a first dose of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine at a mobile vaccination clinic on May 14, 2021 in Los Angeles, California.

The COVID-19 vaccine is likely linked with rare cases of heart inflammation in U.S. teens and young adults  particularly in males. But the benefits of the vaccine still outweigh the risks for every age group at this time, according to data presented Wednesday (June 23) at a meeting of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) .

As of June 11, the CDC's vaccine adverse event reporting system logged 323 confirmed U.S. cases of heart muscle inflammation, or myocarditis, shortly after receipt of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines in people ages 12 to 29, Dr. Tom Shimabukuro, deputy director of the CDC's Immunization Safety Office, said during the meeting. In most of these cases, recipients experienced chest pain and shortness of breath within four days of the second COVID-19 shot. Most of these people were hospitalized. But the vast majority were discharged within a few days from the hospital and had recovered from their symptoms by that time.

And overall, this side effect appears rare  data so far show the rate of myocarditis following COVID-19 vaccine in people ages 12 to 39 is 12.6 cases per 1 million people vaccinated. Still, for young males, the rate is higher, up to 66 cases per 1 million people, Shimabukuro said, which is much higher than the background rate of myocarditis cases that would be expected in the short period of time after vaccination for this age group.

"Data available to date suggest a likely association of myocarditis with mRNA vaccination in adolescents and young adults," Dr. Grace M. Lee, chair of the COVID-19 Vaccine Safety Technical Subgroup of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), said during the meeting.

Related: Should 12-year-olds get the COVID-19 vaccine?

Still, the data showed a clear benefit of the vaccine compared with the risk of myocarditis for all age groups.

The CDC said that for every million teen males who are vaccinated, an estimated 5,700 cases of COVID-19 and 215 hospitalizations would be prevented; an estimated 56 to 69 cases of myocarditis would be expected.

"Currently, the benefits still clearly outweigh the risks for COVID-19 vaccination in adolescents and young adults," Dr. Sara Oliver, an epidemic intelligence service officer at the CDC, said during the meeting.

Experts from a CDC advisory panel on vaccinations seemed to largely agree with this interpretation.

"I clearly think the presentation you've given today shows the benefit-risk balance in favor of benefit," Dr. Jose Romero, ACIP chair and Arkansas' Secretary of Health, said during the meeting.

But experts stressed the need for further follow-up of these patients to evaluate the potential long-term risks of myocarditis, and to figure out how to handle cases of myocarditis that happen after the first dose.

Preliminary recommendations from the CDC, which may be updated before they are finalized, say that people who experience myocarditis after the first dose should defer their second dose until more information is known, Oliver said. But even these patients might still consider receiving their second shot after they've recovered from their myocarditis symptoms under certain circumstances, Oliver said. (These circumstances were not specified at the meeting.)

"The facts are clear: This is an extremely rare side effect, and only an exceedingly small number of people will experience it after vaccination," according to a statement co-signed by more than a dozen organizations following the meeting, including the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, CDC, American Academy of Pediatrics and American Heart Association. "Importantly, for the young people who do, most cases are mild, and individuals recover often on their own or with minimal treatment," the statement said.

The CDC still recommends COVID-19 vaccination for everyone ages 12 and older.

Originally published on Live Science.
A metal detectorist in England has unearthed two rare gold coins that date to the mid-14th century, a time when Black Death was ravaging the country.

Both medieval coins depict Edward III, who tried to introduce gold coinage to England starting in 1344. One of the newfound coins  a leopard coin (also called a half florin), issued from January to July 1344  was considered "failed" because the mint charges were too high and the value assigned to the leopard coins overvalued gold against silver , according to a June 17 statement from the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS).

Edward III tried to rectify these monetary problems by introducing new coins from July 1344 until 1351, when the other newfound coin was minted. This coin, called a gold noble, weighed nearly 0.3 ounces (7.7 grams), more than twice as much as the 0.12-ounce (3.5 g) leopard.

Related: 12 bizarre medieval trends

The metal detectorist found both gold coins near the town of Reepham in Norfolk County in October 2019, but PAS archaeologists have only now finished their assessments of the coins. As for how the coins ended up in the ground, archaeologists have proposed two possibilities. "It seems likely that both coins went into the ground at the same time, either as part of a purse loss or as part of a concealed hoard," according to a statement from PAS, a project managed by the British Museum in England and Amgueddfa Cymru  National Museum Wales that analyzes and preserves valuable artifacts found in the U.K.

The coins were folded in half but were otherwise in good condition, with minor scuffing that was likely caused by agricultural activity. The leopard is 23 karats, meaning it's about 96% pure gold, PAS reported. If the local coroner, an independent legal official, holds an inquest to review coins, they may qualify as "treasure," a PAS term used to describe two or more silver or gold coins from the same find that are at least 300 years old.

Edward III had this rare gold leopard coin minted in 1344. (Image credit: CC BY 2.0

The discovery of the leopard is especially remarkable, given that not many of these coins were minted and "hardly any have survived," Helen Geake, a finds liaison officer for PAS, told the BBC . There are just three leopard coins in public museums today, PAS reported.

Whoever owned the two coins was "at the top of society," Geake added. Back then, their worth was equivalent to $16,700 (12,000 British pounds) in today's money.

Following the Norman Conquest in the 11th century, the only coins used in England were silver pennies, Geake told the BBC. "Then Edward III decided to reintroduce the first gold coins in England since the Anglo-Saxon era  and no one knows why."

The new system used florins (or double leopards), leopards and helms (or half leopards). However, Edward III's new money denominations didn't catch on with the public. Maybe because "when one or two pennies were the equivalent of a day's wages  perhaps very few people used them," because their denominations were too high, Geake told the BBC.

The leopard's failure led to the creation of the noble, she noted. However, while a florin was worth 6 shillings, a leopard 3 shillings and a helm 1 shilling, 6 pence, the noble also had a high worth of 6 shillings, 8 pence, according to PAS.

The new finding shows that leopards were in circulation longer than previously thought. One possibility for the leopard's unexpectedly long reign is that the Black Death came to England in the late 1340s, killing at least a third of the population, Geake said.

"Usually, the authorities would be keen to remove a withdrawn coin as soon as possible," but the Black Death likely had them otherwise occupied, she said.

Originally published on Live Science.
NASA's experimental Mars helicopter, Ingenuity, has now flown eight times on the Red Planet, traveling farther than scientists hoped would be possible.

The little chopper made its most recent Mars sortie on Monday (June 21). During the flight, Ingenuity remained aloft for 77.4 seconds, flew 525 feet (160 meters), and landed about 440 feet (133.5 m) away from its companion, the Perseverance rover, according to a tweet from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, which operates the helicopter.

Ingenuity is a technology demonstration project that hitchhiked to Mars with NASA's much larger Perseverance rover, which touched down on the Red Planet on Feb. 18. Before beginning its science work in earnest, Perseverance began its stay on Mars by testing the helicopter and another technology project that can turn carbon dioxide from the Red Planet's thin atmosphere into oxygen.

Related: Watch NASA's Mars helicopter Ingenuity fly in 3D (video)

An image the Mars helicopter Ingenuity captured of its shadow during its eighth flight on Mars, on June 21, 2021. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)

Monday's flight came about two weeks after Ingenuity's previous flight, on June 8. The success of the new flight marks a second flawless flight for the helicopter after a difficult sixth flight that tested the chopper's resilience.

Although Ingenuity was originally designed to fly only five times, its steady successes encouraged the agency to extend its mission and experiment with more ambitious flights. Whereas the helicopter's early flights began and ended in the same place, dubbed Wright Brothers Field after pioneers of flight on Earth, Ingenuity is now soaring from one new airfield to another.

So while NASA has not yet announced when the helicopter will make a ninth flight, definitely expect such an outing to come sooner or later.

According to SpaceNews reporter Jeff Foust, the helicopter may keep exploring for months. Speaking with a group that advises NASA about Mars exploration, the project scientist of the Mars 2020 mission, which includes both Perseverance and Ingenuity, said that Ingenuity could make "a couple flights a month" for "a few more months," Foust reported.

Those sorties would see the helicopter keep pace with Perseverance's own travels on Mars to better understand how rovers and aircraft can conduct science work in tandem.

Meanwhile, Perseverance faces its own ambitious agenda, focused on evaluating the past habitability of its landing site, Jezero Crater, and stashing away intriguing rock samples for a later mission to carry to laboratories on Earth for more detailed analysis.

Email Meghan Bartels at mbartels@space.com or follow her on Twitter @meghanbartels. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.
Denham Springs, LA (70726)

Today

Thunderstorms likely this evening. Then a chance of scattered thunderstorms overnight. Low 72F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%. Locally heavy rainfall possible..

Tonight

Thunderstorms likely this evening. Then a chance of scattered thunderstorms overnight. Low 72F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%. Locally heavy rainfall possible.
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In a nearly three-hour presentation Wednesday morning, Pershing Square Capital founder Bill Ackman made his love for the music business  and the reasons for setting his sights on Universal Music Group  clear, saying, I cant think of an asset Im more confident in being consumed over time.  You need food and water to live, but music comes next.

Given his choice between all those basic necessities, Ackman made his preference clear, adding that you cant license IP from food and water.

Ackmans comments came in a webcast for Pershing Squares shareholders in which he explained the reasons for spending $4 billion to obtain 10% of UMG, the worlds largest music company, making the investment sound like a relative bargain in the process.

Other Pershing Square executives participating in the webcast said that they would have preferred to buy as much as half the company  and, perhaps more realistically, made an initial ask for a 17.5% share  but Vivendi, UMGs parent company, cited tax reasons for only being able to sell 10%.

The best analogy we can make here is whats happened to software, and some of most highly valued companies in the world are software companies, Ackman said in the meeting, according to the Wall Street Journal. Im confident in 25 years, 50 years, 100 years, Universal will be very high on the list of great companies.

Ackman noted that UMG grew 5% during the pandemic, which he described as about the worst thing that can happen in music, proving, in his reasoning, that music is recession-proof. He cited UMGs 31% share of worldwide consumption and relative lack of debt as additional attractions for ownership.

UMGs CEO Lucian Grainge was showered with praise during the presentation, with Ackman comparing him to the most iconic business leaders in history, including Walt Disney, Steve Jobs and Reed Hastings.

In a deal that closed Sunday after seven months of negotiations, Pershing Square ultimately picked up 184.8 million shares, ahead of Universal going public in September on the Euronext Amsterdam stock exchange.

Pershing Square made a prediction that 67% of smartphone users will subscribe to paid streaming services by 2030, roughly doubling the percentage of subscribers  34%  at the beginning of the decade. Citing Universals dominance, with no music consumption platform being able to survive without making a deal with the company, Ackman said that, in essence, if you own UMG, you own a royalty on people listening to music.

Ackman reiterated that music in general and UMG in particular is personal to him, citing a Sting record as the first he ever bought, and how his songwriter grandfather, Herman Ackman, wrote hit songs in the 1920s whose master recordings are now owned by Universal.

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BlockFilm, a Canada-based financing platform, is bringing private investors and content creators together via a safe financing online platform using digital security tokens, the company announced today.

Digital security tokens using blockchains to connect private investors with content creators are something fairly new that has been used in real estate, for example, says Pauline Couture, co-CEO of BlockFilm. Together with Suzette Couture, no relation, she set up the global platform that they started working on in 2019 with backing from the Canada Media Fund. Pauline is based in Toronto while Suzette (Avonlea, Conspiracy of Silence) is headquartered in Los Angeles. Film producer Charlotte Mickie is also part of the company.

We have a reputation of playing well with others, Pauline Couture said. Everyone has financing issues in indie films.

BlockFilm offers private investors a place to put their money and gets indie filmmakers financing, with the idea of getting passion projects to completion faster. The bonus is that investors can resell if they want to get out. The emerging secondary market is completely new, she said. One of the challenges we have is the educational hump to overcome. Its so new. Our biggest challenge is getting people to understand it.

BlockFilm is conceived and designed to support an immense need among producers to access new sources of financing, said Suzette Couture, co-CEO and chair of BlockFilms board. Content producers in Canada and around the world will greatly benefit from our groundbreaking new platform, powered by our partnership with TokenFunder, as they connect to a global community of investors and champions that can now discover and invest in their work.

Among the film and TV creators they are working with are Roland Joffe, J. Todd Harris, Damon DOliveira, Mary Young Leckie and Ina Fichman.

BlockFilm received the Ontario Securities Commissions exemption order allowing it to leverage TokenFunder as a trading platform.

Were excited about this partnership with TokenFunder. Backed by blockchain integrity, security and transparency, we are responding to challenges our industry has faced for decades, Pauline Couture said. The BlockFilm solution for producers and investors, powered by TokenFunder, is unmatched today and shows true global leadership from the OSC. BlockFilm will be transformational for both content producers and investors.

Wendy Bernfeld and RoseMarie Couture from BlockFilm will attend the Cannes Film Festival virtually while Mickie will be attending, although on behalf of her Celluloid Dreams.

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Supporting the U.K. animation industry is one of the key priorities for the recently launched 7 million ($9.77 million) U.K. Global Screen Fund (UKGSF), which is being administered by the British Film Institute.

Each of the three key funding strands of the UKGSF  international business development, co-production investment, and international distribution (see separate story for details)  are accessible to animation companies.

In many ways, the ambition of the UKGSF to boost global exports of U.K. screen content and to foster international collaborations perfectly fits with the experience of the animation sector.

Often overlooked compared with its live action cousins, animation is one of the most internationally focused of the U.K.s screen industries.

Thats very much out of necessity. At a time when animation producers can likely secure a maximum of 25% of budget for a commission from a U.K. broadcaster, companies have had to reach out internationally to secure financing for projects. Kate OConnor, executive chair of U.K. Animation, says: Its in the DNA of animation sector that there are international collaborations and partnerships, and a sharing of skills and talents.

U.K. animation firms are also successful too. Magic Light Pictures The Snail and the Whale and Blue-Zoo Animations Adventures of Paddington both took home key prizes at Aprils annual Annie Awards.

Animators have also managed to carry on working during most of the pandemic, quickly switching to remote working amid high demand for content. Most of the studios have reported being busier, says OConnor. Its been quite buoyant.

This is echoed by Camilla Deakin, joint managing director of London studio Lupus Films, whose animation credits include adaptations of classic kids books Were Going on a Bear Hunt, and The Tiger Who Came to Tea. We saw a big uptick of interest in our projects, particularly from the streamers in the U.S. Everybody is needing content, and theyve seen animation as a really useful way to feed that.

Lupus is currently making adventure story Kensukes Kingdom, a U.K., France and Luxemburg co-production. Its a classic, collaborative co-production, in the grand tradition of European filmmaking, says Deakin.

She says two aspects of the UKGSF are of particular interest to a company like Lupus. The international business development funding strand is one of them. Weve got good support for production in the U.K., but not so much for development. For animation, development is so important. Deakin points out that animation development isnt just about polishing a script, its about designing the characters and locations, running an animation test and creating a pitch bible. That becomes part of how you take the film out and finance it. Traditionally, weve found it hard to raise those development funds.

The co-production investment strand is also a focus. Itll really help us forge those useful relationships with other co-producers. In the past, we have always been a majority co-producer going out and seeking minority co-producers in other territories. But itll be nice if it can then work the other way as well.

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John McAfee, the creator of the antivirus software company bearing his name, was found dead in his prison cell near Barcelona, Spain, according to multiple outlets. He was 75.

According to the Associated Press, authorities are investigating the cause of death. His lawyer, however, told Reuters that McAfee died by suicide.

A statement from the regional Catalan government did not name McAfee, but described attempting to revive a 75-year-old U.S. citizen who was awaiting extradition to his country. Just hours earlier, Spains National Court ruled for McAfees extradition to the United States.

McAfee was wanted in the U.S. for evading taxes, which could have resulted in a 30-year prison sentence. Tennessee prosecutors charged the computer software entrepreneur after he failed to report income he made from speaking engagements, selling the rights to his life story for a documentary and promoting cryptocurrencies. He was arrested in October 2020 at the Barcelona airport. Since then, McAfee had been awaiting his extradition hearing in prison. During a hearing earlier this month, he claimed the charges were politically motivated and feared he would spend his life behind bars upon returning to the U.S.

McAfee was previously a person of interest in the death of George Faull and ordered by a Florida court to pay $25 million in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by Faulls estate. When Faull was found dead in his Belizean home, McAfee left for Guatemala. The computer software tycoon kept a low profile until his attempt to run for the U.S. presidency in 2016. He ran again in 2020.

McAfee was the subject of the 2016 documentary Gringo: The Dangerous Life of John McAfee, which he refused to participate in.

In his final tweet, McAfee wrote, In a democracy, power is given not taken.  Take care which powers you allow a democracy to wield.

In a democracy, power is given not taken. But it is still power. Love, compassion, caring have no use for it. But it is fuel for greed, hostility, jealousy All power corrupts. Take care which powers you allow a democracy to wield.  John McAfee (@officialmcafee) June 18, 2021

On June 10, McAfee was more direct about his time in prison. There is much sorrow in prison, disguised as hostility, he tweeted. Im old and content with food and a bed but for the young prison is a horror.

There is much sorrow in prison, disguised as hostility. The sorrow is plainly visible even in the most angry faces. I'm old and content with food and a bed but for the young prison is a horror  a reflection of the minds of those who conceived them.  John McAfee (@officialmcafee) June 10, 2021

If you or anyone you know is having thoughts of suicide, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or go to SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources.

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In the remote hamlet of Giromeri, a small village in the mountainous Epirus region of northern Greece close to the Albanian border, the declining population numbers close to 50 permanent residents. But every year the villagers gather during the Easter holidays to preserve their time-honored customs, celebrate life, and commemorate the dead, rituals that play out to an indelible soundtrack of wailing clarinets.

In his lyrical documentary Memento, director Nikos Ziogas offers an elegy to a way of life that is fading away in his native Epirus, as well as a testament to the powerful rites that survive. It is a love song for those who stayed, for those who migrated, for its musicians and the physical character of one of Greeces most evocative and forbidding regions.

Memento is produced by Angelo Venetis of Boo Productions, with associate producers Iraklis Mavroides, Nikos Smpiliris, Antigoni Gavriatopoulou, and Aris Dagios. The film is co-written by Mimis Chrysomallis and Ziogas, who also worked as DoP.

Ziogas spoke to Variety ahead of the films world premiere in the Film Forward Competition section of the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival, to discuss his attempt to keep the analog memory of the Greek countryside alive in an era of relentless digitization.

You dedicated this movie to your grandfather. Was he the starting point for Memento?

Ive always been thinking about death as concept and fact; what it symbolizes, what kind of fears it awakens, and how we can face it. My relationship with my grandfather was special, characterized by a love that was, so to speak, cellular. The moment he passed away was always in my mind, troubling me. The same was true about the film; I knew I would make it, but I was probably afraid of getting too close to this subject.

In 2017 I met Mimis Chrysomallis, who co-wrote the script with me. I told him I had this idea about a documentary film, and he did nothing less than encourage me to begin with the shooting. I kept postponing it until one afternoon in 2019, when he called me and said: Nikos, we have to make the film. My reply was positive and the same day we met to discuss the details. After this initial meeting I came back home. The next time my phone rang, I was told my grandfather had passed away. Maybe everything happens for a reason. It was through this process that I came closer to death, both spiritually and creatively.

What sort of personal relationship do you have to Giromeri?

I had no personal relationship whatsoever to Giromeri, neither had I visited the place before going there for the shooting (12 days in total). I am related, however, to Epirus, as my family has roots there. Epirus has always been familiar to me through black and white family photos, its customs, people, and music. During the shooting I experienced all those things I had previously imagined in my mind. Now I feel I am carrying a piece of the village with me.

You utilize a lot of archival footage. Can you talk about how you got access to that footage? Have many images and videos from Giromeri been preserved through the years?

Cinema is magic. And making a film is something magical. So, in a magical way, after we started shooting, we came across this material. While doing research for the film, we found out that Menelaos Meletzis (nephew of Greek photographer Spyros Meletzis) had made a film in 1975 about this same custom in Giromeri. Afterwards, we discovered that the Benaki Museum in Athens also had archival footage shot by Greek photographer Costas Balafas. Finally, a resident of the village came to us with five VHS tapes with amateur footage shot by himself and allowed us to use it for our film. When I watched all this material, I got very excited, as it changed the pattern and texture of the documentary. It was as if the past came forward, claiming its share from the present.

Along with directing Memento, you did your own cinematography. Did having the camera as an intermediary between you and the villagers in any way make it easier, or perhaps more difficult, to interview them for the film? Do you always prefer to do your own camera work?

I believe that when sitting before a camera, we all think about ourselves and discover a piece of our own self. Thinking about what to say or how we appear, it is as if we are looking at our own selves through the reflection of the lens. I like it when people can overcome the obstacle posed by a camera and express their inner truth. I look for spontaneity, trying to bring us closer with the camera, this sometimes scary item that intervenes in our private lives! I try to make the camera a piece of myself so that people see me in it, and this is why I decided to do the cinematography myself. In Memento I think we managed to do this better than we thought we could. The close bond within the crew and the trust felt by the residents made spontaneity possible in a very short time.

We are all passersby is a refrain that we hear often throughout the film, and the villagers are especially preoccupied with the process of rememberingthrough communal rites, through personal memories. Do you see yourself playing a similar role as a documentary filmmaker?

Filmmaking has always been a communal rite. We filmmakers are certainly passersby. Still, I hope our films can leave a trace of memory hovering in the chaos of forever. After my experience with Memento, I notice in every film I watch the need of filmmakers to deal with memory. They are preoccupied with this abstract journey into the roots, the origin and the destinationtwo words inextricably linked. Often, when we try to forget something we havent dealt with, it ends up in our way. Maybe this film is one more attempt to purge from oblivion.

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When business in brothels is slow, that means the economy is on the ropes. Those words, uttered by the indelible madame at the heart of director Eva Stefanis Days and Nights of Demetra K., offers a fitting introduction to the way in which the ups and downs in the life of a single sex worker mirror the larger political and economic uncertainties rattling post-crisis Greece.

Stefanis feature-length debut, which has its premiere in the main competition at the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival, centers on the life of the titular Demetra K., who runs one of the oldest brothels in Athens. The film follows her throughout a turbulent period when the Greek economy is on the verge of collapse and a contentious law on prostitution threatens the worlds oldest profession in the cradle of Western civilization. Pic is produced by Amanda Livanou, of Neda Film, in co-production with Faliro House Productions and Greek public broadcaster ERT.

Stefanis work as a filmmaker and video artist has screened in several film festivals including IDFA, Cinema du Reel, and DocLisboa, as well as art exhibitions such as Documenta. She spoke to Variety ahead of the world premiere of Days and Nights of Demetra K. about a journey 12 years in the making. It took a long time for her to let me inin her place, and in her heart, she said. It was just meeting her that I was interested in, and trying to understand herand through her, myself.

What was the starting point for this film?

I was interested in shooting a film about Athens at night, but I had a vague idea about what I wanted to do. And I had a friend, Sofia Michaelidou, who used to be responsible for the film program at Goethe Institute. And she suggested, Why dont you meet Demetra? And when I met Demetra, I was seduced. So I forgot about Athens at night, this broader theme, and I just wanted to meet Demetra and get to know her more.

In the beginning, I think I was more interested in an issue-based film. Okay, Im going to do something about sex workers in Athens. But the more I got to know Demetra, I didnt want to make an issue-based film. And the more Demetra wouldnt fit into one. That was what was extraordinary about her.

This movie was made over the course of 12 years. Did you have any idea at the outset that it would take up so much of your life?

I had no idea. First of all, it took a long time until Demetra would let me in, until she would want me to be there, even without a camera. Because shes very private, and she doesnt like journalists that go there and just want to see what its all about. I think she wanted to be convinced that there was something else I wanted to explore rather than whats the everyday life in a brothel. I think she believed that I was generally interested in her. Which I was.

And what was it like, once Demetra finally let you in? Because shes very brash, shes outspoken, shes funny, shes opinionated, shes charismatic. Shes certainly not someone whos going to be shy in front of the camera.

In the beginning, shes still kind of playing the role. Shes performing. Shes less vulnerable than she becomes. Gradually, we both expose ourselves. I also became more vulnerable. It goes both ways. Thats whats wonderful about documentary. Its a real relationship. If you just want to grab from the other, then it wont develop. Theres a lot of things I have shared with Demetra that I havent with very close friends.

Theres always this conflict between us, that she calls me a prude. Which I am. [Laughs]

I didnt know if I should move to a more self-reflexive documentary, and talk about my own sexuality, but I just didnt know how Id do it. And then I thought, Demetra is too big; why should I go in this [film]? I just felt like its a recipe, to put myself in, talking about [sexuality]. Its very confessional. And I find it quite boring, to be honest. I have this totem, this Demetra. What am I going to say?

Along the way, Days and Nights becomes a story as much about the political and economic fortunes of Greece over the past decade as it is a portrait of a single sex worker. Did you expect it to take on such depth and dimensions from the start?

I thought that would be the subtext, but I didnt want it to be upfront. I always think that if its a portrait, its always more complicated. Everything is more complicated, and theres always an existential issue thats more important. Or they go together with politics, or the social milieu. I didnt want to stress it, because at one point I had included a lot of material about this very awful law about prostitution in Greece. Half of the film was about this. I spent a lot of time in the editing trying to avoid that. Because it became a very polemical documentary, but Demetra was overshadowed by that. Finally, I tried to keep a balance between her, and try to show how the sex workers are influenced by economics and politics in Greece, but not talk directly about the issue. Because I think documentaries shouldnt talk but show and feel.

Demetra is very much an iconoclast in contemporary Greece, and shes also an activist. We see the scene of the assembly meeting, which is the first we learn that shes the head of the sex workers union.

That was amazing. These are pseudo-feminists, because they represent the feminists of the left. But they hadnt even invited sex workers to a meeting about prostitution. It was such hypocrisy.

She tells stories about the violence and abuse shes faced, the sex workers who have been killed. And in some uncomfortable and disquieting ways, it really felt like she was speaking to a larger conversation in Greece right now, issues of violence against women, workplace harassment, and so on. Did that aspect of the storyline come more to the forefront for you during editing and post?

I wanted it to be political, but I dont want these things to be literal in the film. I want them to be conveyed in a cinematic way, and not be said. I had many parts of Demetra talking about the law, that its not right, and it was like an interview. That wasnt very cinematic in my view. It was like she was addressing the issue. That wasnt like watching a film. I like what [Frederick] Wiseman said [paraphrasing Samuel Goldwyn]: If you want to send me a message, send me a telegram. You dont want me to make a film about it.

Youve made dozens of short films and visual poems, as you describe them, as well as working in other disciplines. What was the experience of making a feature-length film like for you?

Difficult. I think Im better at doing little things and taking myself less seriously. Theres a phrase from Flaubert that I like: I think the best things are the ones you do a pantoufles, in your slippers. Like you have the main thing, and then theres something you do on the side, to heal yourself. I think I take myself too seriously when I do something like [a feature film]. If I write something, or I make a short film, I really give it the importance it needs. It has to be taken a bit lightly. Otherwise, its too heavy for me.

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Theres a good story in Wolfgang that captures how a chef goes with the flow. It was a bustling night at Spago (the only kind of night Spago had in the 80s), and in walked Joan Collins, at the apex of her Dynasty fame. She always ordered one of Wolfgang Pucks most popular dishes: smoked salmon on a brioche. But all the brioche was gone, and Puck didnt want to face the wrath of Alexis. So he improvised. He cooked a pizza without tomato sauce and spread dill cream on it, covering it with smoked salmon and topping it with dollops of caviar. Voila! A Spago classic was born.

Thats an anecdote to make you hungry, which happens a lot in Wolfgang, a Disney Plus documentary that tells Wolfgang Pucks story, and does it justice, in a crisp light 78 minutes. As it happens, the Pizza Factor looms large in the Puck legend. For starters, he made sublime pizzas: the chewy brick-oven-baked crust, the delicacy of the cheeses, the toppings that were artier than you were used to seeing on pizza (duck sausage!) but in a way that made you go, How could no one have put this on a pizza before?

But the other element of the Pizza Factor is that even as Puck was bringing the revolution he called California Cuisine to Los Angeles and, as it turned out, to the rest of America  a revolution in flavor, in farm produce savory with its natural essence, in the fusion of French cooking techniques and a kind of promiscuous American bite  the fact that the restaurant made a divinely hip dish out of pizza became an advertisement for something: that Wolfgang Puck never forget his pleasure center (or ours). He made great food fun, not just tasty and classy and healthy but popping with succulence in a way that appealed to the child within. People went to Spago because they wanted to be seen, but also because it was a nightly culinary party. It was Puck who took the stuffiness out of high-end restaurant bravado, and that spirit swept through New York and other food meccas and spilled into the hinterlands. The former Spago cook Evan Funke says in the movie, Hes the founding father of the way we eat in this country.

If Puck had done nothing but that, hed be a giant. But as Wolfgang, directed by David Gelb (Jiro Dreams of Sushi), entertainingly captures, Puck tumbled into innovations that became more influential than anyone, including him, might have expected. When he decided to set off on his own, he and his partner, Barbara Lazaroff (they were married for 19 years, starting in 1983), bought a dive restaurant along Hollywood Boulevard that they rebuilt from the ground up. We see photographs of it prior to the renovation, and its a horror show  like the before scenes from an episode of Restaurant: Impossible. They decided to have an open kitchen, which was, at that point, a totally out-of-the-box idea. It created a visual drama out of smoke and stainless steel, it let the cooking aromas waft into the dining room, and it put the spotlight right on the chef. It was theater, says Lazaroff. And he was the star.

A star surrounded by a galaxy of stars. Spago became a place of deal-making that doubled as the Hollywood celebrity cantina. I remember hearing about it, with a touch of awe, from a friend who was starting to break into the film industry. That he went there at all was less impressive than the fact that hed be seated at one of the good tables, over on the east side of the restaurant. He explained that he would turn down any attempt to seat him at one of the declasse tables, because that would have made a statement about his clout (or lack of it) in the industry. These werent just people eating dinner. They were planets of power orbiting one another at just the right trajectory.

The great food writer Ruth Reichl is interviewed in the film, and as she points out, In the 70s, being a chef was a blue-collar job. It was a terrible job. People knew who owned the restaurant, they rarely knew who did the cooking. And Wolf changes that, in a really big way. He worked with a perfectionism culled from his training in France, yet part of Pucks talent was also his gift for cultivation. He wasnt a tall or imposing man, but he had a Mick Jagger-meets-Matt Damon baby face with a hint of the showmans gleam of Siegfried and Roy. He was cute, sexy, andwell, puckish. He used his Austrian accent with a dramatic articulation, the way Arnold did. At the restaurant, he became friends with the super-agent Michael Ovitz, who talks about how he launched Pucks TV career. Ovitz brought the president of ABC-TV to Spago, and Puck served them a tasting menu to die for, along with a ladle of charm. By the end of the dinner, Ovitz had gotten a deal for Puck to appear on Good Morning America.

He took off as a television personality, becoming a fixture on the morning shows and Late Night with David Letterman, and its no exaggeration to say that the spirit he brought to it  the zest and wit, the cooking seriousness, the anyone-can-do-it casualness  essentially launched the concept of the Food Channel. He was the first celebrity chef (though maybe Julia Child beat him to it), and certainly the first to elevate himself into a brand. In the movie, Puck recalls how Johnny Carson came to Spago one night and, when he was ready to leave, asked if he could have 10 pizzas to go. Puck asked why, and Johnny said that he wanted to freeze them; thats how good they were. That gave Puck the idea to launch his own quality-controlled frozen-pizza line. (One can joke about the mass-marketing, but when I spy a Wolfgang Puck outpost in a cuisine-impaired airport, I breathe a sigh of relief.) And then, of course, there were all the restaurants: the one in Vegas, the ones around the world. He became an empire.

The film goes back to his roots in Austria, where he fell in love with the kitchen at a young age, cooking Wiener schnitzel and liver dumplings with his mother and grandmother, but he was haunted by the abusive put-downs of his stepfather. As he admits in the film, he has spent his life trying to outrun that feeling of failure. When he became the chef at the fabled but lousy L.A. restaurant Ma Maison, with its AstroTurf carpet, he explains with a laugh how terrible the food was there, and how he knew he could redeem it when he found the Chino Ranch in Del Mar, which grew produce comparable to what hed seen in France.

I think the film commits a major omission in never mentioning Alice Waters, who truly put this revolution on the map, but it was Puck who activated the new food gospel. And at 71, hes still at it, with silver hair and an ageless playful warmth, never any pretensions, just a love of food and of life. When he introduces Wiener schnitzel at Spago, and it becomes a huge hit, you feel his story come full circle  and the dish looks so golden crispy luscious you want to order it right there. The one dark side of Wolfgang Puck the movie presents is that he became so obsessed with work that he neglected his children. That sounds less than scandalous, but Puck owns what a compromise it was; he wasnt there for his kids. (Thats a weight he bears.) As a movie, Wolfgang is short and sweet enough that Im sure it leaves things out. But whats there is real, and as savory as it should be.

Reviewed online, June 21, 2021. MPAA Rating: Not rated. Running time: 78 MIN.

Production

A Disney Plus release of a Supper Club production. Producers: Jason Sterman, Brian McGinn, David Gelb. Executive producer: Samantha Polan.

Crew

Director: David Gelb. Screenplay: Brian McGinn. Camera: Will Basanta. Editors: Arielle Zakowski, Brad Grossman. Music: Stenfert Charles.

With

Wolfgang Puck, Barbara Lazaroff, Ruth Reichl, Michael Ovitz, Nancy Silverton, Christina Puck, Byron Puck, Evan Funke, Laurie Ochoa.

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SAN FRANCISCO (AP)  Asian Americans, veterans and civilians in the U.S. and the Philippines are campaigning to name a Navy warship for a Filipino sailor who bravely rescued two crew members when their ship caught fire more than a century ago, earning him a prestigious and rare Medal of Honor.

Supporters say naming a ship for Telesforo Trinidad would honor not just the only Asian American in the U.S. Navy granted the nation's highest award for valor, but the tens of thousands of Filipinos and Americans of Filipino descent who have served in the U.S. Navy since 1901, when the Philippines was a United States territory.

I dont believe it's a long shot at all; it may be a long timeline, but were hoping its not," said retired Navy Capt. Ron Ravelo and chair of the campaign. We're going to be making Navy ships into the foreseeable future, and theres no reason one of those can't bear the name of Telesforo Trinidad.

Trinidad, who died in 1968 at age 77, was so eager to join the U.S. Navy that he stowed away on a lifeboat from his home island of Panay to the main island to enlist, said grandson Rene Trinidad. In 1915, while on patrol on the USS San Diego, he risked his life and suffered burns to rescue two crewmates when boilers exploded, killing nine. He received the medal that year, at a time when the honor could be awarded for noncombat valor.

Rene Trinidad, a real estate agent in Southern California, recalls his grandfather was a man of few words.

He let his actions speak for himself, he said, and I suppose thats why he did what he did.

The campaign has grassroots enthusiasm, and support from Democratic Congress members who sent a letter last month to Thomas Harker, acting secretary of the Navy.

Traditionally, different types of ships have different naming conventions, but there are exceptions, said Samuel J. Cox, retired rear admiral and director of the Naval History and Heritage Command, which suggests names and has previously submitted Trinidads for consideration. The secretary of the Navy has final authority and discretion to name and rename ships, he said.

Some memorialize states, U.S. cities, Navy heroes or distinguished Americans. The number of Navy ships receiving names varies widely by year but averages roughly to about eight, of which three or four are named for people, Cox said.

There simply are far too many heroes compared to the number of ships to be named, he said.

Norman Polmar, author and naval analyst, agrees.

And I hate to say this, Im getting a little pain when I say this: Increasingly it becomes political  what party youre in and whos in the White House, and occasionally the White House gets involved, Polmar said.

Former U.S. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus drew controversy after naming naval ships for former U.S. Rep Gabrielle Giffords; the late gay civil rights leader Harvey Milk of San Francisco; and the late farmworker activist Cesar Chavez. The honoring of Giffords broke more modern traditions that the person be dead or old.

Critics also said there were plenty of heroic service members to choose from. Mabus said his picks also demonstrated heroism.

In January 2020, Acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly named a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier after Doris Dorie Miller, an African American enlisted sailor who received the Navy Cross for his actions during Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor.

The naming did not sit well with critics who say Miller deserves to have a ship named after him, but not an elite aircraft carrier bearing the names of presidents. There's also ongoing debate over ships named for the Civil War Confederacy.

Cecilia Gaerlan, Trinidad campaign board member, said they would like a Navy surface combatant, such as a destroyer or frigate, named for the fireman second class. The naming would be a symbol of the Navy's commitment to "diversity, equality and inclusion during this time of national racial tensions and unwarranted violence against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, said Democratic U.S. Rep. Sara Jacobs of California, in a May letter to Harker signed by 10 others.

There are other Navy vessels named for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, including the USS Daniel Inouye, a destroyer. The former U.S. senator received the Medal of Honor as part of the celebrated 442nd Infantry Regiment, made up of Americans of Japanese descent whose families were incarcerated in camps during World War II.

There was a U.S. Navy a ship named for a Filipino person, but Gaerlan says the USS Rizal, a destroyer in service from 1919 to 1931, was donated by the Philippine Legislature and honors Jose Rizal, a national hero who never served in the military.

More than two dozen Asian and Pacific Americans have been awarded the Medal of Honor since its creation during the Civil War, mostly in the U.S. Army, according to the Congressional Medal of Honor Society. There are roughly 3,500 recipients.

Telesforo Trinidad, born in 1890, enlisted in 1910 in the Insular Force established by then-President William McKinley and served in both world wars. More than 250,000 Filipino soldiers served in World War II, and thousands died during the brutal 1942 Bataan Death March in the Philippines.

Rene Trinidad, 65, said it goes against his cultural upbringing to call attention to his grandfather's heroism, but his late father wanted the recognition for his father, who overcame hardship, merited a medal and worked hard to provide for his family. Two sons followed him into the U.S. Navy.

The bottom line is that Filipinos be recognized for their contribution to the United States, and that every Filipino should be proud of that as well, he said.
Laredo's Arturo B. Campos is one step closer to having his namesake on NASA's next mission to Mars after he advanced to the semifinals of the 'Moonikin' competition.

The compeition is being held in order to find a name for the manikin that will fly on the upcoming Atremis I mission around the Moon. The manikin is being sent up in order to understand the effects of the space trip on humans, with the data gathered being used on the second Artemis mission, which is expected to be fully manned.
WASHINGTON (AP)  When New York Democratic Rep. Mondaire Jones was at the White House for the signing of the proclamation making Juneteenth a national holiday last week, he told President Joe Biden their party needed him more involved in passing voting legislation on the Hill.

In response? Biden just sort of stared at me, Jones said, describing an awkward silence that passed between the two.

For Jones, the moment was emblematic of what he and a growing number of Democratic activists describe as a lackluster engagement from Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris on an issue they consider urgent and necessary for the health of U.S. democracy.

Although the White House has characterized the issue as the fight of his presidency, Biden has prioritized his economic initiatives, measures more likely to win Republican support in the Senate. And he's shown little interest thus far in diving into a messy debate over changing Senate rules to pass the legislation on Democratic votes alone.

But as Democrats' massive election legislation was blocked by Republicans on Tuesday, progressives argued Biden could not avoid that fight much longer and must use all his leverage to find a path forward. The criticism suggested the voting debate may prove to be among Biden's first major, public rifts with the left of his presidency.

President Obama, for his part, has been doing more to salvage our ailing democracy than the current president of the United States of America, Mondaire said, referring to a recent interview in which the former president pushed for the legislation.

The White House argues that both Biden and Harris have been in frequent touch with Democratic leadership and key advocacy groups as the legislation  dubbed the For the People Act  moved through Congress. Biden has spoken out forcefully at times, declaring a new Georgia law backed by Republicans an atrocity.

On Wednesday, Harris met virtually with leaders of several voting and civil rights groups, describing the moment as an inflection point and reiterating a commitment to federal legislation protecting voting rights.

In advance of the vote, Biden met with Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., at the White House to discuss both voting rights and infrastructure. But Biden didn't use his clout to work Republicans, who have expressed staunch and unified opposition to any voting legislation, arguing Democrats are pushing an unnecessary federal takeover of elections now run by state and county officials.

Biden spent much of the month focused on foreign policy during a trip to Europe, encouraging Americans to get vaccinated and selling his infrastructure plan to the American public. He tasked Harris with taking the lead on the issue, and she spent last week largely engaged in private meetings with voting rights advocates as she traveled for a vaccination tour around the nation.

Those efforts haven't appeased some activists, who argue that state laws tightening election laws are designed to make it harder for Black, young and infrequent voters to cast ballots. The best way to counter the state laws is with federal legislation, they say, and Biden ought to come out for a change in the Senate filibuster rules that require 60 votes to advance most legislation.

Progressives are losing patience, and I think particularly African American Democrats are losing patience," said Democratic strategist Joel Payne, a longtime aide to former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. They feel like they have done the kind of good Democrat thing over the last year-plus, going back to when Biden got the nomination, unifying support around Biden, turning out, showing up on Election Day.

Progressives feel like, Hey, we did our part.' And now when its time for the bill to be paid, so to speak, I think some progressives feel like, OK, well, how long do we have to wait?'

Still, there could be a silver lining for Democrats in the ongoing battle over voting rights: The issue is a major motivator for progressives and may serve to drive enthusiasm among Black voters as well, potentially driving engagement in a midterm year where Democrats are certain to face a tough political climate.

Harris watched the legislation fail to advance to debate on Tuesday, in her role as president of the Senate, and coming off the floor told reporters that she and Biden still support voting legislation and the fight is not over.

Ezra Levin, co-executive director of Indivisible, a progressive grassroots group, said its been nowhere near the level of advocacy the public has seen on the infrastructure bill.

The president has been on the sidelines. He has issued statements of support, hes maybe included a line or two in a speech here or there, but there has been nothing on the scale of his public advocacy for recovery for COVID relief, for roads and bridges, Levin said.

We think this is a crisis at the same level as crumbling roads and bridges, and if we agree on that, the question is, why is the president on the sidelines?

White House aides push back against any suggestion the president and vice president havent been engaged on the issue.

But in private, White House advisers see infrastructure as the bigger political winner for Biden because its widely popular among voters of both parties, a White House official said. Passing a major infrastructure bill is seen within the White House as going further towards helping Democrats win in the 2022 midterms and beyond than taking on massive voting overhaul that had a slim chance of passage without a debate over filibuster rules, said the official, who requested anonymity to discuss internal talks.

In the weeks ahead, Biden will use the bully pulpit of the presidency to elevate voting rights, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday.

What you should expect to hear from him is that there are many ways to work across the country  with activists, with states, with legislators  using every lever at our disposal to expand access, improve access to voting across the country, Psaki said.

Embracing filibuster changes, in particular, risks undermining Bidens profile as a bipartisan dealmaker and could poison the delicate negotiations around infrastructure, where the White House insists it still sees opportunity for bipartisan compromise.

Still, Democrats say its time for Biden to get out front on the issue. Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, said the proposals Republicans are looking to pass in his home state are more explicit and more dangerous than anything Ive ever come across.

Allred said that the voting fight increases pressure on Biden to take the leadership on the filibuster fight.

We do need President Biden to make that a priority, because if youre going to talk about supporting the underlying legislation, it really doesnt matter if we dont have way to get past the filibuster, he said.
WASHINGTON (AP)  The Democrats' sweeping attempt to rewrite U.S. election and voting law suffered a major setback in the Senate Tuesday, blocked by a filibuster wall of Republican opposition to what would be the largest overhaul of the electoral system in a generation.

The vote leaves the Democrats with no clear path forward, though President Joe Biden declared, This fight is far from over.

The bill, known as the For the People Act, would touch on virtually every aspect of how elections are conducted, striking down hurdles to voting that advocates view as the Civil Rights fight of the era, while also curbing the influence of money in politics and limiting partisan influence over the drawing of congressional districts.

But many in the GOP say the measure represents instead a breathtaking federal infringement on states authority to conduct their own elections without fraud  and is meant to ultimately benefit Democrats.

It failed on a 50-50 vote after Republicans, some of whom derided the bill as the Screw the People Act, denied Democrats the 60 votes needed to begin debate under Senate rules. Vice President Kamala Harris, the first Black woman to hold her office, presided over the chamber as the bill failed to break past that filibuster barrier.

Biden praised Senate Democrats for standing together against the ongoing assault of voter suppression that represents a Jim Crow era in the 21st Century." In a statement from the White House, he said that in their actions, though unsuccessful on Tuesday, they took the next step forward in this continuous struggle.

The rejection forces Democrats to reckon with what comes next for their top legislative priority in a narrowly divided Senate. They've touted the measure as a powerful counterweight to scores of proposals advancing in GOP-controlled statehouses making it more difficult to vote.

Once again, the Senate Republican minority has launched a partisan blockade of a pressing issue," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said from the chamber floor. He vowed that the vote was the starting gun and not the last time voting rights would be up for debate.

Whatever Democrats decide, they will likely be confronted with the same challenge they faced Tuesday when minority Republicans used the filibuster  the same tool that Democrats employed during Donald Trumps presidency  to block consideration of the bill.

Republicans showed no sign of yielding.

Republican leader Mitch McConnell called the bill a a solution looking for a problem and vowed to put an end to it. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz dismissed it as "partisan legislation, written by elected Democrats, designed to keep elected Democrats in office.

And, more graphically, Sen. Shelley Moore Capito called the bill a despicable, disingenuous attempt to strip states of their constitutional right to administer elections" that "should never come close to reaching the presidents desk.

Pressure has been mounting on Democrats to change Senate rules or watch their priorities languish. A group of moderate Democratic senators, however, including Sens. Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, have ruled that out, denying the votes needed to make a filibuster change.

Biden has vowed what the White House calls the fight of his presidency over ensuring Americans access to voting. But without changes to Senate rules, key planks of his agenda, including the voting bill, appear stalled.

Sen. Raphael Warnock, a Georgia Democrat and senior pastor at the Atlanta church Martin Luther King Jr. once led, called minority Republicans willingness to prevent debate on the voting bill a dereliction of duty.

What could be more hypocritical and cynical than invoking minority rights in the Senate as a pretext for preventing debate about how to preserve minority rights in the society, Warnock said during a floor speech Tuesday.

The changes being enacted in many Republican states are decried by voting rights advocates who argue the restrictions will make it more difficult for people to cast ballots, particularly minority residents who tend to support Democrats. Republicans, cheered on by Trump, talk instead about fighting potential voting fraud and say the Democrats' concerns are wildly overblown.

As the Senate discussion churns, more changes could be coming to the bill.

Democrats want to protect against intimidation at the polls in the aftermath of the 2020 election. They propose enhancing penalties for those who would threaten or intimidate election workers and creating a buffer zone between election workers and poll watchers, among other possible changes.

They also want to limit the ability of state officials to remove local election officials. Georgia Republicans passed a law earlier this year that gives the GOP-dominated Legislature greater influence over a state board that regulates elections and empowers it to remove local election officials deemed to be underperforming.

But Democrats have divisions of their own. Until Tuesday, it wasn't even clear that they would be united on the vote to bring the bill up for debate. Manchin, a moderate from West Virginia, announced earlier this month that he couldn't support the bill because it lacked Republican support.

Manchin flipped his vote to a yes after Democrats agreed to consider his revised version. His proposal was endorsed by former President Barack Obama and called a step forward by Biden's administration.

Manchin has proposed adding provisions for a national voter ID requirement, which is anathema to many Democrats, and dropping a proposed public financing of campaigns. The ID requirement would be less strict than ones pushed by Republicans in certain states and allow voters to provide non-photo ID such as a utility bill.

Those changes did little, however, to garner the bipartisan support Manchin was hoping for. Senate Republicans said they would likely reject any legislation that expands the federal government's role in elections. McConnell dismissed Manchin's version as equally unacceptable.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a moderate Alaska Republican, said some aspects of the Democratic bill were laudable and she supports other voting rights legislation, like a reinstatement of the Voting Rights Act struck down by the Supreme Court in 2013.

But, ultimately, she said the sprawling bill amounted to a one-size-fits-all mandate coming out of Washington D.C. that "in many cases doesnt work.

Months in the making, Tuesdays showdown had taken on fresh urgency as Trump continues to challenge the outcome of the 2020 election and new limits move ahead in Republican-led states.

State officials who certified the results of the 2020 election have dismissed Trumps claims of voter fraud, and judges across the country have thrown out multiple lawsuits filed by Trump and his allies. Trumps own attorney general said there was no evidence of widespread fraud that would change the outcome.
Image by Erik Pronske Photograph/Getty Images

Brandon Jordan, known by his nearly three million subscribers as "Jiggin' With Jordan," finally had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to dive along the San Antonio River Walk and search for "treasures."

This time, he was equipped with city approval. A previous attempt was stopped by police in November. Thanks to his online support system and discussions with the city, he was provided access to dive into the water, which Jordan says no other diver has been able to do. The city also provided a barge and helped Jordan connect with a local hotel, Krystal Jones, the city's marketing, film & music administrator, says.
A Maryland man found a nearly 8-foot-long alligator over the weekend in a pond off the Chesapeake Bay, caught it using chicken livers as bait, shot it with a crossbow and put the meat in his freezer.

The tale of how 43-year-old William Adams - a.k.a. Crocodile Dundee - and his 14-year-old son, Jake, came to find the alligator has created a buzz in his Southern Maryland hometown of Lusby, population 1,835, about 60 miles southeast of Washington. State wildlife officials said it is likely that someone had been trying to raise the gator as a pet, then released it.

On Tuesday, Adams said he put to use lessons learned from a television show while trying to remove the alligator from his family's favorite kayaking spot, a mission he accomplished on Father's Day.

In early June, Adams said he and his son were kayaking near their home at Chesapeake Ranch Estates. Adams, an avid outdoorsman, said he and his son often go hunting, fishing and kayaking.

Usually they find a snakehead fish. This time, Adams said he and his son were fishing from kayaks when he drifted up to a pile of trees that had fallen into the water.

"I looked down and about a foot away was a big alligator head," Adams recalled. "That's all I could see." He said he quietly rowed away and told his son they should get out of the water.

He returned and unsuccessfully tried to find the alligator in the three-foot-deep pond. He said he ordered some "hooks and lines off the Internet" that could hold up to 980 pounds, and on Saturday he went back to the pond. He set up lines with a hook and chicken breasts for bait, tying them in trees just above the water.

He has seen alligators in his twice-a-year visits to his wife's family in Florida, but had never been close to one. The closest alligators to the Washington region are typically near North Carolina beaches in the Kitty Hawk area, experts said.

Adams, who works for a bathroom and kitchen renovation company, said he learned how to trap the gator from watching the History Channel's "Swamp People," a show that chronicles alligator-hunting season in the Louisiana swamps. The key, Adams said, is to drill a hole in a clothespin, then hook it to the line and a tree so the alligator bites but "doesn't feel any pressure or else it will let go."

Adams said he baited the 30-foot contraption and left it overnight because "that's when alligators eat." The next morning, on Father's Day, Adams and his son went back to the pond.

"We went back first thing in the morning, and it was there on the lines," Adams said. He said the alligator was thrashing, so he crept up on it, got about two feet away and shot it behind the skull with his crossbow.

"It was pretty scary," Adams recalled, "especially because I don't know anything about alligators."

He said he, along with his son and a family friend, dragged the gator out of the water, put it in his Dodge Dakota and showed a few friends.

Adams said the gator measured 7 feet, 6 inches, and estimated that it weighed 150 to 175 pounds. He plans to have a taxidermist stuff and mount the alligator in a trophy room at his house.

News traveled fast, especially after Adams took the alligator to Driftwood Beach near his home.

"They thought it was the craziest thing they'd ever seen," Adams said of his friends' reactions.

On social media, some expressed support for Adams, while others questioned why he did not contact wildlife authorities.

Adams said he did not report the alligator because he did not think officials would find it. And, he said, "I just felt like I needed to do it . . . so no kids or dogs would get hurt."

Jessica Adams, his wife, defended her husband against criticisms Monday in a Facebook post, writing that he is a "animal lover and has rescued and saved many" animals. That includes squirrels that have fallen from trees, an owl hit by a car and abandoned bunnies, plus cats and dogs the family has rescued.

"We are an animal-loving family," she said in her post. "It's not everyday you see an almost 8 alligator swimming around a pond near the beaches your children and pets swim at," Jessica posted on Facebook. "He did what he thought was best and he has no regrets."

Adams said he used a crossbow to shoot the alligator because the pond is in a residential area, about 50 yards from homes, and guns are not allowed.

Adams said he called the Maryland Department of Natural Resources on Monday and reported that he had caught and shot the alligator with a crossbow.

Gregg Bortz, a spokesman for the Maryland DNR, said in a statement that "there have been occasional rumors of alligators in the Calvert County area previously but none could be confirmed by DNR."

"We have had alligators or other nonnative crocodilians show up in the wild in Maryland in the past," Bortz said. He said residents have illegally kept alligators as pets, then released them into the wild when they become too large.

"There are no Maryland state laws against killing an alligator," he said.

Adams's family cooked a Father's Day meal of alligator bites, fried with flour and sprinkled with Old Bay seasoning. He said it tasted "just like chicken with a steak texture."
We hear that Border communities are very safe, yet we also hear the Border is not secure. How can that be? Common logic should tell us that Border security should give us safe Border Cities, right? Then why the paradox? I say that Laredo and other Border cities are safe as evidenced by ample FBI data that is periodically reported. Laredo is safe because of the excellent working relationship we have with all levels of law enforcement, federal, state and local. But, our geography, puts us on the front lines where we are vulnerable to the activity of organized crime, asylum seekers and migrants. Therefore, I pose the following question: For how long? I ask that because frequently I hear from federal law enforcement that the Border situation in Laredo, although still arguably containable and manageable, could change dramatically if the migrant numbers continue to increase, and if additional resources are not timely obtained.

Laredo Sector Stats and Federal laws that directly impact our community

A glance at the stats for the Border Patrol Laredo Sector tells us that it has experienced over 180% increase in migrants over same time last year. That amounts to over 80,000 migrants who have been detained or arrested, 92% being single adults, 4 % children and 2% family units.

Most concerning and unpleasant to report is the unprecedented number of Stash House incidents in Laredo. There have been over 200 incidents within our neighborhoods, which equals to a 650% increase over same period last year. All Stash House activities are criminally driven and operated; and potentially very dangerous. I urge everyone to report any suspicious activity to authorities (call 911).

Currently the numbers for the asylum seekers, namely the family units and unaccompanied children are still manageable. This is because of the consistent services offered by Holding Institute and Catholic Charities.

Title 42, a federal law which currently gives Border Patrol the authority to quickly expel detained migrants back to their countries of origin, is expected to be lifted in the near future. Migrant numbers in Laredo are anticipated to significantly increase once Title 42 is lifted. Asylum laws, as they stand now, do not allow asylum seekers to apply remotely (from their country of origin). Rather, people are forced to make dangerous journeys with little resources to claim asylum. Laws need to change to allow applicants to apply remotely from their country of origin or safe zones elsewhere. This will save lives, resources and allow our border to remain safe.

Nexus: An Unsecured Border Contributes to Big City Crimes

The Border Patrol Chief and Laredo Police Chief report there is a nexus, a definite connection between an unsecured Border and crimes committed further north, particularly in the big cities. The illicit international smuggling and trafficking networks of humans, drugs, guns, and stolen vehicles, to name a few, traverse through border communities, like Laredo, and contribute toward big city crimes and violence. Obviously, the goal of law enforcement is to intercept as much of this at the Ports of Entry and between the Ports, but that is not always the case. Typically, Border communities serve as corridors, transient elements, toward capturing more lucrative rewards in the big cities, all feeding into and perpetuating criminal network enterprises. Due to this, border cities, which are much safer than Big Cities, suffer collateral damage by false assumptions or insinuations that criminal activity occurs more so on the Border, which is not true. Data proves that border communities are safer than big cities.

Where do we go from here? How do we secure the Border?

The Border was a hot topic issue during the election cycle; however, today, it appears the Border has been abandoned by the Biden Administration. The City of Laredos position remains the same: BUILD A VIRTUAL WALL. Provide all the necessary resources for our men and women in blue (CBP) and green (BP) and all other federal agencies to adequately protect and secure the Border. Specifically, this means more personnel, technology, road infrastructure, clear lines of sight by the river, and even better coordination/collaboration with all applicable law enforcement entities. President Biden ran and won on a virtual wall approach, which was encouraging; however, as of today, only modest efforts, if at all, have been seen.
Business & Finance

By Chris Boyle Published: June 23 2021

Weekly unemployment claims in New York saw the 12th biggest decrease in the U.S.

New York is having a somewhat successful recovery from new unemployment claims, with last weeks claims lower than at the start of 2020, according to WalletHubs updated rankings for the States Whose Unemployment Claims Are Recovering the Quickest

Key Stats:

Weekly unemployment claims in New York increased by 53.71% compared to the same week in 2019. This was the 21st smallest increase in the U.S.

Weekly unemployment claims in New York decreased by 57.89% compared to the start of 2020. This was the 3rd biggest decrease in the U.S.

Weekly unemployment claims in New York decreased by 80.15% compared to the same week last year. This was the 12th biggest decrease in the U.S.

Q&A

Some states are proposing paying bonuses to people who go back to work. Is this a good idea?

It is a bad idea for states to pay bonuses to people who go back to work. The government has already done its job to get the pandemic under control with shutdowns and the vaccine, and it supported people and businesses with multiple stimulus packages, said Jill Gonzalez, WalletHub analyst. Now that COVID-19 cases have dropped dramatically and the country has largely reopened, its time for the free market to function again.

If the U.S. fails to reach herd immunity, what could that mean for unemployment?

If the U.S. fails to reach herd immunity, that wouldnt be ideal, but it also wouldnt prevent us from getting things back to normal. A significant portion of the population is getting vaccinated, which will still greatly reduce the transmission rate and threat of the disease. As a result, we should see a continued decline in unemployment, said Jill Gonzalez, WalletHub analyst. The U.S. has already made big strides toward a full reopening. The more people who choose to get vaccinated, the smoother that reopening will be and the greater companies hiring capabilities will be.

Do you expect companies to require getting the COVID-19 vaccine as a condition for employment?

It is likely that some companies will require getting the COVID-19 vaccine as a condition for employment, with obvious exemptions for people who are medically unable to receive it, said Jill Gonzalez, WalletHub analyst. Companies should be able to have a COVID-19 vaccine requirement because they need to do everything in their power to keep their workers and customers safe. In addition, the more companies that require employees to get a vaccine, the faster we will be able to achieve a full reopening.

How do red states and blue states compare when it comes to recovery?

With an average rank of 28 among the most recovered states, blue states had a worse recovery from unemployment claims last week than red states, which rank 24 on average, said Jill Gonzalez, WalletHub analyst. The lower the number of the ranking, the bigger the states recovery was.
(Alliance News) - The following stocks are the leading risers and fallers on AIM in London on Wednesday.







AIM - WINNERS







Mercantile Ports & Logistics Ltd, up 48% at 0.86 pence, 12-month range 0.20p-0.95p. The port and logistics firm based in India secures multi-year pact with Esquire Shipping & Trading Pvt Ltd and Sai Om Petro Specialties Ltd worth GBP7 million. The contract has an initial 10-year term which can be extended by a further five. The two firms will provide cargo handling services at Mercantile's Karanja port.







Braveheart Investment Group PLC, up 12% at 48.10 pence, 12-month range 11.65p-140.20p. Investee Paraytec Ltd's Covid-19 test achieves 94% sensitivity and 100% specificity. Braveheart and Paraytec begin talks with potential commercial partners.







Touchstar PLC, up 12% at 81.20 pence, 12-month range 35.80p-93.50p. Supplier of mobile data computing services says its year-to-date performance tops expectations. Order book rises 50% since year end to over GBP750,000.







Avacta Group PLC, up 9.6% at 183.02 pence, 12-month range 88.66p-291.80p. Shares in the developer of diagnostics and cancer therapies recover, snapping streak of three successive days of losses. Avacta shares are still 19% lower than they were on Thursday.







AIM - LOSERS







Myanmar Investments International Ltd, down 21% at USD0.30, 12-month range 0.25p-0.77p. Soldiers in Myanmar fought with anti-junta civilian militia on Tuesday. Violence has erupted in Myanmar since a coup in February.







By Eric Cunha; ericcunha@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
(Alliance News) - Allied Minds PLC on Wednesday said it plans to buy back USD3.0 million of its shares after the liquidation of its investee Spin Memory Inc initiated an internal review.

The intellectual property commercialization company holds a 34% minority stake in Spin Memory, having invested USD50.5 million since 2007. The California-based memory company has faced "significant liquidity issues" due to challenges securing new customers and the pandemic delaying the testing of its development chip with ARM, Allied Minds noted.

In light of these challenges, Allied Minds concluded it will not invest further into Spin Memory. Spin Memory has decided to liquidate and will undertake an assignment for the benefit of creditors, which offers investors a greater chance of receiving payment from the liquidation. However, Allied Minds noted that it is not guaranteed to receive any capital from the process.

Spin Memory's closure initiated an internal review, with Allied Minds concluding that it had sufficient capital to cover portfolio requirements and buy back up to USD3.0 million shares. The company is currently authorised to buy back up to 24.2 million shares.

"Share purchases will take place in open market transactions and may be made from time to time depending on market conditions, share price, trading volume and other factors," Allied Minds said.

The buyback programme will run until October 15 and will be managed by Numis Securities Ltd.

Allied Minds shares were trading flat at 20.40 pence each in London on Wednesday morning.

By Scarlett Butler; scarlettbutler@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
By Omar Mohammed

NAIROBI, June 23 (Reuters) - Seychelles said on Wednesday it

is looking to diversify its economy beyond its mainstay of

tourism into areas such as fisheries after visitor numbers were

battered by restrictions to arrest the spread of COVID-19.

The Indian Ocean archipelago saw revenue from tourism plunge

by 61%, a loss of $322 million last year, as tourist arrivals

dropped by 70%. Authorities closed off the island nation early

in the coronavirus pandemic to stem its spread.

The move starved resorts, cruise ship ports and nature

reserves of visitors.

"It's been a massive challenge," Minister for Foreign

Affairs and Tourism Sylvestre Radegonde told the Qatar Economic

Forum on Wednesday.

"The economy depends still on tourism. We are looking now at

diversifying the economy, moving into other sectors like

fisheries," he said.

"Overnight we saw the airport closed, no planes coming, no

visitors coming in, and the economy just was on its knees."

Other sectors of the economy which rely on tourism to thrive

were at a standstill.

"That is why we pushed for vaccination, maximum people

vaccinating, so we could reopen the borders like we did on March

25 this year," Radegonde said.

Seychelles has been called one of the highest vaccinated

nations in the world, employing the Sinopharm, Sputnik and

Covishield shots.

It has administered close to 138,000 doses of COVID-19

vaccine so far, which, assuming every person needs two doses, is

enough to have inoculated about 70.5% of the country's

population, according to a Reuters analysis.

But the archipelago has also seen a surge in

infections.

Radegonde said the high rates of vaccination had led some

people to relax their guard. "People became a bit

over-confident, dropped their guard and forgot about social

distancing, started partying," he said.

An increased rate of contact tracing may also have

contributed to the reporting of more positive cases, he added.

The country is now concentrating on vaccinating the

remaining 5,000-6,000 people who are still to be inoculated

before it can contemplate any booster shots that might be

needed, Radegonde said.

(Reporting by Omar Mohammed; Editing by Jan Harvey)
(Alliance News) - Synthomer PLC on Wednesday said it hired the ex-head of Conzzeta AG with a history of dealmaking, Michael Willome, as its new chief executive.

54-year-old Willome will replace Calum MacLean at the helm of the FTSE 250 chemicals company on November 1. Willome was chief executive of Swiss conglomerate Conzzeta, since renamed Bystronic AG, from January 2016 until April this year.

In his first four years at Conzzeta, Willome doubled earnings before interest and tax through organic growth and acquisitions, before divesting four of its five businesses in a 2020 restructuring, Synthomer said.

The Swiss national, who will relocate to London where Synthomer is based, previously spent 18 years at Clariant AG and has held leadership roles in Hong Kong, Canada and Turkey, the company added.

He will be paid GBP650,000 per year, plus bonuses and shares worth over triple that amount, depending on performance.

MacLean had announced his wish to step down as chief executive in January.

Willome is "a high calibre, proven business leader with considerable experience in the global speciality chemicals industry and a strong track record of driving growth and profitability," Synthomer Chair Caroline Johnstone said.

Shares were down 0.9% to 524.50 pence in London.

By Ivan Edwards; ivanedwards@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
FILE - In this June 27, 2006, file photo, attorney Merle Smith talks to reporters at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Conn. Smith, the first Black cadet to graduate from the Coast Guard Academy, died of complications from Parkinson's disease and COVID-19 on Wednesday, June 16, 2021, his family said. He was 76.
Lionel Messi will become a free agent in seven days' time if an agreement is not reached with Barcelona to renew his contract, as the Argentina international keeps the Catalan club on edge.

There had been reports that the six-time Ballon d'Or winner, who turns 34 on June 24, had already accepted Barcelona's offer of a contract renewal, but the player's entourage have confirmed to MARCA that he has not yet made a decision. In fact, Messi has not received Barcelona's official offer just yet.

The countdown until the end of Messi's contract has already begun, yet Barcelona remain confident that, despite interest from elsewhere, he will commit his short-term future at the Camp Nou. They had, however, hoped that he would have agreed by now.

Barcelona president Joan Laporta still remains optimistic that Messi will sign his contract prior to June 30 and therefore not become unattached to a club, but this seems increasingly unlikely. That is the view of Messi's entourage at least, as they have been in talks with the Catalan club for some time now and there has been little progression.

Messi has been offered a two-year deal worth a gross salary of 50 million euros - more or less half of what he currently earns - in addition to a 10-year agreement to be linked to Barcelona as a club ambassador, which would be tied to him even if goes to play in MLS. He would earn 10 million euros in this period as a club ambassador.

Unrest

The fact that Messi's response has been delayed is causing some concern at Barcelona, who are trying to plan for next season with the Argentine front and centre. As Laporta himself has recognised, Messi is not just a star on the pitch but also away from it, as he brings in a third of the club's income, which is around 650 million euros.

As such, until Messi commits his future to Barcelona, any sponsorship deals and marketing opportunities have had to be put on the back-burner. It is the same for fans too, with eight out of every 10 Barcelona shirts having his name emblazoned on the back.

The Barcelona board and the club's supporters were shocked when Messi announced that he wanted to leave last summer, but they will be hoping that they do not have to go through a similar experience this year under Laporta's leadership.
Every once in a while, after working long and sometimes grueling shifts, after getting yelled at and spat on and occasionally having plastic cups thrown at him, Officer Brian Vaughan feels so worn down that he wonders if being a cop is still worth it.
Frozen Pizza Experts At CJCJ Food, Americas Set The Table For What Comes Next In The Category
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ATLANTA  The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation has released its 2021 list of 10 Places in Peril, historic sites across the state either threatened by neglect or in danger of demolition or encroaching development. The nonprofit organizations 16th annual Places in Peril list, as was the case with its predecessors, is aimed at encouraging []
Thornton Kennedy is the president of PR South and a former news editor of this paper. He can be reached at thornton@prsouth.net .
George Edward Logan, age 82 of Conneautville, PA passed away on June 27, 2021, at Hamot Hospital with family. He was born November 14, 1938, in Meadville, PA to the late Catherine (Ohl) Logan and Thomas P. Logan. He graduated in 1957 from Conneautville High School where he was a star athlete
Meadville, PA (16335)

Today

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Cloudy skies early, followed by partial clearing. Low near 55F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Cloudy skies early, followed by partial clearing. Low near 55F. Winds light and variable.
Manager - Research, Evidence & Learning

Cote D'IvoireCongo, The Democratic Republic of theFull time

ABOUT VILLAGEREACH

VillageReach transforms health care delivery to reach everyone, so that each person has the health care needed to thrive. We develop solutions that improve equity and access to primary health care. This includes making sure products are available when and where they are needed and primary health care services are delivered to the most under-reached. Radical collaboration with governments, the private sector and other partners strengthen our ability to scale and sustain these solutions. Our work increases access to quality health care for more than 46 million people in sub-Saharan Africa. VillageReach in incorporated in Washington State and has offices in Seattle (USA), Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, and Mozambique.

Summary

VillageReach invites qualified candidates to apply for the position of Manager Research, Evidence & Learning (REL). REL supports VillageReach programs in research and evaluation efforts to improve program performance, generate evidence of program impact and promote a culture of learning. Ideal candidates are experienced in designing and implementing monitoring and evaluation plans, experienced in quantitative & qualitative methods, experience managing research projects, and skilled in business development including building relationships with donors and writing proposals. A Masters degree or equivalent in public health, epidemiology, biostatistics or similar field is required.

Description

Research, Evidence and Learning team members support a portfolio of programs, typically supporting 3-5 programs simultaneously. Typical support includes design of monitoring and evaluation plans, support with routine data collection, cleaning and analysis, design and implementation of evaluations at key points in a programs lifespan, donor reporting, and fundraising. Examples of potential work assignments are below:

Serve as the Research, Evidence and Learning advisor for VillageReachs Drones for Health program which uses unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to supply hard-to-reach health centers

with needed vaccines, medicines and other essential medical products. This includes leading the updating, dissemination and partnership building around the Drone Evidence Toolkit and encourage global evidence sharing through the Medical Drone Delivery Database.

Lead the design, analysis and reporting of an upcoming impact evaluation of a phone-based system design to improve immunization rates in Cote DIvoire through SMS reminders to parents of when vaccinations are due and electronic records of vaccine histories.

Support the monitoring and evaluation of a DRC-based program to improve the supply of vaccines. This includes the rollout of a new Power BI dashboard to support data visibility and organizational reporting.

Help build the REL portfolio through building relationships with donors, cultivating new partnerships, writing proposals, and working with programs to fund evaluations and evidence generation.

Provide monitoring and evidence support to other programs as needed including design of monitoring and evaluation plans, cleaning and analysis of quantitative and qualitative data, programmatic recommendations based on learning, donor reporting, and managing internal and external research projects and evaluations.

Competencies:

The following competencies reflect what is expected of all VillageReach employees; including examples of how one might demonstrate each of these competencies in ones role.

* Personal Motivation and Drive: Is self-directed in ones approach to work, but asks for help when needed; holds oneself accountable; undertakes self-development activities; seeks to build and master new skills; looks for and takes advantage of opportunities within the organization

* Collaboration & Effective Communication: Establishes and maintains effective relations with coworkers, partners & stakeholders and external parties; works collaboratively with others to accomplish organizational and team goals and objectives; works actively to resolve conflicts; expresses ideas and thoughts effectively; selects and uses appropriate communication methods and maintains meaningful communication with virtual coworkers and other parties to keep them informed

* Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion: Takes personal responsibility for and supports others across the organization in creating and sustaining a diverse work environment where individuals are welcomed, valued, respected and supported; personally committed to attaining cultural competency including self-awareness of ones own attitudes about culture and cross-cultural interactions; exhibits the willingness and ability to engage openly and respectfully around issues of race, colonialism, identity and culture; upholds equity in access to sharing of information, ideas, and opportunities throughout VillageReach

* Commitment to Excellence: Produces a high output of work, both in terms of quality and quantity; looks for ways to improve and promote quality; monitors work to ensure quality; has a personal commitment to the mission of VillageReach

* Solution Orientation & Innovation: Focuses on results and desired outcomes and how to best achieve them; gets the job done; sees opportunities for creative problem-solving while staying within the parameters of good practice; sees old problems in new ways and has novel approaches to solving those problems; contributes original and/or resourceful ideas to their area of responsibility; is able to consider and articulate risks and consequences of proposed innovations and factor these into decision-making

Requirements

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

This position can include the supervision of associates and/or research assistants. Managers are expected to carry out supervisory responsibilities in accordance with the organizations policies and applicable laws. Responsibilities include interviewing, hiring, and training employees; planning, assigning and directing work; monitoring performance; and addressing complaints and resolving problems.

Education & Experience:

Masters degree or equivalent in public health, epidemiology, biostatistics or similar field is required

At least two to five (2-5) years of relevant experience or an equivalent combination of education and work experience is required.

Other Qualifications:

Fluency in English and French is required

Established cultural competency in partnering with racial, cultural and linguistically diverse groups.

Demonstrated understanding of challenges with working in rural, underserved and low-income context; experience living in and/or working in a low-income country a plus.

Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, Excel) and comfortable in a fast-paced technical environment.

Experience in data analysis and data visualization software such as STATA, R, PowerBI, and Tableau preferred.

Strong written and verbal communication abilities, and ability to synthesize and deliver information to diverse audiences in a clear and concise way.

Skilled in managing programs and research projects including creating workplans, facilitating team meetings and working with team members to ensure deliverables are met.

Ability to work and collaborate remotely with an international workforce across all time zones and multiple languages.

Environment and Physical Demands

Due to the time zone differences between our offices in the US, DRC, Malawi and Mozambique and location of other global staff, US based staff are expected to be available for early morning meetings starting at 6am. Staff located in Europe and Africa are expected to be available for late afternoon/evening meetings up to 6pm.

Most of the work will be sitting or standing at a computer. Some travel to the locations where program work is conducted to collaborate with other staff, collect data, and present at conferences may be required.

APPLICATION INFORMATION:

This is an immediate hire and therefore resumes will be reviewed on a rolling basis until filled. To apply, please submit your resume and a cover letter to our online portal: https://www.villagereach.org/join-us/



COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY & INCLUSION:

VillageReach is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer committed to workforce diversity. We believe that diverse, equitably weighted perspectives foster an organizational capacity to create novel solutions that improve health in the most underserved and hard-to-reach areas. To align our values, innovations and impact, VillageReach is committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse global workforce.
"It has all the symptoms and physical characteristics. It has hearing loss, osteoporosis, renal dysfunction, visual impairment, hypertension, as well as other age-related issues. It's prematurely aged just because it has lost its ability to repair its DNA."A normal 2-year-old mouse is about equivalent in age to a human in their late 70s to early 80s. Kelley and his colleagues found that markers for cell aging and cell damage were greater in the immune cells of genetically-modified mice compared to normal, wild-type mice.Damaged cells are seen in liver and kidney too. These results suggest that unrepaired DNA damage may cause the entire body to age prematurely.Free radicals will quickly interact with another molecule in order to gain electrons. When these free radicals interact with important biomolecules, such as a protein or DNA, it causes damage that can keep that biomolecule from working properly.Smoking, drinking and exposure to pesticides and other chemicals through occupational hazards all significantly increase free radicals."A cigarette has over 10 to the 16th free radicals per puff, just from combusted carbon materials," Kelley said.Human body is also constantly producing free radicals during a process used to turn food into energy, called oxidative phosphorylation."We have mechanisms in the mitochondria that mop free radicals up for us, but if they become overwhelmed--if we have over-nutrition, if we eat too much junk, if we smoke--the defense mechanism absolutely cannot keep up," Kelley said.The amount of damage caused by free-radical formation becomes greater than the antioxidant defenses as aging progresses. Gradually, the balance between the two tips over to the oxidant side, and damage starts to win out over repair. If we are exposed to a greater amount of pollutants and accumulate more free radicals, this balance will be disrupted even sooner, causing premature aging.West Virginia has the greatest percentage of obese citizens in the nation and a high rate of smokers and workers in high-pollution-exposure occupations along with comorbidities like diabetes, enhanced cardiovascular disease, stroke and renal issues."I come from an Appalachian background," Kelley said. "And, you know, I'd go to funerals that were in some old house--an in-the-living-room-with-a-casket kind of deal--and I'd look at people in there, and they'd be 39 or 42 and look like they were 80 because of their occupation and their nutrition."Kelley believes it is best to prevent premature aging through lifestyle change. He says that focusing on slowing the aging process through preventive measures can improve the outcome for each comorbidity and add more healthy years to people's lives."The impact is less on lifespan and more on healthspan," he said. "If you could get people better access to healthcare, better education, easier ways for them to participate in healthier eating and a healthier lifestyle, then you could improve the overall economic burden on the population of West Virginia and have a much better outcome all the way around."Source: Medindia
Since everyone was cooped up in their homes amid the pandemic, we got a glimpse of the luxurious homes of all the celebrities as they shared their pictures doing home workout, reading, or just relaxing in their comfortable abode. Shweta Tiwari, who is currently in Cape Town shooting for Khatron Ke Khiladi Season 11 is also one of those celebs who keeps on sharing a glimpse of comfy and classy corners of her house.



 Instagram/Shweta Tiwari

The Kasautii Zindagi Kay actress lives in Kandivali with her daughter Palak Tiwari and son Reyansh Kohli. Her house has a mix of simplicity and opulence. While there is luxurious flooring and decor, there are also humble spaces with just a few plants and rustic furniture. Heres a virtual tour of her stunning home.



 Instagram/Shweta Tiwari

Spacious Living room

 Instagram/Shweta Tiwari

The living room has been decorated with the contrasting tones of neutral colours like beige sofa and white curtains with bright yellows and browns that feature in decor and artifacts.



Wall Of Fame

 Instagram/Shweta Tiwari

Shweta has a whole glass cabinet in her home which shines with her trophies and awards. She often poses in the area which is an embodiment of her successful career. Beside is kept a lush plant to break the monotony of golds and browns of the shelf.



Aesthetic balcony

 Instagram/Shweta Tiwari

You will find Shweta often reading a book in her balcony which is overlooking the stunning view of the city. She has decorated the space with a reading chair, some plants and thats it.



Dining Area

The dining area has a simple setting with grey and white decor. Nothing too fancy but it still looks luxurious. In the middle is the marble table top which is surrounded by aesthetic grey chairs.



Minimalist Bedroom

 Instagram/Shweta Tiwari

Her bedroom is as simple and humble as sumptuous the rest of her home is. It almost seems like its her space to unwind and get back to her comfortable zone after the day being in the spotlight. It has minimalist and neutral tones and a very simple decor with just a lamp and a couch.


The riots of 1984 that took place after the assassination of PM Indira Gandhi became one of the most highlighted events in the history of India. The memories of wounds of the riots and mass killings of the Sikh population in 1984 are still very much fresh in the minds of people and making a series on the show can be a tricky call. The new upcoming series Grahan from Disney+ Hotstar will be basing its premise on the possible reason behind the massacre.

The series is inspired by the bestselling novel Chaurasi, written by Satya Vyas.

It tells the story of a police officer, who has been made a part of Special Investigation Teams to investigate cold cases from the riots in Bokaro. Things take an ugly turn when she realizes that her father has to do something with the riots and has some sort of involvement in igniting the massacre. The show stars Zoya Hussain and Pavan Malhotra as central characters. It also features Anshuman Pushkar, Wamiqa Gabbi, Teekam Joshi, and Sahidur Rahman in other pivotal roles.

Heres the trailer:

About the show, Malhotra had earlier said, "Its an innocent love story, a complex web of emotions, but most importantly Grahan is the search for the truth."

A topic as sensitive as this was anyway a risky decision and it has now turned into a living nightmare for the makers as the show has fallen into trouble for hurting the religious sentiments. Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Bibi Jagir Kaur on Monday demanded an immediate ban on Grahan.





Addressing the press conference here on Monday, Kaur said, A Sikh character has been portrayed in an objectionable manner in a web series called Grahan based on the 1984 Sikh genocide. In the web series, the charge of Sikh genocide is being leveled against a Sikh character which is highly condemnable and fabricated.

A legal notice has been sent by a witness of the genocide Nirpreet Kaur to Ajay G Rai, producer of Grahan web series and Sunil Ryan, head and president of Disney+Hotstar. The SGPC also supports this notice, she said.

SGPC president Kaur said, Through this web series, work is being done to rub salt on the wounds of Sikhs which would hurt the Sikh sentiments. Such films also hurt the communal harmony in society. Therefore, the government should enact strict Information Technology (IT) rules to curb such sensitive and objectionable trends.

Not just this, we woke up to people trending #BanGrahanWebSeries on Twitter. People have been bashing the makers for playing with their emotions and said the facts are twisted for TRPs. They are calling it propaganda against the Sikh Community.

Here are the reactions:

 Twitter

 Twitter

 Twitter

 Twitter

 Twitter

Do you agree with peoples opinions? What do you have to say about it? Let us know in the comments section below.


Human beings can be weird, and find some of the most bizarre things vastly interesting. A case in point would be, how some people just love and adore serial killers.



 Reuters

Now, finding serial killers intriguing and fascinating isnt that big a deal or problematic so to say. However, there are people who actually call themselves fans of certain notorious serial killers. Heck, there are a number of fan groups on Facebook and Instagram, that are dedicated to certain notorious murderers.



 New Statesman

Here are some of the most prominent serial killers who have their own fan-clubs and groupies.



Ted Bundy

 Reuters

Ted Bundy remains to be one of the most sinister serial killers of all times. He also happens to be one of the most charming one, as per his fans. He has had several fan groups over the years, with the most notorious one being called, The Bundyphilles, who actively lobbied for him to be released.



Richard Ramirez

 AFP

Dubbed as the Valley Intruder as well as the Night Stalker, Ramirez had killed over 13 people, and sexually assaulted at least a dozen more, including children. That does not mean that he did not have his share of fans. Most of his fans believed that he was being entrapped because of his Latin-American ancestry. He married one of his fans, Doreen Lioy, while he was awaiting his execution. During their courtship, which began when Ramirez was in prison, Lioy wrote about 75 letters to him.



The Zodiac Killer

 Paramount Pictures

To this day, nobody knows for sure who the Zodiac Killer is. Perhaps that is why the serial killer remains to be one of the most popular urban legends in San Francisco. Jake Gyllenhal & Robert Downey Jr. played journalists in a movie about the serial killer. The Zodiac Killer had a great number of fans who would often call up radio & TV news stations discussing him, and confess their love for him. All this, without even knowing who the person was.



Aileen Wuornos

 AFP

Aileen Wuornos was a sex worker who was arrested and convicted for murdering 7 young boys. Her trial received a lot of media attention, which ultimately painted her as the victim of a series of unfortunate events, which led her to act out. Although she was executed, she left behind a number of fan clubs that are operational to this day.



Jeffrey Dahmer

 AFP

Jeffrey Dahmer, again, was a serial killer who targeted young boys. Many of his murders involved sexual assault, necrophilia, and cannibalism. His appeal, sort of went international. Imagine being a convicted American serial killer with a fan club, based out of Glasgow, named McDahmers. Well, thats what happened with him. Anyway, Dahmer was beaten to death by a prison-mate.



Charles Sobhraj

 BCCL

Finally, theres Charles Sobhraj. There are several urban legends surrounding the man and his charm, about how he would often entrap his victims with his charm and his ability to smooth talk. Charles had a number of fan clubs in India, Thailand, Nepal, and France, all countries where he was a wanted man. Heck, he even got married to Nihita Biswas the daughter of his lawyer, who, in her own words, was charmed by his personality. At the time of his marriage, he was 64, while she was 21. Go figure.



The bottom line

As we said, human beings can be very weird. It is actually very interesting to see, why people such as Bundy & Shobhraj become cult personalities and draw people near, almost to the point where their fans start vehemently denying their crimes. Nonetheless, making superstars out of such people isnt exactly wise.
Graveside services for James Arnold McGowen will be held Sunday morning 8:30 a.m., at Enondale Cemetery. Bro Doug Stokes will be officiating. Stephens Funeral Home is honored to assist in the arrangements. Mr. McGowen was born on Oct. 27, 1956, in Mobile, Ala. the son of Mildred and Ralph Mc
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Walker Gaddis, 14, gets his COVID-19 vaccine shot from Owensboro Healths pharmaceutical student Mary Santana on Monday outside the Daviess County Public Library. Owensboro Public Schools is partnering with the Owensboro Health Regional Hospital and the Green River District Health Department to provide COVID-19 vaccines to families and students aged 12 and up through the Summer Food Service Program.
The companys new wire rod mill started production at the end of 2020.We realized the new ground reality concerning rebar - that consumption in Egypt is declining and theres a significant and serious imbalance between supply and demand - early enough to plan and execute adding exceptional quality wire rod products to our portfolio, Saleh said.

The...
KABUL  Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammad Haneef Atmar met with the Special Representative of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran Mohammad Ebrahim Taherian, this afternoon.

Minister Atmar congratulated the government and people of Iran on the successful presidential elections and the victory of H.E. Sayed Ebrahim Raisi, expressing gratitude to Iran for its comprehensive support to the Afghan peace process.

Referring to the growing importance of friendly and fraternal relations between Kabul and Tehran, Minister Atmar stressed the need to further strengthen and expand bilateral relations.

Minister Atmar also underscored the urgent need to strengthen regional consensus for the success of the peace process and called Iran's role in this regard important and valuable.

Irans special envoy assured Minister Atmar of his government's support to the peace process, stating that Tehran was ready to host the Afghan peace talks.

He added that Iran fully supported the Afghan governments agenda for peace and all initiatives that contribute to the success of the Afghan Peace Process and preserve the Islamic Republic system.
Ambassador of Belarus to Pakistan A.Metelitsa visits Karachi

On June 21-23, 2021, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Belarus to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Andrei Metelitsa visited the main financial and trade center of Pakistan  Karachi (Sindh province).

The meeting between the Ambassador of Belarus and Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan Reza Baqir was devoted to Belarusian-Pakistan cooperation in the financial sector. The interlocutors discussed issues of interaction with the National Bank of Belarus, as well as export financial tools for the supply of Belarusian goods to Pakistan.

A.Metelitsa also visited the Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority of the Ministry of Science and Technology of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan (PSQCA) where he discussed with its Director General Abdul Aleem Memon the carrying out of the Action Plan on implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in the field of Standardization and Information Support, signed this year, as well as issues for intensification of bilateral interaction on the issues of compliance of Belarusian enterprises with Pakistani standards and Halal regulations. The Sides agreed to hold bilateral online event on the topic of requirements and standards for import of animal products to Pakistan.

In order to strengthen ties in the field of information, Ambassador of Belarus held a meeting with editor-in-chief of one of the leading newspapers of Pakistan DAWN Zaffar Abbas. The interlocutors discussed information exchange and direct cooperation with BelTA and other Belarusian news agencies.

During the visit, the Head of the Belarusian Mission met with the President of Ecommerce Gateway of Pakistan and discussed the preparation of the National Exposition of Belarus within the framework of the International Trade and Industrial Fair IEMA that will be held in Karachi in November 2021.

In the context of intensifying inter-regional cooperation between two countries, Ambassador A.Metelitsa met with Chief Minister of Sindh Murad Ali Shah, during which the latter received an invitation to pay a visit to the Gomel region  a partner region of Sindh.

The Head of the Belarusian Mission also held a series of meetings aimed at strengthening economic cooperation of Belarus with the Pakistani province. The main topic of discussion with the leadership of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Trade Development Authority of Pakistan, Pakistan Council on Foreign Relations, local companies was cooperation in the spheres of industry, agriculture, education, as well as enhancing Belarusian products supply to Pakistan.

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When Independence Day approaches, we often take time to reflect on those who made the sacrifices that allow us to enjoy our democratic freedoms. Sadly, the contributions of Black Americans often get left out of the discussion.
June 22, 2021

Oakland County CISMA offers free invasive species surveys in ponds and wetlands

European frog-bit, an invasive aquatic plant, has been found in 17 stormwater ponds, wetlands and drains in the Novi area. While the plant is established along Michigan's east coast, it has only been found in a small number of inland bodies of water, making this Oakland County detection a significant discovery.

The plant, which resembles miniature water lilies, can be moved from one body of water to another when its small seeds or plant fragments attach to wildlife, boats or recreational gear. To prevent widespread infestation, it is important to identify and manage infested areas.

Invasive species are those that are not native and can cause harm to the environment, economy or human health.

Free surveys offered in Novi area

The Oakland County Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area is leading European frog-bit management efforts in the Novi area and is seeking permission from people to survey waters on their properties.

"We are hoping to reach homeowner associations, businesses and individual residents with ponds, detention basins or wetlands on their properties," said Erica Clites, Oakland County CISMA director. "The survey focuses on the plants in the water and usually takes about 15 to 45 minutes."

Through support from the Michigan Invasive Species Grant Program, these surveys are free to landowners in the project area, which includes Farmington, Farmington Hills, Lyon Township, Novi, South Lyon, Walled Lake, Wixom, Wolverine Lake, and parts of Commerce, Milford and West Bloomfield townships. Anyone interested in arranging a survey can contact Emily Messick at EMessick@sixriversrlc.org or 248-660-0240. Teams from Friends of the Rouge and the Huron River Watershed Council will conduct the surveys.

What if European frog-bit is found on my property?

If survey teams find European frog-bit, property owners will not be required to take any additional steps; however, funds may be available for treatment through the Oakland County CISMA.

"If there are just a few plants, crews can remove them by hand, but if there is a large infestation, chemical weed treatment may be suggested," said Clites. "No matter which treatment is recommended, annual follow-up is needed to check for regrowth."

What is European frog-bit?

A native of Europe and parts of Africa and Asia, European frog-bit is an aquatic plant with small (half-inch to 2.5-inch), heart-shaped leaves that look like miniature water lilies. Unlike similar aquatic plants, European frog-bit does not anchor its roots in the lake or stream bed and is free-floating. Three-petaled white flowers with yellow centers appear briefly between June and July.

Why is it a problem?

The plant quickly forms dense colonies or mats in shallow, slow-moving waters. These mats can alter food and habitat for ducks and fish and cause problems for boaters, anglers and swimmers.

Virtual public meeting scheduled

The Oakland County CISMA has scheduled a public meeting on Zoom at 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 14, to discuss its European frog-bit program and answer questions. Those interested in attending should register using the link at OaklandInvasiveSpecies.org/Frogbit-Project or visit the Oakland County CISMA's Facebook event page.

To find out more about European frog-bit, visit Michigan.gov/Invasives or OaklandInvasiveSpecies.org.

Michigan's Invasive Species Program is cooperatively implemented by the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, the Department of Natural Resources and the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

/Note to editors: Accompanying photos are available below for download. Suggested caption information follows.

Flowers: European frog-bit can form dense mats of vegetation on the water's surface, making swimming, boating and fishing a challenge.

Map: The Oakland County CISMA's European frog-bit project area, outlined in red, covers most of the southwest corner of Oakland County.

Plant: European frog-bit resembles small water lilies, with round to heart-shaped leaves and white blossoms with yellow centers visible in June and July./
Westbound M-80 detoured in Kincheloe today

Westbound M-80 detoured in Kincheloe today

Dan Weingarten, MDOT Office of Communications, 906-250-4809 Transportation

June 23, 2021 -- A detour for westbound M-80 is planned for utility work starting today.

Under a permit from the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), crews will be performing water main repairs, requiring the closure of westbound M-80 at Meehan Street in Kincheloe, Chippewa County. Westbound traffic will be detoured on Meehan Street to Curtis Street, then Water Tower Drive to Kincheloe Street and back to M-80. Eastbound traffic will remain on M-80.

The closure will go into effect later today, June 23. The detour is expected to be lifted by Thursday, June 24.
Michigan Launches New College Savings Mobile App

Michigan Launches New College Savings Mobile App

June 23, 2021

Michigan families can now manage their children's college education savings right from the palm of their hand.

The Michigan Department of Treasury today announced the launch of READYSAVE 529, a new education savings mobile app available to Michigan Education Savings Program (MESP) account owners. The app provides a convenient way to access information, track progress and make contributions.

"We are excited to be one of the first states to offer this new tool that makes it easier for families to save for their children's future," said Diane Brewer, MESP administrator. "As higher education costs continue to rise, we are always looking for new and innovative ways to help Michiganders plan, monitor and adjust their saving strategies to meet their goals. READYSAVE 529 delivers a simple yet powerful solution to do that."

Developed by Ascensus, the READYSAVE 529 app allows users to view account balances and investment allocations, make one-time or reoccurring contributions and see how their savings compare with peers. Future launches of the app will add new capabilities like allowing family and friends to make gift contributions.

READYSAVE 529 is available for download in the Apple and Google Play app stores and can be installed on any device. MESP account owners can log in using their existing username and password.

Managed by TIAA-CREF, Tuition Financing Inc. on behalf of the Michigan Department of Treasury, MESP is considered one of the nation's top college-savings options, earning silver and gold ratings from Morningstar each year since 2012.

MESP, sold directly to families that are saving for college, offers 18 investment options. The plan, which marked its 20th anniversary last November, has more than 285,000 accounts with total assets exceeding $7.3 billion.

MESP is one of three Michigan Section 529 plans, named after the section of the Internal Revenue Code that allowed for their creation. Each plan offers Michigan taxpayers a state income tax deduction on contributions and potential tax-free growth on earnings if account proceeds are used to pay for qualified higher education expenses.

MESP can be used at any eligible college, university or trade school in the nation and some abroad for a variety of qualified higher education expenses, including tuition, fees, certain room and board costs, books, supplies and equipment required for enrollment.

More information about MESP is available at MISaves.com or 877-861-6377.

# # #

Press Contacts: Danelle Gittus or Ron Leix, Treasury Public Information Officers, at 517-335-2167
MDHHS expanding mobile services to Ingham, Kent and Muskegon counties to help reach vulnerable populations

MDHHS expanding mobile services to Ingham, Kent and Muskegon counties to help reach vulnerable populations

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 23, 2021

CONTACT: Chelsea Wuth, 517-241-2112

LANSING, Mich. - In an effort to reach more Michiganders in need of COVID-19 testing and other public health services, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) is expanding its partnership with Ingham, Kent and Muskegon counties to provide mobile COVID-19 testing, vaccines and PPE along with other social services.

"Every Michigander should have access to fundamental public health services regardless of their zip code, and expanding mobile health services across the state will bring us a step closer to making that a reality," said Lt. Governor Garlin Gilchrist. "These mobile units are a product of the Michigan Coronavirus Task Force on Racial Disparities - which I am proud to chair - and have been widely successful in advancing racial equity as we fight COVID-19. I look forward to seeing this partnership provide services where they are most needed in Ingham, Kent and Muskegon Counties."

There are a total of six operational mobile units in Michigan supported by this initiative serving rural and urban communities. Mobile units visit community centers, churches and other community locations to reach as far as possible to assist Michigan residents who may not have transportation or live in a community without public transportation. Many residents of communities served would not have access to services if those services were unable to be placed as conveniently as possible for them.

"The most effective public health efforts happen when we take resources to where people are and make services easily accessible," said Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, MDHHS chief medical executive and chief deputy for health. "The expansion of these mobile clinics means more access to COVID-19 testing, vaccinations, and other healthcare services, and are so important as we enter a new phase of fighting this pandemic."

MDHHS partnered with Gorno Ford and Ford X to help pilot the program by outfitting the mobile vehicles and helped orient local health department staff with their new mobile units.

"We were thrilled to work with MDHHS to mobilize public health initiatives across the State of Michigan," said Kristin Welch, Manager, Strategy and Operations, Ford X. "Michigan was the first state to reach out to us as an early and thoughtful collaborator to bring mobile health units to its citizens. We are eager to continue this relationship to further train and support local healthcare staff as we fight this pandemic collectively and continue to improve public health in the future."

"The reality is that not everyone has access to a primary care provider and public health has long worked to fill those gaps by providing health care services to those in need," said Christopher Bendekgey, Kent County Community Clinical Services Division Director. "This last 16 months has been no different. The pandemic brought upon many challenges to health care providers and public health alike, however, through the use of the mobile health van, we have been able to bring COVID testing and vaccinations to many who may not otherwise had access, particularly in those communities who have been disproportionally impacted during the pandemic."

"Since the Ingham County Health Department acquired its mobile health unit three months ago, it has become a critical component of our outreach to communities and populations with low access to health care and low vaccination rates," said Ingham County Health Officer Linda S. Vail. "We have visited more than 40 unique sites, returning to most for second doses, in addition to vaccinating homebound residents. This high level of outreach would not be possible without this vital partnership with MDHHS."

Michigan residents seeking more information about the COVID-19 vaccine can visit Michigan.gov/COVIDvaccine. The latest information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

###
Nick Assendelft, EGLE Public Information Officer, 517-388-3135, or Kevin Walters, EGLE Aquatic Biologist, 616-250-8637

June 23, 2021

More than 54 boat landing events are planned across the state to mark this year's Aquatic Invasive Species Awareness Week, June 27 to July 4. Public awareness about the impacts of harmful, nonnative aquatic plants and animals is critical to protecting Michigan's ecosystems, tourism and economy.

The boat landing events are are part of the eighth annual Landing Blitz in which representatives of state departments and local partners such as lake associations and cooperative invasive species management areas give boaters tips to prevent the spread of harmful species and comply with recently-updated laws. The Landing Blitz website allows you to search for an event near you. Similar AIS Landing Blitz events will be held in each of the Great Lakes states and Canadian provinces.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has issued a proclamation to mark Aquatic Invasive Species Awareness Week and raise awareness about this important issue to help prevent the spread of invasive aquatic plants and organisms.

Protect Michigan waters from the threat of aquatic invasive species by following these simple steps:

Required actions - it's the law in Michigan

Remove all aquatic organisms, including plants, from watercraft and trailers before launching or transporting.

Remove all drain plugs and drain all water from bilges, ballast tanks and live wells before transporting a watercraft.

Dispose of unused bait in the trash, not in the water.

Recommended additional actions - protect our waters by following these steps:

Clean boats, trailers and equipment by removing plants, debris and mud before leaving the access area. Dispose of the material in a trash receptacle or otherwise away from the water body, if possible.

Wash boats and trailers before leaving the access area, if possible, or at a nearby car wash or at home.

Dry boats and equipment for five days before launching into a different water body.

Disinfect live wells and bilges with a bleach solution (1/2 cup bleach to 5 gallons water.)

A short EGLE video from a past Landing Blitz shows how easy it is to clean, drain, and dry boats and trailers.

"Everyone has a part to play in helping prevent the spread of invasive species," said Kevin Walters, aquatic biologist with EGLE. "Education is key to protecting Michigan's incredible natural resources."

Events at boat launches are contingent on weather and volunteer availability. Contact Kevin Walters for a list of events.

AIS Awareness Week is sponsored by EGLE's Water Resources Division, in partnership with the departments of Natural Resources and Agriculture and Rural Development, federal agencies and private and nonprofit organizations. For more information about AIS Awareness Week or the AIS Landing Blitz visit Michigan's invasive species web site at Michigan.gov/Invasives.
Muskegon Insurance Agent Charged with Embezzling Clients' Money Pleads Guilty

Muskegon Insurance Agent Charged with Embezzling Clients' Money Pleads Guilty

Lynsey Mukomel 517-599-2746 Attorney General

June 23, 2021

LANSING - A Muskegon insurance agent charged with fraud and embezzling his clients' money has pleaded guilty, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and the Department of Insurance and Financial Services (DIFS) Director Anita Fox announced today.

In February, Charles Booker, Jr., 63, was arraigned on the following charges:

three counts of embezzlement by an agent or trustee of $1,000 or more but less than $20,000, a felony punishable by five years' imprisonment and/or a $10,000 fine, or three times the amount embezzled, whichever is greater;

one count of insurance fraud, a four-year felony and/or a $50,000 fine; and

using a computer to commit a crime, which is a felony punishable by seven years in prison and/or a $5,000 fine in this instance.

The Attorney General's office alleged that between October 2014 and June 2016 Booker collected insurance premiums from 42 clients but failed to remit the premiums to Farmers Insurance. Instead, Booker converted the money to his own use.

He also allegedly applied money he collected in premiums from three clients to the policies of several other clients whose premiums he did not remit to the insurer.

Wednesday morning before Judge Maria Ladas Hoopes in Muskegon County's 60th District Court, Booker pleaded guilty to three counts of misdemeanor embezzlement by an agent of $200 or more but less than $1,000.

He also paid $13,764 in restitution prior to entering the guilty plea. Booker further signed a written acknowledgement that he engaged in insurance fraud and that he was not eligible to seek re-licensure as an insurance agent.

Farmers Insurance honored the affected insurance policies, so Farmers Insurance was the victim of Booker's conduct.

"My office continues to work alongside DIFS to ensure Michiganders who entrust their finances to insurance agents can be confident their money is being used as intended," Nessel said. "I'm proud of the work done to ensure accountability in this case. It should serve as a reminder that we stand ready to pursue justice against anyone who violates our laws."

"We are pleased to continue our strong partnership with the Attorney General to successfully prosecute criminals like Mr. Booker," Fox said. "DIFS is committed to holding those who commit fraud accountable, and the public can help by contacting us at Michigan.gov/ReportFraud2DIFS or by calling Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 877-999-6442."

In addition to the restitution, the judge ordered Booker to pay $1,500 in fines and costs as his sentence.

DIFS' Fraud Investigation Unit investigates criminal and fraudulent activity related to the insurance and financial markets and refers cases to the Attorney General and law enforcement for prosecution of criminal activity. Suspected insurance fraud can be reported to DIFS safely, easily and, in most cases, anonymously by calling 877-999-6442 or online by visiting the department's website.
For 42.9 million student loan borrowers , its been 18 months without a payment. That ends in October  ready or not.

The interest-free federal student loan payment pause, known as a forbearance, was extended three times after it initially went into effect in March 2020 as a way to help reduce the financial blow many borrowers experienced as a result of the pandemic.

But with payments set to resume in a few months, servicers  the companies that manage student loan payments  are already fielding thousands of calls a day from borrowers seeking student loan help, according to Scott Buchanan, executive director of the Student Loan Servicing Alliance, a nonprofit trade organization for student loan servicers.

Time is running out for both servicers and loan borrowers to prepare for repayment.

While Education Secretary Miguel Cardona has indicated its not out of the question to extend the loan forbearance beyond Sept. 30, for now borrowers should be prepared for bills to come due sometime in October (theyre supposed to be notified at least 21 days prior to their exact billing date).

TALK WITH YOUR SERVICER NOW

Servicers are expecting borrower demand for help to increase and may have trouble keeping up. The repayment system has never been turned off before, so no one is sure what restarting it simultaneously for 42.9 million people will look like.

We dont have any guidance from the department (of Education) about what a resumption strategy would look like, says Buchanan. We are in the time frame where those plans need to be communicated; it cannot wait.

Richard Cordray, the newly appointed head of the Education Departments federal student aid office, told The Washington Post for a story on June 11 that restarting payments was a very complex situation and said the office planned to provide more information to servicers soon. He also said the department planned to hold the servicers accountable by setting rigorous performance benchmarks.

Despite the uncertainty, if youre worried about your ability to make payments, theres no downside to contacting your servicer now to beat the rush, says Buchanan. Ask about your best options to manage payments, depending on your situation.

If youre not sure who your servicer is, log in to your My Federal Student Aid account to find out. To ensure you dont miss any notifications, check that your contact information is up to date on your loan servicers website and in your StudentAid.gov profile.

KNOW YOUR REPAYMENT OPTIONS

Your options are not pay or default, says Megan Coval, vice president of policy and federal relations at the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. There are options in between for lowering payments. Nobody, including the federal government, wants to see you go into default.

Default happens after roughly nine months of late federal loan payments. It can result in a damaged credit score, wage garnishment, withheld tax refunds and other financial burdens.

 If payments will be a hardship: Enrolling in an income-driven repayment plan sets payments at a portion of your income, which could be $0 if youre out of work or underemployed. Or you could opt to pause payments (with interest collecting) using an unemployment deferment or forbearance.

 If you were delinquent before the pause: Your loans will be reset into good standing. Making monthly payments on time will help you retain that status. But if you think you might miss a payment or you dont think you can afford payments altogether, contact your servicer about enrolling in an income-driven plan.

 If you were in default before the pause: Contact your loan holder or the education departments default resolution group to find out how to enter into loan rehabilitation and get back into good standing.

FIND A LEGIT RESOURCE

Servicers may be your first point of contact, but they dont have to be your last. You may have other needs your servicer isnt providing, such as financial difficulty beyond your student loans or legal advice.

Cash-strapped borrowers can find legitimate student loan help for free with organizations such as The Institute of Student Loan Advisors . Other student loan help, such as a credit counselor or a lawyer, will charge fees. You can find reputable credit counselors through organizations such as the National Foundation for Credit Counseling .

Financial planners can also help, but its best to look for one with student loan expertise, such as a certified student loan professional.

You can find legal assistance, including advice on debt settlement and pursuing bankruptcy, with lawyers who specialize in student loans or with legal services in your state as listed by the National Consumer Law Center.

If your issue is with your servicer, contact the Federal Student Loan Ombudsman Group , which resolves federal student aid disputes. You can also file a complaint with the Federal Student Aid Feedback Cente r or the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

AVOID SCAMMERS

Legitimate student loan help organizations wont seek you out with offers of debt resolution through unsolicited texts, emails or phone calls. Most importantly, you dont have to pay anyone to apply to consolidate your debt, enter into an income-driven repayment plan or apply for Public Service Loan Forgiveness.

The hard and fast rule is that applying for (consolidation and repayment) programs is free, says Kyra Taylor, staff attorney focusing on student loans at the National Consumer Law Center. I think when people realize what they can do for free, it makes it easier for them to spot scams.

And dont fall for any company that promises to forgive your student loans or wait for the government to do so  thus far, no executive action from President Joe Biden or legislation from Congress has come to pass.

____________________________

This article was provided to The Associated Press by the personal finance website NerdWallet. Anna Helhoski is a writer at NerdWallet. Email: anna@nerdwallet.com. Twitter: @AnnaHelhoski.

RELATED LINKS:

NerdWallet: How to get student loan help

My Federal Student Aid

National Consumer Law Center: Student Borrower Assistance Project legal resources
NEW YORK (AP)  In an election night speech to supporters, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams relished his initial lead in the race to become New York City's next mayor, saying he was proud to have been many voters' first choice."

But under the city's new ranked choice election system, the ultimate winner in the Democratic primary might be the candidate who most voters pick second, third, fourth or fifth.

Hundreds of thousands of ballots cast for losing candidates are set to be redistributed to higher-ranked contenders in additional rounds of tabulation that begin next week. It remained possible for two other candidates, Maya Wiley or Kathryn Garcia, to come out on top.

Early returns show that Adams, a former police captain who also served in the New York state Senate, was the first choice of 32% of those who voted in person on Tuesday or during the early voting period, compared to 22% for Wiley and 20% for Garcia.

It was not clear Wednesday whether that lead would hold.

An undetermined number of mail-in ballots  possibly as many as 200,000  have yet to be counted.

Victory could hinge on where people who voted for losing candidates ranked Adams, Wiley or Garcia on their ballots, or whether they bothered to rank anyone at all.

There were good signs and bad signs for Adams, according to elections data analyzed by The Associated Press.

Overall, in the ballots counted so far, he was ranked on more ballots than any other candidate.

About 474,000 voters ranked him in their top five. That compares to 454,000 voters who ranked Garcia and 443,000 who ranked Wiley.

However, Garcia and Wiley both did better than Adams among the ballots that could be redistributed in the ranked choice voting system.

For example, 298,000 voters ranked Garcia second, third, fourth or fifth on their ballots. Wiley was ranked on 265,000 ballots in which she was not the top candidate, while Adams was ranked on 221,000 ballots in which he was not the top candidate.

The numbers suggest that any of the three candidates could ultimately win.

Under the version of ranked choice voting that New York City adopted in 2019, voters in primaries can rank up to five candidates in order of preference instead of choosing just one.

If one candidate is the first choice of a majority of voters  which did not occur in Tuesday's mayoral primary  that person wins outright.

If nobody hits the 50% threshold, ranked choice kicks in, with vote tabulations done in computerized rounds. In each round, the candidate in last place is eliminated. Ballots cast for that person are then redistributed to the surviving candidates, based on whoever the voter ranked next on their list.

The process repeats until there are only two candidates left. The one with the most votes wins.

The final numbers in the mayoral primary likely won't be known for at least two weeks. Elections officials won't perform their first pass of ranked choice analysis until June 29.

Adams appeared confident of victory Tuesday night, telling cheering supporters, New York City said, Our first choice is Eric Adams.

But Wiley and Garcia said they will wait for every ranked vote to be counted.

Weve known all along that we have strong support in the top rankings, so were excited about the possibility here," Wiley said at a Brooklyn subway station Wednesday. "We know we can win. The voters will decide. We will wait patiently.

Garcia told supporters at her election night party Tuesday, "Its going to come down to opening up those ballots and making sure every single New Yorkers voice is heard.

The three emerged from a crowded field that also included 2020 presidential candidate Andrew Yang, who finished fourth in first-place votes of in-person voters and conceded about two hours after polls closed.

Either Adams or Wiley would be New York City's second Black mayor, and either Wiley or Garcia would be the city's first woman mayor.

Stark differences defined the three.

Adams, 60, a moderate who was a registered Republican in the late 1990s, was the co-founder of a leadership group for Black police. He promised to crack down on crime and police misconduct both.

"If Black lives really matter, it cant only be against police abuse, he said Tuesday. It has to be about the violence tearing apart our communities."

The 57-year-old Wiley, a civil rights lawyer who formerly headed a city board that investigates accusations of police misconduct, promised to cut $1 billion from the police budget and reallocate it to other city departments. Wiley framed herself as the candidate with "the courage to confront the bureaucracy, developers, and the NYPD."

Garcia, 51, a former sanitation commissioner who has also held leadership posts in several other city departments, campaigned as a pragmatist who already knew how to run the city. In case of emergency, break glass, a Garcia TV ad urged.

A victory by Wiley or Garcia would in some ways be comparable to the 2010 mayoral election in Oakland, California, in which former state lawmaker Don Perata led his closest rival, City Council Member Jean Quan, by more than 10,000 first-place votes but lost to her 51% to 49% when all the ranked votes were counted.

Quan's victory in the first Oakland election to use ranked choice voting shocked many, in part because they were unfamiliar with the system, said Rob Richie, the president of FairVote, a national organization that advocates for ranked voting.

Were still dealing with people saying, How did that possibly happen? And it actually was a very rational thing, but it sort of caught people flat-footed, Richie said.

Quan had a rocky tenure and lost her 2014 reelection bid to Libby Schaaf, but ranked choice voting has endured in Oakland, Richie noted.

They didnt repeal it, and its very solid today in its use, he said.

Many people who voted in Tuesday's New York primary did not rank all five candidates.

With nearly 800,000 votes counted, more than 100,000 didnt bother to rank a second candidate. Slightly more than half didnt rank the maximum five candidates.

___

Associated Press writer Stephen Ohlemacher in Washington contributed to this report.
CAMP HILL, Ala. (AP)  Caring for abused and neglected girls is Candice Gulleys life work, and that's what she was doing when she helped load vans from an Alabama childrens home for a trip to the beach. The kids walked on the sand, ate seafood and threw an early, dinosaur-themed fourth birthday party for her son, Ben, during a week on the coast.

With Gulley behind the wheel of a van headed back to the home as Tropical Storm Claudette blew through the South, the trip ended in a cataclysmic crash. The van was caught in a chain-reaction wreck on a rain-slick interstate that involved 17 vehicles, seven of which caught fire  some reduced to twisted, burned-out hulks. Two of Gulley's own children and two nephews were among the 10 dead.

The lone survivor in her van, Gulley was recovering from her physical injuries Tuesday, which would have been Bens birthday. One relative made an appeal on social media for people to pray for Gulley; another posted a video of the little boy as a tribute.

Gulley said last month that she had a tough childhood which left her clinging to God after her father's suicide when she was just 8, but the added emotional trauma of the crash is hard to fathom.

Social work is a notoriously tough job, but Gulley relished the challenge at the Tallapoosa County Girls Ranch, a Christian-based group home where she and her husband, Tommy, began working and living a decade ago after years in youth ministry in Mobile, their hometown.

They are like my second parents, former ranch resident Therese Meshall Crawford said Wednesday of the couple, who were her house parents a decade ago. The best way to explain Candice and Tommy is they are the most open-hearted people ever. Candice, she will do anything for you."

Crawford, 26, said she knew the Gulley's two children who were killed in the crash for much of their lives.

It broke my heart. I cried for hours. I still cry, " Crawford, now a mother herself and an aspiring nurse.

Gulley has a God-given ability to relate to children in a positive way, said Jerry Ferguson, a pastor who worked with the ranches for 30 years and hired the Gulleys as house parents.

She was genuine. She had the ability to relate to children at their level, that was very important," Ferguson said

Often known as mom and pop to the girls, the couple would play games with their charges, take them on trips and horse rides, all while pushing them to excel in school and showing unconditional love and support, he recalled. For some of the girls, he said, it was the first taste of a supportive family life.

"Lots of our kids were in situations where the people who were supposed to love them the most did the most harm to them, Ferguson said.

In a Facebook live interview in May, Gulley described both her own life and the ranch, which she said is different from other foster care operations.

"Really, I think what sets us apart is its a family. Kids come and they go, but once they set roots down at the ranch, were your family, Gulley said. In a way, the beach trip was like a family vacation: girls from troubled homes who often come to consider one another sisters traveling with stand-in parents.

The wreck killed Gulleys 16-year-old daughter, Isabella, and 3-year-old Ben. Her two nephews, 12-year-old Josiah Dunnavant and 8-year-old Nicholas Dunnavant, who lived near Mobile, also were killed.

"They were just all sweet loving children, Candice Gulley's aunt, Desiree Bishop, told FOX10.

Its a high price to pay. It just comes in waves of grief, just waves of grief, she said.

Authorities havent said what caused the wreck, which also killed four ranch residents whove not been publicly identified, as well as Cody Fox of Tennessee and his 9-month-old daughter, Ariana. But witnesses said the road was wet because of Claudette, and authorities said vehicles may have hydroplaned.

Someone pulled Gulley out of the wreckage on Interstate 65, but no one else in the van could be saved. She was hospitalized afterward.

Gulley, who has five children including a daughter adopted from the ranch, took over as director in 2019 after her predecessor departed for another position. Shed previously worked as a house parent, serving as a fill-in mom and mentor to girls who arrived at the home because of abandonment, abuse or neglect.

Sometimes families are too broke to care for a child; other times a girl must be removed from her home because of drug abuse by parents, said Michael Smith, chief executive of Alabama Youth Homes. But Gulley is there for them all, helping teach the importance of well-done chores and finished schoolwork while sharing her own steadying faith in God.

As director, she oversees ranch management, staff and helps with fundraising.

We create an environment that has structure, that has stability, she said in the Facebook interview.

After missing out on events including annual beach trips because of the pandemic, the girls and ranch workers looked forward to the break at the coast, Smith said. They all packed into two vans and loaded a trailer with suitcases for the trip to Gulf Shores, where Smith said he met the group for lunch four days before the crash.

They get to pick the place they want to go out eat, he said. We had a really good time. The girls had a ball.

The crash sent shockwaves through Camp Hill and Reeltown, the rural communities closest to the home located on a two-lane road about 60 miles (97 kilometers) northeast of Montgomery.

Terrie Webster, who works at a store near the ranch, said a woman she knows who works as a house parent at the home would have been on the van if not for a late change of plans. Webster said she can't begin to understand the pain caused by the wreck.

Its awful. I cant even imagine, Webster said.

Tallapoosa County Sheriff Jimmy Abbett, who worked with Gulley over her nearly 11 years at the ranch, said Gulley always worries about her girls and their accomplishments are her proudest moments.

Words cant express what she is going through, he said. Knowing Candice like I do, she is worried about the girls and the ranch, too.

___

Chandler reported from Montgomery, Alabama.
MADRID (AP)  Nine Catalan separatists pardoned by the Spanish government walked out of prison on Wednesday to the cheers of supporters, leaving behind their lengthy terms for organizing a bid four years ago to make Catalonia an independent republic.

Spains Cabinet pardoned them Tuesday in the hope of starting what Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called much-needed reconciliation in the countrys restive northeastern region, although fervent local support for the pardoned separatists indicated the issue won't go away anytime soon.

Former Catalan vice president Oriol Junqueras, five fellow Cabinet members, the former regional parliament's speaker and two pro-independence activists walked free shortly after noon. They had spent between three-and-a-half and four years behind bars.

Spain's official gazette on Wednesday published the government decree pardoning them.

The freed separatists were met by dozens of cheering, clapping supporters and relatives who had gathered in the rain. The men, released in a group, held up a small banner that said, in English, Freedom Catalonia, as well as a Catalan flag. They addressed their supporters in the Catalan language.

We are aware that today, with our release from prison, nothing has ended, Junqueras told supporters in a defiant speech. Prison does not scare us, it reinforces our ideas.

The Catalan regional president, Pere Aragones, and the speaker of the Catalan parliament, Laura Borras, also went to the prison for the separatists' release.

The pardon canceled the remainder of prison terms ranging from nine to 13 years over sedition and misuse of public funds linked to the 2017 banned referendum and a short-lived Catalonia independence declaration. But the separatists won't be able to hold public office until the end of their sentences and they could go back to prison if they break Spanish law again, the decree said.

Despite polls showing that many people in Spain were against the pardons, Sanchez has defended them, arguing that they are popular in Catalonia and that freeing the separatists will be a fresh start for relations between central and regional authorities.

The prime minister's office announced Wednesday that Sanchez and Aragones will meet in Madrid on June 29, exactly one week after the pardons, in their first encounter since the latter became Catalonia's regional chief earlier this year.

The political divisions were on full display Wednesday at the nation's parliament. Conservative opposition leader Pablo Casado called for the prime minister's resignation for issuing the pardons without consulting lawmakers.

You are applauding an unfortunate day for Spain's democratic history, you are throwing the fate of the country into the hands of the separatists," Casado said, accusing Sanchez of lying because the Socialist leader had vowed not to make concessions to separatists when he came to power.

Sanchez responded saying the decision to issue pardons was brave, restorative and in favor of coexistence.

Catalan separatist legislators called for the government to take a step further and urged it to follow the Scottish way  in reference to Scotland's 2014 independence referendum that was authorized by the British government. Voters in Scotland elected to remain in the U.K.

___

Barry Hatton in Lisbon, Portugal contributed to this report.
MOSCOW (AP)  Russia said one of its warships in the Black Sea fired warning shots and a warplane dropped bombs Wednesday to force a British destroyer out of an area near Crimea that Moscow claims as its territorial waters, but Britain denied that account and insisted its ship wasn't fired upon.

It was the first time since the Cold War that Moscow acknowledged using live ammunition to deter a NATO warship, reflecting the growing risk of military incidents amid soaring tensions between Russia and the West.

The Russian Defense Ministry said a patrol ship fired warning shots after the HMS Defender had ignored a notice against intrusion and sailed 3 kilometers (1.6 nautical miles) into Russias territorial waters near Sevastopol, the main Russian naval base in Crimea. It said a Russian Su-24 bomber also dropped four bombs ahead of the vessel to persuade the Defender to change course. Minutes later, the Defender left Russian waters, the ministry said.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova denounced the rude British provocation that defies international law, and said Londons ambassador was being summoned. The Defense Ministry said it also called in the U.K. military attache in Moscow to protest the destroyers dangerous move and urged British authorities to investigate the crews actions.

Britains Ministry of Defense denied the Defender had been fired on or was in Russian waters, but had been in Ukrainian waters.

No warning shots have been fired at HMS Defender, it said in a statement. The Royal Navy ship is conducting innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law."

Russia annexed Ukraines Crimean Peninsula in 2014, a move not recognized by most countries, gaining access to its long Black Sea coast. Russia has chafed at NATO warships visiting near Crimea as destabilizing. In April, it declared a broader area off Crimea closed to foreign naval ships.

We believe the Russians were undertaking a gunnery exercise in the Black Sea and provided the maritime community with prior warning of their activity," the British Ministry of Defense said. No shots were directed at HMS Defender and we do not recognize the claim that bombs were dropped in her path.

British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said the Defender carried out a routine transit from Odessa towards Georgia across the Black Sea.

As is normal for this route, she entered an internationally recognized traffic separation corridor, he tweeted, adding that HMS Defender exited the corridor safely at 9:45 a.m. BST (0845 GMT; 4:45 a.m. EDT).

"As is routine, Russian vessels shadowed her passage and she was made aware of training exercises in her wider vicinity, he added.

Speaking to Parliaments defense committee, Wallace again denied Russias version of events.

These are the things that come and go with Russia, he said. Disinformation, misinformation is something that we have seen regularly. Were not surprised by it; we plan for it.

Asked if Defender's crew had seen or heard anything, he said initial reports say they did hear or observe training noises somewhere to the rear of her but beyond visual range.

We saw the reports this morning, said Max Blain, a spokesman for Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Its incorrect to say either that it was fired on or this ship was in Russian waters. HMS Defender was taking the most direct and internationally recognized route between Ukraine and Georgia.

He emphasized that Britain, and much of the international community, does not recognize Russias annexation of Crimea.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said it was clear proof of Ukraines position: Russias aggressive and provocative actions in the Black and Azov seas, its occupation and militarization of Crimea pose a lasting threat to Ukraine and allies.

We need a new quality of cooperation between Ukraine & NATO allies in the Black Sea, Kuleba tweeted.

In November 2018, Russian coast guard ships fired on three Ukrainian gunboats trying to pass from the Black Sea into the Azov Sea and captured them along with 24 crewmembers. It returned the crew and the boats the following year.

HMS Defender, a Type 45 destroyer, is part of the U.K. Carrier Strike Group heading to the Indo-Pacific region. It was announced earlier this month that it would be temporarily breaking away from the group to carry out its own set of missions in the Black Sea.

Just before Wednesday's incident, Defender stopped in the Ukrainian port of Odessa, where Ukrainian and British officials and industry representatives signed an agreement to collaborate on boosting Ukraines naval capabilities.

NATO members Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria border the Black Sea. Warships from the U.S., U.K. and other NATO allies also have made increasingly frequent visits in support of Ukraine.

Speaking before the incident, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, the chief of the General Staff of the Russian armed forces, sharply criticized the deployment of NATO warships near Russian waters.

The moves by warships of the U.S. and its allies have been clearly provocative, Gerasimov said at an international security conference in Moscow organized by the Defense Ministry. It creates preconditions for incidents and doesn't help ease tensions in the military sphere.

He charged that the British destroyer HMS Dragon intruded into Russian waters near Crimea in October, and the U.S. destroyer USS John S. McCain violated the Russian border in the Sea of Japan in November.

In April, Russia imposed restrictions on foreign naval movements near Crimea until November in a move that drew strong complaints from Ukraine and the West. Russia rejected the criticism and noted the restrictions wouldnt interfere with commercial shipping.

Earlier this year, Russia also bolstered its troops near the border with Ukraine and warned Kyiv against using force to reclaim control of the country's eastern industrial heartland, where a conflict with Russia-backed separatists has killed more than 14,000 people in seven years. Moscow withdrew some of its forces after maneuvers, but Ukrainian officials say many of them remain.

Speaking earlier Wednesday via video to participants of the security conference, President Vladimir Putin expressed concern about NATO forces near Russia.

We arent striving for a decisive, unilateral military advantage to tip the balance of forces in our favor, Putin said. But we will never allow anyone else to tip that balance.

Russias relations with the West have sunk to the lowest levels since the Cold War, following Moscow's annexation of Crimea, accusations of Russian interference with elections, hacking attacks and other tensions.

In a speech at the same conference before Wednesday's incident, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said the situation in Europe is explosive, and accused NATO of stonewalling Russian proposals to enhance security by refraining from military exercises near the borders of Russia and alliance members.

He said the world is rapidly sinking in a new confrontation, which is much more dangerous than during the Cold War times.

___

Lawless reported from London.
MIDDLETOWN  A 10-year-olds budding interest in baking, begun as a way to keep busy during the pandemic, has quickly taken off into human-grade dog treat business with a portion of proceeds going to canine charities.

Budding entrepreneur Ella Tessman, an incoming fifth-grader at Woodside Intermediate School who has loved dogs since forever, started her money-making endeavor by baking a dogs birthday cake.

Not only are her Ellas Eats human clients pleased with her new endeavor, so are her pupstomers, as Ella calls them.

Theres nothing in them that humans cant eat, her mother, Johanna Tessman, said.

Their popularity was unexpected, Ella said. At first, when neighbors were trying to buy them, I wasnt prepared, said the middle-schooler, who prices her products at about $5 a bag.

It took a couple months until she got into a routine with it, mom said.

So far, Ella has sold between $800 and $900 worth of treats, which are packaged in dog-paw printed cellophane or polka-dot plastic bags. That does not include her supply purchases, her mother said.

Ella buys all her own supplies with her profits, including a standing mixer and special cookie cutouts and pans, mom said.

She sells bone-shaped biscuits in two sizes, training treats, which are about the size of a blueberry, and, her newest offering  nonbaked balls of peanut butter, honey, flaxseed and a few other ingredients, Johanna Tessman said.

During the school year, Ella and her two best friends baked her puppy products on the weekends. They help with cutouts, making the mix, baking, and bagging the treats, which last up to three weeks, Ella said. We do rotations.

Now that summer break has arrived, Ella devotes between one and two hours on each batch of between five and six bags, she said.

When shes in the kitchen, Ella is focused, and demanding, but not in a bad way, Johanna Tessman said. She knows exactly how she wants to do it. Everything has to be run by her, because she wants to make it look right, make sure theyre the right texture, size.

Shes always been that way, her mom said.

After baking a dogs birthday cake early last summer with her own frosting recipe  made with yogurt and peanut butter  Ella started to get requests from neighbors, and others who messaged her mother on Facebook. We just told a few people, and, by Christmas, every day she had orders. It was crazy for a while, Johanna Tessman said.

Thats when they created an Instagram page so customers can peruse photos of whats for sale and her furry clients.

Ella already has a regular customer. A woman who has three canines orders treats every Monday, said mom, who added her daughters efforts grew with grassroots support. It was very organic. It just happened that way.

Lucy, the familys Jack Russell terrier/Whippet mix rescue, is Ellas No. 1 customer. So far, the girl has taught Lucy to give her paw and high-fives, turn in a circle, and obey the stay command. She listens to directions when I give her those particular treats, she said.

Lucy is so excited to try Ellas creations that the family has set up a barrier in the kitchen to prevent her from entering the work space. Shell just sit there and wait for everything, Johanna Tessman said.

Last month, they created a website, ellaseats310.com, incorporating Ellas birthday, March 10, into the URL.

She always makes sure the ingredients are safe for canines, her mother said. We mainly looked up if dogs could have things, Ella said.

Lucy has a sensitive stomach, Ella said, so shes the perfect test subject.

Since chocolate is toxic to canines, Ella came up with an ideal substitute for her Puppernutter Puffs  carob, which is naturally sweet. She melts her own chocolate into these molds and puts peanut butter in them, Johanna Tessman said.

Theyre actually pretty good, Ella said.

This isnt the middle-schoolers first foray into charitable sales. Early on in the pandemic, Ella, who also enjoys swimming and fishing with her father, started painting, and sold enough of her artworks to raise $500 for Freedom Service Dogs of Colorado, Johanna Tessman said.

The familys church, Third Congregational in Middletown, matched that amount, turning the donation into a $1,000 gift, mom added. Theyre so supportive of her there, she said.

Ten percent of Ellas proceeds will go to the Connecticut Humane Society in Newington. So far, shes raised $75 for the cause, mom said. Ella was thrilled to learn shell be getting a private tour of the facility, which has yet to reopen to the public.

My husband and I are so incredibly proud of her, mom said. Shes done so much. Shes very ambitious.

Ellas grandfather, who owned a business for many years, is looking into getting her an LLC. Its taken off more than we expected, Johanna Tessman said.

Ella is already thinking about continuing the business long-term. I think its going to be something for the future, she said.

Ella will be selling her canine treats at the Cromwell Farmers Market July 16 from 4 to 7 p.m.

For information, visit ellaseats310.com and @ellas.eats310 on Instagram. Canine cakes can be baked upon request.
DURHAM  After almost 25 years of friendship, two Durham natives are still best friends, and have co-founded their own theater production company, Surette & Hall Theatricals.

The first endeavor of Coginchaug Regional High School graduates Kelly Boylin Surette and Teddy Hall is an investor workshop for Surettes new production, Moms: The Musical, set to launch in New York City, according to a press release.

Both Surette, and Teddy Hall, the assistant book writer and workshop producer who lives in Middletown; attended The Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts. They have shared their love of musicals since they met in the fifth grade at Memorial Middle School, according to the news release.

Moms: The Musical is a fast and furious ride through the uproarious and heartfelt journey of becoming a new mom. It follows two first-time mothers who, from an unlikely friendship, discover how strong they are as they take on their role as mothers while unapologetically preserving who they are as individual women, according to the release.

The show honestly addresses the representation of motherhood and women in the theater through female empowerment, Surette said. It also positively normalizes LGBTQ+ representation in family structure while challenging cultural and gender norms, the release said.

With a small, diverse cast of eight, representing all shapes, sizes and ethnicities, this musical tackles everything from marriage issues to friendship challenges, career concerns to body image struggles, lack of mothering instincts to self-esteem issues  all the while fearlessly examining societal pressures placed on women, the news release said.

This show is both an honest reflection and celebration of motherhood and women in general, Surette said in a prepared statement. It doesnt glorify, sugarcoat, or pass judgment on any particular kind of mother. Instead, it illuminates our struggles, loneliness, and self-criticism while honoring the joy, humor, and incredible moxie it takes to be a mother in America today.

Surette had the time to write the show that she envisioned for many years during quarantine, she said. Moms originated from Surettes personal experiences as a mother of two little girls, as well as her desire to illuminate the voices of the women and mothers around her in an authentic and relatable form, the release said.

The workshop will be live streamed from Ripley Grier Studios in New York July 24 at 2 p.m. For tickets, $5, visit suretteandhall.com/moms-the-musical.

All proceeds go directly to Moms For Moms: NYC, which assists single mothers in need throughout New York City.
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP)  The federal government has approved a Maine plan about how the state intends to manage its forests.

Maine is the most forested state in the country. The Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry said Wednesday its Maine Forest Service has received approval for its forest plan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service.
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP)  One person was shot to death by city police officers in downtown Santa Fe on Wednesday after authorities responded to reports of a fight and gunfire at a public park, the Santa Fe Police Department said.

The Santa Fe Police Department said its officers responded to a call about a fight in progress at De Vargas Park and reports from emergency dispatchers that one person had been shot, with the shooter running away.
NEW BERLIN, Wis. (AP)  Police in the Milwaukee suburb of New Berlin have shot and critically wounded a person with a gun, according to state officials.

The Wisconsin Department of Justice said dispatchers received a call about an armed individual about 10 p.m. Tuesday in New Berlin.
SALT LAKE CITY (AP)  Salt Lake City has issued a fireworks ban as drought conditions worsen throughout the state.

Mayor Erin Mendenhall said Tuesday that the ban covers fireworks, including smoke bombs and sparklers. Mendenhall also issued an open burning ban that prohibits people from starting any fires outside.

The fireworks ban comes as Utah experiences its worst drought in decades. About 90% of the state is in extreme or exceptional drought, the two worst categories.

Our foothills, our open spaces, and even our yards and park strips are dry and could be ignited by a single spark, Mendenhall, a Democrat, said in a statement. These conditions present a very real, immediate threat of fire.

Fireworks are banned on all state and unincorporated business lands, but Republican Gov. Spencer Cox has said he does not have the legal authority to enact a statewide ban.

It is unclear if state law allows cities to outright ban fireworks, The Salt Lake Tribune reported. Public safety code prevents local governments from prohibiting explosives around the July Fourth and Pioneer Day holidays, except "in certain areas with hazardous environmental conditions. Pioneer Day is a holiday only celebrated in Utah every July 24  marking the date when pioneers discovered the Salt Lake Valley.

Republican legislative leaders have avoided taking action to ban fireworks statewide and instead have encouraged local governments to implement their own restrictions.

We have taken steps to empower local officials rather than impose a statewide fireworks ban, House Speaker Brad Wilson said in a statement Monday. I do not believe it is necessary for the legislature to hold a special session at this time.
U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, a Democrat from Vernon, announced Tuesday that two popular shoreline attractions forced to close their doors during the pandemic would receive support for their reopenings from the U.S. Small Business Administration.

The U.S. Submarine Force Library and Museum Association in Groton, a non-profit that supports the Navy-owned museum home to the USS Nautilus, received $137,247 under the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program, Courtney announced.

A second grant worth $284,148 was awarded to Niantic Cinemas in East Lyme.

Our regions local theaters, museums, and live venues dont just make eastern Connecticut a great place to live, they also create real, good-paying jobs, the congressman said in a statement. There was a lot of talk a few months back about where American Rescue Plan funding was going  a lot of that talk has faded lately as folks keep seeing relief being delivered in a variety of ways directly to our local communities.

The grants can be used to cover payroll, rent and utility payments, taxes or other businesses expenses incurred during the pandemic. More than 14,416 applications were submitted, with just 1,445 grants awarded as of Monday, according to the SBA.

Funding for the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program comes from the American Rescue Plan Act, which was signed into law by President Joe Biden in March. The legislation received unanimous support from Connecticuts congressional delegation.

Kathy Lotring, executive director of the Submarine Force Library and Museum Association, said she was informed of the award earlier this month, shortly after the museum reopened to the public ahead of Memorial Day after being closed for 14 months.

We were very excited, the bookkeeper and I were jumping for joy, Lotring recalled.

The non-profit employs two full-time staff and five part-time employees, two of whom were placed on unemployment while the museum was closed, Lotring said. The association helps support the museum through fundraising and operates the gift shop.

During the pandemic, Lotring said staff continued fundraising and doing inventory, while also re-painting the store and installing a new point-of-sale system, which she hoped to pay for in part using funds from the SBA grant.

The museums main attraction is the USS Nautilus, the worlds first nuclear powered submarine and the first submarine to sail under the North Pole. The museum is free to the public, including self-guided tours of the submarine.

During Memorial Day Weekend this year, Lotring said 2,479 people visited the museum, compared with 234 during the holiday weekend in 2019.

People just came in droves, she said.

The other recipient of the shuttered business grant program, Niantic Cinemas, is planning to reopen this Friday, according to its website, with showtimes for new-release movies including Cruella and In the Heights. No one at the business responded to requests for comment on Tuesday.

Niantic Cinemas attempted a reopening last summer, only to shut down again due to a lack of new releases from the movie industry, according to The Day in New London.

Other recipients of the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program in Connecticut include Toads Place in New Haven and the Downtown Cabaret Theater in Bridgeport.

According to Courtneys office, other applications from venues in the region are still being processed by the SBA. The congressman also also announced three additional grants under the American Rescue Plan, totaling $120,000, to local airports in Killingly, Windham and North Windham.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is backing a review commission's call to remove decisions on prosecuting sexual assaults and related crimes, as well as other crimes including domestic violence, from the military's chain of command.

In a release Tuesday evening, Austin praised the work done by the Independent Review Commission, which was formed in February, to find ways to stop sexual assault in the military and better support victims of sexual assault. The commission presented its findings and recommendations to Austin on Monday.

But Austin's backing of changes to the Uniform Code of Military Justice for sexual assault and other special victims' crimes could prove controversial in the military. Earlier on Tuesday, Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., released letters from seven top generals, including Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, opposing a bill that would take decisions on prosecuting major crimes out of commanders' hands.

Read Next: Seven Top Generals Object to Taking Military Prosecutions Out of Commanders' Hands

However, some generals, including Milley, expressed an openness to a limited revamp of the military justice process that only removed decisions on prosecuting sexual assault crimes from commanders.

Austin said that he supports the commission's call to include domestic violence and other special victims crimes in the proposed independent prosecution system, because there is a strong correlation between those crimes and the prevalence of sexual assault.

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Austin said he will soon present specific recommendations to President Biden, but outlined broader points for reform he is backing.

In addition to removing sexual assaults and related crimes from the chain of command, Austin said the military needs to change its approach for preventing sexual assault, command climate, and how victims are supported. He did not detail those changes, but said the commission's recommendations "appear strong and well-grounded."

Austin also said the Pentagon will need new resources, and authorities to enact the commission's recommendations, and that the military's leadership will work with Congress on this.

Recommendations that can already be done with the Pentagon's existing authorities will be given the top priority, he said.

And he praised Defense's civilian and military leadership for supporting the commission, and "the thoughtfulness with which they have advised me" as the department tries to find ways to eliminate sexual assault and harassment.

"As I made clear on my first full day in office, this is a leadership issue," Austin said. "And we will lead. Our people depend on it. They deserve nothing less."

-- Stephen Losey can be reached at stephen.losey@military.com. Follow him on Twitter @StephenLosey.

Related: Army Punishes 15 Leaders, Including 2-Star General, Over Botched SHARP Program
The Joint Chiefs of Staff on Tuesday came out against Sen. Kristen Gillibrand's proposal to take the decision to prosecute major crimes out of the hands of commanders, jeopardizing the chance of passing major changes to the military criminal justice system.

In letters released by Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., seven top generals outlined their concerns with the Military Justice Improvement and Increasing Prevention Act, and said it could hurt the military's ability to maintain order and discipline in the ranks without improving how the services prosecute serious crimes.

The generals who submitted letters included Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley; Army Chief of Staff Gen. James McConville; Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown; Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday; Marine Corps Commandant Gen. David Berger; Chief of Space Operations Gen. John "Jay" Raymond; and Chief of the National Guard Bureau Gen. Daniel Hokanson.

However, some of the joint chiefs, Milley said, indicated they were open to removing the decision to prosecute sexual assault crimes from commanders.

Read Next: Cash-Strapped National Guard Warns It Will Be Forced to Cancel Training, Ground Aircraft

In a release, Gillibrand, D-N.Y., said that the letters were "disappointing, but not surprising," and urged Congress and the administration to act to reform the military justice system.

"From racially integrating the armed forces to enabling women to serve in combat to allowing LGBTQ service members to serve openly, the chain of command has always fought to protect the status quo, just as they are doing here," Gillibrand said. "Their arguments are recycled talking points from the battles for progress in the past and are void of any coherent argument beyond the disingenuous 'good order and discipline.'"

But while Gillibrand touted the bill's broad range of bipartisan support -- she said it is backed by 66 senators, including 21 Republicans and two independents -- she said it is being blocked by Sens. Jack Reed, D-R.I., and Inhofe.

Inhofe said in his release that the Joint Chiefs' views on the bill, and whether it would truly reduce sexual assaults or other crimes in the military or have unintended consequences, "were, across the board, not reassuring."

Inhofe said the bill would not provide enough time or money to enact these proposed changes, leaving just six months to overhaul the military justice system and not providing any resources or additional personnel to get it done.

In his letter, Milley said that removing commanders from prosecution decisions "may have an adverse effect on readiness, mission accomplishment, good order and discipline, justice, unit cohesion, trust and loyalty between commanders and those they lead."

Milley said that any changes to commander authority should be narrowly drawn and "limited only to sexual assault and related offenses."

"It is my belief we have not made sufficient progress in recent years to eliminate sexual assault, and we have consequently lost the trust and confidence of many soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and Guardians in the chain of command's ability to adjudicate these serious crimes," Milley said.

McConville also recommended that removing commanders' prosecution authorities should only apply to rape and sexual assault offenses under Article 120 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. And he advised these changes be tested on a trial basis over a three-year period.

Brown also said in his letter that, if commanders' prosecution authority is removed, it should be limited to just sexual assault and harassment.

-- Stephen Losey can be reached at stephen.losey@military.com. Follow him on Twitter @StephenLosey.

Related: Military Leaders Wary of Changes in Sexual Assault Policy
The U.S. Air Force believes it can sustain and upgrade 92 of its oldest C-130 military transport aircraft even as it aims to downsize the overall Hercules fleet over the next few years, according to top brass.

During a Senate Armed Services Airland subcommittee hearing Tuesday, the Air Force reiterated budget plans to reduce its C-130 fleet to 255 aircraft in the near future from about 300 currently.

Of those 255, 163 would be newer J-models the service already has or are on order from Lockheed Martin Corp., said Lt. Gen. David Nahom, deputy chief of staff for plans and programs, adding that 92 older H models would receive necessary modifications to keep them viable. He first disclosed these figures at a House Armed Services Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces hearing earlier this month.

Read Next: Seven Top Generals Object to Taking Military Prosecutions Out of Commanders' Hands

"To get to 255 is a stretch goal. That's if we can get that with mutually agreeable replace missions," Nahom said. He was referring to state National Guard and Reserve units that fly C-130s someday transitioning to a new mission. Nearly half of the service's current C-130 aircraft, or 149, are flown by the Guard, according to an Air National Guard fact sheet.

"And we may not get there. We understand that, but we believe that 163 is a good number," Nahom said. J-models typically have new engines and better propellers; they also have more lift capability, can fly faster and have a longer range.

The service also maintains some special mission C-130s -- such as EC-130 airborne communications jamming aircraft and the LC-130 "Skibird," which can land on ice and snow for Antarctic missions. It was not immediately clear how these aircraft would be affected by the potential fleet downsizing. However, in its fiscal 2022 budget request, the Air Force is already looking to mothball 20 of the oldest C-130 Hercules transport H-models, which includes two EC-130H and five MC-130H special operations aircraft.

As the service brings in new C-130J models, it will incur additional costs to sustain those aircraft in the future, Nahom said. "That comes obviously at an added cost to what we can do with that money for other areas that we're frankly carrying greater risks than on the C-130," he added.

The C-130 serves as the airlift workhorse for supply missions around the world, largely due to its tactical advantage: Much more flexible and agile than its larger cousin, the C-17 Globemaster III, the C-130 can carry approximately 45,000 pounds and airdrop loads up to 42,000 pounds.

C-130s also have been reconfigured for crucial missions stateside, such as the Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System to battle wildfires; the Modular Aerial Spray System aircraft to spray for pests such as mosquitoes; and the WC-130 "Hurricane Hunter" aircraft for weather reconnaissance.

Last month, Lt. Gen. S. Clinton Hinote, the Air Force's deputy chief of staff for strategy, integration and requirements, said lumbering C-130s might be vulnerable as they deliver supplies or transport personnel during a near-peer conflict.

Instead, the Air Force should look to more innovative solutions, such as a high-speed vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, he told Military.com in an interview. He made similar comments during the seapower and projection forces hearing earlier this month.

"[The] C-130 capability is not well-suited to address this risk," Hinote said during that panel. "That's why we feel we need to retire a certain number of the older C-130s, while addressing this airlift risk in new ways, with new capabilities."

In May, Army Gen. Daniel R. Hokanson, head of the National Guard Bureau, told lawmakers he's against sizable C-130 cuts just for the stateside missions alone.

The Guard must "retain every single one of those flying squadrons because of what they bring for our nation," he said during a May 4 House Appropriations Defense subcommittee hearing.

Senators haven't jumped to support a potential cut, nor have they been quick to back high-speed vertical takeoff and landing aircraft or other innovative solutions as a trade-off for more modernized equipment.

Instead, Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, both Illinois Democrats, have urged the Senate Appropriations Committee to support the procurement of extra C-130Js, known as the Super Hercules, for the Air National Guard.

"We support strong funding for the quick modernization of all Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve C-130H aircraft that are not recapitalized with the newer C-130J models," they said in a June 4 letter to the committee with nine other signatories.

The service has asked for five new C-130Js this budget cycle. Durbin and Duckworth want "at least eight additional" aircraft, according to the letter.

"Such robust funding will help our brave service members have the best, newest equipment to provide for their safety, as well as our vital airlift capability and national security needs," they wrote.

-- Oriana Pawlyk can be reached at oriana.pawlyk@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @oriana0214.

Related: Air Force Returns C-130s to Flight After Safety Inspections
SAN DIEGO  In the chaotic, final hours of the Vietnam War, the U.S. evacuated thousands of South Vietnamese who supported the American mission and were at risk under the communist government.

As U.S. and NATO forces prepare to depart Afghanistan by Sept. 11, many are recalling that desperate, hasty exodus as they urge the Biden administration to evacuate thousands of Afghans who worked as interpreters or otherwise helped U.S. military operations there in the past two decades.

Despite unusual bipartisan support in Congress, the administration hasn't agreed to such a move, declining to publicly support something that could undermine security in the country as it unwinds a war that started after the 9/11 attacks.

We have a moral obligation to protect our brave allies who put their lives on the line for us, and weve been working for months to engage the administration and make sure theres a plan, with few concrete results, Republican Rep. Peter Meijer of Michigan said during a House hearing last week.

Lawmakers have urged the administration to consider temporarily relocating Afghans who worked for American or NATO forces to a safe overseas location while their U.S. visas are processed. Some have suggested Guam, a U.S. territory that served a similar purpose after the Vietnam War. Kurdish refugees also were flown to the Pacific island in 1996 after the Gulf War.

Guam's governor recently wrote to President Joe Biden to say the territory was ready to help if needed.

The Biden administration for now is focusing on accelerating a special visa program for Afghans who helped U.S. operations and pouring resources into relieving the backlog.

We are processing and getting people out at a record pace, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday. We are working with Congress right now to streamline some of the requirements that slow this process down and were doing the kind of extensive planning for potential evacuation, should that become necessary.

Zalmay Khalilzad, the State Departments special representative for Afghanistan reconstruction, warned lawmakers in May that the departure of all educated Afghans" would "signal panic" and hurt the morale of the country's security forces.

This is a delicate, complicated balance that we have to keep," Khalilzad said.

Democratic Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado recently introduced legislation that would nearly double the number of visas available this year, to 8,000, and ease eligibility requirements.

But he said congressional action will not be quick enough or sufficient.

Even if the legislation passed immediately, the number of visas would fall far short of the estimated 18,000 Afghans waiting to be processed. That figure does not include their spouses and children, who would bring the total to about 70,000 people.

And the average wait is more than three years. The process has been also hampered by the coronavirus pandemic, which led the U.S. embassy in Afghanistan to suspend visa interviews.

Crow, a former Army Ranger who served in Afghanistan, said he prefers the government evacuate our Afghan partners to a temporary evacuation site where we can safely conduct robust visa processing without threat to applicants safety by the Taliban.

In a statement this month, the Taliban vowed not to attack those who worked for Western interests, urging Afghans to remain at home and warning their ranks against revenge killings.

Still, many Afghans are desperate for a visa, fearing violence not only from the Taliban but heavily armed warlords allied with the U.S. and seeing now as their last chance to leave Afghanistan.

The American withdrawal began May 1, when the number of U.S. troops was between 2,500 and 3,500, and could be completed by July 4. Some 7,000 NATO forces are set to leave by Sept. 11.

Independent Sen. Angus King of Maine said the government needs to find a creative approach to helping Afghans who worked with the U.S. military. That could include sending more people from the State Department or the military to process visas in Afghanistan or evacuating people to a safe place to be vetted.

Its not only a moral issue, its a national security issue, said King, who sits on both the Intelligence and Armed Services committees, adding that we also have a practical responsibility, in terms of do we want people to help us in the future?

More than 300 interpreters have been killed in Afghanistan since 2016, according to No One Left Behind, an organization that advocates on their behalf.

Former Army Maj. Matt Zeller said a military evacuation is the only viable option for thousands of Afghans facing threats who have been protected by the presence of U.S. troops.

Im only alive because my Afghan, Muslim translator saved my life by killing two Taliban fighters who were about to kill me in a battle," said Zeller, whose interpreter waited three years for a visa.

The U.S. government should have learned from what happened in Vietnam, said Jim Jones, a Vietnam veteran and former Idaho Supreme Court chief justice.

Initially fearing a mass evacuation would undermine the South Vietnamese military, the U.S. watched for weeks as the North Vietnamese Army overtook South Vietnam before starting to fly out Americans and allies. The effort ended with the largest helicopter evacuation in history in the final hours of the war.

In less than 24 hours, Marine helicopters airlifted about 7,000 U.S. military personnel, South Vietnamese who supported the American mission and their dependents.

Many South Vietnamese soldiers and government officials left behind were killed or held in reeducation" camps. They included troops who had helped Jones stay alive as an Army artillery officer.

We had a moral obligation to extract as many as possible but, instead, we abandoned them to a horrific fate, Jones wrote in the Military Times. We simply cannot allow that kind of tragedy to happen again with the Afghans. I pray that this great nation does not again turn its back on beleaguered people who placed their trust in us.

Pentagon leaders say they are ready to help in any way they can and downplayed concerns that history will repeat itself.

I dont see Saigon 1975 in Afghanistan," Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, recently told lawmakers.

___

Fox reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Lolita C. Baldor and Joshua Boak in Washington and Kathy Gannon in Kabul, Afghanistan, contributed to this report.
MOSCOW  A Russian warship fired warning shots and a Russian warplane dropped bombs Wednesday to force a British destroyer away from an area in the Black Sea near Crimea that Russia claims as its territorial waters.

The incident marked the first time since the Cold War that Moscow has used live ammunition to deter a NATO warship, reflecting growing risks of military incidents amid soaring Russia-West tensions.

The Russian Defense Ministry said the Russian warship fired warning shots after the British missile destroyer Defender had ignored a notice against intrusion in Russias territorial waters. It said that a Russian Su-24 bomber also dropped four bombs ahead of the British ship to persuade it to change course. Minutes later, the British warship left the Russian waters, the ministry said.

The Russian Defense Ministry said it has summoned the U.K. military attache in Moscow to protest the British destroyers maneuver.

The U.K. Ministry of Defense said it was aware of the reports but had no immediate comment.

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HMS Defender, a Type 45 destroyer, is part of the U.K. Carrier Strike Group currently heading to the Indo-Pacific region. However, it was announced earlier this month that it would be temporarily breaking away from the group to carry out its own set of missions in the Black Sea.

Russia annexed Ukraines Crimean Peninsula in 2014, a move that was not recognized by most countries in the world, gaining access to the peninsula's long Black Sea coastline. Russia has frequently chafed at NATO warships visits near Crimea, casting them as destabilizing.

NATO members Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria all are on the Black Sea, but warships from the U.S., U.K. and other NATO allies also have made increasingly frequent visits there in a show of support for Ukraine.

Speaking Wednesday just before the incident, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, the chief of the General Staff of the Russian armed forces, sharply criticized the deployments of NATO warships near Russian waters.

The moves by warships of the U.S. and its allies have been clearly provocative, Gerasimov said at an international security conference in Moscow organized by the Russian Defense Ministry. It creates preconditions for incidents and doesn't help ease tensions in the military sphere.

He charged that the British destroyer Dragon intruded into the Russian waters near Crimea in October, and the U.S. destroyer John McCain violated the Russian border in the Sea of Japan in November.

In April, Russia imposed restrictions on foreign navy ships' movements near Crimea until November in a move that drew strong complaints from Ukraine and the West. Russia has rejected that criticism and noted that the restrictions wouldnt interfere with commercial shipping.

Earlier this year, Russia also beefed up its troops near the border with Ukraine and warned Ukrainian authorities against using force to reclaim control of the country's east, where a conflict with Russia-backed separatists has killed more than 14,000 people in seven years. Moscow withdrew some of its forces after sweeping maneuvers, but Ukrainian officials say that the bulk of them have remained.

___

Associated Press writer Jill Lawless in London contributed to this report.
Russian ships recently practiced destroying a "carrier strike group of a mock enemy" off the coast of Hawaii, according to a statement from the country's ministry of defense. The exercises come at the same time as the U.S. aircraft carrier Carl Vinson and ships from its carrier strike group are operating in the area.

According to the Russian Ministry of Defence, as many as 20 surface warships, submarines and support vessels were involved in the exercises, including the flagship of Russia's Pacific Fleet, the Slava-class cruiser Varyag, Udaloy-class destroyer Marshal Shaposhnikov, and Steregushchiy-class corvettes Hero of the Russian Federation Aldar Tsydenzhapov, Gromky and Sovershenniy.

The Russian statement noted that the exercise is the first of its kind "in the recent history of the Pacific Fleet in the central part of the Pacific Ocean."

Read Next: Air Force Plans to Cut 45 Planes from Its Workhorse C-130 Fleet, Upgrade Others

The ships were split into two groups, 300 miles apart, with one playing the role of the enemy. They then "figured out how to detect, counter, and deliver missile strikes against an aircraft carrier strike group of a mock enemy," according to the Russian statement.

The Russians say that their exercises occurred about 2,500 miles southeast of the Kuril Ridge islands. That places the fleet near the Hawaiian islands.

Although the ministry of defence does not give a specific date for the exercises, the statement about the conclusion of the exercises came on June 21. An earlier statement from the Russian state news agency, TASS, reported that a Pacific Fleet flotilla of the same size had "started accomplishing tasks today under the scenario of tactical maneuvers" on June 13.

On June 17, the commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet announced that the Carl Vinson and five destroyers assigned to Carrier Strike Group 1 had begun operating around Hawaii.

"Operating in Hawaii provides unique opportunities for Vinson to train jointly while positioned to respond if called," Vice Adm. Steve Koehler, commander of the U.S. 3rd Fleet, said in the statement.

The Navy also noted that the Vinson was recently upgraded to support the new F-35C Lightning II fighter -- the first aircraft carrier to have that ability.

Military.com has reached out to the commanders of Pacific Fleet and 3rd Fleet to ask if this deployment was in response to the exercises but did not receive a response.

The Russian military said that its fleet also was supported by Tu-142 aircraft.

The Tu-142 is a derivative of the Tu-95 strategic "Bear" bomber, with specialized equipment to conduct undersea surveillance.

The Honolulu Star Advertiser reported that a pair of F-22 Raptors was launched June 18 to investigate "Russian 'Bear' bombers headed for the second time toward Hawaii as part of an ongoing Russian naval and air exercise several hundred miles west of the Aloha State."

The exercise comes as the U.S. Navy anticipates more competition with Russia in the Arctic and the Atlantic and Russian interactions with U.S. aircraft persist.

The Navy's 6th Fleet also announced it will participate in annual exercises in the Black Sea with Ukraine and other allies starting July 28. These plans drew a rebuke from the Russian embassy on Twitter, which called them "in no way match[ing] the real security needs in the Black Sea region" and "increas[ing] risks of unintended incidents."

-- Konstantin Toropin can be reached at konstantin.toropin@monster.com.

Related: Russia Fires Warning Shots to Deter UK Warship in Black Sea
Retired Lt. Col. Thomas Edward Lasser spent seven years on active duty with the U.S. Army and another 33 years with the California National Guard, including 30 years on full-time status with the California Military Department. A Vietnam veteran, he is a master Army aviator with more than 6,000 flying hours, including over 1,000 helicopter missions in Vietnam and almost 1,800 combat flying hours.

Clear, concise decision-making. That's what American citizens -- and U.S. allies -- expect from our government leaders. Unfortunately, that isn't what we're getting, specifically regarding defense programs and the future of global military engagement.

The U.S. Army has a long record of success and a reputation for getting things done. However, it is standing still on the crucial CH-47 Chinook helicopter program at a moment when it's imperative to move forward. This program brings a lot to the table regarding quality, capability and economic opportunity. It's necessary for U.S., allied military operations, civilian missions and America's manufacturing sector. If the Army continues to hedge, the Chinook program will shut its doors, leaving our military and manufacturers empty-handed.

Since the 1960s, American soldiers have relied on the Chinook. I flew the helicopter during the Vietnam War and in the California National Guard; since then, it has only improved. The newest model -- the Chinook Block II -- increased the payload to more than 1,700 pounds. It has greater agility and avionics, and can fly higher and farther in extreme weather. It's also the only Army aircraft that can transport a Joint Light Tactical Vehicle, or JLTV, and the M777ER Howitzer.

The Chinook program has a reliable supply chain that employs tens of thousands of Americans, supports hundreds of businesses, and pumps millions of dollars into the economy. It also is an essential tool for National Guard and civilian missions, including natural disasters, firefighting, humanitarian aid and search-and-rescue operations. The Chinook is so capable and dependable that U.S. Special Forces are already slated to receive the upgraded Block II model for our nation's most challenging military missions. Unfortunately, the number of Block II Chinooks destined for America's most elite fighters is not enough to keep the program going.

Weighing cost versus benefits is essential, especially when millions of dollars are involved. I don't fault the Army for its careful consideration, but the Chinook program has proven its worth. It's time for the service to commit. Army leadership generically supports the Chinook, yet asks Congress to divert funding allocated for the program to other priorities. These mixed messages are hurting military efforts, discouraging our foreign allies, leaving workers out to dry, and pulling a fast one on taxpayers. These actions do not align with the Army I served in for most of my life.

Importantly, the service has invested a substantial amount of taxpayer dollars into the research, development and operation of JLTVs and Howitzers. If neither can be transported to where they need to be, they're useless. Without clear buy-in from the Army, our allies overseas won't invest in the Chinook program either. That means the capabilities America would lose without the Chinook will also impact allied operations. This could complicate existing overseas missions.

The uncertain future of the Chinook program leaves supplier companies wondering whether they'll be able to keep their doors open and their workers employed. It's also concerning that the Army has no alternative rotorcraft to replace the Chinook should its production line be shut down.

This situation doesn't make much sense, and the Army hasn't shown much desire to clear it up. The longer this continues, the worse it will be for national defense and an important segment of American manufacturing. I was inspired to join the Army out of patriotism, respect for the institution, and my belief in the service's leadership. My desire is to have leadership listen to the field and sustain this capability for us and our international partners.

The Army has to live up to its commitments and have straightforward conversations about its intentions for the Chinook program. It has been a steadfast, cost-effective, and successful platform for the service, and the upgraded Block II model will only improve the program's impeccable track record.

The Army needs to move forward with the upgraded Block II across the service, not just Special Forces. If the service wants to remain a world leader, it requires a world-class helicopter. There is no replacement for the CH-47.

-- The opinions expressed in this op-ed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Military.com. If you would like to submit your own commentary, please send your article to opinions@military.com for consideration.
Retired Marine Gen. James Mattis is a legend in the military. Revered by Marines and non-Marines alike, Mattis has taken on the persona of a modern-day Patton  having the knowledge and insight to lead his Marines through combat, while standing behind them and taking the heat if things go bad. In short, Mattis is a hell of a leader.

In 2013 while serving as commander of Central Command in Tampa, Fla., Mattis retired after four decades of service. Since then, hes been teaching at Stanford and Dartmouth, as well as speaking across the country on leadership. Hes also working on a book with author Bing West.

We looked back at some of the best insights he offered, through a great collection of quotes. Most apply strictly to military service, but some can be just as useful in the corporate boardroom.

You cannot allow any of your people to avoid the brutal facts. If they start living in a dream world, its going to be bad.

The dream world Mattis is talking about is one of denial and complacency  a mood in combat that can get you killed. And in corporate America, it can get you wiped out by the competition.

Then-Lt. Gen. Jim Mattis, head of Marine Central Command, visits with members of 1st Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 2, in Baghdadi, Iraq, on July 27, 2007. Marine Corps photo

If in order to kill the enemy you have to kill an innocent, dont take the shot. Dont create more enemies than you take out by some immoral act.

Mattis, who co-wrote the manual for Counterinsurgency with Gen. David Petraeus, knows well that troops cannot win over the population to their side if they are killing the wrong people. His advice here to soldiers and Marines is spot on.

I dont lose any sleep at night over the potential for failure. I cannot even spell the word.

Of course he can spell it but thats not the point. Mattis wants to impress upon his troops that failure should not be an option.

Marine Corps Gen. James Mattis with Air Force Col. James Jacobson, during an April 2012 visit to Kyrgyzstan, when Mattis led the U.S. Central Command. (Air Force photo/Angela Ruiz)

Be polite, be professional, but have a plan to kill everybody you meet.

Before his Marines deployed to Iraq in 2003, he told them this (along with many other great pieces of advice in a now-famous letter). His point here is to be a professional warfighter who can be polite with civilians, but always remember that if things go south, the dirty work needs to get done.

The first time you blow someone away is not an insignificant event. That said, there are some shheads in the world that just need to be shot. There are hunters and there are victims. By your discipline, you will decide if you are a hunter or a victim.

Recalling the mentality of the wolf, the sheep, and the sheepdog, Mattis understands that there is evil in the world. Its important for his men to be prepared for whether they will be the hunter or the victim if they ever face it.

There are some people who think you have to hate them in order to shoot them. I dont think you do. Its just business.

One of his more controversial quotes, to be sure. But in Mattis view, to be a professional, you need to have a professional mindset. Its not really necessary to get emotional about what you have to do. It just needs to get done.

Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, right, laughs with General James Mattis at McDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Fla., on March 22, 2013. (DoD photo/Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo)

You can overcome wrong technology. Your people have the initiative, they see the problem, no big dealyou cant overcome bad culture. Youve gotta change whoever is in charge.

In a talk at Stanford, Mattis was relating how toxic culture can bring down an organization that has everything else right. The culture of an organization comes from the top, and if that part is screwed up, there are going to be problems.

The most important six inches on the battlefield is between your ears.

Mattis doesnt want robots just mindlessly following his orders. As a leader, he gives broad guidance and lets his men use their own brains to decide how it gets accomplished.

Then-Lt. Gen. Jim Mattis, head of U.S. Marine Forces Central Command and 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, speaks with Marines from Security Platoon, Headquarters and Support Company, 1st Marine Logistics Group (Forward), during a visit to Camp Taqaddum, Iraq, on Dec. 9, 2006. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Corporal Ryan L. Tomlinson)

Find the enemy that wants to end this experiment (in American democracy) and kill every one of them until theyre so sick of the killing that they leave us and our freedoms intact.

Amen.

In this age, I dont care how tactically or operationally brilliant you are, if you cannot create harmony  even vicious harmony  on the battlefield based on trust across service lines, across coalition and national lines, and across civilian/military lines, you need to go home, because your leadership is obsolete. We have got to have officers who can create harmony across all those lines.

Mattis implores his officers to not get stuck in their own little boxes. Learning how to be brilliant on the battlefield is important, but its more important to be able to work with others to get the job done.

U.S. Marine Corps Gen. James F. Amos, left, the commandant of the Marine Corps, and his wife, Bonnie, right, pose for a photo with Gen. James N. Mattis, the commander of U.S. Central Command, at the Camp Bastion airfield in Helmand province, Afghanistan, during a holiday visit Dec. 25, 2012. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Mallory S. VanderSchans/Released)

PowerPoint makes us stupid.

Military officers endure (and have to create) tons of PowerPoint briefings to inform their chain of command whats going on. Mattis however, is not one of those officers. He actually banned PowerPoint since he saw it as a waste of time.

You are part of the worlds most feared and trusted force. Engage your brain before you engage your weapon.

Mattis wants his Marines to always be thinking before they take the shot. Its advice that has no doubt saved lives.

An untrained or uneducated Marine  deployed to the combat zone is a bigger threat to mission accomplishment  than the enemy.

The biggest detriment to mission accomplishment is not from the competition, but from within. Having the right mindset and skills is what results in getting results.

General James Mattis, left, commanding general, U.S. Central Command, serves Christmas dinner to servicemembers aboard Camp Leatherneck, Afghanistan, with Gen. John R. Allen, second from left, commanding general, International Security Assistance Force, Gen. James F. Amos, right, commandant of the Marine Corps and his wife Bonnie, Dec. 25, 2012. The leaders visited Marines serving in Afghanistan during the holiday season. (Photo by Cpl. Timothy Lenzo/Regional Command Southwest)

No war is over until the enemy says its over. We may think it over, we may declare it over, but in fact, the enemy gets a vote.

Combat doesnt happen in a vacuum. All the planning, meetings, and briefings on what potentially can happen in a given situation are good, but the bad guys will always react in uncertain ways. The key is to be prepared for anything.

Be the hunter, not the hunted: Never allow your unit to be caught with its guard down.

Just because you are at the top of your game doesnt mean someone wont come along to knock you down. Units (and individuals) need to be vigilant and make sure that doesnt happen.

The 35th Commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. James F. Amos, left, greets Gen. James N. Mattis during a retirement reception in honor of Mattis and Gen. John R. Allen, not shown, at the Home of the Commandants in Washington, D.C., April 4, 2013. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Tia Dufour/Released)

Ultimately, a real understanding of history means that we face NOTHING new under the sun.

Mattis is an avid reader. On all his deployments, the general brought along a ton of books that he thought may help him along the way. In an email that went viral (via Business Insider) on the importance of reading, Mattis wrote that it doesnt give me all the answers, but it lights what is often a dark path ahead.

Youve been told that youre broken. That youre damaged goodsthere is also Post-Traumatic Growth. You come back from war stronger and more sure of who you are.

While giving a speech to veterans in San Francisco, Mattis tried to dispel the mindset that those leaving the service should be pitied. Instead, he told them, use your experiences as a positive that teaches you to be a better person.

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Deployments are tough on military Families, especially children.

Separation can take its toll on youth of all ages, and experts agree that parents should take steps to help their children cope during this difficult time.

"Many times we forget the kids, that they go through the same emotions, fears and concerns as we do," said Simone Hartley of the U.S. Army Garrison Grafenwoehr Army Community Service Family Advocacy Program.

Robin Kelley, the program's program manager, said parents and caregivers should "start preparing the child as soon as you know about an upcoming deployment."

Such groundwork should involve the entire Family, with parents talking individually with each child.

"Children often pick up on subtle emotional changes in their parents, and if they become aware that their mother or father is behaving differently, they may personalize it and believe they are the cause," added Navy Capt. Daphne Brown, a clinical psychologist at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany. "They need to understand, in concrete terms they can grasp, what is happening and why."

But this crucial communication should not be a one-time event, Ms. Kelley stressed, adding that parents should use every opportunity to prepare each child according to his or her age and their level of understanding."

Additionally, Ms. Kelley said it is important for a Soldier-parent to spend time separately with each child prior to deployment because "it is about respecting your child as an individual, who needs your undivided attention."

Reinforcing that notion, Capt. Brown said, "Spending time individually is very important because it establishes connections."

She said children often experience the same emotions as parents prior and during deployments, but "they just show it in different ways, often through behavior."

Pre-school children, for example, may exhibit regressive behavior, such as bedwetting, and a desire to sleep in the same bed with parents. Children in this age group, Capt. Brown said, do not have a total grasp of time and they simply "do not understand what it means that daddy is going away for a long time."

Another common deployment characteristic for pre-school children is egocentrism.

"Kids are very egocentric," Capt. Brown said, explaining that they often think that if a parent is leaving, they have probably done something wrong.

And pre-school kids experience what Ms. Kelley called non-reality "magical thinking," believing that if they wish or pray for something to happen, it will come to pass.

Another common pre-deployment reaction of that age group is feelings of rejection by the deploying parent. I don't love you can be heard often from the children, Ms. Kelley said. "This is where the parent should react with 'I know that you are angry but it is okay, I still love you.'"

Common pre-deployment behavior for school-age children includes difficulty concentrating, difficulty sleeping, anxiety, resentfulness and denial, according to Elizabeth Hill, an adolescent substance abuse counselor for Grafenwoehr's middle school.

"Anger is also a primary reaction that consists of fear and hurt," Ms. Hill said.

Plus children may become irritable, or even withdraw from their parents and friends.

"Some children develop physical problems, such as stomach pains and headaches, while others cling to the parents more closely," Capt. Brown noted, adding it is not uncommon for school-age children to also exhibit regressive behavior and "become more clingy or whiny."

And though teenagers are more mature, they are just as likely to exhibit pre-deployment stress. Common behaviors for teenagers: depression, problems sleeping, missing curfew and cursing.

"It is like they are thinking if I am bad, my dad cannot go," Ms. Kelley said.

"Sometimes teenagers have difficulty saying they are scared for deployed parents," she pointed out, noting that teenagers can also suddenly begin to avoid a parent who is leaving.

Regardless of the different age groups and behaviors, military child experts agree on one matter - the diverse behavior of children of deploying parents is normal.

"Whenever there is a noticeable change in a child's behavior that appears to be more negative or immature, you should consider ... that the child is struggling because of the upcoming deployment," said Capt. Brown said.

When parents see such emotions, Ms. Hill suggests they listen to the child with an open mind, keeping the lines of communication flowing; it helps children to deal with changes and to restore predictability.

"Children need a great deal of routine and predictability," Capt. Brown said. "Certainly a parent leaving the household disturbs both of those factors. Behavioral problems are far more likely to be resolved if children do not have the extra anxiety of wondering what is going to happen next in their world."

Another key to helping children cope with deployments, she suggested, is "reassuring them of your love."

Capt. Brown called children, ages 8 to 10, as very egocentric as well, meaning they see many events in their world occurring because of their actions. Reassuring young ones that they are loved, she said, can help to eliminate the misperception that the parent left because the children were bad, are unlovable, or somehow did something wrong.

However, Ms. Kelley cautioned, "Reassuring the kids that they are loved and reassuring them that you are coming back are two very different things; never make a false promise to a child."

"You should be honest with the child that there is risk - but at a level the child can understand," Capt. Brown agreed. While a teenager can comprehend that the deploying parent may face dangers, younger children cannot process that information.

Ms. Kelley said parents should explain this in an age-appropriate manner: "If the kid is 6 years old, you do not give them statistics."

The best way to phrase it, experts concur, without making a false promise to the child, is reassuring them that the parent is well-prepared for his job, that all Soldiers work together as a team to keep each other safe, and that the parent will do everything possible to return home safely.

"One should definitely be honest while focusing on the positive perspectives that can provide reassurance," Capt. Brown said.
WASHINGTON -- Army Maj. Marc Bailey and his wife, Sallie, never thought theyd have to wait this long or spend this much to have a baby.

As of June, the couple had spent three agonizing years and $35,000 unsuccessfully trying to get pregnant. The effort has nearly exhausted their retirement savings and their patience.

This is hands down the worst thing weve ever been through, Sallie said. When you start having fertility problems, it consumes your life.

Since 2009, the couple has gone through seven failed fertility treatments, including three expensive in vitro fertilization cycles. Each one cost thousands of dollars and required months of medications, doctor visits and stressful waits. Each took an enormous emotional toll.

Each left them a little less hopeful.

Were young enough that we should not have had these problems, Marc said. The first treatment should have been enough. ... We expected each treatment to solve our problems.

About one in 10 couples under 45 in the United States struggle with infertility, according to statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Dealing with it can be time-consuming and heartbreaking. For military couples, the demands of service add an extra level of complication.

The Baileys have moved through three duty stations since they were married in 2007 and consulted with doctors in four states. Several times, new treatments had to be delayed because of Marcs deployments and out-of-state assignments.

Each obstacle meant more delays, more waiting.

Even after three years of heartbreak and frustration, they werent ready to give up. In June, they decided to try one more clinic, one last treatment, one final attempt.

After this, I dont think there will be any money left to try again, Sallie said.

***

Military couples interviewed said much of their motivation to talk about their struggles was to break the taboo surrounding infertility and dispel the myth that the assisted pregnancy procedures are more about convenience than need.

A lot of insurance companies still compare those procedures to cosmetic surgery, said Barbara Collura, executive director of the national infertility association Resolve. Its not something that people understand, even though the World Health Organization classifies infertility as a disease.

Part of the silence surrounding infertility comes from religious objections to the in vitro fertilization procedure, which involves manually combining an egg and sperm in a controlled laboratory environment and -- if successful -- transferring the resulting embryos into a womans uterus. The Catholic Church and a number of conservative Christian denominations consider the procedure immoral.

Part of the reluctance to talk about infertility comes from the frustration of multiple failed attempts, and from embarrassment.

Sallie said much of the problem comes from a lack of knowledge among families whove never had to deal with infertility.

Ive had family ask why I dont just be patient, or go to adoption, she said. A lot of people just see it as an elective thing. Its not.

And struggling with infertility as a military spouse is a special kind of hell. Many of the Army wives Ive met seem to have no idea how to relate to me because Im not a mom."

***

Sallie and Marc said their inability to get pregnant has taken a permanent emotional toll.

I think I put on a good show, but its hard, Sallie said. Ive been through self-esteem counseling and been put on antidepressants. I think were stronger as a couple, but this is a huge, horrible thing.

Marc said he has tried to be the calmer one, since Sallie has to endure the trauma that comes with every new clinic visit, whether hes there or not.

I can handle the stress of combat much easier than I can seeing what Sallie goes through, he said. I try to be there for her, but I feel inadequate in helping to shoulder the burden of all the medical procedures, physical discomfort and loss of dignity.

The couple met at graduate school in Missouri. He was stationed at Fort Leonard Wood, living as a civilian for a semester to finish a masters degree. Both were studying environmental engineering and started pairing up on assignments.

Their romance was interrupted by Marcs yearlong deployment to Honduras a few months later. They did the best they could to keep in touch through email and sporadic phone conversations.

Ill never forget when he sent me a picture  showing him and a few friends visiting a local orphanage and handing out candy, she said. To see him with those adorable children melted my heart.

After Honduras, Marc deployed to Iraq for a year. The couple decided to call it quits, but that didnt stick. Within weeks of his returning home, they started seeing each other again. They talked about starting a family.

Within a few months they were married. Three weeks after that, he deployed to Iraq again.

More delays, more waiting.

***

Hectic schedules and frequent separations have always challenged military newlyweds. In the Baileys case, the demands of military service also put off the discovery of infertility.

We took some time just to be a couple when he came back from Iraq [the second time], she said, but once we started trying [in 2009] it didnt take me long to figure out my body was going to have trouble.

They started consulting with specialists, who put Sallie on a hormone stimulant and recommended timed intercourse to increase their odds. Frustration and fear started to creep into their family planning.

The military makes it worse, Marc said. Most of our married [military] friends have children now. You cant go to a PX or commissary without children everywhere. Posts and units constantly put out programs for families and children.

Sallie got pregnant in late 2010, but miscarried a few weeks later. Marc was out of town on assignment when she realized what had happened. Both were devastated.

They went back to the fertility specialists. Doctor visits had to be scheduled around Army assignments. New treatments had to be scheduled around station moves.

More lost time, more waiting.

A typical fertility treatment can take two or three months, from pre-cycle preparation to the final test results. Time became a more precious commodity with each failed cycle.

In June, just as they were about to start another IVF cycle, the duty-before-family problem surfaced again. Marc was sent to California on a training assignment. Sallie was left behind in Kentucky.

I chose the military and I have a great deal of pride in serving, Marc said, but damned if nothing seems easy with infertility when youre serving.

The latest pregnancy attempt was delayed another month.

More delays, more waiting.

***

When the Baileys started looking into more invasive infertility procedures, the cost of treatment became a major concern.

Under military rules, Defense Health Systems will pay for diagnostic tests, fertility specialists and certain medications, but not for the costs of IVF or other complex pregnancy procedures.

Many civilian insurance companies have a patchwork of coverage for infertility treatments, but few cover all the costs. A single IVF cycle can run $12,000 to $20,000, including medications, medical appointments and lab work.

In recent months, Congress has considered a measure to cover the full cost of treatments for troops or veterans wounded in combat, and another proposal to offer military and civilian families a tax credit of about $13,000 a year for infertility treatments.

Neither measure has advanced far.

The Defense Department offers advanced fertility treatments, including IVF cycles, at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas, Tripler Army Medical Center in Hawaii, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Maryland, Fort Bragg in North Carolina, Naval Medical Center in California, and Madigan Army Medical Center in Washington.

Time on the waiting lists can be up to 12 months, but the facilities provide a great boost for couples who get in.

Susanne Volinski and her Navy lieutenant husband, Walter, went through three IVF cycles at the Fort Bragg clinic before she got pregnant. The total cost for all three cycles was less than $10,000. The total at civilian clinics they had visited would have been more than $30,000.

The military facilities dont have many of the administrative and operating costs of private clinics, and will cut off a cycle at no cost if no healthy embryos develop. Private clinics, with physicians salaries and monthly rent bills to cover, cant always afford the same generosity.

The Volinskis had to cut off cycles prematurely twice in their efforts to find treatments for her damaged fallopian tubes. Their advanced age was a complicating factor. Both were over 35 when they started treatment.

We would never have been able to afford it if not for the military options, she said.

The process wasnt easy. The couple was stationed in Jacksonville, N.C., about a two-hour drive to Fort Bragg. Susanne had to make the trip alone at least once each week for most of their two-month treatment, totaling more than 1,000 miles for multiple trips in the days leading up to the embryo transfers. Id have to leave at 5 a.m. just to get there in time for 7:30 appointments, she said.

Still, they said they were fortunate to get in the program after only a few months on the waiting list following three years of trying to get pregnant.

Theyre trying another cycle at the North Carolina clinic now, hoping for a brother or sister for their 16-month old daughter, Madison.

***

By the end of July, Marc returned to Kentucky and the Baileys finally started their next IVF cycle with a private clinic. Marc said they had looked into the military options, but decided against them.

A major concern for us was the travel and separation for treatment, he said.

They were far from the military clinics  theyve moved from New York to Kansas to Kentucky in the last three years -- and missing duty for elective procedures was a concern.

After the years of failure, the couple was forced to travel anyway. The New Jersey clinic they selected was more than 700 miles away from Fort Knox, but offered some new approaches and cutting-edge research that the military clinics did not.

The bills and the frustration began to pile up.

Marc said he had to fight with Tricare to get reimbursed for basic diagnostic tests, and to get records shifted between the different regional health care systems. It took weeks of phone calls and red tape to get a $1,000 bill covered for blood work.

When Sallie was diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome -- a severe imbalance of female sex hormones -- it was somewhat of a relief.

At least we felt like we were getting answers, she said.

A little more than a week into the new cycle, the Baileys received more bad financial news. Tricare officials told them that even though the costs of fertility medications had been covered in past cycles, they shouldnt have been.

Sallie had to scramble to find $3,800 to continue their latest IVF attempt. They still worry that military health officials might try to revisit past reimbursements.

At the same time, the couple started talking more seriously about using donor eggs or pursuing adoption, but Sallie said that would be admitting defeat.

Im not ready to let go of that genetic link. Im only 32, she said. I want to be a mother to my husbands child.

***

The American Pregnancy Association says about one-third of all women under 35 who go through a single IVF cycle get pregnant. It approaches 90 percent for those who endure multiple cycles, as doctors address hormonal imbalances and identify pregnancy roadblocks.

Its a draining process for the women. Doctors prescribe medications to adjust body chemistry, medications to stimulate egg production, medications to trigger ovulation, medications to help the body accept transferred embryos.

Most have to be taken through injections. Sallie said she has become an expert at giving herself the shots, some of which are required more than once a day during an IVF cycle.

Its tough, but I can psych myself up to get it done, she said.

The only one she hasnt been able to handle without Marcs help is the trigger shot just before the egg extraction, because doctors require that oversize intermuscular injection to go deep into her lower back.

In a cruel twist, the side effects of the treatments -- morning sickness, fatigue, abdominal pain -- can mirror the early aches of pregnancy.

Colluras group runs online support groups for couples struggling with infertility, including military families. They trade tips on medications that have shown promise, warnings about false positives from pregnancy tests, and encouragement after frustrating failures. Those message boards have been invaluable for Sallie.

It helps to know that youre not the only one dealing with this, she said.

***

The Baileys grueling wait ended mid-September.

The cycle failed. There were no embryos to transfer.

Weve had healthy embryos in the past, but this time, there was nothing, Sallie said.

Marc had taken leave to travel to New Jersey for the cycle, and the hotel and travel costs added to their mounting expenses. The latest failure added to their mounting disappointment.

It has just been exhausting for both of us, Sallie said. To travel all the way to New Jersey and not even get a chance ...

They have now spent more than $50,000 on failed fertility treatments. Despite the cost, despite the sadness, the couple has decided to try one more IVF cycle.

Marc says we can afford one more, although Im not really sure I believe him, Sallie said. This really will absolutely have to be our last.

They will have to make arrangements soon -- Marc is expecting to deploy overseas again next year. If he gets the call early, that could mean more delays, and more waiting.

The feeling that time is against us eats at me, he said.
JUNE 28: Fisher has cleared waivers and been sent outright to Nashville, the team announced. The 27-year-old doesnt have the requisite service time to reject an outright assignment. Hell remain in the organization as non-roster depth and attempt to play his way back onto the MLB team before the end of the season.

JUNE 22: The Brewers announced a series of roster moves before tonights game against the Diamondbacks, the most notable of which is the designation of outfielder Derek Fisher. Outfielder Tyrone Taylor was activated from the 10-day injured list, while right-hander Ryan Weber was recalled from Triple-A Nashville. The club selected the contract of righty Miguel Sanchez, placed starter Brett Anderson on the 10-day IL with a right knee contusion and optioned reliever Hoby Milner to Nashville.

Fisher, a supplemental first-round pick by the Astros back in 2014, emerged as one of the more well-regarded position player prospects in the organization. The left-handed hitter long drew praise for his combination of raw power and speed, but there were always lingering questions about his hit tool. Indeed, Fisher has been undone by a lofty 35.4% strikeout rate to this point in his MLB career, contributing to a .195/.285/.378 line over 466 plate appearances at the highest level.

Given his obvious physical gifts, Fisher could draw interest from another club via small trade or waiver claim. The 27-year-old is out of minor league option years, though, so any acquiring club would have to keep him on their active roster or again expose him to DFA limbo.

Sanchez, also 27, is now in line to make his MLB debut. A pure reliever, he didnt appear in affiliated ball until he was 22 years old, but hes performed fairly well over parts of five seasons in the Milwaukee system. Sanchez has a 3.95 ERA across 84 1/3 innings over parts of three seasons at Triple-A, striking out a decent 24.2% of opposing hitters while walking 9.4%.
7:20 pm: Confortos absence is indeed related to contact tracing protocols at Syracuse, the club announced. He has tested negative for COVID-19 and is expected to be reinstated in advance of tomorrow evenings game against the Braves.

5:17 pm: The Mets announced theyve claimed right-hander Robert Stock off waivers from the Cubs. Hes been optioned to Triple-A Syracuse. Infielder Brandon Drury was also optioned, while catcher Patrick Mazeika was recalled.

Chicago just selected Stock to the big league roster last week. Generally a reliever, he made a four-inning spot start last Wednesday that ironically came against his new team. The 31-year-old allowed five runs on six walks while only striking out three, but the Mets were evidently intrigued by their then-opponent. After the Cubs designated him for assignment last weekend, New York put in a claim.

Stock has pitched to a 4.12 ERA with very strong strikeout and walk rates (30.5% and 4.9%, respectively) in Triple-A this year. He can be optioned for the rest of this season, so hell offer the Mets a flexible depth piece on the pitching staff.

Notably, the Mets did not reinstate outfielder Michael Conforto from the IL today. General manager Zack Scott told reporters (including Anthony DiComo of MLB.com) earlier in the day that the All-Star outfielder would return tonight. Notably, the Syracuse Mets, where Conforto had been on a rehab assignment, have since announced theyre dealing with a COVID-19 situation. Its not clear if Conforto not being reinstated is related in any way.
The Rangers announced theyve released veteran reliever Nick Vincent from his minor league contract. Hes now a free agent.

Vincent signed with Texas in March. He has gone on to make fifteen appearances at Triple-A Round Rock, tossing 15 1/3 innings of 4.11 ERA ball with a strong 29.7% strikeout rate and a slightly elevated 9.5% walk rate. Despite that decent performance, Texas has elected to cut Vincent loose rather than give him a major league look.

The 34-year-old righty shouldnt have a hard time finding another opportunity elsewhere. He saw big league action in each season from 2012-20 and has typically been a steady, reliable option in the middle innings. Vincent has a career 3.38 ERA at the big league level, but hes pitched to a 4.43 mark in each of the past two seasons.
While the income tax (I-T) department is still struggling with its newly launched portal, fraudsters are sending emails to taxpayers about the unavailability of the old e-filing portal.

However, this message sent from a Gmail email ID is spam and it is advisable to never open such an email or any file attached or click on any link in the email or the attached file.

Closer investigation reveals that this dangerous email, is being sent from  [email protected]  in the name of 'incometax department'. This is not the official way how the I-T department communicates with taxpayers.

Further, the subject line of this spam mail and the text of the message are completely different. Its subject line says, "New e-filing Portal www.income.tax.gov.in launch on June 22th - existing e-filing portal unavailable from June 22th to June 25th, 2021 Plan your work accordingly."

However, the email plainly says, "Please find attachment with this email for your all important information within documents. Your Acknowledgement is attachment...No further action needed from your end..." More about the PDF file later.

Basically, there is nothing in this message relevant to the subject line and all it insists on is, downloading a PDF file. In the PDF file, there is a link to "Download All PDF files here". This link takes you to a website covin.work, which is nowhere related to I-T department. In fact, it opens a page looking like the Gmail login page.

However, the fraudsters, keen to steal your Gmail credentials, cannot write proper English. For example, here they forgot add 'n' in Learn. "Not your computer? Use Guest mode to sign in privately. Lear More," is what is displayed on this link. Plus, the language used here is English from UK, while Gmail uses US English as default language, unless you had changed it.

The official Gmail page, says, "Not your computer? Use a private browsing window to sign in. Learn more."

Coming back to the PDF file, it appears like just an attempt to deceive the recipient about the 'genuineness' of the mail. The PDF mainly talks about some challan and appears to have copy-pasted the text from an official website without making any effort to format the text.

Basically, this email and all links, files attached with it are fake and aimed to collect personal data or information from taxpayers.

Read: How To Report a Fraudulent Gmail Account ) You can immediately delete the mail. Also since this is a misleading email, you can file a complaint against the Gmail ID from where this mail is sent to Google. (

A few years ago, scamsters used to send what appeared to be an I-T tax payment challan receipt via email. Those emails contained some obvious signals that revealed they were fake, spam or malicious.
The union finance ministry has asked the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) to constitute a seven-member task force to look into the technical issues facing the new income-tax (I-T) e-filing portal developed by Infosys.

In line with the directive, the ICAI has constituted a team to analyse the issues, it said in a statement.

The finance ministry on Tuesday organised a meeting to review the glitches and issues related to the new I-T e-filing portal. The new portal has been facing issues ever since its launch on 7th June.

The meeting was chaired by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman and was attended by minister of state for finance Anurag Thakur, revenue secretary Tarun Bajaj, and CBDT (central board of direct taxes) Chairman Jagannath Mohapatra among others.

"We believe this process will be almost complete in a phased manner and the problems will be resolved on a daily basis. For tax audit report, which is awaited by CAs, utility shall be available by the first week of July," the ICAI statement said.

During the meeting, ICAI was asked to provide its continuous support and inputs to the CBDT and Infosys for resolving the issues as early as possible.

The finance minister exhorted Infosys, the service provider, to work on the tax portal to make it more humane and user-friendly and expressed her deep concern on the various problems being faced by the stakeholders in the new portal, which was expected to provide a seamless experience to the taxpayers, said a statement by the finance ministry.

Ms Sitharaman also asked Infosys to address all the issues without further loss of time, improve its services and redress the grievances on priority as they impact the taxpayers adversely.

Disclaimer: Information, facts or opinions expressed in this news article are presented as sourced from IANS and do not reflect views of Moneylife and hence Moneylife is not responsible or liable for the same. As a source and news provider, IANS is responsible for accuracy, completeness, suitability and validity of any information in this article.
The committee of creditors (CoC) of the beleaguered Dewan Housing Finance Ltd (DHFL) has voted against a proposal that sought to increase payouts to fixed depositors and non-convertible debenture(NCD) holders in the company. A proposal to repay the Rs39 crore claim by the Army Group Insurance Fund in full has also been rejected, as per documents shared in the Smartroom portal. From the copy of the results Moneylife has accessed, an overwhelming 89.19% of the financial creditors have voted against the proposal while a mere 2.96% voted in favour of the proposal and 7.85% abstained from voting. At least 66% of the financial creditors must vote in favour of such a proposal for it to be passed.

The voting on the proposal to raise payout to retail depositors and unsecured NCD-holders ended at 9pm on Tuesday night.

The proposal had sought to increase fixed depositors recovery to 41% from 23% earlier, while in case of unsecured NCD-holders, the proposal recommended the recovery rate be increased from 5% to 41%. The first resolution was rejected since the cumulative votes cast in favour of the resolution by the CoC is less than 66% of the total voting rights as required under Sec 30(4) of IBC (Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016). Surprisingly, the fixed deposit-holders and unsecured NCD-holders have also voted against the proposal which would have given them more money.

From the large secured lenders (banks) only IDBI (with 1.15% voting share) has voted in favour of the proposal while all other large banks (including several public sector banks) have voted against it. Accepting the proposal would have meant that other large creditors would get back lesser money (around 5% difference).

There was another resolution put up for voting which sought to to authorise representatives of State Bank of India, Union Bank of India and Catalyst Trusteeship to act on their behalf for further actions in the DHFL case and including the implementation of Piramal Group's resolution plan for DHFL.

However, strangely, a majority of CoC has cast their votes (81.98%) in favour of this resolution while a mere 7.31% rejected this proposal and 10.71% abstained from voting. The second resolution is approved since the cumulative votes cast in favour of the resolution by the CoC is more than 51% of the total voting rights as required under Sec 21(8) of the Code.

Earlier, Catalyst Trusteeship, the debenture trustee for DHFL NCDs had sought a vote from the NCD holders (from 20th to 22nd June) on both these resolutions from the NCD-holders.

Earlier in January this year, fixed depositors and unsecured NCD-holders had voted against the Piramal group plan, making them dissenting financial creditors in the scheme.

While the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) had earlier this month approved Piramal group's plan to acquire DHFL under IBC, it had requested the creditors to consider increasing the payments to smaller creditors and full repayment of invested money for the Army Group Insurance Fund on compassionate grounds.

In its order, the Tribunal had said small investors should not face more risk than institutions. Considering the number of small investors and senior citizens who had deposited their hard-earned money and who now face a financial crisis due to the pandemic, the resolution plan should provide for an increased share for them, the order said while nudging the CoC.

Accordingly, for this limited purpose, we direct the CoC to reconsider their distribution method amongst various members of the CoC within two weeks from today and report the same to this Adjudicating Authority, the NCLT said in its order.

Experts had pointed out that if the CoC had agreed to give more to the FD-holders, then it could have set a precedent for other insolvency cases in future. The DHFL case has seen many sharp twists and turns in the past one month.

So far, Piramal group has already received regulatory approvals from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Competition Commission of India (CCI) and the NCLT. Piramal group is said to be earnestly involved in the process of implementing the resolution plan, which is expected to be completed by August 2021.
We had mentioned in Tuesdays closing report that Nifty, Sensex may move sideways. On Wednesday, the indices opened higher but ended lower with minor losses. On the NSE, there were 780 advances, 1,193 declines and 63 unchanged.

The trend of the major indices on Wednesdays trading are given in the table below:

The Enforcement Directorate has handed over assets worth Rs 9,371 crore belonging to fugitive businessmen Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi to state-run banks to realise the losses on account of the fraud committed against them.

The government may sell 26% stake in IDBI Bank as part of its disinvestment programme. The Centre has started the sale process by issuing Request for Proposals (RFP) to hire transaction and legal advisors to advice on the sale process.

Piramal Pharma has completed the acquisition of Hemmo Pharmaceuticals Private Ltd for cash consideration of Rs 775 crore and earn-outs linked to achievement of milestones.

NMDC net profit jumped to Rs 2,838 crore from Rs 351 crore YoY. Total income more than doubled to Rs 6,932.75 crore, from Rs 3,320.95 crore in the year-ago period.

Bharat Electronics net profit rose 30% YoY to Rs 1,352.38 crore for the Jan-Mar 2021 quarter. Sales jumped 18% YoY to Rs 6757.05 crore.

Godrej Agrovets promoter Godrej Industries acquired 9,76,047 equity shares in the company at Rs 570 per share via open market purchases.

Hero MotoCorp has decided to raise prices by up to Rs 3,000 from July 1, due to an increase in commodity prices.

Sobha reported consolidated profit of Rs 17.9 crore during quarter ended 31 March 2021, down from Rs 50.7 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous financial year. Revenue fell to Rs 553.4 crore from Rs 910.1 crore YoY.

Oriental Rail Infrastructure has secured orders worth Rs 15.46 crore for manufacturing and supplying seat and berths to Indian Railways. The subsidiary Oriental Foundry has secured order worth Rs 14.40 crore from Northern Railways for manufacturing and supplying bogies.

Century Plyboards (India) may set up a new unit in the state of Punjab for manufacturing of veneer and plywood. The existing capacity for plywood production is 300000 CBM per year (includes existing capacity in subsidiaries but excludes proposed capacities) and the proposed expansion project is for 60000 CBM per year.

Jaypee Infratech loss has narrowed to Rs 491.6 crore during the quarter ended 31 March 2021 against loss of Rs 940.53 crore YoY. Revenue fell to Rs 244.59 crore from Rs 383.18 crore YoY.

The top gainers and top losers of the major indices are given in the table below:

The closing values of the major Asian indices are given in the table below:
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday said it has handed over assets worth Rs9,371 crore belonging to fugitive businessmen Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi to State-run banks to realise the losses on account of the fraud committed against them.

The ED in a statement said that Messrs Mallya, Modi and Choksi have defrauded public sector banks (PSBs) by siphoning off the funds through their companies which resulted in total loss of Rs22,585.83 crore to the banks.

The ED has booked the three on the basis of the FIR filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The financial probe agency said that the ED has taken swift action by unearthing myriad web of domestic and international transactions and stashing of assets abroad.

"Investigation has also irrevocably proved that these three accused persons used dummy entities controlled by them for rotation and siphoning off the funds provided by the banks," the ED said.

It further said that the ED has attached or seized assets worth Rs18,170.02 crore which included assets worth of Rs969 crore located in foreign countries.

"The quantum of the attached and seized assets represents 80.45% of total bank loss of Rs22,585.83 crore," it said, adding that the investigation by the ED has proved that substantial part of these assets were held in the names of dummy entities, trusts, third persons, relatives of these accused and these entities were proxy of these accused to hold these assets.

Tue ED has filed charge-sheets against all the three accused after completion of PMLA investigation.

"Extradition requests have been sent for these persons to the UK and Antigua and Barbuda. The extradition of Mallya has been ordered by the Westminster Magistrates Court and confirmed by the UK High Court. Since Mallya has been denied permission to file appeal in the UK Supreme Court, his extradition to India has become final," the ED said.

It further said that the Westminster Magistrates Court has ordered extradition of Nirav Modi to India.

Nirav Modi has been in London Jail for last two years and three months on the basis of extradition request by India.

Nirav Modi and Mr Mallya have also been declared fugitive economic offenders by PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) court in Mumbai, it said.

The ED also said that recently, the agency has transferred shares attached by it, worth of Rs6,600 crore, to SBI led consortium as per order of PMLA special court, Mumbai.

"Today, DRT on behalf of SBI led consortium, has sold shares of United Breweries Limited for Rs5,824.50 crore," it said, adding that further realisation of Rs800 crore by sale of shares is expected by 25th June.

It also said that due to the cooperation and help extended by ED, Public Sector Banks have already recovered Rs1,357 crore by selling the shares earlier.

"Thus, the banks shall be realising total amount of Rs9,041.5 crore through sale of a part of assets attached/seized by ED under the provisions of PMLA," the ED said.

"As on date, out of total attached or seized assets of Rs18,170.02 crore under provisions of PMLA, assets worth of Rs329.67 crore has been confiscated and assets worth Rs9,041.5 crore, representing 40% of total loss to the bank have been handed over to the Public Sector banks," it added.

Disclaimer: Information, facts or opinions expressed in this news article are presented as sourced from IANS and do not reflect views of Moneylife and hence Moneylife is not responsible or liable for the same. As a source and news provider, IANS is responsible for accuracy, completeness, suitability and validity of any information in this article.
On 31 August 2012, the Supreme Court of India (SC) handed down a historic verdict asking two Sahara companies to refund over Rs20,000 crore to investors that was illegally raised through quasi-debentures without regulatory clearance. High drama continued even after the verdict with the Court enhancing Saharas repayment to Rs25,700 crore in 2015. Subrata Roy also spent over two years in jail for contempt of court. He remains out on bail. The Court directed the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to identify investors of the two Sahara realty firms and refund the money under the supervision of justice BN Agrawal, a retired Supreme Court judge. That was nine years ago!

In February 2020, the minister of state for finance told parliament that the Sahara group has deposited only Rs15,448.67 crore with the Sebi-Sahara Refund account, of which it has been able to refund only Rs109.86 crore to 14,146 applicants who came forward with legitimate documents. Since then, it has paid out a little more.

While SEBI cannot find investors of the realty companies, lakhs of genuine investors are coming forward from all over the country demanding payment. They were lured to invest in the controversial group through four giant cooperative societies spread across India. Many have a genuine claim to the money collected by SEBI, but the regulator is sticking to a narrow definition of what the Supreme Court has ordered and making no effort to help investors who were duped. Sahara investors are holding protests across India, through social media (#JusticeForSaharaInvestors) and some have even ended their lives in desperation. Innumerable police complaints have been filed all over the country; but Sahara is not making any payments.

Surely, it was never the SCs intention that SEBI would sit over investors funds for a decade while complaints mount and an equitable solution needs to be found?

Read here: Saharas Mysterious Riches: Rs1,10,000 Crore Raised in 10 Years despite Intense Scrutiny of Government, Supreme Court and SEBI ) The plight of lakhs of investors spilled into the public domain in September 2020 through an explosive letter by Vivek Aggarwal, central registrar of cooperative societies (CRCS) who said that the group had raised a stupendous Rs86,673 crore over 10 years (from 2010) from around eight crore depositors and was unable to repay them. The money was raised through four multi-state cooperative societies registered across IndiaSahara Credit Cooperative Society Ltd, the Saharayn Universal Multipurpose Coop Society Ltd, the Humara India Credit Coop Society Ltd and the Stars Multipurpose Cooperative Society. Mr Aggarwal had called for an investigation by the serious frauds investigation office (SFIO). (

Read: Sahara Pariwar: Mysterious Riches, Tall Claims and Struggle To Repay ). Many investors approached Moneylife after our articles in October 2020 (). Moneylife Foundation , our not-for-profit organisation, collated and verified information from over 400 investors based on Saharas promise to pay. But the group paid only Rs39 lakh to 18 investors and then reneged on its commitment.

Moneylife Foundation Appeal to SEBI in January 2021

On 30 December 2020, Moneylife Foundation wrote to the SEBI chairman and justice BN Agrawal taking forward the facts stated by Vivek Aggarwal, the CRCS, in his letter dated 18 August 2020. The letter mentioned how Sahara Credit Cooperative Society Ltd (Sahara Credit), which has raised deposits of Rs47,245 crore, had provided an advance of Rs2,253 crore to Subrata Roy which was transferred to SEBI as money collected by the Sahara realty companies. Hence, at least this sum of Rs2,253 crore belongs to investors of Sahara Credit and they ought to be allowed to claim it. Moneylife Foundation had attached a list of 240 depositors of Sahara Credit who had provided complete documentation and requested the SEBI chairman and justice BN Agarwal to consider their claims, keeping in mind the spirit and essence of the SC judgement, and in view of the hardship they were suffering during the pandemic.

SEBI did not bother to acknowledge or respond to the letter. Former central information commissioner, Shailesh Gandhi and a colleague filed an application under the Right to Information (RTI) Act which was fobbed off saying that the appropriate regulator is the Credit Cooperative Societies under the ministry of agriculture and farmers welfare. Scores of investors writing to SEBI had received similar letters deflecting responsibility. On filing a first appeal under RTI, the public information officer was directed to provide information on our memorandum along with the file notings. The reply, dated 11th June (received 10 days later), said that our memorandum was referred to justice Agarwal who informed SEBI that the Supreme Court order did not mention about refund of money to investors of Sahara Credit therefore the refunds cannot be effected by SEBI to those investors. It further said, As no further action was warranted, the matter was closed by SEBI.

One expected SEBI to take a considered view of the matter and seek permission from the SC to expand the scope of refunds. But the regulator would rather sit on the money than exert itself to help investors. According to SEBIs internal notes, contrary to Vivek Aggrawals claim, there is no such amount of Rs2,253 crore deposited by Subrata Roy. But it admits that Rs571.96 crore was credited by Sahara Credit in SEBIs refund account between 5 June 2014 and 13 June 2014 and has a list of the deposits. SEBI claims it is not known in what capacity the deposits were made, since there was no statement accompanying the credit.

While SEBI admits receiving at least Rs571.96 crore, it goes on to claim that Saharas counsel appearing before the SRCS on 19 November 2020 was unable to throw any light on the amount paid by Sahara Credit to SEBI. It also says it has now paid out Rs125.17 crore to bond-holders and some applications are pending completion of documents. In effect, Rs16 crore more has been paid out since the last statement to parliamenta drop in the ocean of the massive amounts held by SEBI.

A regulator with empathy for investors would have gone back to the SC for a direction but SEBI clearly doesnt care as is clear from the negative tone of its note.

SEBIs negative-sounding note was placed before justice Agarwal. A hand-written note mentions that Justice Agarwal was of the view that in the absence of an order of the honourable Supreme Court to refund the money to investors of Sahara Credit, refund cannot be effected by SEBI to investors. Hence the matter may be closed.

There appears to be a slight but significant difference between what justice Agarwal said and SEBIs interpretation. Justice Agarwals emphasis seems to be the absence of an SC order. The big question is: Who will approach the Supreme Court and apprise it about the new facts and developments? A regulator with empathy for investors would have gone back to the SC for a direction but SEBI clearly doesnt care as is clear from the negative tone of its note.

Strangely enough, SEBI is working overtime to collect more money from a seemingly bankrupt group. As recently as in November 2020, SEBI filed a petition in the SC asking the Sahara group to deposit Rs62,600 crore, including interest on the Rs25,700 crore it was ordered to pay ( Read: Pay Rs62,600 Crore To Stay out of Jail: SEBI to Saharasri Subrata Roy ). It is doing this, knowing full well that there are no funds with Sahara, while investors are pleading to get their money back. Meanwhile, finance minister (FM) Nirmala Sitharamans reply to parliament on 15 March 2021 actually makes a very strong case for at least some of Saharas beleaguered investors.

Finance Ministers Answer in Parliament

on false assurance, conversion of investments of Sahara Housing Corporation Ltd and Sahara India Real Estate Corporation Ltd into Sahara Q Shop and other Sahara group companies, and conversion of deposits from Sahara Q Shop to co-operative societies of Sahara Group. There are complaints alleging the conversion of investments of Sahara Housing Corporation Ltd and Sahara India Real Estate Corporation Ltd. The directors of these companies of Sahara have confirmed the conversions during the investigation by SFIO. (emphasis added). The FMs written reply said that SFIO has found that Sahara Q Shop Unique Products Range Ltds investments were being converted into other schemes in Saharayan Universal Multipurpose Society Ltd, Sahara Credit Co-operative Societies and two other societies of the group. She also said that the government has received over 17,000 investor complaints against Sahara Q Shop and other group entities. She further revealed that SFIO found that deposits were collected  (emphasis added).

Meanwhile, finance minister (FM) Nirmala Sitharamans reply to parliament on 15 March 2021 actually makes a very strong case for at least some of Saharas beleaguered investors.

The minister further said that the fund flow from the realty entities involved in the SEBI case to Sahara Q-shop had been established by SFIO. This clearly makes a strong case for Q-shop and some of the cooperative societies to get their money back. The question is: Who will bell the cat? Will it be SEBI, whose primary job is to think about investors (according to the preamble to the SEBI Act)?

It was surely never the Supreme Courts intention that SEBI will sit on the money. Moreover, the regulator is clearly out of ideas and it may be time for SC to set up a committee to collect all valid claims and distribute the money. The big difference today is that there are lakhs of genuine investors who have been dupedunlike in the past when it was impossible to find a Sahara investor.
The Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) has upheld orders by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) imposing a fine of Rs1 crore on former Yes Banks former chief executive (CEO) Rana Kapoor and a penalty of Rs50 lakh each on two other entities - Yes Capital (India) and Morgan Credits.

Regarding the quantum of penalty, SAT said that SEBIs adjudicating officer found the default to be of a serious nature, principally because Mr Kapoor was the then managing director and CEO of the bank and therefore, a maximum penalty of Rs1 crore was imposed.

We do not find any mitigating factor to interfere in the quantum of the penalty. The appeal therefore fails, SAT says.

Earlier, market regulator SEBI had found that by not making the requisite disclosures of encumbrances of shares of Yes Bank to the stock exchanges and the lender, the two promoter entities had violated the provisions of SAST (Substantial Acquisition of Shares and Takeover) Regulations.

In March 2021, SEBI had imposed penalties on Yes Capital (India) and Morgan Credits for not making the requisite disclosures pertaining to the encumbrance of shares.

Market regulator SEBI had earlier imposed a fine of Rs1 crore on Rana Kapoor for not making disclosures regarding the Morgan Credits transaction.

By not disclosing the transaction to Yes Bank's Board of directors, Rana Kapoor created an opaque layer between him and stakeholders, SEBI had said in its order.

In September 2020, SEBI had levied a fine of Rs1 crore on Rana Kapoor for failing to disclose a transaction with Morgan Credit to the board of directors at Yes Bank, thus creating an opaque layer between him and Yes Bank's stakeholders. Morgan Credit was an unlisted promoter entity of Yes Bank. This was in clear violation of the Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements (LODR). The market regulator had also issued a demand notice to Mr Kapoor in February 2021 since he did not pay any dues.
Weather Alert

...HEAT ADVISORY WILL EXPIRE AT 9 PM MDT THIS EVENING... Temperatures will still remain well above normal through the weekend with highs in the 90s. Please use caution when outdoors and remember to stay well hydrated. Check on relatives and neighbors to make sure they are sufficiently handling the prolonged heat of this past week.
June 23, 2021 These Uppity Brits Need A Slap-like Lesson The Brits were getting a bit uppity today so the Russians responded by opening fire: A Russian patrol ship and fighter jet have fired warning shots after the British destroyer HMS Defender violated the countrys border in the Black Sea. The UK embassy's defense attache has been summoned by officials in Moscow. According to Russias Ministry of Defense, the British naval ship entered the country's territorial waters at 11:52am local time and traveled 3km inside the frontier, near Cape Fiolent, in Crimea. The peninsula is not recognized by the United Kingdom as Russian land and London believes it to be illegally occupied Ukrainian territory. At 12:06 and 12:08, a border patrol ship fired warning shots, the Defense Ministry said. (And) at 12:19, a Su-24m aircraft performed a warning bombing (4 OFAB-250) ahead of the course of the USS Defender. Four minutes later, at 12:23, the destroyer left Russian territory. The Brits denied that any shots were fired at(!) them: UK Defense Ministry claimed that HMS conducts an "innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with the international law" and rejected Russian Defense Ministrys claims that warning shots were fired or bombs were dropped in the destroyers path. "The Royal Navy ship is conducting innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law," the Defense Ministry press service said in its Twitter Wednesday, referring to the internationally recognized right to sail through territorial waters of a country provided they mean no harm. "We believe the Russians were undertaking a gunnery exercise in the Black Sea and provided the maritime community with prior-warning of their activity. No shots were directed at HMS Defender and we do not recognize the claim that bombs were dropped in her path." The Defense Ministry also claimed that the destroyer was traveling in an "internationally recognized traffic separation corridor." That is non-denial denial. Warning shots are never directed AT the target. A BBC journalist on board of the British ship does not think that it was just an 'innocent passage': The crew were already at action stations as they approached the southern tip of Russian occupied Crimea. Weapons systems on board the Royal Navy destroyer had already been loaded. This would be a deliberate move to make a point to Russia. HMS Defender was going to sail within the 12 mile (19km) limit of Crimea's territorial waters. The captain insisted he was only seeking safe passage thorough an internationally recognised shipping lane. Two Russian coastguard ships that were shadowing the Royal Navy warship, tried to force it to alter course. At one stage one of the Russian vessels closed in to about 100m (328ft). Increasingly hostile warnings were issued over the radio - including one that said "if you don't change course I'll fire". We did hear some firing in the distance but they were believed to be well out of range. As HMS Defender sailed through the shipping lane it was buzzed by Russian jets. The Captain, Vincent Owen, said the ship detected more than 20 military aircraft nearby. Commander Owen said his mission was confident but non-confrontational. The BBC reporter phoned his report in. One can hear Russian jets buzzing the ship.

bigger Innocent passage with loaded weapons? That is a no no. Passing a battle ready warship through Russian territorial water without necessity? There are no 'shipping lanes' in that area but lots of room to the west to pass around Crimea. So no. The Brits were clearly seeking a confrontation. There was also a U.S. spy plane flying in the area to record the Russian reaction.

bigger This came just hours after the U.K had signed an agreement with the Ukraine for the "enhancement of Ukrainian naval capabilities": Contractual work will now begin to implement the following projects: Missile sale and integration on new and in-service Ukrainian Navy patrol and airborne platforms, including a training and engineering support package.

The development and joint production of eight fast missile warships.

The creation of a new naval base on the Black Sea as the primary fleet base for Ukraine and a new base on the Sea of Azov.

Babcock will participate in the Ukrainian project to deliver a modern frigate capability.

A Government to Government sale of two refurbished Sandown class mine countermeasure vessels. The editor of the Chinese Global Times says that Britain should receive a "slap-like lesson" for today's incident. That is probably a good idea. But Russia tends to not react hasty over such issues. Revenge is best served cold. Unrelated to the above a slap-like lesson was given to Britain today when U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken arrived in Germany: "I think it's fair to say that the United States has no better partner, no better friend in the world than Germany," Blinken said. He is scheduled to meet with Chancellor Angela Merkel and Foreign Minister Heiko Maas. London will not like that statement. Next week NATO will run its Exercise Seabreeze in and near to the Black Sea in which soldiers and sailors from some 30 nations will take part. In light of today's provocation the Russian military will probably prepare some surprises for them. Posted by b on June 23, 2021 at 16:15 UTC | Permalink Comments next page  next page 
The Sunflower Wine Festival will return to Rocky River on July 10 to fund research and raise awareness for childhood brain tumors.
The Lorain City Charter Commission met June 22, 2021, to review the draft document of new rules of city government. The commission will reconvene on June 29 to analyze what likely will be the final draft that Lorain voters will decide on in November.
Moultrie, GA (31768)

Today

Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 72F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 72F. Winds light and variable.
(Bloomberg) -- The bosses of some of the worlds biggest oil companies said crude prices are likely to keep rising because a lack of investment will curtail future supply.

The chief executive officers of Royal Dutch Shell Plc and TotalEnergies SE joined major commodity traders and banks in predicting that oil could go as high as $100 a barrel, although they also said volatile markets could drive prices back down again.

The lack of investment is going to exacerbate supply and demand tightness as the economies pick back up again, and then in time well see supply pick up and rebalance, Exxon Mobil Corp. CEO Darren Woods said at the Qatar Economic Forum Tuesday. But in the shorter term probably higher prices are more likely.

Trading house Trafigura Group said oil could top $100 a barrel over the next year. Bank of America Corp. also forecast this week that prices could jump to that level and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said it doesnt rule it out. Oil has climbed 44% this year as widespread vaccinations increase mobility and boost demand. Benchmark Brent crude was little changed at 2:55 p.m. in New York at $74.90 a barrel.

Global oil markets had one of the most turbulent years in history last year with the coronavirus pandemic sending prices crashing. But economies in the West are growing again, roads in Europe and the U.S. are starting to fill up, and more Americans are flying. While that could drive prices higher in the near term, the energy transition means oil consumption could start to plateau and eventually decline in the longer term.

The energy shift means there hasnt been enough investment in oil and gas projects and that could push prices higher, Qatari Energy Minister Saad al-Kaabi said at the same event. BP Plc CEO Bernard Looney said earlier Tuesday that rising crude is helping the companys energy transition plans and generating better cash flow and returns for shareholders.

Theres quite a chance of reaching $100 a barrel, but we could see again in coming years some low prices, TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanne said. Weve been accustomed to volatility.

The Qatar Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Investment Promotion Agency Qatar and Media City Qatar are underwriters of the Qatar Economic Forum, Powered by Bloomberg.

2021 Bloomberg L.P.
Exxon Mobil is preparing to reduce headcount at its U.S. offices by between 5% and 10% annually for the next three to five years by using its performance-evaluation system to suss out low performers, according to people familiar with the matter.

The cuts will target the lowest-rated employees relative to peers, and for that reason will not be characterized as layoffs, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information isn't public. While such workers are typically put on a so-called performance improvement plan, many are expected to eventually leave on their own. This year's evaluation is happening now but affected employees have not yet been notified, the people said.

"Our annual performance assessment process has been occurring over the last several months," Exxon spokesman Casey Norton said in an email. "Where employees are not contributing to their highest ability, they may need to participate in an improvement plan. This is an annual process which has been in place for many years, and it is meant to improve performance. This process is unrelated to workforce reduction plans."

The plan is separate from Exxon's announcement last year that it will cut 14,000 jobs worldwide by 2022, and it would extend reductions well beyond that original time frame. It's a tumultuous time for Exxon, which is still grappling with the fallout from last month's annual meeting, when shareholders rebuffed top management and replaced a quarter of the company's board over climate and financial concerns.

Exxon had 72,000 employees globally at the end of last year, of which 40% worked in the U.S., according to a company filing.

Several high-profile traders have also left in the last few weeks. While the performance-review process mostly applies to white-collar jobs such in areas such as engineering, finance and project management, there's no suggestion the trading departures were related to the review program.

Exxon's other cost-cutting initiatives have included suspending bonuses and halting employee-contribution matches to 401k savings plans as the pandemic crushed demand for crude, saddling the company with a record annual loss.

International crude prices have surged 44% this year to almost $75 a barrel, improving Exxon's financial position markedly. Still, the supermajor has some way to go to pay down debts accumulated during 2020's market collapse. A smaller and more efficient workforce is key to further improvements.

Exxon achieved $3 billion of annual "structural cost reductions" in 2020 and will continue to make savings through 2023, Chief Executive Officer Darren Woods said at the annual meeting in May.

"We've got additional work to continue to take advantage of the new organization and find opportunities to reduce our costs," Woods said.

Exxon's shares rose 3.6% to $62.59 at the close in New York trading Monday amid a broad rally in energy stocks on stronger oil prices.
A cat trapping program has increased the amount of money needed for spay-neutering vouchers for Midland residents.

The Midland City Council approved Tuesday adding an extra $65,000 to its voucher program and will revisit the amount it dedicates to vouchers this year and in the future.

Before the approval of additional funding, city leaders learned feral and other community cats have been collected by Midland residents, including the Midland Cat Wranglers, pushing to the need for vouchers to record levels. The city had already reported of the 2,955 vouchers redeemed, 46 percent or $94,220 were for feral cats. In fact, it is not uncommon for cat wranglers and others to ask for $70 vouchers in stacks of 10 because of the demand.

Carol Savage, vice president of the Cat Wranglers, showed the council her notebooks filled with information about cats she had trapped, spayed or neutered and then released back into communities around town.

Tracye Daniel Gearhart, of Midland Animal Shelter Adoptable, said she once helped trapped cats but stopped because she believed living as community cats was a horrible life as those cats are always in search for food, water and looking to avoid being torn up by predators  a point driven home by Fix West Texas Karen Patterson. When asked if county residents are using the countys voucher program she joked They are lucky they have coyotes.

Fix West Texas has been a big part of the increased spay and neutering taking place. City records show it has collected $80,430 for spay and neutering efforts, including more than $60,000 for feral animals. Baze Animal Clinic has received nearly $48,000, including nearly $30,000 for feral animals.

Council members bought themselves some time by their actions Tuesday. The city reported spending $215,000 already this year and expected at this pace to need another $150,000. It was reported that the amount spent on the voucher program was around $228,000 in 2018, $234,000 in 2019 and $295,000 last year. The trap-neuter/spay-release program started in 2018, city officials said Tuesday.

Patterson described the program as helping to control the animal population, especially with the cats, which she said is a problem in areas of town that are unfancy. She also said the trap program is beneficial for those elderly, disabled and lower-income residents who have no ability to be part of the solution.

Of those participating in the public hearing, it remained unclear if the program now was having a great enough impact that less money might be needed in the future. It also was unclear if the money spent on the trap program would eventually leave less money for those who use the vouchers for rescue animals and to promote responsible pet ownership.

It is a people problem, Shirley Cook said, because people will not fix their problems.
Sun Valley, ID (83353)

Today

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 56F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 56F. Winds light and variable.
Billie Vanderbilt, 72, resident of Boley, left us on Thursday, July 1, 2021 from her home. Service arrangements are pending in the Hyde Park Chapel of the Keith D. Biglow Funeral Directors, Inc., in Boley. biglowfunerals.com
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Some Horry County Council members have been hesitant to support impact fees because state law severely limits how they can be used. For example, impact fees can help pay to construct a fire or police station, but they cannot be spent on the salaries of firefighters or officers. Thats because the levies are collected just once, while those salaries must be paid every year. With this in mind, do you think Horry County Council should raise impact fee? Choices are:

You voted:
People targeted by a campaign robocall from former Gov. Bruce Rauner since his first campaign in 2014 will be eligible to earn a portion of a $1 million settlement agreement that was reached last month in a class-action case.

The agreement would end the federal lawsuit against the former governor and his campaign entity, Citizens for Rauner, that was brought by Peter Garvey, an Illinois resident who received three prerecorded voice mails from Rauners campaign in 2018.

The amount owed to each person has not been determined, according to the settlement notice website, because the total number of class members and the costs of settlement administration, as well as attorneys fees, havent been finalized.

The number of class members could exceed 35,000 people, according to Garveys lawsuit.

As part of the settlement agreement, Rauner and his campaign deny all allegations of wrongdoing and liability made it the lawsuit.

The campaign robocalls that left prerecorded voicemails to Garveys cellphone encouraged people to vote for Rauner in the upcoming March 2018 primary election.

The 30-second message featuring Rauners voice said, in part, Illinois is worth fightin for and with real reform together we can bring back Illinois and provide the future our children deserve. Please join me in the fight against Mike Madigan and his special interest allies. Im askin for your vote on Tuesday, March 20.

The messages were left through so-called ringless voicemails, which is technology used to deliver voicemail messages the same way as text messages.

The lawsuit claimed that the ringless voicemails made to class members, like Garvey, violated the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act.

A violation of the federal act is defined as making any call (other than a call made for emergency purposes or made with the prior express consent of the called party) using any automatic telephone dialing system or an artificial or prerecorded voice  to any telephone number assigned to a  cellular telephone service.

Under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, individuals or companies that violate the law must pay at least $500 in damages, per violation.

Garveys lawsuit argued that the voice messages caused him and the class members actual harm, including invasion of privacy, aggravation, annoyance, intrusion on seclusion, trespass, and conversion, the lawsuit states.

Last month, a federal judge preliminarily approved the proposed settlement agreement. The final hearing on the agreement is set for Sept. 7.

John Sawin, a Chicago lawyer who represents Garvey and the class, didnt respond to a request for comment. Lawyers for Rauner and his campaign also did not respond when reached for comment.

The deadline for class members to submit claim forms and be eligible for monetary compensation from the $1 million settlement fund is Aug. 11.

More information about the settlement or submitting a claim is available at CitizensForRaunerTCPASettlement.com.
Senate Democrats are making a push to give undocumented immigrants the opportunity to vote in school board elections.

The proposal could require the State Board of Education to create an affidavit helping non-citizens register for school board elections. Current bill language requires potential voters to verify they are a parent, legal guardian or caregiver of a student. They also must live within the boundaries of a school district and intend to stay there until the next school board election.

The bills sponsor, Celina Villanueva, D-Chicago, said families should have the opportunity to play a bigger role in shaping their childs future.

For too long, these families have been systematically excluded from participating in our democracy even at the most basic level, Villanueva said.

Thomas Bride, spokesman for the Illinois Association of County Clerks and Recorders, said the change would create chaos.

The association has some real concerns about introducing the non-citizen voting into the school board elections, primarily from a process point, Bride said. The elections are complicated in Illinois.

Tazewell County Clerk John Ackerman has been joined by a bipartisan group of 20 county clerks in opposition to the measure.

If this law should pass, even if Tazewell County would have no non-citizen voters, my office would be required to prepare for the chance that non-citizens would request a ballot each election, Ackerman said in a statement. As such, we have estimated the cost of the minimum paper ballots at each polling location, preparation for over 150 different ballot styles with Tazewell County, equipment preparation and other administrative tasks to be $15,000 to $30,000 each election.

Ackerman said he also is concerned about a violation of the current Voter Registration Fraud Prevention procedures.

We currently require voters to provide two forms of identification, one of which has the current address (at which) they are residing and one a photo identification so we can verify the individual is voting in the appropriate election district, Ackerman said. This new proposal would remove that physical proof and require just a statement on an affidavit that they reside with the district they wish to vote in.

The Senate Human Services Committee expects to host several hearings on the proposal before a vote.

Sponsors said they are willing to work with stakeholders to address concerns and make a stronger bill.
NEW YORK (AP)  Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams appeared to take a fragile lead Tuesday in New York Citys Democratic mayoral primary, but it could be weeks before it becomes clear who is actually on top in the first citywide election to use ranked choice voting.

As ballot counting began Tuesday, a plurality of Democrats ranked Adams as their first choice in the race.

It was tough to tell, though, whether that lead would hold. As many as 207,500 absentee ballots remained to be counted. Voters full rankings of the candidates have yet to be taken into account. It could be July before a winner emerges in the Democratic contest.

Adams, a former police captain who co-founded a leadership group for Black officers, was leading former city sanitation commissioner Kathryn Garcia and former de Blasio administration lawyer Maya Wiley.

Speaking to jubilant supporters, Adams acknowledged that he hadnt won yet, and that under the ranked choice system there were multiple rounds of ballot counting still to go.

We know that theres going to be twos and threes and fours," he said. "But theres something else we know. We know that New York City said, Our first choice is Eric Adams.

Former presidential candidate Andrew Yang, who was far behind in early returns, conceded about two hours after polls closed and vowed to work with the next mayor.

In the Republican primary, Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa defeated businessman Fernando Mateo. Ranked choice voting wasnt a factor because there were only two candidates in the race.

Several candidates in the race to succeed Mayor Bill de Blasio have the potential to make history if elected. The city could get its first female mayor, or its second Black mayor, depending on who comes out on top.

But in the Democratic contest, the initial picture could be misleading. After polls closed at 9 p.m., New York Citys Board of Elections began releasing results of votes cast in person, but the returns focused on who candidates ranked as their first choice.

The ranked choice system, approved for use in New York City primaries and special elections by referendum in 2019, allowed voters to rank up to five candidates on their ballot.

Vote tabulation is then done in computerized rounds, with the person in last place getting eliminated each round, and ballots cast for that person getting redistributed to the surviving candidates based on voter rankings. That process continues until only two candidates are left. The one with the most votes wins.

It wont be until June 29 that the Board of Elections performs a tally of those votes using the new system. It wont include any absentee ballots in its analysis until July 6, making any count before then potentially unreliable.

Among the votes counted on election night, Adams trailed both Garcia and Wiley when voters listed their second, third and fourth choices in the ranked choice voting system.

Besides Adams, Garcia, Wiley and Yang, other contenders in the Democratic contest included City Comptroller Scott Stringer, former U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan, former Citigroup executive Ray McGuire and nonprofit executive Dianne Morales.

Stringer, McGuire and Morales addressed supporters after polls closed as early returns showed them trailing the front-runners but did not immediately concede.

De Blasio, a Democrat, leaves office at the end of the year due to term limits.

The candidates traveled around the city Tuesday doing a last round of campaigning.

Wiley was losing her voice greeting voters near her polling place in Brooklyn. Garcia campaigned up in the Bronx, while Sliwa and Stringer bumped into each other campaigning in Manhattan.

A still hoarse Wiley acknowledged the uncertainty of the race in a speech later. What we celebrate today is that we have a path, she said.

Garcia told her supporters, I know that were not going to know a lot more tonight, so I want to thank everyone who is here, and everyone who has been a part of this journey.

Concern over a rise in shootings during the pandemic has dominated the mayoral campaign in recent months, even as the candidates have wrestled with demands from the left for more police reform.

As a former officer, but one who spent his career fighting racism within the department, Adams may have benefited most from the policing debate.

He denounced the defund the police slogan and proposed reinstating a disbanded plainclothes unit to focus on getting illegal guns off the streets.

Wiley and Stringer, battling for progressive votes, both said they would reallocate a portion of the police departments budget to other city programs.

Of the top contenders, either Garcia or Wiley would be citys first female mayor if elected. Adams or Wiley would be the second Black mayor.

Yang and Garcia formed an alliance in the campaigns last days in an apparent effort to use the ranked voting system to block Adams. The two held several joint campaign events, with Yang asking his supporters to rank Garcia as their No. 2  though Garcia did not quite return the favor, not telling her voters where to rank Yang. Adams accused his two rivals of purposely trying to block a Black candidate.

Sliwa does not have much of a chance to win the November general election in a city where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans by 7 to 1.

Former allies, the two Republicans Sliwa and Mateo traded personal insults and tried to shout over each other during one debate on Zoom.

Sliwa, a radio host who still wears his red Guardian Angels beret when he appears in public, got an endorsement from former Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who called him my great friend in a robocall to Republican voters.

Flanked by Giuliani at his victory party, Sliwa promised a general election campaign focused on crime. This is going to be a campaign clearly in which I talk about cracking down on crime, supporting the police, refunding our heroes the police, hiring more police, taking the handcuffs off the police and putting it on the criminals, and restoring qualified immunity to the police so that they cant be personally sued, he said.
BLUFFS  The villages ZIP code will have added significance on Saturday, when it coincides with the calendar  6-26-21  for the only time this century.

In light of the occasion, the village will hold a special celebration to honor ZIP Code Day.

The event will kick off at 11 a.m. in front of the villages post office, where free hamburgers, chips and desserts will be provided. T-shirts and long-sleeve shirts that feature the date and an image of the post office will be available for purchase, with proceeds helping to fund the villages sesquicentennial celebration in August.

A photo also will be taken at noon Saturday to commemorate the day.

Bluffs Picnic committee chairwoman Maryon Shaw was approached by Mayor Linda Sapp last fall during a village board meeting and told about ZIP Code Day. At the time, Shaw was unaware of the significance of the date.

I had no clue what she was even talking about, Shaw said. So I did some Googling and figured out what some other communities have done for ZIP Code Day and we just went from there.

A commemorative stamp that will be available from the postmaster already is gaining widespread attention.

I didnt realize until I did some research that this is kind of a big deal, Shaw said. There are people across the country that collect ZIP Code Day stamps and our postmaster just told me she got a request for the stamp from Philadelphia.

Sapp said she hopes the community will come together to enjoy the unique occasion.

I hope this event will bring people together and generate some money for the sesquicentennial, she said.

Shaw, who is dedicated to helping put together various events for the Bluffs community, is looking forward to the day.

I just like doing events for our community to try and get more people involved, and I thought this may be a fun thing with no strings attached, she said.

The Bluffs post office is at 119 E. Oakes St.
SHIPMAN  More than 200 concealed carry certificates issued through a Shipman instructor have been deemed invalid, and she has been charged with forgery and providing a false certification.

Macoupin County States Attorney Jordan Garrison and the Illinois State Police Firearms Services Bureau Investigative Support Unit announced Monday that they had charged concealed carry license instructor Terry Lumma, 60, of Shipman with felony forgery and misdemeanor providing false concealed carry weapon certification.

The Illinois State Police takes these types of allegations seriously and will investigate those who attempt to defraud the system and bring them to justice, state police director Brendan F. Kelly said, adding that his office strives to protect and maintain the integrity of the firearms owners identification and concealed carry license.

According to officials, the state polices Firearms Services Bureau received a complaint against Lumma in December that alleged she was not teaching the concealed carry license classes according to Illinois law. After a five-month investigation, the bureaus investigators said they found evidence to support the allegation.

The bureau then presented the case to Garrison, who filed criminal charges against Lumma. She is scheduled to appear today in Macoupin County court.

The bureau said it had determined all concealed carry certification courses hosted by Lumma failed to satisfy the mandatory requirements for concealed carry firearm training set forth in state law.

As a result, training certificates issued by Lumma to more than 200 students and submitted to the state police as part of their concealed carry license applications have been deemed invalid.

All of the students were sent letters notifying them of their concealed carry license status; they are receiving a 60-day grace period in which to complete the requirements for a new, valid license. During the 60-day period, state police will treat the license holder as valid  if the license otherwise is in good standing.

State law requires applicants to take at least 16 hours of training from a qualified instructor to receive concealed carry licensing certification.
SYDNEY, Australia  A state government minister has been infected with COVID-19 and another minister is in isolation as a cluster in the Australian city of Sydney worsens.

New South Wales Agriculture Minister Adam Marshall said he was told on Thursday that he had tested positive after dining with three government colleagues on Monday at a Sydney restaurant after an infected diner.

All four lawmakers had been attending Parliament as recently as Tuesday.

Health Minister Brad Hazard said he was self-isolating after being exposed to a potential case at Parliament House.

Hazzard said while standing next to Premier Gladys Berejiklian at daily pandemic media briefings, that he thought she was fairly safe.

Pandemic restrictions tightened in Sydney on Thursday as a cluster of the Delta variant increased and states banned travel from either parts of Sydney or from anywhere in New South Wales.

The cluster began last week when a Sydney airport limousine driver tested positive. He was not vaccinated and is suspected to have been infected while transporting a foreign air crew. The cluster had grown to 31 cases by Wednesday.

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MORE ON THE PANDEMIC:

 Italy is banking on a huge windfall of EU pandemic recovery funds to revamp its lagging economy. The future of the eurozone may depend on how well it does.

 Due to the pandemic, Tokyo is shaping up to be the no-fun Olympics

 Colombia hits 100,000 confirmed COVID-19 deaths, president blames antigovernment protests

 US finds deaths among Medicare patients in nursing homes soared by 32% last year

 WHO plans technology transfer hub for coronavirus vaccines in South Africa

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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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HERE'S WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

JERUSALEM  Israels government has postponed the planned reopening of the country to vaccinated tourists over concerns about the spread of the infectious delta variant of the coronavirus.

Israel was set to reopen its borders to vaccinated visitors on July 1, after having largely closed the country during the pandemic. It had already started allowing groups of vaccinated tourists to enter in May. All visitors will need to be tested before boarding flights to Israel and show proof of vaccination.

But after a rise in infections in the past week, the government said Wednesday that it would be pushing that date until Aug. 1. Israels Health Ministry recorded 110 new cases of coronavirus in the past day.

Israel has suffered a major economic blow due to the coronavirus pandemic, but even as the country has gradually recovered after a speedy vaccination campaign, the tourism industry has remained blighted.

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ALBANY, N.Y.  New York will lift more COVID-19 restrictions when the state of emergency expires later this week, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday.

New Yorkers will still have to wear masks on public transit, hospitals, nursing homes, correctional facilities and homeless shelters, in accordance with federal guidance.

But Cuomos announcement Wednesday means public meetings, for example, no longer must occur virtually.

Fighting COVID & vaccinating New Yorkers are still top priorities, but the emergency chapter of this fight is over, Cuomo tweeted.

Its the governors latest announcement about lifting COVID-19 restrictions at a time when rates of new positives are dipping to record lows as more New Yorkers get vaccinated. And it follows months of pushback from Republicans and business groups who have called for Cuomos executive power to be reined in.

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BERLIN  Germanys disease control center says the delta variant accounted for more than 15% of coronavirus infections in the country by mid-June, with its share roughly doubling in a week.

The Robert Koch Institute said in a weekly report Wednesday that the more contagious delta variants share in sequenced samples rose to 15.1% in the week ending June 13. That compares with 7.9% a week earlier.

The alpha variant, first detected in Britain, remained dominant in Germany, though its share declined to 74.1% from 83.5%.

Overall cases in Germany have declined to their lowest level in months. On Wednesday, the disease control center said that 1,016 new cases were reported over the previous day  a rate of 7.2 new cases per 100,000 residents over seven days.

Authorities have relaxed many restrictions but are pointing to surges in Britain, Portugal and Russia driven by the delta variant, first detected in India, as illustrating the need to remain vigilant.

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MADRID  Spain is scrapping its requirement to wear face masks outdoors, as long as people can remain at least 1.5 meters (5 feet) apart, from next Saturday.

Health Minister Carolina Darias said masks will still be needed at large gatherings, such as concerts, when people are on their feet instead of sitting on distanced chairs.

Masks remain mandatory indoors in public places and on public transport.

She said Wednesday that face coverings have been tremendously efficient and useful in helping curb the spread of COVID-19.

She noted that 32% of Spaniards have had two vaccine doses and 50% have had a single doses so far, allowing a relaxation of mask rules.

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BERLIN  A spokesman for Angela Merkel says the German Chancellor received two different vaccines in a conscious effort to encourage people not to be afraid if they are advised to get a mix of shots.

Merkels office confirmed Tuesday that the 66-year-old received a first shot of the AstraZeneca vaccine on April 16. For the second shot, she received the Moderna vaccine.

Her spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said Merkel intentionally opted for the initial AstraZeneca shot at a time when there were concerns about possible serious side effects.

And so she can now perhaps take away the fears of people...who were or are worried about this so-called cross-vaccination, he said.

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BOISE, Idaho  Just over half of Idaho adults have now received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine  about two months after the 50% mark was reached nationwide.

Idaho Public Health Administrator Elke Shaw-Tulloch said during a press conference Tuesday that the state is unlikely to meet the national goal of at least 70% of adults with at least one vaccine dose by July 4.

Still, she said the state continues to make slow gains in vaccination rates. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says Idaho has the eighth lowest adult partial COVID-19 vaccination rate in the U.S.

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ANKARA, Turkey  Turkeys health minister says anyone 18 years old and older will be eligible to receive COVID-19 vaccines as of Friday, as the country ramps up its vaccination campaign.

Speaking after a meeting of the countrys scientific advisory council on Wednesday, Fahrettin Koca said the government aims to administer at least one dose to around 70% of the 55 million people that are eligible to be vaccinated, by mid-July.

So far, close to 30 million people in a population of 84 million have received their first dose and 14.6 million people have received both doses.

Meanwhile, Koca said 40,800 people would be involved in the late-stage trial of Turkeys first local COVID-19 jab, which had been named TURCOVAC. The vaccine that uses the inactivated virus technology, was developed by Turkeys Erciyes University.

Some volunteers would be administered the vaccine developed by Chinas Sinovac pharmaceutical instead of a placebo, allowing researchers to compare the two inactivated vaccines safety and efficacy, the minister said. Volunteers in Hungary, Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan would also be involved in the trials.

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MOSCOW  Buryatia, a republic in Siberia, became the first Russian region on Wednesday to announce a lockdown because of a surge in coronavirus infections.

The lockdown will take affect on Sunday and last for two weeks, during which only essential services such as grocery shops, pharmacies, utility companies, public transport and media organizations will be allowed to operate.

Coronavirus infections in Russia have surged in recent weeks, with the daily tally of new cases growing from approximately 9,000 in early June to over 17,000 last Friday.

Buryatia is the only Russian region so far that imposed several lockdowns since the beginning of the pandemic. Last November, the regions governor also closed all non-essential businesses for two weeks in an effort to cope with a resurgence of the outbreak.

Russia had only one, six-week nationwide lockdown last spring, and most coronavirus restrictions in the country were lifted over the summer. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Wednesday no plans to reimpose another nationwide lockdown were being discussed by authorities.

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LISBON, Portugal  The Lisbon regions recent surge in COVID-19 cases is powering ahead, with new infections pushing Portugals number of daily cases to a four-month high.

Portugal on Wednesday reported almost 1,500 new cases, with two thirds of them in the region of the capital where some 2.8 million people live.

The national 14-day cumulative Covid-19 case notification rate per 100,000 people has risen to 130.

The pressure on hospitals remains manageable, with just 437 virus patients admitted and 100 in intensive care.

The Portuguese government has already banned travel into and out of the Lisbon region at weekends. Experts blame the Delta variant for the virus spread there.

It is widely expected to announce new restrictions for Lisbon after a Cabinet meeting on Thursday.

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GENEVA  Swiss authorities are vastly easing measures aimed to combat COVID-19 and relaxing some key requirements facing incoming travelers, as case counts and deaths from the pandemic have plunged in Switzerland in recent weeks.

Among the new steps effective Saturday, the Federal Council said work-from-home rules and the requirement to wear masks outdoors will be lifted. Restaurants will also no longer have to limit the number of patrons that can dine together.

The Swiss government said people from the European Schengen area  a vast zone that allows visa-free travel between countries  will no longer be required to quarantine upon entry to Switzerland.

Rules limiting entries of people from abroad will focus on countries with worrying levels of coronavirus variants in circulation.

The council  Switzerlands executive branch  is also extending the estimated duration of vaccine effectiveness for mRNA vaccines like those from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna to 12 months, from six months.

Swiss health authorities said Wednesday that 154 new cases and 2 new deaths were recorded from Tuesday to Wednesday in the country of about 8.5 million. Overall, Switzerland has tallied over 700,000 cases and 10,000 deaths linked to COVID-19.

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PARIS  France is adding Russia to its red list of countries from which travels are banned unless imperious motives because they are struggling with virus surges and worrisome variants.

French government spokesperson Gabriel Attal said Wednesday that Russia, Namibia and Seychelles are being added to the list of now 21 countries.

The red list notably includes India, South Africa and Brazil and implies that vaccinated travelers arriving in France must justify their trip, show a negative test and self-isolate for a week. Those not vaccinated must go on a quarantine for 10 days, risking a 1000-euro fine, equivalent to $1,194.

Attal also called for enhanced vigilance about the more contagious delta variant, first identified in India.

The delta variant is estimated to represent 9 to 10% overall in France, he said. But authorities are closely monitoring the situation in a region of southwestern France, the Landes, where 70% of confirmed infections are due to the delta variant, he added.

The epidemic situation in France has rapidly improved in recent weeks, with about 2,300 new daily infections reported each day, down from 35,000 in the March-April peak.

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BRUSSELS  Teenagers in Belgium aged from 12 to 15 with underlying conditions will be able to get vaccinated with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

The move was adopted Wednesday following a meeting of the countrys health ministers.

They said COVID-19 shots will be offered to youngsters affected by pathologies such as leukemia, Down syndrome or liver and kidney diseases because the risk they face to develop a severe form of coronavirus requiring a stay in hospital higher than the general population.

A decision has yet been taken on the vaccination of others in that age group.

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THE HAGUE, Netherlands  A telephone line set up to allow people in the Netherlands to book a Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccination has been overwhelmed with callers.

Health Minister Hugo de Jonge tweeted Wednesday that more than 130,000 people had attempted to call the line a total of more than 2 million times on the first morning that the government allowed anybody over the age of 18 to make an appointment for a J&J vaccination.

The J&J single-dose shot has largely been removed from the Dutch COVID-19 vaccination program because of the tiny risk of an extremely rare blood clotting disorder.

However, the government has about 200,000 J&J shots available over the next two weeks and is making them available to the public on a first-come-first-served basis.
There is no way that this winter is ever going to end as long as this groundhog keeps seeing his shadow. I do not see any other way out. Hes got to be stopped. And I have to stop him.

Bill Murrays Groundhog Day comes to mind as we witness the recurring spate of ransomware, cyberattacks, and cyber espionage that have targeted U.S. agencies and businesses in recent years. From the ransomware attacks on the Colonial oil pipeline, which caused consumer panic and gas shortages along the East Coast, and on JBS, the worlds largest meat processor, the problem is only getting worse.

Americans now realize what many national security leaders have said for years: our digital borders can be easily penetrated and cause turmoil in our daily lives. We live in an ever-increasing digitalized world that offers amazing future technological possibilities for everyday Americans. However, this is sprinkled with the downside of cyber threats within our interconnected society. These threats are not only disruptive but can be very costly (as the $11 million ransom that JBS paid to its attackers shows), as well as cause significant loss of property or life.

So how do we stop this pesky groundhog? There is not an easy cybersecurity in a box solution. Any persistent actor, especially a nation-state, can infiltrate a network if given enough time, skill, and resources. We need a multi-pronged approach to put us on a better defensive and offensive footing going forward.

To its credit, the Biden administration has zeroed in on cyber vulnerabilities in recent months, including recent announcements by the Department of Justice that they will elevate cyber prosecutorial and law enforcement action, to a new Ransomware and Digital Extortion Task Force for heightened coordination of cyber activity.

The FBI recently seized $2.3 million back from the reported $4.4 million that Colonial paid their hackers. The FBI also used a court-authorized order earlier this year to remove remaining web-shells from the Chinese-based Hafnium attacks on the Microsoft Exchange servers. Various Cyberspace Solarium recommendations have become law recently. Implementing these will be critical, along with the recent Executive Order by the administration to clean up the governments woefully inadequate cyber lawn.

Calls for private-public sector cooperation or information-sharing are important, but insufficient when it comes to systemically protecting important critical infrastructure. As former NSA and Cyber Command head, Adm. Mike Rogers, said earlier this year, its not about collaboration  its about integration.

There is talk of legislation that would require companies to disclose hacks. Doing so could help by not only enabling the government to potentially assist with an active breach or ransom, but by mitigating the future spread of the threat. It would also make critical infrastructure operators more aware of active threats.

A word of warning, though. Bloated regulation or cyber requirements that tether private sector entities into specific technologies could also dampen innovation while doing little or nothing to secure our infrastructure.

Businesses and CEOs can no longer take for granted their organizational digital supply chains and cyber defenses. Paying ransoms and hoping that cyber insurance will eventually make you whole is not a long-term strategy and imperfect at best.

Although ransomware has dominated headlines most recently, increasingly sophisticated spear-phishing campaigns and general breaches of user authentication processes are the standard offenses for many cybercriminals and nation-states actors. Increased focus on software supply chain security, zero-trust architecture, and multi-factor authentication need to become a mainstay of those operating in a cyber world, no matter how small the business or operation.

Critical infrastructure operators and businesses have to ask themselves if theyll be ready if that Winter is Coming moment comes to their system. Did they properly back up their data and store it offline? Are their information technology systems bleeding over to their infrastructures operational technology? What systems will they have in place to communicate and get back online? Just as war games and military planning are a necessary function of our military apparatus to be prepared for contingencies, companies must prepare similarly for these looming cyber storms.

Nothing about cybersecurity can be foolproof or unbreachable. But the U.S. can come to terms with some of these questions and come up with solutions to avoid Phil Connors prediction of a winter that is going to last you for the rest of your lives!

Dustin Carmack is a research fellow in The Heritage Foundations Center for Technology Policy and former chief of staff for the director of national intelligence. He wrote this for InsideSources.com.
In this March 10, 2020 file photo, a woman votes in the presidential primary election at the the Summit View Church of the Nazarene in Kansas City, Mo.
OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso (AP)  Gunmen ambushed a group of police officers in Burkina Faso, killing at least 11 of them in the deadliest attack of its kind yet in this West African country where extremist violence is escalating.

At least four other officers were missing after Mondays attack near the town of Barsalogho in the volatile countrys center-north region, Burkina Fasos security ministry confirmed in a press release Tuesday.

The violence is getting closer to Barsalogho. We are really concerned, said Abdoulaye Pafadnam, the towns mayor.

Only seven police officers are known to have survived the ambush, authorities from the security ministry said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, though suspicion immediately fell on Islamic extremists who have unleashed unprecedented violence recently.

Earlier this month, jihadists carried out the deadliest attack on civilians in Burkina Faso since the insurgency here began, killing at least 132 people in Solhan village in the countrys Sahel region.

This clearly shows that the militant threat is not abating despite the ongoing major military operations, said Heni Nsaibia, senior researcher at the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project.

Violence linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State has devastated Burkina Faso, killing thousands and displacing more than 1 million people since 2016. Fighting has further intensified in recent months, and more than 50 people were killed in one week alone in April including two Spanish journalists and an Irish conservationist.

By SAM MEDNICK

Associated Press
JOHANNESBURG (AP)  A summit of southern African leaders has agreed to send a regional military force to Mozambique to help the country battle its growing crisis caused by a jihadi insurgency.

Leaders of the 16-nation Southern African Development Community agreed Wednesday to deploy a military force to help the Mozambican government combat terrorism and acts of violent extremism.

The Islamic extremists violent campaign in Mozambiques northern province of Cabo Delgado has caused a rapidly escalating humanitarian crisis. The jihadi violence is blamed for the deaths of more than 2,000 people and has caused more than 700,000 to flee their homes.

The brief statement, issued after a summit in Mozambiques capital of Maputo, did not give details on the size of the force or when troops would be sent. Earlier this year military experts from the group recommended that the regional body send in about 3,000 soldiers, with arms, helicopters, airplanes and naval capacity.

The statement also urged that humanitarian assistance be given in northern Mozambique where nearly 1 million people need food aid, according to the U.N. World Food Program.

Mozambique will establish a headquarters in the northern port city of Nacala for the regional force, said the statement.

The insurgency in northern Mozambique started in Cabo Delgado province in 2017 and has grown rapidly in the past year. The rebels have held the port of Mocimboa da Praia since August last year. And they have repeatedly attacked the strategic center of Palma, forcing the French energy firm Total to suspend its $20 billion liquified natural gas project.

The short statement from the summit left many questions unanswered, said analysts.

There is a lot of uncertainty still as to the size of the regional force and what will be its operating mandate, said Dino Mahtani, deputy director of the International Crisis Groups Africa program. Mozambican authorities have expressed hesitancy about having regional boots on the ground, so it is not certain how this will be implemented.

The statement is an important acknowledgment by the Southern African Development Community that the conflict in northern Mozambique warrants a regional military intervention, said Jasmine Opperman, an analyst on African extremism.

There are no details, so we should not expect a quick deployment, said Opperman.

It is not clear how Mozambique will integrate a regional force into its operations in Cabo Delgado. And SADC should not underestimate the insurgents, she said.

Such a military intervention alone will not resolve the insurgency. It may be able to help achieve stability and security in northern Mozambique and that will help Mozambique address the humanitarian situation which is dire, she added. And Mozambique must reestablish effective governance in Cabo Delgado because that has been missing for four years.

By ANDREW MELDRUM

Associated Press
Bombing near Pakistan home of anti-India militant kills 3 View Photo

LAHORE, Pakistan (AP)  A powerful car bomb went off near the residence of a jailed anti-India militant leader in Pakistan on Wednesday, killing at least three people and wounding 25 others, police and rescue officials said.

The blast happened in the Johar Town neighborhood in the eastern city of Lahore, provincial police chief Inam Ghani told reporters. He said officers were still trying to determine whether it was a suicide bombing or the bomb was remotely detonated.

Ghani said some police officers were among the wounded.

It was a car bomb, but we are still trying to confirm whether it was a suicide bombing, he said.

He confirmed that the bombing happened near the residence of anti-India militant leader Hafiz Saeed, who has been designated a terrorist by the U.S. Justice Department and has a $10 million bounty on his head.

Saeed is the founder of the outlawed Lashkar-e-Taiba group, which was blamed for the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people.

Lashkar-e-Taiba was active for years mainly in Kashmir, which is split between Pakistan and India and is claimed by both in its entirety. In the Indian-controlled sector of Kashmir, rebels have been fighting against Indian rule since 1989. Most Muslim Kashmiris support the rebel goal that the territory be united either under Pakistani rule or as an independent country.

India accuses Pakistan of backing rebels in the Indian part of Kashmir, a charge Pakistan denies. Pakistan says it only provides moral, political and diplomatic support to the Kashmiri people, and that this support will continue until they get the right to self-determination under a U.N. resolution.

TV footage showed badly damaged homes, and many residents spoke of a bomb attack. Doctors say some of the wounded were in critical condition.

Ghani said police were guarding Saeeds house at the time of the attack. He said the attackers might have succeeded in targeting Saeeds home had police not set up a security post in the street where the bombing happened.

Last year, Pakistan sentenced Saeed to 15 years in jail in a terror-financing case, but he was never charged in connection with the Mumbai attacks.

Saeed, who is serving the jail term at his home under a special government order, escaped unharmed, but the windows of his house were also shattered. The bombing damaged several homes and the government announced compensation for those residents whose property was damaged in the attack.

Authorities blocked passageways to Saeeds home, citing security reasons.

Pakistan and India have a history of bitter relations and they have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir since gaining independence in 1947.

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Associated Press writer Asim Tanveer contributed to this report from Multan, Pakistan.

By BABAR DOGAR

Associated Press
Europes human rights body seeks probe into Czech Roma death View Photo

PRAGUE (AP)  Europes main human rights body on Wednesday demanded a thorough and independent investigation into the death of a Roma man who died after a Czech police officer responding to a call over an altercation knelt on his neck.

Police say the mans death last week was due to a drug overdose, and the countrys prime minister backed their handling of the incident. But Roma activists reject the police explanation and are planning a protest rally on Saturday in the northern city of Teplice, where the incident occurred.

Some compare the incident to the killing of George Floyd, a Black American man who died when a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck, according to prosecutors.

The Council of Europe said in a statement Wednesday that the police action was alarming and raises numerous questions about the circumstances of this tragic incident.

The local branch of the Amnesty International and the governments envoy for human rights, Helena Valkova, joined the call for an independent investigation while the countrys deputy ombudsman, Monika Simunkova, said Wednesday she will launch her separate probe into it.

Three police officers were involved in Saturdays incident in Teplice.

Video footage shows one of them kneeling on the mans neck for several minutes. The man, who has not been officially named, later died in an ambulance. Police said a drug overdose was preliminary determined by a doctor as the cause of death.

Police deny wrongdoing. Interior Minister Jan Hamacek said he stands by them. He said police are investigating whether the action was appropriate.

Police said the preliminary autopsy showed the man had a drug in his system and a heart problem, rejecting that his death had anything to do with their intervention.

They said they arrived at the scene, in a Roma neighborhood, after receiving a call that two men were fighting and damaging nearby cars. They said one of the men fled but the other attacked them after they approached him when they saw him lying on the street.

Prime Minister Andrej Babis thanked the police unit in Teplice.

If someone is destroying cars, is aggressive and even bites a policeman, then they cannot expect to be treated with kid gloves, Babis said Wednesday.

The site has been turned into an impromptu memorial, with people coming to light candles.

Roma have long suffered racism and discrimination in eastern Europe and continue to face huge hurdles in employment and education.
Greece: Bishops attacked with caustic liquid, 10 hurt View Photo

ATHENS, Greece (AP)  Seven senior members of Greeces Orthodox Church and three others were hospitalized with burns Wednesday after being attacked with a caustic liquid, allegedly by a priest facing a disciplinary hearing, authorities said.

The incident occurred at a meeting in Athens of senior bishops. The 37-year-old priest, who was facing the hearing for alleged drug-related offenses, was arrested unharmed and detained for questioning.

A police officer who helped restrain the suspect was also injured, as were a lawyer and a presiding clergyman. They were transferred to state hospitals, for treatment, and two clergymen were described as being in more serious condition.

Police said it was not immediately clear what liquid was used, but added that the victims were being treated for burns.

I express my abhorrence at this unprecedented event, Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou wrote in a tweet after contacting Archbishop Ieronymos, the leader of the Greek church.

Most of the victims hold the senior rank of metropolitan bishop

Health Minister Vassilis Kikilias visit an Athens hospital where the bishops were initially treated, joined by Archbishop Ieronymos.

Ieronymos told reporters he was deeply saddened by the attack but relieved that none of the injuries were considered by doctors to be life-threatening.

Health Minister Kikilias said four of the bishops were more lightly injured and were receiving first aid, while one was transferred to the plastic surgery unit of another hospital and the other two might also be transferred to other hospitals with specialized units, including one with a specialist eye clinic.

He said Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis had asked for constant updates on the case.

The motives for the attack were not immediately clear. State-run ERT television reported that the hearing was held as an appeal to depose the priest from the clergy.

Police identified the victims as the metropolitan bishops Antonios of Glyfada, Kyrillos of Kifissia, Kallinikos of Arta, Nikodimos of Kassandra, Dionysios IV of Zakynthos, Dimitrios of Goumenissis, and Andreas of Dryinoupolis.

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Follow Becatoros at https://twitter.com/ElenaBec and Gatopoulos at https://twitter.com/dgatopoulos

By ELENA BECATOROS and DEREK GATOPOULOS

Associated Press
2015 Butte Fire Visible From Glencoe View Photo

Sacramento, CA  $194,000 is coming to Calaveras County to create an evacuation and preparedness plan.

The Caltrans funding will help Calaveras identify its infrastructure of most concern related to wildfires or extreme weather events. It will also look at communities that would face the most challenges evacuating in the event of an emergency. Officials will gather information from local stakeholders, and then develop a strategic plan moving forward.

It is part of $34-million in state grants just announced by Caltrans to improve transportation flow and develop more sustainable communities.

Mariposa County is also receiving money, $460,000, to help further plan for its Mariposa Creek Parkway Project. The county-owned land between the Mariposa County Jail and Fournier Road will eventually feature complete-streets, recreational opportunities and help pave the way for new economic development and housing in that area. The project is part of Mariposa Countys strategic plan. Caltrans reports the funding will help the county work with various stakeholders to articulate a vision for a sustainable neighborhood along the Mariposa Creek Parkway.
UN urges world to push Afghanistan from battlefield to talks View Photo

UNITED NATIONS (AP)  The U.N.s top envoy for Afghanistan urged the international community on Tuesday to do everything possible to push the Taliban and the government from the battlefield back to the negotiating table, warning that inertia and the lack of action might lead to more years of bloodshed and conflict.

Deborah Lyons told the U.N. Security Council that she cannot overstate her concern at the current situation, saying every major trend  politics, security, the peace process, the economy, the humanitarian emergency and tackling COVID-19  is either negative or stagnant.

She said the Talibans increasing violence over the past year, even as now stalled peace talks began in Qatar in September, and its latest intensified military campaign have led to significant advances for the insurgents.

More than 50 of Afghanistans 370 districts have fallen since the beginning of May, the U.N. special representative said in a virtual briefing to a ministerial meeting of the council. Most districts that have been taken surround provincial capitals, suggesting that the Taliban are positioning themselves to try and take these capitals once foreign forces are fully withdrawn.

She also pointed to a 29% increase in civilian casualties in the first quarter of 2021 compared to the same period last year, including major increases among women and children. She singled out the May 8 attack on girls leaving school in a majority-Hazara area of Kabul that killed nearly 100 young female students, and two attacks this month that killed 11 people clearing mines in Baghlan province and five people engaged in polio vaccinations in Nangarhar province.

While Afghans knew international forces would be leaving, Lyons said U.S. President Joe Bidens mid-April announcement that the remaining 2,500-3,500 troops would be gone by Sept. 11 sent a seismic tremor through the Afghan political system and society at large because of the speed of their departure.

A U.S.-led coalition launched an invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 to hunt down and destroy the al-Qaida network and its leader, Osama bin Laden, blamed for the 9/11 attacks on America, and overthrew the Taliban, who during their rule imposed a harsh brand of Islam that stripped virtually all rights from women.

Under a February 2020 agreement with the United States, the U.S. agreed to withdraw its troops in exchange for a Taliban promise to denounce terrorist groups and keep Afghanistan from again being a staging arena for attacks on America, to reduce violence, and to enter negotiations with the government aimed at reaching a permanent cease-fire and restoring peace to the war-battered country.

Lyons said, however, the drivers of conflict seem for now to overwhelm hoped-for negotiations.

For the Taliban to continue this intensive military campaign would be a tragic course of action, she warned. It would lead to increased and prolonged violence that would extend the suffering of the Afghan people and threatens to destroy much of what has been built and hard won in the past 20 years, including the rights of women which she stressed are not negotiable.

Afghanistans Foreign Minister Mohammad Haneef Atmar told the council the Afghan people have recently witnessed the worst violence of the past two decades, accusing the Taliban of failing to honor any obligations in the February 2020 agreement and instead stepping up violence and leaving the country and region dangerously unstable.

He pointed to the Talibans failure to cut ties with international terrorist groups, saying it is hosting not only al-Qaida but also regional terrorist groups  in pursuit of their violence campaign against both Afghanistan and other countries. He didnt mention the Islamic State extremist group which has been blamed for recent attacks on minority Hazaras.

With the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO troops to be completed in the coming weeks, Atmar urged the international community to try to persuade the Taliban to honor its agreement with the United States and the Security Council resolution supporting it. He said it should also establish a mechanism to monitor implementation of the agreement and to take appropriate measures to ensure compliance.

Atmar said Afghanistan is at an inflection point in its history  of hope for achieving a sustainable peace after four decades of imposed war and fear of falling back into protracted conflict.

He urged the Taliban to explain to the world community why they said they were fighting foreign troops in Afghanistan and are killing their fellow Afghans, and especially civilians, where the foreign troops are leaving the country now.

As a key obstacle to peace, the U.N.s Lyons pointed to the lack of unity among Afghanistans quarrelsome leaders which is essential for peace talks with the Taliban. The foreign minister didnt mention this issue.

Lyons said the Afghan people and diplomatic community have been alarmed at the lack of political unity. She expressed cautious optimism about recent moved by President Ashrad Ghanis government and other political leaders to come together to discuss pressing security issues, but said the real test will be whether this reinforces the peace process and strengthens state institutions.

Lyons urged the Security Council and regional countries to make every effort to avoid the country going down the path of more bloodshed and suffering and return to negotiations.

The tragic history of conflict need not repeat itself  but left to its own and our inertia it just might, she said.

U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield reiterated the U.S. commitment to Afghanistans safety and security and continuing support for its security forces and economic and humanitarian needs.

She also urged countries with influence to press for negotiations between the Taliban and the government to move forward toward a peace settlement with the full participation of women.

U.S. President Joe Biden will meet Ghani and and Abdullah Abdullah, the head of the countrys High Council for National Reconciliation, which oversees the governments negotiation team with the Taliban, at the White House on Friday. In April, Biden said the U.S. was leaving Afghanistan having achieved its goals: Al-Qaida had been greatly diminished, bin Laden was dead, and America no longer needed boots on the ground to fight any terrorist threat from the country.

To the Taliban, we reiterate that the military path will not lead to legitimacy, ambassador Thomas-Greenfield said, noting that council members from Europe, Russia and China have also stressed that there is no military solution to the conflict.

The world will not recognize the establishment in Afghanistan of any government imposed by force, nor the restoration of the Islamic Emirate (under the Taliban), Thomas-Greenfield warned. There is only one way forward: a negotiated and inclusive political settlement through an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned process.

By EDITH M. LEDERER

Associated Press
Blinken to meet Israels new foreign minister in Rome View Photo

BERLIN (AP)  U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will meet with Israels new Foreign Minister Yair Lapid in Italy over the weekend, a senior State Department official and Israels foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

They said the meeting would take place on Sunday in Rome but neither side offered any details about the agenda, which is likely to focus on Israels concerns about a possible U.S. return to the Iran nuclear deal and Israels security more broadly.

It will be their first meeting since Lapid assumed his position after longtime Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was ousted. The discussion comes as Israels new government led by Prime Minister Naftali Bennett seeks to mend relations with U.S. President Joe Bidens administration.

The leaders have inherited a relationship that is at once imperiled by increasingly partisan domestic political considerations and deeply bound in history and an engrained recognition that they need each other.

Bennetts government says it wants to repair relations with Democrats and restore bipartisan support in the U.S. for Israel that former President Donald Trump attempted to turn into a Republican monopoly. Biden, meanwhile, is trying to pursue a more balanced approach on the Palestinian conflict and Iran by restoring ties with the Palestinians and entering into indirect negotiations on the nuclear agreement that Trump withdrew from.

The relationship is critical to both countries. Israel has long regarded the United States as its closest ally and guarantor of its security and international standing while the U.S. counts on Israels military and intelligence prowess in a turbulent Middle East.

By MATTHEW LEE

AP Diplomatic Writer
Help wanted: Labor crisis plagues US restaurant industry View Photo

LOS ANGELES (AP)  Sherry Villanuevas family of Santa Barbara restaurants employed 350 people before the pandemic took hold and darkened dining rooms across California. Now, with the states economy officially reopened, about 250 workers are back on the job.

Villanueva would hire 100 more if she could  but she cant find people to take the openings.

We are in the midst of a very severe labor shortage, said Villanueva, owner and managing partner of Acme Hospitality, which operates eight eateries in the popular seaside destination, though two remain closed. With staffs stretched paper-napkin thin, the employees are doing the job of two people.

California fully reopened its economy on June 15 and did away with limits on capacity at restaurants, retail stores and other businesses. People are eager to return to sporting events and amusement parks and enjoy a meal out.

But instead of full dining rooms, many restaurants are being forced to cut operating hours or leave tables open. Villanuevas company is offering cash bonuses to workers who recruit new employees.

The worker shortage is also affecting restaurants across the U.S.

The National Restaurant Association has reported the eating and drinking industry shed 2.5 million jobs in 2020. Federal data show nearly 1.4 million job openings in the restaurant and hotel sector in April.

At the Served Global Dining restaurant in Henderson, Nevada, a Las Vegas suburb, chef-owner Matthew Meyer said he needs a dozen or more people to fill positions across the board, including cooks and bartenders.

Plans for a seafood raw bar, to-go kits and a chefs table to serve special tasting menus are on hold because he cant find enough workers. Meanwhile, his labor costs are up by a third because he has to offer more money to lure applicants. Even then, the last two he had scheduled for interviews never, showed up.

We are having extreme difficulties, he said.

Sam Toia, CEO of the Illinois Restaurant Association, said hes started talking with federal lawmakers about the possibility of expanding worker visa programs for the restaurant industry to open a new pipeline of labor.

And without enough workers to fill shifts, restaurants are warning customers to expect longer-than-typical waits for their meals, Toia said.

The California Restaurant Association earlier estimated as many as one-third of the states restaurants would not make it through the pandemic. For those that survived, the employment gap is a full-blown crisis, said Jot Condie, who heads the organization.

Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom is fond of saying that Californias economy is roaring back. Indeed, employment figures released Friday showed the state added over 100,000 jobs in May, the fourth consecutive month of gains after 2.7 million jobs vanished during the early months of the pandemic.

But in the states battered restaurant industry, the return toward normalcy is being slowed by the struggle to find an adequate number of cooks, bartenders, food servers and kitchen staff. Since May 2020, restaurants and hotels have added 420,400 jobs  the most of any sector  but the industry remains about 450,000 jobs below its pre-pandemic level.

In Los Angeles, Caroline Styne, owner and wine director at The Lucques Group, has turned away dozens of customers because she didnt have the staff to serve them, leaving seats empty.

If you cant fill your seats  multiple times per evening, the financial structure of the restaurant doesnt work, Styne said.

Hiring is a nightmare, she added. Ive never been in a situation like this.

The sector is notoriously volatile and restaurant employees can be a transient lot  students who drop in-and-out of shifts as time allows, aspiring actors and musicians looking to supplement their income, kitchen staffers who move on for bigger paydays elsewhere. The hours can be long, benefits scarce and the pay low, sometimes reliant on tips.

Styne, Villanueva and other industry experts see a web of factors conspiring to create the scarcity of job applicants.

Among them: Californias population dropped by 182,000 last year as the pandemic ravaged the economy, scattering workers around the country as many businesses closed. Some workers are hesitant to come back, either over lingering fear of the virus or because of frayed nerves after struggling through on-and-off lockdowns, home isolation and shifting health regulations.

Extended federal unemployment benefits have provided a cushion to stay home  about 2 million people are still receiving checks. In other cases, theres a child care problem with schools closed or in recess for summer. And after a long break from work to ponder the future, others took on a new career path.

Restaurants and hotels have been ground zero for the labor shortage, but other sectors have been struggling to fill jobs, including non-union construction and home health care, said Michael Bernick, a former director of the California Employment Development Department and an attorney with the Duane Morris law firm.

For ailing restaurants, a turning point may not come until late summer, when enhanced federal benefits end and schools reopen. Even then, wages might need to rise to attract workers.

On Saturday, Alec Nedelman was enjoying an early Fathers Day celebration with his family at one of Stynes A.O.C. restaurants in Los Angeles. The attorney said he has just started to return to restaurants since dining rooms began to reopen, and also was looking forward to having them available for business meetings.

Its still a mixed feeling. You are still a little cautious and concerned, Nedelman said. But Im looking forward to being able to be social again.

By MICHAEL R. BLOOD

Associated Press
Report: Clergy abuse in Iowa was overwhelming but now rare View Photo

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP)  Roman Catholic priests sexually abused minors across Iowa for decades while church leaders covered it up, but reforms implemented in recent years have largely stopped the problem, a three-year review by Iowas attorney general concluded.

A report issued by Attorney General Tom Miller said the number of complaints, victims and the duration of the abuse was overwhelming and the cover-up was extensive, similar to what has been found elsewhere in the U.S. Dozens of victims came forward to Millers office, describing lifelong consequences.

The pain was real and lasting, whether the abuse happened 60 years ago or more recently. In some cases, survivors explained why they kept the abuse secret; in others, they described how their allegations were ignored or covered up for decades, the report said.

It added, The image and reputation of the church were put ahead of the enormous harm to young people.

The review found that only five Iowa priests have been the subject of allegations since 2002, and that bishops who participated in concealing past problems are no longer in charge in Iowa.

Miller said reforms implemented since 2002 are working. His report praised the automatic reporting of all allegations by church officials to local law enforcement authorities, decisions by the states four Catholic dioceses to post online lists of credibly accused priests, and the improved treatment of victims.

Of the five priests accused of misconduct since 2002, only one has been added to the credibly accused list: a former Davenport priest who pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography. The others involved allegations of improper touching, possession of pornography and invasion of privacy, but they either werent substantiated or didnt meet the definition of sexual abuse.

Miller, who graduated from a Catholic high school in Dubuque but now attends a Lutheran church, announced the inquiry in November 2018. The move came after an investigation by The Associated Press found that the Diocese of Sioux City had covered up a priests 1986 admission to having sexually abused dozens of Iowa boys.

Sioux City leaders apologized and for the first time released a list of 28 accused priests. The Diocese of Des Moines followed suit, releasing a list of nine accused priests. The states other two dioceses, Davenport and Dubuque, had previously released such lists.

Millers office opened a hotline and encouraged victims of abuse to come forward, and 50 people made accusations against dozens of Catholic priests concerning abuse that took place from the 1930s to 1997. Seventeen victims said they had never previously reported the abuse, and three allegations involved active priests.

Millers office said all of the allegations against Catholic clergy fell outside the statute of limitations for criminal charges. One prompted an investigation by church officials of St. Ambrose University professor and Davenport priest, the Rev. Robert Bud Grant, which concluded that his misconduct did not amount to sexual abuse of a minor but led to restrictions on his activities with students.

Millers investigation focused on how church officials had investigated prior allegations that they determined werent credible. He sent a letter in 2019 requesting internal records, which the dioceses agreed to turn over, and investigators later asked for more information on specific cases.

The review raised some concerns about the Des Moines diocese, saying it did not follow up on single complaints of abuse against deceased priests and refused to turn over some investigative reports by citing attorney-client privilege. The diocese is an outlier compared with the states other three, because it has fewer publicly listed priests and has found a higher percentage of complaints unfounded, the report found.

Millers office does not agree with how Des Moines decided who to add to its list but those decisions are in a gray area, new leaders are in place and complaints now get reported to law enforcement, the report said.

During Millers review, Sioux City added the names of three priests to its credibly accused list and Davenport recently added one.

In a joint statement, the states four Catholic bishops said they cooperated with the investigation in the interest of transparency and accountability and would study Millers report for ways to improve.

The Catholic Church is committed to do all that is humanly possible to protect minors from the sin and crime of clergy sexual abuse, and to promote healing, the statement said.

__

This story has been corrected to reflect that while Miller attended a Catholic high school, he now attends a Lutheran church.

By RYAN J. FOLEY

Associated Press
Man killed after he shot NDOT worker may have homicide ties

RENO, Nev. (AP)  A man who died in a gun battle with officers after he shot a state transportation worker on a remote Nevada highway last week has been identified as a 34-year-old from Northern California who may have ties to a homicide there, authorities say.

Zachary Minissale of Nevada City, California, was shot last Wednesday after fleeing the scene of the shooting of the Nevada Department of Transportation worker on State Route 278 in Eureka County, Nevada Highway Patrol Lt. Eddie Bowers said Monday. He was transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The transportation worker recovered from non-life-threatening injuries and has been released from the hospital, he said.

Bowers said Minissale would have faced multiple charges including attempted murder with a deadly weapon after he opened fire on a road paving crew member in a construction zone south of the mining town of Carlin at about 10 a.m.

He made it about 42 miles (67 kilometers) south before the white 2017 Dodge cargo van he was driving was disabled by a spike strip and left the highway. He exited the van and began firing at a trooper and Eureka County undersheriff chasing him.

Nevada Highway Patrol Trooper Eric Candee, 28, who was armed with an AR15, and Undersheriff Tyler Thomas, 30, who was armed with a 9 mm pistol, fired a total of 16 shots, Bowers said.

Minissale had a .45 caliber revolver. He died of a single gunshot wound, Bowers said. No officers were hurt.

Bowers said an investigation determined Minissale may have ties to an ongoing homicide investigation in Nevada City, in the Sierra about 70 miles (112 kilometers) west of the California-Nevada line.

The Nevada County sheriffs office said deputies found a 30-year-old British citizen, Jessic Clayton Robiere, dead in a home on Bodie Ridge Road in Nevada City on the same day the shoot-out occurred, June 16.

Minissale owned the home, and authorities believe he also had lived there, Sheriffs Lt. Sean Scales told The Union.

Scales declined to classify him as a suspect in Robieres death but said Minissale had obvious ties to the case we are looking at.

By SCOTT SONNER

Associated Press
SAN FRANCISCO (AP)  Dozens of tule elk at Point Reyes National Seashore have died from starvation and dehydration in the last year because the animals couldnt get past a fence that the National Park Service placed to stop them from competing for food and water with cattle, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday against the federal government.

Three California residents and the Animal Legal Defense Fund sued the park service in federal court in San Francisco claiming it is being negligent and more animals will die if the agency is not ordered to provide food and water during the drought.

The National Park Service has a responsibility to protect and preserve these beautiful animals. The idea that depriving them of food and water somehow fulfills that responsibility isnt just absurd, its undeniably inhumane, said Kate Barnekow, of Harvard Law Schools Animal Law & Policy Clinic, who is representing the Plaintiffs.

Point Reyes National Seashore spokeswoman Melanie Gunn said she couldnt comment on pending litigation.

Tule elk are a subspecies of elk native to California. The 700-pound (318-kilogram) animals, which were hunted to near extinction in the 1800s, were reintroduced to the park in 1978.

According to the lawsuit, 152 elk  more than a third of the population  have died since last year and necropsies obtained under the Freedom of Information Act show that the emaciated elk died of starvation and/or dehydration.

The park service announced earlier this month that it had installed three large troughs after many of the stock ponds and other water sources began drying up earlier than expected due to lack of rain. But that water was only accessible to one of four herds at Tomales Point, the lawsuit said.

Gov. Gavin Newsom last month declared a drought emergency for much of the state after an unusually dry winter and extraordinarily warm spring temperatures. But while droughts are common in California, this years drought much hotter and drier than others, evaporating water more quickly.

The fence was erected decades ago to prevent the elk from competing with the cattle that are permitted by the park service to graze on public land.

Some of the biggest names in the Bay Areas organic meat and dairy industry lease land in Point Reyes, including Bill Niman and Nicolette Hahn Niman of BN Ranch LLC, and David Evans of Marin Sun Farms.

Plaintiff Jack Gescheidt, an environmentalist and artist, has been visiting Tomales Point in the Point Reyes National Seashore for at least 20 years. He said the park service cited him after he took troughs of water to the elk.

The knowledge that approximately a third of the Tomales Point herd of tule elk has already died from a lack of adequate water and forage is absolutely chilling, he said. I see these beautiful animals and want them to experience a healthy, happy, safe life, but I know that so many of them will diethrough no fault of their own.

____

This story has been correct to reflect that two independently owned dairy farms that supply the Straus Family Creamery lease land at the Point Reyes National Seashore.

By OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ

Associated Press
California oil regulators delay health, safety rules again View Photo

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP)  Its been a year and a half since California Gov. Gavin Newsom directed oil regulators to consider new health and safety measures to protect people living near oil and gas drilling sites.

But those regulators missed another deadline Monday for releasing the rules, frustrating environmental advocates who say communities cant wait any longer for change. The California Geologic Energy Management Division, known as CalGEM, hasnt set a new timeline for the rules, which Newsom originally mandated be out last December. Regulators delayed but said they would come out in the spring.

California is the nations seventh-largest oil-producing state and has no statewide rules on how far oil and gas wells must be from where people live, work or go to school. While it has a reputation as a climate leader, other oil-producing states, including Pennsylvania and Colorado, already have such regulations. Even Texas bans wells within 467 feet (142 meters) of a property line.

Advocacy groups point to studies that show living near drilling sites can worsen a slew of health risks, including respiratory problems and birth defects.

It is clear CalGEM does not respect the urgency needed to prevent further damage and inequity in our communities, Cesar Aguirre, a community organizer with Central California Environmental Justice Network, said in a statement.

The group is one of dozens in the Last Chance Alliance that sent Newsom an open letter calling for him to immediately mandate a 2,500-foot (762-meter) buffer zone between wells and places like homes and schools and to issue a moratorium on all new drilling permits in those zones. Newsom has previously declined to impose such a mandate in favor of the agency rulemaking process.

Your leadership can deliver equitable and effective relief today, the letter says.

Uduak-Joe Ntuk, the states oil and gas supervisor, was not made available for an interview Tuesday to discuss the delay.

The process is taking longer than expected because of complex subject matter within and beyond our previous regulatory experience, David Shabazian, director of the California Department of Conservation, said in a statement. His department oversees CalGEM.

We continue to work closely with our state partners and the public health experts panel to thoroughly examine and assess impacts across the board so that we develop the most well-informed, legally durable rule possible to protect communities and workers from the impacts of oil extraction activities, he said.

Spokespeople for Newsom didnt comment on whether he would communicate with regulators about the delay or respond to advocates call for him to take immediate action.

But as he faces an expected recall election later this year, the regulation of the oil industry places him between two powerful constituencies : environmentalists and some labor unions aligned with the oil industry. Democrats, who control state government, are divided on how much to regulate the industry.

The Western States Petroleum Association and the State Building and Construction Trades Council oppose a statewide mandate on buffer zones, saying such a rule would hurt workers and raise the cost of fuel.

Meanwhile, environmentalists have long been frustrated by the states oil regulator, saying the agency is too close with the companies it oversees.

Newsom, a first-term Democrat, pledged to reform CalGEM in 2019 by renaming it and directing it to focus on health and safety. He told the agency to consider prohibiting drilling within certain distances of homes, schools, hospitals and parks.

Last year, he used executive powers to mandate the draft regulations come out by December. But the agency punted to the spring, saying it needed more time to take feedback from public health experts. Advocates took note when summer began on Monday without the new rules.

Its astounding that the state has failed to develop a draft public health and safety rule in over a year and a half, said Gladys Limon, executive director of the California Environmental Justice Alliance.

By KATHLEEN RONAYNE

Associated Press
FONTANA, Calif. (AP)  Two men driving stolen trucks were shot dead by law enforcement officers Wednesday in separate Southern California confrontations, authorities said.

A California Highway Patrol officer fatally shot a man at about 1 a.m. after he led police on a wrong-way chase along freeways in a flatbed truck, authorities said.

The man was pronounced dead on Interstate 10 in Fontana, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) east of Los Angeles, CHP Officer Ramon Duran said. The man was not immediately identified.

A passenger in the truck was taken into custody after being treated for minor injuries, likely sustained from glass debris, authorities said.

The truck was reported stolen in the city of San Bernardino at about 10:30 p.m. Tuesday, San Bernardino police Sgt. John Echevarria said.

Officers spotted the vehicle about an hour later in the nearby city of Colton, he said. Then the pursuit began.

CHP officers followed the truck for more more than an hour as it drove the wrong way on several freeways east of Los Angeles. At one point, officers were able to get in front of the truck and set up a roadblock with their cruisers, Duran said.

The truck approached the officers head-on, Duran said. One officer opened fire, striking the driver. No officers were injured.

The incident caused a massive traffic jam on the major route.

More than 50 miles (80 kilometers) southeast of the police pursuit, Los Angeles County sheriffs deputies shot and killed a man who led them on a chase in a utility box van that was reported to be driving erratically in the Los Angeles suburb of Norwalk, authorities said.

The van had been reported earlier in the day, according to a Sheriffs Department statement.

Deputies located the truck but when they tried to stop the driver shortly before 10 a.m. he pulled out something that appeared to be a handgun, and he was shot and killed, the statement said.

Although the object resembled a gun, deputies determined that it wasnt a firearm, authorities said.

The man was believed to be about 20 years old but his name wasnt immediately released, authorities said.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Utah Rep. John Curtis says he's tired of hearing that Republicans  his party colleagues  don't care about climate change or slowing global warming.

A former Provo mayor who has served in Congress since 2017, Curtis says Republicans can push for serious climate solutions while holding fast to conservative values. To prove the point, he has formed the Conservative Climate Caucus, an all-GOP group aimed at educating fellow Republicans on climate change and advancing market-based policies to counter the Green New Deal and other Democratic proposals.

Those who watch this caucus will see Republicans do care about this Earth  deeply,'' Curtis said at a news conference Wednesday.

"We, too, want to leave this Earth better than we found it. We dont need to kill the U.S. economy to reach our climate goals. In fact, its just the opposite. There is a way to lower emissions without sacrificing American jobs and principles. And I believe Republicans are the ones to lead on this.''

Leading Republicans, most notably former President Donald Trump, have mocked climate change as a hoax and downplayed the effects of warming temperatures caused by fossil fuel emissions. Trump withdrew the United States from the global Paris climate accord, and his Environmental Protection Agency refused to update a website highlighting evidence of climate change in the United States, including rising temperatures, increased ocean acidity and more severe droughts and wildfires.

Rep. Peter Meijer of Michigan, another caucus member, said it's long past time for Republicans to acknowledge the reality of climate change and put forward solutions that reduce carbon emissions while remaining "aligned with our business community.''

Climate caucus members are not going to be bringing snowballs onto the House floor,'' Meijer said. Were bringing solutions. Were not using this as a cheap talking point.''

Meijer was referring to a 2015 incident when Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., brought a snowball to the Senate floor to dispute global warming.

Meijer, a freshman who voted to impeach Trump in January, acknowledged that Republicans have an image problem on climate change, but he said Democrats must answer for excesses of their own.

Far too often,'' he said, "our colleagues on the other side of the aisle look at the environment as a cloak they can wrap around any policy, as just another adjective in front of a nebulously defined justice that can encompass whatever their talking points want.''

Curtis, who voted against impeachment but supported a bipartisan commission on the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, said he has not talked to Trump about the climate caucus. The group includes some strong Trump supporters, but all are "independent thinkers,'' Curtis said in an interview.

Calling climate change a serious threat, he said, "We've been missing from the table for too long as conservatives.''

A total of 56 Republicans  a quarter of the GOP caucus  had joined the climate group as of Wednesday, including Louisiana Rep. Garret Graves, the top Republican on the House Select Committee on Climate; Washington Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, the top Republican on Energy and Commerce; and Arkansas Rep. Bruce Westerman, top Republican on Natural Resources.

None of the top three GOP leaders in the House belongs to the climate group, although House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California has pledged to form a GOP task force on energy and climate issues.

Rep. Kathy Castor of Florida, the Democratic chair of the full House climate panel, said she hopes Republicans are serious about addressing climate change and are not just trying to score political points.

As a dangerous heatwave threatens to break all-time temperature records across the West, and as families and farmers struggle with rising costs, it is clearer than ever that Congress must act now to expand clean energy and cost-saving energy efficiency,'' Castor said. There is no more time for half measures. If my Republicans colleagues really want to do something, they need to start voting in favor of real solutions.

David Doniger, a top climate strategist at the Natural Resources Defense Council, said his organization welcomes Republican engagement on climate. The key question is: Will they support actual limits on carbon pollution to cut emissions in half in the next 10 years and reach net-zero (greenhouse gas emissions) by 2050? he said.

Curtis and other caucus member cited private-sector innovation and development of technologies that capture and store carbon emissions as crucial to address climate change, and said the United States is the global leader in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Natural gas exports from Russia produce about 40 percent more carbon emissions than U.S. gas exports, Graves said, citing a 2019 Energy Department study.

We didnt do it with mandates, we didnt do it with picking technological winners or losers. We did it because of Americas innovators, because of the same people that allowed the United States to be this amazing economy,'' he said.
A man indicted on a kidnapping charge in connection with his teen-age stepdaughter's disappearance was arrested again Friday after more indictments were handed up in the case.

Gabriel Cuauhtli, 38, has not given authorities any information about where to find his adopted stepdaughter, Margarette Ann Cuauhtli, 17, said Christy Gilfour, an Arlington police spokeswoman.

Cuauhtli was indicted by a Tarrant County grand jury Thursday on three counts of tampering with evidence and one count of theft. He is jailed in Arlington on $10,000 bond for each charge.

The indictments stem from information that Arlington police gave the district attorney's office for the kidnapping case. Cuauhtli was indicted on that charge earlier this month.

Cuauhtli's attorney has said his client did not kidnap or kill Margarette Ann, a high school senior.

Arlington detectives say Cuauhtli doctored e-mails, which appeared to be from the girl in Mexico, and fabricated evidence in an attempt to lead investigators in other directions.

In a runaway report filed Oct. 12, Cuauhtli told investigators that his daughter, then 16, had voluntarily run off with her boyfriend the previous morning.

Thirteen days after the report was filed, Margarette Ann turned 17, the legal age of responsibility in Texas, police said. At that point, police continued their investigation but could not legally make her return home even if they found her.

Police began to suspect Cuauhtli in March after he told them his daughter had not left home voluntarily but had been kidnapped by her boyfriend.

The theft charge is not directly connected to the girl's disappearance. Investigators learned of theft allegations from Cuauhtli's employer, a bank, and police found evidence that they gave to the grand jury.
During the blockbuster plot twist that was 2020, three Los Angeles-based actors and longtime friends wrote themselves a scene that was playing out in cities across the United States. Early into lockdown, Becca Tobin, best known for her role as Kitty Wilde on the Fox series Glee, formed a pandemic pod with her fellow actors Haylie Duff and Jamie-Lynn Sigler, gathering for regular backyard confabs about shifting priorities, family demands and their future in Hollywood.

We had been able to work from home successfully and set up our careers from anywhere, Tobin said. And we were all kind of ready for a change.

Tobin, 35, Duff, 36 and Sigler, 40, had all moved to Los Angeles in their 20s for work and, like so many others, spent much of 2020 wondering if they wanted to live somewhere else. Hollywood the town and Hollywood the job had been cleaved apart, with acting classes going online, self-tape auditions replacing in-person and the off-screen demands of the job  red carpets, award shows, interviews  going virtual or extinct.

We found our conversations shifting more toward life, said Sigler, who made her mark playing Meadow Soprano on The Sopranos. And then we started to fantasize about what it would be like to live in different cities, and would we ever want to leave LA?

They were far from alone. For the first time in more than a century, California lost people last year, according to population estimates released by the state in May. Some of that was a result of COVID-19 deaths, falling birthrates and the Trump administrations efforts to limit immigration. But for many, it was simply a matter of finding better prices in greener pastures.

The three made a pact to relocate their quaranteam, leaving Hollywood together for a new city where they could keep working but enjoy a less hectic, and less expensive, life.

It reminded me of being in high school and being like, Youre gonna go home tonight and shave your legs, right? Because Im going to do it, too, Tobin said of the agreement. Like adult peer pressure.

During the summer, Duff, the native Texan in the group, had visited her parents in Houston and felt the pull back home. The older sister of actress Hilary Duff, she has been acting since she was a teenager and had always planned to move back to Texas eventually, and after the trip, she cut her familys five-year plan to a five-month plan. As more friends relocated, there was an energy around people choosing to make a change in their life, for a positive reason, for a self-care reason, she said.

The friends considered different cities they had heard of people moving to, like Nashville or Atlanta, but they kept coming back to Texas. We liked the idea of being in a progressive city, but not necessarily something so overly populated, Tobin said.

The obvious choice was Austin, the booming southern crossroads of culture and technology, where they could more or less split the distance between Los Angeles and New York. It was a madcap move in the rush of a red-hot sellers market, a once-in-a-century chance to pause, then fast-forward.

Even though we were together so much during quarantine and COVID, it really chipped away at us as a family, like many families, said Sigler, who had only been to Austin once, for a film premiere at the South by Southwest festival. Coming to this new city all together on this adventure offered a lot of repair for us, as well.

Tobin, a Georgia native who had lived in Los Angeles for 12 years, said of Tinseltown: As easy as it was to come, it was as easy for me to say goodbye.

The three families made a common checklist, headlined by ample outdoor space and good public schools. They hit the Zillow hard, Sigler said, lobbing listings at one another from film sets and playgrounds. In October, they embarked on a house-hunting tour with partners and children in tow (Duff has two daughters; Sigler has two sons), and settled on a neighborhood about 20 minutes northwest of downtown Austin.

When they arrived in the spring, the culture shock came by way of small-town hospitality and everyday conveniences.

You mean I can get in my car, drive five minutes and not fight people when Im in the grocery store to get in a lot? said Tobin, who arrived in April after filming a TV reboot of the 1989 film Turner & Hooch in Vancouver, British Columbia. Oh, and you dont pay for parking anywhere.

In decamping to Austin  home to an ever-expanding ecosystem of film festivals and production studios  they were joining a wave of high-profile Californians like Tesla founder Elon Musk and podcaster Joe Rogan, as well as the other roughly 70,000 people who moved to the area last year, according to U.S. census data, making it the fastest-growing metro area in the United States.

Once you come here, its hard to leave, said Duff, whose film roles include Napoleon Dynamite and The Wedding Pact, and who spent time this year shooting a movie in Fort Wayne, Indiana. She noted that each of the friends booked gigs not long after closing on their Austin homes, which felt like a nod from the universe.

I almost feel more connected to my craft and why I love acting, said Sigler, who had just returned from recording dialogue at a studio in downtown Austin for an ABC pilot she shot in Los Angeles. When the calls come in, its a beautiful surprise. Im still on things and Im still a businesswoman and its still my career, but I dont feel the pressure around it because we took a stand for ourselves and we made decisions for our families.

With its bohemian charms, natural splendors and lack of state income taxes, Austin has been courting Californias twin economic engines, Hollywood and Silicon Valley, for years, all while trying to maintain its cherished Keep Austin Weird credibility. According to Rice Universitys Kinder Institute for Urban Research, about 90,000 Californians moved to Texas in 2018 and 2019. The pandemic has only deepened the romance. Austin enjoyed a PR blitz of high-profile corporate relocations and expansions last year, with tech giant Oracle moving its headquarters there from Redwood Shores, California, and Musk announcing Teslas $1 billion gigafactory on the southeast edge of town.

The housing market, already in a decadelong development frenzy, wound up defying the pandemic and roaring back to life. In May 2021, the median sale price in the Austin metro area hit an all-time high of $465,000, according to the Austin Board of Realtors. High-end home prices spiked 24%, according to Redfin, the most of any area in the country.

Still, anyone used to California prices sees Texas as a bargain, said Scott Michaels, an Austin real estate agent with Compass, who described cutthroat, all-cash bidding wars that drew 40 to 60 offers on a single property.

Its a challenge because were competing with people moving from out-of-state, and theres just not a lot of inventory on the market, he said.

For Sigler, who is from Long Island, New York, Austins square footage and outdoor space were revelatory.

There was a lot of like, Oh my God, look what we can get for this. Look at the life we can give ourselves, you know, compared to what were able to afford here in LA, she said. I just feel like were taking a big, deep breath since we got here.

Sigler and Duff started their careers as teens but wanted a different lifestyle for their children in Austin, where space and nature are plentiful, and paparazzi arent.

That was a big choice for us, wanting our kids to stay young, Duff said.

Austin has been contending with growing pains since the early 1980s, during its first hint of what locals call Silicon Hills, said Natasha Harper-Madison, the citys mayor pro-tem. Born and raised in East Austin, Harper-Madison said the changing cityscape was best described by her mother: She said, I really like my neighbors. I just wish I didnt have to lose so many of the old ones to get new ones. And I think, in large part, thats how folks feel. Its not any sort of absence of the desire to welcome people to our communities. Its the exact opposite. In fact, people want to preserve and sort of steward the evolution of their communities.

Despite some natal cries of Dont California My Texas from both ends of the political spectrum, whats fueling the migration are the states similarities. Sitting on the border with relatively sunny climates, theyre both super diverse, in every possible way  ethnically, economically, geographically, said Jake Weggman, an associate professor of community and regional planning at the University of Texas at Austin.

Its an incredible burst of prosperity for the city, but its also just terrifying from a housing affordability standpoint, what that means for people living here, Weggman said.

Tobin has sensed some side-eye when she tells locals where shes from, but she tries to put them at ease. Voting and donating are two ways to do it, she said, and she has contributed to causes that support homeless outreach and abortion rights through local nonprofits like Mobile Loaves & Fishes and the Lilith Fund.

I get it, they dont want us to LA their Austin, she said. My husband and I personally are going to really try to do our best to help out in the community and get involved where we can.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
LAS VEGAS (AP)  A Las Vegas father who authorities say was killed at the hands of his teenage daughter and her boyfriend was stabbed more than 70 times, according to an autopsy report.

The Clark County coroners office autopsy, which was made available this week, details numerous wounds inflicted on the body of Daniel Halseth.
WASHINGTON (AP)  The Supreme Court on Wednesday sided with California agriculture businesses that objected to a state regulation giving unions access to farm property in order to organize workers.

As a result of the ruling, the businesses' attorney said, California will have to modify or abandon the regulation put in place in 1975 after the efforts of labor leader Cesar Chavez.

The justices ruled 6-3 along ideological lines for the agriculture businesses. It's another potential setback for unions as a result of a high court decision.

"The access regulation amounts to simple appropriation of private property," Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the conservative members of the court. Roberts said the regulation grants labor organizations a right to invade the growers property.

At issue was a California regulation that allows unions access to farms and other agriculture businesses for up to three hours per day, 120 days per year, in order to organize workers. Businesses are supposed to be notified before organizers arrive, and organizers are supposed to come during nonwork times such as lunch and before and after work.

Two agriculture businesses had challenged the regulation saying it had the effect of taking their property without compensation in violation of the Constitution. The businesses also said the regulation was outdated and unnecessary given that unions can now reach workers many ways, including via smartphone and radio.

Writing for the majority, Roberts rejected the suggestion that the ruling would endanger a host of state and federal government activities involving entry onto private property.

But writing for the three-justice liberal minority, Justice Stephen Breyer said the majoritys conclusion threatens to make many ordinary forms of regulation unusually complex or impractical.

Breyer wrote that he would have concluded that California's regulation did not take anything but instead regulates the employers right to exclude others.

Breyer noted the large numbers of ordinary regulations that permit the temporary entry onto a property owner's land. That includes entry for inspections ranging from food product safety like meat and dairy facility inspections to the inspections of nursing homes, preschools and foster care facilities.

I suspect that the majority has substituted a new, complex legal scheme for a comparatively simpler old one, he wrote.

The ruling is the latest hit to unions by the court under Roberts. In 2018, the courts conservative majority overturned a 41-year-old pro-union decision that had allowed states to require that public employees pay some fees to unions that represent them, even if the workers choose not to join.

Still, its unclear how much will change as a result of the court's ruling.

The access regulation in particular is unique to California. And the state had said that union organizers use the regulation sparingly  only five times in the 2019-2020 budget year and 24 times in 2018-2019. Still, the United Farmworkers of America told the justices that the regulation is more necessary now than ever. The union said farmworkers are increasingly indigenous workers from Mexico and the only effective way to communicate with them is in person at their job sites.

In court documents filed before President Joe Biden took office, the Trump administration had urged the justices to side with the businesses. The Biden administration later changed the governments position.

The case the justices ruled in involved Fowler Packing Company in Fresno, which ships grapes and citrus, and Cedar Point Nursery in Dorris, which grows strawberry plants for commercial growers.

Union organizers used Californias regulation to go on to Cedar Points property in 2015. That same year, union organizers complained Fowler Packing Company interfered with their ability to access company property for three days. That complaint was later withdrawn.

In a statement, Joshua Thompson of the Pacific Legal Foundation, who argued the case for the businesses at the high court, called the ruling a huge victory for property rights.

Todays decision affirms that one of the most fundamental aspects of property is the right to decide who can and cant access your property," he said.

The case is Cedar Point Nursery v. Hassid, 20-107.
TEHRAN, Iran (AP)  Iranian authorities have thwarted what they called a sabotage attack targeting a civilian nuclear facility near the country's capital, state TV reported Wednesday, as details about the incident remained scarce.

The attempted attack against a building belonging to Iran's Atomic Energy Organization left no casualties or damages and was unable to disrupt the Iranian nuclear program, Iranian state television reported, adding that authorities were working to identify the perpetrators.

Iranian media offered no details on the kind of attack, saying only that the move targeted a sprawling nuclear center located in Karaj city, just some 40 kilometers (25 miles) northwest of Tehran.

When asked for comment, an Iranian official referred to the initial report by Nournews, believed to be close to Iran's Supreme National Security Council. The official spoke on condition of anonymity as they did not have authorization to discuss the matter with media.

The International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations body that monitors Tehrans atomic program, did not immediately respond to request for comment.

Iranian authorities did not specify which facility in Karaj had been targeted. There are two sites associated with Iran's nuclear program known to be in the area, including the Karaj Agricultural and Medical Research Center.

Irans Atomic Energy Organization describes the Karaj Agricultural and Medical Research Center as a facility founded in 1974 that uses nuclear technology to improve quality of soil, water, agricultural and livestock production.

The area is located near various industrial sites, including pharmaceutical production facilities where Iran has manufactured its domestic coronavirus vaccine.

Earlier on Wednesday, Iranian social media crackled with unconfirmed reports that authorities had prevented an unmanned aerial vehicle from targeting a COVID-19 vaccine production facility. But an anonymous official in the country's air defense units later ruled out that theory, telling Irans semi-official ISNA news agency that it was not a drone attack, but rather possible sabotage targeting security that doesn't fall within the authority of our air defense system. The official did not elaborate.

There are 18 nuclear facilities and nine other locations in Iran under IAEA safeguards. The agricultural nuclear research center is not listed as a safeguard facility with the IAEA, though a nearby nuclear waste facility around Karaj is. The IAEA visited the site in 2003.

The Karaj facility had been storing waste from the nuclear program and equipment dismantled from atomic vapor laser isotope separation experiments in the nearby Lashkar Abad, according to a policy paper by the Washington Institute for Near-East Policy written in March 2015.

The U.N. Security Council in 2007 sanctioned the Agricultural Center, identifying it along with other facilities it described as being involved in Irans nuclear and ballistic missile programs. The U.S. Treasury under then-President George W. Bush also sanctioned the facility.

The U.S. lifted those sanctions under the 2015 nuclear deal, although re-imposed them in 2018 with then-President Donald Trumps decision to unilaterally withdraw from the accord.

The foiled sabotage attack follows several suspected incidents targeting Irans nuclear program that have heightened regional tensions in recent months, as diplomatic efforts gain traction in Vienna to resurrect Tehran's tattered atomic deal with world powers.

In April, Irans underground Natanz nuclear facility experienced a mysterious blackout that damaged some of its centrifuges. Last July, unexplained fires struck the advanced centrifuge assembly plant at Natanz, which authorities later described as sabotage. Iran now is rebuilding that facility deep inside a nearby mountain.

Israel is widely believed to have carried out the sabotage, though it has not claimed it. Iran also blamed Israel for the November killing of a scientist who began the countrys military nuclear program decades earlier.

Trumps decision to withdraw from the nuclear deal has seen Iran, over time, abandon all limitations on uranium enrichment. The country is now enriching uranium to 60%, its highest ever levels, although still short of weapons grade. Iran has said that its nuclear ambitions are peaceful and that it will return to its commitments once the U.S. lifts its sanctions.

Last December, Irans hard-line parliament approved a bill that would suspend part of U.N. inspections of its nuclear facilities if European signatories didnt provide relief from oil and banking sanctions by February.

The IAEA then struck a temporary deal with Iran to have it salvage the surveillance images, with Tehran threatening to delete them afterward if sanctions remained in place. Iran will decide whether to extend that deal after its expiry on Thursday, presidential chief of staff Mahmoud Vaezi was quoted as saying by Iran's state TV.

Earlier this week, Iran's sole nuclear power plant at Bushehr underwent an unexplained temporary emergency shutdown. Authorities earlier this year had warned of the plant's possible closure because of American sanctions that allegedly prevented Iran from procuring equipment for repairs.

On Tuesday, the IAEA said it was informed of a technical program striking the Bushehr plant's electrical generator. The agency said the facility would go back online after being reconnected to the national electric grid.

Irans nuclear department said that engineers were working to repair the broken generator.

___

DeBre reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Associated Press writer Jon Gambrell in Dubai contributed to this report.
Jarritos, the classic Mexican soda in a bottle, is forming an alliance with Duolingo (the language learning app on your phone that youve been meaning to revisit).

The two forces are giving away 100 3-month premium Spanish lesson subscriptions, with one fortunate subscriber winning an all expenses paid four-night trip for two in Mexico.

The trip will be to the Mexican destination of the winners choice, anywhere from Cabo San Lucas to Cancun.

"Since Jarritos is flavored by culture and rooted in rich Mexican tradition, partnering with Duolingo allows us to further celebrate our heritage by focusing on the language of our brand's birthplace," says Eric Delamare, director of marketing for Jarritos in a press statement. "Something as simple as learning that the letter 'J' is pronounced like an 'H' in our brand name can unlock a whole new world of learning through language.

Courtesy of Brianna Hernandez, Jarritos

RELATED: Actually good San Antonio panaderias located outside of Loop 410

With 13 flavors ranging from mandarin, tamarind, guava and grapefruit, a cold Jarritos (HA-reetos) is a summer-time favorite. Even if you already know how to pronounce the beverage correctly, you can still enter to win.

Those seeking to brush up on their Spanish through lessons or take an immersive language vacation must complete several tasks to enter the drawing.

First, follow both Duolingo and Jarritos on Instagram. Then, on either brands account, tag one friend who youd want to join you on a trip to Mexico. Then, if you havent already, download (or re-download) the Duolingo App and follow the link online to finalize your entry by sharing your name, email, address, Duolingo and Instagram handles.

The deadline to enter is July 20, 2021.



RELATED: San Antonio favorite Burger Boy rolls out free Fiesta surprise
Fifty years ago, the first Southwest Airlines arrival from Dallas landed at the San Antonio International Airport.

Flight attendants wore hot pants and white go-go boots. Low fares and love were promised from the start.

"The somebody else up there who loves you," a slogan on an ad printed exactly 50 years ago in the San Antonio Express-News says.

The corporation that now owns a fleet of 747 aircraft and boarded more than 130 million passengers in 2019, started with a sketch on a cocktail napkin in downtown San Antonio's St. Anthony Hotel. The year was 1966, during the Golden Age of commercial aviation, when Herb Kelleher and Rollin King made the first sketch plan for flights between Houston, Dallas and San Antonio while drinking at the hotel bar.

They drew the Texas triangle, with three lines (which would become routes) connecting Dallas, Houston and San Antonio on the paper cloth.

RELATED: A Beverly Hills socialite was entombed in her Ferrari in San Antonio 44 years ago

Lamar Muse, who is respected as a "pioneer" in airline deregulation, was the first president of Southwest Airlines. He joined the company months before the first flight, before Southwest had any airplanes and only about $100 in the bank. Muse negotiated the purchase of three Boeing 737-200s, according to the New York Times. On June 18, 1971, the first flights took off from Dallas Love Field to San Antonio and Houston. One-way fares were $20, according to the airline's website.

San Antonio Express-News archives

The 50-year-old ad, which appeared in the San Antonio Express-News during Southwest's first week of flying, shows gate 15 was used for all flights. It compares the "love" passengers would get from the new company to what the "other airlines" had to offer.

One of the company's most-popular commercials also happened during that period. The hot pants-clad hostess promotes "executive-class service" with first-class leg room and free cocktails. If that wasn't enough to grab customer's attention, a jumbo jet soars into view, terrifyingly close to the woman's head.

According to D Magazine, a Dallas-based monthly publication, Southwest "was an underdog fighting for its life" in its early years, despite the flashy marketing. The young company encountered issues attracting passengers and was so disregarded, it was not asked to move to the Dallas-Fort Worth airport.

READ MORE FROM MADALYN: Woody Harrelson's father killed a federal judge in San Antonio 42 years ago

The New York Times credits Muse for his marketing tactics to win passengers over from competitors, like Braniff International and Texas International, by slashing prices between Dallas and San Antonio and offering cheap drinks or a fifth of whiskey if they paid for a $26 flight.

The corporation was exclusive to Texas in its inception, due to federal regulations on commercial aviation. By 1979, the Airline Deregulation Act went into effect, giving Southwest room to move about the country.

On June 16, Southwest celebrated the 50th milestone with a small group of employees and San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg where it all started, at the St. Anthony Hotel.

Over the weekend, Southwest Airlines unveiled "Freedom One," a Boeing 737-800 painted with an American flag theme, celebrating the anniversary and marking its bounceback from the pandemic, which was one of the aviation industry's worst financial crises.

News researcher Misty Harris contributed to this report.
According to a new report from the Public News Service, 13 percent of Texas children went without health insurance in 2019, which is significantly higher than the national average of 6 percent. This puts Texas last in the nation for children's health insurance coverage.

Approximately 1 million Texas kids were uninsured in 2019, based on data from the 2021 Kids Count Data Book produced by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The percentage is even higher for Hispanic children, who are uninsured at a rate of 17 percent.

The Kids Count index evaluates four domains, including: economic well-being, education, health, and family and community.

Overall, in addition to poor health insurance ratings, Texas ranked 49th out of 50 states overall for overall children's health, ahead only of Mississippi.

READ MORE: Harris to visit US-Mexico border area regarding migration

Considering the impact of the pandemic on jobs and insurance, Amy Knop-Narbutis, a researcher and data director at nonprofit Every Texan, tells Public News Service that a March survey captured even worse numbers, with 23 percent of all Texas households without health insurance, a number that jumps to 38 percent for Hispanic households with children.

Leslie Boissiere, Every Texan's vice president of external affairs, says Medicaid expansion is at the top of the list for improving health outcomes for children.

"One of the recommendations is to pass Medicaid expansion in those states that have not passed it already," Boissiere tells the Public News Service. "And we've seen the states who have Medicaid expansion have a significantly lower number of children and families who are uninsured."

Currently, Texas is one of 12 states to opt out of Medicaid expansion, which would ideally allow more lower income people to access affordable insurance. Though some low ranking states in the index, like New Mexico and Louisiana, have expanded Medicaid, states like Texas, Mississippi and Alabama have not.

According to the data, the only area where Texas outperformed a national average is in the percentage of high school students graduating on time. In 2019, where the 2021 survey data is collected from, only 10 percent of Texas students did not graduate on time in compared to 14 percent nationally.
Patient readers, many of you have asked about Yves. She is doing very well, and will provide a proper update in due course. Her mother, however, is still in the hospital. lambert

IU scientists find microbe that protects bees from fungal infections Indiana Environmental Reporter (TH).

CalPERS Names Marlene Timberlake DAdamo Chief Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Officer MondoVisione (KW). KW: Still no replacement for Meng yet. Priorities!

Pathways to coastal retreat Science

#COVID19

The Pandemics End Is as Messy as the Start Bloomberg

China?

They Relied on Chinese Vaccines. Now Theyre Battling Outbreaks. NYT. Geopolitics? However

Coronavirus: surge of Delta variant in Indonesia threatens Bali tourism reopening South China Morning Post

Myanmar

In Taiwan, some foreign tech workers are confined indoors to tackle an outbreak. NYT

Japan Restarts First Nuclear Reactor Since 2018 Amid Hurdles Bloomberg

India

Syraqistan

Africas third wave: What haunts me a lot is the Indian scenario FT

Exactly like the railways in the pre-Confederate South:

Wow  every single one of them is a tap line. Zero interconnections. That's nearly a textbook example of neocolonial investment. https://t.co/yT9kBe7boH  Peter Zeihan (@PeterZeihan) June 21, 2021

UK/EU

Finland Might Have Solved Nuclear Powers Biggest Problem The B1M

Biden Administration

Adams leads Democrats early in NYCs first ranked-choice mayoral primary; Yang bows out NBC. Handy map:

Union Dems

Hipster Dems

Elite Dems

Republican Dems https://t.co/iYTgFGrHsE  Alice is highlighting a real issue (@AliceFromQueens) June 23, 2021

Note: This does not reflect the result of New Yorks RCV system.

India Walton Poised To Become Buffalos First Socialist Mayor HuffPo.

NYC Advises Orgy Goers to Get Vaccinated ASAP Gizmodo (KS). News you can use!

Our Famously Free Press

A Court Ruled Rachel Maddows Viewers Know She Offers Exaggeration and Opinion, Not Facts Glenn Greenwald. The judge was appointed by Obama.

Big Brother Is Watching You Watch

Love me, love me, love me. New US military training document calls socialists a "terrorist" ideology and lists them alongside "neo-nazis" amid Pentagon crackdown on domestic extremism, per counterterrorism training material leaked to me:https://t.co/JkECB8AEhS pic.twitter.com/35lThp22k9  Ken Klippenstein (@kenklippenstein) June 22, 2021

Black Injustice Tipping Point

Imperial Collapse Watch

Class Warfare

This one email explains Apple TechCrunch. Well, not entirely

Hey, Nintendo, Whats Up With Animal Crossing? Kotaku

Why You Hate Contemporary Architecture Brianna Rennix and Nathan J. Robinson, Current Affairs. Many beautiful and ugly photographs. Oddly, the authors focus their ire on architects, and not on the boards who commission the buildings and approve the designs (and whose, dare I say, souls the ugly building embody, or so Christopher Alexander argues).

Antidote du Jour (via):

Bonus antidote:

 Watch a moray eating on land, caught on video for the first time! While most fish need water to feed, a new study by @ucsc researcher Rita Mehta has found that snowflake moray eels have an extra set of jaws in their throats that allows them to grab & swallow prey on land. pic.twitter.com/Pf6Wi4EbCn  UC Santa Cruz Science (@UCSCscience) June 14, 2021

And: In The New York Times, A Story on Eels Achieves Headline Perfection Nieman Labs

See yesterdays Links and Antidote du Jour here.
Yves here. Tom Neuburger explains how Follow the science might be more accurately translated as Follow PMC orthodoxy or the old standby, Follow the money.

I also want to clarify a point that might be missed. Ivermectin is approved by the FDA. It does not need an additional FDA seal of good housekeeping for what is called off label use, as in a doctor prescribing it for some other application beyond which it was originally approved. A classic example of off label use is Botox to partly paralyze muscles for vanity cosmetic reasons. If you look at the approved uses of Botox, youll see this isnt on the list.

There is also a fresh and more definitive Ivermectin study than the one Neuburger cites that comes out in favor of its use in the American Journal of Therapeutics, titled Ivermectin for Prevention and Treatment of COVID-19 Infection: A Systematic Review, Meta-analysis, and Trial Sequential Analysis to Inform Clinical Guidelines. As Lambert put it:

First rate authors and methodology, second rank journal, studies themselves pass muster but are not great. However, there are a ton of them. (Studies done or driven by doctors tend to be underpowered because they lack institutional muscle, unlike full-bore RCTs).

By Thomas Neuburger. Originally published at Gods Spies

Ivermectin is cheap and exists. Undeveloped vaccines, with governments desperate to finance and promote them, are money in the bank for years.

One of the challenges of the pandemic period is the degree to which science has become intertwined with politics. Arguments about the efficacy of mask use or ventilators, or the viability of repurposed drugs like hydroxychloroquine or ivermectin, or even the pandemics origins, were quashed from the jump in the American commercial press, which committed itself to a regime of simplified insta-takes made opposite to Donald Trumps comments.

Matt Taibbi, Why Has Ivermectin Become a Dirty Word?

Matt Taibbi, in a free post at his Substack site, has started to look at a subject dear to my heart, the fact that the admonition to follow the science has become its opposite, an admonition instead to not follow the science if the path you tread makes you look insufficiently anti-Trump to your liberal peers and their gatekeepers.

Taibbis kick-off point is the controversy (or controversy) over the use of the drug ivermectin to prevent Covid-19 infection:

On December 8, 2020, when most of America was consumed with what The Guardian called Donald Trumps desperate, mendacious, frenzied and sometimes farcical attempt to remain president, the Senates Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee held a hearing on the Medical Response to Covid-19. One of the witnesses, a pulmonologist named Dr. Pierre Kory, insisted he had great news. We have a solution to this crisis, he said unequivocally. There is a drug that is proving to have a miraculous impact. Kory was referring to an FDA-approved medicine called ivermectin. A genuine wonder drug in other realms, ivermectin has all but eliminated parasitic diseases like river blindness and elephantiasis, helping discoverer Satoshi Omura win the Nobel Prize in 2015. As far as its uses in the pandemic went, however, research was still scant. Could it really be a magic Covid-19 bullet? Kory had been trying to make such a case, but complained to the Senate that public efforts had been stifled, because every time we mention ivermectin, we get put in Facebook jail. A Catch-22 seemed to be ensnaring science. With the world desperate for news about an unprecedented disaster, Silicon Valley had essentially decided to disallow discussion of a potential solution  disallow calls for more research and more study  because not enough research and study had been done. Once, people werent allowed to take drugs before they got FDA approval. Now, they cant talk about them. [emphasis added]

These are the liberal gatekeepers Im referring to, the media who push, shape or ignore certain stories, and the Silicon Valley giants who ban their discussion, all to serve the anti-Trumpian cause.

Wheres the science in that?

What We Could Have Done

There are many ways we could have approached the Covid-19 crisis. One would would have been mitigation through eradication, just as we did with the SARS crisis. Recall that we (the worlds collective leaders) decided to handle that crisis without a vaccine but with a program of containment and elimination. SARS turned out to be less virulent, and the program worked.

As one scientifically knowledgeable person with membership of several elite scientific institutions, put it (quoted here), The question  is when exactly was it decided to not contain it [Covid-19]. If you remember, some information came out about early and mid-February 2020 closed Senate meetings, after which senators were selling their shares in hotels and airlines, i.e. what was going to happen in late March was known at that time. But it was not in fact too late to contain it in early February, it could have been done with test-trace-isolate.  After all SARS-1 was contained even though it reached hundreds of cases in Canada and the US.  [T]his all becomes even more gruesome when one realizes that the decision of the US to allow it to become endemic meant the same decision was imposed on most of the rest of the world, as the US controls it.  But once it became clear the US will not eliminate and the EU will not eliminate, [other] countries had no choice, although they could have at least held out for vaccines instead of letting it rip.

Another path would have been mitigation through prevention and treatment  to find medicines that prevented deaths by preventing infection, or treat infection with promising existing medicines and thus eliminate most hospital stays and contagion. The current Covid vaccines havent been shown to prevent infection, only symptoms of infection, and thats by design. All this could have been done while vaccines were in development.

With real and effective non-vaccine options, the need for an immediate vaccine would have been greatly attenuated. If successful, we would have ended up with the same vaccines in the end  or better ones, ones designed to prevent infection  and also seen far fewer deaths and long-term health disabilities.

Covid and the Economy

Not only that, but economic consequences would have also been far milder. Were in an economic crisis that, grave as it is, we havent yet begun to feel. The next big downturn could well be coming. Consider the following discussion on Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjetis new show Breaking Points with Washington Post economics reporter Jeff Steiner:

Unemployment is stubbornly high for a variety of reasons  one of which is a game of low wage-chicken fought between a workforce thats not interested in returning to crappy jobs, and greedy employers not interested in paying more for work they used to get essentially for free.

(I saw this war first-hand in Las Vegas last week. At a resort hotel owned by the MGM Grand corporation, one of the two employment giants on the Strip, wages for their house-cleaning people were kept so low that the corporation couldnt to hire enough people to guarantee daily room-cleaning service. Many rooms went uncleaned until final checkout. That was a wage-squeeze choice, and simple greed.)

At the same time, according to Stein, theres zero appetite among DC elites for another round of non-corporate economic support. As a result, most of us will be stuck come September, when previous federal support to humans  as opposed to corporate clients of giant lobbying firms  comes to a permanent end.

What will people do when federal benefits run out? Will they simply submit to the new normal and go about their lives? Or will the appetite for rebellion in the country increase again? If it does, Joe Bidens ramped-up national security state has an answer for that, and its not a pretty one.

None of this  none  would have happened if non-vaccine prevention and treatment options had been pursued in addition to then-non-existent vaccines. Yet again, we (the worlds collective leaders) chose not to do that.

Claims Supporting Ivermectin Go Unreported

The claims made on behalf of ivermectin as a prevention are considerable(pdf). But are they worth considering? Not in the Age of Trump, it seems, which is with us still. Even today, the follow-the-science crowd isnt interested, despite the fact that ivermectin is already FDA-approved and thus has a considerable advantage over much more expensive (and, coincidentally perhaps, more profitable) options.

For example, consider this Indian research report, Prophylactic role of ivermectin in SARS-CoV-2 infection among healthcare workers, posted for comment in February of this year. Its apolitical and therefore it attempts to follow the science. From the abstract:

Preventing HCWs [health care workers] from getting infected is a priority to maintain healthcare services. The therapeutic and preventive role of ivermectin in COVID-19 is being investigated. Based on promising results of in vitro studies of oral ivermectin, this study was conducted with the aim to demonstrate the prophylactic role of oral ivermectin in preventing SARS-CoV-2 infection among HCWs at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Bhubaneswar.

Its conclusion: Two-doses of oral ivermectin (300 g/kg given 72 hours apart) as chemoprophylaxis among HCWs reduces the risk of COVID-19 infection by 83% in the following month. Safe, effective, and low-cost chemoprophylaxis have relevance in the containment of pandemic alongside vaccine.

In plain language, 83% of Covid infection was prevented in the group that took two doses of ivermectin in the previous month. Read the study for the full details. Many similar results have been recorded  but the public has been trained by its media to fear any non-vaccine-only solution.

Why? Perhaps, a cynical person might say, because governments and liberal media are inclined to serve the greed of the pharmaceutical industry. Ivermectin is cheap and exists. Undeveloped vaccines, especially when governments are desperate to finance and promote them, are money in the bank for years.

Or perhaps because liberal opinion-makers are afraid of appearing, to their peers and corporate funders, to be insufficiently anti-Trump. Resistance Fever  the desire to get rid of Trump at any and all cost  drove almost the whole of non-right wing reporting and thinking during the last four years and a half. Its driving that thinking still.

Or much more simply, perhaps all of our leaders have gone mad and decided, in an act of world-historical hubris, to use the crisis to enhance their power and place regardless of what happens to, well, everyone else on the planet.

It wouldnt be the first time our rulers have placed their welfare above ours. And given the almost inevitable climate catastrophe, it wont be the last.
(Natural News) Lucas Wall of Washington D.C. on June 14 filed a lawsuit in a federal court accusing seven airlines of discriminating against travelers who cant wear masks because of medical conditions.

According to a complaint filed in District Court in Orlando, Florida, Wall cant wear a mask because he has generalized anxiety disorder. The 44-year-old sued Southwest Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Allegiant Air, Delta Air Lines, Frontier Airlines, JetBlue Airways and Spirit Airlines.

Similar complaint filed against CDC, TSA

Wall filed a similar complaint against government agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).

Federal mask mandates for travelers have been in place for months although airlines have their own mask requirements. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said last month that mask mandates were still in place as a matter of respect for flight crews and others.

Wall said hes been stranded in his mothers retirement community in the Villages, Florida, because he cant fly without a mask. His court filings included medical paperwork detailing his diagnosis.

I take medication for that, but Im still prone to panic attacks, he said in a phone interview. One of the triggers is any time my breathing is obstructed  that brings a feeling of claustrophobia and a complete sense of unease.

Wall bought tickets for eight flights this summer, according to his complaint. He requested a mask waiver on the airlines websites.

The frequent flier, who has been to all 56 states and territories and has visited 134 countries, missed a Southwest Airlines flight on June 2 after a back-and-forth with members of the TSA, airport officials at Orlando International and Southwest employees. Wall was able to record his interactions with TSA agents. (Related: Man kicked off Southwest Airlines flight for not wearing a mask WHILE EATING candy.)

No, I will not wear a mask thats why I have my vaccination card, Wall told a TSA agent.

You need a mask, the TSA agent told Wall.

You cant go through here without a mask, another TSA agent told Wall.

Well I refuse to comply with that, responded Wall. I cant wear a mask because of my anxiety I will not wear a mask. I cannot wear a mask because of my breathing difficulties.

Airlines mask requirements violate ACAA

Wall said the airlines requirements violate the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA), which protects passengers with disabilities from discrimination. He sought an emergency temporary restraining order that would let him travel without a mask.

JetBlue on June 17 made a filing against the temporary restraining order, saying Walls complaint is entirely without merit. Only the Department of Transportation can investigate or enforce ACAA regulations, the airline said in its filing.

Plaintiff cites that he needs emergency relief from this Court because, otherwise, he will be stranded at [his] mothers house in the Villages,' wrote JetBlues lawyer, Suzanne E. Gilbert, of Holland & Knight LLP. Plaintiffs procrastination is not an emergency.

Wall said he expected that initial defense, which amounted to a government agency conspiring with the airlines to ground travelers who cant wear masks.

Delta also stood by its policy. (Related: Delta Air Lines bans over 100 people from flying with them for refusing to comply with companys mask mandate.)

While Delta has no specific comment on this complaint, the actions Delta began taking in 2020 to protect our people and customers during the pandemic are part of our long-standing commitment to a high standard of care as nothing is more important at Delta than safety, a spokesperson for Delta said in an email. Deltas mask-wearing requirement for customers and our people remains in place as does a federal mandate for mask-wearing across all modes of public transportation.

Wall said hes been comfortable in the Villages, but the arrival of summer means unbearable weather. I mean, you can also say as a 44-year-old living in a retirement community  as much as I love my mother  its not the greatest place to be, he said.

On May 3, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law a bill that bars businesses, schools and government entities across the state from asking anyone to provide proof of coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination. He also told Fox host Laura Ingraham that airports and airlines will not be able to require vaccine certificates in Florida.

But it is not clear whether the state also plans to interfere with the mask wearing policy of airports and airlines in Florida.

Follow Tyranny.news for more news and information related to oppressive government mandates.

Sources include:

msn.com

WWMT.com

GovTech.com
(Natural News) After banning Vaxxed and other content for spreading misinformation, monopolistic retail behemoth Amazon has decided to allow the sale of Blue Lives Murder merchandise that calls for the execution of police officers.

The Detectives Endowment Association is calling on Amazon to immediately remove all of this hateful merchandise, calling it disgusting and warning that its only purpose is to invite further division, hatred and violence toward the hard-working men and women of the nations police departments, who are toiling every day to keep their communities safe.

The Association sent a letter to Amazon pleading with the company to immediately remove all Blue Lives Murder merchandise from its platform. By allowing it to be available, Amazon is perpetuating hate and violence against law enforcement, and could be culpable in the event of a tragedy.

Amazon is perpetuating anti-police rhetoric, a detective told the media. It is totally inaccurate. They should sell shirts that say, Blue Lives Save Lives.'

Amazon sells other hateful content such as shirts that say, F*** the Police and ACAB, which is leftist shorthand for All Cops Are B***ards.'

They are hypocrites, another law enforcement officer from Brooklyn stated about Amazon. They say they dont sell items that incite hatred. I cant think of an item that incites hatred more than these sweatshirts.

Amazon is evil

An extension of the CIA deep state, Amazon is doing its part to rile up the populace as much as it can in promotion of societal collapse.

While law enforcement throughout America could certainly use a healthy dose of reform, promoting violence against police officers and disrespecting them in this manner is inappropriate, and Amazon truly is hypocritical for allowing it while simultaneously removing other offensive content such as documentaries about vaccine dangers.

As of this writing, Amazon is still selling Blue Lives Murder face masks, though t-shirts and hoodies with the slogan are no longer coming up in searches. In the immediate aftermath of the death of George Floyd, many other such phrases on merchandise were also showing up on Amazon.

It shows that [Amazon is] bending over backwards for this movement like many other companies are, lamented Sgt. Joe Imperatrice, founder of Blue Lives Matter NYC.

In its terms of service, Amazon explains that it does not allow products that promote, incite or glorify hatred, violence, racial, sexual or religious intolerance or promote organizations with such views. These rules apparently do not apply to anti-police products.

Back in January, the Media Research Center identified some 204 examples of merchandise sold on Amazon that violate these terms. Hateful content against President Donald Trump, Republicans and police officers is all over the platform.

One product depicts Trump getting his brains blown out with a firearm, along with the slogan, Where is Lee Harvey Oswald now that we really need him? Another t-shirt, black in color, contains the phrase in red letters, Kill All Republicans.

The latter product actually appeared in Amazons sponsored listing section, meaning Jeff Bezos and his team fully support its sentiment.

To continue to hawk products emblazoned with this vile phrase puts the lives of Police Officers, and all law enforcement nationwide, at peril and risk, the Associations letter goes on to explain.

Meanwhile, merchandise with phrases such as Joe and Hoe, referring to Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, is strictly forbidden on the Amazon platform because it supposedly promotes hate. You can clearly see the double standard in this.

As of this writing, Amazon continues to allow the listing and sale of products on its platform that also contain the phrase, Blue Lives Arent Real, suggesting that police lives do not matter.

More related news about Amazon can be found at Evil.news.

Sources for this article include:

Newsbusters.org

NaturalNews.com

NYPost.com
(Natural News) Tens of millions of Americans who saw plenty of evidence before the 2020 election know that China Joe Biden and son Hunter Biden are coopted and co-owned by China.

Hunter got into business deals with Chinese firms, none of which are allowed to do business without the approval of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), in the years when daddy was still Barack Obamas vice president.

Investigative author Peter Schweizer explained this connection during a Breitbart News Tonight interview on SiriusXM radio in 2018.

In December of 2013, Vice President Joe Biden flies to Asia for a trip, and the centerpiece for that trip is a visit to Beijing, China. To put this into context, in 2013, the Chinese have just exerted air rights over the South Pacific, the South China Sea, he said.

They basically have said, If you want to fly in this area, you have to get Chinese approval. We are claiming sovereignty over this territory. Highly controversial in Japan, in the Philippines, and in other countries, Schweizer continued. Joe Biden is supposed to be going there to confront the Chinese. Well, he gets widely criticized on that trip for going soft on China. So basically, not challenging them, and Japan and other countries are quite upset about this.

Breitbart noted that Hunter Biden inked a $1.5 dollar deal with a subsidiary of the state-owned Bank of China only ten days after he visited the country with his father aboard Air Force Two that same year.

So yes, the Bidens, but especially now-President Biden, are beholden to China, which makes his recent order banning investment in Chinese firms a joke.

The National Pulse reported:

President Joe Biden banned investment in nearly 60 firms due to close ties to the Chinese Communist Party military operations and human rights abuses. Among the companies included in the ban are entities that have enjoyed millions of dollars in investment from Hunter Biden and Bill Gates

The ban solidifies and strengthens an executive order issued by former President Donald Trump, who regularly confronted China during his tenure  on trade, and militarily  that restricted investments in securities that associate with the Peoples Liberation Army and that produce technology making it easier for the CCP to oppress and brutalize the Uyghurs in Xinjiang, the outlet continued.

Interestingly, the order applies to some of the very same companies Hunter Biden invested in or otherwise did business with, the National Pulse added.

A private equity firm led by Hunter  whos inked several deals with Chinese military-linked entities excluded from the ban  counts multi-million dollar investments in a firm included on the list: China General Nuclear (CGN) Power Corporation, the outlet reported, adding that Gates, founder of the Microsoft Corp., has also worked with another firm mentioned in Bidens order, the China National Nuclear Corporation.

BHR Partners, a private equity company where Hunter Biden had served as director since 2013, made a $10 million investment in CGNs initial public offering, which was launched in 2014. The IPO became the second-largest one of that year and was valued at more than $3 billion.

CGN, an energy firm owned completely by the Chinese government, has since had one of its consultants convicted by the Justice Department for schemes aimed at securing U.S.-based nuclear engineers to assist with designing and manufacturing certain components for nuclear reactors for almost 20 years.

Meanwhile, Terrapower, a nuclear energy research firm founded and chaired by Gates, does work with the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC).

But its the Biden connections that make this order pointless.

Joe Biden and his familys financial ties to China, recently exposed by emails found on a laptop belonging to his son, Hunter Biden, present a national security risk for America should he be elected president, Breitbart News pointed out in October, just a few weeks before the stolen November election.

Sources include:

Breitbart.com

TheNationalPulse.com

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) Mexico City has strengthened its lockdown restrictions as the countrys capital deals with another outbreak of the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19). This outbreak is occurring even though the countrys mass vaccination drive is in full swing.

Many schools in Mexico City reopened at the beginning of the month and had gone back to in-person classes. These students returned to online instruction on Monday, June 21. The capital and its population of over nine million has also risen one tier higher in the countrys four-tier traffic light model of assessing coronavirus risk.

At the beginning of June, Mexico City health authorities loosened restrictions on gatherings in schools and other indoor locations such as retail stores, restaurants and hotels. This is when the city moved to the lowest risk tier.

But the Secretariat of Health, the federal health department, countermanded Mexico Citys loosening of restrictions and placed the city one step higher on the tier. This designation will last from June 21 to July 4, after which it shall be reassessed by federal health authorities.

Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said the citys coronavirus cases surged, which is why federal health authorities decided to intervene.

Mexico ramps up mass vaccination, aided by vaccines donated by the U.S.

As of press time, Mexican health authorities have administered over 40 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine, or 31 vaccines for every 100 people. Around 22 percent of the population has received at least one dose of the vaccine. Thirteen percent of the population is fully vaccinated.

The United States is aiding Mexicos mass vaccination campaign. On June 15, America donated 1.35 million doses of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine to Mexico.

But theres a catch. These vaccines can only be used to vaccinate residents of four cities: Tijuana, Reynosa, Mexicali and Ciudad Juarez. These are some of the largest Mexican cities that hug the border with the U.S. They have a combined population of around 4.7 million people.

The mass vaccination campaign using the American vaccines began the day after the vaccines arrived. The Johnson & Johnson vaccines will be provided to anybody over 18, even though Mexicos own mass vaccination program is still focused on vaccinating people over 40.

In the same week that the American vaccines were distributed, reported cases surged by eight percent. Assistant Health Secretary Hugo Lopez-Gatell tried to justify the rise in cases by saying they were caused by surges in states far from the American border.

There is a significant increase in case numbers, said Lopez-Gatell.

The goal of focusing the donated vaccines in these border cities is to boost vaccination rates to levels similar to the American cities across the border that they adjoin.

Secretary of Foreign Affairs Marcelo Ebrard said that once the vaccines have been distributed, there will be no public health arguments for keeping the border closed. Lopez-Gatell said the country is seeking to acquire more vaccines for residents along the border. The country is even planning to vaccinate Central Americans who want to migrate into the U.S.

Baja California Health Secretary Alonso Oscar Perez said his agency plans to allocate certain days specifically for the vaccination of illegal immigrants. The border crossing in Tijuana is one of the busiest in the entire world. The entire state has thousands of migrants living in camps waiting for their turn to cross the border. (Related: Dozens of unaccompanied migrant minors sheltered in San Diego have tested positive for coronavirus.)

The plan to vaccinate migrants will begin in Baja California and then move east state-by-state until it reaches the state of Tamaulipas, the easternmost Mexican state that shares a border with the U.S.

Learn more about the mass vaccination campaigns in Mexico and other parts of the world by reading the latest articles at Vaccines.news.

Sources include:

News.Trust.org

NYTimes.com

ABCNews.go.com

Reuters.com
(Natural News) Just like buyers remorse after you spend a lot of money on a product that you realize you dont want, and should not have acquired, millions of Americans are experiencing vaccine remorse after getting jabbed with central nervous system disrupting, blood clotting, dirty Covid-19 vaccines. For many others, the remorse is for their relatives, friends, neighbors and coworkers who died from the jabs. For millions of others yet, the Covid-19 vaccine GIVES them Covid-19, thus materializing, ironically, their greatest fear.

The worst part is that the customers cant take the vaccines back. Bad deposit, no return. It doesnt matter if you have your receipt (vaccine ID card or passport), because theres NO undoing mRNA codes once theyre embedded in your cells. They sneak in like a poisoned Trojan horse and invade the space, the message between your DNA and your RNA, and thats that. Youre all set. Recoded to produce unlimited prions and proteins into your blood, that travel far beyond just the sore muscle tissue where they stabbed the technology into your arm.

The vaccine muscle myth busted: Spike proteins DO cleave off your cells and travel throughout the body via your blood

Spike proteins cleave off (break away from) the cell, and leave the injection site, traveling throughout your body and brain, counter to what the dirty vaccine manufacturers, the corrupt FDA and their co-conspirators at the CDC are telling everybody. If you want to understand the science, the real science, behind mRNA, listen to the scientist who MADE it, who discovered it, pioneered it, and is blowing the whistle on it right now. Get ready to get red pilled on the truth about these dirty, plandemic Covid-19 inoculations:

Sold! Now, after half of all Americans at least got their first Covid-19 jab, if not their second, millions of patients are discovering immediate or oddly delayed vaccine injuries, some that seem now permanent, including loss of vision, hearing and blood-clot-polluted organs. You were sold a lie, for free. People are now suffering mass loss of motor skills, simple tasks they did just fine before the vaccine(s), but can barely do or cant do now, including holding a glass of water, brushing their own teeth, driving a car, jogging, and the list goes on.

This is buyers remorse of the most extreme kind, and these people are starting to figure out WHY the vaccines are free and being promoted with so much propaganda and free stuff.

Buyers remorse is usually associated with expensive items, like motor vehicles or real estate, but now its from something consumers got that was free and corrupted  dirty vaccines

How did you get so scared about coronavirus that you rushed out and got an experimental vaccine? Would you take it back now if you could, return it, and undo the mRNA-prion-creating function thats now part of who you are, and what you are? Remember, back in the 1990s, when all the natural health advocates were screaming out to ban GMOs?

That was for good reason. The food is now corrupted with pesticide-creating genes, and now, 30 years later, your body is corrupted with prion-creating genes, and you could end up with mad cow disease, going psychotic in the fight against the invaders  pathogens your body is now programmed to create and is spreading throughout your blood.

This is much more than a period of mental discomfort. This is more than some feelings of regret and anxiety after making a significant purchase, but how did it come to this for half of all Americans? Its called cognitive dissonance, where people do what they feel compelled to do by outside forces in order to avoid stress on a subconscious level. The media sets up everyone watching for the ultimate stress reliever, and that is post-vaccine confidence, but its a trap. Its a trap like wandering out into the very low-tide sandbar just before the tsunami comes. Theres no escape.

You missed the better option, if youve been inoculated for the China Flu. Vitamin D and zinc, plus medicinal mushrooms that build immunity are key. Look into the power of superfoods and herbal tinctures too.

Visit CovidVaccineReactions.com if you already got a toxic Covid jab or two and you are experiencing side effects, blood clots or other adverse events. Then tune your internet frequency to Pandemic.news for updates on these crimes against humanity being delivered under the guise of inoculation.

Sources for this article include:

Pandemic.news

NaturalNews.com

TruthWiki.org

GlobalJustice.org

NOQReport.com

PeerFinance101.com
(Natural News) There is an untold story about billionaire eugenicist Bill Gates that the world desperately needs to hear, especially in the era of Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) vaccinations.

As of late, you have probably noticed that India has been the center of attention in the mainstream media, which claims the Far East country is seeing an uptick in Chinese Virus cases from all the new variants that are supposedly spreading. As the tale goes, more people need to get injected in order to stop the spread.

The fake news media wants us all to believe that the Wuhan Flu is one of the worst things to ever happen to India, when the fact remains that just 12 years ago Gates unleashed a much worse pandemic intentionally, and we never heard a word about it from the talking-heads in print and on television.

It was the year 2009 when a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF)-funded non-governmental organization (NGO) carried out unauthorized trials of an experimental vaccine on some of the poorest and most vulnerable children in the world.

None of these poor tribal children, many of them young girls, were told about the risks involved, and neither were their parents. The Gates-funded operation lied to both the children and their parents by claiming that the syringes contained special magic medicine, which ended up killing thousands of them.

Gates and his wife got richer, of course, and the Indian families that were targeted saw a wave of death that completely devastated them. A parliamentary committee later charged the NGO with child abuse, procuring a raft of supporting evidence to show that the Gates-funded initiative created untold misery and death in the community where it was perpetrated.

Bill & Melinda Gates purchased stock in Merck right before mass administering its HPV injection to Indian girls

The NGO, known as PATH (formerly the Program for Appropriate Technology in Health), is based out of Seattle, where Gates owns a multi-million-dollar mansion. PATH receives tons of cash both from BMGF and the federal government  meaning American taxpayers are also supporting death and destruction in the third world.

Between 1995 and today, PATH has received more than $2.5 billion from BMGF alone. One wonders just how many innocent children are now dead, thanks to all that cash from Gates.

The same year that Gates and his wife murdered the aforementioned Indian children, they also funded another similar vaccine project involving the injection for human papillomavirus (HPV), which was once again administered to some of the poorest children in India, as well as in Uganda, Peru and Vietnam.

Gavi, another Gates-funded shell organization, had originally been selected to lead this eugenics program, but PATH was later chosen instead. BMGF provided full funding for this operation, which resulted in thousands more injured and dead children.

The HPV injection that was given to these children came from Merck & Co., which Bill and Melinda Gates had just so happened to heavily invest in before the operation was launched. Through BMGF, the eugenics couple bought $205 million worth of Merck stock, raising many eyebrows due to the obvious and flagrant conflict of interest.

Later that same year, BMGF sold off the stock it had purchased. Much profit was generated by this so-called non-profit while thousands of lives were ruined  which was music to the ears of Bill and Melinda Gates.

Such conflicts of interest have been a hallmark of BMGF since 2002, reports Great Game India.

Bill and Melinda Gates partially own Pfizer, BioNTech, and CureVac

As you might expect, the same thing happened this past year with the Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19), which Bill and Melinda Gates used for their own financial gain.

All throughout 2020, the now-divorced couple  because assets possibly on the line are easier to protect when criminals are no longer married  made routine appearances on television to hawk the need for Chinese Virus injections, and specifically those made by Pfizer and BioNTech.

Why did they endorse these particular injections over others, you might be asking? The answer, of course, is because they are part owners of Pfizer, BioNTech, and CureVac. CureVac, as we have reported, saw its stock soar 400 percent right after going public last August.

In other words, the Wuhan Flu plandemic was planned for such a time as this, accomplishing two goals: to make Bill and Melinda Gates even richer than they already are, and to kill off millions with experimental mRNA (messenger RNA) injections.

Right before the Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) was first announced, Gates held a plandemic exercise called Event 201 that foretold what was about to happen on a global scale. The whole thing was schemed up in advance on purpose, in other words.

All throughout the years, Gates has been launching fake scare after fake scare to enrich himself while killing off as many people as he can get away with. It is the same thing his father did, and the apple certainly did not fall far from the tree.

Sadly, many Americans still mistakenly believe that Gates is some kind of philanthropic hero when the reality is that he loves money, hates people and only knows how to lie. There is nothing good about the guy and hopefully someday the history books will reflect that.

All of us, or at least those of us who are conscious, know that the real virus is Bill Gates, wrote one commenter at Great Game India.

More of the latest news about what Bill and Melinda Gates are up to these days can be found at Evil.news.

Sources for this article include:

GreatGameIndia.com

NaturalNews.com

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) The California Independent System Operator (ISO), which runs the states energy grid, has warned that it may face challenges this summer in part because droughts have reduced the capacity of the states hydroelectric dams.

This prompted California Gov. Gavin Newsom to ask Californians to voluntarily conserve power to avoid rotating outages. Meanwhile, the California ISO asked people to set thermostats to 78 degrees, avoid using large appliances, close drapes and blinds, turn off unnecessary lights and use fans.

Hydroelectric plant at risk of closing

One of Californias most critical hydroelectric plants is at risk of closing for the first time as water levels continue to sink. (Related: Drought could force California power plant to shut down at hottest time of the year.)

The drought and the scorching heat have depleted some of the water supply at Northern Californias Lake Oroville. The lakes current water levels are hovering around 700 feet above sea level.

If 640 feet is breached, officials will likely be forced to close the Edward Hyatt Power Plant for the first time since it opened in 1967, California Energy Commission spokesperson Lindsay Buckley told CNN. The lakes record low is 646 feet.

Earlier this month, at least 130 houseboats were evacuated from the lake as water levels continued to drop.

If the Hyatt plant closes, hydroelectric generation for the states grid would be affected. At full capacity, the plant can power up to 800,000 homes.

If lake levels fall below those elevations later this summer, DWR [California Department of Water Resources] will, for the first time, cease generation at the Hyatt power plant due to lack of sufficient water to turn the plants electrical generation turbines, said Liza Whitmore, Public Information Officer of DWRs Oroville Field Division.

Californias power companies may have to source electricity from elsewhere

Closure of the plant would mean the states power companies would have to source electricity from elsewhere to fill the void.

On Thursday, June 17, Newsom signed an emergency proclamation allowing power plants to increase operations if needed to meet electricity demands.

Amid a major heat wave that is stressing energy grids in states across the western United States, Governor Gavin Newsom today signed an emergency proclamation to free up additional energy capacity, Newsoms office said in a press release.

Interior areas of California suffered from triple-digit temperatures Thursday. Death Valley reached 128 degrees and Palm Springs tied its all-time record of 123 degrees. Palm Springs previously climbed to 123 degrees on Aug. 1, 1993, July 28, 1995 and July 29, 1995.

Higher temperatures were also felt in the normally temperate San Francisco Bay Area. Kathleen Craft, shelter coordinator for the city of Livermore, California, said temperatures had reached 99 degrees shortly after midday on Thursday but only one woman had shown up at the citys cooling center.

Drought strains Californias water supplies

Global warming is making things worse. Rising temperatures dried out soils and the prolonged drought put a strain into the states water supplies.

The Inverness Public Utility District in Marin County will vote this week on whether to impose rationing for 1,100 customers, assigning each household a set amount of water for the first time. (Related: California bottling water during worst drought in history.)

Farmers have been forced to take drastic measures. Sheep and cattle ranchers are selling this years stock months early, and some dairy farmers are selling their cows rather than come up with 50 gallons of water each animal needs per day.

Many California farmers are already using micro-irrigation, drip hoses and other water conservation methods. Weve stretched every drop, said Bill Diedrich, a fourth-generation farmer in Fresno County.

The effect on farms could cause supply issues and higher prices nationwide, said Mike Wade, the executive director of the California Farm Water Coalition. California produces two-thirds of the countrys fruit and one-third of its vegetables.

Agricultural communities are in peril without water.

When you are operating a longstanding family farm, you dont want to be the one to lose it, said Eric Bream, the third generation in his family to run a citrus farm in Californias Central Valley.

Follow ClimateScienceNews.com for more news and information related to global warming.

Sources include:

ZeroHedge.com

USAToday.com

NYTimes.com
(Natural News) Chinas central bank ordered officials from the countrys largest banks to reinforce a ban on cryptocurrency services.

A statement from the Peoples Bank of China (PBOC), released Monday, June 21, said that representatives from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd., Agricultural Bank of China and internet payment provider Alipay were summoned to a meeting where they were reminded of rules preventing Chinese banks from engaging in cryptocurrency-related transactions.

According to the statement, the inquiry was focused on services provided to assist speculative trades in virtual currencies. It added that such activities disrupt financial order and also breed risks of criminal activities like illegal cross-border asset transfers and money laundering.

The statement also said that the institutions were also ordered to cut off payment channels for crypto exchanges and over-the-counter platforms.

China moving to block cryptocurrencies

The meeting is the latest sign that Chinese authorities will do whatever it takes to close any loopholes left in crypto trading. The country has longstanding rules that bar banks and other financial institutions from offering crypto-related services.

But in recent years, individuals have moved to trade cryptocurrencies on over-the-counter platforms and even offshore exchanges.

This has caused concern among authorities whore wary about not only the industrys carbon footprint but of its intrinsically uncontrollable, decentralized nature. In May, the State Council  Chinas cabinet  called for a renewed crackdown on Bitcoin mining and trading activities. (Related: Treasury to crack down on illegal activities in cryptocurrency markets and transactions, ignoring the fact that most crimes are carried out in DOLLARS.)

In response, the financial companies have pledged to step up inspections into crypto activity and close related accounts. In addition, they stated that they would not offer account opening, clearing or settlement to assist in crypto trading.

PBOC statement causes drop in crypto values

The statement rocked cryptomarkets, causing the values of some coins to plummet.

Bitcoin is now trading 10 percent lower at just below $32,000. This extends its 8.7 percent decline from last week. Meanwhile, Ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market value, is only trading at $1920 at press time. the lowest level ether has been at since May 23. The

Other top cryptocurrencies, such as cardano, polkadot and XRP, are also nursing losses ranging from 5 to 10 percent.

The drop is also affecting companies that have heavily invested in cryptocurrencies. Business intelligence company MicroStrategy, which recently bought large amounts of bitcoin, saw its shares drop by 7 percent. Meanwhile, companies such as Tesla, Coinbase and Square saw their share drop by 1.5 to 3.5 percent.

Chinese cryptocurrency miners moving to the West

Chinas regulatory stance stands in stark contrast to that of the West, where crypto trading is big business. Here, large banks such as JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are all beginning to dip their topes into the industry and offer products for wealthy clients that want access to the volatile digital coins.

Because of this, many Chinese miners are now leaving the country and making a beeline for the U.S. and Canada, with an increasing number of them setting up in places like Texas, South Dakota.

According to Yemu Xu, co-founder of cryptocurrency banking service provider Bella Protocol, Chinese miners whove seen the writing on the wall have been trying for years to migrate to other countries to cut costs. But recent moves such as Chinas crackdown and Irans banning of mining have made them more interested in countries with stable political regimes, mature regulation and better policy support.

As a result, mining in countries like the U.S. and Canada [has] been picking up, he stated.

This has led to mixed reactions from states. Some are worried about the industrys energy demand and carbon footprint. In New York, the state legislature is considering a bill that would block new bitcoin mining in carbon-producing power plants following the conversion of one such plant into a bitcoin mine.

Other states are more welcoming. In March, Kentucky passed a law offering tax breaks to miners that invest $1 million in setting up their operations in the state.

Either way, the U.S. cryptocurrency industrys growth is expected to continue as more miners and more investment funds are drawn in.

In China, miners might not have somewhere to go anymore and theyre thinking, how can I move some of my portfolio someplace else? said Mike Colyer, CEO of Foundry, a New York-based company that helps miners in setting up their operations. But its not just the Chinese. Right now, everyone is scrambling to get machines plugged in.

Follow Risk.news for more on Chinas regulatory moves against cryptocurrencies and what it means for the industry.

Sources include:

Bloomberg.com

LiveMint.com

CoinDesk.com

SeattleTimes.com
(Natural News) Prolonged heat waves and drought are straining electrical grids and fueling wildfires in a large part of the U.S. West. Heatwaves are becoming more frequent, lasting longer and occurring earlier in the year, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom on June 17 signed an emergency proclamation allowing power plants to increase operations if needed to meet electricity demands.

The California Independent System Operator (California ISO), which runs the states energy grid, also issued a so-called Flex Alert. The alert encourages people to set thermostats to 78 degrees, avoid using large appliances, close drapes and blinds, turn off unnecessary lights and use fans.

Elliot Mainzer, California ISOs chief executive officer, said last week that the grid was stable and there was no expectation of rotating power outages, but that could change as temperatures spike in the coming days.

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which operates the Lone Star States electric grid, also called on residents to conserve electricity, asking them to set thermostats to 78 degrees or higher, turn off lights and avoid using large appliances.

In Montana, temperatures over 100 degrees have made it tougher to fight wildfires that have exploded in size and destroyed an undetermined number of homes. Furious winds have stoked the flames and forced the crash-landing of a firefighting helicopter. At least 14 new fires have been reported in Montana and Wyoming since June 15.

In Idaho, authorities are preparing for what could be a challenging wildfire season. Nick Nauslar, a meteorologist with the National Interagency Fire Center, told state officials last week that nearly 80 percent of Idaho is in drought and the rest will likely experience it in the coming months. He said Idaho had its second-driest spring in the last 126 years.

Record-breaking temperatures seen in major cities across West

Many cities across the West have seen record-breaking temperatures last week.

Interior areas of California baked in triple-digit temperatures on June 17. Death Valley reached 128 degrees and Palm Springs tied the all-time record of 123 degrees. Palm Springs previously climbed to 123 degrees on Aug. 1, 1993, July 28, 1995 and July 29, 1995.

Phoenix faced an excessive heat warning until Sunday, June 20. The 118 degrees recorded in Phoenix on June 17 broke the citys previous daily record of 115 degrees last set in 1981, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).

Its just going to be very hot and well be flirting with records each day, meteorologist Matthew Hirsch said last week. We dont see cooling trends really until late in the weekend, early next week.

At a sweltering 107 degrees, Salt Lake City on June 15 tied the all-time hottest temperature ever recorded in city history while Las Vegas topped an 80-year daily record on June 16 with a high of 116 degrees.

Denver broke the daily record of 97 degrees set in 1952 and tied in 1993 with a 101-degree heat on June 15 while Des Moines exceeded the citys longstanding record high temperature for June 17 with 101 degrees. Des Moines set the previous record high of 94 degrees for June 17 in 1897 and tied it in 1913 and 1933, according to the NWS.

Experts say things are likely to get worse before they get better

Park Williams, a University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) climate and fire scientist, said that heatwaves are intensifying because the soil in the western half of the nation is the driest it has been since 1895. We could have two, three, four, five of these [heatwaves] before the end of the summer, Williams said.

With the summer just starting, theres no real relief in sight.

Were still a long way out from the peak of the wildfire season and the peak of the dry season, said Daniel Swain, a UCLA climate scientist. Things are likely to get worse before they get better.

Jonathan Overpeck, a climate scientist at the University of Michigan, agreed.

The Southwest is getting hammered by climate change harder than almost any other part of the country, apart from perhaps coastal cities, he said. And as bad as it might seem today, this is about as good as its going to get if we dont get global warming under control.

Droughts have long been a feature of the West. But global warming is making things worse, with rising temperatures drying out soils and depleting mountain snowpack that normally supply water during the spring and summer. Those dry soils amplified the heatwave, creating a blast more severe than it otherwise would be. (Related: Is global warming over? One scientist says major study used to defend global warming theory actually shows it is no longer occurring.)

Dry conditions also suggest a potentially devastating fire season.

New figures released on June 17 by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) underscored the risks. According to Gina Palma, a fire meteorologist at NOAAs Great Basin Coordination Center in Salt Lake City, conditions are as dry today as could be expected well into July.

Much of the Western U.S. is forecast to have above normal, significant fire potential at some point this summer, Palma said.

Follow ClimateScienceNews.com for more news and information related to climate change and global warming.

Sources include:

CleanTechnica.com

USAToday.com

APNews.com

NYTimes.com
(Natural News) Indonesia is seeing a new wave of hospitalizations, as hospital bed capacity reaches 90 percent. More than 350 healthcare workers have tested positive for covid-19, despite being vaccinated earlier this year. Dozens of vaccinated doctors are now hospitalized. The so-called efficacy of the vaccination protocol is already wearing off, putting the vaccine guinea pigs at greater risk to the latest coronavirus variants.

Badai Ismoyo, head of the health office in the district of Kudus, says many of the vaccinated doctors are isolating at home and getting better. However, dozens of these vaccinated doctors are hospitalized with high fevers and are experiencing low oxygen-saturation levels. Some are being wheeled into the ICU.

Fully vaccinated Indonesian healthcare workers are being hospitalized en masse

At the capitol of Jakarta, radiologist Dr. Prijo Sidipratomo reports there have been at least half a dozen doctors hospitalized with COVID-19 in the past month alone, despite being fully vaccinated. The healthcare workers are now concerned that the vaccinations are failing. It is alarming for us because we cannot rely on vaccinations only, said Dr. Sidipratomo.

At first, the vaccines appeared to work, to some degree. The number of Indonesian healthcare workers who died from COVID-19 dropped sharply from 158 in January to 13 in May. But the short-term efficacy of these vaccines has already worn off. Its also hard to know the reasons why fully vaccinated healthcare workers are dying now. The Indonesian medical system has not been forthcoming with information on why healthcare workers died before and after being vaccinated. The cause of these deaths are easy to mislabel, relabel and misconstrue. If these healthcare workers died last year, it was easily labeled death by covid-19 but this year, medical systems are slow to announce that either covid-19 or the vaccine caused their death.

Siti Nadia Tarmizi, a senior health ministry official, has refused to comment on the number of vaccinated healthcare workers who have passed away in 2021. However, there have been at least six confirmed cases of hospital staff dying with symptoms of covid-19 post-vaccination  including one nurse and five doctors. The number of doctor deaths post-vaccination do not seem to be as important as the number of doctors who passed away since this bioweapon experiment began.

Mass vaccination campaigns are pressuring new variants into existence, causing new fatalities

Kudus is home to nearly 5,000 healthcare workers. In January, front-line healthcare workers were given top priority for the covid-19 experimental vaccines. According to the Indonesian Medical Association, almost every single healthcare worker in the region took the experimental vaccine protocol. Indonesia is using the emergency use Sinovac vaccine, which was developed in Beijing.

The World Health Organization gave the Sinovac vaccine emergency use listing in June  even though short-term, preliminary clinical studies showed it only prevented symptomatic disease half the time (51 percent). The vaccines purported efficacy is no better than flipping a coin. Moreover, theres no data on the vaccines ability to prevent hospitalization and death over time. The real factors that determine hospitalization and death are never studied in these clinical vaccine trials. This lackluster data on vaccinated populations was not compared to data on natural infection, which is also known to exhibit mild symptoms for healthy people, and has proven to convey long-lasting immunity.

Worse yet, after the mass vaccination campaigns began, covid-19 cases suddenly became labeled covid-19 variants as breakthrough cases began appearing in the vaccinated populations. Now the general population is dealing with new variants that have mutated into existence post-vaccination. This crisis will only grow worse as the health of the innate immune system is suppressed and neglected.

Sources include:

Reuters.com

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) A federal report outlining the possibility of the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) leaking from a laboratory sat for five months before it reached the State Department. The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) prepared the study in May 2020  but it only reached the department last October. Because of this revelation, questions about whether officials suppressed the report have surfaced.

The LLNLs Z Division intelligence unit was responsible for producing the classified report. The document scrutinized both the theory of SARS-CoV-2 escaping a laboratory and the pathogen naturally crossing over from animals to humans. It concluded that both scenarios were plausible and could not be ruled out. Had the Z Divisions report reached the State Department in time, it would have made a significant impact on the debate about COVID-19s origins.

In an email to Washington, D.C. television station WJLA 7, LLNL Public Affairs Director Lynda Seaver confirmed that the Z Division report did exist. She wrote: Because the report  is classified, it would be inappropriate for our lab to discuss this. Seaver added that the laboratory will not be commenting on [the] issue of the report facing delays in its distribution to other government agencies.

LLNL scientist Dr. David Rakestraw is one of those involved in the preparation of the classified report. Outside his role in the report, he coordinated the facilitys COVID-19 technical response. Rakestraw told Quest Science Center Chief Learning Officer Caleb Cheung in an interview: The thing that Ive worked on probably the hardest [is] being able to respond rapidly to biological threats as they appeared. We were focused on both the potential for natural occurrences like the most recent COVID-19 [pandemic], but also on the potential for adversaries to use advances in biotechnology to create novel threats that we wouldnt have vaccines for.

Because of Rakestraws involvement in the classified report, three Republican lawmakers in the House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce sent a letter to LLNL Director Kimberly Budil. The May 11 letter demanded that Rakestraw appear before Congress to conduct a classified briefing on the Z Division report. The correspondence set a May 25 deadline for response, but it was not immediately known if the briefing did push through.

Biden administration tapped the LLNL to help out in its probe of COVID-19s origins

The 7,900-strong LLNL is largely funded by the Department of Energys National Nuclear Security Administration, having an annual budget of $2.5 billion. Meanwhile, the secretive Z Division was established in 1965 to study Soviet nuclear weapons programs. It eventually expanded its scope to include biological and chemical weapons programs.

A person privy to the classified document said it made a strong case for further scrutiny into the laboratory leak theory. House Committee on Foreign Affairs ranking member Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) echoed the earlier individuals sentiments. He said in a statement: From what I have seen and read, you absolutely cannot dismiss the notion that the Wuhan Institute of Virology lab is a potential source of the virus. And if you listen to the leaders in the previous and current administrations, they have said exactly the same thing. (Related: Rep. McCaul calls COVID-19 pandemic worst cover-up in human history.)

The Z Division report also influenced the State Departments own probe, led by then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, last fall. According to The Wall Street Journal, the department asked for additional information after it received the classified study in late October 2020. This was confirmed by a timeline from the State Departments Bureau of Arms Control, Verification and Compliance obtained by the news outlet. However, the current administration ordered the closure of the Pompeo-led probe  to much criticism. (Related: CNN blasts Biden for shutting down probe in to Covids Chinese origins.)

In response, President Joe Biden ordered a new investigation on the lab leak theory. He said in a May 26 statement that he has asked the intelligence community to redouble [its] efforts to collect and analyze information on the theory. Biden added that he has also tapped national laboratories  including the LLNL  to augment intelligence efforts on the matter.

The president also reiterated that the U.S. will continue working with its worldwide partners in pressing China to participate in a full, transparent [and] evidence-based international investigation and provide access to all relevant data and evidence. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken echoed Bidens sentiments and called for transparency from the Chinese government. He said in a June 6 interview: What the [Chinese] government didnt do in the early days  and still hasnt done  is [to give] us the transparency we need.

Visit Pandemic.news to read more articles about investigations on the origins of COVID-19.

Sources include:

DailyMail.co.uk

WSJ.com

WJLA.com

WhiteHouse.gov
(Natural News) A report on the origins of coronavirus (COVID-19) prepared last year by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory reportedly found that the theory claiming the virus originated from a Chinese lab in Wuhan, China was plausible and warranted further investigation from health officials.

The Wall Street Journal, which spoke with people familiar with the classified document, reported that the May 2020 report from the California-based research facility made its conclusion based on genomic analysis of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

People familiar with the study said that it was prepared by the intelligence arm of Lawrence Livermore called Z Division. The Department of State (DOS) reportedly asked the laboratory for additional information when it received the report in October 2020.

Lab-leak theory attracts renewed interest

The lab-leak theory is attracting renewed interest now that President Joe Biden has ordered intelligence agencies to take a closer look at the possibility. According to Biden, the intelligence community was split on whether the virus came from a lab accident or emerged from human contact with an infected animal. (Related: Chinese virologist: Faucis emails proved coronavirus lab-leak theory is right.)

While some prominent scientists have called for a fuller probe of the lab hypothesis in recent months, many scientists still insist a natural spillover remains the most likely explanation. Scientists analyze the genetic makeup of viruses to try to determine how they evolved and spread in the population. Proponents on both sides of the debate over the origins of COVID-19 have cited such analysis to try to make their case.

The assessment by Lawrence Livermore is said to have been among the first efforts to seriously explore the hypothesis that the virus leaked from Chinas Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV).

Chinas government has repeatedly denied that the virus escaped from a Chinese laboratory and said it is cooperating fully with international efforts to find the pandemics origins. The WIV has also denied that the virus leaked from its facilities and said that none of its staff have tested positive for COVID-19.

The Lawrence Livermore report dated May 27, 2020, was important because it came from a respected national laboratory and differed from the dominant view in spring 2020 that the virus almost certainly was first transmitted to humans via an infected animal, a former official involved in the DOS inquiry said. The reports existence was reported by the Sinclair Broadcast Group last month and was noted in a recent article by Vanity Fair.

Days before Biden was sworn in, the DOS issued a fact sheet saying that several researchers at WIV had fallen ill with COVID-like symptoms before the first publicly known case. It also said that the institute had worked secretly with the Chinese military. The fact sheet was vetted by the countrys intelligence agencies.

On June 6, the Wall Street Journal published an op-ed discussing the possibility that the pandemic started with a virus escaping from the WIV.

Steven Quay, who holds both a masters and a doctorate degree from the University of Michigan, and Richard Muller, emeritus professor of physics at the University of California, Berkeley, wrote that there are two factors suggesting a lab origin of the outbreak that has infected close to 175 million people worldwide.

The presence of the double CGG sequence is strong evidence of gene splicing, and the absence of diversity in the public outbreak suggests gain-of-function acceleration. The scientific evidence points to the conclusion that the virus was developed in a laboratory, the pair wrote.

Presence of double CGG sequence suggests SARS-CoV-2 came from lab

A genome is a blueprint for the factory of a cell to make proteins. The language is made up of three-letter words that represent the 20 different amino acids. Quay and Muller noted that in the entire class of coronaviruses that includes SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, the CGG-CGG combination has never been found naturally.

But the double CGG sequence appeared in SARS-CoV-2.

According to Quay and Muller, the insertion sequence of choice in laboratory works is the double CGG because it is readily available and convenient and scientists have a great deal of experience inserting it. The double CGG sequence also creates a useful beacon that permits the scientists to track the insertion in the laboratory.

Proponents of zoonotic origin must explain why the novel coronavirus, when it mutated or recombined, happened to pick its least favorite combination, the double CGG. Why did it replicate the choice the labs gain-of-function researchers would have made? they wrote. (Related: Gain-of-function expert Dr. Peter Daszak bullied top scientists into covering up laboratory origins of SARS-CoV-2.)

At the minimum, this fact  that the coronavirus, with all its random possibilities, took the rare and unnatural combination used by human researchers  implies that the leading theory for the origin of the coronavirus must be laboratory escape.

SARS-CoV-2s lack of diversity suggests gain-of-function of acceleration

The difference in the genetic diversity of SARS-CoV-2 compared with the coronaviruses responsible for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) also suggests that SARS-CoV-2 originated from a lab.

Both SARS and MERS were confirmed to have a natural origin  the viruses evolved as they spread through the human population until the most contagious forms dominated.

On the other hand, COVID-19 appeared in humans already adapted into an extremely contagious version. No serious viral improvement took place until a minor variation occurred many months later in England.

Such early optimization is unprecedented, suggesting a long period of adaptation that predated its public spread.

Science knows of only one way that could be achieved and that is through simulated natural evolution, growing the virus on human cells until the optimum is achieved, Quay and Muller wrote. That is precisely what is done in gain-of-function research.

Follow Pandemic.news for more news and information related to coronavirus origins.

Sources include:

WSJ.com 1

TheEpochTimes.com

WSJ.com 2
(Natural News) For four years we heard the Democrat left lie to the country about how President Donald Trump was a racist, a bigot and an anti-Semite, all of which were easily disproven by the mans acts, if not his words.

He hired and appointed persons of color to his administration; he kept his word to Israel and moved the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem (like every one of his predecessors dating back to Bill Clinton promised to do but didnt); his administration struck historic peace deals between Israel and its Arab neighbors; even his daughter, Ivanka, is Jewish.

No, Donald Trump is no anti-Semite or bigot, but boy, many of his left-wing detractors sure are, as the tech giant Google just proved again.

The company recently was forced to dismiss its diversity chief over a 2007 blog post demonstrating massive anti-Semitism, Israel365 News reports:

Kamau Bobb will no longer be part of our diversity team going forward, tech giant Google announced Wednesday, after the surfacing of an antisemitic blog post its Global Lead for Diversity, Strategy and Research wrote in 2007. 

In the 2007 post, first reported on by the Washington Free Beacon, Bobb, then a research associate at Georgia Tech, shared his views on how Jews people should view the conflict in the Middle East.

We unequivocally condemn the past writings by a member of our diversity team that are causing deep offense and pain to members of our Jewish community and our LGBTQ+ community. These writings are unquestionably hurtful. The author acknowledges this and has apologized. He will no longer be part of our diversity team going forward and will focus on his STEM [Science Technology Engineering Math] work, Google said in a statement. This has come at a time where weve seen an alarming increase in antisemitic attacks. Antisemitism is a vile prejudice that has given rise to unfathomable acts. It has no place in society and we stand with our Jewish community in condemning it.

And yetthe company hired Bobb without checking his background? Come on.

In 2007, Bobb claimed that Jews have an insatiable appetite for war and an insensitivity to the suffering [of] others  failing to mention, of course, that Israel is constantly under attack and did not start any of the three major wars it has fought with its neighbors since coming into existence in 1947.

He went on to rip the Israeli government, which, at the time, was led by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, adding that Jews everywhere should be tormented by Israels actions.

If I were a Jew today, my sensibilities would be tormented. I would find it increasingly difficult to reconcile the long cycles of oppression that Jewish people have endured and the insatiable appetite for vengeful violence that Israel, my homeland, has now acquired, he wrote.

If I were a Jew I would be concerned about my insatiable appetite for war and killing in defense of myself, he wrote. Self-defense is undoubtedly an instinct, but I would be afraid of my increasing insensitivity to the suffering [of] others.

He went on to make highly disturbing comments about the Holocaust  because of course.

He said that as a Jew, his reflections on Kristallnacht, also known as the Night of Broken Glass in Nazi Germany, which preceded the Holocaust, would lead me to feel that these are precisely the human sentiments that I as Jew would understand; that I ought to understand and feel compelled to help alleviate.

It cannot be that the sum total of a history of suffering and slaughter places such a premium on my identity that I would be willing to damn others in defense of it, Bobb wrote.

As a Jew, he continued, I wouldnt understand the notion of collective punishment, cutting off gas, electricity, and water from residents in Gaza because they are attacking Israel who is fighting against them. It would be unconscionable to me to watch Israeli tanks donning the Star of David rumbling through Ramallah, destroying buildings and breaking the glass.

Its incredibly ironic that the company which perfected the search engine couldnt be bothered to look up its diversity choice and learn more about him before putting him on the payroll.

Sources include:

Israel365News.com

EndGame.news
Weather Alert

...HEAT ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM PDT SUNDAY... ...EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING IS CANCELLED... * WHAT...Temperatures up to 95 to 103. * WHERE...Portions of central, south central and southeast Washington and central, north central and northeast Oregon. * WHEN...Until 8 PM PDT Sunday. * IMPACTS...Hot temperatures may cause heat illnesses to occur. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors. Young children and pets should never be left unattended in vehicles under any circumstances. Take extra precautions if you work or spend time outside. When possible reschedule strenuous activities to early morning or evening. Know the signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Wear lightweight and loose fitting clothing when possible. To reduce risk during outdoor work, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration recommends scheduling frequent rest breaks in shaded or air conditioned environments. Anyone overcome by heat should be moved to a cool and shaded location. Heat stroke is an emergency! Call 9 1 1. &&
HARTFORD  A sixth individual admitted her participation in a Victorias Secret theft scheme in Connecticut and Massachusetts on Tuesday as the seventh, and final, defendant in the case awaits trail, federal prosecutors said.

Sharnice Jackson, 20, of Hartford, pleaded guilty before Judge Janet C. Hall via video conference due to the ongoing pandemic and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

The offense carries a maximum term of 20 years in prison. Hall scheduled Jackson to be sentenced on Sept. 17.

Hartford residents Shamonique Mackey, 22; Daijah Fagan, 21; Tamijah Hunter, 21; Leonna Jones, 22; and Imani Aitcheson, 21, previously pleaded guilty to the same charge and await sentencing.

Dabran Moore, 21, was also charged in the conspiracy and awaits trial, prosecutors said.

The charges stemmed from allegations that Jackson and the sixth others were involved in a scheme through which they stole thousands of dollars from L Brands, the parent company of Victorias Secret stores, according to prosecutors.

As part of the scheme, they would allegedly shoplift merchandise from the stores and then return the item through a no original receipt return, allowing them to get gift cards in the value of the stolen merchandise, prosecutors said. They would then redeem the gift card for merchandise slightly more expensive, charging the additional funds to a debit card. They would then allegedly return that new item, getting the full refund credited back to the card.

Between October 2018 and October 2019, prosecutors said, L Brands lost more than $100,000 through the scheme.
BRUSSELS (AP)  The European Union on Monday imposed sanctions on several senior officials and organizations in Myanmar over the military coup in February and the security crackdown that followed.

The EU imposed travel bans and asset freezes on 8 officials and froze the assets of 3 economic entities and the War Veterans Organization.

Those targeted include ministers, deputy ministers and the attorney general, whom the EU blames for undermining democracy and the rule of law, and for serious human rights violations.

The entities are either state-owned or controlled by the Myanmar armed forces.

By targeting the gems and timber sectors, these measures are aimed at restricting the juntas ability to profit from Myanmars natural resources, while being crafted so as to avoid undue harm to the people of Myanmar, an EU statement said.

Last week, the United Nations office in Myanmar expressed concern about escalating human rights abuses after reports that a group opposed to the junta may have executed 25 civilians it captured and allegations that troops had burned down a village.

The struggle between the military regime that took power in February after ousting the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi and those opposing it has sharpened in recent months.

Elements of what had initially been a nonviolent civil disobedience movement have evolved into a fledgling armed resistance force in response to harsh repression from police and soldiers who killed hundreds of peaceful protesters and bystanders.

The EU has now imposed sanctions on a total of 43 officials and 6 organizations in Myanmar. It also has an arms embargo in place, as well as a ban on equipment that can be used for internal repression or for monitoring communications.
Contributed photo

There are four presidents memorialized on Mount Rushmore in Keystone, South Dakota: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln. On Friday, June 25, the New Canaan Mens Clubs members are going to hear about the Italian immigrant who was the chief stone carver on the work, Luigi Del Bianco, as told by his grandson, Lou Del Bianco.

The Mens Club meets most weeks at 10 a.m. in Morrill Hall at the St. Marks Episcopal Church, which is located at 111 Oenoke Ridge in New Canaan. Along with the in-person meetings, the sessions are carried on Zoom. The speakers presentation usually begins around 10:30 a.m. following the business portion of the session.
New Canaans superintendent does not expect children to need to don masks in school next year, though parental volunteers may be required to be vaccinated to help out.

Bryan Luizzi discussed with the Board of Education what next fall will look like, comparing fall 2022 to the 2021-22 school year.

We know how hard it is for children, to wear masks all day and it makes language acquisition harder, the superintendent Luizzi told the school board on Monday, June 22. If someone wishes to wear a mask, they always have the option.

If infection rates stays low, he said the district can reduce most mitigation strategies, though the schools will adhere to executive orders and mandates as required by law, Luizzi said.

However, parent volunteers in New Canaan schools may be asked to show proof of vaccination upon entering the building, sparking debate.

Board member Bob Naughton asked to reduce vaccination proof and implement it only if things get bad.

Luizzi replied that there is always a concern about bringing something into the school.

Board member Dionna Carlson felt the administration should make the policy for volunteers more flexible. She wanted other options offered to parents, including being able to show proof of antibodies.

Final decisions on visitor policies will be made closer to the opening of school, Luizzi said.

Over 92 percent of certified staff, and 86 percent of employees, are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to Luizzi.

Carlson noted that children will be asked to meet vaccination requirements, without religious exemption, this fall and raised concerns this would include the COVID-19 vaccine.

We have no intention of requiring students to be vaccinated from COVID, Superintendent repeated at different times during the meeting.

The district may organize a large scale COVID diagnostic testing event before school, for those who have been traveling.

Social distancing, cleanliness

The schools are not expected to offer remote learning in the fall. The district maintained in-person learning 97 percent of the school year and the schools did not close unexpectedly due to the virus, Luizzi touted.

He expects the use of space will be almost normal while they maximize distancing in the classroom. The students will return to art and music classrooms and gym again, instead of using the specialized rooms to accommodate social distancing.

Students will also share materials in art classes, instead of bringing in bags of art materials from home like last year.

Measures to ensure cleanliness created during the pandemic will continue, including having hand sanitation stations, enforcing respiratory etiquette, coughing into your elbow and frequently washing hands.

Furniture such as bookcases will not be used in the next academic year and will not be in the classroom, but educators are not to remove items that would have a programatic effect, the superintendent said.

The district will forego keeping students in various cohorts, or small groups, as they did last year, which was done to avoid intermingling with a wider population. It helped limit the number of (those) quarantined, Luizzi said.

Lunch time will start to resemble pre-pandemic cafeteria use, Luizzi said. In the last school year, some district schools used their gyms during lunch periods to reduce the number of students in the cafeteria.

The district will continue to encourage children to go outside, because getting them outdoors always makes sense, Luizzi said.

Recess will resume for the younger children, with the use of playground equipment, balls and games.

Bus transportation would go back to normal capacity, while the district will still clean high-touch areas and keep the windows open, Luizzi said. Students will not be required to wear masks on their way into school.

We encourage people to use the buses, because those lines at drop off are very, very long, the superintendent said.

Block scheduling

One program started during the pandemic that will continue is block scheduling in the high school, which includes longer class periods and fewer class changes, which exposes students to potential contagions.

Naughton said he wished the administration had asked the Board of Education to weigh in on block scheduling instead instituting it on its own.

There are lot of points of view on that, but we didnt have that discussion, so I dont know, Naughton said.

Block scheduling was an important COVID strategy, Luizzi said, and he wanted to continue it since staff feedback has been encouraging.

Board member Penny Rashin defended the administration, saying the board had discussed it for months.

Remote learning

Luizzi does not expect to offer remote programming for students as was necessary in 2021-22.

Over 94 percent of students were engaged in in-person learning and approximately 5.5 percent remote this past year, according to Luizzi.

Remote learning may enhance some programs in high school, he said and the district is looking for ways to continue to improve the medium. He added that some courses may still work well in a blended environment.

Half-day Wednesdays

One of the least popular changes for the board was doing away with half-day Wednesdays.

When a few members pushed back on it, the superintendent said the administration felt that face time was so much more important. It is not just the number of days, its the number of hours in a school year, he said.

Board Member Sheri West said the board had received a few emails advocating the continuation of the half day, saying some private schools will offer them.

Many private schools have half days on Saturday, the superintendent said.

For families with younger students it can be a struggle for them to find babysitting coverage for those kids, on those days, the superintendent reasoned.

Chairman Katrina Parkhill asked how orientation for new students would be handled.

Luizzi said kindergarten orientation would be divided into four groups instead of two and tours for incoming fifth graders would utilize smaller groups with more frequent visits.

Open house in the New Canaan High School is expected to be more of a challenge, with parents of over 1,300 students set to visit the building, it can become very crowded, Luizzi explaind.

He said the high school may only have open house for ninth graders since it is their first year and tenth graders since they would not have been able to attend last year.
UNITED NATIONS (AP)  The United States voted against a U.N. resolution Wednesday that overwhelmingly condemned the American economic embargo of Cuba for the 29th year, maintaining the Trump administrations opposition and refusing to return to the Obama administrations 2016 abstention.

The vote in the 193-member General Assembly was 184 countries supporting the condemnation, the United States and Israel opposing it, and Brazil, Colombia and Ukraine abstaining. Four countries did not vote -- Central African Republic, Myanmar, Moldova and Somalia.

Before the vote, the U.S. Missions political coordinator, Rodney Hunter, told the assembly that the Biden administration voted no because the United States believes sanctions are key to advancing democracy and human rights which remain at the core of our policy efforts toward Cuba.

Sanctions are a legitimate way to achieve foreign policy, national security, and other national and international objectives, Hunter said, and are one set of tools in our broader effort toward Cuba to advance democracy, promote respect for human rights, and help the Cuban people exercise the fundamental freedoms enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

We therefore oppose this resolution, he said.

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez accused the Biden administration of following Trump administration policies that tightened economic, commercial and financial sanctions and restricted travel by U.S. citizens in a blow to its tourism sector, which caused the country record losses estimated at around $5 billion.

All these measures remain in force today and are being fully implemented, he said. And paradoxically, they are shaping up the behavior of the current U.S. administration particularly during the months when Cuba has experienced the highest COVID-19 infection rate, the highest number of fatalities and a much worse economic impact.

Rodriguez said the restrictions remain despite the Democratic Party platform that promised voters to swiftly reverse the actions taken by the administration of Donald Trump, particularly the elimination of restrictions on travel to Cuba, financial remittances and the implementation of the bilateral migration accords, including the granting of visas.

He said a large majority of Americans support lifting the embargo, restoring freedom to travel and establishing normal relations.

There are some who put the blame of this pernicious inertia on the electoral ambitions associated to Florida or the balances, in no way transparent, of the political and legislative elites, Rodriguez said.

The General Assemblys last vote in November 2019, during its 74th session, was 187-3 with the U.S., Israel and Brazil voting no, and Colombia and Ukraine abstaining. The assemblys 75th session began in September 2020, but because of the COVID-19 pandemic the vote on the Cuba resolution was postponed from last fall to Wednesday.

General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding and are unenforceable, but they reflect world opinion and the vote has given Cuba an annual stage to demonstrate the isolation of the U.S. on the embargo.

It was imposed in 1960 following the revolution led by Fidel Castro and the nationalization of properties belonging to U.S. citizens and corporations. Two years later it was strengthened.

Former Cuban President Raul Castro and then-President Barack Obama officially restored relations in July 2016, and that year the U.S. abstained on the resolution calling for an end to the embargo for the first time. But Obamas successor, Donald Trump, sharply criticized Cubas human rights record, and in 2017 the U.S. again voted against the resolution.

Hunter, the U.S. diplomat, said the United States recognizes the challenges the Cuban people face.

That is why the United States is a significant supplier of humanitarian goods to Cuba and one of Cubans principal trading partners, he said. Every year we authorize billions of dollars worth of exports to Cuba, including food and other agricultural commodities, medicines, medical devices, telecommunications equipment, consumer goods, and other items to support the Cuban people.

Cubas Rodriguez sharply disagreed. He said the damage to Cubans from the embargo is incalculable and accused the United States of a massive, flagrant and systematic violation of their human rights, arguing that under the 1948 Geneva Convention this qualifies as an act of genocide.

In the health area, the foreign minister said, theres a lingering impossibility to access equipment, technologies, devices, therapies and the best-suited pharmaceuticals from U.S. companies. And the embargo, which Cubans call a blockade, has deprived the country's industries of funds and restricted food imports from the U.S. to specific volumes that create shortages, rising prices, and long lines day after day in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, he said.

Cuba demands to be left in peace, to live without a blockade, and calls for an end to the persecution of our commercial and financial relations with the rest of the world, Rodriguez said. We call for an end to manipulation, discrimination and the obstacles to relations between Cubans living in the United States and their relatives in Cuba and the country where they were born.
So what if I wear socks with my sandals? You dont like that? Then arrest me. Cancel me. Call me a deplorable. Rat me out to Anna Wintour. I dont care. I believe in freedom of fashion. I believe in rugged individualism. I believe in America, the land of the footloose and fancy-free!

All my life Ive been vilified by fashionistas, who insist that wearing socks with sandals violates the fundamental laws of fashion, puritanical podiatry and Aristotelian aesthetics. Do you want to know what really violates aesthetics? My small toe. Its a terrifying sight, and I dont want to submit myself to ridicule by publicly exposing it, anymore than I would want to expose Al Pacino or Daniel Craig by taking off their toupees.

I wear socks so I wont trigger young people. If they saw my gnarled small toe, theyd go running through the streets, screaming in terror as if Godzilla were breathing down their necks.

Everyone should wear socks with sandals because toes arent the prettiest part of our anatomy. The Kardashians, for example, can change every body part they want with cosmetic surgery and PhotoShop, from their bosoms to their butts ... but not their toes. Have you ever seen their toes? Neither have I. I rest my case.

Whenever my wife complains because I wear socks with sandals, I tell her, Youre the one who should be wearing them. Look at that big toe. (Just kidding, Dear.)

But let me get to the point of this column. Summers here, and I have something important to talk about thats a matter of national and personal security. Its a public health crisis and a public safety crisis combined: FLIP-FLOPS ARE DANGEROUS.

You should not be wearing flip-flops, especially if you work on the Ford assembly line or you operate heavy machinery or you take the subway or you have you crooked toes. Flip-floppers of America, do not send me angry emails. I speak out of concern for your safety and the safety of your big toes.

Ive written about this urgent issue before, and I wont stop writing about it. I refuse to be silenced. (Countless columnists wrote about Donald Trump week after week, so I should be allowed to write about toe protection a few dozen times.)

Im so committed to this cause Im doing a five-part series titled, The Hidden Dangers of Flip-Flops, which I know will finally win me a Pulitzer Prize unless the judges wear flip-flops and are biased. The New York Times has probably already assigned a team of investigative reporters to cover this issue with the sole purpose of denying me my prize.

Unlike the rest of you, I follow the science wherever it takes me. There is extensive research that proves flip-flops are the most dangerous shoe you can wear. Auburn University concluded that flip-flops lead to ankle, leg and foot pain. Orthopedic experts say they can cause bad posture, hammer toes, back pain, bunions, bone spurs, skin cancer and tendonitis, not to mention you could get your foot crushed racing through Grand Central at rush hour. (Plus, when Godzilla comes to town, you wont be able to run in flip-flops.)

I bet you didnt know flip-flops contribute to global warming. Theyre made from synthetic materials and are not sustainable, so follow Greta Thunbergs example and wear army boots or go barefoot.

To solve this crisis, we need a leader of Michael Bloombergs caliber. He wasnt afraid to ban Big Gulp when he was mayor of New York. But since he didnt get elected president or even vice president, we have to turn to our next best leader  Dr. Fauci, a man who recognizes the

jbreunig@stamfordadvocate.com

importance of lung AND toe protection. Now that hes solved the COVID pandemic, I urge him to support a constitutional amendment banning flip-flops. I also urge him to urge Americans to use those worthless face masks to cover up their toes when they wear sandals. (Celebrities such as Chelsea Handler are already using face masks on other body parts, but Im wont get into that again.)

At the very least, I implore our surgeon general to require a warning on flip-flops that says: Flip-flops have been known to cause foot injuries in the state of California.

This is my journalistic duty. If I can save only one big toe, my crusade will not have been in vain. Besides, it might be your toe.

Joe Pisani can be reached at joefpisani@yahoo.com.
New Castle, PA (16103)

Today

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Partly to mostly cloudy. Low 54F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Partly to mostly cloudy. Low 54F. Winds light and variable.
This section contains news stories about events and culture across the Norwich and Norfolk Christian community. It also includes a calendar of events to publicise your events.

Please bear in mind that currently most events are cancelled because of the coronavirus situation. Some event organisers may not have notified us of cancellation, so please check any event before you try to attend.

Please e-mail the following details of your event to Network Norfolk Events : Date, event title, what it involves, start and end time, location (if you include a postcode we can attach an e-map to your entry), contact name and tel no for more details. The details must be received at least two weeks before the event, ideally longer.



This listing contains the next 20 events. If you require information on events even further ahead then visit the comprehensive Calendar database section of this website.

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YMCA Norfolk - Youth & Digital Engagement Worker

YMCA Norfolk is seeking a Youth & Digital Engagement Worker to deliver a youth club project, and offer support on our digital youth work platform.

Position: Youth & Digital Engagement Worker

Pay: 10.78 per hour

Location: Various Locations

Contract Type: Minimum Hours permanent contract

Hours per week: 22.5 hours per week



Job Role:

To deliver a youth club project, and offer support on our digital youth work platform.

Further information can be found at  Youth & Digital Engagement Worker  Youth Clubs

The Organisation:

YMCA Norfolk is a great place to work, offering meaningful opportunities to make a difference in the lives of young people. Working at YMCA Norfolk is an opportunity to be a part of an organisation which is challenging, innovative, rewarding and fun! We place young people at the heart of all we do and are committed to building an organisation that is responsive to the needs of young people and our stakeholders.



What youll get in return:

Healthshield Health Care Plan

Health and wellbeing events and activities

Family friendly policies

In service training opportunities and bursaries investing in your development

Annual staff day and staff awards to celebrate our successes

Regular line management and support

Death in service benefit of 2 x annual salary

Staff discount at Stepping Stones Cafe, Williams Kitchen, Explorers Soft Play & Muddy Puddles Nursery
Newburyport, MA (01950)

Today

Cloudy this evening with showers after midnight. Low 56F. Winds NE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 40%..

Tonight

Cloudy this evening with showers after midnight. Low 56F. Winds NE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Aster DM Healthcare on Friday said it has tied up with Dr Reddy's Laboratories to administer the COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V as part of a limited pilot soft launch.

The Kochi-based healthcare provider would initially inoculate beneficiaries in (Kochi) Kerala and Kolhapur (Maharashtra) as part of the initiative.

"We look forward to building a strong partnership with Dr Reddy's across our network of hospitals to further strengthen our efforts in providing easy access and vaccinating the community," Aster DM Healthcare Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Harish Pillai said in a statement.

Aster has trained over a hundred staff at the 14 hospitals to administer the vaccine jab.

"We are pleased to collaborate with Aster DM Healthcare in Kochi and Kolhapur as we scale up our soft pilot launch of the Sputnik V vaccine in India to more cities ahead of its commercial launch. In the upcoming months, we hope to inoculate as many Indians as possible," Dr Reddy's CEO  Branded Markets (India & Emerging Markets) MV Ramana noted.

Aster DM Healthcare is one of the largest integrated healthcare service providers operating in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region and an emerging healthcare player in India.

Hyderabad-based Dr Reddy's operates in markets across the globe including, the USA, India, Russia, CIS countries, and Europe.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Chinese smart devices company Xiaomi will bring the 5G variant of its lightest and slimmest smartphone M11 Lite after 5G network is available in the country or it gets sufficient demand for the handset, a top official of the company said on Tuesday.

The company unveiled two 4G models of Mi 11 Lite each weighing 157 gram for Rs 21,999 and Rs 23,999 which will go on sale on Mi website, Flipkart and authorised retail partner from June 25.

"In India, we are bringing the 4G variant first. It does not mean that we cannot bring the 5G variant to India."

"We will be more than happy to bring the 5G variant as and when the 5G network rolls out or we get sufficient demand for the 5G variant here in India," Xiaomi India Managing Director Manu Jain said while announcing the launch.

He claimed that Xiaomi has been the top smartphone brand for almost 4 years with almost 30 per cent market share in the last quarter.

The Mi 11X series smartphones crossed sales of over Rs 300 crore within 45 days of its launch, he said.

"This year, we launched the Mi 11 series. Just a few weeks ago, we launched Mi11 Ultra with the biggest camera sensor in the world. Mi 11x and Mi 11 x Pro."

"I am happy to share that the Mi11 X series has done business worth Rs 300 crore in just a few weeks of launch," Jain said.

The company also unveiled a smartwatch with oxygen saturation level monitoring feature ,Mi Watch Revolve Active, for Rs 9,999 per unit.

It will go on sale from June 25 on Mi website, Amazon and other authorised retail channels.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Norwegian pension fund KLP is divesting from Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Limited citing the companys links with the Myanmar military.

Adanis operations in Myanmar and its business partnership with that countrys armed forces constitutes an unacceptable risk of contributing to the violation of KLPs guidelines for responsible investment, says Kiran Aziz, senior analyst in KLP Kapitalforvaltning.

Adani Ports has been under scrutiny from international investors over its project to build a container terminal in the city of Yangon on land leased from a Myanmar military-owned conglomerate. A military coup in Myanmar on February 1 and an ensuing crackdown on mass protests in which hundreds have been killed has drawn international condemnation and sanctions.

The fund said that there is an imminent danger the armed forces could use the port to import weapons and equipment, or as a naval base, continuing human rights violations. KLP had an investment worth $1.05 million in APSEZ.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: The troubles for the Union government, which is under immense pressure to cut taxes on petroleum products, may increase further since steadily improving prospects for the global economy and their expected impact on global crude oil prices have led industry analysts to ring the warning bell for the return of $100 per barrel oil. Brent crude has already gone from just $37.5 per barrel at the end of October last year to trading at over $75 on Tuesdaya 100 per cent jump in just half a year.

While Jeremy Weir, CEO of commodity trader Trafigura, had said last week that there was a chance for $100 oil at the FT Commodities Global Summit, Bank of America Global Research on Tuesday made a more solid forecast for prices hitting the $100 per barrel mark in 2022. We believe that the robust global oil demand recovery will outpace supply growth over the next 18 months, further draining inventories and setting the stage for higher oil prices, Reuters reported BofA saying. The investment bank expects Brent crude to now average $68 a barrel in 2021 and go on to an average of $75 in 2022.

High crude oil prices have always presented challenges to Indias fiscal health, since it imports over 80 per cent of its oil requirements. For Indian fuel consumers, who pay over Rs 100 for a litre of petrol in most states, a further increase in crude oil prices is only set to drive prices to new highs.

For the Union and state governments, which have sharply increased dependence on fuel taxes, the rise would force an unpalatable choice, either: accept lower tax revenues at a time when pandemic-related relief requires large scale spending, or allow retail fuel prices to keep rising, which in turn will have a cascading effect on other commodities.

The chorus for a reduction in taxes is growing with the Union governments own advisor on economic mattersSanjeev Sanyalrecently saying that it is a political call that the government has to take. Recently, CII president TV Narendran had said in a media interaction that when oil prices are rising the government needs to cut excise on petroleum to protect consumers.

Headwinds to oil prices still exist though. Oil cartel OPEC is expected to negotiate a further relaxation supply curbs in the second half of this year. OPEC had slashed output by a record 9.7 million barrels per day (mbpd) in April last year, but has already increased output a little between May-July. Analysts also expect the return of Iranian crude oil supplies if the sanctions imposed by the US on the country are lifted.

Strong demand

Despite expected headwinds to oil prices such as further relaxations on output curbs by oil cartel OPEC and the likely lifting of sanctions on Iran by the United States, industry analysts now believe that there exists a case for Brent crude prices crossing the $100 per barrel mark next year. BofA analysts note that there is plenty of pent-up mobility demand after an 18-month lockdown and that the lag in mass transit will boost private car usage for a prolonged period of time. Third, pre-pandemic studies show more remote work could result in more miles driven, as work-from-home turns into work-from-car, they added.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: PNB Housing Finance held its much-awaited extraordinary general meeting (EGM) on Tuesday to seek shareholders' approval for a Rs 4,000 crore capital infusion into the company led by US-based Carlyle Group.

However, the outcome of the meeting was awaited till late night, even as the EGM was learnt to have concluded in the day. When contacted, the company said it will inform about the outcome of the meeting through stock exchange filings.

A day earlier, the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) set aside a SEBI order, allowing PNB Housing Finance to go ahead with the shareholders' meeting on Tuesday to consider the proposed Rs 4,000 crore investment by private equity firm Carlyle and others in the mortgage firm.

The SAT ruling came after PNB Housing Finance had moved the tribunal, seeking approval to go ahead with the proposed EGM. On June 18, SEBI had directed the company to defer consideration of the capital infusion proposal till a valuation of the company's shares is done by a registered independent valuer.

In a not-so-often seen move, SEBI not only restrained PNB Housing Finance from going ahead with voting on the proposal but also directed that the matter should be placed afresh before the company's board of directors and then a decision be taken on the basis of the independent valuation.

Under the proposed deal, PNB Housing Finance will allot securities worth Rs 4,000 crore to Carlyle and other entities, a deal that will eventually result in the private equity major becoming a major shareholder of the company.

On Tuesday, shares of PNB Housing Finance rose 4.99 per cent to close at Rs 737.45 apiece on BSE. The proposed transaction has come under the lens of SEBI and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) following concerns raised in certain quarters, including by a proxy advisory firm.

The proposal is for allotting a total of 8,20,51,281 equity shares and 2,05,12,820 warrants exchangeable into equity shares for Rs 390 per share/ warrant to Pluto Investments S.a r.l, Salisbury Investments Pvt Ltd, General Atlantic Singapore Fund FII Pte Ltd and Alpha Investments V Pte Ltd in specified proportions.

These securities would be allotted for a cash consideration aggregating to around Rs 4,000 crore. Pluto Investments, an affiliated entity of Carlyle Asia Partners IV L.P.and Carlyle Asia Partners V L.P.(together Carlyle) have agreed to invest up to Rs 3,185 crore in PNB Housing Finance.

Besides, existing shareholders of the company, funds managed by Ares SSG and General Atlantic will be participating in the capital raise, along with Salisbury Investments, the family investment vehicle of Aditya Puri, Senior Advisor for Carlyle in Asia.

Puri is the former CEO and MD of HDFC Bank. Once the deal is completed, the stake of Carlyle Group in the mortgage firm will rise to 50.16 per cent from 32.21 per cent, a development that would trigger an open offer.

Last week, Carlyle Group along with other entities floated a 'draft letter offer' with regard to the open offer for acquisition of over 7 crore equity shares representing 26 per cent stake in PNB Housing Finance.

An open offer is a mandatory offer that an acquirer and Persons Acting in Concert (PACs) have to make to the shareholders of a company in case the former acquires more than 25 per cent stake in the company, as per SEBI regulations.

In case of creeping acquisition too, the clause of open offer kicks in when an entity or PACs make an acquisition of more than 5 per cent stake in a company in a year. Meanwhile, there are reports of conflict of interest of directors on the board of PNB Housing Finance as they have some direct or indirect connection with Carlyle.

Earlier this month, proxy advisory firm SES said the proposed deal was an "unfair transaction" which was against public shareholders as well as the promoter bank PNB and also flagged concerns about a proposal to re-appoint two independent directors.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The government and industry must work together to ensure existing regulations are not unnecessary barriers to investment, Union Power Secretary Alok Kumar said on Tuesday. He was speaking at a virtual two-day BRICS Green Hydrogen Summit, anchored by state-run power giant NTPC.

"Government and industry must work together to ensure existing regulations are not an unnecessary barrier to investment," Kumar was quoted as saying in a statement by NTPC.

He was of the view that trade will benefit from common international standards for safely transporting and storing large volumes of hydrogen and having appropriate certificate of origin. He added that the BRICS countries could work together on these aspects.

"India has launched an ambitious National Hydrogen Mission to introduce hydrogen purchase obligations for fertilizers, refineries involving private sector in transparent & competitive manner to produce green hydrogen," Kumar noted.

Green hydrogen is of great topical interest to all the countries, including BRICS nations, as it has great potential to ensure sustainable energy supply, increase the level of energy availability and minimise the negative impact on the environment.

NTPC CMD Gurdeep Singh said, "Five BRICS countries share a common vision of sustainable development and inclusive economic growth. Strengthening energy cooperation and ensuring affordable, reliable, accessible and secure energy for all, has always been a strategic area of importance in the agenda of BRICS countries."

He opined that for India, the transition to a hydrogen economy will not only reduce its import dependency on hydrocarbon fuels but also provide clean air to its citizens, reduce GHG (green house gases) emissions in absolute terms and fulfil the country's 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' vision.

The online event saw leading experts from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) share their insights on the subject as well as the latest developments going on in their countries in the area of green hydrogen.

The keynote speakers were Agnes M da Costa (Ministry of Mines & Energy, Brazil), Kovalev Andrey (Russian Energy Agency, Russia), Prakash Chandra Maithani, (Scientist, MNRE, Government of India), Fu Tianyi (National Energy Administration of China) and Makgabo H Tsiri (International Relations, National Department of Energy, South Africa).

These BRICS countries are capable of ensuring that there is net-zero carbon emission since the cost of deployment of these emerging technologies in these countries is a fraction in comparison to that of other developed nations, the statement said.

It added that NTPC is pioneering green hydrogen Initiatives in India.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Vedanta Ltd on Tuesday said the coal block in Odisha allotted to it, once operational, will provide fuel security, improve power availability and further strengthen the company's aluminium operations.

The statement came soon after Vedanta emerged as the successful bidder for the Kuraloi (A) North coal block located in Jharsuguda district, Odisha which was put up for re-bidding in the second auction of blocks for commercial mining.

"We wish to inform you that Vedanta Ltd has been awarded the Kuraloi (A) North coal block, located in Jharsuguda district, Odisha...Once operational, it will provide fuel security, improve power availability and further strengthen the company's aluminium operations and performance," the company said in a filing to BSE.

The coal block is an optimal fit for the company's Jharsuguda smelter given its logistical location and annual capacity. The mine has geological reserves of 1,680 million tonnes and an estimated per annum capacity of 8 million tonnes.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Owing to the second Covid-19 wave and regional lockdowns, housing sales in Q2 2021 (April-June period) stood at approximately 24,570 units across the top seven cities as against 58,290 units in the preceding quarter (Q1 2021), dropping by 58 per cent quarter-on-quarter, according to data released by real estate consultancy firm Anarock.

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) and Pune led the residential market between April and June 2021 with a 46 per cent share of the total sales.

However, sales in Q2 2021 are up by 93 per cent Year-on-Year as only 12,740 units were sold in the corresponding quarter of 2020 when the country was under a strict lockdown.

Meanwhile, despite localised lockdowns and restrictions due to the second wave, developers launched new projects (mostly digitally) and put approximately 36,260 units on the market across the top seven cities. Hyderabad is the frontrunner in overall housing launches with approximately 8,850 units launched in Q2 2021 - followed by MMR with 6,880 and Bengaluru with 6,690 units.

Anuj Puri, Chairman, ANAROCK Property Consultants, said that the second COVID-19 wave definitely impacted overall residential property market activity in the second quarter this year. However, the localised lockdowns and restrictions did not dent activity as much as the complete nationwide lockdown last year, he added.

According to Puri, listed and leading developers whose sales share against the smaller and unorganized ones increased further in the quarter amid the second wave  from 40:60 previously to 43:57 now. Back in FY2017, the ratio was 17:83. The impact of the second wave was felt more intensely by smaller and unorganised players.

Going ahead, Puri said, "Restrictions are now easing across cities and the vaccination drive is gathering momentum. We, therefore, anticipate residential demand to see steady growth in the upcoming quarter. The previously-noted structural shift in housing demand continues - many current homeowners seek to upgrade to larger homes and the previously purchase-averse millennials remain very active property buyers."

Unsold inventory across the top seven cities increased by 2 per cent in Q2 2021 over Q1 2021 since new supply outpaced overall absorption numbers in this quarter, according to the data. Unsold inventory increased from 6,41,860 units in Q1 2021 to approx. 6,53,540 units in Q2 2021.



Due to the second COVID-19 wave, average residential property prices across the top seven cities remained stagnant in Q2 2021 against the preceding quarter. On a yearly basis, Bengaluru and NCR saw the average residential prices rise by 2 per cent, while MMR, Pune, Hyderabad and Chennai saw average property prices increase by 1 per cent. Kolkata saw no yearly change in average property prices.




By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Since the State government has permitted transport between Chennai, Chengalpattu, Tiruvallur and Kancheepuram districts, commuters say the general public should be allowed to travel on suburban trains again. Since May 17, only government employees and people providing essential services have been allowed on these trains.

This has forced residents of Tiruvallur, Tiruttani, Chengalpattu and Kancheepuram to find alternate ways to reach their offices in Chennai. On Monday, bus services between Chennai, Chengalpattu, Tiruvallur and Kancheepuram districts were resumed with 50 per cent of the seating capacity.

But without access to suburban trains, thousands of workers, including electricians, plumbers, painters and construction labourers, are struggling to travel between Chennai and Tiruttani every day, said S Srinisavan, a commuter from Tiruvallur. The government has allowed many private companies to function, and the Southern Railways decision not to let these employees use the suburban trains is unacceptable, he asserted.

Another commuter, G Narayanan, from Chengalpattu, said the Railways reluctance to allow the general public on suburban trains results in overcrowding of buses. Almost all buses from Tambaram, Chengalpattu, Perungalathur and Vandalur are crowded. The Covid-19 protocol is violated, and commuters have to risk their lives to travel to work as many employers have asked their staff to return to offices, he added.

Southern Railway officials said they increased the number of suburban services from 379 to 470 from Monday. Since all government departments are allowed to function, we have added more services. A decision on allowing the general public on trains will be taken soon, said a Railway official.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court on Wednesday issued a notice to the central government over a plea moved by the Digital News Publishers Association, comprising thirteen media outlets, challenging the constitutional validity of the Information Technology Rules 2021.

The first bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy admitting the plea tagged the present petition along with a pending plea moved by Carnatic musician TM Krishna, who approached the court a few weeks ago.

The bench also granted interim relief for the association to approach the court if any coercive and arm-twisting action is taken under the rules, particularly under provisions 12, 14 and 16 of the rules.

Senior advocate P S Raman, appearing for the petitioner, contended that two provisions of the rules immediately offended the association.

Particularly Rule 16 which is an omnibus provision giving power to the secretary of the Union ministry of information and broadcasting to block public access to any digital information. Therefore, he wanted the court to pass an interim order restraining the Union from taking any action under the rules pending disposal of the plea, he added.

ALSO READ: Software engineer files plea in Kerala High Court seeking to ban WhatsApp in India

However, the bench in reply observed that there is no need to issue an omnibus interim order at this stage since no coercive action has been taken against the media outlets yet.

"Since no adverse action has been initiated against the petitioners as of now, no omnibus order made at this stage. However if such provisions are resorted to against the petitioners, petitioners will be at liberty to apply for interim relief," said the bench.

According to the petitioner, Part II of the IT Rules, 2021 (Due diligence by intermediaries and grievance redressal mechanism) is anti-ethical to fundamental rights. By these provisions, private intermediaries are vested with excessive power in shaping the discourse of speech in the country.

In particular, Rules 3(2)(b), 2(1)(d), 4 (2), 4(4) are cited that intermediaries becoming trigger-happy to pull down content by keeping a low threshold for complaints received over the content, self-censorship, lack of opportunities for users to be heard before content is taken down, curtailment of free speech through automated tools, infringement of the privacy of users etc. The stringent timelines forced under Part II incentivise intermediaries to over-censor content, thereby curbing free speech, the petitioners added.

The new IT Rules seek to regulate the conduct of entities that do not even fall within the scope of the Information Technology Act of 2000, stressed the petittioners.

The petitioner urged the court to declare the 2021 IT Rules as ultra vires, void and violative of Articles 14 (right to equality before the law and equal protection of laws), 19(1)(a) (freedom of speech and expression) and 19(1)(g) (right to practice any profession or to carry on any occupation, trade or business) of the Constitution.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: A 10-unit increase in PM 2.5 leads to more than seven hospital admissions due to respiratory diseases in Delhi each week, said a study conducted by Maulana Azad Medical College.

The report of the 15-month study, which started in April 2019 to assess the impact of air pollution on health, was submitted to the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) around three months ago, an official said.

The Maulana Azad Medical College (MAMC) was asked by the DPCC to conduct the study.

A team led by Dr Nandini Sharma, former dean and the head of the Department of Community Medicine, MAMC, collected data from Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital, Lok Nayak Hospital, Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, Lal Bahadur Shastri Hospital and Madan Mohan Malviya Hospital.

According to the report, the rate and trend of the cardio-respiratory morbidity in terms of hospital admissions were corroborated with the change in values of Air Quality Index (AQI), PM10 and PM2.5 levels.

It showed that "an increase of 10 units of PM 2.5 leads to 7.09 new cumulative respiratory admissions per week, keeping other factors constant".

"The increase in respiratory admissions (bronchitis, bronchial asthma) is directly proportional to increase in AQI," the report read.

The study has been able to generate evidence that cardiopulmonary admissions in hospitals increase significantly with rising air pollution.

"An increase of 10 units of PM2.5 will increase 1.1 new cumulative cardiac admissions in these hospitals each week," it said.

The research team also collected community-based data on the restriction of activity, perceived stress, awareness about the cause and perceived interventions required for improving air quality from 1,879 people in all 11 districts of Delhi.

It was found that as educational status improves, awareness about air pollution increases.

A Majority of the respondents (96.5 per cent) perceived that automobiles were the major reason for air pollution, while 77 per cent said industries are responsible for worsening air quality in Delhi.

Sixty-five per cent of the respondents attributed poor air quality to the burning of waste, while 46 per cent said it was due to construction activities.

Only 28 per cent of the respondents perceived stubble burning and firecrackers as the cause of air pollution.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Procuring around 500 pulse oximeters and 100 thermal scanners, setting up an oxygen plant and Covid care facilities inside the campus are some of the steps planned by the Delhi University to tackle a possible third wave of the novel coronavirus infection.

At least 40 professors of the varsity have so far succumbed to the infection.

"The university will set up an oxygen plant that can fill in medical cylinders (about 50-80 cylinders per day) using the Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) technology that will cost less, is safe in a campus setting and needs minimal clearances and approvals from the government," the varsity said in a statement.

The Delhi University Teachers' Association (DUTA) had on June 10 proposed to the varsity administration to set up an oxygen plant in the north campus to prepare for a possible third Covid wave.

The varsity said it has had dialogues with vendors in this regard.

"We will provide these cylinders, when in need, to every Delhi University (DU) member and also to those in the neighbourhood. This step will help support other universities and educational institutes in Delhi as well," it said.

While oxygen cylinders are needed for serious cases of infection, for moderate cases, especially in homes and hostels, supply of oxygen concentrators is a sure way of preventing further infection and hospitalisation, the varsity said.

DU has a total of 120 establishments in the university, including colleges, hostels and two campuses (residential and departments).

ALSO WATCH:

With an average of two concentrators for each unit, the varsity has a need of about 240 oxygen concentrators providing oxygen at a flow of 10 litres/minute.

"In addition, for the large number of students in hostels as well as residences, it will be worthwhile to have about 500 pulse oximeters and about 100 thermal scanners," it said.

According to the statement, Janki Devi Memorial College and Hansraj College have offered infrastructure for setting up covid care facilities (100 beds each).

"We will also offer one of the campus hostels for another 200 beds. These facilities will need beds, medical equipment and oxygen supplies through in-situ small scale oxygen plants with direct pipelines to beds, generators for uninterrupted power supply, medicines, facility for food and above all salaries for doctors and nurses, who are in great demand but short supply," it said.

The varsity is also planning to sign MoUs with different path labs or organisations to further strengthen the facilities at three of its health centres, it said.

The varsity colleges like Keshav Mahavidyala and Lakshmibai college as well as its health centre have made arrangements for continuous vaccination even for the general public, the statement stated.
Toby Antony By

Express News Service

KOCHI: Kochi seems to be becoming a transit hub for international drug cartels, assesses the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) that seized 2.9kg of heroin from a Zimbabwean national after interrogating her. According to officials, smuggling of heroin from Africa is a new route adopted by cartels.The Zimbabwean woman, identified as Chigwaza Sharon, was intercepted by the NCB team on arrival at Kochi airport on Saturday. The officials are checking whether similar consignments of heroin had transited through Kochi before through other carriers.

The drug ring members change their transit routes frequently. When the crackdown in other major international airports in the country intensifies, they use smaller international airports like Kochi for the transit. For them, the main challenge is to exit the airports with the drugs in India. Thereafter, they take flights to domestic airports where checking will not be as intense as in international airports. In some cases, after landing in a place like Kochi, the gang members take interstate buses and trains for transit. The drugs are not meant for supplying in Kerala, but destined for Bengaluru, Goa, New Delhi and Mumbai where the main receivers are based, a Customs official said.

As per the data with the prison department, 52 foreign prisoners have been lodged in various jails in Kerala now. Of them, four are convicted and 48 others are on trial. Two of the four convicted persons were involved in NDPS cases. Of the 48 undertrial prisoners, 12 were involved in NDPS cases. In the 2017-2018 period, NCB had registered five cases in Kochi in which people mainly from South American countries  Venezuela, Paraguay and El Salvador  were arrested in separate cocaine seizure incidents. A Paraguay citizen, Alexis R Fernandez, was sentenced recently to 12 years of jail for smuggling cocaine. Recently, two incidents of heroin recovery from Sri Lankan fishing boats were reported off the Kerala coast.

According to the NCB, the heroin extracted from illegal poppy cultivation in Afghanistan was smuggled into India via Pakistan earlier through the porous borders in Northwest India and Jammu and Kashmir. The sea routes used were also busted. Though African nationals had been booked in drug smuggling cases earlier, they were mostly involved in bringing cocaine and synthetic drugs. The seizure of opium-derived heroin brought via Africa is a new trend, a source said.

Meanwhile, the NCB probing the seizure of heroin from the Zimbabwean national has engaged other state units to track down the end receiver of the contraband.The arrested woman was travelling from South Africa to New Delhi via Kochi and Bengaluru. So, the consignment was to be received by her aides in these stations. The bag was handed over to her by a Nigerian national in South Africa, the source said.
Krishnachand K By

Express News Service

KOCHI: The day after the death of 24-year-old Vismaya, who was found hanging in her husbands residence in Kollam following alleged harassment demanding more dowry shocked the state, two more similar incidents were reported one in Thiruvananthapuram and the other in Alappuzha districts on Tuesday. Many people took to social media to express their anguish and disappointment over dowry demands and subsequent physical and mental harassment from husbands families.

Recently, Unni P Dev, son of late actor Rajan P Dev, was arrested for the death by suicide of his wife Priyanka following mental and physical harassment over dowry. Priyanka was a resident of Vembayam in Thiruvananthapuram district and was living in her husbands residence at Angamaly near Kochi.

As per the data available with the Kerala Police, 1,080 cases of domestic violence by husbands or their families have been reported in the state till May 31 this year. The whole of last year saw 2,715 similar incidents. This means, on average, more than 200 such cases were reported in a month in the last two years.

According to the police, charge sheets in 66 dowry death cases were submitted in various courts in the last five years in the state. Last year, six dowry death cases under Section 304 (B) of the Indian Penal Code were registered in the state. The police are yet to compile the data on dowry deaths from this year.

Conflict resolution

The state police launched Domestic Conflict Resolution Centres (DCRCs) across the state on May 5 to bring instances of violence at home. These centres are associated with 19 police womens cells. The complaints on domestic violence received through various channels by the police will be taken up by the DCRCs which then make necessary interventions.

ILLUS: EXPRESS

Women must come forward

State police chief Loknath Behera told TNIE that the state police would come up with a project which is more systematic to avoid such instances in the future. Domestic violence has indeed increased due to the lockdown, but that is not happening in Kerala alone. Even in Western countries, such incidents have been reported. So, we have DCRCs to prevent any casualties.

When I started a state-level consultation programme to address this issue, a total of 43 complaints came to us and 90% of those complaints were settled. Similarly, the DCRCs will do this exercise on a monthly basis. However, the women who face such atrocities should come forward and file complaints. We are here to resolve their issues, the DGP said. Inspector-General of Police P Vijayan, who coordinates the functioning of DCRCs, said more than 6,00monthlymestic violence had been received by DCRCs in the state in one month since its inception. He also said only the police with the help of counsellors could resolve the complaints.

Relationships should be democratic

Meanwhile, mental health experts said several incidents of domestic violence have been reported since the pandemic hit the state. The prevalence of domestic violence has gone up probably because spouses are forced to stay together and interact for longer periods due to the lockdown restrictions. The social evil of dowry persists despite awareness and social progress in our society. The attitude of viewing a girl as a commodity and burden is a fundamental error that needs to be cleared. The system of benevolent patriarchy which celebrates masculinity and its associated aggression is also an important reason for this situation. Women empowerment drives should focus on equal rights and opportunities for women inside the family and should also insist on democracy in domestic relationships, said Dr Arun B Nair, psychiatrist, Medical College Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram.

2016 topped the charts

The highest number of dowry deaths reported in the state was in 2016  25. As per the National Crime Records Bureau, Kerala saw 194 Protection of Women against Domestic Violence Act cases in 2019.

Divorce petitions pile up in courts

According to C R Sudesh, a senior lawyer practising at Thiruvananthapuram Family Court, 2,084 divorce petitions were filed in the court in the capital alone till November 30 last year. At the family courts in Thiruvananthapuram district, nearly 3,000 divorce petitions were received. More petitions might have been filed after November 30, as there is a family court each in Nedumangad and Attingal too. If we take the cases from all family courts in the state, the figure will be huge. The situation is grave. When I started practising, only four to five petitions were filed daily in the court. Now, that is around 14-15 cases. It indicates that the number of broken families is increasing and more and more couples want to go for legal separation, he said.

While 1,080 cases of domestic abuse were reported in the state till May 31 this year, 2,715 such incidents were brought to light last year.

Police launched domestic conflict resolution centres on May 5 in a bid to reduce such tragedies, but experts say the societys attitude towards women must change first
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court Wednesday sought to know whether movie, 'Nyay: The Justice', which is purportedly based on the life of late Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, has been released as scheduled on June 11 after both the director of the film and the actor's father gave contradictory statements on the aspect.

The high court was hearing an appeal filed by Rajput's father Krishna Kishore Singh challenging a single judge's order refusing to stay the release of the movie or to restrain anyone from using his son's name or likeness in movies.

A vacation bench of Justices Anup Jairam Bhambhani and Jasmeet Singh raised a preliminary query whether the film has been released on OTT platform as was scheduled on June 11.

"A lot depends on whether the movie has been released or not. If it has been released, the matter can wait for the roster bench. If it has not been released, the court may be inclined to hear it now (during vacations)," it said.

The bench asked if the movie has already been released, can it now reverse it and can the bell be unrung? Senior advocate Jayant Mehta, representing Rajput's father, said it has not been released yet.

However, senior advocate Chander Lall for the film director, said his instructions are to the contrary.

To this, senior advocate Harish Salve, also representing Rajput's father, suggested that this fact be verified before proceeding further with the matter.

The bench said, "let the fact be verified. To verify this aspect, list on June 25."

The single judge had on June 10, refused to stay the release of several movies, including 'Nyay: The Justice', saying these films are neither portrayed as biopic nor factual narration of what transpired in his life.

"Posthumous privacy right is not permissible", it had said in its interim order on a plea by Rajput's father to restrain such films.

During the hearing, Mehta submitted that the difficulty was not only release of the movie but also the manner in which the order was passed by the single judge.

He said the movie is going to infringe upon the right to privacy and the right to a fair trial and with each passing day, it is causing damage to the reputation of the actor.

The court also asked the counsel for plaintiff to serve a copy of the appeal to the advocate for the film director who claimed they have not received it.

The single judge had earlier said it found merit in the submissions of producers and directors that if information of events which have occurred is already in the public domain, one cannot plead any violation of right to privacy on a movie inspired from such events.

Some of the upcoming or proposed movie projects based on his son's life are -- 'Nyay: The Justice', 'Suicide or Murder: A star was lost', 'Shashank' and an unnamed crowd-funded film.

The court had directed the filmmakers to render complete accounts of the revenue earned from the films, if any case of damages is made out in future and listed the suit for completion of pleading before the joint registrar.

It had said the producers and directors claimed the films to be fictional rendition of true events surrounding the lives of film/TV personalities, including Rajput who was reportedly found dead at his home in Mumbai.

The investigation is still on.

The had court said it does not find merit in the plaintiff's contention to restraint on the strength of his right to fair trial relating to the unnatural death of his son, saying no foundation is set up to demonstrate how the films would impair the trial.

It had termed as misconceived, plaintiff's plea that the content of the film is defamatory and will damage his and his son's reputation.

The suit has claimed that in case a "movie, web-series, book or any other content of similar nature is allowed to be published or broadcasted, it would affect the right of the victim and deceased for a free and fair trial as it may cause prejudice to them".

It has also contended that Rajput being a well-known celebrity, "any misuse of his name/ image/ caricature/ style of delivering dialogues also amounts to infringement of the personality right vested with the plaintiff besides amounting to acts of passing off".

The contentions of Rajput's father have been opposed by the filmmakers of the upcoming and proposed movies.
By PTI

BHOPAL: The existing ban on inter-state movement of passenger buses between Madhya Pradesh and adjoining Maharashtra, imposed when a surge was recorded in COVID-19 cases, was on Tuesday extended up to June 30, an official said.

An order of this effect was issued by MP's additional transport commissioner Arvind Saxena, the official said here.

Earlier order, issued on June 15, was effective till June 22.

The Madhya Pradesh government has lifted the ban on bus operations with Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh from June 15.

The MP government had prohibited movement of inter-state buses as part of efforts to curb coronavirus cases.

The coronavirus tally in Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday rose to 7,89,415 after the state reported 65 fresh cases, while the death toll reached 8,806 as 22 more patients succumbed to the infection, the health department said.

A total of 318 people were discharged from hospitals in the last 24 hours, after which the recovery count touched 7,78,902, it said.

The official pointed out that 31 of the state's 52 districts did not report a single COVID-19 case in the last 24 hours.

"Indore and Bhopal added 15 and 13 cases, taking their respective tallies to 1,52,776 and 1,23,045. While Indore reported one death, after which its toll reached 1,377, Bhopal's toll remained unchanged at 972. MP now has 1,707 active cases, with Bhopal accounting for 522 and Indore 344," the official said.

With 64,415 samples being examined in the last 24 hours, the number of tests in MP went up to 1,15,32,528.

Coronavirus figures in MP are as follows: Total cases 7,89,415, new cases 65, death toll 8,806, recovered 7,78,902, active cases 1,707, number of tests so far 1,15,32,528.
By PTI

KOLKATA: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday slammed the Centre for "victimising" her former top bureaucrat Alapan Bandyopadhyay, against whom the union government has initiated penalty proceedings that could deprive him of post-retirement benefits.

Banerjee said that IAS and IPS officers of the country are in solidarity with the former West Bengal chief secretary, as it is the "battle of every bureaucrat".

"The Centre must realise it is victimising an official who lost his brother, nephew and mother within a span of 15-20 days and he is in mental agony because he has worked for the country all his life, and now he is being treated in such a manner. This is irresponsible behaviour and we will not allow this," she told reporters.

The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) has sent Bandyopadhyay, now an advisor to the chief minister, a "memorandum" mentioning the charges and giving him 30 days to reply, officials had said on Monday.

He has been warned of major penalty proceedings, which allows the central government to withhold pension or gratuity, or both, either in full or in part.

The CM said Bandyopadhyay, a 1987-batch IAS officer (retired), has always worked with dedication, determination and devotion, and he is authorised to take any action as part of his response to the Centre.

"Our government will give him full support," Banerjee asserted.

She also said the union government is not abiding by the law in its actions against Bandyopadhyay.

"You cannot forcibly change rules because the country has a Constitution. It (central government) is turning into a selfish giant. Former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi and the Congress party, too, had a massive majority, but even he had never done something like this," Banerjee said.

The Centre had on May 28 sought services of Bandyopadhyay, barely a few days after he was given a three- month extension beyond the date of his superannuation (May 31), and asked the state government to relieve him immediately with a direction to him to report at DoPT, New Delhi.

The DoPT had sent him a reminder after he failed to report in response to its May 28th order.

As the tussle between the Centre and the state continued over the order, Mamata Banerjee on May 31 said that Bandyopadhyay has "retired" and been appointed as her advisor for three years.
By PTI

MUMBAI: After a gap of seven days, Maharashtra on Wednesday crossed the 10,000 single-day case mark and reported 10,066 COVID-19 infections, taking its tally to 59,97,587, said the state health department.

The state on June 16 had reported 10,107 cases and since then, the daily count has remained below 10,000.

Maharashtra health minister Rajesh Tope on Wednesday expressed concern over statewide daily cases not remaining below 7,000-8,000 on a consistent basis.

With 163 more deaths, the fatality count increased to 1,19,303, the health department said.

Out of them, 109 deaths occurred in the last 48 hours and 54 in the last week.

Deaths that took place more than a week's ago are being added in the cumulative tally as part of a data reconciliation exercise.

Under the exercise, 345 previously unreported deaths were added to the overall toll figure, the department said in a report.

The state's COVID-19 recovery rate is 95.93 per cent, while the case fatality rate is 1.99 per cent, the report said.

As many as 11,032 patients were discharged during the day, taking the number of recovered cases to 57,53,290 and leaving the state with 1,21,859 active cases, the department said.

There are 5,92,108 people in home quarantine and 4,223 in institutional quarantine, the report said.

With 2,41,801 more tests in the last 24 hours, the cumulative figure of samples examined for coronavirus reached 4,01,28,355, it said.

According to the statement, Mumbai city reported 864 new cases and 23 deaths, taking its infection tally to 7,21,963 and the toll to 15,338.

In the Mumbai division, comprising the city and its satellite towns, there were 2,515 new cases and 36 deaths.

This took the cumulative caseload in the region to 15,81,638 and the deaths to 31,503, it said.

The Nashik division reported 703 cases and six deaths, the health department said.

The Pune division recorded 2,423 cases and 34 deaths, of which 17 came from Satara district alone, the statement said.

The Kolhapur division reported 3,617 cases and 68 deaths, of which rural parts of Kolhapur and Sangli registered 20 and 23, respectively.

Kolhapur city added 14 deaths.

The Aurangabad division registered 160 new infections and one death, while the Latur division added 332 cases and eight fatalities, the statement said.

The Akola division reported 178 cases and two deaths, while the Nagpur division registered 138 cases and eight deaths, the statement said.

Maharashtra's coronavirus figures are as follows: Positive cases 59,97,587; new cases 10,066; deaths 1,19,303; recoveries 57,53,290; active cases 1,21,859; total tests so far 4,01,28,355.

Daily COVID-19 cases not falling below the 8,000-mark in Maharashtra is a matter of concern, state Health Minister Rajesh Tope said on Wednesday even as he observed that the study of the Delta Plus variant has indicated that it could be more virulent compared to the previous mutants.

Speaking to reporters, Tope said the cases are plateaued at 7,000 to 8,000 per day in the state now compared to the peak of 65,000 infections reported in a day in the past.

"It is a matter of concern for the state as the number of fresh (daily) COVID-19 cases is not dropping below 8,000. In the last 7 to 8 days, the state has been adding around 7,000 to 8,000 new COVID-19 cases per day but the number is not going down," he said.

Tope said 21 COVID-19 cases of the Delta plus variant had been found so far in seven districts in the state.

"A separate hospital ward is formed for such patients," he said.

"These are the index cases of Delta plus variant and its severity could be higher. The study of this variant has indicated that it could be more virulent compared to the previous mutants," he said.

He said 100 samples each from 36 districts of Maharashtra have been taken and sent for genome sequencing.

"The total sample size is as big as 7,500," Tope added.

A member of the Maharashtra COVID task force Dr Shashank Joshi earlier on Wednesday said enough data was not available about the new variant and the extent of its virulence.

The new Delta Plus variant has been found in the US, UK, Portugal, Switzerland, Japan, Poland, Nepal, China and Russia.

The new Delta Plus variant has been formed due to a mutation in the Delta or B.1.617.2 variant, first identified in India and one of the drivers of the deadly second wave.

Though there is no indication yet of the severity of the disease due to the new variant, Delta Plus is resistant to the monoclonal antibody cocktail treatment for COVID-19 recently authorised in India.

Some cases of the Delta Plus variant of COVID-19 have also been found in Madhya Pradesh and Kerala.

The state on Wednesday administered more than 6 lakh doses of COVID-19 vaccines, setting a new single-day record of inoculating people against the infection, a top government official said.

With this, the state bettered the record of administrating 5,58,639 vaccine doses on Tuesday.

Dr Pradeep Vyas, additional chief secretary (public health department), said, "Today, we have bettered the performance of yesterday (Tuesday) and administered the highest-ever number of COVID-19 vaccination doses in a single day. The state administered 6,02,163 doses till 7 pm on Wednesday."

"The actual number could be more after the final figure comes," he said.

Maharashtra on Tuesday had given 5,58,639 vaccine doses, as per a report released on Wednesday.
By PTI

MUMBAI: Senior television journalist Arnab Goswami illegally tampered with the TRPs in connivance of the then CEO of the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) Partho Dasgupta to improve ratings of Republic TV channels and paid him for his help, as per the supplementary chargesheet filed by the Mumbai Police who cited Whatsapp chats between the duo as a "crucial evidence".

The Crime Intelligence Unit (CIU) of the Mumbai Police on Tuesday filed a third chargesheet before a magistrate's court here in the alleged fake Television Ratings Points (TRP) scam.

Besides Goswami, the Editor-in-Chief of Republic TV, and ARG Outlier Media that runs Republic TV channels, the police also named six other accused including some employees of Republic group channels in the latest chargesheet.

"We have found evidence to show they (Goswami and Dasgupta) had exchanged confidential information about the BARC repeatedly to benefit Goswami's channels," the chargesheet said.

During the period between June 2017 and March 2018 when Dasgupta was working with the BARC, the TRP ratings of an English news channel were illegally manipulated so that they fall below the TRPs of Republic TV channels, which resulted in Rs 431 crore loss to that channel, police said, citing the statement of an executive of the news channel.

Police further said they possess the evidence to show that Goswami had paid Dasgupta in return for the latter's assistance in manipulating the TRPs, "which was evident from the jewellery and expensive items seized from Dasgupta's residence", the chargesheet said.

Dasgupta, who had been named as accused in the previous chargesheet, was arrested in December last year.

He is currently out on bail.

The first chargesheet in the TRP rigging case, filed in November last year, had named Dasgupta and Republic TV CEO Vikash Khanchandani.

The alleged fake TRP scam came to light in October last year when the rating agency Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) filed a complaint through Hansa Research Group (HRG), alleging that certain television channels were rigging TRP numbers.

The HRG had been tasked with installing barometers for recording channel viewership data at sample households.

Police had arrested dozens of people, including the top officials of BARC and Republic TV.

Most of them are currently out on bail.

In March this year, the Bombay High Court had asked the Mumbai police why Republic TV and Goswami had not been named as accused in the case if the investigators believed to possess adequate evidence against them.

The ARG Outlier Media and Goswami had approached the high court last year, filing a bunch of petitions seeking several reliefs in the alleged TRP scam.

They had alleged that the whole case was malafide and they had been targeted for Republic TV's reportage in connection with the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput and Palghar lynching case last year.
By PTI

GUWAHATI: The Assam government on Wednesday directed all departmental heads to ascertain the vaccination status of frontline government employees before releasing their salaries from this month.

Chief Secretary Jishnu Barua, in his capacity as the Chairperson of the Assam State Disaster Management Authority, in an order stated that it has been observed that many frontline government employees have not yet taken the COVID-19 vaccine, irrespective of their registration in the COWIN portal.

The order came two days after the state administration said that it is mandatory for all workers of government and private enterprises, who have taken both doses of the vaccine, to attend office.

Non-vaccination of such frontline government employees may give rise to the possibility of further spread of the virus which, in turn, may endanger the risk of common citizens, especially the vulnerable groups like infants, pregnant women and others, the order issued on Wednesday stated.

"The state health department has arranged for large scale vaccination of all eligible age groups, both on and offline, and as such all departmental heads must ascertain the vaccination status of such frontline government employees before releasing the monthly salary/remuneration from the current month," it said.

It has been observed that though the number of patients and positivity rate is declining in some districts, the overall situation is still a matter of concern for which adequate containment measures are necessary to contain the spread of the virus, the order stated.

Meanwhile, Assam crossed the daily target of vaccinating three lakh people by giving the shot to 3,31,315 beneficiaries above the age of 18 on Wednesday at 2,184 sites across the state under its enhanced "Free Vaccination for All", an official said.

Kamrup Metropolitan district vaccinated the highest number of 23,360 people, followed by 22,854 in Sonitpur, 19,095 in Nagaon, 18,012 in Cachar, 16,117 in Tinsukia, 15,845 in Dibrugarh and 14,827 in Dhubri.

The campaign which began on Monday had exceeded its target on the first day by vaccinating 3,19,340 eligible beneficiaries.

However, on the second day, it failed to meet the target with the inoculation of 2,41,809 people.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has refused to stay the Competition Commission of India (CCI) notice asking Facebook and WhatsApp to furnish certain information in relation to a probe ordered by it into the instant messaging app's new privacy policy.

A vacation bench of Justices Anup Jairam Bhambhani and Jasmeet Singh said an application seeking stay of further steps in the investigation already stands filed in which notice was issued to the Director General of CCI in which no interim relief was given by the division bench on May 6 and is listed for consideration on July 9.

We also find that there is substantial overlap, in fact near identity, as between the prayers made in (earlier application) and those made in the present application.

For the foregoing reason, we do not consider it appropriate to stay the operation of impugned notice dated June 8, at this stage, the bench said in its order passed on June 21 and made available on Wednesday.

The case relates to the appeals of Facebook and WhatsApp against a single judge order dismissing their pleas against the probe CCI ordered into the instant messaging app's new privacy policy.

The high court had earlier issued notices on the appeals and asked the Centre to respond to it.

PTI SKV SKV DV DV 06231143 NNNN
Sumi Sukanya Dutta By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: A day after the Centre raised an alarm on the delta plus variant of Covid-19 in 3 states, scientists associated with the governments genomic surveillance project said that its detection in India should be a cause of concern but not a reason to panic as yet.

The Union Health Ministry while issuing a statement on INSACOG report on delta variant with K417N mutation also being called B.1.617.2.1 or AY.1 or delta plus- said that this was first detected in India in a sample collected on April 5 in Maharashtra and has been found so far in about 40 cases.

INSACOG is a consortium of laboratories set up by the Centre for genomic and epidemiological surveillance of Covid in the country and has thus far carried out whole genome sequencing in about 45,000 virus samples collected across India.

The government, as well as scientists associated with the project, said that there is no evidence so far to suggest that this variant is more transmissible or increased disease severity.

However, the government has swung into actionby issuing quick advisories to Kerala and Madhya Pradesh, apart from Maharashtra, where this mutant has been detectedas delta variant itself was largely responsible for the devastating second wave in the country and has now been seen coupled with a still more worrying mutation.

ALSO READ: Centre declares delta plus as variant of concern, tells states to strictly isolate Covid cases with new strain

The K417N mutationwhich has previously been seen in the South African and Brazilian variantshas been found to evade immune response, raising worries against possible reduced effectiveness of existing vaccines against this mutant.

The government has done a good thing by issuing an advisory to states on increasing surveillance and heightened measures, said a scientist with CSIR-Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology, part of the 28-lab network.

But we are yet to understand whether the effects of mutations are neutral, additive, or even bigger than sum of individuals mutations but it is difficult to do it immediately mainly because of meagre number of cases so far, he added.

An independent virologist, not directly attached with the project said that in the wake of the new finding, the government should also reveal it's future strategy.

In my view, a test like the one developed in the UK which is faster and cheaper than whole genome sequencing in detecting the mutation should be urgently considered and deployed here in order to understand the characteristics and progression of this variant, he told this newspaper.

The ministry, meanwhile, said that INSACOG first reported in a bulletin on June 18, the evolution of this variant--B.1.617.2 or delta variant with K417N mutation in spike protein.

The spike protein aids the virus to gain receptor-mediated entry into human cells and K417N corresponds to change of amino acid lysine (K) to asparagine (N) at the 417th position of spike protein.

All delta sub-lineages are treated as variants of concern although properties of AY.1 are still being investigated, the government said adding that currently, the variant frequency of AY.1 is low in India, with 40 sporadic cases reported from 3 statesMaharashtra, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh.

Across the world, 205 cases with AY.1 have been mostly reported from nine countries of Europe, Asia apart from the USA.

AY.1 was first reported by the Public Health England bulletin on June 11 and a retrospective analysis of samples by INSACOG revealed the first occurrence of this lineage from a sample collected from Maharashtra in early April.

The INSACOG report also said that there is other delta plus variants with other mutations and while AY.1 is the most well-known but these are not identical.

"A second clade found in sequences uploaded to GISAID from the USA, for example, is now designated AY.2, but has not been not seen in India yet," it said.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: While trust in news has grown on an average globally, India ranked lower at 31 among 46 countries surveyed as part of the Digital News Report, 2021, collaborated by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism and the Asian College Of Journalism.

The findings are based on an online survey of 46 media markets to understand how news is consumed in different countries. This years report focuses on trust in news, pandemic-induced economic pressure on news publishers, misinformation and Covid-19 and other aspects of digital news consumption among the public.

India is one of the strongest mobile-focused markets with 73% of respondents using smartphones to access news, showed the survey. Overall, 82% of respondents source news online, including social media, while 63% source news from social media platforms. WhatsApp and YouTube were the top social media platforms from where 53% got their news amid concerns of rampant misinformation on these platforms, it said.

While 44% of total samples for all media markets said they trust news most of the time, 38% in India said they trusted news overall. Finland had the highest levels of overall trust in news with 65%, while the US had the lowest levels of trust at 29%.

In India, respondents were mainly English-speaking, online news users, leaning towards a more affluent, younger, educated, and city-dwelling population. They represent a small portion of a diverse media market in the country. The survey clarified that the findings should not be taken to be nationally representative.
By PTI

PANAJI: The Goa government has increased surveillance along the border adjoining Maharashtra in the wake of the neighbouring state reporting cases of the COVID-19 'Delta Plus' variant, which is considered highly infectious.

Chief Minister Pramod Sawant told reporters on Wednesday that cases of 'Delta' variant of COVID-19 have been detected in Goa, but so far there is not a single case of the 'Delta Plus' variant in the coastal state.

Since the 'Delta Plus' variant has been found in Maharashtra's Sindhudurg district adjoining Goa, "surveillance along the border has been stepped up", the CM said.

ALSO READ | Delta Plus still 'variant of interest', 40 cases reported so far in India, say govt sources

On Monday, Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Monday said 21 cases of the 'Delta Plus' variant have been found in the state so far, including nine in Ratnagiri, seven in Jalgaon, two in Mumbai, and one case each in Palghar, Thane and Sindhudurg districts.

Sawant said Goa has so far reported 26 cases of the COVID-19 'Delta' variant, which were detected in samples sent to a laboratory in Pune.

He said the Goa Medical College and Hospital (located near Panaji), North Goa District Hospital (Mapusa), South Goa District Hospital (Margao) and Victor Hospital (Margao) have been collecting COVID-19 patients' samples which are sent to the Pune-based lab to check for variants of the virus.

Sawant also said his government has allowed private laboratories to set up their facilities along the Goa-Maharashtra border.

"If we find any suspect (entering Goa with the coronavirus infection), he is isolated and tested before being allowed to move around in the state," Sawant said.

On Tuesday, Goa reported 303 new COVID-19 cases that took its tally of infections to 1,64,957, while 11 fatalities pushed the death toll to 3,008, as per the state health department.

ALSO WATCH:
By PTI

NEW DELHI: A parliamentary panel meeting on the issue of vaccine development witnessed high drama on Wednesday as several BJP MPs walked out of it asserting that this is not the appropriate time to discuss the vaccine policy, sources said.

Scientific Advisor to the government K Vijaya Raghavan, ICMR DG VK Bhargava and Secretary in the Department of Biotechnology Renu Swarup were among those who deposed before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Science and Technology.

The meeting was chaired by Congress MP Jairam Ramesh on the agenda of vaccine development for COVID-19 and genetic sequencing of coronavirus and its variants.

When several opposition MPs expressed their desire to ask questions about the Centre's vaccination policy such as increasing the gap between two doses, the BJP MPs strongly opposed it and few of them even demanded postponement of the meeting and walked out, the sources said.

The BJP MPs were of the opinion that as the vaccine drive is going on in the country, this is not the appropriate time to raise such issues which may hamper the vaccination process, the sources said.

Panel chairman Ramesh underlined that the meeting should be held according to its agenda, they said.

When a BJP MP stuck to the demand for postponement of the meeting, and wanted a vote on it, Ramesh categorically refused it saying that standing committee meetings are conducted through consensus.

Ramesh was of the view that there would be no voting, even if it would be his last meeting as chairman, according to the sources.

The Opposition MPs asserted that they also have the right to question as they are answerable to people as parliamentarians, they said.

The sources said the drama lasted for about an hour after which top officials were called to depose before the meeting.

During the meeting, all members applauded the scientific community for their role amid the pandemic, the sources said.

Later, Ramesh in a tweet termed all the reports claiming that PM-CARES was mentioned in the meeting as false and said it was not mentioned even once in 150 minutes.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Kashmiri separatist leader Shabbir Shah was involved in generating huge proceeds of crime from Pakistan and other countries to create unrest in the Valley, the Enforcement Directorate told a Delhi court on Tuesday.

The ED made the submissions before Special Judge Dharmender Rana while opposing his bail application in a money laundering case which was adjourned for June 29. The agency told the court that Shah amassed huge wealth in the form of immovable and movable properties.

"Shabbir Shah was also involved in terror financing activities as terrorists need money to sustain themselves. Money laundering is the method by which criminals disguise the illegal origins of their wealth and protect their asset bases, so as to avoid the suspicion of law enforcement agencies and prevent leaving a trail of incriminating evidence," the agency said.

The ED said that Shah was in regular touch with Hafiz Sayeed, chief of banned terrorist outfit Jamat-Ud-Dawa (JuD), based in Pakistan. "Shah was also in touch with one Mohd Shafi Shayar, who belongs to Kashmir and had escaped to Pakistan along with his family after his release from Central Jail Jammu," it said.

The agency claimed that there were serious allegations against the applicant and further investigation in the matter was going on. Shah had moved bail application, claiming there was no likelihood of the trial being completed any time soon in the case due to the pandemic.
By PTI

PATNA: A key aide of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday mocked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for "confusing" with floods the "water-logging" in parts of the state which have been receiving heavy rainfall of late.

Sanjay Kumar Jha, the water resources minister, however, added that he was "not ruling out" the possibility of floods in Bihar which suffers devastation on account of the calamity almost every year.

"Dear @RahulGandji ji Looks like you have been wrong fed about floods in Bihar. There is none yet and in the wake of heavy rains we are not ruling it out either. However, you are intelligent enough to distinguish between water-logging and floods. Kindly refrain from confusing the two," Jha tweeted.

The senior JD(U) leader, considered a confidant of his boss, was reacting to a tweet, in Hindi, by the former Congress president.

"I sympathise with flood-affected families of Bihar. It is a big disaster to have struck in the midst of corona pandemic. I appeal to my colleagues in the Congress that they help in relief work. Every step of the Congress must be in the direction of helping the people this is what Congress ideology is known for," Gandhi had tweeted.

Thousands of people have been affected by the flood- like situation that prevails in half a dozen districts of north Bihar, especially those situated along the river Gandak.

The river has been in spate ever since catchment areas in adjoining Nepal were pounded by torrential rainfall a couple of weeks ago.
Rajesh Kumar Thakur By

Express News Service

PATNA: LJP leader Chirag Paswan accused Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar of playing an instrumental role in the LJPs split which was spearheaded by his uncle and Hajipur MP Pashupati Paras.

In an open letter to LJP workers, Chirag clarified that his decision to go solo in the last years Bihar polls was both politically and ideologically correct. LJP founder Ram Vilas Paswan throughout his life opposed the political policies and principles of Nitish Kumar and it was difficult to go in the NDA in which Nitish was an ally, he asserted.

The JD-U had always attempted to cause a break-up in the LJP by breaking up 29 MLAs in 2005 and by taking one MLA of LJP in 2020, he said. This time, by causing a split using 5 LJP MPs, the JD-U has repeated its policy of divide and rule. Nitish Kumar attempted several times to politically finish off our leader Ram Vilas Paswan during his lifetime.

Nitish, meanwhile, said some people keep speaking against him in order to get publicity. If they will not speak against me, how they will get publicity? he told the media in Delhi. In the letter shared through Twitter, Nitish was also accused of causing a division between the scheduled caste and extremely poor scheduled classes in Bihar.

Chirag further claimed that Nitish did not miss any chance to humiliate and politically finish him and his father. But my father never compromised with him. The LJP was in alliance with the BJP since 2014, when Nitish Kumar left the NDA on the issue of prime ministerial candidature of Narendra Modi.

But, when in 2017, he returned overnight in the NDA, my father was very uncomfortable to work with him in the alliance. But he continued by trusting PM Modi, he added. Chirag also accused his uncle of being deceitful to him even though he considered him as a fatherly figure.
By PTI

LUCKNOW: BSP president Mayawati on Wednesday termed as a "proper initiative" the meeting convened by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Kashmir, and hoped that it would prove helpful in taking some concrete decisions.

Fourteen leaders from Jammu and Kashmir have been invited to the meeting to be chaired by the prime minister on Thursday to discuss the future course of action for the union territory.

In a tweet in Hindi, the BSP president said, The meeting of 14 leaders of Jammu and Kashmir at the level of PM Narendra Modi on June 24 is a proper initiative. Hope this meeting, which comes after a gap of about two years, will prove fruitful in taking some concrete decisions and will also be helpful on (issues like) restoration of statehood of Jammu and Kashmir etc.

"At the same time, the early completion of delimitation of Jammu and Kashmir Assembly seats and general elections are such issues on which the eyes of the country are focussed.

The Centre should intensify efforts to restore the situation in Jammu and Kashmir at the earliest as per its promise and claim," she said in another tweet.

The meeting is the first such exercise since the Centre announced the abrogation of Jammu and Kashmir's special status under Article 370 of the Constitution and its bifurcation into union territories on August 5, 2019.
By PTI

SRINAGAR: An unidentified militant was killed in an encounter with security forces in Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday, police said.

Security forces launched a cordon and search operation in Shirmal area of the south Kashmir district after receiving specific inputs about the presence of militants there, a police official said.

He said as the forces were conducting searches, militants fired upon them.

The forces retaliated, ensuing an encounter, in which one militant was killed, the official said.

He said the identity and group affiliation of the slain militant was being ascertained.

The operation is going on, he added.
By PTI

BHOPAL/INDORE/BETUL: In a bid to encourage people to take COVID-19 jabs and overcome hesitancy, Madhya Pradesh government officials and various organisations have started offering prizes and gifts, ranging from mobile phone recharge coupons to sarees and make-up boxes, especially in rural areas.

Bhopal district administration is offering mobile recharge coupons worth Rs 200 through lottery while an organisation in a village in Betul district is distributing umbrellas and sarees.

A traders' outfit in Indore has also announced various rewards totalling Rs one lakh to encourage people to get themselves vaccinated.

"Five persons won mobile vouchers worth Rs 200 each through a lucky draw on Wednesday. This initiative was launched to encourage vaccination," a Bhopal district official said.

In Indore, the Association of Industries Madhya Pradesh, an organisation of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) companies, announced a reward scheme to strengthen inoculation.

"We are seeing that many workers in industrial plants in Indore are not getting themselves vaccinated due to different reasons. So we have decided to encourage them through a reward scheme," said Association president Pramod Dafaria.

He said prizes, including items like juicers, mixers and cookers, worth Rs one lakh would be distributed on July 20 to 100 vaccinated labourers through a lucky draw.

An estimated one lakh workers are currently working in local industrial plants, he said, adding that the Association has also asked its member industrialists to get workers in their respective factories vaccinated by July 10.

Another organisation is offering umbrellas and sarees for those getting themselves vaccinated in Simori village in Betul district.

"All the doses of vaccines were exhausted within the first two hours of the announcement of this scheme," said a volunteer in Simori village.

He said 40 sarees and a good number of masks were distributed on the occasion.

Besides, make-up boxes were also distributed to women.

Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday recorded 84 new cases of COVID-19 and 21 casualties that raised the tally of infections to 7,89,499 and took the toll to 8,827, the state health department said.

On July 21, Madhya Pradesh set a new record for itself by vaccinating more than 16 lakh people against COVID-19 as part of a mega inoculation campaign launched to coincide with International Yoga Day, exceeding the set target of 10 lakh inoculations for that day.
By PTI

JAMMU: A narcotics smuggler was shot dead by the BSF along the International Border in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua district and 27 kg of heroin worth crores of rupees recovered from his possession on Wednesday, officials said.

A spokesperson of the Border Security Force (BSF) said the incident took place in the border outpost (BOP) Pansar area of Hiranagar sector.

BSF personnel noticed the smuggler trying to sneak into Indian territory from the other side of the border.

They shot him after he ignored their warnings and tried to flee, he said.

The identity of the smuggler is being ascertained.

A senior officer said the value of the drugs recovered during the operation is estimated to be over Rs 100 crore in the international market.

The spokesperson pointed out that earlier on January 23, the BSF had detected a 150-metre underground tunnel, which was meant to facilitate the infiltration of terrorists from Pakistan for carrying out subversive activities, in the BOP Pansar area.
By PTI

MUMBAI: Maharashtra COVID-19 task force member Dr Shashank Joshi on Wednesday said there is no sufficient data available to be alarmed about the 'Delta Plus' variant of coronavirus.

He also said people need to adhere to COVID-19 prevention guidelines and wear masks, avoid crowds and get vaccinated.

Notably, Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Monday said 21 cases of the Delta Plus variant, considered highly infectious, have been found in the state so far, including nine in Ratnagiri, seven in Jalgaon, two in Mumbai, and one case each in Palghar, Thane and Sindhudurg districts.

Dr Joshi in a tweet on Wednesday said, "Variant of concern, vaccine and Panic.Delta plus variant of concern does not have sufficient data to be alarmed except that we must continue our strict COVID appropriate behaviour with double mask, avoid crowds and continue vaccination.

Delta plus virulence unknown, transmission may be more, he added.

The new Delta Plus variant has been formed due to a mutation in the Delta or B.1.617.2 variant, first identified in India and one of the drivers of the deadly second wave.

Though there is no indication yet of the severity of the disease due to the new variant, Delta Plus is resistant to the monoclonal antibody cocktail treatment for COVID-19 recently authorised in India.

Some cases of the Delta Plus variant of COVID-19 have also been found in Madhya Pradesh and Kerala.

India is among the 10 countries where the Delta Plus mutation has been found so far, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said on Tuesday.

According to a statement issued by the Union Health Ministry, INSACOG had informed that the Delta Plus variant, "currently a variant of concern (VOC)", has these characteristics -- increased transmissibility, stronger binding to receptors of lung cells and potential reduction in monoclonal antibody response.

Besides India, the Delta Plus variant has been found in the US, UK, Portugal, Switzerland, Japan, Poland, Nepal, China and Russia.

The Delta variant is found in 80 countries around the world, including India, and it is a variant of concern, Bhushan had said.
Richa Sharma By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Representatives of a clutch of Opposition parties attended a meeting hosted at NCP chief Sharad Pawars residence here on Tuesday, but the sense was a national front cannot be cobbled together to take on the BJP if the Congress is out of the frame.

The meeting, the participants later claimed, was non-political. Among the attendees were leaders from the Trinamool Congress, Left Front, Samajwadi Party, RLD, National Conference and Aam Aadmi Party. The Congress was not represented as some of its invited leaders excused themselves on personal grounds.

Called under the banner of the Rashtra Manch floated by former Union minister Yashwant Sinha, the meeting discussed a wide array of issues, including the ongoing farmer agitation, spiralling fuel prices, unemployment, Covid situation and the economic slowdown.

The meeting was called by Yashwant Sinha, not Sharad Pawar. This was not a political meet. We called all like-minded people. We also invited Congress leaders. I called Vivek Tanha, Manish Tiwari, Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Shatrughan Sinha for the meeting. They couldnt come. Its not true that we didnt invite the Congress, said NCP leader Majid Memon.

The centrality of the Congress to be part of the national front, since it is in direct fight with the BJP in 200 Lok Sabha seats and is in a tough contest in 100 other seats, came up for discussion.

Third Front not discussed in meet

The leaders talked about need to have a blueprint on key issues to counter BJPs narrative and Sinha is expected talk to other opposition parties on the matter in coming months.

Others who attended the meeting included retired Justice AP Shah, former ambassador KC Singh and lyricist Javed Akhtar. Pawar meeting with poll strategist Prashant Kishor ahead of this meeting created a buzz that he is trying to get all like-minded parties together against the BJP.

I dont believe a Third or Fourth Front could emerge as a successfully challenge to the current dispensation, Kishor had said after a speculation of him being involved in the entire exercise.

Sources said that Pawar known for his negotiating skills will not discuss such important issues in such meetings where none of the important leaders of political parties were present.

It has nothing to with the Third Front and when that will happen, it wont be like in this format of some 20-25 people discussing it, said an opposition party leader.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Political strategist Prashant Kishor met Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) supremo Sharad Pawar here on Wednesday, a day after leaders of eight opposition parties gathered at Pawar's residence and discussed various issues facing the country.

According to sources, the closed-door discussions between Kishor and Pawar, held at the latter's residence in Delhi, lasted for about an hour.

This was their third meeting within a fortnight.

Kishor, who was instrumental in the thumping victory of the Trinamool Congress in the West Bengal Assembly polls, had met Pawar over lunch at his residence in Mumbai on June 11.

He again called on the NCP chief at his residence in Delhi on Monday.

ALSO READ | Prashant Kishor, Sharad Pawar meet for second time in two weeks

These meetings with Pawar has fuelled speculations about the possibility of opposition parties coming together to form a third front against the BJP.

Pawar on Tuesday hosted a meeting of the leaders of eight opposition parties including the Trinamool Congress, the Samajwadi Party, the Aam Aadmi Party, the Rashtriya Lok Dal and the Left at his residence in Delhi.

However, leaders who took part in that discussions asserted that it was a "non-political" meeting of like-minded individuals by Rashtriya Manch that was floated by former finance minister and TMC vice-president Yashwant Sinha along with others.

ALSO READ | Wider alliance of anti-BJP parties necessary: NCP leader after Sharad Pawar-Prashant Kishor meet

Before the opposition leaders' meeting on Tuesday, Pawar also chaired NCP's national executive meeting the same day and had "a detailed discussion" with his party leaders on its "future policies", its role in the next Lok Sabha polls and current national issues.

The opposition party leaders' meet at Pawar's residence was attended by National Conference's leader Omar Abdullah, SP's Ghanshyam Tiwari, RLD president Jayant Chaudhary, Sushil Gupta from the AAP, Binoy Viswam from the CPI, Nilotpal Basu from CPI-M and TMC vice-president Yashwant Sinha among others.

Former Congress leader Sanjay Jha and Janata Dal-United's (JD-U) ex-leader Pavan Verma also participated in the meeting.

Besides politicians, several eminent personalities such as Javed Akhtar, former ambassador KC Singh and Justice (retd) A P Shah were also present at Tuesday's meeting.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Congress on Wednesday attacked the government over the dip in vaccination numbers after a record high earlier this week with former party chief Rahul Gandhi saying the country is not safe unless vaccination is done on a large scale but sadly the government is "unable to move beyond a PR event".

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also lashed out at the Centre over the dip in the number of vaccinations after India achieved a "historic milestone" of administering 88.09 lakh coronavirus vaccine doses in a single day on June 21, the numbers dipped to over 53.4 lakh on Tuesday.

"The Delta variant (of coronavirus) is knocking on the doors of the country. Only 3. 6 per cent of the population has been fully vaccinated but the PM has taken on the role of EM event manager," Priyanka Gandhi said in a tweet in Hindi.

After patting his own back, the vaccinations saw a drop of 40 per cent the next day, the Congress general secretary said.

"Formula of record vaccination. Madhya Pradesh, June 20: 692 vaccine doses administered, June 21: 16,91,967, June 22: 4,825," Priyanka Gandhi said.

"Collected vaccines, used it in a single day for event, then a dip the next day.

For administering vaccines to all adults by December, 80-90 lakh vaccine doses will have to be administered daily," she said.

Rahul Gandhi said unless coronavirus vaccination is done on a large scale continuously, "our country is not safe".

"Sadly, the central government is not able to move beyond a PR event," the former Congress chief said in a tweet in Hindi.

In a tweet, senior Congress spokesperson P Chidambaram said, "Look at the numbers for MP, Karnataka and Haryana on Sunday to Tuesday. BJP governments pulling a rabbit out of a hat! Pure magic for a day!" He tagged a media report on the vaccine doses administered in various states, showing the dip in numbers after the record high on Monday.

"Watch UP and Gujarat numbers for a few more days," Chidambaram added.

"I am appalled that eminent doctors attribute Monday's record to 'planning'. The plan was to 'doctor' the numbers on Monday," the former Union minister alleged.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh also highlighted the Madhya Pradesh vaccination numbers for the last three days to attack the government and asked "who are we trying to fool".

Attacking the government, Chidambaram had said on Wednesday, "Hoard on Sunday, vaccinate on Monday, and go back to limping on Tuesday. That is the secret behind the world 'record' of vaccinations on a 'single day'."

"I am sure the 'feat' will find a place in the Guinness book of records! Who knows, there may be a Nobel Prize for Medicine awarded to the Modi government," he had said.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Congress president Sonia Gandhi will resolve all issues related to the Punjab unit by early July and a united party will fight the next assembly elections in the state, AICC general secretary Harish Rawat said Wednesday after a meeting with Rahul Gandhi.

Rahul Gandhi, the former Congress president, also met a number of Punjab leaders and is learnt to have discussed various issues thread-bare on how to strengthen the party in the state.

Among the leaders whom he met include former PCC chief Pratap Singh Bajwa and sitting PCC president Sunil Jakhar, besides some ministers and MLAs.

Rawat said the three-member AICC panel on resolving the Punjab Congress infighting had met Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Tuesday and asked him to prepare a roadmap on 18 issues that are pending action on the part of the state government, including action against the land and transport mafia as well as against those involved in the desecration of the Guru Granth Sahib.

The chief minister left for Chandigarh Wednesday without meeting Sonia Gandhi or Rahul Gandhi.

The Punjab Congress is facing factionalism with its leader Navjot Singh Sidhu going against the chief minister publicly.

Rawat said the AICC has set a deadline for the implementation of various pending promises and the same will be done by the state government as per plan.

On Navjot Singh Sidhu, he said the former Punjab minister will also be called to Delhi for a discussions with the panel and all issues would be sorted out soon.

Rawat said he has taken note of the interviews and public statements made by Sidhu.

"We have sought all his statements and will examine them. Whatever advice or direction is to be given, it will be given," he told reporters here.

Asked whether Sidhu would be called again before the panel, he said "Yes, he will be", without specifying the time.

"I am confident that Congress president Sonia Gandhi will decide on all issues relating to Punjab by the first week of July or by July 10," he said.

He said Rahul Gandhi is also meeting many leaders after a comprehensive report was handed over to the Congress president on the matter.

Rawat said Amarinder Singh met the Committee, which had sought details of many promises stated in the party manifesto and the status of their implementation.

The AICC has set a deadline for implementation of various other promises and there are 18 such issues that the party has asked the CM to implement, he said, adding that the record of Punjab is good as 95 percent promises have been implemented.

On the Bagarhi Granth Sahib sacrilege incident, Rawat said, "We respect the sentiments of people of Punjab and we want that the issue be resolved as per law. Action is being taken on the issue of Guru Granth Sahib and more action is being taken."

He also said that the Congress is proposing to give 200 unit free power to urban poor as tariff concession for each family in urban areas, besides providing SC scholarships and loan-waiver for SCs and poor, apart from regularising the land ownership of the poor.

"The Punjab government has been told to implement this within time limit. The government has also been told to take steps to check the transport mafia and sand mafia. Work is on it and state government will launch an offensive against them soon," he said.

On the issue sons of MLAs given jobs, Rawat said the MLAs have thanked the government for the offer, but are not accepting the jobs as per reports.

Bajwa said after the half-an-hour meeting with Rahul Gandhi that they discussed all issues relating to Punjab theadbare.

"The high command is aware of all the realities and ground realities."

PCC chief Sunil Jakhar said discussions were held on how to strengthen the party and settle the differences of opinion among leaders.

He said the seriousness with which Rahul Gandhi is meeting party leaders shows the comeback of the Congress in the country will be heralded from Punjab.

"Changes for the sake of changes will not be done, but for strengthening the party," he said on the impending reshuffle in the Punjab Congress, and added that these are symptoms of the problem beneath.

"When the Congress stands together and united, the Congress wins. I am confident that things will be resolved soon," he said.

Jakhar said Sidhu is one among the 80 MLAs of the Congress and had his own issues.

On the chief minister, he said, some "wrong people" are getting works done from the CM and "they are putting the office of chief minister in a spot".
Rajesh Asnani By

Express News Service

JAIPUR: The crucial meeting of the newly-formed G-19 front to neutralise the demands of Sachin Pilot camp was held in Jaipur on Wednesday. But in a new twist, the 6 ex-BSP MLAs who were part of this alliance didn't join the meeting apparently due to fears that they may face disciplinary action from the Congress high command.

The 13 Independent MLAs met at the Jaipur Circuit House in the evening and as expected they expressed full faith in the Ashok Gehlot government. They also targeted the BJP and asserted that if the Saffron party tries to destabilize the Gehlot government, then they will provide an effective answer. On Sachin Pilot, these MLAs said that he had never tasted defeat and is upset at being outwitted for the first time.

After the meeting which lasted an hour, Independent MLA Sanyam Lodha told the media that, "our group has supported and strengthened the Rajasthan government both within and outside the state assembly."

On the issue of the upcoming cabinet expansion and political appointments in the state, Lodha remarked that this is the prerogative of CM Gehlot. "When and how he wants to reshuffle the Cabinet is a special right of the Chief Minister. Creating undue pressure or setting any time limit for this exercise is totally unwanted. It will not be in the interest of the people of the state to set such conditions and our group fully authorises CM Gehlot to take all such decisions as he deems fit."

Without taking any names, this was a clear hint at the pressure being built up by the Sachin Pilot camp which wants cabinet expansion and political appointments in the state to happen at the earliest and adequate representation for loyalists of the former Deputy CM.

But when asked who is creating pressure, MLA Lodha said, there is no need to name anyone. Everyone knows who is using pressure tactics.

Most political observers in Rajasthan believe that the G-19 front has been specially formed as a powerful tool for the Gehlot camp. The meeting today is likely to intensify pressure on the Congress High Command not to succumb to the excessive demands of the Pilot camp.

After the meeting today and its advocacy of a 'free hand' to CM Gehlot in the matter of cabinet expansion and political appointments, the factional fight between the Ashok Gehlot and Sachin Pilot camps is likely to escalate further. Political observers are keenly watching the next step of the Pilot camp.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: A day after India achieved over 86 lakh Covid-19 vaccinations, as the Centre took over the task of supplying free vaccines for adults in all government hospitals, vaccination numbers fell by nearly 40%. A total of 52.83 lakh doses were administered on Tuesday, in comparison to 86.16 lakh doses given on Monday, as all adults became eligible to receive the shots free of cost in government hospitals across the country.

Nearly 64% of the doses administered on Monday were in rural areas and nearly 65,000 of total 67,000 vaccination centres were government facilities, while women comprised about 46% of total recipients.

Senior authorities conceded that while Mondays show was a sign of Indias ability to vaccinate at scale, it will remain a challenge to sustain the momentum per day even during the remaining days this month. Officials said that of about 12 crore vaccine doses available for June, 9.5 crore doses have already been exhausted, which leaves only about 2.5 crore doses for eight days.

Monday was actually an orchestrated capacity demonstration to show that we are capable of carrying out this high number of vaccinations, but current dose supplies might constrain efforts to sustain the pace, a top official in the Union health ministry said. From Monday, the Union government is responsible for procuring and supplying 75% of total vaccines available in the country which will be used for inoculating adults in government hospitals, while 25% will be available for procurement by private hospitals.

VK Paul, who heads the national Covid task force and the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for Covid-19, underscored that Day 1 figures demonstrate Indias ability to carry out vaccination on large scale for days and weeks together.

This was possible because of coordination between Central and state governments and taking up the task in mission mode, said Paul. We need to do our daily work, maintain social life, open schools, businesses. We will be able to do this only when we are able to vaccinate at a fast pace. NK Arora, chairperson of National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation, said the country could achieve 1.25 crore vaccinations in a day.

Stock of doses for June not encouraging

Health officials said that of about 12 crore vaccine doses available for the month of June, 9.5 crore doses have already been exhausted, which leaves only about 2.5 crore doses for the remaining eight days. So sustaining the momentum generated by massive numbers on June 21 will not be an easy task.


By PTI

BHOPAL: Veterinarians across the country observed a "black day" and sported black badges on Wednesday to protest against BJP MP and animal rights activist Maneka Gandhi over her alleged use of unparliamentary language while scolding a veterinary doctor, their association said.

The nationwide protest call was given by the Indian Veterinary Association (IVA).

Veterinarians across the country strongly condemned the kind of language the former Union minister has allegedly used against them and sported black badges in protest, said Umesh Sharma, president of IVA and also of the Veterinary Council of India, in a statement here.

Sharma said Maneka Gandhi allegedly abused a veterinary doctor on Tuesday over the phone.

She used unparliamentary language during the conversation, he said.

A purported audio clip of their telephonic conversation has gone viral on social media.

The association has also written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and BJP president JP Nadda on the issue and urged them to take cognisance of the remarks, which it said, damages the reputation of the saffron party.

The association demanded that the BJP MP withdraw her comments and also issue a public apology.

Sharma said during the COVID-19 crisis, more than 150 veterinarians and over 1,000 para-medics have lost their lives while serving the nation.
By PTI

PATNA: RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav on Wednesday held out an olive branch to Chirag Paswan, saying the beleaguered LJP leader must reconsider his continuance in the NDA, led by the BJP which swore by the RSS ideology instead of the Constitution.

The leader of the opposition also charged the ruling JD(U) in Bihar with being the "mastermind" behind the split in the LJP, which has left Chirag cornered within the party headed by him till recently and founded by his late father Ram Vilas Paswan.

Yadav, who was talking to reporters at the airport here upon his return from New Delhi after a long stay, also sought to remind Chirag that in 2005 and 2010 similar splits had been engineered by the JD(U) in the LJP while his father and RJD supremo Lalu Prasad had "helped Ram Vilas get a Rajya Sabha berth when he had lost his own Lok Sabha seat".

"Chirag Paswan must now decide whom he wants to stand with those abiding by the Bunch of Thoughts (a famous polemical work by RSS ideologue M S Golwalkar) or those for whom the Constitution drafted by B R Ambedkar is supreme", said Yadav.

When pointed out that the JD(U), controlled by its de facto leader Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, claimed that it knew "nothing" about the crisis in the LJP which witnessed a revolt by Chirags uncle and former state minister Pashupati Kumar Paras, Yadav responded mordantly.

"Nitish Kumar never knows anything. Perhaps he does not even read the papers. He must be unaware that in 27 out of 38 districts of Bihar, the price of petrol has crossed Rs 100 per litre", Yadav remarked.

When asked about the ruling partys criticism of his protracted absence from Bihar, Yadav, who led the RJD to an impressive performance in the last assembly polls, asserted that he had been away to look after his ailing father.

"The ruling dispensation must be aware that I am a beta (son) besides being a neta (leader). Moreover, what would I have been able to do for the people here when even those in power had been forbidden from venturing out", Yadav said, in an oblique reference to a circular issued by the state cabinet secretariat whereby ministers had been asked to refrain from undertaking tours during the COVID-induced lockdown.

He also said doctors attending his father, one of the most colourful and keenly-watched politicians of the state, have hinted that he might be able to come to Patna "very soon".

Prasad, convicted in many fodder scam cases, has been staying in the national capital upon his release from jail following bail granted by Jharkhand High Court.
Ashoke K Maitra By

Covid-19 was not a difficult problem to tackle. We made it a problem. It is an effect of bad practices perpetuated by human beings. The virus has a short shelf life. If all the countries in the entire world that were then affected had come together and agreed on a lockdown for around 15 days in early 2020, Covid could have very well become history.

The real problem is that there is no unity amongst nations. There is not a single leader in the world who has the capacity to make people understand. There is not a single leader in any country to whom every citizen listens to. We are in chaos because of lack of leadership, not Covid. This illness is a product of complete failure of leadership and human conscience to behave responsibly.

We are also in an environmental disaster. We are witnessing climate change, icebergs melting, rampant forest fires, the coming of new viruses, etc. We will witness worse pandemics if we dont wake up. Biodiversity is being affected globally, with ecosystems vanishing and a million species at risk of extinction. We urgently need to reverse this to prevent another mass extinction event. The slight progress we are witnessing to stop industries from polluting the earth is happening because of NGO movements like Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth and social and environmental groups that are taking legal action to stop further destruction.

Recently, a court in the Netherlands asked Royal Dutch Shell to reduce its emissions by a net 45% by 2030 compared to 2019 levels. This judgement was a product of the Friends of the Earth moving the Dutch court.

Late last year, the Danish government, which was under pressure, announced that it would cancel all future licensing rounds for new oil and gas exploration and production permits in the Danish part of the North Sea and end existing production by 2050. As a major oil-producing country in the EU, Denmarks announcement is a landmark decision towards the necessary phasing-out of fossil fuels.

Similarly, due to the pressure exerted by Greenpeace, Bunnings, one of Australias biggest users of energy, has decided to cut emissions of around 2,57,000 tonnes of C02 and this will lead to about 110 MW of new investment in wind and solar power.

Coming back to pandemics and epidemics, we must understand them as an environmental response. Many pathogens have travelled from animals to human beings because we have engaged in rampant deforestation and gone too close to them. Humans are killing billions of animals every year for consumption and for making goods from animal skins. This is a great tragedy. Meanwhile, forgetting their role in the tragedy and to absolve themselves of the responsibility of endangering the earth, leaders are busy only calling for investigations into Covids origins.

The truth is we have endangered the earth. We have no unity even at the time of a pandemic. The truth is we are facing the worst leadership crisis at this crucial time.

The citizens of every country in this world are also responsible for this environmental disaster. Human beings are consuming far too much compared to what they need. We have learned to enjoy only the consumption of material things. We want big houses, big cars, fancy gadgets, too many clothes, shoes, crocodile leather shoes and mink coats, etc.

Enjoyment can be achieved even by listening to music, seeing art, reading literature, hiking along nature trails, photography, playing sports, good poetry, adventure, etc.

We dont need to be obsessed with hedonism and keep on consuming more and more, and believe that only consumption creates happiness. Eastern philosophy has always taught the opposite. The goal of human life is happiness and peace and not consumption.

Its time for everyone to wake up, think about how to get happiness without endangering the earth and lead a sustainable life, so that our children have the earth to live in.

Ashoke K Maitra, Founder and CEO, Sri Ramakrishna International Institute of Management

(ashoke.maitra@gmail.com)coron
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Andhra Pradesh government on Wednesday told the Supreme Court that it will be able to conduct Class 12 exams successfully as there are no reliable alternatives to assess the state board students.

The state government said it will tentatively hold the Class 12 examination in the last week of July and the time table would be issued shortly.

In its affidavit, filed through standing counsel for the state Mahfooz A Nazki, the state government said that COVID-19 cases are fast declining in the state.

It gave figures of COVID cases for June 20 - 5,646, June 21 - 5,541 and June 22 - 4,169 cases and compared them with last month's corresponding dates May 20 - 22,610, May 21 - 20,937 cases and May 22- 19,981 cases.

"Experts have been consulted and they are of the view that it will be feasible to hold the examination. The state accordingly shall endeavour to conduct the examination tentatively in the last week of July 2021. The actual time table shall be issued shortly and intimated to the students and parents 15 days in advance," it said.

The practical exams have already been conducted from March 31 to April 24, 2021, it said.

The Andhra government said there does not appear to be a reliable alternative to assess Class 12 of the state board Class 10 students are awarded grades instead of marks.

"The board does not have any check or visibility on the internal examinations conducted by various schools. Thus, any assessment based on internal examination in the State of Andhra Pradesh may not yield accurate results," the state government said.

The state's affidavit, which will be taken up for hearing before a special bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar and Dinesh Maheshwari on Thursday, said that in the common entrance exam (Engineering, Agriculture and Pharmacy Common Entrance Test), 25 per cent weight is given to the marks obtained in Class 12.

The top court is hearing a plea seeking directions to state governments to not hold board examinations in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Thus, Class 12 results play a crucial role in determining the future of the Students," the Andhra Pradesh government said, adding that "in view of the difficulties coupled with the improving COVID situation, the authorities are of the view that it will be in the best interest of Students if examination is conducted".

It said a total of 5,19,510 students are scheduled to appear for Class 12 exams and 5,12,959 students are eligible for Class 11 exams.

It said that several precautionary measures will be put in place if the state government is permitted to conduct examinations -- like, Class 12 and Class 11 will be held on alternative days.

It added that Class 11 and Class 12 students are required to appear for 5-6 subjects only, hence each student will be required to attend examination for 5-6 days.

"Only 15 to 18 students will be allotted to each examination Centre", the state government said while giving details of several precautionary measures it will be taking keeping in mind the COVID pandemic.

"The state is conscious of the difficult situation that it is in. However, under the given circumstances, the State is of the considered view that conduct of examination shall not only be in the best interest of the Students but shall also be conducted safely," it said.

The state government sought permission of the top court to conduct the Intermediate Public Examination 2021 adhering to the precautions.

On Tuesday, the top court had said "If there is any fatality, we will hold the state responsible."

The remark of the top court came after it was informed by the state government of its decision to hold the Class 12 board examination.

The top court was informed that Andhra Pradesh and Kerala are the only two states which have till now decided to hold the Class 12 board examination.

It had told the counsel for Andhra Pradesh that the state government will have to give very good reasons to hold Class 12 board examinations.

The bench said that it will consider the affidavit of Kerala government on Thursday and asked a students' body of the state to file a counter affidavit to the state government's response.

On Monday, the top court was informed by the Assam and Tripura governments that they have cancelled their state boards of Class 12 board exam due to the pandemic.

The Counsel for the Karnataka government had said it too has announced that class 12 board exam has been cancelled, but no final decision has been taken as far as Class 10 examination is concerned.

On June 17, the top court was informed that out of 28 states, six states have already conducted the board exams, 18 states have cancelled them, but four states (Assam, Punjab, Tripura and Andhra Pradesh) have not cancelled them as of now.
Chetana Belagere By

Express News Service

BENGALURU: Though Karnataka does not figure among the states listed by the Union Health Ministry where the Delta plus variant has been detected, two cases have been found among less than hundred samples sequenced for this variant. While one was sequenced at the Department of Virologys lab at NIMHANS, the other was from the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS). Experts are now calling for urgency to not just step up genome sequencing, but also rework vaccines to ensure their efficacy against the SARS-CoV-2 variants.

One sample from Mysuru had the Delta plus variant and another was from a person hailing from Tamil Nadu whose sample was sequenced at NCBS in Bengaluru, said a senior virologist from the Genomic Surveillance Committee, who did not want to be identified.

Though Dr V Ravi, nodal officer for INSACOG genomic confirmation of SARS-COV-2, and chairman of Covid-19 Genomic Surveillance Committee, has said that the Delta plus variant was not yet one of concern and there is no proof of it being highly transmissible, experts say this is worrisome and needs immediate attention. This variant has so far been found in 22 samples in Maharashtra, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh.

Dr Vishal Rao, Dean, Centre for Academic Research at HCG Cancer Centre, Member of Karnataka COVID Task Force Genomic Surveillance Committee, said detailed studies across countries have proved that with an increase in number of cases, the chances of mutations escaping vaccines are higher. Right now, the most important application is that of getting advance notice of shifts in disease dynamics using genomic surveillance. A (pre-print) paper from ICMR-NIV shows that B.1.1.28.2 (P.2) variant was isolated from nasal/throat swabs of international travellers returning to India from the UK and Brazil, he said.

Researchers believe that findings of increased disease severity and neutralisation reduction in animal models can be a matter for concern, and stressed the need for further screening of vaccines for their neutralisation effect and efficacy, and ramp up genomic surveillance efforts to monitor this new variant and other emerging variants.

It is important to rework vaccines and update them along with the development of new vaccines due to the emergence of newer variants of concern. It is most important to conduct concurrent genomic sequencing, and epidemiological investigation as it can steer the Covid-19 response, said Dr Giridhara Babu, epidemiologist and member of the Covid-19 Technical Advisory Committee. In the event of newer variants of concern emerging, they will have to be isolated and used to update the existing vaccines.

On Tuesday Maria van Kerkhove, the World Health Organisations (WHO) technical lead for Covid, in a press conference, also warned against giving the virus any chance to mutate further. She said that although the current vaccines are able to offer great protection against severe illnesses, it is a worrying trend which could leave vaccines completely ineffective against potential highly mutated variants.
By PTI

BENGALURU: The Karnataka government on Wednesday set in motion the process to conduct the Secondary School Leaving Certificate Examination or the 10th standard examination in July by releasing the standard operating procedure (SOP) for teachers.

While releasing the SOP, the Primary and Secondary Education Minister S Suresh Kumar said those in charge of the exam centres should abide by the SOP.

The SOP mandated sanitising the exam halls, furniture and toilets daily by spraying disinfectant solution before and after the exam.

There would be 12 children in the examination hall and only one student in each desk to maintain physical distancing.

Also, the SOP ordered students not to gather at any time.

In the rural areas, arrangements should be made to ensure that the test centres should be created in a manner that students need not go to the taluk-level to appear for the exam, the SOP said.

Vaccinating the teachers, staff and officials involved in conducting the examination with the cooperation of the district administration is mandatory, the Minister said adding that they need to make sure that they get a dose of the vaccine well before the exams.

According to Kumar, there should be two rooms reserved for candidates suffering from cough, common cold and flu.

There should be a thermal scanner, pulse oximeter, first aid boxes and hand sanitisers at the entrance.

Students would be given masks at the entrance of the health counters in the exam halls.

Also, there would be ambulances reserved in each Taluk for those involved in the SSLC examination.

There would also be a COVID care centre for those COVID- positive students to write the exam.

If anyone in the family is infected and the candidate is in isolation and is found to be healthy, he or she would be allowed to write the test at the nearby COVID Care Centre after testing the student.

Unlike other States, the Karnataka government decided to conduct the exam in two phases where objective type questions would be asked.

The government said the 10th exam cannot be avoided as it is crucial to decide the stream in which a student should study.

Last year, the government had successfully conducted the SSLC exams despite the fear expressed by the opposition parties and experts.

The state reported 4,436 new COVID-19 cases and 123 deaths on Wednesday, taking the total number of infections to 28.19 lakh and the toll to 34,287.

The day also saw 6,455 discharges, continuing to outnumber the fresh cases, taking the total number of recoveries in the state so far to 26,68,705.

Out of 4,436 new cases reported on Wednesday, 1,008 were from Bengaluru Urban, as the city saw 1,071 discharges and 24 deaths.

The total number of active cases in the state stood at 1,16,450.

While the positivity rate stood at 2.59 per cent, the Case Fatality Rate (CFR) was 2.77 per cent.

Out of 123 deaths reported on Wednesday, 24 were from Bengaluru Urban, Mysuru (18), Dakshina Kannada (13), Ballari (10), Dharwad (9), followed by others.

Among the districts where the new cases were reported, Bengaluru Urban accounted for 1,008, Dakshina Kannada 538, Mysuru 499, Hassan 301, followed by others.

Bengaluru Urban district headed the list of positive cases with a total of 12,08,104, followed by Mysuru 1,63,614 and Tumakuru 1,14,137.

Among discharges too, Bengaluru Urban was on top with 11,23,323, followed by Mysuru 1,55,385 and Tumakuru 1,10,278.

Cumulatively a total of 3,31,89,023 samples have been tested in the state so far, out of which 1,70,654 were done on Wednesday alone.
By Express News Service

BENGALURU: The high-level committee on the Covid-19 third wave has estimated that 2.2 per cent of the state's population may be infected with the virus during the third wave. In its report, the committee has estimated that about 3.40 lakh paediatric cases of Covid-19 may be reported in Karnataka during the third wave, but about 80 per cent of cases, in the worst case scenario, may be mild or asymptomatic. In the best case scenario, it is estimated that 90 per cent of paediatric cases will be mild or asymptomatic.

The committee submitted its interim report to the Karnataka Government on Tuesday with a slew of recommendations, especially on testing methods for children. Instead of the invasive RT-PCR, which is conventional, the committee has recommended alternative methods including Gargle RT-PCR and Salivary RT-PCR, which is considered most comfortable and ideal for children. "All paediatric Covid care facilities should have caregivers. Home-cooked food should be given. Medical staff should be trained to handle Covid-positive children. Counselling should be provided for mental health," the report said.

Apart from suggestions to enhance existing Covid facilities and Special Neonatal Care units by 10 per cent, the committee has also asked the government to incentivise medical health professionals, increase staff at district hospitals by at least 50 per cent, add additional equipment to neonatal and paediatric wards at all government and private hospitals. Post Covid clinics have been recommended along with better surveillance for AEFI cases.

"Create a state-level policy such that no hospital stocks unused vaccines beyond 10 days. It must be diverted to alternate vaccination centres by government or non-government medical bodies. Many of the private hospitals and clinics will be happy to vaccinate at the capped price of Rs 150 per vaccine to be paid by the government and carry on with the government's mission of free vaccination," the committee recommended.

Lockdown norms relaxed in 4 more districts

The State Government on Tuesday relaxed lockdown restrictions in four more districts  Dakshina Kannada, Hassan, Davanagere and Chamarajanagar. "The chairman of the State Executive Committee, after assessing the current Covid-19 situation in certain districts, hereby permits the functioning of all shops (other than air-conditioned shops, air-conditioned shopping complexes and malls) from 6 am to 1 pm in Dakshina Kannada, Hassan, Davanagere, and Chamarajanagar districts with immediate effect and until 5 am July 5," the order stated.

Key suggestions of the task force

16-member high-level expert committee on the Covid third wave suggests:
By Express News Service

YADGIR: Vaccine hesitancy owing to the fear of developing fever or other side-effects has prompted many villagers in Kenchagarahalli of Yadgir taluk to lock their houses and leave over the last two days.

Officials and ASHA workers, who went to the village on Monday and Tuesday, saw most of the houses locked. When the health officials spotted some of the women, they went there to persuade them to take vaccination, but were abused by the women who wanted to know why the officials were pressuring them when they were not ready to take the vaccination.

Yadgir Tahsildhar Chennamallappa said pointed out that only about 3-40 people have been vaccinated in the village which has a population of 1,350 of which over 300 people are above 45 years of age and 600 are above 18 years.
Amiya Meethal By

Express News Service

KOZHIKODE: Everyone knows that dowry is prevalent in the state but, legally, nothing can be done as the menace takes place in the form of gift and will. Though dowry has been banned since 1961 through the Kerala Dowry Prohibition Act, only a negligible number of people come forward to complain. We have almost nil dowry-related complaint. If any complaint is filed and we start an inquiry, we learn later that it has been settled between the couples families, says Women and Child Development (WCD) Department Director T V Anupama.

While preparing the Domestic Incident Report (DIR) during the domestic violence case, there is a column to be filled by the district women protection officer (WPO) with regard to dowry. But most often, the complainant would answer that her parents hadnt given dowry but only gold ornaments and cash as gift during the marriage. Hence, we cannot fill that column, resulting in dropping of the charge under the dowry prohibition Act, said a WPO in North Kerala.

Officers say that besides dowry cases being largely settled between the families, the police also encourage them to go for a settlement. We are helpless. Most of the complainants and their parents will demand settlement, rather than proceeding with the case. The girls parents are afraid of the social taboo when a daughter who is married stays with them for long. We cannot proceed with a case without the petitioners consent. But the police can take action lawfully but they dont, says a WPO from South Kerala, who requested anonymity.

Asha Unnithan, activist and lawyer practising in the High Court, says the consumerist culture is the basis of dowry in a social perspective. Giving a huge quantity of gold as a parameter of social status is the theory proposed by the market. We bought that theory, she says. She points to how parents bypass the succession laws by preparing a will that states that all their assets would go to the son(s), which has been duly agreed to by the daughter. Such parents might have given all the gold and cash to the daughter as dowry during her marriage. Hence, she has no right to the parents immovable property thereafter. The practice of giving dowry will end only if it is ensured that all assets of the parents are divided equally among the children, she says.

Asha Unnithan also proposes a prenuptial agreement between the bride and groom on the lines of laws in foreign countries.Though the women and child development department has no data on dowry cases or deaths, Kerala Police have recorded 212 dowry deaths in the last 13 years. The WCD departments proposal to amend a rule empowering the district women and child development officer as the dowry prohibition officer is awaiting the law departments nod. As per the proposal, the WCD officer will be the dowry prohibition officer in each district and the WPO should be the inquiry officer, said a source.
By Express News Service

THIRUVANATHAPURAM: Relatives of a 24-year-old woman who died on Tuesday due to burn injuries staged a protest at Venganoor junction on Wednesday, claiming that the police were lenient towards the husband, who they alleged had a role in the suicide.

Archana, a native of Venganoor, had died of burn injuries in the wee hours of Tuesday. She was married to Suresh, an electrician, and they were staying at a rented house near Venniyoor.

Archana's was a love marriage and her family had alleged that Suresh used to harass her for dowry. Vizhinjam police had taken Suresh into custody after the incident. However, the police said he had no involvement in the incident and later released him on bail.

This led to the protest. The ambulance carrying Archana's body was also stopped by the protesters demanding swift police action against Suresh who, according to them, was responsible for her suicide.

Several political parties and leaders joined the protest.
By Express News Service

KOCHI: A software engineer from Idukki on Wednesday approached the Kerala High Court seeking a directive to the central government to ban the operations of WhatsApp if the company is not willing to co-operate with the lawful authorities in India.

KG Omanakuttan, Kumali, Idukki, submitted that WhatsApp has moved the Delhi High Court against India's new IT Rules that require instant messaging platforms to aid in identifying the 'originator' of messages. The company claimed that the rules violates the privacy of a citizen. The petitioner pointed out that the app itself violates the privacy of its users and cannot blame the law of this land.

The petitioner argued that fake information in the form of texts, images and videos is been widely spread and circulated. Character assassination of many prominent personalities of all political parties was done using such messages. This app is being used by anti-nationals to pass their messages and information. Criminal activities such as threats, honey traps, fake visas, admissions and job placements are a few instances of misuse of the app, the petitioner said.

He pointed out that the authorities are finding it difficult to trace the source of unlawful activities as there are no laws in India to insist that they share the source. The company has never cooperated with the authorities saying that the platform is end-to-end encrypted, even in cases which involve the security of the nation, he alleged.

The petitioner argued that no one is above the law and no one should be allowed to be above law. The app should abide by the laws of this country so as to function here. If the app is not willing to change its technology and cooperate with the government, it should not be permitted to operate. The central government has banned many websites and mobile apps for being against the interests of the country.

The petitioner also sought a directive to the central government to ask WhatsApp to comply with the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021.

The court will consider the petition on Monday.
By PTI

BHUBANESWAR: The opposition BJP on Wednesday continued to protest against absence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's photograph in the hoardings and posters which are diplaying only picture of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at the inoculation sites in Odisha.

They demanded the state government to include picture of Modi on all means of advertisement put up at the vaccination centres.

Union minister Pratap Sarangi who visited the vaccination centre at the Gandhi Smruti Bhavan in Balasore to oversee the inoculation process, stressed that Modi "deserves universal acclaim for rolling out such a massive inoculation drive."

Sarangi represents Balasore in Lok Sabha.

The two parties had crossed swords on the matter two days back also.

BJP parliamentarian Aparajita Sarangi said Wednesday that the Odisha government sought the union government's support after it "failed" to procure coronavirus vaccines.

"Our PM @narendramodi has come to the rescue of @CMO_Odisha," she tweeted.

"Basic courtesy demands that PM Modi's photo with (the) CM's photo be put up at all vaccination points by the state government," the BJP leader posted, along with pictures of her visit to a vaccination centre here.

The Bhubaneswar MP said that not putting up posters of the prime minister was "height of insecurity and narrow- mindedness" of the state government.

BJD leader Sasmit Patra rebutted Aparajita Sarangi, and accused her of doing "shameful" and "petty" politics as Modi's photo is there on every COVID vaccination certificates given to the beneficiaries in the state.

"While every party is trying to make an issue out of it, (the) BJD never played policits over this," Patra tweeted, tagging Aparajita Sarangi.

Patra underscored that Patnaik's message that had been put out across the state called for using masks and ensure COVID-appropriate behaviour, adding that it was nothing about vaccination.

"It is petty and shameful to do politics out of this. I am afraid you (Aparajita Sarangi) may be insecure about your political relevance and doing this narrow-minded politics," the BJD spokesperson said.

The Rajya Sabha MP also took a jibe at the Bhubaneswar MP, thanking her "for wearing masks off late".

BJP which replaced Congress as the main opposition in Odisha after 2019 state election is not missing any chance to confront the ruling Biju Janata Dal politically.

The saffron party workers had on Monday staged strong protest on display of lone picture of Patnaik at vaccination centres in Balasore, Koraput and Angul districts.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Chief Minister MK Stalin on Tuesday assured in the Assembly that a resolution to show displeasure against the three farm laws and the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) will be unanimously passed in the upcoming Budget session. Stalin was responding to DMK MLA A Tamilarasi, after she spoke on a motion to thank the Governor for his address, and urged that the State government should adopt a resolution against the laws.

Responding to her request, the Chief Minister stated that it was the DMK that continuously urged the Union government to repeal the farm laws since the time they were adopted. The government has decided to adopt a unanimous resolution to repeal those laws to reflect the sentiments of farmers from not only TN but also across the country, he said.

It is deemed that to adopt a resolution on this in the ongoing first session of the Assembly is not good during the debate on a motion to thank the Governor, he said, further assuring that it will be adopted in the upcoming Budget session, along with another resolution against the CAA, that has created fear among the minorities.
T Muruganandham By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu Assembly on Wednesday witnessed a short debate on the use of the term Union government instead of 'central government' by DMK leaders. Responding to BJP floor leader Nainar Nagenthran who raised the issue, Chief Minister MK Stalin said there was nothing wrong in the usage since the word 'Ondriyam' (Union) implied federalism and asserted that the DMK would continue to use it.

"No one needs to get frightened by the word Ondriyam. We use this word as it implies federalism. So we will continue to use it," the Chief Minister said responding to Nainar Nagenthran who criticised the DMK's new found interest in using the term 'Ondriya arasu' (Union government) instead of the term for central government.

ALSO READ: Will NEET take place in TN this year? AIADMK wants Stalin govt to clarify

A few feel that using the term 'Union government' is a social crime. That is totally wrong. We say what is said in the Constitution of India. The first sentence of the Constitution says - India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States. So, we are using what is used in the Constitution, Stalin explained.

Nainar Nagenthran said the Chief Minister should explain why this new usage has been reiterated now and the ulterior motive behind it. This has created a suspicion among the people whether the present government has some other motive for using it, he added.

Referring to the contention of Nagenthran that present day DMK leaders have 'invented' something new which even their late leaders Arignar Anna (CN Annadurai) and M Karunanidhi did not use, Stalin said, "Decades ago, the election manifesto of the DMK used the phrase Union of India. Further, Anna, speaking in the Rajya Sabha on January 25, 1963 explained this in his speech: "What is it that we mean by sovereignty? The Preamble to the Constitution says that political sovereignty rests with the people. The legal sovereignty is divided between the Federal Union and the constituent units."

The Chief Minister also recalled that freedom fighter MP Sivagnanam had used the word 'samashti' (federal) while late leader Rajaji spoke against piling up of powers with the Union government and about ushering in true federalism.
By PTI

LAHORE: A powerful car bomb went off outside Mumbai terror attack mastermind and banned Jamat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed's house here on Wednesday, killing at least three people and injuring 20 others, police said. The blast took place at the BOR Society in Jauhar Town at the police picket outside Saeed's residence.

The Punjab police chief Inam Ghani said there could have been a "major loss" had there been no police picket outside the house of the high-profile personality, referring to Saeed. He said three people were killed in the car bomb blast while 20 others were injured.

"Explosive material was installed in the car. There was a police picket outside the high-value target's house. The car could not cross the police picket," Inspector General Police (IGP) Punjab Ghani said, describing it as "a terror" act.

The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) has taken over the blast site and investigating from all aspects, he said. Ghani also claimed that "hostile" intelligence agencies could be involved in this blast.

The injured people have been shifted to the Jinnah Hospital where the condition of six of them is said to be critical.

"The injured also include policemen. The condition of six injured of the 17 admitted to hospital is critical," said Dr Yahya Sultan of Jinnah Hospital.

It was a powerful blast that damaged a number of houses, shops and vehicles in the area. A roof of a house caved in because of the impact of the blast, says Rescue 1122.

The blast sparked rumours at the site that Saeed was present in the house. Saeed, 71, has been serving a jail sentence at the Kot Lakhpat Jail Lahore for his conviction in terror financing cases.
By AFP

CAIRO: An Egyptian court Tuesday convicted a university student to four years in prison for "spreading false news", rights groups said, in a sentence Amnesty International labelled "outrageous".

Ahmed Samir, a master's student at the Central European University in Vienna studying women's reproductive rights, was arrested in February after returning to Egypt on a family visit.

Authorities have not specified the reason for his arrest but have accused him of "spreading false news" and "belonging to a terrorist organisation".

Such accusations are frequently levelled against political and human rights activists in Egypt.

A state security court in New Cairo sentenced Samir "to four years in prison and a fine of 500 Egyptian pounds (around $30) for spreading false news", the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms (ECRF) said in a statement on Facebook.

The Cairo-based Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression (AFTE) said the sentence could not be appealed due to state of emergency legislation in force since 2017.

Earlier this month, five Egyptian and international rights groups including Amnesty International had called on Egyptian authorities to release Samir "immediately and unconditionally".

Amnesty on Tuesday called the sentencing "outrageous" and called on Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to quash the conviction.

Samir's conviction "is based solely on social media posts criticising human rights violations in Egyptian prisons and the state's mishandling of the pandemic, which he has, in any case, denied writing", Amnesty's Philip Luther said in a statement.

Sisi, Egypt's former army chief, has overseen a broad crackdown aimed at quashing dissent, jailing journalists, lawyers, academics and activists.

AFTE says around a dozen academics are in prison over their work.
By Associated Press

LONDON: Five years ago Wednesday, Britons voted in a referendum that was meant to bring certainty to the UK's unsettled relationship with its European neighbors. Fat chance.

Voters' decision on June 23, 2016, was narrow but clear: By 52% to 48%, they chose to leave the European Union.

It took over four years to actually make the break and the former partners are still bickering, like many divorced couples, over money and trust.

And five years after a fractious referendum campaign that sparked family arguments and neighbourhood disputes, Britain is still as split over Europe as ever.

"Britain is still significantly divided over the merits of Brexit," said polling expert John Curtice of the University of Strathclyde.

He says voters are split almost exactly 50-50 between "remain" and "leave" supporters, and relatively few have changed their minds since 2016.

"Over four in five people still say that they would vote exactly in the same way as they did five years ago," Curtice said.

The country is also split on whether Brexit has been a success.

In 2016, Brexit campaigners claimed leaving the EU would not only restore British sovereignty, but save the country money.

ALSO READ | 'Won't hesitate' to suspend Brexit protocol for Northern Ireland if needed: UK PM Boris Johnson

Notoriously, campaigners emblazoned a double-decker bus with the claim that Brexit would give the U.K. an extra 350 million pounds ($486 million) a week to spend on its beloved national health service.

The U.K.'s net contribution to the EU was actually about half that much.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Conservative government insists that Brexit is bringing new economic opportunities.

Britain recently signed its first full post-Brexit trade deal, with Australia, and has applied to join a trade partnership of Pacific-rim countries.

But Britain's trade with the EU, which before Brexit accounted for about half of all imports and exports, plummeted by 20% after the U.K. made a full economic break at the end of 2020, although the disruption from the coronavirus pandemic makes it hard to tell how much of that impact is from Brexit.

Jonathan Portes, professor of economics at King's College London, said Brexit will be "a significant but not catastrophic" drag on U.K. economic growth for many years.

"Not a blowout, but a slow puncture," he said.

The referendum ended the career of then-Prime Minister David Cameron, who had championed staying in the EU and quit soon after.

His successor, Theresa May, tried and failed to strike a divorce deal that both the EU and Britain's Parliament would accept and resigned in 2019.

The two most prominent Brexit champions have had mixed fortunes.

Former U.K. Independence Party leader Nigel Farage arguably did more than anyone to make Brexit happen, but never won a seat in Parliament despite repeated attempts.

He founded, and then left, the Brexit Party, and remained in the public eye as Britain's most vocal supporter of Donald Trump.

He is currently out of frontline politics.

Johnson, who led the official "Vote Leave" campaign, became prime minister in 2019 by promising to "get Brexit done" after years of wrangling.

He succeeded in leading Britain out of the EU -- and straight into another crisis, the coronavirus pandemic.

He leads a nation divided over more than just Brexit.

Far from bringing the U.K. together, Brexit has frayed the bonds between the different parts of the United Kingdom.

It has increased support for independence in Scotland, which voted in 2016 to remain in the EU but had to leave the bloc when the rest of the U.K did.

It also has destabilized Northern Ireland, which borders EU member Ireland, by imposing new trade barriers between it and the rest of the U.K. that have angered Northern Ireland's pro-British unionist community.

As for the divorced couple itself, Britain and the EU are squabbling, with Britain urging the bloc to show flexibility and the EU threatening legal action unless the U.K. sticks to the Brexit agreement.

British Brexit minister David Frost, who led negotiations for the U.K. side, said Tuesday that many Brexit supporters like him were surprised at how rocky the relationship had become.

"It's not something that we want," he said.

"The sooner we can move beyond the settling-down process the better."
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DALLAS (AP)  Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly will step down in February after a long run in which he steered the airline through periods of growth, recessions and now a pandemic.

Kelly, who has been CEO since July 2004, will be succeeded by Robert Jordan, the airline's executive vice president of corporate services. Southwest said Wednesday that Kelly, 66, plans to remain executive chairman at least through 2026.

Change at the top comes as Southwest and other airlines are starting to recover from the pandemic. Southwest, which carries more domestic passengers than any other airline, is geared to vacationers flying within the U.S. or to nearby countries, and it has navigated the downturn better than most. Thanks to federal pandemic relief, it turned a small profit in the first quarter of this year, and it has added many new leisure-travel destinations.

Jordan said in an interview that his goals are to restore Southwests profitability to the levels we would like and expect, repair the balance sheet  Southwest took on debt to survive the pandemic  and visit employees every week. He gave a stay-the-course outlook  We've got a wonderful strategy  and declined to list any major changes on his agenda.

The new CEO will take over an airline with a history of technology outages that have aggravated customers. Two separate issues last week led to thousands of flight delays and hundreds of cancellations. Jordan said the technology problems were not because of a lack of investment, and that the airlines technology department works to prevent them.

Jordan, 60, was a programmer and financial analyst for computer maker Hewlett-Packard before joining Southwest in 1988. He held jobs in accounting and overseeing technology. However, he has taken on a larger strategic role at Southwest in recent years, including running AirTran Airways after Southwest bought the rival low-cost carrier in 2011 and overseeing overhauls of the airline's website and frequent-flyer program.

During the pandemic, when air travel dropped to levels not seen during the jet era, Jordan worked with Southwest's unions and shaped programs to encourage employees to take leaves of absence or buyouts to save money for the company.

Southwest has generally avoided the kind of labor-management conflict that has been common at other big U.S. airlines, although tension has grown in recent years  Southwest sued its mechanics union in 2019, accusing members of conducting an illegal work slowdown to gain leverage in contract negotiations.

The president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, Casey Murray, said he hopes Jordan can fix the airline's technology issues and cooperate with labor on efficiency measures.

I have always had a lot of respect for Bob, Murray said, adding that they worked together to combine pilot groups after Southwest bought AirTran. We as an organization have always been impressed with his people skills as well as his business acumen. I was always kind of hoping it would be Bob who would become the next CEO.

Lyn Montgomery, president of the union local that represents Southwest flight attendants, congratulated Jordan and said in a statement that she hopes he will improve the people-centric culture of our company.

Speculation about Kellys successor had at one time focused on Tom Nealon, who was named president in January 2017, and Mike Van de Ven, the chief operating officer. Both men have played more prominent roles in key events such as quarterly calls with Wall Street analysts. But insiders were not surprised by Jordan's selection.

The Dallas carrier has had only five CEOs in its 50-year history. It was led for many years by Herb Kelleher, a colorful, chain-smoking lawyer who helped create the airline against fierce opposition from existing carriers. Kelleher stepped down in March 2001, but his successor, Jim Parker, had a tense relationship with labor groups at the heavily unionized airline, and was replaced by Kelly in 2004.

Kelly said steering the airline through the pandemic was the biggest challenge he faced in the past 17 years.

Getting through that intact, as strong as we are, has to be the highest of highs, he said.

Kelly extended the airlines string of profitable years to 47, until it lost $3.1 billion last year amid the pandemic. Under Kelly, Southwest added destinations including international ones, and it bucked industry trends by refusing to assign seats or charge fees for checking a bag or changing a ticket. Kelly frequently mentions that Southwest has never laid off employees.

The lowest point of his tenure, Kelly said in an interview Wednesday, was an engine blow-up that killed a woman on a 2018 flight  the first Southwest passenger to be killed by an accident during flight. Any time you have a loss of life, that is definitely a low point," he said.

Kelly, who joined Southwest in 1986 and was chief financial officer before becoming CEO, said he wanted to have a succession plan in place by the end of this year. With travel picking up, and Southwest recently deciding on new planes from Boeing, he said the time was right.

Were encouraged by the recovery, Kelly said. If demand improves continually at the same kind of pace that it has, I think well be in really good shape next year.

Shares of Southwest Airlines Co. fell 1% Wednesday, with little change in other major U.S. airlines.

___

David Koenig can be reached at www.twitter.com/airlinewriter
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP)  An Alaska man linked to the 2018 death of a 10-year-old girl has pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and sexual abuse of a minor, authorities said.

Peter Vance Wilson entered his plea Monday in the death of Ashley Johnson Barr in the remote Inupiat town of Kotzebue, which is 26 miles (42 kilometers) north of the Arctic Circle and serves as a regional hub for northwest Alaska villages.

Wilson had initially pleaded not guilty but recently entered a plea agreement with prosecutors.

Alaska State Trooper Sgt. Scott Bartlett said Wilson had confessed to the girls death on Sept. 24, 2018, when Bartlett showed evidence linking Wilson to the crime, state Department of Law spokesperson Grace Lee said.

Its a good sigh of relief, knowing that he decided to finally admit what he did, and he finally understands what he did was wrong, Ashleys father, Scotty Barr, told The Associated Press on Tuesday. But there shouldnt be any excuses for taking another persons life, especially a younger child.

The girl disappeared Sept. 6, 2018, in the community of about 3,200 people, and her remains were found Sept. 14 in rugged tundra accessible only by a four-wheeler or on foot.

According to court documents filed in 2018, Wilson took a cellphone away from Ashley and lied when he said he found it on the ground. The documents also say Wilson lied about knowing Ashley and using a four-wheeler the day she vanished.

Ashley had her cellphone with her when she was last seen playing with friends at a park. Authorities say the phone was found later that day in Wilsons jacket by one of his relatives after her parents repeatedly called it.

Wilson told authorities that he found the phone on the ground near the park. A message left with his lawyer, Ariel Toft with the Office of Public Advocacy, was not immediately returned.

The afternoon the girl went missing, authorities say Wilson disappeared with a four-wheeler for about two hours. The FBI, which sent 17 agents to help investigate, said the girls body was found on tundra outside Kotzebue, in an area concealed by brush.

After the girl disappeared, Kotzebue residents helped search for her and vigils were held across Alaska.

Scotty Barr said Wilson changing his plea was another good little relief off our shoulders, off our minds."

Wilson will be sentenced Sept. 21. If the court accepts the plea agreement, he will be sentenced to 198 years in prison with 99 of them suspended.

It plays with your emotions, mentally, physically and emotionally and spiritually, Barr said, noting that Ashleys six siblings might be having the hardest time with her death. Were almost at the end, and were looking forward to it, to become a family again, to learn to live without one of your children that will never, ever come back.
WASHINGTON (AP)  President Joe Biden plans to lay out new steps to stem a rising national tide of violent crime, with a particular focus on gun violence, as administration officials brace for what they fear could be an especially turbulent summer.

The worry over crime is real and believed to be fueled by the pandemic, which has created economic hardship, displacement and anxiety. But there are also tricky politics at play. The spike in crime has become a Republican talking point and has been a frequent topic of conversation on conservative media.

White House aides believe that Biden, with his long legislative record on crime as a former senator, is not easy to paint as soft on the issue, and the president has been clear that he is opposed to the defund the police movement, which has been effectively used against other Democrats to paint them as anti-law enforcement. But Biden also is trying to boost progressives' efforts to reform policing. And while combating crime and reforming the police don't have to be at odds with each other, the two efforts are increasingly billed that way.

In a speech on Wednesday, Biden is to unveil a series of executive orders aimed at reducing violence, and he will renew his calls for Congress to pass gun legislation, aides said. Ahead of the speech, the Justice Department announced new strike forces aimed at tackling gun trafficking in five cities.

The White House also planned to convene a meeting Wednesday with Attorney General Merrick Garland; the Democratic mayors of Baltimore and Miami-Dade County and the Republican mayor of Rapid City, South Dakota; the Democratic attorney general of New Jersey; the police chief in Baton Rouge, Louisiana; and community activists. White House staff members have also been in touch with legislators and congressional staff.

Yes, there need to be reforms of police systems across the country. The president is a firm believer in that," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday. "But there are also steps he can take as president of the United States to help address and hopefully reduce that crime. A big part of that, in his view, is putting in place gun safety measures ... using the bully pulpit but also using levers at his disposal as president.

In April, Biden announced a half-dozen executive actions on gun control, including cracking down on ghost guns, homemade firearms that lack serial numbers used to trace them and that are often purchased without a background check.

There is also new federal funding from the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package directed toward municipal governments, allowing them to keep more police officers on the street. Aides said Biden would also urge a swift confirmation of his choice to head the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

But Biden is limited in his power to act alone. The House passed two bills requiring background checks on all firearms sales and transfers and allowing an expanded 10-day review for gun purchases. But that legislation faces strong headwinds in the Senate, where some Republican support would be needed for passage.

Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said Tuesday that she has seen double-digit increases in murder and violent crime nationwide.

It is staggering. It is sobering, she said at a violent-crime forum held by the Washington-based Police Executive Research Forum. And its something that DOJ is committed to do all we can to reverse what are profoundly troubling trends.

Monaco said the Justice Department would launch strike forces in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., to help reduce violent crime by addressing illegal gun trafficking, building on an initiative begun last month.

If the federal effort sounds familiar, it is. Federal operations have often been launched to help cities facing spiking crime. President Donald Trump announced something similar last year when he and then-Attorney General William Barr launched Operation Legend, named for a boy who was shot to death in Kansas City, Missouri. In that effort, hundreds of investigators were deployed to nine cities with rising crime, prioritizing the arrest of violent criminals.

Trump, though, laid blame for the spike in crime on protesters who demonstrated against police brutality following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. He claimed that Democrats were allowing crime to run amok in their cities. But despite pockets of violence in both Democratic- and Republican-run cities, the protests were mostly peaceful. A Harvard Radcliffe Institute study found there were no injuries reported in 97% of the events. Still, Republican leaders continue to echo Trump's claims.

And while crime is rising  homicides and shootings are up from the same period last year in Chicago; Los Angeles; Minneapolis; Portland, Oregon; Baltimore; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; and Houston  violent crime overall remains lower than it was a decade ago or even five years ago. And most violent crimes plummeted during the first six months of the pandemic, as people stayed indoors and away from others.

Crime started creeping up last summer, a trend criminologists say is hard to define and is likely due to a variety of factors such as historic unemployment, fear over the virus and mass anger over stay-at-home orders. Public mass shootings have also made an alarming return.

Many of us  if not most of us  are seeing a rise in crime, while at the same time, were hearing calls for reform, Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison said of cities in remarks at the police forum. And some of those calls are to the extreme of dismantle and defund ... while all of the same time were sworn to protect the people.

Interest in guns, too, is on the rise. The number of people stopped from buying guns through the U.S. background check system hit an all-time high of more than 300,000 last year amid a surge of firearm sales. And several states have passed laws barring federal gun control laws from taking effect.

Louisville Metro Police Chief Erika Shields said lax gun laws and the presence of illegal guns on the streets are compounding the violence.

When everyone can have a gun, they tend to, she said. And it just leads to more illegal guns on the street.

The Justice Department recently announced a sweeping investigation into the Louisville police over the March 2020 death of Breonna Taylor, who was shot to death by police during a raid at her home. A similar investigation was launched into the Minneapolis police force.

The rise in violence comes against the backdrop of a national debate on policing and as a police reform bill is being crafted in Congress. Psaki on Tuesday dismissed suggestions that a presidential event focused on cracking down on crime would undermine that legislative effort.

As a senator, Biden wrote several major anti-crime packages, including a 1994 bill that contained provisions now viewed by some as an overreaction to the crime spikes in the 1980s and 1990s. Critics say those bills helped lead to mass incarceration of Black Americans, and Bidens involvement became a flashpoint in his 2020 campaign.

Biden has expressed second thoughts about some aspects of the legislation, and he has acknowledged its harmful impact on many Black Americans. But he and his allies still hold out the law's provisions to address domestic violence, ban assault weapons and finance community policing.

___

Lemire reported from New York.
Schools are preparing for a full return to classroom learning in September, but that doesnt mean technology will fall to the wayside.

Government officials and education leaders in Connecticut are exploring techs role in the future of teaching and learning. One of the key takeaways was the chance to personalize instruction through technology, although some said its just as important to ensure children have access as it is to determine what happens once they do.

Gov. Ned Lamont, the state Department of Education and the Connecticut Commission for Educational Technology co-sponsored a two-hour town hall on Tuesday to discuss best policy and practices for digital tools.

Over this last year, year and a half, weve learned in no uncertain way how important not just a physical presence is, but also the virtual presence, said Lamont.

Most of the town halls close to 20 featured speakers, including Lamont, said theyd like to see innovative tech use stay at the center of learning, though not at the expense of face-to-face instruction.

I think youre going to find virtual learning a part of our future forever, said Lamont.

The conversation was part of a larger series, hosted by the Future of Tech Commission, to help formulate a national technology policy agenda for a post-pandemic world.

The governor cited a couple of priorities for the commission, namely expanding technology and broadband access to all  regardless of their position in life  and making that digital learning experience more meaningful.

Top leadership at the state Department of Education and Connecticut Commission for Educational Technology echoed Lamonts first point  adding that any technology introduced in the classroom has to emphasize equity.

Acting Education Commissioner Charlene Russell-Tucker cited the states signature Learning Engagement and Attendance Program, a door-knocking initiative that aims to give families not just the tangible resources, but also an in-person nudge to take advantage of them.

Devices are great, but we still wanted to know are kids connected? said Russell-Tucker. A key piece of this programming is to meet families where they are.

We found that a lot of families didnt take advantage of connectivity options for a lot of reasons, said Doug Casey, the executive director of the Connecticut Commission for Educational Technology. To name a few, Casey cited privacy concerns, fears of hidden costs and obligations, scheduling challenges and language barriers.

Its as much a human issue as it is a technology issue, he said.

Casey added that solutions cant be broad brushstrokes, but individualized fixes meeting family need. A highly mobile student, for example, whos the child of divorced parents or in transient housing, might benefit from a hot spot more than a Wi-Fi router, he said.

Other education leaders at the town hall highlighted digital tools capacity to personalize instruction. They said that with proper use, technology can not only avoid creating barriers, but actually remove them.

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, previously Connecticuts education commissioner, added in a prerecorded message that quality digital education tools can be used to increase access to AP and STEM courses in districts where those offerings lack, and bring lesson plans to life.

Union leadership and members also said technology can be used going forward to personalize instruction for students.

Its a great way to differentiate teaching and learning, said Jan Hochadel, the president of AFT Connecticut. And you can use it to meet students where they are in things like reading and math, and then let them learn at their own pace.

But the same technology doesnt work for all students, she added, including those who lack access or self-discipline, or younger children who need more hands-on support with digital tools.

And just like students, teachers are acclimating to these tools too.

Professional development is needed to learn a new technology, but it cant be done in a day, she said.

Overall, the government officials and education leaders were in agreement that future policies need to address the intricacies of technology in classrooms.

As a society, we should not be creating winners and losers, said Russell-Tucker. When you dont have the policies appropriately done, thats what you do.
WASHINGTON (AP)  The Supreme Court on Wednesday gave the president greater power to fire the head of the agency that oversees mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, ruling that the agency's structure violates separation of powers principles in the Constitution.

Writing for a majority of the court, Justice Samuel Alito said that as the justices explained in a case last year, the Constitution prohibits even modest restrictions on the Presidents power to remove the head of an agency with a single top officer.

The ruling paves the way for President Joe Biden to remove Mark Calabria, who was nominated to head the Federal Housing Finance Agency in 2019 by then-President Donald Trump.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters after the Supreme Court decision that the president would nominate a new head of the FHFA, but she did not give a timeline.

The justices sent the case involving FHFA, which was created during the 2008 financial crisis, back to a lower court for additional proceedings.

Shareholders of the two companies had argued that the FHFA's structure was unconstitutional and that the justices should set aside a 2012 agreement under which the companies have paid the government billions. That money is compensation for the taxpayer bailout that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac received following the 2008 financial crisis. The 2012 agreement has since been replaced by a new one.

The justices declined to do what shareholders asked and set aside the entire 2012 agreement.

The "FHFAs structure violates the separation of powers, and we remand for further proceedings to determine what remedy, if any, the shareholders are entitled to receive on their constitutional claim, Alito wrote.

The justices noted that the agreement the shareholders complained about was entered into by an acting director of the agency, who was removable by the president for any reason. The justices said that conclusion defeats the shareholders' argument for setting aside the agreement in its entirety.

The case is in many ways similar to one the justices decided last year involving the FHFAs companion agency, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which is the governments consumer watchdog agency. It was created by Congress in response to the same financial crisis.

In the case involving the bureau, the court struck down restrictions Congress imposed that said the president could only fire the bureau's director for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office.

Just as the bureau's leader was, the director of the FHFA is nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate to a five-year term. In the FHFA's case, the director was only removable by the president for cause.

In a statement issued after the ruling Calabria, the current FHFA director, called the job the honor of a lifetime and said he respected the decision and the authority of the president. He added that while the FHFA acted quickly and effectively to provide relief to homeowners and renters impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic problems remained and he wished his successor all the best in fixing the remaining flaws of the housing finance system in order to preserve homeownership opportunities for all Americans.

Shares of Freddie Mac (Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp.) fell 33.6% to $1.48. Shares of Fannie Mae (Federal National Mortgage Association) dropped 32.1% to $1.52.

The two consolidated cases the court ruled in are Collins v. Yellen, 19-422, and Yellen v. Collins, 19-563.

___

Associated Press writer Josh Boak and business editor Paul Harloff contributed to this report.
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No moratorium on permits in Clayton County District 1

Special Photo A motion to impose a moratorium in District 1 on applications for rezoning, conditional use or site development permits for review and consideration was lost due to a tie vote during the Board of Commission meeting June 15.

JONESBORO  A resolution that would have paused applications for rezoning, conditional use or site development permits for review and consideration in the countys unincorporated District 1 through Oct. 1 was lost to a tie vote during the Board of Commissioners June 15 meeting.

The proposed moratorium came about as a result of District 1 Commissioner Sonna Singleton Gregorys death last month.

Commissioners in favor of the moratorium argued that residents in District 1 are currently without representation, suggesting that district commissioners know whats best for the communities they represent.

Board Chair Jeff Turner contended that as chair, his position is elected by the whole of the county, therefore he represents all residents, including those in District 1.

By virtue of having a vote, Im able to provide representation, he said.

Turner said he didnt want District 1 closed for business during the busy summer months, adding that it looks bad for the county.

I would hate to lose out on any good development that could come, he said. Im pro business, and I want to see quality businesses come in to Clayton County.

He said hes staying in touch with District 1 citizens to make sure theyre still represented during this interim period.

Typically during meetings, individual commissioners make recommendations on development or other projects in their districts, though its only a matter of practice.

County Attorney Charles Reid noted that anyone on the board can make a recommendation no matter the district.

Commissioner DeMont Davis suggested the county create a more defined succession plan.

We need to be well equipped to have a plan in place should this come up again, he said.

Currently, the county does not have anything in place to allow for an interim commissioner to be appointed until an election is held.

For now, business will continue as usual in District 1.

A second resolution proposing a moratorium on board appointments in District 1 passed unanimously. It will be in place until Oct. 1.

District 1 residents will head to the polls on Sept. 21 to select a commissioner. The winner will serve the remainder of Singleton Gregorys term through Dec. 31, 2022.

District 1 is located in the northeast corner of the county and includes portions of Lake City, Forest Park, Morrow, Rex and Ellenwood.
BALTIC SEA  Jonesboro native Logistics Specialist 3rd Class Shurette Nelloms took supply inventory while stationed aboard Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Roosevelt earlier this month.

Nelloms and other members of the U.S. Navy were part of the Baltic Operations, an annual military exercise that gives servicemembers high-end training across the entire spectrum of naval warfare, anti-submarine warfare, live gunnery and mine countermeasures operations.

The exercise included participation from 18 nations from June 6-18. The 16 NATO and two partner nations provided approximately 40 maritime units, 60 aircraft, and 4,000 personnel, according to the Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO.

The 50th BALTOPS represents a continuous, steady commitment to reinforcing interoperability in the Alliance and providing collective maritime security in the Baltic Sea, according to Navy officials.

With more than 90 percent of all trade traveling by sea, and 95 percent of the worlds international phone and internet traffic carried through fiber optic cables lying on the ocean floor, Navy officials continue to emphasize that the prosperity and security of the United States is directly linked to a strong and ready Navy, officials from the Navy Office of Community Outreach said.
Vice President Kamala Harris will head to the US-Mexico border on Friday, her office confirmed, following weeks of criticism that she hasn't visited the area despite being tasked by the Biden administration with trying to stem the flow of migration from Central America.

The upcoming trip to El Paso, Texas, comes as Harris has been dogged by Republican criticism of her absence at the border after being asked by President Joe Biden to lead diplomatic relations in the Northern Triangle in an attempt to alleviate the tide of migration over the southern border.

In a statement released Wednesday, Harris spokeswoman Symone Sanders confirmed the trip, adding that she would be accompanied by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

"Earlier this year, the President asked the Vice President to oversee our diplomatic efforts to address the root causes of migration from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. As a part of this ongoing work, the Vice President traveled to Guatemala and Mexico earlier this month and will travel to El Paso on Friday," the statement read.

Politico was first to report the trip.

Senior administrations officials rejected the notion that Harris' visit amounts to the vice president bucking to GOP pressure to visit the southern border.

"She has always said she will visit the US border," one senior official said. This official pointed to Harris saying in March she had been to the border before and "I'm sure I will again."

The senior official called it a "cause-and-effect" strategy, labeling Harris' efforts in Guatemala and Mexico as addressing the cause and her upcoming visit to the border as addressing the effect. That's despite months of countering from aides both publicly and privately that Harris' focus is not the border.

"She went first to the cause. This trip follows the extension of that work in addressing the root causes. It's the effect, because what happens at the border matters and is the direct effect of what's happening in the countries in the [Northern Triangle] region," the official said.

Officials argued her trip's timing is a matter of "sequencing," defending the notion that the first place Harris should have visited was not the US-Mexico border but the actual Northern Triangle nations.

"This really is to continue informing her strategy and work," another official said. Aides to Harris summarized her Guatemala and Mexico visit in similar terms earlier this months, describing it as a fact finding mission that would inform her larger strategy on how to deal with the region.

The trip is also about drawing a contrast with the Trump administration's immigration and border policies. A third senior administration official called El Paso the "birthplace" of the Trump administration's family separation policy, pointing to a 2017 pilot program.

"It's a very important location as we work to rebuild a fair, orderly and humane immigration system," the third senior administration off said.

El Paso, this official said, is also a key entry point for migrants and "representative of larger birder dynamics, which is what the VP wants to see for herself." The official insisted that Harris "is not concerned with (GOP) lines of attack, she's focused on doing the work."

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday that Harris' trip is a part of her efforts to address the root causes of migration.

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"I will note that I've also said here from this podium, and she has also said that when it was the right time, she may go to visit the border," Psaki said, adding that that the "planning and timing" was done in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security.

She added, it's "part of the coordinated effort between her office, her work, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Health and Human Services, to continue to address the root causes and work in coordination to get the situation under control."

The vice president and her team have been staring down attempts from Republicans to make her the face of the Biden administration's response to the crisis at the border. It's a role that then-Vice President Biden had under Obama.

Still, it put a politician likely to run for president at the center of one of the administration's most divisive issues. In response, her office has repeatedly sought to make clear, both privately and publicly, that she has a laser focus on diplomatic relations and the conditions that push migrants to make the journey and not the politically fraught situation at the US-Mexico border.

A record number of unaccompanied children crossed into the US this spring, further intensifying GOP criticism of the Biden administration's handling. US Customs and Border Protection encountered more than 180,000 migrants at the southern border in May, putting the US on track to surpass the number of border crossings in fiscal year 2019.

That tension reached its apex earlier this month during her first international trip as vice president, a two-day trip to Guatemala and Mexico, during which she likened not going to the border to also not having visited Europe under questioning by NBC's Lester Holt.

"I, and I haven't been to Europe. And I mean, I don't -- I don't understand the point that you're making," Harris said with a laugh to Holt when pressed about the fact that she hadn't visited the US-Mexico border.

She added: "I'm not discounting the importance of the border."

The fallout from her answer, at least in part, obscured the larger message of the trip. The vice president had in-person bilateral meetings with leaders of both countries, as well as with civil society organizations. Supporters of Harris pointed to the agreements fostered with both the Guatemalan and Mexican governments -- and the praise she received from leaders of both countries and civil society afterward -- as clear signs that the vice president achieved her objective, which was deepening diplomatic relations.

During a news conference in Mexico City on that trip, Harris eventually said she would go to the border, but added that it's "short sighted" to "respond to the reaction as opposed to addressing the cause."

"When the President asked me to deal with this issue, it was about addressing the root causes of migration, and the root causes are based on the problems and the challenges that people are facing in countries like Guatemala," she said, "which is why I was there."

Harris, a former California senator and attorney general, contended that in both roles she had been to the border many times before to see what was happening on the ground and would soon go again.

While Harris finally committed to visiting the border during her end of trip news conference in Mexico, the vice president's office had not said when she would go, other than "soon."

The third senior official said Harris was already scheduled to fly west to her home in California and the timing "worked out well with our partners on the ground."

This story has been updated with additional reporting.
Russia says one of its warplanes dropped bombs and a patrol boat fired warning shots to turn back a British destroyer it claims entered into its territorial waters in the Black Sea on Wednesday.

The UK Defense Ministry denied Moscow's accusation, saying that the British warship, HMS Defender, was making legal and innocent passage in the Black Sea.

Russia said HMS Defender went three kilometers (1.9 miles) inside Russian territory off Cape Fiolent in Crimea just before noon local time on Wednesday. A nation's territorial waters extend 12 nautical miles (22.2 kilometers) from its coastline. Any foreign warship going past that limit would need permission of the country to do so.

Shortly after that, an Su-24M attack jet dropped bombs and a coastal patrol ship fired warning shots in front of the British destroyer, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a report from Russian State Media TASS.

British officials pushed back on the Russian allegations.

"This morning, HMS Defender carried out a routine transit from Odesa towards Georgia across the Black Sea. As is normal for this route, she entered an internationally recognised traffic separation corridor. She exited that corridor safely at 0945 BST. As is routine, Russian vessels shadowed her passage and she was made aware of training exercises in her wider vicinity," British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said in a tweet.

The UK Ministry of Defence also said no warning shots were fired at its destroyer Wednesday, contrary to what the Russian Defense Ministry claimed, as cited by TASS.

"No warning shots have been fired at HMS Defender. The Royal Navy ship is conducting innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law. We believe the Russians were undertaking a gunnery exercise in the Black Sea and provided the maritime community with prior warning of their activity," the UK Defence Ministry Press Office said in a statement.

"No shots were directed at HMS Defender and we do not recognise the claim that bombs were dropped in her path," the statement added.

TASS reported the Russian Defence Ministry told journalists the Russian Black Sea Fleet, together with the Federal Security Service Border Control, "stopped a violation of the Russian border" by the ship.

The department said in a statement that it has "called on the British side to conduct a thorough investigation of the actions of the crew of the destroyer 'Defender' to prevent similar incidents in the future."

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Its statement also said the British Defense Attache at the UK Embassy in Moscow has been summoned to the Defense Ministry to discuss the incident.

The ministry told Russian state media that the British destroyer left Russian territorial waters at 12:23 p.m. local time.

The Russian accusations on Wednesday follow a report from the US Naval Institute News (USNI) on Monday that open source intelligence data on the positions of the British destroyer and a Dutch frigate had been faked on June 18-19 to show them steaming to within two nautical miles of a Russian naval base in Sevastopol, Crimea.

The track was shown from an automatic identification system (AIS) signal, which transmits position details of ships to improve maritime safety, according to the USNI report. But live webcams from the port in Odessa showed the two warships there at the time the AIS signal showed them near Sevastopol, USNI reported.

A tweet on Tuesday from the account of the British warship said defense officials from Ukraine and the UK signed an agreement aboard the Defender for Ukraine to "enhance its naval capabilities" with the help of the British defense contractor Babcock.

That's a move that would likely draw the ire of Moscow, which annexed Crimea from Ukraine after a military intervention in the region in 2014.

Relations between Russia and NATO allies have been tense in the Black Sea since the annexation.

Russian warplanes have buzzed US destroyers on routine operations in the Black Sea and US reconnaissance aircraft conduct regular patrols above it.

HMS Defender is operating as part of the UK's Carrier Strike Group 21, which the UK Defense Ministry calls "the largest concentration of maritime and air power to leave the UK in a generation." The flotilla is led by the aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth and US and Dutch warships are also deployed with the group.

A tweet from the HMS Defender account on Tuesday said it was leaving the Ukrainian port of Odessa, accompanied by the Dutch frigate HNLMS Evertsen.
Reporter

Debra Pressey is a reporter covering health care at The News-Gazette. Her email is dpressey@news-gazette.com, and you can follow her on Twitter (@DLPressey).
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).
Coal-ash pits, foreground and background right, are shown in 2013 near the former Vermilion Power Station, background left, which Dynegy Midwest Generation LLC closed in 2011, near the Middle Fork River upstream from Kickapoo State Recreation Area near Oakwood.
An artist's rendering of the University of Illinois' $75 million Campus Instructional Facility at the southeast corner of Wright Street and Springfield Avenue, just west of the Grainger Engineering Library.
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Years before they are diagnosed, persons with multiple sclerosis (MS) make significantly more visits to doctors and hospitals than others. Specialists have recently discussed whether this might represent a preliminary phase of MS  known as a prodrome. A research team at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has now published results of a study suggesting that, in many cases, the complaints may relate to unrecognized early clinical MS events.

Persons suffering from the autoimmune disease multiple sclerosis can develop various neurological symptoms caused by damage to the nervous system. Especially in early stages, these may include sensory dysfunction such as numbness or visual disturbances. In most patients, MS starts with recurring episodes of neurological disability, called relapses or demyelinating events. These clinical events are followed by a partial or complete remission. Especially in the beginning, the symptoms vary widely, so that it is often difficult even for experienced doctors to interpret them correctly to arrive at a diagnosis of MS.

Above-average numbers of medical appointments

It has been evident for some time, however, that patients with MS show significantly higher numbers of physician visits and hospital admissions even years before the first diagnosis as compared to healthy control persons. In recent years, specialists have seen this pre-diagnosis period as a possible prodromal phase of the disease.

MS often begins far in advance of the diagnosis

A new study carried out by a team working with the neurologist Prof. Bernhard Hemmer at TUM suggests that many complaints prior to diagnosis might not represent a prodromal phase.

Instead, we suspect that unrecognized MS relapses cause these individuals to seek medical attention. That is because we have found that the physician appointments and hospital admissions frequently involved complaints indicating typical MS symptoms. We believe that many complaints that have been attributed to a prodromal phase are in fact caused by ongoing disease. We therefore believe that, although the disease has not yet been diagnosed, it is fully active and not in a preliminary or prodromal phase." Prof. Bernhard Hemmer, TUM

A path to an earlier diagnosis

The results of the study could also open up possibilities to optimize MS treatment: "The sooner MS is recognized, the better we can treat the disease," says first author Dr. Christiane Gasperi, a physician and researcher at the Neuro-Head Center at the TUM Klinikum rechts der Isar. "We now need to take a closer look at which early symptoms of MS might be overlooked. This could allow us to recognize the disease at an earlier stage and thus enable earlier treatment initiation."

Less frequent respiratory tract infections

Along with the more frequent complaints in the years before an MS diagnosis, the results of the study also showed that persons with MS were actually less likely to seek medical attention for upper respiratory tract infections. "This was unexpected, in view of the fact that MS relapses have sometimes been associated with infections," says co-first author and Adjunct Teaching Professor Dr. Alexander Hapfelmeier of the TUM Institute of General Practice and Health Services Research. "However, future studies will be needed to determine whether there is a causal link between MS and a degree of protection against certain infections, or whether the health data we analyzed reflect protective behavior adopted by persons with MS."
Scientists at the University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public Health have developed a universal vaccine that protected mice not just against COVID-19 but also other coronaviruses and triggered the immune system to fight off a dangerous variant.

While no one knows which virus may cause the next outbreak, coronaviruses remain a threat after causing the SARS outbreak in 2003 and the global COVID-19 pandemic.

To prevent a future coronavirus pandemic, UNC-Chapel Hill researchers designed the vaccine to provide protection from the current SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus and a group of coronaviruses known to make the jump from animals to humans.

The findings were published in Science by lead authors David Martinez, a postdoctoral researcher at UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health and a Hanna H. Gray Fellow at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and Ralph Baric, an epidemiologist at UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health and professor of immunology and microbiology at the UNC School of Medicine, whose research has sparked new therapies to fight emerging infectious diseases.

The lead authors worked with a team of scientists from UNC-Chapel Hill, Duke University School of Medicine, and the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine.

Researchers at UNC-Chapel Hill are playing a key role in coronavirus vaccine development. After testing the effectiveness of the first generation of COVID-19 vaccines, they pivoted to look at a second-generation vaccine: one that targets sarbecoviruses, Baric said.

Sarbecoviruses, part of the large family of coronaviruses, are a priority for virologists after two caused devastating disease in the past two decades: SARS and COVID-19.

The team's approach started with mRNA, which is similar to the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines used today. But instead of including the mRNA code for only one virus, they welded together mRNA from multiple coronaviruses.

When given to mice, the hybrid vaccine effectively generated neutralizing antibodies against multiple spike proteins -- which viruses use to latch onto healthy cells, including one associated with B.1.351, known as the South African variant.

"The vaccine has the potential to prevent outbreaks when used as a new variant is detected," said Baric, a trailblazer in pandemic preparedness.

The paper includes data from mice infected with SARS-CoV and related coronaviruses and the vaccine prevented infection and lung damage in mice. Additional testing could lead to human clinical trials next year.

Our findings look bright for the future because they suggest we can design more universal pan coronavirus vaccines to proactively guard against viruses we know are at risk for emerging in humans. With this strategy, perhaps we can prevent a SARS-CoV-3." David Martinez, Postdoctoral Researcher, UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health
Jessica Damoiseaux, Ph.D., an associate professor with the Institute of Gerontology at Wayne State University, recently published the results of a three-year study of cognitive changes in older adults. The team followed 69 primarily African American females, ages 50 to 85, who complained that their cognitive ability was worsening though clinical assessments showed no impairments. Three magnetic resonance imaging scans (MRIs) at 18-month intervals showed significant changes in functional connectivity in two areas of the brain.

An older adult's perceived cognitive decline could be an important precursor to dementia. Brain alterations that underlie the experience of decline could reflect the progression of incipient dementia and may emerge before cognitive assessment is sensitive enough to detect a deficit." Jessica Damoiseaux, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Institute of Gerontology, Wayne State University

The resulting paper, "Longitudinal change in hippocampal and dorsal anterior insulae functional connectivity in subjective cognitive decline," appeared in the May 31 issue of Alzheimer's Research & Therapy. Damoiseaux conducted the study with graduate student Raymond Viviano, Ph.D., who is first author.

Subjective cognitive decline, defined as a perceived worsening of cognitive ability not noted on clinical assessment, may be an early indicator of dementia. Previous cross-sectional research has demonstrated aberrant brain functional connectivity in subjective cognitive decline, but longitudinal evaluation has been limited.

Viviano and Damoiseaux's three-year study found that persons reporting more subjective cognitive decline showed a larger decrease in connectivity between components of the default mode network and a larger increase in connectivity between salience and default mode network components. The functional connectivity changed in the absence of a change in cognitive performance.

Since these brain changes occurred without concomitant cognitive changes, they could indicate that brain changes underlie the perception of decline. These changes could be a sensitive marker for nascent dementia months or years before assessments detect any cognitive deficit.
Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer-related deaths. Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for 80-85 percent cases of lung cancer and when diagnosed early, has a five-year survival rate of 50-80 percent. Black patients have lower overall incidence of NSCLC than white patients, but are more likely to be diagnosed at later stages. They also are less likely to receive surgery for early-stage cancer.

Now a new study from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) highlights the impact that structural racism and residential segregation has on NSCLC outcomes.

The researchers analyzed patient data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results Program--a database of Black and white patients diagnosed with NSCLC from 2004-2016 in the 100 most populous counties. They found that Black lung cancer patients living in the most segregated U.S. counties were 49 percent more likely to be diagnosed at an advanced stage, compared to those living in the least segregated counties. Among those with early-stage lung cancer, Black patients in highly segregated areas were 47 percent less likely to receive surgery. Segregation was used in this study as a proxy for historic housing discrimination and the enduring structural racism that has resulted from it.

Our study suggests that Black patients have a greater likelihood of presenting at advanced stage than their white counterparts, a disparity that disappears at low levels of segregation. Similarly, higher residential segregation is associated with increased risk of advanced stage for Black patients but not white. This may be due to factors such as lack of access to routine medical care and lack of routine screenings for Black patients in segregated areas." Kei Suzuki, MD, corresponding author, assistant professor of surgery at BUSM

According to the researchers, fewer Black patients are considered eligible for lung cancer screening criteria and also are less likely to complete screening. For many diseases including lung cancer, Black patients of lower socioeconomic status tend to present to their physician only when symptomatic, aligning with a later stage of disease.

"Broadly, urban policy can serve to address the structural factors leading to these outcomes. Most immediately, clinicians and healthcare institutions can focus screening efforts in these minoritized communities and realize the racialized socioeconomic implications that may impact access to care, which may delay definitive care," adds Suzuki, who also is a thoracic surgeon at Boston Medical Center.

These findings appear online in the journal Annals of Thoracic Surgery and was presented virtually as an oral presentation at the Society of Thoracic Surgery 2021 Annual Meeting on Jan. 31, 2021.
The Endocrine Society and a coalition of LGBTQ+ youth and reproductive health organizations argued in a joint submission to the High Court of England and Wales that transgender teenagers should be able to give informed consent to treatment the same way teenagers with other medical conditions can.

The coalition submitted a written intervention as part of the appeal of Bell v Tavistock and Portman NHS Health Foundation, a case where the High Court ruled in December 2020 that adolescents younger than age 16 are not competent to give consent to treatment to delay puberty. The ruling threatens to block transgender and gender diverse teenagers from accessing the medical care they need.

"The current system forces transgender and gender diverse teenagers to operate under a different set of rules from other adolescents when they seek medical care," said Sabine Hannema, M.D., Ph.D., a paediatric endocrinologist at Amsterdam UMC in the Netherlands, a co-author of the Society's Clinical Practice Guideline on Endocrine Treatment of Gender-Dysphoric/Gender-Incongruent Persons and a co-author of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health statement responding to the Bell v Tavistock ruling.

Gender-affirming care for transgender and gender diverse teens in the context of a multidisciplinary approach is widely accepted as standard practice among major medical associations worldwide. Delaying puberty and providing teens with access to gender-affirming hormone therapy, when administered by a trained professional following a thorough assessment, improves psychological functioning and is potentially life-saving." Sabine Hannema, M.D., Ph.D., Pediatric Endocrinologist at Amsterdam UMC in the Netherlands

A June 2020 study published in the Journal of Adolescent Health found that transgender and gender diverse youth who had started treatment to delay puberty had lower suicidality and improved psychological functioning, comparable to the general population, while those who had not yet begun treatment were found to have higher psychological problem scores and increased rates of suicidality.

Major international medical organizations--including the Endocrine Society, the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, the European Society of Endocrinology, the European Society for Pediatric Endocrinology, and the Pediatric Endocrine Society--agree on the appropriate care for transgender people. Scientific studies support the concept that biological factors, in addition to environmental ones, contribute to the development of gender identity.

Prior to puberty, transgender children are encouraged to explore their gender identity. A mental health professional can provide support in this process. After transgender and gender diverse minors start puberty, prescribing hormones to delay puberty is the recommended strategy after careful screening, if it is desired by the patient and if diagnostic and treatment criteria are met. This treatment, which delays puberty in a reversible manner, gives adolescents more time to explore their options.

Treatment to delay puberty is "only prescribed to children who suffer strong and persistent (gender dysphoria) with the purpose of avoiding the predictable and intense distress of puberty," the interveners wrote in the written submission to the court. "As a result, withholding treatment is not a neutral option. Children denied (hormones to delay puberty) become bystanders as their bodies change in ways that they know to be irreversible; they develop an Adam's apple, their voice drops, their hips widen, knowing that these features will affect how they see themselves and are seen by others for the rest of their lives."

The interveners in the case include Gendered Intelligence, a community interest group for trans youth, and youth sexual health organization Brook, as well as the Endocrine Society. The intervention is supported by the Good Law Project's Legal Defence Fund for Transgender Lives.

"Health care providers have prescribed treatment to delay puberty for youth experiencing early puberty for decades without issue or public outcry. Transgender and gender diverse adolescents deserve the same access to medical care," said Joshua Safer, M.D., of the Mount Sinai Center for Transgender Medicine and Surgery and Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, N.Y. Safer is a co-author of the Society's Clinical Practice Guideline on Endocrine Treatment of Gender-Dysphoric/Gender-Incongruent Persons as well as the Society's transgender medicine position statement.

"The High Court's decision, if it is allowed to stand, would set a harmful precedent preventing physicians from providing transgender and gender diverse youth with high-quality medical care," Safer said.
Alfredo "Freddy" Valles was an accomplished trumpeter and a beloved music teacher for nearly four decades at one of the city's poorest middle schools.

He was known for buying his students shoes and bow ties for their band concerts, his effortlessly positive demeanor and a suave personal style  "he looked like he stepped out of a different era, the 1950s," said his niece Ruby Montana.

While Valles was singular in life, his death at age 60 in February was part of a devastating statistic: He was one of thousands of deaths in Texas border counties  where coronavirus mortality rates far outpaced state and national averages.

In the state's border communities, including El Paso, not only did people die of covid-19 at significantly higher rates than elsewhere, but people under age 65 were also more likely to die, according to a KHN-El Paso Matters analysis of covid death data through January. More than 7,700 people died of covid in the border area during that period.

In Texas, covid death rates for border residents younger than 65 were nearly three times the national average for that age group and more than twice the state average. And those ages 18-49 were nearly four times more likely to die than those in the same age range across the U.S.

"This was like a perfect storm," said Heide Castaneda, an anthropology professor at the University of South Florida who studies the health of border residents. She said a higher-than-normal prevalence of underlying health issues combined with high uninsurance rates and flagging access to care likely made the pandemic even more lethal for those living along the border than elsewhere.

That pattern was not as stark in neighboring New Mexico. Border counties there recorded covid death rates 41% lower than those in Texas, although the New Mexico areas were well above the national average as of January, the KHN-El Paso Matters analysis found. Texas border counties tallied 282 deaths per 100,000, compared with 166 per 100,000 in New Mexico.

That stark divide could be seen even when looking at neighboring El Paso County, Texas, and Dona Ana County, New Mexico. The death rate for residents under 65 was 70% higher in El Paso County.

Health experts said Texas' refusal to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, a shortage of health care options and the states lax strategy toward the pandemic also contributed to a higher death rate at the border. Texas GOP leaders have opposed Medicaid expansion for a litany of economic and political reasons, though largely because they object to expanding the role or size of government.

"Having no Medicaid expansion and an area that is already underserved by primary care and preventive care set the stage for a serious situation," Castaneda said. "A lot of this is caused by state politics."

Texas was one of the first states to reopen following the nationwide coronavirus shutdown in March and April last year. Last June  even as cases were rising  Gov. Greg Abbott allowed all businesses, including restaurants, to operate at up to 50% capacity, with limited exceptions. And he refused to put any capacity restrictions on churches and other religious facilities or let local governments impose mask requirements.

In November, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed an injunction to stop a lockdown order implemented by the El Paso county judge, the top administrative officer, at a time when El Paso hospitals were so overwhelmed with covid patients that 10 mobile morgues had to be set up at an area hospital to accommodate the dead.

Unlike Texas, New Mexico expanded Medicaid under the ACA and, as a result, has a much lower uninsured rate than Texas for people under age 65  12% compared with Texas' 21%, according to Census figures. And New Mexico had aggressive rules for face masks and public gatherings. Still, that didn't spare New Mexico from the crisis. Outbreaks in and around the Navajo reservation hit hard. Overall, its state death rate exceeded the state rate for Texas, but along the border New Mexico's rates were lower in all age groups.

For some border families, the immense toll of the pandemic meant multiple deaths among loved ones. Ruby Montana lost not only her uncle to covid in recent months, but also her cousin Julieta "Julie" Apodaca, a former elementary school teacher and speech therapist.

Montana said Valles' death surprised the family. He had been teaching remotely at Guillen Middle School in El Paso's Segundo Barrio neighborhood, an area known as "the other Ellis Island because of its adjacency to the border and its history as an enclave for Mexican immigrant families.

When Valles first got sick with covid in December, Montana and the family were not worried, not only because he had no preexisting health conditions, but also because they knew his lungs were strong from practicing his trumpet daily over the course of decades.

In early January, he went to an urgent care center after his condition deteriorated. He had pneumonia and was told to go straight to the emergency room.

"When I took him to the [hospital], I dropped him off and went to go park," said his wife, Elvira. But when she returned, she was not allowed inside. "I never saw him again," she said.

Valles, a father of three, had been teaching one of his three grandchildren, 5-year-old Aliq Valles, to play the trumpet.

They "were joined at the hip," Montana said. "That part has been really hard to deal with too. [Aliq] should have a whole lifetime with his grandpa."

Hispanic adults are more than twice as likely to die of covid as white adults, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In Texas, Hispanic residents died of covid at a rate four times as high as that of non-Hispanic white people, according to a December analysis by The Dallas Morning News.

Ninety percent of residents under 65 in Texas border counties are Hispanic, compared with 37% in the rest of the state. Latinos have high rates of chronic conditions like diabetes and obesity, which increases their risks of covid complications, health experts say.

Because they were more likely to die of covid at earlier ages, Latinos are losing the most years of potential life among all racial and ethnic groups, said Coda Rayo-Garza, an advocate for policies to aid Hispanic populations and a professor of political science at the University of Texas-San Antonio.

Expanding Medicaid, she said, would have aided the border communities in their fight against covid, as they have some of the highest rates of residents without health coverage in the state.

There has been a disinvestment in border areas long before that led to this outcome that you're finding, she said. The legislature did not end up passing Medicaid expansion, which would have largely benefited border towns.

The higher death rates among border communities are "unfortunately not surprising," said Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-El Paso).

"It's exactly what we warned about," Escobar said. "People in Texas died at disproportionate rates because of a dereliction on behalf of the governor. He chose not to govern  and the results are deadly."

Abbott spokesperson Renae Eze said the governor mourns every life lost to covid.

"Throughout the entire pandemic, the state of Texas has worked diligently with local officials to quickly provide the resources needed to combat covid and keep Texans safe," she said.

ErnestoCastaneda, a sociology professor at American University in Washington, D.C., who is not related to Heide Castaneda, said structural racism is integrally linked to poor health outcomes in border communities. Generations of institutional discrimination  through policing, educational and job opportunities, and health care  worsens the severity of crisis events for people of color, he explained.

"We knew it was going to be bad in El Paso," Ernesto Castaneda said. "El Paso has relatively low socioeconomic status, relatively low education levels, high levels of diabetes and overweight [population]."

In some Texas counties along the border more than a third of workers are uninsured, according to an analysis by Georgetown University's Center for Children and Families.

"The border is a very troubled area in terms of high uninsured rates, and we see all of those are folks put at increased risk by the pandemic," said Joan Alker, director of the center.

In addition, because of a shortage of health workers along much of the border, the pandemic surge was all the deadlier, said Dr. Ogechika Alozie, an El Paso specialist in infectious diseases.

"When you layer on top not having enough medical personnel with a sicker-on-average population, this is really what you find happens, unfortunately," he said.

The federal government has designated the entire Texas border region as both a health professional shortage area and a medically underserved area.

Jagdish Khubchandani, a professor of public health at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, about 40 miles northwest of El Paso, said the two cities were like night and day in their response to the crisis.

"Restrictions were far more rigid in New Mexico," he said. "It almost felt like two different countries."

Manny Sanchez, a commissioner in Dona Ana County, credits the lower death rates in New Mexico to state and local officials' united message to residents about covid and the need to wear masks and maintain physical distance. "I would like to think we made a difference in saving lives," Sanchez said.

But, because containing a virus requires community buy-in, even El Paso residents who understood the risks were susceptible to covid. Julie Apodaca, who had recently retired, had been especially careful, in part because her asthma and diabetes put her at increased risk. As the primary caregiver for her elderly mother, she was likely exposed to the virus through one of the nurse caretakers who came to her mother's home and later tested positive, said her sister Ana Apodaca.

Julie Apodaca had registered for a covid vaccine in December as soon as it was available but had not been able to get an appointment for a shot by the time she fell ill.

Montana found out that Apodaca had been hospitalized the day after her uncle died. One month later, and after 16 days on a ventilator, she too died on March 13.

She was 56.

This story was done in partnership with El Paso Matters, a member-supported, nonpartisan media organization that focuses on in-depth and investigative reporting about El Paso, Texas, Ciudad Juarez across the border in Mexico, and neighboring communities.

Methodology

To analyze covid deaths rates along the border with Mexico, KHN and El Paso Matters requested covid-related death counts by age group and county from Texas, New Mexico, California and Arizona. California and Arizona were unable to fulfill the requests. The Texas Department of State Health Services and the New Mexico Department of Health provided death counts as of Jan. 31, 2021.

Texas' data included totals by age group for border counties as a group and for the state with no suppression of data. New Mexico provided data for individual counties, and small numbers were suppressed, totaling 1.6% of all deaths in the state. (Data on deaths is commonly suppressed when it involves very small numbers to protect individual identities.)

National death counts by age group were calculated using provisional death data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and included deaths as of Jan. 31, 2021.

Rates were calculated per 100,000 people using the 2019 American Community Survey.

The ethnic breakdown in Texas' border counties comes from the Census Bureau's 2019 population estimates.
In the United States, more than 12 million children hear a minority language at home from birth. More than two-thirds hear English as well, and they reach school age with varying levels of proficiency in two languages. Parents and teachers often worry that acquiring Spanish will interfere with children's acquisition of English.

A first-of-its kind study in U.S.-born children from Spanish-speaking families led by researchers at Florida Atlantic University finds that minority language exposure does not threaten the acquisition of English by children in the U.S. and that there is no trade-off between English and Spanish. Rather, children reliably acquire English, and their total language knowledge is greater to the degree that they also acquire Spanish.

Results of the study, published in the journal Child Development, show that children with the most balanced bilingualism were those who heard the most Spanish at home and who had parents with high levels of education in Spanish.

Importantly, these children did not have lower English skills than the English-dominant children. Children's level of English knowledge was independent of their level of Spanish knowledge. U.S.-born children who live in Spanish-speaking homes and who also are exposed to English from infancy tend to become English dominant by age 5  but some more so than others.

The study, conducted in collaboration with The George Washington University, is the first to describe the outcome of early dual language exposure in terms of bilingual skill profiles that reflect the relations in the data between children's skill levels in their two languages. The study addresses the question of what level of English and Spanish skill can be expected in 5-year-old children who come from Spanish-speaking homes in which they also hear English in varying amounts.

We found that early in development, children who hear two languages take a little longer to acquire each language than children who hear only one language; however, there is no evidence that learning two languages is too difficult for children," Erika Hoff, Ph.D., Study Lead Author and Professor, Department of Psychology within FAU's Charles E. Schmidt College of Science on FAU Broward Campuses

A key finding from the study is that low levels of proficiency in two languages at age 5 is not a typical outcome of exposure to two languages. Bilingual children who have weak skills in both languages at age 5 may have an underlying impairment or inadequate environmental support for language acquisition.

For the study, Hoff and co-authors Michelle K. Tulloch, a Ph.D. student in the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science; and Cynthia Core, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences within the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, The George Washington University, used an examiner-administered test to measure the English and Spanish expressive vocabulary of 126 U.S.-born 5 year olds from Spanish-speaking families with one or two immigrant parents who have been exposed to Spanish since birth and who have also heard English at home in varying amounts, either from birth or soon thereafter. They also measured indicators of the children's language learning ability.

Prior to this study, differences among bilingual children were described primarily in terms of dominance (English-dominant bilinguals, Spanish-dominant bilinguals) and balance, but that turns out not to be the only way in which bilinguals differ.

"Previous research has tended to treat bilingual children's development in each language as a separate outcome, rather than treating dual language skills as the single outcome of dual language exposure," said Hoff. "This approach not only fails to adequately capture the nature of children's dual language skills, it also leaves unaddressed the question of how the acquisition of one language is related to the acquisition of another."

Findings from this study suggest that dominance is not the same thing as proficiency. Bilinguals differ both in dominance and in total language knowledge. Teachers and clinicians cannot infer a bilingual child's language proficiency from that child's language dominance. There are balanced bilinguals at age 5 who have stronger English skills than some English-dominant bilinguals.

Individual differences in dominance are significantly related to home exposure, although the function that relates exposure to dominance is biased toward English. Balanced language exposure at home does not result in balanced proficiency; Spanish-dominant home exposure appears to be necessary. Individual differences in total language knowledge are significantly related to indicators of language-learning ability, measured in this study in terms of phonological memory and nonverbal intelligence.

This research has important implications for parents, educators, clinicians and policy makers whose concerns include the language development of children from language minority homes.
The map of Montana Kayla Irish pulls up is peppered with red circles, each cluster providing details behind one of today's timely topics - childhood vaccination.

The project, led by Dr. Sophia Newcomer in the University of Montana's Center for Population Health Research, is the first spatial scan analysis to identify hotspots of undervaccinated children across Montana and evaluate whether they are due to social or geographic barriers.

CPHR is funded through the National Institutes of Health, and the analysis is part of a collaborative study with the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services to help inform the state's public health measures.

Irish, a history and math major from Lewistown set to graduate from UM this fall, became involved in January after taking a statistics course with UM math Professor Jon Graham, who also is the Data and Modeling Core director of CPHR.

Irish said the project is the first to use data, rather than anecdotes from physicians, on why childhood undervaccination exists in the state.

"Montana is already undervaccinated, and this study overall is trying to find out why and where," Irish said.

The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommends that by age 2, when they are most vulnerable, children receive the combined 7-vaccine series. These vaccines work against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis; polio; measles, mumps and rubella; hepatitis B; varicella; Haemophilus influenzae type b; and pneumococcal disease.

According to the CPHR and Montana DPHHS study, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Montana lags behind the 2019 national childhood combined 7-series vaccination rate of 71%. Just 62% of the children studied completed the vaccine series, and only 38% received them on time - fewer than two in five.

Partnering with DPHHS, the CPHR Data and Modeling Core analyzed immunization data on Montana children born between 2015 and 2017, which includes more than 30,000 kids. Newcomer, an assistant professor in UM's School of Public and Community Health Sciences, led the research effort as one of several projects ongoing in CPHR.

Irish and Graham then used biostatistical modeling and a spatial statistical technique known as spatial scan analysis to identify and create the maps of clusters of undervaccination.

This technique takes measurements of some variable of interest on a landscape and identifies hotspots of unusual values. Kayla and I read several papers on the spatial scan method, learned how to implement it in the R statistical software package and applied it to the vaccination data." Jon Graham, Math Professor, University of Montana

The research method considers hundreds of thousands of areas throughout the state to identify large and small geographic hotspots with the highest rates of childhood undervaccination of the combined 7-vaccine series. In addition to identifying the clusters, separate analyses identified groups where children may be undervaccinated due to access barriers such as geographic distances and those where parents are hesitant to vaccinate their children.

To identify patterns suggestive of parental hesitancy, the researchers looked for inconsistency in the number of vaccines children received in the series or vaccines spread out over multiple clinic visits.

"Say you have all the different vaccines in the combined 7- vaccine series," Irish said. "If five of them are perfectly on time and two of them aren't happening, that's a pretty clear sign of parents consciously electing not to vaccinate with certain shots."

According to the spatial analysis, parental hesitancy on vaccination is concentrated in the western part of the state.

Structural or access barriers, in contrast, mainly show up on the eastern side. To determine potential structural barriers, the team looked at children missing final vaccine doses or receiving them late.

Irish said looking at the two factors helps researchers understand how to increase vaccination rates in certain areas. Interventions to structural barriers, for example, might include hiring more vaccine program providers or creating programs in nontraditional settings for areas where clinics may be inaccessible, while social media tools and physician-client discussions may aid in addressing parental hesitancy.

"I think it's really cool because the long-term objective of this study is to test and determine ways to intervene," she said. "This is an amazing and great map for that."

Rain Freeman, UM's epidemiology specialist and the project's data manager, analyst and programmer, said national Vaccines for Children Program data showed a substantial dip in routine, pediatric vaccine orders at the beginning of the pandemic. And Montana was not immune to that trend.

Although more recent CDC data shows an uptick in vaccine orders again, it is not enough to catch up on the missed doses. Freeman said making sure children are vaccinated on time is crucial to preventing diseases during COVID-19 like measles, which needs a 95% vaccination rate for herd immunity.

"The problem is if vaccination rates for these preventable diseases dip too far below the estimated thresholds for herd immunity, we're worried that we could have multiple epidemics or outbreaks occurring as social interaction becomes a little more normal," she said.

As a history major, Irish is interested in predicting the next preventable disease outbreak. Promoting community health, helping write a scientific paper, and using and managing data while working on the CPHR project also has prepared her for grad school.

"I'm gaining the skills I'll be needing anyway," she said. "It's unbelievably useful to me. I cannot recommend undergrad research too much."

The CPHR team is currently drafting a paper on these analyses and will submit it for publication in the coming months.

"It's hard not to be excited," Irish said. "I feel so much satisfaction. In computer science, it feels like in everything you do, you write a little bit of code and it always fails, and when you see it actually works, it's so cool. And I have so many of those moments here."
Researchers found antibody levels in mRNA vaccinated individuals varied with age, gender, and previous coronavirus disease (COVID-19) infection. Comparing this to people with only a natural infection they found a wide range of levels, starting with similar antibody levels to the levels increasing about 20 times in vaccinated individuals.

With several vaccines now being approved for combating COVID-19, the attention is now turning to understand how they are working in real-life scenarios. One type of approved vaccine is based on mRNA technology, and two slightly different types are approved for use, one made by BioNtech/Pfizer and the other by Moderna.

Clinical trials of the BioNtech/Pfizer BNT162b2 vaccine have shown an efficacy of 95% in preventing symptomatic COVID-19 about a week after the second dose. Similar efficacy of about 94% was seen with the Moderna vaccine. Studies of the real-world vaccination in Israel have provided more evidence for the efficacy of the BNT162b2 vaccine.

Vaccine efficacy has a strong correlation with neutralizing antibodies, but it is not easy to measure neutralizing antibodies on a large scale. Binding assays to the spike protein of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) have a good correlation with neutralizing antibodies and can be used to investigate the immune response to vaccines at a large scale. Assessing immune response to vaccines can help predict vaccine effectiveness in people who were not included in clinical trials, such as immunocompromised individuals.

It is yet not known how long protection lasts after vaccination. Antibodies to other coronaviruses, including after natural infection of SARS-CoV-2, decrease with time. After natural infection with SARS-CoV-2, protection lasts for at least seven months.

Results of Study. Image Credit: https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.06.15.21258669v1.full.pdf

Antibodies to mRNA vaccination

In a study published in the medRxiv* preprint server, researchers studied the immune response data to BNT162b2 after two doses. Participants were vaccinated with two doses of the BNT162b2 vaccine, 21 days apart. Immune response was tested about a week or two after the second dose. Participants also included some patients who were vaccinated after being naturally infected with SARS-CoV-2.

The team tested serum samples for IgG binding antibodies to the virus nucleocapsid protein and the spike protein. Of the 871 participants, 3.7% had IgG antibodies against the nucleocapsid protein and 99.7% had IgG antibodies to the spike protein receptor-binding domain (RBD).

The researchers also found correlations between RBD antibodies and gender, age, and previous SARS-CoV-2 infection, with females having a higher concentration of antibodies than males. Elderly participants above 55 years had lower levels of antibodies than vaccinated people 18 to 34 years old. Those who had side effects also had higher levels of antibodies as did people who had had COVID-19 before.

Comparing antibodies to natural infection

The team also compared the data with people who only had natural SARS-CoV-2 infection. Among the people with only natural infection, 88.3% had antibodies against the nucleocapsid protein and 90.6% had anti-RBD antibodies.

The anti-RBD levels increased with disease severity, with critically ill patients having almost eight times the antibody concentrations as people with mild or moderate infection.

Comparing the antibody levels between those who had a natural infection and those who were vaccinated, the authors found that anti-RBD levels in vaccinated individuals varied widely, from being similar to those infected naturally to almost 20 times more compared to natural infection.

The results indicate that the BNT162b2 vaccine is highly immunogenic and elicits more antibodies than in response to natural infection. Real-world studies in countries like Qatar where the prevalence of the virus variants B.1.1.7 and B.1.351 is high showed 89% and 75% effectiveness against them, suggesting the mRNA vaccines can also protect against some virus variants.

The use of antibodies to understand protection against SARS-CoV-2 may provide useful tools to understand vaccine efficacy and effectiveness over time and against different virus variants, doing away with the need for doing expensive clinical trials.

The authors are continuing to study vaccinated and people infected naturally to understand the immune response, which will help with understanding how the virus infects and spreads as well as vaccine effectiveness.

*Important Notice

medRxiv publishes preliminary scientific reports that are not peer-reviewed and, therefore, should not be regarded as conclusive, guide clinical practice/health-related behavior, or treated as established information.
Does a connection exist between the development of heart disease and autism? That's a question Dr. Maria Kontaridis, Executive Director and Gordon K. Moe Professor at the Masonic Medical Research Institute (MMRI), and her team have been actively investigating thanks to a grant from the American Heart Association (AHA).

Now, with the help of an AHA supplement award, the ongoing project will continue to propel forward. The grant, which promotes diversity and excellence in science, was awarded to Dr. Luana Nunes Santos, a postdoctoral fellow in the Kontaridis Laboratory.

I am honored to have been awarded this grant and given the opportunity to continue working towards my dream. As a woman in science who is also from South America, it means a lot to have this support. It is the first check on the list to one day becoming an independent scientist and have my own lab." Dr Luana Nunes Santos, Postdoctoral Fellow in Kontaridis Laboratory, Masonic Medical Research Institute

This achievement comes on the heels of a $300,000 Transformational Project award from the AHA to Dr. Kontaridis in November of 2020. The supplement, whose focus is to "support research experiences for predoctoral and postdoctoral fellows from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups in science under the mentorship of current AHA awardees" (AHA), will span a period of two years, totaling $133,480.

"This project would not have been possible without the support from the AHA. I am immensely proud to have Dr. Santos on my team, to be her mentor and to witness her success trajectory and growth as a scientist. This grant is well-deserved, and a testament to Dr. Santos' skills, dedication, and ambition," said Dr. Kontaridis.

The project focuses on a specific mutation within the PTPN11 gene. Up to now, experiments have been centered around the use of inducible pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), cells that can be differentiated into any tissue type of interest and are derived from patients with autism-causing mutations.

The iPSCs have been converted into both heart muscle cells and brain organoid cells, to study the effects of these novel PTPN11 mutations on heart disease and brain development. Thanks to the supplement, Dr. Santos will also now be able to study these mutations in genetic-modified mouse models, which will allow for determination of the effects of these mutations in a mammalian system, and not just specific cells in a tissue culture dish.

Dr. Santos' work will center around conducting the heart study experiments of this project. Dr. Gulahn Ercan-Sencicek, an Instructor in the Kontaridis laboratory at the MMRI, will be focusing on the brain organoids portion of the study. Together, the group hopes to identify novel mechanisms of disease and identify potential therapeutics that can be used to treat patients with autism-associated cardiac disease.
Poll of 1,161 Ontario students shows attitudes toward cannabis differ from alcohol, creating potentially risky and dangerous driving behavior.

Ontario students are more likely to get behind the wheel of a vehicle after smoking cannabis than drinking alcohol, a new study from researchers at the University of Ottawa's Faculty of Medicine has revealed.

The study, published in Preventive Medicine, found 10 percent of licensed Ontario high school students reported driving within an hour of cannabis use. Driving after drinking alcohol was much less prevalent, with 3.5 percent of students doing so.

The study, led by master's student Nathan Cantor, found that students who favour cannabis legislation and perceive cannabis to be less risky were more likely to report driving after cannabis use. The study found that graduated licencing programs tended to sway behaviors with students holding a G2 licence four times more likely to report driving after cannabis use compared to those with a G1 licence.

This work reveals that Ontario adolescents perceive cannabis to be less risky than alcohol, and this perception affects other risky behaviors. The reason this is important is that it suggests that educating adolescents about the risks of cannabis use may be effective in reducing the dangerous practice of driving after cannabis use." Dr Ian Colman, Principal Investigator and Full Professor, School of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Ottawa

"We need to debunk the myth that cannabis use does not impair drivers," says Cantor, lead author of the study whose data originates from the period prior to the legalization of recreational cannabis in Canada.

"There's a good evidence base that shows acute cannabis consumption is associated with an increased risk of motor vehicle crash, especially for fatal collisions. This association is likely even greater in adolescents - this population has less driving experience, and proportionally represent a higher burden of motor vehicle crashes."
Political institutions such as the timing of elections and presidentialism had a larger influence on COVID-19 strategies than the institutions organizing national healthcare, according to a research team led by a professor at Binghamton University, State University of New York.

Olga Shvetsova, a political scientist at Binghamton University, and fellow researchers explored policy strategies on public health by the federal incumbents worldwide. Specifically, they looked at whether national incumbents led the charge as the pandemic unfolded or waited for the states (provinces) to enact the measures.

Multiple levels of government contributed to the COVID-19 policy response in federations and non-federations both. Decentralization in a country did not diminish the stringency of the overall government pandemic response. Early on, policies in federations were more stringent than those in non-federations.

Our evidence shows that, by and large, the coordination among the federal and subnational governments in federations did not fail, and the incumbents in federations collectively managed to provide at least as much protection to their citizens as the incumbents in unitary states, though the balance of federal versus subnational policy contributions varied." Olga Shvetsova, Political Scientist, Binghamton University

Still, different federations responded in different ways. The researchers discovered a large variation across federations, so significant that they believe it deserves an institutional explanation.

Specifically, scholars explored how "political incumbents' strategies in mitigating . . the COVID-19 pandemic were influenced in federations by the constitutional/electoral and health-related political institutions.

"We developed conjectures about the institutional variables conducive to more stringent public health policies and about institutional determinants of greater involvement of the federal government in pandemic public health policies," Shvetsova said.

They found that political institutional variables influenced COVID-19 federal strategies, even to a greater extent than countries' healthcare institutions.

"Diffusion of executive accountability, such as in a multiparty executive and with more fragmented parliaments, possibly increased the willingness to engage in more stringent policy response to the virus," Shvetsova said.
Repligen Corporation, a life sciences company focused on bioprocessing technology leadership, today announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Toulouse, France-based Polymem S.A. (Polymem), a leading industrial expert in the development and manufacture of hollow fiber membranes and modules.

We are delighted to have Jean-Michel, Franc and the Polymem team join the Repligen family. The acquisition significantly expands our hollow fiber membrane and module production capabilities and adds core R&D, engineering and production expertise in hollow fiber technology for both industrial and bioprocessing markets. The business complements what we have already in place at our Rancho Dominguez site and establishes a world-class center of excellence in Europe to meet the accelerating demand for hollow fiber products and to serve our rapidly expanding global customer base. Tony J. Hunt, President and CEO of Repligen

Jean-Michel Espenan, President of Polymem, said, Since co-founding the company in 1997, Polymem has remained true to our expertise in hollow fiber membrane development and manufacturing for industrial and life sciences applications. By joining forces with Repligen, we now have the opportunity to focus on two market segments, Municipal/Industrial and Bioprocessing, each with very similar needs and demands.

This deal further extends our market reach, allowing us to boost our growth across both our historical Municipal/Industrial markets and the Bioprocessing market. We continue to increase capacity with the extension of our production site in Castanet-Tolosan, south of Toulouse, and we look forward to working together with Repligen to further penetrate our core markets.

Jean-Michel Espenan and Franc Saux will stay on with the company in their current respective roles of President and Technical Director. The proposed acquisition is expected to close during Repligens third fiscal quarter of 2021, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

To fund the transaction, Repligen intends to use its cash on hand which totaled approximately $711 million at March 31, 2021. Additional financial details were not disclosed. Perella Weinberg Partners LP is acting as financial advisor and Goodwin Procter LLP is serving as legal counsel to Repligen.

About Repligen Corporation

Repligen Corporation is a global life sciences company that develops and commercializes highly innovative bioprocessing technologies and systems that increase efficiencies in the process of manufacturing biological drugs. We are inspiring advances in bioprocessing for the customers we serve; primarily biopharmaceutical drug developers and contract development and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs) worldwide.

Our corporate headquarters are located in Waltham, Massachusetts, with additional administrative and manufacturing operations worldwide. The majority of our manufacturing sites are located within the U.S. (California, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York), and outside of the U.S. we have sites in Estonia, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands and Sweden.

About Polymem

Polymem S.A., located outside of Toulouse in southwestern France, was established in 1997 by two engineers specializing in hollow fiber membrane technology. The company has grown into a team of 60 people, dedicated to the development and manufacture of hollow fiber membranes, membrane modules and systems. These products are used in water treatment, solid/liquid separation, gas separation, liquid/gas transfer and bioprocessing applications.

Polymem anticipated the demands of the worldwide municipal and industrial markets and is now recognized not only for its ability to develop innovative products, but also for the quality of its production of membranes, cartridges and modules for various applications and sectors.
Gilbert J. Rake, 88, of Bonita Springs, FL passed away on Wednesday, June 30, 2021 with his loving wife by his side. He was born in Starlight, IN, son of Henry and Catherine Rake. Gil proudly served his country in the United States Army. Following the service, he worked as an accountant with
Goldsboro, NC (27530)

Today

Overcast. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 64F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Overcast. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 64F. Winds light and variable.
(Newser)  North Korea has informed the World Health Organization that it tested more than 30,000 people for the coronavirus through June 10 but has yet to find a single infection. The WHO said in a monitoring report Tuesday that North Korea's testing figures included 733 people who were tested June 4-10, of which 149 had influenza-like illnesses or severe respiratory infections. Experts widely doubt North Korea's claim that it has not had a single case of the virus, the AP reports, given its poor health infrastructure and porous border with China, its major ally and economic lifeline.

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Describing its anti-virus efforts as a "matter of national existence," the North has barred tourists, jetted out diplomats, and severely restricted cross-border traffic and trade. The self-imposed lockdown has caused further strain on an economy already battered by decades of mismanagement and crippling US-led sanctions over the country's nuclear weapons program. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during a political conference last week called for officials to brace for prolonged COVID-19 restrictions, indicating that the country isn't ready to open its borders anytime soon.

(Read more North Korea stories.)
(Newser)  The biggest voting rights bill in decades met its widely expected fate in the evenly divided Senate Tuesday, with Republicans unified in opposition. Senators voted 50-50 on advancing the For the People Act, the Hill reports. Democrats needed 60 votes to overcome the GOP filibuster and advance the bill to debate. Before the vote, which was presided over by Vice President Kamala Harris, Democrats delivered dire warnings about the state of US democracy, the Washington Post reportsand afterward, they vowed to keep fighting the efforts of Republican-controlled states to make it more difficult to vote. "This is a battle for the soul of America, said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, per the AP. "We will keep fighting until we succeed.

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The bill, which would bring in national voting standards, passed the House in March but was denounced by Republicans including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell as a partisan "solution looking for a problem." In a small victory for Democrats Tuesday, Sen. Joe Manchin flipped his vote to a yes, ensuring unified Democratic support. The switch came after Democrats agreed to consider his compromise proposal, which includes a national voter ID requirement. Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski, seen as a possible swing vote, said Tuesday that she supported some parts of the Democratic legislation, but the "sprawling" bill would make elections "more difficult, expensive, subject to federal micromanagement," the AP reports. Democrats may now push to abolish the filibuster, though Sen. Krysten Sinema made it clear Tuesday that she does not intend to change her position. (Read more voting rights stories.)
(Newser)  A police officer who was one of three people killed in a shooting at a suburban Denver shopping district was ambushed by a suspect who previously expressed hatred toward police, authorities said Tuesday. Arvada Police Officer Gordon Beesley "was targeted because he was wearing an Arvada police uniform," police Chief Link Strate said at a news conference. Strate called it a "deliberate act of violence" and an "isolated incident," the AP reports. The suspect was one of those killed, authorities said. Strate did not identify the suspect, saying his name would be released by the Jefferson County Coroners Office. Strate also did not explain what started Mondays shootout, which also killed a man authorities have described as a Samaritan near a library in historic downtown Arvada.

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Strate on Tuesday identified that man as John Hurley, 40, of nearby Golden. Without elaborating on what he did, Strate called Hurley a "true hero who likely disrupted what could have been a larger loss of life." The chief said there was no connection between Hurley and the suspect. Arvada police spokesman Dave Snelling declined to say who shot the suspect, saying that would be something investigated by a team of area law enforcement officers. Authorities said Beesley, a 19-year veteran of the force, was a school resource officer with a reputation for taking a compassionate approach with students. With school out for the summer, Beesley was working on patrol when police said he was hit by gunfire shortly after a report of a suspicious incident.

(Read more Colorado stories.)
(Newser)  Chris Brown is once again accused of getting violent with a woman, and the Los Angeles Police Department has launched a probe into the incident. Per NBC News, it's being investigated as a battery. The accuser says that Brown hit her during an argument at his home in the San Fernando Valley area of LA Friday. According to TMZ, she claims he slapped the back of her head so hard that part of her hair weave fell out. She was reportedly not injured.

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Brown, 32, assaulted then-girlfriend Rihanna in 2009, was allegedly involved in a nightclub brawl over her years later, punched a man outside a hotel in 2013, was ordered to stay away from another ex who accused him of abusing her, has been accused of assault multiple other times, was accused of holding an orgy at his mansion at which a woman was sexually assaulted, and was accused of rape in Paris (no charges were filed).
(Newser)  More than 150 employees at a Houston hospital system who refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine have been fired or resigned after a judge dismissed an employee lawsuit over the vaccine requirement, the AP reports. A spokesperson for Houston Methodist hospital system said 153 employees either resigned in the two-week suspension period or were terminated on Tuesday. The case over how far health care institutions can go to protect patients and others against the coronavirus has been closely watched. It's believed to be the first of its kind in the US. The hospital system's decision in April to require the vaccine for workers made it the first major US health care system to do so. Houston Methodists president and CEO has said nearly 25,000 of the systems more than 26,000 workers have been fully vaccinated.

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Some 117 Houston Methodist employees filed suit, likening their situation to medical experiments performed on unwilling victims in Nazi concentration camps during World War II. US District Judge Lynn Hughes called that comparison reprehensible and said claims made in the lawsuit that the vaccines are experimental and dangerous are false. Hughes, who dismissed the lawsuit on June 12, said that if the employees didn't like the requirement, they could go work elsewhere. Those who filed the lawsuit have already appealed. The hospital system had required employees to complete their immunization by June 7. The next day, 178 employees were suspended for two weeks without pay for not complying. Other hospital systems around the country, including in Washington, DC, Indiana, Maryland, Pennsylvania and most recently New York, have followed Houston Methodist and have also gotten pushback.

(Read more coronavirus vaccine stories.)
(Newser)  According to a New York Times exclusive report, four Saudi Arabian operatives who were on the "kill team" in journalist Jamal Khashoggi's 2018 assassination had received paramilitary training in the US the year before. The Times spoke to sources familiar with the arrangement and viewed documents. The State Department approved the contract under which the men were trained by Arkansas-based security company Tier 1 Group, granting the license back in 2014. Two of the operatives involved had received training from 2014-15 and again in 2017; the other two only trained in 2017.

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Around that time, the secret unit that ultimately carried out the Washington Post journalist's killing was starting its campaign, ordered by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, to stamp out dissent in the kingdom via kidnapping, detention, and torture of citizens. There is no evidence that either US officials or Tier 1 Group execs knew about that crackdown, but, as the Times points out, the news still makes clear "how intensely intertwined" the US is with Saudi Arabia. See the Times for the full story. (Read more Jamal Khashoggi stories.)
(Newser)  A 33-year-old Greek helicopter pilot is charged with murdering his 20-year-old wife and trying to frame her death as the result of a robbery gone wrong. Caroline Crouch was asphyxiated as she slept on May 11, authorities say, and for the next month, her husband Babis Anagnostopoulos told police three robbers had broken in, bound and gagged the couple, suffocated his wife, and took nearly $18,000 in cash. The couple's puppy was also found hanged to death with its own leash; their 1-year-old daughter, however, was unharmed. But authorities found no evidence to back up his claims, and after investigating surveillance footage, data from Crouch's watch, and Anagnostopoulos's phone, inconsistencies in the story began mounting, the BBC reports.

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Anagnostopoulos was taken in for questioning by police on June 17, the day of his wife's memorial, at which he had been pictured hugging her mother, the AP reports. On Tuesday, he was jailed pending his trial on charges of murder and felony animal abuse, plus multiple misdemeanors. He faces up to life behind bars if convicted. The case shocked Greece, and women's rights activists protested outside the Athens courthouse where he arrived to testify for five hours Tuesday. During the testimony, he denied that the killing was premeditated, claiming it took place in the heat of the moment. The prosecutor's office is also weighing who should get custody of the couple's daughter; both sets of grandparents are eager to take care of her. (Read more Greece stories.)
(Newser)  Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams appeared to take a fragile lead Tuesday in New York Citys Democratic mayoral primary, but it could be weeks before it becomes clear who is actually on top in the first citywide election to use ranked-choice voting, the AP reports. As ballot counting began Tuesday, a plurality of Democrats ranked Adams as their first choice in the race. It was tough to tell, though, whether that lead would hold. As many as 207,500 absentee ballots remained to be counted. Voters full rankings of the candidates have yet to be taken into account. It could be July before a winner emerges in the Democratic contest. Adams, a former police captain who co-founded a leadership group for Black officers, was leading former city sanitation commissioner Kathryn Garcia and former de Blasio administration lawyer Maya Wiley.

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Former presidential candidate Andrew Yang, who was far behind in early returns, conceded about two hours after polls closed and vowed to work with the next mayor. In the Republican primary, Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa defeated businessman Fernando Mateo. Ranked-choice voting wasnt a factor because there were only two candidates in the race. Sliwa does not have much of a chance to win the November general election in a city where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans by 7 to 1. In other New York primary results, Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren, who is currently under indictment in a campaign finance case and under fire for her handling of a police killing in the city, was defeated in the Democratic primary. And it was too early to declare a winner in the Manhattan district attorney Democratic primary, but Alvin Bragg was in the leadslightly. (More on how the NYC mayoral primary will play out here.)
(Newser)  Investment bank Morgan Stanley plans to lift mask and physical distancing requirements in its offices next month, but only after banning unvaccinated workers, clients, and visitors. The company told its workforce on Tuesday that employees and clients who are not fully vaccinated against COVID-19 will be unable to return to offices that have a significant employee presence in New York City and New York's Westchester County starting July 12, CNBC reports. The New York Times reports the rule will also apply to visitors, though "the requirement relies on an honor system for now rather than proof of vaccination." Workers who are not fully vaccinated are expected to continue working remotely.

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The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission says this is completely legal, per the Times. Blackstone similarly began allowing fully vaccinated employees to return to its offices earlier this month, while BlackRock, the world's biggest asset manager, will allow only fully vaccinated US employees to return to its offices in July and August, per Bloomberg. It will require all employees to report their vaccination status by the end of this month. Goldman Sachs is also requiring that US employees disclose their vaccination status, per CNBC. Other banks, including JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America, are asking workers to voluntarily disclose their vaccination status, per the Times. (Read more Morgan Stanley stories.)
(Newser)  American authorities seized a range of Iran's state-linked news website domains they accused of spreading disinformation, the US Justice Department said Tuesday, a move that appeared to be a far-reaching crackdown on Iranian media amid heightened tensions between the two countries. The Justice Department said 33 of the seized websites were used by the Iranian Islamic Radio and Television Union, which was singled out by the US government last October for what officials described as efforts to spread disinformation and sow discord among American voters ahead of the 2020 presidential election, per the AP. The US says three other seized websites were operated by the Iraqi Shiite paramilitary group Kata'ib Hizballah, which more than a decade ago was designated a foreign terrorist organization.

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The US also took over the domain name of the Palestine Today site, which reflects the viewpoints of Gaza-based Islamic militant groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad. The website domains are owned by US companies, but despite sanctions, neither the IRTVU nor KH obtained the required licenses from the US government before using them. Most of the domains seized appeared to be ".net," ".com," and ".tv" domains; ".tv" is owned by the Pacific nation of Tuvalu but administered by the US company Verisign. It's not the first time the US has seized domain names of sites it accuses of spreading disinformation. Last fall, the DOJ announced the takedown of nearly 100 websites linked to Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard, saying the sites were waging a "global disinformation campaign" to influence US policy and push Iranian propaganda worldwide. (Read more Iran stories.)
(Newser)  Japan's oldest zoo was one of the most popular tourist attractions in the country before closing for five months due to the pandemic. Shortly after reopening, it's suddenly even more attractive. In a surprise, a giant panda at Tokyo's Ueno Zoo gave birth to twins early Wednesday. Officials suspected 15-year-old mother Shin Shin was pregnantnews that caused stocks of eateries around the zoo to spikebut they hadnt expected her to birth twins, the first set ever to be born at the zoo, which opened in 1882. "When the first one was born, I was relieved," zoo director Yutaka Fukuda says, per the New York Times. "When I received a report about the second one, I was shocked and extremely happy." Only five other pandas have been born at the zoo, including triplets conceived through artificial insemination in the 1980s, but one of the triplets and another cub died within days.

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Shin Shin mated with Ri Ri, a 15-year-old male who arrived with her at the zoo a decade ago. It was the first successful mating since the birth of their daughter Xiang Xiang in 2017, five years after Shin Shin lost a cub to pneumonia. Pandas generally raise one offspring so the twins, of unknown sex, present a bit of a problem. Zoo rep Naoya Ohashi says Shin Shin will be allowed to feed one of the cubs, with occasional swaps. The mother "is in good health and carefully looking after" one cub, while the other, weighing in at about four and a half ounces, spends time in an incubator, per the Japan Times. Like all panda cubs, the twins are considered property of China, which loans out its pandas. Shin Shin and Ri Ri are to stay at Ueno for another five years, while 4-year-old Xiang Xiang is to be sent to China by the year's end. (Read more giant pandas stories.)
(Newser)  Nikole Hannah-Jones is to teach two courses at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill's journalism school this fall. But she won't be in class unless she gets tenure, according to a letter submitted by the 1619 Project creator's legal team. Others appointed to the Knight Chair in Race and Investigative Journalism at the Hussman School of Journalism and Media have been given tenure, which requires approval by the university's board of trustees. But the board failed to vote on tenure for Hannah-Jones amid conservative criticism following her appointment, per the Washington Post. In what supporters and even some critics labeled a "travesty," the Black journalistwinner of a Pulitzer Prize and MacArthur grantwas instead offered a five-year contract with a later tenure review, which didn't require the trustees' approval. She agreed to the position beginning July 1.

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She has since learned that "political interference and influence from a powerful donor contributed to the Board of Trustees' failure to consider her tenure application," the letter reads, per NC Policy Watch. Therefore she "cannot trust that the University would consider her tenure application in good faith" at a later date. This may refer to Walter Hussman, publisher of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, who donated $25 million to the school that bears his name. NPR reports he "shared his opposition to Hannah-Jones' appointment with the journalism school dean, several university administrators, and, reportedly, two members of the UNC-Chapel Hill board of trustees." Hussman tells NPR that journalists must be impartial. But Hannah-Jones suggests unfair treatment based on her race. White journalists are "often treated as neutral, as if they are not going through the world in a racialized way," she tells the outlet. "But they are." (Read more Nikole Hannah-Jones stories.)
(Newser)  Some people like their wines to have earthy notes. Their drinking water, not so much. With much of California in extreme drought, Sacramento residents have been complaining that their water smells strange and tastes like dirt, CBS Sacramento reports. Authorities say it is the result of harmless organic compounds found in the water at greater concentrations when rivers start to dry up. "People can detect one of those naturally occurring compounds, called Geosmin, at extremely low concentrations," says city water quality superintendent Mark Severeid. "Geosmin is also the compound that makes the air smell earthy after it rains.

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Severeid says the water usually starts tasting earthier later in the year, but conditions this year are hotter and drier, with rivers at extremely low levels. "We realize that it's unpleasant," city utilities spokesperson Carlos Eliason tells CNN. "The earthy taste that some of our customers are experiencing is harmless and can be neutralized by adding some lemon or putting it in the refrigerator." Eliason says the city is looking into improving water treatment plants so they can remove the compoundsand to improve groundwater infrastructure so less water is needed from the area's increasingly unreliable rivers. (Lake Mead at Hoover Dam has reached a record low.)
(Newser)  Visitors about to enter the American Museum of Natural History in New York will no longer be greeted by Theodore Roosevelt atop a horse with a Native American and African man by his side. In a unanimous Monday vote, the New York City Public Design Commission decided the controversial statue would be given on long-term loan to a to-be-decided institution that is "publicly accessible" and has a "relevant connection" to Roosevelt. What to do with it has been the subject of formal debate since 2017, reports the New York Times, with the commission stating in a 2018 report that "height is power in public art, and Roosevelt's stature on his noble steed visibly expresses dominance and superiority over the Native American and African figures." But a number of panel members requested that more historical research be done before a decision was made.

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As that research was conducted, the effort to remove it gained steam: The museum itself came out on the "remove" side last June, and both New York City (the statue is on city-owned land) and Mayor Bill de Blasio backed up that position. The AP reports the bronze statue of Roosevelt, a founding member of the museum, has been at the entrance since 1940, and Hyperallegic notes one argument of those who wanted the statue to stay is that sculptor James Earle Fraser at the time said his goal was to present "Roosevelt's friendliness to all races." But at Monday's meeting, a museum official stated that the various heights of the figures "[appear] to depict the superiority of the white race," and its position at the entrance conveys "endorsement of this content and perceived content, undermining the museum's mission." (Read more Theodore Roosevelt stories.)
(Newser)  A month after Kendall Jenner got slammed for her "migrant chic" look in an ad for her 818 Tequila, there's another celeb with a booze-brand problem. Actor Michael B. Jordan says he'll be changing the name of his rum brand, J'Ouvert, which Nicki Minaj joined other social media users in (kindly, in her case) denouncing. The Trinidad native wrote on Instagram, "I'm sure MBJ didnt intentionally do anything he thought Caribbean ppl would find offensivebut now that you are aware, change the name & continue to flourish & prosper." Page Six reports J'Ouvert shares its name with a carnival celebrated in a number of Caribbean nations that has ties to slavery. Minaj's accompanying image was a comment from user "xaria_rae" sharing the history of the festival.

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Xaria Rae wrote in part that it was originally a reenactment of an event where slaves were forced to harvest sugarcane even as the fields were burning. Masters mockingly played the role of slaves until after emancipation, when "the slaves mocked the masters mocking them." Jordan took to his Instagram stories with a response: "I just wanna say on behalf of myself & my partners, our intention was never to offend or hurt a culture(we love & respect) & hoped to celebrated & shine a positive light on. Last few days has been a lot of listening. A lot of learning & engaging in countless community conversations. We hear you. I hear you & want to be clear that we are in the process of renaming. We sincerely apologize & look forward to introducing a brand we can all be proud of." (Read more Michael B. Jordan stories.)
(Newser)  Apple Daily, Hong Kongs main pro-democracy paper, is shutting down. Its founder, Jimmy Lai, is in jail, and several other top-level editors were arrested last week. But the killing blow was when the government froze its assetsabout $2.3 million, the AP reports. The arrests and freezing of assets were done under a new national security law imposed by Beijing. The employees and paper are accused of encouraging foreign nations to impose sanctions on Hong Kong and China. Supporters of the paper gathered outside its offices holding up their phone flashlights and chanting "add oil," a slogan from the 2019 pro-democracy protests, the BBC reports.

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Apple Dailys assets were enough to sustain the paper for about a year and a half, and its defiant employees had vowed to stay on until the end, NPR reports. The paper, known for investigations into Beijings influence in Hong Kong and intense editorials, had broad support in the city, with readers scooping up copies and businesses buying ads. It increased its print run and sold half a million copies after the arrests in its offices last week, per the Wall Street Journal. The paper will stop updating online on Wednesday, and Thursdays paper will be its last print edition. "Apple Daily showed we have a vibrant society, with freedom of expression and freedom of the press," Emily Lau, a former pro-democracy lawmaker, told the New York Times. Now that outlet is gone. (Read more Hong Kong stories.)
(Newser)  For a couple of chili cheese dogs, some pickle chips, and a few drinks, $37 is a pretty reasonable tab. Now add $16,000. The bartenders at Stumble Inn Bar & Grill in Londonderry, New Hampshire, were pretty excited about that. Until they spotted the five-figure tip, the most noteworthy thing about an unnamed man sitting alone at the outdoor bar was that when he saw another customers order for fried pickles go by he said, "Hey, I want some of those," NBC Boston reports. The restaurants owner, Mike Zarella, figured it was a typo. It wasnt a typo, and it wasnt a joke.

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Zarella cautioned his staff not to get too excited in case the funds never appeared, Fox News reports. But the money was disbursed, and the eight bartenders split it and shared with the cooks, too. The diner left the tip on June 12 and Zarella celebrated with a Facebook post on Monday. The bonus was a welcome boost for the staff. The restaurant had been shut down for months for the pandemic. Its just been a really rough year for all of us. For someone to do something like that really restored my faith in humanity, bartender Michelle McCudden said. (Read more tip stories.)
(Newser)  On Wednesday, Spain's National Court ruled that John McAfee could be extradited to the US to stand trial on criminal tax evasion charges. Hours later, the antivirus software pioneer was found dead in his prison cell. The Catalan justice department confirmed that the 75-year-old had been found unresponsive in the Brians 2 prison near Barcelona and efforts to resuscitate him failed, the Guardian reports. The department said the death is being investigated, but "everything points to death by suicide." McAfeea former NASA programmer who founded McAfee Associates in 1987 and resigned from the company in 1994was arrested at Barcelona's international airport last year and held in custody pending extradition hearings.

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US prosecutors said he failed to file tax returns from 2014 to 2018 despite earning millions from sources including consulting work and cryptocurrency ventures, reports CNBC. He was charged in March with failing to declare income from cryptocurrencies. The charges could have sent him to prison for up to 30 years. In a hearing earlier this month, McAfee argued that the charges against him were politically motivated and he would spend the rest of his life in prison if he was returned to the US, reports the AP. The Spanish court said Wednesday that there was "no revealing data or indication that Mr. McAfee could be subjected to any political persecution," per the New York Times. (In 2012, McAfee was suspected of killing a neighbor in Belize.)
Buckingham Palace has launched an inquiry into bullying claims made against Meghan Markle, which a source says she will take on in a "brutal showdown."

In March, the Duchess of Sussex demanded a breakdown of all the allegations that have been made against her by her former staff at Kensington Palace.

The Daily Mail reports an email written in 2018 by the Sussexes' then-press secretary, Jason Knauf, was leaked to The Times newspaper.

The email brought to light bullying allegations reading "I am very concerned that the Duchess was able to bully two PAs out of the household in the past year. The treatment of X [Name redacted to protect privacy] was totally unacceptable."

Simon Case, then the Duke of Cambridge's private secretary first received the email.
Nicholas Pointon for RNZ

Businesses are being hit by massive rises to their power bills as dry weather and a natural gas shortage wreak havoc in the electricity market.Hundreds of thousands of dollars in extra costs are hitting firms as they look to renew their fixed power contracts.

Christchurch-based firm Enztec employs 70 people to design and manufacture high-end medical instruments for the global orthopaedic market.

It usually operates on a fixed electricity contract with its suppliers, to avoid the volatility of spot prices.

But its chief executive Iain McMillan said it had struggled to get a new deal since its previous contract ended in February.

"We have had one company being prepared to negotiate a contract with us and we're still actively working on that.

"But several of the large supply companies basically said they did not have capacity to supply and therefore wouldn't even put an offer to the table."

Enztec is now stuck paying spot prices which are more than 50 percent higher than a year ago, according to the energy consultancy firm Energy Link.

This is because the country had been suffering from outages at several gas fields since December, dry weather to start the year and low hydro lake levels.

Enztec's monthly power bill had about doubled but it was unable to pass these costs onto its customers because the price of its products are fixed.

As a consequence, McMillan said Enztec would have to reduce spending on research and development because it had no idea when the upward pressure on power prices may ease.

Enztec's situation was not unique with more firms saying they were at the mercy of high wholesale electricity prices.
The traveller tested positive upon returning to Australia but New Zealand's Ministry of Health says they most likely contracted the virus in Sydney prior to their trip.

Microbiologist Siouxsie Wiles is warning New Zealanders the Delta COVID-19 variant can spread extremely quickly.

"Any case of COVID is obviously not something that we want in New Zealand, and especially the Delta version which we know is much, much more infectious than the previous variants," she told Newshub.

Dr Wiles said people only need to look overseas to see why the variant shouldn't be underestimated. The World Health Organization has said Delta is now the globally dominant variant of the disease.

"In the UK, this Delta variant has now completely replaced the Alpha - which was [Britain's] dominant strain," Dr Wiles said. "It's extremely transmissible.

"What they're seeing in Sydney is transmission taking place from what they're calling 'fleeting encounters' - so people who have shared the same airspace."
Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield said officials quickly identified the case's four close contacts, isolated them and then spoke to the case "into the early hours of the morning".

"There is a process that needs to be gone through by our experts to assess what the risk is to determine what it is we are going to ask people to do who have been in those settings. That was done as quickly as possible this morning."

The process includes corroborating information received from the case and assessing the risk and whether the locations need to become public.

Dr Bloomfield said he believes officials did a "good job" at getting the information together.

"If you look as we have gone through our various cases and outbreaks here in New Zealand, we have got faster and faster at getting these locations of interest out. You will see this time real clarity about what is expected of people without any confusion around definitions of whether people are close or some other sort of contact."

He said officials like to notify businesses that they are locations of interest before it becomes public.

"Some of them may then choose to put a message out either through social media or to call staff."

Locations of interest include the popular Te Papa museum, a large number of bars and cafes and central city bookstore. Many people who visited those sites are being asked to self-isolate and get tested.

Seymour said the delay to confirm the case and release places of interest is "frankly unacceptable".

"Why are we being drip fed places of interest throughout the morning? Why wasnt the Ministry of Health able to identify these places and let us know immediately?

"People who have been at locations of interest have gone about their business for an entire morning when they should have been isolating.

"COVID has been around long enough and weve had enough lockdowns that we should know by now what to do."

Both Seymour and Collins believe Wellingtonians should have been alerted on Tuesday night.

The National leader said there are "modern things called emails, texts and other forms of communication".

"I think if the Australians had the information, we should have had it."

She said businesses that are locations of interest should be told at the same time as the public.

Collins, however, is supportive of the move to alert level 2.

Wellington will move to alert level 2 at 6pm on Wednesday until at least 11:59pm on Sunday. All four close contacts have tested negative.

The full list of locations of interest can be found here.
Chris Hipkins says the COVID-19 vaccine New Zealand chose is "worth waiting for", amid criticism our rollout is lagging behind that of other developed nations.

About 8 percent of Kiwis have had two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, which has proven to be one of the most effective at stopping infection and serious illness.

That places us around about 100th in the world - alongside Cuba, Peru, Kazakhstan and Japan. We rank near the bottom of the OECD group of wealthy countries however, well behind the UK (46 percent), Israel (60 percent) and the US (45 percent).

Hipkins told The AM Show on Thursday the rollout has "gone as fast as it can given the availability of vaccines in New Zealand".

"If we could have got more vaccines into the country faster, then yes of course we could have gone faster. But ultimately supply has been the thing that's constrained that."
"I look forward to working out my term with the National team. In the meantime, I am on pre-approved leave for the next five weeks, to care for my wife who is undergoing a significant medical procedure. I will return to Parliament after the winter recess.

"I have decided that I need to prioritise my health and family and move onto the next chapter of my life."

Muller resigned as National leader in July last year after less than 60 days in the role. He became leader after rolling Simon Bridges. Muller's deputy was former Auckland Central MP Nikki Kaye.

The day Muller stepped down, Judith Collins was elected by the party as leader, with Gerry Brownlee as her deputy. Brownlee has since stepped down from the deputy role, which was filled by incumbent Dr Shane Reti.

Muller has talked about how becoming leader led to anxiety panic attacks, which ultimately led him to step down after a short time in the role.

Muller said he was "very proud" of the work he did with Climate Change Minister James Shaw in creating "bi-partisan support for climate action" and "achieving cross party support" for the Zero Carbon Act.

Muller's support for climate action and endorsement of the School Strike 4 Climate earlier this year appeared to be in contrast to current leader Collins, who says kids will grow out of climate activism.

He says serving his community has also been a highlight of being an MP.

"I particularly enjoy working with my various local communities from Papamoa to Omokoroa pushing hard for the amenities and infrastructure that our growing region deserves.

"I can assure them all I won't stop advocating for mental health facilities, after hours A&E and roads for my remaining time as their MP."
New Zealand has also topped the Lowy Institute's 'Feelings Thermometer', a measurement of Australians' perceptions about countries, territories and institutions on a scale of 0C - meaning cold feelings - to 100C, meaning warm feelings.

Aotearoa easily beat other countries, recording a warm 87C. The United Kingdom came in second with 76C, followed by Japan, Germany and the Pacific Islands Forum.

Sitting at the bottom of the thermometer at a chilly 32C is China, just below the 34C recorded by Iran.

The icy relations between Australia and China is a common theme in Wednesday's report.

Although he came in above North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, China's Xi Jinping is only supported by 10 percent of Australians, less than half of what he received in 2020 and down 33 points since 2018.

It reflects an overall decline in Australia's sentiment towards China over the last year as the relationship between the two countries has nosedived.

"The majority of Australians blame China for the current tensions in the bilateral relationship," The Lowy Institute Report says. "More Australians see China as a security threat than an economic partner. Confidence in China's President Xi Jinping, already declining, has fallen to a new record low.

"However, Australians do not want regional competition to slide into confrontation. Most still believe we can maintain good relations with both superpowers. A majority of Australians would prefer to stay neutral in the event of a military conflict between China and the US."

For the second year in a row, China is the least-trusted country for Australians, with just 16 percent saying they trust China to act responsibly in the world, down 7 points since 2020.

"The number of Australians holding positive views of Chinas trustworthiness has plummeted in three years, halving since 2019 and now at a third of the level in 2018 when a majority of Australians (52 percent) said they trusted China."
For the second time in as many days, a National MP has made a social media boo-boo.

Harete Hipango lost her seat at the 2020 election, but re-entered Parliament earlier this month with the abrupt retirement of veteran Nick Smith. On Tuesday she was sworn back in as an MP by Speaker Trevor Mallard.

Later that day she took to Facebook to celebrate.

"By oath... I'm back!" she told her followers, many of whom congratulated the former member for Whanganui.

But strangely, amongst them was Hipango.

"Great to see you back in the House Harete, and making a speech too!" a post from Hipango herself read.
COVID-19 alerts blaring out of phones around Wellington would have interrupted many workplaces on Wednesday.

However, the most notable was Parliament - a chorus of bleeps forcing Opposition leader Judith Collins to restart her general debate speech.

Collins barely managed the first sentence of her speech before everyone's attention was directed elsewhere - to the notification communicating Wellington's move to alert level 2.

"What we saw today was a Prime Minister being asked to answer some questions," Collins says before a faint electronic noise interrupts her.
Tech tycoon John McAfee, best known for the antivirus software that bears his name, has been found dead in a Spanish jail cell.

It's believed the eccentric entrepreneur took his own life after reports the Spanish high court had authorised his extradition to the US.

McAfee, 75, had been arrested in October 2020 for allegedly evading tax and failing to pay taxes on his income.

He was also facing a cryptocurrency fraud case in New York.
In all cases of COVID-19 that arrive in New Zealand, the Ministry of Health will always release the information of the flight the case travelled on as soon as possible.

But for people who aren't frequent flyers, flight numbers and codes can be daunting even when it's just a matter of finding the right gate. So when it comes to checking your flights against those named in a COVID-19 case, that added level of anxiety could make that process even harder.



Here are a few key things you can do to determine if your flight is the same as the one that's been listed.



We will use the COVID-19 case that flew to and from Wellington on June 18 as the example.



Date of travel:



This person travelled to Wellington on June 18 and back to Sydney on June 21.



One possible cause of confusion here is that the flight arrived in Wellington on June 19, just minutes after midnight. So in these circumstances, if your flight does take place in the hours around midnight, then be clear about what date you left, and what date you landed.

The return flight to Sydney was much more straightforward as the person departed at 10.13am and arrived back in Sydney at 11.33am (Sydney time).



Flight number:



This should be one of the most clearly written elements on your boarding pass. In this case the flight was operated by Qantas, so the flight number will begin with QF.



There is only one flight each day per flight number, so there would only have been one QF163 that flew on June 18.
Here's the latest on the pandemic from around the world.

Asia-Pacific

Australia/New Zealand

Australia's largest city of Sydney re-introduced "soft touch" COVID-19 curbs on Wednesday to contain a widening outbreak of the highly infectious Delta variant, mandating masks in offices while neighbouring states closed their borders.

The Australian Medical Association has warned it's unlikely contact tracing will be able to stop the country's biggest city going into lockdown, particularly because it's the infectious Delta variant.

"The bottom line is, if it keeps on escalating like this, it doesnt matter how good your contact tracing is, they will be looking at pulling the lever on a lockdown," said vice-president Dr Chris Moy.

New Zealand raised the alert level in its capital of Wellington over exposure concerns after an Australian tourist tested positive for the virus upon returning to Sydney from a weekend visit to the neighbouring nation.
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Trail tales: Lutz's journey on 1,000-mile trek filled with twists

SUBMITTED PHOTOs Walt Lutz poses for a photo at Clingmans Dome in North Carolina on May 11, the day he began his 1,000-mile trek along the Appalachian Trial to support the Kulpmont Fire Department and honor first responders. SUBMITTED PHOTO Shown is a marker at the Mason-Dixon Line that Kulpmont resident Walt Lutz crossed Tuesday during his 1,000-mile hike along the Appalachian Trail. In this photo taken by Walt Lutz, a shelter along the Appalachian Trail is shown. Lutz spends his nights along the trail either sleeping in a tent that he carries with him during the hike or in shelters along the trail like the one pictured.

HAGERSTOWN, Maryland  When Walt Lutz took to the Appalachian Trail on May 11 at Clingmans Dome, North Carolina, he expected to spend months hiking northbound back toward his hometown of Kulpmont.

As of Tuesday afternoon, he was heading south and had just crossed the Mason-Dixon Line near Hagerstown, Maryland  a testament to the twists and turns that life on the trail often provide the thousands of hikers who venture onto the pathway each year.

Less than three weeks into his hike, Lutz learned of the passing of friend Joe Pancerella, who died unexpectedly on Memorial Day, prompting him to temporarily suspend his endeavor and fly home to attend the funeral services.

What a heartbreaker that was, Lutz said of Pancerellas passing. He was the motivation behind the Kulpmont100  the glue that held all of that together. ... It is a huge loss. He was one of those guys that whenever you talked to him, you would feel better. I loved him dearly.

Lutz, 70, announced in early May he would be walking 1,000 miles on the Appalachian Trail to raise money for the Kulpmont Fire Department to replace a 30-year-old engine and honor first responders in the year of the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

A new plan

Lutz said he hiked locally every day, with the exception of the day of Pancerellas funeral, during his 7-day stay back home in Kulpmont in order to keep his legs fresh while he planned a new course of action for his 1,000-mile endeavor.

He decided to restart his trek from Clarks Ferry, just north of Harrisburg, and head southbound to Damascus, Virginia, just north of the Tennessee border, where he departed the trail to head home.

Lutz expects to hit his 300th mile today, with 700 more on the horizon, but for him its easier to compartmentalize the trip.

I cant look at things like I have 700 miles to go, he said. I am taking this with 100 mile increments. My next goal is to get to 400 miles, and just keep it going forward  its easier for my brain to handle it that way.

Trip to the ER

In hindsight, Lutz states he probably couldnt have picked a more difficult starting point for his trip than Clingmans Dome.

The first 100 miles when I was down in North Carolina just about killed me, he said. The elevation changes up and down were really bad. ... I was at 6,500 feet of elevation and it was cold. I had a day where there was sleet and eventually it caught up with me.

While walking on a relatively flat trail, Lutz slipped and fell, hitting his head off the ground and causing a gash. A young woman had been hiking behind him and gave assistance, helping to place a bandage to stop the bleeding.

He continued for a few miles when two more people approached him, asking, Are you Walter?

I thought, Oh wow, Im famous!, Lutz said with a laugh, explaining that the two had been notified he was injured and came to help him.

They walked me off the trail for four miles and when I got to the trailhead an ambulance was waiting for me, he said. The doctor didnt give stitches because the trail isnt a very clean place to be, but he told me I couldnt hike for two days.

That night, Lutz spent the only night of his trip in a motel to rest as directed.

The daily grind

Lutz said in a typical day he aims to walk about 13 miles per day, a goal he considers modest but challenging.

The other day I did 17 miles and its a little too much, he said. One of the things Im trying to stay focused on is my eating  its very important.

Lutz said he has lost a significant amount of weight during his six weeks hiking, which he expected, but said he began to notice the weight loss may have gone too far.

I started to look a little emaciated, he said. Im having to kind of force myself now to eat two big meals a day instead of one. ... Im burning a lot of calories every day walking this many miles.

Logistically, he said food is the main focus to keep him going, as water supplies along the trail are plenty.

I have to go into town every four or five days for food, he said, adding that he searches for Planet Fitness locations ahead of time to take care of hygiene as best as possible.

Thats the thing I miss most  showers.

Deadpool

The humor behind a 70-year-old man attempting a 1,000-mile hike does not escape Lutz. He said most people traveling along the Appalachian Trail for extended periods of time have a trail name, with him getting the name Deadpool.

How he got the name is a mixture of good-natured ribbing and a little bit of dark humor from his friends back home in Kulpmont.

They started a pool for people to give $20 to guess what day of the hike Ill die on, he said with a laugh.
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ALBANY, N.Y. (AP)  New York will lift more COVID-19 restrictions when the state of emergency expires later this week, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday.

The state of emergency expires Thursday, he said, meaning that it lifts Friday.

New Yorkers will still have to wear masks on public transit, hospitals, nursing homes, correctional facilities and homeless shelters, in accordance with federal guidance. Students and staff still have to wear masks at schools indoors until the end of the school year  though the Department of Health didn't say Wednesday whether that rule applies for summer school, for example.

But Cuomo's announcement Wednesday means public meetings, for example, no longer must occur virtually.

And bars and restaurants will no longer be able to sell wine, liquor and cocktails to-go, according to the state liquor authority.

Meanwhile, businesses can keep stricter COVID-19 restrictions in place. And COVID-19 restrictions remain in place for large indoor venues that hold more than 5,000 people: Attendees must produce proof of vaccination, or wear masks and present proof of negative test results.

Fighting COVID & vaccinating New Yorkers are still top priorities, but the emergency chapter of this fight is over, Cuomo tweeted.

It's the governor's latest announcement about lifting COVID-19 restrictions at a time when rates of new positives are dipping to record lows as more New Yorkers get vaccinated. And it follows months of pushback from Republicans and business groups who have called for Cuomos executive power to be reigned in.

Cuomo already has the power to temporarily suspend or change laws in a state of emergency.

Cuomo had been extending the state of emergency since spring 2020, when lawmakers gave the governor the power to start passing statewide COVID-19 mandates without needing legislative approval.

Cuomo used those emergency powers to shutter schools and businesses, mandate masks and social distancing, set eligibility rules for vaccinations and limit how many people could gather together.

Earlier this year, lawmakers curtailed those powers: Cuomo has largely been limited to extending or tweaking existing COVID-19 orders if he gives legislative leaders notice.

In past weeks, conservatives and advocacy groups have pushed Cuomo to repeal the remaining COVID-19 restrictions, including mask mandates for schoolchildren and business restrictions.

The New York State Association of Realtors, for example, urged Cuomo to let the state of emergency expire so realtors could once again conduct telemarketing cold calls.

There is a critical housing shortage and this ban is making it worse by stopping us from developing new listings, reads a call for action on the group's website.

Industry groups representing restaurant and bar owners said that to-go alcoholic beverage sales have proved popular over the last year  though to-go beer sales are still allowed. The Empire State Restaurant and Tavern Association has blasted lawmakers for failing to pass a bill to extend to-go sales, and has blamed lobbyists representing liquor stores for spreading disinformation that to-go sales were fueling massive drunk driving.

Nationwide at least 15 states have made cocktails to-go permanent, while 12 states have extended to-go sales, according to Lisa Hawkins, spokesperson for the Distilled Spirits Council. She called New York's failure to pass the bill shocking and extremely disappointing for the state's hard-hit hospitality industry.

Some municipalities have already lifted their own COVID-19 states of emergency in recent days: Kingston, New York, is no longer requiring health screenings for employees and visitors, though unvaccinated individuals still have to wear a mask in city buildings.

We expect that in-person meetings will begin to take place in the weeks ahead as our new equipment arrives and is installed, Kingston Mayor Steven Noble said in a statement.

Cuomo began lifting COVID-19 mandates in February, when New York was seeing high levels of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations.

In May, as the rate of new cases plummeted, he ended capacity-based restrictions for most businesses.

And last week, Cuomo lifted rules that required many types of businesses to follow cleaning and health screening protocols and ensure customers had space to stay 6 feet (2 meters) apart.

An average of 326 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in New York in the seven days through Tuesday, the lowest amount recorded since March 2020. About 52% of residents are fully vaccinated, with rates as low as 32% in Allegany County in western New York, 39% in the Bronx and 42% in Brooklyn.
An Indiana woman on Wednesday became the first defendant to be sentenced in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and avoided time behind bars, while a member of the Oath Keepers extremist group pleaded guilty in a conspiracy case and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in a major step forward for the massive investigation.

The two developments signal that the cases against those charged in the deadly siege are slowly advancing, even as the U.S. Department of Justice and the courthouse in Washington, D.C., struggle under the weight of roughly 500 federal arrests across the U.S. And it comes as Republicans in Washington attempt to downplay the violence committed by members of the mob supporting former President Donald Trump.

Graydon Young, who was accused alongside 15 other members and associates of the Oath Keepers of conspiring to block the congressional certification of Joe Bidens presidential victory, pleaded guilty to two counts: conspiracy and obstruction of an official proceeding. It was the first guilty plea in the major conspiracy case brought against members of the group.

The second charge calls for up to 20 years in prison, but U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta said federal sentencing guidelines call for Young to serve between 5 1/4 years and 6 1/2 years behind bars. Prosecutors may seek even less time in exchange for his cooperation against other defendants.

Young, 55, of Englewood, Florida, was arrested in February and charged in the sweeping conspiracy case accusing members of the Oath Keepers of coming to Washington prepared to use violence and intent on stopping the certification of the vote. Authorities said in court documents that Young joined the Florida chapter of the Oath Keepers in December, writing that he was looking to get involved in helping ...

Later that month, Young reached out to a company that does firearms and combat training about a rifle class for four people, according to the indictment. Authorities say Young, wearing a helmet and tactical vest, was part of the military-style stack seen on camera marching through the crowd before entering the Capitol building.

Young's attorneys didn't immediately respond to emails sent Wednesday seeking comment.

Another Oath Keepers member, Jon Ryan Schaffer, has also pleaded guilty in the riot, but was not charged in the conspiracy case. Schaffer has agreed to cooperate with investigators and potentially testify against other defendants.

Anna Morgan Lloyd, 49, of Indiana, was ordered by a federal judge to serve three years of probation, perform 120 hours of community service and pay $500 in restitution after admitting to unlawfully entering the Capitol. She pleaded guilty to a single misdemeanor charge under a deal with prosecutors.

After the riot, Lloyd described Jan. 6 on Facebook as the best day ever."

On Wednesday, she apologized to the court, her family and the American people, saying she went to Washington that day to peacefully show her support for Trump.

Im ashamed that it became a savage display of violence that day. And I would have never been there if I had a clue it was going to turn out that way, Lloyd told the judge. It was never my intent to be a part of anything thats so disgraceful to our American people.

In seeking probation for Lloyd, prosecutors noted that she was not involved in any violence and destruction or preplanning and coordination of the Capitol breach. Lloyd was invited by her hairdresser to drive to Washington to hear Trump speak, her attorney wrote in court documents.

U.S. District Court Judge Royce Lamberth said he was giving her a break, but didnt want others to think that probation  and not a stiffer sentence  would be the norm.

Legally, I could give you the six months, but is that really what we want our judiciary to do? the judge asked.

Lamberth said he struggled with what would be an appropriate sentence for Lloyd because he views the riot as a serious crime. This wasnt a peaceful demonstration the way it turned out. It was not an accident, he said. It was intended to and brought a halt to the very functioning of our government.

He said he was especially troubled by some lawmakers who are seeking to rewrite the history of the Capitol riot.

I dont know what planet they were on, but there were millions of people in this country that saw what happened on Jan. 6 and that saw what you saw and what you just described: a disgrace to our country, the judge said.

In a letter to the judge asking for leniency, Lloyd wrote that she was a registered Democrat but that she and her husband began supporting Trump in 2016 because he was standing up for what we believe in.

After her arrest, Lloyds lawyer gave her a list of books and movies to help her see what life is like for others in our country, Lloyd wrote. Lloyd said she has sought to educate herself by watching movies such as Schindlers List and the History Channels Burning Tulsa and reading Bryan Stevensons Just Mercy.

Ive lived a sheltered life and truly havent experienced life the way many have, Lloyd wrote. Ive learned that even though we live in a wonderful country things still need to improve. People of all colors should feel as safe as I do to walk down the street.

Four other people  a Tennessee man, a Maryland man and a Virginia couple  have pleaded guilty to the same misdemeanor charge in the last two weeks.

Earlier Wednesday, another man, Robert Maurice Reeder of Maryland, admitted to entering the Capitol, but his lawyer said he didnt force his way inside and didnt damage any property or hurt anyone.

Before his arrest, an attorney for Reeder provided federal authorities with a compilation of photos and videos that he took with his cellphone at the Capitol. A video seemed to show Reeder chanting, Fight for Trump! and he recorded an assault on a Capitol police officer, according to the FBI.

You need to retreat! Reeder apparently told the officer, an FBI agent wrote in a court filing.

A prosecutor said Tennessee resident Brian Wayne Ivey, who pleaded guilty on Tuesday, entered the Capitol through a window that somebody else broke with a riot shield and spent roughly 30 minutes inside the building.

Joshua Bustle of Virginia, who pleaded guilty alongside his wife, will also be seeking probation, his lawyer said. Jessica Bustles attorney described them as good, decent, hardworking people, who were urged to come to Washington by very powerful people and groups.

They are not criminals or insurrectionists or rioters. They were not looking to break laws when they came to DC on the 6th. They violated minor laws on the 6th and they have accepted responsibility and accountability for doing so, Jessica Bustles attorney, Nabeel Kibria, wrote in an email.
BETHEL  Despite commands not to drive, a state trooper charged with driving under the influence last weekend told an officer to watch this before driving away, a police report obtained Wednesday shows.

Andrew Murphy, a trooper assigned to the Troop A barracks in Southbury, is facing charges of operating under the influence of alcohol, disobeying the signal of an officer and interfering with an officer. He was released from custody after a friend posted $500 bond and is due to appear Monday in state Superior Court in Danbury.

Murphy, a state trooper since July 2019, has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation, state police officials said.

In a police report obtained by Hearst Connecticut Media, Bethel police said Murphy repeatedly told them he was a state police officer, and claimed they were hurting one of their own in a expletive-laden interaction.

The report also said Murphy refused a urine test, and was uncooperative during questioning after his arrest, forcing officers to repeatedly ask him to stop yelling, according to the report.

The incident began around 2:10 a.m. Sunday when a patrol officer spotted Murphy standing by the open door of his Mazda sedan in the parking lot of a 7-Eleven on Stony Hill Road, according to the report.

As the officer approached, he reported that he saw Murphy was having difficulty keeping his balance, the report said. He shouted at Murphy to ask if he was all right, and was told in very slurred speech that he was fine, according to the report.

The officer told Murphy he looked like he needed a ride and did not want him to be driving, the report read.

When the state trooper got into his car, the officer wrote in the report that he yelled at him to stop and not to drive, but Murphy told him watch this, watch me!

Murphy then pulled out of the lot without wearing his seat belt and drove to his home about a mile away, the report said.

When the officer spotted a tire on Murphys car go off the road, he put on his lights and siren to pull Murphy over, but he did not stop, the report said. Along the way, the officer claims Murphy was drifting around turns and driving at around 10 mph, the report said.

When Murphy pulled into the driveway of his home, the officer requested backup.

As Murphy got out of his car, he had such poor balance  he needed to brace himself on his vehicle, the report said.

When the officer asked Murphy why he didnt stop, he told the officer he wanted to go home, and pointed to his Connecticut State Police cruiser in the driveway, according to the report.

The officer wrote in the report that he smelled a strong odor of alcoholic beverage coming from Murphys breath, and that the trooper told him he had had four drinks that night, the report said.

The officer conducted a field sobriety test, during which Murphy told police he needed an ambulance because everything hurt, the officer wrote in the report.

When police questioned Murphy about whether his firearm was in the car, he became aggressive and began yelling, according to the report, claiming Bethel police were (expletive) one of your own.

He was transported to Danbury Hospital before being taken to the Bethel Police Department and processed, according to the report.

About two hours after arriving at the police station, the officer reported that Murphy began talking with me and appeared able to gather his words better than before. Murphy began asking me questions about the motor vehicle stop and how he ended up getting arrested.

The questions included how Murphy ended up at the 7-Eleven, the officer wrote in the report.

Murphy is not the only state police trooper to face a DUI charge in recent years. State police charged one of their own, Sgt. John McDonald, with driving under the influence in 2019. State police said McDonald was leaving a retirement party for another officer at a Brewery in Oxford when he drove through a stop sign and struck a car carrying a woman and her daughter.

McDonald pleaded nolo contendere to to two counts of second-degree reckless endangerment last month as part of a plea agreement that will allow him to complete a pretrial alcohol education program and have the DUI charge dismissed. State police said Wednesday McDonald remains on administrative suspension.
MADISON, Wis. (AP)  The Wisconsin Assembly on Tuesday passed a bill designed to save two shuttered paper mills.

The bill would make available a $50 million loan to a cooperative that wants to buy the shuttered Verso paper mill in Wisconsin Rapids and make a $15 million loan for a cooperative working to purchase the paper mill in Park Falls formerly known as Flambeau River Papers.

The money would come from federal coronavirus relief money. The bill came after a year of discussion with state, local and federal officials about how to save the Verso mill, which closed in June 2020 after more than a hundred years of operation. It employed 900 people.

Democrats said they were concerned the federal law may not allow for use of the money for a loan to cooperatives to purchase the mills. But Republican bill sponsor, Rep. Scott Krug, of Nekoosa, said federal guidance clearly allows for the money to be used to purchase them.

Gov. Tony Evers expressed disappointment that a Democratic-backed amendment to the bill was rejected. But he didn't say whether rejection of that amendment would lead to him not signing the bill.

Supporters of the bill said it was needed to both save the mills and help the state's paper industry hurt when they shut down.

The measure passed on a bipartisan 63-35 vote and now heads to the Senate.
EAM told UN Security council that a durable peace in Afghanistan requires a genuine double peace, that is, peace within Afghanistan and peace around Afghanistan. He added that it required harmonising the interests of all, both within and around that country.

Addressing UN Security council on Tuesday, External Affairs minister S Jaishankar called for a permanent ceasefire to ensure reduction in violence in Afghanistan. He asserted zero tolerance against cross-border terrorism.

EAM told UN Security council that a durable peace in Afghanistan requires a genuine double peace, that is, peace within Afghanistan and peace around Afghanistan. He added that it required harmonising the interests of all, both within and around that country.

In an indirect reference to Pakistan, he added that for enduring peace in Afghanistan, terrorist safe havens and sanctuaries must be dismantled immediately and terrorist supply chains disrupted. He went on to say that there needs to be zero tolerance for terrorism in all its forms and manifestations including its cross-border one.

He added that it was equally important to ensure that the territory of Afghanistan is not used by terrorist groups to threaten or attack any other country. He said that those providing material and financial support to terrorist entities must be held accountable.

Additionally, India has provided $650-750 million in humanitarian and economic aid to Afghanistan, making it the largest regional provider of aid. It created transportation link that bypass Pakistan, helping it to reduce Afghanistans dependency on Pakistan.

A Memorandum Of Understanding was also signed with the government of Afghanistan. Infact, good amount of supplies like, monetary assistance of 75000 metric terms, food and shelter requirements are sent with recognized AIR TRADE CORRIDORS. In order to fight covid outbreak, Covid-19 vaccinations were also sent to Afghanistan and MADE IN INDIA products will be supplied.
After border tensions with India last year, the Chinese military realised that its soldiers from plains cant perform well in high altitudes, hence unable to stand up to Ladakhi or Tibetan soldiers joining the Indian Army. Recruiting unemployed Tibetan youths into Chinese army after 70 years of Tibet occupation, can be a two way move to not only target India but also gain Tibetans sympathy and support. Most Chinese troops are from the plains and cant perform well at high altitudes.

Chinas Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) has deployed the first set of troops of the newly raised Tibetan unit (purely of Tibetan ethnicity), the Special Tibetan Army Unit (STAU), in the strategically important Chumbi Valley between Sikkim and Bhutan.

The Tibetans who are recruited in the STAU are taken to Tibetan Monks after completion of their training for their blessings. It is reported that previously there was no such practice of taking Tibetan recruits to Tibetan Monks for their blessings. This is likely a new strategy of PLA to get some religious mileage from the newly recruited Tibetans in STAU.

The PLA has deployed a new set of militia, which is known as Mimang Cheton (MC), in the Chumbi Valley under Yatung County in Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR), said a source. Mimang Cheton (MC) probably means for the Public in the Tibetan language. The MC consists of local Tibetan youths recruited and trained by the PLA. It is learnt that two batches of MC with around 100 youths in one batch have already completed their training and currently deployed at various locations in Chumbi valley viz Yutung, Cheema, Rinchengang, PB Thang and Phari. The second batch of MC is currently undergoing training at their training facility at Phari. The MC is raised with the aim of being deployed mostly in the local bordering areas to exploit their knowledge of the local terrain, language, and demography and weather conditions. Currently, MC personnel have neither uniform nor ranks.
Mongolia, Seychelles and Bahrain, which mostly relied on Sinopharm and Sinovac, are now witnessing a surge in coronavirus infections. Chinese foreign ministry has said that it does not see a link between the recent outbreaks and Chinese vaccines.

Amid uncertainty over the third wave and how long the pandemic is going to last, countries, who relied on Chinese vaccines, are now facing a Covid-19 surge. Even though the Chinese vaccines are easily available, examples from Mongolia, Seychelles and Bahrain, which mostly relied on Sinopharm and Sinovac, are now suggesting that they might not be reliable and effective against the new variants, as pointed by The New York Times latest report.

These three countries quickly rolled out the vaccination programme and inoculated about 50 to 68 per cent of its population with the Chinese vaccines, outpacing even the United States. However, now these countries are battling a massive surge in Covid-19 cases, casting a doubt on the efficacy of these vaccines.

Jin Dongyan, a virologist at the University of Hong Kong, has stated that if the vaccines are sufficiently good then we should not see this pattern. He added that the Chinese have a responsibility to remedy this.

Even as China continues its vaccine diplomacy, countries like Mongolia, Seychelles and Bahrain, are now recording Covid-19 cases at a record pace. Defending the Chinese vaccines, officials in Seychelles and Mongolia have stated that Sinopharm is effective in preventing severe cases of Covid-19. Chinese foreign ministry, on the other hand, has shuddered its responsibility by stating that it does not see a link between the recent outbreaks and Chinese vaccines.
Feeling like you are being watched? It could be from a lot farther away than you think.

Astronomers took a technique used to look for life on other planets and flipped it around  so instead of looking to see whats out there, they tried to see what places could see us.

There's a lot.

Astronomers calculated that 1,715 stars in our galactic neighborhood  and hundreds of probable Earth-like planets circling those stars  have had an unobstructed view of Earth during human civilization, according to a study Wednesday in the journal Nature.

When I look up at the sky, it looks a little bit friendlier because its like, maybe somebody is waving, said study lead author Lisa Kaltenegger, director of the Carl Sagan Institute at Cornell University.

Even though some experts, including the late Stephen Hawking, warn against reaching out to aliens because they could harm us, Kaltenegger said it doesn't matter. If those planets have advanced life, someone out there could conclude that there is life back here based on oxygen in our atmosphere, or by the radio waves from human sources that have swept over 75 of the closest stars on her list.

Hiding is not really an option, she said.

One way humans look for potentially habitable planets is by watching them as they cross in front of the star they are orbiting, which dims the stars' light slightly. Kaltenegger and astrophysicist Jacqueline Faherty of the American Museum of Natural History used the European Space Agencys Gaia space telescope to turn that around, looking to see what star systems could watch Earth as it passes in front of the sun.

They looked at the 331,312 stars within 326 light-years of Earth. One light-year is 5.9 trillion miles. The angle to see Earth pass in front of the sun is so small that only the 1,715 could see Earth at some point in the last 5,000 years, including 313 that no longer can see us because we've moved out of view.

Another 319 stars will be able to see Earth in the next 5,000 years, including a few star systems where scientists have already spotted Earth-like planets, prime candidates for contact. That brings the total to more than 2,000 star systems with an Earth view.

The closest star on Kalteneggers list is the red dwarf star Wolf 359, which is 7.9 light-years away. It's been able to see us since the disco era of the mid 1970s.

Carnegie Institution for Science planetary scientist Alan Boss, who wasnt part of the study, called it provocative. He said in addition to viewing Earth moving in front of the star, space telescopes nearby could spot us even if the cosmic geometry is wrong: So intelligent civilizations who build space telescopes could be studying us right now.

So why havent we heard from them?

It takes a long time for messages and life to travel between stars and civilizations might not last long. So between those two its enough to limit the chances for civilizations to exchange "emails and TikTok videos, Boss said in his own email. So we should not expect aliens to show up anytime soon.

Or, Kaltenneger said, life in the cosmos, could just be rare.

Whats exciting about the study is that it tells scientists where to point our instruments, said outside astronomer Seth Shostak of the SETI Institute that searches for extraterrestrial intelligence. You might know where to look for the aliens!

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Follow Seth Borenstein on Twitter at @borenbears.

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institutes Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP)  Claims by a Republican congressional candidate that another GOP hopeful plotted to kill her landed Tuesday in a Florida courtroom.

Anna Paulina Luna, who plans to run for Florida's District 13 seat after losing a race for the slot in 2020 to Democratic U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist, contends in court documents that GOP challenger William Braddock is stalking her and wants her dead. Luna has filed a petition for a permanent restraining order. Pinellas County Circuit Judge Doneene Loar had previously granted a temporary restraining order for Luna and a conservative activist and friend of hers, Erin Olszewski, after the allegations surfaced.

In court Tuesday, Braddock, who has already filed as a GOP candidate, told a judge he opposes the injunction and wants to obtain, review and validate any evidence against him. He did not directly address the accusations but has denied them in the past and called them politically motivated.

I dont know what they have, he said in court.

Loar agreed to delay the hearing until July 9 to allow both sides to exchange evidence. She said the temporary restraining orders against Braddock and Olszewski will remain in effect, and she cautioned him to not violate them.

In her petition, Luna claims she received text messages recently between Braddock and some associates in which he allegedly said he wanted to take me (Luna) out." She also said others told her that means he intends to kill me.

I do not feel safe and I am currently in fear for my life from Mr. Braddock, Luna said in her petition.

The case took a darker and somewhat bizarre turn last week when Politico reported that Olszewski had secretly recorded a phone call with Braddock earlier this month in which he says the alleged Russian and Ukrainian hit squad could kill Luna within 24 hours.

Luna's going to go down and I hope it's by herself, Braddock says in the recording, according to Politico, which said it had obtained the recording. For the better or the good of the majority of the people, we've got to sacrifice the few.

According to the report, Braddock described the hit squad as being armed for close-battle combat to make sure nothing was left to chance.

No snipers. Up close and personal. So they know the target has gone, Braddock said, according to the Politico report. The online news site quoted Braddock as saying he hadn't heard the recording and that there there was no proof it was him on it.

The recording was not mentioned in Luna's petition or in Tuesday's hearing, which was conducted by video conference. Politico said Olszewski turned the recording over to law enforcement officials, who declined to release any information to The Associated Press, citing an ongoing investigation. No criminal charges have been filed.

Olszewski did not respond to phone calls and emails from the AP. Her attorney, Katherine Yanes, said in an email Tuesday that they were pleased with the judge's ruling keeping the injunction in place but had no further comment.

In 2020, Luna lost by about 24,600 votes to the far better-known Crist in the District 13 congressional race in Pinellas County. Crist, a former Republican Florida governor who has held several other high-profile offices, is running for governor in 2022 as a Democrat.

A slew of candidates are running for the district, which could be key to determining which party controls the U.S. House after next year's elections.

Among the other candidates in the race are Democratic state Reps. Ben Diamond and Michele Rayner. More candidates are expected to join the campaign.
NEW BRITAIN  Connecticut utility regulators on Wednesday unanimously approved a settlement between the state and The United Illuminating Co. that will reduce customers bills and also create long-term rate stability for customers of the Orange-based electric utility.

Under the settlement agreement approved by the states Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA), UI customers will see a 5.2 percent decrease in their total bills starting July 1. That translates into a reduction of $9.79 per month for the average UI residential customer who uses 700 kilowatt hours per month.

The settlement also freezes UIs base distribution rates until May 2023.

PURA Chairwoman Marissa Gillett called the settlement a balanced result.

UI officials had originally proposed the settlement in March, but PURA commissioners rejected the original settlement in mid-April. The deal was negotiated between the utility and Connecticut Attorney General William Tong as well as other officials in the administration of Gov. Ned Lamont.

PURA initially rejected the settlement, and instead proposed an alternative plan to amortize the accumulated charges over a 68-month period. At the urging of Attorney General Tong and other settling parties, PURA reconsidered its draft decision, agreeing to revisit the merits of the settlement and allowing settling parties to continue to negotiate.

Tong called PURAs approval of the amended settlement a big win for Connecticut families,

This amended settlement ... will save UI customers 5.2 percent on their bills starting next week, he said. Energy costs far too much in our state and this agreement brings a much-needed break to families who need it.

Frank Reynolds, president and chief executive officer of UI, said the settlement shows that our customers are our first priority.

Providing them with real rate relief and stability has been our goal throughout this process, Reynolds said.

UI is making a $5 million voluntary contribution as part of the settlement. It also shortens the period during which the company is returning $41.55 million in accumulated savings from federal tax cuts.

The agreement fully offsets what would have been a 5 to 8 percent increase in bills on May 1 due to federally-mandated transmission charges and the costs of a power purchase agreement involving the Millstone nuclear power plant in Waterford.

UI has approximately 341,000 customers spread across 17 towns in greater New Haven and Bridgeport.

luther.turmelle@hearstmediact.com
WASHINGTON (AP)  Attorney General Merrick Garland said Tuesday that private industry needs better safeguards to avoid calamitous consequences in the event of cyberattacks like the ones that have targeted American infrastructure and corporations.

You have to have a secondary method if your first method is shut down. You have to have depth, and we need to work with them on that," Garland said, one week after a meeting between President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin that included discussion of a spate of Russia-linked ransomware attacks in recent months.

Such hacks, including a ransomware attack last month on Colonial Pipeline, are extremely dangerous, Garland said. The Justice Department has responded with a task force focused on ransomware.

In a wide-ranging question-and-answer session with reporters, his first since being confirmed in March as the countrys chief law enforcement officer, Garland also reiterated his concerns about the death penalty, defended the Justice Departments position in a defamation case against former President Donald Trump and insisted that the government would work to protect both journalists personal safety and their ability to conceal their confidential sources.

The conversation occurred as Garland has faced demands from Democrats to swiftly undo or reverse positions taken by the Justice Department during the Trump administration, including aggressive leak investigations in which law enforcement obtained phone records of journalists and congressional officials.

The Justice Department inspector general is now investigating, and Garland met last week with executives from news media organizations after pledging that the government would abandon the practice of seizing reporters' records in an effort to identify their sources.

Garland, who has made several major announcements during his tenure but taken no questions from reporters before Tuesday, did not reveal any new details about how those subpoenas were authorized and did not answer when asked when he had learned about the issue.

But he said it was clear the balance the department had sought for decades to strike between upholding journalists' First Amendment rights and guarding against the disclosure of classified information is not sufficient for your protection."

He said he believed journalists need sources to expose wrongdoing and bad decision-making inside the government and "I'm going to do everything I can to help protect you from being forced to reveal those contacts.

Garland also defended the Justice Department's decision to maintain its position, first argued last year, that Trump cannot be held personally liable for crude and disrespectful remarks he made about a woman who accused him of rape because he made the comments while he was president.

Democrats had looked to that case as one place where Garland's Justice Department might make a dramatic shift in position. Instead, the department's stance has not changed. Garland said the case law that government lawyers had reviewed tilted in favor of the argument that defamatory statements made to the news media by a public official are protected by law.

The question for us, though, is really a question of law, unrelated to how we feel about Trump's statements, Garland said. We don't have one rule for Republicans and one rule for Democrats, one rule for a current president, one rule for the former president.

He was noncommittal on Democratic calls for an investigation into the potential politicization of decisions made in the Trump Justice Department, saying he did not want career officials to feel unnecessarily second-guessed by new appointees applying political lenses to things.

But every new manager, every good manager, looks over what's happened in their agency, their company, whatever it is  and make judgments, he said.

Garland also said he has concerns about the death penalty, in part because of the exonerations that have happened as well as the disparate impact the punishment has had on minority communities, and has been personally reviewing the department's processes in that area. He said he expected to have a more extensive statement on the death penalty soon.

The Trump administration revived the death penalty last year after a nearly two-decade-long hiatus in federal executions.

Though activists widely expected Biden to take swift action against the death penalty as the first sitting president to oppose capital punishment, the White House has been mostly silent.

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Follow Eric Tucker on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/etuckerAP
CAIRO (AP)  The International Monetary Fund has announced a debt relief package for Sudan, a step in helping the country as it tries to rejoin the global economy after years of isolation.

In a statement distributed late Tuesday, the funds managing director Kristalina Georgieva said that it had obtained enough pledges from more than 100 member countries to finance the debt relief package of some US$1.4 billion. This will help to erase debts Sudan owed to the IMF, but also other lending institutions.

Todays financing milestone marks a historic opportunity for Sudan to move toward comprehensive debt relief, she said. The Fund will continue to support Sudan in its recovery from a long period of instability and economic hardship.

Its new standing will make the country eligible for new IMF loans, but also developmental aid and assistance. It comes after France announced that it would forgive $5 billion of Sudan's debt at a conference meant to drum up international financial support for the African country in May.

Sudans joint military-civilian government that has ruled the African country after a popular uprising has taken a series of bold steps to try to revive a battered and distorted economy where smuggling is rife. Thats included floating its currency, starting to address heavy government subsidies, particularly on fuel, and seeking investment from international donors.

But some measures also threaten to further impoverish some of the countrys poorest, and have faced opposition from pro-democracy activists who led the popular uprising against autocrat Omar al-Bashir who ruled the country for nearly 30 years.

The revolt led to the militarys overthrow of al-Bashir in April 2019. The country has since been on a fragile path to democracy with daunting economic challenges representing a major threat to that transition.

Sudan became an international pariah after it was placed on the United States list of state sponsors of terror in the 1990s.

Former President Donald Trump removed Sudan from the blacklist after the transitional government agreed to pay $335 million in compensation for victims of attacks carried out by Osama bin Ladens al-Qaida network while the terror leader was living in Sudan. The removal also was an incentive for Sudan to normalize ties with Israel.
NEW HAVEN  A thorough system for notifying parents and pediatricians of how New Haven deals with lead poisoned children will be approved by the court as the long-litigated case nears closure.

Superior Court Judge Claudia Baio told the city and the New Haven Legal Assistance Association this week that she has decided to approve the notification format and will put it in writing so there is no ambiguity.

She will also set a fairness hearing date within about a month on the lead case settlement itself between the city and Legal Assistance, after which the detailed protocols on helping young lead poisoned children and abating apartments will go into effect, assuring a court presence.

Congratulations on reaching what is hopefully the last stretch of a very long process for you folks in working collaboratively to bring this matter to what appears to the court to be a fair resolution, Baio said.

The city celebrated the end of the legal fight with the New Haven Legal Assistance Association on May 17. The Connecticut Department of Public Health has reported 14,000 cases of lead-poisoned children under 6 since 2012.

The parties are now getting the approval of the court for the class action settlement that they worked out that puts step-by-step rules in place.

Baio thanked the lawyers for their collaboration in reaching a settlement some two years after the association started court proceedings challenging the lack of enforcement by the city of its lead abatement ordinance.

The city lost all the cases.

The judge said the parties submitted a very complete and thorough package. It is the courts intention to approve the motion on notification through a written memorandum of approval.

After the New Haven Legal Assistance Association continuously won challenges based on individual cases, the court approved a class action by the association against the city to represent all similarly situated children.

The Board of Alders has also updated the citys lead ordinance to make it clearer as to when a child under 6 is considered lead poisoned and the role of the Department of Health, tenants and landlords in responding to that.

The issue before Baio this week was the proposed method of notifying the parents of the estimated 300 lead poisoned children in the city of the settlement, as well as future families.

Each of the households will get notices with the settlement from the citys Department of Health.

It will also be posted on the city of New Haven website and the website of the New Haven Legal Assistance Association with contact information for the attorneys in the event parents need to contact them.

The new protocols will be sent to pediatrician offices  with the city providing addresses  and lead clinics to reach as wide an audience as possible.

Attorney Amy Marx, who represented the children in the multiple cases, thanked the Housing Court and the five judges who heard those cases over time that culminated in the settlement.

Marx said the judges have given just really extraordinary amounts of time ... to the substantive issues in our lead disputes. ... It is not your usual typical docket case ...

She said Legal Assistance spent a fair amount of time deciding the venue in which to file the legal challenges.

In addition to Baio, the judges included: Judge John Cordiani, Judge Walter Spader, Judge Anthony Avallone and Judge Sheila Ozalis.
PORTLAND, Maine (AP)  County commissioners agreed with the sheriffs recommendation to fire the administrator of a jail that dealt with one of the states largest COVID-19 outbreaks last year.

Michael Vitiello, who ran the York County Jail for two decades, was recommended for dismissal Friday by county commissioners after an investigation and recommendation by Sheriff William King. Vitiello will likely appeal the decision, his attorney said.

Vitiello had been on administrative leave since September following an outbreak involving at least 96 cases of the virus among staff and inmates.

An investigation concluded that the virus was brought into the jail by a corrections officer who attended a wedding in the Katahdin region that became a superspreader event.

One of the key issues, according to the investigation, was that no masks were required inside the jail except during the intake process. The lack of a mask mandate raised fears among staff and inmates.

King wrote in a letter that Vitiello balked when he suggested corrections officers wear masks. "The masking issue, which was in fact crucial, left us vulnerable, King wrote.

Vitiello said he felt the issue had to be negotiated with the union. He also said his position evolved over time, noting that early on he was concerned that masks might cause panic in the jail population.

His attorney, Michael Waxman, said its unfortunate that the jail had an outbreak but he noted that there were eight outbreaks in Maine even after the Department of Corrections tightened up rules for staff and inmates. One of them was larger than the York County Jail outbreak, he said.

Michael ends up being the head that has to roll because something bad, and perhaps unavoidable, happened, he said. Its unfortunate that Mike Vitiello is the one who has to be thrown under the bus. Its not fair.

In other pandemic-related news:

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THE NUMBERS

The state's numbers continue to dip.

The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in Maine has gone from 73 new cases per day on June 7 to 33 new cases per day on June 21.

On Wednesday, the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported reported just 13 new infections. There also were two deaths, bringing the total since the pandemic began to 856.



EMERGENCY ORDER

Maine is counting down to the end of a pandemic emergency order, which expires in a week.

Democratic Gov. Janet Mills announced the state of civil emergency in the early days of the pandemic. It has allowed Mills to deploy all government resources to try to reduce the spread of the virus in Maine.

Mills has said the emergency order is set to expire on June 30. She has called the end of the emergency order another important step forward in our return to normal.

Democrats and Republicans in the state have long debated whether the emergency order has gone on for too long. Most Democrats have characterized it as an important piece of the state's recovery, but many Republicans have said it has given Mills too much authority.
NEW HAVEN  As the mayor and the cops stood on the corner talking with the folks filing in and out of a convenience store, Goldie Wooten explained why she valued officers walking the beat: Its more comfortable, more immediate.

Dealing with an officer you dont know, she said, is like having a stranger walk into your home.

You get to know whos working your community, said Wooten. And they get to know whose community theyre working.

Wooten spoke as Mayor Justin Elicker, Officer Endri Dragoi and Officer Margaret Luciani traversed the streets around the substation at 332 Whalley Ave., as the department launches additional walking beats for the summer, seeking to aid residents and reduce crime and violence in New Haven.

Lt. John Healey, district manager for Dwight / Chapel and Beaver Hills, said the shift was a volunteer, overtime walking beat that ran from noon to 4 p.m., with officers dispatched to high priority areas of the city. Elicker joined in on Tuesday.

I think its important for me to hear directly from officers that are walking the beat about their experiences, and how we can improve, said Elicker.

Arnold Gold / Hearst Connecticut Media

Dragoi, a seven-year veteran of the department, and Luciani, going on three years, said they built relationships with residents while walking the beat, as well as dissuading crime.

Its a chance to interact with people on multiple occasions  to learn names, faces, to understand them better, to share a sense of oneself and ones approach to the job.

Being a police officer, Luciani and Dragoi said, is highly reliant on building a rapport in times of stress. You have to be able to calm people down, match their emotional state, absorb hostility without responding in kind.

Having a personal relationship helps with people, they said  the familiarity eases interactions; your reputation can vouch for you.

You dont feel like you dont belong in the community (after spending time there), said Dragoi.

Dragoi walked past a man sitting outside of a convenience store; they joked about getting picture-ready for the photographer at the head of the group.

The man had been banned from the establishment, Dragoi said  when intoxicated, he would start trouble there, and had been arrested multiple times. But the relationship, built through repeated interaction, was more complex than that, Dragoi said.

As they walked through the city, the group met with residents, chatting about life in the city.

Elicker, Dragoi and Luciani talked with Shahara Gray, leaning out over the railing of her second-floor porch in the light rain.

She said was looking to move because of the violence in the area; she had to tell her children to get on the floor when shots were fired nearby. The walking beats, she said, were appreciated.

But they can only do so much, said Gray.

Wooten walked past the group at the New York Style Deli at the corner of Winthrop Avenue and Whalley; she said she lived on Goffe Street, where there have been multiple shootings this year.

When she was young, Wooten said, she had strong relationships with some of the officers that patrolled the area. That was welcome, as are the walking beats, she said.

It makes you feel more comfortable, said Wooten. Overall, I think beats are better than cars.

The group met with a shop owner, praising him for cleanliness of the street corner.

A woman, framed by flowering bushes as she stood in a doorway, shared her appreciation for Elickers efforts to help working-class people, but asked him to do something about reckless driving. She and her husband had their vehicle damaged in such an incident; now they have no car.

Arnold Gold / Hearst Connecticut Media

Dragoi and Luciani said they enjoyed the work. Theres stress that comes with serving as a patrol officer, but its manageable, they said.

Its something new every day, said Luciani. Theres nothing better than being able to help people.

Not every day is going to be a perfect day, said Dragoi. But you do (help people)... Youve just got to follow through and do your best.

Dragoi said he thought of many peoples childhood vision of a heroic police officer. Thats what he would want for his family, he said, and what he tries to provide.

You have to have that passion, that love (for people), said Dragoi. This is what I signed up for... if someone needs me, I want to be there for them.

Asked what they hoped people would consider about their jobs, both spoke to the emotional complexity of the work.

Dragoi said that officers, like other people, dont come to work hoping to be angry or aggressive.

But it can be hard to provide the best possible service when dealing with hostile people, he said, especially if youre full of emotion and stress from another call.

Most people do understand, said Dragoi. Its always how you talk to people.

Luciani said people should consider the intricacies of the job. It requires you to wear many hats  therapist, lawyer, emergency medical technician, officer, and more  all at the same time, she said.

Officers can be sponges of emotion, she said, absorbing the nature and tenor of each call.

Theres so many levels, she said. Theres so many unknowns.

Sometimes, the burden of the job can wear on you; the ability to detach emotionally can be helpful at times, she said.

I like to remind myself that emotions last 90 seconds, said Luciani. Consequences last a lot longer.

Elicker said afterwards that he was struck by the importance of the walking beats after meeting with Dragoi, Luciani, and the community.

Both officers knew many people by name and had relationships and mutual respect with community members, Elicker said in a statement. Those relationships are critical to the officers ability to do their job, connect people with help and keep people safe.

The citys approach to addressing violence includes, among other facets, the increased walking beats, efforts to meet and help or dissuade people at risk of becoming involved in violence, street outreach workers, social and youth programs and a reentry center for people returning to New Haven from prison, Elicker has said previously.

william.lambert@hearstmediact.com
SEOUL, South Korea (AP)  North Koreas foreign minister on Wednesday said his country is not even considering a resumption of stalled nuclear talks with the United States, dismissing hopes expressed by U.S. and South Korean officials for a quick resumption of negotiations.

The statement by Ri Son Gwon came a day after the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un issued a message saying that U.S. expectations of talks would plunge them into a greater disappointment.

Hope for a restart of the nuclear talks flared briefly after Kim Jong Un instructed officials at a political conference last week to prepare for both dialogue and confrontation  though more for confrontation  with the Biden administration. U.S. National Security adviser Jake Sullivan called Kims comments an interesting signal.

Ri praised the statement issued by Kims sister, Kim Yo Jong, which he said brushed off the hasty judgment, conjecture and expectation of the U.S.

We are not considering even the possibility of any contact with the U.S., let alone having it, which would get us nowhere, only taking up precious time, Ri said in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency.

Nuclear negotiations between Washington and Seoul have been stalled since the collapse of a meeting between Kim Jong Un and former President Donald Trump in 2019 because of a disagreement over an easing of U.S.-led economic sanctions in exchange for partial denuclearization by North Korea.

While U.S. and South Korean officials expressed optimism over Kims comment that he expects both dialogue and confrontation, some experts say North Korea has been communicating the same message for months  that it has no intention to return to talks unless the United States offers meaningful concessions, likely in the form of eased sanctions.

Sung Kim, President Joe Bidens special representative for North Korea, said Washington was prepared to meet the North anywhere, anytime without preconditions" as he visited Seoul for discussions with South Korean and Japanese officials over the nuclear standoff. But he stressed that the Biden administration would continue to pressure North Korea with sanctions over its nuclear and missile ambitions.

The trilateral talks followed a four-day North Korean ruling party meeting last week at which Kim Jong Un called for stronger efforts to improve the nations economy, battered by pandemic border closures and facing worsening food shortages.
BELFAST, Maine (AP)  Police arrested a 35-year-old woman on Wednesday in connection with the death of her 3-year-old son in Stockton Springs, officials said.

Maddox Williams died on Sunday after his mother and grandmother brought him to Waldo General Hospital in Belfast, police said. The death has since been ruled a homicide by the state medical examiner's office, police said.
New Haven Police Department

NEW HAVEN  A New Haven resident has been arrested on multiple charges, including firearm and substance-related charges, according to police.

Richard Smith, 30, faces charges of possession of a controlled substance, possession with intent to sell, carrying a pistol without a permit, criminal possession of a pistol and weapon in a motor vehicle, among others, according to a release from New Haven Police.
VATICAN CITY (AP)  While Pope Francis is usually the star at Vatican gatherings, Spider-Man, or at least an Italian who dresses up like the character, was the attention-grabber among the public lined up in rows during the pontiffs weekly Wednesday audience.

Matteo Villardita, 28, dons the comic-book and movie super-hero outfit to cheer up hospitalized children, like those at the Vaticans pediatric hospital which he planned to visit later on Wednesday.
WEST HAVEN  The Savin Rock Plaza, a strip mall on Captain Thomas Boulevard was sold for $3 million according to City Clerk Patty Horvath.

According to the deed, the sale took place on June 16.

In a news release, O,R&L Commercial, LLC announced it represented buyer DeLaurentis Management Corp. in the sale of the 62,722-square-foot property. The release said DeLaurentis Management plans substantial renovations and upgrades to the property. DeLaurentis Management did not immediately return a request for comment Wednesday.

According to its website, DeLaurentis Management owns four other commercial properties in Greater New Haven  two in Branford and two in East Haven  as well as several other properties in Connecticut, New York and Massachusetts.

The retail center is located at 200-205 Captain Thomas Blvd., beside West Havens two miles of shoreline.

Mayor Nancy Rossi said one of the most frequent questions she gets from residents pertain to the plaza.

They want to know why theres nothing in there, she said.

Although the plaza has some businesses, including a bank and restaurants, several of its storefronts are closed.

Any time property owners come in and say theyre going to improve the property, thats a good thing, she said.

Lee Tiernan, the citys corporation counsel, said the city had been in discussions for a while about developing the area to become more friendly for pedestrians: more walkable than having a big parking lot in front as it currently does.

Councilman Barry Lee Cohen, R-10, whose district encompasses some of the citys shoreline, said he is optimistic about the transaction as it has been reported.

Its long overdue and Im happy to see its sold. They inherited some extremely valuable West Haven businesses, he said. Things like this are the catalyst for other improvements along the shorefront.

brian.zahn@hearstmediact.com
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP)  To the relief of many, Rhode Island reopened public restrooms Wednesday at the Kennedy Plaza transit hub in Providence, which had been closed since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Rhode Island Public Transit Authority also recently reopened to the general public bathroom facilities at the Newport Transportation and Visitors Center and the Pawtucket Transit Center.

Reopening public restrooms at three busy transit facilities in our state is a necessary step to address public need as we re-emerge from the pandemic, Gov. Daniel McKee said in a statement.

The agency has kept the Kennedy Plaza bathrooms closed to the general public, citing the need to enforce a federal mask mandate and to provide bus drivers with their own facilities where they didn't have to wait in line and in turn could keep buses running on schedule.

RIPTA chief Scott Avedisian said the issue has been resolved.

The city agreed on a plan that will accommodate the public need for the facilities while also making provisions for drivers by retrofitting restrooms at the nearby public skating rink for them.

We are happy to be moving forward on this issue, Avedisian said, and we appreciate the steps the city is taking."

___

COLLEGE STUDENT VACCINATIONS

Rhode Island College and the Community College of Rhode Island both announced Wednesday that coronavirus vaccinations will be required for students taking on-campus classes next fall.

Given the overwhelming success shown by the COVID-19 vaccinations to stop the spread of the virus, Rhode Island College will be mandating that all students are fully vaccinated for COVID-19 prior to the opening of the Fall 2021 semester," the school posted on its website. We are strongly encouraging all faculty and staff members to do the same."

CCRI, which has multiple campuses, is also strongly encouraging employees to receive their shots.

Both schools are hosting vaccination clinics.

Exemptions for medical and religious reasons will be considered, the schools said.

The University of Rhode Island has already mandated student vaccinations, meaning all three state colleges have now done so. Most private schools have also done so.

___

DOOR-TO-DOOR VACCINE OUTREACH

Gov. Daniel McKee joined Woonsocket Mayor Lisa Baldelli-Hunt and health officials for a door-to-door vaccine outreach effort Wednesday in a city with the lowest COVID-19 vaccination rate in the state.

Woonsocket has Rhode Island's lowest percentage of residents fully vaccinated at 41% and partially vaccinated at 47%, and has among the highest COVID-19-related death rates, hospitalization rates, and cases per 100,000 population, according to state Department of Health data.

In contrast, more than 615,000 people, or about 58% of the state's population at large has been fully vaccinated.

We know how important accessibility and convenience are ... for many people when it comes to getting their shot," the Democratic governor said at a news conference outside the Woonsocket Housing Authority.

The state is particularly worried about the fast-spreading delta variant, he said.

Please, if you haven't already, get a vaccine today," he said.

Wednesdays effort focused on residents of the Morin Heights and Veterans Memorial housing complexes.

The city's residents live in closely packed neighborhoods in multi-generational households, Baldelli-Hunt said, explaining high transmission rates.

Shots are free and no insurance is required, she said.
New York Attorney General Letitia James has filed a lawsuit against the Niagara-Wheatfield Central School District for failing to respond to incidents of sexual assault and bullying in the schools.

The legal action follows an investigation launched by the Office of the Attorney General in 2019, which found that Niagara-Wheatfield deliberately ignored student complaints of rape, assault, sexual harassment, and gender-based bullying, and took no action to protect them from their assailants and harassers, leading several students to drop out of school and lose access to educational opportunities. The lawsuit alleges that district officials repeatedly violated the federal Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and New York state common law, requiring that schools provide adequate supervision of their students to protect them from harm.

Handling of rape case draws criticism in N-W Several residents of the Niagara Wheatfield School District are calling for the resignation 

James lawsuit seeks oversight, monitoring, and the creation and implementation of new procedures for the school district and all of its schools to better address the handling of sexual assault.

It is unconscionable that an institution tasked with educating and protecting its students turned a blind eye to the abuse, harassment, and bullying happening right in its school halls, James said in a release. (Niagara-Wheatfield's) inaction demonstrates that it did not have adequate systems in place to protect its students  particularly young women  when they needed it most. This indifference to student suffering has caused physical, mental, and emotional trauma, and jeopardized students education. My office remains committed to standing against sexual assault of any kind, anywhere, and ensuring the safety and wellbeing of all New Yorkers. I will continue to use the law to hold the school district accountable for its negligence, and to empower survivors of sexual harassment and assault.

Speaking out for victims of sexual assult Though her daughter's rapist has pleaded guilty and been sentenced, Leslie Camp said she has

A former high school student, identified as TG by James' office, said district officials failed her three years ago after she was raped by a fellow classmate.

"Their negligence and active disregard for my well-being only deepened my pain and suffering. In the time since, they have repeatedly tried to intimidate and silence me, the student said in the release. "Today, with this lawsuit, I feel a glimmer of hope. It is time to ensure Niagara Wheatfield does not fail another student in the way they failed me. Thank you, Attorney General James, for taking a stand and joining me in this fight. I will not be silenced.

Federal law guarantees all students the right to a public education, and it provides that they shall not be deprived of this most basic right on the basis of sex. To that end, Title IX specifically requires that schools take steps to protect students from gender-based harassment and sexual assault that create a hostile educational environment and deprive students of educational opportunities.

The attorney generals investigation into Niagara-Wheatfield began after media reports detailed how the district did nothing in response to the rape of "TG" by a fellow student in May 2018. "TG" was forced to attend school with her assailant for the year following her rape. Even after the assailant pleaded guilty to third-degree rape, he was still allowed to remain in school, and was told he could attend prom and graduation. Niagara-Wheatfield school officials finally expelled him in May 2019, but only in response to the nationwide public and media attention brought by a student walkout organized to protest the schools inaction. The school district also took no action against the students that bullied "TG" over her rape, but instead punished several students for participating in the walkout.

Former N-W student given 10 years probation LOCKPORT  After a year of interim probation, a former Niagara-Wheatfield Senior High School

After a year of interim probation, the former Niagara-Wheatfield student was granted youthful offender status and placed on 10 years probation for his conviction for third-degree rape on Dec. 1, 2020.

Niagara-Wheatfield Principal Michael Mann, who was placed on leave after coming under criticism for the handling of the rape involving the two students tendered his resignation in 2019.

Principal criticized for handling of N-W rape case resigns The Niagara-Wheatfield principal who was placed on leave in June after coming under criticis

The attorney general's investigation found that on multiple occasions, Niagara-Wheatfield did not protect students from harassment and bullying, affecting the overall school climate and harming students for a period of years. In the last several years, there have been more than 30 documented incidents of sex discrimination, sexual harassment, sexual assault, or gender-based bullying at Niagara-Wheatfield, yet district officials never created a single written safety plan, nor took any documented effort to keep students safe following these reports of rape, physical or sexual assault, or harassment. As a direct result of the hostile environment cultivated by Niagara-Wheatfield, at least two students dropped out of school.

The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York, seeks injunctive relief, including oversight, monitoring, and trainings for NWCSD, and the creation of new policies and practices for the handling of sexual assault, including a written safety plan for victims of harassment and assault.
Niagara Falls, NY (14301)

Today

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some clouds. Low 59F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some clouds. Low 59F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph.
The Leader of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, Primate Elijah Ayodele, on Wednesday warned that another terrorist group will emerge with...

The Leader of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, Primate Elijah Ayodele, on Wednesday warned that another terrorist group will emerge with sophisticated weapons.

Primate Ayodele revealed that President Muhammadu Buhari and the Chief of Army Staff need to fortify the security of the nation because he foresees another terrorist group coming up soon.

In a statement released by his media office, the man of God revealed that the existing ones, Boko Haram and ISWAP will fade out but a tougher one will rise in Africa and settle down in Nigeria with highly sophisticated weapons.

He revealed that God is ready to fight the battle against terrorism for Nigeria but the Army need to show that they are ready to win the fight by making some apprehensions.

Nigeria will overcome terrorism if the government will take to instruction. Boko Haram is fading out as I said, I foresee that ISWAP will also go soon but I see another terrorist group in Africa coming to settle down in Nigeria. They will use highly sophisticated weapons to operate. If the military is ready, God will fight terrorism for Nigeria. Some politicians are involved in terrorism, they should be arrested and dealt with, and these are the people fueling terrorism.

Continuing, He asked Nigerians to pray not to lose a top army general and advised the new chief of army staff to be focused.





 Let Nigeria pray so the army will not lose a top general. The new chief of army staff should be focused so that he can succeed. He will battle enemies who are in charge of terrorists in Nigeria.

While speaking on corruption, Primate Ayodele noted that He foresees that the EFCC will go after influential politicians who are corrupt, stating that many of them will need to surrender their ambition and portfolios due to this development.

EFCC will do a lot as from now on, many politicians should get prepared because some will go to jail, they will be mandated to surrender their ambition. Anyone who is involved in corruption should not contest, they will be disgraced.
The baby born in prison by an 18-year-old girl, Kemisola Ogunniyi, who was arrested during the End SARS protest in Akure, has been christe...

The baby born in prison by an 18-year-old girl, Kemisola Ogunniyi, who was arrested during the End SARS protest in Akure, has been christened on Wedneday.

The baby was christened at Ayedun area of Akure, Ondo State capital with well-wishers trooping into Vera Christian Assembly to witnessed the event despite the heavy downpour.

Some of the names given to the baby boy include, Eriponmile, Oluwadamilare Elijah, Okikianu, Oluwanifemi son of Temitope.

During the christening ceremony, the wife of Ooni of Ife, Olori Naomi Ogunwusi, stormed the venue with her entourage and offered the baby scholarship from primary to secondary school level.

Apart from the scholarship, Olori Ogunwusi also presented the new baby and the mother who was shedding tears of joy with food items, toiletries as well as other gifts.

According to the Oonis queen, she was touched by the plight of the baby and the mother and decided to come personally to witness the christening of the baby and give support to them.

An Ondo state High Court sitting in Olokuta Medium Prison in Akure had on Tuesday, granted bail to Kemisola after spending eight months in the prison custody.

Kemisola who was granted N10 million bail was charged for arson, conspiracy, riotous assembly, stealing and malicious damage.

The teenager gave birth to a baby boy in prison custody last Wednesday.
The federal government has presented letters of credence to Tukur Buratai and Abayomi Olonisakin, as non-career ambassadors to the Republi...

The federal government has presented letters of credence to Tukur Buratai and Abayomi Olonisakin, as non-career ambassadors to the Republic of Benin and Cameroon, respectively.





A letter of credence is a diplomatic letter appointing an ambassador to another sovereign state.

The letters were handed over to the two ambassadors by Geoffrey Onyeama, minister of foreign affairs, in Abuja, on Tuesday.

In February, President Muhammadu Buhari appointed Buratai, former chief of army staff, and Olonisakin, former chief of defence staff, as non-career ambassadors.





Also appointed were Ibok-Ete Ibas, former chief of naval staff, and Sadique Abubakar, former chief of air staff.

The appointment was met with varying reactions at the time, but the senate went ahead to screen the ex-service chiefs.

Presenting a report on behalf of the senate foreign affairs committee in February, Muhammed Bulkachuwa had said the nominees met the requirements for the positions.

The nominees rose to a point of their career that has made them eminently qualified. The committee is satisfied with their character and performance, the lawmaker had said.

The ex-service chiefs were subsequently confirmed by the senate.
The Oyo State government has said that it will employ traditional means to address security challenges facing the state. The state governmen...





The Oyo State government has said that it will employ traditional means to address security challenges facing the state.

The state government made this disclosure through the Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Dr. Wasiu Olatubosun.

Recall that the State had in the last few months witnessed series of security challenges.

Our correspondent recalls that no fewer than fifty-seven people had been kidnapped in the last three months.

Gunmen had also killed citizens of the state in the last few days.

The state government has, however, said it is ready to offer sacrifices, special prayers and other traditional methods to address the situation.

The resolution to use traditional means to tackle insecurity was part of a resolution at a Community Public Enlightenment meeting on Security and Peaceful Coexistence, held on Wednesday in Ibadan.

Olatubosun who convened the meeting on behalf of the government expressed the joy of the administration for the support given to the governor by the traditional worshippers since the last gubernatorial elections.

He informed that Makinde was working on the request of the traditional worshipers to be granted a public holiday.

He harped on the need to involve the traditionalists, among other religious bodies, in the effort to end insecurity in the state.

I wish to inform you that work is ongoing on the approval of a special holiday for traditional worshippers in Oyo State, it is a long process that must go through legislation, executive assent and state gazette, the government is working on this and we need your continuous collaboration to make Oyo State more harmonious and attractive to investors.

We need to involve you our fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters in the traditional religion in putting an end to insecurity in the State, we are using this opportunity to urge you to do all you can, including making spiritual appeasements, sacrifices to ensure and maintain peace in our State.

In the old, our forefathers had ways of overcoming insecurity, we need to go back and adopt some of these methods to make our land habitable, to make Oyo State the pride of other States and attract investors to bring their businesses, which in turn will multiply employment opportunities and improve commercial activities.
Ahmad Gumi, Islamic cleric, says it is unfair to compare the activities of criminal herdsmen with those of the Indigenous People of Biafra...

Ahmad Gumi, Islamic cleric, says it is unfair to compare the activities of criminal herdsmen with those of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

The cleric, who is known to have access to bandits, said herdsmens crimes weigh significantly lesser than those of IPOB.

Speaking on Arise TV on Wednesday, Gumi called for fairness in the comparison between the two groups, saying one is killing our gallant men while the other is kidnapping children to make money and not to kill them.

IPOB is attacking the police, the army, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and other government institutions; killing our men in service, he said.

And the herdsmen are kidnapping children not to kill them but to get money; so how can you compare somebody who is killing our gallant men directly to somebody who is kidnapping children to make money and not to kill them. Look, we need some fairness in what we are doing.

Bandits have kidnapped over 800 school children across the north since December 2020.

The security challenge has led to the death several students, notably the killing of five Greenfield University students.

Since IPOB launched its militia arm called Eastern Security Network (ESN) a few months ago, attacks on security operatives and government infrastructure have surged. A number of security operatives have been killed by the militia.
Ahmad Lawan, President of the Senate, on Wednesday said the National Assembly Complex is overdue for rehabilitation. Lawan made the ...

Ahmad Lawan, President of the Senate, on Wednesday said the National Assembly Complex is overdue for rehabilitation.

Lawan made the comments after a point of order moved by Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, the Deputy Chief Whip of the Senate.

Abdullahi had complained on Tuesday that some media reports about the leakage and flooding of the chambers due to a heavy downpour were full of inaccuracies and therefore impugned the integrity of lawmakers.

The Senate lobby of the National Assembly complex on Tuesday was flooded with water as cleaners battled to stop the water from seeping into the chambers.

The water which had leaked directly from the damaged roof during the rain had Senators coming into the Chambers around 11.00 am, wondering where such an amount of water was coming from.

The maintenance of the National Assembly complex is the function of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA).

Recall that the sum of N37 billion was budgeted for the maintenance of the complex in the 2020 budget, which elicited wild reactions from the public, including the Civil Society Organisations (CSOs).
The 26 members of the Ogun State House of Assembly have celebrated their second year as lawmakers in the state, but with no constituency pro...





The 26 members of the Ogun State House of Assembly have celebrated their second year as lawmakers in the state, but with no constituency projects.

The ninth Assembly was constituted on June 10, with Olakunle Oluomo emerging as the Speaker.

With their emergence as lawmakers, there were high expectations from constituents, who saw a new beginning in a house made up of a sizeable number of youths.

This is simply so because the members had made promises to embark on various constituency projects if they were elected to represent their people at the ninth assembly.

However, it was reported that the lawmakers are yet to fulfill their promises, 24 months after they came on board.

Our correspondent understands that most of the lawmakers are now being dragged on social media by their constituents, who would not stop comparing them with their predecessors.

It will be recalled that one of the legislators from Ado-Odo/Ota II constituency, Musefiu Lamidi, had during plenary in October 2020, expressed concern over what he termed the misinformation in some quarters that members had received constituency project allowances but had failed to do the needful.

Lamidi said he was accused by his constituents that Governor Dapo Abiodun had approved money for them to embark on constituency projects; an insinuation that was dispelled by the Speaker.

For face saving, some of the lawmakers have been embarking on lacklustre projects to prove their relevance to constituents, who are already running out of patience.

It was gathered that some of the legislators carry out the minor projects from their monthly salaries, which the Speaker said stood between N500,000 and N680,000.

But, Speaker Oluomo said their inability to embark on constituency projects was as a result of Gov Abioduns refusal to release funds to that effect.

For the second time, Oluomo said in a recent interview on radio that the governor is yet to release a dime to the lawmakers for the execution of projects in their constituencies.

Oluomo said the State government asked them to hold on about their constituency projects.

In Ogun State Assembly, this is two years, we have not gotten Kobo from the government for constituency projects. We have not gotten a dime for constituency projects. This is our second year now. We have not received a Kobo for constituency projects.

And we understand the government, because there is no local government you will not see the government repairing schools, renovating primary health care centres. There is no local government you will go without seeing them (the government) doing one road or the other.

What they are saying is that we should hold on about our constituency projects. We understand. But the truth of the matter is that no honourable member; apart from our salaries and allowances, in the last two years, has gotten anything, Oluomo stated emphatically.

It was gathered that the legislators, while marking their second anniversary Tuesday, made a unanimous call for the implementation of more infrastructural projects, especially road construction and rehabilitation in their respective constituencies.

They appealed to Abiodun to release their constituency project allowances to enable them implement projects to complement the existing infrastructure put in place by the State Government in their constituencies.
The Russian government on Wednesday said it fired warning shots at a British Royal Navy warship on the Black Sea near Crimea. Russias...

The Russian government on Wednesday said it fired warning shots at a British Royal Navy warship on the Black Sea near Crimea.





Russias defence ministry said its fighter jet dropped bombs on the path of the HMS Defender and a border patrol ship fired shots after the warship entered 3 km into its (Russias) territorial waters.

The patrol ship reportedly fired twice and the Su24-M jet dropped four bombs in the path of the British vessel.

According to the ministry, the British warship was warned to back off but it kept its course.

It, however, left minutes after the shots were fired.

The destroyer had been warned that weapons would be used if it trespasses the border of the Russian Federation. It did not react to the warning, the defence ministry said.

But the UK military said it is untrue that its HMS Defender was shot at.

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It said its vessel did not trespass but was only conducting innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law.

This morning, HMS Defender carried out a routine transit from Odesa towards Georgia across the Black Sea, UK ministry of defence responded in a statement.

As is normal for this route, she entered an internationally recognised traffic separation corridor. She exited that corridor safely at 0945 BST. As is routine, Russian vessels shadowed her passage and she was made aware of training exercises in her wider vicinity.

We believe the Russians were undertaking a gunnery exercise in the Black Sea and provided the maritime community with prior-warning of their activity,

No shots were directed at HMS Defender and we do not recognise the claim that bombs were dropped in her path.





As is normal for this route, she entered an internationally recognised traffic separation corridor. She exited that corridor safely at 0945 BST. As is routine, Russian vessels shadowed her passage and she was made aware of training exercises in her wider vicinity.



2/2  Ministry of Defence  (@DefenceHQ) June 23, 2021

The UK and its allies do not recognise Crimea as Russian territory after Moscow annexed the region in February 2014.
Newsfrom Japan

Tokyo, June 23 (Jiji Press)--A former Japanese Foreign Ministry official who became senior adviser to the director-general of the World Trade Organization in May vowed to devote himself to assisting the reform-minded WTO chief.

"I'll fully support the WTO chief who has a strong will to promote reform," Tomochika Uyama, who became the first Japanese to take such an important post at the Geneva-based trade body, said in a recent interview.

The WTO has made little progress in making trade rules. Its dispute settlement functions do not work well due to U.S. opposition to replacing Appellate Body members.

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who became the first woman to lead the WTO in March, has been working on challenges including intellectual property waivers for COVID-19 vaccines and fisheries subsidies.

"WTO member economies are feeling her enthusiasm," Uyama said, referring to rising momentum for reforming the organization.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
Watertown, NY (13601)

Today

Rain diminishing to a few showers by morning. Low 57F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall near a quarter of an inch..

Tonight

Rain diminishing to a few showers by morning. Low 57F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall near a quarter of an inch.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo, right, and Secretary to the Governor Melissa DeRosa at a COVID-19 briefing at the governors office in Manhattan on Monday. Courtesy of Gov. Andrew Cuomos office
At first glance, the 108 bottles of yellow fingernail polish in artist Christian Anh Dai Viet Dinhs exhibit of ceramic sculpture at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art might seem identical. But as you look more carefully, you pick up on subtle differences in shape, from squat to slender. And you notice color variations, from antique ivory to mango. If, as you survey the bottles, you begin considering the relationship of individuality to generality, then youre being drawn into a subject dear to Dinhs heart.

Dinh, 28, is a first-generation American. His mom was 7 and his dad was 14 in 1975, when they escaped the chaos at the close of the war in Vietnam and eventually settled with their families in Florida. Dinh said he cant speak Vietnamese very well, but he understands it all right. For instance, he understood when his grandmother instructed him how to properly steam a whole fish. Grandma wasnt big on the exact timing of the recipe. Instead, she told him to just wait until the eyes turn white, then the fish is perfectly done.

Now, Dinh appreciates being a part of a chain of culture that can pass down native recipes from generation to generation, from the distant past far into the future. But, he confesses, there was a time when he didnt want to be identified with the perceived stereotypes of Vietnamese-American culture  the nail salons, the love of karaoke, the Catholic Church and all that stuff.

Furthermore, he didnt want to be lumped in with all the other Asian cultures, as often happened. He was an individualist, which, he said, is a very American trait. Or maybe its a trait of people like Dinh, who have one foot in American culture and one foot in another culture too. Maybe, since some Americans think all the yellow nail-polish bottles look the same, some of the bottles strive to stand out more than they otherwise would.

Dinh is one of those dudes who overdoes everything. When he studied classical guitar, he practiced until he risked damaging the muscles in his hands. When he studied photography, he became so obsessed with old-fashioned darkroom work that hed volunteer to develop photos for other students. And when he learned to create classic Chinese porcelain, he honed the exacting techniques until his vases and cast shapes look like they might have been done by an age-old master. Dinhs craftsmanship is, well, outstanding.

A few years back, Dinh had an epiphany. It suddenly dawned on him that those Vietnamese stereotypes that he had shunned were actually symbols of cultural triumph.

For instance, back in the 1970s, Vietnamese entrepreneurs went into the nail salon business, he said. Now there are Vietnamese-run salons from coast to coast. And theyre not just examples of successful small startup companies; theyre examples of immigrant community members making sure there are always jobs for other immigrant community members. Vietnamese nail salons, he said, are like Chinese restaurants, in a way. They represent assimilation as they ensure a cultural bond.

It would have been easy, he said, for the immigrant Christian Vietnamese to have relaxed their Catholic devotion as they settled in a new country, but they didnt. Instead, he said, they re-established churches that anchored communities as they adjusted to their new world. The church was a place of worship and a place for ethnic identity to survive, he said.

The way that Dinh has woven those concepts into his ceramics on the Ogden Museums fourth floor is marvelously subtle. The sets of identical ceramic hands youll see are reproductions of the manikin hands used to display nail-painting techniques in the windows of Vietnamese nail salons. But instead of cheaply manufactured plastic advertising props, Dinhs hands are lovingly hand-made treasures, decorated with symbols of the refugee experience. As Dinh put it, the messages on the hands reveal both language barriers and tools of communication, such as the words of the hymn Ave Maria, along with a celebratory Vietnamese drinking toast, karaoke machine-style lettering, American dollars and Vietnamese currency.

One of the exquisite Chinese-style blue and white pots is decorated with images from takeout cartons from Chinese restaurants. Another is illustrated with the sort of squid used to make Vietnamese fish sauce. And another includes a family recipe for, you guessed it, steamed fish. The vases might seem entirely traditional, if they werent shaped like giant fingernail polish bottles.

In each case, Dinh has taken objects or ideas that could seem ordinary and made them precious, just like his culture has become precious to him. Which brings us back to the 108 meticulously made porcelain nail-polish bottles glazed in a spectrum of yellow.

If they all look the same (though they are not), then we might all look the same, but were all individuals, Dinh said. If all Asian people are yellow, then yellow is beautiful.

Dinh is a graduate student at Tulane University. His Nail Salon exhibit continues through Jan. 16 at The Ogden, 925 Camp St. Timed tickets required: adults, $13.50; seniors/teachers/military, $11; children 5 to 17, $6.75.

+16 A dreadful detail of New Orleans history in a delicious costume show at Newcomb Art Museum Part of Mexico-born artist Laura Anderson Barbatas exhibit at the Newcomb Art Museum includes a very strange, very disturbing snippet of New 

+9 One artist devours another, and other unreasonable sights at Good Children Gallery There are only a few days left to catch The Sleep of Reason, an exhibit at the gritty little Good Children Gallery on St. Claude Avenue. But
According to a new report, Samsung has started mass producing a host of upcoming flagship Galaxy devices. From the Galaxy Z Fold3 to the Galaxy Watch Active 4 and the Galaxy S21 FE, Samsung is preparing for a big launch cycle for the second half of 2021.

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Roland Quandt has delivered updates about the release of upcoming flagship Samsung hardware. Based on previous rumours and leaks, the South Korean company has two foldable smartphones and multiple smartwatches in development, to name but a few.

According to Quandt, Samsung has started mass producing the following devices in 'large quantities':

Galaxy Buds 2 (SM-R177)

Galaxy Z Fold3

Galaxy Z Flip3

Galaxy Watch 4

Galaxy Watch Active 4

Galaxy S21 FE

However, Quandt asserts that Samsung produced 'a few ten thousand parts' for the Galaxy S21 FE before stopping. While he stresses that the Galaxy S21 FE is not cancelled, there is no explanation for why Samsung has stopped producing it for the time being, beyond what has been discussed previously.
Height is power in public art, and Roosevelts stature on his noble steed visibly expresses dominance and superiority over the Native American and African figures, the panel wrote in its report, delivered in January 2018.

At the time, about half of the commission wanted to relocate the sculpture, and about half recommended additional historical research before making a decision. Only a few members wanted to leave the statue where it was, if on-site context was provided.

At Mondays meeting, made public as a YouTube video, Sam Biederman of the New York City Parks Department said that although the statue was not erected with malice of intent, its composition supports a thematic framework of colonization and racism.

The museum had spent years working with academics and advisers, both before and after the statue was considered by the mayors monuments commission. In 2019, that research culminated in an exhibition about the sculptures context and history  and how the public perceived it.

The understanding of statues and monuments as powerful and hurtful symbols of systemic racism became even more evident in the wake of the movement for racial justice that emerged after the murder of George Floyd, Dan Slippen, vice president of government relations at the museum, said at the meeting. It has become clear that removing the statue would be a symbol of progress toward an inclusive and equitable community.
Morgan Stanley will require employees and visitors to be vaccinated against the coronavirus when they enter its New York offices next month.

Starting July 12, employees, contingent workers, clients and visitors at Morgan Stanleys buildings in New York City and Westchester County must attest that they are fully vaccinated, a person familiar with the matter said, citing a memo from Mandell Crawley, the banks chief human resources officer. Staff members who dont will be required to work remotely, added the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss personnel-related matters.

Although the requirement relies on an honor system for now rather than proof of vaccination, it will allow the bank to lift other pandemic protocols, such as face coverings and physical distancing. Some office spaces for Morgan Stanleys institutional securities, investment and wealth management divisions already allow only those who have received their shots to work from their desks.

Companies across America are grappling with the question of whether to ask employees about their vaccination status, or to require those returning to offices to be vaccinated. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said last month that both actions were legal. Still, some senior executives have worried about pushback from employees.
When I was growing up in the suburbs east of San Francisco, our teachers used to say, Dont put anything in your ear except for your elbow. No matter how much our ears itched, we were told, we shouldnt poke in a pen cap, the pink eraser on a No. 2 pencil or a cotton swab; doing so risked puncturing our eardrums.

True enough  and yet what our teachers said didnt reflect the practices of my Chinese grandmother, who had immigrated to the United States and moved into our house to help care for me and my siblings while my parents worked. Waipo, as we called her, would cozily tuck our heads into her capacious lap to clean our ears. Her grooming introduced me to the ear spoon  a long-handled curette, also known as an ear pick, ear picker or ear scoop, that is a common implement in Asian households.

Traditional ear spoons can be made of silver, brass, plastic, bamboo or another smooth, sturdy material; the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco owns an ornate jade hair ornament from the Qing dynasty that doubles as an ear spoon. I dont recall what Waipos looked like, only that sitting in her bedroom  where I remember the glow of the lamp, with the crinkly clear plastic left on the shade, and her bottle of Oil of Olay on the dresser  she made us feel cherished.

Waipo had other rituals that I knew our white neighbors might find strange or unusual. She hung meat from the rafters of our garage to cure it and rolled whole walnuts in her hand to keep her fingers strong and nimble. But she also loved The Price is Right, and together with the host, Bob Barker, wed shout A new car!  one of the phrases she could say in English. Eventually, when I was 8 or 9, she moved in with my aunt in Southern California.
Robinson: It is a fragile system. It could become like the League of Nations. In the future, to the extent that there will be historians, they may look back and say it was a good idea that failed. People may look back to our time and say, Here was a crux, and then they blew it. This is the power of the basic science-fictional exercise of looking at our own time as if from the future, thus judging ourselves as actors in creating history. From that imaginary perspective, it can sometimes become blazingly obvious what we should do now. Parochial concerns over quarterly returns or the selfish privileges of currently existing wealthy people fade to insignificance when you take the long view and see us teetering on the edge of causing a mass-extinction event that would hammer all future living creatures.

What happens when the system is under stress?

Klein: Covid functioned, in some ways, as a test run for how our political systems would handle the disruptions of climate change. It was a crisis that experts had warned about for years and years. And we didnt really prepare at all. And then it hit. And so youd imagine that the last year has led to a tremendous sharpening of our catastrophic imagination, that the idea that the perils we are told will come are not abstract, that they really do come and they really transform our lives. On the other hand, you can read it the opposite way: Its a potentially scary lesson in how much external destruction the rich countries, if they can protect themselves, will get used to. How has the pandemic changed your model of how societies will envision and then respond to true catastrophe?

Jasanoff: I have spent 16 months thinking about almost nothing other than what youre talking about. There was an interesting moment in France when the health minister was being questioned about why the initial modeling of the spread of the disease in France failed. And she said in public testimony that one point their modelers hadnt reckoned on was that there were direct flights from Wuhan to Paris. This was not in their model. Just pause for a second to consider that: In modeling the spread of the disease, the advisers to the health minister of France didnt know that there were direct flights from Wuhan to Paris. So, these are moments that make one reflect on the hubris of so-called knowledge. What is it that people are seeing, and what is it that theyre not seeing when contemplating the next catastrophe? And why? Those are, I think, the questions that we should be confronting as well.

Gunn-Wright: I think its important to note that in the United States, that resistance to masks and social distancing was not equally racially distributed or equally distributed by class or income. And I do think its important when we have takeaways like that to actually note and wonder what that means and what drove that, because it wasnt happening across the board.

Griffith: I worry that America might learn the wrong lesson from Covid. Theres a lot of optimism there now, because magically the vaccines arrived. I think thats a fairly natural response. But a similar level of success with climate change  lets say, staying under two degrees of warming  wont be easy. The existing machines in the world that burn fossil fuels  the coal plants, natural-gas plants, cars, furnaces and boilers in peoples basements  if theyre allowed to live out their natural life spans, they will emit enough carbon dioxide to take us very close to two degrees. We need very close to perfect execution: When we retire anything that emits carbon dioxide, we must replace it with the thing that wont emit carbon dioxide.

And that will only get us under two degrees if we have a World War II arsenal of democracy-style intervention in the economy. Back then, American manufacturing was ramped up to make the materials to win the war: bullets, tanks, airplanes, Liberty ships. The bullets to win this war are batteries, electric vehicles, offshore wind platforms, wind turbines, solar, rooftop solar and heat pumps. All those industries are about 10 times below the production rates we need to hit this target. No better time to do that than coming out of the pandemic, when unemployment is high and we need to put people back to work.
Curtis Sliwa won the Republican primary in the New York mayors race on Tuesday, setting up a long-shot challenge in November to the Democratic Partys eventual nominee.

With a significant portion of votes counted, Mr. Sliwa was beating Fernando Mateo by over 40 percentage points, according to The Associated Press.

I am a populist, Mr. Sliwa thundered to a roaring, well-dressed crowd of about 200 people at a Midtown Manhattan steakhouse after the race was called.

With Rudolph W. Giuliani, a former Republican mayor, standing beside him, Mr. Sliwa vowed to fight crime, address the citys homelessness problem and stop animal shelters from euthanizing pets.
No matter the primary results tonight, the mood at Dianne Moraless election party was festive and celebratory: it also functioned as the candidates birthday party. (She turned 54 on Monday.)

Supporters and staff gathered at The Corners in Bedford-Stuyvesant, her neighborhood bar, and feasted on mac and cheese, fried chicken and ribs, all ordered from a local joint. A cake birthday cake was offered for dessert.

It feels like were in the middle, at a crossroads, starting the next chapter, Ms. Morales said, addressing the crowd around 9:30 p.m.

In a speech that referenced Frederick Douglass, Shirley Chisholm and Michelle Obama, Ms. Morales described the challenges her campaign, historic in its elevation of an Afro-Latina woman to the mayoral ballot, had overcome in order to make it to election night.
Mr. Bragg and Ms. Farhadian Weinstein split Manhattan almost perfectly in two: Mr. Bragg won most neighborhoods on the boroughs West Side, dominating in the Upper West Side and Harlem, while Ms. Farhadian Weinstein won big on the East Side, particularly the Upper East Side and in Inwood and Washington Heights. Each performed solidly throughout the borough, with strong showings in every district.

While many of his proposed policies and priorities align with those of progressive prosecutors who have remade offices around the country in recent years, Mr. Bragg defied easy classification during the race, explaining the nuances of his positions by referring to his experiences growing up. If elected, he would be the first Black person to hold the office.

We are going to demand and deliver on both safety and fairness, Mr. Bragg said in a speech at his election party in Harlem in which he acknowledged that there were votes still to be counted but declared victory and spoke as if he had already won. He pledged to help end racial disparities in the justice system and to run an office informed by his and his supporters life experiences.

Ms. Farhadian Weinstein said in a statement that the race was far from over.

We all knew going into today that this race was not going to be decided tonight, and it has not been, the statement said. We have to be patient.

Ms. Farhadian Weinstein, who would be the first woman to hold the office, ran a more moderate campaign than most of the field, declining to join some other candidates in saying that she would not prosecute certain categories of crime under any circumstances. She raced ahead of the other contenders in fund-raising, bringing in at least $12.8 million, including $8.2 million she gave to her own campaign  causing her competitors and some observers to accuse her of trying to buy the race.
Under ranked-choice voting, New Yorkers are able to list five candidates in order of preference. If no single candidate earns more than 50 percent of first-choice votes, the candidate in last place will be eliminated and their votes will be distributed to the candidate their voters ranked next. These rounds of elimination continue until there are only two candidates left, and the one who comes out ahead is the winner.

This is the most important election, weve got to bring New York City back, said Richard Ridge, 62, a volunteer for Erik Bottcher, a candidate for City Council, as Mr. Ridge stood on a corner in Manhattans West Village. Mr. Ridge, who works at a website focused on the theater industry, one of the sectors hardest hit by the pandemic, said the stakes felt so high that this was the first time he had ever volunteered for a campaign.

Mr. Bottcher said if he couldnt inspire enough voters on the street, I will go to their apartments personally and take them to the polls.

In the Williamsburg area of Brooklyn, Alyson Mance, 36, who works in sales, said that the twin factors of the Covid crisis and the still-roiling passions of the 2020 presidential election had brought her to her polling place at Public School 84 Jose de Diego that day.

Normally I dont really care, thats the truth, she said. This time, I feel that as a country we bungled it so bad and I had to pay more attention than I usually do.

That included doing more extensive research than she has ever done before voting in a previous primary election. The pandemics restrictions on her social life helped: It left her little else to do, Ms. Mance said. 2020 gave me a lot more time to research candidates, she said.

She arrived to her polling place with organized ranked lists for each race on her phone.

On the corner of Hudson and Grove Streets, in the West Village, Warren Bruce, a campaign volunteer, engaged in a curious dance with a volunteer of a rival campaign, unthinkable in past elections where voters could choose only one person: whenever someone stopped for a leaflet, that campaign then suggested they grab their rivals flier too.
Scott M. Stringer, addressing supporters at a results-watching party on the Upper West Side shortly after polls closed, appeared to acknowledge on Tuesday that his longstanding dream of becoming mayor had come up short, without explicitly conceding that the race was over.

Citing his long career in government and politics, Mr. Stringer, the city comptroller, gave what amounted to a valedictory to a campaign that he began as a leading contender, only to fade after two women leveled decades-old accusations of sexual harassment against him.

This was a very tough election for me and my family, said Mr. Stringer, with his wife, Elyse Buxbaum, at his side but it was a very inspirational one as well.

He pledged to support the next mayor, and he also made it clear he was not finished with public service.
Like everyone else, I look forward to a summer of reconnecting with family and friends and relishing a good ole Fourth of July barbecue  unmasked! But I will be doing so with a pit in my stomach, because just beneath the surface calm in America, volcanic forces are gathering that could blow the lid off our democracy. We are living in a fools paradise. Enjoy it while it lasts.

Three recent news stories have me terrified:

First are the unfolding reports about how Donald Trumps Justice Department secretly seized the personal data of journalists and Democrats in Congress from phone and tech companies while investigating leaks, and even secured Trumps own White House counsels data. Now imagine what would happen if Trump was re-elected in 2024 by his cultlike following and he didnt have to worry about facing voters again. Hed be out of control.

Second are the efforts by Republican-dominated state legislatures to pass voter-suppression measures to retain power and reinstall Trump and his imitators  laws that in some cases just make it harder to vote and in other cases, as Vox noted in an in-depth assessment, might disqualify voters for no valid reason. Or allow partisan officials to refuse to certify an election, even if there are no legitimate questions about who won.

And third, as The Times just reported, homicide rates in large cities  many of them run by Democrats  were up more than 30 percent on average last year, and up another 24 percent for the beginning of this year. Soaring murder rates and policing are becoming huge Republican and right-wing-media talking points. Democrats are vulnerable. Thats why President Biden plans to lay out a forceful anti-crime strategy on Wednesday.
A grand jury in Texas has declined to indict eight former jailers on criminal charges in the death of Marvin Scott III, a 26-year-old Black man who died after being restrained and pepper-sprayed at the Collin County jail in March.

Greg Willis, the Collin County district attorney, said in a statement on Tuesday that the grand jury had reviewed video footage of the episode and heard testimony from witnesses before coming to its decision that the former detention officers  Andres Cardenas, Alec Difatta, Blaise Mikulewicz, Rafael Paradez, Justin Patrick, James Schoelen, Christopher Windsor and Austin Wong  would not be charged.

The jury said in a statement that it found no probable cause exists to charge any person with a criminal offense related to the death of Mr. Scott.

Mr. Scotts family and protesters had been demanding that the jailers be arrested and that the authorities release footage that would show what transpired inside the jail.
WASHINGTON  Republicans on Tuesday blocked the most ambitious voting rights legislation to come before Congress in a generation, dealing a blow to Democrats attempts to counter a wave of state-level ballot restrictions and supercharging a campaign to end the legislative filibuster.

President Biden and Democratic leaders said the defeat was only the beginning of their drive to steer federal voting rights legislation into law, and vowed to redouble their efforts in the weeks ahead.

In the fight for voting rights, this vote was the starting gun, not the finish line, said Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York and the majority leader. We will not let it go. We will not let it die. This voter suppression cannot stand.

But the Republican blockade in the Senate left Democrats without a clear path forward, and without a means to beat back the restrictive voting laws racing through Republican-led states. For now, it will largely be left to the Justice Department to decide whether to challenge any of the state laws in court  a time-consuming process with limited chances of success  and to a coalition of outside groups to help voters navigate the shifting rules.
Democrats have begun to move forward to pass some, if not all, of Mr. Bidens economic agenda through the fast-track budget reconciliation process in order to bypass a Republican filibuster in the Senate. But the openness from Mr. Sanders underscored the breadth of compromises that rank-and-file lawmakers may have to accept to secure the necessary support of all 50 senators who caucus with Democrats and nearly every House Democrat.

Mr. Sanders, who has pushed for as much as $6 trillion in spending should bipartisan negotiations on a narrower infrastructure package collapse, said he had asked Democrats on his committee to outline their priorities as he moves to build consensus around an outline.

OK, look, what do you think? What kind of numbers youre comfortable with? And where would you like to cut back? Mr. Sanders said as he described his approach. We havent heard a lot about the cutting back.

But he acknowledged the challenge in such maneuvers even as he pushes for various liberal priorities, including expanding Medicare benefits and eligibility and more spending. Were going to have to make sure that we end up with numbers that 50 members can agree on, he said.

Mr. Sanders said he had not yet received a commitment from every senator for a $6 trillion package, even as he warned that a bipartisan infrastructure agreement would clear the Senate only with the promise that every Democrat would also support a reconciliation package.
American officials also seized Farss website in 2018, when it was registered as a .com domain. The news agency switched to an Iranian domain of .ir and was back online soon afterward  a strategy that Press TV said on Tuesday that it would follow.

Amir Rashidi, the director of digital rights and security at Miaan Group and an expert on Iranian technology, likened the security action to a game of whack-a-mole  you close this domain, they open another and there is nothing they can do.

The way to combat disinformation is information and strengthening independent journalism, giving the population internet access, Mr. Rashidi said.

It was unclear how the security operation might affect the nuclear negotiations, which have been underway in Vienna since April.

Diplomats from the world powers that are trying to revive the accord said after meetings in Vienna on Sunday that the talks were making some progress, with the top Russian negotiator, Mikhail Ulyanov, even predicting a possible breakthrough by mid-July. The negotiators were to return to their capitals this week to brief their governments on the latest developments.

American and Iranian officials are not negotiating directly, leaving it to diplomats from Europe, China and Russia to serve as intermediaries in the talks, which are aimed at bringing the United States and Iran back into compliance with the 2015 nuclear accord that the United States left three years later on the orders of President Donald J. Trump.

President Biden has said that rejoining the nuclear agreement is one of his top foreign policy priorities, although his aides have largely downplayed any certainty that a deal will be struck.
HONG KONG  Nearly a year ago, a 23-year-old ramen cook rode a motorcycle through a Hong Kong neighborhood, flying a large flag emblazoned with a popular antigovernment protest slogan. He collided into several riot police officers as they tried to stop him.

In a different era, the rider, Tong Ying-kit, might have been accused of dangerous driving and assaulting a police officer. Instead, the authorities arrested him last July under a draconian national security law Beijing had imposed on Hong Kong, only hours earlier, that took aim at dissent and other political activity challenging Chinas rule.

Mr. Tong stood trial on Wednesday, the first among the more than 100 people in Hong Kong who have been arrested under the sweeping new rules. His case is a test of how the citys vaunted judicial system, based on British common law principles of fairness and independence, will interpret and enforce Beijings far-reaching security law, in which political crimes are vaguely defined. China says the law is necessary to root out threats to Beijings sovereignty, but human rights activists, opposition leaders and scholars have said the law puts the citys judicial independence in peril.

The national security law constitutes one of the greatest threats to human rights and the rule of law in Hong Kong since the 1997 handover, wrote Lydia Wong and Thomas Kellogg, scholars at Georgetown Law School, in a report in February.
He added that video footage had shown a vehicle leaving the scene.

Chief Clarence Louie of the Osoyoos Indian Band said his community was also ambivalent about the church. I dont believe in the church. I dont believe in those symbols, but some of our people do, Chief Louie said, adding that a handful of churchgoers live on the reserve. He said the fires, which had taken place at night, sounded like vandalism.

The surrounding Okanagan Valley is a stunningly picturesque area known for its sweeping vineyards and lakeside vacation areas. The region, which extends about 125 miles north from the border with Washington State, has produced one of Canadas first Indigenous-owned wineries.

Sergeant Jason Bayda, a spokesman for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in the region, said that while the area was known for its wildfires, acts of arson were very rare. He said that police were not speculating on the circumstances.

I havent heard something like this happening here before, he said. We are sensitive to recent events, he added, alluding to the discovery of the childrens unmarked graves.

He said the R.C.M.P. is investigating the fires, and had sent forensic investigators to comb the charred remains of the churches.

Bob Graham, chief of the Oliver Fire Department, which fought the St. Gregorys fire and is helping investigate it, said the fire there occurred about two hours after Sacred Heart burned. He said the timing  the Sacred Heart fire was discovered at 1:22 a.m. Monday; the R.C.M.P. were notified of the St. Gregorys fire at 3:10 a.m.  seemed more than coincidental.

Chief Graham said he suspected a liquid accelerant may have been used because of the burn patterns found on the ground. Both churches were old and made of wood, he said, and the level of destruction would make it more difficult to parse the evidence.
AMSTERDAM  Rembrandts The Night Watch has been a national icon in the Netherlands ever since it was painted in 1642, but even that didnt protect it.

In 1715, the monumental canvas was cut down on all four sides to fit onto a wall between two doors in Amsterdams Town Hall. The snipped pieces were lost. Since the 19th century, the trimmed painting has been housed in the Rijksmuseum, where it is displayed as the museums centerpiece, at the focal point of its Gallery of Honor.

Now, from Wednesday  for the first time in more than three centuries  it will be possible for the public to see the painting nearly as it was intended, said the museums director, Taco Dibbits.
The South African soprano Pretty Yende expected her visit this week to France, where she is starring in a production of Bellinis La Sonnambula, to be relatively uneventful.

But when she arrived at Pariss main airport on Monday, Yende was taken aback. The French authorities told her she did not have the proper documents to enter the country. They took her for questioning and forced her to submit to a body search that she described as invasive.

I felt stripped of my human dignity, Yende said in an email. It was absolutely uncomfortable.

Yende took to social media to share her experience, saying she was stripped and searched like a criminal offender during the ordeal, which lasted more than two hours. While she was not asked to remove her clothes, she says, the police told her, without explanation, to take off her shoes and kept her in a cold, dark room. She suggested that she had been singled out because she is Black.

Police brutality is real for someone who looks like me, Yende wrote on Facebook, adding that she feared for her life.
What is the songwriting process like for Central Park?

KATE ANDERSON Our job, especially in Season 1, was to set up the voice of the show. [Along with] some of the early guest writers, artists like Sara Bareilles and Meghan Trainor and Cyndi Lauper, we all set the tone, comedically and lyrically.

ELYSSA SAMSEL In Season 2, they would give us either a script or an outline and set us free to figure out whatever the hook of the song was going to be. We always try to make sure that our hook is something that takes us from Point A to Point C so that we can get as much plot into the song as possible, whether were given a script, a paragraph or just like throw a song here.

Are there certain characters that are the most fun to write?

ANDERSON Our personal favorite in terms of just silliness is Elwood [voiced by Rory OMalley]. He has this very optimistic, childlike wonder.

SAMSEL The cast is beyond our wildest dreams. You get to imagine those words in Daveed Diggss mouth or Kathryn Hahns mouth or in Leslie Odom Jr.s angelic voice. It helps to have them as muses.

Kristen Bell, who played the family daughter, Molly, last season, was one of several white actors in the animation industry who stepped down from voicing characters of color last year. She was replaced by Emmy Raver-Lampman  what can viewers expect from her?

SAMSEL Theres this one song in Episode 203 called Trying Too Hard, and its all Emmy and she was incredible.
Jared Drake Bell, a former star of the Nickelodeon series Drake & Josh, faces up to two years in prison after pleading guilty on Wednesday to two charges against him relating to a girl who met him online and attended one of his concerts in Cleveland in 2017.

Mr. Bell, 34, who was charged earlier this month with attempted child endangerment, a felony, and disseminating material harmful to children, a misdemeanor, agreed to a plea deal at a virtual court hearing on Wednesday. He had initially pleaded not guilty to both charges.

Mr. Bells lawyer, Ian N. Friedman, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

The sentencing range is probation to two years in prison. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 12.
Tell us about Chinas involvement in Hong Kongs elections.

China has overhauled Hong Kongs election system. Before anyone can run for office, they will have to pass a screening committee set up by Beijing. The central government had gotten worried that pro-democracy residents were going to try to sweep the upcoming legislative elections. So Beijing passed another top-down order, as it had with the security law.

There are a few major changes. Only patriots, defined by a screening committee, will be allowed to run for office.

Also, in the past, half of the seats in the legislature were directly elected (the other half were reserved for representatives of industry groups, often dominated by pro-Beijing candidates). Now, less than a quarter will be directly elected.

Many pro-democracy leaders are in prison. What does that mean for the movement?

Those sentenced range from some of the most veteran pro-democracy leaders to people in their 20s who had been considered the next generation. The government is sending a message: Anyone who becomes too prominent, or too vocal, is putting themselves at risk. These figures were definitely important in boosting public morale and giving people someone to rally around.
At Harris in San Francisco  a quintessential American steakhouse with dark wood, cozy leather booths and dry martinis  the price of the popular eight-ounce filet mignon with two sides recently increased $2 to $56.

Its even more expensive for the restaurant.

Michael Buhagiar, its chef and owner, said he was now paying 30 to 40 percent more for that steak than he did a year ago. Raising his prices makes up only some of that difference, he said, but were not trying to scare away customers.

About 1,700 miles to the east, Brad Kooima scans the 3,000 cattle in his feedlot in Rock Valley, Iowa, on the South Dakota border. These days, hes losing $84 a head.

The frustration for producers like myself is that youre looking at a situation where demand for beef, domestically and globally, has never been this good, Mr. Kooima, 63, said. And were not making any money.
John David McAfee, the founder of the antivirus software maker bearing his name, died in a prison in Spain on Wednesday, after a Spanish court said he could be extradited to the United States on tax-evasion charges.

His death was confirmed by his lawyers. He was 75.

After selling his pioneering virus-fighting firm in 1994 and losing most of his fortune during the 2008 financial crisis, Mr. McAfee led a peripatetic life that included a turn to paranoia and a string of arrests around the globe. That all culminated in his detention in Spain in 2020 after prosecutors in the United States accused him of not filing tax returns for several years.

The indictment filed by the Justice Department said Mr. McAfee had earned millions from promoting cryptocurrencies, consulting work, speaking engagements and selling the rights to his life story for a documentary, and had tried to avoid taxes by using cryptocurrency and channeling the money through bank accounts. He could have faced prison time if convicted.

Mr. McAfee said he had been arrested despite paying millions of dollars in taxes and resisted extradition, claiming he faced political persecution for denouncing corruption in the Internal Revenue Service and opposing the fiat money system, in which central banks like the Federal Reserve control the money supply. But on Wednesday, the Spanish court released its decision to allow the Justice Departments request to extradite him, saying there was no supporting evidence that such a thing could be happening.
The Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones has told the University of North Carolina that she will not join its faculty as planned next month unless she is granted tenure, according to a letter from her lawyers.

Ms. Hannah-Jones, a correspondent for The New York Times Magazine, had agreed to teach at the universitys Hussman School of Journalism and Media as the Knight Chair in Race and Investigative Journalism. Her appointment drew bitter opposition from conservatives nationwide over Ms. Hannah-Joness role in creating The Timess 1619 Project  an ambitious series that reframed the history of the United States through the lens of slavery  and she was ultimately denied tenure.

The letter, initially reported by NC Policy Watch and published on its site, pointedly referred to political interference by an unnamed powerful donor whose influence contributed to the board of trustees failure to consider her tenure application.

In light of this information, Ms. Hannah-Jones cannot trust that the university would consider her tenure application in good faith during the period of the fixed-term contract, according to the letter, which was dated Monday.
The airline has added flights to and from more than a dozen new airports since the pandemic began, including George Bush Intercontinental in Houston and OHare International in Chicago. This month, Southwest also revealed it had more than doubled an order for Boeings 737 Max airplane next year, committing to take 64 jets with the option to buy dozens more.

Still, Southwest will most likely face intense competition, particularly as smaller airlines, including Sun Country, Frontier and Sprit, try to expand and the other three large airlines shift more of their focus to domestic flights while international travel is depressed. Southwest also saw widespread delays and cancellations last week as it dealt with technical problems, first involving a supplier of data and then with its own systems.

Known for his jovial demeanor, Mr. Kelly, an accountant by training, has led Southwest with a steady hand. He is widely respected in the corporate world and is Southwests second-longest-serving chief executive, behind only Herb Kelleher, the airlines charismatic co-founder, who died in 2019.

Mr. Jordan will be the airlines sixth chief executive. And while he takes over a robust business, he will have to manage Southwests expanding network, try to preserve the airlines quirky corporate culture  Southwest flight attendants, for example, frequently crack jokes and wear much less formal attire than attendants at other big airlines  and repay billions of dollars in loans it took out during the pandemic.

If things are more erratic, I think that will be more of a challenge, Mr. Kelly said.

The Transportation Security Administration screened 2.1 million people at airport checkpoints on Sunday, the most since the pandemic began. But that figure is down 23 percent from the same day in 2019. And while strong demand this summer seems likely, analysts have less confidence in what demand will look like in the fall and winter.

Mr. Jordans experience as a jack-of-all-trades may serve him well. He joined Southwest in 1988 as a computer programmer. Since then, he has held a number of finance, strategy, planning and other executive jobs. He helped develop the airlines frequent flier program.

In 2011, Mr. Jordan was put in charge of integrating AirTran Airways after Southwest bought the company. That deal was unusual because unlike the other big U.S. airlines that were created by mergers between companies like Northwest and Delta and United and Continental, Southwest has grown mostly by adding new routes and airports to its network.
MILAN  If 15 months away from live fashion has taught us anything, it is that viewing fashions digitally is as satisfying as pretending to dine by looking through the window of a restaurant. You have to see it, smell it, feel it, Nick Sullivan, the creative director of Esquire, said on Saturday afternoon in griddle-pan hot Milan.

Pausing for a cigarette beside some tram tracks following a Dolce & Gabbana show, Mr. Sullivan reflected on his decision to rejoin the caravan traveling to the shows that designers are beginning, with considerable caution, to stage here and in Paris, as those cities slowly emerge from the pandemics darkest days.

Digital can be fantastic, Mr. Sullivan said. Yet, as with a good meal consumed with just ones eyes, it invariably makes you hungrier. Milan relies on its position as Italys fashion capital for its economic health and cultural vitality.

For me, resuming live shows instead of digital events is particularly relevant because it gives a sense of purpose and a sense of reality to what I do, Giorgio Armani said in an email. It is also important for the city.
A campaign that began behind the pandemic-imposed safety measure of Zoom screens ended on Tuesday in a five-borough, bare-knuckled brawl as Eric Adams, a former police captain, took a sizable lead over a splintered field of Democrats in the primary race to become New York Citys next mayor.

Here are five takeaways from the mayoral primary:

1. Eric Adams is leading after defining himself on public safety.

A former New York Police Department captain and the current Brooklyn borough president, Mr. Adams framed his candidacy from the start as that of a blue-collar Black man who could battle both rising crime and the citys history of discriminatory policing.

Speaking often of himself in the third person  telling the Eric Adams story  he paced the field in centering his campaign on public safety at a moment when a spike in shootings has raised anxiety among New Yorkers. Recent polls have shown that crime emerged as the top issue for voters.
A campaign that began behind the pandemic-imposed safety measure of Zoom screens ended on Tuesday in a five-borough, bare-knuckled brawl as Eric Adams, a former police captain, took a sizable lead over a splintered field of Democrats in the primary race to become New York Citys next mayor.

Maya Wiley, a former civil rights attorney and past adviser to Mayor Bill de Blasio, was narrowly in second, followed closely by Kathryn Garcia, a former city sanitation commissioner. Neither had conceded in a spirited race whose outcome will shape how the city emerges from the pandemic.

With Democrats far outnumbering Republicans, the Democratic primary winner would be the heavy favorite in November.

With nearly 90 percent of the votes counted, Mr. Adams led in four of the citys five boroughs  everywhere but Manhattan  though the final results, including the first-ever use of ranked-choice voting for the city, are expected to take weeks.
Read more about how India B. Walton won her primary in Buffalo.

A progressive challenger running her first campaign beat Buffalos four-term Democratic mayor in a primary upset on Tuesday that could upend the political landscape in New Yorks second-biggest city and signal the strength of the partys left wing.

The challenger, India B. Walton, is a nurse and community activist who ran with the support of the Democratic Socialists of America and the Working Families Party. When The Associated Press called the race Wednesday morning, Ms. Walton was leading Byron Brown, a longtime member of the Democratic establishment, by 7 percentage points, or about 1,500 votes, with all of the in-person ballots counted.

Should Ms. Walton, 38, triumph in the general election in November  a likely result in heavily Democratic Buffalo  she would be the first female mayor in Buffalos history and the first socialist mayor of a major American city since 1960, when Frank P. Zeidler stepped down as Milwaukees mayor.

Her victory came decades after the countrys most prominent democratic socialist, Senator Bernie Sanders, served as mayor of Burlington, Vt. Mr. Sanders was mayor for eight years before he was elected to Congress and has run for president twice as a Democrat.
The election offered the first major test of a new voting system and capped off months of campaigning in several city races. But winners will not immediately be called in many major contests, including the Democratic primary for mayor and the city comptroller race, with no single candidate getting more than 50 percent of the vote and ranked-choice selections yet to be processed.

Heres a look at where the races stand (and you can follow all the results here):

Eric Adams is ahead. But results are far from final.

In initial tallies after Tuesdays voting, Mr. Adams was in front among the Democratic candidates for mayor with nearly 32 percent of first-choice votes. He was trailed by Maya Wiley, with about 22 percent, and Kathryn Garcia, with more than 19 percent.

The three remained firmly optimistic on Tuesday night. But Andrew Yang, who was in fourth place at less than 12 percent, conceded. We still believe we can help, but not as mayor and first lady, he said with his wife, Evelyn, at his side.

As ranked-choice votes are tabulated, those standings could change, and absentee ballots also must be counted. It may be weeks before an official winner is named.
The poll tracks fairly closely with the actual first-round results reported so far: It showed Mr. Adams with 32 percent and Ms. Wiley and Ms. Garcia both with 18 percent. It was conducted before the races chaotic final weekend, when Mr. Adams was criticized for asserting that Ms. Garcia and Andrew Yang, a former presidential candidate, were trying to weaken Black candidates by campaigning together.

That episode may have damaged Mr. Adams and helped Ms. Garcia, but not much, said Rob Richie, FairVotes president.

My assumption is that the last three days didnt change the fundamentals enough to actually change the outcome, he said.

To give a sense of Mr. Adamss strength, in a final-round matchup between Mr. Adams and Ms. Wiley based on the voter rankings in the FairVote poll, Ms. Wiley inherited 47 percent of Ms. Garcias first-place voters and Mr. Adams inherited 35 percent, but he still beat her by more than 10 points. In a similar matchup between Mr. Adams and Ms. Garcia, she inherited more than 60 percent of Ms. Wileys first-place votes but still lost.

Nevertheless, an undaunted Ms. Wiley said on Wednesday that she expected to significantly outpace Mr. Adams in collecting second- and third-choice votes and said she had no plan to concede, because Im winning.

How often does a trailing candidate in a ranked-choice election end up winning?

Very rarely. In 128 ranked-choice races in the United States since 2004 where there was no first-round winner, there have been only three occasions where someone trailing by more than eight points after the first round ended up the victor, according to FairVote.
N.Y.C. Mayoral Race: Ranked-Choice Could Give Wiley and Garcia a Win, But It Is an Uphill Battle Eric Adams holds a commanding lead in the race for the Democratic nomination. The winner might not be known for weeks. Read our latest coverage on the New York City mayoral race here.

Can Wiley or Garcia still win? Maya Wiley is hoping that she can capture enough second-choice ballots to beat Eric Adams, the current front-runner. Credit... Stephanie Keith for The New York Times There is no way around it for Maya Wiley and Kathryn Garcia: Eric Adams holds a commanding lead over both of them. With partial results in on Wednesday afternoon, Mr. Adams, the Brooklyn borough president, had 32 percent of first-place votes. He led Ms. Wiley, a former City Hall counsel, by 9 points, and Ms. Garcia, a former sanitation commissioner, by 12 points. But the runners-up still have a chance to win as the ranked-choice voting process plays out, as it must because Mr. Adams has almost no chance of garnering more than 50 percent of the first-choice votes. In each subsequent round of vote-counting, the candidate with the fewest first-place votes is eliminated, and their votes are transferred to whoever their supporters ranked next. The process continues until only two candidates remain, at which point the leader wins. Ms. Wileys supporters hope she can pick up enough votes to close the gap from voters who did not rank her first but still preferred her over Mr. Adams. Ms. Garcias supporters hope for the same. Still, the path to victory for either woman is very narrow. Here is a brief primer: Can Wiley or Garcia still win? Mathematically, yes. Ms. Wiley could win if she makes it to the final round and is ranked ahead of Mr. Adams on around 60 percent of all ballots where neither is ranked first. Ms. Garcias threshold in the same situation is a few points higher. Whats the likelihood of that? Low. Mr. Adams would have to be enormously unpopular among voters who did not rank him first, and one of the few polls done late in the race found that he had broader support than Ms. Wiley or Ms. Garcia. The poll of likely voters, conducted by FairVote, a national organization that promotes ranked-choice voting, and Citizen Data, found that Mr. Adams was the only candidate in the race who was a top-three choice of more than half the voters. Image Kathryn Garcia campaigning on the Upper West Side on Tuesday. She was trailing Eric Adams in first-place votes by 12 points on Wednesday afternoon. Credit... Desiree Rios for The New York Times How often does a trailing candidate in a ranked-choice election end up winning? Very rarely. Since 2004 there have been 128 ranked-choice races in the United States with no first-round winner, but in only three has a candidate who trailed by more than eight points after the first round ended up winning, according to FairVote. No one trailing by 10 points has ever won. In the 2010 mayoral race in Oakland, Calif., the eventual victor, Jean Quan, trailed by nearly nine points after the first round. But in that race, Ms. Quan and another candidate cross-endorsed each other and united in an anybody-but-Don attack against the front-runner, Don Perata. It was really cooperative campaigning between two people who were more on the left, said Jason McDaniel, an associate professor of political science at San Francisco State University. Ms. Garcia and Ms. Wiley formed no such alliance, though Ms. Garcia did form an alliance with Andrew Yang in the races closing days. Ms. Wiley said she was invited to campaign with Ms. Garcia and Mr. Yang, but declined. What about the ballots that have yet to be tallied? As of Wednesday afternoon, the in-person votes from about 3 percent of election scanning machines had not been counted yet. Neither had tens of thousands of absentee ballots  a maximum of about 220,000. But they would have to overwhelmingly favor one candidate to swing the election, and unlike last falls Trump-Biden contest, there are no signs of that. The absentee ballots will likely favor Ms. Garcia over Ms. Wiley because absentee voters tend to be older and Ms. Garcia had an older base, but only moderately. Nate Cohn, Emma G. Fitzsimmons and Charlie Smart contributed reporting.

Adams leads New York City mayoral primary after winning big outside Manhattan. Video transcript Back bars 0:00 / 1:30 - 0:00 transcript N.Y.C. Mayoral Hopefuls Celebrate Victory With Supporters While the final results of the New York City mayors race are still unknown, three top mayoral hopefuls celebrated victory at the polls on Tuesday night. The top three candidates are Eric Adams, Kathryn Garcia and Maya Wiley. We know theres going to be twos and threes and fours. We know that, but theres something else we know   that New York City said, our first choice is Eric Adams. [cheering] I have been out there talking to voters, and they so desperately want things to be better. They want to see us come back strongly, to see art and culture and restaurants. But theyre hurting. And we are going to have to do a lot of work on small businesses. Were going to have to do a lot of work about kids who have been traumatized by being on Zoom school or, perhaps worse, having lost a parent or guardian. Were going to have to make real investments, but I know that we are going to come back strongly. I know that this is a city that can do that. I dont know what New Yorkers have chosen tonight. Not any one of us do because the votes are still being counted. I will tell you what is true. Every single vote will count. [cheering] Every single New New Yorker who voted will count  50 percent of the ranked-choice vote has not yet been counted. While the final results of the New York City mayors race are still unknown, three top mayoral hopefuls celebrated victory at the polls on Tuesday night. The top three candidates are Eric Adams, Kathryn Garcia and Maya Wiley. Credit Credit... Sarah Blesener for The New York Times Eric Adams, the Brooklyn borough president, held a strong lead on Wednesday, the day after the Democratic primary for mayor of New York City, but the race was far from over. Mr. Adams gave a triumphant speech on Tuesday night and thanked a long list of supporters who were part of a coalition that included Black and Latino voters, union members and a broad swath of the city outside Manhattan. He had more than 31 percent of first-choice votes among the nearly 800,000 Democratic votes reported so far. In cities with ranked-choice elections, the candidate who is leading in the first round of voting usually prevails in the final count. The Most Detailed Map of New York City Mayoral Primary Results See neighborhood-level election results from the first round of the mayoral race. Mr. Adamss closest competitors, Maya Wiley, a former counsel to Mayor Bill de Blasio, and Kathryn Garcia, a former city sanitation commissioner, had their own corridors of support. Ms. Wiley performed well in some predominantly Black neighborhoods in Brooklyn, and in Astoria and Long Island City in Queens. Ms. Garcia had strong support in Manhattan and in parts of the areas known as Brownstone Brooklyn. If Mr. Adams emerges as the winner after absentee ballots and ranked choices are tabulated in the coming weeks, it could blunt the momentum of the progressive movement in New York City and reinforce the idea that public safety has become the top issue for voters. Adams used his approach on policing of saying we need justice and safety simultaneously to fuse together that traditional coalition, said Bruce Gyory, a veteran Democratic strategist. Ms. Wiley told her supporters on Tuesday night that the race was not over. Fifty percent of the votes are about to be recalculated, she said to cheers. Many voters ranked Ms. Wiley and Ms. Garcia in the first two spots on their ballots, and it is possible that one of them could capture many of the others supporters. Both are vying to be the citys first female mayor, and both made that a central message of their campaigns. Mr. Adams ran as a working-class underdog and focused on communities that were hit hard by the pandemic, a message he touched on during his primary night speech, said Christina Greer, an associate professor of political science at Fordham University. There are so many communities feeling left out and Adams, as his authentic self, seemed just as angry and hurt and inspired as those communities, Ms. Greer said.

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In the race for the Democratic nomination for mayor, some votes cost more than others. Some candidates in the Democratic primary for New York mayor spent hundreds of dollars for each vote they earned. Others fared better. Credit... Desiree Rios for The New York Times Raymond J. McGuire, the former Citigroup executive who mounted a long-shot and apparently unsuccessful Democratic bid for mayor, won 18,503 first-place primary votes. Early indications suggest he and his supporters paid dearly for each of them. Based on preliminary totals, Mr. McGuires votes cost his campaign and a so-called super PAC that supported him $910 apiece on average. The figure will probably fall as absentee votes are counted, but it is unclear by how much. Should all 207,500 of the absentee ballots that were sent to Democratic voters be returned, and should Mr. McGuires share of first-place votes on those ballots be the same as it was for those cast in person  2.31 percent  the price-per-vote would drop to $723. Even without the super PAC spending, the preliminary data shows that Mr. McGuires votes still cost $568 apiece. A spokeswoman for Mr. McGuires campaign had no immediate comment. I wouldnt have changed anything that we did, said Kimberly Peeler-Allen, who helped run the super PAC. There were a lot of factors at play in this race and the majority of them we had no control over. Mr. McGuire was not the only Democratic candidate whose robust spending yielded meager returns, according to the early data. Shaun Donovan, a former Obama administration housing secretary and budget director, claimed 17,303 first-place votes. His campaign and a super PAC that was financed mostly by his father combined to spend $630 per vote, the data shows. Even absent the super PAC, Mr. Donovans campaign still spent $236 a vote. (As with Mr. McGuires, the per-vote figures for Mr. Donovan are expected to change as absentee ballots are counted.) Scott M. Stringer, the city comptroller, also had the benefit of spending by a super PAC in addition to his campaign. Combined, the data shows, they spent $313 apiece for the 40,244 first-place votes he won. Not all of the candidates fared as poorly, on a price-per-vote basis. Supporters of Andrew Yang, who contributed to his campaign and to two super PACs that backed him, ended up spending about $130 apiece on his 93,291 first-place votes, according to the preliminary totals. Supporters of Eric Adams, the Brooklyn borough president and the races leader after first-choice votes were counted, spent about $62 apiece on his 253,234 first-place votes. Supporters of Maya Wiley, a former counsel to Mayor Bill de Blasio, spent $45 on each of her 177,722 votes, through her campaign and two super PACs. Ms. Wiley placed second in first-choice votes. Kathryn Garcia, Mr. de Blasios former sanitation commissioner, was in third place after first-choice votes were counted. Her supporters spent $34 apiece, via her campaign and a super PAC, on the 155,812 votes that went to her. Dianne Morales, the major candidate in the field who ran furthest to the left and the only one without super PAC support, won more votes than either Mr. McGuire or Mr. Donovan and spent significantly less money: $55 on each of the 22,221 first-place votes she got. The votes of about 800,000 Democrats who voted in person had been tallied by Wednesday, but the count was not yet complete. New Yorkers requested a total of about 220,000 absentee ballots; as of Tuesday, more than 90,763 had been completed and returned.

Tuesdays vote shows Adams won over Black and Latino voters. Eric Adams campaigned heavily in Black and Latino neighborhoods, and it helped him gain an early lead in the race for the Democratic nomination for mayor. Credit... Sarah Blesener for The New York Times During the long race for the Democratic nomination for mayor, there were certain Black and Latino neighborhoods that Eric Adams, the leader after the first round of vote-counting, returned to time and again. More than any other candidate, Mr. Adams built his coalition on a foundation of Black and Latino voters, and the strong support of labor unions. A former police captain, he focused on public safety and on championing the concerns of working-class New Yorkers, while promising to tackle inequality in education, housing and other areas. The little guy won, he said at his primary night party. Mr. Adams, the Brooklyn borough president, leads Maya Wiley, a former counsel to Mayor Bill de Blasio, and Kathryn Garcia, the former sanitation commissioner, in the first round of ranked-choice balloting. On Sunday, one of the last full days of campaigning, Mr. Adams, 60, appeared at a Black Episcopal Church in Brooklyn in the morning, in Upper Manhattan for a rally with Latino supporters after that, and, at the end of the day, at the scene of a recent shooting in the Bronx that endangered two childrens lives. It was his second trip to the area in 24 hours. The strategy paid off. Mr. Adams, who is Black, won in huge sections of the Bronx, including neighborhoods like Tremont and University Heights. In Brooklyn, he won close to 70 percent of first-choice votes in many Assembly districts in East New York and Canarsie. He also won in parts of Queens dominated by middle-class Black families, like Cambria Heights and Springfield Gardens. And while Kathryn Garcia, the former sanitation commissioner, dominated in much of Manhattan, Mr. Adams won in large swaths of Harlem. Patricia Linen, 62, a paraprofessional who works in the New York City schools, stopped to greet Mr. Adams at a rally in Washington Heights on Primary Day. She said she had voted for him because he sent her masks, gloves and hand sanitizer during the pandemic while she was contending with a cancer diagnosis. Im excited about him being mayor because he has been through what my sons have been through, said Ms. Linen, who is Black. Wed have someone who understands us and knows us. New York Primary Election Results See full results and maps from the New York City mayoral race and other primaries.

Voting on Primary Day was surprisingly robust. Voters cast their ballots at the polling site inside P.S. 98 Shorac Kappock in Manhattan. Credit... Desiree Rios for The New York Times Even with the final primary results far from decided on Wednesday, one thing was readily apparent: Voter turnout in the race was on track to be robust by New York City standards. More New Yorkers voted in this years Democratic mayoral primary than in the last competitive one, in 2013; 646,000 ballots were cast that year. The higher turnout suggested that New Yorkers had eventually tuned into a contest that, despite being filled with twists and turns, failed to capture many voters attention earlier in the year, as business owners and families focused more on the citys economic recovery and reopening. The turnout was likely to be higher because of expanded access to voting by mail, a change precipitated by the pandemic that may outlast current conditions. As of Wednesday at 1:30 a.m., more than 790,000 ballots cast in person had been counted in New York City, according to an Associated Press estimate. There were also many absentee ballots yet to be counted: The Board of Elections sent out more 222,000, with voters returning nearly 91,000 so far and more expected to arrive in the coming days. That could push the primary turnout past that of the Democratic presidential primary last June, when more than 844,000 votes were cast, accounting for 23.3 percent of the citys registered Democrats. It is also conceivable that the total number of ballots could near, or even surpass, one million.

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Will Wiley concede? No, she said. Because Im winning. Maya Wiley, addressing supporters in Brooklyn, sounded bullish on her chances of winning the mayoral primary. Credit... Stephanie Keith for The New York Times Sounding even more confident the morning after than she did on primary night, Maya Wiley declared Wednesday that she can pull off an upset victory over Eric Adams, the front-runner in the New York mayors race, despite his nearly 10-point lead. We have every reason to believe we can win this race, Ms. Wiley told campaign supporters and journalists in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn. She explained that she expects to significantly outpace Mr. Adams in collecting second- and third-choice votes, and she added: Were going to wait til every vote is counted, so every New Yorker counts. As of Wednesday afternoon, with 83 percent of votes counted, Ms. Wiley, a civil-rights lawyer and former City Hall counsel, had 22 percent to Mr. Adamss 32 percent. Kathryn Garcia, a former sanitation commissioner, was running third, with 20 percent. The rest is divided between Andrew Yang, who has already conceded, and nine other candidates. Ms. Wileys advisers said she would keep calling for patience and thoroughness, over and over, in the coming weeks to ensure that Mr. Adams, a retired police captain and Brooklyns borough president, does not try to claim victory before the end of the complex counting process. This is New Yorks first citywide ballot using ranked-choice voting, which allows voters to choose up to five candidates in order of preference. If anything, Ms. Wileys advisers said, hopes are rising as vote counts and turnout data trickle in. They said her strategy has long relied on second-choice votes from a wide range of New Yorkers, but she has already won more first-place votes than they said they expected. More important, based on turnout and polling trends, they believe Ms. Wiley and Mr. Adams will be the last candidates standing, narrowly dividing the total vote. I think were in a nail-biter, Jon Paul Lupo, a senior adviser, said as Ms. Wiley hugged supporters on a busy sidewalk outside the Parkside subway station. That analysis explained Ms. Wileys answer when a reporter asked if, with 22 percent of votes in the first round, she was considering conceding. No, she said with an mildly outraged laugh. Because Im winning.

Andrew Yang ends his campaign after a poor showing. Video transcript Back bars 0:00 / 0:44 - 0:00 transcript Andrew Yang Ends His N.Y.C. Mayoral Campaign Andrew Yang, a former 2020 presidential candidate and early front-runner in the New York mayors race, conceded Tuesday night in the Democratic primary after trailing in early vote tallies. Theres so many people I owe an incredible debt to for the success and impact of this campaign, but you all know I am a numbers guy. Im someone who traffics in whats happening by the numbers. And I am not going to be the next mayor of New York City based upon the numbers that have come in tonight. I am conceding this race, though were not sure ultimately who the next mayor is going to be. But whoever that person is, I will be very happy to work with them to help improve the lives of the 8.3 million people who live in our great city. And I would urge everyone here to do the same. Andrew Yang, a former 2020 presidential candidate and early front-runner in the New York mayors race, conceded Tuesday night in the Democratic primary after trailing in early vote tallies. Credit Credit... Gabriela Bhaskar/The New York Times Andrew Yang, a former 2020 presidential candidate whose name recognition helped made him an early front-runner in the New York City mayors race, conceded on Tuesday night after trailing badly in early vote tallies. Mr. Yang was joined by his wife, Evelyn, and other supporters, and spoke in a somber tone that contrasted with the enthusiasm and energy that had largely defined his campaign. He reflected on his rise from relative obscurity to public prominence in just three years, a transformation that helped galvanize a group of loyal supporters, often via social media, and gave him a platform in the city. Our city was in crisis and we believed we could help, he told supporters gathered at a Manhattan hotel. But as a self-described numbers guy, he said, the outlook for his campaign was bleak. I am not going to be mayor of New York City based on the numbers that have come in tonight, he said. I am conceding this race, though were not sure ultimately who the next mayor is going to be. Whoever that person is, I will be very happy to work with them to help improve the lives of the 8.3 million people who live in our great city, and I encourage other people to do the same. Mr. Yang said he believed his supporters had been drawn to a central message of his campaign: that politics as usual was not working. He said he also believed that his campaign had influenced the debate over the priorities that will shape the citys future. Those, he said, included elevating the discussion of cash relief for families, an issue he also promoted in the 2020 presidential race, and the push to reopen schools. He also said he had helped focus attention on a rise in attacks on people of Asian descent. He praised his ability to draw many small donors and cited his alliance with Kathryn Garcia, a fellow mayoral candidate and former sanitation commissioner, as a positive. I thought we could elevate each other and give New York City a better chance of leadership that I was excited about, he said. Mr. Yang was frequently challenged during the campaign by other candidates and journalists over what sometimes appeared to be his loose grasp of some aspects of what city government does. Mr. Yang acknowledged on Tuesday that there was so much about New York City that he did not know. I sometimes would come home to Evelyn and say, Hey, have you visited this neighborhood? Have you been here? he said, adding that he and his wife would seek to contribute to public life in New York City and beyond.

How ranked-choice voting works. This year marks the first time New York City has used ranked-choice voting in a mayors race. Credit... Victor J. Blue for The New York Times For the first time in a mayors race, New York City used a system called ranked-choice voting. Instead of picking just one candidate, voters ranked up to five, in order of preference, from a primary ballot that included 13 Democrats. The next step is complicated. The Board of Elections has collected all the ballots and begun tabulating the votes. Since no candidate got more than 50 percent of the vote, the board will eliminate the last-place finisher. The voters whose first choice was eliminated will have their second-choice votes counted and allocated to the remaining candidates. The process continues until there is a winner with a majority. Heres more information on the ranked-choice ballot and how the rounds of counting will work. The same system was used for all city elections, including for seats in the New York City Council and the offices of the borough presidents, the public advocate and the New York City comptroller. The race for the Manhattan district attorney, which was a federal election, did not use ranked-choice voting. Proponents of the system argue that it gives voters more of a say in the leadership of a city like New York, in which crowded primaries are often as important as the general election. It is also more efficient than holding runoff contests. One of the many benefits to ranked-choice voting is that it negates the need for multimillion-dollar runoff elections, which usually take place two to three weeks later, Susan Lerner, the executive director of Common Cause New York, a good government group, said in a recent statement. Some critics had argued the system was bewilderingly complex and not well understood in some lower-income neighborhoods. But there were few problems reported on Election Day.

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Alvin Bragg has a slight lead in the Manhattan district attorneys race, which is still undecided. Alvin Bragg has a slight lead over his closest rival, Tali Farhadian Weinstein, in the race for the Democratic nomination for Manhattan district attorney. Credit... Dave Sanders for The New York Times The closely fought Democratic race for Manhattan district attorney remained undecided on Wednesday, and it could take at least a week to know who will likely lead the office currently investigating former President Donald J. Trump and his family business. Alvin Bragg, a former federal prosecutor, had a slight lead over his closest rival, Tali Farhadian Weinstein, with tens of thousands of absentee ballots still to be counted. The winner of the Democratic nomination will be heavily favored in the general election in November against the Republican nominee, Thomas Kenniff, a former state prosecutor and Iraq war veteran. Mr. Bragg would be the first Black person to lead the district attorneys office, which is among the most prominent local prosecutors offices in the country. Both leading Democratic candidates have been tight-lipped about the investigation into Mr. Trump and his family, but Mr. Bragg made a habit of telling voters that he sued the former president more than 100 times while working at the New York attorney generals office. Ms. Farhadian Weinstein, who was interviewed by Trump administration officials for a possible appointment to a federal judgeship in 2017, has had less to say about Mr. Trump. Legal ethicists have said there is no issue with her having sought the judgeship. Mr. Bragg and Ms. Farhadian Weinstein have had similar careers and records of accomplishment. He went to Harvard and Harvard Law and was a federal prosecutor in Manhattan. She went to Yale, and Yale Law, and was a federal prosecutor in Brooklyn. On Tuesday, they split Manhattan almost perfectly in two: Mr. Bragg won most neighborhoods on the boroughs West Side, dominating on the Upper West Side and in Harlem, while Ms. Farhadian Weinstein won big on the East Side, particularly the Upper East Side and in Inwood and Washington Heights. Both of them beat their six rivals by a significant margin all over the borough, though Ms. Aboushi significantly outperformed expectations, coming in third in almost every district . Mr. Bragg and Ms. Farhadian Weinstein, who ran on their prosecutorial experience, beat out several candidates with less traditional agendas, like Ms. Aboushi, who had said she would cut the budget of the district attorneys office in half and stop prosecuting a long list of misdemeanors and some felonies. Mr. Bragg ran to strike a balance between public safety and civil rights. Ms. Farhadian Weinstein ran a more moderate campaign, with a strong focus on public safety and prosecuting hate crimes and sex crimes. She amplified her message by giving her own campaign at least $8.2 million and raising close to $13 million overall.

Williams wins primary for public advocate and Lander leads for comptroller. Several borough president races are close. Jumaane Williams victory Tuesday during New York Citys primary essentially ensures he will be elected public advocate this fall. Credit... Hilary Swift for The New York Times The mayors race wasnt the only contest on the ballot during Tuesdays primary, with several being won outright and others too close to call. Jumaane Williams, who became public advocate in a special election two years ago, won his primary race outright with 71 percent of the vote, making it almost certain that he will capture a full term in November. Brad Lander, a member of the City Council, appears likely to win the city comptroller nomination with 31.4 percent of the votes, followed by Council Speaker Corey Johnson at 22.6 percent. Mr. Johnson was a last-minute addition to the race, announcing his bid for comptroller in March. As in the mayoral primary, final results in the races for borough president, which are also using ranked-choice voting, may not be known for sometime. Still, several leaders quickly emerged. In the Bronx, Vanessa Gibson, a City Council member, holds an initial lead of 39.4 percent, while in Brooklyn, Council Member Antonio Reynoso has a comfortable lead of 28.2 percent of the votes. Mark Levine, also a member of the City Council leads the race for Manhattans president with a narrow 28.7 percent of the vote over Brad Hoylman, a New York state senator, with 25.7 percent. The races in Queens and Staten Island were much closer. In Queens, the incumbent, Donovan Richards, who won the spot in a special election in 2020, was closely followed by Elizabeth Crowley. He won 41.7 percent of the vote, while Ms. Crowley captured 40.4 percent. In the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens, the Democratic winner will be the overwhelming favorite in the general election. Not so in Staten Island, a Republican stronghold. In the Republican primary, former Congressman Vito Fossella was running neck and neck with Councilman Steven Matteo, with 42.5 percent to Mr. Matteos 41.3 percent. On the Democratic side, Mark Murphy had a sizable lead with 46.8 percent of the vote. Precious Fondren and

Curtis Sliwa, the Republican nominee for mayor, lashes out at Eric Adams. Curtis Sliwa, who won the Republican mayoral primary on Tuesday, addressed supporters and the press in Manhattan on Wednesday. Credit... Jeenah Moon for The New York Times Curtis Sliwa, who won New Yorks Republican primary for mayor on Tuesday night, addressed supporters and the news media on Wednesday morning in a speech that ranged from jubilant optimism to pointed and angry criticism of the Democratic candidates, including Eric Adams, who is leading in his partys primary. Although I am happy to be the Republican nominee and certainly earned my right to be the standard-bearer, I am also an independent candidate in the general election, Mr. Sliwa said, standing outside WABC Studio in Manhattan. Invoking the tough-on-crime stance characteristic of his campaign and his career as the founder of the Guardian Angels, Mr. Sliwa called for hiring more New York City police officers and providing them with more benefits. He also said that he would not accept private protection from the New York Police Department, criticizing Democratic candidates who had called to redirect funds from police departments while hiring private security for themselves. If theyre going to defund the police and deprive citizens of protection in the subways and the streets, he said, then let me be the first to say I want no police security whatsoever. A longtime animal lover who owns 15 rescue cats, Mr. Sliwa also called for permanently closing all kill shelters in the city before going on to mention some of his cats by name, along with a brief description of their personalities. Asked about how he would handle the general election, Mr. Sliwa said he would work with various organizations and elected officials across the political spectrum. He also said he would go after Mr. Adamss stance on qualified immunity. Mr. Adams, the Brooklyn borough president and a former police captain, has said the legal policy that shields police officers from most civil lawsuits should be removed. Mr. Sliwa called that lack of support for the policy a sin against his brothers and sisters in blue. Ive known Eric and Im certainly going to take him to task, Mr. Sliwa said. And Im going to ask him to join me in solidarity if, in fact, he turns out to be the winner of the Democratic primary process.

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The teachers union appears to lose big in mayors race. Credit... Andrew Seng for The New York Times The United Federation of Teachers, the citys teachers union, has a decades-long losing streak in backing candidates for mayor, a track record that continued apace Tuesday night, with its chosen candidate, Scott M. Stringer, falling far behind the pack in the first round of voting. Its choice to replace Mr. Stringer as the citys comptroller, Corey Johnson, also has a big gap to surmount if he hopes to overcome the front-runner, Councilman Brad Lander. Its only consolation was a number of candidates for City Council who notched victories on Tuesday night. While the primary results are not complete, we want to congratulate the U.F.T.-endorsed candidates for the City Council and other offices who have already won their races, said Alison Gendar, a spokeswoman for the union. A candidates record on public education will always be our most important consideration, and we are proud to back  win or lose  those who make the public schools and students their first priority. The 200,000-person union stood by Mr. Stringer, even after two women came forward to allege sexual misconduct from decades ago. The union, which has not endorsed a winning mayoral candidate since 1989, even backed a super PAC effort on his behalf called NY4Kids, which spent more than $4 million to boost Mr. Stringers campaign. Neither Mr. Stringer nor Mr. Johnson has formally conceded. That has a lot to do with ranked-choice voting. This year, voters in New York City were able to rank up to five candidates for mayor and comptroller, in order of preference. The first-round results were released Tuesday night, and they would seem to bode ill for Mr. Stringer and Mr. Johnson: With 96.62 percent of voting scanners reporting, Mr. Stringer won 5.03 percent of the vote; Mr. Johnson did better in his race, with 22.54 percent, but still significantly behind Mr. Lander, at 31.31 percent. While Mr. Stringer had the support of the union, Mr. Adams had the support of the charter school movement, in the form of a super PAC run by Jenny Sedlis, who is on leave from a charter school advocacy group, Students First NY, and co-founded Success Academy. Her PAC, in turn, was funded by charter-school supporters.

Progressive candidates showed strength outside of the mayors race. Credit... Gabriela Bhaskar for The New York Times After the pandemic laid bare systemic inequities, and more than a year after the murder of George Floyd kicked off urgent conversations about police reform, Tuesdays primary served as a test of how well the left wing of the Democratic Party could harness that energy and make gains at the ballot box. And progressive candidates appeared to show strength around the city and state, even though a more moderate candidate, Eric Adams, the Brooklyn borough president, has so far earned the most votes in the mayors race. Because of ranked-choice voting, the results of many elections remain uncertain. But progressives appeared to be leading or poised to win a number of races. In a City Council race in Queens, Tiffany Caban, who narrowly lost a primary race in 2019 for district attorney in the borough, was leading by a wide margin with the backing of the Democratic Socialists of America and the Working Families Party, a progressive political party. Two other candidates backed by the Working Families Party also won primaries for open City Council seats: Marjorie Velazquez in the Bronx and Jennifer Gutierrez in Brooklyn and Queens. Sandy Nurse, a carpenter and community organizer, and Alexa Aviles, backed by the D.S.A., both led by relatively wide margins in their primaries. Even before all the results are tallied, we already know that New York will have more diverse, young and progressive leaders representing our city than ever before  an undeniable sign that our message is resonating, said Monica Klein, a progressive political consultant. Brad Lander, a City Council member who was endorsed by the Working Families Party and progressive politicians like Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, is leading in the city comptroller race. In the Manhattan district attorneys race, Alvin Bragg appeared to lead Tali Farhadian Weinstein, considered a more moderate candidate. In Buffalo, India B. Walton, a Democratic Socialist who has called for safeguarding undocumented immigrants and ending the role of police officers in responding to mental health emergencies, won an upset over the four-term incumbent Democrat, Byron Brown, a close ally of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo. Ms. Walton would become the first socialist mayor of a major American city since 1960. Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who served as the mayor of Burlington, his states largest city, in the 1980s, governed as a progressive but ran as an independent and largely eschewed the socialist label once in office. Mihir Zaveri, Michael Gold and

Here are scenes from election parties around New York. Eric Adams supporters James Estrin/The New York Times Maya Wiley supporters Hilary Swift for The New York Times Andrew Yang supporters Gabriela Bhaskar/The New York Times Scott M. Stringer supporters Andrew Seng for The New York Times Alvin Bragg supporters Dave Sanders for The New York Times Tali Farhadian Weinstein supporters Sarah Blesener for The New York Times slide 1 slide 2 slide 3 slide 4 slide 5 slide 6 Drinks, hugs, selfies and dancing  along with a surprising concession from Andrew Yang  brought a long Primary Day to a close. Candidates and supporters attended election parties around New York on Tuesday night.

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A rise through the ranks

Mr. Adams spent more than 20 years as a New York City police officer before entering politics. He has said that he was motivated in part to join the force after he was beaten by the police at age 15. Mr. Adams believed that he could change the culture of policing from within.

During his time in the department, Mr. Adams was a strong advocate for Black officers. Through his involvement in Black police fraternal organizations  the Grand Council of Guardians and 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care, a group that he co-founded  Mr. Adams questioned his superiors publicly, speaking out against discrimination, police brutality and the departments excessive use of stop-and-frisk tactics.

The latter issue, in particular, illustrated the precarious tightrope that Mr. Adams walked during the campaign: Though he once fought the stop-and-frisk policing strategy, which was used disproportionately in New York against Black and Latino men and is reviled by the left, he has also supported its limited use.

Some who knew Mr. Adams during his time as a police officer thought even then that his challenges to Police Department leadership were meant to position him for public office. As early as 1994, he had determined he wanted to be mayor, he told The New York Times.

In 2006, Mr. Adams retired from policing to run for the State Senate. He won and represented parts of central Brooklyn in Albany until 2013, when he became the first Black person elected Brooklyns borough president.
Twenty-one senators, led by Rob Portman of Ohio, a Republican, announced a new outline agreement for an infrastructure package last week. Disagreement over tax changes derailed previous talks, but this bipartisan group claimed to have identified a set of proposed financing sources that could pay for new spending without raising taxes. Reportedly, the largest among those was $315 billion from alternative financing schemes known as public-private partnerships.

The legislators are jumping through these hoops in the first place because for the past three decades, the Republican Party has organized its agenda around an absolutist principle: no new taxes, ever. But despite the senators insistence, these arrangements do not actually avoid extractive charges on residents. They just launder the new fees through private investors.

Rather than the government financing the rebuilding of roads and bridges that get you across town, you pay a private company operating in contract with the government  while policymakers pretend that they have avoided imposing new costs.

Chief among these schemes that Republicans have identified are so-called user fees, like road tolls and a new fee on vehicle miles traveled. The White House rejected such proposals as violating its own tax pledge: a promise not to increase taxes on families earning under $400,000 annually. As President Biden observed, If everything is paid for by a user fee, the burden falls on working-class folks, who are having trouble.
On the outskirts of Paris, a mother knew something was amiss when her 5-year-old grew distraught at the idea of one day having a beard like Papa.

In Gurugram, India, a father was baffled by his childs deep depression and frightening incidents of self-harm.

A mother from Kyushu, Japan, told me that she had never heard the word transgender when her child came out to her as nonbinary. She described a Japanese legend about people who come down to Earth from the moon. And thats how I felt, she said. It was as if my child had said, Im actually from the moon.

Like this mother (and like me), nearly all of these parents were bewildered and terrified when they first learned their child was trans. But their childrens suffering was too real to ignore. When the father in India finally discovered the source of his childs depression  she told him that she could no longer bear living as a boy  she asked her father if he was going to throw her out on the streets.

He did not. Instead, he founded a group that supports transgender people in India. The mother in Japan did the same. A mother from Bogota, Colombia, joined a similar group after consulting three priests and informing them that if she had to choose between her religion and her transgender son, she would walk away from a lifetime in the Catholic Church. All three priests told her that humans may judge, but God loved her son. She stayed.

These children, their parents told me, are now thriving, living in the genders that match their hearts  in some cases thanks to medical care that still remains inaccessible to many trans people around the world. But if transgender children are a global phenomenon, so are their struggles. Just as in the United States, parents who have spoken publicly are often harassed and threatened. (For safety reasons, I am not naming them.) Nearly all saw relationships with friends and family members disintegrate when their children came out as trans. Several families immigrated to countries that felt safer for their children. When my daughter is older, said one mother who left Mexico for the United States, Ill tell her the real reason we left.

These kinds of moves are likely to become more common, as courts and legislatures around the United States and in other countries chip away at transgender rights, restricting access to gender-affirming (and lifesaving) medical care for children like mine. On my social media feed, parents around the world are asking one another: Where can we go now? Where will my child be safe?
As a Hindu pundit, or priest, who focuses on the L.G.B.T.Q. population, Sushma Dwivedi is a rarity in the wedding industry. Its close to impossible to find a woman pundit here in the States, she said. As far as I know there are less than 10, and none of them cater to the gay and transgender community.

In 2016, Ms. Dwivedi founded the Purple Pundit Project in New York, which offers various progressive, inclusive, L.G.B.T.Q.+-friendly religious services like baby namings, house warmings and business blessings to people who are straight, gay, having an interracial marriage or just want a female pundit. So far she has officiated 33 weddings, nearly half of which have been for same-sex couples.

Ms. Dwivedi, 40, also works full time as the vice president for communications and brand marketing at Daily Harvest, a subscription-based organic food company. She grew up in Canada and now lives in Harlem with her husband, Vivek Jindal, 37, the chief investment officer of Kore, a wealth management platform in New York, and their two sons, Ashwin, 5, and Nayan, 3.

Why did you become interested in officiating?

In 2013, I was getting married and we were having a classic Indian wedding with 250 people and doing two different events: one at the Hotel Nelligan located in the middle of the Old Port, and the other at the Loft, both in Montreal. My husbands sibling is trans, and it became glaringly obvious that if they wanted to get married, there wouldnt be a pundit who would do it. Its not culturally accepted yet.
When the pandemic blended our professional and personal lives by forcing many of us to work from home, we learned a valuable lesson about tech. It can be an incredibly useful tool for communicating with colleagues. But when used without care, it can hurt our productivity and our relationships.

Now as some white-collar professionals prepare to return to the office, many businesses are planning a so-called hybrid model, in which workers split their hours between the office and home. And therein lies a new tech challenge.

Instead of one work environment, many of us will have two. Well be constantly switching between them, collaborating with some colleagues in the office while others are at home. It may feel chaotic to figure out which tools to use  from email to video calls  for working together in each situation.

What Im seeing in the literature is more and more evidence of how important it is to be intentional and deliberate about the way were using technology, said Emiliana Simon-Thomas, a neuroscientist who teaches courses about the science of happiness at work for the University of California, Berkeley. How is it supporting what I really want to do rather than pulling me in 15 different directions?
OHARA Theres a comfort level where people can laugh, and then you can get behind them and show them some truths. Sometimes funny is painful; sometimes pain is funny. Sometimes the way I can deal with the institutionalized racism and homophobia and sexism and assault and harassment is to simply laugh. Because if I dont, I will go out and harm something, or harm an individual, or say things that are harmful.

Why focus on a small Off Broadway company?

OHARA When you think of the shows that address the theater, theyre usually about Broadway. But on Broadway you have to create your whole team every time, whereas Off Broadway and regional theater are set inside institutions. And what an institution does with creativity is never really examined.

TOWNSEND It was important to me to weave the language about money into this play. The corporate world is more a part of the nonprofit theater world than were really aware of. There is a connection between this corporatization of American theater and the underlying abuse that ensues because we are conducting business as if were inside Trump Tower. I dont think theres a difference between the way Michael Cohen and Donald Trump are doing business and the way people are doing business inside an administrative office. Its the dirty secret of the American theater: These theaters are run by bank managers, by accountants, and their donors are rich people working on Wall Street.

OHARA I have been head-hunted to see if I was interested in running an institution, and one of the most important skills they are looking for is an ability to fund-raise. For an institution to work, you have to know the lay of the land. And the lay of the land is that, although it says nonprofit, we are not trying to lose any more money  were trying to get as much money as possible.

What is the solution: more public funding, more division of labor between artistic and fund-raising duties?

OHARA One of the things I think is necessary is diversity. Diversity will breed different people with different skill sets to show you different ways to run this institution. You need to disrupt the person in charge, you need to disrupt what power means and how power is distributed. That in itself will generate a new relationship to fund-raising. I dont know very many happy artistic directors. Theres also a level of division that needs to be had: Am I going to be the artistic head and can that actually allow other people to deal with the educational and the finances and all this other stuff?

The show points out how the system has long reproduced itself.

OHARA You have people who feel its OK to run an institution for 30 [expletive] years. Im against white supremacy but I want to run this [expletive] for 30 [expletive] years. And Im like, No, get out! Go run something else! They know who they are. And its unacceptable. Theyre fossils.

Off Broadway

June 24-27; broad.stream/off-broadway
To better understand what that means and how we got here, I spoke with Ed Hirs, an energy fellow at the University of Houston. Heres our conversation, lightly edited and condensed.

I take it that youve been keeping an eye on the flex alerts  lets start with those. At a very basic level, why do those happen?

Really good question. We have to go all the way back to the beginning.

In the late 1930s, when the federal power administration came into being, folks started looking at grid reliability and that became the goal  especially since that was all done under President Franklin Delano Roosevelt as we were pointed toward World War II. The social contract with the utilities was: You provide electricity reliably, and well make sure you dont go broke.

And then things changed?

Things began to go sideways when California passed Assembly Bill 1890 in 1993. Everything was implemented in 1996. We later had a similar thing happen in Texas, but nobody in Texas learned anything from California.

Doesnt seem to happen often. Anyway 

So what people had seen was the massive overbuild of energy generation facilities. They had been built for peak time, and the equipment would be idle for the rest of the year. In California, for about eight out of 12 months, it was idle because the weather was so nice. Thats why people live in California.
Ask them about potential upsides. Maybe its being able to travel, or protecting a grandparent, or going to school without a mask. Whatever it is, dont suggest reasons, Gagneur said. Its more effective if people express it themselves.

Take it slow. If youre faced with very hesitant people, you will not change their mind in five or 10 minutes, Gagneur said. If you move too fast it could be counterproductive. So you could say, Thank you very much for the discussion, and if you want, we could have another discussion tomorrow, or in two weeks, or whenever. This is important. Its a seed we put in someones mind that they can trust us, that we are going to listen to them, and that we are not going to make them change their mind too quickly. And you can continue the discussion later.

When the virus breaks through

Although the risk that vaccinated people will become infected with the coronavirus is low, it can still happen.Heres what you need to know about these breakthrough cases.

How common are they?

Quite rare  but the vast size of the immunized population means that there is a considerable number of cases, including the TV host Bill Maher and the Yankees two-time All-Star shortstop, Gleyber Torres.

As of April 30, out of about 101 million vaccinated people at the time, there were about 10,000 breakthrough infections reported in the U.S., according to the C.D.C. The agency has since stopped recording infections that do not involve severe symptoms.

How serious are breakthrough symptoms?

Because of the protection provided by the vaccines, experts say that most infected people who had been vaccinated are likely to have mild symptoms  nasal congestion and mild body aches  or no symptoms at all. That might be more severe for vaccinated people with weak immune systems, older adults and people with certain medical conditions.
A Pennsylvania man who was awaiting trial on charges that he fraudulently received more than $3.8 million in Paycheck Protection Program loans filed an application last month seeking an additional $500,000 in Covid-19 relief money, the authorities said.

In February, federal authorities seized four of the mans bank accounts where most of the money had been deposited, saying the loan applications were fraudulent. In March, the man submitted a fifth application for a P.P.P. loan, intended to help struggling businesses during the pandemic, and received more than $1.3 million. In April, he was arrested and charged with bank fraud and money laundering.

While he was out on bond, federal officials said, he submitted a sixth loan application.

On Monday, the man, Randy A. Frasinelli, 65, of Carnegie, Pa., was arrested again and charged with another count of bank fraud.

As the coronavirus disrupted the global economy, officials raced to send billions of dollars to businesses on the verge of collapsing, hoping to keep them and their employees afloat. Some saw that as an opportunity to enrich themselves by seeking loans for businesses that did not exist.
The thing that is the open wound for our communities right now, she said, is the fact that our children were taken, and theyre lost, and we dont know where they went and we dont know what happened to them. We dont know their final resting place.

Chuck Hoskin Jr., principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, described the boarding schools as part of an effort by the federal government to civilize Native Americans. The Cherokee Nation identifies the boarding schools as the biggest factor in the loss of the Cherokee language.

We saw an erosion of our culture and language, and in some cases, it was literally beaten out of the children who were forced to attend, Chief Hoskin said in a statement. It is a history that needs to be known and remembered.

In a statement on Tuesday, Jonathan Nez and Myron Lizer, president and vice president of the Navajo Nation, commended Ms. Haaland on the announcement.

This troubling history deserves more attention to raise awareness and to educate others about the atrocities that our people experienced, so that they can better understand our society today and work together to heal and move forward, Mr. Nez said.

In an interview on Wednesday, Mr. Nez said his biggest worry for the initiative was that it would become a report that gets filed away.

He said he hoped that the findings from the effort would make it into textbooks and lead to teaching unedited Native American history, especially in public schools on reservations.
Biden Pushes New Efforts to Tackle Gun Violence The president made clear that he intends to approach crime prevention by investing in, rather than defunding, the police. Vice President Kamala Harris will travel to El Paso on Friday with Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas.

Biden addresses rising gun violence amid continued calls for police reform. Video transcript Back bars 0:00 / 1:53 - 0:00 transcript Biden Outlines Actions to Reduce Gun Violence President Biden announced new efforts to tackle gun violence on Wednesday, including cracking down on illegal sales and providing new funding for police departments and community-based organizations. Crime historically rises during the summer. And as we emerge from this pandemic, the country opening back up again, the traditional summer spike may be more pronounced than it usually would be. For folks at home, heres what you need to know. Ive been at this a long time and there are things we know that work to reduce gun violence and violent crime and things that we dont know about. But things we know about: Background checks for purchasing a firearm are important; ban on assault weapons and high capacity magazines; community policing and programs that keep neighborhoods safe and keep folks out of trouble. These efforts work. They save lives. But over time, these policies were gutted and are woefully underfunded. In our conversation today, we talked about our strategy to supercharge what works while we continue to push the Congress to act on sensible gun violence legislation. We know that if there is a strict enforcement of background checks, then fewer guns get into the hands of criminals. Background checks have thus far kept more than three million guns out of the hands of felons, convicted felons, fugitives, domestic abusers and others prohibited from being able to purchase a gun. If you willfully sell a gun to someone who is prohibited from possessing it, if you willfully fail to run a background check, if you willfully falsify a record, if you willfully fail to cooperate with the tracing requests or inspections. My message to you is this: Well find you and we will seek your license to sell guns. Well make sure you cant sell death and mayhem on our streets. Its an outrage, has to end and well end it. Period. President Biden announced new efforts to tackle gun violence on Wednesday, including cracking down on illegal sales and providing new funding for police departments and community-based organizations. Credit Credit... Doug Mills/The New York Times President Biden said on Wednesday that states could draw from $350 billion in federal stimulus money to shore up police departments and vowed to crack down on gun dealers who fail to run background checks, as the White House seeks to combat the alarming rise in homicide rates in Americas cities. Mr. Bidens speech made clear that he intends to approach crime prevention by investing in, rather than defunding, the police  wading into a national debate about whether the government should give police departments more resources, or spend the money on mental health and other social services instead. The president tried to appeal to both sides on Wednesday, saying from the White House that this is not a time to turn our backs on law enforcement or our communities. Under Mr. Bidens new plan, state and local governments will be allowed to use their designated $350 billion of coronavirus relief funds for programs such as hiring police officers to prepandemic levels, paying overtime for community policing work and supporting community-based anti-violence groups. City governments struggling with high crime will be able to go even further, hiring even more officers than they had before the pandemic. The money is not new spending, but the administration is for the first time encouraging states to use the funds for expanding policing efforts and crime prevention efforts. The funds can also be used for summer jobs for young people and organizations that aim to intervene with at-risk youths before they commit violence, a nod to criminal justice advocates who have called for political leaders to address the societal factors that drive crime. With Wednesdays speech, Mr. Biden aimed to blunt criticism from Republicans who say he is soft on crime. But he also tried to bridge the two flanks of his party: centrist Democrats alarmed by the spike in crime in cities and progressives who are pushing systemic changes to police departments that have long been accused of racial discrimination. Mr. Biden used the moment to call for Congress to pass legislative measures that would close background check loopholes, restrict assault weapons and repeal gun manufacturers immunity from lawsuits. Folks, this shouldnt be a red or blue issue, Mr. Biden said. Its an American issue. Were not changing the Constitution; were enforcing it.

Facing mounting pressure, Harris will travel to the southern border Friday. Video transcript Back bars 0:00 / 1:25 - 0:00 transcript White House Defends Timing of Harris Trip to Southern Border Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, on Wednesday defended Vice President Kamala Harriss upcoming trip to the Southern border. The vice presidents travel plans come amid pressure from Republicans who have seized on a surge of border crossings to criticize the Biden administration. Vice President will travel to El Paso, Texas, on Friday. Shell be accompanied by Department of Homeland Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Earlier this year, as you all know, the president asked the vice president to oversee our diplomatic efforts to address the root causes of migration from El Salvador to Guatemala and Honduras. And as a part of this work, she recently traveled to Guatemala and Mexico last month to have those discussions. And this trip to the border on Friday will be a part of this effort. I will note that Ive also said here, from this podium, and she has also said that when it was the right time, she may go to visit the border. And I will note that were at this point, in part, because weve made a great deal of progress. And if you look just to a couple of months ago when 6,000 children were in Border Patrol facilities, were now at the point where there is far less than 1,000. If you look to just a couple of months ago when there were children who were waiting in Border Patrol facilities for more than 100 hours, and they were certainly overcrowded, now its less than 30 hours. In April, there were 22,000 kids in H.H.S. facilities, and now that number is 14,000. Is there still more work to do? Absolutely, thats the purview of Secretary Mayorkas. But its important every component of our government is coordinated. Reporter: Was it important for the White House to have her seen at the border before former President Trump has a trip there next week? We made an assessment within our government about when it was an appropriate time for her to go to the border. Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, on Wednesday defended Vice President Kamala Harriss upcoming trip to the Southern border. The vice presidents travel plans come amid pressure from Republicans who have seized on a surge of border crossings to criticize the Biden administration. Credit Credit... Carlos Barria/Reuters Vice President Kamala Harris will travel to the United States-Mexico border on Friday, a visit that comes after weeks of criticism from Republicans who assailed her for not visiting even though she is in charge of addressing the root causes of migration. The criticism came after Ms. Harriss visit to Mexico City and Guatemala this month, when Lester Holt of NBC grilled her about why she had not visited the border. She responded by calling the visit a grand gesture and pointed out that she had not visited Europe yet, either  answers that confounded her critics and members of her own administration. She said in the same interview she would be open to going to the border at an appropriate time, Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, said, fielding questions about Ms. Harriss visit on Wednesday. We made an assessment within our government about when it was an appropriate time for her to go the border. Administration officials did not give a clear answer about what made this week an appropriate time. Ms. Harris has held the role since March, when President Biden tapped her to lead an effort to improve conditions in Central America to deter migration north. But even during this months trip aimed at improving conditions in the region, she continued to face questions over her absence from the border. Ms. Harris and her aides have since been on the defensive, arguing that she is focused on addressing the poverty and persecution that force vulnerable families to leave their homes. Allies have cautioned the White House not to give in to criticism. The visit, which was first reported by Politico, will come just days before former President Donald J. Trump is set to visit the border with a group of House Republicans and Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas, who has pledged to finish the border wall that became a symbol of Mr. Trumps restrictive immigration agenda. Zolan Kanno-Youngs and

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Senators to meet with Biden on Thursday after potential breakthrough on a bipartisan infrastructure bill. Senator Jeanne Shaheen, Democrat of New Hampshire, and other senators met with White House officials on Tuesday to discuss infrastructure proposals. Credit... Erin Schaff/The New York Times A bipartisan group of centrist senators will head to the White House on Thursday to brief President Biden on their infrastructure framework after lawmakers said they had signed off on an outline for how to fund and finance billions of dollars for roads, bridges and other public-works projects. After two lengthy meetings with White House officials on Wednesday, a few senators said they had struck an agreement on the overall framework for an infrastructure plan and would personally update Mr. Biden as they worked to finalize some details. Lawmakers and staff declined to offer any details about the apparent breakthrough, but a previous outline drafted by the group of senators  five Republicans and five Democrats  would provide for $579 billion in new spending as part of an overall $1.2 trillion package spent over eight years. Theres a framework of agreement on a bipartisan infrastructure package, Senator Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, told reporters as she left negotiations in the Capitol. Theres still details to be worked out. The bipartisan group previously released a statement announcing an agreement on a framework that the White House had not yet backed. Mr. Biden sent aides to Capitol Hill on Tuesday and Wednesday for further discussions. The group made progress toward an outline of a potential agreement, Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, said in a statement Wednesday evening after what she described as two productive meetings with White House officials. The group has been scrounging for ways to pay for billions of dollars in new spending that would be a critical part of a potential compromise plan to invest in roads, broadband internet, electric utilities and other infrastructure projects. They huddled repeatedly with Brian Deese, the director of the National Economic Council; Steve Ricchetti, a top adviser to Mr. Biden; and Louisa Terrell, the director of the White House Office of Legislative Affairs. We just kept working at it, Im serious, Ms. Collins said. Each of us brought in different ideas that we had researched with our staffs. Those White House officials later joined a meeting Wednesday evening with Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the majority leader, and Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California. Those discussions centered on infrastructure negotiations as well as a separate effort to move a large chunk of the presidents $4 trillion economic agenda through the Senate with no Republican votes using a procedural mechanism known as reconciliation. That meeting was intended to focus not only on the bipartisan talks, but plans to push some, if not all, of Mr. Bidens agenda through both chambers using the fast-track budget reconciliation process that would allow Democrats to bypass Republican opposition. Were very excited about the prospect of a bipartisan agreement, Ms. Pelosi said. The two leaders said after the meeting, which lasted past 9 p.m., that they hoped to move forward with both bipartisan infrastructure legislation and the reconciliation process in July. Well let them announce it first  lets see it, Mr. Schumer said of the bipartisan agreement. But we support the concepts weve heard about it. Emily Cochrane, Jim Tankersley and

Biden administration forces out Border Patrol chief, a supporter of Trumps policies. Rodney S. Scott, the chief of the United States Border Patrol, near a border wall construction site outside McAllen, Texas, in October. Credit... Sergio Flores for The New York Times The Biden administration is forcing out the chief of the United States Border Patrol, Rodney S. Scott, who took over the agency during the final year of the Trump administration, a Department of Homeland Security official said on Wednesday. The move comes as Vice President Kamala Harris plans to visit the southwest border on Friday for the first time since President Biden asked her to lead the administrations efforts to deter migration from Central America. Republicans have increased pressure on both Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris to visit the border, where a record number of migrants have been trying to cross in recent months. Mr. Scott, a 29-year veteran of the Border Patrol, took the helm of the agency in February 2020. He was a supporter of President Donald J. Trumps signature border policy, a plan to complete a wall between the United States and Mexico. The Homeland Security official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said that while Mr. Scott had been asked to move on, it was possible he could be reassigned to a new post within the department. The Border Patrol monitors nearly 6,000 miles of the nations borders with Mexico and Canada, in between official points of entry. It has been at the center of a highly polarized national debate over immigration policy, particularly as Mr. Trump employed hard-line tactics against undocumented immigrants. At Mr. Trumps direction, the Border Patrol sought to catch and detain hundreds of thousands of immigrants, including migrant families who had fled violence in their home countries. Earlier this year, Mr. Scott refused to follow a Biden administration directive to stop using the term illegal alien in reference to undocumented immigrants. Referring to immigration laws, which use the term, Mr. Scott said that public trust in the Border Patrol would continue to erode if its agents were forced to use terms inconsistent with law. Mr. Scott was in charge of the agency when highly trained Border Patrol agents, assigned to investigate drug smuggling organizations, were deployed to the streets of Portland, Ore., last summer. While their mission was to protect federal buildings during a series of protests against police violence, there were reports of federal agents in riot gear inside the city and away from federal property. Mr. Scott pushed back against those reports, but the episode and others like it last summer left an indelible mark on the Trump legacy.

The first person to be sentenced in connection to the Capitol riot will serve no prison time. A pro-Trump mob breached the Capitol building on Jan. 6. Credit... Erin Schaff/The New York Times The first person to be sentenced in connection with the riot at the Capitol  a 49-year-old woman from Indiana  will serve no time in prison after reaching an agreement with the government and pleading guilty on Wednesday to a misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge. At an unusual hearing where she admitted guilt and was immediately sentenced by a judge, the woman, Anna Morgan-Lloyd, expressed remorse for her role in the attacks of Jan. 6. She apologized to the court, her family and the American people, saying it was wrong to have entered the Capitol. In court papers filed last week, prosecutors laid out seven reasons they believed Ms. Morgan-Lloyd should not have to serve time in prison. It is likely to serve as a checklist for other rioters who committed no violence and were accused of only minor crimes. Prosecutors noted that Ms. Morgan-Lloyd was not violent at the Capitol, did not plan her breach in advance, remained inside only briefly and allowed investigators to question her thoroughly about her role in the riot as well as search her cellphone. Ms. Morgan-Lloyd also submitted a statement to the court saying that she was ashamed and suggested that her relatively peaceful part in the breach allowed others to do worse. At first it didnt dawn on me, but later I realized that if every person like me, who wasnt violent, was removed from that crowd, the ones who were violent may have lost the nerve to do what they did, Ms. Morgan-Lloyd wrote. For that I am sorry and take responsibility. It was never my intent to help empower people to act violently. At the hearing, the presiding judge, Royce C. Lamberth, made scathing remarks from the bench attacking the handful of Republican politicians who have labeled the assault on the Capitol the work of mere tourists, calling that position utter nonsense. I dont know what planet theyre on, Judge Lamberth said. Millions of people saw Jan. 6. Under the terms of her deal with the government, Ms. Morgan-Lloyd agreed to pay restitution of $500 to help defray the estimated $1.5 million in damage done to the Capitol on Jan. 6.

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Cindy McCain is Bidens choice for ambassador to the U.N.s food program. Cindy McCain, the widow of former Senator John McCain, endorsed Joseph R. Biden Jr. in the 2020 presidential election. Credit... Ilana Panich-Linsman for The New York Times President Biden announced Wednesday that he was nominating Cindy McCain, the widow of former Senator John McCain, as ambassador to the United Nations World Food Programme, giving the post to a longtime Republican friend as he continues to emphasize the importance of bipartisanship in a deeply divided Washington. Ms. McCain, who participated in a video supporting Mr. Bidens candidacy during the all-virtual Democratic National Convention last summer, was seen as a must do for an ambassador posting in the Biden administration, according to sources familiar with the process, and has been undergoing the vetting process for some time. In the video, Ms. McCain spoke about Mr. Bidens unlikely friendship with her husband. My husband and Vice President Biden enjoyed a 30+ year friendship dating back to before their years serving together in the Senate, she tweeted before the Democratic convention. So I was honored to accept the invitation from the Biden campaign to participate in a video celebrating their relationship. The U.N. mission is based in Rome. Mr. Biden also announced on Wednesday that he was nominating Claire Cronin, a Massachusetts state representative, as ambassador to Ireland. Former Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut, a longtime Biden friend, had taken himself out of the running for that posting because he did not want to move his family out of the country, according to people familiar with the process. Both nominations had been long expected. A third nominee was Jack Markell  a former governor of Mr. Bidens home state, Delaware  who is the presidents choice for U.S. representative to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, with the rank of ambassador. Mr. Biden announced his first slate of ambassador nominations earlier this month, including his picks for key posts to Mexico, Israel and NATO. But some of his selections for the most significant posts abroad  including R. Nicholas Burns, a veteran Foreign Service officer and a former ambassador to NATO, to serve as ambassador to China; Mayor Eric Garcetti of Los Angeles to serve as ambassador to India; and former Mayor Rahm Emanuel of Chicago to serve as ambassador to Japan  have still not been announced, even though multiple people familiar with the process said their nominations had been finalized internally.

Biden removes the head of a federal housing agency after a Supreme Court decision says he can. Mark Calabria, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Director, testified on Capitol Hill last June. Credit... Pool photo by Astrid Riecken President Biden on Wednesday removed the chief of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which oversees the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, acting immediately after the Supreme Court ruled that the president had the authority to dismiss the agencys director. The director, Mark Calabria, who was appointed by President Donald J. Trump, issued a statement wishing his successor well and noting that he respected the decision of the court and the presidents authority to remove him. The White House said late Wednesday that it had designated Sandra L. Thompson, a deputy director at the agency, as the acting chief. Replacing Mr. Calabria gives Mr. Biden more control over the fate of the mortgage giants, which play an outsize role in the housing market and are central to many homeowners ability to afford homes. Fannie and Freddie do not make home loans but instead buy mortgages and package them into securities, providing a guarantee to make investors who buy those securities whole in case of default. That helps keep the cost of 30-year mortgages low. During his tenure, Mr. Calabria had overseen the enactment of a number of rules that were seen as critical steps toward ending the federal governments conservatorship of Fannie and Freddie, which was imposed in 2008 at the start of the financial crisis. Mr. Calabria has favored a move toward privatizing Fannie and Freddie and ending the conservatorship. Many housing advocates and Democrats also favor ending it, but they do not necessarily want Fannie and Freddie put into private hands. The Supreme Court ruling stemmed from a dispute between shareholders of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the Treasury Department over $124 billion in payments the two lenders were required to make to the government after the 2008 housing crisis. Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., writing for a unanimous court on this point, rejected the shareholders argument that this so-called profit sweep exceeded the agencys statutory authority. But he added, now writing for six justices, that the law that created the housing agency violated the Constitution because it insulated the agencys director from presidential oversight. Matthew Goldstein, Adam Liptak and

General Milley pushes back on G.O.P. accusations of a woke military. Video transcript Back bars 0:00 / 1:41 - 0:00 transcript General Milley Defends Military Teaching of Critical Race Theory Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, pushed back forcefully on Wednesday to objections raised by Republican lawmakers about the teaching of critical race theory at service academies. I do think its important, actually, for those of us in uniform to be open-minded and be widely read. In the United States Military Academy is a university. And it is important that we train and we understand. And I want to understand white rage, and Im white, and I want to understand it. So, what is it that caused thousands of people to assault this building and try to overturn the Constitution of the United States of America? What caused that? I want to find that out. I want to maintain an open mind here, and I do want to analyze it. Its important that we understand that because our soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and guardians, they come from the American people. So, it is important that the leaders now and in the future do understand it. Ive read Mao Zedong. Ive read Karl Marx. Ive read Lenin. That doesnt make me a communist. So what is wrong with understanding, having some situational understanding about the country for which we are here to defend? And I personally find it offensive that we are accusing the United States military, our general officers, our commissioned, non-commissioned officers of being, quote, woke or something else, because were studying some theories that are out there. That was started at Harvard Law School years ago. And it proposed that there were laws in the United States, antebellum laws prior to the Civil War, that led to a power differential with African Americans, that were 3/4 of a human being, when this country was formed. And then we had a Civil War and Emancipation Proclamation to change it. And we brought it up to the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It took another 100 years to change that. So look, I do want to know. And I respect your service, and you and I are both Green Berets, but I want to know. And it matters to our military and the discipline and cohesion of this military. Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, pushed back forcefully on Wednesday to objections raised by Republican lawmakers about the teaching of critical race theory at service academies. Credit Credit... Sarahbeth Maney/The New York Times Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, pushed back on Wednesday against suggestions from a Republican congressman that the military was becoming too woke, calling such accusations offensive and alluding directly to the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol in which some veterans and active-duty members participated. Mr. Milley and Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III were testifying before the House Armed Services Committee when they were questioned about anti-extremism efforts and curriculums about race relations at service academies and beyond. Representative Michael Waltz, Republican of Florida, asked about the teaching of critical race theory at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, and specifically a seminar called Understanding Whiteness and White Rage. This came to me from cadets, from families, from soldiers with their alarm and their concern about how divisive this type of teaching is that is rooted in Marxism, Mr. Waltz said. Mr. Austin, who is the nations first Black defense secretary, suggested that the teaching of literature concerning white rage, as Mr. Waltz had described it, certainly sounds like something that should not occur. But General Milley, who is white, defended both the seminar and the broader practice of teaching service members controversial or uncomfortable ideas. I want to understand white rage, and Im white, General Milley said. What is it that caused thousands of people to assault this building and try to overturn the Constitution of the United States of America? he continued, as Mr. Austin looked on. What is wrong with having some situational understanding about the country we are here to defend? Noting that his having read writers like Karl Marx did not make him a communist, General Milley went on a long, impromptu disquisition on the history of racism in the military and the need for cadets and service members alike to study it. I do want to know, he said. It matters to our military and the discipline and cohesion of this military.

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U.S. opposes U.N. resolution on Cuba embargo, signaling Bidens cautious approach. A woman, wearing a protective face mask as a precaution against the spread of the new coronavirus, rides her bicycle along a street in Havana, Cuba, Wednesday, June 2, 2021. Credit... Ramon Espinosa/Associated Press For the 29th year, the United Nations General Assembly voted overwhelmingly on Wednesday to condemn the Cold War-era American embargo on Cuba, with many diplomats exhorting the Biden administration to resume the reconciliation that was upended by former President Donald J. Trump. The Biden administrations no vote appeared to signal, at least for now, that it would move cautiously to undo Mr. Trumps policy on Cuba, which remains a politically contentious issue in the United States  particularly in Florida, home to many Cubans who fled Fidel Castro and his successors. The U.N. resolution denouncing the six-decade embargo is symbolic only, having no practical effect. But the vote, held since 1992, amounts to a tradition for critics of American policy to vent their anger and express solidarity with Cuba at the United Nations. The United States had always voted against the resolution until it abstained from the vote during the last year of the Obama administration, while Mr. Biden was vice president, signaling a move to fully repair U.S. relations with Cuba after more than a half-century of estrangement. But Mr. Trump sought to reverse that direction after he took office, and the United States resumed voting against the resolution during his term. He went much further, adding sanctions on Cuba and  in his final weeks in office  putting the country back on the State Departments list of state sponsors of terrorism. A full termination of the embargo, which can only be rescinded by Congress, seems highly unlikely any time soon. But Mr. Biden is still expected to gradually move away from Mr. Trumps stance on Cuba.

The Supreme Court sides with a cheerleader who was punished by her school over a vulgar Snapchat post. Brandi Levy, a Pennsylvania high school student, had expressed her dismay on Snapchat over not making the varsity cheerleading squad. Credit... Danna Singer/ACLU, via Getty The Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that a Pennsylvania school district had violated the First Amendment by punishing a student for a vulgar social-media message sent away from school grounds. Justice Stephen G. Breyer, writing for an eight-member majority, said part of what schools must teach students is the value of free speech. Americas public schools are the nurseries of democracy, he wrote. Our representative democracy only works if we protect the marketplace of ideas. Schools have a strong interest in ensuring that future generations understand the workings in practice of the well-known aphorism, I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it, he wrote. Justice Clarence Thomas dissented. It has been more than 50 years since a high school student won a free-speech case the Supreme Court. The opinion reaffirms that schools authority over the lives of students is not boundless, said Justin Driver, a law professor at Yale and the author of The Schoolhouse Gate: Public Education, the Supreme Court and the Battle for the American Mind. At the same time, he said, the decision is intensely, almost painfully narrow, and for that reason it offers little in the way of clarity to students, educators or lower court judges. The case concerned Brandi Levy, a Pennsylvania high school student who had expressed her dismay over not making the varsity cheerleading squad by sending a colorful Snapchat message to about 250 people. She sent the message on a Saturday from a convenience store. It included an image of Ms. Levy and a friend with their middle fingers raised, along with a string of words expressing the same sentiment. Using a swear word four times, Ms. Levy objected to school, softball, cheer and everything. Though Snapchat messages are meant to vanish not long after they are sent, another student took a screenshot and showed it to her mother, a coach. The school suspended Ms. Levy from cheerleading for a year, saying the punishment was needed to avoid chaos and maintain a teamlike environment. Ms. Levy sued the school district, winning a sweeping victory from a divided three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, in Philadelphia. The court said the First Amendment did not allow public schools to punish students for speech outside school grounds, relying on precedent from a 1969 case. Here are other key rulings announced Wednesday by the Supreme Court: The court ruled that a California regulation allowing union organizers to recruit agricultural workers at their workplaces violated the constitutional rights of their employers. The vote was 6 to 3, with the courts three liberal members in dissent. The ruling was the latest blow to unions from a court that has issued several decisions limiting the power of organized labor.

The court, after having previously said that police officers do not need a warrant to enter a home when they are in hot pursuit of a fleeing felon, ruled that the same thing is not always true when the crime in question was as minor as playing a car stereo too loudly.

Supreme Court says a fleeing suspect does not always justify entering a home without a warrant. The Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that the mere fact that someone suspected of a minor crime had fled from the police did not justify entering a home without a warrant. Credit... Stefani Reynolds for The New York Times The Supreme Court, which has said that police officers do not need a warrant to enter a home when they are in hot pursuit of a fleeing felon, ruled on Wednesday that the same thing is not always true when the crime in question is minor. Justice Elena Kagan, writing for a seven-justice majority in the case, Lange v. California, said the mere fact that someone suspected of a minor crime had fled from the police did not justify entering a home. She added that other factors could change the calculus. We have no doubt that in a great many cases flight creates a need for police to act swiftly, she wrote. A suspect may flee, for example, because he is intent on discarding evidence. Or his flight may show a willingness to flee yet again, while the police await a warrant. But no evidence suggests that every case of misdemeanor flight poses such dangers. The case concerned Arthur Lange, a retiree in Sonoma, Calif., who was charged with driving under the influence, a misdemeanor, and playing music too loudly, an infraction, after an officer followed him home and used his foot to stop Mr. Lange from closing his garage door. Mr. Lange moved to suppress the evidence against him, arguing that the officers entry into his home had violated the Fourth Amendments prohibition on unreasonable searches and seizures. In an unusual move, California did not defend a lower courts decision in its favor and instead urged the Supreme Court to rule that only felonies justified entering a home without a warrant.

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The defense secretary endorses a plan to remove sexual assault cases from commanders. Video transcript Back bars 0:00 / 1:32 - 0:00 transcript Austin Backs Plan to Remove Sexual Assault Cases From Commanders Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III on Wednesday formally endorsed a plan, recommended by a Pentagon commission, that would remove the prosecution of sexual assault cases from the military chain of command. As you know, my first directive as Secretary of Defense issued on my first full day in the office was to service leadership about sexual assault. Yesterday, I received the final recommendations and complete report of the independent review commission, and I want to thank Lynn Rosenthal for her exceptional leadership on this commission, as well as the talented experts who worked so hard and so diligently to support her. The result is a comprehensive assessment across four lines of effort: accountability, prevention, climate and culture, and victim care and support. And that assessment recommends creative and evidence-based options. In the coming days, Ill present to President Biden my specific recommendations about the commissions finding, but I know enough at this point to say that I fully support removing the prosecution of sexual assaults and related crimes from the military chain of command. We are prepared to work with Congress to amend the Uniform Code of Military Justice in this regard. The I.R.C. also recommended the inclusion of other special victims crimes inside this independent prosecution system to include domestic violence, and I support this as well. As we move forward, I believe that its important to make changes that are both scope to the problem that were of trying to solve, and properly resource. Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III on Wednesday formally endorsed a plan, recommended by a Pentagon commission, that would remove the prosecution of sexual assault cases from the military chain of command. Credit Credit... Stefani Reynolds for The New York Times Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III formally endorsed changes on Wednesday to the way the military handles sexual assault cases, a sharp retreat from years of opposition by prior secretaries on the issue. The changes, which were recommended by a Pentagon commission convened by Mr. Austin, do not go as far as a bill that Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Wednesday that she intended to put on the floor soon. That legislation would take decisions about prosecuting all serious crimes committed in the military  not just sexual assaults  from the hands of commanders. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrat of New York, has pushed a similar bill for nearly a decade, but she has faced resistance from the chairman and top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee. As you know, my first directive as secretary of defense, issued on my first full day in the office, was to service leadership about sexual assault, said Mr. Austin, who appeared before the House Armed Services Committee with Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. In the coming days, I will present to President Biden my specific recommendations about the commissions finding, Mr. Austin said. But I know enough at this point to say that I fully support removing the prosecution of sexual assaults and related crimes from the military chain of command. The competing visions of how far to go in altering the military justice system set the stage for a potentially intense legislative battle over an issue that has vexed the Pentagon for generations with little progress. Some military leaders have begun to protest such changes.

News Analysis The defeat of the voting rights bill could open up new paths to reform. Video transcript Back bars 0:00 / 1:58 - 0:00 transcript Republicans Filibuster Voting Rights Bill Senate Republicans used the filibuster on Tuesday to block debate on an ambitious Democratic bill aimed at countering a wave of ballot restrictions in G.O.P.-controlled states. The For the People Act is about setting basic national standards to make sure that all voters in this country can vote legally in the way that works for them, regardless of what ZIP code they live in, regardless of if they live in a big city or in a suburb or out in a small town in Western Minnesota. It is about reducing the power of big money in our elections by ending secret spending by billionaires and special interests. And it is about making anti-corruption reforms to ensure politicians work for the people, not for themselves. The federal takeover elections shouldnt happen. I urge my colleagues not to support it happening. The American people dont want to see the things imposed on our election system that are in this bill. And I urge my colleagues to vote against this harmful legislation. On this vote, the yeas are 50, the nays are 50. Three-fifths of the senators duly chosen and sworn not having voted in the affirmative, the motion is not agreed to. All we wanted to do here on the floor was to bring up the issue of voting rights and debate how to combat these vicious, oftentimes discriminatory voting restrictions. And today, every single Democratic senator stood together in the fight to protect the right to vote in America. Regrettably, our efforts were met by the unanimous opposition of the Republic  of the Senate minority. Once again, Senate Republicans have signed their names in the ledger of history along Donal  alongside Donald Trump, the big lie and voter suppression, to their enduring disgrace. Senate Republicans used the filibuster on Tuesday to block debate on an ambitious Democratic bill aimed at countering a wave of ballot restrictions in G.O.P.-controlled states. Credit Credit... Erin Schaff/The New York Times The demise of the For the People Act  the far-reaching voting rights bill that Republicans blocked in the Senate on Tuesday  is a crushing blow to progressives and reformers, but it opens up more plausible, if still rocky, paths to reform. The law, known as H.R. 1 or S. 1, was full of progressive wish list measures  from public financing of elections to national mail-in voting  that all but ensured its failure in the Senate. But there were roads not taken. Reformers did not add provisions to tackle the most insidious and serious threat to democracy: election subversion, where partisan election officials might use their powers to overturn electoral outcomes. Those concerns have only escalated over the last several months as Republicans have advanced bills that not only imposed new limits on voting, but also afforded the G.O.P. greater control over election administration. Instead, the bill focused on the serious but less urgent issues that animated reformers at the time it was first proposed in 2019: allegations of corruption in the Trump administration, the rise of so-called dark money in the aftermath of the Supreme Courts decision in Citizens United, or the spate of voter identification laws passed in the aftermath of President Barack Obamas election victories. Originally, the bill was seen as a political statement or a messaging bill, not as the basis for a realistic legislative effort. One narrow, yet possible avenue emerged in the final days of the push for H.R. 1: a grand bargain, like the one recently suggested by Joe Manchin III, the moderate Democratic senator from West Virginia who provoked outrage among progressives when he said he would oppose the bill in its current form. The Manchin compromise resembles H.R. 1 in crucial ways. It does not address election subversion any more than H.R. 1 does. And it still seeks sweeping changes to voting, ethics, campaign finance and redistricting law. But it offers Republicans a national voter identification requirement, while relenting on many of the provisions that provoke the most intense Republican opposition. Mr. Manchins proposal nonetheless provoked intense Republican opposition. Senator Roy Blunt of Missouri derided it as a Stacey Abrams bill. And Mitch McConnell, the minority leader from Kentucky, appeared to suggest that no federal election law would earn his support.

The Biden administration plans to extend the federal moratorium on evictions for another month. The Biden administration plans to extend the national moratorium on evictions through July, officials said. Activists in Brooklyn called in May for an extension of New York States eviction moratorium. Credit... Justin Lane/EPA, via Shutterstock The Biden administration plans to extend the national moratorium on evictions, scheduled to expire on June 30, by one month to buy more time to distribute billions of dollars in federal pandemic housing aid, according to two officials with knowledge of the situation. The moratorium, instituted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last September to prevent a wave of evictions spurred by the economic downturn associated with the coronavirus pandemic, has significantly limited the economic damage to renters and sharply reduced eviction filings. Congressional Democrats, local officials and tenant groups have been warning that the expiration of the moratorium at the end of the month, and the lapsing of similar state and local measures, might touch off a new  if somewhat less severe  eviction crisis. President Bidens team decided to extend the moratorium by a month after an internal debate at the White House over the weekend. The step is one of a series of actions that the administration plans to take in the next several weeks, involving several federal agencies, the officials said. Other initiatives include a summit on housing affordability and evictions, to be held at the White House later this month; stepped-up coordination with local officials and legal aid organizations to minimize evictions after July 31; and new guidance from the Treasury Department meant to streamline the sluggish disbursement of the $21.5 billion in emergency aid included in the pandemic relief bill in the spring. White House officials, requesting anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the issue publicly, said that the one-month extension, while influenced by concerns over a new wave of evictions, was prompted by the lag in vaccination rates in some parts of the country and by other factors that have extended the coronavirus crisis. Forty-four House Democrats wrote to Mr. Biden and the C.D.C. director, Dr. Rochelle P. Walensky, on Tuesday, urging them to put off allowing evictions to resume. By extending the moratorium and incorporating these critical improvements to protect vulnerable renters, we can work to curtail the eviction crisis disproportionately impacting our communities of color, the lawmakers wrote. A spokesman for the C.D.C. did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Many local officials have also pressed to extend the freeze as long as possible, and are bracing for a rise in evictions when the federal moratorium and similar state and city orders expire over the summer. Gov. Gavin Newsom of California announced on Monday that his state had set aside $5.2 billion from federal aid packages to pay off the back rent of tenants who fell behind during the pandemic, an extraordinary move intended to wipe the slate clean for millions of renters. Still, groups representing private landlords maintain that the health crisis that justified the freeze has ended, and that continuing the freeze even for an extra four weeks would be an unwarranted government intrusion in the housing market. The mounting housing affordability crisis is quickly becoming a housing affordability disaster fueled by flawed eviction moratoriums, which leave renters with insurmountable debt and housing providers holding the bag, said Bob Pinnegar, president of the National Apartment Association, a trade group representing owners of large residential buildings.

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The Biden administration is forcing out the chief of the United States Border Patrol, Rodney S. Scott, who took over the agency during the final year of the Trump administration, a Department of Homeland Security official said on Wednesday.

The move comes as Vice President Kamala Harris plans to visit the southwest border on Friday for the first time since President Biden asked her to lead the administrations efforts to deter migration from Central America. Republicans have increased pressure on both Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris to visit the border, where a record number of migrants have been trying to cross in recent months.

Mr. Scott, a 29-year veteran of the Border Patrol, took the helm of the agency in February 2020. He was a supporter of President Donald J. Trumps signature border policy, a plan to complete a wall between the United States and Mexico. The Homeland Security official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said that while Mr. Scott had been asked to move on, it was possible he could be reassigned to a new post within the department.

The Border Patrol monitors nearly 6,000 miles of the nations borders with Mexico and Canada, in between official points of entry. It has been at the center of a highly polarized national debate over immigration policy, particularly as Mr. Trump employed hard-line tactics against undocumented immigrants.
President Biden announced Wednesday that he was nominating Cindy McCain, the widow of former Senator John McCain, as ambassador to the United Nations World Food Programme, giving the post to a longtime Republican friend as he continues to emphasize the importance of bipartisanship in a deeply divided Washington.

Ms. McCain, who participated in a video supporting Mr. Bidens candidacy during the all-virtual Democratic National Convention last summer, was seen as a must do for an ambassador posting in the Biden administration, according to sources familiar with the process, and has been undergoing the vetting process for some time.

In the video, Ms. McCain spoke about Mr. Bidens unlikely friendship with her husband.

My husband and Vice President Biden enjoyed a 30+ year friendship dating back to before their years serving together in the Senate, she tweeted before the Democratic convention. So I was honored to accept the invitation from the Biden campaign to participate in a video celebrating their relationship.

The U.N. mission is based in Rome.

Mr. Biden also announced on Wednesday that he was nominating Claire Cronin, a Massachusetts state representative, as ambassador to Ireland. Former Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut, a longtime Biden friend, had taken himself out of the running for that posting because he did not want to move his family out of the country, according to people familiar with the process.
For Democrats, the only way to break their voting rights legislation free of Republican opposition is by changing the Senates filibuster rules  an institution-shaking step that so far remains out of reach. But while the filibuster is proving hard to kill, it has been wounded.

The unanimous Republican refusal to allow the Senate to open a debate sought by every Democrat on the expansive elections and ethics measure  coupled with the recent filibuster of other legislation with bipartisan support  has armed opponents with fresh evidence of how the tactic can be employed to give the minority veto power over the majority.

Democrats and activists say the increasing Republican reliance on the filibuster will only intensify calls to jettison it and potentially bring about critical mass for a rules change as Democrats remain determined to pass some form of the elections measure and other parts of their agenda opposed by Republicans.

I think as people see them stopping more things, minds might change, Senator Amy Klobuchar, Democrat of Minnesota and one of the chief sponsors of the voting bill, said on Wednesday.
The safety of our communities, the safety of our nation is the No. 1 priority and the No. 1 concern, Ms. Demings said, adding, Everybody deserves to live in a safe community.

Trying out a counterattack that could become a staple of Democratic messaging in 2022, Ms. Demings said that Republicans may have eagerly draped themselves in blue but have not followed up with concrete support for the police.

When it came to supporting resources for local communities, including law enforcement, not one Republican voted in favor of that funding, she said, alluding to the lock-step G.O.P. opposition to the presidents American Rescue Plan. When first responders needed them the most  one of those moments  they just didnt deliver.

It is not clear how universally Democrats will adopt that approach. While a majority of the party appears to welcome a message of being simultaneously tough on crime and stringent about police abuse, there is also significant resistance among liberals to policies that might bolster police departments, of which they are deeply distrustful.

Last month, a small group of House liberals briefly threatened to derail a bill to fund security at the Capitol complex, saying it was ineffective to keep supporting what they called a broken system rooted in white supremacy.

In New York, progressives were holding out hope that Ms. Wiley or another candidate could overtake Mr. Adams through the tabulation of ranked-choice ballots. That kind of upset is not entirely out of the question: Mr. Adams has alienated several of the other leading candidates with bitter personal attacks, and he faced serious questions about financial ethics and real-estate interests that fueled antipathy to his campaign. (If he prevails, national Democrats may come to find him an awkward ally on law-enforcement subjects and beyond.)

Some progressives were also looking beyond the five boroughs of New York for encouragement, drawing satisfaction from a political upset in Buffalo, where the entrenched Democratic mayor lost to a socialist primary challenger who was a forceful critic of the citys police department.
WASHINGTON  Vice President Kamala Harris will travel to the United States-Mexico border on Friday, a visit that comes after weeks of criticism from Republicans who assailed her for not visiting even though she is in charge of addressing the root causes of migration.

The criticism came after Ms. Harriss visit to Mexico City and Guatemala this month, when Lester Holt of NBC grilled her about why she had not visited the border. She responded by calling the visit a grand gesture and pointed out that she had not visited Europe yet, either  answers that confounded her critics and members of her own administration.

She said in the same interview she would be open to going to the border at an appropriate time, Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, said, fielding questions about Ms. Harriss visit on Wednesday. We made an assessment within our government about when it was an appropriate time for her to go the border.

Administration officials did not give a clear answer about what made this week an appropriate time. Ms. Harris has held the role since March, when President Biden tapped her to lead an effort to improve conditions in Central America to deter migration north. But even during this months trip aimed at improving conditions in the region, she continued to face questions over her absence from the border.
I do think its important, actually, for those of us in uniform to be open-minded and be widely read. In the United States Military Academy is a university. And it is important that we train and we understand. And I want to understand white rage, and Im white, and I want to understand it. So, what is it that caused thousands of people to assault this building and try to overturn the Constitution of the United States of America? What caused that? I want to find that out. I want to maintain an open mind here, and I do want to analyze it. Its important that we understand that because our soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and guardians, they come from the American people. So, it is important that the leaders now and in the future do understand it. Ive read Mao Zedong. Ive read Karl Marx. Ive read Lenin. That doesnt make me a communist. So what is wrong with understanding, having some situational understanding about the country for which we are here to defend? And I personally find it offensive that we are accusing the United States military, our general officers, our commissioned, non-commissioned officers of being, quote, woke or something else, because were studying some theories that are out there. That was started at Harvard Law School years ago. And it proposed that there were laws in the United States, antebellum laws prior to the Civil War, that led to a power differential with African Americans, that were 3/4 of a human being, when this country was formed. And then we had a Civil War and Emancipation Proclamation to change it. And we brought it up to the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It took another 100 years to change that. So look, I do want to know. And I respect your service, and you and I are both Green Berets, but I want to know. And it matters to our military and the discipline and cohesion of this military.
In the end, the Yang Gang went bust.

Andrew Yang entered the race for New York mayor in January as the front-runner, but his happy-go-lucky, antipolitical style of campaigning left him unable to hold onto voters confidence. As early results came in for the Democratic primary after polls closed on Tuesday, Mr. Yang was on track to finish in a distant fourth place. Hes since conceded.

Still, that doesnt necessarily mean that New Yorkers wanted a boldly ideological candidate either  or one with a wonky political approach. Eric Adams, a longtime Brooklyn politician and a former Republican, whose docket of endorsements and donors arguably looked more similar to Mr. Yangs than any other candidates did and who similarly positioned himself as a no-nonsense Everyman, held a wide lead as early returns arrived.

With 83 percent of precinct results in, Mr. Adams currently has 31.7 percent of the first-choice votes. Hes far from the certain winner: New York City elections are using a ranked-choice system this year for the first time, so itll probably take weeks to know who will be the Democratic nominee (a.k.a., the next mayor, almost guaranteed).

But Mr. Adams is in a very strong position, meaning that even as the New York City Council has drifted leftward in recent years, its voters may choose a mayor with more moderate  and in some cases, even conservative-leaning  politics.
In the days after lawmakers introduced legislation that could break the dominance of tech companies, Apples chief executive, Tim Cook, called Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other members of Congress to deliver a warning.

The antitrust bills were rushed, he said. They would crimp innovation. And they would hurt consumers by disrupting the services that power Apples lucrative iPhone, Mr. Cook cautioned at various points, according to five people with knowledge of the conversations.

The calls by Mr. Cook are part of a forceful and wide-ranging pushback by the tech industry since the proposals were announced this month. Executives, lobbyists, and more than a dozen think tanks and advocacy groups paid by tech companies have swarmed Capitol offices, called and emailed lawmakers and their staff members, and written letters arguing there will be dire consequences for the industry and the country if the ideas become law.

The bills, the most sweeping set of antitrust legislation in generations, take aim at Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google by trying to undo their dominance in online commerce, advertising, media and entertainment. There are six bills in total, and if passed, they would empower regulators, make it harder for the tech giants to acquire start-ups and prevent the companies from using their strength in one area to form a grip in another.
WASHINGTON  The Supreme Court, which has said that police officers do not need a warrant to enter a home when they are in hot pursuit of a fleeing felon, ruled on Wednesday that the same thing is not always true when the crime in question was as minor as playing a car stereo too loudly.

Justice Elena Kagan, writing for a seven-justice majority, said the mere fact that someone suspected of a minor crime fled from the police did not justify entering a home. She added that other factors could change the calculus.

We have no doubt that in a great many cases flight creates a need for police to act swiftly, she wrote. A suspect may flee, for example, because he is intent on discarding evidence. Or his flight may show a willingness to flee yet again, while the police await a warrant. But no evidence suggests that every case of misdemeanor flight poses such dangers.

The case concerned Arthur Lange, who had retired to Sonoma, Calif., after a career in commercial real estate. Driving home around 10 p.m. in the fall of 2016, with the windows down, loud music on and occasionally honking the cars horn, he caught the attention of a state highway patrol officer.
WASHINGTON  The Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that a California regulation allowing union organizers to recruit agricultural workers at their workplaces violated the constitutional rights of their employers.

The vote was 6 to 3, with the courts three liberal members in dissent.

Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., writing for the majority, said that the access regulation grants labor organizations a right to invade the growers property. That meant, he wrote, that it was a taking of private property without just compensation.

The decision did away with a major achievement of the farmworkers movement led by Cesar Chavez in the 1970s, which had argued that allowing organizers to enter workplaces was the only practical way to give farmworkers, who can be nomadic and poorly educated, a realistic chance to consider joining a union.

The ruling was the latest blow to unions from a court that has issued several decisions limiting the power of organized labor.
Dozens of people were killed when a government airstrike slammed into a busy market in northern Ethiopia, medics and witnesses said, as fighting intensified in the restive Tigray region where federal forces are struggling to contain a broadening insurgency.

The airstrike appeared to be one of the deadliest single incidents of the eight-month civil war that has sullied the international reputation of Ethiopias Nobel Peace Prize winning leader, Abiy Ahmed. The attack was on Tuesday in Togoga, 15 miles west of the Tigrayan regional capital, Mekelle.

A day later, on Wednesday, Tigrayan rebels struck back against the government when fighters shot down an Ethiopian Air Forces C-130 transport plane as it approached Mekelle, causing it to smash into a field about 15 miles south of the city, according to the rebels and witnesses.

It pointed to an intensifying fight in Tigray, where fighters led by Ethiopias one-time ruling party, the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front, captured areas south of Mekelle that until recently were controlled by soldiers from Eritrea. The rebels say they have captured several thousand Ethiopian soldiers and were holding them as prisoners of war.
MEXICO CITY  The business tycoon Carlos Slim is willing to repair part of Mexico Citys subway system, the countrys president said Wednesday, after investigations found that shoddy work by Mr. Slims engineering firm had caused part of a metro line to collapse last month, killing 26 people.

But it was not clear whether that meant Mr. Slim would absorb any of the cost of fixing the line, which failed less than nine years after it opened.

The results of a government-commissioned probe conducted by DNV, a Norwegian risk management company, and released last week, supported the findings of an investigation published just days earlier by The New York Times. Both The Timess and DNVs investigations found that serious construction flaws led to the collapse of an overpass in Mexico Citys subway system, including problems with the welding and placement of metal studs, which were linchpins of the entire structure.

Speaking at a news conference on Wednesday, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador spoke of the urgent need to rehabilitate the line as soon as possible because more than 300,000 people travel on it daily. Mexico Citys subway is the second largest in the Americas, after New York Citys.
For the 29th year, the United Nations General Assembly voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to condemn the Cold War-era American embargo on Cuba, with many diplomats exhorting the Biden administration to resume the reconciliation that was upended by former President Donald J. Trump.

In what was seen as a litmus test of President Bidens willingness to quickly reverse his predecessors tough stance toward Cuba, the United States opposed the resolution. During the last year of the Obama administration, when Mr. Biden was vice president, the United States abstained on the resolution for the first time.

The Biden administrations no vote appeared to signal, at least for now, that it would move cautiously to undo Mr. Trumps policy on Cuba, which remains a politically contentious issue in the United States, particularly in Florida, home to many Cubans who fled Fidel Castro and his successors.

The resolution denouncing the six-decade embargo is symbolic only, having no practical effect. But the vote, held since 1992, amounts to a tradition for critics of American policy to vent their anger and express solidarity with Cuba at the United Nations.
HONG KONG  Apple Daily, a popular newspaper in Hong Kong, has long needled Beijing with its rambunctious support of pro-democracy protesters, aggressive investigations of officials and lampooning of Chinas Communist Party leadership. Now China has effectively silenced the paper  and along with it, one of its most defiant critics.

Apple Daily said on Wednesday that it was closing less than a week after the police froze its accounts, raided its offices and arrested top editors, as the governments escalating campaign against dissent takes aim at the citys once vaunted media freedoms.

The forced closure of Apple Daily struck a blow to the unique character of the city itself. The paper churned out stories on celebrity gossip and lurid scandals, as well as hard-hitting political news and analysis, always with a decidedly antigovernment slant and an irreverence antithetical to what the Communist Party would allow in the mainland. Even in the face of advertising boycotts, assaults on its journalists and firebomb attacks, the paper persevered and thrived, remaining one of the most widely read newspapers in the city, living proof of the freedoms Hong Kong enjoyed despite its return to Chinese rule in 1997.

When antigovernment protests erupted in Hong Kong in 2019, posing the greatest political challenge to Beijing in decades, Apple Daily was an unabashed supporter of the movement, even printing placards for demonstrators. But when Beijing moved to quash resistance to its rule in the city with a powerful and sweeping national security law that squeezed space for dissent, Apple Daily quickly became a key target.
Hong Kongs raucous and politically diverse news media, though free from the constraints placed on journalism next door in mainland China, has contended with various threats over the years. But after a draconian national security law went into effect a year ago, those challenges have multiplied dramatically.

The growing pressure on the media was underscored on Wednesday when Apple Daily, a pro-democracy tabloid that is often critical of the Chinese and Hong Kong governments, said it had no choice but to close. The newspaper, which had been one of the most widely read in Hong Kong, is the subject of a national security investigation that has also imprisoned its founder, Jimmy Lai.

Despite having the right to free speech enshrined in its local Constitution, the Chinese territory is now ranked 80th out of 180 countries and regions on the World Press Freedom Index, down from 18th when Reporters Without Borders first published the index in 2002.

There is no doubt it is the worst of times, Chris Yeung, chairman of the Hong Kong Journalists Association, told The New York Times last month.
BRUSSELS  A culture war between Hungary and the European Union escalated Wednesday after a top official from the bloc said she would use all her powers to thwart a new Hungarian law that critics say targets the L.G.B.T. community.

The law, which would ban the depiction or promotion of homosexuality to those under 18 years of age, an addition to legislation targeting pedophiles, has been approved in Hungarys Parliament but still must be endorsed by the countrys president.

The legislation was sharply criticized on Wednesday by the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.

This Hungarian bill is a shame, Ms. von der Leyen said in a statement. This bill clearly discriminates against people based on their sexual orientation. It goes against the fundamental values of the European Union: human dignity, equality and respect for human rights.
MOSCOW  The Russian Defense Ministry said on Wednesday that one of its naval vessels had fired warning shots at a British destroyer near Crimea in the Black Sea and that a Russian fighter jet had dropped bombs in the destroyers path after it entered Russian waters, claims that were quickly denied by Britain.

We believe the Russians were undertaking a gunnery exercise in the Black Sea and provided the maritime community with prior warning of their activity, Britains Ministry of Defense said of the incident involving the destroyer Defender. No shots were directed at H.M.S. Defender and we do not recognize the claim that bombs were dropped in her path.

That account was at sharp variance with the one given by Russias Defense Ministry, which said the British ship had ventured almost two miles inside Russias territorial waters and had retreated immediately after the purported confrontation.

The ministry said the standoff took place near Cape Fiolent, near the port city of Sevastopol, where Russia maintains a large naval base.
Some people will believe these videos and believe Uyghurs are living a happy life, she said. We cant say they have locked up everyone. But what theyre saying in these videos  its not true. They know theyre not speaking the truth. But they have to say what the Chinese government wants them to say.

Ms. Kadeer said the videos had given her a chance to see what had become of her granddaughters. The last time she saw them, they were infants.

Several of the Xinjiang videos feature family members of Rebiya Kadeer, 74, whom the Chinese government has accused of abetting terrorism. In one clip, two of Ms. Kadeers granddaughters lash out at Mr. Pompeo while out shopping for a wedding.

Chinas propaganda efforts will keep getting better, Mr. Pompeo added. Theyll continue to revise and become quicker, more authentic in their capacity to deliver this message, he said.

As clumsy as the videos seem, he said, their influence should not be dismissed: In places that dont have access to a great deal of media, that repetition, those story lines have an ability to take hold.

The warehouse accounts on YouTube have attracted more than 480,000 views in total. People on YouTube, TikTok and other platforms  users with no apparent connection to the influence campaign  have cited the testimonials to argue that all is well in Xinjiang. Their videos have received hundreds of thousands of additional views.

New videos are being uploaded to Pomegranate Cloud nearly every day. That means the campaign, which has already enlisted thousands of people in Xinjiang  teachers, shopkeepers, farmhands  could keep growing.

The anti-H&M campaign continues. By June 21, more than 800 cotton-related videos had been posted to Pomegranate Cloud, a large share of which were later reposted on YouTube or Twitter.

The clip was posted on Pomegranate Cloud on March 29. Six days later, it was posted on and YouTube , 20 minutes apart, by two warehouse accounts. As with the other clips that appeared on those platforms, English subtitles were added somewhere along the way, seemingly for the benefit of international audiences.

Two months later, another wave of videos, shot in the same style and distributed in a similar way, raged against H&M and other international clothing brands that have expressed concern about possible labor abuses in Xinjiangs cotton and textile industries.

The clip was posted by Global Times, a state-controlled newspaper, on the Chinese platform Kuaishou on Jan. 25. Two days later, the video was posted on and YouTube by the warehouse accounts within 30 minutes of one another.

After this article was published online, YouTube took down several but not all of these accounts. The company determined that some of them had behaved in a coordinated manner in uploading Xinjiang videos and removed them as part of its efforts to combat influence operations, said a spokeswoman, Ivy Choi. Other accounts, she said, were removed for violating the platforms policy against spam and deceptive practices.

Most of these accounts  seven on Twitter and nearly two dozen on YouTube  posted dozens of videos that originally appeared on Pomegranate Cloud. The accounts seem to have served solely as warehouses to store the clips, making it easier for other accounts in the network to share them.

Those YouTube and Twitter accounts often posted copies of the same Xinjiang videos at roughly the same time, according to the Times and ProPublica analysis. Nearly three-quarters of the copied clips were posted by different accounts within 30 minutes of one another. This suggests the posts were coordinated, even though the accounts had no obvious connection.

The accounts did not upload Xinjiang clips directly to Twitter. Rather, they tweeted links to videos on YouTube or retweeted videos that had been originally posted by other Twitter accounts.

Twitter suspended many of these accounts in March and April, before The Times and ProPublica inquired about them. Twitter said the accounts had violated its policies against platform manipulation and spam.

All of the accounts had been registered only in recent months. Many of them followed zero other users. Nearly all had fewer than five followers. The bulk of their tweeting took place between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. Beijing time.

Such strings were found in about three-quarters of the accounts tweets. They caused the text of the posts to vary slightly, in an apparent attempt to bypass Twitters automated anti-spam filters.

The accounts often posted messages that were identical but for a at the end with no obvious meaning, either four Roman letters, five Chinese characters or three symbols such as percentage signs or parentheses.

Within days, videos criticizing Mr. Pompeo began appearing on an app called Pomegranate Cloud , which is owned by the regional arm of the official Communist Party newspaper, Peoples Daily. The name of the app is a reference to a propaganda slogan that calls on people of all ethnic groups in China to be as closely united as pomegranate seeds.

On government-led tours of the region, foreign diplomats and reporters have been allowed to speak with locals only under Chinese officials watchful eyes, often in settings that seem staged and scripted .

The Chinese authorities have thwarted efforts by journalists and others to gain unfettered access to the indoctrination camps where hundreds of thousands of Muslims have been sent for re-education.

The clips effectiveness as propaganda comes in part because they will probably be most peoples only glimpse into Xinjiang, a remote desert region closer to Kabul than to Beijing.

Multiple calls to Mr. Hes number were not answered. Seven other people in the videos whose contact information could be found either declined to be interviewed or couldnt be reached. The name of the car dealerships owner is being withheld to protect him from retribution by Chinese officials.

When reached by phone, the man said local propaganda authorities had produced the clip. When asked for details, he gave the number of an official he called Mr. He, saying, Why dont you ask the head of the propaganda department?

The people in more than 1,000 of the videos say they have recently come across Mr. Pompeos remarks, most of them on the internet or on specific platforms such as Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok.

Most videos are in Chinese or Uyghur and follow the same basic script. The subject introduces herself, then explains how her own happy, prosperous life means there couldnt possibly be repressive policies in Xinjiang. Heres a typical clip, shot as a selfie.

They are, in essence, high-speed propaganda pipelines for Beijing. In just a few days, videos establishing the Communist Partys version of reality can be shot, edited and amplified across the global internet.

Western platforms like Twitter and YouTube are banned in China out of fear they might be used to spread political messaging  which is exactly how Chinese officials are using these platforms in the rest of the world.

Many of these videos of people in Xinjiang first appeared on a regional Communist Party news app. Then they showed up on YouTube and other global sites, with English subtitles added. (The excerpts of dialogue in this article are translated from the original spoken Chinese or Uyghur by The Times and ProPublica. They are not taken from the English subtitles in the original videos.)

The operation has produced and spread thousands of videos in which Chinese citizens deny abuses against their own communities and scold foreign officials and multinational corporations who dare question the Chinese governments human rights record in Xinjiang.

A monthslong analysis of more than 3,000 of the videos by The New York Times and ProPublica found evidence of an influence campaign orchestrated by the Chinese government.

These and thousands of other videos are meant to look like unfiltered glimpses of life in Xinjiang, the western Chinese region where the Communist Party has carried out repressive policies against Uyghurs and other predominantly Muslim ethnic minorities.

Recently, the owner of a small store in western China came across some remarks by Mike Pompeo, the former U.S. secretary of state. What he heard made him angry.

Methodology

The data analyzed for this article includes videos, metadata and social media posts collected from Twitter, YouTube and Pomegranate Cloud between Feb. 18 and June 2. We downloaded more than 5,000 videos posted to these platforms between Jan. 23 (the date of the first campaign video following the State Departments Jan. 19 declaration of genocide in Xinjiang) and May 31. On Pomegranate Cloud, we collected clips targeting Mr. Pompeo by searching for posts mentioning him after Jan. 19 that contained video. We collected videos denying forced labor in Xinjiangs cotton industry from a section dedicated to them in the app.

On Twitter and YouTube, the campaign videos were collected from what we call warehouse accounts, those whose videos were shared by a network of more than 300 coordinated Twitter accounts. This network appeared to work in coordination to like and retweet content that supported Chinese government policies, such as the campaign videos, as well as news articles and editorials from state media. To define the network, we manually identified a small group of accounts and their indicators of automation, specifically posts containing identical content followed by strings of random characters. We then identified additional network accounts by programmatically searching for other accounts that boosted the same content and had the same indicators.

We cataloged more than 3,000 unique campaign videos out of the more than 5,000 collected. To pinpoint duplicates among videos containing various compression rates, visual artifacts and subtitle languages, we calculated a fingerprint for each video by running a sample of its frames through the Google Cloud Vision image labeler. We determined videos with similar fingerprints and durations to be duplicates. We manually sampled and reviewed the results from this process to minimize false positives and false negatives.

To identify non-campaign videos on YouTube and Twitter, we first obtained their subtitles by using optical character recognition on frames taken from them at regular intervals. We considered videos that did not mention Mr. Pompeo or cotton to be non-campaign videos. Videos on Twitter and YouTube always had subtitles in English and Chinese. Videos from Pomegranate Cloud had subtitles in Chinese only when Uyghur was spoken. We considered all videos collected from Pomegranate Cloud to be campaign videos, but did not review each manually. We also used the subtitles of the YouTube and Twitter videos to analyze their content.
New York City voters cast their ballots for mayor on Tuesday, and it became clear that the competitive Democratic race would be decided by the citys new ranked-choice system. It is likely to be weeks before a winner is known. The map below shows the latest unofficial results for the first round of votes, which do not include absentee ballots.
Chinas Broad Group recently showcased its innovative Living Building, a new type of modular building system, by erecting a 10-storey apartment building in Changsha City in only 28 hours and 45 minutes.

The Living Building concept developed by Broad Group sounds like it could truly revolutionize the construction industry, and the Chinese companys recent feat of erecting a 10-floor building in just over a day was meant to emphasize just how disruptive its new system can be. Technically, the building was just assembled on a site in Changsha, by three cranes and a large workforce, as all the components were built in a local Broad Group factory and transported by truck. But thats one of the features of the Living Building system, it consists of pre-made container-size modules that only need to be bolted together at the build site and have their electricity and plumbing connected.

Photo: Broad Group

The true innovation behind Broad Groups newest product is the concept of building houses like cars. Everything is produced and assembled at a state-of-the-art factory in Changsha, and then transported to the desired location for assembly. Built out of the Chinese companys proprietary Bcore steel slabs, the modular components can be folded into a standard 40ft-high container that can easily be transported by land and sea, just like regular containers.

Once the containers arrive at the desired location, all that is required is an extremely simple installation process that involves tightening the modules together to form a building, and connecting the electricity and plumbing. It sounds too simple to be true, which is exactly why Broad Group did the recent demonstration.

Photo: Broad Group

Watching the video of the 10-storey Living Building coming to life and becoming inhabitable in just over a day is quite impressive, but the speed at which it can be assembled is just one of the many qualities Broad Group boasts about in its presentation.

According to the Chinese company, the stainless steel structure is 10 times lighter and 100 times stronger than conventional buildings, and is resistant to mega earthquakes and typhoons. Its also considerably cheaper to make than traditional structures and carbon steel buildings, thanks in large part to the streamlined production process.

Photo: Broad Group

Thanks to the 22-cm-thick insulation, as well as 3 or 4-pane glass windows, and intelligent heat recovery system, the energy cost of the Living Building is reportedly 1/5 to 1/10 that of traditional buildings.

Broad Group claims that its new system is called Living Building because of its versatility. It can be used for luxury and public residential structures, as well as skyscrapers up to 200-storeys-high. Thanks to the modular design, the building can be disassembled and moved to new locations easily, and the position and number of walls, doors, windows and balconies can be changed after completion.

Finally, Broad Group claims that the 100% stainless steel structure of its Living Building is over 30 times more corrosion-resistant than carbon steel and has over 1,000 years of service life.

Well have to wait and see if the Living Building concept takes off, but theres no denying that the idea of building a 10-storey building in just over a day is very intriguing. Its not as cool as the tiny house that can be installed in just 3 hours, but still
Japanese artist Yoneji Inamura spent six years of his life collecting 20,000 beetles of different varieties and using them to create a five-foot sculpture of a popular Buddhist deity.

Its unclear how and when exactly Inamura started catching and collecting beetles. Some sources claim that it was during his days working for the local railroad, in Itakura, Japans Gunma Prefecture, after noticing that the rhinoceros beetles horn resembled the fingers of the Buddhist deity, while others say that he was helping local children collect beetles and just became fascinated with them. Living in a rural area of Japan, Inamura was always surrounded by various types of beetles, including rhinoceros beetles, winged jewel beetles, drone beetles, longhorn beetles, just to name a few, and he dedicated most of his free time to catching and adding them to his collection.

Photo: H. Zell

Yoneji Inamura was not a professional artist, but in 1970, he somehow got the idea of using his extensive collection of beetles to create art. His first notable work was a wooden samurai sculpture covered in 5,000 beetles of different varieties. He spent 10 months using the bugs to make a unique armor for the samurai and the result was simply breathtaking.

But while the self-taught artist got a lot of attention when his beetle samurai was unveiled, it wasnt all positive feedback. While some people praised his talent, others called him cruel for killing so many insects to create the artwork. He wasnt immune to this criticism, so he decided to make amends for killing thousands of tiny critters in the most bizarre way  killing even more of them.

In 1972, Yoneji Inamura started working on his most impressive beetle sculpture, a five-foot-tall statue of the senju kannon bosatsu (1000-armed bodhisattva), a popular deity in Japan. If I shaped them into the form of a Buddhist statue it would also serve as a memorial to the insects, he told Japanese newspaper Asahi.

Over the next six years, Inamura collected beetles almost every day, before and after work, and added them to his artwork. It took him a total of six years and 20,000 beetles to complete the Buddha. The controversial sculpture generated a lot of publicity in the late 1970s, and people from all over Japan traveled to Itakura to see it in person, but it was eventually forgotten.

Luckily the beetle Buddha was rediscovered two years ago, by a Tokyo art museum director looking for interesting artworks for an exhibit. It received ample coverage in Japanese media, and it is now proudly displayed at the Itakura Town Hall.

Yoneji Inamura passed away earlier this year, at the age of 98, so well probably never know why he thought it was a good idea to make a memorial to the beetles by killing even more of them.

Theres no denying that Inamuras artworks have a unique charm, but knowing that they consist of thousands of dead insects also adds a layer of creepiness.

Here are some photos of his beetle samurai sculpture.

Yoneji Inamuras art reminds me of a similarly controversial artwork created by renowned artist Damien Hirst. In 2009, he sparked controversy with his etomology series, which features thousands of insects sealed in gloss paint.

Sources: Spoon & Tamago, Kotaku, Journal News
Uglier and Uglier, a controversial artwork that ranked photos and videos of 5,000 different real-life women from ugly to ugliest, was removed by a Shanghai-based gallery following public outcry.

Created by male Chinese artist Song Ta, Uglier and Uglier featured photos and clips of thousands of women on a university campus ranked by how unattractive he found them. Song reportedly created the controversial exhibit in 2013 and showcased it in several art galleries since, but its latest outing at the OCAT Shanghai gallery was met with so much criticism from the public that it was eventually taken down. The fact that Song Ta once said that he and his assistants ranked the women depicted in his artwork from forgivably ugly to unforgivably ugly might have had something to do with peoples reaction to the exhibit

After receiving criticism, we re-evaluated the content of this artwork and the artists explanation, we found it disrespected women, and the way it was shot has copyright infringement issues, OCAT Shanghai announced on Weibo. As a museum that supports diversity, we will take this as a warning, improve our services and treat everyone with empathy.

In a 2019 interview with VICE Magazine, Song Ta defended his controversial artwork by saying that he had the right to tell the truth. He also admitted that he hurt the people he labeled as ugly, but argued that at least he was honest about the ranking.

In the end, it was scary  they were normal people, not missing an arm or an ear or an eye, but just so ugly that it made people uncomfortable, Song said. I objectify you in an honest way, thats a type of respect. I will not randomly rank you first place, thats disrespect, thats toying you with clever words.

Many of the people outraged by Uglier and Uglier took to social media to accuse Song Ta of being misogynistic and objectifying women.

Its already 2021, how can you still objectify women so boldly, without any shame? one person wrote.

This artwork is not only insulting but infringes on individuals portrait rights, and these women didnt even know they were being filmed, another commented.
Mark Penn

MDC Partners today adjourned its June 22 special meeting of shareholders to vote on its combination with Mark Penns Stagwell Media LP until July 19.

Shareholders now have until July 15 to weigh in on the deal that is opposed by Indaba Capital Management, MDCs largest independent stockholder, which criticized the transaction as a conflict-riddled and poorly structured merger.

The San Francisco hedge fund owns about 15 percent of MDCs shares.

Penn, who also helms MDC, claims the merger will create a transformative global marketing network blessed with best-in-class capabilities.

He says the Stagwell/MDC mash-up will be the first platform in 50 years ready to take on the big four that dominate the industry.

MDC is the home of PR firms Allison+Partners, Hunter and KWT Global, while Stagwell owns Sloane & Co and SKDKnickerbocker.
ON Monday week last the people of the parish of Kilbeggan and Rahugh came to together to celebrate the ruby jubilee of parish priest, Fr Brendan Corrigan.

In normal times, parishioners would have organised a parish party with the world and his wife invited but due to Covid and the subsequent public health safety regulations this could not be done at this time.

Speaking at a special Mass to mark the occasion, Maura Maher, Rahugh, a member of the parish council said parishoners were delighted that Fr Brendan had reached this milestone.

In a special tribute to Fr Brendan, Maura said: As a small boy growing up in Mullingar you have said you were sure of what you wanted to be. So on Pentecost Sunday, 40 years ago , you took your vows. You served His flock first in Navan, then Kells and Kilbeg. Then God smiled upon the people of Kilbeggan and Rahugh - for He placed you in charge of the mission that is our parish! He doubly blessed us, first by giving you the vocation of your priesthood and then leading you to us. And I know that when you couldnt be assigned to Lourdes, you were at least consoled that you were assigned to your second favourite place on earth!

It is fitting that we give thanks here in the parish for your priestly vocation and ministry. We also give thanks to your parents and family for the support you received in making your choice and the unstinting support they have given you since  especially your sister Lily who we welcome here with us.

When you came to us in 2008, you took up where your predecessors left off. You ministered to your flock and you tried to improve the parish in any way you could. Physical evidence of this can be seen in the beautiful Church in which we are seated. We look out the window and we see the Parish Centre and renovated parochial house. You also had substantial works carried out in the Church in Rahugh. It was your vision and your efforts that got these projects rolling and completed and they are a testament to you personally, as much as they are to the people of the parish. I am sure the people of Kilbeg were broken hearted to loose you  but with certainty I can say it was our gain that you were assigned here.

We know your ministry is everything to you  it is obvious in all that you do. Whether it is your support of the elderly, the sick, bereaved families, or just the ordinary individuals (young and old) that make up this parish community, we have all gained from your presence amongst us. During the worst of the pandemic, you made sure both Churches remained open. You went above and beyond your duty by saying the Rosary and Benediction each evening here  so that we could all access on line. In times of great hardship you ministered faithfully to your parishioners and in a changing and fearful world you helped us feel that much more secure. The Good Shepherd tends to his flock and that is what you are to us.

In thanksgiving, I would now ask all here to say the Hail Mary and may Our Lady of Lourdes pray for us and may St Bernadette pray for us all.

We have here a small token of our deep appreciation and with heartfelt thanks to you not only for what you have done among us but also for the person that you are.

A presentation was also made to Fr Brendan on behalf of the Parish Centre Committee, the Hospitality Committee, the Bingo Committee, St. James Church Altar Society, St Hughs Church Altar Society, Rahugh Social Services, the Charity Shop, the Finance Committee, Rahugh Hall Development Association and the Parish Council.
For anyone planning home renovation work in the next few months, now is the time to consider an energy retrofit; especially as SEAI grant funding of up to 35% is currently available.

However, knowing where to start, getting the right information and understanding how to navigate a retrofit project can be a daunting prospect.

Now, through Electric Ireland Superhomes, a recently announced partnership between Electric Ireland and the Tipperary Energy Agency, homeowners can avail of a service which manages the whole retrofit process for them and promises the best quality energy retrofit in Ireland.

Electric Ireland Superhomes is a one-stop-shop for home energy retrofits.

This means they offer independent advice and expertise; designing the retrofit and looking after all the key stages from initial survey through to quality assurance at the end of the work.

They even manage the SEAI grant application process and engage leading contractors and experienced retrofit specialists to help homeowners through an often complex process. Electric Ireland Superhomes focuses on whole-house, heat pump led retrofit projects; bringing homes to a minimum of a B2 BER energy rating through a number of energy upgrade measures.

What is an energy retrofit?

Stephen OConnor, Managing Director, Electric Ireland SuperHomes explains some of the features and benefits of a deep energy retrofit: A whole house approach is really important. To create a truly energy efficient, warm home we need to understand how the house works as an interrelated and interdependent system.

Draughty doors will draw heat from your home no matter how efficient your heating; installing energy efficient windows can lead to condensation and mould if the house is poorly ventilated. Even in a well-insulated house, a room might be cold if the heating system is badly designed.

The core elements of a retrofit are an air to water heat pump, advanced ventilation, airtightness improvements to reduce draughts and heat loss as well as insulation to a very high standard.

Results include significant savings in energy bills, a warmer, more comfortable and healthier home, a reduction in carbon emissions and an increased value of the property adds Stephen.

A retrofit as part of a home renovation

A lot of homeowners consider energy upgrades while they are planning renovation works but the thoughts of managing a project of this scale can be off-putting. Aoife and Paul Davey from Shinrone, Co. Offaly who live in a bungalow built in the early 80s, recently got an Electric Ireland Superhomes retrofit.

Having initially planned cosmetic improvements to their home, Aoife and Paul were interested in including some energy upgrades.

Friends of theirs had completed significant energy upgrades to their home and they were inspired by this and wanted to do something similar.

After speaking with an Electric Ireland Superhomes Advisor, Aoife and Paul realised they could futureproof their house with a deep retrofit, save money on bills and do their bit for the planet. They took away the hassle of paperwork and secured grant funding for the works on our behalf which was so important to us, says Aoife.

The end result of the retrofit works saw their bungalow go from an E2 BER rating up to a B1.

People have been really surprised at the energy rating we have achieved with an older house. There is this perception that you can only get the most energy efficient home from a new build but thats just not the case. Aoife said.

The energy upgrade works took 6 weeks in total and were completed at the same time as the other work done to their house. Aoife and Paul love the look of their new improved home but say the feel is even better.

Its lovely to have a new kitchen but in the depths of winter it is no good if the house is freezing. When you come into the house now it is so lovely to not have to light a fire. We love the way our house looks now but the convenience and comfort have been the main benefits we have felt.

To find out more about a deep retrofit for your home today, visit Superhomes.ie or call 052 744 30 90.
A judge yesterday ordered the arrest of a banned motorist who phoned an ambulance for himself in the middle of a court hearing which subsequently found him guilty of a string of road traffic offences.

Judge Seamus Hughes issued a bench warrant for the arrest of Kenneth McCaffrey (46), The Square, Clara, Co Offaly after he appeared accused of dangerous driving, no insurance and being at the wheel without a license arising from an incident at Main Street, Ballymahon, Co Longford on March 9, 2017.

Mr McCaffrey, who pleaded not guilty and represented himself, accused the court of a "rushed judgement" after attempting to take issue with over 30 different items of disclosure made available by the prosecution.

When Judge Hughes dismissed a number of issues raised by Mr McCaffrey, the accused hit out at Judge Hughes by insisting his case was not being given due process.

"I think you are biased and giving me no opportunity," he told the judge.

"I need time to go through it. I need time to go through the video evidence."

The court heard how CCTV footage allegedly showing Mr McCaffrey at a Ballymahon filling station moments before the alleged incident had been posted to him in the lead up to this evening's hearing.

"Are you calling me a liar?" Mr McCaffrey questioned Judge Hughes, claiming he had only flown in from the UK less than 24 hours previously.

Moments after handing in documentation to show his insurance details were in order and that the case would be proceeding with or without his consent, Mr McCaffrey suddenly began clutching his chest.

"I need water," he said, as Inspector Paddy McGirl implied he believed Mr McCaffrey's unexpected bout of illness was "an act".

"Well, let's go to the doctor and see what the doctor has to say," replied Mr McCaffrey under muffled breath from the body of the court.

Judge Hughes, in response, indicated he would rise for five minutes to afford gardai a chance to contact Dr Mary Ward, a GP Mr McCaffrey cited he was a patient of.

When the case resumed Inspector McGirl informed the court Dr Ward was no longer in situ at the practise identified by Mr McCaffrey and would not be in a position to release any information in relation to Mr McCaffrey's medical history.

Attempts to make Mr McCaffrey aware of those revelations came up short when Inspector McGirl returned to the courtroom to indicate the accused was on the phone and in the process of ringing an ambulance.

Evidence was provided back inside the courtroom by Garda Aiden Lenehan who said he had been on parked in an unmarked patrol car in Ballymahon at around 4:30pm.

He said his attention was drawn to a black Audi Q7 which had just been washed with its front driver's window down.

"He (defendant) stared at me, continued to stare at me and looked backwards while driving forwards," said the garda.

In noting the "very peculiar" behaviour of the driver, Garda Lenehan observed the vehicle's registration number seconds before it swiftly took off at high speed.

"The car then crossed a white line, forcing oncoming traffic to take evasive action."

Garda Lenehan said he attempted to take off in pursuit of the high powered jeep but was unable to stay with its driver as it sped through Ballymahon's Main Street and out the Ballymore road.

"Even with my flashing lights and sirens, I couldn't keep up, he was gone like a light," said Garda Lenehan.

He added his recollection of seeing the freshly washed car led him to seek CCTV footage from Nally's Garage in Ballymahon.

Garda Lenehan said from those examinations, he identified the man alleged to be Mr McCaffrey driving off from its forecourt.

Despite still not knowing who Mr McCaffrey was at the time, he said he received confirmation over the accused man's identity from Inspector Frank Finn who later made an official statement on the matter.

He would also reveal from his own inquiries how Mr McCaffrey was not a patient of Dr Ward's in Clara, a practise she had moved to over five years ago.

In delivering his verdict, Judge Hughes said he was in no doubt the case would come before a higher court given how Mr McCaffrey had sought to "frustrate" the court in its execution of justice.

He also said he did not believe Mr McCaffrey's unanticipated turn was "bona fide" as hear about Mr McCaffrey's criminal past.

Inspector McGirl said the accused had 62 previous convictions, seven of which were for no insurance.

A seven year disqualification, he added, had been handed down at Tullamore Circuit Court in March 2013.

Judge Hughes said whatever about the "unusual matrix" to the case, he was of the firm belief both he and the court were on "solid ground" in issuing a bench warrant for Mr McCaffrey's arrest upon his release from hospital.

The accused is likely to appear at a subsequent court sitting for the purposes of sentencing.
The Vintners Federation of Ireland has said that "any delay to reopening will devastate pub sector."

"The scheduled full reopening of the hospitality sector on July 5 will mean a return to work for over 25,000 staff and the opportunity for pubs to trade during a busy summer season," the VFI said.

"The eight weeks until the end of August is a vital period for publicans as it remains the only realistic opportunity to salvage something from 2021 and tide them over until next year.

"Therefore, todays briefing there is only a 50-50 chance of reopening proceeding as planned is causing huge concern and stress to publicans and the 25,000 staff who are planning on returning to work in early July."

NPHET has urged caution because of the Delta variant of Covid-19, stressing that the reopening of indoor hospitality on July 5 would be a "recipe for problems." The government will have to now review the NPHET advice before deciding whether or not to stick to the plan in place for July 5 or delay that reopening.

Padraig Cribben, VFI Chief Executive, says: The comments from Government ministers that July 5 reopening may be delayed is causing huge upset and concern in the hospitality sector. With only two weeks to go its not acceptable to treat our members in this manner.

There are just eight weeks in the summer season for pubs to recoup some of the massive losses accumulated over the past 15 months, so to tell publicans they may lose any of those weeks will devastate the trade. The business generated in July and August will sustain most pubs through the winter and into next year so for Government to delay reopening during the summer will impact the sector to a much greater degree than, for instance, a delay in January.

Publicans are busy rehiring staff and ordering stock so this new uncertainty places them in an impossible position. They need immediate confirmation that reopening on 5th July will proceed as planned. The fact Government will not make a final decision until Friday 2nd July  just three days before reopening  illustrates how detached Ministers are from the realities of running a business. The mental stress this uncertainty is placing on our members cannot be overstated.

The easing of restrictions and reopening of society has been a relatively smooth process that publicans support, including the resumption of outdoor trade on 7th June. Its beyond belief we are now thinking of going backwards while the rest of Europe moves forward. Pubs in England reopened indoors on 17th May while pubs in Northern Ireland have been fully open for over four weeks. Denmark is allowing 40,000 spectators attend Euro 2020 matches.

We are also facing the resumption of unrestricted travel to EU countries from July 19. Is the Government seriously suggesting that people can travel to Spain for a pint while pubs back home remain shut?

Were already lagging behind the UK and mainland Europe when it comes to reopening. July 5th must proceed as planned, says Mr Cribben.
The owner of a chain of pharmacies who fraudulently obtained payments from the HSEs Primary Care Reimbursement Service has been ordered to complete 240 hours of community service.

John Corr (55) was the owner of five pharmacies which made duplicate claims for reimbursement from the scheme, which is responsible for making payments to healthcare professionals like GPs, dentists and pharmacists for the free or reduced costs services they provide to the public.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that the accused man has made full restitution.

Corr of Vergemount Hall, Clonskeagh, pleaded guilty to seven counts of dishonestly inducing the HSE scheme to make a reimbursement at locations in Co. Dublin and Co. Louth on dates between July 15, 2016 and July 30, 2016. He has no previous convictions.

At a previous sentencing hearing in April, last, Judge Martin Nolan said that to say this is a perplexing case is an understatement.

Judge Nolan said Corr had been a pharmacist for 31 years and by reason of his actions has lost his business. He said the court is at a loss why, at this point in his life, the accused did what he did.

He said Corr was in a position of trust and that the HSE is entitled to trust pharmacists to be honest in their dealings. He said the loss was not substantial in this case and that the accused was lucky the loss to the State was not more.

Judge Nolan adjourned the matter to today's/yesterday's (WEDS) date in order to give the Probation Service time to assess whether Corr is suitable for community service.

On Wednesday, Judge Nolan ordered that Corr complete 240 hours of community service in lieu of two-and-a-half years imprisonment.

During a previous sentencing hearing, Detective Garda Darren Hughes told Kieran Kelly BL, prosecuting, that duplicate claims were made by five pharmacies owned by Corr located in Clonskeagh and Clarehall in Co. Dublin and in Clogherhead, Blackbull and Mell in Co. Louth.

Det Gda Hughes said that duplicate claims occur when the same claim is made by more than one pharmacy in the same group. He said an investigation was launched after above average payments were noticed being made to the pharmacy in Mell.

All five pharmacies were inspected and found to have made duplicate claims. 94 patients were identified to have had duplicate claims made in relation to them in July 2016, including patients with Dublin addresses having had claims made on their behalf in Co. Louth.

The total amount reimbursed on foot of duplicate claims was 8,075.37. The court heard that the amount of money the accused was charged with obtaining by deception was 3,988.79.

Det Gda Hughes agreed with Remy Farrell SC, defending, that full restitution had been made. He agreed with counsel that his client lost his community pharmacy contract with the HSE as a result of the offences.

Mr Farrell said his client was no longer in business as realistically a pharmacy cannot operate without a community pharmacy contract.

Counsel said he did not have a good reason for the offending of his client, saying that there may have been some perception by his client of underpayment in some other areas.

Mr Farrell said his client is a board member of a charity and has gone above and beyond in providing addiction services over the years. He said his client was supported in court by family members and employees.
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BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP)  India Walton, a socialist community activist, has defeated the four-term mayor of Buffalo in a Democratic primary.

The 38-year-old nurse and union leader pulled off the victory over Mayor Byron Brown with the backing of the Democratic Socialists of America in a campaign focused on affordable housing, health care and criminal justice reform.

She is all but assured to win the general election in November in the majority Democratic city. There is no Republican candidate in the race.

The Associated Press called the race Wednesday after it became clear that there weren't enough absentee ballots for Brown to overcome Walton's lead. She had declared victory Tuesday night.

This is the work of a well-meaning group of rebels and revolutionaries that had a bold vision on what we want the future of our city to look like, Walton told cheering supporters.

All that we are doing in this moment is claiming what is rightfully ours. We are the workers. We do the work. And we deserve a government that works with and for us."

Brown, who matched the record for the upstate city's longest-serving mayor and was endorsed by the Erie County Democratic Committee, did not immediately concede late Tuesday.

Brown was a city council member and state senator before becoming mayor.

Walton was born in Buffalo and became a working mother at 14. After earning her GED while pregnant, she went on to become a nurse in the same hospital where her twins were born.

One potential opponent for Walton in the general election, Scott Wilson, filed paperwork to appear as a candidate on an independent line, Better Buffalo, but his designating petitions are being challenged for falling short of signatures.

Election officials are expected to rule on the matter Thursday.
Yes. I would be the first in line.

No. I don't trust that a vaccine will be safe.

I plan to, but I want to wait to see effects of first doses.

Not sure.

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FILE - In this June 10, 2021 file photo Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin appears at a Senate Armed Services budget hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington. Austin, for the first time on Tuesday, June 22, said he will support long-debated changes to the military justice system that would remove decisions on prosecuting sexual assault cases from military commanders. In a statement, obtained by The Associated Press, Austin said he supports taking those sexual assault and related crimes away from the chain of command, and let independent military lawyers handle them.
Statement by PNG Finance Minister Sir John Pundari

As the Minister for Finance and Rural Development, I am the Minister mandated by the Hon. James Marape MP, the Prime Minister, with the administration of the -

Public Finances (Management) Act, which controls the efficient and ethical use of public money in Papua New Guinea;

The National Procurement Act, which is implemented by the National procurement Commission; and

The winding up of the APEC Papua New Guinea 2018 Co-ordination Authority under the terms of the APEC Papua New Guinea 2018 Co-ordination Authority Act 2014.

These are the relevant pieces of legislation that places my Department in charge of disposing all APEC vehicles.

When I took office as Minister for Finance and Rural Development I was very aware of the public appetite for closure on the APEC Report and disposal of the assets of the wound up APEC Authority. Thus one of my first instructions as Minister was for a detailed update on their status. The Marape  Basil Government assures the public that all outstanding issues will be addressed. NEC has met in relation to this and is on top of its progress.

We ensure that the public has full disclosure and there is complete transparency in the process. For the information of the people of Papua New Guinea, I am pleased to report the progress in respect of the disposal of the APEC vehicles from my office.

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.     &   

According to Department of Finances records, including other sourced documents from MVIL; motor dealer companies; Donor Agencies; and APEC Papua New Guinea 2018 Co-ordination Authority:

326 vehicles were state purchased; and

166 vehicles were donated by our development partners mostly from Japan and China;

The total of all APEC acquired vehicles was 492.

Donor Agencies made it clear that all donated vehicles must be donated at no cost to State departments, churches, NGOs, government institutions, schools and hospitals.

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.        

From the total of 166 Donor APEC vehicles:

8 vehicles given to Churches

15 vehicles given to Schools

12 vehicles given to Hospitals

15 vehicles given to Departments

63 vehicles given to Police

10 vehicles given to Fire Service

10 vehicles given to Provincial Health Authorities

34 vehicles given to Charity Organizations & NGOs in PNG

The Donor APEC vehicles were distributed to the above classes of institutions throughout PNG based on the receipt of their interest letter.

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.      

The Final phase of disposal is for the State Purchased APEC vehicles. From the total of 326 State purchased APEC vehicles;

199 are Low-end vehicles

127 are High-end vehicles

Following National Executive Council (NEC) Decision No. NG 03/2019, the Department of Finance, through National Procurement Commission, has donated the low-end APEC vehicles (H1 Hyundai Van Buses; Sedan Taxis; Mahindra Station Wagons; and the Fuso Rosa Mitsubishi 30 Seater Buses) to provinces and districts.

-----------------------------------------

.        &    

All 22 Provincial Government Arms are allocated 30 Seat Fuso Rosa Busses. All 89 District Authorities are allocated Hyundai H1 Vans and the Mahindra station wagons. A progressive total of 22 Provincial Governments and 75 District Authorities have received their vehicles already.

As confirmed from our records, 14 districts are outstanding and will receive their vehicles shortly once all vehicles under interim arrangement with government agencies are recouped. Once the outstanding vehicles are returned and grounded at the CT4 Wharf, the Department of Finance, through National Procurement Commission will distribute the remaining allocated vehicle to the remaining 14 Districts.

No APEC vehicles were allocated to individual persons or public servants in this disposal exercise.

-----------------------------------------

. -    -    

A total of 127 high-end APEC vehicles such as Maseratis, Bentleys, Prados, BT 50s, Land Cruiser VXs, Ford Rangers; Wild tracks, Land Cruiser 10 Seaters, and Toyota Land Cruiser 5-Doors will all be disposed through public tender.

A total of 43 Maserati and Bentley vehicles have already gone up on tender. The remaining other high-end vehicles will be assessed by Works BOS team and recommended to the Finance Department for public tender.

The written-off vehicles will be disposed by way of sales through public tender also. This will also be done together with the high-end vehicles once all distribution exercises throughout PNG regarding APEC vehicles are fully achieved.

-----------------------------------------

.       

Out of the 40 Maserati and 3 Bentley vehicles, 2 Maserati and 1 Bentley vehicle have already been sold and generated K1.6million revenue for the State.

The remaining two (2) Bentley vehicles were allocated to the Office of the Governor General and the Office of the Prime Minister for official use purposes.

The remaining 38 Maserati vehicles were re-tendered and are now open to both national and international markets for bidders to bid on. This is still in the vetting process and awarding of successful bidders will follow shortly after.

In accordance with directions issued under NEC Decision No. 51/2021, the remaining balance of all Maserati vehicles after public tender sales will be allocated to designated PNG Foreign missions throughout the world for official use. A number of Maserati vehicles will be kept in the country and managed under the National Events Council (PMNEC) which will be reserved for diplomatic and official uses.

-----------------------------------------

.    

Finance Department is now progressing into the recovery phase of the APEC vehicles which are missing (all accounted) and those that are under temporary arrangements. About one hundred and ten (110) State purchased APEC vehicles are still in the hands of general public and certain public officials.

These vehicles are all accounted for and will be recouped by Finance Department with assistance from Police very soon. A total of 50 vehicles are currently utilized by Police, Defence, Health, National Pandemic Office and other government agencies under temporary arrangements. Once recovery is complete, these vehicles will firstly be distributed to the remaining 14 Districts and the balance will be put to public tender for immediate disposal.

-----------------------------------------

.       

In line with National Executive Council (NEC) Decision No. 51/2021, the Department of Finance will publicly tender the remaining High-end APEC vehicles, as well as the written-off APEC vehicles, through National Procurement Commission (NPC) in consistent with the Public Finances (Management) Act and the National Procurement Act.

This exercise will commence once all missing vehicles are recouped and assessed by the Department of Works.

-----------------------------------------

.        

The Department of Finance has donated a scanner and Xray machines to the National Airport Corporation. Other APEC assets such as plant and non-movable assets (land & buildings) are currently under the custody of Finance Department through the Government Office Accommodation Committee (GOAC). Those assets will be managed by GOAC for official government activities.

-----------------------------------------

.    

The full report of the disposal of APEC assets will be made available to the NEC, Ombudsman Commission, PM&NEC, Office of the State Solicitor, Police, and the Departments of Treasury and Works.

-----------------------------------------

In conclusion, the Department of Finance and the National Procurement Commission aim to fully complete the disposal exercise by December 2021, so that the government restores public confidence in the way the government manages public money and properties. The Public Finances (Management) Act and the National Procurement Act control the disposal exercise, and the Finance Department and the National Procurement Commission are cooperatively ensuring that all due processes are followed and the disposal exercise is fully accomplished according to the laws.

As a responsible Government, we have taken all the necessary steps to ensure that we uphold the principles of good governance and transparency. As Minister responsible, I present this progressive update for public consumption.

On that note, I would like to commend the good work of the Finance Secretary Ken Nangan and his officers at the Department. They have performed their duties responsibly and I am satisfied with the detailed reporting they have provided. I encourage them to continue the good work as we bring this important public matter to closure.

May God bless Papua New Guinea.



.    , , , , , 

     





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Opalesque Industry Update - Calderwood, a Cayman Islands boutique fund governance firm, has further expanded its senior team with the appointment of Laura McGrath as an independent director. Ms. McGrath is an accomplished board chairperson, attorney, and business executive. She possesses broad experience across operational, legal and compliance matters, also bringing business management expertise to board leadership positions. Ms. McGrath has 23 years of experience in the ?nancial services industry - with over 20 years specifically in hedge and private equity fund services. She has served as a director on Cayman Islands hedge fund boards for over 15 years, and has previously been a board director on UCITS funds registered with the Central Bank of Ireland. As an independent director with Calderwood, Ms. McGrath will take positions on the boards of a range of investment funds, advising on fund governance and regulatory compliance issues. In addition to being an independent director with Calderwood, Ms. McGrath serves as the Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel for a US-based hedge fund manager where she has built the infrastructure, systems, and processes needed to effectively manage business complexities. "We are extremely pleased to welcome Laura to the firm," said Calderwood co-founder Ronan Guilfoyle. "Her depth of expertise, across both Cayman Islands and US investment funds, will be of significant benefit to our clients as regulation continues to evolve at a significant pace in both jurisdictions." "I am very pleased to join Calderwood and welcome the opportunity to bring my broad industry experience to this dynamic team, " Ms. McGrath said. Ms. McGrath is also the President and Principal of a FINRA-member broker dealer and for the 15 years prior, she held regulatory Chief Compliance Officer roles, with demonstrated expertise of the regulatory environment for both US and Cayman Islands investment funds. Since launching in 2016, Calderwood has developed over 300 investment manager relationships and the firm also operates an office in Asia, to provide time sensitive directorship and compliance services in that region. Calderwood recently celebrated its fifth anniversary and has assembled a team of eight highly experienced independent directors. The firm also offers a broad range of services, including full turnkey solutions for tax information exchange and anti money laundering/know your client compliance.
Labrador Publishing is proud to announce that author John Layne won two of the three top spots in the American Book Fest 2021 International Book Awards (IBA) Fiction: Western Category. American Book Fest Announced the winners and finalists of the 2021 International Book Awards on June 18, 2021. Gunslingers: A Story of the Old West (second edition) took home the top honors in the Fiction: Western category while Red River Reunion 
The records of roughly 500,000 patients of an eye clinic with locations throughout Iowa may have been stolen as part of a ransomware attack on the business earlier this year
As much as passengers are eager to return to the skies, they likely dont miss all the frustrations that come with airplane travel
The U.S. government is stepping up efforts to get younger Americans vaccinated for COVID-19 amid growing concern about the spread of a new variant that threatens to set the country back in the months ahead
An Iowa judge has blocked a state law that would have imposed a 24-hour waiting period before women could get abortions, likely setting up a legal battle before the state Supreme Court
Prosecutors say a Chicago man robbed two Iowa gas station employees at gunpoint and confined them in a cooler before firing 10 times at a sheriffs deputy who responded to the crime
Political figures unwilling to say they believe in the results of last year's presidential election pose a quandary for some in television news
Fire crews remain on scene after a fire was extinguished at 3046 Newland Way in Oskaloosa on Monday. An deceased individual was found inside the home, and authorities believe a self-inflicted gunshot was the cause of death. Investigators said the fire was intentionally set in at least six different places.
CELINA [mdash] Doyle Eugene Brittain Doyle Eugene Brittain was called to the lord on Wednesday, June 9th of 2021 in Mckinney, Texas. Doyle was born in Sigourney, Iowa and one of six children to the late Alfred and Bertha Brittain. His late siblings were Verle, Orbie, Eldon, Ruby, and Vera. H
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MIAMI (AP)  Miami's new police chief said he has fired two high-level police officials  a married couple  because they weren't truthful about a crash involving a city-issued SUV.

Deputy Police Chief Ronald Papier and his wife Nerly Papier, a commander in Little Havana, were fired Tuesday after a nearly three-month investigation, the Miami Herald reported. It's one of the first major decisions made by Chief Art Acevedo, who took over the Miami department in April after four years in Houston.

Any time we see folks terminated, its sad, Acevedo said. But we all have to be accountable for our actions.

The Papiers' attorney, Eugene Gibbons, said he will continue to fight for the couples employment. He called the investigation a sham and claimed that the Papiers were targeted by the department's internal affairs office and Acevedo.

Nerly Papier told officials that she was heading to work the morning of April 2 when she crashed her SUV into a curb to avoid another vehicle that had veered into her lane. Acevedo said his final decision to fire her came after internal affairs investigators concluded Nerly Papier had left out important details such as pedestrians being on the sidewalk when the vehicle jumped the curb and her running at least two red lights while driving the vehicle to the office on its rims.

According to an internal affairs report, Ron Papier, who had served as acting chief for two months before Acevedo took over, was terminated because he didnt recuse himself from the investigation into his wife or tell Acevedo about a Miami-Dade State Attorneys Office investigation, which found no criminal wrongdoing.

The same day as the crash, three days before Acevedo was officially sworn in, he was meeting with the citys command staff when he told them, You lie, you die. According to a discipline report, Acevedo told everyone at the meeting that if any of his officers violated a sacred trust, a community standard or betrayed their badge, their careers would be at stake.
BERLIN (AP)  The United States and Germany struggled Wednesday to resolve a major dispute over a Russian gas pipeline, even as the Biden administration seeks to improve relations with Western Europe that had been strained during Donald Trumps presidency.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his German counterpart Heiko Maas met in Berlin and extolled the depth and strength of U.S.-German relations, but there was no sign of progress in talks to overcome the impasse over the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. And neither Blinken nor Maas could offer a timetable for a possible resolution.

We dont always agree and one of those areas of disagreement is the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which we continue to believe is a threat to European energy security," Blinken said. Germany has a different perspective and that happens from time to time. Well handle our disagreements while pressing ahead on the many areas where we are working very closely together.

In addition to increasing the continents reliance on Russian gas, the U.S. believes the pipeline will become a tool for Russia to exert political pressure on vulnerable Eastern and Central European nations. As such, the project continues to be a significant irritant in U.S.-German ties despite steps by the Biden administration to cool the dispute.

Speaking alongside Blinken at a joint news conference, Maas said Germany was well aware of the U.S. concerns and trying to address them.

We are engaging in these talks, he said. We are aware of the expectations from Washington and it is of the utmost importance."

Maas said that Germany is also speaking with Ukraine and other countries bypassed by the pipeline with an eye toward guaranteeing them an alternative energy supply.

There is a whole host of ways and means and approaches that we are discussing but we are not discussing them in public, Maas said.

Ideally, he added, a resolution could be reached by the time outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel visits Biden in Washington next month. But, Maas stressed that timing was aspirational only.

Blinken met later with Merkel and neither rmentioned the pipeline in brief welcoming remarks.

Despite U.S. opposition and strident objections from Poland and Ukraine, Merkel strongly favors the project, which has been one of Russian President Vladimir Putins key initiatives to increase Russias energy revenue.

The pipeline also faces strong bipartisan opposition in the U.S. Congress, where both Republican and Democratic lawmakers harshly criticized the administration for waiving sanctions against the German firm constructing it, the companys German CEO and several other executives in May. Critics saw those sanctions as a last-ditch effort to prevent completion of the pipeline that is now more than 95% constructed.

In waiving the sanctions against Nord Stream 2 AG and the executives, the White House rejected recommendations from the State Department and other agencies in favor of imposing the penalties, according to officials and congressional aides. Bidens national security adviser Jake Sullivan argued that the sanctions would do more harm than good in terms of repairing ties with Germany, they said.

Blinken is in Germany on his second visit to Europe in seven days, having just accompanied President Joe Biden to leaders summits in Britain and Belgium. In his meeting with Maas, Blinken emphasized the America is back message that Biden also delivered last week.

Maas welcomed the commitment that Blinken is also expected to pass on to Merkel in a later meeting. He said Biden's visit, coupled by Blinken's return to Europe so quickly, underlined impressively that America is back: Back on the multilateral and international stage and we're very pleased by this."

Merkel echoed that sentiment in her comments before meeting Blinken, saying Germany was delighted with Bidens pronouncement. Given all the controversies in the world I think it's fair to say we need to keep channels of dialogue open," she said.

Biden administration officials insist that there are still ways to mitigate the pipeline's impact. They say even after the project is physically completed there are still permits, insurance and testing hurdles it must clear before becoming operational. Some officials believe that could delay its opening by nine to 12 months..

After Germany, Blinken will visit France and Italy as part of his weeklong tour, his first trips to all three nations as secretary of state.
JACKSON, Miss. (AP)  First lady Jill Biden visited one of the states least vaccinated against COVID-19 on Tuesday, encouraging residents of Mississippi to get their shots and telling them, "The White House, our administration  we care about you.

Im here today to ask all of the people who can hear my voice, who can see my face, to get their shot," Biden said after visiting a clinic at Jackson State University, one of the largest historically Black universities in the country. Biden later encouraged people who were getting vaccinated in Nashville, Tennessee, with the help of country singer Brad Paisley later Tuesday evening.

Mississippi and Tennessee have consistently ranked among the U.S. states with the fewest number of residents vaccinated against COVID-19, along with Alabama. Approximately 30% of Mississippis total population is fully vaccinated, according to the state Department of Health.

The first lady said she wanted to visit states like Mississippi and Tennessee because the current vaccination rates are "just not enough."

Thats why the White House said, 'Jill, please, can you go to Mississippi?' Because the president, the White House, our administration, we care about you, we care about the people of Mississippi. We want them to be safe. We want them to be healthy.

Mississippi's U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, who was present at Tuesday's event in the state capital, said it's important for Biden to be in Mississippi "given the demographics of the population that is most vulnerable.

Mississippi is among the states in the U.S. with the highest number of chronic health conditions that can make people more vulnerable to COVID-19, such as diabetes and heart disease.

Mississippi State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs has said the biggest issues he sees driving vaccine hesitancy are misinformation and a cultural refusal to prioritize preventative care measures.

President Joe Biden had set a vaccination goal of delivering at least one shot to 70% of adult Americans by July Fourth, a target the White House administration acknowledged Tuesday he will likely fall short of.

As of Tuesday, 54% of Americans had been vaccinated with at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Increased participation in states like Mississippi and Tennessee will be essential to boosting the nations overall vaccine rate.

Inside the Ole Smoky Distillery and Yee-Haw Brewing Co. in Nashville, bartenders were serving beers and shots over loud country music as people got vaccinated outside in a pop-up clinic. Biden said that only three in 10 Tennesseans had been vaccinated, which prompted boos from the crowd.

The vaccines are the only way to get back to the open mics and the music festivals and the concerts that make this town so very special, Biden said.

Paisley noted that the COVID-19 virus had hit the country music artist community very hard and that icons like Mississippi-native Charley Pride and John Prine had died before a vaccine could be created.

To lighten the mood, Paisley sang a few songs including ad-libbing the lines Vaccine, vaccine, vaccine, vaccine to the tune of Dolly Partons famous song Jolene."

Many Mississippi residents remain hesitant, however.

Angel Devine of Jackson said Tuesday that she has chosen not to get the COVID-19 vaccine so far because she doesnt like needles, and shes worried that the shot wont be effective against variants.

She said she is now considering it, not because of the first lady's visit, but because she has been urged to by her 18-year-old daughter, who is heading off to the University of Southern Mississippi to study nursing.

She wants to get it, and she wants me to get it with her," she said. "Im still concerned, but it does want me to take it a little more. Well have to wait and see.

Dobbs has said family pressure is one of the most powerful motivating factors to get people to take the vaccine.

Glenda McHenry, 78, of Pearl, a city outside Jackson, said she has family members who are still waiting to get the shot, but she got hers months ago. She said she wanted to spend time with her three grandchildren without being concerned about them passing the virus to her, or vice versa.

I did have some worries at first  just really not knowing what it was going to do to you, she said, of the vaccine. But I just felt it was the thing to do. It was important to be able to spend time with those kids.

___

Leah Willingham is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

__ AP reporter Kristin M. Hall contributed to this report from Nashville, Tennessee.
While the State of Michigan recently announced that masks will no longer be required for residents beginning June 22, masking remains mandatory for all MidMichigan Health Medical Centers, outpatient centers and provider clinics regardless of vaccination status.

We are delighted to see the COVID numbers at an all-time low for our state and local communities; however, it is our priority to keep our patients safe and minimize any risk for potential exposure to the virus, said Lydia Watson, M.D., chief medical officer and senior vice president, MidMichigan Health.
LANSING, Mich. (AP)  Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Tuesday highlighted a revised budget proposal that would expand a tuition-free scholarship program to attend community college to 22,000 additional frontline workers.

The initiative, which the Democratic governor unveiled in Detroit while marking the end of major COVID-19 restrictions, would be funded with $100 million from the state's $6.5 billion in discretionary coronavirus aid approved by Congress and President Joe Biden in March. Frontline employees who worked between Nov. 1 and Jan. 31 and do not have an associate's or bachelor's degree would become eligible for the Futures for Frontliners program, joining 85,000 eligible applicants who worked on the front lines from April through June 2020, including more than 15,000 who are enrolled.

The plan would need approval from the Republican-controlled Legislature. GOP lawmakers have not embraced Whitmer's previous call to expand eligibility to an estimated 22,000 workers who became unemployed between Nov. 1 and Jan. 31, when infections surged again and government restrictions were tightened.

Whitmer said the $100 million would fully fund two years of college for those already enrolled and allow for the expansion.

They saved and contributed to the saving of countless lives in our state, she said. It's not just gratitude, but it's opportunity that we want to create for them.

Frontline workers include employees in health care, grocery stores, sanitation, public transportation and other critical sectors in which remote work is not possible.

It is uncertain how quickly legislators and the governor could begin to allocate federal funding over which they have discretion. Legislators most recently finalized the release of $2.2 billion in non-discretionary funds for food, rental and disaster assistance, along with payments to local governments.

About $4.4 billion in federal relief designated for K-12 schools remains on hold after the Senate removed $362 million that would ensure there is at least $1,093 more per pupil for districts that stand to receive less because they have fewer low-income students.

Talks continue on the next state budget. The fiscal year does not start until Oct. 1, but a 2019 law requires lawmakers to send Whitmer 2021-22 spending bills no later than July 1. That law might be delayed if negotiations continue into the summer.

The governor has been revising her budget proposal to reflect the influx of federal funds and a large surplus of state revenues. She has called for eliminating a funding gap among K-12 districts, giving grants to businesses to temporarily pay at least $15 an hour, providing hero pay bonuses to frontline workers and upgrading state parks.

___

Follow David Eggert at https://twitter.com/DavidEggert00
FILE - This Saturday, March 6, 2021 file photo shows vials of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine at a pharmacy in Denver. On Thursday, June 10, 2021, Johnson & Johnson said that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration extended the expiration date on millions of doses of its COVID-19 vaccine by an extra six weeks.
Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - Libyan Foreign Minister, Najla Al-Mangouch, says the Berlin II Conference offered the Libyan government the opportunity to work with the international community to achieve stability in Libya, by seeking ways to promote peace, security, unity and independence of the country
Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - Participants at the Berlin II Conference Wednesday evening called for the need to move forward with the organization of national presidential and legislative elections scheduled for 24 December, 2021
Port-Louis, Mauritius (PANA)  The Mauritian health authorities said on Wednesday that eight new positive cases of COVID-19 were detected out of 2,416 PCR tests carried out on Tuesday
Conakry, Guinea (PANA) - About 53 cases of rape of under-age girls were recorded between January and June 2021 in the special zone of the Guinean capital and referred to the children's court, the Special Brigade for the Protection of Vulnerable Persons (BSPPV) said Tuesday in a report obtained by PANA
A Distant Grave, by Sarah Stewart Taylor (Minotaur)

Homicide detective Maggie Darcy has been hoping to heat up a cross-Atlantic romance with her sweetheart, Conor Kearney, but after a body turns up on Long Island beach, her trip to Ireland appears to be off.

When the murder victim turns out to be Gabriel Treacy, a Dublin resident who had just arrived in America, however, she flies to the Emerald Isle to combine business with pleasure. As the investigation heats up, she finds scant time for the latter.

The indomitable Darcy, introduced by author Sarah Stewart Taylor last year in the critically acclaimed Mountains Wild, soon finds herself entangled in a case with threads that stretch from Long Island and Ireland to Italy and war-torn Afghanistan.

Treacy, it turns out, was an aid worker who once had been kidnapped, and subsequently rescued, in Afghanistan. And recently, he had been looking for a long-lost brother who had been torn from his family during Irelands stolen babies scandal. Could either, or perhaps both, explain why he had come to America? Could either involve motives for his murder?

Meanwhile, powerful Suffolk County DA John J. Cooney, insistent that the murder was just a gang-related robbery gone bad, pressures Darcy to return to Long Island.

As she persists in following her lines of investigation, however, several others involved in either the stolen babies scandal or the kidnapping die from a mysterious killers bullets. Eventually, she realizes her own life is in danger.

The result is a fast-paced, tension-filled yarn filled with twists the reader is unlikely to see coming. Taylor tells the story in a lyrical prose style that is a joy to read. She excels in vividly portraying both the rural Ireland and Long Island settings and in developing memorable characters including Darcys partner, Dave Milich, and her troubled daughter, Lilly.

The only off note is occasional references to events in The Mountain Wild that are difficult for readers to fathom unless they have read the first book in the series.



Bruce DeSilva, winner of the Mystery Writers of Americas Edgar Award, is the author of the Mulligan crime novels including The Dread Line.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

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BLOOMINGTON  Health officials in McLean County are urging those who have yet to get the vaccine to consider doing so as additional cases of the rapidly spreading Delta COVID-19 variant have been confirmed in the area.

Pekin-based Reditus Laboratories announced Tuesday that two additional strains of the Indian double-mutant variant of the virus had been found in a random sampling of 369 COVID-19 test samples.

One of the variant cases was confirmed from a person who lived in Central Illinois, according to a Reditus news release. While "95% of the samples were collected in Illinois in the past two weeks," the other, confirmed case was from a person who lives in Michigan, the release noted.

McLean County Health Department spokeswoman Marianne Manko said during a news conference Wednesday that "the important thing is that we all get back vaccinated for the greater good, because we're really protecting ourselves and the people around us, as well."

"The Delta variant is the most contagious variant yet and could lead to a rise in cases here in Central Illinois," she said. "It is especially dangerous for those who are unvaccinated. In order to have our best shot at preventing another surge of infections later this summer, we are encouraging as many people as possible to get fully vaccinated now."

According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, there have been 84 cases of the Delta variant confirmed in the state. The strain was first confirmed in the U.S. on April 3; Reditus confirmed a case in the Bloomington-Normal area in late May.

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More than 150,303 doses of vaccine have been administered in the county so far, with about 45% of the population  78,379  considered to be fully-vaccinated.

McLean County saw a two-day streak of no newly confirmed COVID-19 cases in the previous week, according to data from MCHD.

Just 16 cases of the virus have been confirmed since June 16, with no new cases being confirmed either June 20 or June 21, MCHD said in its weekly update Wednesday.

The cumulative number of cases since last year is now 18,453. Of those cases, 18,195 are reported as having recovered.

With no county residents hospitalized because of the virus, the county's active caseload is 24  the number of people reported to be in isolation due to exposure.

Locally, there are three COVID patients in McLean County hospitals.

MCHD reported one additional COVID-related death Wednesday. A man in his 60s, not affiliated with long-term care, brings the county's COVID death toll to 234, MCHD said.

Contact Lyndsay Jones at (309) 820-3275. Follow her on Twitter: @__lyndsayjones

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BLOOMINGTON  After spending 34 years in the tech industry, Greg Severns wanted to do something to better serve his community.

Amid a thriving housing market and an uptick in home construction, Severns took a big leap moving out of the corporate world. In April, Greg and wife Tracy Severns opened Floor Coverings International Bloomington-Peoria  and business has been "hectic" ever since.

"There's certainly been a lot of demand," said Greg Severns, 51. "I think it was something that was happening anyway, but whenever COVID hit and people were confined to their home so much and so many people were working from home, it's in their face all day long.

"Those are the types of things (remodeling) that have gotten into people's minds, and it's really because they've been home so much in the last year."

The floor remodeling business, at 1712 E. Hamilton Road, is a local franchise of Floor Coverings International, which has 170 locations across the United States and Canada. It provides services for across Central Illinois.

While houses continue to fly off the market and subdivisions prepare for added home construction, many homeowners are turning to remodeling as a lower-cost option to switch up their environment.

People stuck inside their homes during the coronavirus pandemic are now rethinking their home environment, with many choosing to remodel their space to handle the demand of working from home, according to Jeff Kida, president of the greater Chicago chapter of the National Association of Remodeling Industry.

People are focused a lot more on their kitchen, where they may have had a desk set up in the bedroom or in the basement, now theyre looking at building a space they can actually function in for a week or two straight," said Kida. "That means higher electrical demand.

While remodeling was steadily on the rise prior to the pandemic, Kida said, the types of projects people are considering have changed because of it. Many have become interested in improving their backyards with outdoor kitchens, decks, and home offices to better handle printers, scanners, and other office-type appliances.

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Nationwide, lumber prices increased more than 180% since last spring, driving up the price of an average new single-family home by $24,386 since April 2020, according to the National Association of Homes Builders.

The rising cost of building materials have led more people to consider remodeling rather than pursuing a newly constructed home.

"Material prices are insane," said Mike Kearns, interior remodeling managing for Nordine Remodeling, at 112 Merle Lane in Normal. "In terms of volume, we've always been busy. For the last 10 years, it's just been an uphill slog. Last year at this point we were at record sales, and this year at this point we're at record sales."

But contractors are not only dealing with high prices. Supply chains have been disrupted as factories experienced closures amid the pandemic, said Kida.

"The supply chains, they're just very uneven right now," he said, adding that for some factories, "they're just now coming out of COVID protocols where they had to spread out their workforce physically or stagger them or just reduce their output."

"Coming out of it (the pandemic) is not just a matter of flipping the switch on."

For Severns, many of his suppliers are located domestically, and the business has been fortunate to not see a disruption in supply or material prices. Customers are also provided fixed prices  which includes the cost of flooring and labor  which has helped.

People are less apt to go build a new home, theyre going to be more apt to renovate the home that theyre in," he said. "Putting in new floorings is something that you can certainly do where you can have a significant impact at a much lower cost.

Business is steadily growing, and they're considering expansion.

"We started the business so we can have a positive impact on the community," said Greg Severns. "It's a way that we can help our friends and neighbors with something that's meaningful for them, it's going to last for them."

Contact Sierra Henry at 309-820-3234. Follow her on Twitter: @pg_sierrahenry.

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BLOOMINGTON  A wind farm project has inched closer to construction in McLean County.

The McLean County Zoning Board of Appeals this week voted 7-0 to approve a plan that would construct 64 turbines reaching 590 feet tall in the southeast corner of the county. The recommendation goes to the full county board for approval.

Sapphire Sky Wind Energy LLC, an affiliate of Invenergy LLC headquartered Chicago, submitted its application for the project May 10.

The estimated $350 million wind farm would span more than 14,000 acres in Bellflower and West townships.

The application seeks 89 turbine locations, but it notes that a maximum of 64 turbines will be installed.

The proposed 250 megawatt project would power about 80,000 homes annually, the application states.

The turbines would contain serrated blades that are larger and rotate slower than other turbines, creating less noise, Jim Griffin, an attorney representing Sapphire Sky Wind Energy, said at a past meeting.

He said the project would use fewer turbines but produce the same electrical output as other wind farms.

The 30-year project is estimated to bring about $71.5 million in property taxes to McLean County, West and Bellflower Townships and other government agencies including the LeRoy and Blue Ridge school districts.

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The zoning meeting was Tuesday.

A large constituent concern that the zoning board of appeals discussed was about shadow flicker, which is caused when the sun is low on the horizon and shines through the rotating blades, creating moving shadows. The project designers said the wind farm would restrict shadow flicker to a 30 hours or less per year.

Zoning board of appeals member Drake Zimmerman recommended shutting down specific turbines for certain times during the day to avoid shadow flicker.

Theyre not losing a gigantic amount of energy by turning it off for that half hour or so, Zimmerman said.

The committee spent most of its time debating on if it would restrict shadow flicker in some areas even more. It voted to recommend restricting shadow flicker to no more than 20 hours per year in areas where residents are not participating in the project.

Participating residents include those with wind turbines on their land and who receive payments in exchange.

Other residents are concerned over the construction of the project.

Ed Peterson, of West Township, said he is against the project because it turns public roads into construction roads.

He pointed to other wind farms that have hindered road access for residents, and that have caused ambulances, for example, to take longer routes.

I feel the road is for public access, public utilities, and priority is public safety above and beyond everything else, Peterson said.

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PEORIA  Dana Garber has always identified as a woman.

The notion was crystal clear for the lifelong Pekin resident, until the world stepped in and muddied the waters. The first time it happened was on Garber's first day of school. Her kindergarten teacher made her use the boy's bathroom.

"I got in the girl's line," said Garber while sitting in her office at Planned Parenthood in Peoria recently. "The teacher grabbed me by the hand and pulled me out of line and said 'No, honey, you are a boy, you got to go to the boys' bathroom.' I didn't understand that, and everybody was laughing at me. I got humiliated, and I went in the bathroom, and I was literally sick to my stomach."

Garber went home early from school that day. Her mother explained the situation after picking her up.

"She said, 'Well, honey, you are a boy. Boys' and girls' bodies are different. You can't go in the bathroom with the girls, you have to go in the bathroom with the boys,' and I just kind of accepted it," said Garber.

It was the first of many instances where the world forced Garber into an uncomfortable role. At that time, in the early 1960s, there were few options for people who didn't identify with their gender assigned at birth. It was considered a mental health disorder and could lead to institutionalization. Doctors believed it could be "cured" with therapy.

"The mental health community has evolved a lot in the last 50 years," said Garber. "They have recognized that gender identity disorder is a stigmatizing term, and they started calling it 'gender dysphoria,' which is an incongruence between your mind and your body. They also realized that you can't cure gender identity disorders ... it's a condition they can treat. So what's the treatment for gender dysphoria? It's transitioning."

Though it took more than 50 years for Garber to begin to transition, today at 63, she is living life in line with her gender identity. She is also helping others on that journey through her role as transgender health program intake coordinator at Planned Parenthood.

"Once I became a happy person, I just got so excited, I wanted to help everybody else," said Garber, who was offered the job not long after Planned Parenthood in central Illinois started offering gender-affirming hormone therapy in 2016.

"I do interviews with the new patients to find out what their needs are and what their goals are," said Garber. "We explain how the program works, and what kind of things to expect from hormone therapy, and they sign the consent forms ... After that, we give them a prescription and they come back in 90 days and we do a checkup and some blood work. They come back every 90 days until we get them on a stable dose where their labs are in the sweet spot."

Gender-affirming hormone therapy is not a walk in the park. Given to men and woman as part of gender-affirming care, it's a powerful therapy that helps people gain physical characteristics more in line with their gender identity. Garber was thrilled when she started seeing softer skin and less body hair, but she also experienced mood swings.

"The hormones knocked me for a loop. That first six months is hell," said Garber. "I had everything on the PMS list but menses."

Hormone therapy and gender confirmation surgery, which Garber had in 2018, are not easy things to do. But for her, deciding to transition was a matter of life or death. After living as a man for 55 years, Garber hit a rough patch  a time when depression led her to thoughts of suicide.

In a short time period, Garber went through a divorce after 27 years of marriage, lost her 20-year-old son in a car accident and was forced into retirement after downsizing at the Powerton power plant, where she had worked for 35 years.

"I found a good counselor in Peoria, and I saw her for a little over two and a half years. We talked about everything, my relationship issues, my gender identity, my grief. There was just a whole pile of stuff on my plate," said Garber. "She finally said to me one day, 'You know, you had yourself figured out, you just needed some validation'... Her recommendation was 'you just need to try this. There is no harm in cross-dressing, trying to live in that gender role. If it's not right for you, go back to where you were. If it's right for you, proceed.' I wasn't even a cross-dresser at that time, I was about 57. So I said OK, and I started dressing in the fall of 2014."

Garber also started visiting area gay bars where she met other LGBTQ people. She was quickly adopted into a loving and supportive community.

"I met a person who was a member of the Peoria Transgender Society down at Diesel one night. I was standing at the bar, and this person came up to me and said, 'Hey, are you trans?' And I said, 'Yeah, why?' I turned around, and he was a trans man. ... We started talking, and he told me about the Peoria Transgender Society. I didn't even know it existed. So I started going to the meetings. It was very validating to meet some other people like me," said Garber.

Through that group, Garber learned about a weekend-long event in Oklahoma City  an outing that would prove pivotal in her journey.

"That was right after I was first dressing (as a woman). I went to a couple bars in Peoria when it was really late at night, and I was hoping nobody would see me," said Garber with a laugh. "So I checked into this event, and I knew it would be good for me. I contacted the organizer and said 'I'm scared to death,' and she said, 'Honey, every single one of us started off just like you. The girls are gonna love you. Come on down here, and have a good time.' So I went, and I left all of my boy clothes at home. I dressed up and put my makeup on, and I drove down through Missouri and Oklahoma, and I stopped and got things to eat and went to the bathroom, and I was terrified. But when I got down there, I had so much fun, I just felt so great. I decided on the ride home that once I had enough clothes, I was gonna (start dressing like a woman) full time. And I never have looked back."

Garber's experiences are helpful when she mentors others. Her clients come from all around central Illinois and as far away as Missouri. Her oldest client is 74 and has been dressing in line with their gender identity for years. They recently decided to begin hormone therapy. And while Garber cannot treat anyone under 18 years of age, she occasionally has the opportunity to speak with young people questioning their identity. She recently spent time with an 11-year-old girl during a community festival.

"This kid said, 'Can I walk around with you?' and I said 'You have to clear that with your parents first.' They were OK with it. She talked the whole time. At the end of the day, I went back, and I gave her mother my card and said, 'if you need help, to find some counselors to take her to, I have a list of trans-friendly counselors around here that I can hook you up with,'" said Garber. "The mother said she was hoping this is a phase, and she will grow out of it. I said, 'Well, maybe it is, and maybe it's not. ... Just support her. If she grows out of it, no harm done. And if she doesn't, then you are probably going to have to provide some support.'"

While community support for trans people has improved in recent years, there are still many challenges people face.

"Most of our issues revolve around employment and income disparities. Gender identity and expression are protected classes in Illinois, but you know as well as I do that if an employer looks at you and they don't like you, they'll find a legal reason to not hire you or to fire you. And that is a real problem for the community, especially the Black community. Especially the Black trans community, trans females," said Garber.

Discrimination is everywhere, from the workplace to the family and at home, and the lack of understanding can lead to mental health issues and, in some cases, substance abuse. Homelessness is another issue. Trans teens can find themselves out on the street after coming out to their parents.

All in all, though, Peoria isn't a bad place to be LGBTQ, said Garber. There is a strong LGBTQ community that provides support, and the availability of medical services has improved in recent years.

Garber has seen a lot of changes in her 63 years, and she's glad young trans people are growing up in a more accepting world, where they are more likely to find support. Though it took Garber more than 50 years to live as an out trans woman, she says she wouldn't change the past.

"Everything that I've been through made me the person I am now. I would not go back and change anything if I could. I got a wonderful daughter who loves me, and my family is pretty accepting. When I came out to my parents at age 55, they were in their early 80s, late 70s. My dad is 90 now, and my mom is 85, and I'm closer to my mom than I have ever been," she said.

The fact that Garber is happier than she used to be has helped win over a couple of reluctant family members. Transitioning helped her dispel the cloud of anxiety and depression she had lived under for many years.

"I had to change my life if I wanted to stay on the top side of the dirt  it was really that simple. It was down to a life-or-death decision for me. And I'm glad I chose to move forward because I'm still here, and I'm happy now. Better late than never."

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CHICAGO  Two men who said they were sexually molested decades ago by a notorious Catholic priest who was imprisoned for molesting other boys have agreed to a settlement of $880,000 from the Archdiocese of Chicago, attorneys announced Wednesday.

The men alleged Norbert Maday sexually abused them repeatedly starting when they were as young as 10 years old while they were alter boys and students at St. Bede the Venerable Elementary School on the citys South Side, attorneys Jason Friedl and Martin Gould said.

Based on lawsuits, court cases and documents, the two were among at least 14 boys whom Maday molested at the six parishes where he was assigned from 1967 to 1986, the attorneys said, adding that they believe Maday died in recent years.

Archdiocese spokesman Manny Gonzalez declined to comment on the settlement.

Friedl and Gould said the agreement was reached before a lawsuit was even filed, representing a significant shift for an archdiocese that has a history of protecting sexually abusive priests.

This is a sharp departure from prior responses and it is a good sign (because) the church itself is recognizing what has happened in the past, said Friedl. This is an indication of a new culture of protection, healing and accountability.

Maday figured prominently in reports about the sexual abuse scandal that rocked the Catholic Church in the United States and around the world, as it played out in Chicago. He has been named in lawsuits and in 2014, documents related to Maday appeared among thousands of pages that showed senior Chicago Archdiocese leaders had helped hide the abuse of children.

Those documents revealed that then-Cardinal Francis George had tried to get Maday released early from a Wisconsin prison, where he was detained after a 1994 conviction for molesting two boys.

It would be a great fulfillment of the millennium spirit to see your captive heart set free, George wrote to Maday in 2000.

But two years later, George heard from another man who alleged he was sexually abused by Maday.

Where was the church for the victims of this sick, demented, twisted pedophile? the man wrote.

George subsequently changed course, writing in 2007 to the Parole Commission of Wisconsin  just before Madays scheduled release  that he had formally removed Maday from the priesthood and was severing all ties with him. George died in 2015.

My first reason is the protection of the vulnerable, George explained, adding, "It would be a cause of scandal ... if he were to return to the Chicago metropolitan area and remain a priest.

Maday was released in 2007, according to the Wisconsin Department of Corrections' website and in 2014, the state's sex offender registry gave his address in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.

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EAST ST. LOUIS  A southern Illinois man has been sentenced to more than five years in prison for firing an automatic rifle while attending a childs birthday party in 2020, federal prosecutors said Tuesday.

Marco B. Orr, 32, of East St. Louis was sentenced Monday to 63 months in federal prison after pleading guilty in April to unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Orr was also ordered to serve a 3-year term of supervised release.

Orr is banned from possessing a firearm because of a 2013 conviction for aggravated battery with great bodily harm in St. Clair County.

Court records show Orr can be seen on surveillance video discharging an AR-15 style rifle into the air several times. An East St. Louis police officer later recovered the rifle from a vehicle. According to police, the rifle was loaded with 17 rounds of ammunition in a high-capacity magazine.

The U.S. Justice Department prosecuted Orr as part of its Project Safe Neighborhood, an effort to reduce violent crime.

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A federal appeals court panel on Tuesday struck down the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's approval of a natural gas pipeline that runs through parts of Missouri and Illinois.

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that the FERC failed to adequately balance public benefits and adverse impacts" in approving the 65-mile-long Spire STL Pipeline, and failed to prove that it was really needed.

A statement from Spire, a St. Louis-based natural gas company with 1.7 million customers in Missouri, Alabama and Mississippi, called the ruling disappointing and said the company is considering its next move. The statement said the ruling jeopardizes reliable and critical energy access to 650,000 homes and businesses throughout the St. Louis region.

But the appeals panel wrote that the evidence showed the pipeline is not being built to serve increasing load demand and that there is no indication the new pipeline will lead to cost savings. The ruling vacated approval of the already-operational pipeline and sent the matter back to the FERC.

The lawsuit challenging the pipeline was filed by the nonprofit Environmental Defense Fund. Lead counsel Natalie Karas said in a statement that people in Missouri and Illinois "continue to experience direct harm to their land that is in the pathway of the pipeline. Meanwhile, ratepayers are being asked to pay for the new infrastructure for decades to come.

FERC granted approval for the pipeline in 2018. Spire said it has been fully operational since 2019. The company statement noted that while other areas of the Midwest struggled with lack of supply and high costs for natural gas during extremely cold weather in February, the STL Pipeline ensured the St. Louis region had access to reliable, affordable energy, when it needed it most.

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Homeowners forced to evacuate their property near the massive Rockton chemical fire that burned for days last week have filed a lawsuit seeking class-action status against the owners of the industrial lubricant plant.

The June 14 fire at the Chemtool plant near Rockford spewed black smoke over an area so large it was visible on weather radar, prompting orders that residents and businesses within a mile vacate their properties during a protracted battle to bring the chemical fire under control.

The lawsuit was filed Friday in Winnebago County Circuit Court on behalf of Stephanie Mackey and Nick Migliore, who were displaced from their Rockton home of four years, along with residents from at least 150 other homes, the lawsuit alleges.

As a result of the explosion and fire, Rockton residents and others have experienced nuisance-level discomforts (respiratory difficulty, malodorous smell), their properties were covered with debris, and they generally have been impeded from using and enjoying their property, including their outdoor spaces, the lawsuit alleges.

The Chemtool plant makes lubricating greases and is a major employer in Rockton, a town of about 7,500 between Rockford and Beloit near the Wisconsin state line. Founded in 1963, Chemtool is based in Rockton, with additional production facilities in California and Brazil. Chemtool was acquired by Lubrizol, a Berkshire Hathaway company, in 2013.

The lawsuit names both Chemtool and Lubrizol as defendants.

We are devastated by this event and deeply regret the disruption and inconvenience that it has caused area residents, Lubrizol spokeswoman Alicia Gauer said in an email.

Gauer said the company is working on a site remediation plan, but expects a total loss of the Chemtool plant. The company has arranged for removal of fire-related debris, posted reimbursement claim forms on its website for fire damages, and while testing has so far shown no impact to water systems, is offering bottled water for residents with private wells in the evacuation area, she said.

Lubrizol issued a statement on its website downplaying any health risks caused by the nearly weeklong burn-off at the chemical plant, which was destroyed.

We are confident that the materials burned in the fire pose no health risk in the short or long-term, other than the short-term irritation one would normally experience in the presence of smoke, the company said in its post.

The fire June 14 was called a catastrophic day by Rockton Fire Chief Kirk Wilson. Dozens of fire departments from northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin responded to the call. More than 50 employees were evacuated from the building, and about 1,000 nearby residents were ordered to leave their homes and businesses.

Black smoke from the fire was visible for miles, as debris fell to the ground across a broad swath of land. Winnebago County public health officials asked residents within 3 miles of the fire to wear face masks and use gloves to handle any waste that fell on their property.

Edward Manzke, a Naperville attorney representing Mackey and Migliore in the lawsuit, said they were allowed to return to their home, which is less than a mile from the site, on Friday. The couple stayed with relatives outside of Rockton for the week, Manzke said.

When they returned, they found huge chunks of burned debris, oil spots, and a filmy buildup on their vehicles and lawn, Manzke said. Its like something out of a disaster movie, he said.

The lawsuit alleges Chemtool and Lubrizol were negligent in failing to prevent the fire, caused a nuisance and trespassed on nearby properties by contaminating them with debris.

The lawsuit is seeking monetary damages for the lost use and enjoyment of the homeowners properties, and an injunction requiring Chemtool and Lubrizol to remediate the damage.

Manzke said the aim of the lawsuit goes beyond monetary compensation.

These folks deserve some answers and some information, Manzke said. They need to understand the full nature, extent and duration of the threats that they have been exposed to, and whether or not theyre continuing to be exposed to those threats. Ultimately, when we get those answers, these folks need to be compensated for what theyve been living through.

A separate lawsuit filed Monday in Winnebago County Circuit Court against Chemtool and Lubrizol on behalf of Jolene Smith and Thomas Henry, who were among those displaced from their Rockton house by the fire, also seeks monetary damages for alleged negligence by the plant.

In addition to fallout from the smoke and debris, the lawsuit raises concerns about foam containing toxic compounds that was allegedly used to suppress the fire.

Nothing has been done to test the ground on any of these homes, said Peter Flowers, a St. Charles attorney representing Smith and Henry. These people have a 2-year-old child who plays outside every day. Its not necessarily the things that you see that are damaging. Its the things you dont see that could damage you.

Gauer said the company is aware of the lawsuits but does not comment on legal matters.

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With summer in full swing, health officials are urging people to remain vigilant about another persistent and endemic health threat: West Nile virus.

While not of the immediate urgency that has come with fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, the Illinois Department of Public Health said that people should exercise the three "R's"  reduce, repel and report  in order to prevent the spread of West Nile.

IDPH director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said that people need to be vigilant and take precautions to protect themselves against the virus.

"We are starting to see West Nile virus make its annual appearance," Ezike said. "Remember to take precautions to protect yourself from mosquitoes and the viruses they carry by wearing insect repellent and getting rid of standing water around your home."

IDPH is asking people to remove all areas of standing water outside their home or property, such as ponds, flowerpots, wading pools, birdbaths and open containers. People can take precautions by wearing shoes, socks, long pants and long-sleeved shirts when working outside near areas where mosquitoes are prevalent.

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People also should wear insect repellent, preferably one that contains DEET, and report areas of standing water that could breed mosquitoes to the local health department.

The reminders come as the first cases of mosquitoes with West Nile emerge in Illinois. A batch of mosquitoes in Skokie was reported positive for the virus on June 9. So far, no people have tested positive for the virus, one year after at least 39 cases and four deaths were reported statewide.

Dr. Douglas Carlson, chief medical director for HSHS St. John's Children's Hospital, said that the virus always has been a cause of underlying concern in Illinois, in particular following 2001 when 884 cases were confirmed and 64 deaths in the next year alone.

Carlson said that taking precautions against mosquito bites will help in reducing the risk of West Nile for people of all ages.

"These diseases are not inevitable," Carlson said. "It's not just bad luck. Now, even with all precautions, there's still a chance of getting an illness like West Nile or (even) COVID. But we know that if we take simple precautions, it decreases that risk  not to zero  but it decreases that risk."

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A state plan that could triple the number of federally mandated tests Illinois students must take in the coming years is being slammed by some educators and parents who say after the recent loss of classroom learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, the last thing kids need is more testing.

While the Illinois State Board of Education last week delayed their vote on the proposal, officials have not shelved what some say is an estimated $200 million plan that would replace the annual Illinois Assessment of Readiness for students in grades 3 through 8 during the next 10 years with three, interim assessments delivered in the fall, winter and spring of each school year.

ISBE spokeswoman Jackie Matthews declined to comment on when the board plans to vote on the proposal, but said in an email Tuesday that officials are continuing to gather stakeholder feedback.

Our goal is to improve this federally required assessment to make it a shorter, more useful, actionable, and equitable tool for teachers and families, Mathews said.

Officials are determining details of the plan, including the scope, timeline, and cost of the assessments, and once finalized, will be asking private testing companies to submit proposals meeting those specifications, Matthews said.

Earlier this year, ISBE officials said the state is paying Pearson  the multinational publishing and education company that provides the IAR test  around $55 million for three years of assessments. That includes $18.6 million for 2020, when only about a quarter of students took the exams before they were halted because of the pandemic, officials said.

The contract also has the state paying Pearson an amount not to exceed $15.6 million to administer the assessments in 2021, and an estimated $21 million in 2022, officials said.

Indeed, several foes of the states plan to hire a company to deliver interim student assessments who shared their concerns at a June 16virtual board of education meeting questioned why officials are considering replacing the annual IAR test with high stakes, interim testing in this rushed manner.

Interim testing for students in third through eighth grade is not what Illinois families are asking for, said Naoma Nagahawatte, advocacy director of Raise Your Hand for Illinois Public Education, a nonprofit parent group.

Our children are more than test scores, and we can do better, Nagahawatte said.

Katie Osgood, a Chicago Public Schools special education teacher, urged the state board to consider the racist, devastating impact high-stakes student testing has on our most vulnerable students, and why we must keep testing at the absolute minimum.

During springtime, our units with children and adolescents would fill to capacity during testing season, said Osgood, recalling the years she was a teacher at a Chicago hospitals psychiatric unit.

We would see children arriving by ambulance directly from testing sessions with things like self-harm ... banging their heads on desks, pulling out all of their eyelashes ... panic attacks, and wed see suicidal ideation, Osgood said.

Our therapy team began to understand the high-stakes testing culture was creating massive mental health damage for children and young people, she added.

While ISBE officials have said that interim assessments can help teachers quickly gauge specific student learning gaps in subject areas, allowing them to immediately provide needed support, Cassie Creswell with Illinois Families for Public Schools said the state should not be pushing for more testing that she described as having, dubious validity.

Switching from one to three high-stakes interim tests is not the direction we should be going in the state, Creswell said.

Dan Montgomery, president of the Illinois Federation of Teachers, agreed, saying teachers have long pushed for a decrease of standardized assessments, which they say are punitive and take away valuable time needed for classroom learning.

Instead, Montgomery said the unions teachers are pushing for the state to invest the money they spend paying private companies to deliver standardized assessments on providing resources to schools that will directly support student learning in the classroom.

Its like theyre throwing all of the kids in a pool, and those who know how to swim get a luxury yacht, and for those who dont, theyll take away their life preservers, Montgomery said. Well know what they didnt learn, and what theyre supposed to learn, but according to whom?

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In recent years, more and more police departments have been choosing to strap their officers with body cameras  a move that boosts transparency in an era of skepticism about police authority.

This transparency benefits all because body cams memorialize police action, yielding points of verification in situations that call for review and evaluation.

The push for police reform following the death of George Floyd has resulted in state requirements for police body cams, with six states mandating the use of such cameras in the past year. Many municipal police forces have opted to use cameras without an outside legal mandate.

Now, the U.S. Justice Department will require federal agents to don cameras when performing arrests or searching buildings, overturning a past policy that restricted their use. It's a good move. The Justice Department's previous stance against the use of body cams was based on concern that cameras would interfere with agents' investigative work, much of which involves the use of confidential sources. This is reasonable. But there is an easy solution: If the cameras will interfere with an officer's ability to do the job, it shouldn't be worn. The new federal policy addresses this by requiring cameras only during the execution of arrests and searches.

The fact is that cameras are being used already to reduce police interaction with the public and to aid officers in investigations. Think traffic cameras; they are a ubiquitous convenience for police agencies that use the footage to nab people accused of everything from speeding to criminal activity. Using cameras during public interactions with citizens is another way of aiding police. Footage gives an officer's perspective. It gives verification. It yields a subconscious deterrent to overreaction in potentially volatile situations.

Law enforcement body cameras should be standard operating procedure  a method of "trust, but verify." The inconvenient truth is that the trusting relationship between police and the public in this country is damaged. Increased use of body cameras could be a step toward repair.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

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A report out of Beijing today claimed that days after U.S. lawmakers introduced five bills that could break the dominance of technology companies, Apple CEO Tim Cook called House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other lawmakers to warn them, people familiar with the matter said.

Mr. Cook issued multiple warnings about the bills, according to people familiar with the matter. He said the antitrust laws were too hasty and would hurt consumers by curbing innovation and disrupting iPhone services.

Pelosi hit back at Cook's concerns, including rejecting Cook's request for the House Judiciary Committee to delay consideration of the bills. She also pressed Cook to find specific policies to oppose the bills.

In addition to calling Pelosi, Cook allegedly spoke to other members of Congress to warn about the impact of these tough antitrust laws. However, it is not clear which members of Congress Mr. Cook spoke to.

Apple is also working with lobby groups to oppose the looming antitrust legislation. Morgan Reed, president of App Association, an industry group sponsored by Apple and other telecommunications and technology companies, wrote to lawmakers Tuesday that "breaking up platforms and limiting the services they provide to our member companies will hurt your constituents." You could also read a similar report on this from the New York Times.

In a secondary report by Bloomberg we learn that Apple is raising fears about letting users install applications outside the companys App Store, an issue being targeted by lawmakers and regulators that also played a prominent role in its recent trial against Epic Games Inc.

The company said Wednesday on its website that requiring apps to be downloaded from the App Store protects consumers against scams, keeps their privacy secure and provides developers payment for their work. All those benefits could disappear if apps can be downloaded from third-party app stores with lesser protections or users get an app from a website or PC and "sideload" it onto the phone.

"Allowing sideloading would degrade the security of the iOS platform and expose users to serious security risks not only on third-party app stores, but also on the App Store, the Cupertino, California-based technology giant said on its website. "Because of the large size of the iPhone user base and the sensitive data stored on their phones -- photos, location data, health and financial information -- allowing sideloading would spur a flood of new investment into attacks on the platform."

The company said sideloading and downloads from third-party app stores would wipe out years of privacy features baked into Apples mobile operating system and make it more like Googles Android system, creating fewer smartphone alternatives for consumers. The company said sideloading would blunt the growth of the app economy, harming both users and developers as consumers worried about privacy are likely to download fewer apps.

Apple added: "Allowing sideloading would spur a flood of new investment into attacks on iPhone, incentivizing malicious actors to develop tools and expertise to attack iPhone device security at an unprecedented scale."

The Bloomberg report further noted that "The timing of Apples push back isnt coincidental. The U.S. House Judiciary Committee Wednesday is scheduled to discuss six proposed antitrust bills, including one sponsored by Rhode Island Democrat Representative David Cicilline, a Democrat from Rhode Island and chairman of the antitrust subcommittee that, if passed into law, could call for Apple to open up to third-party app stores and provide all of its iPhone technologies to third-party software makers."

According to an early copy of the bill: "It shall be unlawful for a person operating a covered platform, in or affecting commerce, to restrict or impede the capacity of a business user to access or interoperate with the same platform, operating system, hardware and software features that are available to the covered platform operators own products, services, or lines of business."







CNBC's report added that "In a 16-page paper posted to its web site, Apple said that allowing sideloading would encourage hackers and scammers to target iPhone users by helping them entice victims to download apps from outside the store, possibly for school or work.

Apple also warned that allowing sideloading could put children at risk by allowing apps to disregard parental controls or by collecting sensitive user data.

"Because of the large size of the iPhone user base and the sensitive data stored on their phones  photos, location data, health and financial information  allowing sideloading would spur a flood of new investment into attacks on the platform," Apple said in the report.

Apple faces far different antitrust challenges than these other companies. Apples Silicon Valley rivals face questioning over large mergers (Apple tends to make only small acquisitions), data privacy, and whether they should be broken up into smaller companies.

With Apple, legislators are mostly focused on its App Store and its rule that Apple must process in-app purchases, for which it takes a 15% to 30% fee. For more on this, read the full CNBC report.

As this story continues to heat up, you could also read another Reuters report posted this morning titled "U.S. House panel to take up Big Tech antitrust bills amid vociferous criticism."
Lenovo is beefing up its Yoga business notebooks, specifically the 13.3-inch ThinkPad L13 Gen 2 and the ThinkPad L13 Yoga Gen 2, with AMD Ryzen 5000 Mobile processors.

Announced Wednesday as part of virtual MWC (normally held live in Barcelona, Spain), both ThinkPad L13s are essentially the same laptop, though with one key difference: The Yoga is a 360-degree convertible, and the ThinkPad L13 is a traditional clamshell laptop. That results in a little less battery life for the Yoga model: 10.6 hours, versus 10.8 hours for its clamshell cousin, Lenovo said.

The addition of AMDs Ryzen 5000 Mobile processors, however, is a first for the ThinkPad L13 lineup, and it arrives specifically following requests from customers, Lenovo said. (Specifically, Lenovo is using the AMD Ryzen 5000 Pro series of processors, with more corporate security and management features.) Executives also noted that the addition of AMDs processors allow for 20 percent more battery life than a similar laptop powered by an Intel Core chip.

Lenovo Lenovos ThinkPad L13 Gen 2 clamshell notebook contains the latest AMD Ryzen 5000 Pro microprocessors.

Familiar Lenovo ThinkPad features make their appearance, including the ThinkShield security shutter that you can slide with a fingertip to cover the webcam. The webcam, meanwhile, is optionally Windows Hello-certified, and theres a Match on Chip fingerprint reader option, too.

The Lenovo ThinkPad L13 Yoga includes the integrated pen, which docks inside its charging cubby on the side of the laptop. Both the L13 and the L13 Yoga have been tested against the MIL-STD 810H specification and approved.

Lenovo said that the ThinkPad L13 Gen 2 will be priced starting at $799 when it ships in August. The ThinkPad L13 Yoga Gen 2 will also ship in August, for a starting price of $999. Weve included what we know of the specs below.

Lenovo ThinkPad L13 Gen 2 features

Processor: Up to Ryzen 5000 Pro series processors

Up to Ryzen 5000 Pro series processors Display: 13.3-inch, with HD and FHD options (250-, 300-nit brightness)

13.3-inch, with HD and FHD options (250-, 300-nit brightness) Memory: Up to 16GB LPDDR4X 3200

Up to 16GB LPDDR4X 3200 Storage: Up to 1 TB PCIe SSD

Up to 1 TB PCIe SSD Graphics: AMD Radeon

AMD Radeon Ports: 2 USB-A 3.2, 2 USB-C 3.2, HDMI 2.0, microSD, 3.5mm mic/headphones

2 USB-A 3.2, 2 USB-C 3.2, HDMI 2.0, microSD, 3.5mm mic/headphones Security: Optional Windows Hello depth camera / fingerprint reader

Optional Windows Hello depth camera / fingerprint reader Camera: HD (user-facing)

HD (user-facing) Battery: 46Wh, or about 10.8 hours of use

46Wh, or about 10.8 hours of use Wireless: Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax 2x2 AX200), Bluetooth 5.1

Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax 2x2 AX200), Bluetooth 5.1 Operating system: Windows 10 Pro

Windows 10 Pro Dimensions: 12.26 x 8.62 x 0.69 inches

12.26 x 8.62 x 0.69 inches Weight: 3.06 pounds

3.06 pounds Colors: Black, Silver

Black, Silver Prices: Starting at $799

Lenovo As the name suggests, the Lenovo ThinkPad L13 Yoga Gen 2 bends backward into tent mode.

Lenovo ThinkPad L13 Yoga Gen 2 features

Processor: Up to Ryzen 5000 Pro series processors

Up to Ryzen 5000 Pro series processors Display: 13.3-inch FHD (300-nit brightness)

13.3-inch FHD (300-nit brightness) Memory: Up to 16GB DDR4X 3200

Up to 16GB DDR4X 3200 Storage: Up to 1 TB PCIe SSD

Up to 1 TB PCIe SSD Graphics: AMD Radeon

AMD Radeon Ports: 2 USB-A 3.2, 2 USB-C 3.2, HDMI 2.0, microSD, 3.5mm mic/headphones

2 USB-A 3.2, 2 USB-C 3.2, HDMI 2.0, microSD, 3.5mm mic/headphones Security: Optional Windows Hello depth camera / fingerprint reader

Optional Windows Hello depth camera / fingerprint reader Camera: HD (user-facing), optional world-facing camera

HD (user-facing), optional world-facing camera Battery: 46Wh, or about 10.6 hours of use

46Wh, or about 10.6 hours of use Wireless: Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax 2x2 AX200), Bluetooth 5.1

Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax 2x2 AX200), Bluetooth 5.1 Operating system: Windows 10 Pro

Windows 10 Pro Dimensions: 12.26 x 8.62 x 0.69 inches

12.26 x 8.62 x 0.69 inches Weight: 3.17 pounds

3.17 pounds Colors: Black, Silver

Black, Silver Prices: Starting at $999
Ghanaian businessman, Dr Kofi Amoah has disclosed the secrets behind his early success as an entrepreneur. According to him, he faced a lot of setbacks in trying to earn his first million dollars, so he increased his target to two million and that came faster.



He told television show host Doloris Frimpong Manso (Delay) that he got the first idea for success from attending a lot of seminars. In an interview on the Delay Show, Dr Amoah said at one of such seminars, a speaker said an ideal business was one where you earn money while sleeping.



When pressed further by the host, Dr Amoah said he made the vast majority of his wealth by facilitating the entry of global remittance service provider, Western Union, into Africa. He said he got the idea because he encountered difficulty in sending money to his mum in Ghana in the 90s.



Dr Amoah, said as the Chief Executive Officer of Progeny Ventures he had to travel across the continent to advertise and sign-on agents. Western Union started its African operations from Ghana in 1995. Twelve years on, the company had expanded its operations to almost all 54 African states.



He said among the many countries he signed onto the money transfer service were Eritrea, South Africa and Ethiopia.

Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The World Bank Migration and Development Report for 2021 has reported an increase of 5 per cent to $3.6 billion in remittance flows to Ghana despite the lockdowns around the world in the heat of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Host countries for Ghanaian migrants include the USA, UK, Cote dIvoire, Italy, Germany, and Canada.



The resilience of Ghanaian migrants has been commended in the face of the harsh economic impact on the top ten remittance-sending countries because of the COVID-19.

Abibatou Wane, Chief of Mission, International Organisation for Migration (IOM), made the revelation at the GIZ-Ghana Programme Migration and Diaspora Multi-Stakeholder Dialogue on Remittance in Accra.



The Dialogue, which was on the theme, "Leveraging Remittances for Recovery and Resilience Post-COVID-19" also marked the International Family Day of Remittances.



She said the World Bank had projected that remittance flows to low- and middle-income countries was expected to fall by 7 per cent to $508 billion in 2020.

This is followed by a further decline of 7.5 per cent to $470 billion in 2021 due to the lockdown and expected economic effects of Covid-19 in the remittance-sending countries but contrary to expectations, remittances to Ghana rather increased.



Ms Wane said in Ghana, remittances were a growing source of foreign funds, raising the standard of living for vulnerable and low-income households.

She said from a study conducted by IOM in the Ghana market, Ghana, as of 2019, was the second-largest recipient of remittances in sub-Saharan Africa.



She said the flows through official channels have increased from $117.6 million in 2007 to an estimated $3.8 billion in 2018.

Remittances, she said, make up 7.4 per cent of Ghanas Gross Domestic Product.



It is estimated that if monitored, remittances sent through informal channels could increase total flows by as much as 50 per cent, she said.

She said the financial sector in Ghana, according to Findex, had gone through a period of change over the last 5 years, with financial inclusion reaching 57 per cent in 2017.











Source: GNA









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The Minister of Education, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, last Wednesday paid a working visit to the Cape Coast Technical University (CCTU) to inspect ongoing projects.



One of the projects is under the Ghana-China Project on the rehabilitation and upgrading of equipment in polytechnics and technical institutes (including technical universities /polytechnics) in the country.



The project at the CCTU, which is about 95 per cent complete, includes a fully equipped automobile workshop, a civil engineering workshop, a mechanical engineering workshop and a welding workshop.



After the installation of all the tools and equipment in those workshops, which are industry-standard equipment, students who graduate from these institutions will have industry-ready skills.



Expedite action



During the tour, Dr Adutwum urged the contractor working on the project to expedite action to ensure that it was completed on schedule for use.



He was upbeat that the project, when completed, would help improve the employability of Ghanaian youth by providing them with the relevant skills and competencies required for self and formal employment for the 21st century market needs.



Dr Adutwum said, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addos government sees education in the form of Technical, Vocational Education and Training (TVET) as the key to transforming Ghana.



The President has, therefore, prioritised education, especially Science, Technical, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and TVET, to make it the bedrock of Ghanas industrialisation agenda.



The minister pledged the governments readiness to provide the needed resources to ensure that the youth of the country benefitted from the equipment to improve their fortunes, as well as support the development of the nations economy through education.



Alignment



Dr Adutwum urged the universities in the country to identify and align with specific industry partners for the various workshops so that they could both plan and make good use of the equipment for the good of the nation and the rest of the world.



The Vice-Chancellor of the university, Professor Joshua Danso Owusu-Sekyere, expressed gratitude to the government and the Ministry of Education for initiating the project and pledged that the university would put the workshops to good use.



For his part, the Ag Director-General of the Commission for Technical, Vocational Education and Training (CTVET), Dr Fred Kyei Asamoah, indicated that the commission would do everything possible to ensure that the institutions which were benefitting from the project followed the required occupational and industry standard in the delivery of TVET using the facilities.



He pledged to collaborate with all sectors to do everything within their mandate to improve the sector which held the key to turning the nations economy around within the shortest possible time if well patronised.



Background



Parliament in March 2018 approved by resolution the concessional loan agreement between the Government of Ghana and the EXIM Bank of China for an amount of US$119 million to finance this rehabilitation project.



Subsequently, Parliament in July 2018 approved by resolution the supplementary contract agreement, as well as the commercial contract between the Government of Ghana and Avic International Holding Corporation of China for the implementation of the project.



This project will see the provision of modern tools and equipment to 13 technical institutes and all the technical universities across the country, as well as the construction of a Technical Examinations Unit Block (TEUB) at the Akenten Appiah-Menka University of Skills Training and Entrepreneurial Development (AAMUSTED).









Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Editor-in-Chief of the Insight newspaper, Kwesi Pratt Jnr. has cast fears over the deadly indian strain detected in Ghana.



The most contagious Covid-19 variant, originating from India, was recorded at the Kotoka International Airport.



Head of West Africa Center for Cell Biology and Infectious Pathogens (WACCBIP) of the University of Ghana, Professor Gordon Awendare confirmed that the Indian variant, also known as Delta variant, is one of the forty-five (45) variants currently in Ghana.



The Delta variant is reportedly the major cause of the huge number of deaths in India and a serious increase in cases in the UK.



Overall we have about 45 or 46 different variants. The trend shows that all these normally come from travellers. Now that the Delta (Indian Variant) is taking over, its just a matter of time before it will come here in large quantities. We have a few here but its going to increase, Professor Awendare explained to Daniel Dadzie on Joy Prime.



Kwesi Pratt, speaking on Peace FM's ''Kokrokoo'', feared the AstraZeneca vaccines administered to a section of the Ghanaian populace may not effectively protect the citizenry against the new variant.



To him, it is very worrying and frightening for Ghana to have recorded the Indian strain.



"If we had reached herd immunity stage and you tell us not to be afraid, we wouldn't be afraid. But when you check the number of vaccinated people which is not up to 400,000, how do we not fear?", he said.



He called for stricter enforcement of the COVID-19 protocols, claiming many Ghanaians have relaxed.





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Biomedical Scientists in Ghana say they have detected the Indian strain of Covid-19 also known as 'Delta' in Ghana.

It was detected in travelers who arrived in Ghana and has not been detected in the general population.



A statement dated June 22, 2021 signed by the Director-General of the Ghana Health Service(GHS) Dr Patrick Kuma-Aboagye and issued Tuesday night said, as of now, Ghana has detected six Delta variants of the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19 virus) from all samples taken between April and June, 2021 at the ports of entry.



"No Delta variant has been detected from samples taken from cases in the community," the statement said.



Earlier on Tuesday in a radio interview monitored by Graphic Online on Accra based Citi FM, the Head of West Africa Center for Cell Biology and Infectious Pathogens at the University of Ghana, Professor Gordon Awendare said Delta was detected in two travelers who arrived in Ghana in the last two weeks.



They arrived from different countries at the Kotoka International Airport in Accra, he said.



It is only two people as of now.



The two people have since been quarantined and will continue to be on quarantine until they are negative.



Prof Awendane said even though the Delta variant [Indian variant] has been detected, it is not yet in the general population.





"The general population we still have mostly the UK variant which is the Alpha. So if you are deploying Sputnik and AstraZeneca, it is fine for now."



The Indian strain according to World Health Organization (WHO) is the "variant of concern."



The variant was originally isolated in India but it has now spread across the world and is now the dominant strain in the United Kingdom and several African countries, especially in East Africa.



"As far as we know, it is not too different from the normal COVID in terms of the clinical presentations," Prof Awendare said.



More transmissible



What is different in the genetic make up is that it is more transmissible than the original variant.



It means that if the original COVID infected let's say 10 people for each infected person, this one will infect maybe 17 or 18 people.



Prof Awendane said if you look at the data from all the different countries, it is the Pfizer vaccine that is able to have a more reliable effect on the newer variants in terms of all levels of protection - from hospitalisation, from death, from infection.



"The Pfizer vaccine seems to be doing better with these new variant in those different levels of protection," he said.



But Prof Awendane stressed that all the other vaccines give assurance of protection against hospitalisation, from death, severe disease and infection.



He said different vaccines provides different levels of protection.



Tracking SARS-CoV-2 variants



According to the WHO, all viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, change over time.



Most changes have little to no impact on the virus properties.



However, some changes may affect the viruss properties, such as how easily it spreads, the associated disease severity, or the performance of vaccines, therapeutic medicines, diagnostic tools, or other public health and social measures.



WHO, in collaboration with partners, expert networks, national authorities, institutions and researchers have been monitoring and assessing the evolution of SARS-CoV-2 since January 2020.



During late 2020, the emergence of variants that posed an increased risk to global public health prompted the characterisation of specific Variants of Interest (VOIs) and Variants of Concern (VOCs), in order to prioritise global monitoring and research, and ultimately to inform the ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic.



WHO and its international networks of experts are monitoring changes to the virus so that if significant mutations are identified, countries and the public can be informed about any changes needed to react to the variant, and prevent its spread.



Globally, systems have been established and are being strengthened to detect signals of potential VOIs or VOCs and assess these based on the risk posed to global public health.



SARS-CoV-2 Variants of Concern and Variants of Interest, updated 15 June 2021 by WHO



Variants of Concern



Alpha (United Kingdom, Sep-2020)

Beta (South Africa, May-2020)

Gamma (Brazil, Nov-2020)

Delta (India, Oct-2020)

Variants of Interest



Epsilon (United States of America, Mar-2020)

Zeta (Brazil, Apr-2020)

Eta (Multiple countries, Dec-2020)

Theta (Philippines, Jan-2021)

Iota ( United States of America, Nov-2020)

Kappa (India, Oct-2020)

Lambda (Peru, Aug-2020)

Below is a copy of the press statement issued by the Ghana Health Service on the Delta variant



Date: 22nd June, 2021



For Immediate Release.



PRESS RELEASE



Re: Covid-19: Deadly Indian strain detected in Ghana; Sputnik V, AstraZeneca vaccines not effective against it



The Ministry of Health (MoH) and Ghana Health Service (GHS) take note of a publication by myjoyonline.com on 21st June 2021 with the headline Covid-19: Deadly Indian strain detected in Ghana; Sputnik V, AstraZeneca vaccines not effective against it.



The Service, hereby, informs the general public that



1. All passengers who test positive at Kotoka International Airport (KIA) are put under mandatory isolation



2. All positive samples are sent for further testing (genomic sequencing) to identify the variants



3. Variants sequenced from samples of positive cases at the Airport do not necessarily end up in the community.



4. As of now, the country has detected six Delta variants of the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19 virus) from all samples taken between April and June, 2021 at the ports of entry.



No Delta variant has been detected from samples taken from cases in the community.



The MOH and GHS further inform the general public that the in April 2021, there was a surge in cases at the airport during which period 308 positives were identified.



However, Ghana has not experienced a third wave partly due to the robust surveillance system in place at the ports of entry and strict isolation of all cases detected.



On the issue of vaccines, reports that Sputnik-V and AstraZeneca vaccines are not effective against the Delta strain of SARS-Cov-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) are untrue. According to Public Health England (PHE) two doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine are highly effective against hospitalisation due to the Delta variant and showed no deaths among those vaccinated.



The data also suggest that the AstraZeneca vaccine is effective against symptomatic disease caused by the Delta variant.



A study conducted by Gamaleya Center suggests that, Sputnik-V is more efficient against the Delta variant of coronavirus, first detected in India, compared to other COVID-19 vaccines.



It must be noted that in the midst of global supply shortages, the MOH and GHS are diligently working with Government to ensure that adequate vaccines are procured to protect the population.



The MOH, GHS and the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) are working collaboratively to ensure that vaccines that come into the country are safe and effective.



The Service would like to urge Ghanaians to take advantage of vaccination when their turn is due while entreating the general public to adhere to the COVID-19 prevention protocols i.e., wearing of face masks, practicing of hand hygiene and physical distancing as part of the strategies Signed



DR. PATRICK KUMA-ABOAGYE



DIRECTOR-GENERAL GHANA HEALTH SERVICE

Source: graphiconline.com









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There is no problem with the Chief Justice, Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah filing a disciplinary complaint against legal practitioner and Member of Parliament for Bolgatanga East, Dr Dominic Akuritinga Ayine at the General Legal Council (GLC).



According to private legal practitioner and former Member of Parliament for Zebilla, Mr John Ndebugre, the arguments being made by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and other people against the complaint are issues, which should be dealt with when Dr Ayine appears before the Disciplinary Committee of the General Legal Council (GLC).



"I think he [Chief Justice] was the proper person to initiate a complaint because the statement that Dr Ayine made which resulted in this complaint was that, in summary, his confidence in the independence of the judiciary has been shaken somehow by the manner in which the presidential election petition was handled or determined."



Complaint



The Chief Justice has reported lawyer Dr Dominic Akuritinga Ayine to the Disciplinary Committee of the GLC for statements he allegedly made during a panel discussion on Presidential Election Petitions and their impact on Africa's Democracy.



Dr. Ayine has been accused of questioning the independence of the Judiciary due to the manner the Supreme Court adjudicated the 2020 presidential election petition.



The petition says Dr. Ayines basis for his assertion during the discussion is the Supreme Court's failure to apply the rules of procedure as well as the consistent and continuous dismissal of the petitioner's applications or reliefs.



These comments are made against the backdrop of the Supreme Court discharging Dr. Ayine on a charge of contempt for similar comments made against members of the Supreme Court during the Election Petition hearing. Dr. Ayine apologized profusely when he appeared before the Court on the Contempt charge and admitted to having made comments which were unbecoming of a Lawyer of his standing and a former Deputy Attorney-General."



Ayine's reply



Dr. Ayine, in his eleven-paged response to the CJ's complaint, is insisting that his comments did not attack the reputation of the justices who sat on the election petition case.



He insists that his comments were in good faith.



As I have stated in this response, as a lawyer, I have a special responsibility to engage in criticism of the work of the judiciary. By reason of my training and experience, I am better placed than most of my fellow citizens to point out deficiencies in judgments and in the performance by the judiciary of its core constitutional mandate.



He further posited that his comments were within the confines of fair and temperate speech.



NDC's argument



The main opposition political party, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) at a press conference in Accra on Monday asked the Chief Justice to withdraw his disciplinary complaint against Dr Ayine.



Ndebugre's argument



Disagreeing with positions that the Chief Justice should withdraw the complaint and that he has no locus to file such a complaint, Mr Ndebugre said Dr Ayine was not talking about an individual member of the panel or the members of the panel who were just seven. He wasn't talking about combination of them. He talked about the whole judiciary and the Chief Justice is the head of the judiciary and therefore he was the proper person to lay the complaint.



Speaking in a radio interview monitored by Graphic Online on Accra based Citi FM on Tuesday evening (June 22, 2021), Mr Ndebugre said: "I think that there is no problem about the Chief Justice laying the complaint."



Comparing that to what happened in 1996 - the Republic against Mensah Bonsu, Stephen Quarcoo and Tommy Thompson - in that case Mensah Bonsu attacked an individual judge, Justice Abban and therefore he made the complaint and then the Attorney-General took it up from there and prosecuted the matter on behalf of the judiciary or the court.



No problem about CJ filing complaint



"So I think that there is no problem about the Chief Justice laying the complaint.



The other matter is that, Dominic Ayine was Deputy Attorney-General, and he and his boss at that time took people to the criminal court, proceeding to the civil court... so if the Attorney-General approves the prosecution of a person, can somebody say that no, the person was expressing freedom of speech... therefore he should not be sent to court. No, you are to go to the court and make your case, and state your case, and say that you were not guilty of the offence charged. So in the same measure, the Chief Justice thinks that the statement was untoward so far as the independence of the judiciary is concerned. So you go there, all those arguments that are being bandied about now, both by the NDC and Dr Ayine himself are matters that should be at the Disciplinary Committee," Mr Ndebugre added.



Insisting that he does not want to discuss the merits, he maintained that there are two forms, it is like contempt, whiles the matter is still pending, which is you are interfering with the administration of justice if you make prejudicial statements whiles the case is still pending, then after the judgment has been given and you make statements that scandalise the courts, you can be pursued for that.



If you lose a case in court, you can say that you don't agree, "but to say that... I say that I don't want to discuss the merits, all I'm doing now is that I don't agree with the position that because in the view of the political party, he [Dr Ayine] was expressing his right to free expression and therefore the matter should not be pursued. I don't agree."



"The point is that you must go to the Disciplinary Committee and state there that you were exercising your right to free expression, but you cannot say that the Chief Justice cannot make a complaint, he is the head of the judiciary, and you say your confidence in the judiciary has been dampened because of the way the case was handled. So he should go there [GLC], and point out those aspects of the handling of the case that led him to the conclusion that the judiciary in Ghana is not independent."



Asked about the notion that the Chief Justice chairs the GLC and therefore the Disciplinary Committee, is a sub-committee of his court and therefore he was sending Ayine to his own "court" to be tried, Mr Ndebugre replied, "are you saying that those who constitute the Disciplinary Committee are robots, and that they are going to take instructions from the Chief Justice. When you do these things, you don't help the development of our democracy. Freedom of speech does not mean that you can just say whatever you like."



He used the Parliamentary Disciplinary Committee where the legislature has been dragging people there, "have those people not been expressing their views or expressing their rights to free speech. If you go and say that errh! Parliamentarians are all corrupt without any evidence, you will be dragged to Privileges Committee... why are you saying that you cannot be questioned in another forum?



"I'm not saying that the Chief Justice is right or wrong. All I'm saying is that the Chief Justice has made a complaint, as far as I am concerned he is the right person to make the complaint because the statement was against the judiciary, the independence of the judiciary, and he is the head of the judiciary and he has to come forward with a complaint. The complaint doesn't mean that you have been condemned, you are to go there and make all the arguments that you are making with press conferences and so on, and then the matter will be determined. It is only when you go there and there is evidence of bias, that you can start complaining but I think at this stage, it is premature and I'll advise Ayine to try and go to the Disciplinary Committee and make his case, it is in their interest for them to go and prove the Chief Justice wrong."

Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Minister for Energy, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh has expressed his commitment to strengthening the relationship between Ghana and Nigeria to tap into the latters rich experience in the petroleum sector for the mutual benefit of the two countries.



Dr Opoku Prempeh was speaking following a visit to Abuja where he met with his Nigerian counterpart.



The two ministers centered their discussions on leveraging on the experience of Nigeria with which has decades of discovery know-how.



ECOWAS

The minister who is also the Chairman of the Committee of Energy Ministers of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), said there is the need for collaborative efforts and drawing of useful lessons Nigeria has accumulated over the years.



With Ghana recently joining the comity of oil producing nations, he said, there is the need to take lessons from Nigeria and learn from all the mistakes they made regarding the signing of petroleum agreements and maximizing their quota of local content and local participation, something Ghana is still getting a grasp on.



He said it was heartwarming that he and his Nigerian counterpart deliberated their positions on the global conversations around energy transition and what the implications were for developing countries such as Ghana and Nigeria.



Powering industrialization

Dr Prempeh said whilst it is important to recognize the need to gravitate towards clean energy, African countries must make this move organically, in order to use available fossil fuels to power the industrialization agenda across the continent.



The Minister and the Nigerian Minister of State for Petroleum Resources also discussed the need for the African Petroleum Producers Organisation (APPO) to protect the interest of petroleum resource rich nations.



We both shared our commitment to support the APPO, which are championing the cause for Africa to be dealt with fairly when it comes to decisions such as prices and importation of petroleum products, he said.



Going forward Dr Prempeh said he is looking forward to hosting his counterpart in Ghana to continue the discussions.



Collaboration vital

For his part, the Nigerian Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, commended the Dr. Prempeh for the move and called for more collaboration.



Ghana and Nigeria over the years have collaborated in many areas especially gas and power supply as well.









Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The alleged negligent removal of the womb of a 30-year-old patient of the LEKMA Hospital, without her consent, has landed the medical facility in trouble.



The woman, now childless, was at the Teshie-based Municipal hospital to be delivered of her first baby, which came out successfully after a caesarean section.



But the victim, Ms Doris Oppong, who has sued the hospital, later complained of severe abdominal pains due to post-partum hemorrhage, for which she was rushed back to the theatre, where her uterus was removed, allegedly without her consent, making her barren for the rest of her life.



Ms Oppong and her husband, Thomas Addai, alleged in their suit at the Accra High Court that the healthy male infant she had been delivered of and who had been placed under the care of the medical officers of LEKMA was negligently and wrongly fed by a nurse, causing him to suffer from asphyxia neonatorum - a condition that affected his ability to take in oxygen, resulting in his death three days after he was born.



According to a writ of summons filed by Ms Oppong, the loss of her womb could have been avoided had the medical team at the LEKMA Hospital applied best practice of care.



It is her case that the doctors at LEKMA allegedly failed to inform her of the situation that necessitated the urgency of the second surgery and also failed to obtain consent from her or her family, in accordance with the Patients Charter of the Ghana Health Service, neither did they do so after the procedure.



Response of LEKMA



The Administrator of the LEKMA Hospital, Mr Charles Banafo, when contacted, stated that the hospital followed all the relevant protocols of best practice in attending to their patients.



LEKMA is doing everything humanly possible to give the best of health care, as enjoined by the Ghana Health Service, Mr Banafo said.



We do not compromise on quality, and for that matter the interest of our service clients is always protected, as stated by the slogan of the Ghana Health Service: Your health, our concern, the hospital administrator emphasised.



Uterus in bucket



In her suit, Ms Oppong alleged that officers at LEKMA failed to disclose the loss of her uterus to her until a nurse distastefully came to her bedside and unexpectedly beckoned her to have a look at her removed uterus in a bucket, a situation she was not aware of and unprepared for, which traumatised her as a result.



The plaintiffs left ovary has been removed without her knowledge or consent, an action which officers of the 2nd Defendant neglected and/or failed to disclose to her, and the reasons for that ovary removal are still unknown, the suit stated.



Ms Oppong alleged in her statement of claim that the grossly negligent conduct of the medical officers at LEKMA had plunged her into premature menopausal conditions, decades ahead of her time, coupled with the perpetual anxiety of a permanent loss of procreation ability.



The plaintiff has lost the very existence of her relevance in society as a woman and has been deprived of the joy of motherhood at such a young age, compounded with the post-traumatic stress disorder she has been subjected to, the suit stated.



Negligence



It is the case of the couple that LEKMA Hospital either failed or neglected to apply the requisite skill and care that was reasonably expected in managing the post-operative hemorrhage of Ms Oppong.



The officers of the hospital, according to the plaintiffs, chose to perform a total hysterectomy (a procedure to remove womb) without recourse to other preventive measures, considering Ms Oppongs reaction within 24 hours of the surgery.



They also argued in their suit that the failure of the hospital to apply the requisite standards of neonatal care, especially those applicable in feeding babies, resulted in the condition that killed their baby.



Reliefs



The couple are, therefore, asking the General Jurisdiction division of the Accra High Court for compensation for the loss of Ms Oppongs uterus due to the alleged negligence of the hospitals medical team.



They are also asking for compensation for the injury that negligently caused the death of their baby, as well as compensation for the loss of their child due to negligence, allegedly, on the part of the hospitals nurses.



Additionally, they are asking for compensation for the pains, anxiety and the post-traumatic disorder they are going through for their loss.



Background



In their statement of claim, the plaintiffs averred that they went to the health facility on June 17, 2019 and Ms Oppong was admitted in anticipation of safe delivery.



According to them, the victim delivered a healthy male infant the following day and was subsequently moved from the operating theatre to the recovery ward in a presumably stable condition.



In the suit, Ms Oppong said that a few hours after her movement from the theatre to the recovery ward, she regained consciousness but complained of severe abdominal pains arising from the operation, which were followed by bleeding.



She further claimed that she was in excruciating pain, to the extent that she was unable to breastfeed the baby, who was then in the care of the nurses of the hospital.



Rushed back



Ms Oppong said on June 19, 2019, she was rushed back to the theatre due to the overwhelming abdominal pain and hemorrhage, where she was diagnosed of an iatrogenic infection arising from the caesarean section procedure which resulted in the loss of her womb.



Again, Ms Oppong claimed that through the negligence of the officers of the hospital, she suffered the loss of her uterus at a very budding age of 28 years, a situation which, she argued, deprived her of reproductive ability for life.



She argued that the irreparable damage she suffered could have been prevented had the officers of the hospital applied any of the best practices of standard of care owed her.



Ovary



Again, Ms Oppongs left ovary, according to the court suit, had been removed without her knowledge or consent, an action which officers of the hospital either neglected or failed to disclose to her.









Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Registrar of Ghana Scholarships Secretariat, Mr. Kingsley Agyemang has made a strong case for Ghana to be considered the prime beneficiary of Spains educational investments in Africa at the Spain-Africa Academic Corporation seminar held in Madrid, Spain, on Monday, 22nd June, 2021.



According to him, Spain is eager to make inroads in Africa by way of education partnership, adding that I urged them to fervently look at Ghana as the gateway to sub-Saharan Africa, since Ghana through the Ghana Scholarships Secretariat had had these bilateral ties with other countries since 1960.



In a Facebook post, Mr. Kingsley Agyeman acknowledged funding challenges involved in tertiary education and cataloged measures put in place by the Akufo-Addo government to address those challenges holistically.



The basic for all developmental agenda is to build capital in knowledge acquisition and thankfully, President Akufo-Addo sees it that way. This is the reason for the introduction of free SHS for all Ghanaian students in his first term of office, an initiative considered the most ambitious social program in the history of Ghana, he said.



In his quest to convince Spain to scale up education investment in Africa, particularly Ghana, Mr. Kingsley Agyemang stated that scholarships make it possible for African bright young minds to stay in school. The funds help cover tuition, books, school supplies, uniforms, and other school-related costs. By providing a scholarship to an African student, we offer a promise to the student that what they do in school has meaning, and they will have the reinforcement they need.



Scholarships allow for future educational planning, and continuous support. When a student receives a scholarship to attend school, he or she is less likely to drop out of school. When a student is offered consistent support, he or she has the confidence to thrive intellectually.



On the side-lines of the seminar, I had a word with Alfonso Gentil Alvarez-Ossorio, Director of Agencia Nacional Erasmus, who assured my team of their willingness to partner Ghana he added.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









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The Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has charged the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, the Lands Commission and other land management agencies as well as traditional leaders to see to the vigorous implementation of the new Land Act 2020 (Act 1063), to ensure sanity and security in the administration of land in Ghana.



Addressing participants at a national symposium organised by the Ministry in collaboration with other land use administrators in Accra on Wednesday, 23 June 2021 Dr Bawumia expressed delight that a comprehensive document guiding the use and administration of land had finally become a reality.



Todays National Symposium) marks a significant event in the history of land administration in Ghana. I say this because, for the first time, a Law on land administration has been passed to revise, harmonize, and consolidate laws on land to ensure sustainable land administration and management.



The importance of an effective and efficient Land Sector in Ghana cannot be overemphasized. Every economic activity undertaken by man has a relation to land and, therefore, land remains pivotal to National Development.



The National Lands Policy, 1999, the Coordinated Programme of Economic and Social Development Policies (2017-2024), and the Ghana Beyond Aid Strategy Document (2020) show that a functional land administration system is a catalyst for development.



In addition to harmonizing existing laws the Act, which received Presidential Assent on 23rd December, 2020, provides for the repeal of 13 land related Acts, which in turn result in the repeal of orders/rules and regulations that emanate from these repealed laws.



Further, Act 1036 significantly introduces new provisions relating to customary land management, compulsory acquisition and vesting of lands, electronic conveyancing, and spousal land rights.



It also provides for stringent of jail terms for various offences related to land that are expected to assist in the sanitizing the land sector.



Recalling his surprise visit to the Lands Commission in 2018, during which he observed several, major challenges in the documentation and administration of land documents, Vice President Bawumia said Government re-invigorated efforts to ensure the passage of a law which embraced technology to meet the challenges of our time.



It is worth noting that successive Governments have tried resolving the challenges in our Land Administration system, but these efforts have often come with various complications, and inefficient deployment of resources. Governments after governments, bank loans after bank loans, our fundamental problems in land administration persist, seemingly unsolvable, and citizens complaints get louder and louder.



To address these critical challenges in the land sector and to optimize the contribution of land to the socio-economic development of Ghana, the Government of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is committed to change through the application of technology. Ghana can only make the much-needed strides in development when technology becomes the driver for all sectors of the economy.



Dr Bawumia called on all stakeholders to actively play their parts in ensuring that the provisions of the Act become reality, and not just another piece of legislation that gathers dust.



Laws in themselves do not resolve problems. It is the application of the laws and their effective implementation that will result in desired changes in the land sector that all of us so much desire.



To this end, I will like to emphasize the need for all stakeholders to rally together to ensure that the provisions of the Land Act are implemented effectively, and resources are channeled towards it.



For instance, the Land Act provides that our eminent chiefs, clan and family heads, tendanas, who are the custodians of approximately 80% of the land area of Ghana, are required to establish Customary Land Secretariats to improve the management of their lands.



However, our Traditional Authorities will require technical and professional assistance from the Lands Commission, Office of the Administrator of Stool Lands and the Land Use and Spatial Planning Authority to establish the Secretariats. I trust the honourable Minister would give the urgent support and needed directives to the agencies to this end.



Also, the participation of the Private Sector is essential, especially in the injection of capital and technical know-how in targeting specific key improvements in the infrastructure and operations of the Lands Commission. This participation would go a long way in improving efficiency, he added.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









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A former illegal miner, popularly known as Strongman has said should a shoot to kill order be issued to the anti-illegal mining (galamsey) Military Taskforce, Operation Halt, the soldiers will rather record more casualties.



Some statesmen including immediate-past Ghanas High Commissioner to South Africa, H.E George Ayisi Boateng have advocated for anyone found on an illegal mining (galamsey) site to be shot dead by the Military Taskforce.



According to him, the war being waged by the government against illegal mining must be fought just as happens on the battlefield where casualties are recorded.



When the Taskforce meets anyone engaging in galamsey, even if its me, the person should be shot to death. All equipment including excavators must be destroyed.



Anyone who draws a sword dies by the sword. We are waging a battle against galamsey and from what I know theres no format when one is on the battlefield. Any means by which the battle against galamsey will be won must be applied because Ghanaians are very stubbornas for this fight against galamsey there should be no mercy for anyone found engaging in the illegal act. Even if its an insect that is found at a galamsey site it must be shot dead. Whoever is hired to work at a galamsey site must turn down the offer because he or she may pay dearly with his or her life, the former Diplomate said in an interview with Okay FM monitored by Kasapafmonline.com.



But in an interview on Kasapa FM Tuesday, June 22, 2021, Strongman while sharing his experience in illegal mining said such a move will be wrong and costly to the nation as most of the illegal miners are well-armed and may even subdue the military taskforce.



Any order to shoot to kill galamseyers (illegal miners) will not bode well for the country. The galamseyers you see at the various mining sites are not weaklings, they are very brave people. If indeed theres a shoot and kill order, I can bet you it will be very tough for the soldiers whenever they go for an operation, unless thousands of soldiers are deployed to that site for reinforcement to ensure they are victorious. Again, the galamseyers because they are indigenes know their way about at the mining sites more than the military taskforce and will outwit them.



Meanwhile, the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) has begun phase 4 of its Operation Halt 2 that focuses on removing all persons and logistics involved in mining from the Ankobra River, its tributaries and forest reserves.



Providing updates on the operation, Minister for Defense, Dominic Nitiwul said government has deployed 401 men of all ranks from the GAF and other sister security apparatus to rid the countrys forest reserves and water bodies of illegal mining activities.





Source: kasapafmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Assin Central MP Kennedy Ohene Agyapong has cut sod for the construction of an 80-bed Cardiothoracic Centre at the 37 Military Hospital in Accra. The Centre will have a Cardiothoracic Training Centre and Conference Room, VVIP Clinic, 3 operating theatres, an Intensive Care Unit, Executive Clinic, Dialysis Unit, X-Ray unit, Robotics Unit, Pharmacy and an Out-Patients Department among other essential units.



Currently, the 80-year-old hospital refers all cardiothoracic cases to the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra for treatment. The sod-cutting ceremony is a follow-up on a promise made by Mr Agyapong in 2020 when he presented some personal protective equipment to the facility in response to the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus in Ghana. The Chief of Defence Staff, Seth Amoama, in his opening remarks, said the MPs gesture was magnanimous, adding that the project was one of great significance to healthcare delivery.



Mr Agyapong, who is the Chairman of the Defence and Interior Committee of Parliament, expressed his contentment about the attention the project has received so far. He said upon thorough research, he realised the need for such specialised healthcare in the sub-region due to its rising population and the huge number of people who would require such specialised healthcare.



Mr Agyapong said he chose the 37 Military Hospital due to the facilitys effort to deliver quality healthcare and its service to the nation.









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 Ashanti Regional Police Command says it has no evidence of armed robbery against three siblings arrested for brandishing guns in a viral social media video.

Command officials say it is yet to receive complaints against the suspects for their involvement in any wrong doing.



But despite not finding anything incriminating on robbery, command officials find their conduct to brandish guns in that video offensive and incriminating.

Ashanti Regional Deputy Police Commander, DCOP David Agyemang Adjem told JoyNews, police did not find any evidence of robbery against the three.



We do not have any evidence against them as armed robbers, he said.

According to him, the three have been formally charged for creating fear and panic in that viral video though police are yet to receive any incriminating complaints against the three on robbery, their conduct sought to create fear and panic.



We are preferring other charges apart from armed robbery because we do not have any evidence against them as armed robbers.

If you remember, last Friday when we had the press conference, we indicated that we were expecting the public to assist us in that direction, he said.



And so now, we are preferring charges of creating fear and panic, he added.



Apostle Alfred Dakurah, Emmanuel Dakurah, also known as Obuor and Richard Suleman aged 43, 26 and 28 respectively are residents of Gausu suburb of Obuasi.



They were detained by police after they handed themselves to the Obuasi police after a video of them brandishing guns went viral on social media.



They are expected to appear before a Kumasi Circuit Court Wednesday on charges of creating fear and panic.



Ashanti Regional Deputy Police Commander, DCOP David Agyemang Adjem says police will push for a remand in court.



We are hoping that if go to court and get them remanded if that is possible, you realize that even what they did create a bit of panic and if you are a follower of social media and the buzz that came with it, its just right that we give it a bit of time .



Meanwhile, DCOPAdjem has been defending the decision of the police to detain the suspects despite the command not receiving complaints from the public against the suspects.



I dont think its an abuse of their human rights because the law allows us to do that even in cases where mere suspicion, we could hold people for 48-hours but in this case, a crime in our view was committed by their brandishing of these dangerous weapons on social media.



We are still appealing to the public if they have any information on them in respect of any criminality.

Source: adomonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The President of Final Global Government (FGM), Dr David Bindan says the ban on noisemaking in Accra during the Homowo festival yearly will be brought to an end spiritually in 2022.



He said from 2022, churches will not be affected spiritually by the ban.



"It is that the annual ban on drumming and noise making in the city of Accra which extends to affect activities in the Holy house of God, that is the Church of Jesus Christ, should be considered a thing of the past from today except it is reviewed to exclude effect in the house of God," he said.



He continued, "I am speaking not on behalf of any organisation or group but as the voice of the heavenly Kingdom of Jesus Christ to the nations and for that matter, Ghana and the city."



Dr Bindan indicated that in the spiritual realm, he has placed a stop to the ban on noisemaking for churches.



The ban on noisemaking is usually imposed by the Ga people during the Homowo festival annually.



Addressing a press conference in Accra on Tuesday, 22nd June, Dr. Bindan noted that the ban will no longer exist from 2022.



He said the imposition of the ban has affected churches spiritually.



"I declare this truth: the situation where men on the earth impose a ban on drumming and noise making and extend it to affect activities in the Holy House of God where Jesus Christ by His Spirit and the scriptures is the only person who has the authority to regulate what happens in God's house is a matter of a high level spiritual disorder.



"Infact, its a reproach to the Holy house of God in such a city and this is why I, as a Prince of the heavenly Kingdom of the Lord Jesus, have spiritually reversed this disorder and removed that reproach from the House of God and in the city. This has been done in the realm of the spirit and it shall be so in the physical.



"To be clear, the annual ban on drumming and noise making in the city of Accra which extends to affect activities in the House of God is hereby spiritually banned except it is reviewed to exclude effects in the Holy house of God and it shall not happen from 2022.



"Before I round up this short address, I would like to stress that the ultimate purpose for this address is to make known to the stakeholders what the current state of affairs is in the spirit so that they have about a whole year from now to appropriately advise themselves towards 2022."



He observed that the situation where men on earth imposed ban and extend it to the church was a matter of high disorder."



He noted the need for the ban to be reviewed to exclude churches.



Dr. Bindan seized the opportunity to pray for peace and blessings upon the city of Accra.





Source: modernghana.com









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The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, has cautioned the leadership of both majority and minority against springing surprises on him while presiding on the floor.



The caution follows some dramatic scenes on the floor Thursday evening during the presentation of the report of the Appointments Committee on some 12 deputy ministerial Nominees including a deputy Education Minister-designate Gifty Twum Ampofo.



The minority shot down an attempt by the majority to secure an expedition of approval since a member of the Appointments Committee Alhassan Suhuyini voted against her approval at the Committee level.



The Speaker ordered a headcount which was disrupted by the majority side.



Addressing the MPs on Friday, the speaker charged leaders on both sides to adequately brief him during pre-sitting meetings and not make moves on the floor that may undermine his authority.



He warned the MPs that Thursdays episode must not repeat itself.







Source: starrfmonline.com









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Legal luminary Tsatsu Tsikata has described as a serious allegation the calling of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo as the mother serpent of corruption. Former Special Prosecutor Martin Amidu described President Akufo-Addo as such after accusing him of interfering with his work.



It was contained in his resignation letter, complaining about the determined effort by the president to block him from investigating his Finance Minister and cousin Ken Ofori-Atta in the botched Agyapa deal.

The former Attorney General said Mr Akufo-Addo took office looking like an innocent flower of anti-corruption but being the mother serpent of corruption under it.



Speaking in an interview with Media Generals Alfred Ocansey, Mr Tsikata said the manner in which the appointment of Mr Amidu ended up tells a lot about the commitment shown in the fight against corruption under this government.

video:-

Source: 3news.com









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The Greater Accra Regional Minister, Mr Henry Quartey, says he will ensure that non-performing Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives in the region are sacked if they do not perform satisfactorily in their roles.



Addressing a meeting of assembly members and MMDCE's in Greater Accra on Monday, (June 21, 2021), Mr Quartery said the performance of MMDCEs in Accra would be assessed every six months after which the low-performing officials would be proposed for dismissal.



He insisted that the job of MMDCEs was not limited to the confines of their offices but on the ground, and that they must be ready to be on the field to work.



Mr. Quartey said he will plead with President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to sack any MMDCE who fails to perform creditably after the six months duration.



I dont know about other regions, but in Greater Accra, if you are confirmed as an MCE, I want to go and kneel down before Mr. President that six months into your administration and you are not performing, we will sack you.



As an MCE, we expect you to work hard. Dont sit in your office and do capacity building. Go to the field, that is where the work is. We will try and get an appraisal to the Local Government Minister, every six months, and if we think you are not doing well, we will sack you.









Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has promised that his government will establish One million Enterprises across the country as he commissions a 96,000 metric ton capacity processing plant of Premium Foods Limited. According to the president, the move forms part of his governments commitment to Ghanas industrialization; value addition and job creation drive.



He made the statement at Kwaso in the Ejisu Municipality where he commissioned a new factory of Premium Foods Limited under the 1 District 1 Factory initiative.

Meanwhile, President Akufo-Addo has paid a working visit to the Upper East Region. He first paid a courtesy call on the Paramount Chief of the Kusaug Traditional Area, Zugraan Naba Asigri Abugrago Azoka II in the Bawku Municipality, and inspected the ongoing Bolgatanga-Bawku-Pulmakom road.



The President would later meet with Party elders and patrons in the Region and address a durbar of Chiefs and people of the Binduri Traditional Area. President Akufo-Addo would also commission a newly constructed District Assembly complex at Zuarungu in the Bolgatanga East District.



The President is expected to leave the Region for the North East Region to continue his visit to the North.



















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 Minority in Parliament has appealed to the government to constitute the governing councils of public universities to facilitate smooth teaching and learning.



It said currently public universities across the country did not have properly constituted councils and that was affecting the governance of such apex institutions of learning.



According to the Minority, the current councils in place had completed their tenure of office and by law newly constituted councils should have been put in place in January 2021.



Do the needful



Speaking on the floor last Friday, the Deputy Ranking Member on the Education Committee of Parliament, Dr Clement Abass Apaak, appealed: Mr Speaker, this is June and this is yet to be done.



I, therefore, wish to appeal to the government to do the needful by ensuring that the universities have properly constituted councils so that teaching and learning and the governance of our apex institutions of learning can go on smoothly.



Non-functioning



The governing councils of the universities became defunct following the Presidential Transitions Act 2012, which states that all statutory boards and committees are dissolved before the coming into force of a new government.



Even though the government provided a five-month extension to allow for the proper reconstitution of the councils, it failed to meet its May 31 deadline, leaving the schools with no legitimate body to issue degrees, approve appointments and promotions, among others.



Speaking in an interview with the Daily Graphic outside the Chamber, Dr Apaak, who is also the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament for Builsa South, said the delayed reconstitution of the governing council lay with the Minister of Education, as he had to appoint a government representative onto the councils.



All the stakeholders of public universities are available but it is the government that is delaying in appointing a representative to those boards, he said.



Composition of councils



Giving insight into the composition of governing councils, Dr Apaak, for instance, said the governing body of the University of Ghana consisted of the Chancellor, the Chairperson, the Vice-Chancellor, four persons appointed by the President, taking into account the need for gender balance, expertise in finance and expertise in management.



It also includes one representative of the alumni of the university, two representatives of convocation, one of whom is from the non-teaching staff, one representative of the National Council for Tertiary Education nominated by the Council for Tertiary Education, a Vice-Chancellor of an African university appointed by the council, and an elected representative of the heads of second cycle institutions in Ghana.



The others are four other persons appointed by council from outside the university, two of whom are women, one representative of the University Teachers Association of Ghana, one representative of undergraduate students of the university elected by the Students Representative Council, one representative of postgraduate students of the university branch of the Graduate Students Association of Ghana and one representative of the Teachers and Education Workers Union.



The council shall ensure the realisation of the aims and objectives of the university, determine the strategic direction of the university, monitor, evaluate and implement the resultant policies and ensure the creation of an environment of equal opportunity for members of the university without regard to ethnicity, sex, race, religious belief or political affiliation.









Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Former Central Regional Minister, Kwamena Duncan has waded into discussions regarding a petition by Chief Justice, Anin-Yeboah to the Ghana Legal Council (GLC) summoning former Attorney General and Bolgatanga East MP, Dr. Dominic Ayine.



Dr. Dominic Ayine has been dragged by the CJ to the GLC for allegedly scandalizing the judiciary when delivering a speech on ''Presidential Election Petitions and their Impact on Africas Democracy'' at a forum organised by the Centre for Democratic Development (CDD).



His Lordship the Chief Justice therefore finds his alleged disparaging comments totally unacceptable and would like you to investigate the matter, the CJ's petition said.



Earlier this week, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) accused the Chief Justice of scheming to gag lawyers belonging to the party.



General Secretary of the opposition party, Johnson Asiedu Nketia, at a press conference described the CJ as supervising a judiciary tyranny.



He said the NDC backs Dr Ayine stressing his opinion about the Judiciary does not violate any rule or professional conduct rules for lawyersNeither Dr Ayine, nor we in the NDC can be compelled to increase our confidence in the independence of the Judiciary even when the Court has not given us any basis or reason to do so.



''We hereby state categorically that they will not succeed! We will not be intimidated. We, as a party, will continue to defend the cause of freedom and of right in this country, he insisted.



The party has asked the CJ to withdraw his petition.



But Hon. Kwamena Duncan thinks the NDC is crying more than the bereaved as he believes Dr. Ayine can defend himself.



To him, the responsibility doesn't lie on the NDC to fight for Dr. Ayine, and demanded that he (Ayine) boldly squares up to the GLC if he so believes he's done nothing wrong.



Speaking on Peace FM's ''Kokrokoo'', he asserted that ''if Dr. Ayine feels this is a principle he stands by, this is an opinion he will forever defend and protect, then what is your fear in getting the Disciplinary Committee to withdraw the petition by the CJ? Appear before the Disciplinary Committee, go and further enunciate on your opinion''.



He insisted he should ''go and tell the Disciplinary Committee that I stand by my words today and tomorrow, then the Disciplinary Committee can take it from there''.







Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Ghanaian actress, television presenter and video vixen, Efia Odo has expressed her disappointment at the way leadership breaks rules they set for the citizenry to follow as she points out that nobody is above the law.



Efia Odos distaste over the attitude of Ghanaian leaders comes after a large number of students gathered and paraded on the streets to welcome H.E. President Akufo Addo when he visited the Upper West Region.



Photos shared on the official Facebook page of the president give an account of SHS students leaving their classrooms to welcome Akufo-Addo. They are seen waving the Ghana flag cheerfully as the presidents convoy drove through the crowd. Some were in their masks while others were not.



The alleged slay queen took to her Twitter page vent her fury on Ghanaian politicians including President Akufo Addo describing the leadership as hypocrites as they preach one thing and do the other.



I guess the president is above the law. The hypocrisy stares us blatantly in our faces every day. We cant demonstrate but yet this can happen? #FixTheCountry



Law makers break the law yet they expect citizens to obey the law. The problem starts with our leaders not the citizens.







Source: Eugene Osafo-Nkansah/Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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M-I Foundation awards $11,000 in scholarships

MONMOUTH/INDEPENDENCE  Scholarships totaling $11,000 were awarded to eight graduating seniors from Central High School by the Monmouth/Independence Community Foundation (MICF) earlier this month.

Recipients of the awards demonstrated high academic achievement and a strong record of service to the community - engagement that remained consistent even during the pandemic.

The five students to receive the MICF scholarships were Jillian Layton, Naeco Le, Amylisha Mykyta, Johnny Li and Natalie Wells.

Isabel Houser received the Wells Family Scholarship; Jade Gil received the Independence Historic Preservation Corporation Scholarship; and Moana Andrew received the Trammart News Verna Duncan Memorial Scholarship.

The MICF is a nonprofit corporation established in 2000 to benefit the greater Monmouth-Independence area. In addition to its own programs in support of scholarships and classroom enrichment in 13J District Schools, it assists community partners in the investment management of their charitable funds, including the American Legion, Independence Heritage Museum, Monmouth Bi-Centennial, Independence Public Library, Polk County Historical Society, Independence Police Benevolence, Friends of Monmouth Library, Panther Club, M-I Rotary and The Gate.

Sheridan Alumni honor Dallas resident Jim Baltimore

Dr. Jim Baltimore is the 2021 Sheridan High School Alumni Scholarships Educator Hero, announced at the June 7 virtual Senior Awards event.

The Sheridan High alumni awarded $3,000 scholarships to 2021 class valedictorian RaeAnn Dearth and salutatorian Derek Locke in honor of Baltimore who taught vocational agriculture and shop and was advisor for the FFA in Sheridan from 1961 to 1970.

Jim and his wife Cathy, of Dallas, maintain ties with former students and serve as community volunteers in Polk County in their retirement. After teaching in Sheridan, Baltimore taught at Sprague High School and was an administrator for vocational education in SalemKeizer Schools. He retired in 1998.

Sheridan alumni Larry and Julie (Ellis) Eisele, of Keizer, nominated Baltimore for this years honor, the second annual Educator Hero, noting his 37-year career and lifelong dedication to Oregon students and their families.

Dallas resident Ed Brandt chairs the Sheridan High Alumni Scholarship (SHAS). The SHAS has donors from across the USA and advisors who live in Western Oregon and Washington, including Sheridan alumna former Oregon Governor Barbara (Hughey) Roberts.
PCSO reveals results of safety belt campaign

POLK COUNTY  The Polk County Sheriffs Office used federally funded overtime to educate the public about safety belts and child seat laws May 24 through June 6.

Four deputies participated in extra patrols throughout the county for this event. Here are their results:

13 contacts were made for speeding violations.

Three contacts for driving while suspended.

One contact for ignition interlock devices.

Two contacts for distracted driving.

Nine contacts for miscellaneous traffic violations.

The Polk County Sheriffs Office is committed to ensuring the safety of all individuals who live in and travel through Polk County, the PCSO said in a press release. One of the most important safety measures individuals can take is buckling up.

The enhanced enforcement is funded through USDOTs National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

PCSO joins safe driving enforcement campaign

POLK COUNTY  During June and July, the Polk County Sheriffs Office is partnering with the U.S. Department of Transportations National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for an enforcement campaign to help keep impaired drivers off the road.

The campaign runs from June 20 to July 5 with additional attention on the July 4 holiday weekend.

This enhanced enforcement is made possible through grant funding of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and administered by Oregon Impact.

The goal of this campaign is to stop people from going through the anguish of living through the death of a family member, as the result of the preventable decision to drive impaired.

The Polk County Sheriffs Office prides itself on having a proactive team who go out each shift to keep dangerous drivers off the road and hold them accountable for their actions the PCSO wrote on its Facebook page. With this additional grant funding, we hope to make the streets, roads and highways a safer place in this county so you may enjoy further Fourth of July holidays with your family.
Information for the report comes from law enforcement agencies. Not all calls for service are included. The status of arrests reported may change after further investigation. Individuals arrested or suspected of crimes are considered innocent until proven guilty.

Polk County Sheriffs Office

Monday, June 13

At 4:58 a.m., a report of a subject possibly breaking into a vehicle in the 200 block of Southeast Southeast Hawthorne Avenue turned out to the owner of the vehicle which had broken down.

At 12:20 p.m., a motorist on Maxfield Creek Road near Dunn Forrest Road swerved to miss another motorist that had drifted into his lane and ended up steering off the road, through a fence and into a field.

At 1:52 p.m. a large tree fell across the front end a Ford Ranger and ripped the front bumper off and shattered the windshield on Highway 22 at Milepost 9. About 20 people exited their vehicles and two had large chainsaws and had the tree removed within minutes. The driver said the tree came down in front of him and he swerved to miss it but couldnt get far enough over to avoid a collision.

At 7:31 p.m., a motorist was cited for speeding 76 mph in a 55-mph zone on Red Prairie Road near Highway 22 and received a verbal warning for having a license that expired last month.

Monday, June 14

At 12:12 a.m., a deputy came across a vehicle pulled over on Highway 18 at Milepost 16. The driver, who was asleep in his vehicle with his dog, told the deputy everything was fine and he just needed some sleep.

At 4:55 a.m., a vehicle was pulled over for no taillights on Highway 22 near Sawtell Road. The driver was cited for Driving While Suspended, Driving Uninsured and Failure to install an Ignition Interlock Device.

At 4:54 a.m., deputies located an unoccupied but warm vehicle in Buell Park at 6060 Mill Creek Road. After searching the trails, they located the driver and eventually cited and released him for Giving False Information, Trespass II and for four outstanding warrants.

At 1:50 p.m., a report of a burglary that occurred around 4:45 a.m. at Rickreall Farm Supply, located at 130 Main St., Rickreall. Surveillance cameras captured possible suspect vehicles of a black Dodge Dakota with blue tarps in the back and a large White Chip truck with the phrase Ask the tree care experts written on the side.

Tuesday, June 15

At 5:46 a.m., a request for an area check in the 5800 block of Main Street of a suspicious person turned up several vehicles broken into at a nearby residence. The deputy woke up the resident and told him to inventory his vehicles for missing items.

At 9:45 a.m., a juvenile German shepherd running in and out of the road in the 6500 block of Rickreall Road was taken to the Willamette Humane Society.

At 9:13 a.m., a subject reported she was raped multiple times between May 18-20 by a resident in the 3100 block of Salem Dallas Highway. She did not want the deputy to investigate further at this point.

At 2:02 p.m., a report of an abandoned vehicle at McCaleb and Alsip roads.

At 2:30 p.m., a report of an abandoned boat in the 3200 block of Ballard Road.

At 3:45 p.m., a deputy came across an abandoned vehicle out of gas at Clow Corner Road and South Pacific Highway. As the deputy was applying an orange tow sticker, the unidentified owner arrived with a portable gas can to put gas in the disabled vehicle. The deputy blocked traffic so the man could safely put gas in his vehicle. The owner then drove the vehicle away.

At 8:30 p.m., a motorist was cited for speeding 87 mph in a 55 mph zone on Highway 22 near Greenwood Road South.

Wednesday, June 16

At 12:04 a.m., a Yamhill County Sheriff Department sergeant stopped a vehicle after getting an attempt to locate and pacing it at 67/55 on Highway 18 at Milepost 27. A PCSO deputy arrived to assist and learned the driver had a statewide felony warrant for parole violation out of the Oregon State Parole Board where the original charge was Robbery II. Because the YCSO jail was at capacity, the driver was arrested and lodged at the PCSO jail.

At 7:14 a.m., a motorist in a stolen vehicle was apprehended at Mule Deer Court Northwest, after eluding several law enforcement agencies across several fields, vineyards and country roads. The driver was arrested for Possession of a stolen vehicle, Unauthorized Entry of a Motor Vehicle, Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle, attempt to elude, Reckless Driving, Reckless Endangering, and Driving Under the influence of an Intoxicant. He also had a cite and release warrant out of Linn County for Failure To Appear on an original Possession of a Controlled Substance - Heroin charge.

At 11:59 a.m., a PCSO deputy provided cover for YCSO on a male shooting a pistol inside a residence in the 300 block of North Trade Street in Amity. YCSO ended up taking the subject into custody without incident.

At 12:13 p.m., the chairman for the Oak Grove Church, in the 2700 block of Oak Grove Road, reported the fence located at the north end of the property had been damaged. Deputies determined it was likely damaged from the pursuit of the stolen vehicle driving through fields earlier in the day.

At 3:51 p.m., a disabled motorist on Highway 22 at Milepost 5 was unsure how to change her vehicles tire and was subsequently stranded. A deputy stopped and changed her tire for her so she could travel to Dallas to have her bad tire replaced.

At 10:03 p.m., a motorist was cited for speeding 78 mph in a 55-mph zone on Highway 99 at Milepost 52.

Thursday, June 17

At 3:02 a.m., a motorist driving a U-Haul on Salem Dallas Highway near Greenwood Road was pulled over for drifting over the white fog line. The driver was then cited for Driving While Suspended.

At 5:15 a.m., deputies assisted in investigating a report of a burglary in progress at Old Willamina High School at Southeast Washington and Baker streets in Willamina. Deputies observed where entrance was made as a subject had been seen on camera. The building was searched but no suspect was found.

At 10:49 a.m., a resident in the 9600 block of Buena Vista Road reported hearing at 4:15 a.m. someone attempting to steal her red Polaris Ranger side by side. She said she yelled from her bedroom for the suspect to leave which they did. She had the Polaris secured with a chain to her raised flower box.

At 11:35 a.m., a resident in the 100 block of Fir Villa Road reported a motorcycle in their backyard fully engulfed in flames with the fire spreading. By the time the deputy arrived, the fire was extinguished.

At 12:30 p.m., a report of a two-vehicle, non-injury accident at Clow Corner and Riddell roads.

At 12:40 p.m., a report of kids selling cookies and lemonade at Southeast Lyle and Washington streets. The deputy reported the cookies were good!

At 8:20 p.m., a motorist at Lockheart Drive and Wallace Road was cited for speeding 56 mph in a 40-mph zone, driving while suspended and driving uninsured.

At 8:07 p.m., a motorist was cited for speeding 81 mph in a 55-mph zone on Highway 99 at milepost 57.

At 8:41 p.m., two subjects on an inflatable flamingo near the Independence Boat ramp told a deputy they planned on floating to Wallace Marine Park. The deputy warned they wouldnt make it by dark. The deputy checked back later and found the wind had pushed them back upriver into a slough. The deputy provided a courtesy transport to the park. However, the male subject had a Salem muni warrant for traffic offenses. He was cited and released on the warrant.

At 8:55 p.m., a motorist was cited for speeding 78 mph in a 55-mph zone on Highway 99 at Milepost 56.

At 9:40 p.m., two subjects were given trespassing warnings for unauthorized riding four-wheelers on private property at Hoffman Road and Pacific Highway.

At 10:25 p.m., a motorist was cited for passing several vehicles in a no passing zone on Highway 22 near Stone Road. The driver was also warned for using prohibited blue headlights and for using studded tires out of season.

Friday, June 18

At 1:19 a.m., deputies responded to a single vehicle, rollover accident at East Ellendale Road and Orchard View Lane, damaging a nearby residents mailbox. The single occupant was eventually arrested for Driving Under the Influence of an Intoxicant  alcohol. Her boyfriend had driven to the scene, but he, too, was intoxicated, and was also arrested for DUII. The drivers daughter was later stopped for suspicion of DUII after making an illegal U-turn searching for the crash scene. She was looking for two dogs in the vehicle at the time of the crash. She was warned for the violation. One dog was found and the other was still missing.

At 2:22 a.m., a motorist was stopped for speeding and Operation without Required Lighting Equipment on Highway 22 at milepost 16. The driver was cited for Driving While Suspended and received warnings for the other violations.

At 4:10 a.m., a motorist was cited for speeding 81 mph in a 55-mph zone on Highway 22 at Milepost 15.

At 8:07 a.m., a report of a shack broken into in the 3500 block of Mill Creek Road. Hard hats and battery pack were reported taken.

At 2:10 p.m., a deputy provided traffic control after a trailer fire obscured the road on Highway 99 at Milepost 56.

At 4:16 p.m., a deputy responded to a two-vehicle accident on East Ellendale Avenue at Oak Villa Road which damaged a nearby residents mailbox. One of the drivers was cited for following too closely.

At 4:33 p.m., two subjects on paddleboards on the Willamette River near River Marker 22. Neither were wearing lifejackets. The father was cited for insufficient number of personal floatation devices. They were loaned two life jackets and told to return them to the PCSO.

At 5:53 p.m., a report of driver of a vehicle on Bethel Road near Pacific Highway had a seizure and the passenger grabbed the steering wheel and put them in a ditch to stop the vehicle. The driver was transported by medics.

At 6:41 p.m., a report of a two-vehicle accident in the 15300 block of Oak Dale Road. The driver, who admitted to texting and driving causing her to rear end the other, was cited for Careless Driving.

At 11:04 p.m., a motorist distracted by lighting a cigarette swerved and lost control of his vehicle, ultimately rolling and coming to a rest upright in the WB lane of the 18600 block of Falls City Road. The driver had a head injury and was bleeding from his ears. He was transported to SHED by Dallas Medics. The driver was cited for driving while suspended for driving with no insurance.

Saturday, June 19

At 5:38 p.m., a father fell off a raft, with his autistic daughter still inside, on the Willamette River at River Marker 77. River patrol located the pair 1/4 mile downstream from the park. The father advised he got caught in the current and was pulling the raft back up to the park. The daughter was scared out of the boat, so they backed off and remained in the area until the two were safely ashore.

At 10:15 p.m., a motorist hit a deer on Highway 99 at Milepost 23. The deer was injured when the deputy found it, but it climbed up to vineyard property where he could not lawfully dispatch it.

Sunday, June 20

At 2:20 a.m., a motorist was stopped on Greenwood Road near Highway 22 for weaving and for equipment violation. The driver appeared impaired and performed poorly on a field sobriety test. He was arrested and cited for Driving Under the Influence of an Intoxicant and refusal to take a breath test.

At 3:41 p.m., a traffic violation as written by the deputy: I stopped a vehicle for illegal u-turn, which turned into going the wrong way up Jefferson Street. As I was walking up, female driver was super apologetic, advising she was trying to do a loopdy loop, as the front passenger, unbenounced to me, was the greatest dad in the world, which I knew this because he was wearing a huge pin on button that said it. Greatest dad was actually blindfolded during the traffic violations, as the not greatest mom in the world was trying to throw him off her secret plan to surprise him by driving somewhere. The not greatest mom in the world received a warning for her violations and the greatest dad in the world, which was super cool to meet the man, could not help but laugh at his wife.

At 9:37 p.m., a motorist was pulled over for speeding on Salem Dallas Highway near Doaks Ferry Road. The driver was cited for Driving While Suspended and Failure to Carry Insurance and received a warning for speeding.

Independence Police Department

Arrests for June 9-12

Nicholas Albert Acordi IV, 32, of Independence, was arrested on an outstanding warrant.

Cassandra Anita Medina Hernandez, 40, of Lebanon, was arrested on an outstanding warrant.

Eduardo Santiago Perez, 31, of Monmouth, was arrested on an outstanding warrant.

Sterling Lee Longfox, 36, of Siletz, Oregon, was arrested on an outstanding warrant.

Douglas Alan Warden, 57, of Monmouth, was arrested on an outstanding warrant.

Melvin Bryce Lytle, 31, a transient, was arrested on an outstanding warrant.

Destanie Lynne Gonzales, 35, of Independence, was arrested on an outstanding warrant.

Kyle Jefferey Casey, 25, a transient, was arrested for harassment.

Brenda Diaz Diaz, 30, of Keizer, was arrested for probation violation.

David Henry Overholser, 77, of Independence, was arrested on an outstanding warrant.
DALLAS  For a lawyer, the role of a district attorney doesnt seem like much of a life  at least not according to one long-standing analysis of the profession. Often, theres no public recognition unless controversy creates the wrong kind.

And even when a district attorney (DA) has a positive profile, theres a recurring popularity contest at the ballot box to clinch the number of votes needed to stay in office.

However, perhaps the most frustrating factor comes from frequently having to limit prosecution to cases in which the evidence is solid and clear.

An act may be highly immoral or wrong, may in fact be a grievous sin, and yet not be a crime, wrote a famous former DA, Arthur Train, nearly a century ago.

In a series of articles that appeared in 1922 in the Sunday Oregonian, Train lamented that people are unaware, or at any rate, unmindful of the many duties a DA is required to juggle so that justice can be served. Train, who published his observations under the title The Public Prosecutor, eventually became the author of fictional legal thrillers.

Fortunately, Polk Countys DA, Aaron Felton, doesnt see the job the same way, though some of the challenges cited by Train nearly a hundred years ago seem much the same today.

Being a prosecutor was, and continues to be, the most professionally satisfying time of my career, Felton said.

The role is full of demands, subject to political pressure and requires exhaustive attention to detail  but it provides very meaningful work, and that has led to great job satisfaction, Felton said.

Felton, who has served as Polk County DA since 2013, was deputy district attorney in Polk County for six years and an assistant city attorney in Salem before becoming Polk Countys DA. Hes also a former chair of the Oregon Board of Parole and Post-Prison Supervision.

This past year has been memorable for him in very different ways. Hes had to contend with large-scale disruptions in court processes due to the coronavirus measures; he was featured in a highly publicized documentary, called The DAs Dilemma; hes been on the receiving end of periodic grilling by the Polk County Board of Commissioners as a result of actions taken for COVID-19.

As a result of pandemic measures, there were fewer prosecutions in Polk County, keeping a lower population in the jail. On more than one occasion, the county commissioners expressed frustration, dubbing it a cite and release approach.

This change took a toll on law enforcement, making acts like stealing far less consequential, explained County Commissioner Lyle Mordhorst. Arrests largely were limited to those who committed physical assaults, or person-to-person crimes, he explained. However, Mordhorst added that the DA has been doing what he can in difficult times.

Meanwhile, Felton was highlighted in a documentary that explored the scarcity of options in the justice system for meeting the needs of some of those with mental health challenges. The film  which was produced by Independent Lens, the Public Broadcasting Service, in association with the Salem Reporter  focuses on the 2018 death of Alexandria Tereshka, a Dallas woman who died of suicide after lying in a roadway while clutching a sheaf of her own court records, and who was reported to have grappled with mental health issues all of her adult life.

A few months before the documentary first aired, Measure 110, the Drug Treatment and Recovery Act, was approved by voters. It decriminalizes some drug possession and is expected to fund the establishment of addiction recovery facilities across the state. The heightened visibility for Felton isnt unprecedented. During his time as former chair of the Oregon Board of Parole and Post-Prison Supervision, Felton oversaw the parole hearings of one of Oregons most notorious criminals, Elizabeth Diane Downs, who attempted to murder her three children, causing the death of one and severely injuring the other two. Her case became the basis for the book Small Sacrifices by crime writer Ann Rule, who detailed the homicide and its aftermath.

One of Feltons many mentors was former Polk County DA John Fisher, who was known as an extremely skilled trial attorney before being elected to that office. Fisher, who retired in 2008, developed a reputation for forging plea bargains during his tenure, which led to stinging criticism from some of those in county law enforcement. However, his compassion won him wide public admiration. Felton is known for the same empathic approach.

When Felton first sought the district attorneys office more than a decade ago, his campaign included a plan to provide crime-preventing outreach for at-risk youth. He was defeated at the time, but now that view seems foresighted  and one likely reason for his inclusion in the recent documentary.

Growing up in a family that had two generations of funeral directors, it hit me that this was a kind of ministry, Felton said.

He remembers seeing his grandfather being able to comfort people at their most grief-stricken and do so in a truly caring way. He provided a great role model, Felton said.

Now, as the coronavirus restrictions ease, there is an emerging new normal at the Polk County courthouse: Some measures that were put into place will remain, such as the technology thats made court proceedings easier to attend for participants. Hearings and pre-trial conferences have been held virtually, Felton explained.

Victims, witnesses, and accused individuals have been able to be part of the process remotely, by telephone or video-conference calls, he noted. Felton sees this as an improvement, especially for those with childcare challenges or transportation problems.

Those are critical changes, and I believe they make it more equitable, Felton said.

And, where once lawyers pulled carrying cases with wheels and loaded documents into court, almost everything is now stored digitally. From the first filing to the final decision, the process is mostly paperless, he said.

The advances have meant that he can sit at his desk and listen to courts in session. The system isnt just more convenient, it is cost saving, he said.

In fact, the DAs office has been fully digitized  a transition that substantially cut expenditures. However, with growth, the cost of licenses for software and maintenance agreements for the systems has risen, too, Felton acknowledged. But the digital platforms increase productivity, a benefit that can be hard to precisely quantify, he observed.

Felton looks back on his early years as a teaching process that prepared him for the job he now occupies. As a young prosecuting attorney, Felton tried cases in Polk County that didnt simply provide him with essential investigative experience, but also imparted a deeply personal view of the impact on victims of crime, including family members affected by the event.

The family of a man who was killed on the way home from work is one such example. He died in a hit-and-run collision. As a result of social media, where the fatality was discussed in some detail, the other driver eventually was caught. But it was the behavior of the victims family that has stuck with him all these years, Felton said.

They never wavered in their focus on preparations for the trial, a show of strength that was unforgettable, Felton recalled. They were present at every pre-trial meeting and unfailingly respectful, said Felton, who is the father of two grown sons and a grandfather of five.

The memory of the dedication by law enforcement in solving the case remains vivid, as well, he said. When the accused man was sentenced to years in prison for the death, Felton observed that, for him, it was a time in which he felt a sense of fulfillment. The family got to witness the system impose accountability  a family still grieving but able to participate in the process with incredible dignity, he said.

He also recalls cases that involved interaction with children, where he tried to be gentle and supportive while eliciting information.

One little girl I remember, she gave me a drawing shed made for me, he said. I still have it.

Felton has had his share of disappointments in office  one of them, very recently. An innovative program, known as mental health court, became a victim of COVID. The remote offering didnt work nearly as well for it, and the number of committed participants plummeted.

Currently, a new public health program is being set up in Polk County for those identified as having mental health needs, but participation is expected to be voluntary. In contrast, mental health court was seen as a diversion program, a specialty court that was part of the countys criminal justice system.

I am optimistic that the issue will be revisited again in the not-too-distant future, as the program had a very positive impact on the participants and the public safety system, he said.

Editors Note: This is the first in a planned series on individuals at the center of Polk Countys Criminal Justice and Court System.
Itemizer-Observer

DALLAS  When Jim Turner and his family purchased BeckenRidge Vineyard last year, he had visions of days like Sunday, without a cloud in the sky, the sun reflecting off acres of chrome.

After a year under public gathering restrictions due to the pandemic, Turner was finally able to share his vision of classic cars combined with classic rock at his first ever Rods and Rock n Roll event on Fathers Day.

Car enthusiasts smiles were beaming as brightly as the polished paint of their rides. Lee and Salley Hart drove their red, 1930 Studebaker out from Salem.

We take it out as much as we can. We take it to a show almost every weekend. We put 1,200 miles or more on it since we bought it a year ago., Lee said. For a while, it looked like we werent going to have a car show this year.

He said the Rods and Rock n Roll show could have done with a few more cars, being only 34 showed up to BeckenRidges parking lot.

This is their first try. Theyve done very well, he added.

Impressed by all the other cars in the show, Lee said he had the oldest one registered, then boasted it was probably the only one left in the world, ticking off its unique features.

Its a rumble seat roadster, a Commander 8 Regal Roadster. Studebaker made some Presidents, theyre still around, but no Commanders. At least none I could find on the internet, Lee said. They originally built them for racing. I actually have several pictures of ladies, of all things, racing these things. All the way up to 77 mph. Weve had so much fun with it.

The participants didnt have to own the shiniest classic car to join in on the fun. Kevin Flowers drove his 1937 Chevy Pickup from home, right down the road from the vineyard. What looks like a rig in dire need of a paint job is exactly how Flowers wants it, faded patina and all. And having a place to take it finally is a bonus.

Its fun. Its fun to get everybody together, Flowers said, adding he was excited to finally go somewhere without face masks. Were just having a good time all the way around.

Get hot rodders together, and they inevitably admire each others rides, swapping tales of hitting the highway.

After Marty Parker, of Dallas, pulled his head back from the shadows admiring the engine of a 1930s Chevy Suburban, he talked about his own 34 Chevy Roadster.

Theres only two street rods here. Mine and a 28 down there, everything else going to newer stuff, Parker said. Ive got a couple of them I like to drive every day. Run into town and get stuff, if it aint raining.

He then interrupted his own tale to pull in a nearby Don Flammang of the Willamette Valley Street Racers car club, asking him what he thought of the show.

Fantastic. This cowboy thinks its just wonderful to get this world back to normal, Flammang said, before going off on a tangent about a recent driving experience in his classic car, which he assumed everyone knew which one his was speaking. I tell you what, Im driving it down there all of sudden I get there, I hear a metallic sound like flex plate still dragging on starter gear, a looseness. Get a howl when I put my foot into it, that sniper fuel injection is needing a tuning. So, its the most Ive driven it since starting it up. The more you drive it, the better sniper gets, so I would have loved to drove it, but the metallic sound bothered the (snot) out of me.

The two are joined by another and their stories carried on.

And thats the goal Turner had, bringing together a classic car community at the end of a road to swap tales and admire the others rides. Chatting with them, he takes the blame for the low turnout.

Im happy with the number of cars registered, he said. But there could have been a better turnout of people looking at them. Its my fault. I need to promote it better next time.

Having already dealt with one virus through the community, word of mouth about Turners event is sure to be a more welcome spread next time.
As the temperatures get hotter and the weather gets stickier, many residents are bound to see mosquitos begin to buzz around the CSRA.

Mosquitoes in South Carolina may carry West Nile virus, so officials say it's important to control the mosquito population in the community, monitor for diseases carried by mosquitoes and for residents to protect themselves from mosquito bites.

Sarah Herring, solid waste administrator with the City of Aiken, said the city will send someone out to check the property if residents contact them with a complaint. Herring emphasized eliminating mosquito habitats as "getting rid of that gets rid of a lot of the problem."

"If we have a big problem in an area, thats when well go ahead and spray and get (the mosquitoes) knocked down," Herring said. "Again, the first and best line of defense is getting rid of their habitats; that tends to be the main focus of mosquito control."

Herring also said the city will start doing some mosquito trapping over the next few weeks in order to have them tested and see what kind of species are around this year.

Residents who wish to file a mosquito complaint with the City of Aiken can visit the city's website, scroll down to the City of Aiken Residents tab and click Mosquito Control, Management & Spraying.

While the insects are an annoyance to adults, they can also be a problem with younger children.

Trey Powell, a Mosquito Joe franchise owner based in Augusta, said kids tend to be an easy target because "they tend to be a little bit oblivious to the fact that theyre getting bit by mosquitoes."

As such, Powell said parents should make sure to watch their children while they're playing and pay attention if the child starts scratching because they could be getting bitten.

"Thats the worst thing in the world to have a child that just has 20 bites on them, and theyre just scratching all night and screaming and crying," Powell said.

When a child gets bitten, there are a few different recommended strategies. Powell said ice can be applied immediately to try and reduce the swelling. To help combat itching, calamine lotion or hydrocortisone cream can be used.

It is important, Powell said, to discourage scratching, as tempting as it may be for children.

"Thats probably the hardest thing in the world," Powell said. "If it itches, they want to scratch it. It feels good to scratch it, at least at first. Then, it feels worse. You have to convince them that thats going to make it worse, which it does."

However, it is better for all parties to prevent being bitten than to treat bites.

Most of the mosquitoes in the CSRA are extremely lazy, Powell said, and don't generally travel more than 200 feet in their lifetimes.

One of the biggest keys to stopping mosquitoes, Powell said, is for residents to keep tabs on standing water sources near them. After a mosquito eats its "blood meal," it goes to lay eggs and needs standing water to do so.

Powell gave some examples of these water sources, including buckets, barrels, wheelbarrows, gutters, drains, downspouts, catch basins or the bottom of a flower pot.

"(Mosquitoes) really dont need a lot of water," Powell said. "You can breed 100 mosquitos out of a bottle cap. It doesnt take a lot of water, but it needs to be dirty water."

Residents should look for these sources of water and deal with them accordingly, Powell said. He recommended turning over containers on a weekly basis to ensure that there is no standing water in them.

Powell also recommended the tried-and-true method of using repellent sprays to keep mosquitos at bay. A few other tips he gave were to wear darker clothing as lighter clothing is more attractive to mosquitos and to make sure screens are in your windows and doors if you plan to have them open during the summer.

The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control is recognizing National Mosquito Control Awareness Week this week and shared some tips to keep mosquitos away. Called the three "Ds," the tips are to drain (empty out water containers at least once a week), dress (wear long sleeves, long pants and light-colored, loose-fitting clothing) and defend (use mosquito repellants).

"As warm weather arrives and people encounter more mosquitoes, protecting yourself from bites becomes more important, said Dr. Chris Evans, state public health entomologist with DHEC's Bureau of Environmental Health Services. DHECs surveillance program helps identify cases of West Nile virus and other mosquito-borne diseases in our state. Most mosquitoes are just a nuisance; however, we detect West Nile virus in mosquitoes in our state every year.
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Reporter

Jay has been in the communication industry for more than 20 years, having spent half of his career in the Myrtle Beach area. He can be reached at (843) 834-0419. Follow him on Twitter at @JayRod_MB.
IRMO  Christina Melton, the outgoing Lexington-Richland Five superintendent, will receive a lump sum of $226,368 as part of a settlement agreement to resign effective June 30 and will relinquish the S.C. Superintendent of the Year award she received last month.

School board members hoped to avoid any mudslinging by including a $20,000 penalty for anybody who makes "negative or disparaging statements or remarks" in the settlement agreement released June 22.

After nearly two hours behind closed doors at a special meeting June 22, Lexington-Richland Five trustees unanimously approved Akil Ross, a former Chapin High School principal named Americas best in 2018 by the National Association of Secondary School Principals, as Meltons successor.

Ross, who left to start Irmo-based educational consulting firm HeartEd shortly after becoming the district's director of secondary education in 2018, told reporters he would not comment on his role until he starts on July 1. Ross was credited with raising Chapin High's graduation rate from 82 percent to 96 percent during his tenure.

A salary for Ross was not released. Melton earns $175,000 a year.

Trustees left the meeting without commenting to reporters but issued a statement later.

"District Five is extremely fortunate to have Dr. Ross lead our district. He is a well-respected educational leader throughout the district, state and country," board chairwoman Jan Hammond said. "The entire board is looking forward to working with Dr. Ross to continue our district's tradition of excellence."

The statement did not mention Melton, who has led the 17,500-student district since 2017, nor the settlement.

After announcing unexpectedly on June 14 plans to step down, Melton must now return her S.C. Association of School Administrators' 2022 Superintendent of the Year honor, Executive Director Beth Phibbs confirmed to The Post and Courier.

Phibbs said the title can only be held by superintendents who are "actively on the job," according to American Association of School Administrators eligibility guidelines.

Phibbs said a successor will be named as South Carolina's top superintendent on July 1.

The reasons for Melton's resignation remain unclear.

Melton has not said why she is leaving, and Lexington-Richland Five school board leaders have not shared publicly any differences with the superintendent that would lead to her departure.

Some trustees and parents disagreed with the safety precautions the district took during the COVID-19 pandemic, including limiting in-person classes and requiring masks.

Trustee Ed White resigned mid-meeting on June 14 after a closed session where he said he refused to sign a confidentiality agreement over Melton's departure. He said Melton was pushed out by a small group of trustees. Melton announced her resignation about 20 minutes after White left.

Melton was absent from the June 22 special board meeting, but about two dozen people rallied outside district headquarters in support of the superintendent before the meeting.

"Christina Melton has been the best superintendent we've ever had. I've been in this district since first grade, and I've seen a bunch of them," said Laney Minter, who graduated June 18 from Spring Hill High School.

Like many others in attendance, Minter was wearing a T-shirt adorned with a sunflower  Melton's favorite. Others held signs reading "Know Thy Impact," which Melton adopted as her motto.

"Having worked for her and having worked for the previous superintendents, she is bar none like nobody else," said Beth Gossett, who worked in the district for 12 years. "Some of our previous superintendents probably were not as forward thinking as Dr. Melton is, so what I'm afraid of is we're not going to get someone who is as forward thinking. She's been pushing us for the last four years and our district is outperforming other districts."

When she won the state superintendent award in May, Melton said she was "humbled every day by the responsibility of leading my school district.

This has been a challenging year for all superintendents, but I do believe we have all done our best to put our students, staff and families first in the decisions we have made. My continued mission will be to make a positive impact in the lives of children and teachers in our community.
Georgetown, SC (29440)

Today

Partly cloudy skies this evening will become overcast overnight. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 68F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies this evening will become overcast overnight. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 68F. Winds light and variable.
With less than half the state's population starting the vaccination process, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control is warning a variant of the virus that originated in India poses a renewed threat to people who haven't gotten a shot.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention named the Delta mutation a "variant of concern" on June 14.

The CDC estimates 20 percent of cases belong to the variant, up from a recent estimate of 10 percent.

"It's about doubled in two weeks time," said Dr. Jonathan Knoche, a DHEC physician.

He noted that while DHEC has only confirmed four cases of the variant in South Carolina, sampling for the mutation is done randomly and the number of cases attributable to the variant is likely much higher.

Fortunately, the vaccines are effective against the mutation, according to DHEC, but only once both doses of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine are taken.

After just the first dose, the two-dose vaccines are only 33 percent effective against the variant. After the second dose, they are 88 percent effective.

There is less information about how effective the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine is against the Delta variant.

Statewide numbers

New cases reported: 68 confirmed, 59 probable.

Total cases in S.C.: 492,864 confirmed, 103,037 probable.

Percent positive: 2.3 percent.

New deaths reported: 1 confirmed, 0 probable.

Total deaths in S.C.: 8,629 confirmed, 1,175 probable.

Percent of ICU beds filled: 65 percent.

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S.C. residents vaccinated

DHEC's vaccine dashboard shows 47 percent of the state's residents have received at least one shot of a COVID-19 vaccine.

Hardest-hit areas

In the total number of newly confirmed cases, Greenville County (nine), Charleston County (eight) and Florence County (five) saw the highest totals.

What about tri-county?

Charleston County had eight new cases on June 23, while Berkeley County had four and Dorchester County had four.

Deaths

The death from COVID-19 confirmed June 23 was a patient age 65 or older.

Hospitalizations

Of the 147 COVID-19 patients hospitalized as of June 23, 38 were in the ICU and 21 were using ventilators.

What do experts say?

During the last week, the total number of deaths from COVID-19 DHEC reports to the public has fluctuated  both upward and downward.

The state public health agency says that's mostly because of new information about the deaths that it receives from coroners and medical certifiers. Commonly, DHEC learns a person it reported as having died from COVID-19 actually resided out-of-state. In other instances, it has gotten two reports of the same death and later deletes one of the records so there are no duplicates.

"The data we report out each day are provisional and as accurate as possible at the time they are reported," the agency said in a statement.

DHEC does not determine cause of death; that responsibility falls to coroners and medical certifiers.
Summerville, SC (29483)

Today

Considerable cloudiness. Occasional rain showers after midnight. Low around 70F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%..

Tonight

Considerable cloudiness. Occasional rain showers after midnight. Low around 70F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%.
Kingstree, SC (29556)

Today

Showers with a possible thunderstorm early, then variable clouds overnight with still a chance of showers. Low 66F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%..

Tonight

Showers with a possible thunderstorm early, then variable clouds overnight with still a chance of showers. Low 66F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%.
MYRTLE BEACH  Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette dropped by the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce's Board of Directors meeting June 23 to commend the chamber on its efforts to jumpstart a "Keeping Myrtle Beach Beautiful" campaign.

Evette said COVID-19 brought a spotlight on the litter problem throughout the state. The S.C. Department of Corrections usually helps in the clean up of litter around the state, but because of COVID-19, the DOC was not taking part in that program.

"I don't think people realize the millions upon millions of dollars we spend on a state and local level picking up trash," Evette said. "It hurts us in tourism. It hurts us in economic development. Companies do not want to come to an area that they don't feel people are proud of."

South Carolina budgets no money for litter cleanup. The only source of funding is associated fines and fees, a portion of which goes back to Palmetto Prides nearly $3 million operating budget, according to lawmakers and advocates.

The chamber announced the joint effort with PalmettoPride and Keep America Beautiful earlier this month.

PalmettoPride is South Carolinas nonprofit focused on eradicating litter and Keep America Beautiful is a leading national nonprofit aimed at inspiring and educating people to take action every day to improve and beautify their community environment.

Evette said pollution even plays a role in flooding. She said when the state started the floodwater commission, it soon realized that as crews began removing bicycles, televisions and more from canals, water started flowing again.

"Just the movement of that water would help ensure that the damage would be minimized," Evette said. "Obviously flooding is an issue, especially in areas of Myrtle Beach and Horry County, as well as Charleston."

Evette said there have been companies who have flown to South Carolina, saw litter on highways and turned around and left.

"It's an economic development issue, it's a flooding issue and it's a dollar issue," she said. "Imagine what we can better use that money for."

The S.C. Department of Transportation has made its trash pickup along highways a monthly task rather than bi-monthly. And South Carolina is looking to partner soon with the Adopt-A-Highway program, a national program that assists in litter pickup.

"I've been really proud of the chambers across our stat taking this on as an issue," Evette said about clean up efforts. "I know, especially this being a tourist area, how that impacts you. People don't want to come to a tourist area that doesn't seem clean. When places don't seem clean, they don't seem safe."
Myrtle Beach, SC (29577)

Today

An isolated thunderstorm possible this evening, then occasional showers overnight. Low 69F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%..

Tonight

An isolated thunderstorm possible this evening, then occasional showers overnight. Low 69F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%.
Now we know.

One year after the John C. Calhoun monument in Marion Square was removed, and four months after the cornerstone was pried open to reveal its long-hidden contents, we can see what was inside the sealed lead box.

And we can better appreciate how these materials add to our understanding of one of South Carolinas most important and controversial statesmen.

It took a while to locate the granite box with marble sides embedded in the statues base.

One newspaper article from 1858  the year the foundation was laid for the first Calhoun monument on the north side of the square and the reliquary created  indicated that the mini-memorial filled with mementos of the time could be found at the northwest corner of the base.

An article from 1886 indicated, instead, that the time capsule would be positioned in the northeast corner of the base.

And thats where the excavators found it. They proceeded carefully with small jackhammers and other tools until the small sepulcher was liberated from its anchorage.

The original statue itself, disparaged by Whites because of its controversial design and despised by Blacks because it honored a man who considered slavery a "positive good," was installed in 1887 but didnt last long. A new monument was erected in 1896, with far less fanfare, and this time atop a very tall column. For a short spell, after the first monument came down and before the second one went up, the reliquary was buried in the middle of the square for safekeeping.

Calhoun is among South Carolina's most prominent public figures. He served in the state legislature, then in the federal government as a representative in Congress, senator, secretary of war, vice president and secretary of state. He was a proponent of nullification of unwanted federal tariff legislation. His advocacy of states' rights set the stage for the Civil War.

Calhoun helped codify and institutionalize the racial divide, not only through his relentless defense of slavery, which he sought to expand, but through rhetoric that rallied poor Whites.

"With us the two great divisions of society are not the rich and the poor, but white and black, and all the former, the poor as well as the rich, belong to the upper class, and are respected and treated as equals, if honest and industrious, and hence have a position and pride of character of which neither poverty nor misfortune can deprive them," he once said.

The statue that was removed from Marion Square exactly one year ago could end up in Columbia. Administrators at the S.C. State Museum and Charleston officials are in ongoing talks about its relocation.

Objects of history

Inside the cornerstone compartment was a severely rusted cannonball found in the waters near Fort Moultrie and almost certainly shot by the British during the 1776 Battle of Sullivans Island. The capsule also contained three objects: a long tin canister containing rolled-up fabric, likely a banner raised by sailors during Calhouns funeral in 1850; a small tin cylinder containing what had been reported to be a lock of Calhouns thick silvery hair; and a rectangular lead box the archaeologists X-ray machine could not penetrate.

Since their retrieval, these items have been housed at Brockington and Associates in Mount Pleasant and carefully studied by its senior archaeologist Eric Poplin and lab manager Jeff Sherard. On Feb. 25, they opened the stone compartment.

They noted that it had once filled partially with water, perhaps during that intermediate period of limbo, and as a result the cannonball and tin containers had corroded significantly.

Rust to an archaeologist is like a snowstorm to an airline pilot: with a bit of labor and some patience, it can be cleared away. The crusty ferric oxide was scraped away and the cannonballs shape and luster restored. The tins were another matter. Sherard and Poplin did their best to clean them up, but one had essentially merged with the fabric, perhaps making the banner impossible ever to unfurl. And water penetration almost certainly destroyed the lock of hair.

So now theyre inclined to keep the objects intact as they are. Why risk damaging historic mementos?

The lead box, though, was showing promise.

'More to the story'

It had been well-sealed and did not reveal obvious water penetration. It took three days to remove the lid. On April 26, they lifted it off and beheld, to their terrific surprise and delight, a pristine glass jar perfectly sealed and filled with scrolls of paper in excellent condition. The jar had been carefully protected with newspapers. At the bottom was a business card of J.F. Church, a plumber located on Broad Street.

Did Mr. Church, clearly a capable metal worker, make the box? Or just prepare it? Poplin said research is required.

They havent opened the jar yet. But historical reports tell us what it contains: a copy of Calhouns last Senate speech, some Continental money (paper bills, clearly visible), a list of all the U.S. and South Carolina governments, and a list of members of the Calhoun Monument Ladies Association.

But theres more than that inside the jar, which contains perhaps eight or 10 rolled up publications, some that are probably newspapers, and some that appear to be portions of the Congressional Record.

When the lead box was opened, jaws dropped, said Jason Kronsberg, director of parks for the city of Charleston. No one expected the contents to be in such good condition. And no one expected to find a hand-blown glass jar sealed with plaster of Paris.

Whoever made it, knew what he was doing, Sherard said, observing the smooth contours and absence of embedded bubbles.

 Beautiful is the word that came to mind immediately, Poplin said.

And in some ways its remarkable that all of this was preserved, found and secured, they said.

Buildings with cornerstones get torn down all the time, Kronsberg said. There are very few things in the world that are permanent.

But these objects have survived 163 years. And now they can add to our appreciation of a complicated and controversial man and the era in which he flourished.

Now, theres more to the story, Sherard said. "It's our history."
MONCKS CORNER  Rick Ollic, the Moncks Corner Police Department's top cop since 2016, has been suspended for two weeks following the arrest and termination of one of his school resource officers and the filing of a lawsuit claiming he and the department conducted an illegal search and arrest of a woman who later was exonerated.

Capt. Mark Fields said he is acting police chief during Ollics suspension.

The suspension comes just over a week after the State Law Enforcement Division launched an investigation into a school resource officer who was charged in mid-June with having criminal sexual conduct with a minor. That former officer, Zedrick Maurice Smalls, 50, was fired.

Smalls is accused of contacting a high school student through social media over the course of a month starting in early May, records show.

Ollic was suspended June 23, attorney Mark Peper said. Peper represents the family of the student who accused Smalls of assaulting her.

Attempts by The Post and Courier to reach Ollic on June 23 were unsuccessful; his phone went to voicemail and his voice mailbox was unable to accept messages.

Smalls, who was fired June 14, was charged with four counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct with a minor and one count of third-degree criminal sexual conduct with a minor, according to Berkeley County court records.

The town Police Department requested SLED investigate the charges, Tommy Crosby, SLED spokesperson, said on June 23.

The chief is not a focal point of the Smalls investigation in any way, Crosby said. I am not aware that Ollic is a focal point in any SLED case at this time.

He said SLED investigators did not influence Ollics suspension.

Police chiefs work for the city, Crosby said. They dont work for SLED. The city makes those decisions.

The newspaper called the Moncks Corner Police Department for a statement regarding Ollics suspension. The department had no comment.

Ollic's suspension comes weeks after a civil lawsuit was filed in state court against Ollic and the Police Department, among others.

The case, filed June 4, is centered on the May 23 2018, arrest of Amanda Land. Authorities determined Land was illegally searched and arrested by officers on charges of trafficking and manufacturing marijuana, according to an email written by a member of the 9th Circuit Solicitors Office dismissing the charges.

On June 21, the case was transferred to U.S. District Court for South Carolina.

The suit claims Ollic knew Moncks Corner officers were engaged in illegal searches and seizures.

Defendant Ollics response to gaining that knowledge of officer misconduct was so inadequate as to show deliberate indifference to or tacit authorization of the alleged offensive practices, according to the lawsuit.

Land filed the complaint against Ollic, former Moncks Corner Detective Brooks Barlow, the police department and the town of Moncks Corner. She also filed the complaint against Berkeley County Sheriff Duane Lewis, the Sheriffs Office and Berkeley Electric Cooperative.

Fields would not confirm whether Ollics position change is connected to Lands lawsuit or SLEDs investigation of the former Moncks Corner officer.
COLUMBIA  Information gathered as part of the Murdaugh double-murder case in Colleton County has prompted state police to open an investigation into the 2015 death of 19-year-old Stephen Smith, a SLED spokesman said June 22.

Smith was found dead on July 8, 2015, on Sandy Run Road near Joe Miley Road in Hampton. At the time, investigators said it appeared he was killed in a hit-and-run collision while walking outside his vehicle because he ran out of gas, according to WSAV-TV News 3.

Smith, a 2014 graduate of Wade Hampton High School, was attending OC Tech of Orangeburg and was studying to become a registered nurse at the time of his death, according to his obituary. His parents are Fred Joel Smith and Sandy Smith.

State Law Enforcement Division spokesperson Tommy Crosby confirmed June 22 the agency had opened an investigation into Smith's death based on information gathered during the course of the case looking into the deaths of Paul Murdaugh, 22, and his mother, Maggie, 52, in Colleton County.

He did not say what information led to the decision.

SLED is also leading the investigation into the June 7 Murdaugh slayings at the family's home in Islandton.

The Murdaughs are a prominent family in South Carolina. Three generations of Murdaughs have served as 14th Circuit Solicitor covering the state's southern tip.

Alex Murdaugh, Paul's father and Maggie's husband, also works part time for the 14th Circuit Solicitor's Office, which will have to determine whether to recuse itself depending on the outcome of SLED's probe.
NORTH CHARLESTON  The city is considering bonuses for hundreds of its employees who worked during the pandemic.

City Council's Finance Committee approved spending about $4.5 million of its recently received COVID relief funds on premium pay that averages to roughly $4,000 per employee. Some staff members could see up to $5,000.

The final decision will go before City Council on June 24.

The bonuses are well-deserved for the city's essential workers, Councilman Ron Brinson said.

Our employees showed up," he said. "They never complained."

Most of the money comes from the $12 million North Charleston received in its first tranche of the American Rescue Plan, which permits cities to offer premium pay to employees who worked during the public health emergency.

There are limitations. The pay cannot increase an employee's annual wage 150 percent above the state or county's average yearly wage for all occupations. Charleston County's average annual wage totals $50,810, which places a $76,215 limit for North Charleston employees in regards to bonuses.

The mayor recommends up to $5,000 payments for those subject to the $76,215 limit, depending on hours worked during the crisis.

Eligible employees over the cap would get up to $1,000 each. That money, which totals about $100,000, will come out of the city's general fund.

"We just didn't think it was quite equitable for someone who is slightly over that cutoff, but who nonetheless came to work and contributed," Brinson said.

Per federal guidelines, the money can be given to those who provided essential work, which involves "regular in-person interactions or regular physical handling of items that were also handled by others."

"That opens up a broad category," said city Finance Director Warren Newton.

The 12-month wage period being considered is February 2020 to January 2021.

Ninety-one percent, or 872 of the 961 employees who were active during that stretch are projected to receive an average premium payment of $4,000 each.

In addition to first responders and sanitation staff, office employees who showed up to work will also be eligible for the bonuses.

This will be the second time North Charleston offered extra money to those who worked despite elevated health risks.

In the wake of the pandemic's spread across South Carolina last year, the city offered hazard pay to fire, police and sanitation workers.

"We had personnel who had to work who could potentially face exposure," Newton said.

Brinson lauded the mayor and City Council for how it managed the city's finances, which saw a $1.5 million to $2 million monthly loss in revenues during the health crisis. To mitigate losses, the city laid off part-time employees, instituted a hiring freeze and didn't implement increases to its 2020 budget.

Though the pandemic isn't over, the city is beginning to recover financially, Brinson said.

"That's because we took a very disciplined approach," he said.

If approved, the premium pay will come over the course of five separate pay periods, with the first payment starting July 29.
Police are investigating after a man was fatally shot the night of June 22 in the Whipper Barony neighborhood of North Charleston.

North Charleston police spokesman Harve Jacobs said officers were dispatched shortly before 8:20 p.m. to Pine Field Court, located off Old Pine Circle in the Whipper Barony neighborhood, for reports of a person on the ground.

Officers found a man suffering an injury consistent with a gunshot wound. The man later died, Jacobs said.

Detectives and the Charleston County Coroner's Office are investigating the death. Jacobs said no suspect information was available.
South Carolina has implemented stricter rules on the harvest of flounder, which will go into effect July 1.

Populations of southern flounder, a popular fish that spans coastal waters from Georgia to North Carolina, have been in severe decline for decades. The rules are aimed at letting the species, an iconic catch that's prized for its rich taste, bounce back to previous levels.

The new rules include:

A daily catch limit of five fish per person or 10 per boat, down from 10 per person or 20 per boat.

A size minimum of 16 inches per fish caught, up from 15 inches previously.

The standards are far looser than a suite of regulations the S.C. Department of Natural Resources proposed earlier this year. Those rules would have kept size restrictions the same but reduced catch limits to two fish per person or six per boat.

The most controversial provision was eschewed entirely: a season for the flounder catch, running from about the beginning of July to the end of October.

Though the regulations were scaled down, "It will still get us going in the right direction," said Mel Bell, director of DNR's Office of Fisheries Management.

English Glover, a former charter boat captain and a Grand Strand fishing commentator on local TV and radio programs, said the new rules were generally a positive for conservation efforts. But he was adamantly opposed to the idea of a set season. It would have deprived revenue for bait and tackle shops and other parts of the industry that supports recreational anglers, he said.

"It would be devastating in so many different realms of fishing here in the Carolinas," he said.

North Carolina, meanwhile, has already instituted a season, which will get even more restrictive this year. Recreational seekers of the flatfish will only have two weeks at the beginning of September to catch them, and the much larger commercial fishery will be able to harvest on staggered two-week schedules from different sections of the coast.

That leaves the risk that opportunistic operations will descend on the Palmetto State's waters to make up the difference. State Sen. Stephen Goldfinch, R-Murrells Inlet, said steeper fees for out-of-state fishing licenses that the Legislature passed along with the new catch limits will hopefully help avert that.

Those higher fees will also, in part, fund a new effort in South Carolina: a hatchery to grow more flounder and release them into coastal waters. The state has had success before in stocking species like red drum, but flounder have a complex life cycle and are notoriously hard to grow in an artificial setting, said Tanya Darden, the assistant director of DNR's coastal lab on James Island.

The larvae, for example, don't have both eyes on one side of their head, as bottom-dwelling adult flounder do. The eyes migrate together as infant fish grow older, but only in a delicately balanced combination of environmental conditions. Temperature also determines the sex of the fish, leaving the possibility that water at the wrong degree will produce only males, Darden said.

Some other states have flounder hatcheries, but they produce fish on smaller scales, to the tune of 100,000 a year. DNR doesn't know yet how many it will be able to produce, but whatever the number, it likely couldn't save the fishery by itself  that would take tens of millions of fish, according to DNR.

"It's going to be a challenge for us. It's one we're up to," Darden said.
Happy hour at the Bishop Gadsden pub really lives up to its name these days.

The bar is hopping  every seat at every table is filled, while dozens of others mingle around the room. Theyre swapping stories, sipping wine, seeing old friends.

Theres absolutely no distance in this socializing, and nary a mask in sight. You can actually see folks smiling.

Its almost nostalgic because its so, well, pre-pandemic.

I stopped by the James Island retirement community for a visit last week, and reached for a mask  now a habit  at the front door. But Susanne Emge and Susan Sanders, who were there to greet me, said, Oh, you wont need that here.

While the rest of the state remains in a sort of bizarre purgatory, with some people still wearing masks and others acting as if nothings happened, Bishop Gadsden is basically back to normal.

Residents say thats because every one of the more than 500 residents and 400 staffers at this Charleston institution have been vaccinated to protect them from COVID-19.

Its amazing what a 100% vaccination rate can do for a community. Which is something a lot of folks apparently need to hear.

MUSC epidemiologist Michael Sweat says the Charleston metropolitan area is doing great right now  about 1 case per 100,000 residents per day. Serious infections, the kind that require hospitalization, are in the single digits of late. There were three coronavirus patients at MUSC on Monday evening, and none of them needed a ventilator.

Thats 180 degrees from where we were this time last year.

Im sure it has to do with vaccinations, and that a lot of people whove been infected have some immunity, he says. About 44% of tri-county residents have had at least one dose.

MUSC's Epidemiology Intelligence Project estimates that about 64% of people in the Charleston area are somewhat protected from COVID-19, either through vaccinations or recent infection  which provides some immunity.

Thats the good news. The worry is what happens to the remaining 36%, because they remain vulnerable.

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As Sweat says, the vaccines are no doubt the reason infection rate is falling. Trouble is, some residents simply arent getting vaccinated  either because they see no need, have adopted a wait-and-see attitude, or because politics has made them kinda nuts.

Theyre the ones who think vaccines turn people into zombies, or at the very least magnetic.

Other parts of the state are seeing much lower vaccination rates than the Lowcountry, but overall about 42% of South Carolina residents have received at least one dose (which doesnt offer complete protection), and 36% are fully vaccinated. Nationally, 45% are fully vaccinated.

Neither of those numbers gets us to herd immunity, but it's having a positive effect. And Sweat is optimistic for the future.

The Associated Press reported Monday that the national COVID-19 death toll has dropped below 300 people per day for the first time since March 2020, which is when the country started shutting down. The daily number of new cases has dropped below 12,000, which is a hopeful statistic.

In January, as you may recall, they were finding 250,000 new cases in the United States each day.

Sweat says so many people have been vaccinated, theres virtually no chance well see those sorts of scary numbers again  especially since the vaccines are 100% effective in preventing COVID deaths. But infections may creep back up, as they did last summer and fall, for seasonal reasons.

Which is why people holding out should reconsider and get the shot. These new variants of the coronavirus, particularly the delta strain from India, are proving to be more infectious and serious than the original. Thats not stoking hysteria, or fear-mongering, its just science.

Sweat says he suspects vaccination rates, which have dropped precipitously, will begin to rise if the number of infections goes back up. But it shouldnt take that sort of shock treatment.

Fact is, the people who are vaccinated dont have to worry. Those who arent, do. That dichotomy is going to eventually create two classes of citizens, with the unvaccinated passing it back and forth among each other  and infecting people who cant get a shot for whatever reason. Thats a problem we could avoid.

Everyone longs for a return to normal, and it is finally within reach. But far too many have been exposed to a pandemic of populist politics to make that possible for now. And thats a real shame.

As the Bishop Gadsden pub scene proves, getting back to normal looks pretty good.
Grand oak trees are cherished in the Lowcountry for their beauty, long life and ability to withstand hurricanes. And Charleston County is among several local governments with regulations protecting these trees, at least the larger ones. Those who want to remove such a large oak need a special permit.

A letter to the editor that raised the alarm about the sad fate of one such grand oak on Edisto Island is the winner of our May Golden Pen Award.

Fred Palm, the writer of the May 21 letter to the editor, described how the Charleston County Board of Zoning Appeals voted to grant homebuilders a variance allowing them to cut down one such tree simply because it stood in the center of their undeveloped 5-acre parcel  in the precise spot where they wanted to build a home.

It is, to say the least, disturbing, Mr. Palm wrote. Grand trees are protected by county ordinance, so it was shocking that this quasi-judicial body would rubber-stamp a request from the homebuilders. The decision makes no sense.

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According to the letter, the property owners would not change their building plans to move the house site by as little as 20 to 30 feet. The owners said they would feel unsafe with a tree so close to their new home and said they thought they might not be able to alter plans to move a septic field, although they hadnt actually checked on that.

Unfortunately, Mr. Palm wrote, the zoning board accepted their lawyers request to make an immediate decision.

Mr. Palm lamented that the board  and the tree  could have waited two more weeks for more information before any final verdict. Now, it has a death sentence.

The Golden Pen is awarded monthly. Winners also are invited to an annual luncheon with the newspapers editorial staff.
The Union Heights community is in a special position to reclaim a section of land that was lost to the progress of urban renewal.

Minority communities across the nation have been scarred by the ravages of construction programs that split neighborhoods for road construction.

Union Heights has an opportunity, with the help of the state Department of Transportation and the General Assembly, to reknit its community.

The Interstate 26 exit to the Port Access Road transverses Union Heights from Spruill Avenue on the east to Meeting Street Road on the west. This area should be transferred to the Union Heights Community Council for the development of permanently affordable homes in collaboration with the Community First Land Trust and Charleston Habitat for Humanity.

At a time when the threat of gentrification is real and the lack of affordable housing is present and growing, reconnecting and revitalizing Joppa Avenue is a must.

GERARD MIKELL

Chairman

Union Heights

Community Council

Hugo Avenue

North Charleston

All life is sacred

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops recently held its three-day conference.

We are told that after several hours of impassioned debate, a substantial number of bishops came up with their hope that our politicians who support abortion rights might be censored sometime in the future.

All their maybes and prudent hopefulness and a call for possible future warnings on the most radical pro-abortion agenda speaks little for the Catholic religious doctrine and tenet of Catholic faith that all life is sacred.

Our Catholic bishops should be admonished, along with the Vatican, for acting more like politicians than leaders of the church.

Apparently, they are more concerned with politics than with Catholic doctrine, and what is needed is some heavenly guidance.

DENNIS J. DONAHUE JR.

Pelican Reach

Isle of Palms

Kudos for pier work

If you have not had the chance and before the work has been completed, get down to the Folly Beach pier during the week to watch the incredible precision with which the crane operators and crew deconstruct the old pier, then sink the foundation pilings for the new.

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Even in the strong winds of the past week, they are able to place the new 100-foot steel pilings exactly where planned.

Well done, crane operators and crew.

LARRY DORMINY

Riverland Woods Place

Charleston

View artifacts

Readers of The Post and Courier learned more about South Carolinas early settlers while reading editorial writer Robert Behres column on June 20.

Digging deeper into the early history of South Carolina, we can find the artifacts of those Native Americans who inhabited the Lowcountry.

An exhibit of artifacts left by those who lived here long before European explorers came to this continent can be viewed at the Salkehatchie branch of the University of South Carolina.

JOHN WINTHROP

One North Adgers Wharf

Charleston

Vaccination pressure

Charleston area colleges and universities are offering incentives to increase participation in getting the COVID-19 vaccination.

These ridiculous ideas include a dunk tank with the college president, puppy therapy and getting to use the library with others.

A few young men have had reactions to the vaccines such as blood clots and enlarged hearts, and some young women have reported that menstrual cycles are out of sync after receiving the vaccination.

Taking the vaccine should be an individual choice and an individual situation.

Making those who have not received the vaccine wear masks or sit isolated are shaming activities. Why not have them wear a scarlet V?

This vaccine has not undergone the test of time. Those vaccinated are a case study for future research.

In the short term, leave these young people to their own decisions made between them and their medical provider.

DIANE SMITH

Barrier Island Court

Mount Pleasant
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Carl Hessler Jr. is a multi-media reporter who writes about crime and justice from the Montgomery County Courthouse for 21st Century Media Newspapers Greater Philadelphia area publications. Follow Carl on Twitter: @MontcoCourtNews
"We have offered them help individually, collectively and as a township and they have not taken us up on it once."

 Steve Miller, chairman, West Pottsgrove Township Commissioners

Pull Quote
According to Biden Secretary of State Antony Blinken, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and psickening pspokesman Jen Psaki, the election of mass murderer Ebrahaim Raisi to Irans presidency poses no obstacle to the administrations desire to consummate another nuclear deal cum sanctions relief with the regime. The administration continues to abase itself in Vienna with the lets get it on spirit.

The presidents view and our view is that the decision leader is the Supreme Leader, Psaki explained on Monday. That was the case before the election; its the case today; it will be the case probably moving forward.

Iran will have, we expect, the same Supreme Leader in August as it will have today, as it had before the elections, as it had in 2015 when the JCPOA [i.e, the original nuclear deal] was consummated for the first time, State Department spokesman Ned Price said.

This has been Blinkens line since before and after the election. I think its clear who the decider is in the Iranian system, and thats the Supreme Leader, and hes the one who has to make the fundamental decisions about what Irans approach would be, Blinken told the Financial Times on May 3.

Raisi must nevertheless be rubbing nerves raw. Fox News quotes Price:

State Department spokesman Ned Price on Monday said the U.S. considered the process in which Raisi was chosen to be pre-manufactured. This was not a free and fair election process, in which Iranians were denied their right to choose their own leaders, he said.

Whats the problem? Weve still got the Supreme Leader!

JNS columnist Ruthie Blum gets to the heart of the inanity:

[I]it is not the president in Iran who calls the shots, but rather the supreme leader. Moreover, it was Khamenei who rigged his protege Raisis so-called landslide victory in the first place. This means that any agreement signed with Iran, now or later, will require Khameneis approval. And that wont be forthcoming unless the deal is as bad for the United States and Israel as the original JCPOA, or worse.

New York Post columnist Michael Goodwin explores the issue and adds this note:

Perhaps the biggest sign of Bidens desperation is that Raisis role in the crushing of dissidents is not an obstacle. Biden downgraded US relations with Saudi Arabia largely because the Crown Prince was implicated in the death of a single person, Jamal Kashoggi, a regime opponent and writer. The double standards make a mockery of Bidens promise to make human rights a pillar of foreign policy. The left always sounds a loud trumpet on the issue when a Republican sits in the White House, but when they have a chance to do better, they punt.

Yesterday Michael Ramirez put it in terms even Joe Biden might understand (below)  if only he could remember the Austin Powers films.
Critical Race Theory is said to have originated in the law schools; in particular, at Harvard Law School in the early 1970s. This is somewhat ironic. In those days, Harvard was considered a conservative law school, attended by people who actually wanted to be lawyers. Yale was the liberal alternative for people with political ambitions. Harvard Professor Derrick Bell is often identified as the founder of CRT. I knew Professor Bell, who taught my first year Criminal Law course. He seemed like a decent enough guy, if somewhat unorthodox in his methods. He did not give full rein, then, to his anti-Americanism.

The CRT movement apparently spread out from the law schools to academia in general. From there it has infected public schools down to the elementary school level. Meanwhile, the liberal attitude toward this viciously racist, divisive and ahistorical movement has evolved. We can see this in the case of the New York Times. In 1997, the Times ran a piece on CRT headlined, For Black Scholars Wedded to Prism of Race, New and Separate Goals. That article is not easily available online, but Unz has lengthy excerpts which I rely on here.

In 1997, the Timess view of CRT was balanced and, on the whole, negative. It begins, appropriately for CRT, with an anecdote:

Taunya Lovell Banks, a law professor at the University of Maryland, was traveling by train to Baltimore a few years ago when a man exposed himself to her and then ran into the next car. Professor Banks and the conductor discussed what to do, including whether to have the man arrested. The conductor suggested just letting him off at the next stop. And that set Professor Banks to thinking about the circumstances. She and the man were black; the conductor was white. Would the conductor have treated the matter differently had she been white? What if the conductor had been black? And was the man mentally disturbed because, as a black man, society had pressed him too hard and provided too little help?

A relatively minor black-on-black crime, but of course it must be the white mans fault.

Critical race theorists, who are on the faculty at almost every major law school and are producing an ever-growing body of scholarly work, have drawn from an idea made popular by postmodernist scholars of all races, that there is no objective reality.

No one in the world actually believes that there is no objective reality. To take one of countless illustrations, imagine that you bet with a friend on the outcome of the World Series. You win the bet and try to collect. Your friend tells you that there is no objective reality, and according to his lived experience, his team won the Series. There is no subculture in the world in which this works. When someone says there is no objective reality, what he means is that he intends to exercise power over you, and no facts or arguments you might present will dissuade him.

While they do not disapprove of integration that occurs naturally, critical race theorists reject the classic liberal view of integration as the ultimate goal. They deride the concept of a colorblind society.

This is the fundamental conflict, still. Should we disregard race as irrelevant, or should we permanently balkanize our society along racial lines and institutionalize racial preferences that favor one group (blacks, which is the only point) over all others?

One important battleground in critical race theory is the criminal justice system: Why, the theorists ask, are a disproportionate number of the men in Americas jails black? Many critical race theorists say it is because the system is infected with racism at every level, from prosecutors offices to judges chambers.

Physical descriptions of perpetrators by victims say the reason is that blacks commit a disproportionate number of crimes. That has been proved over and over, in every possible way. But, hey, that is just objective reality. We now begin to understand why CRT advocates are at war with the truth.

Back in 1997, the Times was willing to give equal time, and implicit approval, to a University of Minnesota law professor who took a dim view of CRT:

Critics of critical race theory, like Prof. Suzanna Sherry of the University of Minnesota law school, contend that it defies common sense and abandons intellectual principles in an effort to promote the political standing of blacks in society.

That sums it up very well.

The problem with denying any objective reality, she said, is that there is no way of mediating among the competing perceptions of reality except power. And what they ultimately want is more power for their perceptions.

Bingo. CRT advocates want power. See, for example, H.R. 1, justified on the absurd (and racist) ground that blacks cant figure out how to get a drivers license or how to vote, but obviously intended to facilitate voter fraud so as to perpetuate the Democratic Partys power.

There is much more, which you can read at the Unz link above. The notable point, I think, is that in 1997, the New York Times could run a balanced and, on the whole, negative article on Critical Race Theory. That could never happen today. Why?

To be sure, the Times has gotten more radically left-wing in the last 25 years. But I think the more salient point is that in 1997, the Democratic Party had not yet adopted CRT and, in fact, was broadly suspicious of it. That is what has changed. Today, the Democratic Party is all-in for CRT. Times reporters and editors, slavish followers of the Democratic Party Line, can only comply. So if you want to read intelligent discussion of CRT, you will have to go somewhere else.
If the media pursued Democrats as it pursues Republicans, the odious Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island would be hounded from public life. The Washington Free Beacons Joe Simsonson follows up on a story that we have found of interest. Imagine this:

Democratic lawmakers and racial justice advocates have kept quiet about Sen. Sheldon Whitehouses membership in a racially exclusionary organization, seemingly satisfied with the Rhode Island Democrats explanation that it is nothing more than a long tradition. The Washington Free Beacon asked all 50 Democratic members of the Senate, as well as the Congressional Black Caucus and the NAACP, for comment on the controversy related to Whitehouses association with Baileys Beach Club. No office, other than Whitehouses, responded.

What a great story. Simonson lets us feel the silence: Black Democrats, Activists Silent on Whitehouses White-Only Club Membership. Subhead: NAACP, Congressional Black Caucus, 49 Democratic senators stay mum. Read the quote above carefully to ascertain the only Democratic Senator responding to Simonsons inquiries.
Kto szuka: Nordea Bank Abp SA Oddzia w Polsce Stanowisko: Junior Process Officer / Process Officer with Danish language in KYC Lokalizacja: odz odzkie

Opis stanowiska podany przez pracodawce:

Wymagania stawiane pracownikowi:

We are now looking for a Junior Process Officer/Process Officer with Danish language skills to support KYC Services department in efforts to prevent money laundering, terrorist financing and tax evasion. This is an opportunity for you to gain knowledge in financial crime area in the modern compliance unit.

Enabling great customer experiences requires a team that leads the way in creating first-class service and operations. Passionate people who are eager to learn and committed to doing their best.

Thats where you come in. Working with skilled international teams in a bright, modern office, youll provide invaluable support to our Nordic business areas. The pace is quick, the atmosphere lively and collaborative.

There are plenty of opportunities for you to learn and grow as you build your career with us. Will you help us lead the way in becoming the best bank we can be?

About this opportunity

Youll join KYC Services in Group Business Support, where we create group-wide solutions to fight financial crime. Our aim is to ensure a robust, high-quality financial crime risk management across Nordea where we support business in identifying, assessing, mitigating and monitoring financial crime risks.

Your responsibilities will include:

Analysing and assessing risk factors of Nordeas customers

Contacting customers, branches and responsible managers regarding customers` data

Working on the basis of international legislations and tax laws

Meeting assigned service deliveries according to customers needs

Contributing to improvement of quality and efficiency of assigned tasks

The role is based in odz/Tricity (currently possibility of remote work due to pandemic situation). Welcome to a team with English speaking environment, focused on personal development and team work.

Who you are

Collaboration. Ownership. Passion. Courage. These are the four key values that guide us in being at our best. We imagine that you enjoy learning and are excited about bringing your ideas to the table. Youre dependable, willing to speak up  even when its difficult  and committed to empowering others.

Your profile and background:

Danish native or at least C1 level

English on a communicative level

Ability to make independent decisions

Analytical mindset

Good knowledge of MS Office tools

If this sounds like you, get in touch!

Firma oferuje:

Next steps





Submit your application no later than 07/10/2021.





At Nordea, we know that an inclusive workplace is a sustainable workplace. We deeply believe that our diverse backgrounds, experiences, characteristics and traits make us better at serving customers and communities. So please come as you are.

Please include permit for processing personal data in CV as following:

In accordance with art. 6 (1) a and b. Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation) hereinafter GDPR. I agree to have: my personal data, education and employment history proceeded for the purposes of current and future recruitment processes in Nordea Bank Abp.

The administrator of your personal data is: Nordea Bank Abp operating in Poland through its Branch, address: Aleja Edwarda Rydza Smiglego 20, 93-281 odz. Your personal data will be processed for the recruitment processes in Nordea Bank Abp. You have a right to access your personal data, right to rectify and right to delete. Disclosing the personal data in the scope specified by the provisions of Polish Labour Code from 26 June 1974 and executive acts are mandatory. Providing personal data is necessary to conduct the recruitment processes. The request for the deletion of your personal data means resignation from further participation in recruitment processes and causes the immediate removal of your application. Detailed information concerning processing of your personal data can be found at:





We reserve the right to reply only to selected applications.

Kontakt do pracodawcy:
Kto szuka: Nordea Bank Abp SA Oddzia w Polsce Stanowisko: Capital and Risk Analyst Lokalizacja: Warszawa mazowieckie

Wymagania stawiane pracownikowi:

We are now looking for a Capital and Risk Analyst within Regulatory Reporting unit. You will work with various types of risk reporting for Nordea Group and its subsidiaries. Your focus will be on analysis and reporting the development of risk exposure amounts (REA), the capital base and the leverage ratio in accordance with Basel III regulation. This is an opportunity for you to join a fast-paced and dynamic field of critical importance in the international finance industry. You will get exposure to a broad spectrum of risk types as well as the opportunity to work with passionate and collaborative colleagues at Nordea.

We offer working with skilled international teams in a bright, modern office, youll provide invaluable support to our Nordic business areas. The pace is quick, the atmosphere lively and collaborative.

There are plenty of opportunities for you to learn and grow as you build your career with us. Will you help us lead the way in becoming the best bank we can be?

At Nordea, we see that the world is changing fast  and we want to be one step ahead of the curve. Thats why were deeply committed to providing the financial solutions of tomorrow to our customers. Were creating an agile environment where we experiment and grow together  and we need your ideas and unique background. With us, youll be in good company with a chance to make your mark on something bigger.

About this opportunity

Welcome to the Capital control team. We add value by delivering reports to supervisory authorities through efficient processes meeting regulatory requirements, as well as to support analysis work related to risk and capital.



What youll be doing:

Performing analysis of the development of risk exposures amounts (REA), capital consumption over broad range of portfolios and risk types and capital frameworks.

Communicating and presenting developments in risk exposure amounts (REA), the capital base to an internal stakeholders in the various portfolios in a clear and concise way.

Driving continuous improvements in your processes and in the unit.

Ensure adequate risk controls within your process and continuous to development of these controls.

Youll join an international & very dynamic environment where there are unlimited development opportunities, both in your carrier and on a personal level. Welcome to a global team with high commitment and positive atmosphere with the ambition to become even better in supplying essential deliveries for Nordea. The role is based in Warsaw.

Who you are

Collaboration. Ownership. Passion. Courage. These are the values that guide us in being at our best  and that we imagine you share with us.



To build a successful career with us, youll work well with others and always act with the customers needs in mind. You love learning and trying new things, and youre excited about bringing your ideas to the table. Youre honest and dependable, willing to speak up even when its difficult, and committed to empowering others. Youre passionate about doing a great job.



To succeed in this role, we believe that you have:

Creative Thinking: can think creatively, has a questioning mind-set, proposes new ways of working and strives for constant improvement in current processes

Flexibility & Reliability: can take on unstructured assignments, discerns what is important, develops appropriate action plans and demonstrates ownership

Drive & Motivation: can successfully handle multiple tasks, persists in the face of adversity, and takes both initiative and accountability for improving his/her own performance

Judgement: Displays good judgement, thinks ahead, anticipates questions and prioritises work tasks appropriately

Your experience and background:

An academic degree in finance, mathematics, statistics, engineering or similar.

2-5 years relevant work experience

Fluency in English is required

Strong Excel Skills

Basic knowledge of VBA, SAS or SQL

Strong analytical skills and attention to details

If this sounds like you, get in touch!

Firma oferuje:

Next steps

Submit your application no later than 07/31/2021.

At Nordea, we know that an inclusive workplace is a sustainable workplace. We deeply believe that our diverse backgrounds, experiences, characteristics and traits make us better at serving customers and communities. So please come as you are.

Please include permit for processing personal data in CV as following:

In accordance with art. 6 (1) a and b. Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation) hereinafter GDPR. I agree to have: my personal data, education and employment history proceeded for the purposes of current and future recruitment processes in Nordea Bank Abp.

The administrator of your personal data is: Nordea Bank Abp operating in Poland through its Branch, address: Aleja Edwarda Rydza Smiglego 20, 93-281 odz. Your personal data will be processed for the recruitment processes in Nordea Bank Abp. You have a right to access your personal data, right to rectify and right to delete. Disclosing the personal data in the scope specified by the provisions of Polish Labour Code from 26 June 1974 and executive acts are mandatory. Providing personal data is necessary to conduct the recruitment processes. The request for the deletion of your personal data means resignation from further participation in recruitment processes and causes the immediate removal of your application. Detailed information concerning processing of your personal data can be found at:





We reserve the right to reply only to selected applications.

Kontakt do pracodawcy:
Yes, no matter what

Yes, but it depends on variety

No, for medical reasons, uncertainty

No, principle

Vote

View Results
Maxine Olmsted (at left) and Anika Henderson walk with placards at the front of the Walk for Awareness, June 16.
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Streamlining of the tax regime and adoption of technology can help the government motivate businesses to be more tax compliant, finance and tax experts have said.

The experts made the submission at an event tagged Tax Administration in Nigeria and its Effects on Businesses, organized by the American Institute of Economic Researchs Bastiat Society of Nigeria in collaboration with Ominira Initiative for Economic Advancement.

The event, held at the University of Ibadan, was put together to facilitate dialogue about the challenges of tax administration in Nigeria, its effects on businesses, and how it could be better for both the government and the citizens.

Bimbo Adekanmbi, a former Oyo State Commissioner of Finance, said that taxes are onerous, and no matter how altruistic the intent is, it decreases the bottom line of businesses.

Mr Adekambi, who was the keynote speaker at the event, added that tax is a predictable and sustainable source of revenue for the government to deliver its obligations to the people.

According to him, the mind-numbing bureaucracy that is obtainable in Nigerias tax administration is disturbing.

When you want to apply for things like tax clearance certificate which should be obtainable in 24 hours or less, but could take as long as three months, he said.

To create alternative sources of revenue, the government has turned its focus on agriculture and taxes in recent years, and since then, the governments revenue from taxes has increased. In 2018, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) had the highest collection in history when it hits N5.3 trillion in revenue.

According to Mr Adekambi, the amount is low compared to what could be realized if the government provides value to taxpayers, adopts technology to streamline the tax processes, and eradicates the mind-numbing bureaucracy for tax clearance certificate issuance, withholding tax, and its entire system

In his submission, Sanmi Abiodun, a corporate lawyer at Audrey Oluwatoni Associates, also talked about the problems of weak compliance to tax payment by SMEs. This, according to him, is because of the multiplicity of taxes and corruption in tax administration.

In addition, lack of confidence in government and tax administration also contributes to why people would rather not pay their taxes, he said.

When the people know that the government will deliver infrastructure like constant power supply, good roads, and so on, they will find it easier to be tax compliant, says Mr Abiodun.
An ex-BB9ja housemate, Nina Onyenobi aka Nina Ivy, has been stripped of her brand ambassador deal with Mav Herbals, a butt enlargement brand, after going public with her Brazilian Butt Lift (BBL) procedure.

A Brazilian butt lift is a popular cosmetic procedure that involves the transfer of fat to help create more fullness in your backside.

Mav Herbals is a popular Nigerian herbal body sculpting brand.

Nina, a popular housemate in the BBNaija 2018 edition, signed the deal with Mav Herbal barely a month ago.

She has been called out by the brand for sharing photos and videos of herself undergoing a butt enlargement procedure at 305 Plastic Surgery, Florida, U.S.

Nina currently lives in the U.S. with her husband and son.

She bared it all on Instagram and the company has threatened to sue her for breach of contract after openly announcing that she went under the knife somewhere else. They said the action has damaged their public image and made them lose customers trust.

No apology

Nina has hit back at her critics and described them as hypocrites who are envious of her action. She also said that she informed the company prior to signing the contract.

She said, Most of you are suffering from depression because you dont want your current body and no money for surgery because you cant afford one. So all you gotta do is to sit and judge. Sis, I got my body done. I took out my fat and put it where I need it more and damn, this my new body is killing. I did it for me and not any of you.

And no, I never signed a contract not to have my body done before getting signed by any brand. In fact, I always tell my manager to tell them that I am getting surgery. So all these fuses are a waste of time.

Mav Herbals blow hot

Following Ninas response, Mav Herbals blew hot and then proceeded to issue a disclaimer. They also announced the cancellation of Ninas contract barely three weeks after the endorsement deal was signed.

Their statement read, How in the world do I explain to people about this damage you have done to my brand? Barely three weeks after you signed a deal with me, you went ahead to use the money to do plastic surgery. Why didnt you finish the deal as promised since you already collected money from me? I paid you millions of naira!

Asides from the fact that I am collecting my full balance back from you, I need a public apology for the confusion you have caused today on social media. I am the last person to be messed with because I know how hard I have worked for my brand. Is it a bad thing I paid you to influence for me?

They also criticised Nina for not reaching out to them to offer an apology.

As of press time, PREMIUM TIMES was unable to verify the service delivery of the brand as their Instagram account, @mav_herbals has been set to private following bashing by Ninas fans.

However, a quick check on their website reveals that they provide an array of services ranging from body and beauty enhancements as well as sexual enhancement products.

Nina, who owns a hair and beauty brand, Ninas empire, has made a name for herself as a beauty entrepreneur.

She launched her brand on May 31, 2018.

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The mother-of-one, who is married to a man simply identified as Mr Tosh, had her plastic surgery done on June 2.

She joins a long list of Nigerian celebrities like Toke Makinwa, Tonto Dikeh, and fellow ex-housemate, Koko, who have gone under the knife.
Armed robbers on Tuesday night attacked commuters who were stuck in traffic on the three-kilometre bridge, popularly known as Long Bridge, linking Lagos State with Ogun.

The robbers took advantage of the traffic congestion on the bridge, occasioned by the downpour, to injure and dispossess people of their belongings.

Some of the victims narrated their horrifying experiences separately in the hands of the armed robbers to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

A victim, Morenike Odusanya, said that she was yet to recover from the shocking experience caused by the carjackers on the bridge, adding that the two side windows of her car were hit during the operation.

It happened around 8.00 p.m. I was alone in the car when the armed robbers after attacking the car in front of me, broke my car windows and demanded my phones and other belongings.

I was speechless and could not utter a word because they looked too dangerous. The robbers, three in number, ransacked my car unhindered; looking for anything they could lay their hands on.

The traffic was so serious that nobody could attempt to come to my aid. I could observe that those around were helpless as well, so no need of calling for help.

After they were satisfied with ransacking my car, and they didnt find anything valuable on me, they left. We really need police presence on this bridge, she said.

A witness, Bayo Shotade, said the armed robbers allegedly stabbed another passenger close to him in the eye, adding that the criminals later fled after hearing gunshots from the police.

The police later came after a lady was stabbed in the eye and was covered in her own blood. Police were shooting in the air from a distance.

If they had been patrolling the bridge very well, they would have saved the day.

The police only showed their presence after the deed had been done, I think we are coming back to the era of constant robbery on this bridge.

A woman beside me was yelling that a man was still down under the bridge, obviously running away from the robbery scene. We just wanted to get off the spot, he said.

Another witness, Olatunde Ayeni, said the robbery lasted few minutes, adding that there had been reports of robbery incidents in the past days on the bridge.

They robbed the commuters for few minutes before it subsided. Police are all over the bridge combing underneath for them.

For some time now, we have been experiencing pockets of robbery incidents on this bridge which should serve as a wakeup call to the police and the authorities concerned, he said.

We responded

When contacted, the head of the Police Patrol Team monitoring the bridge, Adesola Agboade, said the police responded to the incident.

He said the police action resulted in chasing the armed robbers out of the bridge, but no arrest was made.

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The robbery incident was due to the heavy downpour which caused a traffic snarl from Warewa end of the bridge to the Berger end in Lagos State.

We got distress calls from commuters on the long bridge about the robbery incident and we responded, but by the time we got there, we did not meet them.

The police detachment close to the spot had to release gunshots and later spotted the boys and they gave them a chase, they ran under the bridge and escaped through the swampy bush, he said. (NAN)
The Nigerian government has told the ECOWAS Court that its ban on Twitter does not affect the human rights of Nigerians.

In its preliminary objection to a suit filed by a civil society group, SERAP, and 176 other entities, the Nigerian government argued that banning Twitter had criminalised the operations of the social media platform in Nigeria. The government, however, argued that such ban did not violate the freedom of expression of Nigerians.

The subject matter of the SERAP suit relates to the indefinite suspension of Twitter in Nigeria. This is not in any way connected to any Nigerian or SERAP. Individual users Twitter accounts are not suspended.

The right to freedom of expression is completely different from freedom of reach. The suspension of Twitter does not fall under the provisions of arts 8 and the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, the government argued.

Twitter as an entity is not an organization of any member state as it is an American microblogging networking service. The suspension of Twitter in Nigeria is not a right recognized under any treaty enforceable by this Court.

In the unlikely event that this Honourable Court agrees with SERAP that the suspension of Twitter is a fundamental right, the dissolution or liquidation of twitter as a profit-making entity may as well open a floodgate and vest the users the rights of a non-existent right.

Twitter is a profit-making entity which can be proscribed/dissolved in compliance with any national laws. The compulsory shut down of an entity cannot be termed the breach of any fundamental rights by this Honourable Court.

The suspension of Twitter in Nigeria is in compliance with the provisions of sections 420, 419 of the Penal Code [Northern Nigeria]; Federal Provisions Act, and section 58 of the Criminal Code Act. The operation of Twitter is in violation of Nigerian domestic legislation.

Details of the arguments by the parties and the ruling by the court were sent to PREMIUM TIMES by SERAP.

The Nigerian government also argued that the ECOWAS Court lacked jurisdiction to entertain the suit.

Ground Two: This Court lacks the jurisdiction to determine the criminalization of an act under Nigerian laws. The subject matter of the SERAP suit borders on the criminalization of Twitter operation in Nigeria pursuant to the Penal Code and the Criminal Code.

The use and operation of Twitter in Nigeria constitutes the offences of Importation of Prohibited publication under sections 420 and 421 or the offence of possession of seditious articles under section 419 of the Penal Code Federal Provisions Act.

In any event there is a right of action vested in the suspension of Twitter in Nigeria, the said right vests directly on Twitter and not individual users of Twitter. This is more so that individual users Twitter accounts were not tempered but only the operation of Twitter.

Nigerians and SERAP have no cause of action. The suspension of Twitter in Nigeria is in compliance with the provisions of sections 420, 419 of the Penal Code and section 58 of the Criminal Code, and sections 78 and 79 of CAMA 2020.

On Tuesday, the court dismissed Nigerias preliminary objection and granted a temporary order that essentially allows Nigerians to continue to use Twitter.

The court restrained the government of President Muhammadu Buhari and its agents from unlawfully imposing sanctions or doing anything whatsoever to harass, intimidate, arrest or prosecute Twitter and/or any other social media service provider(s), media houses, radio and television broadcast stations, the Plaintiffs and other Nigerians who are Twitter users, pending the hearing and determination of this suit.

The ruling followed the suit filed by SERAP and others, arguing that the unlawful suspension of Twitter in Nigeria, criminalization of Nigerians and other people using Twitter have escalated repression of human rights and unlawfully restricted the rights of Nigerians and other people to freedom of expression, access to information, and media freedom in the country.

The court gave the order after hearing arguments from the Solicitor to SERAP, Femi Falana, and lawyer to the government Maimuna Shiru.

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The court has listened very well to the objection by Nigeria. The court has this to say. Any interference with Twitter is viewed as inference with human rights, and that will violate human rights. Therefore, this court has jurisdiction to hear the case. The court also hereby orders that the application be heard expeditiously. The Nigerian government must take immediate steps to implement the order, the court ruled.

Nigeria recently suspended Twitters operations in the country, after the social media giant deleted a controversial tweet by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The Nigerian government also accused Twitter of working against Nigerias interests and accused its founder, Jack Dorsey, of sponsoring Nigerians who protested against police brutality last October.

The Twitter ban has been condemned by many Nigerians, civil society groups and foreign organisations and governments as a clampdown on the freedom of expression.

The government announced on Tuesday that it had set up a committee to negotiate with Twitter.
Angela Otaluka, the judge of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Apo, Abuja, on Tuesday, sent a former federal lawmaker, Farouk Lawan, to jail for bribery on Tuesday.

In arriving at the decision sentencing Mr Lawan to seven years jail term, the judge relied heavily on the testimony of billionaire oil magnate, Femi Otedola, who was a principal character in the bribery scandal that broke out in 2012.

During the trial, both men admitted that $500,000 changed hands between them, but each of them claimed he gave or collected the money in a discreet operation to obtain evidence of crime against the other.

Ms Otaluka dismissed Mr Lawans account and believed Mr Otedolas version of the story in her judgment on Tuesday.

This is why:

Testimonies

The bribery scandal was a fallout of the probe conducted by Mr Lawan-led ad-hoc committee of the House of Representatives on the multi-billion naira fraud in the federal governments fuel subsidy scheme in 2012.

Mr Otedolas firm, Zenon Oil and Gas Ltd, was accused by the committee of fraudulently benefitting from the scheme.

The committee alleged that Zenon Oil obtained $230 million foreign exchange from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to import Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) commonly referred to as petrol under the subsidy scheme, but failed to use it for the purpose.

But in the charges subsequently filed in court, the federal government accused Mr Lawan of corruptly demanding $3milion and eventually taking $500,000 as bribe from Mr Otedola to exonerate Zenon Oil of the oil subsidy fraud.

While testifying as the fifth and prosecution witness in Mr Lawans trial, however, Mr Otedola told the judge that none of his firms participated in the fuel subsidy scheme, saying Mr Lawan only put Zenons name on the list of indicted firms to create a room to extort him.

Led in evidence by the head of the prosecution, Adegboyega Awomolo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mr Otedola walked the court through the journey of his encounters with Mr Lawan, whom he said demanded to clear Zenon Oil.

I eventually contacted the Department of the State Security (DSS) when he (Mr Lawan) asked me for $3 million bribe.

The DSS gave me the marked currencies and six operatives and gadget which we used to put him on tape, Mr Otedola said.

During the trial, the prosecution played a video clip showing where Mr Lawan was seen receiving a swollen envelope which was said to have contained the $500,000 from Mr Otedola.

Mr Otedola said Mr Lawan went on to remove his firm from the list of the indicted firms after receiving the $500,000 cash.

After the early hours of April 24, 2012, (the time the money was paid) he left and removed the name of Zenon from the list of indicted companies, Mr Otedola said.

Lawans version

On his part, Mr Lawan, who testified along with two others as defence witnesses, said he obtained the money from Mr Otedola as evidence of moves made by owners of various indicted companies to induce him and members of his committee to exonerate their firms.

The secretary of the committee, Boniface Emenalo, who was initially charged as Mr Lawans co-accused but later turned to a prosecution witness, also admitted under cross-examination by Mike Ozekhome-led defence team that he took $100,000 from Mr Otedola as evidence of inducement.

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But Mr Otedola denied pressuring the committee members to accept bribe to free his firm from indictment.

He said he chose to report Mr Lawan to the State Security Service after he baselessly indicted his company and then come arround to demand bribe to exonerate the company.

I could not have put pressure on him because Zenon Oil was not involved in the theft of the subsidy fund.

He did demand. And if he did not demand, why will he collect and expect a balance of $2.5 million? He mentioned to me that the $3 million will be shared by himself and some other members of the House, Mr Otedola said.

Judge decides

In evaluating the evidence before the court, Ms Otaluka said Mr Lawan failed to impugn the testimonies of the prosecution witnesses, including Mr Otedola.

She said Mr Lawans acceptance of the $500,000 from Mr Otedola could not have been for anti-corruption purpose since he neither reported it to any law enforcement agency nor informed any of his committee members about it.

The defendant did not impugn Mr Otedolas evidence in the course of his (Mr Lawans) defence.

The conduct of the defendant established the ingredients of corruption as he did not report any case of inducement to any law enforcement agency.

From the abundance of the evidence before me, the defendant corruptly asked for a bribe of three million dollars.

He collected the sum of 500,000 dollars from Mr Otedola, while expecting a balance of $2.5 million.

The defendants corrupt intention was the motive behind his ignoble conduct, rather than his defence that he collected the money from Mr Otedola in order to make an example of the fight against corruption.

The defendant never told any of his committee members about the fact that he had collected the sum of $500,000 as evidence of inducement as he never called them as witnesses in the suit, the judge noted, the judge said.

It was a clear case of demanding and receiving bribe to pervert the course of justice, the judge said also quoting the testimony of a police investigator.

The judge took a further swipe at Mr Lawan.

The receipt of $500,000 influenced the defendants action to hurriedly go to the House of Representatives and remove Zenon Oil Gas company from the list of indicted in the fuel subsidy scam in Nigeria, Ms Otaluka said.

In her overall assessment of the testimonies of Mr Lawan and his two other defence witnesses, the judge held they were unreliable.

The totality of the evidence of Defence Witnesses (DW) 1 and 3 is worthless. For over 10 minutes, DW 1 could not compose himself, and he muttered about his position at his place of work. Their evidence is not attributed any credibility.

When DW1 was put under cross-examination, his initial claim of being a legal practitioner was discredited. He could not tell the court what he knew about the defendants case, the judge said.
More than one year after the hopes of 13,489 fresh graduates of the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Akoka, to receive their honours were abruptly dashed as a result of the cancellation of the institutions 51st convocation ceremonies, the institution has announced new dates for the ceremonies.

The cancellation, which followed the directive of the National Universities Commission (NUC) based on an instruction by the minister of education, Adamu Adamu, was announced on March 5, 2020.

The announcement came just 24 hours after the universitys vice-chancellor, flanked by the members of the management and senate of the institution, addressed a press briefing to announce the schedules of activities to mark the ceremonies.

The decision, which attracted public condemnation, was the climax of the frosty relationship between the Ogundipe-led university management and the governing council which was chaired by Wale Babalakin, an alumnus of the university and a lawyer.

But a notice issued on Wednesday by a principal registrar, corporate affairs office at the communication unit of the office of the vice-chancellor. Nonye Oguama, noted that a pre-convocation press briefing to be addressed by the vice-chancellor, Oluwatoyin Ogundipe, would hold on June 30, 2021.

Convocation cancellation

Since 2017 when Mr Ogundipe assumed office as the universitys 12th substantive vice-chancellor, the relationship between his management and the governing council led by Mr Babala has been frosty.

The relationship peaked in May, 2019, when the governing council set up an investigative committee to probe allegations of financial mismanagement, among others, against Mr Ogundipe.

There were queries and counter-queries between the two quarters leading to peaceful protests by workers unions on the campus.

The climax was when Mr Babalakin complained to the minister that the scheduled convocation ceremonies did not receive his blessings and urged the minister to halt the process.

But the university management said the same governing council approved the N70 million budget for the ceremonies, and countered the claim that it wasnt carried along.

The workers unions on the campus, and particularly the universitys chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) also intervened and argued that the law governing the university puts the matter of convocation under the purview of the university senate, the management and the chancellor.

The union said the pro-chancellor, who is the governing council chairman, has no role to play in matters of convocation.

But in his reaction to Mr Babalakins complaint, the minister through the ministrys permanent secretary, Sonny Echonu, wrote to the NUC, as the regulatory agency, to inform the university of its suspension order.

The university, PREMIUM TIMES learnt, received a memo from the NUC on March 3, less than 24 hours after the VCs pre-convocation press briefing, confirming the decision of the minister.

Many graduands, parents and well-wishers who had arrived Lagos from far distances including overseas ahead of the ceremonies, were disappointed by the last-minute action, and heaped the blame on the governing council.

Some national dailies including The Guardian, wrote editorials on the development, analysing the possible consequences of the action on the image and branding of the ivory tower.

The crisis eventually consumed the universitys governing council as President Muhammadu Buhari, in November, 2020, announced its dissolution and reinstated the then suspended vice-chancellor.

Varsity sends results to graduands

As a damage control measure, the university opted to send to each of the graduands a soft copy of the statement of results.

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The decision, which was endorsed by the universitys senate, was aimed at assuaging the angry graduands and offered them an opportunity to own a document that could help in their career or further academic pursuits.

New date set

Apparently following the constitution of a new governing council, the university has said it is committed to covering the lost grounds.

The coronavirus pandemic did a huge blow too, but without letting down the guard, we are prepared to reclaim the glory and return the university to the right path to excellence, Mr Ogundipe said recently.

The university has, therefore, lined up series of activities to mark the aborted 51st ceremony, including exhibition and convocation lectures.

According to the notice by Mrs Oguama, the governor of the central bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, will on July 5, deliver the convocation lecture.

The event is scheduled to be chaired by the overseer of citadel global community church, Tunde Bakare.

The congregation for the award of first degrees, diplomas, certificates and prizes to graduating students of the faculties of education, social sciences, arts, environmental sciences and science will take place in the morning and afternoon sessions on Tuesday, July 6, the notice states in part.

The event is scheduled to end on July 8 with the congregation for the award of PhD, degrees and best PhD award of the school of postgraduate studies and conferment of honorary doctorate degrees, emeritus professorship and distinguished professorship.
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The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has said it will resume its suspended industrial action in Kaduna State, alleging a breach of the agreement it signed with the state government to end the action in May.

The union, however, did not state the date the strike would resume but it said the states councils and affiliate unions have been directed to mobilise and officially communicate to all employers of labour in the state to get ready.

The NLC decided after an emergency National Executive Council meeting presided over by its President, Ayuba Wabba, on Tuesday.

The union has been on a warpath with the Kaduna government following the decision of Governor Nasir El-Rufai to lay off civil servants.

The governor claimed that the wage bill was gulping too much of the states revenue.

PREMIUM TIMES had reported how the NLC in protest of the governments decision, embarked on a five-day warning strike on May 18, paralysing business activities in the state.

The state government, in its reaction, threatened to lay off the protesting workers and not to back down from the planned mass disengagement of civil servants.

But following the intervention of the federal government, the NLC suspended the strike after two days and went into negotiation with the government to resolve the matter.

Breach of agreement

During Tuesdays meeting, the NLC said it resolved to resume the suspended strike because the state, as against the outcome of the meeting brokered by the federal government, has started to sack its workers.

Mr Wabba accused the governor of failing to respect the Memorandum of Understanding brokered between the NLC and the state government by the Federal Government, saying the governor has continued to violate the provisions of the MoU, especially the No victimisation clause.

Addressing reporters at the end of the meeting, the NLC president said the congress, after exhausting all avenues, including writing letters to President Muhammadu Buhari and Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, has decided to resume the strike.

Owing to the above grievous infractions and continued provocation by the Kaduna State government against workers and trade unions in the state and although we have also complained formally to the federal government through the President, and Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment on the non-adherence to the MoU, NEC has resolved that the earlier decision to withdraw all services and protest this neo-liberal and extreme right-wing policy should take effect without further delay.

Mobilisation of all our state councils and all affiliates should take place immediately and all employers of labour should be put on notice as required by our extant laws, he noted.
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A former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Charles Soludo, has won the governorship primary of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) held on Wednesday in Awka.

Mr Soludo, a professor of econometrics, had been disqualified earlier by a faction of the party headed by Jude Okeke, along with other aspirants.

But the National Chairman of the party, Victor Oye, had told the public to disregard the news about Mr Soludos disqualification.

Who suspended him? Please forget the impostors and desperadoes, Mr Oye said in a text message to PREMIUM TIMES earlier on Wednesday.

APGA has no factions. We are one, united party. Ask those parading themselves as acting chairman which convention produced them? I am the only constitutionally, legally and legitimately elected National Chairman of APGA. It is not in contention, he added.

The 60-year-old Mr Soludo, in his acceptance speech after the primary, said he was humbled by his choice as APGAs governorship candidate.

This moment is Gods time, and Gods time is the time, Mr Soludo said to his supporters and delegates which included Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra State.

Mr Soludo said he was grateful to the party delegates, the leadership of APGA and Mr Obiano for electing him as the party governorship candidate.

Mr Soludo was attacked in April by gunmen in his hometown of Isuofia, Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra State, during a political gathering.

Three police officers who were protecting him were shot dead in the attack.

Mr Soludo was the CBN governor from 2004 to 2009.
About seven Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) have refused to appear before the Senate Public Accounts Committee to account for public funds at their disposal.

They include Ministries of Information, Police, Health and the Federal Fire Service.

Others are Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Management (NIMASA), Nigeria Police Force and Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria.

This was contained in the annual report of the Auditor-General for the Federation on the accounts of the Federation for 2015.

The report was submitted by the committee and was considered by the Senate on Wednesday.

The defaulting MDAs are part of the 114 MDAs queried by the Auditor-General of the Federation for incessant violation of extant rules, some of which include non-retirement of personal advances within a financial year and grant of cash advances above approved limit.

Other violations include uncooperative attitude towards auditors and extra-budgetary expenditure without the National Assemblys approval.

Details

In the report seen by PREMIUM TIMES, the committee noted that of the 114 MDAs queried by the Auditor-General, 84 made submissions and appeared before the panel to defend the queries raised.

21 MDAs sent in written responses but did not appear before the panel.

The seven MDAs that failed to appear before the committee also refused to send written responses to the queries raised against them.

Discoveries

Chairman of the committee, Matthew Urhoghide, who presented the report, said the panel discovered that there was consistent contravention of relevant Constitutional provisions and other Extant Laws by the office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.

He said the late submission of annual financial statements is a violation of Section 49(1) and (2) of the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA) 2007 and Section 85 (5) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

He further disclosed that there were withdrawals of funds by the Executive Arm from Special Fund Accounts for purposes other than the objectives the funds were created, and without recourse to the National Assembly for authourisation  contrary to Section 80(4) of the 1999 Constitution as amended.

There was absence of collaboration among the two key agencies involved in the management and superintending over of public funds  office of the Auditor-General and the Office of the Accountant-General and the lack of cooperation between both offices poses a barrier to efficient, effective and transparent audit process of the nations Federation Account, he added.

The lawmaker, therefore, underscored the need to pass the Audit Service Bill into law, to strengthen and streamline the audit process with a view to ensuring prudence in public finance and transactions.

Lawan talks tough

In his remarks, the Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, said the Senate will publish the names of government agencies that have refused to appear before the panel to account for public funds.

Any public official, he said, that refuses to account for public funds at their disposal must be shown the way out of office.

This is one of our major responsibilities as a parliament, to hold the executive to account. Whoever is given the responsibility and the trust of running any agency with public funds must be accountable to the parliament on behalf of the people.

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You have indicated a certain number of MDAs who failed to come to the committee after invitation, I want you to go through your documents  the invitation letters with reminders. This Senate will publish the names of these agencies for the public to know.

This Senate will insist, any public servant or civil servant that is given public funds for public good and has questions to answer and refuse to appear to answer, should have no business being in government. Because all of us are supposed to be accountable to the people and, therefore, if someone feels that he is not going to be accountable, then that person has no business remaining in office, he said.

While he commended MDAs that appeared before the panel and those that responded to their queries, Mr Lawan lamented that many agencies have refused to comply with accounting systems put in place by the office of the Accountant-General.

This, he said, is largely responsible for fraudulent transactions by some MDAs.

He, therefore, tasked the Public Accounts Committee to ensure that agencies of government comply with the accounting systems and procedures specified by the office of the Accountant-General.

Most of the agencies of government do not adhere to the established accounting mechanisms that will ensure accountability and transparency sent to them by the office of the Accountant-General. We should go ahead and check the accounting systems established in most of these agencies.

ALSO READ: NCC shielding officials who stole public funds from prosecution

In my experience, there was an agency of the government in 2005 or 2006 that spent N1 billion naira on what they called welfare. And that is to tell you that there is no system to stop this kind of thing. So, we should go aheadand look at the systems they follow so that we stop people from doing the wrong things before we start to look for a remedy.

He added that the chamber would consider the eventual recommendations of the Public Accounts Committee after it comes up with a document that neatly outlines and summarises them for consideration.

The report needs our study, just like most of our colleagues said, lets read it and then come back to look at the recommendations.

But, Ill also suggest that you should have all the recommendations in one place, because it is the recommendations that we will consider, instead of going through all the documents before we pass the recommendations. We should have the recommendations summarised.

After considering the report of the committee, the Senate suspended adoption of the recommendations pending when the committee summarises its recommendations to the Senate.
It is very impressive that somewhere in Abuja, you can have so much manufacturing going on, so many people employed and so much innovation and creativity on display, said Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Tuesday, during a visit to DLK Clothing Signatures LTD, a manufacturer of shoes, garments and other items, located in Lugbe, a suburb of Abuja.

The vice president accompanied by the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Niyi Adebayo, among other officials, also visited Roving Heights Book Store located at the Wuse II area of the FCT, as the 2021 MSME Week gets underway.

At the Lugbe facility, Mr Osinbajo was conducted around the different production lines by the CEO of the company, Lovelyn Mbanefo. He was taken around the shoe-making line, garment factory, and face mask production line. The VP interacted with the workers at the factory as he observed the inner workings and the different processes in the production line.

At the Roving Heights Book Store in Wuse II, the vice president was conducted around the book store by Nike Oyetunde, the Co-founder of the book store, where the professor bought a few titles and was told about the business operations and how sales fare in the book store.

Speaking in a chat with journalists during the tour, Mr Osinbajo said the Federal Government will continue to give priority attention to MSMEs especially those creating jobs for Nigerians.

According to him, this is our MSME Week, we are looking at star MSMEs here and there, looking at what they are doing and in what ways we can support them, so we are looking forward to working with them.

At the Lugbe stop, the vice president told reporters we are here at the DLK manufacturing company. They manufacture, as you have seen, boots, shoes, special uniforms for the NYSC, for the Armed Forces, and they also make bags and masks. Even face masks.

This is quite an impressive facility because first, there is a wide range of products that are manufactured right here, and secondly, there is a good number of young men and women that are employed.

Thirdly, and importantly, the equipment is state-of-the-art. We have looked around and we have seen that you can do practically anything here. You can do all of the manufacture of boots for the Armed Forces, and they already have something they are doing for the Armed Forces, the Customs Service, and the NYSC.

He expressed satisfaction with the operations of both MSMEs and said what he had observed was quite impressive.

In commemoration of the 2021 MSME Week, culminating in the World MSME Day on June 27, a series of activities have been planned.

Only yesterday, the vice president held a virtual interaction with leaders of the organised private sector on issues bothering on the economy, especially the growth of MSMEs.

The President of NASME, Orimadegun Agboade, praised the vice president for his personal attention to MSMEs Clinics, describing the VPs support as more than what we can express.

On Thursday, June 24, the first National MSME Discourse which will focus on challenges and prospects in the MSME sector will be declared open by the vice president with panelists and discussants drawn from the public and private sectors.

On Friday, the National Fashion and Arts Exhibition featuring notable fashion designers across the country will be held at the State House Banquet Hall, while the grand finale of the week, the National MSME Awards will hold on Sunday, June 27 at the same venue.

Laolu Akande

Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Publicity

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An Abuja-based lawyer, Emeka Okoye, has sued the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) and the 36 states of the federation over financial autonomy for the judicial arm of government.

The Judicial Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) had embarked on April 6, embarked on a nationwide strike that grounded courts across the country for about two months

Other respondents joined as defendants in the suit are the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) and the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF).

In his originating summons dated June 18, 2021, the plaintiff, Mr Okoye, sued the 36 states through their Attorneys General.

Among the questions he formulated for the court to find an answer to in resolving the matter is Whether by the provisions of sections 121 (1), (2) and (3) of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), it is proper for the state Governor to include the budgetary expenditure of the judiciary in the state which is charged upon the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the state in the budgetary estimates the Governor presents to the state House of Assembly?

He also asked, Whether by the provisions of section 121 (3) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria(as amended), it is proper to pay funds standing to the credit of the judiciary in the state to any other person or authority outside the heads of court in the various states as directed by section 121(3) of the 1999 constitution?

Whether by the community reading of sections 81(3), 121(3) and 162(9) of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria(as amended), the Federation Account Allocation Committee is right in paying the fund standing to the credit of the judiciary to various state Governors and not National Judicial Council as directed by the above sections of the constitution?

It is stated on the document that the defendants have 30 days to respond to the suit.

Prayers

In the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/502/2021, the plaintiff, through his counsel, Oba Maduabuchi, sought an order of the court directing the Federation Account Allocation Committee (2nd defendant) to henceforth pay directly all monies standing to the credit of the judiciary to the National Judicial Council (NJC).

The plaintiff prayed for an order directing the Accountant General of each state of the federation to pay directly to each head of court in the state, all such funds standing to the credit of the judiciary in the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the state.

In his 19-paragraph affidavit filed in support of his suit, the plaintiff said the 1999 constitution is the grund norm upon which all laws and actions of governments and agencies derive their powers and authority.

He said Nigeria, upon independence, adopted a federal system with three tiers of federal, state and local governments with three arms  the executive, legislature and judiciary.

Mr Okoye said the Nigerian constitution created 10 courts for the federation and the 36 states.

He said the same constitution made various provisions for the disbursements of funds due to the judiciary from the federation account to be paid directly to the National Judicial Council and not any other person or authority.

He added that the constitution equally makes provisions for how funds standing to the credit of the judiciary from the consolidated funds in the states are to be disbursed a and paid directly to the various heads of courts of the various states.

He however noted that under the system being adopted in violation of the constitution, funds meant for the judiciary are being to the governors of the 36 states, instead of the National Judicial Council (NJC) and heads of court in the states.

He said the direct payment of the fund due to the judiciary to the governors of the 36 states is against the spirit and letters of the 1999 constitution.

He argued that the NJC is the only body authorised by the constitution to receive and distribute funds due to the judiciary either in states or the federal courts for their capital and recurrent expenditures.

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The suit has yet to be fixed for hearing.
The judicial panels of inquiry set up to investigate cases of police brutality and human rights violations have concluded sittings and submitted their reports in all the North-central states with the exception of Kogi and Benue States.

The two states are behind Kwara, Plateau, Niger and Nasarawa whose panels have submitted their reports.

It will be recalled that the federal and state governments had agreed to set up the panels to address grievances that fuelled the historic #EndSARS protests against police brutality in October 2020.

The #EndSARS protests led to the disbandment of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), the notorious police unit whose inhuman activities triggered the protests.

The protests gained ground in the southern parts of the country and the North-central region, but only held in only a few of the 13 states in the North-west and North-east regions.

Some panels across the country have concluded their public hearing and submitted their reports to the governors of the respective states.

PREMIUM TIMES gives you an update on the status of the panels in the North-central states.

Niger

Governor Abubakar Bello of Niger State inaugurated a 14-man #EndSARS panel led by Ishaku Usman, a retired judge, on October 23, 2020.

The panel, after concluding hearing on the 17 petitions it received, submitted its report to the government on February 24, 2021.

Presenting the report at the Government House in Minna, Mr Usman said 53 witnesses appeared before the panel, while 50 exhibits, including three teeth of a young lady, three death certificates, 33 empty teargas canisters and four bullet shells, were tendered.

Your Excellency, in the course of our two months sitting, we saw the good, the bad and the best of the personnel of Nigerian police, had said during the period of the inquest.

As part of its recommendations, the panel awarded N6 million compensation to a woman whose husband was extra-judicially killed by the police.

Nasarawa

The Nasarawa State Judicial Commission of Inquiry said it received 16 petitions.

The eight-member panel had its public hearings at the State Ministry of Justice in Lafia, the state capital.

The panel, headed by Badamasi Maina, a retired judge, submitted its report to Governor Abdullahi Sule on April 29.

It awarded N480 million as compensation for victims of police brutality and recommended improved welfare conditions for men of the police force.

Governor Sule, in his response, during the presentation ceremony, assured that the panels report would be deliberated upon at a meeting of the state executive council.

This would be followed by the recommendation of the Attorney-General of the state, which would be acted upon by the government, Mr Sule noted.

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Plateau

Also in October 2020, Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State set up the states judicial panel of inquiry to investigate complaints of police brutality and related extra-judicial killings in the state.

The panel submitted its final report in mid-June, recommending the award of N152 million as compensation to victims of police excesses.

The panel submitted the report at a banquet as part of the June 12 Democracy Day activities in the state.

The chairman, Philomena Lot, said N152 million was recommended as compensation for the families of petitioners, adding that a careful implementation of the panels recommendations, especially payment of damages to victims, is crucial in dousing tensions.

Mr Lalong promised that all recommendations of the panel concerning the state government would be implemented.

He said others requiring the intervention of the federal government would be forwarded accordingly.

Kwara

In Kwara State, the #EndSARS panel led by Tunde Garba, a retired judge, received 25 petitions of rights violations by police officers.

After a series of public hearings, the panel submitted its report to Governor Abdulrahaman Abdulrazaq on February 25.

Mr Garba said if the government adopts the recommendations of the panel, it will help to support victims of identified cases of police brutality and improve the living conditions of serving and retired police officers.

The panels report was based on various petitions received, bordering on alleged police brutality, unlawful arrests, extortion, violation of fundamental human rights, and impunity, the retired judge said.

The report is in three volumes; Volume 1 is the main report, Volume 2 contains the petitions received and adopted by the panel, while Volume 3 contains the list of all the exhibits tendered and admitted during the panels proceedings, he said.

He added, The main report contains proceedings, our findings and recommendations on each of the 25 petitions received and treated holistically by the panel.

It is therefore our hope that the recommendations therein if adopted by the government will wipe the tears and put a smile on the faces of all the victims of police brutality and even the serving and retired police officers inclusive.

The panel recommended, among others, that some erring SARS operatives indicted for unlawful activities be prosecuted and legitimate petitioners compensated with varying sums of money.

The report also recommended that officers of the Nigerian police be made to enjoy adequate training and their salaries and emoluments reviewed upward to reduce excesses and improve productivity in the system.

Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq ,however, promised to set up an implementation committee on its recommendations.

Inconclusive

While the four states are looking forward to implementation, the panels in Benue and Kogi States are yet to conclude the public hearing.

In Benue, Governor Samuel Ortom inaugurated members of a Judicial Panel of Inquiry into human rights violations by police and its disbanded notorious SARS unit.

At the inaugural sitting, the chairman of the panel, Adam Onum, a retired judge, explained that the panel, which had a six-month lifespan, would sit three times a week until there was a need to increase the number of days.

In Kogi, Governor Yahaya Bello inaugurated a 10-member panel of enquiry consisting personnel from the police, State Security Service, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Ministry of Justice, and the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA).

Unlike other states, the Kogi state government codenamed the panel Human Rights Special Intervention Group (HRSIG).

Both states panels are yet to submit their reports to the state governments.

According to Justin Gbagir, the chairman of Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) in Makurdi, Benue State capital, the public hearing was stalled by the judiciary workers strike that lasted two months.

Mr Gbagir told PREMIUM TIMES that the panel will soon resume its hearing in Makurdi since the workers have resumed.

On his part, the chairman of the Kogi State panel, Ibrahim Alhassan, a lawyer, said his committee is rounding off and will make its report available to the state government soon.

So far, we received six petitions. Two of the people did not show up. One of them, his cow was detained in a police station since 2016. Another, his house was demolished and the police are still investigating, Mr Alhassan told our reporter.

How successful?

Assessing the success of the #EndSARS panels, public affairs analysts in the region said the commissions have not achieved the purpose they were set up for

To me, the protest should have continued as it almost addressed our national problems. The panel is a distraction created by the federal government of Nigeria as this is clothed in the same illegitimacy, the hallmark of life and living in Nigeria today, Daniel Makolo, a lawyer said.

The Executive Director of Brain Builders Youths Development Initiative (BBYDI), Abideen Olasupo, faulted the lack of transparency of the state governments and implementation process for panels that have submitted the report.

Has the government given the people access to the full reports?, he questioned, citing the case of the Kwara State government.

Mr Olasupo, however, said the panels are not successful until the reports have been implemented to the letter.
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The Governor of Borno State, Babagana Zulum, on Wednesday says famine is imminent in the state unless its farmers can return to their farms.

Mr Zulum told BBC Hausa Service that the situation has become pathetic as thousands of refugees who have returned to their communities have no food and cannot cultivate their farmland.

No insecurity is worse than food insecurity. Without food to eat terrible things can happen. We have reached a situation that if people are not allowed to farm they can kill themselves and eat, Mr Zulum, a professor, said.

Borno is now experiencing food insecurity. We cannot wait for things to get perfect for people to go to farm, we need to be resilient to Boko Haram attacks. We cannot accept a situation where five or 10 gunmen can dislodge a town with over ten thousand dwellers, the governor said.

People cannot be allowed to die of hunger and our children not going to school, that cannot happen, Mr Zulum added

The governor said the non-governmental organisations giving support have done their best but are no longer providing food assistance because they are overwhelmed.

Mr Zulum said people have to return to their communities to farm and transact businesses.

Nigerias North-east region has been enmeshed in a bloody insurgency for over a decade which has resulted in thousands of deaths and mass displacement of residents in Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe states.

Attacks on peasants communities in the region have continued despite claims by the government that the insurgency had been defeated.
A self-styled Yoruba activist, Sunday Adeyemo, also known as Sunday Igboho, has announced his plan to lead a Yoruba Nation protest in Lagos.

Mr Igboho said the rally would hold on 3 July at Freedom Park in Ojota. The proposed rally was announced through his spokesperson, Olayomi Koiki, on Facebook.

We are sending a peaceful message to Governor Sanwo-Olu. We do not mind any other person who is saying we should not come to Lagos. Sanwo-Olu is the chief security officer of the land and we are coming to Lagos.

July 3rd is the most important date; nobody cannot say we should not come to Lagos. It is a peaceful rally.

PREMIUM TIMES in the past reported that Mr Igbohos rally had taken place in Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Ekiti and Oyo States. In some cases, police forcefully dispersed the agitators.

The Lagos police spokesperson, Muyiwa Adejobi, said he is not aware of the rally.

I am not aware of Sunday Igbohos planned Lagos rally. When the command is aware, the command will react to that. For now, we are not aware of that, he said.

Shelve your rally

But the All Progressives Congress (APC), UK Chapter, has urged Mr Igboho, to shelve the rally. The group, in a statement by its chairman, Phillip Idaewor, argued that the rally might be hijacked by hoodlums to unleash terror on Lagos residents.

We are not opposed to the ideas of making Nigeria work better for the many and not the few, the group said in a statement.

Indeed, our party promised restructuring of Nigeria in our manifesto and it is our view that this remains the best course of action to reclaim the narrative from citizens who now feel alienated both from the government and country.

Considering the state of insecurity that the government is battling across the country, we feel that the rally is ill-timed.

No doubt, people have rights all over the world to peaceful protests but the situation in the country is such that all efforts must be geared to stop any gathering or association that may further worsen the security situation in the country.

We urge Yoruba youths and supporters of Ighoho to encourage him to pull back on this mission as it may lead to loss of lives and destruction of property. Our main concern is about our Lagos, part of the groups statement read.

We believe in one Nigeria and we must not allow those calling for its breakup to tear us apart irrespective of challenges currently faced by the nation. This is the historical beckoning to Nigerians to keep working hard towards a united country.

As diaspora Nigerians, we know from the experience of mixing with people from around the world, that Africa more than ever before, needs Nigeria to become a strong, stable and prosperous country.

Yoruba Nation agitation is a political ideology to realise the independence and sovereign country for the Yoruba race in Nigeria but many political leaders in the region have rejected and kicked against the idea.

Former Governor of Lagos, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, alongside Speaker of the House of Representatives Femi Gbajabiamila, Bisi Akande and all leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the South-West, in a meeting in Lagos last month, strongly opposed the agitation.

They called for ethnic and religious unity instead of a divided nation.

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The fact that there was a leakage (from the roof) at the National Assembly on Tuesday is a clear testimony and confirmation that the building needs rehabilitation, Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, has said.

The legislative complex, he said, belongs to Nigerians and deserves to be rehabilitated.

He said this at the start of the plenary on Wednesday.

Mr Lawan was responding to a Point of Order raised by the Deputy Chief Whip, Sabi Abdullahi, who faulted some reports of the leakage on Tuesday.

Mr Sabi had particularly picked holes in the report by Channels Television, which he said was infringed upon his privileges as a lawmaker.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how the roof of the National Assembly began to leak shortly after the rain on Tuesday morning.

It was the main lobby of the building  between both chambers  that had water dripping from the top to other wings of the building.

The Press Centre, where journalists sit to monitor plenary, was also affected.

This was despite numerous budgetary allocations, amounting to billions, they have been made to the National Assembly specifically for renovations.

Query

In his Point of Order, Mr Abdullahi said many issues raised in the Channels TV report, infringed on his privilege and his colleagues.

In that report, three things were reported that were very inaccurate, that there was heavy downpour or leakage in the chamber. That was not correct. There was leakage around the premises.

It was reported that because of that leakage, it delayed our sitting. That also was not correct. The leadership had housekeeping matters and until the leadership enters the chamber, sitting would not begin.

Thirdly and the most critical, was that the leadership approved N37 billion for the rehabilitation. This is nothing further from the truth.

He explained that although N37 billion was approved for the rehabilitation of the building, the money was spread into different phases at N9 billion for each phase. This, he said, was because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In his response, Mr Lawan warned against fake and inaccurate reports even as he said Tuesdays incident was a confirmation of the need for rehabilitation.

Let me also say that Channels TV reporter may not be responsible for that report, our members of the Press Corps are in tune with what we do here and what happens around us.

Let me advise the media, this is irresponsible I must say, seek the truth, investigate properly before you compile and send your report.

The fact there was a leakage to me is a clear testimony, confirmation and vindication of the position the National Assembly took initially. Everyone knows that this place is overdue for rehabilitation.

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He further explained how President Muhammadu Buhari had directed the late chief of staff, Abba Kyari, to ensure that the fund was sourced and released for the project.

When the N37 billion was approved, it was not a National Assembly budget, it was an FCDA budget.

If this place leaks we are not holding our democracy with the respect it has. We expect the press to inform the people responsibly.

This house is the house of Nigerians. It belongs to Nigerians and it deserves to be rehabilitated, he said.

It is not clear how much has been released for the rehabilitation of the building so far. It is also not clear when the renovation would begin.
The Governor of Borno State, Babagana Zulum, says he is sending displaced persons back to their communities so that they can farm and help tackle rising food insecurity in the state.

Mr Zulum spoke on Thursday in an interview with BBC Hausa Service.

The governor said over 100,000 refugees from Damasak, who fled the farming community in Borno State to Niger Republic have returned home.

He said residents have to return home and farm.

Thousands of women and children were displaced. While returning them, some were abducted by the insurgents. I am visiting the troubled communities to motivate others to return to their communities.

We have returned IDPs to Baga, Dikwa and several other communities hitherto deserted due to Boko Haram attacks.

No insecurity is worse than food insecurity. Without food to eat terrible things can happen. We have reached a situation that if people are not allowed to farm they can kill themselves and eat, Mr Zulum said.

Borno is now experiencing food insecurity. We cannot wait for things to get perfect for people to go to farm, we need to be resilient against Boko Haram attacks. We cannot accept a situation where five or 10 gunmen can dislodge a town with over ten thousand dwellers.

Mr Zulum said people have to return to their communities to farm and resume their businesses.

Were returning the displaced persons after comprehensive security reports that their communities are safe and we did that through careful analysis of the areas before returning them and we will continue to do that.

The IDPs are returning to occupy existing houses. The federal government is building 10,000 housing units and the Borno State Government has built thousands of houses and is now empowering the returnees with building materials and some tokens to build mud houses for the meantime, Mr Zulum said.

Mr Zulum said he avoided using aircraft when visiting the troubled communities, to demonstrate that road travels are safe.

Why should we be afraid to travel by road? We only have one life to live and only God can decide when to take your life. That gave me the motivation to visit the troubled areas, he said.

Conflict in the North-East

Nigerias North-east region has been enmeshed in a bloody insurgency for over a decade, which has resulted in thousands of deaths and mass displacement of residents in Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe states.

Over 23,000 persons, mostly children, have been reported missing in eight years of the conflicts in the region, according to a report by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

Nigeria has the highest number of missing people registered, at about 23,000, the report said, adding that more than 20,000 missing persons were in the Northeast where Boko Haram has continued to unleash terror on defenceless residents since 2009.

President Muhammadu Buhari came into office in 2015, with a promise to tackle the northeast insecurity in six months. However, six years later, attacks on civilians have continued in the region.

In June last year, Boko Haram, in one its deadliest attacks, killed 81 people in Gubio, a Borno farming community. The UN humanitarian coordinator in Nigeria, Edward Kallon, while commenting on the killings, bemoaned the insecurity in the Northeast.

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The Federal High Court in Abuja Wednesday slated July 2 for hearing of an application filed by former Abia State governor, Orji Kalu, challenging his retrial by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for money laundering.

The Lagos Division of the court had on December 5, 2019, convicted and sentenced Mr Kalu to 12 years imprisonment, and his co-defendant, Udeh Udeogu, to 10 years jail term for diverting Abia States funds to the tune of N7.1 billion.

However, citing technical grounds, the Supreme Court on May 8, 2020, set side the conviction and sentence, and ordered that the defendants be tried afresh.

Before they could be re-arraigned, however, Mr Kalu, the incumbent Chief Whip of the Nigerian Senate, filed an application to stop his retrial.

When the matter came up before Inyang Ekwo, the judge handling the case, on Wednesday, lawyers representing the different parties respectively informed the court that they had all filed and exchanged their processes.

Mr Kalu was represented by Awa Kalu, EFCC by Oluwaleke Atolagbe, Mr Udeogu by George Ukaegbu, and the senators firm, Slok Nigeria Ltd (3rd respondent) by K. C Nwafor.

The lawyers are to return to court on July 2 to adopt the processes they have filed.

Kalus application

In his application, Mr Kalu asked the court for an order prohibiting the EFCC from retrying him on same alleged N7.1 billion money laundering charges.

He contented that it would amount to double jeopardy to be subjected to a fresh trial on same charge, having been tried, convicted and sentenced on the same charges in the suit marked, FHC/ABJ/CR/56/ 2007.

In his supporting affidavit filed in support of his motion, Mr Kalu chronicled the historical background of the trial from his first arraignment and re-arraignment in 2016 and 2017, before the Abuja division of the Federal High Court after the initial charges were amended by the EFCC.

He recalled that how on December 5, 2019, Mohammed Idris, the then trial judge at the Federal High Court in Lagos, who is now a judge of the Court of Appeal, convicted and sentenced him with respect to the charges.

He said he was taken to Ikoyi Correctional Centre where he served a few days of his jail term before he was later moved to Kuje Correctional Centre in Abuja.

He added that on May 8, 2020, the Supreme Court ruled that trial by Mr Mohammed was conducted without jurisdiction and ordered the retrial of the appellant, Mr Udeogu, without reference to him.

He argued that there is no extant ruling or judgment of a competent court in Nigeria ordering his trial having regard to the fact that the Supreme Court excluded him from the explicit order for retrial arising from charge No: FHC/ABJ/56/2007.

According to him, his trial having been pronounced a nullity by the Supreme Court in its judgment of May 8, 2020, EFCC can no longer institute the same charge against him.

Meanwhile, the court had earlier issued an interim order suspending Mr Kalus retrial pending the determination of his application.

EFCC replies

In his reply to the application, however, EFCC asked the court to dismiss it on the grounds that the planned re-trial would not amount to a case of double jeopardy.

The anti-corruption agency argued in the reply filed on Wednesday, that the re-trial is in compliance with the order of the Supreme Court.

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Road to retrial

PREMIUM TIMES had reported that the EFCC had prosecuted Mr Kalu alongside Ude Udeogu, a former director of finance and accounts with the Abia State Government, and Mr Kalus company, Slok Nigeria Limited, on 39 counts of fraud involving about N7.1billion at the Federal High Court in Lagos.

The trial judge, Mohammed Idris, who is now a Justice of the Court of Appeal, had at the end of the trial, sentenced Mr Kalu to 12 years imprisonment and Mr Udeogu was sentenced to 10 years jail term.

The third defendant, Mr Kalus company, Slok Nigeria Limited, was ordered to be wound up and its assets forfeited to the Nigerian government.

But on May 8, 2020, the Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision of its seven-member panel, nullified Mr Kalus conviction and ordered a retrial.

The apex court ruled and held that the trial was a nullity on the grounds that Mr Idris, the trial judge, had been elevated to the Court of Appeal and no longer a judge of the Federal High Court as of the time he concluded the trial and handed down his verdict.
The Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) has criticised current attempts to regulate the media and further curb the freedom of speech.

The guild said the media industry is not a political opponent or enemy of the federal government as the administration is currently depicting.

It also said many of the political elites attacks on the media are habitually not envisioned to win an argument on the values, journalistic or legal; but designed to bully media organisations.

Draconian

It was reacting to what it described as draconian provisions in the two Bills  to amend the Nigerian Press Council (NPC) Act, and the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) Act that are currently before the National Assembly, which the sponsors said were aimed at moderating the recklessness of the media.

The Guild said that the bills are actually meant to criminalise journalism practice in the country.

In a statement issued by the umbrella of all editors in Nigeria and signed by Mustapha Isah (President) and Iyobosa Uwugiaren (General Secretary), on Tuesday, the Guild said that the oxygen of democracy: the media, will be strangulated if the bills are passed in their present forms.

Part of its statement is reproduced below:

At a time there is a popular ongoing global conversation about the need for a #NewDealForJournalism  for immediate and sustained action from, and collaboration between governments and other influential actors to improve the policy, funding, and enabling environment for independent professional journalism, we see the proposed legislations as unhelpful.

While we are not opposed to an Act that will promote media stakeholders-driven regulatory council, the many draconian provisions in the Hon. Odebunmi Oluseguns sponsor bills are actually aimed at criminalising media practice in Nigeria. While the intention of the sponsor of the bills is suspicious, the bills negate all known features of media regulatory bodies in the world.

While the NPC Act. CAP N128, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1992, created by the military dictatorship, gives the Council Board full responsibility to administer the council, the proposed Act restricts the council board to advisory capacity on a part-time basis without direct interference in the day to day administration of the council, and gives the Executive Secretary all the power.

While the proposed NPC Act says the Board shall consist of one representative each from the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ); Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE); Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN); Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON); Ministry of Information; two representative of the general public, one of whom shall be a legal practitioner and a woman and Executive Secretary of the council, who shall serve as the secretary to the Board, the board is a mere advisory body.

The Bill also says that the Chairman of the Board shall be appointed by the President on the recommendation of the Minister in charge of Information. And that all other members of the Board shall be appointed by the President on the recommendation by the Minister of Information. The intention of this kind of Council is suspicious.

The professional body doesnt need the approval of the Minister of Information to establish and disseminate a National Press Code and standards to guide the conduct of print media, related media houses and media practitioners and approves penalties and fines against violation of the press code, as provided for in the Bill.

The Guild is not aware of any media regulatory council in the world, which says that media regulatory council shall establish a National Press and Ethical Code of Conduct for media houses and media practitioners, which shall come into effect and be disseminated after approval by the Minister of Information, and that the code shall be binding on every media houses and journalists.

Again, apart from the fines for journalist or media houses that violate the Act, the Bill also says that in an extreme case, the council shall order the striking out of the name of the journalist from the register; and suspend the person from practice by ordering him not to engage in practice as a journalist for a period not exceeding six months; as may be specified in the directive.

This kind of media regulatory council will neither serve the interest of the media industry, strengthen its constitutional role  of holding public officers accountable to the people nor serves the general interest of the public-who are the original trustees of the media.

The sponsor mischievously smuggled in the controversial fake news provision by stating that any person who carries news, established to be fake thereafter, commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine of N5million or a term of two-year imprisonment or both, and a compensation of N2 million payable to the person(s), group(s), corporate bodies, government or any of its agencies whom the news was carried against.

The bill also states that any print media house whose medium was used to carry such news is liable on conviction to a fine of N10 million or closure of such media house for a period of one year or both and compensation of N20 million to the person, group, corporate body, government or any of its agencies, whom the news was carried against.

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Section 23 of the Bill, which gives the Minister of information powers to participate in the making of regulations is unhelpful. The Minister will turn NBC into a tool for political interference.

Provisions of the two bills give the impression that the Federal Government is out to crush its enemy. The two bills, if passed, will compound the nations negative image in the global community.

Nigeria comes in at No. 120, the rough equivalent of a D+ in this years index by Reporters Without Borders. Youll find similar results on the Democracy Index where Nigeria is ranked No. 110  the lowest-ranking Hybrid Regime, one slot away from Authoritarian.
Nigerias AIDS agency, National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), has decried what it described as the countrys over-dependence on foreign funding for the campaign against HIV and AIDS.

The agencys director general, Gambo Aliyu, who said this at the launch of his agencys National Domestic Resource Mobilisation and Sustainability Strategy, noted that about $6.2 billion was spent to identify and treat 60 per cent of PLWHIV in Nigeria between 2005 and 2018.

He, however, noted that international donations account for more than 80 per cent of the said amount.

He said; Between 2005 and 2018, about $6.2 billion dollars was spent to identify close to one million people living with HIV in this country and place them on treatment.

However 80 per cent of this money came from international donors and development partners, only 18 per cent was contributed by the federal and state governments and one per cent came from the private sector.

Mr Aliyu said it is essential for national and state stakeholders to assume greater ownership of the HIV response including financing and strong accountability structures, adding that he was committed to mobilising local resources towards achieving the agencys objective,

He said the strategy, which is designed to run from 2021 to 2025, is needed to monitor the use of the funds that are raised and to ensure that they are spent on activities that will continue to have real impact on people living with HIV/AIDS.

He said the initiative would reduce the over-dependence on international funding and help towards ensuring the availability of sustainable resources for the implementation of programmes to meet the 95:95:95 HIV target by 2030.

The target, he said, is to diagnose 95 per cent of all HIV positive persons, provide Antiretroviral Therapy (ARTs) for 95 per cent of those diagnosed, and achieve viral load suppression for 95 per cent of those treated by 2030.

He said, sustaining HIV funding requires resource mobilisation and this resource mobilisation has always been external.

It is time to mobilise resources domestically and to ensure that sustainability of HIV funding is guaranteed after epidemic control, he said.

Mr Aliyu said it is important for a countrys strategy to reflect the need to expand its resource base and increase domestic resources to diversify sources of funding.

Call for increased budgetary allocation

In his remarks, the chairman of the house of representatives committee on AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, Abubakar Dahiru, said there is an urgent need to improve on the budget allocated to NACA.

He said, this 2022 budget, by the grace of God, the National Assembly, based on the Committee on ATM, and also our Senate partners, we felt that the budget of NACA should be improved by 100 percent.

Based on our position, we have always felt that we are living on risk because if today the development partners decide to withdraw from Nigeria, believe me sincerely, we felt that at the end of the day we are going to crash between the zero level.

Mr Dahiru urged state governors to contribute their own quota to the efforts of ending HIV/AIDS in the country.

He said the majority of the state governors are not doing what they are supposed to do.

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Most of the people living with HIV are in various states and it is the duty of our governors to look after their people.

They are supposed to be doing (sending) their own contributions also to NACA. This way, at least, at the end of the day, the states will be able to see the impact, especially within the rural areas, he said.

Speaking at the event, the country director of UNAIDS, Erasmus Morah, said Nigeria should learn from the South African experience of funding its HIV response by 80 per cent.

He said it is necessary for Nigeria to key into the UN shared responsibility and global solidarity module and not overburden international donors.

He said; Who is paying for the 1.6 million Nigerians who are on treatment? If the payer should change their mind, what happens to these people who need the drugs for the rest of their lives.

So, this particular agenda we are calling domestic resource mobilisation and sustainability agenda, is about how do we pay to keep Nigerians from getting infected from HIV, and more importantly, how do we pay to ensure that those who are in treatment currently can comfortably remain on treatment, and that the remaining 20 to 30 percent who are not on treatment are brought on treatment?
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The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) is currently holding its primary for the Anambra State governorship election in Awka.

A former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Charles Soludo, has not been disqualified from participating in the primary contrary to information circulating on social media.

A faction of the party headed by Jude Okeke had issued a statement ahead of the APGA primary, saying that Mr Soludo, one of the aspirants in the primary, has been disqualified because of anti-party activities.

The National Chairman of APGA, Victor Oye, told PREMIUM TIMES, Wednesday afternoon, that Mr Soludo was participating in the primary.

Who suspended him? Please forget the impostors and desperadoes, Mr Oye said in a text message.

APGA has no factions. We are one, united party. Ask those parading themselves as acting chairman which convention produced them? I am the only constitutionally, legally and legitimately elected National Chairman of APGA. It is not in contention, he added.

Mr Soludo, a professor of econometrics, was attacked in April by gunmen in his hometown of Isuofia, Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra State, during a political gathering.

Three police officers who were protecting him were shot dead in the attack.

It is not clear why Mr Okekes faction singled out the former CBN governor for suspension.

Meanwhile, the Governorship Screening Appeal Panel of APGA has upheld the disqualification of five aspirants from the primary.

The disqualified aspirants are Ifeanyi Ozoka, Nonso Okafor, Sullivan Nwankpo, Michael Umeaji, and Cater Umeoduagu, according to a report by the Secretary of the appeal panel, Shodeinde Emmanuel.

The Anambra governorship election is scheduled for November 6.
Barely one week after they called off a three-day warning strike, members of Gurasa Bakers Association of Kano State have threatened to go on an indefinite one this time, if the price of flour is not reduced.

Gurasa is a local bread variety popular with Hausa people in the state.

The association, through its chairperson, Fatima Auwalu, on Wednesday said nothing has changed since they called off the warning strike.

According to Mrs Auwalu, gurasa bakers are recording losses due to the recurring increase in the price of flour, which is the major ingredient for making the local snacks.

She pointed out that not long ago, the price of flour was N9,500 but now it has reached N16,200.

She also lamented that a part from the increase in the price of flour, the quality of the product has reduced, saying, this has negatively impacted our business.

Since calling off the warning strike, we thought the price would reduce, but to our dismay, the price is rather going up day by day.

The three-day strike had inflicted hardship on us and our customers and we cannot do anything to resolve this problem but to take industrial action in order to draw the attention of the authorities concerned to bring lasting solution to the problem.

Mrs Auwalu said the association had decided to call off the strike because of the intervention of the state Commissioner of Police and human rights organisations.

She called on the manufacturers of flour and others to consider their plight and bring down the price of the commodity in order to ease their business.

We normally use IRS flour, Golden Confectionery and Super Flour. These are the only three brands that we used always. But were in a difficult situation because our business has become a shadow of its former self due to the hike on the price of the flour.

Let me use this opportunity to call on these company and authorities concerned to come to our aide, she appealed.

Another gurasa baker, Usaina Adamu, said they were considering an indefinite strike because their warning action did not yield the desired results.

According to her, the bakers had gone on the warning strike to bring the attention of those concerned to control the price of the flour, regrettting that their action did not change the situation.

We dont know where the problem is. We called on the stakeholders to do the needful in a bid to control the situation but it is rather deteriorating.

We therefore call on Abdussamad to intervene and bring solution to this problem. We also called on the management of IRS flour to come to our aide, she appealed.

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On his part, Umar Badamasi, who is the Vice Chairman of Gurasa Sellers Association, expressed surprise on the price of flour is rising day in day out.

He blamed the dealers of the product of arbitrarily increasing the price of flour.
One of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) aspirants for the November 6 Anambra governorship poll has ruled out the possibility of a consensus candidate, ahead of the partys primary election.

The aspirant, Godwin Maduka, a professor and founder of Las Vegas Pain Institute and Medical Center, U.S., said this when he spoke with reporters in Abuja on Tuesday, after a stakeholders meeting.

He said it was unimaginable for any of the 16 aspirants to step down before the Saturdays primaries.

Some of the aspirants will come to you and say lets talk. They will say, you dont need to be in politics. What are you looking for?

I will tell them, are you going to take the governorship title and allow me to work? I will allow you to do that.

Let me work on my ten point agenda-education, ICT, Agriculture, Women and Youth empowerment, solar energy, transportation and all that. I dont think consensus is possible, he said.

Mr Maduka said he was prepared for the partys primary election.

I have been prepared all my life because this is part of who I am. I have never really changed.

Preparedness in politics is knowing the people you are coming to serve. In Anambra today, everybody seems to be enjoying my company. It is not politics, its like a carnival. That is because I am among my people, he said.

Mr Maduka said he did not anticipate losing the primaries and the state election, because he had marshalled out an action plan to effect positive changes in the state.

He said his prayer was for God to make him governor of the state to work for Him, the people of Anambra and Nigeria at large.

I am going for governorship and I dont plan to lose it because I have been praying hard to be able to change the things I dont like.

I cannot just go ahead and change my town and the rest of the people are suffering.

I want to start a movement in Nigeria to end tribalism. I dont want to wait until all those tribalistic people are dead, he said.

Mr Maduka added that his faith told him that he will be allowed to work for the people.

I dont plan to lose. I am not God though. I will give him room to decide what is good for us. If he doesnt work out, who am I?

But I pray to God to let me do that. I am not just coming for Anambra, I am coming for Nigeria, he added.

Mr Maduka, who described the PDP National Working Committee (NWC) meeting with aspirants, party leaders and other stakeholders in the state as fruitful, added that they had all resolved their differences.

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He described the outcome of the meeting as a good step for PDP to secure the governorship seat in the state.

He urged the delegates to cast their votes for him to be able to make his dream for the state a reality.

(NAN)
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A motorcyclist was killed in a road accident at Otolo-Nnewi, Nnewi North Local Government Area of Anambra State on Wednesday.

Adeoye Irelewuyi, Anambra State Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), confirmed the incident to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Awka.

Mr Irelewuyi said the accident, which occurred at 10:55 a.m., was caused by brake failure.

The crash involved an unidentified driver of a green-coloured Toyota RAV4 with registration number NNE43JF and a black-coloured motorcycle without registration number.

Eyewitness report indicates that the brake of the vehicle failed and it hit the motorcycle.

Three persons were involved in the crash, two male adults and one female adult.

The male and female in the vehicle sustained injuries and were rushed to Nnewi Diocesan Hospital by a Good Samaritan before the arrival of the FRSC rescue team from Nnewi Unit Command.

The motorcycle rider, who was also taken to the same hospital, was confirmed dead by the doctor on duty, and his body deposited at the mortuary, he said.

While condoling with the family of the deceased, Mr Irelewuyi urged motorcyclists to always put on their safety helmets while riding their bikes to avoid head injuries during road crashes.

He also urged motorists to ensure regular maintenance of their vehicles to avoid brake failure and road mishaps.

(NAN)
Over 500 members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ajeromi/Ifelodun Local Government Area of Lagos State on Tuesday reunited with party leaders ahead of the July 24 council poll in the state.

The reunification was presided over by the partys LGA Chairman, Mathew Abogunde, at the unveiling of PDP candidates for the forthcoming local government polls.

Mr Abogunde said that members decided to resolve their differences in order to work together for the partys candidates to emerge victorious in the forthcoming council election.

The chairman noted that the PDP national leadership had set up a reconciliation committee, headed by the former Senate President, David Mark, to reconcile all aggrieved members.

The chairman said that after the committee visited the state, the party leaders and aggrieved members in Lagos State agreed to work together in the interest of PDP.

We have gathered today to reconcile our differences so we can win the election because if we dont come together, it will be difficult to defeat our opponents in the forthcoming election.

This gathering today also signifies that we are one as you know that the umbrella is big enough to accommodate everyone including the new members and aggrieved ones that have been reconciled with the party, he said.

Mr Abogunde urged the electorate to stand for their rights and not to be afraid to defend their votes at the polling centres.

He advised party candidates to embark on aggressive house-to-house campaign to tell the electorate that they could do it better in terms of providing good governance to the people of the area.

We advise the electorate not to be discouraged by the present economic situation and come out en masse to elect their leaders into the local government councils of the state, he said.

He said PDP was optimistic that it would emerge victorious in the forthcoming local government election in the state.

A party leader, Isreal Ogunrinde, said the gathering was to bring aggrieved members together because of the division within the party since its 2017 congress.

Mr Ogunrinde said it was unfortunate that everybody went their separate ways and thanked God that those members had choosen to follow the path of unity in the interest of the party.

The partys Chairmanship Candidate, Ajeromi Local Council Development Area, Tajudeen Balogun, said that he would bring meaningful grassroots development to the people of the area, if elected.

Mr Balogun said he would improve on the Internally Generated Revenue of the council to fix some bad roads and also focus on improved healthcare system at the local government health centres.

Another party leader, Francis Chima, advised the electorate to make effective change that would bring good governance to the grassroots.

Mr Chima said good governance was in the hands of the people because once they allowed the wrong people to lead them, it would bring bad governance to the area.

(NAN)

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The Baale of Araromi Village in Ibadan, Tafa Apanpa, and his wife, have been abducted by some suspected kidnappers.

The duo was reported to have been kidnapped by gunmen, who stormed the village located in the Bakatari area of Ibadan, on Tuesday night.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Bakatari in Ido Local Government Area of Ibadan is a border town between Oyo and Ogun, located on the Ibadan-Abeokuta road.

A resident of the community, who requested not to be named, told journalists on Wednesday in Ibadan that the duo was kidnapped while it was raining on Tuesday night.

The source said that their whereabouts were still unknown as of the time of filing this report on Wednesday.

When contacted, Adewale Osifeso, the State Police Public Relations Officer, confirmed the incident, saying efforts have been put in place to secure the release of the victims.

The incident happened very late on Tuesday 22nd of June, at Araromi Village.

Efforts are in top gear to rescue both victims and apprehend the abductors, please, he said.

(NAN)
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An Ado-Ekiti Magistrates Court, on Wednesday, ordered the remand of a 64-year-old man, Durodola Kayode, in the correctional centre in Ado-Ekiti for allegedly raping his step-mother.

The defendant, whose address was not provided, is being tried for rape.

The prosecutor, Adejare Elijah, told the court that the defendant committed the offence on June 13 at Ayetoro-Ekiti.

According to him, the offence contravenes Section 358 of the Criminal Code, Laws of Ekiti State, 2012.

He urged the court to remand the defendant in the correctional centre, pending legal advice from the Office of Director of Public Prosecution (DPP).

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the plea of the defendant was, however, not taken.

The Magistrate, Mojisola Salau, ordered the remand of the defendant in the correctional facility, pending issuance of legal advice.

She, thereafter, adjourned the case till July 5, for mention.

In another development, a 29-year-old man, Owajulu Tobi, was ordered to be remanded in the correctional centre in Ado-Ekiti over alleged rape of a 17-year-old girl.

Mr Elijah told the court that the defendant committed the offence on June 15 at Emure-Ekiti.

He said the offence contravened Section 358 of the Criminal Code, Laws of Ekiti State, 2012.

The prosecutor urged the court to remand the defendant in the correctional centre, pending legal advice from the DPP.

The plea of the defendant was, however, not taken.

Mrs Salau also ordered the remand of the defendant at the correctional centre, pending legal advice.

She adjourned the case till July 5, for mention. (NAN)
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The body of Adewumi Abiola, a police inspector killed by suspected kidnappers, was buried Wednesday in Igbemo Ekiti, Irepodun/Ifelodun Local Government Area of Ekiti.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Mr Abiola was shot dead on June 16, a day after celebrating his 40th birthday, by suspected kidnappers, who also abducted four Chinese rail workers at a construction site in Alaagba village, Ogun.

The expatriates were, however, released on Tuesday.

The deceased, who was attached to P Department Operations, Oyo State Command, was an escort to the Chinese contractors handling Lagos/Ibadan rail project before his demise.

The remains of Mr Abiola, brought from Ibadan by a team of police personnel, were interred at his uncompleted building in Igbemo Ekiti.

NAN reports that the late police inspector was survived by an 80-year-old mother, Olubiyo Abiola, a young wife and four female children, who are all in primary schools.

The slain officers elder sister, Caroline Bamigboye, described the police officers death as traumatising.

An uncle to the deceased, Laolu Omosilade, applauded the Commissioner of Police in Oyo State, Ngozi Onadeko, for her swift action, which, he said, hastened the release of the body for burial.

Mr Omosilade, a former Chairman of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Ekiti council, called on CCECC, police authorities as well as Oyo and Ekiti state governments to assist the family the late officer left behind.

The most pathetic aspect of the whole thing is that Adewumis brother, who had a hunchback, was also gruesomely murdered by suspected ritualists about four years ago on Aramoko/Itawure road in Ekiti.

The mother relies on Adewumi for survival and now, the life support has been removed. People should show empathy toward this distraught woman, he said. (NAN)
With gas prices likely soaring for the holiday weekend, are you planning to travel or stay close to home?

You voted:
A Celebration of Life Service for David J. Tallman, NK2Y, will be held at the Plattsburgh United Methodist Church, 127 Beekman Street, Plattsburgh, NY on Saturday, July 10, 2021, at 3 P.M. on the front lawn of the church, weather permitting. It will be moved to the sanctuary for inclement we
Tested under dermatologist-supervised conditions, on some of the severest acne, Tolpa delivers stand-out results with significant visible improvements in spot lesions and visible scaring.

In the UK, Tolpa has signed renowned consultant dermatologist, Dr Alia Ahmed, aka The Psychodermatologist, as an independent consultant.

Monika Thorne, Marketing Director, Tolpa said: "Tolpa lands in the 'sweet spot' between the natural and the scientific  benefiting from the best that nature has to offer with formulations that are rigorously lab and dermatologically tested. Tolpa is the number one brand in acne skincare in Poland where every minute more than one of the cult Tolpa Sebio 3 Enzyme Scrubs is sold. We are excited to be introducing this proven and adored range to UK consumers. Time-after-time Tolpa users share their before-and-after pictures with us and the beneficial results to their blemished skin are amazing."

John Acland, Head of eCommerce and Category Trading, LloydsPharmacy said: "Skincare is an important category to pharmacy with many consumers choosing to visit a pharmacy for advice and products for their skin conditions. We are continuously looking for new, innovative solutions to help our customers manage their skincare needs and have been impressed by the success of Tolpa in Poland. This range has shown how dramatically it can improve the skin condition of those living with acne, blemishes and rosacea. In the UK, skincare has been one of the most resilient categories in 2020  and the dermatological skincare market continues to gain share of total skincare year-on-year, showing an impressive 14% category share increase in 2020. (Ekimetrics 2020, Total UK Market). We look forward to seeing Tolpa play a part in that continued growth with LloydsPharmacy."

Heroes include:

Tolpa Sebio 3 Enzyme Scrub

Tolpa Sebio Max Effect Gommage Exfoliating Mask with Silver

Tolpa Sebio+ CICA Correcting Cream

https://lloydspharmacy.com - 23 June

LloydsPharmacy stores - 19 July

RRP 8.99 - 12.99

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1538969/Tolpa_Sebio.jpg

Contact:

KATE CLARK,

KCPR KateClarkPR,

+44 (0)7990 525639

kate@kateclarkpr.co.uk

SOURCE Tolpa
A new report, Breaking Cancer Barriers: Proton Beam Therapy in the UK, published today, reveals that since facilities were opened in the UK, more than 2,000 patients have been treated in the UK between the NHS and the independent healthcare sector.

The report also documents a significant rise in the number of oncologists being trained in the delivery of proton beam therapy and an increase in the number of medical insurance companies willing to support patients' treatment financially.

Proton beam therapy in the UK is currently delivered by an NHS facility at the Christie Hospital, Manchester and three Rutherford Cancer Centres in South Wales, Thames Valley and Northumberland. Combined, the four centres can treat around 2,000 patients at any time.

Prior to the establishment of facilities in the UK, all proton therapy patients were sent abroad for treatment. The necessity to send patients abroad for treatment has now been reduced dramatically.

Today's report states that the emergence of facilities in the UK can play an important role helping address the cancer treatment backlog created by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Professor Karol Sikora, chief medical officer at Rutherford Health plc, which published the report, said: "This report is the first of its kind addressing the UK's progress in the provision of proton beam therapy. We were one of the last European countries to establish an operational proton therapy service but now it's immensely heartening to demonstrate how far we have come as a nation in such a short space of time.

"The gap between provision of proton beam therapy in the UK and European counterparts is closing and there is still scope for more service provision in the UK through the creation of more facilities and the further widening of indications suitable for proton treatment. However, we have made great strides across the public and independent healthcare sectors."

Professor Sikora reaffirmed that proton beam therapy should not be regarded as a panacea for all cancer but it has been proven to be an excellent treatment for a particular range of cancers and offers patients the prospect of living a good quality of life with little to no side effects. Patients should always be assessed through a dual planning process which determines whether PBT or conventional radiotherapy would be the optimum treatment.

The report highlights that the UK is set to reap an 'innovation dividend' through the creation of a better skilled workforce including radiographers and physicists spread across the regions of the UK. This ultimately benefits patients who find treatment is available closer to home.

Mike Moran, chief executive officer of Rutherford Health, commented: "The establishment of a proton beam therapy service in the UK is creating a new highly skilled workforce  both public and independent  which will be sustained in the future through more skills development, training and partnership working between those involved in healthcare delivery. As a country, we are heading in the right direction and can make even greater strides in future. The UK is now a contributor to thought leadership on proton beam therapy globally due to the innovation and research that has been developed over the last five years by providers of proton beam therapy within the UK."

PDF - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1539128/Rutherford_Health_37462_Booklet_2021.pdf

Notes to editors:

For further information please contract Ramsay Smith (ramsay@mediahouse.co.uk) or Ibrahim Khalil (ibrahim@mediahouse.co.uk):

Ibrahim: 07943 759 042

Ramsay: 0788 414 856

For financial PR enquiries please contact:

Melanie Toyne-Sewell / Jeremy Durrant / Rozi Morris / Phil Marriage at Instinctif Partners:

+44 207 457 2020 / Rutherford@Instinctif.com

SOURCE Rutherford Health
Folds of Honor was created in 2007 when Lieutenant Colonel Dan Rooney flew home from his second tour of duty in Iraq. As his flight landed, the pilot announced they were carrying the remains of Corporal Brock Bucklin on board. As he watched Corporal Bucklin's twin brother accompany the flag-covered casket to meet his brother's young family on the tarmac, Lt Col Rooney was moved by Corp. Bucklin's young son and the family's obvious grief. Since that night, he has committed his life through Folds of Honor to provide scholarships to families of deceased and disabled service members.

"When we heard about Folds of Honor, we immediately were drawn to their mission of providing scholarships to spouses and children of America's fallen and disabled service members," said Advisors Excel Co-Founder Cody Foster. "These are people who put their lives on the line to create the freedom and chance for prosperity that we all get to enjoy every day. We need to honor their sacrifice by educating their legacy," Foster said.

Advisors Excel raised funds in conjunction with more than 500 of the nation's top financial professionals attending a two-day training event in Houston. The company hosts the event each year, which always includes an opportunity to raise money for a worthy cause. Since 2008, Advisors Excel and its affiliated independent financial professionals have raised approximately $5.3 million to help incredible nonprofits and amazing organizations around the country.

"With the phenomenal contributions from Advisors Excel and their associated financial professionals, we will be able to give 180 scholarships to military families," said Lt Col Rooney Folds of Honor, Founder, and CEO. "Being able to help these families who have already sacrificed so much, pay for school can be a life-changing event for them."

Since 2007, Folds of Honor has given out 29,000 scholarships and awarded 4,500 scholarships in the 2020-2021 school year. As of 2019, Folds of Honor has awarded more than $145 million to students.

About Advisors Excel:

Advisors Excel, founded in 2005, has redefined the role a marketing organization can play in supporting independent financial advisors. Their growth has been unparalleled in the industry and is achieved by working with a smaller group of select advisors. With a focus on making good advisors great business owners, Advisors Excel has revolutionized how financial professionals build and operate their businesses.

In 2020, the 500 advisors working with Advisors Excel did over $8.2 billion in annuity, Medicare, and life insurance production. Their affiliated Registered Investment Advisory Firm, AE Wealth Management, currently manages over $12.5 billion and has been named one of the fastest-growing RIAs in the country.

For more information:

Tracey Stratton, Advisors Excel  866.363.9595

[email protected]



SOURCE Advisors Excel

Related Links

http://www.advisorsexcel.com


ALEXANDRIA, Va., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Affinity Empowering, Inc., a leading provider of the most sophisticated and secure occupational, behavioral, and direct-to-consumer health services, today announced the launch of https://safercommunities.affinitytesting.com, a new website designed to facilitate the enrollment of K-12 schools and community organizations into fully funded COVID-19 testing surveillance programs. The new website is part of Operation Expanded Testing, a program to increase COVID-19 testing capabilities throughout congregate settings including K-12 schools and summer school programs, correctional facilities, homeless shelters, and select, non-profit community centers. The Operation Expanded Testing program was created in agreement with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in coordination with the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD).

The new website provides direct access information for leaders of school districts, individual schools, and community organizations. The website also provides information to interested parents or teachers that may want to advocate for the adoption of a COVID-19 testing program at their local school.

For Operation Expanded Testing, Affinity Empowering is working on behalf of Clinical Enterprise, a Eurofins company, to coordinate the logistics of COVID-19 testing programs. Leveraging its integrated technology platform, Assure, Affinity returns test results approximately 24 hours following collection. Detailed information about the program, including the types of tests and the process that occurs following sign up, can also be found on the new website.

"As we look towards the fall semester, our goal at Affinity is for schools to be able to open their doors with peace of mind, armed with the confidence that comes from COVID-19 surveillance. We want to make schools even safer," said Scott Storrer, CEO of Affinity Empowering. "The new Affinity Testing website makes it easy for school and community leaders to get the information they need and contact our team directly for enrollment."

Interested parties are encouraged to visit https://safercommunities.affinitytesting.com or to contact Affinity Empowering (email: [email protected], phone: 1-844-631-0469) to learn more about and sign up for the program.

About Affinity Empowering

Affinity Empowering is a leading occupational health, population, and disease management life sciences organization that specializes in providing technology-based solutions and support for overall health and wellness endeavors. In addition to providing occupational health, mental health, and cutting edge, wrap around substance use support, they also have become a major provider of COVID-19 testing. Their Return to Normalcy program provides COVID-19 consultation, support, and conducts thousands of onsite and at home testing options to safely screen, monitor, and test populations. They currently support numerous business partners in various fields, ranging from government contracts, universities, top Fortune 100 companies, and major film and television production companies.

For more information, please visit https://safercommunities.affinitytesting.com.

Media Contacts:

David Schull

Russo Partners, LLC

(212) 845-4271

[email protected]

Scott Stachowiak

Russo Partners, LLC

(646) 942-5630

[email protected]

Related Links

https://safercommunities.affinitytesting.com

SOURCE Affinity Empowering, Inc.
NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Aircall, a cloud-based voice platform helping companies across the globe manage millions of customer support and sales calls every day, today announced it has raised $120 million in a Series D funding round, bringing the company's total valuation to more than $1 billion. The funding round was led by the Growth Equity business within Goldman Sachs Asset Management, and joined by most of Aircall's current investors (DTCP, eFounders, Swisscom Ventures, Draper Esprit, Adams Street Partners, NextWorld Capital, Gaia Capital Partners), showing their renewed trust in the company's vision.

Aircall was founded in 2014 with the belief that traditional business phone systems were hard to manage, siloed, and required heavy implementation costs and time. In an increasingly virtual world, businesses were lacking an easy-to-use solution that could integrate with other critical business applications, and support the communications needs of a dispersed and flexible workforce.

Over the past year, remote workforces accelerated digital transformation for companies of all sizes and, at the same time, their customers increased their expectations around personalized and convenient service. Aircall helps businesses meet those objectives by integrating its cloud-based solution into leading business softwares like Salesforce, Hubspot, Zendesk, Slack, Intercom and many others. This allows businesses to streamline workflows, providing more efficiency for their teams with better visibility, data and insights into their customers' needs and their teams' performances. Ultimately, the solution allows personalized experiences for their customers. Aircall was built to empower any professional to have richer conversations, and to allow the phone channel to be accessible, transparent, and collaborative.

Christian Resch, Managing Director at Goldman Sachs, said: "The past 12 months have been a catalyst for Aircall's cloud based SaaS communication solution. In a hybrid work environment, users are looking to Aircall to provide an easy to use experience that is highly integrated into their workflows, thereby making the most out of every customer interaction. We are very excited to partner with Aircall, as the company looks to accelerate its growth and expand globally."

Kirk Lepke, Executive Director at Goldman Sachs, added: "We have been following Aircall's journey for some time and are delighted to be partnering with Olivier and the Aircall team to lead the Series D. The company has tremendous momentum within a huge category and a differentiated product strategy that will sustain significant growth for many years to come."

Despite the challenges this past year has brought, Aircall achieved record-breaking growth across its business. The company saw more than 65 percent total customer growth year over year, and now has more than 8,500 customers worldwide. Aircall's development relies strongly on internationalization, with more than a third of revenue generated in the United States. With offices in New York, Paris, Sydney and Madrid, Aircall recently passed the 450 employee mark and plans to recruit more than 260 new employees by the end of the year.

With this new funding round, Aircall will invest in the following:

Enrich its app ecosystem, specifically with new integrations covering all use cases, from e-commerce to financial services, Sales, Support, etc.

specifically with new integrations covering all use cases, from e-commerce to financial services, Sales, Support, etc. Expand globally, with new European offices in London and Berlin , and deeper investments in North America and APAC. Aircall plans to recruit more customer-facing teams to come closer to the customer needs, and to form strong partnerships, including with channels and resellers.

and Aircall plans to recruit more customer-facing teams to come closer to the customer needs, and to form strong partnerships, including with channels and resellers. Partner with major telecommunications companies to bring its technology to every professional around the world, by leveraging local networks expertise.

to bring its technology to every professional around the world, by leveraging local networks expertise. Improve technology with new AI capabilities, additional productivity features for call centers: transcription & speech analytics for greater depth of productivity features for sales and support. Aircall will also enhance infrastructure capacities by providing additional points of presence to support local usage, while continuing to deliver additional capacity at scale, and provide a global standard of high quality for voice.

"Since the beginning of Aircall, we've helped thousands of companies to enrich their customer experience through voice channels, with more empathy than ever in the past year. We also witnessed an increasing demand for visibility and data about teams and performances." said Olivier Pailhes, co-founder and CEO of Aircall.

"Now that hybrid, on-site or remote teams are likely here to stay, we'll continue to work to achieve our vision, and empower every professional to have richer conversations. With that in mind, the investment by Goldman Sachs, and the renewed trust of our current investors validates this vision."

About Aircall

Aircall is the phone system for modern business. An entirely cloud-based voice platform that integrates seamlessly with popular productivity and helpdesk tools. Aircall was built to make phone support as easy to manage  accessible, transparent, and collaborative.

Aircall believes that voice is the most powerful way to communicate with customers, prospects, candidates, and colleagues. It is designed to enable delightful moments of human connection. Aircall was founded in 2014 and has raised over $226 million in funding. With offices in New York, Paris, Sydney, and Madrid, the company currently has over 450+ employees.

https://aircall.io/

About Goldman Sachs Asset Management Growth Equity

Bringing together traditional and alternative investments, Goldman Sachs Asset Management provides clients around the world with a dedicated partnership and focus on long-term performance. As the primary investing area within Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), we deliver investment and advisory services for the world's leading institutions, financial advisors and individuals, drawing from our deeply connected global network and tailored expert insights, across every region and marketoverseeing more than $2 trillion in assets under supervision worldwide as of March 31, 2021. Driven by a passion for our clients' performance, we seek to build long-term relationships based on conviction, sustainable outcomes, and shared success over time. Goldman Sachs Asset Management invests in the full spectrum of alternatives, including private equity, growth equity, private credit, real estate and infrastructure.

Since 2003 the Growth Equity business within Goldman Sachs Asset Management comprising more than 75 individuals has invested over $13 billion in companies led by visionary founders and CEOs. We focus exclusively on investments in growth stage and technology-driven companies spanning multiple industries, including enterprise technology, financial technology, consumer and healthcare. Follow us on LinkedIn.

Press contact

Aircall US PR Contact

InkHouse for Aircall

[email protected]

SOURCE Aircall
Customers have seen a 75% reduction in their cash management time. Tweet this

Kevin Brown joins the ARCA Cannabis Team as a Retail Sales Executive and will lead ARCA's efforts on the East Coast from Denver. Brown has extensive experience in the cannabis industry helping retailers assess security needs and implement technology solutions to reduce risk, increase safety and optimize operations.

Katie Poxon joins the ARCA Cannabis Team as a Retail Sales Executive and will lead ARCA's efforts on the West Coast from Los Angeles. Poxon brings over 20 years of cash operations experience and a deep knowledge of the retail industry to the Cannabis Team. She has supported cash operation solutions for retailers including Starbucks, Fiesta Mart and Vallarta Super Markets.

Shawn Daniels completes the team as a Sales Support Specialist and focuses on helping customers from ARCA's headquarters in Mebane, North Carolina. Daniels brings over 10 years of Sales and Account Management experience from the Medical Device Sales industry to the Cannabis Team.

ARCA's Cannabis Cash Control solution saves time and money by automating manual cash management. Customers have seen a 75% reduction in their cash management time. This is a substantial benefit for cash-intensive retail cannabis customers.

"We are really excited to bring this team together," says ARCA Chief Sales Officer Joel Leslie. "Retail cannabis is a rapidly growing segment of our business. By adding these experts to our team we will continue to help customers streamline their operations and save money."

About ARCA

ARCA's solutions help people control and streamline cash operations in financial institutions, retail stores, and self-service kiosks around the world. We develop technology and services that make transactions simpler, more efficient and more secure. Visit arca.com for more information.

SOURCE ARCA

Related Links

http://www.arca.com


SAN FRANCISCO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Archer, a data-driven real estate investment firm, has hired Prabhat Dalmia to lead the firm's data science group.

Dalmia boasts more than 20 years of experience in data science and analytics, predictive modeling, machine learning, data architecture, and software development. He joins Archer as a director, reporting to Fred Canney, Archer co-founder and CFO/COO.

Prabhat Dalmia

"I have special interest in startups, FinTech and real estate, and it all seemed to align at Archer," Dalmia says. "I saw a unique opportunity to apply my strong data analytics skills to overcome the challenges related to investing in commercial real estate."

Previously, Dalmia held data science positions in the banking, finance, and healthcare sectors. Of particular note, he served as vice president of quant research for a New York-based family office where he developed an entire quantitative hedge fund from the ground up. He also held a quant-related role at Cambria Investments, a Los Angeles-based investment management firm that sponsors several ETFs.

"Prabhat's previous experience identifying signals and designing quantitative trading programs for investment managers and hedge funds lends itself well to the challenges we face with real estate data," Canney notes. "We're really excited to take our technology to the next level with Prabhat leading the charge."

Working remotely from Silicon Valley, Dalmia will focus on Archer's proprietary technology platform, Actionable Insights Model (AIM). AIM helps investors source opportunities by converting raw, disjointed data into actionable market intelligence with a click of a button  something that typically requires an army of analysts and takes multiple weeks, if not months.

Utilizing behavioral ownership triggers, AIM creates a "seller propensity" score, allowing acquisitions teams to focus on the deals most likely to transact, e.g. the most actionable deals. The platform also provides customized recommendations based on clients' preferred locations, previous investments, and areas of interest. By layering proprietary cash-flow forecasting models with market-specific data and thematic demand drivers, AIM delivers a clear view into the performance of any property type and market.

"Prabhat is a great fit for our team," says Thomas Foley, Archer co-founder and CEO. "He brings a unique combination of skills that truly are necessary for this venture as we create scalable tools and technology to unearth targeted, actionable investments for our clients."

Archer is working with several real estate investors to enhance their in-house acquisition teams and source deals. The firm plans to invest in commercial real estate alongside its clients, either through co-investments or customized separate accounts. Its longer-term vision is to build investment portfolios that target specific cities and property types, e.g. Salt Lake City industrial or San Antonio multifamily.

Dalmia holds a Bachelor of Technology in chemical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Kanpur, India, and an MBA from UCLA's Anderson School of Management where he was an Anderson Student Asset Management (ASAM) fellow. ASAM is a graduate-level program designed to teach MBA students how to create stock portfolios using quantitative methods. The ASAM fund now manages about $1 million.

About Archer

Archer is a real estate investment firm that helps investors build their ideal portfolios. By targeting specific cities and properties, Archer is refining the way investors enter new markets and expand into new property types. The firm has developed a transformative technology tool, Actionable Insights Model (AIM), that merges data from trusted sources and insights from local market experts. Guided by AIM, Archer identifies the most strategic assets, allowing investors to reduce the risk associated with market entry. Learn more at www.archer.re.

Media Contact:

Jennifer Duell

[email protected]

817-903-2432

SOURCE Archer

Related Links

http://www.archer.re


With more than three decades of collective CRE advisory experience at the helm, DOT specializes in advising family offices, wealth managers, and institutional investors on growth strategy and alternative investments in commercial real estate. Prior to founding DOT, Manansala served for nine years as principal of Jackson Stone Financial Services, which has rebranded under the DOT banner of services.

"As our economy recovers, many GPs and emerging managers are searching for new solutions and innovative thinking to identify investment opportunities," said Manansala, "and that's where Diversity of Thought makes a key difference."

DOT predominantly works with Sponsors who have an ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) component in their strategy. With the rising trend of emerging managers, DOT offers valuable counsel and tools to help these new players advance, often working in the trenches with them to develop strategy, from marketing materials to organizational structure to capital raises.

"We're seeing great investment prospects in mission-driven housing and other social impact projects," added Manansala. "Many of our clients build in distressed communities where capital is scarce. We can help them take things one step further, such as establishing funds to provide housing for families on the verge of homelessness."

Joining Manansala to help lead client services is institutional real estate veteran Lourdes Canlas. In addition to decades of experience, Canlas is co-founder of Filipinos in Institutional Real Estate (FIIRE) a non-profit that brings together institutional real estate professionals and guides them in education and mentoring for the advancement of Filipinos in the field. An advisor to the 501(C)(6) Commercial Real Estate Diversity Coalition (CREDC), Manansala works with affinity groups from various backgrounds. CREDC provides opportunities and advancement for people of color within the wider CRE space.

"DOT is committed to the multicultural communities in which we serve, and there's a tremendous opportunity to transform our cities," noted Manansala. "When we can help foster diversity and inclusion in the industry as well, that's a win all around."

DOT Capital Advisors provides advisory services for a range of commercial real estate companies, working closely with General Partners (GP) on impact investing, purposeful business strategies, and investor/Sponsor relations. Led by its company values of honesty, fairness and transparency, DOT takes a thoughtful, personalized approach to working with clients, offering expert, hands-on solutions. Principal Rosalie Manansala is a registered representative of Rainmaker Securities, LLC, a FINRA SEC broker-dealer and FINRA/SIPC member firm. Check the background of this investment professional on FINRA's BrokerCheck.

Press Contact: 10storyhouse PR for DOT Capital Advisors

Jessica del Mundo, 1-323-741-5600 or [email protected]

SOURCE DOT Capital Advisors

Related Links

https://www.dotcapitaladvisors.com/


HAMILTON COUNTY, Ind., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Blo Blow Dry Bar, North America's original blow dry bar and the world's largest blow dry bar franchise, announced today the signing of a three-unit franchise agreement in Indiana to expand the brand in the Midwest. With this agreement, Blo Blow Dry Bar solidifies its entrance into a new state and continues its growth momentum with over 130 locations across the U.S. and Canada.

Leading this growth and Indiana expansion is Theresa Shadley, a seasoned franchisee with experience in the boutique fitness industry. Originally from North Carolina, she earned a degree in business and a masters in accounting while also working as a licensed cosmetologist. Shadley made the move to Indiana when she joined the Kenra Professional team and worked her way up to VP of Sales and Trade Marketing. When the company relocated, she remained in Indiana and decided to experiment in franchising and introduced Pure Barre to the area. Four and a half years later, she owns four Pure Barre locations and is now re-entering the beauty industry with a three-unit agreement with Blo Blow Dry Bar. Her first bar is slated to open in Hamilton County by year-end.

"I see so much potential in the blow dry service industry and I am excited to bring the Blo concept to Hamilton County community," said Shadley. "I absolutely love franchising and introducing the area to new industries. Joining the Blo team seemed like the perfect fit. The company is backed by immense corporate support and the team is so passionate and knowledgeable  I am really impressed and ready to introduce Blo to Indiana."

With a favorable real estate landscape and vast opportunity for market growth, company executives are seeking franchisees to continue to expand in key markets across the country.

"As the Blo brand continues to grow, adding experienced franchisees like Theresa will be a vital piece to the overall puzzle," said, Patrick Pantano, Vice President, Franchise Development, Blo Blow Dry Bar. "These will be our first units in Indiana which is a strong state from a demographics standpoint for the brand. The combination of a strong franchisee and a ripe market creates great growth opportunity."

Blo Blow Dry Bar creates a space where people of all ages, ethnicities and orientations are welcomed, represented and made to feel gorgeous while emphasizing the need for self-care and wellness. Combining a sophisticated design with a fun and energetic environment, the blow dry bar cultivates a seamless and enjoyable experience for guests upon their arrival, during and after their services. Expertly trained bloers are available for consultation seven days a week to meet the needs of all guests. The brand's hair menu includes seven signature styles  from a sleek ponytail to lively and bouncy curls. Blo Blow Dry Bar also offers makeup services from expert artists to help guests look and feel amazing for any occasion.

The growing franchise is just at the start of the runway, staking its claim as a leader in the $47 billion a year industry and continues to expand at a rapid rate. Every year, more cities across the globe are painted pink. Every day, a new guest discovers how wonderful the Blo Blow Dry Bar experience is. Superior service and consistent results are a top priority for all guests as well as franchisees. The brand goes beyond beauty  it is strategically positioned to meet growing customer demands within the wellness and self-care industries with an established foundation for business success.

"We're eager to build on the momentum of this partnership to make our catwalk-quality blow outs accessible to women across the Midwest," said Vanessa Yakobson, CEO of Blo Blow Dry Bar. "Our proven business model, strong culture and exceptional franchisees means great growth opportunities for our sector-leading brand."

Blo Blow Dry Bar is currently seeking single- and multi- unit operators to join the brand's rapid expansion. For more information about franchise opportunities visit https://franchise.blomedry.com/.

About Blo Blow Dry Bar

Blo Blow Dry Bar is North America's original blow dry bar and the world's largest blow dry bar franchise. The company transformed beauty norms and reinvented the salon industry when it launched the "no cuts, no color" concept: only blow outs. Since opening its first location in Canada in 2007, Blo has grown to over 130 locations across the U.S. and Canada and continues to expand rapidly. With a mission to enhance the lives of those in the community through the power of flawless blow outs and beauty services, Blo Blow Dry Bar offers perfectly styled hair and exceptional customer experiences seven days a week. For more information visit www.blomedry.com.

Media Contact: Marisa Beaumont, Fishman Public Relations, (414) 366-3317, [email protected]

SOURCE Blo Blow Dry Bar

Related Links

http://www.blomedry.com


LOS ANGELES and MIAMI, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Broadvoice, an award-winning provider of hosted voice, unified communications (UC) and SIP trunking services for businesses, announced today at ITEXPO in Miami that it's offering business customers using its voice over IP (VoIP) services a 100 percent uptime Service Level Agreement (SLA) as part of its commitment to deliver an unmatched customer experience.

Broadvoice Offers 100% Uptime Service Level Agreement

"Our business customers count on us for their communication needs  not most of the time, but all of the time," said George Mitsopoulos, Chief Product Officer for Broadvoice. "A 100 percent SLA backs up our commitment to delivering a stable, secure and reliable network for customers of our hosted voice, UC and SIP trunking services."

Industrywide SLAs for voice services typically are 99.9 percent, which means customers should expect 8 hours, 46 minutes of downtime annually. That could cost a business as much as $2,945,600 if, as Gartner claims, the average cost of network downtime is $5,600 per minute.

"Broadvoice is passionate about bringing an enterprise-class communications platform to the small and medium business (SMB) market," said Mitsopoulos. "We understand that the reliability of an SMB's communications systems is critical to their success."

To outdo the industry average with its 100 percent uptime SLA, Broadvoice spent the last year revamping its born-in-the-cloud b-hive platform and network infrastructure to rival the best in the industry. Broadvoice's hybrid cloud architecture leverages leading cloud providers for application and data processing alongside its own geo-redundant data centers for media processing  all backed by Broadvoice 24/7 network operations center (NOC) and extensive system monitoring.

"Our resilient infrastructure coupled with multicarrier relationships gives Broadvoice customers the ability to rest easy knowing that we've got them covered," said Mitsopoulos. "Broadvoice is so confident in the reliability of its network that we're putting our money where our mouth is and offering credits to customers in the unlikely event that they experience downtime or even degraded quality of service."

As part of the new SLA, Broadvoice voice customers can request credits for service disruption or degraded service levels.

Broadvoice's 100 percent SLA is the company's latest investment in delivering a best-in-class customer experience. In 2020, the company focused on developing a service culture and defined customer satisfaction as the key metric of success. As a result, CSAT improved more than 26 percent and NPS improved more than 299 percent in less than a year. Earlier this year, Broadvoice received three Stevie awards for outstanding customer service.

To find out more about the 100 percent SLA, meet with the Broadvoice team at ITEXPO #TECHSUPERSHOW, Meeting Room 13, at the Miami Beach Convention Center, June 22-25, 2021. Broadvoice also will be demonstrating the all-new video-enabled Broadvoice b-hive Communicator all-in-one communications and collaboration app.

Media Contact:

Marisa Freeden

Vice President of Brand & Experience

626.627.6506

[email protected]

SOURCE Broadvoice

Related Links

https://www.broadvoice.com/


MADISON, N.J., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Century 21 Real Estate LLC unveiled today a new alliance with Project Destined, a national social impact platform providing diverse high school and college students, as well as military veterans, with critical business and real estate fundamentals as they pursue careers in real estate. Focused on education, mentorship and career guidance, the three-year sponsorship provides students access to the industry-leading knowledge and expertise of CENTURY 21 affiliated real estate professionals creating a pathway to success and ownership within the sector. This program is the latest initiative reinforcing the brand's commitment to advancing diversity and representation within the real estate industry.

Kicking off this month, the CENTURY 21 intern team members represent diverse students from colleges and universities throughout Chicago including the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the University of Illinois at Chicago, DePaul University, Purdue University and Amherst College, who will participate in a paid virtual internship program alongside

CENTURY 21 employee mentors. The program will explore real estate, the importance of ownership and the power of technology to tell authentic, compelling stories about communities via a curriculum of topics impacting today's commercial and residential sectors such as: Market Research, Property Analysis, Valuation and Deal Financing. Throughout the eight-week program students will earn a scholarship stipend and participate in biweekly "Shark Tank"-style competitions, presenting a live, local real estate deal to a panel of industry leaders for the chance to ultimately win over $5,000.

"We are thrilled to align our brand with the Project Destined organization as they work to empower the best and brightest young entrepreneurs to compete and grow within the world of real estate," said Michael Miedler, president and CEO of Century 21 Real Estate. "As a brand committed to elevating the real estate experience and advancing equity in fair housing, we understand the importance of having our affiliated salesforce represent the same level of diversity that we see within the communities they serve. Programs such as this allow us to open a path to success for a diverse group of go-getters who will one day serve as the leaders of our industry."

"We are extremely excited to partner with Century 21 Real Estate to launch the Chicago market and continue our work to expand access to ownership and leadership in real estate," said Cedric Bobo, Founder and CEO of Project Destined. "The real estate industry provides incredible opportunities to build a great career while also impacting your city. This partnership ensures that our students have a global brand and community supporting them as they take on this challenge."

Following the pilot summer program, the CENTURY 21 brand and Project Destined plan to roll out the campaign to include students in other key cities across the country and engage CENTURY 21 affiliated brokers and agents to serve as local market mentors.

About Century 21 Real Estate LLC

The approximately 150,000 independent sales professionals in approximately 13,500 offices spanning 86 countries and territories in the CENTURY 21 System live their mission every day: to defy mediocrity and deliver extraordinary experiences. By consistently chasing excellence, giving 121% and always elevating, the CENTURY 21 brand is helping its affiliated brokers/agents to be the first choice for real estate consumers and industry professionals worldwide. Century 21 Real Estate has numerous websites to help answer specific consumer needs. They are century21.com, century21.com/global, century21.com/commercial,

century21.com/finehomes and century21.com/espanol.

Century 21 Real Estate LLC is a subsidiary of Realogy Holdings Corp. (NYSE: RLGY), a global leader in real estate franchising and provider of real estate brokerage, relocation and settlement services.

2021 Century 21 Real Estate LLC. All Rights Reserved. CENTURY 21, the CENTURY 21 Logo and C21 are registered service marks owned by Century 21 Real Estate LLC. Century 21 Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each office is independently owned and operated.

About Project Destined

Project Destined is a leading social impact platform that provides training in financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and real estate. Project Destined partners with corporations, schools, and non-profits to deliver training using its proprietary e-learning platform and live courses. Project Destined leverages a work-based learning approach where students work with executives to evaluate live deals in their community and present them in a pitch competition to industry leaders. Scholars emerge with the skills, confidence, experiences, and networks that prepare them to secure a strong first job and to become stakeholders in their community. For more information, please visit projectdestined.com.

Contact:

Erin Siegel

Century 21 Real Estate LLC

Phone: 201.913.1432

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Century 21 Real Estate LLC

Related Links

www.realogy.com


Bechtel will provide Dublin Airport with additional capacity and capability over the next five years, as the capital program evolves. Bechtel employees will be seamlessly integrated into Dublin Airport's existing team, allowing the infrastructure department to be flexible as required during the life of the capital investment program.

"This is a new approach in the Irish market for a major program of works, and it will bring significant benefits for Dublin Airport," said Dublin Airport Managing Director Vincent Harrison. "It will deliver a true partnership of people, processes, systems, and best practice and will ensure that we have world-class resources as needed to support our existing highly experienced and skilled in-house teams," Mr. Harrison added. "Working with Bechtel, we will bring a portfolio management approach to the forthcoming capital programme and this will deliver efficiencies across a range of areas."

"We're honoured to be selected as Ireland's first delivery partner within an integrated team contract and we embrace the opportunity to set the highest of standards for future infrastructure projects to follow," said John Williams, Bechtel's UK & Ireland managing director. "Our team is excited to bring our experience and innovation to this hugely significant capital investment programme."

Bechtel is a global leader in aviation infrastructure and has managed more than 40 major airport projects in the past decade including expansion programs at Gatwick and London City Airport in the UK, and new airport construction at Muscat International Airport in Oman. The company is also delivery partner for a new airport in Western Sydney, Australia.



In recent months, daa has started the procurement process for a series of long-term projects at Dublin Airport and Bechtel will assist with the delivery of this new capital investment program over the next five years. daa's decision to move ahead with the procurement processes for the works will allow the company to have construction projects shovel ready for when passenger numbers have recovered from the impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic.

The projects that are within the current capital program were either carried over from Dublin Airport's last investment program, or are contained within the existing program, which was approved by the aviation regulator in 2019. The current likely timescales for the proposed works will run until the end of this decade.

The scale, scope and timing of the works may change, as several projects within the overall program are subject to planning. daa is also keeping the delivery timescale of its capital program under review, given the negative impact that COVID-19 has had on global air travel and the lack of certainty in relation to the medium-term recovery of passenger numbers.

Essential projects, such as Dublin Airport's new North Runway and the upgrade to the airport's hold baggage screening systems have been progressing and there will also be a requirement for significant ongoing works across the airport campus.

Passenger numbers at Dublin Airport, which is Ireland's main international gateway, fell by 78% to almost 7.4 million last year due to the impact of COVID-19 on travel. In 2019, Dublin Airport welcomed a record 32.9 million passengers in 2019 and had flights to more than 190 destinations in 42 countries operated by almost 50 airlines. Rebuilding Ireland's connectivity will play a vital role in helping the Irish economy to recover from the economic shock of the pandemic.

About daa

daa owns and manages Dublin and Cork airports in Ireland and has operations/investments in 15 countries overseas including Canada, Cyprus Germany, India, New Zealand, and Saudi Arabia. daa's travel retail business ARI has operations in 14 countries, and also holds the group's investments in Dusseldorf Airport and in Hermes Airports, which manages Larnaca and Paphos airports in Cyprus. daa International offers advisory, management and investment services to clients globally. It manages Terminal 5 at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and recently won the contract to manage the new airport at the Red Sea Project in Saudi Arabia.



About Bechtel

Bechtel is a trusted engineering, construction and project management partner to industry and government. Differentiated by the quality of our people and our relentless drive to deliver the most successful outcomes, we align our capabilities to our customers' objectives to create a lasting positive impact. Since 1898, we have helped customers complete more than 25,000 projects in 160 countries on all seven continents that have created jobs, grown economies, improved the resiliency of the world's infrastructure, increased access to energy, resources, and vital services, and made the world a safer, cleaner place.

Bechtel serves the Energy; Infrastructure; Nuclear, Security & Environmental; and Mining & Metals markets. Our services span from initial planning and investment, through start-up and operations. www.bechtel.com

Media contact:

Juliet Whitcombe

[email protected]

tel. +44 (0)7917 722304

SOURCE Bechtel

Related Links

http://www.bechtel.com


SAN FRANCISCO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The global disposable hospital gowns market size is expected to reach USD 5.61 billion by 2028, registering a CAGR of 13.7% over the forecast period, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. Increasing prevalence of Surgical Site Infections (SSIs), rising number of surgeries performed coupled with growing incidence of chronic disorders and impact of COVID-19 are the key factors driving the market. The increasing prevalence of Hospital-Acquired Infections (HAIs) is a major factor expected to propel the market growth over the forecast period.

Key Insights & Findings:

In terms of usability, the average-type segment held the largest revenue share in 2020

The segment is estimated to register the fastest CAGR from 2021 to 2028

The surgical product segment held the largest revenue share in 2020. However, the non-surgical product segment is expected to witness the fastest CAGR from 2021 to 2028

The high-risk disposable hospital gowns segment accounted for the largest revenue share in 2020 due to increased cases of HAIs

North America is expected to lead the global market over the forecast period

Read 90 page market research report, "Disposable Hospital Gowns Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Risk Type (High, Moderate), By Usability (Low-type, Average-type Disposable Gowns), By Product (Non-surgical, Surgical), And Segment Forecasts, 2021 - 2028", By Grand View Research.

According to the data published by health.gov (U.S. dept. of Health and Services) in 2020, about 1 in 25 inpatients have a hospital-related infection, at any given time. Such incidents are projected to augment demand for disposable gowns as they aid in the prevention of the spread of infections and diseases. Furthermore, the rise in hospital admissions due to the global COVID-19 pandemic will drive the product demand. In addition, major players operating in the market are launching new products and extending their production capacities to overcome the rising demand for disposable hospital gowns.

For instance, in April 2021, Precision Textiles launched EcoGuard material. The eco-friendly fabric is manufactured in the United States and is designed for use in Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), especially disposable medical isolation gowns. In September 2020, the Department of Defense, on behalf of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), signed an agreement with 9 American companies for the delivery of 73 million COVID-19 disposable isolation gowns at USD 335M. Therefore, such instances are anticipated to propel market growth over the forecast period.

Grand View Research has segmented the global disposable hospital gowns market on the basis of usability, product, risk type, and region:

Disposable Hospital Gowns Usability Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2028)

Low-type



Average-type



Premium-type

Disposable Hospital Gowns Product Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2028 )

Surgical



Non-surgical



Patient

Disposable Hospital Gowns Risk Type Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2028 )

Low



Moderate



High

Disposable Hospital Gowns Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2028)

North America



U.S.





Canada



Europe



U.K.





Germany



Asia Pacific



Japan





China



Latin America



Brazil





Mexico



MEA



South Africa





Saudi Arabia

List of Key Players of Disposable Hospital Gowns Market

Cardinal Health



3M



Angelica



Standard Textile Co., Inc.



Medline Industries, Inc.



Petoskey Plastics



Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.



Bellcross Industries Private Ltd.



Priontex



Sara Health Care

Find more research reports on Medical Devices Industry, by Grand View Research:

External Fixators Market  The global external fixators market size is expected to reach USD 1.16 billion by 2028, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is expected to expand at a CAGR of 4.0% from 2021 to 2028.

The global external fixators market size is expected to reach by 2028, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is expected to expand at a CAGR of 4.0% from 2021 to 2028. Cochlear Implant Market  The global cochlear implant market size is expected to reach USD 4.0 billion by 2028, based on a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is expected to expand at a CAGR of 10.5% from 2021 to 2028.

The global cochlear implant market size is expected to reach by 2028, based on a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is expected to expand at a CAGR of 10.5% from 2021 to 2028. Mesotherapy Market  The global mesotherapy market size is expected to reach USD 1.0 billion by 2028, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is expected to expand at a CAGR of 14.4% from 2021 to 2028.

Gain access to Grand View Compass, our BI enabled intuitive market research database of 10,000+ reports

About Grand View Research

Grand View Research, U.S.-based market research and consulting company, provides syndicated as well as customized research reports and consulting services. Registered in California and headquartered in San Francisco, the company comprises over 425 analysts and consultants, adding more than 1200 market research reports to its vast database each year. These reports offer in-depth analysis on 46 industries across 25 major countries worldwide. With the help of an interactive market intelligence platform, Grand View Research helps Fortune 500 companies and renowned academic institutes understand the global and regional business environment and gauge the opportunities that lie ahead.

Contact:

Sherry James

Corporate Sales Specialist, USA

Grand View Research, Inc.

Phone: 1-415-349-0058

Toll Free: 1-888-202-9519

Email: [email protected]

Web: https://www.grandviewresearch.com

Follow Us: LinkedIn | Twitter

SOURCE Grand View Research, Inc.
SAN FRANCISCO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Doximity, Inc. ("Doximity") (NYSE: DOCS) today announced the pricing of its initial public offering of 23,300,000 shares of its Class A common stock at a price to the public of $26.00 per share. The offering consists of 19,010,750 shares of Class A common stock being sold by Doximity and 4,289,250 shares of Class A common stock being sold by an existing stockholder. The gross proceeds from the offering to Doximity are expected to be approximately $494.3 million, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses payable by Doximity. Doximity will not receive any proceeds from the sale of shares by the selling stockholder. Doximity's Class A common stock is expected to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on June 24, 2021 under the ticker symbol "DOCS." The offering is expected to close on June 28, 2021, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions. In addition, Doximity has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 3,495,000 shares of Class A common stock at the initial public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions.

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC are acting as joint lead book-running managers for the offering. Piper Sandler & Co. and William Blair & Company, L.L.C. are acting as joint book-running managers for the offering. Canaccord Genuity LLC, Needham & Company, LLC, Raymond James & Associates, Inc. and SVB Leerink LLC are acting as co-managers for the offering.

A registration statement relating to these securities was declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 23, 2021. The offering is made only by means of a prospectus. Copies of the preliminary prospectus relating to the offering may be obtained from: Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Attention: Prospectus Department, 180 Varick Street, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10014 or by email at [email protected] ; Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, Attention: Prospectus Department, 200 West Street, New York, NY 10282, by telephone at (866) 471-2526 or by email at [email protected] ; and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717, by telephone at (866) 803-9204 or by email at [email protected] .

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.

About Doximity

Founded in 2010, Doximity is the leading digital platform for U.S. medical professionals. The company's network members include over 80% of U.S. physicians across all specialties and practice areas. Doximity provides its verified clinical membership with digital tools built for medicine, enabling them to collaborate with colleagues, stay up to date with the latest medical news and research, manage their careers and conduct virtual patient visits. Doximity's mission is to help doctors be more productive so they can provide better health care for their patients.

For investors:

Perry Gold

[email protected]

For media:

Jim Rivas

[email protected]

SOURCE Doximity

Related Links

http://www.doximity.com


LOUISVILLE, Ky., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- On Tuesday, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky conducted a hearing in the case of John H. Schnatter v. 247 Group, d/b/a Laundry Service and Wasserman Media Group LLC, during which attorneys for Papa John's International argued to keep 13,000 subpoenaed documents secret from the public following months of delay in producing the materials for the court. John Schnatter, the Papa John's founder and former Chairman and CEO, filed the lawsuit to demonstrate that the company's former ad firm, Laundry Service, damaged him and the company brand when they secretly taped a conference call in which the founder spoke against racism but reversed his meaning and leaked the tape to the media. Discovery in the case shows that the conference call was a set-up designed to sabotage the founder.

Mr. Schnatter issued the following statement in response to the court hearing.





"Papa John's has dragged their feet for months trying to prevent the court from seeing 13,000 documents subpoenaed by Wasserman Media as a part of our litigation. The most troubling thing about it is that this continues a consistent pattern of cover-up by the company since the false attacks against me in 2018.

"In 2019, Papa John's lost a 220 ruling in a Delaware court, but produced a sparse number of relevant documents following that court order, and now they're fighting tooth-and-nail to prevent disclosures that may reveal the truth about who did what to try to damage me and the company brand.

"Why would Papa John's try so hard to hide these documents from public view? Could it be that they're hiding something about their possible role in the set-up by our former ad firm, Wasserman Media company 'Laundry Service,' when my comments against racism were secretly taped and their meaning was reversed and leaked to the media?

"With all the revelations in our litigation, the actions by Laundry Service and Papa John's won't stand the light of day. We have the tape which fully exonerates me, and with further revelations, we will know the full truth about Papa John's likely role in this injustice that hurt so many people, including our franchisees and employees."

Reference: Civil Action No. 3:20-cv-000003-CHBCHL





To access materials related to the lawsuit, including the audio recording of the conference call, the transcript from the call, and other highlights, go to: thepapajohnschnatter.com/AudioTape

SOURCE John Schnatter
DETROIT, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- General Motors and Shell, through its wholly owned subsidiary MP2 Energy, LLC ("Shell"), are collaborating to provide comprehensive energy solutions programs to GM's customers and supply chain partners, including fixed-rate home energy plans backed by 100 percent renewable energy resources.

This program is currently available for eligible owners of Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac vehicles in Texas. Coming this summer, owners of electric vehicles from GM brands will have the opportunity to select home energy plans that include the option for free overnight hours of EV charging1. This month, the companies will also begin providing GM suppliers access to a tailored suite of renewable energy products to assist in setting and achieving their individual emissions-reduction goals. Employees of participating GM suppliers will be eligible for the home energy plans mentioned above.

Both GM and Shell have recently announced ambitious goals to address emissions.

GM plans to be carbon neutral in global products and operations by 2040 and has committed to science-based targets that align with the most ambitious goals of the Paris Agreement.

"Addressing climate change requires incredible scale," said Kristen Siemen, chief sustainability officer, General Motors. "At GM, we're committed to helping bring everybody in on a more sustainable future."

Shell's target is to become a net-zero emissions energy business by 2050, in step with society's progress in achieving the goals of the UN Paris Agreement on climate change. This target includes emissions not only from the energy Shell produces and processes, but also from all the energy products it sells to its customers.

"Shell is working across many sectors to help address greenhouse gas emissions and to serve as a partner for change," said Glenn Wright, vice president of Renewables and Energy Solutions, Shell. "We see opportunities amidst the challenges of the energy transition, and we are excited to work with GM to provide options for consumers and businesses focused on their emissions impact."

GM and Shell expect to expand the residential and EV offerings across U.S. markets in the future.

General Motors (NYSE:GM) is a global company focused on advancing an all-electric future that is inclusive and accessible to all. At the heart of this strategy is the Ultium battery platform, which powers everything from mass-market to high-performance vehicles. General Motors, its subsidiaries and its joint venture entities sell vehicles under the Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, Cadillac, Baojun and Wuling brands. More information on the company and its subsidiaries, including OnStar, a global leader in vehicle safety and security services, can be found at https://www.gm.com.

Royal Dutch Shell plc, incorporated in England and Wales, has its headquarters in The Hague and is listed on the London, Amsterdam, and New York stock exchanges. Shell companies have operations in more than 70 countries and territories with businesses that include renewable energy projects. For further information, visit www.shell.com.

1Owners of eligible Chevrolet electric vehicles (EV) will have the opportunity to schedule their EV to charge during the free overnight hours, from midnight to 5 a.m.

Cautionary note:

The companies in which Royal Dutch Shell plc directly and indirectly owns investments are separate legal entities. In this press release "Shell", "Shell Group" and "Group" are sometimes used for convenience where references are made to Royal Dutch Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general. Likewise, the words "we", "us" and "our" are also used to refer to Royal Dutch Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general or to those who work for them. These terms are also used where no useful purpose is served by identifying the particular entity or entities. ''Subsidiaries'', "Shell subsidiaries" and "Shell companies" as used in this press release refer to entities over which Royal Dutch Shell plc either directly or indirectly has control. Entities and unincorporated arrangements over which Shell has joint control are generally referred to as "joint ventures" and "joint operations", respectively. Entities over which Shell has significant influence but neither control nor joint control are referred to as "associates". The term "Shell interest" is used for convenience to indicate the direct and/or indirect ownership interest held by Shell in an entity or unincorporated joint arrangement, after exclusion of all third-party interest.

Shell's operating plan, outlook and budgets are forecasted for a ten-year period and are updated every year. They reflect the current economic environment and what we can reasonably expect to see over the next ten years. Accordingly, Shell's operating plans, outlooks, budgets and pricing assumptions do not reflect our net-zero emissions target. In the future, as society moves towards net-zero emissions, we expect Shell's operating plans, outlooks, budgets and pricing assumptions to reflect this movement.

This press release contains forward-looking statements (within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) concerning the financial condition, results of operations and businesses of Royal Dutch Shell. All statements other than statements of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements of future expectations that are based on management's current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. Forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements concerning the potential exposure of Royal Dutch Shell to market risks and statements expressing management's expectations, beliefs, estimates, forecasts, projections and assumptions. These forward-looking statements are identified by their use of terms and phrases such as "aim", "ambition", ''anticipate'', ''believe'', ''could'', ''estimate'', ''expect'', ''goals'', ''intend'', ''may'', ''objectives'', ''outlook'', ''plan'', ''probably'', ''project'', ''risks'', "schedule", ''seek'', ''should'', ''target'', ''will'' and similar terms and phrases. There are a number of factors that could affect the future operations of Royal Dutch Shell and could cause those results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements included in this press release, including (without limitation): (a) price fluctuations in crude oil and natural gas; (b) changes in demand for Shell's products; (c) currency fluctuations; (d) drilling and production results; (e) reserves estimates; (f) loss of market share and industry competition; (g) environmental and physical risks; (h) risks associated with the identification of suitable potential acquisition properties and targets, and successful negotiation and completion of such transactions; (i) the risk of doing business in developing countries and countries subject to international sanctions; (j) legislative, fiscal and regulatory developments including regulatory measures addressing climate change; (k) economic and financial market conditions in various countries and regions; (l) political risks, including the risks of expropriation and renegotiation of the terms of contracts with governmental entities, delays or advancements in the approval of projects and delays in the reimbursement for shared costs; (m) risks associated with the impact of pandemics, such as the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak; and (n) changes in trading conditions. No assurance is provided that future dividend payments will match or exceed previous dividend payments. All forward-looking statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Additional risk factors that may affect future results are contained in Royal Dutch Shell's Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2020 (available at www.shell.com/investor and www.sec.gov). These risk factors also expressly qualify all forward-looking statements contained in this press release and should be considered by the reader. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this press release, [June 23, 2021]. Neither Royal Dutch Shell plc nor any of its subsidiaries undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other information. In light of these risks, results could differ materially from those stated, implied or inferred from the forward-looking statements contained in this press release.

We may have used certain terms, such as resources, in this press release that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) strictly prohibits us from including in our filings with the SEC. Investors are urged to consider closely the disclosure in our Form 20-F, File No 1-32575, available on the SEC website www.sec.gov.

GM Forward-Looking Statement

This press release and related comments by management may also include "forward-looking statements" relating to General Motors within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements are any statements other than statements of historical fact. Forward-looking statements represent GM's current judgement about possible future events and are often identified by words such as "anticipate," "appears," "approximately," "believe," "continue," "could," "designed," "effect," "estimate," "evaluate," "expect," "forecast," "goal," "initiative," "intend," "may," "objective," "outlook," "plan," "potential," "priorities," "project," "pursue," "seek," "should," "target," "when," "will," "would," or the negative of any of those words or similar expressions. In making these statements, GM relies upon assumptions and analysis based on its experience and perception of historical trends, current conditions, and expected future developments, as well as other factors it considers appropriate under the circumstances. GM believes these judgements are reasonable, but these statements are not guarantees of any future events or financial results, and GM's actual results may differ materially due to a variety of factors, many of which are described in its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and its other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. GM cautions readers not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and GM undertakes no obligation to update publicly or otherwise revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or other factors that affect the subject of these statements, except where it is expressly required to do so by law.

SOURCE General Motors Co.

Related Links

http://www.gm.com


SAN FRANCISCO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- GrubMarket today announced it has completed the acquisition of Sierra Produce, one of the largest importers of South American fruits directly from growers into the United States. Sierra Produce is a highly established and well-respected leading fruit provider to a wide range of business customers including grocery stores, supermarkets, online grocers and others across the U.S. It has long-standing and diverse relationships with many local growers directly in South America, including Chile, Argentina, Peru, Columbia and Mexico.

Founded in 1996, Sierra Produce provides a variety of high-quality fresh fruits to businesses throughout the United States. Its well-trained QC department inspects fruits upon arrival and prior to shipping. Sierra Produce also has full repack/restyle capabilities, with quick turn-around times, full-service delivery options, flexible transportation, including LTL (Less than Load), ad planning and marketing support. It handles direct communication with the growers at farm level for timely harvest information. Its products include blueberries, grapes, cherries, pears, kiwi and a variety of citrus and stone fruits. Historically, its grower associates have been strategically selected to provide a multitude of different varieties throughout the whole growing season. After the acquisition, the business will continue to be managed by its current leadership team.

"We are excited to join the GrubMarket team and welcome the opportunities brought forth by GrubMarket's robust technology platform and network. We are constantly striving for the best customer service and committed to meet the needs of all our growers and customers. We are thrilled to learn that GrubMarket shares this same mission. We sincerely look forward to joining the GrubMarket Team and bringing Sierra Produce to the next level of success." said Roland Berndt, CEO of Sierra Produce.

According to Mike Xu, CEO of GrubMarket: "Sierra Produce is one of the biggest providers of South American fruits in the United States. It sources from financially sound growers who manage their own proprietary farms. Its relationships with growers are long standing and, in many cases, exclusive. These diverse relationships in the Southern Hemisphere provide a consistent flow of products to our growing customer base. The top-notch team at Sierra Produce has quite a few business geniuses who are hard to find elsewhere in this food space, and is a true value-added partner for their customers and producers. This acquisition enables to GrubMarket to further deepen its software domain knowledge in working with South American growers and strengthen the integration between local and import capabilities supported by our software. We are excited to welcome the Sierra Produce team to the GrubMarket family. Together, we will build a greater customer base and a stronger producer network in the food ecosystem worldwide."

Lastly, Sierra Produce will now be able to utilize GrubMarket's innovative proprietary WholesaleWare software suite, the company's Software-as-a-Service platform providing food industry suppliers and vendors with seamless financial management, easy-to-use online ordering and sales, precise inventory management, and engaging CRM tools.

About GrubMarket

Founded in 2014, GrubMarket is a San Francisco-based food technology company operating in the space of food ecommerce both B2B & B2C as well as providing related software-as-a-service solutions to solve inefficiencies in the American food supply chain. Currently, GrubMarket operates in California, Washington, Texas, Michigan, New York, New Jersey, Missouri and Massachusetts, with plans to expand to other parts of the country.

For Media Inquiries:

GrubMarket Media Team

[email protected]

(510) 556-4786

SOURCE GrubMarket

Related Links

http://www.grubmarket.com


NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- After almost two years of being in effect, the statute of limitations extension created by the New York Child Victims Act (CVA) is ending. Survivors have until Aug. 13, 2021, to file any potential claim for damages related to previously time-barred cases.

After Aug. 13, 2021, those claims that could have been filed under the extension or otherwise had passed their statute of limitation could be barred from seeing their day in court.

"The CVA is a historic opportunity for victims to seek justice and time is running out," said attorney Jeff Herman, one of the nation's leading advocates for victims of child sex abuse. "We have heard from thousands of New Yorkers who were sexually abused as children and, for the first time in their lives, they are able to have a voice."

Victims are encouraged to contact a skilled, licensed attorney to discuss their options for preserving their case before this opportunity to file comes to a close.

How Herman Law Can Help

At Herman Law, the firm only represents victims of sexual abuse. Herman Law attorneys believe that it is their duty to provide a voice for the victims while supporting and advocating for justice on their behalf. The firm's experience advocating for survivors provides it with a wealth of resources and tools. Herman Law provides these resources and tools to its clients as they navigate the often emotional and difficult process of recovering from sexual abuse.

Founder Jeff Herman is recognized as one of the country's foremost advocates for child victims of sexual abuse.

"Most of our clients were abused by Catholic priests, foster fathers and school teachers," Herman said. "Time is running out for others who have not yet come forward for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to seek justice."

Herman Law has represented over 1,000 survivors of sexual abuse and recovered over $200 million in damages for its clients. It is the firm's mission to empower victims of sexual abuse so they can take back their lives and begin their healing process. "We are here to help these survivors throughout the legal process."

What is the New York Child Victims Act?

The New York Child Victims Act was signed into law by Governor Andrew Cuomo in 2019. It extends the statute of limitations for survivors of childhood sexual abuse to file claims in the state of New York. The CVA extends the time for a victim to press both criminal charges and civil claims for monetary damages. The CVA also allows for lawsuits to be filed against institutions that may have been involved in the abuse.

All claims that had previously expired under the old statute of limitations are potentially able to be filed under this special extension that expires Aug. 13, 2021.

Media Inquiries:

Jordana Balsam

[email protected]

561-693-2947

Herman Law Firm, P.A.

1800 N. Military Trail, Suite 160

Boca Raton, FL 33431

SOURCE Herman Law Firm, P.A.
"What ICEYE has accomplished in satellite operations and services for its government customers is remarkable. My intent is to continue on that path to help provide crucial information and dedicated services with radar satellite data to the Japanese satellite data market," said Makoto Higashi , General Manager, ICEYE Japan. "Only those satellite data companies that have withstood the strict requirements of government customers have prospered. ICEYE is very well-respected in this regard worldwide. The Japanese market has an opportunity to access remarkable aerospace capabilities with the data products ICEYE has to offer."

The insurance organization Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance is among ICEYE's Japan-based customer base. The organization receives ICEYE's insights from its global flood monitoring solution to serve its insurance customers with significantly faster claims payments after natural catastrophes.

"ICEYE's advanced technology in SAR image acquisition & near real-time data analysis brought our long-term business goals to reality and even has potential to transform beyond our claim service operation," said Hidenori Kobayashi, Deputy General Manager at Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire insurance.

ICEYE Japan offices are opening in Tokyo within the next 12 months, with initial recruitment focusing on local commercial operations. ICEYE has so far launched 10 radar satellite missions since early 2018, including dedicated satellites for customers. The company has gathered $152 million in financing to date, with offices in Finland, Poland, US, UK, Spain, and Japan. For 2020, ICEYE has reported $50 million in signed contracts for the year.

About ICEYE:

ICEYE empowers commercial and government partners with unmatched persistent monitoring capabilities for any location on Earth. The company helps customers make informed, data-driven decisions to address time-critical challenges in various industries, to ensure infrastructure safety, and to protect the environment. ICEYE's radar satellite imaging service, designed to deliver very frequent coverage, both day and night, helps clients resolve challenges in sectors such as maritime, disaster management, insurance, and finance. For more information, please visit: www.iceye.com

SOURCE ICEYE

Related Links

https://www.iceye.com


DALLAS, June 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- SilverPoint Senior Living announced a new partnership with La Fontaine Memory Care. This partnership will bring a proven assisted living and memory care management team with experienced professionals and an engaged program to benefit the residents of La Fontaine of Frisco.

"As SilverPoint is continuing to grow, we want to be strategic as we add to the portfolio of communities we manage. We truly connected on a personal level with the ownership group and both agreed that SilverPoint can add value to the La Fontaine community," says Shawn Corzine, Chief Executive Officer at SilverPoint. "We are thrilled to add La Fontaine Memory Care to the SilverPoint family."

"We are excited to partner with SilverPoint and look forward to working with them at La Fontaine Memory Care. Paramount Healthcare's expertise has historically focused on individuals needing skilled nursing care. Since La Fontaine Memory Care is our only assisted living community, we felt it was crucial to partner with a management team that had an excellent reputation for providing the best assisted living care and leadership to our residents and employees. We were very purposeful in choosing the partner to help us manage La Fontaine," says Lauren P. Golden, Owner of La Fontaine. "With SilverPoint, we felt not only the personal connection with the ownership and management, but also we saw first-hand their commitment to caring for individuals in assisted living communities. We truly look forward to watching them make every day for our seniors at La Fontaine a better day than yesterday!"

About SilverPoint Senior Living

SilverPoint Senior Living is a Texas senior living management company that specializes in operating independent living, assisted living, and memory care communities. Their management services include portfolio management; development and acquisition; accounting and financial; marketing and sales; and IT and digital transformation. SilverPoint is strongly committed to its five core values of family, purpose, fun, integrity, and dignity, and is known for its signature Engaged Life program in which residents enjoy a person-centered care approach designed to make their lifestyle more similar to home. It is also a certified 2021 Great Place to Work. For more information about SilverPoint Senior Living, please visit www.silverpointsl.com or call 830-730-4472.

Kelly Schwennesen

SilverPoint Senior Living

[email protected]

SOURCE SilverPoint Senior Living

Related Links

https://silverpointsl.com


For several years, Mastercard and LATAM Pass, the most relevant frequent flyer program in Latin America, have collaborated with issuing banks to introduce co-branded credit cards and benefits to their loyal customers when flying to more than 115 destinations within the LATAM network.

"Many industries, including travel, are accelerating their digital transformation to deliver innovations across consumer touch points," said Kiki del Valle, executive vice president of Market Development for Latin America and the Caribbean for Mastercard. "With our data analytics and ability to continuously adjust to consumer trends and market forces, we are excited to innovate in the travel space together with the LATAM Airlines Group team, which is equally passionate about evolving the travel experience for the digitally connected traveler."

LATAM Pass VP Ralph Piket noted that, "we are sure that the partnership agreement with Mastercard will allow us to not only further accelerate our innovation, but also to improve the travel experience of our customers. As we know, the future of the airline industry is essentially being digital and seamless, and LATAM is working in that regard. In this context, the partnership with Mastercard is a very relevant step on that path and adds to the launch of our e-business unit last year."

Both parties will begin work on the launch of new benefits and new Mastercard LATAM Pass programs, offering more mileage accrual and redemption alternatives in both travel and partner merchants, which will be communicated as soon as they are available.

About Mastercard (NYSE: MA)

Mastercard is a global technology company in the payments industry. Our mission is to connect and power an inclusive, digital economy that benefits everyone, everywhere by making transactions safe, simple, smart and accessible. Using secure data and networks, partnerships and passion, our innovations and solutions help individuals, financial institutions, governments, and businesses realize their greatest potential. Our decency quotient, or DQ, drives our culture and everything we do inside and outside of our company. With connections across more than 210 countries and territories, we are building a sustainable world that unlocks priceless possibilities for all.

www.mastercard.com

About LATAM

LATAM is the principal group of airlines in Latin America present in five domestic markets in the region: Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, in addition to international operations inside Latin America and between it and Europe, the United States, and the Caribbean.

The group has a fleet of Boeing 767, 777, 787, Airbus A321, A320, A320neo and A319 aircraft.

LATAM Cargo Chile, LATAM Cargo Colombia, and LATAM Cargo Brazil are the LATAM Airlines freight subsidiaries. In addition to having access to the passenger cargo holds of LATAM Airlines Group, they have a fleet of 11 freighters, which will gradually increase to a total of up to 21 freighters by 2023.

They operate on the LATAM Group network as well as International routes that are solely used for shipping. They offer modern Infrastructure, a wide variety of services and protection options to meet all customer needs.

For press inquiries write to [email protected]latam.com. More financial information is available at www.latamairlinesgroup.net

www.latam.com

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1539044/Mastercard_and_LATAM_Airlines_Group.jpg

SOURCE Mastercard Latin America & the Caribbean

Related Links

https://www.mastercard.com


"We're thrilled to welcome our newest hotel and restaurant partners, who all pay homage to our city's rich culture and history," said Steve Adkins, Chairman of the Miami Beach Visitor and Convention Authority (MBVCA). "From the preservation of art deco treasures to innovative cuisine that captures the unique zest of Miami Beach, these highly-anticipated openings will offer more options for travelers to choose from during their stay with us."

Starting this summer, Miami Beach will expand on its reputation as a city like no other place in the world, connecting travelers to the essence of the city through several must-stay and must-taste experiences, including:

The Goodtime Hotel : Fueled by the star power of Pharrell Williams and David Grutman , visitors can escape this summer and vacation like a celebrity when staying at the Goodtime Hotel. The hotel features a 30,000-square-foot pool deck spotted with cabanas, lush greenery, and Instagram-worthy interiors  like pink landline phones. Guests can also enjoy dining and drinks at Strawberry Moon, cozy up with a book at the library, or record music at the on-site recording studio  the possibilities are endless.

: Fueled by the star power of and , visitors can escape this summer and vacation like a celebrity when staying at the Goodtime Hotel. The hotel features a 30,000-square-foot pool deck spotted with cabanas, lush greenery, and Instagram-worthy interiors  like pink landline phones. Guests can also enjoy dining and drinks at Strawberry Moon, cozy up with a book at the library, or record music at the on-site recording studio  the possibilities are endless. Moxy Miami South Beach : Travelers searching for an authentic Miami Beach experience need look no further than Moxy Miami South Beach, where colorful murals, floor-to-ceiling windows, and bright hues greet all who enter. Highlights include a rooftop pool with panoramic views, a dedicated beach club, and six dining and drinking venues to choose from, including the rooftop restaurant Serena .

: Travelers searching for an authentic experience need look no further than Moxy Miami South Beach, where colorful murals, floor-to-ceiling windows, and bright hues greet all who enter. Highlights include a rooftop pool with panoramic views, a dedicated beach club, and six dining and drinking venues to choose from, including the rooftop restaurant Serena The Re-imagination of The Ritz-Carlton, South Beach: Following a $90 million renovation, this 376-room oceanfront hotel pays tribute to the city's vibrant culture, history, and glamour with a level of sophistication that's unmatched. Visitors can take a dip in the hotel's new elevated swimming pool while overlooking the Atlantic, enjoy a rejuvenating spa treatment, and indulge in luxury dining at several eateries, including Fuego y Mar, Lapidus Bar , and DiLido Beach Club.

Following a renovation, this 376-room oceanfront hotel pays tribute to the city's vibrant culture, history, and glamour with a level of sophistication that's unmatched. Visitors can take a dip in the hotel's new elevated swimming pool while overlooking the Atlantic, enjoy a rejuvenating spa treatment, and indulge in luxury dining at several eateries, including Fuego y Mar, , and DiLido Beach Club. Avo Miami : Avocado lovers will enjoy this 2,000-square-foot Mediterranean eatery that features avocado in every dish. Must-try menu items include the savory Avocado Salmon toast, Fettuccini pasta paired with a creamy avocado basil sauce, and the Thyme Grilled Branzino with quinoa tabbouleh and lemon parsley aioli.

: Avocado lovers will enjoy this 2,000-square-foot Mediterranean eatery that features avocado in every dish. Must-try menu items include the savory Avocado Salmon toast, Fettuccini pasta paired with a creamy avocado basil sauce, and the Thyme Grilled Branzino with quinoa tabbouleh and lemon parsley aioli. Nossa Omakase : A true luxury dining experience awaits visitors at this new omakase restaurant. Upon arrival, diners are escorted through a dark corridor that opens up into a den, producing a genuine 'wow' factor for guests. Executive Chef Max Kamakura created the menu, where guests can choose from exotic dishes like Lobster Sashimi and A5 Wagyu Nigiri for their 16-18 course dinner.

: A true luxury dining experience awaits visitors at this new omakase restaurant. Upon arrival, diners are escorted through a dark corridor that opens up into a den, producing a genuine 'wow' factor for guests. Executive Chef created the menu, where guests can choose from exotic dishes like Lobster Sashimi and A5 Wagyu Nigiri for their 16-18 course dinner. Layla : Those who appreciate a good love story will enjoy dining at Layla, where Modern Middle Eastern-inspired cuisine celebrates the relationship of Layla and Majnun  affectionately known as the Middle Eastern Romeo and Juliet. Set along the Collins Canal, the dining experience reflects the dinner party where the two lovebirds met. The restaurant's rooftop courtyard represents where the lovers escaped to live and love freely. Menu highlights include Ras Hanout Hanger Steak, Shawarma Grilled Chicken, and Braised Lamb.

: Those who appreciate a good love story will enjoy dining at Layla, where Modern Middle Eastern-inspired cuisine celebrates the relationship of Layla and Majnun  affectionately known as the Middle Eastern Romeo and Juliet. Set along the Collins Canal, the dining experience reflects the dinner party where the two lovebirds met. The restaurant's rooftop courtyard represents where the lovers escaped to live and love freely. Menu highlights include Ras Hanout Hanger Steak, Shawarma Grilled Chicken, and Braised Lamb. Emergence: The Process of Coming Into : Art lovers will appreciate this all-new, student-run exhibit located right in the heart of Miami Beach . Thanks to the College of Communication, Architecture + The Arts (CARTA), with the support of the Berkowitz Contemporary Foundation, this inaugural exhibition features a diverse mix of contemporary art by six Department of Art + Art History graduate students and Berkowitz Scholarship recipients.

: Art lovers will appreciate this all-new, student-run exhibit located right in the heart of . Thanks to the College of Communication, Architecture + The Arts (CARTA), with the support of the Berkowitz Contemporary Foundation, this inaugural exhibition features a diverse mix of contemporary art by six Department of Art + Art History graduate students and Berkowitz Scholarship recipients. Ase: Afro Frequencies: West African culture radiates through this Artechouse exhibit, which focuses on the idea of ase and represents the power to produce change. The exhibit celebrates historical, social, and cultural aspects of the Black experience through the unique perspective of artist Vince Fraser .

"Summer is finally here and with our new destination partners, there's something for everyone to discover on Miami Beach," said Grisette Marcos, Executive Director of the MBVCA. "Travelers are welcome to experience all that the city has to offer this summer and beyond."

For more information about the latest hotel and restaurant openings on Miami Beach, follow @ExperienceMiamiBeach on Facebook, Instagram, and @EMiamiBeach on Twitter, and download the Miami Beach App at http://www.miamibeachapi.com/.

Contact: Elisabeth Denil, [email protected]

SOURCE Miami Beach Visitor and Convention Authority

Related Links

http://www.miamibeachapi.com/


WASHINGTON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The momentum for a bipartisan infrastructure agreement has never been this high.

President Biden can seize the moment.

From Karl Rove to Sen. Mark Warner to Sen. Rob Portman to Rep. Lee (see video compilation) the Washington conventional wisdom has finally caught up with the reality: patriots on Capitol Hill are ready to stand up to the extremes of both the left and right, work through the details, and make this a reality.

The G-21 Senate group and the House Problem Solvers continue to flesh out the details of a $1.2 trillion package, propelled by extraordinary bicameral negotiations and the clear backing of a broad majority of the country that wants this effort to succeed.

Tuesday, close Biden ally, Senator Chris Coons, one of the Senate Gang of 21, wrote in The Washington Post:

"Enacting a bipartisan infrastructure proposal is the best way to strengthen our recoverynothing will showcase that the United States is back like seeing Republicans and Democrats coming together around a bold infrastructure package that will make us more competitive around the world."

In a just released national Harvard/CAPS Harris poll, 78% say they want President Biden to accept a $1.2 trillion infrastructure proposal negotiated by a bipartisan group of lawmakers, while only 22 percent believe that the president should hold out for a larger package.

This feeling extends to President Biden's home state of Delaware. Delawareans are rarely polled but No Labels just did a survey of the president's home state to get a better sense of what those voters want him to do on these negotiations. We found:

73% of Delaware votersincluding 67% if Democratswant the President to take the $1.2 trillion bipartisan deal that's on the table as opposed to holding out for a bigger deal.

66% of Delaware voters want President Biden to "compromise with Republicans, spend less and hold the line on taxes" as opposed to just 34% who advocate him going along with "The progressive wing of the Democratic Party represented by Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and others who want to spend $4 trillion dollars and raise taxes.

With talk of even more Senators of both parties getting ready to join their 21 colleagues who are already united behind a bipartisan agreement and reporting that makes it clear that the White House wants a deal, now is the opportunity to get this done.

To help get this package over the finish line, No Labels has launched a partnership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Business Roundtablewhich was announced on CNBC by No Labels co-chair and Maryland Governor Larry Hoganto join almost 150 business, military, and civic organizations to sign a statement pushing for a two-party solution.

Several notable Delaware civic leaders including Ben duPont, a Republican business innovator, and the state's former U.S. Attorney and Attorney General Charles Oberly, are part of the effort, which also includes a No Labels TV ad campaign in Delaware and DC that draws on footage of President Biden from six consecutive decades talking about the importance of bipartisanship.

Delawareans, like all Americans, are ready to support Joe Biden's fulfilment of a lifetime of promises to bring both parties together to meet the needs of the nation.

As DuPont and Oberly wrote in an op-ed piece in the Wilmington News Journal on Tuesday:

"Now, as president, Delaware's favorite son faces a critical decision. At a rare moment when Washington is on the cusp of solving a huge problem  namely the sorry state of our nation's infrastructure."

Get this deal done and agreements on policing reform, immigration, minimum wage, competitiveness, and more are all there for the taking.

Go to a Democratic-only process via reconciliation and the tens of millions of Americans who support bipartisanship will be equal parts angry and incredulous.

Let's do this thing.

SOURCE No Labels

Related Links

http://www.nolabels.org


WASHINGTON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- As bipartisan infrastructure negotiations reach a critical juncture, No Labels decided to ask: What does Delaware think?

Delawareans are rarely polled but a new No Labels survey of President Biden's home state revealed:

73% of Delaware votersincluding 67% of Democratswant the President to take the $1.2 trillion bipartisan deal that's on the table as opposed to holding out for a bigger deal.



that's on the table as opposed to holding out for a bigger deal. 66% of Delaware voters want President Biden to "compromise with Republicans, spend less and hold the line on taxes" as opposed to just 34% who advocate him going along with "The progressive wing of the Democratic Party represented by Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and others who want to spend $4 trillion dollars and raise taxes.

The Delaware poll is part of a broader campaign by No Labels to reveal the broad support a two-party infrastructure deal enjoys across America. No Labels has launched a partnership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Business Roundtablewhich was announced on CNBC by No Labels co-chair and Maryland Governor Larry Hoganto join almost 150 business, military, and civic organizations to sign a statement pushing for a two-party solution.

Several notable Delaware civic leaders including Ben duPont, a Republican business innovator, and the state's former U.S. Attorney and Attorney General Charles Oberly, are part of the effort, which also includes a No Labels TV ad campaign in Delaware and DC that draws on footage of President Biden from six consecutive decades talking about the importance of bipartisanship.

As DuPont and Oberly wrote in an op-ed piece in the Wilmington News Journal on Tuesday:

"Now, as president, Delaware's favorite son faces a critical decision. At a rare moment when Washington is on the cusp of solving a huge problem  namely the sorry state of our nation's infrastructure."

Other interesting findings from the surveywhich can be viewed in full here include:

About Infrastructure

A 53% majority of Delaware voters say that the Democrats should only pass an infrastructure bill on a strictly partisan basis as a last resort; 27% say passing the bill on a partisan basis should be the Democrats' focus, and 20% say Democrats shouldn't work on a partisan bill under any circumstances.



voters say that the Democrats should only pass an infrastructure bill on a strictly partisan basis as a last resort; 27% say passing the bill on a partisan basis should be the Democrats' focus, and 20% say Democrats shouldn't work on a partisan bill under any circumstances. A 54% majority of Delaware voters say pursuing a bipartisan compromise on the infrastructure bill is worth the risk of not passing a bill. The majority holds for 70% of Republicans and 50% of Independents, and even 49% of Democrats agree that securing bipartisan compromise on the bill is worth the risk.



voters say pursuing a bipartisan compromise on the infrastructure bill is worth the risk of not passing a bill. The majority holds for 70% of Republicans and 50% of Independents, and even 49% of Democrats agree that securing bipartisan compromise on the bill is worth the risk. Two-thirds (67%) of Delaware voters say President Biden should spend far less than $4 trillion on new infrastructure, and should reduce any increases in taxes and the deficit. Majorities of all major party IDs agree on this point, with 87% of Republicans, 78% of Independents, and 51% of Democrats saying this statement is closer to their view than spending $4 trillion on infrastructure, raising taxes and increasing the deficit

About President Joe Biden

60% of Delaware voters approve of the job Joe Biden is doing as President, including 88% of Democrats, 52% of Independents, and 19% of Republicans.



voters approve of the job is doing as President, including 88% of Democrats, 52% of Independents, and 19% of Republicans. A 55% majority of Delaware voters think President Biden truly believes in the importance of bipartisanship. This figure is driven by a 77% majority of Democrats. However, 76% of Republicans and 57% of Independents are not convinced, and say Biden's talk about bipartisan solutions are for political purposes

This survey was conducted online within the United States from June 17-22 among 488 registered voters in Delaware by HarrisX. Results were weighted for age, gender, party, race, education, and income to align them with their actual proportions in the population in the state. The margin of error is plus or minus 4%.

No Labels is a nationwide movement of Democrats, Republicans and independents working to build the bipartisan governing coalition capable of solving America's toughest challenges.

SOURCE No Labels

Related Links

http://www.nolabels.org


BANGALORE, India, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Smoke Evacuation System Market by Product (Smoke Evacuators, Smoke Evacuation Pencils, Smoke Evacuation Filters, Smoke Evacuation Tubing and Smoke Evacuation Accessories), Application (Laparoscopic Surgeries, Orthopedic Surgeries, Medical Aesthetic Surgeries and Others), and End User (Hospitals, Ambulatory Surgery Centers, Cosmetic Surgery Centers and Dental Clinics). This report is published on Valuates Reports in the Medical Devices & Equipment Category.

The global Smoke Evacuation System Market size was valued at USD 128.6 Million in 2019 and is projected to reach USD 196.4 Million by 2027 at a CAGR of 10.5% from 2020 to 2027.

The primary function of smoke evacuation systems is to reduce odor and trap smoke through an active carbon barrier. During open surgical and laparoscopic procedures in hospital operating rooms, these devices filter smoke and remove aerosol-charged air.

Major factors driving the growth of the smoke evacuation system market are:

Rising patient preference for minimally invasive surgeries and an increasing number of laparoscopic, orthopedic, aesthetic, and botox treatments are driving the growth of the smoke evacuation system market.

The increasing demand for medical aesthetic procedures due to growing awareness toward physical appearance is also expected to supplement the market growth.

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TRENDS INFLUENCING THE GROWTH OF SMOKE EVACUATION SYSTEM MARKET

The increasing preference for minimally invasive surgeries has increased the need for the elimination of smoke/surgical plumes from operating rooms and surgical theatres. Healthcare providers are increasingly using evacuation/suction systems, smoke/surgical plumes. This, in turn, is expected to drive the growth of the smoke evacuation system market. Inhalation of surgical plumes causes chronic medical problems in patients and surgeons who are exposed to them. The clinical dangers of surgical plume inhalation have also been recognized by several government agencies and industry associations. As a result, product manufacturers are increasingly concentrating on developing and commercializing novel smoke evacuation products that are both safer and more efficient.

For players in the Smoke Evacuation System Market, emerging countries offer significant growth opportunities. This can be attributed to the increasing public and private initiatives undertaken by market stakeholders across these countries, as well as low trade regulatory barriers, continuous improvements in healthcare infrastructures, the patient populations, rising healthcare expenditure, market leaders in these regions strengthening their distribution networks, and the rising trend of medical tours.

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SMOKE EVACUATION SYSTEM MARKET SHARE ANALYSIS

Based on application, the other surgery segment is anticipated to be the largest growing segment during the forecast period. This is due to the increase in the number of general surgeries, gynecology surgeries, urologic surgeries, neurosurgeries, and cardiovascular surgeries.

Based on end-users, the hospital segment is expected to maintain the largest market share. This is due to the fact that hospitals conduct a greater number of operations per year.

Based on the region, North America currently dominates the global smoke evacuation system market and is predicted to continue to do so over the forecast period. This is because the number of cosmetic procedures performed in the area is growing. The United States accounts for the majority of the region's revenue and is expected to boost the demand for smoke evacuation systems in North America.

However, due to growing investments in R&D by leading companies in the industry and their persistent efforts toward commercializing smoke evacuation devices at lower prices to end-users, Asia-Pacific is expected to develop at the fastest rate of 12.0%.

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KEY MARKET SEGMENTS

By Product

Smoke Evacuators

Smoke Evacuation Pencils

Smoke Evacuation Filters

Smoke Evacuation Tubing

Smoke Evacuation Accessories

By Application

Laparoscopic Surgeries

Orthopedic Surgeries

Medical Aesthetic Surgeries

Others

By End User

Hospitals

Ambulatory Surgery Centers

Cosmetic Surgery Centers

Dental Clinics

By Region

North America

U.S.



Canada



Mexico

Europe

Germany



France



UK



Italy



Spain



Rest of Europe

Asia-Pacific

Japan



China



India



Australia



South Korea



Rest of Asia-Pacific

LAMEA

Brazil



Saudi Arabia



South Africa



Rest of LAMEA

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SIMILAR REPORTS :

Global Electrosurgical Smoke Evacuation Systems Sales Market report offers in depth assessment of the growth and other aspects of the Electrosurgical Smoke Evacuation Systems market in important regions including the U. S. , it is segmented by Product-Type: Smoke Evacuators, Wands & Pencils, Smoke Evacuation Filters, Other, Application: Hospitals, Ambulatory Surgical Centers, Others, by key players, by Regions: North America , Europe , China and Japan , etc.

report offers in depth assessment of the growth and other aspects of the Electrosurgical Smoke Evacuation Systems market in important regions including the U. S. , it is segmented by Product-Type: Smoke Evacuators, Wands & Pencils, Smoke Evacuation Filters, Other, Application: Hospitals, Ambulatory Surgical Centers, Others, by key players, by Regions: , , and , etc. Global Surgical Smoke Evacuation Systems Sales Market report offers an in -depth assessment of the growth and other aspects of the Surgical Smoke Evacuation Systems market in important regions including the U. S. The report is segmented by Product-Type: Smoke Evacuators, Wands & Pencils, Smoke Evacuation Filters, Other, Application: Hospitals, Ambulatory Surgical Centers, Others, by key players, by Regions: North America , Europe , China and Japan , etc.

report offers an in -depth assessment of the growth and other aspects of the Surgical Smoke Evacuation Systems market in important regions including the U. S. The report is segmented by Product-Type: Smoke Evacuators, Wands & Pencils, Smoke Evacuation Filters, Other, Application: Hospitals, Ambulatory Surgical Centers, Others, by key players, by Regions: , , and , etc. Global Smoke Evacuation Units Sales Market report offers in depth assessment of the growth and other aspects of the Smoke Evacuation Units market in important regions including the U. S. it is segmented by Product-Type: Smoke Evacuators, Wands & Pencils, Smoke Evacuation Filters, Other, Application: Hospitals, Ambulatory Surgical Centers, Others, by key players, by Regions: North America , Europe , China and Japan , etc.

report offers in depth assessment of the growth and other aspects of the Smoke Evacuation Units market in important regions including the U. S. it is segmented by Product-Type: Smoke Evacuators, Wands & Pencils, Smoke Evacuation Filters, Other, Application: Hospitals, Ambulatory Surgical Centers, Others, by key players, by Regions: , , and , etc. Global Safe Air Smoke Evacuator Units Sales Market report offers in depth assessment of the growth and other aspects of the Safe Air Smoke Evacuator Units market in important regions including the U. S. it is segmented by Product-Type: Smoke Evacuators, Wands & Pencils, Smoke Evacuation Filters, Other, Application: Hospitals, Ambulatory Surgical Centers, Others, by key players, by Regions: North America , Europe , China and Japan , etc.

report offers in depth assessment of the growth and other aspects of the Safe Air Smoke Evacuator Units market in important regions including the U. S. it is segmented by Product-Type: Smoke Evacuators, Wands & Pencils, Smoke Evacuation Filters, Other, Application: Hospitals, Ambulatory Surgical Centers, Others, by key players, by Regions: , , and , etc. Global Laparoscopic Smoke Evacuation System Market Research Report contains Market Size, Market Share, Market Dynamics, Porter's 5 force Analysis, Segmentation, Regional and Competitor Analysis. Product: Laparoscopic Smoke Evacuation System, Product-Type: Filter, Smoke Filter Pipe, Other, Application: Hospital, Clinic, Other

Click Here To See Related Reports On Smoke Evacuation

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LONDON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Squaretalk, a global interactive business communications platform, has been ranked by G2 as a top 10 performing technology in G2's Telecom Services for Call Centers Relationship Index. The company scored above 90% in each of the three categories measured: likelihood to recommend; ease of doing business; and quality of support.

In its Summer 2021 Grids report, G2 also recognised Squaretalk as a High Performer in two categories, Contact Center Operations Software and Telecom Services for Call Centers . Technology products in the High Performer quadrant of G2's Grid Reports are rated highly by G2 users and have substantial satisfaction and market presence scores.

G2 is the world's largest review platform for business software and services, with more than one million user reviews published to date. Visitors use the site to research and compare technology solutions based on peer reviews and synthesized social data.

Rankings on G2 reports are based on data provided by actual, verified users of the software or service. This sets it apart from other review sites that primarily use self-reported information from vendors to compare and rate products.

Commenting on G2's recognition of his company, Elie Rubin, CEO of Squaretalk, said: "We are delighted that the hard work of our multi-regional teams has been recognised by G2 in this report. Our aim is to be an intelligent glue in the business communications ecosystem, and the appreciation and high esteem of our partners and clients is integral to achieving our goal."

Squaretalk recently announced a major integration with Zoho One, a unified suite of 40+ tightly integrated enterprise-level online applications from Zoho to help businesses grow. The integration was built using Zoho PhoneBridge, a platform that enables the integration of cloud PBX and Contact Centre Solution providers with Zoho to add telephony capabilities to any Zoho application. The Squaretalk integration for Zoho One is readily available on Zoho Marketplace.

Earlier this year, Squaretalk also launched a multi-channel messaging service called Express, enabling businesses and contact centres to connect with customers wherever they are, through any device, on their preferred platform. Starting with SMS, the platform will soon include WhatsApp, Messenger, Viber, Telegram, and WeChat.

For more information visit www.squaretalk.com .

About Squaretalk

Squaretalk (formerly known as Deskforce) is a global interactive business communications platform providing voice, text, chat, and messaging solutions. Its core purpose is to simplify and enhance how businesses communicate with their customers by providing integration capabilities that elevate the user experience, drive customer loyalty, and scale operations, whilst improving operational systems for their remote workforce. Headquartered in Jerusalem, Israel and with a hub in Bulgaria, its international footprint of over 200 clients and 15,000 agents globally reflects the company's success. In 2020 Squaretalk grew revenues by 40% and it is expected to double up in 2021.

With powerful cloud communication tools, flexible solutions for decentralized teams, and the ability to integrate easily with existing and new leading communications platforms, Squaretalk is enabling better business communication.

About G2



G2, the world's leading business solution review platform, leverages more than 1M+ user reviews to drive better purchasing decisions. Business professionals, buyers, investors, and analysts use the site to compare and select the best software and services based on peer reviews and synthesized social data. Every month, more than three million people visit G2's site to gain unique insights.

For more information please contact:

Yellow Jersey PR

Alexandra Santos

E: [email protected]

Chris Flame

E: [email protected]

SOURCE Squaretalk
TALLINN, Estonia, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- In wake of a resurgence in global financial activity, award-winning online trading brokerage brand Trustpac has announced a series of special promotions , all in line with upcoming and recent initial public offerings (IPOs). This measure is part of the brand's strategy of expanding the horizons of client traders, therefore enabling themselves to fulfill the potential of online trading today.

"These new promotions are a result of months of planning and monitoring markets all around the world," commented Ema Overland, Trustpac's spokesperson. "We've always believed that the only way to develop as a business is to offer our clients something they won't be able to find anywhere else, and that only by putting our customers in the center, will we be able to thrive. We can promise the users of our platform and mechanisms that this approach is going to lead our way in the future as well."

Making online trading simple today, for tomorrow's trader

Alongside the markets returning to pre-pandemic volumes, a great deal of volatility is also being witnessed. It is a consensus among expert analysts that the next few months will be a test for the new economic routine. For that reason, Trustpac plans to keep setting the standards in the industry, for other trading brands to follow. Aside from these IPO promotions, which include promising names such as AirBNB, Wish, Instacart, and others, the company plans on introducing new features for the benefit of its traders.

"There's a lot in store for our loyal customers," added Overland, "like special events focused on different aspects of global trading, and new tools incorporated into our state of the art platform. I can't reveal all of the surprises we have in store, but I can definitely say that there's something worth waiting for."

About Trustpac

Based in the UK and operating worldwide, Trustpac has managed to become a role model for new and old brands alike. Among the awards won by the brand are the titles of "preferred trader in 2017" and "best online trader in 2016". Trustpac's services are open to traders around the globe, under strict anti money laundering policies. The brand's platform consists of cutting edge tools, based on the latest technologies in the market, and is compatible with all types of devices - desktop, mobile and tablet.

SOURCE Trustpac
LONDON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Redscan, A Kroll Business, the award-winning provider of managed security services, specialising in Managed Detection and Response, Penetration Testing and Red Teaming, today issued its report, Disjointed and under-resourced: Cyber security across UK councils. The report is an analysis of Freedom of Information (FOI) responses from more than 200 councils in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.*

The data suggests that in addition to experiencing disruption to services, councils are under-prepared for current and future security challenges. Key findings include:

UK councils reported an estimated 700+ data breaches to the information Commissioner's Office (ICO) in 2020

Ten councils had their operations disrupted due to a breach or ransomware

One council reported 29 data breaches to the ICO in 2020

Approximately four in ten councils spent no money on security training

Just over half of all UK council employees received cyber security training in 2020, and 45% of councils employ no staff with recognised security qualifications

The crucial role councils play in ensuring access to vital services means they must process huge volumes of data and comply with strict regulatory requirements. However, in the last 12 months, there have been numerous reports of data breaches at UK local authorities.

The Redscan report demonstrates that attitudes to security vary considerably across UK councils. While some councils prioritise and invest in training, many others do not. Redscan estimates that, across the UK, councils spent approximately 1.5 million on training in 2020. However, approximately four in ten councils spent nothing during the same period.

Redscan CTO Mark Nicholls commented: "There is significant room for councils to improve their readiness to tackle current cyber risks, as well as those that will emerge in the future as cities become smarter and more connected.

"Every council has thousands of citizens depending on its services daily. Going offline due to a cyber-attack can deny people access to critical services. To minimise the impact of data breaches, it is important that councils are constantly prepared to prevent, detect and respond to attacks. While our findings show that councils are taking some steps to achieve this, approaches vary widely and, in many cases, are not enough.

"Our analysis reveals some pretty shocking failings, such as 29 data breaches reported to the ICO by one council in a single year. The fact that approximately half of all council employees across the UK did not receive security training in 2020 is also concerning," Nicholls added.

*Notes for editors

Redscan submitted FOI requests to 398 borough, district, unitary and county councils on 8 January 2021 and received responses from 265 (63%) by 1 March 2021.

Read the full report here.

About Redscan, A Kroll Business

Redscan is an award-winning provider of managed security services, specialising in Managed Detection and Response, Penetration Testing and Red Teaming. As of March 2021, Redscan is now part of Kroll, the world's premier provider of services and digital products related to governance, risk and transparency.

About Kroll

Kroll is the world's premier provider of services and digital products related to governance, risk and transparency. We work with clients across diverse sectors in the areas of valuation, expert services, investigations, cyber security, corporate finance, restructuring, legal and business solutions, data analytics and regulatory compliance. Our firm has nearly 5,000 professionals in 30 countries and territories around the world. For more information, visit www.kroll.com.

SOURCE Redscan
NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Almost everything in our world has been digitized, especially with the onset and continued spread of Covid-19. The new normal has meant remote work, exponentially more online shopping, socialization from behind our screens, remote medicine, etc. The incredible pace with which our lives and circumstances have changed also brought with it an unexpected and evil side effect - new cyber vulnerabilities quickly turning into an explosion in cyber threats and criminal activity, turning 2020 into a record year in terms of the size and number of cyberattacks.

Cobwebs Technologies

Today, cybercrime has become so prevalent, sophisticated, and profitable, and the criminals so mainstream, that identifying them has become all the more difficult. Governments have begun to collaborate more deeply, and even the FBI now has a "most wanted" cybercriminals list.

In this new era, organizational access to cyber threat intelligence is mission-critical. Briefly, threat intelligence is information, rooted in data, that helps an organization to identify, understand, prevent, and mitigate actual and potential threats that have, will, or are currently targeting the organization. It provides context - the who's, what's, and how's of attacks - as well as threat hunting tools to help the organization make informed decisions and take swift action.

"Threat intelligence is evidence-based knowledge, including context, mechanisms, indicators, implications, and action-oriented advice about an existing or emerging menace or hazard to assets. This intelligence can be used to inform decisions regarding the subject's response to that menace or hazard."  Gartner

Cobwebs' cyber threat intelligence platform provides actionable, timely, and relevant intelligence to organizations small and big. It crawls the surface, deep and dark web to protect organizations from potential attacks. By automating the process and leveraging AI, it stays up to speed with the latest, newest, darkest web sources for cybercriminal activity. The platform offers advanced monitoring tools and helps you to get ahead of hackers.

In most cases, what complicates organizational cybersecurity efforts is that the vast majority of these efforts are devoted to a reactive catch-up game as opposed to a proactive intelligence approach. The daily flood of data, the deviousness and persistence of cybercriminals, and shortage of resources and skilled staff all contribute to this problem, snowballing into a huge avalanche. Most organizations find themselves limited in their ability to protect a valuable product and/or information in this tough data security environment.

A cyber threat intelligence platform can help organizations tackle such cybersecurity challenges efficiently and effectively, providing operational intelligence as well as situational intelligence. The best and most actionable intelligence can only be generated by a machine learning-based platform as these platforms automate data collection and processing, continually gather unstructured data from different sources, and are able to connect the dots for you. They continually learn and self-improve at a pace that's humanly not possible.

With the right threat intelligence platform, cybersecurity is no longer the domain of elite experts. Cyber intelligence becomes accessible to the people in charge of making decisions and adds value across the whole organization.

For more details, please contact us at: [email protected]

www.cobwebs.com

Related Images

security-intelligence.png

security intelligence

SOURCE Cobwebs Technologies
NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Wyoming Whiskey today announced the brand has raised over $120,000 in partnership with the National Park Foundation. The brand, which is committed to preserving the natural beauty of America's wide-open spaces that inspired the whiskey, hosted a virtual auction featuring four beautiful, one-of-a-kind bottles in the Wide Open Spaces  By Air collection, with all proceeds directly benefiting the National Park Foundation.

The first in the brand's annual production of this limited-edition collectionWide Open Spaces  By Air was inspired by the beauty and wonder of Wyoming's national parks. The collection, curated by Creative Director Harrison Ford, included four artfully crafted, one-of-a-kind bottles of Wyoming Whiskey only available at auction. Each bottle was accompanied by a hand-carved wooden case created by natural materials artist, Jamison Sellers. Original photography from Tuck Fauntleroy is featured on each of the four labels and was accompanied by a framed, large format print. One of the bespoke bottles, Barrel #5004, inspired by Yellowstone Lake, sold to a lucky winner for a generous $15,000. The auction also included several other items to bid on, such as vacation retreats and custom merchandise, all in support of the National Park Foundation.

"On behalf of all of us at Wyoming Whiskey, I thank everyone who participated in our virtual auction and am grateful to all who donated to such a great cause," said David DeFazio, co-founder of Wyoming Whiskey. "The importance of protecting our national parks cannot be overstated."

To continue the celebration and support of America's parks, Wyoming Whiskey created a Wide Open Spaces virtual exhibit . The exhibit showcases the story and inspiration behind the four unique bottles featured in the auction, as well as background on Wyoming Whiskey's commitment to preserving America's wide-open spaces and partnership with the National Park Foundation.

In conjunction with the virtual auction, Wyoming Whiskey also launched a new National Parks Limited Edition Bourbon Whiskey available in limited markets and online. With each bottle sold, $5 will be donated to the National Park Foundation. Consumers interested in securing a bottle should look to online retailers Reserve Bar and Flaviar, and select retailers in NY, GA, CO and WY while supplies last. These bottles retail for $49.99.

Learn more at www.wyomingwhiskey.com and connect with @WyomingWhiskey on Instagram .

About the National Park Foundation

The National Park Foundation works to protect wildlife and park lands, preserve history and culture, educate and engage youth, and connect people everywhere to the wonder of parks. We do it in collaboration with the National Park Service, the park partner community, and with the generous support of donors, without whom our work would not be possible. Learn more at www.nationalparks.org .

About Wyoming Whiskey

Based in Kirby, Wyoming, Wyoming Whiskey has had a simple goal: to create America's next great American Whiskey. The company and product are a collaboration between its partners and 97,818 square miles of Wyoming. The Mead family first came to Wyoming as ranchers in 1890 and the state defines them and their whiskey. They use the finest corn, wheat, barley, and water from the Big Horn Basin and promote Wyoming's natural and human resources. Every drop of Wyoming Whiskey's American Whiskey is 100% Wyoming.

About Edrington

Edrington's vision is that we will give more by building the world's leading portfolio of exceptional super premium spirits.

Our strategy is to intensify our focus on becoming the world's leading super premium brand builder. The Macallan is our central focus supported by Highland Park and The Glenrothes in the fast-growing Single Malt category and Naked in the Blended Malt category.

We have strategic partnerships with Tequila Partida and Wyoming Whiskey in the dynamic Tequila and American Whiskey categories.

Our portfolio is completed with The Famous Grouse Blended Scotch Whisky and Brugal premium rum in the Dominican Republic.

Edrington is headquartered in Scotland and employs over 3,500 people in its wholly owned and joint venture companies, with over 70% employed overseas. We own our route to market in 15 countries and distribute our brands to more than 100 countries around the world through joint ventures and third-party agreements.

Edrington Americas is headquartered in New York, NY with regional offices in Chicago, Miami and Orange County. To learn more visit https://www.edrington.com , and to find our brands visit https://www.findourspirits.com .

Our principal shareholder is The Robertson Trust, which has donated over 283m to charitable causes since 1961.

Our business model is underpinned by the Edrington values of giving, integrity, excellence and respect.

Media Contact:

Valerie Marks

[email protected]

SOURCE Wyoming Whiskey

Related Links

https://wyomingwhiskey.com/


TEL AVIV, Israel, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- 3DM (TASE: DM3), which operates in the field of plastic polymers industrial 3D printing, has successfully completed an IPO in Tel Aviv Stock Exchange and begun trading yesterday, Monday, June 21, 2021. The company has raised $13 Million in a Pre-IPO & IPO rounds from several institutional entities which include Mor, Psagot, Phoenix, Meitav and Sphera. The IPO's underwriter was Rosario Underwriter Services.

3DM operates in the field of plastic polymer industrial 3D printing. The technology and the product that the company has developed will enable the next leap in the industrial 3D printing world by opening the market to an enormous range of applications as a result of expanding the material library availability to industrial printing, improvement of the mechanical characteristics of the printed component, and significant reduction of the printing costs.

The automotive and aviation industries, for example, are some of the largest adopters of plastic 3D printing technology for industrial needs. Thus, a car manufacturer may supply spare parts for a large variety of car model's body by keeping a 'digital warehouse' from which spare parts may be printed, and send them to the customer within a few days. The supplier is thus able to save on storage and inventory management costs while maintaining a high level of customer service with "inventory on demand".

The consumer goods industry also aims to utilize the innovation of industrial printing to develop a range of custom-made products such as shoes, helmets, bike seats, glasses and more. This trend is expected to greatly increase the use of industrial 3D printers.

The company's core technology is its self-developed semiconductor laser component for 3D printing. The company uses these components for optimal melting of all thermoplastic material families. Its small size (several millimeters), high power, low manufacturing cost has allowed the company to design a new printhead which combines many dozens of laser components into a matrix of laser beams that accelerate printing speed. The company has a registered patent for the use of its laser technology in plastic polymer 3D printing.

The company's controlling shareholders are Terralab Ventures and Dr. Daniel Majer. Dr. Majer holds a Ph.D. in physics from the Weizmann Institute of Science and has over 25 years of experience in the development of electro-optic components. He has engaged in the development of lasers since 2005 and in the development of 3D printing technology since 2012. The company started out as an incubator company of Terralab Ventures which, after the IPO, holds around 23% of the company's shares.

Before the IPO, the company raised funds from Terralab Ventures, AM Venture Group (US based strategic private group) and a private Israeli investors group. The company is located in Rosh HaAyin, Israel.

3DM's printhead capabilities:

High printing speed, up to ten times and more compared with existing printing technologies, irrespective of the size of the printing surface, will lead to a reduction of up to 90% in printing costs.

Printing any thermoplastic polymer with industrial-standard mechanical performance (up to 2-9 times better than existing technologies) will open up an enormous range of markets and applications for industrial printing.

Printing resolution of up to 5-8 times better than leading printers will allow small details printing and excellent surface finish.

The need for technological innovation:

The plastics market has for decades made extensive use of plastic injection molding for a broad range of applications. In 2019, the global plastics manufacturing market was valuedaround $570 billion. Despite the demand in the market for industrial printing solutions, the market share of industrial printing is a few percent due to insufficient technological innovation alongside the high costs of printers and raw materials. 3DM estimates that the printhead developed by the company brings to the market the technological innovation that will enable many more manufacturers and customers to make use of 3D technology for printing industrial products on a larger-than-ever scale and at lower costs, resulting in a significant increase in the industrial printing's market share in the plastics manufacturing market.

Technology penetration catalysts:

The global Covid-19 pandemic led to significant disruptions in the supply chain with an emphasis on the supply of products from the East to the West, causing difficulties in the supply of both raw materials and products, and consequently many manufacturers, with the support of their countries, are exploring the possibility of repatriating the manufacturing of all or part of the finished product to domestic manufacturing centers. As Aan example the U.S. Administration launched a $2 trillion incentive program which marks a trend of development and transfer of manufacturing abilities to the U.S. from countries where significant manufacturing has been carried out until now. The company believes that this trend may lead to a rise in the demand for 3D manufacturing in fields which, until now, had been manufactured outside of the U.S., including consumer goods and parts for the automotive and aviation industries.

Visit: https://www.3dm-tech.co.il/

Contact

Daviv Ben Naim

[email protected]

SOURCE 3DM
WASHINGTON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- AARP Executive Vice President and Chief Advocacy & Engagement Officer Nancy LeaMond issued the following statement in response to the U.S. House of Representatives' vote today approving the bipartisan Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act (POWADA). The legislation, introduced by Representatives Bobby Scott (VA-03), chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor, and Rodney Davis (IL-13), would defend the rights of older workers and protect them against age discrimination in the workplace. LeaMond said:

"Today's vote is a crucial moment for older workers who have waited more than a decade for legislation to restore fairness and protections against age discrimination. The strong bipartisan support for POWADA sends a clear message that discrimination in the workplace  against older workers or others  is unacceptable. Ageism is not only harmful to workers, but for companies too, who miss out on the experience and expertise older workers bring. Research shows that age-diverse workforces have a positive effect on employee engagement, productivity and the bottom line. On behalf of our nearly 38 million members, AARP applauds the House for passing POWADA and urges the Senate to consider this important legislation."

According to an AARP survey, nearly 8 in 10 workers ages 40 to 65 reported having seen or experienced age discrimination in the workplace during the pandemic.

POWADA was first introduced, with AARP backing, after an adverse 2009 Supreme Court decision (Gross v. FBL Financial Services, Inc.) that made it much more difficult for older workers to prove claims of illegal bias based on age. The legislation would restore longstanding protections for workers age 40 and older that had been in place since the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) of 1967.

About AARP

AARP is the nation's largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With a nationwide presence and nearly 38 million members, AARP strengthens communities and advocates for what matters most to families: health security, financial stability and personal fulfillment. AARP also produces the nation's largest circulation publications: AARP The Magazine and AARP Bulletin. To learn more, visit www.aarp.org, www.aarp.org/espanol or follow @AARP, @AARPenEspanol and @AARPadvocates, @AliadosAdelante on social media.

SOURCE AARP

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MEXICO CITY, June 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Grupo Aeromexico, S.A.B. de C.V. ("Aeromexico" or the "Company") (BMV: AEROMEX). The Company informs that the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, presiding over Aeromexico's Chapter 11 voluntary financial restructuring process, today approved a 75 calendar day extension of the Company's exclusive period to propose a plan of reorganization. The Court approved the extension because, among other reasons, of the good progress the Company has made with its restructuring.

Aeromexico will continue pursuing, in an orderly manner, its voluntary financial restructuring through Chapter 11, while continuing to operate and offer services to its customers and contracting from its suppliers the goods and services required for operations. The Company will continue to strengthen its financial position and liquidity, protect and preserve its operations and assets, and implement necessary adjustments to mitigate the effects of COVID-19.

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements that reflect the current views and/or expectations of the Company and its management with respect to its performance, business and future events. We use words such as "believe," "anticipate," "plan," "expect,", "intend," "target," "estimate," "project," "predict," "forecast," "guideline," "should" and other similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements, but they are not the only way we identify such statements. Such statements are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions. We caution you that a number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the plans, objectives, expectations, estimates and intentions expressed in this release. The Company is under no obligation and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

About Grupo Aeromexico Grupo Aeromexico, S.A.B. de C.V. is a holding company whose subsidiaries are engaged in commercial aviation in Mexico and the promotion of passenger loyalty programs. Aeromexico, Mexico's global airline, has its main operations center in Terminal 2 of the Mexico City International Airport. Its destination network has reach in Mexico, the United States, Canada, Central America, South America, Asia and Europe. The Group's current operating fleet includes Boeing 787 and 737 aircraft, as well as the latest generation Embraer 190. Aeromexico is a founding partner of SkyTeam, an alliance that celebrates 20 years and offers connectivity in more than 170 countries, through the 19 partner airlines. Aeromexico created and implemented a Health and Hygiene Management System (SGSH) to protect its clients and collaborators at all stages of its operation.

www.aeromexico.com www.skyteam.com

SOURCE Grupo Aeromexico S.A.B. de C.V.

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DALLAS, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Alternet Systems, Inc. (USOTC: ALYI) today announced its finance partner, RevoltTOKEN, has published a new website with new Revolt Token purchase features:

A Reduced Minimum Purchase Requirement  Was $1,000 ; Now $250 Streamlined Purchase Process  Signup And Purchase Much Faster New Features Coming In July With 25% Bonus To All That Purchase Prior

www.RVLTTOKEN.com

"We have learned a lot about managing a cryptocurrency since our initial Revolt Token launch," said Henryk Dabroski, CEO of RevolTOKEN. "compared with stocks and fiat currency, cryptocurrency is still in its infancy. Cryptocurrency practitioners need to learn and evolve and that is what we are doing here with Revolt Token. All of you initial Revolt Token purchasers are helping us learn and we intend to demonstrate our gratitude to you. Our new website and reduced minimum purchase requirement are just two new features. In the next few weeks, we will introduce a credit and debit card purchase feature and an all new automated and very fast know-your-customer feature. Additional new features will also be coming in the next overall feature update, and to everyone that purchases prior to the next overall feature update, you will be receiving some "tokens' of our appreciation  specifically 25% more. We will give you additional tokens equal to 25% of your purchase or purchases prior to the publication of our July new feature updates."

In addition to the new features introduced today, RevoltTOKEN has also added a new advisory board. Our new advisory board includes Dr Randell Torno, CEO of Alternet Systems (OTC:ALYI); Mr Leandro Iglesias, CEO of IQSTEL (OTCQB:IQST), an Alternet Systems electric vehicle development partner; Mr. Gonzalo Araujo, CEO of SLM Sistemas, a seasoned tokens expert, and Mr. Eduardo Chapeta, CEO of IW GLOBAL, RevoltTOKEN's core technology partner.

In conjunction with the upcoming July updates, Revolt Token will soon be listed on several exchanges bringing liquidity to current and future buyers.

You can follow Revolt Token social media links on Instagram (revolttoken) and on reddit (/rvlt). The Revolt Token website is www.rvlttoken.com. Management can be contacted by emailing [email protected].

Revolt Token backs Alternet System's ("ALYI") Electric Vehicle Ecosystem Business Plan

ALYI is building its electric vehicle ecosystem in a region with one of the lowest per capita transportation ratios in the world, Sub Saharan Africa.

To both attract industry leading talent to collaborate in ALYI's electric vehicle ecosystem, and to provide an opportunity to prove innovations coming out of the electric vehicle ecosystem, ALYI is launching an annual electric vehicle race in partnership with a brand name racing organization. The annual race event will be hosted simultaneously with an electric mobility symposium and expo.

ALYI is setting itself apart from the rest of the electric vehicle industry not only through its electric vehicle ecosystem strategy, but also through its commitment to democratize the electric vehicle ecosystem via its Revolt Token partnership.

For more information and to stay up to date on ALYI's overall latest developments, please visit www.alternetsystemsinc.com .

Disclaimer/Safe Harbor: This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Securities Litigation Reform Act. The statements reflect the Company's current views with respect to future events that involve risks and uncertainties. Among others, these risks include the expectation that any of the companies mentioned herein will achieve significant sales, the failure to meet schedule or performance requirements of the companies' contracts, the companies' liquidity position, the companies' ability to obtain new contracts, the emergence of competitors with greater financial resources and the impact of competitive pricing. In the light of these uncertainties, the forward-looking events referred to in this release might not occur.

For more information, please visit: http://www.alternetsystemsinc.com

Alternet Systems, Inc. Contact:

Randell Torno

[email protected]

+1-800-713-0297

SOURCE Alternet Systems, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.alternetsystemsinc.com


Modern brand communications require accurate targeting and effective personalization to forge customer connections and drive growth. Brands must engage with customers across multiple channels, including email, SMS, and in-product messaging, with a comprehensive understanding of each consumer necessary to increase open rates as well as customer Lifetime Value (LTV). The new partnership between Amperity and Braze will provide companies with an unmatched set of tools to monitor, understand, and react to customer behaviors in real-time.

"Braze on the Amperity DataGrid unites two industry leaders in their respective fields, supporting customers on both platforms by harnessing critical customer insights to improve performance and increase return on investment," said Kabir Shahani, CEO of Amperity. "The integrated solution is greater than the sum of its parts, providing brands with an indispensable platform to better serve and communicate with their customers."

Personalization & Automation

The bi-directional integration of the Amperity and Braze platforms, each an industry leader in their respective categories, will provide critical improvements in digital personalization and automation across channels. Amperity's AI-powered AmpID tool for identity resolution enriches Braze profiles with constantly updated, highly accurate and privacy-compliant data for each customer, enabling personalized email, SMS and in-product communications through Braze's messaging platform. The partnership allows for automation and action on key moments within the customer lifecycle, including post-purchase cultivation and triggered responses to important actions. The insights gleaned from Braze messaging are also available within Amperity via Braze currents to fuel future models for personalization and further action.

Unifying Customer Data to Drive Personalized Customer Engagement Campaigns

Bringing together both companies' focus on precision and ease of use, the new partnership improves business outcomes and user experience across key customer engagement functions, including segmentation, orchestration, and measurement. Examples of key use cases for Amperity and Braze customers include:

Creating a single comprehensive view of the customer across all data sources: Amperity's AI-powered and multi-patented AmpID resolves identities creating a fresh, accurate, and compliant identity foundation. More accurate customer profiles translate into higher conversion rates.

Using the comprehensive Customer 360 to power real-time customer engagement and personalized messaging: Amperity's Amp360 adds dozens of historical and predicted attributes to customer profiles. Leveraging these new pieces of information, such as pCLV, helps drive easier, and more sophisticated segmentation and messaging programs within Braze.

Driving retention, loyalty, and customer Lifetime Value (LTV) via Braze real-time customer journey orchestration: Braze lets users create a thoughtful, personalized messaging strategy that suits the needs of each individual customer across channels and experiences.



Seamless integration, interoperation, and iteration across the marketing technology ecosystem: Braze data streams back into Amperity to further enrich the Customer 360 which allows for even more targeted campaigns. Additionally, that data can be used by Amperity's AmpIQ for marketing intelligence and activation within an even broader array of partner solutions creating a virtuous cycle of learning and improvements across the martech stack.

"As retailers adjust to the ongoing economic recovery and ride the wave of increased consumer spending, effective multi-channel communication and cross-platform identity resolution is critical to drive long term customer loyalty and ultimately ROI for your brand," said Myles Kleeger, president and chief customer officer at Braze. "This new partnership with Amperity will improve efficacy for Braze users across the board, providing a 360-degree view of the customer, and applying state-of-the-art identity resolution to Braze's customer engagement platforms."

To learn more about this partnership go to www.amperity.com/resources/quickguide/amperity-braze-partnership

About Braze

Braze is a comprehensive customer engagement platform that powers relevant and memorable experiences between consumers and the brands they love. Context underpins every Braze interaction, helping brands foster human connection with consumers through interactive conversations across channels that deliver value quickly and continuously. The company was named a Leader in Forrester's 2020 Mobile Engagement Automation Wave report and was recognized as one of Inc. Magazine's Best Workplaces two years in a row. Braze is headquartered in New York with offices in Chicago, London, San Francisco, Singapore, and Tokyo. Learn more at braze.com.

About Amperity

Amperity's mission is to help companies use data to serve their customers. The company has revolutionized the way brands identify, understand, and connect with their customers by leveraging AI to deliver a comprehensive and actionable Customer 360. This unified view improves marketing performance, fuels accurate customer insights, and enables world-class customer experiences. With Amperity, technical teams are freed from endless integration and data management, and business teams have direct access to the comprehensive data they need to build long-term customer loyalty and drive growth. Amperity serves many of the world's most loved brands, including Alaska Airlines, Michaels, Lucky Brand, Kendra Scott, Kenneth Cole, Tapestry, Crocs, Servco, Wheels Up, First Hawaiian Bank, and many more. Learn more at Amperity.com.

SOURCE Amperity

Related Links

https://www.amperity.com


"Congressmember Bass has been a tireless and effective champion for a just, equitable society," said Mark Hower, PhD, Antioch University Los Angeles President and CEO. "Antioch University is honored that she will be speaking to our students as Southern California and the nation begins to open up again. We have much to celebrate and also much work to do to address inequities and to realize the promise of a society that works for all."

Congressmember Karen Bass represents the 37th Congressional District, which includes Culver City. Congressmember Bass serves on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, where she is the Chair of the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, and Global Human Rights. She also serves on the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism, where she is active in working to craft sound criminal justice reform policies.

Congressmember Bass served as the Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus in 2019 and 2020. During her tenure, the Congressional Black Caucus worked with the Congressional Hispanic, Asian Pacific Islander, and Native American Caucuses to demand a targeted response to the COVID-19 pandemic and initiate a national needs assessment for communities of color. She also introduced the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act - the most transformative piece of policing legislation to ever pass in a chamber of Congress.

Congressmember Bass has also served on the Judiciary Committee since 2012. Her work on this committee includes passing sweeping criminal justice reforms, including the First Step Act and reforms to our prison system with an eye on how women are treated in prisons. Congressmember Bass also helped pass the Equality Act of 2020, which would provide consistent and explicit anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people across key areas of life, including employment and housing.

Antioch's commencement ceremony will honor more than 300 graduates. Members of AULA's 2021 graduating class will receive master's degrees in creative writing, education, nonprofit management, psychology, and urban sustainability. Undergraduate degrees will be awarded in liberal studies, applied studies, applied arts and media, urban communities and justice, and applied technology and business leadership. Completers from Antioch's Bridge Program, which provides university-level credits in the humanities at no cost to those who have not previously had access to higher education, will be honored during the ceremony.

The virtual ceremony will begin at 10:00 am PT and will be streamed live at https://takeonedigital.com/antioch/.

Antioch University Los Angeles (AULA) provides a rigorous, progressive education to prepare students for the complexities of today's diverse societies. AULA, a campus of Antioch University, has served the greater Los Angeles area since 1972. Antioch University provides learner-centered education to empower students with the knowledge and skills to lead meaningful lives and to advance social, economic, and environmental justice. Inspired by the work of pioneering educator Horace Mann, Antioch University includes a Graduate School of Leadership and Change; Antioch Online; and campuses in Keene, New Hampshire; Los Angeles; Santa Barbara; and Seattle. A bold and enduring source of innovation in higher education, Antioch University is a private, nonprofit 501(c)3 institution and accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. Learn more at antioch.edu

SOURCE Antioch University Los Angeles

Related Links

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WASHINGTON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Apis & Heritage Capital Partners (A&H) announced its First Close at $30 million for its flagship Legacy Fund I, which is designed to help close the country's racial wealth gap by transitioning businesses with large workforces of color into 100% employee-owned enterprises.

The fund surpassed its $15 million first close target, with support from leading investors and advisors including the Ford Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation's Zero Gap Fund, The Skoll Foundation and its advisor Capricorn Investments, Gary Community Investments, Ascension Investment Management, and others.

A&H is a BIPOC-led private equity fund that has developed an "employee-led buyout" (ELBO) model that gives retiring owners a fair market price for their businesses, often with significant tax advantages, as employees become the employee/owners of the business with A&H's assistance. In today's America, 60% of Black and 65% of LatinX workers have $0 in retirement assets making workers vulnerable to financial insecurity as they age and without resources to pass on to the next generation. A&H expects an average worker who benefits from an A&H-assisted buyout to accrue retirement savings of $70,000 - $120,000 each, which can be life changing.

A&H's Legacy Fund I intends to buy at least eight closely held companies from retiring founders, converting at least 500 workers over the next five years into employee/owners. A&H will focus on companies mainly in waste hauling, landscaping, elder care, commercial cleaning, food processing, and other essential service sectors in America.

"We are looking to make life-changing investments with this first fund to address the significant and growing wealth gap in this country, especially for Black and brown workers," said Todd Leverette, Co-founding Principal at A&H. "Making this announcement so close to Juneteenth feels right, since A&H is providing a path to financial freedom for workforces of color across the United States."

A&H was conceived by Leverette in collaboration with colleagues at the Democracy at Work Institute (DAWI). DAWI is a national organization dedicated to innovation, equity and scale for worker-owned businesses, and will provide technical assistance to A&H portfolio companies. With a planning grant from Citi Community Development, critical launch funding from the Kendeda Foundation, and additional support from the Kellogg Foundation, DAWI made space and resources available to Leverette and co-founder Philip Reeves to incubate A&H. Co-founder Michael Brownrigg joined soon afterward to help move the concept from one-off deal making into a scalable private equity fund. Jason Ollison and Natalie Edwards rounded out the partnership in 2021. The firm hired its first Associate, Kyle Chin-How, shortly thereafter.

"There are two traditional paths to build wealth in America  you can own your home, or you can own your business," said Philip Reeves, Co-Founder at A&H. "A&H is focused on the latter, especially for workforces of color, which have been shut out of equity ownership for so long."

A&H will also announce a Legacy Fund I strategic partnership with LISC's New Markets Support Company (NMSC), which will become the nationwide partner for the ELBO senior debt tranche. LISC and A&H are mission- and values-aligned to drive resources into enterprises and communities of color that have been denied growth finance over the years.

"NMSC is proud to partner on this transformational new fund to address the racial wealth gap," said Kevin Boes, President and CEO of NMSC. "By helping vital, community-based small businesses transition from one founder to many owners, A&H will safeguard the health of these businesses and the futures of their workforces of color."

A&H's flagship fund easily surpassed its First Close target due to substantial interest from some of the nation's leading foundations and impact investors.

"The A&H team has taken an innovative approach at addressing the racial wealth gap and building a more inclusive economy," said Maria Kozloski, Senior Vice President of Innovative Finance at The Rockefeller Foundation. "Their novel ELBO model solves for many pain points of prior ESOP strategies while layering in a racial equity lens. The Rockefeller Foundation is proud to be a part of these efforts, providing investors with an offering that can deliver clear impact and competitive returns with great potential for scale."

The firm and its leadership were selected by Impact Assets as a 2021 IA 50 Emerging Impact Manager and were invited to join VC Include's inaugural Fellowship Cohort for BIPOC Emerging VC and Impact Fund Managers. Todd is a frequent speaker on the power and promise of ESOPs and has recently become a Board Member of the National Center on Employee Ownership.

"We are grateful for the support and confidence that our first close LPs have shown us," said Natalie Edwards, Managing Director and General Counsel for A&H. "A&H is now well-positioned to buy great companies and share the rewards with the people who have really earned them  the workers. Especially workers of color."

About Apis & Heritage Capital Partners

A&H Capital is a mezzanine debt private equity fund that buys closely-held businesses with significant workforces of color from founders who want a return on their life's work and who also care about their legacy. A&H then converts those companies into 100% employee-owned businesses. Enterprises that are 100% employee-owned pay zero federal taxes and, in 44 out of 50 states, zero state taxes. A&H provides support and training to the companies to create an engaged and empowered workforce and enlightened management team. Data is clear that when employees feel engaged, then productivity and profitability increase, staff turnover decreases, and overall, the firms outperform their peers. A&H seeks companies with at least $1 million in EBITDA and with 40 employees or more, where at least one-third of the workforce are people of color. A&H focuses on essential service sectors such as landscaping, plumbing, food processing, commercial cleaning, healthcare, and transportation, and its geographic scope is nationwide.

In addition to the investors listed above, A&H's first close Limited Partners include clients advised by Veris Wealth Partners, clients advised by Tiedemann Advisors, the Opus Foundation, the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, Kachuwa Impact Fund, Social Capital Partners, the Sorenson Foundation, clients advised by the Candide Group, clients advised by Fresh Pond Capital/Reynders McVeigh Capital Mgmt., clients advised by Natural Investments, clients advised by Chordata Capital, the Cooperative Assistance Fund, the Libra Foundation with the support of the Candide Group, certain family offices and individual investors.

A&H is advised by a stand-out group of experts in investment, management, worker-centered training, and operations. Advisors include Melissa Bradley (1863 Ventures), Walter Mayo (CEO, Expert.AI), Dwayne Boothe (Directional Capital), Dr Russell Read (former CIO, CalPERS and Alaska Permanent Fund), Karin Burns (Franklin Energy), Melissa Hoover (DAWI), and Michael Quarrey (VP Web Industries and ownership culture expert). On the transaction side, A&H is advised and assisted by SES ESOP Strategies, one of the nation's leading ESOP legal, investment banking and consulting firms, Mission Driven Finance, and K&L Gates LLP.

A&H will target a final fund size of $40  50 million.

About The Rockefeller Foundation

The Rockefeller Foundation is a pioneering philanthropy built on collaborative partnerships at the frontiers of science, technology, and innovation to enable individuals, families, and communities to flourish. We work to promote the well-being of humanity and make opportunity universal. Our focus is on scaling renewable energy for all, stimulating economic mobility, and ensuring equitable access to healthy and nutritious food. For more information, sign up for our newsletter at rockefellerfoundation.org and follow us on Twitter @RockefellerFdn.

About The Zero Gap Fund

This funding is part of The Rockefeller Foundation's Zero Gap Fund. Launched in partnership with the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation through the Catalytic Capital Consortium (C3), the Zero Gap Fund is a vehicle to channel private investment toward addressing the world's most pressing challenges. For more information, visit: www.rockefellerfoundation.org/initiative/zero-gap-fund/

SOURCE The Rockefeller Foundation

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Carlos writes, "It is the adventure of Simon Troyano. A young mechanic who is involved in the oldest and most current war that has existed. The war between God and Luzbel, and the one that never ends. Simon, about to die a natural death in a hospital in the city of Montreal Canada, will accept the deal of his life and rent his body so that, a being as powerful as God himself, can carry out his well-planned vacations in this world. Simon will be safeguarded in the city of Hades, colossal, cosmopolitan, modern and orderly. There Simon will remain locked in the sumptuous and magnificent mansion of his host Luzbel. King of those domains. Simon will live a week full of fear, nerves, surprises and even love. As he uncovers a plot to steal his kingdom from Luzbel in his absence. Simon will meet angels and demons and beings even older than God himself, in his adventure within that other astral dimension. Interacting in Montreal, inside the human body of Simon Troyano, this previously celestial being will quickly discover that, if we have something left over, it is problems. His luxurious vacation will be changed by persecution and living in the parsonage with two old priests, knowing who he is. With them he will enjoy many glasses of good wine and a lot of philosophical and biblical talk full of curiosities, which is his specialty since everything involves him. Trapped in that normal body and without the usual power that he possesses in his dimension. This former heavenly angel will be led to fall in love, to feel carnal desires, to feel pity, he will laugh, tell jokes and dance salsa and merengue. The fallen angel, he will learn to be human. He therefore will receive love and give love, today with heart even God can forgive him."

Published by Page Publishing, Carlos Mota's fascinating fiction opens up a journey about a fallen angel who is about to become a commoner on earth, with no place to run but here and with almost no one left to run to but himself alone.

This narrative will paint a picture of how the three realms act upon an individualmortal or not.

Readers who wish to experience this great work can purchase "Simon Dice" at bookstores everywhere or online at the Apple iTunes store, Amazon, Google Play, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or media inquiries, contact Page Publishing at 866-315-2708.

About Page Publishing:

Page Publishing is a traditional, full-service publishing house that handles all the intricacies involved in publishing its authors' books, including distribution in the world's largest retail outlets and royalty generation. Page Publishing knows that authors need to be free to create, not mired in logistics like eBook conversion, establishing wholesale accounts, insurance, shipping, taxes, and so on. Page's accomplished writers and publishing professionals allow authors to leave behind these complex and time-consuming issues and focus on their passion: writing and creating. Learn more at www.pagepublishing.com.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1538010/Carlos_Mota.jpg

SOURCE Page Publishing

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DALLAS, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- BenefitMall , the leading provider of next-generation broker services, today announced the company was named a winner of People's Choice Stevie Award for Favorite New Products in the 19th Annual American Business Awards (ABA).

The People's Choice Stevie Awards for Favorite New Products are a feature of The American Business Awards in which the general public can vote for their favorite new products and services of the year. More than 92,000 votes were cast in people's choice categories this year. All new products and services nominated in the ABAs' new product categories were included in people's choice voting.

BenefitMall was awarded the People's Choice Stevie for its Agency Workspace platform, a technology hub that allows brokers to manage every aspect of their business in a single, secure space. Last year, BenefitMall introduced a new Client Center to Agency Workspace, as well as a new feature within notifications that simplifies brokers' management of their books of business online. Both features were specifically developed based on solicited broker feedback.

"It is a true honor to be recognized as a company that is at the forefront of innovation in the benefits industry with this award," said Laura Clenney, vice president of marketing for BenefitMall. "After listening diligently to our broker partners across the country, we worked to make significant enhancements that meet their needs, and we are pleased to have that effort recognized by our industry."

More than 3,800 nominations were submitted to this year's American Business Awards for consideration in a wide range of categories, including New Product or Service of the Year, Most Innovative Company of the Year, Management Team of the Year, Best New Product or Service of the Year, Corporate Social Responsibility Program of the Year, and Startup of the Year, among others.

The American Business Awards are the nation's premier business awards program. All organizations operating in the U.S. are eligible to submit nominations  public and private, for-profit and non-profit, large and small. Winners of the Crystal People's Choice Stevie Awards, as well as all other winners in the 19th ABAs, will be celebrated during a virtual awards ceremony on June 30.

Details about The American Business Awards, the list of People's Choice Stevie Award winners, and the complete list of Stevie winners in this year's ABAs are available at www.StevieAwards.com/ABA .

About BenefitMall

Headquartered in Dallas, BenefitMall is the largest general agency partnering with a network of 20,000 Brokers to deliver employee benefits to more than 140,000 small and medium-sized businesses. BenefitMall uniquely leverages innovative technology backed by human expertise to provide the fastest, easiest, and most secure benefits selling experience for carriers, brokers, and their clients.

Owned by Management and The Carlyle Group, BenefitMall also operates HealthCareExchange.com, the leading online community for health care reform and compliance. More information is available at www.benefitmall.com .

About the Stevie Awards

Stevie Awards are conferred in eight programs: the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards, the German Stevie Awards, the Middle East & North Africa Stevie Awards, The American Business Awards, The International Business Awards, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, and the Stevie Awards for Great Employers. Stevie Awards competitions receive more than 12,000 entries each year from organizations in more than 70 nations. Honoring organizations of all types and sizes and the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding performances in the workplace worldwide. Learn more about the Stevie Awards at www.StevieAwards.com .

SOURCE BenefitMall

Related Links

http://www.benefitmall.com


Significant and Growing Addressable Market Opportunity: The fast-growing plant-based alternative meat segment is estimated to reach $140 billion by 2029, and the overall addressable market for the global agri-food industry is estimated at $5 trillion ;

The fast-growing plant-based alternative meat segment is estimated to reach by 2029, and the overall addressable market for the global agri-food industry is estimated at ; Leveraging CropOS  Technology Platform : Benson Hill's unique and proprietary innovation engine, CropOS  , combines data science, plant science and food science to create innovative food and ingredient products. The Company has a robust proprietary data library that is expected to double in size every year, with high-performance soybean breeding data, hundreds of billions of data points to understand natural genetic variation for biodiversity, and 120,000 unique plant genomes across 27 species incorporated to-date. CropOS  leverages this data library to accelerate Benson Hill's products to market, including its current non-GMO proprietary soy-based products;

: unique and proprietary innovation engine, CropOS , combines data science, plant science and food science to create innovative food and ingredient products. The Company has a robust proprietary data library that is expected to double in size every year, with high-performance soybean breeding data, hundreds of billions of data points to understand natural genetic variation for biodiversity, and 120,000 unique plant genomes across 27 species incorporated to-date. CropOS leverages this data library to accelerate products to market, including its current non-GMO proprietary soy-based products; Integrated Business Model : Starting with the seed and through an integrated business model, the Company works with partners and growers to bring products to market that meet consumer needs for food that is healthier, more sustainable, more affordable and better tasting. Benson Hill deploys an innovative go-to-market approach that significantly reduces technological and product risk by using an integrated supply chain to ensure plant-to-plate traceability and preserve product identity;

: Starting with the seed and through an integrated business model, the Company works with partners and growers to bring products to market that meet consumer needs for food that is healthier, more sustainable, more affordable and better tasting. deploys an innovative go-to-market approach that significantly reduces technological and product risk by using an integrated supply chain to ensure plant-to-plate traceability and preserve product identity; Driving Growth: The Company generated revenues of $102 million in 2020 1 and is projecting robust near-term growth, largely driven by existing products. The commercialization of innovative ingredient products is expected to deliver annual topline growth between 50% to 100% in the near-term. Over the longer-term, the Company expects its focus on production partnerships and royalties will help it scale and deliver products across numerous end-markets, including those in human plant-based food ingredients, animal feed, and pet food;

The Company generated revenues of in 2020 and is projecting robust near-term growth, largely driven by existing products. The commercialization of innovative ingredient products is expected to deliver annual topline growth between 50% to 100% in the near-term. Over the longer-term, the Company expects its focus on production partnerships and royalties will help it scale and deliver products across numerous end-markets, including those in human plant-based food ingredients, animal feed, and pet food; Strong Financial Position : The pending transaction with Star Peak Corp II (NYSE: STPC) (" Star Peak "), is expected to fully finance the Company's forecasted growth plan. The merger transaction is expected to provide approximately $625 million in gross proceeds, comprised of Star Peak's $403 million of cash in trust, assuming no redemptions, and an oversubscribed and upsized $225 million common stock PIPE at $10.00 per share;

The pending transaction with Star Peak Corp II (NYSE: STPC) (" "), is expected to fully finance the Company's forecasted growth plan. The merger transaction is expected to provide approximately in gross proceeds, comprised of of cash in trust, assuming no redemptions, and an oversubscribed and upsized common stock PIPE at per share; Pure Play ESG Investment Opportunity: ESG is embedded in Benson Hill's product impact, culture, and long-term value. The Company's integrated business model can unlock sustainability benefits at each step of the value chain that consumers are demanding, while offering cleaner labels for food companies and retailers.

Executives participating in the Analyst Meeting presentation included:

Matt Crisp  Chief Executive Officer and Director, Benson Hill

 Chief Executive Officer and Director, DeAnn Brunts  Chief Financial Officer, Benson Hill

Jason Bull  Chief Technology Officer, Benson Hill

 Chief Technology Officer, Adam Javan  Chief Strategy Officer, Benson Hill

Natalie DiNicola  Chief of Staff, Benson Hill

 Chief of Staff, Anthony Kingsley  Director, Impact and ESG, Benson Hill

 Director, Impact and ESG, Mike Morgan  Chairman, Star Peak Corp II

 Chairman, Star Peak Corp II Eric Scheyer  Chief Executive Officer, Star Peak Corp II

Benson Hill and Star Peak, a special purpose acquisition company, announced a proposed business combination on May 10, 2021. Upon closing of the transaction, the combined company will be named "Benson Hill, Inc." and is expected to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the new ticker symbol "BHIL". The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2021, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including the approval of Star Peak's stockholders and Benson Hill's stockholders.

About Benson Hill

Benson Hill moves food forward with the CropOS platform, a cutting-edge food innovation engine that combines data science and machine learning with biology and genetics. Benson Hill empowers innovators to unlock nature's genetic diversity from plant to plate, with the purpose of creating healthier, great-tasting food and ingredient options that are both widely accessible and sustainable. More information can be found at bensonhill.com or on Twitter at @bensonhillinc.

About Star Peak Corp II

Led by an experienced management team that has a long history of partnering with high-quality companies across the sustainability, energy infrastructure, renewables and technology landscape  and sponsored by Star Peak Sponsor II LLC, a group comprised of Michael C. Morgan and members of Magnetar Capital, Star Peak Corp II is a special purpose acquisition company created to identify and merge with a market-leading business well-positioned to capitalize on trends in sustainability and emissions reduction. For more information about Star Peak Corp II, visit stpc.starpeakcorp.com.

Additional Information

This communication is being made in respect of a proposed merger (the "Merger") and related transactions (the "proposed transactions") involving Star Peak and Benson Hill. The proposed transactions will be submitted to stockholders of Star Peak for their consideration and approval at a special meeting of stockholders. In addition, Benson Hill will solicit written consents from its stockholders for approval of the proposed transactions. In connection with the proposed transactions, Star Peak has filed a Registration Statement on Form S-4 (the "Registration Statement") with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), which includes a proxy statement to be distributed to Star Peak stockholders in connection with Star Peak's solicitation for proxies for the vote by Star Peak's stockholders in connection with the proposed transactions and other matters as described in such Registration Statement, a consent solicitation statement of Benson Hill to solicit written consents from its stockholders in connection with the proposed transactions and a prospectus relating to the offer of the securities to be issued to Benson Hill's stockholders in connection with the completion of the Merger. After the Registration Statement has been declared effective, Star Peak will mail a definitive proxy statement / consent solicitation statement / prospectus and other relevant documents to its stockholders as of the record date established for voting on the proposed transactions. Investors, Star Peak's stockholders and other interested parties are advised to read, when available, the preliminary proxy statement, and any amendments thereto, and the definitive proxy statement in connection with Star Peak's solicitation of proxies for its special meeting of stockholders to be held to approve the proposed transaction because the proxy statement / consent solicitation statement / prospectus will contain important information about the proposed transaction and the parties to the proposed transaction. Stockholders will also be able to obtain copies of the proxy statement / consent solicitation statement / prospectus, without charge, once available, at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov or by directing a request to: Star Peak Corp II, 1603 Orrington Avenue, 13th Floor, Evanston, Illinois 60201.

No Offer or Solicitation

This communication does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, or a solicitation of any vote or approval, nor shall there be any sale of securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. No offering of securities shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of Section 10 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

Participants in the Solicitation

Star Peak and Benson Hill and their respective directors, executive officers, other members of management, and employees, under SEC rules, may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies of Star Peak's stockholders in connection with the proposed transaction. Information regarding the persons who may, under SEC rules, be deemed participants in the solicitation of proxies in connection with the proposed transaction, including a description of their direct or indirect interests, by security holdings or otherwise, is set forth in the Registration Statement that has been filed with the SEC by Star Peak, which includes the proxy statement / consent solicitation statement / prospectus for the proposed transaction. Information regarding the directors and executive officers of Star Peak is contained in Star Peak's filings with the SEC, and such information is also in the Registration Statement that has been filed with the SEC by Star Peak, which includes the proxy statement / consent solicitation statement / prospectus for the proposed transaction.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this communication may be considered "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements generally relate to future events or Star Peak's or Benson Hill's future financial or operating performance. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding estimates and forecasts of other financial and performance metrics and projections of market opportunity. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as "may," "should," "expect," "intend," "will," "estimate," "anticipate," "believe," "predict," or the negatives of these terms or variations of them or similar terminology. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties, and other factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by Star Peak and its management, and Benson Hill and its management, as the case may be, are inherently uncertain factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations include, but are not limited to: 1) the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstances that could give rise to the termination of the definitive merger agreement with respect to the business combination; 2) the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against Star Peak, the combined company or others following the announcement of the business combination and any definitive agreements with respect thereto; 3) the inability to complete the business combination due to the failure to obtain approval of the stockholders of Star Peak, to obtain financing to complete the business combination or to satisfy other conditions to closing; 4) changes to the proposed structure of the business combination that may be required or appropriate as a result of applicable laws or regulations or as a condition to obtaining regulatory approval of the business combination; 5) the ability to meet the New York Stock Exchange's listing standards following the consummation of the business combination; 6) the risk that the business combination disrupts current plans and operations of Benson Hill as a result of the announcement and consummation of the business combination; 7) the ability to recognize the anticipated benefits of the business combination, which may be affected by, among other things, competition, the ability of the combined company to grow and manage growth profitably, maintain relationships with customers and suppliers and retain its management and key employees; 8) costs related to the business combination; 9) changes in applicable laws or regulations; 10) the possibility that Benson Hill or the combined company may be adversely affected by other economic, business and/or competitive factors; 11) Benson Hill's estimates of its financial performance; 12) the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on business and financial conditions; and 13) other risks and uncertainties set forth in the sections entitled "Risk Factors" and "Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" in Star Peak's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, filed with the SEC on March 31, 2021, in the Registration Statement containing the proxy statement / consent solicitation statement / prospectus relating to the proposed business combination, and other documents filed or to be filed with the SEC by Star Peak. Nothing in this communication should be regarded as a representation by any person that the forward-looking statements set forth herein will be achieved or that any of the contemplated results of such forward looking statements will be achieved. There may be additional risks that Star Peak and Benson Hill presently do not know or that Star Peak and Benson Hill currently believe are immaterial that could also cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. Neither Star Peak nor Benson Hill undertakes any duty to update these forward-looking statements, except as otherwise required by law.

__________________________

1 Excludes revenue from a business divested in 2020.

SOURCE Benson Hill
FOSTER CITY, Calif., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Bertram Capital ("Bertram"), in conjunction with TA Associates, announced the signing of a definitive agreement to sell Paula's Choice (the "Company"), a leading digital-led skin care brand, to Unilever, one of the world's leading suppliers of Beauty & Personal Care, Home Care, and Foods & Refreshment products. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2021. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

In 2012, Bertram Capital partnered with Paula Begoun, internationally renowned beauty expert and founder of Paula's Choice, to become the Company's first institutional investor. Under Bertram's stewardship, Paula's Choice grew into one of the largest digitally native beauty brands in the world. Bertram subsequently recapitalized the Company in 2016 with TA Associates. Today the business has a broadly diversified geographic reach, a methodically curated product offering, and a loyal customer base supported by a global direct-to consumer ("DTC") model.

"Bertram and its in-house technology team, Bertram Labs, were the ideal partner for Paula's Choice when we sought our first outside investor. Together we've achieved more than I ever thought possible," said the Company's founder, Paula Begoun. "The Bertram team, led by Ryan Craig and Tom Beerle, put us on a path that led to this exciting new chapter with Unilever."

"We are grateful to have found a partner the caliber of TA Associates and Jeff Barber, who had the vision and resources to help bring Paula's Choice radically truthful brand of skin care to the world," said Ryan Craig, Partner at Bertram Capital. "TA Associates and the Company's management team, led by its CEO, Tara Posely, helped us fully realize the potential of Paula's Choice and its unique digital platform."

Bertram would like to recognize Financo Raymond James (lead), Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and Piper Sandler & Co. for their role as financial advisors to the transaction.

About Bertram Capital

Bertram Capital is a private equity firm targeting investments in lower middle market companies. Since its inception in 2006, the firm has raised over $2.2B of capital commitments. In addition to supplying strategic growth capital, Bertram Capital leverages proprietary processes and services, Bertram High-5sm and Bertram Labs, to empower its portfolio companies to unlock their full business potential. The Bertram High-5sm is an operationally-focused value creation strategy, which includes management augmentation, operational initiative implementation, complementary business acquisition, sales and marketing improvements, and leveraging technology and IP. The cornerstone of this strategy is Bertram Labs, its in-house technology team, which drives growth and value through digital marketing, e-commerce, big data and analytics, application development, and internal and external platform optimization. Visit www.bcap.com for more information.

SOURCE Bertram Capital

Related Links

http://www.bertramcapital.com


Groundbreaking OSC Exemption Order makes BlockFilm, powered by TokenFunder,

the leading blockchain-based film financing platform

TORONTO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Launching today, BlockFilm Inc., a new producer-driven, Canadian-based platform incorporated in 2019, has obtained a world-first, trailblazing exemption order from the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) to launch 'tokenized' production financing opportunities for the content creation industry by leveraging TokenFunder, Canada's first regulated digital securities issuance and trading platform. The decision follows a rigorous process conducted by the OSC's LaunchPad team and will help investors in content production avoid multiple-year waits before monetizing their investment.

The decision allows BlockFilm to bring content producers together with accredited investors to finance independent media productions. The platform supports the creation of compliant digital financial instruments (security tokens) to fund and support project budgets. The security tokens (covering equity, debt and/or revenue share methods of financing) represent the underlying fractionalized ownership or debt instruments that provide content producers with unprecedented and efficient access to new sources of private capital.

An innovative new asset class for investors

BlockFilm has partnered exclusively in Canada with TokenGX, an Exempt Market Dealer operating its groundbreaking TokenFunder investing and security token issuance platform, to onboard and serve investors wishing to invest in BlockFilm content producers' security tokens.

Investments in BlockFilm projects are transferable among accredited investors. The TokenFunder partnership will allow this new level of liquidity in the content creation industry. Up until now, traditional film industry investors had to wait out the full lifecycle of a project's distribution path (seven to ten years, or even longer) to monetize their investment.

"We're excited about this partnership with TokenFunder. Backed by blockchain integrity, security and transparency, we are responding to challenges our industry has faced for decades," says Pauline Couture, Co-CEO of BlockFilm. "The BlockFilm solution is unmatched today and shows true global leadership from the OSC. BlockFilm will be transformational for both content producers and investors."

At the time of launch, BlockFilm's first 11 projects from Canada, Europe and the UK, aim to raise $19.1 million CAD in the next 4 to 6 months. With 50 projects in the pipeline and enormous ongoing interest, BlockFilm is looking for investments for more than 100 projects by the end of 2022, for a projected total raise of $175 million CAD over that time.

SOURCE BlockFilm Inc.
"Kimberley brings to BMO an exceptional skillset and reputation as a seasoned communications executive," said Mr. Fowler. "Beyond her impressive resume, she is being appointed to this role because of specific attributes she has consistently modelled throughout her career. She is a values-based, strategic and purpose-led leader. She has successfully led transformations focused on driving business results through integrated communications encompassing reputation management, brand building, corporate social responsibility, culture and diversity, equity, and inclusion. She is also a strong believer in the use of data to drive, measure, and adapt to maximize impact."

"BMO is a purpose-driven and future-focused company that knows its growth helps fuel a more inclusive and growing economy and a sustainable future. I am delighted to join BMO to lead the bank's efforts to share its story with its stakeholders," said Ms. Goode. "I look forward to working with Cam and all my new colleagues to help the bank achieve its ambition."

Trained as a journalist, Ms. Goode has progressed to lead complex communications and public affairs organizations across various regulated industries including financial services, consumer goods, technology, automotive, and healthcare. Most recently, she has held the position of Senior Vice-President of External Affairs at Blue Shield of California, based in the San Francisco Bay area. Prior to that, she spent nine years with Northwestern Mutual in Milwaukee where she integrated its communications functions and helped to reposition the company from insurance to a holistic financial services provider.

About BMO Financial Group

Serving customers for 200 years and counting, BMO is a highly diversified financial services provider - the 8th largest bank, by assets, in North America. With total assets of $950 billion as of April 30, 2021, and a team of diverse and highly engaged employees, BMO provides a broad range of personal and commercial banking, wealth management and investment banking products and services to more than 12 million customers and conducts business through three operating groups: Personal and Commercial Banking, BMO Wealth Management and BMO Capital Markets.

Internet: www.bmo.com Twitter: @BMOMedia

SOURCE BMO Financial Group
BOSTON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The 39 healthcare professionals (HCPs) of the VNA of Boston, represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association, voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday, June 22 to authorize a potential limited duration strike as they seek their first MNA contract. Corporate owner VNA Care, which has offices in Worcester, Needham, and Danvers, refuses to agree to key provisions around patient care conditions, health insurance and retirement security.

Eighty percent of the HCPs  physical therapists, occupational therapists, social workers, and speech therapists  turned out to vote on June 22 and voted 100% to authorize their MNA Bargaining Committee to call for a strike if necessary. The length and timing of the strike have yet to be determined by the HCPs elected by their colleagues to represent them on the committee. HCPs voted to authorize the potential strike after many months of negotiations and VNA Care creating significant roadblocks to a contract agreement:

VNA Care refuses to safely limit the patient care assignments given to HCPs on a daily basis. Excessive caseloads makes it extremely difficult for HCPs to provide the level of care patients deserve, especially patients who need complex treatments following hospitalization or surgery. Instead, VNA Care wants unlimited ability to assign cases to HCPs with no regard for the complexity of patient care requirements.

VNA Care wants the right to increase health insurance costs or decrease coverage unilaterally. HCPs are seeking the same health insurance arrangement VNA Care has with its registered nurses so HCPs can count on accessible and affordable coverage for themselves and their families.

VNA Care does not want to guarantee any retirement contributions for HCPs. The HCPs have proposed receiving the same 401K match as other network employees.

match as other network employees. VNA Care is proposing to cut sick time for newer HCPs, from 13 days annually to six, a change that would only force clinicians to work while sick and threaten the safety of patients. The agency is also proposing to reduce bereavement days.

VNA Care refuses to agree to a wage scale that properly values the care HCPs provide and their increasing experience level as they continue to work for the agency. Wage scales are a standard in union contracts that provide for fair and transparent pay increases and help with recruitment and retention.

"We are dedicated to this process and getting a fair and equitable contract," said Rod Hemingway, MNA Co-Chair and an occupational therapist. "They have not respected us and have decided they just don't want to give us the predictability we need. A contract will give our members stability in our wages and benefits, so we can plan our lives and care for our children or family members. People want to grow roots down deep at the VNA. We want to care for our patients and make the agency the best it can be. When new staff come in, we want them to stay and become trusted, experienced healthcare professionals. There is no reason we can't be the agency of choice."

"It is frustrating that they are purposefully delaying our contract. They are coming to the table for show, not to make any progress, and are not even willing to give us equity with the nurses," said Nikki Ducey, a physical therapist and MNA Co-Chair. "Nurses agree the workload is the same and should be counted the same. We are all working together to treat the patients and for our own employer to value us differently, and really less than, is awful. We are looking for predictability and reliability. They want complete discretion. I have been here almost 10 years and they have taken so much away. They took away the retirement match and I have not had a raise in five years. To not know what those benefits will look like from year to year is very discouraging."

"We have been committed to our patients, to our union and to this negotiation process," said Debra Nowak, MNA Co-Chair and a physical therapist. "We stand in solidarity as we take all steps necessary to protect our patients and secure a contract that adequately supports and empowers our clinicians."

Background on BVNA HCPs and Negotiations

The HCPs voted to join the MNA as part of a National Labor Relations Board election in late 2019. The MNA also represents registered nurses working for the VNA of Boston, who have a separate contract.

Established in 1886, VNA of Boston is the oldest organized VNA in the country. The VNA of Boston and its HCPs provide essential in-home care and recovery services to thousands of patients across an enormous area of Massachusetts that includes Boston, Brookline, South Boston, Hyde Park, West Roxbury, Roxbury, Brighton, the North End, Chinatown, Quincy, Everett, Winthrop, Milton, Revere, and more.

The medical needs of these patients are varied and complex and may include, among other things, post-surgical conditions such as total hip or total knee replacements; stroke; Parkinson's Disease; Multiple Sclerosis; Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS); cardiopulmonary conditions; amputations; and post-trauma care (breaks, fractures).

In recent years, many hospital-based services for patients have shifted to in-home services, making VNAs and HCPs an essential and ever-expanding part of the American healthcare system. Hospitals now move patients back home faster than before as doing so reduces costs and opens in-hospital beds. This has led to a dramatic increase in the size of the region's at-home patient population as well as in the complexity of those patients.

However, the working conditions for the HCPs who care for at-home patients have not kept pace with environmental changes or the market, which is what prompted the Boston VNA's HCPs to unionize with the MNA. In December, the HCPs delivered a petition signed by 100% of members to the office of the VNA's CEO Todd Rose. The petition stated that they expect the organization to bargain with them in good faith for a first contract that is fair, equitable, and good for patients and members alike.

MassNurses.org  Facebook.com/MassNurses  Twitter.com/MassNurses Instagram.com/MassNurses

Founded in 1903, the Massachusetts Nurses Association is the largest union of registered nurses in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Its 23,000 members advance the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the economic and general welfare of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Legislature and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the public.

SOURCE Massachusetts Nurses Association

Related Links

http://www.massnurses.org


BETHESDA, Md., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Broad Street Realty, Inc. (OTCQX: BRST), a fully integrated and self-managed real estate company, has qualified to trade on the OTCQX Best Market effective today. The Company upgraded to OTCQX from the Pink market. OTC Markets Group Inc. (OTCQX: OTCM) is the operator of financial markets for 11,000 U.S. and global securities.

Michael Z. Jacoby, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, said, "We are very pleased to have been approved by the OTC Markets Group to begin trading on the OTCQX Best Market. We believe this is another successful step in the continued progress towards achieving our strategic goals. Our entire Broad Street Realty team has done a great job executing on our business plan."

The Company's common stock begins trading today on OTCQX under the symbol "BRST." U.S. investors can find current financial disclosure and Real-Time Level 2 quotes for the Company on www.otcmarkets.com.

About Broad Street Realty, Inc.

Broad Street Realty, Inc. is a fully integrated and self-managed real estate company that owns, operates, develops and redevelops primarily grocery-anchored shopping centers and mixed-use properties in the Mid-Atlantic, Southeast and Denver, Colorado markets. Broad Street is also a market-leading commercial real estate services firm that delivers cost-effective solutions for office, industrial and retail clients. The company has extensive experience in tenant representation, landlord representation, property acquisition and disposition, real estate development, project/construction management, finance, strategic consulting, property management and asset management.

About OTC Markets Group Inc.

OTC Markets Group Inc. (OTCQX: OTCM) operates the OTCQX Best Market, the OTCQB Venture Market and the Pink Open Market for 11,000 U.S. and global securities. Through OTC Link ATS and OTC Link ECN, we connect a diverse network of broker-dealers that provide liquidity and execution services. We enable investors to easily trade through the broker of their choice and empower companies to improve the quality of information available for investors.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements about our estimates, expectations, predictions and forecasts of our future business plans and financial and operating performance and/or results, as well as statements of management's goals and objectives and other similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts. When we use the words "may," "should," "could," "would," "predicts," "potential," "continue," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates" or similar expressions or their negatives, as well as statements in future tense, we intend to identify forward-looking statements. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, beliefs and expectations, such information is necessarily subject to uncertainties and may involve certain risks, many of which are difficult to predict and are beyond the control of the Company's management. For a description of factors that may cause the Company's actual results or performance to differ from its forward-looking statements, please review the information under the heading "Risk Factors" included in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, and the other documents filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release. Except as otherwise may be required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update or publicly release any revisions to forward-looking statements to reflect events, circumstances or changes in expectations after the date of this press release.

SOURCE Broad Street Realty, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.broadstreetllc.net/


NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Bureau Veritas, a world leader in Testing, Inspection, and Certification (TIC) services, today announced the Bureau Veritas STEM Scholars Program in partnership with STEM Educational Institute and Madison Square Boys & Girls Club. The program aims to give high school students in New York City's most under-resourced communities the technological skills needed to enter today's workforce while building generational wealth.

Kicking-off on June 28, 2021, in New York City, The Bureau Veritas STEM Scholars Program serves as a career bridge for high school students to enter into STEM fields and college majors. Students will participate in an in-person curriculum that includes:

STEM and Coding Skills: Leveraging a case study from Bureau Veritas, the scholars will receive hands-on training to solve real-world problems.

Leveraging a case study from Bureau Veritas, the scholars will receive hands-on training to solve real-world problems. Career Bridge and Financial Stability: Bureau Veritas provides students a stipend to support their daily needs. This stipend allows students to focus on learning skills that can easily transfer into internships or full-time positions.

Bureau Veritas provides students a stipend to support their daily needs. This stipend allows students to focus on learning skills that can easily transfer into internships or full-time positions. Generational Wealth and Future Goals: Students enroll in a 529 College Savings Plan with a scholarship from Bureau Veritas and learn fundamental skills to prepare and save for college through a wealth management curriculum.

Students enroll in a 529 College Savings Plan with a scholarship from Bureau Veritas and learn fundamental skills to prepare and save for college through a wealth management curriculum. Mental Health Resources: Support with coping with COVID-19 induced stress, study strategies, and stress management skills.

"Bureau Veritas is committed to developing the next generation of STEM professionals, and we are proud to launch the Bureau Veritas STEM Scholars program in New York City," said Natalia Shuman, EVP, and CEO, Bureau Veritas North America. "Our goal is to ignite the imaginations of the students by demonstrating all the ways STEM touches our lives. We are proud that through the Bureau Veritas STEM Scholars Program, we can help create a foundation for the next generation of STEM leaders."

"Only 30% of high-ability eighth-graders from low-income families complete college. Our goal is to give underrepresented students the wealth management skills they need to succeed and introduce them to a variety of STEM career opportunities through mentoring and scholarships," said Nikisha Alcindor, President, and Founder, STEM Educational Institute. "We sincerely appreciate the generous contributions and invaluable expertise of Bureau Veritas and its leaders through the Bureau Veritas STEM Scholarship Program."

The Bureau Veritas STEM Scholarship Program received applicants through the Boys and Girls Club in New York City and 15 high-school students have been awarded the scholarship and invited to participate in the curriculum. All student participants will receive a scholarship through a 529 College Savings Plan upon completing the program.

Bureau Veritas is committed to corporate social responsibility and shaping a better world through community programs that prepare the next generation of STEM professionals and the BV Green Line, a wide range of sustainability services and solutions that enable clients to address the growing challenges of society, and to implement, measure and achieve their sustainability objectives.

About Bureau Veritas

Bureau Veritas is a world leader in laboratory testing, inspection, and certification services. Created in 1828, the Group has more than 75,000 employees located in more than 1,600 offices and laboratories around the globe. Bureau Veritas helps its clients improve their performance by offering services and innovative solutions, in order to ensure that their assets, products, infrastructure and processes meet standards and regulations in terms of quality, health and safety, environmental protection and social responsibility. Bureau Veritas is listed on Euronext Paris and belongs to the Next 20 index. Compartment A, ISIN code FR 0006174348, stock symbol: BVI. For more information, visit https://group.bureauveritas.com.

About STEM Educational Institute

The STEM Educational Institute, Inc. (SEI) is a nonprofit corporation that provides programming that gives underrepresented high school students the technological skills needed to enter today's workforce while building generational wealth. In partnership with several corporations, the program aims to serve as a diverse talent pipeline for organizations and build generational wealth. The STEM Educational Institute provides a 1 - week program that serves as a career bridge for high school students to enter into STEM fields. For more information, visit http://www.stemeducationalinstitute.org/

About Madison

Since 1884, Madison has been saving and enhancing the lives of youth by providing youth development services for children in New York City's most disadvantaged communities. Programs are engineered to empower each member to achieve three priority outcomes: Academic Success, Good Character & Citizenship, and the adoption of a Healthy Lifestyle. Every day, Madison provides thousands of children with a safe and positive environment, one where fun is encouraged and positive role models are plentiful. A founding member of Boys & Girls Clubs of America, Madison currently serves more than 5,000 youth, ages 6 to 18, at six Clubhouses throughout Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Harlem. www.madisonsquare.org

MEDIA CONTACTS

Theresa Anderson

Bureau Veritas

+1 917 344 4593

[email protected]

Nikisha Alcindor

STEM Educational Institute, Inc.

+1 646 546 7275

[email protected]

Gabriella Schiraldi

Madison Square Boys & Girls Club

212.760.9600 ext. 0485

[email protected]

SOURCE Bureau Veritas

Related Links

https://group.bureauveritas.com


MIAMI, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Eight cruise line brands from Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL;NYSE: CUK), the world's largest cruise company, have announced plans to resume guest cruise operations, with AIDA Cruises, Carnival Cruise Line, Costa Cruises, Cunard, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, P&O Cruises (UK) and Seabourn sailing in the United States, the Caribbean and Europe.

The brands are resuming operations using a gradual, phased-in approach, with sailings announced on 42 ships to date through the end of fiscal year 2021 (Nov. 30), representing 52% of the company's total capacity across its global fleet of 91 cruise ships. The initial cruises will take place with enhanced health protocols developed in conjunction with government and health authorities, and informed by guidance from the company's public health, epidemiological and policy experts.

Carnival Corporation's most recent brand restart announcements are summarized directly below, with a full list of initial restart plans by brand, ship and expected start date available further below. Additional brand updates on the resumption of guest cruise operations for the remainder of fiscal year 2021 will be announced as further restart plans are finalized.

North America Brands:

Carnival Cruise Line has announced it will resume guest cruise operations with eight ships by the end of August, including sailings out of Galveston, Miami , Port Canaveral, Long Beach and Seattle (to Alaska ). Included in that roster is Mardi Gras , the line's newest and most innovative ship, and first cruise ship in North America powered by eco-friendly liquefied natural gas (LNG), with sailings from Port Canaveral starting on July 31 .

has announced it will resume guest cruise operations with eight ships by the end of August, including sailings out of Galveston, , Port Canaveral, and (to ). Included in that roster is , the line's newest and most innovative ship, and first cruise ship in powered by eco-friendly liquefied natural gas (LNG), with sailings from Port Canaveral starting on . Princess Cruises expects to resume guest cruise operations in July with Alaska sailings and a series of cruises around UK coastal waters, as well as cruises out of Los Angeles , San Francisco and Fort Lauderdale to the Caribbean , Panama Canal, Mexico , Hawaii and California coast starting in September.

expects to resume guest cruise operations in July with sailings and a series of cruises around UK coastal waters, as well as cruises out of , and to the , Panama Canal, , and coast starting in September. Holland America Line expects to resume guest cruise operations in July with Alaska sailings, followed by sailings from Greece in August, and from Italy and Spain in September, as well as sailings to Mexico , Hawaii , the California coast and the Caribbean this fall.

expects to resume guest cruise operations in July with sailings, followed by sailings from in August, and from and in September, as well as sailings to , , the coast and the this fall. Seabourn expects to resume guest cruise operations in July sailing from Greece and Barbados , along with the beginning of the Antarctica season in November.

Europe & Asia Brands:

Costa Cruises resumed guest cruise operations in May with sailings in Italy and Greece , and is now offering sailings to France and Spain in July, followed by Portugal and Turkey in September.

resumed guest cruise operations in May with sailings in and , and is now offering sailings to and in July, followed by and in September. AIDA Cruises resumed guest cruise operations in March sailing in the Canary Islands, in May with sailings in Greece and Germany , and is now offering additional sailings out of Germany as well as sailings in Spain , Italy , Portugal and Malta from July, and the Persian Gulf from November.

resumed guest cruise operations in March sailing in the Canary Islands, in May with sailings in and , and is now offering additional sailings out of as well as sailings in , , and from July, and the Persian Gulf from November. P&O Cruises (UK) will offer a series of cruises this summer sailing around UK coastal waters beginning in June, expanding to the Mediterranean and the Atlantic coast starting in September.

will offer a series of cruises this summer sailing around UK coastal waters beginning in June, expanding to the Mediterranean and the Atlantic coast starting in September. Cunard will offer a series of cruises this summer sailing around UK coastal waters in July, followed by voyages to the Iberian coast and Canary Islands. In November, Queen Mary 2 returns to service with a combination of transatlantic crossings and Caribbean cruises.

Additionally, Holland America Line and Princess Cruises are offering land-based vacation options this summer for travelers to experience Alaska through a combination of escorted, explorer and rail tours, as well as lodging and sightseeing.

The newly announced voyages build on recent restarts from the company's AIDA Cruises and Costa Cruises brands, which have been sailing in Europe since March and May, respectively. In addition to dozens of successful sailings between both brands in 2020, the most recent 2021 sailings from AIDA Cruises and Costa Cruises have demonstrated the effectiveness of enhanced health protocols developed in conjunction with local, national and global experts, and have generated high guest satisfaction scores, as measured by net promotor surveys.

"For all of our brands, our highest responsibility and top priorities are always compliance, environmental protection, and the health, safety and well-being of our guests, our shipboard and shoreside employees, and the communities we visit," said Roger Frizzell, chief communications officer for Carnival Corporation. "We are excited to see eight of our world-leading cruise line brands sailing this summer, and to date, we've announced over half of our capacity returning by the end of the fiscal year, as we work to meet significant pent-up demand for cruising and get back to what we do best  serving our guests with one of the world's most popular vacations."

Added Frizzell: "The broader restart of cruising marks a critical step in the recovery of our brands and the industry as a whole, which provides a major economic impact and supports jobs across multiple sectors around the world. As our cruise line brands collaborate closely with our port, destination, supply chain and travel agent partners on a responsible resumption of cruise operations, we will ensure we continue working together across the industry in the best interest of public health."

In working with global and national health authorities and medical experts, as well as authorities in destination countries, the company's brands have developed a comprehensive set of health and safety protocols for protection and mitigation across the entire cruise experience for its initial cruises. This includes cross-industry learnings and best practices based on the proven health and safety record of industrywide sailings and input from top science and health experts and health authorities.

Cautionary Note Concerning Factors That May Affect Future Results

Some of the statements, estimates or projections contained in this document are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions with respect to us, including some statements concerning our resuming of cruise operations in the US, Caribbean and Europe. These statements are intended to qualify for the safe harbors from liability provided by Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements other than statements of historical facts are statements that could be deemed forward-looking. These statements are based on current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about our business and the industry in which we operate and the beliefs and assumptions of our management. We have tried, whenever possible, to identify these statements by using words like "will," "may," "could," "should," "would," "believe," "depends," "expect," "goal," "anticipate," "forecast," "project," "future," "intend," "plan," "estimate," "target," "indicate," "outlook," and similar expressions of future intent or the negative of such terms.

Because forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, there are many factors that could cause our actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by our forward-looking statements. This note contains important cautionary statements of the known factors that we consider could materially affect the accuracy of our forward-looking statements and adversely affect our resuming of risk operations. Such risks, uncertainties and factors include the risk factors discussed in Item 1A of our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC").

Forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as a prediction of actual results. Subject to any continuing obligations under applicable law or any relevant stock exchange rules, we expressly disclaim any obligation to disseminate, after the date of this document, any updates or revisions to any such forward-looking statements to reflect any change in expectations or events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements are based.

About Carnival Corporation & plc

Carnival Corporation & plc is one of the world's largest leisure travel companies with a portfolio of nine of the world's leading cruise lines sailing to all seven continents. With operations in North America, Australia, Europe and Asia, its portfolio features Carnival Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, Seabourn, P&O Cruises (Australia), Costa Cruises, AIDA Cruises, P&O Cruises (UK) and Cunard.

Additional information can be found on www.carnivalcorp.com , www.carnival.com , www.princess.com , www.hollandamerica.com , www.seabourn.com , www.pocruises.com.au , www.costacruise.com , www.aida.de , www.pocruises.com and www.cunard.com .

Ships in Service and Announced Restarts by Brand for Fiscal Year End 2021

Number of Ships

Passenger Capacity (Lower Berths)

% of Brand Capacity

% of Total Capacity (a) North America and Australia ("NAA") Brands













Carnival Cruise Line 8

29,630



41 %



Princess Cruises 8

26,350



58 %



Holland America Line 6

14,140



62 %



P&O Cruises (Australia) 













Seabourn 3

1,520



59 %





25

71,640







49 %















Europe and Asia ("EA") Brands













Costa Cruises 6

20,650



53 %



AIDA Cruises 6

18,380



60 %



P&O Cruises (UK) 3

11,920



63 %



Cunard 2

4,760



70 %





17

55,710







58 %

42

127,350







52 %















(a) NAA Brands capacity for 57 ships, EA Brands capacity for 34 ships, total company capacity for 91 ships

























Ships in Service and Announced Restarts by Ship for Fiscal Year End 2021 in Order of Actual or Announced Restart Date

Ship Name

Passenger Capacity (Lower Berths) March







AIDAperla

3,280







May







Costa Smeralda

5,220

Costa Luminosa

2,260

AIDAsol

2,190

AIDAblu

2,200







June







Costa Deliziosa

2,260

Britannia

3,640







July







Seabourn Ovation

600

Carnival Vista

3,930

Costa Firenze

4,240

Carnival Horizon

3,960

AIDAprima

3,280

Carnival Breeze

3,690

Seabourn Odyssey

460

Queen Elizabeth

2,080

Nieuw Amsterdam

2,100

Majestic Princess

3,560

Carnival Miracle

2,120

AIDAstella

2,200

Regal Princess

3,560

Mardi Gras

5,250







August







Iona

5,200

Carnival Magic

3,690

Carnival Sunrise

2,980

Eurodam

2,100

Carnival Panorama

4,010

Sky Princess

3,660







September







Zuiderdam

1,960

Costa Fascinosa

2,980

Grand Princess

2,600

Costa Diadema

3,690







October







Ventura

3,080

Koningsdam

2,650

Rotterdam

2,670

Ruby Princess

3,080







November







AIDAnova

5,230

Crown Princess

3,090

Seabourn Quest

460

Enchanted Princess

3,660

Queen Mary 2

2,680

Nieuw Statendam

2,660

Caribbean Princess

3,140

SOURCE Carnival Corporation & plc

Related Links

www.carnival.com


SOUTH PORTLAND, Maine, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- ElleVet Sciences , the first company to prove the safety and efficacy of its hemp-based CBD products for pets, is expanding its world-class executive team to include Dave Rosin as Vice President, Business Development, the company announced today.

Rosin is joining ElleVet from the strategic consulting world where he was most recently an associate partner at the global management consulting firm McKinsey & Company and previous to that a growth strategy manager at Monitor Deloitte.

A native of Toronto, Canada, Rosin earned his bachelor of commerce degree at McGill University in Montreal and attended ESADE School of Business in Barcelona, Spain. He is fluent in English, Spanish and Hebrew and has traveled to over 40 countries.

"Dave's consulting background strengthens our analytical bandwidth and allows ElleVet Sciences to continue to pursue multiple growth opportunities within the cannabinoid industry," says Christian Kjaer, CEO of ElleVet Sciences. "He will play a crucial role in helping the ElleVet team reach a greater number of pets in need, which is our ultimate goal as a company."

"I couldn't be more excited to join the ElleVet Sciences team," says Rosin. "I am eager to learn more about CBD in the animal health field and leverage my background of analytics and strategic insight to fuel ElleVet's next wave of growth."

ElleVet Sciences is the company that conducted the first clinical trial using its product on dogs with osteoarthritis in conjunction with Dr. Joe Wakshlag, ElleVet chief medical officer and professor at Cornell University's College of Veterinary Medicine. Its product remains the only pet CBD + CBDA product on the market proven to work in a clinical trial. ElleVet currently has more than 30 ongoing clinical studies and R&D projects and expects to finalize several clinical studies in 2021.

For more information please visit www.ElleVetSciences.com or on social media at @Ellevetsciences on Facebook and on Instagram.

ABOUT ELLEVET SCIENCES: ElleVet Sciences is a leading science-focused pet CBD + CBDA company based in Portland, Maine, and the first and only company to conduct clinical trials with proven results using their cannabinoid and terpene oil blend. ElleVet was founded by Christian Kjaer and Amanda Howland in 2017, and the entire ElleVet team combines science, veterinary backgrounds with a dedication to animals through research and innovation. For more information, please visit https://www.ellevetsciences.com or on social media at @Ellevet on Facebook and @ellevetsciences on Instagram.

Editor's Note: Interviews are available upon request.

CONTACT:

Hope Diamond, [email protected]

SOURCE ElleVet Sciences

Related Links

http://www.ellevetsciences.com


FORT MYERS, Fla., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Chico's FAS, Inc. (NYSE: CHS) today announced that Nancy Johnson has been appointed SVP, GMM Merchandising and Design for the Chico's brand and Dimple Rao has been appointed VP, Product Management. In this role, Ms. Johnson will be responsible for the product, design and overall strategy for Chico's, and she will report directly to Molly Langenstein, president and chief executive officer of Chico's FAS. Dimple Rao will oversee architecting and designing end-to-end customer experience and she will report to Jay Topper, chief digital officer of Chico's FAS.



Ms. Johnson has more than 30 years of merchandise experience and joins Chico's FAS from Macy's Inc., where she served as executive vice president of private brands leading all of Women's and has a proven track record in creating, launching and turning around many of Macy's private brands, leading the highest years of growth.



"Nancy is a results focused customer led leader with deep knowledge of product and sourcing and has built multiple brands successfully that have contributed to consistent revenue growth across an omnichannel marketplace," said Molly Langenstein, President and CEO. "Dimple has a proven track record of driving customer growth, revenue and digital adoption using product design and development, customer experience transformation and marketing. Both Nancy and Dimple are passionate about the customer and developing world-class customer experiences. I am proud to welcome both Nancy and Dimple to Chico's FAS."

"I'm thrilled to join this iconic brand and focus on customers that I've long admired," stated Nancy Johnson. "I am excited to lead the merchandise and design teams as we continue to strengthen the Chico's brand."



Ms. Rao has over 15 years of experience developing and implementing key customer experience improvements in complex global retail and online environments. Ms. Rao joins Chico's FAS from SPINS, where she held the role of senior vice president, and prior to SPINS Ms. Rao was VP of Product Management, UX and design for both the consumer and floral business units at FTD.



"I'm honored to join the Chico's FAS team", said Dimple Rao. "I am passionate about the customers and their fashion needs and look forward to enhancing their end-to-end experiences."



Chico's FAS, Inc. was also recently named as one of America's Best Employers for Diversity 2021 by Forbes. The annual prestigious award list is presented by Forbes and Statista, and honors companies demonstrating a strong commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. Chico's FAS, Inc. has previously been recognized on Forbes' Best Employers for Women and Best Employers for Diversity and Human Rights, and NAFE's Top companies for Executive Women.



ABOUT CHICO'S FAS, INC.

Chico's FAS is a Florida-based fashion company founded in 1983 on Sanibel Island, Fla. The Company reinvented the fashion retail experience by creating fashion communities anchored by service, which put the customer at the center of everything we do. As one of the leading fashion retailers in North America, Chico's FAS is a company of three unique brands  Chico's, White House Black Market and Soma  each thriving in their own white space, founded by women, led by women, providing solutions that millions of women say give them confidence and joy.



Our Company has a passion for fashion, and each day, we provide clothing, shoes and accessories, intimate apparel and expert styling in our brick-and-mortar boutiques, digital online boutiques and through StyleConnect, the Company's proprietary digital styling tool that enables customers to conveniently shop wherever, whenever and however they prefer.



As of May 1, 2021, the Company operated 1,293 stores in the U.S. and sold merchandise through 66 international franchise locations in Mexico and 2 domestic franchise airport locations. The Company's merchandise is also available at www.chicos.com, www.chicosofftherack.com, www.whbm.com, www.soma.com and www.mytelltale.com as well as through third-party channels.

For more detailed information on the Company, please visit our corporate website at www.chicosfas.com. The information on our corporate website is not, and shall not be deemed to be, a part of this press release or incorporated into our federal securities law filings.



SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT UNDER THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF 1995

Certain statements contained herein, including without limitation, statements addressing the beliefs, plans, objectives or expectations of the Company relating to the Company's digital success, and future results constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. Such forward-looking statements involve known or unknown risks, including, but not limited to, general economic and business conditions, and conditions in the specialty retail industry. There can be no assurance that the actual future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by such forward- looking statements will occur. Investors using forward-looking statements are encouraged to review the Company's latest annual report on Form 10-K, including management's discussion and analysis included therein, for a description of other important factors that may affect the Company's business, results of operations and financial condition. The Company does not undertake to publicly update or revise its forward-looking statements even if experience or future changes make it clear that projected results expressed or implied in such statements will not be realized.



MEDIA CONTACT:

Kristin McClement

Director, Public Relations and Social Marketing

Chico's FAS, Inc.

(239)346-4870

[email protected]

SOURCE Chico's FAS, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.chicosfas.com


ATLANTA, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Citizens Bancshares Corporation, CBC, parent company of Citizens Trust Bank officially announced the appointment C. Howie Hodges, II to its board of directors.

Appointed as the eighth Board member, Mr. Hodges brings decades of experience in the discovery and development of high-performing public and private companies. His counsel and expertise bring added value to the board and the board's commitment to enhancing the community, its customers and stakeholders. His input will be significant as the Bank plans for the next phase of growth.



Currently as CEO of CH Hodges, Inc., which provides political and reputational risk analysis and community impact strategy for Fortune 500 companies and community equity funders.



Hodges also served as president and board member of Zions Community Investment Company, a CDFI and has held senior executive level management roles at Bank of America, Time Warner Cable, Charter Communications and also served as Group Director for the American Bankers Association, the nation's oldest and largest banking lobbying association, providing policy recommendations on a range of Congressional and regulatory rulemaking legislation impacting financial institutions.

"We believe Mr. Hodges' varied business experience and diverse skill set in strategic public/private partnerships, external affairs, and political and reputational risk expertise, are valuable to the Board and qualifies him to serve as a director," said Ray Robinson, Chairman of the CBC Board.

Cynthia N. Day, Citizens Trust Bank president and CEO, "Mr. Hodges joins us at an exciting time as we continue to drive growth, cultivate deeper relationships with our

Continued

CH Hodges, II  CBC BOD



customers and pursue innovation that will enhance our digital footprint and transform our Company for generations to come.

His addition complements our board of directors' skills and experience and he has already made a difference in facilitating valuable relationships," concluded Day.



"I am excited to join the Citizens Bancshares Corporation Board," stated Hodges. "I look forward to working alongside fellow Board members and the management team to continue a vision started 100 years ago to provide access to financial services that meet the needs of all communities, particularly communities of color."

About Citizens Trust Bank

Celebrating 100 years in the community, Citizens Trust Bank remains committed to providing personalized service and financial solutions to meet the growing needs of the community. Through a legacy built on economic equality and well-being, we go beyond meeting the needs of offering banking solutions; our mission is to empower our customers and future generations for financial success.

The bank takes pride in offering its financial solutions throughout metropolitan-Atlanta and Birmingham and Eutaw, Alabama. Through its parent company, Citizens Bancshares Corporation, the Bank offers its common stock over-the-counter to the public under the trading symbol CZBS and can be found at www.ctbconnect.com.

SOURCE Citizens Trust Bank

Related Links

http://www.CTBconnect.com


NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Brain research and advocacy non-profit Cohen Veterans Bioscience (CVB) announced today that it joined the PRISM 2 consortium as as a designated associated partner of the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI).

The new PRISM 2 project, "Psychiatric Ratings using Intermediate Stratified Markers 2," aims to identify quantitative biological features common across Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia and major depressive disorder, opening the possibility of developing targeted treatments irrespective of traditional diagnosis.

Building on the success of innovative research by the original PRISM project, the Innovative Medicines Initiative 2, a joint undertaking between the EU and the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA), has backed the program with funding for a new project to explore the underlying biology across the diseases.

Most mental health or neurological problems are only diagnosed when the patient begins to show symptoms for example when they begin to sink into depression, or when Alzheimer's disease starts to affect their memory. The ability to understand the biological causes of mental health conditions before clinical onset  which may lead both to early diagnosis and targeted treatment - has long been a "holy grail" of neuroscience.

Magali Haas, MD, PhD, President and CEO of Cohen Veterans Bioscience, said:

"We are delighted to partner in this critical initiative. To advance precision solutions for patients we need transdiagnostic approaches and objective biomarker assessment tools as the PRISM2 initiative develops them. Often individuals with different diagnoses share common symptoms. The emphasis on quantitative, as opposed to qualitative, categorical disease parameters, offers significant benefits for the advancement of new therapeutic solutions for these conditions."

These disorders are also much more complex than often recognized. Indeed, there are many symptom domains that do not align neatly with traditional diagnoses but appear in individuals with a variety of different diagnoses. As people with Alzheimer's do not only exhibit impairments in memory, people with schizophrenia do not only experience psychosis.

The original PRISM project has taken the first steps at developing a suite of biological tests, including Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), blood tests, smartphone monitoring and Electroencephalogram (EEG), which will allow more objective diagnosis of the conditions, and indicate which brain mechanisms are involved, potentially identifying targets for tailored treatment.

PRISM launched in 2016, worked with patients to measure brain and behavioral activities using a variety of new and existing techniques. The project focused on Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia and used social dysfunction, which is common to both conditions, as a key to access the underlying causes. This part of the project has successfully identified measurable biological indicators related to traditional diagnoses of schizophrenia and Alzheimer disease. However, the unbiased approach in PRISM also allowed a novel "transdiagnostic" link between a neural circuit and social dysfunction to be identified. The new PRISM 2 project aims to probe these findings more deeply as well as casting the net more broadly to include Major Depressive Disorder.

Social dysfunction is one of the earliest indicators of the onset of several common psychiatric and neurological disorders but it is a symptom that may be caused by very different neurobiological processes. People with social dysfunction tend to retreat from friends and family, as well as from social networks at their workplaces. The underlying causes and mechanisms remain unknown.

By probing large genetic databases, such as the UK BioBank, the team found 19 genetic variations linked strongly to social dysfunction. Intriguingly, all of these 19 genetic variations were confirmed as being linked to protein expression in the specific circuit identified in the study.

These findings led to the IMI agreeing to a 7.9m funding allocation to build on the results in a new project.

Academic project coordinator and Professor of Behavioural Neuroscience at the University of Groningen, Prof. Dr. Martien Kas, said:

"PRISM has been able to apply new statistical and monitoring tools to unpick biological associations with mental health and neurological conditions. For example, using GPS and call logs on smartphones show how much people move and interact, which indicates social functioning status. We can relate behavioural traits to findings from MRI and EEG: in fact we have identified over 4000 relevant biological markers. We are now beginning to identify patterns which associate these markers and behavioural traits with conditions such as Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia, and this is what has led the IMI Joint Undertaking to support phase 2 of the project.

PRISM 2 will aim to determine just how reproducible and accurate our initial findings are, especially in schizophrenia and Alzheimer's disease, and we will investigate generalizability of the findings to a third indication, namely Major Depressive Disorder. The ultimate aim is to translate our findings into practical diagnosis and treatment."

14 institutes and companies in the EU, the UK, and the USA will cooperate on PRISM 2.

IMI Executive Director, Dr Pierre Meulien, said:

"By bringing together partners including patients, universities and companies, PRISM succeeded in shedding new light on some of the underlying causes of schizophrenia and Alzheimer's disease. PRISM 2 will build on this work and if successful, could significantly change how we see and treat mental illness."

Industrial project leader and Head of Department CNS Diseases Research at Boehringer Ingelheim, Dr. Hugh Marston, said:

"We do need to focus, in an unbiased manner, on the problems that neuropsychiatric patients actually suffer from. PRISM was an excellent example of patients, academics, CROs and major pharma coming together to try to shed new light on these life changing disorders. I am excited that the findings of PRISM's paradigm changing approach to mental health have led to the extension of this project. We hope that our research will yield better diagnosis and treatment choices that transform the lives of people with Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia and Major Depressive Disorder."

List of participating companies and Institutes, PRISM 2

Participant No.* Participant organization name Country 01 (COO) RUG University of Groningen The Netherlands 02 P1vital P1vital LTD United Kingdom 03 RUMC Radboud University Medical Center The Netherlands 04 CIBER Centro de Investigacion Biomedica en Red Spain 05 UNIBO University of Bologna Italy 06 VUMC VU University Medical Center Amsterdam The Netherlands 07 BIOTRIAL BIOTRIAL SAS France 08 SBG SBGneuro Ltd. United Kingdom 09 concentris concentris research management Germany 10 LUMC Leiden University Medical Center The Netherlands 11 ECNP European College of Neuropsychopharmacology The Netherlands 12 CVB Cohen Veterans Bioscience USA 13 BI Boehringer Ingelheim International Germany 14 PGI PsychoGenics USA

About Cohen Veteran Bioscience

Cohen Veterans Bioscience is a non-profit 501(c)(3) biomedical research and technology organization dedicated to advancing brain health by fast-tracking precision diagnostics and tailored therapeutics.

SOURCE Cohen Veterans Bioscience

Related Links

http://www.cohenveteransbioscience.org


JACKSON, Mich., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Consumers Energy today announced a sweeping proposal to stop using coal as a fuel source for electricity by 2025 15 years faster than currently planned. The plan would make the company one of the first in the nation to go coal-free and provide a 20-year blueprint to meet Michigan's energy needs while protecting the environment for future generations.

"We are proud to lead Michigan's clean energy transformation and be one of the first utilities in the country to end coal use," President and CEO Garrick Rochow said. "We are committed to being a force of change and good stewards of our environment, producing reliable, affordable energy for our customers while caring for our communities during this transition."

The plan, which requires regulatory approval, ensures we will:

Be among the first utilities in the nation to go coal-free by 2025;

Use 90 percent clean energy resources by 2040;

Build nearly 8,000 megawatts of solar energy to power Michigan's homes and businesses by 2040;

homes and businesses by 2040; Stay on the path to achieve net zero carbon emissions, and

Save customers about $650 million through 2040.

If approved by the Michigan Public Service Commission, the updated plan would speed closure of our three coal-fired units at the Campbell generating complex near Holland.

Campbell 1 and 2, collectively capable of producing more than 600 megawatts of electricity, would retire in 2025  roughly six years sooner than their scheduled design lives.

1 and 2, collectively capable of producing more than 600 megawatts of electricity, would retire in 2025  roughly six years sooner than their scheduled design lives. Campbell 3, capable of generating 840 MW, would also retire in 2025  roughly 15 years sooner than its scheduled design life.

The updated proposal also calls for moving up closure of Karn 3 and 4, units that run on natural gas and fuel oil and can generate more than 1,100 MW to meet peak demand, to 2023  about eight years sooner than their design lives.

"Consumers Energy is committed to a just transition away from coal as a fuel source for electricity," said Brandon Hofmeister, senior vice president for governmental, regulatory and public affairs. "We supported employees and communities impacted by our 2016 coal retirements by finding new roles for workers who wanted to stay, fulfilling our environmental responsibilities at the sites and helping local leaders pursue new economic possibilities. We plan to follow the same philosophy to help those affected by the proposed Campbell and Karn retirements."

By 2040, clean, renewable fuel sources such as solar and wind will comprise more than 60 percent of our electric capacity. Combining that growth with advances in energy storage and customer efficiency will allow us to meet customers' needs with 90 percent clean energy resources. The rapid transition to clean, renewable sources includes the addition of nearly 8,000 megawatts of solar power. Our solar ramp-up has started and will continue throughout the 2020s. Consumers Energy currently operates solar power plants at Western Michigan University, Grand Valley State University and in Cadillac and purchases solar generation from several sites in Michigan.

To ensure continued reliable, affordable energy for Michigan and the Midwest during this historic transition away from coal generation, Consumers Energy proposes buying four existing natural gas-fired power plants in the state: Covert Generating Station in Van Buren County; Dearborn Industrial Generation in Wayne County; Kalamazoo River Generating Station in Kalamazoo County; and Livingston Generating Station in Otsego County. The proposed purchases require state and federal regulatory approvals. The Kalamazoo River and Livingston plants are smaller and used primarily to meet peak demand.

These natural gas plants  along with Consumers Energy's current natural gas-fired power plants in Zeeland and Jackson  would supply steady, reliable electricity for homes and businesses as the company invests more heavily in renewable energy and continues to explore emerging technology to minimize impact on the environment.

Our plan creates price stability and, by using natural gas as a fuel source to generate baseload power, will save customers about $650 million through 2040 compared to our current plan. Further, the increased use of demand management tools such as energy waste reduction programs will give customers more control over their monthly energy bills, equipping them to save energy and money over the long term.

Visit ConsumersEnergy.com/change to learn more about the Clean Energy Plan.

Consumers Energy, Michigan's largest energy provider, is the principal subsidiary of CMS Energy (NYSE: CMS), providing natural gas and/or electricity to 6.8 million of the state's 10 million residents in all 68 Lower Peninsula counties.

For more information about Consumers Energy, go to ConsumersEnergy.com.

Check out Consumers Energy on Social Media



Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/consumersenergymichigan

Twitter: https://twitter.com/consumersenergy

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/consumersenergy

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/consumersenergy

SOURCE Consumers Energy

Related Links

http://www.consumersenergy.com


PLANO, Texas, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Cookies by Design, The Original Cookie Bouquet Company and the nation's leader in cookie bouquet delivery, announced today the unveiling of a major rebranding initiative. The transformation of the international cookie company was prompted in 2020 by the surge in demand across both the gifting and food delivery industries. Cookies by Design invested in scalable infrastructure, supported ongoing international expansion, enhanced their product mix, redefined target markets, optimized eCommerce experiences, and reimagined the brand's identity - providing consumers across the US & Canada with a fresh take on handcrafted cookie gifts delivered nationwide.

Key Operational Announcements:

Locations, International Expansion - Canada

Locations, US Expansion - Indianapolis Coming 2022

New Leadership, Corporate - Marketing, Finance, Product Development, B2B Sales

Nationwide Delivery  Exclusive Enterprise-Level Partnership with FedEx

Nationwide Delivery  Sunday Delivery

Website, Customer Support  Live Chat

Website, Enhanced Payment Options  Afterpay Partnership

Product Development, Market Trends  Decorating Kits, Improved Seasonal Offerings

Infrastructure, Central Bakery - $300K in New Equipment / Machinery

in New Equipment / Machinery B2B Client Base Growth  Custom Cookie Bulk Orders for Fortune 500 Brands

Marketing, New Affiliate Marketing Channel  Advertise Purple

Marketing, Brand Studies  New Brand Identity, Logo, Shop Signage, Packaging - Summer 2021

 New Brand Identity, Logo, Shop Signage, Packaging - Summer 2021 Finance, Transactions and PCI Compliance  5 Year Agreement with Bank of America and FiServe

Founded in 1983, the company offers a wide range of products and services to celebrate life's moments with Same-Day and Nationwide Delivery services. As the nation's largest franchisor of handcrafted cookie gifts, the company recently announced international expansion with a secondary HQ in Toronto, Canada, with plans to expand to 10 shops in the region. At the global headquarters in the US, Cookies by Design implemented key changes in leadership across Marketing, Finance, Product Development, and Corporate Sales.

Results from an independent brand study in 2020 confirmed opportunities to shift the brand's target demographic, improve unaided brand recall, elevate brand perception, and modernize the web browsing experience.

The new brand mark pays homage to the company's iconic 7-cookie bouquet and embraces a friendly, yet modern simplicity that allows the brightly decorated products to shine through without concern of clashing color palettes. The brand rollout will continue through Summer 2021.

"We are delighted to launch a fresh new look for Cookies by Design. Our brand reflects who we are not just today, but also for years to come," said Jack Long, President and CEO of Cookies by Design. "Our customers are what makes our business so special and so rewarding. Over the coming months we will be launching some compelling new products and services that we believe will further enhance our reputation for quality, value, service and the capacity to create sensational personalized gifts that are truly one of a kind."

The brand's newly deployed eCommerce updates include Customer Support Live Chat features, revamped product collections, improved cart & checkout processes, an additional payment option with Afterpay, and new Sunday Delivery options.

Investments in infrastructure improvements include $300K in equipment and machinery at their largest bakery in Plano, TX.

For the accounting division, a five-year agreement with Bank of America and FiServe has been reached to manage website transactions and PCI compliance, setting the groundwork for coming years.

With over 1 million cookies delivered each month and growing nationwide delivery demands, Cookies by Design announces their exclusive partnership with FedEx as an Enterprise Client.

Dedicated to the mission of sharing life's moments - even when we couldn't physically be together - the cookie company developed a new assortment of cookie decorating kits, limited-time seasonal flavors, and whimsical cookie gifts to keep friends and families connected throughout 2020. Many of these projects paved the way to where the company is today - emerging ready for the next chapter.

To learn more about Cookies by Design, visit www.cookiesbydesign.com, stop by one of over 50 US franchise locations, or call 855.COOKIES.

About Cookies by Design

For over 35 years, Cookies by Design has been delighting people across the US and Canada with a unique and delicious gifting alternative to flowers. Our ability to create custom cookie bouquet designs with a personalized message as well as provide local hand delivery set us apart. Our customers are thrilled with Cookies by Design's ease of service and creativity that delivers their gift with a personal touch. Discover the full line of gourmet cookie gifts at https://www.cookiesbydesign.com.

CONTACT: Cookies by Design, 855.COOKIES, [email protected]

SOURCE Cookies by Design

Related Links

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DENVER, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- COSMO Technologies, Inc., a first-of-its-kind family technology design and manufacturing company, announced today the closing of its Pre-Seed funding round. The funds will be used to accelerate development of COSMO's suite of family products, expand its team and enhance brand awareness.

"Families around the world are grappling with the daunting challenge of how to treat technology in the home and how to safely communicate with their youngest children," said Russell York, founder and CEO of COSMO. "This funding gives us extra momentum as we develop a credible, holistic solution to the family technology dilemma."

"We are excited about COSMO's business model and explosive growth in the family technology space," said Jim Thorson of Free Radical Ventures, an investment firm in the raise. "It's great to have the opportunity to invest in a company with such a clear mission and value add to society."

COSMO's flagship product, the JrTrack Kids Smartwatch, is a 4G-enabled wearable for kids ages 5-12 years old. Designed and manufactured to deliver all the features available in offerings from prominent telecoms, COSMO offers the JrTrack Kids Smartwatch starting at just $49.99 with a cancel-anytime subscription.

"We are preparing for a year of product launches, from JrTrack 2 to a kids phone and an array of other products and services," said Michelle Ross, co-founder and COO. "Our growth since the end of 2020 when we were just a bootstrapped startup has been rapid and validates the growing demand for family-friendly technology."

JrTrack 2 will be available for presale this Summer.

To learn more about COSMO, visit www.cosmotogether.com and follow @cosmotogether on Instagram and Facebook .

About COSMO Technologies, Inc.

COSMO designs, manufactures and markets family-safe technology products. Committed to the idea that technology should be designed for families, not just repurposed from other segments, COSMO is pioneering new product categories. At the center of its offerings is its mobile application, COSMO: Mission Control. This hub for managing connected devices and family software is meant for families who are seeking a new way of doing technology.

Media Contact:

Russell York

[email protected]

SOURCE COSMO Technologies

Related Links

www.cosmotogether.com


BOSTON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- COTA, Inc., an oncology real-world data and analytics company, and University of Chicago Medicine announced a research collaboration agreement to investigate racial disparities of care in multiple myeloma to better understand differences in the diagnosis, treatment patterns, and outcomes of patients with this type of cancer.

Multiple myeloma is the second-most-common hematologic malignancy, with an estimated 34,920 new cases and 12,410 deaths expected to occur in the United States in 2021. Research has shown that the incidence rate of myeloma in Black Americans is two to three times higher than in other populations  and the death rates are higher as well. Researchers at COTA and University of Chicago Medicine will use real-world data to examine potential disparities in clinical treatment pathways and outcomes.

The University of Chicago Medicine is a not-for-profit academic medical health system based on the campus of the University of Chicago in Hyde Park. They are at the forefront of health equity in the South Side and Southland communities, committed to strategically addressing chronic conditions and other complex health needs in this region.

"Black Americans are grossly underrepresented in clinical trials, and more data is needed to evaluate the best treatments for this population," said Benjamin Derman, MD, University of Chicago Medicine. "It is critical that we understand optimal treatment pathways and risk prognostication in Black populations. Leveraging COTA's expertise in real-world data, we can evaluate reasons for racial disparities in multiple myeloma outcomes and improve the way we care for these patients moving forward."

COTA provides comprehensive oncology real-world data abstraction, curation, and analytics capabilities to leading healthcare provider organizations and life sciences companies that are caring and developing treatments for patients living with a wide range of cancers. The company uniquely combines oncology expertise with technology-enabled data abstraction techniques to

"We are excited to be collaborating with the University of Chicago Medicine to generate inclusive research that can improve our understanding of multiple myeloma across all racial and ethnic groups." said C.K. Wang, MD, Chief Medical Officer, COTA. "There is a significant need to address the persistent lack of diversity and inclusion in clinical trial participation and research. This collaboration aligns with COTA's mission to ensure that everyone touched by cancer has the clear path to the right care."

About COTA, Inc.

Founded by oncologists, COTA is committed to creating a precise, patient-first approach to cancer care through the use of real-world data. The company leverages technology-supported human data abstraction methods to make sense of complex, fragmented patient data from the real world. Offering the highest quality oncology real-world data from leading academic and community-based cancer centers and an advanced analytics platform, COTA partners with leading life sciences companies, providers, and payers to ensure that everyone touched by cancer has a clear path to the right care. To learn more about COTA and how to fast-track improvements in cancer care and treatment with comprehensive and diverse real-world data and analytics, visit cotahealthcare.com .

CONTACT: Jaimee Ryan - [email protected]

SOURCE COTA, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.cotahealthcare.com


NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- DailyPay , the industry-leading technology platform that's disrupting the financial system, is expanding its technology partnership with UKG (Ultimate Kronos Group), a leading global provider of HCM, payroll, HR service delivery, and workforce management solutions.

DailyPay's API integration enables on-demand pay services through UKG Pro, UKG's award-winning global HCM solution for large and medium-size enterprises. Expanding on the proven success of DailyPay's integrations with other UKG solutions, including UKG Dimensions and UKG Ready, organizations that utilize both UKG Pro and DailyPay can seamlessly integrate systems, giving employees easy and instant access to earned income before payday.

" Our research shows that employees pay an average of $1,200 a year in late fees and overdraft penalties. Thanks to this integration, even more employees across the U.S. will have the power of choice and control over their earned pay and can avoid these charges and invest in their future savings," said DailyPay's Senior Director of Business Development & Partnerships, Jak Lerdgidkjon. "We truly value our integration and alliance partners such as UKG, and how much they help us extend our reach."

DailyPay's industry-leading technology platform features PayEx, a suite of services that offers employees the ability to transfer their earned income to accounts of their choice, both checking and savings, 24/7/365, with its PAY and SAVE products. The PayEx products also give employers the ability to smoothly process off-cycle payments with CYCLE or compliantly reward employees for a job well done with REWARD.

"Financial wellness is a critical component to supporting holistic employee wellness, a pillar of the modern employee experience," said Mike May, Senior Director, UKG Partner Network at UKG. "Instead of employees working for payday, we can make payday work for employees."

As American businesses reopen, companies are leveraging on-demand pay to hire quicker and retain employees longer to meet the growing needs of consumers. Employers who partner with DailyPay can expect to have increased retention, productivity and employee satisfaction. A recent study shows that 73% of DailyPay users have an improved opinion of their employers and 74% say that DailyPay has helped reduce their financial stress . According to Mercator Advisory Group , less financial stress creates better interactions between coworkers and customers, therefore improving sales, brand image and customer experience. DailyPay clients can also expect a 63% improvement in turnover .

For more information about DailyPay, or to get a demo, click here .

About DailyPay:

DailyPay, powered by its industry-leading technology platform, is on a mission to build a new financial system. Partnering with America's best-in-class employers, including Dollar Tree, Berkshire Hathaway and Adecco, DailyPay is the recognized gold-standard in on-demand pay. Through its massive data network, proprietary funding model and connections into over 6,000 endpoints in the banking system, DailyPay works to ensure that money is always in the right place at the right time for employers, merchants and financial institutions. DailyPay is building technology and the mindset to reimagine the way money moves, from the moment work starts. DailyPay is headquartered in New York City, with operations based in Minneapolis. For more information, visit www.dailypay.com/press .

Media contacts:

David Schwarz

Email: [email protected]

Ye Bin Kwon

Email: [email protected]

Website: dailypay.com

SOURCE DailyPay

Related Links

www.dailypay.com


Powered by Google Project Sunroof, Stella enables solar companies to increase sales volume by capturing the large segment of website visitors who have enough interest to click on an installer's website, but do not have sufficient information to proceed with a sales consultation. Homeowners can quickly and easily upload their utility bills via computer, phone, or tablet to further inform their instant solar estimates.

According to the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals, Hispanics accounted for more than 50% of new homeowners in the United States over the past decade, representing a quickly growing segment for the solar industry. In addition to Demand IQ's instant solar estimate, lead capture, and pre-qualification features, a fully conversational experience in Spanish unlocks access to education about solar energy and potential utility bill cost savings for Hispanic homeowners.

"With the addition of our Spanish language feature, we are proud to address long-standing energy inequities and promote access to solar for homeowners in underserved segments," Demand IQ's CEO Austin Rosenbaum says. "Our primary goal is developing captivating and educational solar shopping experiences by providing homeowners with customized solar estimates in real time. The ability to communicate fluently in Spanish was the logical next step in providing a best-in-class solar shopping experience and supporting the growth of solar energy."

The new feature is now available for all Demand IQ clients and Demand IQ clients will find a new "Spanish Setup" section in the admin portal.

About Demand IQ:

Demand IQ equips solar pros with the tools to engage, educate, and convert more solar prospects into customers. The comprehensive solar revenue growth platform combines conversational AI, financial analysis, virtual appointment setting, utility bill capture, and data from Google Project Sunroof to provide homeowners with instant solar estimates. Stella can interact with many prospects concurrently, at any time of day, acting as a virtual sales agent.

Solar companies utilizing Stella experience a dramatic increase in appointments, a shorter sales cycle, and reduced customer acquisition costs. Since Stella's launch in August 2020, Demand IQ engages with homeowners on behalf of its clients approximately every two minutes in more than 40 states. https://demand-iq.com

SOURCE Demand IQ

Related Links

https://demand-iq.com


With the continuing spread of the coronavirus pandemic, organizations across the globe are gradually flattening their recessionary curve by leveraging technology. Many businesses will go through response, recovery, and renewal phases. Building business resilience and enabling agility will aid organizations to move forward in their journey out of the COVID-19 crisis towards the Next Normal.

Key Considerations for Market Forecast:

Impact of lockdowns, supply chain disruptions, demand destruction, and change in customer behavior

Optimistic, probable, and pessimistic scenarios for all markets as the impact of pandemic unfolds

Pre- as well as post-COVID-19 market estimates

Quarterly impact analysis and updates on market estimates

Major Five Digital Transformation Market Participants in the Retail Sector:

Alibaba Cloud: The company offers Alibaba Cloud that enables digital retail transformation to fuel growth and realize an omnichannel customer experience throughout the consumer journey.

Alphabet Inc.: The company offers Google cloud that helps retailers to accelerate digital and achieve omnichannel revenue growth.

Amazon Web Services Inc.: The company offers AWS retail that leads the retailers to plan and forecast, promote and recommend, incentivize and sell, fulfill and ship, deliver and support, analyze and expand throughout the digital transformation journey.

Intel Corp.: The company offers digital transformation which is powered by analytics and artificial intelligence (AI).

Microsoft Corp.: The company offers Microsoft Cloud for Retail that brings together different data sources across the retail value chain and uniquely connects experiences across the end-to-end shopper journey through a set of capabilities that deliver more relevant personalized experiences and operational excellence for sustained profitability.

Learn more about the global trends impacting the future of the digital transformation market vendors.

Download a Free Sample Report Now!

Digital Transformation Market in the Retail Sector 2021-2025: Segmentation

Digital transformation market in the retail sector is segmented as below:

Technology

IoT



Cloud Computing



Big Data



AI



AR/VR

Geography

North America



Europe



APAC



South America



MEA

Related Reports on Information Technology Include:

Global Digital Intelligence Platform Market - Global digital intelligence platform market is segmented by end-user (BFSI, retail, telecom, and others) and geography (North America, Europe, APAC, South America, and MEA).

Download Exclusive Free Sample Report

Global Digital Asset Management Market - Global digital asset management market is segmented by Type (On premises and cloud) and Geography (North America, Europe, APAC, South America, and MEA).

Download Exclusive Free Sample Report

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Report: www.technavio.com/report/digital-transformation-market-in-retail-industry-analysis

SOURCE Technavio

Related Links

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STOCKHOLM, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Dignitana, world leader in scalp cooling innovation, announced today the launch of two key initiatives to support reimbursement and insurance appeals for U.S. providers of The DigniCap Scalp Cooling System. The company has engaged two Minneapolis-based organizations, medical device consulting firm JD Lymon Group and market access specialists JDL Access, to launch a reimbursement hub and an appeal support program. JDL Access will be working directly with providers and payers to facilitate reimbursement for patient treatments using DigniCap.

"The JD Lymon team are recognized experts in reimbursement. As we approach the July 1 introduction of CPT codes for scalp cooling, we are acutely aware of the complexities of the reimbursement landscape. Our partnership with JD Lymon and JDL Access is a demonstration of our commitment to our customers to achieve and maintain access to DigniCap for patients in need," said William Cronin, Dignitana CEO. "When the AMA announced the CPT codes for scalp cooling last fall, we initiated a plan to do our part to help the oncology community establish appropriate reimbursement. JDL Access and JD Lymon are the ideal partners to help us achieve that."

Julie Grimme, President of JDL Access along with Jolayne Devers, Partner at JD Lymon, state, "We are honored to be selected by Dignitana to support their market needs. Emerging technologies face special challenges in reimbursement. We understand these challenges and look forward to a beneficial collaboration and increased access to The DigniCap Scalp Cooling System."

With more than 70 combined years of medical device and pharmaceutical experience across the firm's partners, JDL Access and JD Lymon focuses on accelerating market access through multi-disciplinary strategies that address the complex interrelationship between policy, evidence, and practice to optimize the market position of emerging therapies.

Cronin continued, "We have recently seen an accelerated pace in new providers signing on for DigniCap. With this increased activity and the developments in reimbursement, I believe awareness of scalp cooling and utilization of DigniCap will continue to grow, further advancing our company's overall strategic objectives and mission."

The DigniCap Scalp Cooling System received FDA clearance in 2015 to minimize hair loss from chemotherapy in patients with solid tumors. DigniCap is available in 34 U.S. states and in 40 countries around the world.

For More Information Contact

Melissa Bourestom, VP Corporate Communications, [email protected] +1 469-518-5031

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

https://news.cision.com/dignitana-ab/r/dignitana-launches-new-initiatives-to-support-reimbursement-and-market-access,c3372753

The following files are available for download:

https://mb.cision.com/Main/2116/3372753/1435926.pdf Release https://news.cision.com/dignitana-ab/i/dignicap-delta-on-patient,c2928737 DigniCap Delta on patient

SOURCE Dignitana AB
"Comprehensive proof of a company's security and compliance posture has quickly become a requirement for doing business," says Oren Yunger of GGV Capital. "Drata's technology allows a company to streamline the audit preparation process, get immediate visibility into real-time security performance, and understand exactly how their controls map to various compliance frameworks. The company has proven to be a true industry disruptor with their continuous approach to compliance, and GGV looks forward to supporting the team as they rapidly scale."

SVCI is an angel syndicate made up of some of the world's leading CISOs, all of whom know first-hand about the challenges of compliance. Seeing the revolutionary approach Drata brings to the table and after evaluating available solutions in the market, the group decided to back Drata as the category leader.

Drata's current customer base includes hundreds of companies across various industries, including Clearco, SmartRecruiters, The Good Face Project, 360 Insights, and Trust & Will. The funding will be used to hire across key go-to-market functions and expand the Drata platform beyond SOC 2 into ISO 27001, the European compliance counterpart, as well as additional security frameworks.

"In a matter of minutes, we had Drata integrated with our environment and continuously monitoring our controls," says Christine Smoley, Security Engineering Lead at Clearco. "We're now able to see our audit-readiness in real time, and receive tailored insights outlining exactly what needs to be done to remediate gaps. The Drata team has removed the headache from the compliance experience and allowed us to engage our people in the process of establishing a 'security-first' mindset."

In an increasingly competitive field, Drata differentiates by employing an automation-led approach to continuous compliance. Users are able to gain immediate visibility into their security program and streamline the compliance process end-to-end, including personnel onboarding, policy creation, vendor management, risk assessment, and more. The company strives to provide customers with the fastest time-to-value possible while reducing the amount of additional tools required. Drata is the only solution in the compliance automation space built on a single-tenant database architecture, ensuring any one customer's data never touches another's.

Formed in 2020, Drata was originally conceived as a response to the experience the founders, Adam Markowitz, Daniel Marashlian, and Troy Markowitz, had with their first venture, Portfolium (acquired by Instructure in 2019). As Portfolium grew, so did customer requests for proof of the company's security posture. The process in preparing for an annual SOC 2 audit was largely manual and took hundreds of hours, distracting the team from its day-to-day.

"We knew that there had to be a better way," says Adam Markowitz, Drata's CEO and Co-Founder. "We launched Drata to help customers automate compliance and build trust. We also developed our platform with customization and flexibility top-of-mind, allowing for the seamless addition of new security frameworks and use by companies from startup level to enterprise. The market response has been astounding. We onboarded our 100th customer 60 days after initial launch and are growing at an average month-over-month rate of 100%. With the addition of ISO 27001 and more to come, we're looking forward to helping more companies achieve and maintain continuous compliance."

About Drata

Drata builds the world's most advanced security and compliance automation platform with the mission to help businesses earn and keep the trust of their users, customers, partners, and prospects. With Drata, companies can streamline compliance through continuous, automated control monitoring and evidence collection, resulting in lower costs and time spent preparing for annual audits. The company is backed by GGV Capital, Cowboy Ventures, Leaders Fund, Okta Ventures, SVCI, SV Angel, and many key industry leaders. Drata is based in San Diego, CA.

For all media enquiries, please contact:

Josh Stanbury | 416-628-7441 | [email protected]

SOURCE Drata Inc.

Related Links

https://drata.com


FREMONT, Calif., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Durabook, the global rugged mobile solutions brand owned by Twinhead International Corporation, announced today that the Chino Valley Police Department in Arizona has successfully deployed its R11 rugged tablets. Over the past five years, the Chino Valley Police Department has deployed Durabook R11s in different vehicles used by police officers.

The Durabook rugged tablets have exceeded all of the performance and durability expectations that the Chino Valley Police Department had for its use.

"In Chino Valley, temperatures range from freezing in the winter to over 100 degrees in the summer, at an elevation of over 4,500 feet," stated Randy Chapman, Chino Valley Police Department Lieutenant. "Also, since our department's territory includes rural areas, shock and vibration are serious issues for any computers in the field. Being a smaller department, the affordable costs to purchase the R11 rugged tablets and maintain them were key factors in the decision-making process."

The Durabook rugged tablets have exceeded all of the performance and durability expectations that the Chino Valley Police Department had for its use. The R11 rugged tablet is optimized for use in law enforcement. The Chino Valley Police Department's officers can utilize the Spillman reporting software, run driver licenses, and more right in the field.

"Durabook's rugged computers are the perfect fit for departments who do not want to compromise between functionality and budget," according to Tom Wang, president of Durabook Americas. "Our ability to upgrade our rugged computers to the cutting-edge chipsets and specifications allows departments to standardize on a single model. We are able to deploy customized in-vehicle solutions for departments of all sizes across the country."

The Durabook R11 that the Chino Valley Police Department purchased features the Intel CPUs with Turbo Boost speeds up to 4.2 GHz, plus Intel UHD Graphics 620, packing high performance and visuals into a compact form. Plus, the high-speed data transmission capability of Intel Dual Band Wireless AC 9260 and Bluetooth V5.0 means smooth, congestion-free processing at all times.

The customer and warranty support provided by the Durabook Americas team has been the primary reason the department has continued to purchase its rugged computers from Durabook. Additionally, when it has had an issue with a unit, the team at Durabook has diligently worked to assist the department in returning the unit to service quickly. This has enabled the department to provide exceptional service to its community and be sensitive to the department's budget.

AVAILABILITY

The Durabook R11 fully rugged tablet is available now. For more details, visit https://www.durabook.com/us/products/r11-tablet/. For sales inquiries, contact [email protected] or call 800-995-8946.

ABOUT THE CHINO VALLEY POLICE DEPARTMENT

The mission of the Chino Valley Police Department is to protect the lives, property, and constitutional rights of the citizens of Chino Valley through fair and impartial enforcement of the laws of the state. The Police Department's mission is accomplished through effective management of department operations, staff, and numerous services and programs such as Traffic Safety, Regulatory Services, Investigative Services, and Response to Calls for Service, Homeland Security Initiatives, and Budget Management. For more information, please visit https://www.chinoaz.net/149/Police-Department.

ABOUT DURABOOK

Durabook is the core brand of Twinhead International Corporation in Taiwan, a world-renowned manufacturer of rugged mobile solutions for more than 30 years. All Durabook devices are designed, manufactured, and tested to the highest standards to ensure maximum quality and reliability. Committed to engineering and service excellence, Durabook products have been widely adopted by government and enterprise customers, including oil and gas, utilities, field service, military, and public safety for more than a decade. For more information, visit www.durabook.com.

PR Contact:

Rita Lee

Copernio

(714) 891-3660

[email protected]

All products/services and trademarks mentioned in this release are the properties of their respective companies.

 2021 Durabook Americas. All rights reserved.

Related Files

PR_Durabook and Chino Valley Police Department_06232021.pdf

Related Images

durabook-rugged-tablet-with-in.jpg

Durabook Rugged Tablet With In-Vehicle Dock Solution

The Durabook rugged tablets have exceeded all of the performance and durability expectations that the Chino Valley Police Department had for its use.

SOURCE Durabook Americas, Inc.
Beginning today and running through July , store employees will ask customers to donate an amount of their choosing to DAV during checkout. Funds donated to DAV help veterans know they are not alone by helping them:

Get the benefits they deserve

Receive transportation to medical appointments

Find meaningful employment

Receive assistance during times of disaster

The convenience stores participating in the promotion include Cumberland Farms, Certified Oil, Fastrac, Kwik Shop, Loaf 'N Jug, Minit Mart, Quik Stop, Tom Thumb and Turkey Hill. Their goal is to raise over $250,000 for DAV, an organization that changes the lives of more than one million veterans, of all eras, every year.

"Recognizing and giving back to those who have served our country is vitally important to the EG Group, which is why we are proud to partner with DAV in this important initiative," said George Fournier, President of EG America. "Additionally, many of our team members and guests are veterans themselves, so this association with DAV allows them to connect with the communities where they live and work in a meaningful way. This fundraising effort hits home for the EG Group and we're looking forward to our guests playing a key role in this effort."

"For years, EG America has successfully raised funds directly supporting the vital programs we provide to the men and women who served," said DAV CEO Marc Burgess. "I can't thank EG America enough for continuing to support DAV in this upcoming promotion, which showcases their compassion, graciousness and genuine reverence for America's ill and injured veterans."

About EG Group:

Founded in 2001 by the Issa Family, United Kingdom based EG Group is a major convenience retailer who has established partnerships with global brands. The business has an established pedigree of delivering a world class fuel, grocery & merchandise and foodservice offer.

EG Group currently employs in excess of 44,000 colleagues working in more than 6,000 sites across Europe, USA and Australia.

Zuber Issa CBE and Mohsin Issa CBE, Founders and co-CEOs, EG Group, were recently honored in the Queen's Birthday Honors List 2020, for their contribution to business and charity. They were also jointly named the 2018 EY Entrepreneur of the Year in the UK.

For more information see the Group's website: www.eurogarages.com

About DAV:

DAV empowers veterans to lead high-quality lives with respect and dignity. It is dedicated to a single purpose: keeping our promise to America's veterans. DAV does this by ensuring that veterans and their families can access the full range of benefits available to them; fighting for the interests of America's injured heroes on Capitol Hill; providing employment resources to veterans and their families and educating the public about the great sacrifices and needs of veterans transitioning back to civilian life. DAV, a nonprofit organization with more than 1 million members, was founded in 1920 and chartered by the US Congress in 1932. Learn more at dav.org.

Media Contact:

Sean Hennessey

[email protected]

O 617.337.9523 | M 617.943.4323

SOURCE EG Group

Related Links

http://www.eurogarages.com


ATLANTA, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Equifax (NYSE: EFX) believes that cloud computing technology is essential to expanding access to credit. As the only cloud-native consumer credit reporting agency, Equifax is leveraging the power of its $1.5 billion cloud transformation to introduce a 2021 developer challenge and accelerator program: Equifax Accelerate. Applications are open through July 29 to start-up and early stage software developers looking to create transformative solutions designed to foster financial inclusion with the powerful suite of Equifax Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) available from the Equifax for Developers API Portal.

"Equifax has led the exploration of new data insights to open access to credit for decades," said Bryson Koehler, Equifax Chief Technology Officer. "The Equifax Accelerate program is another way that we are leveraging the power of the Equifax Cloud to fuel rapid innovation. We are challenging software developers to join us in building data-driven solutions to the challenge of consumer access to credit and small business access to capital. We're making the Equifax for Developers API portal open for simplified access to data assets and API products so that developers can easily explore, access technical documentation, create apps, experiment, and innovate faster than ever before."

Equifax Accelerate is produced in partnership with 1871 , a Chicago-based technology hub that supports early stage tech start-ups, growth stage tech leaders, and corporate innovators building extraordinary businesses. 1871 is the home of nearly 500 early-stage, high-growth digital startups and more than 1,500 members.

The top 50 Equifax Accelerate entries will be accepted to an August 2021 Design Sprint Challenge. All Design Sprint Challenge participants will receive access to Equifax APIs and mentorship from both Equifax and 1871 subject matter experts to assist in the creation of prototype solutions. They will also compete for a chance to access the 12-week Product Studio, a custom accelerator program powered by Equifax and 1871.

The Product Studio includes complimentary access to Equifax APIs and 1:1 mentorship from Equifax technical and commercial leaders to quickly implement and scale solutions for production. Product Studio participants will also receive unlimited access to all 1871 products and services, including dozens of workshops, 300+ mentors, and 400+ other tech founders from idea stage companies to series C+. Product Studio participants will also be promoted through Equifax marketing communications.

The Design Sprint Challenge will be judged by Equifax executive leadership and a panel of experts, including: Mike Newell, Senior Director of Software Engineering, Capital One; Jeff Sternberg, Technical Director, Office of the Chief Technology Officer, Google Cloud; and Fang Yu, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer, DataVisor.

The deadline to register for Equifax Accelerate is 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on July 29, 2021. Guidelines for the event can be found at Equifax.com . To register, click here .

ABOUT EQUIFAX INC.

At Equifax (NYSE: EFX), we believe knowledge drives progress. As a global data, analytics, and technology company, we play an essential role in the global economy by helping financial institutions, companies, employers, and government agencies make critical decisions with greater confidence. Our unique blend of differentiated data, analytics, and cloud technology drives insights to power decisions to move people forward. Headquartered in Atlanta and supported by more than 11,000 employees worldwide, Equifax operates or has investments in 24 countries in North America, Central and South America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific region. For more information, visit Equifax.com

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Kate Walker for Equifax USIS

[email protected]

SOURCE Equifax Inc.

Related Links

http://www.equifax.com


LOS ANGELES, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Ervin Cohen & Jessup LLP (ECJ) today announced that Partners and Real Estate Practice Group Chairs Joan B. Velazquez and Albert C. Valencia have been recognized in Commercial Real Estate Magazine as '2021 Commercial Real Estate Visionaries.' This inaugural issue honors noteworthy real estate professionals for their "successes and accomplishments during the last 24 months, as well as their exemplary leadership within their organizations and communities across Southern California," reported the Los Angeles Times B2B magazine.

"Joan and Al are talented lawyers who continually prove their abilities to deliver the Firm's clients with the highest degree of strategy and service, and provide unsurpassed mentorship in developing a multi-generational team that can effectively service all major aspects of commercial real estate transactions," said Co-Managing Partner Randy Leff.

The magazine writes that "Joan Velazquez is a creative problem solver and proven deal maker who never loses sight of her clients' business goals. She understands that her job is to mitigate her client's legal risks while letting them realize the business opportunity in every deal."

"Clients look to Valencia for his experience in a broad range of real estate asset classes including multi-family, office, retail, mixed-use and industrial properties. He regularly represents clients in forming joint-ventures and syndications, negotiating structured finance transactions including obtaining CMBS loans, mezzanine debt and preferred equity, and assisting property owners in asset management," says the feature.

Velazquez represents real estate owners, developers, investors, lenders, contractors and asset managers in connection with a wide range of projects, including the acquisition, financing, development, leasing, management and sale of commercial real estate. The publication adds that "having structured, documented and closed more than one billion dollars of financing transactions over the past years, she guides clients with distressed properties in successfully restructuring existing debt. Additionally, her tax background gives her a competitive advantage when structuring deals so she can increase the net return to her clients. Recently, she represented the borrower of a $350 million construction loan for a multi-phase residential mixed-use project in Los Angeles."

Valencia's clients include developers, operators, private equity investors and lenders in a broad range of real estate transactions, including acquisitions and dispositions, joint ventures and syndications, leasing, financing, construction, workouts and restructurings. He is adept at meeting clients' needs and recently, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, successfully represented a joint venture in its purchase and financing of the 297,277 square foot Summit IV office campus in Aliso Viejo, CA, which is one of the biggest office deals completed in Orange County this year.

Ervin Cohen & Jessup LLP is a full-service firm that provides a broad range of business-related legal services including, real estate, litigation, corporate, tax, land use, employment, bankruptcy, estate planning, finance, healthcare, intellectual property and technology law. For more information, visit our new website http://www.ecjlaw.com/

SOURCE Ervin Cohen & Jessup LLP
NIEL, Belgium, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- eTheRNA immunotherapies NV ('eTheRNA', Niel, Belgium), a clinical-stage company developing mRNA-based immunotherapies for the treatment of cancer and infectious diseases, announces the expansion of its strategic collaboration with Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) with the signing of an exclusive license for TetraMix , a new generation of the TriMix adjuvant technology.

Clinical and preclinical data have demonstrated clinical safety of TriMix, together with its ability to amplify immune responses in multiple disease indications. This new license stems from the collaboration between the VUB and eTheRNA focussed on directed activation of dendritic cells and leverages research performed at the Laboratory for Molecular and Cellular Therapy (LMCT) of the VUB. In the presence of specific antigens, dendritic cells behave as immune response modulators, directing the immune system to attack target cells through the activation of directed CD4+ T-helper and CD8+ cytotoxic T-cell responses.

"We have already demonstrated that TriMix has a benign safety profile and promotes high mRNA expression levels," comments Steven Powell, CEO, eTheRNA. "TetraMix will now be integrated into our programs to engineer new generation mRNA immunotherapies offering even greater efficacy and immunogenicity."

"VUB has been an internationally recognised centre of excellence for RNA research for the last decade with numerous breakthroughs originating from LMCT," comments Professor Dr. Karine Breckpot, Director of LMCT. "TriMix's robustness and versatility as an immune stimulatory platform has been proven in a number of clinical indications and we are delighted to now introduce TetraMix. We are confident that TetraMix's new way of immune activation will certainly set a precedent for future immunotherapies."

Please visit our Strategic Collaborations webpage to find out more about eTheRNA's multiple partnerships: https://www.etherna.be/strategic-collaborations/.

About eTheRNA immunotherapies

eTheRNA immunotherapies NV is developing immunotherapy and vaccine products for the treatment of cancer and infectious disease from its multiple RNA, formulation, and manufacturing technology platforms. The company is headquartered in Belgium and was established in 2013. Its founding shareholders include Progress Pharma and VUB. eTheRNA is supported by an international group of specialist investors; BNP Fortis Private Equity, Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Funds, Everjoy Fortune PTE. LTD, Grand Decade Development Limited, Fund+, LSP, Novalis Lifesciences, Omega Funds, PMV and Ying Zhou Enterprise Management Company Limited who share the Company's ambition to build a world-leading company in the RNA field. To date, the Company has raised 63 million of venture funding. Further details relating to eTheRNA's R&D pipeline can be found at https://www.etherna.be/immunotherapies-rd-pipeline/.

About UB Vice-Rectorate Innovation & Industry Relations

The mission of the Vice-Rectorate Innovation & Industry Relations is to create a positive impact on society through the valorisation of scientific research. Its operational and multidisciplinary team, VUB TechTransfer, aims to connect the university's research expertise with society and industry, together with its partners VUB Foundation and Crosstalks.

https://www.vub.be/en/innovate

About VUB

Vrije Universiteit Brussel is an internationally oriented university in Brussels, the heart of Europe. By providing excellent research and education on a human scale, VUB wants to make an active and committed contribution to a better society.

www.vub.be

About the Laboratory for Molecular and Cellular Therapy

The goal of the research activities at the Laboratory for Molecular and Cellular Therapy (LMCT) is to develop innovative immunotherapy strategies, among which immunotherapy strategies that exploit the immune orchestrating activity of dendritic cells, exemplified by the development of the TriMix and more recently TetraMix technology. Other strategies under development include adoptive T-cell therapy and therapies that support the activity of T-cells, be it stimulated by dendritic cells or adoptively transferred, in the tumor microenvironment. Technologies such as mRNA, lentiviral vectors, and single domain antibodies (better known as nanobodies) are employed for these purposes.

https://lmct.research.vub.be/en/home

SOURCE eTheRNA immunotherapies
PORTLAND, Maine, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Expanded veterinary service capabilities are now available in Portland, Maine. The first-of-its-kind PetMedic Urgent Care Vet Clinic opened its doors in May, located on 191 Marginal Way in the bustling downtown area. A grand opening celebration is scheduled for July 25, 2021.

Clinical Supervisor Angelika Demers, CVT, and Medical Director Amy Hess, DVM

Modeled after human urgent care, PetMedic offers coordinated, convenient and compassionate veterinary care for non-life-threatening conditions after regular business hours and on weekends. PetMedic complements pet owners' trusted family veterinarians and alleviates the case overload at emergency hospitals. The first PetMedic clinic opened in Watertown, Massachusetts, in 2020.

The clinic is staffed by an experienced emergency medicine team and is complete with a modern surgical suite, laboratory, digital X-ray, ultrasound and cutting-edge software that allows for an efficient workflow for team members. PetMedic Portland is a partnership between Dr. Nir Ben-Ari, emergency veterinarian and PetMedic chief medical officer, and Rarebreed Veterinary Partners.

Dr. Ben-Ari commented, "Without an urgent care option, pet owners must make the difficult decision to allow their pets to wait overnight or even days to be treated for an issue that may be uncomfortable or get worse, or go to an emergency hospital, adding to patient overload where the priority must be given to critical conditions."

Dr. Amy Hess, medical director of PetMedic Portland, added, "I am so excited to join the local community of amazing veterinary practitioners in one of the greatest regions in the country. My staff and I have extensive experience in emergency, critical care and general practice, lending to an ability to offer high-quality, convenient and affordable care for your pets' injuries and illnesses in a welcoming and friendly environment."

PetMedic does not perform routine services provided by family veterinary practices, such as wellness visits, or administer vaccinations. Pet owners can make same-day appointments conveniently online. An outstanding healthcare team and a client-centric approach are top priorities for all PetMedic clinics.

Media Contact

Kim Farina, DVM

(530) 848-8507

[email protected]

Related Images

petmedic-portland-maine.jpg

PetMedic Portland Maine

Clinical Supervisor Angelika Demers, CVT, and Medical Director Amy Hess, DVM

SOURCE PetMedic Urgent Care Vet Clinic
Now, researchers at Gladstone Institutes have discovered a master switch for fibrosis in the heart. When the heart is under stress, they found, the gene MEOX1 is turned on in cells called fibroblasts, spurring fibrosis. Their new study, published in the journal Nature , suggests that blocking this gene could prevent fibrosis in the heartand other organs that can similarly fail from stiffening over time.

"With these findings, we may have an entirely new way to stop that slow but steady progression of heart failure that affects 24 million people worldwide," says Deepak Srivastava, MD, president and senior investigator at Gladstone and senior author of the study. "Right now, we don't have any drugs that effectively prevent fibrosis."

Fibroblasts are key to normal organ repair and integrity; they're the most abundant cell in connective tissue and congregate at sites of bodily damage or disease. In many cases, their presence is beneficial. They help launch immune responses, mediate inflammation, and rebuild tissue. But in chronic disease, activated fibroblasts can continuously create scar tissue, impeding normal organ function.

Researchers knew that in mice with heart disease, blocking a class of proteins known as BET proteins slowed fibrosis and improved heart function, although it wasn't clear which cell type in the heart was being affected. They also knew that BET proteins are needed throughout the body for many important functions, including normal immunity.

"To treat a heart failure patient with a BET inhibitor is a sledgehammer approach, because we might prevent fibrosis, but we'd likely also disrupt many other critical cellular functions throughout the body in the process," says Srivastava, who is also a pediatric cardiologist and a professor in the Department of Pediatrics at UC San Francisco (UCSF). "Our hope was that if we could understand the precise mechanism through which BET works in the heart, we could home in on a narrower target with fewer side effects."

Srivastava's group studied mice who developed heart failure, and treated them daily with a BET inhibitor for 1 month. The researchers used single-cell RNA sequencing and single-cell epigenomicswhich can reveal which genes in a cell are accessible and being turned on at any given timeto compare heart cells from mice before, during, and after the treatment, and correlate those results with heart function.

These technologies allowed the researchers to analyze thousands of cells at once, and separate them based on their specific cell type. Thanks to a close collaboration with the laboratory of Katie Pollard, PhD, at Gladstone, they developed new computational methods to learn from the vast amount of data generated by their analysis.

While the scientists didn't find significant changes to heart muscle cells, they observed that the treatment induced striking changes in cardiac fibroblasts, which represent more than half the cells in the human heart.

In particular, the researchers discovered that the gene MEOX1 was highly active in the mice with heart failure and that its levels dramatically dropped when the mice were treated with the BET inhibitor. Moreover, the levels of MEOX1 correlated with activation of the fibroblasts; when the gene was switched on, the fibroblasts were better at making scar tissue. In fact, MEOX1 seemed to be a "master regulator" of fibroblast activation, controlling thousands of other genes that contribute to fibrosis.

"MEOX1 is a gene known to be important in early development, but not much was known about it in adult disease, so our findings were quite surprising," says Michael Alexanian, PhD, a Gladstone postdoctoral scholar and first author of the new study.

The findings point to the precise part of the DNA, regulated by BET, that is responsible for MEOX1 to be turned on in disease states. Using CRISPR genome-editing technology, the scientists showed that deleting this small part of the DNA prevented MEOX1 from being activated, even under stress.

The team went on to show that blocking MEOX1 from being switched on had the same effects as a BET inhibitorit blocks the activation of fibroblasts. The researchers also studied other organs that commonly become fibrotic with disease, and found that cellular stress led to higher levels of MEOX1 in human lung, liver, and kidney fibroblasts.

"Fibrosis is much broader than just the heart; it affects many other organs," says Srivastava. "We hope this discovery provides an avenue to slow down or stop fibrosis in many settings."

More studies are needed to show whether blocking MEOX1 could have therapeutic value in humans. Srivastava and his colleagues are now conducting additional studies to better understand the long-term role of MEOX1 in heart disease and heart failure.

"In a coordinated effort to design novel therapies for heart failure, researchers are looking for molecular clues to use as therapeutic targets," says Bishow Adhikari, PhD, a program officer in the heart failure and arrhythmias branch, located within the Division of Cardiovascular Sciences at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. "These findings are highly informative and bring researchers closer to advancing new therapeutic strategies to better predict and treat heart disease."

About the Study

The paper "A Transcriptional Switch Governs Fibroblast Activation in Heart Disease" was published by the journal Nature on June 23, 2021.

Other authors are: Pawel Przytycki, Arun Padmanabhan, Lin Ye, Barbara Gonzalez Teran, Ana Catarina Silva, Qiming Duan, Sanjeev Ranade, Franco Felix, Clara Yougna Lee, Nandhini Sadagopan, Angelo Pelonero, Yu Huang, Casey Gifford, and Saptarsi Haldar of Gladstone; Rudi Micheletti and Michael Rosenfeld of UC San Diego; Joshua Travers and Timothy McKinsey of University of Colorado; Ricardo Linares-Saldana, Li Li and Rajan Jain of University of Pennsylvania; and Gaia Andreoletti of UCSF.

The work at Gladstone was supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health (P01 HL098707, HL098179, R01 HL127240, P01 HL146366, R01 HL057181, R01 HL015100, C06 RR018928), the San Simeon Fund, the TobaccoRelated Disease Research Program, A.P. Giannini Foundation, Michael Antonov Charitable Foundation Inc., Sarnoff Cardiovascular Research Foundation, the American Heart Association, the Roddenberry Foundation, the L.K. Whittier Foundation, Dario and Irina Sattui, and the Younger Family Fund.

About Gladstone Institutes

To ensure our work does the greatest good, Gladstone Institutes focuses on conditions with profound medical, economic, and social impactunsolved diseases. Gladstone is an independent, nonprofit life science research organization that uses visionary science and technology to overcome disease. It has an academic affiliation with the University of California, San Francisco.

Media Contact: Julie Langelier | Associate Director, Communications | [email protected] | 415.734.5000

1650 Owens Street, San Francisco, CA 94158 | gladstone.org | @GladstoneInst

SOURCE Gladstone Institutes

Related Links

https://gladstone.org


DALLAS, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Leaders at Friendship-West Baptist Church would like to invite the public to a in depth discussion about Critical Race Theory.

Friendship-West Baptist Church to host critical conversation on race featuring Dr. Michael Eric Dyson, Dr. Luke Harris, and Dr. Stacey Floyd-Thomas The panel will be moderated by Dr. Frederick D. Haynes, III, social justice activist and senior pastor of Friendship-West Baptist Church

WHO/WHAT: Friendship-West Baptist Church will host a critical conversation on race theory titled, "The Gospel According to Critical Race Theory." Moderated by Dr. Frederick D. Haynes, III, social justice activist and senior pastor of Friendship-West, the panel will feature some of the most prolific voices of our time, including Dr. Michael Eric Dyson, New York Times bestselling author, professor at Vanderbilt University, New York Times contributing opinion writer, and a contributing editor of The New Republic, and of ESPN's The Undefeated website; Dr. Luke Harris, a leading authority on critical race theory, chairman of the Board of Directors of the African American Policy Forum, associate professor of American Politics and Constitutional Law and co-founder of African American Policy Forum; and Dr. Stacey Floyd-Thomas, associate professor of ethics and society at Vanderbilt University Divinity School, executive director of both the Society of Christian Ethics and the nationally-acclaimed Black Religious Scholars Group and serves as co-founder of the Society for the Study of Race, Ethnicity and Religion.

WHEN: Wednesday, June 23, 2021 at 7 p.m. CDT

WHERE: The event will be hosted live on Friendship-West's Facebook and YouTube pages.

WHY: These esteemed scholars who have studied critical race theory extensively will discuss how policies and practices contribute to racial inequalities and will offer solutions to counter those discriminatory practices and policies.

For more information, please visit https://www.friendshipwest.org. The event is free and open to the public.

INTERVIEW/PHOTO OPPORTUNITIES

Dr. Frederick D. Haynes, III is available for interviews.

is available for interviews. Panelists are available for interviews.

For media interviews or coverage, please contact Kayla Tucker Adams at [email protected] or 214-403-9852.

SOURCE Friendship-West Baptist Church
"We created Far-Right Groups in America in response to the growing number of research centers, university departments and undergraduate courses dedicated to the academic study of far-right and extremist political research," said Seth Cayley, vice president of Gale Primary Sources . "It's a must-have teaching and learning tool for understanding how the resurgence of right-wing populism and the movement of far-right thinking into the mainstream has been able to develop over the course of the 20th and 21st centuries."

California State University (CSU) at Fullerton uses the Political Extremism and Radicalism archive to support research in history and American studies courses. More than 40,000 students have access to the collection through the university's library. Megan Graewingholt, Social Sciences and Government Documents Librarian at CSU Fullerton's Pollak Library, believes that primary sources like those found in Political Extremism and Radicalism are invaluable for teaching and learning. They provide students with unique historical insight from multiple points of views to examine and understand current events and issues:

"Primary sources are snippets of history; they often come without context or are incomplete, but they can help develop critical thinking skills and analytical abilities," said Graewingholt. "They expose students to multiple perspectives on issues, helping them to develop reasoned explanations and interpretations of these events and issues. This collection provides the perfect academic ground to explore the longer history of many present-day political issues."

Far-Right Groups in America covers topics such as fascism, racism, anti-Semitism, homophobia, nationalism, Christian Identity, political misinformation and conspiracy theories. The archive includes essential publications and ephemera that explore the nature of right-wing politics in the U.S., including material that both supports and criticizes the radical right. It examines the varying manifestations of far-right ideologies, looking at their emergence, growth, structure and development, as well as the identities of individual groups, making it an ideal resource for undergraduate teaching.

Far-Right Groups in America brings together five collections from renowned libraries and institutions that include:

University of California, Santa Barbara - Christian Identity and Far-Right Wing Politics : this collection consists of periodicals, pamphlets, programs and other printed ephemera regarding American Christian conservative groups' philosophies, as well as far-right wing politics and election propaganda. It includes both ephemera and periodicals through which researchers can explore the intersection of Christian conservatism and the far right.

: this collection consists of periodicals, pamphlets, programs and other printed ephemera regarding American Christian conservative groups' philosophies, as well as far-right wing politics and election propaganda. It includes both ephemera and periodicals through which researchers can explore the intersection of Christian conservatism and the far right. University of Iowa - Social Documents Collection: contains a large accumulation of materials published by conservative organizations; groups generally considered to be to the right on the political spectrum. Far-right Groups in America includes a number of pamphlets, publications, leaflets, correspondence and ephemera focusing specifically on material related to far-right groups that have been selected from the wider Social Documents Collection. Materials concern a range of right-wing and far-right thinking from Second Amendment gun rights and tax protest to anti-communist, racist, anti-Semitic, Neo-Confederate thinking and much more.

contains a large accumulation of materials published by conservative organizations; groups generally considered to be to the right on the political spectrum. includes a number of pamphlets, publications, leaflets, correspondence and ephemera focusing specifically on material related to far-right groups that have been selected from the wider Social Documents Collection. Materials concern a range of right-wing and far-right thinking from Second Amendment gun rights and tax protest to anti-communist, racist, anti-Semitic, Neo-Confederate thinking and much more. University of California, Davis - Walter Goldwater Radical Pamphlet Collection : was established in 1966 with a collection of pamphlets purchased from Walter Goldwater , a book dealer who specialized in radical politics, and who was also one of the first book dealers to specialize in African American Studies. Through the material in this collection researchers can explore the role that the far-right plays in the U.S., with titles authored by both those in support of and criticizing far-right viewpoints, and which cover topics such as the Ku Klux Klan, communism, politics, racism and fascism.

was established in 1966 with a collection of pamphlets purchased from , a book dealer who specialized in radical politics, and who was also one of the first book dealers to specialize in African American Studies. Through the material in this collection researchers can explore the role that the far-right plays in the U.S., with titles authored by both those in support of and criticizing far-right viewpoints, and which cover topics such as the Ku Klux Klan, communism, politics, racism and fascism. Idaho State University - James Aho Collection: comprised of a variety of materials documenting right-wing extremism in Idaho and the Pacific Northwest. Materials consist of printed matter, recordings, and ephemera with the bulk of the collection consisting of newsletters from various churches and organizations promoting their beliefs. Of particular interest is the collection of recorded sermons and interviews (hosted as audio files and transcripts) that provide an interesting window into the viewpoints and inner workings of far-right groups such as Aryan Nations .

comprised of a variety of materials documenting right-wing extremism in and the Pacific Northwest. Materials consist of printed matter, recordings, and ephemera with the bulk of the collection consisting of newsletters from various churches and organizations promoting their beliefs. Of particular interest is the collection of recorded sermons and interviews (hosted as audio files and transcripts) that provide an interesting window into the viewpoints and inner workings of far-right groups such as . Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Files: files on Joseph McCarthy , Charles Lindbergh, Ezra Pound and the Posse Comitatus document the FBI's surveillance of influential right-wing thinkers and one extremist hate group. These fascinating materials will appeal to anyone interested in 20th century American social history as well as far-right extremism in America.

Political Extremism and Radicalism series is available on the Gale Primary Sources platform, enabling cross-archival searching to help users make new connections across topics. For those looking to explore even deeper insights, the series is also available through the Gale Digital Scholar Lab. This allows researchers to apply natural language processing tools to raw text data (OCR) from the collections or Gale Primary Sources archives and perform textual analysis on large corpora of historical texts. Now researchers can analyze and explore historical text more interactively, generating new research insights and content sets not previously possible.

Gale will showcase the new archive at the American Library Association (ALA) Annual Virtual Conference, June 23-26.

For more information on Far-Right Groups in America, visit the Political Extremism and Radicalism series webpage.

About Cengage and Gale

Cengage, an education technology company serving millions of learners in 165 countries, advances the way students learn through quality, digital experiences. The company currently serves the K-12, higher education, professional, library, English language teaching and workforce training markets worldwide. Gale, a Cengage company, provides libraries with original and curated content, as well as the modern research tools and technology that are crucial in connecting libraries to learning, and learners to libraries. For more than 60 years, Gale has partnered with libraries around the world to empower the discovery of knowledge and insights  where, when and how people need it. Gale has 500 employees globally with its main operations in Farmington Hills, Michigan. For more information, please visit www.gale.com.

Follow Gale on:

Media Contact:

Kayla Siefker, Gale, a Cengage company

248-915-9624

[email protected]

SOURCE Gale, a Cengage company

Related Links

https://www.gale.com


Sigma Pi Phi Grand Sire Archon, Dwayne M. Murray, delivered the program's keynote address and implored the graduates to hold on to the lesson they were taught in L.A.M.P. as those lessons will make a difference in their lives as they go forward. L.A.M.P. 2010 alumnus, Russell Richey II, provided the alumni remarks in which he encouraged the graduates to stay curious and to always believe in themselves. The program also featured Jeremiah Davis, L.A.M.P. Class of 2022, delivering a passionate spoken word piece about the power of "The Black Family."

During the program the Foundation also presented the inaugural Archon Julius Johnson Community Service Award to Diane Anchundia, Associate Dean for Loans and Outreach at the University of Southern California. For many years, Dean Anchundia has conducted a workshop entitled, How to Fund a College Education, and provided expert counsel on the college financial aid process. Archon Johnson was one of the founders, and served as the first President, of the Gamma Zeta Boule Foundation. He was on the Foundation Board of Directors and was a consistent volunteer in the L.A.M.P. Program until his untimely passing in June 2020.

Gamma Zeta Boule Foundation President, Ramsey Jay, Jr. made the following statement, "The eight scholars of the L.A.M.P. Class of 2021 are truly establishing themselves as the best of the best, in terms of scholarship and leadership, and provide yet another example of the fruitful results emanating from communal advocacy. Together, this distinguished cohort, provides credible evidence of the prevailing mission of The Foundation's Social Action campaign: to improve society, with an emphasis on amplifying the possibility set of the next generation, while simultaneously espousing a higher type of manhood, which is the hallmark of Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity."

You can replay this extraordinary Scholarship Ceremony by clicking here. You may learn more about the Gamma Zeta Boule Foundation and the L.A.M.P. Mentor program at www.gzbfoundation.org and to support L.A.M.P. please visit www.gzbfoundation.org/donate. If you have questions or desire more information, please contact Ramsey Jay, Jr., President, [email protected] or Gilbert Holmes, Program Coordinator, [email protected], or [email protected].

SOURCE Gamma Zeta Boule Foundation, Inc.

Related Links

https://gzbfoundation.org


NASHVILLE, Tenn., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Genesco Inc. (NYSE: GCO) ("Genesco" or the "Company") today filed an investor presentation with the Securities and Exchange Commission detailing the Company's proven track record of execution, strong footwear focused strategy, and fit for purpose Board of Directors.

Genesco urges shareholders to protect the value of their investment by voting the BLUE proxy card today "FOR" all nine of the Company's highly qualified directors in connection with Genesco's Annual Meeting of Shareholders scheduled to be held on July 20, 2021. Shareholders of record as of the close of business on June 28, 2021 will be entitled to vote at the meeting. The presentation and additional information can be found at www.GenescoDrivingValue.com/investor-presentation.

Highlights from the presentation include:

Genesco's Compelling Execution, Including During the Pandemic

During the pandemic, Genesco delivered strong performance, including record digital revenues, reduced operating expenses, increased liquidity, and significant sequential quarterly improvement in revenue and profit margins with increased cash flow in FY2021 vs. FY2020.

Genesco's footwear focused strategy delivered strong results pre-pandemic and the Company delivered 11 consecutive quarters of total comparable sales growth between Q2 FY2018 and Q4 FY2020.

Genesco is off to a strong start in FY2022, recently reporting an increase in revenue of 9% and an increase in adjusted operating income of 125% in Q1 FY2022 over the pre-pandemic period of Q1 FY2020 (+71% growth in GAAP OI vs. Q1 FY2020)1.

The Company's Strategy and Thoughtful Allocation of Capital Position Genesco to Continue Creating Greater Value

Genesco's footwear focused strategy has provided a strong platform for growth and capital efficiency, and the Company is on track to deliver adjusted operating margin of 6% or more by FY2025.

This strategy enables Genesco to leverage synergies across its platforms to enhance scale and profitability.

Genesco's business is anchored upon a robust, direct-to-consumer model, which is driven by leading retail brands and a growing digital platform.

The Board and management's prudent capital allocation focuses on reinvestment in the business, returning excess capital to shareholders, and maintaining balance sheet flexibility.

Genesco Has Assembled the Right Board and Management Team for Continued Success

Genesco's Board is fresh, independent, and diverse, and each Director brings highly relevant skills and experiences that are essential to its footwear focused strategy and to delivering long-term, sustainable shareholder value.

The Board decisively oversaw and implemented a strategic transformation to address changes in retail, the increasing importance of digital and resultant need for scale and system efficiencies, and has made deliberate changes to support near- and long-term value creation.

Under Lead Independent Director Matthew Diamond's leadership, the Board appointed Mimi Vaughn as President and CEO in February 2020 and Board Chair in July 2020 to help drive strategy execution and brought in additional key management team members aligned with Genesco's footwear focused strategy.

leadership, the Board appointed as President and CEO in and Board Chair in to help drive strategy execution and brought in additional key management team members aligned with Genesco's footwear focused strategy. Genesco has added five new directors (representing a majority of the Board) since 2019 with specific skillsets required to oversee the footwear focused strategy, and four directors left the Board over that same period, resulting in an average director tenure of less than five years.

The Compensation Committee of the Board executed a thoughtful, performance-aligned executive compensation program designed to directly incentivize shareholder value creation, of which Say-on-Pay advisory vote garnered an average of 95% shareholder support over the past five years.

The Company recently formed an ESG subcommittee under the Nominating and Governance Committee to provide oversight of its environmental, health and safety, diversity, equity and inclusion, corporate social responsibility, and corporate governance and sustainability initiatives.

Genesco Believes Legion's Baseless Campaign and Underqualified Nominees Would Introduce Significant Risk for Shareholders

Genesco has taken every possible action to engage with Legion constructively, but at every turn Legion has refused to collaborate or share any business plans, strategic ideas, or how their nominees support a compelling vision for Genesco's future.

Legion has demonstrated a fundamental lack of understanding of Genesco's business and of the skills and expertise necessary for Genesco's Board.

Legion's nominees are underqualified and lack the principal footwear, public company CEO or CFO, substantial eCommerce, or public board experience to serve on Genesco's Board.

Despite Genesco's majority-refreshed Board, Legion's campaign would result in 100% of the Board's independent directors turning over in less than a nine-month period. Consequently, the Board would have an average board tenure of only four months.

Legion has not demonstrated that it is a long-term shareholder; during its 2018 campaign, Legion began selling its position after only four months and completely exited less than 16 months after settling for board seats.

Genesco strongly urges shareholders to vote the BLUE proxy card FOR ALL the Company's highly qualified and experienced director nominees. Shareholders are reminded that their vote is important, no matter how many or how few shares they own. Voting the WHITE proxy card, even in protest, will revoke any previous proxy submitted using the BLUE proxy card. Only the latest-dated proxy counts.

If shareholders have any questions or need help voting their BLUE proxy card, please contact:

Innisfree

1 (877) 825-8772

(toll-free from the U.S. and Canada)

+1 (412) 232-3651

(from other locations)

About Genesco Inc.

Genesco Inc., a Nashville-based specialty retailer and branded company, sells footwear and accessories in more than 1,455 retail stores throughout the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, principally under the names Journeys, Journeys Kidz, Little Burgundy, Schuh, Schuh Kids, Johnston & Murphy, and on internet websites www.journeys.com, www.journeyskidz.com, www.journeys.ca, www.littleburgundyshoes.com, www.schuh.co.uk, www.johnstonmurphy.com, www.johnstonmurphy.ca, www.nashvilleshoewarehouse.com, and www.dockersshoes.com. In addition, Genesco sells footwear at wholesale under its Johnston & Murphy brand, the licensed Levi's brand, the licensed Dockers brand, the licensed Bass brand, and other brands. For more information on Genesco and its operating divisions, please visit www.genesco.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains forward-looking statements, including those regarding the performance outlook for the Company and all other statements not addressing solely historical facts or present conditions. Forward- looking statements are usually identified by or are associated with such words as "intend," "expect," "believe," "should," "anticipate," "optimistic," "on track" and similar terminology. Actual results could vary materially from the expectations reflected in these statements. A number of factors could cause differences. These include adjustments to projections reflected in forward-looking statements, including those resulting from the effects of COVID-19 on the Company's business, including COVID-19 case spikes in locations in which the Company operates, the roll-out of COVID-19 vaccines and the public's acceptance of the vaccines, additional stores closures due to COVID-19, the timing of the re-opening of our stores, the timing of in-person back-to-work and back-to-school and sales with respect thereto, weakness in store and shopping mall traffic, restrictions on operations imposed by government entities and/or landlords, changes in public safety and health requirements, and limitations on the Company's ability to adequately staff and operate stores. Differences from expectations could also result from stores closures and effects on the business as a result of civil disturbances; the level and timing of promotional activity necessary to maintain inventories at appropriate levels; the imposition of tariffs on product imported by the Company or its vendors as well as the ability and costs to move production of products in response to tariffs; the Company's ability to obtain from suppliers products that are in-demand on a timely basis and effectively manage disruptions in product supply or distribution, including disruptions as a result of COVID-19; unfavorable trends in fuel costs, foreign exchange rates, foreign labor and material costs, and other factors affecting the cost of products; the effects of the British decision to exit the European Union and other sources of market weakness in the U.K. and Republic of Ireland; the effectiveness of the Company's omni-channel initiatives; costs associated with changes in minimum wage and overtime requirements; wage pressure in the U.S. and the U.K.; weakness in the consumer economy and retail industry; competition and fashion trends in the Company's markets; risks related to the potential for terrorist events; risks related to public health and safety events; changes in buying patterns by significant wholesale customers; retained liabilities associated with divestitures of businesses including potential liabilities under leases as the prior tenant or as a guarantor; and changes in the timing of holidays or in the onset of seasonal weather affecting period-to-period sales comparisons. Additional factors that could cause differences from expectations include the ability to renew leases in existing stores and control or lower occupancy costs, and to conduct required remodeling or refurbishment on schedule and at expected expense levels; the Company's ability to realize anticipated cost savings, including rent savings; the Company's ability to achieve expected digital gains and gain market share; deterioration in the performance of individual businesses or of the Company's market value relative to its book value, resulting in impairments of fixed assets, operating lease right of use assets or intangible assets or other adverse financial consequences and the timing and amount of such impairments or other consequences; unexpected changes to the market for the Company's shares or for the retail sector in general; costs and reputational harm as a result of disruptions in the Company's business or information technology systems either by security breaches and incidents or by potential problems associated with the implementation of new or upgraded systems; the Company's ability to realize any anticipated tax benefits; and the cost and outcome of litigation, investigations and environmental matters involving the Company, and the impact of actions initiated by activist shareholders. Additional factors are cited in the "Risk Factors," "Legal Proceedings" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" sections of, and elsewhere in, the Company's SEC filings, copies of which may be obtained from the SEC website, www.sec.gov, or by contacting the investor relations department of Genesco via the Company's website, www.genesco.com. Many of the factors that will determine the outcome of the subject matter of this release are beyond Genesco's ability to control or predict. Genesco undertakes no obligation to release publicly the results of any revisions to these forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. Forward-looking statements reflect the expectations of the Company at the time they are made. The Company disclaims any obligation to update such statements.

Important Additional Information and Where to Find It

Genesco has filed a definitive proxy statement (the "Proxy Statement") and accompanying proxy card in connection with the solicitation of proxies for the 2021 annual meeting of Genesco shareholders (the "Annual Meeting"). INVESTORS AND SHAREHOLDERS ARE STRONGLY ENCOURAGED TO READ THE PROXY STATEMENT AND ACCOMPANYING PROXY CARD AND OTHER DOCUMENTS FILED WITH THE U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE AS THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. Shareholders may obtain the Proxy Statement, any amendments or supplements to the Proxy Statement and other documents filed by Genesco with the SEC for no charge at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov . Copies will also be available at no charge in the Investors section of Genesco's corporate website at www.genesco.com .

Participants in the Solicitation

Genesco, its directors and certain of its executive officers may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from Genesco shareholders in connection with the matters to be considered at the Annual Meeting. Information regarding the names of Genesco's directors and executive officers and certain other individuals and their respective interests in Genesco by security holdings or otherwise is set forth in the Annual Report on Form 10-K of Genesco for the fiscal year ended January 30, 2021, and in the Proxy Statement. To the extent holdings of such participants in Genesco's securities have changed since the amounts described in the Proxy Statement, such changes have been reflected on Initial Statements of Beneficial Ownership on Form 3 or Statements of Change in Ownership on Form 4 filed with the SEC.

1Adjusted operating income excludes fees related to the shareholder activist, retail store asset impairments and expenses related to the new headquarters building, net of tax effect in the first quarter of Fiscal 2022 (the "Excluded Items"). A reconciliation of operating income in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and adjusted operating income is set forth below.

Adjusted Operating Income (Loss) by Segment





May 1, 2021

May 4, 2019



Operating Asset Impair Adj Operating

Operating Asset Impair Adj Operating In Thousands

Income (Loss) & Other Adj Income (Loss)

Income (Loss) & Other Adj Income (Loss) Journeys Group

$ 33,124 $ - $ 33,124

$ 18,976 $ - $ 18,976 Schuh Group

(3,847) - (3,847)

(5,428) - (5,428) Johnston & Murphy Group

(3,180) - (3,180)

5,106 - 5,106 Licensed Brands

2,561 - 2,561

429 - 429 Goodwill Impairment

- - -

- - - Corporate and Other

(13,131) 3,267 (9,864)

(9,999) (731) (10,730) Total Operating Income

$ 15,527 $ 3,267 $ 18,794

$ 9,084 $ (731) $ 8,353 % of sales

2.9%

3.5%

1.8%

1.7%

SOURCE Genesco Inc.

Related Links

http://www.genesco.com


NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- In celebration of Pride Month, The Bob & Renee Parsons Foundation has donated $1.5 million to GLSEN. The three-year grant will be allocated between the Phoenix Chapter ($1 million) and the National Organization ($500,000) and will support the organization's mission to ensure that every member of every school community is valued and respected regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.

"In our personal lives and through The Bob & Renee Parsons Foundation, one of our overarching goals is to be champions of inclusivity," said President and Executive Creative Director of PXG Apparel Renee Parsons. "Every person deserves to feel whole, equal and welcome."

GLSEN research has found that six out of 10 LGBTQ students have felt unsafe at school because of their sexual orientation and nearly eight out of 10 have avoided school functions because they felt unsafe or uncomfortable. The level of harassment these students experience negatively affects their ability to learn due to increased absenteeism and lower educational aspirations. The anti-LGBTQ bias can also have a profound impact on a student's overall health and well-being.

"Many LGBTQ youth face cruel, often unbearable levels of bullying and discrimination," said PXG Founder and CEO Bob Parsons. "GLSEN is working to help all K-12 students feel safe at school and accepted for who they are."

GLSEN has developed four focus areas to help schools cultivate an inclusive, safe and supportive environment for all their students, especially those of marginalized identities.

Activating supportive educators, who are crucial to creating LGBTQ-inclusive classroom environments

Advocating for inclusive & affirming curriculum, which not only offers support to LGBTQ students but raises the awareness of all students

Passing and implementing laws and policies to ensure that LGBTQ students can learn and thrive in safe, inclusive, accepting schools

Supporting student-led clubs because student leaders are integral to creating community and pushing for change

"We are filled with gratitude for this generous grant from The Bob & Renee Parsons Foundation," said Melanie Willingham-Jaggers, GLSEN's Interim Executive Director. "It is because of allies like Bob and Renee Parsons that organizations like GLSEN are able to work towards making the world a safe and celebratory place for LGBTQ+ children and young people. In addition to financial support, it's incredible to have partners who focus their power, reach and influence to lift up our community."

"This transformational gift will enable GLSEN Phoenix to mobilize even more school communities, so that all of our children get to be and become who they ought to be," said GLSEN Phoenix founding co-chair Madelaine Adelman, Ph.D. "Feeling safe at school means having a sense of belonging, being respected, learning about yourself and others -- this is simply the best way to learn."

In addition to celebrating this grant during Pride Month, GLSEN Phoenix is launching a legacy monthly giving program. To learn more and invest in local efforts to create LGBTQ-inclusive K-12 schools, please visit https://www.glsenphoenix.org/. To learn more about the organization on a national level, visit https://www.glsen.org/ and follow @glsen on social.

About GLSEN Phoenix

Founded in October 2002, GLSEN Phoenix is part of a national GLSEN chapter network that works to ensure that each student in every K-12 school is valued and treated with respect, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression. We believe that all students deserve safe and inclusive K-12 schools. LGBTQ students who feel unsafe and unsupported at school are more likely to have been victimized and discriminated against at school, and thus, more likely to have high absenteeism, more likely to have lower GPAs, less likely to participate in school activities, more likely to have lower self esteem and a lower sense of school belonging, less likely to graduate from high school, and less likely to consider going to college. We invest the community's time, talent, and treasure into four evidence-based interrelated areas of activity: supportive teachers, protective policies, inclusive curriculum, and empowered, student-led Gender/Sexuality Alliance (GSA) clubs. To learn more about our local programs, visit: glsenphoenix.org, facebook.com/glsen.phoenix, instagram.com/glsenphoenix, twitter.com/glsen_phoenix

About GLSEN

GLSEN works to create safe and inclusive schools for all. We envision a world in which every child learns to respect and accept all people, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, and/or gender expression. Each year, GLSEN programs and resources reach millions of students and educators in K-12 schools, via action at the national, state, and local level. Over nearly three decades of work, GLSEN has improved conditions for LGBTQ students across the United States and launched an international movement to address LGBTQ issues in education and promote respect for all in schools. Find more information on GLSEN's policy advocacy, student leadership initiatives, school-based programs, research, and professional development for educators at www.glsen.org.

About The Bob & Renee Parsons Foundation

The Bob & Renee Parsons Foundation offers support to nonprofit organizations successfully working to empower, educate, nurture and nourish people during what is often the darkest time of their lives. Founded in 2012 by philanthropists and business leaders Bob and Renee Parsons to provide hope and life-changing assistance to the country's most vulnerable populations, The Bob & Renee Parsons Foundation offers critical funding at critical times to those in need. The Foundation's giving is driven by the core belief that all people  regardless of race, religion, roots, economic status, sexual orientation or gender identity  deserve access to quality healthcare, education and a safe place to call home. Follow @WeDealInHope on social media or visit TBRPF.org, to learn more about partner organizations and the important work being done in the community.

Local Media Contact: GLSEN Phoenix | Madelaine Adelman | [email protected] | 602-920-1025

Contact: Kara Watkins-Chow, [email protected]

SOURCE GLSEN
Table 1: Drill Hole Intersections

Hole ID Area / Vein From To Length1 Au Ag AuEq2 AgEu2



(m) (m) (m) (g/t) (g/t) (g/t) (g/t) LRGF-21-044 Favor 0.0 15.0 15.0 0.41 136.4 2.23 166.9

including 2.5 8.9 6.4 0.80 257.8 4.24 317.8 LRGF-21-045 Favor 46.8 67.4 20.6 0.13 44.5 0.72 53.9

including 48.8 55.1 6.3 0.21 92.5 1.45 108.5

Salomon 105.9 116.5 10.6 0.09 38.0 0.60 45.0 LRGF-21-047 Favor 56.9 63.4 6.5 0.17 80.7 1.25 93.6

Salomon 81.3 145.0 63.7 0.11 47.1 0.74 55.6

Including 82.8 91.9 9.1 0.54 186.3 3.02 226.7

Including 88.4 91.2 2.8 1.45 477.6 7.82 586.3 LRGF-21-048 Favor3 20.3 84.0 61.3 0.56 242.7 3.79 284.6

including 48.8 58.1 9.3 2.06 973.0 15.03 1,127.4

including 54.3 55.3 1.0 4.83 4,708.0 67.61 5,070.5 LRGF-21-049 Favor 162.7 172.1 9.4 0.10 45.1 0.70 52.3

including 167.3 170.1 2.8 0.17 74.9 1.17 87.7 LRGF-21-050 Salomon 29.6 36.4 6.8 0.12 135.6 1.93 144.5

including 31.1 34.6 3.5 0.17 190.0 2.70 202.7 LRGF-21-051 Favor 50.5 55.3 4.8 0.25 87.9 1.42 106.6

and 71.0 85.4 14.4 0.17 49.2 0.83 61.9

including 78.0 81.2 3.2 0.39 117.5 1.95 146.6

and 111.2 146.4 35.2 0.17 42.9 0.74 55.8

1. Not true width 2. AqEq converted using a silver to gold ratio of 75:1 at recoveries of 100% 3. Excludes 2.4m of historically mined void

Three of the four major veins (Salomon, Guitarrillas and Los Chivos) appear to converge into a 100m wide zone at the western end of the El Favor deposit in the vicinity of the Hundido Pit at an elevation of 1300m. The wallrock in between the veins is strongly silicified, altered and mineralized. The merging of these veins continue to provide significant widths of good grade which could be potentially amenable to bulk mining. Currently at El Favor drilling is underway on an eastern extension of the structure where good mineralization has been encountered, such as hole LRGF-21-048.

The Eastern end of the El Orito deposit (as presently defined) is located about 800 metres along strike to the west of the Hundido Pit (see Figure 2). Wide zones of precious and base metal mineralization were cut by drill holes at El Orito at elevations between 600 to 800m. Geological mapping, sampling and Induced Polarization ("IP") surveying programs in the area between El Orito and El Favor are underway.

Table 2: Drill Hole Locations

Hole ID Easting Northing Elevation Azimuth Dip Length LRGF-21-045 585523 2336646 1258 180 -45 247.1 LRGF-21-047 585128 2336505 1294 180 -45 166.2 LRGF-21-048 585855 2336766 1191 180 -45 242.5 LRGF-21-049 585132 2336522 1294 180 -59 305.0 LRGF-21-050 585037 2336470 1265 180 -45 157.1 LRGF-21-051 585852 2336816 1204 180 -55 317.2

VRIFY Slide Deck and 3D Presentation

VRIFY is a platform being used by companies to communicate with investors using 360 virtual tours of remote mining assets, 3D models and interactive presentations. VRIFY can be accessed by website and with the VRIFY iOS and Android apps.

Access the GoGold Company Profile on VRIFY at: https://vrify.com

The VRIFY Slide Deck and 3D Presentation for GoGold can be viewed at: https://vrify.com/explore/decks/9404 and on the Company's website at: www.gogoldresources.com.

Los Ricos District Exploration Projects

The Company's two exploration projects at its Los Ricos property are in Jalisco state, Mexico. The Los Ricos South Project began in March 2019 and an initial resource was announced on July 29, 2020 which indicated a Measured & Indicated Mineral Resource of 63.7 million ounces AgEq grading 199 g/t AgEq contained in 10.0 million tonnes, and an Inferred Resource of 19.9 million ounces AgEq grading 190 g/t AgEq contained in 3.3 million tonnes. An initial PEA on the project was announced on January 20, 2021 indicating an NPV 5% of US$295M.

The Los Ricos North Project was launched in March 2020 and includes drilling at the El Favor, La Trini, Casados and El Orito targets. During 2020, GoGold's exploration team identified over 100 targets on the Los Ricos North properties, demonstrating the significant exploration potential. The Company plans to drill 10 of these targets as part of its 2021 drilling program which is planned to exceed 100,000 metres of drilling and will be one of the largest in Mexico.

Procedure, Quality Assurance / Quality Control and Data Verification

The diamond drill core (HQ size) is geologically logged, photographed and marked for sampling. When the sample lengths are determined, the full core is sawn with a diamond blade core saw with one half of the core being bagged and tagged for assay. The remaining half portion is returned to the core trays for storage and/or for metallurgical test work.

The sealed and tagged sample bags are transported to the ActLabs facility in Zacatecas, Mexico. ActLabs crushes the samples and prepares 200-300 gram pulp samples with ninety percent passing Tyler 150 mesh (106m). The pulps are assayed for gold using a 50-gram charge by fire assay (Code 1A2-50) and over limits greater than 10 grams per tonne are re-assayed using a gravimetric finish (Code 1A3-50). Silver and multi-element analysis is completed using total digestion (Code 1F2 Total Digestion ICP). Over limits greater than 100 grams per tonne silver are re-assayed using a gravimetric finish (Code 8-Ag FA-GRAV Ag).

Quality assurance and quality control ("QA/QC") procedures monitor the chain-of-custody of the samples and includes the systematic insertion and monitoring of appropriate reference materials (certified standards, blanks and duplicates) into the sample strings. The results of the assaying of the QA/QC material included in each batch are tracked to ensure the integrity of the assay data. All results stated in this announcement have passed GoGold's QA/QC protocols.

Mr. David Duncan, P. Geo. is the qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and is responsible for the technical information of this release.

About GoGold Resources

GoGold Resources (TSX: GGD) is a Canadian-based silver and gold producer focused on operating, developing, exploring and acquiring high quality projects in Mexico. The Company operates the Parral Tailings mine in the state of Chihuahua and has the Los Ricos South and Los Ricos North exploration projects in the state of Jalisco. Headquartered in Halifax, NS, GoGold is building a portfolio of low cost, high margin projects. For more information visit gogoldresources.com.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT:

The securities described herein have not been, and will not be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or any state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to, or for the benefit of, U.S. persons (as defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act) except in compliance with the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or pursuant to exemptions therefrom. This release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy of any of GoGold's securities in the United States.

This news release may contain "forward-looking information" as defined in applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements other than statements of historical fact, included in this release, including, without limitation, statements regarding the Los Ricos South and North projects, and future plans and objectives of GoGold, including the intention to undertake further exploration at Los Ricos North, and the prospect of further discoveries there, constitute forward looking information that involve various risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking information is based on a number of factors and assumptions which have been used to develop such information but which may prove to be incorrect, including, but not limited to, assumptions in connection with the continuance of GoGold and its subsidiaries as a going concern, general economic and market conditions, mineral prices, the accuracy of mineral resource estimates, and the performance of the Parral project. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking information.

Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from GoGold's expectations include exploration and development risks associated with GoGold's projects, the failure to establish estimated mineral resources or mineral reserves, volatility of commodity prices, variations of recovery rates, and global economic conditions. For additional information with respect to risk factors applicable to GoGold, reference should be made to GoGold's continuous disclosure materials filed from time to time with securities regulators, including, but not limited to, GoGold's Annual Information Form. The forward-looking information contained in this release is made as of the date of this release.

SOURCE GoGold Resources Inc.

Related Links

http://www.gogoldresources.com/


CHICAGO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The team at Gordon Law Group wishes to express our deepest sympathy to the family and friends of John McAfee.

We can confirm that our client Mr. McAfee was found dead in his Spanish prison cell shortly after the Spanish court approved his extradition to the United States. Rumors of suicide are reported, though they have yet to be confirmed.

"Working closely with John for the past three months, I found him to be a gracious person who was eager to help those around him in any way possible," says Andrew Gordon, the lead attorney for Mr. McAfee's U.S. defense team. "The news of his death came as a horrible surprise considering that John was intent on sharing the truth of his story. John always maintained his innocence and we looked forward to fighting for his justice before the courts."

It is unfortunate that Mr. McAfee will not have his chance to dismiss the false charges against him. Moreover, we deeply mourn the loss of one of the world's most unique and ingenious minds.

Contact Information:

Andrew Gordon, Managing Attorney

Gordon Law Group

[email protected]

SOURCE Gordon Law Group

Related Links

https://gordonlawltd.com/


Located at 464 Cameron M. Alexander Boulevard NW, Herndon Square Senior offers 87 one- and 10 two-bedroom apartments for seniors at 60% of the area median income (AMI). Five units are set aside as ADA-compliant accessible and two units are designated for households with hearing or vision impairments. The modern apartments feature spacious floor plans, fully equipped kitchens with dishwashers, carpeted bedrooms, and in-unit washer and dryer.

Residents have access to robust amenities including, a resident lounge, fitness center, computer center and covered outdoor porch, are also available for residents to enjoy.

"On behalf of Atlanta Housing's Board of Commissioners and staff, I'd like to recognize our partners Pennrose and Hunt Companies for their role in completing the first phase of this historically significant development," said Eugene Jones, Jr., CEO with Atlanta Housing. "Herndon Square will provide much-needed senior housing on Atlanta's West Side, and future phases will provide hundreds of more units of affordable housing for Atlanta residents."

Herndon Square is located on more than 12 acres at Cameron Madison Alexander Boulevard and Northside Drive. In addition to the mixed-income apartments planned in Phases I through 4, Phase 5 includes approximately 681 rental units and 32 for-sale townhomes, with 45 percent of the units projected to be affordable for households earning up to 80% AMI. Qualifying homebuyers earning less than 80% AMI will receive Atlanta Housing's down payment assistance up to $25,000.

"Hunt is proud to be a partner on this much-needed affordable housing community for seniors in the heart of West Atlanta," said Sinclair Cooper, President, Public Infrastructure - Development at Hunt. "This grand opening represents a significant step forward to creating a community that provides solutions that meet the needs of its residents and is the first phase of our overall development plan for Herndon Square."

Atlanta Housing is committed to utilizing minority, female and Section 3 business partners. As part of this commitment, the development team held several information sessions for minority industry associations and organized a pre-bid conference to provide information on bidding to minority subcontractors and vendors. More than 50% of construction costs were allocated to minority and women-owned businesses.

Funding partners for this Project include the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, Atlanta Housing and Invest Atlanta.

SOURCE Hunt Companies, Inc.
RENO, Nev., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Greater Commercial Lending (GCL), a subsidiary of Greater Nevada Credit Union (GNCU), made Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans totaling $737.7 million during 2020 and 2021 to small businesses and nonprofits in all 50 states and six U.S. territories. That represents the largest PPP sum from any U.S. credit union or credit union subsidiary, according to data published by Credit Union Times.

During the two rounds of government-guaranteed PPP lending, GCL provided 9,178 loans, averaging approximately $80,400 each. That effort resulted in the retention of 76,336 jobs across the country. Overall, the PPP initiative, a COVID-19 economic disaster relief program administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), extended over $798 billion in financing to 8.5 million organizations in the U.S. The program stopped accepting applications on June 1, 2021.

"Our core objective at Greater Commercial Lending is to help businesses and organizations in under-served and rural communities and to enhance quality of life. When the pandemic hit, and when PPP began, our team members stayed up all night to gear up as quickly and extensively as possible. We did not want to turn down any legitimate application, so we worked hard to make the process as fluid as possible for applicants from locations far and wide. I am very proud of our team and their utter dedication in implementing the program at GCL," said Jeremy Gilpin, executive vice president of GCL.

"From speaking with our customers and our partner institutions, I know how PPP loans offset so much of the economic suffering resulting from COVID. The funds not only preserved businesses, but they also preserved employees' livelihood and dignity," he added.

GCL is a credit organization that brings together credit unions and community banks from around the U.S. to provide government-guaranteed loans to businesses and initiatives in rural and under-served markets. Beyond PPP, GCL partners with the SBA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which guarantee loans, to arrange credit for entities at favorable terms.

"Throughout the PPP initiative, the partnership between Greater Commercial Lending and its parent company, Greater Nevada Credit Union, demonstrated the true power of passion-driven collaboration. As a result, during a time when business owners were regularly being frustrated by the institutions where they had conducted their financial business for years, GCL was able to assist them in literally helping save their businesses. That passion for doing what is right is what fueled our success in making a meaningful nationwide impact on behalf of thousands of businesses and their employees," said Wally Murray, President and CEO of Greater Nevada Credit Union.

"Credit unions and their affiliated organizations played an important role in the PPP's ability to keep businesses open and people in their jobs during the pandemic. We are grateful that Greater Commercial Lending helped lead the charge and set a standard for advancing the program's mission and accessibility to deserving small businesses and nonprofits," said Joseph Amato, District Director at the Nevada SBA Office.

Cashman Photo, based in the Las Vegas economy that was particularly affected by the pandemic, is the largest privately held photography and multimedia company in the country. It faced severe challenges.

"PPP came at the right time for us because we have over 450 employees and the ability to be able to actually bring them back as things are starting to ramp up made it possible for us to move forward with our business as there was no revenue coming in to actually meet payroll," said Robert Dolan, EVP and CDO of Cashman Photo, on behalf of owner Karen Cashman. "It was easy to navigate and correspondence was quick and efficient. The whole process was relatively easy for us, making it possible to focus on our business rather than spending time focusing on filling out forms."

According to GCL's Gilpin, now that the PPP has ended, GCL is continuing to work with a substantial number of those customers to continue to provide support, guidance and government-guaranteed credit, as appropriate.

About Greater Commercial Lending

Greater Commercial Lending (GCL) is a credit organization that brings together credit unions and community lenders from around the U.S. to provide government-guaranteed loans to businesses and initiatives in rural and under-served markets throughout the U.S. and its territories. It helps finance key infrastructure services, like power, renewable energy, transportation and fiber optic, as well as schools, hospitals, restaurants, agriculture, hotels and manufacturers. GCL partners with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which guarantee loans, to arrange credit at favorable terms.

About Greater Nevada Credit Union

Greater Nevada Credit Union (GNCU) is headquartered in Carson City, Nevada and has been helping Nevadans with their financial needs since 1949. The credit union serves more than 80,000 consumers and small businesses and has over $1.5 billion in assets. GNCU's subsidiaries include Greater Commercial Lending, Greater Nevada Mortgage, and Greater Nevada Insurance. GNCU has been consistently recognized as a Best Financial Institution in many of its service areas, as a top employer by the Reno/Tahoe Best Places to Work Awards and is the USDA Lender of the Year. GNCU is also the title sponsor of Greater Nevada Field in Reno. For more information, call (800) 421-6674 or visit www.gncu.org.

Media contact:

Hannah Johnston

Allison+Partners

[email protected]

+1 (623) 201-5562

SOURCE Greater Commercial Lending
BOSTON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Guaranteed Rate, one of the top 5 retail mortgage lenders in the country, is proud to announce that Boston's Shant Banosian has funded $1 billion in loan volume for the second consecutive yearat record speed.

Shant Banosian | Guaranteed Rate

"What Shant's doing is incredible. Funding this much volume in less than six months shows his amazing dedication and true commitment to everyone around him," said Guaranteed Rate's President and Chief Executive Officer Victor Ciardelli. "Given how big he dreams and how well he and his team leverage our innovative system, it's not surprising he crossed the billion-dollar mark three months faster than he did last year."

Banosian made headlines in 2020 when he funded a total of $1.7 billion, finishing the year as the nation's #1 loan originator for purchase volume according to Scotsman Guide, closing more than 1,400 purchase loans and 3,551 loans in total.

With more than a decade of mortgage industry experience, 40-year-old Banosian has earned an impressive total career volume of over $5 billion in funded loans, ranking as one of the top 5 loan originators in the U.S. by Scotsman Guide for six years running, including two consecutive years at #1. He has been Guaranteed Rate's top loan officer and the top producer in Massachusetts consistently since 2013.

"My team and our partners are on track to serve more borrowers this year than ever before," said Banosian. "Reaching this goal yet again, and at record speed, would not have been possible without the hard work and dedication of my team. In this fast-paced market, Guaranteed Rate's leadership and technology continuously sets us up for success."

A Massachusetts native, Banosian graduated from Bentley University, where he met his wife, Kara. They currently live in Belmont, Mass., with their three daughters. Banosian credits his success to his amazing team, adding that, "Surrounding yourself with the right people and working together to accomplish big goals is a lot of fun."

Along with his family and team, Banosian actively participates in numerous charitable events throughout his community, consistently fundraising for the Greater Boston Food Bank and running one of the top 5 fundraising teams in the country for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Banosian is also actively involved in the Guaranteed Rate Foundation, a 501(c) 3 organization that has granted more than $5 million directly to individuals and families in need.

About Guaranteed Rate Companies

The Guaranteed Rate Companies includes Guaranteed Rate, Inc., one of the top 5 retail mortgage lenders in the United States, Guaranteed Rate Affinity, LLC, and Proper Rate, LLC. Headquartered in Chicago, Guaranteed Rate Companies combined funded over $73 billion in 2020 and have more than 10,000 employees in over 850 offices across the United States. Founded in 2000 and located in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., Guaranteed Rate has helped homeowners nationwide with home purchase loans and refinances. The company has established itself as an industry leader by introducing innovative technology, offering low rates and delivering unparalleled customer service. In 2017, the company launched Guaranteed Rate Affinity, LLC, a mortgage origination joint venture between Guaranteed Rate, Inc. and Realogy Holdings Corp. (NYSE: RLGY), a global leader in residential real estate franchising and brokerage. In 2020, the company launched Proper Rate, LLC, a mortgage origination joint venture between Guaranteed Rate, Inc. and @properties, one of the nation's largest residential brokerage firms. Collectively, the Guaranteed Rate Companies have earned numerous honors and awards including: Forbes Advisor's Top 10 Mortgage Lenders for 2021; Best Mortgage Lender for Online Loans and Best Mortgage Lender for Refinancing by NerdWallet for 2021; 2018 Top Lender for Online Service by U.S. News & World Report; HousingWire's 2020 Tech100 award for the company's industry-leading FlashClose SM technology; No. 3 ranking in Scotsman Guide's 2021 list of Top Retail Mortgage Lenders; Chicago Agent Magazine's Lender of the Year for five consecutive years; and Chicago Tribune's Top Workplaces list for seven consecutive years. Visit rate.com for more information.

Contact: Jennifer Zeidler

VP of Public Relations

(847) 414-0828



SOURCE Guaranteed Rate

Related Links

rate.com


MINNEAPOLIS, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Halunen Law recently filed a lawsuit in Olmsted County on behalf of plaintiff Yelena Ryabchuk against Mayo Clinic Hospital-Rochester (Mayo). In her lawsuit, Ryabchuk, a former Housekeeper at Mayo Clinic, alleges that Mayo terminated her for reporting being sexually assaulted by her supervisor while at work. The lawsuit alleges that in October 2020, Ms. Ryabchuk was raped by Assistant Supervisor Tapiwa Nyamayaro at Mayo's St. Mary's hospital campus. Soon after, according to the lawsuit, she reported the rape to the Rochester Police Department and to her managers at Mayo.

The lawsuit alleges that rather than supporting Ryabchuk when she reported the rape, the supervisors, all of whom were male, interrogated her, raised their voices, accused her of lying, and placed her on leave. Mayo then terminated her employment, claiming she had made a false report of rape. According to the lawsuit, Mr. Nyamayaro was neither disciplined nor terminated for the rape.

"The allegations, in this case, are deeply disturbing," said Ms. Ryabchuk's attorney, Emma Denny of Halunen Law. "The Minnesota Human Rights Act prohibits employers from retaliating against employees for reporting sexual assault. Under the law, employers do not get to serve as judge and jury when an employee reports a rape and fire her because they decide they don't believe her. Employees would never come forward with reports of sexual assault at work if they thought they were putting their job in jeopardy by doing so."

Denny added, "It is shocking that in the #MeToo era, a company of Mayo's size and stature would be subject to these kinds of allegations. Our client has bravely brought this lawsuit not only to get justice for herself but to hopefully deter companies from engaging in the type of behavior she has alleged. We look forward to holding Mayo accountable and getting our client the justice that is due."

About Halunen Law: With offices in Minneapolis, Chicago, and Phoenix, Halunen Law offers experienced legal representation to employees, whistleblowers, and those who have been wrongfully injured. Halunen Law has achieved a reputation as a fearless, tenacious, and successful plaintiffs' law firm, with a laser focus on achieving justice for its clients. For more information visit halunenlaw.com .

Contact Info:

Carol Schuler

[email protected]

612-281-7030

Emma Denny

[email protected]

612-605-4098

SOURCE Halunen Law
AUSTIN, Texas, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Harte Hanks, Inc. (OTCQX: HRTH), an industry leader in Marketing Services and Execution, Customer Care, Fulfillment and Logistics Services, today announced that its Board of Directors has promoted Chief Operating Officer Brian Linscott to the position of CEO, succeeding Andrew Benett, effective immediately.

Mr. Benett is stepping down from his role as Chief Executive Officer to pursue other opportunities after positioning Harte Hanks for ongoing success. Mr. Linscott and Mr. Benett have agreed to work together to ensure a smooth transition at the Company.

Jack Griffin, Chairman of the Board of Harte Hanks, stated, "Mr. Benett and Mr. Linscott have worked closely together over the past 18 months and this transition ensures continuity of seasoned leadership at Harte Hanks. Brian's success at Harte Hanks and his two plus decades of experience in operations, growth strategies, acquisitions, and finance, as well as leading teams in the development of new client opportunities positions Brian perfectly to lead Harte Hanks as our new CEO in our next phase of profitable growth."

Mr. Linscott added, "We have worked to structure Harte Hanks for growth and profitability as our clients get back to business. I am honored to lead Harte Hanks' outstanding team at this exciting time as we enter the next phases of this post-pandemic world."

Brian has an accomplished track record for improving financial and operational results. Before joining Harte Hanks in late 2019, his prior positions include CFO of Sun Times Media, LLC, a media company that included the Chicago Sun-Times, Managing Director of Huron Consulting Group, and a Partner at BR Advisors, where he led operational improvements, developed new partnerships and drove topline growth for media clients and other companies.

Mr. Griffin continued, "I want to thank Andrew for his hard work and dedication in leading the Company through the challenges of restructuring our organization during the COVID-19 pandemic as well as maintaining the confidence and loyalty of our clients."

"I am proud of the progress we have achieved at Harte Hanks, and it has been a pleasure building and leading such a strong team," said Andrew Benett. "Brian is an accomplished corporate executive, and I am confident that he has the skills to lead execution at Harte Hanks going forward."

About Harte Hanks

Harte Hanks is a global marketing services firm specializing in customer lifecycle management. Harte Hanks effectively connects our clients with their customers in powerful ways. We are experts in defining, executing and optimizing the customer journey by offering end-to-end BPO marketing services including lead generation, data analytics, and multi-channel customer engagement solutions (digital, social, and mobile), as well as contact center, fulfillment and logistics services. From visionary thinking to tactical execution, Harte Hanks delivers smarter customer interactions for some of the world's leading brands. Harte Hanks has approximately 2,500 employees located in North America, Asia-Pacific and Europe.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements:

Our press release and related earnings conference call contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of U.S. federal securities laws. All such statements are qualified by this cautionary note, provided pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Statements other than historical facts are forward-looking and may be identified by words such as "may," "will," "expects," "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "estimates," "seeks," "could," "intends," or words of similar meaning. These forward-looking statements are based on current information, expectations and estimates and involve risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors that are difficult to predict and that could cause actual results to vary materially from what is expressed in or indicated by the forward-looking statements. In that event, our business, financial condition, results of operations or liquidity could be materially adversely affected and investors in our securities could lose part or all of their investments. These risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors include: (a) local, national and international economic and business conditions, including (i) the outbreak of diseases, such as the COVID-19 coronavirus, which has curtailed travel to and from certain countries and geographic regions, disrupted business operations resulting from travel restrictions and reduced consumer spending, and uncertainty regarding the duration of the virus' impact, (ii) market conditions that may adversely impact marketing expenditures and (iii) the impact of economic environments and competitive pressures on the financial condition, marketing expenditures and activities of our clients and prospects; (b) the demand for our products and services by clients and prospective clients, including (i) the willingness of existing clients to maintain or increase their spending on products and services that are or remain profitable for us, and (ii) our ability to predict changes in client needs and preferences; (c) economic and other business factors that impact the industry verticals we serve, including competition and consolidation of current and prospective clients, vendors and partners in these verticals; (d) our ability to manage and timely adjust our facilities, capacity, workforce and cost structure to effectively serve our clients; (e) our ability to improve our processes and to provide new products and services in a timely and cost-effective manner though development, license, partnership or acquisition; (f) our ability to protect our facilities against security breaches and other interruptions and to protect sensitive personal information of our clients and their customers; (g) our ability to respond to increasing concern, regulation and legal action over consumer privacy issues, including changing requirements for collection, processing and use of information; (h) the impact of privacy and other regulations, including restrictions on unsolicited marketing communications and other consumer protection laws; (i) fluctuations in fuel prices, paper prices, postal rates and postal delivery schedules; (j) the number of shares, if any, that we may repurchase in connection with our repurchase program; (k) unanticipated developments regarding litigation or other contingent liabilities; (l) our ability to complete anticipated divestitures and reorganizations, including cost-saving initiatives; (m) our ability to realize the expected tax refunds; and (n) other factors discussed from time to time in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including under "Item 1A. Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020 which was filed on March 24, 2021. The forward-looking statements in this press release are made only as of the date hereof, and we undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statement, even if new information becomes available or other events occur in the future.

Contact: For more information, visit Harte Hanks at www.hartehanks.com, call 800-456-9748, or email us at [email protected] and/ or [email protected].

SOURCE Harte Hanks
WALTHAM, Mass., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Employees want to maintain the option to work remotely post-pandemic and will not tolerate being compensated less for remote work, according to new survey data from Salary.com. The Remote Work & Compensation Pulse Survey of both employees and employers, conducted in May 2021, found 48% percent of employees want to be fully remote and 44% want a hybrid work model. The hybrid work model has support among 51% of employers surveyed, though there is a big divide when it comes to fully remote work, with only 5% of employers saying that will be an option. Another red flag: 92% of employers have no formal practice in place for determining pay for partially remote employees; 72% have no formal practice in place for determining pay for fully remote employees.

When asked if they would hire a fully remote employee in a different geographic market at the same rate as an on-site employee, 34% of employers said No.

Compensation Adjustments for Remote Employees

While generally there has been speculation that employers would decrease pay for fully remote employees going forward, the Salary.com data shows otherwise. An overwhelming majority (95%) of employers said they would not lower compensation for employees who continue, or transition to, working remotely. This is a critical point, given that 83% of employees said they would leave their job if compensated less for working remotely. A vast majority of employees (94%) believe they should be compensated based on their skill set, not their location.

The same strategy applies to partially remote employees, with 97% of employers indicating they will not lower an employee's compensation if they continue, or transition to, working partially remote. For those that would adjust compensation, 21% would adjust salary with employee contribution, geographic location, and concerns about culture as contributing factors.

"Remote work translates into a more fluid, and potentially volatile, market for how employees move from company to company," said David Cross, Senior Compensation Consultant for Salary.com. "This double-edged sword not only means that there's a broader selection of talent from which to hire, but that there is also an increased retention risk to the current workforce. Employers recognize that rewards need to not only reflect and attract these skills into the business, but to retain those skills of their existing employees."

Compensation Strategy Shifts for New Hires Working Remote

The compensation strategy appears to shift for new hires. When asked if they would hire a fully remote employee in a different geographic market at the same rate as an on-site employee, 34% of employers said No.

For their pay decisions they would take into account:

Geographic differentials (58%)

External competitiveness (67%)

Cost of living (43%)

"One-quarter of employers indicated they will take different considerations into account when determining fully remote pay for new hires, which could create a subtle class divide between new hires and existing employees," said Cross. "This move could have significant consequences on employee culture and retention."

Return to Work Timetable of Employers

51% planning to bring employees back to the workplace in Q2

Most prevalent in organizations with less than 500 employees

37% planning to make the shift in Q3

Most prevalent with organizations with 5,000+ employees

Remaining organizations are planning to make the shift in Q4

Predominantly organizations with 1,000+ employees

Survey Methodology

Both the Employer and Employee surveys were conducted in May of 2021 by Salary.com. There were 743 employer responses from organizations across the US: 32% of respondents were HR professionals; compensation professionals accounted for an additional 17%; 64% of respondents were from organizations with 500 employees or less. A total of 549 individuals from across the US responded to the Employee survey: 36% of respondents identified as Individual Contributors; Middle Manager/Director accounted for an additional 26%. 54% of respondents were from organizations with 500 employees or less.

ABOUT SALARY.COM

Salary.com is the leading SaaS provider of compensation market data, software, and analytics, bringing more of the trusted data and intuitive software organizations need to get pay right. The industry's fastest-growing compensation management company, Salary.com serves over 30,000 survey participant organizations, over 8,000 business-to-business software subscribers, and over 45 million employees globally. For more than 20 years, Salary.com has empowered confident decisions by aligning compensation practices with recruiting, performance, and development initiatives through easy-to-access data and meaningful insights.

The market-leading CompAnalyst SaaS platform accelerates compensation workflows, delivers real-time data, and powers accurate, equitable, and competitive compensation. Through its Salary Wizard and pioneering website, Salary.com delivers continually updated, reliable market pay data and career content to over 30 million visitors each year. For more information, please visit the company website at www.salary.com.

Media Contact:

Julie Murphy

[email protected]

617-967-5426

SOURCE Salary.com, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.salary.com


DOVER, Del., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Inteliquet announced today Presbyterian Healthcare Services of Albuquerque, New Mexico will join Inteliquet's Cancer Center Research Consortium as a leader in personalized, comprehensive oncological care in New Mexico and champion of leading-edge clinical research.

"We select members of the Cancer Center Research Consortium based on their ability to deliver personalized care, and their ability to transfer that approach to more effective research," said Dr. Tandy Tipps, Senior Vice President, Healthcare Organizations at Inteliquet. "Presbyterian has earned a reputation for investing in teams and a process that in turn take the time to understand and serve patients as individuals. Our experience has been that leads to better research, and that access to clinical trials can be provided to patients on the most appropriate basis."

All consortium members are able to leverage the integration technology in OncWeb at their centers. The AI technology provided securely and quickly identifies eligible patients for the right trials. It more accurately recognizes what is important about individuals within patient populations, and better informs care decisions for specific patients, as well as determine the suitability of different trials.

"The experts at Presbyterian Cancer Care are dedicated to delivering compassionate, individualized care for our patients," said Norbert Topf M.D., chief quality/medical officer, Presbyterian Healthcare Services. "Joining the Consortium allows our team of oncology and research nurses and technologists, surgical oncologists, and radiation oncologists to work together with a larger community of centers and scale our personalized approach to incorporating the latest research, treatment and clinical trial options to create the best treatment plan for each patient."

OncWeb provides cancer centers the ability to scale and enhance their existing patient-first focus, regardless of size, type and therapeutic focus, while improving clinical trial enrollment and reducing recruitment frustrations and administrative burden. It provides physicians the tools to more accurately understands patient populations, promote well-informed patient care decisions, as well as determining a site's suitability when considering a specific trial.

Deidentified Consortium data allows physicians at each center to conduct patient treatment comparisons with hundreds of their peers. Centers are able to deploy digitally transcribed protocol criteria, up-to-date clinical trial patient matching and querying, cohort identification and analysis, optimized clinical trial feasibility, and truth in treatment analytics.

A user-curated Watch List ensures awareness of patients who may soon become eligible for a clinical trial. Personalized care is further augmented by Real-world Evidence, nightly data refreshers, patient comparison, and a longitudinal view of a patient's journey via de-identified protected health information.

About Presbyterian Healthcare Services

Presbyterian Healthcare Services exists to improve the health of patients, members and the communities we serve. Presbyterian is a locally owned, not-for-profit healthcare system of nine hospitals, a statewide health plan and a growing multi-specialty medical group. Founded in New Mexico in 1908, it is the state's largest private employer with more than 13,000 employees.

For more information visit phs.org.

About Inteliquet

Inteliquet is a leading oncology solutions provider of technology, insights and expertise for clinical research, patient treatment, and translational medicine strategies. Our proprietary platform securely, accurately, and quickly aggregates and analyzes healthcare data, helping to ensure clinical trials are designed more effectively, patients are matched to trials more rapidly, and patient-care decisions are made using real-world evidence. Our team is passionate about ensuring every patient  regardless of race, geography, age, sex, economic status, or stage of disease  has access to promising therapies as soon as they become available to help improve the care they receive.

For more information about Inteliquet and the OncWeb software platform, please visit www.inteliquet.com , and follow Inteliquet on LinkedIn and Twitter .

Media Contact: Chris Gale, [email protected]

SOURCE Inteliquet

Related Links

https://inteliquet.com/


CHICAGO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- JLL (NYSE: JLL) released its Global Sustainability Report 2020 today, emphasizing the firm's commitment to achieving long-term value to stakeholders by focusing its sustainability efforts on delivering resilient buildings, healthy spaces and inclusive places.

In 2020, JLL set a science-based target to reduce emissions by 2034 and also committed to net zero emissions from its own buildings by 2030. These commitments are milestones to enable the firm to achieve net zero by 2040 across all areas of its operations, including the client sites it manages. The report details JLL's strategy for meeting these goals.

"Our sustainability report shows great progress on our journey to net zero," said Christian Ulbrich, JLL CEO. "As a core strategic priority, we are embedding and growing sustainability products and services across all our business lines, consistent with JLL's purpose of shaping the future of real estate for a better world."

"2021 is all about the road to net zero and we have focused our efforts on achieving this. But our sustainability program is not exclusively about carbon," added Richard Batten, JLL's Global Chief Sustainability Officer. "As our 2020 report demonstrates, we have made significant progress against our targets and set new ambitious targets, in part responding to the impact of the pandemic, across all of the ESG metrics."

2020 performance highlights include:

295 sustainable building certifications for clients

20,629 metric tons CO2e averted by advising on renewable energy projects

35% of the global workforce are women

One of the World's Most Ethical Companies by the Ethisphere Institute, 14th successive year

79 JLL offices with sustainable building certifications

23.7% reduction in scope 1 and 2 emissions across JLL's own real estate and fleet, compared with 2018 baseline

77% reduction in emissions from business travel, compared to 2019

All-time low for employee accident rates, a 44% Lost Time Injury Rate reduction from 2018

$7.7 million and 7,959 days of employee time contributed to community causes

Looking to the future, JLL is committing to a new set of ambitious targets. One goal includes increasing employee time in the community to 23,500 days by the end of 2023, to mitigate against a reduction in community volunteering time last year due to the pandemic.

Diversity and inclusion emerged as the top priority for JLL internal and external stakeholders

Due to the pandemic, JLL accelerated the timeline of its materiality review to December 2020 from late 2021. Findings showed that the social aspect of ESG, specifically diversity and inclusion, was identified as the most important issue for JLL. Other top priorities included: ethics and compliance, corporate culture and reputation, innovation and technology, energy and climate, employee engagement and satisfaction, and adaptation and resilience.

Financial risks of climate change scenarios on real assets better understood

In 2019, JLL adopted the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) recommendations to understand climate risks impacting the organization. The 2020 report provides a qualitative assessment focused on direct physical climate risk to eight of JLL's leased headquarter offices. In the next phase, JLL will continue to stress test the building and market resilience of its own operations, evaluate the implications for clients and also expand its scope to review the wider impacts on society, markets and the firm's people.

UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) further guide and refine JLL's sustainability strategy

JLL established four new approaches in 2020:

to assess and drive SDG-influenced opportunities in JLL's value chain

to expand waste and circularity impacts in JLL's real estate

to review focus areas among JLL's employees and improve data collection to measure progress

through a new goal, to align 75% of community activities to JLL's priority SDGs (by the end of 2022)

Find out more by downloading the JLL 2020 Global Sustainability Summary (8 pages) and/or the full JLL 2020 Global Sustainability Report at jll.com/sustainability.

About JLL

JLL (NYSE: JLL) is a leading professional services firm that specializes in real estate and investment management. JLL shapes the future of real estate for a better world by using the most advanced technology to create rewarding opportunities, amazing spaces and sustainable real estate solutions for our clients, our people and our communities. JLL is a Fortune 500 company with annual revenue of $16.6 billion in 2020, operations in over 80 countries and a global workforce of more than 91,000 as of March 31, 2021. JLL is the brand name, and a registered trademark, of Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated. For further information, visit jll.com.

Connect with us

https://www.linkedin.com/company/jll

https://www.facebook.com/jll

https://twitter.com/jll

https://www.instagram.com/jll

Contact: Gayle Kantro

Phone: +1 312 228 2795

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE JLL-IR
Cataracts are the leading cause of preventable blindness worldwide, impacting more than 100 million eyes, with more than 90% of people developing cataracts by the age of 65.7,8 Most people will develop cataracts at some point in their life, and modern cataract surgery is a safe and effective treatment that has a success rate of nearly 98%.9 However, in the U.S., 22% of people with cataracts say that their lack of knowledge of the procedure is a barrier to them seeking treatment,10 with many not realizing that there are intraocular lenses (IOL) available that may give them freedom from glasses. Today's 55  64-year-olds are also using digital devices at much higher rates, and there's been a rapid increase in adoption of LED lighting, requiring an IOL that delivers high-quality vision, at all distances, in all lighting conditions.

"My cataract patients are getting younger, have more active lifestyles, and want to be able to see their smartphones in the day and their menus at dinner," said Dr. Vance Thompson, Vance Thompson Vision in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.*** "They have high expectations for their vision following cataract surgery, and the patients I've implanted with TECNIS Synergy IOL have not been let down. This new lens has provided the wide range of continuous^^ vision patients are looking for, with great image contrast throughout the day, even in low lighting conditions." ^^^^11

"I've been using the TECNIS Synergy IOL for the past year and have been extremely impressed with the wide range of continuous^^ vision it provides," said Dr. Sheldon Herzig, Herzig Eye Institute in Toronto and Ottawa.*** "This lens has provided the best near^^^ 4 vision for my patients, and most of my patients have said they have not used their glasses following surgery.6 I implanted my first TECNIS Synergy Toric II last week, which also corrects my patients' astigmatism to improve both distance and near vision."

The TECNIS Synergy IOL is built on the legacy TECNIS platform and delivers excellent performance, image contrast, and patient outcomes:

Widest ^ range of continuous ^^ vision among leading PC-IOLs  93% of patients achieved 20/25 or better binocular distance-corrected visual acuity. ^^^^ 1,2,3,4,5 , [12]

 93% of patients achieved 20/25 or better binocular distance-corrected visual acuity. Best near ^^^ 4 vision  patients gained an additional line of visual acuity at near distances versus a leading PC-IOL. ^^^^ 4

 patients gained an additional line of visual acuity at near distances versus a leading PC-IOL. Superior image contrast ^^^^  achieved two times better image contrast in low lighting conditions compared to IOLs of comparable range.  11,12

 achieved two times better image contrast in low lighting conditions compared to IOLs of comparable range. High satisfaction with nighttime activities  97% of patients were able see steps or curbs, 96% were able to see a menu in a dimly lit restaurant, and 90% were able to see objects and read street signs. ^^^

 97% of patients were able see steps or curbs, 96% were able to see a menu in a dimly lit restaurant, and 90% were able to see objects and read street signs. Reduced need for glasses  9 out of 10 patients studied didn't wear glasses after surgery.6

"Around the world, the excitement for TECNIS Synergy PC-IOLs has been incredible and we're proud of the excellent outcomes this innovation has delivered for patients," said Sandor Palfi, Commercial Vice President of the Americas, Surgical at Johnson & Johnson Vision.**** "We are delighted to bring the most advanced TECNIS IOL to North America with TECNIS Synergy. Surgeons across the U.S. and Canada now have access to an IOL that will meet the needs of today's cataract patients, who don't want their life or their vision to be limited by their IOL." 6,11 ^^^

The TECNIS Synergy PC-IOL was first launched in Europe and Asia Pacific in 2019 and is now available in Latin America, Canada, and the United States. Ophthalmologists in North America can learn more about the TECNIS Synergy PC-IOL portfolio at the Annual Canadian Ophthalmological Society virtual meeting later this week, and at the American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgeons Annual Meeting in Las Vegas in July.

In addition to bringing the full TECNIS Synergy PC-IOL portfolio to the market in North America this month, Johnson & Johnson Vision is providing education to patients and caregivers about the symptoms of cataracts and the treatments options. In honor of Cataract Awareness Month, Johnson & Johnson is sharing cataract patient stories and information from ophthalmologist through various media, digital, and social media channels. For more information, patients and their caregivers are encouraged to visit beyondcataracts.com and follow Johnson & Johnson Vision on @JNJVision on Twitter, Johnson & Johnson Vision on LinkedIn, and @JNJVision on Facebook.

^vs Acrysof IQ PanOptix IOL, TECNIS Symfony IOL, TECNIS Multifocal IOL (United States), vs. Acrysof IQ PanOptix IOL, AT Lisa Trifocal IOL and FineVision IOL (Canada). Based on comparison of DFU defocus curves and a head to head clinical study vs. Acrysof IQ PanOptix IOL.

^^Continuous 20/32 or better

^^^Based on interim 6-months post-operative data

^^^^vs. Acrysof IQ PanOptix IOL

 Compared to IOLs of comparable range, i.e. trifocal IOLs (Acrysof IQ PanOptix, FineVision IOL, AT Lisa Trifocal IOL)





About The TECNIS Family of IOLs

At Johnson & Johnson Vision, quality begins with the platform. The TECNIS platform uses a proprietary combination of materials and design to deliver more for patients  more clarity with lower reflectance/lower dispersion vs competitor platform,13,14,15 the lowest level of chromatic aberration available on the market16, and almost complete elimination of spherical aberration17. The TECNIS portfolio also delivers more image contrast - day and night - than the leading competitor platform14,18  and more stability to stand the test of time.19,20,21  Finally, TECNIS delivers more choice for surgeons and patients - offering the broadest portfolio of IOLs, with solutions for every vision need, across a variety of different visual conditions and lifestyles.22

About Johnson & Johnson Vision

At Johnson & Johnson Vision, part of Johnson & Johnson Medical Devices Companies**, we have a bold ambition: to change the trajectory of eye health worldwide. Through our operating companies, we deliver innovation that enables eye care professionals to create better outcomes for patients throughout their lives, with products and technologies that address unmet needs including refractive error, cataracts, and dry eye. In communities with greatest need, we work in collaboration to expand access to quality eye care, and we are committed to helping people see better, connect better, live better. Visit us at jjvision.com, follow @JNJVision on Twitter, Johnson & Johnson Vision on LinkedIn, and @JNJVision on Facebook.

About Johnson & Johnson Medical Devices Companies

At Johnson & Johnson Medical Devices Companies, we are helping people live their best lives. Building on more than a century of expertise, we tackle pressing healthcare challenges, and take bold steps that lead to new standards of care while improving people's healthcare experiences. In surgery, orthopaedics, vision, and interventional solutions, we are helping to save lives and paving the way to a healthier future for everyone, everywhere.

Cautions Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding TECNIS Synergy and TECNIS Synergy Toric II IOLs. The reader is cautioned not to rely on these forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations of future events. If underlying assumptions prove inaccurate or known or unknown risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results could vary materially from the expectations and projections of Johnson & Johnson Vision and/or Johnson & Johnson. Risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: uncertainty of regulatory approvals; uncertainty of commercial success; challenges to patents; competition, including technological advances, new products and patents attained by competitors; manufacturing difficulties and delays; product efficacy or safety concerns resulting in product recalls or regulatory action; changes to applicable laws and regulations, including global health care reforms; changes in behavior and spending patterns of purchasers of health care products and services; and trends toward health care cost containment. A further list and descriptions of these risks, uncertainties and other factors can be found in Johnson & Johnson's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 3, 2021, including in the sections captioned "Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" and "Item 1A. Risk Factors," and in the company's most recently filed Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, and the company's subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Copies of these filings are available online at www.sec.gov, www.jnj.com or on request from Johnson & Johnson. Neither Johnson & Johnson Vision nor Johnson & Johnson undertakes to update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information or future events or developments.

Competitor platforms included are Hoya, Alcon & B&L Acrylic

Against IOLs that use Hoya, Alcon Acrylic, and B&L Silicone

Against Acrysof IOL & Clareon IOL

Against Acrysof IOL

INDICATIONS and IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION FOR TECNIS Synergy IOL with TECNIS Simplicity Delivery System, Model DFR00V and TECNIS Synergy Toric II IOL with TECNIS Simplicity Delivery System, Models DFW150, DFW225, DFW300, DFW375, in the United States

INDICATIONS

The TECNIS Simplicity Delivery System is used to fold and assist in inserting the TECNIS Synergy IOL which is indicated for primary implantation for the visual correction of aphakia in adult patients, with less than 1 diopter of pre-existing corneal astigmatism, in whom a cataractous lens has been removed. The TECNIS Simplicity Delivery System is used to fold and assist in inserting the TECNIS Synergy Toric II IOLs that are indicated for primary implantation for the visual correction of aphakia and for reduction of refractive astigmatism in adult patients with greater than or equal to 1 diopter of preoperative corneal astigmatism, in whom a cataractous lens has been removed. Compared to an aspheric monofocal lens, the TECNIS Synergy IOLs mitigate the effects of presbyopia by providing improved visual acuity at intermediate and near distances to reduce eyeglass wear, while maintaining comparable distance visual acuity. The lens is intended for capsular bag placement only.



WARNINGS

Intraocular lenses may exacerbate an existing condition, may interfere with diagnosis or treatment of a condition or may pose an unreasonable risk to the eyesight of patients. Patients should have well-defined visual needs and be informed of possible visual effects (such as a perception of halo, starburst or glare around lights), which may be expected in nighttime or poor visibility conditions. Patients may perceive these visual effects as bothersome, which, on rare occasions, may be significant enough for the patient to request removal of the IOL. The physician should carefully weigh the potential risks and benefits for each patient. Patients with a predicted postoperative residual astigmatism greater than 1.0 diopter, with or without a toric lens, may not fully benefit in terms of reducing spectacle wear. Rotation of the TECNIS Synergy Toric II IOL from its intended axis can reduce its astigmatic correction. Misalignment greater than 30 may increase postoperative refractive cylinder. If necessary, lens repositioning should occur as early as possible, prior to lens encapsulation. The lens and delivery system should be discarded if the lens has been folded within the cartridge for more than 10 minutes. Not doing so may result in the lens being stuck in the cartridge. Do not attempt to disassemble, modify, or alter the delivery system or any of its components, as this can significantly affect the function and/or structural integrity of the design.

PRECAUTIONS

Interpret results with caution when using autorefractors or wavefront aberrometers that utilize infrared light, or when performing a duochrome test. Confirmation of refraction with maximum plus manifest refraction technique is strongly recommended. The ability to perform some eye treatments (e.g., retinal photocoagulation) may be affected by the IOL optical design. The surgeon should target emmetropia, as this lens is designed for optimum visual performance when emmetropia is achieved. The TECNIS Synergy IOLs should not be placed in the ciliary sulcus. Carefully remove all viscoelastic and do not over-inflate the capsular bag at the end of the case. Residual viscoelastic and/or over-inflation of the capsular bag may allow the lens to rotate, causing misalignment of the TECNIS Synergy Toric II IOL. All preoperative surgical parameters are important when choosing a TECNIS Synergy Toric II IOL for implantation, including preoperative keratometric cylinder (magnitude and axis), incision location, the surgeon's estimated surgically induced astigmatism (SIA) and biometry. Variability in any of the preoperative measurements can influence patient outcomes and the effectiveness of treating eyes with lower amounts of preoperative corneal astigmatism. The effectiveness of TECNIS Synergy Toric II IOLs in reducing postoperative residual astigmatism in patients with preoperative corneal astigmatism < 1.0 diopter has not been demonstrated. Patients with a predicted postoperative astigmatism greater than 1.0 D may not be suitable candidates for implantation with the TECNIS Synergy and TECNIS Synergy Toric II IOLs, as they may not obtain the benefits of reduced spectacle wear or improved intermediate and near vision seen in patients with lower predicted postoperative astigmatism.

ATTENTION: Reference the Directions for Use for a complete listing of Indications and Important Safety Information.

INDICATIONS and IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION FOR TECNIS SYNERGY TORIC II OPTIBLUE IOL WITH TECNIS SIMPLICITY DELIVERY SYSTEM, MODELs DFW100, DFW150, DFW225, DFW300 AND DFW375

INDICATIONS FOR USE: The TECNIS Simplicity Delivery System is used to fold and assist in inserting the TECNIS Synergy Toric II OptiBlue IOLs which are indicated for primary implantation for the visual correction of aphakia and pre-existing corneal astigmatism in adult patients with or without presbyopia, in whom a cataractous lens has been removed. The lens mitigates the effects of presbyopia by providing vision far through near, a reduction of residual refractive cylinder and reduced spectacle dependence across a range of distances.

PRECAUTIONS: Recent contact lens usage may affect the patient's refraction; therefore, in contact lens wearers, surgeons should establish corneal stability without contact lenses prior to determining IOL power. Prior to implanting, examine the lens package for proper lens model, dioptric power, and expiration date. The surgeon should target emmetropia, as this lens is designed for optimum visual performance when emmetropia is achieved. Care should be taken to achieve centration of the intraocular lens. When the insertion system is used improperly, the haptics of the IOL may become broken. Please refer to the specific instructions for use provided with the insertion instrument or system. Safety and effectiveness in patients 21 years or younger have not been established in clinical studies. The intraocular pressure of implanted patients with glaucoma should be carefully monitored for postoperative changes.

WARNINGS: Physicians considering lens implantation under any of the following circumstances should weigh the potential risk/benefit ratio. The lens should be placed entirely in the capsular bag. Do not place the lens in the ciliary sulcus. Well-informed patients with well-defined visual needs and preferences should be selected for lens model ZFW implantation. The patients should be informed of the possibility of visual effects (such as halo or glare) in nighttime or poor visibility conditions. Patients with a predicted postoperative astigmatism greater than 1.0 diopter may not be suitable candidates for lens model ZFW implantation since they may not fully benefit in terms of potential spectacle independence. Patients may perceive these visual effects as an annoyance or hindrance, which, on rare occasions, may be significant enough for the patient to request removal of the IOL. The lens model ZFW may affect image quality and lead to some reduction of contrast sensitivity compared to a monofocal lens. Therefore, patients should exercise caution when driving at night or in poor visibility conditions.

Rotation of toric lens model ZFW from its intended axis can reduce its astigmatic correction. Misalignment greater than 30 may increase postoperative refractive cylinder. If necessary, lens repositioning should occur as early as possible prior to lens encapsulation. Carefully remove all viscoelastic from the capsular bag. Residual viscoelastic may allow the lens to rotate, causing misalignment of the toric lens model ZFW with the intended axis of placement.

ADVERSE EVENTS: Potential adverse events during or following cataract surgery with implantation of the IOL may include but are not limited to: Endophthalmitis/intraocular infection, IOL dislocation, Persistent cystoid macular edema, Persistent corneal stromal edema, Persistent raised intraocular pressure (IOP) requiring treatment, Secondary surgical intervention (including implant repositioning, removal, AC tap, or other surgical procedure). Adverse events can lead to permanent visual impairment and may require secondary surgical intervention, including intraocular lens exchange or explantation.

ATTENTION: Reference the Directions for Use for a complete listing of Indications and Important Safety Information.

INDICATIONS and IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION FOR TECNIS SYNERGY OPTIBLUE WITH TECNIS SIMPLICITY DELIVERY SYSTEM, MODEL DFR00V, IN CANADA

INDICATIONS FOR USE: The TECNIS Simplicity Delivery System is used to fold and assist in inserting the TECNIS Synergy OptiBlue IOL which is indicated for primary implantation for the visual correction of aphakia in adult patients with or without presbyopia, in whom a cataractous lens has been removed. The lens mitigates the effects of presbyopia by providing vision far through near and reduced spectacle dependence across a range of distances. The lens is intended to be placed in the capsular bag.

PRECAUTIONS: Recent contact lens usage may affect the patient's refraction; therefore, in contact lens wearers, surgeons should establish corneal stability without contact lenses prior to determining IOL power. Prior to implanting, examine the lens package for proper lens model, dioptric power, and expiration date. The surgeon should target emmetropia, as this lens is designed for optimum visual performance when emmetropia is achieved. Care should be taken to achieve centration of the intraocular lens. When the insertion system is used improperly, the haptics of the IOL may become broken. Please refer to the specific instructions for use provided with the insertion instrument or system. Safety and effectiveness in patients 21 years or younger have not been established in clinical studies. The intraocular pressure of implanted patients with glaucoma should be carefully monitored for postoperative changes.

WARNINGS: Physicians considering lens implantation under any of the following circumstances should weigh the potential risk/benefit ratio. The lens model ZFR00V should be placed entirely in the capsular bag. Do not place the lens in the ciliary sulcus. Well-informed patients with well-defined visual needs and preferences should be selected for lens model ZFR00V implantation. The patients should be informed of the possibility of visual effects (such as halo or glare) in nighttime or poor visibility conditions. Patients may perceive these visual effects as an annoyance or hindrance, which, on rare occasions, may be significant enough for the patient to request removal of the IOL. Patients with a predicted postoperative astigmatism greater than 1.0 diopter may not be suitable candidates for lens model ZFR00V implantation since they may not fully benefit in terms of potential spectacle independence. The lens model ZFR00V may affect image quality and lead to some reduction of contrast sensitivity compared to a monofocal lens. Therefore, patients should exercise caution when driving at night or in poor visibility conditions.

ADVERSE EVENTS: Potential adverse events during or following cataract surgery with implantation of the IOL may include but are not limited to: Endophthalmitis/intraocular infection, IOL dislocation, Persistent cystoid macular edema, Persistent corneal stromal edema, Persistent raised intraocular pressure (IOP) requiring treatment, Secondary surgical intervention (including implant repositioning, removal, AC tap, or other surgical procedure). Adverse events can lead to permanent visual impairment and may require secondary surgical intervention, including intraocular lens exchange or explantation.

ATTENTION: Reference the Directions for Use for a complete listing of Indications and Important Safety Information.

*Johnson & Johnson Vision represents the products and services of Johnson & Johnson Surgical Vision, Inc., Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc., and the affiliates of both.

**The Johnson & Johnson Medical Devices Companies comprise the surgery, orthopaedics, vision, and interventional solutions businesses within Johnson & Johnson's Medical Devices segment.

***Dr. Vance Thompson and Dr. Sheldon Herzig are paid consultants to Johnson & Johnson Vision.

****Sandor Palfi is an employee of Johnson & Johnson Vision, Inc., serving as Commercial Vice President of the Americas, with oversight for Surgical Vision in the U.S., Latin America and Canada regions.

 Johnson & Johnson Vision, 2021. All rights reserved.

1 DOF2019OTH4005  Perez G. Simulated VA of the TECNIS SynergyTM IOL and AT Lisa Tri IOL. 5 May 2019. 2 DOF2019OTH4006  Perez G. Simulated VA of the TECNIS SynergyTM IOL and FineVision IOL. 5 May 2019 3 TECNIS Multifocal 1-Piece IOL ZKB00 and ZLB00 DFU  US  Doc. #Z311328. Rev. A, 04/2018. REF2019CT4049; TECNIS Multifocal 1-Piece IOL ZKB00 and ZLB00 DFU - CAN  Doc. #Z7311006. Rev. A, 04/2015. REF 2018 CT4348. 4 DOF2020CT4014 - Forte 1: A Comparative Clinical Evaluation of a New TECNIS Presbyopia Correcting Intraocular Lens Against a PanOptix Intraocular Lens- Defocus Curves and Visual Acuity Results 5 TECNIS Symfony Extended Range of Vision IOL DFU - US -Doc. #Z311215. Rev. 01, 12/2017 REF2020MLT4051, TECNIS SYMFONY EXTENDED RANGE OF VISION IOL AND TECNIS SYMFONY TORIC EXTENDED RANGE OF VISION IOL IOL DFU  CAN  Doc. #Z311359. Rev. D, 11/2017 6 DOF2020CT4015- ("Forte 1"): A Comparative Clinical Evaluation of a New TECNIS Presbyopia Correcting Intraocular Lens Against a PanOptix Intraocular Lens-SPECTACLE WEAR AND SATISFACTION RESULTS 7 World Health Organization. Blindness and Impairment. https://www.who.int/en/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/blindness-and-visual-impairment 8 Kellogg Eye Center. Cataract. www.umkelloggeye.org/conditions-treatments/cataract. 9 Vision Health Initiative, Common Eye Disorders. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/visionhealth/basics/ced/index.html 10 The survey was conducted online in August 2020 by TRUE Global Intelligencethe in-house research practice of FleishmanHillardamong more than 6,000 adults 18 years of age or older across the United States, Japan, China, Germany, Russia, and the United Kingdom. 11 DOF2019OTH4002  Weeber H. MTF of the TECNIS Synergy OptiBlue, and other lens models. 27 Mar 2020 12 DOF2019OTH4003  Clinical Investigation of the TECNIS Next-Generation IOL Model ZFR00 (TECNIS Synergy IOL): 6-Month POC Data. 23 Apr 2019. 13 Zhao H, Mainster MA. Br J Ophthalmol. 2007; 91:12251229. 14 Negishi K et al. Arch Ophthalmol 2001;119:1154-1158. 15 Krader CG.EUROTIMES 2011/2012;16/17: 18. 16 Data on File, DOF2018CT4007, Johnson & Johnson Surgical Vision, Inc. 2018 17 Piers P, Manzanera S, Prieto P, Gorceix N, Artal P. Use of adaptive optics to determine the optimal ocular spherical aberration. J Cataract Refract Surg. 2007 Oct;33(10):1721-62. 18 Data on File, DOF2018OTH 4004 Johnson & Johnson Surgical Vision, Inc. 2018. (Modular transfer function (MTF) is a measure of the amount of contrast transferred by the optics in a visual system. The higher the MTF value, the more contrast transferred to the image, resulting in higher image contrast.) 19 Nagata M, Matsushima H, Mukai K, Terauchi W, Senoo T, Wada H, Yoshida S. Clinical evaluation of the transparency of hydrophobic acrylic intraocular lens optics. J Cataract Refract Surg. 2010 Dec;36(12):2056-60. 20 Van der Mooren M, Franssen L, Piers P. Effects of glistenings in intraocular lenses. Biomed Opt Express. 21 Auffarth GU, et al. Analysis of optical purity and optical quality of a new extended range of vision IOL. Poster presented at: The 20th ESCRS Winter Meeting; February2016, Athens, Greece. 22 Freeman W. Market Scope - 2017 IOL report: a global market analysis for 2016 to 2022. P. 79, 137, 174. REF2018MLT4002

Media Contact:

Erin Wolf-Valich

Johnson & Johnson Vision

[email protected]

718.730.2192



Investor Contact:

Sarah Wood

[email protected]

732.524.2617

SOURCE Johnson & Johnson Vision
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Kadenwood, a leading plant-based wellness company dedicated to fostering consumer trust and transparency in CBD, announced the acquisition of UK-based CBD wellness brand Healist Advanced Naturals. The partnership expands Kadenwood's premium portfolio of plant-based wellness products focused on all-natural, benefit-driven CBD solutions. The acquisition will allow both companies to scale quickly providing new retail and e-commerce distribution channels to bring high-quality CBD to consumers globally.

Kadenwood has quickly grown to become the largest U.S. supplier of vertically-integrated CBD, setting the industry standard of quality with its proprietary formulas. The company has furthered its mission of normalizing CBD through strategic partnerships and acquisitions, positioning itself as a trusted partner for brands across categories. Healist is one of the newest brands in-market who quickly gained notoriety for its benefit formulations focused on holistic everyday wellness and sustainability practices.

The two companies share a like-minded mission to support each consumer's individual needs with trusted, plant-based wellness products and are backed by leading executives with veteran careers in the CPG space.

Global beauty and wellness company Present Life has sold its pioneering brand Healist to leading US CBD lifestyle company Kadenwood , in order to further democratise access to Healist's innovative and nurturing products. In a simultaneous move Present Life owner The Craftory is investing in Kadenwood thereby creating a new partnership intended to disrupt the industry status quo.

"We're excited to welcome Healist into our portfolio as we look to expand our premium plant-based wellness offerings to consumers globally," said Erick Dickens, Co-Founder and CEO of Kadenwood. "Kadenwood and Healist share important brand values and we believe they complement our current portfolio bringing a new perspective on wellness that is focused on everyday benefit formulations. It's imperative that we lead the way for providing transparent, safe and reliable products to consumers and Healist will help us expand that mission."

"Kadenwood's expertise, full vertical integration and ability to support brands with national advertising is unmatched," said Camillo Pane, Executive Chairman at Present Life. "The exemplary team brings veteran knowledge in the CPG space and provides Healist the support to grow at scale across all channels and markets. We're thrilled to be partnering with them to bring better access and premium products to the global market."

"Healist has deep, strong foundations in consumer insights, and understands Sleep, Calm and Relief like no other CBD brand. We will continue our partnership with this bold CPG challenger brand by investing in Kadenwood, as we view them as the perfect home for Healist," explains Elio Leoni Sceti, Co-Founder & Chief Crafter at The Craftory.

Healist is an innovative wellness brand with benefit-led formulations designed to restore the body's innate capacity to heal and defend against the challenges of modern life. The brand product line is focused on four key benefit areas: calm, relief, sleep and well-being. The brands' pioneering formulations blend efficacious active natural ingredients with U.S grown organic, broad-spectrum hemp extract. Committed to quality and transparency, all Healist products are clean and natural, triple lab-tested, vegan, cruelty-free, non-GMO, and contain 0.00% THC. All Healist products are packaged with sustainable materials including ocean waste plastic, with plans to have 100% of its plastic be Ocean Waste Certified (OWP) by the end of 2021.

For more information on Kadenwood and its products please visit www.kadenwoodbrands.com.

To find out more about The Craftory and Present Life, please contact: [email protected] or visit TheCraftory.io

For more information on Healist please visit https://healistnaturals.com/

About CBD

CBD is a non-intoxicating cannabinoid found in cannabis. After tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), cannabidiol (CBD) is the second most abundant cannabinoid in the plant and is believed to have many potential therapeutic benefits.

About Kadenwood

Founded in 2019, Kadenwood is a privately held consumer products lifestyle company relentlessly focused on shaping CBD into a trusted and safe mainstream wellness category. To drive this mission, Kadenwood is backed by decades of CPG marketing and category innovation expertise and industry-leading, vertically integrated CBD farming to ensure quality CBD oil from seed-to-shelf that contains 0% THC. In 2019, Kadenwood launched its first plant-based branded products under LEVEL SELECT in personal care. And in late 2020, Kadenwood launched the Purity Preferred Pet business, as well as Purity Organic hot teas, to add to its portfolio of CBD brands.

About Present Life

Present Life is a global beauty & wellness company that creates and acquires clean, benefit-led brands with no compromise on performance or the planet. All Present Life brands are plant-based, planet-friendly and with proven efficacy, spanning different price points and retail settings.

About Healist

Founded in 2020 by Present Life Limited, Healist is led by a diverse team of executives with category-leading expertise in marketing and innovation in the wellness and beauty industry with a mission to bring transparency and credibility to a newly forming category. Already distributed nationally in the US, UK and Brazil, Healist was crafted as a benefit-led brand designed to help defend wellness. All Healist products are clean and natural, triple lab-tested, vegan, cruelty-free, non-GMO and contain 0.00% THC.

About The Craftory

Based in London and San Francisco, The Craftory is a $375M global investment house focused exclusively on amplifying the world's boldest consumer brands. We offer permanent, early stage and growth capital to cause-driven CPG brands that positively impact the categories they serve, society, and the planet. The Craftory is a proud B-Corp.

CONTACT:

[email protected]

SOURCE Kadenwood

Related Links

https://www.kadenwoodbrands.com


BOSTON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Dunkin' continues to go bold on cold this season, brewing a batch of new iced beverages perfect for every summer adventure and escape. The brand today introduced its new sun-sational selection of summer sips, launching Sunrise Batch Iced Coffee, Smoked Vanilla Cold Brew with Sweet Cold Foam, and Smoked Vanilla Iced Latte at participating Dunkin' restaurants nationwide. For even more exciting and innovative choices, new ElectroBrew and Kombucha drinks are now on the menu at Dunkin' restaurants in select markets as well.

Building on the success of Dunkin's recently introduced Sunrise Batch Hot Coffee, new Sunrise Batch Iced Coffee is a medium roast featuring notes of cocoa and toasted nuts. The latest offering in Dunkin's new Limited Batch series, this bright and smooth, full-bodied coffee features beans sourced from the highly regarded coffee regions of Kenya and Latin America. To help every guest kick off the day with a perfect sunrise, Dunkin' is serving medium-sized iced and hot Sunrise Batch Coffee for the special price of $2, beginning June 23 and continuing through July 20.

Smoked Vanilla Cold Brew with Sweet Cold Foam makes for a delicious part of any summer scene, featuring Dunkin's ultra-smooth, full-bodied Cold Brew with new Smoked Vanilla flavored syrup, topped with Sweet Cold Foam and hot chocolate powder. The smoky notes of Smoked Vanilla pair well with the chocolate notes in Dunkin's signature Cold Brew, while the Sweet Cold Foam adds marshmallow flavor to create a subtle, s'mores-like taste reminiscent of summer nights by a campfire.

For an espresso to go with any summer adventure, Dunkin's Smoked Vanilla Iced Latte blends the brand's rich, smooth espresso with Smoked Vanilla syrup. The bittersweet chocolate and dark caramel notes in Dunkin's signature espresso complement the Smoked Vanilla for subtle sweetness that, when finished with guests' dairy or dairy alternative of choice, create the ultimate summer sip.

Dunkin' Delivers More Drink Innovation for Select Cities

For an innovative and new feel-good boost to your day, ElectroBrew is charging onto Dunkin's line of Cold Brew beverages at select Dunkin' locations in Springfield, MA, Miami/Ft. Lauderdale, FL, and West Palm Beach, FL. ElectroBrew is made by infusing ultra-smooth Cold Brew with refreshing coconut water for a subtly sweet taste and burst of electrolytes, with no added sugar for the fuel needed to take on the day.

Dunkin' continues to democratize delicious by testing Kombucha for the first time. This flavorful, fermented tea is a premium beverage that feels as good as it tastes. Made with prebiotics to help support gut health*, Dunkin' Kombucha is available in two varieties, Fuji Apple Berry flavor and Blueberry Lemon flavor, for a new way to refresh and reinvigorate on-the-go any time during a long summer day. Kombucha is available for a limited time at select Dunkin' restaurants in the Albany, NY and Charlotte, NC markets.

To learn more about Dunkin', visit http://www.dunkindonuts.com or subscribe to the Dunkin' blog to receive notifications at https://news.dunkindonuts.com/blog.

*A good source of fiber

About Dunkin'

Founded in 1950, Dunkin' is America's favorite all-day, everyday stop for coffee and baked goods. Dunkin' is a market leader in the hot regular/decaf/flavored coffee, iced regular/decaf/flavored coffee, donut, bagel and muffin categories. Dunkin' has earned a No. 1 ranking for customer loyalty in the coffee category by Brand Keys for 15 years running. The company has more than 12,600 restaurants in 40 countries worldwide. Dunkin' is part of the Inspire Brands family of restaurants. For more information, visit www.DunkinDonuts.com.

Media Contact:

Caroline Medeiros

[email protected]

SOURCE Dunkin'

Related Links

http://www.dunkindonuts.com


NEW YORK and TORONTO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Kernls, a New York-based online giving platform that matches motivated donors with researchers that need funding, announced today it has forged a partnership with The Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation (The PMCF), the fundraising arm for University Health Network's Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, one of the world's top-five cancer centers, to empower those who have been touched by cancer to drive progress towards a cure.

The Kernls platform showcases various in-flight medical research projects from world-renowned institutions, and invites donors to support the projects and teams by donating directly to the project, or by 'championing' a project and soliciting donations from their own network.

Specifically, The PMCF will leverage Kernls as a new way to reach a broader and younger donor base for promising cancer research such as a study on the potential of slowing tumor growth in pancreatic cancer by cutting off cell communications, led by Dr. Armand Keating within the Cell Therapy Translational Research Laboratory at University Health Network. This project has already raised more than half of its $60,000 fundraising goal through the platform.

According to Meaghan Stovel McKnight, Chief Operating Officer of The PMCF, the Kernls partnership is part of a larger strategy to diversify fundraising sources beyond its traditional geographic and demographic boundaries: "Eighty-five percent of donations to The Princess Margaret research projects through the Kernls platform are coming from outside of Canada, with donors increasingly skewing younger. We are excited to further this reach and increase engagement with Millennials and GenX professionals."

The Princess Margaret is one of a growing number of esteemed university research institutions who have started working with Kernls in the past year, including the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York.

Kernls Founder Driven by Personal Tragedy and Search for Cure

Kernls founder and CEO Mike Haughton, who lost both his parents to cancer, was inspired to create the company by his own personal frustration trying to fund research that might help others avoid his family's tragic outcome.

"After losing both my mom and dad to cancer, I looked for ways to make a personal connection with researchers who were working to develop cures and treatments and found a pretty big gap," explained Haughton. "It can be challenging to easily identify and directly fund specific, current research projects -- and maintain meaningful communications about progress being made. I created Kernls as a solution for both donors and researchers that uses technology to bring greater efficiency and transparency to the process."

About Kernls

Kernls is a giving platform that matches motivated donors -- often people who have firsthand experience with an illness -- with researchers that need funding. Based in New York City and aligned with world class institutions such as Toronto's University Health Network, University of Southern California, Cornell University and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Kernls provides the only way to allow donors to connect directly with medical researchers to see and share the impact of their work. Kernls pairs researchers with motivated donors, which it calls "Champions," who drive awareness and giving by sharing the projects with their network and/or matching donations. Find out more at www.kernls.com .

About The Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation

The Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation is Canada's largest cancer charity dedicated to raising funds for Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Canada's preeminent cancer centre and top 5 in the world, known for its game-changing scientific achievements and exceptional patient treatment and care. Through philanthropy, events, our world-leading home lottery program and commercialization initiatives, we make possible the critical funding required to accelerate cancer research, education and clinical care -- benefitting patients at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and beyond. Join us in bringing real hope to Canadians and patients worldwide living with cancer. Invest in ending cancer today at thepmcf.ca/donate .

About University Health Network

University Health Network consists of Toronto General and Toronto Western Hospitals, the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, and The Michener Institute of Education at UHN. The scope of research and complexity of cases at University Health Network has made it a national and international source for discovery, education and patient care. It has the largest hospital-based research program in Canada, with major research in cardiology, transplantation, neurosciences, oncology, surgical innovation, infectious diseases, genomic medicine and rehabilitation medicine. University Health Network is a research hospital affiliated with the University of Toronto. www.uhn.ca

Media Contact:

Aimee Grove

[email protected]

(415) 706-1906

SOURCE Kernls

Related Links

http://www.kernls.com


WICHITA, Kan., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- OnPoint Digital Solutions, a subsidiary of Koch Engineered Solutions LLC (KES), announced today a collaboration with Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS), an Amazon.com company and Koch's preferred cloud provider, to co-develop an intelligent process optimization platform (IPOP). The platform  designed to enable OnPoint's solutions  will utilize cloud and edge digital infrastructure to provide advanced machine learning and industrial computing capabilities for OnPoint's connected ecosystem, enabling industrial operators and their preferred partners to integrate and act upon the best available knowledge anywhere, anytime, at scale.

Manufacturers worldwide are modifying operations to address the Industry 4.0 revolution and the associated infrastructure necessary to integrate smart technologies. This unique collaboration between OnPoint and AWS will leverage and complement AWS's generally available infrastructure services, IoT, advanced analytics and machine learning. Together, the co-developed technology will help connect industrial companies with the solutions they need to optimize their operations in a variety of industrial verticals from oil and gas to food and beverage, electronics, smart grid, paper manufacturing, steel production and more.

"The Fourth Industrial Revolution is upon us, and in the same way that we are teaming up with AWS to co-develop this software platform, we believe the platform will enrich our partnerships with KES customers through the digital application of our world-class capabilities," said Dave Dotson, President of KES. "This collaboration with AWS seeks to transform the way KES partners with industrial operations, removing barriers and leveraging technology that connects operators directly with subject matter expertise to get more value from their data and make better, more efficient decisions in real-time. We're working with a sense of greater purpose toward improved connected solutions across industries that will create value for our customers and society."

As a part of Koch Industries, OnPoint has access to decades of process industry experience in engineering, manufacturing, and operations through companies such as Flint Hills Resources, Koch Ag & Energy Solutions, Georgia-Pacific, Molex, Guardian, and INVISTA. OnPoint is now delivering connected solutions using the strong expertise that resides in Koch Engineered Solutions brands such as John Zink Hamworthy Combustion, Koch-Glitsch, Koch Heat Transfer, Sentient Energy, and Koch Separation Solutions. Available today, Ember, "your digital combustion assistant," is the first solution in the OnPoint IPOP platform, enabling operators to leverage KES's domain expertise to advance their industrial processes in the refining and petrochemical markets. Ember delivers real-time insights that enable facilities to optimize their combustion processes leading to a safer and more efficient operation. Improving visibility and providing intelligent recommendations in real time enables simultaneous improvements of emissions, safety, throughput, reliability, and efficiency.

The IPOP solution will also provide "state of the asset" information to equipment manufacturers to enable them to be proactive in both decisions and customer support. Leveraging first principle physics models combined with machine learning technology, solutions built on IPOP will be designed to provide better insights and recommendations to plant operator customers, to proactively optimize industrial processes and provide predictive maintenance, quality, and yield analyses.

"From engineering to manufacturing, Koch brings invaluable knowledge and full lifecycle capabilities in asset design, implementation, operations, and maintenance," said Sarah Cooper, GM of Outcome Driven Engineering at AWS. "At the heart of our industrial processing customers' operations are the physics-based first principle models that largely haven't changed for the past two decades. The IPOP collaboration with KES brings new emerging digital services to help accelerate process innovation and improve resource efficiency and product quality."

To get started with Ember today or to learn more about this co-development and our products, please contact us at [email protected] or visit the OnPoint website at OnPointSolutions.com.

About Koch Industries, Inc.

Based in Wichita, Kansas, Koch Industries, Inc. is one of the largest private companies in America, with estimated annual revenues as high as $115 billion, according to Forbes. It owns a diverse group of companies involved in refining, chemicals, and biofuels; forest and consumer products; fertilizers; polymers and fibers; process and pollution control systems; electronics, software and data analytics; minerals; glass; automotive components; ranching; commodity trading; and investments. Since 2003, Koch companies have invested nearly $133 billion in growth and improvements. With a presence in more than 70 countries, Koch companies employ 122,000 people worldwide, with about 62,000 of those in the United States. From January 2009 to present, Koch companies have earned more than 1,300 awards for safety, environmental excellence, community stewardship, innovation, and customer service. For more news and information, visit www.KOCHind.com.

About Koch Engineered Solutions

Koch Engineered Solutions provides uniquely engineered solutions in mass and heat transfer, combustion and emissions controls, filtration, separation, materials applications, automation and actuation. KES is located in Wichita, Kansas, and is a subsidiary of Koch Industries, one of the largest private companies in the world. KES delivers superior value in developing, integrating, and applying innovative technical and service solutions for industrial value chains. More information is available at KochEngineeredSolutions.com .

About OnPoint

OnPoint Digital Solutions is a connected solutions business within Koch Engineered Solutions, a unit of Koch Industries, Inc., that leverages unique engineering capabilities and expertise in combination with digital technology. The OnPoint solutions portfolio drives advanced, actionable insights to help customers identify root causes, analyze performance, and optimize equipment as well as plant operations to improve efficiency, yield, reliability, environmental performance, and safety. More information is available at OnPointSolutions.com .

SOURCE Koch Engineered Solutions

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KYIV, Ukraine, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Today the Northern Appellate Commercial Court of Kyiv postponed the hearing of the illegal disconnection of the TIU Canada solar station in Nikopol, until July 26 at 3:30 PM. The reason given was the failure of one of the defendants to show up for court. In addition, one of the judges recused himself from the case in the morning and was replaced. This follows a postponement last month due to the recusal from the case of the previous three judge panel. TIU Canada filed a motion to dismiss the previous slate of judges. The appeal is based on a January 26 decision by the Kyiv Commercial Court to reject the claims of an illegal disconnection despite overwhelming evidence presented by TIU Canada's legal team. The case is a bellwether of Ukraine's investment environment for foreign business and is attracting international attention.

"We will not rest in our pursuit of fairness, rule of law and fighting corruption" said TIU Canada President Michael Yurkovich. He added, "The West is watching this case closely because it is a test of whether or not foreign investors in Ukraine can be protected from raider attacks by oligarchs". The court case number is 910/3844/20 and the judges are O. Gavruliuk, Y. Ponomarenko and the presiding judge is O. Maydanevych.

The 10.5 MW solar station was disconnected from the electricity grid by NFZ on March 2, 2020, despite the fact that Ukrainian law prevents electricity producers from being disconnected from the energy grid without obtaining the range of all the necessary permissions. TIU Canada is seeking an immediate reconnection to the electricity grid and plans to hold the NFZ and its shareholders fully accountable under the law. The main shareholders of the Nikopol Ferroalloy Plant are Igor Kolomoyskyi, Gennadiy Bogolyubov, and Viktor Pinchuk.

A number of respected diplomats and Members of Parliament commented on the case. Roman Waschuk who served as Canada's Ambassador to Ukraine (2014-2019) said, "Ukraine deserves external support, especially now. But it also needs to deal with internal threats, such as oligarch Kolomoysky".

MP Yvan Baker, who is the Chairman of the Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Friendship Group said, "If Ukraine is to attract the foreign investment needed to grow its economy, offer prosperity to Ukrainians and secure its sovereignty, rule of law must be reinforced and corruption eliminated. Some of the developments around TIU Canada's investment in Ukraine are deeply concerning".

Senator Peter Harder stated, "Rule of law and holding oligarchs accountable is paramount to Ukraine attracting the foreign investment it desperately needs. The people of Ukraine deserve tangible progress on both fronts". Other Members of the Canadian Parliament including Senator Peter Boehm, Garnett Genuis, Heather McPherson, and James Maloney have also spoken in support of TIU Canada and are monitoring the court case.

The Nikopol solar station owned by TIU Canada is on land leased long term from the city of Nikopol. The solar plant connects to a substation on the grounds of the NFZ. On December 23, 2019, TIU Canada received a letter from the General Director of the NFZ, that they would be disconnecting the TIU Canada connection to grids via the substation on the grounds of the NFZ in order to make 'repairs.' The NFZ stated that they would begin the repairs after February 29, 2020, and TIU Canada immediately contacted the NFZ to seek solutions to avoid any disconnection. However, despite multiple discussions, the NFZ management and shareholders proceeded with disconnecting TIU Canada from the substation on the morning of March 2, 2020. This illegal disconnection has caused more than 1.5 million Euros of damage to TIU Canada already and increases daily.

The case is viewed as a test of the Zelensky's administration's commitment to protecting foreign investors. It should be noted that on July 3, 2019, while speaking to the Economic Club of Canada, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky praised the work of TIU Canada at the Toronto Ukraine Reforms Conference. He said, "We think about the future, that is why green energy will be one of the key sectors of our economy during the upcoming years. I know that we have here Canadian company TIU that already successfully works in this area. We are grateful to them for this - please, follow their example".

Unfortunately, this court ruling is just the latest in a series of setbacks for foreign investors in Ukraine. Last year Ukraine received only $400 million in foreign direct investment due to the lack of rule of law, widespread corruption, and the Covid pandemic. The corruption situation was exacerbated last year due to a kangaroo court ruling by Ukraine's Constitutional Court which cancelled the disclosure requirements for public officials.

TIU Canada is owned by the Calgary based Refraction Asset Management, has been working in Ukraine since 2016, and is a leading solar energy producer. The company commissioned a 10  megawatt solar energy plant in Nikopol, Ukraine, in January 2018, and an 11-megawatt solar station in the Mykolayiv region in April 2019. An additional 33 megawatts of solar electricity production have been commissioned in the Odesa region, for a total of 54 megawatts nationwide. TIU Canada has invested more than $65 million in Ukrainian solar energy over the last four years and was the first investor in Ukraine under the Canadian Ukrainian Free Trade Agreement (CUFTA).

TIU Canada directly and through its subcontractors employs more than 30 people in Ukraine whose jobs are now threatened by this illegal disconnection.

SOURCE TIU Canada

Related Links

https://tiucanada.com/


CAMBRIDGE, Mass., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Elemental Machines, a developer of universal laboratory asset monitoring technology for research and clinical labs around the world, has released a free scheduling and booking software that eliminates a longstanding source of inefficiency in the lab operations (LabOps) space.

The release follows a season of significant disruption to scientific operations and commemorates the long-awaited complete reopening of many labs around the world.

"Elemental Calendar is our gift to the scientific community  a response to a critical need we observed while listening to our customers," said Elemental Machines CEO Sridhar Iyengar. "We were confounded by the lack of scheduling and asset booking solutions available to essential LabOps professionals. Forced to improvise, some of our customers had resorted to creating standalone Google Calendars for each and every asset under their management."

As teams return to the lab in full, seamless equipment scheduling is urgently needed. Elemental Calendar marries a familiar calendar interface with novel features and function built for LabOps, such as the ability to reserve assets, assign users, and tag protocols for any instrument across the lab.

Existing Elemental Machines customers will find Elemental Calendar in their dashboard today, while other LabOps professionals can request access to the scheduling software without cost and with no strings attached.

To learn more, visit www.elementalmachines.com/calendar.

About Elemental Machines

Elemental Machines is the trusted data collection and reporting technology supplier to researchers and clinicians around the world. The Cambridge-based company equips labs with universal cloud-based dashboards and turnkey sensors that unite data from every asset, every metric, and every location, enabling universal collection, seamless sharing, and turnkey reporting.

SOURCE Elemental Machines

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LEHI, Utah., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- EY announced that Doug Robinson, CEO of LGCY Power (LGCY) is a finalist for the Entrepreneur of The Year 2021 Award in the Utah Region.

A native of Logan, Utah, Robinson leads LGCY Power, one of the largest privately held solar companies in the United States.

Doug Robinson, CEO of LGCY Power

"LGCY has installed more than 40,000 customers and over 300 megawatts of residential solar power. With these numbers, LGCY has proven they are a top 5 solar company in the nation! We've offset millions of pounds of carbon emissions, while employing thousands of people around the country, and doing it while saving customers substantial money!" said Robinson. "I am particularly thankful for our team across the United States, our LGCY Nation, for their role in providing an extraordinary customer experience while becoming the best versions of themselves. They live up to our mission to be better people and to help others to do the same through the power of clean energy."



EY Entrepreneur of the Year is considered one of the most prestigious business awards programs in the U.S. The program recognizes entrepreneurs and leaders of high-growth companies who are excelling in areas such as innovation, financial performance and personal commitment to their businesses and communities, while also transforming our world. Robinson was selected as a finalist by a panel of independent judges. Award winners will be announced in July.

ABOUT LGCY POWER

LGCY Power is one of the largest privately held solar companies in the United States and has been named one of the Emerging Eight companies in Utah, A Best Place to Work by Glassdoor.com and Utah Business, and is focused on providing an extraordinary solar experience for customers in the United States. By offering a cleaner, cheaper alternative to traditional electricity, LGCY assists residential homeowners by providing solar power at little to no upfront cost. LGCY's focus on technology innovation has spurred their growth. LGCY Power offers solar in 29 states and is headquartered in Lehi, Utah. For more information visit https://www.lgcypower.com/ .

If you would like further information about Doug Robinson or his background, please reach out to Samantha Philips at [email protected] / 801.999.8330

SOURCE LGCY Power
Nayumbi Target: Luminex has begun drilling the first hole of a programmed 2,000-metre drill program designed to test the depth extent of the high-grade, low sulphidation gold system identified at surface. Surface geology, geochemistry and geophysical modeling in three dimensions point to strong similarities to the Fruta del Norte gold deposit, located 45 kilometres north-northeast in the same mineral belt, as described in the company's news release dated May 13, 2021 (see Figure 1). The initial drill hole, currently underway, is designed to test hydrothermal breccias with sandstone clasts that occur with a latticework of narrow feldspar porphyry dikes, that coincide with rock chip samples grading up to 62.90 g/t gold.

Prometedor Target: Surface mapping and sampling of the area to the southeast of Los Cuyes and Camp, extending to Prometedor is continuing, with the objective of defining targets for drill testing. Mapping has revealed swarms of rhyolite dikes cutting metamorphic and volcanic host rocks, with rock chip sampling returning results of up 3.75 g/t Au. The mineralization style reflects the mineralization style encountered at Camp, that hosts an underground Inferred resource of 1,126 koz AuEq at an average grade of 2.95 g/t AuEq, calculated at a cut-off grade of 1.50 g/t AuEq; see news release dated March 31, 2020 for details.

Condor Preliminary Economic Assessment: The Condor North study that will include Camp, Los Cuyes, Soledad and Enma is near completion. The Company expects to announce results in July.



Cascas Project

Shakai Target: The Company has received assay results from the first three holes of the five-hole, 2,017 metre program at the Shakai porphyry copper-molybdenum target, located within the Cascas claim block. The first three holes were drilled on the eastern half of the target area as shown in Figure 2. Results, shown in Table 1 below, reveal long intercepts of low-grade copper-molybdenum mineralization. It is notable that the 0.22% Cu Eq interval reported for hole SK21-03 remains open to depth. The results are consistent with geological observations of disseminated sulphides hosted within porphyritic granodiorites and leucogranites that are pervasively altered with potassic, propylitic and phyllic alteration. The porphyry intrusive is interpreted to be dissected into wedges by a series of northwest to north-northwest trending fault overlaps that dip to the southwest (Figure 2). The Company expects to receive results from the remaining two drill holes in July.

Table 1. Significant intervals from holes SK21-01 through SK21-03.

Drill Hole (final depth) From (m) To (m) Interval (m) Cu (%) Mo (ppm) Cu Eq (%)*

SK21-01 (569.8m) 33.0 406.0 373.0 0.13 88 0.15 incl. 33.0 52.0 19.0 0.15 69 0.18 incl. 312.0 366.0 54.0 0.18 138 0.23

SK21-02 (567.2m) 13.0 19.0 6.0 0.19 478 0.35 and 197.0 343.9 146.9 0.13 52 0.15 and 440.0 454.0 14.0 0.26 5 0.26

SK21-03 (263.2m) 75.0 135.6 60.6 0.15 60 0.17 and 195.0 263.2 68.2 0.19 89 0.22

* Copper equivalent calculation for reporting purposes only. The copper equivalent grade (CuEq) is calculated as follows: CuEq (%) = Cu (%) + 0.000333  Mo (%) assuming prices of Cu US$3.00/lb and Mo US$10.00/lb. Minor gold and silver values not included.

Kuru Target: Drill target definition work is continuing at the Kuru low sulphidation epithermal gold vein target located approximately three kilometres southwest of Shakai. Mapping and sampling work are continuing, and rock chip samples have returned grades of up to 8.82 g/t gold.

Qualified Persons

Leo Hathaway, P. Geo, Senior Vice President Exploration of Luminex and the Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, has reviewed, verified and approved the scientific and technical information in this news release and has verified the data underlying that scientific and technical information.

About Luminex Resources

Luminex Resources Corp. (TSXV:LR,OTCQX:LUMIF) is a Vancouver, Canada based precious and base metals exploration and development company focused on gold and copper projects in Ecuador. Luminex's inferred and indicated mineral resources are located at the Condor Gold-Copper project in Zamora-Chinchipe Province, southeast Ecuador. Luminex also holds a large and highly prospective land package in Ecuador, including the Tarqui and Pegasus projects, which are being co-developed with BHP Group plc and Anglo American respectively.

Further details are available on the Company's website at https://luminexresources.com/.

To receive news releases please sign up at https://www.luminexresources.com/contact/contact-us/.

LUMINEX RESOURCES CORP.

Signed: "Marshall Koval"



Marshall Koval, CEO and Director



Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements and information herein, including all statements that are not historical facts, contain forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such forward-looking statements or information include but are not limited to statements or information with respect to the timing for the Preliminary Economic Assessment at Condor North, drilling timing and amount at the Nayumbi target and timing for further Cascas results. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements or information can be identified by the use of phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "will" occur or be achieved.

With respect to forward-looking statements and information contained herein, the Company has made numerous assumptions including among other things, assumptions about general business and economic conditions, the prices of gold and copper, and anticipated costs and expenditures. The foregoing list of assumptions is not exhaustive.

Although management of the Company believes that the assumptions made and the expectations represented by such statements or information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that a forward-looking statement or information herein will prove to be accurate. Forward-looking statements and information by their nature are based on assumptions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. These factors include, but are not limited to: risks associated with the business of the Company; business and economic conditions in the mining industry generally; the supply and demand for labour and other project inputs; changes in commodity prices; changes in interest and currency exchange rates; risks relating to inaccurate geological and engineering assumptions (including with respect to the tonnage, grade and recoverability of reserves and resources); risks relating to unanticipated operational difficulties (including failure of equipment or processes to operate in accordance with specifications or expectations, cost escalation, unavailability of materials and equipment, government action or delays in the receipt of government approvals, industrial disturbances or other job action, and unanticipated events related to health, safety and environmental matters); risks relating to adverse weather conditions; political risk and social unrest; changes in general economic conditions or conditions in the financial markets; changes in laws (including regulations respecting mining concessions); and other risk factors as detailed from time to time in the Company's continuous disclosure documents filed with Canadian securities administrators. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

SOURCE Luminex Resources Corp.
Doctoral candidate Suvadra Datta Gupta from the University of Saskatchewan; Doctoral candidate Samantha Stewart from Ryerson University; and Master's candidate Vanessa Cunningham from the University of Guelph will each receive a $15,000 scholarship to support their research. Gupta will explore potential funding models and policies for a national school food program in Canada, as well as parent and decision-maker perceptions of school food programs. Stewart will determine how public discourses on food security policy have changed over the last decade and what implications this has for the development of a Food Policy for Canada. Cunningham will seek to better understand the lived experience of food insecurity among post-secondary students in Canada.

These scholarships recognize the contributions of David Emerson, Purdy Crawford and Wallace McCain as past Chairs of the Maple Leaf Foods' Board of Directors. Three scholarships are awarded annually to master's or doctoral students who are pursuing research that contributes to the body of knowledge on food insecurity in Canada. Candidates are selected based on their academic preparedness, contribution of research findings and quality of the submission, including feasibility and methodological rigor.

"These scholarships will support high caliber, insightful research that increases knowledge on food insecurity and the impact of policy and program interventions." said Michael H McCain, President and CEO, Maple Leaf Foods and Honorary Chair of the Maple Leaf Centre for Action on Food Security. "We are pleased to be able to support these students and look forward to sharing the knowledge that emerges from their research projects".

The Centre's goal is to work collaboratively across sectors to reduce food insecurity in Canada by 50% by 2030. This includes supporting research that contributes insightful information on barriers and interventions to achieve sustainable food security. For more information about the scholarship process, visit the Maple Leaf Centre for Action on Food Security.

About the Maple Leaf Centre for Action on Food Security

The Maple Leaf Centre for Action on Food Security (the Centre) is a registered charity committed to working collaboratively to reduce food insecurity in Canada by 50% by 2030. The Centre advocates for critical public policies and invests in knowledge building and food-based programs that advance the capacity of people and communities to achieve sustainable food security. The Centre was created in 2016 and is governed by a board of directors, including four independent experts.

About Maple Leaf Foods

Maple Leaf Foods Inc. ("Maple Leaf Foods") is a carbon neutral company with a vision to be the most sustainable protein company on earth, responsibly producing food products under leading brands including Maple Leaf, Maple Leaf Prime, Maple Leaf Natural Selections, Schneiders, Schneiders Country Naturals, Mina, Greenfield Natural Meat Co., Lightlife and Field Roast. Maple Leaf Foods employs approximately 13,500 people and does business in Canada, the U.S. and Asia. The company is headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario, and its shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange (MFI).

Follow us on Twitter:

@MapleLeafFoods

@FeedOpportunity

SOURCE Maple Leaf Foods Inc.

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ORLANDO, Fla., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation (NYSE: VAC) is updating its outlook for its second quarter 2021 results in conjunction with its participation at the Jefferies Virtual Consumer Conference today.

The Company continues to experience a strong recovery during the second quarter, illustrating the resiliency of its leisure focused business model.

Occupancies and tours continued to grow sequentially in the second quarter from the first quarter and VPGs remained well above 2019 levels. As a result, the Company now expects contract sales to be $345 million to $355 million in second quarter 2021 versus its previous guidance of $320 million to $340 million , a 55% sequential increase from first quarter 2021 at the midpoint.

to in second quarter 2021 versus its previous guidance of to , a 55% sequential increase from first quarter 2021 at the midpoint. Combined Owner and Preview reservations on the books for the second half of 2021 are currently more than 15% higher than at the same time in 2019.

The Company will host a fireside chat session today at 9:10 a.m. E.T. A live webcast will be available in the Investor Relations section of the Company's website at ir.mvwc.com . The webcast will also be available on the Company's website for 30 days following the call.

The Company currently expects to report financial results for the second quarter 2021 on or about July 28, 2021.

About Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation

Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation is a leading global vacation Company that offers vacation ownership, exchange, rental and resort and property management, along with related businesses, products and services. The Company has nearly 120 resorts and approximately 700,000 Owners and Members in a diverse portfolio that includes seven vacation ownership brands. It also includes exchange networks and membership programs comprised of nearly 3,200 resorts in over 90 nations and over 1.7 million members, as well as management of more than 160 other resorts and lodging properties. As a leader and innovator in the vacation industry, the Company upholds the highest standards of excellence in serving its customers, investors and associates while maintaining exclusive, long-term relationships with Marriott International, Inc. and Hyatt Hotels Corporation for the development, sales and marketing of vacation ownership products and services. For more information, please visit www.marriottvacationsworldwide.com .

Note on forward-looking statements

This press release and accompanying schedules contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of federal securities laws, including statements about expectations for contract sales in the second quarter, future operating results, estimates, and assumptions, and similar statements concerning anticipated future events and expectations that are not historical facts. The Company cautions you that these statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, conditions beyond our control such as the length and severity of the current COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on our operations, its short and longer-term impacts on the demand for travel and consumer confidence, and the availability and distribution of effective vaccines; the pace of recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic or as effective treatments or vaccines become widely available; the Company's ability to manage and reduce expenditures in a low revenue environment; volatility in the economy and the credit markets, changes in supply and demand for vacation ownership products, competitive conditions, the availability of additional financing when and if required, and other matters disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" contained in the Company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") and in subsequent SEC filings, any of which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied in this press release. These statements are made as of the date of issuance and the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

SOURCE Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation

Related Links

https://www.marriottvacationsworldwide.com


WASHINGTON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Today the Biden-Harris Administration announced a comprehensive strategy to halt the rise in deadly gun violence and other crime that has taken place in American cities over the last year. The strategy includes several components that American mayors have called on leaders in Washington to make a priority, including the need for new action to address the easy availability of guns for violent criminals. Last week 27 mayors sent a letter to the President calling for several of the actions included in the Administration's strategy. Welcoming the new initiative, U.S. Conference of Mayors President Dayton (OH) Mayor Nan Whaley released the following statement:

"Mayors have been sounding the alarm on this deadly problem for years, and we're grateful that President Biden is stepping up to direct the capabilities and resources of the federal government to help. The rise in violent crime since the beginning of this pandemic is showing no signs of slowing, and we are in for a long, difficult summer if there's not quick action to address both the root causes and the flow of illegal guns in American cities. This crisis requires both illegal firearm enforcement action and new commonsense laws to make sure guns are not ending up in the hands of people who shouldn't have them. We must implement new community policing initiatives, violence intervention programs, and strategies to give young people opportunities and keep them off the streets as well as returning citizens the support they need to successfully re-enter their communities. We simply cannot accept a new normal of heightened gun violence in America. That's why mayors welcome today's announcement and are eager to work with the administration to bring an end to this spike in deadly gun violence."

About the United States Conference of Mayors -- The U.S. Conference of Mayors is the official nonpartisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more. There are more than 1,400 such cities in the country today, and each city is represented in the Conference by its chief elected official, the mayor. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.

SOURCE U.S. Conference of Mayors

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TRUMBULL, Conn., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Dr. George Lewis, founder of ZetrOZ Systems, will present a study at The Special Operations Medical Association's Scientific Assembly 2021 that shows sustained acoustic medicine (SAM) effectively reduces pain, accelerates recovery and increases strength in patients with neck, back, knee and soft-tissue injuries.

ZetrOZ Systems

Dr. Lewis will present "Multisite Randomized Clinical Trials on Sustained Acoustic Medicine for the Treatment of Musculoskeletal Injuries: Two Hundred and Ninety-Eight Patient Cohort Analysis" at 3:45 p.m., Thursday, July 1, at SOMA's conference in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Dr. Lewis is the inventor of ZetrOZ's SAM technology and the samSport and sam2.0 wearable ultrasound devices, which are approved by the Food and Drug Administration and provide comfortable, extended, high-frequency ultrasound treatment. The study included 298 patients with neck and back myofascial pain, moderate to severe knee pain and confirmed knee osteoarthritis, or soft-tissue injury to the elbow, shoulder, back and ankle. Doctors treated the patients with multi-hour ultrasound therapy from SAM devices for four hours a day for four to eight weeks and then assessed their conditions with a standard questionnaire and quantitative measures.

The study found that more than 90% of the participants had improved function, and 86% were able to return to work after conservative intervention failed. Across all injury cohorts, 95% of participants found the device safe, effective and easy to use and would continue the treatment if required.

"The treatment of soft tissue injuries and inflammatory-based conditions appears to respond well to four to eight weeks of daily SAM treatment," the physicians concluded. "When participants failed to respond to physical therapy alone, SAM proved to be a useful adjunct to facilitate healing and return to work."

The presentation will be before the Special Operations Medical Association, which brings together military and civilian medical providers, academia, and industry partners to advance the science, technology, and skills of unconventional medicine. It is the only medical association that brings together the unique blend of perspectives across prehospital, tactical, wilderness, austere, disaster, and deployed medicine.

SOMA is also the world's largest gathering of Special Operations Forces (SOF) medical providers, including service members and retired personnel from the U.S. and foreign militaries, domestic law enforcement, and tactical EMS providers.

For a schedule of the full program, visit http://specialoperationsmedicine.org/Pages/SOMSA-Program.aspx.

About ZetrOZ Systems

ZetrOZ Systems is an FDA cGMP and ISO 13585 medical technology company headquartered in the southern coastal region of Connecticut. The organization also has manufacturing facilities across the United States. ZetrOZ Systems produced UltrOZ, samSport and sam 2.0 to provide safe and effective treatment options for prevalent conditions such as arthritis. Learn more at zetroz.com and samrecover.com.

Media Contact:

Bianca D'Angelo

(203)577-7588 (Direct)

[email protected]

www.Newswire.com

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SOURCE ZetrOZ Systems
NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Mitiga , the first cloud-based solution for Incident Readiness and Response in cloud and hybrid environments, today announced the company has raised $25 million in Series-A funding, bringing total funding to $32 million, to completely change the traditional incident response market by supplying unlimited active incident response support for subscribers. Mitiga's cloud-based solution for cloud and hybrid environments dramatically improves efficiencies for incident readiness and response by aligning around the client's goals. Additionally, instead of the traditional time and materials invoicing, Mitiga clients only pay for its readiness service and receive unlimited Incident Response as part of their subscription. By preparing responses ahead of an attack, Mitiga customers are able to return to operational normalcy in hours instead of days or weeks, as is the case using traditional, services-based incident response techniques.

Mitiga's funding was led by ClearSky Security, Atlantic Bridge and DNX. The funding will be used to address the changing mindset for security obsessed enterprise organizations when it comes to incident readiness and response in their ever-growing cloud and hybrid environments.

The events of the past year accelerated cloud adoption by allowing organizations to overcome their reluctance to move mission-critical workloads to the cloud. Gartner predicts spending on cloud services to run past $332 billion this year alone, which has also provided a new, lucrative target for hackers; in the first four months of 2020, McAfee reported a 630 percent increase in attacks on cloud services.

By 2022, It is predicted that 90 percent of organizations will have a hybrid and multi-cloud environment. This opens up the potential for hackers to move between on-premises data centers and cloud providers, as well as lateral attacks from one cloud provider to another. Aside from the damage attacks to do business, organizations have to endure cyber insurance premium increases, which rose by 29 percent in 2020, according to Fitch Ratings, and some policies have become more difficult to obtain.

As the first incident response solution for cloud-based environments, Mitiga has attracted top talent in cyber readiness and response, and armed them with an innovative technology stack to bring speed and transparency to the incident response space. The effect is to bring post-attack return to

normalcy down to just hours, vs. days or even weeks with traditional incident response. Post attack responses need to focus on efficiency, and current cloud and hybrid environments have made traditional on-premises approaches to incident readiness and response outdated.

"We have seen firsthand how demoralizing and detrimental slow responses are to cyber attacks," said Tal Mozes, co-founder and CEO of Mitiga. "The cloud represents new challenges for incident readiness and response and we're bringing the industry's first incident response solution in the cloud, for the cloud. This funding will allow us to further our engagements with heads of enterprise security who are looking to recover from an incident in real-time, attract even more of the most innovative cybersecurity minds in the industry, and expand our partner network. I couldn't be more excited about what Mitiga is going to do for cloud-first organizations who understand the importance of cybersecurity readiness and response."

Today's enterprise environments are threatened on an hourly basis with unpredictable incidents. Mitiga's approach to provide unlimited active incident response meets the needs of regulators and business leaders that understand the importance of a resilient incident response solution and allows them to return to business as usual fast. In addition, Mitiga is able to document each event which allows an organization to fix the cause in order to prevent future attacks.

"The increased speed of adoption of cloud platforms has organizations rethinking how they prepare for and react to breaches," said Patrick Heim, Partner & CISO at ClearSky. "Organizations are moving away from mostly reactive incident response processes. Newer approaches focus on preparing companies for inevitable incidents with a focus on tools and services that enable rapidly restoring operations and limiting impact. Mitiga is leading the way in building out this new discipline of cloud focused Incident Readiness and Response. We're excited to be on this journey with them and look forward to transforming the way incidents are managed."

Mitiga's hybrid managed services currently provide Fortune 1000, financial service institutions, banks, ecommerce, law enforcement and government agencies with Incident Response to handle real-time incidents and Incident Readiness that accelerates post-incident bounce back from days down to hours. The company also provides emergency response to active network security incidents such as ransomware and data breaches for non-subscription customers.

About Mitiga

Mitiga provides remote Incident Readiness & Response solutions to clients that operate hybrid and full cloud environments. Our unique readiness offering builds the cyber resiliency of an organization so that any cyber breach will not become a crisis, but a 'hiccup' in their business operations. We have built a technology-based solution to provide a quick and rapid recovery from any type of cyber breach. For more information, go to: www.mitiga.io

For More Information:

Escalate PR

[email protected]

SOURCE Mitiga

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CHARLOTTE, N.C., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Motto Mortgage Metro, an innovative mortgage brokerage franchise focused on transparency and compliance, has a new office in North Carolina. Motto Mortgage Metro is now open in Charlotte and serving all markets throughout the Tarheel State, in addition to all of South Carolina and Georgia.

Established by the dynamic husband and wife team, Aaron and Brooke Marin, with more than a decade of experience in mortgage, real estate, and law, Motto Mortgage Metro is a caring, responsive, customer-first, full-service mortgage brokerage serving our clients with excellence. Their 5-Star Google reviews prove this.

"Motto Mortgage Metro offers a personal, local, and advantageous alternative to the traditional mortgage bankers currently operating in Charlotte," said broker owner, Aaron Marin. "We provide the scope, scale and support of a large retail lender, while offering the flexibility, autonomy, and exceptional service of a local mortgage broker with a family-feel."

Aaron Marin also serves as the Director of Operations and oversees Motto Mortgage Metro's talented team of Mortgage Loan Originators. The mortgage loan originators are mortgage experts with their finger on the pulse of the local markets they serve, and they take great satisfaction helping homebuyers achieve the "American dream" of homeownership with ease and simplicity.

Brooke Marin serves as the Director of Realtor Support and connects Realtors to Motto Mortgage Metro across Charlotte, their beloved "Queen City", in addition to their key markets of Raleigh-Durham, Wilmington, Asheville, Atlanta, Savannah, Charleston, Columbia, and beyond. From being in real estate for almost a decade, Brooke understands the personal support services Realtors need from a responsive, exceptional mortgage brokerage like Motto Mortgage Metro.

Mortgage loan originators in the Motto Mortgage network have access to competitive loans from various wholesale lenders, and work hard to give homebuyers choices  because no loan is one-size-fits-all. The exceptional Mortgage Loan Originators at Motto Mortgage Metro can be reached at (704) 997-0035. A digital mortgage experience is also available for borrowers who would prefer to conduct business online by easily applying online at Apply.MMMetro.com or learning more about Motto Mortgage Metro by visiting their website, Motto Mortgage Metro.

Each Motto Mortgage franchise is independently owned, operated, and licensed and a proud supporter of Mission Against Hunger to end hunger in our communities.

About Motto Mortgage Metro:

Motto Mortgage Metro (OFFICE NMLS #: 2102061 is a locally owned and operated full-service mortgage brokerage serving all of North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia, located at 1207 East Boulevard, Charlotte, NC 28203. To learn more, please visit Motto Mortgage Metro or call our office at (704) 997-0035. Brooke B. Marin, J.D.: NMLS #: 2042441 (704) 833-8236.

SOURCE Motto Mortgage

Related Links

https://www.mmmetro.com


WASHINGTON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum awards its Michael Collins Trophy annually for Lifetime and Current Achievements. The 2021 recipients are Gene Kranz for Lifetime Achievement and the SpaceX Crew Dragon Team for Current Achievement; they will receive their awards at a ceremony at the museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia.

Established in 1985, the award recognizes outstanding achievements in the fields of aerospace science and technology and their history. Trophy winners receive a miniature version of "The Web of Space," a sculpture by artist John Safer. The renaming of the trophy in 2020 (previously the National Air and Space Museum Trophy) recognizes Collins' contributions to aerospace and his service to the museum as director during a critical time in its evolution.

"We are honored to award two worthy and inspiring recipients the 2021 Michael Collins Trophy," said Chris Browne, acting director of the museum. "Both Gene Kranz and the SpaceX Crew Dragon Team have advanced human space exploration in major ways, not only for our country, but for the world."

2021 Michael Collins Trophy Recipients

Kranz will receive the 2021 Michael Collins Trophy for Lifetime Achievement honoring his remarkable accomplishments and success with NASA's Mission Control for 34 years, from Project Mercury through STS-61, the first Hubble servicing mission. He began his career in the U.S. Air Force, flying high-performance jet fighters including the F-80, F-86, and F-100. In 1958, he worked as a flight-test engineer for McDonnell Aircraft developing the Quail Decoy Missile for B-52 and B-47 aircraft. Kranz became assistant flight director for Project Mercury with the NASA Space Task Group at Langley, Virginia, in 1960. He assumed flight director roles with Project Gemini and eventually the Apollo Program, including Apollo 11. His leadership during the Apollo 13 crisis became well known to subsequent generations thanks to the popular Ron Howard film Apollo 13 (1995) as well as Kranz's own book and public speaking. He continued providing expertise for many other NASA missions throughout his career, including the Skylab Program and Space Shuttle operations. Kranz receives this prestigious award as a result of a career of excellence and service in NASA's space program.

SpaceX and the Crew Dragon team will receive the 2021 Michael Collins Trophy for Current Achievement after having successfully launched and returned two NASA astronauts on a mission to the International Space Station in 2020 using its Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon spacecraft. This marked the first time NASA astronauts traveled on a U.S.-made and -operated spacecraft since 2011, when the agency retired the space shuttle orbiters, and the first time NASA astronauts traveled on vehicles owned and operated by a private company. The SpaceX Crew Demo-2 mission helped restore American independence in human spaceflight. Since SpaceX was founded in 2002 with the objectives of reducing the cost of space transportation and enabling a multi-planetary future for humans, it has seen its share of setbacks but never shied away from the daunting challenges. It has treated failures as opportunities to improve and innovate and become the first private company to provide commercial human spaceflight into Earth orbit.

More information about the Michael Collins Trophy and a complete list of past winners are available at https://airandspace.si.edu/trophy-award.

The Michael Collins Trophy event is made possible through the support of Atlas Air Worldwide, BAE Systems, Blue Origin, Booz Allen Hamilton, The Claude Moore Charitable Foundation, Jacobs, Leidos, National Air Traffic Controllers Association, National Business Aviation Association, Pratt & Whitney, Seabury Securities, Sierra Nevada Corp. and Thales.

The National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., is located at Sixth Street and Independence Avenue S.W. The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center is located in Chantilly, Virginia, near Washington Dulles International Airport.

Media only:

Alison Mitchell

(202) 633-2376;

[email protected]



Amy Stamm

(202) 633-2392;

[email protected]



Media website:

http://newsdesk.si.edu

SOURCE Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum

Related Links

airandspace.si.edu


NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Olympic Career Training Institute (OCTI) today secured $25 million in growth financing to drive the expansion of their tuition financing programs. The Tennessee-based company leverages small class sizes and an experienced staff to train successful commercial truck drivers, a key industry experiencing acute labor shortages and strong demand . OCTI plans to increase access to their program through the use of Income Share Agreements, which will be available to students as a result of this capital infusion. These incentive-aligned financing products demonstrate OCTI's innovative ethos and dedication to delivering exceptional student outcomes.

Olympic Career Training Institute has partnered with Leif, the Tuition Finance Management Platform. Leif works with industry leading education providers who deliver exceptional outcomes to students across a variety of fields and arranged the financing for OCTI. Leif's outcomes-aligned tuition financing solutions include Income Share Agreements which help education providers maximize their program's growth and impact potential.

Trey Carter, President of OCTI, commented: "Our mission is to transform students of all backgrounds into dynamic and highly skilled commercial drivers. Incentive-aligned financing embodies this mission. We chose to partner with Leif because they are the market's only full-service ISA Program Manager, enabling us to secure ISA financing and leverage their best-in-class technology solutions to streamline our origination and program management workflow. Leif's expertise made structuring, launching and financing our ISA program a smooth experience for OCTI and our students."

"Leif is committed to partnering with the best training providers across the country in any field of study and helping them maximize their impact by leveraging outcomes-aligned tuition financing in all its forms," remarked Jeffrey Groeber, Founder and CEO of Leif. "Olympic Career Training Institute has an extensive track record of delivering strong student outcomes across a diverse student body in one of the nation's largest occupations. For this reason, we were thrilled by the opportunity to partner with OCTI and increase access to their training."

About Olympic Career Training Institute:

OCTI is a Department of Labor approved training provider that is committed to career training in the Memphis community. OCTI was created in 2010 due to the overwhelming need for training in logistics, the largest employer in the southern region economy. OCTI seeks to become the leading training provider for the Regional Aerotropolis as it transforms from "America's Distribution Center" to the aerotropolis that links air, rail, truck and barge as a complete and seamless transportation system for moving people and product around the world.

About Leif:

Leif is a technology company dedicated to increasing access to quality and affordable education. The company has developed an end-to-end platform that enables the design, origination, and program management of Income Share Agreement programs. As the infrastructure layer that powers the incentive-aligned tuition finance ecosystem, Leif partners with schools to provide students with an outcomes-oriented form of education finance. Leif enjoys the benefit as the market leader based on the following core metrics:

20,000 originations

200 partner schools

$300 million in arranged financing

LinkedIn

AngelList

SOURCE Leif

Related Links

http://leif.org


VICTORIA, BC, June 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Global COVID pandemic has sped up the widespread adoption and eagerness for e-commerce and online shopping for a greater number of products and services has become available at the click of a button. Shipping and freight companies have been the first to speak of the major upsurge in home delivery of products purchased online, and that is especially true for USPS and Canada Post. This is especially true as people have found new ways to order and receive medication online through companies such as Canada Drugs Direct.

Canada Drugs Direct

Increasingly, more people are buying what they need from the comfort of their home through mobile devices, and Canada is one of two countries neighbouring the USA where US-written prescriptions can be filled by international pharmacies.

The prices for prescription medication from Canada are lower because Canada - unlike the USA - has federal measures in place to regulate the prices manufacturers are allowed to attach to the Rx medication that are produced. Some drugs are still expensive, but they are still significantly less in comparison to what Americans will pay for the same medication. Being able to buy their prescription meds for less will be the primary appeal for US residents looking into this alternative.

The USD to CAD dollar conversion advantage will add to this appeal for saving on prescription meds. Alternately the primary concern these same people might have about ordering medication online from Canada is whether medication is sourced and dispensed with the same protocols for safety and purity as in the USA. There may also be doubts on whether the medication have the same quality and formulation that there would be when filling a prescription at a local pharmacy.

These fears should be put aside. Health Canada serves the same strict regulatory functions that the US Food & Drug Administration does regarding quality, safety, and purity of Rx meds dispensed. The medications dispensed from international pharmacies are the indeed the same in chemical structure and usually cost less. Add free or discounted shipping options to anywhere in the continental USA and choosing an online pharmacy in Canada can indeed be a sensible idea for Americans.

Use the CIPA Pharmacy Checker to determine whether a Canadian online pharmacy is accredited by the Canadian International Pharmacy Association and make sure you're going with a reputable online pharmacy.

About the Company

Canada Drugs Direct is a Canadian online pharmacy that is among those recommended for Americans that wish to shop at a pharmacy in Canada to save money on medications. The online pharmacy is able to source medications in a way that allows for the best prices on prescription drugs from Canada. All orders require a prescription and are dispensed by a licensed pharmacist, in the same way as any pharmacy in America.

Contact Canada Drugs Direct:

https://www.canadadrugsdirect.com

[email protected]

Toll Free: 1-888-904-8467

Related Images

canada-drugs-direct.jpg

Canada Drugs Direct

Canada Drugs Direct

SOURCE Canada Drugs Direct
NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- OTC Markets Group Inc. (OTCQX: OTCM), operator of financial markets for 11,000 U.S. and global securities, today announced Broad Street Realty, Inc. (OTCQX: BRST), a fully integrated and self-managed real estate company, has qualified to trade on the OTCQX Best Market. Broad Street Realty, Inc. upgraded to OTCQX from the Pink market.

Broad Street Realty, Inc. begins trading today on OTCQX under the symbol "BRST." U.S. investors can find current financial disclosure and Real-Time Level 2 quotes for the company on www.otcmarkets.com.

The OTCQX Market provides investors with a premium U.S. public market to research and trade the shares of investor-focused companies. Graduating to the OTCQX Market marks an important milestone for companies, enabling them to demonstrate their qualifications and build visibility among U.S. investors. To qualify for OTCQX, companies must meet high financial standards, follow best practice corporate governance, and demonstrate compliance with applicable securities laws.

"We are proud that Broad Street will begin trading on the OTCQX Best Market. To reach this milestone is a testament to how our team has continued to successfully execute on our business plan despite this past year's turbulent macro business environment," said Alexander Topchy, Chief Financial Officer of Broad Street Realty, Inc.

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acted as the company's OTCQX sponsor.

About Broad Street Realty, Inc.

Broad Street Realty, Inc. is a fully integrated and self-managed real estate company that owns, operates, develops and redevelops primarily grocery-anchored shopping centers and mixed-use properties in the Mid-Atlantic, Southeast and Denver, Colorado markets. Broad Street is also a market-leading commercial real estate services firm that delivers cost-effective solutions for office, industrial and retail clients. The company has extensive experience in tenant representation, landlord representation, property acquisition and disposition, real estate development, project/construction management, finance, strategic consulting, property management and asset management.

About OTC Markets Group Inc.

OTC Markets Group Inc. (OTCQX: OTCM) operates the OTCQX Best Market, the OTCQB Venture Market and the Pink Open Market for 11,000 U.S. and global securities. Through OTC Link ATS and OTC Link ECN, we connect a diverse network of broker-dealers that provide liquidity and execution services. We enable investors to easily trade through the broker of their choice and empower companies to improve the quality of information available for investors.

To learn more about how we create better informed and more efficient markets, visit www.otcmarkets.com.

OTC Link ATS and OTC Link ECN are SEC regulated ATSs, operated by OTC Link LLC, member FINRA/SIPC.

Subscribe to the OTC Markets RSS Feed

Media Contact: OTC Markets Group Inc., +1 (212) 896-4428, [email protected]

SOURCE OTC Markets Group Inc.

Related Links

http://www.otcmarkets.com


When many regulatory agencies and clients had postponed or completely discontinued GMP site inspections due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, Samsung Biologics proactively leveraged its process innovation to custom tailor a robust solution specifically to address the rigorous demands of a biopharmaceutical onsite inspection. Live Virtual Tour is an omni-device platform which allows third parties, such as the FDA and clients, to remotely observe and assess Samsung Biologics' facilities, communicate in real-time, and review GMP documentation, all in high definition using a flexible and secure global cloud infrastructure.

Since the launch of LVT, the company has utilized the platform for many aspects of its business, including technical due diligence and regulatory inspections including one of FDA's earliest virtual assessment for Emergency Use of Authorization (EUA) of COVID-19 treatments, and more recently, EMA's virtual inspection ("EMA distant assessment") for six Pre-Approval Inspections (PAI) over the course of seven days, receiving no critical observations.

John Rim, CEO of Samsung Biologics, said of the inspections, "While we have had many successful regulatory inspections in the past, these recent approvals, are meaningful milestones for Samsung Biologics. We will continue to adopt new technologies and stay abreast of what regulatory authorities require to help our clients secure robust and safe delivery of treatments to all patients around the globe."

The FDA issued a new recommendation in April providing guidance on remote inspections ("Remote Interactive Evaluations") in light of COVID-19, suggesting that the FDA may continue to use remote inspections to supplement on-site audits post-pandemic. The European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) also predicts added value in retaining a virtual inspection system beyond the pandemic.

By using all available approaches to ensure drug products are safe, effective, and of high quality, regulatory agencies agree that this form of evaluation is an effective and adaptive strategy for the duration of the COVID-19 public health emergency. James Choi, Samsung Biologics Senior VP and Chief Information and Marketing Officer said, "Our Live Virtual Tour platform not only fully complies with the regulatory agencies' guidance on remote interactive evaluations but is also aimed at promoting greater client satisfaction through digital and virtual access to our site and quality documents."

About Samsung Biologics Co., Ltd.

Samsung Biologics (KRX: 207940.KS) is a fully integrated CDMO offering state-of-the-art contract development, manufacturing, and laboratory testing services. With proven regulatory approvals, the largest capacity, and the fastest throughput, Samsung Biologics is an award-winning partner of choice and is uniquely able to support the development and manufacturing of biologics products at every stage of the process while meeting the evolving needs of biopharmaceutical companies worldwide. For more information, visit www.samsungbiologics.com.

Samsung Biologics

Media Contact:

Claire Kim

Senior Director, Global Public Relations

[email protected]

SOURCE Samsung Biologics

Related Links

https://samsungbiologics.com/en


LOS ANGELES, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Papa Cantella's  manufacturer of the Official Dodger Dog - is launching the iconic Dodger Dogs in grocery stores across Southern California including Vons, Albertsons, Ralph's and so many more. Selling over 350,000 Dodger Dogs since opening day, the iconic stadium favorite hits shelves just in time for Fourth of July barbecues.

"We are excited to help fans feel like they're at Dodger Stadium all summer long with retail packs of Dodger Dog," said Tony Cantella, President of Papa Cantella's. "Dodger Dogs have been a Los Angeles staple for decades, and now people can get that quality and nostalgic flavor on their own grills this summer."

As one of the best-selling concession items in professional sports, Dodger Dogs were introduced when the team first moved to Los Angeles in 1958. For the past 63 years, the Dodger Dogs have become an emblem of the team and the city at large. Upholding the tradition of the iconic stadium treat, Papa Cantella's all pork Dodger Dogs bring a vital piece of the stadium experience to homes all over the region.

Since 1980, Papa Cantella's has produced over 150 sausage, hot dogs, specialty meat and side dish varieties for retailers nationwide. As one of the leading family owned and operated manufacturers in the Los Angeles area, Papa Cantella's tradition and values in delivering superior quality products make it a perfect partner for the reigning World Series Champions.

For more information on Papa Cantella's and where to find Dodger Dogs in stores, visit PapaCantella.com.

About Papa Cantella's:

Founded in 1980, and located in Vernon, CA, Papa Cantella's is a family owned and operated manufacturer specializing in premium sausages and prepared foods. Our current portfolio includes over 150 formulas of sausages & hot dogs, specialty meats, prepared entrees & side dishes. Papa Cantella's and the Cantella's brand can be found throughout Southern California and across the country in leading retail grocers & wholesale clubs, as well as through food service distributors. Visit Papa Cantella's online at www.papacantella.com. For media information, contact [email protected]

SOURCE Papa Cantellas

Related Links

http://PapaCantella.com


TORONTO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Payfare (TSX: PAY) today announced that it will integrate Mastercard Send into Payfare's financial technology platform, expanding real-time payment options for the gig economy. Payfare, who powers digital banking and instant payout solutions for some of the world's largest on-demand platforms will leverage Mastercard's full-service disbursements and person-to-person platform to further its mission in supporting financial inclusion for all gig workers and offer a differentiated payment experience.

Mastercard Send allows people and organizations to send and receive money how, where and when they choose. With Mastercard Send, Payfare can send gig worker earnings payouts to virtually all consumer and small business debit cards in the United States and other countries. Gig workers will also be able to send domestic and international money transfers in the Payfare-powered digital banking apps.

"We are thrilled to add Mastercard Send capabilities to our existing payout and digital banking solutions," said Marco Margiotta, CEO and Founding Partner of Payfare. "This partnership will open up new revenue streams for Payfare while providing more choice for our corporate clients and cardholders."

"As we continue to watch the pace of change accelerate around digital payments, it's become clear that waiting days to receive a payment is no longer working," said Chiro Aikat, Executive Vice President, North America Products & Innovation at Mastercard. "Through the integration of Mastercard Send, Payfare can now better meet the needs of the gig and independent economy by offering greater choice and efficiency."

About Payfare (TSX:PAY)

Payfare is a global financial technology company powering digital banking and instant payment solutions for today's gig workforce. Payfare partners with leading platforms and marketplaces, such as Uber, Lyft and DoorDash, to provide financial security and inclusion for their workforce.

For further information please visit www.payfare.com or contact:

Su Chun, Chief Compliance & Legal Officer

1 (888) 850-2713

[email protected]

or

Lindsey Abshire

(337) 772-8357

[email protected]

SOURCE Payfare

Related Links

http://www.payfare.com/


ERIE, Pa., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Penelec, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE), has hired 28 new graduates from the Power Systems Institute (PSI), the company's award-winning, two-year educational program that helps train the next generation of line and substation workers for FirstEnergy's 10 electric companies.

The new employees include 22 line workers who graduated from the program at Porecco College in Erie and six substation electricians who graduated from the program at Penn Highlands Community College in Johnstown.

"For 20 years, our PSI program has strengthened our diverse workforce pipeline and instilled safe work practices, proper work methods and teambuilding by developing the well-educated men and women needed to provide reliable power to customers," said Scott R. Wyman, president of FirstEnergy's Pennsylvania Operations. "We welcome these graduates joining our workforce to help continue providing safe and reliable electric service for our customers."

Penelec's new PSI graduates include:

Cole Dauson , Waterford

, Wade Mills , Williamsport

, Taynton Repard, Wellsboro

Dylan Smith , Sidman

, Teagan Staver , Williamsport

, Adrian Weaver , Troy

, Troy Nathan Berkebile , Johnstown

, Zachary Hoover , Johnstown

, Colton Pierce , Mansfield

The PSI curriculum for lines employees requires two and a half days each week spent between Porecco College and at a Penelec training facility in Erie. The PSI curriculum for substation employees requires a half week spent between Penn Highlands Community College and at a FirstEnergy facility in Pennsylvania for hands-on learning that focuses on safe work practices and procedures in the electrical environment.

PSI was originally developed by FirstEnergy in 2000. Students who successfully complete the program earn an associate degree from an affiliated community college in their area. Since the program's inception, FirstEnergy has hired more than 2,000 line and substation personnel who completed PSI programs in Maryland, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

For information about how to enroll in the PSI program, call 1-800-829-6801, or go to www.firstenergycorp.com/psi.

Penelec serves approximately 585,000 customers within 17,600 square miles of northern and central Pennsylvania. Follow Penelec on Twitter @Penelec and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PenelecElectric.

FirstEnergy Corp. is dedicated to integrity, safety, reliability and operational excellence. Its 10 electric distribution companies form one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, serving customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland and New York. The company's transmission subsidiaries operate approximately 24,000 miles of transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. Follow FirstEnergy online at www.firstenergycorp.com . Follow FirstEnergy and its utilities on Twitter @FirstEnergyCorp , @ToledoEdison, @IlluminatingCo, @OhioEdison , @MonPowerWV , @JCP_L , @Penn_Power , @Penelec , @Met_Ed , @PotomacEdison , @W_Penn_Power .

Editor's Note: Photos of FirstEnergy Power Systems Institute graduates are available for download on Flickr.

SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp.

Related Links

http://www.firstenergycorp.com


HOUSTON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A new lawsuit against Santa Cruz-based Future Motion, Inc. claims a Texas man suffered severe injuries after his Onewheel XR transportation device suddenly shut off and nosedived mid-ride.

The suit, filed in Santa Cruz County Superior Court, accuses Future Motion of failing to uphold its duties to design, manufacture, and market a safe device. It is one of several suits to be filed against the tech company over alleged dangers associated with its Onewheel device, a single-wheel, self-balancing electric skateboard which allows riders to steer using their body weight and positioning on the board.

About the Incident

According to court documents, the lawsuit stems from an incident in May 2019 in which a Texas man had been riding his Onewheel XR board just outside his neighborhood in Benbrook, TX.

The suit claims that while the man was riding downhill on a paved residential road, the Onewheel suddenly shut off and nosedived, causing the board to "violently and unexpectedly slam into the pavement" and throw the man forward.

The man, who was wearing a helmet, suffered severe injuries and was transported to a local hospital where he was kept for five days, the lawsuit claims. He sustained a broken right femur that required two surgeries to repair, a dislocated right shoulder, and lacerations along the right side of his body.

Onewheel Defects Can Cause Sudden Power Shut-Offs, Suit Claims

The civil complaint claims the Plaintiff's injuries resulted from alleged defects in the design, manufacturing, and marketing of the Onewheel device.

The suit also brings causes of action for alleged failures to warn, negligent design, strict liability, and violations of the California Business and Professions Code for Future Motion allegedly downplaying risks and misleading customers into believing the Onewheel and Onewheel XR were safe.

The lawsuit seeks compensation for the man's medical expenses, lost income, and related losses, as well as punitive damages.

Bailey Cowan Heckaman is a Houston-based civil trial practice known for litigating complex claims involving products liability, toxic exposure, and serious injury. The firm has filed several personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits against Future Motion over alleged Onewheel defects for victims and families across the country. For more information, visit www.BCHLaw.com.

SOURCE Bailey Cowan Heckaman PLLC

Related Links

https://www.bchlaw.com


ALLENTOWN, Pa., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- PPL Capital Funding, Inc. ("PPL Capital Funding"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of PPL Corporation (NYSE: PPL), today announced that it has extended the Early Tender Date, the Withdrawal Deadline and the Expiration Date for its previously announced tender offers (collectively, the "Tender Offers" and each a "Tender Offer") to purchase for cash (1) any and all of its outstanding 4.200% Senior Notes due 2022, 3.500% Senior Notes due 2022, 3.400% Senior Notes due 2023 and 3.950% Senior Notes due 2024 (collectively, the "Any and All Notes") and (2) up to $1,000,000,000 aggregate purchase price (the "Aggregate Maximum Purchase Price") of its outstanding 4.700% Senior Notes due 2043, 5.000% Senior Notes due 2044, 4.000% Senior Notes due 2047, 4.125% Senior Notes due 2030 and 3.100% Senior Notes due 2026 (collectively, the "Maximum Tender Offer Notes," and the Maximum Tender Offer Notes together with the Any and All Notes, the "Securities").

PPL Capital Funding's obligation to accept and pay for Securities in the Tender Offers remains subject to the terms of the Tender Offers as described in the Offer to Purchase, dated June 14, 2021 (the "Offer to Purchase"). Each of such dates is being extended by one business day, as applicable securities regulations require minimum tender offer periods and the Juneteenth National Independence Day would not count as a business day as it became a federal holiday because of legislation enacted on June 17, 2021.

PPL Capital Funding commenced the Tender Offers on June 14, 2021. The new Early Tender Date will be 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on June 28, 2021; the new Withdrawal Deadline will be 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on June 28, 2021; the new Price Determination Date will be 10:00 a.m., New York City time, on June 29, 2021; and the new Expiration Date will be 11:59 p.m., New York City time, on July 13, 2021, in each case unless extended or earlier terminated by PPL Capital Funding, for each series of Securities. All other terms and conditions of the Tender Offers, as previously announced and described in the Offer to Purchase, remain unchanged.

The following table sets forth certain key dates of the Tender Offers, as extended. Further information may be found in the Offer to Purchase:





Key Date Calendar Date Commencement Date June 14, 2021 Early Tender Date 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on June 28, 2021, unless extended by PPL Capital Funding Withdrawal Deadline 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on June 28, 2021, unless extended by PPL Capital Funding Price Determination Date 10:00 a.m., New York City time, on June 29, 2021, unless extended by PPL Capital Funding Early Settlement Date The Early Settlement Date is currently expected to be June 30, 2021 Expiration Date 11:59 p.m., New York City time, on July 13, 2021, unless extended or earlier terminated by PPL Capital Funding Final Settlement Date The Final Settlement Date is currently expected to be July 15, 2021

The Tender Offers are being conducted pursuant to the Offer to Purchase, this press release and PPL Capital Funding's other press releases used in the Tender Offers.

J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, Barclays Capital Inc. and Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC are acting as the lead dealer managers for the Tender Offers (the "Lead Dealer Managers") and BMO Capital Markets Corp., RBC Capital Markets, LLC, Scotia Capital (USA) Inc. are acting as the co-dealer managers (the "Co-Dealer Managers"). The information agent and tender agent is D.F. King & Co., Inc. Copies of the Offer to Purchase and related offering materials are available by contacting D.F. King & Co., Inc. by telephone at (212) 269-5550 (for banks and brokers only), (877) 283-0323 (for all others toll-free), via email at [email protected]. Questions regarding the Tender Offers should be directed to J.P. Morgan Securities LLC at (212) 834-3424 (toll-free) or (866) 834-4666, Barclays Capital Inc. at (800) 438-3242 (toll-free) or (212) 528-7581 (collect), or Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC at (800) 624-1808 or (212) 761-1057. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell, a solicitation to buy or an offer to purchase or sell any securities. The Tender Offers are being made only pursuant to the Offer to Purchase and only in such jurisdiction as is permitted under applicable law.

About PPL

PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL), based in Allentown, Pennsylvania, is a leading U.S. energy company focused on providing electricity and natural gas safely, reliably and affordably to more than 2.5 million customers in the U.S. PPL's high-performing, award-winning utilities are addressing energy challenges head-on by building smarter, more resilient and more dynamic power grids and advancing sustainable energy solutions. For more information, visit www.pplweb.com.

Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

Statements contained in this news release, including without limitation terms and phrases that include "anticipate," "believe," "intend," "estimate," "expect," "continue," "should," "could," "may," "plan," "project," "predict," "will," "potential," "forecast," "target," "guidance," "outlook," or other similar terminology, are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Although PPL Corporation believes that the expectations and assumptions reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, these statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from the results discussed in the statements. The following are among the important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements: strategic acquisitions, dispositions, or similar transactions, including the sale of our U.K. utility business and the expected acquisition of The Narragansett Electric Company, and our ability to consummate these business transactions or realize expected benefits from them; the COVID-19 pandemic or other pandemic health events or other catastrophic events, including severe weather, and their effect on financial markets, economic conditions and our businesses; weather conditions affecting customer energy usage and operating costs; significant decreases in demand for electricity in the U.S.; the effect of any business or industry restructuring; the profitability and liquidity of PPL Corporation and its subsidiaries; new accounting requirements or new interpretations or applications of existing requirements; operating performance of our facilities; the length of scheduled and unscheduled outages at our generating plants; environmental conditions and requirements, and the related costs of compliance; system conditions and operating costs; development of new projects, markets and technologies; performance of new ventures; receipt of necessary government permits, approvals, rate relief and regulatory cost recovery; capital market conditions, including interest rates, and decisions regarding capital structure; the impact of state, federal or foreign investigations applicable to PPL Corporation and its subsidiaries; the outcome of litigation involving PPL Corporation and its subsidiaries; stock price performance; the market prices of debt and equity securities and the impact on pension income and resultant cash funding requirements for defined benefit pension plans; the securities and credit ratings of PPL Corporation and its subsidiaries; political, regulatory or economic conditions in states, regions or countries where PPL Corporation or its subsidiaries conduct business, including any potential direct or indirect effects of threatened or actual cyberattack, terrorism, or war or other hostilities; new state, federal or foreign legislation or regulatory developments, including new tax legislation; and the commitments and liabilities of PPL Corporation and its subsidiaries. Any such forward-looking statements should be considered in light of such important factors and in conjunction with factors and other matters discussed in PPL Corporation's Form 10-K and other reports on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

SOURCE PPL Capital Funding, Inc.

Related Links

https://www.pplweb.com/


SALT LAKE CITY, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Today patients, doctors, scientists, donors, and community members gathered to mark the opening of a major new resource for cancer care in Utah. The Senator Orrin G. Hatch Proton Therapy Center at Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) is the first of its kind in the Mountain West and one of only 37 such centers nationwide.

Aerial View of Huntsman Cancer Institute in Salt Lake City, UT

The $31 million, 7,450-square-foot addition adds to an array of radiation therapy technology and expertise available within University of Utah Health. The center was named to honor Senator Orrin G. Hatch's longstanding commitment to improve the landscape for cancer care in Utah. Senator Hatch was among the earliest supporters when Jon M. Huntsman Sr. announced his intent to build a major new cancer research center in Utah. "Huntsman Cancer Institute offers patients an indispensable palliativehope. Hope, that powerful medicine of the soul, is what animates the Institute's mission: hope that our doctors can find a cure; hope that our loved ones can find relief; and hope that someday, hopefully someday soon, we can defeat this disease once and for all," said Hatch. "I have no doubt that the Senator Orrin G. Hatch Proton Therapy Center will play a critical role in this effort. To have my name affiliated with an institution that is synonymous with hope and healing is among the greatest honors of my lifetime."

According to the National Cancer Institute, nearly half of all cancer patients receive some type of radiation therapy. Radiation therapy uses beams of energy to kill or shrink a tumor. It is often used in combination with other types of cancer treatment such as surgery and/or chemotherapy.

Proton therapy is a newer, more sophisticated type of radiation therapy that uses particles called protons instead of photons or electrons used in other radiation treatment. This difference reduces the radiation dose to nearby healthy tissue. Studies show patients have fewer and less serious side effects from proton therapy than traditional radiation therapy.

Up until now, the nearest proton therapy centers were >700 miles away. Utahns with cancer who needed proton therapy have had to temporarily relocate during the treatment course, which typically lasts four to six weeks, five days a week. Patients would have to choose between major disruptions to their lives, or a lifesaving treatment.

Now for the first time, patients in the state and surrounding areas can receive this treatment in Utah.

Proton therapy can be used to treat adults and children with many different types of cancer. Physicians consider many factors before recommending proton therapy. Those factors include the age of the patient, the health of the patient, and whether the tumor is located in an area of the body very sensitive to radiation.

"HCI's newly opened Center for Proton Therapy is a game changer for patients in our region," says HCI CEO Mary Beckerle, PhD. "In addition to this innovative clinical resource for patients, HCI will also contribute to advancing research on how proton therapy can be used to its fullest potential."

According to Utah Governor Spencer Cox, "For the residents of our state, having a treatment like this much closer to home and family is critical. The Center for Proton Therapy underscores the incredible innovative spirit in our state and brings another critical resource to our work to advance insights into the best ways to deliver world-class care to our citizens, which includes densely populated areas and vast frontiers and rural communities. Together, we will continue to band together to bring hope and healing to cancer patients across Utah and beyond. "

University of Utah interim president and senior vice president for health sciences Michael Good, MD, adds, "It is gratifying to see this major new resource on our campus and in our University of Utah Health system. The team effort that brought this to our campus highlights our approach to marry expertise and equipment with compassionate, patient-focused care."

The technology that delivers this treatment is housed in a three-story facility. The equipment includes a 110-ton gantry (a moveable framework that allows the equipment to rotate 190 degrees around the patient), which holds a 15-ton cyclotron. It accelerates protons to 2/3 the speed of light. This precision technology allows the treatment to target the tumor from the best angles and avoid important structures in the body. A team of specially trained medical doctors, technologists, technicians, and others work to safely deliver this treatment to adult and pediatric patients as part of their cancer care plan. The new center also includes state-of-the-art tumor targeting, with a special combination of proton treatment delivery and CT imaging for tumor targeting.

Peter Huntsman, chairman and CEO of Huntsman Cancer Foundation, says, "It is a fitting tribute to see this center named in honor of Senator Hatch. World-class facilities such as Huntsman Cancer Institute are not built overnight. This Institution, and the Center for Proton Therapy, are the culmination of decades of dedication from leaders like Senator Hatch; visionaries such as my parents, Jon and Karen Huntsman; and the gifted researchers, physicians, nurses, volunteers, and more than one million donors. It is this entire community that we celebrate this day."

Professor and chair of radiation oncology Dennis Shrieve, MD, PhD, credits the team who brought this to Utah. "With fewer than 40 proton therapy centers in the country, we recognized an incredible opportunity to deploy our extensive radiation therapy expertise at the University of Utah toward bringing this new resource to our patients. The team that brought this to Utah has been exceptionally dedicated. We are humbled by the opportunity to have this resource at HCI and look forward to collaborating with partners at University of Utah Health, Primary Children's Hospital, and across the region."

When fully operational, the center is projected to care for approximately 200 patients a year.

Project funds included donations to Huntsman Cancer Foundation, including major gifts from Zions Bank and the Semnani Family Foundation. The project was designed by Architectural Nexus and built by Jacobsen Construction. Key project partners include University of Utah Health, Mevion Medical Systems, Siemens, University of Utah Campus Design and Construction, and Huntsman Cancer Foundation.

SOURCE Huntsman Cancer Institute
OMER, Israel , June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Pulsenmore Ltd. (Pulsenmore), (TASE: PULS) an Israeli company, completed an initial public offering on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, raising NIS 137 million (USD 42 million) as part of the offering. The issue was carried out at a pre-money value of approximately NIS 670 million (USD 204 million). The offering was led by the underwriting companies of Leader Capital, Apex Issuances and Value Base. The company's shares began trading on the stock exchange on Tuesday morning, June 15, 2021.

Pulsenmore is pioneering the use of at home ultrasound. The Pulsenmore ES miniaturized ultrasound device docks with a smartphone, allowing creation of quality fetal scans at home that are interpreted clinically by professionals, thus providing reassurance to women with regard to the status of their unborn fetus. Women can use the device to "stream" fetal images to their doctor as part of a real-time telehealth session. Additionally, a women can scan her baby at-home, anytime, and send the images for professional interpretation.

Pulsenmore has a major commercial agreement with Clalit Health Services, which includes an initial order of 20,000 units of the product. Clalit, Israel's largest health fund, with over 4.6 million insured patients, is the first Healthcare Maintenance Organization (HMO) to integrate the device into its offerings for pregnant women. The company is currently negotiating with other health funds, distributors and large companies around the world. In the company's product pipeline are additional products for women's healthcare which will serve as growth engines.

The Pulsenmore ES Device is approved for sale in Israel and Europe. The company has submitted an application to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for US market clearance.

The company's CEO and founder, Dr. Elazar Sonnenschein, said today: "We thank the investing public for their great trust in the company, its products and its vision. We intend to develop the company into a global business. Our device introduces a higher level of availability into fetal monitoring, combining at-home ultrasound scanning with professional clinical review. We are driving a revolution in women's healthcare, bringing value to pregnant women and healthcare providers."

For further details:

Eisenberg-Eliasch:

Amir Eisenberg: +972-52-8260285

Naama Zellner: +972-54-5929150

SOURCE Pulsenmore Ltd.
Dr. Flores, who received her M.D. from Columbia University's College of Physicians and Surgeons in 1995 and her B.A. and B.S. from Brown University in 1990, currently serves as a director on the boards of both QuadMed and Quad. She is the daughter of Quad and QuadMed founder Harry V. Quadracci and the sister of current Quad Chairman, President & CEO Joel Quadracci.

"Kathryn is an empathetic, visionary leader who is passionate about expanding health care access through QuadMed's comprehensive care model, which provides high-quality, cost-effective health and wellness services to forward-thinking employers around the country," Joel Quadracci said. "Kathryn understands the world of medicine and has been deeply involved in COVID-19 response plans and QuadMed's business operations, as a member of the board of directors."

"It is my profound pleasure to serve as President of QuadMed and continue the legacy of premiere employer-powered health care envisioned by my father 30 years ago," Dr. Flores said. "I look forward to working with our exceptional team of providers, health and wellness center staff, corporate support teams, executive leadership, and QuadMed's board of directors as we continue to deliver population health improvements and cost savings as a trusted partner to the employers we serve."

John Bustle, MD, MHCM, Chief Medical Officer

Dr. John Bustle brings a unique combination of physician leadership and health care administrative skills to QuadMed. He holds a Master of Health Care Management Degree from Harvard University and is board certified in family medicine and obesity medicine. He began his career as a practicing physician and clinic medical director, ultimately serving as the health system Chief Executive Officer and Chief Medical Officer of Bates County Memorial Hospital in Missouri.

Dr. Bustle has been an advocate for innovative models of care including the patient centered medical home and multiple telehealth initiatives. He improved quality of care through partnerships and local initiatives including NCQA accreditation, restructuring quality management systems and electronic health record optimization. Most recently, he served as the MidAmerica Market Medical Executive for Cigna where he was the clinical leader responsible for improving the quality and affordability of care for a large member population.

Dr. Bustle will lead the organization's focus on health care's Quadruple Aim: delivering a better patient experience with improved outcomes at a lower cost while supporting provider engagement and satisfaction. He will build on the organization's current success in meeting and exceeding clinical benchmarks and optimizing the Epic electronic health record and all its functionality to deliver measurable improvements in the health and wellbeing of an employer's workforce.

Shannon Clark, DNP, FNP, Chief Operating Officer

Shannon Clark comes to QuadMed as an accomplished clinician and health care operations leader. She is a board certified family nurse practitioner with a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from Johns Hopkins University, and brings a great depth of experience in worksite health and wellness services, particularly in occupational health.

Clark was most recently Executive Vice President of operations for Medcor, overseeing more than 200 primary care/occupational health clinics across the U.S. for a variety of industries including distribution, manufacturing, pharmaceutical, retail, food, auto, film, and construction. Prior to Medcor, Clark was the owner and CEO of Synergy Health Center & Urgent Care, two high-volume urgent care and multispecialty clinics where she treated acute and chronic illness and injury within the specialties of family practice, urgent care, and orthopedics. Clark also provided expertise in the areas of occupational medicine, wellness, and workers' compensation services.

As the operations leader for QuadMed, she will focus on the continuous improvement of our health center operations and account management support with a focus on the integration of new technologies, programs and services to drive optimal cost, quality and outcomes for our employer partners.

"The addition of these two experienced leaders to our already strong leadership team enables us to advance our strategic growth plan, while enhancing our current client partnerships," Dr. Flores said. "In an industry ripe with mergers, acquisitions and consolidation, QuadMed is committed to remaining independent. We have a singular focus: to deliver innovative, high-value solutions to employers, and an exceptional patient experience for their employees, that results in improved health outcomes and reduced costs."

About QuadMed

QuadMed (quadmedical.com) is a nationally recognized provider of health and wellness solutions designed specifically for employers. The model features a full continuum of high-quality, patient-centered services proven to decrease costs by increasing accessibility and engagement. The company's 30-year track record of success is rooted in integrating prevention-focused, comprehensive primary care with leading-edge technology and analytics. The industry pioneer, QuadMed was founded in 1991 as a subsidiary of Quad.

About Quad

Quad (NYSE: QUAD) is a worldwide marketing solutions partner that leverages its 50-year heritage of platform excellence, innovation, strong culture and social purpose to create a better way for its clients, employees and communities. The Company's integrated marketing platform helps brands and marketers reduce complexity, increase efficiency and enhance marketing spend effectiveness. Quad provides its clients with unmatched scale for client on-site services and expanded subject expertise in marketing strategy, creative solutions, media deployment (which includes a strong foundation in print) and marketing management services. With a client-centric approach that drives the Company to continuously evolve its offering, combined with leading-edge technology and single-source simplicity, the Company has the resources and knowledge to help a wide variety of clients in multiple vertical industries, including retail, publishing, consumer technology, consumer packaged goods, financial services, insurance, healthcare and direct-to-consumer. Quad has multiple locations throughout North America, South America and Europe, and strategic partnerships in Asia and other parts of the world. For additional information visit www.QUAD.com .

SOURCE Quadmed LLC

Related Links

http://www.quadmedical.com


STAFFORD, Texas, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- RealNex is pleased to announce the expansion of its MarketPlace listing syndication capability. Spacelist, a leading commercial real estate listing platform, is the most recent syndication channel available. With this partnership, RealNex MarketPlace clients will be able to syndicate For Lease properties to Spacelist for exposure to their community.

RealNex

Spacelist offers a robust lead generation platform for all types of space for lease. Tenants can also be matched directly with brokers to help them find space. Spacelist's owners are also behind a very exciting new venture called SimpleLease, which streamlines the entire lease transaction process.

"RealNex is committed to driving commercial real estate transaction liquidity and marketing efficiencies" said RealNex CEO Jeffrey Finn. "By adding Spacelist to our marketing platform, our MarketPlace listings receive timely exposure to tenants and their agents actively seeking new locations. As we continue to add dynamic partners like Spacelist to our syndication channel, our clients receive more exposure than ever to the best prospects for their space availabilities."

With RealNex, brokers can manage their entire workflow. Driven from their robust commercial real estate centric CRM, users maintain all their property and client information to generate business and manage deals. They can readily leverage their data to create authoritative financial analyses and elegant marketing collateral as well promote offerings to a dynamic, growing marketplace.

"As the leading listing platform in Canada, we're excited to work with great partners like RealNex to help us accelerate our growth in the US. RealNex's suite of tools and services perfectly complements Spacelist's lead generation capabilities," noted Spacelist's CEO Steven Jaffe. "We are looking forward to building a long-term relationship with RealNex."

RealNex provides a complete set of solutions for commercial real estate professionals. The full RealNex platform also includes Immersive 3D Virtual Reality, VideoMaker and a powerful tenant rep tour book and leasing agent transaction management app.

About RealNex

RealNex is a leading commercial real estate technology solutions company. It strives to become the portal and marketplace for the commercial real estate industry by integrating sector-based solutions to improve marketplace efficiency, transparency, and liquidity. For more information, please visit https://realnex.com

About Spacelist

Founded in 2012, Spacelist's mission is to make commercial real estate more accessible and efficient. Spacelist offers a robust inventory of up-to-date commercial real estate listings in Canada and the US, making it easier than ever to find great space for your business.

For more information visit: https://www.spacelist.co/

Media Contact:

Oanh Nguyen

281.299.3161

[email protected]

SOURCE RealNex

Related Links

http://www.realnex.com


LOS ANGELES, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- reevert , an intelligent hybrid data backup and storage solution, today announced its partnership with Splashtop, a leader in next-generation remote access and remote support software. The partnership will extend reevert's intelligent ransomware-resilient data backup and management capabilities by providing secure remote access technology.

With the recent onslaught of ransomware attacks across multiple industries and the government's late-to-the-game attempts at introducing policy to protect companies from these attacks, businesses cannot afford to wait for policy intervention. This partnership creates the needed unified solution to tackle these cyberattacks regardless of physical location.

reevert and Splashtop's partnership enables managed service providers (MSPs) and system administrators to securely and efficiently access and support remote managed devices by way of encrypted control access through reevert's Monitoring Center. This integration with Splashtop's remote support platform will further allow users to utilize reevert's solution for security management and disaster recovery.

"Coupling Splashtop's system with our own extends our RMM capabilities and enables us to offer our clients both remote backup and remote device access," said Ara Aslanian, Co-Founder and CEO of reevert. "This partnership will give our clients faster access to securing a device or server once a hack attempt is identified as well providing the needed data backup to minimize the effectiveness of cyberattacks."

"Security is a priority at Splashtop, and partnering with reevert made logical sense for us," said Mark Lee, CEO and Co-Founder of Splashtop. "As a leader in the hybrid backup and storage solution space, reevert can help bring both secure remote backup and remote access capabilities to users in a unified platform. Our partnership will ensure that businesses are able to efficiently and safely continue operations remotely."

The implementation of Splashtop's remote access and support technology is part of the new reevert firmware 1.14.6.0 and reevert appliance OVA 1.14.6.0, available immediately. The update includes 10 Splashtop seats in the enterprise version and supported integration with both Windows and MacOS  additional Splashtop seats can be purchased from the reevert Cloud Panel licensing portal. More information on the recent reevert updates can be found here .

About reevert:

reevert is an intelligent hybrid backup and storage solution, designed from the ground up specifically to protect businesses against ransomware and data loss. It features fast hourly snapshots, safeguards your data and backups, and allows quick recovery. reevert can image servers and computers, protect network shares and local files, and offers offsite cloud data backups.

For more information, please visit reevert.com

About Splashtop

Based in Silicon Valley, Splashtop Inc. delivers next-generation remote access and remote support software and services for enterprises, academic and research institutions, government agencies, small businesses, MSPs, IT departments, and individuals. Splashtop's cloud-based, secure, and easily managed remote access approach is increasingly replacing legacy approaches such as virtual private networks (VPNs) while earning a stunning 93 Net Promoter Score (NPS), a standard for assessing customer satisfaction. More than 30 million users, including those in 85% of Fortune 500 enterprises, enjoy Splashtop products globally.

Visit Splashtop.com for more information.

Media Contact:

Maury Chasteau-Simien

[email protected]

(424) 230-3770

SOURCE reevert

Related Links

http://reevert.com


PANAMA, Republic Of Panama, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ --

New Local Treasury Bonds (Bonos del Tesoro) Offering

The Republic of Panama (" Panama "), rated Baa2/BBB/BBB-, announced today the commencement of the previously announced offering of new Treasury Bonds (Bonos del Tesoro) to be denominated in U.S. Dollars due 2031 (the " New Treasury Bonds " and such offering of New Treasury Bonds, the " New Treasury Bonds Offering "). HSBC Securities (USA) Inc., Santander Investment Securities Inc. and Scotia Capital (USA) Inc. (the " International Initial Purchasers ") and Valores Banistmo S.A. will serve as initial purchasers for the New Treasury Bonds Offering.

The International Initial Purchasers also announced today the commencement of an offering of the New Treasury Bonds pursuant to a GDN Supplement (as defined below) in the form of global depositary notes (the " GDNs ") to be issued by Citibank, N.A., in its capacity as GDN depositary (the " Depositary ").

The GDNs will represent New Treasury Bonds denominated in United States Dollars and will be issued in increments representing at least U.S.$1,000 in aggregate principal amount of New Treasury Bonds and integral multiples thereof. Each GDN will represent U.S.$1.00 in principal amount of New Treasury Bonds deposited with Citibank, N.A.  Panama Branch, as custodian for the Depositary.

The New Treasury Bonds Offering and GDNs offering are being made only to investors who are either (i) qualified institutional buyers within the meaning of Rule 144A under the Securities Act, or (ii) outside the United States in accordance with Regulation S under the Securities Act. The New Treasury Bonds Offering will be made solely by means of a separate offering memorandum related to that offering. The GDNs offering will be made solely by means of the New Treasury Bonds offering memorandum and the GDN Supplement (together, the " GDN Supplement "). Copies of either offering memorandum may be obtained by contacting: HSBC Securities (USA) Inc., by calling +1 (888) HSBC-4LM (U.S. toll free); Santander Investment Securities Inc., by calling +1 (855) 404-3636 (U.S. toll free); Scotia Capital (USA) Inc., by calling +1 (833) 498-1660 (U.S. toll free); or, solely for investors within Panama, Valores Banistmo S.A., by calling + (507) 321 7458. Copies of the GDN Supplement may be obtained by contacting the International Initial Purchasers as detailed above.

Application will be made to list the New Treasury Bonds on the Panama Stock Exchange. The New Treasury Bonds will not be listed on any stock exchange outside Panama. Application will be made to the Irish Stock Exchange plc trading as Euronext Dublin (" Euronext Dublin ") for the GDNs to be admitted to the Official List for trading on the Global Exchange Market, Euronext Dublin's exchange regulated market.

Tender Offer

Panama also announced today that it has commenced the previously announced offer to purchase for cash (the " Tender Offer ") its outstanding 4.000% Global Bonds due 2024 (CUSIP No. 698299 BD5, ISIN US698299BD54, Common Code 111287791) (the " Old Bonds ") in an aggregate principal amount that will not result in an aggregate Purchase Price that exceeds an amount determined by Panama in its sole discretion (the " Maximum Purchase Amount "). As of June 23, 2021, there were U.S. $1.25 billion Old Bonds outstanding. The purchase price to be paid per U.S. $1,000 principal amount of Old Bonds that are tendered and accepted pursuant to the Tender Offer will be U.S. $1,097.00. Holders of the Old Bonds participating in the Tender Offer will also receive any accrued and unpaid interest on their Old Bonds up to (but excluding) the Tender Offer Settlement Date (as defined below). The Tender Offer is made subject to the terms and conditions contained in the Offer to Purchase, dated June 23, 2021 (the " Offer to Purchase "). The Tender Offer is conditioned upon the pricing, but not settlement, of the issue of New Treasury Bonds by Panama in an amount and on terms and subject to conditions acceptable to Panama, which pricing is expected to occur today. All capitalized terms used but not defined under the heading "Tender Offer" in this communication have the meanings specified in the Offer to Purchase.

The tender period (the " Tender Period ") will commence at the open of market today, New York City time, on Wednesday, June 23, 2021, and, unless extended or earlier terminated by Panama in its sole discretion, the Tender Period will expire at 12:00 p.m., New York City time, today for Non-Preferred Tenders and at 2:00 p.m., New York City time, today for Preferred Tenders.

Panama expects to announce the Maximum Purchase Amount, the aggregate principal amount of Preferred Tenders and Non-Preferred Tenders that have been accepted and whether any proration has occurred on Thursday, June 24, 2021, or as soon as possible thereafter. The settlement of the Tender Offer is scheduled to occur on Friday, June 25, 2021 (the " Tender Offer Settlement Date "), and is subject to change without notice.

During the Tender Period, a holder of Old Bonds may place orders to tender Old Bonds (" Tender Orders ") only through HSBC Securities (USA) Inc., Santander Investment Securities Inc. or Scotia Capital (USA) Inc. (the " Dealer Managers "). If a holder does not have an account with a Dealer Manager and desires to tender its Old Bonds, it may do so through a broker, dealer, commercial bank, trust company, other financial institution or other custodian that has an account with a Dealer Manager. Holders will NOT be able to submit tenders through Euroclear Bank S.A./N.V., Clearstream Banking, societe anonyme, Luxembourg or the Depository Trust Company (" DTC ") systems. Holders in Panama will NOT be able to submit tenders through Central Latinoamericana de Valores S.A.

Scotia Capital (USA) Inc., as the billing and delivering bank for the Tender Offer (in such capacity, the " Billing and Delivering Bank "), will consolidate all Tender Orders, and accept Old Bonds for purchase pursuant to the terms and subject to conditions in the Offer to Purchase on behalf of Panama, subject to proration as described in the Offer to Purchase, on Thursday, June 24, 2021, or as soon as possible thereafter. Failure to deliver Old Bonds on time may result, in Panama's sole discretion, in any of the following: (i) the cancellation of your tender and your becoming liable for any damages resulting from that failure, and/or (ii) the delivery of a buy-in notice for the purchase of such Old Bonds, executed in accordance with customary brokerage practices for corporate fixed income securities, and/or (iii) in the case of Preferred Tender Orders, the cancellation of your tender and your remaining obligated to purchase your allocation of New Treasury Bonds in respect of your related Indication of Interest (as defined below).

To the extent proration occurs, the Billing and Delivering Bank will accept Old Bonds with appropriate adjustments to avoid purchase of Old Bonds in principal amounts other than Permitted Tender Amounts. Each holder submitting an Indication of Interest and tendering Old Bonds shall be deemed to represent to Panama, the Dealer Managers and the Billing and Delivering Bank that such holder held, from the time of its submission of its Tender Order through the Expiration Time, at least the amount of Old Bonds as are being tendered. " Indication of Interest " means the submission to the initial purchasers of the New Treasury Bonds Offering, during the Tender Period, of a firm bid for an amount certain of New Treasury Bonds (specifically, the principal amount of New Treasury Bonds is equal to the aggregate purchase price of Old Bonds tendered divided by the price of the New Treasury Bonds) at an indicated spread over the applicable Treasury bond yield.

All Old Bonds that are tendered pursuant to Tender Orders placed through a Dealer Manager and are accepted by Panama will be purchased by the Billing and Delivering Bank on behalf of Panama directly or, if the tendering holder does not have an account with the Billing and Delivering Bank, through the Dealer Manager with which such holder placed a Tender Order. There is no letter of transmittal for the Tender Offer. Old Bonds held through DTC must be delivered for settlement no later than 3:00 p.m., New York City time, on the Tender Offer Settlement Date. If a holder holds Old Bonds through Euroclear or Clearstream, the latest process it can use to deliver its Old Bonds is the overnight process, one day prior to the Tender Offer Settlement Date; holders may not use the optional daylight process. Holders will not have withdrawal rights with respect to any tenders of Old Bonds in the Tender Offer after the expiration of the Tender Period. Old Bonds accepted for purchase will be settled on a delivery versus payment basis in accordance with customary brokerage practices for corporate fixed income securities (i.e., a "desk to desk" or "broker to broker" trade).

Panama may, but is not required to, issue and sell New Treasury Bonds to holders who validly tender their Old Bonds pursuant to the Tender Offer and place firm orders for New Treasury Bonds during the Tender Period (as well as investors that are not participating in the Tender Offer). If Panama determines to issue and sell New Treasury Bonds to such holders, the scheduled settlement date for the New Treasury Bonds is expected to occur on Wednesday, June 30, 2021.

The Tender Offer is subject to Panama's right, at its sole discretion and subject to applicable law, to extend, terminate, withdraw, or amend the Tender Offer at any time. Each of Panama and the Dealer Managers reserves the right, in the sole discretion of each of them, not to accept Tender Orders for any reason.

The Offer to Purchase may be downloaded from the Information Agent's website at www.dfking.com/panama or from any of the Dealer Managers.

The Dealer Managers for the Tender Offer are:

HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. Santander Investment Securities Inc. Scotia Capital (USA) Inc. Attn: Global Liability Management Group Attn: Liability Management Group Attn: Liability Management Group 452 Fifth Avenue 45 East 53rd Street 250 Vesey Street New York, New York 10018 New York, New York 10022 New York, New York 10281 Collect: +1( 212) 525-5552 Collect: +1 (212) 940-1442 Toll-Free: +1 (833) 498-1660 Toll-Free: +1 (888) HSBC-4LM Toll-Free: +1 (855) 404-3636



The Billing and Delivering Bank for this Tender Offer is: Scotia Capital (USA) Inc.

Questions regarding the Tender Offer may be directed to the Dealer Managers at the above contact.

The New Treasury Bonds Offering and the GDNs offering will be made only to investors who are either (i) qualified institutional buyers ("QIBs") within the meaning of Rule 144A under the Securities Act, or (ii) outside the United States in accordance with Regulation S under the Securities Act (each investor meeting such criteria, a "Qualified Investor"). The New Treasury Bonds will be made solely by means of a separate offering memorandum related to that offering, which is available only to Qualified Investors. The GDNs offering will be made solely by means of the New Treasury Bonds offering memorandum and the GDN Supplement. The initial purchasers for the New Treasury Bonds Offering, the Dealer Managers or the Information Agent, as the case may be, will arrange to send you the offering memorandum related to the New Treasury Bonds Offering if you request it by calling any one of them at the numbers set forth above.

Important Notice: The distribution of materials relating to the New Treasury Bonds Offering, the GDNs offering and the Tender Offer and the transactions contemplated by the New Treasury Bonds Offering, GDNs offering and the Tender Offer may be restricted by law in certain jurisdictions. Each of the New Treasury Bonds Offering, GDNs offering and the Tender Offer is void in all jurisdictions where it is prohibited. If materials relating to the New Treasury Bonds Offering. GDNs offering or the Tender Offer come into a holder's possession, such holder is required by Panama to inform himself or herself of and to observe all of these restrictions. The materials relating to the New Treasury Bonds Offering, GDNs offering or the Tender Offer, including this communication, do not constitute, and may not be used in connection with, an offer or solicitation in any place where offers or solicitations are not permitted by law. If a jurisdiction requires that the New Treasury Bonds Offering, GDNs offering or the Tender Offer be made by a licensed broker or dealer and a Dealer Manager or any affiliate of a Dealer Manager is a licensed broker or dealer in that jurisdiction, the New Treasury Bonds Offering, GDNs offering or the Tender Offer, as the case may be, shall be deemed to be made by the Dealer Manager or such affiliate on behalf of Panama in that jurisdiction. Owners who may lawfully participate in the Tender Offer in accordance with the terms thereof are referred to as "holders."

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities nor will there be any sale of these securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or other jurisdiction.

References below to the New Treasury Bonds Offering shall include the GDNs offering and references to the New Treasury Bonds shall include the GDNs.

Belgium

In Belgium, the New Treasury Bonds Offering and the Tender Offer are not directly or indirectly, being made to, or for the account of, any person other than to qualified investors (gekwalificeerde beleggers/investisseurs qualifies) within the meaning of Article 2(e) Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 June 2017 on the prospectus to be published when securities are offered to the public or admitted to trading on a regulated market, and repealing Directive 2003/71/EC. (Reglement (UE) 2017/1129 du 14 juin 2017 du Parlement europeen et du Conseil concernant le prospectus a publier en cas d'offre au public de valeurs mobilieres ou en vue de l'admission de valeurs mobilieres a la negociation sur un marche reglemente, et abrogeant la directive 2003/71/CE / Verordening (EU) 2017/1129 van het Europees Parlement en de Raad van 14 juni 2017 betreffende het prospectus dat moet worden gepubliceerd wanneer effecten aan het publiek worden aangeboden of tot de handel op een gereglementeerde markt worden toegelaten en tot intrekking van Richtlijn 2003/71/EG), as amended or replaced from time to time (Belgian Qualified Investor), that do not qualify as consumers (consumenten/consommateurs) within the meaning of Article I.1, 2 of the Belgian Code of Economic Law of February 28, 2013 (Wetboek van economisch recht/Code de droit economique), as amended or replaced from time to time (Consumers). A Consumer within the meaning of Article I.1, 2 of the Belgian Code of Economic Law is any natural person who is acting for purposes which are outside their trade, business, craft or profession.

As a result, the New Treasury Bonds Offering and the Tender Offer do not constitute a public takeover bid pursuant to Articles 3, 1, 1 and 6,  1 of the Belgian law of April 1, 2007 on public takeover bids (Wet op de openbare overnamebiedingen/Loi relative aux offres publiques d'acquisition), as amended or replaced from time to time.

Consequently, the New Treasury Bonds Offering and the Tender Offer and any material relating thereto have not been and will not be, notified or submitted to, nor approved by the Belgian Financial Services and Markets Authority (Autoriteit voor Financiele Diensten en Markten/Autorite des Services et Marches Financiers) pursuant to the Belgian laws and regulations applicable to the public offering or tendering of securities.

The New Treasury Bonds Offering and the Tender Offer as well as any materials relating thereto may not be advertised, nor distributed, directly or indirectly, to any person in Belgium other than Belgian Qualified Investors acting for their own account who are not Consumers, and may not be used in connection with any offering in Belgium except as may otherwise be permitted by law.

Canada

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities nor will there be any sale of the New Treasury Bonds or the Tender Offer in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or other jurisdiction. The offering of the New Treasury Bonds will be made only by means of the offering memorandum and in Canada, under applicable exemptions from any prospectus or registration requirements.

The New Treasury Bonds may be sold and the Tender Offer is made in Canada only to purchasers purchasing, or deemed to be purchasing, as principal that are accredited investors, as defined in National Instrument 45-106 Prospectus Exemptions or subsection 73.3(1) of the Securities Act (Ontario), and are permitted clients, as defined in National Instrument 31-103 Registration Requirements, Exemptions and Ongoing Registrant Obligations, and who are not individuals. Any resale of the New Treasury Bonds must be made in accordance with an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the prospectus requirements of applicable Canadian securities laws.

European Economic Area

In relation to each Member State of the EEA, no offer of the New Treasury Bonds to the public may be made in that Member State other than under the following exemptions under the Prospectus Regulation: (a) to any legal entity which is a qualified investor as defined in the Prospectus Regulation; (b) to fewer than 150 natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined in the Prospectus Regulation), subject to obtaining the prior consent of the initial purchasers for any such offer; or (c) in any other circumstances falling within Article 1(4) of the Prospectus Regulation, provided that no such offer of the New Treasury Bonds shall result in a requirement for Panama or any of the initial purchasers to publish a prospectus pursuant to Article 3 of the Prospectus Regulation and each person who initially acquires any of the New Treasury Bonds or to whom any offer is made will be deemed to have represented, warranted and agreed to and with Panama and the initial purchasers that it is a qualified investor within the meaning of Article 2(e) of the Prospectus Regulation.

For the purposes of this provision, the expression an "offer of the New Treasury Bonds to the public" in relation to any of the New Treasury Bonds in any Member State means the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the Offer to Purchase or the New Treasury Bonds Offering and the New Treasury Bonds to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to purchase or subscribe for any of the New Treasury Bonds and the expression "Prospectus Regulation" means Regulation (EU) 2017/1129, as amended.

United Kingdom

Neither this communication, the Offer to Purchase nor any other offer material relating to the Tender Offer or the New Treasury Bonds Offering has been approved by an authorized person for the purposes of section 21 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (the "FSMA"). This communication, the Offer to Purchase and the offering memorandum are only being distributed to and are only directed at (i) persons who are outside the UK or (ii) investment professionals falling within Article 19(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005, (as amended, the "Order") or (iii) high net worth entities, and other persons to whom it may lawfully be communicated, falling within Article 49(2)(a) to (d) of the Order (all such other persons together being referred to as "relevant persons"). Any investment or investment activity to which the Offer to Purchase or the New Treasury Bonds Offering relates will only be available to, and any invitation, offer or agreement to subscribe, purchase or otherwise acquire the same will be engaged in only with, relevant persons. The New Treasury Bonds will only be available to, and any invitation, offer or agreement to subscribe, purchase or otherwise acquire the New Treasury Bonds will be engaged in only with, relevant persons. Any person who is not a relevant person should not act or rely on the Offer to Purchase, the offering memorandum or any of their contents.

No offer of the New Treasury Bonds to the public may be made in the United Kingdom other than under the following exemptions under the UK Prospectus Regulation: (a) to any legal entity which is a qualified investor as defined in the UK Prospectus Regulation; (b) to fewer than 150 natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined in the UK Prospectus Regulation), subject to obtaining the prior consent of the initial purchasers for any such offer; or (c) in any other circumstances falling within section 86 of the FSMA, provided that no such offer of the New Treasury Bonds shall result in a requirement for Panama or any of the initial purchasers to publish a prospectus pursuant to section 86 of the FSMA and each person who initially acquires any of the New Treasury Bonds or to whom any offer is made will be deemed to have represented, warranted and agreed to and with Panama and the initial purchasers that it is a qualified investor within the meaning of Article 2(e) of the UK Prospectus Regulation.

For the purposes of this provision, the expression an "offer of the New Treasury Bonds to the public" in relation to any of the New Treasury Bonds means the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the Offer to Purchase or New Treasury Bonds Offering and the New Treasury Bonds to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to purchase or subscribe for any of the New Treasury Bonds and the expression "UK Prospectus Regulation" means Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 as it forms part of domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018.

Germany

The Tender Offer is made in the Federal Republic of Germany ("Germany") to existing holders of the Old Bonds only.

The offering memorandum does not constitute a prospectus compliant with the Prospectus Regulation and does therefore not allow any public offering in Germany. No action has been or will be taken in Germany that would permit a public offering of the New Treasury Bonds, or distribution of an offering memorandum or any other offering material relating to the New Treasury Bonds. In particular, no prospectus (Prospekt) within the meaning of the Prospectus Regulation and the German Securities Trading Act (Wertpapierprospektgesetz) or any other applicable laws in Germany has been or will be published in Germany, nor has any prospectus or the prospectus supplement been filed with or approved by the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (Bundesanstalt fur Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht) for publication in Germany.

The offering memorandum is strictly for use of the person who has received it. It may not be forwarded to other persons or published in Germany.

Hong Kong

With respect to persons in Hong Kong, the New Treasury Bonds Offering and the Tender Offer are only made to, and are only capable of acceptance by, "professional investors" within the meaning of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571) of Hong Kong (the "SFO") and any rules made thereunder. No person or entity may issue or have in its possession for the purposes of issue, whether in Hong Kong or elsewhere, any advertisement, invitation or document relating to the New Treasury Bonds, Old Bonds or the Tender Offer, which is directed at, or the contents of which are likely to be accessed or read by, the public of Hong Kong (except if permitted to do so under the securities laws of Hong Kong) other than with respect to the Old Bonds which are or are intended to be tendered, or New Treasury Bonds which are intended to be purchased, only by persons outside Hong Kong or only by "professional investors" as defined in the SFO and any rules made under thereunder.

Japan

The New Treasury Bonds have not been and will not be registered under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act of Japan (Act No. 25 of 1948, as amended, the "Financial Instruments and Exchange Act") and each manager has represented and agreed that it has not offered or sold, and will not offer or sell any New Treasury Bonds, directly or indirectly, in Japan or to, or for the benefit of, any resident of Japan (as defined under Article 6, Paragraph 1, Item 5 of the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act of Japan (Act No. 228 of 1949, as amended)), or to others for re-offering or resale, directly or indirectly, in Japan or to, or for the benefit of, a resident of Japan, except pursuant to an exemption from the registration requirements of, and otherwise in compliance with, the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act and any other applicable laws, regulations and ministerial guidelines of Japan.

Luxembourg

In Luxembourg, this announcement has been prepared on the basis that the offer of the New Treasury Bonds and the Tender Offer will be made pursuant to an exemption under Article 1 (4) of the Prospectus Regulation from the requirement to produce a prospectus for offers of securities.

Malaysia

Nothing in the offering memorandum constitutes the making available, or offer for subscription or purchase, or invitation to subscribe for or purchase, or sale, of the New Treasury Bonds in Malaysia. No approval, authorization or recognition from, or registration with, the Securities Commission of Malaysia ("SC") has been or will be obtained for the making available, offer for subscription or purchase of, or invitation to subscribe for or purchase, or sale, of the New Treasury Bonds or any other securities under the Capital Markets and Services Act 2007 to any persons in Malaysia. Neither the offering memorandum or any amendment or supplement, disclosure document or other offering document has been or will be approved by, or registered or lodged with, the SC, Registrar of Companies, or any other authority in connection with the offering or invitation in Malaysia. Accordingly, no offering or invitation in respect of the New Treasury Bonds or any other securities is or will be made in Malaysia pursuant to the offering memorandum or any amendment or supplement thereto. The offering memorandum or any amendment or supplement thereto or any other offering document in relation to the New Treasury Bonds may not be circulated or distributed in Malaysia, whether directly or indirectly, for the purpose of making available, or offer for subscription or purchase, or invitation to subscribe for or purchase, or sale, of the New Treasury Bonds, and no person may offer for purchase any of the New Treasury Bonds directly or indirectly to anyone in Malaysia. The New Treasury Bonds will only be made available or offered or sold exclusively to persons outside Malaysia.

Panama

The Tender Offer, the offering memorandum, the Old Bonds and the New Treasury Bonds have not been and will not be registered with the Superintendency of Securities Markets of the Republic of Panama under Decree Law 1 of 1999, as amended, as they are exempt from registration. Therefore, the Old Bonds and the New Treasury Bonds may be publicly offered and sold in the Republic of Panama to any investor pursuant to registration exemptions applicable to government securities.

Singapore

The New Treasury Bonds Offering offering memorandum and the Offer to Purchase have not been and will not be registered as a prospectus with the Monetary Authority of Singapore. The Offer to Purchase does not constitute an offering of securities in Singapore pursuant to the Securities and Futures Act, Chapter 289 of Singapore (the " SFA "). The New Treasury Bonds will not be offered or sold or cause that such New Treasury Bonds to be made the subject of an invitation for subscription or purchase and will not offer or sell such New Treasury Bonds or cause such New Treasury Bonds to be made the subject of an invitation for subscription or purchase, and has not circulated or distributed, nor will it circulate or distribute, the offering memorandum or any other document or material in connection with the offer or sale, or invitation for subscription or purchase, of such New Treasury Bonds, whether directly or indirectly, to persons in Singapore other than (i) to an institutional investor (as defined in Section 4A of the SFA) under Section 274 of the SFA, (ii) to a relevant person (as defined in Section 275(2) of the SFA) pursuant to Section 275(1), or any person pursuant to Section 275(1A), and in accordance with the conditions specified in Section 275 of the SFA and (where applicable) Regulation 3 of the Securities and Futures (Classes of Investors) Regulations 2018 of Singapore or (iii) otherwise pursuant to, and in accordance with the conditions of, any other applicable provision of the SFA.

Where the New Treasury Bonds are subscribed or purchased in reliance on an exemption under Sections 274 or 275 of the SFA, the New Treasury Bonds shall not be sold within the period of six months from the date of the initial acquisition of the bonds, except to any of the following persons:

an institutional investor (as defined in Section 4A of the SFA);





a relevant person (as defined in Section 275(2) of the SFA); or





any person pursuant to an offer referred to in Section 275(1A) of the SFA, unless expressly specified otherwise in Section 276(7) of the SFA or Regulation 37A of the Securities and Futures (Offers of Investments) (Securities and Securities-based Derivatives Contracts)

Regulations 2018 of Singapore.

Where the New Treasury Bonds are subscribed or purchased under Section 275 of the SFA by a relevant person which is:

a corporation (which is not an accredited investor (as defined in Section 4A of the SFA)) the sole business of which is to hold investments and the entire share capital of which is owned by one or more individuals, each of whom is an accredited investor; or





a trust (where the trustee is not an accredited investor) whose sole purpose is to hold investments and each beneficiary of the trust is an individual who is an accredited investor,

securities or securities-based derivatives contracts (each term as defined in Section 2(1) of the SFA) of that corporation or the beneficiaries' rights and interest (howsoever described) in that trust shall not be transferred within six months after that corporation or that trust has acquired the New Treasury Bonds pursuant to an offer made under Section 275 of the SFA except:

to an institutional investor or to a relevant person as defined in Section 275(2) of the SFA, or (in the case of such corporation) where the transfer arises from an offer referred to in 276(3)(i)(B) of the SFA or (in the case of such trust) where the transfer arises from an offer referred to in Section 276(4)(i)(B) of the SFA;





where no consideration is or will be given for the transfer;





where the transfer is by operation of law;





as specified in Section 276(7) of the SFA; or





as specified in Regulation 37A of the Securities and Futures (Offers of Investments) (Securities and Securities-based Derivatives Contracts) Regulations 2018 of Singapore .

South Korea

The New Treasury Bonds have not been and will not be registered with the Financial Services Commission of the Republic of Korea ("Korea") for public offering in Korea under the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act of Korea and its subordinate decrees and regulations. None of the New Treasury Bonds may be offered, sold or delivered, directly or indirectly, or offered or sold to any person for reoffering or resale, directly or indirectly, in Korea or to any resident of Korea (as defined under the Foreign Exchange Transaction Law of Korea) except pursuant to applicable laws and regulations of Korea. In addition, no tender offer for any bonds in exchange for the New Treasury Bonds may be made, directly or indirectly, in Korea or to any resident of Korea except pursuant to applicable laws and regulations of Korea.

Switzerland

The offering memorandum is not intended to constitute an offer or solicitation to purchase or invest in the New Treasury Bonds described therein in Switzerland, except as permitted by law. The New Treasury Bonds may not be publicly offered, directly or indirectly, in Switzerland within the meaning of the Swiss Financial Services Act ("FinSA") and will not be admitted to any trading venue (exchange or multilateral trading facility) in Switzerland.

Neither the offering memorandum nor any other offering or marketing material relating to the New Treasury Bonds constitutes a prospectus as such term is understood pursuant to the FinSA, and neither the offering memorandum nor any other offering or marketing material relating to the New Treasury Bonds may be publicly distributed or otherwise made publicly available in Switzerland.

United Arab Emirates

The offering memorandum is being provided at written request and is not intended to constitute an offer, sale or delivery of bonds or other securities under the laws of the United Arab Emirates. The New Treasury Bonds have not been and will not be approved or licensed by the UAE Central Bank, the UAE Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA), the Dubai Financial Services Authority, the Financial Services Regulatory Authority or any other relevant licensing authorities in the UAE, and accordingly does not constitute a public offer of securities in the UAE in accordance with the UAE Commercial Companies Law (Federal Law No. 2 of 2015 (as amended)), SCA Resolution No. 3 R.M. of 2017 Regulating Promotions and Introductions or otherwise. Accordingly, the New Treasury Bonds may not be offered to the public in the United Arab Emirates (including the Dubai International Financial Centre and Abu Dhabi Global Market)

Contact information:

D. F. King & Co., Inc.

48 Wall Street, 22nd Floor

New York, NY 10005

E-mail: [email protected]

Call Collect: +1 (212) 269-5550

Call Toll-Free: +1 (866) 829-1035

Website: www.dfking.com/panama

ANY DISCLAIMERS OR OTHER NOTICES THAT MAY APPEAR AFTER THIS MESSAGE ARE NOT APPLICABLE TO THIS COMMUNICATION AND SHOULD BE DISREGARDED. SUCH DISCLAIMERS OR OTHER NOTICES WERE AUTOMATICALLY GENERATED AS A RESULT OF THIS COMMUNICATION BEING SENT VIA BLOOMBERG OR ANOTHER EMAIL SYSTEM.

SOURCE Republic of Panama
NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, students from the FIT Cosmetics and Fragrance Marketing and Management (CFMM) master's degree program present their capstone projectThe Future of Consumerisma two-part study spanning 16 countries that examines how COVID-19 triggered shifts in consumer mindsets and identifies its ensuing impact on brands and retailers in a post-pandemic world.

The 2021 cohort completed an in-depth analysis consisting of primary and secondary research; field work; original consumer research inclusive of over 1,600 respondents; and interviews with 28 market experts across five continents. Recognized internationally as a think tank of innovation, the two-year graduate business program educates emerging executives from the beauty industry through advanced coursework and global field studies that focus on identifying marketing best practices across all consumer industries. To register for today's webinar, click here . The students will also present their findings at CosmoProf North America on August 30 in Las Vegas.

Part One of The Future of Consumerism study, titled The Future of Global Consumption, addresses the shift from shareholder-led capitalism to consumer-led capitalism. Part Two, The Chameleon Consumer, examines the evolving values of U.S. consumers and their emotional relationship to purchasing. Sample highlights from the research are included below.

"Each year 700 industry attendees come to FIT to review the findings of these emerging leaders on issues challenging the consumer products sector," Stephan Kanlian said, founder and professor of the Cosmetics and Fragrance Marketing and Management graduate program. "FIT students go on to present their capstone research to executive leadership within their own companies and at industry conferences around the world. This year's research explores the permanent shifts in consumer values, thinking, and purchase behavior caused by the global pandemic, easily the greatest disruption in corporate strategy and individual behavior patterns we are likely to see in our lifetimes."

CFMM Market Opportunity #1: The Circular Economy

We live in a linear economy in which consumers and brands are on a never-ending cycle of take, consume, and dispose. With a circular economy, brands can be value-driven and allow consumers the opportunity to disrupt the old pattern with a model of "make, use, return, and repeat." Today, only 9% of the global economy is circular and the opportunity for brands to profit from the untapped 91% will be valued at $4.5 trillion by 2030. (Accenture)

Consumer Behavior: The Future of Traceability

Consumers track all aspects of their lives and are looking to make better choices for their futures. Therefore, brands need to put the consumer's core values at the center of their business and strategy.

66% of global consumers align themselves with brands that mirror their values. (FIT Lifestyle Survey, 2021)

88% of global consumers want brands to help them make a difference. ( Forbes , 2019)

, 2019) 71% of global consumers are willing to pay a premium for brands that provide traceability. (IBM Institute of Business Value, 2020)

Recommendation: CFMM's Personal Impact Index (PII)

Brands must value consumers over all other stakeholders. Research led the students to create an indexing tool, dubbed the "Personal Impact Index (PII)," through which consumers can track every purchase to see how it aligns with their social values, such as transparency and sustainability. In turn, consumers with higher PII scores can unlock higher credit scores as a result of participating in ethical consumption as responsible global citizens. Simultaneously, brands can leverage PII data to predict future purchasing behavior and marketing opportunities.

CFMM Market Opportunity #2 : Understanding the Post-COVID Consumer

How can brands in the U.S. pinpoint consumers' shape-shifting values? Brands can better serve their consumer audience by identifying which of the following CFMM-coined values is driving their purchasing decisions:

"For Me" values: introverted and self-serving

"Fulfillment" values: rewarding and community-building

"Fundamental" values: logical and practical

Consumer Behavior: Chameleon Consumers

Today's consumer is like a chameleon, constantly changing their purchasing behavior based on mood, situation, and core values.

75% of U.S. consumers believe their purchasing decisions shift based on the circumstance they are in. (FIT Lifestyle Survey, 2021)

Recommendation: CFMM's Chameleon Credo

The CFMM students developed a brand survival guide, coined the Chameleon Credo, which brands must follow to future-proof their businesses:

Deliver newness that's intentional when it comes to communication, innovation, and buying channels.

62% of U.S. consumers say brands need less assortment and higher quality. (FIT CFMM Consumer Values and Behaviors Survey, 2021)

Predict the shift by understanding what a consumer values the most at a particular moment (flexibility, quality, wellness, time and convenience, price, or community)

100% of the time, flexibility was marked as a top 3 driver in all purchase scenarios presented to survey respondents. (FIT CFMM Mood Mapping Survey, 2021)

Transform the experience by offering interactivity from the comfort of the consumer's home.

7 out of 10 respondents prefer shopping online because it's convenient for them. (FIT Shopping Experience Survey, 2021)

The class of 2021's respective white papers can be viewed upon request.

About CFMM

The FIT Master of Professional Studies (MPS) in Cosmetics and Fragrance Marketing and Management (CFMM) program, one of seven advanced degree programs in FIT's School of Graduate Studies, was developed in collaboration with industry as a leadership development program for outstanding mid-career executives. Global luxury firms including Chanel, Shiseido, Estee Lauder, L'Oreal and LVMH, and global consumer packaged goods companies including Coty and Unilever, nominate talented emerging executives to participate in the two-year program. The CFMM program has become the beauty industry's recognized think tank, producing high-level research presented to industry executives and organizations, and during specialized panels, symposia, and forums in both academia and industry. Visit fitnyc.edu/cfmm .

About FIT

FIT, a part of the State University of New York, has been an internationally recognized leader in career education in design, fashion, business, and technology for 75 years. Providing an uncommon blend of practical experience and theory on a foundation of arts and sciences, FIT offers a wide range of affordable programs that foster innovation, collaboration, and a global perspective. FIT draws on its New York City location to provide a vibrant, creative environment for learning, exploration, and research. The college offers nearly 50 majors and grants AAS, BFA, BS, MA, MFA, and MPS degrees, preparing students for professional success and leadership in the new creative economy. Visit fitnyc.edu .

Ivana Cepeda, Media Relations Specialist

[email protected]

SOURCE Fashion Institute of Technology

Related Links

http://www.fitnyc.edu


TOKYO AND NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Russell Simmons, the Founder of Def Jam Records (now the largest music label under Universal Music), collaborates with TOKAU to exclusively launch a NFT collection aptly named "Masterminds of Hip Hop" built alongside with legendary musicians that were the original rappers of Hip Hop. The exclusive Russell Simmons Tokau joint venture aims to give credit and compensation back to the original musicians that help create the multi-billion dollar industry it is today.

"We are super excited to partner with Russell to create this one of a kind NFT which will recognize the creators of Hip Hop," says Dennis Jia (also known as Dennis Tok the fearless leader and brainchild of the Tokau family) Co-CEO of Tokau. "Our goal is to give credit back to the original artists."

"I often think of the early days of pre-recorded hip hop when it was only a performance art. There were rappers and DJs who pioneered the space and made it so popular that the recording of rap artists was eminent. None of them has received the accolades that I believe they deserve and this is my chance to use a new vehicle to revisit and repay these amazing artists while they are still living," says Russell Simmons. "Masterminds of Hip Hop aims to give credit back to the creators of the cultural movement."

As part of the venture, Russell Simmons will work alongside with Tokau to sign more than 15 of the original pioneers in Hip Hop that founded Hip Hop culture. "Masterminds of Hip Hop" will be a collector's series broken into 2 phases  Pre-Recorded; Early Recording, releasing no less than 40 exclusive NFTs. Each NFT will be a special collectible that is co-designed and co-curated by Russell Simmons, the artist and the Tokau team and will capture a piece of Hip Hop history that is behind the scenes with stories told by the artist themselves. Together, the entire collection showcases a wholistic story of the origins and development of Hip Hop that became the most powerful part of global musical culture today.

"Artists now have a powerful way to distribute their art using cryptocurrency and blockchain technology. This reflects a new phase of how fintech and blockchain technology merges with art for the benefit of all," say Miranda Tan, spokesperson for Tokau.

Tokau is the world's leading platform that allows Celebrities and Influencers to interact with their fans using blockchain NFT technology. Tokau helps celebrities and influencers to monetize their IP through a NFT. Tokau builds communication channels between celebrities and users. In addition, many celebrities and athletes' IPs can engage and interact with their fans on the Tokau platform.

Tokau has already signed exclusives with dozens of the top global celebrities and influencers with plans to sign more in the near future. Additionally, Tokau plans to expand IP resources to athletes, artists, and famous stars around the world.

The NFT market was valued at $2 billion in April 2021, a 2100% increase since December 2020. In the next 12 months, it is expected to grow exponentially. Tokau is planning to develop their NFT business with BakerySwap, Binance NFT marketplace and others and will release its first main version in September 2021.

About Tokau

Tokau is the first global platform focused on Celebrity and Influencer interactions with their fans using blockchain NFT technology. Tokau has offices in Tokyo and New York. To learn more about Tokau, please visit Tokau.io.

Contact: Miranda Tan, [email protected], 917-678-6041

SOURCE Tokau
LOS ANGELES, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Scali Rasmussen attorney and Chair of the Regulatory and Licensing practice Monica Baumann has been selected as a nominee for the 'Woman to Watch' Award and recognized in the Los Angeles Business Journal's special supplement, published earlier this week. The 2021 Women's Leadership Awards honors the accomplished and impactful women business leaders in the Los Angeles community.

"Monica is a skilled lawyer who continually demonstrates her ability to provide the firm's clients with the highest degree of strategy and service," said Scali Rasmussen Founder and Managing Shareholder Christian Scali.

Baumann is certified as an Information Privacy Professional and received certification through the International Association of Privacy Professionals, the world's preeminent organization for credentialing privacy professionals. The certification demonstrates one's understanding of the laws, regulations, and standards of privacy and data security in a given discipline.

Baumann is also a litigator and adviser with extensive experience in the automotive industry and in consumer environmental litigation, including Proposition 65 issues. She advises dealer clients and litigates all aspects of dealership legal and regulatory compliance. Baumann previously served as director of legal and regulatory affairs with the California New Car Dealers Association, where she developed innovative compliance programs for dealerships and focused on emerging legal and regulatory issues affecting the sales, finance and service of vehicles. Baumann has extensive experience working with dealers and their staff to find practical business solutions to tough legal issues.

The Los Angeles Business Journal is hosting a virtual awards ceremony today at 2pm. Information on the Women's Leadership Awards Program available here https://labusinessjournal.com/wsa2021/awardsprogram/.

Scali Rasmussen attorneys are thought leaders in the automotive industry, often called upon to provide their opinions on new and trending issues on auto distribution and franchise, F&I, employment and advertising issues. The firm drafted the CNCDA's 2015 and 2017 Advertising Law Manuals, providing auto dealers with practical guidance on advertising practices. For more information, visit ScaliRasmussen.com

SOURCE Scali Rasmussen
For years only 'accredited investors' could participate in real estate investments. However, that's no longer the case due to the passing of the JOBS Act of 2012 (a.k.a. The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act) in 2016. This change has allowed School of Whales to launch an innovative crowdfunding platform that democratizes real estate investing for everyone .

"The opportunity to invest in commercial real estate should not be exclusive to the wealthy elite," said School of Whales Co-Founder and CEO Andrea Petersen. "School of Whales was designed specifically to make large-scale real estate investing more accessible than ever before. With our low barrier of entry of $500, we are fostering a community of new financially conscious investors and helping them take steps to secure their financial future by diversifying their savings."

Examples of past or related projects that School of Whales' partners have developed include iconic venues like The Langford Hotel in Downtown Miami and Julia and Henry's, an upcoming multi-level building that will house more than 25 world class food concepts, co-working spaces, recording studios, and a rooftop restaurant in the heart of Downtown.

"With the money raised from fellow Whales, our fund will invest in transformational projects that are creating a measurably positive impact on neighborhoods across South Florida," said Pena-Giraldi, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of School of Whales, who has worked in real estate development for more than 20 years. "We are excited to help unique projects become a reality by providing the necessary capital to up-and-coming developers who often struggle to find traditional funding for out-of-the-box concepts."

When someone becomes a Whale, they are investing in a small ownership stake, also known as 'equity,' in one of the fund's projects. Once profits begin pouring in from a given property, investors are paid first with a preferred rate of return of 8%. Any returns above that are split 80-20, 80% to the investor and 20% to School of Whales.

School of Whales is officially 'open for enrollment'  interested investors can learn more about the crowdfunding platform and invest at www.schoolofwhales.com .

ABOUT SCHOOL OF WHALES:

School of Whales is a Miami-based financial technology start-up founded May 2021 by financial whale Andrea Petersen and her business partners, Daniel Pena-Giraldi, a whale in commercial real estate development and general construction, and JJ Giraldi, who brings over 30 years of expertise in finance and strategic planning. The goal? To create an easy-to-use and even-easier-to-join real estate fund that allows anyone with as little as $500 to invest in developments designed to leave a lasting and positive impact on their communities, earning investors profits with a purpose. To learn more or invest, visit www.schoolofwhales.com .

For media inquiries, please contact [email protected] .

SOURCE School of Whales

Related Links

www.schoolofwhales.com


VANCOUVER, BC, June 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Available on all the online platforms, the SendMePic app facilitates the quick and easy sharing of live photos of locations that are shared by the users. The app is one of a kind and the first ever empowered with high-quality images and photos embedded with enticing features and unique benefits. A perfect app designed for travelers, bikers, tourists, and peripatetics.

Some of the app features include:

SendMePic App Live on Apple Store and Google Play Store

Quick, easy, and flexible setup. Register your profile in minutes.

Seamless functionality enriched with an appealing and exclusive user interface with clickable options.

Share a live photo of locations with your friends in second and bring fun to the community.

Efficient tracking systems are designed to save the time of the users instead of searching locations without images.

Hide locations to secure and protect private information with simple and resilient security features.

A separate photo gallery available to store images in the app for future use.

Easy tracking of locations for hospitals, health centers, and clinics via live photos. Now, the users can attend their parties, wedding ceremonies, community meetings, and much more on time.

Great safety and security to the users' data. The app takes care of all the aspects related to protecting the privacy of the users.

Giving access to six members, the app is so appropriate for marketers, event managers, and salesforce staff.

Designed for social networking purposes, the app is carefully and diligently developed by Mr. Amr Goal - a proficient expert in creating versatile and dynamic apps for iOS users. For the app launch, he says, "I went on to design SendMePic app when I found out how difficult it was for users to search the locations without images. This app will help the users to see the live images of the locations shared by their community. Altogether, it will make lives easier and simpler in terms of finding places."

SendMePic, an image-sharing app, is now available free for online users on iOS and Android platforms on the Google Play Store and Apple Store. The app can be accessed worldwide by numerous users and is available in several languages. It's the perfect timing for the app in today's era when people lack enough time to track locations with just maps.

Google Play Store Link: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sqt.send_me_pic

Apple Store Link: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/sendmepic/id1564025954

Please visit our official website www.sendmepic.com for more information about SendMePic - an image-sharing app, including videos and photos of the app and its features, stated elaborately.

SendMePic app is developed by Mr. Amr Goal - a proficient app developer with 10+ years of expertise in the app development industry.

For further information on SendMePic, or in case if you like to schedule an interview, please contact us.

Related Images

send-me-pic-app.jpg

Send Me Pic App

SendMePic App Live on Apple Store and Google Play Store

SOURCE SendMePic
HARTFORD, Conn., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Silver Fern Healthcare's Co-Founder and CEO Colleen A. McGuire was recognized by Constellation Research on its 2022 Business Transformation 150 (BT150), an elite list of executives leading business transformation efforts around the globe. Silver Fern Healthcare is transforming chronic disease care through its evidence-based, clinically validated SaaS behavior diagnostic and decision support platform.

Digital leaders have been greatly challenged this year by a perfect storm of disruptions. The BT150 nomination process took these influences to heart this year to make sure the list genuinely reflects today's world and leading trends.

McGuire has a long history of success as a business leader and is a trusted advisor to corporations and nonprofits. In addition to leading Silver Fern through its fast-paced growth, during her career, McGuire has held senior leadership positions in large public financial service companies and has worked as a consultant to executive leadership teams in large and small companies. Prior to founding Silver Fern, she was the Executive Director of the University of Connecticut's Graduate Business Learning Center and an instructor in the Business School's Marketing and Management Departments. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of the United Way of Central and Northeastern Connecticut.

"I am honored to be named to BT150 and to be recognized alongside such an accomplished group of current and past winners. My mission in founding Silver Fern was to transform the way we treat and prevent chronic disease by disrupting the 'treatment as usual' approach to healthcare. I am proud of what we are accomplishing in the market with our clinically proven technology and tools that enable clinicians and patients to build deeper, more meaningful relationships with their patients  leading to better outcomes," she said.

"In curating the next generation of Business Transformation 150 executives from our network, we emphasized those who are successfully navigating the historic challenges of the last year, while still effectively guiding their organizations to transform and evolve," said Constellation Research's VP and Principal Analyst, Dion Hinchcliffe.

Each executive on the list demonstrates an understanding of how the business environment is transforming in response to digital and exponential technologies, and these leaders are actively preparing their companies to excel during and after the transformation.

The full listing of award winners can be found here: https://www.constellationr.com/business-transformation-150-2021-2022

Silver Fern Healthcare

Silver Fern Healthcare, a mission-driven Connecticut company, is making whole person care a reality, improving health outcomes, and lowering the cost of healthcare. Powered by 30+ years of behavior medicine and published, evidence-based research, Silver Fern's first-of-its-kind behavior diagnostic and decision support platform enables clinicians and patients to identify and understand all the facets of a patient's health and unlock those behaviors and psychosocial barriers that, until now, went unexplored and unaddressed. Silver Fern's platform has been proven to significantly increase engagement and achieve better health outcomes for patients. For more information, visit silverfernhealthcare.com.

Julia Winer

860.539.7150

[email protected]

www.silverfernhealthcare.com

Jessica Lyon

860.676.4400

[email protected]

SOURCE Silver Fern Healthcare

Related Links

http://www.silverfernhealthcare.com


SAN FRANCISCO, and SUZHOU, China, June 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Innovent Biologics, Inc. ("Innovent") (HKEX: 01801), a world-class biopharmaceutical company that develops, manufactures and commercializes high quality medicines for the treatment of oncology, metabolic, autoimmune and other major diseases, today announced that the Phase 3 ORIENT-15 study met the predefined overall survival primary endpoint. ORIENT-15 is a global randomized, double-blind, multi-center clinical study evaluating sintilimab in combination with chemotherapy (cisplatin plus paclitaxel or cisplatin plus 5-fluorouracil [5-FU]) for the first-line treatment of patients with unresectable, locally advanced recurrent or metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC).

Based on an interim analysis conducted by the Independent Data Monitoring Committee (IDMC), sintilimab in combination with chemotherapy demonstrated a statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in the primary endpoint of overall survival (OS) compared to placebo in combination with chemotherapy regardless of PD-L1 expression status. The safety profile of sintilimab in this study was consistent with that observed in previously reported studies of sintilimab, and no additional safety signals were identified. These results will be presented at an upcoming medical meeting.

The principal investigator of the ORIENT-15 study, Prof. Shen Lin from Peking University Cancer Hospital and Institute stated, "More than half of new and fatal cases of esophageal cancer in the world occur in China every year. In China, esophageal cancer is the fifth most commonly diagnosed cancer and the fourth leading cause of death from cancer, and squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is the predominant histologic type. Treatment options for people with ESCC are limited. Chemotherapy is currently the main treatment for ESCC and, in recent years, immunotherapy has brought new hope in the treatment of this type of cancer, with some PD-1 inhibitors receiving approval as a second-line treatment for patients with ESCC in China. We are encouraged by these interim results of the ORIENT-15 study which demonstrated that sintilimab in combination with chemotherapy prolonged overall survival in the first-line treatment of patients with ESCC, regardless of PD-L1 status."

Dr. Zhou Hui, Senior Vice President of Clinical Development of Innovent, stated: "The treatment options for locally advanced or metastatic ESCC are limited and represent a significant unmet clinical need. ORIENT-15 is the largest clinical study of sintilimab conducted by Innovent to date. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the joint effort of the study's investigators and broader team have enabled us to reach this milestone. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all the patients who participated in the ORIENT-15 study. We hope these results can help to provide a new treatment option for patients with ESCC."

About the ORIENT-15 Study

ORIENT-15 is a global randomized, double-blind, multi-center Phase 3 clinical study evaluating sintilimab in combination with chemotherapy (cisplatin plus paclitaxel or cisplatin plus 5-fluorouracil [5-FU]), compared to placebo in combination with chemotherapy, for the first-line treatment of unresectable, locally advanced recurrent or metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03748134). At the time of interim analysis, a total of 659 eligible patients were enrolled and randomly assigned into the experimental group or control group in a 1:1 ratio. Patients were enrolled regardless of PD-L1 status. The primary endpoints included overall survival in all randomized patients and overall survival in PD-L1 positive (defined as CPS 10) patients.

About Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma (ESCC)

Esophageal cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors worldwide that begins in the inner layer (mucosa) of the esophagus, which connects the throat to the stomach. Based on GLOBOCAN 2020 estimates, approximately 600,000 new cases of esophageal cancer are diagnosed and approximately 540,000 deaths result from the disease globally. Esophageal cancer is the seventh most commonly diagnosed cancer and the sixth leading cause of death from cancer worldwide. More than half of new and fatal cases of esophageal cancer in the world occur in China. In China, it is estimated there were approximately 320,000 new cases of esophageal cancer diagnosed and approximately 300,000 deaths resulting from the disease in 2020. Esophageal cancer is the fifth most commonly diagnosed cancer and the fourth leading cause of death from cancer in China, which has a five-year survival rate of only 30 percent.

The two main types of esophageal cancer are squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and adenocarcinoma. In China, SCC is the predominant histologic type  accounting for more than 90 percent of all esophageal cancer. Currently, first-line standard systemic therapy in China is chemotherapy based on platinum drugs for unresectable, locally advanced recurrent or metastatic ESCC. There have been a few PD-1 inhibitors recently approved for the second-line treatment of patients with ESCC.

About Sintilimab

Sintilimab, marketed as TYVYT (sintilimab injection) in China, is an innovative PD-1 inhibitor with global quality standards jointly developed by Innovent and Eli Lilly and Company. Sintilimab is an immunoglobulin G4 monoclonal antibody, which binds to PD-1 molecules on the surface of T-cells, blocks the PD-1 / PD-Ligand 1 (PD-L1) pathway, and reactivates T-cells to kill cancer cells. Innovent is currently conducting more than 20 clinical studies of sintilimab to evaluate its safety and efficacy in a wide variety of cancer indications, including more than 10 registrational or pivotal clinical trials.

In China, sintilimab has been approved for three indications, including:

The treatment of relapsed or refractory classic Hodgkin's lymphoma after two lines or later of systemic chemotherapy

In combination with pemetrexed and platinum chemotherapy, for the first-line treatment of nonsquamous non-small cell lung cancer

In combination with gemcitabine and platinum chemotherapy, for the first-line treatment of squamous non-small cell lung cancer

Additionally, Innovent currently has regulatory submissions under review in China for sintilimab:

In combination with BYVASDA (bevacizumab injection) for the first-line treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma

The second-line treatment of squamous non-small cell lung cancer

Innovent also has two clinical studies that have met primary endpoint for sintilimab:

in combination with cisplatin plus paclitaxel or cisplatin plus 5-fluorouracil for the first-line treatment of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

The second-line treatment for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

In May 2021, the U.S. FDA accepted for review the Biologics License Application (BLA) for sintilimab in combination with pemetrexed and platinum chemotherapy for the first-line treatment of nonsquamous non-small cell lung cancer.

Sintilimab was included in China's National Reimbursement Drug List (NRDL) in 2019 as the first PD-1 inhibitor and the only PD-1 included in the list in that year.

About Innovent

Inspired by the spirit of "Start with Integrity, Succeed through Action," Innovent's mission is to develop, manufacture and commercialize high-quality biopharmaceutical products that are affordable to ordinary people. Established in 2011, Innovent is committed to developing, manufacturing and commercializing high-quality innovative medicines for the treatment of cancer, autoimmune, metabolic and other major diseases. On October 31, 2018, Innovent was listed on the Main Board of the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited with the stock code: 01801.HK.

Since its inception, Innovent has developed a fully integrated multi-functional platform which includes R&D, CMC (Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls), clinical development and commercialization capabilities. Leveraging the platform, the company has built a robust pipeline of 24 valuable assets in the fields of cancer, metabolic, autoimmune disease and other major therapeutic areas, with 5 products  TYVYT (sintilimab injection), BYVASDA (bevacizumab biosimilar injection), SULINNO(adalimumab biosimilar injection), HALPRYZA (rituximab biosimilar injection) and Pemazyre (pemigatinib oral inhibitor)  officially approved for marketing, sintilimab's Biologics License Application (BLA) acceptance in the U.S., 5 assets in Phase 3 or pivotal clinical trials, and an additional 14 molecules in clinical trials.

Innovent has built an international team with advanced talent in high-end biological drug development and commercialization, including many global experts. The company has also entered into strategic collaborations with Eli Lilly and Company, Adimab, Incyte, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Hanmi and other international partners. Innovent strives to work with many collaborators to help advance China's biopharmaceutical industry, improve drug availability and enhance the quality of the patients' lives. For more information, please visit: www.innoventbio.com.

Note:

Sintilimab is not an approved product in the United States.

BYVASDA (bevacizumab biosimilar injection), HALPRYZA (rituximab biosimilar injection), and SULINNO (adalimumab biosimilar injection) are not approved products in the United States.

TYVYT (sintilimab injection, Innovent)

BYVASDA (bevacizumab biosimilar injection, Innovent)

SULINNO (adalimumab biosimilar injection, Innovent)

Pemazyre (pemigatinib oral inhibitor, Incyte Corporation). Pemazyre was discovered by Incyte Corporation and licensed to Innovent for development and commercialization in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

Innovent Biologics, Inc. Forward-Looking Statements

This news release may contain certain forward-looking statements that are, by their nature, subject to significant risks and uncertainties. The words "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "intend" and similar expressions, as they relate to Innovent, are intended to identify certain of such forward-looking statements. Innovent does not intend to update these forward-looking statements regularly.

These forward-looking statements are based on the existing beliefs, assumptions, expectations, estimates, projections and understandings of the management of Innovent with respect to future events at the time these statements are made. These statements are not a guarantee of future developments and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond Innovent's control and are difficult to predict. Consequently, actual results may differ materially from information contained in the forward-looking statements as a result of future changes or developments in our business, Innovent's competitive environment and political, economic, legal and social conditions.

Innovent, the Directors and the employees of Innovent assume (a) no obligation to correct or update the forward-looking statements contained in this site; and (b) no liability in the event that any of the forward-looking statements does not materialize or turn out to be incorrect.

SOURCE Innovent Biologics
TORONTO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Blackbox Goods is pleased to announce the introduction of a lifetime warranty on the Vault, its popular carbon fiber smell proof container for weed. The company is a noted expert in cannabis storage, dedicated to delivering innovatively designed products that are unique as well as practical. The company's latest product, the Vault, is the world's first-ever carbon filter stash box for cannabis storage.

To find out more about the Vault and its unique features, please visit https://blackboxgoods.com/pages/the-vault-carbon-fiber-smell-proof-stash-box .

Kulbi Stash Box for Weed

"At Blackbox Goods, we are always looking for ways to add value to our customers. This is why we have decided to safeguard their interest by offering a lifetime warranty on the Vault. We are dedicated to disrupting the cannabis storage space with our innovatively designed product and will continue to do whatever it takes to get there," said the company spokesperson Philip Li.

According to Blackbox Goods, its smell proof case for weed utilizes advanced Smell Block Technology, making it 100% smell proof tested against even the most potent flowers and concentrates. In addition, the product is manufactured using special carbon fiber infused fabric. This storage case is suitable for the storage of cannabis flowers, edibles, as well as concentrates. It uses the company's proprietary triple smell filter layers capable of containing all odors. The product has an immense modular internal storage space and can stand up to 50 pounds of crushing force. A Sezzle verified product, the Vault can be purchased in four easy interest-free installments.

Blackbox Goods came into the cannabis storage market with its inaugural product, the Blackbox - the original smell proof stash box. Featuring a high-quality ballistic nylon outer shell and smell proof technology, this smell proof herb container protects potent herbs as well as all types of daily essentials. The dimensions of this smell proof case are 8.7 inches by 7.1 inches by 3.9 inches.

More about the Blackbox can be found at https://blackboxgoods.com/pages/the-blackbox-original-smell-proof-stash-box .

Please visit Blackbox Goods' official website to find out more about the company's products.

Contact Name : Philip Li

Contact Phone: 4165660901

Contact Email: [email protected]

About Blackbox Goods by Kulbi

Blackbox Goods by Kulbi are the experts in cannabis storage. Using advanced materials like carbon fiber and ballistic nylon to bring high functional products with unparalleled protection to cannabis users - from beginners to connoisseurs alike.

SOURCE Blackbox Goods by Kulbi
MOUNT PEARL, NL, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Solace Power Inc. ("Solace Power" or the "Company"), a world leader in differentiated wireless power technology, announces that its board of directors (the "Board"), following a review in collaboration with the Company's strategic advisor, Clariti Strategic Advisors Inc. ("Clariti"), has determined that it is in the best interests of the Company to seek the support of one or more strategic partners to assist the Company in achieving its growth aspirations.

In conjunction with this process, the Company also announced that, effective June 17th, 2021, Michael Gotlieb has stepped down as the Chief Executive Officer, and Neil Chaulk, one of the founding shareholders and directors of the Company, has moved into this role.

Gordon Conlin, speaking on behalf of the Board, said: "Solace Power has a highly differentiated technology that is considered mission critical by blue-chip customers in several high-growth industries, including telecom (particularly with the advent of 5G), aerospace & defense, automotive and healthcare. Under the leadership of its management and the Board, Solace Power has brought its technology through the proof-of-concept phase and has proven out its commercial application and value. It is now time to work in collaboration with a world class strategic partner to take the Company and its technology to the next level. The ideal strategic partner would be one that covets our differentiated technology as an opportunity to further penetrate not only our blue-chip customer base, but also the end markets that we are pursuing. Such a partner could participate with Solace Power in a variety of ways, including through an acquisition of control of Solace Power or a capitalized long-term licensing agreement."

Neil Chaulk, Chief Executive Officer of Solace Power, added: "I look forward to working closely with our board of directors, executive team, and all of our employees to achieve our strategic goals. I have been involved in all facets of the business since inception and am more confident than ever in Solace Power's potential. Our technology has proven its efficacy to be a best-in-class solution and is primed for growth across several verticals. I am excited about the opportunity to work closely with a strategic partner, and together, we can achieve very strong outcomes."

About Solace Power

Solace Power is a leading developer of intelligent wireless power-based solutions featuring proximity sensing and data. Our patented Resonant Capacitive Coupled (RC) technology provides industrial grade, decoupled power for a world of new, previously unachievable applications across automotive, defense, medical, industrial automation and telecommunication. The addition of high-frequency induction capabilities has broadened Solace Power's scope into high-volume markets where Solace Power has a distinct advantage. Solace Power is proud to have won the 2017 Boeing Silver Level Performance Excellence Award and Deloitte's Technology Fast 50/Companies-to-Watch.

About Clariti Strategic Advisors

Clariti Strategic Advisors Inc. is a leading Toronto-based independent strategic and investment banking advisory firm.

SOURCE Solace Power

Related Links

https://www.solace.ca/


WACO, Texas, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Sorey & Gilliland, LLP is pleased to announce the opening of its new law office in Waco. The new facilities will allow the firm to focus on its growing intellectual property practice and expand its depth of services in the increasingly popular Western District of Texas federal court venue.

"It is no secret that the Western District has become a hotbed when it comes to patent litigation cases," said Sorey & Gilliland Partner Derek Gilliland, who will lead the firm's IP litigation practice from the firm's Waco and Longview offices. "Given the increase in the number of cases we're handling in the Western District, along with our firm's already close ties to Waco, opening this new office now was simply a no-brainer."

The new office will be a platform to build upon the firm's already robust Intellectual Property Litigation practice. A veteran trial lawyer, Mr. Gilliland has a unique perspective and decades of experience representing clients in disputes involving patent infringement, trademark and copyright violations, trade secret infringement and other areas of patent law.

A graduate of Baylor University School of Law in Waco, Mr. Gilliland has handled multiple cases in the Western District and has successfully tried a case with U.S. District Judge Alan Albright as co-counsel.

"I am very excited to be returning to Waco while also expanding our firm's footprint," said Mr. Gilliland. "This move further strengthens our firm's commitment to our patent litigation practice, and I am confident we'll be very successful here in Waco."

The new office is located at 106 North Sixth Street, Suite 502 in Waco.

Sorey & Gilliland, LLP is a Texas-based law firm with an impressive track record in personal injury litigation, intellectual property and business disputes. With offices in Longview and Waco, Texas, the team of skilled courtroom litigators has a reputation for providing each and every client creative and zealous representation with a personal touch. Learn more about the firm at https://soreylaw.com/

Media Contact:

April Arias

[email protected]

800-559-4534

SOURCE Sorey & Gilliland, LLP
TOKYO and CAMBRIDGE, England, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Sosei Group Corporation ("the Company"; TSE: 4565) today announces that the first healthy subject has been dosed with HTL0022562 in a Phase 1 clinical study. HTL0022562 (also known as BHV3100) is a novel, small molecule CGRP* receptor antagonist discovered by Sosei Heptares and the lead compound in a portfolio of CGRP antagonists licensed to Biohaven Pharmaceutical Holding Company Ltd. ("Biohaven",NYSE: BHVN) in December 2020 for development as new therapies for CGRP-mediated disorders.

The trial is a Phase 1, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, first-in-human study to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of a single ascending dose and multiple ascending doses of subcutaneous HTL0022562 in healthy adult subjects. The trial aims to enroll 88 subjects at a single center in the UK and is expected to complete in 2022.

Sosei Heptares has advanced HTL0022562 successfully though a preclinical development program demonstrating its promising and differentiated properties for further investigation in human trials.

Under the global collaboration and license agreement with Biohaven, Sosei Heptares will conduct the Phase 1 clinical trial itself, receiving a milestone payment for its initiation, and is also eligible for development costs for conducting the trial. Biohaven will lead all future studies and development activities and Sosei Heptares will be eligible for further milestone payments and royalties.

Although the event reported today has no significant impact on the consolidated financial results for the accounting period ending 31 December 2021, the Company considers that an important developmental milestone has been achieved with HTL0022562 becoming the tenth drug candidate overall generated from Sosei Heptares' SBDD platform to enter clinical development, and therefore makes this announcement.

Tim Tasker, Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer of Sosei Heptares, said: "We are pleased to initiate this new clinical trial with HTL0022562 following the successful discovery and preclinical development work conducted by Sosei Heptares. We are also delighted at the speed of progress and the positive collaborative approach that has developed between our team and our partners at Biohaven and the confidence they have shown in our early clinical development capabilities. Together, we are committed to developing this novel differentiated agent to treat CGRP-mediated diseases with unmet need."

*Abbreviations used: CGRP - calcitonin gene-related peptide

About the Agreement with Biohaven

Sosei Heptares and Biohaven entered a global collaboration and license agreement in December 2020 under which Biohaven received exclusive global rights to develop, manufacture and commercialize a portfolio of novel, small-molecule CGRP receptor antagonists discovered by Sosei Heptares for the treatment of CGRP-mediated disorders. Sosei Heptares received an upfront payment of US$10 million on signing in cash and Biohaven common shares and is eligible to receive additional research funding, up to US$370 million in development, regulatory and commercialization milestone payments, plus tiered royalties on net sales of products resulting from the collaboration.

About CGRP

CGRP is an important neuropeptide believed to be involved in multiple neuro-inflammatory and neuro-immune diseases. CGRP receptor antagonism interrupts pathologic signals in CGRP-mediated diseases, such as migraine. Following the success of this approach in migraine, Biohaven is exploring the potential of this approach in other neuro-inflammatory and neuro-immune diseases, including COVID-19.

About Sosei Heptares

We are an international biopharmaceutical group focused on the discovery and early development of new medicines originating from our proprietary GPCR-targeted StaR technology and structure-based drug design platform capabilities. We are advancing a broad and deep pipeline of novel medicines across multiple therapeutic areas, including neurology, immunology, gastroenterology and inflammatory diseases.

We have established partnerships with some of the world's leading pharmaceutical companies, including AbbVie, AstraZeneca, Biohaven, Genentech (Roche), GSK, Novartis, Pfizer and Takeda and additionally with multiple emerging technology companies. Sosei Heptares is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan with corporate and R&D facilities in Cambridge, UK.

"Sosei Heptares" is the corporate brand and trademark of Sosei Group Corporation, which is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (ticker: 4565). Sosei, Heptares, the logo and StaR are trademarks of Sosei Group companies.

For more information, please visit https://www.soseiheptares.com/

LinkedIn: @soseiheptaresco | Twitter: @soseiheptaresco | YouTube: @soseiheptaresco

About Biohaven

Biohaven (NYSE: BHVN) is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company with a portfolio of innovative, best-in-class therapies to improve the lives of patients with debilitating neurological and neuropsychiatric diseases, including rare disorders. Biohaven's neuroinnovation portfolio includes FDA-approved NURTEC ODT (rimegepant) for the acute treatment of migraine and a broad pipeline of late-stage product candidates across three distinct mechanistic platforms: CGRP receptor antagonism for the acute and preventive treatment of migraine; glutamate modulation for obsessive-compulsive disorder, Alzheimer's disease, and spinocerebellar ataxia; and myeloperoxidase (MPO) inhibition for multiple system atrophy and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. More information about Biohaven is available at www.biohavenpharma.com

NURTEC is a trademark of Biohaven Pharmaceutical Ireland DAC.

Enquiries:

Sosei Heptares  Media and Investor Relations

Hironoshin Nomura, SVP Investor Relations and Corporate Strategy

+81 (0)3 6679 2178 | [email protected]

Shinichiro Nishishita, VP Investor Relations, Head of Regulatory Disclosures

+81 (0)3 5210 3399 | [email protected]

Citigate Dewe Rogerson (for Japanese Media)

Yas Fukuda

+81 (0)3 4360 9234 | [email protected]

MEDiSTRAVA Consulting (for International Media)

Mark Swallow, David Dible

+44 (0)20 7638 9571 | [email protected]

Forward-looking statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements about the discovery, development and commercialization of products. Various risks may cause Sosei Group Corporation's actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including: adverse results in clinical development programs; failure to obtain patent protection for inventions; commercial limitations imposed by patents owned or controlled by third parties; dependence upon strategic alliance partners to develop and commercialize products and services; difficulties or delays in obtaining regulatory approvals to market products and services resulting from development efforts; the requirement for substantial funding to conduct research and development and to expand commercialization activities; and product initiatives by competitors. As a result of these factors, prospective investors are cautioned not to rely on any forward-looking statements. We disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE Sosei Heptares

Related Links

https://www.soseiheptares.com


DALLAS, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) announced that Chairman and CEO Gary Kelly will transition roles in early 2022, becoming the carrier's Executive Chairman with the desire to serve in that role through at least 2026 at the discretion of the Board of Directors. Executive Vice President Corporate Services Robert Jordan will become Kelly's successor as CEO effective Feb. 1, 2022. Jordan also will join the Board at that time.

"On behalf of the Southwest Airlines Board of Directors, I am delighted to announce Bob Jordan as CEO," Kelly said. "Bob and I have worked side by side for more than 30 years. He is a gifted and experienced executive and well-prepared to take on this important role. Working closely with President Tom Nealon and Chief Operating Officer Mike Van de Ven, we will begin developing transition plans in the coming weeks and months. These three top-notch Leaders make for a powerful team to lead us forward."

Serving as CEO since 2004, Kelly, 66, has led Southwest through some of the airline industry's most turbulent times. Kelly is a 35-year Southwest veteran who began his career at Southwest Airlines as Controller, moving up to Chief Financial Officer and Vice President Finance, then Executive Vice President and CFO, before being promoted to CEO and Vice Chairman in July 2004. He assumed the roles of Chairman and President in 2008. In January 2017, Kelly relinquished the title of President and named former Southwest Board Member and Executive Tom Nealon to the executive team as President. Prior to joining Southwest Airlines in 1986, Kelly was a CPA for Arthur Young & Company in Dallas and Controller for Systems Center, Inc.

Kelly has often said his biggest source of pride is the fact that Southwest Airlines has never had a single layoff or furlough in the airline's 50-year history. As CEO, he has guided the airline's transformation through several major initiatives, including the acquisition of AirTran Airways, the repeal of the Wright Amendment, the launch of international destinations for the first time in Southwest's history, the installment of a new reservation system, introduction of a new frequent flyer program, debut of the new Heart brand and livery, initiation of the long-awaited service to Hawaii, and the introduction of the Boeing 737 MAX 8 into the airline's fleet all while staying true to the Company's core values and People-centric Culture.

"The airline has a strong Leadership team, and the Board has always taken seriously its role to oversee a strong succession plan for the top Leadership roles," said William Cunningham, Southwest's Lead Director on the Board. "Gary has been an outstanding CEO for Southwest for nearly two decades and has developed an excellent group of Senior Leaders to shepherd the airline into its next 50 years. We are thrilled he is willing to continue to serve as the Board's Executive Chairman, subject to the annual elections process. Bob inherits a solid strategy and great momentum to continue the airline's recovery as the COVID pandemic wanes. Bob has the Board's full support."

Jordan, 60, is a long-time Southwest Executive with broad and deep experience. Joining the airline in 1988, he has served in roles including Director of Revenue Accounting, Corporate Controller, Vice President Procurement, Vice President Technology, Senior Vice President Enterprise Spend Management, Executive Vice President Strategy and Technology, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer, AirTran President and Executive Vice President Corporate Services. During his tenure, he has led numerous significant transformational projects, including the acquisition of AirTran Airways, the development of the new southwest.com e-commerce platform, the Rapid Rewards loyalty program, and our enhanced boarding process. Most recently, Jordan led the efforts for the Company's voluntary leave and early separation programs, which were key to reducing the airline's labor expenses during the pandemic and instrumental in avoiding layoffs and furlough actions.

Prior to Southwest, Jordan worked for Hewlett-Packard as a programmer and financial analyst. He holds bachelor's and master's degrees from Texas A&M University. He joined Coppell-based The Container Store's Board of Directors in 2013 and currently serves as its Lead Director. He and wife, Kelly, live in Flower Mound and have two adult children and two grandchildren.

"I'm humbled, honored, and excited to be asked to serve as the next CEO," Jordan said. "The Heart of Southwest is our People; they make the difference for our Customers, and I look forward to serving them. We have a terrific team of Leaders, many of whom I have had the joy of working alongside for decades. I'm looking forward to working with Gary, Mike and Tom on the transition effort and setting up Southwest for the next 50 years of giving Customers the Freedom to Fly."

ABOUT SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CO.

In its 50th year of service, Dallas-based Southwest Airlines Co. continues to differentiate itself from other air carriers with exemplary Customer Service delivered by more than 56,000 Employees to a Customer base that topped 130 million Passengers in 2019. Southwest has a robust network of point-to-point service with a strong presence across top leisure and business markets. In peak travel seasons during 2019, Southwest operated more than 4,000 weekday departures among a network of 101 destinations in the United States and 10 additional countries. In 2020, the carrier added service to Hilo, Hawaii; Cozumel, Mexico; Miami; Palm Springs, Calif.; Steamboat Springs; and Montrose (Telluride/Crested Butte), Colo. Thus far in 2021, Southwest has initiated service to Chicago (O'Hare) and Sarasota/ Bradenton, both on Feb. 14; Savannah/Hilton Head and Colorado Springs, Colo., both on March 11; Houston (Bush) and Santa Barbara, Calif., both on April 12; Fresno, Calif., on April 25; Destin/Fort Walton Beach on May 6; Myrtle Beach S.C., on May 23; Bozeman, Mont., on May 27; and Jackson, Miss., on June 6. The airline will begin service to Eugene, Ore., on Aug. 29; Bellingham, Wash., on Nov. 7; and Syracuse, NY, on Nov. 14.

The carrier issued its Southwest Promise in May 2020 to highlight new and round-the-clock efforts to support its Customers and Employees well-being and comfort. Among the changes are enhanced cleaning efforts at airports and onboard aircraft, along with a federal mandate requiring every person to wear a mask at all times throughout each flight. Additional details about the Southwest Promise are available at Southwest.com/Promise.

Southwest coined Transfarency to describe its purposed philosophy of treating Customers honestly and fairly, and low fares actually staying low. Southwest is the only major U.S. airline to offer bags fly free to everyone (first and second checked pieces of luggage, size and weight limits apply, some carriers offer free checked bags on select routes or in qualified circumstances). Southwest does not charge change fees, though fare differences might apply.

Southwest is one of the most honored airlines in the world, known for a triple bottom line approach that contributes to the carrier's performance and productivity, the importance of its People and the communities they serve, and an overall commitment to efficiency and the planet. Learn more about how the carrier gives back to communities across the world by visiting Southwest.com/citizenship.

Book Southwest Airlines' low fares online at Southwest.com or by phone at 1-800-I-FLY-SWA.

SOURCE Southwest Airlines Co.

Related Links

http://www.southwest.com


NEW YORK, June 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Sprinklr, the unified customer experience management (Unified-CXM) platform for modern enterprises, today announced the pricing of its initial public offering of its Class A common stock at a price of $16.00 per share. Sprinklr is offering 16,625,000 shares of its Class A common stock.

In addition, the underwriters have been granted a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 1,662,500 shares of common stock at the initial public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions. The shares are expected to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on June 23, 2021 under the symbol "CXM," and the offering is expected to close on June 25, 2021, subject to customary closing conditions.

In connection with and subject to completion of this offering, certain existing stockholders, including our Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer and entities affiliated with Hellman & Friedman LLC, Battery Ventures and ICONIQ Strategic Partners, have agreed to purchase 3,125,000 out of the 16,625,000 shares of the Class A common stock offered by Sprinklr.

Morgan Stanley, J.P. Morgan, Citigroup, Barclays, and Wells Fargo Securities are acting as lead book-running managers for the proposed offering, and JMP Securities, KeyBanc Capital Markets, Oppenheimer & Co., Stifel, William Blair, Blaylock Van, LLC, C.L. King & Associates, Ramirez & Co., Inc and Roberts & Ryan are acting as co-managers for the offering.

A registration statement relating to this offering was declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 22, 2021. This offering is being made only by means of a prospectus. Copies of the final prospectus, when available, may be obtained from:: Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Attention: Prospectus Department, 180 Varick Street, 2nd Floor, New York, New York 10014; J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717, or by telephone at (866) 803-9204, or by email at [email protected]; or Citigroup Global Markets Inc., c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717, by telephone at (800) 831-9146, or by email at [email protected].

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.

About Sprinklr

Sprinklr is the unified platform for all customer-facing functions. We call it unified customer experience management (Unified-CXM). We help companies deliver human experiences to every customer, every time, across any modern channel, at a once impossible scale. Headquartered in New York City with over 2,400 employees globally, Sprinklr works with more than 1,000 of the world's most valuable enterprises  global brands like Microsoft, P&G, Samsung and more than 50% of the Fortune 100.

Media Contacts

Sprinklr

[email protected]

Brunswick Group

[email protected]

SOURCE Sprinklr
Starlee Sykes, bp senior vice president Gulf of Mexico and Canada, said: "Manuel is exactly the type of high-value project that is critical to growing our business here in the Gulf of Mexico. bp's focused and resilient hydrocarbons business is a key pillar of our strategy. This start-up is another example of our team's commitment to safe and reliable operations."

The bp-operated wells, drilled to a depth of approximately 21,000 feet, are located southeast of the Na Kika platform, approximately 140 miles off the coast of New Orleans. bp and Shell each hold a 50 percent working interest in the Manuel development.

Ewan Drummond, bp senior vice president of projects, production and operations, said: "Our disciplined investment in Manuel is part of our target to add 900,000 boe/d of production from new projects by the end of 2021. The safe production of resilient hydrocarbons in the basins we know best is core to advancing our strategy to transform into an integrated energy company."

About bp

bp's ambition is to become a net zero company by 2050 or sooner, and to help the world get to net zero. bp is America's largest energy investor since 2005, investing more than $130 billion in the economy and supporting more than 125,000 additional jobs through its business activities. For more information on bp in the US, visit www.bp.com/us.

Notes to editors:

Manuel is located on Mississippi Canyon block 520, east of the bp-operated Na Kika platform in 6,625 feet of water.

is located on Mississippi Canyon block 520, east of the bp-operated Na Kika platform in 6,625 feet of water. bp is a leading producer in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico , operating four production platforms  Thunder Horse, Atlantis, Mad Dog and Na Kika  with a fifth platform, Argos, expected to come online in 2022.

, operating four production platforms  Thunder Horse, Atlantis, Mad Dog and Na Kika  with a fifth platform, Argos, expected to come online in 2022. bp anticipates growth in its production in the US Gulf of Mexico to more than 400,000 boe/d by the mid-2020s.

Further inquiries :

bp press office, Houston, [email protected]

bp privacy statement :

https://www.bp.com/en/global/corporate/news-and-insights/press-releases/privacy-statement-press.html

Cautionary statement:

In order to utilize the 'safe harbor' provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the 'PSLRA'), bp is providing the following cautionary statement. This press release contains certain forward-looking statements  that is, statements related to future, not past events and circumstances  which may relate to one or more of the financial conditions, results of operations and businesses of bp and certain of the plans and objectives of bp with respect to these items. These statements are generally, but not always, identified by the use of words such as 'will', 'expects', 'is expected to', 'aims', 'should', 'may', 'objective', 'is likely to', 'intends', 'believes', 'anticipates', 'plans', 'we see' or similar expressions. Actual results may differ from those expressed in such statements, depending on a variety of factors including the risk factors set forth in our most recent Annual Report and Form 20-F under "Risk factors" and in any of our more recent public reports.



This document contains references to non-proved resources and production outlooks based on non-proved resources that the SEC's rules prohibit us from including in our filings with the SEC. U.S. investors are urged to consider closely the disclosures in our Form 20-F, SEC File No. 1-06262.



Our most recent Annual Report and Form 20-F and other period filings are available on our website at www.bp.com,or can be obtained from the SEC by calling 1-800-SEC-0330 or on its website at www.sec.gov.

SOURCE BP

Related Links

http://www.bp.com/us


MENDON, Mass., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Workers who have been on strike against Johnson Brothers of Rhode Island since May 26 marked the new federal holiday, Juneteenth, by protesting at the home of their boss. Johnson Brothers of RI is the exclusive distributor of Gallo Wine products in the Ocean State. Teamsters Local 251 has been negotiating a first contract with the company since November 2020.

The workers gathered at Johnson Brothers of Rhode Island President Keith Miranda's home early in the morning. They wore their strike signs, carried Black Lives Matter signs, chanted and gave flyers out describing their struggle in the exclusive Mendon, Mass., neighborhood.

"This small group of 12 workers is comprised predominantly of people of color. As we celebrate the emancipation of Black Americans on Juneteenth for the first time as a federal holiday, the truth of the matter is we still have corporate enslavement in America," said Teamsters Local 251 Business Agent Matt Maini.

"Some of these workers make as little as $15 per hour. How does Johnson Brothers expect them to pay up to $20,000 per year in premiums and out of pocket expenses for a family medical plan, put food on the table, keep a roof over their head and save for retirement with wages like that?" asked Matt Taibi, Teamsters Local 251 Secretary-Treasurer. "Before the strike even began one of the workers was already homeless. Another was living in an apartment with minimal furniture, very little food in the refrigerator, had to take out loans to stave off evictions, and took buses to get to work."

"We have nothing, so we have nothing to lose by striking this company," said Alex Pelaez, a 19-year driver for the company. "Our labor built that mansion for Keith Miranda. He gives his lawn better treatment than he does his workers. This is why we have asked the Rhode Island public to not purchase any Gallo wine products like High Noon Hard Seltzer or Barefoot Wine until we get a fair contract."

"We've gotten great community support in Rhode Island for these workers," Maini said. "Many of the bars, restaurants and liquor stores have refused to take deliveries from the out of state replacement workers during the strike and we believe those numbers will increase over time."

Johnson Brothers Distributing is based in St. Paul, MN and has been in operation since 1953. It is one of the largest family-owned liquor distributorships in the United States with locations in 21 states.

Teamsters Local 251 represents over 6,300 workers in a wide variety of industries throughout Rhode Island. For more information, go to https://teamsterslocal251.org/

Contact:

Matthew Taibi, (401) 431-0454

[email protected]

SOURCE Teamsters Local 251
CHICAGO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading digital automotive marketplace and solutions provider Cars.comTM (NYSE: CARS) today released its 2021 American-Made Index (AMI), an independent, annual list that ranks the new vehicles that contribute most to the U.S. economy based on criteria ranging from U.S. factory jobs and manufacturing plants to parts sourcing. The No. 1 most American-made vehicle for 2021 is the Tesla Model 3. This is the first time Tesla has topped the list, and also the first time an all-electric vehicle has come in at No. 1. To view the complete list, visit www.cars.com/ami .

AMI story: What is the American Made-Index and why is it so important - Full story Top Spot: Kelsey Mays, Lead American Made-Index Researcher, on who got the top spot this year AMI Auto Environment: Kelsey Mays, Lead American Made-Index Researcher, on how the current auto environment impacted the American Made-Index Broll: Broll of Kelsey Mays, Lead American Made-Index Researcher, as he gathers the needed data to create the American Made-Index Cars.com's American Made-Index Top 10 Cars The most American car on Cars.com American Made-Index goes to the 2021 Tesla Model 3. Cars.com Inc.

Experience the interactive Multichannel News Release here: https://www.multivu.com/players/English/8915151-cars-com-tesla-model-3-2021-american-made-index/

"Tesla has now cemented itself firmly on Cars.com's American Made-Index, with the Model 3 and the Model Y taking the No. 1 and No. 3 spots, respectively," says Kelsey Mays, Cars.com assistant managing editor and the AMI's lead researcher. "The 2021 AMI arrives against a backdrop of scarce inventory amid a microchip shortage and heightened consumer demand. Despite this, there remains a high consumer focus on buying American-made vehicles as the economy is still emerging from the effects of the pandemic. For those interested in making the biggest impact here, the index gives shoppers a way to purchase the most American-made vehicle."

Top 10 on the 2021 Cars.com American-Made Index

Rank Make/Model U.S. Assembly Location 1. Tesla Model 3 Fremont, Calif. 2. Ford Mustang Flat Rock, Mich. 3. Tesla Model Y Fremont, Calif. 4. Jeep Cherokee Belvidere, Ill. 5. Chevrolet Corvette Bowling Green, Ky. 6. Honda Ridgeline Lincoln, Ala. 7. Honda Odyssey Lincoln, Ala 8. Honda Pilot Lincoln, Ala. 9. Honda Passport Lincoln, Ala. 10. Toyota Tundra San Antonio

Tesla tops the list in just its second year of participation; in 2020, three of the automaker's models made the AMI top 10. Marking its first AMI top 10 appearance is the Michigan-built Ford Mustang, and Stellantis' Jeep Cherokee, assembled in northern Illinois, is in the top five once again. Additionally, four Honda nameplates are in the top 10, all built in Alabama. The Chevrolet Corvette and Toyota Tundra also hold top spots on the index this year.

Out of 344 models on the market for 2021, a total of 90 models qualified for this year's AMI. GM led the way with 19 cars on the index, followed by Honda (13), Toyota (12), and Ford (11). As it relates to body style, nearly 50% of the vehicles are SUVs, followed by sedans and/or hatchbacks models (28%) and pickup trucks (17%).

Increased Importance on Buying American Made

According to new research from Cars.com, 72% of shoppers consider a car's U.S. economic impact a significant or deciding factor in their vehicle purchase, up from 70% who indicated the same in 2020. Even as the pandemic threat begins to wane, a third of respondents in 2021 still say COVID-19 has made them more likely to buy an American-built vehicle. Up from just a quarter of respondents in 2020, 29% this year say that it's "unpatriotic" to purchase a non-American-made vehicle.

Methodology

Cars.com's American-Made Index ranks cars based on five factors: assembly location, parts sourcing as determined by the American Automobile Labeling Act, U.S. factory employment relative to vehicle production, engine sourcing and transmission sourcing.

For more information on the 2021 Cars.com American-Made Index, including a deeper dive into the data and methodology, visit www.cars.com/ami .

1 Cars.com survey conducted June 10-14, 2021; 1,001 responses.

About Cars.com

CARS is a leading digital marketplace and solutions provider for the automotive industry that connects car shoppers with sellers. Launched in 1998 with the flagship marketplace site Cars.com and headquartered in Chicago, the Company empowers shoppers with the data, resources and digital tools needed to make informed buying decisions and seamlessly connect with automotive retailers. In a rapidly changing market, CARS enables dealerships and OEMs with innovative technical solutions and data-driven intelligence to better reach and influence ready-to-buy shoppers, increase inventory turn and gain market share.

In addition to Cars.com, CARS brands include Dealer Inspire, a technology provider building solutions that future-proof dealerships with more efficient operations and connected digital experiences; FUEL, which gives dealers and OEMs the opportunity to harness the untapped power of digital video by leveraging Cars.com's pure audience of in-market car shoppers, and DealerRater, a leading car dealer review and reputation management platform.

The full suite of CARS brands include Cars.com , Dealer Inspire , FUEL , DealerRater , Auto.com , PickupTrucks.com  and NewCars.com . For more information, visit www.Cars.com .

SOURCE Cars.com Inc.

Related Links

http://www.cars.com


NEW YORK, June 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Led by James Beard Award-winner and Executive Director Anthony Dias Blue, the New York World Wine & Spirits Competition is now officially open for entries for their 10th annual judging, taking place from August 30th through September 3rd, 2021.

Entrants can submit their products online or download entry materials from the Competition's website at www.nywscomp.com . The deadline to submit is Friday, August 6th, 2021. The deadline to contact their import partner, Park Street Imports for help with importing products into the United States is Monday, July 5th, 2021.

This year's new trade, marketing and writing awards celebrate the talented trade people whose efforts have influenced growth and trends in the wine and spirits industry  especially small and mid-sized producers. Winners will be announced throughout the year.

"After a year where the people of the beverage community were so dramatically affected, we wanted to take time to recognize, honor and highlight the people that dedicate their lives to and make up this amazing industry," said Amanda Blue, COO of The Tasting Alliance.

Below are the new awards.

Best Mixologist

Best Sommelier

Best Wine List

Best Wine Retailer

Best Spirits Retailer

Best Online Wine Retailer

Best Online Spirits Retailer

Best Brand Ambassador

Best Wine Writing

Best Spirits Writing

Best Social Media Account

Best Marketing and Advertising

Best Craft Distiller

Most Creative POS Display

Best Cocktail Menu (US/International)

Best Independent Food and Beverage Director

Best Corporate Food and Beverage Director

And more, for a full list of awards please visit the NYWSC website: www.nywscomp.com

About the New York World Wine & Spirits Competition:

The NYWSC is a member of The Tasting Alliance, parent company of the SFWSC, SFIWC, and SWSC.

Products are evaluated in a blind, consensual procedure ensuring the NYWSC maintains the highest level of impartiality.

The 2021 Competition takes place over five days, August 30th through September 3rd.

through September 3rd. Deadline for entries will be Friday, August 6th, 2021

The Tasting Alliance sponsors tasting events throughout the year where trade professionals and consumers can sample the Competition's top winners.

SOURCE The Tasting Alliance

Related Links

https://www.swscomp.com


CASCADE LOCKS, Ore., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, The Renewal Workshop (TRW), the leading provider of impact driven white-labeled resale and renewal solutions to enable apparel and textile brands to compete in the second-hand market, is announcing a $6 million financing round. The round includes Rubio Ventures, Shift Invest, Quadia, Closed Loop Partners, Gratitude Railroad, Portland Seed Fund, Fashion for Good, DOEN, Mosiaco Management, Mistletoe, and Volta Circle.

With second-hand retail as the fastest growing segment of the fashion industry, brands without TRW's services are ceding the second sale of their products to marketplaces like ThredUp, TheRealReal, and Vestiaire Collective. Leveraging TRW's technology, operations, and fulfillment services, The North Face Renewed expanded their US program to Germany in May. Following that launch, Tommy Hilfiger's Tommy for Life program expanded to France, employing TRW's technology that offers a user-centric resale experience in multiple languages, currencies and countries.

"After their successful expansion to Europe, TRW is the leading full service solution that supports recapture, renew and recommerce for apparel companies today on a global platform. Given the fast changing landscape of consumer sentiment, every brand needs to have a resale solution to stay competitive and TRW is the ideal partner from both a technology and execution perspective," says Caroline Brown, current TRW board member, investor, and Managing Director at Closed Loop Partners.

TRW also welcomes new executive leadership with the hiring of Sridhar Krishnan as CFO who was previously CFO of eBay in the Benelux region. Shay Gipson has been hired to lead Business Development. Shay has a long history in the apparel industry with Nordstrom, Ralph Lauren, and as the Director of Sales and Brand Relations for the Project and Magic Tradeshows.

The Renewal Workshop

The Renewal Workshop is the technology enabled service provider that powers circular business for brands. We connect Resale and Renewal services for apparel and home goods brands looking to increase their revenue through resale while reducing their negative environmental impact. Our user-centric white-label recommerce platform and trade-in application are available in multiple languages and currencies in the US and across the EU for partners such as The North Face, Tommy Hilfiger, and Coyuchi. TRW has facilities in Oregon and Amsterdam.

SOURCE The Renewal Workshop

Related Links

https://renewalworkshop.com


Each VIP has personally selected items for a virtual Shoebox which can be purchased on The Shoebox Project website and is then gifted to women impacted by homelessness in communities across the country. Simu Liu (Marvel's Shang-Chi The Legend of the Ten Rings) chose to select items from mostly Asian owned brands such as BEIGIC, Clio and Patrick Ta, while Kim Cattrall made her selects to include some personal care essentials from independent brands like BOM, SOMA and Compagnie de Provence. Each VIP box costs $100 and the donor has the opportunity to select the region they would like to support.

"One of the main objectives of The Shoebox Project is to connect people, and never has this been more important than after the year we've been through. Living in a shelter or relying on social services can be extremely isolating, and many women feel like they've been forgotten by society. Our aim is simply to help as many women as possible realize that they are valued, cared for, and not alone." - Jessica Mulroney, Co-Founder, The Shoebox Project.

Over the last 10 years, The Shoebox Project has supported over 250,000 women accessing shelters and other community agencies in Canada, USA and the UK and this project is aiming to reach even more women in need.

LINK TO HIGH RES IMAGERY OF BOXES

About The Shoebox Project:

The Shoebox Project for Women collects and distributes gift-filled Shoeboxes to women impacted by homelessness. Each Shoebox is filled with items valued at 50 dollars that can enhance self-worth and reduce isolation. The Shoebox Project now delivers over 64,000 gifts annually to hundreds of communities across Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Website is: shoeboxproject.co Follow along on Twitter: @ShoeboxUSA , Facebook: ShoeboxProjectUSA , and Instagram: @ShoeboxProject

SOURCE The Shoebox Project

Related Links

www.shoeboxproject.com


INDIANAPOLIS, June 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- To kick off the 2021 Sweets & Snacks Expo, judges of the coveted Most Innovative New Product Awards unveiled this year's winners. These highly competitive awards recognize the most innovative candy and snack products and companies for their achievements and new products introduced to the market over the past two years.

"The Most Innovative New Product Awards continue to highlight the innovation that pushes our industry forward, and we celebrate the creativity that makes the confectionery and snack categories shine," John Downs, president and CEO of the National Confectioners Association, said. "For many consumers, candy and snacks played a central role over the past 18 months in making ordinary moments a little more special, and these new products will make getting back to the things that we love to do this summer even more fun."

The submitted products were judged by retail and category thought leaders from leading retailers like Costco, Walgreen's and 7-Eleven. The awards attracted more than 300 entries and recognized 55 products in 11 categories as well as Best In Show and Small Business Innovator, which recognize the judges' favorite product and an up-and-coming innovative company, respectively.

The winners of the Most Innovative New Products Awards are as follows:

Chocolate: The Hershey Company  Reese's Big Cup with Pretzels

 Reese's Big Cup with Pretzels Non-Chocolate: Mederer U.S.A. , Inc.  efrutti Bakery Shoppe Bag

 efrutti Bakery Shoppe Bag Gum & Mints: Perfetti Van Melle USA , Inc.  Mentos Gum Paperboard Bottle

Mentos Gum Paperboard Bottle Salty Snacks: Wonderful Pistachios  Wonderful Pistachios No Shells Sea Salt & Vinegar

Wonderful Pistachios No Shells Sea Salt & Vinegar Sweet Snacks: TruFru LLC  Nature's Strawberries Hyper-Chilled Frozen Fresh in White Chocolate & Milk Chocolate

 Nature's Strawberries Hyper-Chilled Frozen Fresh in White Chocolate & Milk Chocolate Meat Snacks: Pure Jerky Co  Tripi's Sweet Spicy Original

 Tripi's Sweet Spicy Original Savory Snacks: Indiana Import LLC  Torti Max

Torti Max Novelty/Licensed  Candy & Snacks: Pez Candy , Inc.  Harry Potter Back Pack Clips with Mystery Flavor PEZ Candy

 Harry Potter Back Pack Clips with Mystery Flavor PEZ Candy Seasonal  Candy & Snacks: Ferrara Candy Company  Nerds Candy Corn

 Nerds Candy Corn Gourmet/Premium  Candy: TruFru LLC  Nature's Pineapple Pina Colada Hyper-Chilled Fresh and Immersed in White Chocolate and Coconut

 Nature's Pineapple Pina Colada Hyper-Chilled Fresh and Immersed in White Chocolate and Coconut Gourmet/Premium  Snacks: Crack Corn  The Original Ultra-Premium Puff Corn

 The Original Ultra-Premium Puff Corn Small Business Innovator: BranchOut  Banana Bites

 Banana Bites Best in Show: Ferrara Candy Company  Nerds Gummy Clusters

To set up an interview with a Sweets & Snacks Expo spokesperson, please call 330-571-3693 or email Lauren Boland ([email protected]).

Please visit the official Sweets & Snacks Expo Media Kit for more information on the show and media resources.

About Sweets & Snacks Expo

The Sweets & Snacks Expo is the premier event for the confectionery and snack industries. Featuring new product launches, business-building solutions and merchandising innovations, this annual trade show brings together qualified candy and snack retail professionals and company representatives who showcase the latest in candy and snack products. The event is sponsored by the National Confectioners Association. Learn more at SweetsAndSnacks.com.

About the National Confectioners Association (NCA)

The National Confectioners Association is the trade organization that promotes the unique role of chocolate, candy, gum and mints in a happy, balanced lifestyle and the companies that make these special treats. Through advocacy and regulatory guidance, communications, industry insights and retail and supply chain engagement, NCA helps create an environment that enables candy makers and confectionery retailers to thrive. As the leading association for the $36 billion U.S. confectionery industry, NCA works to ensure that chocolate and candy are celebrated for their contributions to culture, society, the economy and everyday moments of joy. Confections are produced in all 50 states, creating jobs for approximately 55,000 workers in more than 1,300 manufacturing facilities across the country. Learn more at CandyUSA.com or follow NCA on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Contact:

Lauren O'Toole Boland

[email protected]

330-571-3693

Carly Schildhaus

[email protected]

516-776-8082

SOURCE National Confectioners Association

Related Links

http://www.candyusa.org


NAIROBI, Kenya, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A national motorcycle helmet coalition is to be established in Kenya as part of a major effort to increase motorcycle and motorised three-wheeler safety for riders and their passengers. It follows research which shows that a motorcycle helmet can reduce the risk of death by 42 per cent and risk of head injury by 69 per cent in a crash.

The project was announced today as part of the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile's (FIA) Safe and Affordable Helmet Programme  which has seen the creation of an innovative new high-quality motorcycle helmet which meets UN safety standard 22.05, is comfortable in hot and humid climates, and available at a target selling price of around 20 USD.

Independent global road safety philanthropy the FIA Foundation will provide ongoing support for the initiative and has appointed Transaid to lead an initial 18-month project to build a national network of stakeholders to improve safety and reduce injury nationally. Transaid is an international development organisation with extensive experience in motorcycle and three-wheeler safety and has worked in Kenya previously.

Sam Clark, Head of Programmes at Transaid, says: "The FIA and FIA Foundation are committed to achieving large-scale deployment of their Safe and Affordable Helmet Programme, and we believe strongly that a national helmet wearing coalition has the potential to deliver transformational change. We are going to be engaging with government, police, hospitals, private sector, transport associations and communities to develop the solutions which make Kenyan journeys safer."

Kevin Mubadi, President of the Boda Boda Safety Association, Kenya, explains: "Our industry is an essential and growing element of Kenya's transport system, but the challenge to access safe, affordable and appropriate helmets means that the number of riders suffering from serious head injuries is on the rise.

"We are committed to taking a leading role in the national helmet coalition implementation and we welcome the FIA Foundation's funding for the multi-sectoral approach which will seek to advocate for greater use of helmets to deliver safer Kenyan roads."

The majority of the estimated 1.4 million* motorcycles in Kenya are used as "boda bodas"  and whilst compulsory motorcycle helmet use laws exist, enforcement is currently inconsistent and helmet use is low.

Saul Billingsley, Executive Director for the FIA Foundation, says: "Use and access to affordable yet quality helmets in low- and middle-income countries such as Kenya has historically been low making riders vulnerable to serious injury, in particular head injuries. More than a quarter of global road traffic deaths represent motorised two or three wheelers and the rate is rising rapidly.

"Establishing a national helmet wearing coalition, with Transaid's support, helps to address the need for greater awareness of road safety amongst riders, and lay the groundwork for the cross-sectoral cooperation and active engagement of civil society and communities."

[Tomorrow] FIA President Jean Todt will meet with His Excellency Uhuru Kenyatta, President of the Republic of Kenya, to showcase the new helmets and discuss road safety.

Kenya currently has amongst the highest road traffic death rates in Africa, with 12,463* road traffic-related deaths reported in 2018.

*Source: Directorate of Registration and Licensing at the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), reported there were 1,393,290 registered motorcycles in Kenya, in February 2018.

**Source: WHO estimated



Note to Editor:

About Transaid

Transaid transforms lives through safe, available, and sustainable transport.

Transaid's core work includes creating transport management systems for the public sector and assisting with the provision of professional driving qualification development and the training of driver trainers. It also assists with teaching preventive vehicle maintenance management and introducing local, low cost transport solutions including its innovative bicycle ambulance. Transaid also helps promote road safety awareness and shares its specialist knowledge with the humanitarian aid sector.

About the FIA Foundation

The FIA Foundation is an independent UK registered charity which supports an international programme of activities promoting road safety, the environment and sustainable mobility. Our aim is to ensure "Safe, Clean, Fair and Green" mobility for all.

SOURCE Transaid

Related Links

https://www.transaid.org


Sunil Nagaraj is the founding Partner at Ubiquity Ventures with close to $100 million of assets under management and 25 portfolio companies. As an investor, Sunil has an extensive and successful track record in venture capital with $14 billion of exits earlier this year, including the sale of Auth0 to Okta for $6.5 billion. Sunil was Auth0's first VC investor while a Principal at Bessemer Venture Partners. He led the company's seed round, was their first board member, and eventually led Auth0's Series A.

Software Beyond the Screen: a unique strategy

"Software Beyond the Screen" startups solve real-world physical problems by utilizing smart hardware or machine learning to provide their enterprise customers with solutions that are more effective, easier to adopt, and offer more rapid payback. Now that software can run anywhere  from training self-driving cars with synthetic data (Parallel Domain) to powering the rise of kiosks and smart dedicated devices (Esper)  software's advantages of rich analytics and over-the-air updates are being used to tune and improve the real physical world. Not only does this ubiquitous approach create a myriad of opportunities for software to impact and accelerate more of our world, but it also creates massive economic opportunities for entrepreneurs and VCs.

"At Esper, we accelerate this trend of software permeating the physical world with our DevOps for Devices platform," said Esper CEO/co-founder Yadhu Gopalan. "Our solution powers enterprise devices across retail, restaurants, logistics, hospitality, and more. Sunil backed us the day we were incorporated, and his hands-on approach is unmatched as we've grown from 2 co-founders to over 100 employees and more than $40 million in VC funding."

Software continues to move beyond the screen of computers and smartphones to other areas including:

Dairy farmers (with Halter's smart cow collars and "cowgorithms" to help dairy farmers digitally shepherd cows around a farm)

Warehouses and manufacturing (with ThruWave to see inside closed boxes or Elementary's cameras to monitor manufacturing defects)

Weather (with Windborne's smart weather balloons)

Space (with Loft Orbital's AWS-like services for taking payloads to space)

Hospitals (with Diligent Robotics autonomous robots)

The use cases are unlimited and often tap into historically untouched, greenfield markets.

Ubiquity founding partner Sunil Nagaraj commented, "In my ten years of venture capital with almost $20 billion of exits, I have never seen a more exciting and lucrative trend than "software beyond the screen". This landscape is incredibly ripe for opportunity with many future multi-billion-dollar companies still at the seed stage or perhaps not even yet formed. Ubiquity's fund 2 is backed by a forward-thinking institutional investor base, with all large backers from fund 1 increasing their commitments as well as the addition of new similarly-minded universities and endowments."

About Ubiquity Ventures

Ubiquity Ventures is a seed-stage institutional venture capital firm that invests in "software beyond the screen" startups. This includes companies using smart hardware and machine intelligence to move real world physical problems into the domain of software where they can be solved much more effectively. Leveraging a decade of institutional venture capital experience, Sunil Nagaraj leads Ubiquity Ventures along with an extended team of 50 experts with a range of technical and marketing expertise. See more details on the Ubiquity Ventures website at http://www.ubiquity.vc.

SOURCE Ubiquity Ventures

Related Links

https://www.ubiquity.vc


TOKYO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- University of Electro-Communications publishes the June 2021 issue of UEC e-Bulletin

June 2021 issue of UEC e-Bulletin

http://www.ru.uec.ac.jp/e-bulletin/

The June 2021 issue of the UEC e-Bulletin includes a video profile of UEC Assistant Professor Daisuke Nakane where he describes his recent research on "How and why do bacteria move".

The Research Highlights are, 'Bacteria in the spotlight: Bacterial community exhibits only counterclockwise movement,' Daisuke Nakane; 'Innovative building blocks for the quantum internet: All fiber platform for quantum photonic processing on tapered optical fibers,' Kali Nayak; and 'Efficient & reliable data processing for scalable Internet of Things: Innovative amplify-and-forward-based AirComp,' Suhua Tang.

The Topics section is an interview with Lu Jin, Associate Professor at the Department of Informatics, UEC Tokyo, who offers insights into mathematical modelling of reliability engineering.

News and Events features the launch of the 'Joint demonstration experiment on visualizing carbon dioxide concentration inside Chofu City Hall with eight IoT sensors' on 1 June

Research Highlights

Efficient & reliable data processing for scalable Internet of Things: Innovative amplify-and-forward-based AirComp

http://www.ru.uec.ac.jp/e-bulletin/research-highlights/202106/a.html

One of the critical issues for the proliferation of Internet of Things (IoT) is the collection and computational analysis of wireless data from huge networks of smart sensors being implemented in applications that include smart transportation and cities. Recently, the technique of over-the-air computation (AirComp) has been proposed as an integrated approach for collection and processing of data from sensor networks transmitting Big-data simultaneously. Notably, although this method is efficient, it requires that all signals from nodes arrive simultaneously at the sink, aligned in signal magnitude so as to enable an unbiased estimation. However, for nodes far away from the sink with low channel gains, it is not possible to avoid misalignment in signal magnitude.

Now, Suhua Tang and colleagues at University of Electro-Communications, Tokyo, University of Science and Technology, China, and Xi'an Jiaotong University, China, describe their solution to the misalignment problem using the amplify-and-forward (AF) based relay mechanism.

In their paper, Tang and colleagues first present the general relay model for AirComp, and investigated the possibility of using a simple relay (SimRelay) approach in which a node either directly transmits its signal to a sink or via a relay node, but not both. They emphasize that, "relay transmission power increases with the number of nodes that use the relay node."

The researchers also proposed a coherent relay (CohRelay) approach, in which a node can divide its power to transmit its signal to both the relay and the sink, and the replicas of its signal are coherently combined together at the sink. They also discuss the tradeoff between computation error and transmission power.

The CohRelay approach greatly reduced the computation error, as well as reducing the relay transmission power and the overall transmission power, which is a major step forward towards the practical applications of AirComp.

Figure: http://www.ru.uec.ac.jp/topics/assets_c/202106/img1.jpg

Caption: Relay for AirComp, an analogy to a conventional relay network.

Reference

Suhua Tang, Huarui Yin, Chao Zhang, and Sadao Obana, Reliable over-the-air computation by amplify-and-forward based relay, IEEE Access, vol. 9, pp. 53333-53342, Apr. 2021.

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9395089

DOI: 10.1109/ACCESS.2021.3070901

Innovative building blocks for the quantum internet:

All fiber platform for quantum photonic processing on tapered optical fibers

http://www.ru.uec.ac.jp/e-bulletin/research-highlights/202106/b.html

Research on quantum photonics is focused on the coherent control of individual quanta of light known as photons. Such control of light is an important step towards the realization of optical quantum networks and ultimately the so-called quantum internet.

Notably, single photons can be efficient carriers of quantum information, and they travel at the speed of light incurring the minimal of interaction with the medium through which they move. However, these same physical characteristics lead to difficulties in isolating (generation) and controlling (storage/retrieval/switching) single photons.

A solution to this problem is the development of means to control photons using atomic media. In this approach, one key requirement is to be able to confine atoms and photons to subwavelength dimensions, that is, within a single atom absorption cross-section to realize efficient light-matter interaction at the single quanta level. Therefore, there has been increasing interest in the strong confinement of photonic modes in nanophotonic waveguides and resonators that exhibit quantum electrodynamics (QED) effects.

Now, Kali Prasanna Nayak and colleagues at the University of Electro-Communications, Tokyo, are developing a unique all-fiber platform for quantum photonics applications using tapered subwavelength diameter waist optical nanofibers.

The key feature of the UEC optical nanofiber technology is that the optical field is tightly confined in the transverse direction while propagating over long distances as a guided mode and enabling strong interaction with the surrounding medium in the evanescent region. This characteristic has led to unique possibilities for manipulating single atoms (solid-state quantum emitters) and fiber-guided photons. Furthermore, implementing even moderate longitudinal confinement in nanofiber cavities has enabled the strong coupling regime of cavity QED where coherent light-matter interaction can be realized at the single quanta level.

Based on their achievements to-date, Nayak and colleagues are developing both quantum interfaces between trapped (laser-cooled) single atoms and fiber-guided photons using photonic crystal nanofiber cavities, and fiber-coupled quantum light sources using hybrid systems of single quantum dots deposited on nanofibers. These fiber-coupled quantum photonics platforms show promise as building blocks for optical quantum processors and can be easily integrated into optical quantum networks.

Figure: http://www.ru.uec.ac.jp/topics/assets_c/202106/img2.jpg

Caption: Schematic diagram of a nanofiber-based quantum interface.

Reference

Kali P. Nayak et al., Count Estimation with A Low-Accuracy Machine Learning Model, Nanofiber quantum photonics, J. Opt. 20, 073001 (2018).

https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/2040-8986/aac35e

Digital Object Identifier (DOI): 10.1088/2040-8986/aac35e

Bacteria in the spotlight: Bacterial community exhibits only counterclockwise movement

http://www.ru.uec.ac.jp/e-bulletin/research-highlights/202106/c.html

The collective motion of self-driven particles is a fascinating area of research in physics and biology. In the case of bacteria, macroscopic behavior emerges through the movement of millions of bacterial cells self-propelled by flagellar rotation.

Here, Daisuke Nakane and colleagues report on the observation of a new mode of collective motion in non-flagellated soil bacterium known as Flavobacterium Johnsonian.

The researchers discovered that when bacterial cells were spotted on an agar plate with a low level of nutrients, the bacterial community exhibited vortex patterns that spontaneously appeared as lattices and integrated into a large-scale circular plate.

Notably, the large-scale circular plate exhibited unidirectional rotation in a counterclockwise manner without exception.

Nakane and his colleagues postulate that "this behavior might be an efficient strategy for cells of this species to find nutrients."

Link to Figure: http://www.ru.uec.ac.jp/topics/assets_c/202106/img3.jpg

Caption: Vortex patterns of bacteria

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auhm-uGOPDA

Reference

Daisuke Nakane et al., Large-scale vortices with dynamic rotation emerged from monolayer collective motion of gliding Flavobacteria, Journal of Bacteriology 203, e00073-21, (2021).

https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/JB.00073-21

DOI: 10.1128/JB.00073-21

Researcher Video Profiles

http://www.ru.uec.ac.jp/e-bulletin/researcher-video-profiles/202106/a.html

Daisuke Nakane, Assistant Professor, Department of Engineering Science, UEC Tokyo.

How and why do bacteria move?

Here, Daisuke Nakane describes his research interests and recent results on how and why bacteria move.

It is well known that bacteria are one of the simplest forms of life on Earth. They live everywhere, and have a great impact on our lives, including health, agriculture, and environment.

"Bacteria are too small to be seen directly," says Nakane. "My research is focused on visualizing bacterial cells and their biological motion using optical microscopy to understand their behavior on a molecular level."

Read more

http://www.ru.uec.ac.jp/e-bulletin/researcher-video-profiles/202106/a.html

Topics

http://www.ru.uec.ac.jp/e-bulletin/topics/202106/a.html

Insights into modern reliability engineering

Lu Jin, Associate Professor at the Department of Informatics, UEC Tokyo

"My research is based on reliability engineering," says Lu Jin, an associate professor at the Department of Informatics, UEC Tokyo. "I am working on maintenance planning to study a wide range of systems for ensuring the safety and security of our society. The interest of my research is developing decision-making models for realizing more flexible and efficient maintenance plan while maintaining high reliability and safety."

Jin is developing decision-making models for systems focused on optimizing problems for maintenance plans such as periodic maintenance and condition monitoring maintenance.

Specifically, Jin wants to reduce maintenance costs while maintaining reliability levels by dynamically adjusting and controlling maintenance plans based on monitoring information on operating systems. A maintenance plan that uses the Markov decision process as the core model, takes into consideration the effects of direct and indirect measurement of system deterioration, measurement accuracy, changes in the operating environment, and so on, and yields a trade-off between maintenance costs and failure losses.

More

http://www.ru.uec.ac.jp/e-bulletin/topics/202106/a.html

News and Events

http://www.ru.uec.ac.jp/e-bulletin/news/202106/a.html

Joint demonstration experiment on visualizing carbon dioxide concentration inside Chofu City Hall with eight IoT sensors

From 1 June 2021, the University of Electro-Communications (UEC Tokyo) and Chofu City plan to jointly carry out a demonstration experiment to visualize the carbon dioxide concentration in Chofu City Hall and maintain good ventilation as part of an industry-academia-government collaboration.

Visualized image of carbon dioxide concentration (composite photo)

The demonstration will utilize high-precision compact carbon dioxide sensor developed by the Tanaka-Ishigaki Laboratory (Department of Informatics) and Yokogawa Laboratory (Info-Powered Energy System Research Center) at UEC Tokyo.

Read more

http://www.ru.uec.ac.jp/e-bulletin/news/202106/a.html

Further information

University of Electro-Communications

1-5-1 Chofugaoka, Chofu, Tokyo 182-8585

E-mail: [email protected]

Website: http://www.uec.ac.jp/

About the University of Electro-Communications

http://www.uec.ac.jp/

The University of Electro-Communications (UEC) in Tokyo is a small, luminous university at the forefront of pure and applied sciences, engineering, and technology research. Its roots go back to the Technical Institute for Wireless Commutations, which was established in 1918 by the Wireless Association to train so-called wireless engineers in maritime communications in response to the Titanic disaster in 1912. In 1949, the UEC was established as a national university by the Japanese Ministry of Education and moved in 1957 from Meguro to its current Chofu campus Tokyo.

With approximately 4,000 students and 350 faculty members, UEC is regarded as a small university, but with expertise in wireless communications, laser science, robotics, informatics, and material science, to name just a few areas of research.

The UEC was selected for the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) Program for Promoting the Enhancement of Research Universities as a result of its strengths in three main areas: optics and photonics research, where we are number one for the number of joint publications with foreign researchers; wireless communications, which reflects our roots; and materials-based research, particularly on fuel cells.

Website: http://www.uec.ac.jp/

SOURCE University of Electro-Communications
For the first time in NJ, a drill used manned aircraft and drones for first responder support after an emergency. Tweet this

"Unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) are a post-disaster force multiplier," said David Yoel, AATI CEO. "In the aftermath of a disaster, UAS can provide critical information to first responders, accelerating response while increasing safety and effectiveness."

"These UAS can be valuable tools in emergency response, but they are not yet used due to concerns about impeding manned aircraft, like helicopters," said Howard Kyle, President of the National Aviation Research and Technology Park. "This exercise is an example of the important research and technology events that are sponsored regularly at NARTP."

The Emergency Response Exercise, led by NARTP, was conducted by private companies and local, state, and federal agencies: AeroDefense, American Aerospace Technologies, Arke Aeronautics, Atlantic Cape Community College, Atlantic City Fire Department, Atlantic City Electric, Atlantic City OEM, Cape May County OEM, Delaware River and Bay Authority, FAA SOSC, New Jersey American Water, New Jersey Dept. of Corrections, NJ Board of Public Utilities, New Jersey Innovation Institute, New Jersey State Police, North Wildwood OEM, Salem County OEM, Sky Scape Industries, SJ Industries, Sunhillo, and the U.S. Coast Guard SDB.

"We are grateful to the US EDA for funding a significant portion of the research through an Innovation Challenge Grant," said Carole Mattessich, Director of Smart Airport Aviation Partnership. "The private companies participated at their own expense because this work has serious implications for emergency response."

For photos, videos and documents, visit https://www.dropbox.com/sh/bvy4dfo6i2k871v/AAAsVGTy0EbYcPT2N1zjrjFga?dl=0

SOURCE National Aviation Research and Technology Park (NARTP)
NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Uptime.com  which provides web monitoring peace of mind to thousands of customers like Apple, Microsoft, IBM, Palo Alto Networks, Kraft and BNP Paribas  was named one of the world's best web monitoring solutions for the fifth consecutive year in G2.com, Inc.'s influential Summer 2021 Grid and Index Reports.

Along with earning High Performer status on G2's Website Monitoring and IT Alerting Grids, Uptime.com was also named a Momentum Leader as one of the fastest growing IT alerting solutions according to G2. In all, Uptime.com received six badges for its performance across 14 Summer 2021 G2 reports and indexes.

"Uptime.com eats, breathes, and lives for our customers' uptime and performance peace of mind," said Mike Welsh, Uptime.com's CEO. "Our G2 rankings from users who trust us for something so vital, yet so easy to get wrong, validates both the depth and quality of our product, along with our relentless focus on customer support."

All G2 rankings and ratings are based on verified user reviews of B2B software. With nearly a decade of operating experience, Uptime.com continues to stand out due to its combination of top-rated technology and full-fledged human support.

"Uptime.com is the total package of monitoring solutions," said Patrick Askan, manager of system engineering at Transcepta. "Their solution is fairly priced, and combines all of the monitoring checks and capabilities we need with fantastic onboarding and technical support."

About Uptime.com

Uptime.com provides peace of mind to thousands of customers like Apple, Microsoft, IBM, Palo Alto Networks, Kraft, and BNP Paribas, who trust us to monitor the performance, health, and downtime of their websites, applications, and infrastructure.

Related Images

ceo-mike-welsh.jpg

CEO Mike Welsh

Uptime.com's CEO Mike Welsh smiles at the camera

SOURCE Uptime.com
SAN FRANCISCO, June 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- San Francisco-based Veritas Investments, one of the largest managers of apartment homes in San Francisco, announced today it is voluntarily extending to Dec. 31, 2021 a moratorium on evictions to assist residents facing financial hardship caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. State and local moratoriums are currently set to expire June 30, 2021.

"Veritas is committed to keeping residents safely housed during this unprecedented crisis," said Jeff Jerden, Veritas' COO. "No resident in any Veritas-managed property will be evicted because they owe back-rent due to COVID-19 if they meet the definition of financial hardship laid out in the state's SB 91 legislation. We've heard from our residents and the upcoming end to the state's eviction moratorium coupled with the slow release of rent-relief funds is of great concern to them. Through face-to-face discussions, as well as thorough and repeated outreach with our Veritas residents, we've urged everyone to apply."

Veritas had announced in March 2020 that it was instituting the nation's first eviction moratorium, prior to legislation by the City of San Francisco that later brought all landlords and property managers under similar guidance.

With the since-instituted local and state moratoria set to expire this June 30, Veritas has been urging residents to be proactive in applying for rent relief that they are entitled to, even as local and state officials have recognized a disconnect in getting financial relief to recipients.

As reported by the Associated Press, "California has been slow to distribute funds," having received $490 million in rental aid requests through May 31, with only $32 million paid out. Just over 2% of people in California who have applied for rent relief during the pandemic have received it, whereas the state has accrued $5.2 billion from federal aid packages to assist those whose COVID-19 related economic hardships prevented them from paying rent. "It should be enough to get the job done," Jason Elliott, senior counselor to Gov. Gavin Newsom, told AP. "The move would fulfill a promise to landlords to help them to break even, while giving renters relief," according to AP.

Veritas has already provided millions of dollars in rent-relief support for its residents to date, working with those that ask for assistance as well as contacting them directly.

"We will also continue to support San Francisco residents through the wide variety of programs that Veritas currently participates in or has initiated itself, including its Open Doors Program that provides temporary, furnished apartments at no cost to victims of domestic violence, wildfire survivors and cancer patients; the Home Bridge Program that helps families find relief during times of crisis, emergency or unforeseen circumstances through partnerships with Ronald McDonald House Charities and UCSF; and through our partnerships with Project Open Hand, HealthRight 360, Self-Help for the Elderly, and other programs," added Jerden.

About Veritas Investments

San Francisco-based Veritas, founded in 2007, is one of the largest managers of multifamily, urban retail and mixed-use properties in California. Veritas oversees assets in excess of $3.5 billion including more than 7,000 apartments and commercial retail space. Vertically integrated, the firm provides property management, leasing, project management, redevelopment, accounting, asset management, financing, and investment management services. For further information visit www.veritasinvestments.com.

Links/resources:

https://www.yahoo.com/news/california-pay-off-unpaid-rent-173214035.html

https://www.veritasinvestments.com/news/veritas-investments-announces-voluntary-extension-of-its-programs-to-keep-residents-in-their-homes/

SOURCE Veritas Investments Inc

Related Links

www.veritasinvestments.com


NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- VERO , the modern leasing infrastructure for owners and renters, today announced a $5M Series A funding round, jointly led by Eleven Capital and Bienville Capital. Strategic investors, including LeFrak and A&E, also participated in the round. This new investment, which will be used to expand VERO's centralized product offerings and grow the team, brings the company's total funding to more than $9M. The new investment will be used to expand the team and fuel product growth.

VERO consolidates a broken leasing process in one simple platform, making lease management easier and more affordable for property managers while providing transparency and cost savings for renters. On average, it takes less than 17 minutes to apply and sign a lease with VEROcompared to the industry average of seven days. By combining each separate step of the leasing process into one centralized solution, VERO grants owners benefits including streamlined workflow, mitigated risk, and increased net asset value (NAV), while passing time savings and transparency onto their renters.

Other operator benefits include:

More informed leasing decisions

Digital-first accessibility

Decreased application fraud

Workflow automation

Increased net asset value

"VERO's centralized solution takes the pain out of the leasing process for all parties," said Chad Pike, Eleven Capital's Founder, who has joined VERO's Board of Directors. "I couldn't be more optimistic about the positive impact VERO's platform will continue to have on the renting ecosystem, and I'm excited to be a part of the journey."

VERO has increased transactions by 500% on an annual basis, and grown revenue by 130% QoQ. Helping both property managers and their renters experience leasing in an entirely new way, the new financing will further propel VERO's vision, and support the ambitious growth to be driven by product and engineering talent. Current VERO partners include LeFrak, Stonehenge, Alfred, and FirstService Residential, among others.

"VERO has identified and solved an immense need within the multifamily rental sector," said Douglas Eisenberg, Founder and Chairman of A&E. "We're excited to take our partnership with VERO even further with a strategic investment in its ambitious vision."

"I'm humbled by the pedigree of partners that have chosen to work with VERO after deeply examining every possible option," said Lou Baugier, CEO and co-founder of VERO. "This new investment will support our ambitious goals and further deepen our product functionality and flexibility to drive value for our nationwide partners."

ABOUT VERO

VERO is the modern leasing infrastructure for renters and owners. Designed to streamline and automate all operations, VERO consolidates a broken leasing process in one simple platform, making lease management easier and more affordable for property managers while providing transparency and cost savings for renters. Learn more about VERO: sayvero.com

CONTACT

[email protected]

SOURCE VERO

Related Links

http://www.sayvero.com


MEXICO CITY, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Corporacion Inmobiliaria Vesta, S.A.B. de C.V. ("VESTA" or the "Company") (BMV: Vesta), one of the leading pure-play industrial real estate companies in Mexico, announces that it has been selected for inclusion in the S&P/BMV Total Mexico ESG Index for the second consecutive year. Vesta and 28 other BMV-listed companies were selected as Index constituents based on the S&P's Corporate Sustainability Assessment.

The S&P/BMV Total Mexico ESG Index was launched in 2020 to measure the performance of stocks within the S&P/BMV Total Mexico Index that meet rules-based sustainability criteria. The index applies exclusions based on business activities and United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) scores and is weighted by the scores of the S&P DJI Sustainability Index.

Lorenzo Dominique Berho, Vesta's Chief Executive Officer, commented, "Inclusion in the S&P/BMV Total Mexico ESG Index for the second consecutive year is an honor, and further recognition that Vesta's contribution to society and to our environment is deeply ingrained within our Company's DNA- a source of pride for our employees and the force that drives us. We continue to broaden and deepen our ESG-related initiatives, and in 2021 Vesta's ESG leadership in Mexico and Latin America was further affirmed as the first Real Estate company to issue a Sustainability-Linked bond out of Latin America. We have always focused on using our uniquely sustainable Industrial Real Estate offering and expertise to improve lives and create a better world."

Laura Elena Ramirez Barron, Vesta's Chief ESG Officer, added, "This recognition is a testament to the Vesta's incredible team; all of us care deeply about making a positive impact on our communities and the world. In the past year in particular, our colleagues came together to further advance Vesta's community support and diversity, equity and inclusion and environmental sustainability throughout our organization as well as at our buildings, developments and in the areas where we operate. As we respond to the changing world before us, Vesta will continue to elevate our business to global best practices- working with clients, international organizations and partner companies to execute on our commitment to making a positive impact on our world."

About Vesta

Vesta is a best-in-class, fully integrated real estate company that owns, manages, acquires, sells, develops and re-develops industrial properties in Mexico. As of March 31, 2021, Vesta owned 189 properties located in modern industrial parks in 15 states of Mexico totaling a GLA of 31.6 million ft2 (2.93 million m2). The Company has multinational clients, which are focused in industries such as consumer retail, aerospace, automotive, food and beverage, logistics, medical devices and plastics, among others. For more information visit: www.vesta.com.mx

SOURCE Corporacion Inmobiliaria Vesta, S.A.B. de C.V.

Related Links

https://www.vesta.com.mx


CHICAGO and LAS VEGAS, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- VillageMD and its affiliates announced today that Priority Health Group in Las Vegas will be joining the organization. Seven primary care providers, including physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants, will join VillageMD's Village Medical practices in Las Vegas starting this month. Village Medical primary care clinics are currently in multiple markets across Texas, Georgia, Arizona, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Florida, Kentucky, Rhode Island, New Jersey, and Nevada. Village Medical offers comprehensive primary care services, which include virtual care and at-home care.

"We're thrilled to open Village Medical in Las Vegas and expand our primary care footprint with such an incredible group of providers, including Dr. Cliff Molin and his team at Priority Health Group," said Tim Barry, CEO and chairman of VillageMD. "Our goal is to offer the best possible care that's physician-led, coordinated and accessible for patients in Las Vegas. Additionally, by joining Village Medical, providers are able to benefit from our high-tech, high-touch primary care model to help provide exceptional care to their patients."

Village Medical offers a comprehensive suite of primary care services including preventative care, treatment for illness and injury, and management of chronic conditions such as diabetes, congestive heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and kidney disease. Las Vegas-area patients can learn more about the services at Village Medical here .

"I'm excited to open the first Village Medical location in Las Vegas and I'm looking forward to serving our existing patients and welcoming new patients. Along with my colleagues Stephanie Lehrner, D.O., and Adam Milman, M.D., we'll continue to offer high-quality care, with additional capabilities including population health insights and a more robust technology platform," said Dr. Molin, who has more than 30 years of experience treating patients with a variety of chronic conditions and is board-certified in internal medicine and sleep medicine.

The new Village Medical practice is located at 2481 Professional Court in Las Vegas.

Village Medical patients will have access to same-day appointments and virtual health visits with a Village Medical provider. Additionally, Village Medical patients can take advantage of Village Medical at Home, which provides in-home primary care visits with experienced primary care providers. Village Medical patients also benefit from VillageMD's patent-pending docOS operating platform, which integrates data and technology to give physicians a 360-degree view of their patients' health profiles and can help identify gaps in care.

To learn more, make an appointment or view all Village Medical locations, please visit www.villagemedical.com .

About VillageMD

VillageMD, through its subsidiary Village Medical, is a leading, national provider of value-based primary care services. VillageMD partners with physicians to provide the tools, technology, operations, staffing support and industry relationships to deliver high-quality clinical care and better patient outcomes, while reducing the total cost of care. The Village Medical brand provides primary care for patients at traditional free-standing clinics, Village Medical at Walgreens clinics, at home and via virtual visits. VillageMD and Village Medical have grown to 15 markets and are responsible for more than 1.6 million patients. VillageMD is also the largest participating sponsor of CMS' new Direct Contracting program and estimates it serves more than 56,000 patients. To learn more, please visit www.villageMD.com .

SOURCE VillageMD

Related Links

https://www.villagemedical.com


TAMPA, Fla., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- vXchnge announced today that the Globee Awards, organizers of the world's premier business awards programs and business ranking lists, has recognized the colocation company as a Gold IT World Awards winner in the category of Data Center Infrastructure Management, in addition to two Bronze awards for Business Intelligence and Analytics and IT Service Management.

"We are extremely proud to be named as a winner of the Gold Globee Award and recognized as a groundbreaking data center services provider," said Ernest Sampera, co-founder and CMO, vXchnge. "Behind this distinguished success is our team's relentless drive to always keep the customer experience at the forefront of everything we do, incorporate direct customer input, and anticipate user needs. This has been a pivotal year for the IT industry and our consumers, and we believe this recognition further validates our customer commitment and the need for secure, reliable, and scalable infrastructure offerings."

By always providing customers with pre-emptive disaster recovery strategies, fast actions to safeguard data, and 24x7x365 support and secure remote access, vXchnge has continued to rise to the challenge of any customer emergency, despite the challenges of the past year.

vXchnge's data center locations throughout the United States offer numerous connectivity options, layered physical and logical security, and SLAs (service-level agreements) guaranteeing 100% uptime to ensure maximum reliability. The company offers colocation features, including redundant infrastructure, predictable pricing, and remote hands for on-site support, as well as key differentiators like carrier-neutral connectivity. in\site, vXchnge's award-winning platform for data center infrastructure management, provides unmatched transparency and equips users with a customizable, 360-degree view into colocation deployments at no additional cost.

"The information technology industry continues to show its resilience," said San Madan, co-president of the Globee Awards. "The tech sector is robust and innovative. And the pandemic has changed the way people live, work, shop, and socialize, thereby accelerating demand for newer technologies and innovations everywhere."

These prestigious global awards highlight information technology and cyber security vendors with advanced, groundbreaking products, solutions, and services that are helping set the bar higher for others in all areas of technology and cyber security.

About vXchnge

As the most awarded carrier-neutral colocation data center operator in the United States, vXchnge delivers unmatched reliability, scalability, and security as well as an infrastructure management platform offering complete data center transparency. vXchnge's broad geographic footprint brings businesses to the edge, so they can reach more customers in the markets they serve. From emerging startups to Fortune 500 brands, some of the world's most well-known and innovative companies trust vXchnge. Visit vxchnge.com for more information.

About the Globee Awards

Globee Awards are conferred in eleven programs and competition: the American Best in Business Awards, Business Excellence Awards (Best Employers), CEO World Awards, Communications Excellence Awards, Customer Sales & Service World Awards, Cyber Security Global Excellence Awards, Disruptor Company Awards, Golden Bridge Awards, International Best in Business Awards, IT World Awards, and Women World Awards. Learn more about the Globee Awards at globeeawards.com.

SOURCE vXchnge

Related Links

https://www.vxchnge.com/


OTTAWA, ON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Wi-LAN Inc. ("WiLAN"), a Quarterhill Inc. ("Quarterhill") company (TSX: QTRH) (OTCQX: QTRHF), today announced that WiLAN's wholly-owned subsidiary, Security Video Camera Systems Inc. ("SVCS"), has entered into a license agreement with a leading security video and solution provider. The license covers various security video technologies.

The consideration payable to SVCS and all other terms of the license agreement are confidential.

About WiLAN

WiLAN, a Quarterhill company, is one of the most successful patent monetization companies in the world and partners with its customers to unlock the value of intellectual property through various patent monetization models. WiLAN operates in a variety of markets including automotive, digital television, Internet, medical, semiconductor and wireless communication technologies. For more information: www.wilan.com.

About Quarterhill

Quarterhill is a growth-oriented company in the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) industry as well as a leader in Intellectual Property licensing. Our goal is to execute an investment strategy that capitalizes on attractive growth opportunities within ITS - and its adjacent markets - to become a global leader in that industry. Quarterhill is listed on the TSX under the symbol QTRH and on the OTCQX Best Market under the symbol QTRHF. For more information: www.quarterhill.com

All trademarks and brands mentioned in this release are the property of their respective owners.

SOURCE Wi-LAN Inc.

Related Links

https://www.quarterhill.com/


DUBLIN, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Meat Processing Equipment Market Size, Market Share, Application Analysis, Regional Outlook, Growth Trends, Key Players, Competitive Strategies and Forecasts, 2021 to 2029" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The global meat processing equipment market is growing competently, projected to grow at a CAGR of 6.9% during the expected period from 2021 to 2029, starting from US$ 11.163 Bn in 2020.



Intensifying use of automated equipment among industries worldwide will spark market growth



In terms of value, the grinding equipment is estimated to dominate the market for meat processing equipment in 2021. Additionally, wide-scale practice of grinding equipment for grinding fragmented pieces of tenderized meat into smaller pieces will expand the market growth. Moreover, increasing use of grinders for processing a wide range of products like sausages, minced meat, hamburgers, and other products, is expected to boost up the market for meat processing equipment on a global scale. Furthermore, growing awareness towards production quality, product consistency, food safety, and workers safety are the major drivers urge the demand for the use of automated equipment across global meat industry.



The rising trend of technological advancement along with safety & regulations for high level machines worldwide will boost the equipment segment



Adoption of modern biotechnology coupled with new technologies for meat processing chain have increased its demand for meat processing equipment across the globe. In addition, new guidelines issued by the U.S. government for food companies is likely to increase the recollections of meat products certainly containing plastic, metals, and other foreign materials. For instance, according to the new guidelines by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, enterprises that manufacture beef and pork processed meat will soon have more control over the sorting of hogs, will expand the market which is likely to drive the demand for meat processing equipment globally.



Dominance is led by the growing consumer demand for processed meat coupled with presence of global market players.



Increasing demand for meat is expected to be driven by steady economic growth in developing countries, thereby expanding the market for meat processing equipment globally. According to annual projections from U.S. Department of Agriculture Imports the U.S. is projected to be the largest importer of beef with an increase of around 18% in global imports. Additionally, the alignment of its BSE policy with OIE is likely to increase the beef trading between the U.S. and European Union (EU). On account of growing investment in meat processing facilities, rising demand for processed meat, and presence of a large number of meat processors, like Cargill Meat Solutions Corp., JBS USA, and Tyson Foods in North America, will spur the demand for meat processing equipment across the region.



Furthermore, growing number of new product launches, eating habits of consumers towards processed meat has resulted in the growth of the meat processing equipment market in North America. In addition, consumer awareness regarding expediency products is one of the most significant factors contributing to the growth of meat processing industry, mainly in developing economies. Moreover, rising consumption of fast packaged food products is likely to have a positive impact, thereby expanding the market growth.



Rising production of meat such as pork, veal, and beef, growing consumer preferences for protein rich foods, and increase in number of population coupled with disposable income is likely to drive the market for meat processing equipment in North America. Additionally, incremental growth of distribution channels by small supplier will expand the market, thereby rising demand for meat processing on a global scale.

Key Industry Development:

In November 2019 , Marel inaugurated its new production facility center in Dongen, Netherlands . The new product unit is likely to improve its production efficiency.

, Marel inaugurated its new production facility center in Dongen, . The new product unit is likely to improve its production efficiency. In October 2019 , Marel acquired Cedar Creek Company, an Australian meat processors firm specialized in software and hardware solutions. This acquisition will aid to manufacture more advanced products along with the expansion of its production line.

, Marel acquired Cedar Creek Company, an Australian meat processors firm specialized in software and hardware solutions. This acquisition will aid to manufacture more advanced products along with the expansion of its production line. In October 2019 , Marel becomes a global supplier of advanced standard equipment for the meat industry with its acquisition of 50% stake in Curio, Iceland .

, Marel becomes a global supplier of advanced standard equipment for the meat industry with its acquisition of 50% stake in Curio, . In July 2018 , Bettcher launched its new meat processing equipment i.e. "Quantum Flex Trimmers" that will deliver more power, durability, and flexibility as a hand handled power trimmer.

, Bettcher launched its new meat processing equipment i.e. "Quantum Flex Trimmers" that will deliver more power, durability, and flexibility as a hand handled power trimmer. In February 2018 , Minerva Omega Group has acquired ARSA, an Italian based firm, thereby expanded its production line inventory along with geographical outreach.

Key questions answered in this report

What are the current market trends and dynamics in the meat processing equipment market and valuable opportunities for emerging players?

Which segment accounts for the fastest CAGR during the forecast period?

Which equipment type segment holds a larger market share and why?

Are low and middle-income economies investing in the meat processing equipment market?

What is the market trend and dynamics in emerging markets such as Asia Pacific , Latin America , and Middle East & Africa ?

Key Topics Covered:



1. Preface



2. Executive Summary

2.1. Market Snapshot: Global Meat Processing Equipment (MPE) Market

2.2. Global MPE Market, by Equipment Type, 2020 (US$ Bn)

2.3. Global MPE Market, by Meat Type, 2020 (US$ Bn)

2.4. Global MPE Market, by Mode of Operation, 2020 (US$ Bn)

2.5. Global MPE Market, by Applications, 2020 (US$ Bn)

2.6. Global MPE Market, by Geography, 2020 (US$ Bn)



3. Market Dynamics

3.1. Introduction

3.2. Market Dynamics

3.3. Attractive Investment Proposition, by Geography, 2020

3.4. Market Positioning of Key Players, 2020



4. Global Meat Processing Equipment (MPE) Market, by Equipment Type , 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

4.1. Overview

4.2. Cutting Equipment

4.3. Slicing Equipment

4.4. Tenderizing Equipment

4.5. Blending Equipment

4.6. Grinding Equipment

4.7. Others (Smoking Equipment, Massaging Equipment, etc.)



5. Global Meat Processing Equipment (MPE) Market, by Meat Type, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

5.1. Overview

5.2. Processed Pork

5.3. Processed Beef

5.4. Processed Mutton

5.5. Others



6. Global Meat Processing Equipment (MPE) Market, by Mode of Operation, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

6.1. Overview

6.2. Manual

6.3. Automatic

6.4. Semi-Automatic



7. Global Meat Processing Equipment (MPE) Market, by Application, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

7.1. Overview

7.2. Fresh Processed Meat

7.3. Raw Cooked Meat

7.4. Precooked Meat

7.5. Raw Fermented Sausages

7.6. Others (Cured Meat, Dried Meat, etc.)



8. North America Meat Processing Equipment (MPE) Market Analysis, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

8.1. Overview

8.2. North America MPE Market Value, By Equipment Type, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

8.3. North America MPE Market Value, By Meat Type, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

8.4. North America MPE Market Value, By Mode of Operation, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

8.5. North America MPE Market Value, By Applications, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

8.6. North America MPE Market Value, By Region/Country, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)



9. Europe Meat Processing Equipment (MPE) Market Analysis, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

9.1. Overview

9.2. Europe MPE Market Value, By Equipment Type, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

9.3. Europe MPE Market Value, By Meat Type, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

9.4. Europe MPE Market Value, By Mode of Operation, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

9.5. Europe MPE Market Value, By Applications, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

9.6. Europe MPE Market Value, By Region/Country, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)



10. Asia Pacific Meat Processing Equipment (MPE) Market Analysis, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

10.1. Overview

10.2. Asia Pacific MPE Market Value, By Equipment Type, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

10.3. Asia Pacific MPE Market Value, By Meat Type, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

10.4. Asia Pacific MPE Market Value, By Mode of Operation, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

10.5. Asia Pacific MPE Market Value, By Applications, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

10.6. Asia Pacific MPE Market Value, By Region/Country, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)



11. Rest of the World Meat Processing Equipment (MPE) Market Analysis, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

11.1. Overview

11.2. Rest of the World MPE Market Value, By Equipment Type, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

11.3. Rest of the World MPE Market Value, By Meat Type, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

11.4. Rest of the World MPE Market Value, By Mode of Operation, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

11.5. Rest of World MPE Market Value, By Applications, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)

11.6. Rest of the World MPE Market Value, By Region, 2019-2029 (US$ Bn)



12. Company Profiles

12.1. GEA Group

12.2. JBT Corporation

12.3. Marel

12.4. Illinois Tool Works

12.5. The Middleby Corporation

12.6. Bettcher Industries

12.7. Equipamientos Carnicos

12.8. Biro Manufacturing Company

12.9. Braher

12.10. RZPO

12.11. Bizerba

12.12. Riopel Industries

12.13. Minerva Omega Group



For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/5o9l1n

Media Contact:

Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]



For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470

For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630

For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900



U.S. Fax: 646-607-1904

Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716

SOURCE Research and Markets

Related Links

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DUBLIN, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Security Analytics Market - Forecasts from 2021 to 2026" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The security analytics market was valued at US$2.981 billion in 2019 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 33.65% to reach a market size of US$22.705 billion by the year 2026. Security analytics tools are very crucial for any form of enterprise as these tools enable to identify and rank threats according to priority, plan appropriate responses and launch them against threats. Security infrastructure is required in every type of organization irrespective of the size of a company or the kind of information is stored in the organization. Security analytics mechanisms help companies to execute real-time monitoring of servers consolidate and coordinate diverse event data from an application, endpoints and network traffic, and network logs. It also performs forensic analysis to better comprehend attack methods and system vulnerabilities.

The key drivers of the security analytics market are the rise in the level of sophistication of security breaches and threats, rapidly growing compliance requirements, and stringent regulations. In addition, the growing numbers of cyber threats from advanced targeted attacks (ATA) or advanced persistent threats (APT) are projected to propel market growth. Often, the APTs or ATAs remained undetected, due to which they stay within the enterprise networks for a longer period; this causes severe damages to the network infrastructure. To prevent such attacks companies can implement real-time monitoring of servers, endpoints, network traffic, network logs, and diverse event data from applications and perform forensic analysis by adopting security analytics solutions. Thus, to curb and prevent such attacks the adoption of security analytics is bound to prevail to easily detect and remediate these threats. The standard security solutions, fail to detect data leakages owing to which the companies suffer huge data breaches and threats. According to a report by FireEye, Inc., 2017, it takes a median time of 99 days to detect an ATP or ATA. The damage caused by the treats these days is severe. By adopting security analytics, such threats can easily be identified and prevented, this adoption will subsequently accelerate the market growth for the security analytics market during the forecast period.



By application, the network security analytics segment is expected to hold a dominant market share as it has the largest source of demand for security analytics solutions, globally. By service, the managed service segment is estimated to grow significantly to assist the customers for the efficient use and maintenance of security analytics solutions, the managed service providers are largely adopting the solutions. Also, the increasing requirements of organizations to adhere to various regulatory compliances across the world will further support market growth. By deployment method, the cloud deployment method is projected to have a noteworthy market share during the forecast period as cloud deployment solutions can Organization Size without the need of Information Technology staff to manage the software. This helps the companies to reduce additional costs and cut down on expenditure. By organization size, large organizations are expected to witness significant market growth owing to voluminous data available in the database. By vertical, the Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance (BFSI) industry is estimated to have a noteworthy market share owing to the increasing phishing attacks and frauds in third party payment integrations, rising risks from accessing mobile banking applications, and stringent government regulatory requirements.



Geographically, the security analytics market is set to expand in the North American region owing to rising incidents of security infringement, prolonged sophisticated attacking, and the presence of outdated defense mechanisms in the organizations in the region. According to a report by IBM and Ponemon Institute, the cost of a breach in the United States is estimated at USD 7.35 million or nearly double the USD 3.62 million it costs globally. Thus, organizations in the United States are increasingly adopting security analytics solutions to prevent such attacks. The Asia Pacific is also set to witness a high market growth on account of increased networking activities by the two nations of the region India and China. These two nations have started to engage in the digitization of businesses and also cloud services are also increasingly being deployed by small, medium, and large enterprises.



Growth Factors

Increasing demand for analytics

The increasing demand for analytics-driven platforms for all types of organizations globally is expected to drive the security analytics market during the forecast period. The rising number of cybersecurity threats, data breaches, malware, ransomware attacks, and phishing across the globe are pressurizing the companies to adopt these solutions. According to a report by IBM, in 2018, the average annual cost for a business to face a data breach is about $3.86 billion. To eliminate such costs, organizations across the globe are adopting security analytics solutions, which will drive market growth during the forecast period.

Multiple benefits of security analytics solutions

Adopting security analytics solutions, the organizations can avail multiple benefits such as analyze digital data, derive meaningful insights, convert raw data into statistics, pre-detect threats, leverage big data analytics, prevent cyber attacks, etc. The vast-ranging benefits of security analytics solutions across industry verticals are expected to expand the market growth during the forecast period.



Restraints

Lack of qualified Information Technology personnel

Organizations across the globe, lack the expertise and manpower to install, configure, and monitor threat detection platforms and solutions. To develop and implement security analytics solutions it is essential to have specialized technical skills, which especially the developing countries lack. The lack of qualified personnel may hamper the market growth during the forecast period.



Impact of COVID-19



The Covid-19 pandemic promoted remote working across the globe, which resulted in the growth of the usage of third-party networks, digital platforms, and personal computing devices, which in turn created an opportunity for numerous phishing attacks, online frauds, cybercrimes, and ransomware attacks, etc. Organizations worldwide, adopted advanced analytics security solutions to manage and detect anomaly behavior of any suspicious attacks in their networks. This resulted in the tremendous growth of the security analytics market. Furthermore, the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued notifications to organizations against cyber threats. This further made the organizations aware of the severity of these threats, which encouraged them to adopt these solutions. Hence, the pandemic positively impacted the security analytics market.



Competitive Insights



Prominent/major key market players in the Security Analytics Market include LogRhythm, Inc., ARBOR NETWORKS, INC., NortonLifeLock Inc., Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Development LP, IBM Corporation, Cisco Systems, Inc., and RSA Security LLC. The players in the Security Analytics Market are implementing various growth strategies to gain a competitive advantage over their competitors in this market. For Instance, in December 2019, IBM enhanced the IBM QRadar Advisor with Watson solution by combining IBM Cognitive AI and the QRadar Security Analytics Platform to uncover hidden threats and assist users with the incident and risk analysis, triage, and response.

In August 2019, Cisco upgraded its security analytics solution Cisco Stealthwatch to version 7.1.2, it adds enhanced analytics, context-aware mitigation capabilities, and improved features for controlling and managing the tool. Major market players in the market have been covered along with their relative competitive strategies in this report and the report mentions recent deals and investments of different market players over the last few years. The company profiles section details the business overview, financial performance (public companies) for the past few years, key products and services being offered along with the recent deals and investments of these important players in the Security Analytics Market.



Key Topics Covered:



1. Introduction

2. Research Methodology



3. Executive Summary



4. Market Dynamics

4.1. Market Drivers

4.2. Market Restraints

4.3. Porters Five Forces Analysis

4.4. Industry Value Chain Analysis



5. Security Analytics Market Analysis, By Application

5.1. Introduction

5.2. Web Security Analytics

5.3. Network Security Analytics

5.4. Endpoint Security Analytics

5.5. Application Security Analytics

5.6. Others



6. Security Analytics Market Analysis, By Service

6.1. Introduction

6.2. Managed Services

6.3. Professional Services



7. Security Analytics Market Analysis, By Deployment Method

7.1. Introduction

7.2. On-Premise

7.3. Cloud



8. Security Analytics Market Analysis, By Organization Size

8.1. Introduction

8.2. Small

8.3. Medium

8.4. Large



9. Security Analytics Market Analysis, By Vertical

9.1. Introduction

9.2. Retail

9.3. Government and Defense

9.4. Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance (BFSI)

9.5. Energy and Power

9.6. Communication and Technology

9.7. Healthcare

9.8. Education

9.9. Manufacturing

9.10. Others



10. Security Analytics Market Analysis, By Geography

10.1. Introduction

10.2. North America

10.2.1. United States

10.2.2. Canada

10.2.3. Mexico

10.3. South America

10.3.1. Brazil

10.3.2. Argentina

10.3.3. Others

10.4. Europe

10.4.1. United Kingdom

10.4.2. Germany

10.4.3. France

10.4.4. Spain

10.4.5. Others

10.5. The Middle East and Africa

10.5.1. Saudi Arabia

10.5.2. Israel

10.5.3. Others

10.6. Asia Pacific

10.6.1. Japan

10.6.2. China

10.6.3. India

10.6.4. Indonesia

10.6.5. Taiwan

10.6.6. Thailand

10.6.7. Others



11. Competitive Intelligence

11.1. Competitive Benchmarking and Analysis

11.2. Recent Investment and Deals

11.3. Strategies of Key Players



12. Company Profiles

12.1. LogRhythm, Inc.

12.2. ARBOR NETWORKS, INC.

12.3. NortonLifeLock Inc.

12.4. Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Development LP

12.5. IBM Corporation

12.6. Cisco Systems, Inc.

12.7. RSA Security LLC



For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/6594cw

Media Contact:

Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]

For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470

For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630

For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900

U.S. Fax: 646-607-1904

Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716

SOURCE Research and Markets

Related Links

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Ministers are only considering small changes after the end of lockdown in England was postponed

Malta and the Balearic Islands may be the only two additions to the UKs green list in Thursdays update.

It means that from Tuesday 29 June, travellers from these destinations wont have to quarantine for ten days once they arrive in the UK.

Opening up the Spanish islands will be welcome from the travel industry, as 5mln Britons used to visit Ibiza, Mallorca and Menorca each year before the pandemic.

Ministers are considering just a handful of changes, The Times reported, after the end of lockdown in England was postponed from 21 June to 19 July.

Some Caribbean islands may also make it to the green list, but other popular European destinations wont be added until next month.

Its understood that UK residents who have received both jabs will be able to avoid quarantine when returning from abroad from August onwards.

Ryanair ( ) added 2% to 16.68 in the late morning, easyJet ( ) advanced 1% to 989.2p and TUI ( ) remained flat at 400.3p.
Horizon Minerals Ltd (ASX:HRZ) continues to progress its strategy of building a standalone gold business in one of Australia's premier gold regions around the WA Goldfields mining centre of Kalgoorlie-Boulder.

The company has updated the market on activity across its gold exploration assets with a fresh investor presentation.

Currently, the gold explorer is carrying out a 50,000-metre drilling campaign in order to test new targets, extend and better understand the gold resource at its regional Goldfields tenements.

Horizon has notched up more than one million ounces worth of gold mineral resource across six key exploration assets in WA  all of which remain open along strike and at depth.

As it works towards becoming the ASXs next standalone gold producer, Horizon Minerals is executing an aggressive exploration strategy in 2021.

Map outlines Horizon's tenements and applications within WA's Goldfields.

Boorara Project

Horizons efforts are centred on the Boorara Project, ust 15 kilometres east of Kalgoorlie, adjacent to Northern Star Resources Ltds (ASX:NST) (OTCMKTS:NESRF) Super Pit gold operation.

To date, trial mining, toll milling and pit mapping have been completed in the area to test its grade uplift potential and metallurgical performance ahead of a larger-scale development.

At present, the mineralisation extends over 1.5 kilometres of strike with the Regal, Crown Jewel and Royal deposits nestled within the wider Boorara gold asset.

The three deposits within the Boorara Project.

The deposits updated independent mineral resource now stands at 11 million tonnes, grading at 1.26 g/t gold for 448,000 ounces of contained gold at a 0.5 g/t lower grade cut-off.

Currently, mine optimisation, design, approvals and economic analysis are underway in a bid to reach maiden ore reserve generation in 2021s September quarter.

To further explore Booraras potential, Horizon has planned up to 13,000 metres of drilling at its wholly-owned asset in 2021.

Ultimately, this campaign will target resource extension, test previously unexplored gold occurrences and follow up shallow historical drilling.

Rose Hill Gold Deposit

Horizon acquired the Rose Hill Gold Deposit during a swap with Northern Star in 2019.

The asset is east of Coolgardie and just 45 kilometres from the potential Boorara mill site.

Some of the best intersections from the deposit include:

11 metres at 8.8 g/t gold from 43 metres;

10 metres at 6.3 g/t from 28 metres;

7 metres at 7.3 g/t from 27 metres and;

3.4 metres at 17.9 g/t from 79 metres.

Rose Hills updated mineral resource comprises 93,000 ounces of gold, grading 3.65 g/t. A maiden ore reserve for the deposit is slated for release in the coming quarter.

Essentially, Horizon believes Rose Hill offers near-term production potential within easy trucking distance of the Boorara gold play.

Binduli Project area

The Binduli asset, an emerging gold camp with multiple resource and new targets, is just 20 kilometres from Boorara, west of Kalgoorlie.

Within the broader project area, Horizon has established a mineral resource for the Crake target, comprising 74,000 ounces of gold at 1.8 g/t.

Activities-wise, the company has conducted extensional and reverse circulation drilling at the Crake and Coote deposits.

Highlights from drilling within the Binduli area include:

24 metres at 4.92 g/t gold from 32 metres;

23 metres at 4.16 g/t from 61 metres;

28 metres at 3.4 g/t from 36 metres and;

12 metres at 6.70 g/t from 6 metres.

Looking ahead, the ASX lister plans to release an updated resource at Crake and a maiden resource at Coote during the current quarter.

Beyond that, Horizon intends to work on mine optimisation, design, approvals and economic analysis in the September quarter.

Teal Gold Camp

Meanwhile, Horizons Teal Gold Camp is 20 kilometres northwest of Boorara.

The camp is estimated to hold 289,000 ounces of mineralisation, grading 2.1 g/t gold.

Promisingly, Horizon believes up to four parallel mineralised structures, open along strike and at depth, lie within the Teal Gold Camp.

The asset isnt new to development: back in 2018, mining took place at Teals open-cut zone, generating $7 million in cash.

So far, reverse circulation and diamond drilling have taken place at Teal, with updated resource modelling underway.

Some of the best intersections from the gold camps Jacques Find and Peyes targets include:

19.2 metres at 12.53 g/t gold from 42 metres;

8 metres at 12.10 g/t from 60 metres;

12 metres at 4.70 g/t from 60 metres and;

4 metres at 18.17 g/t from 79 metres.

Kalpini Gold Deposit

Even further northeast of Boorara lies Horizons Kalpini Gold Deposit, a new acquisition with significant resource and growth potential.

The gold explorer snapped up the asset last year for $2.75 million in cash, with a historical JORC 2004 mineral resource indicating the deposit contains 255,600 gold ounces, grading at 1.7 g/t.

In order to update the mineral resource and bring it up to current JORC standards, Horizon intends to target extensions along strike and at depth and infill some areas at the deposit.

An initial phase of reverse circulation and diamond drilling has taken place, with a mineral resource update slated for the current quarter.

Theres also potential for both open-pit and underground development at Kalpini, with mine optimisation and design for ore reserve generation expected next quarter.

Cannon Gold Deposit

Finally, to Booraras east is the Cannon Gold Deposit, the companys newest acquisition.

Horizon secured the deposit last month for a $5 million cash payment, absorbing a near-term development asset as part of its gold exploration portfolio.

Interestingly, Cannons open pit was mined in 2017 for 56,000 ounces of gold, grading at 5.2 g/t.

Since then, a feasibility study was completed in 2019 for underground development, establishing a JORC 2012 ore reserve comprising 20,000 ounces of gold.

Exploration drilling at the deposit is slated for the coming quarter, with an update of mine optimisation and economic analysis currently underway.

Next steps

As it continues to progress its 50,000-metre exploratory drilling campaign, Horizon is also focused on a near-term production facility at its high-grade Pennys Find joint venture (JV).

An underground ore reserve and development decision is expected for the JV asset in 2021s September quarter,

Overall, Horizon hopes to use the remainder of 2021 to rapidly progress its priority resources into mine-ready reserves and complete a feasibility study, targeting first gold production in 2022.

The company also has $17 million in cash and investments available to support its growth strategy.
( ) is set to soar higher in the current financial year as it continues to see growth from all parts of its business, after hitting an important milestone of $1 million in its May 2021 invoicing.

The company, which saw its first-ever $2 million-plus invoicing in the third quarter, has been winning deals in the last few months for all of its solutions  land management and heritage, reserves reporting and SATEVA.

It believes its fourth-quarter total will comfortably exceed the third-quarter numbers, setting another record, after a slow second half due to the COVID-lag.

The improved invoicing totals reflect the companys land & expand strategy, whereby it seeks to successfully deliver its range of software solutions to major resources companies.

The leading global provider of reporting software solutions now has more solutions, more clients and more staff to help grow the business, and in part, this reflects the successful integration of acquisitions such as SATEVA and Decipher.

Dams & Tailing solution

K2fly chief commercial officer Nic Pollock said given the current need for miners to increase all of their ESG reporting, the time was right to expand K2flys portfolio of solutions.

Our success in building our Resource Inventory and governance solutions with global tier 1 and 2 clients has rapidly uncovered multiple further technical assurance needs of our customers, particularly in Tailings, Heritage and Rehabilitation as well as Land Access and Disturbance.

This is coinciding with higher levels of required reporting and compliance following the release of the Global Tailings Standard, plus the laser focus shareholders now have on ESG.

In August 2020, the new Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management was launched by the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) to prevent catastrophic failures and enhance the safety of tailings facilities globally.

In December 2020, the Church of England Pensions Board and the Council on Ethics of the Swedish National Pension Funds wrote to over 350 mining companies on behalf of investors with $21 trillion in assets under management (AUM), asking them to confirm their support for the Standard and to set out a timeline for their intended compliance with it.

When ICMM launched GITS alongside the UNEP and PRI, all ICMM member companies (28) committed that all tailings facilities with extreme or very high potential consequences will be in conformance with the Standard by August 2023, and all other facilities by August 2025.

Resources companies are now required to be more transparent in their disclosure of tailings risk and insurers have been quick to lineup behind the new standards making insurance cover difficult to secure unless miners can demonstrate standards compliance.

K2Flys cloud-based application combines regulatory compliance management, mining waste management, stakeholder engagement, environmental monitoring, and environmental management system into a single feature-rich package, with secure global access, to industry, regulators, designers and operators can share data and monitor facilities from anywhere in the world, at any time.

No other TSF management solution brings together as many tailings and environmental monitoring components into a single, centralised repository.

K2fly chief commercial officer Nic Pollock said: We have met with stakeholders from many mining companies that are awash with expensive data that they cannot adequately turn into intelligence.

Other mining companies have very little at all. All of them need to turn the multiple sources of data into useable and actionable intelligence, which is what the K2fly solution provides as well as supporting their path towards Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM) compliance.

Reseller agreement with Descartes Labs

K2flys partnership deal with Descartes Labs  a reseller agreement - will see the company bundle Descartes software as a service-based Deformation system with its own solutions to expand its offering.

Descartes software aims to provide an integrated spatial intelligence solution for resources companies that analyse data from a range of satellite and ground-based sensors.

Combined with K2flys Dams & Tailings solutions, the ASX-lister believes both companies can create products that help mining companies better manage their tailings facilities in support of their GISTM commitments.

Descartes Labs head of mining & metals James Orsulak said: The Descartes Labs Global Deformation Systems (GDS) is a first of its kind planetary-scale deformation model.

Leveraging our history in high-performance computing (HPC), geospatial data, and machine learning, weve created the world's first automated, low-cost subsidence and deformation system that can be deployed anywhere in the world at any scale.

GDS is an ideal fit for the K2fly Dams & Tailings solution, where the deformation outputs can be operationalized and interpreted in the context of all available data.

We believe this will be the beginning of a long and successful partnership with Descartes Labs that will enable K2fly to deliver world-class remote sensing products and analytics workflows to the mining industry with seamless integration into dam management programs.

Both companies have joint bids on several advanced tailings opportunities with tier one and two global miners.

Decipher acquisition

K2fly has also made progress since the acquisition of Decipher for Mining from ( ) in January 2021, bringing additional depth to K2flys growing solution suite in tailings and rehabilitation and extends K2fly's technical

Five-year contract with Roy Hill

K2fly secured the first contract for its full Mining Technical Assurance suite from Roy Hill in May 2021 since acquiring the full suite of SATEVA applications in the December quarter of 2020.

The five-year contract with Roy Hill, a world-class iron ore operation and the largest single ore mine in Australia, has a total contract value (TCV) of A$2.44 million.

Roy Hill ships more than 60 million tonnes per annum of iron ore, with approval to move to 70 million tonnes per annum, and among the many benefits in adopting this suite of products will be an improvement in critical mine geology processes through automation - resulting in improved short-term scheduling and excavation of the ore body.

In large-scale open-pit mines, such as Roy Hill, small improvements in grade recovery or excavation efficiency deliver significant additional value to the operator.

New substantial shareholder Tribeca Investment Partners

K2fly gained a new substantial holder in Sydney-based Tribeca Investment Partners Pty Ltd, which now holds more than 7.62 million shares for a 5.56% stake through the purchase of 6.8 million shares in the placement in April, together with eight separate on-market purchases in May.

Product offerings

K2Fly delivers a suite of solutions in governance and compliance, stakeholder engagement and permits and obligations services for clients covering:

 Land access

 Community and heritage

 Rehab

 Dams & tailings

 Resources inventory and mine geology systems

 Ground disturbance

Underpinning its Software as a Service (SaaS) offering are its proprietary technologies: RCubed, Infoscope, the SATEVA Suite and Decipher.
The work showed that the asset will produce clean concentrates and that overall recovery of molybdenum over the first 12 years of the mine will be 76%, up from an assumption of 75% in the PEA

( ) (OTCMKTS:LSANF) (FRA:L41A) has welcomed the results of pre-feasibility study (PFS) metallurgical testing at its Vizcachitas copper project in Chile, which it said has improved on the economics of the 2019 preliminary economic assessment (PEA).

The work showed that the asset will produce clean concentrates and that overall recovery of molybdenum over the first 12 years of the mine will be 76%, up from an assumption of 75% in the PEA.

"The results represent yet another accomplishment for the development of Vizcachitas, following the recent investment from Queen's Road Capital, the award of the environmental approvals for the drilling programs and further metallurgical test work confirming a copper recovery rate of 91.4%," Fernando Porcile, executive chairman of Los Andes said in a statement.

"These updates illustrate the asset's significant potential," he added.

Based on the PFS testing on samples for the first 12 years of the operation, moly recoveries were 90.3% in the rougher stage, 95.8% in the cleaner-scavenger stage, and 90.6% in the copper-molybdenum selective flotation.

In addition, analysis for the final copper concentrates confirmed that Vizcachitas will produce clean concentrates, with projected final copper concentrate grades at between 22.9% and 24.4% copper, and a credit may be obtained for silver at grades between 46 to 65 grammes per tonne (g/t).

"The outcome of this metallurgical study has shown an improvement in the overall recoveries and it is encouraging to see that it has also confirmed the use of eco-friendly technologies such as HPGR and dry-stacked tailings, which are important in the development of sustainably produced copper for the green transition. We look forward to providing advancements as we move to complete our PFS at Vizcachitas," continued Porcile.

The Vizcachitas deposit sits in a huge land package, spanning 308 square kilometres (sq km), of which only a small portion has so far been explored, and lies in the same geological belt as several other giant porphyry deposits. The project is currently at PFS stage after the positive PEA in 2019 showed compelling economics.

Using a copper price of US$3.50 a pound, the after-tax net present value (NPV) was pegged at US$2.7 billion, while the internal rate of return (IRR) was 26.7%. Initial capex needed was put at US$1.88 billion for a project with 3.4 year pay-back time and a mine life of 45 years.

Vizcachitas already hosts a measured and indicated resources of 11.2 billion pounds of copper, 400 million pounds of molybdenum and 43.3 million ounces of silver.

Additionally, there is 'significant' exploration upside with potential to increase the resource base beyond the initial 45 year mine life modelled in the PEA.

Contact the author at giles@proactiveinvestors.com
New York, June 23 : The Covid-19 delta variant, first identified in India, now accounts for more than 20 per cent of coronavirus infections in the US, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Tuesday.

"The delta variant is currently the greatest threat in the US to our attempt to eliminate Covid-19," Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country's top infectious disease expert, warned at a White House briefing. "Good news: Our vaccines are effective against the delta variant." The variant makes up more than 50 per cent of new infections in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming.

With the delta variant spreading rapidly among younger populations, Biden's White House is urging 18 to 26-year-olds to get vaccinated. Fauci lists under-vaccinated regions as the country's main "obstacles" to crushing the virus.

"If you look at the growing threat of what we're all concerned about: the Delta variant. What do we know about that variant? The transmissibility is unquestionably greater than the wild-type SARS-CoV-2, as well as the Alpha variant. It is associated with an increased disease severity, as reflected by hospitalization risk, compared to Alpha," Fauci said.

Fauci pointed to an Imperial College study of over 100,000 homes which found that youth were driving the UK surge. The results showed a fivefold higher positivity among children 5 to 12 and young adults 18 to 24, versus people older than 65 years old.

He then went on to list the "good news": vaccine effectiveness. "Two weeks after the second dose of Pfizer-BioNTech -- was 88 per cent effective against the Delta and 93 per cent effective against the Alpha when you're dealing with symptomatic disease," Fauci said.

Both the Pfizer-BioNTech and AstraZeneca shots have shown between 92 and 96 per cent effectiveness against hospitalizations.

"We have the tools, so let's use them and crush the outbreak," Fauci said.

At this time, the US is just short of vaccinating 70 per cent of all American adults with at least one shot by Independence Day - July 4. More than 150 million are fully vaccinated, as of Monday. Among those ages 30 and above, 70 per cent have at least one shot. For those over 40 years, 75 per cent have received at least one shot. Biden's Covid-19 response team thinks the country will hit the 70 per cent target for ages 27 and over once the data for the July 4th weekend is in.

US Covid-19 caseloads and deaths are at their lowest levels since the pandemic exploded here last year. The country is now averaging about 11,000 new infections and less than 300 deaths per day. The virus has so far killed more than 602,000 people in the US alone.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Chennai, June 23 : The Tamil Nadu Police on Wednesday morning found two 'pipe bombs' in a cement factory in Tirunelveli.

Tirunelveli, the southern part of the state, is tense after the detection by the police and the Bomb Detection and Disposable squad. The factory, located at Shankar Nagar supplies cement to Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

The pipe bombs were discovered after the cement factory management received a telephone call that improvised explosives would go off at five places in the cement factory if the callers were not given a ransom of Rs 50 lakh.

After the company management informed the police about the threat calls, the Thaazhiyoothu police immediately reached the spot and conducted a thorough check with the help of Bomb Detection and Disposable Squad and found the two pipe bombs.

Police suspect this to be the handiwork of a few terminated employees of the cement factory. Following Covid-19 restrictions, the cement factory had to stop continuing the services of a few hundred contract employees. However, police sources said the department is conducting a thorough investigation from all angles.

Tirunelveli Superintendent of Police, Manivannan, who reached the spot in the night, told IANS, "Police are conducting an open investigation. We are not leaving out any angles and will soon bring the culprits to book." The detection of pipe bombs, which are widely used by certain terror outfits, has not gone down well with the people of Tirunelveli as the cement factory has been supplying cement to Tamil Nadu as well as part of Kerala and is a source of income for many. Used gelatin sticks were recently detected from the forest land of Pathanapuram in Kollam district adjoining Tamil Nadu and the state police and intelligence were on the lookout of the origin of these sticks.

Central Intelligence agencies have already started an investigation as the ultra Tamil feeling has been fanned up in the state after the DMK government has come to power and the agencies are mainly focusing on the source of these pipe bombs.
Kathmandu, June 23 : The Nepali government has decided to reopen international flights for more foreign destinations and partially resume domestic flights, a senior government official said on Tuesday.

A cabinet meeting decided on Monday to allow flights to the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Malaysia, South Korea and Japan, said Buddhisagar Lamichhane, joint secretary at the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation.

The move came as the Kathmandu Valley went into lockdown for another week with eased restrictions on Tuesday, as new Covid-19 infections have declined for weeks in the Himalayan country amid a second wave of the pandemic, the Xinhua news agency reported.

Earlier, Nepal has reopened flights to India, China, Turkey and Qatar. Flight frequencies to Turkey and Qatar have been increased as per the new decision.

Lamichhane said his ministry would decide on Wednesday when the international flights for the new destinations would be allowed. "Possibly, international flights to new destinations will be allowed later this week or early next week," he added.

According to Nepal's cabinet decision, one to four flights a week have been allowed to and from different destinations.

Domestic flights have been suspended in Nepal since early May. Under the cabinet decision, domestic flights will be operated on the basis that no more than half of the total domestic flights in normal days will take place.

"Domestic flights may be allowed to resume from early next week," said Lamichhane.

In the case of China, the Nepali government has decided to allow two flights a week to Chengdu and Guangzhou respectively. Lamichhane said the destinations may be changed based on consultations with the Chinese side.
Kochi, June 23 : Malayalam star Prithviraj Sukumaran acknowledges the industry has been missing "happy films", and the reason is the contained environment under which everyone has been living over the last one and a half year.

"I think the primary reason for that is all the filmmakers, actors and producers -- all of us -- were forced to start thinking about contained films. Films that could pull off under these circumstances," shares the actor, as he opens up in a conversation with IANS.

"More often than not, when you start thinking on these lines, the genre that you start deviating towards is either a thriller, a dark satire happening in real space, like 'Joji'. As is the usual practice when you start thinking about happy films -- films that have a lot of actors, laughter, joy, comedy and music -- you start thinking that this is big and the film has many locations, people, and places. So, you don't usually think on those lines, when you think what kind of a film you can pull off under the given circumstances (of the pandemic and lockdown)," he says.

The actor made his directorial debut in 2019 with the film "Lucifer", and is now all set to wield the megaphone again in the recently announced "Bro Daddy". Besides him, the film will also be headlined by superstar Mohanlal. Prothviraj calls it a happy film that has badly been missing in Malayalam cinema lately.

"I was supposed to come with my next directorial long back, which was supposed to be a sequel to 'Lucifer'. It was a much bigger film. If things would have been as we wished, then it would have been shot this year, but due to obvious reasons we couldn't start. To me, it seems we are badly missing a happy film in Malayalam cinema over the past one and half year. All of the content we see in Kerala is dark. It's either a murder mystery or a dark satire or an investigative thriller," he says.

"I thought we were all badly missing a happy film, which is when these two writers came and narrated the script to me. I found it to be interesting, hilarious and more than anything I found it to be a really enjoyable, light watch. I casually narrated the idea to Mr Mohanlal over a zoom call and he said that we are doing this and the project took off," recalls the actor-filmmaker.

Prithviraj made his Bollywood debut with 2012 film "Aiyaa" alongside Rani Mukerji, and was later seen in films such as "Aurangzeb" (2013) and "Naam Shabana" (2017). However, his presence in Bollywood has been rare ever since.

"I have heard a few scripts in between but the fact of the matter is that Malayalam cinema is going through such a high and all of us find such great content here in Malayalam, it would require something really good to come and invest that kind of a time in a Hindi film, though I look forward to it. I hope something good enough finds its way to me," he says.

Right now, Prithviraj is gearing up for his next film, the dark mystery thriller "The Cold Case". He shares that shooting for the Malayalam film was a new experience for him.

"This is going to be one or the first films I shot with post-pandemic regulations. We were not used to social distancing on the set, being masked all the time. This film was shot strictly keeping all precautions in mind. Most of us would remember shooting 'The Cold Case' because all of us were coming together for the first time post the pandemic," he says of shooting the film, which will soon stream on Amazon Prime Video.
Beijing, June 23 : China will release 50,000 tonnes of aluminum from its national reserves amid efforts to ease commodity price hikes and cost pressure on firms.

Open bidding of the first batch of aluminum will start on July 5 at the website https://www.norincogroup-ebuy.com, the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration said on Tuesday in a statement.

Only aluminum processing and manufacturing enterprises will be eligible to bid, and the purchased aluminum shall be used for production promptly. It shall not be resold or hoarded, said the administration, the Xinhua news agency reported.

China will further release its state reserves of copper, aluminum, and zinc to ensure stable commodity prices, the country's top economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission, said earlier this month.

The commission said it would work with other departments to release the nonferrous metal reserves in multiple batches as needed in light of market price changes.
Barabanki : , June 23 (IANS) Three relatives of a 20-year-old Muslim woman have been arrested in Barabanki district after they allegedly assaulted her and shaved her head for marrying a Dalit man.

The incident took place last week and the police booked eight family members, including three women, on the victim's complaint. Three of them were arrested on Tuesday night.

"As per my wishes, I got married to a youth from my village at a temple. On Monday, my uncles called me home and with other family members beat me up with shoes, slippers and sticks. Initially, they chopped my hair and then shaved my entire head. They also confined me at their home and threatened to kill me," the victim said in her complaint.

The woman mentioned that her parents are dead and that she has no siblings.

According to her, she had married a 22-year-old Dalit man from the same village on June 19.

Barabanki Superintendent of Police (SP) Yamuna Prasad said three persons have been arrested.

"The woman's two uncles and a cousin have been arrested. The other five accused are absconding. We are conducting searches for the other accused," he said.

He added that the couple were at their own house now and had been provided security.

The police have booked the woman's family members under IPC sections 147 (rioting), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 506 (criminal intimidation), 354 (Assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 355 (assault or criminal force with intent to dishonour person, otherwise than on grave provocation), 188 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 269 (Negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) and 270 (Malignant act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life).

The Epidemic Disease Act and Criminal Law (Amendment) Act have also been invoked against the accused.

Barabanki District Magistrate Adarsh Singh said the administration was reviewing if the couple are eligible for any compensation.

"If they are eligible as per the state government and Centre's rules, we will offer them compensation," said the district magistrate.
Bahraich : , June 23 (IANS) A 30-year-old man in Bahraich district of Uttar Pradesh, was shot in the leg by the police after he tried to flee from custody.

The man was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly raping a one-and-a-half-year-old girl in a village in the district on Monday night.

According to the police, the accused picked up the toddler while she was sleeping beside her mother and took her to a primary school in the village where he allegedly raped her.

He was later spotted by villagers who beat him up and handed him over to the police.

The girl was taken to a hospital where she died during treatment. Her body has been sent for post mortem.

Based on the complaint of the victim's father, the police registered an FIR against the accused under section 376 AB of IPC and section 5M/6 of POCSO Act.

When the police were taking him to the magistrate, the accused tried to escape to avoid arrest but was injured in police firing.

He was taken to a community health centre for treatment.
Jaipur, June 23 : Stepping up its investigation on the FIR filed by union minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat in Rajasthan phone tapping case, the Delhi Crime Branch has issued a notice to Congress chief whip Mahesh Joshi and summoned him for interrogation on June 24 at Prashant Vihar office.

The development comes in view of the intensified war between Sachin Pilot and chief minister Ashok Gehlot.

The notice has been issued by Delhi Crime Branch Inspector Satish Malik. However, Joshi told IANS that he has not yet read the notice and will revert after reading it by Wednesday afternoon.

Sachin Pilot in July last year had rebelled against chief minister Ashok Gehlot and had camped in a Haryana hotel accompanied by MLAs who supported him. It was during this period that the Rajasthan government was accused of phone tapping.

An FIR was registered by the Crime Branch of Delhi Police on March 25 after a complaint was lodged by union minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat. In the FIR, Shekhawat had alleged that the state government is tapping phones of public representatives illegally.

Shekhawat has accused unknown police officers and Lokesh Sharma, the OSD of chief minister Ashok Gehlot in the FIR. The Delhi Crime Branch has now included the name of Mahesh Joshi in its investigation expanding its scope in this case.

Mahesh Joshi had filed an FIR in SOG and ACB on the basis of leaked phone calls after the political crisis escalated. Mahesh Joshi had also recorded his statement in ACB and SOG regarding this case.

Lokesh Sharma had recently moved the Delhi High Court with regard to the FIR lodged in the Crime Branch. The court gave the next hearing date on August 6 and asked the crime branch not to take any action till then.

Also, the case status report was sought from Delhi and Rajasthan Police.

Delhi Crime Branch may now call a few Congress leaders and officers for questioning.

Recently, pro-Pilot MLA Ved Solanki also gave a statement that the government is getting the phones of MLAs tapped. These MLAs have also informed CM Ashok Gehlot about the illegal tapping, he said.
Chennai, June 23 : The Greater Chennai Corporation is sending out messages and calling people who have missed their second dose of vaccine due to the unavailability of the jab earlier.

The GCC in a statement said that around 85,000 people have missed their second vaccination. The corporation collected the details of such people zone-wise and has commenced calling them personally and through messages.

The Greater Chennai Corporation has so far vaccinated 30,480 of these 85,000 people whose vaccines were delayed due to the lack of availability of vaccines. There are around 59,000 people left whose second dose of vaccine was delayed and the corporation has taken all efforts to inoculate them as early as possible.

These people will get priority for the second dose of vaccines on Wednesday and Thursday.

A total of 62,050 Covaxin vaccines will be available at vaccine centres across the city, the statement from the GCC said.

The corporation is also expecting more doses of the vaccine in the coming weeks and is in the process of inoculating the maximum population within the corporation limits.

A senior health official attached with the GCC told IANS, "We are losing no time for the vaccinations to be done and are in the process of achieving maximum vaccinated corporations. The possibility of a third wave has also alerted the administration and we don't want to lose time for this."
Jaipur, June 23 : BJP general secretary and Rajasthan in charge Arun Singh on Wednesday announced here that Yogi Adityanath will be the face of Assembly elections to be held in Uttar Pradesh in early next year and the face of the chief minister in Rajasthan will be decided by the BJP Parliamentary Board.

Speaking to the media during his visit to Jaipur, Singh said that Yogi Adityanath is doing a good job, so why should he be removed from CM's position.

Also, speaking on Rajasthan CM face amid the ongoing tussle between state organisation and former CM Vasundhara Raje group, he said, "The parliamentary board will decide the CM face for the assembly polls to be held in 2023." He also warned those commenting on state organisation's working (Raje followers).

"Those issuing their statements should first evaluate whether their comment will benefit or bring in loss to the party." Arun Singh said.

"If party suffers due to any statement of any leader, then disciplinary action shall be taken against the person concerned," he added.

"I have asked the state leadership that enough is enough." "Make a list of all those leaders who are issuing unnecessary statements. We will make those leaders understand and if they don't understand, action will be taken against them," he added.
San Francisco, June 23 : Apple's largest manufacturing partner Foxconn is offering "record-high" signing bonuses in an effort to recruit workers for iPhone 13 production over the next few months, the media reported.

Foxconn is offering up to 8,000 yuan ($1,235) as a signing bonus to former workers willing to return to its Zhengzhou, China factory to assist with iPhone assembly during the "peak season," up from 5,500 yuan last month and 5,000 yuan in 2020.

Workers will receive their bonuses after working for Foxconn's iPhone assembly division for four months and staying until the end of the peak season, MacRumors reported, citing the South China Morning Post.

Apple manufacturers like Foxconn commonly offer signing bonuses in the months leading up to an iPhone launch, but this year's bonus range for returning workers is the highest since the Zhengzhou factory started operations in 2010, the report said.

Apple is increasingly expected to unveil the iPhone 13 lineup in September, marking a return to its usual launch timeframe after unveiling the iPhone 12 lineup in October 2020 due to reported Covid-19-related production delays.

iPhone 13 models are rumoured to feature a smaller notch at the top of the display, but otherwise they are expected to have a similar design as their iPhone 12 counterparts.

Other key new features expected include a faster A15 chip, a 120Hz refresh rate on the Pro models, several camera upgrades, a new Matte Black color and more.
Washington, June 23 : The Delta variant has emerged as the greatest threat to the efforts of combatting the coronavirus pandemic in the US as it now accounts for more than 20 per cent of cases in the country, top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci has said.

"As was the case with B117 -- we seem to be following the pattern with the Delta variant, with a doubling time of about two weeks if you look from the May 8th with 1.2, to 2.7, to 9.9, and as of a couple of days ago, 20.6 per cent of the isolates are Delta," Fauci said at a White House briefing on Tuesday.

"Similar to the situation in the UK, the Delta variant is currently the greatest threat in the US to our attempt to eliminate Covid-19," he added.

US President Joe Biden had earlier set a target of vaccinating 70 per cent of the country's adult population with at least one dose by July 4. However, it looks like the country may narrowly miss the target.

Currently, 65 per cent of the adult population has gotten at least one shot and 56 per cent are fully vaccinated, according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). At current rates, the US is on track to get to about 67 per cent people with at least one shot by July 4.

"Our aspirational goal for July 4th was 70 per cent of the adult population receiving at least one dose, but that is not the goal line, nor is it the endgame. The endgame is to go well beyond that, beyond July 4th, into the summer and beyond, with the ultimate goal of crushing the outbreak completely in the United States," Fauci said.

Under-vaccinated people, particularly the young individuals between 18 and 26 are the main obstacles for that, said Fauci, who is director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Further, he said that the Delta variant is a growing threat and is more transmissible than the original Covid virus and Alpha variant.

"The transmissibility is unquestionably greater than the wild-type SARS-CoV-2, as well as the Alpha variant. It is associated with an increased disease severity, as reflected by hospitalisation risk, compared to Alpha. And in lab tests, associated with modest decreased neutralisation by sera from previously infected and vaccinated individuals," Fauci noted.

However, good news is that the vaccines Pfizer-BioNTech and Oxford-AstraZeneca are effective against the Delta variant, said the 80-year-old Coronovirus pandemic advisor to the US President.

"The effectiveness of the vaccines -- in this case, two weeks after the second dose of Pfizer-BioNTech -- was 88 per cent effective against the Delta and 93 per cent effective against the Alpha when you're dealing with symptomatic disease.

"When you look at hospitalisations, again, both the Pfizer-BioNTech and the Oxford-AstraZeneca are between 92 and 96 per cent effective against hospitalisations," Fauci said

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Srinagar, June 23 : There can be no development without road and rail connectivity, this is the mantra adopted by the Lt Governor Manoj Sinha to ensure all inclusive development in Jammu and Kashmir.

To achieve this objective, the national flagship programme, Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) has come handy for the J&K government.

"In the ongoing financial year, 2021-2022, we are building 4,500 km long roads under the PMGSY.

"The roads so constructed will connect 150 habitations across J&K those have remained unconnected so far.

"Fourteen new bridges are also being constructed during this fiscal. The government has allotted Rs 4,089 crore as annual budget for 2021-2022.

"This is 467 crore more than last year's budget. An online monitoring system has been devised through which all project works right from the DPR stage till their final completion are monitored online," said a senior official of the public works department.

The official also said that national level consultants are being engaged for developing monitoring mechanisms to keep an eye on the roll-out of third party inspection systems.

In addition to construction of 4,500 km road length under the PMGSY-1 and PMGSY-2 during the current financial year, J&K government has decided to upgrade 1,750 km long existing roads.

"Black-topping of 8,000 km long roads in cities and towns is going on. A total of 250 crore is being provided to ensure pothole free roads," the official said.

In addition to this, the road transport and highways ministry with its arms like the NHAI and NHIDCL in concert with the border roads organisation and J&K public works department is currently engaged in completing a series of projects.

The 8.5 km long Qazigund-Banihal tunnel across the Pir Panjal Mountain range laid at a cost of Rs 2,100 core on Srinagar-Jammu highway is ready to be thrown open.

The heavy vehicle trial run of the tunnel was completed on Tuesday and the tunnel is being thrown open shortly.

This tunnel will reduce the distance between Qazigund and Banihal town from the existing 36km by 15 km besides by-passing the Jawahar Tunnel and the Shatani Nallah stretches of the highway those become slippery and snowbound during the winter months.

The other ongoing projects include Srinagar-Jammu-Lakhanpur highway, Srinagar Ring road, Jammu Ring road and the tunnel at Z-Morh on Srinagar-Leh highway in addition to the Zojila tunnel that will make the Srinagar-Leh highway an all weather road.

With its rapidly growing rail and road connectivity and the ongoing construction of the Jammu Ring road, Jammu division will get a huge economic boost with its flourishing religious tourism, Mata Vaishno Devi shrine and star-ups in businesses like wood grain work, basmati rice trade, carpets, electric and electronic items.

Four-lanning of Jammu-Srinagar highway and construction of rail link between Udhampur town and the Valley is going on.

The rail link to Valley includes the construction of World's highest railway bridge called the Chenab Bridge in Ramban district of J&K.

The bridge is 1,315 metre long and 359 metres above the river bed level. The arch of the bridge, which was recently completed, is an engineering marvel. It is 35 metre higher than the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

The construction of the bridge involved fabrication of 28,660 MT steel, 66,000-cum-concrete, 10-lakh-cum earthwork and 26 km long motorable approach.

'Tekla', the most sophisticated software has been used for structural detailing of the bridge. Structural steel used is suitable for minus 10 to 40 degrees Celsius.

The bridge is being constructed by Konkan railway corporation at a cost of Rs 1,486 crore.

Lt governor, Manoj Sinha asserts that the ongoing road and railway construction projects will transform the face and economy of J&K.

Given the colossal amounts of money being spent on road and rail projects in J&K, Sinha's assertion is not an over statement.
Chennai, June 23 : Tamil Nadu chief minister, M.K. Stalin is likely to head the state-level temple advisory committee to be constituted in the near future. The Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) minister P.K. Sekar Babu will be the vice-chairman of the committee.

Sources in the HR&CE department told IANS that the committee would be constituted under Section 7 of the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowment (HR&CE) Act.

The number of non-official members to be included in the committee is not yet confirmed but a person from the Scheduled Caste would be a member. Commissioner of HR &CE would be ex-officio member secretary and the secretary in charge.

Governor Banwarilal Purohit in his address in the Tamil Nadu assembly on Monday had mentioned the formation of an advisory committee for all Major Hindu temples. Sources indicated that the major temples named in the policy address could be interpreted as those with an annual income of Rs 10 lakh and above.

According to the HR&CE department sources, there are 331 temples that have an annual income of Rs 10 lakh or above and 47 temples that have an annual income of Rs 50 lakh and above.

It may be noted that such an advisory committee was established in 2012 and its tenure ended in 2015 but HR&CE officials told IANS that there were no income limits to be included in the earlier advisory committee constituted in 2012.

The Tamil Nadu government is already in the process of recovering land which was lost or being encroached by several people and groups including charitable trusts and societies and with the constitution of a state-level temple advisory committee, the political leadership could understand the nuances of temple management.

The non-official members who could be included in the temple advisory committee are likely to be drawn from industrialists who have contributed sizably to the temples of the state as well as retired high court judges. The draft of the advisory committee, according to officials have specifically mentioned that those with a criminal past as well as those who are involved in the subletting of temple land as representatives of trusts and societies are not included in the committee.
New Delhi, June 23 : The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday said it has handed over assets worth Rs 9,371 crore belonging to fugitive businessmen Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi to state-run banks to realise the losses on account of the fraud committed against them.

The ED in a statement said that Mallya, Nirav Modi and Choksi have defrauded public sector banks by siphoning off the funds through their companies which resulted in total loss of Rs 22,585.83 crore to the banks.

The ED has booked the three on the basis of the FIR filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The financial probe agency said that the ED has taken swift action by unearthing myriad web of domestic and international transactions and stashing of assets abroad.

"Investigation has also irrevocably proved that these three accused persons used dummy entities controlled by them for rotation and siphoning off the funds provided by the banks," the ED said.

It further said that the ED has attached or seized assets worth Rs 18,170.02 crore which included assets worth of Rs 969 crore located in foreign countries.

"The quantum of the attached and seized assets represents 80.45 per cent of total bank loss of Rs 22,585.83 crore," it said, adding that the investigation by the ED has proved that substantial part of these assets were held in the names of dummy entities, trusts, third persons, relatives of these accused and these entities were proxy of these accused to hold these assets.

Tue ED has filed charge sheets against all the three accused after completion of PMLA investigation.

"Extradition requests have been sent for these persons to the UK and Antigua and Barbuda. The extradition of Mallya has been ordered by the Westminster Magistrates Court and confirmed by the UK High Court. Since Mallya has been denied permission to file appeal in the UK Supreme Court, his extradition to India has become final," the ED said.

It further said that the Westminster Magistrates Court has ordered extradition of Nirav Modi to India.

Nirav Modi has been in London Jail for last two years and three months on the basis of extradition request by India.

Nirav Modi and Mallya have also been declared Fugitive Economic Offenders by PMLA Court in Mumbai, it said.

The ED also said that recently, the agency has transferred shares attached by it, worth of Rs 6,600 crore, to SBI led consortium as per order of PMLA Special Court, Mumbai.

"Today, DRT on behalf of SBI led consortium, has sold shares of United Breweries Limited for Rs 5,824.50 crore," it said, adding that further realisation of Rs 800 crore by sale of shares is expected by June 25.

It also said that due to the cooperation and help extended by ED, Public Sector Banks have already recovered Rs 1,357 crore by selling the shares earlier.

"Thus, the banks shall be realising total amount of Rs 9,041.5 crore through sale of a part of assets attached/seized by ED under the provisions of PMLA," the ED said.

"As on date, out of total attached or seized assets of Rs 18,170.02 crore under provisions of PMLA, assets worth of Rs 329.67 crore has been confiscated and assets worth Rs 9,041.5 crore, representing 40 per cent of total loss to the bank have been handed over to the Public Sector banks," it added.
Lucknow, June 23 : Uttar Pradesh Shia Central Waqf Board member and former chairman, Waseem Rizvi, has been accused of rape by his driver's wife.

The woman, who went to Saadatganj police station with several lawyers on Tuesday, has demanded action against Waseem Rizvi.

The woman has accused Rizvi of blackmailing her through obscene videos and photos.

The police said they are investigating on the basis of the complaint given by the woman.

The woman told reporters that Waseem Rizvi used to sexually assault by sending her driver husband out on the pretext of some work or the other.

When the woman protested, Rizvi used to threaten to make her obscene videos and photos viral.

The woman said that when she could not bear it, she narrated the ordeal to her husband. When the woman's husband tried to talk to Waseem Rizvi, he was also beaten up.

Meanwhile, Waseem Rizvi said that his driver was conniving with his rivals and was passing on his information to them. Rizvi, has recently printed and self-published the first compilation of what he has calls 'The Real Quran'.

Shia clerics in Lucknow have been up in arms against Rizvi ever since demanding FIR against Shia Waqf Board member Waseem Rizvi for hurting religious sentiments of Muslims.

"In view of this and also my safety, I had fired the driver a few days ago. The house that I gave him was also vacated. Now he is tried to malign my image by making such baseless allegations," he said, Saadatganj police station in-charge, meanwhile, said that further action will be taken after registering a case once preliminary investigations are over.
Mumbai, June 23 : "Sherni" director Amit Masurkar has opened up on the music of the film, saying he is glad to have collaborated with composers Naren Chandavarkar and Benedict Taylor for the project.

"'Sherni' was a difficult film to score because of the complex intersections in the story. I felt safe with Naren and Benedict. I knew they would put the story and the theme first. They have the sensitivity and depth to understand a layered narrative and not judge characters or events. They are open-minded, collaborative and have a genuine love for cinema," Amit tells IANS.

The music composers made their foray into the industry with Anurag Kashyap's "That Girl In Yellow Boots" and shot to fame with "Udta Punjab" and "Newton".

Talking about working with Amit again after "Newton", Benedict says: "With 'Newton', we got in on the project quite late but with 'Sherni' we were part of it much earlier on. By then we had already developed a comfort level and understanding with Amit." Naren adds: "He (Amit), along with writer Aastha Tiku and the editor Dipika Kalra, didn't discuss the brief in terms of music, but more the politics and ideas they wanted to come across. They trusted our vision and encouraged us to take it in a musical direction we felt appropriate. This coupled with the delicate moral balance they had outlined made it both a freeing and challenging process."
New Delhi, June 23 : Fertility treatment is a stressful process for a couple. At times, it becomes so intense that either of the two partners starts to withdraw and isolate from family, friends, and community. This happens mostly with the females because the anxiety and anticipation tends to overwhelm her. This is exactly when she needs the support of her partner. It's essential that the male partner communicates so that he not only lets her know he is there for her, but also helps her express what she is going through.

A study of 525 infertile couples presented at the 57th annual meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, has clarified that women are more likely to feel depressed about the whole situation compared to their partners. Female depression is especially common in couples in which partners feel different levels of stress.

Here are some tried and tested tips to help men in the fertility journey to make the whole process less cumbersome and stressful for their partners: Respect her feelings

If your partner doesn't want to go to a party or talk to somebody, instead of being indifferent to her, respect and support her decision. Try and understand what she's going through.

Don't hide your own feelings Sometimes, in order to manage so many responsibilities, men tend to ignore their own feelings thinking it might aggravate the issue. While women are generally expressive about their feelings, men are exactly opposite of them. Sharing your own feelings also enable your partner also to open up. Bottling up your own feelings makes your partner more alienated and alone.

Share the burden After a diagnosis of infertility, there are many options that couples consider, including IUI treatments, and sometimes both husband and wife may have to go for treatments together. They involve a whole lot of paperwork, uncomfortable questions from doctors and invasive procedures for the man as well as the woman. In such a situation it is important to lean on each other, talk, and ease the process for each other.

Do your part diligently If your partner needs medical help, make sure to schedule an appointment with a doctor for you both. One should not forget the fact that men are also partly responsible for infertility in as much as 50 per cent of cases, where couples struggle to conceive. When you people are going through infertility issues, your doctor may recommend medical treatments or lifestyle changes to boost your chances for parenthood. Many causes of male infertility are treatable and curable.

Set goals Infertility treatment is not merely a procedure but also a life-altering journey for a couple. It demands a whole lot of patience, perseverance and understanding. Before you kick start the procedure, set goals about how much time and money the two of you would be willing to spend. Do your own research and speak to the doctor. With so much pressure from society and your own family members, infertility is often extremely hard to go through for a woman. If she doesn't get the support of her spouse at this crucial point of time, it often leads to feelings of hopelessness, or inadequacy.

(Aswati Nair, Fertility Consultant, Nova IVF Fertility, New Delhi ) (IANSlife can be contacted at ianslife@ians.in)
Chennai, June 23 : The cyber crime division of the Chennai police has started cracking its whip on obscene content on social media and web portals and video platforms including YouTube.

The active deletion and increased monitoring of these social media platforms commenced after YouTuber Madhan Manickam and his wife Kruthika, who had uploaded several obscene content on their YouTube channels, were arrested.

The Chennai cyber cops, according to a top official in the department, have already deleted more than 600 obscene videos from social media, web platforms as well as from YouTube. This is excluding the contents which the department has deleted from the three YouTube channels of Madhan and his wife.

When the cops received a complaint from veteran Tamil Comedian actors, Senthil and Charlie, the fake Twitter account was deleted within half an hour on receipt of the complaint.

The Chennai cyber police have already deleted around 80 contents uploaded on YouTube platforms belonging to massage parlours and Tattoo centres. The cyber crime wing sleuths told IANS that around 400 YouTube contents of Madhan Manickam's channels, "Toxic Madan 18+", "PUBG Madan girl fan", "Richie Gaming" and "Madam" have been deleted.

The cyber wing has also deleted videos uploaded on cosmetic treatment and with other obscene content and, according to Cyber wing, around 120 such videos were deleted in the past ten days.

Chennai City Police commissioner, Shankar Jiwal told IANS, "We will be strengthening the cyber wing. We have an excellent rapport with all the social media providers and they are responding as soon as we communicate with them. The department is balancing derogatory content and freedom of speech".

An official statement from the commissioner's office has requested the members of the common public who felt offended by the obscene content of Madhan Manickam to send their complaints to dcpccbl@gmail.com. The commissioners office said that the details of those who have filed the complaints would be kept confidential.

Cyber crime officials said that they were receiving 10 complaints a day but after the arrest of YouTuber Madan Manickam, the number of complaints has increased to 50 cases per day.
Kolkata, June 23 : Myanmar's military junta has ordered an extensive combing operation in the country's second biggest city Mandalay after a shootout on Tuesday.

Fighting erupted between an armed urban insurgent group People's Defense Force, a Mandalay based resistance force made up of Bamar (ethnic Burmese) hardliners , and the Burmese military Tatmadaw raided a rebel hideout on the 54th street in Mandalay's Chanmyathazi township on Tuesday morning.

The Tatmadaw-backed Myawaddy TV claimed eight PDF fighters were killed and as many arrested during the shootout. But the PDF spokesman Bo Tun Tauk Naing told IANS only two activists were killed and six arrested.

"They sniffed us out in one of our hideout in a boarding school located on the 54th Street in the Hton Tone area. We shot at them as they encircled the school. Many of our fighters escaped but two were killed and six arrested," Bo Tun told IANS over Facebook messenger.

He said that the PDF was ' not worried over some setbacks like this' and would target Tatmadaw families and their Chinese backers. "We lost some weapons but we have a steady supply now," said Bo Tun, pointing to possible arming of Burmese resistance fighters by ethnic rebel armies of the Karen and Kachin tribe which have fought the Tatmadaw for decades.

That worries the military junta because the resistance activists have repeatedly threatened to blow up the 800kms oil-gas pipeline connecting Myanmar's Rakhine province deep sea port Kyaukphyu with China's Yunnan province.

In May, resistance activists slashed three police guards in an off-take station of the pipeline at Mandalay, testifying to their targetting of Chinese business interests because the pro-democracy protestors see Beijing as the main backer of the Myanmar military junta.

More than 30 Chinese factories have so far been burnt down so far.

"The shootout in Mandalay points to the existence of the resistance in the city and the Tatmadaw is worried that it could hit the Myanmar-China pipeline," said a foreign diplomat posted in Mandalay.

He said Mandalay was ringed by huge number of Tatmadaw soldiers and armed policemen after the Tuesday shootout. Civilians were asked to stay home and not move as the troops searched for the resistance fighters who escaped.

He said reports of armed resistance to the military junta multiplying in many cities and towns were streaming in over the past fifteen days.

It began in late May with the heroic resistance by the local militia at Mindat town in the Chin Hills, which IANS reported in details. Now it seems to be spreading, specially in areas close to borders.
Lucknow, June 23 : Vaccination is likely to be mandatory for all the Uttar Pradesh MLAs, who attend the monsoon session of the state legislature, likely to be convened in August.

During the Budget Session, held in February this year, RT-PCR tests were made mandatory for the legislators attending the session. The Budget Session was adjourned sine die on March 4.

The monsoon session is likely to be convened in the first week of August.

State Assembly Speaker Hriday Narayan Dixit said, "The monsoon session of the UP Assembly will be held as per Covid protocol and all the measures, which were implemented during the last session, will be in place. The decision making the vaccination compulsory for all MLAs/MLCs will be announced after the schedule of the session is decided by the state government." He said, "As per the established practice an all party meeting will be organised and the issue of vaccination of MLAs will be discussed in that meeting." Dixit further said, "The Assembly Secretariat will compile the data about the corona jab taken by the MLAs and as per my information most of them have taken at least one jab. During the Budget Session, special camps were set up by the Assembly secretariat for conducting RT-PCR test of legislators."
Hyderabad, June 23 : Hyderabad International Airport is taking stringent measures to comply with Covid protocols to ensure safe flying.

As the number of Covid cases are gradually coming down across India and the states are relaxing lockdown rules, GMR-led Airport has said that it is geared up in its fight against the pandemic to give a safe and seamless passenger experience.

Surveillance teams with the help of the Telangana state police are assisting the airport officials on the adherence to Covid protocols.

Random checks are conducted to ensure compliance and penalties are imposed on violators. In addition to this, 20 officials of GMR Hyderabad International Airport Limited (GHIAL) were appointed as Special Police Officers (SPOs) to safeguard and help in the enforcement of Covid-19 safety guidelines.

These special officers have the authority to impose penalties on passengers, visitors and staff who do not follow the Covid-19 safety guidelines within the airport premises.

Awareness signages are displayed across various locations of the airport on precautions and sanitization methods that everyone needs to take about Covid.

In order to avoid close contact and crowding at the counters, passengers are encouraged to check-in at home or use self-service facilities such as self-check-in facility, self-bag tag facility, etc.

The airport has deployed self-check-in kiosks, as per social-distancing norms across the airport forecourt area and at check-in halls for a contact-less boarding experience. These check-in kiosks are enabled with a touch-less technology which is QR code friendly and helps in the completion of the check-in process, print out of boarding card and baggage tags for bag drop in no time.

GHIAL said it has taken a slew of measures with focus on a seamlessly contactless boarding experience for passengers, including some stringent safety measures viz. thermal scanning of every departing passenger, the availability of automatic hand sanitizer dispensers at various places, placing floor markers, staggered seating arrangements, remote information desk where passengers queries will be answered without physical presence, allocation of entry gates and check-in islands for departure passengers to encourage compliance of social distancing norms and minimize human contact at the airport.

GHIAL is the only airport in the country that already has an advantage of a paperless e-boarding facility for all domestic travellers. The E-boarding solution is quite unique as it fully eliminates the need to manual stamping of boarding cards.

The passengers can take advantage of the E-boarding system to travel using electronic boarding passes stored on their mobile phones. All boarding gates have contactless E-boarding gates with boarding card scanners, which will help the passengers to just flash their boarding cards to verify flight details and once done, they can proceed to board the aircraft. This E-boarding facility is now being extended to international travellers also.

"In line with the Government of India's mandatory Covid Protocols, Hyderabad International Airport is taking rigorous measures to ensure passenger safety. While the airport is geared up with all safety norms in place, we request all passengers to extend their cooperation and support in adherence to correct usage of face masks, maintaining social distancing and to comply with all the necessary Covid related travel documents," said GHIAL spokesperson.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Kanpur : , June 23 (IANS) The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur has submitted a report to the state government on the oxygen wastage in hospitals across Uttar Pradesh during the month of May.

The report claims that of the 52 hospitals from various districts, 10 were found to be wasting oxygen or using more than the required amount per patient.

According to the team, the list of hospitals was provided by the government with most of them being state-run hospitals.

Those from the NCR districts included in the study were Government Institute of Medical Sciences (GIMS) in Greater Noida, NCR Institute of Medical Sciences and LLRM in Meerut, Santosh Medical College in Ghaziabad and Rama Medical College in Hapur. However, none of these were found to be using excessive oxygen.

The team collected information on the different kinds of instruments the hospitals used for supply of oxygen, amount of oxygen used and the number of patients using the oxygen.

This was compared to the standard usage to find where the consumption was excessive.

Professor Manindra Agrawal, deputy director of IIT Kanpur who was heading the study, said, "There are different kinds of equipment for oxygen supply - various kinds of masks and ventilators. All of these have standard consumption rates. We compared these standards with the average daily consumption in these hospitals and found that 10 hospitals had been using excessive amounts. We have submitted the findings to the state to take further corrective steps." He added that maximum wastage was found while using the High Flow Nasal Cannula (HFNC).

"The study did not mention reasons for the wastage and it needs to be investigated further. However, the wastage could be because of leakage if the mask is not adjusted properly and has been left unmonitored," said Agrawal.
New Delhi, June 23 : AstraZeneca said new data from Public Health England (PHE) demonstrated COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca, offers high levels of protection against the Delta variant (B.1.617.2; formerly the 'Indian variant).

AstraZeneca vaccine is used in India as Covishield. Real world data from PHE, demonstrated two doses of COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca are 92% effective against hospitalisation due to the Delta variant and showed no deaths among those vaccinated.

The vaccine also showed a high level of effectiveness against the Alpha variant (B.1.1.7; formerly the 'Kent' variant) with an 86% reduction of hospitalisations and no deaths reported.

The higher efficacy against severe disease and hospitalisation is supported by recent data showing strong T-cell response to COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca, which should correlate with high and durable protection.1 Mene Pangalos, Executive Vice President, BioPharmaceuticals R&D, said: "This real world evidence shows that COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca provides a high level of protection against the Delta variant, which is currently a critical area of concern given its rapid transmission. The data show that the vaccine will continue to have a significant impact around the world given that it continues to account for the overwhelming majority of supplies to India and the COVAX facility." The analysis included 14,019 cases of the Delta variant - 122 of whom were hospitalised - between 12 April and 4 June, looking at emergency hospital admissions in England.

This real world evidence against the Delta variant is based on limited follow up after the second dose which could impact the effectiveness estimate.

The Delta variant is a key contributor to the current wave of infection in the Indian subcontinent and beyond. It has recently replaced the Alpha variant as the dominant strain in Scotland and is responsible for a notable increase in cases in the UK. The WHO Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization (SAGE) has recommended COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca in countries where new variants, like the Delta variant of concern, are prevalent.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Lahore, June 23 : At least 12 people were injured in a blast in Lahorex, Pakistan on Wednesday, officials said.

Speaking to Samaa TV at the site of the incident, Lahore Deputy Commissioner Mudassir Riaz Malik said that 12 people, including women and children, had been injured in Johar town. He said that the injured also included a police official, Dawn reported.

He said that while it was not immediately clear what had caused the blast, it had left behind a crater. "We will only be able to determine the cause after carrying out an investigation," he said, adding that the area was being cordoned off.

Speaking to Geo News, Lahore CCPO Ghulam Mehmood Dogar stated that officials could not comment on whether the blast was targeting someone without carrying out an investigation.

TV footage showed the blast took place in a residential area, causing damage to nearby houses and shattering windows.

Speaking to Samaa TV, an eyewitness said that his house had been badly damaged. "It was constructed six years ago. We have no other place to go," said the visibly distressed man. Another eyewitness claimed that a device planted on a motorcycle had detonated.

A spokesperson for Rescue 1122 said that it was not immediately clear what caused the blast. "So far we have not been able to determine whether a gas pipeline burst or whether it was a cylinder. But we have shifted four people (to the hospital) and more injuries are expected," he said, reported Dawn.

Meanwhile, Punjab Province Chief Minister Usman Buzdar directed the IG to investigate the incident and submit a report. "Those responsible for the blast should be brought under the law," he said.

Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid also directed the Punjab Province chief secretary and IG to submit a report.
Mumbai, June 23 : Country's largest bank State Bank of India may raise only up to Rs 9,000 crore in capital through additional tier I bonds (AT1 bonds) in current financial year (FY22) and could consider additional raising plan only next year to further enhance it's capital adequacy profile.

Official sources said that the bank is sitting with a sound capital adequacy ratio (CAR) of 13.74 per cent and expects loan growth to touch close to 9 per cent in FY22. This would prevent the bank from raising full quanta of Rs 14,000 crore Tier-I capital raising plan that its board approved early this year.

The SBI Central Board on Monday approved plan to raise up to Rs 14,000 crore in capital through additional tier I bonds (AT1 bonds) by way of issuance of Basel lll compliant debt instrument in rupee and/or US dollar in FY 22.

Sources said that most of the capital raised by the SBI would be used to finance the maturity of AT1 and Tier-II bond coming up this year. The maturity amount works to about Rs 9,000 crore that could be financed through the capital raised by the bank this year.

An SBI executive said that permission for Rs 14,000 crore capital raising plan is an enabling provision and the actual issuance will depend on the market conditions and credit growth in the system.

Sources said that the centre has approved the capital raise plan of the bank, but it could not be verified with the officials. Concurrence of the centre is important as it is promoter of the bank with 57.63 per cent stake as of March 31, 2021.

SBI's Common Equity Tier I (CETI) was 10.02 per cent in March 2021 higher than regulatory requirement of 7.97 per cent. Its AT-1 level was 1.42 per cent in March 2021, up from 1.23 per cent in March 2020.

With CETI higher than regulatory requirements, SBI is not hard pressed to raise capital and would approach the board and shareholders for requisite approvals as and when need arises.
Bengaluru, June 23 : After seeing a bulldozer parked for a year on a roadside, two miscreants hit upon an idea to break it into pieces and then sold it to a scrap dealer, said the police on Wednesday.

The police have arrested Pavan, after the bulldozer owner who is a road construction contractor, Selvaraj from Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu lodged a complaint.

The main culprit, Bharat and the scrap dealer, Ismail, who had purchased the pieces, are still at large, added the police.

"Selvaraj, a road contractor from Tamil Nadu often did road works in Bengaluru, but he lived in his home district, Tirunelveli, though he had a house here, but it was used during his transit. Since March last year, he had stopped coming to Bengaluru completely as work had come to stand still here. Therefore, he had asked his people to park the bulldozer near his house on a road in Nagarabhavi," said the police.

Nagarabhavi is located between Mysore Road and Magadi road and is part of Western suburb of Bengaluru.

After seeing this bulldozer parked on road for more than year, Bharat hit upon idea that the bulldozer could be sold by cutting it into pieces and along with his welder friend, Pavan, broke the whole bulldozer into sizeable pieces and sold these pieces to scrap dealer Ismail at Rs 28 per kg.

"They sold metal pieces weighing 7,500 kgs to the scrap dealer, besides the engine but left three drums (wheels) which they could not move," explained the police.

The police said that this theft came to light when Selvaraj, the contractor, came to his transit house on June 18. He filed a complaint after seeing his bulldozer cut into pieces.

"Selvaraj had purchased this bulldozer at cost Rs 5.5 lakh from another contractor in Tamil Nadu and moved it to Bengaluru in order to cater to growing demand in Bengaluru," said the police.

On his part, Ismail had dismantled bulldozer's engine and sold parts to other dealers and even he was able to dispose of some of the huge metal pieces, claimed the police.

The police have slapped a vehicle theft case against three accused persons and are investigating.
Lahore, June 23 : A massive bomb blast occurred near the house of terrorist Hafiz Saeed in Lahore's Johar Town area on Wednesday, in which at least two persons were killed, while 17 others have sustained injuries.

Saeed is wanted in India for the Mumbai terror attack and other terror cases. He is the founder of banned terror groups Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jamat-ud-Dawa and currently lodged in jail.

The house was cordoned through barbed wire and security personnel were deployed permanently to guard it.

Top sources said that one of the policemen deployed for the security of the house was killed in the blast. The second person who died in the blast was a passer-by.

Lahore's Chief City Police Officer Ghulam Mehmood Dogar told media persons that the probe has started into the incident and a team of bomb disposal squad is on the spot.

He had also stated that the Bomb Disposal Squad would share the details about the nature of explosion.

Police and bomb disposal teams have reached the site of the incident. It is found that the glass windows of nearby houses and buildings were shattered.

The people, who sustained injuries, had been rushed to Lahore's Jinnah Hospital in private cars and auto-rickshaws.

The sound of the blast was so loud that it was heard in faraway areas. However, the nature of the blast has not been ascertained yet.

Local police have cordoned off the area for further probe into the matter.

Punjab chief minister Sardar Usman Buzdar has sought report from the Inspector-General of Police about the blast.

The Government of Punjab on Twitter announced that the chief minister has ordered an immediate investigation of the incident.

Last year, Saeed was sentenced to 15 and a half years in jail by an anti-terrorism court in Pakistan in one more terror financing case. He has had already been convicted for 21 years imprisonment in four terror financing cases.

Saeed, a UN-designated terrorist on whom the US has placed a USD 10 million bounty, was arrested on July 17 last year in the terror financing cases.
New Delhi, June 23 : In an industry first initiative, low cost carrier Indigo has started offering a discount of up to 10 per cent on its base air fare booking to customers in a bid to encourage vaccination among the masses -- either one or both the Covid-19 vaccine doses are welcome.

The discount has been offered to support the government-led mass vaccination programme and incentivise air travel for such responsible citizens.

The airline in statement said that the discount offer will only be available to vaccinated passengers aged 18 years and above, who are located in India at the time of booking and have already received a Covid-19 vaccine in the country.

Passengers who have availed the offer at the time of booking shall be required to furnish a valid Covid-19 vaccination certificate, issued by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India.

Alternately, they can display their vaccination status on the Aarogya Setu mobile application at the airport check-in counter/boarding gate, the statement added.

"Being the largest airline in the country, we feel it is our responsibility to contribute to the national vaccination drive, by encouraging more people towards this common goal. This offer will not only strengthen their resolve towards vaccination, but also ensure that they can travel safely at affordable fares with IndiGo. We are committed to offer an on-time, hassle-free travel experience to our customers, on-board our lean, clean flying machine," said Sanjay Kumar, Chief Strategy & Revenue Officer, IndiGo.

The airline opened only limited inventory under the offer. It said that the offer cannot be clubbed with any other offer, scheme, or promotion and will be available only on IndiGo website.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Panaji, June 23 : The Goa cabinet on Wednesday approved the setting up of an international university for legal education and research, a project funded by the Bar Council of India, chief minister Pramod Sawant said on Wednesday.

Sawant said that while the location for the project had not been finalised yet, the Goa government will also set up an international arbitration centre in the state on the lines of an existing arbitration centre in Singapore.

"An international university for legal education and research by the Bar Council of India has been approved (by the cabinet) in Goa. A location is yet to be finalised. We have yet to identify a place for it. A total of 20 per cent seats will be reserved for Goans. All expenses are being borne by the Bar Council of India, not by us," Sawant said.

The chief minister also said that the university will be run by the Bar Council of India and the state will only offer the Council land free of cost for setting up of the institution.

The University, Sawant said, will also operate the International Arbitration Centre, once it is set up.

"In the same way, the International Arbitration Centre which is related to this will be also in Goa. Right now there is no International Arbitration Centre in India, there's only one in Singapore. This International Arbitration Centre will function through the aegis of the University that will be set up here," Sawant said.
Kolkata, June 23 : The ongoing tussle between the state government and governor Jagdeep Dhankhar turned murkier after West Bengal assembly Speaker Biman Banerjee complained against the constitutional head of the state for interfering into the matters related to parliamentary democracy and functioning of the House.

In a virtual meeting with the Speakers of different states and Speaker of the Lok Sabha Om Birla on Tuesday evening, Banerjee complained that there has been excessive interference of Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar in parliamentary democracy and the functioning of the Assembly.

The Bengal Speaker also complained that despite being passed by the Assembly, several bills are lying with the governor as he has not signed them. This is unprecedented in the history of West Bengal's parliamentary democracy. Such a thing has never happened before, the speaker had said.

Dhankhar, who is on a tour to North Bengal for the last seven days, has run into controversy on several occasions with the state government.

Recently, Dhankhar has given a letter to the chief minister criticising her government's stand on post poll violence. In the letter Dhankhar urged the chief minister to be active to contain the violence in the state.

Dhankhar even went to Delhi to meet President Ram Nath Kovind and Union Home Minister Amit Shah and it is expected that he has given a detailed report on the 'lawlessness' in the state. Dhankhar also met several union ministers and discussed with them several issues of the state.

Sources in the assembly confirmed that the Speaker also held the election commission responsible for the uncontrolled virus infection in the state. Speaking in the virtual meeting, Banerjee had said that the state government including chief minister Mamata Banerjee had urged several times to reduce the number of phases but the election commission was adamant and that resulted in such a Covid situation in the state.

"We have been saying for a long time that the present governor is acting as the mouthpiece of a specific political party. He is not only interfering in the functioning of the state of affairs but is also maligning the West Bengal government," senior TMC leader and MLA Tapas Roy said.

However, the West Bengal unit of the BJP came out in support of the governor and claimed that he had exposed the truth.

"The TMC is angry with the governor as he has exposed the lawless situation in the state. There have been complaints against me earlier, but all of them were baseless," BJP state chief Dilip Ghosh said.
New Delhi, June 23 : In a bid to curb offshore tax evasion, the Union Cabinet has approved an agreement between India and the Caribbean nations -- Saint Vincent and The Grenadines.

Under the pact, both the countries will exchange information and assistance in respect of collection of taxes.

An official statement said this is a new agreement between the Republic of India and Saint Vincent and The Grenadines and there was no such agreement in the past between the two countries.

"Agreement mainly proposes to facilitate exchange of information between the two countries and to provide assistance to each other in collection of tax claims," it said.

The agreement also contains tax examination abroad provisions which provide that a country may allow the representatives of the other country to enter its territory, to the extent permitted under its domestic laws, to interview individuals and examine records for tax purposes.

According to the Finance Ministry statement, the agreement will help in facilitating the exchange of information between the two countries, including sharing of information held by the banks and other financial institutions encompassing the information regarding the legal and beneficial ownership.

It will also facilitate the assistance in collection of the tax claims between the two countries.

"Thus, it will strengthen India's commitment to fight offshore tax evasion and tax avoidance practices leading to generation of unaccounted black money," it said.

India has been negotiating this agreement for a long time, said the ministry statement, adding that Saint Vincent and The Grenadines finally agreed to conclude this agreement with India which will promote tax cooperation between the two countries through exchange of information and assistance in collection of outstanding tax claims between the two countries.
Hyderabad, June 23 : The government of Telangana on Wednesday issued orders fixing treatment and investigation charges for Covid-19 in private hospitals.

The state government, which had capped the treatment charges last year, issued a revised Government Order (GO) on the direction of Telangana High Court.

The fresh GO has fixed charges for routine ward and isolation Rs 4,000 per day; for ICU without ventilator Rs 7,500 and charges for ICU with ventilator Rs 9,000. These include all blood tests, X-Ray, ECG, consultations, bed charges and meals but exclude interventional procedures and high-end drugs.

It also mentioned that PPE kits should not be charged at price exceeding Rs 273 per kits.

These rates, however, are not applicable to the patients subscribing insurance scheme as well as patients being treated under various agreements/MoUs entered into the hospitals and different sponsored groups or corporate entities.

The GO also fixed the rates for investigations pertaining to Covid-19. Charges for HRCT fixed at Rs 1,995, for IL-6 at Rs 1,300, Digital X-Ray 300, D-Dimer Rs 800, CRP Rs 500, Procalcitonin Rs 1,400, Ferritin Rs 400 and LDH Rs 140.

The ambulance charges per kilometer for ambulances with basic life supporting system have been fixed at Rs 75 and for those with advanced life supporting system at Rs 125. Minimum charges will be Rs 2,000 and Rs 3,000 respectively.

It asked the hospitals to refrain from experimental treatment, unnecessary investigations and repeated HRCTs. It makes it clear that no compliance with the orders will attract action as per the provision of the law.

S.A.M. Rizvi, secretary, health, medical and family welfare, issued the GO a day before the expiry of the two-week deadline fixed by the high court.

The court had repeatedly pulled up the state health authorities for the delay in issuing the revised GO and during the last hearing it even remarked if the government will come out with fresh order after Covid-19 vanishes.

The court had issued the directions while hearing public interest litigations with regard to private hospitals collecting excess charges from the Covid patients.

The government capped the charges on the recommendations of a committee constituted for fixing the charges for inpatient treatment, diagnostic tests and investigations for Covid-19.

Meanwhile, the director of public health and family welfare informed the high court on Wednesday that 350 complaints have been received against 170 private hospitals. He said in respect of 30 complaints, the victims were refunded to the tune of Rs 72.20 lakh while efforts are on to do justice to other complainants.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Chennai, June 23 : Murugesan, a 47-year-old farmer from Edayappatti, Salem district who was brutally assaulted by a policeman in broad daylight, died on Wednesday, following which, the family demanded action against the erring officials.

The incident leading to the policeman assaulting Murugesan using a 'lathi' (baton) started after the farmer entered into an argument with the policeman at Pappinaickenpatti check post on Tuesday.

A video clip of the policeman beating Murugesan, who was in an inebriated state, went viral on social media platforms. In the video, the policeman was seen beating Murugesan until he fell unconscious.

The policeman continued with the beating even after Murugesan and his friends were pleading before him. Three other policemen were also present at the site of the incident but they were mute spectators to the incident.

Police sources told IANS that Murugesan entered into an altercation with the policeman after he and his two other friends were returning from a bar where the three had liquor.

The video which went viral was shot by a villager who had accompanied Murugesan.

Murugesan's wife Annakili told reporters that stringent action be taken against all the four policemen involved in the incident even though only one policeman was seen beating her husband. She said that the other three policemen were also part of the brutal assault as they did not try to prevent the policeman from beating a hapless person.

She said that he left the house at 3 p.m. and was assaulted at 5 p.m. After Murugesan fell unconscious following the beating, his friends took him immediately to the local Primary Health Centre at Thumbal and later at the Government hospital at Attur. After his health deteriorated, doctors referred him to Salem Government Mohan Kumaramangalam Medical College and Hospital. He passed away on Wednesday morning.

Murugesan is survived by his wife Annakili, two daughters, and a son.

Local people, including the relatives and friends of Murugesan gathered in large numbers in front of the Yethapur police station demanding stringent action against the erring policeman. A heavy police posse has been also deployed to prevent any untoward incident.
Lahore, June 23 : At least two people have died while over 15 persons have been critically injured in a massive bomb blast in the Joher town area in Lahore on Wednesday.

As per police sources, an explosive laden vehicle exploded near a police check-post located near the Allah Hu Boulevard in Joher town.

The intensity of the blast was so severe that several nearby buildings developed cracks, while the windowpanes of many houses and vehicles parked in the area were shattered.

Official sources confirmed that the injured persons include women and children, who have been taken to nearby hospitals. Local people have been urged to visit the hospitals to donate blood.

The injured persons also include police officers, who are also being treated in the nearby hospitals. Their condition is stated to be critical.

Security forces have cordoned off the area while the officers of the Counter Terrorism Department are working towards ascertaining the cause of the blast.

"We will only be able to determine the cause after carrying out an investigation," said Inam Ghani, Inspector General of Punjab Police.

As per eyewitnesses, the intensity of the blast was huge. However, some of the eyewitnesses claimed that the explosive was planted on a motorcycle.

It is pertinent to mention here that the target of the vehicle carrying the explosives may have been the residence of Mumbai terror attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed, whose house is located in the same area.

The security check-post, near which the blast occurred, is close to the residence of Hafiz Saeed.

Ghani said that the target of the attackers seems to be the security officials.

Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar has taken note of the blast and has directed the IG to investigate the matter and submit a report on priority.

"Those responsible for the blast should be brought under the law," Budzar said.

Meanwhile, Ghani said that a foreign hand is always present in such terror attacks, adding that hostile foreign agencies trying to target security officials and spread fear would not succeed in defeating the ongoing fight against terrorism.
New Delhi, June 23 : A fresh standoff between Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) ruled Delhi government and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led central government erupted with Food and Civil Supplies Department raising various concerns on Delhi government's proposed door-step ration delivery scheme.

The Centre's Food and Civil Supplies Department in a letter to the Delhi government has pointed out four issues which need to be followed under the proposed door-step ration delivery scheme in the national capital and also to protect the National Food Security Act (NFSA) in the future as well.

The department in the letter has pointed on challenges observed in contravention of statutory provisions of NFSA, which applies across the country for providing food grains on subsidized rates by the Centre.

The department has pointed out that the proposed scheme (door-step ration) involves distribution of packaged food commodities -- wheat flour (atta) instead of wheat and rice, and it will involve milling, processing, packing, additional transportation, etc. "Hence, it will naturally increase the per kg cost of commodities, and will have a direct financial implications on the poor NFSA beneficiaries. Further, it shall be obligatory on the part of the state govt to clearly mention the additional cost of milling (per kg) over and above CIP of wheat." The department also pointed out that there is no clarity on how Delhi government will maintain the address of beneficiaries to ensure uninterrupted home delivery of packaged commodities every month even in case of change in address of the beneficiaries.

It further stated that free movement of delivery vehicles may not be possible in narrow streets in residential colonies and the scheme also may not be successful in multistories residential colonies. "Every beneficiary shall expect the vehicle in front of their door. If not, there may be issue of favouritism and nepotism." It noted that the Delhi government in its proposal has not clarified on various subjects, for instance, who will be the delivery partner and for how long the contract will be made to deliver subsidised packed food commodities in every home.

"Most importantly, how the GNCTD intend to ensure continuous online monitoring of delivery of food security entitlement, as it will be difficult in a scenario where existing distribution process itself is not yet automated and integrated with the central online system- 'Annavitaran portal'.

In absence of an institutionalized oversight mechanism this may also give rise to grievances, complaints, and petition in the courts," the letter to Delhi government read.

The department further noted that the Delhi government has not clarified that how the packaged food to be supplied to street dwellers, rag-pickers, migratory labourers, construction workers, etc who do not have permanent address in Delhi.

"Therefore, in view of observations and concern, it is clarified that proposal of GNCTD does not meet the statutory and financial requirements of the NFSA and therefore, proposal made by GNCTD can't be accepted," the department stated in the letter to Delhi government issued on June 22.

Addressing a press conference on Wednesday, Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia accused the Center of rejecting AAP government's flagship door-to-door ration scheme. "Distribution of food under NFSA comes under the State and it has the right to distribute food commodities in its own way. Delhi government's door-step ration scheme is only to provide packed food commodities at home. The Centre has rejected the scheme on baseless arguments."
Bengaluru, June 23 : Tech giant Google has courted a fresh controversy over wrongly inserting late Kannada thespian Dr Rajkumar's photograph for a character named 'Half Boil' in Vijay Sethupathi Tamil starrer "Vikram Vedha".

Earlier, the tech giant was forced to tender a public apology on June 4, after its search engine produced results on Kannada as one of the ugliest languages in the world.

Many Kannada film stars and several fans took serious objection to the goof up by Google as Rajkumar, who died in 2016, is considered to be a Kannada cultural icon and is still remembered by millions of fans.

Highlighting this anomaly, Kannada Film Director, Actor and Writer Rishab Shetty took to his Twitter account and appealed to his followers on the microblogging site to report the error.

"I have a request for everyone. "Vikram Vedha" film's Google search shows our Dr Rajkumar's photo in place of another actor. Please report it and correct the mistake," he wrote on his Twitter page on Monday evening.

Even after his tweet, Google has not changed the photo yet. Rajkumar earned his demigod as well as Kannada cultural icon status for his performances in several genres -- romantic, action, drama, thriller and mythological. Almost all the movies were superhits and won several awards for his performance. He was the only lead actor to win a National Award for singing. He breathed his last on April 12, 2016.
Amaravati, June 23 : Andhra Pradesh is all set to reopen tourist attractions in the state from Thursday.

"All tourist places in the state should reopen from Thursday," said Tourism Minister Mutthamsetty Srinivas on Wednesday after reviewing the tourism sector at the Secretariat.

The Minister called for popularizing the prominence of AP tourist attractions across major cities in India through roadshows.

According to Srinivas, the tourism department's Blue Bay hotel at Rushikonda in Visakhapatnam will be developed with Rs 164 crore.

Likewise, the minister said that there should be no room for corruption in the tourism department.
Srinagar, June 23 : The People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) -- a conglomerate of Kashmir-based parties comprising National Conference (NC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and a few other smaller parties -- after a flip-flop has decided to attend the all-party meeting to be chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Thursday.

Top 14 leaders from Jammu and Kashmir, including Farooq Abdullah, Mehbooba Mufti, Sajad Lone and others, will meet the Prime Minister for the first time after August 5, 2019, when the Centre had announced its decision to abrogate J&K's special status and bifurcated it into two Union Territories.

During the past two years, many things have changed in the erstwhile strife torn state. People-friendly decisions have put the newly craved out Union Territory on the path of peace, prosperity and development.

Kashmiri leaders have to keep their minds and hearts open as Modi has shown magnanimity by extending an invitation to them. The Prime Minister has indicated that he wants traditional politicians of Kashmir to become a part of 'Naya Jammu and Kashmir' and play a constructive role.

The statements that have emanated from different quarters in New Delhi indicate that Modi is ready to walk an extra mile, but there doesn't seem to be any possibility of rolling back the decision to abrogate Article 370, a temporary provision of the Constitution scrapped two years ago, or hold talks with Pakistan.

The tone for the meeting has already been set and the Kashmiri leaders, especially former J&K Chief Minister and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti, needs to understand that the clock cannot be reversed and there is no point in raking up such issues that have lost significance.

Soon after the PAGD announced its decision to attend the all-party meeting called by the Prime Minister, the PDP chief demanded that Modi should talk to Pakistan also.

"If they can go to Doha and talk to the Taliban, they should have a dialogue with us and with Pakistan too in order to bring about a resolution," Mehbooba told reporters in Srinagar.

The former J&K Chief Minister needs to realise that the Kashmir problem was settled once and for all on August 5, 2019, by merging J&K completely with the Union of India, and Pakistan is no stakeholder.

If she doesn't watch her words, they can project her in bad light and will prove her critics right, who leave no opportunity to claim that she is 'anti-national', 'anti-Kashmir', and has got 'separatist leanings'.

J&K's development Centre's priority Last week, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had chaired a high-level meeting in the national capital and reviewed various development projects being implemented in Jammu and Kashmir.

He said that the all-round development and welfare of the people of the UT is the top priority of the Narendra Modi-led government.

Shah made it clear that there would be no compromise on "development with transparency" as enunciated by the Prime Minister.

The Home Minister directed the officials to expedite the completion of the PM development package, and the flagship and iconic projects, including industrial development projects.

Shah also directed the J&K administration to ensure that all farmers are provided the benefits of the schemes such as Pradhan Mantri Kisan Yojana, under which Rs 6,000 is deposited annually directly into the accounts of the farmers, and the Kisan Credit Card Yojna, aming others.

He said that it should be ensured that the benefits of the industrial policy reach the small-scale industries.

The Home Minister also spoke in detail about the efforts being put in to provide employment to the youth and the institutional reforms like geo-tagging of all development works that are put in public domain, purchasing through the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) model and direct deposit of money into the bank accounts of almost hundred per cent beneficiaries of Gram Swaraj, social security and other individual beneficiary schemes.

He appreciated the 90 per cent reach of various Central government schemes in J&K and complimented Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and his team for covering 76 per cent of the population under the Covid-19 vaccination drive.

It's crystal clear that the Centre has a clear agenda, which revolves around development. There is no place for rhetoric and unnecessary discussions.

J&K's transition into a Union Territory has proved to be a blessing in disguise for the common man. The system has been overhauled and the things are moving at a very fast pace.

An Overview of development projects after August 5, 2019 Just one month after the abrogation of Article 370, Union Power Minister R.K. Singh and then Governor of J&K Satya Pal Malik had jointly inaugurated 15 power projects and laid the foundation stones for 20 others worth Rs 10,000 crore in September 2019.

The world's highest railway bridge over Chenab river, which is expected to connect Kashmir with the rest of the country by train for the first time, is likely to be completed by 2022.

The government has announced that it would refurbish 11 airports -- including two along the India-China border -- while the military airports along India-Pakistan border like in Poonch, Rajouri and Gurez would also be expanded and opened up for civilian use.

For developing the information and technology sector in J&K, many sops have been introduced like providing "subsidy on rent" to the outside investors, among others.

The policy document of the government envisages two IT parks -- one each in Srinagar and Jammu -- spread over a 5 lakh square feet area.

According to Union Minister of State for HRD, Communications and Electronics & Information Technology, Sanjay Dhotre, the Centre after August 5, 2019 expedited the process of opening of IIT, IIM and AIIMs in J&K and allowing development of highways, power generation and irrigation projects.

The projects that were lying dormant for last several decades are also being revived in a speedy manner.

Dhotre had stated that the various developmental schemes include acceleration of the projects being executed under the Prime Minister Development Package (PMDP); to execute effective implementation of various schemes targeting the individual beneficiaries; to restart the long-pending projects by removing the obstacles that have been holding such projects; and to ensure effective administration with transparency.

Nearly one year after the abrogation of Article 370, in July 2020, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had inaugurated six bridges in the border areas of J&K.

Four bridges were constructed on the Akhnoor-Pallanwala road in Akhnoor, while two bridges were built on the Tarnah Nallah in Kathua district, at a total cost of Rs 43 crore.

The dedication of the bridges to the people of J&K carried a bigger message that India will continue to develop key infrastructure in the border areas, notwithstanding the hostilities by any adversary.

"Our government is committed to promoting infrastructure in our borders and necessary resources will be provided for this. Our government has a keen interest in the development of Jammu and Kashmir," Rajnath Singh had said.

When these bridges were being constructed, Prime Minister Modi was regularly monitoring the progress of these projects and adequate funds were being provided for their timely execution.

The work on Shahpur-Kandi electricity and irrigation project, which couldn't commence for five decades, is going on. The Ujh project was fast-tracked, and the Metro rail is on its way to Srinagar and Jammu.

Recently, the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) conducted a trial run of vehicular traffic through the newly constructed 8.5 km long Banihal-Qazigund road tunnel on the Srinagar-Jammu highway.

The work on the crucial tunnel, which cuts through the heart of the Pir Panjal mountain range, will reduce the travel distance between Jammu and Srinagar by 16 km on the strategic highway.

With the opening of this tunnel, commuters would get much-needed respite as it by-passes the Jawahar Tunnel, which remains closed for days due to heavy snowfall during winters.

Centre ready to serve everything on platter New Delhi has dropped enough hints about J&K's statehood being restored soon and the Assembly elections can be held in 2022, soon after the delimitation exercise in the Union Territory is completed.

The ball is in the court of the traditional politicians of the Valley now. They have to decide what they want, do they want to remain stranded in the past or want to move on.

If they become a part of Modi's vision, they will be able to serve the people of J&K in a better way, but if they continue to talk about irrelevant issues, they may end up as fence sitters.

Modi has provided them a golden opportunity to join the mainstream and help the people of J&K to prosper. Since the day Kashmiri leaders have received the invitation from New Delhi, they have been upbeat and look keen to attend the all-party meeting.

If all goes well, a new beginning for them is on the cards and the ice is all set to melt.
Hong Kong, June 23 : In a major setback to media freedom in Hong Kong, its largest pro-democracy tabloid Apple Daily has announced its closure.

Last week, the paper's offices were raided over allegations that it had published several reports breaching a controversial national security law, the BBC reported.

Following the incident, police have detained the Chief Editor and five other executives, while the company-linked assets were frozen.

The publication had become a leading critic of the Hong Kong and Chinese leadership.

Amnesty International described the closure of Apple Daily as "the blackest day for media freedom in Hong Kong's recent history".

"The paper has been effectively banned by the government for publishing articles that criticised it, and for reporting on international discussions about Hong Kong" a statement from Amnesty said.

The paper's management said that "in view of staff members' safety", it had decided "to cease operation immediately after midnight" - making Thursday's publication the final printed edition.
New Delhi, June 23 : Goldman Sachs estimates that Dixon Technologies will grow its revenue by 5X and its EBITDA by 5.5X over the next decade.

Over the last decade, global electronics manufacturing services (EMS) companies have grown revenue by about 1.5-2X, EBITDA by also 1.5-2X and market cap by about 1.5-2X (with exception of Wingtech where the growth has been multi-fold).

"We estimate Dixon will grow its revenue by 5X and its EBITDA by 5.5X over the next decade. If we assume market cap grows 5X in line with what global peers have seen - although not strictly comparable as most of the EMS companies were already mature - our Blue Sky scenario suggests almost 70 per cent upside from current levels - assuming no multiple compression," Goldman Sachs said.

"As India moves away from import of electronics to domestic manufacturing, we anticipate a paradigm shift in the growth of its home-grown EMS (electronics manufacturing services) companies. Under the 'Make in India' programme, we expect the recent policy boosters for electronics and component manufacturing in India to first support assembly, but long-term success will depend on developing a globally competitive supply chain. The key advantages India brings are a large domestic market and low manpower costs." Goldman Sachs expects India's two largest EMS players, Dixon Technologies and Amber Enterprises, to be a long term story.

"While the shares are up 314 per cent over the last 12 months and trading at a FY23E P/E of 56.5X (vs global peers at 11.8X), we believe Dixon's strong growth and returns profile (we expect a revenue CAGR of 42 per cent over FY20-26E and ROCE of 30 per cent+) warrants premium multiples to sustain, but we see limited upside from current levels," Goldman Sachs said.

"In our Blue Sky scenario, we compare Dixon with some of the largest global EMS companies. We find that on average Dixon's peers are at least 39X larger than Dixon in revenue terms today, suggesting a significant growth opportunity for Dixon." With most of these companies already well established by the early 2000s, over the last decade, they have doubled their revenue/EBITDA/market caps, with Hon Hai, the global leader in the EMS segment, gaining the most due to its strong partnership with Apple and market leadership across segments.

"In our base case DCF, we assume that over the next two decades, Dixon will achieve the scale its peers are at today (with the exception of Hon Hai). A like-for-like market cap/sales (P/S) comparison for Dixon vs peers shows that peers are trading at a 29 per cent discount to Dixon," the report said.

"Comparing Amber Enterprises to global majors, we present a Blue Sky scenario to compare Amber with some of the largest global AC companies. Most of the competition globally has shifted from ODM to branded manufacturer, and we find that on average Amber's peers are about 38X larger than Amber in revenue terms today, which suggests a significant growth opportunity," it said.

The other key attribute of these companies is the strong focus on exports. With most peers establishing themselves as global AC majors over the last decade, their market caps have increased by 4X over the last seven years led by Midea as it built its market presence across major product categories.

"While our growth assumptions are bullish, we have confidence in them. We expect that over the next two decades, Amber will achieve the scale some of its peers are at today," Goldman Sachs said.

"In our base case, we assume that by CY2035 Amber would reach the same revenue scale that Hisense has today (in terms of AC business) and by CY2037 the scale Haier has reached today (in terms of AC business)," the report said.

A like-for-like market cap/sales (P/S) comparison for Amber vs Hisense shows that Amber is currently trading at a 117 per cent premium to Hisense on a CY2021 basis given its strong near-term growth profile because of the PLI schemes in the AC sector, it said.

"Over the last 7 years, global AC companies have grown revenue by about 2X on average, EBITDA by about 3X and market cap by about 4X. We estimate that Amber will grow its revenue by 6X and its EBITDA by 7X over the next decade," Goldman Sachs said.

"Under our Blue Sky scenario, we assume market cap would grow 6X, in line with what global peers have seen (adjusting for growth), which would imply almost 100 per cent upside from current levels, assuming no multiple compression," the report said.

(Sanjeev Sharma can be reached at Sanjeev.s@ians.in)
London, June 23 : Fugitive diamond marchent Nirav Modi, who is wanted in India in the Rs 13,500 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case, has lost the first stage of his extradition appeal in the UK High Court.

An official of the high court confirmed that the permission to appeal was "rejected on paper" on Tuesday.

The latest rejection leaves Nirav Modi with one chance to make his case at a brief oral hearing in the high court with a renewed "leave to appeal" application for a judge to determine if it can proceed to a full appeal hearing.

Nirav Modi has five business days to apply for such an oral consideration, giving him time until next week.

The appeal was filed before a high court judge for a decision "on the papers" submitted for the appeal to determine if there are any grounds for an appeal against the Home Secretary's decision or the Westminster Magistrates Court's February ruling in favour of Nirav Modi's extradition to India to face charges of fraud and money laundering.

Nirav Modi's extradition to India was ordered on April 16 this year by UK Home Secretary Priti Patel in the Rs 13,500 crore PNB fraud case. He has been lodged in a prison in London since his arrest in March 2019.

On February 25 this year, a UK court had allowed the extradition of Nirav Modi to India.

Nirav Modi is facing probe by the CBI for a large-scale fraud upon PNB through fraudulently obtaining LoUs or loan agreements. He is also being probed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a case related to the laundering of the proceeds of that fraud.

He also faces two additional charges of "causing disappearance of evidence" and "intimidating witnesses" or "criminal intimidation to cause death", which were added on to the CBI case.

The ED has attached several assets of Nirav Modi running into crores of rupees in connection with the case.

Nirav Modi's uncle, Mehul Choksi of Geetanjali group, is also being probed in connection with the case.

Earlier in the day, the ED said that it has handed assets totalling Rs 9,371 crore belonging to fugitive businessmen Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi to state-run banks to realise the losses on account of the frauds committed against them.
Chandigarh, June 23 : Residents of Punjab, along with a panel of experts, came together on Wednesday for a virtual discussion on air quality management as part of the Clean Air Punjab network in collaboration with EcoSikh.

The session ensued a detailed discussion about the rising air pollution as well as the steps that need to be taken up by authorities as well as the community to manage the deteriorating air quality.

A series of campaigns have been initiated by the Clean Air Punjab, which is a citizen initiative, along with EcoSikh, to promote awareness among people as well as sensitisation of degradation of the environment and the rising air pollution levels in Punjab.

The session was attended by over 100 participants from Punjab and other neighbouring states.

The panellists for the workshop included Prabhjyot Kaur Sidhu, Principal Scientist and Head, Department of Climate Change and Agricultural Meteorology, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana; Kahan Singh Pannu, a former IAS officer; Raj Ratra, Senior Environment Engineer, Punjab Pollution Control Board; Sarath Guttikunda, founder-cum-director Urban Emissions, Tanushree Ganguly, Programme Lead, Risks and Adaptation-Air Quality, Council on Energy Environment & Water (CEEW), and Gunjan Jain, a communication strategist with Climate Trends.

Ganguly said Punjab is home to nine non-attainment cities of which only six cities -- Mandi Gobindgarh, Patiala, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Amritsar and Khanna -- possess real-time monitoring infrastructure.

"Data reported by these stations suggest that PM10 concentrations in all six cities were greater than the permissible limit on more than 50 per cent of days in the first half of 2021. PM10, the coarser fraction of particulate matter, comes from sources like road dust, dust from construction sites, landfills, windblown dust, etc," she said, adding interestingly, existing source apportionment studies for cities in Punjab point to a significant contribution from sources outside city limits.

"Therefore, to address pollution in the state, it would be imperative to ramp up air quality monitoring and generate more evidence on local and regional sources of pollution impacting the state," Ganguly said.

Experts emphasised that it was becoming a norm for neighbouring states to simply blame Punjab during the stubble burning season, and the fact that people from Punjab are themselves a victim of air pollution is lost in the stubble burning discussion.

"Stubble burning was not the only polluting source across the Indo-Gangetic plains every winter, but it has captured the imagination and attention of popular debate as to the culprit for Delhi's grey winter skies," said Jain.

She added that although stubble burning is an episodic source that contributes approximately 2 to 25 per cent (depending on the year, season and meteorology) to Delhi's pollution share, the media debate and political blame game fail to give similar attention to the year-long polluting sources like industry, vehicles, power plants, cooking fuels, diesel generators, waste burning, dust, etc., which are leading to high pollution levels even in the summer.

Prabhjyot Kaur said Punjab with nearly 83 per cent area under crops is predominantly a green state.

"Despite this fact, the AQI of Punjab in May 2021 ranged from 68-220, which indicates that the air quality ranged in the poor to very poor category. This continued even during the lockdown period despite reduced vehicular and industrial pollution, which highlights that we need to explore the possible reasons for the poor AQI in Punjab," she said.
Bengaluru, June 23 : Karnataka Health Minister K. Sudhakar on Wednesday said that the first case of Delta Plus strain of Covid-19 has been reported in Mysuru and the infected person is asymptomatic.

He told reporters here that none of the patient's contacts have contracted the virus.

"In Mysuru, one patient is infected with Delta Plus variant, whom we have isolated but he is asymptomatic and none of his primary and secondary contacts have it which is a good sign," Sudhakar said.

He added that the state government was cautious, keeping track of the emergence of new strains since Covid hit the state in March last year.

"We are planning to establish six more genomic sequencing labs in order to augment overall testing abilities across the state," he noted.

Sudhakar said that the government had not shown any laxity in testing as wherever there was a suspicion, it had conducted genomic sequencing and frequently carried out random checks too.

"We are checking five per cent of the total samples randomly to keep track of emerging variants in this deadly virus. The state is, on an average, conducting about 1.5 lakh to two lakh Covid tests on a daily basis," he said.

According to health experts, the new Delta Plus strain is much like the Delta strain that has spread to 80 countries, is highly infectious and fast-spreading.

A senior health official told IANS quoting the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomic Consortia (INSACOG) surveillance bulletin, that the Delta Plus strain shows increased transmissibility, stronger binding to receptors of lung cells and potentially reduced monoclonal antibody response.

"It may also show resistance to existing treatment protocols for Covid, experts worry. There are concerns over whether current vaccines will be effective against the Delta Plus," the expert, who was speaking on condition of anonymity, noted.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Moscow, June 23 : Russia has developed a test system for identifying Covid-19 virus' antibodies in animal blood serum, according to the country's Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Control, media reports said on Wednesday.

"Only specific antibodies generated in the animal body against SARS-CoV-2 virus are trapped in the course of blood serum testing," the regulator was quoted as saying by TASS news agency.

"The Federal Centre for Animal Health subordinate to the Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Control developed a test system for identification of SARS-CoV-2 virus antibodies on the basis of the widespread enzyme-linked immune-electrodiffusion assay (ELISA) technology," the regulator added.

The procedure was tested during the research of biological materials of pets (cats and dogs), agricultural (pigs) and fur animals (ferrets, foxes, and minks). The test system is intended to analyse blood serum for all these animal species, the report said.

Last month, Russia also started vaccinating animals against coronavirus -- with the Carnivak-Cov vaccine, Russia's veterinary watchdog Rosselkhoznadzor told local media.

A Carnivak-Cov jab provides immunity for an estimated six months. The vaccine was earlier tested on dogs, cats, mink, foxes, and other animals and was proven to be effective, Rosselkhoznadzor had said.

Russia started mass production of Carnivac-Cov in early May and the first batch of 17,000 doses was produced at Rosselkhoznadzor's subordinate institution, the Federal Centre for Animal Health.

Russia is also negotiating for the fast registration of the vaccine abroad, particularly in the European Union.

While currently there is no evidence that animals play a significant role in spreading the disease to humans, infections have been confirmed in various species worldwide on -- dogs, cats, apes, and minks.

Covid-19 has been a serious problem for minks -- semi-aquatic mammals farmed for their fur. Multiple countries have reported infections in farmed mink which, in some cases, have fallen severely ill or died.

The US veterinary pharmaceutical company Zoetis is also developing a vaccine for animals.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Kohima, June 23 : Two oxygen generation plants, supported by the Japan government and UNDP, were commissioned in two district hospitals --Tuensang and Phek -- in Nagaland to provide emergency oxygen supplies for the intensive care treatment of critically ill Covid-19 patients.

Eight oxygen generation plants are being installed in three northeast states -- Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura -- with the help of the Japanese government and UNDP.

Three oxygen generation plants were set up in three civil hospitals in Tura, Nongpoh and Jowai in Meghalaya on Tuesday and the remaining three would be set up soon in Tripura to provide emergency oxygen supply to the seriously ill Covid-19 patients.

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) officials said that the eight plants have the capacity to serve approximately 1,300 beds.

The plants utilise pressure swing adsorption (PSA) technology to produce up to 800 litres of oxygen per minute. A statement of UNDP said, launching the plants in Phek on Wednesday, Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio thanked the UNDP and the government of Japan for installing the oxygen generation plants in Tuensang and Phek districts.

"We are indebted for this help, the one that strengthens our health facility and furthers our ability to be able to succeed in mitigating this unprecedented health crisis," the Chief Minister said.

Nagaland Health Minister S Pangnyu Phom, also thanked the UNDP and the Japanese government for strengthening the health system.

"To support the Indian government's ongoing Covid-19 response, UNDP together with the Japanese government is strengthening the health and social protection systems, most importantly reviving the livelihoods and targeting the most vulnerable population," the statement said.

"Japan is always happy to provide development assistance to the Northeast, feeling a special closeness based on our shared history. I hope that these oxygen generating plants will serve well and help as many the people as possible for a long time to come," the statement said, quoting Suzuki Satoshi, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to India.

"UNDP stands committed to supporting the Indian government to fight Covid-19, in partnership with development partners and UN sister agencies.I am pleased that our several months of effort to provide end to end service, to install and set the oxygen generation plants up and running has come to fruition. Together, we can better prepare for future crises," said Shoko Noda, UNDP Resident Representative in India.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Mumbai, June 23 : Life insurance company HDFC Life on Wednesday announced a bonus of over Rs 2,000 crore on its participating plans.

The eligible participating policyholders will get a share of the surplus generated in the participating fund.

"The bonus of Rs 2,180 crore was announced in the Company's Board meeting held in April 2021. It exceeds the previous year's bonus by 44 per cent," the company said in a statement.

As per the company, 15.49 lakh policyholders are eligible for this bonus.

"Out of the total amount of Rs 2,180 crore, Rs 1,438 crore will be payable to policies in this financial year, as bonus on maturing policies or as cash bonuses." "The remaining bonus amount would be payable in the future when policies exit on maturity/death/surrender."
New Delhi, June 23 : The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has ordered an investigation into allegations that Google has abused the dominant position of Android in the country's smart TV market.

According to the CCI's order on Tuesday, the antitrust watchdog was of the prima facie view that Google is dominant in the market for licensable smart TV device operating systems in India.

"The Commission is of the prima facie opinion that by making pre-installation of Google's proprietary apps (particularly Play Store) conditional upon signing of ACC (Android Compatibility Commitments) for all Android devices manufactured/distributed/marketed by device manufacturers, Google has reduced the ability and incentive of device manufacturers to develop and sell devices operating on alternative versions of Android i.e. Android forks, and thereby limited technical or scientific development relating to goods or services to the prejudice of consumers in contravention of Section 4(2)(b) of the Act," the watchdog said in its 24-page order.

"Further, ACC prevents OEMs from manufacturing/ distributing/ selling any other device which operate on a competing forked Android operating system. Therefore, given the dominance of Google in the relevant markets and pronounced network effects, by virtue of this restriction, developers of such forked Android operating system are denied market access resulting in violation of Section 4(2)(c) of the Act," it added.

According to a TechCrunch report, the news comes hours after the European Union opened a formal antitrust investigation into allegations that Google abuses its leading role in the advertising-technology sector.

In its initial review, the Competition Commission of India, which began looking into these allegations last year, said Google had breached certain anti-competitive laws.

Google, which counts India as its largest market by users and last year committed to investing $10 billion in the country, denied any wrongdoing, the report said.

"We are confident that our smart TV licensing practices are in compliance with all applicable competition laws," a company spokesperson said in a statement.

The CCI added that it found Google requiring television manufacturers pre-installing all its "must-have" apps and not having the ability to pick and choose from alternatives "amounts to imposition of unfair condition on the smart TV device manufacturers and thereby in contravention of Section 4(2)(a)(i) of the Act".

"It also amounts to prima facie leveraging of Google's dominance in Play Store to protect the relevant markets such as online video hosting services offered by YouTube, etc. in contravention of Section 4(2)(e) of the Act. All these aspects warrant a detailed investigation," the competition regulator added.

About 8 million smart TV sets were sold in India in 2019, over 60 per cent of which were powered by Google's Android operating system, the report said.

This order is the third ongoing antitrust case investigation that India has opened against the tech giant.
Most wanted woman Maoist ANJU ASARAM AACHALA, 30, with a bounty of Rs.6-Lakhs on her head, surrendered before the Superintendent of Police Ankit Goyal and other top officers after years of violence in the wild. Image Source: IANS News

Most wanted woman Maoist ANJU ASARAM AACHALA, 30, with a bounty of Rs.6-Lakhs on her head, surrendered before the Superintendent of Police Ankit Goyal and other top officers after years of violence in the wild. Image Source: IANS News

Gadchiroli : , June 23 (IANS) In a significant achievement for security forces, dreaded and most wanted woman Maoist active in the Gadchiroli region and carrying a bounty of Rs 6 lakh on her head, surrendered before the Maharashtra Police, officials said on Wednesday.

Anju Asaram Aachala, 30, also known by various aliases like Shashikala, Guni, Zuri, was the Area Committee Member of Tipagad area in the Maoist-infested district of eastern Maharashtra.

At a public function, she laid down her arms before to police officials led by Superintendent of Police Ankit Goyal, Maneesh Kalwaniya, Sameer Shaikh, Somay Munde and others who felicitated her with bouqets on her return to the social mainstream.

This is the second woman Maoist who discarded arms and gave herself up to the police in the past five days in the state. On June 18, Savitha Ajay Narothi, 20, who carries a reward of Rs 2 lakh, had surrendered to the state authorities after spending several years of violence in the wilderness.

Anju, who turned a new leaf on Wednesday, had 20 serious crimes lodged against her and over many years, was personally involved in 15 encounters with the security forces, one arson and four other serious cases, said SP Goyal.

With this, as many as 39 Maoists have already returned to the fold from 2019 till date, including four Divisional Committee Members, two Dalam Commanders, three Department Commanders, 29 Dalam members and a Jan Militia Member, proving a feather in the cap of the security forces.

An official said that fed up with the bloody life in the jungles, "many Maoists are getting attracted by the state government's Surrender Policy with several more of the rebels planning to quit warfare" and return to the national mainstream soon.

Constant pressure is built up on the rebel groups by enhanced vigil, combing operations, anti-Maoist ops, while simultaneously, police organise Janjagran Melawas (public awareness gathering), Rozgar Melawa, Women Melawa, Grambhet (Village Visit) in which senior officers visit the homes of relatives of Maoists who can be persuaded to abdicate violence.

While Goyal assured all help and cooperation to the surrendered Maoists to lead normal life, he warned that stringent action would be taken against all those rebels who will try to disrupt the development process in the district.
New Delhi, June 23 : Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Wednesday dubbed Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the "most jhagdalu (quarrelsome) PM".

Sisodia accused Modi of always indulging in quarrels with state governments even on small issues.

Sisodia's remarks came in reply to a letter to the Delhi government by the Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, raising concerns over shortcomings regarding the Delhi government's proposed doorstep ration delivery scheme.

Addressing a digital press conference on Wednesday, Sisodia called Modi "jhagdalu" (quarrelsome), adding that the objections raised by the Centre on the proposed scheme for doorstep delivery of ration were laughable.

Delhi's ruling AAP and the BJP-led Centre have been locked in a political tussle over the doorstep ration delivery scheme since it was announced by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on January 26 this year.

In a letter to the Delhi government, the Union ministry said that the city government has not mentioned the prices of ration under home delivery. It also asked whether people who opt for home delivery can revert to buying ration from shops later. Another concern it raised was about what happens in case the beneficiary changes his or her address and how addresses will be updated regularly.

Responding to the Centre's objections, Sisodia said, "The Centre could have asked us about the prices and we would have told them. They are saying that this scheme has been rejected but we never sent it to them for approval. Distributing ration is the state government's prerogative. We can tell the Centre that the cost will not be more than that prescribed by it." In the letter, the Union ministry also asked about doorstep delivery in cases where the lanes are narrow and buildings are multi-storeyed. "Free movement of the delivery vehicle may be hindered. Moreover, doorstep delivery may not be successful in multi-storey buildings with multiple floors as most of the beneficiaries are daily wage labourers, household workers and timely delivery at fixed date/timing may be hampered due to traffic congestion, breakdown of delivery vehicles etc," the letter states.

"For the first time in its history, India has seen such a 'jhagdalu' Prime Minister. He fought with the West Bengal CM, then he fought with the state's Chief Secretary. He fights with the Maharashtra Chief Minister, Twitter and Facebook. It seems like he woke up two days ago in the mood to fight with us, and asked the ministry officials to write this letter. The Centre has no right to stop this scheme," Sisodia alleged.

Kejriwal reacted on social media on the issue, saying the Centre's letter to the Delhi government hurt a lot. He sarcastically remarked that "21st century India had reached the moon, but you (Centre) are stuck on the third floor."
Washington, June 23 : China's infamous Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) lab has docked up some unspecified classified projects and responsibilities under China's state secrets law, reveals a review of the lab's public records and internal guidelines, which stands as a hurdle to the probe into the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The review found that some records mention protocols for disclosing information to foreigners and the sealing of some research reports for up to two decades, the Washington Post reported on Tuesday.

The Wuhan lab has drawn global scrutiny because of its research on bat coronaviruses in the city where the pandemic began. Globally, many experts have, in recent weeks, pushed to determine the lab leak theory, which was earlier dismissed as conspiracy. US President Joe Biden has also recently ordered the intelligence community to redouble efforts to examine how the virus originated, including the lab accident theory.

However, the review finds that Wuhan lab was prepared for such an investigation more than a decade ago and had set up systems to handle confidential information.

In May 2019, Tang Kaihong, a local representative of China's National Administration for the Protection of State Secrets, discussed the national security risks of the institute's research and warned of infiltration efforts by foreign spies, according to an account published by the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The researchers signed pledges to protect confidential information, the Washington Post report said.

According to WIV's guidelines on information disclosure, the institute shares details of its work with the public, with the exception of state secrets, research and work secrets, matters under investigation, and disclosures that would violate the law.

Thus, the topics of the lab's classified projects are unknown. The lab and the National Administration for the Protection of State Secrets did not respond to questions on the matter, the Post said.

Further, the Wuhan researchers have maintained that they did not encounter Covid-19 before the pandemic and that no accidents occurred at the lab. So far, no evidence has emerged to contradict these statements, the Post noted.

Experts doubt that even with the renewed investigations, a lab leak can neither be proved or ruled out.

"We will never know the answer. We either take their word for it, or we send you over with some muscular guys and we draw their blood. Would we tolerate that? No, we would not," Robert Gallo, director of the Institute of Human Virology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, was quoted as saying.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Ranchi, June 23 : As cases have declined in the second wave of coronavirus in Jharkhand, the state government has started preparations to tackle the third wave.

In the second wave, oxygen crisis was a major issue therefore this time adequate focus has been placed on making arrangements for oxygen as part of which in Jharkhand 38 PSA plants will be set up. Further, the state will get 4,630 oxygen concentrators.

Apart from Sadar Hospitals in the all districts, these oxygen concentrators will also be used in CHCs, PHCs and health sub centres for which nodal officers from block level to state level will be appointed. The Centre is also providing training so that the machines can be properly used, said a health department official.

The Centre has developed Oxygen Concentrator Management Information System (OCMIS). The concerned nodal officer will have to update daily information on the portal and the officer will be also responsible to make arrangements for power and other necessities.

In Jharkhand, 38 PSA plants will also be set up under the PM-CARES fund and it is expected that in another two months all the plants will be made operational. Two technical persons will be appointed in each of these plants, along with that a nodal officer will be also deputed and will be responsible for complete coordination.
New Delhi, June 23 : Hitting out at former Union Minister P Chidambaram over his comment on the pace of vaccination, BJP Chief J P Nadda on Wednesday said that India is not limping but sprinting ahead powered by the strength of its citizens.

Quoting the former Union Minister's tweet, Nadda said, "India is not limping, but sprinting ahead powered by the strength of our citizens. After the record Monday, India has crossed 50 lakh vaccinations on Tuesday and Wednesday, much to the dislike of the Congress Party." In another tweet, calling Chidambaram a 'Recounting Minister' Nadda said, "It is the Congress' culture to attack Indians whenever India accomplishes a record. Also, it is ironical to hear about sanctity of numbers from a 'Recounting Minister' whose only claim to fame is dressing up numbers in the budget." After record vaccinations on Monday, in a tweet Chidambaram had said, "Hoard on Sunday, vaccinate on Monday, and go back to limping on Tuesday." "That is the secret behind the world 'record' of vaccinations on a 'single day'. I am sure the 'feat' will find a place in the Guinness book of records." Before Nadda, Union Ministers and senior BJP leaders attacked Chidambaram for his comment.

Quoting the former Union Minister's tweet, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said, "Congress strategy for vaccination, Invent of Indian Vaccines - Discredit Scientists. Vaccination started - Questioned its efficacy. Vaccination picks pace - derailed, sabotage by Congress ruled states. Meanwhile, Vaccine Express moves on (nearly 30 crore Indians vaccinated)." Questioning Chidambaram, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri tweeted, "1.4 crore doses in two days. More than 48 lakhs and counting at 1600 Hours on Day 3. Mr P Chidambaram is this a limp? Or a fast paced medium/long distance run?." In a series of tweets, BJP Yuva Morcha National President Tejasvi Surya said, "Five million crossed on Day 2 as well! The only ones limping here are the Congress-led state governments. You should worry why Chhattisgarh and Punjab managed less than a lakh jabs per day, even as MP touched 16 lakh, and Karnataka hit 10.5 lakh." "BJP ruled states MP, Karnataka, UP, Haryana, Tripura, Gujarat & others are breaking records & will continue to. BJP governments top the list on number of daily jabs, but Congress-led states top the list on vaccine wastage! For once, at least try to compete with us, can you?," Surya said.

BJP National General Secretary CT Ravi asked, "Ayya P Chidambaram, How does vaccinating 58 lakh people amount to 'limping'? It would have been more if only Opposition ruled States had focused on World's Largest Vaccine Drive instead of pointing fingers at PM Modi.Please ask your CMs to talk less and work more." Quoting the senior Congress leader's tweet, BJP co-incharge for West Bengal Amit Malviya said, "India closed Tuesday at 54.22 lakh vaccinations after a record Monday. It is the Congress ruled States that are limping, and dragging India down. So keep the scorn and derision for your colleagues and allies in Punjab, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra, spare us."
Chennai, June 23 : The Madras High Court has issued notice to the Centre on a petition filed by Digital News Publishers Association, comprising of 13 media outlets, challenging the constitutional validity of the new Information Technology Rules, 2021.

A bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy admitted the plea and tagged along with another plea by noted Carnatic musician, T.M. Krishna on similar lines.

The court also granted interim relief for the association, allowing it to approach the court if any coercive or arm twisting action is taken under the rules, particularly under provisions 12,14 and 16 of the rules.

Senior advocate P.S. Raman, appearing for the petitioner, contended that two provisions of the rules were creating major problems for the digital news platforms. He said that in particular Rule 16 is an omnibus provision that gives power to the Secretary of the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to block public access to any digital information.

He sought that the court pass an interim order restraining the Information and Broadcasting Ministry from taking any action under the rules pending disposal of the plea.

The bench, however, refused to grant any interim order staying the operation of the rule as no adverse action has been initiated against the petitioner as of now.

It also said that if any such adverse action is initiated against the petitioner, they will be at the liberty to apply for interim relief in these proceedings.

The court adjourned the hearing by three weeks.
Mumbai, June 23 : In a major swoop, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has arrested Iqbal Ibrahim Kaskar -- the Mumbai-based sibling of absconding mafia don Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar -- in connection with a drugs-related case, officials said here on Wednesday.

Earlier, Iqbal Kaskar was picked up from the Thane Jail and taken to the NCB office under a production remand for interrogation, said Sameer Wankhede, Zonal Director, NCB.

The fast-paced developments came after Iqbal Kaskar's name cropped up during the investigation of some of the accused persons arrested in a series of seizures of narcotic substances effected by the central agency in Mumbai.

Lodged in Thane Jail in connection with an extortion cases since the past five years, Iqbal Kaskar was grilled at the NCB office for several hours before being arrested, though the agency kept mum on further details.

Suspected of running his brother Dawood Ibrahim's realty empire and other businesses in Mumbai for the past couple of decades, Iqbal Kaskar's name figured in connection with the recent seizure of 15 kg cannabis, which was sent from Kashmir to Mumbai.

In 2017, Iqbal Kaskar was arrested by the Anti Extortion Cell of Thane Police by its then chief Pradeep Sharma, who is currently in NIA custody in connection with the planting of an SUV with 20 gelatin sticks near the home of businessman magnate Mukesh Ambani, and the suqsequent killing of its owner Mansukh Hiran.

Earlier, the NCB had nabbed two notorious druglords, Arif Bhujwala, allegedly linked to the D-Company, and Parvez Khan, the kin of the late mafia don Karim Lala.

The Bhujwala-Pathan duo is said to be closely associated with the narcotics syndicates operated from the Middle East by another brother of Dawood Ibrahim, Anees Ibrahim Kaskar, and is also connected with the drug cartels which are active in the Gulf and Southeast Asia regions.

Deported from the UAE in 2003, Iqbal Kaskar faced trial in two major cases pertaining to the murder of a Customs department informer, and illegal constructions in the Sara-Sahara building in south Mumbi, but was acquitted in both th cases.

The NCB will also probe his possible role in the drugs angle that emerged after the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput in June 2020.

After his arrest in September 2017, Iqbal Kaskar was lodged in Thane Jail as an undertrial until his fresh arrest by the NCB in a drugs matter on Wednesday.
Kuwait City, June 23 : Kuwait has decided to use armed forces to help implement the health measures adopted by the government last week to confront the spread of coronavirus, the Kuwait Municipality announced on Wednesday.

Ahmad Al-Manfouhi, General Director of Kuwait Municipality, said in a statement that armed forces of the country will join state bodies to confront the spread of coronavirus and to apply the government's decision on restricting access to public venues for unvaccinated people, Xinhua reported.

Al-Manfouhi, who also heads the main committee to follow up on the implementation of health measures, said that the committee discussed on Wednesday the mechanism for implementing government's decision.

The committee decided to use the armed forces to help civilian health teams implement the decision, starting next Sunday, which is the starting date for restricting unvaccinated citizens and residents from entering restaurants, cafes, gyms, salons, and shopping malls covering more than 6,000 square meters.

Al-Manfouhi explained that Kuwait needs to intensify the application of health requirements during the next two months, hoping to achieve herd immunity by increasing the percentage of vaccinated people.

On June 14, Kuwait announced the discovery of the first cases of the Delta Covid-19 variant.

Since June 13, Kuwait has opened all museums, cultural institutions and facilities to the public, and has also started direct flights to the United Kingdom, as part of efforts to ease COVID-19 restrictions.

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Chennai, June 23 : The Madras High Court has ordered the Tamil Nadu government to provide interim compensation of Rs 75,000 to the parents of a newborn baby whose left thumb was cut off by a negligent nurse while trying to removing a paediatric cannula. The incident occurred in Thanjavur Government hospital on June 8, 2021.

Justice Anand Venkatesh of the Madras High Court passed the order on Wednesday following a petition by M Ganeshan, father of the 14-day-old girl seeking compensation and treating the child at a multi-specialty hospital.

The high court judge observed that the parents were made to watch the horrible sight of the left thumb of the child lying on the floor and the child crying in pain. The court in its judgment said that this would have caused great mental agony, suffering and pain to the parents who were helpless.

Justice Anand Venkatesh observed, "As the incident itself shows that there was negligence on the part of the government hospital, an interim compensation must be paid by the government to the parents of the child. This is the minimum that a government must undertake in a welfare state." The judge also directed the government to treat the child in a multi-specialty hospital and to undertake a specialised surgery so that the child does not permanently suffer from the loss of its left-hand thumb.

The court ordered the government to pay the interim compensation within four weeks of the judgment and directed the public prosecutor to report the matter to the court after the compensation is paid.

Justice Anand Venkatesh also directed the director of medical education and the dean of Thanjavur Government hospital to file a counter-affidavit in this case and adjourned the case till June 26 for further hearing.
Chennai, June 23 : Stepping up their campaign against the Amazon Prime web series 'The Family Man 2', the members of the Eelam Tamil diaspora have urged the Tamil film industry to stop showing the victims of genocide in bad light.

The controversial hit series has come under fire from Tamil organisations for the 'negative' portrayal of Sri Lankan Tamils.

The Australian Tamil Congress (ATC), British Tamils Forum (BTF), Irish Tamils Forum (ITF), La Maison du Tamil Eelam (MTE), Norwegian Council of Eelam Tamils (NCET), National Council of Canadian Tamils (NCCT), Solidarity Group for Peace and Justice (SGPJ-South Africa) and United States Tamil Action Group (USTAG) have collectively written a letter to the Tamil Nadu Film Directors Association, Tamil Film Producers Council, and the South Indian Artistes' Association in this respect.

"We, as victims of the biggest genocide in this century, note with concern the falsification of the just struggle of Eelam Tamils against the state oppression in the above web series and strongly condemn it," a media release issued by the organisations stated.

The organisations have expressed their anguish over Tamil actors and script writers being roped in for the said web series.

The diaspora organisations have also debunked the makers' claims that the web series is a work of fiction, alleging that it's a deliberate attempt to malign Sri Lankan Tamils.

"Although the directors/producers of 'Family Man 2' have stated that the series is a fictional product, the usage of words such as 'Eelam Tamils', 'Point Pedro', 'Eelam' and 'North Sri Lanka' as well as similarity of scenes to the last stages of the genocidal war in Sri Lanka and violent streaks exhibited by the characters clearly demonstrate the fabricated agenda to illustrate the Eelam Tamils as people prone to mindless violence," the statement read.

The Eelam Tamil organisations have objected to the depiction of Eelam Tamils as terrorists, wherever they reside.

"For the past 12 years, we have been seeking remedies against the injustices caused by the genocide in a peaceful manner and in accordance with the mechanisms of international laws. Still these kinds of steps are being taken with the aim of suppressing our efforts," the statement added.

As the first step, the Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora had registered their protest through memorandums to Amazon Prime head office for its part in releasing the web series on its platform.

The global Tamil diaspora has staged demonstrations in front of the Amazon Prime offices, the first of which was staged in front of the Amazon office in London on Monday, adhering to the Covid-19 regulations.

'The Family Man 2' has also faced protests in Tamil Nadu, with several public personalities and political leaders demanding Amazon Prime to stop screening the web series, which stars Manoj Bajpai, Priyamani and Samantha in lead roles.
New Delhi, June 23 : The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said on Wednesday that it has booked an official of the State Bank of India in Andhra Pradesh for causing the bank loss to the tune of Rs 7 crore, besides carrying out searches at three different locations.

A CBI spokesperson said that the agency has booked Rapaka Venkata Ramana Murthy, an award staff and cash in-charge of the SBI's Sakhinetipalli branch in Andhra Pradesh's East Godavari district.

The official said that Murthy was booked over allegations that he used to create gold loans accounts in CBS without having pledged the required gold ornaments.

In the complaint, the bank also alleged that during the period between December 30, 2016 and January 1, 2021, he credited loan amounts to 319 savings accounts of 246 members, involving an amount of Rs 6.69 crore, where gold loan bags were not traceable.

It further said that in 37 cases, the gold loans sanctioned were more than the value of the gold ornaments, amounting to Rs 38 lakh.

It said that the accused had fraudulently created gold loan accounts in the name of several persons and caused the bank a loss of Rs 7.07 crore.

The spokesperson said that the agency sleuths carried out searches at the office and residential premises of Murthy and others at three locations in Andhra Pradesh, which led to the recovery of incriminating documents.
Mumbai, June 23 : Telugu actress Rashmika Mandanna, who will soon make her Bollywood debut with "Mission Majnu", has moved into her recently-purchased apartment in Mumbai. The actress updated her fans on Instagram Stories, on Wednesday.

"Dear diary, Ahhhh so much happened today, I finally shifted to the apartment! had to shop so many Ill things...( I am still not done) (gahhhh it's an never ending expense) aura was out all day...1 had to meet 2 of my friends I had to set up the place.. (Sai (my assistant) helped me) Aura and I passed out cz we were so tired," she wrote with a picture of her dog Aura.

Apart from the spy thriller "Mission Majnu", the actress will also be seen in the Hindi film "Goodbye" starring Amitabh Bachchan. She also has the Telugu film "Pushpa" lined up, starring Allu Arjun.
Chennai, June 23 : Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Wednesday said that he would take a "good decision" regarding the 10.5 per cent reservation for the Vanniyar community within the Most Backward Castes in the state.

Vanniyar community leader and PMK founder President Dr S. Ramadoss had petitioned the Chief Minister that the 10.5 per cent reservation for the community is not being implemented even after the previous AIADMK government had passed it in the house in February 2021.

PMK legislator G.K. Mani said, in the house, that the Vanniyar quota was not being implemented by the state except for the Higher Education Department issuing an order. The MLA said that there was no hindrance to implementing the internal quota of Muslims, Adi Dravidars and economically weaker sections and 69 per cent reservation even as cases were pending in the court.

Stalin, in his reply in the house, said: "We have just begun to breathe as our focus was to reduce Covid-19 day and night since we took over. I assure that a good decision will be taken after holding discussions and reviews with the officials." He said that Ramadoss had written a letter to him a few days ago for implementing the 10.5 per cent quota for the Vanniyar community and urging the state to implement the law enacted in February and issue necessary government orders and guidelines based on the reservation quota.
New Delhi, June 23 : Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal has notified the Delhi government's proposed compensation policy which will provide Rs 50,000 to the kin of those who lost their lives to Covid-19.

The scheme - 'Mukhyamantri Covid-19 Pariwar Aarthik Sahayata Yojana' - will provide immediate financial relief in case of death of a family member due to Covid-19.

"The scheme shall come into force with the effect from the date of its publication in the Delhi gazette," a notification issued by department of social welfare of Delhi government stated.

Earlier in May, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had announced that Delhi government would provide Rs 50,000 ex-gratia to each family that has lost a member to Covid-19, besides a monthly assistance of Rs 2,500 if the deceased was an earning member.

He had also stated that the children who have lost both parents, or a single parent, due to Covid-19 will also be provided a monthly assistance of Rs 2,500 up to the age of 25 years. Also, the city government will take care of their education.

Under the policy, apart from the one-time payment of Rs 50,000, a sum of Rs 2,500 per month will be given to the families who have lost bread earners. One member of the family will also be considered for enrolment as a civil defence volunteer.

Parents who were dependent on their children (unmarried) will also be eligible for the assistance. There is no maximum income limit for this scheme.

While the monthly assistance will stop for children once they turn 25, for other beneficiaries, it will continue for life.

A notification issued in this regard stated that the process is to be coordinated by District Magistrates.

The documents required are proof of residence of both deceased and dependents, death certificate, Proof of Covid death as death must certified as Covid death (as per MHA data) or death within one month of testing Covid positive and verified by Health Department as Covid death.

Also documents establishing relationship between deceased and applicant with bank account details of the applicant.

In case of rejection of application by concerned DM, the applicant can file the grievance before the Divisional Commissioner.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
New Delhi, June 23 : The US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has designated India national, Manoj Sabharwal, among members of a smuggling network that helps fund Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) and the Houthis in Yemen.

Led by Iran-based Houthi financier Said al-Jamal, this network generates tens of millions of dollars in revenue from the sale of commodities, like Iranian petroleum, a significant portion of which is then directed through a complex network of intermediaries and exchange houses in multiple countries to the Houthis in Yemen.

According to the US Treasury, UAE-based Sabharwal is a maritime shipping professional who manages shipping operations for al-Jamal's network and advises al-Jamal on smuggling Iranian oil products.

Sabharwal is responsible for coordinating shipments of Iranian petroleum products and commodities throughout the Middle East and Asia while obscuring al-Jamal's involvement.

Sabharwal is being designated for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of al-Jamal.

Since the onset of the conflict in Yemen, the Houthis have relied on support from the IRGC-QF to wage their campaign against the internationally recognised Yemeni government and the Saudi-led Coalition.

Despite growing calls for peace, the Houthis have continued to escalate their lethal attacks inside Yemen and in the region, with dire consequences for Yemeni civilians and Yemen's neighbors. The Houthis have used ballistic missiles, explosives, naval mines, and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles to strike military targets, population centres, infrastructure, and nearby commercial shipping in Saudi Arabia, along key international trade routes.
Kolkata, June 23 : Holding the BJP government at the Centre responsible for the uncontrolled spread of Covid-19 during the second wave, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Wednesday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should immediately get Covaxin authorised by the World Health Organization (WHO) or else suggest a remedy for the recipients of the vaccine who are facing problems to travel abroad.

Terming the BJP as a "big disease for everyone", Banerjee said, "People took Covaxin on the suggestion of the Central government and now the latter should take the responsibility of the problems these people are facing. Students who are set to join foreign universities are in deep trouble as Covaxin is not authorised by the WHO yet. What should these students do now? They cannot take another vaccine as they have already taken Covaxin." "They did not take Covaxin on their own and now the Centre cannot shy away from its responsibility. Either the Centre should immediately get Covaxin authenticated by the WHO, or else suggest a remedy to this problem. It is for the Government of India to take some initiative. Even Bangladesh and Brazil are facing problems. The problem needs to be sorted out immediately," Banerjee said at the state secretariat Nabanna after reviewing the overall Covid situation in the state.

When asked to respond to BJP chief J.P. Nadda's allegation that the opposition is doing politics over the vaccination drive, the Chief Minister said, "The BJP government is fully responsible for the second wave disaster as it did not taken enough measures to combat the wave. How can he say this now? Does he understand that it was because of their negligence that the situation deteriorated? They didn't allow people to take precaution before the second wave." Banerjee also said that the state government will do everything possible to counter a possible third wave of the pandemic.

"As per experts, children might be the most affected lot in case a third wave breaks out, so we need to ensure the health of mothers so that they are able to keep their children safe. We are taking all the necessary measures to combat a possible third wave," she said.

The state government has planned have 1,300 paediatric ICUs, 350 SNCUs, and 10,000 general beds for paediatric and women patients in the government hospitals by July. Along with this, infrastructure has been planned to cater to the additional demand for oxygen, she said.

Asserting that the vaccination status in West Bengal is very good, Banerjee said that nearly two crore doses have already been administered to the people of the state, including 33 lakh jabs to the super-spreaders.

"We are administering three lakh doses per day and from tomorrow onwards, this figure will go up to four lakhs a day. We had demanded three crore vaccine doses from the Centre, but we did not receive them. Had we got the additional doses, we could have given one lakh doses to the private hospitals. We plan to inoculate 70 lakh more people by July," she sadi.

Banerjee also said that the bypolls should be held as the Covid situation is currently conducive in the state, adding that seven days would be enough for campaigning.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
A voter is casting her vote at a polling station in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on June 21, 2021. (Xinhua/Michael Tewelde) Image Source: IANS News

A voter is casting her vote at a polling station in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on June 21, 2021. (Xinhua/Michael Tewelde) Image Source: IANS News

A voter is casting her vote at a polling station in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on June 21, 2021. (Xinhua/Michael Tewelde) Image Source: IANS News

Addis Ababa, June 23 : The African Union (AU) election observer mission on Wednesday commended Ethiopia for holding peaceful polls.

Speaking to the media, the AU election observer team chief, former Nigerian President, Olusegun Obasanjo, commended Ethiopia for holding sixth national polls in a largely peaceful manner, Xinhua reported.

"Despite the challenging security landscape, the mission commends the security measures put in place by Ethiopian authorities, which ensured a largely peaceful environment on election day," said Obasanjo when presenting the AU election mission's preliminary statement.

"The mission concludes that despite some operational, logistical, security, political and Covid-related challenges, overall, the pre-election and election day processes were conducted in an orderly, peaceful and credible manner," he said.

The AU Ethiopia election observer mission comprises eight long-term observers and 57 short-term observers.

On Monday, Ethiopia held twice-postponed general elections in seven of the 10 regional states, with voters choosing candidates vying for 440 of the 547 parliamentary seats in the East African country.

The National Electoral Board of Ethiopia has previously disclosed security and logistical challenges as well as faulty ballots and electoral malpractices, which have forced it to postpone voting in 107 of the 547 parliamentary seats.

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 votes.
Amaravati/Hyderabad, June 23 : Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Wednesday thanked Telugu film industry legend Chiranjeevi for appreciating the mega inoculation feat achieved by the state on Sunday when it administered vaccine shots to 13.72 lakh people across 13 districts, terming it as a team effort.

"Chiranjeevi garu, on behalf of the state government, I thank you for your kind words of appreciation. The credit goes to team effort," Reddy said.

The Chief Minister mentioned that village and ward secretariats, volunteers, ANMs, Asha workers, PHC doctors, mandal officials, district officials, joint collectors and collectors were part of the team effort in vaccinating a record number of 13.72 lakh people on a single day.

On Tuesday, Chiranjeevi had heaped praises on the CM for vaccinating a record number of people in the state on a single day.

"So happy at the fabulous feat of vaccinating over 13.7 lakh people on a single day by the health teams in Andhra Pradesh. Your efforts fill confidence in everyone about defeating the Covid monster," Chiranjeevi had tweeted.

Appreciating the state health department, he said: "Way to go Team AP. More power to you." Congratulating Reddy, the actor said: "Congrats to Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy for his inspiring leadership." Chiranjeevi's compliments came at a time when his younger brother and Janasena founder, actor-politician Pawan Kalyan, considers Reddy as his bete noire and has even tried everything in his 'capacity' to defeat him in the 2019 Aasembly polls. Kalyan had even gone to the extent of declaring that Reddy "will never become the CM" ahead of the 2019 polls.

Chiranjeevi has been openly endearing himself to Reddy since a couple years now. He himself was a chief ministerial hopeful back in 2009 with his Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) and had aimed to defeat former CM and Jagan Reddy's father, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy.

However, he could not win the elections but managed to secure 18 Assembly seats. He later went on to merge the PRP with the Congress.

It looks like Chiranjeevi has come a full circle with respect to Reddy, evolving from being his vociferous critic when he was an active frontline Congress leader to complementing him now.

However, the megastar from Mogalturu village is not very active in politics nowadays and going by the past comments made by Kalyan's aide Nadendla Manohar, Chiranjeevi has promised to stand by his younger brother after he (Kalyan) spends some more years acting in movies.
Amaravati, June 23 : Andhra Pradesh on Wednesday reported 4,684 new Covid cases, pushing the state's overall tally beyond 18.6 lakh, even as its active caseload dropped to 51,204.

As many as 7,324 more persons recovered from the disease in the past 24 hours, raising the state's total number of recoveries to over 17.9 lakh.

East Godavari district reported the highest number of cases at 1,171, followed by West Godavari (660), Chittoor (493), Krishna (355), Prakasam (307), Nellore (306), Kadapa (296), Guntur (289), Anantapur (236), Srikakulam (174), Visakhapatnam (173), Vizianagaram (151) and Kurnool (73).

East Godavari has logged more than 1,000 cases after a gap of few days.

Except for Krishna and Vizianagaram, all the other districts of Andhra Pradesh have now reported more than 1 lakh Covid cases, though the former is also inching closer towards that mark, just shy of 600 cases.

East Godavari tops the chart with more than 2.5 lakh cases, followed by Chittoor with 2.1 lakh cases.

Meanwhile, 36 more persons succumbed to the virus in the past 24 hours, raising the state's Covid death toll to 12,452.

With 80,712 more tests conducted in the past 24 hours, the total number of tests carried out in Andhra Pradesh so far has crossed the 2.13 crore-mark.

Meanwhile, the state's nodal officer for Covid, Arja Srikanth, has thanked the American India Fund (AIF) for donating infrastructure for a 100-bed hospital each at Rampachodavaram and Paderu tribal belts of East Godavari and Visakhapatnam districts.

Each of these locations received 92 beds, out of which eight are ICU beds, 42 seller stands, 20 storage cupboards, 1 workstation with 4 tables and 30 chairs, air conditioners, LED lights and electrical fittings, 15 restrooms, 10 oxygen concentrators and 10 non-invasive ventilators.

"AIF is providing a timely and apt medical infrastructure to help the tribal people who are located in the geographically difficult terrains of East Godavari and Visakhapatnam districts," Srikanth said.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Srinagar, June 23 : The terrorist killed in south Kashmir's Shopian district in an encounter between militants and security forces on Wednesday had refused to surrender, officials said.

Based on a specific input regarding the presence of terrorists in the orchards of the Shirmal area in Shopian, a joint cordon and search operation was launched by the police, the army and the CRPF, the police said.

"During the operation, the terrorists were given an opportunity to surrender, but they fired indiscriminately upon the joint search party, which was retaliated leading to an encounter," the police said.

The police said that in the ensuing encounter, one terrorist was killed and his body was retrieved from the site of encounter.

The slain terrorist has been identified as Sajad Ahmad Bhat, son of Ghulam Qadir Bhat, a resident of Badigam Aishmuqam Anantnag. He was linked to the proscribed terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen.

The police said that as per their records, the slain terrorist was active since 2020 and was involved in several terror crime cases.

Arms and ammunition, including one pistol with magazine, one grenade and other incriminating materials were recovered from the encounter site.

"All the recovered materials have been taken into case records for further investigation and to probe Bhat's complicity in other terror crimes. During the search operation, one terrorist hideout was also destroyed," the police said.
Patna, June 23 : While Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is on a health visit to Delhi, state minister and Vikassheel Insan Party (VIP) President Mukesh Sahani met JD-U leader Upendra Kushwaha on Wednesday.

Both the leaders posted a photograph of the meeting on social media but did not reveal any details.

Kushwaha, who is the President of the JD-U parliamentary board, was not pleased with some of party leaders, especially national President R.C.P. Singh. Also, the JD-U had a high level virtual meeting on Sunday where state President Umesh Kushwaha and other senior leaders of the party participated but Upendra Kushwaha was not invited to it.

On the other hand, Sahani had also met Hindustani Awam Morcha chief Jitan Ram Manjhi a few days ago.

Since then, there was speculation that something was cooking in the smaller NDA constituents.

Sahani, however, clarified that there was no political meeting either with Manjhi then or with Upendra Kushwaha now.

"We expect that friends of NDA would not reach any conclusion and avoid making political statements about these two meetings. We have discussed social issues with Manjhi and Kushwaha. We are united and will work in the direction of providing 19 lakh jobs to our unemployed youths," he said.

Sources say that that R.C.P. Singh used to ignore Upendra Kushwaha in the party, and also avoided discussing party policies with him.

Sahani is also not pleased with Nitish Kumar. He was wanting another ministerial berth and an MLC seat during the second cabinet expansion earlier this year but neither Nitish Kumar nor the BJP entertained him.
Abuja, June 23 : Three people died and two others injured after a motorbike collided with truck in Nigeria's Oyo, authorities said on Wednesday.

The incident happened on a busy road in Ibadan when the speeding motorbike rider lost control and was crushed under the wheels in an attempt to overtake a truck, said Uche Chukwurah, head of the Federal Road Safety Corps in Oyo.

Chukwurah said that the driver of the truck, which was fully loaded with drinks, had also lost control of his vehicle as it experienced brake failure, Xinhua reported.

The motorbike rider and two others died on the spot, she added.
Amaravati, June 23 : Telugu Desam Party's second-in-command Nara Lokesh on Wednesday issued a 36-hour 'deadline' for the Andhra Pradesh government to cancel 10th standard and intermediate examinations in order to save the lives of lakhs of students, parents and teachers in the state from Covid-19.

The TDP national general secretary demanded the state government change its adamant stand and admonished it to mention in the affidavit to the Supreme Court that it is willing to cancel the exams.

"Otherwise, the Telugu Desam Party would further step up its agitation as well as its legal struggle to bring the stubborn regime to its knees and to protect the interests of students at any cost," he said.

Incidentally, Lokesh started the agitation after introspection and stated that as a father he would not like to send his own son to write examinations at the risk of getting infected.

"Minister Adimulapu Suresh should also think like a father and he should introspect whether it would be correct to apply different moral standards for his own children and those for the rest of the parents in the state," he said.

The former TDP minister urged Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy to pay a little attention to the students' problems and called on the government to immediately promote all students to higher classes.

"No exams should be conducted and marking system should be followed on the lines of the CBSE. It is high time for Reddy to decide whether he would want to continue to be a 'Mental Mama' or change to become a 'Manchi Mama' (Good Uncle) to the children," Lokesh noted.

According to Lokesh, an IIT-Kanpur report has warned of the likelihood of a third Covid wave peaking in October and observed that if the southern state were to hold exams in July or August, it would put the students at greater risk compared to other states.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Kolkata, June 23 : The Finance Minister of West Bengal, Amit Mitra, has written to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman expressing his dismay over the 'steady breakdown of the spirit of cooperative federalism and the erosion of commitment', urging her to 'work out a consensus in the GST Council Meetings' to bring back the atmosphere of trust that had defined the Council since its inception.

In a three-page letter to Sitharaman, Mitra alleged that the GST Council meetings have become "acrimonious, vexing and almost toxic with the erosion of the mutual trust that had held fast between states and the Centre" since the Council's inception.

He even recalled instances when the Government of India had yielded to the suggestions of a lone voice from a state, and the states in turn yielded to GoI's proposals despite reservations.

"I recall many instances when the GoI (The Chair) yielded to suggestions even from a lone voice from a state and in turn, states yielded to Gol proposals despite reservations. The Council vehemently debated over thousands of pages to formulate the GST Law, IGST Law and GST Compensation Law without any bitterness or antagonism.

"I recall that the possibility of a consensus almost broke down over how taxpayers would be divided between Centre and states (vertical or horizontal formula) ending with a consensus on a 1.5 crore threshold, as proposed by the states. But now I am afraid that arriving at such a consensus, even for much simpler matters, has become elusive," Mitra wrote.

Alleging that presently there is the prevalence of a narrow view political majoritarianism in the GST Council, Mitra said, "I urge you Honourable Minister to kindly introspect on what I have taken the liberty of bringing to your attention with utmost sincerity and frankness, so that you may consider a course correction in the matter of functioning of the GST Council.

"Frankly speaking, Honourable Minister, an undercurrent has emerged in recent times that while the Chair hears the submissions of all states patiently, indeed, there is a predetermined conclusion with which the Government of India, aided by its top bureaucrats, comes to the GST Council meetings." Citing example, Mitra said, "Many of us as ministers are also concerned that the GST Implementation Committee (GIC) consisting of officers from a few states and mainly from the GoI, has started amending rules and presenting them only for the information of the GST Council -- not for discussion and ratification.

"When the GIC was meant only for procedural issues, it amended Rules 8 and 9 on Registration, Rule 21, Rule 21A, Rule 59, Rule 86B and Rules 138 and 138A on the vital issue of e-Way Bills. You would agree that such amendments and their implementation by the GIC are undermining the powers of the GST Council.

"Hon'ble Minister, it would be the time for us to pull together and rebuild trust and faith, not just hear but to listen to each other's logic with an open mind as we have done for many years in the past, when we cut across party lines and regional diversities." "We are passing through dangerous times for the GST regime itself, when states' own revenues are in dire stress with a growth of (-) 3 per cent during FY 2020-21. The gap between protected revenue and revenue collected has ballooned to Rs 2,75,606 crore. The actual compensation due to the states for 2020-21 has reached Rs 74,398 crore. Fraudulent transactions hit a peak of Rs 70,000 crore, according to Nandan Nilekani's presentation to the GST Council," Mitra said.
Mumbai June 23 : Tata Motors has announced that Guenter Butschek will step down from his role as the CEO and MD from June 30.

He, however, will continue as a consultant to the company till the end of this fiscal year.

Butschek had earlier informed the company of his desire to relocate to Germany at the end of the contract for personal reasons.

Tata Group Chairman N. Chandrasekaran said: "I would like to thank Guenter for leading Tata Motors successfully over the last 5 years and creating a strong foundation for the future. I look forward to his continued inputs as a consultant to the Company." Butschek said that leading Tata Motors over the last five years was an exciting experience.

"The business fundamentals are stronger, and we are well positioned to leverage the opportunities in both Commercial and Passenger Vehicles. I look forward to my continued association with the company as a consultant in the coming months," he added.

Girish Wagh has now been appointed as the Executive Director to the Board of Tata Motors Ltd from July 1.

Tata Motors' domestic business has successfully transitioned to a Business Unit structure with the Commercial Vehicles Division headed by Wagh and the Passenger Vehicle Division headed by Shailesh Chandra.

The Executive Committee is an experienced leadership team that has been successfully scripting the turnaround of the company and will continue to drive the business, said a company statement.

Wagh, the President, Commercial Vehicles, Shailesh Chandra, President, Passenger Vehicles and Thierry Bollore, CEO, Jaguar Land Rover will continue to work closely with Chandrasekaran, it said.
Amaravati, June 23 : The Andhra Pradesh government on Wednesday objected to the registration of 11 suo moto criminal revision cases by the High Court's registry, following an equal number of cases being withdrawn against Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy recently.

The High Court took suo moto cognisance of withdrawal of 11 criminal complaints against Reddy.

The Registrar Judicial apprised the state government about the suo motu cases on Tuesday while they were listed on Wednesday before a bench of Justice Lalitha Kanneganti.

However, Advocate General Subrahmanyam Sriram objected to the suo moto cases, arguing that the cases registered under the purview of CrPC sections 397, 401, 482 and 483 cannot be initiated by the administrative side of the High Court.

The case will come up for hearing again on Friday.

The court had received complaints against the withdrawal of cases.
Bengaluru, June 23 : Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa on Wednesday unveiled 2,500 Smart classes in government first grade Colleges and also launched distribution of 1.55 lakh free tablet PCs to college students to promote digital learning and also to bridge the digital divide in higher education.

He handed over the tablet PCs symbolically to 10 students of different colleges while simultaneously this program was organised in other districts in the state too.

Yediyurppa said that the state government was spending Rs 195 crore under the Digital Learning Programme and these innovative initiatives are taken up to bridge the digital gap among students.

He said that smart classes will include projectors, white board, Android box, UPS and internet facility which will facilitate both teaching and learning.

He said that providing tablet PCs and creating the smart classrooms is expected to largely benefit the students belonging to economically weaker sections of society, pursuing their studies in government education institutions.

Deputy Chief Minister, C.N. Ashwath Narayan, who holds the higher education portfolio, said that the Learning Management System (LMS) at a cost of Rs 4.04 crore is a comprehensive system that will provide a platform to a unique and modern teaching and learning experience.

"The LMS is designed in such a way that it is ideally suitable to conduct both online and offline classes," he claimed.

He said that this programme will help students studying in 430 government first grade colleges, 87 government-run polytechnics and 14 government engineering colleges in the state "This is part of our 'Any Time, Anywhere; learning scheme which will be beneficial for 25,000 teaching faculty and 1.55 lakh students studying in these institutions," Narayan said.

He contended that these initiatives will helpful to resolve the existing imbalances between offline and online, digital and physical, rural and urban, rich and poor and also break English and non-English speaking (native language) barriers with respect to access for quality teaching and learning.
New Delhi, June 23 : The Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) has denounced the arrest of Maulana Umar Gautam and Mufti Qazi Jahangir Alam Qasmi who were arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terror Squad on several charges including forcible conversions, and they are being investigated.

JIH Vice President Mohammad Salim Engineer said, "the manner in which they were arrested and are being implicated in serious charges and the way a section of the media is overreacting, it clearly shows that attempts are being made to exploit public sentiments by creating a charged atmosphere of fear, intimidation and hatred for political mileage. Such attempts to divert attention from the real public issues to create an emotional atmosphere in view of the UP Assembly election eight months later, are very regrettable." Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has ordered action under the Gangster Act and National Security Act (NSA) against those involved in the conversion of deaf and dumb and physically challenged children and youth.

Two persons had been arrested from Delhi on Monday for allegedly forcibly converting over 1,000 people to Islam, police said.

The Chief Minister has ordered stringent action and asked the agencies to further probe the case and dig deeper to arrest all those involved.

The state government has also ordered seizure of properties of the accused.

The two men in Delhi's Jamia Nagar were allegedly running an outfit involved in converting deaf and dumb students and poor people to Islam in Uttar Pradesh.
Kohima, June 23 : Nagaland Governor and the Central government's interlocutor for the Naga peace talks R.N. Ravi and the Isak-Muivah faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-IM) were engaged in a war of words over the collection of "tax" by the main Naga outfit from the people.

The NSCN-IM in a statement on Wednesday night said that it is highly unbecoming of the Governor of Nagaland desperately trying to "criminalize the Naga political movement by questioning the taxation right of the NSCN".

"Surprisingly, this comes after more than 23 years of Indo-Naga political dialogue," the statement said.

The Officer-on-Special Duty (OSD) to government of India representative and interlocutor for Naga Peace talk Gurmeet Singh in a statement said on Monday that a Naga armed organisation engaged in the peace process has issued a statement recently, carried through the media, that they have right to collect "tax" from the people and further added that their right has been recognised also by the Representative of the Government of India having dialogue with them.

"Such an erroneous statement is likely to cause confusion among the people. Taxation is a sovereign function which can be exercised only either by the Government of India or the State Government. The Government of India does not recognise any such right by any other entity. Forcible collection of money by any entity is extortion which is a criminal offence punishable under the laws. In fact, all the Naga armed organisations engaged in the peace process have given a commitment against such collection," the OSD statement said without naming the NSCN-IM or any other outfit.

The NSCN-IM statement said that to go back to the history to point out that taxation is something which is deeply rooted in the history of the Naga resistance movement even before the Naga National Council (NNC) came into the scenario.

"Now the focus has been shifted to the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (NSCN) which is at the helm of affairs leading the Naga political struggle. As brought about by the 23 years of Indo-Naga political talks, the Nagas' stand for sovereign existence is before the world domain and not a question of obscurity," it said.

The statement said that it has become pertinent to mention the background of Naga history to drive home the point that tax collection was the inherent part of the Nagas way of political existence as sovereign people since time immemorial in order to manage its own affairs.

"The NSCN collected taxes to support the Naga people's political movement which started in 1929 even before India got independence from the British. Opposing the Naga tax is nothing short of obstructing the Naga political movement and to let the Naga people be enslaved by India." The NSCN-IM, which had entered into a ceasefire agreement with the Central government in August 1997 and since then had held around 80 rounds of negotiations with the central government, said that NSCN is not working for packages from the Government of India but for an honourable and acceptable political settlement with India and the nominal taxations would continue as it is.

"The irony is that while other outfits are taxing the people they work as the agents of adversaries that are remotely connected with the Naga political interest. Naga are thus made to suffer by the GoI under the garb of Naga Political Groups (NPGs)." The statement said that taxation is the legitimate right of every government of a nation state. The Nagas declared their independence status as a sovereign nation one day ahead of India and defended its sovereign right thus far.

"The Naga nation does not require permission from the Government of India for taxation. The matter remains loud and clear that at no point of time the Nagas became Indians either by conquest or consent.

"It has to be taken note that the sovereign rights of the Naga people to tax cannot be denied. Moreover, the Indo-Naga political talks are yet to be finalized as critical issues are waiting to be considered from the perspective of the Framework Agreement," the two-page NSCN-IM statement said.

The NSCN-IM and the intelligence sources said that while many of the 31 demands of the Nagas have been almost resolved during the talks with the Centre, differences remain over a separate flag, and a separate constitution.The Central government's interlocutor R.N. Ravi had recently rejected the demand for a separate flag and a Constitution for the state as demanded by the NSCN-IM.
Vijaypura : , June 23 (IANS) A teenaged boy and girl, belonging to different communities, were murdered allegedly by the girl's family members in Karnataka's Vijayapura district, police said on Wednesday.

The boy was a resident of Saladahalli hamlet, while the girl and her family hailed from neighbouring Khanapur village of Sindagi taluk in the district.

The crime came to light when the United Dalit Forum of Sindagi Taluk submitted a memorandum to Karnataka Home Minister, Basavaraj Bommai, on Wednesday evening, alleging that this was case of "honour" killing.

The forum's Nandakumar Bambekar, who is also the Karnataka Madiga Youth Brigade's President, later told reporters that the crime has sent shockwaves across Dalits living in Saladahalli village.

He alleged that the police was playing in the hands of the rich and the girl's father has been named fifth accused in the FIR instead of prime accused.

According to the police, both teenagers were in madly in love with each other, with the girl, aged 16-17 years, belonging to the minority community, while the 19-year-old boy, who used drive auto rickshaw for living, belonged to a Dalit family.

"Both families were equally opposed to their affair and both families had beaten up their wards too for this. On Monday these youngsters were out on their usual date in fields, where one of the girl's family members came to know about it and in turn, he brought four other family members who came and caught these youngsters red-handed. Out of rage, the girl's family tied both of them to a tree and started beating them up with sticks. Due to internal injuries, they succumbed on the spot," the police said.

Police said that all male members of the girl's family are on the run and a team has been formed to track them down.

Police has registerd a case and is investigating the "honour killing" angle too.
New Delhi, June 24 : The government on Wednesday appointed CBI Additional Director Praveen Sinha as the Special Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), a post earlier held by Rakesh Asthana.

"The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has appointed Praveen Sinha as the Special Director of CBI for a tenure up to his superannuation on April 30, 2022 from the date of assumption of charge, or until further orders, whichever is earlier," the Department of Personnel and Training said.

The post of Special Director is the second senior-most position in the CBI after the Director. The post was vacant for the last three years.

Sinha, a Gujarat-cadre IPS officer of 1988 batch, has served as the agency's acting Director after Rishi Kumar Shukla had retired on February 3. He held the post till Subodh Kumar Jaiswal was appointed as new CBI chief by the high-powered committee led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

In CBI, Sinha had earlier served as the superintendent of police, deputy inspector general, joint director and additional director in two stints between 2000 and 2021.

Sinha was also instrumental in revising the crime manual of the agency after 15 years.

Sinha had also served as the Deputy Director, ACB, Ahmedabad, in 1996.
Berlin, June 24 : Although the current infection situation in Germany was "encouraging," Chancellor Angela Merkel called for further caution over the Covid-19 crisis during her last government question session in the Bundestag on Wednesday.

"Even if the third wave has been impressively broken, the pandemic is not over yet," said Merkel. "We are still on thin ice." Keeping distance, hygiene and the use of protective masks in certain situations were still "important protective measures and will remain important," she added, Xinhua reported.

Germany's incidence rate of Covid-19 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the past seven days continued to fall to 7.2 on Wednesday, according to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI). A week ago, the country's seven-day incidence rate stood at 13.

The number of new daily Covid-19 infections also remained below the previous week's level as 1,016 new cases were registered in Germany on Wednesday, according to the RKI.

Merkel highlighted the threat posed by the spreading of coronavirus mutations. "We must not now lightly risk what we have achieved together," said Merkel.

Although the share of the Covid-19 Delta variant in Germany only reached six percent of new cases as of last Friday, the strain was spreading at a fast pace, warned the RKI.

As of Tuesday, almost 27 million people in Germany had been fully vaccinated, bringing the country's vaccination rate to 32.4 per cent, the RKI said. Almost 43 million people have received at least one Covid-19 vaccine dose.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Patna, June 24 : RJD chief Lalu Prasad's daughter Rohini Acharya and son Tej Pratap have taken a jibe at Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for visiting Delhi for eye treatment, saying his trip to the national capital highlights the condition of the state's health infrastructure.

"Nitish Kumar left Bihar and went to Delhi for the treatment of his eyes. He is highlighting his own failure on the collapsed health infrastructure of Bihar," Acharya tweeted.

Acharya was very critical of the Nitish Kumar government during the second wave of Covid-19 in Bihar, slamming the latter over the state's health and medical infrastructure, and the loss of lives.

"The situation of Bihar health system is as such that CM Nitish Kumar is ruling the state for 16 years and he went to Delhi only for his eye checkup," Acharya's brother and former Bihar health minister Tej Pratap said in his tweet.

"Nitish Kumar is the chief minister of Bihar for the last 16 years but he doesn't have faith in the state health infrastructure and the treatment of doctors," he said.

Nitish is on a three-day visit to Delhi for eye treatment. He underwent a checkup on Wednesday and is likely to undergo an operation on Thursday.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Mobile home communities have emerged as one of the top-performing investments in America. What was once primarily a mom and pop asset and the target of negative stereotypes is now the darling of real estate, and we are watching a rapid transition of ownership. - Jack Martin

52TEN, a private real estate investment firm, is pleased to announce its second income and growth fund built around recession-resistant mobile home communities. This second fund, called 52TEN Fund II, will focus on larger, higher-quality properties, with the underlying belief that quality will outperform less expensive assets over the long term.

Fund II will acquire mobile home communities with upside potential in markets where population and demand for affordable housing are increasing. The primary geographic target will be cities in the Sun Belt, which are growing faster than the rest of the United States and experiencing a greater shortage of affordable housing. Once acquired, the fund will add value by optimizing performance and therefore forcing the appreciation of each property, while distributing cash flow to investors over the life of the fund.

Fund II will build on the success of Fund I, said Nate Pattee, 52TEN co-founder. Our existing portfolio in Fund I is outperforming projections, and we look forward to repeating that success as we build a quality portfolio for Fund II.

Fund Thesis

Even before the pandemic, the U.S. was in an affordable housing crisis. As home prices and rental rates continue to grow faster than wages, the supply of affordable housing is shrinking at an alarming rate. This dynamic creates the highest demand in history for the most affordable housing option: mobile homes.

The high demand for affordable housing and the recession-resistant behavior of mobile home communities have attracted institutional buyers. Some of the largest investment groups in the world, including Sam Zells, Blackstone, the Carlyle Group, and even foreign investment funds, are buying up communities at a blistering pace.

Mobile home communities have emerged as one of the top-performing investments in America, said Jack Martin, 52TEN co-founder and head of investor relations. What was once primarily a mom and pop asset and the target of negative stereotypes is now the darling of real estate, and we are watching a rapid transition to institutional ownership.

A Window of Opportunity

As institutional buyers capture market share, the window of opportunity to acquire larger communities in quality locations is closing. During this transition of ownership, 52TEN aims to leverage its experience and unique approach to build a quality portfolio for Fund II.

As a 506(c) Reg D offering, Fund II will be open to accredited investors and will accept capital contributions up to an aggregate amount of $30 million. Through Fund II, investors can gain exposure to mobile home communities with an experienced sponsor who is adept at finding high-quality, value-add properties, repositioning them, and delivering a best-in-class investment experience.

ABOUT 52TEN

52TEN is an Arizona-based private real estate investment firm verified by Verivest. Co-founded by Jack Martin and Nate Pattee, 52TEN takes a unique approach, partnering with investors through recession-resistant mobile home communities to maximize yield while minimizing risk. By combining a lower-risk strategy with unparalleled transparency and a disciplined business approach, the firm provides a comfortable investment and the best experience in the industry.
VisionMenu takes an innovative approach to providing unlimited customization options to match each customers buying preferences, so dealers can build the process that works best for their dealership. said Ken Hill, Managing Director of 700Credit.

700 Credit, LLC, the automotive industrys leading provider of credit reports, compliance solutions and consumer pre-qualification products, has announced their alliance with Vision Dealer Solutions. The VisionMenu is a web-based F&I tool that streamlines the sales process and is completely customizable, giving you the power to build the process that best fits the exact needs of your F&I office. This new integration will provide dealerships with seamless access to 700Credits credit report & compliance workflow optimizing the sales process even further.

VisionMenu takes an innovative approach to providing unlimited customization options to match each customers buying preferences, so dealers can build the process that works best for their dealership. Integrating our credit and compliance platform further speeds the sales process so dealers can complete deals quicker and sell more vehicles, said Ken Hill, Managing Director of 700Credit. We are pleased to have Vision Dealer Solutions as a partner and welcome their customer base to our 700Credit family.

We are very excited to offer 700Credit robust compliance suite to all of our products, said Ron Martin, President of Vision Dealer Solutions. Whether the dealer is using the VisionSales, VisionMenu, or VisionTouch product, the 700Credit tools are tightly integrated and easily accessible.

To learn more about this alliance, CLICK HERE.

About 700Credit

700Credit is the automotive industrys leading provider of credit reports, compliance and soft pull products. The companys product and service offerings include credit reports, prescreen and pre-qualification platforms, OFAC compliance, Red Flag solutions, MLA, Synthetic Fraud Detection, Identity Verification, score disclosure notices, adverse action notices and more. 700Credits goal is to provide its clients with the highest quality data in a compliant framework in the most efficient manner possible. For more information about 700Credit, visit http://www.700credit.com.

About Vision Dealer Solutions

Vision Dealer Solutions provides companies, dealers, and agents with technologically advanced tools to expedite customer service, create meaningful and profitable relationships, and shape the Finance & Insurance (F&I) industry. Vision Dealer Solutions products allow finance managers to quickly complete a deal using cutting-edge rating and contracting features and easy-to-use electronic sales tools. Products also help dealers simplify the selling process and increase profitability with eSign, secure document storage, and customizable progress tracking. Discover more about Vision Dealer Solutions at visiondealersolutions.com.
"The economy is hot, but workers are playing it coolunable or reluctant to take open jobs. Job openings are at record highs, yet unemployment is anything but low." - Express CEO Bill Stoller

By most measures, the economy is on fire. Even businesses that had been shuttered during the COVID-19 pandemic are putting out help wanted signs. But as workers are slow to return, businesses have gone from saying help wanted to screaming help!

At last count, there were 9.3 million open jobs in America, a record high since the Bureau of Labor Statistics started tracking the number 20 years ago. Yet the unemployment rate still sits at 5.8%, and millions more arent even looking for work. They are on the sidelines, not even counted among the unemployed.

In short, jobs are plentiful, but available workers seem uninterested or unable to take them.

The economy is hot, but workers are playing it coolunable or reluctant to take open jobs, Express Employment Professionals CEO Bill Stoller said. Job openings are at record highs, yet unemployment is anything but low and millions of Americans are on the sidelines of the workforce.

Express is witnessing the trend in its own numbers. Express had 38,762 open positions in May, up from 38,219 in April, up not only from 2020 but also from previous years.

Even with so many job openings, applications are flat. In Q1 of 2021, Express offices counted 279,701 applications. Thats down from pre-pandemic applications in Q1 of 2020 when the count was 280,376 and up only about 4% from 2019s count of 269,284.

While the number of Q1 job applicants is just slightly down from 2020 to 2021, whats interesting is that it is down even though our total Express office count has increased. With more offices, more jobs and higher pay due to market demand, the only thing were not seeing more of is applicants, Stoller said.

Is this a post-pandemic bump in the road? Or is it a roadblock to recovery?

From generous government benefits to a difficult transition to new routines, employers and academics have offered various explanationsand Express has a few ideas on where we go from here.

Jobs are Everywhere, but Workers are Staying on the Sidelines.

According to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, never in the history of the United States have there been more open jobs than there were in April 2021.

Employers have more than 9.3 million jobs to fill. And yet with all those open jobs, the unemployment rate is still just below 6%. It actually ticked up in April to 6.1%, before declining to 5.8% in May. (Before the recession, in February 2020, the unemployment rate was 3.5%)

But the unemployment rate only tells part of the story.

In February 2020, before the pandemic hit, 158.7 million Americans were employed. By April 2020, that number had fallen to 133.3 million. Thats a decline of 25.3 million.

Over the same period, the number of unemployed Americans rose from 5.7 million to 23.1 millionan increase of just 17.4 million.

What happened to the remaining 7.9 million? They left the workforce entirely. They not only stopped working; they stopped looking for work.

The labor force participation rate (LFPR)the percentage of Americans defined as working or wanting to workfell from 63.3% in February 2020 to 60.2% in April 2020. By May 2021, only about half the gap had been closed, with LFPR sitting at 61.6%. Labor force participation actually declined slightly between April and May 2021. Millions of Americans who were employed before the pandemic are still on the sidelines, not even officially counted among the unemployed.

Before the pandemic-induced recession, the LFPR had not been this low since the 1970s. It is possible that LFPR may be on the rebound. Or this may be a new and troubling normal that will create new pressures on employers. It is too soon to tell.

In our area when you drive down the street you see hiring signs at every fast-food business, every gas station, every manufacturing facility, said David Robb, director of marketing at the Express franchise in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Weve heard from multiple companies that they are at the point where they cannot run all of their production lines or will not be able to implement planned expansion projects because they do not have the workforce they need.

Why is this happening?

So why are people turning down jobs or not looking for jobs at all? Are there other forces at work?

Its difficult to single out one factor. As labor market data company Emsi explains, a number of forcesparticularly baby boomer retirement and a declining birthratewere already putting pressures on the labor market before the pandemic. The pandemic accelerated some of those retirements. But it is still expected that for decades into the future there will be more work to do than people to do it. As a result, many employers are turning to robots or other automated solutions to fill the gap. There was once a fear that robots would take jobs from humans; now it seems robots may be the ones filling jobs humans wont take.

We still struggle in skilled trades; since theyre so closely tied to the manufacturing pickup, there is also a huge need there, said Lori Gajdzik, branch manager for the Crystal Lake, Illinois, Express franchise. This need has been pretty constant, however, there was a shortage even before the pandemic. The pandemic has magnified a problem that already existed 10-fold.

But there are still factors unique to this moment that are contributing to this situation:

1. There are lingering fears of COVID-19.

Many of the unfilled jobs, particularly the ones that Express is working to fill, require contact with other people. These are not work-from-home jobs. Job seekers, especially those who are not yet vaccinated, partially vaccinated or immunocompromised, may be wary of being in environments where COVID-19 could still be spreadingor where they do not know who has been vaccinated. The rapidly declining case rates across the United States may help to change minds in a matter of weeks.

2. Stimulus payments, unemployment benefits and even recent tax refunds allow job seekers to hold out for more attractive job offers.

In early 2021, Americans received another round of relief checks, this time for $1,400. Under federal relief legislation, eligibility for unemployment benefits was extended and the federal government also provided an extra $300 per week on top of standard benefits. The extra $300 was scheduled to expire in September, but about half of the states have announced they will end it sooner.

Proponents of the extra benefits say they give people the time to find a job that matches their skillsets or previous career paths. Opponents say the benefits are giving people an incentive not to accept available jobs.

In the spring, Americans also began receiving their tax refundsanother infusion of cash that made it easier for job seekers to hold out for more attractive job offers or to put off job searching until the health situation improves. Each year, Express sees a similar impact from tax refunds on job searches.

3. Those caring for young people and the elderly may not yet have access to the previous childcare or eldercare resources.

In some states and localities, schools have only recently reopened, and some are still using a hybrid model. Day cares may have space limitations. Summer presents additional hurdles. Camps or other care providers that parents typically rely on may not be available.

Whats more, the worker shortage has also hit childcare providers. Childcare centers are typically required to follow specific adult-to-child ratios. If they are understaffed, they cant accept more children. In that way, the childcare worker shortage further exacerbates the broader worker shortage.

Those caring for parents or older loved ones also may not have access to the eldercare they depended on previouslyor they may have been reluctant to let the elderly, who are more vulnerable to COVID-19, be exposed to non-family members.

4. Those who lost jobs in one field may not have the skills required for jobs that are open.

According to research from the Conference Board, the pandemic accelerated automation in some sectors and shifted many services from in-person to online. Retail workers and those in the service industry were among the hardest hit, and some of those shifts could be permanent. As a result, workers in those sectors will need to find jobs in other fields, but those may be fields for which they have not received the necessary training or education.

It is harder for people to accept these jobs if the employer does not provide training. And job seekers may not know that training is available to them and as a result, not even look at jobs outside their previous sectors.

Others in higher paying fields, such as the oil and gas industry, lost jobs and now can only find opportunities that pay significantly less than their previous jobs.

What Do We Do About It?

When there are many factors at play in a rapidly changing environment, there is no easy solution.

But there are some actions that should be considered.

1. Enforce requirements that those on unemployment accept job offers.

Under the law, those receiving unemployment benefits must actively look for work in order to continue receiving benefitsand they should accept work if they are offered it. The Biden administration has affirmed their position that individuals who turn down suitable jobs should lose benefits. But enforcement can be easier in theory than in practice.

More than 20 states have ended the expanded unemployment benefits that were instituted as part of federal COVID-19 relief legislation. Whether this will prove to be good or bad policy is still to be determined. But it will make for an interesting comparison between states that have ended the benefits and those that have not. Will the former group see a rush back to the workplace?

This may be the closest thing to a large-scale controlled experiment on unemployment benefits we ever witness.

2. Incentivize returning to work.

Rather than simply reducing unemployment benefits, some governors are looking for ways to incentivize unemployed individuals to get back to work. Some states are now offering one-time government-funded bonuses for people who take a full-time job.

Arizona and Montana are offering these bonuses after halting the expanded unemployment benefits. Connecticut is still offering the expanded benefits while also providing a $1,000 back-to-work bonus.

Supporters argue this will give an extra push to those who can find work but are hesitant to accept a job, wondering if it is in their best financial interest.

At best, things may return to where they were pre-pandemic, which was still one of the tightest labor markets in West Michigan in the last 25 years, Robb said. But with that being said, any government policies that encourage and incentivize people to go back to work will be helpful in addressing the current situation.

3. Expand training opportunities.

Getting Americans back to work will require not only a fast-paced economic recovery but also workforce training and reskilling to meet the tech-driven demands of the postpandemic economy, explains the Committee for Economic Development of The Conference Board. The acceleration in automation and AI will, in turn, accelerate a shift in skills. Lessons learned from past episodes of automation suggest that COVID-induced technological adoption will reallocate many jobs across industries. The real policy challenge is not mass unemployment but helping workers transition to new industries, skills and occupations.

Opportunities for training and upskilling were in demand before the pandemic, an issue Express has highlighted over the years. Now the need is even greater. This will require partnerships among federal, state and local governments, employers, educators, non-profits and other stakeholders.

4. Recognize new wage realities.

With so many open jobs, workers can afford to be picky. In many places, $15 may not be the statutory minimum wage, but its becoming the de facto minimum wage. Employers have to recognize that to get people off of the sidelines, they may need to adjust their wage expectations to be competitive, especially as larger employers in some regionsperhaps most notably Amazonmove starting wages above $15.

The $13 to $16 per hour pay range is where we have large numbers of clients with hiring needs, Gajdzik said.

5. Be patient.

This recession was unlike any previous recession. Mass vaccination has quickly slowed the spread of COVID-19, meaning that a rapid reopening of businesses is happening nationwide. Previous recoveries have been much more gradual, meaning new jobs are posting at an unprecedented rate.

Neither employers nor prospective employees have been in such a situation before, so naturally theres a learning curve. Many Americans are just trying to keep up with which health precautions still apply. Soon, though, school operations, work schedules, government financial support and other factors will move to something resembling normal. That may be what it takes for the labor market to feel more normal, too.

What Have We Learned?

This labor shortage is absolutely the craziest thing I have seen in 22 years with Express. Its been interesting and I think it will actually benefit us in the long run, said Jan Riggins, general manager for two Express franchises in Fort Worth, Texas.

In the short term, employers will need to stay nimble, recognize the forces at play in their local job markets and adapt to new realities accordinglyif they want to win the competition for talent.

Thinking long term, all leadersin business and in governmentwill need to evaluate how we incentivize work without hurting those who truly need a lifeline. The pandemic did not just disrupt the job market; it transformed it. So we cannot depend on the old hiring practices, old education models, old wage and benefit assumptions and old recruitment tools to work the same way in a new economy.

As enhanced benefits are discontinued early in some states, we will get a better idea of how much those benefits were driving a worker shortage. And as COVID-19 caseloads continue to declinehopefullywe will be able to see how much health concerns were an issue.

There will never be one clear answer, but understanding the factors at play is how we begin to solve this crisis.

***

If you would like to arrange for an interview with Bill Stoller to discuss this topic, please contact Sheena (Karami) Hollander, Director of Corporate Communications and PR, at (405) 717-5966.

About Bill Stoller

William H. "Bill" Stoller is chairman and chief executive officer of Express Employment Professionals. Headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, the international staffing company has more than 830 franchises in the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. Since inception, Express has put more than 9 million people to work worldwide.

About Express Employment Professionals

At Express Employment Professionals, were in the business of people. From job seekers to client companies, Express helps people thrive and businesses grow. Our international network of franchises offers localized staffing solutions to the communities they serve across the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, employing 526,000 people globally in 2020. For more information, visit http://www.ExpressPros.com.


ASTRA KA-750 series

ASTRA, leading fruit peeling machine manufacturer from Japan, has developed a new peeling function for soft core Taiwanese pineapple, with the Pineapplator KA-750 series in response to the increasing demand for Taiwanese pineapples.

The fresh-cut pineapples you see in supermarkets have been peeled and cut. The mainstream method used in mass-processing factories, is to use a cylindrical cutter to peel and de-core at once. This method can process in high-speed, but the yield is very poor, and produces many edible wastes. On the other hand, the mainstream method used in supermarkets, is manually peeling. This method can produce high yield, but the task is time-consuming and labor-intensive. To solve these problems, ASTRA developed and added the pineapple peeling machine KA-750 to their Peel-a-ton series lineup. The KA-750 will simultaneously improve yield and eliminate labor shortages while maintaining high peeling quality.

Features of KA-750 series

1. High yield performance

A specially developed peeler blade is controlled to peel pineapples according to their shapes. The peeled surface is smooth and reduces food oxidation and juice dripping. The yield rate is approximately 55-60% (*Actual measurement, before top and bottom cutting), contributing to the prevention of food loss.

2. Easy operation for any operator

Since the machine can be operated with simple buttons, the quality of peeling can be maintained at all times, regardless of the operator's skill level.

3. Easy to clean

Since the machine is designed to be used in a food factory, the entire machine can be washed in water. Each part can be removed without the need for tools and can be cleaned and disinfected separately from the main unit for hygiene. The product is small enough to fit on a tabletop and can be carried and stored by hand after work.

The KA-750 series basically uses the firmness of the core of the pineapple to fix the fruit. However, Taiwanese pineapples are generally softer than the regular golden pineapples and has an edible soft-core. This meant that the fixation of the Taiwanese pineapple was not stable enough. To solve this problem, ASTRA invented a new attachment parts which uses the hard skin of the pineapple for the fixation. This new attachment made the KA-750 series able to peel soft- core Taiwanese pineapples. As with regular golden pineapples, the yield of peeled Taiwanese pineapples is about 55% to 60%. The pineapple which has an edible core, and a peeling machine that does not have a coring function, was a good match and the KA-750 series were highly accepted by the Taiwanese market. The first lot of this year has already been sold out.

About ASTRA Inc.: Over thirty years of experience in peeling machine manufacturing, ASTRA has more than 70% share in the kaki (persimmon) peeling market of Japan. The patented technology of ASTRA made its peeling machine able to adjust the peeling speed and depth, and able to peel 20+ variations of wonky shaped fruits beautifully. ASTRA is developing its business with high-speed electric peeler as its mainstay, and its high technology is highly appreciated by winning the ""Kitchen Innovations Award"" in 2018, and the ""14th Nippon New Business Creation Award for Entrepreneurial Excellence"" in December 2019. More information about ASTRA is available at https://peel-a-ton.com/.

Media Contact:

Ryo Takeshita, Sales Manager

+81 24 541-2444

ryo@e-astra.co.jp

ASTRA Inc.

Related Links

https://www.e-astra.co.jp/

https://peel-a-ton.com/
Keeping the Armor On at the Front: Removing the Corrosion that Keeps Us from Resisting the Enemy: a potent examination of the dangers of temptation and how we can defend ourselves. Keeping the Armor On at the Front: Removing the Corrosion that Keeps Us from Resisting the Enemy is the creation of published author, Michael J. Metz, a loving husband and father who grew up as the product of a broken home. The author overcame teenage drinking after joining the Air Force which resulted in a twenty-year career; after which, he continued his work as a substance-abuse counselor.

An excerpt from the book shares, Reality TV in print, reporting on temptations at the scene. The author lets you in on the battle reports in the first person  speaking to you, the reader. Spend time with him as he deals with encounters by different biblical demons in sixteen battle reports; each one closing with a Bible promise. In the course of these encounters, you are given opportunities to identify pieces of the armor of God to stand firm against the specific evil spirits. You will experience the use of various tools and weapons, which are often neglected by todays Christians. The workbook examines the armor of God and actions you can take to put the armor on. Included are dossiers of each enemy, and an introduction to spiritual gifts. Self-examining questions enable the reader to discover strongholds, cracks, and stains the enemy uses to produce corrosion in the Christians armor. A four-phase training outline is customizable to your needs.

Journaling is encouraged.

Published by Christian Faith Publishing, Michael J. Metzs new book is a creative approach to personal and spiritual growth.

With experience writing bible study lessons, Metz pairs his military background with an abiding faith in hopes of encouraging readers to acknowledge and develop their relationships with God.

View a synopsis of Keeping the Armor On at the Front: Removing the Corrosion that Keeps Us from Resisting the Enemy on YouTube.

Consumers can purchase Keeping the Armor On at the Front: Removing the Corrosion that Keeps Us from Resisting the Enemy at traditional brick & mortar bookstores, or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or inquiries about Keeping the Armor On at the Front: Removing the Corrosion that Keeps Us from Resisting the Enemy, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919.
Andy Mauro, Founder/CEO Automat Technologies All the data demonstrates an unignorable business case for these companies to steal from the advertising budgets and start investing in personalization.

Following a series of closed-door roundtable discussions with leading global eCommerce executives, website personalization platform provider Automat has released survey data revealing that these leaders find themselves on the horns of a dilemma: The executives agree that eCommerce personalization is their next area of competitive advantage, but find it challenging to get their initiatives resourced.

Attendees questioned why they were spending so much time and money getting people to their website, and so little time actually making sure the website is helping potential customers find the right products for them.

Some highlights from the survey:



78% of the executives polled felt that their company website is not doing enough to provide consumers with the help they need to find the right products.

89% of executives felt that website visitors are hindered in making confident purchase decisions since its unclear how product benefits meet the consumers individual needs.

92% of executives said their website could meaningfully benefit from a greater level of personalization - with 92% citing the potential for increased sales and 83% pointing to higher consumer engagement.

Their focus on eCommerce personalization is validated by a recent Wall Street Journal article on the topic that suggests that many online direct-to-consumer sellers are stuck in the muck; what the article refers to as Personalization 1.0. Succinctly put, most eCommerce personalization engines are currently using a user's historical data such as click-path and previous purchases to make recommendations. To keep pace with consumer expectations for personalization (Personalization 2.0 and beyond), these recommendations must come from zero-party data, which is data proactively provided by the website visitor. This evolution in personalization has the effect of co-creating the sale outcome with the customer's direct involvement, leading to greater purchase confidence and satisfaction and, as current data suggests, a three times increase in typical conversion rates.

At Automat weve always believed that brands perform better when they build direct relationships with their customers, said Automats Founder and CEO, Andy Mauro. Recent security and data privacy upheavals relating to Apples introduction of App Tracking Transparency and Google Chromes upcoming 3rd party cookie changes, have made this a necessity. While companies like Klayviyo and Attentive are helping brands build their direct channel, at Automat we aim to help brands deepen their understanding of their customers by learning about them in the most natural way possible: conversations. Of course the only way to make this work at scale is with technology which is why weve built the most advanced Conversational AI product ever assembled to ask questions, listen to customers needs and help them achieve their goal while theyre on your site. We are proud to be part of a broader movement helping brands shift away from the ad and attention economy towards owning their customer relationships.

Weve recently launched a free ROI calculator to help brands express the return on personalization spend (ROPS), adds Automat Co-Founder and CTO, Erdem Ozcan. All the data we have points to significantly shorter time to conversion and an immediate lift of 10%, before optimization. Theres an unignorable business case for these companies to steal from the advertising budgets and start investing in personalization. To build meaningful connections with their site visitors and customers, at scale.
With the addition of the new consultants, Cayuga Hospitality Consultants can continue to provide unique and unequaled solutions to any challenge for its clients, says Katherine Moulton, Partner and Executive Director.

Cayuga Hospitality Consultants is delighted to announce the addition of three new hospitality consultants, Jens Busch, David Salcfas, and Haydee Cruz, each with diverse areas of expertise. They are ready to help hospitality clients succeed in achieving their business goals and objectives. With the addition of the new consultants, Cayuga Hospitality Consultants can continue to provide unique and unequaled solutions to any challenge for its clients.

Jens Busch brings over 20 years of experience in hotel and resort operations with Hyatt Hotels, Marriott International, Jumeirah Hotels and Sands China. His consulting services include management operations review, quality assurance and analysis, hotel and resort rooms operations support, hotel pre-opening support and rooms task force, organizational development, and staffing solutions. He is also a part of CTC Consulting Group in Hong Kong, providing support and advice for Hotel Owners and Operators in Asia. In 2019 he completed the SC Johnson College of Business General Managers program at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.

David Salcfas started his career over 35 years ago and is a proven leader in the hospitality industry. He has held twenty two positions, worked at fifteen hotels, across five brands and several restaurants. His consulting services include interview skill training to pivot and focus using the STAR process, excel in both union and non-union labor markets, transparent observations to assess and implement improvements, and create a balanced scorecard action plan. His other competencies include communication, time management, work execution and accountability, employee engagement, guest satisfaction and financial success. David also serves as the Guidance Team Leader for the Northeast Business Councils and is on the Board of Directors for the Hotel Association of New York City. He earned his Bachelor's degree in Food Service Management and Culinary Arts from Johnson & Wales University.

Haydee Cruz has over 25 years of experience in the hotel and tourism sector. She has held multiple sales management and operation positions in 5 star hotels and resorts in the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Venezuela, and in the luxury resorts in Thailand and The Maldives. Her consulting services include digital marketing, sales team development, distribution strategies, hotel sales recovery plan after crisis and market analysis. She has a strong network in the tour and travel, Incentives and Corporate segments and in-market B2B and B2C. Cruzs expertise in sales and marketing and operations has been honored with brands such as Marriott, Anantara, Accor, Outrigger, and Onyx, as well as luxury independent hotels and resorts around the globe. She is fluent in Spanish and is currently based in Bangkok, Thailand.

About Cayuga Hospitality Consultants

Cayuga Hospitality Consultants is a global network of independent consultants focused on the hospitality industry. Consultants are available to work independently on assignments or can be organized as a team or task force to achieve the greatest possible results for our clients. Areas of expertise include operations, sales, marketing, finance, asset management, development, technology, insurance, litigation and sustainability for all areas of hospitality, including hotels/resorts, spas/clubs, restaurants/bars, and casinos. Consultants goals are to provide practical, profit-oriented advisory services across a broad range of hospitality property types and business models plus hands-on support implementing their recommendations. For more information, view their hospitality consulting services or follow them on LinkedIn.
I benefited greatly from my time at the summit, and it is no exaggeration to say that my experience there will make a huge difference in my career.

Learn about the many opportunities available within the cybersecurity field at the Community College Cyber Summit (3CS) Career Exploration event, Nov. 6, at Sinclair Community College in Centerville, Ohio.

3CS is occurring Nov. 5-7 during this special event, which will help attendees understand the field and learn about career opportunities. Cybersecurity college students or recent graduates are invited to participate to talk with professionals in the field and understand current advancements in the career. Because this is in conjunction with 3CS, participants will have access to conference sessions geared toward students.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to attend 3CS! I benefited greatly from my time at the summit, and it is no exaggeration to say that my experience there will make a huge difference in my career. There are many reasons for this, not the least of which is the valuable conversations I had. I could not have asked for a more eye-opening experience than the 3CS job fair, said a past Career Fair Exploration attendee.

Regional and national companies as well as government agencies and universities will be in attendance to share their opportunities available for advancement and jobs. Over 400 college faculty and workforce development professionals from across the U.S. will be at 3CS.

Financial support is available for students interested in attending 3CS, which gains entry into the Career Exploration event. Applications for financial support run through Sept. 20. For more information or to register, visit http://www.my3cs.org/career-exploration-2021.

About Community College Cyber Summit:

The Community College Cyber Summit (3CS) is organized and produced by the National CyberWatch Center, National Center for Systems Security and Information Assurance (CSSIA), and National Cybersecurity Training and Innovation Center (NCyTE), which are all funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). The outcomes of 3CS will leverage community college cybersecurity programs across the nation by introducing the latest technologies, best practices, curricula, products, and more. To learn more, visit http://www.my3cs.org.
In a first for science, a team of researchers used wildtype SARS-CoV-2 to infect and replicate the disease on human tissue in an organ-on-a-chip device. Image: Shutterstock. "The door is now open for using naturally circulating viruses to develop and screen therapies for COVID-19 using the best method availableorgan-on-a-chip, said Ashley Gard, Draper scientist and corresponding author for a research paper by Draper and Massachusetts General Hospital.

A new Draper-led study has demonstrated the first SARS-CoV-2 infection and viral replication using a wildtype virus in a human tissue lung-on-a-chip. The findings, posted as a preprint article on bioRxiv, represent a breakthrough in SARS-CoV-2 research and a promising path forward for therapy development.

In SARS-CoV-2 research, organ-on-chip is emerging as a powerful method for scientists to assess the potential effects of drugs in humans. In this research, we advance the science with the first successful demonstration of SARS-CoV-2 infection in human primary airway epithelial cells derived from a living donor, said Ashley Gard, the papers corresponding author and scientist at Draper. The door is now open for using naturally circulating viruses to develop and screen therapies for COVID-19 using the best method availableorgan-on-a-chip.

This research collaborative, led by Gard, a senior member of the technical staff at Draper, includes experts in synthetic biology, molecular biology, cell and tissue engineering, molecular microbiology, biotechnology and biomedical engineering. The lung-on-a-chip at the heart of the study simulates the human lungs own airway-liquid interface (ALI), an achievement that promises to give a boost to COVID-19 therapy development.

In the study, the researchers investigated viral infection kinetics of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in the PREDICT96-ALI platform in a BSL-3 laboratory environment. They measured RNA levels increasing 600-fold during the experiment, a validation of the models capacity to support SARS-CoV-2 viral infection and replication. They also detected the presence of large multi-cell clusters, further confirming SARS-CoV-2 replication and spread to neighboring cells.

The findings indicate a promising advance beyond the use of pseudoviruses in SARS-CoV-2 research studies. Compared to a naturally occurring virus, pseudoviruses contain only fragments of host-cell DNA without containing any of the nucleic acid components of the infectious virus to which they are related. The lack of DNA prevents the pseudoviruses from producing viral surface proteins on their own. Results with naturally occurring, or wildtype, virus are more relevant to the infection and replication process that causes disease in humans.

The paper advances the case for ALI tissue models by identifying additional applications, including chronic pulmonary conditions, acute respiratory infections and toxic exposures to the lung. But it also describes the limitations of traditional membrane insert-based systems, such as challenges with high resolution imaging, large media volumes and a lack of dynamic media circulation and real-time sensing, all of which highlight the advantages of this high throughput organ-on-chip approach.

Co-author Benjamin Medoff, MD, Chief of Pulmonary and Critical Care at Massachusetts General Hospital, said, This study offers a detailed description of how the airway-on-a-chip model can be used to evaluate mechanisms of infection for the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The demonstration of PREDICT96-ALI for use in high-throughput assays is quite important and highlights its utility in drug discovery and therapeutic screening applications.

Co-author Jeff Borenstein added, PREDICT96-ALI has the demonstrated capacity for use in high-throughput assays, a critical capability for practical drug discovery and therapeutic screening applications. Leveraging all of its features, this model will facilitate high-throughput, preclinical evaluation of therapeutic candidates in a dynamic tissue microenvironment that supports real-time, non-invasive sensing and imaging.

Gard added that one reason researchers have been unable to demonstrate SARS-CoV-2 infection and replication in human tissue models in organ-on-chip systems is that most systems are configured as laboratory research tools, and operation in the BSL-3 environment requires an instrumented well plate designed to fit pharmaceutical industry standard tools. Preparing for a pandemic requires tools that rapidly integrate with pharma infrastructure and are instrumented for the remote monitoring and operation necessary to operate in a BSL-3 environment. Drapers tool fits that description, Gard said.

Co-authors from Draper include Christine Fisher, Felix Mba Medie, Rebeccah Luu, Robert Gaibler, Caitlin Miller, Thomas Mulhern, Vidhya Vijayakumar, Elizabeth Marr, Jeffrey Borenstein and Ashley Gard. Co-authors from MGH include Jehan Alladina and Benjamin Medoff.

Draper has contributed to organ-on-chip programs for a number of government agencies, academic institutions and commercial customers.

Draper

At Draper, we believe exciting things happen when new capabilities are imagined and created. Whether formulating a concept and developing each component to achieve a field-ready prototype or combining existing technologies in new ways, Draper engineers apply multidisciplinary approaches that deliver new capabilities to customers. As a nonprofit engineering innovation company, Draper focuses on the design, development and deployment of advanced technological solutions for the worlds most challenging and important problems. We provide engineering solutions directly to government, industry and academia; work on teams as prime contractor or subcontractor; and participate as a collaborator in consortia. We provide unbiased assessments of technology or systems designed or recommended by other organizationscustom designed, as well as commercial-off-the-shelf. http://www.draper.com


If you would like to know more about the Parenting Network, Inc. lawsuit, please contact Attorney Jackland K. Hom today by calling (619) 255-9047.

The California labor law attorneys, at Zakay Law Group, APLC and JCL Law Firm, APC, filed a class action complaint against Parenting Network, Inc. for allegedly failing to accurately pay employees' wages for all their time worked. The Parenting Network, Inc. class action lawsuit, Case No. VCU287027, is currently pending in the Tulare County Superior Court of the State of California. A copy of the Complaint can be read here.

According to the lawsuit, Parenting Network, Inc. allegedly violated California Labor Code Sections  201, 202, 203, 204, 206.5, 226.7, 510, 512, 558, 1194, 1197, 1197.1, 1198, and 2802 by failing to: (1) pay minimum wages; (2) pay overtime wages; (3) provide required meal and rest periods; (4) reimburse employees for required expenses; (5) provide accurate itemized wage statements; and (6) provide wages when due. The lawsuit also alleges Parenting Network, Inc. violated the Private Attorneys General Act ("PAGA"), which gives rise to civil penalties as a result of Parenting Network, Inc.'s conduct. PAGA allows aggrieved employees to file a lawsuit to recover civil penalties on behalf of themselves, other employees, and the State of California for Labor Code violations.

California Labor Code Section 226 requires an employer to furnish its employees an accurate itemized wage statement in writing showing (1) gross wages earned, (2) total hours worked, (3) the number of piece-rate units earned and any applicable piece-rate, (4) all deductions, (5) net wages earned, (6) the inclusive dates of the period for which the employee is paid, (7) the name of the employee and only the last four digits of the employees social security number or an employee identification number other than a social security number, (8) the name and address of the legal entity that is the employer and, (9) all applicable hourly rates in effect during the pay period and the corresponding number of hours worked at each hourly rate by the employee. Parenting Network, Inc. allegedly failed to provide its employees with accurate itemized wage statements that complied with all the requirements of California Labor Code Section 226.

If you would like to know more about the Parenting Network, Inc. lawsuit, please contact Attorney Jackland K. Hom today by calling (619) 255-9047.

Zakay Law Group, APLC and JCL Law Firm, APC are labor and employment law firms with offices located in California that dedicate their practices to fighting for employees who have been wronged by their employers due to unfair employment practices. Contact one of their attorneys today if you need help with workplace issues regarding wage and hour, wrongful termination, retaliation, discrimination, and harassment.

-THIS IS AN ATTORNEY ADVERTISEMENT-
Im very excited about this launch because it builds on decades of working with top publishers to streamline and automate their royalty processes. Publishers want to be able to provide secure, on-demand statement access to authors to remain competitive and keep pace with the industry.

FADEL, leading provider of Rights and Royalty Management software for publishers, today announced the launch of Statement Portal, the latest innovation in royalty statement delivery online. This cloud solution empowers publishers to strengthen author and agent relations and attract new talent by providing a comprehensive set of author self-service capabilities and secure statement and document delivery services.

Im very excited about this launch because it builds on decades of working with top publishers to streamline and automate their royalty processes, and it incorporates a common theme in customer feedback to automate statement delivery, said Gregg Guest, Vice President of Product Management at FADEL. Publishers want to be able to provide secure, on-demand statement access to authors  and authors expect to be able to look up that information whenever and wherever they need to. It is a simple way to remain competitive and keep pace with the industry.

The Statement Portal improves publisher-to-author relations with better communications, greater transparency, and increased operational efficiency. Powerful features include:



electronic, digital delivery of royalty statements

secure, easy delivery of financial information and documents

self-service for authors and agents

personalized notifications to any combination of authors, agents, and business units for a powerful marketing and customer service engine

better efficiency with process automation and reduced paper waste & printing costs

Want to learn more about Statement Portal? Join our upcoming complimentary webinar at The London Book Fair on June 23  Modernize the Author Experience with a Royalty Statement Cloud App. Click here to register for FREE admission to The Online Book Fair and join the FADEL session.

About FADEL

FADEL, innovator of rights and royalty management software, has worked with some of the biggest names in media, publishing, life sciences, fast-moving consumer goods and high-tech. By automating talent and content rights management across videos, photos, ads, music, products and brands, and streamlining the processing of licensing royalties, FADELs cloud-based solutions have empowered businesses to significantly maximize revenues and increase process efficiencies. Founded in 2003, FADEL is headquartered in New York City, and also operates offices in Los Angeles, Montreal, London, Paris and Lebanon. For more information, visit fadel.com
"We are proud to recognize the breakthrough solutions and companies addressing the worlds most complex issues with artificial intelligence technology"

AI Breakthrough, a leading market intelligence organization that recognizes the top companies, technologies and products in the global Artificial Intelligence (AI) market, today announced the results of its fourth annual AI Breakthrough Awards program, showcasing technologies and companies that drive innovation and exemplify the best in artificial intelligence related technology solutions across the globe.

The AI Breakthrough Awards program is the premier awards and recognition platform founded to recognize artificial intelligence related technology innovators, leaders and visionaries from around the world.

The annual awards program honors AI excellence, innovation and success in a range of AI and machine learning related categories, including AI and Machine Learning Platforms, Smart Robotics, Business Intelligence and Analytics, Natural Language Processing, industry specific AI applications and many more. This years program attracted more than 2,850 nominations from over 17 different countries throughout the world.

While this past year was profoundly challenging, the maturing AI industry had a breakout year by substantially increasing its impact on the world with compelling artificial intelligence applications that played a crucial role in saving lives and driving economic resilience, said James Johnson, managing director, AI Breakthrough. As spending on research, development and deployment of AI technologies continues to rise, and AI technologies increasingly find their way into our everyday personal and business lives, we are proud to recognize the breakthrough solutions and companies addressing the worlds most complex issues with artificial intelligence technology. We extend our sincerest congratulations to the 2021 AI Breakthrough Award winners.

All award nominations were evaluated by an independent panel of experts within the AI industry, with the winning products and companies selected based on a variety of considerations, including innovation, design and user-experience, as well as overall technological advancement for their respective categories.

The 2021 AI Breakthrough Award winners include:

Industry Leadership

Best AI Solution for Big Data: Pure Storage, AIRI

AI Hardware Innovation Award: DDN AI Storage Solutions

Best AI Startup: Logically

Best Artificial Intelligence Company CEO: Jennifer Bisceglie, Interos

Best Overall AI Solution: BMC Helix Operations Management with AIOps

Best Overall AI Company: Celonis

AI Platforms

Best Machine Learning Company: cnvrg.io

Best Deep Learning Platform: Q.ai

Best Overall AI Platform: WekaIO

Business Intelligence & Analytics

Best Predictive Analytics Platform: EcoEnergy Insights, CORTIX platform

Best Predictive Analytics Solution: Xactly Corporation, Xactly Forecasting

Best BI Visualization Solution: Pelican by Nabler

Best Overall AI-based Analytics Solution: Contentsquare

Best Overall AI-based Analytics Company: Skai

Natural Language Processing (NLP)

Best Natural Language Understanding (NLU) Solution: Infinia ML

Best NLP Platform: Sensory Inc.

Best Natural Language Generation Platform: Cognizant

Best Overall NLP Company: IBM

Virtual Agents & Bots

Best Informational Bot Solution: TELUS International, Agent Assist Chatbot

Best Virtual Agent Solution: Verint IVA Professional (Pro) Package

Computer Vision

Best Intelligent Word Recognition Solution: Capgemini, AnGee

Best Handwriting Recognition Solution: Hyperscience

Best Overall Computer Vision Solution: Grabango

Best Overall Computer Vision Company: Tractable

Decision Management

Best Decision Management Solution: Red Hat, Red Hat Decision Manager

Best Decision Management Company: Fundbox

Robotic Process Automation (RPA)

Best Robotic Process Automation Solution: Blue Yonder, Robotics Hub

Best Robotic Process Automation Company: HGS

Virtual Reality

Best Use of Virtual Reality for Retail Applications: Zensar Technologies

Best Overall Use of AI for Virtual Reality: Clay AIR

Vertical Industry Applications

Best AI-based Solution for Cybersecurity: F5, F5 Shape Enterprise Defense

Best AI-based Solution for Financial Services: Moody's Analytics, Credit Sentiment Score

Best AI-based Solution for Customer Service: Everise

Best AI-based Solution for Transportation: Halfspace.io

Best AI-based Solution for Advertising: AdTheorent

Best AI-based Solution for Marketing: Outlier

Best AI-based Solution for Workforce Management: eightfold

Best AI-based Solution for Sales: Marchex

Best AI-based Solution for Legal: BlackBoiler

Best AI-based Solution for Data Science: Austin Data Labs

###

About AI Breakthrough

Part of Tech Breakthrough, a leading market intelligence and recognition platform for global technology innovation and leadership, the AI Breakthrough Awards program is devoted to honoring excellence in Artificial Intelligence technologies, services, companies and products. The AI Breakthrough Awards provide public recognition for the achievements of AI companies and products in categories including AI Platforms, Robotics, Business Intelligence, AI Hardware, NLP, Vision, Biometrics and more. For more information visit AIBreakthroughAwards.com.
"When we implemented GRUBBRR, we immediately benefitted from the smart upsell technology that boosted our average ticket size by 40%.

GRUBBRR, the leading innovator of self-ordering technologies, has just announced the expansion of an exclusive partnership with The Chicken Shack as the chain aggressively expands throughout North America. Designed to maximize profit, improve restaurant efficiency and increase customer satisfaction, GRUBBRRs self-ordering technology has proven pivotal in the explosive expansion of The Chicken Shack.

The Chicken Shack has had amazing success partnering with GRUBBRR, Chicken Shack franchisor, Jonathan Vitt said. Our locations immediately cut labor costs, increased revenue and streamlined workflow, and the experience is far better for our customers, all thanks to GRUBBRRs ecosystem of solutions.

Recent economic struggles, including the current labor shortage and recent minimum wage hike have all hurt the profit margins of the restaurant industry. Nevertheless, GRUBBRRs technology provides seamless solutions to these economic problems through cost-efficient, self-ordering kiosks.

Damon Miller, franchise owner for all of California, credits GRUBBRRs revolutionary self-ordering ecosystem for the restaurants rapid growth in both locations and revenue. I can say with complete confidence that GRUBBRR technology was the single most important factor in the explosive expansion of The Chicken Shack. GRUBBRRs solutions have given us the platform for success, streamlining our efficiency and cutting labor costs. Our continued partnership is critical as The Chicken Shack continues to innovate within the restaurant industry.

GRUBBRRs contactless ordering solutions, including self-ordering kiosks and QR codes, work to benefit both restaurants and customers. Kiosks and digital menus increase revenue through upselling items, decreasing order error and minimizing labor costs. GRUBBRRs self-ordering technology is both consistent and reliable in providing excellent service, and improves the customer experience by allowing for personalization, privacy, and accuracy while ordering.

Nicholas Vitt, co-franchisor of The Chicken Shack, commends GRUBBRR for its critical role in the restaurant chains continued success. Customers have really taken to the kiosks well. Were spending less on labor, which really helps with our bottom line, and our service has never been faster than it is now. When we implemented GRUBBRR, we immediately benefitted from the smart upsell technology that boosted our average ticket size by 40%.

As both GRUBBRR and The Chicken Shack continue to experience unprecedented growth, it is clear that GRUBBRRs mission of utilizing technology to maximize efficiency and customer satisfaction is crucial to the future of restaurant success.

The Chicken Shack has been an innovator and adaptor of self-ordering technology since the chains early days, making them a perfect partner for us, said GRUBBRR CEO, Sam Zietz. They are pioneers in the restaurant industry as we usher in this age of contactless, self-ordering technologies. Their success utilizing GRUBBRR is further proof that restaurants using the self-ordering technologies we provide have the greatest competitive advantage moving forward. We are looking forward to witnessing The Chicken Shacks accomplishments in the future.

About GRUBBRR

Headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida, GRUBBRR is a leading global commerce automation company at the forefront of self-ordering technologies. GRUBBRRs award-winning eco-system, including kiosks, mobile ordering, contactless smart lockers and more, are proven to help businesses maximize revenue, decrease labor costs, and increase operational efficiency while improving the consumer experience. GRUBBRRs solutions are adaptable and beneficial to a multitude of businesses, and power both enterprise-level and small and medium businesses across verticals such as quick-service restaurants, fast casual restaurants, stadiums, movie theatres, casinos, micro-markets, retail, and more. To learn more about GRUBBRR and its products, visit https://grubbrr.com/
H/L Ventures and its family of funds have been recognized by Crain's NY Business among the top ten most active VC firms in New York-and the top firm in NYC-with impact and diversity as core elements of its thesis.

H/L Ventures (https://h-l.vc/), a pioneer in the venture studio and impact investing world, today announced the closing of its Series A fund CityRock Venture Partners, LP (CityRock). CityRock, like all H/L Ventures investment funds, is focused on investing in companies at the nexus of growth, impact, and diversity. Closed to new investment, CityRock launches with a six-company portfolio, all of which are founded and led by underrepresented entrepreneurs.

H/L Ventures is a company-building venture capital firm that is redefining how closely investors can work with their founding teams. H/L Ventures and its family of funds have been recognized by Crains NY Business among the top ten most active VC firms in New York  and the top firm in NYC - with impact and diversity as core elements of its thesis. For more than a decade, H/L Ventures has partnered via its original venture studio with entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds launching high-growth seeking businesses that protect and promote people and the planet. The H/L Ventures ecosystem, including CityRock, is driven by the animating principle of Daily Active Engagement, working hands-on with most of its portfolio companies virtually every day.

At H/L, we set out to show that much of the work of innovation happens after an initial investment is made, said Eric Hatzimemos, co-founder, chairman, and CEO of the firm. Its about picking great entrepreneurs and businesses, and actively supporting them throughout their whole journey. With this approach, weve seen that we can purposefully and positively impact our portfolio companies chances for success.

As more and more of H/L Ventures studio-backed start-ups achieved the Series A stage, the firm launched CityRock to strengthen its commitment to supporting these and other exciting companies through their growth journey. The team expects many of CityRocks investments to come from the H/L Ventures studio as the companies mature, although the fund is also actively seeking investments outside the studio pipeline that align with its mandate. While the firm is industry agnostic, portfolio companies address key sectors like sustainable energy, health and wellness, better-for-you consumer products, financial technology, protective industries, and the future of work, among others.

H/L Ventures existing studio vehicles have co-built more than thirty early stage portfolio companies. The existing CityRock portfolio includes six companies  Andie Swim, BlocPower, Holler, Hydra Studios, Loliware, and Sealed. In addition, CityRocks team is proud to have co-led the Holler Series B.

All CityRock portfolio companies have access to the full services and engagement of the H/L Ventures team, including more than 30 core staff and Venture Partners, as well as hundreds of independent experts, advisors, and service providers. CityRocks Investment Committee is gender-balanced and represents well over half a century of VC experience.

Over the past decade, we have built a new model for supporting entrepreneurs, innovating within venture capital itself, says Oliver Libby, co-founder and managing partner of H/L Ventures. CityRock gives us a much more powerful new tool to succeed with our entrepreneurs, allowing us to extend and strengthen our support of these impactful companies and their inspiring founders.

Investing in businesses that have strong potential for growth, but make the world a better place, is crucial to our approach, says co-founding general partner Laura Hovas. We are pleased to see our sector waking up to the power of these underrepresented founders and their teams, who are working to build incredible, exciting companies.

For more information about H/L Ventures and the CityRock fund, please visit http://www.h-l.vc.

About H/L Ventures

Hatzimemos / Libby Holdings LLC, (H/L Ventures) strives to help mission-driven founders build inspiring, valuable companies from inception to exit. Founded in 2009, H/L Ventures began its history as one of the first modern venture studios, and certainly among the earliest company-building firms focused on start-ups at the nexus of growth, impact, and diversity. H/L Ventures is specifically designed to deliver on Daily Active Engagement with all its portfolio companies, providing an unparalleled ecosystem of resources to entrepreneurs throughout their journey. These resources include a core studio team of more than thirty core staff and Venture Partners, the CityRock Series A fund, a Trusted Partner Network, select managed services, and more. A large majority of H/L Ventures studio-backed companies feature diverse founding teams, all of the CityRock funds portfolio companies have underrepresented founding CEOs, and 92% of every dollar invested by H/L Ventures has gone to underrepresented founders. In addition, every one of H/L Ventures more than thirty portfolio companies has both a strong case for economic performance and also a mission to protect and promote people and the planet.

H/L Ventures has received certain rankings by third parties as reflected herein. Interested readers should contact H/L Ventures to review the criteria for each ranking. In addition, the rankings reflect past performance of H/L Ventures and may not reflect the current performance or status of the firm and may no longer be applicable. Contact H/L Ventures for more information on how the rankings are determined and for full disclosures regarding third party rankings.

# # #

Media Contact

Cristina Dunning-Pena

Sparkpr

hlventures@sparkpr.com

503-507-4758
E-commerce has seen steady growth in the past, which was only boosted further by the ongoing pandemic. Keeping up with the ever-changing landscape of heavily diversified and equally saturated online markets presents a massive challenge. It's no secret that product prices constantly change even without any special discounts and deals.

Efficient price monitoring has become a crucial element of success for any company. Price intelligence offers valuable real-time market insights and helps optimize pricing strategy. These insights are essential for creating an effective business development strategy, increasing sales, and staying on top of the newest market trends.

Here are five ways businesses can perform price monitoring, keep an eye on their competition, and ensure more efficient brand growth.

1. Develop a Price Monitoring Strategy

Every retailer knows that consumers tend to search for the lowest prices. With so many price monitoring apps, websites, and browser extensions, keeping an eye on price fluctuation, discounts, and special deals has become easier than ever. However, most businesses just don't know how to respond to this tendency.

The worst thing a company can do is make pricing decisions without knowing what the competition is charging for similar products. A robust price monitoring strategy offers timely insight into the market, which allows making changes at the right time. That way, a business can stay ahead of the competition and secure higher revenues and a more significant market share.

2. Identify the Competition

The competition for any enterprise varies depending on the industry and the channels used to sell products. Determining how prices change across each channel is crucial. Online prices often change a lot faster than they do in brick-and-mortar stores. Knowing what's going on with the competition will allow a business to determine how often prices need to change to remain competitive.

Not all competition is equal, of course. Prioritizing competitors by importance and their influence on the market helps figure out which price changes to follow. Closely monitoring the most popular competition allows businesses to make sure their pricing changes are based on the action of competing retailers that matter the most.

3. Use Price Monitoring Tools

After identifying the competitors, it's time to start gathering pricing intelligence. Doing it manually takes time and resources, but companies can utilize different tools designed to automate the process. Different software solutions can monitor prices across various channels by product UPNs, brand, or category.

While these tools are great, they usually come with certain limitations. Some are focused on specific e-commerce platforms, a particular market, or a region. While they do provide useful intelligence, they often can't show the whole picture. This usually leaves businesses without a complete overview of the current trends and prevents them from developing a comprehensive pricing strategy.

4. Use Proxy Services

For a company to grow and dominate the modern market, it needs an upper hand over all the competition. Unlike price monitoring tools, a proxy service ensures a comprehensive, secure, and customizable solution for price tracking without any restrictions and requiring minimal maintenance. Most importantly, they can gather accurate data from all over the world.

"More and more businesses are recognizing the value of gathering pricing data from different platforms worldwide. Our clients can select the data scraping sources, the information they need, and the frequency at which the data is collected. They can change the scale of scraping depending on their needs, and rest assure the data they get is accurate and up-to-date," said Karolis Toleikis, CEO of IPRoyal.

5. Analyze the Data

Once they get the relevant data, businesses can structure and analyze it. This helps understanding how often the competition changes their prices, why they change it, and why they believe a specific price is suitable for their product. This data can be extrapolated and converted into a market price index to determine a company's price position.

With this valuable information, a business can quickly determine any discrepancies in pricing. This allows for confident price adjustments, which help protect the brand, ensure more effective market penetration. In turn, these adjustments will secure more sales, increase margins, and enable any company to get ahead of the competition.

The modern consumer is informed and savvy, with multiple options that allow tracking the lowest price of any product or service. If a business doesn't stay competitive, the customers simply choose to spend their money somewhere else. With price tracking and marketing insight, businesses can ensure a valuable advantage that guarantees a firm position in the competitive landscape.
Chaos reigns during Lynns Mexico vacation, and she now makes it her responsibility to rescue some skinny, sad pups from their lives on the street in Carolynn Tucciarones new book Spot On: Chaos at the Dog Rescue (published by Archway Publishing).

This time, they go to Mexico, where a mystery causes chaos at the dog rescue. A scandal evolves. Meanwhile, Lynn is on vacation, hoping to swim and water ski. Instead, she is confronted with unexpected intrigue.

Lynn is once again on the case as she rescues some skinny and dehydrated dogs from Mexico. She plans to save them, and she wont be stopped in her heartfelt mission.

Tucciarone hopes her fun read with a little mystery educates readers on dog rescues in foreign lands. Rescues in the USA can be your choice.

Spot On is available for purchase online from Archway, Barnes & Noble and on Amazon at: https://www.amazon.com/Spot-Chaos-at-Dog-Rescue/dp/1665706015.

Spot On

By Carolynn Tucciarone

Hardcover | 6 x 9 in | 112 pages | ISBN 9781665706025

Softcover | 6 x 9 in | 112 pages | ISBN 9781665706018

E-Book | 112 pages | ISBN 9781665706001

Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

About the Author

Carolynn Tucciarone is an avid reader. Dog rescue is her passion. She lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband, Joe Tucciarone, and their bull terrier Spot. Learn more at http://www.carolynntucciarone.com. Spot On: Chaos at the Dog Rescue is part of her book series that includes Spot On - Mystery at the Dog Rescue, Spot On - Canine Babies at the Dog Rescue, Spot On - Canines on a Cruise and Working On Spot On - K9 at the Dog Rescue.

Simon & Schuster, a company with nearly ninety years of publishing experience, has teamed up with Author Solutions, LLC, the worldwide leader in self-publishing, to create Archway Publishing. With unique resources to support books of all kind, Archway Publishing offers a specialized approach to help every author reach his or her desired audience. For more information, visit archwaypublishing.com or call 844-669-3957.
Intouch Insight Smiling Report Continuing to measure and set benchmarks for world-class customer experience is critical for businesses, maybe more now than ever, as the battle for customer loyalty wages on, says Andree-Anne Chailler, VP of Operations at Intouch Insight.

In a year where service standards took a back-seat to the health and safety of customers and employees, businesses had no choice but to find new ways of engaging and building personal connection with those they serve. Through it all, Canadian businesses continued to perform exceedingly well on the international stage. For a second year in a row, Canada comes in on top, tied for first place in the Smile category, one of three areas of focus in the annual study comparing customer service standards across 25 different countries.

Intouch Insight, a leading Canadian mystery shopping and Customer Experience Management software company, contributed its North American data for this years edition of the Smiling Report. Despite everything that has happened this year, we were committed to ensuring Canada was represented in the 2021 study, says Andree-Anne Chailler, VP of Operations at Intouch Insight. Continuing to measure and set benchmarks for world-class customer experience is critical for businesses, maybe more now than ever, as the battle for customer loyalty wages on.

Key findings of the study:



Smiling: Russian Federation, Canada (96%), Lithuania, Latvia (95 %) and Czech Republic (93%) had the highest Smiling scores, followed by Poland with 92%.

Greeting: Russian Federation and Hungary attained the highest score with 95% Greeting, followed by Czech Republic with 94%, while North America was the best performing continent overall, with 87%.

Add-on Sales: Russian Federation scored 73%, Denmark 73%, followed by Puerto Rico 70 % and Spain with 69 % and Hungary with 65%. Canada took 3rd place for most improved in this category, with scores up 15% to 52%.

About the study

In collaboration with its participating global company partners, the MSPA Europe/Africa has released the 2021 Smiling Report in cooperation with Better Business World Wide, the 17th year the report has been published. The report analyzes customer service data from evaluations conducted across a whole spectrum of industries. All information is gathered by mystery shoppers from professional mystery shopping companies that are members of MSPA, the trade organization for mystery shopping professionals. The 2021 report provides a summary of over 500,000 reports from 25 countries during 2020.

About Intouch Insight

Intouch Insight (TSXV: INX) (OTCQX: INXSF) offers a complete portfolio of customer experience management (CEM) products and services that help global brands delight their customers, strengthen brand reputation and improve financial performance. Through its flagship SaaS product, LiaCX, Intouch helps clients collect and centralize data from multiple customer touch points, gives them actionable, real-time insights, and provides them with the tools to continuously improve customer experience. Founded in 1992, Intouch is trusted by over 300 of North Americas most-loved brands for their customer experience management, customer survey, mystery shopping, mobile forms, operational and compliance audits, and event marketing automation solutions. For more information, visit intouchinsight.com.

For further information, please contact:

Sarah Beckett

Director of Marketing

sbeckett@intouchinsight.com

613-270-7922
KiwiTech, LLC, a leading ecosystem that helps startups build viable products, drive traction and raise capital, signed a memorandum of understanding with Startup Research, a leading South Korea-based startup accelerator.

As part of this partnership, KiwiTech will work in tandem with Startup Research to facilitate global growth opportunities for emerging South Korean startups by supporting them on their digital transformation journey. KiwiTech will also provide Startup Researchs startup partners access to its network of investors, mentors, and industry experts to guide them on their plans to venture outside Korea.

"We are thrilled to join forces with Startup Research. The passion that we share for encouraging disruptive solutions will greatly benefit the South Korean startups and provide them access to a wider range of opportunities on the global spectrum," said Rakesh Gupta, CEO and Founder of KiwiTech. "We look forward to sharing our extensive tech and entrepreneurial expertise with Startup Researchs partner startups and cohorts to help their ecosystem reach new horizons."

"Collaboration is key for every startup ecosystem to become stronger while planning expansion. Im honored to partner with Startup Research and looking forward to this collaboration," said Mohsin Syed, EVP and Chief Startup Officer at KiwiTech. "Were proud to join an elite list of partners of Startup Research. We are certain that we will significantly contribute to their mission of providing global expansion opportunities to Korean startups all the while focusing on innovation and entrepreneurs."

Were very excited to have teamed up with such a strong pool of industry experts at KiwiTech and would like to thank Rakesh Gupta for making this happen. We believe its critical that Korean startups look beyond the domestic market and tap into a wider network of financial and business partners on a global scale. A partnership like this will ensure a head-start for local startups that aim to have their technologies/solutions validated in the global downstream market, said Kevin Lee, CEO of Startup Research.

KiwiTech and Startup Research also plan to organize an investor event focused on the South Korean market in the near future.

About Startup Research

Startup Research provides turn-key support for South Korean startups and promising SMEs expanding overseas. Unlike existing acceleration programs, they seek practical results through collaboration with industry experts at home and abroad. Their goal is to become a stepping stone for the overseas expansion and fundraising activities of startups. For further information, visit: http://startupresearch.co.kr/eng/

About KiwiTech

Headquartered in New York, KiwiTech is a growing ecosystem of entrepreneurs, investors, and mentors. The company helps early and growth-stage startups build viable products, drive traction, raise capital, and scale their businesses. KiwiTech is currently home to 2,000+ transatlantic investors and 400+ portfolio companies across 15+ industries undergoing disruption. The company takes pride in its 450+ strong team that has breadth and depth of experience in emerging and existing technologies. Its clientele comprises Fortune 1000 companies and many more that are on their way to becoming unicorns. For further information, visit: https://www.kiwitech.com/
Law Office of Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP For more information about the lawsuit against Prime Hospitality Services, LLC, call (800) 568-8020 to speak to an experienced California employment attorney today.

The Los Angeles employment law attorneys, at Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP, filed a lawsuit against Prime Hospitality Services, LLC, alleging the company violated the California Labor Code. The lawsuit against Prime Hospitality Services, LLC, is currently pending in the Kern County Superior Court, Case No. BCV-21-101048. To read a copy of the Complaint, please click here.

According to the lawsuit filed, Prime Hospitality Services, LLC allegedly (a) failed to pay minimum wages, (b) failed to pay overtime wages, (c) failed to provide legally required meal and rest periods, (d) failed to provide accurate itemized wage statements, (e) failed to reimburse employees for required expenses, and (f) failed to provide wages when due, all in violation of the applicable Labor Code sections listed in Labor Code Sections  201, 202, 203, 226, 226.7, 512, 1194, 1197, 1197.1, 2802, and the applicable Wage Order(s), and thereby gives rise to civil penalties as a result of such alleged conduct.

The complaint further alleges Prime Hospitality Services, LLC 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 allegedly failed to accurately calculate and record all missed meal and rest periods by PLAINTIFF and other CALIFORNIA CLASS Members. As a result of DEFENDANTs alleged 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 allegedly violated the California Labor Code.

For more information about the lawsuit against Prime Hospitality Services, 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.

***THIS IS AN ATTORNEY ADVERTISEMENT***
Mainsail Partners, a growth equity firm that invests in fast-growing bootstrapped software companies, announced today that it will open a second office in Austin, Texas in September 2021. The firm has been based in San Francisco since it was founded nearly 20 years ago. The move to open an office in Austin reflects Mainsails conviction in the strength of the software ecosystem in Texas.

Since Mainsail was founded, our team has been investing across the United States and has found Texas to be home to a uniquely vibrant community of founder-led software companies, said Gavin Turner, Mainsails co-founder and Managing Partner. Our commitment to Texas has been there for a long time. This new office will put us front and center with this community, providing our team with what we believe will be even greater opportunities to build relationships early and often with growing software companies.

Since 2003, Mainsail Partners has raised more than $1.3 billion of committed capital and invested in more than 50 bootstrapped companies throughout the United States. The firm targets investments in software companies that are growing quickly, have recurring annual revenue of $5 million or greater, and have developed robust products in compelling markets. Mainsail has invested in three Texas-based companies, including two out of the last nine software investments the firm has made: PestRoutes in McKinney, TX and ResMan in Plano, TX. The Austin office is expected to also provide easier access to other markets throughout the South, where Mainsail has partnered with software company founders.

This move supports our model of collaborating closely with the management teams of our portfolio companies, said Mainsails Operating Partner and CFO, Bill Salisbury. The Austin office will make it more convenient to engage directly and in-person with our partners as we strive to drive value creation. Salisbury added, Additionally, we expect this office location to give our team access to a broader pool of talent to continue building out our Operations and Investment Teams.

Turner and Salisbury have already relocated to Austin and will be joined by about a dozen other employees who are in the process of making the move. The Austin office will be located at 500 W 5th Street.

About Mainsail Partners

Mainsail Partners is a growth equity firm with offices in San Francisco and Austin that invests exclusively in fast-growing, bootstrapped software companies. The firm has raised over $1.3 billion and invested in more than 50 growing companies since 2003. Mainsail prioritizes investments in B2B software companies with compelling business models in growing markets. The firms approach to driving value creation is anchored in a dedicated Operations Team that is purpose-built to help founders scale their businesses and accelerate growth. These women and men include former software company operators who leverage real-world experience, well-established best practices, and a true partnership ethos to support management teams. For more information, visit mainsailpartners.com or follow the firm on LinkedIn.
NFP, a leading insurance broker and consultant that provides property and casualty (P&C), corporate benefits, retirement, and individual solutions today announced the acquisition of Pinetree Capital LLC dba Emphasis Benefits. This acquisition of an experienced group benefits team will further advance NFPs capabilities and product offerings in Florida.

Emphasis Benefits is an employee benefits broker located in Coral Springs, Florida. Founded in 2008, they bring expertise to middle market clients with tailored holistic benefit solutions. The Emphasis team engages with clients to design plans and programs that enhance their clients business operations, complement retention efforts with meaningful benefit offerings, and simplify even the most complex aspects of benefits administration.

In addition to expanding NFPs footprint in Florida, Emphasis Benefits will work closely with NFP leadership, particularly in the Northeast region, to enhance NFPs ability to serve employers that have migrated to or established a presence in Florida. Firm principal Todd Brown will join NFP as a senior vice president and report to William Austin, president of NFPs Northeast region.

NFP is committed to growing our Florida operation, organically and through strategic acquisitions, and Emphasis Benefits is important to our efforts, said Austin. The Emphasis Benefits team, including Todds market knowledge and leadership, strengthens our foundation and will help us expand the holistic solutions across benefits, property and casualty, and retirement.

Joining NFP allows us to bring even more value to our clients, said Brown. Were proud of how we help customers protect their businesses and assets by focusing on people, which aligns well with NFPs culture and values. There are exciting things to come as we access NFPs resources, collaborate with members of the NFP community and continue helping clients overcome their challenges in this dynamic environment.

About NFP

NFP is a leading insurance broker and consultant providing specialized property and casualty, corporate benefits, retirement, and individual solutions through its licensed subsidiaries and affiliates. NFP enables client success through the expertise of over 6,000 global employees, investments in innovative technologies, and enduring relationships with highly rated insurers, vendors, and financial institutions. NFP is the 5th largest benefits broker by global revenue, 5th best place to work in insurance and 6th largest US-based privately owned broker (Business Insurance); 9th largest commercial lines agency by P&C commercial lines revenue and 10th largest property and casualty agency (Insurance Journal); and 12th largest global insurance broker (Bests Review).

Visit NFP.com to discover how NFP empowers clients to meet their goals.
OperaWine 2021 10th edition - Group photo Being here after a year means seeing happy faces again. This wonderful industry needs human relationships. Wine is even better if you can share it.

This gala event welcomed journalists, sommeliers, and international wine professionals to celebrate and highlight the diversity and quality of Italian wines. Wine Spectators selection confirmed itself as a true ambassador of Made in Italy products, promoting the best Italian wines to international buyers and experts in the wine industry.

The 10th edition saw the special invitation of selected producers from the past ten editions, resulting in a total of 186 Italian wine producers representing the best wines in the Italian peninsula. We were especially proud this year as we were able to have OperaWine back in-person. Physically seeing all our guests, going through tastings together and talk about all things wine was a beautiful experience. From the feedback collected during the event, the producers had this same shared feeling, summarized by the words of Federica Mascheroni Stianti from Castello di Volpaia: Being at OperaWine 2021, for this extraordinary and special edition, symbolizes a restart as it is the first event we have attended for a long time. It seems we can now return to an almost normal life, even if we are wearing a mask. Being here after a year said Andrea Orsini Scataglini, Head of Communication at Frescobaldi, means seeing happy faces again. This wonderful industry needs human relationships. Wine is even better if you can share it.

One of our top priorities during the event was the safety and health of our guests, which we took seriously. Thanks to our new location, the Gallerie Mercatali of Verona, we were able to avoid overcrowding and ensure the respect of social distancing throughout the whole event.

OperaWines experiential journey was also a success. A specific path guided our guests through regions, new oenological frontiers, and grape varieties, representing the finest wines Italy has to offer. Once inside the venue, explains managing Director of OperaWine Stevie Kim, our guests had to follow a specific path through an experiential journey exploring regions, grape varieties, and the finest wines represented by 186 producers. This guided course both allowed guests to taste safely, but also provided a narrative guide through the selected wines, thus a regulation becomes an innovation!

The event started with a ribbon cutting ceremony at 2:15 pm, but our producers and sponsors were on site earlier to be interviewed, set their booths, and enjoy a light lunch offered by pizza Chef Renato Bosco from Sapore in Verona, who created different types of pizzas perfectly paired with the wines.

Our sponsors and partners played an important role during the event. From our main sponsor, Unicredit to Enartis, from Grana Padano to Grissin Bon, from San Felice Acqua di Toscana to Frantoio Bonamini, and from Terra e Cuore to Forno Bonomi who provided support, and savory and sweet treats during the event. A complimentary glass from Rastal, with a special engraving of the OperaWine logo, was also offered.

The OperaWine staff remains fully at disposal for any additional enquiry and can be contacted at: operawine@justdothework.it

About Vinitaly:

The 54th edition of Vinitaly has been postponed to April, 10-13 2022. Every year, Vinitaly counts more than 4,000 exhibitors on a 100,000+ square meter area and 130,000 visitors from over 140 different countries with more than 30,000 top international buyers. The premier event to Vinitaly, OperaWine Finest Italian Wines: 100 Great Producers selected by Wine Spectator which in 2021 will be held on June 19, will unite international wine professionals in the heart of Verona, offering them the unique opportunity to discover and taste the wines of the 100 Best Italian Producers, as selected by Wine Spectator. Since 1998 Vinitaly travels to several countries such as Russia, China, USA and Hong Kong thanks to its strategic arm abroad, Vinitaly International. In February 2014 Vinitaly International launched an educational project, the Vinitaly International Academy (VIA) with the aim of divulging and broadcasting the excellence and diversity of Italian wine around the globe. Today VIA counts 215 Italian Wine Ambassadors and 15 Italian Wine Experts.

About Wine Spectator:

Wine Spectator is the worlds leading authority on wine. Anchored by Wine Spectator magazine, a print publication that reaches around 3 million readers worldwide, the brand also encompasses the Webs most comprehensive wine site (WineSpectator.com), mobile platforms and a series of signature events. Wine Spectator examines the world of wine from the vineyard to the table, exploring wines role in contemporary culture and delivering expert reviews of more than 15,000 wines each year. Parent company M. Shanken Communications, Inc., also publishes Cigar Aficionado, Whisky Advocate, Market Watch, Shanken News Daily and Shankens Impact Newsletter.
P2 Science Inc., a green chemistry company, announced that Professor Alan Aspuru-Guzik has joined the companys scientific advisory board (SAB).

Aspuru-Guzik is is a professor of Chemistry and Computer Science at the University of Toronto and is also the Canada 150 Research Chair in Theoretical Chemistry and a Canada CIFAR AI Chair at the Vector Institute. He is a CIFAR Lebovic Fellow in the Biologically Inspired Solar Energy program. Aspuru-Guzik also holds a Google Industrial Research Chair in Quantum Computing. He is the director of the Acceleration Consortium, a University of Toronto-based strategic initiative that aims to gather researchers from industry, government and academia around pre-competitive research topics related to the lab of the future. In addition to these roles, Professor Aspuru-Guzik is editor-in-chief of the journal Digital Discovery and co-founder of both Zapata Computing and Kebotix.

Alan's cutting-edge expertise in artificial intelligence, machine learning and quantum chemistry is sure to inspire us in areas that we have barely explored but which have enormous potential for our green chemistry platforms," said P2 CEO, Neil Burns. He is a leading thinker in many areas of chemistry and we are happy to have him as part of our team."

P2 Science is an exciting company that produces functional chemicals for a variety of applications," said professor Aspuru-Guzik. I am very interested in the intersection of this unique platform and data science approaches. I am looking forward to the exciting SAB discussions that will ensue.

At the University of Toronto, Aspuru-Guzik conducts research in the interfaces of quantum information, chemistry, machine learning and chemistry. He was a pioneer in the development of algorithms and experimental implementations of quantum computers and quantum simulators dedicated to chemical systems. He has studied the role of quantum coherence in the transfer of excitonic energy in photosynthetic complexes and has accelerated the discovery by calculating organic semiconductors, organic photovoltaic energy, organic batteries and organic light-emitting diodes. He has worked on molecular representations and generative models for the automatic learning of molecular properties. Currently, Professor Aspurs-Guzik is interested in automation and autonomous chemical laboratories for accelerating scientific discovery.

About P2 Science:

P2 Science is a green chemistry company, co-founded by Professor Paul Anastas, head of the Yale Center for Green Chemistry and Green Engineering and Dr. Patrick Foley. P2 has developed and patented technologies for converting renewable feedstocks into high-value specialty products. Investors in P2 include BASF Venture Capital, Xeraya Capital, Elm Street Ventures, Connecticut Innovations, Ironwood Capital, HG Ventures and Chanel. The company started up its first manufacturing plant in September of 2018 which produces novel renewable aroma chemicals and cosmetic ingredients. For more information, visit http://www.p2science.com.
Pacifico Aquaculture (Pacifico), a leader in sustainable aquaculture and the worlds first and only producer of ocean-raised striped bass, today announced that veteran aquaculture executive Per-Roar Gjerde will be joining the company as CEO, effective June 22, 2021. Mr. Gjerde brings an extensive background in the seafood industry, most recently serving in several senior executive positions at Mowi, one of the largest seafood companies in the world and the worlds largest producer of Atlantic salmon. He joins Pacifico Aquaculture at a watershed moment for the company that just received Fair Trade certification, the first fish farm in the Americas to achieve this distinction.

Prior to joining Pacifico, Mr. Gjerde spent nearly 20 years at Mowi, most recently serving as COO of Farming Americas and Faroes, where he oversaw all aspects of salmon farming in Mowis Chile, Canada West, Canada East and Faroe Island regions. Mr. Gjerde also held other leadership roles at the organization including COO of Farming Global, managing director of Mowi Chile and regional director of Mowi Norway Region West.

I am thrilled about the opportunity to join Pacifico as CEO during this exciting and dynamic moment. The brand has a stellar and proven track record of meaningful progress in sustainable aquaculture, and I am honored to help shepherd it through this next phase and build on the momentum established by current Co-CEOs Omar Alfi and Daniel Farag, said Mr. Gjerde.

Alfi and Farag will maintain their board roles at the company and will remain actively involved with the business. We are extremely excited to welcome Per-Roar to the team at Pacifico. He shares our vision of building a world class aquaculture business rooted in sustainable values and his deep operational experience will accelerate the continued growth of our incredible team here in Ensenada and across the US, the Co-CEOs said.

Dustin Beck, Co-Founder of Butterfly Equity which holds a majority interest in Pacifico, added: The appointment of Per-Roar Gjerde as CEO is a critical next step in fortifying Pacificos role as North Americas leading aquaculture platform. Mr. Gjerdes remarkable expertise in all aspects of scaling fish farming businesses will help us achieve unlimited growth opportunities.

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About Pacifico Aquaculture and Pacifico Striped Bass

Pacifico Aquaculture is the worlds first and only producer of ocean-raised striped bass, known as Pacifico Striped Bass. Committed to continuous improvement in aquaculture practices, Pacifico Aquaculture works in concert with some of the worlds leading thinkers to sustain people, fish and the planet. Pacifico Striped Bass has earned a spot on the menus of numerous Michelin star restaurants across the U.S. and Mexico. Pacifico Striped Bass is available from coast to coast via retailers and restaurants and direct-to-retail partnerships. The company is Fair Trade certified, the first fish farm in the Americas to achieve this and has been named Supplier of the Year from Whole Foods. 2021 saw the launch of a frozen retail program along with increased distribution to over 1,300 doors. For more information about Pacifico Aquaculture, please visit http://www.pacificoaquaculture.com

About Butterfly

Butterfly Equity ("Butterfly") is a Los Angeles, California-based private equity firm specializing in the food sector, spanning the entire food value chain from "seed to fork" via four target verticals: agriculture & aquaculture, food & beverage products, food distribution and foodservice. Butterfly aims to generate attractive investment returns through deep industry specialization, a unique approach to sourcing transactions, and leveraging an operations-focused and technology-driven approach to value creation. For additional information about Butterfly, please visit its website at http://www.butterflyequity.com.

For more information about Pacifico Aquaculture, please contact Vanessa Vega of Baltz & Company at vvega@baltzco.com
Pritzker Military Museum & Library is proud to announce that professor of international history and award-winning author, Margaret MacMillan, is the 15th recipient of the Pritzker Military Museum & Library Literature Award for Lifetime Achievement in Military Writing. The award will be presented when MacMillan is honored at the 2021 Liberty Gala. The annual event will be held on October 21 and is the non-profits main fundraiser each year.

The Pritzker Lifetime Literature Award  which includes a gold medallion, citation, and $100,000 honorarium stands to honor and recognize the contributions of a living author for a body of work dedicated to enriching the understanding of military history and the history of war. Author or co-author of 15 publications, MacMillan has been recognized nationally and internationally for her work regarding the international and military history of the 19th and 20th centuries.

It is an honor to accept the 2021 Pritzker Military Museum & Library Literature Award for Lifetime Achievement in Military Writing, said MacMillan. It is a pleasure to be in such company as the previous winners and to be the first woman to receive such a prestigious award. I look forward to seeing the study of war and of military history continue to expand and grow.

Margaret MacMillan is a Canadian historian who was educated at University of Toronto and Oxford University. She is a Professor of History at the University of Toronto and emeritus Professor of International History at the University of Oxford. Her work has been translated into 29 languages and honored with numerous awards. Her extensive bibliography showcases her commitment to the scholarly advancements in her area of expertise. She is the first woman to win the Samuel Johnson Prize, the British honor for best non-fiction writing in the English language, for her 2001 work, Peacemakers: the Paris Conference of 1919 and Its Attempt to End War (published in 2002 in North America as Paris 1919: Six Months that Changed the World). Her other works include Women of the Raj, Nixon and Mao: The Week that Changed the World, Dangerous Games: The Uses and Abuses of History, The War that Ended Peace: the Road to 1914, and her most recent, War: How Conflict Shaped Us.

It is a privilege to recognize Margaret MacMillan as the 15th recipient of the Pritzker Military Museum & Library Literature Award for Lifetime Achievement in Military Writing, stated Susan Rifkin, Chief Operating Officer of Philanthropic Activities. Her work furthers societys understanding of war and conflict, allowing us to look back at lessons of the past to better understand the conflicts of today. The screening committee, as well as Colonel Pritzker and I, are pleased to shine a spotlight on her many contributions to the study of military history with this honor.

Now in its fifteenth year, the Pritzker Lifetime Literature Award was first presented to historian James McPherson in 2007. Past recipients include Dennis Showalter, Peter Paret, Sir Hew Strachan, David Hackett Fischer, Sir Antony Beevor, Tim OBrien, Dr. John Morrow, Jr, and 2020s recipient Col. David Glantz. Many of the past honorees also served on the selection committee.

The 2021 Liberty Gala, to be held on October 21 at 6 p.m., will celebrate the work of the Pritzker Military Museum & Library, and honor the service and stories of the U.S. Armed Forces citizen soldiers, past and present. This year, the hybrid event will be hosted at the Museum & Library and feature in-person, virtual, and video segments.

For more information on the Liberty Gala, the Pritzker Lifetime Literature Award, or to make a donation to the Museum & Library, visit the website at PritzkerMilitary.org.

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ABOUT THE PRITZKER MILITARY MUSEUM & LIBRARY

The Pritzker Military Museum & Library aims to increase the publics understanding of military history, military affairs and national security by providing a forum for the study and exploration of our military - past, present, and future - with a specific focus on their stories, sacrifices, and values. With national and global reach, these spaces and events aim to share the stories of those who served and their contributions as citizen soldiers, helping citizens everywhere appreciate the relationship between the armed forces and the civilians whose freedoms they protect. A non-governmental, non-partisan organization, the Museum & Library features diverse collections, scholarly initiatives, and public programs from its flagship center in downtown Chicago to its world-class research center and park currently under construction in Somers, Wisconsin.


AIRI from Pure Storage offers new, modern breakthrough technologies that help enterprises tap the power of AI for faster innovation and a competitive edge"

AI Breakthrough, a leading market intelligence organization that recognizes the top companies, technologies and products in the global Artificial Intelligence (AI) market, today announced that Pure Storage (NYSE: PSTG), the IT pioneer that delivers storage as-a-service in a multi-cloud world, has been selected as winner of the Best AI Solution for Big Data award in the fourth annual AI Breakthrough Awards program for its AIRI infrastructure solution.

Architected by Pure Storage and NVIDIA, AIRI is the industrys first complete AI-ready infrastructure. Powered by Pures unified fast file and object (UFFO) storage platform FlashBlade, AIRI offers organizations a simple and flexible infrastructure to meet AI demands for any AI initiative, at any scale. AIRI flexibly adapts to business demand as AI models move from prototyping to deployment, with one universal AI system that offers right-sized resources for every workload, and consolidates silos into a single elastic AI infrastructure.

The NVIDIA DGX A100 systems and FlashBlade platform within AIRI replace the performance of racks of legacy technology, offering data scientists the power of a large supercomputer for any AI initiative. AIRI offers graphics processing units (GPUs), scale-out flash and remote direct memory access (RDMA) fabric that move large data loads.

Traditional approaches to AI infrastructure often result in silos of servers and storage that are either over-spent on capacity or starve AI workloads. The complexities of legacy solutions are holding enterprises back from moving into the new era of AI, said Amy Fowler, VP of Strategy and Solutions for FlashBlade at Pure Storage. AIRI offers a modern platform suited to the unique demands of analytics, training and inference. We are incredibly proud to receive this 2021 AI Breakthrough Award in recognition of our innovative approach as we drive to make AI-first infrastructure a reality.

The mission of the AI Breakthrough Awards is to honor excellence and recognize the innovation, hard work and success in a range of AI and machine learning related categories, including AI platforms, Deep Learning, Smart Robotics, Business Intelligence, Natural Language Processing, industry specific AI applications and many more. This years program attracted more than 2,850 nominations from over 17 different countries throughout the world.

The unfortunate reality of too many of todays AI initiatives is that they are stalled by the complexity and rigidity of legacy technology, as well as the intricacies of a do-it-yourself approach. AI requires a completely new infrastructure to truly facilitate faster innovation and obtain actionable, modern analytics, said James Johnson, managing director, AI Breakthrough. AIRI from Pure Storage offers new, modern breakthrough technologies that help enterprises tap the power of AI for faster innovation and a competitive edge. Congratulations to Pure Storage and the AIRI team being our clear choice for Best AI Solution for Big Data in this new era of data intelligence.

AIRI is built with a complete software stack enabling data scientists to get up and running in a few hours, not weeks or months and keep their focus on algorithms, not infrastructure.

To learn more about AIRI, visit https://www.purestorage.com/products/ai-infrastructure/airi.html

About AI Breakthrough

Part of Tech Breakthrough, a leading market intelligence and recognition platform for global technology innovation and leadership, the AI Breakthrough Awards program is devoted to honoring excellence in Artificial Intelligence technologies, services, companies and products. The AI Breakthrough Awards provide public recognition for the achievements of AI companies and products in categories including AI Platforms, Robotics, Business Intelligence, AI Hardware, NLP, Vision, Biometrics and more. For more information visit AIBreakthroughAwards.com.

About Pure Storage

Pure Storage (NYSE: PSTG) gives technologists their time back. Pure delivers a modern data experience that empowers organizations to run their operations as a true, automated, storage as-a-service model seamlessly across multiple clouds. One of the fastest-growing enterprise IT companies in history, Pure helps customers put data to use while reducing the complexity and expense of managing the infrastructure behind it. And with a certified customer satisfaction score in the top one percent of B2B companies, Pure's ever-expanding list of customers are among the happiest in the world.
"AcceleRISE will give each participant the opportunity to interact with one another while adding gamification and competition to the mix. It is an experience you and your team will not want to miss.  Katie Greatti, conference manager for AcceleRISE

The Security Industry Association (SIA) has announced the 2021 agenda and speaker lineup for AcceleRISE: The Challenge, an essential experience hosted by SIAs RISE community for young professionals in the security industry. The 2021 AcceleRISE event  taking place virtually Aug. 23-25  will challenge tomorrows security leaders to test their limits, escape their comfort zones and grow their industry expertise.

AcceleRISE is a unique learning experience for up-and-coming security professionals to learn and network together, said Dr. Elli Voorhees, director of learning and development at SIA. The conference program covers key security technologies and business topics along with essential soft skills that support professional growth for high performers looking to stay at the forefront of the security industry and advance their careers.

AcceleRISE was created for rising stars in the security industry and is different from a standard conference. The 2021 event will put young professionals preconceptions, boundaries and industry know-how to the test and teach them how to maximize their leadership potential.

Session topics for AcceleRISE 2021 will include:



Are We Living in the Future? A Conversation Around IoT

A Year Later, a Pandemic and Much, Much More  An Update to I Owe It to Her: How My Partner Helped (and Continues to Help) Me Achieve My Career Success

Generational Work Styles: Building Trust & Effective Communication

Privacy Regulations: What Does the Rising Security Professional Need to Know?

Securing Values: Choosing Your Path to Profession & Partnerships

Smooth Operator: How End Users Feel About Typical Sales Tactics and How to Innovate Your Sales Approach

The Art of Hiring & Firing

The Value of Coopetition Within an Ecosystem

Attendees will have the chance to make valuable connections with other young industry professionals and enjoy fun virtual happy hours, trivia and more. As part of 2021s The Challenge theme, attendees will also be able to compete for points and prizes and track their progress on the AcceleRISE leaderboard throughout the experience.

View the full agenda here.

AcceleRISE is all about building a community of industry young professionals and allowing relationships to be created in an exciting platform, said Katie Greatti, SIA staff liaison for SIA RISE and conference manager for AcceleRISE. Utilizing the virtual environment, AcceleRISE will give each participant the opportunity to interact with one another while adding gamification and competition to the mix. It is an experience you and your team will not want to miss.

Speakers for the virtual event include:

Diana Brucha, enterprise account executive, Allied Universal

Kelsey Carnell, regional sales manager, Axis Communications

Danny Chung, global director of consulting and design, Northland Controls

Colin DePree, sales strategy, Salto Systems

Kami Dukes, director of business development, North America, AMAG Technology

Scott Dunn, senior director, business development solutions and services, Axis Communications

Marc Facca, distribution sales consultant, Allegion

Robert Gaulden, director of multifamily strategy, Allegion

Adam Groom, vice president of sales, Northland Controls

Kim Hooper, regional loss prevention manager, Amazon

Antoinette King, founder, Credo Cyber Consulting LLC

Brendan McFall, technical engineering manager, Northland Controls

Zack Morris, director, commercial career programs, ADT Commercial

Jennifer Odess, vice president, global partner enablement, ServiceNow

Lee Odess, founder and CEO, Group337

View the full list of speakers here.

AcceleRISE 2021 is supported by Premier Sponsor Group337; Full Conference Sponsors ADT, Allegion, Axis Communications, BCD International, Northland Controls and Salto; and Event Sponsors AMAG Technology, Brivo, Cam-Dex Security Corporation, ISC Security Events and WeSuite.

SIA RISE is a community that fosters the careers of young professionals in the security industry. In addition to hosting AcceleRISE, the SIA RISE community offers fun in-person and virtual networking events, mentorship opportunities through the Talent Inclusion Mentorship Education (TIME) program, career growth webinars and e-learning, scholarships for use toward education and professional development and career tracks at top trade shows. RISE membership is available to all employees at SIA member companies who are young professionals under 40 or have been in the security industry for less than two years. Learn more about SIA RISE and sign up to join.

Pricing for AcceleRISE 2021 starts at just $199 for SIA members and only $49 for student members. Group packages are also available, which allow companies to purchase three tickets for their employees to use and get a fourth free. Learn more about AcceleRISE and register to attend.

About SIA

SIA is the leading trade association for global security solution providers, with over 1,100 innovative member companies representing thousands of security leaders and experts who shape the future of the security industry. SIA protects and advances its members interests by advocating pro-industry policies and legislation at the federal and state levels, creating open industry standards that enable integration, advancing industry professionalism through learning and development, opening global market opportunities and collaborating with other like-minded organizations. As the premier sponsor of ISC Events expos and conferences, SIA ensures its members have access to top-level buyers and influencers, as well as unparalleled learning and network opportunities. SIA also enhances the position of its members in the security marketplace through SIA GovSummit, which brings together private industry with government decision makers, and Securing New Ground, the security industrys top executive conference for peer-to-peer networking.
Starfrost and Star Women employees supporting INWED

Starfrost are proud to support International Women in Engineering Day and celebrate the outstanding achievements of women engineers.

Wednesday 23rd June marks 2021's International Women in Engineering Day (INWED), a global awareness campaign, coordinated by Womens Engineering Society (WES), which aims to increase the profile of women in engineering worldwide and focus attention on the career opportunities available to women and girls in engineering and related industries.

Lauren Stephenson, Marketing Manager at Starfrost said: Starfrost are proud to support Women in Engineering Day and celebrate the outstanding achievements of women engineers throughout the world."

"INWED is a fantastic initiative that raises awareness of women in the engineering industry and the exciting career opportunities available across the sector. We hope to encourage and inspire more women to join the wide-ranging industry as well as raise awareness and promote progress for a diverse and equal workforce.

In support of INWED, Star Refrigeration (Starfrost's parent company) are sponsoring Institute of Refrigeration Women in RACHP Engineering Heroes event an event to commemorate International Women in Engineering Day. This years event will consist of an online meeting hosted by the Institute of Refrigerations (IOR) Women in Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Heat Pump network group (WiRACHP). The live online meeting will follow the theme of Engineering Heroes and will ask attendees to remember the motivational figures in their life who have helped them to choose a career in the industry.

Hosted by IOR Trustee and Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) Ambassador Lisa-Jayne Cook, the event will kick off as a live webinar at 10.00 am on Wednesday 23rd June and is expected to run through until 11.30am.

The network is now open to anyone (male or female) working in any RACHP related role such as service & maintenance, design, research, engineering, science, sales, administration, marketing, training, etc. You do not have to be an IOR member to take part. To attend the free online event which will take place on International Women in Engineering Day, register at https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEtcOugqTIsG90fTscD2Z2AD8nkIOTMnoVW%20 and tune in to hear some amazing stories from the world of WiRACHP and inspire the next generation of female engineers.

To find out more about International Women in Engineering Day, please visit: https://www.inwed.org.uk/

To find out more about the Women in RACHP event, please visit: https://ior.org.uk/events/inwed2021
The Tartabit IoT Device Bridge enables Microsoft Azure users to quickly deploy a large scale, customized solution with Queclink devices in a matter of minutes. Says Manny Hernandez, VP of North America at Queclink, Frictionless integration to Azure allows our customers to provide solutions an

Today, Tartabit LLC announces a series of new features available in the IoT Bridge to enable emerging and established device makers additional pathways into Microsoft Azure. With the latest release of Tartabit's IoT Bridge, customers can now self-onboard devices that do not natively support an Azure IoT SDK using the Tartabit IoT Bridge low-code platform. Customers continue to enjoy the easiest to use, easiest to buy, easiest to deploy, and easiest to manage cloud gateway service for Azure IoT Hub integration, available in the Azure Marketplace.

First, in addition to Tartabit's existing support for LWM2M standards-based integrations, Tartabit IoT Bridge now supports custom UDP, CoAP, MQTT, HTTP, and TCP transports that can be used to connect proprietary protocols into Azure IoT Hub. With this functionality, new and old devices can be quickly integrated enabling increased battery life, reduced data consumption on LTE Cat-M and NB-IoT networks, and extending the life of existing fleets of devices already in the field.

Second, the Tartabit IoT Bridge is expanding access for the industrys most popular OEM IoT devices through transparently bridging their proprietary protocol implementations to Azure IoT Hub, IoT Central and other services. Tartabit is pleased to announce support of select asset tracking devices from Queclink as the newest listing within the IoT Bridge supported device portfolio. Customers can now quickly integrate the vast portfolio of devices from Queclink into Azure IoT Hub in minutes.

Lastly, the Tartabit IoT Bridge furthers its support for aggregating LORAWAN LoRa Networks Servers (LNS) into Azure IoT by announcing support for Chirpstack, LORIOT, The Things Network, and Helium. In addition, the Tartabit IoT Bridge now supports devices from Browan, RAKWireless, and Laird Connectivity in its solution templates.

Todays announcement reinforces our dedication to helping customers onboard LPWAN devices into Microsoft Azure that lack native integration capabilities, Jim Wert, CTO and Co-Founder, Tartabit. Helping our customers quickly deploy solutions across multiple networks, protocols, and technologies into Azure is our number one objective.

The Tartabit IoT Bridge enables Microsoft Azure users to quickly deploy a large scale, customized solution with Queclink devices in a matter of minutes, says Manny Hernandez, VP of North America at Queclink, Frictionless integration to Azure allows our customers to provide solutions and critical asset information natively into new Azure based applications.

About Tartabit LLC

Tartabit is a Next Gen Things (IoT) enablement company founded by a team of experienced IoT executives and practitioners who share a passion to provide easy to use tools and services capable of accelerating the adoption of IoT globally. Our vision is to radically increase the ability for enterprise and OEM customers to leverage next generation IoT device data by offering the easiest to use, buy, deploy, and manage LPWAN Cloud Gateway Service to bridge next generation IoT device data with industry leading Cloud Services. IoT Services built for IoT Developers by IoT Developers.

Copyright  2021 Tartabit LLC. All rights reserved. Tartabit, Tartabit IoT Bridge and all associated logos are trademarks of Tartabit LLC in the United States and other countries. Other names used herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.
Turn To Me: The Sequel: A Trilogy: an encouraging example of devotional exercises. Turn To Me: The Sequel: A Trilogy is the creation of published author Tom Reed, who grew up in the West but has lived in the South for the past forty years. He and his wife, Judy, tend a small farm in rural West Tennessee. He retired from a career in health care business management and was active in community organizations and projects.

Reed shares, Turn To Me is a 365-day devotional book saturated in Scripture. This book is a sequel to it. The sequel is a continuation of devotionals formatted as a trilogy. The first section looks at bit players or unnamed people in the Bible who play a key role in the Grand Story. Each person provides a timeless lesson for us and then disappears. The woman at the well is an unnamed example. The second section examines questions asked by God or Jesus. The questions were specific to an event or a person at that time but remain relevant to us today. God asked Cain, What have you done? How would you answer for yourself today? The final section looks at answers. Jesus was constantly questioned by many, and His answers were profound and timeless. They remain relevant and useful for us today.

Published by Christian Faith Publishing, Tom Reeds new book is concise exploration of the Bible.

The author writes in hopes of encouraging others to seek God and develop a stronger bond with the writings of the Bible.

View a synopsis of Turn To Me: The Sequel: A Trilogy on YouTube.

Consumers can purchase Turn To Me: The Sequel: A Trilogy at traditional brick & mortar bookstores, or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or inquiries about Turn To Me: The Sequel: A Trilogy, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919.
Sharla Crawford - CEO Gravity Junction When my partners and I decided to join the BBB last fall, I never would have thought Id be nominated to its board of directors.

Sharla Crawford, CEO of Gravity Junction, was recently sworn in as the newest member of the board of directors for the Better Business Bureau of Metro Atlanta, Athens, and North Georgia. Gravity Junction is one of Atlantas leading marketing and SaaS firms.

Crawford lends her expertise in all things marketing, web development, and web design, as well as her well-known business and process development acumen to the BBB.

When my partners and I decided to join the BBB last fall, I never would have thought Id be nominated to its board of directors, Crawford explained. To be considered for a nomination, the existing board votes on nominees based on the needs of the organization and where they feel they could be lacking in expertise. I was excited and honored to be nominated.

After a rigorous interview process, Crawford was invited to sit on the board for two years.

My experience thus far has been amazing, Crawford said.

BBB employees have already reached out to Crawford to consult on the organizations SEO strategies and messaging.

The BBB can be a huge boost to businesses across our region and the nation. Its been exciting to work with the leaders in our local branch to plan ways to change the narrative around the BBB. The BBB is a valuable resource. I think we can employ proactive practices and move the BBB toward extending more value propositions, helping them be an essential part of what business owners need to build strong, resilient businesses, Crawford said.

Gravity Junction is best known for its ability to create brands or transform existing ones. Notable clients include: John Addison of Addison Leadership Group, Asa Carlton, Inc, Pinnacle Aviation, Atlanta Dental, and Vee Culinary, LLC, among others.

While I certainly have my own expertise, and my team depends on me for process integration, Gravity Junction is a think-tank of brilliant writers, designers, and developers. I am inspired daily by our teams intellect and talent."

For more information about Gravity Junction or Sharla Crawford visit GravityJunction.com
Landy, a French artist who started with TuneCore and whose career was quickly accelerated by Believe through the Signed By program

Leading independent DIY digital music distributor TuneCore and parent company, Paris-based Believe, today revealed that the ongoing Signed By program between the two companies has benefitted over 340 artists and labels around the world. Artists who release their music through TuneCore and are identified as rising stars, are eligible to be signed by industry leading digital music distribution and artist development company, Believe.

TuneCore was acquired by Believe in 2015 and, with little barrier to entry, the company serves artists who are often at the beginning stages of their careers managing many (if not all) aspects of their development themselves. When paired with Believe Label and Artist Solutions (L&AS), and Artist Services, all three divisions work in concert

to best serve artists and labels at each stage of their development in the digital world.

For DIY artists, TuneCore provides a global, best-in-class distribution platform, while Believe, through L&AS and Artist Services, provides worldwide support for artists whose careers have reached a level where additional services and solutions will propel their growth forward, including digital distribution, innovative marketing, data-driven technology, artist development and go-to-market release planning. The Signed By program has resulted in over 340 artists and labels moving from TuneCore up to Believe, as well as its house of brands including Nuclear Blast, Naive, All Points, Groove Attack, PIVTL Projects and more.

Denis Ladegaillerie, Believe CEO stated, Believe and TuneCore are artist-first, solution-driven digital music companies whose central tenet is to serve artists at all stages of their careers and development. Because of the symbiotic nature of our businesses, we are able to identify emerging talent early on through TuneCore and then further develop and support the artists journey with Believe L&AS and Artist Services. The acceleration of artists careers through our multi-faceted solution speaks to the success of this program.

French artist Landy began releasing music through TuneCore in 2017. Just two years later, he had reached a critical mass and was signed by Believe, releasing the album ASSA BAING in March 2019. With the support of Believe, the album reached gold in two months. Landys latest album A ONE was released by Believe in December 2020, went gold in 10 weeks and is on track for platinum by this October. Believe has helped Landy build his following to 1.5 million Spotify monthly listeners, 576,000 YouTube subscribers and 270 million cumulative views on his YouTube channel.

Commented Andreea Gleeson, Co-head and Chief Revenue Officer of TuneCore, As artists are building their careers, TuneCore provides tools and solutions for artists at scale, including our ground-breaking TuneCore Rewards program. When they start to gain traction, TuneCore is able to move the artist to the appropriate support system, whether thats Believe L&AS, Artist Services or its house of brands. Were the only digital music company who has a system like this in place, where artists work within one transparent ecosystem and maintain their masters and creative control throughout.

The spectrum of artists who have been signed by Believe, spans genres and countries. Trillary Banks, a UK rapper joined TuneCore in 2017, with the single Come Over Mi Yard, and was subsequently moved up to Believe in 2020. Since then, her monthly listeners on Spotify have doubled, with similar numbers across other digital streaming and download platforms.

Describing her journey, she stated, At the start, I just wanted to make my music available on streaming platforms and TuneCore allowed me to do this. Believe added further structure and aided my release strategy whilst helping increase my listenership. Believe are the most responsive and supportive team I know... really good people

About TuneCore

TuneCore is the global platform for independent musicians to build audiences and careers  with technology and services across distribution, publishing administration and a range of promotional services. TuneCore Music Distribution services help artists, labels and managers sell their music through Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Deezer, TikTok, Tencent and more than 150 download and streaming stores worldwide, while retaining 100 percent of their sales revenue and rights for a low annual flat fee. TuneCore Music Publishing Administration assists songwriters by administering their compositions through licensing, registration, worldwide royalty collections, and placement opportunities in film, TV, commercials, video games and more. The TuneCore Artist Services portal offers a suite of tools and services that enable artists to promote their craft, connect with fans, and get their music heard. TuneCore, part of Believe, is headquartered in Brooklyn, NY, with offices in Los Angeles, Nashville, Atlanta, and Austin, and operates globally through local teams based in the UK, Germany, France, Belgium, Italy, Russia, Brazil, Mexico, Nigeria, South Africa, India, Japan and Singapore across 4 continents. http://www.tunecore.com

About Believe

Believe is one of the worlds leading digital music companies. Believes mission is to develop independent artists and labels in the digital world, by providing them the solutions they need to grow their audience at each stage of their career and development. Believes passionate team of digital music experts around the world leverages the Groups global technology platform to advise artists and labels, distribute and promote their music. Its 1,270 employees in more than 50 countries aim to support independent artists and labels with a unique digital expertise, respect, fairness and transparency. Believe offers its various solutions through a portfolio of brands including TuneCore, Nuclear Blast, Naive, Groove Attack and AllPoints. Believe is listed on compartment A of the Euronext Paris stock exchange (Ticker: BLV, ISIN : FR0014003FE9) http://www.believe.com
Joe Morrison recently joined Umbras product team, and in recognition of his leadership has been promoted to Vice President of Commercial Product. Joe is one of the most public advocates for the value of commercial remote sensing and has been a customer of satellite imagery for half a decade. He is an outspoken critic of the procurement and business processes implemented by incumbent commercial satellite imagery providers.

On Joes newsletter, blog, and Twitter account, he regularly comments on the state of mapping technology and the geospatial intelligence market. His essays are read by tens of thousands of readers each month all over the world.

In one of his most popular and controversial essays, The Commercial Satellite Imagery Business Model is Broken, Joe unapologetically criticized commercial satellite imagery providers. Many satellite providers share the same frustrations about selling their own data. As a satellite provider, when supply is limited over a high demand area, the common approach is to increase the price of the data and offer paid priority access to generate more revenue and improve unit economics. Such an approach necessitates complex contracts and strict licensing to maintain control over the data and preserve as much of its proprietary value as possible.

This business model works well for the data providers, but not for many of their customers. It favors larger, high-paying customers over smaller, innovative customers. Still, following this playbook, data providers have been able to generate billions of dollars in revenue.

At Umbra, we believe the structural supply/demand curve can be solved with technology. Umbras technological approach and space system design allow us to offer more data over high demand areas, eliminating the need for complex licensing, priority access or regional exclusivity. Umbras cost advantage and design approach allow us to launch spacecraft to quickly increase supply, fill customer demand, and to keep data prices stable to spur innovation and ultimately create new commercial markets.

Umbra is genuinely committed to making a thriving commercial Earth observation industry possible, by implementing the following three policies: 1) Transparent, self-service scheduling and tasking; 2) permissive licensing; and 3) clear universal pricing.

We believe this is the business model of the future for satellite operators. By removing as much friction as possible from the sales process, and not competing with our customers by selling in-house analytics and services, we are confident we can unlock new markets for Earth observation data that have been stifled by the old way of doing things.

In his new role, Joe is responsible for Umbras customer and partner experience. Like Joe, all of Umbra is committed to customer obsession and growing the industry in the long term. If you want to help us revolutionize the Earth observation industry, please reach out directly at product@umbra.space.
Vietnam Veteran Bruce Autry Semper Cares Initiative provides veterans and their families help in handling high energy costs with major home improvements like solar panel installation free of charge.

After being moved by Bruces story, Semper Solaris has chosen the Lancaster resident as the 2021 Semper Cares Initiative recipient for this upcoming Independence Day event. Mr. Autry will be receiving solar panels free of cost, drastically reducing his electricity bills for life.

The morning of September 11th, Bruce Autry found himself directly outside the walls of the Pentagon. His prior experience in Law Enforcement and as a US Army Veteran led Bruce to become a Federal Investigator within the EEOC. While attending a training class, the attack on the Pentagon happened. Luckily, Bruce was unharmed. Amidst the days chaos, he quickly rushed to help the first responders in any way needed. Bruce decided to extend his stay in DC to volunteer his services in his countrys time of need.

Bruces kind heart and work ethic continued, as he simultaneously held two full-time positions: carrying on as Investigator at the EEOC while serving as a San Bernardino Peace Officer. Bruce also took on many off-duty security positions, providing bodyguard services for celebrities, politicians, and public events. Mr. Autry also found a passion in teaching and sharing proper bodyguard practices to others.

Throughout his life, Bruce has always been a focused individual, graduating high-school early at age 16, followed by an enlistment in the US Army, 169th Engineer Battalion. In 2013, Bruce Autry was diagnosed with cancer, stemming from Agent Orange exposure during his three tours in Vietnam. Bruce, being the warrior he is, took cancer on while continuing to work full-time and provide for his wife, two step-daughters, and at the same time, continues to care for his ailing mother. Semper Solaris is proud to be able to help Bruce after he has helped so many.

Semper Cares Initiative provides veterans and their families help in handling high energy costs with major home improvements like solar panel installation free of charge. This Independence Day, Semper Solaris is honored to provide a full solar panel system and installation for Bruce Autry and his family!

Semper Solaris is a veteran owned company based in California that performs energy and conservation services such as solar panel + battery storage installation like the Tesla Powerwall. Former Marine Corps Captain and co-owner Kelly Shawhan is passionate about renewable energy and its benefits to his customers. The companys impeccable work ethic is inspired by the U.S. Marine Corp motto, Semper Fidelis, which means "always faithful". Many employees at Semper Solaris are fellow veterans, using military values to provide excellent service to their customers.

Moving forward, our goal is to get the word out to the families and friends of deserving veterans to nominate their loved ones to receive free solar panel installation. After this Fourth of July, we will be preparing for our next Semper Cares event and will continue to help Veterans in need. Please go to http://www.SemperCares.com to nominate a deserving veteran in your community.
A partnership with Kiss the Ground will allow us to spread the message of Regenerative Agriculture to help create a better environment for the next generations, says Winemaker Sofia Araya of Vinedos Veramonte.

Vinedos Veramonte, one of the top 100% organic and sustainable wineries in Chile, is pleased to announce a partnership with the non-profit organization, Kiss the Ground, to help promote Regenerative Agriculture and inform American consumers on the best practices to have a healthy ecosystem.

Kiss the Ground was created to focus efforts on healthy soils and create a symbiotic relationship with the earth. The organization promotes Regenerative Agriculture, which goes hand in hand with what Vinedos Veramonte has been doing for years. They believe in farming principles and practices that aim to increase biodiversity, enrich soils, improve watersheds and enhance ecosystem services, eventually increasing yields and higher health and vitality for farming communities.

Together with the winerys parent company, Gonzalez Byass, a producer and supplier of wine brands from several countries of origin offering organic, sustainable, and biodynamic choices, Vinedos Veramonte recognizes that the organic wine market in the U.S. is growing at a steadfast rate. Gonzalez Byass began the 5+5 Caring for the planet program, a long-term sustainability initiative. This program represents the five generations of the Gonzalez family who have brought the company into the 21st century and the next five generations who will continue to build upon the work that has already been done to help our planet succeed.

A partnership with Kiss the Ground will allow us to spread the message of Regenerative Agriculture to help create a better environment for the next generations, says Winemaker Sofia Araya of Vinedos Veramonte. We follow organic practices in all our estates to ensure the best conditions for the development of the vine. Through cultivating healthy, living soils and maintaining a natural balance in our vineyards and winemaking process, we obtain quality grapes that express the full potential of the terroir.

To show their commitment to the movement, Vinedos Veramonte will donate a percentage of sales to Kiss the Ground, supporting their mission. Further, the winery plans to build a community of consumers who are passionate about organic wine and Regenerative Agriculture by providing education and information. They will donate $2.00 for every person who signs up to receive emails and a guide to organic wines.

By partnering with Kiss the Ground, Vinedos Veramonte can spread the word to other wineries and consumers to reduce emissions, energy consumption, generated waste, bottle weight and increase green energy and water saving programs. Vinedos Veramonte is determined to maintain Regenerative Agriculture and generate awareness among consumers across the U.S.

About Vinedos Veramonte

Vinedos Veramonte follows organic practices in all of their estates to ensure the best conditions for the development of the vine, thus achieving vineyards that are sustainable over time. Through cultivating healthy, living soils and maintaining a natural balance in the vineyards and winemaking process, the wines obtain quality grapes that express the full potential of the terroir, leading to wines with character, authentic and expressive. Within the Vinedos Veramonte umbrella are Neyen and Primus in Apalta in the Colchagua Valley and Ritual and Veramonte in the Casablanca Valley.

For further information, please visit: http://www.vinedosveramonte.cl/home and follow @veramontewines.

About Kiss the Ground

Kiss the Ground is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit on a mission to awaken people to the possibilities of regeneration and inspire participation in this movement through media, communications, education, workshops, immersive programming, and advocacy. Since being established in 2013 with the goal of creating societal awareness around the extraordinary potential of healthy soil, Kiss the Ground has educated and activated millions.

For further information, please visit: http://www.KisstheGround.com.

About Gonzalez Byass USA

Gonzalez Byass USA is a Chicago based importer for a strategically selected portfolio of fine wine and spirit brands from around the world including Spain, Chile, Italy and Austria.

Gonzalez Byass USA is the US subsidiary of Gonzalez Byass headquartered in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain. Gonzalez Byass is a family-owned, collection of wineries founded in 1835 which spans across Spains most important wine producing regions.

Today the fifth generation of the family are the custodians of many exceptional brands having built the company into a family of wineries which produces wine in some of Spains most famous regions; Bodegas Beronia (Rioja and Rueda), Dominio Fournier (Ribera del Duero), Cavas Vilarnau (Cava), Finca Constancia (Vino de la Tierra de Castilla), Finca Moncloa (Vino de la Tierra de Cadiz), Vinas del Vero (Somontano) and Pazos de Lusco (Rias Baixas). In each of these regions the family strives to make the best possible quality wines respecting the local terroir and the environment. At the same time the company has also expanded its interests further in the premium spirits business and has created pioneering brands such as The London No.1 and Nomad Outland Whisky to complement the Spanish brandies in the portfolio Soberano and Lepanto. In recent years, the family have expanded outside of Spain purchasing the quality vineyards of Vinedos Veramonte in Chile. Organically farmed vineyards producing cool climate wines from Casablanca and complex reds from Apalta.

Gonzalez Byass USA also represents a number of international wineries in the US market including from Austria Domane Wachau, and from Italy Pranza, Caldora, Cantine Cellaro, Vesevo, Vigneti Del Salento and Tenute Rossetti. In addition, Harveys Bristol Cream and Fundador Brandy de Jerez and El Recuerdo and Senorio mezcals were recently added to the portfolio, as well as Mexican brandies from Pedro Domecq: Presidente and Don Pedro.

For further information, please visit: http://www.GonzalezByassUSA.com.
The best immune systems thrive on a healthy dose of paranoia. The instant that defensive cells spot something unfamiliar in their midstbe it a living microbe or a harmless mote of schmutzthey will whip themselves into a frenzy, detonating microscopic bombs, sparking bouts of inflammation, even engaging in some casual cannibalism until they are certain that the threat has passed. This system is built on alarmism, but it very often pays off: Most of our encounters with pathogens end before we ever notice them.

The agents of immunity are sorisk-averse that even the dreadof facing off with a pathogen can sometimes prompt them to gird their little loins. Ashley Love, a biologist at the University of Connecticut, has seen this happen in birds. A few years ago, she stationed healthy canaries within eyeshot of sick ones, infected with a bacterium that left the birds sluggish and visibly unwell. The healthy canaries werent close enough to catch the infection themselves. But the mere sight of their symptomatic peers revved up their immune systems all the same, Love and her colleagues report today in Biology Letters.

Love, who did the research as a graduate student at Oklahoma State University, had an inkling that the experiment would work before she did it. In 2010, the psychologist Mark Schaller, at the University of British Columbia, and his colleagues described a similar reaction in humans looking through photos of people who were sneezing or covered in rashes. The study subjects immune cells then reacted aggressively when exposed to bits of bacteria, a hint that the pictures had somehow whipped the body into fighting form, Schaller told me.



Read the whole story: The Atlantic
Indian American illustrator and writer Nidhi Chanani has published several books for young readers, including YA graphic novel Pashmina, and her illustrations have been featured at Disney Parks. Born in Kolkata, India and raised in California, she holds a degree in literature from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her second graphic novel, Jukebox, about a girl who travels to important moments in music history to find her music obsessed dad after his disappearance, celebrates her love of music history mixed with magic. PW spoke with Chanani about her writing and research process, where the inspiration for the story came from, and what readers can expect from her next.

Before becoming an author-illustrator, you started as a literature major and then went to art school. How does your background influence your approach to storytelling? Did you always want to be a graphic novelist?

Ive always loved storytelling and books. I was an avid reader and still amart came much later. I always thought I would end up being a writer, which is why I studied literature. But I never got into comics in my young life. It was just the funnies like Garfield or Calvin and Hobbes. The Caped Crusaders and superhero comics were what I had understood as [the form]. When I looked at them, they seemed very much designed for men. I wasnt their target audience. But in college, friends of mine introduced me to Ghost World by Daniel Clowes. I found this way of looking at comics as another storytelling format fascinating because it wasnt designed to attract male readers.

After I finished my degree, I was reading comics and trying to figure out my life. I ended up taking out another set of loans to go to art school because I had been introduced to art that I really loved. There, I started formulating this idea of, I love storytelling, I love drawing, maybe I can combine the two. Growing up in the Indian community, it was: you become a doctor or a lawyer, you go to an Ivy League school. And then there I was, studying literature, loving art, and I realized art could be a job. I thought, Oh my God, what if I could make people happy as my job?

I think whats interesting about [the Indian] community is the idea of pursuing something youre passionate about is very nerve-wracking. My parents immigrated here, so its very fresh in their mind that if you pursue the wrong thing, you could end up unable to take care of yourself. Its super understandable but also very frustrating. [The experience] ends up being relatable across immigrants and children of immigrants. Obviously, there are specific things that are very different community to community but [it is also] the idea of understanding yourself while living in this whole new culture and feeling very much in between. I didnt always want to do this and I think that its all been this lovely surprise.

Your stories capture the whimsy and magic that come with being a kid. Jukebox features a time-traveling jukebox and a music-obsessed father. Where did the inspiration for the book come from? Is there an era of music that you would like to travel to?

Jukebox was very much born of my husbands obsession with vinyl records; I think we now have 2,000 in our house. Music is a conversation that is constant between us. Its such a part of our life that I sometimes forget people dont talk [about music] the way we do. One of the interesting things he told me was how reggae is slowed-down ska music because it was too fast for people to dance to. And I was like, Do people know that? Music is a huge part of our lives and I think its a huge part of many peoples lives.

For the book, I wanted to select albums that changed music in a certain way or changed history. [Music] is a commentary on history and politics in this country, and I kept coming back to the 60s and 70s. There was so much going on and there were so many musicians taking a lot of risks to say something politically with their music. I found that really fascinating. [My husband and I] were talking one day and I asked him why jukeboxes only play singles. He made this comment, Well, if a jukebox played a full 12-inch record it would be humongous and people wouldnt be able to put it into diners. It was one comment and this lifetime of talking about music together that sparked this idea of What if there was a giant jukebox? Why would somebody make that? Music is so powerful, and the idea of an object [with] so much power immediately felt magical to me.

What kind of research did you do to portray the environment and the feel of the era accurately?

My husband has been an amazing resource when picking albums or when Im thinking about musics combination with history that I wanted to bring out in the book. This book would absolutely not exist if he wasnt in my life. I [also] love Google Images and am thankful for the historical photos that are available online. When creating a book that has magic in it, I always make sure that I know what the rules are. [My] rules are that when you put in a record, it takes you back in time [and] that same record is playing in history but it has to be in a crowd. [When I decided that, I did not [account for] the fact that I would have to draw crowds throughout the whole book. At the end of Pashmina, [I thought], Im never going to draw or write a book where theyre in the car so much. And at the end of Jukebox, I thought, Im never going to create a book where I have a rule that theyre in crowds.

But what was wonderful about the research is, crowds end up being big events and tying into history. I looked up old video footage and photographs to get the backgrounds right. More than anything, I wanted to make sure I got the clothing right. Sometimes I drew [the exact] clothing I saw in a reference photo or combined clothing from different photos from the [same] era. And I watched a lot of documentaries. I watched the James Brown concert at least 50 times because I took actual dialogue from that closing chapter in the documentary, where the news anchor says this piece about televising his concert the day after MLK was shot. I wanted to make sure that there were concrete historical elements in it.

Are there any exciting projects youre looking forward to doing? Would you be open to doing something similar to this historical graphic novel?

I have three books releasing this year. I had a picture book, Kong & Me [by Kiki Thorpe], released in March, Jukebox is out this month, and at the end of the year, my debut author-illustrator picture book is coming out, called What Will My Story Be? Its about a creative girl who is influenced by her aunties stories. I have another picture book coming out for Pride next year called Strong, about the first gay strong man, Rob Kearney, and its been amazing and wonderful to draw. I drew a lot of muscles, which isnt something Ive done before. And I have quite a few comics coming up in the future that are middle grade and some early reader. I let the stories tell me where I need to go.

There are no historical elements in anything I am working on at the moment, but I wouldnt prevent myself from doing that, at some point. In my family history we had a freedom fighter and Ive always been fascinated by that. But I havent gone through the process of finding out more beyond family stories. I think its one of those things that I dont see enough in graphic novels. When Im approaching stories, I think about what we havent yet seen represented. Because if youre taking up space on a shelf, I want to make sure that Im adding something to the world that takes up space in a way thats meaningful.

Jukebox by Nidhi Chanani. First Second, $21.99 June 22 ISBN 978-1-250-15637-2
Hannah Hill at Delacorte has acquired, in a preempt, Lancers, the debut YA trilogy by author Yoon Ha Lee (Dragon Pearl). This adrenaline-fueled sci-fi adventure follows Hwa Young, a teen training to become an Imperial lancer pilot after her rebel moon home is literally ripped apart. But when she uncovers a terrible secret that the Empire has been hiding from its citizens, she must return to her rebel roots to save her world. Book one is planned for summer 2023; Seth Fishman at the Gernert Company did the deal for North American rights.



Anne Heltzel at Abrams has bought debut YA novel Lightlark by Alex Aster (Emblem Island), an untitled sequel, and an untitled graphic novel. Lightlark is a twisty fantasy that features six rulers competing in a high-stakes game set on a lush magical island, with 100 days to break the deadly curses that have plagued their realms for centuries. The first book is set for fall 2022; Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary negotiated the six-figure deal at auction for world English rights.



Wendy Loggia at Underlined has acquired A Night to Die For by Lisa Schroeder. Pitched as The Night Of meets One Of Us Is Lying, the book tells the story of a prom night gone wrong when a senior boy finds a classmate's body in a ditch only to become the primary suspect in the girl's murder. Publication is scheduled for spring 2022; Sara Crowe at Pippin Properties brokered the deal for world rights.



Maggie Lehrman at Abrams has bought Fraternity, the first YA novel from actor and writer Andy Mientus. Set at an all-boys boarding school in 1991, it follows a secret society of queer kids who uncover a book of dark magic and use its power to find their ownat a huge cost. Publication is slated for fall 2022; Geoffrey Soffer at Soffer Namoff and Michael Mahan at Peikoff Mahan handled the deal for world rights.



Mark Podesta at Holt has acquired, at auction, Everyone Sux But You by Lambda Award-winning artist and author Kelsey Wroten, a YA graphic novel set in the early aughts about an apathetic lesbian punk who learnsin the wake of her mother's death and on the verge of confessing her feelings for her best friendthat caring might just be cool, with echoes of Daria, Ladybird, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Publication is planned for winter 2024; Edward Maxwell at Sanford J. Greenburger Associates negotiated the deal for world English rights.



Hilary Van Dusen at MITeen/Candlewick Press has bought Finding Life's Story, a four-volume YA nonfiction account of the history and evolution of the life sciences, by Joy Hakim, bestselling author of A History of US. The book recounts and offers insights on hundreds of years of scientific innovation and discovery, beginning in the late 1400s, as Leonardo da Vinci dissected cadavers to learn human anatomy firsthand, and ending with present-day experiments with gene editing and viruses. Publication of the first volume is expected in fall 2022; Patricia Frisch did the deal for world rights.



Liesa Abrams at Labyrinth Road has acquired, at auction, Alex Wise vs. the End of the World by Terry J. Benton-Walker. In this middle grade contemporary fantasy series opener, a 12-year-old boy is reeling from his best friend abandoning him after he revealed that he's gay. Meanwhile, he must save his younger sister and the world when his sister is possessed by the spirit of one of the four horsemenevil former gods from a parallel world who are determined to bring forth the apocalypse. Publication is scheduled for fall 2023; Patrice Caldwell at New Leaf Literary & Media brokered the mid-six figure, three-book deal for world English rights.



Alyssa Miele at HarperCollins/Quill Tree has bought The Year the Maps Changed, a middle grade debut by Australian author Danielle Binks, based on the real-life Operation Safe Haven, which in 1999 relocated thousands of Kosovar-Albanian refugees to "safe havens" around the world. The novel takes place in an Australian seaside town, following 11-year-old Winifred ("Fred") who, six years after the death of her mother, befriends a pregnant refugee woman from the Haven and tries to save her from deportation, all while struggling to come to terms with the changing makeup of her own family now that her father's new girlfriend is moving in. Publication is set for fall 2022; Annabel Barker at Annabel Barker Agency handled the deal via Jacinta di Mase at Jacinta di Mase Management.



Rebecca Taylor at Wonderbound/Vault Comics has acquired Kenzie's Kingdom, written by Shea Fontana (l.), drawn by Agnes Garbowska (c.), and colored by Sil Brys (r.). The middle grade graphic novel is about a teenage girl who is less than content to work at her family business, a castle turned tourist stop. When an out-of-his-own-time knight-in-training appears, the only way to send him back is for a princess to properly knight him; too bad the 21st century is light on princesses. Publication is slated for summer 2022; Claire Draper at the Bent Agency negotiated the deal for world rights.



Mark Podesta at Henry Holt has bought, at auction, world rights to debut picture book Hidden Gem by author-illustrator Linda Liu, and a second untitled picture book. Hidden Gem, pitched as the humor of Jon Klassen meets the whimsical style of Miyazaki, is about an ordinary gray pebble that is envious of its more colorful, shiny peers as it traverses a museum of unique and precious rocks. Publication is planned for spring 2023; Thao Le at the Dijkstra Agency did the deal.



Ken Geist at Scholastic has acquired picture book The Underpants by Tammi Sauer, in an exclusive submission. This irreverent homage to The Mitten by Jan Brett begins when Kitty discovers a "coat" in a farmer's fresh laundry pile. Hijinks ensue as other animals want to share the "coat" too. Publication is scheduled for summer 2022; Laura Rennert at Andrea Brown Literary brokered the deal for world rights.



Emma Ledbetter at Abrams has won, in a 10-house auction, world rights to My Powerful Hair by Carole Lindstrom (l.) (We Are Water Protectors), illustrated by Steph Littlebird, the story of a girl celebrating her personal power and reclaiming ancestral wisdom after generations of short hair in her family due to Indian Residential Schools forbidding long hair and important cultural practices. Publication is set for April 2022; Kathleen Rushall at Andrea Brown Literary represented the author and illustrator.



Nancy Paulsen at Penguin/Nancy Paulsen Books has bought world rights to On Our Way, a picture book by JaNay Brown-Wood (l.), illustrated by Tamisha Anthony, in which Big Sis must keep her younger siblings focused on the task at handfinding a birthday giftas they move through the city on their way to Nana's house. Publication is slated for summer 2024; Karen Grencik at Red Fox Literary represented the author, and Anne Moore Armstrong at the Bright Agency represented the illustrator.



Connie Hsu at Roaring Brook Press has acquired world rights to Butterfly on The Wind, a picture book by Adam Pottle (l.), illustrated by Ziyue Chen. A Deaf girl signs the word for "butterfly," sending it off in a breeze that blows through her town, across the country, and over deep waters, touching the lives of Deaf children around the world. Publication is planned for fall 2023; Emmy Nordstrom Higdon at Westwood Creative Artists represented the author, and Mela Bolinao at MB Artists represented the artist.



Janine O'Malley at FSG has bought world rights to A Very Scary Story (By Terrifying Kitten) written by Kate Messner (l.), illustrated by MacKenzie Haley. This picture book follows an extremely fierce and tiny kitten who really wants to scare you. Publication is scheduled for spring 2023; Jennifer Laughran at Andrea Brown Literary represented the author, and Nicole Tugeau at Tugeau 2 represented the illustrator.



Megan Dobson at HarperCollins has acquired world rights to Walking Grandma Home by Nancy Bo Flood (l.). When Lee's beloved grandmother becomes ill, he decides to help "walk her home" to heaven with the help of his family. Ellen Shi will illustrate. Publication is set for winter 2023; Amy Thrall Flynn at Rubin Pfeffer Content represented the author, and Robbin Brosterman at the Bright Agency represented the illustrator.



Deirdre Jones at Little, Brown has bought world rights to The 12 Hours of Christmas by Jenn Bailey (l.), a modern take on the classic song, in which a big family comes together to celebrate the holidays, along with a missing kitten, dinosaurs, knock-knock jokes, and more. Parker Looks Up artist Bea Jackson will illustrate. Publication is slated for fall 2023; Erica Rand Silverman at Stimola Literary Studio represented the author, and Lori Nowicki at Painted Words represented the artist.



Anna Roberto at Feiwel and Friends has acquired world rights to Painting the Sky with Love by Mary Baca Haque (l.), illustrated by Tatiana Gardel. In this picture book, a child "paints" the sky with love; hearts cascade and bounce down, while people looking up open their hearts to love. Publication is planned for fall 2023; Mary Cummings at Great River Literary, in association with Betsy Amster Literary Enterprises, represented the author, and Jemiscoe Chambers-Black at Andrea Brown Literary represented the illustrator.



Andrea Welch at S&S/Beach Lane has bought world rights to Fungi Grow by Maria Gianferrari (l.), an ode to mushrooms that gets up close and personal with these intriguing and often under-appreciated specimens, illustrated by Diana Sudyka. Publication is scheduled for fall 2023; Ammi-Joan Paquette at Erin Murphy Literary represented the author, and Andrea Morrison at Writers House represented the illustrator.



Carol Hinz at Lerner/Millbrook has acquired, in a preempt, world rights to Curious Kati: The Race for a Covid-19 Vaccine, a picture book biography of Dr. Katalin Kariko, the scientist who devoted her career to studying mRNA and played a crucial role in bringing Covid-19 vaccines to millions, written by Debbie Dadey (l.) and illustrated by Juliana Oakley. Publication is set for spring 2023; Elizabeth Bennett at Transatlantic Agency represented the author, and Alex Gehringer at the Bright Agency represented the illustrator.



Christianne Jones at Capstone has bought world rights to the picture book Moving to Mars by Stef Wade (l.) (A Place for Pluto), illustrated by Erin Taylor. Mars likes peace and quiet and is not happy when unexpected visitors start showing up. But when they leave, Mars realizes being alone isnt all that great. Publication is slated for August 2022; Christa Heschke at McIntosh & Otis represented the author, and Emmajane Turner at the Bright Agency represented the illustrator.



Cindy Kim at Little Simon has acquired world rights to The Big Scream, written by Kirsti Call (l.) and illustrated by Denis Angelov. In this board book, little ones will learn how to pause, breathe in, and feel better after a tantrum. Publication is planned for summer 2022; Charlotte Wenger at Prospect Agency represented the author, and Susan Hawk at Upstart Crow Literary represented the illustrator.



Michele McAvoy at Little Press/Blue Bronco Books Jr. has bought world rights to Annalise's Special Dish, first in a graphic early reader series by J de laVega. When students of PS 114 are asked to bring in a dish that represents their culture, Annalise is thrilled, until she finds out that her friends are making the same dishes; she learns that it's the love, not the ingredients, that make a dish special. Publication is set for April 2023; the author-illustrator represented herself.

Wendy Loggia at Delacorte has acquired rights to Midnight at the Houdini by bestselling author Delilah S. Dawson along with an untitled book. In the tradition of Caraval and The Starless Sea, with whispers of The Tempest, a 16-year-old girl betrayed by her sister discovers a surreal hotel that's home to a boy who has spent his entire life there, because no one ever leaves. When the clock strikes midnight she'll be trapped there forever unless she's able to break free from magic that in turn breaks all her rules. Publication is slated for fall 2023; Stacia Decker at Dunow Carlson & Lerner negotiated the deal for world English rights.



Rachel Diebel at Feiwel and Friends has bought debut fantasy YA graphic novel Evil-ish by author-illustrator and Disney Animation Studios story artist Kennedy Tarrell, and a second untitled project. In Evil-ish, nonbinary teen Hawthorne finally gets the chance to fulfill their dream of joining the local league of evil... only to play second fiddle to bubbly, bright, decidedly un-evil seeming Maple. But after an accident ends in death, Hawthorne begins to realize that villainy is not all it's cracked up to be, and Maple might be a little too interested in crime for their taste. Publication is set for winter 2024; Moe Ferrara at BookEnds did the deal for world rights.



Stephanie Guerdan at HarperTeen has acquired Just Happy to Be Here by Naomi Kanakia, a contemporary YA novel about Tara, an Indian American trans girl who transfers from her prestigious all-boys school to the sister school that she's always idealized. But once there, Tara has to decide whether she's content to be treated like a second-class citizen or whether to risk her place by demanding that her school live up to its own principles. Publication is scheduled for spring 2023; Christopher Schelling at Selectric Artists brokered the deal for world rights.



Tamara Grasty at Page Street has bought North American and U.K. rights to The Comedienne's Guide to Pride by Hayli Thomson, who was a Lammy Award finalist under the name Virginia Hale. In this contemporary YA, a teenage girl wrestles with revealing her two most deeply held secretsshe wants to work in comedy, a career her mother failed at, and she's gaywhen a contest puts her in the running for an internship at SNL. Publication is planned for spring 2022; Bridget Smith at JABberwocky handled the deal for North American and UK rights.



Jordan Brown at HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray has acquired debut middle grade novel A Song Called Home by National Book Award finalist Sara Zarr. The night Lou is set to move out of the only home she's known, she finds a guitar left by her front door; assuming it's a gift from her absent, alcoholic father, she sets out to learn how to play it, in the hope she might bring a piece of him, and of her old life, home. Publication is slated for February 2022; Michael Bourret at Dystel, Goderich & Bourret negotiated the deal for North American rights.



Reka Simonsen at Atheneum has bought Kin by Carole Boston Weatherford (l.), illustrated by Jeffery Weatherford, a middle grade multi-generational family history, spanning enslavement alongside Frederick Douglass at Maryland's Wye House plantation, service in the U.S. Colored Troops, and the founding of all-Black Reconstruction-era communities, told in the voices of the author's ancestors and inspired by Spoon River Anthology. Publication is set for fall 2023; Rubin Pfeffer at Rubin Pfeffer Content represented the author and illustrator in the deal for world rights.



Liesa Abrams at Labyrinth Road has acquired, at auction, middle grade debut Farrah Noorzad and the Ring of Fate by Deeba Zargarpur. Based on the mythology of the Seven Jinn Kings, this contemporary fantasy series follows 11-year-old Farrah, who discovers her distant father is a jinn king after she accidentally traps him inside a magical ring with a birthday wish gone wrong, and her quest to free him leads right to the most devious jinn king of all. Publication is scheduled for summer 2023; Elana Roth Parker at Laura Dail Literary brokered the two-book deal for world English rights.



Martha Mihalick at Greenwillow has bought middle grade novel A Bit of Earth by Karuna Riazi (The Gauntlet series) and a second untitled novel. A Bit of Earth, told in a hybrid of verse and prose, is a contemporary retelling of The Secret Garden starring a rebellious girl of Bangladeshi and Pakistani descent who finds herself shipped off to the white Clayborne family on Long Island after losing her activist parents. The book is planned for fall 2022; Thao Le at the Dijkstra Agency did the deal for world English rights.



Christine Engels at Candlewick has acquired middle grade novel The Girl from Earth's End by Tara Dairman (All Four Stars), about a girl who has lived her whole life on the tiny island of Earth's End, and who sets out in search of a mysterious, nearly extinct plant that might save her father's life. Publication is slated for spring 2023; Ammi-Joan Paquette at Erin Murphy Literary negotiated the deal for world English rights.



Alex McKenzie at Charlesbridge has bought Monster vs. Boy by SCBWI Crystal Kite Award winner Karen Krossing, a story about the power of empathy, told from the dual perspectives of 11-year-old Dawz and his natural enemy, Mim, the terrifying but kind-hearted monster in his closet, in which they must eventually uncover the true nature of their mysterious connection. Publication is scheduled for fall 2023; Ginger Knowlton at Curtis Brown brokered the deal for world rights.



Karen Lotz at Candlewick Press has acquired world rights to two picture books, Build a House and We Could Fly, from musician Rhiannon Giddens (l.). Build a House, based on the song of that title, which Giddens wrote in 2020 for the 155th anniversary of Juneteenth, is set for publication in fall 2022; illustrator Monica Mikai (c) was represented by Christy Ewers at the CAT Agency. We Could Fly, slated for publication in fall 2023 and based on Giddenss song of that title, written with Dirk Powell, is a dialogue between a mother and daughter drawing on African folklore and celebrating resilience and love; it will be illustrated by Briana Mukodiri Uchendu (r.), represented by Jessica Saint Jean at Jill Grinberg Literary Management. The author's agent, Laura Nolan at Aevitas Creative Management, handled the four-book deal.



Mekisha Telfer at Roaring Brook has bought world rights for School Is Wherever I Am by author-illustrator Ellie Peterson, inspired by the non-traditional and surprising ways we can learn from the world around us, beyond the boundaries of a classroom, and a second untitled picture book. Publication is planned for summer 2022; Adria Goetz at Martin Literary Management negotiated the deal.



Christy Ottaviano at Little, Brown/Ottaviano has acquired, in an exclusive submission, world rights to Like You, Like Me by Ezra Jack Keats Award-winning author-illustrator Jenny Sue Kostecki-Shaw (Same, Same but Different). The picture book follows two young pen pals who live across the world from each otherone in a city by the sea, the other in the mountains. The friends celebrate their cultures and their unique connections to the land they share, seeing themselves in the other as they observe feelings and experiences they have in common. It's slated for fall 2023; Jo-Lynne Worley at Worley Shoemaker brokered the deal.



Reka Simonsen at Atheneum has bought world English rights at auction to Do You Know Them? by 2021 Irma Black Award winner Shana Keller (l.), illustrated by Laura Freeman. In the picture book, a girl is seeking family members displaced by slavery and the civil war, with the help of historically accurate newspaper ads from others who are searching for their missing loved ones. Despite slim odds of success, she saves money to place her own ad, and reads other ads aloud to reconnect her community. Publication is set for spring 2024; Laura Rennert at Andrea Brown Literary represented the author, and Janet DeCarlo at Storybook Arts represented the illustrator.



Sylvie Frank while at Paula Wiseman Books acquired world rights to the latest picture book by Gabi Snyder (l.), Look, which explores different kinds of patterns in nature and at home that connect us all to each other and to the world around us. Samantha Cotterill will illustrate; Paula Wiseman will edit. Publication is scheduled for fall 2023; Natalie Lakosil at Bradford Literary Agency represented the author, and Kirsten Hall at Catbird Productions represented the illustrator.



Sophia Jimenez at Atheneum has bought Free to Learn: How Alfredo Lopez Fought for the Right to Go to School by Cynthia Levinson (l.) (The Youngest Marcher), a picture book based on the true story of a boy whose family was part of Plyler v. Doe, the Supreme Court case that won access to education for undocumented immigrant children in the U.S., illustrated by Mirelle Ortega (Small Rooms, Big Dreams: The Journey of Julian and Joaquin Castro). Publication is planned for spring 2024; Erin Murphy at Erin Murphy Literary represented the author, and James Burns at the Bright Agency represented the illustrator in the deal for world rights.



Kelly Delaney at Knopf has acquired world rights to the picture book biography Door by Door: How Sarah McBride Became America's First Transgender Senator by Golden Kite honoree Meeg Pincus (l.), illustrated by Meridth McKean Gimbel, detailing the trailblazing politician's life from building the White House out of toy blocks as a kid to advocating for the LGBTQ+ community within its walls. Publication is slated for summer 2023; Jenna Pocius at Red Fox Literary represented the author, and Alexandra Levick at Writers House represented the illustrator.



Wiley Blevins at Reycraft has bought picture book biography Ferdinand Cheval: The Postman Who Delivered a Palace by Anne Renaud (Gwendolyn's Pet Garden). The forerunner of the Naive Architecture movement built his "Perfect Palace" one pebble at a time over three decades and inspired generations of artists, including Picasso, with the site a designated historical monument in France to this day. Publication is scheduled for fall 2022; Olga Filina at 5 Otter Literary sold world English rights.



Peter Phillips and Tara Walker at Tundra Books have acquired North American rights to Your Birthday Was the BEST! and School Was the BEST!, two picture books by Australian author Maggie Hutchings (l.) and illustrator Felicita Sala, in a two-book deal. The books follow the adventures of an optimistic cockroach who gate-crashes a birthday party (and then a school day). Birthday, published in Australia by Affirm Press, was a Children's Book Council of Australia Notable Book. The books' North American publication dates will be spring 2022 and summer 2023, respectively; Annabel Barker at Annabel Barker Agency brokered the deal on behalf of Tash Besliev at Affirm Press.



Christianne Jones at Capstone has bought world rights to Braver Than Brave by Janet Sumner Johnson (l.), illustrated by Eunji Jung. It's the tale of a girl who is determined to be brave in her own wayproving that everyone has their own version of brave. Publication is planned for August 2022; Lauren Galit at LKG Agency represented the author, and Lemonade Illustration Agency represented the artist.



Kelsey Skea at Amazon/Two Lions has acquired, in an exclusive submission, North American English rights to Lowy by Geisel winners (You Are (Not) Small) Anna Kang (l.) and Christopher Weyant, about a girl named So-Hee whose myriad of allergies prevent her from the only thing she's ever wanted: a pet to love and hold. Her life changes forever when she sets her eyes on a large, highlighter-yellow python. Publication is set for spring 2023; Holly McGhee at Pippin Properties negotiated the deal.


In an agreement with the estate of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., HarperCollins has acquired world publishing rights to the archives of the civil rights leader. The publisher said the collection features some of the "most historically important and vital literature in American history."

Judith Curr, president and publisher of HarperOne Group, negotiated the deal with Amy Berkower, president, Writers House and agent for the King estate; and Eric D. Tidwell of Intellectual Properties Management, manager of the King estate. The deal gives HC world rights to publish new books from the archives across all formats, including childrens books, e-books, audiobooks, journals, and graphic novels in all languages.

HC said it plans to hire an archivist who will oversee the material in the archive and make it "available to all HarperCollins editors globally." HC added that it intends to "engage prominent Black scholars, actors, artists, performers, and social activists to help bring Dr. Kings works to life."

HC also has history with King. A predecessor company to HC, Harper & Brothers, published King's first book, Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story, in 1958.

All current his King titles, including those published by Beacon Press, will continue to be publishing by their current rights holders.

We are thrilled to be the official publisher of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.s archives, said Curr in a statement. We view this as a unique global publishing program."

The first King titles to be published by HC are scheduled to drop in January 2022, coinciding with Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
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Coping with the death of a loved one and facing ones own mortality are evergreen topics for religion and spirituality publishers. But this year, titles in the death and dying category also address societys most current and painful issues, including mass shootings, the coronavirus pandemic, veteran suicide, and more.

Authors in this category have shown great vulnerability in talking about their losses, and they are also now more honest about mental health realities like trauma and depression as part of the grief journey, Al Hsu, senior editor at IVP, tells PW.

From IVP, When Thoughts and Prayers Aren't Enough: A Shooting Survivor's Journey into the Realities of Gun Violence by Taylor S. Schumann (July) reveals what her life is like since sustaining a gunshot wound in 2013 at New River Community College in Christianburg, Va. Long after news outlets stopped covering the shooting, Schumann underwent surgeries, rehabilitation, and counseling, and she writes: I spent a lot of days feeling forgotten. In the weeks and months after the shooting, most of my friends and people in my life were able to move on with their lives. Things went back to normal for them, but I was drowning, trying to figure out what my life was supposed to look like.

In addition to sharing her story, Schumann examines gun ownership and Second Amendment rights before calling on Christians to join the effort to reduce gun violence and protect lives.

Much of the current discussion about guns in America is framed from the perspective of the rights of gun owners and manufacturers, IVPs Hsu tells PW. Taylor's story gives us a real-life window into how gun violence is experienced by the victims, the pain of trauma and recovery, and the cost that is borne by the survivors and all of society.

Shifting to another urgent crisis, books on Covid-19 are beginning to examine the life-changing ramifications of the coronavirusnot least, the deaths of millions of people. After a lengthy and public battle against severe Covid-19 complications, Broadway actor Nick Cordero died in July 2020. Now, his widow, Amanda Kloots, is reflecting on the 95 days Cordero spent in the intensive care unit, their relationship, and how she learned that sometimes, celebrating life today is the only path through tomorrows darkness, she writes in Live Your Life: My Story of Loving and Losing Nick Cordero (Harper, out now). Kloots wrote the book alongside her sister Anna, and both authors hope it serves as a tribute to [Nicks] legacy and many other things we value: the goodness of humanity, the importance of family, the power of faith, the joys of motherhood, and the unbreakable bond of sisterhood, they write.

War takes an immeasurable toll on everyone it touches, resulting in grief that reaches well beyond the battlefield. In his memoir, A Bridge in Babylon: Stories of a Military Chaplain in Iraq (Chalice, out now), Owen R. Chandler shares details about the realities of war and his struggle to maintain a sense of hope and faith. Drawing attention to the high rates of suicide and substance abuse among veterans, especially Army National Reserve soldiers, Chandler also urges readers to create meaningful connections with those who have served.

Confronting the widespread feeling of anguish present today, Finding Refuge: Heart Work for Healing Collective Grief by Michelle Cassandra Johnson (Shambhala, July) features personal stories of overcoming desperation, powerlessness, and confusion related to cultural and racial biases. It is written for those who are grieving due to cultural oppression, those who are blind to cultural privilege, and anyone interested in discovering what is present in their heart, according to the publisher.

Executive editor at Shambhala Beth Frankl calls the book medicine, telling PW: Fully experiencing our grief with presence and awareness leads to power and strength that can fuel real change. Learning to work with those difficult emotions, rather than being consumed by them, is a brave, hopeful choice each of us makes.

Johnson, a social worker and yoga teacher, includes meditation and journaling practices at the end of each chapter with the goal of inspiring readers to take intentional action and shift what is unsettled and unjust in the world.

Geared toward women, Living Brave: Lessons from Hurt, Lighting the Way to Hope (HarperOne, out now) is intended to help readers discover hope in a hopeless world and bravery in an age that seems to lack it, Shannon Dingle writes. Drawing on her past, including childhood sexual abuse and the sudden death of her husband Lee, hit by a freak wave during a family vacation, Dingle makes a case for how faith and courage gave her the strength to make it through the darkest days.

Grief is all around us, Merissa Nathan Gerson writes in Forget Prayers, Bring Cake: A Single Woman's Guide to Grieving (Mandala, Aug.). Rooted in the authors Jewish faith and drawn from her personal experiences with loss, the book lays out ways to practice self-care, foster self-worth, define ones needs, and more in these troubled times. It is for readers of all ages and orientations dealing with grief of any sortprofessional, personal, romantic, familial, or even the sadness of the modern day, according to the publisher.

In Either Way, Well Be All Right: An Honest Exploration of God in Our Grief (NavPress, out now), Presbyterian pastor Eric Tonjes explains what his wife Elizabeths terminal illness taught him about the nature of God. Caitlyn Carlson, acquisitions editor at NavPress, describes Either Way, Well Be All Right as a raw, unflinching, profound statement on how God meets us in our most painful moments. Carlson adds: Eric wrote this book in the middle of his own devastating griefthe final days of his wifes battle with cancer. There is no saccharine religiosity here; only honest, transcendent truth to carry us through the storm of grief.

For example, Tonjes details what he calls cancers agony and wrongness, and builds a case for how God has shown up for us, not in some sanctimonious way, but for real. I have yelled at him and wrestled with him and found his arms around me still, hugging me until the turmoil subsides.

Finally, two books draw on religious and spiritual teachings in order to prepare readers for the inevitable last act. Tim Perry, adjunct professor of theology at Saint Paul University in Ottawa, Ontario, writes specifically to pastors about how to help congregants face death in Funerals: For the Care of Souls (Lexham, Aug.). In it, Perry argues that a more secularized society has caused death as well as funerals to be viewed as distant and strange. He aims to shed new light on traditional Christian rituals and beliefs surrounding death, including communion with saints, peace in forgiveness, hope in the resurrection, and joy in eternal life in heaven.

"You are going to die, Sister Theresa Aletheia Noble, FSP wrote in 2019s Remember Your Death: Memento Mori Lenten Devotional (Pauline). The moment you are born you begin dying. You may die in ten years, fifty years, perhaps tomorrowor even today. But whenever it happens, death awaits every person, whether rich or poor, young or old, believer or nonbeliever.

In a follow up book publishing in October, Memento Mori: An Advent Companion on the Last Things (Pauline), Sister Theresa provides meditations on death and the afterlife, often known as the Four Last Things in the Christian traditiondeath, judgment, heaven, and hell. The meditation practices are designed to coincide with the lead up to Christmas. Just as no days exist in which a human does not die, there are no liturgical breaks from remembrance of death, she writes. Advent is both a time of joyful anticipation and sober preparation. The powerful, paradoxical truth of the Catholic faith demands that we keep these truths in tension."
Petition to rename Elliott Hall of Music reckons with former president's inactions toward Black students.
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Paris Hilton is "more interested" in having a baby than becoming a billionaire.

The 40-year-old star insisted in her 'This Is Paris' documentary - which is available on YouTube and was filmed two years ago - that she was motivated by money, but now her stance has changed.

Explaining why she doesn't want to make one billion dollars anymore, she told the 'Just for Variety' podcast: "It was such a goal of mine before because I wasnt happy in my personal life.

And also just going through what I went through, I always saw money as freedom and independence, and not being controlled.

"And I think thats why I just had that as my focus in life.

"And now that I am so incredibly happy and in love in my personal life Im not really interested in billions anymore. Im more interested in babies.

The heiress got engaged to Carter Reum earlier this year and not only will all their preparations for their big day feature in her new reality TV series, 'Paris in Love', she's also confirmed their nuptials will be part of the show too.

She revealed: "We just started shooting our new show, 'Paris in Love', on Peacock and we're shooting in New York just now, actually, and getting ready for the dress fitting and just planning the bachelorette party. There's a lot.

"So I'm really excited to share that with all my fans."

When asked whether or not the wedding itself will be televised, she confirmed: "Yes."

The 'Stars are Blind' hitmaker teased her wedding will be "something magical and fun" and her beloved pet dog will be involved in the ceremony.

She said: "You know, I'm not your traditional bride. There has to be my little Chihuahua, Diamond Baby."

Paris hailed Carter as her "prince charming" and insisted she'd never met anyone like him before.

Asked how it felt to have his support, she added: "You're going to make me cry asking a question like that. I've never met a man like this in my life.

"I've never been with someone who loves and supports me so much, and lifts me up, and isn't intimidated.

"[He] is just my best friend and my prince charming all rolled into one."
WWE NXT REPORT: THE DIAMOND MINE DEBUTS, KYLE VERSUS KUSHIDA, MORE ANNOUNCED FOR GREAT AMERICAN BASH, AND MORE

We are at the Capitol Wrestling Centre and your announcers are Vic Joseph, Beth Phoenix, and Wade Barrett.

Adam Cole has a mic and he says last week Regal decided he had to fight Kyle O'Reilly at the Great American Bash. Last week, Samoa Joe assaulted him. Tonight, he gets to hand pick his opponent. Adam says he was in his locker room and he says there ain't no way in hell he is going to pick his opponent. He isn't going to follow the rules just because Samoa Joe is here. Adam says that he is the king of the brand. After I embarrass Kyle at the Great American Bash, I will be recognized as the greatest NXT superstar.

Carmelo Hayes makes his way to the ring.

Hayes says you might not know who he is, but he knows who Adam Cole is. If anyone is going to change your mind, it is me.

Cole asks how does Hayes plan to change his mind.

Hayes says there is this phrase . . . Ruthless Aggression. Hayes punches Cole.

Match Number One: Adam Cole versus Carmelo Hayes

Cole with punches and forearms. Hayes with a springboard clothesline and Cole goes to the floor. Hayes with a pescado but Cole with a boot to Hayes to knock him off the apron. Cole with punches and a suplex. Cole with a neck breaker. Cole chokes Hayes in the ropes. Hayes punches Cole but Cole with a forearm and more punches. Hayes kicks Cole away and Cole gets Hayes to flinch and Cole with a super kick to the knee. Hayes with a face buster followed by a clothesline for a near fall.

Hayes with punches in the corner. Cole sends Hayes into the turnbuckles. Cole runs into a boot and Cole knocks Hayes over the top rope to the floor. Cole sends Hayes into the ringside barrier and then into the plexiglass. Cole breaks the count and returns to the floor. Cole sends Hayes into the plexiglass again. Cole breaks the count again. Cole sends Hayes back into the ring and then he connects with a knee to the back and he applies a figure four head scissors.

Hayes gets to the ropes and Cole with a forearm and he sends Hayes into the turnbuckles. Cole with a punch and hard Irish whip. Hayes with a punch but Cole with a kick and a belly-to-back suplex for a near fall. Hayes with a forearm and Cole with a punch but Hayes with a kick. Cole with a European uppercut and Hayes with a forearm. Cole gets a near fall. Cole with a reverse chin lock. Cole with elbows to Hayes. Cole returns to the reverse chin lock. Hayes with punches and Cole with a back elbow. Cole sends Hayes into the turnbuckles and follows with a hard Irish whip. Hayes rolls to the floor. Hayes rolls back into the ring to beat the count. Cole with a forearm. Cole slaps Hayes and Hayes falls into the corner.

Hayes with a forearm and Cole fires back. They go back and forth. Hayes with a boot to Cole but Cole with a bicycle kick. Hayes counters a suplex into a cutter suplex. Cole with an inside cradle for a near fall. Hayes has a kick blocked but Hayes with an enzuigiri followed by a Codebreaker for a near fall. Hayes with a chop. Hayes gets Cole on his shoulders but Cole escapes and hits a lungblower for a near fall. Cole comes off the turnbuckles and Hayes with a super kick. Hayes with a springboard move and Cole with a super kicka nd Panama Sunrise for the three count.

Winner: Adam Cole

We go to footage from earlier today with Franky Monet, Aliyah, and Jessi Kamea. Franky talks about their matches and Franky suggests they be called the Winner's Circle.

Robert Stone shows up and Franky wishes Aliyah and Jessi luck, but Franky's dog almost bites Stone.

Zoey Stark is in the interview area and McKenzie asks why did Zoey help Io. Zoey says that she was paying it back for being her first opponent.

Io says that she respects Zoey but does not like her and she walks away.

Zoey says that mutual respect is all they need.

We go to commercial.

We are back with LA Knight and he says history was made at Takeover with him becoming the Million Dollar Champion. Then he says he dropped what he doesn't need and that is Ted DiBiase trying to ride the gravy train. Knight says the crowd chanted for Cameron Grimes and he came out to help DiBiase. You are a 100% moron idiot. Do you remember that fall you took at Takeover, that will be nothing when I drop you on your head.

Johnny Gargano and Austin Theory make their way to the ring.

Johnny says these are exciting times. We need a new champion and a new face of this brand. We don't need angry faced Doomsday guy. We need the handsome, hard working, headband wearing, respectable family man. We need me. The 57 days I was NXT champion, this place thrived. It was the best that NXT ever was. It was paradise. I proved that Karrion Kross was not on my level at Takeover. I outclassed him every time we were in the ring. Everyone knows I can outwrestle him on his worst day.

Pete Dunne's music plays and he makes his way to the ring with Oney Lorcan.

Pete asks Johnny if he is mad. You must be mad if you think you are number one contender over me. Pete tells Austin to shut up.

Johnny tells Austin they are trying to provoke him and start chaos. You are not provoked. There is a new way to do things. They do not participate in hijinks and shenanigans any more. There are rules for a reason Peter. They are good people. If you want to fight, you are not going to get it from us.

Johnny and Austin leave the ring.

Austin tells Pete that he is watching him while on the apron and Pete pulls at the fingers.

We see Cameron Grimes arriving at the building earlier today and he gives out some money as people ask about Ted DiBiase.

Ari Sterling talks about going to the old folk's home to check on DiBiase and he punches Sterling.

Adam Cole tells McKenzie he is not going to talk about Kyle. He will do to Kyle what he did to Carmelo.

William Regal shows up and he tells Cole there is no animosity between Joe and Cole. He tells Cole not to provoke him.

Cole says he loves how Regal has done nothing to reprimand Joe for putting his hands on him. Cole says he doesn't want to be here and he leaves.

We go to commercial.

We are back and the phone charging graphic is at 31 percent.

Johnny Gargano and Austin Theory go to William Regal's office and Johnny asks if Regal saw what happened. Johnny says they are being model citizens and he has a pencil for Regal. Johnny says there needs to be consequences. They ask if Joe will choke them out or throw them through a wall. Johnny asks if Regal will knuck them out.

Regal says they will face Pete and Oney tonight.

Match Number Two: Zoey Stark and Io Shirai versus Jessi Kamea and Aliyah (with Robert Stone)

Aliyah and Io start things off and Io with a side head lock and Io with a take down and she gets Aliyah on her shoulders but Aliyah gets to her feet. Io with punches and chops. Aliyah pushes Io but Io with a flapjack and a drop kick to the head. Io sends Aliyah into the corner and she chokes Aliyah. Zoey tags in and she takes Aliyah down with a fireman's carry into an arm bar. Aliyah with forearms but Zoey blocks an Irish whip. Aliyah with a head scissors but Stark lands on her feet.

Jessi tags in and Jessi with a rolling round kick for a near fall. Zoey with a rollup for a near fall. Zoey with a double stomp to the back. Jessi drops Zoey on the top rope and Jessi with an elbow drop for a near fall.

NXT Women's Tag Champs Candice LeRae and Indi Hartwell make their way to the ring.

Aliyah chokes Zoey and Jessi tags in and kicks Zoey. Aliyah tags in and kicks Zoey. Zoey with a rollup for a near fall. Aliyah with a drop kick for a near fall.

We go to commercial.

We are back and Jessi with a head lock on Zoey and then Aliyah tags in. Jessi slams Aliyah onto Stark for a near fall. Aliyah with a waist lock. Stark with punches to Aliyah but Aliyah adds pressure in the body scissors. Stark picks up Aliyah and Stark with a power slam. Jessi and Io tag in and Io with forearms. Io with a flapjack and she knocks Aliyah off the apron. Io with a Tiger Feint Kick and she avoids Aliyah and kicks Aliyah. Io with a springboard drop kick for a near fall. Io with a double underhook but Jessi escapes and kicks Io.

Aliyah tags in and Aliyah with a Northern Lights suplex for a near fall. Io avoids a double suplex and tags in Stark. Stark with a springboard drop kick and a belly-to-back suplex. Io tags in and she goes up top after pointing at Candice and Indi. Io with a moonsault for the three count.

Winners: Io Shirai and Zoey Stark

After the match, Candice and Indi get on the apron but they take their time and Raquel Gonzalez and Dakota Kai.

Raquel says that Io went on vacation and got a new friend. Dakota says that no one is jumping the line ahead of them.

Ember Moon and Shotzi Blackheart come out and Ember says that they are crazy if they think they are the number one contenders. Shotzi says they need to remind everyone and that means to kick their ass.

Everyone but the tag champs battle in the ring while Samoa Joe comes out and tells security to break things up.

KUSHIDA says he knew his wrestling career will not last forever, but this will be a special moment for him.

Coverage continues on next page

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Cloudy skies with periods of rain late. Low 61F. Winds NE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 70%.
Foothills Forum is an independent, community-supported nonprofit tackling the need for in-depth research and reporting on Rappahannock County issues.

The group has an agreement with Rappahannock Media, owner of the Rappahannock News, to present this series and other award-winning reporting projects. More at foothills-forum.org.
Wawa and 2SP Brewing team up to create a new beer, summer brew will be available at six Wawa locations
Radar

Pursuit of safety

Radar for local police might soon be available to Berks municipalities
A 22-year-old man lost his hand and several others were also injured amid violence as police tried to break up an unauthorized rave party in western France
Safe Berks has stepped up its work recently in the wake of high-profile domestic violence episodes. The leadership, above, urges victims to seek help and police and other groups to equip themselves with the Lethality Assessment Program that potentially can reveal abuse. The leaders are, from left, Macy Lluberes, Jennifer Sawyer, Mereliss Colon Ortiz, Francine M. Scoboria and Meghan Sager.
The remarkable resilience of what evolved into the Antarctic

Treaty System cannot be an excuse for complacency.

The Antarctic Treaty is celebrating an important anniversary.

Negotiated in 1959, the treaty entered into force on 23 June 1961. The first meeting of the treaty parties was held at (Old) Parliament House in Canberra on 10 July 1961. There were only 13 original state parties: Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Chile, France, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, South Africa, the United States, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Russia), and the United Kingdom.

That list has now grown to 54 including powerful new Antarctic Treaty parties such as China, Germany and India.

The treaty has evolved over the years into what is commonly referred to as the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS), which encompasses additional instruments such as the 1972 Seals Convention, 1980 Marine Living Resources Convention, and 1991 Madrid Protocol. Each has in their own way been a success, though debate over adoption of the Madrid Protocol came at the end of a tumultuous period when core treaty parties lead by Australia and France abandoned a negotiated minerals treaty. The Madrid Protocol to the Antarctic Treaty placed a prohibition on all minerals activity on the continent and in the adjacent Southern Ocean and introduced a sweeping environmental protection regime.

Since the height of these governance reforms in the 1990s, Antarctic affairs have been low key excepting the occasional spotlight that fell on Japans whaling program. In the past decade, much more global polar attention has been focussed on the Arctic.

While the Antarctic Treaty has spawned the ATS, remarkably the treaty has not undergone any formal amendment over its 60 years. An important feature of the treaty was provision for the calling of a Review Conference any time after 30 years. Subject to the outcome of such a conference there was the potential that parties could withdraw, which could over time have imperilled the treatys future. No review conference was called for in 1991, but that option remains possible today.

Likewise, the Madrid Protocol could also be subject to review in 2048, which could possibly lead to a reversal of the mining prohibition. The likelihood of that occurring without the support of all the key Antarctic Treaty parties including Australia would appear at present to be remote. This raises the prospect that parties dissatisfied with the outcome of those processes could withdraw from the treaty.

It is currently fashionable to critique the ATS and speculate whether it will survive due to a combination of geopolitics and resource tensions, and whether it remains fit for purpose at a time that is much changed from that which existed when the regime was originally negotiated. Much of this debate has been sparked by the global rise of China in tandem with Chinas increased engagement with Antarctica and the ATS. It has also been fuelled by suspicions about Chinas Antarctic ambitions, which to date have not been clearly articulated.

Chinas commitment to the ATS has, however, been demonstrated through its hosting of the 2017 Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting, and its ongoing high level scientific research program, which now matches that of longstanding Antarctic states. Whether China would seek to leave the ATS in the foreseeable future can only be speculated about. In this respect it needs to be acknowledged that China is currently able to assert a much greater role in Antarctic governance through its ATS status than it does in the Arctic where it is an observer on the regional Arctic Council.

Nevertheless, debate continues as to whether China, or any other party, may seek to initiate a 2048 Madrid Protocol Review Conference. While 2048, like 1991 before it, may prove to be an important milestone for the ATS, the history of the regime shows that it has faced a number of challenges, and those challenges have been actively addressed. The result is that the ATS has been able to demonstrate great resilience over the past 60 years.

Antarctic affairs have been low key since the 1990s excepting the occasional spotlight that fell on Japans whaling program ( Daniel Enchev/Flickr)

This resilience should not be underestimated, and while the ATS still only has a membership of approximately one quarter of UN member states, it does include all of the permanent five members of the UN Security Council, all G7 members, and all but three members of the G20.

Nevertheless, while the ATS has enjoyed enormous success the global international order is currently experiencing a backlash against some aspects of international law and institutions, which is partly driven by a concern from some states that certain global institutions and mechanisms are no longer appropriate and are in need of reform or radical modification. In some cases, states have abandoned long established international legal frameworks and institutions to pursue unilateral goals or to support new regimes. It would therefore be inappropriate to become complacent about the ATS and the challenges that it faces.

While there has been considerable attention in the past to the prospect of an Antarctic Treaty review conference, and increasingly a Madrid Protocol review conference, states have additional legal mechanisms they could rely upon to withdraw from either treaty. In addition, despite the passage of time, an Antarctic Treaty Review Conference could also be called by a dissatisfied state or states.

While the ATS currently presents itself as a stable legal regime, the reality is that both the Antarctic Treaty and Madrid Protocol are subject to treaty law mechanisms allowing for review of their cornerstone provisions. The international law and global governance issues that could arise from such events should not be underestimated.

Donald R Rothwell is one of Australias leading experts in International Law with specific focus on the law of the sea; law of the polar regions, use of force and implementation of international law within Australia. He is the author of 22 books and over 200 book chapters and articles including, with Tim Stephens, the influential and respected academic text, The International Law of the Sea (2nd ed, 2016). His most recent work is Arctic Ocean Shipping (BRILL The Law of the Sea 1.3 (2017)).

His most recent edited work - the 3rd edition of International Law in Australia (2017) co-edited with Associate Professor Emily Crawford, revives a publication that last appeared in 1984 and brings together some of Australia's most eminent international law jurists, practitioners and scholars to assess contemporary developments for Australia and international law.

Major career works include The Polar Regions and the Development of International Law (CUP, 1996), and International Law: Cases and Materials with Australian Perspectives 2nd (CUP: 2014) with Kaye, Akhtarkhavari and Davis.

This article appeared originally at Lowy Institute's the interpreter.
Getting outside a WEIRD worldview requires both effort and empathy. As retired general H.R. McMaster puts it, American foreign policy is currently lacking such strategic empathy, or ability to conceive a problem from the mindset of another. Empathy displaces narcissism with an appreciation of the aspirations, and ideologies that drive and constrain our rivals, he wrote last year.[8] McMaster has repeatedly stated that policy makers must remember that, to use a cliche, the enemy gets a votesomething everyone claims to understand but history shows gets forgotten.[9] Getting outside WEIRD biases requires self-reflection that is likely difficult, but nonetheless critical, as it is the precursor to even being able to engage empathetically with allies and enemies. Trying to red team strategy requires admitting that even a villain is the hero of their own story and comes to the present with their own past that we both cannot ignore and which they expect their interlocutors to respect. In international politics, that translates to being much more intentional when contemplating other countries strategic goals.

Beyond just being able to recognize existing WEIRD biases, having blinders to the non-WEIRD world may also beget other problems, such as with information warfare, which fundamentally requires an understanding of language.

The importance of non-WEIRD study

There are numerous ways to incorporate non-WEIRD thinking into strategy and military education. One is the aforementioned need to focus on empathy. A second is to draw from non-WEIRD examples, for example in the study of campaigns or battles. A third is by recognizing the importance of language.

Research in sociolinguistics shows that the language in which a conversation is conducted influences both understanding and how memories encode in the brain.[10] In other words, to a native bilingual, saying something in one language may evoke very different emotions and behaviors than saying the same thing to that same person in their other language.[11] It may not matter much if an American asks a Canadian ally about poutine in French or English, but asking a counterpart from the Northern Triangle about a sensitive topic like crime or emigration in Spanish versus English may provoke different reactions with potential national security implications. In terms of great power competition, it potentially could be very important for recall and memory if someone encodes an idea in their brain in Mandarin Chinese versus English, as the former may provoke more of an expectation of communalism than the latter.[12] To give another example, Mandarin may be better suited to systems thinking because the terms in that language overlay better with network terminology than existing English terms and explanations.[13] But few works on strategy or information discuss the implications of code-switching in discussions about strategic options or about which languages constrain or facilitate certain behaviors.

the security clearance process actually compounds or accentuates WEIRD biases in the national security environment.

Unfortunately, the U.S. Government is notoriously deficient when it comes to bilinguals, especially in less common languages.[14] Ambassador Laura Holgate pointed out in 2017 that the security clearance process itself impedes bringing some of the people who speak the languages the U.S. government most needs.[15] Indeed, the security clearance process actually compounds or accentuates WEIRD biases in the national security environment. The military, for example, created a program to lure qualified foreign youths for hard-to-fill positions, in exchange for permanent residence.[16] But, even in that specific program, enlistees were denied clearances for having foreign contacts, which seems endemic to the design of the program, and is bafflingly myopic.[17] "They're rejecting me for the same reasons they hired me," one said.[18] That is, to use the technical term, utter bullocks! Especially since the clearance process itself may not actually root out native-born extremists, as evidenced in Americas Capitol on January 6, 2021.[19]

can the national security and intelligence communities expect such patriots to step up if some in government and media are promoting Anglo-Saxon heritage as preferable?

Relatedly, the ethno-nationalist populism prevalent in todays American politics, as well as the numerous xenophobic attacks catalogued in recent years prompted by merely speaking a language other than English or looking Asian, means that WEIRD biases could become more prevalent in the short-term.[20] That would be especially problematic for great power competition from a strategic perspective. After all, if the U.S. is worried about China and Russia, the country needs more people who both speak those languages and can analyze problems and offer options from those perspectives. But can the national security and intelligence communities expect such patriots to step up if some in government and media are promoting Anglo-Saxon heritage as preferable?[21]
The New York Times has decided it is fine to out a confidential source -- provided his name is Tucker Carlson. Its media columnist, Ben Smith, reports that the Fox News star is the go-to guy for sometimes-unflattering stories about Donald J. Trump and for coverage of the internal politics of Fox News (not to mention stories about Mr. Carlson himself).

Breaking a cardinal rule of journalistic ethics, Smith identifies Carlson as one of his own off-the-record sources. So, too, did 16 other journalists  [who] told me on background that he has been, as three of them put it, a great source.

Betraying no self-awareness of his cynicism, Smith underscores the transgressive nature of these disclosures by noting that none of the 16 work at the Times because it would put my colleagues in a weird position if I asked them to betray a source. Translation: Hes happy to have his competitors violate sacred rules.

The one offender Smith does name is Brian Stelter, the host of CNNs Reliable Sources (and Times alumnus) who routinely casts himself as the conscience of journalism, who told him you can see Tuckers fingerprints all over his anti-Fox book, Hoax.

Given the lefts hatred of Carlson  who is their current Bogeyman No. 2, after Donald Trump  and its habit of reporting fake news, Smiths article could be a smear aimed at stirring up conflict on the right and problems for Carlson with his employer. That thought would not have occurred to me even five years ago, but thats where we are.

If Carlson does dish dirt off the record, Smiths piece is a yet another new low for our increasingly partisan press. As my RealClearInvestigations colleague Tom Kuntz observed, Protecting confidential sources is, of course, one of the bedrocks of journalism. The free flow of information depends on people being able to share hard truths without jeopardizing their careers or lives.

It is why journalists have gone to jail to protect their sources. Outing Carlson sends the message that trust is dead in American journalism. No source is safe if reporters decide they dont like or agree with them. Today its the Fox News anchor, tomorrow its the whistleblower who uncovered malfeasance in the Biden administration.

Still, the protection of confidentiality is not ironclad. All bets are off when a source lies. For example, false disclosures from dishonest anonymous sources were a prime driver of the bogus Trump/Russia scandal that dominated the news for several years. Smiths paper was a prime dumping ground of misinformation, as was the publication he edited before coming to the Times, BuzzFeed, publisher of the now-infamous and largely fabricated Steele dossier. Smith also oversaw the seminal but deeply misleading BuzzFeed work of Ali Watkins (now also at the Times) that commenced the years-long media smearing of former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page.

Kuntz argues, When sources engage in gross deception on a matter of such import, even committing national security crimes in the process, the news media involved should honor their higher duty  to their readers or viewers  to expose the malfeasance and correct the record.

Even as the Times outs Carlson  who is not accused of misleading anyone  it continues to protect those who perpetrated devastating frauds upon the nation. That silence is a scandal; instead of honoring trust, it betrays it. If Smith truly cares about the fate of American journalism, he should insist that his editors identify the anonymous sources of their many debunked stories during the Trump years:

The paper could start by unmasking the unnamed law enforcement source who told the paper that Capitol Hill police officer Brian Sicknick had died after pro-Trump rioters  struck him in the head with a fire extinguisher. Although this claim was cited by Democrats as grounds for impeachment, it was apparently invented. And what about the anonymous sources who told the Times and other news outlets that former New York City mayor and Trump confidant Rudy Giuliani had received a formal warning about potential Russian disinformation. The Times issued a correction to this whopper, but never said where the disinformation came from. Likewise, Times readers still dont know the identity of the source who maintained  anonymously, of course -- that the 2016 Trump campaign had repeated contacts with Russian intelligence agents, a claim Robert Mueller could find no evidence to support.

Although the Times never named any of these sources, something tells me it wasnt Tucker Carlson.
According to the establishment media, critical race theory, or CRT, is a distraction. It is a right-wing smear. It is a conservative attempt to quash the dark side of American history. Most of all, according to the establishment media, you must never -- ever -- pay attention to the infusion of CRT into the nation's institutions of power. According to MSNBC's Chuck Todd, controversy over CRT is a "creation ... It keeps people watching or it keeps people clicking." According to CNN's Bakari Sellers, CRT is just "America's history." According to The Washington Post's Jonathan Capehart, those who criticize CRT are merely attempting to prevent "us from learning our history."

Critical race theory, of course, is not America's actual history. It is a perverse worldview, unsupportable by the evidence, in which all of America's key institutions are inextricably rooted in white supremacy; it is an activist campaign demanding the destruction of those institutions. The founders of CRT have written as much. According to CRT founders Richard Delgado and Jean Stefancic, CRT is founded on two key premises: that "racism is ordinary, not aberrational -- 'normal science,' the usual way society does business, the common, everyday experience of most people of color in this country"; second, that "our system of white-over-color ascendancy serves important purposes, both psychic and material." This means, according to Delgado and Stefancic, that "racism is difficult to cure or address" and that a formal commitment to legal equality on the basis of color-blindness is merely a guise for further discrimination. Furthermore, CRT founders say that whites are unable to understand racism, and that "minority status ... brings with it a presumed competence to speak about race and racism."

CRT therefore holds that racism is embedded deeply in American life, unconsciously into white American psyches, and that it is impossible for white Americans to understand their own racism or that of the system, let alone to remove it. The only solution: tearing away the only systems that have ever provided widespread liberty and prosperity. As fellow CRT founder Derrick Bell wrote, "The whole liberal worldview of private rights and public sovereignty mediated by the rule of law needed to be exploded."

CRT isn't merely a tool of legal analysis, either, as many of its dishonest defenders claim. Delgado and Stefancic are clear: "Although CRT began as a movement in the law, it has rapidly spread beyond that discipline. Today, many in the field of education consider themselves critical race theorists. ... Political scientists ponder voting strategies coined by critical race theorists. ... Unlike some academic disciplines, critical race theory contains an activist dimension."

So, what has CRT accomplished? The near-complete subjugation of our higher educational system, which now traffics regularly in CRT-related theories; the corruption of our establishment media, who parrot the anti-Americanism of CRT as "just history"; the infusion of CRT into nearly every area of the government, under the Biden-esque Newspeak of "equity." And yet, if Americans notice this -- if Americans lobby school boards to bar indoctrination in the cultish nonsense of CRT -- these institutional actors tell those Americans that there is nothing to see.

The grassroots pushback against CRT is rooted in the best of the American tradition: a rejection of racial essentialism in favor of individualism, an enthusiastic endorsement of agency rather than determinism, a willingness to stand united against tribalism. We all ought to fight those who have hijacked and weaponized our institutions against all of these traditionally American ideals. Anything less would be an abdication of the trust we have been given -- a trust that has resulted in liberty, equality and prosperity beyond imagining for nearly all of human history.

COPYRIGHT 2021 CREATORS.COM
Traverse City, MI (49684)

Today

Partly cloudy this evening followed by mostly cloudy skies and a few showers after midnight. Low 58F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening followed by mostly cloudy skies and a few showers after midnight. Low 58F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30%.
Fred L. Goldenberg is a Certified Senior Advisor (CSA) and the owner of Senior Benefit Solutions, LLC, a financial services, and certified health insurance organization in Traverse City. Questions or comments about this column or interest in our monthly Medicare classes can be directed to (231) 922-1010 or fred@srbenefitsolutions.com.
FILE - In this May 24, 2021, file photo, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti speaks at a news conference at Los Angeles International Airport, in Los Angeles. The top aide for Garcetti is on leave for mocking California politicians and saying she hated labor icon Dolores Huerta. Garcetti said Tuesday, June 22, 2021, that his chief of staff, Ana Guerrero, will "step away" from her responsibilities.
Nolan Harold Kidd, of Crawford, and Savannah Daniel McDonald, of Elberton, were arrested after the FBI received multiple tips that Kidd and McDonald had been inside the Capitol, according to an FBI affidavit.
The inside of Wall & Broad, the event venue that will be hosting the LGBTQ micro-wedding event in collaboration with the LGBT Wedding Officiant. (Photo/Caroline Barnes, caroline.barnes3710@gmail.com)
Juneteenth, sometimes known as Freedom Day, celebrates June 19, 1865, when Union troops arrived in Texas and informed the states enslaved people they were free. While it has long been celebrated by Black communities across the U.S., it has recently become more widely known following nationwide protests over police brutality and racial inequality.
As Athens restaurants, bars and eateries adjust to changing policies and conditions during the coronavirus pandemic, their operations change frequently. Heres this weeks roundup of restaurant news. Dont forget to stay up to date on hours of operations, service options and contact information with our comprehensive restaurant guide.
Greenville, NC (27833)

Today

A few clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low near 65F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

A few clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low near 65F. Winds light and variable.
Greenville, NC (27833)

Today

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some clouds. Low 64F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some clouds. Low 64F. Winds light and variable.
Brattleboro, VT (05301)

Today

Cloudy with periods of rain. Low around 55F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%. Rainfall near a half an inch..

Tonight

Cloudy with periods of rain. Low around 55F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%. Rainfall near a half an inch.
TORRINGTON  Mayor Elinor Carbone wants to keep the tax rate flat.

To accomplish that, she has presented a reduced budget for 2021-22 to the City Council. The spending proposal includes proposed adjustments to the Board of Educations spending requests, as well as the city proposal.

The school boards operating budget, as it had been proposed, totals $77,502,179, plus a capital budget of $2,204,500, and a capital technology budget of $791,398, for a total of $80,498,077.

The citys proposed budget totals $60,836,813.

But Carbone proposed reducing the school boards capital budgets for new roofs at Vogel-Wetmore and Torrington Middle School, and sending the projects to a referendum, and bonding for them instead.

Under her plan, the school operating budget also would be reduced by $569,281, using funding from the American Rescue Plan Act to cover programs, the mayor said. She said she would work with the school board to find other qualified expenses in the operating budget that could be paid with ARP money.

The mayor also wants to authorize the school board to move its surplus funds, estimated to be $444,000, into capital reserve to cover additional expenses.

On the municipal side, the mayor proposed reducing the budget by $2,120,421, lowering the citys pension fund for police, firefighters and city hall staff. Theres still some work for me to do on that, she said, calling the cuts to pensions onerous reductions.

Carbones adjustments put the citys new 2021-22 proposed budget at $58,716,000, and the school boards proposal at $76,932,898.

My reason for bringing this to you is to talk about potentially putting the roof projects out to referendum, the mayor told the council.

My idea was to bundle the roofs, find savings, get the bids and have a crew deployed by summer 2022, so that moving forward, we can keep those big ticket items that are looming on our doorstep, and get them done, so we dont find ourselves in this position again, she said.

City Council member Sharon Waagner asked if the city could use some of the $5 million American Rescue Plan money, which is being distributed by the U.S. Treasury for recovery efforts from the pandemic. But the funding has limitations and guidelines  and Torrington would not be able to use it for new school roofs.

If we have $5 million coming in ... is there a way to spend some of it on the roofs? Waagner asked.

I wish there were, Carbone said. There are limitations.

To use the ARP money appropriately, Carbone has assembled a team to include the superintendent of schools, to meet with the public, and get them to tell us what they want, she said. By September 1, we should be in the position to make strong recommendations with public support.

The mayor was apologetic about reducing spending. Ive agonized over this budget, trying to find things I could move, to use the money, she said. There just isnt.

The council has not yet taken action on Carbones proposals.
TORRINGTON  The city has received $5 million in American Rescue Plan funding, with another $5 million expected in 2022, officials said.

But there are strict rules on how this federal money can be spent  with little guidance for local leaders, according to Mayor Elinor Carbone. She has reviewed the challenges of using the money with City Council members, and said she wants public input, too.

Funding for ARP money is municipal, not educational, she said. But there is nobody in the state that can give us guidance on how to spend this.

We have to read documents from the United States Treasury before using it. I cant send a list and say, Heres my punchlist, this is how much money we need to accomplish this punchlist, she said. The onus is on the municipality to spend the money properly, file a report, and if, after our report is reviewed, we misspend it, we have to give the money back.

The state is not involved in any regulation of the ARP money, Carbone said. Theres no reporting to the state on this funding, she said.

According to the U.S. Treasurys website, ARP money is intended to Support urgent COVID-19 response efforts to continue to decrease spread of the virus and bring the pandemic under control; replace lost revenue for eligible state, local, territorial, and Tribal governments to strengthen support for vital public services and help retain jobs; support immediate economic stabilization for households and businesses; (and) address systemic public health and economic challenges that have contributed to the inequal impact of the pandemic.

Carbone said that, as she reads through these intentions and rules for the ARP, shes looking for ways she can demonstrate that the city lost tax revenue.

Theres a broad spending latitude here; lost revenue could fund a multitude of operation expenses, capital expenses and program expenses, she said. But the U.S. Treasury gave a very specific way to calculate lost revenue, and according to our calculations, we cant demonstrate that.

Larger municipalities that have larger revenues and lost investment income during the pandemic  theres a methodology that can be used, the mayor said. For example, keeping bridge construction projects going, providing various public safety services to police and fire, that type of spending. We really hoped, through budget deliberations, that we could show that.

Torrington can apply the ARP funding to immediate economic stabilization for households and businesses, Carbone said. That includes utilities, rent, any losses that families experienced during the pandemic; unemployment, rent that wasnt paid. There are businesses that lost revenue, so theres a way to spend that money to support those businesses and households.

What she cant do with the money, however, is use it for looming infrastructure needs  such as a new roof at Torrington Middle School and Vogel-Wetmore Elementary School, or repair the citys salt shed that stores winter supplies for road safety, she said. The city also cant use the money to build its regional animal shelter, whose construction costs have increased, she said.

The ARP addresses public health and economic challenges, and there are examples of how this could be spent  for broadband needs in the community, getting essential workers for our public safety agencies. Were really, truly handcuffed with the ability to use these funds in any sort of broad latitude. It has to be very specific, Carbone said. Not infrastructure.

Another example of a way to help families that were impacted by the pandemic is to provide them with learning assistance, such as new computers or laptops.

Theres an area in the eligibility rules that we spent time looking at, equity-focused services, Carbone said. But its only applicable in qualified areas. It talks about addressing educational support, that would fill a gap wherever learning was affected. The Board of Education was asking for mental health support, such as social workers ... that could apply.

Council member Sharon Waagner asked if the money could be applied to a school.

No, it has to apply to families, Carbone said. The economic disparities theyre talking about are conversations we have to have.

Councilman Paul Cavagnero said the money had to benefit the taxpayers. Didnt the school budget ask for more teachers? he said.

We have to find uses for these funds that best benefit our taxpayers, our budgets, our schools; to fill a hold that was created, and find a path forward to apply things to this money, Carbone said.

The mayor said the ARP funds can be used for economic development for local businesses. The $5 million would go very quickly, I think, she said.

Its likely that the city will hold a public meeting to get residents input on the ARP money in the future, Carbone said.
The Rev. Marti McDougal, pastor of the First United Methodist Church in Osawatomie, speaks at the 125-year anniversary of the First United Methodist Church of Beagle in 2017, drawing smiles from the audience as she reminisced about her time as a minister in Beagle. McDougal is set to retire as pastor of the Osawatomie and Lane United Methodist Churches on Sunday, June 27.
POTTSVILLE  Farm market vouchers are available to eligible older adults in Schuylkill County.

Applicants can complete an application (one accompanies this story) and return it to Diakon Community Services through email, fax or mail.

Diakon staff will review and process applications and mail vouchers to the people who qualify.

Applicants also may make an appointment at a county senior center by calling 570-624-3063.

Also, outside distributions are taking place.

The next will occur at the Taste and See-Pennsylvania Produce event at The Island, Broadway Street, Schuylkill Haven, from 2 to 6 p.m. Aug. 11.

To be eligible, applicants must turn 60 before Dec. 31 of this year and be a county resident.

Income guidelines for eligibility are $23,828 for a single-person household and $32,227 for a two-person household, including investment interest, wages, Social Security payments, unemployment and similar distributions.

Federal stimulus checks do not count as income for determining eligibility.

The voucher program does not include older adults living in nursing care centers or other residential facilities in which meals are provided.

Application forms

All completed applications must be returned to Diakon before Sept. 15 by mail to 118 S. Centre St., Pottsville, PA 17901; email CSS@diakon.org or fax to 570-624-3011.

Application forms are available at www.diakon.org/community-services/, on Diakon Community Services Facebook page and at the following locations:

 Redners Warehouse Markets, 191 Manheim Road, Schuylkill Haven; 1 Gold Star Highway, Shenandoah; and 22 Forest Drive, Hegins.

 Boyers Food Stores customer service desk: 150 E. Centre St., Ashland; 550 W. Oak St., Frackville; 318 S. Hancock St., McAdoo; 329 S. Liberty St., Orwigsburg; 131-134 W. Main St., Schuylkill Haven; 600 W. Centre St., Shenandoah; 210 Cedar St., Tamaqua; and Yorkville, 2247 W. Market St., Pottsville.

 BGs Value Market: 24 Pleasant Valley Road, Pine Grove; 70 Kings Village, Minersville; and Mahanoy City Food Store, 28 S Main St., Mahanoy City.

 Giant Food Store, Route 61, Cressona.

The vouchers are a program of the state Department of Agriculture. Diakon, which operates various local programs under contract with the Schuylkill County Office of Senior Services, is again administering the program in Schuylkill County.

For more information, call 570-624-3063.
Woman victim of hit-and-run crash

HEGINS  The Hegins Township Police Department is investigating a hit-and-run crash that occurred on Route 125 in Hegins around 3:05 p.m. Sunday.

Police said a woman reported she was southbound and as she passed the intersection with Chestnut Street, a gold SUV-type vehicle, possibly a Ford, failed to stop at a stop sign, entered the intersection and hit her vehicle.

The woman reported stopping after being hit, but the SUVs driver failed to stop and fled the area, continuing east on Chestnut Street, police said.

Police said from the debris left at the scene, the fleeing SUV sustained damage to the front passengers side area of the vehicle.

Anyone with information on the crash or the location of the SUV is asked to call police at 570-682-3133.

Man arrested for disorderly conduct

PINE GROVE  A 60-year-old Pine Grove man was arrested by state police at Frackville and charged with disorderly conduct after he exposed himself to a woman at 4 Fidler Court in Pine Grove Township around 10:30 p.m. Friday.

Police said they were called to the address for a report of a disturbance and determined the man exposed himself to a 47-year-old Pine Grove woman during a verbal argument.

Police said a citation against the man was filed with Magisterial District Judge David J. Rossi, Tremont.

Police investigate 3-vehicle crash

CRESSONA  State police at Schuylkill Haven investigated a three-vehicle crash that happened on Route 183, just west of South Fourth Street, around 5:10 p.m. Thursday.

Police said Gabriel Dagostino, 21, of Pottsville, was driving a 1994 Toyota Tacoma north on Route 183 when he applied his brakes to avoid hitting a 2006 Subaru Legacy driven by Thomas Cragen, 51, of Auburn, who pulled out of a business parking lot into the northbound lane.

Police said Robert Powanda, 30, of Port Carbon, was driving a 2014 Ford Focus and saw the brake lights of Dagostinos vehicle but was unable to stop and ran into the back of it. Police said Cragen was unable to stop and ran into the back of Powandas vehicle.

All three drivers and a passenger in Cragens vehicle  Luisa Perez, 24, of Reading  escaped injury, police said, adding that as a result of the crash, Powanda was cited for drivers required to be licensed and Cragen with following too closely.

Seven 9 mm rounds found in roadwayAUBURN  State police at Schuylkill Haven said a magazine containing seven 9 mm rounds was found in the roadway on Pear Alley around 8 p.m. Saturday.

Police said anyone with information is asked to call the Schuylkill Haven station and refer to incident PA2021-836218.

Man free on bail after violating PFA orderGIRARDVILLE  A 27-year-old Phoenixville man is free on bail after being charged by state police at Frackville with violating a protection from abuse order on West Main Street around 9:40 a.m. Sunday.

Police said the unidentified man was involved in the PFA incident with a 30-year-old Girardville man and was taken into custody.

He was arraigned by on-call Magisterial District Judge Anthony J. Kilker, Shenandoah, and released on $10,000 unsecured bail.

2 people charged with harassment

NUREMBERG  A man and a woman were arrested by state police at Frackville after a disturbance at 4 Millers Road in North Union Township around 7:50 p.m. Friday.

Police said a 52-year-old Atlas man and a 50-year-old Green Lake woman were involved in an argument over their relationship that resulted in each making physical contact with the other.

Police did not identify the two, but said the man was charged with simple assault and harassment, arraigned and released on $25,000 unsecured bail, while the woman was charged with summary harassment.
HARRISBURG  A key state Senate committee agreed Tuesday to put guardrails on how Pennsylvania lawmakers draw congressional maps, while stripping out proposed limits on how the General Assemblys own districts are drawn.

The bill, which passed on a near party-line vote in the chambers State Government Committee, diminished anti-gerrymandering advocates hopes of preventing Pennsylvanias most powerful lawmakers from drawing maps that unfairly benefit one political party.

An amendment offered by the panels chair, Sen. David G. Argall, R-29, Rush Township, removed all proposed reforms to the legislative redistricting process, including requirements to hold public meetings and allow public comments, as well as to add criteria that advocates say could lead to fairer state House and Senate maps.

Experts say while the amendment significantly rolls back and weakens transparency and accountability provisions in the original bill introduced by Sen. Lisa Boscola, D-Northampton, the proposed guardrails would still be an improvement over the way the states congressional maps are currently drawn.

Its the first time in three decades that Pennsylvanias congressional map  which will be reduced from 18 to 17 districts  will be decided by a divided government, with Republicans controlling the General Assembly and Democrat Tom Wolf in the governors seat. National Democrats have already anticipated an impasse and have filed a lawsuit asking the Commonwealth Court to step in if the elected officials cant come to an agreement.

Argall said the bill had a better chance of passing if it only focused on congressional redistricting, which he hoped would reverse at least some of the hyperpartisan efforts of the past.

We thought that, better we try to fix this one problem now and then move on rather than try to do it all at once, Argall said. Our fear is that if we try to do it all at once, the bill will fail again.

Boscolas original bill  and its identical House version  was supported by 25 senators and 89 representatives.

Her chief of staff, Joe Kelly, told Spotlight PA and Votebeat last week that the senator was disappointed the amendment guts the guardrails for legislative redistricting, which is done by a five-person commission of legislative leaders and an appointed outside chairman.

Commissioners of that panel previously said theyre committed to making their map-drawing process transparent and have pledged to hold public hearings while they await population data set to be released in mid-August.

Argalls proposal keeps some remnants of Boscolas bill.

It requires the House and Senate State Government committees to explain how the proposed congressional map follows state and federal redistricting criteria and how the map differs from the previous decade. In December 2011, Republican lawmakers revealed and passed a new congressional map in less than two weeks without any public input.

The committees would also be mandated to hold at least four public hearings around the state to get input and to develop a system for receiving and publicly sharing written comments and citizen-submitted maps.

But Argalls amendment removed language that prohibits lawmakers from unduly favoring one political party over another  the hallmark of gerrymandering.

There are people that think thats a very difficult goal to attain, Argall told Spotlight PA and Votebeat in an interview last week. Our goal is to pass a piece of legislation that meets court muster.

But Yurij Rudensky, redistricting counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice, said that argument doesnt pass muster. Multiple courts  including the Pennsylvania Supreme Court  have acknowledged that computer-based methods can determine whether a map is drawn with one party at a disadvantage.

The states congressional map was redrawn by an outside expert in 2018 after the state Supreme Court found Republicans maximized the number of congressional seats for their party while disadvantaging Democrats. And experts have said the states current legislative maps skew toward Republicans  who controlled the process the last time the maps were drawn.

Under Argalls amendment, lawmakers would need to draw districts equal in population and would be prevented from splitting up cities, towns, boroughs, townships or voting precincts.

One objection raised by Fair Districts PA, a nonprofit group advocating for redistricting reform, is that Argalls amendment prioritizes avoiding municipality splits and population equality above all other standards  including compactness and communities of interest  rather than considering all of the standards with equal weight.

Mappers could draw strangely shaped districts that do nothing to renew trust or bring voters closer to district offices, Carol Kuniholm, chair of Fair Districts PA, said in an email to members of the Senate State Government Committee.

Fair Districts also takes issue with what the group said is a lack of transparency in a broken legislative process. A few hours before the meeting Tuesday, the amendment still wasnt publicly available online, and the public wasnt allowed to testify on the proposed amendment.

The bill was the subject of two recent rallies in Pottsville, the latest on Monday, at which members of Fair Districts called on Argall to bring the bill to a vote.

Rudensky said its unclear whether Argalls proposed criteria of prioritizing equal population and prohibiting municipality splits would give either party an advantage. Democrats in Pennsylvania tend to cluster in urban areas and cities, while Republicans are spread throughout the states rural counties.

The bill now goes to the Senate for consideration and would then need the approval of the House to reach Wolf.
TAMAQUA  A fire early Tuesday extensively damaged a borough home and caused heat damage to a shed and an attached home.

Firefighters were called to 645 E. Broad St. just before 7 a.m. and found the rear of the property, including a large deck, engulfed in flames.

Tamaqua Fire Chief James Connely said despite the volume of flames, crews were able to bring the blaze under control in a little more than 45 minutes.

It was all in the back of the building when we got there; they (firefighters) were met with a large amount of fire, he said.

Connely said he believes the building is a total loss, with fire, water and smoke damage to all three floors at the rear of the home.

He said state police fire marshal Trooper John Burns of the Frackville station was at the scene later Tuesday to try to determine how the fire started.

Connely said Burns will meet with the investigator for the familys insurance carrier before making a determination as to the cause and origin.

The chief said the three people living in the home  Russ Arnold; his wife, Tracey; and their adult son, Tyler  were not injured, but that two cats died in the fire.

Connely said one firefighter was evaluated at the scene for heat exhaustion but did not require treatment at a hospital.

Patty Daley, disaster captain with the American Red Cross Tri-County Chapter, said none of the occupants of the home required assistance from the Red Cross because they will be staying with family.

Connely said the fire was declared under control at 7:47 a.m., but one engine and several firefighters remained for several hours to assist Burns.

Also assisting were firefighters from Coaldale, rapid intervention units from Pottsville and Carbon County, and Tamaqua EMS.

Fire police from Tamaqua and Hometown assisted Tamaqua police with traffic control, with a portion of East Broad Street (Route 209), the main east-west thoroughfare, closed for more than three hours.
The seventh instalment in the Transformers movie franchise will finally see the light of the day. The project was announced on Paramount pictures' official Twitter account. The seventh instalment is titled Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. The movie stars Anthony Ramos and Dominique Fishback in prominent roles. Transformers: Rise of the Beasts release date is set for June 24, 2022. The Twitter update by Transformers says that the movie will no longer have only Autobots and Decepticons but Maximals, Predacons and Terrocons will also join the extraterrestrial battle. The seventh instalment will be directed by Steven Caple Jr., who has movies like The Land and Creed II to his credit.

Now In Production: #Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. Directed by Steven Caple Jr. and starring Anthony Ramos and Dominique Fishback, experience it in theatres June 24, 2022. https://t.co/sZHM2bYCKJ  Paramount Pictures (@ParamountPics) June 22, 2021

The battle on Earth is no longer just between Autobots and Decepticons Maximals, Predacons, and Terrorcons join Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, in theatres June 24, 2022. pic.twitter.com/VtS4CjSxLy  Transformers (@transformers) June 22, 2021

Anthony Ramos says his head "exploded" after reading the script of Transformers 7

Anthony Ramos and Dominique Fishback will be playing prominent roles in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. According to People, in a virtual press conference, Anthony revealed his excitement at being a part of the movie. He said that his head "exploded" after he read the script for the film. The movie's plot was not revealed in the press conference, but the story will be focused on animal transformers Maximals and Predacons. It will be set in 1994 in Brookyln, New York, continuing the timeline from the 2018 film Bumblebee which was set in the 80s. Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is written by Joby Harold who is known for writing films like King Arthur: Legend of the Sword.

In addition to Brooklyn, the cast will also go to Peru to film some scenes. The crew is in talks with the Peru Government to open up the Machu Pichu for filming. The official logline of the movie is that it "will take audiences on a '90s globetrotting adventure and introduce the Maximals, Predacons, and Terrorcons to the existing battle on earth between Autobots and Decepticons." Anthony Ramos further added that there is one more plot point that "almost took" him out. He exclaimed that no one has seen that in the Transformers movie before. People also reported that Paramount is also working for two more Transformers films to expand the universe.

IMAGE: TRANSFORMERS' MOVIE AND ANTHONY RAMOS' INSTAGRAM

Get the latest entertainment news from India & around the world. Now follow your favourite television celebs and telly updates. Republic World is your one-stop destination for trending Bollywood news. Tune in today to stay updated with all the latest news and headlines from the world of entertainment.
New Delhi, Jun 23 (PTI) Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday urged his party workers to provide all assistance in the relief work in the flood-affected areas in Bihar.

Thousands of people have been affected by a flash flood that has hit Bihar's East Champaran district in the wake of torrential rains that lashed catchment areas of Nepal recently causing a rise in water levels of the river Gandak.

Gandhi expressed his solidarity with the families affected by the floods in Bihar.

"I appeal to Congress friends to provide assistance in the relief work. Our every step should be for people's help -- this is the true identity of Congress' ideology," the former Congress chief said in a tweet in Hindi. PTI ASK SMN SMN

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
Jajpur (Odisha), Jun 22 (PTI) A woman, who was allegedly forced into prostitution in Kolkata, has been rescued from Jajpur district of Odisha, police said Tuesday.

Jajpur superintendent of police Rahul P R said the 22 -year-old woman claims to be a citizen of Bangladesh.

"The rescued womans credentials are being verified.

If it is proved that she is from Bangladesh, then steps will be taken to send her back to her homeland as per diplomatic procedure," the SP said.

One person has been arrested while the prime accused is absconding, police said.

As per the police complaint lodged by the woman, a businessman of Nuagaon in Dharmasala area of Jajpur district had brought her from Bangladesh to work as a domestic help at his house two years back.

During the girls short stay at the mans house, his son fell in love with her.

Later, the businessman took her to Kolkata and forced her into prostitution there, the victim alleged.

When his son came to know that the woman was in Kolkata, he went there and then took her to Bengaluru where they were living together for the last one year.

The duo returned to Jajpur district and stayed in a rented house in Jaraka bazaar last year during the first wave of the pandemic as the private company where they were working had shuttered operations due to the lockdown.

When the persons father came to know that his son was staying with the woman in a rented house in Jaraka, he allegedly assaulted her and forcibly took his son away as he was against their relationship, the police said quoting the victim.

The matter came to light when the landlady saw her weeping on Monday night. The woman narrated her ordeal to the house owner, following which she informed the local police.

Based on the complaint of the victim, the police arrested the person with whom she was in a relationship. The police sent the girl to a centre at Sakhi in Jajpur on Tuesday.

However, she has expressed her wish to return to her homeland.

Dharmasala police station Inspector-In-Charge Saroj Kumar Sahoo said that person who had brought her to Odisha used to travel to Bardhaman, Kolkata, and Bangladesh and he had brought the woman to India promising her a job.

The police said that a case has been registered under relevant sections of IPC and PITA (Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act) in connection with the incident and efforts were on to arrest the prime accused.

The accused was forwarded to a local court on Tuesday and remanded to judicial custody after his bail plea was rejected, police said. PTI COR AAM MM MM

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
Ranchi, Jun 23 (PTI) Thirty-three tribal migrant workers and their nine children forced to live like bonded labours in a brick kiln in Uttar Pradesh were rescued and are on way to their native Jharkhand by a train Wednesday.

All of them boarded Shramik Maurya Express this morning, a state government spokesperson said.

These migrant workers hailing from Tangar village under Chanho block of Ranchi district had gone to Uttar Pradesh in search of livelihood and were forced to work like bonded labourers in a brick kin in Deoria after being lured by a contractors who did not pay wages to them, he said.

All of them along with their nine children were freed at the intervention of Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, the official said.

The operator of the brick kiln at the intervention of the Jharkhand and the Uttar Pradesh officials made Rs 5 lakh payment to the workers out of total Rs 7 lakh due to them.

"At the initiative of chief minister Hemant Soren, 33 tribal workers and their nine children, residents of Chanho block of Ranchi, have been freed from the brick kiln in Deoria, Uttar Pradesh with the joint efforts of state migrant control room of the Labour Department and an NGO.

"On the morning of June 23, all the migrant workers left for Ranchi by Maurya Express train," the spokesperson said.

He said the workers who had gone to UP in January were held hostage there at Silver brick kiln located at village Mundera in Deoria district and were forced to live in hellish and inhuman conditions like bonded labourers.

The accommodation provided to the workers was in a dilapidated and unhygienic condition resulting in children of the workers falling sick, the official said.

He added that when the CM came to know about the matter, he directed the state migrant control centre of the labour department to take steps to free the workers.

"After this the labor department contacted Deoria District Collector and Superintendent of Police. An inquiry committee was constituted under the supervision of the police administration of Deoria. The committee investigated various aspects related to this matter and got the workers free.

"Also, out of the outstanding remuneration of Rs 7 lakh, about Rs 5 lakh were given to the workers by the brick kiln operator at the intervention of the administration," the official added.

Earlier, this month the state government ensured return of 38 Jharkhand tribal women stranded in Tamil Nadu due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown in the southern state, to their home district of Dumka.

Last month 26 migrant workers from Jharkhand,engaged in a project in Nepal by Larsen & Tourbro,through a contractor, who had been stranded due to lockdown in the Himalayan country to rein in the coronavirus surge were rescued at the initiative of the Jharkhand government. PTI NAM SNS SNS

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Ahead of PM Modi's Kashmir meet, which is scheduled to take place on Thursday, the Election Commission of India held a meeting in two sessions with all 20 Deputy Commissioners of Jammu & Kashmir. EC Meeting was chaired by Deputy Election Commissioner Chandra Bhushan in which Deputy Commissioners took part virtually.

EC holds meeting on the delimitation of J&K Constituencies

It was a meeting to delimit the constituencies of J&K which is seen as a step forward to delimitation in Union Territory, which will pave way for elections in Jammu and Kashmir.

Discussions were held on the delimitation of all 90 Assembly constituencies of Jammu & Kashmir. In the meeting the administrative difficulties faced by the deputy commissioners with respect to the assembly constituencies were discussed, said an official privy to the development.

Sources told Republic TV this overlapping of Assembly constituencies was done in a way that helps those Netas in power to retain their powers. The constituency of A district was overlapped with B and C district and the sole reason behind this is that it was managing the winning digit for those who were at the helm of affairs at that time.

During the meeting, Election Commission sought details on the Assembly constituencies reserved for Scheduled Castes and the population of SCs and STs. The meeting was held in two sessions; 11.00 AM - 12.30 PM and 1.30 PM - 3.00 PM. In the first session, the meeting was held with Deputy Commissioners of Jammu, Samba, Rajouri, Poonch, Kupwara, Bandipora, Baramulla, Srinagar, Ganderbal and Budgam and with Deputy Commissioners of Kishtwar, Doda, Ramban, Udhampur, Reasi, Kathua, Pulwama, Shopian, Kulgam and Anantnag in the second session.

All the Deputy Commissioners took around 8-10 minutes to put forth the administrative difficulties faced by them with regards to Assembly Constituencies in their area. There are some districts where Assembly constituencies are overlapping within the districts of Jammu and Kashmir, another official added.

The state of Jammu and Kashmir had 111 seats in total that include 24 reserved for Pakistan Occupied Jammu Kashmir while elections used to happen on 87 seats. Union Territory of J&K was left with 83 seats after the bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories. However, with the increase of seven seats, J&K UT will have an Assembly of 90 seats.

(Image: PTI)
In a successful operation, the Border Security Force (BSF) shot dead a Pakistani intruder in the Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday morning. With this, the BSF has also seized nearly 27 kgs of narcotics worth Rs 135 crores from the border area. The intruder who was shot by the force was said to be involved in smuggling drugs to India. The BSF confirmed the operation.

27 kg heroin worth approximately Rs 135 crores seized, one smuggler killed in Hiranagar sector of Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir: Border Security Force (BSF)  ANI (@ANI) June 23, 2021

This was Pakistan's effort to push drugs in India to generate money for terrorist activities in the valley region, informed sources. The operation took place at the BOP Pansar Hiranagar area from where the security force seized heroin worth crores. The search operation is still underway to see if more such poison is available.

Since the ceasefire, Pakistan has been shifting focus from weaponry to pushing drug activities in India. Recently, the security forces of Kashmir had successfully averted a major tragedy by destroying 17 grenades that were deployed by terrorists from across the border. While speaking on the matter, Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Vijay Kumar had informed Republic TV that Pakistan has been smuggling narcotics in parts of India including Punjab and Delhi to generate money for terrorists.

Pakistan smuggling Narcotics in Punjab, Delhi

According to the police head, security forces are currently focusing on bringing down the narcotics which is smuggled by Pakistani terrorists in Delhi and Punjab. The money that they get through this gets distributed amongst local terrorists and it is the biggest challenge for us, added IGP Vijay Kumar. Recently, the police had busted one of the biggest narco terror modules in Baramulla.

The June 21 operation was one of the major crackdowns by the Kashmir police along with CRPF jawans as they were able to gun down terrorist Mudasir Pandit on whom a reward of Rs 5 lakh was announced. Along with Mudasir, two other terrorists were also neutralized in the Gund Brath area of Sopore in the north Kashmir district.

In May 2021, the Jammu and Kashmir Police had busted a Pakistan-sponsored narco-terror module in the Kupwara district and seized heroin worth Rs 50 crore. In the operation, a terrorist identified as Mujasir Ahmad Lone, a resident of the Karen Bala area of the north Kashmir district, was also arrested.
Rangia, Jun 23 (PTI) Thirty-four persons, including seven girls, were rescued from a Gujarat-bound bus in Assam's Baksa district bordering Bhutan while they were being allegedly trafficked, officials said on Wednesday.

Acting on a tip-off, the Sashatra Seema Bal (SSB) and Assam Police rescued the people from the bus at Kumarikata in the Tamulpur police station area on Tuesday night, they said.

Seven persons -- two from Gujarat and five from the villages along the India-Bhutan border -- who were also travelling on the bus were taken into custody for interrogation, said SSB Assistant Commandant Y Shyam Kishore Singh.

During interrogation, it was found that 41 persons from remote villages near the India-Bhutan border were being taken to Rameshwar in Gujarat's Junagadh district with the promise of providing them with jobs, he said.

The police handed over 27 people to their families in the presence of village elders of the areas and the girls were sent to the Child Care Line home in Mushalpur town of the district.

A case was registered under different sections of the IPC, Juvenile Justice Act 2000, Labour System Act 1976 and Inter State Migration Act against the suspected traffickers, police said.

Further investigations were underway, they said. PTI CORR DG SOM SOM

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The Border Security Forces (BSF) on Wednesday foiled the smuggling attempt of alleged Pakistani smugglers and seized 27 kg of heroin worth Rs 135 crores along the Kathua border in Jammu. BSF in its press release said, "In the early hours of June 23, the ever-vigilant troops of BSF Jammu thwarted a narcotics (heroin) smuggling attempt by Pakistan smugglers on Kathua border and seized about 27 kg of narcotics."

Jammu: BSF foils smuggling attempt

Stating that the troops were alerted after noticing a suspicious movement on the international border from the Pakistan side, the BSF informed that when the smugglers attempted entry towards the Indian side of the border, they were challenged and fired upon. It further added that during the search of the area, 27 packets of heroin were found near the fence. The approximate value of this narcotics consignment is estimated to be about Rs 135 crores.

"With this recovery, BSF Jammu has once again exposed the nefarious designs of Pakistan authorities to smuggle narcotics consignment to India through the international border. Narco-terrorism angle can also not be ruled out," the release read.

Pakistan's attempt to smuggle narcotics in Punjab, Delhi

According to the police head, security forces are currently focusing on bringing down the narcotics which is smuggled by Pakistani terrorists in Delhi and Punjab. The money that they get through this gets distributed amongst local terrorists and it is the biggest challenge for us, added IGP Vijay Kumar. Recently, the police had busted one of the biggest narco terror modules in Baramulla.

The June 21 operation was one of the major crackdowns by the Kashmir police along with CRPF jawans as they were able to gun down terrorist Mudasir Pandit on whom a reward of Rs 5 lakh was announced. Along with Mudasir, two other terrorists were also neutralized in the Gund Brath area of Sopore in the north Kashmir district.

Earlier in May 2021, the Jammu and Kashmir Police had busted a Pakistan-sponsored narco-terror module in the Kupwara district and seized heroin worth Rs 50 crore. In the operation, a terrorist identified as Mujasir Ahmad Lone, a resident of the Karen Bala area of the north Kashmir district, was also arrested.

(Image: PTI)
New Delhi, Jun 23 (PTI) The ED has summoned three top fashion designers of the country -- Ritu Kumar, Sabyasachi Mukherjee and Manish Malhotra -- in connection with a money-laundering case against a Punjab Congress legislator, official sources said on Wednesday.

They said the fashion designers have been sent notices to appear for questioning before the central probe agency in Delhi later this week.

The three could not be reached for a comment.

The summonses are related to a money-laundering case against Punjab Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira and his family members. The agency had conducted searches against the accused in March, the sources said.

Khaira was a rebel Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA when the raids were carried out. He has recently re-joined the Congress.

The legislator from the Bholath Assembly seat in Punjab's Kapurthala district won the election on an AAP ticket in 2017.

However, he resigned from the primary membership of the Arvind Kejriwal-led party in January 2019 and floated his own outfit, the Punjab Ekta Party.

The ED has alleged that Khaira is an "associate" of drug case convicts and fake passport racketeers.

The 56-year-old politician has denied any wrongdoing and said he is being targeted by central agencies as he has been vocal against the Centre's three new farm laws.

The case against him pertains to the probe in a 2015 Fazilka (Punjab) drugs-smuggling case in which 1,800 gms of heroin, 24 gold biscuits, two weapons, 26 live cartridges and two Pakistani SIM cards were seized by security agencies from a gang of international drug smugglers.

The sources said the ED has found that certain payments, including in cash, were allegedly made to the three designers and hence, the agency wants to know their version of the transactions and record their statements.

The payments, purportedly made during 2018-19, run into a few lakhs of rupees and are linked to Khaira, they said.

The ED had filed the case under criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against Khaira and others after studying a Punjab Police FIR.

"The drugs were smuggled through the India-Pakistan border and one of the kingpins of the syndicate is in the UK.

"Khaira was actively aiding and supporting the gang of international smugglers and enjoying the proceeds of crime," the agency has alleged. PTI NES SKL RC

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The BJP has hit out at the Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government in Rajasthan. BJP leader and Rajasthan state-in-charge Arun Singh on Tuesday said that 'nothing is going well' in the Gehlot government. Singh hit out at the Rajasthan government and stated that the crime rate is big in the state. Moreover, he also slammed the grand old party for its stand on the RSS.

'They should look at themselves first': Arun Singh

Hitting out at the Congress for its statement on the RSS, Singh countered and said that the Congress should look at itself first instead of commenting on other organisations. He further hit out at Rahul Gandhi for spreading lies on vaccination and other issues. Singh has asserted that people know the truth. In addition, Singh also criticised other Congress leaders for their stand on Pakistan.

"Congress does the work of spreading lies and Rahul Gandhi himself is a big liar, first spread lies on vaccine and then on many other issues but people know the truth," said Arun Singh "Be it the leader of Kashmir or Congress's Digvijay Singh, everyone's love for Pakistan is clear." he added

'No factionalism in BJP'

The BJP leader has maintained that there is no factionalism within the saffron party's Rajasthan unit. Even so, the BJP leader has cautioned the party workers against making any statement that weakens the party and said they may face action for such comments. Singh has also directed the party's state unit to prepare a list of such workers. Reacting to some reported statements from the supporters of former chief minister Vasundhara Raje that "Raje is BJP and BJP is Raje", Singh said such statements weaken the party.
Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's all-party meeting with J&K leaders, Jammu & Kashmir Apni Party president Altaf Bukhari on Wednesday spoke exclusively to Republic Media Network. When asked about his views on PM Modi Kashmir meet, which is scheduled to take place on June 24, Altaf Bukhari said that he expects the Prime Minister to look upon how to restore dignity and grassroots democracy.

When asked about his agenda for the PM Modis Kashmir meet, he said, I would not like to end the speculations of the people. It is a great day for the people of J&K. We do expect that the Prime Ministers meeting will look into the aspects of how to restore the dignity of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. How to restore the grassroots democracy, so that the people of the UT feel empowered by choosing their own government.

Altaf Bukhari speaks to Republic TV

Speaking about his expectations of the next elections in Jammu and Kashmir, Bukhari said that he expects that PM Modi should look for such an alternative wherein immediately elections can be held. Stating that the problem is that in J&K, at the grassroots level, there is a disconnect between the administration and the common man, he said, "Bureaucracy cannot be an answer to democracy."

Asserting that solution to all problems of J&K lies in Delhi, Apni Party chief said that the medium through which all these problems can be solved is grassroots democracy, Pople should be able to have their own chosen government so that the connect, which has been missing since 3 years, can be restored, he added.

When asked if he is one of the key architects of what is going to happen, the Jammu & Kashmir Apni Party chief said, No, I will be very honest. The credit goes to the countrys leadership, Prime Minister, Union Home Minister and NSA. We are just an eye representation of the aspiration of my people."

Stating that India is the worlds largest democracy, he asked why the people of J&K should be left out from enjoying the benefits of democracy. When asked if there is a possibility that a discussion on Article 370 can be initiated during the key meeting on Thursday, he said that nothing can stop J&K leaders from raising this issue. "Article 370 has been close to the heart of J&K people. It is still in the Supreme Court of India and I think, either the Parliament can restore it or the apex court. People are free to raise any issues because I should be honest that the way it was removed has probably hurt people. People are looking forward to the restoration of statehood," he said.

Altaf Bukhari said, "I should be honest, this process was started on March 14, 2021, by our honourable Prime Minister, when he called us for a discussion. I am sorry that my colleagues wasted one and a half years to come to this point and thus depriving our own people of their rights, which they would have otherwise got by restoring back the democratic institution."

On Mehboobas statement that if you are talking to us, you should also begin talks with Pakistan, he said, whatever we are going to get, we will get it from Delhi and our solutions cannot be found in Islamabad, Washington or London."

PM calls for an all-party meeting with Gupkar leaders

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called for an all-party meeting with the People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) on June 24. Ahead of the meeting, leaders of the Gupkar Alliance met at National Conference (NC) Chairman Farooq Abdullah's residence on Tuesday where they announced that they will meet the PM and put forth certain demands before him. The meeting will be the first-ever all-party meeting between PM Narendra Modi and the political parties of the union territory since the abrogation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Chief Mehbooba Mufti has maintained that the PAGD alliance is not against dialogue between them and the Centre but 'confidence-building measures' from the Centre's side were necessary.

"All of us are going to attend the meeting. We don't know what their agenda is but we will put our agenda before them," Mufti said. "We will try to ensure confidence-building measures like releasing the political prisoners. People here are distressed in the last two years," she added.

(Image: Republicworld.com)
10 hours ago

Bengal govt will never allow division of state, says guv's inaugural address
Former Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti on Wednesday arrived in Delhi one day ahead of the scheduled meeting of all parties of Jammu and Kashmir leaders. In the video, she can be seen coming out of Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport but refused to talk to the media. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is going to host an all-party meeting of Jammu & Kashmir leaders in Delhi on June 24.

Mehbooba Mufti in Delhi

Former Jammu & Kashmir CM and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti arrives in Delhi to participate in the all-party meeting called by PM Narendra Modi tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/qPP1U7p3gf  ANI (@ANI) June 23, 2021

On Tuesday, the Gupkar leaders-- PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti along with the National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah --accepted the all-party meet invitation. The Indian National Congress also decided to participate in the scheduled meeting after a high-level meeting on Tuesday that was chaired by party president Sonia Gandhi.

"All of us are going to attend the meeting. We don't know what their agenda is but we will put our agenda before them. We will try to ensure confidence-building measures like releasing the political prisoners. People here are distressed in the last two years," Mufti said.

Mehbooba Mufti Bats For Dialogue With Pakistan

On June 22, Mehbooba Mufti once again urged for the need to include Pakistan in India's internal matters. With discussion on restoring statehood, the delimitation exercise, and assembly elections in J&K allegedly on the agenda with PM, the PDP leader stressed inviting Pakistan to reach a 'resolution' in the UT.

Speaking to the media on Tuesday, Mehbooba Mufti said, "They say there are engaging in dialogues with us, we say they are doing dialogues with Taliban in Doha. Then in Jammu and Kashmir, they should do dialogues with everyone including Pakistan to reach a resolution."

Her comments come in reference to the alleged 'quiet visit' that senior Indian officials made to Doha to speak to the Talibans political leadership. She later backtracked and said that Pakistan would not be discussed as it was not on the agenda.

PM Modi's meeting on June 24

This will be the Prime Minister's first interaction with all the political parties of Jammu and Kashmir since August 5, 2019, when the Central government abrogated the state's special status and bifurcated it into UTs. The PM's meeting with the political parties from Jammu and Kashmir is part of the Centre's initiatives to bolster political processes, including holding assembly elections, in the union territory.

The PAGD (People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration ) is a combination of six mainstream parties in Jammu and Kashmir that are-- National Conference, People's Democratic Party, Communist Party of India (Marxist), Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party, People's Conference, and the Panthers Party. The leaders of all the political parties of the valley were telephonically invited by Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla for participation in the meeting to be held at the Prime Minister's residence in the national capital at 3 pm on June 24 (Thursday).

The invitees include four former chief ministers-- National Conference president Farooq Abdullah, his son Omar Abdullah, senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad and PDP president Mehbooba Mufti.

(Image Credits: ANI/PTI)
Turkey's foreign minister met with Libya's prime minister and foreign minister in Berlin on Wednesday on the sidelines of a conference aimed at securing elections in the North African nation and the removal of foreign fighters. Mevlut Cavusoglu held talks with Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh and his Libyan counterpart, Najla Mangoush, as Germany and the United Nations bring together representatives of Libya with powers that have interests in the country.

The Berlin gathering follows up on a January 2020 conference where leaders agreed to respect an arms embargo and to push the country's warring parties to reach a full cease-fire. Germany has tried to act as an intermediary. Countries that have been involved in the process include the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, along with Italy, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.

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Canadas House of Commons on June 22 passed a bill banning LGBTQ conversion therapy, a victory for PM Justin Trudeaus government, which had pledged to end the practice widely regarded as a humans rights violation. According to a local Canadian media outlet, City News, the bill received 263 to 63 votes in the countrys House of Commons. It will now ban conversion therapy for children, bar people from forcing anyone to go through it and will also outlaw the profiting from or advertising of such services.

Conversion therapy is a practice of trying to change another persons sexuality by attempting to turn an LGBTQ person straight. It harms and stigmatizes lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and Two-Spirit (LGBTQ2) persons. It even undermines their dignity, and negatively impacts their equality rights. Conversion therapy can include talk therapy hypnosis, electric shocks and fasting.

As per reports, even though Canadian lawmakers voted overwhelmingly in favour of the Bill, over half of the main opposition Conservative party, however, voted against it despite support from its leadership. The legislation will now go to the Senate, where it will need to pass before receiving royal assent. Minister of Justice David Lametti said that if passed, the Bill will make the countrys criminal laws on conversion therapy the most progressive and comprehensive in the world.

Conversion therapy is 'harmful and ineffective'

Conversion therapy is a practice, treatment or service designed to change an individuals sexual orientation to heterosexual. The American Medical Association has described the practice as harmful and ineffective. According to a recent official survey, 47,000 Canadian men who identify as part of a minority sexuality group had been subjected to conversion therapy. However, now the Bill would prohibit subjecting a minor to the practice, either in Canada or abroad. An adult would also not be able to undergo conversion therapy against his or her will.

It is worth mentioning that criminalising conversion therapy was one of Canadas Liberal Partys main 2019 election pledge. A similar bill was also introduced in March 2020, but despite the support of most lawmakers, it failed to pass before Parliament was suspended for a summer break as the COVID-19 pandemic hijacked the legislative agenda. Back in October, the legislation then proposed five criminal code offences related to conversion therapy, including causing a minor to undergo conversion therapy and removing a minor from Canada to undergo conversion therapy abroad.

Image: Unsplash/AP


Countries like Mongolia, Seychelles and Bahrain relied on Chinese COVID-19 vaccines to combat the coronavirus pandemic, however, they are now battling a surge in infections, according to New York Times. The media outlet reported that the examples from several countries suggest that the Chinese vaccines may not be very effective at preventing the spread of the virus, particularly the new variants. While citing a data-tacking project report, it said that in Seychelles, Chile, Bahrain and Mongolia, about 50 to 68 per cent of the populations have been fully inoculated with Chinese vaccines, but they are still among the top 10 countries with the worst COVID-19 outbreak.

Jin Dongyan, a virologist at the University of Hong Kong, said, If the vaccines are sufficiently good, we should not see this pattern. The Chinese have a responsibility to remedy this.

China says no link between outbreak and vaccine

As per the report, Seychelles, which relied mostly on Sinopharm, reported more than 716 COVID-19 cases per million. Mongolia, relying on Chinese aid, quickly rolled out a vaccination program and eased restrictions, inoculating 52 per cent of its population. However, it recorded 2,400 new infections on Sunday, a quadrupling from a month before.

Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates were the first two countries to approve Sinopharm shot, even before late-stage clinical trial data was released. Since then, NYT reported that there have been extensive reports of vaccinated people falling ill in both countries. Chinas foreign ministry, however, has said that it did not see a link between the recent outbreaks and its vaccine. It even cited the WHO as saying that vaccination rates in certain countries had not reached sufficient levels to prevent outbreaks and that countries need to continue to maintain controls.

"Relevant reports and data also show that many countries that use Chinese-made vaccines have expressed that they are safe and reliable, and have played a good role in their epidemic prevention efforts," the ministry said.

Meanwhile, it is worth noting that the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines have efficacy rates of more than 90 per cent. Chinas Sinopharm vaccine has an efficacy rate of 78.1 per cent and the Sinovac vaccine has an efficacy rate of 51 per cent. Moreover, the Chinese companies have not released much clinical data to show how their vaccines work at preventing transmission.

(With inputs from ANI)
Amid the political crisis in Nepal, the Supreme Court quashed the appointment of 20 Cabinet ministers by Nepal Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli. The apex court termed the appointment after the dissolution of the House of Representatives as unconstitutional. The Judges invalidated two recent cabinet expansions in the House of Representatives.

Supreme Court quashes appointment of Cabinet ministers

A division bench of Chief Justice Cholendra Shumsher Rana and Justice Prakash Kumar Dhungana ruled that Cabinet expansions after the dissolution of the House were unconstitutional. The two Deputy Prime Ministers, who have lost the posts include Rajendra Mahato and Raghubir Mahaseth, according to PTI. After the Court ruling, there are only five ministers left in the cabinet that includes Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli. The Supreme Court has cited Article 77 (3) in its ruling to quash the appointments.

The article states that if the Office of the Prime Minister falls vacant after the prime minister fails to win a vote of confidence or resigns, the same Council of Ministers shall continue to act until another Council of Ministers is constituted, PTI cited a report by Kathmandu Post. Oli is heading a minority government after losing a trust vote in the House of Representatives. He expanded his cabinet on June 10 and June 4. The decision of the Court comes amid the ongoing case regarding the reinstatement of the House of Representatives, which was dissolved by President Bidya Devi Bhandari at the recommendation of Nepal PM Oli.

Dissolution of House of Representatives

Nepal President Bidya Devi Bhandari had dissolved the House of Representatives and announced that mid-term polls will be held on November 12 and 19. Nearly 30 writ petitions including the one by the Opposition alliance have been filed against the dissolution of the House of Representatives in the apex court. The Supreme Court of Nepal had issued a show-cause notice to the Office of the Prime Minister and the Presidents Office to produce a written response within 15 days. While defending government's decision of dissolution of Parliament, KP Oli had told the Supreme Court that it not the judiciarys call to appoint a premier. Nepal's President Bidya Devi Bhandari had told the Supreme Court that the House of Representatives has been dissolved under constitutional provisions.

IMAGE: ANI

Inputs from PTI
A Russian warship fired warning shots to deter a British Royal Navy warship from its waters near Crimea in the Black Sea, international reports suggested on Wednesday. As per reports, Russia accused the British destroyer of encroaching two miles into Russian waters following which the Russian warship along with a jet fighter fired shots and dropped bombs respectively near the British Royal Navy destroyer ship near Crimea's Cape Fiolent.

Russian warship, jet fire shots in path of British Navy vessel

Reports quoted the Russian Defense Ministry claiming that the Russian Navys Su-24 attack aircraft dropped four bombs along the path of the British Royal Navys HMS Defender destroyer to stop it from further manoeuvres after a border patrol ship fired warning shots. The HMS Defender 'did not respond to a warning' about the use of weapons in response to its movements, the Defense Ministry was quoted as saying. The Ministry added that the HMS Defender left the Russian waters moments after the shots were fired.

Meanwhile, Britain's newest aircraft carrier, HMS Queen Elizabeth, is helping to take a large share of operations against the Islamic State group in Iraq, according to UK naval commanders. It has also piqued the interest of Russian warplanes, who try to keep tabs on its cutting-edge F-35 jet in a "cat-and-mouse" game with British and US pilots. Speaking aboard the 65,000-tonne carrier on its first-ever deployment, Commodore Steve Moorhouse said that the UK was currently carrying out most of the missions to wipe out IS remnants in Iraq while the US is preoccupied with its withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Britain's newest aircraft carrier, HMS Queen Elizabeth, is helping to take a large share of operations against the Islamic State group in Iraq, according to UK naval commanders.

It has also piqued the interest of Russian warplanes, who try to keep tabs on its cutting-edge F-35 jet in a "cat-and-mouse" game with British and US pilots.

Speaking aboard the 65,000 tonne carrier on its first-ever deployment, Commodore Steve Moorhouse said that the UK was currently carrying out most of the missions to wipe out IS remnants in Iraq while the US is preoccupied with its withdrawal from Afghanistan.

It's the first time that a UK aircraft carrier is supporting live military operations on the ground in over two decades, projecting British military power on a global scale.

Moorhouse said the carrier offered the UK flexibility in how to conduct military operations abroad.

He added that the eastern Mediterranean had become more contested over the last decade in light of the heavier Russian military presence in Syria, which is resulting in regular encounters with Russian ships and warplanes.

The commodore insisted that Russian, British and US pilots respected each other and that their conduct had been "professional" with nothing untoward occurring in the days since the aircraft carrier started anti-IS operations on 18 June.

In total, eight British F-35 jets and 10 helicopters are aboard the carrier.

The state-of-the art F-35, armed with air-to-air missiles and laser-guided bombs, is being used over Iraq to look for other aircraft or unmanned air vehicles, support troops on the ground as well carry out surveillance duties with its sophisticated sensor and radar systems.

The HMS Queen Elizabeth and its support ships, which include the US destroyer The Sullivans, will remain in the east Mediterranean for two to three weeks before moving through the Suez Canal to continue with its seven and a half--month deployment to India, South Korea and Japan.

The carrier also has 10 US F-35 jets from the Marine Corps' Fighter Attack Squadron 211 aboard which carry out operations under British command.

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UK foreign secretary Dominic Raab met with his Cambodian counterpart Prak Sokhonn in Phnom Penh on Wednesday on the latest leg of his trip to Southeast Asia.

Raab also met Cambodia's environment minister.

A meeting with prime minister Hun Sen was cancelled after the premier came into contact with a COVID-infected official and had to self-isolate.

It's Raab's fifth visit to Southeast Asia since becoming foreign secretary.

It comes as the UK pursues a tilt towards the Indo-Pacific region in response to China's growing influence on the world stage.

It's also aimed at boosting Britain's trade ties with Asia after the UK's departure from the European Union.

Raab began his three-nation tour with meetings in Vietnam.

After Cambodia he will fly on to Singapore before returning to London on Friday.

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Scientists have recently warned that Leishmaniasis, a disease caused by a flesh-eating parasite, can spread in North American areas as a result of climate change. According to Undark Magazine, the disease is caused by a parasite known as Leishmania, which eats the flesh of the host infected by it. Leishmaniasis is already endemic to about 92 countries in the world with about two million cases each year, of which 70,000 people die.

As per the reports, the disease already exists in tropical and subtropical countries like Brazil, Mexico, and India. The parasites are also currently endemic in Texas and Oklahoma and new studies suggest that they might be present in other states, including Florida. The scientists have said that while reported cases of leishmaniasis contracted in the US are currently negligible, they may soon be on the rise. They explained that as climate change pushes rodent and sand fly habitat northward, an increasing number of US residents could be exposed to different varieties of flesh-eating parasite.

According to scientists, a person can get infected with the disease if they are bitten by infected sand flies. They explained that parasites infect sandflies when they feed on infected rodents blood. Further, they also cautioned that some strains of Leishmania parasites can be life-threatening.

Symptoms of leishmaniasis

Symptoms of the disease include lesions to ulcers on the visible parts of the body such as arms, legs and face. Another variant of the disease can cause irregular intense periods of fever, weight loss, swollen spleen and liver and serious anaemia. Some variants of the disease can be treated using gentle treatment but treating it as bacterial infections can make it severe. Sometimes the disease heals on its own.

Meanwhile, in 2007 the World Health Organization added leishmaniasis to the list of neglected tropical diseases, which mainly affect the worlds poor and do not receive much attention. A 2010 study also raised an alarm that by 2020 the disease-causing parasite was expected to reach many US states. Scientists have also predicted that by 2080, it will put nearly 27 million North Americans at risk of infection. However, it is worth noting that there is a vaccine under clinical trial that showed positive results in its first stage and scientists claim that the new vaccine can safely stimulate an immune response linked to a cure.

Image: Unsplash




A story of survival featuring a female Alaskan hiker, who traced her way back home two days after she was chased off-trail by bears, went viral and people around the world are praising her. According to Alaska News Source, 55-year-old Fina Kiefer was hiking alone on the 13.6-mile long Pioneer Peak Trail when she had run with a pair of bears. The wild encounter pushed her off her route and she lost contact with others.

It only was after one and a half days of struggle that Kiefer was finally able to regain contact with her husband and sent a text to him saying that she was chased away by bears. She also told him that she was left with only half a can of bear spray. However, problems increased further after the battery of her cellphone died, although she had climbed back on the mountain avoiding the risk of more bear encounters.

Rescue efforts

After Kiefers husband dialled to 911, members from the Alaska Mountain Rescue Group and MAT+SAR Search & Rescue swung into action. As per Senior Master Sgt. Evan Budd, Kiefer had a waterproof match stick and lit a fire during the one and half-day of her survival. In addendum, he said that she could also see helicopters searching for her, but the opposite was not possible as the hiker was in the woods. It was only after Kiefer made it out of the forest and got onto the road that volunteer searcher Stephen Dunphy found her and took her back to search basecamp. Alaska Mountain Rescue Group also shared the story and photographs from the rescue on their Facebook page.

The post garnered a myriad of comments from people across boundaries. "A great group of people. God bless you all," commented a user. "Great working with you again, thank you for what you do!," commented Alaska Air Ambulance who collaborated in the rescue mission. "I saw the news today about the Kiefer lady being rescued after bears tried to attack her. Always glad to hear good outcomes,' wrote another user. The hiker is now back home and her husband-Steve- couldn't be happier. As per Alaska News Source, several relatives of the avid hikers flew to her home to celebrate her return.

Image: Akmountainrescue/Facebook
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Xu Aimin, in a brown suit, stands next to Peter Struder, then-CEO of Kantha Bopha Childrens Hospital in Phnom Penh, in December 2018 as Struder receives a silver plate with packets of $100 bills totaling $200,000 from Rithy Samnang, in gray, who is the son-in-law of ruling party senator Kok An. Also pictured is Sao Sokha, second from left, the national military police commander, and Chinese emigre Su Zhongjian, third from left.

Political connections in Cambodia have allowed a major Chinese fugitive to elude jail while building a business empire, an investigation by RFA has found.

Xu Aimin was sentenced to 10 years in a Chinese prison in 2013 for masterminding an illicit international gambling ring with an estimated turnover of $1.75 billion. Rather than do the time for his crime he has instead spent the last eight years building an immense Cambodian business empire, including, ironically enough, a capacious casino in the port city of Sihanoukville.

The financially savvy fugitive owes both his commercial success and liberty to high-level political connections in Phnom Penh. Those connections are perhaps best illustrated in a photo posted to the Facebook page of the Royal Gendarmerie of Cambodia, or Military Police.

At the center of the photo, taken in December 2018 at the Kantha Bopha Childrens Hospital in Phnom Penh, are 2,000 hundred-dollar bills, bundled together on a silver plate, which is being received by the hospitals then-CEO Peter Struder.

Flanking Struder and handing him the plate are Xu, with a weathered face and brown suit, and a markedly more fresh-faced Rithy Samnang. Known simply as Tek by his friends, Samnang is the son-in-law of ruling party senator Kok An, who made his fortune during the 1990s in the cigarette and casino businesses.

Standing next to Xu is another entrepreneurial Chinese emigre, Su Zhongjian, who counts among his business partners Try Pheap, a U.S.-sanctioned timber tycoon and confidant of Prime Minister Hun Sen. Together, Xu, Samnang and Zhongjian are the owners of the KB Hotel & Casino in Sihanoukville and RSX Investment Co. Ltd. Presiding over the donation is national Military Police Commander Sao Sokha.

A Wanted Man

Just eight years earlier, Xus billion-dollar gambling racket in China had run into problems. The center of the action was Jingzhou, a city on the banks of the Yangtze River in Hubei province, best known for its 1,200-ton bronze statue of an ancient war god.

In October 2010, Jingzhou police were alerted to online baccarat being offered at a city hotel. Gambling having been illegal in China since 1949, an investigation was launched that traced the operation to a server in Sihanoukville, Cambodia.

Two years later, on December 14, 2012, a triumphant article appeared in the China Daily, announcing the shutdown of a major international gambling ring with a turnover of 11 billion yuan ($1.75 billion) and 120 agents identified within China alone and 27 suspects apprehended. In all its triumphal excitement the state-owned newspaper omitted to mention one crucial detail: the operations ringleader was still at large.

Rithy Samnang, left, and Xu Aimin have fun at the beach birthday party Samnang threw for himself on the island of Koh Smach. Credit: MAX Media In Hong Kong, with cash to spare

In fact, just one week before the reported bust of the gambling ring, Xu was in Hong Kong setting up a new company.

The company, Amin Capital Limited, was established as a vehicle to invest in Chinese IT start-ups, according to a former business associate of Xu, who asked not to be identified, citing reputational concerns. However, the source added, Xu quickly changed his mind and said that he was not confident in Chinas future anymore. The company was de-registered in early 2014.

In June 2013, just six months after Amin Capital Limited was registered with the authorities, Xu would find himself the subject of an Interpol Red Notice, sometimes described as an international arrest warrant. The notice described Xu as the chairman of one gambling group wanted in mainland China after a 10-year imprisonment sentence had been imposed on him by a Chinese court, according to court documents.

By November 2013, a Hong Kong magistrate issued a warrant for Xus arrest over allegations he had laundered more than 300 million yuan ($46 million) in proceeds from the online baccarat operation through five bank accounts held with the Hong Kong branch of HSBC.

A 2016 court judgement revealed that as of July 2013, the accounts  four of which were in Xus name, the fifth in that of a British Virgin Islands shell company controlled by him  held a total of 654 million Hong Kong dollars ($84 million). Records held by the Hong Kong tax authorities showed that despite holding these vast sums in accounts in the territory, neither Xu nor his shell company had filed tax returns there in the previous seven years.

The money in those accounts was made the subject of an asset freeze over suspicions it was the proceeds of organized crime. Xu, however, never submitted to the arrest warrant. As the judge in the case dryly noted, he was elsewhere. He conveniently fled Hong Kong on May 5, 2013, one month before the Interpol Red Notice would set the local authorities on his trail.

For reasons best known to [Xu], he chooses to remain in Cambodia, a country that he is not wanted [in] for any judicial proceedings, wrote Judge Andrew Chan.

Rithy Samnang, third from right, and Xu Aimin, right, attend the opening ceremony in December 2019 for their KB Hotel & Casino on Xu Aimin Avenue, near Otres beach, Sihanoukville. Credit: MAX Media A very long holiday in Cambodia

It is remarkable that Xu has been able to remain in Cambodia for so long with warrants for his arrest active in China and Hong Kong. Both Hun Sen and Chinese President Xi Jinping have in recent years made repeated public reference to their two countries special relationship, which the Cambodian premier described in July 2020 as an unbreakable friendship.

Chinas contribution to this friendship comes largely in the form of direct investment. Since the launch of Chinas cross-continent Belt and Road Initiative in 2013, Chinese investment in Cambodia has ballooned, and by 2019 reportedly accounted for 43 percent of all foreign direct investment in the country.

In return, Cambodia has become what academics have termed a client state to China. Cambodia has repeatedly sided against its fellow Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members in their disputes with Beijing over the South China Sea, and since the start of 2019 has hosted Chinese police officers in the National Police headquarters in Phnom Penh.

In 2019 alone, 1,145 Chinese nationals were arrested and returned home, accounting for 74 percent of all persons deported from Cambodia that year, according to a January 2020 report by the General Immigration Department cited by news site Thmey Thmey. In September 2019, over 150 Chinese were deported in a single flight for gambling-related offences.

So how has Xu managed to slip through this dragnet year after year? A January 2014 report by Chinese-language portal Jingzhou News appears to hold the answer.

According to Jingzhou News, Xus gambling ring was taken very seriously by Chinas Ministry of Public Security. The ministry dispatched senior officials to Cambodia multiple times during 2012 and 2013 to seek the arrest and deportation of the individuals behind the scheme. The officials even met with Cambodian Interior Minister Sar Kheng.

While some 36 suspects in the case were eventually arrested, at least six of them in Cambodia, Xu was never put on a plane back to China. This was, Jingzhou News reported, because of [his] Cambodian citizenship and relationship with Cambodian high-level officials.

It is unclear when Xu acquired Cambodian citizenship, but Ministry of Commerce records suggest it was sometime prior to 2012. Cambodias Law on Nationality stipulates that Cambodian citizens must not be extradited unless there is a mutual agreement. A 1999 extradition treaty signed by China and Cambodia would seem to constitute such a mutual agreement, although it does give both countries the right to refuse extradition of its own nationals. Phnom Penh appears to have exercised this right in the case of Xu.

The Chinese embassy in Phnom Penh did not respond to repeated requests for comment on the case or its significance for Sino-Khmer relations. Spokespersons for the Cambodian government, General Directorate of Immigration, Sihanoukville municipality, National Police, and Ministry of Justice all declined to comment on questions put to them by RFA for this story.

Meas Soksensan, spokesman for the Ministry of Economy and Finance, also declined to address whether the government had conducted due diligence before granting a gambling and casino license to Xu Xus KB Hotel & Casino in Sihanoukville. But the spokesman told RFA that it was not until November 2020 that Cambodia had adopted the Law on the Management of Integrated Resorts and Commercial Gambling, which establishes regulatory oversight of the gaming industry. He said existing casinos will have to comply with its provisions including on conducting due diligence and following license application procedures.

That Xu has managed to remain in Cambodia unmolested is of no surprise to Clement Lai, a former Hong Kong police superintendent who has opened a security consultancy in Phnom Penh since retiring. Lai described Xu as a well-known tycoon with close ties to military and government officials which may ensure he receives "preferential treatment and convenience" for both his businesses and personal safety. He added that while China and Cambodia have an extradition treaty, the Cambodian authorities often give consideration to an individuals influence and investments when deciding how to implement it.

"He is not a highly dangerous person and he gives the country a lot of economic support," Lai said. "It's not surprising that he has been able to stay in Cambodia for a long time."

The KB Hotel & Casino features a 650 square meter casino floor with gaming tables, slot machines and a VIP gaming room. Credit: Steven Cai Whos the patron and whos the client?

While on a geopolitical level Beijing is the patron and Phnom Penh the client, when it comes to doing business in Cambodia the relationship is flipped on its head. Any Chinese investor looking to establish a Cambodian enterprise must first find a Cambodian patron. Xu appears to have found that patron in Rithy Samnang, the son-in-law of ruling party senator Kok An.

The first record of Samnang and Xu going into business together comes in October 2017, when they founded RSX Investment Co. Ltd. together. Also on board as a founding shareholder and director was Chinese-born real estate developer Su Zhongjian, who was made a naturalized Cambodian citizen by royal decree two years earlier.

From the moment they went into business together, almost anytime Samnang was photographed in Sihanoukville, Xu would be in shot, often with a half-smoked cigarette in hand. On March 22, 2018, Samnang threw a beach party for his 37th birthday on the island of Koh Smach, some 35 miles from Sihanoukville. Photos of the event give some indication of the close bond between the tycoon and his fugitive business partner. In countless images, Samnang is flanked by his wife Phu Cherlin on his right-hand side and Xu to his left. Frequently the two men have their arms around one another, smiles on their faces.

Visually, Xu and Samnang are an odd pairing. Scion of one of the countrys wealthiest dynasties, Samnang plays the part perfectly with his back always straight, a winning smile seemingly pinned to his face and perma-coiffed hair. Xus shoulders, conversely, are stooped, his skin weathered. If Samnang is a vision of the model son-in-law then Xu is the disreputable uncle.

But however unlikely they may appear as a pair in photographs, their relationship is typical of Sino-Khmer business partnerships, according to a paper published last year by University College London researcher Sokphea Young.

Drawing on years of in-country research and interviews, Young found Chinese investments can only flourish in Cambodia with the patronage of a local business partner, who acts as a lobbyist-cum-bagman for the project.

These Cambodian partners usually hold the title oknha, a position similar to that of a lordship, bestowed on tycoons who have demonstrated their loyalty to the ruling Cambodian Peoples Party by donating at least $500,000 to national development projects. Rithy Samnang is an oknha, for example.

The tycoons job in such partnerships is to use their influence to grease the regulatory path of the project and to leverage their connections in politics and law enforcement to ensure the project is not preyed upon by rent-seeking officials or rivals. In return, the tycoon is compensated up front, will often be made a shareholder in the enterprise, and will likely be entitled to a split of any profits.

The first thing Chinese companies do when they get here is find a backer, like an oknha, who will help them get through various difficulties, liaise with government officials, and so on, the Cambodian office manager for a Chinese state-owned enterprise told Pal Nyiri, another researcher. Whether or not you will have to share the profits  that varies. But first you have to pay.

Rithy Samnang, left, and Xu Aimin have fun at the beach birthday party Samnang threw for himself on the island of Koh Smach. Credit: MAX Media Getting back to his roots

Xu and Samnang did not respond to detailed requests to comment on this story. Today, however, they are the masters of an emerging Sihanoukville real estate empire. In October 2019 they broke ground on KB Central, a 600,000-square-meter combined residential and commercial complex near the citys Otres beach. In a speech to inaugurate the project, Deputy Provincial Governor Mang Sineth told an assembled crowd that KB Central would be worth half a billion dollars when completed.

The shining jewel in their current portfolio, however, is the KB Hotel & Casino. Situated on Xu Aimin Avenue, a little over 800 meters from Otres beach, the KB Hotel opened its doors in December 2019 with a ceremony at which both Samnang and Xu burned ceremonial candles.

The propertys core offering appears to be its 650-square-meter casino floor, which marketing materials claim hosts 15 gaming tables, seven slot machines and a VIP gaming room.

The hotels website is in Chinese, suggesting that Xu has returned to Sihanoukville to do what got him into trouble there in 2012  giving Chinese gamblers a place to gamble. The Chinese Embassy in Phnom Penh issued a warning to its citizens in January, as it did the two previous years, not to get involved in gambling activities. However, that does not appear to have deterred the KB Hotel, which the following month put out adverts for croupiers and assorted casino staff.

Xu may be playing a dangerous game. But with no shortage of Cambodian officials willing to endorse RSX Investments businesses  from the provincial deputy governor, to the national head of the military police and Rithys senator father-in-law  it seems unlikely to catch up with him any time soon.
Prison food lacks nutrition, and authorities should allow prisoners' families to visit, one rights group says.

Prum Chantha (left), wife of jailed CNRP activist Kak Komphear, is shown protesting for her husband's freedom in a file photo.

The wives of two political prisoners held in Cambodian jails are fearing for their husbands health after seeing them in failing health during recent visits, the women said, blaming prison authorities for failing to provide the men with adequate food.

Tek Sok Lorn, the wife of jailed opposition activist Prov Chantheun, said she was shocked at her husbands appearance when she saw him through a glass partition at the Mort Khmung prison in Tbong Khmum province.

Her husband was thin, pale, and exhausted, and looked sadly at her through hollow eyes, Tek Sok Lorn told RFA on Wednesday.

When I walked into the prison facility to visit him, I saw his tears, she said.

As his wife I am really concerned about his health, since he isnt getting any sunlight. I am requesting the court to please render justice for us, and Im asking the judge to be loyal to the Khmer nation and know what is right and what is wrong, she said.

Nguon Phalla, the wife another Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) activist, Um Yet, said she had previously been able to bring him food every Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, and that he had been in good health during the last four months.

But now her husband has lost weight, has high blood pressure, and suffers from stomach pains possibly caused by malnutrition, she said.

[The court] should release him, Nguon Phalla said, adding, He appears to have lost about 10 kilos of weight after being held for only six months, and Im concerned that if hes left like this he may lose even more, and that his life may be at risk.

Im asking the court to release him and drop all the charges against him, she added.

Verdicts to be announced

On June 30, the Tbong Khmum provincial court will announce verdicts in the cases of 14 political and land-rights activists. Eight of these, including six CNRP members and two land-rights activists, are now being held in the provincial prison, sources said.

Arrested between late 2020 and January 2021, they face charges of plotting, conspiracy to topple the government, and inciting social chaos for having worn T-shirts bearing political slogans and for gathering in protest last year in front of the Chinese embassy in Phnom Penh.

The CNRP was banned and disbanded, and its leader Kem Sokha arrested, in late 2017 as part of a wider crackdown on civil society by longtime ruler Hun Sen, driving many party leaders into exile.

Speaking to RFA on Wednesday, Nuth Savanaspokesperson for the General Directorate of Prisonssaid that inmates families are allowed to bring them food, medicine, and other amenities, and that prison officials always pay attention to the condition of their prisoners health.

The rate of new COVID-19 infections in the prisons is now declining, though one new case was recently found in the Kompong Thom provincial prison, Nuth Savana said. Physical contact between prisoners and their families is still barred, though, he added.

During a workshop we held yesterday with the International Red Cross, we discussed the possibility of allowing video calls or phone calls between inmates and their families. These are all just options for discussion, though, he said. We havent made any decisions yet.

'We cannot be silent'

Prum Chantha, the wife of political opposition figure Kak Komphear who remains locked up in Phnom Penhs Prey Sar Prison, said that after her groupnamed Friday wives for their weekly protestsappealed for help from foreign embassies, prison officials allowed her to send food to her husband.

She is still not allowed to meet with him in person, though, she said.

Prum Chantha said she is concerned over reports of the spread of COVID-19 in the prisons, adding that her group will continue to appeal to foreign embassies in Cambodia for intervention in their husbands cases.

We cannot be silent. My husband didnt commit any legal offense, so I must demand his release and look for ways to make that happen, she said. If all these officials were in this position, they would also miss their spouses and children, she added.

Prison food often lacks nutrition, and prison officials should allow inmates family members to visit and bring them food, said Am Sam Ath of the local rights group Licadho.

We always look for ways to encourage the prison department to facilitate visits by the families of detainees, he said.

Courts and the relevant government departments should also address the issue of overcrowding in the prisons, Am Sam Ath said.

We have seen the the Ministry of Justice is currently drafting a proposal to allow inmates whose full sentences have almost been served to be released under certain conditions. But we also want to see a decision reached in the cases of prisoners held while waiting for their trial.

We call on the courts to speed up their procedures so that these cases can be heard, with some detainees being given priority for release, he said.

Reported by RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Sovannarith Keo. Written in English by Richard Finney.
Authorities in the Chinese capital have stepped up security measures ahead of the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP)'s centenary celebration on , while rights activists and dissidents are being forced to leave town by state security police, RFA has learned.



One video clip uploaded to social media showed more than 200 buses filled with People's Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers in full camouflage with weapons driving into Beijing's iconic Bird's Nest stadium.



Another showed dozens of police officers with police dogs on Chongwenmen Street near Chaoyang district.



Beijing residents reported an increase in the number of People's Armed Police on the streets of the capital, as well as plainclothes officers of the state security police.



At the gates of residential compounds, retired elderly people wearing red armbands were on duty, watching everyone entering and leaving.



Beijing-based political activist Zha Jianguo said he is also under surveillance.



"This time because of the centenary, there is an unprecedented level of stability maintenance; the tightest I've seen in years," he said.



"There is a detail following me now," Zha said. "They follow me everywhere, even when I go to the hospital."



"There are people on duty at my door round the clock," he said. "They started from , and will carry on until the beginning of July."



"A lot of other people like me, who are seen as 'unstable elements', are also under guard right now," Zha said.



Enforced vacations

Beijing-based dissident Ji Feng said state security police from his hometown in the southwestern province of Guizhou will be taking him out of town from .



"[Tiananmen massacre victim and long-time activist] Qi Zhiyong and others were taken away on enforced vacation on , while Yan Zhenxue was taken away on ," Ji told RFA.



"I'm probably leaving [] or the day after," he said. "The state security police have already notified me."



Retired Central Party School professor Cai Xia, who is now in the United States, commented via Twitter: "



"The CCP is treating its own centenary celebrations like a major disaster, wielding weapons, money and high-tech surveillance," Cai wrote. "They are detaining people and shutting down their social media accounts at will."



"What are they afraid of? Is this centenary a celebration or a funeral?"



A Beijing-based scholar who gave only a surname, Huang, said the CCP is treating its own people like the enemy.



"It's like this every time the CCP has a major celebration: heavily armed military and police all over Beijing, with red-armband monitors along every street and alleyway," Huang said.



"Why can't they show the people's enjoyment to the world, instead of treating them like the enemy every time, treating the whole thing like the scene of a crime?"



Radio control

He said the answer lies with the fundamental insecurity at the heart of CCP: the fear that growing inequality and a backlash from oppressed groups will eventually undermine its power.



"The authorities know that their regime is entirely based on brute force and propaganda, so they use a major celebration like this to flex their muscles and to try to intimidate people," Huang said.



Beijing Capital International Airport announced on that the airport would adopt more stringent security inspection measures, including prohibiting passengers from carrying lithium batteries and power banks in checked baggage, Hong Kong's Chinese-language Ming Pao newspaper reported.



The Beijing municipal government has also implemented radio control in designated areas of Beijing during the centenary celebrations, the paper said.



"The use of radio equipment and high-powered non-radio equipment that radiates radio waves will be banned in controlled areas, except for those approved by the radio regulatory authorities to serve the centenary ceremony, the report said.



Meanwhile, private courier companies have been banned from operating in Beijing, Shanghai, Jiaxing, Jinggangshan, Yan'an, Zunyi and Xibaipo, with mail parcels entering Beijing subjected to additional security checks.



The governments of Fengtai, Daxing, Fangshan and other districts of Beijing will also be checking privately renting tenants under their jurisdiction, and expelling petitioners pursuing official complaints against the government.



The Chinese military is holding a series of activities to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the CCP's founding, but no military parade will take place on Tiananmen Square.



The events will include theoretical seminars, themed forums and a massive exhibition at the Military Museum of the Chinese People's Revolution.



The PLA has produced a number of movies to mark the centenary, "displaying the military's love of the party, the nation and the people," according to high-ranking officials in the Central Military Commission.



Reported by Qiao Long for RFA's Mandarin Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
A letter sent to Beijing reminds China's government it has pledged to end support to highly polluting projects.

Smoke and flames are seen from discarded goods set on fire by workers protesting at a power plant in Banshkhali sub-district, southeastern Bangladesh, April 17, 2021.

More than 100 activists from 21 countries sent a letter to Chinas government on Tuesday calling for it to end financing of a coal-fired power plant in Bangladesh, saying Beijing had notified Dhaka in February that it would no longer support highly polluting projects.

In 2016, Bangladesh approved the majority-Chinese funded Banshkhali S. Alam project, which has been controversial from the start, with allegations of undue force by police against protesters, and wage and labor issues.

In February 2021, the Economic and Commercial Counselor of China in Bangladesh sent a letter to the Bangladesh Ministry of Finance stating that the Chinese side shall no longer consider projects with high pollution and high energy consumption, such as coal mining and coal-fired power stations, the activists wrote in the letter signed by Hasan Mehedi, member secretary of the Bangladesh Working Group on External Debt (BWGED).

The activists letter noted that Chinas President Xi Jinping had called to pursue open, green and clean cooperation in a speech at the second Belt and Road Forum in 2019.

It also noted the projects controversial history.

Since the beginning of the project in 2016, 12 people have lost their lives, more than 100 got injured and harassment cases have been filed against over 6,000 workers and villagers in three different incidents around this power plant, the letter said.

Local people consider the project a curse for themselves as not only lives were lost but at least 10,000 people have been affected by the losses of homesteads and farmland because of this project.

Mehedi confirmed that the letter signed by 129 activists from 74 organizations had been emailed to Wang Wentao, the Chinese commerce minister. A copy is to be sent to the Chinese Embassy in Dhaka.

We will fax a copy of the letter on Wednesday, he told BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service.

The letter called for the withdrawal of all Chinese investment and involvement in the Banshkhali plant. It also demanded an investigation into alleged human rights violations there and reportedly false information contained in an Environmental Impact Assessment of the project.

Without exceptions, cancel all ongoing and future investments in fossil fuel including coal, oil and gas, it said.

The Banshkhali S. Alam project is scheduled to begin producing 1,320 MW of power in 2023. China financed 70 percent of the U.S. $2.49 billion cost of the project, according to information on S. Alam Groups website.

The plant, also called SS Power I, is being built by Shandong Electric Power Construction Corp. (SEPCOIII), a subsidiary of PowerChina, a Chinese central government enterprise, according to three environmental groups.

Ebadat Hossain Bhuiyan, the SS Power I chief financial officer, said he was not aware of the letter, but challenged its contents.

If the letter mentioned that the power plant will pollute the environment or it is breaching human rights, then it is totally false, he told BenarNews.

And we do not know why they are making false statements against us.

The Chinese Embassy in Dhaka did not immediately respond to a BenarNews request for comment on the letter.

Mohammad Hossain, director general of the power cell, a division of the Ministry of Power and Energy and Mineral Resources, also said he was not aware of the letter, but compared it to a similar effort five years ago.

Sending a letter to a foreign country requesting suspension of funding in a local development project is frustrating, he told BenarNews.

Previously, we saw such a move during the Rampal Power Plant project  that time some individuals and so-called green groups sent a letter to UNESCO.

In 2016, several NGOs sent a petition to the U.N. agencys World Heritage Committee about the plan to construct Rampal and Orion coal-powered plants within 14 km (8.6 miles) of the Sundarbans, the largest existing mangrove forest in the world and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Environmental report challenged

The letter about the Banshkhali project said the coal plant would be extremely harmful to the health of people living in the area.

It cited a report published last week by three green groups, which said that a Bangladesh-government cleared environmental report on the project downplays information about its effect on air quality.

BWGED, joined by the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air and co-signer Bangladesh Environment Lawyers Association, said the reports modeling was flawed, leading to a prediction of pollution levels many times lower than what would be established through appropriate modeling.

Sharif Jamil, general secretary of the environmental organization Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (BAPA), said China should switch funding from the Banshkhali coal plant to a renewable power project.

China should consider the letter an effort to save the earth as we are amid a planetary emergency, Jamil, whose organization is a signatory to the letter sent to the Chinese commerce minister, told BenarNews on Tuesday.

The letter urged China to demonstrate it is committed to environmental issues.

We hope you will reconsider your decision of financial and technical support for the Banshkhali power project and show your commitment toward a green [One Belt, One Road] Initiative by respecting human and environmental rights, not a blood and tear-spilled one, the letter said.

Reported by BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service.
The paper says it is being forced to close to protect employees following the arrest of a high-profile columnist under the national security law.

Members of the press take photos as executive editor-in-chief Lam Man Chung proofreads the final edition of Hong Kong's Apple Daily newspaper, June 23, 2021.

Hong Kong's Apple Daily newspaper said on Wednesday it will be shutting down operations following a raid on its headquarters by national security police and the arrests of several executives for "collusion with foreign powers."

"The management of the Apple Daily have decided to stop operations immediately after midnight, out of concern for employee safety and manpower," the paper said in a report on its website on Wednesday.

"The last print edition of the newspaper will be published tomorrow (June 24), and the website will stop updating after midnight," the report said.

"The Apple Daily would like to thank all of its readers, subscribers, advertisers and the people of Hong Kong for their love and support over the past 26 years," it said. "This is farewell."

The board of directors of the paper's parent company Next Digital had earlier announced that the paper would stop operations "no later than 11.59 p.m. on Saturday."

The announcement came after an op-ed writer widely known by his penname Li Ping, was arrested by national security police on Wednesday on suspicion of "collusion with a foreign power," under a draconian national security law imposed by the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) on Hong Kong from July 1, 2020.

Yeung Ching-kee, 55, was the author of the Apple Daily's Ping On column, and is the first newspaper columnist to be arrested under the law.

A native of Fujian and a graduate Shanghai's Fudan University, Yeung immigrated to Hong Kong in the 1990s, rising to head the Apple Daily's China department, and penning regular current affairs commentaries.

His arrest came after he wrote a column calling on the U.S. to use its Global Magnitsky human rights laws to sanction more senior Hong Kong and Chinese officials "as soon as possible."

Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai, currently serving jail time for taking part in a peaceful protest, is also awaiting trial on the same charge, and is accused of calling for foreign countries to impose sanctions.

An officer who answered the phone at the Hong Kong police press office on Wednesday declined to confirm that the arrestee was Leung or to comment on the ongoing investigation.

"The police haven't ruled out the possibility of making further arrests," the officer said.

Highly effective attack

Hong Kong political commentator Willy Lam said the national security raid had been a highly effective attack on the Apple Daily and Next Digital.

"It's shocking," he said of Leung's arrest. "It shows that this is an all-out attack on the Apple Daily, and that the red lines have now moved to include commentators."

"We can no longer rule out the possibility that the government will seize on articles critical of the Hong Kong or Chinese governments, even articles that were written a while ago that they don't like, and use them against the writers or editors," Lam said.

Current affairs commentator Johnny Lam said the timing of the attack on Next Digital seemed to be significant, given that the CCP is about to celebrate the centenary of its founding on July 1, one year after the National Security Law for Hong Kong took effect.

"They are very much hoping to drown out any noise in an overwhelming tide of propaganda," Lau told RFA. "They are actually making it impossible for any unwanted voices to be heard."

"They could have taken a more relaxed attitude towards [Apple Daily] employees, but they are hoping to spread the chilling effect, thereby reducing the likelihood of dissenting voices in future," he said.

A magazine also published by Next Digital, Next Magazine, had earlier announced that it would stop updating its website early on Thursday morning.

"Next Magazine would like to thank all readers for their support," the magazine said in a news release on Wednesday.

"Goodbye everyone, and take care!" it said.

'Evidence of collusion'

The closures came after hundreds of national security police descended on the headquarters of Next Digital in Tseung Kwan O on June 17, confiscating computers and journalistic materials police said were "evidence" of collusion with foreign forces under the national security law.

Five executives were arrested, and the paper's assets totaling around H.K.$18 million were frozen by the authorities.

Chief editor Ryan Law and Next Digital CEO Cheung Kim-hung have since been charged with "collusion with foreign powers," while three other executives have been released on bail without being charged.

The Hong Kong Journalists' Association (HKJA) had earlier called on the government to unfreeze enough of the company's assets to enable it to pay staff for work already carried out.

"The government should do everything in its power to ensure that employees of an enterprise can receive their salaries," the HKJA said in a statement on its website.

"Even if the police are investigating individuals, this should not affect hundreds of dedicated employees," it said.



Reported by Chan Yun Nam, Man Hoi Yan and Cheng Yut Yiu for RFA's Cantonese and Mandarin Services. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
The US-led Build Back Better World (B3W) initiative is scant in details, though, and some countries' leaders say they now want more information.

US President Joe Biden speaks at a news conference at the end of the G7 Summit at Cornwall Airport, Newquay, England, June 13, 2021.

Bangladesh and nations in Southeast Asia are welcoming the Group of Sevens new answer to Chinas One Belt, One Road initiative, saying it will be another source for financing their burgeoning infrastructure needs.

But because the U.S.-led Build Back Better World Partnership (B3W) initiative is scant in details, officials of some governments in the region and analysts say they also are waiting for more information to see how it can help their countries. China has an eight-year head start and has pumped huge amounts of money into its global infrastructure-building program (OBOR).

The new initiative, announced this month at the G7 summit in Cornwall, England, promises sustainable and value-driven infrastructure investment to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars in low- and middle-income countries in the coming years.

The program will help narrow a U.S. $40 trillion need for infrastructure projects across the developing world, President Joe Biden said in announcing the new initiative.

B3W is a good opportunity for us, Bangladesh Planning Minister Abdul Mannan told BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service, this week.

We will try to exploit the opportunity for our development efforts. Other than the Chinese sources, B3W would allow us to explore funds for infrastructure development in Bangladesh, he said.

Thailand, too, welcomes the G7 initiative and views it and Beijings OBOR initiative as mutually reinforcing, Thanee Sangrat, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told BenarNews.

Both aim to strengthen connectivity and create resilient supply chains in our region, he said.

The Philippines welcomes B3W but to see and to actually receive it is to believe [it], presidential spokesman Harry Roque told BenarNews.

Indonesia, Southeast Asias largest and most populous country, is also waiting to see how B3W investments are made, according to Jodi Mahardi, spokesman for the investment ministry.

We welcome the B3W development initiative proposed by the G-7, but we want to see the implementation. There have been many U.S.-led initiatives that are lacking in realization, Jodi told BenarNews.

The schemes must be flexible, based on the needs of partner countries, not on what Western countries see as good. I used the word partner because we dont want the relationship to be between donors and recipients, we want it to be [cooperation] between equals.

BenarNews contacted Malaysias investment agency, the trade ministry, and the minister in charge of economics, but officials did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

Economists and political analysts in these countries said B3W investments would be good alternative sources of funding for infrastructure projects.

Ahsan H. Mansur, an economist and executive director of the Policy Research Institute in Dhaka, described the G7 initiative as a big opportunity for us, the developing and low-income countries.

This is because now we have an alternative option to get funds from, he told BenarNews.

B3W is not fully fleshed out yet but, in principle, is a good funding source for Indonesia, said Fithra Faisal Hastiadi, executive director of Next Policy, an Indonesian think-tank.

I think B3W will be a good alternative for Indonesia as a non-aligned country. But I think the problem is the initiative is still half-baked, Fithra told BenarNews.

Walden Bello, co-chair of the Board of Focus on the Global South, a Bangkok think-tank, was blunter. He dismissed the G7 initiative as purely reactive.

[A]nd purely reactive programs tend to be put together in a hurry with little serious thought to follow-through, he said.

For Oh Ei Sun, an international relations specialist based in Singapore, B3W will lead to countries in the region playing both sides to see who will be able to offer more.

Its all about the money, lets not kid ourselves, Oh told BenarNews.

Unveiled in 2013, OBOR is Chinese President Xi Jinpings signature geopolitical program that aims to build a modern-day Silk Road through a network of ports, railways, roads, and trade routes to connect China to markets in Southeast Asia, South Asia, and beyond.

OBOR began eight years ago with a focus on investments around the world in energy, infrastructure, and transportation projects. Estimates about the size of OBOR investments vary widely  from $1 trillion to $8 trillion.

According to a London-based financial data firm Refinitiv, in January 2020 OBOR comprised close to 3,000 projects valued at $3.87 trillion.

Ongoing construction in Southeast Asia includes the $6 billion Bandung-Jakarta high-speed rail project in Indonesia and the $1.3 billion Kyaukphyu deep-water port in Myanmar, among others.

In Bangladesh, China has provided nearly $7 billion for nine development projects since October 2016, according to data from the Ministry of Finance.

More equitable way

Some may see B3W and OBOR as complementary, but President Biden and the G7 see the two initiatives as fundamentally different.

The point is that whats happening is that China has this Belt and Road Initiative, and we think that theres a much more equitable way to provide for the needs of countries around the world, Biden told a press conference in Cornwall on June 13, according to a White House transcript.

And we believe that will not only be good for the countries, but itll be good for the entire world and represent values that our democracies represent, and not autocratic lack of values.

The democracies he referred to are the U.S. and fellow G7 members Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom.

Biden was highlighting that China is not a democracy, and alluding to what critics have said is Beijings practice of predatory lending or debt-trap diplomacy in OBOR.

For instance, analysts point to Chinese loans to Sri Lanka, in particular, as a cautionary tale for nations planning to borrow from Beijing.

In 2017, a Chinese state-owned company took over a majority stake in Sri Lankas strategic Hambantota port after Colombo struggled to repay its loans from China.

B3W, on the other hand, emphasizes what it calls enhanced multilateral finance, the G7 said in a communique issued from Cornwall on June 13.

Multilateral development banks and other international financial Institutions have evolved to embody the highest standards for project planning, implementation, social and environmental safeguards, and analytical capability, the communique said.

We emphasize the importance of transparent, open, economically efficient, fair and competitive standards for lending and procurement, also in line with debt sustainability, and the adherence of international rules and standards for major creditor countries, the joint statement said.

B3W-related investments are to be guided by standards such as those promoted by the updated Blue Dot Network, G7s communique added.

The Blue Dot Network, announced by the United States, Japan, and Australia in November 2019, assesses and certifies infrastructure projects for environmental sustainability, financial transparency, and economic impact.

Thailand shares G7s endeavor

Thailand, for one, especially welcomes the B3Ws focus on transparent and sustainable investments through clear and established international mechanisms, said Thanee, the foreign ministry spokesman.

Thailand shares the G7s endeavor in developing high-quality infrastructure with a fresh approach that advocates responsibility for the environment and for the people; fiscal sustainability; the participation of international investors and financial institutions; and compatibility with global standards by adopting international norms, Thanee said.

[T]he B3W initiative  supports our priorities.

B3Ws priority investment areas will be climate, health and health security, digital technology, and gender equity and equality, according to a White House fact sheet about the initiative.

But transparency in investment, and funding in gender equity and health projects may be seen by some nations as pet projects that come with strings attached, said Oh, a senior fellow at the Singapore Institute of International Affairs.

These are important only in the eyes of advanced liberal democracies and not considered as vital in some other countries, Oh told BenarNews.

The G7 is also harping on transparency which is in not the norm in most parts of the developing world, Oh told BenarNews.

Oh, Indonesian economist Fithra, and other analysts cast doubt on whether the G7 countries, however advanced and industrialized, have the financial chops to compete with Chinas massive OBOR investments.

Bello, the analyst based in Bangkok, noted that Chinas initial commitment to OBOR was $1 trillion in 2013-2014, but had now ballooned to  by some estimates  around $4 trillion.

Washington has already committed the bulk of what it plans to raise from taxes to the planned new U.S.-focused high-tech industrial policy program passed by the Senate over a week ago, Bello told BenarNews, referring to the Innovation and Competition Act, which analysts say is intended to counter China.

The biggest problem [for B3W] is the money, and with all these countries suffering fiscal crises, with the possible exception of Germany, where are they going to get the trillions of dollars to match Chinas investment?

European members of the G7, meanwhile, will have trouble convincing their citizens that infrastructure investments are needed around the world as they recover from the pandemic and the effects of Brexit, Fithra said.

If they have to chip in for the initiative, where does the money come from? There will be opposition from their own people. So its like a paper tiger, he said.

Chan Hoi Cheong, a senior political and security risk analyst at Safeture ABs Malaysia branch, said B3W may have come too late in the geopolitical game.

If B3W aims to capture the hearts and minds of Asian countries, it will have a lot of catching up to do, Chan told BenarNews.

Reported by BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service.
Motorcyclist Tong Ying-kit stands accused of 'terrorism' and 'inciting secession' after he flew a banned slogan while riding down a street on July 1, 2020.

Hong Kong barrister Laurence Lao, representing Tong Ying-kit, speaks to reporters outside the West Kowloon Court in a July 3, 2020 photo.

Motorcyclist Tong Ying-kit stands accused of "terrorism" and "inciting secession" after he flew a banned slogan while riding down a street on July 1, 2020.

National security law defendant Tong Ying-kit stood trial for "secession" in Hong Kong on Wednesday, after he rode a motorbike at a protest, carrying a flag bearing the words "Free Hong Kong, revolution now!"

Tong's trial opened at the High Court, with the 24-year-old facing charges of "terrorism" and "inciting secession."

Dozens of supporters and a large number of journalists from around the world lined up for a spot in the courtroom early on Wednesday.

Tong seemed calm, wearing a blue jacket, a black shirt and glasses, and made use of simultaneous interpretation, as the trial proceedings were conducted in English.

He pleaded not guilty to all of the charges against him as they were read out.

Video posted to Twitter claiming to show his interaction with a group of police officers during protests against a draconian national security law showed a motorbike rider coming down a street that was clear of police officers at the time.

The next shot shows the rider being ambushed and pulled from his bike by police, although he is accused of deliberately riding into them.

An alternate charge to the one of "terrorism" accuses Tong of "causing grievous bodily harm by dangerous driving."

Tong has been held on remand for nearly a year, with repeated applications for bail and a writ of habeas corpus rejected by judges.

He has also been denied a jury trial, with his case being heard instead by a a panel of three government-picked national security judges.

Rejection of Chinese rule

Prosecutors' opening statement focused on the slogan on Tong's flag, which was banned when the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) imposed the National Security Law for Hong Kong on the city, and which prosecution lawyers said "connoted independence."

The "Free Hong Kong" part implied the city needed to be rescued from an enemy, the CCP, while "Revolution now!" implied a rejection of Chinese rule over the city, acting deputy director of public prosecutions, Anthony Chau told the court.

The trial is expected to call 22 witnesses and last for around two weeks.

The national security law, which saw China's feared state security police set up a headquarters in Hong Kong to oversee "serious" cases, has been widely criticized by governments, rights groups, and lawyers as an assault on Hong Kong's traditional freedoms of speech, association, and political participation.

On Jan. 6, 2021, 53 pro-democracy activists and former opposition lawmakers were arrested for "subversion" under the law after they held a democratic primary designed to maximize their chances of winning seats in the Legislative Council (LegCo).

The authorities responded by postponing the election and arresting those who took part in the primary.

Of those arrested, 47 currently await trial on "subversion" charges, with 12 granted bail -- some only after several months in detention -- and the rest remaining in prison pending trial.



Reported by Lau Siu Fung and Matt Chan for RFA's Cantonese Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
A North Korean family walks in front of the bronze statues of North Korea founder Kim Il-sung (L) and late leader Kim Jong-il after paid floral tribute at Mansudae in Pyongyang, in this file photo taken and provided by Kyodo.

North Korean women are becoming more and more reluctant to have children due to poor economic conditions and food insecurity, rejecting government propaganda aimed at increasing the plummeting birthrate, sources in the country told RFA.

Though the declining birthrate is a problem on both ends of the Korean peninsula, the reasons behind it are drastically different.

South Koreans are avoiding having children in the face of rising housing prices, high supplemental educational costs, and grueling work-life balance ratios. North Koreans, however, worry about having more mouths to feed while the country continues to struggle with food security.

The biggest reason why women in North Korea are reluctant to give birth to children is that they are not in a normal environment to raise kids due to a lack of food and basic necessities caused by economic difficulties, a resident of the city of Hyesan, in the northern central Ryanggang province told RFAs Korean Service June 13.

According to data from Statistics Korea, the South Korean National Statistical Office, the population of North Korea in 2019 stood at 25.25 million. The UN estimated that the fertility rate in North Korea between 2015 and 2020 was 1.91 children per woman of childbearing age and trending downward each year, and lower than the rate of 2.0 for the previous five-year period.

The North Korean economy has been devastated by international nuclear sanctions and the closure of the border and suspension of all trade with China since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic in Jan. 2020.

RFA previously reported that the government has been telling the people to prepare for conditions worse than the 1994-1998 famine, which killed millions of people, as much as 10 percent of the North Korean population by some estimates.

U.N Special Rapporteur on North Korean Human Rights Tomas Ojea Quintana warned in a report in March that the closure of the Sino-Korean border and restrictions on the movement of people could bring on a serious food crisis.

Deaths by starvation have been reported, as has an increase in the number of children and elderly people who have resorted to begging as families are unable to support them, said the report.

Against this backdrop, women in North Korea are ignoring their governments expectations and thinking more realistically about motherhood, according to the Hyesan resident, who requested anonymity for security reasons.

At one time, the country praised mothers with many children as heroines and praised their fertility as patriotic, but the burden of raising children is so great that most families now acknowledge that they have to be more in control of pregnancy and childbirth to match with their means, said the source.

To encourage women to have more children, the state has introduced several benefits for mothers of three or more children, including exemptions from forced mobilization, the countrys chief way of procuring labor for government projects, according to the source. The exemption also extends to children of such families.

But people think that anyone who says they want to have three children because of the multi-child benefit provided by the state is a naive fool who doesnt know anything, the source said.

When I asked a woman I knew who had one daughter if she had any plans to have a second child, she sighed, saying it was difficult to raise even one child in the current situation. She said she wanted to give a younger brother to her daughter, but she emphasized that having another child in such a situation would be painful not only for the family, but also for the child being born, said the source.

Another source, a resident of the city of Chongjin in northeastern North Hamgyong province, told RFA June 13 that many women there have resigned themselves to the idea that they will have a single child or none at all.

Women of childbearing age all sneer at the national propaganda encouraging them to have kids, said the second source, who requested anonymity to speak freely.

A teacher working at an elementary school in Chongam district, here in Chongjin, complained that there were more than 30 children in each class only seven or eight years ago, but now 20 children are considered a large class, said the second source.

In North Korea, many women are the breadwinners for their families, as their husbands work at their assigned jobs for a nominal salary that is not enough to live on. The women must run family businesses to cover living expenses, leaving little time for much else.

The reality is that women are responsible for their familys survival and they are engaged in business activities and dont have time to think about pregnancy and childbirth, the second source said.

These days, women of childbearing age also have difficulty conceiving because they are malnourished or they come down with diseases from working too hard, so thats adding to the fertility problem.

The second source said that without government support to help families raise children, the birthrate will only continue to decline.

The country is encouraging us to give birth to many children without suggesting a way to solve our economic distress, the second source said.

How can young women think of giving birth to many children when its common to see infants suffering from malnutrition right before our very eyes?

A report by the United Nations Population Fund (UNPFA) said that North Koreas current fertility rate of 1.9 is lower than the world average of 2.4 and lower than the Asia-Pacific regions rate of 2.1, which is also the rate needed to maintain a countrys current population. North Korea ranked 119th out of 198 countries listed in the report.

Reported by Jeong Yon Park for RFAs Korean Service. Translated by Jinha Shin. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
In a photo released by the office of Myanmar's Commander-in-Chief, security forces hold a man during a raid on a residence following a tipoff on the presence of person with weapons and explosives in Mandalay, June 22, 2021.

Open warfare broke out Tuesday between troops loyal to Myanmars junta and members of the Peoples Defense Force (PDF) militia in the countrys second largest city of Mandalay, leaving at least three people dead and one injured and prompting calls from foreign embassies for a cessation of violence.

Fighting erupted early in the morning as junta troops raided a PDF office in the citys Chanmya Tharzi township, according to Mandalay PDF combat team leader Bo Zeegwat, who said militia members were forced to retreat in the face of the militarys superior firepower. The clashes marked the first in the cosmopolitan city of more than 1.7 million people since the military took over the government in a February coup, prompting widespread protests.

It was just a small office with only a few people and supplies insidethey must have had informers to find the place, he told RFAs Myanmar Service.

The building was surrounded and there were four snipers firing at us. We didnt have enough manpower or weaponry, so we had to withdraw. A few of our guys got arrested and at least two were killed.

Bo Zeegwat said the decision to pull out of the area came after the military fired rocket propelled grenades (RPGs) at the building, causing the loss of several PDF automatic weapons and improvised explosives.

He said there were eight members of the PDF in the office at the time of the attack but that he did not know exactly how many were killed or arrested.

The military issued a statement acknowledging that troops inspecting the area at around 7:30 a.m. were attacked with small arms fire and grenades. It said four people were killed in the firefight and eight were arrested by security forces, who also confiscated several weapons.

According to the military, a white Pajero SUV fired at troops before crashing into a power transformer after a brief chase, killing all four of the occupants. The statement said that some members of the military were seriously injured in the clashes but did not specify how many.

RFA was unable to confirm widespread reports that a lieutenant colonel and another army officer from the militarys Central Command were killed in the fighting.

Residents of Mandalays Amarapura and Pyigyi Dagun townships also reported bomb attacks on buildings occupied by security forces on Tuesday, although details were scarce.

Following the fighting, the military tightened security in several parts of the city, while roads leading to area hospitals were placed under strict surveillance. Many shops, restaurants, and bars remained closed as of Tuesday evening.

Meanwhile, clashes between the military and the PDF in Myanmars Sagaing region that touched off on Monday night continued through Tuesday morning, with both sides suffering casualties, according to local militia members.

A policeman, later identified as Win Moe Kyaw, was killed at around 9:30 p.m. on Monday when a vehicle convoy hit a mine while on patrol between Myaung townships Kuto Kone and Hlay Tin Oo villages, said a member of the townships PDF, who claimed responsibility for the attack.

They came in three cars, and we blew them up with mines, said the militiaman, speaking on condition of anonymity citing fear of reprisal. One policeman was killed, and six others were wounded, two of them seriously.

From there, they drove straight to the Myaung police station and began firing at their surroundings. We suffered no casualties on our side.

Attempts by RFA to contact junta spokesman Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun for comment on the clashes went unanswered Tuesday.

Tuesdays clashes prompted the U.S. Embassy in Yangon to issue a statement saying that Washington was disturbed by the military escalation and calling for an urgent end to the fighting.

The Embassy of the Netherlands said the violence in Mandalay highlights the emergent need to build a credible and sustainable crisis recovery process, to respect human rights and the choices expressed by the Myanmar people at the November 2020 general elections, and to implement an agreement to stop bloodshed in the country adopted at a summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) held in Jakarta in April.

Protesters make the three-finger salute from a police truck in Yangon, after a crackdown on demonstrations against the military coup, Feb. 27, 2021. AFP Hundreds of terrorists arrested

According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), the military has killed at least 875 people since it orchestrated a coup on Feb. 1, claiming that the ruling National League for Democracys (NLD) landslide victory in the countrys November 2020 election was the result of widespread voter fraud. The junta has yet to present evidence of its claims and security forces have responded to nationwide protests with deadly force.

AAPP says some 5,053 people have been detained, charged, or sentenced in the five months since the coup.

In a report issued on June 10 through the military-owned Myawaddy newspaper, the junta claimed that more than 600 of those arrested are terrorists, including 49 arsonists, 61 killers, 256 people with illegal weapons, and 272 bombers. It said the arrests had resulted in the seizure of 50 small arms, more than 2,500 rounds of ammunition, 900 handmade guns, and nearly 6,000 anti-personnel mines.

However, family members of those arrested have dismissed the juntas allegations, saying instead that they were simply unarmed protesters trying to make their voices heard, and that many will now face the stigma of having been labeled terrorists.

Ye Mon, defense minister of the shadow National Unity Government (NUG), told RFA that the people referred to in the juntas report had been forced to protect themselves and others from the military.

Given the current situation, it is clear that the people of Myanmar are defenseless, he said.

The international community has been unable to stop the juntas atrocities, so the people have only one choice. Its a matter of self-defense.

The juntas claims come as the AAPP reported over the weekend that at least 25 people have been killed by the military while in detention since Februarythe latest of which was a 27-year-old man named Thet Paing Htoo, who was beaten to death after being arrested on Saturday for his alleged involvement in anti-coup protests.

On Tuesday, New York-based Human Rights Watch said Myanmars security forces have arbitrarily detained thousands of people and subjected many to torture, routine beatings, and other ill-treatment since the coup.

In a statement, the group cited victims who described beatings, burnings from lit cigarettes, prolonged stress positions, and gender-based violence, including one 17-year-old boy who said he was tortured for days and later forced into a pit and buried up to his neck in a mock burial.

Myanmars military authorities cannot be trusted to undertake serious investigations of allegations of torture, let alone to prosecute the police and military abusers, said Manny Maung, Myanmar researcher at Human Rights Watch.

The United Nations and concerned governments should publicly demand an end to torture and other abuse of detainees and make clear to the military that failure to comply will mean redoubled efforts to impose additional targeted sanctions on senior military and police officials, and military-owned enterprises.

A Myanmar protester holds a poster with an image of detained civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi during a candlelight vigil to honor those who have died during demonstrations against the military coup, in Yangon, March 13, 2021. AFP Court hearings underway

Also on Tuesday, a special court in the capital Myanmar held the second day of the second week of hearings for NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi who, along with several other ruling party officials, was detained in the aftermath of the February putsch.

The countrys former State Counselor has been charged in six cases in the capital and one in Yangon. The chargesincluding violating the Official Secrets Act, bribery, incitement and sedition, violating the telecommunications law, possession of unlicensed two-way radios, and violating protocols set up to contain the spread of the coronavirusare widely seen as designed to end her role in politics.

In Tuesdays proceedings, the court heard arguments for motions to admit documents and photos submitted by the junta as evidence for the charges of incitement and sedition against Aung San Suu Kyi, as well as former President Win Myint and Myo Aung, the NLDs chairman of the Naypyidaw Council. The proceedings also included the testimony of witnesses related to Aung San Suu Kyis charges of violating protocols set up to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

Her attorney Thae Maung Maung said his team had objected to the evidence submitted by prosecutors in the incitement and sedition case.

Aung San Suu Kyis trial, which began on June 14 and is being heard weekly on Mondays and Tuesdays, is expected to be completed within six months. If convicted on all counts, she could be sentenced to up to 39 years in prison, in addition to a life sentence.

The democracy icon and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, who turned 76 over the weekend, spent a total of 15 years under house arrest over a 21-year period that ended in 2010 under the countrys previous junta regime.

The NUG has said that Aung San Suu Kyi and other detained NLD leaders were unlawfully arrested and rejected the charges against them.

Reported by RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Khin Maung Nyane and by Ye Kaung Myint Maung. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.
A health worker (R) receives the AstraZeneca/Oxford Covid-19 coronavirus vaccine at the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases in Hanoi on March 8, 2021, as Vietnam launched its first phase of vaccination to frontline personnel to battle the Covid-19 coronavirus.

Vietnam will administer coronavirus vaccines manufactured in China to people in the countrys nine northern provinces, becoming the final ASEAN country to accept vaccines from its northern neighbor, local media reported.

The country of 95 million people has administered about 2.4 million doses of vaccines, but only 121,683 people are fully vaccinated, or about 0.13 percent of the population.

In an RFA report published last week, experts said that the Vietnamese government had appeared reluctant to accept Chinese vaccines because of a lack of trust in them by the Vietnamese people, or because relations between Beijing and Hanoi could be slightly on the rocks.

But the VietnamNet online newspaper reported Wednesday that the Ministry of Health would administer 500,000 China-donated Sinopharm doses in the provinces of Lao Cai, Lang Son, Quang Ninh, Nam Dinh, Thai Binh, Dien Bien, Cao Bang, Lai Chau and Ha Giang.

The biggest recipient would be Quang Ninh in the coastal northeast bordering China, with 230,000 doses, while coastal Thai Binh, two provinces to the south of Quang Ninh, would receive only 1,400 doses.

According to VietnamNet, the three groups prioritized to receive the vaccines first are local residents who live in the communes near the borders shared with China, those who need to carry out exchange activities or do business with China and Chinese people working and living in the provinces.

Also Wednesday, the Ministry of Health sent an urgent dispatch to Ho Chi Minh City and the nine provinces of Nam Dinh, Cao Bang, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Dak Lak, Tien Giang, Lam Dong, Can Tho and Kien Giang, urging them to speed up their vaccination against the coronavirus.

To date, the vaccination rate in Ho Chi Minh and the second group of nine provinces is lower than 40 percent. Ho Chi Minh received two batches of vaccine, 74,500 doses in late May and 796,370 doses in mid-June.

Vietnams Vaccine Fund has raised nearly 7 trillion dong (about U.S. $300 million) to buy and administer vaccines, according to the funds management board.

Luu Hoang, deputy director of the board, told Vietnam News Agency (VNA) that 2 trillion dong would be used to buy vaccines in July under health ministry instructions. The remaining amount will be deposited in commercial banks.

Possible vaccine deaths

On Tuesday the Hanoi Center for Disease Control (Hanoi CDC) reported that a 26-year-old male teacher in the citys Dong Anh district had died 39 hours after inoculation with the coronavirus vaccine manufactured by the British-Swedish AstraZeneca, the fifth such post-vaccination death in Vietnam.

A report in the health ministrys Health and Life newspaper said that a council of experts concluded that the cause of death was unknown.

Clinical signs and forensic results showed no evidence that the death had been caused by anaphylaxis, which can rarely be caused by an allergic reaction to a vaccine, or embolism, when blood clots block arteries. Immunization and screening procedures were carried out in accordance with current regulations, the report said.

The four previous deaths wera a 35-year-old female health worker in An Giang province, a 27-year-old worker and a 46-year-old driver in Bac Giang province, and a 55-year-old officer in Binh Thuan province.

Only the case of the female health worker in An Giang was confirmed to have been caused by anaphylaxis. She died one day after vaccination.

No license for domestic vaccine

Also on Tuesday, Nanogen, the manufacturer of Vietnams Nanocovax vaccine, told local media that it had submitted a proposal for an urgent approval for local use to Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh as the vaccine had a 99.4 percent rate of producing immunogenic responses, but the health ministry said there was not enough scientific evidence to approve it.

[The 99.4 precent figure is] only the immunogenicity, Nguyen Ngo Quang, the deputy head of the Administration of Science Technology and Training under the Ministry of Health, told local media.

We havent got the research results on how the immunogenicity/vaccine could reduce Covid-19 infection rates or its severity or not, said Quang.

He also said that the vaccine had undergone two phases of clinical trials and showed great immunogenicity. However, the sample size was still too small as the company has collected samples from only several hundred people while it needs tens of thousands.

Similarly, in its third phase trial, only 1,000 people had been given the first dose of the vaccine, but it should be tested on 13,000 people as planned.

Moreover, experts would also need to evaluate the vaccine's immunogenicity and effectiveness on the 36th, 45th and 56th day following the second shot, he said.

Those are the bases to assess the immunogenicity and efficacy of the vaccine. Therefore, it takes at least two months and needs to reach this number of samples to be qualified for evaluation, said Quang to the Tuoi Tre newspaper.

He also said that the ministry has been strongly supporting the development of domestic vaccines to help Vietnam improve its vaccine supply as well as its vaccine autonomy. However, before giving approval to a vaccine, the Ministry must have sufficient data on its safety, immunogenicity and especially protective efficacy.

Our goal is to protect people's health, so it is necessary to thoroughly weigh the benefits and risks. Careful approval does not mean we are trying to make it hard for businesses, he told Health and Life.

Vietnam has been among the most effective countries in tackling COVID-19, reporting no deaths among its 95 million people through late July 2020a record that was attributed to effective contact tracing, strict quarantines, and early testing.

Since then, four separate waves of the virus swept over the country, with 13,782 confirmed cases and 69 deaths, according to statistics from the Johns Hopkins University of Medicines Coronavirus Resource Center.

Reported by RFAs Vietnamese Service. Translated by Anna Vu. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
Due to climate change, the Arctic is becoming more accessible and therefore more attractive for the countries that encircle it. Which countries have claimed parts of the Arctic? What do they need to enforce these claims? And what does Russia hope to achieve in the region?

It was August 2, 2007. Russian explorers in two mini-submarines dived deep below the North Pole and planted their country's flag on the seabed. This not-so-subtle assertion of Moscow's claims to the Arctic was criticized by other countries, especially those that also have an interest in the region.

Who Owns The Arctic?

Over the past three decades, several countries encircling the Arctic, including Canada, Denmark, Norway, and Russia, have claimed various parts of it. Some of these claims overlap and have yet to be resolved. Here's a look at which parts of the Arctic have been claimed and by whom.

Claims To The Arctic

(By country)

Claims To The Arctic

(By country)

Why Is Russia Interested In The Arctic?

So why does Russia claim parts of the Arctic? The region seems to be attractive for several reasons. According to some estimates, up to one-quarter of the world's undiscovered oil and natural gas might be located there. It is also a strategic place when it comes to trade routes, specifically the Northern Sea Route, and military control of the region. And let's not forget that Russia's coastline accounts for 53 percent of the total Arctic Ocean coastline and its population in the area is about 2 million people, which is about half of the people living in the Arctic worldwide.

Natural Resources

According to Russia's latest plan, issued in March 2021, the country plans to boost its production of liquefied natural gas to 140 million tons by 2035 -- which is almost five times more than in 2020. It is estimated that about 90 percent of Russia's gas resources are located in the Yamal-Nenets region in the Arctic and there is probably undiscovered oil and gas even further to the north.

Northern Sea Route

Another reason why Russia claims part of the Arctic is the Northern Sea Route. It is one of several Arctic shipping channels and it lies mostly within Russia's exclusive economic zone.

In the past, the route was accessible only several months a year, usually between July and November, but this has changed due to global climate change and ice in the area being at a historic low. Last year's shipping season was the longest on record when a tanker made a trip through the Arctic Sea in May 2020 and then completed a return journey in February 2021.

Taking the Northern Sea Route can cut journey times (from St. Petersburg to Seoul, for example) by up to two weeks, compared to the traditional Suez Canal route, and some believe that it could become a viable alternative.

Northern Sea Route

(Compared to the Suez Canal Route)

Distance is not the only factor, though. The Northern Sea Route puts great demands on ships, as they need special equipment for the harsh Arctic conditions or even assistance from icebreakers. It's also very onerous for the crews manning the ships, who might need to work during polar nights and get ice-navigation training, for example.

There are also ecology-related concerns, such as the fact that increased shipping could disrupt local habitats. The risk of oil spills in the Arctic would increase as well, and the region's remoteness would make it difficult to respond to such incidents.

Nevertheless, Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a decree in 2018 ordering an increase in cargo traffic to 80 million tons by 2024, which would be almost 70 million tons more than in 2017. The country hopes that the route could eventually be accessible year-round, but this is not expected to happen before 2025.

Military Strength

As more areas in the Arctic become ice-free, Russia is becoming increasingly worried about potential territorial vulnerabilities in its Far North. Therefore, it plans to bolster its military presence there, according to a decree issued in October 2020. From the Russian perspective, natural barriers that used to protect the country's border in the past might disappear and therefore it needs to take action.

Expansion work on Russia's northernmost air base, Nagurskoyene, is one of the latest examples of Moscow's increased military activity in the region. Located on an island in Alexandra Land, it is inhabited by military personnel only. The facility covers more than 14,000 square meters and can sustain itself independently for over a year, according to some reports. Recently, the runway was extended so Russia can now land and refuel most of its military aircraft there.

What Else Is Russia Doing To Secure Its Position In The Region?

Besides strategic military activities and promoting the Northern Sea Route, Russia has also developed the world's first floating nuclear reactor. In 2019, it completed a 5,000-kilometer journey from Murmansk to its permanent location in Pevek. Akademik Lomonosov, as the reactor has been named, was designed to supply remote communities with power. The concept of a nuclear reactor stationed in the Arctic Sea raised safety concerns among environmentalists, some even dubbing it "Chernobyl on ice".

Russia also has possibly the largest fleet of more than 40 icebreakers, including the Arktika, which the country describes as the world's largest nuclear icebreaker. Icebreakers are generally used to clear paths from ice for more fragile vessels, but some have also been used for scientific purposes and even tourist cruises to the North Pole.

...But What About The Environment?

While the Russian Arctic Strategy mentions the vulnerability of ecological systems to external influences and global climate change, it also says higher temperatures can bring more economic opportunities and Moscow doesn't seem too concerned about thawing ice.

Besides these risks, there is also the threat of oil spills. According to data from the Russian Energy Ministry, there were more than 17,000 fuel leaks (mostly from aging pipelines) in Russia in 2019, including those in the Arctic. While leaks happen in many countries around the world, Russia usually records more spills than any other oil-rich state. The clean-ups are often very difficult due to the Arctic's remoteness and a lack of high-quality cleaning equipment.

Russia also needs to deal with nuclear dumping grounds in the area. For example, the Kara Sea has the highest concentration of radioactive and nuclear waste in the world's oceans, as many decommissioned submarines and other nuclear materials were dumped there by the former Soviet Union.

In May 2021, after two years with Iceland at the helm, Russia took over the chairmanship of the Arctic Council, which consists of eight Arctic states and addresses local issues. In the past 24 months, the council has mainly focused on sustainability in marine life, green energy, and local communities. It is yet to be seen what regional challenges Russia will address.
Outgoing Iranian President Hassan Rohani says the main issues between Tehran and world powers to revive the 2015 nuclear deal have been resolved, although Germany and France caution that hurdles remain.

The comments, made at cabinet meeting on June 23, came as other top Iranian officials signaled progress was being made at talks under way since April in Vienna.

Rohani's chief of staff, Mahmud Vaezi, said that the United States had agreed in principle to lift more than 1,000 sanctions reimposed when former U.S. President Donald Trump exited the deal three years ago.

"An agreement has been reached to remove all insurance, oil, and shipping sanctions that were imposed," Vaezi was quoted as saying by Iranian state media.

"Right now, we're discussing which of the remaining sanctions are related to the nuclear deal and which ones relate to before 2015," he said, adding that the sides were still negotiating.

U.S. national-security adviser Jake Sullivan said on June 20 there was still "a fair distance to travel," including on sanctions and on the nuclear commitments that Iran has to make to salvage the tattered deal.

The United States is present, but not directly negotiating, mainly due to Iran's refusal to meet face-to-face. Instead, the U.S. delegation is at a nearby location in Vienna, with the other delegations and EU as go-betweens.

Vaezi said Iran will also decide whether to extend its monitoring deal with the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency after its expiry on June 24.

The latest round of talks between Iran and world powers to the deal adjourned on June 20 for consultations in capitals, two days after Iran held a presidential election won by hard-liner Ebrahim Raisi.

Raisi is due to replace Rohani in August.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, who is also Tehran's lead nuclear negotiator, was quoted by state media on June 21 as saying that the parties were closer to a deal than ever.

"Negotiators decided to conclude this round, and return home not only for further consultations, but also for decision making," Araqchi said.

He said he hoped to finish the negotiations and possibly implement the deal while the current government is still in office.

Raisi said after his election victory that he backed discussions to revive the nuclear deal, which lifted sanctions on Iran in return for commitments to limit and monitor its nuclear program.

"We support the negotiations that guarantee our national interests...America should immediately return to the deal and fulfill its obligations under the deal," he said.

Trump abandoned the agreement in 2018 and reimposed harsh sanctions, prompting Iran to gradually violate it by ramping up enrichment.

U.S. President Joe Biden's administration is trying to restore the deal, but the sides disagree on which steps to take and in what order.

Some Iranian officials have suggested Tehran may prefer an agreement before Raisi takes office in order to avoid blame if future problems arise with the deal, which was originally negotiated by the Rohani administration only to be trashed by Trump.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has the final say on all major policy and would need to sign off on any agreement to revive the nuclear deal.

Although European parties to the deal say progress has been made, they caution that the complicated and highly technical talks still face many hurdles.

"We are making progress but there are still some nuts to crack," German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said at a joint news conference in Berlin on June 23 alongside U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Maas said a deal was possible even after the election of Raisi.

French Deputy Foreign Minister Franck Riester told lawmakers that "difficult decisions" needed to be made in the coming days and weeks.

The remaining parties to the deal are Iran, Russia, China, France, Britain, Germany, and the European Union.

Meanwhile, Iranian media reported that the authorities foiled a sabotage attempt against a building of the country's Atomic Energy Organization, although few details were provided.

With reporting by Tasnim, ISNA, and Reuters
ALMATY, Kazakhstan -- A court in Kazakhstan's largest city has sentenced a protester to 15 days in jail and fined two other demonstrators who picketed the Chinese Consulate for 135 days to demand the release of relatives they say are being held "illegally" in China.

The Almaty Specialized Inter-District Court on June 22 found Baibolat Kunbolat guilty of "organizing an unsanctioned rally" and sentenced him to 15 days in jail. Kunbolat has rejected the charge, saying he was not an organizer of the picket.



Two women, Gulbaran Omirali and Altynai Arakhan, were found guilty of taking part in the same "unsanctioned rally" and fined 145,000 tenges ($340) and 87,000 tenges ($200), respectively.

The day before, two other protesters were found guilty of "violating laws on public gatherings" and fined for picketing the Chinese Consulate in Almaty.

In recent years, many similar protests have taken place in Kazakhstan, with demonstrators demanding the authorities officially intervene in the situation faced by ethnic Kazakhs in Xinjiang.

The U.S. State Department has said that as many as 2 million Uyghurs, Kazakhs, and members of Xinjiang's other indigenous, mostly Muslim, ethnic groups have been confined to detention centers.

China denies that the facilities are internment camps but people who have fled the province say people from the groups are undergoing "political indoctrination" at a network of facilities known officially as reeducation camps.

Kazakhs are the second-largest Turkic-speaking indigenous community in Xinjiang after Uyghurs. The region is also home to ethnic Kyrgyz, Tajiks, and Hui, also known as Dungans.

Han, China's largest ethnicity, is the second-largest community in Xinjiang.
Belarusian opposition leader Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya says Belaruss forced diversion of a passenger flight to Minsk last month was a mistake that has galvanized the West against authoritarian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka.

Tsikhanouskaya told AP in an interview published on June 23 that this hijacking touched all the European leaders because their citizens were on this flight.

Lukashenkas regime never crossed this red line before, of interfering in a European area, she said.

Crisis In Belarus Read our coverage as Belarusians continue to demand the resignation of Alyaksandr Lukashenka amid a brutal crackdown on protesters. The West refuses to recognize him as the country's legitimate leader after an August 9 election considered fraudulent.

The regime is so frightened by the unity of Belarusians, by the unity of the European Union, the U.S.A., about this situation in Belarus that they stopped to think strategically. They started to think emotionally, she added.

Lukashenka's regime has been under international pressure since it launched a brutal crackdown on the political opposition and the independent media in the wake of a disputed election in August 2020.

The protesters have said that election was rigged, insisting that Tsikhanouskaya won the poll.

The crisis hit a new level on May 23 when Belarusian authorities scrambled a military jet to escort an Athens-Vilnius Ryanair flight to land in Minsk in what many countries regarded as a "state hijacking." After the plane, which was diverted just before it left Belarusian airspace, landed, law enforcement immediately arrested opposition blogger Raman Pratasevich and his Russian girlfriend.

In response, the European Union, the United States, Britain, and Canada have slapped sanctions on Belarus that included asset freezes and visa bans imposed against dozens of officials, lawmakers, and ministers from Lukashenka's administration and his family members, as well as Belarusian entities.

EU foreign ministers also agreed to sanction key sectors of the Belarusian economy and major revenue sources for the regime, including potash fertilizer exports, the tobacco industry, petroleum, and petrochemical products.

European states have also banned Belarusian carriers from overflying their airspaces and from accessing their airports.

This crisis is deepening, Tsikhanouskaya said.

Lukashenka told a June 22 commemoration event marking the 80th anniversary of the Nazi invasion of the U.S.S.R. that the latest sanctions, announced on June 21, were part of an ongoing "hybrid war" against his country.

The Belarusian Foreign Ministry said the sanctions would negatively impact the interests of citizens and warned that it would be forced to take reciprocal measures. It did not specify what measures could be taken.

The EU, the United States, and other countries have refused to recognize the official results of the election and do not consider Lukashenka to be the country's legitimate leader.

Before the diversion of the Ryanair flight, they had already imposed sanctions against the 66-year-old autocrat, whom some describe as Europe's last dictator.

Tsikhanouskaya ran in last years election in place of her husband, video blogger Syarhey Tsikhanouski, who was arrested in May 2020 after expressing his willingness to challenge Lukashenka.

After the vote, the 38-year-old political novice was forced to flee Belarus over safety concerns. She currently lives in neighboring Lithuania with her children, working to rally Western countries against Lukashenka.

The trial of Tsikhanouski and other opposition figures and political prisoners is set to begin in the southeastern city of Homel on June 24 on charges widely considered to be trumped-up.

If found guilty, Tsikhanouski faces up to 15 years in prison.

The others accused in the case include popular blogger and RFE/RL consultant Ihar Losik, as well as Mikalay Statkevich, Uladzimer Tsyhanovich, Artsyom Sakau, and Dzmitry Papou.

The trial will be closed. The trial will not be in court, it will be right in the prison. Lawyers will not have an opportunity to tell us what is going on, Tsikhanouskaya told AP.

We understand that the trial will not be lawful, will not be honest, will not be fair. In reality, judges can write any number of years in prison.

The opposition leader said she expected the trial to last a month or two.

According to Tsikhanouskaya, if the authorities really cared about people they would start a dialogue with Belarusians, they would release political prisoners, and solve this crisis in a civilized way."

"I imagine new elections this fall. This is our aim.

With reporting by AP and AFP
Congressional lawmakers are ratcheting up the pressure on the White House, demanding more be done to force the extradition of a powerful Ukrainian tycoon from Austria to the United States.

In a letter released by a bipartisan group of House of Representatives lawmakers on June 22, they also suggested that Austria's judiciary had been corrupted by Dmytro Firtash, one of Ukraine's wealthiest businessmen.

The demand was the latest development in the long-running and politically charged case involving Firtash, who made a fortune in the murky industry of natural-gas trade between Russia and Ukraine in the 1990s and 2000s.

He was charged by U.S. prosecutors with participating in a bribery conspiracy in 2013, and has been fighting U.S. demands for his extradition from Austria, where he now lives.

In the letter addressed to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Attorney General Merrick Garland, the lawmakers -- Democrats Marcy Kaptur and Mike Quigley and Republicans Brian Fitzpatrick and Andy Harris -- said Austria appeared to be dragging its feet on the U.S. request, and suggested Firtash had corrupted Austria's judiciary.

"We are concerned that Mr. Firtash has used his considerable wealth and malign influence to subvert that countrys legal system to evade extradition and the rule of law," the letter said.

Christina Salzborn, a spokeswoman for the Austrian regional court that is considering the extradition request, told RFE/RL that the slow pace of the proceedings was due in part to a change in the judge overseeing the case.



Firtash was still required to check in with the court regularly, she said, though he was not required to wear any sort of electronic monitoring device.



Asked to comment on the suggestion that the Austrian judiciary had been corrupted by Firtash, she replied: "It's absurd, absolutely absurd. There's no kind of corruption whatsoever. There are a lot of documents, a lot of data, a lot of lawyers involved."



One of Firtash's lead U.S. lawyers, Lanny Davis, criticized the lawmakers' letter, saying it was "100 percent wrong."



"There is not one fact of evidence whatsoever that Dmytro Firtash has been responsible for any corruption either in Ukraine or in Austria," he told RFE/RL.



He said the fact that the Austrian court had rejected the extradition was "embarrassing" to the United States. He also asserted that Firtash's arrest in 2015 was due to political interference on behalf of a top State Department official who oversaw Ukraine policy at the time, Victoria Nuland.



"Since when does the State Department tell a country like Austria to arrest somebody? Nuland had it out for [Ukrainian President Viktor] Yanukovych, and she blamed it on Firtash," he said.

Yanukovych fled Ukraine in March 2014 after months of street protests culminated in violent clashes in Kyiv. Firtash was arrested about two weeks later in Vienna.



The State Department did not respond to an inquiry from RFE/RL seeking comment on the assertion. Nuland is now the undersecretary of state for political affairs.

In a letter provided to RFE/RL, Otto Dietrich, the Austrian lawyer handling the extradition fight in Vienna, said Firtash's original extradition hearing in 2015 was "the only due process that has yet occurred...over all these years of unsubstantiated and false accusations."

"To suggest corruption in Austrian courts, therefore, is not only factually inaccurate -- it is an insult to our judicial system," he wrote.

Firtash was indicted by the United States in June 2013, accused of conspiring with five other people in 2006-10 to pay at least $18.5 million in bribes to Indian officials to acquire a titanium mine in India. The Ukrainian tycoon allegedly intended to sell part of the output to U.S. aerospace giant Boeing.

Austria's Supreme Court in June 2019 upheld Firtash's extradition but a lower court stayed the decision to give Firtash a chance to submit new evidence that could open the door to a retrial.

The hearing to determine whether Firtash can get a new trial has been delayed due to a change of judge and the coronavirus pandemic.

Firtash, who has denied reports of ties to organized crime groups in Russia and elsewhere, built his fortune on deals with Kremlin-controlled natural gas company Gazprom. The tycoon imported Russian energy at below-market prices, earning billions of dollars as he resold it to Ukraine at significantly higher prices, according to a Reuters investigation.

Firtash was one of several powerful Ukrainian tycoons who used his wealth to back Yanukovychs 2010 presidential bid.

More recently, he's been linked to alleged efforts by Rudy Giuliani, the personal lawyer of former U.S. President Donald Trump, to find and publicize information in Ukraine aimed at damaging Joe Biden, who defeated Trump in 2020.

Firtash, for his part, has accused the United States of targeting him in an attempt to influence Ukrainian politics.

The lawmakers' letter comes as the Biden administration makes fighting corruption a key pillar of its foreign policy, especially with respect to Ukraine.

The White House has already imposed sanctions on a host of politicians and businessmen around the world since taking power in January, including Ihor Kolomoyskiy, another top Ukrainian tycoon.

However, the administration has also suggested Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was not doing enough to fight corruption.

In April, a top U.S. State Department official, George Kent, expressed frustration that Ukraine had not done more; and he singled out Firtash, highlighting his much-maligned gas-import business.

Last week, Ukraine's Security and Defense Council imposed financial penalties on Firtash, claiming he sold titanium to Russia for use by its defense industry. The tycoon denies the allegations.

Zelenskiy has yet to sign the measure into law.

Zelenskiy's relations with the Trump administration have been troubled; in an infamous phone call in July 2019 with Zelenskiy, Trump appeared to condition military aid on Zelenskiy's opening investigations into Joe Biden and his son Hunter, who had business dealings in Ukraine.

That phone call led to Trump's first impeachment by Congress in January 2020. The Senate ultimately acquitted him.

Since Biden took office in January, Zelenskiy has been trying to mend fences with, and seek greater support from, Washington, particularly for Ukraine's ongoing war with Kremlin-backed fighters in eastern Ukraine.

Zelenskiy recently secured an invitation to visit the White House, in what would be a major victory for the Ukrainian leader; he's scheduled to travel to Washington sometime this summer.
MOSCOW -- A Moscow court has sentenced a member of the Russian protest group Pussy Riot to 15 days in jail on a charge of "minor hooliganism," part of a series of moves against the activists in recent days.

The court issued the ruling against Aleksandr Sofeyev on June 23. A Moscow photographer, Dmitry Vorontsov, who was detained along with Sofeyev, was also sentenced to 15 days in jail on the same charge.

The two were arrested late on June 21. Police initially filled protocols against the two accusing them of "drinking alcohol in public" after they found a bottle of wine in Sofeyev's backpack.

Sofeyev's lawyer, Marat Gilmanov, told MBKh Media that the charge was changed and all of the initial paperwork rewritten after he demanded the two men be examined by medical personnel, who found no alcohol in their blood.

The arrests came a day after three other Pussy Riot members, Lyusya Shtein, Anna Kuzminykh, and Maria Alyokhina, as well as the chief of the Moscow branch of the unregistered The Other Russia party, Olga Shalina, were detained in Moscow.

Alyokhina and Shtein were charged with disobeying police. Alyokhina was detained as she traveled to get a vaccination against COVID-19. Police said they took her into custody because of "information about her plans to perform an unsanctioned protest action on the day of the 80th anniversary of Nazi Germany's attack on the Soviet Union."

It is not clear where the police got that information and the next day the charge was changed to disobeying police.

Another Pussy Riot member, Veronika Nikulshina, was sentenced on June 21 to 15 days in jail on a charge of "disobedience to police."

Pussy Riot came to prominence in 2012 when Alyokhina and the groups another noted member, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, burst into Moscow's Christ the Savior Cathedral to protest ties between the Russian Orthodox Church and then-Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

Their protest, the performance of a song they described as a "punk prayer," took place as Putin was campaigning for his return to the presidency.

Two were convicted on a charge of "hooliganism motivated by religious hatred" and sentenced to two years in a penal colony.

Alyokhina and Tolokonnikova were close to completing their sentences when they were granted amnesty in December 2013.

Two dismissed their amnesty as a propaganda stunt aimed at improving Putin's image abroad ahead of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Russia's Black Sea resort of Sochi.

With reporting by MBKh Media
The UN envoy to the Central African Republic (C.A.R.), as well as diplomats from the United States and France, has accused the national security forces and their Russian paramilitary allies of wide-ranging human rights abuses.

Russia helps President Faustin Archange Touadera combat rebel groups in the resource-rich country's ongoing civil war, including fielding Russian mercenaries and security details for government figures.

Moscow says it has only sent unarmed "instructors" to train the C.A.R. Defense Ministry.

Envoy Mankeur Ndiaye told the UN Security Council that human rights abuses and violations of international humanitarian law were "attributable to the Central African armed forces, bilateral forces, and other security personnel," referring to the hundreds of Russian paramilitaries deployed in the country.

A UN report in March expressed concern about Russian paramilitaries participating in human rights abuses alongside C.A.R. government forces, and in some cases UN peacekeepers. The alleged abuses include mass summary executions, forced displacement of the civilian population, and indiscriminate targeting of civilian facilities.

Numerous witnesses and NGOs say the instructors are in fact paramilitaries from the Vagner Group, a Russian military contractor with ties to the government, who are actively participating alongside Rwandan special forces and UN peacekeepers in the fight against rebels.

Russia has significantly increased its presence and influence in the poor but resource-rich African country, where Russian national Valery Zakharov serves as national-security adviser to President Touadera.

The C.A.R. government has granted gold- and diamond-mining permits to Russian companies suspected of having links to Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin, a close associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin, and the man believed to be the head of the Vagner Group.

Deputy U.S. Ambassador to the UN Richard Mills also addressed Russia's role at the UN Security Council.

"We are troubled as well by continued reports of Central African armed forces and Russian instructors committing violations of international humanitarian law," he said. "They are operating [as a] direct extension of Russia's Ministry of Defense."

France's ambassador to the UN, Nicolas de Riviere, also raised concerns.

"Some will attempt to deny the presence of the Vagner company. Therefore, who are these men involved in the fighting...and to whom do they answer for their actions?" he asked.

Last week, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian accused Russia of what he called a "seizure of power" in the Central African Republic in order to exploit natural resources.

"In the Central African Republic, there is a form of a seizure of power, and in particular of military power, by Russian mercenaries," he told BFM TV. "We are fighting this and it has led us to take measures to withdraw a certain number of our military personnel."

The French military earlier this month suspended financial aid and military cooperation with the Central African Republic, a former colony.

It accused the government of being "complicit" in an anti-French disinformation campaign backed by Russia.

With reporting by AFP
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia -- "This is very bad news," wrote historian and instructor at the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences Daniil Kotsyubinsky when he learned that the Russian Prosecutor-General's Office had moved to name his faculty's U.S. partner, Bard College, an "undesirable" foreign organization.



"It is nothing more than self-defeating state paranoia. It is inexplicable....," he continued. "The men in epaulets are sewing themselves new badges and stripes any way they can while educated youths once again receive from our superpower a hairy fist in their 'servile snouts.'"



"For the students, this decision is humiliating," Kotsyubinsky added in an interview with RFE/RL. "How are the instructors now supposed to tell them about what a great country they live in? That's what I'd like to ask those who make such decisions."



On June 21, the Prosecutor-General's Office asked the Justice Ministry to list Bard as an "undesirable foreign organization," saying it "represents a threat to the constitutional order and security of the Russian Federation." When listed, Bard would become the 35th organization so designated.



The designation effectively ends -- and potentially criminalizes -- all activity connected with the "undesirable" organization in Russia.



Bard College, a respected private liberal arts college with about 2,000 students based in Annandale-on-Hudson in upstate New York, has been actively partnering with St. Petersburg State University since 1997. The first students came to Russia on a program called Art and the Humanities during the 1999/2000 academic year.

The exchange quickly evolved into a dual-degree program, with successful students earning degrees from both institutions.



In 2011, the two educational institutions created the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences and selected former Finance Minister Aleksei Kudrin as its dean. Informally, the faculty was known as the Smolny Institute. Kudrin, who is believed to have close relations with President Vladimir Putin and who has for many years been seen as a leading relatively liberal voice in the ruling elite, remains the dean.

According to its website, the faculty "is the first Russian school designed around the principles of liberal education, which are based on an individual approach to each student and the creation of a suitable atmosphere for creative and original thinkers."



The new institution was actively supported by prominent St. Petersburg academician Dmitry Likhachyov, who said the initiative would restore "the best native traditions of university education, including those that unfortunately were lost because of the dramatic cataclysms our motherland endured in the last century."



According to Bard College's website, "cooperation between St. Petersburg University and Bard College takes place on many levels, including student and faculty exchange. Each year up to 45 students spend a semester at the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences through Bard and an equal number of SPbU students attend courses at Bard."



In November 2019, St. Petersburg State University announced it had become "the first Russian university to open a representative office in the United States" on the campus of Bard College.



"The creation of the representative office of St. Petersburg is especially well-timed now in the light of the difficulties that are found in relations between Russia and the United States in policy and diplomacy," said longtime Bard College President Leon Botstein at the ceremony. "We have been cooperating for 22 years."

Earlier this year, the Russian government decided to separate the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences from St. Petersburg State University and establish it as an independent university. That decision became official on March 3. About a month later, Bard announced it had received a "transformational" $500 million endowment from financier George Soros. Bard earlier played important roles in two Soros initiatives -- the Open Society University Network and the Central European University.



After Bard's announcement, St. Petersburg University rector Nikolai Kropachev invited prosecutors to the university to check whether it was in compliance with Russian laws.

Around the same time, prosecutors received a request from the Coordinating Council of Noncommercial Organizations of Russia complaining that Soros, the Open Society Foundations, Bard College, the Central European University, and Botstein were using the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences "as part of a global network of controlled educational institutions to indoctrinate young people into the pro-Western sphere, form a protest electorate, and sow a hostile ideology regarding our country."



In April, the Kremlin-friendly Coordinating Council held a roundtable to discuss "the negative influence of the Soros Foundation on Russian education."



Soros's Open Society organizations were among the first foreign NGOs declared "undesirable" in Russia back in 2015. The Kremlin and its supporters have long accused Soros of funding and promoting so-called "color" revolutions in the former Soviet Union.



St. Petersburg State University could not be reached for comment.

Bard College has not issued an official reaction to the "undesirable" designation, but Botstein gave an interview to the Chronicle Of Higher Education in which he described the prosecutors' decision as "shocking" and "wildly wrong-headed."



"We hope the Russian government will reconsider," he said. "It's a terrible blow against cultural and human exchange between our two peoples."



He said he had recently shipped the latest batch of Bard diplomas to students in Russia, but he wasn't sure the students would ever receive them.



Botstein added that Bard was already "cut off in communications from our colleagues in Russia."



"This law puts individuals at risk of being jailed just for having contact with us," he said. "We have alerted the secretary of state in hopes of including this in dialogue with Russia."

Immediate Consequences



Maksim Olenichev, a lawyer with the Team 29 legal-aid organization in St. Petersburg, agreed that the decision by the Prosecutor-General's Office has immediate consequences for the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences.



"It must immediately cease all projects and, if some support came from [Bard], either financial or otherwise, it cannot be received," Olenichev told RFE/RL. "Any support that has not yet been spent on projects must be returned. In addition, it is illegal to keep or distribute any literature that was created with the participation of Bard College. This is expressly forbidden by the law on undesirable organizations. In general, any form of cooperation or interaction with Bard College must halt. The faculty can no longer host students, invite specialists, or carry out joint projects."



A person found to have violated the law three times within one year could face criminal prosecution and up to six years in prison, Olenichev explained.



Ilya Utekhin, an instructor with the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences, said the "undesirable" designation "reflects the schizophrenia of the authorities."



"Bard College is not a political organization," he said. "It is simply a university that is promoting a liberal model of education. These days, the liberal educational model is advancing rapidly around the world. In China, more than 100 universities are using this model. It is an American invention, and Bard College is at the forefront of this process."

Utekhin added that the decision seems to be a "another case of the authorities' hysteria" ahead of national legislative elections to be held in September.



"It is an attack on young people," he said. "The authorities are rather hysterically showing who is the boss around here. Every election is an opportunity for panic."



"Earlier, targeted repressions led me to understand that a person had done something publicly and if I didn't want to share his fate, I just shouldn't do that. I shouldn't express certain opinions or go to protests," Utekhin said.



"Now the authorities are introducing another behavioral model. The story of Bard College is different. After all, I can't change my past. I can't change the fact that I spent four years at the Smolny Institute of Liberal Arts and Sciences and that I spent four months studying at Bard. That is, the authorities are telling me to think about the 'wrong' choices I have made in life. It is a tendency to look at a person's biography rather than his actions. This really scares me."



Historian Ivan Kurilla wrote on Facebook



"Should we expect that all universities around the world that were helped by Soros will be declared 'undesirable'?" he wrote. "Is it the prosecutors' goal to bring to an end all educational cooperation between Russian and foreign universities? Are Russia's elites prepared to live with the perspective of the destruction of the best hope for competitive domestic education for the sake of the paranoia of some and the intrigues of others?"

Written by RFE/RL senior correspondent Robert Coalson based on reporting from St. Petersburg by correspondent Tatyana Voltskaya of the North.Realities desk of RFE/RL's Russian Service
The team for jailed opposition leader Aleksei Navalny says a court ruling labeling his political network as "extremist" fails to show any evidence of wrongdoing -- a sign of a "truly new level" of lawlessness in the country.

Navalny's associates on June 23 made public the court ruling and the documents used against them by prosecutors during the trial, which was held behind closed doors because some materials were considered classified.

In its June 9 ruling, the court described the group as "extremist" on the grounds that its calls for people to protest caused "damage to public order, to public security, to the interests of individuals and companies."

The court said the protests violated the rights and freedoms of citizens in Russia.

"During Putin's 20 years, we seem to have gotten used to any kind of game or lawlessness, but here we have a truly new level. And absurdity, and repression of common sense," the Navalny team said in a statement.

Russian authorities have ramped up pressure on dissent ahead of the parliamentary elections in September, with opinion polls showing support for the ruling United Russia party waning.

The court ruling came just days after Putin endorsed a law that bars leaders and founders of organizations declared "extremist" or terrorists by Russian courts from running for elected posts for a period of five years. Other members or employees of such organizations will face a three-year ban.

The two factors together prevent people associated with Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK) and his network of regional political offices across Russia from seeking public office. It also carries lengthy prison terms for activists who have worked with the organizations.

Navalny's team said that in total, the case file included more than 20 volumes and more than 5,000 pages, many of which are just screenshots and descriptions of web pages, an indication, the team said, of how little "real evidence" there was in the case.

Navalny's team said the court ruling and "extremism" law showed how desperate the Kremlin is to hold on to power in the face of growing dissent.

"The constitution says that everyone capable and not in prison can be elected. So Putin took a pencil and added, 'Except those who support Navalny are not allowed to be elected, thank you,'" their statement says.

"An absolutely unprecedented sweep has taken place, the extent of which we have yet to realize. Literally an entire generation has been cut off from participating in politics," it adds.

The statement came the same day that the independent monitoring group Golos said legal restrictions enacted by the government had deprived at least 9 million Russians, about 8 percent of the eligible population, of their right to be elected as the September parliamentary elections near.

Navalny, Putin's most prominent domestic critic, was arrested in January upon returning from Germany, where he spent five months recovering from a nerve-agent poisoning that he blames on the Kremlin -- an accusation that Russian officials reject.

Navalny was sentenced in February to 2 1/2 years in prison for violating the terms of a suspended sentence from a 2014 embezzlement conviction widely considered politically motivated. In April, tens of thousands of people demonstrated for his release, following similar mass protests in January against his arrest.

Navalny's foundation has relentlessly targeted senior government officials over the past decade with widely watched videos that detail allegations of corruption. His political network has been instrumental in implementing a "smart voting" strategy -- a project designed to promote candidates most likely to defeat Kremlin-linked figures.

The United States and Britain have condemned the court ruling, which has fueled greater tensions between the West and Moscow.

With reporting by Reuters and Meduza
The jailed former executive director of the pro-democracy Open Russia movement has been fined for failing to provide details of a group he established in 2017 that was added to the "foreign agents" registry.

A court in St. Petersburg on June 23 fined Andrei Pivovarov 50,000 rubles ($685) and his organization, Open Petersburg, 150,000 rubles ($2,050).

Pivovarov was detained in late May and placed in pretrial detention for two months after he was removed from a Warsaw-bound plane in St. Petersburg.

He said earlier that in December the Justice Ministry labeled the Open Petersburg educational group that he established in 2017 as a "foreign agent."

Russia's so-called "foreign agent" legislation was adopted in 2012 and has been modified repeatedly. It requires nongovernmental organizations that receive foreign assistance and that the government deems to be engaged in political activity to be registered, to identify themselves as "foreign agents," and to submit to audits.

Later modifications of the law targeted foreign-funded media, including RFE/RL.

On June 2, a court in the southern city of Krasnodar ruled that Pivovarov should be held for two months after he was accused of publishing a post on social media supporting a local election candidate last year on behalf of Open Russia, which was labeled an "undesirable" organization in 2017.

Days after Pivovarov's arrest, on June 7, the former chairman of Open Russia, Aleksandr Solovyov, left Russia for Ukraine, saying he feared for his safety.

Open Russia was financed by Russian tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who moved to London after spending 10 years in prison in Russia on charges widely seen as political revenge for challenging Russian President Vladimir Putin's rule.

The organization associated with Pivovarov was based in Russia and no longer legally connected with the London-based group with the same name that ended operations in 2017.

Leaders of the Russian-based Open Russia dissolved the group in late May after it was designated an "undesirable" organization in order to protect its supporters from further "harassment" by the Russian authorities.

The "undesirable organization" law, adopted in May 2015, was part of a series of regulations pushed by the Kremlin that squeezed many nonprofit and nongovernmental organizations that received funding from foreign sources -- mainly from Europe and the United States.

With reporting by TASS and Interfax
CHEBOKSARY, Russia -- The Supreme Court of Russia's Chuvashia region has reversed the acquittal of RFE/RL correspondent Darya Komarova in a case regarding her coverage of a protest rally.

Judge Andrei Golubev on June 22 ruled that the decision of the Lenin district court to acquit Komarova must be nullified and the case sent for retrial. It is not clear why the acquittal was reversed.

Komarova said after the hearing that the judge had questions regarding the absence of the date and registration number on her assignment papers to cover the rally.

"The judge also raised the issue of the accreditation of reporters working for foreign media outlets in general," Komarova said.

Komarova, a correspondent of the Idel.Realities project of RFE/RL's Tatar-Bashkir Service, was charged earlier this year with taking part in three unsanctioned rallies in Chuvashia's capital, Cheboksary -- two in January, when demonstrators protested the arrest of opposition politician Aleksei Navalny in Moscow, and one in August 2020.

The Lenin district court ruled that Komarova was not a participant in the rallies but was covering the demonstrations as a reporter.

Chuvashia's Interior Ministry appealed the acquittals, but the lower court's acquittals of Komarova regarding her coverage of the rallies on January 23 and January 31 came into force earlier and therefore only the ruling on the rally in August was taken to the Supreme Court.

"The continued legal harassment of RFE/RL journalist Darya Komarova on manufactured charges is unacceptable. The court previously acquitted Darya, agreeing that she was a properly credentialed reporter on assignment," RFE/RL President Jamie Fly said in reaction to the decision.

"This is just the latest indication that the Russian authorities are not serious about allowing independent journalists to do their jobs."
The independent monitoring group Golos says legal restrictions enacted by the government have deprived at least 9 million Russians, about 8 percent of the eligible population, of their right to be elected as September parliamentary elections near.

In an analysis of the impact of a series of recent legal amendments, which it says are harsher than those in place in the Soviet Union from 1961 to 1991, the group said it is impossible to calculate the exact number of citizens who have now been deprived of their passive suffrage.

However, it added in the June 22 report, research conducted on the data available from state agencies shows that the total number of citizens who are prohibited by the state from running in elections is at least 9 million, and "most likely, significantly more."

"The entry into force of the new 'anti-extremist' amendments and the recognition by extremist organizations of the structures of Aleksei Navalny's supporters lead to the fact that several hundred thousand more politically active citizens may be under attack in the near future," it said in reference to a bill President Vladimir Putin signed into law on June 4 that bans supporters and members of organizations deemed by authorities as "extremist" from being elected to any public post.

Five days later, the political network built by Navalny, Putin's most-vocal critic, was deemed "extremist" by a Moscow court.

Many in Russia warned the law was an attempt to make it impossible for anyone connected with Navalny to gain public office.

Golos said that the electoral legislation in place in 2021 "returned to the early Soviet models," when the defeat of political opponents was used to consolidate the power of the Bolsheviks.

"The tradition of disenfranchising its political opponents in Russia has deep historical roots," Golos said in the report.

"The latest waves of attacks on the right of citizens to be elected, as in Soviet times, are obviously politically motivated," it said, adding that "in the event of a complete defeat" of the opposition, it's possible these new rules will be removed, just as in previous times.

While Russian authorities have been ramping up pressure on dissent ahead of the September elections, public opinion polls have shown that support for Putin's United Russia party is at the lowest level ever.

Navalny's regional headquarters has been instrumental in implementing a so-called Smart Voting strategy -- a project designed to promote candidates who are most likely to defeat those from United Russia.

Navalny is currently serving a prison sentence on embezzlement charges that he says were trumped up because of his political activity and criticism of Putin.

Golos said that the roughly 6 million dual nationals and those with foreign residence permits are the largest disenfranchised group of voters, while another 1.1 million people convicted of theft and more than 300,000 convicted of drug offenses have also been denied their right to seek office.

The monitoring group emphasizes that since late May, several high-profile officials have lost their right to seek office after they were convicted on questionable charges. These include Moscow municipal lawmaker Yulia Galyamina, an opposition activist in the Arkhangelsk region Andrei Borovikov, a former lawmaker in the Vologda region Yevgeny Domozhirov, the leader of the For New Socialism movement Nikolai Platoshkin, Communist Yury Yukhnevich, and a member of the Liberal Democratic Party, Anton Mirbaldayev.

According to Golos, about 100 more noted politicians may lose their right to seek election in the coming months.

The real goal of the latest amendments is not to protect the sovereignty of the people as a source of power, but to limit them as much as possible, to filter out candidates who are not acceptable to the current government, Golos said.
The United Kingdom has denied reports that a Russian vessel fired warning shots at a British Navy ship in the Black Sea, attributing the incident to a preannounced military exercise.

The Russian Defense Ministry on June 23 said a patrol ship fired warning shots at a British warship in response to an alleged violation of its territorial waters near Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula, which Russia seized in 2014.

The ministry said a Su-24 aircraft also dropped four bombs near the Royal Navy's HMS Defender destroyer.

But Britain denied the Defender had been fired upon or that it was in Russian waters.

"No warning shots have been fired at HMS Defender. The Royal Navy ship is conducting innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law," the ministry said.

The ministry said it believed Russia was carrying out "gunnery exercise in the Black Sea and provided the maritime community with prior warning of their activity."

Russia's official TASS news agency reported the incident took place after the HMS Defender allegedly crossed 3 kilometers into territory in the Black Sea that Russia considers its own.

No casualties were reported in the incident.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said it would summon the British ambassador to Moscow to protest "a crude provocation."

Moscow forcibly seized Crimea in 2014 and threw its support behind pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine's eastern region of Donbas, where more than 13,200 people have been killed in a conflict that continues to this day.

Russia massed troops on its border with Ukraine and in Crimea in the spring, causing consternation in Washington and European capitals about Moscow's intentions at a time of increased fighting in eastern Ukraine between Kyiv and Kremlin-backed separatists.

Russia said in April that it intended to reduce the more than 100,000 troops it had moved near the border areas, but U.S. and Ukrainian officials say Russia has left some military hardware in place.

At the time, Russia announced plans to conduct six months of naval exercises and threatened to block maritime traffic off the Crimean Peninsula, potentially preventing access to Ukrainian ports in the Sea of Azov, which is connected to the Black Sea through the Kerch Strait.

NATO and Ukraine condemned the threat as a violation of international maritime law and Ukraine's sovereignty.

"By international law, of course, the waters off Crimea are not Russian, as the annexation is not recognized," Mark Galeotti, a professor of Russian studies at University College London, tweeted on June 23.

"Continuing to pass those waters -- without being too provocative -- is a crucial way of reaffirming law over land and sea grab."

Western countries have imposed sanctions on Russia over the seizure of Crimea, the treatment of jailed opposition activist Aleksei Navalny, election interference and cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure blamed on Russian hackers.
MANSFIELD -- On Saturday, June 26, teens from around the country will compete to see who will be named Americas Next Top Young Entrepreneur at the Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA!) 13th annual Saunders Scholars National Competition.

The Shark Tank style pitch competition will award over $80,000 in cash prizes and college scholarships to the Saunders College of Business at Rochester Institute of Technology to the students with the best businesses in the U.S. Local viewers will be able to cast their vote for the Peoples Choice Award.

This year 22 semifinalists will compete virtually representing middle and high schools from 13 states across the United States and India for 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and a Peoples Choice Award.

For the second year, the competition will be live broadcast from Rochester, New York ABC-TV WHAM Channel 13 and will be streamed live over the web and able to be seen worldwide on YEA!s YouTube channel and on Facebook live.

Students enrolled in the YEA! program first competed locally in front of an investor panel earlier this year. The top business from each YEA! chapter across the country will now compete head-to-head in semi-final and final rounds at the Saunders Scholars National Competition to take place throughout the day on Saturday, June 26 from noon until 4:30 p.m., with the national winner announcements at 5:55 p.m.

The local semi-finalist, 18-year-old Caleb Keller of Mansfield has been selected by local judges to advance to the National Competition for his start-up business, Pathify.

Keller participated in the Young Entrepreneurs Academy seven-month youth entrepreneurship program presented by and in partnership with the Richland Area Chamber and Economic Development and the Mansfield-Richland Area Educational Foundation.

With the help of local entrepreneurs and business leaders, the student designed, pitched, and launched Pathify, a delivery routing program that will help reduce expenses and increase efficiency for businesses.

The local student will be pitching via multiple online options live in Panel 1, scheduled to run from noon to 1:30 p.m., local time. To support Keller as he competes, here are the options to watch:

You can register online free for updates and information: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/144699709727

Facebook Live on YEA!s official Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/yeausa

YouTube Live: http://www.youtube.com/c/YoungEntrepreneursAcademy

Live on YEA!s official website: http://www.yeausa.org/

During the Finals, the audience does have the ability to vote for the Peoples Choice Award. There are two ways that you can vote for your favorite finalist.

Text-to-Vote phone number is 505-392-5681. Standard texting rates apply.

If you text, you would text 1 to 505-392-5681 to vote for Finalist #1, text 2 to vote for Finalist #2, etc.

To vote online via web browser: http://www.yeausa.org/vote/

This years Saunders Scholars National Competition is sponsored in part by the E. Philp Saunders Foundation, Southwest Airlines, and the Saunders College of Business at the Rochester Institute of Technology.

We could not be more proud of the work these young people are doing and of our partners who are leading the charge across the Country delivering YEA!s entrepreneurship education, said YEA! founder and CEO, Gayle Jagel.

"Our local Chambers of Commerce, incubators, accelerators, universities, colleges and K12 partners who come together through YEA! are igniting the sparks of innovation in the entire community. Just imagine what our world would look like if every student got the chance to bring their ideas to life.

YEA! Richland is currently accepting applications for the class of 2022. There are upcoming information sessions planned throughout the summer and fall. To find those dates, please follow YEA Richland on Facebook and Instagram.

If you would like to take part in the upcoming class, applications can be found at yeausa.org with a due date of Sept. 17. All questions about the program can be directed to Program Manager, Nikki Lewis, at the Richland Area Chamber & Economic Development.
MANSFIELD  The smell of Darrell Smiths deep-fried food easily attracts groups of customers.

His food truck, Smittys & Co., has been in operation since 2018, according to the owner. Popular items include buffalo fry, Smitty fry, Smitty chicken sandwich and deep-fried salmon.

Smith said he had the buffalo fry at a restaurant in San Diego years ago. He brought the idea back to Ohio, tweaked it and created his own dish comprising a bed of fries topped with chicken, cheese and homemade buffalo sauce.

The sauce was so popular customers asked him to bottle and sell it separately, Smith said.

Customer Sheri Bailey said she rarely bought food from a food truck before trying Smiths food. She became a fan of Smitty fry, which has everything in buffalo fry plus BBQ sauce, after the first time trying it.

Bailey also said she has heard nothing but good things about the number of deep-fried mushrooms people can get for only $5.

Smith, known as Dee Smitty, said he learned cooking from Joy Mack, his grandmother. Mack cooked for the family for a long time before she passed away several years ago.

Whenever her children and grandchildren went over to her house on holidays, Mack always made sure everyone had great food, according to Smith.

He inherited the spirit from his grandmother and marked the saying Food made with love on the counter of his food truck.

When the COVID-19 pandemic forced schools to close last March, Smith collaborated with several community members and initiated Operation: 1,000 lunch. Smittys & Co., along with other food businesses, provided and distributed brown bag lunches to 1,000 students in need.

Smith said he has also partnered with 419 Barbershop for a back-to-school drive. They collected school supplies such as folders, papers and pencils for parents to pick up for their children.

On June 19, right after Juneteenth became a federal holiday, Smith co-hosted a celebration at John Todd Park with vendors, informational booths and giveaways available.

He said the organizers plan to start a Juneteenth Festival committee to hold the event annually.

I just feel like they are needed, Smith said of his participation in the community. Like the way to be successful with anything, you find the need and then you fill the need.

Although he said he didn't benefit financially from those events, Smith keeps doing them because they are essential to the community.

You can make as much money as you can, but if you don't help (those in need), I feel like you're not fulfilling the purpose, he said.

Besides Mansfield, Smittys & Co. goes to Crestline, Bucyrus and Ashland from time to time, Smith said. Those interested can check the business Facebook page or Street Food Finder to check its schedule.
MANSFIELD  The village of Bellville and the Richland County Commissioners are moving forward with a financial partnership to install a new tornado siren that will better serve its surrounding area.

Bellville Mayor Teri Brenkus has long advocated for a new tornado siren to be installed on the southern end of Bellville, particularly where new housing developments are slightly out of reach of the current siren located downtown. On Tuesday, county commissioners unanimously committed to helping fund the new siren.

Originally, the two entities had hoped the Jefferson Township trustees would be willing to split the cost of the siren three ways. However, the trustees unanimously passed a resolution a few months ago stating they would not be willing to take on that cost.

"Jefferson Township has up to this point not shown a willingness to partner with Bellville and Richland County," said Commissioner Tony Vero. "I think we need to do this regardless, especially in light of the fact that this county has a history of tornadoes and high weather events. Any extra of layer of safety we can provide to the residents is a good thing, at a very minimal cost."

According to Brenkus and Richland County EMA Director Rick Evans, the estimated cost of a new tornado siren would be $30,000. The estimated electric cost to keep the siren running is $50 a month.

The Richland County Emergency Operations Plan states Richland County has 42 outdoor warning sirens in key locations throughout the county. Each siren is owned, operated and maintained by the jurisdiction in which it is located. Siren activation is performed by the Richland County dispatch center; Bellville's new siren would be part of that system.

The plan states the purpose of outdoor warning sirens is to notify people who are outside to seek shelter and additional information about the situation. Outdoor warning sirens are designed to be audible for an outdoor range of approximately one square mile, depending on wind conditions.

Weather conditions such as storm noise and wind may diminish the effectiveness of sound transmission by the outdoor warning sirens. In addition, limitations in wireless service areas, landline and internet service interruptions, and other potential communications system failures can make the delivery of emergency warnings difficult or impossible.

However, in a separate interview with Richland Source, Jefferson Township Trustees chair Mark Gatton said he feels with today's technology, the need for tornado sirens is not as prevalent.

"They were never designed to alert people indoors, and that's all I needed to hear," Gatton said. "There are different apps you can get on your phone that can tell you what's going on weather-wise, good or bad, and everybody has a cell phone, internet and TV. So we didn't feel that the expenditure was worth it.

"I'm not putting a negative twist on the fact that they think it is; that's just how we feel," he said. "It's our job to spend our money wisely."

According to Brenkus, the general fund balance for Jefferson Township was $144,000 as of February 2021. The population of Bellville is 2,200 and the vast majority of residents reside in Jefferson Township. Over half the population of Jefferson Township live within the village of Bellville.

"Bellville residents pay money into the Jefferson Township general fund. They pay the majority of their finances," Vero said.

"While many have cell phones, not everyone is all that technologically savvy, and this is an extra layer of protection that I think is important to provide on top of a cell phone," he said.

Brenkus said the ideal location for the new tornado siren would be at the Jefferson Township fire department. Gatton said the trustees would have "no qualms" about putting the siren at that location.

The new tornado siren would be able to reach residents particularly in the Greenbriar Condos, Hamilton Hills and Urban Meadows neighborhoods in Bellville. The village performed a test of decibel levels at four different locations in town; FEMA guidelines say the decibel level of a tornado siren is supposed to be 70 decibels, but most locations showed levels well under 70.

"I started a Greenbriar neighborhood watch about seven years ago; every year a lot of the residents that live in the condos said they could barely hear the tornado sirens," Brenkus said. "Especially for the condos (without a basement), I felt it was really important to have a heads up as to what's coming so they can get to a place of safety."

The next steps are for Richland County EMA to work with the village of Bellville and determine a final, official cost for the new tornado siren. The two entities will then move forward on their own to finance and install the new siren.

"If we had the opportunity to collaborate efforts, it would make it reasonable and affordable for all of us to cover that many more people," Brenkus said. "But either way, I think it's our duty to do what we can to make sure everyone has a safe environment."
Written By

Joe Schulz served as the reporter of the Green Laker in 2019 and 2020, before being hired as a reporter for the Commonwealth in October 2020. He is from Oshkosh and graduated from UW-Oshkosh in December with a bachelor's degree in journalism.

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Rockdale County transportation director excited for start of transit master plan

Special Photo John Moretto

CONYERS  The Rockdale County Board of Commissioners was expected to approve a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Atlanta-Region Transit Link Authority (ATL) and $105,000 as a grant match for the development of a transit master plan at the June 22 meeting.

Rockdale County Department of Transportation Director John Moretto told the BOC at the June 15 meeting that the $105,000 is the countys match for a $420,000 grant from the ATL and federal funds. He added that he is excited to get started on the transit master plan.

This will set the foundation for what we need to do, Moretto told the BOC. Right now, we all know what we want to do, but thats what we feel individually. This will help us determine what the county needs to do, and that could be a variety of different forms of transit, whether it be bus whether it be some sort of micro-transit, whatever that comes out to be.

But the purpose of this is to determine what is needed from the community, from the geographical situation, to the geometrics of the different roads. It is very logical and is set out in such a way that everybody can understand it.

There will be an 18-month process which will include a 12-month process for the consultant. They will have seven separate tasks involved within that, with task number two being community outreach. If you read through the MOU, there is a lot of community involvement baked into that, a tremendous amount. Were talking about the potential of 10 to 15 different public meetings.

Chairman Oz Nesbitt Sr. credited Moretto for making sure the county followed the correct path to determining what type of transportation is needed, adding that in a call he had earlier in the day with Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff, that Ossoff was excited for Rockdale County.

We got with Chris Tomlinson, the executive director of ATL, and part of the conversation today with Sen. Ossoff talked about everything that Moretto talked about, Nesbitt said. So we are high up on the radar and were moving. But had we not pumped the brakes and followed his (Morettos) leadership to do it the way it needs to be done, we never would have been able to get to the point where were at with ATL and Chris Tomlinson and all the folks on the state level, let alone whats happening on the federal level.

So its worth the wait to get it done right. There are so many people in Rockdale County who are in need of transit and transit services intra-county. It is coming. I wont say that its coming soon. I think that were talking another 18-22 months before were ready to really start a show-and-tell process. But we have to do this groundwork and all of the legal and liability at this point.

District 1 Commissioner Sherri Washington ask if the county has already thought of preliminary routes.

Moretto said they have not because there will be a lot of different steps theyll have to go through in the plan before they start planning routes.

For example, if you go with something similar to the micro-transit, which is like an Uber transit, you start with that and start developing and know the routes of where people want to go, Moretto said. You start keeping and tracking that, and put a year to a year and a half of data together, then you develop routes that are just not something you think is right, but you know is right because you have the data there and you see it and know it.

Washington emphasized the need to engage citizens in the transit plan, similarly to what the county did during its strategic master plan several years ago.

This is super important because this is going to be generational work for our children, our grandchildren, our great-grandchildren, and we need to get it right, Washington said. We need to have as much input as possible.

District 2 Commissioner Dr. Doreen Williams suggested coordinating their transit plan with neighboring counties.

Many of our people that live in Conyers and Rockdale go out of the county to go to work, and lots of people from Newton County come into Rockdale to work, Williams noted. Im not saying were going to cross borders, but I would like to see some kind of connection in coordination with DeKalb County on the one side and Newton County on the other side, and maybe Henry County down below and Gwinnett north of us. It needs to be all-inclusive.

Morette replied that he has already reached out to several of the counties.

From a preliminary standpoint we will definitely engage them in that task that reaches out not only to the public, but also to others, he said. And I know that there needs to be a regional connection.

Nesbitt said when they get to the point of getting civic feedback and input, they need to make sure everyone is involved.

This is not just for those people walking through our county, Nesbitt said. This will give options for those people who drive who may not want to drive. They may want to just go to a terminal or depot and get on a bus or whatever mode of transportation is the end result. This project is a lot of work. Were at the very beginning.
Rocky Mount, NC (27804)

Today

Considerable cloudiness. Occasional rain showers after midnight. Low 63F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%..

Tonight

Considerable cloudiness. Occasional rain showers after midnight. Low 63F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
(jingdaily.com) - France released a color-coded map laying out eased entry protocols for the summer travel season, featuring eased restrictions that apply to seven countries deemed green. Meanwhile, visitors from countries colored orange will need a negative COVID-19 test even if vaccinated. China, among other countries such as Britain and the US, is counted as orange. A plan to start lifting border controls should assist Frances crucial tourism industry as the country emerges from its third pandemic lockdown. However, Chinese netizens had negative reactions toward the new policy, and many commented that they would not visit France at the current stage except for necessary business travel.
After a lifetime of enduring microaggressions and racism, and a year of publicized hate crimes, most Asian Americans feel a degree of othering. The past year has put these issues front and center in the public discourse, but its important to know that what our community is experiencing is not new.

From displacing indigenous peoples, to slavery, to internment camps, our nations history is characterized by racism against people of color, including Asian Americans. One case in particular fueled the modern-day movement for Asian American rightsthe murder of a Chinese American man, Vincent Chin, which took place 39 years ago this June. Chin was bludgeoned to death during his bachelor party at a bar in Detroit by two white men who blamed Japan for losing their automobile manufacturing jobs. There are echoes of Chins murder in hate crimes we see today, and in the pain that is triggered for Asian American families who endured grave injustices.

In addition to race-motivated mass murders and acts of violence, the United States has a long history of anti-Asian policies rooted in systemic and structural racism. For instance, discriminatory immigration laws in the 1800s (such as the Chinese Exclusion Act) and U.S. Supreme Court rulings (e.g., United States vs. Bhagat Singh Thind) in the 1900s legalized bias and exclusion. In fact, it wasnt until 1952 that people of Asian ancestry won the right to become citizens. This history has ramifications still, to this day, and has shaped current narratives and policies that impact Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities and other people of color. Our Executive Vice President, Julie Morita, wrote about her Japanese American parents who suffered in U.S.-sanctioned internment camps during World War II and these days hear all-too-familiar vitriol toward Asian Americans being spewed from the dark and angry corners of social media and beyond.

So while the bigoted rhetoric about COVID-19 may have exacerbated hate against Asian Americans, it has been with us for generations. What may be changing, however, is the increasing political power of the Asian American community, unprecedented recognition of hate crimes against Asian Americans, growing solidarity across races, and increased determination to defeat white supremacy.

Working Toward Solutions

Our history and experiences fuel our passion for RWJFs commitment to ensuring everyone in America has a fair and just opportunity to thrive. We are proud to work alongside others who are striving to dismantle structural racism. We know that doing so will require increased funding for AAPIs and a new narrative that acknowledges, rather than masks, the vast differences within our community. And as researchers, we understand that doing so will also require better, more nuanced data.

The pervasive and false model minority myth has driven misunderstanding, division, and inaction. Historically, the term model minority was used to pit Asian Americans against other communities of color, and it is harmful on many levels. Grouping together very diverse communities and conveying the falsehood that all Asian Americans are doing well masks grave hardship among segments of the population. In fact, the Asian American community has the greatest income inequality of any racial or ethnic group. The model minority myth erases the needs of those who do not fit the stereotype. It is a primary reason so few resources have been invested in Asian Americans. Quite simply, not everyone is doing well and suggesting otherwise disincentivizes investments and fosters division, rather than solidarity, among people of color.

The complexity of Asian American communities* has been a barrier to conducting the kind of research needed to understand and address discrimination, poverty, poor health, and other problems. Asian Americans include people from this country and those from more than 65 countries. We have very different life experiences, speak different languages, and are diverse in other ways. Too often we dont ask survey questions or conduct focus groups in other languages. But with the resources and technology we have today, that should change. We should be able to improve language access and develop surveys in culturally sensitive ways.

Doing so allows for a closer look at the datadata disaggregation, in research parlancethat can reveal real-life problems and point the way to solutions. Instead of looking at overall results of a survey or study, breaking out the data into sub-categories can reveal patterns that would otherwise be masked. In one example, a National Nurses United report on COVID-19 deaths among health care workers found that 31.5 percent of the registered nurses who had died of COVID-19 and related complications were Filipino, even though Filipinos make up just 4 percent of registered nurses in the United States. Only by disaggregating the data was this shocking and tragic disparity revealed.

RWJF is supporting data disaggregation, community power, narrative change, and other research projects that help advance health equity. We are also working collaboratively with diverse communities of color; one example is a powerful guide for community leaders and advocates who want to advance health equity through changes in the way data are collected, analyzed, and reported.

Among other projects, the Foundation is:

supporting the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum as it advances the health and well-being of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, as well as the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund to re-grant to organizations that are addressing hate crimes that target the Asian American and Pacific Islander community through education, data collection/analysis, narrative change, and other AAPI community-led initiatives;

funding studies to identify barriers that impede compliance with federal race and ethnicity data collection and reporting standards; and to examine and monitor opposition to data disaggregation from a social and social justice perspective; and

supporting the Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) Data Policy Lab to demonstrate how its culturally grounded and community-driven research efforts to document COVID infection rates can serve as a model for other communities to counter their underrepresentation in data.

Fostering Racial Solidarity

In addition to this work, conversations across races are essential right now. We must recognize the unique needs of communities that are experiencing racism at the individual, institutional, and structural levels, in this country and by this country. Just as with other Black, Indigenous, and other people of color (BIPOC), Asian Americans suffer from housing and employment discrimination, high rates of uninsurance and low access to mental health services.

The national reckoning with race and the hard conversations it has driven are giving us hope that we can join together with others in acknowledging past wrongsa first step in finding solutions and hope for the future. We stand in solidarity with all communities that have endured racism and discrimination.

*The authors recognize that Asian Americans are a distinct population from Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders (NHPIs). The U.S. Office of Personnel Management recognized these are unique groups nearly 25 years ago, in 1997. However, we include NHPIs in our discussion of solutions in this post because, historically, many organizations have worked to support both communities under the term AAPI.

About the Authors
A still from the TikTok video taken by a college student in December, shows Scott Marberblatt as he coughed and spit at him.
Sanford, NC (27330)

Today

Overcast with showers at times. Low 59F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%..

Tonight

Overcast with showers at times. Low 59F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
Lee County has been selected by the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services to host a COVID-19 vaccine incentive program.

The county is one of 28 in the state chosen to participate, according to a release from the Lee County Health Department.

Beginning Thursday, the Health Department will offer $25 cash cards to those 18 and older who have received their first vaccine dose or taken a person to a vaccination appointment.

There is a limit of one cash card per customer and drivers must attest that they are not drivers for a transportation service such as Uber, Lyft or a taxi company, according to the release.

NCDHHS will provide the local Health Department with cards as long as they are available, the release said.

This incentive program is a great addition in our efforts to help alleviate time and transportation barriers to COVID-19 vaccines, Heath Cain, the countys health director, said in the release. I am so grateful that Lee County was among the counties selected to provide this incentive as we all work to make our community healthier.

The cash cards will be available at the Lee County Government Center, 106 Hillcrest Drive, and the Dennis A. Wicker Civic Center, 1801 Nash St., the release said. Both locations are vaccination sites.

The Pfizer vaccine will be offered Thursday and Friday, 2-4 p.m., and July 1-2, 2-4 p.m. at the Government Center. Vaccines will be offered at the Civic Center, 8:30-10 a.m., on June 29.

Appointments can be scheduled online at www.leecountync.govby phone at 919-842-5744. For Spanish, call 919-718-4640 and select option 8.

Walk-in appointments also are available.

For more information, call the Lee County Health Department at 919-718-4640.
Lansing, Michigan, is the states capital. The area has a rich history, as well as plenty of opportunities for indoor and outdoor recreation. However, if youre a budget-conscious local or traveler, you may not have a ton to spend on an outing. Luckily, having fun here doesnt have to cost you a dime. If youre on the hunt for free things to do in Lansing, Michigan, here are some stellar options that are worth checking out.

Michigan State Capitol

In 1992, the Michigan State Capitol building became a historic landmark. Along with being an architectural beauty, its brimming with amazing art, lighting, furniture, and much more. Plus, the building has a vibrant, intriguing history while also serving as the center of the states government.

The Michigan State Capitol actually offers a variety of tour options. If you want some flexibility, you can go with a self-guided tour. Simply pick up a tour booklet  which is available in multiple languages  from the information services, and you can take your time learning about the various public areas.

If you would prefer a guided tour, those are also available. Along with the standard tour, you may also find limited-run tours that focus on a specific aspect of history or that provide specific services, like having sign language interpreters available.

Fenner Nature Center

If youre looking for a nice outdoor space with plenty of room to stretch your legs, the Fenner Nature Center is a great option. There are 134-acres of land, all of which is open to the public. You can enjoy the four miles of trails, take a stroll through the maple groves, or learn about local wildlife in the visitor center.

In the Visitor Center, there are also some hands-on exhibits. This can be fun for people of all ages, making the learning process much more engaging.

If you enjoy your trip and have a little cash to spare, donations are welcome. The Fenner Nature Center recommends $2 per adult and $1 per child. However, that isnt a requirement, and you can always enjoy the property without paying anything.

River Trail

Another great option for exploring the area is the River Trail. This 16-mile stretch is paved and passes through Downtown as well as several parks and natural landscape. You can walk, bike, or skate along the path. If youd like to picnic, bring a lunch and plan to stop once you reach a park.

Of course, you arent required to travel the full 16 miles. You can enter or leave the trail at almost any time, giving you the flexibility you need to plan an outing that meets your needs or aligns with any limitations.

Brenke Fish Ladder

If you want to see something a bit unique, consider taking a trip to the Brenke Fish Ladder. You can actually access it from the River Trail, making it a nice place to pause on your walk.

The Brenke Fish Ladder was designed to help fish swim past the dam safely. If you visit the area in early fall, you may be able to spot some salmon working their way up the stairs, continuing their journey up the Grand River.

Adado Riverfront Park

When Adado Riverfront Park was designed, it was to serve as a place for festivals. There are plenty of wide-open spaces, ensuring there is enough room for different kinds of events.

When there isnt a festival taking place, you can simply enjoy the open areas. Its an incredible space near the river thats perfect for games, picnics, or a nice stroll in the sun.

During the year, there are many events at Adado Riverfront Park, including some free festivals. However, its important to note that while some festivals dont charge for admissions, others do, so they wont all be available at no cost.

Old Town

If youre looking for historic charm, head to Old Town. Its brimming with buildings that have stood the test of time and the area has recently been revitalized into a thriving neighborhood filled with shops, restaurants, and more.

Like Adado Riverfront Park, Old Town also hosts a variety of events during the year, like arts and crafts festivals. Often, you can enjoy these festivals for free, so its worth seeing if anything may be happening in this part of the city while youre in the area.

Downtown Sculpture Walk

If youre an art lover and would appreciate seeing an eclectic collection, take the time to wander the Downtown Sculpture Walk. By following the path, you can see dozens of pieces representing a wide range of art styles.

Since the sculptures vary so greatly, youll never know what to expect as you approach each one. The photo ops are also exceptional, giving you a chance to capture intriguing images of the various pieces. Plus, since the trail gets you walking, its an excellent way to squeeze in some exercise.

Woldumar Nature Center

StoryWalks

Run by the Capital Area District Libraries and dotting the Lansing area, StoryWalks lets families enjoy reading a story together while taking a stroll outside. Each page of a story is posted along a path, letting the tale unfold a bit at a time as you journey between pages.

Many of the StoryWalks also incorporate activities designed to help young children develop important skills. Along with reading, there may be opportunities to write, sing, or play, making the walk even more engaging.

Michigan History Museum

If youre looking for free things to do in Lansing on a Sunday, youre in luck. The Michigan History Museum is free to everyone on Sundays, allowing you to enjoy the museum without having to pay an admission fee.

The Michigan History Museum focuses on the states rich past. From the time the area was being settled to the late 20th century, youll learn about the states growth and evolution over time, as well as its role in historical events.

MSU Bug House

If youd like to learn more about amazing insects, one of the best free things to do in Lansing, Michigan is to attend one of the MSU Bug House free open houses. They happen regularly throughout the year, usually during the evenings or on weekends, and you dont need an appointment to attend.

Along with being able to view a wide variety of species, you may even get a chance to handle a few. This can be a great hands-on experience for people of all ages, making the world of bugs seem like a treat.

Are there any other free things to do in Lansing, Michigan, that people need to check out? Why not tell us about them? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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Following vaccination availability and loosened travel restrictions, leisure travel continues to skyrocket. In response, airlines are enhancing service routes to meet the heightened demand of summer travel.

This weeks airline news reveals new Pacific Northwest service from Alaska Airlines, nonstop service between Seattle and Amsterdam from Delta, and the return of Tahiti service from Hawaiian Airlines.

Keep reading to discover the latest airline news for the Pacific Northwest and beyond.

Alaska Airlines expands with Boise and Redding

Alaska Airlines is adding new nonstop service between Washingtons Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport (PUW) and Boise (BOI). Service begins August 17, with five flights per week between the two cities.

Our new year-round route bridging Boise and Pullman-Moscow will offer a crucial link to that area's two major universities, said Brett Catlin, vice president of network and alliances at Alaska Airlines.

Alaska has also introduced daily service between Redding Municipal Airport (RDD) and Seattle (SEA).

Delta enhances trans-Atlantic offerings as borders reopen to tourism

Trans-Atlantic flights continue to return as European destinations reopen to travelers. Delta is operating more flights to Amsterdam than any other U.S. airline, including direct nonstop service between Seattle (SEA) and Amsterdam (AMS).

Effective June 24, passengers from the U.S. do not need to present vaccination or covid test results when entering The Netherlands. Travelers may book flights to Amsterdam and review entry requirements on Deltas Travel Planning Center. A roundtrip flight from SEA to AMS starts at $1,060 in Deltas basic economy.

Max shen/Getty Images

Hawaiian Airlines to resume Tahiti service

Hawaiian Airlines has announced the return of its Tahiti service following the launch of a pre-travel testing program allowing quarantine-free travel within the two archipelagos. Beginning August 7, Hawaiian will reinstate once-weekly nonstop flying between Honolulus HNL airport and Tahitis PPT airport.

We look forward to reconnecting our islands, but most importantly, reconnecting family members who have not seen each other for over a year, said Peter Ingram, president and CEO at Hawaiian Airlines.

Guests traveling to Tahiti from HNL will need to provide proof of vaccination and have fulfilled the government of Tahiti's COVID-19 entry requirements prior to travel.
ATHENS, Greece (AP)  Seven senior members of Greeces Orthodox Church and three others were hospitalized with burns Wednesday after being attacked with a caustic liquid, allegedly by a priest facing a disciplinary hearing, authorities said.

The incident occurred at a meeting in Athens of senior bishops. The 37-year-old priest, who was facing the hearing for alleged drug-related offenses, was arrested unharmed and detained for questioning.

A police officer who helped restrain the suspect was also injured, as were a lawyer and a presiding clergyman. They were transferred to state hospitals, for treatment, and two clergymen were described as being in more serious condition.

Police said it was not immediately clear what liquid was used, but added that the victims were being treated for burns.

I express my abhorrence at this unprecedented event, Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou wrote in a tweet after contacting Archbishop Ieronymos, the leader of the Greek church.

Most of the victims hold the senior rank of metropolitan bishop

Health Minister Vassilis Kikilias visit an Athens hospital where the bishops were initially treated, joined by Archbishop Ieronymos.

Ieronymos told reporters he was deeply saddened by the attack but relieved that none of the injuries were considered by doctors to be life-threatening.

Health Minister Kikilias said four of the bishops were more lightly injured and were receiving first aid, while one was transferred to the plastic surgery unit of another hospital and the other two might also be transferred to other hospitals with specialized units, including one with a specialist eye clinic.

He said Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis had asked for constant updates on the case.

The motives for the attack were not immediately clear. State-run ERT television reported that the hearing was held as an appeal to depose the priest from the clergy.

Police identified the victims as the metropolitan bishops Antonios of Glyfada, Kyrillos of Kifissia, Kallinikos of Arta, Nikodimos of Kassandra, Dionysios IV of Zakynthos, Dimitrios of Goumenissis, and Andreas of Dryinoupolis.

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Follow Becatoros at https://twitter.com/ElenaBec and Gatopoulos at https://twitter.com/dgatopoulos
BRUSSELS (AP)  The European Unions chief executive vowed Wednesday to take any action necessary to thwart a new law in Hungary that would ban content portraying or promoting homosexuality or sex reassignment to children.

The Hungarian parliament passed the bill last week, but it must be endorsed by the president to take effect. It prohibits sharing content on homosexuality or sex reassignment to people under 18 in school sex education programs, films or advertisements. The government says its meant to protect children but critics of the law say it links homosexuality with pedophilia.

This Hungarian bill is a shame, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said. This bill clearly discriminates against people based on their sexual orientation. It goes against the fundamental values of the European Union: human dignity, equality and respect for human rights.

I believe in a European Union where you are free to be who you are and love whomever you want, she said in a statement. I will use all the powers of the commission to ensure that the rights of all EU citizens are guaranteed. Whoever they are and wherever they live within the European Union.

Von der Leyen said she had instructed her commissioners to send a letter to Hungary laying out her legal concerns before the bill formally becomes law. The commission proposes legislation on behalf of the 27 EU member countries and ensures that the rules are respected.

The Hungarian government, for its part, said von der Leyen's statement is a shame because it is based on false allegations and because it publishes a biased political opinion without a previously conducted, impartial inquiry.

The recently adopted Hungarian bill protects the rights of children, guarantees the rights of parents and does not apply to the sexual orientation rights of those over 18 years of age, so it does not contain any discriminatory elements, a government statement said.

The issue is due to be raised at Europe's top table on Thursday night, when EU leaders meet in Brussels for a two-day summit.

In Berlin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel told lawmakers that she think's this law is wrong, and its incompatible with my idea of politics -- if you allow homosexual, same-sex partnerships but restrict information about them elsewhere, that also has to do with freedom of education and the like.

She said that proceedings against Hungary on the legislation were a matter for the European Commission to decide on but in any case it draws clear criticism from me.

Earlier this month, EU lawmakers threatened to sue the commission if it fails to act against countries like Hungary if they flout democratic standards. EU Parliament President David Sassoli said Wednesday that he had written to von der Leyen insisting on action.

We are convinced that there have been flagrant violations of the principles of the rule of law by certain member states, which need to be sanctioned, Sassoli said. If there is no reaction from the commission within the timeframe specified in the treaties, we will take action in the (EU) court of justice.

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Justin Spike in Budapest and Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed to this report.
WASHINGTON (AP)  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer will confer Wednesday with White House officials on next steps for President Joe Biden's nearly $4 trillion infrastructure plans as talks with Republicans see-saw in search of a potential deal.

The White House's legislative team huddled in the Capitol basement Tuesday for another round of talks with members from the group of 21 senators, Democrats and Republicans, who are straining to figure out a way to pay for an estimated $1 trillion compromise plan. Biden has rejected their idea for a gas tax linked to inflation, but Republicans are refusing to consider his idea of raising the corporate tax rate. Frustrations are mounting as time ticks with issues still unresolved.

While progress was made, more work remains to be done, said White House press secretary Jen Psaki.

Biden is redoubling his engagement this week as anxious Democrats urge the White House to move faster and leave the talks with Republicans behind so they can pursue his ambitious American Jobs and American Families plans on their own. The congressional leaders are preparing for a consequential but slogging summer schedule with no room for error with their slim majorities in the House and Senate as they try to appease centrist lawmakers who want a potentially more modest but bipartisan accord and liberals who want Biden to go big and seize the moment to deliver on his big campaign promises.

Pelosi and Schumer plan to discuss the path ahead with the White House team, according to aides granted anonymity to discuss the private meeting.

We need to get to this issue sooner rather than later, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., told reporters on a conference call.

For weeks, the bipartisan group that now makes up one-fifth of the Senate has been chasing numbers and policies behind closed doors, having largely agreed to a package of infrastructure priorities but still arguing over how to pay for it.

Theirs is a more traditional package of roads, bridges, highways and broadband investments, with a small amount devoted to the green energy priorities of electric vehicle charging stations and building resiliency championed by Biden. It totals $579 billion in new spending and about $1 overall  far from Biden's $1.7 trillion jobs plan.

Theyre still plugging away at it, and I think, as has been the problem for a long time, it kind of comes down to how we pay for it, Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., the GOP whip, told reporters at the Capitol.

Thune said it was his understanding the White House was not interested in a proposed public-private investment fund as a way to raise money for the building projects and developments, though other Republican senators cautioned that idea may still be in the mix.

The bipartisan group has proposed various other funding sources, including tapping more than $100 billion in unspent COVID-19 relief funds, but that received a cool reception from the White House and Democrats who say the virus aid money is still needed. Another idea, to raise $63 billion from Internal Revenue Service enforcement of tax cheats, is something some Republicans oppose.

Were trying to work things through, said Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., a lead negotiator.

As the bipartisan talks drag on, Democrats are preparing to go it alone, readying a massive $6 trillion package that goes far beyond traditional infrastructure and includes longtime priorities, including expanding Medicare to include dental, vision and hearing aid benefits, developing child care centers, elder care and hospitals and extending tax breaks and other benefits for families that were introduced during the coronavirus crisis.

Initial votes on those proposals could start in July, launching the budget reconciliation process, which allows majority passage, without the need for Democrats in the split 50-50 Senate to rely on Republicans to reach the 60-vote threshold needed to overcome opposition from a filibuster.

-

Associated Press writer Josh Boak contributed to this report.
WASHINGTON (AP)  A new poll on American attitudes toward a core conflict in the Middle East finds about half of Democrats want the U.S. to do more to support the Palestinians, showing that a growing rift among Democratic lawmakers is also reflected in the partys base.

The poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research finds differences within both the Democratic and the Republican parties on the U.S. approach toward Israel and the Palestinians, with liberal Democrats wanting more support for the Palestinians and conservative Republicans seeking even greater support for the Israelis.

The survey also examined Americans opinions on the Biden administrations handling of the Israel-Palestinian conflict. The survey was conducted about three weeks into a cease-fire following a devastating 11-day war last month between Israel and the Gaza Strips Hamas militant rulers. The fighting killed at least 254 Palestinians and 13 people in Israel.

The poll shows Americans overall are divided over U.S. policy toward Israel and the Palestinians. It also shows more Americans disapprove of President Joe Bidens approach to the conflict than approve of it.

Among Democrats, 51% say the U.S. is not supportive enough of the Palestinians. The sentiment jumps to 62% among Democrats who describe themselves as liberal. On the other hand, 49% of Republicans say the U.S. is not supportive enough of the Israelis, a number that rises to 61% among those who say they're conservative.

Paul Spelce, a 26-year-old Democratic-leaning independent voter and supporter of Palestinian statehood, is a member of a heavily religious Texas Republican family whose support for Israel is ingrained with their Christian faith. Spelce, of Austin, says he followed news of last month's Gaza war and the U.S. response closely on the radio as he helped deliver mail.

I started paying a lot more attention," said Spelce, who said he disapproved of Biden's handling of the conflict and thinks the United States is too supportive of Israelis and not supportive enough of the Palestinians.

I don't think Biden's word was that strong," Spelce said. And I don't think, you know, this administration ... can actually do anything regarding the conflict.

Overall, the poll shows that 29% of Americans say the U.S. is too supportive of the Israelis, 30% say its not supportive enough and 36% say its about right. In its approach toward the Palestinians, 25% say the U.S. is too supportive, 32% say it's not supportive enough and 37% say it's about right.

Broad but not unvarying support for Israel has been a tenet of U.S. domestic politics, as well as its foreign policy, for decades. Biden refrained from publicly criticizing Israel over civilian deaths and waited until the last days of fighting last month to openly press Israel to wind down its airstrikes on heavily populated Gaza.

The war highlighted differences among Democratic lawmakers and between some Democratic lawmakers and Biden on Israel policy. Dozens of Democrats in Congress called for Israel and Hamas to cease fire immediately, days before Biden openly did. Sen. Bernie Sanders, a progressive Vermont independent, urged the U.S. to be more even-handed in its approach to the conflict.

The poll found 56% of Americans disapprove of the way Biden is handling the conflict, compared with 40% who approve. While 75% of Republicans disapprove of how Biden is handling the conflict, so do 35% of Democrats.

The new administrations policies, its posture toward Israel, its totally different to President Donald Trumps, said ChrisTina Elliott, a 57-year-old Republican in the northeast Texas town of Atlanta. She said she disapproves of Bidens approach to the conflict and thinks the U.S. should be more supportive of Israelis and less of Palestinians.

The Palestinians need to put just as much effort as Israel is into peaceful relations, Elliott said, and added of Israel, My God, theyre surrounded by enemies.

Forty-two percent of liberal Democrats say they disapprove of how Biden is handling the conflict, compared with 31% of moderate and conservative ones.

That's compared with just 9% of Democrats who disapproved of how Biden is handling his job in general. Overall, Bidens job approval rating stands at 55%.

Since the cease-fire, Israel has transitioned to a new government that says it wants to repair relations with Democrats and restore bipartisan support in the U.S. for Israel. Benjamin Netanyahu, the former longtime prime minister, had openly challenged both Biden and President Barack Obama on U.S. policy in the Middle East and was seen as allying himself to Trump.

Some of the respondents in the survey, both Democratic and Republican, cited the comparatively limited timespan of the war  in comparison, 50 days of fighting in 2014 killed more than 2,200 Palestinians and 73 people on the Israeli side  in saying they approved of Biden's handling of the conflict.

The poll also shows just 19% of Americans think the U.S. should play a major role in finding a solution to the conflict, while 50% say it should play a minor role and 28% say it should play no role. Democrats and Republicans are largely in agreement on the size of the U.S. role in the conflict.

A majority of Americans, 57%, say they think there is a way for Israel and an independent Palestinian state to coexist peacefully, compared with 39% who say there is not a way. About 2 out of 3 Democrats think there is a way. Republicans are closely divided, with 50% saying there is and 45% saying there is not.

Patrick Diehl, another Democratic-leaning independent, cited U.S. offers to help rebuild Gaza buildings leveled by Israeli airstrikes, so, I guess, they can be destroyed again. This seems to me kind of hapless.

You know, we need a stronger position taken by the administration  pushing for actual change rather than continuation of this wretched situation," said Diehl, 74, of Tucson, Arizona.

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Knickmeyer reported from Oklahoma City. Associated Press video journalist Nathan Ellgren in Washington contributed to this report.

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The AP-NORC poll of 1,125 adults was conducted June 10-14 using a sample drawn from NORCs probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for all respondents is plus or minus 4.2 percentage points.
DENVER (AP)  A Colorado man was shopping when he heard the gunfire that killed a suburban Denver police officer, rushed out of the store with his gun and shot the suspect, according to a worker who saw the shooting.

Bill Troyanos told Denver news station KMGH-TV that he was working at the Army Navy Surplus store in downtown Arvada on Monday when he and a man later identified by police as 40-year-old John Hurley heard shots and spotted a gunman in a plaza outside. Troyanos said Hurley rushed to confront the shooter.

He did not hesitate; he didnt stand there and think about it. He totally heard the gunfire, went to the door, saw the shooter and immediately ran in that direction, Troyanos said. I just want to make sure his family knows how heroic he was.

Troyanos said he heard Hurley fire five or six shots. The gunman, identified by police as 59-year-old Ronald Troyke, fell against a parked vehicle, he said.

Hurley, who lived in Denver, was killed, as were the gunman and Arvada police Officer Gordon Beesley, a 19-year department veteran and beloved school resource officer. Police have not said who shot Hurley or the gunman.

Authorities were still investigating the shooting that happened in Olde Town Arvada, a historic and popular downtown district with restaurants, breweries and shops about 7 miles (10 kilometers) northwest of downtown Denver.

In a statement Wednesday, police acknowledged that questions remained unanswered, saying they had not finished interviewing witnesses and were waiting for forensic evidence.

"We hope in the next few days to have all of this information and we promise to provide that to our citizens, it said.

On Tuesday, Police Chief Link Strate called Hurley a true hero who likely disrupted what could have been a larger loss of life. He said the gunman targeted the officer because he was wearing an Arvada police uniform and badge.

Officer Beasley was ambushed by someone who expressed hatred of police officers, Strate said.

A note left behind by Troyke and recovered after the shooting contained threats against Arvada police officers, Detective Dave Snelling told the AP on Wednesday.

The Gazette, citing officials who spoke on condition of anonymity, reported the note was found in Troyke's apartment.

Cody Soules, who went to high school in Colorado Springs with Hurley, recalled his friend as an idealist who was outspoken on political issues but always wished the best for everyone he met. Hurley, known to friends as Johnny, was working with a catering company before he died, Soules said.

John was a good guy, a big-hearted person. He wanted to make a change in our society, said Soules, a general contractor and yoga instructor who lives near Napa, California. When we were in high school, we were troublemakers, and we got into a bit of trouble. But he had a good heart."

I know for sure he was doing what he thought was the right thing, trying to protect those people, Soules said.

According to a fundraising page for Hurley's funeral, he loved the outdoors, had a passion for food and cooking, and loved spending time with family.

Hurleys sister, Erin Hurley, declined to comment when contacted by the AP but said her family planned to issue a statement at some point.

She wrote on Facebook: Johnny acted without hesitation and possibly saved many lives while sacrificing his own.

___

This story has been corrected to show that Hurley lived in Denver, not Golden, according to police.
Enjoy the slightly cool reprieve on Wednesday and Thursday, because Western Washington is in for extreme heat Friday through the weekend with the potential for record-high triple digit temperatures in some areas.

The National Weather Service (NWS) in Seattle has issued an excessive heat watch beginning Friday into early next week as high temperatures are expected to reach the upper 90s due to an area of high pressure over the region. Probability charts currently show that Sea-Tac has a 75% chance of exceeding 95 degrees on Saturday, and an 85% chance of exceeding 95 degrees on Sunday.

"Overall, expect highs to climb into the 90s across the interior on Saturday, with triple digit heat possible mainly for interior areas Tacoma southward," NWS wrote in their Wednesday forecast discussion. "Sunday looks like a repeat of Saturday, however guidance hints at the possibility of triple digit heat inching just slightly further northward."

Friday marks the beginning of the region's hot streak, with temperatures in the upper 80s to low 90s. Nighttime lows will only reach the 60s, providing little recovery from the daytime heat.

Things will really begin to heat up on Saturday and Sunday, with afternoon highs in the 90s for much of the region. Some areas farther south could hit 100 degrees: Olympia currently has a 70% chance of triple digit temperatures on Sunday. Seattle only has a 35% chance of reaching 100 degrees on Saturday, but chances increase to 50% on Sunday. Overnight lows are expected to be in the mid to upper 60s on both days.

Temperatures will remain hot on Monday, in the upper 80s to mid 90s for much of the interior, and will only begin to fall back into the mid to low 80s on Tuesday.

"A better chance at a reprieve is possible on Tuesday, with the latest forecast calling for temperatures to retreat back into the 80s across the interior and mid 60s to low 70s along the coast," NWS wrote.

With the incoming high temperatures and much of the region considered "abnormally dry" by the U.S. Drought Monitor, NWS is warning of increased wildfire risk and asking residents to take precautions including properly discarding cigarettes and keeping vehicles off of dry grass. The agency is also reminding people to stay hydrated, avoid direct sunlight for extended periods of time, and never leave kids or pets in a car unattended.

With high temperatures on the way, the city is advising people in need of cool spaces to visit reopened library branches  which have air conditioning  or pools and spray parks. Limited by COVID-19 restrictions that are still in place for indoor gatherings, the city has not yet announced if it will open any official cooling shelters.

"This upcoming week, were reopening many City facilities for individuals to stay cool, but many of our Citys indoor spaces remain closed or at reduced capacity due to state and local Public Health mandates," said Mayor Jenny Durkan in a news release on Monday. "As a reminder, drink plenty of water, reduce strenuous outdoor activities, check on neighbors and those at risk for heat-related illness, and dont leave any pets in the car."

Although taking a dip could be a good way to cool off, NWS is also advising residents to be cautious while swimming and wear life jackets to avoid "cold water shock" that could lead to drowning. Lake Washington is currently 69 degrees according to King County buoy data, while Lake Sammamish is 74 degrees.
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The victim of the Juneteenth shooting at Oaklands Lake Merritt was identified Tuesday as 22-year old DaShawn Demetrius Rhodes.

The Alameda County coroners office said Rhodes was a resident of San Francisco and Oakland.

The fatal shooting injured seven people and involved multiple shooters amid the citys lakeside Juneteenth festivities that drew a crowd of thousands, police said.

Rhodes was a happy, fun-loving and musical person, his aunt Jasma Turner told the Chronicle on Tuesday.

Rhodes lived in Oakland and had a 1-year old son he cared for whenever he wasnt working, Turner said.

He jumped into that father's role like it was second nature for him, she said.

Turner and Rhodes attended the Juneteenth festivities together Saturday afternoon with several other family members, she said. The group split up and intended to meet again in the evening.

Gunshots were reported Saturday on Lakeshore Avenue around 6:22 p.m. as thousands of celebrants gathered around the lake, police said.

Rhodes died at the scene. The seven other gunfire victims were in stable condition following the shooting and were described by police as five men aged 16 to 27 and two women, aged 21 and 22.

Police have not arrested or identified any suspects in the shooting. Two men with guns were arrested in the aftermath Saturday, but police later determined the men were not involved in the incident.

On Monday, police said the shooting appeared to have been a gang-related feud between two San Francisco groups.

Turner said her nephew was not in a gang.

I didnt get to bring my baby back home, she said.

Nora Mishanec is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: nora.mishanec@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @NMishanec
San Francisco mom Naomi Laguana has spent the better part of 11 years dedicated to the citys public schools, volunteering in classrooms and the front office, serving as PTA president and leading the time-consuming Parent Advisory Committee, which provides input to the school board.

Laguana was all in when it came to supporting the school district. Now, she is out.

After her son fell behind during distance learning, and his school appeared to have no specific plan to address learning loss in the fall, she and her husband decided to make the move to private school.

Laguanas high-profile departure from the district  which includes resigning from her parent leadership role  is the latest blow to the citys public schools, which have already lost hundreds of students during the drawn-out distance learning last school year. Its likely they will lose hundreds more by the fall, as families with the means to leave officially inform their schools of their departure or simply dont show up in August.

I had to do whats right for my kid, she said Wednesday. I gave it my all, and it just didnt work out.

Her son, who will be in the eighth grade in the fall, basically didnt learn anything, during the year of distance learning. Private assessments showed he was at least a year behind in math and not writing at grade level.

Laguana asked the district a simple question about the first day of school: What is the plan on Aug. 17 to address the thousands and thousands of kids that have suffered from learning loss, she said. I dont hear anyone talking about it.

The districts stated goal is to foster highly engaged and joyful learners and support every student reaching his or her potential, but thats not happening, said Laguana, whose husband, Sharky Laguana, is president of the San Francisco Small Business Commission.

Theyre providing an education for all, a perfunctory education for all. Theyre not going above and beyond, she said. Its a broken system. This is not something a few angry parents can take on.

The district is running expanded summer programs, including summer school and other academic programs, meant to address learning loss but they werent open to every student. But Morgan Polikoff, University of Southern California associate professor of education, told The Chronicle in May that districts dont know the magnitude of whats been lost because we dont really have good measurement of that.

He added that the summer will not be enough to make up for lost learning time.

The district has $60 million in state and federal funding to address learning loss, but its not yet clear how all the money will be spent.

District officials acknowledged Laguanas dedication to the district and her desire to do what she feels is best for her child.

Naomi has been a valued member of the PAC and her work will truly be missed, said board Vice President Faauuga Moliga. I respect her decision and I wish her and her family well.

According to the district, her son is an average student in math, but clearly is lagging behind, unable to do grade-level calculations, she said.

Laguana doesnt believe her departure will spur change, including a deep dive into whether the district inflates student test scores or grades, so it doesnt appear their students academic performance lags behind those at private schools.

People are looking at options, she added. We know that from people leaving the district and leaving the city.

COVID Resources Coronavirus Map Tracking COVID-19 cases across the Bay Area and California.

Her departure follows what has been a tense relationship between the parent advisory group and the school board, which rejected gay dad Seth Brenzel  nominated by Laguana and the other parents on the committee because he wasnt diverse enough. He was also part of a group calling on the school board to reopen schools.

Instead, on Tuesday, the board approved several new members, including one vocal school board supporter who was on the controversial school renaming task force. Mari Villaluna supported renaming 44 school sites, a recommendation approved by the school board and later rescinded following legal challenges. There are still no fathers on the committee.

Villaluna, who opposed Brenzels prior nomination, was previously a member of Parent Voices, a child care advocacy arm of the San Francisco Childrens Council, but was removed in a unanimous vote from the group for verbal abuse and sucking the energy out of the group, according to organizers.

We had no choice but to cut our connections with (Villaluna), said Maria Luz Torre, Parent Voices founding organizer.

Villaluna has been an outspoken supporter of board member Alison Collins, who has sued five fellow board members for $87 million after they removed her from leadership posts over racist tweets Collins posted in 2016 against Asian Americans. Villaluna did not return requests for comment.

Laguana said she has faith the parent committee will remain a strong voice in the district, advocating for families. She just wont be part of it anymore.

I want to be the mom that made a difference, she said. I just dont think I am.

Jill Tucker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jtucker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @jilltucker
Federal health regulators anticipate adding warnings for the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines in light of reports of heart inflammation in a small number of adolescents and young adults after vaccination.

The Food and Drug Administration will move rapidly to include the warnings of possible vaccine-induced heart inflammation on fact sheets for health care providers and recipients, the FDAs Dr. Doran Fink said Wednesday during a public meeting of the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices. The committee advises the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on vaccine policy.

Regulators did not indicate any plans to change federal rules allowing the vaccines to be given to children as young as 12, saying the dangers of heart inflammation were small compared with the risks from contracting COVID-19.

The facts are clear: This is an extremely rare side effect, and only an exceedingly small number of people will experience it after vaccination, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky and Assistant Secretary for Health Dr. Rachel Levine said in a joint statement with several medical associations. Importantly, for the young people who do, most cases are mild, and individuals recover often on their own or with minimal treatment.

They added that myocarditis and pericarditis, inflammation of the heart and heart lining, are much more common if you get COVID-19, and the risks to the heart from COVID-19 infection can be more severe.

The warnings on vaccine fact sheets are meant to alert health care professionals and the public of the possible post-vaccination risk of heart inflammation. Cases of myocarditis have been reported mostly in young males within a week of getting their second shot of mRNA vaccine, the type produced by Pfizer and Moderna. Most often the cases were mild and people recovered quickly.

The issue has not been reported among people who have received the Johnson & Johnson COVID vaccine.

The latest data suggests a likely association between heart inflammation with the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines in adolescents and young adults, an analysis by the CDC committees vaccine safety work group found.

Fink said the FDA warning would likely include information stating these events have occurred in some vaccine recipients following dose 2 of mRNA vaccines. Inflammation typically has occurred within several days to a week following vaccination, he said.

Although the committee did not suggest changing vaccination age rules, two CDC researchers who presented new data said providers should consider a procedural change when vaccinating people with a history of myocarditis. If someone with a history of myocarditis develops symptoms after the first dose, they recommend delaying the second dose until more information is known. If the heart has recovered, the second dose can be given under certain circumstances, they said.

Many members of the CDC committee, which includes infectious disease and pediatric experts, said they agreed that the benefits of vaccinating young people against COVID outweigh the risks of myocarditis, which typically is treatable.

This is still a very rare event, said Dr. Tom Shimabukuro of the CDCs COVID-19 Vaccine Task Force.

About 600 cases of myocarditis have been reported out of 133 million second-dose shots administered, according to new data presented by the CDC on Wednesday.

For people ages 12 to 39, myocarditis occurred at a rate of 12.6 cases per million second-dose shots in the 21 days after vaccination, according to CDC data.

Were talking about a handful of cases per million doses, said Stanford infectious disease specialist Dr. Yvonne Maldonado, who added that she absolutely still recommends that people get vaccinated.

The vaccine is still highly beneficial when you compare it to the risk of getting COVID disease, Maldonado said. The risk of COVID in an individual child or adult is still much higher than any complication from the vaccine.

Catherine Ho is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: cho@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Cat_Ho
San Francisco doesnt always have enough ambulances for medical calls, with a backlog of up to six calls at times. That means an ambulance has been requested but isnt immediately available.

Though paramedics are already at the scene delivering potentially life-saving care, and each delayed request may be resolved in minutes or even seconds, it can delay transport to a hospital in situations where each minute could matter.

While medical calls have grown nearly 16% since 2015, the number of ambulance personnel has remained at 200, according to a Fire Department memo. The impacts of more calls can be increased wait times for patients to get ambulances in outlying areas and reliance on overtime to meet staffing needs, the memo said.

Both Mayor London Breed and San Francisco supervisors are proposing bumping up the departments budget to help fill gaps, though their proposals differ. While the department and Breed said more analysis was needed to determine whether to increase staff in the future, Supervisors Matt Haney, Ahsha Safai and Shamann Walton announced Wednesday that they are using budget savings to add 10 more paramedics for ambulances now.

It is absolutely critical that paramedics are available to respond immediately in an emergency, Haney said in a statement. Adding new paramedics will reduce response times, improve health and safety, and save lives.

In San Francisco, where elected officials are fighting over the police budget and staffing, theres near unanimous support for the Fire Department and particularly its community paramedics. The city has increasingly relied on them to respond to homelessness, mental health crises and drug overdoses, tackling some of the medical calls that may not always need an ambulance.

There are an additional estimated 57 paramedics on the departments community paramedicine and new Street Crisis Response Teams, and the department has been approved to backfill those positions on ambulances.

The city also added eight paramedics and emergency medical technicians on smaller trucks that aim to put medical staff on scene as soon as possible, although they cant transport patients to the hospital.

The mayors spending plan proposes increasing the departments current $412 million budget by 7% over the next two fiscal years. The increased funding will go toward equipment, training, salaries and 35 new paramedics to backfill those in the ambulance division moving to street teams.

Our plan is to do everything we can to make sure we can make up for some of the challenges that we know exist, Breed said Wednesday while standing outside the citys newly renovated ambulance hub at Station 49 in the Bayview district.

While the Fire Departments memo to supervisors a couple weeks ago painted a picture of ambulance staffing issues, Breed and the department said this week that its unclear if more personnel are needed. The city plans to restart a staffing analysis that was halted because of the pandemic to guide hiring. The department said it would then come back to the Mayors office in the middle of the fiscal year, which starts July 1, or next year with budget needs.

To put our foot down and say yes, we need more or no, we dont need more  that would be speculative and an uneducated decision, said Lt. Jonathan Baxter, a Fire Department spokesman, pointing to the need for the analysis.

But the Board of Supervisors  and the firefighters union  want even more paramedics and funding now. The proposal Wednesday commits to using $1.9 million in budget savings to pay for 10 new paramedics  with possibly more to come. The total cost of a full-time paramedic for salary and benefits is just over $200,000. Ambulances need either two paramedics or one along with an emergency medical technician to run a 12-hour shift.

The debate is not new. Over the past 15 years, Fire Department service calls have steadily risen, largely attributed to calls for emergency medical services, the mayors budget said. When a city report revealed that the city didnt have enough ambulances or paramedics in 2014, the city raised the number of ambulance personnel from 177 to 200 in 2015. The current number remains at 203.

Last year, with fewer people living and working in the city, calls overall decreased. Now that the city is emerging from the pandemic, the need is rising again.

Since most ambulance requests are downtown and in the Mission, the impact of the increased call volume is felt the most in the citys outlying districts, the Fire Departments memo said. Data shared with Supervisor Gordon Mar shows that average yearly response times for medical transport calls in the Great Highway area on the citys western edge increased 1% last year, and 10% this year, to nearly 10 minutes.

Do increased response times concern me? Yes, Fire Chief Jeanine Nicholson told Mar during a budget hearing last week. It concerns me, absolutely  not just the ambulances but all of our units.

The target response time for an ambulance medical transport is under 10 minutes. The department meets that goal 89% of the time. Another first responder arrives within four minutes 91% of the time. That responder can provide care, but not transport a patient to the hospital.

Baxter said the reason for sometimes longer call response times could be attributed to a number of factors  traffic, closed streets, construction  besides staffing.

There are times when we have no ambulance to respond, Baxter said. Why is that the case? Those are the things that we need to evaluate to see what our needs are.

The union believes the problem is staffing. Sam Gebler, director of Local 798 union representing nearly 1,700 Fire Department staff, said hes frequently the only paramedic on three fire engines in the Richmond District. He said that last week, while working overtime in the Sunset District, he responded to an older patient with a history of cancer who was sick with very severe symptoms. He had to wait 30 minutes stabilizing the patient for an ambulance to arrive, he said. In those cases, hes not able to respond to other calls if they come up.

With an increase in calls over the years, the department has been forced to rely more and more on overtime shifts, including mandatory overtime, and per diem employees to meet minimum staffing levels, the departments memo said. Gebler estimated that paramedics work mandatory overtime at least five times a month.

We are doing our best to meet the needs for the safety of the citizens, said Shon Buford, a fire captain and union president. But its having a major impact on the mental health of our paramedics, and its not sustainable.

Mallory Moench is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mallory.moench@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @mallorymoench
San Franciscans struggling to pay rent in the pandemic will have another six-month reprieve after the Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to extend a city eviction moratorium that mirrors the states protections.

The ordinance will protect against evictions for nonpayment of rent due to the pandemic for tenants who pay a quarter of their rent. The Board unanimously passed the ordinance on first reading, meaning it will require another vote, but is all but guaranteed to pass. The protections have already been in place as an emergency order for 30 days, but will now be extended until Dec. 31.

The states rent protections are set to expire on June 30, although a deal to extend them appears imminent.

While the citys moratorium will keep many San Franciscans in their homes, it doesnt eliminate their rent debt. San Franciscans have racked up anywhere between $147 million to $355 million in unpaid rent over the past 15 months because of pandemic unemployment, a city report released Wednesday said.

The reports release coincided with a hearing on the city-run rent relief program during the last week of the Board of Supervisors negotiations over San Franciscos budget. The $13 billion spending plan as proposed by Mayor London Breed doesnt include any more local dollars for rent relief, but supervisors are debating whether to add more, and if so, how to pay for it. Some supervisors want to use federal funds first and then see where the need lies, while others are determined to fund rent relief.

San Francisco is currently administering $90 million in federal funds for rent relief  not enough to cover all the estimated back rent thats owed. Since the citys rent program launched at the end of May, 1,800 households that owe a combined $16 million have applied, a city official said during a hearing Wednesday. Half of those have received notification that theyve been approved to get funds. The program expects to cover only between 5,000 and 6,000 of the highest-need households based on available funds and greatest need, he said.

Separately, a state relief program covering rent from April 2020 to March 2021 has administered $4 million, out of nearly $50 million requested, according to recently obtained data from The Chronicle.

Supervisor Dean Preston said Wednesday the report confirmed his recent rallying cry that relief would not be enough to cover rent debt when eviction moratoriums lift.

We know people who were barely making ends meet before the pandemic are in an undeniably precarious situation now, Preston said. Thousands of San Franciscans in need will be shut out of rent relief  thats the path were on right now. We have an opportunity, and the resources available, to invest in our citys future by funding additional rent relief now to prevent displacement and homelessness.

Preston requested using at least $128 million out of the $200 million in expected revenue from Proposition I, a tax on expensive real estate property transfers, on rent relief and the other half on affordable housing  as was promised in the campaign. Last week, he introduced a budget supplement to take $26.7 million out of the citys reserves for Prop. Is purposes, but some of his colleagues seemed hesitant to use reserves due to competing budget priorities.

Breed has opposed allocating Prop. I specifically for those purposes since the money was technically a general tax, meaning that it goes into the general fund and can be used for any city services. Breed said during a Board meeting in April that housing is a top priority and funding housing and eviction protection is imperative but pointed to relief available. She added: I dont agree we should set it aside for brand new programming that hasnt been fully defined when we have an economic and housing crisis to solve now.

San Francisco Chronicle staff writer Lauren Hepler contributed to this report.

Mallory Moench is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mallory.moench@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @mallorymoench
If you want to see how diverse the Bay Areas new housing can be in 2021, theres no better place to start than at Delta Coves.

In a region that increasingly emphasizes dense housing along centrally located mass transit, the project is nestled against the microscopic downtown of Bethel Island, a happily remote piece of Contra Costa County that is as close to Sacramento as it is to San Francisco. The island has no bus stop, but each of the newcomers 494 homesites comes with a dock along the shore of a 145-acre lagoon.

And if a project like this sounds like something from another time, theres a reason. Delta Coves was approved by the countys Board of Supervisors in ... 1976.

It was a little terrifying to step in, admitted Nick Taratsas, executive vice president of DMB Development, which took over the oft-stalled project in 2017. But everyone realized something like this wasnt likely to be permitted again in our lifetimes.

The project has seemed cursed since it was proposed in 1973, and not just by the gusty Delta winds that pound an island with 2,000 residents that is connected to the mainland by a single two-lane bridge. The first developer never recovered from a nine-year lawsuit with the county that he eventually won. Another developer revived the plans in the early 2000s, carved the huge lagoon and lined it with shiny metal docks  which then sat vacant after the collapse of the projects financier, Lehman Brothers, the financial giant whose demise triggered the 2008 recession.

After DMB was hired by yet another owner, construction began in earnest. The first batch of homes was ready at the end of 2019.

Bad timing.

Things were getting going and then COVID-19 hit, Taratsas recalled during a tour of Delta Coves earlier this month. I thought, can this poor troubled project really take another torpedo?

Now, though, 75 homes are built or under construction. Buyers have signed contracts for another 40. The Island Camp clubhouse complex features a large lap pool, two fire pits and an electric Duffy boat that was converted into an onshore bar. Houses start at $800,000, dock included, and theres a community ambassador on staff.

As for the 32 current homeowners, around half are full-time residents.

Paul Kuroda/Special to The Chronicle

The first to arrive, moving from San Bruno in November 2019, were Terry Chew and his wife.

I had heard it might be coming years ago, and Ive always dreamed of having waterfront property, Chew said. A retired first responder, he fished the Delta with his father as a child.

As a San Francisco native, any problem with temperatures that last week reached 108 degrees?

If its real hot, you just jump into the water, Chew said.

Another convert is John Sandhu, who owns a logistics company in Hayward with his wife, Joti. The dock was not the lure  they didnt own a boat  but they wanted to be near the water and reasonably close to Jotis parents in Livermore.

Driving east to see the models, exiting Highway 4 to navigate neighboring Oakleys patchwork of orchards and subdivisions, John Sandhu admits his first reaction was, Wow, its farther out than I thought.

But the couple liked their destination, moved in October 2020 and now own a boat. They visit the Hayward office once a week. When they feel like a nice dinner out  being so far away from any real city was concerning to me, John Sandhu admitted  downtown Walnut Creek is 45 minutes away.

Chew stays closer to home. Were discovering there are a lot of places to reach on the water, he said. The only thing that would make this place better is if you could pick it up and drop it into Hawaii.

Chew is such a fan, in fact, that he and a friend will greet new neighbors not by knocking on their door, but pulling up in back.

Well jump on my boat, bring beer and a bottle of whiskey, and head to their dock, Chew said. Tell them, Have a beer, have a shot, welcome to the neighborhood!

He isnt the only gregarious resident.

The water attracts personalities, John Sandhu said. These people are living their lives in the moment. If you see somebody having a party, you just go in.

Paul Kuroda/Special to The Chronicle

Lifestyle communities such as these might be old news in Arizona, where DMB is based, but theyre nothing like the multistory housing projects that are the norm today in cities closer to the bay. Delta Coves centerpiece  the lagoon created by breaching Bethel Islands levee  was an out-of-favor notion by the 1980s, when Contra Costa officials tried to revoke the developers approvals and prompted the lawsuit that the county eventually lost in 1989.

After the project came back to life in 2003, many Bethel Island residents tried again to stop it. But the legal decision left the county no wriggle room.

Now that Delta Coves is becoming a reality, the controversies have receded.

Most people were scared about the breach of the levee, but it was well done, said Jamie Bolt. She runs Bethel Harbor, a marina on the island. Most of the residents seem older, and real nice, and the houses are beautiful. Its good for the island.

For Tracy Venable, whose family owns the Sugar Barge marina and restaurant near Delta Coves, theres a palpable relief in seeing construction workers come and go each weekday.

Weve been waiting for this since we bought our place in 1995, Venable said. Wed see things revving up and get so excited, and then everything would fall apart.

Back in 2019, Taratsas paused while showing off the project during construction to describe his model buyer: Kid Rock but a little older, with a wife and young kids.

Has that worked out? The developer shrugged.

Theyre a bit more upscale, not so much the cut-off ways, Taratsas said. Give them a year to settle in. Theyll be casualed-up soon enough.

John King is The San Francisco Chronicles urban design critic. Email: jking@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @johnkingsfchron
A push to extend Californias eviction freeze for struggling tenants is down to the wire, with just days to go before the current moratorium is set to expire on June 30.

Even with the impending deadline, Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders have struggled to come up with a plan that can satisfy both tenant advocates warning of a looming eviction wave and property owners who want to tighten eligibility requirements.

Because bills must be in print for at least 72 hours before the Legislature can vote on them, lawmakers have until Sunday at the latest to reach a deal that can be passed by the end of the month. Progress toward an agreement this week has been halting, with attention divided by state budget negotiations that face the same deadlines and differing views of how successful California has been in reviving its economy after the worst of the coronavirus pandemic.

While the debate continues in Sacramento, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced on Thursday that it would extend federal eviction protections through July 31 in what is intended to be the final extension of the moratorium. California is expected to go further with its renter protections, meaning that the states tenants will likely be covered by its own program rules  that is, if lawmakers can come to an agreement.

We risk a wave of evictions and homelessness that could be completely preventable, said Assemblymember David Chiu, a Democrat from San Francisco who has advocated extending the moratorium through the end of the year. The discussion is, how long should we make the extension, and what are the conditions?

2 1 of 2 Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle Show More Show Less 2 of 2 Gabrielle Lurie / The Chronicle Show More Show Less



Billions of dollars in federal assistance were supposed to make it easier to figure out a solution. Through two rounds of stimulus, California received $5.2 billion from the federal government to provide relief to low-income tenants who could not cover their rent because of the pandemic.

The second round of funding prompted state officials to propose covering 100% of the missed rent for eligible tenants  a provision likely to be included as part of an extension of the eviction moratorium. Tenant groups are seeking assurance that renters will have access to the money even if property owners choose not to participate in the process. An initial pandemic housing aid program, approved in January, offers more rent relief to tenants if the property owner is willing to forgive the rest of their debt.

But the money has been slow to flow out through a complicated web of state, county and local rent relief programs, frustrating both tenants and property owners who say the resources are desperately needed. An estimated 135,000 households in the nine-county Bay Area are behind on rent, according to a National Equity Atlas analysis of U.S. Census surveys, with a debt that has ballooned to some $747 million.

As of Monday, the California Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency told The Chronicle that it had paid just $61.5 million of the nearly $659 million that has been requested so far in counties relying on state rent relief programs.

Tom Bannon, chief executive officer of the California Apartment Association, which represents owners and developers of rental properties, slammed the pace of rent relief payments as unconscionable.

During a news conference Tuesday, the organization presented a report that it commissioned from the firm Beacon Economics arguing that another evictions freeze is unnecessary because California tenants are benefiting from business reopenings and improving employment rates. The report pointed to U.S. Census data that showed a decline in late rent payments from 21% in December to 12% in May.

Bannon said that if the Legislature does extend the eviction moratorium, it must be short and only apply to those who can prove that they suffered a financial hardship from the pandemic.

This isnt about us being shrill, he said. This is about the rental housing industry having done its fair share.

Tenant advocates reject that view, contending that many families have taken on other forms of debt to keep paying a portion of their rent. Those renters and others who are still out of work, they argue, are in danger of sliding into homelessness if protections expire too quickly.

Several groups have organized their own events featuring renters like 23-year-old Luis Fenando Anguiano, a recent UC Davis graduate who briefly lived in his car before moving into a shared Sacramento apartment. After his mother lost her job during the pandemic, he was forced to put graduate school plans on hold to find a job and send money back to his family in Southern California.

I still havent found full-time work, Anguiano said, and Im still struggling.

Because the state moratorium only bars evictions for nonpayment of rent related to the pandemic, tenants can still be forced to leave for other reasons, though comprehensive data on evictions is hard to come by. As Bay Area cities like San Francisco and Oakland enact their own ongoing tenant protections, some rent relief programs rely on applicants self-certifying how they were hurt financially by the pandemic.

In the meantime, affordable housing advocates like Brian Augusta, a legislative advocate for the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation, argue that the choice to conduct the negotiations behind closed doors with little time for public scrutiny has only led to more uncertainty for those still reeling from the pandemic.

Theres no excuse for this, Augusta said. Were really playing a game of chicken with peoples lives here.

Lauren Hepler and Alexei Koseff are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: lauren.hepler@sfchronicle.com, alexei.koseff@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @LAHepler, @akoseff
On June 23, 1982, 27-year-old Vincent Chin was beaten to death by two white autoworkers in Detroit during his bachelor party just a few days shy of his wedding. The attack took place against the backdrop of growing insecurity and anger over the threat of the rising Japanese car industry, and the two men mistook Chin, a Chinese American, as Japanese. Their light sentence  three years probation and a $3,000 fine  ignited a pan-Asian American movement for the first time in the United States.

At the forefront of the national movement was Lilly Chin, Vincent Chins mother, who spoke at rallies across the country. One person who flew to be by her side during her stop in San Francisco Chinatown, was Black political activist and one time U.S. presidential nominee, Reverend Jesse Jackson, who was the first national political leader of any race to speak out against racial violence towards Asians. Later in her life, Lilly Chin briefly lived in Ping Yuen public housing in San Francisco Chinatown.

Last week, Reverend Jackson returned to San Francisco Chinatown to remind people of the importance of interracial solidarity amid continued violence against Asians today.

Longtime Chinatown activist and former executive director of the Chinatown Community Development Center, Reverend Norman Fong, joins Fifth and Mission host Cecilia Lei to talk about the significance of Reverend Jesse Jacksons return to Chinatown and the future of Asian and Black community solidarity in the Bay Area.

Listen to the full interview in the podcast player above or read a partial transcript of Cecilia Leis interview with Rev. Norman Fong below, edited and condensed for clarity.

Cecilia Lei: Reverend Fong, this week marks the anniversary of Vincent Chins death, and theres been this renewed interest in what happened with Chin. What do you think are the lessons from Chins murder that were still grappling with today?

Rev. Norman Fong: His killing reminds us that especially in Asian America, we've always been the scapegoats whenever times get bad. And so I think that the big lesson we've learned is that we're in the struggle against racism together, but instead we just keep looking at it from our own point of view and not seeing the big picture.

This past week, we've had an inspiring visit from the one and only Reverend Jackson, who came back in the early 80s to back us up. A lot of us from different Chinatowns across the country and Asian American communities, we were talking about How come we're not getting traction on social justice or racial justice for Vincent Chin? and we realized that we needed to organize differently and more broadly. And so Reverend Jackson came in, the first national black leader. And he's just beamed with so much power. And the same story was used in the Black community, I am somebody, Keep hope alive and I felt the same way as an Asian American. I felt like our voices were never heard. We're not somebody that people listen to. And together it turned into an amazing synergy that jump started one of the biggest Asian American movements in this country and got us engaged in civil rights and each other's struggle.

Cecilia Lei: And can you tell me more about how Reverend Jesse Jackson's role in organizing around Vincent Chin's death really changed the conversation?

Rev. Norman Fong: There are too many conversations going on, on the street level and between communities, that is terrible. There's prejudices and stereotypes of each other's community. And so when Reverend Jackson, he says there's one struggle against racism, there's just one, but it hits on many cultural fronts. Maybe the Chinese thinks U.S. immigration laws, Latinos, the same thing. And Blacks are very upset now because they see the demographics in the San Francisco Bay Area going so low for them. And then at the same time, we're the largest Asian American demographic in any city in America. So you can see how it can all be misinterpreted or multilayered in a way that upsets folks. We got to be smarter. And Reverend Jackson, with his Rainbow Coalition, that means all people of color now, it's not just Black and white. He embraces everybodys story. He's the includer.

Cecilia Lei: And racial solidarity has been such an important part of your contributions to the community. How would you, Reverend Fong, describe what the relationship is between black and Asian communities in the Bay Area right now?

Rev. Norman Fong: One of the things I learned with Reverend Jackson helping us out back in the 80s was that it's too often that we just fight for our own community and can't see the links.

In the Bay Area, I thought we were uplifted to a more progressive and liberal understanding community. But no, its the same. And the trick is between the Asians and Blacks, there's misinformation, a sort of misunderstanding about each other's history that we need to address.

With Black Lives Matter, because we connected Vincent Chint to [George] Floyd on purpose, we have to look at them and interpret them together. Some of the youth say at this time, how do we heal Asian and Black communities? They all agree that ethnic studies should start right at kindergarten, little things like that make a difference and we have to take the risks of expanding our world.

Cecilia Lei: Reverend Fong, this is a harder question: What do you think is happening right now there? There's so much violence that we're seeing play out these horrifying attacks against Asian-American elders that are seemingly perpetuated by people of color. What is happening from your perspective after decades of activism? And we know that this isn't a new issue, but what's happening in this moment right now?

Rev. Norman Fong: So at the moment, I think we've gone a little too overboard on videos just showing Blacks beating on the elderly. In a recent study, they said 71% of those racist acts against Asians are by whites. And so it's skewed in how we interpret it. But we have to reinterpret it, reinvest in it and find some positive stories too. That's why we brought Reverend Jesse Jackson back. We needed some positive stories. We needed him now, we need that celebration of We're in it together, one struggle, many fronts and see that all our suffering fits together. And President Trump wanted to scapegoat us again on the virus and the hate virus. And I believe it was a political strategy, sometimes when they do that. Perpetual foreigners, that's what we sometimes feel like. And in the Bay Area, it should be different. We know our own history.

Cecilia Lei: Do you feel like this moment, after a year of racial reckoning, all this increased attention on anti-Asian hate that building those bridges is more possible than it was maybe 39 years ago when Vincent Chin died?

Rev. Norman Fong: Oh, yeah, I'm feeling excited. So I'm hoping for a bigger and more broader and impactful movement. The civil rights [movement] really did the big change first, but we can never stay at that level. We have to really think and recreate all our institutions in a more inclusive way. San Francisco Bay Area, I feel I see some positive changes going on. I think we can do this. But Reverend Jackson stepped it up in honor of Vincent Chin and that act of love. And it was love.

Cecilia Lei is the co-host and producer of the Fifth and Mission podcast. Email: cecilia.lei@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @CeeLei.
The man accused of last years kidnapping of Maki, the ring-tailed lemur from the San Francisco Zoo, made his first appearance in federal court this week.

If convicted of his alleged violations of the federal Endangered Species Act, Cory McGilloway, 31, faces up to a year in jail and as much as $50,000 in fines, according to prosecutors.

Maki, at 21 one of the oldest of the San Francisco Zoos four endangered ring-tailed lemurs, was stolen from his enclosure on Oct. 13. Two days later, 5-year old James Trinh spotted Maki in the parking lot of Hope Lutheran Day School in Daly City. Zoo officials recovered the lemur there and returned him to his enclosure.

The same day Maki was found, McGilloway was arrested in Marin County on suspicion of stealing a Marin Sanitary Service truck. He became a suspect in the missing-lemur case after police found pictures of Maki on his phone.

Earlier that day, a woman reported to the San Francisco Police Department that she had taken a video of a man on Treasure Island the day before walking a lemur on a leash. The man in the video had distinctive tattoos and is believed to be McGilloway, federal prosecuters said.

California residents are banned from owning lemurs, which are native to Madagascar, because of their endangered status.

McGilloway, of Los Angeles, made his first court appearance in San Francisco Superior Court in January in the zoo theft of Maki, which is separate from the federal case related to the Endangered Species Act.

He was released from custody but ordered to stay away from the zoo and to follow the probation terms he received in Marin County on the truck theft case as he awaited trial on second degree burglary, grand theft and vandalism charges in the Maki case in San Francisco. While on probation, he was ordered to attend weekly mental health classes and take his prescribed medication, The Chronicle previously reported.

However, authorities said he was arrested again after he failed to show up for a 2020 court appearance, the Mercury News reported. According to prosecutors, he is currently in custody in Los Angeles pending extradition to the Bay Area.

He made his appearance in federal court virtually, with his next hearing set for July.

Though hungry, dehydrated, and agitated when he was first recovered according to prosecutors, Maki is now back at the zoo and doing well. The zoo tweeted on Tuesday that he was enjoying the sun and having a good day.

Danielle Echeverria is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Twitter: @DanielleEchev Email: danielle.echeverria@sfchronicle.com
Accolades to Justin Phillips and The Chronicle for Absent black father myth obscures modern realities (June 20). Phillips not only sets the record straight about how the myth is obsolete today, even providing research about Black fathers being more connected with their kids than white fathers, but also digs into history to help readers learn about systemic racism, including the war on drugs.

Individual columns or collections of them by Phillips would make excellent teaching materials.

Nan Lorenzen, Benicia

Inalienable rights at risk

I do not have a legal background, however, as stated in our federal Constitution: A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

It seems to me that we, the people of California, have the power to determine how we want to interpret that Second Amendment by using the referendum process to amend our state Constitution and interpret it with a focus on well regulated as a necessity to the security and safety of the people of California and in order to secure our inalienable rights of Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.

All three inalienable rights are placed at risk when we come in contact with other Californians who have military or military-style weapons.

Justices likely understand that guns in a court room would introduce a lethal danger given the passions felt during court proceedings, and would introduce the element of intimidation into those proceedings. The black robes protect themselves but seem to have little regard for protecting the people, leaving it up to us, the people to act to protect ourselves.

Frank Salmeri, San Francisco

Too much propaganda

Regarding Fox News lacks integrity (Letters, June 22): A recent letter to the editor was critical of Fox News, stating that its deceit and lies poisons the minds of its viewers. Watching any of the news networks, it is easy to see which agenda they are promoting. Just as Fox has its conservative slant, CNN and MSNBC are offering liberal and progressive diatribes all day long. These networks have mutated from news to propaganda of their particular slant.

If a person wants a balanced view of the topics of the day, reach for the remote and channel surf!

Jim Gray, Rodeo

Chaos without rules

It is funny in a tragic way how many Americans speak of their rights, such as the right to carry weapons and the right to free speech, without paying attention to the responsibilities attached to such rights. All the rights guaranteed under the Constitution come with certain responsibilities.

Organizations such as the National Rifle Association and Fox News need to be reminded that if they want to exercise their rights, they also need to uphold the responsibilities associated with such rights. Freedom of speech stipulates that we may freely express our views, but also that we refrain from speaking flat out lies and disguise them as truth.

In much the same way, we are allowed to carry weapons provided we use them in a responsible way and not use them to kill anyone who disagrees with us or those who we wish to harm. Freedom without responsibility is a road leading straight to chaos and mayhem.

MyoKyaw Myint, San Jose

Trumps repeated lies

In his Insight piece Hitler still has a hand in politics (June 20), Matthew Fleischer is right on the money when, after mentioning former President Donald Trumps Big Lie about winning the election, he quotes Hitlers Mein Kampf.

It states All effective propaganda should be limited to a very few points which, in turn, should be used as slogans until even the very last man is able to imagine what is meant by such words.

In the same Chronicle issue, the article Disbelief, delusion mix on Trump rally circuit (June 20) about a recent Trump rally in Wisconsin states Then Trump appeared via Jumbotron to repeat the lie that has become his central talking point since losing to Joe Biden by more than 7 million votes The election was rigged.
LONDON (AP)  Buckingham Palace has for the first time released figures on the ethnic makeup of its staff, following the Duke and Duchess of Sussexs allegations of racism in the royal family.

The Royal Household said Thursday that 8.5% of its staff come from ethnic minorities, compared with a target of 10% by next year. The latest census data shows that ethnic minorities account for about 13% of the U.K. population. The staffing figures were released as part of an annual report on royal finances.

A senior palace source said publishing the figures was an effort to ensure greater accountability because there would be no place to hide if diversity goals arent met. The source acknowledged that much more needed to be done.

We are not where we would like to be despite our efforts, the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity as is customary for royal officials. It is not that we have not been progressing diversity and inclusion initiatives during this period, it is that simply the results have not been what we would like.

Buckingham Palace struggled to quiet criticism after comments made by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, also known as Prince Harry and Meghan, during a March interview with Oprah Winfrey. The interview was the couples most significant since they stepped away from royal duties and moved to California.

Meghan, who is biracial, said an unidentified member of the royal family had raised concerns about the color of her babys skin before she gave birth to her first child. The couple also alleged that Meghan was the victim of callous treatment during her time as a working member of the royal family.

The palace responded at the time by saying the allegations about race were particularly concerning and would be addressed by the family privately. But critics called the 61-word statement made on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II too little, too late.

Prince William, Harrys older brother, was forced to respond after reporters shouted at him demanding comment during a visit to an East London school.

Were very much not a racist family, William said as his wife, Kate, walked by his side.

The figures on ethnic minorities were released along with data on employment at the palace. As of March 31, public money paid the salaries of 556 crown employees, down from 580 a year earlier. While the total staff was equally split along gender lines, men dominated the senior ranks. Of 34 senior employees, 25 were men.

The figures were part of the annual report and accounts for the Sovereign Grant, the public financing mechanism that funds the public activities of the queen and her family.

The report showed that Harry and Meghan paid 2.4 million pounds ($3.35 million) to reimburse the crown for refurbishment of their home near Windsor Palace, which was financed with public money when they were working members of the Royal Family. They were required to repay the money when they decided to step away from royal duties.

The Queens official expenditures rose 26% to 87.5 million pounds ($122 million) last year. That included 31.6 million pounds for the repair and remodeling of Buckingham Palace, almost double the previous years figure. Work on the 10-year, 369-million-pound ($515 million) project accelerated because most public events were canceled due to COVID-19.

The Sovereign Grant is public money that funds the royal familys official work. It is calculated as a percentage of the profit generated by the Crown Estate, lucrative real estate holdings that are owned by the queen by virtue of her role as monarch and must be passed on to her successor. In return for the grant, the Crown Estates profits are turned over to the national treasury.

Under current rules, the grant equals 25% of the estates profit two years previously, with three-fifths of the money funding basic expenditures and two-fifths financing the Buckingham Palace project.

The Sovereign Grant rose 4.2% to 85.9 million pounds last year. The crown also pulled 1.6 million pounds from reserves.
AP

NEW YORK (AP)  Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka will be attending this fall's PEN America literary gala, flying in from his native Nigeria to help present an award to the author, scholar and filmmaker Henry Louis Gates Jr.

It means a great deal to Skip Gates and to PEN America that Wole Soyinka has decided to join us for what will be an unforgettable occasion, PEN America CEO Suzanne Nossel said in a statement Wednesday. Wole Soyinka is a giant in world literature. His stature is proportionate to the momentous task of recognizing Professor Gates for his contributions to our understanding of history and culture."
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP)  Walt Disney World is planning an 18-month celebration in honor of its 50th anniversary.

All four parks at the Lake Buena Vista, Florida, resort will take part in The World's Most Magical Celebration," beginning Oct. 1, Disney announced Tuesday.

On Oct. 1, 1971, the resort opened to guests, culminating years spent planning and developing Walt Disney's magical dream," officials said in a statement announcing the celebration. Since then, the vacation destination has expanded from Magic Kingdom, to include EPCOT, Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. The resort also includes multiple themed hotels, water parks and Disney Springs, a shopping and restaurant venue.

The celebration will include a new nighttime show called Disney Enchantment," at the Magic Kingdom. The show will have enhanced lighting, fireworks and immersive projection effects that extend from the Cinderella Castle down Main Street, U.S.A.

EPCOT will feature Harmonious," a show at the World Showcase Lagoon which the statement said is one of the largest nighttime spectaculars ever created for a Disney park." The show will feature new interpretations of classic Disney songs, reimagined in more than a dozen languages by a diverse group of 240 artists from around the world.

At Animal Kingdom, Disney KiteTails" will feature performers flying windcatchers and kites at the Discovery River to the beat of favorite Disney songs.

All the favorite Disney characters  including Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Goofy, Pluto and Chip n Dale  will be part of a collection of special golden sculptures debuting at all four parks Oct. 1. Guests will be able to interact in surprising ways with the 50 characters featured in the Disney Fab 50," the statement said.

Characters will also be dressed in sparkling custom-made costumes for this special occasion.

Another special feature on Oct. 1 is the opening of Remys Ratatouille Adventure in EPCOT. This ride will take guests into the flavorful world of Disney and Pixars Ratatouille. A new restaurant, La Creperie de Paris also debuts Oct. 1 at EPCOT.

The celebration will also feature Beacons of Magic" each night at all four parks. Cinderella's castle will illuminate Magic Kingdom with pixie dust. A warm light will emanate from the Tree of Life at Animal Kingdom as magical fireflies gather to usher in the magic of nature." At Hollywood Studios, the Hollywood Tower Hotel will be awash in a brilliance evoking the golden age of imagination and adventure." And EPCOT will feature new lights that will shine across the reflective panels of Spaceship Earth, connecting to one another in a symbol of optimism resembling stars in a nighttime sky."
San Francisco became the first city in America to limit the fees that delivery apps such as Uber, DoorDash and Postmates can charge restaurants.

The Board of Supervisors' Tuesday vote was unanimous, reported Eater SF, with all 11 present supervisors voting in favor for the limitations, including Supervisor Aaron Peskin, who co-sponsored the bill. (Peskin was in attendance for the vote despite issuing a formal apology and entering alcohol treatment earlier this month.)

The Golden Gate Restaurant Association, a San Francisco-based restaurant advocacy group that worked on the legislation, praised the bill's passage in a statement Wednesday.

"This legislation will help ensure our San Francisco restaurants can continue to operate in a financially sustainable way as they recover from the past year plus with limited capacity and lost revenue," said a spokesperson for the association.

The legislation is a formal implementation of an executive order introduced by San Francisco Mayor London Breed during the height of the coronavirus pandemic, when restaurants had to rely on delivery services for a majority of their business.

Neither Uber nor DoorDash, two of the largest food delivery services headquartered in San Francisco, responded to a request for comment from SFGATE, nor are statements publicly available on their respective websites.

A DoorDash spokesperson referred SFGATE to Geoff Vetter, a spokesperson for Protect App-Based Drivers and Services Coalition  a lobbying arm affiliated with Uber, Lyft and DoorDash previously known as Yes on Prop 22 Coalition. Vetter told SFGATE that they want to "continue working with the Mayor and Board of Supervisors to educate them about the harm of a permanent fee cap.

"Experience with fee caps proves that they are bad for drivers, bad for restaurants and bad for consumers," Vetter said.

Their relative silence is a stunning contrast to last year, when Proposition 22  the measure that permitted the companies to continue classifying drivers and delivery people as contractors instead of employees  resoundingly passed.

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi sent an email on Election Day 2020 praising the drivers who "spoke up" for "the future of independent work," reported NPR at the time. DoorDash CEO Tony Xu, who earned an estimated $413 million last year, according to the San Francisco Business Times, issued a similar statement on the company's blog.

Delivery app companies received a lot of flak  and devoted a lot of rehabilitative PR energy  after turning large profits during the worst of the coronavirus pandemic, despite the restaurants they worked with struggling to survive. Uber, for instance, launched a microgrant campaign in February for restaurants facing financial challenges and offered an option for customers to donate to local businesses on its apps.

A spokesperson for GrubHub told the San Francisco Business Times that the cap would create "long-term consequences" for restaurants and workers alike.
Currently Reading

Alert: McAfee antivirus software creator found dead in Spanish prison hours after court okays his extradition to the US
Sunday, June 27

On this date in 1881, 15 tons of gunpowder exploded in Zeckendorfs powder magazine at the edge of Tucson, smashing windows and dishes and damaging buildings all over town. Churches were quickly filled with people who feared the end of the world was at hand.

On this date in 1921, a fire destroyed the mining town of Oatman with the loss estimated at $500,000.

On this date in 1926, a shoulder blade of a huge prehistoric animal was discovered at Arivaca.

Monday, June 28

On this date in 1888, The Phoenix Herald announced the arrival of 16 ostriches, delivered to M.E. Clanton who was establishing a local ostrich farm.

On this date in 1909, the Tucson Citizen reported that a masked bandit held up a street car at the main gate of the University of Arizona and took a gold watch and $15 in cash from the passengers.

On this date in 1965, Ross Santee, cowboy artists and author, died in Globe at the age of 76.

Tuesday, June 29

On this date in 1907, a fire destroyed 80 buildings in Bisbee, leaving 600 people homeless.

On this date in 1916, the first Arizona chapter of the American Red Cross was organized in Phoenix.

On this date in 2008, two medical helicopters ferrying patients to Flagstaff Medical Center collide near the hospital, killing all seven people aboard the aircraft.

Wednesday, June 30

On this date in 1910, Gov. Richard E. Sloan issued a proclamation calling for the election of officers in Greenlee County, which was recently formed out of Graham County.

On this date in 1910, it was announced that the 21,938-acre abandoned military reservation of Camp Bowie would be sold at an auction by the U.S. Government.

On this date in 1910, Col. E. W. Powell resigned as manager of the Calumet & Arizona Co. in Bisbee and John Greenway was named successor.

On this date in 1931, Andrew Ellicott Douglas of the University of Arizona was honored for his work in dendrochronology by the Research Corporation of New York. Charles Evans Hughes presented the award to Douglas.

On this date in 1956, a United DC-7 carrying 58 people and a TWA Super Constellation Airliner carrying 70 people collided and crashed in the Grand Canyon, killing all 128 people in what was at the time the worst airline disaster in history.

On this date in 2013, 19 firefighters are killed while fighting the Yarnell Hill wildfire.

Thursday, July 1

On this date in 1874, an executive order set aside the San Xavier Reservation for the use of the Papago tribe.

On this date in 1876, the Territorial Prison in Yuma opened with seven prisoners in residence.

On this date in 1877, John P. Clum resigned his long position as Indian Agent at San Carlos after a long and stormy battle with the military over Indian policy.

On this date in 1898, William Bucky ONeill, captain of Troop A of the Arizona Rough Riders, was killed in the Spanish American War.

On this date in 1924, the first parcel post package was sent by airmail from Tucson to New York.

On this date in 1927, Apache Lake filled and the water first flowed over Horse Mesa Dam.

Friday, July 2

On this date in 1833, the final title for the Arivaca Land Grant was awarded to Tomas and Ignacio Ortiz.

On this date in 1864, Congress made the Arizona Territory a part of the Surveying District of New Mexico, thus providing for surveying operations within Arizona. Surveys were begun at Initial Point, a stone monument placed on a hill on the south side of the Gila River opposite the mouth of the Salt River.

On this date in 1908, Coconino National Forest was created from parts of Black Mesa, Tonto and Grand Canyon Forest Reserves.

Saturday, July 3

On this date in 1839, Erastus Snow, co-founder of the town of Snowflake, was born.

On this date in 1887, the first railroad line to Phoenix began operation. Crowds gathered at the depot as the first engine pulled into town with three little girls, Mabel Hancock and Serene and Cora Goodrich, ringing the bell.

On this date in 1917, Gila County Sheriff Tom Armer swore in 400 citizens to protect the property at the Old Dominion Mine during a strike, pending the arrival of federal troops.
CABOT, Arkansas (AP)  An Arkansas sheriffs deputy shot and killed a 17-year-old male during a traffic stop early Wednesday, but authorities arent saying what led to the fatal shooting.

The Lonoke County Sheriff's Office said it has turned the investigation of the shooting that occurred at about 3 a.m. over to Arkansas State Police. State police say the circumstances of the traffic stop and what led to the deputy to fire his gun at Hunter Brittain "will be documented in the investigation.
MOSCOW (AP)  Buryatia, a republic in Siberia, on Wednesday became the first Russian region to announce a lockdown because of a surge in coronavirus infections.

The lockdown will take effect Sunday and last for two weeks, during which only essential services, such as grocery shops, pharmacies, utility companies, public transport and media will be allowed to operate. The republic's coronavirus task force said the goal of the restrictions is to reverse the epidemic situation, which has been worsening for a fifth straight week.

Coronavirus infections in Russia have surged in recent weeks, with the daily tally of new cases growing from around 9,000 in early June to over 17,000 on Friday.

Buryatia, a region of 985,000 people just north of Mongolia, went from reporting about 90 new infections a day in the beginning of June to over 200 a day last week. In light of the increase in new cases, local authorities earlier this month already closed theaters, cinemas, swimming pools and spas and restricted shopping malls.

Buryatia is the only Russian region so far that has imposed several lockdowns since the beginning of the pandemic. Last November, the region's governor also closed all nonessential businesses to close for two weeks to cope with a resurgence of the outbreak.

Russia had only one, six-week nationwide lockdown last spring. Most coronavirus restrictions in the country were lifted over the summer, with regional governors empowered to decide on which virus measures to keep in place.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Wednesday that authorities had plans to reimpose another nationwide lockdown.

Russia, a nation of 146 million, was among the first the world to roll out a coronavirus vaccine last year but has been much slower than other countries in vaccinating its population. As of last Friday, only 19.7 million people  about 13% of the population  had received at least one vaccine shot and 16.1 million, or 11%, have been fully immunized.

In Buryatia, over 162,000 people  16% of the population  have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 126,000, or just under 13%, have gotten both shots.

Russia's state coronavirus taskforce has reported over 5.3 million confirmed infections and 130,895 deaths, the highest death toll in Europe.

___

Follow all of APs pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic and https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP)  A South Carolina committee that monitors how dry South Carolina is has declared the state is drought free for now.

The South Carolina Drought Response Committee voted Wednesday to remove six counties in the northeast part of the state from an incipient drought, which is the first of four levels.
DOVER, Del. (AP)  House lawmakers on Wednesday approved a spending plan for the fiscal year starting July 1 that adds hundreds of millions of dollars to the budget that Democratic Gov. John Carney proposed in January.

House members voted 38-1, with two abstentions, for a $4.77 billion general fund operating budget for fiscal 2022. That is an increase of almost 5% over the current years budget and roughly $65 million more than what Carney ad recommended.

House members also voted unanimously for a supplemental budget bill of one-time expenditures that brings the increase over the current years $4.5 billion operating budget to more than 10%.

With state revenue estimates having skyrocketed since January, lawmakers included more than $221 million in one-time funds for a variety of expenditures next year. Carney had recommended only $35.7 million for one-time expenditures.

The budget bill, which now goes to the Senate, includes $22.7 million for across-the-board pay raises of $500 or 1%, whichever is higher, for state employees. Lawmakers used the supplemental bill to pad those pay raises, allocating $54.6 million for one-time bonuses of $1,000 for government workers. They also approved almost $15.3 million for $500 bonuses to government retirees.

Carney had recommended $30 million in one-time funding for pandemic contingencies, but lawmakers eliminated that supplemental line-item in favor of other one-time expenditures. They include $20 million for state employee health insurance costs and $5 million for a loan program that helps volunteer fire companies upgrade equipment and improve facilities.

The spending plan also includes:

 $22 million in additional funding for disadvantaged students, a term that encompasses low-income students, students whose first language is not English, and students with disabilities

 $17.2 million to increase reimbursement rates for support professionals who work with adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities

 $16 million for student mental health services, including the placement of a mental health professional in every public elementary school

 $10.2 million for efforts to improve academic performance of students in public schools in Wilmington and northern New Castle County.

 $5.2 million to implement a statewide body-worn camera program for police officers.

The additional funding for disadvantaged students is part of Delawares obligations under the settlement of a school funding lawsuit brought by the ACLU and Community Legal Aid Society. The settlement required Carney to seek significantly higher funding from the legislature for disadvantaged students over the next several years. He also was required to propose legislation to make funding for disadvantaged students a permanent fixture in the state budget. A bill doing so is awaiting Carneys signature.

This budget demonstrates a strong commitment to improving public education in Delaware and targeting underserved students and those with special needs, and supporting the educators who are dedicated to helping them shape their futures, said Rep. Kim Williams, D-Newport, a member of the budget-writing committee and chair of the House Education Committee.

Looking ahead, legislative budget writers also recommended setting aside $72.7 million for an extra paycheck that state employees are slated to receive in fiscal 2023 because of a once-every-decade 27th pay cycle.

Its going to make next year easier, state finance secretary Rick Geisenberger said in an interview last week. I think its being very fiscally responsible to set it aside now, in a good year, while you can.

Delawares official revenue estimates, and resulting government spending capacity, have grown significantly since the passage of last years budget during the height of the coronavirus epidemic and since Carney issued his budget proposal. Official estimates left lawmakers with some $1.3 billion more revenue available for next fiscal year compared to the current year. Much of that growth is due to substantial increases in estimates for personal income tax and corporate franchise tax revenue.

We were far more pessimistic last June than we are today, Geisenberger said.

Even with the substantial additions to Carneys recommended budget, lawmakers still have hundreds of million dollars available to spend next year. A significant chunk of that money will likely be added to the record-high $894 million capital budget that Carney requested in January. The legislatures capital budget committee, which is meeting this week, has already added millions of dollars to Carneys proposal.

Despite the spending increases, lawmakers are keeping expenditures to no more than 98% of estimated available revenue, as required by the state constitution. They also are maintaining Delawares never-tapped rainy day fund, which currently totals $252 million, and are expected to add to the $63 million current balance in a separate reserve fund that Carney created for budget planning purposes in 2018.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP)  Deputies searched Wednesday for three youths who escaped from a Tennessee detention center, authorities said.

Three 17-year-old boys escaped the Wilder Youth Development Center in Somerville between 12:45 a.m. and 1 a.m. Wednesday, said Ray Garcia, chief deputy for the Fayette County Sheriff's Office.

Authorities did not know which way they went or how they were traveling, Garcia said.

Two of the youths are from Memphis, and the other is from Chattanooga, Garcia said. They are not being named because they are juveniles.

The youths were detained at the facility for charges including criminal homicide, aggravated robbery and theft of property, Garcia said.

Somerville is located about 35 miles (56 kilometers) east of Memphis.
HELENA, Mont. (AP)  A coalition of environmental advocacy groups threatened Wednesday to sue the state of Montana if it implements new laws passed earlier this year permitting the snaring of wolves and expanding trapping seasons, which they say could pose a threat to the states grizzly bear and lynx populations.

Grizzly bears and Canada lynx, both federally protected under the Endangered Species Act, could be injured or killed by snares and other traps set for wolves, according to Earthjustice, an environmental advocacy group, which sent a notice of intent to sue on behalf of several organizations, including the Center for Biological Diversity, Friends of the Clearwater, Humane Society of the United States, International Wildlife Coexistence Network, Sierra Club, Western Watersheds Project, Wilderness Watch and Wolves of the Rockies.

The group said it would file a lawsuit against the state in 60 days if the state failed to put in place rules that would protect the grizzly and lynx populations.

Montanas expansion of strangulation snares and other traps is an appalling attack on the wolf population, but many other imperiled animals will also die, Andrea Zaccardi, an attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in a statement, calling the new laws unscientific.

The threat of legal action comes as hunting policies in some states this year took an aggressive turn, as Republican lawmakers and conservative hunting groups pushed to curb wolf numbers. In neighboring Idaho, a new law could lead to killing 90% of the 1,500 wolves in the state.

Republican lawmakers who control the Montana Legislature overwhelmingly supported several bills earlier this year to allow the use of snares, extend the trapping season, allow night hunting, and other measures meant to significantly decrease the state's wolf population.

Supporters of the measures said the state's wolves threaten ranchers' livestock and compete with hunters over elk, deer and other big game.

The Montana Fish and Wildlife Commission is set to meet Thursday to discuss new rules to implement the laws.

In a report by the state Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks released last week, department officials acknowledged that expanding the trapping season and using snares pose a substantial risk to non-target species, including lynx and grizzlies.

The commission is considering rules aimed at mitigating the risk to other species, including limiting the use of snares to private property and implementing several safety precautions, such as requiring that snares be fitted with a breakaway device rated to 1,000 pounds (450 kilograms) or less.

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Samuels is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
HONOLULU (AP)  The state Ethics Commission has fined the former principal of a Hawaiian-focused charter school $4,000 for improperly giving employees cash advances on their salaries.

When Alvin Parker was principal of Ka Waihona o Ka Naauao Public Charter School in Waianae, he approved tens of thousands of dollars in cash advances, including $13,000 to his wife, Hawaii News Now reported.
PARIS (AP)  The European Space Agency says it was blown away by the record number of applicants  more than 22,000  hoping to become the continents next generation of space travelers, including more women than ever and some 200 people with disabilities.

In releasing the results of a new recruitment drive aimed at more astronaut diversity, the agency acknowledged Wednesday that it still has work to do on gender balance. Just 24% of the applicants were women, up from 15% at the last hiring drive in 2008.

The hiring campaign didn't specifically address ethnic diversity, but stressed the importance of representing all parts of our society." The agency received applications from all 25 member nations and associate members, though most came from traditional heavyweights France, Germany, Britain and Italy.

ESA specifically sought out people with physical disabilities, for a first-of-its-kind effort to determine what adaptations would be necessary to space stations to accommodate them.

The competition is fierce. Just four to six people will be chosen as Europes next astronauts, with a reserve team of about 20. The candidates will undergo intensive screening over the next year, with a final decision expected in late 2022.

Weve all been astonished at the number of applicants, ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher told a news conference. Its a very strong expression of interest and enthusiasm that people have across Europe for space."

The European agency has sent only two women into space to date  Claudie Haignere and Samantha Cristoforetti  but wants that number to grow.

While 5,419 women applied for the new ESA program, the numbers also show there is more to be done to achieve gender balance in the space sector," said David Parker, its director of human and robotic exploration.

Globally, 65 of the more than 560 people who have explored space were women, most of them Americans.

ESA this week signed an agreement with the European Union that will see the 27-nation bloc deepen ties with and increase its funding for the space agency.

As part of the deal, the EU will invest almost 9 billion euros ($10.8 billion) between now and 2027 for ESA programs aimed at boosting economic growth, digitalization and environmental protection.

While many ESA members are also part of the EU, some  such as Britain  are not.

Among the future programs planned are one that will test the use of a satellite-based quantum encryption system for secure communications, and another to monitor space for potential hazardous debris.
BOSTON (AP)  A former Boston police officer who authorities say received almost $13,000 in fraudulent overtime pay while working at the department's evidence warehouse has pleaded guilty, federal prosecutors said.

Joseph Nee, 48, of Randolph, pleaded guilty Tuesday to conspiracy to commit theft concerning programs receiving federal funds and embezzlement from an agency receiving federal funds, according to a statement from the U.S. attorney's office in Boston.
HAMMOND, La. (AP)  A former police officer in Louisiana has been sentenced to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to having sex with a child, prosecutors said.

Brad Core, 47, of Tickfaw, pleaded guilty Tuesday before state District Judge Jeffrey Johnson to felony carnal knowledge of a juvenile, oral sexual battery, sexual battery and aggravated crime against nature, Tangipahoa Parish District Attorney Scott M. Perrilloux said. The term is to be served without benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence, Perrilloux's office said.
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP)  When temperatures are sweltering in Arizona's desert areas, people head to the forests to camp, hike, fish and just cool off.

But options for finding respite from the heat will be slim now that all but one of Arizona's national forests are enacting broad shutdowns amid high fire danger and as firefighting resources run thin with blazes already burning across the state.

Portions of forests in other western states also are off-limits. But the shutdowns in Arizona are the most widespread and, by Friday, will include land owned and managed by the state.

Kathy Howard set out for a hike in Sedona on Wednesday a couple of hours before the Coconino National Forest closure went into effect. She crossed a creek where she enjoys listening to water gently roll over the rocks, turned right and was greeted with caution tape.

Her plans were dashed.

I have to say I'm glad that they did close the forest because we don't want to lose our trees and all the flora and fauna out there, said Howard, who splits her time between Scottsdale and Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Arizona has been a hotbed for wildfires so far this year, with more large fires burning than in any other state and across all terrain. The fires have forced rural residents from their homes and sent motorists on sometimes lengthy detours.

Firefighters got help Wednesday with cooler weather and the hope of rain, however short-lived it might be with a warming trend in the forecast later this week. Still, they were on alert for thunderstorms that could produce lightning and touch off more blazes.

The Coconino and Kaibab national forests in northern Arizona closed Wednesday. Apache-Sitgreaves, Prescott and Tonto were set to close later this week. Tonto near Phoenix will leave most of its lakes open for recreation.

A previous, full closure of the Coconino forest 2006 lasted nine days. A 2002 shutdown lasted nine weeks, encompassing the Memorial Day and July 4 holidays.

There's no telling when the latest closures, which don't affect state or national parks, will be rescinded.

We know the public wants to get outside," said Tiffany Davila, spokeswoman for the state Department of Forestry and Fire Management. But it comes down to public and firefighter safety and making sure we can get people to the next incident, if and when it occurs."

Coconino forest employees were scattered throughout the forest Wednesday, letting campers, hikers and locals know about the closure, posting signs and providing information on social services to people who regularly camp in the forest.

Keith Buchli drove to Flagstaff from Scottsdale to escape the heat, knowing the forest would be closed, but checked some roads just in case. Instead of his planned mountain bike ride, he rode on the highway shoulder. Exercise is exercise, he said.

It's so much nicer here, he said. I just love getting out into the woods.

Nearby, the road that leads to a ski resort that operates a scenic chairlift in the summer also was closed.

To the southwest in Prescott, a summer camp for kids will have to nix horseback riding and camping in the nearby forest. Kevin Nissen, co-director of Friendly Pines, said the camp has plenty of room on its own property for other activities.

Hopefully the rains will come and this will all get lifted, he said.

Beyond inconveniencing campers and hikers, the forest closures are felt by businesses that rely on tourists, hunters, ranchers and researchers who can't conduct studies. Forest thinning also could be delayed.
LONDON - British lawmakers are demanding a meeting with tech giant Amazon's country manager after an investigation at a warehouse in Scotland revealed that thousands of unsold or returned items - including televisions, books, sealed face masks and laptops - were being destroyed by the company.

Footage from the undercover investigation by ITV News at a warehouse in the Scottish town of Dunfermline, also showed drones, headphones, jewelry and countless other high-value products being placed into boxes labeled "destroy," before huge trucks were followed carrying the stock to landfill sites and recycling centers. The investigation said it amounted to the destruction of millions of products each year.

One ex-employee told ITV News that workers were expected to get rid of an estimated 130,000 items a week. The broadcaster described the practice as "waste on an astonishing level."

As outrage grew on social media, Prime Minister Boris Johnson promised that he would look into the allegations, which he said were "incredible." Climate activist Greta Thunberg slammed the footage on Twitter.

"This is just ONE warehouse. If you have a system where this possible - and even profitable - that's a clear sign that something is fundamentally wrong," Thunberg wrote.

Amazon operates 175 centers worldwide, spanning more than 150 million square feet of space where employees prepare items to be shipped and delivered to customers around-the-clock.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post.

In a statement released Tuesday, the company said it prioritizes the reselling and donating of unsold goods.

"As a last resort, we will send items to energy recovery, but we're working hard to drive the number of times this happens down to zero," a spokesperson told British media.

According to ITV, John Boumphrey, Amazon's country manager for the United Kingdom, said the number of items being destroyed by the company was "extremely small."

Since the original investigation was shared, another whistleblower who was previously employed by the company at a large warehouse in Hertfordshire, England, said that "lots of things from brand new iPhones to PlayStations" were destroyed, along with books that had never been read.

The man, who has not been identified, also reported that people working at other Amazon centers across the country had similar accounts of usable products going to waste.

ITV News noted that the reason for the destruction of the goods may be attributable to Amazon's business model. Companies worldwide store items in warehouses owned by the online shopping giant. However, if the items fail to sell, they are charged rising fees that some may struggle to pay, leading to piles of goods that need to be stored - or dumped - elsewhere.

Lawmaker Siobhain McDonagh of the opposition Labour Party said it was "appalling" that the company had destroyed items that could have benefited many children across the country - especially amid the coronavirus pandemic. Many families struggle to educate their children from home during the outbreak, often with inadequate or limited digital equipment.

The coronavirus has ravaged Britain, causing more than 128,000 deaths and three nationwide lockdowns that forced schools across the country to close.

Many Britons, also concerned by the investigation, demanded to know why items that appeared to be in good condition were being dumped when vulnerable people or charities could have used the goods.

A recent report from the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) called on the British government to stop what it called "digital exclusion" of young people in Britain. It said digital access was "no longer a luxury" but a necessity that "must be seen as the cornerstone to ensuring social justice and equitable life chances for every child."

Allegations of Amazon's destruction of products are not new.

In 2019, the French newspaper Le Monde reported that Amazon destroyed an estimated 3.2 million unsold products in 2018. "Amazon, seller of mass destruction," the headline at the time read.
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP)  Former U.S. Labor Secretary Tom Perez is running for governor of Maryland.

The former chairman of the Democratic National Committee is making the announcement official Wednesday.

Perez is highlighting his experience in local, state and federal government, particularly with labor issues and civil rights.

I want to make sure here in Maryland that zip code never determines destiny, that people have access to good jobs, safe communities, affordable housing, health care  all the building blocks of a vibrant community," Perez said in an interview with The Associated Press.

Perez, 59, served as Maryland's labor secretary from 2007 to 2009 in former Gov. Martin O'Malley's administration. He went on to serve in former President Barack Obama's administration as assistant attorney general for civil rights from 2009 to 2013 and as head of the U.S. Labor Department from 2013 to 2017.

He was chairman of the DNC from 2017 until January.

Perez said he wants to bring a progressive vision to Maryland's crowded Democratic primary.

You can have all the vision in the world, but if you cant govern, youre not going to deliver results," Perez said.

He is underscoring his labor credentials, focusing on income inequality and the importance of experience in developing a workforce development system. He said that's crucial in the aftermath of the pandemic, as more people either want to switch careers or need to because their jobs went away.

He also is emphasizing the link between growing jobs and protecting the environment by supporting offshore wind power.

We want to create jobs of the future," he said. "We should be a leader in offshore wind.

A resident of Montgomery County in the suburbs of the nation's capital, Perez enters a growing field of candidates for the governor's office in next year's election. Republican Gov. Larry Hogan is term limited.

Other Democrats in the race include Comptroller Peter Franchot, former Attorney General Doug Gansler, former U.S. Education Secretary John King, author and nonprofit executive Wes Moore, businessman Mike Rosenbaum, former nonprofit executive Jon Baron and former Montgomery County Council candidate Ashwani Jain.

Its a crowded field," Perez said. "Itll be a competitive primary. Theres no doubt about it, but I think the more people see what Ive done I think the more they will embrace both the vision and the demonstrated track record of accomplishment.
BERLIN (AP)  Libya's transitional government underlined its commitment to holding elections on Dec. 24 at a conference Wednesday with powers that have interests in the North African country, while the German hosts vowed to keep up pressure until all foreign forces have been withdrawn from Libya.

Germany and the United Nations brought together 17 countries at the conference in Berlin. Libyas transitional leadership was joined by foreign ministers from Egypt, Turkey, Tunisia, Algeria, France and Italy, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and senior officials from Russia, the United Arab Emirates and others.

The meeting followed up on a January 2020 conference where leaders agreed to respect an arms embargo and to push the countrys warring parties to reach a full cease-fire. Germany has tried to act as an intermediary.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said the meeting marked a new phase" and that we are no longer only talking about Libya, but above all with Libya.

Participants welcomed progress since the process was launched. An October cease-fire agreement including a demand that all foreign fighters and mercenaries leave Libya within 90 days led to a deal on the elections in December and the transitional government that took office in February.

Libyan Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush said the transitional government came with a vision of how best to re-establish stability in our country and pave the way for free, inclusive and safe elections on Dec. 24.

Wednesday's conference saw powers involved in Libya recommit to refraining from interfering in the country's internal affairs and stating that foreign forces and mercenaries need to be withdrawn without delay  something on which there has been little progress.

Asked what guarantees the countries involved are giving to withdraw foreign fighters, Maas pointed to the fact that they had gathered for the conference. He said that we will not let up, and we will not rest, until the last foreign forces have left Libya ... wherever they come from."

He said Russia and Turkey, which have been heavily involved on opposite sides, understand that a withdrawal would have to be carried out step by step and added that it would have to be balanced, so that one side doesn't gain an advantage.

Mangoush said there was progress regarding mercenaries, so hopefully within the coming days mercenaries from both sides are going to be withdrawn, creating more trust and leading to further steps.

A senior U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the closed-doors talks, said Russia and Turkey tentatively agreed to begin a process of removing foreign fighters. The official said the deal is not yet done but they are prepared to discuss an incremental withdrawal of about 300 each.

A further challenge will be to start bringing all armed groups in Libya under a joint military command.

Speaking earlier Wednesday ahead of the conference, Blinken said that we share the goal of a sovereign, stable, unified, secure Libya free from foreign interference  it's what the people of Libya deserve, it's critical to regional security as well.

For that to happen, national elections need to go forward in December and that means urgent agreement is needed on constitutional and legal issues that would undergird those elections, he said. And the Oct. 23 cease-fire agreement has to be fully implemented, including by withdrawing all foreign forces from Libya.

Conference participants supported efforts toward a reconciliation process and committed to helping Libyan authorities in developing a comprehensive approach to addressing migration, including the closure of detention centers.

Aid group Doctors Without Borders said this week it was suspending its activities in two detention centers in Tripoli after repeated incidents of violence toward refugees and migrants held there. It said staff had witnessed guards beating detainees at one center and received reports of people being shot at in another.

Libya has been a key transit country for migrants from Africa trying to reach Europe, especially after the collapse of order when a NATO-backed uprising toppled and later killed longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. The oil-rich country was long divided 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, eastern-based commander Khalifa Hifter and his forces, backed by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, launched an offensive to try to capture Tripoli. Hifters 14-month campaign collapsed after Turkey stepped up its military support of the U.N.-backed government with hundreds of troops and thousands of Syrian mercenaries.

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AP Diplomatic Writer Matthew Lee contributed to this report from Berlin.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP)  The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear a case challenging Indianas vote-by-mail restrictions, a rebuff that means a federal court will decide the future of absentee voting in the state.

Monday's decision by the high court follows a federal appeals court's ruling in October rejecting a lawsuit that aimed to make mail-in ballots available to all Indiana voters last November due to the pandemic.

The case now returns before a federal judge in Indianapolis, where it began, The Indianapolis Star reported.

In October, a three-judge panel of 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that Indiana's limits in state law dont violate voters constitutional rights. That decision upheld an August ruling that state officials had discretion in how to allow mail voting and that voters not wanting to cast ballots on Election Day could go to early voting sites for nearly a month before then.

Indianas mail-in voting limits allow people to vote by mail only if they fall into one of several categories, including being 65 or older or being absent from their home counties on Election Day.

Plaintiffs in the case argued that Indianas age restriction for absentee voters infringes upon the constitutional right to participate in the polls. It is one of 11 state restrictions that define who can and cant vote by mail.

Indiana's election commission waived those requirements during last years primary elections because it recognized that the pandemic hindered safety at the voting booth. Plaintiffs tried to get a federal judge to require the commission to extend that allowance to November, but the judge declined.

Indiana Vote By Mail, a nonprofit and one of 13 plaintiffs in the lawsuit, said Tuesday that the plaintiffs were gravely disappointed by the high court's decision.

Indianas response to our petition provided no justification for Indianas arbitrary age-based excuse for receiving an absentee ballot, the nonprofit said in a statement. Nor are the State of Indiana or Indiana voters served in any way by applying this age-based test to voters who wish to vote at home.

Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita tweeted his support for the high court's decision, saying it rightly allowed Indiana to limit the privilege of mail-in absentee ballots to Hoosiers 65 and older (among other categories of voters).

States have the authority to set their own election policies so long as they are constitutional," he wrote.
WARSAW, Poland (AP)  Polish energy officials say human error was to blame for a massive outage at Europes largest brown coal power plant of Belchatow last month and a separate fire there just days later, according to the state PAP news agency.

Poland needed snap energy imports May 17 when 10 of Belchatows 11 units suddenly went out, and the outage was felt across Europes grid. Some 3.6 gigawatts of energy were lost and only the newest, 858-megawatt unit was operating.

The problem was fixed that day and in the following days the units were gradually restarted.

Belchatow plant, fed by an adjacent open-pit lignite mine, supplies over 20% of Poland's energy, serving some 11 million households.

The head of Poland's energy grid PSE, Eryk Klossowski, told a special parliament commission late Tuesday that the outage was caused by an employee who was installing automatic equipment at a power switch. That led to a chain of events that automatically switched off Belchatow's units, Klossowski told the commission, according to PAP.

A week later, coal ignited on a conveyer belt going to the state-of-the-art 858 megawatt unit, forcing its full lockdown for many days.

Also in this case, a series of errors by employees who did not observe strict safety procedures caused the outage, Wioletta Czemiel-Grzybowska, the head of the state mining and conventional energy concern PGE GiEK that operates Belchatow, told the parliament commission, according to PAP.

The unit will be fully operational after Oct. 31, following the needed repairs, and four employees have been fired, she said.

Poland relies on black and brown coal for some 65% of its energy. The Belchatow lignite mine and power plant is Europe's largest single pollutant and under pressure to close, as the European Union strives to meet its ambitious climate goals. Belchatow's last unit is to close in 2036, and the mine in 2038 according to plans by the PGE GiEK and local authorities.

Poland is also in intensive talks with the neighboring Czech Republic over another Polish lignite plant and mine near the countries' border. Prague has taken Warsaw to the European Court of Justice over what it says are the harmful effects of the Turow complex on nearby Czech villages. The court has ordered the mine closed immediately, which Poland says is not possible.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP)  Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine made good on his promise Wednesday to treat policing like a profession in the state by introducing a college-to-law enforcement pathway program.

The pilot program under the new state Office of Law Enforcement Recruitment is an effort by the Republican governor to both recruit more law enforcement officers as departures engulf agencies across the state and make sure the candidates who do apply are qualified.

This is not an easy time to be in law enforcement," DeWine said at a briefing, surrounded by police chiefs, deputies and rank-and-file officers from across Ohio. Failure to keep the ranks of law enforcement full has the potential to create a public safety crisis."

During a time where we are seeing more violence, that is an additional challenge, he added.

The new program, DeWine says, will connect criminal justice programs from colleges and universities in Ohio to law enforcement agencies in the state, effectively creating a pipeline for college students to become officers.

The announcement of the initiative comes as the reckoning over racial injustice that began after George Floyd's killing last summer shifted the public perception of police and their roles in the community.

The result of that is low morale among rank-and-file officers, leading to more officers retiring and fewer people coming forward to serve, DeWine said.

In Columbus, one of the state's largest police forces, 80 officers retired last year, making that nearly double the average number of retirements in the previous five years, according to the local NPR affiliate WOSU.

In the past six months, Columbus police has already seen another 71 retirements.

The pilot program will start with pairing students at Cedarville University and Central State University with officers at 11 agencies across the state, including the Franklin County Sheriff's Office and the Ohio State Highway Patrol.

The two biggest problems in law enforcement right now are that we cannot get enough qualified candidates through the process and we cant get enough qualified minorities or women through the process, Patrick Oliver, the director of the criminal justice program at Cedarville University, said of the unprecedented program.

DeWine introduced the idea of professionalizing the state's police force last June as part of a series of reforms he and state Attorney General Dave Yost put forward to address police brutality in Ohio.

We must begin treating our law enforcement officers like we treat those in other professions, DeWine said at the time. Doctors, dentists, lawyers, barbers  those and many other occupations are held to high professional standards, often with a code of ethics."

"It is time to treat a peace officer certificate more like a professional license, he added.

A number of those reforms introduced last year, including establishing a state oversight board for officers and securing funding for use-of-force training, have either died or been stalled in the Republican-controlled Legislature.

We can't wait on bills. We can't wait on a massive change," Sarah Shendy, law enforcement officer and the administrator for the Office of Law Enforcement Recruitment, said. "Reform is a personal responsibility and we have to reform after every single encounter.

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Farnoush Amiri is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
BRASILIA, Brazil (AP)  Hundreds of Indigenous people gathered outside Brazil's Congress on Wednesday to push for rejection of a bill that could loosen protections for their lands  a proposal that has already prompted clashes with police.

Indigenous groups have been staging protests for days in the capital. Dressed in traditional clothes and carrying bows, they marched to Congress, where they sang and danced. A group of women gave roses to police officers standing guard. The prior day, police used tear gas to disperse the protesters, who shot arrows; one pierced an officers leg.

The bill before the lower house's Constitution and Justice Committee would require Indigenous people seeking full protection of their territories to have been occupying the land in 1988, the year Brazils constitution was signed after the nations return to democracy. The committee approved the bill late Wednesday, paving the way for it to proceed to the floor for a vote.

Indigenous rights activists say the cut-off date ignores the fact many had been forcibly expelled from their ancestral lands, particularly during the military dictatorship, or may not have formal means to prove possession.

There are currently 237 such requests for full protection of territories, most small and located outside the Amazon rainforest in Brazil's north region, according to Juliana Batista, a lawyer at the nonprofit Socioenvironmental Institute.

It is a big conflict because theyre in areas within contexts of real estate speculation, cities, and very much pressured by economic interests, Batista said by phone. If they cant prove they were in possession, they could lose their lands.

The bill's backers argue it would provide legal certainty to agricultural producers, a key constituency of Brazils far-right President Jair Bolsonaro. He has said Indigenous people control far too much territory relative to their population  their territories cover 14% of Brazil, most in the Amazon  and he has been outspoken about his desire to promote development.

Brazil has enormous potential within that 14%, that enormous area of our Indigenous brothers, he said in a broadcast on social media in April, while highlighting the countrys multitude of agricultural crops.

We want to integrate the Indian into society, he added. The Indian wants to integrate into society, and we wont do anything beyond what our Indian brothers want to do.

Indigenous demonstrators in Brasilia strove to show they were indeed opposed to any changes that could strip them of their rights.

The bill also would allow the government to appropriate so-called Indigenous reserves demarcated prior to 1988 if the groups cultural features have changed. That could potentially apply to more than 60 areas totaling roughly 400,000 hectares (about 1,500 square miles), which are home to around 70,000 people, according to the institute.

The bill attacks lands already approved and demarcated and opens space for illegal mining and deforestation if its approved, Kreta Kaingang, an Indigenous leader from Brazil's southern region, said in an interview. It attacks all of our rights.

Indigenous demonstrators earlier on Wednesday circled around a giant speaker to listen to the congressional committee's proceedings. They said clashes on Tuesday began when they tried to move out of the blasting sun and into a shaded area.

For decades we have faced ... miners invasions, violence, leaders being killed, said Dinama Tuxa, an Indigenous leader from northeastern Bahia state. And then we arrive to denounce precisely what is going on inside our territories and we face the same situation.

The countrys Supreme Court in the past has ruled against efforts to open Indigenous territories to business interests, ruling the reserves are off limits to commercial development.

___ Biller reported from Rio de Janeiro. Associated Press writer Marcelo de Sousa contributed from Rio.
JERUSALEM (AP)  Israel's Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the decision to destroy the family home of a detained Palestinian accused of a deadly shooting. It rejected a petition by his estranged wife, who lives in the house with their children and says she knew nothing about the attack.

The case drew attention to Israel's policy of demolishing the family homes of attackers after they have been killed or arrested. Israeli officials say the demolitions deter future attacks, while rights groups view it as a form of collective punishment.

The U.S. State Department has urged a halt to punitive home demolitions. An internal review by the Israeli military in 2004 reportedly questioned its effectiveness as a deterrent, leading the military to largely halt such demolitions for nearly a decade. It resumed the practice in 2014 after three Israeli teenagers were kidnapped and killed in the West Bank.

Israel says Muntasser Shalaby carried out a May 2 drive-by shooting in the occupied West Bank that killed an Israeli and wounded two others. He was arrested days after the attack.

His wife, Sanaa Shalaby, told The Associated Press they were estranged for several years and that he spent most of his time in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where he had married three other women in unofficial Islamic ceremonies. The entire family has U.S. citizenship.

Sanaa said he would return to the West Bank for a month or two every year to visit their three children, aged 17, 12 and 9, who live with her in the home in the village of Turmus Ayya. HaMoked, an Israeli rights group representing her, said he had a history of mental illness.

In upholding the demolition order, the Supreme Court noted that Muntasser had lived in the home continuously from 2006-2012, before their estrangement, and had resided there for weeks before the attack. It said the petitioners did not present sufficient evidence to show he had suffered from mental illness.

Jessica Montell, the executive director of HaMoked, said the disappointing judgment would allow the military to expand the use of punitive home demolitions. Her group is weighing whether to request another hearing and says the court is unlikely to grant one.

She said the house could be demolished anytime after an interim injunction expires on June 30.

If Mrs. Shalabys legal recourse has been exhausted, the diplomatic recourse is crucial: Is the U.S. government going to allow this blatant collective punishment against a U.S. citizen mother and three children?

The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the ruling. Earlier this month, it called on Israel and the Palestinians to refrain from any actions that undermine efforts to revive the peace process, including punitive home demolitions.

"The home of an entire family should not be demolished for the actions of one individual," it said.

___

Associated Press writer Isaac Scharf contributed.
JERUSALEM (AP)  An Israeli defense ministry body advanced plans for 31 West Bank settlement construction projects Wednesday, the first such move under the countrys new government.

The plans approved by the Civil Administration include a shopping center, a special needs school and a number of infrastructure projects and zoning changes in existing West Bank settlements, Israeli media reported.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennetts new government was sworn in earlier this month, unseating longtime leader Benjamin Netanyahu after four deadlocked elections. His governing coalition is comprised of eight parties representing a wide spectrum of political positions, from Jewish ultranationalists to liberal factions and a small Islamist party.

Most of the international community considers Israeli settlement construction illegal under international law and an obstacle to peace with the Palestinians. Since Israel captured the territory in the 1967 Mideast war, it has constructed dozens of settlements in the West Bank, where more than 400,000 Israelis live alongside nearly 3 million Palestinians.

The Palestinians seek the West Bank as the heartland of a future independent state. Peace talks between the two parties have been stalled for years.

The U.S. has urged Israel and the Palestinians to refrain from actions that could hinder peace efforts, including settlement activity. Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid will be flying to Rome on Sunday to meet with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Ayman Odeh, head of the Joint List of Arab parties in Israels parliament, said following the approval of settlement construction that the left has surrendered to the right and has put aside the diplomatic issue, but the right continues to harm the chances of peace and deepen the occupation, oppression and dispossession of millions of Palestinians."

Bennett has said that all parties will have to put ideological differences aside for the new government to function. A minister from the dovish Meretz party said the new government has agreed at least at this stage, not to deal with the Palestinian issue.
O'FALLON, Mo. (AP)  Jim Bakker and his southwestern Missouri church will pay restitution of $156,000 to settle a lawsuit that accuses the TV pastor of falsely claiming a health supplement could cure COVID-19.

Missouri court records show that a settlement agreement was filed Tuesday. It calls for refunds to people who paid money or gave contributions to obtain a product known as Silver Solution in the early days of the pandemic.

The settlement also prohibits Bakker and Morningside Church Productions Inc. from advertising or selling Silver Solution to diagnose, prevent, mitigate, treat or cure any disease or illness. Bakker, in the agreement, does not admit wrongdoing.

Republican Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt sued Bakker and Morningside in March 2020. Schmitt sought an injunction ordering Bakker to stop selling Silver Solution as a treatment for COVID-19 on his streaming TV program, The Jim Bakker Show. The lawsuit said Bakker and a guest made the cure claim during 11 episodes in February and March of 2020.

Schmitt said in a news release on Wednesday that Bakker has already made restitution to many consumers, and must pay back another $90,000 to others.

The hour-long Jim Bakker Show is filmed in southwestern Missouri. The consent agreement notes that during the program, Silver Solution was offered to those who agreed to contribute $80 to $125.

Baker's attorneys  Derek Ankrom and former Democratic Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon  said in a joint statement that Bakker and Morningside Church Productions are pleased to put the matter behind them so they can continue the important work of Morningside Church. They noted that the agreement includes no findings whatsoever that our clients violated any laws or misled consumers.

Nixon had previously claimed that Bakker was being unfairly targeted by those who want to crush his ministry and force his Christian television program off the air," and that Bakker did not claim that Silver Solution was a cure for COVID-19.

The lawsuit cited a discussion on the program on Feb. 12, 2020, in which Bakker spoke with Sherrill Sellman, referring to her as a naturopathic doctor and a natural health expert."

This influenza that is now circling the globe, youre saying that Silver Solution would be effective? Bakker asks. Sellman, according to the lawsuit, replies: Well, lets say it hasnt been tested on this strain of the coronavirus, but it has been tested on other strains of the coronavirus and has been able to eliminate it within 12 hours.

Yeah, Bakker says.

Totally eliminate it, kills it. Deactivates it, Sellman replies, according to the lawsuit.

Also in March 2020, U.S. regulators warned Bakkers company and six others to stop selling items using what the government called false claims that they could treat the coronavirus or keep people from catching it. Letters sent jointly by the Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission warned the companies that their products for treating COVID-19 were fraudulent, pose significant risks to patient health and violate federal law.

Silver Solution, a form of colloidal silver, consists of silver particles suspended in a liquid. The solution is often described by manufacturers as having the power to boost the immune system and cure diseases. But it has no known benefit in the body when ingested, according to officials with the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, a federal scientific research agency.

Experts say ingesting colloidal silver can have serious side effects. The NCCIH says it can turn skin blue when silver builds up in the bodys tissue.

Nixon, who served two terms as governor from 2009 to 2017 and is now a partner at the Dowd Bennett law firm in St. Louis, said Bakker immediately complied with orders to stop offering Silver Solution on his show and ministry website after receiving the warning letters from the FDA and FTC.

Meanwhile, Arkansas' attorney general filed a lawsuit similar to Missouri's in June 2020. That case is still pending.
NEW YORK (AP)  A judge Tuesday struck down a New York City law that had prohibited the city's police officers from putting pressure on a persons torso while making an arrest, calling the measure unconstitutionally vague.

Manhattan Judge Laurence Love wrote in a 17-page opinion that phrasing in the law, passed in the wake of the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd, was hard to define and ripe for confusion.

Loves ruling came in a lawsuit brought by police unions opposed to the law, which they referred to as the diaphragm law because it barred officers from restraining people in a manner that compresses the diaphragm.

Love, in his opinion, said that such phrasing cannot be adequately defined as written. He rejected the citys proposal to simply remove those words from the law, saying he would not usurp the role of city lawmakers.

Lawyers for the unions argued that deleting the line wouldve made the law even more vague, leaving officers susceptible to criminal charges for sitting, kneeling or standing on a suspects chest or back regardless of how much pressure they applied, for how long, and whether that affected the persons breathing.

Instead, the judge urged the city council to revisit the law and address the language issue. A bill proposed last year to revise the law amid outcry from police unions appears to have stalled. The New York City law was one of many police reforms enacted across the U.S. in the wake of Floyd's death, which occurred as a Minneapolis police officer kneeled on his neck for about 9 1/2 minutes.

New York Citys law department, which defended the struck down law in court, said it is reviewing its legal options. The law had also outlawed the use of chokeholds by police officers. Loves ruling has no bearing on a long-standing NYPD ban on the tactic. Chokeholds are also illegal under state law.

Messages seeking comment were left with the police department and with the police unions that sued over the law.

In the past, Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Lynch has described the diaphragm law as legislative overreach that went against all training.

Love, in his ruling, noted that the NYPD has established new training procedures and blanket restrictions on sitting, kneeling or standing on a persons chest or back, but that the departments training materials had also failed to meaningfully address the legal definition of compresses the diaphragm.

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Follow Michael Sisak on Twitter at https://www.twitter.com/mikesisak and send confidential tips by visiting https://www.ap.org/tips
BEIRUT (AP)  A Lebanese prosecutor Wednesday ordered the release of seven people who were detained after last years deadly massive blast at Beiruts port, state media reported.

The decision by Ghassan Khoury came a day after the Lebanese judge leading the investigation into the explosion requested the release of 13 people who were detained after the August catastrophe, one of the largest non-nuclear blasts in history.

The National News Agency said Khoury only approved the release of seven persons, most of them junior port employees. It added that the request to release senior employees was rejected.

NNA did not say when they will be released.

Nearly 3,000 tons of ammonium nitrate, a highly explosive material used in fertilizers that had been improperly stored in the port for years, exploded on Aug. 4, killing 211 people, wounding more than 6,000 and damaging entire neighborhoods nearby.

A judicial official said six men and one woman will be released but he did not say when. He spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

The official said the head of the customs department, his predecessor and the ports director general at the time will remain in custody.

In April, six people including security officers who had been detained for months, were released. They included an officer who had written a detailed warning to top officials prior to the explosion about the dangers of the material stored at the port.

After the blast, 25 people were detained but with those released in April and the seven who will be set free, 12 will remain in detention.

Lebanons code of criminal procedure gives the judicial investigator the authority to hold suspects in pre-trial detention indefinitely. But this violates their due process rights, said Aya Majzoub, Lebanon researcher at Human Rights Watch. She added that under international law, anyone held in pre-trial detention has a right to a speedy trial or release.

Those detained in connection with the Beirut blast have spent almost a year in prison, without knowing the evidence or the charges against them, and with no prospects of a trial in the near future, said Majzoub. Their release addresses some of the due process concerns that HRW had with regards to the investigation.

Judge Tarek Bitar was named to lead the investigation in February after his predecessor was removed following legal challenges by two former Cabinet ministers he had accused of negligence.

The Beirut port explosion has been one of the most traumatic national experiences the Lebanese have faced. Families of those killed are skeptical that any investigation into the explosion can be transparent and independent in a country where a culture of impunity has prevailed for decades.

___

Associated Press writer Sarah El Deeb contributed to this report.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP)  A Kansas City man faces life in prison after being convicted of sexually abusing a young girl while her mother worked.

The Jackson County Prosecutor's office said Adalberto Gaitan, 36, was convicted Tuesday of two counts of first-degree statutory rape, two counts of statutory sodomy and one count of first-degree statutory sodomy.
BOISE, Idaho (AP)  Just over half of Idaho adults have now received at least one dose of coronavirus vaccine  about two months after the 50% mark was reached nationwide.

Idaho Public Health Administrator Elke Shaw-Tulloch told reporters Tuesday that 50.2% of adults have received at least one vaccine dose but that the state is unlikely to meet the national goal of at least 70% by July 4. Still, she said Idaho continues to make gains in vaccination rates.

Idaho has the eighth lowest adult partial COVID-19 vaccination rate in the U.S., according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Many Idaho residents are still reluctant to get vaccinated and have their children vaccinated and it's difficult for some rural residents to get vaccines. Shaw-Tulloch said state officials are employing a variety of tactics to increase vaccine confidence and accessibility.

State officials are training pediatricians and other healthcare providers on how to administer and talk to patients about the vaccine. And grants are being offered to vaccine providers for mobile clinics and other efforts to increase access.

One grant recipient is partnering with Boise-area events such as the Treefort music festival to encourage people to get the vaccine while enjoying the event.

All adults in Idaho have been eligible to receive the vaccine since early April and kids ages 12 and up became eligible in mid-May. But with low demand, vaccine providers now have more than 350,000 shots on hand  enough to last almost 16 weeks.

Idahos overall vaccination rate has been boosted by older adults, with more than 76% of senior citizens at least partially vaccinated. More than 56% of Idaho residents between 55 and 64 years old are at least partially vaccinated. But a majority of people in age groups younger than 55 have received no vaccine doses in Idaho.

Were kind of ticking along, and were making slow gains as people become more and more confident in the vaccine and we have more opportunities easily available, Shaw-Tulloch said.
LOS ANGELES (AP)  Mayor Eric Garcetti's chief of staff has been placed on leave after mocking California politicians and saying she hated labor icon Dolores Huerta in years-old social media posts.

Ana Guerrero was asked to step away from her executive management responsibilities so that she can make things right with the people addressed in these comments, Garcetti said in a statement Tuesday.

She will be on administrative leave for the foreseeable future, unpaid for a month," Garcetti spokesman Alex Comisar said.

The Los Angeles Times on Tuesday reported that Guerrero and others made insulting comments about various people in 2016 and 2017 in an invitation-only Facebook group called Solid Gold that included other Garcetti appointees, city employees and friends. The newspaper didnt indicate how it had obtained or reviewed the posts.

One 2016 post included a photo of Huerta, the 91-year-old co-founder of the United Farm Workers union with Cesar Chavez that fought for better working conditions for agricultural laborers. Under the photo, Guerrero wrote, I hate her. You hate her, adding, Viejita envidiosa! which is Spanish for Jealous old lady, the Times reported.

The Times said members of the group made disparaging comments about various politicians and officials, including state Sen. Maria Elena Durazo, City Council member Gil Cedillo and University of California Board of Regents chairman John Perez.

These comments were offensive and wrong, and I deeply regret making them," Guerrero said in a statement Tuesday. There is no excuse  and to anyone who was the subject of these posts, I am deeply sorry for the pain they caused.

Guerrero apologized to her City Hall colleagues and anyone in my life who looks up to and depends on me to set an example for leadership."

Garcetti's statement said the mayor had just learned about the postings, which he said do not reflect the values that I expect from members of my administration.

I am a big believer in second chances and in teachable moments of both growth and reconciliation," Garcetti added. Ana has been an important part of the work we have done at City Hall and has exceptional talents, and it is my hope that she can grow from this experience.

Huerta told the Times that all of us on the front lines are used to having people say negative things about us.

The growers used to call me all kinds of names," she said. I think it just reflects badly on them when they have positions like the chief of staff of the mayor. It would seem they would have better ethics.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP)  Virginia lawmakers will meet in Richmond in August for a special session focused on allocating more than $4.3 billion in federal coronavirus relief funding.

Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam issued a proclamation Wednesday calling on the legislature to convene Aug. 2. In addition to deciding how to spend the American Rescue Plan funding, lawmakers will be filling judicial vacancies.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP)  Several advocacy groups are suing a Florida school district over its practice of making hundreds of students undergo mental health examinations at psychiatric facilities each year.

The federal lawsuit, filed Tuesday by advocates for disabled and minority children, called the Palm Beach Countys public school district's policy excessive and illegal.

The groups claimed in the lawsuit that the school district had deprived hundreds of children of educational opportunities and inflicted unnecessary trauma by forcing them into mental health centers over unthreatening behavioral incidents, The Palm Beach Post reported.

Florida's Mental Health Act  also called the Baker Act  gives police, judges and mental health professionals power to require someone to undergo mental health exams if they appear to be suffering from a mental illness and could cause harm to themselves or others.

The lawsuit claims school officials violated state and federal law by involuntarily committing students in situations where the law does not apply, the newspaper reported.

School employees, including (school district) police officers, regularly seize children for involuntary examination who plainly do not meet the criteria of the Baker Act, the suit states.

The lawsuit alleges that school officials routinely handcuff and take young children to psychiatric centers over their parents objections. Sometimes it is for normal, childish behavior or for misconduct stemming from developmental disabilities, which the lawsuit says are specifically excluded from the (Baker Acts) definition of mental illness.

The lawsuit further states that the districts use of the law disproportionately affects students with disabilities and students of color.

The lawsuit was filed by Disability Rights Florida, the NAACP and five students and their families. It comes three months after the Southern Poverty Law Center released a report singling out the countys public schools for excessive use of the Baker Act.

The law center found that Palm Beach County schools involuntarily committed 1,217 students between 2016 and 2020. The group included 254 elementary school students, with 59 younger than 8 years old, the newspaper reported.

After that report was released, the county and a coalition of groups worked to come to a legal settlement. But negotiations fell apart, resulting in the lawsuit, the newspaper said.

The lawsuit mentions a 2017 case first reported by newspaper last month in which a North Grade Elementary administrator pressed to have a 7-year-old girl involuntarily committed.

In a statement, the school district said its use of the Baker Act complied with state law and its schools had gone above and beyond to attend to students mental health needs.

The district has created a Department of Behavior and Mental Health Services, and hired dozens of extra psychologists to staff its schools over the past two years, school officials told the newspaper.

It is the School Districts position that it meets and exceeds the needs of students with mental health issues, the district said.

The lawsuit is seeking financial compensation for the affected families, and for the district to halt any illegal use of the Baker Act. It also calls for better training for school staff.
NEW YORK (AP)  Lindsey Boylan, a former aide to Gov. Andrew Cuomo who was the first of multiple women to say he sexually harassed them, conceded on Wednesday in the Democratic primary for Manhattan borough president.

A winner in Tuesday's primary election has not yet officially been determined. Absentee ballots remain to be counted and a final accounting of how voters ranked the field of candidates has to take place, but Boylan was lagging in the initial numbers released after the polls closed.
BOSTON (AP)  A jury acquitted a man on charges of shooting a Boston police officer in the leg during a traffic stop in 2016 but convicted him on related weapons charges.

The jury ruled on June 14 that Grant Headley, 32, was not guilty of charges including armed assault with intent to murder and drug charges related to the shooting of Officer Kurt Stokinger. A judge sentenced Headley on Monday to eight to 10 years in prison on the weapons charges.

Authorities had said Headley got out of his car and shot Stokinger in the citys Dorchester neighborhood in January 2016 after being pulled over. Police said they pulled Headley over because he was out on probation, known to be selling drugs and driving on a suspended license.

Suffolk District Attorney Rachael Rollins had asked the judge for a longer sentence.

While my staff and I are disappointed that we were not able to hold this defendant accountable for the violent armed assault of a Boston Police officer, we respect the jurys decision and are grateful for their work on this case, she said in a statement.

Stokinger, who had been on the force for nine years when he was shot, has not been able to return to duty because of his injuries, according to Superintendent-in-Chief Gregory Long, the departments acting commissioner.

It is the Departments firm belief that, despite the jurys verdict, the evidence warranted the conviction of Headley for shooting Officer Stokinger, Long said.

An attorney for Headley, Jessica Tripp, thanked Judge Paul B. Krupp in a statement to the Boston Globe.

My client and I are thankful to Judge Krupp for sentencing him under the statutory guidelines based on the charges he was convicted of, she wrote in an email.
WRIGHT CITY, Mo. (AP)  A 22-year-old man has died after being struck by a train in eastern Missouri.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol said Aron Wilson of Wright City was killed Tuesday afternoon. The patrol said Wilson was walking on or near the railroad tracks near Route H when he was struck by a train owned by Norfolk Southern.
TAMPA, Fla. (AP)  A Florida man has been sentenced to a year and a day in federal prison for buying parts of dead endangered animals.

Steven Phillip Griffin II, 36, was sentenced last week in Tampa federal court, according to court records. He pleaded guilty in November to receiving and transporting endangered species in violation of the Endangered Species Act and for possessing firearms and ammunition as a convicted felon.
TACOMA, Wash. (AP)  A Tacoma man who pleaded guilty to receipt of child pornography has been sentenced in U.S. District Court to more than seven years in prison, officials said.

Judge Benjamin H. Settle sentenced 37-year-old Brandon Culp on Tuesday, calling Culp a danger to the public, the News Tribune reported.
NEW LONDON, Conn. (AP)  Merle Smith Jr., the first Black cadet to graduate from the Coast Guard Academy, has died, his family said. He was 76.

Smith died on June 16 of complications from Parkinson's disease and COVID-19, his wife Lynda Smith said.

Smith commanded a cutter in Vietnam, taught law classes at the academy in New London and retired from active-duty service with the rank of Coast Guard commander before joining the legal staff of submarine builder Electric Boat.

The academy's superintendent, Rear Adm. William Kelly, said in an email to the campus community that Smith served as a role model for countless cadets, faculty, and staff."

Smith, the son of an Army colonel, attended the academy as a member of the Class of 1966. In an interview with The Associated Press in 2012, he said he generally did not feel like an outsider during his years as a cadet.

Every now and then you would get something that would happen. Someone would make some remark somewhere, he said. In the main, it was not a situation that I felt uncomfortable with.

In 2016, the academy honored Smith with a ceremony commemorating the 50th anniversary of his graduation, and last year it announced plans to rename its officers club after Smith. In a congratulatory letter, members of the class he graduated with noted his unflappable demeanor during his service Vietnam  where his service was honored with a Bronze Star  and his role as a pioneer for diversity.

In recent years, as the emphasis on diversity and inclusiveness grew within the Coast Guard, you became a beacon of inspiration within the Academy community encouraging others to strive for the unimaginable and forge new paths of greatness in the face of adversity and uncertainty," his classmates wrote.

As a cutter commander during the Vietnam War, Smith also became the first Black officer to command a U.S. warship in close quarters combat.

In 2006, Smith served as a defense attorney in the first court-martial of a cadet in the academys 130-year history. The student was acquitted of a rape charge, but found guilty of other crimes including indecent assault and extortion.

Smith's family said he did not consider himself a trailblazer.

He was a really wonderful, wonderful man, who did his job as he saw fit to do his job, so therefore he considered all of his accomplishments as part of doing his job, as opposed to being a trailblazer or a pioneer, Lynda Smith told The Day of New London. He was very self-effacing in his personality, very humble, very gracious.

Merle grew up in Germany, Japan and elsewhere in the U.S. and attended Aberdeen High School in Maryland before entering the Coast Guard Academy in 1962. He graduated from the George Washington University Law School in 1974, according to the academy.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP)  Missouri senators on Wednesday returned to the Capitol to work out a deal on a critical piece of Medicaid funding that's entangled in a fight over family planning services.

Republican Gov. Mike Parson called the last-minute special session after threatening to cut $722 million from the state budget July 1 if lawmakers don't reup a tax on hospitals and other medical providers. Money from the tax is used to bring in more federal Medicaid funding.

The tax expires Sept. 30.

Lawmakers didn't renew the tax during regular session after it became tied to an effort to ban Medicaid coverage of some contraceptives and block government funding for Planned Parenthood.

Lawmakers can address those issues now, although some senators on Wednesday proposed setting aside those disagreements and focusing only on the hospital tax.

Parson's call gives the GOP-led Legislature the opportunity to block Medicaid payments for abortion medications, as well as intrauterine devices and the morning-after pill when those are used to induce an abortion.

Dr. Colleen McNicholas, the chief medical officer for Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region and Southwest Missouri, on Wednesday told reporters that emergency contraception and IUDs do not cause abortions.

No matter how hard politicians want you to believe birth control and emergency contraception are abortion-inducing medications, they are not, McNicholas said. It is simple science. Birth control and emergency contraception prevent pregnancy while abortion medications end them.

Lawmakers also could pass a bill to exclude facilities that provide abortions from getting money from the states family planning services for low-income women.

A spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region and Southwest Missouri said those organizations currently don't get any state funding from that program.
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RENO, Nev. (AP)  A Lyon County man has been charged with nearly two dozen criminal counts accusing him of arson, impersonating a firefighter and possessing more than $50,000 in uniforms, equipment and other items stolen from area fire agencies.

Kevin Critor, 29, Dayton, was in possession of a firefighter badge and a firearm when he was arrested Monday in Dayton while attempting to set an arson fire near Mound House, the state fire marshal said Wednesday.
NEW ORLEANS (AP)  An inmate who died in the New Orleans jail was identified Wednesday as Anthony Hunt, who was awaiting extradition to Mississippi to face a homicide charge.

Hunt died at a hospital Tuesday after he was found unresponsive at the jail during roll call, the Orleans Parish Sheriff's Office said. The coroner's office confirmed the identity.
HIGH POINT, N.C. (AP)  A North Carolina man is accused of killing his girlfriend, taking her body to Tennessee and asking a friend to help him dispose of it, police said.

High Point police said officers were called to check on Gianna Rose Delgado, 19, after getting information that she was assaulted, news outlets reported.

Court documents in Tennessee said Michael Louis Cadogan, 24, contacted a friend, admitted strangling Delgado during an argument and needed help with disposing of Delgados body and car. That friend then contacted police.

During a later call between Cadogan and the friend, who was at the Kingsport Police Department, the friend agreed to meet Cadogan at a marina in Carter County to put Delgados body and car in Watauga Lake. A police lieutenant listened in on the call, officials said.

A Carter County sheriffs deputy spotted and stopped Cadogan, who was driving Delgados car, near the marina, authorities said. Delgados body was found inside the car.

Cadogan is charged with first-degree murder, concealment of death and tampering with a corpse. He is being held without bond in Tennessee, and there's been no word on his possible extradition back to North Carolina.

Pam Haynes, a spokesperson for High Point University in North Carolina, said Delgado had just completed her freshman year at the university. Though High Point police had earlier said Cadogan was a student at High Point University, Haynes said the man was never enrolled there.

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This story has been corrected to show that Cadogan was never a student at High Point University, according to university spokeswoman. High Point police had said he was a student at the university.
OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, Neb. (AP)  Offutt Air Force Base's 55th Wing has a new leader  the first woman to command the 80-year-old reconnaissance unit.

The Omaha World-Herald reports that Col. Kristen Thompson took over command Tuesday, becoming the first woman among the 65 officers who have led the unit since it was established in 1941. She replaces Col. Gavin Marks, who was the first Black leader of the unit.
MILAN (AP)  Premier Mario Draghi defended the independence of Italys parliament on Wednesday in the face of formal objections by the Vatican to a proposed law that would extend additional discrimination protections to the LGBT community.

Ours is a secular country, Draghi said in an address to the Senate. Therefore, it is not a religious state.
PEORIA, Ariz. (AP)  Authorities have identified the man who was killed during a 90-minute string of drive-by shootings in metro Phoenix last week.

David Liebler, 67, was shot in the neck and found dead inside a pickup truck that had gone off the road and into a canal near a freeway, police in the Phoenix suburb of Peoria said Tuesday.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP)  Roman Catholic priests sexually abused minors across Iowa for decades while church leaders covered it up, but reforms implemented in recent years have largely stopped the problem, a three-year review by Iowas attorney general concluded.

A report issued by Attorney General Tom Miller said the number of complaints, victims and the duration of the abuse was overwhelming and the cover-up was extensive, similar to what has been found elsewhere in the U.S. Dozens of victims came forward to Millers office, describing lifelong consequences.

The pain was real and lasting, whether the abuse happened 60 years ago or more recently. In some cases, survivors explained why they kept the abuse secret; in others, they described how their allegations were ignored or covered up for decades," the report said.

It added, The image and reputation of the church were put ahead of the enormous harm to young people.

The review found that only five Iowa priests have been the subject of allegations since 2002, and that bishops who participated in concealing past problems are no longer in charge in Iowa.

Miller said reforms implemented since 2002 are working. His report praised the automatic reporting of all allegations by church officials to local law enforcement authorities, decisions by the states four Catholic dioceses to post online lists of credibly accused priests, and the improved treatment of victims.

Of the five priests accused of misconduct since 2002, only one has been added to the credibly accused list: a former Davenport priest who pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography. The others involved allegations of improper touching, possession of pornography and invasion of privacy, but they either werent substantiated or didnt meet the definition of sexual abuse.

Miller, who graduated from a Catholic high school in Dubuque but now attends a Lutheran church, announced the inquiry in November 2018. The move came after an investigation by The Associated Press found that the Diocese of Sioux City had covered up a priests 1986 admission to having sexually abused dozens of Iowa boys.

Sioux City leaders apologized and for the first time released a list of 28 accused priests. The Diocese of Des Moines followed suit, releasing a list of nine accused priests. The states other two dioceses, Davenport and Dubuque, had previously released such lists.

Millers office opened a hotline and encouraged victims of abuse to come forward, and 50 people made accusations against dozens of Catholic priests concerning abuse that took place from the 1930s to 1997. Seventeen victims said they had never previously reported the abuse, and three allegations involved active priests.

Millers office said all of the allegations against Catholic clergy fell outside the statute of limitations for criminal charges. One prompted an investigation by church officials of St. Ambrose University professor and Davenport priest, the Rev. Robert Bud Grant, which concluded that his misconduct did not amount to sexual abuse of a minor but led to restrictions on his activities with students.

Millers investigation focused on how church officials had investigated prior allegations that they determined werent credible. He sent a letter in 2019 requesting internal records, which the dioceses agreed to turn over, and investigators later asked for more information on specific cases.

The review raised some concerns about the Des Moines diocese, saying it did not follow up on single complaints of abuse against deceased priests and refused to turn over some investigative reports by citing attorney-client privilege. The diocese is an outlier compared with the states other three, because it has fewer publicly listed priests and has found a higher percentage of complaints unfounded, the report found.

Millers office does not agree with how Des Moines decided who to add to its list but those decisions are in a gray area, new leaders are in place and complaints now get reported to law enforcement, the report said.

During Millers review, Sioux City added the names of three priests to its credibly accused list and Davenport recently added one.

In a joint statement, the state's four Catholic bishops said they cooperated with the investigation in the interest of transparency and accountability and would study Miller's report for ways to improve.

The Catholic Church is committed to do all that is humanly possible to protect minors from the sin and crime of clergy sexual abuse, and to promote healing, the statement said.

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This story has been corrected to reflect that while Miller attended a Catholic high school, he now attends a Lutheran church.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP)  Years of no's" have culminated in the Rhode Island legislature saying yes to a proposal that would remove lawmakers' authority over approving who has permission to officiate marriages.

Lawmakers gave final approval Tuesday to a proposal that would end the General Assemblys role in deciding who gets to officiate a wedding in Rhode Island, The Providence Journal reported. The bill awaits the signature of Gov. Dan McKee, who has said he supports it.
LEESBURG, Va. (AP)  One person was arrested and a second was cited for trespassing after Loudoun County's school board shut down public comment on proposed rules for the treatment of transgender students.

Hundreds of people showed up at Tuesday's meeting in Leesburg to voice their opinions, but the school board voted unanimously to close public comment after just a few speakers, citing unruly behavior from the audience.

Even after numerous attempts to ask for decorum, so everyone could speak, those attending insisted on continued interruptions in an attempt to delay and disrupt the proceeding, school board Chair Brenda Sheridan said in a statement early Wednesday. These politically motivated antics ought to end.

Critics of the school board accused its members of ignoring public sentiment.

The proposed regulations would require that transgender students be addressed by their preferred name and pronoun and allow students to use the restroom associated with their preferred gender.

School systems across Virginia are adopting similar regulations; a new state law gives counties little leeway to consider alternatives. But Loudoun, an outer suburb of the nation's capital, has become a flashpoint in the debate. Conservative groups rallied to support an elementary school gym teacher, Tanner Cross, who was suspended after he spoke at a school board meeting in opposition to the new rules.

A judge ordered Cross' reinstatement, but the school board is appealing the ruling.

At Tuesday's meeting, sheriff's deputies charged one man with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. A second man received a summons for trespassing.

The proposed regulations are scheduled for a final vote in August.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP)  A divided Pennsylvania Senate on Wednesday approved a constitutional amendment to require identification for voters each time they cast a ballot, starting the lengthy amendment process that usually takes years to complete.

All Republicans and a single Democrat voted as the proposal passed 30-20. Constitutional amendments require passage by both chambers in two consecutive two-year sessions before going to voters for the final OK.

The GOP majority Legislature has increasingly turned to constitutional amendments to avoid having partisan legislation vetoed by Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf.

We should not go down the path of amending our constitution every time we may disagree on a particular issue of policy, and certainly there's disagreement on this particular issue, said Sen. Steve Santarsiero, D-Bucks.

The voter ID provision is part of a package of changes that Republican state lawmakers have been pushing this year in response to their constituents' displeasure at the result of former President Donald Trump's failed re-election campaign last fall.

This is something that the people of Pennsylvania are begging for, said Sen. Judy Ward, R-Blair, the sponsor. She cited recent polling that indicated strong support for greater voter identification requirements.

Sen. Sharif Street, D-Philadelphia, said getting proper ID can often be a time-consuming process and have financial costs.

There is very little evidence of systemic voter fraud in Pennsylvania, Street said. We should all be working to try and get as many people to participate in the electoral process as possible.

Pennsylvania voters currently must provide identification when they register to vote, the first time they vote at a new polling place and when they obtain an absentee or mail-in ballot.

The proposed amendment would have those voting by mail provide proof of a valid identification with his or her ballot, but does not elaborate on how that would work in practice. Under the proposal, any government-issued ID will suffice.

The lone Democrat to vote in favor was Sen. Lisa Boscola of Lehigh County, who regularly crosses party lines on legislation. The bill was sent to the state House for its consideration.
MADISON, Wis. (AP)  The Wisconsin Senate approved a Republican bill Wednesday that would delay local governments redistricting efforts.

The Senate passed the measure 18-12. No Democrats voted for it. The vote sends the measure on to Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.

Wisconsin law requires counties to adopt redistricting plans for supervisors by July 1 and municipalities to adopt new aldermanic wards within the following 60 days.

The new districts would be based on 2020 census data that federal officials were required to deliver to states by March. But the COVID-19 pandemic has delayed the data until fall. Local leaders fear that means they can't draw new maps by the state's deadlines, a violation of state law.

Under the bill, counties would have until February to adopt new maps. Municipalities would have until May.

Democrats contend that keeping current districts in place for local elections this year could be unconstitutional. Republicans counter that the bill establishes deadlines that local leaders can meet and Democrats are trying to create an issue where none exists.

The Assembly signed off on the proposal earlier this month.
MADISON, Wis. (AP)  The state Senate approved a bill Wednesday that would make it easier to kill beavers and muskrats that are damaging roads.

Wisconsin law allows the Department of Natural Resources to capture, shoot, trap or relocate wild animals that are causing damage or a nuisance. But no one can open fire within 50 feet of the center of a road.
New York's top prosecutor is suing the school district in charge of a high school where dozens of students walked out in 2019 to protest the schools response to a rape of a student by another.

The lawsuit filed Wednesday by New York Attorney General Letitia James alleges the Niagara-Wheatfield Central School District ignored student complaints of rape, assault, sexual harassment and gender-based bullying.

In May 2019, school officials suspended a student who had pleaded guilty to third-degree rape, though he continued to attend classes for a week after entering a guilty plea. He had also attended nearly his entire senior year while his criminal case was pending. His accuser attended the same school.

The student who was raped said in a statement released by the attorney general's office that the school district had failed her.

Their negligence and active disregard for my well-being only deepened my pain and suffering. In the time since, they have repeatedly tried to intimidate and silence me, the student said. She is identified by her initials in the lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York. The Associated Press does not identify victims of sexual assault who have not spoken publicly.

Superintendent Daniel Ljiljanich said in an emailed statement that the school district had learned of the lawsuit from media reports.

The District will respond to any allegations through the court proceeding and will not provide additional comment due to this pending litigation, he said.

The lawsuit alleges that the school district's failure to protect students violated their obligations under federal Title IX protections and New York state laws. The suit seeks oversight, monitoring, and trainings for the school district as well as the creation of written policies for responding to reports of sexual assault and harassment.

The lawsuit follows an investigation by the attorney general that found there were 30 documented reports of sex discrimination, sexual harassment, sexual assault, or gender-based bullying, in the school district in the past several years. The school did not create a safety plan for the students who reported the abuse, according to the attorney general's statement.

The NWCSDs inaction demonstrates that it did not have adequate systems in place to protect its students  particularly young women  when they needed it most," James said in a statement. This indifference to student suffering has caused physical, mental, and emotional trauma, and jeopardized students education.

The Niagara-Wheatfield Central School District is located outside of Niagara Falls, New York.
The University of Illinois Springfield Office of Continuing and Professional Education will offer non-credit online certificates in cannabis education.

The course will include three, eight-week fully online courses. The courses are being offered as part of a partnership between the university and Green Flower, a consulting company that creates online education about cannabis.

The fastest-growing industry in America according to Business Wire, cannabis has created a demand for workers with a broad range of skills. The program will attempt to meet this need for workers in the industry.

Courses will cover the business of cannabis, agriculture and horticulture, law and policy, and healthcare and medicine. The certificates and programs are aimed at advancing knowledge and practice of cannabis across multiple sectors.

"We are excited to be the first university in Illinois to partner with Green Flower to offer in-demand cannabis certificate programs," said Rob Kerr, associate director of Continuing and Professional Education for UIS, in a statement. "The Illinois cannabis sector has enormous growth potential. There are 25 dispensaries and cultivation centers within 100 miles of our campus, and over 16,000 employees statewide. Those with the right training will be positioned to take full advantage of it."

Courses are set to begin Aug. 23, and enrollment is open now. The cost is $2,500 per certificate, but UIS is offering a $300 discount for students who enroll in the first cohort. After graduating from the course, students will earn a certificate from the University of Illinois Springfield.
BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP)  A Vermont county judge has approved the payment of nearly $8 million in outstanding claims made by three Koffee Kup Bakery creditors.

Chittenden County Judge Samuel Hoar approved the payment Tuesday and signaled that he was open to expanding the role of Ronald Teplitsky, the receiver of Koffee Kups assets, to make recommendations on how other creditors, including the 500 employees who lost their jobs on April 26, will receive money owed to them, the Brattleboro Reformer reported.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP)  A North Carolina woman has pleaded guilty to charges that she stole money from her employer, the third time in a decade that she has been accused of embezzling funds from her job, prosecutors said.

The U.S. attorney's office in Charlotte said in a news release that Lisa Buza Hill, 41, of Belmont pleaded guilty Tuesday to wire fraud and making false statements for embezzling more than $570,000 from two companies she worked for. Hill is in federal custody while awaiting sentencing on a date not yet announced.

Hill was previously convicted of stealing more than $800,000 from a third company where she was employed, the news release said.

According to the news release, in 2012, Hill was convicted of federal wire fraud after she admitted to stealing more than $800,000 from a motorcycle company in Kings Mountain. She was ordered to serve five months of probation, three years of supervised release and to pay more than $807,000 in restitution to the company.

In July 2020, the U.S. attorneys office filed new charges against Hill for embezzling money from an unidentified Charlotte-based company where she worked as a controller. Court documents showed that over six months, and while still paying restitution for the 2012 embezzlement scheme, Hill misused her access to her employers financial system and defrauded the company by issuing herself approximately 15 company checks totaling over $22,000.

During that time, the U.S. attorney's office said, Hill also made false statements regarding attempts to collect court-ordered restitution owed by Hill in connection with her 2012 conviction.

This month, while Hills criminal charges for the fraudulent check scheme were still pending, a federal bill of information was also filed charging her with embezzling more than $550,000 from her latest employer, a development company in Rock Hill, South Carolina.

In court, Hill admitted using the embezzled funds to make payments for a BMW, a trip to Disney World, mortgage payments and to settle misuse of funds allegations from previous employers.

Court documents dont explain how Hill continued to get jobs for senior financial positions, given her criminal history.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told a congressional panel Wednesday that failing to raise the federal debt ceiling would have catastrophic consequences that could bring on a financial crisis.

Testifying before a Senate Appropriations subcommittee, Yellen said in response to questions that it is important Congress not delay in dealing with the debt limit, which has been suspended for the past two years.

That suspension is due to expire on July 31, when the limit will go back into effect at the level of debt at that time. The debt subject to the limit currently stands at $28.3 trillion. It has risen sharply over the past year as Congress has approved trillions of dollars in support packages to combat a recession caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., asked Yellen what would occur if Congress were to fail to either raise the debt ceiling or suspend it for a period of time so that the government could keep borrowing to meet its obligations, including making interest payments on the national debt.

Failure to make those debt payments would result in the federal government defaulting on its debt obligations, something that has never occurred in U.S. history. A standoff on raising the debt ceiling in 2011 resulted in a first-ever downgrade on a portion of the federal government's AAA-bond rating by the Standard & Poor's rating agency.

Yellen said defaulting on the national debt should be regarded as unthinkable because it would have absolutely catastrophic consequences that could precipitate a financial crisis.

I would plead with Congress simply to protect the full faith and credit of the United States by addressing the issue before the July 31 deadline.

The Treasury Department is able to use bookkeeping maneuvers, such as temporarily disinvesting government pension accounts, to keep the government from broaching the debt limit. But those measures can only buy a limited amount of time.

Yellen said she could not give an estimate for how long the emergency measures might last. Outside groups have estimated that the Treasury's emergency measures would likely be exhausted by sometime this fall.

Yellen said it is hard to make an accurate forecast because of the large amount of uncertainty caused by the pandemic regarding payment flows and revenue collections.

She said it is possible Treasury could reach a point where it would be unable to pay the government's bills as soon as August, when Congress is scheduled to be out for its summer recess.
When Gov. Gavin Newsom announced plans for the state to pay off past-due rent for low tenants with federal relief money earlier this week, most state and national media outlets ran a headline along the lines of "Newsom says California will pay for past-due rent."

San Francisco Supervisor Dean Preston warns the governor's proposal is not what it seems.

"This cynical BS is why people hate politicians and maybe part of why our Governor faces recall," Preston tweeted Tuesday. "Rather than increase $ for back rent or issue a real eviction moratorium, Gov simply repackaged a prior announcement & went on a PR offensive. It has worked so far."

Preston notes that Newsom first announced plans to use $5.2 billion in federal money to pay off rent May 14, which is true. Nothing in Newsom's announcement Monday is new.

"Whats changed?" Preston asks. "Governor needs cover from his unconscionable failure to extend eviction protections, something he should have done a month ago. Half the state lives in terror, fearing eviction, because Gov & Leadership focus on pleasing landlord lobby rather than helping people."

Newsom and legislative leaders will be meeting in the coming days to determine whether to extend the eviction moratorium past June 30.

Lawmakers told CalMatters earlier in the week it is likely the moratorium will be extended, but a decision will likely come last minute and the terms are uncertain. The biggest debate seems to center on how long the moratorium will be extended.

Preston went on to highlight the fact that the state's system for processing tenant claims has been inefficient so far, while criticizing media coverage of Newsom's announcement.

"Biden, Harris, Pelosi, etc deserve credit for delivering billions for rent relief, both to states and cities," Preston wrote. "Maybe for once Governor Newsom could deliver for the 17 million tenants in CA who are struggling, instead of issuing press releases saying he has done so when he hasnt."

You can read Preston's full thread on his Twitter.
A striking new report from CapRadio and NPR's California Newsroom alleges that Gov. Gavin Newsom made false and misleading statements related to wildfire prevention efforts in the state of California.

CapRadio, which is the NPR affiliate in Sacramento, obtained data that shows Newsom has dramatically overstated the level of preventative work that has been done in advance of what is widely expected to be a challenging fire season.

The four biggest findings from the report are:

- Newsom overstated the number of acres treated with fuel breaks and prescribed burns by 690%. He claimed 90,000 acres have been treated after he signed an executive order authorizing burns on 35 priority projects, but CapRadio reports the actual acreage number is 11,399.

- The number of acres Cal Fire treated in 2020  the most destructive fire season in California history  was half of what it was in 2019.

- Newsom slashed $150 million from Cal Fires wildfire prevention budget in 2020.

- Several wildfire experts say the state has done nowhere near enough to be prepared for the 2021 wildfire season.

The CapRadio report states that Newsom's office did not respond to "multiple requests for comment over the course of two weeks." Newsom has repeatedly touted the 90,000 acre figure in public appearances and press releases.

Cal Fire chief Tom Porter did talk to CapRadio, and per the report, "acknowledged the figures cited by Newsom were incorrect and took responsibility for the governors misstatements."

CapRadio's report comes at a time California Democrats are working to accelerate the timeline for Newsom's recall election in an attempt to hold the election before wildfire and power blackout season. Elected Democrats have openly acknowledged the threat wildfire season could pose to Newsom's political fortunes.

You can read the full CapRadio/NPR report here.
Sharon, PA (16146)

Today

Cloudy skies this evening will become partly cloudy after midnight. Low around 55F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Cloudy skies this evening will become partly cloudy after midnight. Low around 55F. Winds light and variable.
By Nick Simonson Long before I owned a boat, I spent much of my summers in high school, college and law school at my grandparents cabin on the shores of Detroit Lakes. Between Memorial Day and Labor Day in those later years, as graduations loomed and then passed, and the liberty of post-secondary education waned...
Naga Chaitanya is bulking up and physically transform for his next movie. He is preparing for his Hindi debut, Laal Singh Chaddha, which has Aamir Khan in the titular character. Naga Chaitanya plays a key role in that film.

Check out the video to know his latest progress, as he is in preparation for his maiden Hindi project, where he will play army officer.

He can be seen lifting weights under the supervision of the trainer and his trainer appreciating him for the good stuff.

Naga Chaitanya will be seen as a middle-class youngster in Sekhar Kammulas Love Story and he is also playing a simple boy-next-doors role in director Vikram Kumars Thank You. Neither of these movies requires him to flaunt his physical body. But for, Aamir Khan starrer Laal Singh Chaddha, he needs to boast a muscular body.

Naga Chaitanyas career is zooming on interesting projects.

For more stories click here: Kollywood l Malayalam l Bollywood l Telugu
In tune with Jaishankar's call, National Security Adviser, Ajit Doval is heading for Dushanbe for a conference of region's security chiefs, under the umbrella of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), where the turbulent situation in Afghanistan is bound to be discussed.

Jaishankar nailed the urgency for a holistic international approach to end conflict by focusing on the umbilical link between terrorism in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Jaishankar during his address went for the jugular when he stressed that the supply chains of terrorism which end up in Afghanistan must be disrupted, for fostering "enduring" peace. "For enduring peace in Afghanistan, terrorist safe havens and sanctuaries must be dismantled immediately and terrorist supply chains disrupted. There needs to be zero tolerance for terrorism in all its forms and manifestations including its cross-border one," he said in a veiled reference to Pakistan.

EAM Jaishankar drove home his point of a composite approach to end terrorism when he hammered his call for "double peace," both within and across the border. "A durable peace in Afghanistan requires a genuine double peace. That is, peace within Afghanistan and peace around Afghanistan. It requires harmonising the interests of all, both within and around that country," he said.

By calling out for regional approach, Jaishankar was implicitly erasing Pakistan's oft-quoted argument of dominating Afghanistan to acquire "strategic depth" against India. In India, there are deep and genuine concerns that Pakistan's sway can once against turn Afghanistan into a ground zero from where global Jihad radiates across the glove, drawing Kashmir into the international terror orbit.

Unsurprisingly, Jaishankar spotlighted that, "It is equally important to ensure that the territory of Afghanistan is not used by terrorist groups to threaten or attack any other country. Those providing material and financial support to terrorist entities must be held accountable."

India's high decibel call for the world to act on the fundamentals and mechanics of terrorism threatening to re-permeate into Afghanistan is natural. India has invested over $3 billion since the Taliban's exit in 2001, apart from substantially pitching in its political capital and soft-power reserves in a country, long known as a "graveyard of empires".

Jaishankar pointed out that India remains committed to steadfastly supporting Afghanistan during its transition. Our development partnership, including more than 550 Community Development Projects covering all 34 provinces, is aimed at making Afghanistan a self-sustaining nation, he said.

Besides, India has recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Afghan government for building the Shatoot dam, which would provide safe drinking water to the residents of Kabul city, he observed.

The EAM asserted that landlocked Afghanistan must have access to high -seas-a reference to India's participation with Afghanistan and Iran in the Chabahar port project. India has also built a strategic road linking Chabahar with Afghanistan's road network.

But noting practical difficulties on the ground during transit, Jaishankar alerted the international community to work towards the removal of artificial transit barriers imposed on Afghanistan and ensure full transit rights guaranteed to Afghanistan under bilateral and multilateral transit agreements without any hindrance.

Jaishankar made two additional points. First, he called for an immediate ceasefire in Afghanistan.

Referring to last week's report of UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on the Afghan situation, Jaishankar stressed that the intra-Afghan talks have yielded a reduction in violence. On the contrary, after May 1, there have been targeted attacks on religious and ethnic minorities, girl students, Afghan security forces, Ulemas, women occupying positions of responsibility, journalists, civil rights activists and youth.

"It is therefore crucial that the international community and, in particular, this Council presses for a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire to ensure immediate reduction in violence and protection of civilian lives," he observed.

CNN is quoting UN special envoy on Afghanistan Deborah Lyons as saying on Tuesday, that as the United States continues its military withdrawal from the country for May 1, 50 out of Afghanistan's 370 districts have fallen to Taliban terrorists.

"The Taliban recent advances are even more significant and are as a result of an intensified military campaign; more than 50 of Afghanistan's 370 districts have fallen since the beginning of May," Lyons told the UNSC.

"Most districts that have been taken surround provincial capitals, suggesting that the Taliban are positioning themselves to try and take these capitals once foreign forces are fully withdrawn," she added. Analysts say that instead of seeking a diplomatic solution, the Taliban appear to be pressing for a military solution, a throwback to the situation in 1996, when the Pak-backed group had overrun the country.

Second, Jaishankar pointed out that India fully supports the UN's apex role in the conduct of international diplomacy to steer Afghanistan's political transition.

"India welcomes any move towards a genuine political settlement and a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire in Afghanistan. We support a leading role for the United Nations, since that would help improve the odds for a lasting and durable outcome," he said.

Jaishankar added that India has been supportive of all the efforts being made to accelerate the dialogue between the Afghan government and the Taliban, including the intra-Afghan negotiations.

The intra-Afghan outside the UN framework had kick-started after the US and the Taliban signed a landmark deal in Doha on February 29, 2020-a result of several rounds of negotiations. Before his UN address, Jaishankar had met US special representative on Afghanistan, Almay Khalilzad in Doha. The Qatari authorities have also confirmed that Indian delegates have met the Taliban in the group's international office in Doha.

(This content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com)

--IANS

Indianarrative/
Ahmad Al-Manfouhi, General Director of Kuwait Municipality, said in a statement that armed forces of the country will join state bodies to confront the spread of coronavirus and to apply the government's decision on restricting access to public venues for unvaccinated people, Xinhua reported.

Kuwait City, June 23 (IANS) Kuwait has decided to use armed forces to help implement the health measures adopted by the government last week to confront the spread of coronavirus, the Kuwait Municipality announced on Wednesday.

Al-Manfouhi, who also heads the main committee to follow up on the implementation of health measures, said that the committee discussed on Wednesday the mechanism for implementing government's decision.

The committee decided to use the armed forces to help civilian health teams implement the decision, starting next Sunday, which is the starting date for restricting unvaccinated citizens and residents from entering restaurants, cafes, gyms, salons, and shopping malls covering more than 6,000 square meters.

Al-Manfouhi explained that Kuwait needs to intensify the application of health requirements during the next two months, hoping to achieve herd immunity by increasing the percentage of vaccinated people.

On June 14, Kuwait announced the discovery of the first cases of the Delta Covid-19 variant.

Since June 13, Kuwait has opened all museums, cultural institutions and facilities to the public, and has also started direct flights to the United Kingdom, as part of efforts to ease COVID-19 restrictions.

--IANS

int/
According to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), 27 deaths and 663 cases of Covid-19 were reported in a single day. On October 20 last year, 660 cases were reported.

Islamabad, June 23 (IANS) The lowest number of deaths and cases of coronavirus infections was reported on Tuesday in Pakistan for over eight months.

The number of active cases, which had topped 90,000 in April, stood at 33,452 as of June 22, while 271 ventilators were in use across the country, the Dawn reported.

Meanwhile, several people complained of errors in vaccination data and expressed fears this might become a problem for them in future.

However, an official of the Ministry of National Health Services (NHS) claimed that over 13 million doses had been administered and only a few hundred persons faced problems regarding data entry.

He urged them to contact the vaccination centre or the helpline to get their issue resolved.

A man told Dawn that he had received the first dose of Sinovac on May 20 and waited for four weeks to get the second dose.

"As vaccine was not available across the country, I waited for a while. Later, I checked my status by sending SMS to 1166, but was shocked to see that according to it I got my second dose on June 17," he said.

Another man lodged a complaint with the Ministry of NHS that the vaccination certificate downloaded from the official website showed that he got his second shot well before the first one.

A woman said on social media that she had been administered Sinopharm, but the National Database and Registration Authority had issued a certificate stating that Sinovac had been administered to her. She called 1166 to get the mistake rectified and was asked to go to the vaccination centre, but the staff there seemed helpless.

The woman asked for guidance as she may require a booster shot in future and the vaccination certificate will show that she had received Sinovac, not Sinopharm.

An official at the National Institute of Health (NIH), who is not authorised to speak on record, said that over 13m doses had been administered to people, but a few hundred such errors were reported.

"It's an occasional error due to late data entry at vaccination centres. As far as the case of a lady, who had got certificate of Sinovac, instead of Sinopharm, both are inactivated vaccines so crossover really doesn't matter," he said.

The official suggested that people should also keep an eye on data entry as operators enter the data in front of them.

"Over the years I have seen a number of cases in which name and gender were changed on the Computerised National Identity Cards. These are human errors and will be rectified if people contact us," he said.

Spokesperson for the NHS ministry Sajid Shah said that a small number of faults had been reported due to human error.

--IANS

int/rs
He said the 'AJK' Assembly has been established after a lot of efforts and any conspiracy to make it a province of Pakistan will not be tolerated.

New Delhi, June 23: 'Azad Jammu & Kashmir' (AJK) Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider Khan has claimed that he was asked to remove the word 'Azad' from 'AJK', besides making it clear that he will not allow 'AJK' to become a province of Pakistan.

He said that love and affection for Pakistan "is in our blood", but no department above the 'AJK' government will be acceptable to them and only they will decide the future of Kashmir.

"We will sacrifice our lives but will not allow 'AJK' to become a province of Pakistan," Haider said.

"We do not want to say things which would affect Pakistan's interests, and that is why we are silent," he said.

He also alleged that the Federal Minister of Kashmir Affairs had approached him with an offer of Rs 5 billion for 'AJK', but there should be no checks and balances on its project by either the 'AJK' government or any officer, nor anyone will be allowed to visit the projects and if any one dares, he will be taken to task.

Haider also alleged that today they say "India is very strong, forget Kashmir, and let us look for something else".

"How will we forget Kashmir and why? Who are you to ask us to forget those who were buried under the flags of Pakistan; we will neither forget them and nor will we allow anyone to forget," he said.

He also lambasted Pakistan's ruling PTI government, and said that that what difference would remain between Imran Khan and Narendra Modi if the PTI snatched power in 'AJK' through bullying.

India and Pakistan's position is not the same on the Kashmir issue and it should not be considered the same, he said.

Haider also criticised Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi for concocting that he has a solution for Kashmir after the OIC meet.

"How could he decide the fate of Kashmiris single-handedly without involving the Kashmiris? Kashmiris will not accept any dictation and the fate of Kashmir could be decided only with the will and wish of the people of Kashmir as per the resolution of the UN," Haider said.

(Courtesy: Daily Dharti)

--dailydharti
Rahi, a leading global integrated IT enterprise solutions provider announced that its support to employees who have succumbed to COVID-19. The company has launched a slew of measures to protect the next of kin of those employees who have lost their lives by providing 12 months of full pay to immediate members of the bereaved family with 2 years of medical insurance.

Further, a Covid medical information helpline has been set up, which has dedicated family physicians, pediatricians, ophthalmologists, and pathologists for employees who need urgent consultation. This Covid helpline also provides regular updates on available beds, oxygen cylinders, along with door-to-door provision of medical equipment and support to the employees families. Besides, for those who have been impacted health wise, Rahi is offering special COVID-19 allowances to its employees such as: additional leaves/option to avail leaves in advance, which are fully paid by the company. The HR team has brought on board renowned psychologists to take forward a wellness program for employees who are facing mental health issues. Counselling sessions will be a major part of this program. Employees can even take off to rejuvenate and relax as the pandemic has taken a serious toll on peoples mental health.
By Mariam Mokhtar



Minister of Education Radzi Jidin and his two deputies do not consider 'period spot checks' a serious matter.

Two months after Malaysians learned that schoolgirls had been forced to undergo this humiliating treatment, Radzi said the Ministry of Education (MoE) was in the final stages of forming a committee to deal with the issue.

The MoE is dragging its feet. Have MoE officials too much time on their hands, or are they afraid to confront allegations of a sexual nature?

Period spot checks and allegations of sexual bullying, sexual abuse and sexual harassment have plagued our schools and institutions of higher learning for decades.

Many parents are unaware of some of these issues because their daughters are ashamed to tell them.

Schoolgirls are reluctant to complain about issues of a sexual nature because ironically they will be 'victim-blamed'.

Many face further humiliation with accusations of lying, or seeking attention, or making things up. These may help explain why there is a low complaint rate about period spot checks and other issues of sexual harassment.

Many schoolgirls suffer in silence and only a few reveal their nasty experiences, years after leaving school.

On June 20, when asked by a reporter for an update regarding the issue of period spot checks, Radzi said, "This matter is being looked at by the ministry."

This blanket statement on a problem is a common response issued by the various ministries.

The remark does not mean much. We are aware that any ministerial investigation will take a long time, and will delay the presentation of findings, all because the ministry hopes we will forget.

Radzi added, "We are in the final process to set up a committee to look into the matters raised, not only this matter but also related matters."

How slow do the wheels of the MoE grind? Two months almost to the day since the 'period spot check' story broke, no investigation has been made because in Radzi's words, they are only in the "final process of forming the committee".

What happened to the MoE's SOP for dealing with complaints? The existing mechanisms for investigating complaints should suffice, but Radzi wants a new committee formed!

He is aware, as are we, that this will cost more money, and from our experience, will take ages to start.

Two months ago, when the story first shocked the nation, Radzi went on the defensive and denied that any school practiced period spot checks.

According to Bernama, Radzi said, "...We've asked all divisions and the answer was no (such practices existed)."

Having seen the anger of the public, former ministers and MPs, did Radzi think that any school head will admit to this abhorrent practice?

He then said that he would be glad to receive more information about the schools which indulged in period spot checks.

Why isn't the MoE able to take the initiative and investigate this issue? From the outset, Radzi appears to want to wash his hands off the matter.

An internal investigation by school heads will only generate a conflict of interest as the people who condone this practice will want a cover-up.

They would be reluctant to get to the root of the problem and in the end, no one will be found at fault, and the issue will recur in the future.

Nevertheless, Malaysiakini, which first reported the issue of period spot checks, provided Radzi with a list of schools which former pupils alleged had practiced period spot checks.

So, will Radzi update us about these schools?

More importantly, whilst deeper investigations are ongoing, did Radzi issue an immediate directive to schools throughout Malaysia that period spot checks must be stopped? Or did he fail to do this?

Radzi's hesitancy to deal with this issue is damaging to our schoolchildren and students of institutions of higher learning.

First. He does not inspire confidence and does not treat the complaints of both the students and their parents with urgency and seriousness they deserve.

Second. The delay tactics show that the MoE is inadequately prepared to deal with issues of a sexual nature.

Third. Will Radzi address the trust deficit in our teaching fraternity?

Physical checks, like showing a blood-stained sanitary pad or prodding a girls pubic area for evidence of wearing a pad, mean that teachers and wardens think students are lying, and using the 'period' excuse to escape group prayers at school. In Islam, menstruating girls are not allowed to pray.

Fourth. Ministry officials are condoning this disgusting practice which violates a girl's personal space.

If anecdotal evidence is to be believed, this practice has been ongoing for at least twenty years. It is highly unlikely that MoE officials were unaware of it.

Why and how did it start? This is another means of conditioning and controlling the behavior of young girls.

Finally, is Radzi really serious about getting to the root of the pupils' allegations of a sexual nature, including the period spot check issue? When will he update us on the findings of the yet-to-be-set-up committee?

(Mariam Mokhtar is a Freelance Writer.)
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Morgan Stanley plans to bar employees who arent vaccinated against Covid-19 from entering its offices in the New York area, as a growing number of major Wall Street firms delay the return of staff who arent protected against the deadly virus.

The policy, outlined in an internal memo, is one of the most restrictive issued by a major US bank so far. The firm said the goal is to help create a normal office environment, without a need for face masks and physical distancing.

The firm said the goal is to help create a normal office environment, without a need for face masks and physical distancing. Credit:Bloomberg

Just last week, chief executive officer James Gorman fired off a warning shot to employees still uncertain about wanting to return to its buildings. If you can go to a restaurant in New York City, you can come into the office and we want you in the office, he said at a conference.

Gorman estimated that more than 90 per cent of employees back in the offices were already vaccinated and said he expects that number to inch closer to 100 per cent. The bank hasnt mandated a full return, as at Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase & Co., but Gorman said if the offices werent filled up by Labour Day in September, then well have a different kind of conversation.
Over the past few years, there have been times when the Art Gallery of NSW was so empty of visitors it gave the impression someone had just shouted Fire!. Right now the opposite applies: the joint is packed to the rafters, with people waiting patiently in queues to see the Archibald Prize. For many, this will be their only visit to the gallery this year.

In 2021, there was less than five months between the closure of the previous Archibald and the opening of the current one. The box office success must tempt the AGNSW to keep the show running perpetually, but then everyone might become jaded and stay home.

For the time being, there is no let-up in the publics infatuation with the Archibald, with the 100th anniversary providing extra impetus. All of us in the media have contributed to the publicity maelstrom but none more egregiously than the ABC, which has collaborated with the AGNSW to make a three-part program, fronted by actor Rachel Griffiths, which is no more than a sugary slice of propaganda.

Actor and presenter Rachel Griffiths, painter Nick Stathopoulos and subject Deng Adut in Finding The Archibald. Credit:ABC

The Archibald is so exciting for Rachel (Wow!) that she steers herself away from criticism, aside from complaining that the old Archibald entries are a bit dull.
There is no question mark in the title, but the question as to who gets to be smart permeates every page of Bri Lees latest work. Lee provides a devastating  and in some parts unsettling  critique of how we approach education, achievement and intellect. And her answer to the question of who gets to be smart? Well, not all of us.

Who Gets to be Smart: Privilege, Power and Knowledge is the third time Lee uses her own experience to shape a work (after Eggshell Skull in 2018 and Beauty in 2019), and it is her most accomplished use of the memoir form to date. Beauty was a long-form essay exploring body image and self-worth, and at one stage Lee intended to write a companion essay with the working title Brains. Instead, Brains evolved into Who Gets to be Smart.

Intellectual rage: Bri Lee challenges shibboleths around education in Who Gets To Be Smart. Credit:Paul Harris

It is perhaps possible to find remnants of this original intention in the work, which begins and ends with Lee reflecting on her intellectual pilgrimage to Oxford University. Captivated by the wonder of the centuries-old institution, Lee felt as if finally seeing Disneyland. But she was also burdened by her belief in the traditional trappings of intellectual success, wondering why she is not as smart as her friend Damian (a Rhodes scholar).

She read Virginia Woolfs A Room of Ones Own while walking the same paths that Woolf herself walked a century before (in itself a marker of privilege), but then spends the rest of Who Gets to be Smart unpicking her own assumptions and biases. A key moment? When Omid Tofighian, translator of Behrouz Boochanis No Friend But the Mountains, tells Lee academia is second only to Manus prison in terms of being the most violent and cruel institution I have ever encountered.
When the script for the pilot of The Republic of Sarah landed in actor Luke Mitchells hands, it looked promising: the story of a small town whose bucolic tranquillity is upended when big tech lands on their doorstep, intending to turn it into a mine until the residents fight back. And then, with filming on the pilot in early 2020 just days away, COVID-19 hit.

We got shut down and we flew back to Australia and we were like, oh, well, we may never get to do this because we dont know whats happening with the world, let alone the industry, Mitchell says. Undaunted, the producers used the camera test footage to cut a reel for CBS and, off the back of that, a series was sold.

Little boy lost ... Luke Mitchell in The Republic of Sarah. Credit:Philippe Bosse / The CW

Mitchell returned to Canada later in 2020 with his wife, actress Rebecca Breeds. Her series, the Silence of the Lambs sequel Clarice, began filming in Toronto, with The Republic of Sarah set to film just five hours away in Montreal. We were able to get through filming the pilot without any major catastrophe, which is huge, all things considered, Mitchell says.

The series is set in a fictional town, Greylock, New Hampshire, on the border between the United States and Canada. As the town goes to war against big tech, old boundary maps are found which suggest Greylock falls between the two borders. And when that ruling is upheld, the small town finds itself independent and adrift.
Value of good teachers not reflected in pay packets The situation would change in an instant if teachers were appropriately compensated relative to other professions (Schools struggle to find teachers as supply collapses, June 23). Minister Sarah Mitchell knows full well that the only barrier to entry is the deplorable pay rate offered to teachers. Overcoming barriers to entry is her double-speak for lowering qualifications and the quality of public education. It always amazes me how neo-liberals preach the power of the market but ignore supply and demand when it suits their budget ideology. Peter Hull, Hat Head To properly educate a child a teacher needs the time and resources to meet the childs needs but our education ministers, both state and federal, seem to be unaware or choose to ignore these facts. Teachers are the education launching pad and are far more important than a university lecturer who is only there to finish off the 12 or 13 years of hard work a teacher has put in. Teachers are not respected or rewarded for their efforts. Frank Adshead, Mona Vale Theres a simple answer to this problem: reintroduce teacher training scholarships for all levels of schooling. This is how plentiful and brilliant teaching staff were recruited to the profession in the 50s and 60s. In addition to fees, a living-away-from-home allowance was paid if the family income was below a certain level. The graduate was bonded to the Education Department for a number of years (or had to pay out the bond) and as a result the profession was improved all round, in numbers and quality. Robyn Weinberg, Bellevue Hill The issues raised regarding shortage of teachers are not new. When I started teaching in 1975 it was the first year that there were too many new teachers. Previously, teachers were coming to NSW from USA on two-year contracts to meet the needs. The removal of the transfer system has added to the difficulty in staffing remote area schools. As a young teacher on a bond to work anywhere in the state for five years, knowing you could apply for a transfer made the experience less daunting. The lack of respect for the teaching profession and low wages for a degree also make the profession less attractive to young graduates. Its not going to be an easy fix. Anne Szczurowski, Lambton

Perhaps it is time to reconsider the actual worth of all jobs and their contribution to society, and adjust salaries accordingly. Who is really more valuable: a senior classroom teacher shaping generations of childrens lives, or a backbench MP in a safe seat? A childcare worker struggling on a subsistence wage, or a financial planner drawing 10 times the salary? An ambulance driver or a real estate agent? Joanna Mendelssohn, Dulwich Hill Vaccine delay compounds pain Russel Howcroft questions the governments vaccination advertising campaign (Shell be right just not good enough for vaccinations, June 23). He sets out how an appropriate advertising campaign could have been developed in stages  advice surely available to the government.

Which begs the question as to why the governments advertising has been so insipid and as described by Howcroft as earnest and unlikely to do anything? It now seem very evident that we were never at the head of the queue, and that supply was never going to be available to meet the governments optimistic projections of vaccination rates. The governments lack of transparency on vaccination, supported by Howcrofts analysis of the advertising campaign, is a national disgrace. Ross Butler, Rodd Point

According to the latest figures, about 23,000 people per day are being vaccinated nationwide each week (Australia flying blind without more vaccine data, June 23). At this very slow rate, Australia wont reach herd immunity till March 2023. Unless the rate rapidly increases, people in all states and territories can all expect lockdowns, border closures, restrictions, business closures, sudden changes of plan and a general feeling of alarm, restriction and fear-filled apprehension for the next 21 months. Do we want that? Get vaccinated. Darryl Emmerson, South Ballarat (Vic) Masking the problem The exemption to the current requirement to wear a mask at all indoor venues unless eating or drinking is a farse (What are NSWs new COVID-19 restrictions?, smh.com.au, June 23). Patrons can spend hours over a lunch and so far as many food and drink outlets are concerned, thats okay and no mask is required. I was informed by one such outlet today that even though hours may be involved they are eating and drinking all the time. When I challenged the accuracy of that statement, I was told the rules were only introduced anyhow by stupid politicians. Brian Roach, Westleigh On a recent flight to the Sunshine Coast on a full plane we found we were sitting next to a man without a mask and when asked to put one on by the cabin crew member he said he had an exemption but was not asked to provide proof (Quarantine-free travel from NSW to New Zealand paused for 72 hours, smh.com.au, June 23). We refused to take our seats and after being asked to wait we were told the man would be moved to business. As we walked back to our seats we passed him looking totally chuffed. Surely exemptions need to be sighted and stamped on the boarding pass and we should also be required to have a COVID test 48 hours before boarding. Liz Mather, Mosman The ownership of the current outbreak in Sydney lies squarely with the state and federal governments for not mandating the full vaccination of anyone associated with quarantine. The driver of flight crew who was the source of this outbreak should have been vaccinated as a requirement of the job. They still wont mandate this, yet they mandate the wearing of masks and all the restrictions we now have to cope with. You cant drive a car without wearing a seat belt, cant ride a bike without a helmet; if these things can be mandated, why not vaccination for anyone associated with quarantine? No jab, no job in quarantine. Geoff Ross, Bayview

Cracking QR codes Good luck with your QR blitz, Premier (Shops set for QR blitz as mystery child case puzzles contact tracers, June 23). Out in a large shopping centre in Chatswood yesterday, I was the only shopper I saw in three stores using the QR codes and there was no QR code available at David Jones. Unless staff check that QR Codes are being used and its mandatory for all retailers to come on board, tracing is only ever going to be hit and miss. Elisabeth Goodsall, Wahroonga Coal comfort Labor and the Greens have delivered a shock defeat to the federal government with a Senate vote to strike down plans to invest taxpayer funds in new fossil fuel technologies, taking advantage of the surprise absence of One Nation leader Pauline Hanson to win the outcome (Labor, Greens veto coal move in shock Senate blow to Morrison, June 23). What a relief. Can you imagine how much better off our country would be if the Coalition supported and encouraged real innovation in renewable technology? Instead they persist with destructive and time wasting sham initiatives aimed at pleasing a very small minority of Australians who just happen to live in critical election seats. Michael Slocum, Ascot Vale (Vic)

My latte was so much more enjoyable this morning. Thank you, Pauline. Tim Hand, Balmain Why stop at farmers (Nationals plan to pay farmers to cut emissions in deal on net zero, June 23)? Coal and gas miners will also need compensation. Those cutting emissions through the purchase of EVs and the generation of rooftop solar might also be eligible. Whatever their motives, the Nationals might finally force their Coalition partners to draft an exit plan for carbon. Philip Cooney, Wentworth Falls Crossing the line This is outrageous (School asked boys to rate girls in class, June 23). The principal must resign. He is in charge, he is responsible and he cannot hide behind ignorance. This is an Anglican school so it is not as if some unconnected religious group drops in to deliver scripture classes. John Ure, Mount Hutton The girls instead were given articles on the importance of virginity and how Satan provides opportunities for fleeting sexual encounters. And this is called an education. Susan Newman, Mona Vale

Sales call I have found the perfect solution for finding staff in DJs (Letters, June 23). I stand at the payment counter of a department, ring the store on my mobile and ask to be put through to that department. When the phone rings on the desk and a previously unseen staff member appears to answer it I end my call and present my purchases. Works every time. Sue Scott, Hornsby Use power for good Barnaby Joyce is acting PM (Letters, June 23). He has said many times the Biloela family should be released from detention and allowed to return home. All he needs to do is pick up the phone. Surprise us all with an act of compassion  show some leadership. Ray Armstrong, Tweed Heads South Chris Uhlmann seems to think Joyce deserves a second chance after his time in the wilderness (Second chance Barnaby back on top, June 23). This would be more enticing if his climate policies werent likely to put us all there permanently. Colin Stokes, Camperdown

Barnabys supporters hope he will be a louder voice for regional Australia. Living in regional NSW, I am concerned he will be relying on volume rather than reason. Michael Kruger-Davis, Gillenbah Time off no crime Honestly, the mean-spiritedness of writers astounds me (Letters, June 23). In the midst of a series of day-and-night meetings with world leaders, a few hours off for a personal trip by the PM results in seething outrage back home. Get over it. Ross MacPherson, Seaforth I have no problem with the PM digging around Cornwalls graveyards. My only fear is he may discover we could be related. Michele Thomas, Mollymook Beach The digital view
Masked underworld figures and armed police watched on as Bilal Hamze was laid to rest on Wednesday, almost a week after a brazen drive-by shooting in the Sydney CBD that police fear will reignite a cycle of violent retribution between rival crime families.

Funeral proceedings at Lakemba Mosque and Rookwood Cemetery were closely monitored by police amid heightened concerns about gangland conflict and the safety of senior members of the notorious Hamzy family who were present at the ceremony.

Mourners carry the coffin of Bilal Hamze into the Lakemba Mosque during his funeral service on Wednesday. Credit:Kate Geraghty

More than 100 mourners  many wearing hooded jumpers and face masks  gathered at the service for Mr Hamze, who was killed in a shooting on Bridge St after a dinner date at an upmarket Japanese restaurant last week.

The shooting was described by police as a major escalation in underworld tensions and detectives are investigating if it was the latest episode in a long-running dispute between the rival Hamzy and Alameddine families.
The NSW government must consider a developer ban to pass measures for COVID-safe council elections in a political push to put the agenda back on the table.

The upper house voted on Tuesday to ban property developers from running for councils in legislative amendments tied up with running elections in a pandemic-safe way, in a late night Greens-Labor move.

Special Minister of State Don Harwin said the governments position on allowing developers for run for local councils hasnt changed. Credit:Steven Saphore

Greens MLC David Shoebridge initially sought to have the ban abridged to Special Minister of State Don Harwins bill to allow political parties greater oversight of their local government candidates campaign donations, which also passed the house, but it was split off with other amendments.

The ban could be debated later today in the lower house, where Mr Shoebridge said the Coalitions priorities would be tested.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has given her clearest indication that Sydney is on the brink of a lockdown as health officials scramble to find missing links in the citys growing COVID-19 cluster.

In a significant escalation of her rhetoric, Ms Berejiklian told Parliament on Wednesday the government will not hesitate to go further and harder if we have to with restrictions.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian says masks need to be worn in all indoor workplaces as Sydneys Delta cluster grows. Credit:Nick Moir

NSW was on high alert after reporting 16 new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, with 31 cases now linked to the Bondi cluster and others under investigation.

The government imposed new restrictions from 4pm Wednesday on Greater Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Central Coast, Wollongong and Shellharbour, which includes limiting capacity in all indoor and outdoor settings to one person per four square metres.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has introduced a slew of new restrictions after the Bondi cluster grew to 31 overnight.

The latest outbreak has also prompted some states to close their borders and New Zealand to pause quarantine-free travel with NSW.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian announcing new COVID-19 restrictions on Wednesday morning. Credit:Nick Moir

Clearly this is an evolving situation ... given what has occurred the NSW government will be taking action today to limit the spread of what is a very contagious COVID, Ms Berejiklian said.

The Premier wont rule out a future lockdown, but said she is confident if we adhere to the health orders today, we will have a good chance on getting on top of this outbreak.
Some of the nations top infectious diseases scientists have made an urgent plea for Australians to consider funding a coronavirus vaccine for a person in a developing country, by donating $10 after receiving their own jab.

Their calls come amid revelations overnight that a string of nations across Africa and Asia have rapidly run out of COVID-19 vaccines or are on the brink of doing so, only months after receiving their first humanitarian aid shipments from Covax, a global program aimed at equitably distributing life-saving shots to poorer nations.

Vaccine and infectious diseases pediatrician Professor Robert Booy. Credit:

The experts warn that without global immunity, variants of the disease will continue to leak into Australia.

The push is being led by Australias Immunisation Coalition and University of Sydney vaccine and infectious diseases pediatrician Professor Robert Booy, who said highly infectious variants of coronavirus, such as Delta, were emerging in developing countries and were spreading rapidly due to a lack of vaccines and healthcare systems collapsing.
Three people linked to the Brisbane Portuguese Family Centre where a COVID-positive woman visited, sparking concerns over possible community transmission, have contracted the virus.

This week Queensland Health authorities confirmed the woman, who had tested positive hours after leaving hotel quarantine at the weekend, acquired the virus while in isolation in Four Points by Sheraton in Brisbane.

Queensland Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young said there was no doubt the woman acquired the virus while in quarantine when she came into contact with another positive case at the hotel.

The woman, who had arrived on an Emirates flight from Portugal to work as cabin crew on other airlines once she reached Australia, was confirmed to have the B117, or Alpha, variant.
On a Zoom call from her room at the Amora Hotel in Sydneys CBD, Stephanie Bryan holds a fistful of antigen tests she bought before boarding the plane at Heathrow up to the screen.

She has been taking the tests during her five days of quarantine in a city she only intended to transit through on her way to visit her 83-year-old mother, Sylvia, who is in her final days of a lung cancer battle.

Stephanie Bryan is quarantined in Sydneys Amora Hotel instead of visiting her dying mother in Brisbane. Credit:Suppled

Like Mark Kilian, the US man who until Wednesday night had been struggling to visit his dying father in similar circumstances, Ms Bryan was granted an exemption by the federal government to travel to Australia on compassionate grounds but is stuck in Sydney after Queensland Health said she could not travel to Brisbane on a charter flight before her 14-day quarantine period ended.

I am fully vaccinated, I have had two negative PCR tests and five negative antigen tests, she said.
Police believe there are gaps in the law when it comes to grab and drag offending after public outrage over the sentence given to a man who pulled a nurse into a Melbourne alleyway.

The Victorian Law Reform Commission was asked late last year by former attorney-general Jill Hennessy to examine whether the state needed a new grab and drag offence following community concern about the outcome in the case of Jackson Williams.

The woman was held down in the daylight attack. Credit:

The 21-year-old was found guilty of common law assault after he grabbed a woman from behind and dragged her into a laneway off Little Lonsdale Street in 2018. He put his hand over her mouth as he lay on top of her during the terrifying 37-second ordeal, which was captured on CCTV footage.

Williams was acquitted of intent to commit a sexual offence and sentenced for common assault by County Court judge Amanda Fox to 42 days in prison, which he had already served, and a 2-year community corrections order.
The Australian government says it was blindsided on Tuesday by the United Nations heritage organisations warning it is considering listing the Great Barrier Reef as in danger.

The move could mean the reef loses its status as a natural wonder. Environment Minister Sussan Ley and Foreign Minister Marise Payne responded to UNESCO immediately, saying Australias stewardship of the reef was world class.

But the listing would likely be related to global warming, with Australia under pressure to set a target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Today on Please Explain, climate and energy correspondent Mike Foley joins Tory Maguire to discuss UNESCOs draft decision to downgrade the Great Barrier Reefs World Heritage status.
Three members of the Murugappan family who were detained on Christmas Island after being told they could not stay in their home town of Biloela have been granted three-month bridging visas, meaning the parents can work and the children can attend school in Perth.

The Tamil asylum seeker family was reunited in Perth last week after Immigration Minister Alex Hawke used his powers to move them off Christmas Island, where they had been since August 2019, into community detention.

Immigration Minister Alex Hawke has given the Murugappan family three-month bridging visas. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen/Supplied

On Wednesday Mr Hawke agreed to an application under a section of the Migration Act that allows him to grant visas in the public interest.

This decision allows three members of the family to reside in the Perth community on bridging visas while the youngest childs medical care, and the familys legal matters, are ongoing. The fourth family members visa status is unchanged, Mr Hawke said in a statement.
The Liberal Party has delivered its first slapdown to the Nationals since Barnaby Joyce deposed Michael McCormack as leader, rejecting a proposal to halt water recovery to restore the ecosystem to health.

Water recovery is unpopular in NSW, Queensland and Victorian rural electorates, with many irrigation communities calling for their Nationals representatives to prevent any further irrigation losses. Nationals senators lodged an amendment on Wednesday morning to do just that.

Nationals MP Anne Webster, Senators Bridget McKenzie and Perin Davey, with MP Damian Drum addressing media after the party moved in the Senate to halt water recovery under the Murray Darling Basin Plan. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen.

Just hours later Liberal Senator Simon Birmingham, the governments Senate leader, knocked the Nationals move on the head, declaring: I, and the government, will be voting against those amendments. The Senate voted down the Nationals proposal on Wednesday night.

Asked if the Nationals now appeared to their constituents like they are all hat, no cattle due to their inability to deliver reforms, Nationals MP Damian Drum said the Nationals were aiming to send their amendments to a Senate committee for review and would continue to lobby their Liberal colleagues to back their proposal.
Labor is seizing on a political opportunity to promise transparent childcare fees to reassure taxpayers their money is actually helping parents, after some Nationals expressed unhappiness with the amount spent subsidising parents who work.

Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce told Parliament he absolutely supported childcare, after two of his close allies told Coalition MPs on Tuesday the government should be spending more money to back parents who looked after their own children.

Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce, who has two young sons, says he is a beneficiary and supporter of childcare. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Alana Johnson, convenor of the Victorian Womens Trust and a former state rural woman of the year winner, said it was astounding that any political party could lag so far behind public opinion on the issue.

It really demonstrates that theyre not listening, she told the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.
When NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet handed down his bounce-back budget this week, he used projections that the state would face no further COVID-19 restrictions. Within 24 hours, those assumptions were proved wrong.

As the so-called Bondi Junction cluster ballooned to 31 cases on Wednesday, a major economic handbrake that the states Treasury had presumed was gone for good  limiting the capacity in indoor and outdoor settings to one person per four square metres  was back.

Seeing is believing: NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet this week. Credit:Nick Moir

For a week from Wednesday afternoon, restrictions will return to greater Sydney, the Blue Mountains, the Central Coast, Wollongong and Shellharbour. The government and health officials are clearly worried this time. In a first for NSW, masks are mandatory in all offices and gym classes because of the Delta variants frightening ability to spread.

Health Minister Brad Hazzard stressed that masks were a critical line of defence against Delta. And while undeniably important, masks in offices will drive people away from Sydneys CBD and back to working from home. The already sluggish city centre will take an immediate economic hit.
Singapore: For all the clamour around Beijing Olympic boycotts next year, Japan has just provided a playbook for a COVID-19 restricted Games that will allow China to avoid diplomatic embarrassment and transparency in 2022.

Travel restrictions limiting visiting athletes, officials and journalists to Olympic facilities? Yep. GPS tracking of reporters? Even better. Report for testing every day? Excellent. An encounter with a dissident? No chance. All in the name of COVID.

Chinese President Xi Jinping meets children attending ski camps while inspecting early preparations for the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games. Credit:AP

Beijings Winter Olympics are not until February next year, but China, like Australia, is already laying the groundwork for borders remaining shut until mid-2022. The Wall St Journal reported on Tuesday that officials had decided in May to keep Chinas border restrictions in place for another year as new variants emerge and sensitive events draw closer, despite 1 billion vaccine doses having already been administered at a rate of 20 million per day.

The move is likely to have several implications. First, as calls by the US government, activists and parliamentarians for a diplomatic boycott over alleged human rights abuses grow, restricted travel will mean any boycott in person from government representatives will be over before it begins. Chinas Foreign Ministry has laid out short-term plans to restrict entry to those inoculated with Chinese-made vaccines, meaning visitors from trade partner countries that bought Sinovac and Sinopharm vaccines.
Washington: Four Saudis who participated in the 2018 killing of the Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi received paramilitary training in the United States the previous year under a contract approved by the State Department, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.

The training was provided by the Arkansas-based security company Tier 1 Group, which is owned by the private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management, and was defensive in nature and devised to protect Saudi leaders, the report said.

Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2011. Credit:AP

Cerberus did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.

There is no evidence that US officials who approved the training or Tier 1 Group knew the Saudis were involved in the crackdown in Saudi Arabia.
PHILIPSBURG:---- Ten years and three ways to celebrate! The regions largest cancer fundraiser, CIBC FirstCaribbeans Walk for the Cure, celebrates 10 years this year and is giving the banks businesses across the region three ways to mark the milestone  the traditional walk with friends and family, a drive for the cure or a virtual event. The banks Walk Management teams have recently started their planning for this years event, which takes place during the first weekend in October.

Covid-19 has caused us to be constantly looking for creative ways in which to continue to engage in all aspects of our lives, and the celebration of our 10th anniversary hosting Walk for the Cure is no exception. We have asked our various business units to choose the type of activity which best suits the prevailing public health scenario in their territory, said executive co-chair of the walk and Managing Director, Retail and Business Banking, Mark St. Hill

He thanked the thousands across the banks 16-member regional footprint as well as sponsors and staff members for walking with us over the decade, whether you were there from that very first walk or joined us along the way, your support has made a fundamental difference in the lives of persons directly affected by cancer and their families. Your funding and your fellowship has been invaluable.

His fellow executive co-chair and the banks Managing Director, Wealth Management Dan Wright said he looked forward to the support of the regions corporate sector for this years walk given the challenges which many of the cancer care and support charities that benefit from the proceeds of the walk are facing.

Many of these charities are struggling as a result of reduced donations while at the same time recording an increased demand for their services, he noted.

We are very much aware of the challenges which the Covid-19 pandemic has dealt with many businesses. Indeed, the last year has been a struggle for businesses of all sizes as they have sought to reposition and prioritize in order to remain viable. However, we are hopeful that resources, however, limited will be found to support the vital work of those charities and institutions that we support with our walk, he added.

In St. Maarten, Walk for the Cure 2021 takes to the road for its first-ever Drive for the Cure motorcade to be held on October 3rd. Partnering with the Positive Foundation for the third consecutive year, all proceeds will assist the foundation in its continued efforts - supporting Breast and Prostate cancer warriors and providing education and awareness to the public.

Ahead of October 3rd, the St. Maarten team will also, host a series of events such as Baking for the Cure and Raffle for the Cure within its branches. Persons wishing to support the cause can make contributions at the branches via the walks donation drop boxes or via CIBC FirstCaribbean Account C/A 10055400.

The walk began as part of the celebrations to mark the banks 10th anniversary and takes place across its 16-member footprint. It has raised over USD$2.9 million over the past nine years.

The funds generated from the walk are used primarily to assist with the purchase and maintenance of equipment used in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer patients.

They are also used to provide assistance, care, and counseling to patients and their families as well as to raise awareness, and stress the importance of early detection, through education campaigns across the region.
PHILIPSBURG:--- The Joint Court of Justice ruled today in the case of Erling Hoeve, the policy advisor at the Ministry of Justice who was suspended in 2016 as a result of the investigation dubbed by the Office of the Public Prosecution as Robalo. Hoeve was accused of being an accomplice in the human smuggling of two young ladies of the Dominican Republic into Sint Maarten in April and May of 2016. He was also charged with creating a system called DTAE (Decision to Allow Entry) to allow illegals into the island, which system the prosecution deemed to be without any legal basis. The prosecution also found that in doing so, Hoeve would have abused his position/function as a policy advisor.

On April 10th, 2019, The Court in First Instance acquitted Hoeve for the first charge, which concerned being an accomplice of human smuggling of one of the young ladies of the Dominican Republic. However, said Court ruled that the aforementioned other charges were legally and convincingly proven by the prosecution and Hoeve was therefore convicted for said charges. Hoeve and his attorney in appeal, Mr. Jason Rogers, challenged said judgment, maintained his innocence, refuted and discredited the evidence used against him, and requested the Joint Court of Justice in appeal to acquit on all charges.

In its decision of today, The Joint Court of Justice has acquitted E. Hoeve on all remaining three charges that were brought against him by the Office of the Public Prosecutor, as said Joint Court was of the opinion that the charges could not be proven. Hoeve was already acquitted for the first charge by the Court in First Instance.

Press Release Hoeve & Rogers.
~ Says budget full of vanity projects ~

PHILIPSBURG:--- Independent Member of Parliament Christophe Emmanuel and MP Claudius Buncamper of the USP faction on Tuesday were critical of the 2021 budget presented by the UP/NA Coalition government, condemning it as a roadmap of vanity projects with no realistic options to solve the issues that matter to people most.

"On top of being nine months late, this budget is remarkable for what it doesn't mention, the MPs said. It reads more like a competing vision for the future of the country, rather than a cohesive effort to address what matters most for a post-pandemic economy and for upward mobility for hard-working people, they said.

The MPs said the budget does nothing for families living in poverty or for those just managing, it does nothing to address the drop in living standards, the rise in living costs, and nothing to tackle the chronic levels of contract abuse and low pay. It also does nothing to help public sector workers and, in fact, tells the civil service that their situation will remain the same for the next six to seven years unless the constitutional court rules that the three reform laws are unconstitutional. And even then the government does not know how it will act," the MPs said.

MP Emmanuel on Monday called on government to clarify to the public if the non-payment of the vacation pay is the result of the agreement that government has with the Netherlands or if the government outright cannot pay the vacation pay. Because if it is an agreement with the Netherlands, and possibly an illegal one, that is not the problem of the civil servants. Government should have known better. Instead, it placed its people further into financial hardships, he said.

He pointed out that government is sitting on enough money to pay the civil servants their vacation pay. The additional NAf. 2 million for garbage collection is not necessary he stressed, neither is the Naf 500,000 budgeted for vehicles for TEATT or the amount of money government will have to spend to insure, maintain, fuel, inspect and get number plates for the new SUVs and pick-up trucks provided by NRPB.

It all comes with a cost to government and so do many other vanity projects in this budget. By our calculations government can save upwards of Naf 5 million and pay the civil servants. Vacation pay is not what its name suggests. Vacation pay is school fees, school uniforms, hurricane preparedness, home, and car insurance, vacation pay is a life essential, it is an income your people depend on, the MPs said.

Focusing on the plight of police officers, The MPs said that at a time when the local police are working hard to protect the country from a rise in crime in very difficult economic times, for there not to be more attention paid to solving their issues is outrageous. The MPs said investment in police and fighting crime does not only involve money but a commitment to ensure that these officers are protected by rights, covenants, and the legal position that are due to them. That is also an investment, the MPs said.

"Sadly the police is one more victim of this government. The police should be fighting crime not fighting for their rights. The police have faced a level of disrespect for years but are still expected to be motivated to work as well as recruit new officers. To their credit, the police are rising to this challenge. Our police are being asked to do more and more but are being given less and less with which to do it. It is simply not fair and morally unacceptable and disrespectful towards people who put their lives on the line for us every day, they said.

MP Buncamper stressed that it is unfortunate that the proposed laws that we were forced to accept and implement in order to receive liquidity support are now bearing their negative fruits. Police officers and school teachers are rightfully revolting, which can create negative labeling of the country. We do not believe that this was the intention of the law, which is now being contested by the Ombudsman on its legality.

Public school teachers too are facing hardships without their vacation pay while their colleagues at semi-private institutions have reportedly gotten or will get their vacation pay. The money that can be saved can pay civil servants and public school teachers their vacation pay, they said.

The MPs further described the budget as one of the broken promises since many of the issues have been lingering for years. The government spent a lot of time sticking plasters and rhetoric over reality and offered little to ordinary people. This is a budget that does nothing to help those people who dont know if their next paycheck will be enough or if they will still have a job tomorrow.

Government sits and boasts about a strong rebound of tourism but try telling that to the many families who are struggling to make ends meet or left with no choice but to hope they get a food voucher or turn to food banks which are now popping up in the country. You cant put a plaster on that and the government through its budget has shown again that it has no solutions other than to wait and see.
By Kelly Murphy, Washington, DC, USA.

PHILIPSBURG:---Ludmila de Weever, Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunications of St. Maarten, opened the 5th Annual CaribAvia Summit & Retreat last week underlining the importance of having sustained airlift and reliable aviation partners to aid in economic recovery in the post-pandemic era.

St. Maarten welcomes you, de Weever said, adding A thriving aviation sector in St. Maarten is indispensable for attracting investment to our shores. She emphasized the direct links between aviation and job growth and entrepreneurial opportunities on the island. Thats why we took the bold, but measured, the decision to re-open international airlift as early as was safely possible last year, in particular to the United States, our main tourism market, de Weever said.

She noted June (week 23 of 2021) recorded the largest number of weekly arrivals with 22 aircraft on Saturday, June 12th compared to the previous weeks at 19 arrivals. In May 2021 destination visitors (21,949 persons) were 85% of May 2019 figures (25,905 persons). A majority of these visitors were from the United States.

Frontier Airlines will begin a brand new service to St. Maarten in July 2021 which will bring additional U.S. leisure travelers to the island.

To help encourage additional international travelers to St. Maarten in a safe and efficient way, a number of steps have been implemented as the world recovers from the pandemic. International travelers are currently required to submit a negative PCR test result within 72 or 120 hours of departure (depending on departure location) to the COVID-19 Electronic Health Authorization System (EHAS) through the Ministry of Public Health, Social Development & Labor St. Maarten. The reviewing process takes up to 12 hours to process, and the traveler is then pre-approved or rejected. In addition, each traveler pays a US$30 insurance to ensure hotel and medical expenses are covered in the case of a positive test result while in St. Maarten resulting in a 2 weeks quarantine that can be reduced to 10 days if asymptomatic and negative PCR test takes place on day 10. As an additional level of safety, every visitor is required to administer a daily temperature check and upload the results to the EHAS portal. Prior to departing St. Maarten, travelers must have a pre-departure PCR or Antigen test with a negative result. These steps will surely help airports, airlines, and passengers adjust to normal travel protocols and return to business as usual.
by Kathryn Creedy, Indian Harbor, FL, USA

Trevor Sadler was forced into a circuitous routing to get from his base at Turks & Caicos to St. Maarten, but his experience is excruciatingly familiar to those traveling around the Caribbean. What made his experience more frustrating was the fact that Sadler is the CEO of interCaribbean Airways.

I couldnt get here on my own airline, he told attendees at this years CARIBAVIA Summit. I had a choice when I got to Miami. I could take a flight that left four hours after I arrived in the US and pay an extraordinary sum of money, or I could spend the night and leave at 6:00 a.m. the next morning. But that flight was a connection over Charlotte, NC. So, I had to fly to Charlotte in order to get to St. Maarten. That is a perfect example of what getting around the Caribbean is all about.

Tropic Ocean Airways CEO Rob Ceravolo agrees to say it is faster to get from Miami to Singapore than around the Caribbean.

Sadlers experience is exactly why CARIBAVIA Summit, designed to improve airlift in the Caribbean region, was created. Indeed, the new services described at this years CARIBAVIA, illustrate how thinking outside the box provides economic and service benefits.

Frontier Airlines and Air Belgium said their new flights are specifically designed, not only to improve connectivity but to bring down the price of Caribbean-bound travel by challenging higher-cost airports and airlines that have kept travel costs prohibitive.

In addition, the Bahamian decision to add US mainland pre-clearance into the archipelago is opening up new markets for business investment and tourism and, once expanded beyond Fort Lauderdale to other points or even Latin America, new markets will skyrocket, according to CEO of the National Association of Black Hotel Owners, Operators & Developers Andy Ingraham. (See related story  Barriers to Improving Service)

Pre-clearance alone changes the dynamics of Caribbean demand as illustrated by Tropic Ocean Airways new markets.

One such market successfully opened on June 11 when Tropic Ocean flew from Fort Lauderdale to its new amphibian base in Nassau to support Jimmy Buffets latest Margaritaville resort, the first amphibious landing in 19 years in Nassau.

Many resorts are eyeing the acquisition of seaplanes for direct-to-resort service. Indeed, Tropic Ocean has already created direct-to-resort connections from its base in Fort Lauderdale, lending the critical expertise needed for safe operations. Tropic Ocean is in the middle of developing an operation in Antigua after having set up one in Panama.

Benefits of Inter-Caribbean Travel

Service to St. Maarten is definitely on Sadlers radar and was, in fact, his reason for attending CARIBAVIA. He wants to explore how the airline, local governments, and regional airlines can work together to improve service.

The airlines 29 years in the Caribbean gives it the experience needed to grow its footprint in the region by improving inter-Caribbean connectivity.

In the last eight years, it has connected Havana in the North to Georgetown Guyana in the South. Its participation in global distribution systems and online travel agencies has increased interest in the region, and for interCaribbean increased traffic 300-400%. Now, half of passengers hail from around the world, including Australia.

The development of service is tied to economic benefits which is a concern to governments and businesses across the region, he told delegates. By building our network, economies benefit. Building our cargo network created a new business for us. We are developing a Caribbean marketplace enabling entrepreneurs across the Caribbean to create a presence and sell their products across the region with inexpensive shipping. That is how we want to help the small businesses in the Caribbean.

Aircraft Right Sizing

Sadler dispelled the myth you need narrowbodies for successful service, something pushed by local governments. In fact, the small aircraft used by regional airlines are perfectly sized for the markets. And they are accepted by the highest rollers coming into the region. A perfect example is St. Barth Commuter with its Cessna Caravans connect incoming private jet passengers to their properties and yachts on the nearby 10,000-resident island.

Saying aircraft is too small, does not come from those living and working in the region, said Sadler. They know applying 737 economics to the region where a majority of flight times are under an hour wont work. Aircraft choice cannot be dictated by artificial economics. We dont have the population density for 737 services between islands so comparing aircraft size with a 737 has absolutely no value.

He noted the region has only six countries with multi-million populations and a handful at about half a million.

The rest of the islands have between 15,000 and 100,000 population, he explained. So, we have to consider the economy of each country and the potential to increase trade with neighbors. The opportunities that can be created are what matters.

Innovation from Europe

Air Belgium Chief Commercial Officer Philippe Wilmart described how the airline has built its Caribbean network since launching operations from Brussels Charleroi Airport (CRL) in December 2018. The carrier flies to Martinique (FDF) and Guadeloupe (PTP) in a triangle pattern.

Our flights are designed to be affordable, direct flights to the Caribbean, he told delegates. Some 20,000 Belgian tourists flew out of Paris to the Caribbean, and we wanted to offer more convenient service out of CRL which offers lower operating costs than either Paris or Amsterdam. Lower operating costs mean lower fares. Our twice-weekly service was so successful, we expanded service from seasonal to year-round service.

CRL is ideally situated within Europe and, said Wilmart, provides easier service for Caribbean islanders to get to Europe.

Belgium is known as the heart of Europe. CRL is literally the crossroads of many motorways attracting passengers from northern France, western Germany, and Southern Netherlands which are all within an hour-and-a-half drive of the airport.

Wilmart reported 20% of passengers originated from France and, to Curacao, 20-30% originated from southern Netherlands.

We see a lot of potential in the Caribbean, he said. We can be very opportunistic to launch new destinations quickly as demand increases. St. Maarten is logical but the traffic  at 1,000 to 2,000 Belgian visitors  doesnt warrant direct service at this point. We need to build the business case to devote two weekly flights year-round using an Airbus A340 with 265 seats. For that we need 40,000 one-way passengers per year to make it sustainable.

In the meantime, the airline used the Covid shutdown to establish inter-Caribbean partnerships using local regional airlines to connect European passengers with islands like St. Lucia beyond its PTP and FDF gateways. While it continues to explore partnerships with other Caribbean regionals, it is now using Air Caraibes for beyond service to St. Maarten and Curacao and between its two Caribbean gateways. It is also exploring connecting with other regionals for connections to Antigua and Aruba.

The market share and presence of Air Caraibes is very beneficial, he told delegates. It has increased the volume of passengers and the yields because the between-island service attracts business passengers thanks to the frequencies offered. There are not many connections between different national colonies such as Martinque and Curacao, for instance, and the addition of cargo service has stimulated new business between the islands.

Wilmart noted 7,000 Belgians head to Curacao annually making the service to the Caribbean gateways from Belgium sustainable. However, the ultimate plan is to build the traffic using its regional partnerships to the point where both Curacao and St. Maarten gain their own direct service from Belgium.

Wilmart also sees opportunities in connecting to cruises now that cruise lines home port around the Caribbean given Belgian interest in cruising. That is one reason to prioritize Martinique, he said, since it not only offers cruising but has the biggest marina to accommodate the growth in yachting.

Challenging High Fares

Frontier Airlines is following Air Belgiums logic with its new Orlando-SXM service disrupting high-cost legacy airlines which charge fares approaching $1000.

With new service launching in July, Frontier will be offering $200-$300 fares roundtrip, according to Vice President Network & Operational Design Josh Flyr. (See related story.)

Like other ultra-low-cost airlines, Frontiers major focus is pulling new flyers from cars and capturing their discretionary spending.

Lowering fares stimulates the market, he said. Our job it to get people traveling who otherwise would not be. If we can lower the cost of travel, these trips are now affordable. We want to bring people to the destinations so they can spend money there not on exorbitant airfares.

Seaplane Services Alleviate Gateway Congestion

Using seaplane or amphibious aircraft to create better access and ease of travel around the Caribbean is the mission of Tropic Ocean Airways.

The Caribbean lacks the last-mile strategy  getting people around the Caribbean, said CEO Rob Ceravolo. Right now, Caribbean hubs are chokepoints. A 20-minute flight between islands is not worth it if you get stuck for an hour-and-a-half in customs and immigration processing.

He noted the infrastructure cant scale up for the connectivity needed around the region.

Land is scarce and if you build a runway on Walkers Key, for instance, youll take half the island away. What these islands dont need is more development, they need preserving so the answer is not expanding runways to accommodate larger aircraft because these islands cant support mass tourism.

Ceravolo said many think the answer is Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing (eVTOLs) aircraft now under development. Yes, the answer is vertical lift, he said. Helicopters are phenomenal in providing last-mile solutions, but they are tough to scale because of the high cost.

eVTOLs are exciting and promise the development of point-to-point air taxis, he continued. They are real and coming but they are not there yet because right now the aircraft are little more than flying batteries. The infrastructure is also not there and must be built to create a mass transit product. Finally, the Caribbean does not have the electric grid to support these operations yet.

Fabrice Danet, general manager of Airport St. Barth and Bertrand Magras, managing partner & accountable manager, St. Barth Commuter agreed.

eVTOL will change what the airspace will look like, Danet explained. Twenty to 30-minute flights are within the range of the batteries technology now.

But Magras noted economics is why we see so few helicopter operations. We are monitoring what is going on very closely but cant say how it will turn out. It looks good on paper but there are many technical challenges needing to be resolved before we can do it.

Instead, Ceravolo is expanding seaplane operations which are as economically beneficial but without the environmental impact and expense of creating new airports and runways.

Seaplanes that can land on both water and runways is the immediate solution to inter-island service development, he explained. They are stable and reliable in both day and night and visual or instrument flight rules. They are more flexible offering 18,000 pounds payload on a 200-nautical-mile route at 160 knots. The cost structure is manageable and, with good maintenance practices so too is salt-water mitigation. Give me a dock or a beach and Ill create air lift with minimal environmental impact.

It is clear Caribbean service is complex and changing. More dramatic changes are on the horizon with eVTOL but these innovative carriers must be applauded for addressing some of its weaknesses to disrupt the high-cost status quo and making it easier to get there and get around.
by Kathryn Creedy, Orlando, FL, USA

Taxes and Caribbean gateway customs and immigration bottlenecks are hurting the competitiveness of many Caribbean destinations including St. Maarten. In addition, the differing regulatory and air traffic control requirements make for a complex operating environment.

There are many in the region wanting to lower taxes, harmonize regulations and air traffic control and eliminate intra-Caribbean bottlenecks that discourage not only innovative products but tourism and business.

Regulatory and Governmental Barriers

Tropic Ocean Airways CEO Rob Ceravolo, a frequent CaribAvia attendee, discussed the development of seaplane operations around the Caribbean, expanding his Cessna Caravan and Grand Caravan operations with the development of seaplane bases which do not require the high cost or environmental impact of creating new runways in a region where land is scarce.

Ceravolo talked about the barriers to creating inter-island operations especially dealing with so many governments. Existing regulations are also woefully outdated  true around the world  and must be updated. Air traffic management must be integrated.

What is needed is a region-wide coalition with all the stakeholders  government, the tourism community, regulators, operators and resorts  to reduce the barriers to improving airlift, he said. The coalition should identify operators who have cracked the nut on developing air service with so many competing aviation interests to learn how it can be done. This government coalition would also identify the best operating practices and assess existing regulations for updating and it would decide together on the regulatory approach that will cover and benefit the entire region. It must allow for scalability and it must set a high bar for safety.

The seeds of such a coalition are actually found at CARIBAVIA but Ceravolo is right a more formal coalition is needed.

The Caribbean Community known as Caricom is actively working on lowering taxes while others streamline processing in the region.

I think this is where we need to go, Regional Economist Dr. Justin Ram, told Caribbean National Weekly. I think having a single Caribbean airspace is critical also for the passengers. It means that once I enter the Caribbean through immigration, I should not have to go through immigration, customs, again. We really need to have one set of rules so that we have that single airspace.

The problem is making it actually happen with so many nations involved. What was interesting at CARIBAVIA was the number of private partnerships being leveraged to implement some of the changes needed.

Born Out of Tragedy

For instance, an innovative program developed by Tropic Ocean Airways, the Bahamas government and the National Association of Black Hotel Owners, Operators and Developers (NABHOOD) was implemented in the wake of Hurricane Damien, a Category Five storm that destroyed Abaco and Grand Bahamas. With the Bahamian government, they created

created a Bahamian pre-clearance presence in Fort Lauderdale to pre-clear emergency relief supplies into the archipelago which helped to speed relief.

NABHOOD was instrumental to the efforts said CEO Andy Ingraham who explained his network of African-American investors made it happen because there was otherwise no money to pay for such a facility.

The Bahamas was hailed for its stroke of genius in creating the private-public partnership for pre-clearance, explained Ingraham. It was a game changer. Once pre-clearance opened up, volumes went up 100% and the private aviation market to the Bahamas almost doubled.

That facility is now permanent, Ingraham told conference attendees. He described how it is opening up new markets and enabling private aviation flights direct to destinations without stopping at overcrowded gateways.

Pre-clearance is the future of travel to the US, but it should be the future of travel to the Caribbean, Ingraham said. That means when you pre-clear you can fly direct to any of the Bahamian islands without stopping at airport ports of entry. This has led to an increase in private-island purchases. It brings in more investment and new projects. Its about opening up new markets including using seaplanes to deliver passengers to their yachts out on the ocean.

Similarly, St. Maarten is also a customs and immigration bottleneck. Quick, inter-island flights between SXM and its surrounding islands or any other international archipelago is immediately bottlenecked at the gateways.

The ease of a 20-minute flight to St. Maarten is destroyed when you are stuck for an hour and a half in immigration processing, said Ceravolo, urging reform.

Increasing Competitiveness by Lowering Taxes

CARIBAVIA Founder Commander Bud Slabbaert described Caribbean aviation taxes as causing economic strangulation in the region. He called on governments to drop departure and other passenger taxes if islands want to reap the economic benefits of becoming international, or even regional, hubs.

Despite global policies calling for a reduction in passenger taxes, the past decade has seen an unprecedented proliferation of taxes levied on air passenger tickets in the region, Slabbaert said in a commentary. This trend is causing serious concerns and has a negative impact on the sustainable development of air transport, which, ultimately negatively impacts the tourism industry and the overall national economic development.

CARIBAVIA speakers related how tourism and airport taxes are counterproductive and leave visitors with less money to spend at local businesses.

An evergreen issue at the CARIBAVIA Summit held each year in St. Maarten, the subject was no less important this year as Bryan Winter, managing counsel, Aero Attorney Group cited taxes as the most important reason it is difficult to come to and travel within the Caribbean.

Perhaps no better support for opposition to tourism taxes could be had than that from Frontier Airlines Vice President Network & Operational Design Josh Flyr, who explained the new service to St. Maarten the airline is launching in July is hampered by taxes.

We are Americas lowest fare, lowest cost airline and our system breakeven fare is $37 per passenger but we cant do those fares because of taxes, Flyr told participants. The idea of really low fares is to get people traveling who otherwise wouldnt. However, certain destinations inhibit our ability to offer low fares for people who are truly price sensitive. Taxes, alone, make such vacations unaffordable.

Speakers at previous conferences concluded taxes are an important determining factor on where travelers go. The higher the taxes the lower the demand. They point out each destination is in competition not only with each other but other destinations such as Florida and Disney World where the majority of visitors come by car because of airport hassles and airline costs.

Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Brown, incoming chair of Caricom, a15-member organization, said he will prioritize a regional tax reduction of 50% on air travel within the Caribbean citing a 20,000-signature petition from Caribbean citizens done in 2019.

He was joined by outgoing Chair Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, Prime Minister of St. Vincent & the Grenadines who said there is general acceptance within the region for lower taxes on inter-Caribbean travel.

St. Vincent & the Grenadines have already cut taxes from US$40 to US$20 and Grenada announced they are also doing that while the prime ministers of Dominica and St. Lucia are talking about doing the same thing, he told Caribbean news outlets.

The problem with the Caricom proposal, however, is it only applies to inter-Caribbean travel rather than travel to the region which it is needed to stimulate business and Caribbean-bound traffic.

Furthermore, taxes inhibit diversifying economies in the region so when hurricanes or pandemics destroy tourism demand, islands have more resiliency.

The region is too dependent on tourism, interCaribbean Airways CEO Trevor Sadler said. If Covid taught us anything it is how bad it is to rely only on tourism.

Governments see business only as tourism rather than how local businesses can expand across the Caribbean, he continued. We can achieve a high level of inter-Caribbean travel if we find countries across the spectrum willing to embrace regional tax reductions and create regional trade initiatives that help small and medium business to establish a foothold and pave the way for entrepreneurs to build independence across the region. We can also develop multi-island packages and help lay the foundation for regional business in the next generation.

Sadler used one route  Dominican Republic-Turks-Jamaica  to illustrate why there is no inter-Caribbean traffic.

The Dominican Republic charges $95, Jamaica charges $144 and Turks & Caicos charges $50 and all that is on top of the air fare, he said. Taxes and airport fees for a one- or one-and-a-half-hour flight makes inter-island flying unaffordable.

He pointed to the developments within Caricom. Some governments are being very bold focusing on how they can develop greater movement of people across the region, he said. It takes political courage. For those who resist, the question then becomes whether governments wish to participate in the benefit. With government willingness to embrace lowering taxes and improving service, we could make a difference in inter-Caribbean service.

While one could argue St. Maarten visitors keep on coming, that begs the question of how much new business is left on the table and how much they would gain if taxes were lower.

An indication of what is at stake was described by Slabbaert who pointed to the elimination of passenger ticket taxes at Amsterdam in order to halt declining traffic at Schiphol. The tax, disguised as an eco tax between 11 and 45, was designed to raise US$395 million but ended up costing the economy $US1.7 billion in lost revenue as passengers favored neighboring airports. The same thing is happening in the Caribbean.

Business Aviation Important to SXM

St. Maarten is a hub for business aviation as elite travelers connect to regional carriers such as St. Barth Commuter and Winair to get to the regions nearby islands.

Private aviation specialist Adam Twidell noted that those private aircraft benefit St. Maarten caterers, fuelers and hotels. Similarly, the same facilities benefit from yachts provisioning with 65% if private aviation traffic connecting to yachts which then head to St. Barth.

In fact, the regions focus on connecting North American and European tourists really puts locals at a competitive disadvantage as they try to conduct inter-island business.

Traveling from his base in St. Croix, Bohlke International Airways CEO William Bohlke Jr. described how private aviation connects the dots around the Caribbean making such services extremely important in the region given the limited regional commercial service. But for small and medium businesses, that, too, is prohibitive.

Even so, improving airlift helps businesses already in the Caribbean. Bohlke and other speakers noted the similarities in clientele traveling to the Riviera and the Caribbean noting economies rely not only on business aviation but yachts and helicopters.

Three speakers from the Riviera  Marketing & Business Development Manager at Groupe Aeroports de la Cote d'Azur Umberto Vallino, Wolton Sky Managing Director Capt. Kristina Tervo and Managing Director Heli Rivera Caribbean Emma Watson, discussed their operations and pilot training. Watsons Heli Riviera Caribbean is already operating out of Grand Case Airport in St. Martin, the French side of St. Maarten.

Airport Development

As Princess Julianna Airport (SXM) finally begins its recovery program, another speaker  Decision Services International CEO Dr Patricia Ryan  explained how airports must be reimagined as not just transit points but a resource for a community such as SXM that is already steeped in aviation. She sees the next generation airport developing pre-security dining and other facilities to develop non-aeronautical revenues and provide tighter connections between community and one of its greatest resources.

Interestingly, Regional Economist Dr. Justin Ram told the Caribbean National Weekly, high taxes resulted from the fact Caribbean airports are huge cost centers because the archipelago requires more airports than if it were a single land mass. But airports around the world are creating non-aeronautical revenue resources to mitigate rising airport costs and that could be duplicated in the region which is exactly what Ram suggested.

Opportunities From Homeporting

Winter was excited about the trend of cruise lines to home port at different Caribbean gateways including St. Maarten. It creates a huge opportunity to charter operators connecting their passengers to cruises because airline schedules do not meet cruise schedules, he said. It also creates opportunities for passengers to come in before their cruise or stay at the home port after their cruise to experience these destinations.

While there are many challenges both serving and getting around the Caribbean, the ideas springing from CARIBAVIA clearly show the many solutions available that would benefit both tourism and businesses in the region.
TEOCO and Swisscom future-proof drone strategy as they prepare for operational UAV traffic

Posted by Publisher Telecommunication

FAIRFAX, VA., USA ? 23 June 2021 ? TEOCO, the leading provider of analytics, assurance and optimization solutions to over 300 communication service providers (CSPs) and OEMs worldwide, together with partner STRAPAG, has today announced a partnership on TEOCO?s AirborneRF to enable the operational deployment of drones over Swisscom?s cellular network. The announcement builds on the initial TEOCO and Swisscom collaboration in 2020 which focused on initial analysis and optimization of the network for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) traffic.

With Swisscom?s network ready to support commercial UAV traffic, the new engagement will see TEOCO?s AirborneRF solution extended to unlock monetization opportunities for the operator. AirborneRF will be used to bridge the gap between the cellular and aviation world, allowing different drone ecosystem players to come together to engage with the live Swisscom network data. This will enable new operational use cases, such as the use of drones in emergency scenarios, in industrial inspections, in search & rescue, or in logistics.

?This is an exciting moment for Swisscom, as we prepare our cellular network to support commercial drone operations,? said Manfred Bacher, Drone Solutions Lead, Swisscom. ?We are now focused on ensuring that drone ecosystem partners have access to the required live data for safe future drone operations, and are able to leverage our network to unlock new use cases.?

Through this partnership, Swisscom will benefit from TEOCO?s leadership in aviation standardisation and regulation. Most recently, TEOCO played a leading role in contributing to the creation of the Network Coverage Service Interface, an outcome of the cooperation agreement between the GSMA and Global UTM Association (GUTMA), the Aerial Connectivity Joint Activity (ACJA) initiative, which aims to align the objectives of the global mobile and unmanned aircraft traffic management (UTM) industries. TEOCO?s AirborneRF is the first industry solutions recognised as fulfilling the global specification requirements defined by the ACJA Network Coverage Service Interface[1].

?We?re delighted to be continuing our partnership with Swisscom to see the capabilities of AirborneRF validated for drone operations,? said Thomas Neubauer, VP Innovations at TEOCO. ?We?re now entering the next phase towards operational deployments and we?re looking forward to seeing how AirborneRF can integrate the cellular and aviation world to enable new drone use cases and help Swisscom engage with new partners, customers, and regulatory and standards bodies.?

Already deployed by several tier-one operators globally, AirborneRF assesses the flight path to ensure a UAV can maintain adequate and continuous cellular coverage for every flight. It assures minimum performance-based requirements and live information during flight operations to cope with the dynamic behaviour of the cellular infrastructure. In addition, AirborneRF provides ground risk information for specific operational risk assessments (SORA) and optionally monitors and logs communications signal performance across the entire flight path.

[1] gsma.com/iot/resources/acja-wt2-interface-for-data-exchange-between-mnos-and-the-utm-ecosystem/
Lucille Morgan, 98, of Science Hill, passed away Wednesday, June 30, 2021 at the Hospice of Lake Cumberland. A Funeral Service will be held 2:00 PM Saturday, July 3, 2021 at the Chapel of Morris & Hislope Funeral Home. Burial will be in Science Hill Cemetery. Visitation will be after 12:
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For Hannah's Honey, a stinging past and fruitful future

Julian Hast / By JULIAN HAST julian.hast@apgsomn.com Hannah and Paul Neigebauer holding a frame full of bees in front of one of their apiaries. (Julian Hast/southernminn.com) Julian Hast / By JULIAN HAST julian.hast@apgsomn.com Hannah and Paul Neigebauer at the apiary. (Julian Hast/southernminn.com) Julian Hast / By JULIAN HAST julian.hast@apgsomn.com Paul Neigebauer holds up a frame full of bees at the apiary. (Julian Hast/southernminn.com)

The first time Paul Neigebauer encountered beekeeping, he was 15. He was living with his grandfather, who took him out to the apiary  the bee yard  one day. To this day, he has no idea why his grandfather didnt give him a bee suit beforehand.

It was not a good experience, Neigebauer said, describing the dozen or so stings he got while bees swarmed under his clothes.

Thirty-nine years later, Paul was retiring from his job at the Waseca County Highway Department. Uncertain what to do with his time, and wondering where the fresh honey was in Waseca, he thought he might give the bees another shot.

His daughter, Hannah Neigebauer, who was in college at the time, thought it would be fun to join him in the summer. They had eight beehives the first year.

I didnt even really have honey before, until we started this, Hannah said. Just a whole new adventure for me. I was in college, I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life, so this was a fun hobby to do on the side.

Today, Paul and Hannah run Hannahs Honey LLC in Waseca, selling honey, lip balm and infused products at the farmers market and local stores. While their business doesnt bring in enough revenue to provide a full income  Hannah works at the Revol Greens greenhouse in Owatonna  they say they enjoy getting to work outside, as well as the contact with local business owners and customers at the farmers market.

Unlike many other small businesses, Hannahs Honey wasnt hurt too badly by the COVID-19 pandemic. While some local stores they supplied had to close, they said, the popularity of the farmers market during lockdowns compensated for that loss of business. An added benefit was that they could safely continue their outdoor work, getting to spend time in nature when there was little else they could do.

The first time Hannah tried to work with bees, though, she was uneasy.

I lifted a frame and the bees went on my hand, and I threw the frame, Hannah said. I was freaking out. But now it doesnt bother me.

Paul explained that harvesting honey from the bees can be an intense experience.

When you start taking their honey from them  the first hive you can get away with, but pretty soon they figure it out, and they are coming after you with aggression, Paul said. Thousands of them, bouncing off of your (bee suit) veil.

And they can sense where your breath is, Hannah said.

So they know where your head is. Thats what theyre going for, Paul added.

Even as more seasoned beekeepers, Paul and Hannah have still had rough moments with the bees. Paul described, for instance, an experience with a new vented bee suit last year, which he didnt realize at the time fit quite snugly over his ears. What that meant was that bees stingers could go through the fabric.

Just sting after sting after sting, Paul said.

Hannah also learned that if she kneeled, they could go through her suit at the knee. And after harvesting time, they have to walk far off  into cornfields, if they are around  to make sure the bees are gone, and they can take their bee suits off and get into their truck.

While Hannah is still getting settled into Waseca  she bought a house a year and a half ago, and is still paying for college, from which she graduated a few years ago  she said the idea of pollinating with bees someday appeals to her.

While Hannahs Honey currently operates on the harvesting of honey alone, most beekeepers who wish to make a living off of it earn the bulk of their revenue not from harvesting, but from pollination. Theyre called migratory beekeepers, and they move from farm to farm, further south, pollinating apples, berries, nuts and more. Almond orchards can require upwards of a million bee colonies for their pollination. Hannah and Paul have 35 colonies.

They bring them in by the semi, Paul said.

In order for them to make this transition, they would need to do a lot of preparation, including learning how to avoid bringing an infection native to the southern part of the country up to Minnesota, a liability for those transporting plants and animals long distances. If Pauls wife, Jane, who makes the beeswax lip balm for Hannahs Honey, ever wanted to retire from her job as a court reporter at the Waseca courthouse, she could come with.

For now, though, Hannah is satisfied with their current situation in Waseca.

Its nice to have a good, tasty product at the end, she added.

Pauls only regret, he said, is getting stung so many times with his grandfather when he was 15. He wonders about the years between then and age 54 when he started beekeeping with Hannah.

I might have been a commercial beekeeper, who knows? he said.
What you need to know about this weeks sentencing of Derek Chauvin
Geneva, June 23, 2021 (SPS) - The Geneva Group is organizing a high-level conference on Wednesday on the right of the Sahrawi people to self-determination and the root causes of the failure of the United Nations organization to implement its plan settlement of the Western Sahara conflict.

Under the theme "the right of the Saharawi people to self-determination", this conference will be an opportunity for the panelists to address the root causes of the failure of the United Nations to definitively resolve the Saharawi question so as to allow the Saharawis to dispose of themselves and to discuss the way forward in order to relaunch the process of negotiations, which has stopped since 2019.

Will take part in this conference, in particular the permanent representative of Timor-Leste to the UN and the international organizations in Geneva, Mr. Francisco Dionisio Fernandes, and the permanent representative of South Africa in Geneva, Mr. Mxolisi Nkosi.

The list of participants also included the lawyer, member of the UN Commission responsible for identification for the referendum in Western Sahara, Ms. Katlyn Tomas, the former head of political affairs at the United Nations, Carmen Johns and the former head of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (Minurso), Francesco Bastagli.

The representative of the Frente POLISARIO in Europe and to the European Union (EU), Oubi Bouchraya Bachir will also participate in this meeting.

Registered since 1966 on the list of non-self-governing territories, and therefore eligible for the application of UN General Assembly resolution 1514 on the declaration on the granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples, Western Sahara is the last colony in Africa, occupied since 1975 by Morocco, supported by France. SPS

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People from the EU who wish to remain in the UK are being reminded that they need to obtain settled or pre-settled status from the EU Settlement Scheme before the deadline on 30 June 2021.

From 1 July 2021, EU citizens may be asked to prove their right to do things like get a job, rent a house, study or use the NHS.

Those with settled or pre-settled status will retain the right to do these things.

People from the EU, EEA (Norway, Liechtenstein and Iceland), Switzerland, plus non-British family members of citizens of these countries need to apply to the scheme before the deadline.

To be eligible they need to have arrived in the UK before 31 December 2020.

Irish citizens do not need to apply to the Settlement Scheme but their non-British family members will need settled or pre-settled status to remain in the UK.

Applying to the scheme is free and can be done online at: https://www.gov.uk/settled-status-eu-citizens-families.

Without the correct status, people could lose the right to live and work in the UK once the deadline is passed.

Victoria Wilson, Cabinet Member for Communities at Staffordshire County Council said:

It is really important for EU citizens who wish to continue living and working in the UK to apply for the Settlement Scheme before the deadline. The decision to leave the EU means that the UK are no longer bound by EU rules on freedom of movement, which has brought EU citizens into the UK immigration system for the first time. People can apply for the status online and there is help and support available from Citizens Advice for anyone having difficulties doing so.

Anyone having difficulty applying for the scheme should visit www.citizensadvice.org.uk/immigration/applying-for-settled-status/
Ross D. Franklin/AP

President Joe Biden is nominating Cindy McCain to be the U.S. representative to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture, one of 17 nominations announced Wednesday that included major diplomatic and arts assignments.

McCain, the widow of Arizona Sen. John McCain, broke with Republicans and endorsed Biden for president, making her a key surrogate for the Democrat after Donald Trump spent years criticizing her husband. McCain is the chair and director of the Hensley Beverage Company, a Phoenix-based distributor of beer, wine, spirits and nonalcoholic drinks.
ROXBURY  The Minor Memorial Library in Roxbury is excited to welcome the New Chordtet Band at 3 p.m. June 26 on the librarys lawn. There will be a pop-up bar for cocktails and drinks and you are welcome to bring your own picnics, blankets and chairs. There is no charge for this program.

The band members are:

Peter McEachern, on trombone has toured and recorded with Blues legend Clarence Gatemouth Brown; has worked and recorded with minimalist composer Lamonte Young and is featured on Insomnia with the Thomas Chapin Trio on Knitting Factory Works. He has been a longtime collaborator with bassist Mario Pavone and drummer Michael Sarin. McEacherns recent releases include Bone-Code and New Chordtet with Dave Santoro, Mike DiRubbo and Tom Melito on Truth Revolution Records in 2019. His newest project Code 2 will be released on Steeplechase Records this August 15th, 2021 and features Noah Preminger on sax along with Sarin and Pavone. In addition, Peter has been a teaching artist at the Litchfield Jazz Camp for over 20 years.

Joe Magnarelli (trumpet) has emerged as one of Americas premier trumpeters, improvisers, composers and educators in jazz. A potent jazz soloist, Joe is known for his engaging, melodically-rich lines and his powerhouse rhythm. He names Charlie Parker, Fats Navarro and Kenny Dorham as core influencers. For many years, Joe has been leading bands in clubs and concert halls all over the world. He is also a trumpet professor at Temple University in Philadelphia and the Julliard School in New York.

Dave Santoro (bass), is a full professor at Berklee College of Music. He has appeared on over 50 jazz CDs including 6 as leader or co-leader. Dave has played, toured and recorded with Red Rodney Quintet, Jerry Bergonzi, Mulgrew Miller, Joe Magnarelli and the Village Vanguard Orchestra amongst many others.

Tom Melito (drums) has been a mainstay on the New York City jazz scene for many years. As a drummer, he has supported such artists as John and Bucky Pizzarelli, Frank Wess, Harry Allen, Sweets Edison, Lew Tabackin and has participated in numerous world tours. As a strong advocate for jazz education, Tom plays on Jerry Bergonzis CD and is currently recording a series of educational jazz CDs for Windplayer magazine. His recordings include Saxology with Jerry Bergonzi, two recordings with Ken Peplowski for Concord Jazz, the Dave Santoro Standards Band and with the Michael Moore trio on two discs titled, The History of Jazz.

Larry Ham (piano) began his professional career in the Lionel Hampton Orchestra in the late 80s. He was pianist in the Illinois Jacquet Big Band 1990-95 and has worked extensively with countless other jazz legends, incl. the late Junior Cook and Dakota Staton. He has appeared at jazz festivals, concerts and nightclubs throughout the US, Europe, West-Africa and Japan. His recent New York appearances include Jazz at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Iridium, The Village Vanguard, Smalls, The Kitano Hotel and Harlems historic Lenox Lounge.

Call the library at 860-350-2181 or visit www.minormemoriallibrary.org for more information and directions. The mission of the Minor Memorial Library is to promote and encourage literacy and to serve the needs of the Roxbury Community by providing free access to ideas and information through diversity of library materials, programs, services, and experiences. The library is handicapped-accessible.
The first time I noticed it, I was at a reunion event for Spence, my high school on the Upper East Side. This was seven years ago, and classmates, many of whom send their kids to private schools like Spence, gathered around me like I was a celebrity  which was weird because many of them are celebrities.

Why?

Because I was describing a Thanksgiving feast at my sons kindergarten.

My kindergartner calls Thanksgiving an act of Euro-American aggression, my friend told me. Shes 4.

They still do the whole Pilgrim and Indian thing in Connecticut, someone else said, as if the entire Constitution State was just adorable.

Thats because they are all Pilgrims in Connecticut, someone else said, laughing.

Guys  thats not true, and hello, there are plenty of Pilgrims on the Upper East Side, I shot back, suddenly defensive.

But I guess that was the point; turns out their kids could no longer braid their hair because it was a sign of cultural appropriation, and Thanksgiving was an act of mass genocide that launched capitalist economic globalization.

And these Pilgrims were mad.

Seven years later, things have exploded. The controversial inclusion of an anti-racist and anti-sexist ideology has now culminated in what many refer to as the Woke Wars. Its a term that is widely known, but its always whispered, not spoken. The Upper East Side is at the red hot center of these wars, where elitist schools such as Dalton, Brearley, Trinity, Spence, Collegiate and Chapin have billionaire parents like John Paulson pulling their kids out of school and writing letters complaining of white indoctrination that appear the next morning on Page Six.

Yeah, a friend laughed, if youre loaded, you can use your name when you complain; if not, youre anonymous.

An anonymous group called Prep School Accountability paid over $10,000 to have mobile billboards put outside of six of these schools with headlines such as Diversity, Not Indoctrination, Teach HOW to think not WHAT to think and Woke school? Speak out.

Its awful, a friend told me. My kids are ashamed to be white and dont want to go to school.

Shakespeare has been replaced by books like Poet X, written entirely in Slam, and Renaissance art is boiled down to one painting: Adoration of the Magi. Why? Because the wise men are often depicted as men of color, so suddenly an entire artistic movement is all about the lens of racism, she told me. My kids know nothing about either World War and theyre going into HIGH SCHOOL! But ask them about implicit white bias, and theyve got it down.

Theres an inherent irony here thats hard to ignore: people work hard to send their kids go to these schools precisely because they believe it will give them an advantage in a competitive world. Inherent in this advantage are issues of privilege, class, race and access, among other less controversial factors such as a challenging education, and a culture of hard work, honor and perseverance. For parents, its fine for their kids to learn about disadvantage  but as soon as their kids become the ones that are disadvantaged in any way, bad things go down uptown.

Seems to me, a friend told me recently, if private schools wanted to really to wake up, the best thing they could do would be close their doors entirely. Implicit in their existence is inequity  and all of this is just an elaborate dance to distract us from that reality.

And yet this is not just about the Upper East Side anymore. Our local Board of Ed. has been struggling with these issues as have many public and private schools across the country. Here in Greenwich, weve seen protests, signs and contentious BOE meetings over whether or not critical race theory is in our schools, among other curriculum concerns. Oregons Department of Education recently claimed math is racist, while a North Korean student at Columbia compared the universitys atmosphere to the Stalinist dictatorship of Kim Jong-un.

READ MORE: Critical race theory or critical thinking skills? Parents, students clash over curriculum in Greenwich

I want to pause here to tell you that I have rewritten this article exactly 26 times. I have listened to friends, as they pull their kids from school, perplexed and bewildered. Then I sit down with a Black friend, who asks me if I have any idea what it feels like to be Black in America. The history, the education, the legislation  even now? And Im silenced.

Im a white woman living in Connecticut; I have no idea what it feels like to be marginalized, nor do I have the truly woke ability to see outside my own bias. I just had my own surreal woke moment with the Tulsa Massacre centennial, which I had always been taught was a mere riot. What else do I have wrong? What else did I mislearn and still dont even see? Teachers in a predominantly Black California elementary school recently replaced the featured books on display with books featuring Black faces, and suddenly kids were flooding the library at recess and taking out books in record numbers.

How about this, a Black mother told me recently. I dont want my kids taught history that was written by white people. I would like them to know a more accurate version of history and to start seeing themselves in the curriculum  and not just during Black History Month. Does that mean I am not being fair to white kids?

I think the biggest thing that white people dont understand, is that this is all about being uncomfortable. Those of us who are minorities have no problem being uncomfortable  its what we know  but for others, it doesnt feel good.

With challenge and discomfort often comes the best learning; its one the most important messages we can impart to our kids. Then my friend smiled, looked me in the eyes and said something thats been with me ever since: Why cant America be great and flawed at the same time?

Claire Tisne Haft is a former publishing and film executive, raising her family in Greenwich while working on a freelance basis on books and films. She can be reached through her website at clairetisnehaft.com.
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP)  The state of Alaska is trying to dispose of a 58-year-old ferry, and even has offered to give it free to the government of the Philippines.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy offered to give the Malaspina ferry away in a letter last month to the Philippines consul general in San Francisco, CoastAlaska reported.

This vessel is surplus to our fleet, is in need of some repairs, but does have some service life left, according to Dunleavys letter dated May 20 and obtained by the Alaska Public Media in a routine public records request for the governors correspondence.

We would be willing to provide the vessel to the Philippine government or to a private ferry company in the Philippines free of charge, the letter states.

The Malaspina, built in 1963, last sailed in 2019. Instead of paying at least $16 million in needed steel work, the state put the ferry into cold storage.

The state Department of Transportation has estimated it would cost up to $45 million to overhaul the ferry, including installing new engines.

The state is paying about $450,000 a year to keep it in storage, prompting the Dunleavy administration to dispose of it.

We are actively looking at working with the EPA to scuttle the ship and potentially salvage some of the steel or resale value, Alaska Marine Highway System General Manager John Falvey told the Alaska House Transportation Committee on March 20.

Falvey said there was only tepid interest in buying the ferry, matching the struggles the state experienced in disposing of three other ferries recently. One went to a scrap yard in India, and two others were sold to a Spanish ferry company.

If the state were to sell the Malaspina, Falvey said at the time it would be put out to sealed bids. But if the ferry is given to another government, procurement rules would not normally apply, said Jason Soza, the states top procurement officer from 2013-19. However, he noted that the offer to give the ferry to a private ferry company would normally not be allowed.

Dunleavy spokesperson Jeff Turner said there had been no response from the Philippines consul general in San Francisco and declined further comment.

The Consul General of the Philippines in San Francisco told CoastAlaska its chief diplomat will visit Juneau in July, but as part of the consul generals normal outreach to Filipino citizens in Alaska. It it not a ferry fact-finding mission, a spokesperson said in an email to the southeast Alaska public radio network.
Alex Kassers decision to resign from the state Senate took local politicians by surprise Tuesday  and while they expressed support for her personal decision, some speculated about how the seat would be filled.

It is a shock, said Joe Angland, chair of the Greenwich Town Committee. She did a great job in Hartford, and I and the people in the state feel this is a great loss.

But in Stamford, the chair of the Stamford RTC said he was not sad to see the Democratic senator step down.

While I dont wish a divorce or its trappings on anyone, Im happy shes out of office, said Fritz Blau. She originated the failed toll push and never seemed to understand what it means to struggle and inhabit the middle class.

The political jockeying to come will certainly be entertaining, he said.

Kasser, who had represented all of Greenwich, the northern part of Stamford and western New Canaan, announced her resignation on her website. She cited ongoing divorce litigation against her husband, Seth Bergstein, as the reason for stepping down, effective immediately, and said she was moving from town.

The divorce is scheduled to go to trial in early September in Stamford Superior Court, according to the court website.

Electing a successor

The Greenwich DTC put out a statement on Twitter thanking Kasser for all she did for us as our state senator and wishing her all the best as she navigates this next part of her life. The DTC tweeted it would share details about what comes next for the 36th Senatorial District as they are confirmed by the state.

Under state law, Gov. Ned Lamont has 10 days to issue a writ of election for voting on a successor. The special election must be held 46 days after Lamont issues the writ.

Any major party conventions in the 36th District to select a candidate must take place 36 days before the special election.

This would be the second special election in Greenwich in the past two years and the third in Stamford to fill seats in the state legislature.

State Rep. Stephen Meskers, D-150th District, said he was surprised by Kassers announcement but noted the full-time commitment of the job even when the legislature is out of session.

I am sorry to lose her as a colleague, Meskers said. I wish her the best of luck.

Angland said he expected the Greenwich DTCs Executive Committee to meet soon to discuss possible candidates.

Its too soon for me to think of a particular person, but I would think somebody from Greenwich might well be interested in running, Angland said.

Stamford Democratic City Committee Chair Josh Fedeli, who thanked Kasser for her service to the 36th District and specifically her Stamford constituents, also said it would be premature to speculate about candidates to replace her.

On the Republican side, no discussions have taken place, either, said Greenwich Republican Town Committee Chair Dan Quigley.

The news of Sen. Kassers resignation came as a surprise to the RTC, Quigley said. I wish Alex and her family all the best going forward, and I thank her for her service to the community.

Meskers, when asked whether he would run for the open seat, said, It would be irresponsible of me to not consider all of my options.

State Rep. Harry Arora, R-151st District, said he is seriously considering running for the now-vacant seat.

I am being encouraged by many and discussing with other Republican leaders. I hope to make a decision in the next few days, said Arora, who is in his first full term as state representative.

Ryan Fazio, a Republican from Greenwich, unsuccessfully challenged Kasser for the seat in the 2020 election. On Tuesday, he declined to discuss his political future.

I wish Sen. Kasser and her family the best and do not have anything to say about politics at this moment, Fazio said.

More political reactions

Stamford Mayor David Martin, another Democrat, praised Kassers time in office.

We appreciate Sen. Kassers hard work for the residents of the City of Stamford. During the time she served, she expressed an ardent interest in our city and always acted as such. Although Stamford may have been just a small part of her district, she consistently provided ongoing support for the many needs unique to Stamford, Martin said.

New Canaan Town Council Chairman John Engel said he was also surprised by Kassers resignation, but I understand her reasons and why she cannot continue.

Looking forward, this is such a critical and exciting time in Connecticuts history to finally grow our economy, pay down debt, rebalance pensions, solve our transportation and affordable housing challenges and emerge from COVID as one of the winners, Engel said.

Greenwich, Stamford and New Canaan need a candidate in the 36th who works both sides of the aisle and can hit the ground running on these critical issues, he said.

State Rep. Tom ODea, R-125th District, which includes part of New Canaan, said he is hopeful we will get another Republican in Hartford. We need more Republicans in Hartford.

But state Sen. Will Haskell, D-26th District, which includes part of New Canaan, said, Alex has been a great friend and colleague and she will be sorely missed.

Kasser was a pleasure to campaign with and they learned together how Hartford works, Haskell said. The individual who replaces Kasser in the Senate will have big shoes to fill, he said.

Staff writer Grace Duffield contributed to this story.
Ogden jazz icon Joe McQueen may be gone, but his memory and legacy live on. One physical reminder of his life, McQueen's lifelong home at 3158 Grant Ave., has now become available for sale. The house received extensive remodeling, but as investor Richard Casperson has said, "Joe's energy is 
In 1982, economist Mancur Olson set out to explain a paradox. West Germany and Japan endured widespread devastation during World War II, yet in the years after the war both countries experienced miraculous economic growth. Britain, on the other hand, emerged victorious from the war, with its institutions more intact, and yet it immediately entered a period of slow economic growth that left it lagging other European democracies. What happened?

In his book The Rise and Decline of Nations, Olson concluded that Germany and Japan enjoyed explosive growth precisely because their old arrangements had been disrupted. The devastation itself, and the forces of American occupation and reconstruction, dislodged the interest groups that had held back innovation. The old patterns that stifled experimentation were swept away. The disruption opened space for something new.

Something similar may be happening today. COVID-19 has disrupted daily American life in a way few emergencies have before. But it has also shaken things up and cleared the way for an economic boom and social revival.

Millions of Americans endured grievous loss and anxiety during this pandemic, but many also used this time as a preparation period, so they could burst out of the gate when things opened up. After decades of slowing entrepreneurial dynamism, 4.4 million new businesses were started in 2020, by far a modern record. A report from Udemy, an online course provider, says that 38% of workers took some additional training during 2020, up from only 14% in 2019.

After decades in which consumption took preference over savings, Americans socked away trillions of dollars in 2020, reducing their debt burdens to lows not seen since 1980 and putting themselves in a position to spend lavishly as things open up.

The biggest shifts, though, may be mental. People have been reminded that life is short. For more than a year, many experienced daily routines that were slower paced, more rooted, more domestic. Millions of Americans seem ready to change their lives to be more in touch with their values.

The economy has already taken off. Global economic growth is expected to be north of 6% this year, and strong growth is expected to last at least through 2022. In late April, Tom Gimbel, who runs the recruiting and staffing firm LaSalle Network, told The Times: Its the best job market Ive seen in 25 years. We have 50% more openings now than we did pre-COVID. Investors are pouring money into new ventures. During the first quarter of this year U.S. startups raised $69 billion, 41% more than the previous record, set in 2018.

Already, this era of new creation seems to be rebalancing society in at least three ways:

First, power has begun shifting from employers to workers. In March, U.S. manufacturing, for example, expanded at the fastest pace in nearly four decades. Companies are desperate for new workers. Between April 2020 and March 2021, the number of unemployed people per opening plummeted to 1.2 from 5.

Workers are in the drivers seat, for now, and they know it. The quit rate  the number of workers who quit their jobs because they are confident they can get a better one  is at the highest in two decades. Employers are raising wages and benefits to try to lure workers back.

Second, there seems to be a rebalancing between cities and suburbs. COVID-19 accelerated trends that had been underway for a few years, with people moving out of big cities like New York and San Francisco to suburbs, and to rural places like Idaho and the Hudson Valley in New York. Many are moving to get work or because of economic distress, but others say they moved so they could have more space, lead slower-paced lives, be closer to family or interact more with their neighbors.

Finally, there seems to be a rebalancing between work and domestic life. Stanford economist Nicholas Bloom expects that even when the pandemic is over, the number of working days spent at home will increase to 20% from 5% in the prepandemic era.

While this has increased pressures on many women, millions of Americans who could work remotely found that they liked being home, dining every night with their kids, not hassling with the commute. We are apparently becoming a less work-obsessed and a more domestic society.

In 1910 the educator Henry Van Dyke wrote, The Spirit of America is best known in Europe by one of its qualities  energy. That energy seemed to be fading away in recent years, as Americans came to move less and start new businesses less frequently. But the challenge of COVID-19 has summoned forth great dynamism, movement and innovation. Labor productivity rates have surged upward recently.

Americans are searching for ways to make more money while living more connected lives. Joel Kotkin, a professor of urban studies at Chapman University, points out that as the U.S. population disperses, economic and cultural gaps between coastal cities and inland communities will most likely shrink. And, he says, as more and more immigrants settle in rural areas and small towns, their presence might reduce nativism and increase economic competitiveness.

People are shifting their personal lives to address common problems  loneliness and loss of community. Nobody knows where this national journey of discovery will take us, but the voyage has begun.

DAVID BROOKS is a columnist for The New York Times.
Tuesday, 22 June 2021 21:22:19 (GMT+3) | Sao Paulo

The Bolivian ministry of mining has resumed construction works at its Empresa Siderurgica Mutun (ESM) iron ore and steelmaking complex. Works were first expected to resume in March this year, as reported by SteelOrbis.

The minister of mining, Ramiro Villavicencio Nino de Guzman, blamed the former president for the 15-month delay. Guzman said construction works should now finish in 2023, with the plants start-up expected to late-2023.

Earlier this year, the Bolivian government said construction works could be completed by late 2022. Construction works were first expected to begin in 2017 but were then postponed for June 2018.

Sinosteel commenced preliminary works in the area in July 2018. The complex should have a 650,000 mt/year capacity iron ore concentration plant, out of which it will produce 400,000 mt/year of pellets and 250,000 mt/year of sponge iron.
The National Bank of Romania (BNR) does not simply aim to stimulate credit toward rational exuberance, a rapid credit growth that will end in the explosion of non-performing loans, BNR Governor Mugur Isarescu said on Wednesday at the seminar on "Target: Boosting financial intermediation".

"Today we have organized a seminar-debate on a topic that has long preoccupied us all: how to healthily grow financial intermediation, namely to have an increase in non-government credit at a higher rate than economic growth. In other words, there should be an increase of the share of non-government credit in the Gross Domestic Product. Although it is not in the title of the seminar, I chose to use the phrase healthy growth intentionally, to specify from the beginning that we do not want just any kind of credit rise. We are not proposing to stimulate credit towards the area, let's say, of rational exuberance, to use Alan Greenspan's words, exuberance or rapid credit growth that ends in the explosion of non-performing loans, and then or at the same time in vehement accusations against banks for a so-called misleading behavior or that ends in trust between the bank and the customer being lost and then many, many steps backwards in terms of intermediation," said Mugur Isarescu.

The BNR head mentioned that he has been through this "nightmare" twice and does not want to repeat it. The BNR governor mentioned that this phenomenon happened in the 1990s, but also in the 2000s, following lending in foreign currency.

"We are not stepping on the lending accelerator at any risk. We do not want this and that is not the purpose of today's seminar. To find appropriate answers to this challenge - how to healthily increase financial intermediation - we first resort to dialogue between stakeholders, between banks and customers, between authorities and customers, between institutions and the media, between different parties that express themselves and say they represent the public opinion. For the time being, we are not presenting the conclusions today, we do not have any, but we are presenting to you perspectives, ideas, problems, possible solutions, under debate, in order to elaborate in the next months a report that addresses this extremely important problem," said Isarescu.

According to the Central Bank official, the the preliminary draft report has already been drawn up but cannot be presented.

Mugur Isarescu added that a working group has been established at the BNR since last year which is being chaired by the former deputy governor of the BNR, Eugen Dijmarescu. This working group has been trying to "put together for some time" a series of proposals in different fields: educational, legislative, administrative, technological. The proposals would provide a concrete answer to the issue of the capping of financial intermediation in recent years, the governor said.
Bucharest Prefect Alin Stoica underlined on Wednesday that the intervention plan in case of an earthquake must be as well structured as possible.

"Starting three months ago, when I took office, I have been interested in this aspect, I even had a meeting with Mr. Niculusca [head of the Municipal Administration for Consolidating Buildings with Seismic Risk under the authority of Bucharest City Hall] and DSU [the Department for Emergency Situations] to see what the lines of action in this area are. Where does the Institution of the Prefect come in here? First of all, drawing up the earthquake response plan and the earthquake response plan cannot be prepared correctly if we do not have the situation on the ground and we do not know the risks related to the buildings, because this is the way the intervention can be scaled afterwards. (...) At the same time, we have a special concern for the safety of children in schools and here we are very interested in having up-to-date information about each school. (...) We want the intervention plan to be as well structured as possible, so that the intervention in case of need is as efficient and effective as possible," Alin Stoica told a conference during which the preparation guide "How to survive an earthquake?", developed by ARCEN Association and Re:Rise Earthquake Risk Reduction Organization.

As for hospitals, Alin Stoica mentioned that there is a report on fire safety. With regard to earthquake safety, he mentioned that expert reports are needed on each building.Alin Stoica also stressed the need for the authorities to be prepared in case of an earthquake.He also said that there are many buildings that pose a threat even without any earthquake."Situations like this are quite common, when construction elements on buildings endanger the lives of passers-by and we do not like to see dilapidated and ruined buildings that are about to fall apart, especially since we want to promote tourism in Bucharest," highlighted Alin Stoica.Asked by journalists if he is considering to have the posters in Bucharest warning about the plaster falling off translated into English for tourists, he replied that it is a good idea. "I will pass this on to all the town halls. Practically the responsibility belongs to the mayors and owners of the buildings," added Alin Stoica.
The Constitutional Court of Romania (CCR) is to discuss on July 7 the notice regarding the Senate's decision relating to the appointment of the chair of the Monitoring Council for the implementation of Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Emanuel Botnariu, officials of the CCR mentioned on Wednesday for AGERPRES.

The senators of the Save Romania Union - Party of Liberty, Unity and Solidarity (USR PLUS) notified the CCR regarding the appointment of the chair of the Monitoring Council for the implementation of the United Nations Convention regarding the Rights of persons with disabilities as this would infringe art. 1, paragraph (5), art. 16, paragraph (1) and art. 20 of the Constitution.

"The appointment of Mr. Botnariu infringes art. 16 paragraph (1) of the Constitution, his designation being privileged because he is politically involved, being a senator in the past mandate and a party member. His candidacy was not conform neither in relation to the principles of Paris, of the Convention and the demands expressly provided for in Law no. 8/2016. Moreover, in the Plenum sitting of the Senate for the appointment of the chairman of the Monitoring Council Mr. Botnariu was presented as a person known from his past mandate as senator, thus the other organizations that submitted their candidacies for the role of chair of the Council were obviously disadvantaged," said the leader of the group of USR PLUS senators, Radu Mihail, according to a release sent, on Wednesday, to AGERPRES.

USR PLUS argues that the appointment of the chair of the Monitoring Council did not respect the principle of independence, one of the demands of the UN Convention regarding functional independence, free from government interference or the political factor.

Furthermore, the USR PLUS complaint also notes the existence of procedural vices in the process to appoint the chairman of the Council stemming from the infringement of the Senate's Regulations.

The Senate's Plenum appointed, on April 26, in the plenum, Emanuel Botnariu as chairman of the Monitoring Council for the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, for a four year mandate. There were 61 votes "for" and 44 "against". The vote was secret, with balls and urns.
Governor of the National Bank of Romania (BNR) Mugur Isarescu sent Parliament a letter requesting the introduction in the bill adopted by the government that prohibits public employees from collecting both wage and pension, of an exception allowing the members of the BNR Board to work beyond the age of 70.

"In our opinion, this bill instates the rule according to which public servants who are appointed to positions within the central and local public authorities or institutions, regardless of their method of financing and subordination, may carry out their activity only until the date of the law's coming in force - if they have turned 70, or until they reach the age of 70 - if this happens after the law's coming into force. As the law allows no exception to this rule, this also applies to the members of the BNR Board, starting with the moment the law enters into force, which makes it impossible for some of the BNR Board members to carry through their term," the letter mentions.

The document states that the provisions of the bill would lead to the interpretation that the members of the BNR Board can carry out their activity only until the date of the law's coming into force - if they have reached the age of 70, or until this age, which which would contradict the provisions of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU and of Law No. 312/2004 on the central bank's statutes.

"Having regard to the aforementioned aspects, we consider that it is necessary to introduce in the bill an exception to the provisions regarding the terms under which the persons who meet the retirement requirements can continue their activity, allowing the members of the BNR Board to continue beyond the age of 70," the letter reads.

Also, the BNR governor considers that the European Central Bank needs to be consulted about this bill, having in view its implications on the length of the term of BNR Board members.

BNR governor Mugur Isarescu turns 72 this August.
On Wednesday, the Chamber of Deputies passed, 290 to one abstention, a bill declaring November 15 the Day of the 1987 Brasov Anti-Communist Uprising.

Parliament, the President of Romania, the government, the central and local public administrations and all the interested non-governmental organisations will hold events to commemorate November 15 as the Day of the 1987 Brasov Anti-Communist Uprising, according to the bill, agerpres report.

The funds necessary for the commemorative events can be provided from local budgets or from the budget of public authorities and institutions.The Chamber of Deputies is the decision-making body in this case.
A number of 60,000 doses of Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) COVID-19 vaccine will arrive on Thursday, at the Cantacuzino National Institute for Medical-Military Development Research in Bucharest, the National COVID-19 Vaccination Coordination Committee (CNCAV) informs.

According to the quoted source, shipment is provided by the manufacturing company, and the vaccine doses will be brought to Bucharest by land.

The doses will be stored at the National Storage Centre, and will be distributed in the following period to the existing regional centers.

The National Storage Centre of the Cantacuzino Institute is completely authorized and approved by the National Agency for Medicines and Medical Devices of Romania (ANMDMR), the national authority that has competence in the field of medicine for human use

In Romania, the allocation of vaccine doses is conducted according to a delivery schedule provided by the manufacturing company, meaning that Romania receives weekly the vaccine batches necessary to immunise its population.
In a message dedicated to the 140th anniversary of Romania - Spain diplomatic relations, Margareta, Custodian of the Crown of Romania, says that the two states have a common democratic destiny and exemplary cooperation in all fields.

"Romania and the Kingdom of Spain celebrate this year their common identity and modern history values. The two European and Latin nations have been through a lot in 140 years. Each royal generation has tried to strengthen the ties between our countries for a stable and prosperous present and future. Our diplomatic relations began with King Carol of Romania and King Alfonso XII of Spain. King Ferdinand, Queen Maria, Carol II and my father, King Mihai continued the close relationship with Spain in the most diverse fields," Her Majesty wrote.

The Crown Custodian reminds that she and Prince Radu have visited Spain "on many occasions" and that they also met with King Philip and Queen Letizia.

"Each time we promoted culture, economy, investment and trade, national defense, diplomacy and met the Romanian community. In Madrid we celebrated together the first Romanian Presidency of the European Union. Romania and Spain have a shared democratic destiny, common interests, common traditions, similar languages, comparable energies and temperaments. We have an exemplary cooperation in all areas. I hope to return to Spain soon. I send you all the best thoughts on this historic anniversary," Crown Custodian Margareta said.

The Kingdom of Romania and the Kingdom of Spain established diplomatic relations on June 23/July 5, 1881, during the reigns of King Carol I of Romania and King Alfonso XII of Spain.
Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu will be touring the South Caucasus region over June 24 - 26 accompanied by his Austrian and Lithuanian counterparts Alexander Schallenberg and Gabrielius Landsbergis, on a mandate entrusted by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell; the purpose of this regional tour is to strengthen the EU's geopolitical profile in its neighborhood and increase the EU's involvement and role in resolving protracted conflicts in the region, the Foreign Ministry said in a release.

The three foreign ministers will set off from Bucharest on a plane provided by the Romanian side; the tour includes visits to the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Republic of Armenia and Georgia. Also accompanying the delegation will be the European Union's Special Representative for the South Caucasus and the crisis in Georgia, Toivo Klaar, as well as other diplomats from the European External Action Service.

The three ministers have a substantive agenda of meetings in Baku, Yerevan and Tbilisi, which also includes top-level receptions (President, Prime Minister) and extensive consultations with counterparts from the three visited states.

"The purpose of the visit is to strengthen the EU's geopolitical profile in its neighborhood, increase the EU's involvement and role in the settlement of protracted conflicts in the region, as well as streamline and increase the cohesion of the Common Foreign and Security Policy and to ensure greater, direct engagement of the member states and European institutions, including through joint action. The three ministers will show that the EU aims to promote a comprehensive and lasting solution to protracted conflicts, including by supporting the stabilization of the on-site situation, post-conflict reconstruction and implementing confidence-building measures," the release said.

The approach of the three top diplomats will thus contribute to strengthening a positive EU agenda in the region and to expressing clear support by the EU and the member states, for its stability and security.

"Thus, the three European Foreign Ministers will send a strong signal regarding the EU's openness and interest in supporting extensive cooperation among South Caucasus countries, including through opportunities within the Eastern Partnership. In fact, encouraging enhanced cooperation among the states in the region on the issue of protracted conflicts was one of the proposals put forward by the Romanian Foreign Minister at the Gymnich meeting in Lisbon this May. Also, the tour is aimed at preparing the Eastern Partnership Summit in December," the release states.

The Foreign Ministry points out that this tour is of great interest to Romania, for which the South Caucasus is an area of priority geopolitical interest and the resolution of protracted conflicts in the Black Sea region is a strategic objective.

The tour is a first concrete result of the proposals advanced by Minister Bogdan Aurescu at the May 27 informal meeting of the Foreign Ministers (Gymnich) in Lisbon when, upon the initiative of the Romanian ForMin backed by 10 counterparts (Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden), they discussed the situation of protracted conflicts in the Eastern Neighborhood and the concrete tools whereby the EU can be more effective and active in resolving them.
Deputy Prime Minister Dan Barna, speaking at an event dedicated to the end of German Ambassador in Bucharest Cord Meier-Klodt's tenure, said that "Romania loses a very important ambassador, but gains a real friend for life."

"Wherever you were needed, you were there," the Romanian official told the German diplomat.

The President of the Federation of Jewish Communities in Romania (FCER), MP Silviu Vexler, stressed that Wednesday was the first time that Germany's national anthem resounded in the Choral Temple and stressed that this is a symbol of a friendship "that seemed impossible not so many years ago."

Ovidiu Victor Gant, deputy of the Democratic Forum of Germans in Romania, said that in Germany "the rehabilitation of war criminals or criminals against humanity is ruled out both in society, in the Church, in Parliament or in justice".

"Also in Germany, anti-Semitism and fascist propaganda are condemned by the state (...), an example to follow for our country, as well, where we still have much to do from this point of view," he said.

In his turn, presidential adviser Sergiu Nistor underlined that, in this context, the Choral Temple represented "a space and a moment of celebrating friendship".

In his turn, Chairman of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) Marcel Ciolacu stated that the activity of the ambassador highlighted the "valuable role" of the German and Jewish communities. "The Jewish community, as well as the German community in Romania, are important components of our history, but also of the present and undoubtedly of the future," he said.

MP Varujan Pambuccian, chairman of the National Minorities Group in Parliament, said the German ambassador was "one of the most humane and intelligent interlocutors" he has had since working in the Legislature.

Ambassador Cord Meier-Klodt was decorated by the Federation of Jewish Communities in Romania.

"I have never had such an experience, at least not with me as a subject. Although my job description requires, I suppose, to never be left speechless, this is almost such a moment," the diplomat confessed.

He appreciated that his mandate in Romania has brought him fulfillment.

"On my departure, I see a consolidated Romanian democracy, strengthened by the presidency of the EU Council in 2019, a close cooperation during our presidency of the Council, a successful effort to strengthen the rule of law and common European values," the diplomat stressed.

Cord Meier-Klodt also spoke about the significance of the ceremony organized by the FCER.

"As a German of my generation and in the context of the atrocities committed on behalf of the German people in the last century, I can only be amazed at the generous gestures that the Jewish community has made for me," he said.

Cord Meier-Klodt took over the mandate of German ambassador to Romania in 2017.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE) celebrates on Wednesday 140 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Romania and Spain and emphasizes the "most important" role of the Romanian community settled in Spain.

"Beyond the political dialogue, the cultural and linguistic ties, marked by Latinity and doubled by growing cooperation, as well as the convergence of objectives at European, allied and multilateral level, have supported the constant evolution of the bilateral relationship. The most important role belongs to the Romanian community in the Kingdom of Spain, who has reached an exceptional level of integration and thus represents a true bridge between the two countries. The undisputed contribution of the Romanian citizens settled in the Kingdom of Spain is essential for the functioning of the economy of the host-country, being facilitated by the openness of the Spanish society," the MAE shows in a release sent to AGERPRES.

The Romanian foreign ministry adds that "this affinity motivates us to continue the path begun 140 years ago and to explore new ways of cooperation, in the immediate perspective of the 150th anniversary."According to the MAE, "at this anniversary moment, the excellent political dialogue is characterized by a substantial Strategic Partnership, common visions and a convergence of views on most issues on the European and international agenda, the dynamics of bilateral talks being confirmed by political consultations in Bucharest, on February 3, between Minister of Foreign Affairs Bogdan Aurescu and Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mrs. Arancha Gonzalez Laya".Located at the extremities of the EU and NATO border, Romania and the Kingdom of Spain "share the objective of projecting to the Neighborhood of the Union, both Eastern and Southern, the common European values.""In this sense, the deep and consistent attachment to multilateralism and international law, the protection of universal human rights and the promotion of the settlement of disputes of any kind by peaceful means remain fundamental constants of the international framework of action of Romania and Spain," the MAE said.
Minister of Education Sorin Cimpeanu informs that the ministry assumes the promotion of the compulsory discipline Education for life, which will include several modules, among which: sex education, civic education, health education, healthy eating education, road safety education or first aid education.

"In Romania, as in any civilized state, school curricula are the attribute of specialists in the Ministry of Education. The National Education Law (LEN) provides in art. 65 paragraph (4) that the frameworks and curricula are drawn up by the Ministry of Education. Also LEN states in Article 5 paragraph (1) that, in the field of education, the provisions of the LEN prevail over any other normative provisions. In case of a conflict between them, the provisions of the National Education Law shall apply. On this legislative basis, the Ministry of Education assumes the promotion of a compulsory discipline - 'Education for life', which should include, from the 5th to the 12th grade, compulsory modules, adapted to the pupil's age," the minister said in a statement sent to agerpres.

According to him, the compulsory modules concerned are the following:- Civic education;- Health education;- Sex education;- Education for healthy eating;- First aid education;- Legal education;- Financial education;- Road safety education;- Civic education.Cimpeanu pointed out that if the parents expressly choose, in writing, to withdraw their children from the Sex Education module, the final grade will be calculated based on the results obtained in the other modules."This way, we will be able to harmonize the need for a curriculum adapted to the needs of today's society and, in particular, the needs of pupils, avoiding overloading the school curriculum with an excessive number of subjects. On the principle of religion, for parents who expressly choose in writing in order to withdraw their children from the Sex Education module, the pupils would not be affected by the grade obtained in 'Education for Life', the final grade related to the subject will be calculated based on the grades obtained for n-1 modules," the minister mentioned.
Dolj - 7 cases and Cluj - 6 ones are the areas with the most newly confirmed cases of coronavirus compared to the last report, the Strategic Communication Group (GCS) informs on Wednesday.

Only one case of infection with the new coronavirus was reported in Bucharest, and no cases were reported in 14 counties.

All counties and the municipality of Bucharest remain in the green scenario in terms of infections with the new coronavirus, the highest incidence per thousand inhabitants being in the counties of Prahova - 0.15 and Alba - 0.12.In the last 24 hours, 66 new cases of people infected with the new coronavirus have been reported, agerpres report.
President Klaus Iohannis will participate in the European Council meeting in Brussels on Thursday and Friday, the Presidential Administration informed.

The main topics on the agenda of the meeting are European Union coordination in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the process of economic recovery of the Union, migration management, EU's foreign relations, especially the relation with Turkey, in the context of the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean and the relation with the Russian Federation.

President Iohannis will also attend the Euro Summit in an extended format, which will address the economic challenges for the Eurozone in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the progress made on the Banking Union and the Capital Markets Union.On the sidelines of the European Council, the leaders of the European Union will have a meeting with the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, reconfirmed for a new 5-year term at the helm of the organization. The agenda will include topics such as multilateralism, combating climate change, human rights, peace, development and global post-COVID-19 recovery, agerpres report.
Prime Minister Florin Citu says that Eurostat statistical data confirm that Romania has the cheapest food in the EU which debunks "another fake news about prices 'exploding.'

"Eurostat confirms: the cheapest food in the European Union is in Romania! This is how we kill another fake news story about the 'explosion' of prices," Citu wrote on Facebook on Wednesday.

The prime minister added that the final price is the result of a transaction between producers and consumers, in response to a comment on his post in which he is accused of being "divorced from reality.""Romanian producers are complaining that the prices for their products are too low. On the other hand, consumers say that the prices are too high. The final price is the result of a transaction that the two voluntarily do," Citu said.Prices for consumer goods and services in the European Union varied significantly in 2020 in EU member states, with the lowest prices being in Romania (55% of the EU average), Bulgaria (56%) and Poland (58%), according to data released on Tuesday by the European Statistical Office (Eurostat), agerpres report.
The Social Democratic Party (PSD) MPs submitted on Wednesday a motion of censure against the Government led by Florin Citu.

The motion is entitled "Failed Romania. The 'fantastic' record of the Citu Government," and in its text the social democrats claim that the PNL-USR-UDMR (National Liberal Party-Save Romania Union-Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania) government "is leading Romania's economy to the abyss with astonishing speed."

"It is time for the Citu Government to go home," the motion signatories said in the document.The motion is to be read on Wednesday in the joint plenary sitting of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, and the joint Standing Bureaus will decide when should be debated and voted on, agerpres report.
The Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Ludovic Orban, stated, referring to relations between Romania and Greece, that "always what united us was more important than what separated us."

"Always what united us was more important than what separated us. We are close not only geographically, but also culturally and historically, united through the past and through valuable traditions. (...) Modern Christian culture, a 'Byzantium after Byzantium', of which our great Nicolae Iorga spoke of, we built it here, together, and we consider it inseparable from Romanian traditions," Orban said, at the exhibition "Greek personalities that played a role in Romanians' history, from antiquity to present time."

He expressed satisfaction for the hosting by Parliament of an exhibition dedicated to the Greek fight for independence."I believe it is symbolic and moving the fact that an institution at the heart of modern democracies, Parliament, can honor in this way the independence of the nation inheriting the old Greeks from which an entire world learned the word democracy. It's not by chance that pan-Hellenism was such a powerful reality in the political culture of the 17th and 19th centuries. We can say it was one of the first manifestations of a common European political culture, coagulated around the cause of a people who have given us the democratic line, the political cornerstone of Europe today," Ludovic Orban said.The exhibition "Greek personalities that played a role in Romanians' history, from antiquity to present time.", dedicated to the marking of 200 years since the start of the Greek Revolution was set up at the Parliament, upon the initiative of the NOSTOS Cultural Association of Greeks in Romania, under the banner of the Greek Embassy in Bucharest and the Greek Union in Romania.In creating the exhibition, the following have collaborated: the Greek Union in Romania, the Greek-Romanian Bilateral Chamber of Commerce, the Department for neo-Greek studies of the Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literatures of the University of Bucharest, the Greek Cultural Foundation, the ATENA Greek School of Bucharest, the Association of Friends of the Greek Church in Bucharest, the Arcadia Cultural Association, the Protagoras Cultural Association and the Office of the Greek Organization for Tourism, agerpres report.
Transgaz will start this fall building the Tuzla - Podisor pipeline which will be completed in about two years and will transport the Black Sea offshore gas production, the company's general manager Ion Sterian told a specialist conference today.

"As of March 1, the entire BRUA capacity is booked and between 4.2 and 4.7 million cubic meters of gas transit Romania daily via Arad-Szeged, Nadlac-Csanadpalota. I look forward to the Black Sea leaseholders making their investment decision," Sterian said.

According to the cited official, a request for booking entry/exit capacity to/from the national gas transmission system is initially required.

"Somewhere in September-October I will sign the order for the start of the works by the consortium that won the bid for the Tuzla-Podisor gas pipeline and in two years we'll have a 400 million euro investment completed," Sterian said.

The Transgaz CEO mentioned that whereas three or four years ago Romania had no functional compressor station, it now has six such stations with state-of-the-art technology and another two that will be ready by September.

"With eight compressor stations, Romania can virtually transport any gas amount," Sterian told the Romania Energy Hub conference organized by EM 360.
After his mothers Alzheimers diagnosis in 2014, Willman watched her struggle as the disease progressed. He had participated in various fundraisers and worked with the Missouri chapter of the Alzheimers Foundation of America, and his father, Robert Willman of Glendale, started the research fund in her honor.

But Justin wanted to step up and do more.

What a great way to honor my mom, he says of Magic for Memories. Its great to use your platform and fan base and peoples affinity for you to bring about change and hopefully discoveries leading to the end of Alzheimers.

Ultimately we want the show to leave people with hope and optimism. (Alzheimers) can bum people out. Anything that doesnt have a cure sounds so hopeless. But the more people talk about it and know about it, the more people can get revved up to find a solution.

Willman promises the family-friendly show wont be your typical charity event.

Weve all been to charity events that go on and on, he says. We want this to be informative, insightful and smart but also funny and full of magic. The goal is to keep the show moving.
Replacing David Letterman at NBC seemed like a fools errand. I despised Conan OBrien for even trying.

On June 24, that fool will retire from the talk show circuit after 28 years, leaving behind one of the zaniest, most memorable runs in TV history.

Truth is, I started warming up to the comedian even before he went on the air.

The morning that Late Night With Conan OBrien premiered, the New York Times ran a column in which the guest writer tore apart a test show he had witnessed, ridiculing the new host for filling his monologue with knock-knock jokes, stealing his predecessors Top Ten List and interviewing a guest who could eat oranges without getting juice on his shirt.

The piece was penned by OBrien.

That self-deprecating wit would serve the newcomer well during the early seasons, as would edgy bits like Cute Animal Theater, in which puppies and kitties were dressed in white-hooded robes to reenact a KKK rally.

The newcomer was smart enough to hire some of the most creative writers in the business, including Louis C.K., future Better Call Saul star Bob Odenkirk, and Robert Smigel, who would give birth to Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, an NC-17 version of Don Rickles.
Trade group Airlines for America sent a separate letter to the Federal Aviation Administration acknowledging that the vast majority of passengers" comply with the rules but unfortunately, we continue to see onboard behavior deteriorating into heinous acts, including assaults, threats and intimidation of crewmembers that directly interfere with the performance of crewmember duties and jeopardize the safety and security of everyone onboard the aircraft.

The FAA announced a zero-tolerance policy against disruptive behavior on flights back in January. The agency is attempting to levy fines that can top $30,000 against more than 50 passengers and has identified more than 400 other cases for possible enforcement.

U.S. airlines have banned at least 3,000 passengers since May of last year, and that doesn't include two of the largest, American and Southwest, which decline to provide figures.

Airlines have stripped some customers of frequent-flyer benefits, and in rare cases pilots have made unplanned landings to remove unruly passengers. Pilots and flight attendants now routinely make pre-flight announcements to remind passengers about federal regulations against interfering with crews.
Three justices dissented, saying they believed Ohio law does allow the arming of teachers without the extra training.

If the General Assembly had wished to prohibit nonsecurity personnel, like teachers, from carrying weapons while on school property without the required training, it could have done so and may still do so, wrote Justice Pat Fischer.

A bill pending in the Ohio House would exempt school employees from the training requirement.

Parents maintain the state appeals court made the correct decision, saying state law is clear that schools can't permit the arming of employees who don't go through police officer training.

The parents "are concerned about the tragic and fatal accidents that could befall their children when armed school staff have insufficient training and are carrying firearms all day, every day, in their childrens classrooms and on the playground," attorneys for the parents said in an October court filing.

They noted that the parents don't oppose gun rights and that several are, in fact, gun owners.

The district maintains current law doesn't require the extensive training sought by the parents.
Marshaks office is leading the investigation into the death.

The three male officers who responded to the scene were not identified Tuesday. One is 33 years old and has been a De Soto officer for 3 years. Another is 37 and also has been on the De Soto force 3 years. The third is 34 and has been a De Soto officer for 2 years.

Its not clear which two fired on Sharp. All three were put on administrative leave, which is customary in a police shooting. At least two of the officers were wearing body cameras, but its not clear if they were able to record the confrontation.

Sharp died at the scene, Bissell said.

Sharp in 2015 pleaded guilty of stealing a car and driving while intoxicated and was sentenced to jail. He also pleaded guilty in 2015 of third-degree assault.

This is the fifth time this year that law enforcement officers across the St. Louis metro area have fatally shot someone.
JEFFERSON CITY  Senators began an extraordinary legislative session Wednesday with a St. Charles County Republican raising concerns that Senate leaders would halt debate over abortion to renew a major tax that helps fund the state Medicaid program.

At issue were three bills Sen. Dan Hegeman, R-Cosby, introduced on Wednesday. One of the bills is considered a clean renewal of the Federal Reimbursement Allowance that doesnt include controversial proposals dealing with abortion or limits on contraception.

Sen. Bob Onder, R-Lake Saint Louis, who has been pushing to ban money for abortion providers and affiliates such as Planned Parenthood, said moving forward without allowing debate on amendments you dont like would be unacceptable.

Onder said he could see a really awful bill coming to the full Senate, something that does nothing to honor our promises to the pro-life voters of our state.

He said when an amendment banning funding for abortion providers is offered, a Democrat likely will raise a point of order. President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, will then decide whether the amendment can be debated.
Unlike the emergency CARES money, which came with a tight deadline to spend the money by the end of 2020, ARPA gives governments until mid-December 2024 to specify how theyll spend the money and until mid-December 2026 to write the last check.

While that gives cities more time to plan their spending, it also leaves more room to run afoul of federal regulations for how the money is spent, Kelly said.

Theyre going to have to be very careful and make sure that theyre dotting all their is and crossing all their ts, he said.

Similar concerns were raised by municipal officials who met in Clayton Tuesday to hear from Deloitte, a global accounting firm St. Louis County contracted to monitor its CARES expenditures for compliance with federal regulations. The two-hour session drew a handful of municipal representatives, as well as Councilman Mark Harder, R-7th District, to the county council chambers.

Government regulations over CARES funds changed frequently over the course of the pandemic and ARPA regulations will also likely change over time, said Damon Armeni, with Deloitte.

Its going to have a lot more rules than you saw with CARES, he said.
Known as B.1.617.2, the Delta variant was first identified in India during a wave of infections and deaths in April and May. It has been linked to a resurgence of cases in southeast Asia and now in the UK, where it has been easier to study.

Those who are fully vaccinated have strong protection against getting severely ill from the variant, officials said.

I dont know how else to beg or plead for people to get vaccinated, but thats exactly what I feel like Im doing  make that decision not just for yourself or your family, but make it for our Springfield and Greene County community and for those outside of this area, Findley said. Its not going to stay here. We dont have an invisible border around southwest Missouri or Greene County, this is going to spread, and the only way to get it under control is to get vaccinated at this point.

A lot of concern

Springfield is the states third-largest city. Dr. Alex Garza, head of the St. Louis Metropolitan Pandemic Task Force, made up of the areas largest hospital systems, is watching how quickly hospitalizations are rising in the southwest corner of the state.
BRANSON, Mo. (AP)  The grandmother of an 11-year-old Tennessee boy who was injured on a roller coaster in Missouri says doctors are concerned his legs might have to be amputated.

Aalondo Perry, who is visually impaired, was injured Sunday when he fell while getting off of The Branson Coaster during a visit to the southwest Missouri tourist town of Branson, said his grandmother Shelandra Ford.

Ford told WREG-TV in Memphis, Tennessee, that Aalondo tried to ride the coaster in one car with his 13-year-old brother but they were told he would be safe riding in a car alone.

Ford said she was told Aalondo fell when he tried to get off after the roller coaster stopped. When the ride restarted, he was trapped under the rails. It took the Branson fire department about 1 1/2 hours to rescue him, she said.

His legs and right arm were crushed, and doctors dont know if they will be able to save his legs, Ford said.
Kansas City is the only major city in Missouri that does not have control of its police department. The commission consists of four members appointed by the governor and the mayor.

The city is required by law to allocate 20% of its general revenue funds to the police department. In the motion, the city argues it meets that obligation even after moving the $42 million.

The Board has planted the false flag that, by passing (the ordinances) the City has somehow attempted to wrest control of the police force from the Board, the city's motion reads. "This is not true. The City has done nothing to tell the Board what to pay, who to pay, or when to pay it. It has not established another police force; it has not appropriated monies outside of (state law); it has not refused to pay expenditures up to the statutory limitations imposed by (the law.)

City officials contend nothing in the law prevents the city from adjusting previous allocations given above the 20% requirement, which it has done more than 60 times.

Opponents of the ordinances argue they are a way of defunding the police and would prevent the city from hiring more officers to respond to and investigate crimes.
In November 2018, Russian coast guard ships fired on three Ukrainian gunboats trying to pass from the Black Sea into the Azov Sea and captured them along with 24 crewmembers. It returned the crew and the boats the following year.

HMS Defender, a Type 45 destroyer, is part of the U.K. Carrier Strike Group heading to the Indo-Pacific region. It was announced earlier this month that it would be temporarily breaking away from the group to carry out its own set of missions in the Black Sea.

Just before Wednesday's incident, Defender stopped in the Ukrainian port of Odessa, where Ukrainian and British officials and industry representatives signed an agreement to collaborate on boosting Ukraines naval capabilities.

NATO members Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria border the Black Sea. Warships from the U.S., U.K. and other NATO allies also have made increasingly frequent visits in support of Ukraine.

Speaking before the incident, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, the chief of the General Staff of the Russian armed forces, sharply criticized the deployment of NATO warships near Russian waters.
I have lived in the St. Louis metro area my entire life. I have lived in St. Louis city, St. Charles, and now St. Louis County. I am proud of St. Louis when our area or local residents receive recognition. When I am visiting another city or if I am talking to visitors to St. Louis, I always tell them what a wonderful place St. Louis is. I am sure many of my fellow St. Louisans feel the same source of local pride.

It troubles me when I hear of the problems that face St. Louis. Declines in the city population are well documented. News stories of violence and crime in the city are both troubling and disheartening.

I have a bold idea for the city, which is that St. Louis should partner with St. Louis Public Schools and area businesses to help pay for college for graduates of the St. Louis Public School District. I believe such a program would provide local students from the city a possible pathway to obtaining a college degree.

This idea may seem costly and unrealistic, but I believe the program could possibly pay for itself over time.
The refusal by congressional Republicans to forcefully push back on former President Donald Trumps big lie that he won the Nov. 3 election is distressing enough, but theres a greater danger: Polls continue to show that majorities of rank-and-file Republican voters still reject the legitimacy of Joe Bidens election. As trends in public opinion go, this is about as ominous as it gets. American democracy cannot survive if a major piece of Americas population adopts a strategy of simply refusing to accept any election outcome it doesnt like.

The debate here is entirely about perception, not facts. The facts are undisputed: Biden won on Nov. 3 by roughly 7 million ballots and a clear majority of the Electoral College in the most closely monitored election in U.S. history. Trumps continuing claims of widespread voter fraud were always based on nothing, as dozens of courts and state election officials, including top Republicans, have since confirmed. Each time Trump claims  as he does to this day  that he actually won the election, he undermines the legitimacy of Americas democracy in a way that no sitting or former president ever has before.
Shares is the leading weekly publication for retail investors. It is packed with investment ideas, news and educational material to help build and run portfolios and get more from your money.

Shares puts on free Investor Events throughout the year across the country. They provide an opportunity for investors to learn more about companies on the stock market and hear from a range of investment experts including fund managers and Shares journalists.
During the recent ten-day war between Hamas and Israel, one of the most heavily defended, against rocket attack, areas in Israel was the coastal town of Ashkelon. It was not just the 120,000 residents but also the Tamar natural gas platform 24 kilometers off the coast. That platform has been extracting huge quantities of natural gas and moving it via a pipeline to Israeli and foreign customers. These natural gas facilities have been the target of Hamas and Islamic Jihad rocket attacks for over five years without success. In response Hamas has been developing other weapons to do what their rockets cannot. This includes attacks from the sea using unmanned submersible (just below the surface) boats full of explosives and guided by GPS. Israel had detected and defeated these attacks as well. But during the recent war Hamas used some of their longer-range rockets possibly equipped with Iranian guidance kits. Firing dozens of these guided rockets at the Tamar platform at once could overwhelm the Iron Dome defenses. To deal with this Israel has made provisions for quickly moving more air defense weapons to defend against such attacks. One thing Israel has already done is develop the capability to quickly shut down natural gas extraction and drain the platform and natural gas pipeline so that if the platform is hit the damage will be less extensive and more quickly repaired. Hitting the platform while it is at work would ignite a lot of natural gas and do a lot more damage. Israel has used the shut-down capability several times when it seemed a major rocket attack was imminent.

Israel began pumping natural gas in 2013 from deposits discovered off Ashkelon and developed since 2008. In 2019 the even larger natural gas fields near the Lebanese coast began producing. Israeli firms have found over $200 billion worth of oil and gas there so far and even more up north than at Tamar. Israel is determined to use these finds to achieve energy independence sometime in the 2020s. Israel expects to be natural gas independent (of imports) by 2022. Currently natural gas accounts for over 70 percent of electricity production and as more offshore natural gas becomes available it will replace coal and oil in many areas.

This makes it very important that the offshore facilities and pipelines be defended from terrorists and military threats. Some of the offshore gas wells are within range of rockets fired from Gaza or southern Lebanon, where Hezbollah still does as it wants. The unguided rockets were not accurate enough to hit a gas platform but now dozens of guided rockets fired at once are a threat, especially if some or all of them are guided. To counter that tactic the offshore platforms were designed to be equipped with the new naval version of Iron Dome called C-Dome, as well as other new air defense systems.

In late 2017 Israel declared the modifications to the Iron Dome fire control system and the more advanced Adir system used on Saar corvettes ready for service as C-Dome on ships or offshore platforms. This upgrade effort began in early 2016 with tests that demonstrated Iron Dome could be operated from a ship or offshore platform. This version was called C-Dome. The late 2017 tests were to confirm that Iron Dome batteries on land could share target information with Saar class ships offshore. The late 2017 tests were done using a Saar 5 class corvette, which does not normally carry the C-Dome system. But the ability of ship based and land-based Iron Dome systems to share information means that Saar class corvettes can be quickly moved to the north (near the Lebanese border) or south (the Gaza border) to provide additional Iron Dome radar coverage as well as the use of the ship-based Barak 8 anti-aircraft missiles. Iron Dome and C-Dome have a unique feature in which the radar system computes where the incoming rocket will land. If the rocket will not hit an inhabited (by ships, people or off-shore facility) area, it will be ignored. Otherwise, an interceptor missile will be fired.

Earlier in 2017 Israel revealed that it had modified the design of the four Saar 6 corvettes being built in Germany to improve their anti-missile capabilities. The modification added two launchers (each with 20 Tamir missiles) used by the Iron Dome and C-Dome. This delayed the service date for the first Saar 6 until late 2020. The second Saar was in service by May 2021 The other two will arrive in 2022. The latest change means the 2,000-ton Saar 6 will be armed with a 76mm cannon, a remotely operated 25mm autocannon, 32 VLS cells for Barak 8 air defense against aircraft and missiles, C-Dome, 16 anti-ship missiles, two torpedo tubes and a helicopter (like the SH-60). The 90-meter (288 foot) ship has a max speed of 46 kilometers an hour, crew of 70 and enough fuel and food to remain at sea ten days at a time. The ships are equipped with an AESA radar like the one used for the Aegis air defense system found on most American warships. Both Barak 8 and C-Dome missiles have a range of 70 kilometers and use the same Israeli designed AESA radar and fire control system.

The Saar 6 ships will mainly guard the Mediterranean Coast, especially the offshore natural gas fields. Saar 6 is one of a growing number of land and air-based systems devoted to defense of the natural gas fields.
The Kenyan Armys QRF (Quick Reaction Force) has been selected to join the UNs elite Force Intervention Brigade (FIB, also IBDE) developed for use in the Congo peacekeeping force for offensive operations against particularly hostile militias and Islamic terrorists found in eastern Congo. The Kenyan contingent expects to be operating out of the Mavivi base in North Kivu province, near the eastern Congo city of Beni. Recently Kenya and Congo signed four framework cooperation agreements. The two countries agreed to cooperate on security and defense, on maritime transport and on several economic issues.

The FIB is currently manned by elite infantry contingents from South Africa, Tanzania and Nepal. South Africa provides an artillery battery and attack helicopters. The FIB was created and first used in mid-2013. It is a unique UN peacekeeper brigade of 3,000 soldiers, though only 2,000 were initially deployed; Tanzanian and South African infantry battalions plus an artillery unit.

FIB was authorized to conduct offensive operations. This is a rare exception to standard peacekeeper defense only tactics. The Congo peacekeeper force has 14,000 troops, 660 military observers, 591 police and 1,050 policemen in paramilitary police units. In January the UN extended the existence of the Congo peacekeeping force until the end of 2021. Up until then there had been serious consideration of reducing and withdrawing the large and expensive peacekeeping force from Congo. The one-year extension indicates the depth of international support for newly elected president Tshisekedi. In light of events during the month of February, the extension of the FIB becomes more important. Former President Kabila is widely believed to have loyal officers in Congos national police force. The elite Presidential Guard force is personally loyal to Kabila. Many feared the police and military would launch a coup against Tshisekedi if he took action against Kabila. Tshisekedi has taken action  and so far, not a peep from the security forces. The UN Congo peacekeeping force is by far the strongest military outfit in central Africa. The FIB is by far the deadliest combat unit in Congo. The UN peacekeepers have a mandate to protect legitimate authority in Congo. If the Presidential Guard launched a coup to restore Kabila would the FIB react? Kabila cant be certain it wouldnt. Yes, this is a real scenario and so far, Kabila has not risked a military solution to regaining his rapidly eroding power. (Austin Bay)

June 18, 2021: In eastern Congo (North Kivu province) thousands of residents of the city of Goma have begun returning to their homes during the last ten days. People left their homes because of the Mount Nyiragongo volcanic eruptions. On May 27 the government, fearing another, more powerful eruption, ordered more to flee. The government now expects all residents to return by June 20. The eruption destroyed over 3,500 homes in the area.

June 17, 2021: Rwandan prosecutors asked a court to sentence Paul Rusesabagina to life in prison on charges of terrorism. At one time Rusesabagina was praised for saving the lives of several hundred ethnic Tutsi civilians during the 1994 Rwandan genocide. However, the Rwandan government now says that in 2018 and 2019 Rusesabagina organized violent attacks by an irregular armed group operating inside Rwanda. Rusesabagina is also accused of financing terrorist attacks. He and his family deny the charges. Rusesabaginas 1994 story inspired the film "Hotel Rwanda."

The UN rebuked the Central African Republics (CAR) security forces and some of its militia allies. The UN claims CAR security units and their allies had committed atrocities and targeted UN peacekeepers with hostile threats and acts. Earlier this month the Security Council condemned atrocities by CAR forces and attacks on UN peacekeepers may be considered war crimes. Russia and Rwanda both have troops in the CAR. The U.S. recently claimed there is evidence Russian military advisers have led military operations that have confronted UN peacekeepers. Russia denies the allegations.

June 16, 2021: A UN report said that a group of investigators had not been able to find evidence that directly links ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant) to the ADF (Allied Democratic Forces) Islamist militia operating in eastern Congo.

In eastern Congo (Ituri province) soldiers fought with CODECO (Cooperative for the Development of the Congo) rebel militiamen in Djugu, eastern Congo). The army accused CODECO of attacking their position. The attack failed with 42 CODECO rebels and two soldiers killed. Four soldiers were wounded.

June 15, 2021: Congos Senate rejected a request by government prosecutors that former Prime Minister Matata Ponyo Mapon lose his immunity status. The prosecutors believe Matata helped steal $200 million from a government agriculture project in the Bukanga Lonzo region. He was prime minister from 2012 to 2016, serving under former president Joseph Kabila.

June 12, 2021: With the East African Oil Pipeline project approved, Landlocked Uganda announced it expects to export its first oil sometime in 2025. An oil industry analytic service reported Uganda could produce 230,000 barrels a day by 2026. Ugandas oil fields are near Lake Albert.

June 10, 2021: In eastern Congo (North Kivu province) Virunga National Park Park rangers arrested militia commander Jackson Muhukambuto on charges of murdering 19 rangers. Muhukambuto is also accused of poaching and smuggling ivory. His militia is called the Mai-Mai Jackson MFP. The Park has a ranger force with an authorized strength of 689 rangers. Virunga was reopened in early 2019 after being closed since May 2018 because in response to the kidnapping of two tourists and their Congolese driver and the murder of a park ranger who tried to defend the three victims. Virunga is huge, covering over 7,800 square kilometers.

June 9, 2021: Italian prosecutors have begun investigating a UN World Food Program officer for possible involvement in the ambush murder of Italian ambassador Luca Attanasio, his driver, and an Italian soldier accompanying the ambassador. The attack took place in February near Virunga National Park. Authorities called the attack an attempted kidnapping. Virunga is a notorious hideout for all sorts of criminal groups.

June 8, 2021: France announced it is suspending all military operations with CAR (Central African Republic) forces as well as $12 million in financial support for CAR forces. France also accused the CAR of conducting an anti-French disinformation campaign. Approximately 160 French military personnel have been providing support and training for CAR security forces.

June 4, 2021: In Congo medical authorities believe Congo is confronting a third wave of covid19 cases. The new outbreak is centered in the capital, Kinshasa, where there is the greatest concentration of people flying in from all over the world.

June 3, 2021: In eastern Congo (Ituri province) an unidentified militia killed at least 11 artisanal gold miners in the Djugu area. One report indicated the miners had been executed. It is believed the militia is attempting to take control of the gold fields that are worked mainly by freelance, often amateur, gold miners..

June 2, 2021: The Central African Republic (CAR) and Chad have asked the UN and AU (African Union) to investigate a May 30 attack on a border crossing. Six Chadian soldiers and three Russian military advisers serving in the CAR were killed in the attack. A Russian news agency reported another three Russian soldiers were killed in the area when a land mine exploded.

May 31, 2021: Former Ugandan Army chief of staff Katumba Wamala survived an assassination attempt in Kampala. Four attackers on motorcycles wounded Wamala and killed his daughter and driver. Wamala is currently serving as Ugandas minister of transportation.
SASKATOON, Saskatchewan, June 21, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- DEEP Earth Energy Production Corp. (the Corporation or DEEP) has successfully completed the Front-End Engineering and Design (FEED) with a corresponding Feasibility study and report on its first geothermal power facility in southeast Saskatchewan. A Canadian first, the facilitys nominal output is expected to be 32 MW and will produce up to 33.4 Megawatts (MW) net power during the winter and a minimum of 20 MW net power during summer, due to seasonal variability in the output of the air cooled binary power plant (lower ambient air temperatures result in higher geothermal power production). Future construction phases have the capacity to increase power outputs to 160 MW during the winter months. Engineering services were provided by Enerpro Engineering Inc. GeothermEx (a Schlumberger Company) is completing a full review of the FEED and Feasibility study.

Total capital costs for the first facility came within the target range and are estimated at approximately CAN$8 million per MW. The report details the capital costs and project schedule, highlighting a start-up date of January 1, 2024. Costs are expected to be driven down further based on: operational learnings and economies of scale in drilling, manufacturing, and construction. Compared to wind or solar, geothermal capital costs are higher, but the non-intermittent (24/7 baseload) characteristic of geothermal creates attractive revenues, offsetting the higher upfront costs.

Currently, 74% of Saskatchewans power comes from traditional carbon-based generation methods (coal and gas fired power plants). By supporting the commitments of Saskatchewan and Canada to power our future with clean electricity, this facility will eliminate approximately 155,000 tCO21 from the atmosphere each year, the equivalent to removing 34,000 cars off the road every year. For every 1 MW of clean geothermal energy produced, approximately 1,200 homes can be removed from non-renewable power generation sources.

Geothermal projects are not exposed to rising non-renewable fuel costs and carbon pricing. Using a carbon tax rate of CAN$65/tCO2 for 2023 and beyond for the DEEP geothermal project, the taxpayers of Saskatchewan will be paying CAN$10 million less in carbon tax per year (155,000 tCO2/year x CAN$65/tCO2). This is a big win for Saskatchewan.

The DEEP geothermal power facility will generate power from hot (120-125C) water produced from open hole barefoot horizontal wells drilled into the Deadwood Formation (the deepest sedimentary unit in the Williston Basin). The ORC technology converts heat from these fluids by passing the geothermal fluid through a heat exchanger to transfer its heat to the organic working fluid, which vaporizes and expands through a turbine, generating power. The working fluid is condensed and re-used continuously in a closed loop. After passing through the heat exchanger, the geothermal fluids are re-injected back into the reservoir in locations that are suitably distant from the production wells to sweep more heat from the reservoir over time.

The well field will be completed with 10 horizontal production wells and 8 horizontal injection wells drilled to a vertical depth of approximately 3,500 metres. Each well will have a horizontal (lateral) length of 3,000-4,000 m, resulting in a total well bore length of approximately 7,000 m. The well pairs will be separated by 750 m. Each production well will be installed with a down-hole electric submersible pump (ESP). This arrangement is designed to meet the specified target flow rate, minimize capital costs, maintain reservoir pressure and enable heat sweeps.

This globally unique ribcage geothermal well field arrangement has been adapted from conventional oilfield design and completion practices and is being advanced by local, world-class oilfield expertise. This is helping to redeploy a highly skilled workforce into a new clean energy sector for Canada. Approximately 250,000 person hours of work will be required for the drilling and completions alone, with an additional 130,000 person hours being added during project construction. Essentially, thousands of new jobs will be created by this project in southeast Saskatchewan and across the Canadian prairies. DEEPs geothermal project design could prove to be transformative in deep sedimentary basins around the world, providing a compelling example of how oil and gas technology and people can support the development of clean baseload power.

We are taking the best of both industries" by merging highly skilled oil and gas expertise with specialized geothermal reservoir and power generation expertise, said Kirsten Marcia, DEEP President & CEO.

To further reduce GHG emissions, DEEP will use the stranded flare/vent gas that is associated with local oil and gas infrastructure to supply the necessary power for ORC facility loads, mostly pumping power. At nearby oilwells, flare gas is burned as a waste product because the cost to collect it is not economically viable. This waste gas produces GHG emissions into the atmosphere. Utilizing this otherwise wasted flare gas to power the pumping requirements, and using modern carbon capturing and sequestering technology can power DEEPs pumps and capture an additional 60,000 tonnes of CO2 annually that would otherwise be flared and wasted. This will also provide the oil producers in the area that are supplying the flare/vent gas real relief from rising carbon taxes, making their operations more environmentally and economically sustainable.

DEEP has a signed Memorandum of Understanding with a midstream company in the area to secure a long-term feedstock supply of flare/vent gas to power the facilitys parasitic power requirements. DEEP is also considering CO2 sequestration opportunities for other producers and CO2 emitters in the area by using its previously drilled test wells and transferring the carbon credits to those producers to aid in methane and CO2 reduction from oilfield operations. This will provide additional reductions of CO2 emissions in Saskatchewan and provide stability to the royalty generating producers.

In addition to power generation, there are many strategic direct use geothermal heating opportunities currently being explored. Major greenhouse developments can support research into diverse high-value crops to increase farm profitability and also supply locally grown produce. As Canada looks to close offshore open-net salmon farms in British Columbia, there are new opportunities for aquaculture operations and infrastructure in Saskatchewan using geothermal heating. There is also capacity for a specialized manufacturing, storage and distribution hub. These would all provide major long-term local employment opportunities and address national food or supply chain security concerns. Heat would be sold to these end users with no carbon tax and no commodity price risk.

DEEPs vision to build 100-160 MW of geothermal power and direct heating infrastructure will be a new, green CAN$1 Billion industry for southeast Saskatchewan. It is important that we extend our sincere gratitude to Natural Resources Canada and the Province of Saskatchewan who have been major supporters and financial contributors to this project that will create jobs and reduce GHG emissions.

In the spirit of reconciliation and of transformative change, DEEP is proud to support Special Advisor to DEEP, George Lafond and his family who are honouring Chief Alphonsine Lafond with a fund investing in young Indigenous women  The Alphonsine Lafond Fund for Innovation. On this National Indigenous Peoples Day, we celebrate leaders like Alphonsine  an Indigenous Saskatchewan woman who overpowered the constraints she encountered and believed in a world of equality. For more information, please visit: https://saskatooncommunityfoundation.ca/funds/alphonsine-lafond-fund-for-innovation/

For more information on DEEP, please visit www.deepcorp.ca or contact:

President & CEO, Kirsten Marcia: (639) 638-0484, info@deepcorp.ca or Wade MacBain, Investor Relations: (306) 717-1818, wmacbain@deepcorp.caPublic Relations & Media, Cynthia Block: (306) 230-8262, cynthia@blockcommunications.ca

Future Oriented Financial Information Disclaimer:

Some of the statements in this news release may be forward-looking statements or statements of future expectations based on currently available information. Such statements are naturally subject to risks and uncertainties. Factors such as the development of general economic conditions, future market conditions, unusual catastrophic loss events, changes in the capital markets and other circumstances may cause the actual events or results to be materially different from those anticipated by such statements. DEEP, including its directors or officers, do not make any representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness or updated status of such statements. Therefore, in no case whatsoever will DEEP or its directors or officers be liable to anyone for any decision made or action taken in conjunction with the information and/or statements in this update or for any related damages. You should consult your professional advisors before deciding to make an investment decision in DEEP.

___________________________________1 Based on Table A13-9, Electricity Generation and GHG Emission Details for Saskatchewan, 680 tCO2/GWh, National Inventory Report 1990-2018: Greenhouse Gas Sources and Sinks in Canada (2020)

Source: DeepCorp
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 22, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Everything Podcasts Ltd. is pleased to announce its partial acquisition by Pattison Media, Canadas leading multi-platform media company. This deal brings Everything Podcasts custom podcast expertise into Pattison Medias expanding digital stable in a dynamic partnership that promises significant and exciting opportunities for both companies.

We are a group of passionate storytellers who have the privilege of doing what we love every day, and were so excited to be able to tell brands stories with a respected media powerhouse like Pattison, a trusted leader across the broadcast and media landscape, says Everything Podcasts Founder/CEO Jennifer Smith. We have always focused on putting our clients first, and this has allowed us to create partnerships with brands around the world.

This acquisition allows Everything Podcasts to move to the next level, scaling up its services and broadening its reach to include continued expansion of large multi-national companies, tech, financial services, publishing, film and television companies, while expanding further into American and European markets.

Im so fortunate to be able to take my twenty-five years of broadcast/media experience and build this company, bringing many of the best creators in the media/podcast space together, says Smith. As the founder/CEO of a women-led company, our team is excited to be with Pattison to place Everything Podcasts in the centre of the growing and diverse podcast media space.

Podcasting is the new media frontier, and Everything Podcasts is at the forefront with a unique ability to tell powerful stories that capture the attention of audiences worldwide. Everything Podcasts clients have included national and international companies such as St. Michaels Unity Health Toronto, Kings College London, and Curatio, a private social health network active in 102 countries and 20 languages. The company has grown by 145% since 2019 and is ideally positioned for this strategic partnership with Pattison.

This acquisition rounds out our media stable and allows us to offer our customers turn-key podcast solutions. Its for precisely this reason that Pattison Media wanted to acquire Everything Podcasts. With the extensive growth of podcasting, this was a natural step for us as we look to expand our digital components as a full-service media business, says Rod Schween, President of Pattison Media. CEO Jennifer Smith and her team bring their expertise in powerful storytelling to the audience in a way that captures attention and lifts brands in a meaningful and memorable way.

The current management team will continue to lead Everything Podcasts and all of their existing, talented team remain ready to tell clients stories. Visit www.everythingpodcasts.com to learn more about this exciting new venture.

About Everything Podcasts Ltd.

Headquartered in Vancouver, B.C., Everything Podcasts provides turn-key solutions for companies and brands eager to take advantage of the explosive growth in the podcasting space. From ideation to creation to distribution to promotion, Everything Podcasts is a full-service media production company with a global network of studios. Our team brings decades of experience in creating content that engages audiences and delivers compelling audio design and powerful storytelling. This talented team of award-winning creators produces original podcasts with and for companies, brands, and organizations that position their values with listeners and customers. National and international clients alike know firsthand the value of Everything Podcasts client first philosophy in every facet of the creation and production process. Visit www.everythingpodcasts.com for more information.

About Pattison Media

Headquartered in Kamloops, B.C., Pattison Media is the countrys largest, private, western-based media company. Spanning British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, their operations currently encompass 45 FM and 3 AM radio stations, 3 television stations, 17 online news portals and a strategic partnership/partial ownership in digital & creative agency, Lift Interactive, in Edmonton, AB. Pattison Media is a proud division of the Jim Pattison Group, a diversified group of operating businesses, based in Vancouver, which has grown to become the second largest privately held company in Canada. Please visit www.pattisonmedia.com or www.jimpattison.com for more information.

Contact

Jennifer Smith Founder/CEO Everything Podcasts Jennifer@everythingpodcasts.com 604-377-7922 Rod Schween President Pattison Media Ltd Rod.Schween@pattisonmedia.com 250-372-3322

Source: Everything Podcasts
REDWOOD CITY, Calif., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, OpenGov, the leader in modern cloud ERP software for our nation's cities, counties, and state agencies, expands its market-leading suites with the acquisition of ProcureNow, the industry's fastest-growing, premier multi-tenant SaaS software provider for government procurement and contract management.

Like OpenGov, ProcureNow enables government leaders to serve stakeholders with the most effective solutions designed to streamline critical workflows, enable data-driven decisions, and communicate results transparently. Together with ProcureNow's full lifecycle procurement management software, which features powerful solicitation and contract development automation, OpenGov continues to power governments' most strategic processes: budgeting and planning, citizen services, financial management, reporting and transparency, and, now, procurement -- all in the cloud.

"OpenGov and ProcureNow share the mission to power more effective and accountable government and our vision is to bring the best cloud solutions to every public sector organization," said OpenGov co-founder and CEO Zac Bookman. "When we first started working with ProcureNow, it became evident that our values, culture, and products were strategically aligned. Together, we look forward to modernizing our nation's digital infrastructure. We're thrilled to welcome the ProcureNow team and community of innovative governments to OpenGov!"

Procurement greatly influences a government's ability to meet its strategic goals, including budget accountability, spend management, supplier diversity, economic development, and citizen experience. It plays an increasingly crucial role in facilitating remote work and enabling investments associated with the American Rescue Plan Act and the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act. Adding this integral solution to the OpenGov ERP Cloud has the combined organization poised to meet the modernization needs of the nation's most forward-thinking administrators, finance, and community development professionals.

"We couldn't be more excited about partnering with OpenGov," said ProcureNow co-founder and CEO David Gertmenian-Wong. "It's rare to find a partner so uniquely aligned on mission, vision, and culture. Our customers can look forward to an even greater level of support and rapid innovation as we expand our platform's reach and capabilities. We can't wait to continue empowering procurement professionals to get the most value out of every tax dollar spent, which leads to stronger communities for us all."

To learn more, please visit OpenGov.com/Products/Procurement.

About OpenGovOpenGov is the leader in providing our nation's state agencies and local governments with modern cloud software to help power more effective and accountable government. Built exclusively for the unique budgeting, financial, and community development needs of the public sector, OpenGov solutions help our more than 1,000 customers plan effectively, increase efficiency, and improve engagement through better collaboration and transparency.

About ProcureNowProcureNow is a certified small business headquartered in San Francisco with the mission to transform efficiency and innovation in local government by offering a comprehensive toolkit for building and sourcing government RFPs and bids. ProcureNow's Government Procurement Automation Cloud brings governments and local businesses together with technology that helps more suppliers read, understand, and respond to complex government bids with confidence.

View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/opengov-acquires-government-procurement-software-leader-procurenow-301318629.html

SOURCE OpenGov
U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Michael J. Lutton, left, 20th Air Force commander, passes the guidon to incoming commander Col. Jason F. Vattioni, right, at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico, June 22, 2021. Vattioni assumed command of the 377th Air Base Wing as the installation commander. (Ireland Summers/U.S. Air Force)

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (Tribune News Service)  Col. Jason Vattioni launched his Air Force career as a nuclear weapons technician in 1990. On Tuesday, he assumed command of the 377th Air Base Wing at Kirtland Air Force Base in front of four inert training munitions set up behind the stage as a nod to the base's role in the country's nuclear enterprise.

The Air Force held a change-of-command ceremony, a military tradition where a flag is ceremoniously transferred from one leader to the next, as Col. David Miller officially relinquished his command of the 377th wing.

Vattioni, previously vice commander of the 75th Air Base Wing at Hill Air Force Base in Utah, will now command the wing, whose mission is "to execute nuclear, readiness, and support operations for American air power."

As the host wing of KAFB, the 377th is also responsible for such base operations as security, medical care and facility maintenance.

"There are so many mission partners (at Kirtland) that bring together so many different capabilities ... for our nation, our allies and our partners. That is really exciting," Vattioni said in an interview.

Throughout his career, he said he has trained and attended several courses at Kirtland, such as nuclear weapons orientation, and munitions and missile training.

"It really is the heartbeat of the Air Force's (nuclear) enterprise," he said of the Albuquerque base.

Miller, immediate past commander of the 377th, is being assigned to Tinker Air Base in Oklahoma. He was awarded the Legion of Merit for his work over the past two years, which included guiding Kirtland through the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kirtland's response to COVID included isolating nearly 300 critical troops for six weeks in the early days of the pandemic, and other strategies, Miller said.

"Our approach allowed us to continue to contribute to the nation's defense," he said.

(c)2021 the Albuquerque Journal (Albuquerque, N.M.)

Visit the Albuquerque Journal (Albuquerque, N.M.) at www.abqjournal.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
U.S. Air Force Col. Kristen Thompson, 380th Expeditionary Operations Group commander stands in front of an E-3 Sentry aircraft at Al Dhafra Air Base, United Arab Emirates, March 29, 2021. Thompson on Tuesday, June 22, took command of the 55th Wing at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska. (Zade Vadnais/U.S. Air Force)

OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, Neb.  Offutt Air Force Base's 55th Wing has a new leader  the first woman to command the 80-year-old reconnaissance unit.

The Omaha World-Herald reports that Col. Kristen Thompson took over command Tuesday, becoming the first woman among the 65 officers who have led the unit since it was established in 1941. She replaces Col. Gavin Marks, who was the first Black leader of the unit.

Marks led the 55th Wing through a tumultuous time that included the early stages of recovery from the March 2019 floods and the COVID-19 pandemic.

About 300 people, including Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts, attended the ceremony.

Thompson, a 2001 graduate of the Air Force Academy, flew 600 combat hours in Iraq and Afghanistan. She was most recently commander of the 380th Expeditionary Operations Group at a base in United Arab Emirates.
Fort Benning soldier Spc. Jared Ziehm, who went missing around 12:30 p.m. on Father's Day, has been found safe, military leaders said. Efforts to find him had garnered significant social media attention. (4th Ranger Training Battalion/Facebook)

A Fort Benning soldier who went missing on Fathers Day has returned safe and sound, officials said late Tuesday.

Days earlier, officials and family asked the public for information that might help locate Spc. Jared Ziehm, after the soldiers wife said he hadnt been seen or heard from since he went to sign in for work at about 12:30 p.m. Sunday.

Very happy to announce SPC Ziehm has returned and is safe and sound, the Benning-based 4th Ranger Training Battalion said in a Facebook post Tuesday night. Thanks to everyone for their concern and help. Great work by all agencies/personnel involved to ensure his safe return.

Before his disappearance, Ziehm had been last seen on the base outside Columbus, Ga., which is home to the Armys Ranger School, as well as Airborne, armor and infantry training, Maj. Gen. Patrick Donahoe, the base commander, said Monday on Twitter.

A Twitter post by Donahoe asking for help finding the missing soldier was shared over 300 times. Donahoe thanked his followers in a post late Tuesday that announced Ziehm was safe.

Ziehm had taken his military ID with him and had left in his car, but didn't take his wallet or cellphone, his wife said in a Facebook post seeking help on Sunday. They had plans to celebrate his first Fathers Day before he disappeared, Gussy Ziehm said.

Thank you to everyone who supported our family during this time, she wrote in a Facebook post Tuesday, saying her husband was safe and accounted for.

Neither she nor the military base provided information about what had happened to him, where he had been or how he had been found and returned home.

A 4th Ranger Training Battalion post on Facebook asking for help finding him had been shared nearly 3,000 times and his wife's post about his disappearance was shared more than 4,000 times on the social media platform.

news@stripes.com

Twitter: @starsandstripes
A video screen grab shows Coast Guard Adm. Karl Schultz testifying in a video conference on Wednesday, June 23, 2021. (YouTube)

WASHINGTON  Adm. Karl Schultz, the commandant of the Coast Guard, dodged questions Wednesday from lawmakers on harassment, bullying and retaliation in the service as a new report revealed the service is struggling with an overall rise in sexual assault cases.

The number of reported incidents of sexual assault increased from 225 in fiscal 2019 to 245 reports in fiscal 2020, according to a Coast Guard report sent to Congress on June 16.

At the same time, reported allegations of sexual harassment decreased from 92 in fiscal 2019 to 86 in fiscal 2020. The service said in the report that the decline is attributable to the Coast Guards efforts to increase awareness of sexual harassment prevention.

The data from the annual report last year combined with data from previous Coast Guard reports show a steady increase in the number of reports since 2007, though it is not clear whats behind the rise.

The latest internal Coast Guard report was discussed as part of a House Homeland Security Committee hearing Wednesday on accountability, diversity and inclusion within the service.

Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., the committees chairman, said the services efforts to address sexual assault and sexual harassment, retaliation, diversity and a lack of accountability for perpetrators are falling short of what is needed or not making an impact quickly.

The Coast Guard falls under the purview of the Department of Homeland Security, so the service does not contribute to a more high-profile annual report on sexual assault across the other military branches, which are a part of the Defense Department.

Wednesdays hearing marked the first time that Schultz testified about how the service is addressing harassment, bullying and retaliation after a series of damning congressional and inspector general reports.

When lawmakers asked Schultz to demonstrate how he has held leadership and other perpetrators accountable for their actions, the commandant discussed updates to anti-harassment and anti-hate incident policy, as well as other recommendations but was scant on details. He also said other members of the Coast Guard would be better suited to answer a question on how he encourages accountability.

The increased reporting of sexual assaults in the Coast Guard comes as lawmakers on Capitol Hill look to make a significant change to how military sexual assault and harassment cases are prosecuted. On Wednesday, House lawmakers introduced a bill that would remove the decision to prosecute serious crimes in the military from the chain of command.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also said Tuesday night that he backs the move to give the power to prosecute cases of sexual assault to independent prosecutors after decades of resistance from the Pentagon.

The newest report on the Coast Guard follows the results of several other investigations that brought to light the services mishandling of allegations of harassment and bullying. Military leadership did not hold officials accountable for failing to complete investigations, and perpetrators were also not adequately disciplined for toxic, and sometimes unlawful behavior.

Thompson said the series of Coast Guard reports highlight a culture of fear that discourages reporting of misconduct, as well as major cultural problems at the Coast Guard Academy.

The lawmaker said the new report on sexual assault reveals a disturbing trend.

Reports of sexual assault have more than doubled in the last decade, Thompson said, citing the Coast Guard report. A 2018 survey also found nearly half of female cadets at the academy said they had been sexually harassed.

Taken together, these reports should be setting off every alarm bell, warning light and alert system at the Coast Guard headquarters and on every base, cutter and air space. As the senior leader of the Coast Guard, Admiral Schultz is ultimately responsible for responding to this five-alarm fire, Thompson said.

Schultz said the data on sexual assault shows a slow glide slope, some of which he would attribute to more comfort in reporting.

I think we have created a more open environment to report we are working hard to eradicate sexual assaults, sexual harassment from our ranks, he said.

The commandant also said he agrees sexual harassment jeopardizes readiness and mission accomplishment, and weakens trust within the ranks and erodes unit cohesion.

Schultz said the service has improved the way allegations are addressed by refining investigative procedures and processing timelines to expedite adjudication of complaints in the last couple of years.

We mandated additional training and enhanced selection criteria for investigators, and now, investigators are appointed from outside the immediate chain of command. These changes add fairness and transparency to the investigative process, Schultz said.

However, the commandant did not give his support to remove the decision to prosecute serious crimes from the chain of command.

Keeping commanders in the decision-making process is absolutely essential, because this is [the] commander's business...we will follow suit with the armed services and I am open to change, Schultz said.

But Schultz was not as direct in response to questions from Democratic lawmakers about how the service is developing a culture that emphasizes accountability and justice.

Rep. Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., asked what Schultz has done to ensure perpetrators receive appropriate discipline and do not advance for promotions.

The commandant said accountability is woven into all the subsequent recommendations that the service is implementing at the direction of Congress and Homeland Securitys inspector general but he did not provide specifics.

We have the Uniform Code of Military Justice from a discipline standpoint. We have administrative tools at our discretion to use and we absolutely will try to create a perception, or reality, that there is accountability, Schultz said.

Clarke pressed the admiral on whether he believes there is a culture of retaliation and fear that prevents saying anything negative about the Coast Guard at the risk of facing professional consequences.

Do I believe theres a pervasive culture? No, Schultz said.

The congresswoman also asked how Schultz is promoting a culture of accountability that is actively encouraged.

I think it would probably be incumbent on my 57,000 shipmates to better answer that question than me, he said.

Schultz said 125 cultural change agents will be fully trained by the end of summer to deliver diversity training and facilitate conversations about diversity and mentorship, which is tied to the services diversity and inclusion action plan.

The commandant was also grilled on the case of Lt. Cmdr. Kimberly Young-McLear, a key part of the 2019 congressional probe, which substantiated years of bullying, harassment, discrimination and retaliation.

All the senior Coast Guard officials who were found to have allowed her allegations to go uninvestigated and who failed to protect her from retaliation in Young-McLears case have all received promotions or competitive job assignments, said Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-N.J.

It is imperative that the Coast Guard hold these leaders accountable for retaliation and ensure survivors are made whole, the congresswoman said.

She asked what has been done to hold those individuals accountable in Young-McLears case and other cases.

Schultz spoke for a few minutes about the details of the case, but did not describe any form of action.

I am concerned when you find substantiated allegations, what are the consequences to the individuals that either perpetrated the harassment or the discrimination, or who allowed it and didnt do anything about it, Coleman said.

Schultz said he did not have the grounds to take disciplinary action or administrative action, but focused on corrective action. He said one captain at the academy had been reassigned within the school as a result of the investigation and the captain later retired.

Coleman cut him off: The chairman asked you this question, which you artfully dodged the yes or no. Has there been a public apology, specifically, to [Young-McLear]?  Would you be willing to issue a written apology for the record on this.

Congresswoman, Im not sure if its as simple as a yes or no question I addressed the cadet corps and the first question I got was from [Young-McLear] and I stated that the Coast Guard had not done right by her and that was unfortunate, Schultz said.

He said it was tricky business on whether he would issue a written apology, yet he said he would apologize up front to people who have been harmed in the past.

It is a tricky space, but...if there are no consequences, theres no change [in] behavior. And simple reassignment is not really a consequence, the congresswoman said.

Young-McLear wrote in a statement on the record for the hearing that the commandant denied my requests for a formal written apology, a meeting to discuss ways in which the culture must improve, and accountability.

Until there is accountability and justice on these issues, Young-McLear wrote survivors like myself will not move on.

Cammarata.Sarah@stripes.com

Twitter: @sarahjcamm
Pfc. Cedar Ross, left, exchanged a challenge coin with his great-grandfather, retired Marine Hershel ''Woody'' Williams, right, the last living recipient of the Medal of Honor from World War II, after Ross graduated from Marine Corps boot camp Friday, June 18, 2021, in Parris Island, S.C. (Brent Casey)

Cedar Ross got a word of advice before Marine Corps boot camp from a family member who knows a thing or two about the service himself.

His great-grandfather is Hershel Woody Williams, 97, the last living Medal of Honor recipient from World War II and a retired chief warrant officer.

The only advice I think I gave him was to do the very best that he could and then do a little more, Williams said in a CBS Evening News interview.

Going above and beyond the call of duty at the risk of his own life earned Williams the countrys highest medal for combat bravery during the Battle of Iwo Jima in 1945, while he was serving with the 3rd Marine Division.

Marine tanks were maneuvering in vain to clear a path for the infantry through a network of reinforced concrete pillboxes when Williams, then a corporal, volunteered his services, the award citation says.

Covered by only 4 riflemen, he fought desperately for 4 hours under terrific enemy small-arms fire and repeatedly returned to his own lines to prepare demolition charges and obtain serviced flamethrowers, it says.

He struggled back, frequently to the rear of hostile emplacements, to wipe out seven machine guns, one-by-one.

Medal of Honor recipient Hershel Woodrow Williams salutes as he is introduced at the USS Hershel "Woody" Williams commissioning ceremony, March 7, 2020, in Norfolk, Va. (Fernando Moreno/U.S. Marine Corps)

At one point, he mounted a pillbox and inserted the nozzle of his flamethrower through an air vent, killing the occupants and silencing the gun.

At another point, he charged Japanese riflemen who tried to stop him with bayonets and destroyed them with a burst of flame from his weapon.

Williams is the namesake of the expeditionary sea base USS Hershel Woody Williams, currently deployed to the U.S. 6th Fleet to support operations in Europe and Africa.

Ross was about halfway through boot camp before his drill instructors realized he was the descendant of the legendary Marine, CBS News reported.

Legendary Marine Hershel Woody Williams, who at 97 is the last living WWII Medal of Honor recipient, is back on base at Parris Island for graduation.



After conquering boot camp himself, hes now passing the torch to his great-grandson in a ceremony for the ages. pic.twitter.com/hT1oU1yB1s  CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) June 21, 2021

The chief drill instructor told me, Ross, youre going to have big shoes to fill, Ross said in an interview seated beside his great-grandfather. I said, Yes, sir. Thankfully, I wear size 15.

Williams laughed. Last week, he visited Parris Island, S.C., to watch his great-grandson and some 350 other new Marines cross the parade deck during a boot camp graduation ceremony.

For his efforts during the rigorous 13-week training, Ross earned a meritorious promotion to private first class, a program for the event indicated.

Fridays ceremony was the first that family members were allowed to attend in-person since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and Williams was decked out in his dress blues to honor the newest Marines.

They have said by their taking that oath, You may take my life, but you cannot take my country or my freedom, Williams said.

Addressing the graduating Marines, Lt. Col. Robert M. Groceman, commanding officer of the 2nd Recruit Training Battalion, told them to take pride in themselves, their uniforms and their accomplishments Friday.

But tomorrow is no longer about you, he said. Tomorrow is about those Marines who came before us, whose legacy you are now a part of. Tomorrow is about those Marines to your left and to your right who are depending on you.

garland.chad@stripes.com

Twitter: @chadgarland
Petty Officer 3rd Class David Feder stands watch as the guided-missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur sails through the Taiwan Strait, Tuesday, June 22, 2021. ()

A week after China flew a record sortie of 28 fighter jets into Taiwans air defense zone, the U.S. Navy on Tuesday sent a guided-missile destroyer through the narrow strait dividing the island from mainland China.

The guided missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilburs routine transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the U.S. commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific, the Navy said in a news release Tuesday.

It was the sixth time this year that a Navy surface ship passed through the politically sensitive channel. The Curtis Wilbur also made the most recent transit on May 18.

Navy warships passed through the Taiwan Strait 11 times in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, according to a report by the Congressional Research Service.

Chinas sortie of fighter jets that flew into Taiwans air space on June 15 included 14 J-16 and six J-11 planes, The Associated Press said in a report, citing Taiwans Ministry of National Defense as the source.

Taiwan deployed its combat air patrol forces in response to the incursion on the southwestern part of the islands air defense identification zone, according to the report.

Beijing considers Taiwan a renegade province that must, at some point, be unified politically with the mainland.

Leaders of the Group of Seven industrialized nations  the U.S., United Kingdom, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan  after meeting earlier this month issued a statement calling for peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

China maintains that such statements interfere in the nations internal affairs.

Taiwan, which enjoys a functioning democracy, has garnered greater international attention as the Communist Party of China has squelched Hong Kongs semi-autonomy by imposing a national security law last summer that has been used to silence and imprison dissenters.

That move ran contrary to Chinas agreement to allow Hong Kong a degree of political autonomy  the so-called one country, two systems principle  after Great Britain handed over the former colony in 1997.

Beijing had likewise maintained for years that unification with Taiwan would be peaceful and mutual, but the turnabout in Hong Kong has led many international observers to ponder whether China is preparing for forcible reunification.

olson.wyatt@stripes.com

Twitter: @WyattWOlson

Wyatt Olson
Randall Tilton, who was stationed at the Naval Submarine Base New London aboard the USS South Dakota as a machinists mate 1st class, waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty in Dec. 2020 to child pornography offenses related to his sexual abuse of two infants and five toddlers. (U.S. Justice Department)

NEW LONDON, Conn. (Tribune News Service)  Navy sailor Randall Tilton was sentenced to 210 years in federal prison Tuesday for the sexual abuse of seven infants and toddlers in a case U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Meyer and government prosecutors called the worst of its kind theyve ever seen.

Before Meyer sentenced Tilton, parents of several of the victims spoke either by Zoom or in person at the federal courthouse in New Haven, where Tilton sat, dressed in prison garb, wearing a face mask.

One mother described him as a vile, inhuman creature.

I dont wish you death, but a long life full of pain, another said.

A father who addressed the court struggled to deliver a profanity-laced condemnation of Tilton.

I beg of you, your Honor, dont ever let him out, a mother of one of the victims said. He belongs in the general (prison) population, and I understand what that would mean for him and I dont care.

Tilton delivered a statement in which he apologized to the victims.

Its not just the production of child pornography, the video, images, for your own satisfaction, which is not even a charge in this case, Meyer told Tilton before pronouncing sentence. What really sets it apart is the scores and scores of hands-on acts of sexual abuse of seven children  much worse than hands on  that goes on for year after year...And for some of these children, its rape, theres no other word for it  rapes of children who knew you and who you knew could not complain.

In arguing for a 30-year sentence, Moira Buckley, the federal public defender representing Tilton, said, Were asking for daylight at the end of the sentencing tunnel. ... His life is going to be one long prison term whether hes in prison or out.

Meyer told Tilton he was troubled by his choice of victims  children under your complete whim and control  and was not persuaded to be lenient by Tiltons military service or by the fact he has not been convicted of other crimes. The judge said he was not confident that Tilton would be rehabilitated in prison and was concerned that if Tilton were released in his 50s, he could still inflict harm.

I also think about the peace of mind of the victims, Meyer said. I heard them loud and clear.

Meyer adopted prosecutors recommendation that Tilton serve his sentence at Federal Medical Center, Devens, a federal prison in eastern Massachusetts for male inmates requiring specialized or long-term medical or mental health care.

The sentence includes an order that Tilton pay more than $900,000 in restitution to his victims.

Tilton, a New Hampshire native who was stationed at Naval Submarine Base New London aboard the USS South Dakota as a machinists mate 1st class, waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty in December to child pornography offenses related to his sexual abuse of two infants as young as 4 months old and five toddlers, most of whom were about 3 years old when Tiltons abuse of them began.

The criminal activity spanned three states  California, New Hampshire and Connecticut  over the course of eight years.

Tilton violently raped the two infants and published videos he made of his abuse to the dark web. He took pornographic photos of a Navy comrades 4-year-old daughter at a BBQ and raped and recorded videos of the 7-year-old daughter of a local woman he met on a dating app.

Tilton told investigators he abused his first infant victim more than 300 times. His rapes became increasingly violent, prosecutors said, and a video of his rape was viewed more than 100,000 times on the dark web. In forums on the dark web, Tilton spoke publicly about how much he enjoyed what he did.

While it is hard to imagine what would lead a person to sexually abuse any child, it is inconceivable that a person could be so inherently evil as to prey upon infants. Randall Tilton, however, is the personification of that very evil, Assistant U.S. Attorney Nancy V. Gifford wrote in a 25-page sentencing memo filed with the court this month.

It is difficult to overstate  or even to adequately state  the horrifying nature of Tiltons crimes, Gifford wrote in the memo, which at one point describes Tiltons crimes as among the most horrific seen in this district.

In imposing the maximum, 210-year penalty  30 years for each of seven counts  Meyer adopted the prosecutors sentencing recommendation. In seeking a 30-year sentence, Tilton and his attorneys had submitted a letter Tilton wrote to the judge in which Tilton calls his actions selfish, destructive, unnatural and wrong.

Prosecutors said that in another letter Tilton wrote from prison to someone he considers his grandfather, Tilton described his abuse  and how much he enjoyed it  in great detail.

Tiltons own words, captured in comments he made in forums on the dark web and chilling letters sent from prison, demonstrate that he reveled in the abuse and brutality he inflicted, Gifford wrote.

Meyer referred to Tiltons letter to the grandfather figure as that remarkable letter you wrote.

Tilton confessed to Groton Town Police that he had assaulted his first victim when she was 6 months old, and investigators obtained 35 videos and 66 images of that abuse over the course of several years. The abuse only ended when Tilton was arrested, prosecutors said.

Investigators found more than 8,000 videos and photos of infants and toddlers being sexually abused in Tiltons possession.

___

(c)2021 The Day (New London, Conn.)

Visit The Day (New London, Conn.) at www.theday.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Merle J. Smith Jr., left, pictured with his father, U.S. Army Col. Merle J. Smith Sr., and then Coast Guard Commandant Willard J. Smith at the Coast Guard Academy commencement in 1966. (U.S. Coast Guard/Facebook)

NEW LONDON, Conn.  Merle Smith Jr., the first Black cadet to graduate from the Coast Guard Academy, has died, his family said. He was 76.

Smith died on June 16 of complications from Parkinson's disease and COVID-19, his wife Lynda Smith said.

Smith commanded a cutter in Vietnam, taught law classes at the academy in New London and retired from active-duty service with the rank of Coast Guard commander before joining the legal staff of submarine builder Electric Boat.

The academy's superintendent, Rear Adm. William Kelly, said in an email to the campus community that Smith "served as a role model for countless cadets, faculty, and staff."

Smith, the son of an Army colonel, attended the academy as a member of the Class of 1966. In an interview with The Associated Press in 2012, he said he generally did not feel like an outsider during his years as a cadet.

"Every now and then you would get something that would happen. Someone would make some remark somewhere," he said. "In the main, it was not a situation that I felt uncomfortable with."

In 2016, the academy honored Smith with a ceremony commemorating the 50th anniversary of his graduation, and last year it announced plans to rename its officers club after Smith. In a congratulatory letter, members of the class he graduated with noted his "unflappable demeanor" during his service Vietnam  where his service was honored with a Bronze Star  and his role as a pioneer for diversity.

"In recent years, as the emphasis on diversity and inclusiveness grew within the Coast Guard, you became a beacon of inspiration within the Academy community encouraging others to strive for the unimaginable and forge new paths of greatness in the face of adversity and uncertainty," his classmates wrote.

As a cutter commander during the Vietnam War, Smith also became the first Black officer to command a U.S. warship in close quarters combat.

In 2006, Smith served as a defense attorney in the first court-martial of a cadet in the academy's 130-year history. The student was acquitted of a rape charge, but found guilty of other crimes including indecent assault and extortion.

Smith's family said he did not consider himself a trailblazer.

"He was a really wonderful, wonderful man, who did his job as he saw fit to do his job, so therefore he considered all of his accomplishments as part of doing his job, as opposed to being a trailblazer or a pioneer," Lynda Smith told The Day of New London. "He was very self-effacing in his personality, very humble, very gracious."

Merle grew up in Germany, Japan and elsewhere in the U.S. and attended Aberdeen High School in Maryland before entering the Coast Guard Academy in 1962. He graduated from the George Washington University Law School in 1974, according to the academy.
Yurts date from thousands of years ago but are now part of the glamping trend. Russell Prechtl and his husband, Craig Freeman, built Solar Solitude last year and started renting out the West Virginia property in March. (Christian Arriola/The Washington Post)

On a spring afternoon deep in West Virginia, Frankie ran around and around and around the deck of Solar Solitude, a rental yurt. To the uninformed observer, the Puerto Rican rescue dog, a guest at the property, was chasing an imaginary squirrel. But I knew better. Frankie was embracing one of the hallmark traits of the yurt: its roundness.

The pandemic has pushed us outdoors, but when it's time to come in, we don't want the same old four walls. Unusual lodgings have become commonplace, and few more than the yurt. The Airbnb Report on Travel & Living, which the company released in May, noted a 31% increase in the number of unique accommodations since 2019; the collection now exceeds 170,000 listings. Demand has risen with supply: According to the study, searches for rentals in this category has grown 94%, and interest in yurts has surged by about 1,700%  more than earthhouses, barns and tiny homes. Campspot has noticed a similar upswing. The booking site for outdoorsy stays features more than 100 yurts in a variety of settings, such as a gnome-themed campground in Pennsylvania and the grounds of a reproduction fort along Colorado's South Platte River. Over the past year, the company noted a 13 percent higher occupancy rate for yurts than for other types of accommodations at vacation spots with mixed lodging styles.

"Yurts are having their moment. They have that cool factor," said Dana "the Yurt Girl" Hendel Morgan, a design and sales consultant with Seattle-based Rainier Outdoor, which builds the structures. "It's just blown up, especially with glamping on the rise."

Ah, yes, glamping, where "roughing it" means having to flick the bug off your duvet cover or throw another Duraflame log on the fire. The muffin-top-shaped dwellings are part of this trend, which is still going strong more than a decade after landing on our shores from Europe. Last year, 4.8 million households with first-time campers tried glamping, up from 1.3 million in 2019, according to Kampgrounds of America's 2021 North American Camping Report. Travelers are clearly seeking nature-centric escapes that feel more like a snug cashmere throw than a scratchy wool camping blanket.

"Yurts remind me of being a kid again," said Colin Sternagel, who lived in Mongolia for seven months before founding SunTime Yurts, which imports the shelters from the Central Asian country. "They are like the ultimate fort made of blankets and have the coziness of a [Volkswagen] Westfalia, but are better insulated."

Colin Sternagel, the founder of SunTime Yurts in Washington state, spent seven months living in Mongolia and imports the structures from the Central Asian country. (SunTime Yurts) From the outside, Solar Solitude resembles the round homes of Mongolian nomads. Inside, it has all the amenities and conveniences of an urban dwelling. (Emily Prechtl/The Washington Post)

Much like tents and cabins, yurts weren't  and still aren't  always cushy affairs. The felt-and-wood homes originated in Mongolia several thousand years ago as mobile lodging for nomadic herders living and working on the Gobi Desert steppes. Mongolian ruler Genghis Khan used gers, the local word for the structure, on his military campaigns. The yurt's main selling points are its portability, durability and quick assembly. Paula Sabloff, a political anthropologist who curated the traveling exhibit, "Modern Mongolia: Reclaiming Genghis Khan," said a Mongolian family can break down and erect a yurt in less than an hour. (By comparison, Solar Solitude took five months to build. Blame the contractor.)

"A friend once said that one is not a true Mongolian man if he cannot assemble a yurt," Sabloff said. "He was, of course, Mongolian."

The yurt's simple structure belies its sophisticated engineering. The latticework walls, door frame, rafters and center ring all work together to create compression, tension and balance. The canvas or vinyl cover helps keep the yurt warm, cool or dry, depending on the weather. Of course, you would never know the genius from a passing glance. When I first drove up the long gravel driveway to Solar Solitude, I wondered if I had booked a circus tent or, based on its color, Papa Smurf's mushroom house.

"Everybody is really curious about it, even if they don't know it's called a yurt," said Russell Prechtl, who with his husband built Solar Solitude last year and started renting the property in March. "They want to know why it doesn't get blown away in high winds." (This is why: The wood frame is bolted down, and the fabric is attached to the foundation via a large metal coil on the perimeter.)

A neighbor I met puzzled over an interior decorating detail. "It must be hard to hang pictures in there," a guy in a pickup truck observed while I was walking Frankie. It isn't: Pretchtl and his husband, Craig Freeman, attached prints from the Lost River Trading Post in nearby Wardensville to the wood frame. And no, the artwork isn't curved.

To be sure, one of the yurt's most defining  and charming  characteristics is its roundness. The circular space feels open and airy, with no hard corners or sharp divisions to disrupt the flow. At Solar Solitude, I felt as if I were riding on a self-propelled carousel that frequently stopped in the kitchen, bathroom, office and den. I only had to leave the sphere to climb the staircase to the bedroom loft. But the domed skylight restored the harmony.

"Every pre-modern culture has celebrated the circle. It's very powerful," said Peter Forbes, who rents nearly 20 yurts on his Knoll Farm in Vermont. "There are few right angles that exist in nature and tons in human culture. You are more connected to nature in a yurt."

Forbes was a longtime friend of Bill Coperthwaite, who is to yurts what Henry David Thoreau is to one-room cabins on ponds. The Maine homesteader, who earned a doctorate in education at Harvard, introduced the country to yurts after reading about the Mongolian buildings in a National Geographic article from 1962. He experimented with the traditional model, replacing the felt with wood panels, for instance, and adding multiple stories to the typically ground-level structure. Coperthwaite, who died in a car crash in 2013, explained the purpose of his yurt mission in his 2002 book, "A Handmade Life: In Search of Simplicity." "The main thrust of my work is not simple living  not yurt design, not social change, although each of these is important and receives large blocks of my time," he wrote. "My central concern is encouragement  encouraging people to seek, experiment, to plan, to create, and to dream."

The octogenarian left behind more than 300 yurts around the country, plus a number of disciples  intentional and accidental  who are carrying on his legacy. Prechtl is among the latter group. "The yurt is a great low-cost alternative to camping that brings you closer to nature," he said. "It's absolutely required for your sanity."

My yurt count is nowhere near Coperthwaite's. My first experience was in the motherland itself, Mongolia. Our entourage of Americans and Mongolians bundled into sleeping bags set atop animal hides. We arrayed ourselves around a fire that none of us stoked during the night. I awoke with an icy nose, the only body part exposed to the frigid air. My next stay was in a New Jersey state park that rented yurts with bunk beds  an upgrade in comfort but still thin on amenities. I stargazed through the skylight, inches closer to Orion than my friend who chose the bottom bunk.

The West Virginia property was gilded luxury compared with the other two. Everything we needed  sectional couch, kitchen island, French press, rain shower head, WiFi  was under one conical roof. When the temperature dropped, we lit the wood-burning stove and plugged in the space heaters. When the sun came out, we rolled up the flap windows and pulled out the deck lounge chairs. When it started to rain, we moved our activities inside. I read under the dome while Frankie resumed her laps, running around and around and around the indoor track.
Displaced families arrive after being rescued by boat from a flooded area of Buzi district, 120 miles outside Beira, Mozambique, on March 23, 2019. (Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi/AP)

JOHANNESBURG  A summit of southern African leaders has agreed to send a regional military force to Mozambique to help the country battle its growing crisis caused by a jihadi insurgency.

Leaders of the 16-nation Southern African Development Community agreed Wednesday to deploy a military force to help the Mozambican government "combat terrorism and acts of violent extremism."

The Islamic extremists' violent campaign in Mozambique's northern province of Cabo Delgado has caused a rapidly escalating humanitarian crisis. The jihadi violence is blamed for the deaths of more than 2,000 people and has caused more than 700,000 to flee their homes.

The brief statement, issued after a summit in Mozambique's capital of Maputo, did not give details on the size of the force or when troops would be sent. Earlier this year military experts from the group recommended that the regional body send in about 3,000 soldiers, with arms, helicopters, airplanes and naval capacity.

The statement also urged that humanitarian assistance be given in northern Mozambique where nearly 1 million people need food aid, according to the U.N. World Food Program.

Mozambique will establish a headquarters in the northern port city of Nacala for the regional force, said the statement.

The insurgency in northern Mozambique started in Cabo Delgado province in 2017 and has grown rapidly in the past year. The rebels have held the port of Mocimboa da Praia since August last year. And they have repeatedly attacked the strategic center of Palma, forcing the French energy firm Total to suspend its $20 billion liquified natural gas project.

The short statement from the summit left many questions unanswered, said analysts.

"There is a lot of uncertainty still as to the size of the regional force and what will be its operating mandate," said Dino Mahtani, deputy director of the International Crisis Group's Africa program. "Mozambican authorities have expressed hesitancy about having regional boots on the ground, so it is not certain how this will be implemented."

The statement is an important acknowledgment by the Southern African Development Community that the conflict in northern Mozambique warrants a regional military intervention, said Jasmine Opperman, an analyst on African extremism.

"There are no details, so we should not expect a quick deployment," said Opperman.

"It is not clear how Mozambique will integrate a regional force into its operations in Cabo Delgado. And SADC should not underestimate the insurgents," she said.

"Such a military intervention alone will not resolve the insurgency. It may be able to help achieve stability and security in northern Mozambique and that will help Mozambique address the humanitarian situation which is dire," she added. "And Mozambique must reestablish effective governance in Cabo Delgado because that has been missing for four years."
Indigenous march past the Cathedral in Brasilia, Brazil, Wednesday, June 23, 2021. Indigenous activists have traveled to the capital to demand government action to halt illegal mining and logging on their land and oppose a proposed bill they say would limit recognition of tribal lands. (Ricardo Mazalan/AP)

BRASILIA, Brazil  Hundreds of Indigenous people gathered outside Brazils Congress on Wednesday to push for rejection of a bill that could loosen protections for their lands  a proposal that has already prompted clashes with police.

Indigenous groups have been staging protests for days in the capital. Dressed in traditional clothes and carrying bows, they marched to Congress, where they sang and danced. A group of women gave roses to police officers standing guard. The prior day, police used tear gas to disperse the protesters, who shot arrows; one pierced an officers leg.

The bill before the lower houses Constitution and Justice Committee would require Indigenous people seeking full protection of their territories to have been occupying the land in 1988, the year Brazils constitution was signed after the nations return to democracy. If approved in committee, it will go to the floor for a vote.

Indigenous rights activists say the cut-off date ignores the fact many had been forcibly expelled from their ancestral lands, particularly during the military dictatorship, or may not have formal means to prove possession.

There are currently 237 such requests for full protection of territories, most small and located outside the Amazon rainforest in Brazils north region, according to Juliana Batista, a lawyer at the nonprofit Socioenvironmental Insititute.

It is a big conflict because theyre in areas within contexts of real estate speculation, cities, and very much pressured by economic interests, Batista said by phone. If they cant prove they were in possession, they could lose their lands.

The bills backers argue it would provide legal certainty to agricultural producers, a key constituency of Brazils far-right President Jair Bolsonaro. He has said Indigenous people control far too much territory relative to their population  their territories cover 14% of Brazil, most in the Amazon  and he has been outspoken about his desire to promote development.

Brazil has enormous potential within that 14%, that enormous area of our Indigenous brothers, he said in a broadcast on social media in April, while highlighting the countrys multitude of agricultural crops.

We want to integrate the Indian into society, he added. The Indian wants to integrate into society, and we wont do anything beyond what our Indian brothers want to do.

Indigenous demonstrators in Brasilia strove to show they were indeed opposed to any changes that could strip them of their rights.

The bill also would allow the government to appropriate so-called Indigenous reserves demarcated prior to 1988 if the groups cultural features have changed. That could potentially apply to more than 60 areas totaling roughly 400,000 hectares (about 1,500 square miles), which are home to around 70,000 people, according to the institute.

The bill attacks lands already approved and demarcated and opens space for illegal mining and deforestation if its approved, Kreta Kaingang, an Indigenous leader from Brazils southern region, said in an interview. It attacks all of our rights.

Indigenous demonstrators on Wednesday circled around a giant speaker to listen to the congressional committees proceedings. They said clashes on Tuesday began when they tried to move out of the blasting sun and into a shaded area.

For decades we have faced ... miners invasions, violence, leaders being killed, said Dinama Tuxa, an Indigenous leader from northeastern Bahia state. And then we arrive to denounce precisely what is going on inside our territories and we face the same situation.

The countrys Supreme Court in the past has ruled against efforts to open Indigenous territories to business interests, ruling the reserves are off limits to commercial development.

___

Biller reported from Rio de Janeiro. Associated Press writer Marcelo de Sousa contributed from Rio.
Buy Photo U.S. Army Capt. Miles Gabrielson and South Korean army Capt. Ha Neul, both assigned to Camp Casey north of Seoul, married on Feb. 20, 2021. The union is the first between active-duty officers in the U.S. and Korean armies, according to the 2nd Infantry Division. (Matthew Keeler/Stars and Stripes)

CAMP CASEY, South Korea  South Korean army Capt. Ha Neul laughed as she recalled meeting her husband, U.S. Army Capt. Miles Gabrielson, last year.

We have a very different memory over that, she said during a recent interview with the newlyweds at this base 40 miles north of Seoul. He thought I was smiling at him.

While relationships between Americans and Koreans are not uncommon, the couples Feb. 20 union became the first of its kind: a marriage between active-duty officers in the U.S. and Korean armies, according to the 2nd Infantry Division.

The bond between Ha, 31, and Gabrielson, 29, both artillery officers, formed in May 2020 after the pair was tasked with one of the most mundane duties in the military: creating a PowerPoint presentation.

The project required them to make a bilingual report for 2nd IDs Republic of Korea-U.S. Combined Division, a unique coalition where U.S. and Korean forces work side by side. For Ha, the project was assigned during one of the busiest days of my life, when she was finalizing the purchase of a new home.

Ill do the more important part, which is translating, Ha said she told herself at the time. So, I went out to do all the [real estate] paperwork and then I came back.

Meanwhile, Gabrielson completed the lions share of their presentation. Ha returned and apologetically asked him out to lunch, and then later to a coffee shop.

I felt bad about it, she said. I felt bad to make him work for me.

The two gradually grew closer over subsequent lunches and dinners. During one of those get-togethers, Ha brought up her concern about their off-duty meetings, which she described as potentially scandalous. Ha said she had avoided relationships with service members, in the off chance they could develop into a disreputable affair.

Buy Photo U.S. Army Capt. Miles Gabrielson and South Korean army Capt. Ha Neul, both assigned to Camp Casey north of Seoul, married on Feb. 20, 2021. The union is the first between active-duty officers in the U.S. and Korean armies, according to the 2nd Infantry Division. (Matthew Keeler/Stars and Stripes)

We saw an opportunity

It was on a night shift during a field exercise when the two couldnt keep back our feelings for each other anymore, Gabrielson said, and they decided to make their relationship official.

We agreed to keep it very discreet, not tell anyone for a while, he said, adding that their interactions were kept strictly professional.

And then, the next day, she told her boss, Gabrielson said, laughing.

Ha said her senior Korean officer was shocked and humbly blamed himself for having introduced the couple.

Nothing prohibits a marriage between active-duty service members from the two countries, a spokesperson for the combined division told Stars and Stripes on a customary condition of anonymity. She said Gabrielson and Ha, who are of the same rank, went through the proper channels to get their marriage certified.

After thoroughly examining military regulations, Gabrielson proposed to Ha last summer, just three months after they were introduced.

Gabrielson admits their marriage might have been a fast decision, but insists it was not impulsive.

In the military, where uncertainty is the nature of our profession, sometimes you have to seize opportunities when theyre presented to you, he said. We didnt know how much time I would be in Korea, and we didnt know how much more time shed have left in Camp Casey. We saw an opportunity and we went with it.

The beautiful thing about our relationship is that it really did start as colleagues, as professional counterparts, he added. And then we became friends.

They exchanged vows at a Catholic church in Busan, about 220 miles south of Camp Casey. The ceremony included a Korean-style reception with Ha and Gabrielson wearing traditional Korean clothing.

Gabrielsons family flew in from Connecticut to attend the ceremony. In lieu of a honeymoon, the couple toured five South Korean cities with their families due to coronavirus travel restrictions.

I am very pleased and proud of their marriage, South Korean army Lt. Col. Son Sanghyun, deputy commander of the 210th Field Artillery Brigade and one of Has senior officers, told Stars and Stripes. I sincerely hope for their best as they continue on with their army career.

U.S. Army Capt. Miles Gabrielson and South Korean army Capt. Ha Neul, pose on their wedding day in Busan, South Korea, Feb. 20, 2021. In lieu of a honeymoon, the couple toured five South Korean cities with their families due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Ha Neul and Miles Gabrielson)

Common ground

Despite wearing different uniforms and being raised in different countries, Gabrielson said he and his wife have a lot in common.

We both went to military academies, he said, referring to his graduation from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and Has graduation from the Korea Military Academy. We both have the same job, the same rank, and work in the same place. On the surface, you might say we have a lot more in common than a lot of couples from the same country.

Gabrielson and Ha acknowledged there are huge differences in their respective cultures but noted that the biggest glue that kept us together was their shared Catholic faith.

Thats something thats been important to me, my whole life, Gabrielson said.

Both Gabrielson and Ha said they have no immediate plans to leave the military. Gabrielson intends to extend his tour in South Korea for as long as possible and plans to eventually attend graduate school in the United States.

Ha hopes to attend a military-sponsored study-abroad program there.

Well make the most of our time together and hopefully maneuver some kind of way to spend some time in the States, Gabrielson said, adding that he wants to start a family together back home.

Soon after their wedding, South Korean news outlets reported on the significance of the union. Gabrielson said theres no bigger purpose behind our marriage, despite media reports focusing on the historic precedent.

Were two people that have a lot in common with each other and got married, Gabrielson said. We just happened to meet through this military venue.

I wouldve married [Ha] if she had any other job in the world, he added. I wouldve married her if she was from any other country in the world.

choi.david@stripes.com

Twitter: @choiboy
Buy Photo Children pray for those killed in the Battle of Okinawa during the island's annual Irei no Hi ceremony on June 23, 2018. (Matthew M. Burke/Stars and Stripes)

CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa  Only 36 people attended a Wednesday ceremony commemorating the Battle of Okinawas 76th anniversary, even as cases of the respiratory disease continued to decline across Japan.

The annual Irei no Hi ceremony, which takes place at Okinawa Peace Memorial Park in Itoman every June 23, was scaled-back for the second consecutive year due to the pandemic, Kyodo News reported shortly after the ceremony. Attendees included family members of those killed in the 82-day World War II battle.

The ceremony usually draws upwards of 5,000 people. Last year, 160 attended the first pandemic-abbreviated tribute.

Okinawa prefecture remains in a state of emergency until July 11.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, in a video message played at the ceremony, attributed Japans modern-day peace and prosperity to the more than 200,000 lives lost in the battle, the Kyodo report said. He also acknowledged Okinawas burden in hosting the lions share of the approximately 54,000 U.S. troops stationed in Japan.

We need to change the current situation by any possible means, he said, according to the report.

The Battle of Okinawa began April 1, 1945. More than 14,000 Americans, about 110,000 Japanese troops and at least 140,000 Okinawan civilians were killed during or after the fighting.

Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki used Wednesdays ceremony to lobby the Japanese government to collect the remains of Japans war dead and to recover and dispose of unexploded ordnance that still litter the island prefecture to this day, the Kyodo report said.

He also urged the U.S. and Japanese governments to set up a new body to reconsider plans to relocate air operations from Marine Corps Air Station Futenma to the northern coastal base of Camp Schwab, a move that is already ongoing.

Okinawa prefecture reported another 96 new infections Wednesday, 19 fewer than the same day last week, according to public broadcaster NHK.

Japan overall reported 1,779 new coronavirus infections as of 6 p.m. Wednesday, 443 more than the same day last week, NHK and the World Health Organization reported. There were 58 deaths nationwide.

The government has counted 785,000 COVID-19 cases during the pandemic and more than 14,000 deaths, the WHO said.

New cases in Japan and South Korea

The U.S. military in Japan and South Korea reported nine new COVID-19 cases as of 6 p.m. Wednesday.

Kadena Air Base on Okinawa had one infection on Tuesday, according to a base Facebook post that evening. The patient was tested prior to traveling to the United States. Contact tracing has been completed and close contacts have been placed in quarantine, the post said.

On the Korean peninsula, seven service members and one family member tested have positive since numbers were last reported on June 17, U.S. Forces Korea said in a statement Tuesday evening.

Four service members assigned to Camp Humphreys and two from Camp Casey in Dongducheon tested positive on June 17 and June 18 after being identified as close contacts of infected individuals, the statement said.

Another service member assigned to Humphreys tested positive on June 17 after developing COVID-19 symptoms, according to the statement. A family member tested positive on Sunday prior to traveling to the United States.

All eight individuals are in isolation at Humphreys, the statement said.

South Korea added 645 new cases at midnight Tuesday and one death, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agencys Central Disease Control Headquarters.

burke.matt@stripes.com

Twitter: @MatthewMBurke1
Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya talks during an interview in Brussels, on Tuesday, June 22, 2021. Tsikhanouskaya says President Alexander Lukashenko may have miscalculated last month by diverting a Ryanair passenger jet to Minsk, where a dissident journalist aboard was arrested. (Francisco Seco/AP)

BRUSSELS  When authorities in Belarus diverted a Ryanair passenger jet to Minsk last month to arrest a dissident journalist who was aboard, their goal may have been to silence a troublesome government critic and send a message to others like him.

Instead, believes opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, it was a panicked miscalculation by authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko that has galvanized the West against him.

"It was really a mistake," Tsikhanouskaya said in an interview with The Associated Press. "The regime never crossed this red line before, of interfering in a European area. This hijacking touched all the European leaders because their citizens were on this flight."

The European Union, the United States, Britain and Canada joined together Monday to impose sanctions on several Belarus officials and organizations in response to the May 23 diversion of Ryanair flight, which was traveling from Greece to Lithuania but was forced to land in Minsk. European officials, who likened the diversion to air piracy, also banned Belarus airlines from EU skies and airports.

Lukashenko won a sixth term as president in an Aug. 9, 2020, election that the EU refuses to recognize as legitimate. The disputed election touched off months of mass demonstrations in Belarus, including some that drew as many as 200,000 people. Authorities there also began a harsh crackdown on protesters, and human rights officials say tens of thousands have been detained, with many brutally beaten by security forces.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said EU countries thought for months that it still might be possible to reason with Lukashenko  until the flight diversion.

"The mood is different now," Landsbergis said.

Tsikhanouskaya was a candidate in the election, running in place of her husband, Siarhei Tsikhanouski, a popular opposition figure who had hoped to stand against Lukashenko but was arrested in May 2020.

A day after the vote, Tsikhanouskaya was forced to flee the country to neighboring Lithuania, where the 38-year-old political novice lives in exile with her children and has worked to rally European countries against Lukashenko.

"The regime is so frightened by the unity of Belarusians, by the unity of the European Union, the U.S.A., about this situation in Belarus that they stopped to think strategically. They started to think emotionally," Tsikhanouskaya told AP.

On Thursday, her husband's trial is scheduled to begin in the city of Homel on charges of violating public order, inciting hatred and plotting mass disturbances  accusations he rejects. He faces up to 15 years in prison.

"The trial will be closed. The trial will be not in the court, it will be right in the prison. Lawyers will not have an opportunity to tell us what is going on," Tsikhanouskaya said.

She expects it to last a month or two, and is not optimistic about the outcome.

"We understand that the trial will not be lawful, will not be honest, will not be fair. In reality, judges can write any number of years in prison," she said.

For Tsikhanouskaya, it's yet another test of her ability as an accidental politician to avoid putting her own feelings for her husband above those of the many Belarusians who have been jailed for opposing the government.

"He's my beloved. I'm thinking about him most of all, because I'm talking about him with my children. I have every day to explain to them where their Daddy is, how he is feeling," she said. "I assure them that he will come back soon."

She must "separate all those feelings from political duties, because your political duty is to release all of them," Tsikhanouskaya said.

"This is your personal pain. You can cry into your pillow in the evening. But just imagine in what conditions those people are in, what conditions my husband is (in)  without light, without information, without the normal conditions of life. Of course, it's awful," she said. "But again, it gives me strength not to stop, not to think about myself."

Since he was pulled off the Ryanair flight in Minsk, Belarusian journalist Raman Pratasevich has been paraded on state TV, tearfully apologizing for his actions and praising Lukashenko.

His parents, members of the opposition and others in the West believe he spoke under duress, with some saying there were signs he was beaten  a warning that no regime opponent can ignore.

Pratasevich's friends say the 26-year-old journalist, who left his homeland in 2019, believed he was being spied upon by Belarusian authorities before his May 23 arrest. This probably is true for many other political activists from Belarus, said Tsikhanouskaya, who a week earlier had flown Ryanair from Greece to Lithuania, just like Pratasevich.

As she travels Europe to raise awareness about Belarus, she feels "more or less in safeness."

"People on the ground (in Belarus), they don't have this protection of laws that the European Union has," she said.

Beyond the immediate fate of Pratasevich, her husband Siarhei and others like them, difficult times lie ahead for her country, Tsikhanouskaya said.

"This crisis is deepening," she said.

If the authorities in Minsk really cared about people "they would start dialogue with Belarusians, they would release political prisoners, and solve this crisis in a civilized way," she added. "I imagine new elections this fall. This is our aim."

-

Associated Press writers Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow and Yuras Karmanau in Kyiv, Ukraine, contributed.
HMS Defender in Portsmouth, England, on March 20, 2020. The Russian military said its warship has fired warning shots and a warplane dropped bombs to force the British destroyer from Russias waters near Crimea in the Black Sea. (Ben Mitchell/AP)

MOSCOW  Russia said one of its warships in the Black Sea fired warning shots and a warplane dropped bombs Wednesday to force a British destroyer out of an area near Crimea that Moscow claims as its territorial waters, but Britain denied that account and insisted its ship wasn't fired upon.

It was the first time since the Cold War that Moscow acknowledged using live ammunition to deter a NATO warship, reflecting the growing risk of military incidents amid soaring tensions between Russia and the West.

The Russian Defense Ministry said a patrol ship fired warning shots after the HMS Defender had ignored a notice against intrusion and sailed 3 kilometers (1.6 nautical miles) into Russia's territorial waters near Sevastopol, the main Russian naval base in Crimea. It said a Russian Su-24 bomber also dropped four bombs ahead of the vessel to persuade the Defender to change course. Minutes later, the Defender left Russian waters, the ministry said.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova denounced the "rude British provocation that defies international law," and said London's ambassador was being summoned. The Defense Ministry said it also called in the U.K. military attache in Moscow to protest the destroyer's "dangerous move" and urged British authorities to investigate the crew's actions.

Britain's Ministry of Defense denied the Defender had been fired on or was in Russian waters, but had been in Ukrainian waters.

"No warning shots have been fired at HMS Defender," it said in a statement. "The Royal Navy ship is conducting innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law."

Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014, a move not recognized by most countries, gaining access to its long Black Sea coast. Russia has chafed at NATO warships visiting near Crimea as destabilizing. In April, it declared a broader area off Crimea closed to foreign naval ships.

"We believe the Russians were undertaking a gunnery exercise in the Black Sea and provided the maritime community with prior warning of their activity," the British Ministry of Defense said. "No shots were directed at HMS Defender and we do not recognize the claim that bombs were dropped in her path."

British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said the Defender "carried out a routine transit from Odessa towards Georgia across the Black Sea."

"As is normal for this route, she entered an internationally recognized traffic separation corridor," he tweeted, adding that HMS Defender exited the corridor safely at 9:45 a.m. BST (0845 GMT; 4:45 a.m. EDT).

"As is routine, Russian vessels shadowed her passage and she was made aware of training exercises in her wider vicinity," he added.

Speaking to Parliament's defense committee, Wallace again denied Russia's version of events.

"These are the things that come and go with Russia," he said. "Disinformation, misinformation is something that we have seen regularly. We're not surprised by it; we plan for it."

Asked if Defender's crew had seen or heard anything, he said "initial reports say they did hear or observe training noises somewhere to the rear of her but beyond visual range."

"We saw the reports this morning," said Max Blain, a spokesman for Prime Minister Boris Johnson. "It's incorrect to say either that it was fired on or this ship was in Russian waters. HMS Defender was taking the most direct and internationally recognized route between Ukraine and Georgia."

He emphasized that Britain, and much of the international community, does not recognize Russia's annexation of Crimea.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said it was "clear proof of Ukraine's position: Russia's aggressive and provocative actions in the Black and Azov seas, its occupation and militarization of Crimea pose a lasting threat to Ukraine and allies."

"We need a new quality of cooperation between Ukraine & NATO allies in the Black Sea," Kuleba tweeted.

In November 2018, Russian coast guard ships fired on three Ukrainian gunboats trying to pass from the Black Sea into the Azov Sea and captured them along with 24 crewmembers. It returned the crew and the boats the following year.

HMS Defender, a Type 45 destroyer, is part of the U.K. Carrier Strike Group heading to the Indo-Pacific region. It was announced earlier this month that it would be temporarily breaking away from the group to carry out its "own set of missions" in the Black Sea.

Just before Wednesday's incident, Defender stopped in the Ukrainian port of Odessa, where Ukrainian and British officials and industry representatives signed an agreement to collaborate on boosting Ukraine's naval capabilities.

NATO members Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria border the Black Sea. Warships from the U.S., U.K. and other NATO allies also have made increasingly frequent visits in support of Ukraine.

Speaking before the incident, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, the chief of the General Staff of the Russian armed forces, sharply criticized the deployment of NATO warships near Russian waters.

"The moves by warships of the U.S. and its allies have been clearly provocative," Gerasimov said at an international security conference in Moscow organized by the Defense Ministry. "It creates preconditions for incidents and doesn't help ease tensions in the military sphere."

He charged that the British destroyer HMS Dragon intruded into Russian waters near Crimea in October, and the U.S. destroyer USS John S. McCain violated the Russian border in the Sea of Japan in November.

In April, Russia imposed restrictions on foreign naval movements near Crimea until November in a move that drew strong complaints from Ukraine and the West. Russia rejected the criticism and noted the restrictions wouldn't interfere with commercial shipping.

Earlier this year, Russia also bolstered its troops near the border with Ukraine and warned Kyiv against using force to reclaim control of the country's eastern industrial heartland, where a conflict with Russia-backed separatists has killed more than 14,000 people in seven years. Moscow withdrew some of its forces after maneuvers, but Ukrainian officials say many of them remain.

Speaking earlier Wednesday via video to participants of the security conference, President Vladimir Putin expressed concern about NATO forces near Russia.

"We aren't striving for a decisive, unilateral military advantage to tip the balance of forces in our favor," Putin said. "But we will never allow anyone else to tip that balance."

Russia's relations with the West have sunk to the lowest levels since the Cold War, following Moscow's annexation of Crimea, accusations of Russian interference with elections, hacking attacks and other tensions.

In a speech at the same conference before Wednesday's incident, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said "the situation in Europe is explosive," and accused NATO of stonewalling Russian proposals to enhance security by refraining from military exercises near the borders of Russia and alliance members.

He said "the world is rapidly sinking in a new confrontation, which is much more dangerous than during the Cold War times."

___

Lawless reported from London.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives at the Berlin Brandenburg Airport in Schonefeld, Germany, Wednesday, June 23, 2021, to travel to Berlin. Blinken begins a week long trip to Europe traveling to Germany, France and Italy. (Andrew Harnik, Pool /AP)

BERLIN  The United States and Germany struggled Wednesday to resolve a major dispute over a Russian gas pipeline, even as the Biden administration seeks to improve relations with Western Europe that had been strained during Donald Trump's presidency.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his German counterpart Heiko Maas met in Berlin and extolled the depth and strength of U.S.-German relations, but there was no sign of progress in talks to overcome the impasse over the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. And neither Blinken nor Maas could offer a timetable for a possible resolution.

"We don't always agree and one of those areas of disagreement is the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which we continue to believe is a threat to European energy security," Blinken said. "Germany has a different perspective and that happens from time to time. We'll handle our disagreements while pressing ahead on the many areas where we are working very closely together."

In addition to increasing the continent's reliance on Russian gas, the U.S. believes the pipeline will become a tool for Russia to exert political pressure on vulnerable Eastern and Central European nations. As such, the project continues to be a significant irritant in U.S.-German ties despite steps by the Biden administration to cool the dispute.

Speaking alongside Blinken at a joint news conference, Maas said Germany was well aware of the U.S. concerns and trying to address them.

"We are engaging in these talks," he said. "We are aware of the expectations from Washington and it is of the utmost importance."

Maas said that Germany is also speaking with Ukraine and other countries bypassed by the pipeline with an eye toward guaranteeing them an alternative energy supply.

"There is a whole host of ways and means and approaches that we are discussing but we are not discussing them in public," Maas said.

Ideally, he added, a resolution could be reached by the time outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel visits Biden in Washington next month. But, Maas stressed that timing was aspirational only.

Blinken met later with Merkel and neither rmentioned the pipeline in brief welcoming remarks.

Despite U.S. opposition and strident objections from Poland and Ukraine, Merkel strongly favors the project, which has been one of Russian President Vladimir Putin's key initiatives to increase Russia's energy revenue.

The pipeline also faces strong bipartisan opposition in the U.S. Congress, where both Republican and Democratic lawmakers harshly criticized the administration for waiving sanctions against the German firm constructing it, the company's German CEO and several other executives in May. Critics saw those sanctions as a last-ditch effort to prevent completion of the pipeline that is now more than 95% constructed.

In waiving the sanctions against Nord Stream 2 AG and the executives, the White House rejected recommendations from the State Department and other agencies in favor of imposing the penalties, according to officials and congressional aides. Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan argued that the sanctions would do more harm than good in terms of repairing ties with Germany, they said.

Blinken is in Germany on his second visit to Europe in seven days, having just accompanied President Joe Biden to leaders' summits in Britain and Belgium. In his meeting with Maas, Blinken emphasized the "America is back" message that Biden also delivered last week.

Maas welcomed the commitment that Blinken is also expected to pass on to Merkel in a later meeting. He said Biden's visit, coupled by Blinken's return to Europe so quickly, "underlined impressively that America is back: Back on the multilateral and international stage and we're very pleased by this."

Merkel echoed that sentiment in her comments before meeting Blinken, saying Germany was "delighted" with Biden's pronouncement. "Given all the controversies in the world I think it's fair to say we need to keep channels of dialogue open," she said.

Biden administration officials insist that there are still ways to mitigate the pipeline's impact. They say even after the project is physically completed there are still permits, insurance and testing hurdles it must clear before becoming operational. Some officials believe that could delay its opening by nine to 12 months..

After Germany, Blinken will visit France and Italy as part of his weeklong tour, his first trips to all three nations as secretary of state.
A Russian Tu-95 Bear long-range bomber in an undated photo. U.S. and NATO bases in Europe could be vulnerable to low-yield nuclear attack in the event of conflict with Russia, a new Rand Corp. report says. (U.S. Navy)

STUTTGART, Germany In the event of a war with Russia, Moscow could use its arsenal of low-yield nuclear weapons to destroy key bases in Europe, neutralizing the U.S.-led NATO alliances conventional military edge and possibly delivering a defeat to allies wary of a larger nuclear escalation, a new research report cautions.

Although the overall military power of the United States and the NATO alliance vastly outstrips that of Russia, a regional conflict close to Russias borders would pose enormous challenges and could result in defeat for the West, according to the study by the nonpartisan Rand Corp., which examined the nuclear implications of a war with Russia.

Buy Photo U.S. and NATO bases in Europe, such as Ramstein Air Base, could be vulnerable to low-yield nuclear attack in the event of conflict with Russia, a new report says. (Michael Abrams/ Stars and Stripes)

The Pentagon has made countering Russia, along with China, a focal point of its strategy over the last few years.

In Europe, much of that focus has been on boosting U.S. and allied forces in places like the Baltics and Poland. But Russia maintains an edge in conventional firepower along NATOs eastern flank, which would likely give it an advantage in the early stages of a conflict before allies assembled a larger force.

Over the past several years, Western security analysts and U.S. military officials have emphasized the importance of reinforcing NATOs position in the east to deter potential Russian aggression.

But less attention has been given to the alliances vulnerabilities should a conflict with Russia in Europe turn nuclear, the Rand report said.

Any conventional conflict with Russia will have to be fought in a way designed to limit the risk of nuclear escalation, which might constrain NATO from employing its full capabilities, it said. Russias arsenal of (non-strategic nuclear weapons) and its potential employment of limited nuclear options also poses a vitally important puzzle for U.S. and NATO officials.

During the Cold War, the threat of mutually assured destruction was considered fundamental to the notion that the U.S. and the Soviet Union would never use high-yield strategic nuclear weapons against each other. Both sides also had lower yield tactical nuclear bombs that could be used for a more limited effect against battlefield targets.

However, since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the U.S.-led NATO alliance has expanded to incorporate areas previously occupied or aligned with the Soviets, while Russian military positions have mainly been reduced to the homeland.

At issue isnt a capability gap with Russia, which has an estimated 2,000-6,000 nonstrategic nuclear bombs, but rather a vulnerability gap because of a lack of viable Russian targets, Rand said.

Although NATO is vulnerable to Russian (nonstrategic nuclear) attacks  a NATO attack on Russian territory is liable to be much more escalatory than a Russian attack on targets in a non-nuclear NATO state such as Germany or Italy, Rand said.

If the U.S. responded to a low-yield nuclear attack on an ally with a nuclear strike on the Russian homeland, Moscow could retaliate with a nuclear strike in the continental U.S., Rand said.

The United States has about 500 nonstrategic nuclear weapons, with around 200 deployed on aircraft in Europe, a Congressional Research Service report in March said. But adding to the arsenal would do little to offset Russias targeting advantage, the study warned.

Although at present the Russian government appears to have little appetite to challenge NATO by exploiting this local advantage, the possibility that Russian leaders will be tempted to do so in the future cannot be ruled out, according to Rand, which said that limited nuclear warfighting options might appear attractive to Russian decisionmakers during an extreme crisis.

The U.S. and NATO should take steps to reduce its vulnerability by hardening bases in Europe, adding more conventional deterrents and developing better active defense systems, the report recommended.

Allies also should consider dispersing more forces and try to reduce reliance on unique, high-value facilities that could be targeted by Russian precision strike weapons.

The possibility of escalation to nuclear use will cast a shadow over any military confrontation between Russia and NATO, it said.

Russias top military official on Wednesday said the use of nuclear weapons was justified to defend against any existential threat to the homeland.

Russia reserves the right to use nuclear weapons in response to the use of nuclear or other mass destruction weapons against it or its allies, or in case of aggression against Russia with conventional weapons that endangers the very existence of the state, Gen. Valery Gerasimov said in Russian state media.

vandiver.john@stripes.com

Twitter: @john_vandiver
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TEHRAN, Iran  Iranian authorities have thwarted what they called a sabotage attack targeting a civilian nuclear facility near the countrys capital, state TV reported Wednesday, as details about the incident remained scarce.

The attempted attack against a building belonging to Irans Atomic Energy Organization left no casualties or damages and was unable to disrupt the Iranian nuclear program, Iranian state television reported, adding that authorities were working to identify the perpetrators.

Iranian media offered no details on the kind of attack, saying only that the move targeted a sprawling nuclear center located in Karaj city, just some 25 miles northwest of Tehran.

When asked for comment, an Iranian official referred to the initial report by Nournews, believed to be close to Irans Supreme National Security Council. The official spoke on condition of anonymity as they did not have authorization to discuss the matter with media.

The International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations body that monitors Tehrans atomic program, did not immediately respond to request for comment.

Iranian authorities did not specify which facility in Karaj had been targeted. There are two sites associated with Irans nuclear program known to be in the area, including the Karaj Agricultural and Medical Research Center.

Irans Atomic Energy Organization describes the Karaj Agricultural and Medical Research Center as a facility founded in 1974 that uses nuclear technology to improve quality of soil, water, agricultural and livestock production.

The area is located near various industrial sites, including pharmaceutical production facilities where Iran has manufactured its domestic coronavirus vaccine.

Earlier on Wednesday, Iranian social media crackled with unconfirmed reports that authorities had prevented an unmanned aerial vehicle from targeting a COVID-19 vaccine production facility.

There are 18 nuclear facilities and nine other locations in Iran under IAEA safeguards. The agricultural nuclear research center is not listed as a safeguard facility with the IAEA, though a nearby nuclear waste facility around Karaj is. The IAEA visited the site in 2003.

The Karaj facility had been storing waste from the nuclear program and equipment dismantled from atomic vapor laser isotope separation experiments in the nearby Lashkar Abad, according to a policy paper by the Washington Institute for Near-East Policy written in March 2015.

The U.N. Security Council in 2007 sanctioned the Agricultural Center, identifying it along with other facilities it described as being involved in Irans nuclear and ballistic missile programs. The U.S. Treasury under then-President George W. Bush also sanctioned the facility.

The U.S. lifted those sanctions under the 2015 nuclear deal, although re-imposed them in 2018 with then-President Donald Trumps decision to unilaterally withdraw from the accord.

The foiled sabotage attack follows several suspected incidents targeting Irans nuclear program that have heightened regional tensions in recent months, as diplomatic efforts gain traction in Vienna to resurrect Tehrans tattered atomic deal with world powers.

In April, Irans underground Natanz nuclear facility experienced a mysterious blackout that damaged some of its centrifuges. Last July, unexplained fires struck the advanced centrifuge assembly plant at Natanz, which authorities later described as sabotage. Iran now is rebuilding that facility deep inside a nearby mountain.

Israel is widely believed to have carried out the sabotage, though it has not claimed it. Iran also blamed Israel for the November killing of a scientist who began the countrys military nuclear program decades earlier.

Trumps decision to withdraw from the nuclear deal has seen Iran, over time, abandon all limitations on uranium enrichment. The country is now enriching uranium to 60%, its highest ever levels, although still short of weapons grade. Iran has said that its nuclear ambitions are peaceful and that it will return to its commitments once the U.S. lifts its sanctions.

Earlier this week, Irans sole nuclear power plant at Bushehr underwent an unexplained temporary emergency shutdown. Authorities earlier this year had warned of the plants possible closure because of American sanctions that allegedly prevented Iran from procuring equipment for repairs.

On Tuesday, the IAEA said it was informed of a technical program striking the Bushehr plants electrical generator. The agency said the facility would go back online after being reconnected to the national electric grid.

Irans nuclear department said that engineers were working to repair the broken generator.

___

DeBre reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Associated Press writer Jon Gambrell in Dubai contributed to this report.
WASHINGTON  A linguist for a U.S. Special Operations task force in Iraq was sentenced Wednesday to 23 years in prison in a rare terrorism espionage case, after she admitted she turned over names of informants and other classified data to a Lebanese man with ties to the militant group Hezbollah.

Mariam Taha Thompson, 63, formerly of Rochester, Minn., pleaded guilty on March 26 to delivering national defense information to aid a foreign government. Prosecutors alleged that she passed the information to a man with whom she fell in love, believing it would assist Lebanese Hezbollah, a U.S. designated terrorist group.

Prosecutors said Thompson risked the lives of U.S. sources and troops because she hoped the man would marry her.

"Thompson's sentence should stand as a clear warning to all clearance holders that violations of their oath to this country will not be taken lightly, especially when they put lives at risk," John Demers, assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's national security division, said in a statement.

In court, Assistant U.S. Attorney John Cummings Jr. argued that turning over terrorist targeting information "posed real threats to U.S. troops and allies, and for those reasons she deserves a 30-year sentence."

While Thompson's defense requested seven years, U.S. District Judge John Bates said he knew of no espionage case in which a defendant was sentenced to less than 15 years for divulging the identities of human sources  much less to a terrorist organization in an active area of operations.

The judge cut the sentence short, however, saying Thompson was a sympathetic individual with an otherwise inspiring life story who served her adopted country with U.S. troops in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. The judge also acknowledged that the government request was tantamount to a life sentence.

"There is no question in my mind that the offense conduct to which the defendant admitted endangered U.S. military personnel and human assets' work with the United States and accordingly posed a significant threat to national security," Bates said.

"This was an actual risk situation, not a hypothetical situation, and therefore it is extremely serious," the judge said.

With good time credit and credit for time served, Bates estimated Thompson could complete her term when she is 81, five years short of her estimated life expectancy.

In a tearful plea for leniency, Thompson apologized those she endangered, saying, "Your honor, I love this country, and I love our soldiers ... I did not set out to hurt them or do damage to our national security.

"I just wanted to have someone to love me in my old age, and because I was desperate for that love I forgot who I was for a short period of time," Thompson said, asking for time to spend with her grandchildren before she died.

The FBI arrested Thompson on Feb. 27, 2020, at a U.S. military facility in Irbil, Iraq, which is home to an elite U.S. Special Operations counterterrorism effort and where she worked, court filings said.

Thompson turned over information after U.S. forces the previous December launched airstrikes at Kata'ib Hizballah, an Iranian-backed foreign terrorist organization, culminating in a Jan. 3, 2020, drone strike that killed its founder as well as Iranian military leader Qasem Soleimani, prosecutors said.

Thompson's unindicted co-conspirator asked her for information on who was helping the U.S. targeting effort. The linguist, who had top-secret government security clearance, began accessing classified information in Pentagon computer systems on Dec. 30, one day before protesters stormed the U.S. Embassy in Iraq as tensions escalated, the prosecution said.

Thompson ultimately began accessing dozens of files and used several techniques to turn over classified national defense information including the identities of at least eight clandestine human assets; at least 10 U.S. targets; and multiple tactics, techniques and procedures, the government said.

Cummings said the "targeting packages" included true names, personal identification data, background information and photographs, and cables detailing information the assets provided to the U.S. government.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has for the first time thrown his support behind removing decision-making from military commanders over prosecution in cases of sexual assault.

In a statement issued Tuesday, Austin said the Pentagon would work with Congress to amend the Uniform Code of Military Justice by removing the prosecution of sexual assaults and similar offenses from the military chain of command.

The statement comes a day after Austin received the final recommendations of the Independent Review Commission on Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment, which he established on Feb. 26.

The IRC recommended the inclusion of other special victims crimes inside this independent prosecution system, to include domestic violence, Austin said in the statement. I support this as well, given the strong correlation between these sorts of crimes and the prevalence of sexual assault.

Austin said that in coming days he would provide President Joe Biden specific recommendations based on the findings.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin speaks to the press from the Pentagon briefing room in Washington, D.C., Feb. 19, 2021. (Jackie Sanders/U.S. Air Force)

The about-face on removing such prosecutions from the chain of command comes after the Pentagons long-held opposition to the idea.

Some key lawmakers remain staunch in their resistance to the change.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., has authored legislation that would establish a system of independent prosecutors to handle more serious felonies in the military. She has garnered a filibuster-proof level of support from 66 senators, including 43 Democrats, 21 Republicans and two independents.

Senators Jack Reed, D-R.I, and Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., respectively the chair and ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, have blocked the legislation from advancing.

On Tuesday, Inhofe released letters from top U.S. military leaders that argue, to one degree or another, prosecution should remain in the chain of command.

It is my professional opinion that removing commanders from prosecution decisions  may have an adverse effect on readiness, mission accomplishment, good order and discipline, justice, unit cohesion, trust, and loyalty between commanders and those they lead, Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in a passage posted on Inhofes official website.

Others who submitted letters opposing Gillibrands plan include Gen. James McConville, the Army chief of staff; Gen. Charles Q. Brown, the Air Force chief of staff; Adm. Mike Gilday, chief of Naval Operations; Gen. David Berger, commandant of the Marine Corps; Gen. John Jay Raymond, chief of Space Operations; and Gen. Daniel Hokanson, chief of the National Guard Bureau.

Austin said in his statement that addressing and solving the problem of sexual assault and harassment in the military will require not just reforming accountability but also changes to our approach on prevention, command climate, and victim services.

I am reviewing the full scope of the commissions recommendations in these areas, but generally they appear strong and well-grounded, he said. I have directed my staff to do a detailed assessment and implementation plan for my review and approval.

Whatever changes are ultimately decided upon, the Defense Department will need adequate funding to implement them, Austin said.

We will most assuredly require additional resources, both in personnel and in funding, he said. But it may take us some time to determine how much and where they are most wisely applied.

olson.wyatt@stripes.com

Twitter: @WyattWOlson
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, left, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley talk before a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing to examine proposed budget estimates and justification for fiscal year 2022 for the Department of Defense in Washington on Thursday, June 17, 2021. (Caroline Brehman/AP)

The Pentagons top leaders on Wednesday offered full-throated defenses of their handling of extremism and diversity issues amid challenges from House Republicans skeptical of efforts to root out radicals and racists in the military force.

The Pentagon is not looking to punish troops for their political beliefs or mandate service members be taught so-called critical race theory, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told the House Armed Services Committee. The typically stoic Pentagon leader grew emotional at times as several Republican lawmakers questioned the stand-down that he ordered in February to discuss extremism and accused the military of embracing critical race theory.

I don't know what the issue of critical race theory is, and what the relevance is here with the [Defense] Department, Austin told Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., who questioned the militarys use of critical race theory. We dont teach critical race theory, we dont embrace critical race theory, and I think thats a spurious conversation.

Austin testified Wednesday before the House Armed Services Committee alongside Army Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in defense of the Pentagons $715 billion fiscal 2022 budget request.

Another lawmaker, Rep. Michael Waltz, R-Fla., challenged Austin on the inclusion of a critical race theory book in at least one class at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., and a seminar attended by some 100 West Point cadets titled Understanding Whiteness and White Rage.

We need to understand our past, I want to be very clear, but can you agree at least that Understand Whiteness and White Rage  probably is something that we shouldn't be teaching our future leaders of the United States Army? Waltz, a retired Green Beret, asked Austin.

Austin, a West Point graduate and the first-ever Black defense secretary, agreed that what Waltz described was likely inappropriate, but he added he would need more specifics to reach a conclusion.

Milley offered a different reaction.

The general admitted he didnt have a full understanding of the issue of critical race theory, which is described by Harvard University as an area of academic study that examines racism as systemic. But, he said, troops should be exposed to many ways of thinking, especially as the military works to improve equity within the ranks.

Troops should be open-minded and well-read, the general said. Then he went further, citing the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by supporters of former President Donald Trump, which was, in part, the basis for Austins stand-down to discuss extremism.

I want to understand white rage, and I'm white, and I want to understand it, Milley said forcefully. So, what is it that caused thousands of people to assault this building, and try to overturn the Constitution of the United States of America, what caused that? I want to find that out.

Milley said he has read works by noted communists Mao Zedong, Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin.

That doesnt make me communist, the general said to Waltz. So, what is wrong with having some situational understanding about the country for which we are here to defend? And, I personally find it offensive that we are accusing the United States military  of being quote woke, because were studying some theories.

So look, I do want to know [about white rage,] and I respect your service, and you and I both Green Berets, but I want to know, and it matters to our military and the discipline and the cohesion of this military.

Gaetz also questioned Austins extremism-focused stand-down and whether the Pentagon could define what constituted extremism within its ranks. Austin has charged a task force with officially defining what constitutes extremist behavior among troops, but he did not reveal Wednesday where that effort stands.

The defense secretary told lawmakers that troops would not be punished for political or religious beliefs and the Defense Department was not looking to purge the ranks of Trump supporters, which Gaetz and others have accused the Pentagon of attempting to do.

While Gaetz asserted that several military officials had privately complained to him that the stand-downs had hurt the military and harmed unit cohesion, Austin said he had heard 50 times that amount of input that outcomes were largely positive.

It may be that you're receiving that input in the ratios you describe, because it was your directive, Gaetz said. It may be that people are concerned about criticizing your decision.

Austin, visibly frustrated by the assertion, said he believed the responses that he received from his subordinates.

I trust  from the top to the bottom that they will give me fair and balanced and unvarnished input, the retired four-star general said. And, for you to say that people are telling me what I want to hear  you know, maybe, [people] are telling you what you want to hear.

dickstein.corey@stripes.com

Twitter: @CDicksteinDC
(Tribune News Service)  Star Wars is moving from the big screen to the desert Southwest as the billionaire owners of Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic ready their rockets for commercial launch into suborbit this summer.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos will board Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket July 20 for a flight to the edge of space from West Texas, accompanied by his brother, Mark, and two other as-yet unnamed passengers, including one who paid nearly $30 million for a seat to the stars.

Sir Richard Branson also plans to fly this summer from Spaceport America in southern New Mexico, possibly as soon as the July 4 weekend, according to media reports that the British billionaire hopes to beat Bezos in the race to space.

Virgin Galactic firmly denies those rumors. But either way, Branson is scheduled to shoot into suborbit sometime this summer, marking the launch of commercial passenger service for tourists who can pay at least $250,000 for a joy ride to the stars.

Hyped-up rivalry

The battle of the billionaires may only be media hype. But it reflects a new stage in the effort to launch paying passengers on private rockets to space, marking the transition from yearslong research-and-development operations to commercial launch by both Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin.

And that, in turn, is generating renewed excitement among investors about the prospects for commercial space services finally coming to fruition, said Rich Smith, a writer for the investor advisory service The Motley Fool who follows Virgin Galactic on the New York Stock Exchange.

"The Bezos-Branson debate is really just a public relations war," Smith told the Journal. "It doesn't really matter who gets up first. This is really about investors looking for something to hang a stock price on."

Indeed, Virgin Galactic's stock has soared since the company successfully launched its VSS Unity rocket into suborbit on May 22 for the first time from New Mexico. Its stock price reached $39.12 per share Tuesday afternoon, up from a low of $14.27 in early May.

That reflects a huge rebound in investor confidence, which fell significantly in February after Virgin Galactic reported technical issues that forced the company to ground its rocket for three months to correct the problems. Company stock had climbed to a peak of $62.80 a share in early February, and then steadily declined over the following three months.

"The company's stock still has more ground to recover, but it's bounced back significantly," Smith said. "If it does fly over the July 4th weekend, the stock price could grow a lot more. But the bottom line is, Virgin Galactic has fixed the problems it faced and is back on track."

Virgin timeline

Virgin Galactic's publicly announced test-flight schedule now calls for one more launch to space with a four-member technical team on board, followed by Branson's long-awaited flight sometime over the summer. The company will also fly four passengers from the Italian Air Force to space in early fall to conduct experiments in microgravity and provide astronaut training.

After that, Virgin Galactic plans a four-month hiatus for upgrades and maintenance on the Unity, and on the mothership VMS Eve, which carries the Unity on its underbelly to about 50,000 feet, where the rocket breaks away from Eve and fires up its motors to shoot into space at 50 miles up.

If all goes well, full commercial service would start in early 2022, allowing up to six paying passengers per flight to float for a few minutes in microgravity and view the Earth's curvature before gliding back down to Spaceport America.

In early June, however, the online news service Parabolic Arc reported that Virgin Galactic may attempt to beat Blue Origin to space by accelerating its plans to fly Branson over the July 4th weekend. That generated significant media speculation about competition between the companies.

Virgin Galactic refutes the report, which Parabolic Arc based on an anonymous source.

"We are in the process of analyzing the data from our successful May 22nd flight," one spokesperson said in an email to the Journal. "As previously announced, we expect to complete the final test flights this summer through to early fall. At this time, we have not determined the date of our next flight."

Long-term feasibility?

Notwithstanding media speculation, the race to space is much less important than pending questions about the long-term sustainability of Virgin Galactic's and Blue Origin's business propositions, said Henry Hertzfeld, a research professor with George Washington University's Space Policy Institute.

"Of course showmanship is involved on who gets there first," Hertzfeld told the Journal. "... But the market has yet to be proven."

In that regard, Blue Origin's upcoming flight bodes well for both companies. Some 7,600 people from 153 countries bid in an online auction this month to fly with Bezos in July, culminating in one anonymous bidder paying $28 million, plus a 6% buyer's commission, for the winning ticket.

That demonstrates substantial interest among potential customers with money to burn.

"The winning bidder is paying a premium to be the first to go up," said Smith of The Motley Fool. "But the auction shows significant interest from people who can afford it."

To date, 600 people have paid $250,000 each to reserve seats on Virgin Galactic's rocket. And the price may rise when the company reopens sales later this summer.

At those prices, Virgin Galactic is targeting a finite number of wealthy space tourists, Hertzfeld said.

"There clearly are some people who will pay for flights," Hertzfeld said. "But there's no mass market for ordinary people to buy seats for a cheap price. I don't know what they'll need to break even, but I assume it's a large number of full flights."

Virgin Galactic is striving to achieve some 400 flights per year to generate $1 billion in annual revenue at Spaceport America once it reaches full commercial operations. It's also betting on business services, such as flying institutional customers like the Italian Air Force to space.

Growing competition

But as commercial space gains momentum, both Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin will face more competition, particularly from Elon Musk's company SpaceX, which is already flying cargo and astronauts to the International Space Station. And it has plans to fly paying passengers on a three-day orbital ride in September.

Both Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin are finally approaching the starting gate for space tourism, but it remains to be seen how they'll fare in the long term, Smith said.

"For now, everyone's focused on the start of commercial operations," Smith said. "I recommend that investors take the long view, looking out over three-to-five years. Virgin Galactic has no revenue or earnings yet, and people are just trading on future prospects."

(c)2021 the Albuquerque Journal (Albuquerque, N.M.)

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The city of Monroe, Mich., is calling on the federal government to increase funding for the River Raisin National Battlefield Park. (River Raisin National Battlefield Park Facebook)

MONROE, Mich. (Tribune News Service)  The city of Monroe is calling on the federal government to increase funding for the River Raisin National Battlefield Park.

Monroe City Council on Monday unanimously passed a "Resolution expressing dissatisfaction of President (Joe) Biden's Proposed Fiscal Year 2022 Budget recommendation and urging an increase in base funding for the River Raisin National Battlefield Park."

"The Monroe City Council of the City of Monroe is vehemently disappointed in and opposed to the Biden Administration's proposed Fiscal Year 2022 budget for the River Raisin National Battlefield Park and urges the United States Congress to reject the Administration's recommendation and calls for an increase to the federal base budget of the River Raisin National Battlefield Park to continue the development and implementation of important education and conservation programs across the described strategic priorities of the National Park Service," the resolution reads.

Mark Cochran, Assistant to the City Manager and Economic Development Coordinator, said that the resolution is a response to the battlefield receiving no increase in base funding under President Biden's proposed budget. Specific dollar amounts were not discussed, but Cochran said that the lack of a funding increase conflicts with the Biden Administration's stated budget priorities for the National Park Service  specifically its stated desire to support parks that are research learning centers, and/or are advancing efforts to support conservation and restoration of natural resources, as well as racial justice and equity in underserved communities.

The city is arguing that the battlefield hits all three of these areas of priority, with council's agenda packet noting that the park is largely situated on several brownfield sites, hosts numerous educational programs on local history, and has partnered with the Wyandotte of Anderdon to increase the public's knowledge of the United States Government's mistreatment of Native Americans.

"Our national park in Monroe hit three of the highest priorities that received the highest funding for the park service," Cochran told council. "However, the River Raisin National Battlefield Park did not receive any funding allocations for those areas... Tonight's resolution is in hopes of pressing our federal legislators, when the budget comes up for consideration, for congress to take a look at the line item appropriated for the River Raisin National Battlefield Park."

Cochran said that, when looked at on a per-visitor basis, the battlefield has the second lowest Fiscal Year 2022 proposed funding out of all national parks, battlefields and military parks at roughly $2.89 per visitor. Cochran also said that the battlefield was one of only 15 National Parks to see a record increase in attendance in 2020.

"Obviously the city has made significant contributions toward the evolution of the (battlefield), and we were hoping that congress and the National Park Service would also step up and increase its support...," Cochran said. "We're presenting this resolution and we would hope to provide it to our federal legislators, as well as the secretary of the National Park Service, to encourage them to increase base funding for the National Park of Monroe."

The resolution will be sent to Secretary of the United States Department of Interior, Deb Haaland, as well as U.S. Reps. Tim Walberg, Debbie Dingell and Rashida Tlaib, and Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow.

(c)2021 Monroe News, Mich.

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A joint venture between Banner Quality Management, Inc. and Fairborns Peerless Technologies Corp. has received a five-year, $233 million effort to support information technology, cybersecurity, communications and program management for NASAs Glenn Research Center and associated facilities. (Bridget Caswell/nasa.gov)

(Tribune News Service)  A joint venture that includes a Fairborn defense contractor is supporting a core area of NASA's work in Ohio.

A joint venture between Banner Quality Management, Inc. and Fairborn's Peerless Technologies Corp. has received the largest award in its history, a five-year, $233 million effort to support information technology, cybersecurity, communications and program management for NASA's Glenn Research Center and associated facilities.

"It's an honor to be able to support the cutting-edge research and development at GRC (Glenn Research Center)," Gail Hall, managing partner of the BQMI-Peerless Joint Venture, said in a recent announcement. "Both companies have a long history of supporting NASA's IT efforts and we look forward to doing our part to support the agency's goals."

The new contract, Professional, Administrative, Computational and Engineering services (PACE V), centers on the support, evolution, and refinement of Glenn Research Center's IT infrastructure, the release noted.

While PACE V work is conducted at Glenn Research, near Cleveland, and the Neil A. Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky, the BQMI-Peerless JV will also collaborate with other NASA centers to help expand and develop agency-wide capabilities and technologies.

Along with IT and cybersecurity support, the Ohio-based BQMI-Peerless JV will help NASA expand its capabilities in artificial intelligence, machine learning, data analytics, cloud services and more.

Founded in 2000, Peerless' roster of customers include NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center; the F-22 Program Office; the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center, Air Force Civil Engineer Center, the Air Force Small Business Innovation Research program, the F-35 Joint Program Office, and other federal agencies.

(c)2021 the Dayton Daily News (Dayton, Ohio)

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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (Tribune News Service)  A man accused of killing his wife two years ago in Colorado was arrested last week at Kirtland Air Force Base.

Albuquerque police on June 16 arrested Dane Kallungi, 38, on a warrant charging him with an open count of murder in the March 2019 death of 28-year-old Jepsy Kallungi.

KAFB spokesman James Fisher said base security and Air Force law enforcement assisted in arresting Kallungi, who was then placed in Albuquerque police custody. Kallungi worked for one of Sandia National Laboratories' subcontractors, according to a lab spokesman.

He is currently jailed at the Metropolitan Detention Center awaiting extradition.

Authorities say that while Kallungi has long denied having anything to do with his wife's death he told an ex-wife, in a recorded phone call last March, that he strangled her during a fight.

Police say he then put her in the trunk, took his son to school, went to work and buried the body in Teller County, Colorado, the following night.

According to the fugitive complaint filed in Metropolitan Court:

Officers in Colorado Springs were dispatched April 4, 2019, to the Kallungi home in the 1900 block of La Salle to do a welfare check on Kallungi's wife. A longtime friend of Jepsy Kallungi told police they hadn't heard from her, she hadn't been on social media and they believed she was injured or dead.

The friend said she had recently separated from Dane Kallungi, who detectives learned had been in the military and had access to weapons. Police say Kallungi was "nervous" and "unconcerned about his wife's whereabouts" the first time they spoke.

Kallungi said his wife had gone to visit a friend and left him due to "marital problems."

The friend Kallungi said his wife went to visit told police she hadn't talked to Jepsy Kallungi in days and her husband had threatened to prevent her from getting citizenship to "control her behavior."

The longtime friend told police the couple had argued a lot over Dane Kallungi's "inappropriate" relationship with his ex-wife, the mother of his child, and he once left Jepsy Kallungi at home for a week without food or transportation to stay with his ex-wife.

The woman was entered into the missing persons database on April 4, the same day detectives searched Kallungi's home and found ammunition, a pistol and a rifle.

Police called Dane Kallungi, who had broken his apartment lease and gone to California, and he told them his wife left him on March 20. Kallungi said she left after the two argued when he found messages from another man on her phone.

Detectives searched the phone records of Dane and Jepsy Kallungi and learned they both pinged around the same time in Cripple Creek, Colorado, on March 22. The ex-wife told police Dane Kallungi had gotten "spooked" after they searched his apartment and packed his stuff and left for his father's home in California, telling her he was staying permanently.

Police were contacted by two men, a sergeant and a soldier in the Army, who said they had been having an affair with Jepsy Kallungi in the two years leading up to her disappearance. One of them said they had seen her last on March 20.

Detectives went to San Diego and searched the father's home and questioned Kallungi, who repeated his previous stories. When challenged with cellphone location information, Kallungi "invoked his Fifth Amendment rights."

Kallungi's ex-wife met with detectives again and detailed multiple domestic violence incidents during their 15-year relationship. She said he had choked her several times, sometimes she would lose consciousness and once he picked her up by her throat and threw her "like a rag doll."

The complaint drops off until March 23, 2021, when the ex-wife called police to say Kallungi was coming back to Colorado due to an "illness in the family" and asked her to lunch. She said, during lunch, Kallungi told her he had killed Jepsy Kallungi.

The ex-wife agreed to a recorded call with Kallungi and he said he attacked Jepsy Kallungi because he was trying to "literally stop the words from coming out of her mouth for a second." He told the ex-wife it "looked like (Jepsy Kallungi) was suffering" and he "didn't want to watch her suffer anymore."

"And no matter how much I tell myself that I didn't mean to, or she was doing this and she was doing that ... it doesn't matter, she still didn't deserve it," Kallungi is quoted as saying in the complaint.

Kallungi told his ex-wife he got lost on four different back roads and eventually dug a hole "as deep as I could" and buried his wife.

"I said goodbye to her before I put her in there and tried to apologize a million times," Kallungi is quoted as saying in the complaint.

Ryan Boetel contributed to this report.

(c)2021 the Albuquerque Journal (Albuquerque, N.M.)

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A set of handcuffs sit on a bedside table inside a Muncie, Ind., hotel on Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2018. (Mykal McEldowney/IndyStar)
Gary Kelly, chief executive officer of Southwest Airlines, at the White House on March 4, 2020. (Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg)

WASHINGTON  Southwest Airlines Co. Chief Executive Officer Gary Kelly will step down in 2022 after more than 17 years in which he transformed the brash discounter into the largest U.S. carrier by domestic passengers and expanded its network abroad.

He will be succeeded by Robert Jordan, 60, the company's executive vice president of corporate services.

Kelly, 66, will give up the CEO title Feb. 1 and stay on as executive chairman through at least 2026, the airline said Wednesday in a statement. Jordan was picked over President Tom Nealon and Chief Operating Officer Mike Van de Ven, who were viewed as potential successors to Kelly.

The leadership transition caps a tumultuous two-year period for Southwest, which was grappling with the grounding of the Boeing Co. 737 Max when the coronavirus pandemic all but erased demand for air travel in early 2020. High on Jordan's to-do list will be repaying billions in debt, deciding how much to expand international service and safeguarding a distinctive, freewheeling company culture under threat from years of corporate growth.

"Working closely with President Tom Nealon and Chief Operating Officer Mike Van de Ven, we will begin developing transition plans in the coming weeks and months." Kelly said in the statement. "These three top-notch leaders make for a powerful team to lead us forward."

Southwest fell 1% to $55.19 at 9:51 a.m. in New York, the biggest decline on a Standard & Poor's index of major U.S. airlines.

Jordan will be Southwest's third CEO since co-founder Herb Kelleher, who left the top job in 2001 and died two years ago. Southwest announced Jordan's appointment days after celebrating the 50th anniversary of the company's founding.

The next chief is a long-time Southwest executive who joined the carrier in 1988. He served as president of AirTran Airways from 2011 to 2014 after it was acquired by Southwest, overseeing the corporate integration.

He also has served as chief commercial officer and overseen strategy and planning, technology and purchasing at the Dallas-based airline.

"We are extremely excited for Bob to take over," Casey Murray, head of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, said in an interview. "He's been active for the past decade and we're looking forward to his leadership to see what he brings."

Kelly took the reins in 2004 and said at the time that the airline sector "was a financial disaster." But he extended Southwest's industry-best run of annual profits, which began in 1972 and ended last year because of the pandemic.

The departing CEO also led Southwest through the 20-month grounding of the Max, the mainstay of the company's future fleet. Earlier this year, after weighing whether to place its first order of Airbus SE planes, Southwest opted to keep an all-Boeing fleet and ordered 100 more Max jets as it rebuilds service for customers flocking back to airlines as COVID-19 vaccines help limit infections.

Kelly often quoted Kelleher, who pioneered Southwest's maverick spirit and reputation for playing hard as well as working hard. Kelly leads the airline's yearly Halloween celebration, dressing up at one time or another as Frankenstein, Gene Simmons from the band Kiss and even Snow White.
SANTA ANA, Calif. (Tribune News Service)  Two former Orange County sheriffs deputies  twin brothers  pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court to defrauding taxpayers by collecting salary to go on military duty as reservists when they actually were doing things like going to Las Vegas or staying home playing the Call of Duty video game.

Taylor and Tyler Morgan, both 26, of Long Beach, received no jail time but were put on home detention, Taylor Morgan for six months and Tyler Morgan for eight months. U.S. Magistrate Judge Autumn D. Spaeth also ordered Taylor Morgan to pay $14,000 in restitution while Tyler Morgan was ordered to pay $32,400 for the misdemeanor offenses.

Both men served as reservists for the U.S. Marine Corps at Camp Pendleton. They were initially tripped up by a sheriffs internal investigation that found five deputies and two correctional workers had forged military documents so they could get paid for fulfilling their reservist duties when they had not. All the employees worked in the jail system.

As part of their employment, the brothers were entitled to 30 days leave per year that could be used for vacations, military service and other personal reasons. In addition to that leave, the defendants received an additional 30 days per year to fulfill active duty obligations with their reserve units.

From June 2017 to November 2019, Tyler Morgan submitted 24 fraudulent military orders to the Sheriffs Department to obtain military leave. From May 2017 to January 2020, Taylor Morgan submitted 25 fraudulent military orders to obtain military leave from the department. In fact, neither had been ordered by the Marine Corps to fulfill active duty obligations with their reserve units.

The brothers embarked on the scheme, submitting realistic paperwork, so they wouldnt have to use their vacation time, federal court officials said. For most of the time, the brothers were on inactive duty, which was not compensated by the Sheriffs Department.

Tyler Morgan did not inform the Sheriffs Department that, during one week while he was on inactive drill, he took a trip to Las Vegas, and spent one day at home playing the Call of Duty video game.

In total, Taylor Morgan received 48 days of military leave to which he was not entitled and Tyler Morgan received 64 days of fraudulently obtained military leave. Both brothers were terminated from the Sheriffs Department for their crimes, according to spokeswoman Carrie Braun.

___

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Vice President Kamala Harris. (Lisa Ferdinando/Department of Defense)

WASHINGTON  Vice President Kamala Harris will travel to the U.S.-Mexico border on Friday, amid mounting criticism from Republicans that neither she nor President Joe Biden has traveled to the country's southern border.

Harris will travel with Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, according to two people familiar with the trip, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a trip that is not yet public. The White House declined to comment.

In March, Biden tasked Harris to lead the administration's efforts to address the root causes of migration from the Northern Triangle region. Harris traveled to Guatemala and Mexico earlier this month to meet with leaders and community groups as part of that work, but Republicans assailed her for declining to visit the border.

Harris's trip will come just two days before former President Donald Trump joins Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, at the border.
Buy Photo Backed by other family members and attorney Natalie Khawam, right, Spc. Vanessa Guillen's sister, Lupe, speaks at a news conference marking the first anniversary of the Fort Hood soldier's killing, April 22, 2021, at the Navy Memorial in Washington, D.C. (JOE GROMELSKI/Stars and Stripes)

WASHINGTON  House lawmakers introduced a bill Wednesday that combines two high-profile measures to combat military sexual assault and harassment.

The new legislation would remove the decision to prosecute serious crimes in the military from the chain of command. Instead, the decision would fall to trained, independent military prosecutors. This would apply to non-military, felony-level crimes, such as murder, rape, domestic violence and sexual assault.

The time has come, said Rep. Jackie Speier, D-Calif., lead sponsor on the bill. Today we have broad, bipartisan support to make a critical and fundamental change to the military justice system.

The bill, titled the Vanessa Guillen Military Justice Improvement and Increasing Prevention Act, is being introduced as the House version of a bill by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y. After nearly a decade of pushing for the change, Gillibrands Military Justice Improvement Act has been gaining momentum in the Senate.

Gillibrands bill now has a filibuster-proof level of support from 66 senators, including 43 Democrats, 21 Republicans and two independents. However, Senators Jack Reed, D-R.I, and Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., respectively the chair and ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, have blocked the legislation from advancing.

In a split with the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin threw his support Tuesday behind removing decision-making from military commanders over prosecution in cases of sexual assault.

Its historic to have the first secretary of defense to agree with us that sexual assault should be taken out of the chain of command, Gillibrand said. That is a monumental step forward. Its validation that our approach is the right approach.

Gillibrands bill, though, goes beyond sexual assault and would send cases of all non-military, serious crimes to independent prosecutors. In letters last month, the Joint Chiefs of Staff argued that the bill went too far.

It is my professional opinion that removing commanders from prosecution decisions, process and accountability may have an adverse effect on readiness, mission accomplishment, good order and discipline, justice, unit cohesion, trust and loyalty between commanders and those they lead, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley wrote.

The legislation introduced Wednesday combines Gillibrands bill with the I Am Vanessa Guillen Act, a House bill that would change the reporting process for sexual harassment and assault in the military and allow service members who are victims to seek monetary damages from the Defense Department. It was named for Spc. Vanessa Guillen, a 20-year-old small arms repair soldier who was sexually harassed before she was killed by a fellow service member last year.

Speier sponsored the I am Vanesa Guillen Act and will now lead the new Vanessa Guillen Military Justice Improvement and Increasing Prevention Act. Natalie Khawam, the attorney for the Guillen family, said she and the family supported the new measure, believing it could get passed through Congress quicker than the I Am Vanessa Guillen Act.

Were doing it this way because we have the votes. Weve got the Senate votes and the House votes, Khawam said. Were making sure this can now get passed immediately and codified into law.

The new bill does not include the part of the Guillen Act that would allow service members to file claims against the Defense Department. Khawam said she wanted that language added as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act, which sets the Defense Departments annual budget and includes a slew of policies for the Pentagon. Its one of the only major bills that passes reliably through Congress each year, making it a desirable target for lawmakers to attach other measures.

Theres no teeth in the law if theres no accountability, Khawam said.

wentling.nikki@stripes.com

Twitter: @nikkiwentling

Nikki Wentling
Melissa Lindhorst, 45, passed away June 26, 2021. A "Come and Go" reception will be from 4-6:00pm Saturday, July 10, 2021 at the Strode Funeral Home Chapel. Interment will be at Fairlawn Cemetery at a later date.
Indiana DNR probing songbird deaths, illnesses in 5 counties

INDIANAPOLIS  State wildlife officials are investigating reports of dead and dying songbirds in five Indiana counties that suffered from ailments seen in birds in several other states.

The Indiana Department of Natural Resources said Tuesday its working with the Indiana Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory and the USGS National Wildlife Health Center in its investigation.

The bird deaths and illnesses have been reported in Monroe, Clark and Jefferson counties in southern Indiana and LaGrange and Lake counites in northern Indiana, the DNR said.

Several bird species, including blue jay, American robin and Northern cardinal have been affected and displayed neurological signs of illness as well as eye swelling and crusty discharge.

The DNR said that all of the bird samples submitted to date have tested negative for avian influenza and West Nile virus, but final laboratory diagnostic results are pending.

Judge weighs blocking Indiana abortion reversal law

INDIANAPOLIS  A federal judge said hell soon decide whether to block a new Indiana law that would require doctors to tell women undergoing drug-induced abortions about a disputed treatment for potentially stopping the abortion process.

U.S. District Judge James Patrick Hanlon in Indianapolis heard arguments Monday in a lawsuit filed by abortion rights groups seeking to stop the so-called abortion reversal law from taking effect as scheduled July 1.

The states witnesses in court maintained the law would ensure that a woman has information about halting a medication-induced abortion if she changes her mind after taking the first of the two drugs used in the procedure and takes a different drug instead.

Dr. George Delgado, who claims to have coined the term abortion reversal, testified that the treatment is safe and effective. He cited 50 to 75 successful reversals hes overseen directly.

Dr. Courtney Schreiber, an obstetrician-gynecologist in Philadelphia, pushed back, calling the states new law deeply distressing and mortifyingly harmful. She denounced Delgados assertions, noting there is no evidence that an abortion can be reversed and that a woman might have an increased risk of hemorrhaging if she does not take the second dose of medication for an abortion.

Hanlon said his initial ruling will be made as soon as possible and is expected before the law takes effect.

IU students sue university over its COVID-19 vaccine policy

BLOOMINGTON  Eight Indiana University students are suing the school, alleging that its COVID-19 vaccine requirement violates both their constitutional rights and the states new vaccine passport law.

The federal lawsuit, filed Monday, alleges that students face strong consequences if they refuse to get vaccinated, including canceled class registration and limits on taking part in on-campus activities.

The suit contends that IUs policy violates the Fourteenth Amendment, which includes the rights of personal autonomy and bodily integrity and the right to reject medical treatment.

The students complaint also alleges that IUs policy violates Indianas recently passed law banning vaccine passports, which Republican legislators pushed and which conservatives portray as a heavy-handed intrusion into personal freedom and private health choices.

IU is offering students medical and religious exemptions. Several of the students suing the school have applied for, and been granted, exemptions based on their religious beliefs. But the suit says they object to extra requirements placed on students who receive exemptions, such as requiring them to wear masks in public spaces.
On Thursday, members of the Vincennes City Councils new Walkable City Committee will meet with the public once again to discuss their ideas for a more pedestrian-friendly community.

City Council Vice President Brian Grove hopes to see more people attend this meeting, the second since the initiative was launched this spring.

Participate, Grove urged, We need more than our own ideas.

City Council President Tim Salters echoes Groves comments. He believes that community involvement at these meetings is key to their success in creating a more walkable city.

We need eyes everywhere, Salters said. I think Im out in the public a lot, but there is a lot I dont see. We dont know where the problem areas are unless people bring them to our attention.

We want our community to care.

Salters, too, maintains that a city with people out strolling, walking their dogs, biking, or just being active encourages others to get involved and do the same.

His personal goals for the meeting are to expand upon the topics discussed previously  such as the need for better/more sidewalks and safer crossings  and to expand upon them into a more functional plan, one that could get the ball rolling toward actual change.

We dont want to keep going back to the Board of Works with this, that and whatever, but Ive talked to them about crosswalks, Salters said. Were moving on getting some new crosswalks and getting older ones repainted.

We want to be able to have a better understanding of what the City of Vincennes needs, he said. We need people to attend these meetings and let us know.

Grove agrees that there is still much to discuss on the matter of safety and  even  hydration.

He has a specific interest in water stations, shaded areas, and more sitting areas for people enjoying the Riverwalk and the surrounding, walkable areas.

Its important to have that shade, Grove said. Weve also talked about watering stations for people and their dogs.

Those are a few things Id like to see.

Other potential topics Thursday night include connecting city parks and historical sites. Some of these areas were discussed at their first meeting, but council members, still, are looking for the publics ideas on how best to do it.

Salters again stressed that the communitys involvement is vital.

There is no reason we cant find a way to connect Kimmell Park to Chicago Park and then connect them with the Riverwalk, the George Rogers Clark National Historical Park, and even the Indiana Military Museum.

We just need to know where people walk, where they run, and where they walk their dogs, Salters said.

Its the only way we can improve these areas and create a more walkable city.

The city councils new Walkable City Committee is set for 6 p.m. at City Hall, 201 Vigo St.
Tauranga City Council have clarified their plans for the potential trial implementation of a cul-de-sac on Links Ave.

They have confirmed that consultation with the wider public will be undertaken before any changes are made on the road, permanently or on a trial basis.

Commissioners unanimously approved the recommendation and tasked council staff to undertake consultation with the wider community on the recommendations of the report, and set aside $400,000 in the Long Term Plan budget to undertake an Innovative Streets style consultation regarding the trial of the recommended solution.

However, the report presented to council mentions a trial could be run alongside consultation if it expedites safety improvements.

That, however, according to Tauranga City Council director of transport Brendan Bisley will not be happening.

In an Innovative Streets style consultation, council works with the community and users of the street to get an outcome that meets the community needs while achieving the safety outcomes, he says.

In relation to Links Avenue, a reduction in the overall traffic volume is the only solution that will improve safety for vulnerable users on the streets, and one of the options to achieve this is a cul-de-sac.

Council state that the consultation process may develop alternative solutions that are preferred, and these would be considered before anything is implemented onsite in Links Avenue.

If the cul-de-sac was the preferred option after consultation, it can be implemented as a trial and the impacts assessed before a final solution is put in place, says Brendan.

Brendan admits that a cul-de-sac would potentially have a knock-on impact across the wider road network but that safety along the road, which is the location of Mount Maunganui Intermediate School, is of paramount importance.

A cul-de-sac is a solution that will reduce the traffic volumes and improve safety for vulnerable users such as the school children that walk and bike along Links Avenue, says Brendan.

A cul-de-sac improves safety, but does impact on the surrounding network, particularly the traffic that currently uses Links Ave as commuter through-route.

Consultation will begin later this year, and if anyone is interested in what is happening in this area they can find more information, or sign up for the regular ENews, at www.tauranga.govt.nz/arataki.
Two people from Tauranga are considered close contacts of the person from Sydney who has tested positive for Covid-19.

The two people are isolating and awaiting testing results, the Director General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield says they had "fleeting" interaction with the case.

Whilst we have those two close contacts in Palmerston North both have tested negative initially and there are no locations of interest or any particular increased risk in Palmerston North or in Tauranga," says Bloomfield.

Watch the live update here:

The person from Sydney visited Wellington from June 19 until June 21 and returned a positive result upon returning home.

Dr Bloomfield says the Sydney Covid-19 case was with his partner and they spent time as tourists.

They have four close contacts including the two in Tauranga, the other two are in Palmerston North, have tested negative and are also isolating.

Two people from Tauranga are among the four close contacts of a Sydney man who tested positive for COVID 19 after visiting Wellington last weekend.



These people are isolating and have been tested.



Please follow the COVID guildelines and stay home if sick.  BOP Civil Defence (@BOPCivilDefence) June 23, 2021

The Wellington region will move to alert level 2 from 6pm tonight until 11.59pm on Sunday.

In today's 1pm press conference, Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins says that includes the Wairarapa and the Kapiti Coast.

The rest of New Zealand will remain at alert level 1.

Alert level 2 means:

 Limits on gathering size to fewer than 100 people, including tangi, church services, weddings and so on

 Physical distancing in public places of 2m, and at least 1m in most other places including workplaces

 Face masks remains mandatory on all public transport, and encourages while waiting for public transport and in rideshare services and taxis as well

 Businesses can open but must follow public health rules including the 100 person cap on venues

 Hospitality locations must apply the three S rules

 As with all levels, people with symptoms should call healthline or their doctor to seek advice on getting a test.

On the person in question, Hipkins says they were likely to have been infected before they travelled to New Zealand.

"I do want to reassure New Zealanders that we've always had plans in place for situations like this and that is what we are working through now. Our contact tracers have been working at pace and they have been since we were first notified of this case last night."

He says the case, who has since returned to Sydney was spoken to last night and again early this morning. Their four close contacts were notified last night, and two have returned negative results.

He also says the decision to pause travel with New South Wales was made before New Zealand officials were notified of the case. When the case left Sydney there were just four cases there, though that number has since grown significantly.

Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield says authorities learned this morning that the new case works in a healthcare setting close to the Bondi junction that is the centre of the current outbreak in Sydney. He says one of the other cases that is part of the current outbreak had been seen there.

The person has had the first dose of a vaccine about 10 weeks ago and thoroughly used the Covid-19 Tracer app while visiting in New Zealand.

"Our hope is that many people who visited those venues that are locations of interest have also been using the app ... however that is complementary to the information that we have put out on our website."

He says the ministry feels confident they have identified all the locations of interest but more specific information will be provided about specific locations at Wellington airport after CCTV has been assessed.

Two of the person's four contacts are located in Palmerston North, and the other two are in Tauranga. Those in Tauranga had a much more fleeting interaction with the case. All four are isolating.

Some 58 passengers who came into New Zealand from Sydney early on Saturday morning are considered close contacts and will have been contacted, Bloomfield says. They would all have been notified last night and be ringing Healthline directly.

Bloomfield says he encourages Wellingtonians and others who have been in Wellington over the weekend to check the places in the locations of interest. Some people will be required to isolate for the full 14 days.

The case stayed at Rydges Hotel in Featherston Street and spent the weekend in tourist and other places around Wellington and dining in the central city. Some of those who were on the return flight to Sydney have since returned to New Zealand and are also being contacted.

The person returned to Sydney on Monday at 10.13am.

Testing sites:

 Community testing station at 200 Taranaki Street is having extra people brought on board

 Testing site in the Hutt Valley

 From the afternoon there will be an additional testing site at the ASB centre in Kilbirnie

 People should call healthline for advice about where to get tested if they need one

Sewage testing has been taken at the Moa Point site yesterday and results should be available tomorrow.

On today's case numbers, Bloomfield says there are four new cases in managed isolation today.

About 5900 tests were processed yesterday and about 470,000 scans with the app. "We want and need that number to increase," Bloomfield says.

People who have been at these locations at the relevant time should immediately isolate at their home or accommodation and call Healthline on 0800 358 5453 for advice on testing.

- RNZ
Waikato DHB is sending some patients to the private sector to catch up on a backlog of non-urgent operations.

It has been five weeks since a ransomware attack crippled its systems and forced a massive overhaul of its operations.

Waikato DHB chief executive Kevin Snee tells Morning Report private clinics will help with a backlog of about 200 elective surgeries.

The backlog also included thousands of outpatient appointments.

"We're in the winter months and most DHBs are running at full capacity, so we'll try to use the private sector or bring in physical capacity into the hospital where we can," he says.

Radiation and cancer services were now operational.

While services have gradually resumed, some IT systems are still to be restored and manual workarounds remain a daily reality for some staff.

Snee says the DHB was back at 90-to-95 per cent operating capacity overall.

"All of the services have a level of disruption but we have our core systems back up and running ... but obviously these core services have a range of interconnecting services to support them and some of those aren't yet functioning.

"It's going to take a number of weeks before we've got everything back up and running and then of course beyond that there is continued data input from all the data we've been collecting manually over the last five weeks. Of course then there's the patient who had non-urgent treatment that didn't take place, but will have to take place over the next few months."

There has been no contact with the cyber criminals by the DHB and Snee says the lessons learned from the incident should be applied across the wider DHB system.

"The DHB systems are pretty complex and the interconnectedness, both within the DHB and the wider health system, is complex... All DHBs will find that to rebuild the system takes time."

One IT system for the whole country could make it easier, with a consolidation of expertise within the new Health New Zealand system, for example, making the system more secure, he says.
Black Ferns Sevens captain Sarah Hirini has been honoured as Te Pou Hapai Wahine, the female flagbearer, for the New Zealand Olympic team for the Tokyo Olympics.

The 28-year-old leader was presented the kakahu (cloak) from Ranui Ngarimu at an emotional ceremony with her team and family in Tauranga before flying to Australia this week for the Oceania Sevens.

New Zealand Team chef de mission Rob Waddell formally named Hirini a flagbearer alongside two-time Olympic champion rower Hamish Bond at a ceremony in Auckland last night.

It will be the first time a male and female athlete have jointly carried the New Zealand flag at an Olympic Games Opening Ceremony, with a change in games rules allowing for the naming of both a male and a female flagbearer.

Hirini, Olympian 1276, says she grew up in awe of New Zealands Olympians and the countrys flagbearers.



This means so much to me and my family, say Hirini



Being able to carry the flag and represent the womens sevens team and the wider New Zealand Team at the Opening Ceremony is going to be such a huge honour. I cant wait to represent my country at these Games.

Bond says hell be extremely proud to carry the flag alongside Hirini.



If you look back on the people who have been our flagbearers over the years its a pretty amazing bunch of athletes so to be bestowed this opportunity is really special to me, he says.



Our flagbearers have represented us with distinction, pride and respect in the past and Im really honoured to be adding my name to that list.

Waddell says the pair were chosen as they exemplify the values and culture of the New Zealand Team.



Sarah and Hamish are outstanding athletes and are also leaders off the field of play, said Waddell.



These athletes are role models and bring a huge amount of mana to our team. Im extremely proud to be naming them as flagbearers.



They will follow in the footsteps of some of New Zealands greatest sportspeople when they lead the New Zealand Team into the Olympic Games Opening Ceremony on July 23rd.

One month to Olympic Games



With just 30 days until the Olympic Games officially begin Waddell says New Zealand Team planning and preparation is in full swing.



With 136 athletes now selected, the first teams arrive in Japan for heat acclimation and pre-camps in the next couple of weeks, says Waddell.

Behind the scenes theres an huge level of detailed work going on to support the athletes.

This will be a games like no other but we are doing everything necessary to support the incredible focus and commitment to excellence of the New Zealand Team athletes.



An advance party will arrive in Tokyo early next month to prepare for athletes checking into the Olympic Village from July 19. Athletes will enter and leave the village in waves, based on their competition dates.



Waddell says strict measures are in place to ensure athletes stay well and are able protect themselves, their teammates, and the wider Japanese public.



Testing is going to be a major feature of our lives in Japan, along with strict mask wearing, social distancing and hygiene management.



Were really pleased that around 80 per cent of everyone in and around the Olympic Athletes Village will be vaccinated against Covid-19.



We acknowledge it is an extremely challenging time to be hosting an Olympic Games and we want the Japanese public to know that the New Zealand Team is very aware of our responsibility. Our athletes know they are in a privileged position and will be taking every step they can to protect themselves, their teammates, and the people of Japan.



In spite of the challenges, Waddell says New Zealands athletes are looking forward to the Olympic Games.



For most athletes, the Olympic Games are a once in a lifetime opportunity. Theyre really looking forward to competing in Tokyo and giving it everything theyve got against the best athletes in the world.



The New Zealand Team for Tokyo is expected to be our biggest ever Olympic team with more than 210 athletes set to wear the silver fern.
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Lawton, OK (73501)

Today

Mostly cloudy skies early then periods of showers late. Low 71F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 40%..

Tonight

Mostly cloudy skies early then periods of showers late. Low 71F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 40%.
Lawton, OK (73501)

Today

Partly cloudy this evening followed by increasing clouds with showers developing after midnight. Low near 70F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 40%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening followed by increasing clouds with showers developing after midnight. Low near 70F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 40%.
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The positivity rate for new cases of COVID-19 in Florida seems to be increasing. The state Department of Health reported a new case positivity rate statewide for COVID-19 of 3.8% for the week of June 18-24 compared to 3.3% for June 11-17 and 3.4% the week previous.
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re: Worth spending on the Hyundai Elantra over a Honda City? The Elantra is a great car no doubt, even though the facelift has assumed a rather controversial styling, and the fact that the 1.5 U2 CRDI is shared with lesser Hyundai's unlike a proper D-segment sedan, that should have a larger engine to set it apart. All said and done though, it is the only global D1 sedan within reach for most as listed by many here.



If you are open to pre-owned options (which I genuinely think you should be since it's D segment sedans we are talking about), I would strongly recommend the Toyota Corolla Altis. Bulletproof reliability, hassle free service and above all, an excellent rear seat. It is the quintessential chauffeur driven D1 segment choice for those who seek reliability and a hassle free ownership experience.



Lastly, you do mention your grandparents are 70+. I suggest you look at the Innova Crysta GX 2.4 manual and even the Maruti Suzuki XL6. Both are great cars in that regard. The latter especially should offer monocoque like ride quality with ease of ingress and egress along with a comfortable rear seat. You will also end up saving a good amount of money in the end. Of course, it does come with the trade-off of not being a proper global product nor as premium as the Elantra or even the Altis, but it's worth considering.



The City is a great car with a very good rear seat as well, but as I said before, if you have the moolah, spend it on an Elantra or even better an Altis. There's simply no comparison between a C segment and a D segment sedan in my opinion. Both are poles apart in terms of engineering prowess, build and safety, though feature lists are more or less the same. Last edited by vishy76 : 20th June 2021 at 03:44 .


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Clients of SolarWinds, which experienced a high-profile data breach last year, are being targeted in a probe by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, according to a Reuters report.

The investigation is focusing on whether some of the companies doing business with the network management software maker failed to disclose they were affected by the attack, Reuters reported Monday, citing two anonymous sources familiar with the investigation.

Those sources revealed that the SEC sent letters last week to a number of public companies and investment firms asking them to voluntarily acknowledge if they had been victims and failed to disclose it.

"The SEC deciding to investigate a public enterprise breach is pretty significant, considering there could be financial implications from this breach that could affect a company's future," Piyush Sharrma, co-founder of Accurics, a cyber resilience company in Pleasanton, Calif. told TechNewsWorld.

"The impact of these large-scale breaches clearly has the potential to destabilize stock prices and the broader stock market, so it makes sense that the SEC would pursue such a line of inquiry," added Oliver Tavakoli, CTO of Vectra AI, a provider of automated threat management solutions in San Jose, Calif.

As cyberattacks continue to grow in sophistication and cost, it is significant that the SEC is aware of security breaches and is proactively requesting information about them, maintained Bryce Hancock, COO of Cerberus Sentinel, a cybersecurity consulting and penetration testing company in Scottsdale, Ariz.

"This is important from a disclosure standpoint, as well as raising the awareness of the importance of creating a culture of cybersecurity," he told TechNewsWorld.

The SEC did not respond to a request for comment for this story.

Question of Reach

James McQuiggan, a security awareness advocate at KnowBe4, a security awareness training provider in Clearwater, Fla. explained that SolarWinds has thousands of customers, many of them likely publicly traded companies.

"While the SolarWinds breach itself was heavily in the news, it was not well known if the other organizations came forward to report that they were breached," he told TechNewsWorld.

"However, the SEC requires organizations to have disclosure procedures, as they are required to report any data breaches or cyber incidents," he continued.

"Ironically, the company may report to the SEC that they experienced a breach," he added, "but may not disclose it publicly if it did not involve losing any privacy-controlled data, like names or emails.

Brent Johnson, CISO of Bluefin, a data security company in Atlanta, explained that a probe into the SolarWinds breach isn't entirely unexpected, since the agency has fined companies in the past for failing to disclose data breaches.

"What is different this time around is the breadth of companies impacted by the SolarWinds incident," he told TechNewsWorld.

"Confusion around whether running affected software versions impacted different companies' user bases has likely raised a lot of questions around the true reach of the hackers here," he told TechNewsWorld.

Sunburst Backdoor

The attack on SolarWinds Orion platform was disclosed in December. The platform is commonly used to manage complex switched and routed network architectures.

Because of the sophistication of the attack, it's suspected that the operation was backed by a nation-state.

What SolarWinds discovered was that hackers were able to penetrate its software development infrastructure and bolt a malware program, known as Sunburst, into a legitimate software update for Orion.

In March of 2020, the malicious software patch was distributed to SolarWinds' customers. The patch set up a backdoor to the systems it infected, which gave the hackers a means for stealing data from those systems.

McQuiggan noted that the SEC has required the reporting of data breaches to the agency since February 2018.

"However," he continued, "with the SolarWinds attack being so prominent in the industry, the SEC may realize that there should be a significantly higher number of organizations that have yet to report if a breach impacted them via the Sunburst exploit."

"This is not entirely new territory for the SEC, as it has sued companies related to breach disclosure and failure to adopt proper cybersecurity policies at least as far back as a decade ago," added Tavakoli.

"But," he told TechNewsWorld, "this push feels more expansive and different than the ad hoc approaches of the past."

Far Reaching Request

In addition to requesting voluntary disclosures, Reuters reported that the SEC is seeking information from victims of the attack as to whether they experienced a lapse of internal controls, as well as any insider trading data.

Reuters also reported the SEC is looking at some companies' policies to determine if they're designed to protect customer information.

"I do find the internal controls piece interesting," Johnson said. "While a supply chain attack may be difficult to detect from an internal controls perspective, a company's ability to investigate, respond, and notify once the vulnerability has been detected could be under scrutiny."

Sharrma maintained that the SEC is trying to understand if state threat actors were involved in the breach. He acknowledged, however, "Enforcing controls and policies could be more complicated because every control may not apply to every enterprise."

"I think they're interested in learning, understanding and evaluating the impact of the breach, rather than enforcing security policies," he added.

Tavakoli called the SEC's information requests "far reaching."

"The SEC setting a clearer bar for what constitutes reasonable cybersecurity policies and practices has the potential to clarify corporate responsibility to protect shareholder value," he said.

"Breaches -- and insider knowledge about them -- can clearly be used to illegally benefit in trading stocks, something that is squarely within the SEC's remit," he added.

He also noted that what action the SEC may take against companies that voluntarily admit they failed to disclose the impact of the SolarWinds breach on their operations appears to be fuzzy.

"It's unclear from the public reports whether companies which now disclose a breach will not be subject to fines -- just that the information they provide to the SEC would not be used as a basis for legal action," he said.

"And companies may still wish to avoid public disclosure and the inevitable raft of civil lawsuits that would ensue from such disclosure," he added.

John P. Mello Jr. has been an ECT News Network reporter since 2003. His areas of focus include cybersecurity, IT issues, privacy, e-commerce, social media, artificial intelligence, big data and consumer electronics. He has written and edited for numerous publications, including the Boston Business Journal, the Boston Phoenix, Megapixel.Net and Government Security News. Email John.


Bottom line: At MWC 2021, Lenovo has revealed the new ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 4, which brings Intel H-series chips, Nvidia RTX 3000 series graphics, optional 5G and other powerful internals to the popular workstation. While this model launches in August with a hefty $2,149 price tag, Lenovo also had a couple of affordable announcements for ThinkPad buyers that use AMD Ryzen 5000 chips inside and will become available in the same month. These include the $799 L13 Gen 2, and the $999 L13 Yoga Gen 2, the latter of which is the company's first AMD-powered Windows 10 convertible.

It may look visually similar to its 15-inch predecessor, but Lenovo's fourth generation of the ThinkPad X1 Extreme packs a slightly larger 16-inch screen with a taller 16:10 aspect ratio. Lenovo hasn't specified all display options for the new model but notes that it will come with up to a 600 nit 4K panel when it launches in August.

Like previous X1 Extremes, the Gen 4 model packs some beastly specs, particularly in the graphics department. Buyers will now be able to choose from an Nvidia RTX 3050Ti all the way up to an RTX 3080, as opposed to the X1 Gen 3 that could only be had with a GTX 1650 Ti. The CPU, meanwhile, gets upgraded to Intel's 11th-gen H-series that can be specced up to a Core i9 chip.

RAM and storage configurations remain the same as the older model, maxing out at 64GB and 4TB (2 x 2TB SSDs), respectively. The X1 Extreme Gen 4 also receives more powerful speakers, a bigger 90Whr battery for up to 10.7 hours of use, a higher resolution FHD/FHD infrared webcam and optional 5G connectivity.

For ThinkPad buyers on a budget, Lenovo has announced two L-series models powered by AMD Ryzen 5000 mobile processors. The L13 Gen 2 is a traditional, business-focused 13.3-inch notebook, while the L13 Yoga Gen 2 is a similarly sized 2-in-1 that comes with an optional pen.

Both laptops aren't exactly new from the ground up, as Lenovo has already been selling their Intel-powered variants for some time. Additionally, the company announced the $219 M15 Mobile monitor for dual-screen users and a couple of new traditional monitors and webcams that will be available later this year.

For its Go-branded line of PC accessories, Lenovo's USB-C Wireless Charging Kit is perhaps the most interesting new announcement. Ultrabook users with a USB-C port to spare can make use of this kit by attaching its rubber strip to the bottom of their machine. It can then be placed on the provided metal plate that transfers up to 65W of power through pogo pins built in the strip.

Although it saves users from having to plug in/out their machine for charging every time, the Wireless Charging Kit only works with 13- and 14-inch Ultrabooks and permanently reserves a USB-C port. Lenovo will begin selling it in October for $140.

The company's other Go-branded announcements include a wireless vertical mouse and split-design keyboard that incorporates cork material on the palm/wrist rest for reducing strain, a couple of powerbanks, headphones, a speakerphone, and a wireless numeric keypad. Aimed at remote workers, these accessories will become available for purchase over the coming months.
In context: Back in 2011, Phil Schiller told other Apple executives the company would one day have to adjust the revenue split from the App Store and pushed for a solution to be found before this would turn into a fierce fight against external pressures. Ten years later, the company is trying to get out of a situation that it could have avoided -- where developers and regulators are pressuring it into allowing sideloading of apps on iOS devices.

The App Store is a money printing machine that generated $643 billion in sales last year, which is why Apple uses every occasion to tout its role in the creation of an app-based economy that will soon reach $1 trillion per year. The company explained during the Epic Games trial that it's being wrongly accused of gatekeeping the App Store, and that it doesn't make nearly as much money from it as you would think.

Epic's lawsuit against Apple may not be successful in bringing Fortnite back on iOS, but it's already kicked in a public debate about the Cupertino giant's insistence on making the App Store the one and only way users can download apps on iPhone and iPads. Regulators in the US and the EU are scrutinizing Big Tech corporations and preparing a new set of antitrust rules that could see the tech industry change dramatically over the next few years.

Today, Apple unveiled a 16-page report titled "Building a Trusted Ecosystem for Millions of Apps," where it tries to make a case for why the App Store works the way it does and the impact sideloading apps would have on the security and users privacy protections that are currently in place.

Apple argues that allowing sideloading would open over 1 billion iOS users to serious security risks as malicious actors would have a huge incentive to exploit this new avenue for scamming users or installing malware on their phones. The company claims the strict App Store review process in combination with built-in iOS protections like running apps in a sandbox are the reason why iOS users see 47 times less malware in the wild when compared to Android users.

The timing of the report is interesting, as lawmakers are currently debating five antitrust bills that target tech giants like Amazon, Google, Apple, and Facebook.

Google, Facebook, and Amazon on Tuesday released statements where they warn of "significant negative effects" on consumers and small to medium sized businesses, from price hikes to degrading services that many depend on to earn an income. Google also believes the new bills have the potential to "undermine US technology leadership."

Apple didn't comment on the bills, but industry groups backed by and other tech and media companies expressed their concerns on the fast-tracking of the proposed antitrust legislation. The Cupertino giant is, however, aggressively lobbying against the bills, as Apple CEO Tim Cook personally called Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday to warn her that they have the potential to seriously disrupt the iPhone. Cook is also scheduled to have a virtual meeting with EU competition head Margrethe Vestager today.
In brief: Organizers of the PAX gaming expo have reaffirmed their commitment to hold an in-person event later this year, but first weve got a virtual gathering scheduled for next month.

Penny Arcade and ReedPop, if you recall, had to pull the plug on PAX East earlier this year due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. That event was originally scheduled for June 3  6, but instead, organizers opted to bring back PAX Online.

Assuming nothing changes, the virtual event will start on July 15 and run through the 18th.

We're so excited to welcome you back home to #PAXWest this September 3-6, 2021. Keep an eye out as badges go on sale within the next two weeks!



To learn more about our Health & Safety guidelines for the show visit https://t.co/ql7KIEFn0v pic.twitter.com/eQGJYMUdu4  PAX (@pax) June 23, 2021

Looking ahead into the not-too-distant future, organizers are still preparing to hold PAX West later this summer. Badges for the event, which is to be held September 3  6 at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle, are expected to go on sale in the next two weeks. Pricing for a four-day badge will be set at $230, or you can pick up individual day passes for $60 each. Journalists, streamers and YouTubers will be able to apply for badges later this month.

While it will be an in-person event, were told that crowd capacity will be reduced to ensure a safe setting. Detailed health and safety guidelines will be published as the event date nears.

Would you consider attending an in-person expo like PAX West, or would you prefer to continue playing the waiting game and let the pandemic blow over a bit more?

Image credit logoboom
What just happened? John McAfee, the eccentric entrepreneur that founded the McAfee antivirus software company in the late 1980s, was found dead in a prison cell on Wednesday in Barcelona, Spain.

According to the Associated Press, a Spanish court had recently ruled that the 75-year-old could be extradited to the United States to face charges of tax evasion.

A statement from the Catalan government notes that prison personnel attempted to revive the man, but were unsuccessful. The statement didnt name McAfee specifically, but reportedly referenced a 75-year-old US citizen awaiting extradition to America.

McAfee was arrested at an airport in Spain last October. A judge ordered him to be held while awaiting the outcome of the extradition hearing.

The US believes I have hidden crypto. I wish I did but it has dissolved through the many hands of Team McAfee (your belief is not required), and my remaining assets are all seized. My friends evaporated through fear of association.



I have nothing.



Yet, I regret nothing.  John McAfee (@officialmcafee) June 16, 2021

The publication didnt cite a cause of death, but Reuters reports that McAfee apparently hanged himself in his prison cell. He had been indicted on tax evasion charges in Tennessee and was reportedly involved in a cryptocurrency fraud case in New York. He was also a person of interest in a murder investigation in Belize years ago.

Just one week ago, McAfee said on Twitter that the US believes he has hidden crypto. I have nothing. Yet, I regret nothing, McAfee concluded in what would be his final tweet.

Image credit Darrin Zammit Lupi, Reuters
(Photo : Daniel Romero on Unsplash) Apple's AirPods 3 Will Have AirPods Pro Design: iPhone 12 Rumored to be Shipped Without Earpods

It is bizarre to feature a throwback story on Tuesday, just like this story of these two men who swallowed Apple AirPod.

Here's a throwback of their stories.

Taiwanese Man - The First Man Who Swallows Apple Airpod

This Taiwanese man was unaware that he swallowed his Apple Airpod when he found out the truth. Surprisingly, his Apple AirPod was still working even it was in his stomach.

Ben Hsu told The Daily Mail that he fell asleep while wearing his AirPods and found that he was missing one earbud when he woke up. He used Apple's tracking feature to find it but failed.

Hsu heard the beeping sound but did not know where it was coming from. He checked under his blanket and his bed until he realized that the sound was coming from his stomach.

Hsu was rushed to the Kaohsiung Municipal Hospital. The medics confirmed that the AirPod was already in the process of passing through his digestive system. Fortunately, no major surgery was needed as he was able to pass it through naturally.

The earbud was still working and intact after he had cleaned it, with the battery still at 41%.

The doctor who looked after Hsu said that swallowing the AirPod did the patient no harm because Hsu was not exposed to the device's battery.

The Second Man Who Accidentally Swallowed Apple AirPods

Bradford Gauthier, a man from Massachusetts, is the second man who swallowed an Apple AirPod. He shared his story about how he realized he swallowed an AirPod while sleeping and how a doctor was able to remove them from the esophagus.

Just like what happened to Hsu, Gauthier swallowed the AirPod back in February after falling asleep while using it. He said he was exhausted, but it was his habit of watching movies on his phone before sleeping.

Before the movie began, he fell asleep, and he woke up four hours later. When he checked his phone, the film had long finished, and he moved his phone off of his pillow and removed the AirPod headphone from one year. The other piece was missing, but he thought it had fallen out.

Also Read: Amazon AirPods Raffle Scam: Your Account and Financial Data Could be at Risk; Here's How to Avoid It

When he tried to take a drink in the middle of the night, that was when he knew something was wrong.

Gauthier claimed that he could not swallow properly. His throat was filled with water, but it would not go down. But since he was too tired, he just went back to bed.

The following morning, he could not swallow properly, and he could not find his other AirPod. It was his son who told him the possibility of him swallowing it. His wife, Heather, was the one who told him to go to the hospital.

The AirPod Still Works

When Gauthier told the doctor his symptoms, he said he could not believe it because people who swallow something experience a lot of pain, but Gauthier only felt a slight discomfort, according to ScreenRant.

The doctor did an X-ray, and Gauthier said his facial expression was priceless. He was led to the workstation, surrounded by medical staff. The screen showed the image of his ribs, and between them was the shape of his missing AirPod.

The AirPod was wedged firmly into the side of his esophagus, but there was a possibility that it could block an airway or he could have digested the lithium-ion battery.

Gauthier's wife drove him to the endoscopy center, where the AirPod was got back out through his mouth using a tube with a lasso attachment. He said that it was uncomfortable, but he was sedated the whole time. After a few minutes, he was given his AirPod back in a little bag.

Gauthier tried to use the AirPod again, and they found out it still works. He then shared his story with NBC and warned Apple users to be careful with AirPods as it is deemed a health hazard.

Related Article: Apple AirPods 3 Release Date Leaked | Motion Sensors Included

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Google has introduced the "Work Location Tool" which would provide employees with the approximate computation of their salary when they move out to other regions or states. Some may see an increase, while some may suffer a decrease in their salary due to local regions' rates, and would differ from setups of office work or remote.

Each region and state has its valuation for compensation and wage rates, with some not having a high value for the specific work they have there, and some giving more for those in the industry.

Google has recently made it clear that it would soon have a hybrid remote setup in the coming months, especially if the country has furthered on to completing the vaccination drive against COVID-19.

On the other hand, several big tech companies have also looked into a change in their lifestyle, including a balance of office work and a remote setup, which follows because of what the pandemic has brought the public. Companies like Apple and other big tech are leaning into a new setup, with Google being the first to express its plans for it.

Read Also: Google Messages New Feature | How to Zoom In

Google's Work Location Tool

Work Location Tool is the new feature that Google will soon debut according to CNet, and it would bring an estimate of how much one's compensation would be in a certain place that they are living in. The remote setup means that a person can work almost anywhere, provided that they have the right tools for the job like a computer and an internet connection.

However, that does not mean that Google would not change the rates for the said location, particularly as it adheres more to the local rates of a state or region, depending on their place. This means that high-traffic, livelihood, or standard of living places would have a higher rate of compensation, while rural areas would have a lower one.

Users could cross-match the Work Location Tool's compensation computing system to Google's Careers website to know what their expected salary would be when living in different states. The application was said to have been rolled out earlier today, and it would provide different estimates and approximations based on one's location, and work setup.

Are Other Big Techs Also Doing This?

Facebook and Twitter are also on board for a remote or hybrid work setup in the coming years, particularly because the pandemic has shown them that it is possible to function, even without the face-to-face. However, in terms of wage change per region, it was not announced by these two social media companies.

On the other hand, Reddit will not change the rate of an employee despite living in far-flung areas, unlike Google that has a varying rate of compensation. The move for Google and Reddit may be different, but those moves are what the company thinks best for their employees, and well, it is still under their jurisdiction and decision.

Related Article: Google App Crashes on Several Android Users - Update Bug?

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Apple Tower Theatre is right at the heart of downtown Los Angeles, California, and it has opened its doors for people to see and experience a retail store, with preservation on its mind. Instead of going with the modern and minimalist stores as seen mostly from the Cupertino giant, this captures a traditional and elegant look that captured its 1927 design.

Apple Tower Theatre

Preservation instead of tearing down was what Apple had done with the Tower Theatre, and it provided a stunning place to showcase what the Cupertino giant has to offer, as one of its retail stores.

According to Apple, the Tower Theatre is the 26th Apple Store in greater Los Angeles and has a massive team of 100 employees in the store alone. Moreover, the theatre captures most of its original design from the 1920s, as designed by S. Charles Lee, the architect behind the Tower Theatre.

The location's address is at 802 S Broadway, in downtown Los Angeles, which is right at the heart of the city's bustling arts, music, film, and creative district. Additionally, it captures the unique architecture that was debuted by Lee in 1927, the Baroque Revival design that has hints of a classic look from Rome, Italy's 1600 era.

This Apple Store is an icon, especially as it captures something special for Apple and the Tower Theatre, without sacrificing what both entities stand for. Tower Theatre screams of culture and art, while Apple is all about technology, and the new retail store represents both elements in one, harmonizing with each other to bring something fresh to people.

Read Also: Amid CDC's Mask Policy, Apple Continues Wearing of Mask as Mandate When Entering its Stores

Apple is also offering a workshop called "Creative Studios LA," which would focus on an in-store event that will help aspiring artists and creatives to focus more on their craft. The event would take place from June 26 to July 22, for people to learn and acquire new skills. People would need to register on the link above to join and secure a spot.

Apple Stores with Unique Architecture

Apple Stores have mostly been simple and minimalist looking, but being in iconic locations has given Apple the chance to focus on creativity and fusing both designs, despite being out of each other's leagues. Rome's Apple Store in Via del Corso has also captured the architecture of the place that surrounds it and did not change much for it.

On the other hand, the orb-looking one in Singapore's Marina Bay Sands also captures the aesthetics of the location, especially as it leans more into the modern look and design of the district. Here, Apple was able to capture more of its modern minimalist concept, without necessarily going away from the elegant and luxurious feels of the Sands.

Related Article: Apple TV Plus One-Year Free Trial Ends This Month, Shortens to Three Months After

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AstraZeneca's COVID-19 Vaccine has proven to be effective in protecting against the Delta and Kappa variants from India, with the likes of Pfizer and BioNTech's mRNA shot. The adenovirus-based drug was initially viewed as something less potent than that of the new technology used by Pfizer, but in some ways, it still brings an edge to the industry.

Vaccines have different creations and build, and it would vary with the technology that was used by the manufacturers and pharmaceutical companies which has debuted the wave of immunization shots. Among these are the trio of Pfizer and BioNTech, Moderna, and Oxford, and AstraZeneca, which all have their unique takes on the vaccine.

Pfizer and Moderna's mRNA vaccines are said to be the future of vaccine and medicine, as well as the medical community as it provides a progressive take on antibody development. However, this does not fully push away the use of traditional "adenovirus" as they still provide options and features for other specific patients.

Read Also: Bumble Survey Shows 30% of 1000 Americans Won't Go On Dates with People Without the COVID-19 Vaccine

AstraZeneca is Effective in Protecting Against Delta and Kappa Variants

In the recent study that was published by Public Health England (PHE), they have discovered that even the notorious and menacing Delta variant from India can be combatted, and it is through vaccines. It was established that two vaccines have shown massive promise, and they are Pfizer and AstraZeneca's shots.

Its statistics show that it has a high chance of protecting against the Delta and Kappa variants, with higher than 90 percent of protection from said specifications of the virus. It was recently said that the Delta variant is the most dangerous strain that the United States has had to face, and this surpasses that of the UK and South Africa.

Good thing is that the world has to worry less about these variants, provided that they are vaccinated against COVID-19, even more so if they received the shots from either Pfizer or AstraZeneca. The best protection that people can receive now are vaccines, and this is what the country has been achieving to finish by July.

Studies Show Massive Protection Against COVID with Vaccine

COVID-19 has plagued the lives of many, and resulted in massive worldwide death counts, far more than previous diseases, especially as it focused more on respiratory illness. To combat this, the government has focused more on the vaccination and immunization campaign to protect its citizens, and stop the transmission of COVID.

Other countries have already done and surpassed the hardships, with others already dropping face masks and social distancing regulations, going back to the usual routine before all of this. That being said, the government hopes to vaccinate all of the country's population, following its finish with adults.

Related Article: WHO Reveals Plans for a Vaccine Tech Transfer Hub in South Africa

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Software solutions leader WorkWave has announced its successful acquisition of Real Green Systems, also a provider of field service solutions geared towards green service industries. The agreement between the two companies boosts WorkWave as an industry leader in providing solutions, with Real Green Systems' trusted service and solutions joining the fold.

"This acquisition is something rarely seen. It is two successful, fast-growing, market-leading companies coming together to create something truly special," says David F. Giannetto, CEO of WorkWave, in a company press release. "It marks the beginning of a new chapter where WorkWave will help our customers focus on the future, helping them to go beyond service to create effective, fast-growing, highly profitable service organizations that also deliver the best service experience possible."

Giannetto adds that Real Green Systems share the same mission and that with the merger, the two entities will be utilizing their expanded product portfolio to give the maximum value for their clients.

"We have tremendous respect for the Real Green team, and the goal of this acquisition is to not just allow them to continue to lead the green industries forward, but to help them make an even greater impact," the WorkWave exec added.

ALSO READ: Top 5 Best Landscaping Software in 2019

A Common Background in Providing Solutions

Both WorkWave and Real Green Systems trace their origins to being founded by actual industry professionals about four decades ago. Since then, both companies have grown to become well-respected entities in their respective markets and establishing recognizable brand names over the following decades.

Now that the two companies are set to join forces, their respective clientele can expect the best of both worlds. Real Green Systems will advance more quickly and access a wider market while WorkWave will enjoy the depth of expertise Real Green has in catering to the specific needs of green industries.

"This acquisition is one of the most impactful combinations in field service, merging two forward-

looking companies who helped shape their respective industries," said WorkWave Chairperson Darren Roos. He adds that their board of directors, together with investment firm EQT Partners, support the company's commitment to empowering its customers. As a sign of their support, former Real Green investor Serent Capital, together with Real Green founder Joe Kucik, will both roll significant equity and join TA Associates as WorkWave minority owners.

The Real Green Systems acquisition follows WorkWave's signed acquisition deal with Slingshot, a leader in customer call center software. With these new additions to the WorkWave portfolio, the company only proves its commitment to creating an organization that is the best partner in the industry.

About WorkWave

WorkWave offers scalable, cloud-based solutions designed to support all stages of a business's life cycle - from marketing, sales, delivery, customer experience, and financial management. For almost 40 years now, it has become a trusted partner for an impressive number and range of customers, including those from the industries of pest control, lawn care and maintenance, HVAC, plumbing and electrical, and more.

About Real Green Systems

Based in Walled Lake, Michigan, Real Green Systems is also approaching four decades of specialist care with its software and marketing solutions for green industries such as landscaping and pest control. It's flagship offering, the Real Green Service Assistant, remains among the top customer relationship management software solutions.

RELATED ARTICLE: How Going Digital Can Actually Enhance The Customer Experience

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NASA will air a third spacewalk for the installation of solar arrays, as well as the departure of the Northrop Grumman Cygnus spacecraft from the International Space Station (ISS). It will happen this week and the following week.

Unmanned Cygnus Cargo Craft

According to NASA's press release on Wednesday, June 23, Northrop Grumman's spacecraft is scheduled to leave the ISS on Tuesday, June 29 after four-month travel in space. The 15th resupply mission was a success for NASA since the cargo craft has managed to deliver about 8,000 lbs of supplies such as hardware, commercial products, and other materials.

The uncrewed spacecraft would begin its launch at noon EDT. This launch will be aired live via NASA Television. Viewers could also watch its departure from the NASA app on any smartphone or through the official website of the international space agency.

The prominent Black woman, Katherine Johnson, was the inspiration of the Northrop Grumman on its spacecraft. She was a mathematician in NASA who fought for racial and gender equality.

From the earth-facing port of the Unity module, the Cygnus will be separated. The flight controllers will be instructing the Canadarm2 robotic arm for the process. Additionally, the spacecraft would be released at 12:25 PM. Megan McArthur from NASA will be assigned for the monitoring of the Cygnus' systems after it leaves the ISS.

The two cube satellites will also be deployed by the Cygnus for the study of the Ionosphere in collaboration with the Khalifa University Students Satellite-2 (MYSat-2) which would conduct training for the software's development.

Read Also: Hubble Space Telescope Remains Offline, NASA Fails to Fix its Computer Issue Three Times

En route to the destructive re-entry, there will b a deorbit engine firing which would terminate space debris. They will be set ablaze upon entering the Earth's atmosphere.

Northrop Grumman Antares rocket was previously launched before Cygnus. The latter successfully entered the ISS last Feb. 22.

NASA Astronauts to Conduct Third Installation for Solar Arrays

The recent spacewalk involving the rollout of solar arrays has lasted for six hours and 28 minutes. It was accomplished at 2:10 PM EDT. This was the eighth spacewalk that happened in 2021.

Now, NASA wants to install the next batch of solar arrays on June 25. They will be coming on a P6 truss 4B power channel. The space agency decides to come up with the idea to supply enough energy for space missions. Space programs such as Artemis' lunar trip would be benefiting from this action, Slash Gear reported.

The live broadcast for the solar array installation will begin at 6:30 AM EDT via NASA app, NASA Television, and the agency's website.

At around 8 AM, Shane Kimbrough and Thomas Pesquet, who was an astronaut from the European Space Agency (ESA) will be deploying the new ISS Roll-Out Solar Arrays (iROSA) on the 4B channel.

Related Article: NASA Creating Origami-style Solar Array: Could Beam Electricity to Earth

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 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Ransomware gang Cl0p has released a new set of stolen confidential data despite last week's arrests of affiliates of the gang.

According to a report by Ars Technica, the stolen data include the victimized company's employee records such as loan applications and wage-related documents. Ars Technica refused to name the company pending the confirmation of the data and hack.

The fresh release of confidential information comes after Ukrainian police made multiple arrests involving six individuals associated with Cl0p on June 16. The group is accused of double extortion stemming from threats to victims who refused to pay for their stolen data.

The newly released data shows that Cl0p's operations seem unhampered by the recent arrests.

Related Article: BUSTED: Ukraine Ransomware Gang Known for Hacking Universities Arrested

Ransomware: What is It?

Ransomware is a portmanteau of the words "ransom" and "malware," which already give a clue to what it is. Malware, in turn, is a portmanteau of the words "malicious" and "software."

According to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), ransomware is a kind of malware that is meant to "files on a device, rendering any files and the systems that rely on them unusable." Those behind the attack then demand a ransom in exchange for decryption.

These days, ransomware gangs have used the malware to steal confidential information from victims in exchange for ransom. If the ransom is paid, whatever information that has been stolen will not be leaked.

According to Norton, these are the types of ransomware that currently exist:

Crypto Malware - A kind of ransomware that encrypts files, folders, and hard drives.

Lockers - Usually Android-based, Lockers, as its name suggests, locks you out of your device and renders it completely inaccessible.

Scareware - Scareware usually comes in the form of fake antivirus software demanding money in exchange for cleaning in exchange for cleaning the problems it claims to have found in your device.

Doxware - The victim is threatened with the publishing of stolen information if ransom is not paid. It is otherwise known as leakware or extortionware.

EU, US to Fight Back Against Ransomware

With the rising cases of ransomware globally, the European Union (EU) and the United States government have partnered to combat the malicious software.

"We have now a new ransomware working group to address the scourge of ransomware," said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. The statement was made following a meeting with EU's ministers for justice and home affairs, according to Politico.

Cases involving ransomware have been on the rise both in Europe and in the US. The Politico report cites the shutting down of the largest gasoline pipeline system in the US and the hacking of Ireland's health care system as examples of ransomware attacks.

Other examples of ransomware attacks that have recently occurred include the Apple Ransomware Attack that hit manufacturers of the tech company and another pipeline-related attack involving LineStart Integrity Services.

Also Read: 71% of Ransomware Attacks Target Small Businesses: Are You Ready?

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Written by Isabella James

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Ivermectin, an anti-parasitic drug for livestock, entered trial as a COVID-19 treatment in the United Kingdom. The study seeks to know if it could help patients with the novel coronavirus recover more swiftly.

According to BBC, the controversial Ivermectin drug is currently being pushed as a COVID-19 treatment in Latin America and South Africa. It prevails even though no large-scale studies are supporting its effectiveness.

The British outlet noted that the available studies for the parasite drug are either too small in sample size, or low in quality. As such, the actual efficacy of the drug against COVID-19 is still unclear.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO), as well as European and United States regulators advise against the use of it for COVID-19 victims as it still needs further evidence.

Ivermectin COVID-19 Treatment Trial

The University of Oxford is studying the drug to put it straight if Ivermectin is definitely effective against COVID-19.

The British government-funded study, dubbed as PRINCIPLE, will specifically answer if Ivermectic helps recovery even without hospital care.

Reuters reported that the study figured that the anti-parasitic drug slightly halts the replication of the virus, at least in laboratory trials. Oxford added that its initial research also shortened the time that the symptoms manifest in some patients.

Bloomberg further noted that the early study showed that Ivermectin reduces the virus inside the respiratory tract of patients.

The co-lead Investigator of the trial, Chris Butler, told Reuters that the researchers "hope to generate robust evidence to determine how effective the treatment is against COVID-19." He added that they also wanted to identify the pros and cons of using the drug.

Additionally, the study excludes patients with liver problems who take medication that causes blood thinning.

Read Also: WHO Claims COVID-19 Delta Strain Could Be the Most Dominant! What Vaccine Can Prevent It?

Ivermectin: Other Use

Bloomberg said in the same report that Ivermectin is commonly used for the treatment of parasitic worms in animals. It is also prescribed by doctors as a remedy to head lice or scabies.

Elsewhere, on October 28, 2015, a study also suggested that the parasitic drug could also kill mosquitoes, which then helps in curbing the spread of Malaria. The medicine works as a poison when it mixes with a person's blood. In turn, the blood-sucking insect will die upon biting.

However, even before the pandemic, the use of Ivermectin is not limited to livestock. Humans use the drug for external use in skin inflammations.

On January 21, a leaked data claimed that the head lice drug reduces COVID-19 death significantly.

Related Article: COVID-19 Vaccine: Study Shows Less Risks of Virus Infection After First Dose, Also for Coronavirus Variants

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Written by Teejay Boris

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A ransomware attack in Tulsa, Oklahoma could have exposed millions of sensitive information of the residents, as the officials recently said. The data breach which occurred last May is seen to be the culprit behind this.

Tulsa Cyberattack Might Steal Over 18,000 Personal Files in the City

In a press release published by the City of Tulsa on Tuesday, June 22, authorities said that the possible numbers for the previous attack could reach more than 18,000. The affected individuals are residents of the city.

Based on the police reports, the officials discovered that the information which could have been leaked was mostly composed of internal department files and police notes.

What's dangerous about this ransomware attack is the exposure of sensitive information of a person such as a driver's license, email address, name, date of birth, and even the complete address.

To implement necessary precautions about the incident, Tulsa officials called those who submitted police reports, as well as those who made transactions within the city, and those who gave their personal details before May, CNN reported.

For the recommendation, the police warned the residents to evaluate their bank accounts and financial reports and report any suspicious observations that they would notice. They should also be alerted if they suspect a change in their account like altered passwords or usernames.

Last month, Tulsa officials said that the city has been hit by a ransomware attack which caused the officials to close any online services within the vicinity.

Read Also: Cox Media is the Latest Victim of Ransomware Attack, Several Company-Owned TV and Radio Stations Taken Off-Air

The Rampant Case of Cyberattacks in the Different States

Upon the infiltration of hackers to the city's systems, Tulsa Mayor G.T Bynum issued that no ransom should be released to the cyberattackers, Oklahoma-based news outlet KJRH reported.

We could recall that in April, the US Colonial Pipeline was struck by an unexpected data breach. The hackers asked for a ransom worth $4.4 million for the ransomware attack. Many people have been affected by the wide-scale cyber scandal.

This month, nearly $2.3 million Bitcoin equivalents have been turned over to the Justice Department. According to the investigators, the investigators said that those people were behind the Colonial Pipeline fiasco.

What they found out was the notorious group of cybercriminals known as DarkSide. For a few years, the hackers have been operating using their malware tools that infect a specific system.

Regarding the Tulsa cyberattack, the city's Response Team is now coordinating with the authorities to solve the issue of the ongoing data leak.

This week, the DarkRadiation ransomware has been spotted in some Linux and Docker cloud containers. In some cases like what happened in Ireland, healthcare centers experienced massive data breaches following a huge Conti Ransomware attack. Some US hospitals also suffered from the cyberattack believed to be controlled by Russian hackers.

Related Article: Ransomware Roundup: Cl0p Releases New Stolen Data; EU, US to Team Up Against Attacks

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Electric vehicles will rule over traditional fuel engines come 2033. The sales of non-EV cars will also go below 1% of the market, a recent study predicted.

Previously, analysts predict that electric vehicle supremacy is happening in 2038. However, the forecast has changed its tune after regulations and customer demand for the cleaner type of vehicle sharply flooded.

If it ends up becoming a reality, it will be good news for Tesla, which reigns supreme in the United States EV market, according to Business Insider.

Meanwile, it will be a welcomed development for other EV giants and start-ups as well, Barrons noted. Among the giants trying to get a slice of the market share of Tesla are Apple and Ford.

On June 11, the Cupertino giant welcomed a long-time BMW maker and Canoo co-founder, Ulrich Kranz, to work on its EV ambition. Kranz transferred ship after abandoning his CEO role on the former.

On the other hand, Ford is likewise stepping up its game on emission-less cars. Its Ford F-150 Lightning, a Tesla Cybertruck close rival, even joined the plans of President Joe Biden for the EVs in America.

Not to mention that Chinese gaints, namely Huawei, Baidu, and Xiaomi, are also investing in EVs.

Electric Vehicle Sales Forecast

Bloomberg reported that research firm, Ernst & Young, predicted that zero-emission cars will replace the traditional engines at the top of the market after 12 years. It also noted that most vehicle sales in the top three auto markets, such as the U.S., China, and Europe, will primarily reflect the prediction.

Fast forward to 2045, non-EVs are anticipated to be nearly obsolete as it keeps less than 1% of the sales in a global spectrum.

Ernst & Young was able to come up with this data through its artificial intelligence-powered forecasting tool.

Read Also: [BREAKING] Tesla Energy Division Targets China Market: Here are Storage and Charging Integration Project's Details

Regulations and Consumer Demand Speed Up Transition

Bloomberg added that the European and Chinese regulations are propelling the takeover of EVs. Both are penalizing companies, as well as consumers for producing and buying fuel-powered cars.

Notably, Europe will see a much faster EV reign as early as 2028. On the other hand, China will achieve a similar fate in 2033.

Interestingly, the U.S. still lags behind the two market leaders as former President Donald Trump eased restrictions on fuel cars. However, POTUS Joe Biden is now taking charge in accelerating EV transition as he rekindled with the Paris Climate Accord.

Related Article: Virtuo Wants 50% Of Its Vehicle To Be Electric, Adds Massive Tesla Model 3s To Its Fleet

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(Photo : Getty Image: Sean Gallup)

The Clop ransomware gang seems to be unbothered after recent arrests as the group resumed business as there are new sets of personal data on the group's data leak site once again.

In June, a sting operation by the National Police of Ukraine, the USA, and the Korean National Police Agency led to the arrest of some Clop ransomware group members.

Clop Ransomware Operation - The Arrest

According to Bleeping Computer, the Ukrainian Police shared a video that showed numerous law enforcement agents searching homes, seizing properties, and arresting several Clop members.

The report mentioned that 500 million Ukrainian hryvnias, documents, computer equipment, and high-end cars like Mercedes and Teslas were seized during the operation.

In a statement, the Ukrainian Police mentioned that the arrest is equivalent to a massive blow in the face against the money laundering ransomware gang's illegal cybercrime operations.

The press statement also mentioned that the law enforcement agencies' collaboration led to the infrastructure shutdown. The virus started to spread, and even block channels that legalize criminally acquired cryptocurrencies.

Clop - The Comeback

The arrest forced Clop's ransomware operation to take a halt -- for a week.

On Tuesday, June 22, the ransomware gang rose back into action by releasing private data of two victims on their website filled with ransomware data leaks.

Read Also: Chinese Hackers Attack Internet Security Program, Targeting South California's Water Suppliers

Bleeping Computer stated that the continuity of Clop's ransomware operations is probably because the previous arrests only targeted the money laundering aspect of the gang. As a result, the primary members of the ransomware gang were not apprehended, which means that key members of the cybercrime group still organized crimes despite the arrests.

Law enforcement believed that they could not arrest critical members of the gang, as they probably reside in Russia.

Overall, the arrests hardly impacted Clop's business. It is only a minor setback, but it might affect the gang deeper than expected. The arrests might result in the gang's brand being abandoned -- similar to other ransomware gangs like Babuk and DarkSide.

The Clop Ransomware Operations

The Clop ransomware group had its humble beginnings in March 2019. The gang's first major cybercrime operation targeted the victim using a CryptoMix ransomware variant.

Since then, the ransomware hacking group gained a significant foothold in the ransomware industry. It is responsible for various large-scale ransomware attacks, including Indiabulls, ExecuPharma, Maastricht University, and Software AG IT.

The group's most recent ransomware operation involved stealing a massive chunk of data from Accellion FTA file transfer devices. The gang used a zero-day vulnerability, and threatened to release the data gathered if the companies would not pay them at least $10 million.

Clop managed to get their hands on data from cybersecurity firm Qualys, energy giant Shell, University of Miami, University of California, Flagstar Bank, and others.

The Ukrainian Police reported that the damage that Clop has caused might reach $500 million so far.

Related Article: REvil Hacking Group's Ransomware Attack on US Nuclear Weapons Contractor Sol Oriens; Invenergy Data Breach

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Our previous report stated that Elon Musk blames drivers for Tesla errors, leading to accidental sealing off windows. The report said that it caused suffocation and may lead to death..

We found out that this is not true as the source came from a satire website, The Onion. The site's narrative suggests that Musk is blaming the drivers for the Tesla electric vehicle errors. The provided statement on the satire website is actually not true or just made up.

"Unfortunately, while it's a rare and preventable tragedy, many people are not prepared when their Tesla suddenly locks the doors, tightens their seatbelts, and slowly begins sucking oxygen from the vehicle."

There's no proof that the statement came from Musk as none of the major publications reported it. TechTimes wants its readers to be aware of the false claims from the parody website.

Also Read: Elon Musk Impostor Lures Fan to Believe He Won a Free Tesla

Current Tesla Issue

As of the moment, the United States auto safety regulators confirmed on Thursday, June 17, that they will investigate Tesla to identify the real cause of the crash accidents back in 2016.

According to Reuters' latest report, the ten incidents lead to the deaths of the Tesla drivers. Investigators currently suggest that these accidents happened when the victims used their EVs' advanced driver assistance systems.

But Elon Musk already advised its consumers that they still need to be attentive, even when Autopilot is activated. Right now, Tesla's driverless feature is still not 100% efficient.

Identifying satire, parody, and fake news

Not everyone knows what satire is or how it differs from parody and fake news.

Satire used original work or some stories that really happened. However, it used this material to express commentary views on something happening in the current situation but has nothing to do with the original work.

Parody is also different from satire and fake news. It targets the original work or story and also mimics it. As you can see on the comedy films with parody angles, there are familiar characters or, sometimes, characters with different names, but you are familiar with the behavior, situation or narrative. The aim is to imitate the person, situation, or other films in order to craft a comedic story.

Fake news, as the adjective suggests, is all false or contains misleading information. The way the content is written may be in the news format, making people think that this is true.

How to spot if a website is parody or satire?

Although it might be tricky to spot at first, checking other sources is one way to verify an information. If none of the major websites have claimed such, this is red flag that the story is not true. Some satire websites have a disclaimer to make sure that their readers will not be confused with what they are sharing. However, websites like this also use sarcasm or satire in their 'About Us' page.

Related Article: Tesla's Elon Musk Lives in a Small $50K Prefabricated House

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The U.S. Navy could soon receive a new amphibious ship, thanks to the United States Marine Corps. They claimed that this new war vessel could blend in with normal fishing boats.

(Photo : Photo by Z.A. Landers/U.S. Navy via Getty Images)

In this handout provided by the U.S. Navy, the Republic of Korea destroyers Sejong the Great (DDG 991) and Yang Manchun (DDH 973), the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Wayne E. Meyer (DDG 108), USS Michael Murphy (DDG 112) and USS Stethem (DDG 63), the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Lake Champlain (CG 57).

If the new warship is proven to be efficient, the new amphib could a deadly war weapon since the enemies of the U.S. Navy will certainly have a hard time spotting within the commercial ship traffic.

Camouflage is not unusual on the real battlefield. It is still implemented various war tools such as rifles, armors, and more. However, this will be hard to pull on in giant defense innovations, especially in jets, ships, and other vessels.

Aside from this, the military agency also announced that they want this new ship to be as cheap as possible. The U.S. Navy said this will allow them to buy around 36 units of the new amphib vessel.

Once they purchase these ships, they can easily spread them out across the Pacific Ocean.

US Navy Next-Gen Amphib's Features

Since the new ship of the U.S. Navy is planned to be affordable, the United States Marine Corps need to make these new warships smaller than the current models, as reported by Forbes.

On the other hand, the next-gen amphibious ship could also have thinner hulls, no armament, as well as fewer flooding and fire countermeasures. Although this is the case, the developers confirmed that this new warship will still have a 30-millimeter gun.

(Photo : Photo by U.S. Navy/General Dynamics Bath Iron Works via Getty Images)

The future USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000) is underway for the first time conducting at-sea tests and trials on the Kennebeck River December 7, 2016 in the Atlantic Ocean.The Zumwalt is the largest destroyer ever built for the U.S. Navy.

Also Read: This New Jet Prototype's Unusual Wing Design Reduced Power Consumption by Around 70%!

However, its small size will still give it a hard time surviving during wartime. Jay Stefany, the acting acquisition chief of the U.S. Navy, said that the developers need to thoroughly examine the new ship to make some major enhancements that could increase its battle capabilities.

Although this is the case, the next-gen amphib would still have its blending capability, which is a major feature when it comes to sneaking behind enemy lines.

This is just one of the innovations being developed by the U.S. Navy. The other ones include the new Boeing-made drone. On the other hand, other countries are also keeping up with the military agency, include the new KF-X Jet of South Korea.

U.S. Navy Tests Gerald R. Ford Carrier

Aside from the upcoming amphib warship, the U.S. Navy also confirmed that it is testing the advanced carrier called Gerald R. Ford Carrier.

According to Defense News' latest report, the military agency fired three in-water blasts near the aircraft carrier. The new shock trial of the U.S. Navy is specifically conducted to prove that the high-end warship could withstand serious missile attacks.

Related Article: U.S. Navy Claims New CPS Missiles Could Arrive By 2028; These New Rockets Have Mach 5 Speed!

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AMD is putting a lot of their older cards on the legacy from here on out, which could mean that a lot of people will be missing out on all the goodness they just put out.

TechRadar reports that Team Red just killed support for their older graphics cards based on the Graphics Core Next (GCN) architecture with the release of their latest Adrenalin 21.6.1 drivers, which also brought support for their brand-new FidelityFX Super Resolution feature. This also includes all pre-Ryzen APUs.

If you're still running an R9/R7R5, HD8000/7000, or an Athlon/A-Series/A-Series Pro/Sempron APU, you're officially out of driver support from here on out--meaning, even some still quite capable GPUs like the R9 Fury or Fury X are now on the legacy lineup. And if you're also still running something like an R9 390X, then you're out of luck as well.

Aside from this, AMD is also killing off official driver support for Windows 7, as stated on their official website (where the full list of now-unsupported graphics cards is, if you want to see it all). Considering that Microsoft already relegated Windows 7 to legacy in January of last year, this has been a long time coming on the part of Team Red.

This decision comes after NVIDIA has also decided it's killing off their Kepler graphics cards from the 600 and 700 series, which further puts a lot of folks who are still holding on to their old GPUs at a software disadvantage from here on out. Newer games, while they will likely still be supported on this old hardware, are not going to get performance optimizations from drivers anymore.

Read also: Red Devil AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT Restock | Would You Buy the GPU at $2,004.29?

AMD and NVIDIA GPU Shortage Easing Up In Time?

AMD and NVIDIA dropping driver support from their old graphics cards is bad news to a lot of folks, especially for those who had no choice but to hold on to their aging hardware in light of the current status of the GPU market. But maybe it's not so bad right now; in fact, things might actually be easing up.

It's been reported that the latest NVIDIA and AMD graphics cards have experienced their biggest price drops yet, especially in Europe. GPUs over there now cost as much as 50 percent off their previous street pricing about a month ago, and it's due to two main factors: supply problems are easing up, and cryptocurrency mining not being as profitable anymore.

Aside from that, AMD has been at the forefront of keeping older hardware alive, too, even those that aren't theirs. They recently launched their much-awaited FidelityFX Super Resolution, which helps boost frame rates on aging hardware and thus making them more relevant again. The biggest catch with FSR is that it works on graphics cards from the RX 400 series onward and NVIDIA ones starting from the Pascal series.

Related: AMD Socket AM5 Is Going the Intel Route: LGA Instead of PGA for Next Gen

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(Photo : GettlyImages/ Spencer Platt ) Revel electric vehicle

Tesla's plan to launch a fleet of electric taxis in New York City has been blocked. On June 22, New York's taxi regulator voted to prevent the issuing of new for-hire licenses for electric vehicles.

Tesla's Electric Vehicles Blocked

The Taxi and Limousine Commission or TLC voted five-to-one to block electric transit startup Revel from launching its planned 50 Model Y Tesla electric taxis.

The TLC argued that Revel can still operate if it purchases 50 gas cars and changes its licenses out for electric vehicles, which is a requirement that Revel called "the definition of limiting market competition."

TLC Chair Aloysee Heredia Jarmoszuk said that they found it unsustainable to allow an unlimited number of new vehicles to the road in a city that is known for its traffic condition, according to The Verge.

The commission does not want to allow another corporation to flood the streets of New York City with additional cars.

Also Read: Solar, Wind Power Now Cheaper than Coal, Renewable Energy Revolution Against Climate Change

On June 21, the TLC posted a notice saying that the commission had already voted to stop issuing Tesla's electric vehicle licenses. The notice was posted in accordance with city rules.

The New York Post reported that both legal and transit experts stated that the notices do not typically use past-tense language, adding that it may have discouraged New Yorkers from weighing in on the issue at the hearing.

Frank Reig, the CEO of Revel, criticized the TLC's ban in a three-minute speech at the meeting, saying that in addition to its plan for environmentally friendly taxis, Revel offers its drivers better treatment than its competitors, Lyft and Uber, because it hired them as full-time employees and given complete benefits.

Reig added that they are offering what the TLC has been asking corporations for years: stable pay and fair treatment for drivers.

Revel raised $31.6 million from backers, including Toyota, according to Crunchbase. The electric vehicle company added that the TLC offered no evidence or analysis to support its decision to end the electric vehicle exemption.

According to Reig, the Commissioners sat through three hours of testimony on all sides but did not ask any questions nor spent any time deliberating before making a decision that has consequences on the company.

Reig accused the TLC of not considering what the drivers and the New Yorkers had to say and only cared about speeding up its vote on Primary Day.

Protecting Yellow Taxis

Meanwhile, the representatives of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance or NYTWA, and several taxi drivers praised the rule change that TLC issued, while the Independent Drivers Guild and activist groups including the Sierra Club and Tristate Transportation Campaign blasted it, stating that it would affect the climate change plans that they have for the city.

Last week, Reig was asked if Revel would ignore a potential TLC decision against the company and launch its electric vehicle fleet anyway. He said that the company's vehicles will still hit the streets.

Reig added that they would continue with their plan as they know that the law is on their side and that Revel has never operated illegally.

Related Article: Uber Partners Up With UK's Arrival, to Use Electronic Vehicles For Ride-Hailing Purposes

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iPhone 12 and 7th-Gen iPad is currently being offered for free by an American Airlines.

(Photo : Photo by Tim Boyle/Getty Images)

An American Airlines jet is seen in the air preparing to land September 3, 2004 at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport in Rosemont, Illinois. American Airlines announced December 10, 2004 that they will be raising domestic airfares $10 for round-trip and $5 for one-way trips due to jet fuel expense.

However, the flight company said that instead of giving it to its passengers, it will provide these advanced Apple devices to its frontline employees, which is quite reasonable since they are the ones serving the consumers.

Maya Leibman, American Airlines' Chief Information Officer, confirmed that the giant company will replace the current mobile devices used by their frontline workers.

On the other hand, she also said that the free iPhone 12 and 7th-Gen iPad will also be provided to the airline's maintenance employees.

Free iPhone 12, 7th-Gen iPad

According to 9To5Mac's latest report, American Airlines shared a memo, the free iPhone 12 and 7th-Gen iPad will further help the airline's employees to offer customer service. These advanced Apple devices will allow them to do their job even when they are in a terminal.

Also Read: [LOOK] iPhone 13 Concept from Leaks Flaunts Smaller Notch, Thicker Body, and Bigger Camera Lenses

"We have decided to consolidate our frontline mobile devices onto Apple iPhones and iPads," said Leibman.

"Not only will this next-generation technology improve our customer and team member experience, but it will also allow our IT developers to create new apps on a single operating platform, Apple's iOS," added American Airlines' Chief Information Officer.

On the other hand, the giant travel agency already confirmed that its AMTs in Line Maintenance began receiving the free 7th-Gen iPads to support the majority of their work. Meanwhile, the airline's pilots will also continue to use iPads as their electronic flight bags which we'll continue to enhance over time.

Delta Also Did the Same Thing

American Airlines is not the only one that uses this approach. Delta News Hub reported on April 28 that Delta Air Lines also did the same thing.

The travel agency partnered with Apple and AT&T to upgrade the existing flight attendant SkyPro devices into iPhone 12. Delta Air Lines said that this innovation will help it transform the everyday job of its flight attendants.

It added that this could happen both on and off the aircraft.

For more news updates about iPhone 12 and the companies offering it for free, always keep your tabs open here at TechTimes.

Related Article: iPhone WiFi Permanently Disabled | Here's a Quick Fix to the iOS Bug

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Singer, songwriter and banjo player Abigail Washburn dances with her son during Edgar and George Meyer's set over the weekend at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival. (Photo by Skylar Schoemig/Telluride Daily Planet)
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ADA [ndash] Jesse G. Denslow, 93, of Ahloso, passed away Saturday, June 26, 2021, in Shawnee. He was born to Leslie Earl Denslow and Poca Vanderpool Denslow in 1927 in Scullin, Oklahoma, "a wide place in the road". He claimed that his secret to long life was that he never drank, never smoked
Longtime Acadiana High Assistant Principal Layne Edelman is assuming the schools top leadership role for the 2021-2022 school year, the Lafayette Parish School System announced Tuesday.

Edelman is taking over the role from Principal David LeJeune, who retired from the school system in June after 34 years. Edelman has been with the school for nine years, most recently serving as the assistant principal overseeing 11th grade students, the schools website said.

During her time at Acadiana High, Edelman helped grow Acadiana High from a D scored school to a B scored school, a designation assigned by the Louisiana Department of Education based on standardized testing scores. The new principal is eager to continue efforts to make it an A school, a district statement said.

These four Lafayette Parish schools will have new principals when students head back in the fall Students returning to campus in the fall can expect new leadership at a handful of Lafayette Parish schools.

Before joining Acadiana High, Edelman taught social studies at Ovey Comeaux High School for five years.

The Acadiana High leader is a graduate of Lafayette High School and earned a bachelors degree in secondary social studies from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, followed later by a masters degree in educational leadership from the American College of Education in 2011.

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Outside of her school work, Edelman worked for the 1/244 Assault Helicopter Battalion of the Louisiana Army National Guard for eight years as a part-time human resources officer, achieving the rank of captain, a district statement said.

+8 Not just Teacher Awards: LEF and United Way closing in on full merger agreement Mays Teacher Awards event was the first public nod to the impending merger between the Lafayette Education Foundation and the United Way of A

Acadiana High isnt the only LPSS school undergoing leadership changes over the summer.

Mary-Delores Spencer was named the principal for Broadmoor Elementary after David Zielinski retired, Lorrie Venable was named principal of Ossun Elementary School following Kelli Clauses retirement, Carlie Roszell is assuming the lead at Katharine Drexel Elementary after Denise Soileaus retirement and Gabrielle Mergist will lead Woodvale Elementary following Monique Vidos transfer to a part-time librarian position as she eases into retirement.

New replacements have not yet been announced for Kandice Broussard of Milton Elementary and Middle School or Jeff Janette of Carencro Middle School.
The East Baton Rouge parks and recreation system hopes to recoup some of the money it forfeited last year by raising the system's tax rates back to pre-pandemic levels.

Bumping the voter-approved tax up to the maximum limit of 14.463 mills  pending BREC Board of Commissioners approval  would inject roughly $3.5 million of additional property tax into the system's coffers.

BREC reduced the rate to 13.702 mills last year to give taxpayers a bit of a break from the pandemic's crippling economic effects. A mill amounts to $1 of tax for every $1,000 of net assessed taxable value.

"Just as we considered the economy and the impact on taxpayers last year, we do that every year," BREC Superintendent Corey Wilson said. "Based on the most recent information we received about the economy, we thought we'd be in a much better position to ask for the roll forward than we were last year."

Why East Baton Rouge property owners will get a little tax help, thanks to BREC Property owners in East Baton Rouge Parish will receive some relief on their tax bills after the city-parish's parks and recreation system opt

A "roll forward" is basically a taxing entity continuing to levy annual property taxes at the maximum amount voters approved. Decisions to reduce the rates or leave them at current levels are generally made during parishwide reassessment years, which happened in 2020 for East Baton Rouge where accessed values saw an uptick.

Increased property values mean taxing entities get to reap the benefit of additional revenue when millage rates are applied to their new assessed values.

BREC's board this week will likely set a public hearing for July 29 to consider the plan.

The proposal comes as BREC managed to avoid the state's encroachment on its operations through a now dead proposal from state Sen. Bodi White, R-Central, who tried to dismantle the city-parish's parks and recreation system to create separate ones in Zachary and Central.

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White repeatedly argued both cities weren't getting their fair share of benefits from the parishwide recreation system. State legislators ultimately decided to table the proposal for a year amidst widespread backlash from the public.

Wilson said Tuesday that had nothing to do with the system's decision to roll rates forward.

"Those are two separate things (but) our eyes are more open that our revenue streams aren't guaranteed going forward," he said.

In addition to the $3.5 million in revenue the recreation system gave up with the rollback, Wilson said BREC collected $4 million less in self-generated funds  which usually comes to about $10 million a year  because of pandemic-prompted park closures and social-distancing rules.

Wilson said being able to levy the additional tax revenue would help finance several unfunded projects, like the ongoing renovations at the Baton Rouge Zoo and the system's bike and pedestrian projects. Not rolling forward the millage rates wouldn't affect the timelines of those initiatives, he added.

The parks system was able to shave off some expenses this year through budget efficiencies, Wilson added, and it plans on dipping into reserve funds to keep projects going.

"We just don't think it's healthy planning to use our fund balance every year for projects," he said.
LWCC has purchased an Acadian Thruway Chevron station, giving the private workers compensation company control of a 7.7-acre tract between Interstate 10 and Bawell Street.

The company paid $907,000 for the half-acre property at 2313 South Acadian Thruway. The seller was the Kavanaugh & Tudor Co. of Alexandria. Kavanaugh & Tudor also owned the land at 2323 South Acadian thats the home of Mestizo Restaurant. LWCC bought that property in January for nearly $2.2 million.

Just like the Mestizo deal, Chevron has a long-term lease on the property, so the gas station and convenience store will continue to operate as is, said Seth Irby, a spokesman for LWCC.

Mestizos building is sold for $2.2 million -- and restaurant will remain open LWCC has purchased another tract of land at the Acadian Thruway/Interstate 10 intersection, buying the property thats the home of Mestizo Res

Buying the gas station came up when LWCC was discussing a deal for the Mestizo property with Kavanaugh & Tudor. But the company wanted more time to conduct environmental reviews and evaluate the site before agreeing to the purchase, Irby said.

The deal gives LWCC more access from Acadian Thruway to two former hotel properties it owns at the intersection. Before the Mestizo sale, there wasnt a direct route from Acadian to the land.

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LWCC bought the former LaQuinta Inn, which was behind Mestizo at 2333 S. Acadian, for $4.4 million in November 2019. In February 2020, the company paid $4.1 million for the Red Roof Inn at 2445 S. Acadian.

Former Acadian Thruway hotel sold to workers compensation company Louisiana Workers' Compensation Corporation has purchased a hotel next door for $4.4 million and is looking at all of its options for the site.

The company has demolished both hotels.

Second Acadian Thruway hotel sold to Workers compensation company; both will be demolished Louisiana Workers Compensation Co. has purchased the former Red Roof Inn on South Acadian Thruway, less than three months after it bought the

Irby said LWCC hasnt determined yet what it will do with the former hotel properties. But he said the company is finished buying land at the intersection now that it has acquired the final piece between its offices and the interstate.

Were in no rush, Irby said. We want to think through all of the options and determine the best path forward.
A sign promotes job opportunities at St. Vincent's Hotel in New Orleans during May.

number of nonfarm jobs in Louisiana dropped by 4,700 from April to May, as most sectors saw declines in workers.

There were 1,829,200 jobs in Louisiana during May, according to figures released Wednesday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Thats down from 1,833,900 in April. The numbers are seasonally adjusted.

. (Photo by Chris Granger | The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden is announcing new efforts to stem a rising national tide of violent crime as administration officials brace for what could be a turbulent summer, focusing on attacking gun violence, providing money to cities that need more police and offering community support.

Biden is expected to announce the measures at a 3:30 p.m. speech. Before that, he is meeting with a number of city and state leaders, including Baton Rouge Police Department Chief Murphy Paul.

The worry over crime is real: It has created economic hardship, displacement and anxiety. But there are also tricky politics at play. The spike in crime has become a Republican talking point and has been a frequent topic of conversation on conservative media.

White House aides believe that Biden, with his long legislative record on fighting crime as a senator, is not easy to paint as soft on the issue, and the president has been clear that he is opposed to the "defund the police" movement, which has been effectively used against other Democrats to cast them as anti-law enforcement.

But Biden also is trying to boost progressives' efforts to reform policing, following a year of mass demonstrations and public anguish sparked by the killing by police of George Floyd and other Black people across the country. And while combating crime and reforming the police don't have to be at odds with each other, the two efforts are increasingly billed that way.

Biden will try to do both at once, according to senior administration officials who detailed his upcoming address on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about it.

BRPD Chief Murphy Paul to attend White House meeting for crime prevention Baton Rouge Police Chief Murphy Paul will attend a meeting with President Joe Biden to discuss crime prevention with other state and local lea

In his speech Wednesday, Biden will announce a "zero tolerance" policy  not to be confused with the Trump administration's "zero tolerance" policy on immigration that separated thousands of children from their families at the U.S.-Mexico border. This one gives no leeway to gun dealers who fail to comply with federal law  their license to sell will be revoked on the first offense.

The president has already announced a half-dozen executive actions on gun control, including cracking down on "ghost guns," homemade firearms that lack serial numbers used to trace them and that are often purchased without a background check.

But Biden is limited in his power to act alone. The House passed two bills requiring background checks on all firearm sales and transfers and allowing an expanded 10-day review for gun purchases. That legislation faces strong headwinds in the Senate, where some Republican support would be needed for passage.

In the meantime, Biden will also seek increased transparency on gun data and better coordination among states, and he will push Congress for more money for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the agency responsible for enforcing federal gun laws and regulating gun dealers. The Justice Department is also launching strike forces in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., to help take down illegal gun traffickers, building on an initiative begun last month.

Police officials around the country have said they are struggling with increasing crime and continued tensions between police and communities, and some say their calls for support aren't answered as they take the blame for the spike.

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"Many of us  if not most of us  are seeing a rise in crime, while at the same time, were hearing calls for reform," Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison said of cities in remarks Tuesday at a forum on policing. "And some of those calls are to the extreme of dismantle and defund ... while all of the same time were sworn to protect the people."

Biden planned to discuss how $350 billion of the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package can be used by cities to hire law enforcement officers, pay overtime, prosecute gun traffickers and invest in technology to make law enforcement more efficient. The officials said the Biden administration hoped cities would choose to use the money for alternatives to policing, too, and to invest in community policing models.

While crime is rising  homicides and shootings are up from the same period last year in Chicago; Los Angeles; Minneapolis; Portland, Oregon; Baltimore; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; and Houston  violent crime overall remains lower than it was a decade ago or even five years ago. And most violent crimes plummeted during the first six months of the coronavirus pandemic, as people stayed indoors and away from others.

Crime started creeping up last summer, a trend criminologists say is hard to define and is likely due to a variety of factors such as historic unemployment, fear over the virus and mass anger over stay-at-home orders. Public mass shootings have also made an alarming return.

The rise in violence comes against the backdrop of the national debate on policing and racism in policing  and as a police reform bill is being crafted in Congress. White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Tuesday dismissed suggestions that a presidential event focused on cracking down on crime would undermine that legislative effort.

As a senator, Biden wrote several major anti-crime packages, including a 1994 bill that contained provisions now viewed by some as an overreaction to the crime spikes in the 1980s and 1990s. Critics say those bills helped lead to mass incarceration of Black Americans, and Bidens involvement became a flashpoint in his 2020 campaign.

Biden has expressed second thoughts about some aspects of the legislation, and he has acknowledged its harmful impact on many Black Americans. But he and his allies still hold out the laws provisions to address domestic violence, ban assault weapons and finance community policing.

On the reform side, Biden on Wednesday is expected to push cities to use $122 billion to help keep schoolchildren busy this summer  they're often both targets and perpetrators of violence  and to expand summer hiring programs for teenagers, the officials said. Labor Department funding will be used to provide pre-apprenticeship jobs for youths and help formerly incarcerated adults and young people in 28 communities get work.

The White House also planned to convene a bipartisan meeting Wednesday of law enforcement officials, politicians, activists and prosecutors and will meet with 14 jurisdictions from around the country that have committed to using a portion of the funding for violence intervention programs.

"Yes, there need to be reforms of police systems across the country. The president is a firm believer in that," Psaki said Tuesday. "But there are also steps he can take as president of the United States to help address and hopefully reduce that crime. A big part of that, in his view, is putting in place gun safety measures ... using the bully pulpit but also using levers at his disposal as president."

By COLLEEN LONG, JONATHAN LEMIRE and MICHAEL BALSAMO, Associated Press. Lemire reported from New York.
A locomotive comes out of the Kansas City Southern freight yard near Baton Rouge.

A host of elected and business leaders from South Louisiana have come out in support of the Canadian National-Kansas City Southern merger and Canadian Nationals plans to sell off the 70-mile rail line connecting Baton Rouge and New Orleans.

Gov. John Bel Edwards, Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome, the Port of New Orleans and the Baton Rouge Area Foundation have all filed letters in support of the deal with the U.S. Surface Transportation Board, the railways announced Monday.
Marijuana:

Lawmakers previously agreed to a framework for the dispensing of medical marijuana nearly four years ago, but regulatory problems and friction between growers and the state persist. Some lawmakers hope to loosen medical marijuana restrictions. Others are proposing the legalization of recreational marijuana. Gov. Edwards supports medical marijuana, but opposes the legalization for recreational use.

Read More: 'Limited release' of marijuana slated for May, with full supply in the fall, grower says
Google faces a sweeping European Union probe into its advertising technology, a move that strikes at the heart of the tech giants business model.

The European Commission said its new confrontation with the Alphabet unit will focus on concerns the company may be illegally favouring its own online display advertising technologies, squeezing out rivals.

The company gets some 81 per cent of its revenue from online advertising, which amounted to $US147 billion last year. Credit:Bloomberg

This is probably the probe that many people were waiting for because it goes to the core of Googles business, said Aitor Ortiz, an analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence. The biggest risk would be an order for Google to separate from or restrict its online ads operations, which could have a significant impact on the money generated through online advertising, he added.

Its the first time the EU has directly examined the black-box of online advertising where Google automatically calculates and offers ad space and prices to advertisers and publishers as a user clicks on a web page. Earlier EU cases focused on shopping search ads, mobile phone ads and advertising contracts.
The central cluster of deposits at De Grey Minings gold project in Western Australias iron-rich Pilbara has been estimated as a 6.8 million-ounce resource, making it one of the most sizeable discoveries in the state in the past decade.

De Greys Mallina Gold Project, 80 kilometres south of Port Hedland, now claims a total mineral resource of 9 million ounces  exceeding the expectations of analysts and the company itself  with the maiden estimate of its Hemi deposits released on Wednesday.

De Grey Mining has reported a 6.8 million ounce maiden mineral resource for its Hemi deposit in the Pilbara. Credit:De Grey Mining

The largest gold discoveries in the past two decades in WA were the Goldfields projects Gruyere in 2013 and Tropicana in 2005.

The Pilbara explorers total Mallina estimate is based on a rate of 230 million tonnes at 1.2 grams of gold per tonne.
A Melbourne nurse who provided medical support to militants in Syria is eligible to apply for parole after almost six years in a Victorian prison, despite doubts over whether he has modified his ideological views.

In 2014 Adam Brookman abandoned his wife and five children  when the youngest was three months old  to follow his Islamic beliefs and travel to Syria, where he lived alongside Chechen rebels who were fighting Bashar al-Assads government troops.

Adam Brookman, pictured when working as an ambulance paramedic, provided medical care for wounded Chechen fighters in Syria. Credit:Facebook

Over 12 weeks Brookman provided medical care for wounded Chechen fighters and also underwent weapons training, did stints as a guard and took part in reconnaissance missions  acts that are illegal under Australias foreign incursion laws.

The 45-year-old surrendered to authorities in Turkey in 2015 and returned to Australia that year, and on Wednesday he was jailed for six years and eight months.
Hundreds of metres of new railway tracks promised by the Andrews government in Melbournes north-east will no longer be built to save an endangered butterfly species.

The $530 million track duplication on the Hurstbridge line was promised before the 2018 state election. The upgrade would benefit commuters in two marginal, Labor-held seats of Eltham and Yan Yean.

The Eltham copper butterfly is found only at several sites around Eltham and in isolated spots in Castlemaine, Bendigo and Kiata, near Nhill.

The project involved duplicating about three kilometres of a single-track section between Greensborough and east of Montmorency station, and a separate 1.5 kilometre stretch between Diamond Creek and Wattle Glen.

Work started on the project late last year but was paused after a local spotted the endangered Eltham copper butterfly in remnant bushland near Montmorency station in January.
Human remains found at a landfill site in the citys north last week have been formally identified as Melbourne mother Ju Zhang.

On the fourth day of the police search for Ms Zhang at a tip in Wollert, officers found what they believed to be human remains on Friday afternoon.

A police spokeswoman confirmed on Wednesday that the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine had examined the remains and a coroner had determined they had been formally identified as the 33-year-old woman.

The Victoria Police missing persons squad would again like to acknowledge the support and assistance of numerous members of the community in this investigation and offer our condolences to the family, she said.
I listened as federal Environment Minister Sussan Ley stated that the plan by UNESCO to list the Great Barrier Reef as endangered was a politically influenced decision. She also claimed that it came as a surprise. As the minister responsible for its care, has she ever looked closely at the reef? I suppose she has not heard of QAnon either.

Patricia OBrien, Ventnor We must heed UNESCOs warning and act Can anyone get it across to Sussan Ley that it is not just a tacky, little fish pond in some Australian backyard. It is the Great Barrier Reef and its survival is of world importance. The basic truth is that we are killing it and UNESCO is telling us to get our act together. And so it should. Shame on us.

John McCallum, St Helens, Tas A way to help our farmers and the environment Barnaby Joyce, one way to bring cash back into the bush via farmers pockets would be to introduce a carbon trading scheme. Farmers could dedicate sections of their land to growing carbon-storing trees. They would get their carbon credits every year, hail, rain or drought, which they could sell for cash or offset against other farming activities. The rest of the land and the livestock thereon would benefit from the shelter belts thus provided. Surely this is a win-win situation and would allow Australia to hold its head up again in international circles.

John Mosig, Kew

Seeing renewable energy as an opportunity The Environment Minister has kyboshed a massive, $48billion renewable energy hub in WAs Pilbara region because it may affect the local environment. Fair enough, but the project was originally a fly-in, fly-out wind and solar based hub with relatively low impact. The feds, however, insisted the developers include hydrogen production and shipping, with a permanent town. Again, fair enough, but now this larger project is considered by the government to be unacceptable. It does not make sense until you realise the Coalition sees renewable energy as a threat, not an opportunity. The National Party, in particular, seems hell-bent on preventing nation-building and future-proofing projects like these. Please get out of the way for everybodys sake.

Barry Mann, Woodend THE FORUM Where the blame lies

The warming that is harming the Great Barrier Reef comes mainly from global sources, most of which is from six nations which emit 60per cent of annual global atmospheric CO2  China, the US, India, Russia, Japan and Germany. However, UNESCO blames the reefs decline on insufficient progress by Australia to protect it from climate change. But the most effective protection for the reef can only come from big reductions by the major emitters. Shifting the blame to Australia, which emits only 1.3per cent of global emissions, defies logic and suggests a political motive.

Thomas Hogg, East Melbourne Steady erosion of reef Sussan Ley says she was blindsided over the Great Barrier Reefs status review. Hello, where have she been for the past 30 years? Crown of thorns starfish, agricultural runoff, episodes of catastrophic weather, and various marine diseases associated with oceanic pollution have had a progressive impact, first documented in the 1980s but recognised to have originated over 20 years before. Perhaps Ms Ley could take advantage of the upcoming reshuffle to seek a less demanding portfolio, such as International Development and the Pacific, which just hands out a bit of money from time to time, or Defence Science that effectively runs itself with unusual efficiency.

James Ogilvie, Kew

How Joyce has changed In 2019, Barnaby Joyce said he was sick of government being in his life, but now he does not mind subsidising farmers for climate action (The Age, 23/6) that they say they are already committed to.

Chris Boon, Wodonga Lets go the whole hog What a great idea, Barnaby Joyce: pay farmers to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. You can also raise cash by taxing coal and gas companies. Call it a carbon tax.

John dHelin, McCrae Learning to objectify

Year 10 boys at St Lukes Grammar School in Sydney were told they had 25 points to allocate on qualities they would look for in a girl. Being good looking and a virgin scored six points, while generosity bottomed out at a measly one point and having a good pedigree, like a loveable labrador, scored three. The perpetuation of the idea that virginity is a highly valued prize which boys should seek out is disgraceful and archaic, but more disturbing is the concept of a ranking system for women. We have seen women march for the right to live free from abuse and harassment, but all the while the next generation of men learn to commodify and objectify women. We have a serious, systemic problem that will not be fixed purely by generational change, thanks in part to school programs like this. The creators and distributors of this exercise owe women, and the boys at the school, an apology for letting them down.

Anita Stubbs, Balwyn The PMs double standard No, Scott Morrison, coverage of your side trip to St Keverne, 45 minutes south of the G7 summit site in Cornwall, to delve into your family history was not massively overstated (The Age, 22/6). Many Australians would give their eye teeth to be in the UK to reunite with our living families. Many of us ache for their presence and to hold our unmet grandchildren.

To do so is really against the odds despite a growing number of us being fully COVID-19 vaccinated. The need to apply for a travel exemption on family/compassionate grounds is fraught. If we are so lucky as to be given the exemption, on our return the need to spend two weeks in hotel quarantine rather than home isolation, which Mr Morrison is now enjoying at The Lodge, is onerous. I am mighty angry and fed up, Prime Minister.

Helen Edwards, Prahran Please, no excuses... I am with Geoff OBrien, polio survivor, who has no time for people who are unwilling to get their COVID-19 jabs (The Age, 22/6). I got polio a year after Mr OBrien, but fortunately a mild case: I am designed for walking around mountains anti-clockwise. People who want no risk and absolute certainty before they make a decision are wasting their lives  and risking others lives, in this case. Anti-vaxxers? Do not get me started. I will be getting my second AstraZeneca shot in July.

Rob Morgan, Bulleen ...just get vaccinated

Hear, hear Geoff OBrien. In 1953, I was in hospital under observation with suspected polio. I was fortunate, but my desk mate and friend was not and battled for the rest of her life. Make an appointment to be vaccinated today for all our sakes.

Marjorie Morkham, Apollo Bay The right to their freedom I write as a GP who visits patients in aged care and as a daughter who has a mother in a facility. With the vast majority of residents being now immunised against COVID-19 and influenza, it seems unnecessary to lock down this vulnerable group. The elderly continue to be deprived of the company of friends and family and the facilities continue with the wearing of masks and even face shields. What are the residents being protected from? Many elderly have poor hearing and struggle to understand when a speaker wears a mask. Facial expression is also an important part of communication. Physical touch is vital for showing love and reassurance, especially when someone may be non-verbal. Our elderly were let down last year and suffered the greatest mortality of any group. The staff in the homes had a terrible time coping with the illness and death of clients and fear of infection by COVID-19 for themselves. Now that they have been immunised they deserve some freedom, as do the staff.

Heidi Andersen-Dalheim, Templestowe

The freedom to travel Our lives are difficult enough at present, but the opening and closing of state borders is making everything more complicated. Could the federal government consider allowing fully vaccinated residents to travel interstate without the restrictions of quarantine? This allowance could encourage more people to get out and get vaccinated.

Carole Nicholls, Surrey Hills Living with consequences If you choose not to be vaccinated against a deadly disease, surely it is correct that this has consequences to limit the harm you could do to other members of society. There is coercion in many areas of society, laws against violence, laws against speeding, laws about wearing a seatbelt, etc, but these laws are what enable us to live together in relative harmony, instead of the chaos of anarchy. You have the right to choose sometimes, but every choice you make in life has consequences.

Wendy Forsey, Seaholme Limits on our rights

Jeremy Browne (Letters, 22/6) has every right to not have COVID-19 vaccinations, just as airlines, restaurants, bars etc have every right to exclude him if he has not. If people catch a highly contagious, deadly disease, their libertarian rights do not guarantee them the freedom to spread it throughout the populace.

Geoff Parkes, Warranwood Playing with fire? NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian will not lock down the many Sydney suburbs now identified with a growing number of COVID-19 cases but instead asks residents not to leave Greater Sydney. To me that sounds like she is playing a risky political game, hanging on to her reputation as being lenient on lockdowns and hoping it turns out well. That is the opposite of the precautionary principle. The tactic worked previously but that was before the Delta variant.

Dennis Richards, Cockatoo Schools out, petrol is up How do you know the school holidays are coming? It is easy: petrol prices across Melbourne have just jumped from 132.9 to 175.9 per litre. A case of price gouging as usual. Petrol companies are a rip-off.

Ian Cayzer, Frankston

Modern day martyr/saints Susan Connellys commentary (Opinion, 21/6) is a deep and chilling analysis of the circumstances surrounding the sentencing of Witness K and the impending trial of his courageous lawyer, Bernard Collaery. She references Jesus Christ as the epitome of innocent scapegoats. World Press Freedom Day on May 3 had the theme: Information as a Public Good. In the future, such days could be given some extra punch by the acknowledgment of whistleblower heroes in each country. Some would need anonymity to preclude them being scapegoated by the powers that be. Our whistleblowers are a modern expression of the martyr-saints who followed Jesus path.

Vince Corbett, Essendon High price for expats I support the case for reconsideration of pension payments to Australian expats who are living in France (The Age, 21/6). I worked for 30years in Australia before moving to work in the UK. I am now retired and live in France. After 13 years of work in the UK, I am receiving a proportional UK pension for life.

This is the type of benefit I would hope to be entitled to from the Australian government, given that I paid taxes to it for 30years and never claimed a cent. It is a poor reflection on the lack of care and respect the government has for its citizens that those who live in certain countries are penalised.

Ruth Bird, Cordes sur Ciel, France Please, say its not true Claims of staff at Victorias prisons using excessive force against prisoners and the strip-searching of a male prisoner taking too long (The Age, 23/6)? Staff smuggling illegal items in and out of jail? They would never do that...would they?

Russell Brims, Bentleigh East Our fashionable heroes SES workers clearing debris in the Dandenongs wear high vis gear while ADF personnel are in camouflage. Is it all about fashion?

Greg Pyers, Daylesford

AND ANOTHER THING Credit:Illustration: Matt Golding Barnaby Joyce Barnabys back. Are we about to see the Nationals tail start wagging the Liberal dog?

Ian Maddison, Parkdale Joyce supports paying farmers to cut emissions, which effectively puts a cost on carbon but is conveniently paid by taxpayers.

Peter Baddeley, Portland

Lets hope the release of Julian Assange will remain high on Barnabys to do list.

Tris Raouf, Hadfield Albanese seems to enjoy Joyces antics in Parliament.

Malcolm Cameron, Camberwell Some will be rejoicing that Mac has been knifed.

Tony OBrien, South Melbourne Barnabys self-centred behaviour reminds me of the old saying, a leopard never changes its spots.

Marlene Burchill, North Carlton With Joyce leading this Flintstone party, I expect to see bags of coal on the floor of Parliament. How far back in time have we gone?

Wies Danielewski, Inverloch

Politics As we recycle leaders, how about giving Kevin Rudd another go?

Val Pollard, Woodend Why dont the Liberals and Nationals go it alone? Lets see how they get on then.

Shane Gunn, Heathcote Junction If the government didnt notice the reef was in danger, its eyes were closed. The effects of accelerating climate change are clear.

Mary Macmillan, Brunswick East COVID-19
A surfer has received a large cut to his leg after being bitten by a shark off the coast north of Perth.

The attack occurred just before 3pm at Gumtree Bay, near the small town of Leeman, about 40 kilometres north of the tourist town of Jurien Bay in the Wheatbelt.

Paramedics rushed to the scene where they applied a tourniquet to the mans leg before an ambulance took him to a nursing post in Leeman for treatment to a 20-centimetre gash to his calf.

The 25-year-old remained conscious throughout the ordeal and is currently in a stable condition.

He has been flown down to Perth for treatment by the Royal Flying Doctor Service.
Indoor settings are risky areas, Professor Sutton said. We do need to bear in mind that thats a level of insurance, a level of protection that allows us to go to the very settings were trying to get to. With offices allowed to run at 50 per cent capacity this week, City of Melbourne pedestrian monitoring shows that office workers are slowly starting to return to the city, but numbers are still down considerably on what was typical before the lockdown began last month. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video There were 523 pedestrians recorded walking past the Southern Cross Station exit on Collins Street during morning peak hour on Wednesday morning. This time last month there were about 2000 pedestrians logged in the area on a weekday morning, while in 2019 there would have been almost 3900 pedestrians in the area on a typical weekday morning. Danni Hunter, Victorian director of the Property Council of Australia, said masks were a natural handbrake on people returning to the office.

Loading Offices are highly maintained, they are well-cleaned environments. Wed like to see more confidence given to workers that it is safe to come into the CBD in particular, she said. City of Melbourne lord mayor Sally Capp was less critical, saying she expected Wednesdays announcement to boost visitors to the CBD. We understand wearing masks inside can be a little uncomfortable, but its worthwhile if it means we can return to offices safely and keep more businesses open. James Trauer of the epidemiological modelling unit at Monash University said if Victoria had recorded seven straight days of no new cases, then face masks might not have been required indoors.

But with a small smattering of new cases linked to previous clusters in the last week, including one new case detected on Monday, Professor Trauer said there was still a tiny chance Melbournes recent spate of outbreaks had not yet been run to ground. It is about being particularly cautious with interventions that dont cause people much harm, he said. As much as masks are an annoyance they are not in my view a significant imposition on somebody when youre balancing this against lockdowns and deaths. Professor Trauer said maintaining the requirement for masks to be worn at offices even though its hard to know exactly what the effect of that would be was reasonable if it allowed businesses, cafes and restaurants to open up more widely. Some epidemiologists argue the mandated face mask rule could be reviewed as early as next week on the provision that there are no new mystery cases that could not be linked back to an existing cluster.

Adrian Esterman, chair of biostatistics at the University of South Australia said he backed the very cautious move to keep masks mandated indoors for now, but he said if there were zero new cases over the next few days then there was no public health reason why the face mask indoors rule couldnt be removed as early next week. Hopefully the outbreaks in Victoria have finished now or are in their death throes and sooner rather than later theyll stop insisting people wear masks indoors, he said. It is a very cautious approach aimed at stopping any undetected spread because we do know that there is more of a risk of the virus spreading indoors and all the latest scientific evidence shows that wearing a mask is really effective at reducing transmission. But if there is no transmission of the virus, then there is no need for it. Opposition Leader Michael OBrien called for the government to release any public health advice behind requiring masks indoors.

Loading Victorians know that Labor has imposed restrictions without public health backing, such as last years curfew, he said. Releasing the advice on masks indoors is essential to maintaining public confidence in Labors continuing restrictions. As Victoria eased restrictions, NSW imposed its toughest rules since the New Years period after it recorded 16 new cases. To combat what she called the evolving situation around the 31-person cluster of the highly infectious Delta variant, Premier Gladys Berejiklian imposed a five-person limit on household gatherings, a ban on standing, singing and dancing at hospitality venues and mandatory masks in all indoor settings. Travellers from the seven most-affected local government areas in Sydney remain banned from entering Victoria.
Were looking for as much support as possible when we do reopen so all the businesses up here can be profitable again. In nearby Olinda, Tall Trees Studio owner Helene Campbell said cash flow was very tight for many businesses. Helene Campbell in her store Tall Trees Studio. Credit:Jason South Ms Campbell, who sells her own jewellery among other products at her shop, closed last weekend so that she could take a break from the stress of the storms. She said some non-local people had managed to get through roadblocks, but described them as ghouls who had been asking where they could find houses that had been smashed by trees. I just would have broken down with those sorts of questions, Ms Campbell said.

She said some business owners had had enough after four coronavirus lockdowns and the recent storms. Ive heard that from a number of people. For me Ill keep struggling on. Loading The storms and floods that began on June 9 wrought devastation in much of the state, leaving many homes uninhabitable. Emergency authorities are preparing for rain of up to 10 millimetres in the Dandenongs on Friday, which could compound damage to unstable trees and roads. An Emergency Management Victoria spokeswoman said it was important that anyone planning a road trip stayed away from flood and storm-affected areas until they were safe.

She said more than 600 kilometres of roads had been cleared in the Dandenong Ranges with emergency services and utilities companies still clearing trees to restore power. Tourists to the Dandenong Ranges are strongly encouraged not to visit storm-affected areas of the Dandenong Ranges at the moment, due to safety risks, including compromised trees and branches falling, she said. On Wednesday, 20 roads remained closed across the state. Energy distribution company AusNet Services confirmed 1434 households and businesses remained without power on Wednesday morning. They are all in the Dandenong Ranges apart from 15 in Gippsland. A company spokeswoman said about 600 electricity workers were out in the field trying to restore power on Wednesday, but the company was monitoring strong winds to ensure its employees were not endangered by further falling trees.

So far $523,680 has been paid in emergency relief payments to 449 recipients, but even though businesses might get government grants and insurance might cover some losses, operators said recent events had still taken a massive toll on their livelihoods. Alan Olney, who owns the Ranges Cafe and Bar and five holiday cottages in Olinda, said his businesses had been hit hard. Ranges Cafe and Bar owner Alan Olney. Credit:Jason South He received some welcome news on Wednesday with a text message from AusNet notifying him he may be eligible to apply for the state governments prolonged power outage payment for businesses. However, Mr Olney said the storms had come through just before the Queens Birthday weekend, which is usually among the busiest of the year.

We had to cancel all the bookings over the Queens Birthday weekend, he said. Loading The storms severely damaged three of his cottages, and he expected the accommodation could be closed for six months. While the cafe and restaurant had remained open, Mr Olney said it was almost deserted. Were just looking after the locals more than anything else. But theres not many of us here. We rely on Melbourne tourists coming up. Ingrid Wilde, director of fashion and accessories retailer Where the Wilde Things Are in Olinda, said her business had suffered a loss of turnover during the two-week period since the storm of between $10,000 and $12,000.
China has been experiencing a remarkable transformation, shedding some of the rigidities of its past and becoming better integrated into the international mainstream after joining the World Trade Organisation. It has seen urbanisation, the promise of further economic reforms, the beginnings of a legal system protecting civil rights, a middle class open to new ideas, new products and new experiences.

I was there for the elevation of Xi Jinping from vice-president to President in 2013, after he became general-secretary of the Communist Party of China in late 2012 at the 18th party congress, through to my return to Australia in late 2015. Arguably, it is in that period  and the time since then  that we have seen the most consequential change.

The outgoing secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), Frances Adamson, addresses the National Press Club on Wednesday. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

The clock has been wound back in terms of the priority accorded to ideology, quashing voices of civil society, and erecting new barriers to external connections and the free flow of information.

China speaks of a new type of international relations, as if it is a fairer way, an improvement. But underneath it is the same old power politics, the raw assertion of national interests. The implication being that Chinas size and strength make its interests more special than those of others, and that these must prevail.
Russia said it used bombs and gunfire in warning shots to force a British Navy destroyer to leave waters it claims in the Black Sea, but the UK rejected that, saying it was likely a gunnery exercise that didnt affect the ships planned voyage.

The episode, which the Russian Defence Ministry said took place off Cape Fiolent, south of its Sevastopol naval base in Crimea, highlights the tensions in the area following Moscows 2014 annexation of the strategic peninsula from Ukraine.

File photo: A Russian Sukhoi Su-24 attack aircraft. Credit:AP

Russia said the incident lasted about half an hour, with the HMS Defender entering waters Moscow claims as its own by about three kilometres and ignoring radio warnings. The Defender continued even after a Russian Border Patrol warship fired its cannon, leaving the area when a Su-24 aircraft dropped four bombs on its course, the Defence Ministry said.

The UK rejected that account, saying no warning shots were fired and noting Russia was conducting a gunnery exercise in the area.
She told the judge she believed this conservatorship is abusive, adding at another point, I want my life back. When a lawyer representing her co-conservator said the hearing and transcript should be kept sealed if private medical information was to be revealed, Spears shouted her down, saying her words should be public. Theyve done a good job at exploiting my life, Spears said, so I feel like it should be an open court hearing and they should listen and hear what I have to say. She went on to say she was forced to take lithium  which made her feel drunk  after rehearsals broke down for a Vegas residency in 2019, which was subsequently cancelled. She said all she had done was disagree with one part of the shows choreography.

Im not here to be anyones slave, Spears said. I can say no to a dance move. She accused her father of relishing his power over her, as he showed when she failed a series of psychological tests in 2019 and he forced her to go into a mental hospital. I cried on the phone for an hour and he loved every minute of it, Spears said. The control he had over someone as powerful as me, as he loved the control to hurt his own daughter 100,000 per cent. Spears said she felt forced to do the Las Vegas residency on the heels of a tour and felt like a great weight was lifted when it was cancelled. She has not performed or recorded since. Spears also said several nurses often watch her every move, not even letting her change her clothes in private.

Jamie Spears, father of singer Britney Spears in 2012. Credit:AP Vivian Thoreen, lawyer for Spears father, James Spears, gave a brief statement on his behalf after conferring with him during a recess. He is sorry to see his daughter suffering and in so much pain, Thoreen said. Mr Spears loves his daughter and misses her very much. James Spears serves as co-conservator of his daughters finances, and also had control of her life decisions for most of the conservatorship. He currently serves as co-conservator of her finances. Britney Spears said her years-long public silence has falsely created the impression that she approved of her circumstances.

Ive lied and told the whole world, Im OK, Im happy,  she said. Ive been in denial, Ive been in shock. I am traumatised. Britney Spears supporters listen to a feed from the courtroom outside a hearing in Los Angeles. Credit:AP More than 100 fans from the so called #FreeBritney movement gathered outside the courthouse before the hearing, holding signs that read Free Britney now! Fan Marissa Cooper was inside the courtroom and cried and occasionally clapped during the remarks. It was insane, Cooper said outside court. Everyone thats been following this has been called crazy since the beginning, and conspiracy theorists, so it just feels really really good to actually hear it from her.

Spears said she has not felt heard in any of her previous appearances before the court, all of which were sealed from the public. Her court-appointed lawyer, Samuel Ingham III, said he made no attempt to control, or filter, or edit his clients words. He said Spears has not officially asked him to file a petition to end the conservatorship. Spears said she had done research that showed her conservatorship could be ended without further evaluation of her. Im scared of people. I dont trust people with what Ive been through, Spears said about the idea of seeing another psychiatric specialist. But under California law, the burden would be on her to prove she is competent to manage her own affairs and an intensive investigation and evaluation is probably inevitable before it can come to an end.

The conservatorship was put in place during her mental health crisis in 2008. She has credited its initial establishment with saving her from financial ruin and keeping her a top flight pop star. Her father and his lawyers have insisted that she and her fortune, which court records put at more than $US50 million ($65 million), remain vulnerable to fraud and manipulation. Under the law, the burden would be on Spears to prove she is competent before the case could end. Britney Spears ex-boyfriend Justin Timberlake was among many who expressed outrage at her revelations. Whats happening to her is just not right, Timberlake tweeted. No woman should ever be restricted from making decisions about her own body. AP
Tony winner Reed Birney wasn't sure if he'd ever do theater again when he got the script for Joseph Dougherty's play Chester Bailey. But the idea was too good to pass up. He had known the director, Ron Lagomarsino, forever, and his co-star in the two-hander  about a doctor trying to heal a young man after a devastating assault  would be an actor named Ephraim Birney, who happens to be his son.

So Birney couldn't say no, and thus began a journey that took the father and son to West Virginia's Contemporary American Theatre Festival in 2019, and now, after a pandemic-related delay of a year, to Barrington Stage Company, where the drama runs through July 3. The play (and the 90-minute drive to and from the theater every night from their home in the Catskills) presents a unique opportunity for the Birneys to discover each other in a new light, as actors and professional colleagues, not family members, and boy, are they having a great time.

Reed Birney and Ephraim Birney in Chester Bailey at Contemporary American Theatre Festival in West Virginia

( Seth Freeman)

This conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity.

Which came first: the Reed or the Ephraim?



Ephraim Birney: I got an audition with [casting director] Pat McCorkle and I went in for Ed Herendeen, who is the main guy at Contemporary American Theatre Festival down in West Virginia. They were both so sweet, and they told me that it was tricky material. I got called back, and I was feeling pretty good about how it went down, and that's when they started talking to me about, if I were to get the part, if dad would be interested in coming on with me, because he knew the director, Ron Lagomarsino. And you said no way.

Reed Birney: Ron and I did Hay Fever with Joanne Woodward in 1982, when we were just children, and we've been friendly since. I had heard that Ephram had this audition and that Ron was the director, so I wrote Ron and said, "That's so amazing, my boy is coming in for your play," and he never said a word to me about me being in it. I think they really wanted to make sure that Ephraim knew he got it on his own.

Way down the line in his process, they reached out to me, and I was sort of not interested in doing theater again, so I told Ephraim I didn't think I could do it. Then, I started to think that if I said no, I would regret it for the rest of my life. I knew it would be a special and important experience for both of us, and we had a great time in West Virginia in 2019. Julie Boyd from Barrington had read the play before it was at Contemporary American Theatre Festival, and she had committed by Christmas of 2019 to do it in April 2020. And then, of course, the world ended.

What was it like doing the play together in Virginia?



Ephraim: It became

Reed: Mommie Dearest. No, I think we were both really nervous about

Ephraim: What it would be like in the room. We have a really good kind of banter and friendship, along with being father and son, so once the room was opened up to us and I could see how not seriously dad takes his job

Reed: That's the headline right there.

Ephraim: Especially since the play is just the two of us, it's a lot of goofing around. There were a lot of things that I always...Not regretted doing, or resented about the rehearsal process, but that I would get tired of.

Reed: He doesn't love table work.

Ephraim: But things like that really took off in a new light after seeing how you approach them.

Reed: I think we were both impressed by how quickly we became colleagues in the room. That was surprising and really gratifying.

Reed Birney and Ephraim Birney in Chester Bailey at Contemporary American Theatre Festival in West Virginia

( Seth Freeman)

Ephraim, did you feel an added pressure knowing that your dad is this beloved actor?



Ephraim: Yeah. The joke that I tell my friends is that, in all senses of it, if you put this on paper, it looks like the actor's nightmare. You're doing a play with one other person and he's your Tony Award-winning father. I knew he was going to be really good, and I went into it like, "OK, we're not going to embarrass each other, I hope."

Reed: I don't think Ephraim is terribly starstruck around me, and he's really good in the play. That was the most fun for me, to see how great he is. Every once in a while I would go, "Well, look at him." But it's like doing a play with anybody. Because we know each other so well, there's an added resonance for both of us. And I actually feel way more confident in this production than I did in West Virginia.

Ephraim: I feel similarly. By the end of week one of rehearsals, we were doing run-throughs of the play.

Reed: It came back to us fast.

Have you had to contend with the idea of separating work and life? Do you talk shop in the car ride home?



Ephraim: When we did it in West Virginia, there would be ride-backs where I would certainly say, "I was staring right through you. I don't know what I was thinking." But we both understand, when you do this, there are days like that. There was never any kind of judgment involved.

Reed: I think Ephraim was really worried that I would be giving him notes. And it never once occurred to me, honestly. He was that good. Driving down to West Virginia, he said, "I'm a little worried about my accent," because he's supposed to have a Brooklyn accent, and I said, "Let me hear some of it." He sounded like John Kennedy. And then miraculously, on the third day of rehearsal, he had this perfect Brooklyn, '40s, Bowery Boys accent. I don't know where it came from. I didn't hear him practice it. He says he has a friend who sounds like that. I know this friend and he does not talk that.

Ephraim: When we talk, we talk like that.

Reed: It was incredibly effective. I suppose if he asked me something about how to do a moment, I would tell him. But I generally don't direct my fellow actors. Some people do. But I don't. I'm wondering, too, from an audience perspective, what it must be like for them. Because we don't play father and son. So does that inform people watching the play? It must be kind of a mind-bender for them. You heard some people say they didn't even realize.

Ephraim: There were people that, the last time we did it, were looking at the programs on the way out and going, "Wait a minute now!"
Three beloved theater district restaurants have announced reopening dates in the the immediate future.

First to reopen is Bond 45, which is officially back as of today, June 23. The Italian restaurant and bar was formerly located on 45th Street, and reopened in 2017 within the Edison Hotel, next door to the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre. On weekends, Bond 45, owned by Fireman Hospitality Group, will host the burlesque show Speakeasy - Times Square. Fireman Hospitality Group will also open a new venture, Brooklyn Delicatessen, at 1501 Broadway in the Paramount Building next month.

Glass House Tavern, the bar and restaurant situated next door to the Brooks Atkinson Theatre, is set to reopen on July 8, with a soft opening several days prior for friends and regulars. Glass House is a regular post-performance watering hole for audience members and theater professionals alike.

Finally, Joe Allen and its famous walls filled with posters of Broadway flops, will throw open its doors once again on August 18, with sibling restaurants Orso and Bar Centrale reopening in September. The 50-year-old eatery is named for its owner, who died at the age of 87 in February.
2021 Toyota RAV4 Prime XSE AWD Review by David Colman + VIDEO

This might just be the perfect 21st century SUV

By David Colman

Special Correspondent to THE AUTO CHANNEL

The RAV4 PRIME is the best version yet of Toyota's most popular SUV. Hybrid architecture has matured so fully that high performance and ultra fuel efficiency can coexist in the same attractive package. Gone are the days when you had to trade decent acceleration for sterling economy. Now both assets define the RAV4 PRIME, which not only generates 302hp and a 0-60mph time of 5.7 seconds, but also records 38MPG in overall driving, and 94MPGe in electric-only mode. The EPA rewards those mileage numbers with a perfect score of 10 out of 10 on the government's Fuel Economy and Greenhouse Gas Rating Scale.

To achieve this double knockout punch Toyota has installed a 2.5 liter "Dynamic Force" inline 4 under the hood that produces 177hp and 165lb.-ft. of torque. This efficient but underpowered gas fed motor receives a monumental boost of both horsepower and torque from the addition of a pair of electric motors which are installed fore and aft in the RAV4's chassis. The front electric produces 179hp and 199lb.-ft. of torque the instant you mat the accelerator pedal. The rear electric adds its own infusion of 53hp and 89lb.-ft. of torque. In concert with the gas engine up front, this trio of energy sources churns out 302 combined horsepower, and enough instantaneous surge to propel the RAV4 PRIME to acceleration levels previously unimaginable in a compact SUV. And best of all, it's affordable. The base price on our test vehicle was $41,425. And you can expect the government to reimburse you $7,000 thanks to the Federal Tax Credit program for which the RAV4 PRIME qualifies.

We should point out, however, that our test example carried a higher buy-in price of $49,577 thanks in large measure to the additional cost of the $3,765 Premium Package which combines a wide variety of assets in one bundle. For those of you planning to plug this RAV4 into wall receptacles for recharging, the Premium Package will prove well worth the extra investment in the long run because it upgrades the on-board battery charger from 3.3kW to 6,6kW. That upgrade allows you to recharge the PRIME's Lithium Ion 355.2v battery in just 2.5 hours on a 240v charger. Compare that recharge time to the 4.5 hours it takes to refresh the 3.3kW standard charger at 240v. A full battery charge should allow you to run the RAV4 PRIME up to 42 miles on electric power alone.

Of course, the Premium Package includes a wide variety of other features in addition to the onboard charger upgrade. One of the more innovative features included is the first digital rearview mirror I have encountered. This utilizes a wide angle rear facing camera which provides crystal clear information about what's behind you. At first I thought this mirror was designed for use while driving but I quickly disabused myself of that notion. While you can use the digital mirror while driving, it presents a bewildering series of reflections and double images that will instantly confuse you into thinking you've had one drink too many. I quickly discovered it can be flipped off and used as a regular rear view mirror, saving its digital capacity for stationary use only.

The RAV4's electronically controlled, continuously variable transmission (eCVT) is well suited to this SUV's performance characteristics. Although it's equipped with sequential shift mode paddles at the steering wheel, you really don't need to rely on them for maximizing performance, since the electric motor's rheostat-like torque infusion is so persuasive. But you can utilize the paddles to "downshift," thereby increasing your regenerative braking force and upping battery charge. For a 4,300lb. SUV, the RAV4 PRIME handles with surprising precision, thanks in part to its quick steering (just 2.65 turns lock to lock), and a set of satisfyingly adhesive (TW 280) Yokohama Avid GT radials (235/45R19) mounted on PRIME model-specific 5-spoke alloy rims. The interior of the RAV4's cabin is both airy and spacious, with 33.5 cubic feet of storage available with all seats up, and 69.8 cubic feet with the rear seats flat. The RAV4 PRIME will tow 2500lbs.

The 2021 RAV4 PRIME is a breakthrough vehicle in many ways. If you equip it with the Premium Package and the $1,620 Premium Audio Package this slick SUV operates like a luxury sedan, with all the niceties you would expect from a vehicle based on the same TGNA platform as the Corolla and Camry sedans. But with the addition of twin electric motors and all wheel drive, the RAV4 PRIME enters another realm altogether. Add Plug In home chargeability, and you've got yourself the basic blueprint for the perfect 21st century SUV.

2021 TYOTA RAV4 PRIME XSE AWD

ENGINE: 2.5 liter inline 4 plus front and rear electric motors

HORSEPOWER: 302combined hp

TORQUE: 165lb.-ft. (gas only)

FUEL CONSUMPTION: 38MPG Combined/94MPGe

PRICE AS TESTED: $49,577

HYPES: Stellar Performance AND E-conomy

GRIPES: Front Seat Squabs Too Short

STAR RATING: 9 Stars out of 10
Gov. Ron DeSantis, of Florida, watches the foursome matches during the Walker Cup golf tournament at the Seminole Golf Club on Saturday, May 8, 2021, in Juno Beach, Fla.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis gestures during a news conference Monday, Aug. 31, 2020, at the University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine and Heart Institute in Tampa, Fla.
Up for debate:

Live legislation tracker

Check out the latest developments on bills pending before state lawmakers in four key topics.
In this Sept. 15, 2009 photo, Wilbert Woodward fills out an application for United Parcel Service during a job fair sponsored by the National Urban League in Louisville, Ky.
Strong Foundations Charter School students explore their new iPads on Jan. 3, 2012, as then-presidential candidate Jon Huntsman (right) visits their school in Pembroke, New Hampshire.
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Nyamekye Daniel has been a journalist for five years. She was the managing editor for the South Florida Media Network and a staff writer for The Miami Times. Daniel's work has also appeared in the Sun-Sentinel, Miami Herald and The New York Times.
Joe Horvath is a Senior Fellow with the Foundation for Government Accountability. His work has appeared in National Review Online, The Hill, and the Washington Examiner. Learn more at thefga.org.
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Showers with a possible thunderstorm early, then variable clouds overnight with still a chance of showers. Low 54F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%.
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Melanie joined The Daily Times in the early 90s and has served as the Life section editor since 1993. A William Blount and UT alum, Melanie is generally the early arriver who turns on the lights in the newsroom.

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Business

Maryville High School graduate Jackson Greene starts digital marketing firm as college freshman

Courtesy of Jackson Greene Jackson Greene started his own digital marketing company, Pursuit Digital, during his first year as a student at Middle Tennessee State University. Scott Keller | The Daily Times Maryville High School graduate Jackson Greene talks about starting his own company, Pursuit Digital, and his work on the Maryville City Schools Foundations Starlight Gala livestream.

For many members of the Class of 2020, surviving their first year of college amid a global pandemic was plenty to accomplish. Maryvilles Jackson Greene, however, also started his own digital marketing business.

Greene had volunteered with the media department at First Baptist Church of Alcoa starting in 2015, and in 2019 became director of media ministries at the age of 17. He led a team ranging from adolescents to older adults and was responsible for Sunday and Wednesday service production, as well as the church website and social media.

Settling into college at Middle Tennessee State University, he connected with the campus ministry and a local church and took a part-time job for a few months delivering food through the DoorDash service.

During winter break, family friends asked him to look at their business website and social media, hiring him as director of digital marketing. He already had made some videos for them, and worked construction cleanup while he was in high school.

By years end Greene had redone the website for M Squared Custom Homes, and the owners encouraged him to start his own business.

The toughest part, Greene said, was finding a name he liked that wasnt already in use. At one point he began looking at Bible verses and recalled the life verse in a Bible he received at age 12.

The website for his company, Pursuit Digital, includes the verse from 1 Timothy 6:11 that inspired the name: But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness.

On Jan. 1, before he turned 19, Greene officially owned his own business.

He knew recruiting clients could be a challenge, so he built his reputation first. His next client was part of his extended family, the owner of Hutton Fly, a fishing company based in the Bahamas.

Finding his niche

Greene was in sixth grade when he first began editing videos for his family. At Maryville High School he took classes in audio and video production, computer science principles and information technology.

He learned skills he could immediate put to work at First Baptist Alcoa, editing video, adding a map feature to the website and improving the Wi-Fi signal.

Still he was unsure of his next path. I didnt have one thing that I loved, Greene said. I like coding; I dont love coding. I like shooting video; I dont love shooting video.

The MTSU media arts program allows him to bring everything together as he pursues a major in interactive media with a minor in video and film production.

Advance Placement classes at Maryville High as well as credits earned through the College Level Examination Program at MTSU have allowed Greene to complete requirements quickly, and this past semester all of his classes were related to his major or minor, such as one on writing for interactive experiences.

Literally I would get off the Zoom for that class and be like, That is a great idea. Im going to go change that on this post right now, said Greene, whos currently managing social media for three clients.

Shining at Starlight

The spring semester was particularly hectic when Greene worked on the Maryville City Schools Foundations Starlight Gala, held at multiple locations because of the pandemic.

Greene edited prerecorded videos for the event and prepared the hosts with written instructions and a Zoom meeting, reminding them, for example, to not let their kids take up bandwith in the home by streaming a movie or playing Fortnite during the event.

The day of the gala he set up in the control room at Maryville with five monitors and managed the livestream to dozens of locations, including a live auction.

While he was livestreaming at FBA, Greene said there was never a Sunday without some type of hiccup, but over about four hours the gala went off without a hitch. I didnt get a single phone call the entire night about an issue, he said.

Entrepreneur winner

At the same time he was working on the gala, Greene entered a business plan competition for MTSU students and alumni, which he heard about through an entrepreneurship class.

It was intimidating, he said, noting he appeared to be the youngest competitor by far.

In addition to answering questions about his business plan, he had to create an elevator pitch, PowerPoint presentation and more.

Pursuit Digital took fourth place, earning a $2,500 prize for Greene.

If he can take needed classes during summer and winter sessions, Greene could complete his degree by December 2022.

In the meantime Pursuit Digital has at least 10 clients, and hes talking with more. He preparing to launch a revised website next week for Revolution Dance in Knoxville.

Hes also putting his talents to work for church again, developing pro bono a website for a new giving initiative at City Church of Murfreesboro.

Greene is learning things that may not be covered in the classroom, such as how to communicate with clients, manage the scope of projects and understand the value of his work.

After all, right now his business expenses are low.

He runs Pursuit Digital out of his parents house with a MacBook Pro, two monitors and an old iPad2 for music. He manages most of the social media work from his iPhone XR, which he also uses to shoot video when needed.
Michael Reagan is the son of the late President Ronald Reagan, a political consultant and the author of Lessons My Father Taught Me: The Strength, Integrity, and Faith of Ronald Reagan.
Jeff Robbins, a former assistant U.S. attorney and delegate to the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, was chief counsel for the minority of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. An attorney specializing in the First Amendment, he is a longtime columnist for the Boston Herald, writing on politics, national security, human rights and the Middle East.
The day is finally here. Too Hot To Handle: Season 2 is out at 6PM tonight!

10 new sexy singles have headed out to the island - to give up sex for a shot at "real love" and a portion of the $100,000 prize.

We've already ruled out the chances of anyone winning the full $100K - there's no way this cast is gonna keep their hands to themselves!
14 Arrested and Charged With 120 Crimes, Including 6 Killings, After Big Bust in Delaware

Fourteen members of a Delaware gang dubbed NorthPak have been indicted with over 120 charges related to their illicit activities in the city of Wilmington, local authorities said on Monday.

The criminal activity of the defendants includes 6 alleged murders and several shootings.

The charges come as a result of a half-year, multi-jurisdictional investigation that involved the participation of the Department of Justice, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the FBI, the Delaware State Police, and the Delaware Department of Correction.

We are very pleased to partner with our Delaware law enforcement entities to identify and arrest those responsible for an increase in violent crime in our state, New Castle County Police Chief Col. Vaughn Bond stated.

Through these efforts violent offenders have been removed from our communities and the devastated families of our victims have the answers they deserve. Our state still has a significant challenge ahead in terms of violent crime. That being said, the New Castle County Police Division of Police will continue to work closely with all Delaware law enforcement and our communities to prevent, decrease and solve crimes, he added.

Attorney General Kathy Jennings noted in a press conference that cracking down on gang violence is crucial for public safety, and offered condolences to the families of the victims.

Disrupting gang activity is critical to restoring public safety in Wilmington, and that requires complicated, resource-intensive investigations. Jennings said.

This was not an easy job for law enforcement, but from the beginning, Wilmington and New Castle County were in with both feet. Its thanks to their tenacity, and to our excellent partners at the state and federal level, that we can announce this indictment and that the DOJ can pursue justice for the terror and bloodshed that NorthPak has caused.
Houston Methodist Baytown Hospital is seen in Baytown, Texas on June 22, 2021. (Francois Picard/AFP via Getty Images)

153 Houston Hospital Workers Quit or Fired Over COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate

A hospital system in Texas has fired every worker who didnt get a COVID-19 vaccine or receive an exemption.

A Houston Methodist spokesperson told The Epoch Times in an email that 153 employees were fired on June 22 or quit during the previous two-week period.

Houston Methodist announced earlier this year that employees would need to get a COVID-19 vaccine or apply for an exemption. Those who chose neither option would face termination.

Executives who refused to comply were fired in April. The latest round of terminations by the hospital was frontline employees, Jared Woodfill, an attorney representing the now ex-workers in a lawsuit challenging the mandates constitutionality, told The Epoch Times.

They had until yesterday to capitulate and to submit to the experimental vaccine. And if they chose not to give in, then they were terminated, he said.

Many of my clients actually contracted COVID as a result of treating COVID-positive patients, and the thank you that Methodist Hospital gives them now is a pink slip.

A total of 178 workers were suspended for a two-week period in early June for not being fully vaccinated by a June 7 deadline. Most of those workers were fired or quit. The rest were either granted an exemption or deferral, or were fully vaccinated against the virus that causes COVID-19.

One hundred percent of our employees and physicians are now vaccinated or received an exemption, a hospital spokesperson told The Epoch Times.

COVID-19 is the disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus.

Jennifer Bridges, who was a nurse at Houston Methodist, confirmed on June 23 that she has been fired.

Completely happy about it. Ive lost all respect for Methodist. Ready to move on with my life, she told The Epoch Times in a text message, adding that she has already started at a new job.

The firings came after U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes, a Reagan appointee, declined to block the vaccine mandate. Woodfill has filed an appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. A briefing schedule hasnt yet been set for the appeal.

Approximately 50 more former workers have joined the suit, Woodfill said.

The plaintiffs argue that the mandate violated federal and state law in part because none of the vaccines currently being administered in the United States have been fully approved. All three are being used under emergency authorization.

The lawyer said wrongful termination lawsuits will be filed in the near future.
3,390 Illegal Aliens Caught on Trains in Uvalde, Texas; Up From 372 Last Year

UVALDE, TexasOn a single eastbound train line stretching from the border town of Eagle Pass to San Antonio, Texas, Border Patrol agents are dealing with a 911 percent jump in illegal alien apprehensions, according to Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

On that line, Border Patrol stops trains as they near Uvalde, Texas, about 60 miles from the U.S.Mexico border.

Border Patrol agents have apprehended 3,390 illegal immigrants on the trains theyve stopped for inspection near Uvalde so far this fiscal year (since Oct. 1, 2020), according to CBP data released on June 23.

During the same period in fiscal 2020, agents arrested 372 illegal aliens.

Uvalde Station continues to see a troubling increase in migrants encountered during train check operations, Del Rio Sector Chief Patrol Agent Austin Skero said in a press release on June 23.

They are found hiding in many dangerous storage areas to avoid detection, putting their lives at risk. With the increase in temperatures during the summer months, this mode of transportation could turn deadly.

BORDER THREAD: Border Patrol stops train near Uvalde that are coming from Mexico via border town Eagle Pass in Texas.  21 Mexican illegal alien males drop out of grain hopper.

 4 Honduran males hiding in other cars. pic.twitter.com/uNMlOeSLud  Charlotte Cuthbertson (@charlottecuthbo) June 21, 2021

Many are found in dark, sweltering grain hopper compartments.

The illegal aliens in the empty grain hoppers generally cant get out unless someone on the outside of the train cranks open the bottom plate. They get in by cutting the locking wire on the lid, dropping in, and closing the lid.

Others hide wherever they think they can avoid detection. As the train grinds to a halt in Uvalde, its common to see a stream of illegal aliens jump off the train and haphazardly run across the road into the brush, or down a street to disappear into a neighborhood.

On June 21, from the four trains stopped by Border Patrol in a five-hour window, agents apprehended at least 43 illegal aliens. Several more got away. All but two were male, and aside from a few Hondurans, most were from Mexico. Several carried knives. Agents were observed checking for gang tattoos on the apprehended individuals.

Authorities will likely return all of those captured to Mexico the same day or the next day. Many of those captured will try again within days.

The increase in the number of illegal immigrants that are going through Uvalde on trains has become a serious problem for Border Patrol, local law enforcement, and our community, as most of these individuals have criminal records or gang affiliation and wouldnt be allowed in our country, Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin told The Epoch Times on June 23.

They are more aggressive, have assaulted law enforcement, and pose a greater threat to our community. Its just a matter of time before someone is hurt or there is a loss of life. Its truly so sad that our federally elected politicians dont care.

The number of illegal border crossings has been rising steadily since last October and surged in February after President Joe Biden took office.

In May, CBP apprehended 180,034 individuals illegally entering the United States, the highest number in a single month in 21 years.

In the same month, at least 51,000 illegal aliens evaded apprehension after being detected by Border Patrol, according to numbers obtained by The Epoch Times.

Union Pacific Railroad spokesperson Robynn Tysver told The Epoch Times that the company is taking the issue at Eagle Pass seriously and have assigned extra special agents at the border.

Tysver said local law enforcement departments have shared jurisdiction with Union Pacific and can charge the illegal immigrants found on the trains with trespassing and/or applicable crimes.

However, Union Pacific itself doesnt charge aliens with trespassing.

People who are illegally found on our property are taken into custody by the Border Patrol. We do not cite them for trespassing on top of the federal charges or deportation they already face, Tysver said via email.

Updated on June 23 to add comments by Union Pacific Railroad and Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin.
In this image from surveillance video, a man identified by law enforcement as Bryan Wayne Ivey holds a cellphone in front of him after entering the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. (DOJ)

5th Person Pleads Guilty in Jan. 6 Breach of US Capitol

Five people have now pleaded guilty to involvement in the tumultuous events in Washington on Jan. 6 after a Tennessee man admitted to disorderly conduct inside the U.S. Capitol that day.

Bryan Wayne Ivey pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building, in exchange for three other charges being dropped, according to court documents. Ivey faces up to six months in prison, a fine of up to $5,000, a potential term of supervised release of one year or less, and restitution. Ivey agreed to pay $500 for the damages caused by the breach, according to the documents.

According to an affidavit from an FBI agent, Ivey entered the Capitol through a broken window and attempted to help others enter the building.

Once inside, Ivey was seen using a cellphone to record people milling around the Capitol Rotunda, according to the complaint.

Ivey had also been hit with three other charges, including knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority. Before the plea agreement, he had been facing three years in prison.

Ivey will be sentenced on Sept. 28.

Four others previously pleaded guilty to being involved in the Capitol breach, including two to the same charge as Ivey.

People storm the Capitol Building in Washington on Jan. 6, 2020. (Ahmed Gaber/Reuters)

Jessica and Joshua Bustle, a married Virginia couple, this month pleaded guilty to the charge. They each face up to six months in jail and fines of up to $6,000.

Two others face stiffer penalties.

Jon Schaffer of Indiana pleaded guilty to two counts in April, including disrupting the orderly conduct of government business. Authorities said Schaffer was armed with bear spray and intended to stop or delay the certification of electoral votes that was interrupted by the beach.

Schaffer, described in the plea agreement as a founding lifetime member of the Oath Keepers, a group largely comprised of former and current law enforcement officers, faces up to 30 years in prison, fines of up to $500,000, supervised release of up to six years, and fees. A sentencing date isnt listed on the court docket.

Paul Hodgkins, who was pictured in the Senate chamber on Jan. 6 holding a pro-Trump flag, agreed earlier this month to plead guilty to obstruction, which could land him up to 20 years in jail.

Patrick Leduc, one of his lawyers, told The Epoch Times that Hodgkinss plea is a recognition that he made a mistake.

Hodgkins, a resident of Florida, is scheduled to be sentenced on July 19.

Meanwhile, Anna Morgan-Lloyd became the first individual to be sentenced in connection with the Capitol breach and wont spend any time in jail. She pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building in exchange for three years of probation, $500 in restitution, and 40 hours of community service, court records show.

Nearly 500 people have been charged for offenses related to the breach.
Catalan leaders imprisoned for their role in the 2017 push for an independent Catalan republic, hold a banner and an "estelada" or Catalan pro-independence flag outside Lledoners prison in Sant Joan de Vilatorrada, near Barcelona, Spain, on June 23, 2021. (Joan Mateu/AP)

9 Pardoned Pro-Independence Catalan Leaders Walk Free

MADRIDNine Catalan separatists pardoned by the Spanish government walked out of prison on Wednesday to the cheers of supporters, leaving behind their lengthy terms for organizing a bid four years ago to make Catalonia an independent republic.

Spains Cabinet pardoned them Tuesday in the hope of starting what Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called a much-needed reconciliation in the countrys restive northeastern region, although fervent local support for the pardoned separatists indicated the problem wont go away anytime soon.

Jordi Cuixart, one of the Catalan leaders imprisoned for their role in the 2017 push for an independent Catalan republic, holds a banner at Lledoners prison in Sant Joan de Vilatorrada, near Barcelona, Spain, on June 23, 2021. (Joan Mateu/AP)

Former Catalan vice president Oriol Junqueras, five fellow Cabinet members, the former regional parliaments speaker, and two pro-independence activists walked free shortly after noon. They had spent between three-and-a-half and four years behind bars.

Spains official gazette on Wednesday published the government decree pardoning them.

The freed separatists were met by dozens of cheering, clapping supporters and relatives who had gathered in the rain. The men, released in a group, held up a small banner that said, in English, Freedom Catalonia, as well as a Catalan flag. They addressed their supporters in the Catalan language.

Jordi Pina, lawyer of Catalan separatist leaders jailed for sedition, talks to the media outside Lledoners prison in Sant Joan de Vilatorrada, near Barcelona, Spain, on June 22, 2021. (Joan Mateu/AP)

We are aware that today, with our release from prison, nothing has ended, Junqueras told supporters in a defiant speech. Prison does not scare us, it reinforces our ideas.

The Catalan regional president, Pere Aragones, and the speaker of the Catalan parliament, Laura Borras, also went to the prison for the separatists release.

The pardon canceled the remainder of prison terms ranging from nine to 13 years over sedition and misuse of public funds linked to the 2017 banned referendum. But the separatists wont be able to hold public office until the end of their sentences and they could go back to prison if they break Spanish law again, the decree said.

Despite polls showing that many people in Spain were against the pardons, Sanchez has defended them, arguing that they are popular in Catalonia and that freeing the separatists will be a fresh start for relations between central and regional authorities.

The political divisions were on full display Wednesday at the nations parliament. Conservative opposition leader Pablo Casado called for the prime ministers resignation for issuing the pardons without consulting lawmakers.

You are applauding an unfortunate day for Spains democratic history, you are throwing the fate of the country into the hands of the separatists, Casado said, accusing Sanchez of lying because the Socialist leader had vowed not to make concessions to separatists when he came to power.

Sanchez responded saying the decision to issue pardons was brave, restorative, and in favor of coexistence.

Catalan separatist legislators called for the government to take a step further and urged it to follow the Scottish way, in reference to Scotlands 2014 independence referendum that was authorized by the British government. Voters in Scotland elected to remain in the United Kingdom.

By Aritz Parra
A doctor puts out syringes with the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at a clinic at La Colaborativa in Chelsea, Mass., on June 11, 2021. (Brian Snyder/Reuters)

AstraZeneca and Pfizer Vaccines Effective Against Delta and Kappa Strains of CCP Virus: Study

A new study suggests that COVID-19 vaccines made by AstraZeneca and the Pfizer-BioNTech alliance are broadly effective against the highly contagious Delta and Kappa strains of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, the pathogen that causes COVID-19.

The Oxford University study, of which a peer-reviewed pre-proof has been published in Cell (pdf), sought to gauge the ability of blood serum from people vaccinated against COVID-19 and from those who recovered naturally to neutralize the Delta (B.1.617.2) and Kappa (B.1.617.1) variants, formerly referred to as the Indian variants as that is where they were first observed.

While the researchers found that both the convalescent and vaccine blood sera had a reduced ability to neutralize the Delta and Kappa variants as compared to ancestral Wuhan related strains, there was no evidence of widespread antibody escape as seen with the Beta (B.1.351, formerly South Africa) variant, suggesting that the current generation of vaccines will provide protection against the B.1.617 lineage.

However, the researchers noted that the reduced ability of the vaccine and convalescent sera to neutralize the Gamma and Kappa variants may lead to some breakthrough infections.

The results build on a recent analysis by Public Health England, which showed early evidence of real-world data that both the AstraZeneca and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines were highly effective against hospitalization from the Delta variant, which has been designated a variant of concern in the UK and which infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci recently called the greatest threat in the U.S. to our attempt to eliminate COVID-19.

Mene Pangalos, Executive Vice President of BioPharmaceuticals R&D at AstraZeneca, said in a statement: We are encouraged to see the non-clinical results published from Oxford and these data, alongside the recent early real-world analysis from Public Health England, provide us with a positive indication that our vaccine can have significant impact against the Delta variant.

This gives us great hope that even as these new variants continue to spread, our vaccine would continue to provide protection for people across the world and help turn the tide of the pandemic for the people of India, he added, referring to the deadly second wave of infections now ravaging India.

Pfizer CEO and Chairman Albert Bourla told CBS News last week that he believes his companys vaccine will offer protection against the Delta variant.

I feel quite comfortable that we cover it, Bourla told the outlet. We will not need a special vaccine for it. The current vaccine should cover it.

The World Health Organizations chief scientist said on Friday that the Delta variant is becoming the globally dominant version of the disease.
Baltimore Police Chief Links Recent Crime Wave to Staff Shortages, Gang Violence

Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison has blamed a rise in violent crime and homicides in the most populous city in Maryland on a number of issues, including a shortage in staff.

Harrison noted during an interview with CNN on June 22 that just like New York and other big cities across the country, Baltimore is seeing a spike in violence, with 18 homicides recorded in the past 10 days alone.

Its a number of issues; its grouping gang violence; its retaliation from previous bad acts, he said.

But we are seeing an increase in close acquaintance shootings and domestic violence shootings where people just have absolutely poor or no conflict resolution skills and are using guns to solve their conflicts.

Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison, center, and Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, second from right, confer at the scene of a deadly shooting in Baltimore, Md. on June 16, 2021. (Kim Hairston/The Baltimore Sun via AP)

Harrison also noted that he hopes the police force in the city, which is about 230 officers short of its current budget, will see more boots on the ground to fight the crime spike and homicides.

We are hiring, we are recruiting, Harrison said. We are using every resource available, were using all the time to force up and plus up the number so we can have more officers.

While stressing the dire need for more officers, the chief also said additional personnel isnt just good for improving law enforcement in the city, but its also needed to build those relationships within the community, noting that the department needs the communitys help in solving murders so that bad actors can be held accountable for terrorizing our community.

The comments come as President Joe Biden plans to lay out new steps to stem a rising national tide of violent crime, with a particular focus on shootings, as administration officials brace for what they fear could be an especially turbulent summer.

President Joe Biden speaks during a meeting with FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell and Homeland Security Adviser and Deputy National Security Adviser Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on June 22, 2021. (Evan Vucci/AP Photo)

In a June 23 speech, Biden was set to unveil a series of executive orders aimed at reducing violence and to renew his calls for Congress to pass gun legislation, aides said. Ahead of the speech, the Justice Department announced new strike forces aimed at tackling gun trafficking in five cities.

Yes, there need to be reforms of police systems across the country. The president is a firm believer in that, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on June 22.

But there are also steps he can take as president of the United States to help address and hopefully reduce that crime. A big part of that, in his view, is putting in place gun safety measures  using the bully pulpit but also using levers at his disposal as president.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

From NTD News
Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya talks during an interview with The Associated Press in Brussels on June 22, 2021. (Francisco Seco/AP)

Belarus Regime Frightened, Says Opponent

BRUSSELSWhen authorities in Belarus diverted a Ryanair passenger jet to Minsk last month to arrest a dissident journalist who was aboard, their goal may have been to silence a troublesome government critic and send a message to others like him.

Instead, believes opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, it was a panicked miscalculation by authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko that has galvanized the West against him.

It was really a mistake, Tsikhanouskaya said in an interview with The Associated Press. The regime never crossed this red line before, of interfering in a European area. This hijacking touched all the European leaders because their citizens were on this flight.

The European Union, the United States, Britain, and Canada joined together Monday to impose sanctions on several Belarus officials and organizations in response to the May 23 diversion of the Ryanair flight, which was traveling from Greece to Lithuania but was forced to land in Minsk. European officials, who likened the diversion to air piracy, also banned Belarus airlines from EU skies and airports.

Lukashenko won a sixth term as president in an Aug. 9, 2020, election that the EU refuses to recognize as legitimate. The disputed election touched off months of mass demonstrations in Belarus, including some that drew as many as 200,000 people. Authorities there also took harsh action against protesters, and human rights officials say tens of thousands have been detained, with many brutally beaten by security forces.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said EU countries thought for months that it still might be possible to reason with Lukashenkountil the flight diversion.

The mood is different now, Landsbergis said.

Tsikhanouskaya was a candidate in the election, running in place of her husband, Siarhei Tsikhanouski, a popular opposition figure who had hoped to stand against Lukashenko but was arrested in May 2020.

A day after the vote, Tsikhanouskaya was forced to flee the country to neighboring Lithuania, where the 38-year-old political novice lives in exile with her children and has worked to rally European countries against Lukashenko.

The regime is so frightened by the unity of Belarusians, by the unity of the European Union, the USA, about this situation in Belarus that they stopped to think strategically. They started to think emotionally, Tsikhanouskaya told AP.

On Thursday, her husbands trial is scheduled to begin in the city of Homel on charges of violating public order, inciting hatred, and plotting mass disturbancesaccusations he rejects. He faces up to 15 years in prison.

The trial will be closed. The trial will be not in the court, it will be right in the prison. Lawyers will not have an opportunity to tell us what is going on, Tsikhanouskaya said.

She expects it to last a month or two, and is not optimistic about the outcome.

We understand that the trial will not be lawful, will not be honest, will not be fair. In reality, judges can write any number of years in prison, she said.

For Tsikhanouskaya, its yet another test of her ability as an accidental politician to avoid putting her own feelings for her husband above those of the many Belarusians who have been jailed for opposing the government.

Hes my beloved. Im thinking about him most of all, because Im talking about him with my children. I have every day to explain to them where their daddy is, how he is feeling, she said. I assure them that he will come back soon.

She must separate all those feelings from political duties, because your political duty is to release all of them, Tsikhanouskaya said.

This is your personal pain. You can cry into your pillow in the evening. But just imagine in what conditions those people are in, what conditions my husband is [in]without light, without information, without the normal conditions of life. Of course, its awful, she said. But again, it gives me strength not to stop, not to think about myself.

Since he was pulled off the Ryanair flight in Minsk, Belarusian journalist Raman Pratasevich has been paraded on state TV, tearfully apologizing for his actions and praising Lukashenko.

His parents, members of the opposition, and others in the West believe he spoke under duress, with some saying there were signs he was beatena warning that no regime opponent can ignore.

Pratasevichs friends say the 26-year-old journalist, who left his homeland in 2019, believed he was being spied upon by Belarusian authorities before his May 23 arrest. This probably is true for many other political activists from Belarus, said Tsikhanouskaya, who a week earlier had flown Ryanair from Greece to Lithuania, just like Pratasevich.

As she travels Europe to raise awareness about Belarus, she feels more or less in safeness.

People on the ground [in Belarus], they dont have this protection of laws that the European Union has, she said.

Beyond the immediate fate of Pratasevich, her husband Siarhei, and others like them, difficult times lie ahead for her country, Tsikhanouskaya said.

This crisis is deepening, she said.

If the authorities in Minsk really cared about people they would start dialogue with Belarusians, they would release political prisoners, and solve this crisis in a civilized way, she added. I imagine new elections this fall. This is our aim.

By Lorne Cook
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis departs after signing into law Senate Bill 7072 at Florida International University in Miami, Fla., on May 24, 2021. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)

Celebrity Cruises Drops COVID-19 Vaccine Requirement, Handing Win to Florida Governor

Celebrity Cruises announced it will drop a requirement for passengers to show proof theyve been vaccinated against COVID-19 for trips departing Florida, essentially handing a political victory for Gov. Ron DeSantis after he mandated that firms cannot implement vaccine passport-type systems in his state.

Cruise operators had grappled with DeSantis, a Republican, over his order banning businesses from requiring proof of vaccination. The firms pointed to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC)s restrictions on cruises that were published in October when asking DeSantis to rescind his order.

Guests over 16 years old (over 12 for any sailing on or after August 1st) who decline or are unable to show proof of vaccination at boarding will be treated as unvaccinated and subject to additional protocols, restrictions, and costs for COVID-19 testing, Celebrity Cruises now says on its website about sailing from Florida.

When departing from other states, All guests age 16 and above must be fully vaccinated (at least two weeks prior to sail date). As of August 1, 2021, all guests age 12 and older must be fully vaccinated, according to the firms website.

Its not clear if the move was approved by the CDC. The Epoch Times has contacted the agency for comment.

In this drone image, the Celebrity Infinity Cruise ship, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd, returns to Port Miami from a cruise in the Caribbean as the world deals with the coronavirus outbreak on March 14, 2020. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

The development comes after a federal judge this month ruled that the CDC cannot enforce COVID-19-related controls on ships in Floridas ports.

U.S. District Judge Steven Merryday wrote in a 124-page decision last week that Florida would be harmed if the CDC order, which the state said effectively blocked most cruises, were to continue.

The Tampa-based judge granted a preliminary injunction that prevents the CDC from enforcing the order pending further legal action on a broader Florida lawsuit.

This order finds that Florida is highly likely to prevail on the merits of the claim that CDCs conditional sailing order and the implementing orders exceed the authority delegated to the CDC, Merryday wrote.

The CDC first flatly halted cruise ships from sailing in March 2020 in response to the coronavirus pandemic, which had affected passengers and crew on numerous ships. Then the CDC on Oct. 30 of last year imposed the aforementioned four-phase conditional framework it said would allow the industry to gradually resume operations if certain thresholds were met.

DeSantis, meanwhile, issued an executive order in April that bars the concept of vaccine passports in the state and has argued that they create two classes of people who are vaccinated and unvaccinated. Such systems, he argued, would also violate Floridians privacy rights.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Chicago Woman Shot on Fathers Day, Dies Days After Her Boyfriend

A 25-year-old woman from Chicago who was ambushed and shot on Fathers Day by a group of thugs while seated in a car next to her boyfriend died from her injuries on Tuesday, according to reports.

The mother of two young children, Yasmin Perez, was beaten and shot in the neck on June 20 and left to die on the street together with her boyfriend after both getting pulled from their vehicle following a minor car accident.

According to footage of the incident that was shared widely on social media, a group of black men surrounded, attacked, and shot the couple following a rear-end collision.

The graphic video shows the couple lying on the pavement next to their car as one of the suspects unleashes a rain of bullets and then ran off.

Gyovanny Arzuaga, 24, the boyfriend of Perez, who is also the father of the two children, was struck by gunfire multiple times during the same ambush and pronounced dead at a hospital that same night. He suffered from gunshot wounds in the head, hip, and thigh, FOX 32 News in Chicago reported.

Perez was rushed to a public hospital in Cook County in critical condition after suffering a gunshot wound in the neck and succumbed to her injuries Tuesday morning.

The deadly incident that has drawn national attention amid a particularly violent year in Chicago happened around 9:15 p.m. on West Division Street near Humboldt Park, just hours after the Puerto Rican Day Parade in the city located in northeastern Illinois ended, Chicago police said.

The shooting was reportedly prompted after the couple had rear-ended a parked vehicle after attending the parade. The group of suspects then got out of the car and killed the couple.

No arrests have been announced yet. Police said a manhunt is underway for the suspects.

Arzuagas brother, who wished to remain anonymous, told FOX 32 News during a phone interview his heart is destroyed, explaining Arzuaga wasnt only his brother, but also his best friend.

In a GoFundMe page created by relatives in order to cover funeral service costs, the couple is pictured together with their two children. The youngest child will turn 1-year-old on June 25. The fundraiser has as of Wednesday generated nearly $75,000.

Relatives of the couple erected a memorial one day after the shooting near the site of the incident where they lit candles and left bouquets of flowers.

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot urged the suspects while talking to reporters during a press conference on Monday to turn themselves in with the police.

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot speaks during a press conference in a file photo. (Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

You need to turn yourself in because we are going to spare no resource whatsoever to find them and you and bring you to justice and make sure that these people who created such brazen chaos and harm are held in custody until they see their day in court, Lightfoot said.

The shooting happened during yet another violent weekend in Chicago that saw 38 shootings and 54 victims, of which five are fatal. The previous weekend, the city saw three people killed and another 43 wounded in multiple shooting incidents.

From NTD News
Southern Chinese City Faces Flooding, Virus Spread

Beijing furthers its narratives in the Westwith help from Western faces. A Chinese state-owned media is recruiting overseas internet personalities to do it.

A Chinese city dubbed the worlds factory struggles to control the pandemic and flooding. A state of emergency was announced on Tuesday, and schools, kindergartens, and nurseries are shuttered.

The United States lifts its ban on TikTok and WeChat. The Trump-era rule had tried to block Americans from downloading the Chinese-owned apps, citing national security concerns.

The first person charged under Hong Kongs new national security law is going to trial. But the citys Court of Appeal says no jury is required. The move breaks away from a nearly 200-year-old precedent.

Another blow strikes Chinese telecom giant Huaweithis time in Europe. A Swedish court upholds a ban blocking the company from selling 5G equipment there.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel for more first-hand news from China.

For more news and videos, please visit our website and Twitter.
Over a thousand people participate in a Stop the Steal rally at Californias State Capitol in Sacramento to protest for election integrity and to support President Trump on Nov. 14, 2020. (Ilene Eng/The Epoch Times)

Congressional Candidates, Election Observers Speak on Voting Irregularities

Two of the 13 Congressional candidates listed in an Election Integrity Project California lawsuit being filed in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals spoke at a June 21 election event held in Thousand Oaks and challenged attendees to fight to protect ballot and voting procedures in California.

What happened in November was fraudulent, said 35th California district candidate Mike Cargile who is running again for Congress in 2022. This [election] case is really the most pivotal case in the nations history. There is no greater issue in America than election integrity.

There was so much fraud in the 2020 election, said 26th Congressional District candidate Ronda Kennedy. How do you explain that I won in-person voting by 3:1 and that my opponent Congresswoman Julia Brownley (in office since 2012) won the mail-in votes by 94 percent?

Meeting participant Sharon S. (who did not want to use her full last name) of Thousand Oaks, told those gathered that when she went to vote on a voting machine at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza, she was asked the following question: Do you want to vote for Donald J. Trump and Ronda Kennedy? I had to confirm before submitting my vote.

Election Integrity Project Ventura County Coordinator Challenges Citizens

Elections are not about parties; but about voice. It is important that we know our voice. if we lose our voice; we are in trouble, said Ventura County Election Integrity Project Coordinator Gloria Chinea. The goal of EIPCa is to enable citizens to become active participants in the entire election process from overseeing the integrity of the voter rolls, to ensuring that each lawfully cast vote is counted and counted fairly. We want 30,000 citizen observers to be trained.

Trained EIPCa Observers Speak on Election Irregularities

Rolando Chinea (Oxnard): Voting irregularities are the norm. We need to make people more aware of this reality.

Mary Gallegos (Agoura Hills): When we sued Ventura County in 2018, I remember the question that the judge asked me: What do you want to see happen during voting? I said: I want closer access and more power to observe.

Rick Estrada (Moorpark): During the 2018 election, I saw someone vote and then leave the precinct and return to vote twice. The poll workers just let him do this.

William Spangler (Westlake Village): We need more poll observers.

Annette Sula (Fillmore): I worked the polls in 2016 and 2018 and I saw elections going the wrong way. Things are not going to change unless we change it.

Rhonda Taylor (Fillmore): My husband and I are from Louisiana. Elections are different in California. In Louisiana, I knew everybody and they knew me. Yet, when it was time to vote they asked for my identification. I was asked by three different election workers. Here, no one asked.

California Election Lawsuit Appeals to Ninth Circuit Court

An Election Integrity Project California lawsuit filed Jan. 4 at Californias Central District Court was dismissed June 15. The defendants motions to dismiss came without ruling on the facts, paving the way for a plaintiffs appeal. EIPCa attorney Joshua Kroot of the Primary Law Group told The Epoch Times on June 16 that an appeal to the Ninth Circuit Court is forthcoming.

Chinea said that the watchdog organization is expecting to pay $2.6 million in legal fees plus additional costs for election forensic audits.

The EIPCa lawsuit was filed against defendants: California Secretary of State Dr. Shirley Weber, Attorney General Xavier Becerra, Governor Gavin Newsom, Alameda Registrar Tim Dupuis, Contra Costa Registrar Deborah R. Cooper, Fresno Registrar James A. Kus, Los Angeles Registrar Dean Logan, Monterey Registrar Claudio Valenzuela, and Orange Registrar Neal Kelley.

Some 13 Congressional candidates who ran in 2020 and are also running in 2022 are the lawsuits plaintiffs. They include: Chris Bish (6th District); James P. Bradley (33rd District); Mike Cargile (35th District); Kevin Cookingham (16th District); Eric Early (28th District); Jeffrey Gorman (20th District); Alison Hayden (15th District); Ronda Kennedy (26th District); Johnny Nalbandian (27th District); Buzz Patterson (7th District); Gary Raths (45th District); Mark Reed (30th District); and Aja Smith (41st District).

The EIPCa lawsuit put forth by Los Angeles Primary Law Group attorney Joshua Kroot states: Election integrity and transparency are critical for the enfranchisement of every eligible voter, regardless of party or political view.

The lawsuit addresses vote by mail ballots and Californias use of voting machines, stating: citizen observers were denied access to ballot processing facilities and barred from observing the remaking of military, damaged or defective ballots or the validation of signatures on Vote by Mail ballots. The lawsuit seeks an audit of the original and remade/duplicated paper vote by mail ballots (included remote access Vote by Mail ballots for individuals with disabilities). The lawsuit examines how California laws like ballot harvesting and last-minute changes to Vote by Mail voting disadvantaged minority groups.

The lawsuit makes the following allegations:

Californias voting practices are systematically undermined through decades of unconstitutional laws and regulations.

In the run-up to the 2020 elections, unconstitutional legislation, emergency orders, and regulations bypassed the normal legislative process and introduced massive new problems with vote by mail ballots.

Evidence suggests required audits in Sacramento never took place and cybersecurity practices were lacking.

The lawsuit also alleges that Californias citizen observers were obstructed from meaningful observations of vote collection and tabulation. Some examples:

Alameda County: An EIPCa citizen observer was informed by multiple county employees that no observers were allowed to observe vote processing and counting at all due to COVID-19.

An EIPCa citizen observer was informed by multiple county employees that no observers were allowed to observe vote processing and counting at all due to COVID-19. Orange County: The Registrar of Voters informed citizen observers that it had halted first pass ballot counting at 5 p.m. However, counting took place later in the evening without the knowledge or observation of citizen observers.

Some of the widespread election irregularities and potential for fraud across many counties including:

Contra Costa County: Poll data tapes from voting machines show inconsistencies between votes as recorded by the machines and later tabulation of those votes in the vote for President.

Poll data tapes from voting machines show inconsistencies between votes as recorded by the machines and later tabulation of those votes in the vote for President. Fresno County: At the Clovis Center, a supervisor informed a citizen observer that the ballots for the first day of early voting (Oct. 31) had been left inside a vote tallying machine unattended in a locked room overnight and that it was his understanding this practice would continue every night until the final closing of the voting center.

At the Clovis Center, a supervisor informed a citizen observer that the ballots for the first day of early voting (Oct. 31) had been left inside a vote tallying machine unattended in a locked room overnight and that it was his understanding this practice would continue every night until the final closing of the voting center. Los Angeles County: A citizen at Los Angeles Countys Pasadena Victory Park Center witnessed a machine change a voters vote.

A citizen at Los Angeles Countys Pasadena Victory Park Center witnessed a machine change a voters vote. Orange County: An election official informed a citizen observer that they do not verify signatures for provisional ballots at all.

An election official informed a citizen observer that they do not verify signatures for provisional ballots at all. Riverside County: An observer witnessed ballots put into boxes that were never sealed and were put into an election officials car in which another unidentified individual was riding.

An observer witnessed ballots put into boxes that were never sealed and were put into an election officials car in which another unidentified individual was riding. San Bernardino County: An election official at the Registrar of Voters informed a citizen: not all of the ballots will be counted, because California is such a Democrat state, in response to the citizens inquiry as to why her in-person ballot had not already been counted. A citizen observed that there were 400 plus more registered voters on the rolls than there had been the night before (after polls had closed).

An election official at the Registrar of Voters informed a citizen: not all of the ballots will be counted, because California is such a Democrat state, in response to the citizens inquiry as to why her in-person ballot had not already been counted. A citizen observed that there were 400 plus more registered voters on the rolls than there had been the night before (after polls had closed). Ventura County: A voting machine company employee was observed inserting a flash drive into a voting machine while it was tallying votes, after which the system was rebooted. The employee then removed the drive from the machine, placed it into his own laptop, and performed operations on the laptop. He then removed the drive from the laptop and provided it to the election official.

The Epoch Times attempted to reach Secretary of State Shirley Weber and her press office stated: We do not make comments on pending litigation.

Chinea ended the evening by saying: We will follow the lead of Arizonas Maricopa County forensics audit. We are asking for audits by Voter Registrars in all 13 counties named in the lawsuit.
The P4 laboratory on the campus of the Wuhan Institute of Virology in Wuhan, in China's central Hubei Province, on May 27, 2020. (Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty Images)

COVID-19 Data From Early on in Pandemic Removed From NIH Database at Chinese Scientists Request

A leading American expert in influenza viruses discovered that early sequences of the novel coronavirus (CCP virus) genome were deleted at the request of researchers in China, which was confirmed by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH).

The NIH, which hasnt yet responded to The Epoch Times request for comment, told the Wall Street Journal that it deleted the sequences after a Chinese researcher requested the U.S. agency to do so, explaining that the researcher had submitted the sequences three months earlier. The statement said the scientist wanted the data removed in June 2020 because an updated version of the sequences was uploaded to another unspecified database.

Submitting investigators hold the rights to their data and can request withdrawal of the data, the NIH said in a statement to the paper.

Professor Jesse Bloom, a COVID-19 researcher from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, wrote in a non-peer-reviewed paper that the missing data entailed sequences of virus samples that were obtained in Wuhan, China, from patients who were hospitalized or were suspected of having COVID-19.

Bloom wrote in an abstract posted online Tuesday that he identified a data set containing sequences of SARS-CoV-2, another name for the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, that was taken early on in the Wuhan epidemic and deleted from NIHs database.

According to his abstract, Bloom recovered the deleted files from the Google Cloud, and reconstruct[ed] partial sequences of 13 early epidemic viruses.

Then, after a phylogenetic analysis of these sequences, the data suggests that the Huanan Seafood Market sequences that are the focus of the joint WHO-China report are not fully representative of the viruses in Wuhan early in the epidemic, he wrote, referring to the widely criticized report from the World Health Organization earlier this year that blamed animalsrather than a laboratory leakfor the origin of the pandemic.

Instead, Bloom wrote, the progenitor of known SARS-CoV-2 sequences likely contained three mutations relative to the market viruses that made it more similar to SARS-CoV-2s bat coronavirus relatives.

Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, appears before a Senate hearing to discuss vaccines, in Washington, on Sept. 9, 2020. (Greg Nash- Pool/Getty Images)

Elaborating on the discovery, the researcher said he found a Wuhan University project that sequenced 34 positive COVID-19 cases from January 2020 along with 16 cases in February.

But when I went to Sequence Read Archive, Bloom tweeted, I found [the] entire project was gone! He said that it doesnt indicate that the NIH engaged in alleged malfeasance or tried to cover the findings up, noting that the Sequence Read Archive policy allows submitters to delete by e-mail request.

However, whether the NIH acted ethically or not, his finding is sure to further cast doubt on the origins of the CCP virus. There has been growing speculation, including by the U.S. Intelligence Community, that the virus may have escaped from the Wuhan Institue of Virology, a top-level security research facility just miles from a wet market that the Chinese regime blamed for the initial outbreak. Meanwhile, the CCP has also been accused of working to cover up the origins of the virus by moving to silence researchers and doctors in early 2020.

Although events that led to emergence of #SARSCoV2 in Wuhan are unclear (zoonosis vs lab accident), everyone agrees deep ancestors are coronaviruses from bats, Bloom wrote on Twitter this week. Therefore, wed expect the first #SARSCoV2 sequences would be more similar to bat coronaviruses, and as #SARSCoV2 continued to evolve it would become more divergent from these ancestors.

Bloom, however, emphasized that its not the case and instead, the seafood market COVID-19 viruses are more different from coronaviruses than #SARSCoV2 viruses collected later in China and even other countries.

As noted by the Wall Street Journal, some of the deleted information from the NIH database was published in a paper in a small journal, but Bloom said researchers tend to look for gene sequences in large databases like the one operated by the U.S. health agency.

Separately, the deletion of the sequences at the behest of a Chinese scientist casts yet another shadow over the Chinese regimes transparency on the origins of the virus and how the regime handled the early days of the pandemic, Bloom told the paper. The Epoch Times has reached out to him for comment.

It makes us wonder if there are other sequences like these that have been purged, said Dr. Vaughn Cooper, a University of Pittsburgh biologist, in a comment to the paper. If more sequences came to light, especially from early time points, or archival samples elsewhere, everything could change once again, Sergei Pond, a Temple University biology professor, added while suggesting that more data sourced early on the pandemic will likely emerge in the future.
Father, 41, Graduates Alongside His Daughter: I Didnt Think I Was College Material

A 41-year-old father of two has graduated alongside his daughter and credits her for encouraging him to pursue his dream. The close-knit pair supported each other through their studies, and both graduated with honors.

I didnt think I was college material, Cesar Galarza admitted to the Buffalo State Colleges website. A welder by trade, and senior pastor at West Side church, Cesar was keen to become a social worker.

His daughter, Clarimar Galarza, who loves ceramics, knew the art education program at the Buffalo State College was perfect for her.

The father-daughter duo pursued bachelors degrees at New Yorks Buffalo State College and on May 15, their names were called out during the colleges virtual commencement ceremony.

Cesar initially had questioned whether he was too old to go to college, until his family convinced him; he then finally took it seriously. He first received a GED and an associates degree from SUNY Erie Community College (ECC) and then transferred to Buffalo State in the fall of 2019. He soon began to fall in love with the courses and developed a passion to help others.

In reality, it was fantastic to go to school with his daughter, he said; if they felt overwhelmed, they had one another to turn to.

We knew we werent alone, Cesar said. If we got tired or felt like it was all too much, wed talk through our assignments and everything.

The pair also drove to campus together and shared lunch whenever they could, yet Cesar joked it was sometimes hard to wrench his daughter away from the ceramics studio.

The pandemic presented a huge obstacle. We went through school during the toughest time, but we overcame, Cesar told Good Morning America. She did better than me  I did pretty good, but she always did better than me.

The father of two moved his family to Buffalo from Puerto Rico in 2008 and had to overcome a language barrier to study at Buffalo State. He had to learn to write in English but was able to achieve it with the help of his supportive wife of 24 years and 15-year-old son who helped by proofreading his papers.

Clarimar, for whom English is also her second language, was keen to teach in a bilingual environment. In spring 2021, she landed a teaching placement at Dr. Martin Luther King Junior Multicultural Institute.

I was very lucky that my professors and mentors knew I wanted to get experience teaching bilingually, she said.

The graduate now wants to teach art at the elementary school level, claiming art is like magic to children. I love getting to teach them about art from the starting process, she explained. Its so much fun to see them learn and grow.

Meanwhile, during the spring of 2021, Cesar got an opportunity to work with the local students at Compeer mentoring program at Maryvale High School, calling the internship a blessing as he wants to work with youth.

During her years at university, Clarimar received three art education scholarships and two awards for excellence. She made the deans list every semester since starting at Buffalo State in 2017.

Also making the deans list every semester, and earning the Excellence in Social Work Award upon graduation, Cesars college fears have long been laid to rest. He has even been accepted into the graduate program at the University at Buffalos School of Social Work, where he will pursue a masters degree.

Its always possible, he asserted. Im 41 years old, and I did it.

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
Florida County Citizens Demand Bill of Rights Sanctuary Ordinance: Have the Courage to Do What Is Right

In a contentious three to two vote, the Collier County Board of County Commissioners (CCBOCC) agreed on June 22 to postpone the vote on a proposed ordinance that would establish Collier County as a Bill of Rights sanctuary. However, even after the county sheriff, one state representative, a United States congressman, and a parade of determined citizens demanded that the CCBOCC have the courage to do what is right, two board members seemed more concerned about personal liability than supporting the will of their constituents.

Of the 67 counties in the state of Florida, 42 have already adopted Second Amendment sanctuary resolutions. However, Collier County may be the first to pass an ordinance protecting all freedoms outlined in the Bill of Rights.

The difference between a resolution and an ordinance is what caused concern among three board members. Where a resolution deals with matters of a unique or temporary nature and expresses an opinion of a policy or item of business, an ordinance establishes law that bears legal penalties and remains in force until the ordinance is repealed by another ordinance.

The People Speak

It scares me that the First Amendment is okay for some but not for all, recent high school graduate Jacob Wagganer told the board, sharing that his grandparents emigrated from Fidel Castros Cuba. Thats my biggest problem, especially for conservatives in the era of cancel culture. Its really scary whats going on in this country.

You as our representatives must have the courage to do what is right, Alexandra Sulecki advised the board, producing an additional 231 petitions she brought in support of the ordinance. If you dont have the courage to affirm the Bill of Rights, our foundational document, then I would recommend to your constituents that at the first possible moment, they replace you with someone who does.

Model, actress, writer, and Collier County resident Victoria Redstall stood before the board to share how she had been completely canceled on Facebook because she is a strong conservative Republican who supports Donald Trump and law enforcement.

Carol Depalo, community programs director for the Coalition to Save Hempstead Harbor and founder of the Joey DiPaolo AIDS Foundation, spoke of how the federal government is violating HIPAA laws by forcing citizens to get vaccinated or explain what medical condition they have to justify non-compliance.

The Sheriff and Congressmen Speak

Making a surprise appearance, Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) was the first to approach the podium. Donalds, who calls Collier County home, had made special arrangements to attend the meeting. However, because he had to catch a flight back to Washington, the board allowed him to make his comments regarding the ordinance early.

I will tell you, Donalds warned of what he sees daily in our nations capitol, those on this [Republican] side of the political aisle are constantly forced to deal with legislative pushes that seek to undermine various aspects of the Bill of Rights.

He spoke of the rancor and disconnect he observes on Capitol Hill, which goes past the simple arguments about Second Amendment rights.

It goes much further, he assured, and these are not just talking points and speeches at rallies. These are legislative ideas that are coming from the other side of the aisle.

Being a congressional representative, I will tell you there are moves to try to strip elements of the Bill of Rights as they exist in the United States Constitution, Donalds cautioned, and being the lawful authority here in Collier County, I see no reason why you cant align yourself, not only with the United States Constitution but also Floridas Constitution.

I hope youll consider it fairly, he pleaded, imploring them not to make this about politics.

Look at this with clear eyes and make the proper determination, he advised. I believe you are well within your rights in your authority here as commissioners for our county to uphold the rights of the people who live here.

The Constitution very clearly designates the powers entrusted to the government by the consent of the people, Collier County Sheriff Kevin Rambosk reminded the board. By virtue of my duties and responsibilities as Sheriff, I recommend supporting this ordinance.

The Tenth Amendment to the Constitution reserves power to the states and to the people, Kim Timm, legislative assistant to Florida Rep. Bob Rommel read from a prepared statement from the congressman. The passage of this ordinance will show that Florida and Collier County will always defend the U.S. Constitution and the citizens of Florida from the overreach of the federal government. For this very reason, I fully support this ordinance.

No Clapping or Cheering

When the meeting began at 9 a.m., a mood of contention was immediately established when CCBOCC Chair Penny Taylor interrupted the first speaker to warn those in attendance she would not tolerate any clapping or cheering. She even threatened to have anyone who did clap removed from the room, a threat she later denied making.

When a few attendees later clapped approval to the remarks of a fellow citizen, Taylor again interrupted the proceedings to lecture everyone on how clapping only delayed the proceedings. When Taylor heard quiet applause for a third time, she immediately gaveled the meeting for a 10-minute recess.

When the meeting reconvened, a heated debate ensued. Vice Chairman William McDaniel reminded Taylor this was a public meeting, saying the audience was not being disrespectful or disruptive, and he advised that her time out process wasted more time than their occasional applause.

Commissioner Burt Saunders asked the frustrated citizens to calm down, insisting the board was not trying to keep people from expressing their views, but rather trying to maintain decorum.

Id just like it to proceed, Taylor interjected, appearing to be offended that her authority had been challenged. While she insisted she was anxious to hear from everyone, she reiterated that she didnt want to hear anyone clapping.

Ive asked that we dont applaud, she ordered again. Its disruptive, and thats what I would like.

Its an emotionally charged subject, obviously, Saunders countered, suggesting Taylors repeated threats and calls for 10-minute breaks was just belaboring the point.

To that, the citizens applauded.

We Could All Be Sued

Among the three CCBOCC members who expressed reservations with the ordinance as is, Commissioner Andy Solis (District 2) was the strongest holdout.

However, no matter how many times McDaniel attempted to explain that the Constitution clearly outlines what is and is not constitutional, and that the sheriffand the sheriffs attorneysbelieved the ordinance was sound, Solis refused to support the measure as written.

Lets say theres federal legislation, Solis hypothesized, suggesting that something they followed today was found to be unconstitutional three years from now.

The way this is written, he determined, we could all be sued for that.

Its Still Alive

While Commissioner Saunders said he still needed some clarification on a few matters, Solis and Taylor were the only two commissioners to vote against the measure.

However, following the extended debate amongst the commissioners on whether or not to approve the ordinance, it was unclear what happened when the board concluded the meeting with a vote of three to two.

As Commissioner Rick LoCastro explained to The Epoch Times, the board essentially voted to forward the questions and concerns held by Solis, Taylor, and Saunders to the sheriff and the sponsors of the ordinance for clarification.

LoCastro, who served 24 years in the United States Air Force and fought to defend the rights enjoyed by Americans, was one of the strongest advocates for the ordinance.

It only needs a three to two vote, LoCostro assured. Because we didnt vote on it, its still alive.
Dark clouds and heavy rain sweep over the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Aug. 3, 2020. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo)

For the People Act Defeated, Democrats Groom H.R. 4 to Federalize Elections, Experts Say

Jubilant Republicans hailed the June 22 defeat of S. 1, although that isnt likely to be the last battle in the campaign by Democrats to federalize presidential and congressional elections.

This bill wouldnt make it easier to vote, Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) declared on Fox News after the Democrats failed to gain the 60 votes required to break a Republican filibuster against the legislation known officially as the For the People Act. The House passed its version of the measure, H.R. 1, in March.

This bill would make it easier to vote illegally. This is the Corrupt Politicians Act and Im glad we defeated it, Lee told Fox host Sean Hannity.

On June 23, conservative and Republican strategists warned that Democrats on Capitol Hill will lick their wounds, regroup, and come back later this year with another proposal that will likely be even worse.

The next Democratic effort will use a measure passed by the House in 2019, known as The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, or H.R. 4.

H.R. 4 is an unconstitutional piece of legislation that would give the federal government veto power over state election integrity laws, Heritage Action for America Vice President Garrett Bess told The Epoch Times on June 23.

This Pelosi power grab would alter and weaponize the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to give massive amounts of power to unelected bureaucrats in Washington to take away voter ID and legalize ballot trafficking across the country. No member of Congress should support it, Bess declared.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) laid the groundwork for H.R. 4 in a June 8 letter to House Democrats.

In addition, it is essential that H.R. 4, the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, become law. When we pass H.R. 4, we must do so in a way that is ironclad constitutionally, Pelosi wrote. This is what Congressman Butterfield and the House Judiciary Committee are hard at work on now. H.R. 4 must be passed, but it will not be ready until the fall, and it is not a substitute for H.R. 1.

While Lewis, the widely venerated Georgia Democrat and civil rights movement veteran, died July 17, 2020, he had a major role in drafting the bill bearing his name.

Like the defeated S. 1, H.R. 4 would effectively put the Department of Justice (DOJ) in control of future presidential and congressional elections, according to constitutional lawyer Hans von Spakovsky of the conservative Heritage Foundation.

The Lewis Act sounds great until you realize it will be used to achieve partisan political gains rather than prevent racial discrimination, the Heritage scholar wrote earlier this year in a legislative and legal analysis.

The real aim is to reverse the 2013 Supreme Court decision in Shelby County v. Holder and to give the political allies of Democratsthe radicals who inhabit the career ranks of the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Justice Department (where I used to work), and advocacy groups such as the ACLUcontrol over state election rules, von Spakovsky wrote.

What makes H.R. 4 the perfect vehicle for a renewed Democratic push to federalize elections is that the Lewis bill would restore the 1965 Civil Rights Acts Section 5, which the 2013 court decision struck down. Section 5 subjected all of nine Southern states and parts of six more to a pre-clearance process for even the most minute details of how those jurisdictions conduct presidential and congressional elections.

The original Section 5 was based on a formula using voter turnout data from the 1960s, when blacks were often unable to vote in the South. Congress failed to renew the formula in 2006, von Spakovsky said, because by that year, black turnout often matched or exceeded white turnout.

In that case, the affected states would be freed of the pre-clearance process and thus regain their constitutionally mandated full sovereignty over elections.

Reviving the pre-clearance process and turning H.R. 4 into a vehicle for including selected items from the Democrats grab-bag of election reforms in S. 1expanded mail-in voting, legalizing vote harvesting, providing federal tax dollars to campaigns, banning voter ID requirementswould simply require the adoption of a package of amendments.

S. 1 was their wish list, but the John Lewis bill isnt far behind it, former Virginia Attorney General and Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Ken Cuccinelli told The Epoch Times on June 23. Cuccinelli is now chairman of the Election Transparency Initiative.

Its scary as well. Theyre rewriting it now. I dont think its going to look like it looked in the last Congress. Theyve had their swords sharpened here, theyve learned some things, and theyre going to go try and strengthen what theyve put forward, he said.

The real problem they have is between what the radical left wants and the moderate nature of what can actually pass. The gulf between the two is very substantial.

A new Monmouth University poll released on June 21 points out the problem Cuccinelli noted, in that the public overwhelmingly supports strengthening voter ID requirements.

Fully four in five Americans (80 percent) support requiring voters to show photo identification in order to cast a ballot. Just 18 percent oppose this, Monmouth said. Support for requiring a photo ID to vote stands at 62 percent among Democrats, 87 percent among independents, and 91 percent among Republicans.
Forgotten Heroines: Fictional Females From Long Ago

So Im shambling around online, looking for some inspiration to write about literary heroines, fictional females who inspire readers, particularly women who practice the virtues and exhibit courage in the face of danger, when a link to The 10 Best Literary Heroines popped up.

Here, the editors at AbeBooks.com had asked this question of their readers: If you could be any literary character, who would you be and why? Many of the responses advocated for female charactersno surprise there, as more women than men read fictionand there were brief comments on such protagonists as Scout Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird and Scarlett OHara in Gone With the Wind. Here, too, were some young lionesses of literatureHermione Granger from the Harry Potter series, Nancy Drew, and Anne of Green Gablesalong with the elderly sleuth Miss Marple.

As I read through this list, these questions occurred: What about much older literary heroines? Have we forgotten the noble females found in ancient poetry and plays? Are we unaware of the high regard for female courage, fidelity, passion, independence, and intelligence expressed by writers of bygone ages?

Cover of Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery, published 1908.

Misapprehensions

Perhaps our shortsightedness derives from our view of women before our modern age as being oppressed and subservient to men. Todays feminists, for example, might consider the women of ancient Greece and Rome, the Middle Ages, and the Renaissance as male chattel, objects possessed and controlled by husbands and fathers, valued only for their dowries and the children they might bring into the world.

There is some truth to these beliefs. With rare exceptions, women in the past generally possessed fewer rights than men, excluded in most instances from the political arena and limited by law and custom from engagement in cultural affairs.

Yet the greater truth is that throughout recorded history, women have wielded tremendous power as wives and mothers. Just like today, they interacted with fathers, husbands, and sons, expressed their opinions, and by force of their intellect, charm, and affection swayed the opinions of the men in their lives. As historian Will Durant and his wife, researcher and writer Ariel Durant, wrote of the ancient Romans in The Story of Civilization: Since the greater urgency of the male supplies women with charms more potent than any law, her status in Rome must not be judged from her legal disabilities.

We see this exercise of female power in many past ages. Even a cursory study of Roman history reveals females like Fulvia (the wife of Mark Antony) and Livia Drusilla (the wife of Emperor Augustus) exerting enormous influence on their husbands.

In the Middle Ages, queens like Eleanor of Aquitaine, saints like Joan of Arc, and female religious orders affected the politics and culture of their time.

Joan of Arc depicted on horseback in an illustration from a 1504 manuscript. (Public Domain)

The Renaissance and Baroque periods featured several prominent female artists, Queen Elizabeth I ruled England with an iron hand, and women like Margaret Roper, who was Thomas Mores daughter, were famed for their erudition and literary talents.

And writers down through history have celebrated the nature, virtues, and accomplishments of strong women in their poetry, plays, and prose.

Portrait of Margaret Roper, from a 1593 reproduction of a now-lost Hans Holbein portrait of all of the women in Thomas Mores family. (PD-US)

The Heroic and Loving Sister

Most of us are familiar with Homers Penelope, the patient and loyal wife of Odysseus who in the Odyssey contrives to put off her suitors by using various tricks while hoping for the safe return of her husband. For the ancients, Penelope was a model of fidelity and wifely virtue.

Penelope, Odysseuss faithful wife puts arete into action. Penelope, 1864, by John Roddam Spencer Stanhope. Sothebys, November 2017. (PD-US)

Perhaps fewer of us know about Antigone, Sophocless play depicting the destruction of the house of Creon. This play pays honor to Antigone and her fidelity to her brother and to the gods. After Antigones brother Polynices dies fighting to regain his right to rule Thebes, the new king, Creon, orders his body to remain unburied and unmourned, thus preventing, according to the Greeks, the dead mans soul from entering the afterlife.

Antigone disobeys this edict and performs the burial rites by sprinkling her brothers body with dust. When she is apprehended for breaking the kings law, she courageously admits her crime to the king, telling him that divine law supersedes his earthly power.

Creon orders that Antigone be walled up alive in a cave. To avoid a slow death, Antigone hangs herself, and Creons son, who is in love with her, also takes his own life, as does his grieving mother, Creons wife. By his unjust law and the courage of Antigone, Creons destruction is complete.

Antigone Condemned to Death by Creon, 1845, by Giuseppe Diotti. Oil on canvas. (Public Domain)

In her act of her defiance, in her verbal sparring with Creon, and even when the guards lead her away to her death, Antigone passionately defends her burial of Polynices as a righteous act. As she exits the stage, she says: Behold me, lords, the last of your kings housewhat doom is mine, and at whose hands, and for what causethat I duly performed the dues of piety!

In this young woman, we have as gallant a soul as any in Greek literature.

Ismene (L) tries to convince her sister, Antigone, to forego her decision to unlawfully bury their brother, but Antigone stands firm in her conviction.Antigone and Ismene an 1892 illustration by Emil Teschendorff from Character Sketches of Romance, Fiction and the Drama by Ebenezer Cobham Brewer. (Public Domain)

The Passionate Queen

In the Aeneid, Virgil creates one of the fullest ancient literary portraits of a woman in ancient literature. When we first meet Dido, queen of Carthage, she is a childless widow immersed in building this city, overseeing the construction of temples and squaresa powerful monarch loved and respected by her people.

When she falls in love with the wanderer and Trojan prince Aeneas, Dido neglects some of her duties as queen, but worse, Aeneas leaves her at the behest of the gods to fulfill his destiny. Brokenhearted and bitter, the queen climbs onto a funeral pyre and dies by her own hand.

Statue of Dido, 1707, attributed to Christophe Cochet, at the Louvre. (Marie-Lan Nguyen/CC BY-SA 2.0)

Some today might find Dido weak or hysterical in this extreme reaction, but for me she rouses great sympathy. She truly loves Aeneas, thinks they are marriedhe denies itand is emotionally shattered as he continues his preparations to desert her. Ah, merciless Love, Virgil comments, is there any length to which you cannot force the human heart to go?

Merciless Love brings this queen to her doom, as it has done to countless other men and women down through the ages.

The Wife of Baths Tale

Bold-faced, gap-toothed, five times married, a traveler to places as faraway as Jerusalem and Rome, and wearing a hat as broad as a shield, this bawdy, adventurous woman is Geoffrey Chaucers Wife of Bath, one of the pilgrims in The Canterbury Tales. She knows how to laugh and chatter, and all the tricks of love.

The Wife of Bath may seem an odd choice to include in a discussion of female virtue, and certainly she undertakes no deeds equal to those of an Antigone or Dido. Yet Chaucers brief description of her physical appearance, and later of her thoughts about marriage and male-female relations in the tale she tells, mocks the idea that all medieval wives were abused servants. The Wife of Bath is witty, clearly educatedshe speaks of Ovid and King Arthurand coquettish.

Detail from the Canterbury Tales mural, 1939, by Ezra Winter. Library of Congress John Adams Building, Washington, D.C. (Public Domain)

The story she tells to her fellow pilgrims further demolishes some of our preconceptions about medieval women. Charged with a heinous crime, a young knight has one year to return to King Arthurs court and correctly answer the question: What do women want most in the world? If he returns with the correct answer, the queen promises to spare his life. If he fails, he will die.

The tale is too long for retelling here, but the young knight eventually finds an old woman who promises him that she has the answer: that all women want husbands or lovers they can command. When he gives this answer to the court, the queen and her ladies applaud, and the knight escapes death, but he must now marry the ugly, old woman. After they are wed and together in bed, she asks the knight whether he would prefer marrying someone like her who was always loyal, or a beauty who was a flirt and unfaithful. Unable to make up his mind, the knight asks her to choose for him. Because he gives the power of choice to her and so the power to command him, she is transformed into a woman who is both good and beautiful.

Both in her life and in her story, the Wife of Bath displays wit, wisdom, and a love for life and romance. She is in every way a modern woman worthy of respect.

The Past Still Speaks to the Present

Many other writers from the past created admirable female characters. In Twelfth Night, for example, Shakespeare creates the shipwrecked and penniless Viola, who disguises herself as a young man and enters into the service of a duke, thereby rescuing herself through the use of her wits and her courage.

Nathaniel Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter paints a portrait of valiant dignity in Hester Prynne, socially ostracized for bearing a child out of wedlock, and whose stoicism and head held high attitude allow her to overcome her broken reputation.

Hester Prynne & Pearl before the stocks, an illustration by Mary Hallock Foote from an 1878 edition of The Scarlet Letter. (PD-US)

In these and other fictional females from the past, we moderns can still discover role models displaying all manner of virtues. For the actress slammed by the cancel culture crew for some innocent comment on social media, Hester Prynne might serve as an exemplar of grace under fire. The college sophomore under attack for her religious views might find solace and inspiration in Antigone.

Something old, something new are the beginning words of the rhyme telling a bride what to wear for good luck on her wedding day. Perhaps we should apply that same formula to our take on women in literature. Lets remember the newthe Scout Finches and Scarlett OHarasbut lets not forget those inspirational women from literature written long ago.

Jeff Minick has four children and a growing platoon of grandchildren. For 20 years, he taught history, literature, and Latin to seminars of homeschooling students in Asheville, N.C. He is the author of two novels, Amanda Bell and Dust On Their Wings, and two works of non-fiction, Learning As I Go and Movies Make The Man. Today, he lives and writes in Front Royal, Va. See JeffMinick.com to follow his blog.
Greg Ellis: Inside the Billion-Dollar Industry Pushing Family Breakdown

Family breakdown is the single greatest threat to American society, argues Greg Ellis in his new book, The Respondent: Exposing the Cartel of Family Law.

Ellis says that every day, 4,000 children are separated from one of their parents in the family court system, which is biased against men and does not afford them due process in the face of hearsay allegations.

Ellis is an Emmy Award-nominated actor and voice actor.

Jan Jekielek: Greg Ellis, such a pleasure to have you on American Thought Leaders.

Greg Ellis: Thank you for having me Jan. Its great to be here.

Mr. Jekielek: Greg, I just finished reading your book, The Respondent, with you, of course, as the respondent, the key character. Its an incredibly profound piece of work, I have to say. It caused me to think a lot about the relationships I have with all sorts of different people in my life. Yours was a profound journey discussed in the book a journey not just of yourself, but also of discovering some of the fascinating and disturbing systems we have in America. Tell me, what did you find?

Mr. Ellis: Before I entered the American justice system, I believed in justice and the legal system, and I learned very quickly. When I first walked into court for my first court appearance, I had a clean criminal record, had never been in trouble with the police, hadnt been arrested, and still havent been arrested. We can talk about that. I believed in the system.

I remember sitting in court and looking up at the crest of Sacramento in California, and thinking, At last, at last, theres going to be a judge. Theres going to be someone who will be reasonable and make sense of the insensible, and see that this is nonsense and ridiculousthese falsehoods, these litany of lies presented in court its transparent.

And I quickly learned, to my shock and horror, that I had left America, and entered the star chamber of family law, where there is no presumption of innocence, and where the legal system or the cartel of family law is not answerable to the Supreme Court. Many times, men and fathers, sometimes mothers and women, but more often than not, men and fathers are found guilty until proven more guilty.

Mr. Jekielek: So you say, its guilty until proven innocent in family law court. Its probably very difficult for many to believe that could possibly be the case in a U.S. court. How does that work?

Mr. Ellis: Im not a legal scholar, but I have the experience of going through the family law system. Family law is not neutral. It doesnt afford due process. Someone can make an allegation against you, and you dont have Miranda rights. You dont have access to an attorney. Your human rights are trampled on. Law enforcement can enter your home, and they can remove you from your home.

Many of the constitutional rights that we think are in place, are not in place. Hearsay evidence, which would not be admissible in criminal court, is not only admissible in family law court, but many times its the basis and the grounds for the allegation and accusation to be taken seriously. What you have is, law enforcement comes out to disturbance, and they dont have the discretion anymore.

They used to have discretion, but its now mandated that someone, one of the parties, the targeted party, usually a man or a father, is removed from the home and cant be arrested because no crime is being committed, many times. Sometimes, theres clear evidence of a crime, obviously. Thats not to say that this is always the case, but jurisprudence in Western civilization was introduced for a reason. So that the burden of proof would be on the accuser, not the accused.

Unless we have that in family law like we have for criminals, terrorists, murderers, and pedophiles, we see a system that is propagating guilt until proven innocent, or more guilty. I cant prove that I have not committed a crime, you have to prove that I committed the crime. Youre a thief. You stole that womans ring. Prove that you didnt. How can you prove that you didnt? Its very difficult.

We cant have a legal system that behaves that way, and yet we do in 2021. If you would have told me my story six years ago, I would have found it preposterous and hard to believe. But it could happen to me and it has. Its happened to many others like Johnny Depp, who kindly wrote the foreword for my book. Alec Baldwin wrote the introductions in my book, and also wrote the foreword for my book. Brad Pitt has been going through this recently, as well as Jeremy Renner.

There are hundreds of thousands of parents, fathers, mothers, and by de facto, their children, if they have children, that have entered the star chamber and experienced the same. So this in effect, completely uppends jurisprudence.

Mr. Jekielek: It sounds like it would be unconstitutional, although I am not a constitutional scholar.

Mr. Ellis: Speak to constitutional scholars and they will tell you, it is unconstitutional. Whats going on is not constitutional. I spoke with Steven Baskerville recently, a constitutional scholar and social policy expert. Hes been talking about this for decades. I have come across many people and many experts way more proficient than I, who have been talking about this with organizations and movements for many, many decades. Its not constitutional. And thats the crux here.

Ill give you an example. Theres the executive director of my new charity, CPU, [Children and Parents United] Mike McCormick. Hes been working in this particular area for decades now. It was 20-something years ago that he was in court falsely accused of domestic violence.

He held his wrists up to the judge and he said, Your Honor, arrest me. And the judge said, What are you, crazy? He said, No, Your Honor. Instruct the bailiff to arrest me. And the judge said, What are you talking about? Why? He said, Because violence, particularly domestic violence is a serious offense. It needs to be treated as such. Its a criminal offense, so arrest me. What he was saying was, and the irony of what he was saying was, Arrest me because Ill get more rights as a criminal than I will as a father, or a parent, or a husband.

And thats the tragedy. Thats what were living with right now. Many legal scholars know it. So many know it. They dont talk about it, because theyll lose their livelihoods, and because its too risky. There are people in positions of power who want to protect the $60-billion-a-year industry, the American divorce machine.Theyre afraid to speak out, because theres too much money. Its incentivized to break down the family, and thats wrong. We shouldnt be incentivizing the legal system to break down the family. We should be encouraging family unity and our familial bonds.

Mr. Jekielek: Again, the book is titled, The Respondent. Theres something powerful in initiating a divorce process in this system that you describe, becoming the petitioner as opposed to being the respondent. When I was reading it, I started to wonder, is there some kind of perverse incentive for this system to invite people to become petitioners, so to speak, in such proceedings?

Mr. Ellis: Yes, I think there is. Its being used as a strategy or a playbook, if you will, being written. The state bar associations run themselves. They write the family law code book. 15 or 20 years ago, it used to be a quarter-of-a-inch thick. If you look at it now, its six or seven inches thick. It is this tangled mess of legal codes that really is used to incentivize acrimony.

Attorneys are trained to make arguments, I get it. But when two people fall into disillusionment within a relationship, I think we have to continually strive to improve the system. The system of family law has been the same since the 1960s. No-fault divorce laws were introduced in California first, and then it spread like wildfire. The good intentions of that were over the years lost and have been usurped, and now we have a system that judges guilty until more guilty, rarely guilty to proven innocent.

Now we have law enforcement who are called and have a very difficult job. They are called on these domestic violence allegations to a home, and then charged with working through what in effect is just a hearsay allegation, and they have to make a determination. It used to be that they had discretion. Now, there is no discretion. Its mandatory for them to remove one person from the home. The moment that happens, it sets off what I refer to in the book as the six silver bullets of high conflict divorce, and the magic ballistics of family law, or family war even.

Bullet one is the incarcerating incident. Thats usually a hearsay allegation called in. At that moment, the respondent is targeted. Silver bullet two is the order of restraint. They are easy to get these days, so easy to get. They hand them out like hot dinners. So that hearsay allegation is many times a false allegation. In fact in the majority of domestic violence, abuse allegations are false.

But theyre so successful, because if you couple that with family law, and an attorney, and a filing by a petitioner to insert the petitioner and the respondent, the partner, into the systemthere is no way out. There is no trapdoor from the divorce trap once the respondent is in. And particularly, if the petitioner is a mother and has a war chest of more money, the attorneys look at the estate. How much money do we have here? How long can we keep this acrimony going, churning the billable hours to keep the acrimony going?

Mr. Jekielek: I want to look at it from the other side for a moment. You say that no-fault divorce created this monster of a system. Presumably, this was created to protect children, to protect mothers, to protect wives, and protect everybody in theory. Are you saying that the system just doesnt work for anybody, or that it doesnt work for select people?

Mr. Ellis: Its working out for a lot of people with bad intentions. When it happened to me in 2015, I started looking for books and information on this subject, so that I could educate and then at least convince myself that I wasnt going insane, because my whole world had turned upside down in an instant. What I found is that there is very little information out there and what information there is were all books written by women for women on how to ruin your husband, how to get rid of your spouse, how to win the house, and how to get custody of the kids.

There were books talking about the silver bullet. A silver bullet is defined as a simple, seemingly, magical solution to a difficult problem, in this case, marriage disillusionment. I was astonished that there was a whole industry behind the divorce industry profiting from this.

They were profiting from promulgating the breakdown of the family, the evisceration of man, manhood, fathers, and masculinity in general, and laying the blame for all of societys ills at the feet of the male. We may be a little flawed as men, but I dont think were 100 percent responsible for all the worlds ills, even if it is in certain people. But I dont believe that. I didnt believe that.

So I started to look deeper into it and try to understand where this was coming from. And part of the reason why I wrote The Respondent was to actually provide some hopethat similar people going through what I went through or will go through will realize theyre not alone. Theyre not going insane. In their existential angst and terror, in their fear, and in the worry that they will lose everything, at least they will feel less alone.

I cant guarantee they wont lose everything, because the system is primed for that. Thats what the system does, when you have a system of justice where the burden of proof is on the accused. The attorney that represented my ex-wife one day showed up in court and accused me, in front of the judge, of burglarizing her home, of breaking and entering and that she had to get security. I sat there in disbelief and voiceless because you cant speak, listening to this wild, baseless accusation.

Mr. Jekielek: In this case, there were never any charges filed for this burglary?

Mr. Ellis: No. I doubt there was a burglary. And if there was, then shouldnt there be a police report filed? Wouldnt the Beverly Hills police have called me, interrogated me, and a detective contacted me? I would have been just as incredulous then as I am now, with nothing to hide. But no, that didnt happen, because it didnt happen.

Mr. Jekielek: You provide some very interesting evidence of this as a big business operation. How does that work?

Mr. Ellis: If you look at the petitioner, or lets say for example, an individual wants to file for divorce. Its almost like the art of war. Its the surprise, stealth attack while engaging in reflective diplomacy on the surface. Sign with an attorney, and the attorney will serve papers, and then declarations are written, usually, about the worst aspects of each partner.

But because the petitioner gets to strike, and always gets to speak first in court, they are leading the charge. Theyll present their evidence. There isnt due process. The most wild, ridiculous accusations are often made. And if you couple it with celebrity, then the press gets hold of it and fiction becomes fact, or at least theres a gray area about what is fact or fiction, and it gets sensationalized.

Then two people find themselves in court with two attorneys speaking on their behalf about their entire estate, their family, and their children. Then you have these cottage industry of guardians ad litems, of mediators, of child psychologists, psychologists, and psychiatrists who are all earning and churning from the system. What happens in family law is that two parents enter a courtroom and one leaves as a parent, and the other leaves as a visitor. We shouldnt be sacrificing our childrens upbringing at the altar of attorneys billable hours. Its wrong. Its just wrong.

Mr. Jekielek: One of the things that I found in here, which kind of blew my mind, was that you said that there are 4,000 children being pulled from their parents in American courtrooms every single day. That seems like an astounding number.

Mr. Ellis: Its astonishing, isnt it, when you actually sit and think about that number? 4,000 children a day lose a parent for the eight hours that the family law courtroom is open. And what happens to those children? They are denied their basic human rights. Now many of them or some of them, people might argue, need to be removed from parents who arent behaving responsibly. But a great deal of them are being removed from their families, their parents, their loved ones, their siblings, and their extended families, unnecessarily.

Mr. Jekielek: This is one of the things that you describe in the book as the ultimate cancellation, if I recall the term. Basically, you represent a whole number of men that have been deprived of spending time with their children. Then theres a societal cause to that. You have explored that quite a bit in the book, the importance of a father role.

Mr. Ellis: Yes. We have a fatherless crisis in Western civilization, and particularly in America. Children who are dad-deprived, particularly boys in our younger generation and young men, I think its safe to say thatI talked with Caitlin Flanagan recently, and she saidit takes a mother to raise a boy, it takes a father to raise a man. We need to start honoring the patriarch as much as we do the matriarch. A balanced home life for children is a good thing.

Of course, there are times when two parents cant always be present, two biological parents. There are many reasons for that. But if there are two biological parents who are good, and loving, and have always been present, we shouldnt have the state and a legal branch come in and basically, dadnap. Thats what happens a lot.

Fathers are removed from homes. Not having committed a crime, with clean criminal records, a good man, and the system just whisks them away. Before they know it, they are either incarcerated or they have child support payments they cant pay. Thats not to say that there arent men out there that obfuscate their responsibilities. I know there are some of those. But there are so many that dont and find themselves in the child support trap.

The state charges them a certain amount of money, and they have to pay child support. They dont pay, and they go to prison. There are interest payments, and then $3,000 becomes $30,000. They lose a job. They cant keep a job because theyre in prison. Its just a spiral down. So many men give up, are hopeless, and then tragically end their lives. Ive read too many suicide notes from good menfathers who were present in their childrens lives, who were summarily removed for no other reason than an accusation or allegation was made against them.

Mr. Jekielek: In the book you mentioned the statistic that eight times more divorced men commit suicide than divorced women. Could this be true?

Mr. Ellis: Yes. In fact, another statistic as well is that every day in America, 10 divorced men take their own lives. And thats not accounting for the men and fathers who are trapped in the system, and the mothers as well. Because I want to make it clear, this happens to mothers and women too. Its more rare, but it does happen.

I spoke with a mother recently who was a nurse with two kids. False allegations were made against her, the children were removed and put into care. She lost her job as a nurse, was thrown in prison, and had a heart attack. She had no recourse because the system doesnt provide the same rights, family law does not provide the same rights that criminals get. Think about that. Terrorists, rapists, murderers, and pedophiles get more rights than parents. How is this right?

Mr. Jekielek: You alluded to this earlier, and you talked about it in The Respondent. You make a connection between how this system of family law has developed, and what you described and others have described as a war on masculinity. Tell me about that.

Mr. Ellis: Yes. It was through the odyssey of what happened to me, then entering the court system, learning about family law, and then learning about the institutions of the legal system, many of which are now psychologically conditioned to think that men and masculinity are bad and toxic. And then there is the public messaging and the signaling through our mainstream media and social or antisocial media, as I sometimes call it, of toxic masculinity, smash the patriarchy, and all men are bad.

Warren Farrell has mentioned this beforewe need a #MeToo dialogue, not a #MeToo monologue. While some of the bad men were swept up in a way, and rightfully served by the #MeToo movement, there were some good men who were swept up in that maelstrom, not femalestrom. We have to start having that conversation, looking at the statistics, and really strive to understand why this situation of demonizing men has been furthered. Whats the agenda behind it? Whos behind it? Why are they behind it? Through my journey, theres been a few telling moments.

I talked with Erin Pizzey, she started the worlds first domestic violence abuse shelter 52 years ago. She informed me about a meeting of the feminist movement, I think it was back in 1969, where there was a split in the feminist movement. So the more factual equality feminists, the true equality feminists like Christina Hoff Sommers, Camille Paglia, and others won the argument, but lost the professorships in the academy to the more toxic, radical third and fourth wave feminists, who wanted to change the messaging. They didnt believe that women should be stay-at-home moms and homemakers, giving birth, and starting families.

They wanted to institute two words into the branding of the feminist movement, and those were toxic masculinity. That was decades ago and here we are through the great awokening of the 2010s, the age of unreason, dealing with the very idea of men being bad. Every man, bad. Every man under suspicion.

I didnt see many people talking about it and I dont see many people talking about it. I understand why. Because immediately one can be perceived as misogynistic or thats the quick go-to target message. Youre a misogynist. Youre a woman-hater. Im like, No, Im not. I believe in feminism, equality feminism. I love women, but I just dont think demonizing masculinity is the solution. I think thats the problem. If were championing fatherhood, that doesnt mean we have to devalue motherhood. Cant we have both again, pleasewhat all children want?

Mr. Jekielek: You told me that U.S. is the number one country for single parent families.

Mr. Ellis: Its the world leader. Yes, the U.S. is the world leader for children living in single parent families.

Mr. Jekielek: Yes. From multiple guests that have been on this show, Im acutely aware of the fact that a father being present in a family is a huge indicator of success in life.

Mr. Ellis: Thats right. Children who grow up without a father are behind in every measurable metric. Theyre more likely to drop out of school, take drugs, not graduate high school, have teen pregnancy, have addictions to online porn, and video games. Its from a lack of balanced parenting, fathering and mothering. You cant substitute the biological father and the biological mother. You can have surrogates. You can have foster parents. You can have great people who are stepping in as major caregivers, and as foster parents. Its wonderful.

But were actually taking children with state-sanctioned kidnappingreally, thats what it is. Theres no other way to say it. I know it sounds like some kind of hyperbole, but thats whats going on here. Then of course that leads to the question of whats happening to those 4,000 children who lose a parent every day the family courts are open. Where do they end up? Some of them, Im sure, are in good homes, but not their family of origin. Many more end up in even worse places.

Mr. Jekielek: Theres a moment in the book where you reflect on that after five years, youve been left in a position where you have to truly say goodbye to your children. Its a crushing moment in the book, frankly.

Mr. Ellis: The unrelenting inescapability of the family law system is that the system doesnt provide relief for parents, particularly fathers, and especially children. I never wanted my sons to ever be in a courtroom or enter a courthouse. A couple of days before March 5, 2015, my eldest boy Charlie was 10 years old. On the top bunk as I hugged him good night after reading him a bedtime story he said, Dad, so-and-so at schools parents just got divorced. Youll never get divorced, will you? I said, No. I promise you son. It was the furthest thing for my mind.

Yet then, hes being dragged into court with my youngest son. And after five years of that living grief, the ambivalent griefthere is a finality when somebody dies you can go through a grieving process, as difficult as it is. You can move on and hopefully time will heal somewhat.

When your children are still alive and youre removed from seeing them by a legal artifice, its almost indescribablethat living grief, that pain, that pull, and particularly, and this is the achilles heel, particularly if you were a present father, and you did and do love your children, and they were the meaning of your life, and are the meaning of your life.

A father was stolen from their childhood, and their childhood was stolen from me. So I had to have finality. In the book I talked about fatherhood and funerals. I had a ritual funeral where I had to lay their childhoods to rest so that I could have some finality. Psychologically, it was a way to try and end the living grief of being separated from them, and them from me.

Mr. Jekielek: Its interesting. You do say that you went through this process, but youre also encouraging other men in a similar situation to fight on.

Mr. Ellis: Yeah. When I say fight on, Im talking about life. This is a life and death struggle for many parents, and many men, and many fathers. Like I said earlier on, Ive read too many suicide notes from good menloving, present fathers who were really committed and engaged with their children, before the family law cartel stepped in and wanted a pound of flesh.

So in that sense, yes, I want men and fathers to know that theyre not alone. They should fight on. The ways of existential terror and existential angst that hit, the unbearable, sometimes never ending bouts of depression, pain, and sufferingyou can ride those waves. You can get through them. I want the message in my book to be a message of hope.

In terms of the system, there is little justice in the system. We need to keep parents out of court. We need to keep families out of family law. Thats until we can improve this system and reform it. So when I talk about fight on, it has to do with life, and how to stay alive, and move from a traumatized place. Because every parent who went to family law in America has PTSD. Youre going to get it.

You went to family law, particularly the admin in the courtroom, before being in trouble with the law before. Its just part and parcel of the system, and the ugliness of it. You get the worst parts of humanity revealing itself in this kind of purgatory, this funerial atmosphere, if you will. Its kind of clouded into the courthouses.

But in terms of people fighting on through family law, my message would be, Dont. Get out. How do you get out? Theres some answers in the book. And theres also some remedies in terms of improvements to the system. Obviously, an introduction of the presumption of innocence is vital.

I dont know if thatll happen in my lifetime, but it could if people in positions of power would actually have integrity, and if experts and institutions would actually talk about what they knew to be the truth in public, rather than protecting their livelihoods and their nice shiny cars and wonderful houses, and their great lives of luxury.

I think equal shared parenting is something. Its beginning to be introduced in certain states. When there is marriage disillusionment and two people decide that they no longer wish to stay married, the default play should be 50-50 shared parenting time. Its not.

So introducing these equal shared parenting bills into the different state legislatures, there have been wonderful people trying this for many years. Molly Olson who started the Center for Parental Responsibility 21 years ago, has been tenaciously fighting, as well as others like Dr. William Fabricius. Kentucky is the only state up until recently, Arkansas become the second state, but Kentucky was the only state to introduce an equal shared parenting bill, and sign it into their law.

I looked into that and discovered why Kentucky had actually passed that. The main reason for that was because its illegal in Kentucky for a family law firm or an attorney to lobby a state legislation. Again, we go back to the money. If the money is kept out of politics, the politicians can make a decision thats in the best interest of families, parents, and childrenand not keep the money machine, the American divorce machine happy. So Kentucky passed that equal shared parenting bill. Weve seen another one recently in Arkansas, and hopefully others will follow.

Mr. Jekielek: What is the default now, in most places?

Mr. Ellis: There isnt a default. There isnt. There simply isnt a default. So without that there is, for example, what happened with Brad Pitt recently. We saw him fighting and fighting, and fighting to get to a position of 50-50. Its taken him months. He and Angie have a retired judge whos overseeing their case, so theyre not in a courtroom. They have a retired family law court judge and he found the custodial time should be 50-50.

He shouldnt have had to fight for that. But why did he have to fight for it? Because he was the respondent. Because allegations were made against him, which I believe was spurious, Then he had to atone. He had to do these public apologies, say the right thing, do the right thing, come back from the wastelands of being the bad man, and prove that hes a worthy parent. My son used to play with his kids every Sunday in the park. Hes a great dad. But hes a dad.

Mr. Jekielek: So Greg, youre continuing to work on this broader issue nonetheless, through a nonprofit that you started, Children and Parents United. So what is this work doing? Presumably, people can come to your nonprofit to look for help. Tell me about that as we finish up.

Mr. Ellis: Sure. Id be happy to. CPU, Children and Parents United, is a nonprofit I started. Its the charitable extension of The Respondent, where theres information at therespondent.com, for all things respondent, and CPU is there. Our mission is to improve the well-being of families, parents, and children, through information and resources for policy makers and politicians to bring about social change, and to advocate for families and parents who are stuck in this horrific legal system without any way out.

We have three programs that weve been developing. One is CPU communication, to improve our interpersonal communication skills, because of course, once a marriage breaks down, and trust breaks down, communication becomes an issue. And communicating through a third party or two third parties, or law firms or attorneys, makes it even harder, particularly if those attorneys are skilled and trained in arguments. CPU communication is the first step.

The second step is CPU mediation. We have some skilled mediators whove worked within the family law system, whove seen just how horrific the system is, and theyre working outside it to help keep families out of court, and help mediate through differences in low conflict, to get some resolution.

Then CPU law is the third program, which is a group of lawyers and attorneys who have experience within the legal system, some of them in family law, to assist parents and partners to actually work through their differences, mediate through their differences, and draw up their own legal disillusionment, and their own divorce papers, if thats what they want. We dont encourage that, but the agency of an individual is up to the two.

We really want to be that safe harbor, three steps to the safe harbor before people enter family law and meet the cartel. Because once you meet the cartel and family law, youre playing by a different set of rules, and theyre not your rules. Theyre not integrity. Theyre not ethics, and there is no moral compass.

Mr. Jekielek: So Greg, one of the things that Ive found quite interesting in the book is you do a lot of self-reflection into some of your own life challenges, and the places where you might have failed. You kind of laid that out. Its not necessarily something you would expect in a book of this sort. Why did you do that?

Mr. Ellis: My book isnt about demeaning one side or the other and being extreme or excessive. Its really just my true story. Laying out the facts is my legacy petition, if you will, of what happened. I learned a tremendous amount through my family law odyssey. Im not going to go through life angry, bitter, and full of outrage and contempt, because why carry that with you for the rest of your life? Id rather turn, as Ive tried to, turn this into something good and positive, and to have impact.

I cant and couldnt save my sons. Maybe I can help other families, other boys, other sons, other fathers, other mothers, other daughters, other families in general, and parents navigate this horrible system of family law, and provide some relief, strategies, and tips.

I have a free ebook thats available at therespondent.com, for people who buy The Respondent. They can use the code in that book to get the free downloadable ebook. Its called The Code. It has some of the tips and strategies that I was able to use to provide myself with some relief through the 82-plus court appearances, the vicissitudes and challenges of family law, and to tend to that quiet desperation.

Everyones struggling with something. I forgive my ex-wife, 100 percent. Where I am at in my life, were all response-able. We all have the ability to be responsible. So Im 100 percent responsible for where I am right now in my life. No ones to blame. No ones at fault. Were all responsible for the big community collective. But for me as the individual, I forgive others, not necessarily because they deserve forgiveness, but because I deserve peace. Forgiveness is not a line that you take, but a road that you cross.

Mr. Jekielek: Greg Ellis, its such a pleasure to have you on.

Mr. Ellis: Thank you Jan. Its been a pleasure talking with you. Thank you for having me.

This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.

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A tram moves along Istiklal Avenue towards Taksim Square on June 9, 2019. Although it is the main street, you can find some tucked-away spots along the way. (Vakidzasi/Shutterstock)

Hidden Istanbul: How to Leave the Tourist Trail and Get Lost in this Vast City

The fare was only a couple of coins, but they carried me to a whole other continent. Behind me, just a memory, were the famous spires and domes of Topkapi Palace and Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque, packed to the gunnels with tourists. But here on the Asian sidecalled Anatolia, by localswas a little more mystery.

Passengers travel on the Eminonu-Kadikoy ferry on Feb. 22, 2021. (tolgaildun/Shutterstock)

Walking off the ferry and onto the dock under a massive Turkish flag that was flapping mightily in the winds off the water, I was carried by the crush of people, mostly Anatolians, into the warren of back lanes and streets and squares that comprise this district, Kadikoy. Soon enough, I was lostand happily so.

A street cafe in the Kadikoy district on June 14, 2017. (franz12/Shutterstock)

As I entered a tiny food shop to ask for directions, the owner seemed surprised to see a tourist. Pulling up a stool for me to rest my legs, he asked, in good English, where I was from, and what I was doing around town. Hurriedly pulling together a plateolives, peppers, and other pickled delightshe insisted I stay a little while.

Welcome to my neighborhood, he bellowed, as I dug in. Its such an honor to have you here!

The ferry station in the Kadikoy district. (Lepneva Irina/Shutterstock)

Istanbul is, famously, divided by the Bosporus, a strait that connects the Black Sea with the Mediterranean, cutting this city of 15 million into continental halves. While its vastIstanbul covers more than 100 square milesmost of the big attractions sit in a relatively small area on the European side. As a result, the majority of visitors limit their explorations to the Ottoman pleasures of the Sultanahmet district and its surrounds, sampling at the Spice Bazaar, and getting lost at the Grand Bazaar.

Kadikoy Fish Market. (tolgaildun/Shutterstock)

But Istanbul keeps some of its finest treasures hidden. Definitely start your visit with the highlights, but when youre ready to see more, venturing into some lesser-known quarters and attractions (on both sides of the Bosporus) will reward you.

Olives for sale at a street market in Kadikoy. (Allen.G/Shutterstock)

Kadikoy

For example, Kadikoy, one of my favorite neighborhoods, and the beating heart of Anatolia. Traditional and Turkish, in many ways, this is the opposite experience to, say, a visit to Topkapi Palace, the 15th-century home of the Ottoman sultans. There, guides will give you a map, and maybe a booklet documenting the long and complex history, and then lead you on an in-depth tour, pointing out every detail, from the harem to the treasury, explaining the history and significance of each relic and illuminated manuscript in the museum.

People enjoy a beautiful day in Kadikoy on April 22, 2021. (tolgaildun/Shutterstock)

But in Kadikoy, its better to leave the map at home, and wander. Walk a block, then turn on a whim. No matter your choice, youll find vendors selling every Turkish treat imaginable, with no delineation where one market ends and the other begins. The sellers burst with personality, calling out to passersby and goofing around to get you to buy whatever they have in front of them, from fish on ice to rows of green watermelons to all sorts of peppers, plus more olives than you imagined possible.

A cup of Turkish coffee. (M.kaankaymaz/Shutterstock)

Sample Turkish delight and baklava at bakeries, and grab a little cup of hot, thick Turkish coffee at a sidewalk cafe (but be careful not to drink the mud once you reach the bottom). And when you tire of walking, or perhaps youve purchased more fresh produce than you can carry, get directions and grab a table at Ciya Sofrasi. Here, Chef Musa Dagdeviren showcases his years traveling across Turkey, cooking in small kitchens to learn local recipes, putting them all together on his delicious menu here. Unpretentious despite being profiled in major magazines and on the Netflix show Chefs Table, he comes here almost every dayyoull often find the chef casually chatting with friends, under the sun, at one of the patio tables.

Inside the Flower Passage in the Beyoglu historical district. (trabantos/Shutterstock)

The entrance to the Flower Passage on Istiklal Avenue. (hbaltaci/Shutterstock)

Istiklal

And when youre looking for a total change of pace, cross back over the Bosporus and head to Istiklal Avenue, a pedestrianized street that curves about a mile, down toward the water. Not hidden, by any meansthis is essentially the citys main streetyoull still find tucked-away spots along the way.

Come here on a Friday night, and youll flow along with literally millions of people, the energy of all that humanity coursing along the full length of the street, a feeling unmatched anywhere else in the city. Start at Taksim Square, perhaps fortifying yourself before the adventure with a doner kebab from one of the many little stands, the scents of roasting meat wafting out, enticing you to eat. Sink your teeth into lamb cooked on a rotating rotisserie, shaved and laid out on a flatbread and paired with greens, tomato, onions, and a spicy sauceenough to drip down your arm, if youre not careful.

Istanbul in the morning haze. (Repina Valeriya/Shutterstock)

Taksim Square. (Mehmet Cetin/Shutterstock)

Then, descend. Dance clubs boom out their beats. Street musicians sitting on stoops, or standing in the middle of the flow, strum Turkish folk songs. Shops scream out their best deals on flashing signs. Diners clink glasses, and the famous red tram rattles right down the middle, as always connecting Taksim with Tunel, the latter with its famous funicular. Its worth taking your time, ducking into places along the way, like the Flower Passage, a shopping arcade graced with a clear dome that was once home to a theater that attracted the sultans. Now, its a fine place to enjoy a meal at one of the many cafes and restaurants inside, always busy, but a step removed from the crush of Istiklal.

At the Galata Mevlevi Museum, right along the way, you can learn more about the citys strange and beautiful whirling dervishes, a mystical meditation that dates back seven centuries. The Museum of Innocence, just nearby, is unique and compelling, showcasing some 1,000 items from a work of fiction, The Museum of Innocence, by novelist and Nobel laureate Orhan Pamuk. Walking through the displays, youll get a glimpse into lives that never actually existed, a peek into a love story, with carefully curated items from the 1970s to the 2000s, collected and arranged by the author himself. A visit here is a walk through the novel, with the 83 display cases filled with objects of everyday life arranged in chronological order, corresponding with the book. (Its an odd concept, but once you visit, you get it.)

Ortakoy Mosque. The neighborhood is a good place to spend an evening in town. (aydngvn/Shutterstock)

A view of Ortakoy Mosque and homes from the Bosphorus Bridge. (Serg Zastavkin/Shutterstock)

Ortakoy

And Ortakoy, a short cab ride away, is an excellent place to spend your last evening in town. Set under the Bosporus Bridge, this was once a separate village outside of the city. It maintains that feel, a web of small, personal streets lined with cafes, shops, and a hammam that dates back to the 16th century.

Find a table near the water. Order some grilled octopus. Watch the day fade away, the setting sun turning the white spires of the neo-baroque Ortakoy Mosque orange, then red, the towering span of what was once Europes longest suspension bridge above, taking travelers to Asia, and a million more neighborhoods, beyond.

Toronto-based writer Tim Johnson is always traveling in search of the next great story. Having visited 140 countries across all seven continents, hes tracked lions on foot in Botswana, dug for dinosaur bones in Mongolia, and walked among a half-million penguins on South Georgia Island. He contributes to some of North Americas largest publications, including CNN Travel, Bloomberg, and The Globe and Mail.
A worker packs copies of the Apple Daily newspaper at the printing house in Hong Kong on June 18, 2021. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Pro-Democracy Paper in Hong Kong Forced to Close Under CCPs Widening Repression Campaign

Apple Daily, an independent pro-democracy tabloid in Hong Kong known for its critical stance on Chinas Communist Party, has weathered police raids and the jailing of its founder. But its 26th birthday might be its last.

Hong Kongs government, backed by Beijing, has taken aim at the newspaper. Last week, 500 police barged into the newsroom, seizing computers and files and arresting five of the publications executives. Two directors now face charges of colluding with foreign forces, an ambiguous offense under the draconian national security law imposed by Beijing last year.

Adding insult to injury, authorities froze the papers assets as part of the investigation. With HK$18 million ($2.32 million) worth of assets on hold in local banks, its now unable to pay its more than 800 staff members, and could be just days away from shutting its doors, the paper says.

The outlets looming closure marks the end of an era, Mary, a senior employee at Apple Daily using a pseudonym, told The Epoch Times. The disappointing part is, we are shut down not because readers dont like us or that we lack good management. We have plenty of supporters and could have continued.

Its saddening. It makes you wonder why Hong Kong has become like this.

Monitors are seen detached from desktop computers at the Apple Daily political desk, after they were taken away as evidence from the local papers newsroom in Hong Kong on June 17, 2021. (Anthony Wallace/AFP via Getty Images)

The company marked the 26th year of its founding on June 20. The next day, a news anchor bid farewell as 36,000 people watched the last episode of its evening live broadcast. The company has ceased updating its online English site and the finance section of its Chinese-language site.

Apple Daily announced it will print its last edition on June 24. Friday will be the papers last working day if the government denies an appeal to unfreeze some of its funds. The paper has given its staff the option to resign immediately without the customary one-month notice. Many have left, but some want to stay on, according to local reports.

Readers have showered the outlet with support by sending food, drinks, and thank you cards, or buying their print copies, Mary said. Their encouragement is the driving force for her to keep going.

I just feel that I need to be responsible for these readers. If there are people who still read your newspaper, you need to keep writing, she said.

Apple Daily was founded in Hong Kong in 1995 by Chinese dissident and textile tycoon Jimmy Lai, a leading opposition voice to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), who is currently jailed for taking part in a pro-democracy assembly in 2019. The Committee to Protect Journalists honored Lai with the Gwen Ifill Press Freedom Award on Monday, saying he is not just a champion of a free press, he is a press freedom warrior.

He fights for the right of his Apple News organization to publish freely, even as China and its backers in Hong Kong use every tool to quash them, said Kathleen Caroll, chair of the committees board.

Jimmy Lai, Apple Daily founder, arrives at the Court of Final Appeal ahead of a bail hearing in Hong Kong on Feb. 9, 2021. (Anthony Kwan/Getty Images)

What happened to Apple Daily is proof of the harm the national security law can have on the Hong Kong press, Mary said. Since it took effect last July, the law has been used to arrest and charge an array of figures critical of the CCP in the city, crippling Hong Kongs pro-democracy movement.

Its likely to send a chill to the news industry, she said. Because the police and the government havent clarified what reporting or opinion articles they have deemed as a violation of the national security law, everyone will now be very careful with what they write and report.

In support of the collusion charges, police said they have identified more than 30 Apple Daily articles, in both Chinese and English, since 2019 that called for foreign countries to impose sanctions on China or Hong Kong, but wouldnt reveal details because of ongoing legal proceedingsthe first time that news articles have been cited as potentially violating the law.

It paints a bleak future for Hong Kongs media, Mary said.

It will leave many journalists in fear because you dont know what is illegal.

Hong Kongs press freedom has plummeted in recent years, particularly after the national security law went into effect in July 2020. According to the press freedom index compiled by the Hong Kong Journalists Association, the index for journalists hit a record low of 32.1 last yeardown from 40.9 in 2018.

On June 22, the pro-Beijing Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam defended the police raid, calling Western criticisms an attempt to beautify actions that endanger national security. She ignored an Apple Daily reporter who shouted as she left: You said the national security law only affected a small number of people. But more than 800 people from our company are now forced out of their jobs. Can you respond to this?

The reporter was referencing statements by Hong Kong and Beijing authorities who, prior to the laws introduction, claimed that it would only target a small number of criminals.

Staff members wave flashlights to their supporters at the Apple Daily headquarters in Hong Kong, on June 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

The papers fate was something that Chung Kim-wah, the vice executive director at the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute foresaw months ago.

A weekly columnist at Apple Daily, Chung penned an article in April titled So what if they knock down Apple Daily? in which he noted the authorities hostility toward the paper.

As early as March, the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office, an agency that answers directly to the regimes cabinet-like State Council, had singled out Lai as one of the anti-Hong Kong forces slated for severe punishment.

The governments stance couldnt be clearer. I had known in my mind two months ago that we would lose Apple before July 1, he said, referring to the date of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the CCP. It will for sure take you down before the Party centenary  it was only a matter of how they do it.

The Chinese Communist Party is 100 percent forcing Apple Daily to close down, this has been clear long ago, said Chen Yonglin, a former Chinese diplomat who defected to Australia more than a decade ago.

Chen pointed to the slew of arrests of prominent protest organizers within the past year as evidence that the CCP has exerted its influence over Hong Kong.

Hong Kong has long fallen, he told The Epoch Times. Eventually, Hong Kong will become a Chinese city, and the word special administrative region will [be] no moreit will be just Hong Kong city [of China].

Despite everything, Chung believes theres room for hope.

Chung used the example of the citys annual remembrance of the Tiananmen Square massacre, which often drew tens of thousands of locals holding candles at Victoria Park.

While authorities this year banned the vigil for a second year running and deployed more than 7,000 police to lock down the park, many Hongkongers turned to creative ways to mark the occasion, such as by illuminating phone flashlights and holding candles nearby, said Chung, who also went to the site.

Whether Hong Kong government or Beijing, I dont think they are able to completely stifle all spaces [of free speech], he said. The whole world has its eyes on Hong Kong.

To fellow media professionals in Hong Kong, Mary said she hopes they can stick to what they believe in.

The wintry night will be cold, but everyone needs to hold their ground.

Sarah Liang and Luo Ya contributed to this report.
Rep. Claudia Tenney speaks as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken testifies before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs on The Biden Administration's Priorities for U.S. Foreign Policy on Capitol Hill in Washington on March 10, 2021. (Ken Cedeno-Pool/Getty Images)

House GOP Members Demand Details of $350 Million in Grants From Nonprofit in 2020 Election

The Center for Tech and Civic Life is partly funded by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife

Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-N.Y.) and 13 Republican House representatives asked a nonprofit foundation that is partly funded by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife to publish details of how it spent $350 million in grants during the 2020 general election.

During the 2020 election cycle, the Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL) distributed over $350 million to nearly 2,500 election officials in 48 states and the District of Columbia, Tenney and other House members said in a letter (pdf) dated June 21. Unfortunately, now more than seven months past election day, the American people have yet to receive a full accounting of exactly how this enormous sum of money was distributed.

Last year, Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, donated $350 million to CTCL, a nonprofit organization focused on helping to modernize U.S. elections. Other grants CTCL received were in much smaller amounts.

Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan arrive for the presentation of the first Axel Springer Award in Berlin on Feb. 25, 2016. (Adam Berry/Getty Images)

Many state and local entities have reported spending your grant money on expenses as varied and unrelated to COVID-19 as advertising, designing absentee ballots, registering teen voters, automatic voter registration, and even pay raises and new vehicle purchases, Tenney claimed in the letter.

CTCL said on its website that the COVID-19 Response Grant program aimed to help local election jurisdictions have the staffing, training, and equipment necessary so this November every eligible voter can participate in a safe and timely way and have their vote counted.

Furthermore, it appears that 92 percent of CTCL grants were given to overwhelmingly Democrat-leaning precincts, Tenney continued. Pennsylvania State Representative Eric Nelson raised concerns with certain counties receiving disproportionate funding, stating I just felt, ethically, it was disturbing to me that the private grant distribution was happening, and it was not happening evenly between counties.

According to the Amistad Project, an initiative from the Thomas More Society, CTCLs 20 largest donations all went to cities that Hillary Clinton won in the 2016 election. In addition, large amounts of these grants go to Democratic areas in the swing states of Pennsylvania, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.

The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty (WILL), a think tank and litigation center, also found that the grants were irregularly distributed in Wisconsin, and there was a statistically significant increase in voter turnout for President Joe Biden, but no such increase for former President Donald Trump.

People check in to vote at a polling place in Sun Prairie, Wis., on April 7, 2020. (Andy Manis/Getty Images)

WILL found that over 200 communities in Wisconsin received grants from $2,212 to $3.4 million, while the five largest cities received 86 percent of CTCLs $10.3 million grant funds.

While we have no objection to the use of resources to help people vote (with appropriate safeguards), it is important to remember that elections are a contest. When resources are expended that ease voting in some areas and not in others, their expenditure has a distorting effect on the election, WILL stated in a report (pdf) released earlier this month. It is not surprising that they were perceived as unfair. They were unfair.

Tenney pointed out that these claims raised red flags around the country, noting that 12 states have or are planning to introduce legislation to prohibit election officials from accepting private funds.

Given the serious questions and inconsistencies surrounding CTCL grants, it is especially vital that your organization promptly release its full financial data so the public can properly assess the influence of this $350 million during the 2020 election, Tenney concluded in the letter.

CTCL didnt respond to a request from The Epoch Times for comment.

A spokesperson for the Chan-Zuckerberg family told The Epoch Times that Zuckerberg didnt determine which areas received funds from CTCL.

While Mark and Priscilla provided an overall grant to CTCL to ensure funding was available, they did not participate in the process to determine which jurisdictions received funds, and as a [501] (c)(3) [nonprofit organization] CTCL is prohibited from engaging in partisan activities, the spokesperson said in a statement emailed to The Epoch Times.

The spokesperson also provided a list of counties that received grants from CTCL, saying the list shows more counties nationwide that received grants voted for Trump than Biden.

The spokesperson didnt dispute that Democratic areas received more grants from CTCL.
If Breyer Retires, Look for Adherent of Living Constitution to Take His Place

News Analysis

Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer has recently been urged by progressives to retire early from the bench, preferably sooner rather than later, to get another adherent of the living constitution theory onto the bench.

While the Supreme Court is often described as split between liberals and conservatives, perhaps a more accurate description would categorize justices as living constitutionalists or originalists, with Breyer in the living constitution camp.

In 2024, Breyer will be 86 years old. His death during a potential Republican White House could add another constitutional originalist to the bench, making the constitutional interpretive split 72.

Progressives are urging Breyers retirement to avoid what happened last fall when Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died prior to the 2020 presidential election, and Justice Amy Coney Barrett quickly replaced her on the bench. President Obama appointed the last two progressive justices in 2009 and 2010 when then-Justices David Souter and John Paul Stevens, respectively, retired and were replaced by Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor.

The Biden administration has already begun making nominations to fill vacancies throughout the U.S. Court of Appeals such as the 2nd Circuit and the coveted D.C. Circuit, from which a Supreme Court nominee might be drawn. Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson is a nominee who will likely become the next judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and she was also a law clerk to Justice Breyer.

Breyer has served as an advocate for the theory of the living constitution. He was the only justice on the Court to openly debate the late Justice Antonin Scalia on the theories of constitutional interpretation, with Scalia, of course, taking the originalist position. The Biden administration is highly likely to nominate a judge who fits the Breyer mold, a staunch adherent to the living constitution.

Meaning Over Time

Professor Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the University of CaliforniaBerkeley School of Law, defined living constitution for The Epoch Times as, the words of the Constitution get their meaning over time, and it rejects the idea that the meaning of a constitutional provision is fixed when it is adopted and can be changed only by an amendment.

The theorys proponents also believe that the meaning of a constitutional provision can change by an interpretation.

This interpretation, on its face, seems to be compatible with a natural rights theory of interpreting the Constitution. However, Chemerinsky said, the difficulty of natural law is deciding what exactly is the natural law. Two different people can have a completely different understanding of what is the natural law. Then, there is the question of whether or not the natural law can itself evolve [over time].

Chemerinsky elaborated on how proponents of the living constitution look to materials for applying the constitutional theory, and he said that both liberal and conservative justices adhere to the concept.

The idea of a living constitution is that it looks at a variety of different sources. It should start with the text and stay true to the text; it should consider the original meaning, precedence, and tradition, but it ultimately rests with the idea that judges should determine the sole meaning of a constitutional provision. I believe that all justices, liberal or conservative, follow a living constitution.

For example, in Citizens United [v. Federal Election Commission], when the Court struck down the limitations on campaign expenditures, they followed the living constitution, because you will not find that in the original meaning in the Constitution. When the conservatives find affirmative action unconstitutional, thats not the original meaning; thats the living constitution. So, liberals and conservatives both follow the living constitution; they just have different understandings of what it means.

However, conservative constitutional scholars have a different understanding of what constitutional theory means when interpreting the Constitution.

Nothingness

Charles Kesler, professor of government at Claremont McKenna College and editor of the Claremont Review of Books, is the author of Crisis of the Two Constitutions: The Rise, Decline, and Recovery of American Greatness. In his book, Kesler speaks directly on the controversy over the interpretative theories of original intent versus the living constitution.

The term itself is misleading because it suggests its an environmental thing, but its not about natural selection in a Darwinian sense. Its an artificial selection, Kesler told The Epoch Times. Its a science varying the conditions that looks to see if it can cure the social problems of the 20th- and 21st-century that life can throw up at the Court.

When looking at the modern notion of the living constitution, Kesler believes it has undergone two crucial changes.

First, it is in pure theory an ongoing process with no institutions meant to be permanent that come out of it. That idea was altered in the 1930s when the welfare state was invented, because now you have these new kinds of rights to education, health care, work, and the like that are meant to be somewhat permanent. Instead of history being an unending flux, there are new institutions that are meant to last.

The second change is that the appeal of science begins to fade as a culture of liberalism is driven by will and preferencethe Nietzschean will to powerto satisfy you, the authentic you. The living constitution then becomes something not measured by science as it does by being measured by a Nietzschean will to power and assertiveness, and that is where liberalism itself is trending.

It becomes whatever scheme of power distribution and creation that can prevail, and it is no longer measured by history or science but by nothingness.
Border Patrol agents apprehend 21 illegal aliens from Mexico who had hidden in a grain hopper on a freight train heading to San Antonio, near Uvalde, Texas, on June 21, 2021. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

In Texas, Waves of Illegal Immigrants Pulled Off Trains

UVALDE, TexasEmpty grain hoppers seem to be the go-to concealment option for illegal alien stowaways on freight trains heading to large Texas cities from the U.SMexico border.

A Border Patrol inspection area 60 miles from the border is so busy that agents are constantly running low on handcuffs and transport options.

On June 21, Border Patrol agents in Uvalde were already spread thin in dealing with three vehicles full of illegal aliens who had tried to evade state troopers and eventually stopped and scattered.

At the train inspection area, an eastbound train heading to San Antonio approaches and slows down. A National Guard member is next to the tracks up on a platform that looks over the top of the train. The guardsmen communicate directly with the Border Patrol agents on the ground when they spot people, broken locks, or open compartments.

A common sight as a train slowly grinds to a halt is a stream of illegal aliens jumping off the train and haphazardly running across the road into the brush, or down a street to disappear into a neighborhood. Agents give chase, but catching more than one person per agent gets tricky as the aliens scatter and hide. Agents with K-9s are the most effective, but theyre not always available and they also have to focus on finding people hidden on the train.

The illegal aliens in the grain hoppers generally cant get out unless someone on the outside of the train cranks open the bottom plate. They get in by cutting the locking wire on the lid, dropping in, and closing the lid. Its dark and gets extremely hot.

The 21 illegal aliens found in a grain hopper on June 21 had a strip of webbing placed from the lid down to the bottompresumably to help them drop in and to provide a lifeline in case they needed to get out.

BORDER THREAD: Border Patrol stops train near Uvalde that are coming from Mexico via border town Eagle Pass in Texas.  21 Mexican illegal alien males drop out of grain hopper.

 4 Honduran males hiding in other cars. pic.twitter.com/uNMlOeSLud  Charlotte Cuthbertson (@charlottecuthbo) June 21, 2021

Of the four trains stopped by Border Patrol in a five-hour window, agents apprehended at least 43 illegal aliens. Several more got away. All but two were male, and aside from a few Hondurans, most were from Mexico. Several carried knives.

Authorities would likely return all of those captured to Mexico the same day or the next day. Many of those captured will often try again within days.

The illegal border crossing recidivism rate is currently more than double that of previous years. In May, 38 percent of Border Patrol apprehensions were individuals who had at least one prior encounter in the previous 12 months, according to Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The average one-year reencounter rate during the previous five years was roughly 15 percent, CBP said.

The number of illegal border crossings has been rising steadily since last October and surged in February after President Joe Biden took office.

In May, CBP apprehended 180,034 individuals illegally entering the United States, the highest number in a single month in 21 years.

The agency said the majority, more than 112,000, were expelled under the Title 42 emergency health provision, which is currently in place until July 21.

In the same month, at least 51,000 illegal aliens evaded apprehension after being detected by Border Patrol, according to numbers obtained by The Epoch Times.

Dangerous Way to Travel

Its not just the trains from Eagle Pass to Uvalde. All day and night, freight trains also exit Mexico into the U.S. cities of El Paso, Laredo, and Brownsville. The illegal aliens often board after the trains have been scanned or X-rayed at the U.S. port of entry.

On June 9, Border Patrol apprehended nine illegal aliens attempting to board a train near Port Laredo. The following day, as agents were apprehending three others, a woman fell while trying to get onto a moving train.

Before agents could reach her, she lost her grip and fell under the train. The train caused severe injuries to her foot, the CBP stated in a release.

On June 5, at an inspection site in Hebbronville, Texas, Border Patrol agents found 25 Salvadorans in a grain hopper with no means to escape, according to the CBP.

This dangerous method of traveling further into the United States after illegal entry is strongly discouraged as it often results in serious injury or death, the CBP stated in a June 22 press release.

Border Patrol apprehended 24 adults from Mexico and Guatemala who were inside a grain hopper near Corpus Christi on May 10.

The Epoch Times requested from CBP the number of illegal aliens apprehended from trains so far this year, but didnt receive the information by press time.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey issued a call for help to other governors on June 10.

With your help, we can apprehend more of these perpetrators of state and federal crimes, before they can cause problems in your state, Abbott and Ducey, both Republicans, wrote in a letter.

So far, the governors of Florida, Nebraska, Idaho, Georgia, South Carolina, and Oklahoma have pledged support by way of sending law enforcement personnel or National Guard troops.

Correction: A previous version of this article erroneously stated that the Kentucky governor had pledged to send support to Texas to help with border issues.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson (L) and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer (2nd L) during the State Opening of Parliament in London, on May 11, 2021. (Stefan Rousseau/WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Index on Censorship: UK Internet Regulation Plans Catastrophic for Free Speech

Index on Censorship has become the latest free speech organisation to lambast the UK governments Online Safety Bill, describing it as catastrophic.

The draft bill aims to protect adults and children from both illegal and legal harms online, and has been described by both critics and supporters as the most ambitious attempt to regulate the internet in the free world.

It would empower broadcast regulator Ofcom to fine and even block tech companies for violating rules.

A report by Index on Censorship, published on June 23, echoes concerns of other organisations around regulating unspecified harmful (but legal) content.

According to the report, such measures would likely be challenged in the courts.

The Governments bill is catastrophic for freedom of speech, Ruth Smeeth, Chief Executive at Index on Censorship said in a statement. Its [sic] plan to force tech platforms to delete harmful content or face big fines will lead to many legal posts being deleted.

Forced to Delete Evidence of Crimes

Index on Censorship laud the bills aim of ensuring platforms remove illegal images of child sexual abuse, terrorist material, and content that incites racial hatred and violence. However, they say the bill will perversely make it harder for law enforcement to properly hold online abusers accountable.

Dictators around the world will be taking notes, said Smeeth. As someone who has experienced online abuse, I am dismayed that the bill would force platforms to delete offending comments. These comments are vital evidence for law enforcement and will make it harder for the authorities to catch people who actually break the law.

Index on Censorship was joined by senior back-bencher MP David Davis for the launch of a campaign called Legal to say. Legal to type.

Lobby groups will be able to push social networks to take down content they view as not politically correct, even though the content is legal, said Davis in a statement. The idea we should force Silicon Valley companies to police Britons speech online, seems out of Orwells 1984, and is not what our voters expect of us.

Former Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union David Davis during a press conference in London, on Jan. 15, 2019. (Leon Neal/Getty Images)

Similar concerns have been raised by other think tanks, including the Institute for Economic Affairs, Big Brother Watch, Open Rights Group, the Adam Smith Institute, and the Free Speech Union.

Some other organisationsincluding the NSPCC and one Lords committeesay that the bill does not go far enough in protecting children.

Victoria Hewson of the free-market think tank, the Institute of Economic Affairs wrote a report about the Online Safety Bill last month.

She said that the definition of harmful content would be fleshed out by Ministers and by the regulator Ofcom.

This is where were expecting to see things like misinformation and disinformation being called harmful, she told NTD earlier this month.

This is likely to apply to what is deemed as public health information, she said. So you can claim a harm there, even though as we have experienced in the past year or so, oftentimes things that are claimed to be disinformation turn out to be fair comment or useful challenges to prevailing wisdom.

Regulation of Private WhatsApp Messages

Then, she said, theres the question of whether the governments role should be to protect people from reading things that might upset them. Part of living in a liberal democracy is that you read things that you disagree with, and that might challenge you, and that actually might even upset you.

Hewson thinks Ofcom already goes too far in its policing of TV broadcasts. The proposed internet regulation worries her even more she said, because this is about individuals communicating with each other, including privately through messenger or through WhatsApp.

The law would also regulate what search engines can provide, she said.

Hewson said that appetite to regulate Big Tech has grown amongst many conservatives who believe that they are increasingly censored online. But she said reaching for solutions that conservatives in the United States have been calling for will likely backfire in the UK.

A lot of the controversial things that digital platforms and social media are already doing, would actually be following certain regulations and codes of practice, certainly in the EU, she said. The U.S. is different, because the U.S. benefits from constitutional protection for free speech. But unfortunately, we dont have such explicit protections in the UK, or indeed in the EU.

CEO and co-founder of Facebook Mark Zuckerberg poses next to Facebook head of global policy communications and former UK deputy prime minister Nick Clegg (L) prior to a meeting with French President at the Elysee Palace in Paris on May 10, 2019. (Yoan Valat/AFP via Getty Images)

She said that more regulation doesnt necessarily wrest power away from companies like Facebook in the way people might hope.

Facebook wants to be regulated, because regulations then become a barrier to entry, that allow them to preserve their dominant position against future competitors. This idea that its a wild west of complete freedom is not true.

The government has not responded to specific criticisms of the draft bill which have emerged since it was published last month during the Queens Speech.

The Department of Media Culture and Sport has not responded to a request for comment on the Index on Censorship Report at the time of publication.
This satellite image shows preparation at the Imam Khomeini Spaceport in Iran's Semnan province, before what experts believe was the launch of a satellite-carrying rocket, Iran, on June 6, 2021. (2021 Maxar Technologies, James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at Middlebury Institute of International Studies via AP)

Iran Likely Had Failed Rocket Launch, Preparing for Another

DUBAI, United Arab EmiratesIran likely conducted a failed launch of a satellite-carrying rocket in recent days and now appears to be preparing to try again, the countrys latest effort to advance its space program amid tensions with the West over its tattered nuclear deal.

Satellite images, a U.S. official, and a rocket expert all confirmed the failed launch, earlier this month, at the Imam Khomeini Spaceport in Irans Semnan province. The attempt comes as Irans space program has suffered a series of high-profile losses, while its paramilitary Revolutionary Guard runs its own parallel program that launched a satellite into orbit last year.

Irans Telecommunications Minister Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi later Wednesday denied Tehran had a failed satellite launch, but offered no explanation for the activity at the spaceport. Irans mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment early Wednesday.

Satellite photos from Planet Labs Inc. and Maxar Technologies show preparations at the spaceport on June 6. Those images include what appears to be fuel tanks alongside a massive white gantry that houses a rocket, while scientists fuel it and prepare for launch. Before the launch, workers tow the gantry away to expose the rocket.

The number of fuel tanks, based on their size, appear to have been enough to fill the first and second stages of an Iranian Simorgh rocket, said Jeffrey Lewis, an expert at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies. The Simorgh is a satellite-carrying rocket that has been launched from that same area of the spaceport, he said.

Later satellite images on June 17 showed a decrease in activity at the site. Lewis said analysts believe Iran launched the rocket at some point in that window.

Nothing had blown up. There wasnt a giant stainlike they had dumped the fueland the vehicles had kind of just moved around, he said. The overall level of activity at the site was much lower. So to our mind, that looked like a launch.

CNN, which first reported on the failed launch, quoted Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Uriah Orland saying that U.S. Space Command is aware of the Iranian rocket launch failure which occurred early June 12. Orland did not elaborate. The Pentagon and U.S. Space Command did not immediately respond to a request for comment early Wednesday from The Associated Press.

It wasnt immediately clear why Iran would have picked June 12 for a launch as Tehran typically schedules such launches for national commemorations. However, it did come in the run-up to Irans presidential election last week, in which the Islamic Republic had hoped to boost turnout.

This satellite image shows preparation at the Imam Khomeini Spaceport in Irans Semnan province before what experts believe was the launch of a satellite-carrying rocket, Iran, on June 1, 2021. (Planet Labs Inc., James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at Middlebury Institute of International Studies via AP)

On Sunday, a new satellite image from Planet Labs showed renewed activity at the site. The image shows a mobile platform previously used to secure a Simorgh rocket at the gantry, a support vehicle seen at previous launches, and a new line of fuel containers lined up at the site. Lewis said the equipment suggests that another launch is imminent.

Over the past decade, Iran has sent several short-lived satellites into orbit and in 2013 launched a monkey into space. The program has seen recent troubles, however. A failed launch this month would be the fourth in a row for the Simorgh program. A separate fire at the Imam Khomeini Spaceport in February 2019 also killed three researchers, authorities said at the time.

A rocket explosion in August 2019 drew even the attention of then-President Donald Trump, who later tweeted what appeared to be an image of the launch failure. The successive failures raised suspicion of outside interference in Irans program, something Trump himself hinted at by tweeting at the time that the United States was not involved in the catastrophic accident. But Lewis said such failures are common, especially when trying to put objects carefully into orbit around the Earth.

Meanwhile, the Guard in April 2020 revealed its own secret space program by successfully launching a satellite into orbit. The head of the U.S. Space Command later dismissed the satellite as a tumbling webcam in space that wouldnt provide Iran vital intelligencethough it showed Tehrans ability to successfully get into orbit.

The launch comes after the landslide election of Iranian President-elect Ebrahim Raisi, the countrys hard-line judiciary chief tied to the mass execution of thousands in 1988. The vote saw the lowest turnout in a presidential election since Irans 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Raisi will take over from Irans outgoing President Hassan Rouhani, a relative moderate who guided Tehran into its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. Trump unilaterally withdrew America from the accord in 2018. Diplomats in Vienna now are negotiating a way for both Iran and the United States to re-enter the deal, which saw Iran agree to limit its nuclear enrichment in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions.

The United States has alleged such satellite launches defy a UN Security Council resolution and called on Iran to undertake no activity related to ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons.
U.S. millionaire John McAfee gestures during an interview with AFP on his yacht anchored at the Marina Hemingway in Havana, on June 26, 2019. (Adalberto Roque/AFP via Getty Images)

John McAfee, Antivirus Pioneer, Found Dead in Spanish Prison Cell: Officials

Millionaire's lawyer says he died via hanging

Antivirus software entrepreneur John McAfee, who was known for his outlandish lifestyle, was found dead in a Spanish prison cell after a court had authorized his extradition back to the United States. He was 75.

The Catalan justice department confirmed his death to news outlets and confirmed earlier reports from El Mundo and El Pais newspapers.

McAfee, who founded the namesake antivirus and computer security service, was facing tax evasion charges in the United States.

The department said in a statement to El Pais it appears McAfee committed suicide and judicial staff have been dispatched to the prison and are investigating the causes of death.

Prison officers and medics were deployed to try and save McAfees life but were unsuccessful. He was pronounced dead after attempts to revive him failed, the departments statement added.

McAfees lawyer, Javier Villalba, told Reuters that he died via hanging and said he couldnt stand spending any more time in jail.

This is the result of a cruel system that had no reason to keep this man in jail for so long, the lawyer added to the news agency.

Hours before that, a court in Spain had authorized McAfees extradition back to the U.S. on the tax evasion charges.

In the final tweet sent from an account associated with McAfee on June 18, he wrote: In a democracy, power is given not taken. But it is still power. Love, compassion, caring have no use for it. But it is fuel for greed, hostility, jealousy All power corrupts. Take care which powers you allow a democracy to wield.

Following his death, some pointed to tweets McAfee previously wrote, including one in 2019 that included a cryptic warning.

Getting subtle messages from U.S. officials saying, in effect: Were coming for you McAfee! Were going to kill yourself. I got a tattoo today just in case. If I suicide myself, I didnt. I was whackd. Check my right arm.$WHACKD, he tweeted, including a link to a now-offline website.

The cybersecurity software pioneer in October 2020 also made a reference to Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier who was found dead in a prison cell in August 2019 while facing sex trafficking charges.

The US believes I have hidden crypto. I wish I did but it has dissolved through the many hands of Team McAfee (your belief is not required), and my remaining assets are all seized. My friends evaporated through fear of association. I have nothing. Yet, I regret nothing, McAfee also wrote on June 16 of this year.

In October 2020, he was arrested at the Barcelona international airport on the charges, which were pending in a Tennessee federal court. An indictment against him said that he earned millions of dollars from consulting, speaking engagements, promoting cryptocurrencies, and making a documentary.

From 2014 to 2018, McAfee allegedly failed to file tax returns, despite receiving considerable income from these sources, the U.S. Justice Department said in a news release at the time.

McAfee in 1994 resigned from the antivirus company he founded, although years later, he created a profane video explaining how users can uninstall the antivirus software. And in 2019, he was ordered to pay $25 million in damages over the death of a former neighbor in Belize in 2012.

Of late, McAfees Twitter posts became increasingly more somber, although he would often criticize the federal government.

In the June 9 post on Twitter, McAfee noted that after uncountable lawsuits and the reach of the FEDs I now have nothing. But inside these prison bars I have never felt more free. The things you believe you own, in reality own you.

And in one particularly revealing post, he wrote, I have a million followers but Id be surprised if even 1% bother to read my tweets. Ramblings of an old man lost in a near infinite Twitter verse  like tears in rain. As you may guess Im having a down day.
John Garrod, of Arvada, stands holding a blue line flag at the beginning of a line of about 30 police cars lined up for a procession in honor of the officer who was fatally shot in Arvada, Colo., on June 21, 2021. (Colleen Slevin/AP Photo)

Killer Targeted Denver-Area Policeman Due to His Uniform, Badge

A Denver-area policeman slain on June 21 was targeted because he was a police officer, according to area police.

Arvada Police Chief Link Strate told reporters on June 22 that Officer Gordon Beasley was targeted because he was wearing an Arvada Police uniform and a badge.

Beasley, who served the police department for 19 years, was ambushed in a shooting near a local library on June 21, Strate said. The suspected assailant was also slain in the shooting, alongside John Hurley, 40, whom the police described as a true hero.

Officer Gordon Beasley in an undated photo. (Arvada Police Department via AP)

Officer Beasley was ambushed by a person who expressed hatred of police officers, Strate said about the suspect.

The identity of the alleged killer will be released by a coroner later, Strate said.

The death of Officer Gordon Beasley was a tragic loss to this community and to this department, but most importantly, it is an inconceivable loss to his family, Strate said. Communities need to know and understand what they ask of their police officers, the sacrifices that they make, the costs to them, for your safety.

Strate noted that the shooting was a deliberate act of violence and an isolated incident.

Police didnt say what Hurley did during the attack, but described him as a true hero who likely disrupted what could have been a larger loss of life.

Strate said the department was hurt and troubled by the murder, but that fellow officers were committed to the protection of this community, our community that we all love, and to honor officer Beasley and Mr. Hurley.

At the time of the press conference, police hadnt yet determined the motive for the shooting. Police didnt believe Hurley and the suspect were connected.

The fatal incident follows a mass shooting at a Boulder grocery store months earlier that killed 10 people, including a police officer.

Arvada Mayor Marc Williams said on June 21, This is by far the saddest day for our police department.

Deputy Chief Ed Brady stated during a June 21 press conference that the officer responded to a call at 1:15 p.m. that reported a suspicious incident near the library. About 15 minutes later, a 911 call reported that shots were fired, and the officer was hit and killed.

Mimi Nguyen Ly contributed to this report.
Largest US Health Care Union Will Fight Mandatory COVID-19 Vaccines

The president of the largest union of health care workers in the United States says the organization will fight against companies requiring mandatory COVID-19 vaccines for employees.

George Gresham, president of 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers Eastwhich describes itself as the largest health care union in the countrysaid hospital systems dont have the right to mandate vaccines for employees. The union, which is based in New York, also represents hundreds of thousands of nurses and caregivers in New Jersey, Florida, Washington, Maryland, and Massachusetts.

Whether there is a legal challenge that we can make, or whether its just a pure organizational challenge that we can make, we are not going to just give in, Gresham told local news website Gothamist this week.

Earlier in June, NewYorkPresbyterian Hospital in New York had mandated that its employees be vaccinated against the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, which causes COVID-19, coming as other hospital systems across the United States have done the same.

The union president said that hes vaccinated against the virus and has encouraged union members to get vaccinated as well. However, he told the website that workers have the right to make their decision about their own health, and met with NewYork-Presbyterian Chief Executive Steve Corwin to discuss unvaccinated union members concerns about the companys policy.

Its not just 1199SEIU that has opposed mandatory shots, as the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) released a statement opposing vaccine mandates.

NYSNA strongly opposes the mandatory vaccination of health care providers for COVID-19 as a condition of employment or as a state or federal mandate, the union states on its website.

According to a memo, NewYorkPresbyterian informed its workers that it would require them to get at least their first COVID-19 vaccine shot by Sept. 1.

We care for sick peoplesome critically soevery day, and we are responsible for their safety while in our care, the mandate notice states. The stakes in this matter are high, and the evidence is clear that getting vaccinated against COVID-19 is the most important and responsible action we can take as NYP team members for the safety and well-being of our patients and visitors, our communities, and ourselves.

Greshams comments come after employees of Houston Methodist Hospital in Texas challenged the systems vaccine requirement, which was rejected by a judge several weeks ago. A Houston Methodist spokesperson has since told The Epoch Times in an email that 153 employees were fired on June 22 or had quit during the previous two-week period.

Many of my clients actually contracted COVID as a result of treating COVID-positive patients, and the thank you that Methodist Hospital gives them now is a pink slip, said Jared Woodfill, an attorney representing the employees.

NewYorkPresbyterian didnt immediately respond to a request for comment.
A voter receives assistance from an election worker at a voting center in Grand Central Market in Los Angeles, Calif., on Nov. 3, 2020. (Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images)

Letter to Californias Secretary of State Demands Answers to 2020 Election Irregularities

California Secretary of State Shirley Weber has received a letter from Election Integrity Project California (EIPCa)a non-profit and non-partisan watchdog organization that demands answers to irregularities in the states 2020 elections.

The letter (pdf), sent June 17 from EIPCa President and co-founder Linda Paine to the Secretary of State who oversees the California Elections Division office, is based on an analysis of VoteCal voter registration information and voting history files of Feb. 9, 2021, and is also a summation of EIPCas findings report released June 17.

The election findings reported to Weber come only after EIPCa reported issues on April 30 and May 18 on 2020 cross-state voting. The June 17 demand letter seeks answers on over 2 million documented registration and voting anomalies.

The demand letter follows the EIPCa reports sent to the California Elections Division Office that were ignored claims Paine. The June report also cites Californias election code that requires officials to provide timely answers to citizens questions.

EIPCa seeks answers to the following questions, on behalf of California voters:

Why are there almost 124,000 more votes counted in Californias November 3, 2020 election than voters recorded as voting in that election? Why do more than 7,700 voters have two November 3, 2020 votes credited to their voting histories? Why does California have 1.8 million more registered voters than eligible citizens and why did this overage rise 72% in the 2020 election cycle? Why did Californias on-line and DMV registration systems change 33,000 foreign-born voters birthplaces of record to California or United States, potentially masking non-citizens unlawfully registered to vote?

Many in the nation are questioning the validity of the 2020 general election in their states, said Paine. Mass irregularities in Californias registration and voting numbers continue to erode voter confidence here and we are hopeful Secretary Weber will immediately address our questions.
A supporter of Lebanon's Hezbollah gestures as he holds a Hezbollah flag in Marjayoun, Lebanon, on May 7, 2018. (Aziz Taher/Reuters)

Linguist With Top-Secret Security Clearance Sentenced to 23 Years for Sending Classified Information to Terrorists

She Developed a Romantic Interest for the Co-conspirator

A Defense Department Linguist was sentenced to 23 years of imprisonment on June 23 for transmitting highly sensitive classified information related to national defense to a foreign government.

Mariam Taha Thompson, 62, from Rochester, Minnesota, pleaded guilty on March 26, admitting that she was aware that the information she passed on to a Lebanese national would then be retransmitted to the Lebanese Hezbollah, a designated terrorist group.

Thompsons sentence reflects the seriousness of her violation of the trust of the American people, of the human sources she jeopardized, and of the troops who worked at her side as friends and colleagues, stated Assistant Attorney General John C. Demers for the Justice Departments National Security Division.

That Thompson passed our nations sensitive secrets to someone whom she knew had ties to Lebanese Hezbollah made her betrayal all the more serious. Thompsons sentence should stand as a clear warning to all clearance holders that violations of their oath to this country will not be taken lightly, especially when they put lives at risk.

Thompson worked as a linguist at a U.S. military facility overseas and had Top-secret government security clearance.

She admitted to having started communication with a co-conspirator through video chat on a secure app and eventually developed a romantic interest in the unindicted co-conspirator, who over time started asking her to provide information to them about the people who helped the United States to target Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani.

Thompson confessed that them meant the Lebanese Hezbollah, which also involved an unidentified high-ranking military commander.

She subsequently started looking into dozens of files relevant to human intelligence sources, including photographs, background information, their personal data, and details related to the information that the human assets sent to the U.S. Government.

Thompson applied different techniques to transmit the sensitive data to the co-conspirator, who said that his contacts were happy with her work and that the military commander would like to meet her when she went to Lebanon.

This case should serve as a clear reminder to all of those entrusted with national defense information that unilaterally disclosing such information for personal gain, or that of others, is not selfless or heroic; it is criminal, Assistant Director Alan E. Kohler, Jr. of the FBIs Counterintelligence Division said.

By knowingly distributing classified information that would be passed onto a designated foreign terrorist organization, Mariam Thompson put our national defense in danger. The men and women of the FBI will continue to work tirelessly to defeat hostile intelligence activities targeting the United States and to hold those who assist our adversaries accountable.

Thompson was arrested on Feb. 27, 2020, by the FBI.
The CBS logo is seen at the CBS Building in New York on Aug. 6, 2018. (Angela Weiss/AFP/Getty Images)

Local CBS Reporter Fired After Sharing Networks Pro-Vaccine Rhetoric via Project Veritas

A weathercaster at Detroits CBS affiliate WWJ-TV has been fired by the station after sharing its practices regarding the COVID-19 vaccine, editorial policies, and corporate interests in an interview with Project Veritas.

April Moss, a former meteorologist and reporter who went off-script during an on-air weather report to say she would be talking to nonprofit Project Veritas, had worked at the station for almost a decade before she was officially fired this week.

In a sit-down interview with Project Veritass James OKeefe, Moss accused CBS 62 of manipulating its audience with a corporate agenda, describing the networks news practices as propaganda being pushed on people.

Im watching my country disintegrate, and if I dont stand up and do something when Im able to, I just dont know that I could live with myself, Moss said. No longer is true journalism being executed anymore. It is one of the greatest crimes really in history right now. Because if we are shaping the American publics mind, then we need to be seeking truth.

She also claimed in her interview that CBS 62 was sending emails and messages to employees who chose not to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Moss accused the station of attempting to pressure them into changing their minds, describing the behavior as a human rights issue.

CBS is abusing the power of all of [the] Viacom/CBS brand to legitimize the vaccines for COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, Moss charged.

In announcing her dismissal, a spokesman from CBS 62 Detroit said in a statement that Moss objected to WWJ-TVs policies regarding COVID-19 testing and wearing masks inside our station, which are based on CDC, state, and local guidelines.

Any suggestion that she was in any way a victim of discrimination due to her concerns about these policies is completely false. In fact, we allowed April to perform her weather anchor duties from home as we explored her concerns, the spokesman said.

Employees are not entitled to use our station news broadcasts as a platform for sharing personal views, the spokesman noted.

Ms. Moss is no longer with our station.

Mosss firing comes after Fox 26 Houston reporter Ivory Hecker said during a live segment earlier this month that she would speak to Project Veritas. Hecker has since been fired by the Fox affiliate station.

Hecker told Project Veritas that Fox 26 came at my throat for standing up against censorship.

James OKeefe, founder and president of Project Veritas, at the nonprofits headquarters in New York, on Oct. 31, 2017. (Benjamin Chasteen/The Epoch Times)

Whats happening within Fox Corp. is an operation of prioritizing corporate interests above the viewers interest and, therefore, operating in a deceptive way, Hecker told OKeefe. It is unspoken, but if you accidentally step outside the narrative, if you dont sense what that narrative is, and go with it, there will be great consequences for you.

Hecker also revealed how she was instructed to cease and desist on content that would present hydroxychloroquine as a feasible treatment for COVID-19.

In a statement, Fox 26 said that it fired Hecker because it adheres to the highest editorial standards of accuracy and impartiality.

This incident involves nothing more than a disgruntled former employee seeking publicity by promoting a false narrative produced through selective editing and misrepresentation, the station stated.
Lockdowns Harm Canadians Mental Health, Says Outgoing MP David Sweet

Vocal human rights advocate will not be running in the next election

Canadas COVID-19 lockdown measures are one of the key human rights issues facing the country, says departing Conservative MP David Sweet, who has been an outspoken rights advocate during the 15 years hes been in office.

In his farewell speech in Parliament on June 15, Sweet said he decided not to run in the next election because he is struggling with what he called mental health jaundice, which he attributed to traumatizing experiences he has had in his life and to years of hearing the worst stories of human suffering while serving on the parliamentary human rights committee.

He also noted that draconian lockdowns aimed at curbing the spread of the virus have had a damaging effect on Canadians mental health, including possibly his own.

There were other tools they could have used rather than broad, sweeping lockdowns, Sweet said in an interview.

I dont speak with only my voice, I simply echo PhDs, doctors, health-care professionals, clinicians, and researchers, he said, noting the Great Barrington Declaration signed by tens of thousands of scientists and medical practitioners from around the world stating that lockdowns do more harm than good.

Unfortunately, the provincial governments and federal government did not listen to them, and preferred to use broad, sweeping lockdowns which caused profound mental health consequences for people  [and] caused delayed surgeries in the hundreds of thousands.

Sweet said one of the missteps the federal government made at the beginning of the pandemic was to shut down the operations that were inside of federal institutions to respond to a pandemic.

So we did not have the usual storehouse of PPE (personal protective equipment) etc., so we had to rely on defective PPE coming from the Peoples Republic of China, he said.

One of the biggest, most troubling things about this pandemic is so much has been politicized and so many mistakes were made, he said.

As for the origin of the outbreak, the claim that the novel coronavirus may have leaked from Chinas Wuhan Institute of Virology has been gaining traction, as opposed to the theory that the virus originated from a wet market in Wuhan.

Sweet says a lack of co-operation from the Chinese Communist Party as well as pressure to stick with the current narrative and even accusations of racism are some of the challenges to discovering the true source of the outbreak.

I dont even know if well get to the bottom of it because so many people have tried to pull the racism card when we try to investigate exactly what happened in Wuhan, and thats problematic.

A Rich Gift



Regarding international human rights work, Sweet had two suggestions for his colleagues on the House of Commons Subcommittee on International Human Rights. One is to seek good sources in their investigations of rights abuses so as to ensure that oppressors cannot bring into question their evidence, and the other is to refrain from politicizing human rights.

Theres always partisan arguments, theres always debate about policy  but seldom did we ever disagree in a partisan fashion because we understood that peoples lives were at stake, he said of his colleagues on the committee.

In his farewell speech, Sweet urged MPs to constantly bear in mind their responsibility to protect Canadas democratic institutions as elected officials.

We are blessed to live in a country where voters determine the outcome of an election and not individual political parties with the right to establish lists for voters or a regime of evil elites who tell voters how they should vote. This is a rich gift that has been carefully protected by past generations. It has been fought for with Canadian blood in past conflicts, he said.

No matter which party members are from in this chamber, their individual responsibility as a member is to guard this cherished institution.  We do not protect this institution because we are privileged. We guard and protect this institution because this chamber is where critical issues that concern individual Canadians are debated and resolved.

Sweet also urged MPs to look after their mental health.

All of us need to be conscious of what our limit is and ensure that we get relief and help when needed well before it becomes crippling, he said. This is what I am doing, and I encourage all those who can hear my voice and need help to seek it and be relentless to get what they need. They need not feel any shame. We all need help sometimes.

With reporting by Andrew Chen
Mark McCloskey Opens Up to The Epoch Times: The Power Resides in the People

Last summer, the George Floyd riots didnt just bring death and damage to the city of St. Louis, it made Mark and Patricia McCloskey famous. The Epoch Times was able to sit down with Mr. McCloskey and go over his journey into politics.

He opened up a bit more about what happened after he and his wife brandished their guns at their home when a mob of activists trespassed into their gated community on June 28, 2020. They came back the following Friday on July the third with the specific intent of killing us and burning down our house. That was the more difficult of the 2 events. That didnt make the press because the optics werent good for the peaceful protesters narrative.

The big lie thats been told by the mainstream media from the very beginning is that these were peaceful protesters that took a wrong turn on their way to the Mayors house and that we went out and assaulted them. But these peaceful protesters on the nights of June first and second last year, burned down downtown St. Louis, shot 4 police officers  killed retired police captain David Dorn.

He detailed how rioters burned down a 7-11, Walgreens, and various other businesses. These rioters turned very violent very fast, and the police had been ordered to stand down, McCloskey noted how they realized they were on their own with no one to protect them.

McCloskey was eager to discuss the current state of the city. The cops are understaffed, underpaid, and the government here just doesnt support them. He noted how St. Louis has changed. We have 20 times the murder rate of New York City when New Yorks having a bad year, and whats the solution of our new mayor Tishaura Jones: Defund the police. I think they arrested 250 or so people during the riots on [June] first and second. She let them all out.

The city of St. Louis was seeking felony charges against the McCloskeys. These have now been dropped and replaced with misdemeanor charges, which McCloskey is ready to accept. The new charge against me was that I purposely placed other people in apprehension of immediate physical injury, and Im thinking, hell, thats what the guns were for, right? he laughed.

But this is not where the story ends. Mark McCloskey is now running for a Senate seat in Missouri with the hopes of inspiring others across the nation to stand up for what they believe in. When Roy Blunt announced that he was not gonna run for re-election, people started asking whether or not I had an interest in it. You know, Ive been a life-long Republican but Ive never had any particular desire to run for office. In fact, if you asked me a year ago today what I wanted most in the world Id say for the world to leave me the heck alone. I like peace and comfort. But the world chose differently. And  it became kind of a calling.

He joked about the events that led to his decision and explained his faith in a higher calling. I didnt think that having three to five hundred angry rioters break down my gate was a good thing, but maybe in the long run it will turn out that way.

McCloskey holds degrees in psychology, sociology, and criminal justice, in addition to his law degree. The Epoch Times asked him about his interest in these fields. I always wanted to be a lawyer, and I always wanted to be a trial lawyer. Part of being a good trial lawyer is understanding how people think and what motivates them.

He then pointed out, I was the first lawyer in the country to file a lawsuit against a school on Critical Race Theory. But just teaching kids to hate themselves, and hate their history, hate their country, and to finally parse out by race, and a selection of gender identities and all these different things to treat everybody differently rather than everybody equally, thats just so corrosive, and its all based on basic Marxism. Instead of having class envy, now you have race envy.

He also expressed a strong aversion to government control and cited the Constitution as his campaigns inspiration. We the people are the government. Thats really what our Senate campaign is all about. Reminding the people that the power resides in the people. The Constitution is a document that protects the people from the government. Its not a document that gives the government power to control the people. Its the exact opposite.

When asked if he had anything to say to Americans who may have misunderstood him over the past year, he said, Im not the typical lawyer. I didnt go from high school to college and college to law school. Although I did that, but I mean, when I got out of high school I didnt immediately go to college. I started working when I was fifteen. I worked on a riverboat as a deckhand when I was fifteen. By the time I was sixteen I was an engineer on an excursion boat. I worked as an auto mechanic, Ive farmed, Ive welded, Ive been kind of a hands-on guy my whole life, and even during the time Ive been a lawyer for the last thirty-seven years, I still do auto-mechanics. I still fix my own cars. I built one of my cars myself.

Mr. McCloskey is currently campaigning in St. Louis, Missouri. His Senatorial race is being challenged by other Republican candidates Vicky Hartzler, Eric Greitens, and current Attorney General Eric Schmitt, as well as Democrat candidates Tim Shepard, Scott Sifton, Jewell Kelly, Spencer Toder, and Lucas Kunce.

The Epoch Times does not endorse nor take a position on political candidates.
Massachusetts Boy, 13, Rescues His 4 Year-Old-Sister During Apparent Murder Suicide

A 13-year-old boy from Massachusetts courageously took his 4-year-old sister to safety during an apparent murder-suicide in their house.

The boy grabbed his sister and escaped the house through a window on Tuesday night while a man shot and killed his girlfriend and then fatally shot himself, police said in a press conference.

The 13-year-old is a pretty courageous young kid, Worcester District Attorney Joseph Early said. He took the 4-year-old in his arms, opened the window, ran out the window to a neighbors house.

Police said that the woman called 911 first but they couldnt make out what was happening, then another call came in from the gunman himself.

The neighbor that received the boy and his sister also called 911.

The motivation for the tragic event is not clear yet, as the investigation is still in its early stages.

There was another 3-year-old child in the house, who remained there until police arrived around 5:30 pm.

The deceased couple were the parents of two of the children, the other child was from a previous relationship.

They were a young couple just getting started in life, one neighbor told WBZ. Why did something like this happen?

Early noted that there were three dogs in the house, two of them Rottweilers. Previously the police have been called because one of the dogs was loose.

A tragic case of domestic violence, Early stated.
A woman is taken to Ayder Referral Hospital, in Mekelle, after an airstrike in Togoga, Ethiopia's Tigray region, on June 22, 2021. (Tigray Guardians 24 via Reuters)

Medical Official: Air Strike in Ethiopias Tigray Kills at Least 43

ADDIS ABABA, EthiopiaAn airstrike in the town of Togoga in Ethiopias Tigray region on June 22 has killed at least 43 people, a medical official told Reuters, after residents said new fighting had flared north of the regional capital Mekelle in recent days.

Ethiopian military spokesman Col. Getnet Adane didnt confirm or deny the incident. He said airstrikes were a common military tactic and that government forces dont target civilians.

The bomb hit a market at around 1 p.m., according to a woman who said her husband and 2-year-old daughter had been injured.

We didnt see the plane, but we heard it, she told Reuters on June 23. When the explosion happened, everyone ran out. After a time, we came back and were trying to pick up the injured.

The woman said the market had been full of families, and she didnt see any armed forces in the area. Many, many people had been killed, she said.

Reuters couldnt independently verify her account. She and other sources asked not to be identified for fear of reprisals.

The medical official confirmed at least 43 fatalities, citing witnesses and first responders.

A spokesperson for Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and the head of a government task force on Tigray didnt respond to requests for comment on the incident by press time.

News of the airstrike came as Ethiopian officials counted ballots from national and regional parliamentary elections held this week in seven of the nations 10 regions.

No voting was held in Tigray, where the military has been battling forces loyal to the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF), the regions former ruling party, since November. Security concerns and problems with ballot papers also delayed voting in two other regions.

Residents reported that TPLF forces had entered several towns north of Mekelle in the past three days, withdrawing from one of them within hours.

Ambulances Blocked

The official and two other health workers helping with the response in Togoga told Reuters on June 23 that Ethiopian soldiers were blocking the main road from Mekelle to the town and preventing ambulances from reaching the scene.

Patients are dying right now, the official said.

He said two ambulances had been able to reach the town via a back road late on June 22, but didnt have the necessary equipment and werent being allowed to leave.

He said the teams had counted at least 40 dead at the scene, three people had died overnight, and there were 44 critically wounded patients needing treatment.

Another medical worker said around 20 health workers in six ambulances had tried to reach the wounded on June 22, but soldiers stopped them at a checkpoint.

They told us we couldnt go to Togoga. We stayed more than one hour at the checkpoint trying to negotiate. We had a letter from the health bureauwe showed them. But they said it was an order.

Military spokesman Getnet denied that the military was blocking ambulances.
CARDIFF, WALES - DECEMBER 08: A member of staff poses with a phial of Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine at a vaccination health centre on the first day of the largest immunisation programme in the UK's history on December 8, 2020 in Cardiff, United Kingdom. (Photo by Justin Tallis - Pool / Getty Images)

Millions of Pfizer Jabs to Arrive as More Australians Cancel Second AstraZeneca Dose

Australias vaccine rollout plan will be undergoing a major overhaul within weeks as millions more Pfizer doses are set to arrive in the upcoming months.

The review was announced at the national cabinet on Monday following the recommendation from Australias vaccine safety body to limit AstraZeneca use to people over 60 only.

Lieutenant General John Frewen, the coordinator-general of the national COVID vaccine task force, told the national cabinet on Monday he had been brought in to test all planning assumptions.

We are now looking at all aspects of the rollout plan and looking for any opportunities we will have to accelerate the rollout through the year as supplies come on line, he said.

The taskforce head suggested that other players such as pharmacists could be included to assist GPs in providing vaccines.

While only people aged over 60 have access to the AstraZeneca vaccine, Australians aged 50-59 are encouraged to book an appointment for the Pfizer vaccine.

He said Australia had 2.3 million doses of Pfizer vaccine on hand and was expecting another 3.4 million over the next six weeks. However, the extra two million people aged 50-59 who now need the Pfizer for their second doses is causing supply shortages of the jab.

At the hearing, the commonwealth acknowledged that supply is a major constraint of the rollout, but said it is sufficient for Australians who are already eligible.

But on current forecasts, we are looking  to ramp up availability of Pfizer through August into September and into October, Frewen said.

While Australia had relied on AstraZeneca to be its main jab vaccinating the nation, officials admitted they have been facing difficulties convincing people to take the second dose as the reputation of the jab is being tarnished for its link to rare blot clotting syndrome.

Dr Christopher Blyth from the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation said there had been 60 cases suffering clotting issues from 4 million AstraZeneca vaccines administered, including two deaths.

That means one-in-2-million chance of death is linked to the jab in Australia.

Dr Blyth said some of those 60 people had experienced harmful side effect and he saw those harms to be as important as deaths in decision making.

Despite reports from GPs showing a surge in the number of patients cancelling their second Astra Zeneca dose, Chief Health Officer Paul Kelly said that most people are going to get the second dose.

Health Department Secretary Brendan Murphy said it was too early to say whether the new advice on AstraZeneca being limited to over-60s would hinder the vaccination process but confirmed that the blood clotting risk following a second dose was minuscule.

But GPs say statistics arent enough to allay public fears.

All across the country people are cancelling appointments or asking about whether they should even have their second dose, says Dr Karen Price, president of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners.

It has definitely put a big barrier on the vaccine rollout, she told the BBC.

What we really need is an easy-to-understand national advert campaign, where the message doesnt necessarily come from authorities but people that other people can relate to, says Dr Price.

To date, 48 per cent of the countrys over-50s had received a first jab, while 65 percent of over 70s had their initial shot, and one in four of people aged over 16 had.

More than 723,440 COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered across the country in the past week, taking the total delivered to more than 6.59 million, said Commodore Eric Young from the federal Health Department.

By the end of July, all 136 commonwealth vaccination clinics, 40 Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services and 1,300 GPs will be administering Pfizer.

Many more primary care providers will be offered the chance to administer mRNA vaccines as the supply of Pfizer significantly increases and the first supplies of Moderna arrive in September/October.
A sign is displayed on the Morgan Stanley building in New York on July 16, 2018. (Lucas Jackson/Reuters)

Morgan Stanley Bans Unvaccinated Staff, Guests From Entering NY Offices

Banking giant Morgan Stanley will not allow employees or guests to enter its metro New York City offices without being vaccinated against COVID-19, according to an internal memo.

Starting July 12 all employees, contingent workforce, clients, and visitors will be required to attest to being fully vaccinated to access Morgan Stanley buildings in New York City and Westchester, chief human resources officer Mandell Crawley wrote in the memo to employees, which was obtained by the Financial Times and was later confirmed by a Morgan Stanley spokesperson.

Individuals who say they are not fully vaccinated will lose access to the buildings, the memo said. For employees who arent fully vaccinated, they can still work at home, according to Crawley.

Crawleys memo also noted that the overwhelming majority of workers have already reported getting inoculated, reported the Financial Times.

Its unclear if there would be any future penalties for employees who haventor are unwillingto get the COVID-19 shot. Also unclear is how the company would enforce its vaccination policy.

Michael Corbat of Citigroup, Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase, James Gorman of Morgan Stanley, and Brian Moynihan of Bank of America listen during a House Financial Services Committee hearing in Washington, on April 10, 2019. Seven CEOs of the countrys largest banks were called to testify a decade after the global financial crisis. (Alex Wroblewski/file/Getty Images)

The Epoch Times has contacted Morgan Stanley for comment. A spokesperson confirmed to Business Insider and other news outlets on Tuesday that the memo referenced in the Financial Times report is authentic.

The investment banks chief executive, James Gorman, said during a June 14 conference that over 90 percent of the firms employees are vaccinated. If you can go to a restaurant in New York City, you can come into the office and we want you in the office, he also remarked.

But once the summer is over, he said, Morgan Stanley employees who work on Wall Street will have to return.

By Labor Day, Ill be very disappointed if people havent found their way into the office and then well have a different kind of conversation, Gorman said, suggesting there could be a pay cut if employees work outside their designated location.

If you want to get paid New York rates, you work in New York. None of this, Im in Colorado  and getting paid like Im sitting in New York City, he added. Sorry. That doesnt work.

The CEO said that the firm will have a flexible COVID-19 policy in different areas, saying that it will implement a hybrid work policy that wont be dictatorial and management will look into requests from individuals to work remotely.

I dont think making a blanket statement to all employees is helpful, Gorman said. I dont think speaking to employees who work at 1585 Broadway in Times Square is the same as speaking to a small office in Topeka.

Investment giant BlackRock, meanwhile, has adopted a similar vaccine policy. Goldman Sachs is asking visitors and employees who arent vaccinated to wear a mask in common areas.

COVID-19 is the illness caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus.
NB in Talks With Taiwan to Bring in Chinese-Language Program to Replace Confucius Institutes

New Brunswick is in talks with Taiwan to bring in a Mandarin-language program that will replace that of communist Chinas Confucius Institute, the provinces education minister told a Commons committee on June 21.

Some of the institutes have already been removed from N.B.s school system, with the rest to be closed by 2022.

One of my goals is to work with  Taiwan to try and replace any programming thats lost because of the end of our relationship with Confucius Institutes with a country that will respect our democratic values, Dominic Cardy told the House of Commons Special Committee on Canada-China Relations.

Were already in those discussions, and I hope those will come to fruition very shortly.



Cardy, who has been a driving force behind removing Confucius Institutes (CI) in his province, said they are a tentacle of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) that extends deep inside public schools and universities in different places across Canada.

He told the committee that the program began in New Brunswick in the late 2000s and has been responsible for spreading misinformation to thousands of students on subjects censored by the CCP.



Programs supposedly focusing on culture and language in many cases included overt political propaganda, he said.

This included having elementary school students drawing maps of China that would erase the border with Taiwan, included the denial of the reality of Tiananmen Square [massacre], included the disciplining of students who raised questions around Chinas abysmal human rights record.

A view of the Confucius Institute building on the Troy University campus in Troy, Ala., on March 16, 2018. (Kreeder13 via Wikimedia Commons)

In August 2019, New Brunswick announced a two-stage plan to remove the institutes from its school system, starting with closing the program at 18 schools by the end of that month and the rest by 2022.



At the committee hearing, Cardy said he wanted the program removed much sooner but some of the institutes can only be terminated next year due to contractual obligations. The previous Liberal government, under Brian Gallant as premier, had signed a contract at Chinas request that removed the right of the province to cancel the contract outright.



Asked by Liberal MP Jean Yip what his basis was for wanting the CI shut down, Cardy said he would not tolerate supporting a program run and managed by a foreign political party operating in our public school system.



He also based his decision on studies that were conducted around the world on the institute, he said.

There is a huge body of evidence talking about why the Confucius Institutes are a danger to the countries in which they are located, and I used those as the basis for that decision, he explained.

It was done largely prior to my time as minister, and the evidence that I received afterwards from the way this program was operationalized in New Brunswick schools only confirmed my decision.



Cardy told MPs that he had heard from the Chinese diaspora how CCP agents working for the CI program have access to the databases and information of N.B. students. In addition, his study of Chinese foreign policy operations, and the correspondence and complaints he received over the years from Chinese and non-Chinese Canadians on how CIs operate, played a critical role.

He also recounted how at one time Chinas consul general from Montreal visited his office without any of the normal diplomatic protocols and tried to pressure him into reversing the governments decision, including threats of economic retaliation and turning this into a two-nation issue rather than a question of a disagreement over schooling.



We need to take all possible actions to reduce the influence by Beijing in all our institutions, and our policies, our politics, or in our economy, Cardy said.

My hope is that through conversations like this, we can move to recognize the threat that China poses and move quickly to try and distance ourselves from a country that does not share our values.


A statue to the famed explorer Christopher Columbus stands in Columbus Circle in New York, N.Y., on June 25, 2020. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

New Jersey School Board Backtracks on Decision to Remove Holiday Names From Calendar

The school board in Randolph Township in Morris County, New Jersey, has reversed a decision to erase all holiday names from the school calendar following backlash from parents.

Randolphs Board of Education on Monday night voted to restore the names of holidays, admitting in a statement that the decision was made without proper consideration.

The very essence of education is to learn, to grow and to apply lessons learned, the district said, promising that in the future, a review committee will seek community input before proposing any changes to the calendar.

Earlier this month, the board unanimously approved to no longer mark holidays by their names on the districts 2021-2022 calendar, meaning that all public and religious holidays, such as Thanksgiving and Yom Kippur, will simply be listed as days off.

The move came in response to a previous effort to replace Columbus Day with an Indigenous Peoples Day in the name of equity and inclusion. The renaming attempt triggered intense opposition from members of the school district community, especially those of Italian ancestry.

I would like to think that the removal of Columbus Day was simply based on a lack of understanding, Franco Piarulli, a parent, told the board at a public comment session, reported NJ Advance Media. Either that or Italian Americans are simply not part of your definition of inclusion.

The board members defended the decision to strip names of the holidays off the calendar, saying that no holiday will be able to offend anyone anymore if their names are left blank.

If we dont have anything on this calendar, then we dont have to have anyone [with] hurt feelings, said board member Dorene Roche.

The districts calendar, following the restoration, still lists Oct. 11 as Indigenous Peoples Day.

A debate over Columbus Day and the legacy of Christopher Columbus, the Genoa-born navigator whose unsuccessful expedition to Asia opened a new age of European exploration and expansion, is becoming more heated in New Jersey and New York, the top two states in terms of Italian American population.

In May, New York Citys Department of Education announced that students on Oct. 11 will be celebrating Italian Heritage Day/Indigenous Peoples Day instead of Columbus Day. The holiday was labelled as Indigenous Peoples Day in an initial release of the 2021-2022 calendar, upsetting several city and state legislators, including state Sens. Diane Savino and Joe Addabbo, both Democrats of Italian ancestry.

Their insensitive decision to eliminate Columbus Day, which is a legal, Federal holiday from their calendar and substitute it with Indigenous Peoples day does a terrible disservice to a difficult and complex conversation, the lawmakers said in a joint statement. In one block-headed decision, they have harmed both communities and fanned the flames of division.
No Tuna DNA in Subways Tuna Sandwiches, Lab Analysis Finds: Report

A commercial lab test commissioned by The New York Times found no identifiable tuna DNA in a number of Subway tuna sandwiches.

In a report published Sunday, the NY Times said that a reporter acquired more than 60 inches worth of Subway tuna sandwiches from three Subway outlets in Los Angeles, and researchers were unable to identify any tuna DNA after they were analyzed in a specialized fish-testing lab.

The lab said it found no amplifiable tuna DNA was present in the sample and so we obtained no amplification products from the DNA.

Therefore, we cannot identify the species, the lab said.

Theres two conclusions, a lab spokesperson told the news outlet. One, its so heavily processed that whatever we could pull out, we couldnt make an identification. Or we got some and theres just nothing there thats tuna.

The Epoch Times has reached out Subway for comment.

A similar test was run in February when Inside Edition sent samples from New York to be tested by Florida-based lab Applied Food Technologies. In that case, tuna DNA was identified in the sandwiches.

In January, a lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California claimed that the ingredient billed as tuna in Subways sandwiches and wraps is made from anything but tuna.

The suit, filed by Karen Dhanowa and Nilima Amin of Alameda County, alleges that the tuna sold at the popular sandwich chain is in fact a mixture of various concoctions.

Dhanowa and Amin claim they conducted independent lab tests of multiple samples of tuna from a number of California Subway locations, and results show the ingredient is a mixture of various concoctions that do not constitute tuna, yet have been blended together by defendants to imitate the appearance of tuna, according to the complaint.

An attorney for the pair, Shalini Dogra, did not elaborate on what specific ingredients were revealed in the lab tests.

We found that the ingredients were not tuna and not fish, the attorney told The Washington Post.

Subway has denied the claims, stating in a press release that the sandwich chain serves 100 percent wild-caught tuna.

There simply is no truth to the allegations in the complaint that was filed in California. Subway delivers 100 [percent] cooked tuna to its restaurants, which is mixed with mayonnaise and used in freshly made sandwiches, wraps, and salads that are served to and enjoyed by our guests, a spokesperson for Subway said in a statement at the time.

The taste and quality of our tuna make it one of Subways most popular products and these baseless accusations threaten to damage our franchisees, small business owners who work tirelessly to uphold the high standards that Subway sets for all of its products, including its tuna.

Given the facts, the lawsuit constitutes a reckless and improper attack on Subways brand and goodwill, and on the livelihood of its California franchisees.

Indeed, there is no basis in law or fact for the plaintiffs claims, which are frivolous and are being pursued without adequate investigation.
A health worker shows a box containing a bottle of Ivermectin, a medicine authorized by the National Institute for Food and Drug Surveillance (INVIMA) to treat patients with mild, asymptomatic or suspicious COVID-19, as part of a study of the Center for Pediatric Infectious Diseases Studies, in Cali, Colombia, on July 21, 2020. (Luis Robayo/AFP via Getty Images)

Oxford University to Trial Ivermectin for COVID-19 Home Treatment

An Oxford-led clinical trial programme is starting to trial antiparasitic drug ivermectin on Wednesday as a possible home treatment for COVID-19, the university has announced.

More than 5,000 volunteers have been recruited to participate in the study, but critics have questioned the necessity and the ethics of the trial, saying its effectiveness has already been proven.

According to Oxford University, ivermectin is the seventh treatment investigated by the government-backed Platform Randomised Trial of Treatments in the Community for Epidemic and Pandemic Illnesses (PRINCIPLE).

The low-cost antiparasitic drug, which has been widely used globally to treat parasitic infections for years, has already been used to treat COVID-19 patients in a number of countries.

PRINCIPLE has said in January that it was considering ivermectin for investigation.

Joint Chief Investigator of the PRINCIPLE trial Chris Butler said the readily available drug is a well-known medicine with a good safety profile.

Because of the early promising results in some studies it is already being widely used to treat COVID-19 in several countries, Butler said.

By including ivermectin in a large-scale trial like PRINCIPLE, we hope to generate robust evidence to determine how effective the treatment is against COVID-19, and whether there are benefits or harms associated with its use, he said.

Oxford University said that even though the drug has been used routinely in some countries to treat COVID-19, there is little evidence from large-scale randomised controlled trials to demonstrate that it can speed up recovery from the illness or reduce hospital admission.

U.S. Food and Drug Administration, European Medicines Agency, and the World Health Organisation (WHO) have advised against the use of ivermectin, saying more data is needed.

Earlier Trials

The British Ivermectin Recommendation Development Group (BIRD), a group of international medical professionals who have been advocating for the use of ivermectin against COVID-19, said the group welcomes the new trial while questioning its merit.

The strength of evidence for ivermectin has this week been supercharged by the publication of a gold standard review of 24 randomised trials conducted in 15 countries among more than 3,400 people worldwide, proving infections fall and deaths are dramatically reduced when ivermectin is administered, BIRD Group said in a statement, referring to a study published on June 17 in the American Journal of Therapeutics.

Dr. Theresa Lawrie, co-author of the study, and founder of the BIRD Group, said ivermectin has already been clearly proven to work against COVID-19.

Dr. Theresa Lawrie, director of Evidence-Based Medicine Consultancy Ltd speaks to The Epoch Times on her research into the use of Ivermectin to treat COVID-19 on June 23, 2021. (Screenshot/The Epoch Times)

In fact, there is more evidence on ivermectin than on any other treatment option for COVID, and far more safety data than any of the novel therapies, she said.

The director of Evidence-Based Medicine Consultancy said the clientele of her company is composed of non-profit organisations including the WHO.

She said her analysis of data showed that COVID-19 patients who received ivermectin in the treatment trials had a 2 percent chance of dying, while the number for the control groups was 8 percent.

Asked how many people are typically needed for such clinical trials, Lawrie said it depends on the outcome.

Theres no point saying we want 3000 people if half the people die, she told The Epoch Times in an interview.

Say that youre going to recruit 1,000 people, and by the time youve recruited 500, so youve got 250 in each arm, she said.

Youve got ten deaths in the ivermectin group and 40 in the other group, youve already got a big difference. So you cant keep on recruiting, youre going to do an interim analysis. And that interim analysis is going to say, hang on, we have to stop the trial, because therere far more deaths happening in the control group, she said.

Lawrie said her team was doing a trial sequential analysis, in which data are analysed as they are reported.

We worked out that there were enough data in December when there were 1,810 people, she said.

I dont think it is ethical [to] tell people: Were doing this trial because we dont know whether ivermectin works. Because we do know that ivermectin works.

Lawrie said she initially submitted her review to the Lancet in mid-January, and peer-reviewers were satisfied that her work was worthy of publication before the journal decided not to publish it.

In the letter to us, they said: We have no doubt that this is an important paper and would be widely picked up. That was confusing to us as to why they chose not to publish it, she said.

In an email to The Epoch Times, the Lancet said that the Lancet group does not comment on papers we have not published.

Lawrie also said that during a British ivermectin recommendation development group meeting in February, attending health professionals and patients stakeholders virtually unanimously said ivermectin should be employed immediately for prevention and treatment [of] COVID after she presented evidence her team had gathered, but authorities around the worldincluding the WHO and regulators from the UK, the United States, Canada have not responded to their communication.
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) speaks during her weekly media availability on Capitol Hill in Washington, on June 17, 2021. (Joshua Roberts/Getty Images)

Pelosi to Decide This Week on Formation of Panel to Probe Jan. 6 Breach

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Tuesday quashed reports that she will be creating a select committee to probe the Jan. 6 breach of U.S. Capitol, saying that she will decide this week whether to do so.

No, I did not make that announcement, Pelosi told reporters while stepping out of her office at the Capitol. Somebody put out a false report.

The clarification came after several U.S. news outlets, citing sources familiar with the matter, earlier in the day reported that Pelosi had decided to form the committee.

Clarification on tonights meeting of the Steering and Policy Committee. Speaker Pelosi told Members she plans to announce WHETHER she will create a select committee THIS WEEK. Her preference continues to be a bipartisan commission which Senate Republicans are blocking, Pelosis deputy chief of staff, Drew Hammill, said on Twitter on Tuesday.

Senate Republicans last month blocked the upper chamber from advancing the House-passed bill that would create a commission to probe the Jan. 6 incident. Some Republicans stated that the commission, which would have subpoena power, isnt necessary because of the probes already underway by the Department of Justice and other agencies, and they worried over whether such a commission would be fueled by politics.

The legislation fell short by six votes in the Senate, though several senators who missed the vote said they would have supported the bill.

Pelosi said on June 13 there are senators working on drawing the additional votes needed to pass the bill if it were brought up for consideration again.

Testifying at an oversight hearing held by the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee earlier this month, FBI Director Chris Wray said that at least one individual was found with a gun inside the U.S. Capitol building on Jan. 6, adding however that a lot of the arrests and more significant charges that are coming out of the investigation currently are individuals who brought all sorts of weapons inside the Capitol building, including Kevlar, tactical vests, and bear spray.

Wray said that the FBI had divided the tens of thousands of protesters who were at the Capitol on Jan. 6 into three groups: peaceful, maybe rowdy protesters who didnt participate in the breach and made up the biggest group, a second group who engaged in criminal trespass of the Capitol Building, and a third groupthe smallest in numberwho were responsible for carrying weapons into the Capitol.

Close to 500 arrests among those in the second and third groups have been made so far in connection with Jan. 6, Wray told the committee. The Department of Justice (DOJ) previously said that the majority of cases are related to entering a restricted building, obstruction of an official proceeding, and civil disorder.

The FBI director also testified that the law enforcement agency considered the events that unfolded on Jan. 6 an act of domestic terrorism. When asked by Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) whether the events on Jan. 6 at the Capitol were an insurrection, Wray replied that he believes it would be inappropriate to describe the breach as such.

In my role as FBI director, because thats a term that has legal meaning, I really have to be careful about using words like that, Wray said, adding that what he says could impact ongoing criminal cases.

Democratic lawmakers pushed the narrative that the Jan. 6 breach was an insurrection largely during the January impeachment effort against former President Donald Trump. No one who participated in the breach has been charged with insurrection.

Zachary Stieber contributed to this report.
An empty street is seen outside the Capitol in Harrisburg, Pa., on Jan. 17, 2021. (Kena Betancur/AFP via Getty Images)

Pennsylvania House Passes Election Integrity Bill: The System Does Not Work

The Pennsylvania state House approved a Republican-backed election reform bill on June 22 that would include a requirement that voters present identification, among other measures relating to polls, audits, and procedures.

The bill passed mostly along partisan lines, with most Republicans supporting the measure and nearly all Democrats opposing it. The bill heads to the Senate, which is controlled by Republicans.

Democrat Gov. Tom Wolf has said several times that he will veto any election-related bill. On June 22, Wolf wrote on Twitter that he wouldnt sign the measure, saying, I will veto this bill if it reaches my desk in its current form.

In touting the bill, House Republicans have said that its necessary to restore what they described as integrity to the election process in the commonwealth. Other lawmakers said their constituents had pushed them to vote on the bill.

We want to ensure elections are fair and the outcomes reflect the will of the people who legally cast their ballots, said Rep. Ann Flood, a Republican who is a co-sponsor of the legislation, according to WFMZ-TV. This has been one of the top issues for people Ive talked with in our district since I took office back in January.

Others, including Republican House Speaker Bryan Cutler, characterized the bill as one that would restore Pennsylvania voters faith in the states election systems after a contentious general election last November. Specifically, Cutler argued that the bills provisions around audits would be a step toward ensuring the publics trust.

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf speaks to the media in Pittsburgh, Penn., on Oct. 27, 2018. (Jeff Swensen/Getty Images)

And Rep. Craig Staats, a Republican, asserted that a number of county election officials had informed them that the state Legislature needs to act to bolster election laws in the state.

In our hearings, the message we received from our county election officials was very clear, Staats said. They said, the system does not work, and they need help. The Voting Rights Protection Act would provide that help.

Some Democrat lawmakers said they wouldnt support the bill due to its voter identification provision, as well as the bills proposal to mandate an earlier deadline for voter registration.

According to the bills text, it would also establish a Bureau of Election Audits, include more processes around verifying voters signatures on ballots, and force voting machine manufacturers to comply with more regulations. County officials, if the bill is signed into law, would have five days before Election Day to start canvassing for mail-in ballots, the text reads.

Folks are really asking for free and fair elections, and theyll embrace the current system that we have and make the appropriate changes that the counties are asking us to do in the Legislature. What we have now is a 150-page document that is a complete waste of time, Rep. Ryan Bizzarro, a Democrat, said on the floor.

The measure, House Bill 1300, now heads to the Senate for consideration.
Policy Expert Fights Back Against Special-Interest Groups in California

Commentary

Upton Sinclair was fond of saying, It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.

This is the key problem with legislators in California, according to a former state government insider.

Its an unbelievably difficult game to win, David Crane, special adviser to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger from 2004 to 2010, told The Epoch Times. Theres hardly a state that is more poorly governed than California [because] legislators are not liberated from special interests to do the bidding of general interests.

The grip that funding from special-interest groups holds on the state Legislature is the main reason why Crane, a lecturer on public policy at Stanford University, started Govern for California in 2011. That organization, a network of political philanthropists, seeks to provide support for politicians who stand up on behalf of their constituents and speak out against single-interest legislation.

Legislators will often have to vote against the general interest in order to please special interests from who they raise money, Crane said. And the way you get power and influence over those legislators is to bundle donations [and] raise money you can use to help those other legislators. They, in turn, will start to owe some allegiance to you. It sounds terrible, but that is the way it works.

Special Interests Versus General Interests

Crane traces a portion of his awakening to the reality of California politics back to a conversation he had with then-Sen. John Kerry in 2010.

At one point, I said, Senator Kerry, when is our party going to stop doing the bidding of all these special interests? Crane, who describes himself as a lifelong JFK kind of Democrat, asked.

Kerrys response helped set Crane on course to launch Govern for California one year later.

David, theyre always there for us, Kerry said.

Crane never forgot that answer.

And that would be true for every Republican senator as well, he said. The special interests are always there for them. Which means if you want them to do the work for the general interest, we always have to be there for them.

Viewed holistically, however, Crane said the problem has several components. While state politicians are beholden to special-interest groups, such as the California Correctional Peace Officers Association or the California Medical Association, they often remain willfully ignorant when the numbers dont add up.

Crane learned this firsthand when he was on the board of the California State Teachers Retirement System, which is the second-largest pension system in the country.

At one of the meetings, I sort of exposed the math, he recalled. They were understating the size of the pension liabilities by about half. But legislators didnt want to understand that was the case, because they were regularly receiving donations from public employee unions in California, who would also oppose them in elections.

These groups, in effect, become customers of the state and typically reap enormous profits, according to Crane.

Prison guard unions, [in] the last elections cycle, spent about $3 million, he said. And in return, theyll collect $10 billion a year [for the] 55,000 employees of the state correction system. So its a very good return on investment. Its better than almost any business that Ive been associated withbetter than [what] Silicon Valley earns.

Special interests, like the prison guards union, know to constantly dribble out money to legislators. It doesnt have to be very much, but it has to be constant.

More often than not, the constituents are none the wiser, which compounds the problem, according to Crane.

California is a very, very progressive talking state, but its not a very progressive walking state, he said.

Take the East Bay in Northern California  Legislators from that area regularly talk a very progressive game: Im for the little guy. Im for justice. Im for power to people. Those legislators regularly vote for salary increases for prison guards, who are already the highest-paid prison guards in the country.

Why would they do that? Because the people in their districts will never know that they vote for those prison guards salaries and increases, which take the money away from social services, universities, community colleges, and other things that are beneficial to the very populations that are those little guys. Its a form of arbitrage, if you will.

Outspending as a Tactic

Though Cranes diagnosis might seem bleak, he remains optimistic about the future. In fact, hes seen progress through Govern for Californias efforts. The bottom line comes down to outspending special-interest groups.

They contributed $4 million to legislators during the last election cycle in an effort to combat the California Medical Association (CMA).

For years, [CMA] worked to keep nurse practitioners from being allowed to practice medicine in California without the supervision of a doctor, Crane said. It was like a feudal system.

At that time, the Business and Professions Code mandated nurses to pay a fee to doctors in the CMA in exchange for their supervision. As a result, Crane said that limited the opportunities for very competent nurse practitioners to service lower-income patients in the rural areas of California.

But theres no reason for it, other than to protect the fiefdom, he said. My organization led an effort last year to change that law in California [and] we succeeded. Now, nurse practitioners in California can practice without being supervised by an M.D.

Breakthroughs such as that leave Crane optimistic about the possibilities of empowering legislators to fight back against special-interest groups.

CMAone of the most powerful lobbies out therewill never forget legislators who voted against them, he said. So those legislators have to know that Govern for California will be there forever to protect them from revenge. Thats a really hard thing to do.

Crane noted that it doesnt take that much money to outspend the entities that seek to manipulate and bully politicians across the state.

If you have $100 a year from a thousand people every year, you would become one the most powerful players in Sacramento, he said. [But] they have to know that youre going to always be there.

Most of the legislators actually want to do the right thing, but they cant because theyre in a vise: If they vote against a salary increase for prison guards, those prison guards will come after them in the next election.

Crane is also advocating for the banning of donations to legislators from any union that does business with the state.

I think a lot of people want to see that happen, he said.
Proposed Bill to Strengthen Relations With Taiwan Would Benefit Canada: MP Michael Cooper

A private members bill that aims to strengthen Canada-Taiwan relations would be beneficial to Canada in a number of ways, says Conservative MP Michael Cooper, who tabled the legislation in the House of Commons on June 17.

Bill C-315, the Canada-Taiwan Relations Framework Act, establishes a framework for providing greater certainty and clarity for Canada to develop its relationship with this major democratic ally, Cooper told The Epoch Times.

Taiwan is one of Canadas largest trading partners. We have strong people-to-people links, and we share common values, he said.

Despite that, there is no formal relationship whatsoever. As a result, I decided to put forward a piece of legislation that I think is a reasonable step towards strengthening Canada-Taiwan relations.

Taiwan, officially the Republic of China, is Canadas 13th-largest trading partner and the 5th-largest in Asia, according to the federal government. In 2018, Canadas total merchandise trade with Taiwan was $7.87 billion, with Canada exporting roughly $2 billion and importing nearly $6 billion.

Bill C-315 seeks to include Taiwan in Canadian laws general reference to foreign states or their governments. Cooper said the inclusion of Taiwan in the definition of state would be beneficial to Canada, which he explained using the Access to Information Act as an example.

In terms of  sensitive information [received] from Taiwan on security or terrorism or criminal law matters, the [Access to Information] Act renders information privileged only as it is received in confidence by a state, so Taiwan would not fit that definition. As a result, sensitive information could potentially be accessed through a court application, he said.

With Taiwan included in the definition of a state, it would ensure that such sensitive information could be shared with Canada and would receive the same privilege and confidence as it would between Canada and any other state, Cooper said. This also has implications for other legislation, such as the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and Canadian Security Intelligence Service Act.

The Chinese regime has continually tried to sideline Taiwan on the international stage by pushing countries around the world to adopt the One China policy, which rejects Taiwan as a sovereign state independent of communist China. Under this policy, Taiwan has constantly been denied participation in international organizations and forums.

Coopers bill supports Taiwans participation in multilateral organizations such as the World Health Organization and the International Civil Aviation Organizations, though it does not intend to challenge Canadas One China policy and recognize Taiwan as a sovereign state.

Cooper said his tabling of the bill has not received any pushback from Beijing, which claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has continuously tried to assert control over the self-governed island.

Beijing is going to do what Beijing is going to do. The fact of the matter is that we cannot govern our policy on the basis of Beijing, he said. We cannot be held hostage by the Chinese communist regime.

Over the past several months, China has stepped up military activities in Taiwans periphery, carrying out regular military flights into its international airspace.

On June 15, a record 28 Chinese military aircraftincluding various types of fighter jets and bombersentered Taiwans air defence identification zone (ADIZ), according to Taiwans Ministry of National Defence. A countrys ADIZ is a vital airspace within which the country requires the identification, location, and air traffic control of aircraft in order to ensure national security.

Cooper suggests Canada work with its allies, particularly the United States, to rein in Beijings predatory behaviour toward Taiwan.

Canada has to work with our allies to encourage a de-escalation on the part of the Chinese communist regime, he said.

We have seen a significant escalation of aggression towards Taiwan over the past year. It is a significant concern  [because] Chinas aggression has undermined the peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region and is a direct challenge to the international rules-based order, and is a threat to democracydemocracy larger than just that of Taiwan.

The bill also calls for renaming the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Canada to the Taiwan Representative Office to reflect its function as Taiwans de facto embassy.

Thats what that aspect of the bill would do, again reflecting reality, Cooper said.

With reporting by Andrew Chen
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk speaks at a press conference at Parliament House in Brisbane, Australia on Apr. 01, 2021. (Photo by Jono Searle/Getty Images)

Update: Queensland Closes Border to 7 Sydney Virus Hotspots Areas

Update: Thousands of Sydney city dwellers wont be allowed to travel beyond metropolitan areas as part of a raft of restrictions imposed after the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW) recorded 13 new CCP virus cases.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian said restrictions were effective immediately for Greater Sydney, the Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong, and Shellharbour.

The Bondi cluster now stands at 31 after an unvaccinated Sydney airport limousine driver last week tested positive to the highly infectious Delta variant, which quickly started spreading at Bondi Junctions busy Westfield shopping centre.

Please abandon non-essential activities, please dont attend social gatherings unless you absolutely must, the premier said on Wednesday.

I am not going to rule out further action.

This comes as earlier on Wednesday the Queensland government declared seven COVID hotspots in NSW as the cluster increased to 21 cases, at that time, before jumping up with 13 new cases reported hours later.

As a result, from 1 a.m. on Thursday, June 24, Queensland decided it would close its borders to people from the following Local Government Areas of Sydney:

The City of Sydney

Woollahra

Bayside

Canada Bay

Inner West

Randwick

As we know, this Delta variant is much more infectious than other variants, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk told reporters on Wednesday. We have serious concerns.

The emergence of a new Sydney cluster comes as Queensland prepares to lift further virus restrictions on Friday.

We cannot afford to have this Delta variant out in our community, the premier said, adding that she was following in Victorias footsteps to close its borders to those specific local government areas.

People should be prepared that if there is further spread in NSW, this advice may have to be updated, she added.

Palaszczuk also said the Delta variant had spread at a Novotel hotel used for quarantine in Queensland with authorities believing it to be a result of quarantine guests leaving their doors open.

I stress, we need to have regional quarantine, she said.

Queensland has recorded no new locally-acquired cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP virus, but one case of the Delta variant was detected in hotel quarantine.

This story is developing.
Security personnel keep watch outside the Wuhan Institute of Virology during the visit by the World Health Organization team tasked with investigating the origins COVID-19, in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, on Feb. 3, 2021. (Thomas Peter/Reuters)

Republicans Introduce Bill to Sanction China for Lack of COVID-19 Transparency

Republican lawmakers have introduced a bill that would authorize sanctions and other restrictions on scientists affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) unless Beijing allows a transparent, international probe into the origins of COVID-19 at suspected labs in China.

Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) on Tuesday introduced a House version of the COVID-19 Act of 2021 (pdf), while Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) on Monday introduced a Senate version (pdf) of the bill, which gives Chinas communist leaders 90 days from enactment to allow a credible and comprehensive investigation into the origins of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus or face a series of punitive measures.

The CCP has lied repeatedly about the origins of this pandemic, blocked access to important records from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, and corrupted the World Health Organization. This is unacceptable, Gallagher said in a statement.

As questions have swirled about the origins of the CCP virus, the Wuhan Institute of Virology, which studied coronaviruses and where scientists carried out research that involved boosting the virulence of some viruses, has refused to share its raw data, safety logs, and lab records about its work on coronaviruses in bats.

And while a report from the World Health Organization (WHO) published in March concluded that the CCP virus likely spread to people through an unknown animal, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at the time that the mission to study the origin of the virus didnt adequately analyze other theories.

More than a dozen nations, including the United States and the European Union, have raised concerns about the phase one WHO study into the origin of the virus, pointing to the reports significant delay and Chinas refusal to share crucial raw data. The United States in May urged the WHO to launch a fresh probe into the origins of the virus, highlighting the need for transparency.

At the same time, a pair of scientists argued in a June 6 op-ed in The Wall Street Journal that there exists damning scientific evidence supporting the theory that the CCP virus didnt make a natural jump from animal to human, but was bio-engineered in a Chinese lab.

The CCP has denied any connection between the viruss origin and the Wuhan lab, and has pushed the natural zoonotic hypothesisthat the virus was transmitted to humans from an animal host. The Chinese regime has also claimed that the virus originated outside of China. At a May 24 press briefing, Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian accused the United States of releasing the virus from the Fort Detrick military base in Maryland.

Rubio said in a statement: The Chinese Communist Party does not want a full, forensic investigation into the origins of COVID-19. If they did, it would have happened at some point during the last 18 months. Instead of hoping the Chinese authorities will suddenly cooperate, the United States needs to compel them to cooperate.

Rubio and Gallaghers bill calls for transparent international forensic investigation access to the Wuhan Institute of Virology within 90 days of the bills enactment. Failure to allow such a probe would authorize sanctions on the leadership at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), including its more than 100 affiliated institutes and laboratories, 13 local branches, and two universities.

The bill also prohibits U.S. federal research dollars from funding CAS-affiliated institutions and more than 430 science and technology enterprises created by the CAS or founded with CAS investment.

It would also prohibit any U.S. individual or institution that receives federal funding from cooperating with any Chinese individual or institution on gain-of-function research, which involves manipulating a viruss genome to increase its virulence or transmissibility.

The sanctions listed in the bill include blocking assets and denying visas.
A protester swings a hammer in an attempt to remove the head of the Egerton Ryerson statue after it was toppled at Ryerson University in Toronto on June 6, 2021. (The Canadian Press/Chris Young)

Ryerson Students Afraid to Speak Out Over Toppling of Statue, Fellow Student Says

Students at Ryerson University who are opposed to the recent toppling of a statue of the schools namesake are afraid to speak out for fear of being shunned by peers or being targeted online, says a student at the school.

Jonathan Bradley, a fourth-year journalism student at Ryerson, says other students have told him theyre in favour of keeping the statue but worry theyll be ostracized if they speak out.

Students who do speak out or who hold an opinion that is unwoke, as I like to call it, theyre often ostracized by their peers. Theyre mobbed online, harassed on campus, he told The Epoch Times.

I know a few students who have been doxxed for sharing an opinion that is considered unwoke. Youll be excluded, and the mob will do anything they can to try to get you to leave the university.

A statue of Egerton Ryerson, a prominent 19th-century educator who was instrumental in the design of the residential school system, was toppled and beheaded on the grounds of the university on June 6. The incident occurred following the reported discovery last month of what are believed to be the remains of 215 indigenous children at the location of a former residential school in Kamloops, B.C.

Ryerson University president Mohamed Lachemi has announced that the statue will not be restored or replaced. Last fall, the university established a task force to examine Egerton Ryersons history, including his relationship with Indigenous Peoples, education, residential schools and how that aligns with Ryerson Universitys values and mission.

Bradley says that although Ryersons ideas influenced the residential school system, the system itself did not come into being until after his death.

He believes the establishment of the residential schools shouldnt negate Ryersons many extraordinary contributions to Canada, including his service as a minister of the Methodist Church and his work to establish a public education system as the chief superintendent of education for Upper Canada.

In a commentary for the National Post, Bradley criticized the university for having kowtowed to the mob responsible for the vandalism, and defended students who hold an opposing opinion.

He says the piece received positive comments on the National Post website and on Facebook, but nasty comments flooded his Twitter account, with several people calling him a racist or bigot and accusing him of defending genocide.

Its difficult being a conservative, libertarian, even a moderate studentyoure expected to shut up or face consequences, he said. I know that this trend is going to continue where students are expected to shut up.

However, there are solutions, he said, one being the implementation at Ryerson of an effective free speech policy based on the University of Chicagos statement on freedom of expression, which provides a clear definition of freedom of speech that students and the university can be committed to.

In August 2018, the Ontario government mandated all publicly funded universities and colleges in the province to implement a free speech policy by Jan. 1, 2019. The institutions are also required to report annually to the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario, which monitors compliance, starting in September 2019.

Bradley said this is a good start, but more needs to be done.

I think it would definitely help if politicians started speaking out whenever these incidents on campus happen, and saying, Whats going on is wrong. Universities need to stand up for free speech, he said.

With reporting by Andrew Chen
Kylie Munson, 15, graduated from the University of CaliforniaIrvine after receiving a full scholarship to the school at age 13. (Courtesy of Kylie Munson)

Science Prodigy, 15, Graduates From UCI

A 15-year-old girl has graduated from the University of CaliforniaIrvine, and is now focusing on being admitted into medical school.

Kylie Munson began taking college classes as an 11-year-old student at Los Angeles Mission College after testing out of traditional standardized testing at her private school.

At age 13, she earned an associate degree in general studies with an emphasis in natural science, something she has been fascinated with since elementary school.

I remember when I was about 10 years old reading this science nature textbook and that just started off my love for science, Munson told The Epoch Times. And I said, OK, I really love this, and then I just started going deeper into the biology of nature and the animals and DNA and all of that stuff, and it just sparked my interest from there.

At the same time as earning her associate degree, Munson graduated from Sage Oak High School with a 4.89 GPA.

At 13, Munson was nominated to represent California at the Congress of Future Medical Leaders, which honors Americas brightest high school students who want to become future leaders in the medical field.

Apart from her academic life, she also loves participating in cheer competitions, with her team SMOED winning the most significant competition in the cheer community, called Worlds, in 2018.

Munson was offered a full ride to UCI at age 13.

During her time there, she said that being younger than her classmates was definitely an interesting experience, but that she was already used to being around older people, something she felt helped her to mature faster.

I still felt like a normal student there, she said. Most people wouldnt notice unless I told them my age right away.

Munson said she decided to go to UCI because of its sense of community, instead of going to a much larger school where one might feel like just another student.

She said some of her more memorable experiences involved being on the schools dance and cheer team.

It was nice to have some school spirit to feel more like a normal student, and then also doing lab work and having some of the best professors was more of the academic side to that.

Asked how it felt to walk across the stage for her UCI graduation at such a young age, Munson said she felt relieved, knowing that all of her hard work was coming to fruition and she could move on to the next step.

For right now, Im going to work on studying for the MCAT [Medical College Admission Test] and applying to medical school, and then also just being able to relax and do some normal teenager things.

After going to medical school, Munson said she hopes to work in cutting-edge research to help find cures for inherited diseases.
Secret Insider-Savings Info

I enjoy discovering secret informationstuff most people dont know about. And I love spreading the word. For example, my supermarket, like most, offers a rain check if they run out of a product that is on sale. This is really great, in my opinion, because my stores rain checks have no set expiration date. But theres another secret: Theres no limit on how many of that item I can get laterat a more convenient timewith my rain check.

Case in point: Last summer, this supermarket advertised its London broil cut of beef for $3.99 a pound. Thats a bargain where I live. And sure enough, the store sold out before noon on Sunday, the day I was shopping. No problem.

Because my goal was to load up for my freezer, I asked for a rain check. A full two months later, when London broil was at its regular price of $7.99 a poundquite plentiful in the butchers case and, I believe, nicer selectionsI bought 10. And yes, I got the $3.99 per pound for the lot. I smiled all the way home.

I am excited to have just learned another secret. Dont we all believe Starbucks has three sizes of drinks? Tall, Grande, and Venti. Well, were wrong.

Theres a secret size for those who know to ask: Short. All hot Starbucks drinks come in an optional short size. Its cheaper and just the right size, at least for me8 ounces as opposed to the 12-ounce Tall size. And heres a bonus: The 8-ounce short cappuccino from Starbucks is 8 ounces but has the same amount of espresso as the tall, meaning that your coffee-to-milk ratio is much higher. So, if you just want more coffee in your cappuccino or prefer to spend as little as possible at Starbucks, there are a few reasons to give the short cappuccino a try.

Heres another secret: The large size of some products in the supermarket is actually more expensive per unit than the smaller size. No kidding! You have to look carefully at the shelf label that indicates the unit pricing (or just figure it out if youre some kind of math wizard). This is not true of all products; you have to know to check.

Want another? I cant guarantee this to be true nationwide, but at the Walgreens drug store close to my office, milk is $2.99 a gallonabout half the $4.69 supermarket price. Who would ever think to buy milk at the drug store? Smart people whove figured out that secret, thats who! Another place for really cheap, fresh milk: the Mobil gasoline stations minimart across the street from that Walgreens. They soak you out at the pump, but they offer a deal inside for those in the know.

Theres a secret in the back of Costco. Even as prices are soaring, the Costco rotisserie chickens are still just $5. Big, plump, and juicy roasted chickens! Costcos famous $4.99 rotisserie chickens sound too good to be true. But theyre totally worth it. Have you seen how plump those birds are? Costcos chickens can weigh twice as much as those of its competitors but for a fraction of the price. Plus, contrary to lots of internet rumors and fake reporting, theyre perfectly seasoned and have no preservatives, MSG, or artificial colors and flavors.

Got secrets? Come on. Fess up! Our curious minds want to know.

Mary Hunt is the founder of EverydayCheapskate.com, a frugal living blog and the author of the book Debt-Proof Living. Mary invites you to visit her at her website, where this column is archived complete with links and resources for all recommended products and services. Mary invites questions and comments at EverydayCheapskate.com/contact, Ask Mary. Tips can be submitted at Tips.EverydayCheapskate.com. This column will answer questions of general interest, but letters cannot be answered individually. Copyright 2021 Creators.com
(L-R) Sens. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), John Thune (R-S.D.), Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) speak to the media at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, on Nov. 10, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

Senate Republican Leader Calls Democrats Sweeping Election Reform Bill a Federal Takeover

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said that Senate Bill 1 (S.1)the For the People Act of 2021is an attempt by Democrats to control the outcome of future elections by taking power away from state election officials.

Theres no rational basis for a federal government takeover of all 50 states elections, McConnell said in a social media statement Tuesday.

The U.S. Constitution gives the primary power of conducting elections to the state legislatures, with additional power to Congress to alter some laws related to running elections.

The Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by law make or alter such Regulations, except as to the Places of choosing Senators, states the Constitution (pdf) in Article I, Section 4: States Conduct Congressional Elections.

Congress has amended the Constitution several times to ensure all Americans have the right to vote, as seen in the 15th and 19th Amendments.

Opponents of S.1 argue that it is an extreme overreach by Congress to control how elections are run nationwide.

Hans von Spakovsky, who heads The Heritage Foundation Election Law Reform Initiative, said, A better description of it [S.1] is that this bill would be a federal takeover and nationalization of the running and administration of elections, basically taking it away from the states.

Sens. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), chairwoman of the Rules Committee who introduced S.1 in the Senate, say the legislation will end corruption in election funding by taking out dark money, as well as end voter suppression.

Thats the only way we can realize our founders We the People vision. We must tackle every obstacle, from partisan gerrymandering to massive sums of dark money, to voter suppression, that is keeping us from fully realizing the promise of an equal and just America, said Merkley.

Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) speaks to the media in Washington, on April 30, 2019. (Pete Marovich/Getty Images)

Unlike Democrats, conservatives like von Spakovsky say election laws should make it easier to vote and hard to cheat, but S.1 will invite fraud in elections.

It [S.1] would change election rules to make it easier to cheat and easier to manipulate election results. And on the ethics and campaign finance rule changes, its designed to restrict and chill speech, political speech, and political activity, said von Spakovsky.

Theres a reason the framers of the Constitution gave the authority to the states to run elections. And the reason for that was they didnt want the people who are in control in Washington, say one political party, which is apparently the case right now, changing the rules nationally to ensure that they remain in office, added von Spakovsky.

Republican senators held a press briefing on June 17 voicing their opposition to S.1. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said the Democrats bill is politically motivated.

The best evidence of the political nature of this bill is that they want to take away from red states, where people are moving, the ability to draw lines. Were going to pick up four or five seats as Republicans because of the census. Under this bill, this independent commission would take away from Florida, Montana, and Texas the ability to draw these lines. This has got nothing to do with improving voting. It has everything to do with locking in perpetual power by the left, said Graham.

Currently, in 34 states, the state legislature is in charge of redistricting. Many of the rest of the states have independent commissions, limiting elected officials from being on the panel, that draw district lines. S.1 would mandate that partisan independent commissions be in charge of redistricting in all 50 states.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said the Senate will take a vote to start debate on S.1 on Tuesday, saying that Republicans at the state and federal level are trying to suppress peoples right to vote and validating former President Donald Trump claim that there was widespread voter fraud.

Schumer was making a reference to election laws being introduced by Republican state legislatures to make elections more secure and reverse some of the voting changes made during the pandemic, as well as address some of the irregularities that were found during the 2020 election ballot counting.

It is spectacularly obvious that Republicans are making it harder to vote and easier to steal an election. The big lie that started with Donald Trump is infecting them, Schumer said on the Senate floor. Republicans across the country are trying to stop the other side from voting that tearsrips apartthe very fabric of our democracy.

Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) said the vote in the Senate for S.1 will be just for show. Its designed purely and simply to score political points. Nothing more, nothing less.
The St. Louis Art Museum in Forest Park occupies the magnificent Palace of Fine Arts, which was erected for the 1904 World's Fair. (Dennis Lennox)

St. Louis Surprises

St. Louis has seen better days, but as I learned during a recent visit, the first American city west of the Mississippi River punches well above its weight with world-class attractions.

My visit started in Forest Park at the St. Louis Art Museum.

The museums main building, designed by architect Cass Gilbert in the then-fashionable style of beaux-arts, was built for the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, also known as the 1904 Worlds Fair. Originally called the Palace of Fine Arts, its a fitting home for a collection spanning 5,000 years and more than 34,000 objects.

The fair was when the world came to St. Louis, a considerable feat given the realities of travel in those days. Some may know it was there that hot dogs, hamburgers, ice cream cones, and other now-established staples of American food were supposedly invented, or, at least, first served to the masses.

St. Louis Union Station. (kwan tse/Shutterstock)

Forest Parkat over 1,300 acres it is larger than New York Citys considerably more famous Central Parkis more than just a relic of St. Louis during the Gilded Age.

It embodies the City Beautiful movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the legacy of which was basically lost during the interwar and postwar years, as concrete and more modern forms of architecture came to dominate cityscapes. Just as the St. Louis Art Museum is one of the countrys best art museums, this is one of the best city parks anywhere.

On the other side of Forest Park stands the neoclassical Jefferson Memorial, which was built with proceeds from the Worlds Fair.

The Basilica of Saint Louis, King of France or as it is commonly called, the Old Cathedral. Built in the early 1830s to replace an earlier structure, it was the first Roman Catholic cathedral west of the Mississippi River. (Dennis Lennox)

Claimed as the first monument to Thomas Jeffersonauthor of the Declaration of Independence, who, as the third president of the United States, spearheaded the Louisiana Purchase that expanded a fledgling country westward to the Pacificit houses the Missouri History Museum. As far state history museums go, it was interesting to explore, especially the now-concluded Mighty Mississippi exhibit that detailed how the river gave rise to the St. Louis of today.

A mural depicting Mississippi River life in St. Louis during the mid-19th century at the Gateway Arch National Park. (Dennis Lennox)

A quick car ride away is Eero Saarinens Gateway Arch, facing the Mississippi River on one side and the Old Courthouse, where the 1857 trial of the slave Dred Scott took place, on the other.

While controversial at the time of its erection40 blocks of buildings in one of the oldest sections of St. Louis were razedthe 630-foot monument and its surrounding area have beautified in recent years, thanks to a 3-year-old green space-covered bridge that spans an interstate highway to seamlessly connect the riverfront with downtown.

Directly underneath the arch is a must-visit visitor center and museum, which includes an overview of the 1764 founding of St. Louis by French colonists. Other landmarks worth seeing within walking distance are the Basilica of St. Louis, King of France, as the Old Cathedral is formally called; the Renaissance-inspired City Hall built at the turn of the last century; the post office on Market Street with its New Deal-era murals; and the castle-like Union Station, parts of which have been repurposed into the St. Louis Aquarium.

The Gateway Arch, seen through a brick window frame. (RozenskiP/Shutterstock)

If You Go

Stay at Le Meridien. This relatively new Marriott hotel is located a short drive from Forest Park in the St. Louis suburb of Clayton. Also nearby is Francis Field at Washington University, where the 1904 Summer Olympics were held.

Eat at French bistro Vin de Set, Cinder House at the Four Seasons Hotel, or 801 Fish, one of the better local seafood restaurants. Cafe la Vie inside the Le Meridien has unrealized potential.

Admission to the St. Louis Art Museum is free from Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Those hours extend to 9 p.m. on Friday. The Missouri History Museum, which is also free, is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday.

The bandstand in Forest Park. (STLJB/Shutterstock)

Gateway Arch National Parks museum is open daily in the summer from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. with no admission charge. Other experiences at the park, including a tram ride to the top of the monument, require payment of fees. Be advised that the concessionaire requires all visitors to wear masks, even though Missouri has no mask mandate and anyone with medical conditions is federally exempt.

More visitor resources can be found at the Explore St. Louis website (ExploreStLouis.com).

Dennis Lennox writes a travel column for The Epoch Times. Follow @dennislennox on Twitter and Instagram.

The authors visit was partially hosted by Explore St. Louis.
Strawberry Moon on June 24 Will Be the Last Supermoon of 2021Heres What You Need to Know:

Hot on the heels of the summer solstice, this months full moon rises on June 24. Known as the Strawberry Moon, Junes lunar marker will also be a supermoon.

For many, pending clear skies, the celestial spectacle will be visible from the comfort of home.

The Strawberry Moon rises over the ocean at Narrawallee Beach, near Mollymook on the south coast of New South Wales, on June 6, 2020. (David Gray/AFP via Getty Images)

The Strawberry supermoon will reach peak illumination at 2:40 p.m. ET on Thursday, June 24, and visibility will be optimal in the southeastern skies just after sunset, reports The Old Farmers Almanac. As it peaks above the horizon, the supermoon will appear larger than usual and golden hued.

A full moon is considered a supermoon when it coincides with its closest point to Earth (called its perigee) on its elliptical orbit. It will appear as much as 7 percent bigger, and brighter than a regular full moon, though the naked eye might not notice the difference. The moon will appear full until early Saturday morning, giving lunar enthusiasts multiple chances to catch the spectacle.

Strawberry Moon is a name that originates from the Algonquin, Ojibwe, Dakota, and Lakota peoples, and marks the ripening and gathering of strawberries in North America in the month of June. Typically the last full moon of spring, the Strawberry Moon was also deemed the Berries Ripen Moon by the Haida indigenous people of British Columbia.

Amidst ripe fruit and blooming flowers, the name connotes the abundance occurring during this month.

Other tribal names for Junes full moon allude to the birth of animal young in springtime, such as the Tlingit peoples Birth Moon, and the Cree peoples Egg Laying Moon and Hatching Moon.

People watch the Strawberry Moon rise over the ocean on Narrawallee Beach, near Mollymook on the south coast of New South Wales, on June 6, 2020. (David Gray/AFP via Getty Images)

In Europe, the Strawberry Moon was also known as the Honey Moon and the Mead Moon, perhaps connoting to the celebration of marriages which traditionally occurred in June.

For anyone unable to witness the Strawberry supermoon from an outdoor vantage point, Virtual Telescope Project will be livestreaming the eventas seen over Romefrom 3:00 p.m. ET on June 24.

The Strawberry Moon rising behind St. Michaels Mount in Marazion near Penzance in Cornwall, England, on June 28, 2018. (Matt Cardy/Getty Images)

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
A woman holds a small bottle labelled with a "Coronavirus COVID-19 Vaccine" sticker and a medical syringe in this illustration taken on Oct. 30, 2020. (Dado Ruvic/Reuters)

Students Sue Indiana University Over COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate

Eight students from Indiana University (IU) filed a lawsuit in a federal court on Monday against the schools COVID-19 vaccine mandate, saying the mandate is unconstitutional and violates Indianas ban on vaccine passports.

The Bopp Law Firm represented the eight students and sued the board of trusteesthe IUs governing body and legal owner.

IUs Mandate violates the constitutional rights of IUs studentsit requires all IU students without any meaningful exemptions to take the COVID vaccine, lead counsel James Bopp said in a statement, noting that no government entity and no other Indiana public university requires a COVID-19 vaccination.

This kind of total disregard for student freedom to choose for themselves, for students bodily autonomy, and for the need for voluntary and informed consent cannot stand under the U.S. Constitution, Bopp added.

On May 21, 2021, IU notified all faculty, staff, and students through email that there would be a requirement to receive a COVID-19 vaccine for the fall semester.

Failing to do so will result in students class registrations being canceled, their university-issued IDs terminated, and being prohibited from any on-campus activity.

Faculty and staff who do not comply will no longer be able to be employed by IU.

Approved exemptions will be extremely limited to a very narrow set of criteria, the universitys website reads. The exemptions include religious exemptions, medical exemptions with documentation or medical deferrals, and an online program exemptionit must be an online program, not simply taking all online classes.

According to the lawsuit, one plaintiff, Mr. D.J.B., was refused a medical exemption even though he recently had a COVID-19 antibody test which revealed that he still has antibodies.

Another plaintiff, Jaime Carini, was refused a medical exemption even though her physician provided a letter stating she should not receive any immunization due to her current illness. She received a religious exemption but faces extra requirements of masks and testing.

The lawsuit (pdf) points out that all three available COVID-19 vaccinesPfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnsonhave only Emergency Use Authorization status and are not licensed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

A vaccine authorized under Emergency Use Authorization requires complete, informed, and voluntary consent, the complaint claims, saying the threat of virtual expulsion from school is coercion.

Hundreds of people protest a mandate from the Massachusetts governor requiring all children to receive a flu vaccine to attend school for the 20202021 year, outside the Massachusetts State House in Boston on Aug. 30, 2020. (Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images)

The lawsuit also alleges that college students are at extremely low risk of adverse effects if they get infected. However, the risks and side effects of COVID-19 vaccines are serious and increasingly recognized.

The mandate violates the liberty protected by the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, including rights of personal autonomy and bodily integrity and the right to reject medical treatment, the lawsuit claims.

The mandate also violates Indianas ban on vaccine passports, the lawsuit states.

Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita issued an opinion in May (pdf), saying the ban on vaccine passports applies to public colleges and universities because they are arms of the state.

IU unquestionably violates the new law by requiring its students, faculty, and staff to show proof of immunization as a condition of continued attendance or employment, Rokita wrote in his letter.

But Rokita also said that federal law requires individuals to be informed of the options and consequences but does not explicitly prohibit an entity from mandating a vaccine, even if it is experimental.

In a statement to The Epoch Times, IUs spokesperson Chuck Carney said IUs mandate would remain in place to support a return to safe and more normal operations this fall.

The university is confident it will prevail in this case. Following the release of the Indiana attorney generals opinion, our process was revised, with uploading proof of vaccination no longer required. The attorney generals opinion affirmed our right to require the vaccine, Carney continued.

Bopp also asked for an expedition and sought a preliminary injunction (pdf) to prevent this mandate from taking effect so the eight students can return to school in time.

More than 1,200 cases of heart inflammation in adolescents and young adults following Pfizers or Modernas COVID vaccine have been reported in the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Wednesday.
Texas Governor Announces Special Legislative Session on Voting and Critical Race Theory Bills

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has set a special legislative session in an attempt to pass a measure focused on the states election laws and regulationscoming weeks after Democrats blocked a Republican-backed election reform package from advancing by leaving the Capitol building.

The governor, a Republican, didnt specify in the June 22 announcement the legislative priorities that will be included during the special session, scheduled to start on July 8. But Abbott has already said that he will ask state lawmakers to work on elections and bail bills that were halted by the walkout during the final hours of the previous legislative session on May 30.

Agenda items will be announced prior to the convening of the special session, Abbott said in a statement.

In May, the state Senate approved sweeping election legislation along party lines, which at the time drew condemnation from high-level Democrats as well as Marc Elias, a lawyer who has filed a number of election-related lawsuits on behalf of the Democratic Party. Echoing their criticism against GOP-backed election laws in other states, Democrats, including President Joe Biden, said the bill would suppress voter turnout rates and described it as an attack on democracy.

But state Sen. Bryan Hughes, the Republican who authored the bill, said the measure would keep Texass elections fair and honest.

We want elections to be secure and accessible, said Hughes when it was approved.

The voting measure would grant more power to poll watchers by giving them more access inside polling areas, while creating new penalties against election officials who restrict poll watchers movements. The proposal would also allow a judge to void the outcome of an election if the number of fraudulent votes could change the result.

It isnt clear if lawmakers will make any tweaks to the bill during the special session, which may last as long as 30 days. Some Republicans signaled that they would change at least one provision that would modify a proposal regarding the window for early voting on Sundays, the Texas Tribune reported.

Abbotts other priority legislation deals with how bail is handled, according to his recent comments to news outlets. The proposed measure, which was also killed by House Democrats last month, would make it more difficult for people who are arrested to bond out of jail without providing cash.

During a campaign call with supporters on June 22, the governor also said he wants to add legislation to deal with the Marxist-inspired critical race theory, the Dallas Morning News reported. Earlier this month, Abbott signed a bill that would bar the teaching of certain concepts related to race in public schools.

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, a Republican, has called on the Legislature to pass a bill that limits transgender athletes from competing in school sports. Hes also seeking the passage of a bill that would limit how social media companies operate in Texas.

I fully expect to have a session where we will pass an election integrity bill, as well as bail reform, Abbott told the Dallas Morning News in June. Those are both needed and they both must pass. And as we get there, we may be adding some additional items.
The CCP Is Vulnerable and Its Rule Could End With a Coming Coup: Expert

The Chinese regime is not as strong as its portrayed to the outside world, and many internal problems plaguing the regime will lead to its demise, says a former British diplomat and China expert.

These problems have been recognized by some high-level Chinese officials themselves, and they could lead a coup detat to remove current Chinese leader Xi Jinping to protect their own interests, according to Roger Garside, author of China Coup: The Great Leap to Freedom, in a recent interview on Epoch TVs American Thought Leaders program.

They can see better than most people can see, that this regime is outwardly strong but inwardly weak. And that its in a state of political decay, Garside said.

And that their best hope for preserving their own wealth and power, as well as the best hope for China, is to lead a coup detat to remove Xi Jinping and to launch China into a democratic transition.

These problems are not caused by external forces or anti-China forces, which the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) often blames for Chinas woes. Instead, the problems have been created by the communist regimes own political system, a totalitarian dictatorship, Garside said.

They [the Chinese regime] are weak inwardly because there is a moral crisis in China. There is a system of corruptionthe system is corrupt from top to bottom, from left to right. And I could go on, but the single greatest area of weakness is, curiously enough, the economy, Garside said.

The moral plunge in China began when the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) lost its moral authority after the Tiananmen Square Massacre, according to Garside. To replace the lost authority, Garside said the regime began the biggest privatization campaign the world has ever seen, in order to use material incentive so people would be loyal to the CCP leadership.

In June 1989, the Chinese regime ordered its troops to open fire on student protesters and unarmed civilians in Tiananmen Square. The CCP denies having initiated a violent crackdown, and any discussion about the protest movement is considered taboo in China.

Unnamed sources within the CCP said that at least 10,000 people were killed that day, according to declassified British cable and declassified U.S. documents.

There certainly is moral decay and a moral vacuum; no trust, no truth, Garside said.

Beijings privatization effort didnt lead to a market economy, but a command economy that has paved the way for rampant corruption in China.

Theres an absence of clarity of ownership in China today on the huge state-owned companies: who controls them, who really owns them, even the private ones, who really owns and controls them. This is all very opaque, and where there is opacity in economic and financial affairs, then youll get corruption, Garside said. And that allowed power holders at every level [in China] to become rich and powerful.

In recent years, many high- and low-ranking CCP officials have been charged with graft and embezzlement, as well as senior executives of Chinas state-owned companies. One of the biggest names implicated in corruption was Zhou Yongkang, a former security chief who was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2015.

Underscoring all of Chinas problems was its economy, which is not as strong as the Chinese regime has touted, according to Garside.

Since 2008, they [the Chinese regime] have relied upon pumping billions of credit into the system in order to maintain an artificially high growth rate. And this flood of money has led to a great deal of distortion, false economic activity, un-economic activity, and fragility within the financial system, he said.

Rather than sitting on the side and wait for political changes in China, the United States and its allies should be proactive such as helping to bring down the Chinese regimes Great Firewall, which blocks access to many foreign websites and social media sites, Garside said.

The communist regime is vulnerable. But I do not believe that the totalitarian regime will be destroyed solely by dynamics within China. I think its absolutely essential that the U.S. and its allies go onto the offensive, he said.

Because China and the United States are deeply connected, particularly on economic and social fronts, the United States cant just sit idly in the face of growing Chinese threats. If we dont counterattack against this ambitious and dangerous regime, we are going to lose our freedom, Garside said.

We cannot just sit back and say, we have right on our side, we will make a better job of running our own countries. Yes, weve got to do that. But weve also got to find the vulnerabilities. Weve got to educate our people of the peril which faces us.
The sting of bankruptcy is not likely to ever go away completely. (diy13/Shutterstock)

The Heartbreak and Effects of Filing for Bankruptcy

Dear Mary: Please give me some pointers on bouncing back from bankruptcy. Will this have any effect on future employment opportunities? Emmaline

Dear Emmaline: Pay your bills on time; never be late. Do not run up big balances. Do not apply for a lot of credit. Never use more than 30 percent of your credit limits. Never allow a credit card balance to roll from one month to the next. Above all, let nothing prevent you from saving 10 percent of your net income.

Many states allow employers to require credit reports from prospective employees: Its the new character reference. Your bankruptcy could adversely affect your job opportunities. The same will hold true for applying for a mortgage or life insurance. That probing question of, Have you ever filed for bankruptcy? will require truth and honesty.

If you are diligent, your credit report will soon reflect a definite change of behavior and your new lifestyle. This will be evident to anyone looking closely at your credit report.

Only time can neutralize the effects of bankruptcy. Once 10 years have passed, it will be much better, as it can be reported by credit bureaus for only 10 years.

Unfortunately, the sting is not likely to ever go away completely.

Dear Mary: We are thinking about filing for bankruptcy. We owe $30,000 in credit card debt plus $1,000 in outstanding medical bills.

Every month, we are falling further and further behind because we have a $2,500 mortgage payment, monthly bills, babysitting, groceries, gas, etc. I know things are not going to clear up overnight, but can you please help us get some reliefquickly? Ron

Dear Ron: My heart goes out to you. Ive been in financial trouble, too. You need to know that your problem is not the result of medical bills or a big mortgage payment. Your problem is credit card debt. It may appear that the medical bill has pushed you over the edge, but its the credit card debt that is such a problem. You are addicted to spending money before youve earned it.

Bankruptcy wont address this problem. Quick fixes dont teach us much. You borrowed the money and spent it freely, and now you have a moral obligation to repay it. I believe you are ideal candidates for credit counseling. My best advice is for you to contact the National Federation of Credit Counselors at their website or by calling 800-388-2227 today.

If its any consolation, my credit card troubles at one point were more than three times yours. It took 13 years, but together, my husband and I repaid every dime, including interest and penaltiesno concessions. It changed my life.

Dear Mary: My husband and I have really gotten ourselves in deep this time. At the time, we thought it was a good idea. We bought a franchise, funding the upfront cost using our personal credit cards.

The manager we hired was inept and untrustworthy. Now, we are in credit card debt to the tune of $250,000.

We are trying to crawl out from under this problem, and we are out of working capital to keep things going.

We cant find anyone who will make us a consolidation loan. Please respond quickly. We are sinking fast! Desperates

Dear Desperates: I wish youd written before you headed down such a dangerous path. Instead, you violated nearly every rule of self-employment: You went into business with borrowed funds; you hired employees before you were profitable; you thought of credit as working capital. Need I go on?

I will say that if theres one thing you did right, it was not taking out a home equity loan to fund this nightmare.

As much as your unsecured creditors may scream and yell, hassle and harangue, they cannot take your home. And they cannot eat you. But they can sue you if you are unable to keep up with your monthly minimum payments, which would be an even worse nightmare.

Bankruptcy may be your only recourse. And while you might be relieved of this burden through bankruptcy, discharged debts dont disappear. The rest of us pay them through increased prices.

It pains me greatly to suggest its probably time for you to consult with a bankruptcy attorney.

Mary Hunt is the founder of EverydayCheapskate.com, a frugal living blog, and the author of the book Debt-Proof Living. Mary invites you to visit her at her website, where this column is archived complete with links and resources for all recommended products and services. Mary invites questions and comments at EverydayCheapskate.com/contact, Ask Mary. Tips can be submitted at Tips.EverydayCheapskate.com. This column will answer questions of general interest, but letters cannot be answered individually. Copyright 2021 Creators.com.
Traffic Cameras Installed at Over 100 Intersections in Richmond Raises Privacy, Surveillance Concerns

The installation of video cameras at over half the intersections in Richmond, B.C., is raising concerns around surveillance and whether the data could fall into the hands of foreign state agents given that the footage can be purchased by the public.

The main concern is the loss of privacy, of course, and the selling of data, personal data, without monitoring, oversight, or control, policy analyst and immigration lawyer Richard Kurland told The Epoch Times.

[Another] is that, why is it needed to that extent?  You have more cameras per capita in Richmond than anywhere else in Canada.

Richmond announced in April that it had installed traffic cameras, known as closed-circuit TV cameras, at 110 intersections aiming to make roads safer, noting that steps have been taken to ensure privacy is maintained.



Mayor Malcolm Brodie said at the time that it was an important initiative that would positively impact road users in Richmond.

By providing the city more accurate data, traffic planning to increase safety and potentially mitigate vehicle congestion will increase, Brodie said. The cameras will also enhance community safety as camera footage will be available for up to 30 days, to assist in vehicle-related incidents.

Kurland points out, however, that there isnt a high collision rate in Richmond. According to data published by the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, Richmond has seen its number of reported crashes cut by nearly half in the past five years, including a significant drop from 16,231 in 2019 to 9,795 in 2020.

The idea is that these systems have been put in places where there are high levels and a trend of car crashes, but the data dont support that. In fact, the number of incidents has plummeted over the last couple of years in Richmond, so its not because of a traffic problem, Kurland says.

Regarding privacy, Meghan McDermott, a staff lawyer with the B.C. Civil Liberties Association, told Richmond News in March 2020 that various court decisions have shown that people are allowed a certain level of anonymity even while in public, although the issue of privacy in a public place is not clear-cut.

She warned that if the video cameras dont blur out faces and licence plates, the footage could be used for malicious purposes or general state surveillance.

Kurland says the newly installed cameras are not the same as a photo radar system, which snaps a photo if someone runs a red light. This is very different. This is not one photoits continuous mass surveillance.

Kim Decker, a corporate communications officer for the city, said in an email that the city has worked closely with B.C.s Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner (OIPC) on the project and is in compliance with regulations to not collect video footage of a sufficient resolution quality to identify facial or licence plate data.

Decker also said the traffic cameras will not be used for generic surveillance or observation.

Immigration lawyer and policy analyst Richard Kurland in Vancouver on Feb. 27, 2018. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press)

In a 71 vote in May, however, Richmond city council adopted a motion to seek approval from the solicitor general, premier, and local MLAs to allow the newly installed traffic cameras to record better quality footage that could help in police investigations if needed. The cameras had earlier been installed following strict OIPC guidelines that they blur out faces and licence plates. In its vote in May, council supported challenging the privacy commissioners ruling, Richmond News reported.

According to the citys April news release, the public and businesses can buy the video footage to assist in legal or other matters such as evidence of collisions. The cost will be $375, and the buyer must specify the location, date, and time related to the vehicle in question, as Decker said the city will only release footage that involves some type of collision.

Kurland says theres nothing to prevent Richmond from selling the data to a proxy, which may in turn sell it to a foreign government. This presents risks for human rights activists, particularly if their data falls into the hands of a regime such as the Chinese Communist Party, he said.

This is essentially an expansion of the Hong Kong surveillance system into Canada, in the city of Richmond and our airport, because the airport is in Richmond. I cannot drive to the airport without being caught by this mass surveillance system.

He said unless people push back, they could easily lose their privacy rights.

If privacy rights groups, human rights groups, refugee protection groups, all start to protest or express their opposition, things can change and change quickly. Otherwise, this is coming to your neighbourhood. If you dont fight this now, expect to see mass surveillance in your neighbourhood because no one fought it here.
Police set up a cordon line outside Apple Daily headquarters in Hong Kong on June 17, 2021. (Kin Cheung,File/AP Photo)

UK, EU Condemn Forced Closure of Pro-Democracy Hong Kong Newspaper

The UK and the EU condemned the erosion of press freedom in Hong Kong on Wednesday after a pro-democracy newspaper announced its closure.

Apple Daily, regarded as among the few independent media outlets in Hong Kong, will halt its operations by midnight on Wednesday after police arrested its executives and froze assets linked to the paper, rendering it unable to maintain operations.

The forced closure of Apple Daily by the Hong Kong authorities is a chilling blow to freedom of expression in Hong Kong, British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said in a statement.

It is crystal clear that the powers under the National Security Law are being used as a tool to curtail freedoms and punish dissentrather than keep public order, he said.

Raab said the Chinese regime had promised to protect press freedom and freedom of speech in Hong Kong under the UK-Sino Joint Declaration.

It must keep its promises, and stand by the commitments it freely assumed, he said.

The European Union also condemned the erosion of press freedom in Hong Kong.

The closure of Apple Dailys Hong Kong operations clearly shows how the National Security Law imposed by Beijing is being used to stifle freedom of the press and the free expression of opinions, Nabila Massrali, the EUs spokesperson for Foreign Affairs & Security Policy said in a statement.

Its closing seriously undermines media freedom and pluralism, which are essential for any open and free society. The erosion of press freedom is also counter to Hong Kongs aspirations as an international business hub, she said.

Massrali said the EU also recalls that these freedoms had been enshrined in the Hong Kong Basic Law, and the Chinese regime had committed to respect them under the Basic Law and the Sino-British Joint Declaration.

All rights enshrined in the Basic Law under the One Country, Two Systems principle should be fully protected and restored, she said.

The Joint Declaration was supposed to guarantee Hong Kong a high degree of autonomy for 50 years following the handover of the territory by Britain to China in 1997.

Chinese state media has previously dismissed the treaty as a historical document which had been invalid and expired for a long time.

More than 500 police officers raided Apple Dailys headquarters on June 17 and arrested five executives on suspicion of colluding with foreigners to endanger national security, an ambiguous offense under the draconian national security law imposed by Beijing last year. Two of the executives were charged the next day.

Hong Kong police cited over 30 articles published by the popular tabloid, accusing them of being part of an alleged conspiracy to impose foreign sanctions on Hong Kong and China, and said that the reports breached the national security law. It marks the first case where authorities have alleged media reports as violating the national security law.

Authorities also froze HK$18 million ($2.3 million) worth of assets from three companies linked to the paper.

Apple Daily is known for its critical coverage of the Chinese Communist Party and the current pro-Beijing Hong Kong government over past years of mass protests.

Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai, who founded Next Digital and owns Apple Daily, is currently in jail, serving multiple sentences over his participation in multiple pro-democracy demonstrations.

More than 100 people have been arrested under the national security law to date.

Mimi Nguyen Ly and PA contributed to this report.
UK Signs Deal to Help Enhance Ukrainian Naval Capabilities

The United Kingdom and Ukraine have signed a trilateral agreement with a British defence industry partner to enhance Ukraines naval capabilities.

It includes new ships, armaments, and the training of Ukrainian Navy personnel.

The UKs Minister for Defence Procurement Jeremy Quin and First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Tony Radakin signed the Memorandum of Implementation (MOI) onboard the British destroyer HMS Defender on Wednesday with Ukraines Deputy Minister of Defence Oleksandr Myroniuk and the CEO of London-based aerospace, defence, and nuclear engineering services company Babcock.

HMS Defender was visiting the Uranian port of Odessa as part of the UKs Carrier Strike Group deployment. A trilateral exercise between the UK, Ukraine, and the United States also took place on board the ship.

The MOI is built on a Memorandum of Intent signed last October by the defence ministers of the two countries.

I am delighted that British and Ukrainian industry will work together on these projects, which will provide world-leading capabilities and provide opportunities for both our nations to boost our shipbuilding enterprises, Quin said in a statement.

He said the UK and Ukraine continue to strengthen their close defence relationship to help deter shared threats.

Myroniuk said: Ukraine and the UK are good friends and allies. Todays Memorandum gives a new impetus to our co-operation in naval industry and will facilitate further development of the Ukrainian Navy. We appreciate the British support and value your experience.

The Ukrainian naval capabilities enhancement projects include enhancing capabilities on existing naval platforms and building new platforms, including fast attack missile craft, a modern frigate capability, shipborne armaments, and the training of naval personnel; and Ukrainian shipyards will also be regenerated.

The UK government said that contractual work will now begin on missile sales and integration on new and in-service Ukrainian Navy patrol and airborne platforms, including a training and engineering support package; the development and joint production of eight fast missile warships; the creation of two new naval bases on the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov; the delivery of a modern frigate capability, and a government to government sale of two refurbished Sandown-class mine countermeasure vessels.

Babcock was chosen as the designated prime industrial partner to deliver the projects, in collaboration with its British and Ukrainian industrial partners.

CEO David Lockwood said hes very proud to be involved in the projects.

The British government said that the UK and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) are committed to Black Sea regional security, stability, and prosperity, and that the UK has trained over 21,000 Armed Forces of Ukraine personnel since 2015.

Ukraine and Russia have been in conflict since 2014 when Russia seized Ukraines Crimea peninsula and backed a rebellion in Donbas. Since then, Ukraines interest to join NATO has reportedly grown.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told U.S. President Joe Biden earlier this month that Ukraine needs a real step-by-step plan tied to calendar dates for its accession to NATO.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on June 4 that he urges NATO allies to provide more support, including personnel training and capacity building, to Ukraine to support their territorial integrity and sovereignty.

He told Ukraine to focus on reforming and modernizing defence and security institutions, which he said was the best way to move towards membership in NATO.

However, the Kremlin on July 17 said that Ukrainian membership in NATO would be a red line for Moscow.

Interfax cited Russias defence ministry as saying that a Russian warship on Wednesday fired warning shots and a warplane dropped bombs to force HMS Defender from an area in the Black Sea near Crimea that Russia claims as its territorial waters.

Britains Ministry of Defence said, No shots were directed at HMS Defender and we do not recognise the claim that bombs were dropped in her path.

We believe the Russians were undertaking a gunnery exercise in the Black Sea and provided the maritime community with prior-warning of their activity, it said in a statement on Twitter.

Ella Kietlinska, Reuters, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A factory of Taiwanese semiconductors manufacturer (TSMC) at Central Taiwan Science Park in Taichung, Taiwan, on March 25, 2021. (Sam Yeh/AFP via Getty Images)

US, Europe, Japan, and Taiwan Stress Tech Supply Chain Partnership at Transnational Forum

As the COVID-19 pandemic has affected nations unprecedentedly, the United States, Europe, Japan, and Taiwan are taking collective action to cement their tech supply chain partnership.

On June 22, an ad-hoc online forum for this alliance was co-organized by the European Economic and Trade Office (EETO), the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association (JTEA), and Taiwans Ministry of Economic Affairs.

The attendees included Filip Grzegorzewski, head of the EETO; Brent Christensen, director of the AIT; Mitsuaki Hoshino, the deputy representative of the JTEA; and Mei-Hua Wang, minister of Taiwans Economic Affairs.

During the event, participants emphasized the importance of advancing tech supply chain cooperation among the like-minded allies. Recognizing that no single economy can produce everything it needs, they believed it is in their common interest to guarantee that allies and partners have resilient supply chains, according to a joint press release.

The organizers also invited representatives from government, industry, academia, and research institutes in the allies countries to share best business practices.

William Brent Christensen expressed that supply chains are a critical element of  national security. He noted that from the silicon wafers to the semiconductors, to the installed components in the latest consumer electronics, Taiwan is truly the central node for global trade in ICT products. And Taiwans semiconductor industry is the envy of the world, he said.

Taiwan has demonstrated time and again that it is a reliable partner and a critical player for moving towards a more sustainable global economy, Christensen said.

Topmost Priority: Joining Hands to Strengthen the Resilience of Supply Chains

Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Trade Policy and Negotiations Matt Murray stated that the United States takes cooperation with Taiwan in terms of supply chains very seriously; and that the Republic of China can play a more significant role amid global economic challenges.

He also thanked Taiwanthe home of the worlds largest cluster of semiconductor makersfor helping solve Americas chip shortage.

According to Murray, the United States has placed semiconductors, electric vehicle batteries, rare earth minerals, and pharmaceuticals on the list of key strategic materials. He expressed it will be a primary concern for the United States to cooperate with its partners to strengthen the supply chain resilience.

Arati Shroff, deputy chief of the Economic Section at the AIT in Taipei, believes that supply chains are of great importance to solving issues of labor, environmental protection, human rights, cybersecurity, intellectual property rights, among others.

Edouard Bourcieu, chief economist of the European Commission for Trade, expressed that the EU attaches great importance to supply chain resilience as well. He revealed that overdependence on other nations, though not serious in the EU, existed among 137 of 5,200 EU imports, mainly from China, Brazil, and Vietnam, in order of severity. The EU is considering alternative sources of supply, the economist added.
US Lawyer Convicted of Assaulting Off-Duty Hong Kong Police Officer After Intervening in Scuffle

An American corporate lawyer working in Hong Kong has been convicted of assaulting a Hong Kong police officer after he attempted to break up a scuffle in late 2019 amid pro-democracy protests in the city.

Samuel Bickett, 37, while on his way to dinner on Dec. 7 2019, saw a man with a metal baton hitting a teenager and stopped to intervene. The man turned out to be a plain-clothes Hong Kong police officer, and Bickett was arrested and charged with common assault and assaulting an officer.

The former compliance director at the Bank of America was convicted on Tuesday of assaulting Senior Constable Yu Shu-sang, and was denied bail ahead of sentencing on July 6.

Part of the confrontation that took place in a subway station was captured on video. Bickett had not joined a protest when he was arrested, but saw a man with an extendible baton strike a teenager who had jumped a subway turnstile.

Hong Kong police officers were at the time permitted to carry the weapons while off-duty for protection purposes and to execute constabulary duties, amid the unrest that rocked the city over an extradition bill.

The plain-clothes Hong Kong police officer had initially stated that he was not a police officer, when asked by a fellow commuter, before eventually saying yes. When questioning Yu, that commuter used the term popoa slang term for police used by pro-democracy protestors.

Yus defence team argued in the trial that Bickett tried to take his baton, dragged him onto the floor, knelt on his chest and punched his face.

Bicketts attorneys argued that he thought Yu was using excessive force, and that he was trying to stop him from attacking the other individual. Bickett didnt know that Yu was an officer, his team argued. The 37-year-old also argued that he was concerned Yu might injure other commuters.

Magistrate Arthur Lam Hei-wei argued that Yu identified himself in video evidence, and that he thought it perfectly understandable for Yu to not immediately state his position given the disrespectful reference, according to the South China Morning Post.

There is simply no justification for the defendant to snatch [Yus] baton when no one was in immediate danger, the magistrate said. He could have simply asked [Yu] to put back his baton for further discussion.

Bickett said in a written statement that the verdict was outrageous and entirely unsupportable by both the law and the evidence in this case.

He added: I will appeal this verdict, and I will not rest until justice is done.

In Hong Kong, assaulting a police officer carries a maximum six months imprisonment and a fine.

June 9, 2019, marked the start of the pro-democracy, anti-Chinese Communist Party movement in Hong Kong, when more than 1 million Hongkongers took to the streets in protest against an extradition bill that would have seen suspects being handed over to China for trial in Party-controlled courts, which are notorious for being used to silence critics and punish dissidents. The extradition bill was formally scrapped months later.

After the bill was shelved, protesters in Hong Kong continued to demand universal suffrage and an independent investigation into police brutality against protesters. The protests died down in the Chinese-ruled city after the Chinese regime imposed a draconian national security law last year. Since then, activists and opposition figures have been charged under the law while others have sought asylum in other countries.

Hong Kong police arrested more than 10,100 people and prosecuted over 2,300 people between June 9, 2019, and Nov. 30, 2020, according to the police departments Facebook page. Many of those prosecuted were accused of riot, illegal assembly, or criminal damage.

Frank Fang contributed to this report.
The U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur patrols in the Philippine Sea on Aug. 15, 2013. (U.S. Navy/Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Declan Barnes/Handout via Reuters)

US Warship Transits Taiwan Strait a Week After Large Chinese Air Incursion

BEIJING/TAIPEIA U.S. warship has again sailed through the sensitive waterway that separates Taiwan from China, a week after the self-ruled island reported the largest incursion here to date of Chinese air force jets in Taiwans air defence zone.

The U.S. Navys 7th Fleet said the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur conducted a routine Taiwan Strait transit on Tuesday in accordance with international law.

The ships transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the U.S. commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific.

The Chinese regime condemned the United States on Wednesday as the regions greatest security risk creator. The Peoples Liberation Armys Eastern Theatre Command said their forces monitored the vessel throughout its passage and warned it.

Taiwans Defense Ministry said the ship had sailed in a northerly direction through the strait and the situation was as normal.

The same ship transited the strait a month ago, prompting the Chinese regime to accuse the United States of threatening peace and stability.

The latest mission comes around a week after Taiwan said 28 Chinese air force aircraft, including fighters and nuclear-capable bombers, entered Taiwans air defense identification zone (ADIZ), the largest reported incursion to date.

That incident followed the Group of Seven (G-7) leaders issuing a joint statement scolding the Chinese regime for a series of issues and underscoring the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

The U.S. Navy has been conducting such operations in the Taiwan Strait every month or so.

The United States, like most countries, has no formal diplomatic ties with democratic Taiwan but is its most important international backer and a major seller of arms.

Military tension between Taiwan and Beijing have spiked over the past year, with Taipei complaining of China repeatedly sending its air force into Taiwans air defense zone.
Vice President Harris to Visit USMexico Border

Vice President Kamala Harris is headed to the U.S.Mexico border on June 25, her office says.

Harris is set to travel to the El Paso, Texas, area, accompanied by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

The vice president, who was tasked by President Joe Biden with overseeing efforts to address the root causes of migration from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras, hasnt been to the border since taking office. Following criticism that neither she nor the president have visited the area, she shifted her messaging in early June, saying shed make the trip at some point.

The trip will take place several days before former President Donald Trump accompanies Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to the border. White House press secretary Jen Psaki acknowledged to reporters in Washington that the administration was aware of Trumps pending travel plans.

She said the decision on the timing of the visit was coordinated with the Department of Homeland Security and that both the White House and Harris had offered previously that the vice president could go to the border at an appropriate time.

That time has arrived, Psaki said, because the number of immigrant children in U.S. government custody has declined from levels that saw facilities both on and off the border overcrowded.

Harris will assess and take a look at the progress thats been made, she said. Is there still more work to do? Absolutely.

Border Patrol agents apprehend 21 illegal aliens from Mexico who had hidden in a grain hopper on a freight train heading to San Antonio, on June 21, 2021. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

Trump released a statement commenting on Harriss trip.

After months of ignoring the crisis at the Southern Border, it is great that we got Kamala Harris to finally go and see the tremendous destruction and death that theyve createda direct result of Biden ending my very tough but fair Border policies, he said. If Governor Abbott and I werent going there next week, she would have never gone!

After Biden reversed or altered a number of key Trump-era policies upon entering office, the border situation worsened quickly. Droves of young migrants without accompanying adults arrived there and were welcomed despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Over 6,000 children at one point were in the custody of Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which isnt equipped to care for minors. Transfer times to Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) care extended to more than seven days for some children, which is far beyond what federal law allows.

As of June 12, 1,040 kids were in CBP care and over 14,400 were in HHS care.

Border Patrol agents have also seen a surge in adults and families. Illegal border crossings hit 180,034 in May, with 51,000 others avoiding capture. Some Democrats who represent border districts have joined Republicans in criticizing the Biden administrations handling of the situation.

Administration officials have defended the border policies, claiming theyve made the immigration system more humane.

We have a strategy, we are executing on our strategy, I have confidence in our strategy, Mayorkas told members of Congress during a recent hearing.

Republicans in Congress said Harris will see firsthand what the administrations policies have wrought. Many linked the trip to Trumps planned visit.

After three months as border czar, its about time VP Harris goes to see first-hand how her policies of open borders and mass amnesty are causing a crisis at our southern border, Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) said in a statement.

No doubt in my mind that Vice President Harriss long-overdue visit to the U.S.Mexico border was prompted by President Trumps decision to visit the border next week, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said.
We Need an Audit: Georgia Lawyer on Latest Fulton County Updates

The series of new revelations about how the 2020 election unfolded in Fulton County, Georgia, show the need for an audit, a lawyer representing voters in the state says.

The county acknowledged it is missing absentee ballot transfer forms last week, prompting Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to announce his office was investigating the matter. State investigators have been conducting a secret ballot probe since late last year, after poll monitors said they observed what appeared to be fraudulent ballots, it was also revealed this month. And notes taken by an election monitor hired by Raffensperger were published for the first time, showing the monitor witnessed serious issues like the scanning of ballots that had already been counted.

Its horrendous and thats why we need an audit, Bob Cheeley, who is representing some of the plaintiffs in an ongoing case against the county, said on an election special that aired on Real Americas Voice.

Ten certified examiners are prepared to analyze each absentee ballot that was cast in the county in the 2020 election, the lawyer added. They would see if the ballots were filled out with a persons hand or a printer.

In court this week, Cheeley said the examiners would use high-powered microscopes in the examination, if its approved by the judge.

We have people that saw, during the hand recount, many of these ballots had never been folded. So there was no crease. They should have been in an envelope. Thats a dead giveaway. And then these people saw that these ovals outside of the candidates names have been perfectly filled in with a white space in the middle and thats impossible, Cheeley said during the election special.

Poll monitors and other voters who attested to witnessing irregularities during the 2020 election and in subsequent recounts filed a petition late last year, asserting fraud occurred. They were given low-resolution absentee ballot images. A preliminary examination uncovered anomalies, David Sawyer, a forensic expert retained by Cheeley, told the court last month.

Sawyer, reached by The Epoch Times, declined to comment further until the case is over. Cheeley has not returned requests for comment.

Henry County Superior Court Chief Judge Brian Amero, who is overseeing the case, later said petitioners could go to the countys ballot storage warehouse and observe as workers imaged the ballots at a higher resolution, which would enable experts like Sawyer to perform a more in-depth analysis.

However, Amero canceled the scheduled visit after the county filed motions to dismiss. County lawyers and Cheeley were among those arguing their cases in court on June 21. Amero did not immediately decide whether to dismiss the case. He said he wanted to take time to mull over what was presented.

If granted, the audit would be one of the largest independent reviews in the nation conducted after the 2020 election.

During the hearing, a county lawyer disclosed that Raffenspergers office is investigating all of the complaints regarding the countys handling of the election, including what happened at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, where many ballots were counted. She also revealed that an investigator with the office pulled the specific batches identified by the petitioners and their witnesses as part of a probe that had not been talked about publicly until this week.

My understanding is they did not find what the witnesses were alleging. That, of course, not public yet, but the investigation is ongoing, she said.

Frances Watson, chief investigator for the secretary of states office, confirmed in a recent statement that she sent investigators to inspect batches of sealed ballots and that the investigators did not find ballots that looked fraudulent.

County lawyers argued in court that petitioners lack standing, that they did not file the proper filing for the relief they seek, and that the county will not count counterfeit ballots in future elections.
A general view of houses in Oriental Bay on April 9, 2016 in Wellington, New Zealand. (Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images)

Wellington Moves to CCP Virus Alert Level 2

The New Zealand city of Wellington will move to alert level two from 6 p.m. on Wednesday night after an Australian man with COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP virus, visited several locations while infectious on a weekend getaway.

RNZ reported the alert level two would last until 11.59 p.m. on Sunday, June 27.

The Australian man was in Wellington from June 19 to June 21, and public health officials have said that based on the time of his symptom onset and CT score, it is most likely he contracted the virus in Sydney prior to visiting New Zealand, the countrys health ministry said in a media release.

Health authorities in New Zealand said their Australian counterparts informed them of the case on Tuesday night once the man had returned to Sydney.

New Zealand Director-General of Health Dr. Ashley Bloomfield believes the man, who works near Bondi Junction, the centre of Sydneys new cluster, contracted the virus before departing Australia.

Genome sequencing is underway to determine whether the case is linked to the Delta variant Bondi cluster.

The Wellington region will be at Alert Level 2 from 6pm on Wednesday 23 June until 11:59pm on Sunday 27 June. This includes Wairarapa and Kapiti Coast. pic.twitter.com/Al2eZN3CtO  Ministry of Health  Manatu Hauora (@minhealthnz) June 23, 2021

Six locations of interest in Wellington have been listed as sites the man visited last weekend, New Zealands health ministry reported on June 23.

All passengers on Qantas flight QF163 which arrived in Wellington on June 19, must isolate or quarantine for 14 days. Likewise, passengers on Air New Zealand flight NZ247 departed Wellington on June 21.

New Zealand authorities are now working with Australian counterparts to carry out contact tracing to gather more information about his movements while in Wellington.

The Rydges Hotel, Prince Barbers, a pharmacy, bars, and restaurants have been listed as exposure sites, along with others.

Health authorities in New Zealand are urging people who visited these locations at the relevant time to immediate isolate themselves at their home or accommodation and contact Healthline for advice on testing.

Four close contacts of the Australian man are currently isolating.

New Zealand health authorities said it was the first time an Australian traveller had brought the CCP virus into New Zealand and since gone home.
What the Media Dont Tell You About Bidens Illegal Immigration Crisis | Larry Elder

Once upon a time, President Joe Biden put Vice President Kamala Harris in charge of the border crisiswhat the Biden administration is calling a challenge. Back during the Democratic presidential debates, Biden said he would make sure a surge would happen at the border. As of today, Border Patrol has intercepted nearly 180,000 people trying to illegally cross the border, not to mention the many others who got away. Meanwhile, the mayor of Del Rio, Texas, is pleading with the Biden administration to put a halt to releasing immigrants in their city, saying they dont have the resources to house and accommodate migrants. In this episode, Larry suggests that this crisis would have ended yesterday if illegal aliens-turned-citizens-turned-voters pulled the lever overwhelmingly for Republicans.

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World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus adjusts his glasses during a meeting in front of the WHO headquarters in Geneva on May 29, 2021. (Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images)

WHO Alters COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations, No Longer Says Children Should Not Be Vaccinated

The World Health Organization (WHO) this week altered its recommendations on COVID-19 vaccinations, softening language that once warned against vaccinating children.

The health bodys web page offering vaccine advice for the public on June 22 stated clearly, children should not be vaccinated for the moment.

There is not yet enough evidence on the use of vaccines against COVID-19 in children to make recommendations for children to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Children and adolescents tend to have milder disease compared to adults. However, children should continue to have the recommended childhood vaccines, the page said.

However, as of June 23, the page no longer offered the same warning.

It now says that children and adolescents tend to have milder disease compared to adults, so unless they are part of a group at higher risk of severe COVID-19, it is less urgent to vaccinate them than older people, those with chronic health conditions, and health workers.

More evidence is needed on the use of the different COVID-19 vaccines in children to be able to make general recommendations on vaccinating children against COVID-19, the page adds.

A WHO spokesperson when asked about the change via email pointed The Epoch Times to updated recommendations the bodys Strategic Advisory Group of Experts put forth last week regarding three vaccines.

The group has concluded that the PfizerBioNTech vaccine is suitable for use by people aged 12 years and above, the spokesperson said, adding: Children aged between 12 and 15 who are at high risk may be offered this vaccine alongside other priority groups. Vaccine trials for children are ongoing and WHO will update its recommendations when the evidence or epidemiological situation warrants a change in policy.

Most countries are not vaccinating children at this time, but some have allowed kids to get a vaccine.

A boy receives a dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in Holon, Israel, on June 21, 2021. (Jack Guez/AFP via Getty Images)

U.S. drug regulators, for instance, initially allowed children as young as 16 to get the PfizerBioNTech shot. Regulators extended emergency use authorization for the jab to 12- to 15-year-olds last month.

About 8 million children between the ages of 12 and 17 have had at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, according to U.S. government data as of June 22.

A health agency and its advisory panel are set Wednesday to discuss updated figures for heart inflammation seen in youth after vaccination. The number of cases reported to health agencies was at nearly 800 when a separate panel met on June 10, stoking concern among some doctors about continuing to administer vaccines to kids.

Im worried about myocarditis, Dr. Cody Meissner, chief of the Division of Pediatric Infectious Disease at the Tufts Childrens Hospital, told fellow panel members. Myocarditis is the medical name of the heart inflammation syndrome. Before we start vaccinating millions of adolescents and children, it is so important to find out what the consequences are because the COVID-19 disease is disappearing in adolescents and children, he added.

Given the unusual immunologic responses in general that were seeing in children, we need to be vigilant for vaccine-enhanced disease, said Dr. Mark Sawyer, professor of clinical pediatrics at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine.

Dr. Eric Rubin, adjunct professor in the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Healths Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, was among the panel members to downplay concerns about myocarditis.

Were all worried about myocarditis. Were not even sure that its an association right now, its very hard to tell, he said, urging members to support expanding emergency use authorization of Modernas jab to younger children.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken (L) and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan address the media following the closed-door morning talks between the United States and China upon conclusion of their two-day meetings in Anchorage, Alaska, on March 19, 2021. (Frederic J. Brown/Pool via Reuters)

Why Does Biden Still Want to Talk to China?

Commentary

President Joe Biden, according to National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, wants to begin a new round of engaging China.

Call this another Biden debacle in the making.

On June 17, after the troubled meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Geneva, Sullivan told reporters that Biden will look for opportunities to engage with President Xi going forward.

Soon enough, we will sit down to work out the right modality for the two presidents to engage, Sullivan said. Its now just a question of when and how.

How about never?

The United States and China have already engaged each other. Sullivan and Secretary of State Antony Blinken sat down with Chinas top two diplomats, Politburo member Yang Jiechi and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in Anchorage in the middle of March.

Yang and Yi did not come to Alaska to talk to the Biden administration; they came to rant, lecture, and humiliate. Blinken and Sullivan should have sent the Chinese diplomats packing as soon as they went on a bender for the benefit of the cameras.

China, it is evident, is now in no mood for substantive discussions, other than, of course, for the purpose of accepting Americas surrender.

Ned Price, State Department spokesman, on the same day said the President believes there is no substitute for personal diplomacy.

A better formulation is that, when it comes to the Peoples Republic of China, there is no place for personal diplomacy. American leaders, administration in and administration out, think it is important to meet face-to-face with adversaries, that they can somehow reason with them.

That view is naive, arrogant, and almost always incorrect. Chinese leaders of the communist variety often talk of friendship but are ruthlessly pragmatic, and often just ruthless. For them, personal feelings have no value in relations with other states.

Personal diplomacy with Beijing is counterproductive: Americans chase after the Chinese and the Chinese take advantage of this eagerness.

The incessant pursuit of Beijing makes America, in the eyes of the Chinese regime, an easy mark. There is no need to speculate how regime figures treat those trying to please and accommodate them.

As Charles Burton of the Ottawa-based Macdonald-Laurier Institute tells Gatestone, Beijing always presses the advantage with the feeble-looking. After all, he says, Chinese officials took Canadian hostages, known as the two Michaels, in December 2018 and have held them since because they knew Prime Minister Justin Trudeau would do nothing about it. The Chinese believed Trudeau would do nothing because he had spent his career desperately trying to court China.

The more Canada has shown weakness by appeasing and making concessions to Chinas integrated party-state-military-security-industrial complex, the more emboldened Chinese leaders have become in dealing with Ottawa, Burton, a former Canadian diplomat posted to Beijing, points out.

There is another fundamental objection. Price, when talking about a Biden-Xi meeting, referred to our principled diplomacy.

Principled diplomacy? How can any country with principles engage in diplomacy with a government that is, according to Amnesty International, the worlds most prolific executioner.

Or a ruling group committing genocide and other crimes against humanity including mass murder, institutionalized rape, and enslavement of racial minorities?

And a regime that deliberately spread a virus beyond its borders and killed, at last count, 3.9 million people worldwide, including 602,000 Americans?

There are reports that Dong Jingwei, a vice minister of State Security, defected to the United States in mid-February with his daughter. Dong, Chinas counterintelligence chief, is said to have given to the Defense Intelligence Agency evidence that the Chinese military is conducting research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, which many now suspect is the source of the pathogen causing COVID-19. This information, Yahoo! News reports, changed the Biden administrations view of the origins of the pandemic.

If the reports about Dong are accurate, Biden should be now talking about imposing the most severe costs on China, not chasing after Xi Jinping to begin a conversation. America should, among other things, cut trade, end investment, prohibit technical cooperation, perhaps stop all travel altogether. Biden definitely should close Chinas remaining four consulates in the United States and send virtually all Chinese embassy officials home. The President should announce it is the policy of the United States to end communist rule in China.

Harsh? No, especially if China released an engineered pathogen to kill Americans, as increasingly appears to be the case.

So, President Biden, stop turning the other cheek and start performing your most fundamental constitutional duty: Protecting America from foreign enemies.

From the Gatestone Institute.

Gordon G. Chang is a distinguished senior fellow at the Gatestone Institute, a member of its Advisory Board, and the author of The Coming Collapse of China. Follow Gordon at GordonChang.com and on Twitter @GordonGChang

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Traffic backs up at the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge toll plaza along Interstate 80 in Oakland, Calif., on July 25, 2019. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

With Its Power Grid Under Pressure, California Asks Residents to Avoid Charging Electric Vehicles

Amid a West Coast heat wave that includes triple-digit temperatures, Californias power grid operators have called on residents to not use as much electricity so as to put less strain on the states beleaguered grid.

In the past week, the California Independent System Operator (ISO) told residents several times to voluntarily conserve energy, including asking them on social media to stop charging their electric vehicles (EVs) during peak usage times. The operator also warned users to [avoid] use of large appliances and turning off extra lights.

This usually happens in the evening hours when solar generation is going offline and consumers are returning home and switching on air conditioners, lights, and appliances, wrote the ISO.

And on June 18, the California Flex Alert Twitter page wrote that now is the perfect time to do a load of laundry, and urged residents to remember to use major appliances, charge cars and devices before #FlexAlert begins at 6 p.m. today.

It comes as the federal government and certain state governmentsincluding Californiashave pushed to convert their respective fleets to electric vehicles. President Joe Biden, who was seen in May in a photo-op driving an electric version of the Ford 150, earlier this year issued an executive order and promised some $174 billion into the electric vehicles market.

And California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, last fall announced he would set 2035 as a target date for ending the sale of petroleum-powered vehicles in the state.

Newsom, at the time, predicted that zero-emission vehicles will almost certainly be cheaper and better than the traditional fossil fuel powered car in 15 years.

However, amid the push, critics have suggested that if there are too many electric vehicles in use, it could potentially put a strain on state power grids and utilities.

Patty Monahan, the lead commissioner on transportation at the California Energy Commission, said that residents should choose to charge their electric vehicles at different times to avoid overloading the power grid.

Charging behaviors matter when it comes to California grid goals, she told Newsweek. By incentivizing, primarily through rates, charging behaviors that capitalize on when renewable energy is being generatedwe basically have a win for the grid, and we have a win for the drivers in terms of reduced rates. Rates are a climate strategy, and California plans on using rates to help drive the charging behaviors that are going to help the state electrify transportation while cutting carbon from the grid and saving ratepayers and drivers money.

Matthew Moniot, a researcher with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, noted if the state also increasingly relies on solar and wind power, that could pose an even more daunting challenge for power grid operators. Speaking to Newsweek, he said that less energy is produced overnightwhen many electric vehicle owners charge their carsby solar and wind.

More solar and wind power generation instead of traditional power sources, he added, will impact how much can we move whats currently overnight charging to be during the daytime hours, when generation may be more excessive, Moniot said.
Worst Cover Up in Human History: House Republicans Launch Campaign to Hold CCP Accountable Over Pandemic

House Republicans have vowed to take a series of actions to hold the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) accountable for its coverup of the COVID-19 outbreak and to get to the bottom of how the disease started spreading among humans.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on June 23 laid out an eight-pronged plan focused on the communist regime and other bodies to ensure Americans get the accountability and transparency they deserve.

We cannot allow the wrongdoing of China to go unnoticedand more importantly, to not allow the accountability to happen, McCarthy said at a press conference in Washington.

The first item on the agenda, he said, is to introduce legislation compelling the government to declassify intelligence relating to the origins of the CCP virus, which causes COVID-19.

President Joe Biden on May 26 ordered the intelligence community to produce a report in 90 days on the origins of the virus, which was first reported in the Chinese city of Wuhan. He said intelligence agencies are looking at rival theories, including the possibility of a laboratory accident in China.

McCarthy said the House Republican caucus was launching the effort because of reluctance by Democrat members of Congress and the White House to take action to hold the regime to account.

The Biden administration wont take immediate action on China to pressure the communist regime to allow an independent probe into whether COVID-19 originated in a Wuhan lab until there is an international consensus, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on June 20.

While the theory that the virus was the result of a leak from the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) was labeled a conspiracy theory last year, it has recently gained traction as a growing number of scientists and officials have lent credence to the hypothesis.

A January State Department fact sheet raised questions about whether the outbreak could have been the result of a lab accident at WIV. It said the United States has reason to believe that several WIV researchers became sick with symptoms consistent with both COVID-19 and common seasonal illnesses in autumn 2019. The department also said the lab had been conducting secret military experiments on animals since at least 2017, and that it has a history of conducting gain-of-function research on viruses. Such research involves modifying viruses to have new or enhanced capabilities.

Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) questioned why the scientific community earlier dismissed the lab leak theory. That is a real question before the American people and the world, he said.

Its the worst cover up in human history. Almost 4 million people have died, and 600,000, in the United States, McCaul said.

McCarthy also has called for a ban on U.S. funding of any gain-of-function research in China and an end to National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding for foreign adversaries such as China, North Korea, Iran, and Russia.

NIH Director Francis Collins acknowledged in a statement last month that the NIH and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases have for many years supported grants to learn more about viruses lurking in bats and other mammals that have the potential to spill over to humans and cause widespread disease, but denied that the institutions have ever approved any grant that would have supported gain-of-function research on coronaviruses that would have increased their transmissibility or lethality for humans.

Republican lawmakers as well as some Democrat members of Congress have already introduced a spate of bills aimed at holding Beijing and accomplices accountable for their coverup of the pandemic. This includes legislation to sanction the CCP officials responsible, remove legal protections to nations so Americans can sue the CCP in U.S. courts to recover pandemic-related losses, and strip the World Health Organization of U.S. funding over its role in aiding the CCPs coverup by parroting its talking points in the early stages of the pandemic.

McCarthy also wants the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics relocated to another country, as the CCP should not be rewarded with such an honor.

I think the world should stand together and say that we will not put up with this, he said. We will not allow you to kill millions of people around the world and lie about where it started.
YouTube Wins User Copyright Fight in Top EU Court Ruling

LUXEMBOURGGoogles YouTube won its latest copyright-infringement challenge after Europes top court said online platforms are not liable for users uploading unauthorised works unless the platforms failed to take quick action to remove or block access to the content.

The case marks the latest development in a long-running battle between Europes $1 trillion creative industry and online platforms, with the former seeking redress for unauthorised works that are uploaded.

It is also part of the wider debate on how much online platforms and social media should do to police the posting of unauthorised, illegal or hateful content, an issue that European Union regulators are targeting with tough new rules that could come into force next year.

As currently stands, operators of online platforms do not, in principle, themselves make a communication to the public of copyright-protected content illegally posted online by users of those platforms, the EU Court of Justice said.

However, those operators do make such a communication in breach of copyright where they contribute, beyond merely making those platforms available, to giving access to such content to the public, judges said.

The EU court said platforms could also be liable if they do not put in place the appropriate technological tools to tackle copyright breaches by their users or where they provide tools on their platforms for illegal sharing of content.

In response to the court ruling a YouTube spokesperson said: YouTube is a leader in copyright and supports rights holders being paid their fair share.

Thats why weve invested in state of the art copyright tools which have created an entirely new revenue stream for the industry. In the past 12 months alone we have paid $4 billion to the music industry, over 30% of which comes from monetised user generated content.

A 3D printed Youtube logo is seen in front of a displayed EU flag and copyright words in this illustration (Dado Ruvic/Illustration/Reuters)

The case underlines a long-running debate on the responsibilities of online platforms, with the CJEU giving useful guidance to national courts assessing such disagreements, said Nils Rauer, a partner at law firm Pinsent Masons.

The core question is and remains whether the platform is in a rather passive role (no liability) or in an active role (liability). There is a fine line between those two roles, he said.

With todays ruling, the domestic courts will be able to build on more guidance from Luxembourg where to draw the line between the good ones (platforms) and the bad ones, he said.

YouTube found itself in the dock after Frank Peterson, a music producer, sued the company and Google in Germany over the uploading to YouTube by users in 2008 of several phonograms to which he holds the rights.

In a second case, publishing group Elsevier took legal action against file-hosting service Cyando in Germany after its users uploaded several Elsevier works on its platform Uploaded in 2013 without its approval.

A German court subsequently sought advice from the EU Court of Justice, which ruled on both cases on Tuesday.

Existing EU rules exempt YouTube and its peers from such liability regarding copyright when they are told of violations and remove them.

The EU last year overhauled its copyright rules for the first time in two decades to help its creative industries by adopting a key provision known as Article 17. This requires YouTube, Facebooks Instagram, and other sharing platforms to install filters to prevent users from uploading copyrighted materials.

But this has drawn criticism from civil rights groups worried about potential censorship by authoritarian governments and risks to freedom of expression.

Several EU countries have yet to transpose the EU law into national legislation, due in part to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The European Commission has also proposed a much more wide-ranging Digital Services Act, which sets stringent obligations on very large online companies, online platforms and hosting services, backed by fines up to 6 percent of a companys revenue for non-compliance.

This would apply to websites, internet infrastructure services, and online platforms such as online marketplaces, social networks, content-sharing platforms, app stores, and online travel and accommodation platforms.

The draft rules need to be thrashed out with EU countries and EU lawmakers before they can become law, likely to be next year.

The cases are C-682/18 YouTube and C-683/18 Cyando.

By Foo Yun Chee
Sometimes wealth is the product of effort and hard work, and other times it is mere luck. That is clear to the peasant couple Rani and Sankalp Parihar , who accidentally planted some of the most expensive mangoes in the world . Now they have Miyazaki mango trees whose cost per kilo is around 270,000 rupees (about $ 3,630 or 74,600 Mexican pesos).

The story of these horticulturists, inhabitants of the city of Jabalpur, in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India, seems like something out of a movie. It all started four years ago, when the Parihar went to Chennai, in the south of the country, to buy some trees to plant. On the train he met a mysterious man who offered him the valuable plants.

He offered me these saplings and asked me to take care of them like our babies. We planted them in the orchard without knowing what variety of mangoes they would produce,  Sankalp told The Times of India .

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In 2020, when the trees grew and began to bear fruit, they noticed that they were very different from other more common types of mangoes. These had a rather unusual intense ruby color.

Since I didn't know the name of this variety, I named the fruit after my mother Damini. Later, we did research on this variety and found the real name. But he's still Damini for me , "Parihar added.

To his surprise, they turned out to be Miyazaki mangoes originating in Japan, which are among the most expensive in the world.

Madhya Pradesh-based orchardist Sankalp Parihar hires security guards & dogs to prevent theft of expensive mango trees



Some people told me that the variety of mango sold at Rs 2.70 lakh per kg in market last year. A customer from Mumbai has offered me Rs 21,000, Parihar said pic.twitter.com/aX1NxvQ4qQ - ANI (@ANI) June 17, 2021

According to Japanese media, last year each kilo of this variety had a price of 270,000 rupees in the international market , that is, about 3,630 dollars or 74,600 Mexican pesos. And if you only want one piece, it will cost you about $ 50 (about 1,000 MXN).

Luck has a price

News of the rare Miyazaki mangoes spread throughout the town, attracting potential buyers and criminals alike. Parihar says that last year thieves broke into her orchard and stole 14 mangoes. Fortunately, they managed to save the trees and will be able to continue producing the valuable fruits.

After the incident, the farmers decided to hire three security guards and nine dogs to protect the rare trees and the seven mangoes they own. Also known as 'sun eggs' , they are rarely grown in India and considered a luxury gift in Japan.

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Rani noted that they have also been contacted by various mango growers and fruit lovers. For example, a businessman offered to buy just one of his mangoes for 21,000 rupees ($ 282 or 5,775 Mexican pesos).

A Mumbai jeweler is willing to pay whatever price we quote. But I have clearly said that we will not sell it to anyone. We will use the fruits to grow more plants , Rani Parihar said bluntly.

Currently, the couple own a total of 150 Miyazaki mango trees , of which only four are bearing fruit.

Why is Mango Miyazaki so expensive?

The Miyazaki mango is the second most expensive in the world , only behind the Noor Jahan mango, which is grown in Afghanistan. This variety was cultivated for the first time in 1984, in the Japanese city of the same name. Currently, it is considered one of the most expensive fruits on the planet and is only found in countries such as Bangladesh , Indonesia and the Philippines .

To develop to fruit, Miyazaki mango trees require a warm climate and long hours of sunshine. Mangoes of this type are distinguished by their ruby red color and their egg-like shape. They weigh between 350 and 900 grams, their peel is edible and they have 15% more sugar than other varieties, which makes them extremely sweet, according to the India Today medium.

It is expensive because its production is very low and its flavor is very sweet. It looks very different. People abroad give away these mangoes, " said RS Katara, deputy director of the Madhya Pradesh horticulture department.

The official claimed that he inspected the orchard and confirmed that the fruit is rare in India. He also indicated that they will re-examine the fruit before promoting it to farmers.

"I asked some local scientists to go and inspect the tree and the fruit to see if it is real or hybrid and why it is so expensive," said GS Kaushal, former director of the Madhya Pradesh horticulture department. "People should only grow it after scientists approve of the quality of this mango ."

Also a team of scientists from the Jawaharlal Nehru Agricultural University of Jabalpur are planning to study the mangoes, confirmed their secretary Rewa Singh Sisodia said.

While they are pears or apples (or authentic Miyazaki mangoes), the two horticulturists have become local celebrities and, if they know how to capitalize wisely on the windfall, they could become millionaires with the fortune that, in their case, is falling from the trees .

Copyright 2021 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
DARIEN  Eversource returned to Little Brook Road Wednesday to prune trees along its large power lines, prompting one neighbor to file a complaint with the state.

The road has been at the center of a debate involving the power companys plans to remove about 50 trees due to what it says are safety reasons.

Last week during a meeting with residents, Eversource officials observed that there was electrical arcing taking place, due to branches being too close to the power lines.

Two dozen workers, most of whom were contracted by Eversource through Davis Tree Service, came to trim back branches along a 200-yard stretch that runs adjacent to the railroad tracks, just south of Little Brook Road.

While utility officials said it was an emergency operation to avert the potential danger of nearby trees becoming charged with electricity, neighbor Natalie Tallis, who has led the opposition to the work, claimed that was not the case.

I believe that Eversource is violating state and municipal laws, she wrote to the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protections Public Utilities Regulatory Authority.

She said the utility has wrongfully and intentionally misinterpreted the law, overstepping its right to trim and remove trees.

Tallis wrote that she asked Darien First Selectman Jayme Stevenson to consider having the towns legal counsel challenge Eversource claims. However, Tallis told PURA that Stevenson rejected her request.

For the record, I have not rejected any of your requests, Stevenson responded. I am in contact with Dariens attorney, who is assisting me with the towns authorities regarding this matter.

After visiting the road Wednesday morning, Stevenson also confirmed that the work was being done on state Department of Transportation property in response to last weeks arcing, as well as some other work to be done on the opposite end of the road in the Eversource easement area thats on private property.

The town has given tentative approval to a planting plan submitted by Eversource for the western end of the road, which would follow the final decision on the tree removal.

Eversource agreed to provide plantings and a planting plan to remediate the areas where they plan to remove trees in the town right-of-way along Little Brook Road, Stevenson said.

The tree removal question will be decided by the Darien tree warden at a public hearing, date to be announced, she said.

Town officials have deemed the planting plan consistent with local policies, and have shared it with neighbors.

At the public hearing, the town tree warden will make a determination about whether the posted-for-removal trees will be allowed to be removed, Stevenson said.

The tree warden may rule that some should be pruned only, she said, but noted that Eversource can then appeal that decision.
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP)  A major business in New Mexico's burgeoning market for marijuana wants the state to refund millions of dollars in taxes that were levied in recent years on sales of medical marijuana but not against most prescription medications.

Integrated cannabis provider Ultra Health said Tuesday that it has asked the state Supreme Court for the opportunity to provide arguments in a legal dispute between another medical marijuana company and the state Taxation and Revenue Department.
NORWALK  Documents obtained through a public records request offer new details into the administrative leave and later resignation of a longtime music instructor at Brien McMahon High School.

The teacher, Frank Arcari, voluntarily stepped down in May after he was accused of failing to report physical abuse he allegedly witnessed several years ago between students, according to partially redacted documents obtained by Hearst Connecticut Media. However, Arcaris attorney James Demetriades said on Friday that any and all investigations or allegations involving his client have been unsubstantiated and dismissed.

Mr. Arcari is a teacher in good standing in the state of Connecticut and looks forward to future educational pursuits, he said.

An April email to a Department of Children and Families official shows Arcari appealed findings from an investigation report conducted by the agency. The records do not show if the group, which is tasked with probing reports of child abuse and neglect, later reversed its initial findings after the appeal.

In a rebuttal letter dated April 23, Demetriades said Arcari flatly denied the allegations, that he only learned of the alleged abuse after it occurred and took action by reporting those alleged incidents to his superiors.

The letter states Arcari reported the students aggressive behavior to a guidance counselor, the school psychologist and then-Vice Principal Scott Hurwitz. Arcari, according to the letter, also informed Assistant Principals Qadir Abdus-Salaam and Barbara Wood.

In sum, Mr. Arcari professionally addressed all behavioral concerns to [redacted] administrators, Demetriades wrote.

Connecticut law requires that district superintendents suspend employees who are found to be responsible for child abuse or neglect. Arcari was on administrative leave at the time of his resignation, but it is unclear when he was placed on leave and what exactly triggered the action.

Hurwitz, who was named principal of Brien McMahon in 2017, Abdus-Salaam and Wood were all placed on administrative leave in April. Wood was allowed to return to work in early May, and Hurwitz and Abdus-Salaam resumed their positions last week.

District officials have not offered an explanation behind their absences. At the time, the school system said the employees were placed on leave to allow the district to address an undisclosed personnel matter.

Arcari, who earned a salary of $103,870 in 2020 according to city records, had served as a music instructor and choir director at Brien McMahon since the fall of 2003. The state files show he previously worked at a school in Thomaston.

A graduate of Westminster Choir College and Nova Southeastern University, Arcari played key roles in the production of the schools annual plays and musicals as the leader of the drama department.

State opens a second investigation

On April 21, the state Department of Educations Bureau of Investigations and Professional Practices opened its own probe into Arcari to determine if his teaching license should be revoked.

Among the documents obtained through the records request was a call to open the investigation that laid out the allegations against Arcari, including claims that a female student reported to the teacher that her boyfriend was physically abusing her. The request to investigate was approved, but the records do not explain how the department reached its conclusion.

Just three weeks later, the department closed the case without taking any action, according to a May 14 letter notifying Arcaris attorney of the decision.

The allegations described in the investigation request include that, The female victim and her friends brought this to Mr. Arcaris attention and he did not react to the reported concerns thus allowing the violence to continue. Mr. Arcari even went as far as blaming the female victim as he told her to stop pushing her boyfriends buttons. On another occasion, Mr. Arcari told the female victim to go deal with her boyfriends behaviors, as he was having an outburst, thus placing her more at risk.

At least one of the alleged incidents occurred in 2017, according to Demetriades letter. Suzanne Brown Koroshetz, who was recently appointed to the Norwalk Board of Education and served as Brien McMahon principal until her retirement in mid-2017, did not respond to a request for comment Friday.

The investigation request also describes a secret honor society for Brien McMahon music students. Students in the group, known as Tri-M, were allegedly given special treatment and allowed to participate in secret activities, including a game developed by Arcari called the hunty hunt in which students would stay at the school until late at night searching for notes, clues and messages throughout the building.

Arcaris actions made the student feel unsafe, officials wrote. The student later missed school due to severe anxiety brought on by the situation, which negatively affected her grades, officials wrote.

In addition to the abuse allegations, the female student also reported that Mr. Arcari groomed her, as he would take her out to dinner and would ask her personal questions about her relationships, the investigation request states. Other female Tri-M members who were interviewed reported that Mr. Arcari had taken them to dinner when they were students also.

In his letter, Demetriades said Arcari never had an improper relationship with a student. He offered several hand-written letters from former students, including a 2018 thank-you note sent to Arcari by the alleged victim, that he suggested was proof his client provided a safe and positive educational experience.

Mr. Arcari never acted inappropriately towards [redacted] or any other student, Demetriades wrote. Rather the record reflects that Mr. Arcari was a dedicated and invested teacher and a mentor to his students. He formed overwhelmingly positive relationships with his students through which he helped students identify and achieve their goals.

District response

Brenda Wilcox Williams, the districts chief of staff and communications, declined to comment Friday about the state investigative records, citing a district policy against commenting on personnel matters.

Hurwitzs return was announced at a school board meeting last Tuesday by Colin Hosten, the board chairperson. In brief remarks at the opening of the meeting, Hosten pledged to share more details about the situation at a later date.

That personnel matter has now been closed, Hosten said. Its been adjudicated, finished and there will be further clarity in the days and weeks to come.

District officials have previously stressed that the three school administrators have not been disciplined by the school system. None of the educators returned a request for comment on Friday.

richard.chumney@hearstmediact.com

This story has been updated to reflect Suzanne Brown Koroshetz was appointed to the Norwalk Board of Education.
SAN DIEGO (AP)  Asylum-seekers whose claims were dismissed or denied under a Trump administration policy that forced them to wait in Mexico for court hearings will be allowed to return for another chance at humanitarian protection, the U.S. Homeland Security Department said Tuesday in a move that could benefit tens of thousands of hopefuls.

Registration will begin Wednesday for asylum-seekers who were subject to the Remain in Mexico policy and either had their cases dismissed or denied for failing to appear in court, The Associated Press has learned.

Under that criteria, it is unclear how many people will be eligible to be released into the United States pending a decision on their cases, according to a senior Homeland Security official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the announcement had not been made public.

But Michele Klein Solomon, the International Organization for Migrations director for North America, Central America and the Caribbean, told the AP that she expected at least 10,000 people. Her organization is working closely with the Biden administration to bring people to the border and ensure they test negative for COVID-19 before being allowed into the country.

The estimate seems low. Syracuse University's Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse said the move could benefit 34,528 migrants  27,842 who denied for failing to appear in court and 6,686 whose cases were dismissed.

Many are believed to have left the Mexican border region, thinking their cases were finished, raising the possibility that they will make the dangerous trek to return. The official said the administration is aware of those dangers and considering bringing people to the United States, like it is doing to reunite families that remain separated years after Trump's zero tolerance" policy on illegal border crossings.

The move is another significant effort at redress for Trump policies that Biden administration officials and their allies say were cruel and inhumane and defenders say were extremely effective at discouraging asylum-seekers from coming to the U.S.

President Joe Biden halted the Remain in Mexico policy his first day in office and soon allowed an estimated 26,000 asylum-seekers with active cases to return to the United States while their cases play out, a process that can take years in a court system backlogged with more than 1.3 million cases. More than 12,300 people with active cases have been admitted to the U.S. since February, while others who have registered but not yet entered the country bring the count to about 17,000.

That still leaves out tens of thousands of asylum-seekers whose claims were denied or dismissed under the policy, known officially as Migrant Protection Protocols. Advocates have been pressing for months for them to get another chance, but the administration has been silent, leaving them in legal limbo.

Many asylum-seekers whose claims were denied for failure to appear in court say they were kidnapped in Mexico. Others were too sick or afraid to travel to a border crossing in a dangerous city, sometimes with appointments as early as 4:30 a.m. Advocacy group Human Rights First tallied more than 1,500 publicly reported attacks against people subject to the policy.

Difficulty finding attorneys from Mexico meant few had legal representation, contributing to a measly 1.6% grant rate among cases that were decided. U.S. authorities gave asylum-seekers a list of low- or no-cost attorneys, but phones would ring unanswered and messages went unreturned.

The Biden administration has not decided whether to admit people who showed up for court and had their claims denied, the official said. The logic behind the expanded eligibility is to give people who didn't appear in court another opportunity.

About 6,700 asylum-seekers had cases dismissed, the vast majority in San Diego, often after judges found the government made a mistake in applying the policy or the migrants failed to appear.

In all, about 70,000 asylum-seekers were returned to Mexico under the policy introduced in San Diego in January 2019 and expanded across the border after then-President Donald Trump threatened Mexico with higher tariffs if it didnt do more to reverse a major spike in border crossings.

The policy was highly effective at deterring asylum claims but widely criticized for exposing asylum-seekers to dangerous conditions in Mexican border cities and violating their rights under domestic law and international agreements, advocates say.

Those who were denied under the policy can register on a website operated by the U.N. refugee agency in collaboration with the International Organization of Migration.

It is unclear where eligible asylum-seekers are but the migration group will work to bring them to the border, Klein Solomon said. The Mexican government has moved many people from the border to other parts of the country, arguing that it was safer to remove them from areas more in the grip of organized crime.

The news was cheered by pro-immigration groups that have denounced Trumps policies as cruel and inhumane while inviting criticism from more enforcement-minded advocates who say Bidens policies have encouraged more people to seek asylum.

Eleanor Acer, Human Rights First's senior director of refugee protection, called it a welcome step" that would provide access to asylum to people who missed hearings due to kidnappings and other dangers.

Chad Wolf, an acting Homeland Security secretary who oversaw the policy, said giving asylum-seekers another chance after they lost their cases was absurd.

This administration simply refuses to put the American people first when formulating their immigration policy. This is just more evidence," said Wolf, now a visiting fellow at The Heritage Foundation.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection recorded more than 180,000 encounters on the Mexican border in May, the most since March 2000. But the numbers were boosted by a pandemic-related ban on seeking asylum that encouraged repeat attempts to cross because getting caught carried no legal consequences.

The Biden administration says it is working to build a humane asylum system but has released few details.

The United States was by far the most popular destination for asylum-seekers last year, with 250,800 new claims, more than twice as many as Germany, with 102,600 claims, the U.N. refugee agency reported last week. Spain, France and Peru rounded out the top five.
We are currently experiencing a severe blood shortage in the Greater St. Louis area and across the nation. Donors of all blood types  especially type O and those giving platelets  are urged to make an appointment to give as soon as possible to prevent further impact to patients.

Hospitals are reporting an atypically high number of traumas and emergency room visits, as well as overdoses and resulting transplants. In comparison to 2019, the Red Cross has seen demand from trauma centers climb by 10% in 2021 more than five times the growth of other facilities that provide blood transfusions.

In addition to trauma needs, there is a great hospital demand for blood as people who deferred care during the height of the pandemic present with more advanced disease progression, requiring increased blood transfusions. Over the last three months, the Red Cross has distributed about 75,000 more blood products than expected to meet these needs.

In the Greater St. Louis area, Red Cross supplies more than 80 percent of the blood to local hospitals, thanks to our generous donors. Blood is perishable and cannot be stockpiled, so it must constantly be replenished by our donors.

Making an appointment to give blood or platelets may be done by downloading the free through the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting RedCrossBlood.org or calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or enabling the Blood Donor Skill on any Alexa Echo device. As a thank-you, those who come to give now through June 30 will receive a $5 Amazon.com Gift Card via email, courtesy of Amazon.

As more than a third of Americans have become fully vaccinated against COVID-19, the Red Cross is winding down COVID-19 antibody testing for blood, platelet and plasma donations. The testing will run through June 25. Testing may show possible exposure to the virus or whether a donor has developed an immune response to vaccination.

In most cases, those who have received a COVID-19 vaccine can donate. However, knowing the name of the manufacturer of the vaccine received is important in determining donation eligibility. Details on eligibility are available online at redcrossblood.org.

The Red Cross is also encouraging donations to help more than 100,000 people who have sickle cell disease. Most people with this disease are of African descent and will require regular blood transfusions to help manage their disease. Some of these individuals may require as many as 100 units of blood per year.

The Red Cross is screening all blood, platelet and plasma donations from self-identified African American donors for the sickle cell trait. This additional screening will provide Black donors with an additional health insight and help the Red Cross identify compatible blood types more quickly to help patients with sickle cell disease. Since the best blood match for a patient receiving ongoing transfusions comes from donors of the same genetic background, the Red Cross encourages people of all ethnicities to give blood and help increase the number of diverse donors so we can find the best match for all patients.

Mary Jane Thomsen, Executive Director of the American Red Cross of Greater St. Louis, that includes Madison County, has served in this role since April 2018 and with the organization since 2010. As Executive Director, Thomsen manages the board of directors and its committees, key financial partners and blood sponsors and represents the Red Cross to the Greater St. Louis communities through public speaking engagements, media interviews and various community opportunities.
EDWARDSVILLE  Superintendent Dr. Jason Henderson delivered his final report at the District 7 Board of Education meeting Monday.

During his report, Henderson discussed the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) requirements regarding COVID-19 restrictions.

As of Monday, Henderson said guidelines for remote learning are unchanged  students who are not eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine and are under quarantine order under guidelines set by the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) or a local health department are eligible to learn remotely. A doctors note does not suffice. With these conditions still in place by ISBE, the district will be emailing all parents who expressed interest in continued remote learning to go over requirements and homebound instructions.

This is all contingent on the guidance not changing, Henderson said. So we have to be ready to pivot if the guidance does change.

Henderson went on to say that, as of Monday afternoon, superintendents in the state of Illinois were putting together a letter to implore ISBE to give additional guidance to schools. He said that the guidance regarding quarantine length, vaccination freedoms, masking, social distancing and other pandemic-related regulations is limited. When the school district receives a response the information will be released to the school community.

Henderson also reminded the board that a Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. Monday in the Hadley House. The first official CAC meeting will be in August. According to Henderson, Dr. Patrick Shelton, the incoming superintendent, will be in attendance.

Shelton will begin a three-year contract with the district on July 1 and will bring 25 years of experience in education. Previously, he was the assistant superintendent of elementary education at Lees Summit R-7 Schools in suburban Kansas City, Missouri. District 7 Board of Education made its choice known back in March by a unanimous vote.

During the meeting, president John McDole presented a commemorative plaque to superintendent Henderson.

Among other praises, the plaque read: Your leadership, dedication, and committed service to District 7 students, parents, and community will be truly missed.

Ive always been, since day one, impressed with his thoroughness, his attention to detail, his commitment to responding to emails even if it means staying up until ungodly hours of the night, McDole said. Youve led this district through an unfathomable time with steadfast energy, commitment and heart, I appreciate what youve done for our children, our teachers, and our community through these times.

Henderson said it has been an honor to serve District 7.

I want to thank you for thinking progressively the last couple of years. I think we accomplished a lot of things, even with the pandemic, he said.

Also during the regular board meeting, Walter Williams, president of the NAACP Edwardsville branch, addressed the board and presented a check of $2,500 to District 7 media centers to continue to sponsor elementary art contests. These contests are usually held in February and March and each elementary school is granted funds to purchase materials that highlight diversity.

The history of the NAACP embodies the spirit of collaboration and partnership, while encouraging the celebration of diversity and unity, Williams said. It is with that same spirit that we work with District 7 to bring you the artistry and talent of District 7 students.

Williams was joined by the first vice president and third vice president of the Edwardsville NAACP to highlight the ongoing commitment to the program.

Whatever happens to me, this will be an ongoing program for future generations, he said.
Salida, CO (81201)

Today

Thunderstorms during the evening will give way to mainly clear skies after midnight. Low 54F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms during the evening will give way to mainly clear skies after midnight. Low 54F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%.
Isaiah Pruitt was elected to serve as the 2021-22 Kentucky Future Farmers of America state reporter. He is a recent graduate of LaRue County High School.
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CCSA outlines contingency plan criteria for shutting down Phuket Sandbox

PHUKET: The Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) has outlined its key criteria for its Phuket Sandbox contingency plan, in case COVID infections start spiralling upward following the reopening of the province to foreign visitors next Thursday (July 1).

COVID-19Coronavirustourismeconomics

By The Phuket News

Wednesday 23 June 2021, 10:50AM

Mr Natapanu outlined the contingency plan criteria yesterday (June 22). Screenshot: CCSA

Natapanu Nopakun, Deputy Director-General of the Department of Information and Deputy Spokesman of the Foreign Affairs Ministry, explained the criteria in English yesterday (June 22) as part of the CCSAs national COVID-sitaution briefing.

Mr Natapanu noted that Phuket ranked 28th in the country for infections, adding, So they are doing good progress there.

He also explained that criteria for the cancellation of the Phuket Sandbox scheme if anything adverse happens.

For example, if there are 90 persons infected per week in Phuket, that would be a criteria for reconsideration of the scheme once it has started, or for any adjustments, Mr Natapanu said.

Also if all three districts in Phuket are affected, and in that more than six villages are affected, that would be another criteria, he added.

If there are COVID cases and there are no linkages found and no contact tracing is possible, that would be another criteria, Mr Natapanu continued.

Also, if the hospital bed capacity exceeds 80%, that would be another criteria, he added.

If the situation becomes worse in Phuket after the opening of the province on the 1st of July with these particular criteria, then it [the box scheme] would be reconsidered, Mr Natapanu noted.

Some of the reconsideration of the Phuket Sandbox scheme would be possibly to decrease the level of business activity or to conduct Sealed Route travel, and also to have more hotel quarantine, he said.

Also as a worst-case scenario, they would have to halt the [Sandbox] scheme in Phuket, Mr Natapanu added.

Of course, this is in preparation of a worst-case scenario if the province opens and something adverse happens, there are more cases and we are not able to control the infections in the province, then this would be the consideration, he said plainly.
Deep south arrivals face 14-day mandatory quarantine

PHUKET: Arrivals from the four southern border provinces must face mandatory quarantine for 14 days after arriving Phuket regardless of whether they have been vaccinated or can prove they have tested negative for COVID-19 within seven days of travelling to Phuket.

COVID-19Coronavirushealthtourism

By The Phuket News

Wednesday 23 June 2021, 10:00AM

Arrivals from the four deep south provinces will face 14-day mandatory quarantine, Phuket Vice Governor Pichet Panapong confirmed. Photo: PR Phuket

Phuket Vice Governor Pichet Panapong confirmed the mandatory quarantine for arrivals in Phuket from the four provinces  Yala, Pattani, Narathiwat and Songkhla  after the meeting of the Phuket Communicable Disease Committee on Monday (June 21).

The quarantine is to protect against the disease [COVID-19] from spreading, as a vaccine may not be able to protect against the virus variant [present in the four southern provinces]. This is our latest medical measure to prevent [infections] spreading from students or visitors, he said.

The move to enforce mandatory quarantine on arrivals from the four provinces follows a student being allowed to return home to Phuket from Yala, where he attended a school that had shut down due to a COVID cluster outbreak.

Yala, Pattani, Narathiwat and Songkhla have been designated Maximum Controlled Provinces, the secondest-highest danger rating under the new classification system brought into effect by the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) on Monday.

The classification comes as the Beta strain of COVID-19, first identified in South Africa, is now spreading quickly throughout the southernmost provinces.

Dr Apisamai Srirangsan, assistant spokeswoman for the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA), explained on Monday that the cluster at the Muslim religious school of Margaz Tabligh preaching center in Yalas Muang district, where the student had returned to Phuket from, has already spread to 402 patients across 12 southern provinces.

Those who travel from the four deep south provinces where the virus variant is spreading must quarantine in a local quarantine [LQ] or alternative local quarantine [ALQ] venue for 14 days even though they have all three qualifications to enter the island, V/Gov Pichet said.

The Phuket Government will release more specific information about provinces and districts as soon as possible, he added.

Of note, arrivals from Trang province, which borders Songkhla and is also classified a Maximum Controlled Province, are not subject to the new mandatory quarantine after arriving in Phuket.

FOREIGNERS ARRIVING BY ROAD FROM JULY 1

Vice Governor Pichet also revealed that the conditions for foreigners to enter Phuket by road will be different than for Thais from July 1.

The key criteria remain the same for both, he said.

1. They must be fully vaccinated with two injections, or the number of doses required for each vaccine or only one injection of AstraZeneca at least 14 days [before arriving].

2. Those who used to be infected with COVID-1 must present a document to prove that they were discharged from hospital care within 90 days before arriving.

3. Arrivals who are unable to prove 1 and 2 must have a RT-PCR or antigen test and present a document to officers [to prove they have tested negative for the virus] at the checkpoint, he said.

However, V/Gov Pichet said that test results documents presented by Thais will be deemed valid for up to seven days from the date they were issued.

For foreigners, test results documents will be deemed valid for up to only three days.

He did not give any explanation as to why Phuket provincial authorities were considering the documents presented differently.

All arrivals must Install the MorChana app and turn on the location sharing at all times while staying in Phuket, and follow the D-M-H-T-T-A measures, he said.
Layan beach encroachers given seven days eviction notice

PHUKET: The occupiers of plots of state land along the Layan-Leypang beachfront together estimated to have a total value of about B10 billion have until next Monday (June 28) to remove their buildings or else face them being demolished.

propertytourismcrime

By The Phuket News

Wednesday 23 June 2021, 04:51PM

MaAnn Samran, chief of the Cherng Talay Tambon Administration Organisation (OrBorTor), served official notices of eviction to 15 people occupying some 178 rai of land, including the well-known Tonys Restaurant at Layan Beach, on Monday (June 21).

Joining Mr MaAnn were Pawin Kuman, Director of Phuket office of the Legal Execution Department (LED), and Thanet Nawalong, Chief Administrative officer at the Thalang District office (Palad) and other officers.

Mr MaAnn explained that previous attempts to evict people illegally occupying state land along the Layan-Leypang beachfront had failed.

In total 178 rai of prime beachfront land valued at an estimated B10 billion was being illegally occupied by people operating private businesses, he said.

The Department of Special Investigation (DSI) originally served eviction notices in 2017 after the Supreme Court ruled that the occupiers were illegally encroaching on state land.

However, nine people fought the court order, Mr MaAnn said on Monday.

Six of the nine tried to present their right of possession and filed complaints against the OrBorTor and the Division of Land under the Thalang District office, until the Supreme Court handed down its verdict that the land is public land, he said.

When the warrant of execution came out, there was an objection and a request to present a lawsuit to the court in a special power. There has been a fight since the Court of First Instance, the Court of Appeal, the Supreme Court. It took almost three years to fight. The Supreme Court has ruled to dismiss all claims, he added.

Therefore, the enforcement according to the verdict starts again today [June 21]. We need to demolish buildings relating to six cases, including three restaurants and three residential buildings, Mr MaAnn said.

A man who presented himself as the owner of a restaurant resisted the order, so we need to follow the legal procedure, which is letting them vacate their plots within seven days, he explained.

If they do not vacate [the properties] within the days, officers of the Legal Execution Department will file a request to Phuket Provincial Court for an arrest warrant, Mr MaAnn said.

For those who did not resist, the Phuket Provincial Administrative Organisation [PPAO or OrBorJor] will send staff and machines to help demolish their buildings, he added.

If we can return the land to be public land, the Cherng Talay OrBorTor will make it an area for relaxation and activities, Mr MaAnn said.

According to a report by the Phuket office of the Public Relations Department (PR Phuket), the owner of the restaurant who resisted the order, who remained unnamed, claimed that he had filed a lawsuit with the Phuket Provincial Court for the right to possess the land.

He also filed a request to cancel the Phuket Provincial Order issued in 2003 that identified the land as reserved vacant land, meaning the land is state land, and to issue him a land title deed from a SorKor 1 that he has presented as his right to possession of 40 rai along the beachfront.

According to the PR Phuket report, the restaurant owner said that the requests are under the consideration of the court, and that he had petitioned against the eviction from the beginning.

Officers then made a record [of the mans statements], in order to further proceed with the law, the PR Phuket report noted.

Other owners of the restaurants, buildings and plantations located on the land also presented documents to confirm their right of possession, while some accepted to vacate their plots by themselves within seven days, the report said.

Officers will come to inspect the land again after seven days have passed and proceed under the law, the report added.

BITTER FIGHT

The battle for the beachfront land has been a long and bitter fight. After the DSI first posted eviction notices in November 2017, the occupiers refused to move.

Lt Col Montree Bunyayothin, Director of the DSIs Bureau of Natural Resources, came to Phuket in person in February 2018 to read the Supreme Court ruling and the eviction order, and hand down a second  and final  warning at a meeting at Phuket Provincial.

He also read out a provincial order to vacate the sites issued by the Phuket Governor at that time, Norraphat Plodthong

During his visit, Lt Col Montree also chaired a panel to investigate why no action had been taken against the illegal encroachers, during which Mr MaAnn was subjected to heavy scrutiny.

Testing Mr MaAnn on his conviction to carry out the evictions was Wanchat Choonhathanorm, a senior prosecutor at the Phukets Public Prosecutors office, which operates under the Office of the Attorney General.

Mr Wanchat had been tasked with overseeing and ensuring the Supreme Court evictions were carried out.

Mr Wanchat at the time was also in the public eye.

There have been reports in the media accusing me of taking bribes to not take any action on this issue. That is a [****] lie. I have not taken any bribes. My house does not need the money, Mr Wanchat said angrily.

Mr MaAnn, you have to follow up with this case. I dont want new people to claim this land. We are still watching this case very closely. We want to see it done.

It is your responsibility, Mr MaAnn, Can you handle it? Mr Wanchat asked in full view of the press present at the meeting.

Mr MaAnn admitted, It is uncomfortable to deal with, but I must do it.

However, he assured, If they dont move, I will knock them [their businesses] down on March 5. Nothing will stop me from doing my job. If officials make no mistakes in their jobs, this enforcement will work.

Of note, Mr Wanchat is now facing corruption charges brought against him by the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC).

The charge alleges that Mr Wanchat attempt to extort money from a defendant facing encroachment charges. The allegation maintains that Mr Wanchat has asked the developer to pay money in order to not have the encroachment charges presented to the Phuket Governor at the time, Phakaphong Tavipattana.

Additional reporting by Eakkapop Thongtub

See also:

Layan lockout: Public access denied amid Supreme Court wrangle for B10bn beachfront land (Click here)

Not For Sale: Attempt to sell Phuket beachfront state-owned land for B3.6bn draws fire (Click here)

Phukets MaAnn pressured over Supreme Court beach evictions (Click here)

Phuket beachfront businesses at Layan, Leypang ordered: Get out, or be demolished (Click here)

DSI posts encroachment warning signs at Layan, Leypang beaches (Click here)
Second Astra jab brought forward again

THAILAND: The second shot of the AstraZeneca vaccine will be brought forward to combat the rapid local transmission of the Delta (Indian) variant of COVID-19, says the Public Health Ministry.

CoronavirusCOVID-19healthVaccine

By Bangkok Post

Wednesday 23 June 2021, 08:48AM

Health workers check peoples vitals before administering doses of the COVID-19 coronavirus CoronaVac and AstraZeneca vaccines at Bang Sue Central Railway Station in Bangkok yesterday (June 22). Photo: AFP.

Instead of the second shot being administered 10-12 weeks after the first, the period will be reduced to eight weeks, said permanent secretary for public health Dr Kiattiphum Wongrajit.

The speed up of the booster jabs is being prompted by the heavy prevalence of the Delta variant in the country, he explained.

Dr Kiattiphum said the ministry has distributed a total of 8.5 million doses throughout the country. The shots will be administered to target groups in a vaccination plan laid out by individual communicable disease committee of each province.

The ministrys latest figures collected from Feb 28 to June 21 showed people have been vaccinated with 7.9mn doses of the vaccine. Of them, 5.6mn were first doses. Also, 5.5mn doses were of the Sinovac vaccine and the rest AstraZeneca.

Initially, the National Communicable Disease Committee decided on June 14 that the first and second AstraZeneca shots should be spaced from 10-12 weeks with the period extendable up to 16 weeks if necessary.

The extension was backed by research in the United Kingdom, he claimed. However, he said the study was conducted before the emergence of the Delta strain of COVID-19.

The ministry has kept up-to-date with the fast-changing pandemic developments in the world which have a direct local impact, he noted.
Roanoke, AL (36274)

Today

Cloudy skies early, then partly cloudy after midnight. Low 64F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Cloudy skies early, then partly cloudy after midnight. Low 64F. Winds light and variable.
@rachelravina on Twitter

Rachel Ravina is a journalist covering news and lifestyle features in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. She grew up in Blue Bell and graduated from Penn State. She's also a news enthusiast who is passionate about covering topics people want to read.
Dr. James Finck is an associate professor of history at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma in Chickasha. He is chair of the Oklahoma Civil War Symposium. Follow Historically Speaking at www.Historicallyspeaking.blog.
Today

A few passing clouds, otherwise generally clear. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 61F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph.

Tonight

A few passing clouds, otherwise generally clear. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 61F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph.

Tomorrow

Partly cloudy skies in the morning will give way to cloudy skies during the afternoon. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 98F. Winds W at 10 to 15 mph.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP)  School districts that allow employees to be armed must also require police-level training for those workers, a divided Ohio Supreme Court ruled Wednesday in a victory for a group of parents who challenged a local district's armed employee policy.

At issue before the court was a directive adopted by Madison Local Schools in southwestern Ohio after a 2016 shooting in which two students were shot and wounded by a 14-year-old boy. A group of parents sued the district in September 2018 to prevent teachers from being armed without extensive training.

A Butler County judge dismissed the lawsuit, saying that school staffers did not need such training because they are not law enforcement officers. The districts policy requires 24 hours of training for staff carrying concealed weapons.

The parents appealed to the 12th District Court of Appeals, which ruled last March that Ohio law requires anyone who carries firearms in schools to have undergone a minimum of 728 hours of law enforcement training.

Nothing in Ohio law allows districts to circumvent the law's training requirement, Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor wrote for the four-justice majority.

The statute prohibits schools from employing someone who is armed while on duty unless the employee has satisfactorily completed an approved basic peace-officer-training program or has 20 years of experience as a peace officer, O'Connor wrote.

Three justices dissented, saying they believed Ohio law does allow the arming of teachers without the extra training.

If the General Assembly had wished to prohibit nonsecurity personnel, like teachers, from carrying weapons while on school property without the required training, it could have done so and may still do so, wrote Justice Pat Fischer.

A bill pending in the Ohio House would exempt school employees from the training requirement.

Parents maintain the state appeals court made the correct decision, saying state law is clear that schools can't permit the arming of employees who don't go through police officer training.

The parents "are concerned about the tragic and fatal accidents that could befall their children when armed school staff have insufficient training and are carrying firearms all day, every day, in their childrens classrooms and on the playground," attorneys for the parents said in an October court filing.

They noted that the parents don't oppose gun rights and that several are, in fact, gun owners.

The district maintains current law doesn't require the extensive training sought by the parents.

If the appeals court ruling is upheld, no school district can exercise the right to arm its staff unless it turns teachers into police officers, or police officers into teachers, lawyers for the district argued in a September filing. This is both entirely impractical and demonstrably wrong as a matter of statutory construction.

A message was left with the district's attorney office Wednesday.

The decision was disappointing, said state Rep. Thomas Hall, a Republican whose district includes Madison Local.

The Ohio General Assembly has a responsibility to give our school districts the option to protect their students and staff by embracing local control and establishing appropriate baseline training requirements for educators to carry a firearm, Hall said.

The district lawyers argued that lawmakers required police training only for officers and left training and qualifications for armed teachers up to school boards.

The state Fraternal Order of Police, several gun training and safety experts and other school districts including Cincinnati and Columbus  Ohio's largest district  filed arguments in support of the parents' position.

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, a Republican who is the state's top law enforcement official, supported the district.
The Ninian Edwards statue, on the corner of St. Louis and West Vandalia streets in downtown Edwardsville, was taken off its pedestal on Monday while a new location for it is planned. The statue has been the target of planned removal since October 2020 as Edwards' pro-slavery views have come into public attention over the past year.

While the park where the statue is located was renamed from Ninian Edwards Park to City Park, the town of Edwardsville itself was named after Ninian Edwards as well. One of the first European-American settlers of the area, Thomas Kirkpatrick, a South Carolina native, named the area after the lone territorial governor in Illinois history. One of the most important assets in the initial founding and settling of Edwardsville and Central Illinois, the Edwards Trace, was also named for Ninian.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP)  Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts is defending his decision to send state patrol troopers to the U.S.-Mexico border at the request of fellow Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas and using it as an opportunity to rail against the Biden administration.

Ricketts announced Saturday that he would send 25 troopers to Del Rio, Texas, this week for a deployment to last as long as 16 days. The troopers will partner with the Texas Department of Public Safety, although it's not clear what they'll be doing or how much the mission will cost.

Other GOP-led states, including Florida, have committed law enforcement agents to Texas as well, arguing that the federal government isn't doing enough to stop illegal immigration.

The White House announced Wednesday that Vice President Kamala Harris would travel to the U.S.-Mexico border. The visit comes amid criticism from Republicans and even some fellow Democrats that Harris has declined to visit the area despite her role leading the Biden administration's response to a sharp increase in migration.

This is a huge failure on the federal government's part, and that leaves states to try to come up with whatever solution they can to try to stem these sorts of crises, Ricketts said in an interview posted Wednesday with the Fox News Rundown podcast.

Ricketts pointed to an increase in unauthorized southern border crossings over the last year. U.S. Customs and Border Protection recorded more than 180,000 encounters on the Mexican border in May, the most since March 2000. But the numbers were boosted by a pandemic-related ban on seeking asylum, which encouraged repeated attempts to cross the border because getting caught carried no legal consequences.

Critics questioned the need to send Nebraska law enforcement agents to the border.

Rose Godinez, a legal and policy counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska, said federal officials have more than enough resources to patrol the border.

We see this as an effort by Gov. Ricketts to politicize this issue, Godinez said.

She said the border crossings are a symptom of the federal government's failure for years to pass broader changes to the U.S. immigration system.

It adds to the question of why the state patrol is needed down there, she said. This is not the best use of their time.

Ricketts' announcement, which blasted the federal government's immigration polices as disastrous, comes as the conservative positions himself as a vocal critic of President Joe Biden. Ricketts has railed against various administration proposals in nationally broadcast interviews, including a goal to conserve nearly one-third of Americas lands and waters by 2030 that Ricketts paints as a federal land grab.

A spokesman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a statement that the agency continues to leverage our longstanding relationships with state and local law enforcement," but deferred questions about state decisions to the governors.

Texas requested assistance from Nebraska through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, a partnership of state emergency management agencies.

Nebraska State Patrol spokesman Cody Thomas said the agency won't know how much the deployment will cost until it's complete. He noted that under the multi-state compact Nebraska has been reimbursed for similar services before.

Nebraska sent 11 troopers to North Dakota on two separate occasions during protests over the Dakota Access pipeline. The state also sent 23 state patrol personnel to Minnesota to help provide security during the trial of former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin in the death of George Floyd.

___

Follow Grant Schulte on Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrantSchulte
ALTON  YWCA Southwestern IL, in conjunction with Scholars on the Rise Tutoring, is again offering free community tutoring sessions on Thursdays July 8 through Aug. 12 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the YWCA, 304 E 3rd St., Alton.

The program structure includes math and reading instruction for grades K-6, lunch and an enrichment activity. Content will build upon previous session instruction, so attendance at each session is required.

Sessions are designed to focus on the development of math and reading skills as well as social emotional skills.

Research shows that students lose about one to two months worth of reading and math skills over the summer, with the loss being greater in math than reading. This data is more prevalent for students from disadvantaged student groups.

Research also shows that income-based reading gaps grow over the summer, given that middle income students tended to show improvement in reading skills while low-income students tended to experience loss. Over the summer, however, the flow of resources decreases for students from disadvantaged backgrounds, but not for students from advantaged backgrounds.

Community Tutoring Program Facilitator Candice Wallace has been an area educator for more than 10 years. She said she feels blessed to partner with the YWCA annually on this program.

Many students leave school for summer break significantly behind in both reading and math, she said. This deficit increases due to limited or no exposure to content or learning during the summer month. The Community Tutoring Program attempts to reduce this leaning loss by providing the recourses and instruction in math and reading to all students.

YWCA Executive Director Dorothy Hummel said she was proud of the collaborations with Wallace, Scholars on the Rise Tutoring, and the Alton-based Summer Lunch program.

It is wonderful to see area teachers and volunteers come back year after to serve these students, Hummel said. We are taking precautionary measures this year to ensure the health and safety of our staff and students as we offer the 5th annual Community Tutoring program. Special COVID procedures are available on our website for review.

Each learning session will be divided by grade and content area, limiting each grade to 10 students. With COVID-19s impact on learning, the Community Tutoring Program will be working harder to help children prepare for the upcoming school year.

Funding for the Community Tutoring program is available from a grant from Madison County Community Development. Registration forms are available on www.altonywca.com or by calling 618-465-7774. Due to grant funding, the registration package has been expanded to include an income survey.

YWCA of Alton is sponsored by BJC Alton Memorial Hospital, Morrissey Contracting Company, Inc., and Phillips 66 Wood River Refinery.
Middle Kids  Today Were the Greatest

THE GOOD: Australian indie pop band Middle Kids releases its second full-length album.

THE BAD: Not bad. Not great. Just very serviceable pop/rock.

THE NITTY GRITTY: Like some other international acts, Middle Kids is very big in its native country but a well-kept secret practically incapable of crossing over to the United States. Since its inception, the group has bounced between EPs and proper albums, each with its own dose of instant gratification. Today Were the Greatest simply continues a run of decent yet formulaic releases, with enjoyable music that isnt big on lasting impressions.

Lead vocalist/guitarist Hannah Joy remains the bands greatest weapon against having the music melt into the surroundings. Whether shes leading the rhythm section through a rousing bit of business such as R U 4 Me or a more personal and swaying concoction like Golden Star, Joy is Middle Kids sparkling personality, with a voice thats either sweet or tough as nails.

BUY IT?: Sure, especially if youve loved the catalog thus far.

The Fratellis  Half Drunk Under a Full Moon

THE GOOD: Scottish alt-rockers the Fratellis release their sixth.

THE BAD: Formulaic? Yeah, but that works here.

THE NITTY GRITTY: The Fratellis are the musical equivalent of a comfy old sweatshirt, feeling very good but exactly the same every time you try it on. The guys play it safe, but you dont mind once the hooks slam into your ears. Tracks such as Need a Little Love and The Last Songbird take care of those bouncy, sunny cravings. Strangers in the Street and Oh Roxy quench that thirst for something more sensitive. The epic title cut falls somewhere in between the extremes.

A band thats stuck on repeat can be irritating. But the Fratellis get a pass because the tunes are big and bold. Summer is here, and we need summertime music  a little something to accompany those late-evening sunsets. Half Drunk fits that bill perfectly. Its energetic and enticing with just a hint of melancholy in all the right places. Now, bring on that moon.

BUY IT?: Yes.

Sir Sly  The Rise and Fall of Loverboy

THE GOOD: California indie pop trio Sir Sly returns with its third.

THE BAD: The set needs trimming, as it wavers across the second half. Still, the strong songs outnumber the weaker moments.

THE NITTY GRITTY: This is NOT a concept album about the 80s Canadian rock band. Loverboy simply is another collection combining rock guitars with electronic elements and danceable rhythms. Frontman Landon Jacobs and his crew deliver an enjoyable set thats as good as one can expect from an alternative outfit like this. Hey, Id put the group above Saint Motel or New Politics any day.

Feel-good moments include Loverboy and Are We Having Any Fun? Citizen adds a splash of hip-hop. Doomsday tosses in darker vibes but remains exceedingly catchy while doing so.

Maybe 14 songs is too ambitious, though. The band stumbles on the more experimental stuff. Bits such as Thx and Sick Sick (Sic) feel self-indulgent and/or unfinished, like B-sides that wormed their way onto the playlist.

BUY IT?: Maybe.
Lackawanna County jumped to third among the states 67 counties in percentage of senior citizens fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to federal data Wednesday.

With 36,926 residents 65 and older, or 86.6%, fully vaccinated, the county ranks behind only Montour County, 92.3%, and Lehigh County, 91.1%, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.

No other local county ranks in the top 20. A month ago, Lackawanna ranked seventh based on state statistics.

County Chief of Staff Brian Jeffers credited county Area Agency on Aging Director Jason Kavulich for concentrating hard on getting residents of all ages vaccinated. For weeks, the county has trailed only Montour in percentage of residents 18 and older fully vaccinated.

Jason worked really hard, Jeffers said Wednesday. I think we will be at over 70% fully vaccinated by the time we come back from the Fourth of July.

As of Wednesday, 75.4% of county adults received at least one vaccine dose with 66.5% fully vaccinated, the CDC data shows. That outpaces the state as a whole.

Pennsylvania has 74.6% of adults with at least one dose, but only 59.1% fully vaccinated, according to the CDC data.

In early May, Gov. Tom Wolf said he would lift all remaining masking requirements when at least 70% of adults were fully vaccinated. Three weeks later, he decided to alter that to 70% fully vaccinated or next Monday, whichever came first. The state will likely fall short of 70% by Monday, but Wolf said last week he will end required masking anyway.

Kavulich said his agency sometimes closed its offices so he and his staff could work on vaccination clinics. They focused on senior citizens especially early on when they were part of the first group authorized for vaccinations.

Were still going at it, Kavulich said. Were going to go door-to-door and targeting rural neighborhoods where some churches have offered to host vaccination clinics.

The state Department of Health reported 174 new cases and eight new deaths statewide Wednesday, raising the totals to 1,210,820 cases and 27,612 deaths.

The seven-county northeast recorded a net of 13 new cases and no new deaths, leaving the totals at 78,256 cases and 1,879 deaths.

By county:

Lackawanna added one case for 18,540 total, including 2,903 probable, and remained at 481 deaths.

Luzerne added seven cases for 32,074 total, including 2,622 probable. One new death raised the total to 824 deaths.

Monroe added two cases for 14,810 total, including 464 probable, and remained at 321 deaths.

Pike remained at 4,033 cases, including 432 probable, and 54 deaths.

Susquehanna declined by one case to 2,658, including 348 probable, and remained at 62 deaths.

Wayne added four cases for 4,145 total, including 442 probable, and remained at 84 deaths.

Wyoming remained at 1,996 cases, including 356 probable, but had its death toll reduced by one to 53.
Former West Hazleton police chief Brian Buglio pleaded guilty Tuesday to a federal count of deprivation of rights under color of law for threatening a citizen with criminal charges in retaliation for social media posts critical of the West Hazleton Police Department.

Buglio, 45, of Lattimer Mines, appeared before Magistrate Judge Joseph F. Saporito Jr. on Tuesday morning to enter his plea pursuant to an agreement he reached with the U.S. Attorneys Office.

During the hearing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Phillip J. Caraballo-Garrison revealed the prosecution has a recording of Buglio threatening to charge the resident with a felony offense in retaliation for Facebook posts critical of him and the department.

Asked if he agreed with the prosecutions portrayal of his conduct, Buglio told the judge he did.

The maximum penalty for the misdemeanor offense is a year in prison, a year of probation and a $100,000 fine. However, under terms of the plea deal, prosecutors agreed to an offense level that would carry up to six months of imprisonment.
A Scranton man who sexually abused three young girls was resentenced Wednesday by a Lackawanna County judge to serve eight to 17 years in state prison.

Anthony R. Show, 33, Scranton, was originally sentenced in May to state prison for 10 years and two months to 20 years and four months. He pleaded guilty Dec. 9 to aggravated indecent assault of a child, indecent assault and corruption of minors, according to court records.

Shows original sentencing took into consideration an incorrect past record, said Douglas Vanston, his attorney.

The court still feels you deserve a lengthy sentence time, Judge Andy Jarbola said during Wednesdays virtual sentencing.

The victims had contact with Show in 2016 and 2017 in the city, according to a criminal complaint.

The Times-Tribune does not identify victims of sexual assault.

According to police, Show, wearing no pants, waited in the bedroom of one child and told her to come closer when she entered the room. She ran and screamed, but no one heard her. The children also described sex acts with Show, with one of them telling authorities Show threatened to harm her if she spoke out.

During forensic interviews at the Childrens Advocacy Center of Northeastern Pennsylvania, the children said Show told them to stay silent about the abuse.

Show attended Wednesdays virtual sentencing virtually from Lackawanna County Prison but declined to speak.
The woman accused of deliberately coughing on food and causing a Hanover Twp. supermarket to toss out tens of thousands of dollars worth of merchandise in an incident that made international headlines pleaded guilty Tuesday to a felony bomb threat charge.

Margaret Ann Cirko, 37, of Hanover Twp., entered her plea before Luzerne County President Judge Michael T. Vough, who set sentencing for Aug. 24.

In exchange for her plea to the felony charge, prosecutors dropped other offenses against her, including criminal mischief, disorderly conduct and making terroristic threats.

According to prosecutors, Cirko entered the Gerritys Supermarket on the Sans Souci Parkway the afternoon of March 25, 2020  at a period when the coronavirus was rapidly spreading through Pennsylvania  and began yelling that she has the virus while coughing and spitting on food and merchandise.

Cirko remains free on $50,000 bail pending her sentencing. She was permitted to apply for the Intermediate Punishment Program, which allows nonviolent offenders to remain out of prison under strict guidelines and conditions.

Cirko previously pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of defiant trespassing after refusing to leave a Warrior Run church in April. Magisterial District Judge Donald L. Whittaker fined her $276.
Public-health leaders sought to reassure Americans that COVID-19 shots are safe and to get vaccinated after reports that a relatively small number of mostly young men had suffered a heart problem after being immunized.

About 1,200 cases of heart inflammation have been reported in people who received messenger RNA COVID-19 vaccines, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The numbers were reported at a Wednesday meeting of the CDCs Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.

Top U.S. health officials, regulators and doctors said that the risk potentially posed by shots developed by the Pfizer-BioNTech SE partnership and Moderna is extremely low, and that it is much more likely that the coronavirus itself would pose a serious threat to peoples health.

Heightened concern about possible cardiovascular side effects could threaten vaccine uptake among young adults and adolescents just as more of them become eligible to receive shots. The immunization push in the U.S. has been slowing in recent weeks, and dangerous variants have begun to flourish in some undervaccinated areas.

More than 130 million Americans have been fully vaccinated with Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna shots that use the mRNA technology, according to the CDC, but the Biden administration has struggled to compel younger people to head to the clinic.The task for health-care providers now will be to bolster confidence in the mRNA shots and highlight the risks of going without a vaccine.

Data presented on Wednesday show theres only a 0.00126% risk of developing the heart condition for those 12 to 39 years old within 21 days of being administered their second dose. Other COVID-caused conditions, like multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, or MIS-C, pose an even greater threat, the agencys advisers said at the meeting.The facts are clear: This is an extremely rare side effect, and only an exceedingly small number of people will experience it after vaccination, the Department of Health and Human Services, CDC, American Academy of Pediatrics, and other public health leaders said in a statement Wednesday.

The officials said for the young people who do suffer the side effect, most cases are mild and that individuals often recover on their own with minimal treatment. Similar heart problems are more common in patients who get COVID-19, they said.

Especially with the troubling delta variant increasingly circulating, and more readily impacting younger people, the risks of being unvaccinated are far greater than any rare side effects from the vaccines, the group said.

Shares of Pfizer were down 1.4% at 3:38 p.m. in New York trading, and BioNTech shares fell 2.5%. Moderna shares were down 3.6%.

The White House said Tuesday that it will not hit its target of administering at least one dose of the vaccine to 70% of Americans by the Fourth of July. The Biden administrations virus czar, Jeff Zients, attributed the missed goal to young adults.

Less than half of those ages 18 to 24 have gotten their first shot, according to the CDC. Meanwhile only 42% of those ages 16 and 17 have gotten a shot. And among the adolescents most recently cleared for the shot, just 29% have received their first dose.

The Pfizer-BioNTech shot was cleared for those 12 to 15 years old in May. About 2 in 10 adolescents in that age group are now fully vaccinated, according to the CDC. Initial safety findings from the U.S. health agency suggest real-world data is consistent with the results from the companies clinical trial prior to authorization.

In the spring, the CDC observed a spike in reports of an inflammation of the heart called myocarditis, and inflammation of the membrane around the heart, or pericarditis, following vaccination.

A total of 1,226 cases have been reported through June 11, according to the CDC, most of which were among young men and adolescents.

Were observing this in younger age groups, mainly teens and early 20s, said Tom Shimabukuro, a safety expert of CDCs National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, at the meeting.

The risk of heart inflammation following mRNA vaccination in adolescents and young adults ages 12 to 39 is notably higher a few days after the second dose of the vaccine and in men, Shimabukuro said. More data are needed to understand risk factors, treatment and long-term outcomes, according to the advisory committee.

Still, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said Wednesday that mRNA vaccines have been successful in preventing severe illness and death among young people.

For every million second doses of an mRNA vaccine administered to those 18-to-24-year-olds, the CDC projects 26,000 cases of COVID-19 and 1,657 hospitalizations are prevented, while only 49 to 61 cases of myocarditis may develop.

Speaking at the Milken Institute Future of Health Summit, Walensky added that the data presented at the advisory committee meeting still overwhelmingly demonstrate that the benefits of vaccination far outweigh the risks.

Walensky also told the summit that the delta variant is spreading rapidly in the U.S. and now accounts for a fifth of recent coronavirus cases.

The rapid growth in the delta variant, which first emerged in India, was seen after the strain accounted for just 3% of cases analyzed several weeks ago, she added.

___

(Bloombergs Elaine Chen contributed to this report.)
HARRISBURG  The Pennsylvania House passed an election overhaul bill Tuesday that creates stricter voter ID requirements and early voting in 2025, despite opposition from most Democrats and a promised veto from Gov. Tom Wolf.

The state Senate is poised to take up the measure in the coming days, but Republican lawmakers in the chamber are charting a separate path that would advance the priorities of county election officials while putting stricter voter ID requirements on a future ballot.

The topic has emerged as a partisan sticking point in Harrisburg. Currently, only first-time voters and those casting ballots at a new polling precinct are required to show ID. Roughly three-quarters of respondents to a recent Franklin & Marshall College poll of Pennsylvania voters said they favor requiring all voters to show photo ID.

Democrats call any new such ID restrictions voter suppression, while Republicans say it makes elections more secure. The reality is more complicated, with a 2019 study showing such laws dont reduce already-rare fraud or voter turnout.

House lawmakers spent more than three hours Tuesday debating Rep. Seth Groves 150-page election bill, which also places limits on drop boxes; requires more comprehensive audits of ballots, machines and processes; and calls for the state to reimburse each county for electronic poll books.

Grove, who heads the House committee in charge of considering election legislation, said the measure secures and modernizes elections while ensuring access to voters. The bill was drafted without input from Democrats.

Democrats countered most of whats included in Groves bill isnt necessary and addresses false claims of voter fraud rather than expanding voter access. Rep. Margo Davidson (D., Delaware), the minority chair of the House State Government Committee, called the bill another sad step in the march that is dismantling our democracy.

Wolf on Twitter said he wants election reform, but would veto Groves bill in its current form.

The lawmakers behind this bill are the same ones who asked Congress to throw out PA votes and whose lies directly contributed to the Jan. 6 insurrection, he tweeted Tuesday.

A state Senate committee is expected to consider the legislation in the coming days.

Even within the GOP, there appears to be disagreements over how to approach any overhaul of the Election Code, with its right-wing members favoring a wholesale repeal of mail voting and a third, Arizona-style audit of the 2020 election.

Groves counterpart in the Senate State Government Committee, David Argall of Schuylkill County, supports such a review, despite two already-completed audits and multiple government officials confirming the accuracy of the votes. Grove has rejected an audit and said his focus is on passing the omnibus election bill, which he said was a result of 10 hearings aimed at finding ways to restore confidence in elections. He said hes tried asking Wolf to negotiate without success and dismissed Democrats claims of voter suppression as a false narrative.

Argall is taking a different approach that may prove more successful. The Republican senator is pushing a bill that solely addresses two priorities election officials fiercely advocated for in the months leading up to the 2020 presidential contest: moving the deadline to apply for a mail ballot from seven to 15 days before Election Day, and allowing county officials to begin processing, or pre-canvassing, mail ballots seven days before Election Day.

Argalls piecemeal approach to election reform is likely to be supported by Democrats and Wolf, who have repeatedly said changes requested by election officials should be addressed before the legislature tackles more nuanced issues. The bill has yet to be considered by Argalls committee.

If your car needs new tires and brakes to pass inspection, thats what we ought to do, Rep. Mark Longietti (D., Mercer) said Monday. Some folks want to rebuild the entire car, which takes a lot of time, thats a big project, and we dont have the tools to do that because the governor doesnt support that.

At the same time, Argalls committee has advanced a proposed constitutional amendment to require voter ID, though the measure is light on details. The proposal has a major benefit for the GOP: It wouldnt require support from Wolf, who has vowed to veto any legislation with stricter ID requirements.

The full state Senate could take up the resolution as early as this week before sending it to the House. As a constitutional amendment, lawmakers would need to approve the measure in two consecutive two-year sessions, meaning the earliest voters could see the question is 2023.

Republicans used the amendment process to send two questions about curtailing the governors emergency powers to the voters, who approved the changes to the Pennsylvania Constitution this May. Such amendments rarely fail to pass: Since the 1990s, voters have approved 100% of ballot questions.

WHILE YOURE HERE, if you learned something from this story, pay it forward and become a member of Spotlight PA so someone else can in the future at spotlightpa.org/donate. Spotlight PA is funded by foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability journalism that gets results.
HARRISBURG  A key state Senate committee agreed Tuesday to put guardrails on how Pennsylvania lawmakers draw congressional maps, while stripping out proposed limits on how the General Assemblys own districts are drawn.

The bill, which passed on a near party-line vote in the chambers State Government Committee, diminished anti-gerrymandering advocates hopes of preventing Pennsylvanias most powerful lawmakers from drawing maps that unfairly benefit one political party.

An amendment offered by the panels chair, Sen. David Argall, R-Schuylkill, removed all proposed reforms to the legislative redistricting process, including requirements to hold public meetings and allow public comments, as well as to add additional criteria that advocates say could lead to fairer state House and Senate maps.

Experts say while the amendment significantly rolls back and weakens transparency and accountability provisions in the original bill introduced by Sen. Lisa Boscola, D-Northampton, the proposed guardrails would still be an improvement over the way the states congressional maps are currently drawn.

Its the first time in three decades that Pennsylvanias congressional map  which will be reduced from 18 to 17 districts  will be decided by a divided government, with Republicans controlling the General Assembly and Democrat Tom Wolf in the governors seat. National Democrats have already anticipated an impasse and have filed a lawsuit asking Commonwealth Court to step in if the elected officials cant come to an agreement.

Argall said the bill had a better chance of passing if it only focused on congressional redistricting, which he hoped would reverse at least some of the hyperpartisan efforts of the past.

We thought that, better we try to fix this one problem now and then move on rather than try to do it all at once, Argall said. Our fear is that if we try to do it all at once, the bill will fail again.

The original bill  and its identical House version  was supported by 25 senators and 89 representatives from both parties.

Boscola told Spotlight PA and Votebeat she was disappointed the amendment gutted the guardrails for legislative redistricting, which is done by a five-person commission of legislative leaders and an appointed outside chairman.

She said she was less concerned about congressional redistricting, as there are built-in checks and balances. Wolf can veto the final product, while the Democratic-controlled Pennsylvania Supreme Court could throw out a congressional map if the justices deem it unconstitutional.

But such reform was desperately needed when it came to the legislative districts, Boscola said.

The power of the pen is still going to be with the five individuals (on the Legislative Reapportionment Commission), she said. The four (party) leaders, they didnt want to give up the power of the pen.

Commissioners of that panel previously said theyre committed to making their map-drawing process transparent and have pledged to hold public hearings while they await population data set to be released in mid-August, but no such meetings have been scheduled.

Argalls proposal keeps some remnants of Boscolas bill as it relates to congressional redistricting.

It requires the House and Senate State Government committees to explain how the proposed congressional map follows state and federal redistricting criteria and how the map differs from the previous decade. In December 2011, Republican lawmakers revealed and passed a new congressional map in less than two weeks without any public input.

The committees would also be mandated to hold at least four public hearings around the state to get input on what the congressional maps should look like and to develop a system for receiving and publicly sharing written comments and citizen-submitted maps.But Argalls amendment removed language that prohibits lawmakers from unduly favoring one political party over another  the hallmark of gerrymandering.There are people that think thats a very difficult goal to attain, Argall told Spotlight PA and Votebeat in an interview last week. Our goal is to pass a piece of legislation that meets court muster. Our goal is not to pass something that gets thrown into the trash can the first time a judge says, Well you helped candidate X, when you promised to be completely nonpartisan or bipartisan.But Yurij Rudensky, redistricting counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice, said that argument doesnt pass muster. Multiple courts  including the Pennsylvania Supreme Court  have acknowledged that computer-based methods can determine whether a map is drawn with one party at a disadvantage.

The states congressional map was redrawn by an outside expert in 2018 after the state Supreme Court found Republicans maximized the number of congressional seats for their party while disadvantaging Democrats.

And experts have said the states current legislative maps skew toward Republicans  who controlled the process the last time the maps were drawn  and that it is unlikely this happened organically.

Under Argalls amendment, lawmakers would need to draw congressional districts equal in population and would be prevented from splitting up cities, towns, boroughs, townships, or voting precincts.

One objection raised by Fair Districts PA, a nonprofit group advocating for redistricting reform, is that Argalls amendment prioritizes avoiding municipality splits and population equality above all other standards  including compactness and communities of interest  rather than considering all of the standards with equal weight.

Mappers could draw strangely shaped districts that do nothing to renew trust or bring voters closer to district offices, Carol Kuniholm, chair of Fair Districts PA, said in an email to members of the Senate State Government Committee.

Fair Districts also takes issue with what the group said is a lack of transparency in a broken legislative process. A few hours before the meeting Tuesday, the amendment still wasnt publicly available online, and the public wasnt allowed to testify on the proposed amendment.

The process once again ignores voters concerns, voters voices, and our constitutional right to alter and reform our government, Kuniholm wrote.

Rudensky, from the Brennan Center, said its unclear whether Argalls proposed criteria of prioritizing equal population and prohibiting municipality splits would give either party an advantage. Democrats in Pennsylvania tend to cluster in urban areas and cities, while Republicans are spread throughout the states rural counties.

It may well be possible to comply with these criteria and still have a map that doesnt offer all communities fair representation, Rudensky said. But without clearly articulated protections, theres always the possibility of gaming the system.

The bill now goes to the Senate for consideration and would then need the approval of the House to reach Wolf.

Boscolas original bill was a concession by reform advocates like Kuniholm who want the district lines to be drawn by an independent redistricting commission without lawmakers, who wouldve had to give up their power to decide what their districts look like.

Proposals to create such a commission never advanced in the legislature.

WHILE YOURE HERE, if you learned something from this story, pay it forward and become a member of Spotlight PA so someone else can in the future at spotlightpa.org/donate. Spotlight PA is funded by foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability journalism that gets results.

This article is part of a yearlong reporting project focused on redistricting and gerrymandering in Pennsylvania. It is made possible by the support of Spotlight PA members and Votebeat, a project focused on election integrity and voting access.
Summer is here, and so are fireworks and, inevitably, complaints about their misuse in neighborhoods across the commonwealth.

Ever since the Legislature passed a law in 2017 that ended the states absurdly restrictive and convoluted rules covering consumer fireworks, many local governments statewide have complained that the new regime might not be restrictive enough.

As often is the case, lawmakers were motivated at least as much by revenue prospects as by a desire for simple, straightforward state policy. They imposed a 12% tax on consumer fireworks sales on top of the standard 6% sales tax. So far in the current fiscal year, which ends June 30, the 12% tax has generated about $7.5 million.

The price for the state revenue largely is paid at the local level, where people live. Scranton police received about 200 fireworks complaints over the July 4 weekend in 2020. Philadelphia alone recorded 8,500 fireworks complaints between June 2019 and June 2020. Pittsburgh and York have established special police units to deal with fireworks complaints.

Public safety also is an issue. U.S. hospitals treated more than 10,000 fireworks injuries last year, about 75% on and around Independence Day. Friday, a man in Centre County suffered serious injuries when year-old fireworks exploded in his car. And a year ago, a Scranton man died in a firework mishap.

Its pretty clear that the state government needs to give local governments greater authority over fireworks use. State Rep. Robert Freeman, a Northampton County Democrat, has introduced a bill to do so. It would allow governments to establish restrictions on fireworks use as long as they do not conflict with state law. And it would amend the state law to limit fireworks to between 10 a.m. and 9 p.m., Sunday through Thursday, and 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday through Sunday, with exceptions for major holidays including New Years Even and July 4. The state law already precludes fireworks within 150 feet of structures.

It also would establish fines for violations that would increase for multiple offenses.

To help protect neighborhoods and promote safety, the Legislature should approve the changes.
Vice President Kamala Harris recently met with Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei and Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to discuss ways to stem migration to the United States.

Harris has acknowledged the complex factors causing migration, including climate changes impact on declining agricultural production and high rates of crime and violence. Harris also identified corruption as key. No matter how much effort we put in  on curbing violence, on providing disaster relief, on tackling food insecurity ... we will not make significant progress if corruption in the region persists.

Harris rightly notes that multiple causes are driving migration, but blaming corruption and violence distracts from the long-standing historical and structural factors fueling Guatemalans desire to leave their country. It also obscures the role that U.S. policy has played in sustaining this crisis. For decades, impoverished urban workers and Indigenous Mayan campesinos have struggled to subsist in a nation that refuses to protect basic human rights and denies them full citizenship. U.S. support of Guatemalas oligarchy has only worsened living conditions and exacerbated migration.

During the mid-20th century, Guatemalans tried to bring more economic opportunity and political equality for all. From 1944 to 1954, the country experienced Ten Years of Spring after the people ousted a dictator and enjoyed democratic elections. Reform-minded governments passed laws that guaranteed a minimum wage, established a 45-hour workweek and secured freedom of the press. In rural areas, the 1945 constitution prohibited forced-labor practices commonly used by elites to obtain free or inexpensive labor during the coffee harvest. Subsequent reforms supported the redistribution of idle land to rural communities that had their land stripped from them during the 19th century.

This brief democratic interlude ended under the Eisenhower administration. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles and CIA Director Allen Dulles had economic interests in United Fruit. The company owned uncultivated land that would have been subject to the agrarian reform. Instead, UFCo paid a public relations firm to convince Congress that the Guatemalan government was pro-Soviet. The result was a CIA-sponsored coup in 1954.

After the coup, Guatemala experienced a string of military governments that collaborated with the countrys small elite class to protect their privileges.

In the 1960s and 1970s, Mayan communities formed rural cooperatives and agrarian leagues designed to improve living standards. After the Catholic Churchs Vatican II reforms from 1962 to 1965, local churches expanded education and leadership opportunities, and the church became a hub for social justice activism.

These organizations made small gains, but they lacked power to challenge the oligarchy. Instead, Guatemalan elites charged that social reformers were Cuban-inspired communists and sought to crush them.

As the conflict intensified through the 1970s, elites supported the militarys efforts to control social unrest by extralegal tactics, including death squads and forced disappearances. U.S. documents show the United States provided hardware and counterinsurgency training to Guatemalan military and police in this effort.

In March 1982, Gen. Efrain Rios Montt led a coup against the then-military president. Rios Montt promised to end corruption, revitalize the economy and defeat the insurgency. In reality, Rios Montt unleashed a genocide against the Maya population. More than 200,000 people were killed or disappeared and 1.5 million were displaced, including about 200,000 who became refugees in Mexico; 83% of the victims of violence were Maya. The Commission for Historical Clarification identified the military as responsible for 93% of abuses.

Guatemalan migration grew during the violence. However, the Reagan administration refused to acknowledge the migrants as refugees. People fleeing from Guatemala and El Salvador were listed as economic migrants because their governments enjoyed strong U.S. support. To acknowledge them as refugees would have required the United States to admit that it was supporting repressive governments. Instead, Guatemalans and Salvadorans became undocumented immigrants in the United States, the same country that supported the violence that forced them to flee.

Many of the young men who came to this country found work in the construction, agriculture and service industries. Some formed gangs. Barrio 18 and Mara Salvatrucha 13 emerged in Los Angeles during the 1980s. The Clinton administrations harsh immigration reform in 1996 mandated deportation for immigrants who were convicted of minor crimes. Essentially, the United States deported gang culture back to Central America. This set the stage for increasing violence over the past 20 years.

For the past half-century, wars have left Guatemalans traumatized, economically fragile and deeply divided. Mayan campesinos continue to be treated as second-class citizens and lack sufficient land. Urban working classes struggle. The alliance between the traditional oligarchy and military remains strong.

In 2006, civil society organizations pushed the government and the United Nations to establish the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala. It worked to support Guatemalas nascent judicial institutions on cases of corruption, illicit security organizations and organized crime. Although the judiciary had significant successes, the judicial system remains marred by mass impunity and corruption permeates all levels of society.

Impunity and corruption have eroded peoples faith in government institutions, a situation best highlighted by the trial of Rios Montt. Although he was convicted of genocide and crimes against humanity in May 2013, Rios Montts conviction was annulled based on procedural irregularities. On May 19, the Guatemalan attorney generals office dropped one of the corruption charges against former president Otto Perez Molina. Instead, it turned against two officials who had helped to build the case.

Migration from Guatemala is directly tied to this history of genocidal violence and impunity. Guatemalans migrate because the possibilities to live and work in their own country have been eliminated. U.S. policy helped make this happen. The Biden-Harris administration needs to recognize how U.S. policy has contributed to this exodus to avoid making similar mistakes.
Editor: If the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops approves a document to deny communion to pro-choice politicians, large numbers of Catholics will walk away in sadness and disbelief.

If the men who have reached the summit of ordained ministry in our church choose to debase this most profound of our sacraments by turning it into a weapon, we may no longer be able to believe what they teach: that this sacrament, the very body and blood of Christ, unites us with Jesus and with each other and calls us to love and service.

We grudgingly might have forgiven the bishops and stayed in spite of the sex scandals and frustratingly stayed when they said nothing about the inhumane policies of the last administration, but this is different. They play a dangerous game with a tenet of faith that we Catholics hold most dear. This sullies the Eucharist with the dirt of politics.

If any bishops read this, I would beg them not to do it.

MARION EAGEN

CLARKS GREEN

Editor: U.S. bishops voted overwhelmingly on June 18 to draft a teaching document to rebuke Catholic politicians, potentially including President Joe Biden, for receiving communion despite their support for abortion rights.

I know from experience that a rebuke must be sharp otherwise it is pointless. Biden said in a speech after signing a hate crime bill that silence is complicity. If he doesnt know he is complicit leading fellow Catholic Democrats to ignore apostolic teaching, then he is cognitively impaired and they are like lemmings.

The weasely Catholic cardinals who also ignore church teaching are the same ones who fail to teach Catechism correctly in their own dioceses and worry only about the bills and Sunday collections to finance their lifestyles.

You only can compare those meetings that our president has with world leaders as in the recent NATO summit to a Weekend at Bernies. How can we have him represent the United States?

NANCY NON

PLEASANT MOUNT WAYNE COUNTY

Editor: Now I have seen everything.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops plans to come out with some sort of admonition to politicians who apparently disobey church teachings. Are you kidding me?

This is the same group of men  yes they are all men  who for decades at least have transferred wayward priests in order to shield them from the children they abused and their devastated parents. Everyone knows this practice gives these predators a fresh pool of potential victims.

I think the Catholic bishops have reached the mountain top of hypocrisy.

TEE MALAKIN

LAKE ARIEL

Editor: I get the feeling that if Jesus were to reappear among us, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops would try to find a reason to deny him communion.

The very sudden target of the bishops concern is President Joe Biden, evidently because he won the 2020 election, which was anathema to some right-wing Catholic clergy members who seem to feel that the Catholic Church should be the Republican Party at prayer.

The sacraments should, of course, be taken seriously. This would be easier if, for generations, the church had not functioned as a vending machine for sacraments. Just insert the right amount of money and you have a wedding, a baptism, whatever you need. Sin is no problem, as long as youre one of the wealthier members of the congregation.

We had a bishop in Scranton some time back who absolutely was devoted to the pro-life movement. It turned out that he was also playing hide-the-pedophile priests. Children sexually molested in our pro-life Catholic Church? Here, take some money and go away.

Its like the courtyard of the temple in the Bible all over again.

JEFFREY M. McHALE

OLYPHANT

Editor: I know through DNA that I have another first cousin. A lady that I never knew, now age 73, contacted me a few years ago in a Facebook text and she said, I think I am related to you.

Hence, from that day forward until June 5, I waited and the results were finally given to me via text that my original investigation came to fruition. Through pictures and dates and other information and her courage, she finally received the birth certificate.

In the beginning she wasnt sure that she wanted to go forward and for personal reasons, she doesnt want to contact her birth mother, who is now 93. That is her choice, because she doesnt want to upset anyone.

ANTHONY WRIGHTSON

JESSUP
Nearly a dozen years after Luzerne County Judges Michael A. Conahan and Mark Ciavarella were convicted in the infamous kids-for-cash juvenile court scandal, the state government has an opportunity to remake juvenile justice.

A broadly bipartisan task force created by all three branches of the state government in 2019 issued a sweeping report Tuesday recommending 35 major improvements. The overarching objectives are to keep more kids out of detention and to ensure that early encounters with the justice system do not dog them forever.

If enacted, the 30-member commission wrote, out-of-home detentions of juveniles would decline by 36% through 2026, saving more than $81 million in detention costs that could be used to help fund nondetention juvenile programs and to pay restitution to victims.

The reports major recommendations include increased funding for juvenile defense, which remained low compared with other states even after the kids-for-cash scandal; increase the minimum age at which a child may be tried in juvenile court, require hearings in all cases in which prosecutors seek to try juveniles as adults, eliminate most fines and costs and focus instead on victims restitution, limit detention to juveniles are deemed to present a threat to the community, and increase transparency through regular public data disclosures.

The commission took a very deep dive into juvenile court operations statewide. It found that 39% of juveniles sent to detention centers had committed violent crimes while more than 40% had committed nonviolent crimes, and most had no prior records. In some counties, the commission said, nonviolent offenders were sent to detention centers even though they had been found to be at low risk for committing another crime. And, as in the regular justice system, technical violations of court-imposed conditions  rather than additional crimes  drove juveniles deeper into the system.

The commission, which was authorized by Gov. Tom Wolf, the state Supreme Court and leaders of both parties in the House and Senate, took the system down to its bones and created a good plan to rebuild it in the interest of vulnerable juveniles and the broader community. They and county court systems should implement the reforms.
The Constitution assigns war-making power to Congress because the Founders had abundant experience dealing with excessive executive authority in the person of King George III.

But modern Congresses slowly have ceded that prerogative to the executive branch, not only leaving presidents with excessive power to wage war with the planets most powerful military, but sparing the lawmakers themselves the difficult decisions and political consequences of using military force.

Due to the speed of modern warfare, commanders in chief must have the flexibility to deploy the military in response to attacks and threats.

But the period since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, demonstrates why Congress is correct in finally trying to reclaim its war-making power.

On Sept. 14, 2001, Congress authorized President George W. Bush to take military action against al Qaeda and the Taliban. It followed that in 2002 with an Authorization for the Use of Military Force, which Bush promptly misused for the disastrous invasion of Iraq  which had no role in the 2001 attacks on the United States. Since then, that authorization has been used  by Bush and Presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump  dozens of times to justify military actions that are loosely tied, if at all, to the 2001 attacks. Obama used it to justify support for military intervention in Libya, for example, and Trump used it to assassinate Iranian Gen. Qassim Suleimani.

The House has repealed the 2002 authorization and the Senate is expected to conduct a vote soon. Unlike his predecessors, President Joe Biden supports the repeal.

The Senate should complete the repeal, restoring Congress authority and accountability for the use of military force.
Brenda Darlene (Burnett, Witt, Bollmer) Curtin, 52, of Cincinnati, Ohio passed away June 21, 2021. She was born November 13, 1968, in Cincinnati, Ohio to the late Gladys (Jones) Napier and the late Wilburn Burnett. Brenda was preceded in death by a daughter, Jennifer Witt and sisters Alta Ru
Westerly, RI (02891)

Today

Cloudy skies with a few showers after midnight. Low 57F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%..

Tonight

Cloudy skies with a few showers after midnight. Low 57F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
Westerly, RI (02891)

Today

Cloudy with occasional light rain late. Low 57F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%..

Tonight

Cloudy with occasional light rain late. Low 57F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%.
TIFTON [mdash] Everette Allen Ivey, 80, of Tifton passed away Sunday, June 27, 2021, at his residence. A graveside funeral service will be held for Mr. Ivey at 4:00 p.m. Thursday, July 1, 2021, at Oak Ridge Cemetery, where he will be laid to rest. The Rev. Rickey Wells will officiate. The fa
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Thomasville, GA (31792)

Today

Thunderstorms early, then variable clouds overnight with still a chance of showers. Low 71F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%. Locally heavy rainfall possible..

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Services for John Mark Rountree, 60, were held at Allen & Allen Celebration of Life Chapel on Friday, July 2, 2021 with burial following at Salem Cemetery. Mr. Rountree, was born on July 16, 1960, and died of injuries sustained in a single-car automobile accident on June 29, 2021. He was
ELKINS PARK  A speech made at Cheltenham High Schools commencement ceremony earlier this month prompted Joel Fishbein to step down as president of the Cheltenham School Board.

Giving up leadership of the school board is not an easy decision, but it is an important first step to help our community heal from the hurt I caused at the June 3 high school commencement ceremony, Fishbein said in a letter addressed to the Cheltenham community that was posted to the school districts Facebook page on June 16.

He tendered his resignation from the school boards top leadership post on June 14, more than a week after the graduation ceremony, according to a June 16 letter from members of the school board.

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Fishbein said in his letter to the community that he plans to serve the remainder of my term as an active member of the board. This term is set to end in 2024, according to a school district spokesperson.

Fishbein's speech was given as more than 350 graduating seniors participating in the ceremony wore caps and gowns as they sat on the Cheltenham High School stadium field. They listened to a number of speeches from fellow students, Principal Renato Lajara, Cheltenham School District Superintendent Wagner Marseille, and school board members, including Fishbein.

Fishbein began his remarks by praising the Class of 2021 on their perseverance and accomplishments as they reached this important milestone during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. As the graduating seniors embark on their next chapter, Fishbein encouraged them to do what you love. Do what you are good at. Do what makes you happy. You will have the greatest chance of success.

His speech contained an anecdote about Frederick Douglass from historian and Boston College Professor Heather Cox Richardson. Fishbein quoted parts of a May 23 post from Richardsons blog, Letters from an American.

His sense of relative normalcy included having good friends in the area and falling in love with a woman who would become his life, Fishbein said. It was enslavement but within that existence it was a pretty good position.

He went on to speak of Douglass journey, adding that his scheme for escaping (sic)  to freedom from slavery was ridiculously easy.

Douglass took an enormous risk with the greatest of consequences and he most definitely changed the world, Fishbein said as he concluded his remarks. We are in a time of great change and those of you who learned resilience the hard way and have the courage to follow your passions and take risks may very well change the world. We all look forward to watching as you do it. Good luck to all of you.

Fishbein noted in the letter that several people including students, teachers, administrators, and his colleagues "shared their feelings about my words and their impact upon them."

From them, I have learned that I had an enormous blind spot in my understanding of the trauma our countrys history of slavery and continuing racism has inflicted, Fishbein said.

I apologize most of all to the students, Fishbein said. I am deeply sorry that my poor choice of subject matter and words inflicted further pain particularly on what should have been their joyous occasion. I am also deeply sorry for causing division and hurt in this community that I love.

Two versions of the June 3 Cheltenham High School graduation were uploaded on June 10 to the CheltenhamVideo Youtube page.

The edited version has been viewed 1,149 times as of June 22. Prior to the start of the more than two-hour-long video features a disclaimer message informing the viewer of the change:

Please be advised, a section of this video (46:00-50:26) has been removed because it contains material which reflects a whitewashed account of the systemic violent subjugation of generations, and denigrates and trivializes the horrors, trials and tribulations of the enslaved as well as those who were able to escape enslavement.

The unedited version, which contains Fishbeins speech in its entirety, had 449 views as of June 22.

I did not share my speech with anyone in advance and I should have, Fishbein said in the letter. This mistake revealed a hole in our board process.

During a June 15 leadership election, Pamela Henry was appointed as school board president and Daniel Schultz selected as vice president, according to a June 16 letter from members of the Montgomery County school board.

When asked about her reaction to Fishbeins speech, Henry told MediaNews Group Monday in an email interview in the weeks following the commencement ceremony that I did not feel the topic was appropriate for the celebratory nature of the event.

School board members outlined several next steps in the June 16 letter addressed to the community:

All commencement speeches will be reviewed by the board and the graduation committee.

The board will continue its cultural proficiency training led by Dr. Barbara Moore Williams.

The board will work with student representatives to identify opportunities to connect with students through town halls and other events.

The board will continue updating and adopting district policies to ensure they are aligned with our commitment to equity.

In his letter, Fishbein stressed the importance of cultural proficiency.

With the help of your feedback, I have become even more deeply aware of the urgency of cultural proficiency in our district, he said. I have more listening and learning to do, and I am committed to this work.

We strive to make this district a welcoming and supportive place for all of the families we serve. We recognize that trust is earned through action, and will work to rebuild the trust of the Cheltenham community, the school board said in a statement.

Henry emphasized community collaboration and engagement as key priorities as she assumes this new role.

Ongoing community collaboration and engagement is important, Henry said. I am focused on our vision of equity and inclusion, ensuring all voices are heard and that our students are equipped to succeed.
Hawkins County Juvenile Judge Daniel Boyd told the Hawkins County Commissions Personnel Committee on Monday that he doesnt have time to address the caseload and the issues facing his court in only two days per week. He is requesting that the position become full time, which would cost an additional $100,000 per year.
Do we really want to return to normal?
Alderman Kathy Christian, right, argues that her proposed ordinance should be heard at Tuesday's BMA meeting while alderman Michael walker, left, listens. The ordinance wasn't consider, and Christian said she will submit it for the July meeting agenda.
Officials in Ethiopia counted ballots on Tuesday after a parliamentary election billed as the first free vote in the countrys history but marred by an opposition boycott, war and reports of irregularities in some areas.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed hopes the national and regional elections will show the success of democratic reforms he launched after being appointed by the ruling coalition in 2018.

But the vote also reflects a messy reality in the country of 109 million people. Authorities could not hold polls on Monday in four of Ethiopias 10 regions, according to the election board. Voters in one of those regions, Sidama, went to the polls a day late on Tuesday, due to logistical problems.

War has displaced 2 million people in the Tigray region, where Abiy sent troops last November to battle regional authorities that once had dominated the federal government in Addis Ababa.

Residents said new fighting had flared in recent days north of regional capital Mekelle. The Ethiopian military denied reports that fighters loyal to the former regional ruling party had entered several towns in the area.

In a tweet on Tuesday, Abiy wrote: All sections of society have gone out to cast their vote in our nations first free and fair election.

Late on Monday, he said in a statement: Democracy is not built in a day. We are laying it brick by brick.

Almost all polling stations in the capital had finished counting ballots, an electoral board spokesperson told reporters on Tuesday.

Abiys newly formed national Prosperity Party is widely forecast to defeat the fragmented opposition of dozens of mostly ethnically based parties. The ruling coalition and its allies won all 547 national parliamentary seats in the last election under Abiys predecessor six years ago, when Ethiopia was one Africas most repressive countries.

NO VOTING IN TIGRAY

Though the prime minister won the Nobel prize in 2019 for making peace with neighbouring Eritrea, his international reputation has been tarnished since conflict erupted in Tigray, where he sent troops after accusing regional authorities of attacking army bases.

The United Nations says a famine is looming after fighting between Ethiopias military and the regions former governing party, the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF). No date has been set for elections in Tigray.

On Tuesday, an airstrike in the town of Togoga killed several people and injured 43, including a 2-year-old, about 25 km (16 miles) south of Mekelle, a doctor told Reuters.

The main road north out of Mekelle has been closed for two days, a resident of Adigrat, a city to the north, told Reuters by phone.

Tigrayan regional forces entered parts of Adigrat on Tuesday morning, before more Ethiopian and Eritrean soldiers came back into the city, the resident said.

A senior member of Tigrays interim government, which was appointed by the federal government, said forces loyal to the TPLF had in the past 48 hours entered the towns of Wukro, Hawzen and Agula, all to the north of Mekelle. There is an Ethiopian federal military base in Agula. It was unclear if the Tigrayan forces were still there, the official added.

Those reports were fabrications, Colonel Getnet Adane, a spokesperson for the Ethiopian federal military, told Reuters by phone. The spokesperson for the prime minister and the head of the governments emergency task force on Tigray did not respond to messages and phone calls seeking comment.

Getachew Reda, a former senior official under the TPLF, mocked the election in a tweet, saying the Tigrayans had captured prisoners of war as a gift for Abiys coronation as #theNakedEmperorofEthiopia.

There were no reports of major outbreaks of violence in parts of the country that did vote, although a spokesperson for the Oromiya regional government said two security officials and one local official were killed in an attack by an armed group.

The opposition alleged some irregularities. Opposition leader Berhanu Nega said his Ethiopian Citizens for Social Justice party (Ezema) had filed 207 complaints after local officials and militia in Amhara region and in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region, blocked party observers.

Opposition observers were reportedly chased away from many polling stations in two regions, board chief Birtukan Midekssa told reporters late on Monday.

SOURCE: REUTERS
BALLSTON SPA  The newly minted members of the Working Families Party  a former unaffiliated voter and a Republican  have knocked the party's endorsed candidate from the ballot line.

Incumbent Saratoga Springs Supervisor Tara Gaston, a Democrat and WFP candidate, lost her primary bid on Tuesday to Bruce Altimar and Gabriel OBrien who just recently registered for the party  a move that WFP officials said was meant to hurt Gaston in November.

They hijacked the line, said Joe Seeman, a WFP volunteer who endorses Saratoga County candidates. We have to take this seriously. We have to register people who are not phony Working Families people, people with real working families values.

While the primary numbers are unofficial, as the 17 absentees have been returned have yet to be counted, the Saratoga County Board of Elections reported that Gaston got two votes, Altimar, the formerly unaffiliated candidate got 21, while former Republican OBrien got 19.

My biggest concern is that if there are people who are familiar with the Working Families Party and want to support Working Families candidates and arent aware of the background then they might end up getting votes from people who think they are progressive candidates and they are in fact not, said Gaston who is still running on the Democratic line. But we dont know and therein lies the problem.

Neither Altimar nor OBrien responded to the Times Union's request for comment.

Earlier this year, the party, known for its progressive politics meant to uplift the working poor, registered 124 new members, boosting its ranks by nearly 30 percent to its current membership of 554 countywide. Most of those who switched -- 73 -- came from the Republican Party and the now-defunct Independence Party of New York that often teamed with the GOP to cross-endorse the same candidate.

While the WFP is still a tiny faction in a county with 174,372 voters, leadership at the WFP has voiced concerned that a more conservative-leaning membership will push out progressive candidates. At the time, Seeman called the move Machiavellian.

The same thing happened all across the state including in Rensselaer County. However, on primary night, the WFP endorsed candidate for county executive, Gwen Wright, secured her place on the ballot. In a statement, the states WFP Director Sochie Nnaemeka said Wright withstood cynical Republican attacks against the WFP ballot line.

Our WFP members are enthusiastically supporting Gwen because she shares the values of the party, and she has the courage, dedication and experience to carry out her vision, Nnaemekas statement read.

The state WFP did not comment on the Saratoga County loss.

Gaston said she is disappointed that so few voted and that Altimar and OBrien won, despite not campaigning. Copies of their petitions to get on the WFP line show they did not sign their petitions and that both petitions, which only required three signatures, were signed by the same three people.

If you are running, you have to say who you are, what you want to do, or why you are doing it, Gaston said. Even if its, I dont like her and I want her to go away. Thats fine. I dont think its a great answer, but you have the responsibility to share that with people.

In addition to Altimar, Gaston and O'Brien, GOP candidates running for the two seats to represent Saratoga Springs on the Saratoga County Board of Supervisors are John Safford and incumbent Matthew Veitch.
SCHENECTADY  At least a couple of trends emerged as a result of Tuesday's primary contests in Schenectady: It was a good night for candidates of color and a mixed bag for the Democratic establishment.

Two Black newcomers are well-positioned to win City Council seats, bringing the potential total number of lawmakers of color to four  the most-ever at one time on the seven-member panel  and the Schenectady County Legislature may seat its second-ever Black lawmaker.

Activist Damonni Farley, a Black candidate, was one of three victors in the Democratic primary for a full, four-year seat on the Council. He and Marion Porterfield and John Mootooveren clinched the party nod over Councilwoman Karen Zalewski-Wildzunas. The five-member body currently has two lawmakers of color: Porterfield and Council President Mootooveren.

Another Black candidate, Omar McGill, defeated Brendan Savage in the Democratic face-off for the Legislature's District 1 seat.

Neither McGill nor Farley were endorsed by the city and county Democratic committees and waged insurgent campaigns, despite efforts by party leadership to quash primaries.

Two of the three candidates running for the special election to fill a pair of vacancies on City Council, Carl Williams and Haileab Samuel, are Black. Williams and Doreen Ditoro lead Samuel in that race, but the contest is close and will likely be determined by absentee ballots. Williams leads with 1,065 votes, followed by Ditoro with 1,011 and Samuel with 970.

Activists for racial justice and the leading candidates see the night as a repudiation of the establishment and a breakthrough for candidates of color.

The Rev. Nicolle Harris, president of Schenectady NAACP, said there has long appeared to be an unwritten rule in the city that candidates of color would be allotted one-by-one to fill slots by party leaders.

It seemed like only one at a time could take a seat, Harris said, citing Joseph L. Allen, the first-ever Black person elected to the Council, who was followed by Councilwoman Porterfield, who was Tuesdays top vote-getter in her contest. This new government really is reflective of the community.

The city received 233 absentee ballots by Tuesday morning, all but three of them Democratic, with the remainder for the Working Families Party. Election officials will begin a voting machine audit on Thursday followed by a canvass of valid absentee, special and affidavit ballots on Monday, a process that will continue until the top two vote-getters are determined.

Mootooveren could then schedule a roll call vote to seat them immediately, or could ask for unanimous consent from the floor.

Should Williams retain his lead, Samuel overcome his gap and Porterfield and Farley prevail in the general election, the number of seated Black lawmakers could potentially rise to four, a remarkable departure from just a year ago.

Neither Samuel or Zalewski-Wildzunas, both of whom have slots on Conservative Line, have conceded, with the latter stating that she intends on remaining in the race until November's general election.

Republicans are fielding three candidates.

Savage, for his part, bested McGill in the Working Families Party primary and has retained the Conservative Party line.

"I will talk with my supporters and discuss with my family if we want to continue promoting this vision until the general election," Savage said in a statement. "We will make a decision soon."

Schenectady-based activists All of Us touted the results as an end to the silence and acceptance of the status quo, citing a ripple effect that began with co-founder Jamaica Miles landing a seat on the Schenectady City Board of Education last month.

If what weve seen so far is any indication, we could be looking forward to the year that Schenectady elects the greatest number of Black people to elected office ever, said the group in a statement.

The city Democratic Committee has been dogged by accusations theyre sluggish to embrace candidates of color, a perceived trend ex-lawmaker Leesa Perazzo cited in a blistering riposte last year before resigning her Council seat.

Chad Putman, a state committee member for the Working Families Party, sees the results as a rejection of the status quo, particularly in a city that is nearly majority-minority. Each of the Working Families Party-endorsed candidates won their Democratic primaries, he noted.

It sends a message to the city Democratic establishment and county Democratic establishment that folks are looking for change, Putman said. Theyre looking to be represented by independent and community voices.

Both Farley and McGill also saw their presumptive victories as sending a signal to party brass.

"To some degree, some people have been left out of the decision-making process in the city, and thats a response to that, Farley said.

McGill said constituents want their leadership to be reflective of the community, and they want to make sure everyone is a part of the team.

City Democratic Committee Chairman Tom Bellick praised the diversity of the presumptive victors, but downplayed the outcomes as a rejection of the establishment. I dont think so, Bellick said on Wednesday. These were good people and a couple of the endorsed candidates didnt win.

County Democratic Committee Chairman Joe Landry didn't immediately return a call on Wednesday.

In a campaign characterized by infighting, Bellick acknowledged a degree of reconciliation is in order before November's election.

In addition to the often-noxious campaign environment, the party is cleaved.

City Council Majority Leader John Polimeni and Vice Chair David Bouck opted not to support the slate of endorsed candidates and instead backed Ditoro, who was not endorsed during the interview process earlier this year, making her in effect an insurgent candidate (Farley, for his part, didn't interview with the committee, Bellick said).

Bellick acknowledged the schisms and campaign sparring has been stressful, but sees a united Democratic team heading into Novembers general election.

Were one big happy family whether we like it or not, Bellick said, echoing a oft-used phrase by Mayor Gary McCarthy.

Only 2,970 registered Democrats cast ballots on Tuesday, according to the county Board of Elections, or about 18 percent of active Democrats as of late February.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP)  A Republican rewrite of Pennsylvania election law that would mandate voter IDs, alter registration and ballot counting deadlines and give conservatives auditing procedures they have clamored for passed the state House on Tuesday despite the Democratic governors veto threat.

The lengthy and complex bill, crafted after 10 committee hearings on the subject earlier this year, was sent to the state Senate on a vote of 110-91.

Rep. Margo Davidson, D-Delaware, dismissed its proposed security provisions by raising the specter of the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol by those who supported former President Donald Trumps baseless efforts to reverse his re-election defeat.

What a farce, Davidson said. We are advancing election security measures, so we say, by ignoring the facts and embracing actual fantasies.

Voters must have confidence that the system is fair, said Rep. Greg Rothman, R-Cumberland.

We know that democracy dies in darkness, Rothman said. Democracy will die without trust in the process.

The bill would establish a new county-issued voter ID that Rep. Tim Bonner, R-Mercer, said was not a burden or a way to suppress votes.

These restrictions are so minimal that if anyone appears at the polling place on election day, they do not need to have any identification on them, Bonner said. They can simply sign a piece of paper saying they are who they say they are.

But Democratic Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta of Philadelphia described the bill as voter suppression in bad drag. It pretends to protect voters while actually restricting voting.

The registration deadline would change from 15 days to 30 days before an election, and mail-in ballots would have to be requested 15 days before the vote. Drop boxes for mail-in ballots would be limited to seven days before an election and have to be monitored by people designated by the major political parties.

Counties would get five days before election day to begin canvassing absentee and mail-in ballots.

The bill would make new rules for fixing problems on mail-in ballots envelopes, such as lack of signatures or dates. Counties would have to issue registration cards that in-person voters would have to show, and the process of mailing them out would be used to clean voting lists of dead or otherwise ineligible names.

The proposal includes signature matching procedures to verify voter eligibility and, starting in 2025, early voting six days before election day. There would be new procedures to help voters with disabilities.

It aims to speed lines at polling places and restrict the secretary of state, who oversees elections, to duties specified in state law.

There would be enhanced training and higher pay for election workers and state funding to help pay for elections. It would be easier for observers to watch votes being counted, although the bill includes new penalties for trying to intimidate an election official.

Gov. Tom Wolf, in a tweet, repeated his vow to reject the proposal, saying lawmakers behind it asked Congress to throw out the states November votes and whose lies directly contributed to the Jan. 6 insurrection.
ALBANY Mayor Kathy Sheehan declared victory in the contest for the Democratic spot in the general election this fall, defeating the Rev. Valerie Faust in an extremely low-turnout primary.

With 100 percent of the city's election districts reporting, Sheehan led 3,688 to 2,093, according to the Albany County Board of Elections. The board issued 1,923 absentee ballots and 944 were returned as of Tuesday morning.

Sheehan's vote total is the lowest of her three primary victories. In 2017 she took home 6,650 votes, down from 7,468 votes in 2013. Both Sheehan and Faust ran relatively quiet campaigns, with no debates and little in-person campaigning. Sheehan loaned her campaign $50,000, Faust loaned hers $20,000 and donated another $10,000, according to campaign finance reports.

Sheehan thanked her supporters and said she was focused on how the city would spend its $85 million in American Rescue Plan funding, including plans to boost homeownership among minorities in the city and finding ways to fix other inequities exacerbated by the pandemic.

"Certainly I'm grateful to have the support," she said. "We still have a lot of work to do."

She attributed the low-turnout to a combination of a shortened petitioning process and it being the first citywide primary in June since the primary date was move from September several years ago.

"That's also caught a lot of people off-guard," she said.

Faust could not be reached for comment.

Sheehan will face two opponents in November, Republican Alicia Purdy and independent candidate Greg Aidala.

Sheehan has said that if she won the primary and the general election in November that she would not run for a fourth term. Sheehan previously said she would only serve two terms, but the pandemic caused her to reconsider, and she is running for a third term to see several projects through to completion.

Beyond the mayoral contest, several Common Council races will come down absentee ballots and may take several days to resolve.

In the 1st Ward, Councilwoman Sonia Frederick leads challenger Scott Mannarino 246 to 77. Mannarino has the Conservative Party endorsement and will be on the ballot in November.

In the 2nd Ward, incumbent Derek Johnson leads Lovett Branch 156 to 75. The 3rd Ward race between Councilwoman Joyce Love and challengers James Davis Jr., and Stephen Negron, will likely come down to absentee ballots. Love led with 159 votes to Davis' 116 and Negron's 29 votes.

In the 5th Ward Councilman Jahmel Robinson led 101 to 66 over challenger Wilmer Lawson. Lawson has the Working Families Party endorsement and will be on the ballot in November.

A four-person race for the 6th Ward had Gabriella Romero in the lead with 374 votes Tuesday evening, trailed by Jeffrey Mayo and Susan Pedo.

The 7th Ward race was the tightest in the city council races. Sergio Adams led the race for the open seat with 229, with Violetta DeRosa behind at 218 votes. Former county legislator Brian Scavo had 48 votes.

In the 9th Ward, Meghan Keegan won 442 votes to Jolyn Gallagher's 250. Councilman Alfredo Balarain took 128 votes to challenger Luis Williams's 43 votes in the 11th Ward. Deborah L. Zamer led with 729 votes to Celia Evers' 475 in the 14th Ward race.

Elsewhere

Other Albany County races: in the Guilderland town board race, Amanda Beedle and Christine Napierski were the top two vote-getters for two seats, ahead of Paul Pastore and Kevin McDonald. Timothy F. Lippert led Anita Clayton in a special election for a Berne town board seat.



In Saratoga County, Frederick Hosley Jr. was leading Timothy Hipwell in the Democratic race for Mechanicville public safety commissioner, 74-64. Bruce Altimar had a two-vote lead over Gabriel OBrien in the Working Families primary for Sararoga Springs supervisor.

Results in a number of races in Rensselaer County were lacking full numbers. Contests included Troy Council Democratic primaries in the 4th, 5th and 6th wards.
ALBANY  A ruling last month by the state's highest court blocking tree removal for snowmobile trails in protected forest areas has created uncertainty for other recreational projects in the Adirondack Forest Preserve.

That uncertainty could result in some trail crews keeping their focus on private lands or on construction and maintenance work that doesnt require tree cutting, as the Adirondack Mountain Club said it planned.

The state Department of Environmental Conservation has declined to respond to questions that include what would come of the 19 or so miles of snowmobile trails already built; how the decision would affect other trail work; how the DEC was interpreting the handling of a constitutionally protected tree; whether the agency would pursue a constitutional amendment to authorize the snowmobile trail,. and what guidance the department would provide to trail crews heading into their summer season.

A spokesperson on May 25 would only say, DEC remains committed to thoughtful stewardship of the Forest Preserve for the use and enjoyment of the public and protection of this resource. DEC is carefully and thoroughly analyzing the courts decision and determining the implications for DECs varied and complex work.

The Adirondack Park Agency also did not respond to similar questions, except to say that the state attorney generals office was reviewing the decision.

Ben Brosseau, director of communications for the Adirondack Mountain Club, said last years DEC guidance held that trail crews were not allowed to cut trees on the forest preserve while the case was pending.

We expect new guidance for hiking trail work to come out by mid to late summer, Brosseau said.

The club is continuing trail work in some areas of the park that do not involve tree cutting. Crews continue to work on projects at Avalanche Lake, Phelps Trail past Johns Brook Lodge, and a new project on Mount Jo. The Mount Jo project is on private property, so is not affected by the court decision. Brousseau said the club will reroute the Long Trail because a large section is eroded into a streambed.

The volunteer-supported club, which uses the acronym "ADK," was formed in 1922 and according to its mission statement has "worked to increase access to the back-country by building trails, conserving natural areas, and developing a stewardship community that supports the ethical and safe use of New Yorks outdoor spaces."

The decision by the Court of Appeals has also confounded local government officials. Bill Farber, chairman of the Hamilton County Board of Supervisors, said he has trouble believing the ruling will only block snowmobile trails. Farber wondered if it could halt tree cutting at some DEC campgrounds.

The two dissenters in the 4-to-2 court decision  Justice Leslie Stein, who is retiring from the court this month, and Chief Justice Janet DiFiore  said the majoritys decision could affect regular maintenance of other recreational trails in the Adirondack Park.

Mark Schachner, a Glens Falls attorney who represented the Adirondack Association of Towns and Villages in writing a friend-of-the-court brief for DEC, criticized the decision, in part because it didnt define what size of tree the Constitution protects on the state forest preserve. He told the Adirondack Explorer that the court was in a position to provide definition and clarity as to what constitutes timber,  yet utterly failed to address this issue.

Instead of providing any sort of clear guidance by which to evaluate the constitutionality of future Forest Preserve activities with any measure of predictability or certainty, he wrote, we are left in the constitutional morass of not knowing whether any and all vegetative removal is truly prohibited as the court decision could be interpreted or future actions are still to be evaluated according to whether proposed removal is substantial enough or material enough to be prohibited.

But for Peter Bauer, executive director of Protect the Adirondacks, the decision is clear and does not affect hiking trails. In a web presentation for the Kelly Adirondack Center on May 27, Bauer discussed clauses in the Court of Appeals decision that parse out hiking trails from the snowmobile trails. For example, the majority stated that the snowmobile trails in question require greater interference with the natural development of the Forest Preserve than is necessary to accommodate hikers.

Other environmental advocacy groups, such as Adirondack Wild and the Adirondack Council, agree that the decision does not apply to hiking trails.

Bauer also believes the decision means the state needs to revise a list of policies and plans in the Adirondack Park. Those include: a half dozen management plans for areas such as the Moose River Plains and Saranac Lake Wild Forest; the DEC and APA guidance on snowmobile trails; and the New York State Snowmobile Plan.

Though the DEC did not say what would become of the 19 miles of snowmobile trails already built before the court's ruling, Bauer contends the DEC will need to restore them to forest.

Asked if he had heard from the DEC since the court decision, Bauer said hed heard nothing of substance.

They clearly have a lot of work to do to reform their management and restore damaged areas to comply with this decision, he added.

A version of this story was first published by AdirondackExplorer.org.
Norman Rockwell Museum of Vermont to close after decades

The Norman Rockwell Museum of Vermont is planning to close its doors before the end of the year
The Alabama girls home director who lost two children and two nephews in a wreck that killed 10 people has dedicated her life's work to helping abused and neglected children
June 21, 2021





Humanitys Favorite Pastime

Games are everywhere you look. They are on our computers, consoles, and mobile phones. In fact, we wouldnt be surprised to see games become available for our refrigerators, so we can play some Candy Crush while waiting for our soda to cool off.







Apart from the usual suspects, such as CS:GO, Dota, and other titles that turned into professional sports, theres a surge of other game genres. For instance, even online slots registered a significant increase in player numbers lately due to many innovations in the gambling industry. One such example is inferno slots, like Dragons Inferno.

This article will make a short overview of how the entire gaming industry has shifted online and how this is just a start. Read on.

PC Gaming

Contrary to popular belief, PC gaming is more popular than ever. All the big esports, including League of Legends, CS:GO, Dota 2, World of Warcraft, and others, are played by millions of people around the globe. Interestingly, most of these games are free to play (except WoW), but there are other ways for the companies making them to secure a profit. For example, they offer in-game skins and special items that you can buy with real money.



Single-player PC games arent as popular as they used to be. So even though single-player games still play a significant role, it seems that they have transitioned to consoles rather than PCs.

Console Gaming

With the introduction of next-gen consoles, such as the PS5, console games have never been more popular. Many single-player games also offer online play. For example, if you have a PS Plus account on your PS4 or PS5, youll be able to play games against virtually anyone in the world.

Some games are free, and others are paid, but one thing is certain  console players are probably the most die-hard fans of their gaming machines and are ready to spend much more money for high-quality online gaming experiences. They are used to buying games, whereas PC players arent always eager to purchase titles. Piracy on PC is still widespread in many parts of the world.

Mobile Gaming

Mobile gaming has recorded the biggest increase in popularity in the last couple of years. Most mobile games are free of charge, and players can download them on their Android (News - Alert) and iOS devices using Google Play and App Store. However, these games use the so-called freemium business model, where players have to pay to progress to higher levels.

Such business models are often turned into pay-to-win models, and many PC and console players consider it unfair. Simply put, mobile game providers sometimes give an unfair advantage to those willing to pair more.

Despite that, the number of mobile gamers is enormous. On top of that, they are willing to pay a lot of money to gain an advantage and win against their opponents. Its safe to say that mobile gaming is the most advanced of all the options listed in this article.

Online Gambling

Online gambling is another very successful form of gaming on the web. There are hundreds of online casinos offering all kinds of video slots, table games, card games, video poker, and more. Many casinos also provide live dealer sections, where visitors can watch dealers in real time and use software to play games as if they were inside a land-based casino.

But online gambling goes beyond just casinos. Youll also find many online sportsbooks and even virtual poker rooms where you can play the popular card game with players around the globe. Even though its still not legal in many countries, some governments decided to legalize and regulate this type of gambling. One of the fastest-expanding markets is definitely the US.

Conclusion

Like it or not, games will become the most popular form of entertainment in a couple of years. Its a multi-billion dollar industry, and some of the most talented people in the world are creating online games that are played by millions of people worldwide. It doesnt matter which device you prefer  each comes with a unique set of advantages and dozens of games that you can play via the internet.
June 23, 2021





Looking for a partner to manage your massive roster of screenings? Maybe you need an all-around solution with a dedicated support team?

Our guide for the best background check services for employers uncovers the top ten background companies and their strengths when working with businesses.

Each provider weve chosen is committed to compliance and meeting the needs of their clients.

Rated for their strengths, service, and price, continue reading for a comprehensive selection of background check companies for employers and guide for how to pick one.

Best Background Check Services for Employers

Best Overall Background Checks  ScoutLogic

When you consider all the key aspects of what sets background check services apart, ScoutLogic comes out on top by a landslide.

The company offers a slew of specific background checks, from employment verification and education verification to criminal history and more. This comprehensive approach to background check services makes ScoutLogic a one-stop shop for the needs of small businesses without breaking the bank.







ScoutLogic sets itself apart from other background check services by personalizing the experience of your companys recruiters. They assign a specific Scout that works closely with your business and gets to know your candidates, preventing frustration and proactively finding solutions to support your team.

Pros

Proactive Scout service model means faster processing

Highly communicative with candidates and your company

Easy to understand pricing model

Cons

No unlimited searches packages available for a monthly fee

One time setup fee for new clients, but can be waived if benchmarks are met

Best for High Capacity & DIY Service  Checkr

Checkr sets itself apart from other background check sites with its user-friendly, mobile platform. Focusing on self-service, the company provides comprehensive background checks that easily tailor to the specific needs of the client.

The background check services are easy to integrate and understand, enabling small businesses and high-volume clients alike to fly through background checks with ease.

Checkr simplifies the hiring process by easily working with credit reporting agencies, education verification, criminal background checks, and even running reference checks. They handle the details so you can focus on the bigger tasks at hand.

Pros:

Highly ranked online as one of the top background check services

Makes compliance a breeze

Easy-to-use with no one time setup fee

Cons:

Offers monthly subscriptions, but not unlimited searches or unlimited reports for the fee

Best for Global Screenings  HireRight

HireRight sets itself apart from the rest of the best background check services available today due to its global reach.

The company operates in more than 200 countries around the world, increasing its reach of international employment verification and national association screening abilities.

HireRight uses social security number trace technology to provide the most comprehensive reports around and is recognized globally as one of the top background check services. This gives businesses clout on the international stage.

Pros

International education verification

Global professional license verification

Access to sex offender registry & drug screenings

Cons

Monthly fee may not be suitable for small businesses

Best for Using with CareerBuilder  Accurate

Accurate, a background check services company based in California, focuses its efforts on supporting mid-sized and small businesses as they grow with innovative background screening processes.

The thing that sets Accurate apart from other companies is their partnership with CareerBuilder.

In 2020, Accurate signed an agreement to acquire CareerBuilder Employment Screening (CBES) from CareerBuilder. This merger means a stronger pool of resources to support both Accurate and CareerBuilder. It allows the two companies to strengthen their pre-and post-employment screening services and continue to focus on customer service and building successful client relationships.

Pros

CareerBuilder integration

Excellent compliance support

Drug screenings history & sex offender registry searches

Cons

Not ideal for large companies

Pricing Structure not easily accessible online

Best for Huge Businesses  Sterling Talent Solutions

Sterling Talent Solutions, while also providing services tailored for small businesses, works primarily with massive, often multinational companies and agencies.

One of the best background check services internationally, they even work with governments and are used to navigating massive amounts of data.

From federal to county criminal court searches and address history to social security number trace abilities, Sterling Talent has earned its spot as one of the top background check companies for international media groups and leading digital publishers. They run background checks for motor vehicle records, perform professional reference checks, run professional license verification, and more.

Pros:

Access to massive amounts of personal data, including sex offender registry, education history, and property records

Clients can purchase single reports

Performs searches for social media accounts

Cons:

No free trial available

Mixed online reviews

Best for Charting Family History  TruthFinder

Best for Civil Records & Criminal Records Checks Instant Checkmate

Best for National Association Membership Searches  PeopleFinder

Best for Reference Checks  AGoodEmployee.com

Best for Contact Details & Identity Verification  Intelius

What Employers Should Look for in a Background Check Company

Seek Background Check Providers with Comprehensive Reports

Youve got enough on your plate during the hiring process without having to sort through confusing criminal records, employment history, motor vehicle records, and miscellaneous national association details.

The best background checks offer concise and comprehensive information in reports that are easy to read and understand. A high-quality background check report should give you all the information you need in an easily understandable format with no extra fluff.

Many background check companies provide services that include the following reports:

Social security number trace is often used because more up to date, personal info is uncovered with a social security number.

Results of criminal searches and civil records. Many searches in this realm can uncover sex offender listings and damaging motor vehicle records.

Employment background checks, when performed by professional background screeners, can provide continuing education verification and other helpful employment history.

Focus on What You Need Specifically & Find Background Check Services to Match

When looking for the best background check services, its important that you find a company that fits your needs. Not all background check reports show the same, up to date information.

While some professional background screeners are excellent at discovering employment history or employment verification, they may not be as suited as other companies to run personal background checks. Some background checkers excel at digging up details from credit reporting agencies and can easily navigate the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Others focus on criminal searches, pulling criminal records through sex offender registry and county criminal court searches.

All background checks look different in process, so you should carefully review the fine print and ensure the company is equipped to do the specific job you require.

Review Cost & Payment Processes

Upfront transparency about cost and payment processes is a key sign that youve found one of the best background check sites.

While some background check platforms list prices right on their website, some background check sites require you to jump through hoops to get a clear quote for services. This speaks volumes about the integrity of a company.

Plus, its important to have a clear idea of what services you need to see if the cost is worthwhile. If you are ordering large quantities of background checks a month, a monthly subscription that allows unlimited reports may be the best background check option for you. On the other hand, if you only need occasional identity verification, address history, or sex offender screening, it may be better to skip the unlimited background checks to save money.

Many companies also charge a one time setup fee, so make sure you read the fine print before signing up for background checks.

FAQs

What is the best background check company?

The absolute best background check provider is subjectively based on the specific needs of your company.

That said, ScoutLogic is ranked as Best Overall on this list for good reason!

The pricing model for their background checks is easy to understand and they make it easy to tailor services. If you need to search records of address history, criminal records, or need identity verification, ScoutLogic has got you covered. Plus, the proactive service model means youll complete hiring procedures faster.

What services do background check sites provide?

If the information is out there on the internet, you can bet a background check service can hunt it down.

Commonly, background reports have access to both civil records and criminal records and can perform education verification. Many can cross-check candidate references and save you lots of time in the process.

If it is relevant to successful hiring, theres a good chance the right background check service for your company is up for the task.

Why might my company need to use background check providers?

Background checks are standard practice for many organizations and industries because they can help proactively protect your company from bad employees.

While no one has a spotless record in life, it can be greatly damaging if someone is hired that poses a serious threat to the safety or success of a company. In some cases, businesses can even be held liable for not doing proper pre-employment background checks if something goes wrong.

Taking the time to go through identity verification processes can ensure someone is who they say they are. You have the right to know about a candidates criminal records if there are negative patterns that could harm your business.

Plus, employment verification during background checks can make sure folks are being honest in their resumes.

When is it inappropriate to run a background check?

While background checks can be incredibly useful for businesses as they search for the perfect candidates, there are circumstances where it may be best to skip or wait before running background check reports.

In some cases, it is actually illegal to run background checks on a candidate before you interview them or prior to offering them a job. This is a common law to protect candidates from discrimination during hiring and to make the job market more equitable. That said, not all cities, states, and jurisdictions have this type of policy, so you should get to know the local laws prior to running background checks.

Additionally, there are some situations where background checks are considered unethical. For example, you shouldnt search for someones criminal history prior to deciding if they are eligible for a scholarship or grant. Running checks for personal use can also be considered problematic, so tread lightly.

What company do most employers use for background checks?

While we would all prefer one clear answer to questions like this, they are often hard to give. Thats because no two employers need the same thing from background checks. Therefore, different industries tend to frequent different service providers.

For example, Intelius is great at digging up personal information and contact details, so that would best suit companies who are trying to create comprehensive personal profiles. For jobs with schools or social services, its more important that background checks find relevant criminal records.

Do I need permission before running a background check?

In many, although not all, cases, it is illegal to run background checks without receiving prior permission from the candidate.

Even in cases where it is not technically illegal, it is still frowned upon as being sneaky, dishonest behavior.

If you want to shine a positive light on your business and maintain a trustworthy reputation as a company, its best to always seek written consent before performing background checks on job candidates.

In Summary

The absolute best background check company to suit your needs depends on a sweeping variety of factors. From considerations about volume versus cost to the types of checks you need to run for your industry, the decision is highly individual.

Whatever route you choose, you can rest assured that your company is protected and better off with a reputable background check provider at your side during candidate screening and hiring.
June 23, 2021





With the numerous transformations over the last few years, it can be said that the US online casino industry is performing well in 2021. In 2020, the US online gambling market was valued at USD 1,978.57 million, and it is projected to register a CAGR of 17.32% over the next five years.







Theres no doubt that everything that happened in 2020 had a major impact on the gambling industry in the whole world. The US online casino industry has witnessed migration from offline to online gambling activities.

However, as time goes by, we can see that the online gambling market kept its audience by offering great accessibility, comfort, and a wide range of game options as well as payment methods and rewards.

Generally, The US online gambling market is segmented into three types:

By game type By end-use Geography

Currently, the largest market for regulated online gambling in the US is New Jersey. Dozens of legal and licensed online casino sites compete for an overall market that is worth more than USD 225 million annually.

Each year, more and more states are getting interested in legalizing online casinos, so the US online gambling market is expected to increase in the future.

Finally, if youre interested, the detailed guide to the best online casinos for US players can be found at onlinecasinosamerica.com.

How Will the US Online Casino Industry Evolve in 2021?

By now, six states have legalized online casino operations, and as the US online gambling market grows, its attracting more investors as well as creating new opportunities for dealers and players. So what is next for the US online gambling market in 2021?

Its expected that online wagering revenue accounts for over 20% of the total gambling revenue in 2021, and as more states legalize online gambling, this percentage might grow. Its projected that by the year 2023, at least 35 states will have authorized online gambling.

As technology evolves, the online gambling industry evolves as well. By taking up 128-bit SSL data encryption, online casinos have proven that the safety of their players is by far the number one priority. Its projected that online casinos will continue to upgrade their security systems as often as possible.

Finally, it seems like crypto will continue to dominate the gambling industry. Many people prefer these types of transactions due to the security and anonymity it offers. So its most likely that crypto will continue to thrive in 2021.

The Impact of Technology on the US Online Casino Industry

It can be said with certainty that technology has had a massive impact on our lives, and no sector has been left out of this great revolution. A lot has changed in the online gambling industry in the last couple of years, and its all thanks to technology.

Nowadays, gambling sites use encryption innovation to encode their players information. That makes it impossible for thefts and cybercriminals to access an individuals data, such as bank information or passwords.

Blockchain technology has had an enormous impact in the world, including the gambling industry. At this point, cryptographic forms of money like BitCoin are a commonly recognized name.

To state the obvious, before the online storm hit the world, gambling was somewhat limited to a particular class of people. With that said, due to technological advancements, nowadays, anyone who has access to the internet also has access to play online casino games.

Last but not least, computer-generated reality, a.k.a virtual reality, has allowed bookmakers to plan virtual competitions for gamblers to be on. With the overwhelming amount of interest, its only a matter of time before everyone has easy access to virtual reality casinos.

Land-Based Casinos Lag Behind

With the rise of the online gambling industry, land-based casinos have experienced quite a fall, and they seem to lag behind due to the recent popularity of online gambling sites.

While brick-and-mortar casinos located in Las Vegas and Jersey Shorerepresent a once in a lifetime experience, the majority of people dont have the time nor the money to get to these places.

Although no picture can replace the feeling in a luxurious and magnificent casino, it seems like these days, people are more focused on comfort than luxury, so thats why land-based casinos are facing a rapid decline.

Additionally, online casinos offer more privacy and convenience, as well as numerous new games that go through upgrades once in a while. This is something that traditional casinos cannot be at par with because of their limited games.
June 23, 2021





Amid the growing trend of unique tech innovations, new job titles keep cropping up. Think of cloud computing. A decade ago, not so many startups had a position for a cloud architect. Likewise, job titles like Blockchain engineer and IoT architect are relatively new.







In other words, the online job sector is constantly evolving. If you want a hi-tech job, you need to future-proof your skillset. Luckily, most of these career options dont need a new college degree. If you have the right skills, you can get hired. Below are some of them.

1Chief Data Officer (CDO)

In this age of big data, expect more CDO positions to appear. A Chief Data Officer is an executive responsible for the collection and management of a companys data. The executive handles data with a focus on business.

As such, you work to ensure a companys data helps achieve its end of year goals. You also ensure data quality, information strategy, business analytics and data science. Wait a minute. Isnt that the role of a Chief Information Officer?

In many organizations, the CIO makes decisions regarding the purchasing of communication equipment and software. They also help identify the best use cases for existing IT infrastructure and managing SAAS and IAAS platforms.

2Cyber Risk Manager

The average cyber breach costs businesses an average of $1 million. Depending on the size of a business, the cost can be enormous. To protect their employees, clients and the business of cyber risks, a growing number of organizations have a position for a cyber risk manager.

Basically, a Cyber risk manager uses technology and human resource to identify risks, reduce vulnerabilities, mitigate impact and prevent future attacks. Being an executive position, a cyber risk manager coordinates with IT staff to detect phishing scams and to train general employees on how to identify potential threats.

3iGaming Investor

The iGaming sector is soaring, from the UK and Europe to the US and South America. Gambling stocks are climbing in double digits while the number of new careers is expected to grow even further.

Ever dreamed of working as an online casino dealer? Every online casino needs one. So, you love to play slots? Join a casino win real money and find out how it works for you. If you win consistently, you could turn it into a career.

Sure, many casino games are based on pure chance. But some, like Blackjack and Poker, need skills to win. That said, you can also join a career that doesnt involve gamblingcasino customer service, marketing, blogging or streaming.

4UX Designer

A User Experience Designer is a popular job in the tech world. It is one of those positions you wont struggle to find an open position. And if you have the right skillset, getting employed is relatively easy.

Many UX designer jobs also demand that you understand UI. In fact, its difficult to find a job if you lack the knowhow to create UI products. Fortunately, the two roles are similar. With UX, the goal is to help customers undergo a smooth experience on the companys website or app.

On the other hand, UI involves designing the website or application to run smoothly. In other words, UI is technical while UX isnt necessarily technical in nature.

5Data Scientist

We are living in a data science era. So, its no surprise that nearly every tech company has a position for someone responsible for their data. In some organizations, this job can be delegated to the Chief Data Officer.

However, the work of a data scientist is better defined. Put simply, a data scientist collects, analyzes and interprets data for an organization. In turn, the company better understands how to use this data to increase sales, score new clients and command brand loyalty.

In many big organizations, data scientists work in conjunction with other specialists. Some of them collect data. Others focus on analyzing while they can team up to interpret the information on behalf of executives.

6Web Developer

When we said you dont need a bachelors degree to get a high-tech job, we meant careers like web development. Almost every tech company needs web developers. Yet, they are not always interested in your traditional papers.

Instead, the modern employer wants a person who can do the job at hand efficiently regardless of whether they own a bachelors degree or not. That said, whether you land this job or not depends on your programming knowledge and experience.

What coding languages are you proficient at? Because if youre an excellent Java, Python or HTML coder and thats what a company is looking for, then youll most certain land the role. Of course, some employers also look for soft skills like teamwork, commitment and reliability before hiring you.

7Front/Back End Engineer

Sometimes you find web development job that are specific about what you need to do: front or back-end engineering. Whats the difference? Basically, developing a website involves taking care of parts that deal with the server and the side that deal with clients.

A back-end engineer, therefore, writes programs that help a website communicate with servers efficiently. Once thats done, the site then displays information on the screen for users to interact with it.

In other words, a front-end developer creates the menu items and feature you interact with on a website or application. They are responsible for aesthetics, debugging and enhancing visual components to better the overall user experience.

8Sales Engineer

So, you love sales? This could be the ideal tech job youve been looking for. All you need is an extensive knowhow of the products youre selling and an ability to convince people to purchase your products.

When we say extensive knowhow, we mean you should know how a piece of software or hardware was created. You should understand how it worksits best features and weaknesses. That way, you can answer questions confidently and meet sales goals as required.
[June 23, 2021] Aircall, now valued above $1bn, raises $120M in Series D funding, led by Goldman Sachs Asset Management

Funding will advance Aircall's market leadership in Cloud Communications industry, ahead of planned IPO - Including its Series D, Aircall has now raised more than $226 million. Launched in 2014 in France, Aircall is a cloud-based phone system and call center software that integrates seamlessly with popular CRM and helpdesk tools, such as Salesforce, Hubspot, etc. - This new financing will allow Aircall to fulfill its mission of trailblazing a new era for cloud communications. - Aircall announces plans to open London office by end of 2021 LONDON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Aircall, a cloud-based voice platform helping companies across the globe manage millions of customer support and sales calls every day, today announced it has raised $120 million in a series D funding round, bringing the company's total valuation to more than $1 billion. The funding round was led by Goldman Sachs Asset Management and joined by most of Aircall's current investors (DTCP, eFounders, Draper Esprit, Adams Street Partners, NextWorld Capital, Gaia Capital Partners), showing their renewed trust in the company's vision. Aircall was founded in 2014 with the belief that traditional business phone systems were hard to manage, siloed, and required heavy implementation costs and time. In an increasingly virtual world, businesses were lacking an easy-to-use solution that could integrate with other critical business applications, and support the communications needs of a dispersed and flexible workforce. Over the past year, remote workforces accelerated digital transformation for companies of all sizes and, at the same time, their customers increased their expectations around personalised and convenient services. Aircall helps businesses meet those objectives by integrating its cloud-based solution into leading business softwares like Salesforce, Hubspot, Zendesk, Slack, Intercom and many others. This allows businesses to streamline workflows, providing more efficiency for their teams with better visibility, data and insights into their customers' needs and their teams' performances. Ultimately, the solution allows personalised experiences for their customers. Aircall was built to empower any professional to have richer conversations and to allow the phone channel to be accessible, transparent, and collaborative. Christian Resch, Managing Director at Goldman Sachs, said, "The past 12 months have been a catalyst for Aircall's cloud-based SaaS communication solution. In a hybrid work environment, users are looking to Aircall to provide an easy-to-use experience that is highly integrated into their workflows, thereby making the most out of every customer interaction. We are very excited to partner with Aircall, as the company looks to accelerate its growth and expand globaly."



Kirk Lepke, Executive Director at Goldman Sachs, added: "We have been following Aircall's journey for some time and are delighted to be partnering with Olivier and the Aircall team to lead the Series D. The company has tremendous momentum within a huge category and a differentiated product strategy that will sustain significant growth for many years to come." Despite the challenges this past year has brought, Aircall achieved record-breaking growth across its business. The company saw more than 65 percent total customer growth year over year, and now has more than 8,500 customers worldwide. Aircall's development relies strongly on internationalisation, with more than a third of revenue generated in the United States. With offices in New York, Paris, Sydney and Madrid, Aircall recently passed the 450 employee mark and plans to recruit more than 260 new employees by the end of the year.

With this new funding round, Aircall will invest in the following: Enrich its app ecosystem, specifically with new integrations covering all use cases, from e-commerce to financial services, Sales, Support, etc.

specifically with new integrations covering all use cases, from e-commerce to financial services, Sales, Support, etc. Expand UK presence with a new office in the region by the end of 2021. Aircall plans to recruit more customer-facing teams to come closer to the customer needs in-market with an expanded European presence including London and Berlin offices.

Aircall plans to recruit more customer-facing teams to come closer to the customer needs in-market with an expanded European presence including and offices. Partner with major telecommunications companies and engage the UK channel ecosystem to bring its technology to every professional around the world, by leveraging local network expertise. Aircall aims to form strong partnerships, including with channels and resellers in the UK market.

to bring its technology to every professional around the world, by leveraging local network expertise. Aircall aims to form strong partnerships, including with channels and resellers in the UK market. Improve technology with new AI capabilities, additional productivity features for call centers: transcription & speech analytics for greater depth of productivity features for sales and support. Aircall will also enhance global infrastructure capacities by providing additional points of presence to support the local usage and local storage of data while continuing to deliver additional capacity at scale, and provide a global standard of high quality for voice. "Since the beginning of Aircall, we've helped thousands of companies to enrich their customer experience through voice channels, with more empathy than ever in the past year. We also witnessed an increasing demand for visibility and data about teams and performances," said Olivier Pailhes, co-founder and CEO of Aircall. "Now that hybrid, on-site or remote teams are likely here to stay, we'll continue to work to achieve our vision, and empower every professional to have richer conversations. With that in mind, the investment by Goldman Sachs, and the renewed trust of our current investors validates this vision." About Aircall Aircall is the phone system for modern business. An entirely cloud-based voice platform that integrates seamlessly with popular productivity and helpdesk tools. Aircall was built to make phone support as easy to manage  accessible, transparent, and collaborative. Aircall believes that voice is the most powerful way to communicate with customers, prospects, candidates, and colleagues. It is designed to enable delightful moments of human connection. Aircall was founded in 2014 within eFounders, and has raised over $226 million in funding. With offices in New York, Paris, Sydney, and Madrid, the company currently has over 450+ employees.

https://aircall.io/ About Goldman Sachs Asset Management Growth Equity Bringing together traditional and alternative investments, Goldman Sachs Asset Management provides clients around the world with a dedicated partnership and focus on long-term performance. As the primary investing area within Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), we deliver investment and advisory services for the world's leading institutions, financial advisors and individuals, drawing from our deeply connected global network and tailored expert insights, across every region and marketoverseeing more than $2 trillion in assets under supervision worldwide as of March 31, 2021. Driven by a passion for our clients' performance, we seek to build long-term relationships based on conviction, sustainable outcomes, and shared success over time. Goldman Sachs Asset Management invests in the full spectrum of alternatives, including private equity, growth equity, private credit, real estate and infrastructure. Since 2003 the Growth Equity business within Goldman Sachs Asset Management comprising more than 75 individuals has invested over $13 billion in companies led by visionary founders and CEOs. We focus exclusively on investments in growth stage and technology-driven companies spanning multiple industries, including enterprise technology, financial technology, consumer and healthcare. Follow us on LinkedIn. Press contact Aircall UK PR Contact

Archetype for Aircall

aircall@archetype.co Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1539071/Aircall_Logo.jpg

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[June 23, 2021] AlayaCare Raises $225 Million to Accelerate the Digital Transformation of Home Health Care

AlayaCare, a global home and community care software company, today announced a $225 million CAD Series D funding round led by Generation Investment Management LLP with participation from Klass Capital and incumbent investors Inovia Capital ("Inovia"), CDPQ, and Investissement Quebec. AlayaCare has scaled its business substantially powering more than one billion patient visits around the world. The US is now the fastest-growing part of AlayaCare's business, representing 7x growth in the last 24 months. Today's announcement fuels AlayaCare's mission to deliver home care of the future through transformative innovation, data-driven insights, and a superior care worker experience that ultimately delivers better patient outcomes and lower costs for providers. AlayaCare will use the funding to continue global expansion, hire additional staff and further invest in innovation capabilities to build a more complete post-acute offering in addition to products that help solve labour market issues around employee shortages and churn. According to Precedence Research, the global home healthcare market size is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of more than 8%. The explosive growth of the aging population - combined with a growing prevalence of chronic diseases, a global shortage of care workers and a shift to value-based reimbursement - is forcing a rethink of how care is delivered. "Employee shortages and retention continues to be one of the biggest headaches for all home health providers. AlayaCare is uniquely positioned to help tackle common pain points related to scheduling challenges and balancing patient and caregiver preferences," said Adrian Schauer, CEO & Founder, AlayaCare. "Our innovative technology helps run the back office more efficiently, allowing care staff to focus on outcomes instead of paperwork. Through the support and confidence of our investors, customers, partners and employees, we are excited to scale the AlayaCare platform and take the more sustainable home health-based model mainstream." Today, more than 500 home and community care organizations around the world rely on AlayaCare's leading software to improve operational efficiencies through its modern, intelligent software. A key differentiator of the platform is its artificial intelligence ("AI")-based predictive models that enable business leaders to spend less time on manual tasks, and more time focused on growing their organizations as they seek to meet the huge demand coming from health systems for home care. The AlayaCare platform also has robust third-party application programming interface ("API") integratin, enabling customers to integrate it holistically within their existing systems. Today's announcement accelerates AlayaCare's global growth strategy and will enable organizations around the world to access the award-winning platform.



"We fundamentally believe that treating people in the home is key to building a sustainable health system that provides better outcomes at lower cost. AlayaCare provides a win-win for both patients and providers by meeting the strongly growing demand for care at home with a more modern, efficient, data-driven and easy-to-use system that vastly improves the experience for caregivers and their agencies," said Dave Easton, Growth Equity Partner, Generation Investment Management LLP. "We look forward to supporting AlayaCare as it doubles down on its investment in R&D and builds out the next generation of home care and home health software, further building on its machine learning capabilities to help its customers prepare for a more tech-enabled, efficient and value-based future." "There is an inflection point in the home care market and COVID-19 has confirmed our investment thesis in that sector," said Dennis Kavelman, Partner, Inovia. "We are proud to continue to support AlayaCare as they execute their M&A playbook and accelerate their growth in the US market."

"With its sophisticated solutions that home health care agencies use to optimize performance and the quality of patient care, AlayaCare is a compelling example of how technology can be leveraged to serve communities," said Alexandre Synnett, Executive Vice-President and Chief Technology Officer, CDPQ. "With the sharp rise in home healthcare around the world, AlayaCare is well-positioned to continue growing and consolidate the international market." "Investissement Quebec, a leading investor in this round of financing, is proud to reaffirm its confidence in AlayaCare, a promising Montreal company that is reinventing the way home care is delivered. This is exactly what our agency is here for: working with solid investment partners to support growth and empower tomorrow's technology leaders while helping to keep head offices and value-added commercial activity here in Quebec," noted Investissement Quebec President and CEO, Guy LeBlanc. The transaction was supported by TD Securities Inc. as exclusive financial advisor, Aust Legal, and Stikeman Elliott LLP who acted as advisors for AlayaCare. Since its launch, AlayaCare has experienced double-digit growth, expanded its operations in the US, Canada, and Australia and now employs nearly 500 staff with aims to hire an additional 300+ employees over the coming years. Visit www.alayacare.com to learn more about the AlayaCare platform, which includes scheduling, reporting, clinical documentation, billing, care worker mobile app, and dedicated portals for patients, family members, and care workers. About AlayaCare AlayaCare offers an end-to end software platform for home and community care providers to manage the entire client lifecycle from referrals and intake to billing, payroll and beyond. Combining traditional in-home and virtual care solutions, AlayaCare enables care providers across the world to propel towards innovation and healthcare of the future. AlayaCare was founded in 2014 and is the parent company of Procura, Arrow, CIMS, and AcuteNet. www.alayacare.com About Generation Investment Management LLP Generation Investment Management LLP is dedicated to long-term investing, integrated sustainability research, and client alignment. It is an independent, private, owner-managed partnership established in 2004 and headquartered in London, with a U.S. office in San Francisco. Generation Investment Management LLP is authorized and regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority. www.generationim.com About Inovia Capital Inovia Capital is a venture firm that partners up with audacious founders ready to build enduring global technology companies. We are known to roll up our sleeves and serve founders with dedicated, long-term mentorship, a global talent network and strategic support for global scale. Inovia Capital manages over US$1.5B across early and growth-stage funds and holds offices in Montreal, Toronto, Calgary, San Francisco and London. For more information, visit inovia.vc. About CDPQ At Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec (CDPQ), we invest constructively to generate sustainable returns over the long term. As a global investment group managing funds for public retirement and insurance plans, we work alongside our partners to build enterprises that drive performance and progress. We are active in the major financial markets, private equity, infrastructure, real estate and private debt. As at December 31, 2020, CDPQ's net assets total CAD 365.5 billion. For more information, visit cdpq.com, follow us on Twitter or consult our Facebook or LinkedIn pages About Investissement Quebec Investissement Quebec's mission is to play an active role in Quebec's economic development by spurring business innovation, entrepreneurship and business acquisitions, as well as growth in investment and exports. Operating in all the province's administrative regions, the Corporation supports the creation and growth of businesses of all sizes with investments and customized financial solutions. It also assists businesses by providing consulting services and other support measures, including technological assistance available from Investissement Quebec - CRIQ. In addition, through Investissement Quebec International, the Corporation also prospects for talent and foreign investment and assists Quebec businesses with export activities. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005361/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Alliance Memory Appoints Alistair Jones as Regional Sales Manager for Northern Europe

KIRKLAND, Wash., June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Alliance Memory today announced the appointment of Alistair Jones as the companys regional sales manager for Northern Europe. In his new role, he will work closely with Alliance Memorys distribution partners to expand the companys sales coverage in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and the Baltics.

Mr. Jones brings extensive management experience in the semiconductor industry to Alliance Memory. He comes to the company from Avnet Silica, where he served as manager of strategic sales projects, Northern Europe. Previously, he served for four years as EMEA channel manager for Tundra Semiconductor, and another four as the head of global sales and strategy for Electrocomponents electronics division. Mr. Jones began his career as an inside sales rep with Memec and finished his tenure with the company 20 years later as the vice president of sales, EMEA, for the Memec United division. Alistair has had a distinguished career in the semiconductor industry, in which he has displayed a drive for excellence across a range of sales, country, and regional management roles, said Sue Macedo, managing director, EMEA, at Alliance Memory. With his deep knowledge of the Northern European market, he is the perfect fit for this role and will be instrumental in expanding our presence in the region. We couldnt be more pleased to welcome him t the Alliance Memory team.



Alliance Memory is an exciting company to be a part of because its continuously looking forward, said Mr. Jones. Even with the myriad challenges presented by 2020, Alliance Memory experienced significant growth in its market share by introducing a slew of new products and industry partnerships. And that momentum is set to continue through 2021 and beyond. Im looking forward to being a part of the companys success story. Mr. Jones is based in Oxford, England, and reports to Ms. Macedo. He can be reached at Alistair@alliancememory.com .

About Alliance Memory Inc.

Alliance Memory is a worldwide provider of critical and hard-to-find memory ICs for the communications, computing, consumer electronics, medical, automotive, and industrial markets. The companys product range includes flash, DRAM, and SRAM memory ICs with commercial, industrial, and automotive operating temperature ranges and densities from 64Kb to 8Gb. Privately held, Alliance Memory maintains headquarters in Kirkland, Washington, and regional offices in Europe, Asia, Canada, and South America. More information about Alliance Memory is available online at www.alliancememory.com . Link to photograph of Alistair Jones:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/alliancememory/51264794089/ Agency Contact:

Bob Decker

Redpines

+1 415 409 0233

bob.decker@redpinesgroup.com





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[June 23, 2021] Blue Cross Blue Shield Plans' Administrative Cost Growth Decelerated in 2020

In 2020, Blue Cross Blue Shield Plans' costs increased by 5.2% per member, down from 6.6% and 6.7% in 2019 and 2018, respectively. These comparisons are between continuously reporting plans and eliminate the effect of product mix differences between comparison years. The results are published in Plan Management Navigator and are posted at sherlockco.com/navigator. Navigator excerpts from the 2021 Blue Cross Blue Shield Plan edition of the Sherlock Benchmarks. This edition of the Sherlock Benchmarks analyzes and reports on the in-depth surveys of 14 Blue Plans serving 41 million members. Surveyed Plans comprise 61% of the members of Blue Cross Blue Shield Plans not served by publicly-traded companies. The decline in growth was significant in Account and Membership Administration and Sales and Marketing. The Corporate Services Cluster was the only one to accelerate in growth. Commercial membership declined in 2020, especially for insured products. Membership in ASO/ ASC (News - Alert) , FEP, Medicaid and Medicare Advantage increased. Staffing ratios increaed, largely due to Customer Services, as compensation increased by 3%. Outsourcing was relatively stable at 11-12% overall.



Within the functions, cost trends were consistent with adaptation to COVID-19, such as in Nurse Information and Customer Services, and strengthening Plans' longer term competitive position through higher Actuarial and Pre-Planning in Information Systems. We will discuss the results via free web conference on Thursday, June 24th, from 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time. Douglas Sherlock will offer a brief presentation, followed by questions and answers. To participate in the web conference, please register at sherlockco.com/webinar. Once registered, dial-in information and a link to connect will be provided in a confirmation email.

The recent operating environment has been challenging for health plans. The Sherlock Benchmarks can assist in adapting to this environment and optimizing expenses. The Sherlock Benchmarks for 2021 will reflect approximately 928 health plan years of experience spanning 24 consecutive years. They are the gold standard" of benchmarks used to measure and manage health plan administrative activities in health plans serving approximately 172 million members. Planning, budgeting and cost benefit analyses are credibly informed by the Sherlock Benchmarks. Besides the Blue Cross Blue Shield universe, other universes include Independent/Provider-Sponsored plans, Medicare plans and Medicaid plans. Collectively, the 36 participating plans serve 54 million insured Americans. Sherlock Company (www.sherlockco.com), based in North Wales, Pennsylvania, provides informed solutions for health plan financial management. Since its founding in 1987, Sherlock Company has been known for its impartiality and technical competence in service to its clients. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005656/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Boast.AI Named Finalist in Two Categories of BC Tech's 2021 Technology Impact Awards

-- Innovative tax credit software company named as finalist in both Excellence in Technology and Company of the Year Categories VANCOUVER, BC, June 23, 2021 /CNW/ -- Boast.AI, the fast-growing FinTech platform that helps companies automate the cumbersome process of preparing and financing Research and Development (R&D) tax credit claims in the United States and Scientific Research & Experimental Development (SR&ED) tax credits in Canada, announced today their selection as finalists in two categories of BC Tech's 2021 Technology Impact Awards (TIA). BC Tech Association (BC Tech) is British Columbia's largest member-led technology non-profit. Boast.AI is a finalist in both the Excellence in Technology Adoption category, presented in partnership with Accenture, and the Company of the Year - Export presented in partnership with Export Development Canada. Each year the U.S. and Canadian governments combined provide more than $20 billion USD in R&D credits to fund innovation. Boast.AI has helped more than 1,000 companies recover their R&D costs from the U.S. and Canadian governments, streamlining the process, reducing the risk of costly audits, and giving companies access to their future refunds as early as 16 months in advance. Boast.AI's R&D tax credit software gathers data from a company's existing technical and financial systems to identif, categorize, and time-track eligible projects, ensuring nothing is missed and all the supporting documentation is in place, leading to larger refunds faster with less investment of time and resources.



"We fulfill our mission anytime we help a company collect eligible tax incentives from the government and use those funds to re-invest in innovation," said Alex Popa, Boast.AI CEO, and co-founder. "Boast.AI's unique software, expertise, and financing approach is what's drawing companies to us. We make a cumbersome process much easier, and we help people access their cash right away instead of waiting. BC Tech's recognition in two categories validates the value proposition we offerlarger refunds with less investment of time and resources." Co-founders Alex Popa and Lloyed Lobo have been busy scaling the company to keep up with demand. The company announced a Series-A C$30 million (USD $23 million) at the start of 2021, and a C$126 million (USD $100 million) credit facility for early access to R&D credit and SR&ED refunds. Boast.AI hired several prominent software executives to scale the company's growth and operational functions as the company experiences triple digit growth.

"Every $1 dollar invested in R&D drives over $20 dollars in new economic activity. Governments are realizing how effective innovation-based tax incentives are, and business leaders see the amazing value of reinvesting tax credits to innovate and grow faster," said Lloyed Lobo, Boast.AI President and Co-founder. "This means our market is growing faster than ever, and we are scaling intelligently to respond. The opportunity for every business to grow faster through innovation is powerful, and we want to help them do that." Boast.AI's independent board member, Laurie Schultz, former CEO of Galvanize, was also recognized by BC Tech as a 2021 TIA finalist in the Person of the Year category. Laurie joined Boast.AI's board of directors after the recent billion-dollar sale of Galvanize. About Boast.AI

Boast.AI is a FinTech platform that is democratizing access to billions of dollars in R&D tax credits and innovation funding so companies can fuel their growth while preserving equity and avoiding red tape. With operations across the U.S. and Canada, more than 1,000 innovative companies have leveraged Boast.AI to get more money faster for less time and risk. www.Boast.AI SOURCE Boast.AI

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[June 23, 2021] Charles River Leverages Finsemble Platform to Enhance its Partner Ecosystem

Charles River Development, a State Street Company, today announced a collaboration with Cosaic leveraging their Finsemble platform to streamline integration of third-party applications into the Charles River Investment Management Solution (Charles River IMS). Finsemble enables asset managers to connect their applications together-modern or legacy, in-house or third-party - providing investment professionals with seamless access to data from Charles River IMS. Built on the Financial Desktop Connectivity and Collaboration Consortium (FDC3) protocol, Finsemble standardizes how applications communicate, without having defined inter-application workflows prior to deployment. FDC3-enabled applications can participate in desktop workflows without any coding or manual integration, enabling significantly faster deployment of new applications and extending the lifetime of legacy applications. "Investment firms increasingly look to on-board the latest technology for risk management, trading and portfolio construction in response to changing investor demands and regulatory obligations. Finsemble's innovative platform enables our customers to embed approved partners and workflows into Charles River IMS, accelerate time to market and enable their front office teams to work more efficiently from a unified desktop," said Michael Beattie, Director of Product Strategy, Charles River Development. "The collaboration with Cosaic underscores our commitment to expanding Charles River's partner ecosystem, providing customers with access to a growing community of third party analytics, data and applications providers." "We are thrilled to enter the next phase of our collaboration with Charles River, enabling our mutual customers to gain greater operational efficiencies with secure, certified interoperability between Charles River IMS and their preferred applications," said Dan Schleifer, CEO, Cosaic, and co-founder of ChartIQ. "Incorporating Finsemble will enable Charles River customers to integrate new technology and services faster, independent from Charles River's release cycle, and help eliminate the need for proprietary APIs and lengthy implementations." Today's announcement expands on the collaboration launched in 2020, which incorporated Cosaic's ChartIQ application into Charles River IMS, empowering institutional traders with visualization tools that deliver greater insight into data affecting investment decisions. Charles River IMS serves as the front and middle office component of State Street Alpha?, which provides global investment managers, hedge funds, asset owners and insurers with a complete front to back solution for risk management, portfolio construction, trading, compliance, post-trade and back office services. About Cosaic

Cosaic provides state-of-the art software for firms that want to promote ingenuity, evolve intelligently, and improve end-user efficiency. Products include ChartIQ, the world-renowned financial charting software, and Finsemble, the smart desktop platform. As a worklow solutions provider, Cosaic is revolutionizing the way people work with over 300 global customers around the world, including Yahoo! Finance, E*TRADE, Charles River, and Fidessa. Founded in 2012 as ChartIQ, Cosaic is a fast-growing firm based in Charlottesville, VA with offices in New York, London, and Hong Kong. For more information, please visit https://cosaic.io.



About Charles River, A State Street Company

Investment firms, asset owners, wealth managers, hedge funds and insurers in more than 30 countries rely on Charles River's front and middle office investment management platform to manage more than US$30 Trillion (News - Alert) in assets. Together with State Street's middle and back office capabilities, Charles River's cloud-deployed software technology forms the foundation of State Street AlphaSM. The Charles River Investment Management Solution (Charles River IMS) is designed to automate and simplify the institutional investment process across asset classes, from portfolio management and risk analytics through trading and post-trade settlement, with integrated compliance and managed data throughout. Charles River's growing partner ecosystem enables clients to seamlessly access external data and analytics, applications and liquidity venues that support the demands of their product and asset class mix. Headquartered in Burlington, Massachusetts, we serve clients globally with more than 1,000 employees in 11 regional offices. (Statistics as of Q1 2021)

About State Street Corporation State Street Corporation (NYSE: STT) is one of the world's leading providers of financial services to institutional investors including investment servicing, investment management and investment research and trading. With $40.3 trillion in assets under custody and/or administration and $3.6 trillion* in assets under management as of March 31, 2021, State Street operates globally in more than 100 geographic markets and employs approximately 39,000 worldwide. For more information, visit State Street's website at www.statestreet.com. * Assets under management as of March 31, 2021 includes approximately $60 billion of assets with respect to SPDR products for which State Street Global Advisors Funds Distributors, LLC (SSGA FD) acts solely as the marketing agent. SSGA FD and State Street Global Advisors are affiliated. 2021 State Street Corporation - All Rights Reserved

State Street Corporation, One Lincoln St, Boston MA 02111 Charles River Development - A State Street Company is a wholly owned business of State Street Corporation (incorporated in Massachusetts). This document and information herein (together, the "Content") is subject to change without notice based on market and other conditions and may not reflect the views of State Street Corporation and its subsidiaries and affiliates ("State Street"). The Content is provided only for general informational, illustrative, and/or marketing purposes, or in connection with exploratory conversations; it does not take into account any client or prospects particular investment or other financial objectives or strategies, nor any client's legal, regulatory, tax or accounting status, nor does it purport to be comprehensive or intended to replace the exercise of a client or prospects own careful independent review regarding any corresponding investment or other financial decision. The Content does not constitute investment research or legal, regulatory, investment, tax or accounting advice and is not an offer or solicitation to buy or sell securities or any other product, nor is it intended to constitute any binding contractual arrangement or commitment by State Street of any kind. The Content provided was prepared and obtained from sources believed to be reliable at the time of preparation, however it is provided "as-is" and State Street makes no guarantee, representation, or warranty of any kind including, without limitation, as to its accuracy, suitability, timeliness, merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement of third-party rights, or otherwise. State Street disclaims all liability, whether arising in contract, tort or otherwise, for any claims, losses, liabilities, damages (including direct, indirect, special or consequential), expenses or costs arising from or connected with the Content. The Content is not intended for retail clients or for distribution to, and may not be relied upon by, any person or entity in any jurisdiction or country where such distribution or use would be contrary to applicable law or regulation. The Content provided may contain certain statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements; any such statements or forecasted information are not guarantees or reliable indicators for future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those depicted or projected. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No permission is granted to reprint, sell, copy, distribute, or modify the Content in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of State Street. The offer or sale of any of these products and services in your jurisdiction is subject to the receipt by State Street of such internal and external approvals as it deems necessary in its sole discretion. Please contact your sales representative for further information. State Street may from time to time, as principal or agent, for its own account or for those of its clients, have positions in and/or actively trade in financial instruments or other products identical to or economically related to those discussed in this communication. State Street may have a commercial relationship with issuers of financial instruments or other products discussed in this communication 2021 STATE STREET CORPORATION #3641315.1.1.GBL. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005550/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Chinese E-commerce Giant JD.com Accelerates Cross-border Trade with Thailand

BEIJING, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- JD.com, China's largest retailer, announced a record-breaking transaction volume of RMB 343.8 billion yuan (~1,680 THB billion) during its 618 Grand Promotion (June 1 to June 18). COVID-19 travel restrictions have spurred enormous growth in cross-border e-commerce business. Thai products sell remarkably well on JD.com and are hugely popular among the company's over 500 million customers. Over 200 brands from Thailand including SMOOTHE, POY SIAN, SCOTCH, VEET joined the 618 Grand Promotion, with 260,000 durian sold. Sales of Thai herbal wax increased 9075% YOY in the first 10 days from June 1 to June 10. Rice, latex pillows, face masks and bird's nests also saw remarkable growth on the platform. China has been Thailand's largest trading partner for years. Mr. Sittikorn Chantadansuwan, Minister Counsellor from the Royl Thai Embassy in Beijing said, "We attach great importance to cross-border e-commerce to promote the bilateral trade with China. JD.com is a leading platform that will help more Thai products reach Chinese customers."



"Products from Thailand are among the most popular among Southeast Asian origins on JD's cross-border e-commerce platform," said Yao Li, senior manager of business development at JD Worldwide. "As the preferred tourist destination in Southeast Asia, Thailand is favored by Chinese people for its unique culture, fresh produce and natural products." The flagship store launched by JD.com and CENTRAL GROUP on JD Worldwide has seen an annual growth rate of over 50% since its launch in 2018.

JD.com launched its first international chartered flight on May 28 with a route between Shenzhen and Bangkok, facilitating delivery of goods from mainland China to customers in Thailand and vice versa within 48 hours. "While the epidemic has accelerated cross-border trade, it has also considerably reduced the air transport capacity in the SEA region," said Daoyuan Chen, assistant president and head of strategic projects at JD International Logistics. "Taking advantage of our in-house logistics networks in both China (JD.com) and Thailand (JD CENTRAL), we have seen nearly 100% capacity in products shipped in the air cargo since its inaugural flight." Korlarp Suwacharangkul, Chief Marketing Officer of JD CENTRAL, revealed that cross borer business at JD CENTRAL in 2020 has an impressive growth of 200% compared to 2019. The most popular Thai products among Chinese are within the food & beverage category, while household appliances from China are popular in Thailand. SOURCE JD.com

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[June 23, 2021] Colleges Modernize Financial Aid Offices with Oracle

AUSTIN, Texas, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Colleges and universities across the U.S. are adopting Oracle Student Financial Planning (SFP) to make it easier for students to apply for essential financial aid. Part of Oracle Student Cloud, the solution gives students a personalized view of their funding options so they can make better decisions to support their education goals. Eastern Gateway Community College, Navarro College, and William Carey University all chose Oracle Student Financial Planning to simplify their financial aid processes for their students and staff. Using Oracle Student Financial Planning, students can access timely, accurate, personalized financial aid information that helps them make more informed financial aid choices. The solution automates the financial aid process from beginning to end  from eligibility, packaging, and awarding, through disbursements and reporting. This leads to better experiences for students, as well as improved efficiency for university staff who can now spend less time on processes and more time on helping students. "As the impacts of the pandemic linger, too many students perceive obtaining a post-secondary degree as financially out of reach," said Vivian Wong, group vice president, higher education development, Oracle. "Colleges and universities using Oracle Student Financial Planning can improve affordability and access with a simplified financial aid process that promotes responsible borrowing, and in turn, empowers students to realize their personal, professional, and academic goals." Eastern Gateway Community College

As Ohio's Eastern Gateway Community College expanded beyond its Steubenville ad Youngstown campuses to expansive online course offerings, its student population grew from 13,000 students in 2018 to more than 40,000 students today. This growth drove the college to cloud-based solutions as it scaled its operations. The college's successful implementation of Oracle Fusion Cloud Applications in 2019 opened the door to adding Oracle Student Financial Planning to its technology portfolio. With the automation, compliance, integration capabilities, and security of Oracle Student Financial Planning, Eastern Gateway leaders anticipate time-and cost-savings that staff can rededicate to more strategic, one-on-one student help.



"Providing high-quality services for more than 40,000 students in all 50 states made modernization of our services and infrastructure a necessity," said Eastern Gateway President Michael Geoghegan. "Oracle Student Financial Planning automates the process from beginning to end, freeing up financial aid staff to work directly with students and ensures our college can invest more of our resources in teaching and learning necessary to build America's 21st century workforce." Navarro College

Navarro College, a public community college based in Corsicana, Texas, aims to set students on a clear path to academic and financial success during their time on campus. But the school's 20-year-old Ellucian Colleague financial aid system relied heavily on manual processes, which was inefficient for staff and delayed the flow of information to students. Navarro College selected Oracle Student Financial Planning to replace the aging system. The solution's streamlined and transparent processes will benefit Navarro College's students and staff alike, boosting the student experience and reducing manual processes for staff.

"We evaluated a number of solutions  including Ellucian, Jenzabar, and Workday  before making our selection," said Barry Sullivan, director of information technology, Navarro College. "Ultimately, Oracle Student Financial Planning earned our vote as we realized it could support our needs not just today, but for years to come." William Carey University

Located in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, William Carey University delivers highly personalized experiences to meet each student where they are. However, the processing of student aid through the financial aid module of its existing Unit4 system was entirely manual, hampering students' experience and failing to meet the university's modern standards. The university selected Oracle Student Financial Planning to create a student-centric financial aid experience. The university also chose Oracle Fusion Cloud Advertising and Customer Experience to support its recruiting efforts; and Oracle Analytics Cloud to complement its other Oracle implementations with enhanced reporting and analytics. These solutions will work together to support the university's strategic enrollment management plan. "The pandemic accelerated the need to move away from traditional, manual processes, and subsequently, accelerated our move to Cloud," said Jeff Andrews, chief information officer, William Carey University. "Oracle's solutions will help us provide the seamless experience that William Carey wants to extend, allowing staff to rededicate time to student success and empowering students in their educational pursuits." About Oracle

Oracle offers integrated suites of applications plus secure, autonomous infrastructure in the Oracle Cloud. For more information about Oracle (NYSE: ORCL), please visit us at oracle.com. Trademarks

Oracle, Java, and MySQL are registered trademarks of Oracle Corporation. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/colleges-modernize-financial-aid-offices-with-oracle-301317749.html SOURCE Oracle

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[June 23, 2021] Emerald and Comexposium Announce Partnership to Launch SIAL America

Emerald Holding, Inc. (NYSE:EEX) ("Emerald" or the "Company") and Comexposium today announced they will join forces in a strategic partnership to launch SIAL America. Comexposium, one of the world's leading event organizers and owner of the established and successful SIAL brand, will unite with Emerald, a leader in providing market-driven, business-to-business platforms that integrate live events with a broad array of media, to produce and stage what is expected to be the first large-scale, generalist food show focused on supporting the US $1.5 trillion Food and Beverage market. SIAL America is planned to launch at the Las Vegas Convention Center in 22 to 24 March 2022 and will be co-located with Emerald's International Pizza Expo and International Artisan Bakery Expo. SIAL America is expected to include products from the following categories: Organic & Wellness, Beverages, Grocery, Sweets & Bakery, Fruits & Vegetables, Seafood, Dairy Products, Frozen Foods, Snack Foods, and Meats. "This partnership underscores the ever-increasing importance of creating a single event for the food industry. Emerald and Comexposium share a vision of providing new opportunities for our customers to grow and innovate, which is very exciting for our industry as a whole," said Jessica Blue, EVP, Emerald. "Comexposium U.S. is delighted to continue the development of its footprint with the launch of SIAL America. Between our partners and ourselves we plan to create a new and distinctive offering. It's an exciting proposition for all to bring the best of the food industry from America and globally to Las Vegas in March 2022," said Steve Corrick, CEO North America at Comexposium. Importantly, the partnership is intended to leverage the respective strengths of Emerald's leading live events footprint in the United States and Comexposium's preeminent SIAL global food brand and network. A 50-year-old generalist food show, the SIAL brand includes ten international food events in France, Canada, the UAE, India, China, Algeria and Indonesia that deliver more than 700,000 attendees and 16,000 exhibitors annually. "We are very excited to partner with Emerald to launch SIAL America. After establishing robust business platforms in Paris, Shanghai, Montreal and many more cities around the world, we plan to bring to life in Las Vegas a new international food exhibition to enable comprehensive sourcing of new products. We look forward to welcoming guests to share our vision, and spark new and exciting connections in the food industry," said Nicolas Trentesaux, SIAL Network Global CEO. Serving as an international business hub for the food and beverage industry, SIAL's philosophy is to include all food categories in the same event while uniting the industry and driving solutions to tomorrow's food challenges. IAL America is expected to emulate and amplify this philosophy and serve as the #1 large-scale food and beverage event in the United States, connecting an exhibitor base of food and drink manufacturers with retailers, importers, exporters, distributors, and wholesalers of food products.



Pete Lachapelle, Vice President, Global Brand Director, Emerald's Food Group added, "SIAL America is expected to be the first and only trade show in the United States geared to the entire food industry. Not only will SIAL America deliver the opportunity to see the full gamut of what's currently available on the market, and in which direction the food industry is headed, it also complements our existing co-location of International Pizza Expo and International Artisan Bakery Expo in Las Vegas and will expand our product and service offering as well as our reach." The SIAL America website can be accessed by clicking here or visiting www.sialamerica.com

Click here to access additional testimonials on the launch of SIAL America. About Emerald: Emerald is a leader in building dynamic, market-driven business-to-business platforms that integrate live events with a broad array of industry insights, digital tools, and data-focused solutions to create uniquely rich experiences. As true partners, we at Emerald strive to build our customers' businesses by creating opportunities that inspire, amaze, and deliver breakthrough results. With over 140 events each year, our teams are creators and connectors who are thoroughly immersed in the industries we serve and committed to supporting the communities in which we operate. For more information, please visit http://www.emeraldx.com About Comexposium: Comexposium is one of the world's leading event organizers., It hosts B2B and B2B2C events all around the world and across many different sectors, significantly in agriculture, construction, fashion, food, health, leisure, real estate, retail, security, students, tourism, and works council. At events, in over 30 countries, Comexposium welcomes more than 3,5 million visitors and 48,000 exhibitors annually. Headquartered in France, Comexposium's employees and sales network operate in 20 countries. https://www.comexposium.com/ About SIAL Network: SIAL Network is the world's largest network of food and drink fairs. Its 10 regular shows (SIAL Paris, SIAL Canada Montreal, Toronto, SIAL China, SIAL China South, SIAL Middle East, SIAL India, SIAL Interfood in Jakarta, Gourmet Selection and DJAZAGRO) bring together 16,000 exhibitors and 700,000 visitors from 200 countries. https://www.sial-network.com/ Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains certain forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, expectations regarding the launch of SIAL America. These statements involve risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, industrial, economic, and competitive factors outside of the Company's control that may cause the launch of SIAL America to differ materially. See "Risk Factors" and "Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" in the Company's most recently filed periodic reports on Form 10-K and Form 10-Q and subsequent filings. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any of the forward-looking statements contained herein, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005192/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Etana Custody Obtains Trust Charter

Etana Custody (etana.com), an independent, qualified custodian that provides global custody services and trade support solutions, announced that the State of Colorado Division of Banking granted final approval for a trust charter. Etana provides asset managers, trading desks, corporations, exchanges, and individuals the ability to buy and sell fiat and digital assets directly from custody, eliminating risky transfers and inefficient transactions. As a fully regulated custodian, Etana's global custody offering adheres to the strictest compliance and risk management policies, procedures, and controls. Etana works with many service providers to deliver a "one-stop-shop" approach to onboarding clients, asset conversion, trade execution, settlement, physical delivery, account deposit, and withdrawal management. Clients can choose from the service providers that are already part of the Etana ecosystem or add their own relationships to the mix. Etana Custody solutions include: Onboarding KYC/AML procedures to BSA standard

Market access to a range of exchanges, liquidity providers, and trade execution venues via API or GUI

Ability to instantaneously trade fiat and digital assets from custody with participating exchanges and counteparties

Support for BTC, ERC20 and other leading blockchain tokens, and G10 fiat currency pairs

Electronic, real-time settlement with counterparties allowing for more effective cash and treasury management



Russell continues, "Since 2014, Etana has focused on providing solutions to minimize the cost of doing business, improve compliance, mitigate risk, and allow our clients to store their assets securely. In addition, we have always supported regulation that seeks to reduce risk and fosters innovation in the marketplace. This regulatory approval is the first step towards expanding our global footprint and delivering the solutions our clients demand."

About Etana Etana Custody Ltd. is a Colorado chartered trust company regulated by the State of Colorado Division of Banking. As an independent, qualified custodian, we offer global custody and trade support solutions for institutions, corporations, exchanges, and individuals. Our industry-leading suite of custody and trade support solutions allows clients to manage their fiat and digital assets from one location in a secure environment linked to many service provider options. For additional information, please visit etana.com. Disclaimer: Etana Trust Company (dba Etana Custody) is a licensed trust company with the Colorado Division of Banking. Etana Custody performs the duties of an escrow depository and independent custodian and does not provide investment advice, sell investment products or offer any tax or legal advice. Customers or potential customers should perform their own due diligence in selecting any financial institution or professional to advise them based on their specific circumstances. Etana Custody does not engage in the offer, sale, or trading of securities and is not registered with the SEC (News - Alert) . Holdings of Digital Assets are speculative and involve a substantial degree of risk, including the risk of a complete loss. Digital assets held in custody are not subject to FDIC or SIPC protection. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005216/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Former Munich Re Digital Partners CEO Joins Insurtech Cover Genius to Accelerate Growth in US and Latin America

NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cover Genius , the embedded insurance company that protects the global customers of the worlds largest digital companies, has named Dave Brune President for the Americas, as it continues its rapid growth in the US, Canada and Latin American markets. Brune brings more than 30 years of P&C insurance experience to the role, where he will oversee strategic partnerships, finance and corporate development.

Most recently, Brune founded and served as the President and CEO of Digital Partners North America, a Munich Re company. Having recently added dozens of technology leaders to our network of global partners who use our XCover distribution platform, hiring Dave is a natural next step for our US and regional arm, which has been growing exponentially, said Angus McDonald, Cover Genius CEO and Co-founder. As founder of the highly regarded Digital Partners unit of Munich Re, which launched dozens of global partnerships in multiple lines of insurance, Daves leadership and experience at one of the industrys most successful corporate venture funds will be an asset in helping Cover Genius reach its mission to protect all the customers of the worlds largest digital companies. Before joining Munich Re, Dave headed product management teams at Prudential Property & Casualty Insurance Company, Great American Insurance Company and American Modern Insurance Group. Dave earned his MBA from the University of Notre Dame, Indiana. While a recent report revealed that traditional insurers fail to meet demands for coverage across a wide-range of categories, insurtechs like Cover Genius help the largest brands in the world bridge that gap with tailored protection offerings, based on real-time data, within their ecosystems, said Brune. Im excited to make the leap from the insurance space to work for a global insurtech leader like Cover Genius who is destined to reshape the future of insurance distribution by meeting customers where they are at with seamless services, like embedded insurance, integrated with their online activities. Cover Genius recently added a significant number of global brands to its network of global parters including retailers such as eBay , Wayfair and South East Asian giant, Shopee ; leading travel brands, like Skyscanner ; global companies within fintech, payments, logistics, auto, mobility, SaaS and property including Intuit QuickBooks, Booking Holdings, owner of Priceline, Kayak and Booking.com, Descartes ShipRush and Automatrix.



About Cover Genius

Cover Genius is the embedded insurance company that protects the global customers of the worlds largest digital companies including Booking Holdings, Intuit, eBay , Skyscanner , Wayfair , Descartes ShipRush , Tile and SE Asias largest company, Shopee . Cover Genius vision is to protect all the customers of the worlds largest online companies through its award-winning technologies that include XCover , a global distribution platform for any line of insurance or warranty, and XClaim , an API for instant payment of approved claims that delivers an NPS of +65, a result that has been independently recognized as the highest for any insurance company globally. Cover Genius co-creates insurance products with partners, enabled by its ability to produce regulated products in 60+ countries & all 50 US States.

Cover Genius Media Contact:

Shelley Petri

spetri@daddibrand.com A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/a93e9f8f-507d-4a10-887f-14b7d9b04d22



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[June 23, 2021] Franklin Street Properties Corp. Announces $50 Million Share Repurchase Program

Franklin Street Properties Corp. (the "Company", "FSP", "our" or "we") (NYSE American: FSP), a real estate investment trust (REIT), announced today that the Company's Board of Directors authorized the repurchase of up to $50 million of its outstanding common shares. Any purchases made pursuant to the program will be made from time to time in the open market, privately negotiated transactions or other manners as permitted by federal securities laws. The timing, manner, price and amount of any repurchases will be determined by the Company in its discretion and will be subject to economic and market conditions, stock price, applicable legal requirements and other factors. The program may be suspended or discontinued at any time. George J. Carter, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of FSP, commented as follows: "We previously announced 2021 disposition guidance in the range of $350 million to $450 million in aggregate gross proceeds. We continue to intend to use those proceeds primarily for debt reduction. However, we believe that our stock price may at times not be fully reflective of the value of our underlying assets. As a result, we may use a portion of proceeds from those asset sales for share repurchases as market conditions warrant." This press release, along with other news about FSP, is available on the Internet at www.fspreit.com. We routinely post information that may be important to investors in the Investor Relations section of our website. We encourage investors to consult that section of our website regularly for important information about us and, if they are interested in automatically receiving news and information as soon as it is posted, to sign up for E-mail Alerts.



About Franklin Street Properties Corp. Franklin Street Properties Corp., based in Wakefield, Massachusetts, is focused on infill and central business district (CBD) office properties in the U.S. Sunbelt and Mountain West, as well as select opportunistic markets. FSP seeks value-oriented investments with an eye towards long-term growth and appreciation, as well as current income. FSP is a Maryland corporation that operates in a manner intended to qualify as a real estate investment trust (REIT) for federal income tax purposes. To learn more about FSP please visit our website at www.fspreit.com.

Forward-Looking Statements Statements made in this press release that state FSP's or management's intentions, beliefs, expectations, or predictions for the future may be forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. This press release may also contain forward-looking statements based on current judgments and current knowledge of management, which are subject to certain risks, trends and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in such forward-looking statements. Accordingly, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned that our forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainty. See the "Risk Factors" set forth in Part I, Item 1A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, as the same may be updated from time to time in subsequent filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Although we believe the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005836/en/

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[June 23, 2021] George Washington University Online High School Celebrates Class of 2021 and 10th Anniversary with Virtual Ceremony

The George Washington University Online High School (GWUOHS) will celebrate the Class of 2021, and the full-time online private school's 10th anniversary, during a virtual commencement ceremony on Saturday, June 26, 2021. The ceremony will recognize the 74 GWUOHS students worldwide who comprise the school's largest-ever graduating class. Collectively, the Class of 2021 reports that it has been offered more than $7.5 million in scholarships and awards from a number of higher education institutions and organizations. Members of the graduating class report having been accepted to colleges and universities around the world, including Boston University, Cornell College, Miami University (Ohio), Michigan State University, New York University, Rice University, Spelman College, University of Pennsylvania, and University of Southern California. "Our graduating students have faced a year unlike any othr with the determination to succeed and accomplish this important milestone," said Alison Mistretta, Head of School at GWUOHS. "I am excited to see what the next chapter holds for these talented students as they pursue their dreams. There is no doubt in my mind that they will be leaders who make an impact no matter where they go next."



GWUOHS is an online college preparatory academy for students in grades 8-12. Students enroll from across the U.S. and around the world, receiving a rigorous, personalized education. The school's curriculum is completed by a unique Journey's Symposium, which promotes self-awareness, leadership, service, and personal success. To celebrate the 10th anniversary of GWUOHS, the guest speakers for the ceremony will include both student speakers and an alumnus. In addition, students will be recognized with awards for their leadership, academic excellence, and community contributions.

Details of the event are as follows: WHAT: The George Washington University Online High School Virtual Commencement

WHEN: Saturday, June 26, 2021 | 1 PM EST

WHERE: Virtual - Link available upon request About The George Washington University Online High School The George Washington University Online High School (GWUOHS) is a full-time online private school accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and School Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools. GWUOHS gives parents and students in grades 8-12 the choice to access the curriculum provided by K12, a Stride Company (NYSE: LRN). Stride offers learners of all ages a more effective way to learn and build skills for their future. For more information about GWUOHS, visit www.gwuohs.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005111/en/

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[June 23, 2021] GeoWealth Powers Global X's ETF Model Portfolios to Explosive Growth in US

GeoWealth, a TAMP built specifically for Registered Investment Advisors (RIAs) with $15B in platform assets and north of $6B in AUM, is pleased to announce that Global X, a New York-based provider of ETFs owned by Mirae Asset Global Investments Co., Ltd., has experienced a 350+% CAGR in its ETF model portfolios available on the GeoWealth platform over the past two and a half years. The partnership has been a key component in Global X's delivery of ETF model portfolios to the US RIA space and helped the firm expand the adoption of its models, developed and maintained by Chief Investment Officer Jon Maier. Dually focused on responding to the needs of modern advisors and investors, GeoWealth and Global X have deepened their relationship to provide RIAs access to a wide range of investment strategies aimed at achieving growth and income objectives for clients. Accessible within the GeoWealth Advisor Portal, advisors are able to allocate to, report on and view key statistics on Global X's ETF model portfolios, all within a user-friendly, modern platform. "Every day, we talk to advisors who are seeking investment solutions that are seamless to access, cost-efficient and lead to better, more diversified portfolios," said Colin Falls, President at GeoWealth. "When we added Global X's ETF model portfolios to our model marketplace, we truly got the best of both worlds; innovative, open-architecture investments that RIAs can get their clients excited about and a partner that is just as passionate about serving these investing professionals as we are." Global X's ETF model portfolios are comprised of four categories, all of which are represented within the GeoWealth model maketplace, including: Equity Thematic Disruptors; Equity Income; the Core Series, which incorporate thematic and factor-based strategies alongside broad equity and fixed income ETFs; and the Sustainable Core Series, which provide low-cost exposure to sustainable investments by combining broad-based ETFs that are tilted towards sustainability along with a dedicated sleeve of sustainable themes. The firm's models can be leveraged by advisors a la carte or as part of asset allocation models.



"The distribution of our ETF model portfolios on GeoWealth's tech-forward platform has resulted in significant growth in the adoption of our models among RIAs," said Jon Maier, Chief Investment Officer at Global X. "Through the strong working relationship between Global X and GeoWealth, we've helped educate the market on solutions that incorporate our forward-looking investment strategies, including thematics, and have been able to provide advisors with insight into the vast landscape of ETFs to achieve specific outcomes for their clients." When GeoWealth added Global X's strategies to its model portfolio offering in 2018, its assets under management totaled $1B. Due to many successful partnerships and its easy-to-use, fully integrated platform that prioritizes the needs of the modern RIA, GeoWealth has experienced asset growth of over 500% in the past 3 years. For more information on GeoWealth, please visit geowealth.com or schedule a demo to learn more about their platform offerings.

About GeoWealth GeoWealth is a turnkey asset management platform (TAMP) and financial technology solution built specifically for the needs of modern RIAs. Serving more than 800 advisors, GeoWealth's user-friendly, cost-efficient, integrated technology enables advisors to access a diversified lineup of model portfolios and fully offload mid and back-office responsibilities, including performance reporting, billing, portfolio accounting and more. Via its customizable open-architecture platform, GeoWealth enables RIAs to grow faster and serve clients more efficiently. Get in touch with the GeoWealth team at geowealth.com - we believe in delivering a best-in-class customer experience. About Global X ETFs Global X ETFs was founded in 2008. For more than a decade, our mission has been empowering investors with unexplored and intelligent solutions. Our product lineup features more than 80 ETF strategies and over $30 billion in assets under management.i While we are distinguished for our Thematic Growth, Income and International Access ETFs, we also offer Core, Commodity, and Alpha funds to suit a wide range of investment objectives. Explore our ETFs, research and insights, and more at www.globalxetfs.com. Global X is a member of Mirae Asset Financial Group, a global leader in financial services, with more than $560 billion in assets under management worldwide. Mirae Asset has an extensive global ETF platform ranging across the US, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Europe, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam with over $60bn in assets under management.ii _____________________ i As of May 2021

ii As of March 2021 View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005542/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Global Telecoms Cloud Market Forecast: Growth at an Impressive CAGR of 21.4% Between 2021 and 2026

DUBLIN, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Telecom Cloud Market by Type (Public, Private, and Hybrid), Service (Colocation, Network, and Management Services), Application, Cloud Computing Service (SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS), Organization Size, End User, and Region - Global Forecast to 2026" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The global telecom cloud market size is expected to grow from USD 19.8 Billion in 2021 to USD 52.3 Billion by 2026, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 21.4% during the forecast period. Data stored on a public cloud platform is generally regarded as safe from most hazards. It helps organizations meet their demands for scalability and also provides a pay-per-usage pricing strategy and ease of deployment. The public cloud is typically designed with built-in redundancies to prevent data loss. Service providers may store replicated files across several data centers to ensure that disaster recovery is smooth and fast. Management Service segment is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period The management service segment is expected to grow at a higher CAGR with telecom cloud solution vendors enabling organizations to centralize, manage, and deliver information in a secure way. Data is increasingly seen as a corporate asset that can be used to make more informed business decisions, improved marketing campaigns, optimized business operations, and reduced costs, all with the goal of increasing revenues and profits. Management services are helping end users, such as retail, healthcare industries, and financials firms, by making them more operationally efficient and utilizing their data for better decision making via artificial intelligence and analytics. Banking, financial services and insurance vertical is expected to have a larger size during the forecast period The banking, financial services and insurance vertical deals with the need to reduce non-core functions and has started outsourcing them. Outsourcing helps banks minimize costs and maximize efficiency. This results in the requirement for channelized content insights and accurate banking information that can be consolidated through telecom cloud solutions. The collaborations enable banking and financial service providers to offer enhanced facilities by providing them with improved communication otions. The solution enables face-to-face interactions between customer and employees to discuss various banking options, located anywhere in the world. Telecom cloud technology also helps with customer experience enhancement. Currently, the telecom cloud market is witnessing increased growth opportunities in the banking, financial services and insurance vertical. This growth can be attributed to the increasing requirement for telecom cloud to enhance staff training, banking education, and customer communication.



Asia Pacific (APAC) region to record the highest growing region in the telecom cloud market APAC has several growing economies, such as China, Australia, India, and Japan, which are expected to register high growth in the telecom cloud market. These countries have always supported and promoted industrial and technological growth. In addition, they possess a developed technological infrastructure, which is promoting the adoption of Telecom cloud solutions across all industry verticals. APAC is driven by the growing acceptance of cloud-based solutions, emerging technologies such as the IoT, and big data analytics and mobility.

By Company Type: Tier 1 - 30%, Tier 2 - 45%, and Tier 3 - 25%

By Designation: C-level - 35%, Directors - 40%, and Others - 25%

By Region: North America - 40%, Europe - 20%, APAC - 30%, ROW - 10% This research study outlines the market potential, market dynamics, and major vendors operating in the Telecom cloud market. Key and innovative vendors in telecom cloud market are such as AT&T Inc. (AT&T), BT Group PLC (BT Group), Verizon Communications Inc. (Verizon), Vodafone Group PLC (Vodafone), China Telecom, Lumen Technologies Inc. (Lumen), Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. (Singapore Telecommunications), Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT), Orange Business Services, Telefonica S.A (Telefonica), Deutsche Telekom A.G (Deutsche Telekom), Telstra Corporation Limited (Telstra), SK Telecom Co. Ltd (SK Telecom), Saudi Telecom Company (STC), Rogers Communications Inc.(Rogers), and Emirate Tele Group Company PJSC (Etisalat). Research coverage The market study covers the telecom cloud market across different segments. It aims at estimating the market size and the growth potential of this market across different segments based on type, service, application, cloud computing services, organisation size, end-users with regions covered. The study also includes an in-depth competitive analysis of the key market players, along with their company profiles, key observations related to product and business offerings, recent developments, and key market strategies. Key benefits of buying the report The report is expected to help the market leaders/new entrants in this market by providing them information on the closest approximations of the revenue numbers for the overall telecom cloud market and its segments. This report is also expected to help stakeholders understand the competitive landscape and gain insights to improve the position of their businesses and to plan suitable go-to-market strategies. The report also aims at helping stakeholders understand the pulse of the market and provide them with information on key market drivers, restraints, challenges, and opportunities. Key Topics Covered: 1 Introduction 2 Research Methodology 3 Executive Summary 4 Premium Insights 5 Market Overview 6 Telecom Cloud Market, by Type 7 Telecom Cloud Market, by Service 8 Telecom Cloud Market, by Application 9 Telecom Cloud Market, by Cloud Computing Service 10 Telecom Cloud Market, by Organization Size 11 Telecom Cloud Market, by End-user 12 Telecom Cloud Market, by Region 13 Competitive Landscape 14 Company Profiles 15 Adjacent/Related Market 16 Appendix Companies Mentioned Alibaba Cloud

AT&T

AWS

BT Group

China Telecom

Dell

Deutsche Telekom

Etisalat

Google

IBM

Lumen Technologies

Microsoft

NTT Communications

Oracle

Orange Business Services

Red Hat

Rogers

Singapore Telecommunications Limited

SK Telecom

STC

Telefonica

Telstra

Verizon

Vodafone For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/1e923g Media Contact:

Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470

For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630

For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1904

Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/global-telecoms-cloud-market-forecast-growth-at-an-impressive-cagr-of-21-4-between-2021-and-2026--301318359.html SOURCE Research and Markets

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[June 23, 2021] GZ6G Technologies' Green Zebra Smart Networks Division to Offer Local Information Technology, Wireless Network and Cyber Security Services

Green Zebra Smart Networks Will Offer Innovative Solutions to Help Small to Mid-size Businesses Post Pandemic to Upgrade, Manage, and Provide Remote Workforce IT Infrastructure LAS VEGAS, NV, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NewMediaWire  GZ6G Technologies (OTCMarkets: GZIC), the complete enterprise smart solutions provider for large venues and cities, has announced that its Green Zebra Smart Networks division will offer Southern California small to midsize businesses local enterprise-level IT and wireless network technology consulting services, business technology infrastructure strategy and planning services as well as, IT networking hardware and secure cloud software products and services. In addition, Green Zebra Smart Networks will provide businesses with remote IT and wireless managed and monitoring services in the Southern California business market. The new Irvine office is the first of three physical locations planned throughout the United States over the next 12 months. Target cities for expansion include Nashville, Tennessee, and Las Vegas, Nevada. This pandemic has expedited the need for remote work force IT and wireless managed service opportunities for small and mid-size businesses in Southern California. We expect to reduce client IT staffing expenses, cyber security management and monitoring, and remote work force technology solutions, said Coleman Smith, CEO and President of GZ6G Technologies. We will offer an enterprise level experience, IT infrastructure strategy and planning, and remote management and monitoring services as a monthly service to our business partners. Green Zebra Networks IT wireless support services will allow companies to reduce IT costs while focusing on selling products and services thereby shifting their IT challenges to Green Zebra Networks. Reducing client IT staffing costs while giving enterprise-level IT support, strategic planning and managed services to our clients creates new opportunities for local IT and support technicians to grow with Green Zebra Smart Networks. We expect a minimum monthly fee of $5,000, targeting companies that have 10 or more employees or employee workstations. This localized approach creates the potential, under a managed service provider (MSP) acquisition model for Green Zebra Networks, to achieve its target revenue goal by 2024. Green Zebra Networks local teams will be comrised of:



Technology Sales Teams

Sales Support Engineers

Senior IT Engineers

Wireless Network Engineers

Web Developers The Green Zebra Networks division expects to onboard local clients commencing August 2021. The Green Zebra Smart Networks website will launch this Summer. For more information visit: GZ6G.com.

About GZ6G Technologies: GZ6G Technologies is the complete enterprise smart solutions provider for large venues and cities. Focused on acquiring smart city solutions, developing innovative products, and overseeing smart cities and smart venues, GZ6G Technologies also assists in modernizing clients with innovative wireless IoT technology for the emerging 5G and Wi-Fi 6 marketplaces. Target markets include stadiums, airports, universities, and smart city projects. Ever evolving and innovative, GZ6G Technologies smart solutions consist of four divisions, Green Zebra Smart Networks: offers a fully integrated wireless and IT infrastructure solutions for enterprise opportunities. The Green Zebra technical teams will also provide both managed services support, and technical support for networking hardware and software for enterprise level clients. Green Zebra Smart Data: The Green Zebra Smart Data centers division will focus on safe and secure data management and cloud computing solutions for GZ6G Technologies divisions as well as co-location and hosting options for venues, cities, and customers. Green Zebra Smart Labs: IoT software applications integrated for commercial, industrial and user engagement technology, as well as artificial intelligence and analytics for historical data, operation forecasting and monetization purposes, to name a few. Green Zebra Smart Media, a majority-owned subsidiary of Gz6G Technology Corp: a full-service marketing and advertising division for clients that includes public relations, copywriting, branding, and all creative needs. Since 2017, GZ6G Technologies is the trusted, smart solutions provider for clients such as Governors Island, NY, and the city of New York, to name a few. For more information, visit www.GZ6G.com. Twitter @gz6tech MEDIA Contact: Arlene Bordinhao

Arlene.b@brandltd.com INVESTOR Contact: Coleman Smith

Cole@greenzebra.net Safe Harbor Statement: In addition to historical information, this press release may contain statements that constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements contained in this press release include the intent, belief, or expectations of the company and members of its management team with respect to the company's future business operations and the assumptions upon which such statements are based. Prospective investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, and involve risks and uncertainties, and that actual results may differ materially from those contemplated by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause these differences include, but are not limited to, failure to complete anticipated sales under negotiations, lack of revenue growth, client discontinuances, failure to realize improvements in performance, efficiency and profitability, and adverse development with respect to litigation or increased litigation costs, the operation or performance of the Company's business units or the market price of its common stock. Additional factors that would cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated within this press release can also be found on the company's website. The company denies any responsibility to update any forward-looking statements.



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[June 23, 2021] H Code and El Salvador Digital Media Leader America Interactiva Announce Exclusive Partnership

H Code, the largest Hispanic digital media company in the U.S., today announces its exclusive partnership with America Interactiva, the leading multimedia company in El Salvador. Through this partnership, H Code will represent 100% of America Interactiva's inventory in the United States, offering brands and advertisers unparalleled access to the company's leading media properties, including Elsalvador.com, the country's first and leading digital news publication. "We're excited to welcome America Interactiva to our roster of publishing partners and look forward to helping them achieve their goals of engaging with the U.S. market as they prepare to scale their digital efforts to increase their global reach," says Parker Morse, CEO and Founder of H Code. As one of the top digital publishers in El Salvador, America Interactiva's partners are guaranteed leading exposure to audiences in El Salvador and the United States as well as in any other country where Salvadorans reside. America Interactiva decided to partner with H Code following their search for a partner that was able to monetize all of its products through one platform instead of having to work with multiple providers. Through this partnership, brands and advertisers can now engage with the America Interactiva's U.S.-based Spanish-speaking auiences using H Code's premium products, which include display, rich media, video, mobile, native, social/digital channels, as well as creative services.



"H Code is the only solution that has a proven track record of helping publishers connect with the U.S. Hispanic audiences by utilizing the channels and content that resonate with them the most. I'm confident that this partnership will be integral to our growth moving forward," says Hector Vandeveire, Sales and Marketing Director for America Interactiva. The partnership with America Interactival bolsters H Code's position as a leader in Hispanic digital media and allows H Code to utilize large, engaged U.S. Hispanic audiences and maximize campaigns for brand partners. Imagen Digital adds to H Code's growing roster of Latin American media partnerships and further establishes its foothold in the region. The company has previously secured strategic partnerships with leading Latin American publishers including Peru-based Grupo El Comercio and Mexico-based Imagen Digital.

"As leaders in El Salvador's digital media landscape, America Interactiva provides valuable opportunities for brands and advertisers to connect with the increasingly influential Salvadoran audience. We're excited to be working with them and helping them accomplish their expansion goals," says Pablo Rivera, VP of Publisher Development for H Code. About H Code Founded in 2015, H Code has solidified its place as the largest Hispanic digital media company in the United States. Committed to reaching Hispanic audiences at scale, H Code strives to leverage its learnings, brand equity, and expertise to shape the future of media by unlocking diverse audiences through data and authentic creative and content. Today, H Code's employee base is 84% multicultural, 65% Hispanic/Latinx, and 49% female across its offices in the U.S. and Latin America. Named one of the fastest-growing private companies in the nation by multiple outlets, H Code strategically brings together targetable data, exclusive inventory, authentic creative and custom content, and more to influence powerful Hispanic consumers every day through digital and integrated campaigns. Backed by its proprietary intelligence platform that derives insights from a robust influencer network and the largest Hispanic digital panel, H Code delivers the most impactful, data-driven strategies to effectively reach and influence multicultural audiences online with unmatched authenticity. About America Interactiva America Interactiva are digital pioneers in El Salvador. The company was founded in 1995 and launched the first digital media company in El Salvador, ElSalvador.com View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005103/en/

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[June 23, 2021]

Hilton Software Wins NGA Contract for Mobile and Data Development

CORAL SPRINGS, Fla., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Hilton Software has been awarded a prime contract by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) to continue providing exceptional multi-platform world-wide mobile solutions and data development. The contract has an anticipated period of performance of three years.

"We are tremendously honored to have the confidence of NGA in continuing to develop multi-platform software solutions and data," said Dr. Goldstein, CEO and Founder of Hilton Software. The Aeronautical Mobile Application supports the United States Department of Defense, the Federal Aviation Administration, and Government Foreign Partners with leading edge mobile technologies and geospatial navigation data. This contract reaffirms the partnership, solutions, and services that Hilton Software has been providing NGA for almost a decade."







For additional information, visit our website: www.hiltonsoftware.com

About Hilton Software

Headquartered in Coral Springs, Florida, Hilton Software is the market-leader in the development of multi-platform mobile aviation solutions for General Aviation, Commercial, and Military operations. Hilton Software is a prime contractor for the United States Department of Defense and the United States Department of Transportation.

View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/hilton-software-wins-nga-contract-for-mobile-and-data-development-301318099.html

SOURCE Hilton Software
[June 23, 2021] Humana Expanding its Commitment to Improving Physical and Mental Health Across North Carolina

Leading health and well-being company Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) today announced it is expanding its commitment to the health and well-being of North Carolinians by more than doubling the number of Humana Neighborhood Centers and opening a new Contact Center in North Carolina due to continued membership growth including the North Carolina State Health Plan members. It's all part of the company's commitment to improving the health and well-being of its Medicare Advantage members, and people in local communities across the state. The company currently operates Humana Neighborhood Centers in Asheville and Greensboro. Over the next year, the company will add new Neighborhood Center locations in Charlotte, Raleigh and Winston-Salem. Humana Neighborhood locations, which are open to the community, offer a unique calendar of special events, programs and activities designed to improve physical and mental health. You do not need to be a Humana member to participate in most activities, including healthy cooking demos, health education and nutrition classes, and a variety of social activities. "We are thrilled to announce this significant expansion in North Carolina and are excited to build on our work to improve the health and well-being of our Medicare Advantage members," said Kathleen Schwarzwalder, Humana North Carolina Medicare Vice President. "This includes the North Carolina State Health Plan retirees that we have the privilege to serve." The new Humana Charlotte Grove 5 Contact Center is dedicated to serving the North Carolina State Health Plan Medicare Advantage members across the state. The 70 call representatives Humana hired to staff this center currently work from home, but will phase into the center once COVID-19 protocols and the company's reentry plans permit onsite work. In December 2019, Humana announced Charlotte as one of its Bold Goal communities. Through its Bold Goal and Population Health strategy, Humana works with local organizations to address the social determinants of health that are affecting the community. For example, Humana supported the Universal Institute for Successful Aging of Carolina's work to deliver culturally appropriate food boxes to area seniors facing food insecurity.



In addition to increasing its footprint in North Carolina, Schwarzwalder said Humana continues to support important statewide health and wellness organizations and activities. "Along with supporting Local Senior Games, we're proud to support the North Carolina Senior Games athletes as a Gold Sponsor of North Carolina Senior Games State Finals for the 16th year in a row," said Schwarzwalder.

This year, Humana has also collaborated with NC Med Assist to bring much needed over-the-counter medicines to people in North Carolina. In addition to sponsoring its OTC Free Store in Charlotte, Humana is sponsoring more than 20 Mobile Free Pharmacy Events across the state this year. For more information about Humana's Neighborhood Centers, visit https://www.humananeighborhoodcenter.com/. About Humana Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) is committed to helping our millions of medical and specialty members achieve their best health. Our successful history in care delivery and health plan administration is helping us create a new kind of integrated care with the power to improve health and well-being and lower costs. Our efforts are leading to a better quality of life for people with Medicare, families, individuals, military service personnel, and communities at large. To accomplish that, we support physicians and other health care professionals as they work to deliver the right care in the right place for their patients, our members. Our range of clinical capabilities, resources and tools - such as in-home care, behavioral health, pharmacy services, data analytics and wellness solutions - combine to produce a simplified experience that makes health care easier to navigate and more effective. More information regarding Humana is available to investors via the Investor Relations page of the company's web site at www.humana.com, including copies of: Annual reports to stockholders

Securities and Exchange Commission filings

Most recent investor conference presentations

Quarterly earnings news releases and conference calls

Calendar of events

Corporate Governance information ID Y0040_GCHL97WEN_C View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005162/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) of Canada Selects Quantcast Choice as Its Consent Management Platform

Quantcast, a global advertising technology company, today announced that the Interactive Advertising Bureau of Canada (IAB Canada), the only organization fully-dedicated to the development and promotion of digital and interactive advertising in Canada, has chosen Quantcast (News - Alert) Choice as its consent management platform (CMP). Quantcast Choice, implemented across more than 3 million publisher and marketer domains globally, solves for compliance and consent with consumer privacy, transparency, and trust at its core. It supports the Transparency and Consent Framework (TCF) 2.0 and other key privacy regulations and industry standards. Easy to deploy, Quantcast Choice increases control and decreases complexity for website owners needing to know which vendors and partners have access to consent data. Additionally, Quantcast Choice helps publishers and brands maximize advertising revenue and optimize consent rates. As the only trade association exclusively dedicated to the development and promotion of the digital marketing and advertising sector in Canada, IAB Canada is committed to helping members navigate the increased emphasis on consumer privacy. With the Canadian industry facing imminent amendments to its existing privacy legislation, IAB Canada selected Quantcast Choice to lead by example, ensuring compliance and increased transparency of processes to ultimately get ahead of more stringent regulations. "Given that the anticipated amendments will include significant penalties and higher accountability standards for the industry, getting organized with solutions that can scale for change is critical," said Sonia Carreno, President of IAB Canada. "While we've been promoting and educating Canadian marketers on the importance of a consent management platform, including how to ensure it aligns with the business, it became critical for us to take first steps and implement a CMP platform to signal that the industry is changing and to demonstrate that innovative technolog exists to help streamline compliance."



"Publishers around the globe need to keep consumers' best interests top of mind as advertisers and marketers look to successfully navigate a privacy-first world, something that Quantcast is pioneering through Quantcast Choice," said Laura Main, Managing Director of Quantcast Canada. "Quantcast is proud to have the trust of the world's leading industry experts, such as the IAB Canada, as we support their privacy, compliance, and consumer consent efforts." For more information about what to look for in a CMP, download IAB Canada's CMP guide written in collaboration with Quantcast and other industry leaders. To hear directly from industry experts about how advertisers and marketers can gain valuable, cross-media audience insights while adhering to consumer privacy regulations, register for IAB Canada's virtual event on July 7th here.

About Quantcast: Quantcast is an advertising technology company and the creator of an innovative intelligent audience platform that empowers brands, agencies, and publishers to know and grow their audiences online. The Quantcast Platform, powered by Ara, a patented AI and machine learning engine, delivers automated insights, marketing performance, and results at scale to drive business growth. Our solutions are leveling the playing field for our customers when it comes to effectively reaching audiences online and helping them power a thriving free and open internet for everyone. Headquartered in San Francisco, Quantcast has been serving customers around the world since 2006. Learn more at www.quantcast.com and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook. About IAB Canada: IAB Canada (www.iabcanada.com), is the national voice and de facto thought leader of the Canadian Digital marketing and advertising industry, and is a not-for-profit association representing Canada's most well-known and respected Advertisers, Agencies, Media Companies, Mobile and Video Game Marketers + Developers, Measurement Companies, Service Providers, Educational Institutions and Government Associations operating within the space. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005259/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Israeli startup OutSense receives three patents for its IoT solution for transforming human waste into lifesaving medical insights

OR YEHUDA, Israel, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Israeli digital health startup OutSense has been granted patents for several of the key innovations of its IoT technology, which analyzes human waste to gain lifesaving medical insights. The company has filed three patent families involving elements of its medical toilet sensor. The first patent is for detecting hidden blood in the toilet bowl. The OutSense device utilizes reflected light from the toilet bowl to determine the optical signature of hidden blood in the stool. A patent for this element of the technology has been granted in the U.S., Europe, Japan, and China. A second patent has been secured in Europe and is pending in other countries for the company's technique that can effectively analyze numerous constituents of stool and for spatial distribution of blood traces. On the basis of this analysis, the OutSense's technique can identify blood origin along the gastro-intestinal tract. A third patent is pending for the company's technique to detect constituents of urine and dehydration from analysis of urine and stool. "The patent approvals underscore the company's strong intellectual property position and its clear lea over competitors in the field of stool and urine monitoring," said Yfat Scialom, CEO of OutSense. She predicts that "with the explosive growth in digital medicine this kind of monitoring is going to become the norm".



The approvals already granted and those pending give OutSense broad protection for its technology that non-invasively tracts hidden blood in the stool and urine. Hidden blood is crucial to the detection of colorectal cancer, inflammatory bowel disease and urinary infections. The company's solution includes multi-spectral optical sensors, a light source and an autonomous inspection device that includes a Wi-Fi connection. The device scans the human waste, identifies the optical footprint of the feces and urine components, sends the data for AI cloud-based analysis, and then supplies indications of various diseases at an extremely high proven level of precision. An additional tool developed by the company goes one step further by diagnosing abnormalities within the human waste. The information from the sampled blood, combined with additional analysis of the time from the bleeding to the excretion provide details of the pathology of the bleeding. A certain pattern can determine whether the bleeding is from fissures or hemorrhoids or from polyps or tumors or possibly from ulcers.

In early June, OutSense announced that CommuniCare, a major healthcare enterprise with more than 90 facilities in the U.S, will begin piloting its technology later this year. In addition to this pilot, OutSense is also conducting clinical trials in Israel as well as a pilot in Japan. CommuniCare's subsidiary, Longevity Venture Partners, is investing in OutSense. Media contact: Amir Ben Artzi, Meirovitch PR, amir@meirovitch.com View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/israeli-startup-outsense-receives-three-patents-for-its-iot-solution-for-transforming-human-waste-into-lifesaving-medical-insights-301318203.html SOURCE OutSense

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[June 23, 2021] Kraig Biocraft Laboratories Completes Installation of Automated Production Equipment

ANN ARBOR, Mich., June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kraig Biocraft Laboratories, Inc. (OTCQB: KBLB) (Company or Kraig Labs), the biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of spider silk, announces today that it has completed the installation of automated mulberry processing equipment at its factory in Vietnam. This new equipment, which was announced earlier this month, is now fully operational and will play an important role in further expanding the Companys silk production.

As part of the Companys roadmap to scale up silk production capacity at its production facility in Quang Nam, Vietnam, the introduction of automated equipment will be a key piece of meeting metric ton levels of recombinant spider silk production. The new equipment will automate the processing of fresh mulberry leaves, a key process input in manufacturing silk. With the ability to process 300kg/hr of mulberry leaves, the new equipment transitions Prodigy Textiles, the Companys Vietnamese subsidiary, to the next expansion phase. In addition, this equipment eliminates a process bottleneck, while improving material handling consistency and quality. As the Company continues to expand production levels, this successful automation implementation will serve as a template for future equipment investments. This new equipment elevates our producion operations to an entirely new level, said COO, Jon Rice. While COVID-related restrictions in Vietnam continue to impact travel into and within the country, our team did an excellent job of navigating those challenges. They successfully imported, installed, and have this equipment operating ahead of schedule. Today marks a very exciting moment in the modernization of our silk production operations and our efforts to fulfill the demand for a sustainable, eco-responsible super fiber, we call spider silk.



To view the most recent news from Kraig Labs and/or to sign up for Company alerts, please go to www.KraigLabs.com/news . About Kraig Biocraft Laboratories, Inc.

Kraig Biocraft Laboratories, Inc. ( www.KraigLabs.com ), a fully reporting biotechnology company, is a developer of genetically engineered spider silk based fiber technologies. Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward Looking Information Statements in this press release about the Companys future and expectations other than historical facts are forward-looking statements. These statements are made on the basis of managements current views and assumptions. As a result, there can be no assurance that managements expectations will necessarily come to pass. These forward-looking statements generally can be identified by phrases such as believes, plans, expects, anticipates, foresees, estimated, hopes, if, develops, researching, research, pilot, potential, could or other words or phrases of similar import. Forward looking statements include descriptions of the Companys business strategy, outlook, objectives, plans, intentions and goals. All such forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security. Ben Hansel, Hansel Capital, LLC

(720) 288-8495

ir@KraigLabs.com



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[June 23, 2021] MetroNet Announces Grand Opening of Vandalia

Today, MetroNet is celebrating the grand opening of the first MetroNet store in the state of Ohio as the company is busy connecting homes and businesses in Vandalia, Tipp City, Troy, Englewood, Union, Huber Heights, Clayton and West Milton. MetroNet officially has a local presence at our storefront location in Vandalia, Ohio. MetroNet's Vandalia storefront is located at 336 E. National Road, Vandalia, Ohio, 45377, and is only a few steps away from local businesses like Jan's Flower Shop and Jim's Donut Shop. The storefront will allow customers to learn more about 100 percent fiber optic connections to their home or business with incredible bandwidth allowing for faster internet speeds. "We are excited that MetroNet chose Vandalia and that they are lighting up fiber around the Dayton Metro Area. This is a big win for our residents and businesses who are considering Vandalia," said Mayor Richard Herbst. The Evansville, IN.-based company began constructing its state-of-the-art fiber network in 2019. MetroNet provides fiber to the premises networks directly connecting homes and businesses to high-speed, symmetrical internet that allows users to upload as quickly as they download over fiber optic strands. Customers may learn more about MetroNet and sign up for MetroNet's services at MetroNetInc.com. "We are thrilled to anounce the official grand opening of MetroNet in Vandalia and to provide high-speed fiber optic internet to North Dayton suburbs," said MetroNet Executive Vice President Kevin Stelmach. "The Vandalia and North Dayton communities have been incredible to work alongside. We are excited to provide this community with services options that will continue to support local businesses and residents."



MetroNet provides customers with a future-proof fiber optic network that allows businesses and residents to have access to the fastest internet speeds available in a time when access to reliable internet is necessary. With MetroNet's symmetrical speeds to and from the home or business, customers can conveniently stream, work and learn from home. MetroNet offers a 100 percent fiber optic network, including high-speed fiber internet, full-featured fiber phone, and fiber television with a wide variety of programming. The company started in 2005 with one fiber optic network in Greencastle, Indiana, and has grown to more than 100 communities in eleven states.

About MetroNet: MetroNet is a 100 percent fiber optic company headquartered in Evansville, Indiana. The customer-focused company provides cutting-edge fiber optic communication services, including high-speed Fiber Internet, full-featured Fiber Phone (News - Alert) , and Fiber IPTV with a wide variety of programming. MetroNet started in 2005 with one fiber optic network in Greencastle, Indiana, and has since grown to serving and constructing networks in more than 100 communities across Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Florida, North Carolina, Virginia, and Texas. MetroNet is committed to bringing state-of-the-art telecommunication services to communities - services that are comparable or superior to those offered in large metropolitan areas. MetroNet has been named in the top 50 small and medium companies on Glassdoor and has been honored with a Glassdoor Employees' Choice Award recognizing MetroNet among the Best Places to Work in 2020. MetroNet has been recognized by PC Mag as one of the Top 10 Fastest ISPs in North Central United States in 2020 and Top 10 ISPs with Best Gaming Quality Index in 2021. Broadband Now has recognized MetroNet as the Top 3 Fastest Internet Providers and Fastest Fiber Providers in the Nation in 2020, and #1 Fastest Mid-Sized Internet Provider in two states in 2020. In 2020, MetroNet was awarded the Vectren Energy Safe Digging Partner Award from Vectren. For more information, visit www.MetroNetinc.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005616/en/

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[June 23, 2021] NTT Research Names Iris Shelly MEI Lab Scientist

NTT Research, Inc., a division of NTT (TYO:9432), today announced that it has named Iris Shelly as a Scientist in its Medical & Health Informatics (MEI) Lab. Shelly, an applied research engineer with expertise in biomedical signal processing and low-power devices, joined NTT (News - Alert) Research in June 2021. She was most recently a Senior Applied Research Engineer at BIOTRONIK/Micro Systems Engineering, Inc. where she designed, developed and validated cardiac arrhythmia detection algorithms. Shelly brings this experience to the MEI Lab where she will initially work on model architecture and the interface for the bio digital twin initiative. Following Shelly's initial research priorities, she will work on several other aspects of the bio digital twin initiative, including disease-related aspects of the model. "The MEI Lab is pleased to welcome Iris Shelly to our research team," said Dr. Jon Peterson (News - Alert) , MEI Lab Senior Scientist responsible for advancing the bio digital twin development strategy. "Shelly's strong software background and robust skillset in C#, algorithm design, Git, code review, machine learning, digital signal processing and more align strongly with the expertise needed to drive the MEI Lab's mission to apply bioinformatics and data science to medical research. Her biomedical engineering background, collaborative personality and innate curiosity, along with the skills mentioned above, position her as a key contributor to our bio digital twin research." The goal of the MEI Lab's bio digital twin initiative is to create complex digital replicas of human bodies that physicians can use to simulate various treatments. The goal is to enable optimal and patient-specific therapeutics essential to excptional patient care and wellbeing. Shelly's work at NTT Research will contribute to the first phase of this project, the development of a cardiovascular bio digital twin (CV BioDT). Shelly's algorithm design experience and attention to detail, honed through years of experience in medical device research and software verification, are vital skills in support of model development for the CV BioDT.



"I am honored to join a team of renowned scientists all dedicated to advancing medical and health sciences," said Shelly. "By addressing the increasing complexity of underlying diseases while also helping to determine the best remedy from an ever-increasing range of therapeutic options, the MEI Lab's bio digital twin initiative has the very real potential to make a difference in people's lives. I am excited to bring my expertise in software development and biomedical engineering to help contribute to this fulfilling initiative." In addition to designing, developing and validating cardiac arrhythmia detection algorithms at BIOTRONIK/Micro Systems Engineering, Inc., Shelly was also responsible for managing data sets for algorithm development and validation using preclinical and clinical signals, drafting technical documentation to support FDA device approval and monitoring real-world clinical data and device performance in the field. Shelly also brings experience in system verification, hardware and software development, testing of product and system requirements for implantable medical devices and more to NTT Research. She holds a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from Portland State University and a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering from Washington University in St. Louis.

Shelly's appointment as a MEI Lab scientist comes on the heels of a strategic joint research agreement with Japan's National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Center (NCVC) to develop cardiovascular disease-related computational models, implement them on a bio digital twin platform and develop applications for use by physicians and patients. The MEI Lab also announced earlier this year the addition of Dr. Jon Peterson to its team as a Senior Scientist. Dr. Peterson, a biomedical engineer with both academic and medical device industry experience, will provide technical expertise and leadership in advancing the bio digital twin development strategy. In addition to the bio digital twin initiative, the MEI Lab is also focused on nanosensor technology. In August 2020, NTT Research announced the opening of an office in Munich in support of a joint research agreement with the Technical University of Munich (TUM), which links the MEI Lab with the Neuroelectronics Group within TUM's School of BioEngineering. The MEI Lab believes that development of the bio digital twin will be informed not only by a vast array of biological, physiological, genomic, phenotypic and health records data, but also by data gleaned from wearable and advanced nanosensor devices. About NTT Research

NTT Research opened its offices in July 2019 as a new Silicon Valley startup to conduct basic research and advance technologies that promote positive change for humankind. Currently, three labs are housed at NTT Research facilities in Sunnyvale: the Physics and Informatics (News - Alert) (PHI) Lab, the Cryptography and Information Security (CIS) Lab, and the Medical and Health Informatics (MEI) Lab. The organization aims to upgrade reality in three areas: 1) quantum information, neuroscience and photonics; 2) cryptographic and information security; and 3) medical and health informatics. NTT Research is part of NTT, a global technology and business solutions provider with an annual R&D budget of $3.6 billion. NTT and the NTT logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of NIPPON TELEGRAPH AND TELEPHONE CORPORATION and/or its affiliates. All other referenced product names are trademarks of their respective owners.  2021 NIPPON TELEGRAPH AND TELEPHONE CORPORATION View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005197/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Over a year into the global pandemic, Samsung Biologics continues to leverage innovative virtual platform for remote audits and regulatory inspections

Samsung Biologics' Live Virtual Tour (LVT) used in one of the earliest FDA full virtual assessments

Recently hosted EMA for 6 PAIs simultaneously using LVT INCHEON, South Korea, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Samsung Biologics, a global contract development and manufacturing organization (CMDO), celebrated the one-year mark of Live Virtual Tour (LVT), a real-time interactive platform to provide remote site inspections for both clients and regulatory agencies. The innovative digital solution was developed and implemented at Samsung Biologics a year ago in the wake of the pandemic and has since been successfully utilized in over 50 virtual regulatory and client audits and inspections and counting. When many regulatory agencies and clients had postponed or completely discontinued GMP site inspections due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, Samsung Biologics proactively leveraged its process innovation to custom tailor a robust solution specifically to address the rigorous demands of a biopharmaceutical onsite inspection. Live Virtual Tour is an omni-device platform which allows third parties, such as the FDA and clients, to remotely observe and assess Samsung Biologics' facilities, communicate in real-time, and review GMP documentation, all in high definition using a flexible and secure global cloud infrastructure. Since the launch of LVT, the company has utilized the platform for many aspects of its business, including technical due diigence and regulatory inspections including one of FDA's earliest virtual assessment for Emergency Use of Authorization (EUA) of COVID-19 treatments, and more recently, EMA's virtual inspection ("EMA distant assessment") for six Pre-Approval Inspections (PAI) over the course of seven days, receiving no critical observations.



John Rim, CEO of Samsung Biologics, said of the inspections, "While we have had many successful regulatory inspections in the past, these recent approvals, are meaningful milestones for Samsung Biologics. We will continue to adopt new technologies and stay abreast of what regulatory authorities require to help our clients secure robust and safe delivery of treatments to all patients around the globe." The FDA issued a new recommendation in April providing guidance on remote inspections ("Remote Interactive Evaluations") in light of COVID-19, suggesting that the FDA may continue to use remote inspections to supplement on-site audits post-pandemic. The European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) also predicts added value in retaining a virtual inspection system beyond the pandemic.

By using all available approaches to ensure drug products are safe, effective, and of high quality, regulatory agencies agree that this form of evaluation is an effective and adaptive strategy for the duration of the COVID-19 public health emergency. James Choi, Samsung Biologics Senior VP and Chief Information and Marketing Officer said, "Our Live Virtual Tour platform not only fully complies with the regulatory agencies' guidance on remote interactive evaluations but is also aimed at promoting greater client satisfaction through digital and virtual access to our site and quality documents." About Samsung Biologics Co., Ltd. Samsung Biologics (KRX: 207940.KS) is a fully integrated CDMO offering state-of-the-art contract development, manufacturing, and laboratory testing services. With proven regulatory approvals, the largest capacity, and the fastest throughput, Samsung Biologics is an award-winning partner of choice and is uniquely able to support the development and manufacturing of biologics products at every stage of the process while meeting the evolving needs of biopharmaceutical companies worldwide. For more information, visit www.samsungbiologics.com. Samsung Biologics

Media Contact:

Claire Kim

Senior Director, Global Public Relations

cair.kim@samsung.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/over-a-year-into-the-global-pandemic-samsung-biologics-continues-to-leverage-innovative-virtual-platform-for-remote-audits-and-regulatory-inspections-301318301.html SOURCE Samsung Biologics

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[June 23, 2021] PADI and The Ocean Cleanup Join Forces to Tackle Oceans Plastic

RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, Calif., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Ocean Cleanup, PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) and PADI AWARE Foundation announce a global partnership to tackle ocean plastic pollution. Together, the organizations will mobilize divers on a local level to take action for global impact through the implementation of citizen science research. The joint project pairs The Ocean Cleanup's advanced technologies with the passion of the global dive community to inform ocean-friendly waste management policies in countries worldwide through data collection. "We're excited to be working together with the world's leading diving organization," says Dan Leahy, Chief Development Officer of The Ocean Cleanup. "Their passion for clean oceans creates a natural fit between our organizations, and I'm delighted we can scale our data and research capability through their dedicated community of divers." In addition to its ocean cleanup efforts, the organization is developing solutions to intercept plastic pollution in the top 1,000 most polluting rivers emitting waste into the ocean. Through the installation of Interceptors in these rivers, The Ocean Cleanup aims to stop 80 percent of riverine plastic pollution from entering the ocean. "By combining the ingenuity of The Ocean Cleanup's Interceptors, which remove floating plastic, with the passion and perspective of the global dive community working to save the ocean below the surface through citizen science, this monumental partnership is poised to inform waste management solutions that will significantly reduce marine debris from the surface to the sea floor," says Drew Richardson, President and CEO of PADI. "The success of preventative and lasting solutions on a global scale will only be possible through local community engagement." PADI's vast network of dive centers, dive professionals, divers and other ocean advocates will drive the joint citizen science effort through regular debris surveys both at the surface and underwater in areas near The Ocean Cleanup's Interceptors and the surrounding oceanic dive sites. The data collected, including the amount and type of waterborne plastic pollution found, will be invaluable in providing insights to governments around the world as they establish and evolve policy regardng solid waste management.



The joint citizen science campaign will be trialed in Malaysia this year, working closely with PADI dive shops in the vicinity of the Klang River where an Interceptor will be placed. Working together with local partners and the government, the PADI dive community in the region will collect data in local waters through regular river surveys, ocean surface surveys and Dive Against Debris surveys on the seafloor. The PADI AWARE Foundation's Community Grant program will help provide critical resource support to PADI Dive Centers and Resorts during the implementation of the project. This project in Malaysia will set the precedent for future efforts worldwide in one of the most ambitious citizen science projects ever taken on by the dive community. Following a successful pilot project, PADI and The Ocean Cleanup will establish future efforts near heavily polluting waterways around the world, including areas of Indonesia, Dominican Republic, Vietnam, the United States, Jamaica, and Thailand, and ultimately in the 186 countries around the world where PADI operates.

To stay informed about how you can get involved in this global citizen science project above and below the surface, join the community of PADI Torchbearers united in the effort to explore and protect the ocean at padi.com/conservation. About PADI

PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) is the world's largest ocean exploration and diver organization with a global network of 6,600 dive centers and resorts and more than 128,000 professional members worldwide. Having issued more than 28 million certifications to date, PADI enables people around the world to seek adventure and save the ocean through underwater education, life-changing experiences and travel. For over 50 years, PADI is undeniably The Way the World Learns to Dive, maintaining its high standards for dive training, safety and customer service, monitored for worldwide consistency and quality. With a longstanding commitment to environmental conservation, PADI is leading the way for millions of people to actively explore, steward and protect the ocean through its course offerings and partnerships with like-minded, mission-driven organizations. PADI embodies a global commitment to ocean health with its mission to create a billion torchbearers to explore and protect the ocean. Seek Adventure. Save the Ocean.SM www.padi.com About The Ocean Cleanup

The Ocean Cleanup develops advanced technologies to rid the world's oceans of plastic. They aim to achieve this goal by taking a two-pronged approach: stemming the inflow via rivers and cleaning up what has already accumulated in the ocean. For the latter, The Ocean Cleanup is developing large-scale systems to efficiently concentrate the plastic for periodic removal. This plastic will then be used to create durable products and fund continued cleanup, making cleanup itself circular. In 2019, the organization launched the other half of their solution, the Interceptor, to extract plastic in rivers before reaching the ocean. Founded in 2013 by Boyan Slat, The Ocean Cleanup now employs approximately 95 engineers and researchers. The foundation is headquartered in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. For more information, visit: theoceancleanup.com and follow @theoceancleanup on social media. About PADI AWARE Foundation

PADI AWARE Foundation is a non-profit public charity that drives global ocean conservation through local action. PADI AWARE Foundation engages divers and people everywhere to take conservation actions that heal and protect the ocean planet both above and below the surface, further elevating and supporting PADI's vision to achieve balance between humanity and ocean. Backed by the power of the PADI brand and supported by the world's largest global network of 6,600 dive centers and resorts and more than 128,000 professional members worldwide, PADI AWARE Foundation leverages the collective influence of divers and the dive industry to address key threats facing the marine environment including climate change, marine habitat loss and vulnerable species protection. PADI AWARE Foundation advances its mission and the PADI Blueprint for Ocean Action through underwater citizen science, public policy, education and community grants. www.padiaware.org View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/padi-and-the-ocean-cleanup-join-forces-to-tackle-oceans-plastic-301318017.html SOURCE PADI

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[June 23, 2021] RenaissanceRe Schedules Second Quarter 2021 Financial Results Conference Call

RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: RNR) (the "Company" or "RenaissanceRe") will conduct an investment community conference call on Friday, July 23, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. ET to discuss its financial results for the second quarter of 2021, as well as the Company's outlook. RenaissanceRe will release its results following the close of market on Thursday, July 22, 2021. A live webcast of the conference call will be available through the Investors section of RenaissanceRe's website at www.renre.com. An archive of the call will be available from approximately 1:00 p.m. ET on July 23, 2021, through midnight ET on August 23, 2021.



About RenaissanceRe RenaissanceRe is a global provider of reinsurance and insurance that specializes in matching well-structured risks with efficient sources of capital. The Company provides property, casualty and specialty reinsurance and certain insurance solutions to customers, principally through intermediaries. Established in 1993, the Company has offices in Bermuda, Australia, Ireland, Singapore, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005906/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Renesas Announces Determination of Number of New Shares to be Issued by Way of Third-Party Allotment

Renesas Electronics Corporation ("Renesas", TSE: 6723) today announced that, with respect to the issuance of new share by way of third-party allotment resolved at the Board of Directors' meeting held on May 28, 2021, the allottee notified Renesas that it will subscribe for a part of the shares scheduled to be issued as follows:







(1) Number of New Shares to be Issued 2,067,600 shares (Shares scheduled to be issued: 3,637,300 shares) (2) Amount to be Paid (News - Alert) 1,151.70 yen per share (3) Aggregate Amount to be Paid 2,381,254,920 yen (4) Amount of Share Capital and Legal Amount of share capital to be increased: 1,190,627,460 yen Capital Surplus to be Increased Amount of legal capital surplus to be increased: 1,190,627,460 yen (5) Subscription Date June 25, 2021 (6) Payment Date June 28, 2021

<Reference> 1. The third-party allotment was resolved at the Board of Directors' meeting held on May 28, 2021, together with the issuance of new shares through the Japanese Public Offering and the International Offering, the secondary offering of shares of Renesas (Japanese Secondary Offering by way of Underwriting and Purchase and International Secondary Offering) and the secondary offering of shares of Renesas (secondary offering by way of over-allotment). For more information regarding the third-party allotment, please refer to the press releases "Renesas Announces Issuance of New Shares and Secondary Offering of Shares" dated May 28, 2021 and "Renesas Announces Determination of Issue Price, Selling Price and Other Matters" dated on June 9, 2021. 2. Total number of issued shares before and after the third-party allotment (1) Current total number of issued shares: 1,928,408,490 shares (Note) (2) Number of shares to be increased by the issuance of new shares by way of third-party allotment: 2,067,600 shares (3) Total number of issued shares after the issuance of new shares by way of third-party allotment: 1,930,476,090 shares (Note) As Renesas has issued stock acquisition rights, "Current total number of issued shares" refers to the aggregate number of (i) the total number of issued shares as of May 31, 2021 (1,736,155,690 shares) and (ii) the number of issued shares increased by the issuance of new shares through the public offering (the Japanese Public Offering and the International Offering) conducted on June 15, 2021 (192,252,800 shares). 3. Use of proceeds In February 2021, Renesas reached an agreement with Dialog Semiconductor (News - Alert) Plc ("Dialog"), a UK.-headquartered analog semiconductor supplier, to acquire the entire issued and to be issued share capital of Dialog and thereby make Dialog a wholly owned subsidiary of Renesas (the "Acquisition"). The Acquisition consideration of the entire issued and to be issued share capital of Dialog totals approximately EUR 4,886 million (approximately 615.7 billion yen based on the exchange rate as of February 3, 2021 of 126 yen per Euro). Renesas executed a Facilities Agreement with MUFG Bank, Ltd. and Mizuho Bank, Ltd., (borrowing limit: 735.4 billion yen) to procure necessary funds for the Acquisition. The fundraising through the issuance of new shares is intended to convert a part of funds to be obtained through such Facilities Agreement to long-term funds. Accordingly, Renesas intends to use the aggregate amount of proceeds of 222,610,804,680 yen to be obtained from the Japanese Public Offering, the International Offering and the third-party allotment to fund a part of the purchase price for the Acquisition. In this case, Renesas will not borrow the equivalent amount through the Facilities Agreement. The Acquisition is expected to close by the end of calendar year 2021. However, if any of the Japanese Public Offering, the International Offering and the third-party allotment are consummated after the payment date of the purchase price for the Acquisition, the proceeds from such delayed financing will be used to repay a part of borrowings under the Facilities Agreement that Renesas procures for payment of the purchase price for the Acquisition. Although, the Acquisition is expected to close by the end of calendar year 2021 as noted above, the closing of the Acquisition is subject to, among other things, the sanction by the UK court and regulatory approvals from the relevant countries; therefore, the Acquisition may not be consummated if any or all of these conditions are not met. In the event that the Acquisition is not consummated, the proceeds will be used in whole or in part for repayments of existing borrowings, investments in the businesses, capital expenditure or working capital. In either case, the proceeds will be managed in a bank account until actual expenditure. About Renesas Electronics Corporation Renesas Electronics Corporation (TSE: 6723) delivers trusted embedded design innovation with complete semiconductor solutions that enable billions of connected, intelligent devices to enhance the way people work and live. A global leader in microcontrollers, analog, power and SoC products, Renesas provides comprehensive solutions for a broad range of automotive, industrial, infrastructure, and IoT applications that help shape a limitless future. Learn more at renesas.com. Follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. (Remarks) All names of products or services mentioned in this press release are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. Note: This press release has been prepared for the purpose of announcing to the public certain matters relating to the issuance of new shares by way of third-party allotment of Renesas, and not for the purpose of soliciting investment or engaging in any other similar activities within or outside Japan. In addition, this press release does not constitute an offer or sale of securities in the United States. The securities referred to above have not been, and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"). The securities may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an exemption from registration under the Securities Act. The securities referred to above will not be publicly offered or sold in the United States. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005400/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Rx Savings Solutions To Create 100 Jobs Through 2021

OVERLAND PARK, Kan., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Rx Savings Solutions, the market leading tool for pharmacy transparency, has announced plans to hire an additional 100 employees between now and December 31, 2021. The aggressive effort is spurred by explosive growth  expected to be greater than 80% this year  and the successful release of new product verticals such as AdminRx for Care Coordination and Rx Home Delivery. The Overland Park-based company, a leader in the industry, is looking for skilled team members in engineering, sales, marketing, operations, customer success and pharmacy technicians (including bi-lingual). The search includes strong candidates with AWS experience and knowledge of frameworks such as Laravel, Spring, Vue.js and Flutter. Positions will be both based in the OP office, as well as remote. Named a "Best Place to Work" by the Kansas City Business Journal for the past 3 consecutive years, Rx Savings Solutions patented a web-based healthcare consumerism software driving proven results to save employers, employees, and health plans money on prescription medications. The company currently serves 9 million members today  and is expected to nearly double that and serve 17 million by year's end. In May 2021, over $1B of pharmacy claims were run through the Rx Savings Solutions proactive, patented software. Founded by a pharmacist, Rx Savings Solutions is mad up of expert clinicians, technical engineers, and former pharma insiders. The team at Rx Savings Solutions is driven to make a difference in the costly pharmaceutical industry by exposing savings opportunities and analytics to its clients and members.



With a five-year compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 66.5%, the company works with more than 40 of the Fortune 500 and growing. Just off the heels of announcing a notable 99% revenue retention rate in 2020, nearly all of Rx Savings Solutions' clients who were up for renewal this year chose to extend their contracts. "Our mission-driven culture and phenomenal team are the primary drivers of the remarkable results we have experienced over the past several years," said Michael Rea, a clinical pharmacist who is founder and CEO of Rx Savings Solutions. "As we continue to outpace our growth metrics year over year, we are proud to be able to do our part to enable healthcare consumerism in our country."



The new positions offer competitive salaries and benefits, including participation in the company's 401(k) program with a dollar-to-dollar match of up to four percent of an employee's salary contribution. Beyond competitive pay and attractive benefits packages, employees enjoy workplace flexibility and a hybrid structure, with employees currently working across the nation in 8 different states. With a fun-loving culture which includes celebratory parking lot parties and corn hole tournaments, Rx Savings Solutions is proud to be part of the local KC community and is looking for ways we can give back. The RxSS Gives Back Program serves local Kansas City charities such as Hope House, an annual Thanksgiving dinner project for Harvesters, and Operation Tiny Home Pay-it-Forward Veteran Housing Program. "At Rx Savings Solutions, people always come first, whether it's the millions of members we serve or our rapidly growing team," added Rea.

For more information or to apply for an opening at Rx Savings Solutions, please visit: https://rxsavingssolutions.com/company/careers.

About Rx Savings Solutions

Rx Savings Solutions offers an innovative, patented engagement software system empowering employers and employees to be educated consumers of healthcare. Serving more than 9 million members nationwide, including 41 Fortune 500 clients and more than a dozen health plans, Rx Savings Solutions provides a state-of-the-art approach to pharmacy transparency using objective and unbiased information to inform better decision making. Rx Savings Solutions was founded and is operated by a team of pharmacists and software engineers who support a collaborative, cost-saving solution for purchasing prescription drugs. For more information, visit rxsavingssolutions.com or follow them on LinkedIn and Twitter. Contact:

Cecile Fradkin

S&C Public Relations Inc.

646-941-9139

media@rxsavingsllc.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/rx-savings-solutions-to-create-100-jobs-through-2021-301317700.html SOURCE Rx Savings Solutions

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[June 23, 2021] RYAH Group Ships Devices for Use in Pilot Program with Medicann in Jersey, Channel Islands

TORONTO, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- RYAH Group, Inc. (CSE:RYAH) (RYAH or the Company) today announces that it has completed an initial shipment of its proprietary RYAH Smart Dry Herb Inhalers for use in a pilot study to be conducted by Medicann in Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands, located between England and France. Medicann is a premier cannabis-specialized clinic, providing patients with access to local specialist doctors and pharmacists that have experience prescribing cannabis-based medication. Medicann is launching an observational study using RYAH Smart Dry Herb Inhalers in order to collect patient feedback on consumption of cannabis strains available on the Island, including strains supplied by Aurora Europe , a subsidiary of Canadian-headquartered Aurora Cannabis Inc., a global leader in the cannabis industry serving both medical and consumer markets and dedicated to helping people improve their lives. In addition to the pilot program, the parties are working toward an exclusive, definitive supply and distribution agreement, which, if entered into, is expected to position Medicann as the sole supplier and distributor of the RYAH Smart Dry Herb Inhalers in the region. Jersey, Channel Islands, which is known to have one of the highest GDP per capita in the world , is a British dependency island ideally situated in the English Channel off the coast of France. In 2019, the island's economy grew by 2.1% in real terms to 4.97 billion . By 2024, the medicinal cannabis market within the United Kingdom is predicted to be worth nearly US$1.3 billion, servicing nearly 340,000 active patients. According to a report by the United Nations International Narcotics Control Board, the U.K. has emerged as the largest supplier of medicinal cannabis in the world. The European cannabis market is forecast to grow with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 67.4% to reach 3.2 billion euros ($3.75 billion) by 2025. "We are excited to be initiating our pilot program with Medicann in Jersey, which represents a unique, ring-fenced environment for establishing potentially numerous studies on the efficacy of treatments using plant-based therapies. RYAH is pleased to contribute RYAHs IoT devices and data platform and work with Medicann toward perfecting prescribing practices and dosing regimens, said Gregory Wagner , CEO of RYAH Group, Inc.



About RYAH Group, Inc. RYAH Group, Inc. (RYAH) is a connected device and big data and technology company focused on valuable predictive analysis in the global medical plant and nutraceutical intake industry. Its robust artificial intelligence platform aggregates and correlates HIPAA-compliant patient data, which is intended to help doctors and patients personalize plant-based treatments to better predict treatment outcomes. The data collection is relevant for clinics, doctors, dispensaries and pharmaceutical companies and licensed processors (LPs) to monitor and manage formulation effects on patients and demographics. With a strong IP portfolio, RYAH gathers deep and insightful data on the complete patient session and formulation life cycle.

Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains certain forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities legislation (collectively "forward-looking statements"). All statements contained in this press release that are not statements of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements. Forward looking statements are often identified by terms such as "may," "should," "anticipate," "expect," "potential," "believe," "intend" or the negative of these terms and similar expressions. Specifically, forward-looking statements in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements related to (i) the pilot study to be conducted by Medicann in Jersey using RYAH Smart Dry Herb Inhalers; (ii) the Company and Medicann's efforts to negotiate and enter into an exclusive definitive supply and distribution agreement to position Medicann as the sole supplier and distributor of the RYAH Smart Dry Herb Inhalers in Jersey; and (iii) the anticipated size and growth of the recreational and/or medicinal cannabis market within the United Kingdom and Europe. Forward-looking statements reflect the Companys current views and intentions with respect to future events based on current information available to the Company and are necessarily subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, risks and uncertainties associated with or inherent in (i) the general business and economic conditions in the regions in which the Company operates; (ii) the expected benefits of the Company's product offerings and the anticipated results and experience of users thereof; (iii) the Company's ability to execute on key priorities, implement business strategies and/or pursue business opportunities; (iv) disruptions in or attacks (including cyberattacks) on the Companys information technology, internet, network access or other voice or data communications systems or services; (v) changes to, or the application of, laws and regulations; and (vi) such other factors set out in the Company's public disclosure documents available under the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com . Readers are further cautioned that the assumptions used in the preparation of such forward-looking statements (including, but not limited to, the assumption that (i) the Company will be able to execute on its business plan and will obtain and maintain all necessary permits and authorizations to execute on its business plan; (ii) the Company's financial condition and development plans do not change as a result of unforeseen events; (iii) there will continue to be a demand, and market opportunity, for the Company's product offerings; (iv) the Company will be able to establish, preserve and develop its brand and attract and retain required personnel; (v) current and future economic conditions will neither affect the business and operations of the Company nor the Company's ability to capitalize on anticipated business opportunities; (vi) Medicann will undertake and complete the pilot study in Jersey upon the terms anticipated by the Company; (vii) there will continue to be a viable business opportunity for Medicann and the Company to work together; and (viii) the Company will be able to secure capital and financing on acceptable terms), although considered reasonable by management of the Company at the time of preparation, may prove to be imprecise and result in actual results differing materially from those anticipated, and, as such, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements. Should any such risk factor affect the Company in an unexpected manner, or should assumptions underlying the forward-looking information prove incorrect, the actual results or events may differ materially from the results or events predicted. Accordingly, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which they are placed will occur. The forward-looking statements included in this press release are made as of the date of this press release, and the Company does not undertake an obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements to reflect new information, subsequent events or otherwise unless required by applicable securities laws. All forward-looking statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. This press release includes market and industry data that has been obtained from third-party sources, including industry publications. The Company believes that the industry data is accurate and that its estimates and assumptions are reasonable, but there can be no assurance as to the accuracy or completeness of this data. Third-party sources generally state that the information contained therein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but there is no assurance as to the accuracy or completeness of included information. Although the data is believed to be reliable, the Company has not independently verified any of the data from third-party sources referred to in this press release or ascertained the underlying economic assumptions relied upon by such sources. Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange ("CSE") nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. For additional information, please contact:



Sofiya Kleshchuk

Client Relations

+1 917 210 0543

Invest@ryahgroup.com



Gregory Wagner, CEO

+1 917 210 0543

Info@ryah.com Corporate Communications:

InvestorBrandNetwork (IBN)

Los Angeles, California

www.InvestorBrandNetwork.com

310.299.1717 Office

Editor@InvestorBrandNetwork.com



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[June 23, 2021] School of Whales Launches Miami's First Real Estate Investment Crowdfunding Platform

MIAMI, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Investing in Miami's booming real estate market just became a whole lot easier with the launch of School of Whales, a financial technology start-up and commercial real estate fund that allows anyone to invest in meaningful revitalization and transformational projects for as little as $500, earning investors profits with a purpose. For years only 'accredited investors' could participate in real estate investments. However, that's no longer the case due to the passing of the JOBS Act of 2012 (a.k.a. The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act) in 2016. This change has allowed School of Whales to launch an innovative crowdfunding platform that democratizes real estate investing for everyone. "The opportunity to invest in commercial real estate should not be exclusive to the wealthy elite," said School of Whales Co-Founder and CEO Andrea Petersen. "School of Whales was designed specifically to make large-scale real estate investing more accessible than ever before. With ourlow barrier of entry of $500, we are fostering a community of new financially conscious investors and helping them take steps to secure their financial future by diversifying their savings."



Examples of past or related projects that School of Whales' partners have developed include iconic venues like The Langford Hotel in Downtown Miami and Julia and Henry's, an upcoming multi-level building that will house more than 25 world class food concepts, co-working spaces, recording studios, and a rooftop restaurant in the heart of Downtown. "With the money raised from fellow Whales, our fund will invest in transformational projects that are creating a measurably positive impact on neighborhoods across South Florida," said Pena-Giraldi, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of School of Whales, who has worked in real estate development for more than 20 years. "We are excited to help unique projects become a reality by providing the necessary capital to up-and-coming developers who often struggle to find traditional funding for out-of-the-box concepts."

When someone becomes a Whale, they are investing in a small ownership stake, also known as 'equity,' in one of the fund's projects. Once profits begin pouring in from a given property, investors are paid first with a preferred rate of return of 8%. Any returns above that are split 80-20, 80% to the investor and 20% to School of Whales. School of Whales is officially 'open for enrollment'  interested investors can learn more about the crowdfunding platform and invest at www.schoolofwhales.com . ABOUT SCHOOL OF WHALES: School of Whales is a Miami-based financial technology start-up founded May 2021 by financial whale Andrea Petersen and her business partners, Daniel Pena-Giraldi, a whale in commercial real estate development and general construction, and JJ Giraldi, who brings over 30 years of expertise in finance and strategic planning. The goal? To create an easy-to-use and even-easier-to-join real estate fund that allows anyone with as little as $500 to invest in developments designed to leave a lasting and positive impact on their communities, earning investors profits with a purpose. To learn more or invest, visit www.schoolofwhales.com . For media inquiries, please contact press@schoolofwhales.com . View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/school-of-whales-launches-miamis-first-real-estate-investment-crowdfunding-platform-301317947.html SOURCE School of Whales

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[June 23, 2021] Stratejm Launches Enhanced Managed Detection & Response Service

Stratejm, North America's premier Next-Generation Managed Security Services Provider, today announced the launch of its enhanced Managed Detection & Response (e-MDR) service. e-MDR leverages state of the art detection and response technologies combined with threat intelligence and security analytics to respond more effectively and in real time to attackers' latest techniques and tactics. e-MDR offers the continuous collection and analysis of system and network telemetry data along with multiple sources of log data enabling a superior proactive cyber threat hunting capability. Stratejm's e-MDR service is supported by a dedicated and highly trained team of Cyber Intelligence Analysts. The Cyber Intelligence Analysts work 24x7x365 as a true extension of the enterprise cybersecurity team. The global cyber threat landscape continues to evolve rapidly and requires a better and more efficient approach to managing advanced threats. Stratejm's e-MDR service is a unique answer, enabling customers to focus on achieving operations goals, significantly reducing risks and lowering the overall costs of their cybersecurity programs. Cybercriminals have switched tactics and have been exploiting COVID-19-related fears. As a result, working from home is becoming a gateway to new forms of data theft. Additionally, digital transformation is hedding light on inadequate cyber and data security controls that give adversaries the upper hand. Stratejm's e-MDR service will help the enterprise address security challenges at a lower cost and with better outcomes.



President and CEO John Menezes, a recognized industry veteran, expressed the view that "cybersecurity professionals need to focus more on outcomes and less on tools; moreover, you cannot maintain legacy practices in cybersecurity and expect any better outcomes." Stratejm's e-MDR service provides enterprises the ideal opportunity to break the unsustainable cycle of continuous spending and focus on the outcomes delivered via Stratejm's e-MDR service. E-MDR enables our customers to reduce their risk and their costs." "We take cyber and data security very seriously," says Mark Fernandes, Chief Information Officer at Hydro Ottawa, a large Electricity Utility, Generation and Energy Services Company located in Canada's national capital region. "Stratejm's e-MDR service offers a robust, enterprise-grade and turnkey platform combined with the 24/7 business assurance we need. Our partnership with Stratejm has helped us advance our cybersecurity posture."

Carl Hayes, Partner & Vice President of Business Development, believes Stratejm is uniquely positioned to offer North American enterprise the benefits of e-MDR. "Leveraging our years of experience in delivering SECaaS to some of North America's largest enterprise customers, Stratejm's development of e-MDR presents itself as the logical evolution of our value proposition and service delivery model," he says. "Customers can onboard e-MDR without making any capital investments. Stratejm's business philosophy is summed up as follows: No Capital. No Contract. No Compromise. The time to value is maximized with Stratejm and our customers quickly begin to realize a Return on Investment." Stratejm is committed to being a leader and innovator in the global security marketplace and a trusted security partner to our customers. To that end, we will continuously innovate while simultaneously maintaining the highest standards of customer satisfaction. Our success depends on our ability to consistently evolve with the ever-changing threat landscape. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005161/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Tauriga Sciences, Inc. Appoints Colorado-based Orthopedic Surgeon, Dr. Craig Loucks, as Member of the Company's Advisory Board

NEW YORK, NY, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NewMediaWire -- Tauriga Sciences, Inc. (OTCQB: TAUG) (Tauriga or the Company), a New York based diversified Life Sciences Company, today announced the appointment of Dr. Craig Loucks (Dr. Loucks) as a member of the Companys Advisory Board. Dr. Loucks is an accomplished orthopedic surgeon, based in Englewood, Colorado. Dr. Loucks is a strong believer in Cannabidiol (CBD) based products and has pre-ordered the Companys enhanced 25mg CBD and CBG infused Tauri-Gum products. Dr. Loucks will mainly assist the Company in generating Tauri-Gum product sales, from both Medical Practices and Dispensaries. He will also provide his expertise to the Company, with respect to its ongoing Pharmaceutical development efforts.

Link to Personal Bio  Craig Loucks, MD: Link: https://www.peakorthopedics.com/craig-loucks-peak-orthopedics-spine.html Dr. Craig Loucks stated, I am both pleased and excited to join Tauriga Sciences, Inc. as a member of the Companys advisory board. The Tauri-Gum product line is of outstanding quality and incorporates sublingual absorption delivery method. There is a significant opportunity for Tauriga to market this product line to both medical practices and dispensaries throughout the state of Colorado. I look forward to working closely with Taurigas management team as well as its Chief Medical Officer. ABOUT TAURIGA SCIENCES INC. Tauriga Sciences, Inc. (TAUG) is a revenue generating, diversified life sciences company, engaged in several major business activities and initiatives. The company manufactures and distributes several proprietary retail products and product lines, mainly focused on the Cannabidiol (CBD) and Cannabigerol (CBG) Edibles market segment. The main product line, branded as Tauri-Gum, consists of a proprietary supplement chewing gum that is Kosher certified, Halal certified, and Vega Formulated (CBD Infused Tauri-Gum Flavors: Mint, Blood Orange, Pomegranate), (CBG Infused Tauri-Gum Flavors: Peach-Lemon, Black Currant), (Vitamin C + Zinc Infused Tauri-Gum Flavor: Pear Bellini), (Caffeine Infused Tauri-Gum Flavor: Cherry Lime Rickey), & (Vitamin D3 Infused Tauri-Gum Flavor: Golden Raspberry). The Companys commercialization strategy consists of a broad array of retail customers, distributors, and a fast-growing E-Commerce business segment (E-Commerce website: www.taurigum.com). Please visit our corporate website, for additional information, as well as inquiries, at http://www.tauriga.com



Complementary to the Companys retail business, is its ongoing Pharmaceutical Development initiative. This relates to the development of a proposed Pharmaceutical grade version of Tauri-Gum, for nausea regulation (specifically designed for the following indication: Patients Subjected to Ongoing Chemotherapy Treatment). On March 22, 2021, the Company announced that it had Converted its U.S. Provisional Patent Application (filed on March 17, 2020) into a U.S. Non-Provisional Patent Application. The Patent, filed with the U.S.P.T.O. is Titled MEDICATED CBD COMPOSITIONS, METHODS OF MANUFACTURING, AND METHODS OF TREATMENT. On December 18, 2020 the Company disclosed that it had entered into a Master Services Agreement with CSTI to lead the Company's clinical development efforts. The Company is headquartered in Wappingers Falls, New York. In addition, the Company operates two full time E-Commerce fulfillment centers: one located in Montgomery, Texas and the other in Brooklyn, New York.

DISCLAIMER -- Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains certain forward-looking statements as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 which represent managements beliefs and assumptions concerning future events. These forward-looking statements are often indicated by using words such as may, will, expects, anticipates, believes, hopes, believes, or plans, and may include statements regarding corporate objectives as well as the attainment of certain corporate goals and milestones. Forward-looking statements are based on present circumstances and on managements present beliefs with respect to events that have not occurred, that may not occur, or that may occur with different consequences or timing than those now assumed or anticipated. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed in forward looking statements due to known and unknown risks and uncertainties, such as are not guarantees of general economic and business conditions, the ability to successfully develop and market products, consumer and business consumption habits, the ability to consummate successful acquisition and licensing transactions, fluctuations in exchange rates, and other factors over which Tauriga has little or no control. Many of these risks and uncertainties are discussed in greater detail in the Risk Factors section of Taurigas Form 10-K and other periodic filings made from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Such forward-looking statements are made only as of the date of this release, and Tauriga assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Contact: Tauriga Sciences, Inc. 4 Nancy Court, Suite 4 Wappingers Falls, NY 12590 Chief Executive Officer Mr. Seth M. Shaw Email: sshaw@tauriga.com cell # (917) 796 9926 Company Instagram: @taurigum Personal Instagram: @sethsms47 Twitter: @SethMShaw Corp. Website: www.tauriga.com E-Commerce Website: www.taurigum.com Attachment 06_23 PR Image



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[June 23, 2021] Tauriga Sciences, Inc.'s Vendor Registration Approved by Miami International Airport (MIA)



The Company Will Focus on Selling its Tauri-Gum Product Line Through MIA Concessions NEW YORK, NY, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NewMediaWire -- Tauriga Sciences, Inc. (OTCQB: TAUG) (Tauriga or the Company), a New York based diversified Life Sciences Company, today obtained approval from Miami International Airport (Code: MIA) to become a Registered Vendor. Specifically, the Company has been registered through the Miami-Dade County Supplier Portal, for access to MIA Concessions. The MIA Concession (Airport Department) procures concession retail, food & beverage, snacks, and services through a solicitation (bidder) process. The Company is working closely with a South Florida based Airport Distribution firm, to sell its flagship Tauri-Gum product line to select U.S. based airports. With the imminent commercial launch of its enhanced Tauri-Gum product line (9 SKUs), the Company is confident in its ability to compete for the business of air travelers. Chewing gum products generate strong levels of sales within airport terminals (stores and kiosks). In other news, the Company has completed its updated Product Catalogue, which includes wholesale pricing (for large quantity purchase orders). The Company can confirm a number of upcoming scheduled meetings, with potential Buyers & Distributors (some of which have National footprints). Over the coming days, the Company expects to disclose several important catalysts. Owing to its strong balance sheet (cash & marketable securities), the Company has the ability to both capitalize on multiple opportunities and enter into material Agreements/Partnerships. Credentials Provided by Miami-Dade County : Vendor Name: Tauriga Sciences, Inc. Vendor ID: B000009271 ABOUT TAURIGA SCIENCES INC. Tauriga Sciences, Inc. (TAUG) is a revenue generating, diversified life sciences company, engaged in several major business activities and initiatives. The company manufactures and distributes several proprietary retail products and product lines, mainly focused on the Cannabidiol(CBD) and Cannabigerol (CBG) Edibles market segment. The main product line, branded as Tauri-Gum, consists of a proprietary supplement chewing gum that is Kosher certified, Halal certified, and Vegan Formulated (CBD Infused Tauri-Gum Flavors: Mint, Blood Orange, Pomegranate), (CBG Infused Tauri-Gum Flavors: Peach-Lemon, Black Currant), (Vitamin C + Zinc Infused Tauri-Gum Flavor: Pear Bellini), (Caffeine Infused Tauri-Gum Flavor: Cherry Lime Rickey), & (Vitamin D3 Infused Tauri-Gum Flavor: Golden Raspberry). The Companys commercialization strategy consists of a broad array of retail customers, distributors, and a fast-growing E-Commerce business segment (E-Commerce website: www.taurigum.com). Please visit our corporate website, for additional information, as well as inquiries, at http://www.tauriga.com



Complementary to the Companys retail business, is its ongoing Pharmaceutical Development initiative. This relates to the development of a proposed Pharmaceutical grade version of Tauri-Gum, for nausea regulation (specifically designed for the following indication: Patients Subjected to Ongoing Chemotherapy Treatment). On March 22, 2021, the Company announced that it had Converted its U.S. Provisional Patent Application (filed on March 17, 2020) into a U.S. Non-Provisional Patent Application. The Patent, filed with the U.S.P.T.O. is Titled MEDICATED CBD COMPOSITIONS, METHODS OF MANUFACTURING, AND METHODS OF TREATMENT. On December 18, 2020 the Company disclosed that it had entered into a Master Services Agreement with CSTI to lead the Company's clinical development efforts. The Company is headquartered in Wappingers Falls, New York. In addition, the Company operates two full time E-Commerce fulfillment centers: one located in Montgomery, Texas and the other in Brooklyn, New York.

DISCLAIMER -- Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains certain forward-looking statements as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 which represent managements beliefs and assumptions concerning future events. These forward-looking statements are often indicated by using words such as may, will, expects, anticipates, believes, hopes, believes, or plans, and may include statements regarding corporate objectives as well as the attainment of certain corporate goals and milestones. Forward-looking statements are based on present circumstances and on managements present beliefs with respect to events that have not occurred, that may not occur, or that may occur with different consequences or timing than those now assumed or anticipated. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed in forward looking statements due to known and unknown risks and uncertainties, such as are not guarantees of general economic and business conditions, the ability to successfully develop and market products, consumer and business consumption habits, the ability to consummate successful acquisition and licensing transactions, fluctuations in exchange rates, and other factors over which Tauriga has little or no control. Many of these risks and uncertainties are discussed in greater detail in the Risk Factors section of Taurigas Form 10-K and other periodic filings made from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Such forward-looking statements are made only as of the date of this release, and Tauriga assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Contact: Tauriga Sciences, Inc. 4 Nancy Court, Suite 4 Wappingers Falls, NY 12590 Chief Executive Officer Mr. Seth M. Shaw Email: sshaw@tauriga.com cell # (917) 796 9926 Company Instagram: @taurigum Personal Instagram: @sethsms47 Twitter: @SethMShaw Corp. Website: www.tauriga.com E-Commerce Website: www.taurigum.com



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[June 23, 2021] Teleperformance Recognized for Its Efforts to Integrate Refugees at First-ever "Business for Refugees" Awards

Regulatory News: Teleperformance (News - Alert) (Paris:TEP), a leading global group in digitally integrated business services, today announced it has been recognized for its outstanding efforts to include refugees in its new host communities. Teleperformance received the Outstanding Leadership in Integrating Refugees into the Workforce Award, recognized for its efforts to hire over 2,000 Venezuelan refugees in Colombia, during Refugee Week 2021, at a virtual awards ceremony in New York. The inaugural "Business for Refugees" Awards, hosted by the Tent Partnership for Refugees (Tent) - a global network of more than 170 major companies committed to supporting refugees around the world - recognizes businesses that have made extraordinary efforts to support refugees. During the virtual awards ceremony, CEO of Chobani and Founder of Tent, Hamdi Ulukaya said: "As we emerge from this pandemic, it's amazing to see so many businesses going above and beyond to include refugees. We must continue to create opportunities for everyone while we rebuild our economies and our societies - we must not leave refugees behind." With an extensive, global presence in 83 countries, Teleperformance serves as a strategic partner to the world's largest companies across many industries. Core to the company's values is a desire to improve people's lives and pave the way to a better and more equitable tomorrow for all. "We are pleased to support such an incredible and noble cause, and be recognized by Tent, alongside our esteemed colleagues, who are also doing incredible work to help those in need," commented Juan Carlos Hincapie, CEO Teleperformance Ibero-Latam, who accepted the award. "This is an incredible honor." Alongside Teleperformance, Tent's "Business for Refugees" Awards recognized the following companies for their programs to integrate refugees: - Airbnb.org and Airbnb won the award for Outstanding Leadership in Tailoring Products to Meet Refugees' Needs

- DoorDash won the award for Outstanding Leadership in Storytelling about Refugee Integration

- IKEA won the award for Outstanding Leadership n Integrating Refugees in the Supply Chain





- Ben & Jerry's won the award for Outstanding Leadership in Supporting Refugee Entrepreneurs Daniel Julien, Chairman and CEO, Teleperformance, said: "For many years now, we have supported global impact sourcing initiatives all around the world to provide aid and help disadvantaged people realize their self-potential. We are very proud of the refugee workforce integration efforts of our team in Colombia, and it is also great to see so many other organizations doing their part to make this critical Tent refugee initiative successful. Together, we really can make a positive difference in millions of lives everywhere."

ABOUT TELEPERFORMANCE GROUP Teleperformance (TEP - ISIN: FR0000051807 - Reuters (News - Alert) : TEPRF.PA - Bloomberg: TEP FP), a leading global group in digitally integrated business services, serves as a strategic partner to the world's largest companies in many industries. It offers a One Office support services model combining three wide, high-value solution families: customer experience management, back-office services and business process knowledge services. These end-to-end digital solutions guarantee successful customer interaction and optimized business processes, anchored in a unique, comprehensive high tech, high touch approach. The Group's 380,000+ employees, based in 83 countries, support billions of connections every year in over 265 languages and over 170 markets, in a shared commitment to excellence as part of the "Simpler, Faster, Safer" process. This mission is supported by the use of reliable, flexible, intelligent technological solutions and compliance with the industry's highest security and quality standards, based on Corporate Social Responsibility excellence. In 2020, Teleperformance reported consolidated revenue of 5,732 million (US$6.5 billion, based on 1 = $1.14) and net profit of 324 million. Teleperformance shares are traded on the Euronext Paris market, Compartment A, and are eligible for the deferred settlement service. They are included in the following indices: CAC 40, CAC Support Services, STOXX 600, S&P Europe 350 and MSCI Global Standard. In the area of corporate social responsibility, Teleperformance shares are included in the CAC 40 ESG index, the Euronext Vigeo Eurozone 120 index, the FTSE4Good index and the Solactive Europe Corporate Social Responsibility index (formerly Ethibel Sustainability Excellence Europe index). For more information: www.teleperformance.com Follow us on Twitter (News - Alert) : @teleperformance ABOUT THE TENT PARTNERSHIP FOR REFUGEES With more and more refugees displaced for longer periods of time, businesses have a critical role to play in helping refugees integrate economically in their new host communities. The Tent Partnership for Refugees mobilizes the global business community to improve the lives and livelihoods of 30 million refugees who have been forcibly displaced from their home countries. Founded by Chobani's founder and CEO Hamdi Ulukaya in 2016, we are a network of over 170 major companies committed to including refugees. Tent believes that companies can most sustainably support refugees by leveraging their core business operations - by engaging refugees as potential employees, entrepreneurs, and consumers. Find out more at www.tent.org View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005731/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Thompson Coburn Combines with Hahn & Hessen, Cementing its Status as a National Firm with a Preeminent Financial Services Practice

Thompson Coburn LLP, a national law firm with six offices across the country, has announced its combination with New York-based Hahn & Hessen LLP, a 44-attorney firm with nearly a century of experience representing financial institutions and other financial market participants in commercial finance, bankruptcy, workouts, and complex litigation. The combination, effective July 1, 2021, will create a combined firm with more than 400 attorneys across seven offices: Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, New York, St. Louis, Washington, D.C., and Southern Illinois. "Thompson Coburn is all about providing exceptional legal services and value to our clients. Now we can strengthen those offerings with dedicated attorneys in New York, the financial capital of the world," said Thompson Coburn Chair Roman Wuller. "Our combination with one of the premier boutique law firms in their space will provide innumerable benefits to our existing client base, as well as prepare us to serve new financial market participants and business entities across the country." Thompson Coburn is a full-service, Am Law 150 law firm with more than 50 practice areas. It represents clients of all sizes, including major companies and financial institutions like U.S. Bank, Citibank, Bayer, and Kawasaki. Hahn & Hessen represents leading market participants in a variety of financial matters, including bankruptcies an restructurings, commercial finance and complex litigation.



"This is a tremendous opportunity for us to combine our deep bankruptcy and financial experience in the New York market with Thompson Coburn's national presence and resources," said Mark Indelicato, Managing Partner at Hahn & Hessen. "When you add in our shared values around professional development, civic and charitable efforts, and a diverse and inclusive culture, it's a perfect fit." As part of their growth strategy, the combined Thompson Coburn will continue to focus on providing a strong, successful platform where entrepreneurial attorneys can grow their practices, pursue innovative client offerings, and collaborate with engaged colleagues across the country.

About Thompson Coburn LLP Thompson Coburn is a full-service law firm with more than 375 attorneys practicing in more than 50 areas of law, with offices in Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, St. Louis, Washington, D.C., and Southern Illinois. Its clients range from high-net-worth individuals and venture-backed startups to Fortune 100 companies. In 2019, the firm was recognized by the Association of Corporate Counsel as an ACC Value Champion, an international honor that recognizes "best-in-class" innovations that drive value and dramatically improve efficiencies within corporate law departments. Thompson Coburn was also selected as the 2019 recipient of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association's (MCCA) George B. Vashon Innovator Award, a recognition for organizations that have made extraordinary strides to support diverse attorneys. Thompson Coburn is one of just 65 firms in the country to receive Mansfield 3.0 "Plus" status under a national initiative to increase the representation of diverse lawyers in law firm leadership. About Hahn & Hessen LLP Hahn & Hessen has a nationally recognized practice representing creditors and equity committees, financial institutions, trustees and other entities in restructurings and bankruptcy proceedings. The firm has thriving corporate finance, bankruptcy and litigation practices involving the representation of business entities and major money center banks in matters such as mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures, trust and fiduciary litigation, complex commercial litigation and commercial-oriented disputes. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005058/en/

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[June 23, 2021] WHY THE RED STAR SHINES OVER CHINA: The Surging Xiangjiang River II--The Forerunners of the CPC

BEIJING, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A news report by China.org.cn on the early life of Mao Zedong in Changsha: To the people of China, Changsha is a city of heroes. Mao Zedong, who saved the Party's cause several times, spent his youth studying, living and working here. This is also where Mao Zedong Thought was formed. The New People's Study Society was later known as the forerunner of the Communist People of China. In an interview, Mao said that the Society was to have a widespread influence on the fate of China. The site of the founding meeting of the New People's Study Society (Xinmin Xuehui), located in Changsha, was also the former residence of Cai Hesen, an early leader of the CPC. In 1917, Cai went to Changsha to study and lived with his family in rented accommodations. It was there where his schoolmates, Mao and Xiao Zisheng, often talked freely about transforming Chinese society. On Apr. 14, 1918, the New People's Study Society was established at Cai' home. The New People's Study Society was a significant social organization in China at that time, which aimed to "reform academics and boost morals." In the second year (1919), the May Fourth Movement broke out, and then they revised the society's purpose to "transform China and the world." In order to achieve such a purpose, Mao made a division of labor for the society's members. Some of them stayed in China for investigation to learn more about the national conditions. Others, such as Cai Hesen, Xiao Zisheng and Li Weihan, went to France to work and study to look for ways to transform China and the world.



While working and studying in France, Cai Hesen translated a large number of Karl Marx's works and wrote letters to Mao in China. In letters dated August 13th, and September 16th, 1920, he proposed "establishing the Communist Party of China without fear," stating the theories and steps needed for the Party's founding. Mao replied, "This is a very good idea, and I could not agree more." Mao, who stayed behind in China, started the Xiangjiang River Review in Changsha in July 1919. He was the chief editor, introducing and spreading new ideas. Li Dazhao believed that this was the most important and insightful periodical in China. Several progressive youths such as Ren Bishi, Guo Liang, and Xiao Jinguang began to awaken under its influence.

These members had great ambitions. They studied hard and took active exercise to make full preparations for shouldering greater responsibilities. Many people in the New People's Study Society became the first batch of CPC members. It can be said that the society prepared talents for the founding of the CPC, and among them a Communist leader. In 1921, the New People's Study Society completed its historical mission and ceased activities. However, that did not mean the end of their efforts to push the revolution forward. The No. 22, Qingshuitang, was later recognized as the exact address of the former secret base of the CPC in Hunan-the then CPC Hunan Region Revolutionary Committee, and also the former residence of Mao Zedong and Yang Kaihui. In July 1921, after attending the First National Congress of the CPC, Mao and He Shuheng returned to Changsha and began preparations for the establishment of local Party organizations in Hunan. In October 1921, the CPC Hunan Branch was established, the first provincial Party branch in China. Mao was elected as secretary, He Shuheng, Yi Lirong as committee members. Mao spent more than one year in Qingshuitang. It was the happiest and most romantic period in Mao's revolutionary career. He had old parents and young kids by his side. His two children, Mao Anying and Mao Anqing, were both born there. There were only few members in Hunan branch at that time. Later, the number of Party members grew steadily. In May 1922, approved by the CPC Central Committee, the CPC Hunan Region Revolutionary Committee was officially established. During this time, Mao organized the workers' movement, the peasants' movement and the students' movement, to propagate Marxism-Leninism and the Russian October Revolution. One of his major achievements during this period was the Anyuan Miners' Strike, in which the management gave in to the workers' demands. In this strike, Liu Shaoqi negotiated with the management, Li Lisan presided over the labor union, and Mao was the general leader. In July 1923, the third National Congress of the CPC was held in Guangzhou. In this meeting, Chen Duxiu, the leader of the CPC, made a speech on the work of the Party branches. Speaking highly of the Hunan Committee's performance, Chen said that only comrades in Hunan had done a good job. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/why-the-red-star-shines-over-china-the-surging-xiangjiang-river-iithe-forerunners-of-the-cpc-301318055.html SOURCE China.org.cn

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[June 22, 2021] Covid-19 catalysing the rapid growth of Asia Pacific regtech sector

- Enterprise Ireland uncovers APAC regtech landscape in new 'The State of Regtech in APAC' report. - Developmental divide between developed and developing economies cited as key area of concern for regtech sector in the future. BEIJING, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Regtech in Asia Pacific (APAC) faces the difficult challenge of bridging the divide between developed and developing economies in the region, according to a report released today by the Irish government's trade and innovation agency Enterprise Ireland, ranked one of the world's most active VC investors, including fintech. The divide was particularly highlighted as the effects of Covid-19 accelerated the demand for the adoption of regtech solutions in the region. The report, entitled The State of Regtech in APAC, provides the most comprehensive, independent analysis available on the adoption of regtech across 10 key APAC markets of Australia, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. Enterprise Ireland commissioned Kapronasia, a leading Asian financial technology market research and consulting firm, to develop the report which identifies the latest opportunities and roadblocks facing regtech players in each of these markets. Launching the report today, Ireland's Minister of State for Financial Services Sean Fleming said: "I welcome this comprehensive regtech report from Enterprise Ireland. It captures the essence of what the Ireland for Finance Strategy is looking to achieve and the unique value proposition that Ireland offers to firms in Asia Pacific and across the globe. As Minister with responsibility for International Financial Services, I want to consolidate and accelerate our position as one of the world's leading locations for fintech and regtech development. I look forward to working with the Enterprise Ireland firms and their partners in Asia as together they deliver value and bring innovative responses to global compliance challenges." It has been forecasted that the global regtech market will grow from USD$6.3 billion in 2020 to USD$16.0 billion by 2025, a rate of over 20% per year, with APAC expected to have the highest growth rate over this period.[1] The projected growth of the sector is in tandem with the booming fintech scene in the region, particularly in Southeast Asia which saw an estimated USD$ billion worth of investments in 2019.[2]



While APAC is home to some of the world's major financial centres, the non-homogenous region demonstrates varying levels of market development. In developed economies such as Hong Kong, Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo, regtech uptake is driven by a sophisticated financial ecosystem and a complex regulatory environment. The need for governance and accountability, the emergence of new market participants and security concerns arising from disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence and distributed ledger technology give regulatory impetus for regtech adoption. This contrasts with developing economies where regtech uptake is driven by the sector's promise in helping to create financial inclusion. Uptake is also reliant on business cases and under-resourced regulators in these markets. With that said, market interest for regtech solutions in these economies is not as strong as their developed counterparts. This can be attributed to regulatory inertia and a marked difference in fundamental behaviours and attitudes towards regtech.

Developing economies however stand to mature over time  while technology ecosystems in developed and developing economies will continue to evolve at an increasingly varying pace, given differing regulatory drivers for regtech adoption. This is especially evident in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic that has further reinforced differing domestic priorities and exacerbated the economic and technology gap in APAC. "Covid-19 compelled financial services sector to see the value of digitalisation as a necessity. It has become a way for organisations to improve their services in response to changing business and consumer needs. The need for regtech solutions also expands far beyond the financial services sector which is why this sector is growing so rapidly. This report is a compendium for anyone in the regulatory, risk or compliance functions of any company in the region, as well as for regtech companies which are looking to scale and expand into Asia Pacific," explained Mo Harvey, Enterprise Ireland's Financial Services and Fintech Lead (Asia Pacific). "Asia Pacific continues to be a strategic region, not only to Ireland which is home to many regtech specialist companies but to the world. At Enterprise Ireland, we share the commitment to support the development of a vibrant global regtech segment and contribute to the global regtech ecosystem, and we hope that this report will provide valuable insights into the complexity of the sector as we continue to prime many companies for success and long-term growth in the region," she added. Brian Tang, co-chair of the Fintech Association of Hong Kong's Regtech Committee and co-convener of the APAC RegTech Network that brings together the Regtech committees of the fintech associations of Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan and Malaysia said, "Regtech is a secret sauce that empowers financial institutions, fintechs, virtual asset service providers and beyond. All such institutions, and their regulators and users, across the Asia-Pacific benefit from innovative, efficient and cost effective regtech solutions to combat financial crime and drive efficiencies and financial inclusion, regardless of origin of such technology solutions." "However, the journey to adoption is certainly not a straightforward one. We congratulate Enterprise Ireland for making this comprehensive report on the state of Regtech in APAC publicly available so that Regtech solution providers from across the globe, as well as APAC policy makers, can benefit from its findings to help drive further regtech adoption in the region," he added. Key Regional Highlights: Some insights from the report's overview include: Impact of Covid-19

Covid-19 accelerated the transition to digitisation of financial services, particularly in the regulatory, risk and compliance sectors.



Covid-19 accelerated the transition to digitisation of financial services, particularly in the regulatory, risk and compliance sectors. Compliance Costs Expected to Rise

The projected cost of AML compliance across Indonesia , Malaysia , the Philippines , and Singapore combined is estimated at US$6.09 billion annually, with more than half of it in Singapore .



The projected cost of AML compliance across , , , and combined is estimated at annually, with more than half of it in . Impact of Regulators Across APAC

Country-specific regulators have the most impact on regulatory compliance, but Singapore's regulators also have substantial impact across APAC study countries.



Country-specific regulators have the most impact on regulatory compliance, but regulators also have substantial impact across APAC study countries. Regtech Adoption

Progress in regtech solutions in Developed APAC countries is starting to gain speed, driven by regulators' need for greater oversight and a tighter regulatory environment.



Progress in regtech solutions in Developed APAC countries is starting to gain speed, driven by regulators' need for greater oversight and a tighter regulatory environment. Promising Areas for Regtechs

Market and industry drivers such as the rise of digital banks, P2P lending, digital assets and remote onboarding present an opportunity for regtechs to fill the need for specialised solutions.



Market and industry drivers such as the rise of digital banks, P2P lending, digital assets and remote onboarding present an opportunity for regtechs to fill the need for specialised solutions. Changes in Regulation

Changes in regulatory stance puts increased focus on compliance and using new technology to meet standards more efficiently and effectively.



Changes in regulatory stance puts increased focus on compliance and using new technology to meet standards more efficiently and effectively. Roadblocks and Challenges

Long sales cycles challenge regtech adoption in Developed APAC while regulatory inertia and lack of proper regulatory processes can hinder regtech adoption in Developing APAC. The State of Regtech in APAC report is available to download here [1] https://a-teaminsight.com/a-new-frontier-of-regulation-asia-takes-the-lead

[2] https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/wdr2016/Digital-Adoption-Index SOURCE Enterprise Ireland

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[June 22, 2021] Geoswift, Western Union and UnionPay International Partner to Make It More Affordable for Chinese Students Studying Abroad

HONG KONG, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Despite the enormous adversity faced by this generation of Chinese students pursuing studies abroad, the majority of them are still holding on to their education goals and are looking forward to commencing studies. As part of the commitment to support these students through a quality payment service, Geoswift, Western Union Business Solutions and UnionPay International have joined forces to release a special offer to make it cheaper for Chinese students when they pay fees with UnionPay debit cards through WU GlobalPay for Students. The offer includes a reduction of FX rates on all transactions, and a Ctrip gift voucher with a value of 100 RMB for each student whose payment amount is more than or equal to 10,000 RMB. It is applicable to students studying at universities and education institutions in North America, UK, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Asia that offer GlobalPay for Students. The promotion is valid for payments made using the UnionPay Debit card payment option. The promotion is available starting 15th June and runs through to 14th October 2021. "As many universities expect an increase in in-person courses and activities on campuses this fall, numerous Chinese students are starting to make travel plans. In celebration of the much-anticipated return to normal university life, we are happy to provide travel gift vouchers which can be redeemed when they book trips through Ctrip, an online travel booking service," said Jessica Ao, Global President of Geoswift. "Meanwhile, we will continue to focus on creating ease for these young people through an easy-to-use, inexpensive and flexible payment service." GlobalPay for Students allows education instituions to provide a quick and easy way for their international students to pay their fees. Students from China can pay in RMB using payment options they know from home such as UnionPay.



Skyler Webster, Director, Product Management, from Western Union Business Solutions, said: "Students studying abroad need a simple-to-use way to pay for items billed by their educational institution, such as tuition and accommodation fees. This promotion enables education institutions to offer a best-in-class student payment experience. We hope our service, which is the result of a long-term partnership with Geoswift and UnionPay, will make life easier for education institutions and their students." "Chinese students who study abroad, as well as their families, are a customer group to whom we attach great importance," said June Chen, General Manager of UnionPay International Americas. "And based on the UnionPay global acceptance network and service system, the UnionPay payment service system for these students is continuously improving. On one hand, we are making education payments a feature service of UnionPay cross-border online payments, providing solutions to the biggest pain point of tuition fee payments. On the other hand, we are expanding our acceptance network on and around campus, further enriching students' payment options by promoting innovative products like QR code-based payment. We are committed to offering better payment services to Chinese students studying abroad."

To learn more about the promotion and the payment process, please visit the Summer Promotion page. About Western Union The Western Union Company (NYSE: WU) is a global leader in cross-border, cross-currency money movement and payments. Western Union's platform provides seamless cross-border flows and its leading global financial network bridges more than 200 countries and territories and over 130 currencies. We connect businesses, education institutions, financial institutions, governments, and consumers through one of the world's widest reaching networks, accessing billions of bank accounts, millions of digital wallets and cards, and over half a million retail locations. Western Union connects the world to bring boundless possibilities within reach. For more information, visit www.westernunion.com. About Geoswift Geoswift is an innovative, globalized payment technology company, with a distinct niche in China cross-border payments. Since its inception in 2010, the name Geoswift has been recognized as synonymous with frictionless cross-border fund flows throughout the world. Geoswift is a leading authorized payment service provider in the US, UK and China, offering global acquiring and issuing capabilities for key financial institutions. Widely recognized for its proprietary technology, extensive knowledge of global and local regulatory requirements, strong banking networks, and global operations, Geoswift provides a customized one-stop cross-border payment solution to businesses of any size. In addition, Geoswift runs several currency exchange stores throughout China, and holds a Stored Value Facilities License (SVF00015) from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. Headquartered in Hong Kong, Geoswift has regional offices in Vancouver, Beijing, Shanghai, San Francisco, London, Singapore and Shenzhen - offering payment solutions to clients globally. For more information, please visit: www.geoswift.com or send queries to marketing@geoswift.com. About UnionPay International UnionPay International (UPI) is a subsidiary of China UnionPay focused on the growth and support of UnionPay's global business. In partnership with more than 2000 institutions worldwide, UnionPay International has enabled card acceptance in 180 countries and regions with issuance in 70 countries and regions. UnionPay International provides high quality, cost effective and secure cross-border payment services to the world's largest cardholder base and ensures convenient local services to a growing number of global UnionPay cardholders and merchants. SOURCE Geoswift

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[June 22, 2021] EditShare Supports Malanshan Video Cultural and Creative Industry Zone

BEIJING, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- EditShare , a technology leader that specializes in collaboration, security, and intelligent storage solutions, today announced that it has deployed its EditShare EFS solution at Malanshan Video Cultural and Creative Industry Zone (The Zone). Located in Changsha, China, The Zone is known as a "World Media Arts City" that integrates creativity, culture, and technology into the fabric of its community. As the cultural epicenter of China, The Zone draws filmmakers and artists, boasting a thriving digital media market. The EFS solution, which was installed by EditShare partner Thinktone Technology at the park's main creative hub, integrates with a wide range of production and post production solutions including key editing applications Adobe Premiere Pro, Avid Media Composer, Apple Final Cut Pro X and Blackmagic Design's DaVinci Resolve. "Media production is fluid and collaborative. In order to achieve full artistic expression, you need a foundation that connects artists with tools to fuel the creative workflow process," Alan Dishington, vice president of sales for Asia Pacific, EditShare. "EditShare has always designed products that prioritize creative users with no compromise on technology. Creative professionals are abstracted from the complexity of modern media management while the technology at the heart of the EditShare products is designed to the very best principles of software engineering. All of this is wrapped in the imperative that our systems are open and scalable in order to adapt to future requirements.



About EditShare EFS Media Engineered Storage

Powering faster EditShare storage nodes and networks, EFS enables media organizations to build extensive HD, 4K, and 8K collaborative workflows. To the end-user, EFS is a fast and flexible, collaborative, easy-to-use, storage space with an incredible throughput performance. To the engineers who manage it, EFS offers a scalable, stable, and incredibly secure media storage platform. Unlike generic IT storage systems, EditShare has written its own efficient drivers for EFS, for use with Windows, MacOS and Linux. Users access more real-time video streams, without the bottlenecks caused by legacy network protocols. The open platform features robust APIs for extensive integration and workflow optimization.

The EFS product line offers solutions for on-premise, hybrid and cloud-based workflows. Other feature highlights include: EFS Single Namespace - a distributed file system designed to scale at will, while retaining a single namespace across tiered storage.

EFS Native Drivers - native client drivers substantially increase bandwidth and reduce latency across the network.

EFS Auditing - real-time analytics for every nuance of your valuable content's journey.

EFS APIs - restFul API's for simple but powerful integration with third party applications and services.

EFS Fault Prevention - distributed file system, writing content and giving protection across multiple nodes that intelligently replicates data as often as needed without negatively impacting performance.

Active directory integration with SSO

EFS High Availability - extreme reliability, and with no single point of failure, facility managers and administrators can have peace of mind in 24/7 environments such as broadcast playout centers.

Support for Industry Creative Applications - support for video and audio editing applications, color grading and visual effects solutions including Adobe, Apple Autodesk, Avid, Blackmagic Design and Sony. For more information on EditShare solutions, please visit the website at www.editshare.com About EditShare

EditShare is a technology leader in networked shared storage and smart workflow solutions for the production, post-production, new media, sports, and education markets. Whether you need on-prem, cloud, or hybrid solutions, our products improve efficiency and workflow collaboration every step of the way. They include media optimized high-performance shared storage, archiving and backup software, a suite of media management tools and a robust set of open APIs that enable integration throughout the workflow. Customer and partner success are at the heart of EditShare's core values ensuring a world-class experience that is second to none. 2021 EditShare LLC. All rights reserved. EditShare is a registered trademark of EditShare. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1538349/PressImage_133816_copy.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1538350/EditShare_Logo.jpg SOURCE EditShare

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[June 22, 2021] Hexagon Adopts The Supercomputer Fugaku To Revolutionise The Use Of Simulations In Product Innovation

LONDON, June 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Hexagon has demonstrated how innovation can be accelerated by opening up the possibility of completing complex CFD (computational fluid dynamics) simulations that were previously too time consuming and expensive using the world's fastest supercomputer, Fugaku. The company's Manufacturing Intelligence division has shown that the performance of next-generation aircraft and electric vehicles can be explored in greater detail and with many more iterations using the power of simulation. By exploiting cutting-edge semiconductors, manufacturers can analyse all the complexities of reality with less than half the energy use and at a fraction of the cost of traditional simulation methods. CFD simulations require significant computational power and resource. Consequently, engineers have to spend many hours simplifying a real product design just so that it can be simulated to make sure it will perform as needed. In some instances, 90% of an engineer's time can be dedicated to this manual process, and engineers are increasingly being challenged to 'scale-up' simulations to manage more elements. As a result, the cost and time to achieve these simulations is prohibitive and engineers can only simulate an approximation of a product. Now, Hexagon's Cradle CFD customers will have the opportunity to tap into the power of the ARM-based Fugaku computer architecture to achieve complex simulations quickly and easily. This is made possible through a new partnership which will allow customers to use Cradle CFD software on Fujitsu Limited's commercially available Supercomputer PRIMEHPC series that utilizes the Fugaku technology. Engineers will now be able to simulate complex designs without having to simplify them, not only saving time but also giving access to significantly enhanced detail. This in turn will enable them to explore multiple design options and do so quickly, using simulation more frequently to refine and test their designs and explore new concepts that cannot be explored with physical testing or simulation today. Manufacturers now stand to benefit from this increased speed and detail. Their engineers could also use this type of simulation routinely in their daily work, as the Fugaku architecture uses approximately a third of the energy of the computers they use currently, reducing cost and improving environmental sustainability. This development is revolutionary for engineers in a number of sectors, including automotive, aerospace and construction, all of which need the insights provided by large scale CFD simulation. This is particularly valuable at a time when the automotive and aerospace industries are racing to bring new forms of mobility and new electrified transport to market. For example, automotive OEs are under pressure to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles. By saving time on manual processes like meshing, manufacturers can run more simulations to better understand how the aerodynamics of a new model for impacts energy efficiency and range, and be able to iterate more between design and engineering and ultimately achieve the optimal design. Thermal management is also particularly important in electric vehicles, as managing the heat of a vehicle optimizes its performance, safety and longevity  all of which are major challenges for the EV market. Understanding these issues through higher resolution simulations enables engineers to achieve optimal designs and bring models with attractive design and range to market faster.



Hexagon experts collaborated closely with Fujitsu Limited to tune the Cradle CFD code to run on Fugaku and complete test simulations. A typical family car was simulated in its entirety, which is only possible with enhanced computational power. This model comprised 70 million elements using 960 cores and was simulated until steady state using the RANS equation over 1000 cycles. In aerospace, the impact of turbulence that forms around the wings of an aircraft is of critical importance to how it is controlled and its safety. Turbulence is the result of many vortices, some of which are so small that they are not feasible to simulate using current methods. Using Cradle technology with Fugaku's extra computational resource, engineers can now achieve a higher resolution simulation to enable them to better understand the impact of turbulence on the structural safety of the aircraft and the forces it can withstand. This is important for the development of the next generation of aircraft, including supersonic and hypersonic, for which engineers need to understand the behaviour of shockwaves around the aircraft.

The team successfully completed a test simulation of transonic compressible fluid around an aeroplane. Transonic analysis is essential to the design of safe and efficient aircraft, helping engineers understand what happens when the air flows around a wing control surface. The simulation: Comprised approximately 230 million elements

Was tested using 4,000 nodes (192,000 computing cores)

Used 48,000 processes via Message Passing Interface (MPI) and 4 threads via the OpenMP application programming interface. This research was carried out by receiving the computational resources of the supercomputer Fugaku of RIKEN through the HPCI System Utilization Research Project (Issue No.: hp200209, hp200302). Roger Assaker, President Design & Engineering, Hexagon's Manufacturing Intelligence division, said: "Simulation holds the key to innovations in aerospace and eMobility. Advances such as the low-power Fugaku supercomputing architecture are one of the ways we can tap into these insights without costing the Earth, and I am delighted by what our Cradle CFD team and our partners have achieved." Masahide Fujisaki, Executive Director of Fujitsu Limited, said: "Fujitsu was pleased to have the chance to work with Software Cradle Co., Ltd. to tune and validate the performance of the scFLOW's solver for large models on the supercomputer Fugaku and the Fujitsu Supercomputer PRIMEHPC series, which utilizes the technology of Fugaku. In the future, we look forward to working together with vendors to optimize commercial applications and contribute to the industrial use of Fugaku, while simultaneously offering the Fujitsu Supercomputer PRIMEHPC series to manufacturers and other companies so that the results of this work can be widely used in industry." Tomohiro Irie, Director of R&D for Cradle CFD, said: "By using the efficient computing power of Fugaku with our simulation tools, we will encourage users to simulate phenomena that simply weren't feasible before due to the computation time and cost. Today we have simulated 192,000 elements but this is only the beginning  because Cradle CFD is used in diverse applications, I expect that these technical developments will contribute to making the power of Fugaku more accessible for general use, bringing huge freedom and improved insights to engineering teams solving tomorrow's problems today. "Both Cradle CFD and Fugaku are based in Japan, and I believe we can leverage these excellent achievements globally through Hexagon's network." Media contact: Robin Wolstenholme, Global Media Relations and Analyst Relations Manager, Hexagon's Manufacturing Intelligence Division Phone: +44(0)7407 642190 e-mail: media.mi@hexagon.com View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/hexagon-adopts-the-supercomputer-fugaku-to-revolutionise-the-use-of-simulations-in-product-innovation-301317708.html SOURCE Hexagons Manufacturing Intelligence division

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[June 22, 2021] Clinical Application of Lunit AI For Chest Radiography and Mammography to Be Presented at AOCR 2021

Two South Korean radiologists share benefits and feedback of using AI products for chest x-rays and mammograms in an actual patient care

Company expects to deliver the diagnostic value of AI and expand its implementation across clinical sites in the Asia-Pacific region SEOUL, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Lunit, a leading medical AI company, today announced the clinical application of its AI solution for chest radiography and mammography to be presented at this year's Asian Oceanian Congress of Radiology(AOCR). The event will be fully virtual due to the COVID-19 pandemic, going live online, July 1-4, 2021. Marking its 19th anniversary, AOCR aims to promote scientific collaborations, build professional rapport, and exchange knowledge amongst the Asian and Oceanian medical experts. Radiologists and pharma/medical device companies from more than 38 countries join to share the latest topics of medical imaging. It is known as one of the largest radiology conferences in the Asia-Pacific region, sponsored this year by global pharmaceutical and medical device companies such as Bayer, Guerbet, and Fujifilm. Lunit will be participating in two symposiums featuring the benefits of AI solutions to analyze chest radiography( Lunit INSIGHT CXR ) and mammography( Lunit INSIGHT MMG ). The session will be hosted by the South Korean radiologists who are currently using the product in actual clinical setting. They will discuss how the AI solutions are implemented in their workflow and share feedback from hands-on experience.



On the first day of the conference, Dr. Chang-Min Park from Seoul National University Hospital will host a lunch symposium on "AI for Chest Radiographs: From Development To Clinical Implementation". Dr. Eun-Kyung Kim from Yongin Severance Hospital will present on 'Application of AI for Mammography' during the breakfast symposium on July 4th. "We are glad to have this opportunity to share our AI solutions at AOCR, one of the largest conferences in the Asia-Pacific region. Lunit has participated in multiple conferences globally, but the fact that actual users of our product are sharing their experience and insights is especially meaningful," said Brandon Suh, CEO of Lunit. "We hope participants of the sessions will leave with new insights for AI, hopefully leading to an expansion of the implementation of Lunit AI among clinical sites in the Asia-Pacific region."

Lunit INSIGHT products are now being used in more than 270 medical institutions across 30 countries, supporting medical professionals to more accurately diagnose cancer through AI. With the recent implementations in general hospitals and healthcare institutions in Thailand, Indonesia, and Singapore, the company is accelerating its expansion in the Asia-Pacific market. It is CE marked and approved for commercial sales in around 35 countries including Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, and more. For more information about AOCR 2021, visit the official website here: https://aocr2021.com Contact:

Yunyoung Noh

Branding & Communications Manager

E: yynoh@lunit.io SOURCE Lunit

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[June 22, 2021] H3C Commits to Empowering Russia's Digital Economy

MOSCOW, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- With the challenges brought on by digitalization across the world, H3C sees greater opportunities for a global intelligent revolution. Armed with its "Cloud & AI Native" strategy, H3C has both the ability and the determination to serve the broader global market by actively providing full-stack digital capabilities, thereby empowering a global digital transformation. In a recent exclusive interview with the leading Russian portal media and analytical company TAdviser, President of International Business and Senior Vice President of H3C Gary Huang discussed the Russian ICT market and the strategic layout of H3C's international business. The "going abroad" strategy to support Russia's digital economy In the interview, Huang affirmed the development prospects of the Russian ICT market. As one of the world's largest and most dynamic economies, Russia is stepping up digitalization in a wide range of sectors. Statistics show that the Russian government will provide about 552 billion rubles in funding for digital economy projects from 2021 to 2023. According to the Russian government's Digital Economy Program, by 2022, stable 5G networks will cover ten cities with a population of one million; by 2024, stable 5G networks will cover all Russian cities with over a million people. "International business is a strategic focus of H3C," Huang said. "It is also our most important business growth engine, and Russia is one of our most important markets. With H3C's rich resources and experience in promoting digital upgrades in Chinese government departments and enterprises, we have the ability to fully support and contribute to the development of Russia's digital economy." New challenges will always arise during development and deployment. Russian business models urgently need intelligent upgrades through complete overhauls of digital infrastructure if they are to achieve digitalization. Against this backdrop, H3C's end-to-end integrated solutions and extensive ICT infrastructure capabilities, coering cloud computing, big data, smart switching, information security, Internet of Things (IoT), edge computing, artificial intelligence (AI), and 5G, have enabled it to become the most important partner in Russia's digital development.





Increase investment continuously and achieve initial results H3C has made huge strides in the ICT field over the past few years. Drawing on its leading technological advantages, H3C is constantly enriching its product portfolio and practical experience. Leveraging its technology and experience, H3C efficiently integrates resources and implements targeted local strategies. As a result, the company has seen notable success in a number of sectors, including government, telecommunications, oil and gas, finance, and retail. In telecommunications, for example, H3C is applying its rich experience to provide Russian telecom carriers with more choices. In the energy sector, the company is using its vast knowledge of energy data centralization, Software-defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) solutions, and Internet of things (IoT) management to assist companies with digital operation and maintenance of oil, gas, and electricity in Russia. In the transportation sector, H3C is helping with the long-term planning of Russia's railways, leveraging its metro wireless coverage and urban rail cloud solutions, as well as extensive practical experience in modern rail transportation. Finally, in the financial sector, H3C's high-performance rack servers and high-reliability computing virtualization technology ensure the safe and efficient use of data and provide end-to-end visualized operation and maintenance. "When we go overseas, including to Russia, we cannot only focus on hardware product sales, when, more importantly, we have the ability to drive solution sales and ultimately help our customers realize digital transformation," Huang added. "In the era of cloudification and the digital economy, digital transformation is both an opportunity for H3C and a responsibility of us." H3C adopts a "Direct Sales + Channel First" business model and gives enough support to channels. In addition, H3C has set up an efficient operational platform with a professional local team. With the gradual implementation of digitalization projects in Russia, H3C will continue to increase its support in technology, talent and materials. H3C expects to become a major player in the Russian ICT market within five years. Empowering digital transformation across industries through committed partner collaboration Russia's fast-growing digital market has also placed higher requirements on H3C's business capabilities. As Huang explained, "With the rapid growth of H3C's business in Russia, we need to quickly develop local personnel, sales capacity, technical support, after-sales services, spare parts support, channel coverage, and so on, in order to rapidly enhance our capabilities." Promoting the development of the digital economy requires synergy between H3C and its partners. In this regard, H3C is demonstrating its confidence and determination in building mutually beneficial relations with its partners. The company works tirelessly to improve its partners' sales and service capabilities and educate them on the solutions, thereby fostering meaningful relationships in the digital transformation of various industries. When discussing international business, Huang mentioned his hope to expand the business to more fields with development potential in the future, such as healthcare and education. and eventually apply its leading digital products and solutions to contribute to the digital transformation of all industries. Along with the acceleration of Russia's "Digital Economy 2024" program, a series of new technologies are emerging, marking a development trend that is opening a new page for Russia's economic development. H3C will closely follow this trend in the future, taking advantage of new technologies such as 5G, big data, and cloud computing to work with more local partners, constantly integrate new technology applications and contribute to the high-quality digital transformation in Russia across various sectors and businesses. SOURCE H3C

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[June 23, 2021] RepRisk Establishes Academic Advisory Board to Guide the Company's Focus in ESG Research

RepRisk, a leading ESG data science firm combining machine learning and human intelligence to identify ESG risks, today announced the formation of the RepRisk Academic Advisory Board. The new Board is comprised of five prominent research leaders in ESG dedicated to developing innovative thought leadership, bridging new theories and ideas in the academic space with RepRisk's industry leading ESG dataset. "ESG investing can only be as good as the data that underpins it," said Julian Kolbel, Head of Research, Center for Sustainable Finance and Private Wealth at the University of Zurich. "I look forward to supporting RepRisk's drive towards reliable and transparent ESG metrics." "At RepRisk, we remain steadfast in our mission to drive responsible corporate behavior and create positive change. Key to fulfilling that is enhancing and formalizing our relationship with academia." said Dr. Philipp Aeby, CEO of RepRisk. "That focus on building inroads with academia has never felt more important than it is today amidst the reinvigorated attention on ESG issues and the increased awareness businesses now have on their impact on our society, our environment, and the economy. Our new RepRisk Academic Advisory Board will convene some of the best minds in the field of ESG scholarly research to guide our work in this area, helping 'kick the tires' of our datasets and ensure that our ESG risk data continues to remain best-in-class." RepRisk's daily times series of metrics and analytics, starting from January 2007, is based on its transparent, rules-based methodology that has been in place since day one. The time series is not reverse-engineered, but generated point-in-time, allowing for proper back-testing and - as ESG risks are known to be material with respect to security prices - to generate ESG alpha. Meet the RepRisk Academic Adisory Board:



Jeffrey Bohn, University of California at Berkeley: Dr. Bohn is Affiliated Researcher at the University of California at Berkeley, Consortium for Data Analytics in Risk, as well as Chief Research & Innovation Officer and Head of Research & Engagement at Swiss Re Institute. His research focuses on factor modeling and large-scale risk simulations, and he has been published widely in the area of credit risk. Rajna Gibson Brandon, University of Geneva: In addition to her role as a Professor of Finance, Rajna Gibson was the founder and Director of the Geneva Finance Research Institute between 2009 and 2016. She has been the Director of the Geneva Institute of Wealth Management since 2016 and Chairwoman since 2021. Andreas Hoepner, University College Dublin School of Business: Andreas Hoepner, Ph.D, is a Professor of Operational Risk, Banking & Finance and is a named supervisor for UCD's SFI Centre for Research Training in Machine Learning. He also serves on the EU's Platform on Sustainable Finance. Julian Kolbel, University of Zurich: Dr. Kolbel is an economist and environmental scientist and the BMW Foundation Fellow at the Center for Sustainable Finance and Private Wealth, covering the real-world impact of sustainable investing, analysis of ESG metrics, as well as the effects of climate change on risk and return. Aaron Yoon, Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management: Aaron Yoon is Assistant Professor of Accounting and Information Management. His research focuses on how to account for and quantify a firm's ESG efforts and integrate the information into portfolio decision-making processes. For more information, please visit RepRisk's research lab. About RepRisk

Founded in 1998 and headquartered in Switzerland, RepRisk is a pioneer in ESG data science that leverages the combination of AI and machine learning with human intelligence to systematically analyze public information and identify material ESG risks. RepRisk's flagship product, the RepRisk ESG Risk Platform, is the world's largest and most comprehensive due diligence database on ESG and business conduct risks, with expertise in 23 languages and coverage of 170,000+ public and private companies and 45,000+ infrastructure projects. For more than a decade, the world's leading financial institutions and corporations have trusted RepRisk for due diligence and risk management across their operations, business relationships, and investments. For more information, visit www.reprisk.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210622006147/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Click It Local Launches National Delivery to Rival Amazon

LONDON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A new national delivery service, championing local businesses and independents only, launches today and is set to rival the likes of Amazon. Click It Local, the virtual high street service that aims to support independent and local shops, has launched national delivery meaning customers can now shop locally from any part of the UK. From today, national delivery from any independent shop will be available across the country with next-day and even same-day delivery available in some areas. The service first launched during the pandemic with the idea to support independent shops with an additional revenue stream. Since its launch last year, Click It Local now has over 1300 businesses signed up to the service across the country and delivers over 20,000 different products to more than 50 areas in the UK.



Steve Koch, co-founder of Click It Local says, "Our aim has always been to support local and independent shops. By creating a platform where every local and independent retailer in the UK can be in one place and providing those retailers with same-day delivery service on a national scale, we are enabling independents to compete with the bigger competition like Amazon, whilst still offering the same level of service and convenience that customers have come to expect." From today, customers can order from any local or independent shop signed up to the service and have their goods delivered to them the next day if the order is placed before 1pm, with one payment and one delivery fee if bought from the same location.

Click it Local started in Cambridge last year and it's success saw it grow to Brighton, Essex, Surrey, Hertfordshire and London. Steve is encouraging customers to support their local high street by continuing to shop local and for independent businesses across the UK to sign-up for the service. Independent businesses interested in finding out more about signing up with Click It Local can contact hello@clickitlocal.co.uk For more information please contact Claire Spinola at press@clickitlocal.co.uk To watch superheroes delivering visit https://vimeo.com/563318046

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[June 23, 2021] Leading APAC e-tailer Miss Amara partners with Netcore Cloud to scale revenue through website personalization

SYDNEY, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Miss Amara , one of the largest rug e-tailers in the Asia-Pacific region, has partnered with Netcore Cloud to boost its revenue, customer engagement, and retention through AI-powered personalization. By partnering with Netcore Cloud, Miss Amara aims to leverage Netcore's AI-powered personalization engine to enhance the product recommendations it offers to its users, and improve the add-to-cart rate, purchase rate, and overall revenue. Netcore Cloud's proprietary AI algorithms, when integrated with Miss Amara 's website, will predict the most relevant and personalized products for each customer in real-time. Displaying the right product at the different pages of the website increases the chances of customers buying the recommended products. The user interaction works as real-time feedback and helps in continually improving product recommendations. Following an initial A/B testing phase, Netcore's product recommendations contributed to 10% of the total website conversions. Jacob Dryer, Digital Marketing Manager, Miss Amara said, "We were already using another recomendation engine and were getting good conversion rates, when we were introduced to Netcore Cloud through a co-marketer in Australia. Netcore Cloud's personalization engine helped us further improve the accuracy of the recommendations. Also, we were able to integrate these effectively at many more touch-points in the website. With this, we were able to increase the ATC rates by 4%-5% ON TOP of the existing engine."



"Delivering personalized experiences across all user touchpoints is a core mission of all our offerings. The team at Miss Amara is as cutting-edge as it can get and we are excited to arm them with the best possible martech stack for customer engagement and retention. With our unique expertise of serving brands in the e-commerce space across the globe, we are confident of achieving astronomical results in an expedited time frame," added Kalpit Jain, Group CEO, Netcore Cloud. About Netcore Cloud

Netcore Cloud is a globally recognized marketing technology SaaS company. It offers full-stack martech products that help product and growth marketers deliver AI-powered intelligent customer experiences across all touchpoints of the user journey. The platform is an all-in-one solution for building unified views of customers, orchestrating omni-channel communication journeys, personalizing the apps and websites, optimizing user experience, real-time reporting and actionable analytics. All the products are designed to scale, with a focus on ROI. Netcore Cloud delivers 12+ billion emails, and tracks 100+ billion marketing events every month for world's top marketers. Netcore Cloud serves over 5000 clients spread across 18 countries. Industry leading brands Canon, Disney+ Hotstar, Jockey, Puma, The Body Shop, Jack & Jones, Tommy Hilfiger, Gas Jeans, Tobi, Standard Chartered, Pizza Hut, McDonalds, Thi Truong Si, Matahari, Gramedia, Hnam Mobile, and Fahasa trust Netcore Cloud to power their customer acquisition, engagement, and retention goals. Netcore Cloud has been in business for 20+ years, is a leader in Asia and is aggressively expanding its presence in the US, EU, and South America. Netcore operates out of India, USA, Germany, Nigeria, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam, and UAE. About Miss Amara Miss Amara is a premium e-retailer of rugs, with online stores in Australia, Hong Kong, New Zealand, and USA. The brand's mission is to create the best possible experience for customers shopping for rugs online. Launched in 2014, Miss Amara is now regarded as one of the emerging e-commerce leaders in the APAC region. Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1495164/Netcore_Cloud_Logo.jpg

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[June 23, 2021] Intelligent Wave Inc. Provides Finland's Broadcaster Yle with IP Flow-monitoring Solution "EoM"

TOKYO, June 23, 2021 /CNW/ -- Intelligent Wave Inc. ("IWI" hereinafter), based in Tokyo, announced on June 23 that it has provided Yleisradio Oy ("Yle" hereinafter), a national public service media, with "EoM," an IP flow-monitoring solution. EoM Implementation Backstory Yle has implemented EoM in a plan to monitor and analyze IP flows in an upcoming renewed MCR Control Room. Below are the points highly evaluated during the POC. EoM Evaluation Points Compatible with 100GbE, and supports a variety of protocols

Expectation on higher availability without additional cost with 24/7 monitoring

Detailed troubleshooting made possible with past data analysis

Integration with third-party network management system

Software-based solution utilizing OSS allowing flexible configuration About EoM EoM is an IP flow-monitoring solution (*1) co-developed with Japan's public broadcaster NHK aimed towards the broadcasting industry. EoM combines IWI's high-speed data-processing technology from its payment system development business and the power of FPGAs (*2). With the spread of 4K/8K broadcasting, it is becoming vital for broadcasters to shift to IP transmission, which calls for a tool to monitor IP flows in detail in order to maintain/increase the quality. EoM supports standard IP broadcasting protocols, such as SMPTE ST2110, ST2022, etc., contributing to drastically cutting down operation cost for IP studios by analyzing/monitoring data in real time as well as analyzing past data. IWI will continuously develop features and functions that will contribute to supporting and maintaining the quality of IP broadcast.







Notes: (*1) Patent pending (*2) FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array): an integrated circuit designed to be configured by a customer or a designer after manufacturing

EoM Functions / Features Below are some functions / features of EoM. (New functions/features will be continuously added.) Monitoring of 12 protocols with a supported speed of 10GbE / 25GbE / 100GbE

Items such as bitrate, packet drop count, latency, jitter, etc. can be monitored

Alert according to user-set threshold

Decoding of audio and video packet

Integration with third-party network management system More information on EoM:

https://www.iwi-marketing.com/en About IWI IWI is a leading company in online network infrastructure development in the finance industry, with strengths in handling an immense amount of data precisely and in real time. IWI has a growing business in the security industry, developing and reselling packaged software for information security and cybersecurity. IWI supports corporate DX by providing fast, reliable, and safe infrastructure based on the company's management philosophy "Creating safe and reliable information society." https://www.iwi.co.jp/en *All product names and company names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.



View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/intelligent-wave-inc-provides-finlands-broadcaster-yle-with-ip-flow-monitoring-solution-eom-301318001.html SOURCE Intelligent Wave Inc.

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[June 23, 2021] Imvision Joins the MuleSoft Technology Partner Program to deliver advanced API security for enterprises

TEL AVIV, Israel, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Imvision, a leading API security company, today announced it has joined the MuleSoft Technology Partner Program and has contributed to the partner ecosystem by releasing the MuleSoft Certified Connector for Imvision. The Imvision connector, accessible in Anypoint Exchange, will allow companies to simplify integration to the Imvision API Security Platform. While APIs offer many benefits, many companies still struggle to implement secure APIs. This is especially challenging in enterprises that are using APIs at scale: on multiple clouds, developed by teams with different expertise, and serving an increasingly large number of consumers for a diverse range of use-cases. MuleSoft provides automated security today  with built in trust and compliance OOTB, and the ability to add threat protection at every layer of a customer's application network. With MuleSoft, Imvision enables enterprises to achieve security consistency across teams, environments, and use cases. Enterprise clients can further enhance their API security backbone to cover design, testing and production, weaving API management and security across the API lifecycle. API security at scale starts with enabling security controls that are aligned with the API lifecycle, along with full visibility and advanced detection capabilities. Imvision API Security Platform is built on a deep understanding of the different stakeholders in enterprises - e.g., SecOps Analyst, API Product Owner, API Developer, API Tester, API Governance Engineer  to serve the relevant insights for eac. With MuleSoft, Imvision API Security Platform further enhances effective implementation of API security controls and processes across the organization.



"Industries are facing new demands that push them to accelerate the pace of digital transformation," said Brian Miller, senior vice president of business development, MuleSoft, "The Connectivity Benchmark Report shows that integration challenges are slowing down critical digital initiatives for 85% of IT organizations. This partnership allows our mutual customers to create a composable enterprise by securely unlocking and integrating their data and apps to deliver new levels of speed, agility and efficiency." "Effectively enforcing API security standards enterprise-wide in the rapidly growing and increasingly complex API-first world a major challenge for enterprise security teams. As a MuleSoft technology partner, we are excited to work on this critical mission of accelerate solution for our joint clients." said Simon Sorrell, Chief Business Officer at Imvision.

The MuleSoft Technology Partner Program includes leading enterprise software companies across both functional applications, such as CRM, enterprise resource planning (ERP), marketing automation, and HCM, as well as across industries, including financial services, healthcare, retail and media and telecom. Using MuleSoft's Anypoint Platform, technology partners help customers achieve greater speed, agility, and efficiency by creating reusable building blocks, including connectors, APIs, and templates, that can accelerate the pace of innovation. Imvision customers can learn more how to integrate data from new and existing apps and systems faster and more efficiently with MuleSoft's Anypoint Platform at: https://www.mulesoft.com/platform/enterprise-integration. About Imvision At Imvision, we help enterprises open up without being vulnerable. It's about making sure that every interaction between people, businesses, and machines can be trusted. Imvision's platform helps enterprise security leaders, including Fortune 500 companies, discover, test, detect and prevent API breaches. We help you automatically give every API the protection it deserves - at any scale, across the lifecycle. By using NLP-based technology to analyze each API's unique dialogue and understand the application's behavior, security and development teams can stay ahead of attackers, focus on what really matters and minimize time-to-remediation. For more information: https://www.imvision.ai/ Media Contact:

Lilach Bar-Tal

pr@g2mteam.com View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/imvision-joins-the-mulesoft-technology-partner-program-to-deliver-advanced-api-security-for-enterprises-301318036.html SOURCE Imvision

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[June 23, 2021] BayernLB Selects Broadridge for Regulatory Trade and Transaction Reporting

NEW YORK, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- To help streamline and consolidate all of its regulatory trade reporting commitments Bayerische Landesbank (BayernLB) has selected Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR), a global Fintech leader, to handle its regulatory trade and transaction reporting. BayernLB will utilize Broadridge's multi-asset class, multi-jurisdictional regulatory trade and transaction reporting solution to provide a single strategic solution to regulatory trade reporting commitments  including for SFTR, EMIR, MiFIR and MMSR. In leveraging Broadridge's solution, BayernLB will also benefit from a consolidated, integrated data model that can be extended and adapted with ease to accommodate additional new reporting jurisdictions and changes to existing regimes. Additionally, it will reduce operational costs, risk and complexity, and enable the Landesbank, which is owned by the Free State of Bavaria and the regional Savings Banks, to concentrate efforts on core activities. "Our customer relationships and commitment to service quality are what makes BayernLB special," said Peter Graml, Head Operating Office, Treasury Products Service at BayernLB. "We are very pleased that our decision to adopt Broadridge's trusted reporting solution not only delivers significant operational efficiency gains and positions us well for future change, but also enables us to dedicate an even higher proportion of our resources to developing customer service relationships and focus more of our attention on what makesus truly unique."



"We are excited to help BayernLB with all of the industry's new and ever-evolving reporting requirements and to see this solution live in the German market," said Hugh Daly, Head of Capital Markets Data & Regulatory Solutions at Broadridge. "We are extremely proud that Broadridge continues to be the provider of choice for globally recognised financial institutions looking to streamline and de-risk their regulatory reporting process." About Bayerische Landesbank

As a streamlined specialised bank, BayernLB is a major investment financier for the Bavarian and German economy. We are committed to progress. Our customers  companies, financial institutions, investors, savings banks and the public sector  are at the centre of our sustainable approach. As a stable and financially strong bank with international activities, we work efficiently and think long-term. We have long-standing experience and in-depth knowledge of the sectors in which our customers operate. We understand their business challenges for the future, offer solutions that match their needs and are partners on an equal footing  always cultivating reliable and trusting working relationships. About Broadridge Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE: BR), a global Fintech leader with over $4.5 billion in revenues, provides the critical infrastructure that powers investing, corporate governance, and communications to enable better financial lives. We deliver technology-driven solutions to banks, broker-dealers, asset and wealth managers and public companies. Broadridge's infrastructure serves as a global communications hub enabling corporate governance by linking thousands of public companies and mutual funds to tens of millions of individual and institutional investors around the world. In addition, Broadridge's technology and operations platforms underpin the daily trading of on average more than U.S. $10 trillion of equities, fixed income and other securities globally. A certified Great Place to Work, Broadridge is a part of the S&P 500 Index, employing over 12,000 associates in 21 countries. For more information about us and what we can do for you, please visit www.broadridge.com . CONTACT: Gregg Rosenberg, gregg.rosenberg@broadridge.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/bayernlb-selects-broadridge-for-regulatory-trade-and-transaction-reporting-301317776.html SOURCE Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc.

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[June 23, 2021] Intellipaat Collaborates with IIBA to Offer Business Analysis Certifications

BANGALORE, India, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Intellipaat, India's fastest growing ed-tech platform, today announced its partnership with the International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA) to offer certification training courses designed for Business Analysis professionals who wish to learn new skills and get significant exposure to advanced-level effective planning and documentation. The offerings include Certified Business Analysis Professional (CBAP) certification along with CCA, CBDA, AAC, and ECBA that aids professionals in achieving one of the most significant and best skills in business analysis, such as planning stakeholder management, assessing the limitations of an organization or a solution, and more. Speaking of the partnership Mr. Diwakar, Founder & CEO at Intellipaat said, "Intellipaat has been in the forefront of digitl learning throughout the ongoing pandemic. This partnership with IIBA continues to reflect our capability and commitment to the EdTech industry and the students who are aiming high in upskilling themselves in this rapidly advancing IT industry."



The CBAP course is taught by top industry experts working with Fortune 500 companies. Learners will get 35 hours instructor-led training from top Industry experts, earn 35 PD hours, 35 CDUs /PDUs, 24 x 7 lifetime support & access, and job assistance are some of the key features of this online CBAP certification training. All the learners enrolling to these courses will be provided with a dedicated learning manager, support in interview preparation, access to an exclusive job portal, interview opportunities with top companies among others as part of their career services.

About Intellipaat: Intellipaat is India's leading ed-tech platform that offers more than 150 courses for professionals' up-skilling on technology and non-technology courses. Intellipaat has more than 150 corporate clients and has more than 6,00,000 learners from 55+ countries learning on their platform. The company also offers + 150 courses on the latest technologies like Data Science, AWS, etc. for professionals who are looking to start their career in these domains. Media Contact :

Deepak Jain

deepak@intellipaat.com

+91-7338335088

Head - Corporate Relations

Intellipaat Software Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

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[June 23, 2021] NAC Indigenous Theatre and Facebook Canada launch #ReconcileThis - a collaboration to amplify Indigenous Voices online

Four-year initiative valued at $400,000 to provide hundreds of Indigenous creators with funding, production equipment and training to share stories, history and culture online OTTAWA, ON, June 23, 2021 /CNW/ - Today, the National Arts Centre Indigenous Theatre and Facebook Canada are announcing the creation of #ReconcileThis - Indigenous Voices Online, a four-year initiative that provides hundreds of transformative Indigenous Voices with funding, production equipment, and training to share their stories, history, and to celebrate culture online. #ReconcileThis will also create four, one-year Associate Producer positions at NAC Indigenous Theatre, providing emerging Indigenous leaders the opportunity to shape the national program. "We are really excited about this project. It is exactly the kind of support we need right now: funding, professional development opportunities and access to a platform dedicated to activating Indigenous voices, brilliance and creativity, centred on the concept of self-determination," said Kevin Loring, Artistic Director of the NAC Indigenous Theatre. The Internet has been a democratizing force for traditionally marginalized and under-represented voices. This effort aims to amplify hundreds of Indigenous Voices across any online platform, where the creators own the content they create and how they share their stories. "Through our ongoing work with Indigenous communities, we have learned so much about the important role that the Internet can play in uplifting Indigenous voices," said Kevin Chan, Global Director and Head of Public Policy, Facebook Canada. "We're grateful to parner with the National Arts Centre Indigenous Theatre and the National Arts Centre to make space for, and amplify the voices of, Indigenous creators on and off our platforms."



Creators' work can span a broad spectrum of contributions, ranging from artistic performances in dance, theatre, and music, to social media content creation, podcast production and writing. NAC Indigenous Theatre will shape and administer the program. More information on the selection process of Indigenous-identifying creators will be shared at a later date. Driving further discoverability, the National Arts Centre Indigenous Theatre will create a microsite to showcase selected works and creations of Indigenous Voices. Selected creators will be welcomed to share content through online platforms of their choice with the hashtag #ReconcileThis.

The National Arts Centre and Facebook Canada aim to support cross-cultural exchange and the process of truth and reconciliation in Canada by collaborating with the NAC Indigenous Theatre on this program.

Storytelling & Truth: Facebook Live Event Amplifying Indigenous Voices

Today at 1pm ET, the NAC Indigenous Theatre and Indigenous storyteller Sarain Fox will host a live event from the Facebook Canada Page to recognize National Indigenous History Month and officially launch #ReconcileThis. The event will spotlight several Indigenous creators and stories and highlight an important discussion about the power of online platforms for cultural and self expression. Click "Interested" here to RSVP and join the Facebook Live discussion. Lori Marchand, Managing Director, and Kevin Loring, Artistic Director, at the NAC Indigenous Theatre will co-host alongside Sarain, and will be joined by Zoey Roy, spoken word poet, Felicia Tremblay, Senior Advisor Outreach for Diversity and Inclusion at the National Arts Centre and Theland Kicknosway, activist and educator, among others. ABOUT THE NATIONAL ARTS CENTRE

The National Arts Centre is Canada's bilingual, multi-disciplinary home for the performing arts. The NAC presents, creates, produces, and co-produces performing arts programming in various streamsthe NAC Orchestra, Dance, English Theatre, French Theatre, Indigenous Theatre, and Popular Music and Varietyand nurtures the next generation of audiences and artists from across Canada. The NAC is located in the National Capital Region on the unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabeg Nation. ABOUT FACEBOOK CANADA

Founded in 2004, Facebook's mission is to give people the power to build community and bring the world closer together. More than 24 million Canadians use Facebook to stay connected with friends and family, to discover what's going on in the world, and to share and express what matters to them. Facebook is a registered trademark of Facebook Inc. SOURCE Facebook Canada

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[June 23, 2021] Trustpac Introduces Special IPO Promotions

TALLINN, Estonia, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- In wake of a resurgence in global financial activity, award-winning online trading brokerage brand Trustpac has announced a series of special promotions , all in line with upcoming and recent initial public offerings (IPOs). This measure is part of the brand's strategy of expanding the horizons of client traders, therefore enabling themselves to fulfill the potential of online trading today. "These new promotions are a result of months of planning and monitoring markets all around the world," commented Ema Overland, Trustpac's spokesperson. "We've always believed that the only way to develop as a business is to offer our clients something they won't be able to find anywhere else, and that only by putting our customers in the center, will w be able to thrive. We can promise the users of our platform and mechanisms that this approach is going to lead our way in the future as well."



Making online trading simple today, for tomorrow's trader Alongside the markets returning to pre-pandemic volumes, a great deal of volatility is also being witnessed. It is a consensus among expert analysts that the next few months will be a test for the new economic routine. For that reason, Trustpac plans to keep setting the standards in the industry, for other trading brands to follow. Aside from these IPO promotions, which include promising names such as AirBNB, Wish, Instacart, and others, the company plans on introducing new features for the benefit of its traders.

"There's a lot in store for our loyal customers," added Overland, "like special events focused on different aspects of global trading, and new tools incorporated into our state of the art platform. I can't reveal all of the surprises we have in store, but I can definitely say that there's something worth waiting for." About Trustpac Based in the UK and operating worldwide, Trustpac has managed to become a role model for new and old brands alike. Among the awards won by the brand are the titles of "preferred trader in 2017" and "best online trader in 2016". Trustpac's services are open to traders around the globe, under strict anti money laundering policies. The brand's platform consists of cutting edge tools, based on the latest technologies in the market, and is compatible with all types of devices - desktop, mobile and tablet.

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[June 23, 2021] Squaretalk named top 10 performing technology by G2 Telecom Services

Also recognised as a High Performer in G2's Summer 2021 Grids report LONDON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Squaretalk, a global interactive business communications platform, has been ranked by G2 as a top 10 performing technology in G2's Telecom Services for Call Centers Relationship Index. The company scored above 90% in each of the three categories measured: likelihood to recommend; ease of doing business; and quality of support. In its Summer 2021 Grids report, G2 also recognised Squaretalk as a High Performer in two categories, Contact Center Operations Software and Telecom Services for Call Centers . Technology products in the High Performer quadrant of G2's Grid Reports are rated highly by G2 users and have substantial satisfaction and market presence scores. G2 is the world's largest review platform for business software and services, with more than one million user reviews published to date. Visitors use the site to research and compare technology solutions based on peer reviews and synthesized social data. Rankings on G2 reports are based on data provided by actual, verified users of the software or service. This sets it apart from other review sites that primarily use self-reported information from vendors to compare and rate products. Commenting on G2's recognition of his company, Elie Rubin, CEO of Squaretalk, said: "e are delighted that the hard work of our multi-regional teams has been recognised by G2 in this report. Our aim is to be an intelligent glue in the business communications ecosystem, and the appreciation and high esteem of our partners and clients is integral to achieving our goal."



Squaretalk recently announced a major integration with Zoho One, a unified suite of 40+ tightly integrated enterprise-level online applications from Zoho to help businesses grow. The integration was built using Zoho PhoneBridge, ?a platform that enables the integration of cloud PBX and Contact Centre Solution providers with Zoho to add telephony capabilities to any Zoho application. The Squaretalk integration for Zoho One is readily available on Zoho Marketplace. Earlier this year, Squaretalk also launched a multi-channel messaging service called Express, enabling businesses and contact centres to connect with customers wherever they are, through any device, on their preferred platform. Starting with SMS, the platform will soon include WhatsApp, Messenger, Viber, Telegram, and WeChat.

For more information visit www.squaretalk.com . About Squaretalk Squaretalk (formerly known as Deskforce) is a global interactive business communications platform providing voice, text, chat, and messaging solutions. Its core purpose is to simplify and enhance how businesses communicate with their customers by providing integration capabilities that elevate the user experience, drive customer loyalty, and scale operations, whilst improving operational systems for their remote workforce. Headquartered in Jerusalem, Israel and with a hub in Bulgaria, its international footprint of over 200 clients and 15,000 agents globally reflects the company's success. In 2020 Squaretalk grew revenues by 40% and it is expected to double up in 2021. With powerful cloud communication tools, flexible solutions for decentralized teams, and the ability to integrate easily with existing and new leading communications platforms, Squaretalk is enabling better business communication. About G2



G2, the world's leading business solution review platform, leverages more than 1M+ user reviews to drive better purchasing decisions. Business professionals, buyers, investors, and analysts use the site to compare and select the best software and services based on peer reviews and synthesized social data. Every month, more than three million people visit G2's site to gain unique insights. For more information please contact: Yellow Jersey PR Alexandra Santos

E: alexandra@yellowjerseypr.com Chris Flame

E: christopher@yellowjerseypr.com

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[June 23, 2021] UK councils report more than 700 breaches to the ICO annually, according to Redscan report

FOI analysis reveals cyber security across councils is disjointed and under-resourced LONDON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Redscan, A Kroll Business, the award-winning provider of managed security services, specialising in Managed Detection and Response, Penetration Testing and Red Teaming, today issued its report, Disjointed and under-resourced: Cyber security across UK councils. The report is an analysis of Freedom of Information (FOI) responses from more than 200 councils in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.* The data suggests that in addition to experiencing disruption to services, councils are under-prepared for current and future security challenges. Key findings include: UK councils reported an estimated 700+ data breaches to the information Commissioner's Office (ICO) in 2020

Ten councils had their operations disrupted due to a breach or ransomware

One council reported 29 data breaches to the ICO in 2020

Approximately four in ten councils spent no money on security training

Just over half of all UK council employees received cyber security training in 2020, and 45% of councils employ no staff with recognised security qualifications The crucial role councils play in ensuring access to vital services means they must process huge volumes of data and comply with strict regulatory requireents. However, in the last 12 months, there have been numerous reports of data breaches at UK local authorities.



The Redscan report demonstrates that attitudes to security vary considerably across UK councils. While some councils prioritise and invest in training, many others do not. Redscan estimates that, across the UK, councils spent approximately 1.5 million on training in 2020. However, approximately four in ten councils spent nothing during the same period. Redscan CTO Mark Nicholls commented: "There is significant room for councils to improve their readiness to tackle current cyber risks, as well as those that will emerge in the future as cities become smarter and more connected.

"Every council has thousands of citizens depending on its services daily. Going offline due to a cyber-attack can deny people access to critical services. To minimise the impact of data breaches, it is important that councils are constantly prepared to prevent, detect and respond to attacks. While our findings show that councils are taking some steps to achieve this, approaches vary widely and, in many cases, are not enough. "Our analysis reveals some pretty shocking failings, such as 29 data breaches reported to the ICO by one council in a single year. The fact that approximately half of all council employees across the UK did not receive security training in 2020 is also concerning," Nicholls added. *Notes for editors Redscan submitted FOI requests to 398 borough, district, unitary and county councils on 8 January 2021 and received responses from 265 (63%) by 1 March 2021. Read the full report here. About Redscan, A Kroll Business Redscan is an award-winning provider of managed security services, specialising in?Managed Detection and Response,?Penetration Testing?and?Red Teaming. As of March 2021, Redscan is now part of Kroll, the world's premier provider of services and digital products related to governance, risk and transparency. About Kroll Kroll is the world's premier provider of services and digital products related to governance, risk and transparency. We work with clients across diverse sectors in the areas of valuation, expert services, investigations, cyber security, corporate finance, restructuring, legal and business solutions, data analytics and regulatory compliance. Our firm has nearly 5,000 professionals in 30 countries and territories around the world. For more information, visit?www.kroll.com.

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[June 23, 2021] Pulpex Announces Collaboration With BASF

- Pulpex is the world's first widely recyclable, PET-free paper bottle - BASF, the world's largest supplier of sustainable chemistry, collaborates with Pulpex to help scale paper bottling technology - The eco-friendly paper bottle is designed to hold a wide range of liquids LONDON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- BASF, the world's leading supplier of innovative materials for the packaging industry, has forged a collaboration with Pulpex Ltd and its global partners to develop proprietary, food-grade barrier technologies for the eco-friendly Pulpex paper bottle. Pulpex Ltd. ( www.pulpex.com ) is a new world-leading sustainable packaging technology company established by venture management firm Pilot Lite and spirits producer Diageo. The company has developed the world's first 100% PET-free paper bottle. Made from sustainably sourced pulp, Pulpex bottles meet food safety standards and can be recycled in standard paper waste streams, which have a far higher yield than plastic waste streams. Scott Winston, CEO, Pulpex, said: "We're proud to be working alongside a world-leading, innovative company like BASF. Their strategic intent and track record of advancing chemical sciences to deliver a moe sustainable future makes the company an ideal partner for Pulpex."



BASF has a long tradition as a supplier of innovative solutions for the packaging industry and has an expert network of highly experienced technicians that support customers in product development and process optimization. Victoria Callaghan, Packaging Project Manager at BASF plc, said: "We are helping to drive positive innovation in the packaging industry and are determined to help deliver sustainable packaging materials where we can, while ensuring the quality, safety and efficacy of our products. It's great to be working with Pulpex to continue developing its paper bottling technology for the world."

The wide range of applications for the Pulpex technology include alcohol and non-alcohol beverages, liquid foods, homecare, personal care and consumer healthcare. The company is also working toward adding the capability of holding hot-fill and carbonated products by the end of 2022. About BASF At BASF, we create chemistry for a sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. More than 110,000 employees in the BASF Group contribute to the success of our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio is organized into six segments: Chemicals, Materials, Industrial Solutions, Surface Technologies, Nutrition & Care and Agricultural Solutions. BASF generated sales of 59 billion in 2020. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchange in Frankfurt (BAS) and as American Depositary Receipts (BASFY) in the U.S. Further information at www.basf.com. About Pulpex Pulpex is a collaboration between Pilot Lite and Diageo. Pilot Lite is a pioneer and international leader in venture management with a successful track record helping Fortune 500/FTSE 100 corporates accelerate the commercialization of innovation. Through its Pilot Lite Capital arm, Pilot Lite directly invests in and converts corporate IP into free-standing, revenue-generating businesses. Diageo is a global leader in beverage alcohol with an outstanding collection of brands sold in more than 180 countries around the world. The company is listed on both the London Stock Exchange (DGE) and the New York Stock Exchange (DEO). Further information at www.pulpex.com.

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[June 23, 2021] Thought Industries Wins CODiE Award for Best Customer Learning Platform

BOSTON, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Thought Industries , the world's #1 platform for customer learning management (CLM), today announced it has received the 2021 CODiE Award for Best Customer Training Learning Management Systema new, standalone category that underscores the importance of this technology in driving business growth through greater customer engagement. Presented by the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), the CODiE Awards are celebrating their 35th year of recognizing the best products, technologies and services in software, information and business technology. The Thought Industries CLM platform serves businesses of all sizes across multiple industriesincluding technology, healthcare, medical devices, process and discrete manufacturing, and educationlooking to increase product adoption, customer success and revenue growth. Organizations turn to Thought Industries for scalable customer education tools that enable rich learning experiences for customers, partners and professionals. "We're honored to be recognized by CODiE again, this time for Best Customer Training Learning Management System. It validates our work in transforming the role and power of customer learning," said Barry Kelly , CEO of Thought Industries. "I continue to beimpressed with our team's work to innovate and create solutions that cater to our customers' needs."



"Congratulations to all of the 2021 Business Technology CODiE Award winners," said SIIA President Jeff Joseph. "The products honored this year hold a particularly special place in the distinguished history of the CODiEs. Many of these winners literally helped business survive, and even thrive, as the global business community transitioned to remote status due to the pandemic. All those honored today demonstrate the resilience of this dynamic industry. Innovation continued even in the face of an unprecedented challenging year." The win comes on the heels of a successful first quarter for Thought Industries. The company added 31 new hires and was ranked as the number two overall learning system by The Craig Weiss Group. Over the last year alone, Thought Industries' revenue grew more than 50 percent as the company continues to define the CLM market, shaping how businesses of all sizes can leverage customer learning for driving loyalty, retention and growth.

The SIIA CODiE Awards are the industry's only peer-reviewed awards program. The first-round review of all nominees is conducted by software and business technology experts with considerable industry expertise, including members of the industry, analysts, media, bloggers, bankers and investors. The scores from the expert judge review determine the finalists. SIIA members then vote on the finalist products, and the scores from both rounds are tabulated to select the winners. 51 awards were given this year for products and services deployed specifically for B2B software, information and media companies, including the Best Overall Business Technology Product, awarded to the product with the highest scores of both rounds of judging. More information about the winning products can be found at the 2021 CODiE Award Winners site . About Thought Industries

Thought Industries powers the business of learning by providing the world's leading B2B customer education and extended enterprise platform. The company was founded in 2014 around the core belief that online learning experiences should be modern, intuitive, engaging, and scalable. Today, our team builds and maintains the only learning solution with completely native tools and integrations that drive higher engagement, learner proficiency, and retention rates for our customers. Headquartered in Boston, Thought Industries has offices across North America and Europe. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/thought-industries-wins-codie-award-for-best-customer-learning-platform-301318094.html SOURCE Thought Industries

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[June 23, 2021] McLeod Health Commits to Quality and Innovation with a Patient-Reported Outcomes Program for Total Joint Replacements

FLORENCE, S.C. and MINNEAPOLIS, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- McLeod Health of South Carolina and CODE Technology partner to build a system wide joint replacement patient-reported outcome (PRO) data registry. Since going live with CODE on November 30, 2020, McLeod is enrolling an average of 115 total joint replacement patients and 95 PROs per month. Within one (1) years-time, McLeod Health will have a robust and powerful data registry with nearly 1,500 completed PROs.

McLeod is positioning themselves to lead the nation in orthopaedic quality and innovation. In addition to the PRO data, McLeods registry contains implant, comorbidities, and other relevant patient and procedure specific information that allows for risk stratification and granular reporting. PROs are one of the most important tools we have for ensuring we are providing the best care for our patients. By analysing how our patients are doing before and after surgery, we can continue to make changes to get better. Working with CODE to collect PROs on our patients allows McLeod to continue to be a national leader in orthopaedic care, states Dr. Chad Thurman, Orthopaedic Surgeon, McLeod Health. Furthermore, Melissa Brock, Orthopaedic Navigator said, PROs not only give us an idea of where the patient begins before surgery, they give us an idea of how the patient perceives they have improved after surgery. I believe its most important that the patient is satisfied with their recovery. This tool also allows the patient to give their own feedback and make comments on specific areas of their experience. For example, the education process prior to surgery, the response of the nursing staff in the hospital and the interaction they have with their physician. These comments help us to improve many areas of the care they receive. CODE Technologys service-centered platform collects the data behind the scenes, rquiring very limited effort on McLeods internal team and zero disruption to clinic workflow. This unique hands free approach results in a sustainable and reliable system for ongoing data collection.



Cian Robinson, Chief Administrative Officer, McLeod Heath Innovation said, To make true strides towards healthcare innovation, good quality patient centered data is a necessity. Empowered with this information, our innovation team can test new ideas, processes, and products quickly. The impact of the changes on the patients will be revealed through the PRO data, and we can proceed, or pivot based on our findings. McLeod has important strategic goals that hinge on data to make decisions. Partnering with CODE proves McLeod is serious about quality, innovation, and their patients, added Breanna Cunningham, founder and CEO of CODE Technology.

Cian Robinson echoed, Providers at McLeod shouldnt have to worry about making sure their patients fill out surveys - thats why we partnered with CODE. When you hire CODE, they remove the data collection burden from your staff. Rather than focusing on collecting the data, our team gets to spend their time actually using and analysing the data. About McLeod Health

McLeod Health was founded over a century ago and is a locally owned, not-for-profit healthcare system. They are comprised of seven (7) hospitals extending from the Midlands to the Coast along the border of North and South Carolina with locations in Florence, Darlington, Dillon, Manning, Cheraw, Loris, and Little River. McLeod expanded into the Myrtle Beach area for patients looking for primary care and family physicians. Their patient care team consists of more than 800 physicians, 2,000 registered nurses and 8,500 employees. McLeods goal is to constantly seek improved patient care through efforts that are physician-led, data-driven and evidence-based. Their vision is to be the regions choice for medical excellence. Contact McLeod by phone at 843-777-7000 to request an appointment. About CODE Technology

CODE Technology is an electronic Patient-Reported Outcomes (PRO) vendor, singularly focused on collecting, reporting, and benchmarking PRO data as a service. To learn why CODE Technology is the industry-leader for PRO capture rate, visit: https://www.codetechnology.com/why-code/ CODE CONTACT: Breanna Cunningham

breanna@codetechnology.com

623-910-9107



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[June 23, 2021] Forescout Taps Ellen Sundra as Chief Customer Officer

SAN JOSE, Calif., June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Forescout Technologies, Inc., the leader in Enterprise of Things security, today announced that Ellen Sundra, senior vice president of global system engineering and enablement, has been promoted to Chief Customer Officer (CCO), effective immediately. In her new role as CCO, Sundra will be responsible for uniting Forescouts technical teams that engage the customer at every stage of their journey. This will provide an optimal experience as the company helps enterprise organizations mitigate risks brought on by the billions of network-connected devices, including IoT and operational technology (OT).

Throughout my 11 years at Forescout, I have shared in the success of many customers journeys. Working together, we have increased visibility and protection for their networks and helped countless customers achieve even the most stringent compliance objectives. From the first conversation with our sales team through product deployment, technical support and professional services, we are uniting our efforts to simplify and accelerate the customers path to success, said Ellen Sundra, Chief Customer Officer, Forescout. I am humbled to represent the voice of our customers on Forescouts leadership team. In her expanded role, Sundra will continue to lead global system engineering and enablement and will add professional services and customer support to her team. Sundra joined Forescout in 2010 and has been instrumental in driving cross-functional efforts between sales, product and engineering to deliver on customers technical needs. She has also been instrumental in building a world-class global system engineering and enablement team across Forescouts commercia and federal business, as well as transforming the customer training and certification program.



Since starting as CEO earlier this year, I have been impressed with Ellens dedication and commitment to our customers, partners and team. She consistently puts our customers first and has been integral to the companys growth over the last 11 years, said Wael Mohamed, CEO, Forescout. Ellen builds strong, effective teams, and we are excited to see her take on an expanded leadership role that unites our customers experience. Ellen is a fantastic leader with the ability to unite and motivate a team. She understands customer service and puts customers first every single day. I am pleased to see her take on an expanded leadership position of Chief Customer Officer. This role is made for her, said Kirsten Davies, SVP and Chief Information Security Officer, The Estee Lauder Companies.

Cybersecurity has transformed from back-office necessity to boardroom priority, said Tye Hayes, Interim Chief Information Officer, City of Atlanta. Speed and agility are critical to protect our organization against todays emerging threats. Forescout was our trusted source of truth during our ransomware attack a few years ago. The companys focus on customers is best in class and the team understands the pressure and scrutiny we are under and have reflected this by streamlining our path to success. I am excited to see what Ellen will accomplish in her new role as Chief Customer Officer. About Forescout

Forescout Technologies, Inc. actively defends the Enterprise of Things by identifying, segmenting and enforcing compliance of every connected thing. Fortune 1000 companies trust Forescout as it provides the most widely deployed, enterprise-class platform at scale across IT, IoT and OT managed and unmanaged devices. Forescout arms customers with more device intelligence than any other company in the world, allowing organizations across every industry to accurately classify risk, detect anomalies and quickly remediate cyberthreats without disruption of critical business assets. Dont just see it. Secure it. The Enterprise of Things  Secured. Learn more at www.forescout.com.  2021 Forescout Technologies, Inc. All rights reserved. Forescout Technologies, Inc. is a Delaware corporation. A list of our trademarks and patents can be found at https://www.forescout.com/company/legal/intellectual-property-patents-trademarks. Other brands, products, or service names may be trademarks or service marks of their respective owners. Media Relations Contact

Katie Beck

Forescout Technologies, Inc.

katie.beck@forescout.com



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[June 23, 2021] Schwab Advisor Services Announces Digital Account Onboarding

Schwab Advisor Services announced today that its new digital onboarding capabilities will be available to independent advisor clients beginning next month. Building on the existing digital account open tool, the new workflow will now also provide advisors with account funding, whether from an account transfer and/or ACH, and the entire process occurs within a single digital envelope, improving client convenience/completion. In addition to the most common accounts already supported, digital account onboarding will also support an expanded number of account types including all living trusts, inherited IRAs for individuals and custodial accounts. "This is a major milestone in our efforts to provide the fastest, most secure way for advisors to onboard new and existing clients," said Andrew Salesky, managing director, Digital Advisor Solutions. "Beginning next month, advisors will be able to open most accounts in just minutes using this easy-to-follow, all-digital process. It is a game-changer in terms of delivering a simpler and more collaborative experience between advisors and their end clients." Additional features and benefits: Establishes enrollment in Schwab Alliance, the end-client portal, which encourages ongoing digital workflows between the advisor and the end-client.

Support for 16 types of the most popular advisor documents, plus Schwab forms, that allow advisors to compete account enrollment documentation within one digital workflow.

Allows advisors to complete set up options like prime broker enrollment, wrap agreements and margins.

Advisors can send incomplete envelopes and collaborate with clients to complete required documents.

As with the existing digital account open tool, the expanded digital account onboarding solution will be available as part of Schwab's integration offer which provides a range of data and capabilities to third parties. Schwab currently has more than 180 integration partners. "Digital adoption by advisors and their clients continues to accelerate and this latest enhancement not only allows for a better client experience and a more efficient process but will also reduce the 30%+ error rate we see with paper forms to the low single digits as a result of more simplified data entry and verification," said Salesky. About Charles Schwab & Co. At Charles Schwab we believe in the power of investing to help individuals create better tomorrow. We have a history of challenging the status quo in our industry, innovating in ways that benefit investors and the advisors and employers who serve them, and championing our clients' goals with passion and integrity.



More information is available at www.aboutschwab.com. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn. The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE: SCHW) is a leading provider of financial services, with 31.9 million active brokerage accounts, 2.1 million corporate retirement plan participants, 1.6 million banking accounts, and approximately $7.07 trillion in client assets. Through its operating subsidiaries, the company provides a full range of wealth management, securities brokerage, banking, asset management, custody, and financial advisory services to individual investors and independent investment advisors. Its broker-dealer subsidiaries, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., TD Ameritrade, Inc., and TD Ameritrade Clearing, Inc., (members SIPC, www.sipc.org), and their affiliates offer a complete range of investment services and products including an extensive selection of mutual funds; financial planning and investment advice; retirement plan and equity compensation plan services; referrals to independent, fee-based investment advisors; and custodial, operational and trading support for independent, fee-based investment advisors through Schwab Advisor Services. Its primary banking subsidiary, Charles Schwab Bank, SSB (member FDIC and an Equal Housing Lender), provides banking and lending services and products. More information is available at www.aboutschwab.com.

Schwab Advisor Services serves independent investment advisors and includes the custody, trading, and support of Schwab. Independent investment advisors are not owned by, affiliated with, or supervised by Schwab. For informational purposes only. 2021 Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. ("Schwab") All rights reserved. Member SIPC. (0621-1T97) View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005227/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Cities With More Remote-Friendly Jobs See Slower Office Market Recovery

While COVID-19 cases are no longer an inhibitor of demand for office space, the pandemic has fundamentally changed the way we work, and the effects are being felt in the office leasing market. Markets with a greater percentage of remote-friendly jobs are recovering more slowly while the opposite is true for markets with fewer remote-friendly jobs. Some of that change is likely to persist in the interim, with more pronounced implications for cities that have a large share of remote-friendly jobs including Seattle, Boston and San Francisco, consistent with the picture emerging from the VTS Office Demand Index (VODI). The VODI tracks tenant tours, both in-person and virtual, of office properties across the nation, and is the earliest available indicator of upcoming office leases, as well as the only commercial real estate index to explicitly track tenant demand. In Seattle, Boston, and San Francisco, the share of jobs that are remote-friendly is among the highest in the nation, and not coincidentally those markets have also recovered the least from their pre-pandemic level of demand, still down 39, 43 and 46 percent from their 2018-2019 average, respectively. In contrast, markets with a substantially lower share of remote-friendly jobs, Chicago, New York and Los Angeles, are only down 14 and 15 and 24 percent from their pre-pandemic values, respectively. The figures for remote-friendly job shares are drawn from a study by Apartment List which builds on prior academic work (Dingel & Neiman (2020). Washington, D.C., an exception to the pattern with a high rate of remote-friendly jobs and a further-along recovery, has a large share of government employers who may be less willing to keep remote work arrangements in place compared to employers in Boston, San Francisco and Seattle. "The pandemic didn't just change the way we work, it changed the way we live. Many workers have found value in remote or hybrid work and may be reluctant to go back to the way life was pre-pandemic, said VTS CEO, Nick Romito. "In cities with higher rates of fully-remote jobs, hiring and retaining talent means employers will need to provide choices and flexibility - including fully-remote and fully in-office."







VTS Office Demand Index (VODI) National BOS CHI LA NYC SEA SF DC Share of Jobs that are Remote-Friendly 29% 38% 32% 31% 33% 39% 42% 42% Pre-pandemic Benchmark* (avg. VODI in 2018-2019) 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 May 2021 VODI (current) 75 57 86 76 85 61 54 81 Current Difference from Pre-pandemic Benchmark (%) -25% -43% -14% -24% -15% -39% -46% -19% Year-to-Year VODI Change +60 +18 +68 +62 +80 +46 +51 +46 Year-over-Year VODI Change (%)** 400% 46.2% 377.8% 442.9% 1600% 306.7% 1700% 131.4% Month-to-Month VODI Change -7 -5 4 0 -12 -19 -10 -7 Month-over-Month VODI Change (%) -8.5% -8.1% 4.9% 0% -12.4% 23.8% 15.6% 8%

*The level of the VODI is set so that its average during 2018-2019 equals 100. That level conveniently also serves as the pre-pandemic benchmark, as it reflects the typical level of office demand in the period preceding the pandemic. **April 2020 was approximately the pandemic trough; exact timing varies by market. Nationally, following a particularly sharp burst of recovery in early 2021, demand for office space took a breather in May. After rising 173 percent in the first four months of the year, demand for office space receded modestly in May, down 8.5 percent from April, but its level remains 5 times higher than the May 2020 pandemic low. The decline, likely fueled by a seasonal lull and an easing of pent-up demand, marks a reversion to office demand's normal see-sawing behavior. "Demand for office space tends to follow seasonal patterns; it should not be concerning that most markets saw demand for office space taper in May," said VTS Chief Strategy Officer, Ryan Masiello. "Depending on the market, we anticipate that demand will continue to fluctuate this summer before rising again in August and September." As of May, more than half of the markets covered were within 25 percent of their pre-pandemic benchmark level--a level that more closely resembles pre-COVID-19 normalcy. All markets, with the exception of Chicago and Los Angeles, saw demand for office space recede in May with Seattle losing the most ground, down 24 percent during the month. At a VODI of 86, Chicago, a market that has lagged behind all others on the march to recovery, is now the closest of all markets to its pre-pandemic level. Chicago is also the only market to see an increase in demand for office space in May, though the monthly increase has tapered from previous months. Demand for office space in Chicago is propped up by the need for physical space for a higher percentage of roles that are not classified as remote-friendly. In addition, the materialization of pent-up demand in Chicago may have been delayed a bit longer than elsewhere owing to the cold winter climate, which is now providing some extra tailwind in May. Seattle also has a relatively high share of remote-friendly jobs, which is slowing its office demand recovery. In addition, Seattle was the only city covered by VODI to experience a drop in office-using employment in May. That said, office demand in Seattle has been volatile in the past, and the current decline is modest in comparison to the city's office demand fluctuations in the years immediately preceding the pandemic. About VTS VTS is commercial real estate's leading leasing, marketing and asset management platform where the industry comes to make deals happen and real-time data comes to life. The VTS Platform captures the largest first-party data source in the industry, which delivers real-time insights that fuel faster, more informed decision making and connections throughout the deal and asset lifecycle. VTS Data, the industry's only forward-looking market dataset, and VTS Market and Marketplace, the industry's first integrated online marketing solution, give landlords, brokers, and tenants unparalleled visibility into real-time market information and the direct connectivity to execute deals with greater speed and intelligence at every point in the planning, marketing, leasing, and asset management cycle. More than 60% of Class A office space in the US and 12B square feet of office, retail, and industrial real estate globally is managed on the VTS platform. VTS' user base includes over 45,000 CRE professionals including respected industry leaders like Blackstone, Brookfield Properties, LaSalle Investment Management, Hines, Boston Properties, Oxford Properties, JLL, and CBRE. To learn more about VTS, and to see our open roles, visit www.vts.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005333/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Five Ways to Reduce Staff Turnover

Making better recruitment decisions and delivering relevant training can significantly bolster staff retention, according to a new white paper by Questionmark, the online assessment provider. Employers could be about to face a "turnover tsunami." Some 52% of workers across North America report they are looking for a new job, according to a study for the Achievers Workforce Institute.1 Staff turnover is expensive for employers. Lost productivity and knowledge alongside new hiring, training, and onboarding fees add up to around a third of annual salary.2 So, firms that do not understand why their people may want to leave and take action to prevent such departures, could face significant losses. The new Questionmark white paper, "Five Ways Assessments Can Help Retain Employees", shows that by testing the skills of workers, employers can: Make better recruitment decisions - someone who leaves within their first year is likely to have been a poor hire. Testing the skills of candidates before hiring them helps ensure new starters are a good fit for the role. Identify relevant training needs - assessments can pinpoint an employee's immediate training need, helping demonstrate that employers are taking their career development needs seriously. Improve onboarding - around 15% of exits relate to employees leaving in the first 90 days.3 Assessments can reveal whether the onboarding process is effective and if new starters are learning what they should. Create a certification program - assessing employee progress andawarding certifications enhances an individual's sense of career development. It also creates immediate goals to work toward. Predict employee retention - employers can track scores from relevant workplace assessments and correlate them with employee longevity. By doing so, employers can identify risk factors that require intervention to prevent employee churn.



Read the full white paper: "Five Ways Assessments Can Help Retain Employees".

www.questionmark.com Ends Notes to editors About Questionmark Questionmark unlocks performance through reliable and secure online assessments. Questionmark provides a secure enterprise-grade assessment platform and professional services to leading organizations around the world, delivered with care and unequalled expertise. Its full-service online assessment tool and professional services help customers to improve their performance and meet their compliance requirements. Questionmark enables organizations to unlock their potential by delivering assessments which are valid, reliable, fair and defensible. Questionmark offers secure powerful integration with other LMS, LRS and proctoring services making it easy to bring everything together in one place. Questionmark's cloud-based assessment management platform offers rapid deployment, scalability for high-volume test delivery, 24/7 support, and the peace-of-mind of secure, audited U.S., Australian and European-based data centers. 1 https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/talent-acquisition/pages/turnover-tsunami-expected-once-pandemic-ends.aspx

2 https://www.ere.net/getting-ahead-of-the-looming-employee-exodus/

3 https://info.workinstitute.com/hubfs/2020%20Retention%20Report/Work%20Institutes%202020%20Retention%20Report.pdf View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005289/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Narcity Media Announces New Narcity TV Series Roster

A wide range of local, informative, and entertaining video content for everyone to enjoy TORONTO, June 23, 2021 /CNW/ -- Narcity Media is delighted to announce that viewers can now head to Narcity TV to watch new exclusive series as part of its 2021 programming schedule. "Narcity Media is rapidly expanding our video offerings for all our editions and platforms," Owen Leitch, Narcity Media's Executive Video Producer, said. "These series showcase the incredible range of local, informative and entertaining video content that viewers can watch when, where and how they want." Our series: QnA is Narcity's must-see video interview series. Each episode we get up close and personal with an emerging Canadian artist, creative or trendsetter at the forefront of youth culture. Fast-paced and fun, interviewers ask the questions that get people talking about themselves, their work, and the city they love. Take3 breaks down three of the funniest, weirdest and most engaging viral moments from Narcity and beyond. Host Alex Melki sifts through the wacky world of the internet to bring viewers the stories just perfect for your group chat. Then & Now time-travels viewers through the changing landscape of Toronto. Host and historian Morgan Cameron Ross peels back the layers of the city's past to reveal how certain landmarks and neighbourhoods came to be. Using a mix of archival material and present-day footage, this video series takes viewers on a journey from "then" to "now in the city they love. New episodes are added every Sunday on Narcity socials and Narcity TV.



Good Bites is the show where hosts Alex Melki and Mahlet "Mahi" Yordanos try the hottest spots for foodies in Montreal and Toronto. Every episode is a mouthwatering adventure into the city's culinary scene. Good Bites Toronto episodes air every Monday while Good Bites Montreal airs every Friday on Narcity TV and Narcity's social accounts. Our hosts:

Mahlet "Mahi" Yordanos is a Toronto foodie who loves exploring the amazing dishes her city has to offer. She loves showcasing all her delicious eats on her growing TikTok and Instagram accounts @heytorontofoodie and for Narcity's audience, of course. Morgan Cameron Ross is known as a musician and songwriter with platinum- and gold-selling records but is also a history buff who can't get enough of his adoptive home of Toronto. Born and raised in Vancouver, Ross became fascinated with Toronto's history and culture and even left the music business to focus on grad school in history. He's the owner of the Instagram account @OldToronto, which now has more than 102,000 followers since its launch in 2016. Alex Melki has been a constant figure at Narcity Media, most notably for being the face and producer of numerous series, including EXP MTL, Hidden Montreal, and Anchorman Canada. Born and raised in Montreal, Melki knows all the ins and outs of each neighbourhood and loves to bring viewers along to discover some of Montreal's best eateries. He's also a dogged live reporter, covering Montreal's most notable protests and events live, such as the curfew protests in April 2021. In the first half of 2021, Narcity Media has already amassed more than 200 million views across its platforms for video. Learn more: Narcity TV Owen Leitch is available for interviews upon request. Contact pr@narcitymedia.com for more information on Narcity TV's editorial vision and partnership opportunities. CONTACT:

Valerie Durocher

Marketing Manager

pr@narcitymedia.com Related Images narcity-tv-series-roster.jpg

Narcity TV Series Roster Related Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ekp4OaN5Rc SOURCE Narcity Media

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[June 23, 2021] Ambassador Labs Releases World's First Managed Developer Control Plane To Transform The Kubernetes Developer Experience

Ambassador Developer Control Plane 1.0 includes new cloud user interface to visualize and manage entire Kubernetes development lifecycle



Continued investments in top Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) open source projects Emissary-ingress and Telepresence to grow adoption and contributions

New developer community programs to expand Kubernetes learning

BOSTON, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ambassador Labs , the cloud native developer experience leader, today announced the Ambassador Developer Control Plane 1.0 (DCP), the companys new managed developer control plane solution that lets developers code, ship, and run apps using Kubernetes faster and easier than ever before. Ambassador DCP provides a new managed cloud UI and integrated toolchains built entirely on top of Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) open source projects. With Ambassador DCP, developers and platform teams can intuitively view and manage their organizations apps and services across development, deployment, and production environments - without the burden of stitching together Kubernetes tools or compromising productivity. Ambassador Labs also unveiled two new developer programs designed specifically to elevate hands-on learning with Kubernetes (Summer of Kubernetes) and recognize top community contributors worldwide (Ambassador Community Advocate program). Kubernetes has become an industry-standard and organizations are now faced with a dizzying ecosystem of cloud native open source tools. To deal with increasingly complex tool sprawl, companies have resorted to gluing together various homegrown systems to improve the Kubernetes developer experience, said Richard Li, CEO & Founder, Ambassador Labs. A modern developer control plane is necessary to accelerate Kubernetes adoption with less complexity and our mission is to put one in the hands of every developer and at the heart of every organization. Introducing Ambassador Developer Control Plane 1.0 The role of developers building applications on Kubernetes has expanded well beyond writing code and now includes shipping and running the code. This expanded responsibility has been accompanied by massive open source tool sprawl, further reducing organizational agility and developer productivity. Developers and companies need a developer control plane to manage and visualize all the tools in their modern app development workflows. Ambassador Labs now delivers a turnkey Developer Control Plane built on major CNCF open-source projects. It includes: New Ambassador Developer Control Plane UI. Now available as a managed solution, the Ambassador DCP integrates the Service Catalog, source control, Kubernetes, and key CNCF technologies in a new UI so that developers can view and manage all their Kubernetes services across the entire development lifecycle.

Now available as a managed solution, the Ambassador DCP integrates the Service Catalog, source control, Kubernetes, and key CNCF technologies in a new UI so that developers can view and manage all their Kubernetes services across the entire development lifecycle. Telepresence Support for Docker & MacOS. Telepresence now runs in more places where developers operate, wth support for container-based continuous integration systems, macOS, and Linux. In addition, developers can now use Ambassador DCP to manage Telepresence across platform teams.

Telepresence now runs in more places where developers operate, wth support for container-based continuous integration systems, macOS, and Linux. In addition, developers can now use Ambassador DCP to manage Telepresence across platform teams. Canary Releases with Argo (Developer Preview). Development teams can now use the Ambassador DCP to manage canary releases to quickly and safely ship updates. Powered by Argo open source, the Ambassador DCP now integrates into existing GitOps workflows, ensuring auditability and visibility across environments.

Development teams can now use the Ambassador DCP to manage canary releases to quickly and safely ship updates. Powered by Argo open source, the Ambassador DCP now integrates into existing GitOps workflows, ensuring auditability and visibility across environments. Enhanced Contributor Experience for Emissary-ingress. Contributors to Emissary-ingress, a CNCF Incubation project, now benefit from an overhauled contribution, release, and testing process. With these changes, Emissary-ingress is able to better support the growth in the open source community.



"Emissary-ingress has been a vital part of our Kubernetes adoption efforts, providing us with an open source platform for our microservices transition as we grow beyond the 150,000 businesses using our platform, said Phil Peble, Senior Software Engineer at ActiveCampaign. The community leadership and valuable support from the Ambassador Labs team gives us great confidence in our commitment to the project."

New Developer Community Programs for Kubernetes Learning Focused entirely on Kubernetes and the CNCF ecosystem, Ambassador Labs is committed to growing a global developer community by offering a variety of education and engagement programs to specifically uplevel cloud native skill sets. The Ambassador Labs community currently benefits from a variety of technical content, open source tools, events, discussion forums, support channels, and more. To drive deeper learning engagement, Ambassador Labs has launched two new initiatives: Summer of Kubernetes . A free, 90-day Kubernetes education program brings a global community of application developers together to get hands-on with cloud native technologies through weekly learning challenges. Over the course of the program, developers gain access to Kubernetes experts who will share technical best practices via popular open source tools to help hone their cloud native skills, wherever they are on their Kubernetes journey. The program is divided into three, month-long chapters that span the full app development lifecycle - Code, Ship, and Run. To learn more and join the program, please visit: https://www.getambassador.io/summer-of-k8s/

. A free, 90-day Kubernetes education program brings a global community of application developers together to get hands-on with cloud native technologies through weekly learning challenges. Over the course of the program, developers gain access to Kubernetes experts who will share technical best practices via popular open source tools to help hone their cloud native skills, wherever they are on their Kubernetes journey. The program is divided into three, month-long chapters that span the full app development lifecycle - Code, Ship, and Run. To learn more and join the program, please visit: Ambassador Community Advocate Program. This inaugural program recognizes and nurtures top Kubernetes experts for their activism and technical contributions within the Ambassador Labs developer community. To apply to become an Ambassador Community Advocate, please visit: https://www.getambassador.io/ambassador-community-advocates Additional Resources Read our announcement blog at https://blog.getambassador.io/ambassador-labs-developer-control-plane-1-0-generally-available-42f73aff9876

To learn more about Ambassador Developer Control Plane, visit: https://www.getambassador.io/products/developer-control-plane

Learn more about the Summer of Kubernetes learning program at https://www.getambassador.io/summer-of-k8s/

Apply to become an Ambassador Community Advocate at https://www.getambassador.io/ambassador-community-advocates/

Learn more about local development environments for Kubernetes at https://www.getambassador.io/developer-control-plane/code/productive-local-dev-environment/

Learn more about developing and debugging Kubernetes microservices at https://www.getambassador.io/developer-control-plane/code/investigating-and-debugging-microservices/

Learn more about continuous delivery for Kubernetes application developers at https://www.getambassador.io/developer-control-plane/ship/continuous-delivery-within-kubernetes/

Join the Ambassador Developer Community on Slack: https://a8r.io/Slack About Ambassador Labs Ambassador Labs, the cloud native developer experience leader, enables developers to code, ship, and run applications faster and easier than ever. Maker of top Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) open source projects, including Emissary-ingress and Telepresence, Ambassador Labs delivers a developer control plane for Kubernetes that integrates the development, deployment, and production infrastructure for developers and organizations worldwide including Microsoft, PTC, NVidia, and Ticketmaster. Ambassador Labs is backed by top investors including Insight Partners, Matrix Partners, Trinity Ventures, and Four Rivers Group. Learn more and get started for free at www.getambassador.io . Media Contact: Lisa Williams press@datawire.io (339) 788-0067



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[June 23, 2021] EyeQue Teams Up with EyecareLive to Offer Virtual Eye Health Care with Expert Doctors

EyeQue, the leader in award-winning smartphone vision tests, has announced a partnership with EyecareLive to offer virtual eye health appointments with expert eye doctors. Consumers can now access EyecareLive's growing network of more than 4,000 eye doctors through EyeQue.com to conveniently connect on any eye health concern. "Our partnership with EyecareLive is a major step in EyeQue's plan to offer everything you need to take care of your eyes - all in one place," said John Serri, PhD, co-founder and President of EyeQue. "From the highest quality eye care with expert doctors to the most powerful and accurate smartphone vision tests, EyeQue is on a mission to bring the future of vision care to the home." EyeQue and EyecareLive share a common mission - to make eye care convenient, affordable, safe, and accessible. EyecareLive enables consumers to virtually meet with licensed eye care doctors in their area, including their own doctor. Appointments are available the same day - most within one hour - and start at $59, with no insurance needed. The doctors will be able to diagnose, evaluate, and provide a personalized treatment plan for a variety of eye conditions, including dry eye, pink eye, eye allergies, and more. "We are excited to partner with EyeQue to extend virtual care to consumers who are in need of an eye health consultation," said Raj Ramchandani, CEO of EyecareLive. "While EyeQue's smartphone screening devices empower consumers to track their vision between doctors' visits, this new partnership gives consumers access to video visits with an EyecareLive eye doctor to address immediate eye health concerns, and to gain valuable eye care information." Since the COVID-19 pandemic, adoption for telehealth and telemedicine has accelerated. It offers many advantages over traditional health care, particularly convenience and safety for both patients and doctors. According to a survey from the COVID-19 Healthcare Coalition, almost 80 percent of people who used telehealth during COVID-19 reported patient satisfaction, and over 70 percent expect to access virtual care post-pandemic. Tele-optometry is no different. Innovative technologies, like EyecareLive and its HIPPA secure platform, are the future of digital vision care - and one that both patients and doctors prefer for the convenience, cost, and accessibility. EyeQue, the leader of smartphone vision testing, saw a surge in consumer and doctor demand for their portfolio of vision tests during the pandemic. Consumers who were wary of visiting a doctor in person, opted for testing their vision at home and ordering updated glasses online. EyeQue is a simple way to test your vision at hme but does not replace a comprehensive eye health exam by an optometrist. EyeQue strongly recommends people visit an eye care professional regularly to receive a complete eye health exam.



EyeQue's smartphone-based vision tests offer doctors an accurate, convenient way to remotely monitor their patient's vision - particularly those recovering from surgery or with medical conditions where frequent vision screenings are part of treatment. EyeQue's latest innovation, EyeQue VisionCheck 2, is the most powerful refraction device available for consumers to test their own vision and order new glasses with the results - all without leaving the safety and comfort of home. The test results are expressed as EyeGlass Numbers (EGNs), the lens-power needed to correct nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism. EyeQue Try-On Glasses are a low-cost, quick-shipping pair of test-glasses custom-made with your vision test results, so you can experience your EGNs before shopping for new glasses online. EyeQue's optical smartphone attachments are shareable, so family and friends can also test their vision at no additional cost as long as each person uses their own free EyeQue account for personalized, custom results.

Learn more about EyeQue at eyeque.com and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube for more updates. If you're a doctor interested in EyeQue for your practice, please email doctor@eyeque.com or visit eyeque.com/partner for more information. About EyeQue

EyeQue is on a mission to revolutionize the future of eye care with innovative products and services that empower consumers to take care of their vision. EyeQue is dedicated to making vision health convenient, affordable and accessible. Based on MIT (News - Alert) and EyeQue patented technologies, EyeQue has developed a portfolio of intelligent vision solutions that allow people anywhere to self-administer vision tests using an optical smartphone attachment, mobile application, and a secure cloud-based processing and service center. The Company innovates from its Silicon Valley headquarters. Follow @EyeQueCorp on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn. About EyecareLive

EyecareLive is a telehealth company created by eye doctors to meet the unique needs of eye care providers and patients. The software's capabilities reach beyond secure video chat. EyecareLive is a comprehensive digital platform that provides virtual testing, such as visual acuity tests, disease monitoring tools and a built-in platform for e-prescribe and e-commerce, all while maintaining a commitment to HIPPA compliance. EyecareLive enables eye doctors to implement telemedicine safely and seamlessly while also directly providing eye care services to patients. The company's mission is to strengthen the doctor-patient relationship through innovative technologies. EyeQue's suite of vision wellness solutions, including the EyeQue VisionCheck and EyeQue Personal Vision Tracker, accurately measure for refractive error and detect changes between regular eye exams when properly used. These tests do not replace a comprehensive eye health exam that evaluates ocular health and binocularity. EyeQue strongly recommends people visit an eye care professional regularly to receive a complete eye health exam. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005288/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Webscale's James Smith Wins Gold Globee in the 2021 IT World Awards

SANTA CLARA, Calif., June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Webscale , the Cloud Platform for Modern Commerce, announced today that The Globee Awards, organizers of worlds premier business awards programs and business ranking lists, has named its Founder and CTO James Smith, a Gold winner in the Chief Technology Officer of the Year  IT Cloud/SaaS category at the 16th Annual 2021 IT World Awards.

The awards recognize information technology and cyber security vendors with advanced, ground-breaking products, solutions, and services that are helping set the bar higher for others in all areas of technology and cyber security. We are delighted to see Jays revolutionary work in the field of ecommerce security being recognized globally by the Globee Awards jury, said Sonal Puri, CEO of Webscale. James vision and expertise have been the driving force behind Webscales product innovations, through which we have been able to solve many of the ecommerce segments challenges around security, availability and performance. More than 65 judges from around the world, representing a wide spectrum of industry experts, participated in the judging process. The IT World Awards are open to all Information Technology and Cyber Security organizations around the world. I am honored to receive this award from Globee on behalf of our stellar product and engineering teams, said James Smith, Founder and CTO of Webscale. This recogition further validates that customer focus, and a relentless drive to make modern commerce safe for both merchants and customers, is what will continue to drive Webscales growth for years to come.



About the Globee Awards

Globee Awards are conferred in eleven programs and competition: the CEO World Awards, the Consumer World Awards, The Customer Sales & Service World Awards, the Globee International Best in Business Awards, the Golden Bridge Awards, the Cyber Security Global Excellence Awards and Security World Awards, the IT World Awards, One Planet American Best in Business Awards, the Globee Employer Excellence Awards, the Globee Corporate Communications & Marketing World Awards, and the Women World Awards. Honoring organizations of all types and sizes and the people behind their success, the Globee Awards recognize outstanding achievements and performances in businesses worldwide. Learn more about the Globee Awards at https://globeeawards.com . About Webscale

Webscale is the worlds only cloud platform for the successful delivery of modern commerce applications. Offering enterprise-grade security, predictive scalability and blazing-fast performance, the Webscale SaaS platform leverages automation and DevOps protocols to simplify the deployment, management and maintenance of infrastructure. The platform supports omni-channel use cases across a variety of ecommerce platforms and architectures, including headless, progressive web applications, self-hosted and fully hosted commerce clouds. Deployed in multi-cloud environments, including Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud Platform, and Microsoft Azure, Webscale powers Fortune 1000 brands including Dollar General, Watsco, Regal Cinemas and thousands of other B2C, B2B, and B2E ecommerce storefronts across 12 countries. Webscale has offices in Santa Clara, CA, Boulder, CO, San Antonio, TX, Bangalore, India and London, UK.

For more information, visit www.webscale.com .

Follow us on LinkedIn , Twitter , and Facebook . Media Contact:

Andrew Humber

Webscale

ah@webscale.com



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[June 23, 2021]

Cloud Nine Web3 Technologies Provides Corporate Update

2021 Highlights to Date:

Acquisition of Limitless Network (VPN, Microminer, Digital Wallet)

Significant Additions to the Advisory Board: Dan Reitzik (former CEO and founder of DMG Blockchain Solutions (TSXV: DMGI), Richard Oh (former executive at PayPal Asia), Shin-Young Park (CEO of WePay Korea), Eric Sim (CEO of Glocontech), Pavel Bains (CEO of Bluzelle)

Launch of the Quick & Dirty Guide to Blockchain and The Quick & Dirty Guide to NFTs

Strategic Partnership to Launch NFT Products & Managed Services Platform

Strong Cash Position: Over $5.5 Million Raised since January 2021



VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cloud Nine Web3 Technologies Inc. (Cloud Nine'' or the Company) (CSE: CNI) (OTC: CLGUF) (FSE: 1JI0) is pleased to provide a corporate update on a record year to date.

Cloud Nine is a technology company focused on leveraging Web 3.0 to power a future where decentralized users and machines are able to interact with data, value and other counterparties via a substrate of peer-to-peer networks without the need for third parties.

This past quarter has seen tremendous growth for our Company. We signed key partnerships, made certain strategic acquisitions and added key executive members and leaders to the Cloud Nine team. Our Companys healthy cash position has given us the strong footing to look for new accretive opportunities for growth. Our impressive new advisory board has already opened doors and provided the executive team with unprecedented guidance, vision and leadership in a very short time span, said Cloud Nine President, Sefton Fincham.

The Companys proprietary ecosystem includes:

Next Decentrum - EdTech Platform is designed to provide users with easy and simple guides to: Cybersecurity, Wearable Technologies, Blockchain Technology, Crypto Currencies, Decentralized Finance (DeFi).

- EdTech Platform is designed to provide users with easy and simple guides to: Cybersecurity, Wearable Technologies, Blockchain Technology, Crypto Currencies, Decentralized Finance (DeFi). Limitless Network (VPN Miner) - The Limitless platform gives the consumer plug & play opportunities to mine favourite cryptocurrencies which are then immediately stored in the consumers in-app digital wallet.



- The Limitless platform gives the consumer plug & play opportunities to mine favourite cryptocurrencies which are then immediately stored in the consumers in-app digital wallet. Digital Wallet for Desktop & Mobile - Crypto credit card paired with user friendly cryptocurrency banking services on desktop, mobile and hardware wallets.

- Crypto credit card paired with user friendly cryptocurrency banking services on desktop, mobile and hardware wallets. Decentralized Storage Application (the AirBnB of Storage) - takes the planets most under-utilized computer resources and provides the most secure and affordable database in the world.

The Company is pleased to provide the following updates from January 1, 2021 to June 30, 2021:

January - February 2021

Strategic Additions To The Team



In the past quarter, the Company launched a strategic initiative to bring on the very best leaders to its Board, Strategic Advisory Council and Executive Team. Key additions include:

Sefton Fincham, Look To The Sky Films and Thirty Six Financial Group founder and raised over $100M for numerous small cap companies, as Company President





Look To The Sky Films and Thirty Six Financial Group founder and raised over $100M for numerous small cap companies, as Company President Nilda Rivera, formerly Aurora Cannabis VP & Corporate Secretary, as Cloud Nine CFO & Corporate Secretary





formerly Aurora Cannabis VP & Corporate Secretary, as Cloud Nine CFO & Corporate Secretary Kant Trivedi, co-founder and director of Blockfusion Technologies Inc., formerly COO and managing partner at Greenwich Associates and formerly senior director at Rogers Communications, as Director





co-founder and director of Blockfusion Technologies Inc., formerly COO and managing partner at Greenwich Associates and formerly senior director at Rogers Communications, as Director Dan Reitzik, formerly CEO and founder of DMG Blockchain Solutions (TSXV: DMGI), as Strategic Advisor





formerly CEO and founder of DMG Blockchain Solutions (TSXV: DMGI), as Strategic Advisor Richard Oh, former executive at PayPal Asia, as Strategic Advisor





former executive at PayPal Asia, as Strategic Advisor Eric Sim, CEO of Glocontech, as Strategic Advisor





CEO of Glocontech, as Strategic Advisor Shin-Young Park, CEO of WePay Korea, and a Payment Development Specialist, as Strategic Advisor





CEO of WePay Korea, and a Payment Development Specialist, as Strategic Advisor Pavel Bains, CEO & co-founder of Bluzelle Networks, writer and contributor to Forbes, Venture Beat and Fast Company, as Strategic Advisor





CEO & co-founder of Bluzelle Networks, writer and contributor to Forbes, Venture Beat and Fast Company, as Strategic Advisor Hussein Hallak, developer of over 20 startups and launched first and largest marketplace for Middle Eastern Art, as Strategic Advisor



Cloud Nine is poised for growth, future strategic initiatives and partnerships as we head into Q3 and the remainder of 2021, said Sefton Fincham. The outstanding acquisitions and additions to our team, our Board and Advisory Board along with having raised over $5.5 Million is positioning our Company for increased market share and sales growth moving forward.

As part of the Companys continuing efforts to identify additional product areas with high growth potentials and to open up new lines of business, Cloud Nines senior management is in advanced discussions with its strategic advisors evaluating the opportunity to join the worlds leading Bitcoin mining associations, including but not limited to the Bitcoin Mining Council (www.bitcoinminingcouncil.com), the Crypto Climate Accord (www.cryptoclimate.org) and the Sustainable Bitcoin Standard (www.sustainablebitcoinstandard.org).

On Behalf of the Board,

CLOUD NINE WEB3 TECHNOLOGIES INC.

Sefton Fincham

President

About Cloud Nine Web3 Technologies Inc.

Cloud Nine Web3 Technologies is a technology company focused on incorporating emerging technologies into its current platforms leveraging Web 3.0. Cloud Nines mission is to fuel innovation and make the future more accessible by powering the launch and growth of future tech companies. Web 3.0 enables a future where decentralized users and machines are able to interact with data, value and other counterparties via a substrate of peer-to-peer networks without the need for third parties.

For further information, please contact:

Paul Searle

Corporate Communications

Citygate Capital Corp

Phone: (778) 240-7724

psearle@citygatecap.com

Neither the Exchange nor its regulation services provider accepts responsibility for the adequacy of accuracy of this release. No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contain herein.

Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking statements and are prospective in nature. Forward-looking statements are not based on historical facts, but rather on current expectations and projections about future events, and are therefore subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from the future results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as may, should, will, could, intend, estimate, plan, anticipate, expect, believe or continue, or the negative thereof or similar variations. Forward-looking statements in this news release include statements regarding: the Companys ability to successfully launch products and expand partnerships; its pursuit of emerging technology products; support its pursuit of Web3 opportunities on a global scale; and the ability of the Strategic Advisors to use their experience to positively impact Cloud Nines business; the Companys ability to identify additional product areas, open up new lines of business, commercialize the Company's latest technology products, build significant strategic distribution relationships and establish the Company as the leader in blockchain technology and decentralized finance; the potential of the Companys technology and operations; growth of the global digital payment market; the Companys ability to capitalize on any growing demand for payment solutions; the Companys ability to expand partnerships; the Companys pursuit of emerging technology products and Web3 opportunities on a global scale; and the ability of the advisor to use his experience to positively impact the Companys business including development of Cloud Nines Limitless assets. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include, failure to obtain regulatory approval, the continued availability of capital and financing, failure to obtain any permits and licenses required to operate the business, the impact of technology changes on the industry, the impact of Covid-19 or other viruses and diseases on the Company's ability to operate and hire personnel, competition, security threats, consumer sentiment towards the Company's products and services, and blockchain and DeFi technology generally, failure to develop new and innovative products, litigation, increase in operating costs, increase in labor costs, failure of counterparties to perform their contractual obligations, government regulations, loss of key employees and consultants, and general economic, market or business conditions. Such forward-looking statements should therefore be construed in light of such factors, and, except as required by applicable law, the Company is not under any obligation, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation, to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise




[June 23, 2021] First Trust Launches First Trust Indxx Medical Devices ETF

First Trust Advisors L.P. ("First Trust"), a leading exchange-traded fund ("ETF") provider and asset manager, announced today that it has launched a new ETF, the First Trust Indxx Medical Devices ETF (Cboe: MDEV) (the "fund"). The fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the fund's fees and expenses) of an index called the Indxx Global Medical Equipment Index (the "index"). "The 2020 global pandemic has put health care at the forefront of news headlines and kitchen table conversations. Growing medical awareness in emerging economies due to aging populations, greater wealth accumulation, and government focus on health care infrastructure all pave the way for increased investment in medical equipment," said Indxx's Managing Partner, Rahul Sen Sharma. The fund provides exposure to global companies that comprise the medical devices industry, which are those that focus on developing equipment, instruments, and machines to diagnose, monitor, and treat diseases. Indxx's Chief Revenue Officer, Vaibhav Agarwal added, "Our index is the product of a unique methodology backed by top-notch research. It tracks the top 50 global companies by market capitalization within the medical equipment space. We are pleased to work with First Trust who recognizes the value in offering US investors access to this growing sector." "Many of the technological developments taking place to enable new discoveries and methods of treatment in health care are significant, and we believe there are strong incentives to find ways to harness these global innovations," said Ryan Issakainen, CFA, Senior Vice President, ETF Strategist at First Trust. "As a leading provider of thematic ETFs, we are excited to offer MDEV as a way to gain exposure to the medical devices industry." For more information about First Trust, please contact Ryan Issakainen at (630) 765-8689 or RIssakainen@FTAdvisors.com. About First Trust First Trust is a federally registered investment advisor and serves as the fund's investment advisor. First Trust and its affiliate First Trust Portfolios L.P. ("FTP"), a FINRA registered broker-dealer, are privately held companies that provide a variety of investment services. First Trust has collective assets under management or supervision of approximately $199 billion as of May 28, 2021 through unit investment trusts, exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds, mutual funds and separate managed accounts. First Trust is the supervisor of the First Trust unit investment trusts, while FTP is the sponsor. FTP is also a distributor of mutual fund shares and exchange-traded fund creation units. First Trust and FTP are based in Wheaton, Illinois. For more information, visit http://www.ftportfolios.com.



You should consider the fund's investment objectives, risks, and charges and expenses carefully before investing. Contact First Trust Portfolios L.P. at 1-800-621-1675 to obtain a prospectus or summary prospectus which contains this and other information about the fund. The prospectus or summary prospectus should be read carefully before investing. Risk Considerations

A fund's return may not match the return of its underlying index. A fund invests in securities included in the index regardless of investment merit and the securities held by a fund will generally not be bought or sold in response to market fluctuations. Investors buying or selling fund shares on the secondary market may incur customary brokerage commissions. Market prices may differ to some degree from the net asset value of the shares. Investors who sell fund shares may receive less than the share's net asset value. Shares may be sold throughout the day on the exchange through any brokerage account. However, unlike mutual funds, shares may only be redeemed directly from a fund by authorized participants in very large creation/redemption units. If a fund's authorized participants are unable to proceed with creation/redemption orders and no other authorized participant is able to step forward to create or redeem, fund shares may trade at a discount to a fund's net asset value and possibly face delisting. A fund's shares will change in value, and you could lose money by investing in a fund. One of the principal risks of investing in a fund is market risk. Market risk is the risk that a particular security owned by a fund, fund shares or securities in general may fall in value. There can be no assurance that a fund's investment objective will be achieved. The outbreak of the respiratory disease designated as COVID-19 in December 2019 has caused significant volatility and declines in global financial markets, which have caused losses for investors. While the development of vaccines has slowed the spread of the virus and allowed for the resumption of "reasonably" normal business activity in the United States, many countries continue to impose lockdown measures in an attempt to slow the spread. Additionally, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against emerging variants of the disease. Changes in currency exchange rates and the relative value of non- US currencies may affect the value of a fund's investments and the value of a fund's shares. As the use of Internet technology has become more prevalent in the course of business, a fund has become more susceptible to potential operational risks through breaches in cyber security. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to additional risks, including currency fluctuations, political risks, withholding, the lack of adequate financial information, and exchange control restrictions impacting non-U.S. issuers. These risks may be heightened for securities of companies located in, or with significant operations in, emerging market countries. Health care companies may be affected by government regulations and government health care programs, increases or decreases in the cost of medical products and services and product liability claims, among other factors. Many health care companies are heavily dependent on patent protection, and the expiration of a company's patent may adversely affect that company's profitability. Health care companies are also subject to competitive forces that may result in price discounting, may be thinly capitalized and susceptible to product obsolescence. A fund may be a constituent of one or more indices which could greatly affect a fund's trading activity, size and volatility. There is no assurance that the index provider or its agents will compile or maintain the index accurately. Large inflows and outflows may impact a new fund's market exposure for limited periods of time. A fund classified as "non-diversified" may invest a relatively high percentage of its assets in a limited number of issuers. As a result, a fund may be more susceptible to a single adverse economic or regulatory occurrence affecting one or more of these issuers, experience increased volatility and be highly concentrated in certain issuers. A fund and a fund's advisor may seek to reduce various operational risks through controls and procedures, but it is not possible to completely protect against such risks. A fund with significant exposure to a single asset class, industry or sector may be more affected by an adverse economic or political development than a broadly diversified fund. Small- and mid-capitalization companies may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies. Trading on the exchange may be halted due to market conditions or other reasons. There can be no assurance that the requirements to maintain the listing of a fund on the exchange will continue to be met or be unchanged. First Trust Advisors L.P. is the adviser to the fund. First Trust Advisors L.P. is an affiliate of First Trust Portfolios L.P., the fund's distributor. Please see the fund's prospectus for a complete description of the risks of investing in the fund. The information presented is not intended to constitute an investment recommendation for, or advice to, any specific person. By providing this information, First Trust is not undertaking to give advice in any fiduciary capacity within the meaning of ERISA, the Internal Revenue Code or any other regulatory framework. Financial professionals are responsible for evaluating investment risks independently and for exercising independent judgment in determining whether investments are appropriate for their clients. Indxx and Indxx Global Medical Equipment Index ("Index") are trademarks of Indxx, LLC ("Indxx") and have been licensed for use for certain purposes by First Trust. The Fund is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by Indxx and Indxx makes no representation regarding the advisability of trading in such product. The Index is determined, composed and calculated by Indxx without regard to First Trust or the Fund. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005648/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Community First Bank Selects Q2's Digital Banking Platform

Q2 Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:QTWO), a leading provider of digital transformation solutions for banking and lending, today announced that Community First Bank of Kennewick, Washington chose Q2's best-of-breed platform to deliver a unified digital banking and wealth management experience for its clients. Community First Bank, located in Kennewick, Washington, specializes in business and consumer banking services. For more than 20 years, Community First Bank has provided financial expertise to business owners and the local community. Wealth management is a big part of Community First Bank's organization and they have long operated on a separate banking system and separate wealth management system. A key strategic initiative that the bank is trying to accomplish is to provide its clients with a 'single pane of glass' to seamlessly access all of their accounts in one place. "Traditionally, the relationship that bankers used to have with their clients was sitting across the desk or visiting them at their business. But the world is changing with the impact of digital technology. We now need to be able to provide services virtually with the same, or as close to the same, kind of relationship that we have when we're working with our clients face to face," said Jim Arneson, chief operating officer of Commuity First Bank. "So, we needed a partner that was flexible, who didn't shy away from being able to add extra services and other functionality to the digital banking platform, to enable us to provide that personalized service. We chose Q2 not just because they are the early pioneers and frontrunners of digital banking, but they were also developing new innovative features and approaches at a rapid pace, which is very exciting to us. We look forward to a long and profitable relationship with Q2."



"We are excited to partner with Community First Bank to deliver a seamless digital banking and wealth management experience," said Matt Flake, Q2 CEO. "Community First Bank's mantra is to be their clients' financial partner for life. Since the day Community First Bank was founded in 1997, they have made a positive difference in the community and continue to build trust with local businesses and community partners. We're committed to helping Community First Bank use technology across their business to better serve their clients in an increasingly digital world." About Community First Bank

Established in 1997, Community First Bank is based in Kennewick, Washington, with over $550 million in assets and operates five offices in Kennewick, Connell, Pasco, and Richland, Washington. Community First Bank provides personal and business banking, home loans, and wealth management services to customers who are predominately small- and middle-market businesses and individuals in Southeastern Washington State. https://www.community1st.com/. About Q2 Holdings, Inc. Q2 is a financial experience company dedicated to providing digital banking and lending solutions to banks, credit unions, alternative finance, and fintech companies in the U.S. and internationally. With comprehensive end-to-end solution sets, Q2 enables its partners to provide cohesive, secure, data-driven experiences to every account holder - from consumer to small business and corporate. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, Q2 has offices worldwide and is publicly traded on the NYSE under the stock symbol QTWO. To learn more, please visit Q2.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005092/en/

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[June 23, 2021] EdCast's Spark Joins Forces with University of Phoenix on Upskilling and Adult Learning Initiatives

Spark by EdCast and University of Phoenix announced a collaboration to provide small-to-medium businesses (SMBs) and individual learners access to the university's course content in business, technology and healthcare subjects. Expanding on the promise of personalized lifelong learning with an intuitive user experience, Spark users will receive special pricing on multiple courses as well as degree and certificate options from the university's catalog. Spark by EdCast is the leading learning experience platform providing career-enhancing training and upskilling in the moment of need to SMBs and individual learners, wherever they are. The mobile-friendly Spark platform includes AI-driven personalized learning with a simple Netflix-style user experience featuring targeted access to training and upskilling both remotely and securely. Historically, only larger organizations have had the resources to work with universities to provide this kind of experience with preferred pricing for higher education solutions. Together with University of Phoenix, Spark is pleased to begin enabling SMBs to bring those same benefits to their employees. Spark users will save 15% off the cost of a University of Phoenix bachelor's degree. For master's, doctoral and select certificate programs through the university, users will receive a sixth course at no cost for every five courses they complete. University o Phoenix's Prior Learning Assessment also offers users the potential to earn their degree faster by applying to have their work and life experiences evaluated for potential college credit.



"We are excited to collaborate with EdCast and their Spark platform to help employees of small-to-medium businesses save money while advancing their education," said Nathan Jones, Director Product Development, E2B Solutions and Strategy for University of Phoenix. "At EdCast, we are completely committed to helping organizations and individuals meet their skilling and talent development needs," said Karl Mehta, CEO and Founder of EdCast. "We are excited to offer learners the opportunity to discover and complete University of Phoenix's higher education pathways through our Spark by EdCast learning experience platform, greatly accelerating learners' skill development and upward career mobility."

For more details, go to spark.edcast.com or send an email to sparkinfo@edcast.com. About University of Phoenix University of Phoenix is continually innovating to help working adults enhance their careers in a rapidly changing world. Flexible schedules, relevant courses and interactive learning help students more effectively pursue career and personal aspirations while balancing their busy lives. We serve a diverse student population, offering degree programs at select locations across the U.S. as well as online. For more information, visit phoenix.edu. About EdCast EdCast offers a unified platform designed to operate end-to-end employee experience journeys spanning learning, skilling and career mobility. Its award-winning platform is used internationally by organizations ranging from large Global 2000 companies to small businesses and governments. With EdCast's platforms, our customers are able to attract, develop and retain a high-performance and future-ready workforce. EdCast's offerings include its Talent Experience Platform, Spark for SMBs, EdCast Marketplace and MyGuide Digital Adoption Platform. EdCast is a World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer award recipient. For additional information, visit www.edcast.com or follow us on Twitter @EdCast. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005220/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Stack Overflow Introduces Collectives, Brings Developers and Technology Organizations Together to Build Faster Through Community

Today, Stack Overflow announced the launch of Collectives on Stack Overflow, communities where technology organizations can directly engage with developers who use their products and developers can find resources that help them build faster. Collectives on Stack Overflow will launch to help developers and technologists collaborate and share knowledge in sub-communities dedicated to the products and services they use most. The first two Collectives are Google Cloud and Go, an open source programming language. Collectives on Stack Overflow introduces a centralized place for developers and technologists to discover questions and answers, as well as new, long-form content related to products and services they use most. Through collaboration, Collectives helps developers more easily adopt and deploy technology through organized, reusable information. Companies, in turn, can recognize Stack Overflow users for participating and sharing knowledge. "At Stack Overflow, we believe that democratizing and organizing technical information helps our community learn and innovate faster," said Prashanth Chandrasekar, CEO at Stack Overflow. "By deeply connecting developers with the products they use, Collectives aims to make building and operating technology easier. Creating new avenues to share knowledge is the only way to build stronger, more collaborative communities." Stack Overflow is the largest community of technologists and the go-to resource to develop new skills and solve coding problems. There are over 50 million questions and answers on Stack Overflow and developers have helped each other over 50 billion times to-date. Collectives helps companies engage with developers and empower the community that already exists around their technologies. "The technical community is the heart of our Google (News - Alert) Cloud mission and everything we build and create is grounded in helping them quickly build technologies that push the boundaries of their imaginations," said Amr Awadallah, Vice President of Cloud Developer Relations at Google. "Ensuringthat Google Cloud developers have the information they need to build is embedded in everything we do. Google Cloud's Collective on Stack Overflow will help us make information more accessible and ignite our technical community so we can all innovate faster."



"Go was born from the idea that modern open source programming languages should make it easier to build simple, reliable, and efficient software," says Steven Francia, Product and Strategy Lead for Go Language at Google. "As more developers adopt Go to build their ideas and contribute to its iterations, it feels only fitting to take the same open source approach to technical knowledge sharing with Stack Overflow. Collectives will change how we are able to help technologists understand, implement, and scale Go, as well as collaborate with their peers." The release of Collectives includes the following features and capabilities:

A branded Collectives homepage provides a curated view of questions and answers and content using tags associated with the organization's technology.

"Recommended Answers" allows companies to endorse the best answer to help users find solutions to their questions faster.

"Articles" introduces long-form content, including how-to guides and announcements, that can be accessed via the Collectives page.

User roles and badges designate Admins, Employees, and Recognized Members of Collectives, providing an easy way for users to identify answers and content from trusted sources.

Enhanced API, dashboards, and reporting provide customers with deep insights into their branded community, including engagement, pageviews, tag (News - Alert) activity, and community health metrics like answer rates.

"Actions for You" shows Admins and Recognized Members where they can make the most impact by answering questions, recommending answers, improving response rates to exceed benchmarks, and more.

A leaderboard gamifies the experience for developers and helps companies easily discover and reward top contributors as Recognized Members. With Collectives, Stack Overflow brings together two of the company's biggest strengths - community building and knowledge sharing. The rollout comes on the heels of significant investments in new features for the company's enterprise product, Stack Overflow for Teams, including Collections (groups of all formats of content on a topic for easy sharing), Articles (longer form documentation, policies and procedures, how-to guides, and much more), personalized For You Feeds (personalized content), a deeper integration with Slack, and the recently introduced Freemium tier. Stack Overflow for Teams is used by leading companies including Box (News - Alert) , Microsoft, Bloomberg, Instacart, and Zapier. To learn more about Collectives, visit https://stackoverflow.com/collectives-on-stack-overflow. About Stack Overflow Stack Overflow empowers the world to develop technology through collective knowledge. More than 100 million people visit Stack Overflow every month making it one of the 50 most-visited websites in the world. Stack Overflow's products include its market-leading knowledge sharing and collaboration platform, Stack Overflow for Teams, in addition to Stack Overflow Reach & Relevance, which is focused on advertising. Organizations such as Bloomberg (News - Alert) , Microsoft, Expensify, Zapier, and more partner with Stack Overflow to help them centralize information, increase efficiency, and build faster. Founded in 2008, Stack Overflow is headquartered in New York. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005665/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Bank of America Announces 2021 Art Conservation Project Grant Selections

Bank of America announced today grant funding for 23 major art restoration projects in 13 countries and nine U.S. cities through the 2021 Bank of America Art Conservation Project (ACP). The company is celebrating a decade of art conservation projects, providing grant funding to nonprofit cultural institutions throughout the world to conserve historically or culturally significant works of art that are in danger of deterioration. This year's grant recipients include: Cantor Arts Center, Stanford University, Palo Alto (News - Alert) , Calif. - Conservation of 32 works in the Asian American Art Initiative

Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA), Long Beach, Calif. - Conservation of four sculptures by contemporary Latinx artists Jose Luis Cuevas; Carlos Luna; Luis Torruella; Noe Katz

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture of The New York Public Library, New York City -Preservation of eight artworks by African American modernists along with three rare books, c. 1800

Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Tel Aviv, Israel - George Segal (American, 1924-2000), Sacrifice of Isaac , 1973

, 1973 Vatican Museums, Vatican City - Apollo "del Belvedere" "With the 2021 selections, we have now been able to fund the conservation of over 5,000 individual pieces of art through 195 projects in 36 countries since launching the program in 2010," said Rena DeSisto, global arts and culture executive, Bank of America. "It's a privilege to support this important work to safeguard our cultural treasures as we believe in the power of the arts to help economies thrive, educate and enrich societies and create greater cultural understanding." This year's selections again span the globe, including the restoration of artworks by five Japanese manga artists at Kawasaki City Museum in Japan, three artworks at the National Museums of Kenya and nine paintings showcasing Brazilian independence at the Museu Paulista in Sao Paulo. The program also continues to help raise understanding and awareness for the field of art conservation through unique projects and partners including Fisk University Galleries in Nashville, Tenn. Fisk, one of the nation's leading historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), is conserving artworks that will be part of an upcoming traveling exhibition, "African Modernism in America, 1947-1967." Students from Fisk University and from other University members of the Alliance of HBCU Museums and Galleries, will have unique opportunities to work alongside conservators and gain valuable experience in the field of art conservation. This year's selections also include several iconic paintings, including Georges Seurat's "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte" at the Art Institute of Chicago, a piece that was also featured as part of the Bank of America Masterpiece Moment program earlier this year.



"Since its inception, this innovative and enigmatic painting has continued to intrigue, elude and inspire-leaving a transformative mark on the history of art-and drawing millions of visitors to Chicago to see it," said James Rondeau, President and Eloise W. Martin Director of the Art Institute of Chicago. "Bank of America's support for the conservation of this artwork-among so many great works of art around the world-not only ensures its preservation and care for future generations of visitors, but, specifically, it enhances our understanding of Seurat's creative process and the materials he used, making us better stewards of this great painting." Additional conservation projects including "The Boy in a Red Vest" by Paul Cezanne and "Man-Eater with Pennants" by Alexander Calder, will take place at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.

"The past year has been enormously challenging for museums, yet our mission to safeguard and share art with the public has never been more important," said Kate Lewis, The Agnes Gund Chief Conservator at The Museum of Modern Art, New York. "Bank of America's commitment to conservation and to keeping the arts thriving ensures that we can continue to connect people with extraordinary works of art, both now, and for future generations." The full list of museums receiving grants through the 2021 Bank of America Art Conservation Project includes: Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago

Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University, Palo Alto, Calif.

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS), Mumbai, India

Denver Art Museum, Denver

Fisk University, Nashville, Tenn.

Kawasaki City Museum, Kawasaki City, Japan

Kunsthaus Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland

Museo Nacional De Antropologia, Mexico City, Mexico

Museu Paulista, Sao Paulo, Brazil

Museum of Latin American Art, Long Beach, Calif.

Museum of Modern Art, New York City

National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya

Rose Art Museum, Waltham, Mass.

Sadberk Hanim Museum, Istanbul, Turkey

Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York City

Stadel Museum, Frankfurt, Germany

Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Tel Aviv, Israel

The Menil Collection, Houston

The New York Public Library, New York City

The Wallace Collection, London, England

Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Vatican Museums, Vatican City

Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, Conn. Bank of America Arts and Culture

The Bank of America Art Conservation Project is a key demonstration of Bank of America's arts support worldwide, and part of the company's environmental, social and governance commitment. Through the Art Conservation Project, programs like Museums on Us, loaning exhibitions through the Art in Our Communities program, the Masterpiece Moment video series and sponsorships and grants, we support a wide range of both local and world-class organizations. Our programs are designed to have a positive impact on economies and societies throughout the world, and shine a light on diverse cultural traditions. Through steadfast and strategic support, we have become one of the world's leading corporate supporters of the arts. To learn more about our arts and culture support and programs, please visit bankofamerica.com/arts. Bank of America

At Bank of America, we're guided by a common purpose to help make financial lives better, through the power of every connection. We're delivering on this through responsible growth with a focus on our environmental, social and governance (ESG) leadership. ESG is embedded across our eight lines of business and reflects how we help fuel the global economy, build trust and credibility, and represent a company that people want to work for, invest in and do business with. It's demonstrated in the inclusive and supportive workplace we create for our employees, the responsible products and services we offer our clients, and the impact we make around the world in helping local economies thrive. An important part of this work is forming strong partnerships with nonprofits and advocacy groups, such as community, consumer and environmental organizations, to bring together our collective networks and expertise to achieve greater impact. Learn more at about.bankofamerica.com, and connect with us on Twitter (News - Alert) (@BofA_News). For more Bank of America news, including dividend announcements and other important information, visit the Bank of America newsroom and register for news email alerts. www.bankofamerica.com View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005597/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Equitable Announces 2021 Equitable Excellence? Scholarship Winners

Equitable, a leading financial services organization and principal franchise of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: EQH), today announced the 2021 Equitable ExcellenceSM Scholarship recipients. This year, the program recognizes 369 deserving students from all 50 states, Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico, who have demonstrated outstanding achievements in academics, exemplary leadership skills and a commitment to improving their communities. "The 2021 Equitable Excellence class is a remarkable and diverse group of young people who inspire us all with the impacts they are making in their communities and around the world," said Nick Lane, President of Equitable. "Amid an exceptionally challenging year, these high school graduates have shown tremendous resiliency and dedication to helping improve the lives of others. We are proud to support them as they start their next chapter in higher education." Equitable Excellence is the flagship program of Equitable Foundation, the charitable-giving arm of Equitable, which for more than 30 years has contributed to the success and vitality of communities through social impact grants, partnerships and volunteer efforts. Research indicates that some of the leading determinants for social mobility and financial success in life are access to college and career advancement. By supporting high school students in their pursuit of higher education, Equitable is furthering its mission to help people secure their financial well-being to pursue long and fulfilling lives. More than $1.8 million is being awarded by Equitable through the 2021 program, surpassing $30 million in total scholarships to more than 7,000 students since the program's inception in 2003. Reflecting on the work in which he was recognized, award winner Jahin Rahman of the Academy of American Studies in Queens Village, New York said, "I believe that this year was especially important in giving back to my community. During this time, I saw that underprivileged and marginalized people in my home country, Bangladesh, were struggling greatly. Through my organization's educational programs and school in progress, we are changing the lives of former street-children with free quality education and developmental opportunities." "Receiving this scholarship greatly reduces the financial burden of affording college which will allow me to better focus on my studies in pursuit of my degree," said award winner Collin Ladina, who attends North Gwinnett High School in Sugar Hill, Georgia. "This last year has been the hardest of all for many families in my community because the pandemic created added layers of hardship that no one was prepared for. It made me want to put Collin's Care Kits in the hands of as many kids as possible to reassure them that there is always someone willing to help and spending time creatively makes the mind stronger." Added award winner, Carlee Reid, who attends the Academy of Information Technology & Engineering in Stamford, Connecticut, "A year which confronted racial justice and inequality head-on emphasized the vitality of the type of work I do. More people and establishments have obtained the book I illustrated, and my mother wrote, because the themes of racial justice and equality finally had homes in my community. The $25,000 scholarship allows me to have greater bandwidth to pursue work and community opportunities. I aim to maximize the professional and communal impact I can make with this wonderful pportunity."



Congratulations to this year's $25,000 scholarship recipients: Ceyda Alabacak - Chapel Hill, N.C.

East Chapel Hill High School Ceyda founded WeLead, an initiative to connect K-12 girls from all over the world who are passionate about Science, Technology, Engineering, Math (STEM) and social entrepreneurship. The initiative exposes girls and non-binary individuals to STEM opportunities and helps them discover their STEM potential through workshops and mentorship programs. Mara Bravo-Santos - San Pablo, Calif. El Cerrito High School Recognizing an opportunity to empower more of her high school classmates to pursue higher education, Mara started a club called Change Maker to encourage, inform and provide resources to students. As a result of the initiative, teachers and school administrators saw an increased representation of underrepresented students in advanced classes, and local community centers noted an increase in participation in tutoring programs by underserved youth. Salvador Gomez-Colon - San Juan, Puerto Rico Phillips Academy When Salvador's Condado neighborhood was left without power for more than a year following Hurricane Maria, he launched a generosity campaign to help raise money for solar lamps, hand-operated washing machines and other supplies for his neighbors in need. Since 2017, Light and Hope for Puerto Rico has raised more than $178,000 and distributed over 6,400 lamps and 1,500 washers to 4,100 underserved households impacted by natural disasters. Jasmyn Jordan - Normal, Ill. Normal Community West High School After noticing the achievement disparities and participation gaps among black students at her high school, Jasmyn organized the first Black Student Union designed to promote student involvement, academic excellence, leadership, positivity, service and unity among all races of the student body. By encouraging Black students to get involved in their community, Jasmyn was able to help increase participation of students in donation drives, rallies, local events and Black history social media campaigns. Collin Ladina - Sugar Hill, Ga. North Gwinnett High School Collin created Collin's Care Kits to provide activity kits for children in families financially affected by COVID-19. To create the care kits, Collin found donors to supply backpacks and raised money and matched donations with earnings from his own part-time job for coloring books, crayons, puzzles and other items. Partnering with a local Co-op, he distributed 100 kits to children from families most devastated in his community. Alice Le Roux - Ormond Beach, Fla. Spruce Creek High School In 2015, Alice started an environmentally conscious service club focused on donating to people in need. Through Give to Live, she collects and cleans unclaimed lost-and-found items to donate to county schools and organizes major donation drives for school supplies, holiday toys and blankets for the homeless in her area. Since Alice started the effort in 2015, she has helped more than 5,500 people in her community and prevented 47 truckloads of goods from reaching landfills prematurely. Shefali Prakash - Phoenix, Ariz. BASIS Phoenix Shefali works with nonprofit SEWA International to distribute menstrual products to girls in India who lack access to proper hygiene and sanitation. She was the National Youth Lead for the organization's Menstrual Hygiene Project and through her fundraising and awareness efforts, has helped raise more than $40,000 for various chapters to provide menstrual products and resources to over 3,000 young women. Jahin Rahman - Queens Village, N.Y. Academy of American Studies Molded by a violent experience as a child, Jahin founded Efforts in Youth Development of Bangladesh (EYDB) to provide free education and development opportunities to at-risk children living on the streets of Bangladesh. Jahin leads more than 300 volunteers from the U.S. and seven other countries to raise money, oversee construction projects, provide sanitation, drug rehabilitation and childcare services and manage a variety of programs aimed at increasing literacy and education in the region. Carlee Reid - Stamford, Conn. Academy of Information Technology & Engineering Carlee is a children's book author and public speaker who promotes the ideals of internal and external love and appreciation. She published her first book, "I Love My Kinky Hair," in collaboration with her mother in 2016, followed by "Oscar Wears Pink Clothes" in 2020, and regularly speaks at events to promote the importance of acceptance and love for who you are. Meagan Warren - Bexley, Ohio Bexley High School When Meagan was just 11 years old, she founded Books For Bedtime, a nonprofit organization with the goal of ensuring every child has books at home. With the help of hundreds of volunteers located across two chapters in Ohio and New Jersey, Meagan's organization has donated over 125,000 books to inspire countless children to develop a love for reading and learning. To see the full list of Equitable Excellence Scholarship recipients, click here. About Equitable Equitable, a principal franchise of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: EQH), has been one of America's leading financial services providers since 1859. With the mission to help clients secure their financial well-being, Equitable provides advice, protection and retirement strategies to individuals, families and small businesses. Equitable has more than 8,000 employees and Equitable Advisors financial professionals and serves 2.8 million clients across the country. Please visit equitable.com for more information. "Equitable" refers exclusively to Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company (NY, NY). GE-3634273(06/21)(exp.06/23) View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005686/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Omnichannel Grocery Shoppers Spend Up to 20% More

DALLAS, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Symphony RetailAI, a leading global provider of integrated AI-powered marketing, merchandising and supply chain solutions for FMCG retailers and manufacturers, today announced research showing that omnichannel grocery shoppers shop more frequently and spend up to 20% more compared to in-store-only shoppers. The findings come from shopper data collected across Symphony RetailAIs customer base of leading grocery retailers during Q1 2021, across 421 million baskets.

While Symphony RetailAIs research indicated that half of shoppers abandoned the channel after one online purchase, those who remained engaged became more loyal. The data suggests that retaining online and omnichannel shoppers, and encouraging in-store shoppers to make online purchases, will yield long-term loyalty for retailers in the new grocery landscape. Because most grocery retailers operate with narrow margins, its important for them to find ways to gain more share of wallet while building customer loyalty, said Chris Koziol, CEO, Symphony RetailAI. Providing customers with an online channel to shop how and when they want is a key differentiator, as we see with the increasing loyalty of omnichannel shoppers observed in our data. Therefore, the online grocery trend should be seen as a win-win omnichannel scenario, not a matter of bricks versus clicks. Our recommendation to retailers based on these insights is to focus on the complete customer lifecycle and buying journey with an emphasis on driving repeat purchases to build long-term engagement. Symphony RetailAI analyzed shopper data from 421 million baskets in the U.S. and Europe. Key findings from Symphony RetailAIs analysis include the following: Customers are making more repeat purchases. Of customers making an online purchase in Q1 2021, Symphony RetailAI found that seven out of 10 returned and bought again within the same quarter. This is up from five out of 10 in Q1 2020.

Of customers making an online purchase in Q1 2021, Symphony RetailAI found that seven out of 10 returned and bought again within the same quarter. This is up from five out of 10 in Q1 2020. Repeat online visits lead to long-term customer retention. Symphony RetailAIs data shows that if an online customer returns to the channel seven times in the first three months, they are three times more likely to become a long-term engaged customer. While only one-third of customers are considered long-term engagd, they represent more than half of all online sales, making them four times more valuable.

Symphony RetailAIs data shows that if an online customer returns to the channel seven times in the first three months, they are three times more likely to become a long-term engaged customer. While only one-third of customers are considered long-term engagd, they represent more than half of all online sales, making them four times more valuable. Theres potential for online to create an Amazon effect with untapped category ranges. Symphony RetailAI found that only 15% of retailers in-store non-food inventory was also purchased online. As consumers seek convenience in a post-pandemic world, grocers can broaden their online offerings, especially in non-food categories. Promoting a one-stop shop experience from low-penetration in-store categories could avoid a missed opportunity for online sales. Doing so could yield up to 1.8% sales growth.

Symphony RetailAI found that only 15% of retailers in-store non-food inventory was also purchased online. As consumers seek convenience in a post-pandemic world, grocers can broaden their online offerings, especially in non-food categories. Promoting a one-stop shop experience from low-penetration in-store categories could avoid a missed opportunity for online sales. Doing so could yield up to 1.8% sales growth. Online grocery sales doubled year over year. In Q1 2021, ecommerce sales represented 8% of total revenue sales. While this figure may seem small, it has doubled from Q1 2020. Furthermore, online sales contributed 50% of total revenue growth during Q1 2021, up 20% from before the pandemic.



To learn more about Symphony RetailAIs consumer data analysis and how retailers can move from insights to execution, visit Symphony RetailAI.com to view an on-demand webinar.

About Symphony RetailAI

Symphony RetailAI is a leading global provider of role-specific, AI-powered revenue growth management solutions and customer-centric insights for retailers and CPG manufacturers across the entire value chain. Our proven, industry-leading, AI-enabled software, coupled with the industrys only conversational natural-language AI interface, CINDE, provides key users with proven prescriptive and preemptive recommendations that make it easy to identify end-to-end growth opportunities, activate plans and realize measurable profit and revenue growth. Our solutions are specific to key decision-maker roles focused on profitable growth across the retail value chain from source to consumer. With our strong global partner ecosystem, we serve more than 1,200 organizations worldwide  including 15 of the top 25 global grocery retailers, 25 of the top 25 global CPG manufacturers, thousands of retail brands, and hundreds of national and regional chains  all through the Microsoft Azure Cloud. Symphony RetailAI is a SymphonyAI company. More at Symphony RetailAI. About SymphonyAI

SymphonyAI is building the leading enterprise AI company for digital transformation across the most important and resilient growth verticals, including life sciences, healthcare, retail, consumer packaged goods, financial services, manufacturing, and media. In each of these verticals, SAI businesses have many of the leading enterprises as clients. SAI is backed by a $1 billion commitment from Dr. Romesh Wadhwani, a successful entrepreneur and philanthropist. Since its founding in 2017, SymphonyAI has grown rapidly to a combined revenue run rate of more than $300 million and over 2,200 talented leaders, data scientists, and other professionals. More at SymphonyAI. Media Contact

Adrienne Newcomb

Ketner Group Communications (for Symphony RetailAI)

adrienne@ketnergroup.com



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[June 23, 2021] Canada and Saskatchewan announce 23 green and recreation infrastructure projects across the province

REGINA, SK, June 23, 2021 /CNW/ - The governments of Canada and Saskatchewan continue to invest in infrastructure during this extraordinary time to enhance citizens' quality of life, meet the needs of communities, and create jobs to address the impact of COVID-19. Today, the Honourable Jim Carr, Minister and Special Representative for the Prairies, on behalf of the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, and the Honourable Don McMorris, Saskatchewan's Minister of Government Relations, announced more than $81.2 million in joint funding for 23 infrastructure projects across the province. The projects are funded under the Community, Culture, and Recreation Stream and the Green Infrastructure Stream of the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program. Thanks to this investment, Esterhazy, Unity, Meadow Lake, and other communities will benefit from improved access to reliable potable water services. Wastewater treatment facilities will be upgraded and expanded in Humboldt, Oxbow, and Grenfell. Other communities will benefit from the decommissioning of landfills or flood prevention projects. Recreation projects include upgrades to the Rexentre Arena in Fort Qu'Appelle used by many communities in the area. Providing communities with reliable and sustainable infrastructure is a shared priority for both governments. The Government of Canada is investing more than $44.3 million in these projects. For projects requiring consultations with Indigenous groups, funding is conditional on all consultation requirements being met. The Government of Saskatchewan is also contributing over $36.9 million toward these projects. Contributions by recipients toward their respective projects are $29.5 million. In total, this represents a combined infrastructure investment of more than $110.7 million. Funding recipients are responsible for any additional project costs. Quotes "This is an example of what we can accomplish when we work together. The $44 million in federal funding announced today, along with the provincial and municipal funding, will help ensure communities across Saskatchewan have reliable services and recreation infrastructure for years to come. The funding announced today will help these communities build back better, create jobs, and build cleaner, more inclusive communities." The Honourable Jim Carr, Minister and Special Representative for the Prairies, on behalf of the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities "The Government of Saskatchewan is proud to invest more than $36 million to support upgrades to water and wastewater systems, improve recreational facilities and decommission historic landfills to safeguard the environment. These infrastructure projects will help protect local economies, which are continuing to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. In the end, the ICIP program and these projects across the province are building better, stronger and safer communities for the future of Saskatchewan." The Honourable Don McMorris, Saskatchewan's Minister of Government Relations "This is absolutely phenomenal for our community and area. Thanks to this investment from the federal and provincial governments toward this important infrastructure, we'll be able to proceed with our regional water system project. Once the work is completed, this project will improve the quality of water for our residents, position the town for growth, and give our treatment facility the capacity to provide potable water to help our neighbours in surrounding communities and the rural area." His Worship Grant Forster, Mayor of the Town of Esterhazy "We're grateful to be receiving this funding from the Government of Canada and the Government of Saskatchewan toward our Rexentre project. The various upgrades planned will extend the service life of this important community hub that's not only used by Fort Qu'Appelle residents, but many other communities in the region." His Worship Gus Lagace, Mayor of the Town of Fort Qu'Appelle Quick facts To support Canadians and communities during the COVID-19 pandemic, a COVID-19 Resilience Stream has been added to the over $33-billion Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program to help fund pandemic-resilient infrastructure. Existing program streams have also been adapted to include more eligible project categories.

Investing in Infrastructure Program to help fund pandemic-resilient infrastructure. Existing program streams have also been adapted to include more eligible project categories. Through the COVID-19 Resilience Stream, over $3 billion is available to provide provinces and territories with added flexibility to fund quick-start, short term projects.

is available to provide provinces and territories with added flexibility to fund quick-start, short term projects. The COVID-19 Resilience Stream allows the Government of Canada to invest up to 80 per cent in projects that support provinces, and up to 100 per cent in projects that support territories and Indigenous communities in their response to the pandemic.

to invest up to 80 per cent in projects that support provinces, and up to 100 per cent in projects that support territories and Indigenous communities in their response to the pandemic. Under the Investing in Canada Plan, the federal government is investing more than $180 billion over 12 years in public transit projects, green infrastructure, social infrastructure, trade and transportation routes, and Canada's rural and northern communities.

Plan, the federal government is investing more than over 12 years in public transit projects, green infrastructure, social infrastructure, trade and transportation routes, and rural and northern communities. In Saskatchewan , the Government of Canada has invested more than $924 million in over 520 infrastructure projects since 2015 under the Investing in Canada Plan. Related product Canada and Saskatchewan announce 23 green and recreation infrastructure projects across the province The Government of Canada is investing more than $44.3 million in 23 projects under the Community, Culture, and Recreation Stream and the Green Infrastructure Stream of the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program. The Government of Saskatchewan is contributing over $36.9 million. Contributions by recipients toward their respective projects are $29.5 million. In total, this represents a combined infrastructure investment of more than $110.7 million. Funding recipients are responsible for any additional project costs.







Location / Area Proponent - Project Description Federal Contribution Provincial Contribution Proponent Contribution Brokenshell No. 68, Rural Municipality of Rural Municipality of Brokenshell No. 68 - Trossachs Landfill Decommissioning Decommission a former .5 ha landfill, and construct an engineered cap on the landfill. $118,080 $98,390 $78,730 Bruno, Town of Town of Bruno - Water Loop Expansion Increase access to potable water by adding approximately 150 metres of piping to the watermain system. $102,064 $85,045 $68,051 Canora, Town of Town of Canora - Historical Landfill Decommissioning Decommission and close the existing landfill. $1,016,389 $846,906 $677,677 Central Butte, Town of Town of Central Butte - Water Treatment Plant Upgrade Project Increase raw water supply capacity and distribution pumping capacity, and add an ultraviolet system in the existing water treatment plant building. $390,000 $324,968 $260,032 Elbow, Village of Village of Elbow - Line 19 Multi-Purpose Facility Construct a community centre, which will house a community hall / gymnasium area, a fitness centre, a library, and two meeting rooms. $2,600,000 $2,166,450 $1,733,550 Esterhazy, Town of Town of Esterhazy - Regional Water System Construct a water treatment facility and associated piping to provide potable water to the Town of Esterhazy, surrounding communities, industry and rural residents. $11,970,000 $9,974,003 $7,980,997 Excel No. 71, Rural Municipality of RM of Excel No. 71 - Landfill Decommissioning and Land Reclamation After Closure Decommission and close the Verwood landfill. $92,034 $76,687 $61,364 Fort Qu'Appelle, Town of Town of Fort Qu'Appelle - Rexentre HVAC & Mechanical Upgrades Upgrade and replace the Rexentre Arena's mechanical HVAC and refrigeration systems. $90,240 $75,192 $60,168 Glen Ewen, Village of Village of Glen Ewen - Water Treatment Plant Expansion Install an additional water storage tank to increase storage capacity of filtered pre-chlorinated water. $150,543 $125,440 $100,375 Grenfell, Town of Town of Grenfell - Secondary Lagoon Upgrade Construct a new waste storage lagoon with associated piping and valves. $785,200 $654,268 $523,532 Humboldt, City of City of Humboldt - Wastewater Treatment System Upgrades Upgrade the wastewater treatment system to meet effluent limits to be compliant with provincial and federal regulations, and expand treatment capacity. $13,621,200 $11,349,865 $9,081,935 Kamsack, Town of Town of Kamsack - Broda Sportsplex Upgrade Upgrade the Broda Sportsplex to provide recreational services in a safe, inclusive and accessible facility. $1,764,520 $1,470,286 $1,176,494 Kannata Valley, Resort Village of Resort Village of Kannata Valley - Storm Water Drainage Infrastructure Improvement Install 12 culverts, 12 catch basins and associated works to provide a storm water management system. Project will help prevent landslide movement and minimize damage to property during extreme weather events. $58,165 $48,466 $38,781 La Ronge, Northern Town of Lac La Ronge Regional Waste Management Corppration - Landfill Decommissioning and Solid Waste Management Sites Decommission four landfills in the communities of Brabant, Weyakwin, Timber Bay, and Missinipe in the Lac la Ronge area. The project will also include the development of the solid waste handling sites to facilitate the transfer of solid waste to the Lac la Ronge Regional landfill. $1,479,380 $1,232,693 $986,377 Meadow Lake, Town of SaskWater  Meadow Lake Water Treatment Plant Actiflo Clarification Add an Actiflo clarifying unit to the water treatment plant to meet current water supply demand and to add redundancy to the plant. $990,000 $824,918 $660,082 Nipawin, Town of Boreal Area Regional Waste Authority Inc. - Historical Landfill Site Decommissioning Decommission and close the existing landfill. $1,421,742 $1,184,666 $947,946 Nokomis, Town of Town of Nokomis - Lagoon Expansion Construct a new storage cell to the existing lagoon and associated works. $561,376 $467,767 $374,297 Oxbow, Town of Town of Oxbow - Wastewater System Capacity Building Upgrade the current wastewater system to increase treatment capacity. $1,521,968 $1,268,180 $1,014,771 Rosetown, Town of Town of Rosetown - Lagoon Expansion & Industrial Lift Station Upgrade Expand the secondary cell of the lagoon, upgrade the existing industrial area low lift sewage pumping station, and construct a new force main from the industrial pumping station to the lagoon to replace the current undersized force main. $1,536,690 $1,280,447 $1,024,587 St. Brieux, Town of Town of St. Brieux - Lagoon Wastewater Upgrade Install a Submerged Attached Growth Reactor system to provide secondary water treatment ability, rehabilitate the existing cell to provide flood protection, decommission a storage cell, and conduct all associated mechanical, piping, electrical and other works. $1,304,200 $1,086,725 $869,575 Torch River No. 488, Rural Municipality of RM of Torch River No. 488 - Installation of Culverts on Various Locations Increase the structural capacity to handle the spring flooding, and replace aging or damaged culverts in different locations. $176,966 $147,457 $117,992 Unity, Town of Town of Unity - 1st Avenue West Water and Waste Water Transmission Line Replacement Project Replace failing water main lines to ensure consistent and predictable supply of clean drinking water, and replace the sanitary sewer main. $1,732,668 $1,443,746 $1,155,257 Vanscoy, Village of Village of Vanscoy - Water Distribution System Upgrades Expand the existing water treatment plant with additional reservoir capacity, upgrade the pumping equipment, controls, backup power generation and distribution piping network. $818,000 $681,599 $545,401 Total federal, provincial and proponent funding $44,301,425 $36,914,164 $29,537,971

Associated links Investing in Canada: Canada's Long-Term Infrastructure Plan

http://www.infrastructure.gc.ca/plan/icp-publication-pic-eng.html Investing in Canada Plan Project Map

http://www.infrastructure.gc.ca/map Federal infrastructure investments in Saskatchewan

https://www.infrastructure.gc.ca/plan/prog-proj-sk-eng.html Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn

Web: Infrastructure Canada SOURCE Infrastructure Canada

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[June 23, 2021] OTC:ILUS, ILUS International (Ilustrato Pictures International Inc), Announces its Acquisition Update as It Closes in on Numerous Strategic Acquisitions

NEW YORK, NY, June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NewMediaWire -- ILUS International Inc (OTC: ILUS) is a M&A company focused on acquiring and developing technology-based companies globally. The company has already completed three acquisitions in 2021 and has been working on completing several strategic acquisitions in Europe and the USA.

ILUS acquisition strategy includes the aggressive acquisition and consolidation of companies that fit its strategic modus operandi and its core mission of delivering innovative and disruptive technology which protects and saves lives. ILUS has a three-pronged acquisition strategy and is conducting thorough due diligence on, and negotiating with, potential acquisitions that satisfy the following objectives: Acquisitions that will add to ILUS manufacturing footprint and global production capacity since many of its key markets require or prefer local manufacturing capability instead of importing. ILUS is acquiring companies with well-established brands and routes to market in specific sectors, which will exponentially speed up the penetration of the ILUS product range into those markets or sectors. ILUS is acquiring companies that have a technological advantage, where the target company will contribute significant innovation to the ILUS group of products or wider strategy. Technology additions are focused on the public safety sector and include software solutions with significant Artificial Intelligence capability, IoT technology including wearable technology, and disruptive drone technology. ILUS is currently engaged in the final stages of discussions in Europe where it expects to complete an acquisition which it has been working on for nearly five months. This acquisition will simultaneously benefit from a Joint Venture with a specialist vehicle manufacturer and the privatization of a large ex-government manufacturing plant. This European acquisition has many moving parts and is substantial in size and strategic importance. The deal will allow ILUS access to some of the worlds largest free trade agreements including the whole of Russia, China, European Union and Eastern Europe, servicing a combined population of over two billion people, some of worlds largest economies and key markets which are in dire need of a technology refresh. This acquisition will also provide a high-quality, low-cost manufacturing base for higher volume ILUS products such as the kitchen system, all Fire and Rescue products and the E-Raptor electric Utility Vehicle. Immediate market potential includes the replacement of 400 fire vehicles over the next few years in order to bring the target acquisition countrys fleet up to the European EURO 6 standards. Currently, there is no manufacturer in the region that can deliver the requirement of meeting the latest engine and Co2 emissions standards. There are many moving parts to a deal of this magnitude which need to be properly structured to reduce any risk for ILUS. There are also several important factors which need to be factored into the timescale that are currently being assessed and finalized. These include government approval, tax incentives, corporate structure, grants and various other financial, strategic and political considerations. We are pleased to say that this acquisition is progressing extremely well and is expected to deliver great value to ILUS. While the European deal is nearing completion, ILUS is beginning to aggressively focus on the USA where it plans to open a new factory in Ocala, Florida - the same location as three other major global Fire and Rescue companies. ILUS has short-listed the facilities of interest and plans to have the lease in place with factory set-up uderway by the end of July.



The Florida manufacturing facility that will be in operation by late August 2021 will be accompanied by two smaller Distribution/Support/Sales Centers on the East and West Coasts of the US. ILUS is still reviewing its options for these facilities. The West Coast facility will have a heavy emphasis on wildfire technology and a more customized range will be distributed from this location. Plans are in place and discussions underway already to replicate this in the Australian market, which faces very similar wildfire challenges. Potential acquisitions that ILUS is working on in the USA will place production demand on the new proposed Ocala factory. The US acquisitions are in the late stages of due diligence and deal structuring. These acquisitions form part of the larger US and Global strategy and will not be standalone acquisitions, with each acquisition directly benefitting other companies within the ILUS Group. Each deal is designed to add value and fit the overall strategic direction and strategy of the group. Although ILUS would like to have completed these deals already, it is ensuring that the considerations and risks for each deal are addressed and eliminated. ILUS is comfortable in the deal progress, the positions that the company has so far negotiated and is confident that the majority of the shareholder base will be supportive of the deals which will deliver on the acquisition objective of adding medium to long-term value.

ILUS Dubai factory is now fully operational and increasing efficiency as the new systems and processes begin to bed themselves down. The team is currently working on completing the ISO 9001 Quality Assurance Certification and preparing to complete the kitchen system certification, which is linked to ISO 9001. Delivery of two new large CNC machines is expected towards the end of July. Although the factory faced multiple COVID challenges with key staff being stranded abroad in India and many also having to self-isolate, the facility is now operating at full steam. ILUS is currently recruiting for additional sales and marketing staff in Dubai, Europe, UK and USA and is also currently booking exhibitions for late 2021 and 2022. The company is currently in the process of appointing a new General Manager for the Middle East, General Manager for UK and Europe and a UK based Marketing Communications Manager. Following this will be the appointment of a US based Technical Director and a US based Marketing Content Manager. ILUS CEO, Nicolas Link, commented with the following: We are working as quickly as we can on all the deals and the overall strategy. We wish we could simply accelerate into the future but we have certainly been working extremely hard and progressed very well. I am excited to say that we are now in the closing stages with these acquisitions and there are also more in the pipeline. The second half of 2021 will certainly get off to a flying start. For further information on the companies please see their communication channels: Website: https://ilus-group.com Twitter : OTC_ILUS Contact: Email: IR@Ilus-Group.com Source: ILUS Related Links https://ilus-group.com Forward-Looking Statement Certain information set forth in this press release contains "forward-looking information", including "future-oriented financial information" and "financial outlook", under applicable securities laws (collectively referred to herein as forward-looking statements). Except for statements of historical fact, the information contained herein constitutes forward-looking statements and includes, but is not limited to, the (i) projected financial performance of the Company; (ii) completion of, and the use of proceeds from, the sale of the shares being offered hereunder; (iii) the expected development of the Company's business, projects, and joint ventures; (iv) execution of the Company's vision and growth strategy, including with respect to future M&A activity and global growth; (v) sources and availability of third-party financing for the Company's projects; (vi) completion of the Company's projects that are currently underway, in development or otherwise under consideration; (vi) renewal of the Company's current customer, supplier and other material agreements; and (vii) future liquidity, working capital, and capital requirements. Forward-looking statements are provided to allow potential investors the opportunity to understand management's beliefs and opinions in respect of the future so that they may use such beliefs and opinions as one factor in evaluating an investment. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and undue reliance should not be placed on them. Such forward-looking statements necessarily involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which may cause actual performance and financial results in future periods to differ materially from any projections of future performance or result expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Although forward-looking statements contained in this presentation are based upon what management of the Company believes are reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change except as required by applicable securities laws. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") has provided guidance to issuers regarding the use of social media to disclose material non-public information. In this regard, investors and others should note that we announce material financial information via official Press Releases, in addition to SEC filings, press releases, Questions & Answers sessions, public conference calls and webcastsalso may take time from time to time. We use these channels as well as social media to communicate with the public about our company, our services and other issues. It is possible that the information we post on social media could be deemed to be material information. Therefore, in light of the SEC's guidance, we encourage investors, the media, and others interested in our company to review the information we post on the following social &media channels: website: https://ilus-group.com Twitter : OTC_ILUS Note: ILUS Coin does not sit within ILUS International Inc (Ilustrato Pictures International Inc) so the public are recommended to follow the correct Media Channels relating to the public company OTC: ILUS.



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[June 23, 2021] Global Real Estate Crowdfunding Market Outlook Report 2021-2028 - ResearchAndMarkets.com

The "Global Real Estate Crowdfunding Market Outlook 2028" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The global real estate crowdfunding market registered is anticipated to grow with a magnificent CAGR of 33.4% during the forecast period, i.e., 2020-2028. Real estate crowdfunding is a new and revolutionary way for business owners to raise money for their business. The process involves reaching out to a large pool of small investors who contribute a small amount of money in real estate projects instead of asking one investor for a huge investment. Factors such as the rising number of real estate activities, along with the increasing favorable regulations of government of nations worldwide for crowdfunding in the real estate sector, are anticipated to contribute to the market growth during the forecast period. Additionally, factors such as the growing adoption of IT technologies, such as blockchain, artificial intelligence, machine learning and others, in the real estate sector for sourcing funds, coupled with the increasing globalization and industrialization, and the favorable government initiatives for crowdfunding, are anticipated to drive the market growth in the coming years. The global real estate crowdfunding market consists of numerous segments, which are segmented by investors, model, real estate sector, and by region. The crowdfunding model segment is further bifurcated into lending and equity crowdfunding. Out of these segments, the lending crowdfunding segment registered the largest market share in the year 2019. In addition, the real estate sector segment is further bifurcated into residential and commercial sectors. Out of these segments, the residential sector is projected to grab the largest market share by the end of 2021. Based on region, the global real estate crowdfunding market is segmented into North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and the Middle East & Africa, out of which, he market in North America is projected to hold the second largest share of close to 30% by the end of 2021, and is primarily driven by nations such as the United States and Canada.



Some of the prominent players in the global real estate crowdfunding market are CrowdStreet, Inc., RM Technologies LLC, RealCrowd, Inc., Groundbreaker Technologies, Inc., Groundfloor Finance Inc., DiversyFund, Inc., EstateGuru OU, AHP Servicing LLC, Crowdestate AS, and Fundrise, LLC. Key Topics Covered:

Global Real Estate Crowdfunding Market 1. Introduction

1.1. Market Definition

1.2. Market Segmentation

1.3. Product overview 2. Research Methodology

2.1. Research process

2.1.1. Primary research

2.1.2. Secondary research

2.1.3. Market size estimation 3. Executive Summary-Global Real Estate Crowdfunding Market 4. COVID-19 impact on Global Real Estate Crowdfunding Market 5. Policies and Regulations Landscape 6. Analysis of Fundraising Model in real estate crowdfunding market

6.1. Fixed Model

6.2. Flexible model 7. Market Dynamics

7.1. Drivers

7.2. Restraints

7.3. Opportunities

7.4. Trends 8. Assessment of Use Cases of Real Estate Crowdfunding Market 9. Analysis of Operating Costs Incurred in Real Estate Crowdfunding Market

9.1. Platform Fees

9.2. Equity (additional) Fees

9.3. Marketing Costs

9.4. Project Specific Costs

9.5. Realization Costs 10. Assessment of Tax Implications in Real Estate Crowdfunding

10.1. Income tax

10.2. Capital Gains Tax

10.3. Depreciation Recapture

10.4. State Taxes 11. Focus on Investor Perspective 12. Analysis on volume of crowdfunding: P2P lending and equity crowdfunding 13. Number of crowdfunding platforms 14. Global perspective on crowd funding platform 15. Analysis on Institutional investors 16. Impact of block chain technology in Real estate crowdfunding market 17. Overview on Bitcoin crowdfunding 18. Block chain in Real estate crowdfunding - Use case analysis 19. Elaborate analysis on third party verifiers and other service providers - opportunities in the ventures 20. Competitive Landscape 21. Global Real Estate Crowdfunding Market Industry Outlook (2019-2028)

21.1. By Investors

21.1.1. Individual investors, 2019-2028F (USD million)

21.1.2. Institutional investors, 2019-2028F (USD million)

21.2. By crowdfunding model

21.2.1. Lending crowdfunding, 2019-2028F (USD million)

21.2.2. Equity crowdfunding, 2019-2028F (USD million)

21.3. By real estate sector

21.3.1. Residential, 2019-2028F (USD million)

21.3.2. Commercial, 2019-2028F (USD million) 22. Regional Real Estate Crowdfunding Market Industry Outlook Companies Mentioned CrowdStreet Inc.

RM Technologies LLC

RealCrowd Inc.

Groundbreaker Technologies Inc.

Groundfloor Finance Inc.

DiversyFund Inc.

EstateGuru OU

AHP Servicing LLC

Crowdestate AS

Fundrise LLC. For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/ms834m View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005778/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Red Hat Becomes Continuous Delivery Foundation Premier Member

SAN FRANCISCO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Continuous Delivery Foundation (CDF), the open-source software foundation that seeks to improve the world's capacity to deliver software with security and speed, today announced that Red Hat has become a premier member. Red Hat's Jason Hall will represent the company as a governing board member. Red Hat originally joined the CDF in 2019 as a founding member. "As a member of the CDF from the very beginning, we have seen the positive contributions the CDF is making to the broader continuous delivery ecosystem first hand. CDF provides a critical vendor-neutral open governance structure for guiding open source continuous delivery tools and technology development and offers a productive path for solving large problems that benefit customers and the broader community," said Jason Hall, senior principal software engineer at Red Hat and CDF governing board member. Red Hat recently announced OpenShift Pipelines , a Kubernetes-native CI/CD framework based on a CDF founding project called Tekton. OpenShift Pipelines enables each step of the CI/CD pipeline to run in its own container, allowing them to scale independently. "We view the Tekton ecosystem as the future of cloud native continuous delivery and with Shipwright, an extensible open source framework for building container images on Kubernetes built on Tekton, we are developing a more secure platform for enterprise Kubernetes," stated Hall. Open source technologies and projects like Jenkins, Jenkins X, Spinnaker, Tekton, Screwdriver and Ortelius are hosted by the CDF to encourage collaboration and technical contribution. Shipwright is a framework for declaring and executing image builds. It boasts a pluggable architecture that allows for many common build strategies including CNCF Buildpacks, Kaniko, Buildah, s2i and others. Shipwright is built on Tekton, a CDF founding project, and adds a higher-level focus on simply building container images. A Red Hat presentation by Jason Hll at cdCon on June 23, 5:10pm PDT, will introduce Shipwright, describe how it takes advantage of Tekton's platform, and demo how to use a built-in build strategy to deliver images using Buildpacks.



"Red Hat has been an important part of the CDF, and we are excited that they are taking a big step forward and becoming a premier member. This is a great vote of confidence in the CDF," said Tracy Miranda, Continuous Delivery Foundation Executive Director. "With Red Hat's leadership contributions, CDF will continue growing open source projects that strengthen the continuous delivery ecosystem of tools and services." "We are extremely familiar with the excellent work Red Hat does, and we are excited to collaborate even more closely together to build enterprise-ready open source tools," said Dan Lorenc, CDF Technical Oversight Committee (TOC) Chair. "Working together is key to setting strategy and pushing forward technological advances in continuous delivery. This can't be accomplished by one company alone. It needs a vendor-neutral open governance structure with great members like Red Hat."

Red Hat joins CDF premier members Armory, CircleCI, CloudBees, Fujitsu, Google, Huawei, JFrog, and Netflix in making continuous delivery tools more accessible, standardized and sustainable. CDF is an open source community that seeks to improve the world's capacity to deliver software with security and speed. Membership can facilitate organizations' journeys to becoming high performing software delivery organizations while leveraging open source. Joining the CDF grants organizations access to expertise, proven methodologies and a place where ideas and innovation lead the conversation. To join the CD Foundation as a member, please click here . Additional CD Foundation Resources Join CDF

Contact CDF

CDF Projects

CDF FAQ

CDF Twitter

CDF Blog About the Continuous Delivery Foundation The Continuous Delivery Foundation (CDF) seeks to improve the world's capacity to deliver software with security and speed. The CDF is a vendor-neutral organization that is establishing best practices of software delivery automation, propelling education and adoption of CD tools, and facilitating cross-pollination across emerging technologies. The CDF is home to many of the fastest-growing projects for CD, including Jenkins, Jenkins X, Tekton, and Spinnaker. The CDF is part of the Linux Foundation, a nonprofit organization. For more information about the CDF, please visit https://cd.foundation . The Linux Foundation has registered trademarks and uses trademarks. For a list of trademarks of The Linux Foundation, please see our trademark usage page. Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. Red Hat and OpenShift are trademarks or registered trademarks of Red Hat, Inc. or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and other countries. Media Contact:

Jesse Casman

jesse@storychangesculture.com View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/red-hat-becomes-continuous-delivery-foundation-premier-member-301318503.html SOURCE CD Foundation

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[June 23, 2021] CNCF End User Community Provides Insights into Kubernetes Cluster Management with Technology Radar

SAN FRANCISCO, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Cloud Native Computing Foundation  (CNCF), which builds sustainable ecosystems for cloud native software, today announced the findings of the fifth CNCF End User Technology Radar, a guide to a set of emerging technologies based on the experience of the CNCF End User Community . The theme of this edition for the second quarter of 2021 was Multicluster Management. The growing popularity of distributed and multi-cloud deployments means organizations are running Kubernetes across many environments, including on-premise, public cloud, and edge. While this improves application availability, reduces latency, and makes it easier to scale both legacy and cloud native applications, it increases complexity as each cluster needs to be individually deployed and managed. The Radar team chose this as a topic because they found their organizations were all managing and deploying clusters in different ways. "Multicluster management is still an emerging and complex space, so we wanted to gain a broader understanding of how organizations are doing it in the real world," said Cheryl Hung, VP Ecosystem, Cloud Native Computing Foundation. "What we found is that there is no one size fits all solution for cluster management. Overall, approaches vary widely based on the number of clusters deployed and the management tools already in place, and custom tooling is usually necessary." After reviewing the data provided by end user organizations, the Radar team divided the solutions into two sub-categories, cluster deployment and core services and add-ons, to differentiate between tools used for deployment and those used to manage day 2 operations. The team summarized its findings in five key themes, which can be viewed in more detail on the Radar page . Tools for managing core services, like DNS, metrics, logs, RBAC, and namespaces, outnumbered the tools for deployment on the Radar. They also received a higher total number of "Adopt" votes than deployment tools. The most widely used core services solutions are Helm, Operators, Kustomize, and GitOps tools Argo and Flux. Custom tools are used across both categories, while public and private managed Kubernetes and Terraform are popular solutions for cluster deployment. Only two solutions ended up in the "Assess" category, kOps and Cluster API, both solutions for cluster deployment. Many end users noted they are closely watching the development Cluster API, a Kubernetes sub-project, hoping it will reduce the need for custom tooling. Jsonnet for cluster services was the only tool in "Trial". "Compared with other Radars, we had more tools than ever in the Adopt category," said Gabe Jackson, Clod Platform Tech Lead at Mattermost. "This actually demonstrates how fractured the cluster management space currently is. Many organizations were almost forced into adopting many different specific tools for specific uses. As time goes on and Kubernetes deployments mature, we'll see more consolidation of tools coming together to address a broader range of needs.



"Everyone starts with one Kubernetes cluster and expands and grows their environments from there, but currently there is no clear path for organizations starting this journey," said Federico Hernandez, Principal Engineer at Meltwater. "In creating this Radar we wanted to document the available tools and processes so that organizations that are just starting can learn from organizations who have already been down this path." The CNCF Technology Radar is an initiative from the CNCF End User Community, a group of more than 140 leading-edge companies and startups, such as Airbnb, Capital One, and Twitter, who use cloud native technologies and aim to identify challenges and best practices when adopting them. The Technology Radar shares insight into which tools are used by end users and how and which tools end users recommend for broad adoption.

To learn more about the Radar results, watch the webinar with the Radar team and visit radar.cncf.io . You can also view previous Technology Radars on Continuous Delivery, Observability, Database Storage, and Secrets Management. About the Methodology

In May 2021, the 140+ companies in the CNCF End User Community were asked to describe what their companies recommended for different solutions: Hold, Assess, Trial, or Adopt. They could also give more detailed comments. As the answers were submitted via a Google Spreadsheet, they were neither private nor anonymized within the group. Twenty-four companies, including Adidas, Intuit, Squarespace, The New York Times, and Workday, submitted 210 data points. These were sorted to determine the final positions. The Radar Team then curated the responses, chose outcomes, and described any patterns or themes they saw in the data or from their own experience. About the Radar Team

Gabe Jackson is a Cloud Platform Tech Lead at Mattermost. He has worked on various distributed systems over the years and generally enjoys the challenges in this space. Federico Hernandez is a Principal Engineer at Meltwater, working with the internal platform offering based on Kubernetes. He has been a KubeCon + CloudNativeCon program committee member and chair for the Operations track. Simone Sciarrati is an Engineering Team Lead at Meltwater, where he has been focusing on building an internal Kubernetes-based platform to make life easier for development teams. Niraj Amin is Vice President of Cloud Platforms at Fidelity Investments, where he leads the engineering teams that work on Kubernetes-based platforms for all of Fidelity's R&D teams, focusing primarily on offerings on multiple CSPs. Rajarajan Pudupatti SJ is Vice President of Cloud Platform Delivery at Fidelity Investments, responsible for the architecture and delivery of the next-gen application platform. Additional Resources CNCF Newsletter

CNCF Twitter

CNCF Website

Learn About CNCF Membership

Learn About the CNCF End User Community About Cloud Native Computing Foundation Cloud native computing empowers organizations to build and run scalable applications with an open source software stack in public, private, and hybrid clouds. The Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) hosts critical components of the global technology infrastructure, including Kubernetes, Prometheus, and Envoy. CNCF brings together the industry's top developers, end users, and vendors, and runs the largest open source developer conferences in the world. Supported by more than 500 members, including the world's largest cloud computing and software companies, as well as over 200 innovative startups, CNCF is part of the nonprofit Linux Foundation. For more information, please visit www.cncf.io. The Linux Foundation has registered trademarks and uses trademarks. For a list of trademarks of The Linux Foundation, please see our trademark usage page. Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. Media Contact

Katie Meinders

The Linux Foundation

PR@CNCF.io View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cncf-end-user-community-provides-insights-into-kubernetes-cluster-management-with-technology-radar-301318558.html SOURCE Cloud Native Computing Foundation

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[June 23, 2021] Gopuff Joins the White House to Support Vaccinations Across Hundreds of U.S. Community Colleges and Universities

Gopuff is joining the White House's National Action Month, the nation-wide campaign to get eligible Americans vaccinated. Gopuff is offering $100,000 in Gopuff credits for select community college and university pop-up events across the country in Gopuff markets, kicking off today at Forsyth Technical Community College in Winston-Salem, NC. This initiative is part of the White House's ongoing efforts to expand access to vaccinations among 12-39 year olds throughout the country. Gopuff credits will be made available to members of the community working or volunteering at the event, or anyone receiving a COVID-19 vaccine at these select vaccination events. "Gopuff is thrilled to support the White House National Action Month," said Daniel Folkman, Gopuff's SVP Business. "Gopuff started on a college campus, and we are proud to be able to support students and schools across the country as we work together to drive vaccinations in local communities and among students across the U.S." This commitment builds directly upon Gopuff's previously announced Covid Health Initiative, through which Gopuff donated over $1 million dollars since 2020 to local community-based organizations across the country to fight against the spread of Covid-19. About Gopuff Gopuff is the go-to solution for immediate everyday needs, fulfilling customer orders of cleaning and home products, over-the-counter medications, baby and pet products, food and drinks, and in some markets, alcohol - in just minutes. With micro-fulfillment centers in every market it serves, the company delivers thousands of products quickly for a flat $1.95 delivery charge. Gopuff is open 24/7 in many markets and late night everywhere else to bring customers what they need, when they need it most.



Founded in 2013 by co-founders and co-CEOs Rafael Ilishayev and Yakir Gola, Gopuff currently operates more than 450 sites, including 275+ micro-fulfillment centers and 184+ recently acquired BevMo! and Liquor Barn locations. To learn more, visit www.Gopuff.com or follow Gopuff on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. Download the Gopuff app on iOS and Android. About the National Action Month & Community College initiative

The National Month of Action (June 4-July 4) is mobilizing national organizations, local government leaders, community-based and faith-based partners, businesses, employers, social media influencers, celebrities, athletes, colleges, young people, and thousands of volunteers. As part of the Month of Action, the Administration has launched the COVID-19 College Challenge and worked to facilitate partnerships between more than 60 community colleges and pharmacies in the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program to provide pop-up vaccination clinics at high-enrollment community colleges between now and July 4th. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005664/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Echodyne Expands Market for Leading CUAS Radar, EchoGuard

Echodyne, the radar platform company, announced today substantial enhancements to its industry-leading radars, adding a new radar for international markets, a new product for special operations-type applications, a ruggedized radome, and continuing improvements in software and performance. Together, these product developments represent significant advancements to its breakthrough radar technology, MESA. With customers in defense, national security, and critical infrastructure protection, Echodyne radars have become a core component for counter-UAS, border security, and base and perimeter 3D surveillance solutions. The products and improvements include: EchoGuard International. The new EchoGuard radar has RoHS3 construction and is compliant with CE Radio Equipment Directive (RED) compliance for EU customers, per Type Examination Certificate per 2014/53/EU Radio Equipment directive.

EchoGuard spectrum expansion. Many jurisdictions allow for RadioLocation use at 24.05-24.25 GHz, and EchoGuard now has a new product variant to address these markets.

Improved radome. A ruggedized radome designed to withstand 1.5 joules of impact energy without altering the radar's form factor.

Lightweight Deployment Kit (LDK). With customer demand running high for a lightweight ystem, the new LDK is designed to fit 10 hours of Intelligence, Surveillance, & Reconnaissance (ISR) activity, including radar, computer, and batteries, into a military backpack weighing <20 lbs.

Firmware updates. All Echodyne radars are software-defined, and this update includes enhanced stability and greater ease of use and functionality.

New waveform ideal for slow velocity resolution. Driven by customer demand, the new waveform is designed to detect and track very slow movement, like stealthy human walking, at greater than 1.5 miles.

RadarUI update. We have significantly upgraded our radar user interface with extended product line support and faster field deployment for easy radar visualization.



For additional details and technical specifications, please visit our website at echodyne.com.

About Echodyne Echodyne, the radar platform company, designs and delivers high-performance compact, solid-state, patent-protected MESA radars. Ideally suited for defense, security, machine perception, and autonomy, Echodyne's commercially priced electronically-scanned array radars are used by defense and government agencies, autonomous developers, and security integrators for counter-UAS, borders and perimeter security, critical infrastructure protection, unmanned aerial vehicles, and autonomous vehicles. Privately held, the company is based in Kirkland, Washington, and is backed by Bill Gates (News - Alert) , NEA, Madrona Venture Group, Vulcan Capital, Vanedge Capital, and Lux Capital among others. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005315/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Mouser Electronics Recognizes 2021 Best-in-Class Award Winners

Mouser Electronics congratulates the 2021 winners of its annual Mouser Best-in-Class Awards. The annual awards selection, now in its 26th year, recognizes the outstanding individuals from Mouser's manufacturer partners who best supported the global distributor's marketing programs and new product introduction (NPI) launches by demonstrating exemplary teamwork and top performance. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005727/en/ Mouser Electronics congratulates the winners of its annual Best-in-Class Awards, which celebrate manufacturer partners who demonstrate exemplary teamwork. (Photo: Business Wire) "Each year, we select our Best-in-Class Award winners from hundreds of business colleagues. Today, we are excited to recognize these 10 extraordinary individuals," said Jeff Newell, Mouser Electronics' Senior Vice President of Products. "We want to thank all of these dedicated professionals. You have played a key role in helping us serve our customers with both your newest products, as well as the largest breadth of product in your channel. Thank you and congratulations!" Winners of the Mouser Best-in-Class Award are selected using five main criteria: Strategically partnering with the Mouser team; promoting product lines and working together on new product launches; finding creative solutions to grow market share mutually for both companies; maximizing Mouser's unique value proposition within their own businesses; and championing Mouser within their organizations. 2021 Mouser Best-in-Class Award Winners:







Fred Bell Molex Mary Benetti-Condon Bel Fuse Inc. James Chandler Amphenol Advanced Sensors Joe Haukos Wurth Elektronik Bob Johnson NXP Semiconductors Hailey Kamen Henkel Diane Laegeler Digi Ivy Spidale Littelfuse Tammy Stine TE Connectivity Christoph Wolf RECOM

This year, Mouser also recognized the individual who has achieved the President's Award honors. The President's Award celebrates the exemplary individuals from Mouser's supplier partners who have won the Best-in-Class Award five or more times, demonstrating consistent top performance. This year's Wall of Fame and President's Award Winner is Tammy Stine of TE Connectivity. "The President's Award is one of the highest and rarest recognitions that Mouser gives to colleagues at our manufacturer partners. It represents our profound respect and appreciation for exceptional teamwork," said Glenn Smith, President and CEO of Mouser Electronics. "The TE-Mouser relationship has benefited greatly with Tammy's guidance, and all of Mouser joins me in congratulating her on this well-deserved President's Award." To learn more about the awards and recipients, visit https://www.mouser.com/bestinclass/. As a global authorized distributor, Mouser offers the world's widest selection of the newest semiconductors and electronic components - in stock and ready to ship. Mouser's customers can expect 100% certified, genuine products that are fully traceable from each of its manufacturer partners. To help speed customers' designs, Mouser's website hosts an extensive library of technical resources, including a Technical Resource Center, along with product data sheets, supplier-specific reference designs, application notes, technical design information, engineering tools and other helpful information. About Mouser Mouser Electronics, a Berkshire Hathaway company, is an authorized semiconductor and electronic component distributor focused on New Product Introductions from its leading manufacturer partners. Serving the global electronic design engineer and buyer community, the global distributor's website, Mouser.com, is available in multiple languages and currencies and features more than 5 million products from over 1,100 manufacturer brands. Mouser offers 27 support locations worldwide to provide best-in-class customer service in local language, currency and time zone. The distributor ships to over 630,000 customers in 223 countries/territories from its 1 million-square-foot, state-of-the-art distribution facilities in the Dallas, Texas, metro area. For more information, visit https://www.mouser.com/. Trademarks Mouser and Mouser Electronics are registered trademarks of Mouser Electronics, Inc. All other products, logos, and company names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective owners. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005727/en/

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[June 23, 2021] PerimeterX Code Defender Named Best Security Solution by the 2021 SIIA CODiE Awards

SAN MATEO, Calif., June 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PerimeterX, the leading provider of solutions that secure digital businesses against automated fraud and client-side threats, today announced that PerimeterX Code Defender has been recognized with the 2021 SIIA CODiE Award for Best Security Solution in the Business Technology category.

PerimeterX Code Defender is a client-side application security solution that provides continuous visibility and control over first-, third- and Nth-party scripts running on a website to protect the site from Magecart and digital skimming attacks, supply chain attacks, formjacking and personally identifiable information (PII) harvesting. A primary cause of vulnerabilities that lead to these attacks is the introduction of code into an application without a formal approval process or security validation, often referred to as Shadow Code. According to Osterman Research , only 8% of organizations have full insight into the external code that runs on their application. This malicious code can modify website pages, insert fake checkout buttons and skim customer information from a website, including credit card numbers and passwords. The SIIA CODiE Awards are the industry's only peer-reviewed awards program. Acknowledged as the premier awards program for the software and information industries for over 35 years, the SIIA CODiE Awards are produced by the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), the principal trade association for the software, education, media and digital content industries. PerimeterX was honored as one of 46 winners across the 43 business technology categories.



With Code Defender, PerimeterX has pioneered a new approach to protecting web and mobile apps. A cloud-native solution, it tracks and monitors behavior and changes in scripts across the entire website supply chain, leveraging advanced machine learning models to detect anomalies in real time that could result in data exfiltration and blocking them. This prevents data leakage or loss, protecting customers data from attackers trying to exploit client-side vulnerabilities which ultimately damage brand reputation. This recognition from the SIIA validates our commitment to online fraud detection and prevention, whether its for retail e-commerce vendors, online banks, or to support the many ways that people meet, shop, learn and do business in this digital world. PerimeterX is dedicated to providing solutions that help online businesses reduce the risk of data breaches, protect their revenue and ultimately enhance their brand and build customer confidence, said Omri Iluz, CEO and co-founder, PerimeterX.

To gain visibility into the threats that Code Defender protects against, download the PerimeterX Website Risk Analyzer , a free analysis tool that allows web application developers and information security teams to analyze website code for JavaScript vulnerabilities, PII sniffing and suspicious behavior that could expose their site to digital skimming and Magecart attacks. About the SIIA CODiE Awards

The SIIA CODiE Awards is the only peer-reviewed program to showcase business and education technologys finest products and services. Since 1986, thousands of products, services and solutions have been recognized for achieving excellence. For more information, visit siia.net/CODiE . About Software and Information Industry Association (SIIA)

SIIA is the only professional organization connecting more than 700 data, financial information, education technology, specialized content and publishing, and health technology companies. Our diverse members manage the global financial markets, develop software that solves today's challenges through technology, provide critical information that helps inform global businesses large and small, and innovate for better health care and personal wellness outcomes. About PerimeterX

PerimeterX is the leading provider of solutions that protect modern web apps at scale. Delivered as a service, the companys Bot Defender and Code Defender solutions detect risks to your web applications and proactively manage them, freeing you to focus on growth and innovation. The worlds largest and most reputable websites and mobile applications count on PerimeterX to safeguard their consumers digital experience. PerimeterX is headquartered in San Mateo, California and at www.perimeterx.com .

Media contact: Paula Brici Eskenzi PR paula@eskenzipr.com +1 949 677 6527

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[June 23, 2021] Behring Co. Wins Landmark Decision to Revive EB-5 Immigrant Investor Visa Program

Behring Co., a vertically integrated real estate developer and the operator of Behring Regional Center, today praised the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of California's decision to rule in favor of its request to vacate the EB-5 Modernization Rule implemented by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in 2019. The decision by U.S. Magistrate Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley supports Behring's argument that the DHS officials responsible for enacting the rule, which updated various regulations governing the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Visa Program, were unlawfully appointed in violation of the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998, and therefore had no legal authority to promulgate the changes. The court's decision restores the original rules for the EB-5 program, which was created by the Immigration Act of 1990 as a method for providing qualified immigrant investors the opportunity to obtain a permanent green card. The program required a minimum $500,000 investment in a U.S. business that would create at least 10 full-time jobs for American workers. The now-defunct EB-5 Modernization Rule of 2019 increased this minimum investment threshold to $900,000 - an update that contributed to stifling participation in a program that was already in need of reform. "We are strong supporters of positive EB-5 reform and modernization, but the 2019 rule did none of that," said Colin Behring, CEO of Behring Co. "The 2019 regs were simply putting the 'cart before the horse' - Congress should be addressing holistic reform through legislation and then finalizing regulations. Although imperfect, the EB-5 program has been one of the most successful and efficient job creation programs the federal government has ever enacted. Our hope is that lawmakers will see how severe our situation is and provide a solution that results in the passing of a new bill that achieves positive long-term reform. Our vision for reform includes creating a clear operating environment with transparent and workable regulations, strong integrity measures, and marketable investment equirements. Reviving the EB-5 program, and the economic powerhouse that it is, could not come at a better time as the nation is reeling from the economic impact of the pandemic."



In addition to the prohibitive investment threshold, the Modernization Rule made problematic changes to the program's Targeted Employment Area (TEA) designation process, removing the states' authority to determine TEA eligibility without a viable replacement and resulting in processing times that could take years to complete. As a result of these changes, new EB-5 investor petitions dropped by more than 99 percent since November of 2019. "We had many concerns with the Modernization Rule. There were many legal problems that were challenged under the Administrative Procedure Act. The minimum investment ignored industry data, and TEA rules were completely unworkable. The plummeting participation proved that it had a devastating impact on the industry," said Laura Foote Reiff, an immigration attorney with Greenberg Traurig, who represented Behring Co. "The court's decision to right this wrong will provide a positive opportunity for EB-5 investors and regional centers to unite with policymakers in forging meaningful legislative change that ultimately leads to creating American jobs and economic growth."

With the original rules in effect, EB-5 investors may once again invest $500,000 in TEA-qualified locations that create at least 10 full-time jobs for American workers. Since its inception, EB-5 investors have injected more than $41 billion and created over 820,000 full-time jobs at no cost to U.S. taxpayers. "Construction is one of our nation's greatest job creators, and EB-5 provides capital that is the catalyst to getting projects off the ground," said Behring. "We currently have multifamily projects on the boards that could amount to creating over 10,000 jobs in the next three years if sufficient capital was available." Reverting back to the original EB-5 rules will likely be short-lived as the program is set to expire on June 30, with several lawmakers considering legislation to modify various components of EB-5. "EB-5 reform must aim to create a long-term sustainable program that benefits all stakeholders and creates American jobs," said Reiff. "Today's decision reinforces that DHS needs to create workable solutions to improve the EB-5 program, clarify operating procedure, add integrity measures, increase immigrant investor protections, and solve the salient problems that are negatively impacting the EB-5 program, such as long processing times, retrogression, and child age-out issues." Learn more about the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program at BehringEB5.com About Behring Co. Behring Co. is a vertically integrated real estate developer, private equity fund manager, and EB-5 regional center serving the San Francisco Bay Area and Silicon Valley. Behring owns and operates the Behring Regional Center, a USCIS accredited EB-5 regional center with 100-percent investor approval history serving hundreds of investors since 2013. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005820/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Khan Academy's Sal Khan, AT&T's Mylayna Albright Discuss Their Commitment to Support Digital Education on MarketScale's Voices of eLearning

DALLAS, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Khan Academy Founder Sal Khan and AT&T Assistant Vice President, Corporate Social Responsibility Mylayna Albright are bringing their unparalleled insights to a live episode of MarketScale's Voices of eLearning, which will air on Thursday, June 24th at 1pm ET/12pm CT. The episode will source the industry leaders' insights about learning loss  and explore why, in the face of a year ofdisruption, Khan Academy and AT&T are focusing instead on engineering learning gains that will elevate students' experience as they return to campus this fall.



Khan Academy and AT&T are working alongside one another to bring solutions to students across the country, including hot spots and new educational content. AT&T recently pledged $3 million to Khan Academy, which will "support personalized student learning, including free virtual summer camps for students" and "help stem learning loss, narrow the homework gap and deliver high-quality learning experiences anywhere today's connected students learn." The digital divide is of chief concern to educators and edtech innovators, and Voices of eLearning host JW Marshall has invited Khan and Albright to this industry-leading edtech platform to help audiences understand ways the nation's educational system and other governing bodies are working to address that gap.

Tune in live to hear more from the duo of edtech leaders. About MarketScale:

MarketScale.com is the Homepage of B2B, offering you insights, trends and expert thought leadership across a range of industries that you won't find anywhere else. MarketScale's award-winning original content, including Voices of eLearning, reaches the furthest corners of the industries that power our world. About Khan Academy:

Khan Academy offers a personalized learning resource for all ages with practice exercises, instructional videos and a personalized learning dashboard that empower learners to study at their own pace in and outside of the classroom. The organization focuses on skill mastery to help learners establish strong foundations, so there's no limit to what they can learn next. About AT&T Connected Learning:

AT&T Connected Learning is the company's multi-year commitment to narrow the homework gap and stem the learning loss it creates. Contact: press@marketscale.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/khan-academys-sal-khan-atts-mylayna-albright-discuss-their-commitment-to-support-digital-education-on-marketscales-voices-of-elearning-301318632.html SOURCE MarketScale

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[June 23, 2021] Building Hope Introduces Discount Purchasing Program for Advanced Air and Surface Purifying Technology to Accelerate Charter Schools' Safe Return to In-Person Learning

Recognizing the immediate need to get students back in the classroom safely, Building Hope, a non-profit foundation dedicated to identifying and financing viable facilities so that all students have access to a quality K-12 education, today announced a new program to provide deeply discounted, advanced air and surface purifying technology to help charter schools create healthier, safer spaces. Through Building Hope's Discount Purchasing Program, charter schools may acquire ActivePure Vollara Air & Surface Pro purifier systems, which safely destroy 99% of common surface and airborne contaminates, including SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) and other viruses, bacteria, mold, and allergens in high-occupancy areas. "It is no secret that COVID-19 significantly impacted school operations and student learning, particularly for those who were already disadvantaged," said Building Hope President Joseph Bruno. "We wanted to find an innovative way to ensure a safe learning environment for all students, faculty, and staff, so we found the most advanced purification technology available and madeit available at a below-market rate so charter schools everywhere can quickly proceed with their fall planning with peace of mind and a focus on their students' education."



Charter schools can utilize Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES Act) funds to take full advantage of Building Hope's Discount Purchasing Program. Building Hope also offers alternative financing options and funding advances for those schools and clients where CARES funds are not immediately available. "The ActivePure units provide us comfort that our school is doing everything we can to keep our students safe," said Regina Lauricells, Founding Principal, Philip's Academy Charter School of Paterson." Forty-two units have been sent to the school in New Jersey. Another charter school in Florida ordered 500 units to cover every building on every campus.

To access the Building Hope Discount Purchasing Program and to get additional information, email info-services@bhope.org. Orders will arrive within seven business days of purchase order agreement completion. For more information about how Building Hope helps charter schools nationwide provide unparalleled facilities, financial, and operational services, visit www.buildinghope.org. About Building Hope Building Hope is a non-profit foundation created to support education and public charter schools. Since 2003, Building Hope's purpose has been to identify and finance viable facilities so that all students have access to a quality K-12 education. Building Hope has grown the capacity of charter schools nationwide by providing facilities, financial, and operational services so that schools can focus on and devote more resources to educating students in underserved communities. Building Hope has supported 300 charter school projects and 150,000 students in 20 states and the District of Columbia, by providing more than $350 million in direct loans, credit enhancements, and equity investments to support $1.9 billion in school construction. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005800/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Durabook's Rugged Tablets Deployed by the Chino Valley Police Department

FREMONT, Calif., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Durabook, the global rugged mobile solutions brand owned by Twinhead International Corporation, announced today that the Chino Valley Police Department in Arizona has successfully deployed its R11 rugged tablets. Over the past five years, the Chino Valley Police Department has deployed Durabook R11s in different vehicles used by police officers. "In Chino Valley, temperatures range from freezing in the winter to over 100 degrees in the summer, at an elevation of over 4,500 feet," stated Randy Chapman, Chino Valley Police Department Lieutenant. "Also, since our department's territory includes rural areas, shock and vibration are serious issues for any computers in the field. Being a smaller department, the affordable costs to purchase the R11 rugged tablets and maintain them were key factors in the decision-making process." The Durabook rugged tablets have exceeded all of the performance and durability expectations that the Chino Valley Police Department had for its use. The R11 rugged tablet is optimized for use in law enforcement. The Chino Valley Police Department's officers can utilize the Spillman reporting software, run driver licenses, and more right in the field. "Durabook's rugged computers are the perfect fit for departments who do not want to compromise between functionality and budget," according to Tom Wang, president of Durabook Americas. "Our ability to upgrade our rugged computers to the cutting-edge chipsets and specifications allows departments to standardize on a single model. We are able to deploy customized in-vehicle solutions for departments of all sizes across the country." The Durabook R11 that the Chino Valley Police Department purchased features the Intel CPUs with Turbo Boost speeds up to 4.2 GHz, plus Intel UHD Graphics 620, packing high performance and visuals into a compact form. Plus, the high-speed data transmission capability of Intel Dual Band Wireless AC 9260 and Bluetooth V5.0 means smooth, congestion-free processing at all times. The customer and warranty support provided by the Durabook Americas team has been the primary reason the department has continued to purchase its rugged cmputers from Durabook. Additionally, when it has had an issue with a unit, the team at Durabook has diligently worked to assist the department in returning the unit to service quickly. This has enabled the department to provide exceptional service to its community and be sensitive to the department's budget.



AVAILABILITY The Durabook R11 fully rugged tablet is available now. For more details, visit https://www.durabook.com/us/products/r11-tablet/. For sales inquiries, contact Sales@DurabookAmericas.com or call 800-995-8946.

ABOUT THE CHINO VALLEY POLICE DEPARTMENT The mission of the Chino Valley Police Department is to protect the lives, property, and constitutional rights of the citizens of Chino Valley through fair and impartial enforcement of the laws of the state. The Police Department's mission is accomplished through effective management of department operations, staff, and numerous services and programs such as Traffic Safety, Regulatory Services, Investigative Services, and Response to Calls for Service, Homeland Security Initiatives, and Budget Management. For more information, please visit https://www.chinoaz.net/149/Police-Department. ABOUT DURABOOK Durabook is the core brand of Twinhead International Corporation in Taiwan, a world-renowned manufacturer of rugged mobile solutions for more than 30 years. All Durabook devices are designed, manufactured, and tested to the highest standards to ensure maximum quality and reliability. Committed to engineering and service excellence, Durabook products have been widely adopted by government and enterprise customers, including oil and gas, utilities, field service, military, and public safety for more than a decade. For more information, visit www.durabook.com. PR Contact:

Rita Lee

Copernio

(714) 891-3660

durabook@copernio.com All products/services and trademarks mentioned in this release are the properties of their respective companies.  2021 Durabook Americas. All rights reserved. Related Files PR_Durabook and Chino Valley Police Department_06232021.pdf Related Images durabook-rugged-tablet-with-in.jpg

Durabook Rugged Tablet With In-Vehicle Dock Solution

The Durabook rugged tablets have exceeded all of the performance and durability expectations that the Chino Valley Police Department had for its use. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/durabooks-rugged-tablets-deployed-by-the-chino-valley-police-department-301318641.html SOURCE Durabook Americas, Inc.

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[June 23, 2021] QuadMed Adds Accomplished Health Care Executives to Leadership Team

SUSSEX, Wis., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- QuadMed, LLC, a subsidiary of Quad/Graphics, Inc. (NYSE: QUAD) ("Quad"), a leader in employer-powered health and wellness solutions, has announced the appointments of Kathryn Quadracci Flores, M.D., John Bustle, MD, MHCM and Shannon Clark, DNP, FNP to leadership positions on the company's executive team. These experienced health care executives will lead strategies focused on continued growth and expansion including innovative approaches to the changing health care environment and employer expectations for cost containment, health improvement and an exceptional patient experience. Kathryn Quadracci Flores, MD, President Dr. Flores, who received her M.D. from Columbia University's College of Physicians and Surgeons in 1995 and her B.A. and B.S. from Brown University in 1990, currently serves as a director on the boards of both QuadMed and Quad. She is the daughter of Quad and QuadMed founder Harry V. Quadracci and the sister of current Quad Chairman, President & CEO Joel Quadracci. "Kathryn is an empathetic, visionary leader who is passionate about expanding health care access through QuadMed's comprehensive care model, which provides high-quality, cost-effective health and wellness services to forward-thinking employers around the country," Joel Quadracci said. "Kathryn understands the world of medicine and has been deeply involved in COVID-19 response plans and QuadMed's business operations, as a member of the board of directors." "It is my profound pleasure to serve as President of QuadMed and continue the legacy of premiere employer-powered health care envisioned by my father 30 years ago," Dr. Flores said. "I look forward to working with our exceptional team of providers, health and wellness center staff, corporate support teams, executive leadership, and QuadMed's board of directors as we continue to deliver population health improvements and cost savings as a trusted partner to the employers we serve." John Bustle, MD, MHCM, Chief Medical Officer Dr. John Bustle brings a unique combination of physician leadership and health care administrative skills to QuadMed. He holds a Master of Health Care Management Degree from Harvard University and is board certified in family medicine and obesity medicine. He began his career as a practicing physician and clinic medical director, ultimately serving as the health system Chief Executive Officer and Chief Medical Officer of Bates County Memorial Hospital in Missouri. Dr. Bustle has been an advocate for innovative models of care including the patient centered medical home and multiple telehalth initiatives. He improved quality of care through partnerships and local initiatives including NCQA accreditation, restructuring quality management systems and electronic health record optimization. Most recently, he served as the MidAmerica Market Medical Executive for Cigna where he was the clinical leader responsible for improving the quality and affordability of care for a large member population.



Dr. Bustle will lead the organization's focus on health care's Quadruple Aim: delivering a better patient experience with improved outcomes at a lower cost while supporting provider engagement and satisfaction. He will build on the organization's current success in meeting and exceeding clinical benchmarks and optimizing the Epic electronic health record and all its functionality to deliver measurable improvements in the health and wellbeing of an employer's workforce. Shannon Clark, DNP, FNP, Chief Operating Officer

Shannon Clark comes to QuadMed as an accomplished clinician and health care operations leader. She is a board certified family nurse practitioner with a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from Johns Hopkins University, and brings a great depth of experience in worksite health and wellness services, particularly in occupational health. Clark was most recently Executive Vice President of operations for Medcor, overseeing more than 200 primary care/occupational health clinics across the U.S. for a variety of industries including distribution, manufacturing, pharmaceutical, retail, food, auto, film, and construction. Prior to Medcor, Clark was the owner and CEO of Synergy Health Center & Urgent Care, two high-volume urgent care and multispecialty clinics where she treated acute and chronic illness and injury within the specialties of family practice, urgent care, and orthopedics. Clark also provided expertise in the areas of occupational medicine, wellness, and workers' compensation services. As the operations leader for QuadMed, she will focus on the continuous improvement of our health center operations and account management support with a focus on the integration of new technologies, programs and services to drive optimal cost, quality and outcomes for our employer partners. "The addition of these two experienced leaders to our already strong leadership team enables us to advance our strategic growth plan, while enhancing our current client partnerships," Dr. Flores said. "In an industry ripe with mergers, acquisitions and consolidation, QuadMed is committed to remaining independent. We have a singular focus: to deliver innovative, high-value solutions to employers, and an exceptional patient experience for their employees, that results in improved health outcomes and reduced costs." About QuadMed QuadMed (quadmedical.com) is a nationally recognized provider of health and wellness solutions designed specifically for employers. The model features a full continuum of high-quality, patient-centered services proven to decrease costs by increasing accessibility and engagement. The company's 30-year track record of success is rooted in integrating prevention-focused, comprehensive primary care with leading-edge technology and analytics. The industry pioneer, QuadMed was founded in 1991 as a subsidiary of Quad. About Quad Quad (NYSE: QUAD) is a worldwide marketing solutions partner that leverages its 50-year heritage of platform excellence, innovation, strong culture and social purpose to create a better way for its clients, employees and communities. The Company's integrated marketing platform helps brands and marketers reduce complexity, increase efficiency and enhance marketing spend effectiveness. Quad provides its clients with unmatched scale for client on-site services and expanded subject expertise in marketing strategy, creative solutions, media deployment (which includes a strong foundation in print) and marketing management services. With a client-centric approach that drives the Company to continuously evolve its offering, combined with leading-edge technology and single-source simplicity, the Company has the resources and knowledge to help a wide variety of clients in multiple vertical industries, including retail, publishing, consumer technology, consumer packaged goods, financial services, insurance, healthcare and direct-to-consumer. Quad has multiple locations throughout North America, South America and Europe, and strategic partnerships in Asia and other parts of the world. For additional information visit www.QUAD.com . View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/quadmed-adds-accomplished-health-care-executives-to-leadership-team-301318657.html SOURCE Quadmed LLC

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[June 23, 2021] CGTN: Chinese astronauts' talk with Earth from space

BEIJING, June 23, 2021 /CNW/ -- The three Chinese astronauts, in China's space station core module since June 17, made their first long-distance phone conversation with the Earth on Wednesday. Nie Haisheng (56), Liu Boming (54) and Tang Hongbo (45) are now stationed at the core module Tianhe, some 380 kilometers above the Earth. This marks China's longest manned space mission to date, and the first since 2016. On Wednesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping sent out greetings to three astronauts via video link, congratulating their successful entering into the station while thanking them for their work. "How's life there," Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, asked the trio about their health, life and work, who had their feet temporarily strapped to the floor of the module during the conversation due to the zero-gravity situation in the outer space. "Thank you for your concern, general secretary! We are in great physical condition, and our space work is going on smoothly," said Nie, the mission's commander. Xi hails China's space mission "Buildinga space station is an important milestone for China's spaceflight cause," Xi said in the televised chat.



"This will be a contribution that opens new horizons for humanity's peaceful use of space. You are the representatives of countless fighters in the new era of China's spaceflight cause," he said. The longest stay in space so far by Chinese astronauts had been 33 days.

"In previous missions, we sent water and oxygen to space along with astronauts. But for a stay of three to six months, water and oxygen would stuff the cargo craft full with no room for other necessary goods and materials. So we installed the core module with a new life support system to recycle urine, exhaled breath condensate (EBC) and carbon dioxide," Bai Linhou, deputy chief designer of the space station at the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST) told Xinhua in an earlier interview. The Tianhe core module, where the three astronauts are currently stationed, has a total length of 16.6 meters, a maximum diameter of 4.2 meters and a takeoff mass of 22.5 tonnes. It is the largest spacecraft developed and launched by China. It is set to help China's aerospace engineers carry out the verification of key technologies, including flexible solar wings, in-orbit assembly and maintenance, and above all a new life support system. With five launch missions done this year, China plans six more missions, including the launch of the Wentian and Mengtian lab modules, two cargo spacecraft and two manned spaceships, in 2022 to complete the construction of the space station. Chinese officials say the new space station will not just be for Chinese, but to be open to the world. Foreign astronauts and global cooperation on scientific experiments are most welcome to China's space station, Hao Chun, director of China Manned Space Engineering Office, said in an interview with CGTN. Chinese astronauts' talk with Earth from space

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2021-06-23/Xi-Jinping-visits-Beijing-Aerospace-Control-Center-11jWnGtdHDW/index.html View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cgtn-chinese-astronauts-talk-with-earth-from-space-301318662.html SOURCE CGTN

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[June 23, 2021] Shreveport Next/BRF recruits software developer Omicron to Northwest Louisiana

SHREVEPORT, La., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Shreveport Next, an initiative of BRF, announced the successful recruitment of Chicago-based software developer Omicron Technology Solutions to Shreveport, Louisiana. Omicron is a software-as-a-service developer and provider serving three industries: transit and rider management, identity and visitor management, and student information software. Customers include municipalities, education systems and other service providers from across the United States. An initial 15 to 20 jobs will be created in Shreveport with Omicron in software development, customer relations and other service-related roles. Additional jobs are to be created in sales, management and customer service with the expansion of the company's customer base. "Omicron is eager to join forces with BRF and locate in Shreveport. The business-friendly environment, attractive labor costs and skilled employee base will make Northwest Louisiana a good fit for the next phase of our business," said Omicron CEO Lionel Rabb. Omicron's recruitment is a result of BRF's approach to economic development: starting new businesses, recruiting existing businesses and retaining local businesses. "Our Shreveport Next and Entrepreneurial Accelerator Program (EAP) divisions helped secure the successful ecruitment and acquisition of Omicron, working with investment banking firm The Chicago Corporation," said John F. George Jr., M.D., BRF President and CEO. "As we fulfill our commitment and vision to transform Shreveport-Bossier, we welcome Omicron to our great cities and mark their arrival as another step in making our community a sought-after location for not only tech and life science companies but also aerospace, advanced manufacturing, and other emerging industries."



Since BRF launched Shreveport Next in September, Director of Business Recruitment Ryan Culp has met with the leaders of more than 50 companies to discuss the area's business advantages and companies' needs. "Shreveport-Bossier is one of the most cost-competitive locations to do business according to Forbes and KPMG. What makes this initiative unique to our community is our targeting of high growth companies that create jobs with a high multiplier effect. What makes us unique to companies is our ability to directly participate in projects and a team that understands what makes companies successful outside of traditional economic incentives," said Culp. "Help from financial analysts under EAP and the BRF team made this first win possible."

BRF will employ its Shreveport Next division's comprehensive marketing and recruitment plan to bring businesses from across the country to relocate or build new facilities in the Shreveport-Bossier MSA, bringing new jobs and revenue to the region. EAP financial analyst Nick Oliver will join Omicron's CEO in opening and operating the company in Shreveport, serving as Vice President of Business Development. "BRF's tactical tools for economic development cross disciplines to start, recruit and retain businesses. We work together to grow opportunities, find ones that fit our region and then support companies and initiatives to sustain and preserve their impact through our organization's expertise," said Dave Smith, EAP Executive Director. "Omicron joins a collection of other successful technology and software companies finding a foothold or growing in our area." Shreveportnext.com BRFLA.org Media Contact: Courtney Bryan, courtney.bryan@brfla.org



View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/shreveport-nextbrf-recruits-software-developer-omicron-to-northwest-louisiana-301318572.html SOURCE BRF

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[June 23, 2021] Canada and FCM Announce New Investments in Southwestern Ontario Communities

BROCKTON, ON, June 23, 2021 /CNW/ - In communities across the country, Canadians are experiencing the impacts of climate change. By investing in initiatives that lower emissions and increase the resiliency of communities, we are creating good, middle-class jobs and building Canada's low-emissions energy future. Parliamentary Secretary Marc G. Serre, on behalf of the Honourable Seamus O'Regan Jr., Minister of Natural Resources, and Joanne Vanderheyden, President of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), today announced a $1.2-million investment through FCM's Green Municipal Fund (GMF) to help reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in five communities in Southwestern Ontario. The Municipality of Brockton is upgrading its aging wastewater treatment facility. For this project, the municipality will receive a $598,000 investment to replace the existing chlorination system with a chemical-free, ultraviolet-light disinfection system, reducing residual chlorine and lower operating and maintenance costs. The City of Guelph will receive $174,550 to study the feasibility of building a net-zero-energy library as part of the innovative zero-carbon Baker District, as well as an additional $175,000 for a study that will support its work with Wellington County on reducing food waste. Bruce County will receive $148,750 to complete a study on the technical and financial requirements associated with using the surplus electricity it generates to produce and store hydrogen in the region. The study will explore the possibilities of this emerging sector for not only the region's economy but also eventually the province's and the country's. The Township of Georgian Bluffs will receive $71,800 to assess opportunities to retrofit and upgrade an anaerobic digester at the Derby Wastewater Treatment Plant. The project aims to increase onsite renewable energy generation, divert waste from landfill and produce soil fertilizer. This will both improve the overall performance of the facility and decrease its operating costs.



In addition, the Township of Warwick will receive $23,300 to investigate energy-efficiency and low-carbon measures for incorporation into the design of a net-zero multi-use community centre. These varied initiatives highlight some of the ways that GMF continues to support transformative environmental initiatives at the community level and build on its 20-year record of environmental and economic impacts. The Government of Canada has invested $1.65 billion in GMF since its inception, enabling municipalities to support projects like these that leverage local resources to drive innovative solutions.

The government supports smarter energy initiatives that build a healthier and cleaner future while creating new jobs and driving economic prosperity for all Canadians. Quotes "Local governments influence half of the country's greenhouse gas emissions. That means local action is critical. With support from the Green Municipal Fund, this is happening: municipalities of all sizes are implementing smart low-carbon solutions. Empowering this local expertise is vital to meeting Canada's climate goals. When orders of government work together to reduce emissions, we're building more resilient communities." Joanne Vanderheyden

President, Federation of Canadian Municipalities "By investing in these initiatives, we're not only taking action to lower greenhouse gas emissions in Southwestern Ontario, we're also creating more resilient and sustainable communities for Canadians." Marc G. Serre

Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources "Local green solutions create jobs, lower emissions and build a more prosperous and sustainable economy for all. This is how we get to net zero by 2050." The Honourable Seamus O'Regan Jr.

Minister of Natural Resources "Cities are key partners in pioneering practical climate solutions. Through the Green Municipal Fund, we're supporting municipalities in their efforts to lower emissions through projects like energy-efficient retrofits, electric and hybrid electric transit pilots and efficiencies in wastewater treatment. By working together, we can create good jobs and grow the economy, protect the environment, and build cleaner, more inclusive communities." The Honourable Catherine McKenna

Minister of Infrastructure and Communities "Canadians in communities across the country are working hard to cut pollution and create jobs. Improving the energy efficiency of our homes and buildings will do just that, while helping Canadians save on energy costs. Together, we are building a cleaner, healthier future for our children and grandchildren." The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson

Minister of Environment and Climate Change "The Municipality of Brockton is very appreciative to receive funding from the Government of Canada and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. The $598,000 funding will go toward replacing our chlorination system at our sewage treatment plant with an ultraviolet light (UV) disinfection system. Our citizens value the river where the wastewater treatment plant sits. The Saugeen River hosts a world-class sport fishery, and this grant will go a long way to enhancing this beautiful marine habitat." Chris Peabody

Mayor of Brockton Related products

Backgrounder: Canada and FCM announce new investments in Southwestern Ontario communities Associated links Green Municipal Fund

Investing in Canada: Canada's Long-Term Infrastructure Plan

Investing in Canada plan project map Follow us on Twitter: @NRCan (http://twitter.com/nrcan) SOURCE Natural Resources Canada

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[June 23, 2021] OEM Group & Rite Track Unite as Shellback Semiconductor Technology

WEST CHESTER, Ohio, June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- OEM Group, a global manufacturer of new and remanufactured semiconductor capital equipment, announces its acquisition of Rite Track - a pioneer in innovative products and services for legacy markets for over 28 years. The combined team further announces the establishment of Shellback Semiconductor Technology. The new global entity is headed up by President & CEO Wayne Jeveli and the senior management teams from both OEM Group and Rite Track. Regarding the news, Mr. Jeveli commented, "Rite Track has flourished for nearly thirty years in a demanding global market. They've created a brand that's respected and loved across the industry and have become integral to our customers' operations. Their expertise in Coat & Develop technologies is legendary, and their expansion into Wafer Carrier Inspection with the EAGLEi system is a game changer for fab productivity. Similarly, OEM has a 22-year track record of supplying iconic technologies from SEMITOOL, VARIAN and Applied P5000. We serve the same customers, and this union is symbiotic. We've respected Rite Track from afar for a long time for their complete focus on customer satisfaction. Now, we've got a chance to work together every day on the same team. Our industry is at an incredible inflection point where the need for chips is greater than it's ever been. SHELLBACK will enable our customers to meet this challenge." Rite Track President and CEO Tim Hayden added, "I'm so proud of the team e've built over the past 28 years and excited about the opportunities this union will create for our employees, our partners, and most importantly our customers. We have seen the strategic relationships that Wayne and the OEM Group have built over the years and very much look forward to working with his team to grow Shellback into a market leading position within the semiconductor industry."



With headquarters in Coopersburg, PA, Shellback Semiconductor Technology consists of approximately 150 employees around the globe. The company notably distinguishes itself by providing solutions for both front-end (FEOL) and back-end (BEOL) processing with a wide range of proprietary technologies, including SEMITOOL Spray Batch, STORM Wafer Carrier Cleaner, EAGLEi Wafer Carrier Inspection, and many more. Shellback Semiconductor Technology will be making further announcements very soon. In the meantime, visit Shellback at www.shellbacksemi.com

ABOUT SHELLBACK SEMICONDUCTOR TECHNOLOGY: For over 400 years, intrepid mariners have embarked on long journeys into uncharted waters. Through a rite of passage, only the most experienced and storied adventurers would earn the honor of being called a "Shellback." Taking on challenging endeavors, honing critical skills, and earning the trust of comrades, a Shellback enables the success of the voyage. In this tradition, Shellback Semiconductor Technology represents the union of two industry-leading proven semiconductor brandsOEM Group and RITE Trackwith a combined 50-years of experience. Sharing a commitment to pioneering intellectual property and unparalleled customer service, Shellback provides new and remanufactured semiconductor capital equipment and services to enable emerging and legacy markets, such as LEDs, MEMS, Wireless, Power, Energy Harvesting, WLP, Data Storage, Analog, and Logic. With one of the industry's largest installed bases of equipment at over 600+ customers world-wide, Shellback offers proprietary products from SEMITOOL, VARIAN, Applied P5000, SVG Track, and more, as well as a combination of best-in-class technologies for Wafer Carrier Inspection and Cleaning- the EAGLEi and STORM. Headquartered in Coopersburg, PA with facilities across the globe, Shellback was launched in 2021 and is led by President and CEO Wayne Jeveli. www.shellbacksemi.com Contact:

Tom Parish

513-645-8600

312840@email4pr.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/oem-group--rite-track-unite-as-shellback-semiconductor-technology-301318704.html SOURCE Rite Track

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[June 23, 2021] ROSEN, A LEADING LAW FIRM, Encourages RLX Technology Inc. Investors With Losses Over $100K to Secure Counsel Before Important August 9 Deadline in Securities Class Action - RLX

WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, reminds purchasers of the American Depository Shares ("ADSs") of RLX Technology Inc. (NYSE: RLX) pursuant and/or traceable to the offering documents issued in connection with RLX's initial public offering ("IPO") on or about January 22, 2021, of the important August 9, 2021 lead plaintiff deadline. SO WHAT: If you purchased RLX securities during the Class Period you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement. WHAT TO DO NEXT: To join the RLX class action, go to http://www.rosenlegal.com/cases-register-2108.html or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email pkim@rosenlegal.com or cases@rosenlegal.com for information on the class action. A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than August 9, 2021. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. WHY ROSEN LAW: We encourage investors to select qualified counsel with a track record of success in leadership roles. Often, firms issuing notices do not have comparable experience or resources. The Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm has ahieved the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company. Rosen Law Firm was Ranked No. 1 by ISS Securities Class Action Services for number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 4 each year since 2013 and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. In 2019 alone the firm secured over $438 million for investors. In 2020, founding partner Laurence Rosen was named by law360 as a Titan of Plaintiffs' Bar. Many of the firm's attorneys have been recognized by Lawdragon and Super Lawyers.



DETAILS OF THE CASE: According to the lawsuit, the offering documents misstated and/or omitted facts concerning RLX's then-existing exposure to China's ongoing campaign to establish a national standard for e-cigarettes, which would bring them in line with traditional tobacco offerings such as ordinary cigarette regulations, and that RLX's reported financials were not nearly as robust as the offering documents projected nor were they indicative of future results. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages. To join the RLX class action, go to http://www.rosenlegal.com/cases-register-2108.html or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email pkim@rosenlegal.com or cases@rosenlegal.com for information on the class action.

No Class Has Been Certified. Until a class is certified, you are not represented by counsel unless you retain one. You may select counsel of your choice. You may also remain an absent class member and do nothing at this point. An investor's ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff. Follow us for updates on LinkedIn (News - Alert) : https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm, on Twitter (News - Alert) : https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook (News - Alert) : https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm/. Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005894/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Air France Tests IATA Travel Pass App on Its Flights Between Montreal-Trudeau and Paris, Jointly With Biron Health Group

First pilot program digitizing negative COVID-19 test results for travellers in Quebec Montreal, June 23, 2021 /CNW Telbec/ - By adding Montreal-Paris to its flights trialing the IATA Travel Pass app, Air France becomes the first airline to introduce a pilot program for outbound flights at the Montreal-Trudeau airport digitizing negative COVID-19 test results. It is carrying out the program jointly with the Biron Health Group. The pilot program will focus strictly on outbound Air France flights from Montreal-Trudeau to Paris-Charles de Gaulle, as of June 24 until July 15, 2021. Its purpose is to test the International Air Transport Association's IATA Travel Pass mobile application which will enable travelers to: Check up on the latest COVID-19 related entry requirements for their country of destination

Have the results of their COVID-19 test performed at partner laboratories sent directly into the app

Securely store these documents in the app so they can demonstrate to airlines and authorities that they meet the relevant entry requirements, without having to divulge further information about their personal health This trial is free of charge for customers and offered on a voluntary basis. It is open to customers travelling on Air France-operated flights with Paris as a final destination. Testing will be carried out at the Biron Health Group's onsite facilities at the Montreal-Trudeau International Airport. Eligible passengers will receive a notification a few days before departing for Paris. Testing is possible on the day of departure for travellers ages 11 and up who have not been vaccinated or have only received their first dose, as they are required to present proof of a negative PCR or antigen test result issued within 72 hours of their departure to enter France. What steps must a traveller follow? The traveller downloads the IATA Travel Pass app available on the Apple Store and Google Play and activates it using the code transmited by Air France

He books an appointment for his PCR or antigen test on the Biron Health Group website. At the time of the test, he asks to have the result integrated directly to the IATA Travel Pass

At the airport, the traveler proceeds to the Air France SkyPriority counter. When checking travel formalities, he presents his phone instead of a printed result



https://bit.ly/3zxkRRf. IATA Travel Pass meets the strictest data protection requirements. All the user's health details remain on the app: at no point are they transmitted or centrally stored, which assures the user of total control over all their personal data.

Already deployed from New York-JFK and Barcelona, this test marks a new step toward simplifying travel. Air France applies the strictest health measures and offers its customers total ticket flexibility, with the possibility of postponing or cancelling or being refunded for any trip planned before December 31, 2021 free of charge. These efforts have earned Air France 4 stars in the Skytrax Covid-19 Airline Safety rating, and more recently, a Diamond Award from Apex Health Safety powered by SimpliFlying This summer, Air France will operate 17 weekly flights from Montreal-Trudeau to Paris-Charles-de Gaulle. "So we may improve our customers' experience, our team is delighted to be trialing this digital solution that enables passengers to safely store their COVID test results, and thus streamline their time at the airport," declared Catherine Guillemart-Dias, Vice-President and General Manager of Air France KLM Canada. "Biron is very proud to be participating in this pilot program, and in the process, also assisting with the restart efforts of air travel and tourism, two industries key to the global economic recovery. Testing will continue to be a crucial step as we move forward and endeavour to protect the health and safety of the population here and abroad, and contain the pandemic," said Genevieve Biron, CEO of the Biron Health Group. About Air France

Since 1933, Air France has been promoting and highlighting France throughout the world. With an activity divided between passenger transport, cargo transport and aeronautical maintenance, Air France is a major air transport player. A workforce of more than 42000 staff are committed on a daily basis to offering each customer a unique travel experience. About Biron Health Group

Founded in 1952, Biron is today a Quebec leader in the health sector. Having first built its reputation through its medical laboratory expertise, it is recognized for the quality of its services, its exemplary execution and its speed of access. Over the years, Biron has diversified its service offering in medical imaging, sleep disorders, genetics and occupational health while maintaining the same level of excellence. Throughout its growth, Biron has remained a company with a human dimension that takes its role in the community to heart. Today, the company has close to 800 employees who operate more than 100 points of service in most regions of Quebec. Its team of experts and dedicated professionals is increasing efforts every day to offer each client medical expertise through a process that is simple, fast and efficient. The Biron Health Group is accredited by Accreditation Canada and holds an operating permit from the LSPQ. It has been named one of Canada's Best Managed Companies. For more information on the company: biron.com. Follow the Biron Health Group on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. SOURCE Air France

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[June 23, 2021] Niagara Health patients are first in Ontario to access diagnostic scans under one digital ID

ST. CATHARINES, ON, June 23, 2021 /CNW/ - Patients at Niagara Health are among the first in the province who can access their diagnostic records such as an x-ray, CT scan, MRI, or ultrasound through Ontario trusted account, a unique patient digital identity service on the Niagara Health Navigator mobile app. Similar to the ease of online banking, patients can view and manage their diagnostic records from the convenience of their mobile device and can choose to securely share access with family members, family doctors, specialists and other care providers. This is powered by PocketHealth, a service that receives digital diagnostic records from the hospital, organizes them in a secure account and stores them for patients to access at a small fee. PocketHealth is one of the first services to integrate with Ontario trusted account, a larger patient digital identity initiative that is funded by the Ontario Ministry of Health and is led by Niagara Health. The Ontario trusted account is a patient digital identity service that makes it easier to access personal health information by connecting patients to health services through one single digital ID. Digital identty is a key enabler for the Digital First for Health Strategy and a key focus area for the government's overall Digital Identity strategy. The Digital First for Health strategy will enable system integration and the sharing of information so that patients receive seamless care.



Niagara Health is leading this initiative in partnership with Southlake Regional Health Centre to build the Ontario trusted account. The two hospitals have also brought on St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton and North York General to bring this solution to more patients. Niagara residents who are interested can sign up for an Ontario trusted account and access their diagnostic records through the Niagara Health Navigator mobile app on the App Store or Google Play, or through the PocketHealth website.

QUOTES "Ontarians deserve a twenty-first century health care system that leverages modern technology to make it easier, simpler and more convenient for patients to navigate their health care journey, while safeguarding patient privacy and security. Our government is proud to be supporting Niagara Health as they leverage digital innovations to enhance the patient experience and support better, connected care." The Honourable Christine Elliott, Ontario Deputy Minister and Minister of Health "We know that Ontarians expect and deserve vital programs and services, like health care, at their fingertips. And through this safe and secure program, Niagara Health is harnessing technology that will allow patients to be in full control of their digital health-related services and personal health information. Our government is excited to support this important work as part of our Ontario Onwards Action Plan to transform government and deliver more convenient, reliable and accessible services for Ontarians." Peter Bethlenfalvy , Minister of Finance and Minister Responsible for Digital and Data Transformation "Niagara Health is leading the way to reduce the patchwork of digital tools and online health services for patients. We're thrilled to keep adding to the services in the Niagara Health Navigator mobile app so that patients have more control over their health information and whom they choose to share it with." Lynn Guerriero , President and Interim Chief Executive Officer, Niagara Health "The Ontario trusted account is leading the way in giving patients a single, secure log in to access their health information and we are excited to be one of the first providers to integrate with this powerful digital tool. Our platform has already helped Niagara residents access their diagnostic imaging records through the Niagara Health Navigator app and now the integration with the Ontario trusted account establishes an unprecedented digital model for health information accessibility." Harsh Nayyar, Co-Founder and CTO, PocketHealth SOURCE Niagara Health

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[June 23, 2021] MetLife Announces Full Redemption of 3.048% Series C Senior Component Debentures, Tranche 2

MetLife, Inc. (NYSE: MET) today announced that it will redeem all of its outstanding 3.048% Series C Senior Component Debentures, Tranche 2 (the "Notes"), pursuant to the terms of the Notes. The full $500 million outstanding principal amount of the Notes will be redeemed on July 23, 2021 (the "Redemption Date"). The redemption price will be equal to the sum of (1) the present value, as of the Redemption Date, of all remaining scheduled principal and interest payments on the Notes from, but excluding, the Redemption Date through, and including, December 15, 2022 (not including any portion of such payments of interest that have accrued, or for which the regular record date has occurred, as of the Redemption Date), such present value to be calculated using discounting, on a semi-annual basis assuming a 360-day year consisting of twelve 30-day months, at a discount rate equal to the lesser of (i) the Treasury Rate (as defined in the indenture for the Notes) plus fifty (50) basis points and (ii) fifteen percent (15%); and (2) (without duplication) unpaid inerest that has accrued on the Notes to, but excluding, the Redemption Date. On and after the Redemption Date, all interest on the Notes will cease to accrue.



The Notes are held through The Depository Trust Company ("DTC") and will be redeemed in accordance with the procedures of DTC. Payment to DTC for the Notes will be made by The Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company, N.A., as paying agent. About MetLife

MetLife, Inc. (NYSE: MET), through its subsidiaries and affiliates ("MetLife"), is one of the world's leading financial services companies, providing insurance, annuities, employee benefits and asset management to help its individual and institutional customers navigate their changing world. Founded in 1868, MetLife has operations in more than 40 markets globally and holds leading positions in the United States, Japan, Latin America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. For more information, visit www.metlife.com. Forward-Looking Statements The forward-looking statements in this news release, such as "will," are based on assumptions and expectations that involve risks and uncertainties, including the "Risk Factors" MetLife, Inc. describes in its U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filings. MetLife's future results could differ, and it has no obligation to correct or update any of these statements. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005853/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Insight Select Income Fund Declares Quarterly Dividend

Dividend Declaration The Insight Select Income Fund (INSI) (the "Fund") today declared a quarterly dividend of $0.20 on June 23, 2021. The total distribution of $0.20 will be payable on July 29, 2021, to shareholders of record at the close of business on July 14, 2021, with an ex-dividend date of July 13, 2021. The Fund's last four quarterly dividend payments from ordinary income equates to approximately $0.80 per share. The Fund is a diversified closed-end management investment company whose investment objective is to seek a high rate of return, primarily from interest income and trading activity, from a portfolio principally consisting of debt securities. The Fund will also seek capital appreciation principally by purchasing debt securities at prices that the Adviser believes are below their intrinsic value. The Fund will also look to benefit from trading securities to optimize the risk adjusted yields in the Fund. Insight North America LLC, the Fund's investment adviser, provides fixed income asset management to a variety of institutional clents including corporations, governmental entities, employee benefit plans, private funds and registered investment companies.



This press release is not for tax reporting purposes but is being provided to announce the amount of the Fund's distribution that have been declared by the Board of Trustees. A portion of the Fund's current distribution may include sources other than net investment income, including a return of capital. Investors should understand that a return of capital is not a distribution from income or gains of a Fund. As required under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, a notice with the estimated components of the distribution will be sent to shareholders at the time of payment if it does not consist solely of net investment income. The notice should not be used to prepare tax returns as the estimates indicated in the notice may differ from the ultimate federal income tax characterization of distributions. After the end of each calendar year, investors will be sent a Form 1099-DIV informing them how to report distributions received during that year for federal income tax purposes. Statements in this press release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined by the United States securities laws. You should exercise caution in interpreting and relying on forward-looking statements because they are subject to uncertainties and other factors which are, in some cases, beyond the Fund's control and could cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements.

An investor should consider a Fund's investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses carefully before investing. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005942/en/

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[June 23, 2021] Chatham Lodging Trust Prices Public Offering of 6.625% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares

Chatham Lodging Trust (NYSE: CLDT) (the "Company") today announced that on June 23, 2021, it priced an underwritten public offering of 4,800,000 of its 6.625% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares (the "Shares") at a public offering price of $25.00 per share, for net proceeds of approximately $116.1 million, after deducting the underwriting discount and estimated offering-related expenses payable by the Company. The offering is expected to close on June 30, 2021, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions. The Company will contribute the net proceeds from the sale of the Shares to its operating partnership in exchange for preferred units. The operating partnership intends to use the net proceeds to repay indebtedness under the Company's revolving credit facility. Borrowings under the Company's revolving credit facility that the operating partnership repays with net proceeds from this offering may be re-borrowed, subject to customary conditions. After using the net proceeds from this offering to repay indebtedness under the Company's revolving credit facility, the operating partnership intends to re-borrow funds under the Company's revolving credit facility to fund the purchase price for the Austin Acquisitions (as defined below). To the extent the operating partnership does not use the net proceeds of this offering to repay indebtedness under the Company's revolving credit facility or fund the Austin Acquisitions, the operating partnership intends to use the net proceeds of this offering for general business purposes, including, without limitation, funding the Company's investment activity, repayment of indebtedness and working capital. As of June 22, 2021, borrowings under the Company'srevolving credit facility totaled approximately $130.0 million, with interest on such borrowings of 3.0% and a maturity date of March 8, 2022. On June 15, 2021, the Company entered into a purchase and sale agreement to acquire two hotels located in Austin, Texas for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $71.2 million (the "Austin Acquisitions").



Wells Fargo (News - Alert) Securities, Barclays, BofA Securities and Citigroup are the joint book-running managers of the offering. BMO Capital Markets, Regions Securities LLC, Stifel and US Bancorp are the joint lead managers of the offering. B. Riley Securities and Janney Montgomery Scott are acting as senior co-managers. The Shares will be issued under the Company's currently effective shelf registration statement on Form S-3 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Copies of the final prospectus supplement (when available) and base prospectus relating to the Shares may be obtained by contacting Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, Attention: WFS Customer Service, 608 2nd Avenue South, Suite 1000, Minneapolis, MN 55402, email: wfscustomerservice@wellsfargo.com, telephone: 1-800-645-3751.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities, in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction. About Chatham Lodging Trust Chatham Lodging Trust is a self-advised, publicly traded real estate investment trust focused primarily on investing in upscale, extended-stay hotels and premium-branded, select-service hotels. The company owns 39 hotels totaling 5,900 rooms/suites in 15 states and the District of Columbia. This press release contains certain "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and other federal securities laws. These forward-looking statements are based upon the Company's expectations, but these statements are not guaranteed to occur. For example, the fact that the offering has priced may imply that the offering will close, but the closing is subject to conditions customary in transactions of this type and may be delayed or may not occur at all. In addition, the fact that the underwriters have an over-allotment option may imply that this option will be exercised. However, the underwriters are not under any obligation to exercise this option, or any portion of it, and may not do so. The Company cannot assure Investors that it will complete the Austin Acquisitions because the acquisitions are subject to the Company's completion of satisfactory due diligence and other customary closing conditions. Investors should not place undue reliance upon forward-looking statements. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005951/en/

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[June 23, 2021] AI in Education Market Revenue to Cross $20B by 2027; Global Market Insights, Inc.

SELBYVILLE, Del., June 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Global Market Insights Inc. has recently added a new report on the AI in education market which estimates the market valuation for AI in education will cross US $20 billion by 2027. The market is gaining traction due to the proliferation of smart devices and rapid digitalization across the globe. The growing demand for AI in education is primarily driven by the advanced features and benefits offered by AI technology, attracting investments and fueling its adoption among organizations. The growing integration of Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITS) into the learning process has assisted in improving students' learning styles, offering personalized tutoring & high-quality education to the students. Request a sample of this research report at https://www.gminsights.com/request-sample/detail/2639 The service segment is expected to grow at a 40% CAGR through 2027. The increase in the adoption of cloud computing services is expected to support the demand for managed services. In addition, the emergence of Software-as-a-Service and Platform-as-a-Service is also contributing to managed service growth. This is anticipated to support market growth over the forecast period. The machine learning technology segment is predicted to observe significant growth over 2021-2027. Machine learning is significant for understanding educational patterns and suggesting variations for teaching methods. It also enables an unbiased grading system and feedback mechanism for both students and teachers. In addition, it captures and maintains the rich content of information, identifying meaningful patterns within them and converting it into a structured database for future usage, thus, providing lucrative opportunities for market growth. The K-12 education accounted for over 30% of the AI in education market revenue share in 2020. This growth is attributed to transitions in academic standards and shifting their focus toward measuring students' problem-solving and critical thinking capabilities, preparing them for higher education and career success. AI software tools understand the requirements of students at every stage of learning and prepare the learning course according to the students' strengths and weaknesses, boosting the market demand. The smart content segment is projected to witness exponential growth over the forecast period. The growth is attributed to beneficial offerings such as online-offline delivery of content such as audio, video & text and filtered content for technology students, resulting in a personalized reading experience. In addition, the reduced cost and resource requirements, flexibility, ease-of-use, and improved consistency in learning will drive the market./p>



Europe held the market share of more than 15% in 2020 on account of the increasing digitalization and growing investments in AI. The internet penetration in the European region is estimated to be approximately 91% in the year 2020. As the internet penetration increases, the population having access to AI-enabled educational services will also rise, fostering the market growth.

Request for customization of this research report at https://www.gminsights.com/roc/2639. The companies operating in the market are focusing on partnering with governments for an advanced learning platform. For instance, in March 2021, Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) signed a partnership agreement with Intel to launch the AI learning platform called AI Students Community (AISC). This platform is aimed to bring together students across both CBSE and non-CBSE schools and learn from Intel AI-certified experts. Some major findings of the AI in education market report include: Growing demand for online learning platforms across the globe is supporting the market growth.



Europe is expected to hold a significant market share for AI in education solutions with the presence of prominent players and supportive government initiatives.



is expected to hold a significant market share for AI in education solutions with the presence of prominent players and supportive government initiatives. Major players operating in the AI in the education market are AWS, Blackboard Inc., Blippar, Century Tech Limited, Cerevrum Inc., CheckiO, etc.



Companies operating in the market are focusing on developing innovative product launches for advanced online education solutions. Partial chapters of report table of contents (ToC): Chapter 3 AI in Education Industry Insights 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Industry segmentation 3.3 Impact of COVID-19 outbreak 3.3.1 Global outlook 3.3.2 Regional outlook 3.3.2.1 North America 3.3.2.2 Europe 3.3.2.3 Asia Pacific 3.3.2.4 Latin America 3.3.2.5 Middle East & Africa 3.3.3 Industry value chain 3.3.3.1 AI in education providers 3.3.3.2 Marketing & distribution channel 3.3.4 Competitive landscape 3.3.4.1 Strategy 3.3.4.2 Distribution network 3.3.4.3 Business growth 3.4 AI in education industry ecosystem analysis 3.4.1 Hardware provider 3.4.2 AI in education software providers 3.4.3 Cloud service providers 3.4.4 End users 3.4.5 Vendor matrix 3.5 Industry evolution 3.6 Features & benefits of AI in education sector 3.7 Technology & innovation landscape 3.7.1 Chatbot 3.7.2 Video analytics 3.7.3 Augmented reality and virtual reality 3.7.4 Education neuroscience 3.8 Use cases 3.9 Investment portfolio 3.10 Patent analysis 3.11 Regulatory landscape 3.11.1 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) 3.11.2 Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) 3.11.3 North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) Standards 3.11.4 Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) 3.11.5 The Gramma-Leach-Bliley Act (GLB) Act of 1999 3.11.6 Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 3.11.7 The Education Act 2011 3.11.8 Right to Education 3.11.9 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 3.11.10 No Child Left Behind Act 3.11.11 Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) 3.11.12 United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) 3.12 Industry impact forces 3.12.1 Growth drivers 3.12.1.1 Increasing venture capital investment in AI and EdTech 3.12.1.2 Exponentially growing digital data 3.12.1.3 Growing integration of ITS in learning process 3.12.1.4 Increasing partnership with education content providers 3.12.1.5 Rising adoption of cloud-based services 3.12.2 Industry pitfalls & challenges 3.12.2.1 Data safety & security issues 3.12.2.2 Limitation of ITS 3.12.2.3 Lack of skilled professionals 3.13 Growth potential analysis 3.14 Porter's analysis 3.15 PESTEL analysis About Global Market Insights Global Market Insights, Inc., headquartered in Delaware, U.S., is a global market research and consulting service provider; offering syndicated and custom research reports along with growth consulting services. Our business intelligence and industry research reports offer clients with penetrative insights and actionable market data specially designed and presented to aid strategic decision making. These exhaustive reports are designed via a proprietary research methodology and are available for key industries such as chemicals, advanced materials, technology, renewable energy and biotechnology. Contact Us:

Arun Hegde

Corporate Sales, USA

Global Market Insights, Inc.

Phone: 1-302-846-7766

Toll Free: 1-888-689-0688

Email: sales@gminsights.com Related Images artificial-intelligence-ai-in.png

Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Education Market size worth $20 Bn by 2027

AI in Education Market size is set to surpass USD 20 billion by 2027, according to a new research report by Global Market Insights, Inc. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ai-in-education-market-revenue-to-cross-20b-by-2027-global-market-insights-inc-301318889.html SOURCE Global Market Insights Inc.

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[June 23, 2021] Government of Canada Invests Over $9.5 Million to Bring High-speed Internet to 6,124 Homes in Rural and Indigenous Communities in Ontario

Close to 3,000 Indigenous households to benefit from improved connectivity OTTAWA, ON, June 23, 2021 /CNW Telbec/ - Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted how much we rely on our connections. Now more than ever, Canadians across the country need reliable high-speed Internet as many of us are working, learning, accessing essential services, and staying in touch with friends and family from home. Right now, too many residents in rural, remote and Indigenous communities in Canada lack access to high-speed Internet. Through the Universal Broadband Fund (UBF) Rapid Response Stream, the Government of Canada is taking immediate action to get Canadians connected to the high-speed Internet they need. Today, the Honourable Maryam Monsef, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Rural Economic Development, the Honourable Marc Miller, Minister of Indigenous Services, and the Honourable Carolyn Bennett, Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations, announced over $9.5 million in federal funding for 11 projects that will bring high-speed Internet to 17 rural and Indigenous communities in Ontario. These projects will connect 6,124 underserved households, 2,953 of which are in Indigenous communities. Of the 11 projects, 10 are led by Indigenous applicants. The following communities and areas will benefit from these high-speed Internet projects: Animakee Wa Zhing 37

Asubpeeschoseewagong First Nation ( Grassy Narrows )

) Big Grassy First Nation

Chapleau Ojibwe First Nation

Chippewas of Georgina Island

Mishkeegogamang Ojibway First Nation region

North Spirit Lake First Nation region

North West Angle No. 33 First Nation

Northwest Angle No. 37 First Nation

Ojibway Nation of Saugeen region

Ojibways of Onigaming First Nation

Ojibways of the Pic River First Nation (Biigtigong Nishnaabeg) region

Pikangikum

Rural areas near Kenora

Sioux Narrows

The region of Kejick (Iskatewizaagegan #39 Independent First Nation)

Wauzhushk Onigum Today's announcement is another important step toward bridging the infrastructure gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities across Canada. In the spirit of reconciliation and in partnership with Indigenous Peoples, the Government of Canada, through Budget 2021, has laid out a $6billion plan to build infrastructure in Indigenous communities, including the establishment of the $4.3billion Indigenous Community Infrastructure Fund. This fund would advance key infrastructure priorities, such as clean drinking water projects, housing, schools, broadband and health care facilities, in Indigenous communities from coast to coast to coast. As part of this work, Government of Canada is committed to addressing the urgent housing needs of vulnerable Canadians by providing adequate and affordable housingin particular, housing that will help serve the needs of women and their children. Investments will be made in housing through directed initiatives such as the Rapid Housing Initiative, the Federal Community Housing Initiative, the Affordable Housing Innovation Fund and the Canada Housing Benefit, which would increase direct financial rental assistance for women and children in low-income situations who are fleeing violence. Together, these initiatives will help many low-income Canadians, including Indigenous women, childre and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people, find a safe and affordable place to take shelter and call home.



To date, the Government of Canada has approved high-speed internet projects that will connect 3,386 Indigenous households in Ontario through the Rapid Response Stream of the Universal Broadband Fund, with more announcements to come. In addition, 108 long-term boil water advisories have been lifted, 182 short-term drinking water advisories have been prevented from becoming long-term, and over $4.27 billion has been invested from the federal government in clean water infrastructure.

Following the announcement, the ministers hosted a private roundtable to discuss the impacts of these connectivity projects in Indigenous communities, and to hear more about the unique broadband infrastructure needs in these areas. The takeaways from these discussions are integral to informing the path forward in connecting Indigenous communities throughout Canada to the high-speed Internet they need. The Universal Broadband Fund was launched in November 2020 and, as a result of Budget 2021, it is now a $2.75-billion program. Projects funded under the UBF, as well as through other public and private investments, will help connect 98% of Canadians to high-speed Internet by 2026 and achieve the Government of Canada's national target of 100% connectivity by 2030. Quotes "High-speed Internet service is essential to the success of everyone living in Indigenous communities and in our rural and remote areas. Today's investment will bring reliable, high-speed Internet access to 6,124 households in Ontario, 2,953 of which are in Indigenous communities. Broadband infrastructure in these communities will help create jobs, improve access to health care and online learning services, and keep families and friends connected to their loved ones. It will also help keep our most vulnerable communities safe and is a pillar of our goal to end violence against women, girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people. We will continue to make investments like these to connect every Indigenous community across the country to the high-speed Internet they need."

 The Honourable Maryam Monsef, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Rural Economic Development "This funding will further close the infrastructure gap between non-Indigenous and Indigenous communities. The Universal Broadband Fund is an important program that continues to support Indigenous peoples' access to high-speed Internet and enhances education and business opportunities in their communities."

 The Honourable Marc Miller, Minister of Indigenous Services "Throughout the development of the 2021 Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People National Action Plan, including the Federal Pathway, we heard from Indigenous partners across the country about how important it was to improve Internet access to promote community safety and wellness. Internet access is essential for staying connected with friends and family, as well as for health care, employment and education. These pieces are integral to ending violence against Indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people. Today's announcement is a major step in ensuring that everyone in Ontario has access to high-speed Internet, wherever they live."

 The Honourable Carolyn Bennett, Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations

Quick facts Canada's Connectivity Strategy aims to provide all Canadians with access to Internet speeds of at least 50 megabits per second (Mbps) download / 10 Mbps upload.

Connectivity Strategy aims to provide all Canadians with access to Internet speeds of at least 50 megabits per second (Mbps) download / 10 Mbps upload. The Universal Broadband Fund (UBF) is a $2.75-billion investment designed to help connect all Canadians to high-speed Internet. Applications to the UBF were accepted until March 15, 2021 , and are now being evaluated.

investment designed to help connect all Canadians to high-speed Internet. Applications to the UBF were accepted until , and are now being evaluated. The UBF is part of a suite of federal investments to improve high-speed Internet. The suite includes the Connect to Innovate program, which is expected to connect nearly 400,000 households by 2023, and the recently announced $2-billion broadband initiative from the Canada Infrastructure Bank.

broadband initiative from the Canada Infrastructure Bank. Thanks to recent federal and provincial investments, Highway 16 in British Columbia , also known as the Highway of Tears, will soon have cellular coverage along the entire route.

, also known as the Highway of Tears, will soon have cellular coverage along the entire route. The government's $585-million investment under the Connect to Innovate program will connect over 975 communities, 190 of which are Indigenous. Associated links Backgrounder: Universal Broadband Fund Rapid Response Stream  Projects benefiting Indigenous communities in Ontario

Universal Broadband Fund

Connect to Innovate Program  Project status updates

Canada Infrastructure Bank announcement

High-Speed Access for All: Canada's Connectivity Strategy Stay connected Follow Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada on Twitter: @ISED_CA SOURCE Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada

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[June 23, 2021]

Government of Canada invests nearly $208,000 to bring high-speed Internet to Biigtigong Nishnaabeg

145 Indigenous households in Ontario to benefit from increased connectivity

OTTAWA, ON, June 23, 2021 /CNW/ - The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted how much we rely on our connections. Now more than ever, Canadians across the country need access to reliable high-speed Internet as many of us are working, learning, and staying in touch with friends and family from home. Right now, too many Canadians living in rural and remote communities lack access to high-speed Internet. Through the Universal Broadband Fund (UBF) Rapid Response Stream, the Government of Canada is taking immediate action to get Canadians connected to the high-speed Internet they need.

Today, the Honourable Patty Hajdu, Minister of Health and Member of Parliament for Thunder BaySuperior North, on behalf of the Honourable Maryam Monsef, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Rural Economic Development, highlighted nearly $208,000 in federal funding to bring high-speed Internet to 145 underserved households in Biigtigong Nishnaabeg (Ojibways of the Pic River First Nation). Pic River Development Corporation is investing an additional $38,000 in this project.

This federal funding is part of the over $9.5 million investment in 11 projects, 10 of which are Indigenous led, announced by Minister Monsef earlier today. These projects will bring high-speed Internet to rural residents and Indigenous communities in Ontario, connecting 6,124 underserved households, almost half of which (2,953) are Indigenous households.

The Universal Broadband Fund was launched in November 2020. Projects funded under the now $2.75-billion UBF, as well as through other public and private investments, will help connect 98% of Canadians to high-speed Internet by 2026 and achieve the national target of 100% connectivity by 2030.

This project builds on the progress the Government of Canada has already made to improve critical infrastructure in Ontario. Since 2015, the federal government has invested more than $2.85 billion in over 4,060 infrastructure projects in Ontario communities with a population of fewer than 100,000 people. These investments mean 452 km of new or upgraded roads that are making our communities safer; more than 938 projects to provide residents with cleaner, more sustainable sources of drinking water; and more than 5,427 additional housing units built in rural communities, helping ensure all Ontarians have a safe place to call home.

Quotes

"High-speed Internet is essential for Northern Ontario. It connects us to work, school and each other. Today's investment will provide reliable access t 145 underserved households in Biigtigong Nishnaabeg. This project is part of our commitment of over $9.5 million for 11 connectivity projects in Ontario that will connect over 6,100 households in rural and Indigenous communities to better, more reliable Internet."









"Pic River Development Corporation is locally run and has been providing Internet service to over 150 homes in Biigtigong Nishnaabeg. We are proud to have run the business successfully for over 20 years and we have invested many times in keeping up with modern technology, but we operate on tight margins and competing with urban centres presents many challenges. After attending some Canadian Cable Systems Alliance conferences, we realized that we were not alone and that others shared the same struggles. We recognize the importance of the Universal Broadband Fund, and we are honoured to have our project selected. On behalf of PRDC and our community, we thank all those who believe in us. Our project will increase opportunity and quality of life in our community, and the funds will also support many Canadian businesses."

 Bonnie Goodchild, General Manager, Pic River Development Corporation

Quick facts

Canada's Connectivity Strategy aims to provide all Canadians with access to Internet speeds of at least 50 megabits per second (Mbps) download / 10 Mbps upload.

Connectivity Strategy aims to provide all Canadians with access to Internet speeds of at least 50 megabits per second (Mbps) download / 10 Mbps upload. The Universal Broadband Fund (UBF) is a $2.75-billion investment designed to help connect all Canadians to high-speed Internet. Applications to the UBF were accepted until March 15, 2021 , and are now being evaluated.

investment designed to help connect all Canadians to high-speed Internet. Applications to the UBF were accepted until , and are now being evaluated. The UBF is part of a suite of federal investments to improve high-speed Internet. The suite includes the Connect to Innovate program, which is expected to connect nearly 400,000 households by 2023, and the recently announced $2-billion broadband initiative from the Canada Infrastructure Bank.

broadband initiative from the Canada Infrastructure Bank. Thanks to recent federal and provincial investments, Highway 16 in British Columbia , also known as the Highway of Tears, will soon have cellular coverage along the entire route.

, also known as the Highway of Tears, will soon have cellular coverage along the entire route. The government's $585-million investment under the Connect to Innovate program will connect over 975 communities, 190 of which are Indigenous.

Associated links

Stay connected

Follow Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada on Twitter: @ISED_CA

SOURCE Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada
[June 23, 2021] O-RAN ALLIANCE Announces New Specifications and Demos, First Open Test and Integration Centers and Its June 29 Industry Summit

O-RAN ALLIANCE welcomes stc as its new operator member, building up the world-wide community of 29 mobile network operators committed to deployment of open and intelligent Radio Access Networks (RAN). This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005961/en/ O-RAN Logical Architecture (Graphic: Business Wire) 33 New or Updated O-RAN Specifications Released since March 2021 On June 17, 2021, the O-RAN ALLIANCE published another 33 specification documents, including 11 new titles. Among others these new specifications include: Management interface, timing and synchronization for Transport

The baseline for Non-Real-Time Radio Intelligent Controller (Non-RT RIC) and Near-Real-Time RIC Architecture and interfaces (E2, A1, F1/X2/Xn)

Certification and badging guidelines and parts of end-to-end, inter-operability and conformance testing For more details on the new specifications, please check this O-RAN blog post. To download O-RAN specifications, please proceed to www.o-ran.org/specifications. First European Open Test and Integration Centers Hosted by Deutsche Telekom (News - Alert) and TIM The O-RAN ALLIANCE approved the first two European Open Test and Integration Centers (OTIC:



European OTIC in Berlin hosted by Deutsche Telekom

European OTIC in Torino hosted by TIM OTICs provide a collaborative, open, and impartial working environment to ensure consistency and quality of testing of O-RAN products and solutions. "It is great to see the momentum in adoption of O-RAN based solutions," said Alex Jinsung Choi, COO of the O-RAN ALLIANCE and SVP Technology Strategy & Technology Innovation, Deutsche Telekom. "OTICs will play an important role in managing the complex interoperability scenarios and related integration cost, and accelerate O-RAN product commercialization in large network solutions."

36 New O-RAN Demonstrations O-RAN ALLIANCE is excited to announce the release of 36 demos to be showcased at the O-RAN Virtual Exhibition by June 29, 2021. Five of these demos will also be presented at the MWC Barcelona exhibition by: Parallel Wireless at Hall 5, Booth 515

at Rohde & Schwarz (News - Alert) at Hall 6, Booth B30

at Sageran, presenting 3 demos at Hall 7, Booth 7N50 More companies are presenting their demos in the virtual form: Analog Devices, Arm, Astri, Baicells, Capgemini, China Mobile, CIG, Comba Telecom, H3C, Intel (News - Alert) , IS-Wireless, ITRI, Juniper Networks, Keysight, Lenovo, NEC, Netcracker, Nokia, Nvidia, NXP, O-RAN Software Community, Parallel Wireless, Pegatron, Radisys, Rohde & Schwarz, Qualcomm, Sageran, Siemens (News - Alert) EDA, TIM, T&W, VIAVI Solutions, WindRiver. For more details on these demos, please read our blog post. O-RAN ALLIANCE Industry Summit on June 29, 2021 O-RAN ALLIANCE plans to hold its next Industry Summit on June 29th. The 90 minute live virtual session will provide exclusive insights from top executives that are driving the rapid advances in the O-RAN space. During the panel discussion speakers from AirHop Communications, AT&T, Deutsche Telekom, Facebook (News - Alert) , Mavenir, Nokia, Rakuten Mobile, TIM, VIAVI and VMware will share their views on key topics including Open RAN Commercialization, Open RAN Security and Performance. The summit will conclude with a live Q&A where the audience can submit their questions for the panelists. Join the event at www.o-ran.org/events. About O-RAN ALLIANCE The O-RAN ALLIANCE is a world-wide community of 300 mobile operators, vendors, and research & academic institutions operating in the Radio Access Network (RAN) industry. As the RAN is an essential part of any mobile network, the O-RAN ALLIANCE's mission is to re-shape the industry towards more intelligent, open, virtualized and fully interoperable mobile networks. The new O-RAN standards will enable a more competitive and vibrant RAN supplier ecosystem with faster innovation to improve user experience. O-RAN based mobile networks will at the same time improve the efficiency of RAN deployments as well as operations by the mobile operators. To achieve this, the O-RAN ALLIANCE publishes new RAN specifications, releases open software for the RAN, and supports its members in integration and testing of their implementations. For more information please visit www.o-ran.org. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210623005961/en/

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NASHVILLE, Tenn.  In partnership with Tennessees five Feeding America affiliates, Tennessee first lady Maria Lee today announced 191,712 meals were distributed to the states 11 economically distressed counties through her Tennessee Serves initiative.

Tennessees five Feeding America affiliates include Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee, Mid-South Food Bank, Chattanooga Area Food Bank, Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee and Second Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Tennessee. Tennessee Serves partnered with these affiliates to distribute 3,994 boxes of food statewide each containing enough meals for four days with three meals per day for a family of four.

Since its launch in May 2019, Tennessee Serves has worked diligently to wrap around the states economically distressed counties. Each month Tennessee Serves introduces a new challenge to encourage Tennesseans to serve their communities in various ways. In June, Tennessee Serves has focused on serving the hungry and food insecure. According to Feeding America, one in eight Tennesseans face hunger with one in six of them being children.

Food banks and their volunteer networks are crucial to a communitys ability to care for those who are in need, said Maria Lee, first lady of Tennessee. We are incredibly grateful for the opportunity to aid those who work around the clock to serve their neighbors and help feed hungry families across the state.

Bledsoe County Community Food Bank in Pikeville was one of the food banks that received boxes of food to serve seniors in their community.

The seniors loved everything in their boxes, said Ginger Housley, pantry director of Bledsoe County Community Food Bank. The residents of these communities in the mountains dont have access to a lot of food and some of the items are considered a luxury by their families. It was a great compliment to our weekly distribution.

The focus on our rural counties is crucial to our work, and we are thankful for this support to provide nutritious food to our neighbors in need, said Nancy Keil, president and CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee. We are so grateful for first lady Maria Lees commitment to fighting hunger in Tennessee.

Not only are we able to distribute 1,284 additional food boxes in three of our rural counties, Tennessee Serves is bringing attention to hunger in our state and the resources food banks continue to provide those in need, said Cathy Pope, president and CEO of Mid-South Food Bank.

For the residents served, these boxes provided not only nutritious food, but also hope for our neighbors struggling with hunger, said Melissa Blevins, president and CEO of Chattanooga Area Food Bank. We are so grateful for the 600 invaluable food boxes that helped fill the gap of food insecurity in both Bledsoe and Grundy Counties.

We are beyond grateful for first lady Maria Lees commitment to the hungry here in East Tennessee and throughout Tennessee, said Elaine Sterno, executive director of Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee. It highlights the poverty we all battle every day, and we are truly appreciative of her hard work and dedication to helping our rural pantries and their clients receive meals.

It takes everyone providing hope to feed people today so that we can end hunger tomorrow, said Rhonda Chafin, executive director of Second Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Tennessee. Second Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Tennessee and the communities we serve, especially the rural community of Sneedville in Hancock County, are grateful for the first ladys Tennessee Serves initiative and this effort to engage Tennesseans in helping one another and their communities.

The first lady will help distribute boxes of food to families in Wayne County on Tuesday, June 22, in Hardeman County on Friday, June 25, and in Hancock County on Tuesday, June 29.

###
Mendes working to secure Rodriguez a move away from Everton

| Tuesday, 22 June 2021



That's the claim of Colombian journalist Pipe Sierra who says that while a return to Real Madrid under Carlo Ancelotti for James hasn't been ruled out, it is seen as a more difficult option.

Rodriguez's agent, Jorge Mendes, is looking to secure a move for between 10m and 20m according to the report.

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No, no he didn't.



And, in fact, there are quite a few people and legal eagles who claim that his arguments are paper thin.

However, as a blogger, we have to be honest with readers and amid this stuff is above our pay grade and we look forward to brighter legal minds offering their insight.

WHAT WE KNOW FOR SURE . . . Is that surging violence and longstanding Kansas City problems have taken a backseat to this debate over legal theory and municipal governance litigation. Simply put: The former law lecturer turned Mayor is running KCMO like a 1L course rather than town with a billion dollar+ budget and a vast array of worsening disputes.



Fox4 offers the best summary . . .

The response claims that the lawsuit is legally and factually false.



In its answer to the Board of Police Commissioners lawsuit seeking a Writ of Mandamus that would overturn the city councils action of transferring about $42 million to a new fund, the city argues approved ordinances did not violate Missouri law, and amount to discretionary actions not reversible by a court ordered Writ.



The filing notes that the city complied with the state law by funding the Kansas City Police Department at 20% of general fund revenues. Any amount beyond that, is discretionary.



It also notes that on several occasions in the past, the city council has revisited funding and cut the police budget, while in at least 60 other instances since fiscal year 2012, additional funding was provided.



Here's the link round-up that's mostly sympathetic to the mayor . . .



'Legally and factually false:' Kansas City files response to Police Board lawsuit KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Kansas City, Missouri, filed its response to a lawsuit filed by Kansas City's Board of Police Commissioners over a change in the way the city funds its police department. The response claims that the lawsuit is legally and factually false.

KCMO files response to BOPC lawsuit, calling it 'without merit' KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The City of Kansas City, Missouri, filed its response Tuesday to the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners' lawsuit over ordinances changing the funding structure of the city's police department .

Kansas City files response in police accountability lawsuit KANSAS CITY, MO (KCTV) -- The City of Kansas City has filed its response to the Board of Police Commissioners' lawsuit against the city pending in Jackson County Circuit Court. The response argues that the Board's complaints against the city are both legally and factually false.

Kansas City Wants Police Board's Lawsuit Dropped, Denies It Seeks To Control Force The war of words around Mayor Quinton Lucas's plan to reallocate a portion of the police budget is now in the courts, with the city responding to the Board of Police Commissioners lawsuit. Both sides say the other is violating state law.

KC leaders file response against BOPC lawsuit Mayor Quinton Lucas. // Courtesy KC Government KC leaders filed their response to the KC Board of Police Commission today against the pending lawsuit in Jackson County Circuit Court today. It argued that the Board's complaints against the city are legally and factually false.

Battle over KCPD funding continues with KCMO Mayor calling board's actions 'wholly without merit' The City of Kansas City, Missouri, and Mayor Quinton Lucas have filed yet another response in the ongoing battle over funding of the Kansas City Police Department.

Developing . . .
There's a bevy of crime news to share tonight and we try to pack it all into one convenient package for the benefit of the KICK-ASS TKC BLOG COMMUNITY . . . And so, here's a collection that reveals the rising threat of local scams and other misdeeds throughout the metro.



Check-it . . .



Local Truck Crook Consequences

KCPD: Man that used stolen ID to purchase a $58k SUV charged in Platte County Detectives with the Kansas City, Missouri, police took to a popular metro-area Facebook group in May with a plea to help name an identity theft suspect.

Cold Case Fight In The Dotte

'Justice for Wyandotte' group holds rally to bring attention to unsolved homicides in Kansas City, Kansas KANSAS CITY, Kan. - A group calling itself "Justice for Wyandotte" is rallying at city hall, calling for police to form a cold case unit. These are some of the same protesters who helped expose police misconduct and corruption in law enforcement connected to former detective Roger Golubski.

Global Scammers Threaten Kansas City

U.S. Customs and Border Protection impersonators target Kansas Citians KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The U.S. Customs and Border Protection is warning Kansas City residents of a new phone scam. Scammers are calling people in the Kansas City area in attempts to obtain banking information, according to the agency.

Police Looking For This Dude

Lenexa police looking for man last seen Wednesday leaving in Uber LENEXA, KS (KCTV) -- Lenexa police are looking for a 26-year-old man who left home in an Uber last Wednesday evening and has not been seen since. The Lenexa Police Department says that 26-year-old Clayton D. Goldbach left home in the 7800 block of Twilight Lane on June 16 around 5 p.m.

Golden Ghetto Murder Case Note

Overland Park police seeking man in relation to homicide investigation KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Overland Park police are asking for public help locating a man who may have information about a May 24 homicide. Police believe Kyle Anthony Gutierres, 24, has information about the shooting that killed 35-year-old Jeren Hinton of Overland Park in the 8500 block of West 85th Street.

Naming The Dead In The Dotte

18-year-old killed outside KCK apartment after argument between two people KANSAS CITY, Kan. - Family and police have confirmed the name of a teen who was shot and killed outside a Kansas City, Kansas, apartment building over the weekend. Eighteen-year-old Darrin Lamont Fry was killed early Saturday. Police said it stemmed from an argument between two people.

Tragic 1st Responder Story

14-year-old boy dies after falling off moving vehicle in Bonner Springs BONNER SPRINGS, KS (KCTV) -- A 14-year-old boy is dead after he fell from a moving vehicle in Bonner Springs. Police were called about 9:50 a.m. Monday to a parking lot in the 2200 block of South 138th Street. Investigators say two juveniles had been riding on a vehicle driven by another juvenile when one of them fell.

Old School Killing Aftermath

Cold case arrest: Suspect charged in 1985 murder of Roeland Park father by: Heidi Schmidt Posted: / Updated: ROELAND PARK, Kan. - The Johnson County District Attorney say they've solved a murder from 1985. Geter Rhymes is charged with first degree murder in the death of Gary Watson. He is scheduled to be in court Wednesday morning.

Kansas Crime Worsening

Wichita police seek federal partnership to address violence WICHITA, Kan. - Wichita police are asking the City Council to approve a federal partnership in an effort to address a surge in violent crime. The Wichita Eagle reports that police want help from the U.S. Marshals Service as gun violence escalates in the city.

Defense Worried After Felony Gun Charge

What two arrests this offseason could mean for Frank Clark's ability to suit up for Chiefs KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Kansas City Chiefs Pro Bowl defensive end Frank Clark is out on bail after being arrested Sunday and booked into the Los Angeles County Jail on Monday on suspicion of felony gun possession.

Developing. . .


Like it or not, and following so much diversity drama in their newsroom over the past few years, KSHB is now the most progressive local news outlet in pushing pride month whilst the other TV stations offer low key (read: down low) acknowledgment or not much coverage at all.



Here's the 41 hot take tonight . . .

Kansas City Center for Inclusion spearheads Gender Affirmation Project KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Not talking about gender dysphoria - feelings of distress regarding gender identity and sex assigned at birth - can be detrimental, according to one Kansas Citian. "You have to talk about it. You have to bring it up.

PRIDE Haven opens overnight youth shelter, partners with businesses for Pride Month KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Kansas City-area businesses are coming together this Pride Month to make sure every young person who identifies as LGBTQIA+ has a place to sleep at night. Save, Inc., a non-profit which runs a variety of housing programs, is partnering with businesses to raise money and awareness for PRIDE Haven, its overnight shelter for homeless youth.

Developing . . .


The Vatican has already warned Bishops against flexing on politicos and playing games with what Catholics believe is the body & blood of Christ.



So, let's acknowledge that a great deal of this slap fight over Prez Biden's communion might just be for show and tantamount to nothing more than an exchange of angry letters & media hyperbole.

We've been blogging the situation for weeks.

Today that Star decided to editorialize and carry Democratic Party talking points pushing back against bishops . . .

U.S. bishops want to deny Biden communion. What about Catholic politicians in KC region?

They mostly focus on defense of Guv Kelly.

However . . . What's also interesting is that local Catholic leaders don't really feel like the paper is important enough to respond to . . . Even in Kansas City the bishop simply pointed them to a statement that we blogged weeks ago . . .



Statement of Bishop James V. Johnston on the Matter of Eucharistic Coherence

Money line . . .

This question touches on many gravely evil activities besides abortion, and it assuredly pertains to all Catholics, not simply those in public office. Nevertheless, it remains a scientific fact that abortion ends an innocent human life, and the Bishops of the United States have rightly noted that abortion is the preeminent issue of our time. It is a preeminent concern due to the sheer scale of human lives taken (60 million unborn children have died since the Roe v. Wade decision in 1973), the fact that abortion often takes place within the sanctuary of the family, and the direct nature of intentionality by willfully killing the most innocent and defenseless among us.



Advocating for or enacting laws which promote such killing as a right, which subsidize such killing, or which seek to expand access to such killing are gravely evil acts, contrary to the Catholic faith. The Catholic Church teaches that any person engaged in such acts is called to repentance and reconciliation prior to presenting oneself for Holy Communion. Catholics in public life who advocate for abortion in these ways and then present themselves as devout Catholics according to their own self-understanding create a source of great confusion among American Catholics. Pastors have a responsibility to help individuals towards repentance out of concern for their salvation, but also to protect the faithful from being misled by bad example and scandal.

And so . . .

Don't expect any resolution on this issue any time soon as American Church leaders seem more savvy about staying relevant than the local newspaper.

You decide . . .


An Italian director who has traveled to 35 countries and made short films and documentaries is currently in Istanbul to tell the story of the Queen of Cities.

Franco Dubini arrived in the Turkish metropolis two weeks ago and is attempting to explore the streets of the historic city to make comprehensive documentaries on Turkish culture.

What is important for me with my camera is to destroy the stereotypes that people who dont travel or who are just used to seeing things on television or reading about in newspapers are afraid of, Dubini told Anadolu Agency.

Dubini hit the road with his camera four years ago and shot documentaries on many different subjects, from coffee producers in Indonesia to the difficult life of refugees in Greece.

He came to Turkey, which he had been curious about for years, and every day, he shares videos on his social media accounts from his first stop Istanbul, which he defines as "the center of the world for centuries."

I was born in Switzerland, but I am Italian inside my bones because I was raised by Italian parents, he said.

Later, he moved to Berlin, Germany, where he studied German and graphic design.

I got a scholarship and I moved to Australia, he said, adding there at the age of 23, he was very lucky to find my real passion, which is filmmaking.

I quit the university. I saved some money. I was a waiter. I was cleaning bathrooms for Airbnb, saved some money, and bought my first camera, he said, adding he traveled to Indonesia and the US to build his portfolio.

Between Asia and Europe

Pointing out that he came to Istanbul at the beginning of June, he recounted his first impression of the city.

I had to come to Istanbul because this is the center of the world. This was the center of the world for centuries.

This is where everything was happening, ships were coming in. There is Asia, there is Europe, he pointed out while standing on the shores of the famous city.

This is the place you feel the energy. This is what I am living for -- visiting this place, meeting the people in all these places, and telling their stories, he added.

Istanbul is incredibly European, he said, highlighting how cosmopolitan the city is.

"The culture is so rich in this place as well as in the food. You can find a different kind of food, you can experience Turkish food as well as Italian food, he said.

Noting that he felt at home despite all the differences, Dubini said: Here you can feel at home in Turkey as much as you can feel in Italy.

Taksim is the most touristic place here, he said, referring to the citys teeming attraction.

I like this place as much as I like very hidden streets and to meet locals. Here you dont see many locals. But what I do with my videos is not just interviewing artists but try to understand what they eat, what is the culture, how they see the world.

All these characteristics make the Turkish people, and I am very curious about it and I want to share this knowledge with Italians, he said.

Noting that people helped and warmly welcomed him during his tours and shootings in Istanbul, Dubini said: Turkish people welcome you very well in their country. I believe it comes from being Muslim.

He noted that he traveled to many Muslim countries and was always greeted with warm hospitality.

People are looking forward to showing you their culture. That is amazing.

Compared to many counties in Europe, I felt way more welcomed here than, for example -- I have to say it -- in other countries, more developed countries. Lets put it down that way, that where people are not much interested in differences, he added.

Here you can feel the differences and you can feel how people are interested in you as a different person coming to their country and they want to show you what they have, he said.

Dubini, who shares his observations in Istanbul with interesting short videos on social media every day, continues to work on making feature-length documentaries.

Image Credit:  AA
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Tribune-Star/Brea Haller Volunteering event: Volunteers gather at Ivy Tech Community College in Terre Haute to tag and prepare the rubber ducks for the 2021 Wabash Valley Rubber Duck Regatta. Shown here are Jennifer Buell, assistant agency director of Catholic Charites in Terre Haute; Abby Clark, volunteer; Cayden Gess, volunteer.
It had to come eventually, our last full day. My husband had scheduled a spa treatment for me in the morning. Up early again, we were at the Sundowner for breakfast right at 8:00. A huge helping of calaloo with my omelette, yum yum yum yum!!!

My husband was going to brave the "craft market" down the road and buy t-shirts for our boys, a wooden tree frog and coffee while I was being pampered. I think I had the better end of this deal!

The Red Lane Spa was awesome. I have been to other spas, but this one takes the cake. I had a scrub and wrap it was fantastic. I really have a hard time relaxing. I don't like massages because I feel silly. The scrub and wrap is way better for me because I feel like there is a purpose. There is an end result that I can not just feel, but see. When I was done I was glowing! My skin looked and felt so great.

The rest of the day was just really mellow. Laid by the pool, swam in the pool, we liked the little pool by the Piano bar the best, there was hardly ever anyone there, and the bar is close enough, plus you have great ocean views. Jeff took a quick sailing lesson and we went out on a hobie cat for a little while. Last lunch with Fitzroy at the Beach Grill.

I checked out the pictures I had taken thus far and realized there were no good pictures of Jeff and I , together or by ourselves, so we decided to do the sunset pictures that the roaming photographers had been asking everyone to do all week. Before dinner we met up with Collin (our older son's name is Colin so we thought this was a good sign). We had fun doing our photo shoot and were told we could come to look at our pictures after dinner.

Our last dinner was at 4C's with Dwayne as our waiter, the same way we started we ended. Food was great (we never had a bad meal anywhere). On this note, I have been working in restaurants since I was 16, I have worked in some really nice places. I can't figure out how anyone can complain about the meals at Sandals. I wonder what they eat when they are home? If I had been there for more than 7 days, I may have gotten bored with the food, but it certainly wasn't bad!

After dinner we went to see our pictures. They were fantastic! They were not cheap. However, they ask you all the time, everyday. everywhere if they can take your picture, and until that very last day we said no. The picture that Collin took on the beach in front of the sailboat that day was so great, as were the sunset pictures, I wished that I had let them take pictures the whole week! Then we would have really had a chronicle of our stay. I am just not the greatest photographer, and my husband is worse, so pictures of me are always terrible!

Our last night with the sounds of Jamaica putting us to sleep.

Tomorrow, reality bites..............
I was hoping to take a cruise but since things aren't running like they used to I might do the inland trip again. It's our second trip to Alaska.

I kind of know what I want to include this time around. I might repeat a few things we really enjoyed adding other things we missed.

I'm looking through my old info, and I can't find recommended cabins for Denali NP. Ouch. All I know I don't want to stay in a cabin that we ended up last time: Carlo Creek Lodge

Someone recommended on this forum nice cabins that weren't' too expansive but stood out, very clean. They were pretty new in 2016 I think but were already booked at the time we were visiting. They were really nice. I can't find the info now nor I remember the name of the place.

Can you suggest a few cabins around Denali NP?

Thank you!

Edited: 23 June 2021, 05:10
KIND Illuminates the New York City Skyline with Rainbow Lights to Celebrate the LGBTQ+ Community
New York Buddhist Church will present its annual Obon festival virtually this year, with online celebratory and remembrance demonstrations and events to be held July 9-July 11
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WASHINGTON (AP)  Senior Biden administration officials have discussed whether to remove the holdover director of the beleaguered federal Bureau of Prisons who has been at the center of the agencys myriad crises.

The discussions about whether to fire Michael Carvajal are in the preliminary stages and a final decision hasnt yet been made, two people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press. They were not authorized to publicly discuss the internal talks and spoke on condition of anonymity.

But theres an indication that the bureau is shaking up its senior ranks following growing criticism of chronic mismanagement, blistering reports from the Justice Departments inspector general and a bleak financial outlook.

Since the death of Jeffrey Epstein at a federal lockup in New York in August 2019, The Associated Press has exposed one crisis after another, including rampant spread of coronavirus inside prisons and a failed response to the pandemic, escapes, deaths and critically low staffing levels that have hampered responses to emergencies.

At least two regional directors, the officials in charge of federal lockups in the South Central and the Southeast regions  including a Texas prison where inmates routinely walked off the grounds to retrieve drugs and other contraband delivered to them in the woods  are also being replaced.

The Bureau of Prisons said the two regional directors  Juan Baltazar, Jr. and J.A. Keller  are retiring and had been planning to do so. But two other people familiar with the matter said that neither had planned to leave for months and were told other officials were being appointed to their jobs.

On Wednesday, the agency said it was appointing wardens William Lothrop and Heriberto Tellez to the regional posts. Tellez is currently in charge of the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where a 34-year-old inmate was found dead in his cell early Wednesday.

British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell is also being held at the jail. Last year, her lawyers sought to question Tellez about the constant surveillance she has been subjected her to since her arrest on sex trafficking charges, but a judge refused.

The Justice Department, which runs the bureau, did not directly address whether officials were considering removing Carvajal, one of the few remaining holdovers from the Trump administration. Instead it said it was working to put in place recommendations made by both the departments inspector general and the Government Accountability Office and is undertaking other changes.

Director Carvajal has formed a task force to help address the fundamental challenges facing BOP, the Justice Department said in a statement to the AP. That work is an important priority.

Implementing the changes will be critical to advancing BOPs mission  ensuring that inmates are housed safely and securely, and also providing critical programming and rehabilitation to help those inmates successfully reenter society after they have served their time, the statement said.

Carvajal took over as director in February 2020, just before the pandemic began raging in the bureau's facilities nationwide, leaving tens of thousands of inmates infected with the virus and resulting in 240 deaths. He also oversaw an unprecedented run of federal executions in the waning months of the Trump presidency that were so poorly managed they became virus superspreader events.

Nearly one-third of federal correctional officer jobs in the United States are vacant, forcing prisons to use cooks, teachers, nurses and other workers to guard inmates. The expanded use of that practice, known as augmentation, has been raising questions about whether the agency can carry out its required duties to ensure the safety of prisoners and staff members while also putting in place programs and classes required under the law.

Over the past 18 months, 30 prisoners have escaped from federal lockups across the U.S.  and nearly half still have not been caught. At some of the institutions, doors are left unlocked, security cameras are broken, and officials sometimes dont notice an inmate is missing for hours. Prisoners have broken out at lockups in nearly every region of the country.

The agencys staffing levels have reached a critical point under Carvajals tenure and officers at several facilities have held protests calling for him to be fired. The agency claims its hiring programs have been successful, though it has significantly slowed its hiring process, pausing most new hires until at least October.

The bureau said it expects to bring on 1,800 new employees, that the initiative has been a huge success and continues to focus on hiring and training staff.

The agency has also been plagued by such serious misconduct that then-Attorney General Bill Barr launched a special task force to address criminal wrongdoing by officers at several prisons after a loaded gun was found smuggled in the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City, the federal jail where Epstein killed himself in August 2019.

___

Sisak reported from New York. On Twitter, follow Michael Balsamo at twitter.com/mikebalsamo1 and Michael Sisak at twitter.com/mikesisak and send confidential tips by visiting https://www.ap.org/tips/
SAN DIEGO (AP)  In the chaotic, final hours of the Vietnam War, the U.S. evacuated thousands of South Vietnamese who supported the American mission and were at risk under the communist government.

With U.S. and NATO forces facing a Sept. 11 deadline to leave Afghanistan, many are recalling that desperate, hasty exodus as they urge the Biden administration to evacuate thousands of Afghans who worked as interpreters or otherwise helped U.S. military operations there in the past two decades.

Despite unusual bipartisan support in Congress, the administration hasn't agreed to such a move, declining to publicly support something that could undermine security in the country as it unwinds a war that started after the 9/11 attacks.

We have a moral obligation to protect our brave allies who put their lives on the line for us, and weve been working for months to engage the administration and make sure theres a plan, with few concrete results, Republican Rep. Peter Meijer of Michigan said during a House hearing last week.

Lawmakers have urged the administration to consider temporarily relocating Afghans who worked for American or NATO forces to a safe overseas location while their U.S. visas are processed. Some have suggested Guam, a U.S. territory that served a similar purpose after the Vietnam War. Kurdish refugees also were flown to the Pacific island in 1996 after the Gulf War.

Guam's governor recently wrote to President Joe Biden to say the territory was ready to help if needed.

The Biden administration for now is focusing on accelerating a special visa program for Afghans who helped U.S. operations and pouring resources into relieving the backlog.

We are processing and getting people out at a record pace, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday. We are working with Congress right now to streamline some of the requirements that slow this process down and were doing the kind of extensive planning for potential evacuation, should that become necessary.

Members of Congress were expected to raise the issue Friday, when Afghan President Ashraf Ghani comes to Washington to meet with Biden and lawmakers.

Zalmay Khalilzad, the State Departments special representative for Afghanistan reconstruction, warned lawmakers in May that the departure of all educated Afghans" would "signal panic" and hurt the morale of the country's security forces.

This is a delicate, complicated balance that we have to keep," Khalilzad said.

Democratic Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado recently introduced legislation that would nearly double the number of visas available this year, to 8,000, and ease eligibility requirements.

But he said congressional action will not be quick enough or sufficient.

Even if the legislation passed immediately, the number of visas would fall far short of the estimated 18,000 Afghans waiting to be processed. That figure does not include their spouses and children, who would bring the total to about 70,000 people.

And the average wait is more than three years. The process also has been hampered by the coronavirus pandemic, which led the U.S. embassy in Afghanistan to suspend visa interviews.

Crow, a former Army ranger who served in Afghanistan, said he prefers the government evacuate our Afghan partners to a temporary evacuation site where we can safely conduct robust visa processing without threat to applicants safety by the Taliban.

In a statement this month, the Taliban vowed not to attack those who worked for Western interests, urging Afghans to remain at home and warning their ranks against revenge killings.

Still, many Afghans are desperate for a visa, fearing violence not only from the Taliban but heavily armed warlords allied with the U.S. and seeing now as their last chance to leave Afghanistan.

The American withdrawal began May 1, when the number of U.S. troops was between 2,500 and 3,500, and could be completed by July 4. Some 7,000 NATO forces are set to leave by Sept. 11.

Independent Sen. Angus King of Maine said the government needs to find a creative approach to helping Afghans who worked with the U.S. military. That could include sending more people from the State Department or the military to process visas in Afghanistan or evacuating people to a safe place to be vetted.

Its not only a moral issue, its a national security issue, said King, who sits on both the Intelligence and Armed Services committees, adding that we also have a practical responsibility, in terms of do we want people to help us in the future?

More than 300 interpreters have been killed in Afghanistan since 2016, according to No One Left Behind, an organization that advocates on their behalf.

Former Army Maj. Matt Zeller said a military evacuation is the only viable option for thousands of Afghans facing threats who have been protected by the presence of U.S. troops.

Im only alive because my Afghan, Muslim translator saved my life by killing two Taliban fighters who were about to kill me in a battle," said Zeller, whose interpreter waited three years for a visa.

The U.S. government should have learned from what happened in Vietnam, said Jim Jones, a Vietnam veteran and former Idaho Supreme Court chief justice.

Initially fearing a mass evacuation would undermine the South Vietnamese military, the U.S. watched for weeks as the North Vietnamese Army overtook South Vietnam before starting to fly out Americans and allies. The effort ended with the largest helicopter evacuation in history in the final hours of the war.

In less than 24 hours, Marine helicopters airlifted about 7,000 U.S. military personnel, South Vietnamese who supported the American mission and their dependents.

Many South Vietnamese soldiers and government officials left behind were killed or held in reeducation" camps. They included troops who had helped Jones stay alive as an Army artillery officer.

We had a moral obligation to extract as many as possible but, instead, we abandoned them to a horrific fate, Jones wrote in the Military Times. We simply cannot allow that kind of tragedy to happen again with the Afghans. I pray that this great nation does not again turn its back on beleaguered people who placed their trust in us.

Pentagon leaders told lawmakers Wednesday that they are prepared to carry out an evacuation if ordered, though they also have sought to downplay concerns that history will repeat itself.

I dont see Saigon 1975 in Afghanistan," Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, recently told lawmakers.

___

Fox reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Lolita C. Baldor and Joshua Boak in Washington and Kathy Gannon in Kabul, Afghanistan, contributed to this report.
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP)  Indonesian health authorities announced the country's largest one-day jump in new coronavirus infections on Monday, as the number of confirmed cases since the pandemic began crossed 2 million.

The Health Ministry reported 14,536 new infections and 294 deaths, bringing the country's total confirmed fatalities to more than 54,950. Both the total cases and total deaths are the most in Southeast Asia.

Indonesia, the world's fourth most populous country, has seen infections surge in recent weeks, a climb that has been blamed on travel during last months Eid al-Fitr holiday as well as the arrival of new virus variants, such as the the Delta version first found in India.

The surge is putting pressure on hospitals, including in Jakarta, where 80% of hospital beds are full, and has added urgency to the government's plan to inoculate 1 million people each day by next month. Authorities have so far only fully vaccinated 12.3 million of Indonesia's 270 million people and partially vaccinated another 10.9 million.

The World Health Organization last week said Indonesias drastic increase in hospital bed occupancy rates is a major concern and necessitates stricter public health and social measures, including large-scale social restrictions.

The government has resisted a large-scale lockdown due to fears of the economic impact. Offices, restaurants. shopping malls and places of worship remain open, though at 50% of their capacity.

The situation is worrying, said Riris Andono Ahmad, an epidemiologist at Gajah Mada University. We are facing a second wave of COVID-19 with the most transmissible variant and the publics low compliance with health protocols.

He urged stricter measures.

All of the governments efforts and policy to curb COVID-19 transmission will be ineffective if it gives room for people to gather and crowd, he said.

The national COVID-19 task force said a spike in infections has been seen in Jakarta, Banten, West Java, Central Java, Yogyakarta and East Java provinces. All are on Java, the most populous of Indonesias more than 17,000 islands.

President Joko Widodo last week ordered authorities to step up the vaccination rate.

The slow progress in immunizations so far can be attributed to the limited global supply of vaccines, the unpreparedness of the national health system and vaccine hesitancy, national COVID-19 task force spokesperson Wiku Adisasmito said.

The government has received 104.7 million vaccine doses, including 94.5 million of Sinovac, 8.2 million of AstraZeneca, and 2 million of Sinopharm. It expects to receive about 50 million Pfizer doses in the coming months, followed by 50 million Moderna doses.

Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin has said deals to import around 104 million AstraZeneca doses have been hit by delays and now only 20 million doses are expected to arrive this year.

___

Associated Press writers Victoria Milko and Edna Tarigan contributed to this report.
Tucson, AZ (85741)

Today

Thunderstorms likely this evening. Then a chance of scattered thunderstorms overnight. Low around 80F. Winds SE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms likely this evening. Then a chance of scattered thunderstorms overnight. Low around 80F. Winds SE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 70%.


Think You Know Who The Bad Guys Are In World War II France? Think Again By Emil Franzi Stone Killer, by J. Robert Janes (Soho Press). Cloth, $22. THIS IS A strange, offbeat, yet compelling murder mystery-cop yarn. Janes is a Canadian author, and Stone Killer is the seventh novel in a series featuring the most unlikely partners--a German Gestapo agent and a Vichy French police officer working together in the unoccupied portion of France in 1942. Kohler and St. Cyr, the two heroes, are trying to find the vicious killer of a middle-aged French woman whose mutilated body was found near a prehistoric cave she and her husband, missing in World War I, had discovered. Janes weaves a number of contemporary characters--both French and German--into the story, and describes what life was like in then-unoccupied France: Once wealthy Parisians writing their country relatives and asking them to send food; the bureaucratic authoritarianism that effected even the most mundane details of everyday life under the Nazis; and the Nazi's collaboration with a great number of the French citizenry are part of the fascinating framework of this unconventional crime story. But the question Janes poses and answers is simple: How did normal policeman investigate and handle normal crimes and criminals during those otherwise abnormal times? Throw in some 1940s forensics, St. Cyr's interest in prehistory (obviously a subject of interest to the geologist author), and a major propaganda attempt by the fictitious Nazi hierarchy to use the cave in a movie, and you have a totally unique murder mystery. Janes paints the German Gestapo agent Kohler as a sympathetic character simply trying to do his job in an environment he neither chose nor likes, a move which adds yet another layer to a reasonably complex tale. Janes also does a fine job of describing both the geography and lifestyle of provincial France--the Perigord region, home of Talleyrand--during this period. Interesting that he never mentions Talleyrand, probably the most important Frenchmen to come from this area. Janes has some habits that are a bit annoying, like having both his detectives constantly hissing "merde"; and at times the story moves a bit too fast and becomes confusing. But its sheer originality of time, place, and character neutralize its weak points, and almost place it in a sub-genre by itself. The style is much more "European" than we're used to. In a way, it's reminiscent of Humberto Eco's medieval detective stories about murder in another time and place; but Janes' is shorter and far less convoluted. Fans of whodunits should give it a read.
After they were caught inside the Residence Nightclub, back in January, 85 people have been now been charged.

And, drinking a beer in Arima, leads to a man being arrested, and fined three-thousand dollars.
Ukraine has become a member of HOTREC, the European association of hotels, restaurants and cafes.

Head of the State Agency for Tourism Development Maryana Oleskiv announced this at a press conference, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"It's a very big step. We joined HOTREC. Everyone has been talking about this for many years, but there have always been obstacles for this. If you really want, everything works out, as we can see. It's a great victory for our hotel environment, said Oleskiv.

In turn, President of the Ukrainian Hotel & Resort Association (UHRA) Iryna Sidletska said that after joining HOTREC, Ukraine would have the opportunity of constant monitoring of the hotel environment and support from international NGOs in the systemic development of the Ukrainian hotel and restaurant industry.

"HOTREC's profile is the support and systematic development of enterprises operating in the HoReCa industry, ie hotels, restaurants, catering establishments," said Sidletska.

HOTREC is the umbrella association of hotels, restaurants, bar and cafes in the European community, established in 1979 in Paris and later transformed in 1991 in Brussels. It brings together 46 associations in 34 countries. HOTREC positions itself as an expert platform of the European hospitality industry.

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Land market reform, which will be launched in a week, will facilitate economic growth. Farmers, who have been working on the land for many years, will have a preemptive right to buy it.

"Another reform, which will be launched in a week, will contribute to economic growth. We are talking about launching a land market. Today we will make some changes in the procedure for maintaining the register of real rights to real estate. This will ensure a completely correct sale procedure, correct record of all information in the register," Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal said at a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers on June 23, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

He stressed that all sales agreements would be checked for compliance with the law.

"I emphasize once again: the land market is about justice. The citizens of Ukraine will finally be able to freely dispose of their property as provided by the Constitution of our state. The land market is also about the economic development of the state and the success of Ukrainian farmers," the Prime Minister said.

He asked the relevant minister to pay attention to the need for information support for the reform.

"The Ministry of Agrarian Policy should provide the necessary level of information so that people on the ground understand all the benefits of land reform," the Head of Government concluded.

As reported, on March 31, 2020, the Verkhovna Rada passed the Law "On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine Concerning the Circulation of Agricultural Land." On April 28, it was signed by President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The document lifts the moratorium on the sale of agricultural land, except for state-owned land, from July 2021. Citizens of Ukraine, territorial communities, and the state may acquire the right of ownership of agricultural land plots.

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The next meeting of the Ukraine-Georgia Joint Intergovernmental Commission on Economic Cooperation is to be held in September, President Volodymyr Zelensky has said.

The Commissions main task is to intensify trade and economic cooperation between the two countries, Zelensky said at a joint press conference with President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili in Kyiv on Wednesday.

I am sure that despite the coronavirus pandemic, we will intensify trade and economic cooperation this year, consolidating the positive trends of the beginning of this year, when our turnover grew by almost 25%. This will be one of the main tasks of the Ukraine-Georgia Joint Intergovernmental Commission on Economic Cooperation. We strive to resume its activities and hold the next 10th meeting this September," Zelensky said.

The president stressed that Georgia is an important trade partner of Ukraine in the South Caucasus region.

As Ukrinform reported, President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili is on an official visit to Ukraine on June 23. In addition to talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky, she will also meet with Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and Verkhovna Rada Chairman Dmytro Razumkov.

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Ukraine and Georgia, having common European aspirations, must take care of energy security.

"Having common European aspirations, Ukraine and Georgia must take care of energy security. During the talks, we agreed to make it one of the key areas of cooperation," President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said during a joint briefing with President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili in Kyiv, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

He added that "traditionally friendly relations between our peoples will continue to develop in the interests of Ukraine and Georgia and in the interests of peace and security of united Europe."

As reported, the President of Georgia makes a state visit to Ukraine on June 23. Zourabichvili is scheduled to hold talks with President Zelensky, Prime Minister Shmyhal, and Verkhovna Rada Speaker Razumkov.

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The Cabinet of Ministers has adopted a number of resolutions aimed at supporting investors in Ukraine.

Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal wrote this on Telegram following a government meeting on June 23, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"The government has adopted several resolutions aimed at supporting investors in Ukraine. The procedure for interaction of "investment nannies" with investors, public bodies, and local authorities has been approved. This interaction will become more effective, transparent and will allow providing high-quality preparation of the investment project. Requirements for the investor in terms of his financial solvency have been approved. They include the criterion of capital adequacy, cash flow, and, in fact, the resource for investment," the PM said.

Apart from that, the Cabinet of Ministers supplemented the tasks assigned to the Ministry of Economy in accordance with the Law "On state support of investment projects with significant investments in Ukraine."

As Ukrinform reported, on February 10, President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law on state support for investment projects with significant investments, aimed at restoring investment activity in Ukraine. The law provides for state support for Ukrainian and foreign investors with a total investment of EUR 20 million or more.

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Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal has met with President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili in Kyiv.

The parties discussed the improvement of trade and economic cooperation, the implementation of joint infrastructure projects and the development of tourism between the countries, according to the Government portal.

"I am sure that by joint efforts we will bring our economic relations to a qualitatively new level. Trade turnover between our countries has prospects for growth, and we are convinced that it can be increased to USD 1 billion. This, in particular, will be advanced by the resumption of work of the Ukraine-Georgia Joint Intergovernmental Commission on Economic Cooperation. We have agreed with the Prime Minister of Georgia to hold its next meeting in September 2021," Shmyhal said.

The prime minister noted the importance of restoring the tourism sector after the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"I hope that the gradual removal of coronavirus restrictions in our countries will help restore the tourist flow. During the meeting with the Prime Minister of Georgia, we agreed on mutual recognition of vaccination certificates. The note with the relevant proposals was submitted to the Georgian side last week. We are waiting for a response as soon as possible," Shmyhal stressed.

President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili is on an official visit to Ukraine on June 23.

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German Chancellor Angela Merkel invited President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky to pay a visit to Berlin in the near future to discuss a number of issues of bilateral relations between Ukraine and Germany and the process of peaceful settlement in eastern Ukraine.

This was discussed during the leaders phone conversation on June 22, the Presidents press service informs.

Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed the invitation to Angela Merkel to visit Ukraine to participate in the inaugural summit of the Crimean Platform and events marking the 30th anniversary of Ukraine's independence.

As noted, the interlocutors stressed the significance of the date when the conversation took place  the Day of Mourning and Remembrance of the Victims of War in Ukraine, noting the importance of historical responsibility for the crimes of Nazism in Ukraine and the preservation of the memory of human victims.

"Our conversation takes place on a special date. The world must do everything to ensure that such tragedies never happen again," said the President of Ukraine.

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President Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a law extending the agreement between the governments of Ukraine and the United States on cooperation in the field of science and technology, Ukrinform reports with reference to the press service of the head of state.

"The governments of the two countries signed an agreement on cooperation in the field of science and technology in Washington, D.C., on December 4, 2006. However, it expired in 2019. Therefore, on July 9, 2019, the governments of Ukraine and the United States agreed to extend the validity of the document for an additional five-year period (starting from May 26, 2019)," the President's Office said.

The agreement is aimed at strengthening the scientific and technical capabilities of Ukraine and the United States, expanding relations between the scientific and technical communities of the two countries, as well as promoting scientific and technical cooperation for peaceful purposes in areas of mutual interest and benefit.

It will promote the development of direct contacts and cooperation between public agencies, universities, research centers, departments, and other organizations of Ukraine and the United States.

According to the document, scientists and researchers will have the opportunity to exchange scientific and technical information, experience, and research methodology.

On June 3, the Verkhovna Rada adopted the Law "On the ratification of the agreement (in the form of exchange of notes) between the Government of Ukraine and the Government of the United States of America on the extension of the agreement between the Government of Ukraine and the Government of the United States of America on cooperation in the field of science and technology."

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The U.S. House of Representatives has called on the Biden Administration to immediately send military aid to Ukraine before the Kremlin crosses anymore "territorial red lines".

This was said in a joint statement by House Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Mike Rogers (R-AL) and House Foreign Affairs Committee Lead Republican Michael McCaul (R-TX), Ukrinform reports.

The United States should not wait for the Kremlin to cross anymore territorial red lines in Ukraine before sending additional military assistance to Kyiv. Instead, the Administration should send this lethal aid immediately to deter further Russian aggression, the statement reads.

As evidenced by its earlier decisions to pull back two U.S. warships from the Black Sea during Russias military buildup, waive critical sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, and delay meeting with Ukrainian President Zelensky until after last weeks fruitless Biden-Putin summit, this Administration has time and time again chosen to appease the Kremlin at the expense of Ukraine. This must end, they stressed.

The congressmen also expressed their concern about reports that the Biden Administration halted a package of lethal military equipment to Ukraine that was put together in response to Russias military escalation in and around Ukraine this spring.

As reported, on June 18, the U.S. media outlet Politico reported, citing its own sources, that the U.S. presidential administration had decided to temporarily halt a military aid package to Ukraine that would include lethal weapons.

After that, the White House said that it had not halted military assistance to Ukraine. In addition, the U.S. added that "they prepared contingency funds in the event of further Russian aggression."

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German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed the situation in eastern Ukraine and ways to resolve it.

Maas said this at a joint press conference following the talks in Berlin on June 23, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"We discussed the Ukrainian issue ... It is clear that no one can be satisfied with the status quo, the Minsk agreements must be fulfilled We also need a new dynamic in the Normandy format," Maas said.

He noted that negotiations in a quadrilateral format for the sake of ending the conflict in eastern Ukraine will keep going. Currently, work is underway to create conditions for meetings of foreign ministers of the countries participating in the Normandy format.

"It would be very nice to have U.S. support for this," Maas said.

The visit of the secretary of state to Berlin is his first bilateral visit to Europe. One of the goals is to participate in the Berlin II Conference on peace and stability in Libya. Blinken will also meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel to reaffirm U.S. commitment to deepening U.S.-Germany and Transatlantic relationships.

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President Volodymyr Zelensky has expressed gratitude to Georgia for supporting the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine and hopes for active cooperation with the Georgian side within the Crimean Platform.

He said this during a joint press conference with President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili in Kyiv on Wednesday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports

"We hope for active cooperation with the Georgian side within the framework of the Crimean Platform in order to protect the rights of Crimeans and de-occupy the Crimean peninsula," Zelensky said.

He also thanked Georgia for its continued support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, non-recognition of the attempted annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea, and condemnation of Russian aggression in Donbas, eastern Ukraine.

President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili is on an official visit to Ukraine on June 23. In addition to talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky, she will also meet with Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and Verkhovna Rada Chairman Dmytro Razumkov.

As a reminder, the Crimean Platform is a new consultative and coordination format initiated by Ukraine to improve the efficiency of the international response to the occupation of Crimea, respond to growing security challenges, step up international pressure on Russia, prevent further human rights violations, protect victims of the occupation regime, and achieve the de-occupation of Crimea.

The first Crimean Platform summit is scheduled for August 23, 2021.

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President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili has stated that GeorgiaUkraine relations are going back to normal based on age-old friendship between peoples and constant support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of both countries.

Zourabichvili made a corresponding statement following the talks with President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

The President of Georgia is making a state visit to Ukraine today for the first time after a 15-year break, she noted. Zourabichvili reminded that she was present at the inauguration of President Zelensky and that day was memorable for her. At the same time, she noted that, unfortunately, some time was lost afterwards which "we should have used to deepen relations between our countries and strengthen our common goals of NATO and EU membership."

"Today is our official meeting. I am very grateful for it and I believe that the presidents of both countries should be careful about our relations. Our relations are going back to normal based on two main principles: age-old friendship between peoples and constant support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our countries," Zourabichvili said.

She added that today Ukraine and Georgia were united not only by age-old friendship but also by parallel tasks and common goals: de-occupation of the territories of both countries, path towards the EU and NATO, and strengthening bilateral and regional cooperation.

Zourabichvili also pointed out the importance of moving to a new level of relations between Georgia and Ukraine. According to her, all institutional frameworks of cooperation have been created between the countries and more than one declaration has been signed.

"But statements and documents are not everything, the main thing is the specifics, the content of these relations and their intensification and revival of existing formats of cooperation," said the President of Georgia.

As reported, on May 7, 2020, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky appointed former president of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili as the head of the executive committee of the National Reforms Council.

On May 8, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia David Zalkaliani said that, according to a Georgian government decision, Georgia's Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Ukraine Teimuraz Sharashenidze would be summoned for consultations in Tbilisi after Saakashvili was appointed head of the executive committee of the National Reforms Council on May 7.

During a speech in the Parliament of Georgia on April 9, President Salome Zourabichvili called for the immediate return to Kyiv of Georgia's Ambassador to Ukraine, who had been recalled for consultations last year.

On April 22, Ambassador Teimuraz Sharashenidze returned to Kyiv.

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Canada unwaveringly supports Ukraines sovereignty and condemns Russian aggression.

Canadas commitment to Ukraines sovereignty, security, and territorial integrity remains unwavering and our position on Russia is unequivocal. Canada will continue to hold Russia to account for its unacceptable behaviour, Canadas Prime Minister, the Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, wrote in a letter to the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC).

He also reminded of Canada's long-standing support for Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic aspirations. Canada has also consistently been a strong advocate for Ukraine within NATO and has long supported NATOs 2008 commitment that Ukraine will become a member of the Alliance, Trudeau noted.

The Prime Minister of Canada added that more recently, we also played a significant role in helping Ukraine secure Enhanced Opportunity Partner status.

As reported, it was decided during the 2008 Bucharest Summit of NATO that Ukraine and Georgia would become NATO members, and a step towards this should be the Membership Action Plan. At the same time, there is still no consensus among NATO countries on the provision of MAPs to both countries. Instead, Ukraine and Georgia were advised to continue conducting reforms and wait for the "right" political moment.

Ukraine was granted NATO EOP status on June 12, 2020.

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International humanitarian organizations still do not have access to places of detention in certain districts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

"The process is often no less important than the outcome. Although I understand that the relatives of those who expect this access from us are unlikely to regard this as a serious, compelling argument, but the dialogue is ongoing indeed. It is very important for us that the dialogue, which we are conducting with the structures in the uncontrolled territories, does not stop for a single day. And I hope that we will get this access," Media Relations Officer of the ICRC Delegation in Ukraine Oleksandr Vlasenko said on the air of Dom TV channel.

In addition to negotiating physical access, the organization deals with handing over letters and parcels to detainees.

"Apart from access, there are other things that we continue to do. It is the transfer of parcels, letters. We have our own special letter structure that can be filled out and handed over to people detained in connection with the conflict in Donbas," the Media Relations Officer of the ICRC Delegation in Ukraine explained.

Vlasenko also expressed hope that negotiations at the international level would bring results and humanitarian organizations would be able to monitor places of detention in certain districts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

As Ukrinform reported with reference to the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Liudmyla Denisova, 413 Ukrainians stay illegally detained in Russia and in the temporarily occupied territories of the Crimean peninsula and parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

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About 7.7 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine are expected to be delivered to Ukraine in July, according to Deputy Minister of Health - Chief State Sanitary Doctor of Ukraine Ihor Kuzin.

He said this during a panel discussion "Why Ukrainians Don't Want to Get Vaccinated: Let's Talk to Officials and Doctors" on Wednesday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"In total, about 7.7 million doses of vaccine are planned to be delivered to the country in July," Kuzin said.

He noted that the CoronaVac vaccine produced by Chinese company Sinovac Biotech is to arrive next month under the contract. As for Sinovac, we have signed commitments and it is planned that 5.325 million doses of the vaccine will be purchased by Crown Agents, Kuzin commented.

He stressed that due to the high expected supply of vaccines in July, negotiations are underway to postpone the supply of CoronaVac under a new contract.

In addition, the deputy minister said that Ukraine is negotiating the purchase of vaccines with Johnson & Johnson.

As reported, over the past day, 53,786 people were vaccinated against COVID-19 in Ukraine. In particular, 22,526 people got their first jab, and 31,260 people were fully vaccinated.

Since the beginning of the vaccination campaign, which started on February 24, 1,755,139 people have been vaccinated, of which 394,107 people have received two doses.

Ukraine recorded 835 new COVID-19 cases on June 22.

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First Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine Emine Dzheppar discussed with Kornelios Korneliou, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus, preparations for the inaugural summit of the Crimean Platform, the ministrys press service has reported.

During the conversation, the parties focused on the Crimean Platform and the situation in Crimea temporarily occupied by the Russian Federation.

"In 2014, Russia committed a crime not only against Ukraine, but also against the entire international community and international law. During the years of occupation, it turned the Ukrainian peninsula into a military base, the hostages of which are 2.5 million Ukrainians," Dzheppar said.

She recalled Russia's recent escalation of the situation along Ukraines border and in the occupied Crimea, and stressed that the impact of Crimea's militarization extends beyond the Black Sea region and affects the security situation in the Mediterranean, the Middle East and North Africa.

Dzheppar informed about the state of preparations for the Crimean Platform summit in Kyiv and expressed hope for participation of President of the Republic of Cyprus Nicos Anastasiades in the summit.

For his part, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cyprus reaffirmed his country's support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and added that Cyprus is currently determining the level of representation at the Crimean Platform summit.

During the meeting, the interlocutors also discussed the development of bilateral cooperation and interaction within international organizations.

As a reminder, the Crimean Platform is a new consultative and coordination format initiated by Ukraine to improve the efficiency of the international response to the occupation of Crimea, respond to growing security challenges, step up international pressure on Russia, prevent further human rights violations, protect victims of the occupation regime, and achieve the de-occupation of Crimea.

The first Crimean Platform summit is scheduled for August 23, 2021.

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Jose Soto and Maria Jose Mercado have struggled to earn a living in Ecuador because of their irregular status.  UNHCR/Jaime Gimenez

In the little house where Maria Jose Mercado and Jose Soto live with their three kids in the Ecuadorian border town of Ibarra, the line between work and home life is a blurry one.

The Venezuelan couple, who left their country two years ago amid food and medicine shortages and a deepening political, economic and human rights crisis, have turned their rental into a workspace where mom, dad and sometimes even the kids play a part in earning the familys living.

Jose, who worked as an artist back home, paints on the canvases that Maria Jose builds and stretches, while the couples kids, ages 11, 6, and 5, sometimes contribute a few brushstrokes. The family sells the finished products at local markets, but their irregular status has kept them from taking their business to the next level.

Regularization is vital  its what we need to find stability and calm, said Maria Jose, 28, adding that without it they are unable to obtain the tax number they would need to sell their paintings to shops. It would also help my children. Theyre in school, but they need to have an ID in order to get their diplomas.

Artistic Venezuelan family finds hope in regularization (Jaime Gimenez, Producer; Camera, Sebastian Narvaez and Gabriel Calderon; Diana Diaz, editor)

Maria Joses dreams of regularization are about to come true. Ecuador recently announced a plan to extend regular status to the nearly 50 per cent of the 430,000 Venezuelan refugees and migrants in the country who currently do not have it, according to an estimate by the interagency platform for Venezuelan refugees and migrants. The plan will not only remove practical barriers to access basic services like health care and education, which are already granted regardless of status, it will also remove barriers to entrepreneurship and provide a doorway to full inclusion.

In neighbouring Colombia, a recently-started similar process will give Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to many of the 1.7 million Venezuelans in the country.

"Without the proper documentation, we are rejected."

For Yohana Bracamonte, a 37-year-old mother of five who spirited her brood to the Colombian city of Barranquilla nearly five years ago, the TPS will mean her children, who have been out of school since they left Venezuela, will be able to get the education they need to make better futures for themselves. She also hopes it will bring her relief from chronic pain. Yohana suffers from ovarian cysts that require a surgery which, without proper documentation, shes been unable to get.

Regularizing our stay in Colombia is very important because we can hardly access anything without it. medical attention, education, employment, said Yohana, who, unable to work legally, makes ends meet by searching the trash for recyclables that she sells. Without the proper documentation, we are rejected.

Jose Soto supervises while his oldest son paints one of the canvases the family sell to earn an income.  UNHCR/Jaime Gimenez

Maria Jose Mercado stretches one of the canvases that her husband will paint.  UNHCR/Jaime Gimenez

Maria Jose Mercado helps one of her sons with his homework. Getting regular status will help her children complete their education in Ecuador.  UNHCR/Jaime Gimenez

Jose Soto paints in his workshop in Ibarra, Ecuador. He worked as an artist back home in Venezuela.  UNHCR/Jaime Gimenez

UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi meets with children at a local integration centre in the Colombian city of Barranquilla.  UNHCR/Santiago Escobar-Jaramillo

During a recent trip to the region that included visits to Panama, Colombia and Ecuador, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi praised efforts to regularize displaced Venezuelans, saying despite the pandemic and many other challenges, we have seen positive steps toward inclusion and solutions.

At an event in the Colombian capital, Bogota, marking World Refugee Day on 20 June, Grandi described the governments decision to implement the TPS as visionary, an example of humanism and pragmatism. Grandi also hailed similar efforts in Ecuador, Peru and the Dominican Republic.

Through regularization, access to fundamental rights is guaranteed, he said. These various initiatives, which together could benefit up to 3 million Venezuelans, should serve as a model of solidarity and refugee inclusion on a global level.

Grandi stressed that regularization brings benefits not only to displaced people themselves but also to the host communities where they seek safety.

We bring our knowledge with us, said Maria Jose, the Venezuelan mother in Ibarra, adding that back in Venezuela she worked as an elementary school teacher and would like to give back to her host community by working in her chosen field.

Her husband echoed her sentiments.

We are bringing our knowledge to Ecuador and also learning new things from the country, said Jose, whose painting business was given a boost by a programme implemented by UNHCR and its partner HIAS that provides would-be entrepreneurs with seed capital and business advice.

If we are able to return to our country, Venezuela, we will take with us what we have learned here.
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi meets Venezuelan entrepreneur Jazhilmar Baez at an event in Quito, Ecuador.  UNHCR/Santiago Escobar-Jaramillo

Quito, Ecuador  At the end of a week-long visit to three Latin American countries, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi applauded the region for its solidarity and commitment to protect refugees, asylum seekers and other displaced people.

Latin American countries are facing an unprecedented level of displacement, said Grandi. Yet, they have stepped up to the challenge by showing unique generosity and dedication to find dignified solutions for those forced to flee.

The Americas region is home to 20 per cent of the 82.4 million people forcibly displaced globally, including the second-largest external displacement crisis in the world  the 5.6 million refugees and migrants from Venezuela. As Latin America struggles to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, several countries have initiated large-scale regularization programmes to realize the full potential of displaced people and the contribution they can make to their communities.

Inclusion is one of the most practical and concrete forms of protection. It helps children to get an education, people to receive the medical treatment they need, prevents exploitation and abuse and supports people to acquire the dignity of self-sustaining work, explained Grandi. Inclusion is the new protection.

Grandi chose to mark World Refugee Day in Latin America as a recognition of the advances made by the region in the protection and inclusion of refugees and other displaced people.

Countries like Colombia and Ecuador are taking brave and bold steps to leverage the full potential of refugees and others displaced. Latin American countries are an example to the world on how to protect people, said Grandi.

Grandi started his trip in Panama where he participated in the International Donors conference for Refugees and Migrants from Venezuela. Panama has a long tradition of solidarity towards those forced to flee their countries and is home to over 2,500 refugees and about 13,000 asylum seekers from different countries. The High Commissioner also witnessed an event celebrating the power of youth to construct more welcoming societies focusing on common struggles, dreams and hopes.

In Colombia, the process announced by President Ivan Duque in February to grant temporary protection status to over a million Venezuelans, has already started. Grandi met the President and other national and local authorities and thanked them and the people of Colombia for this generous move, that will pave the way to the full inclusion of refugees and migrants from Venezuela. He also met with Venezuelan refugees and migrants to hear from them about their needs and concerns.

Grandi then travelled to Ecuador, where President Guillermo Lasso announced a new regularization process for Venezuelans in the country. Ecuador plays host to an estimated 430,000 Venezuelan refugees and migrants and has a long tradition of asylum and has recognized over 70,000 refugees, the majority from Colombia. In the capital, Quito, Grandi met the Vice-President and other government officials, members of civil society, including refugee and migrant associations. He also joined the private sector in the launch of a new strategy to integrate those forcibly displaced in the labour market in order to support their socio-economic integration.

Refugees and others displaced can become real agents of change and contribute to the communities hosting them if given a chance and the tools to thrive, Grandi said. In this sense, the rest of the world can learn a great deal about the inclusion and integration of refugees in Latin America and the Caribbean.

For more information please contact:
Syrian refugees arrive at Bardarash camp in Duhok, the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, in 2019.  UNHCR/Hossein Fatemi

1.47 million refugees will be in need of resettlement next year. This is according to the latest estimates released by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, in its Projected Global Resettlement Needs 2022 report issued today.

Despite the pandemic, wars and conflict continue to rage across the world, displacing millions and barring many from returning home. With rising humanitarian needs far outpacing solutions, we appeal to countries to make more resettlement places available for the refugees whose lives are in danger or who are otherwise at-risk, said UNHCRs chief of international protection, Gillian Triggs.

The 2022 projections are based on several assessments of the protection needs and at-risk profiles across refugee populations, globally.

For the sixth year in a row, Syrian refugees are among those with the highest resettlement needs, followed by refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan, Afghanistan and Eritrea.

As a result of the pandemic, many of those displaced are now faced with increased poverty, destitution and widespread protection risks, from exploitation, trafficking, sexual and gender-based violence, child labor, early marriage, to arrest, detention, deportation, and refoulement.

Among cases submitted by UNHCR to resettlement states for consideration are refugees with legal and physical protection needs, survivors of violence, women, adolescents and children at risk, LGBTIQ+ people at risk, those with medical needs and others who face precarious circumstances and conditions.

Nearly ninety per cent of the worlds refugees are hosted in developing countries whose capacities were overstretched even before the pandemic and are now forced to contend with worsening humanitarian conditions for local and displaced communities alike, said Triggs.

Not only is resettlement a life-saving tool of protection for refugees facing extreme vulnerability in these countries of asylum, it is a tangible way for other states to step up and help share this responsibility.

This is a key objective of the Global Compact on Refugees, and envisaged in a three-year resettlement and complementary pathways strategy developed by stakeholders, including governments, other international organizations, civil society and UNHCR.

Owing to the impact of the pandemic and the limited number of places made available by states, refugee resettlement plummeted to the lowest levels on record in at least two decades despite surging levels of worldwide, forced displacement.

Last year, fewer than 35,000 refugees out of 20.7 million - a fraction of a per cent - were resettled.

Pandemic-induced border closures and travel restrictions necessitated a temporary hold on many resettlement movements in 2020, with some countries still struggling to regain their previous capacity to receive refugees.

Despite the challenges, UNHCR operations and several resettlement states were able to be more flexible when processing and facilitating resettlement. This ensured the continuity of the program and the life-saving transfers of refugees at risk.

The full report is available here.

For more information on this topic, please contact:
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THE OTHER DAY I mentioned to a guy I know that some Buddhist monks in Nepal are fans of my song Slow Days of Summer, according to their ESL teacher Jennifer who stopped me on the street to tell me, and I said (which is the truth) that I felt enormously honored, whereupon the guy said that 
To the Editor: In reply to Sens. Becky Whitley and Rebecca Perkins Kwoka on their desire to veto the abortion bill, now in consideration in the House, they noted several reasons for their stand on pro-choice for reasons such as rape or incest and women's health, but one that struck me as od
Union Springs, AL (36089)

Today

Mostly cloudy skies during the evening. Areas of fog developing after midnight. Low near 70F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Mostly cloudy skies during the evening. Areas of fog developing after midnight. Low near 70F. Winds light and variable.
(@FahadShabbir)

San Francisco, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jun, 2021 ) :Google on Tuesday unveiled a platform that lets its workers calculate pay and benefits for remote work, and how this would change if they move to a cheaper - or more expensive - city.

With the company's new hybrid workplace, "more employees are considering where they live and how they work," a Google spokesperson said in response to an AFP inquiry.

The new Work Location Tool will show workers how their compensation will be adjusted depending on their location, since pay is based on costs of living in places and tuned to local job markets.

Google, which employs some 140,000 people worldwide, expects that in the post-pandemic work model 60 percent of its employees will meet in offices just a few days a week, and 20 percent of its workers will be in new office locations.

The remaining 20 percent of "Googlers" are expected to work from home, according to the spokesperson.

Google chief executive Sundar Pichai has spoken of a need for flexibility regarding remote work and changes of location as tech companies reopen campuses abandoned during the pandemic.
Bagram, Afghanistan, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jun, 2021 ) :Squatting in the dust by the main road to Afghanistan's biggest air base, Mir Salam sifts through a pile of broken electronics in front of him, salvaged from departing US troops.

All around are heaps of junk and scrapped equipment -- ranging from telephones and thermos flasks to computer keyboards and printer cartridges.

"This is what the Americans do," the 40-year-old told AFP. "They destroy absolutely everything." The Pentagon is vacating Bagram air base as part of its plan to withdraw all forces by this year's 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks on the United States, and it could be completed by the end of the month.

Military gear is being taken home, or given to Afghan security forces, but tons of civilian equipment must be left behind.

The result is a booming scrap business that is making money for some, but leaving many resentful.

"They blow it up or are burning it," says Salam of the equipment being discarded.

"There were lots of new things in this base -- enough to rebuild Afghanistan 20 times -- but they destroyed everything." For two decades, Bagram served as the nerve centre for US operations in Afghanistan.

A sprawling mini-city visited by hundreds of thousands of service members and contractors, it boasted swimming pools, cinemas and spas -- and even a boardwalk featuring fast-food outlets such as Burger King and Pizza Hut.

It also has a prison that held thousands of Taliban inmates over the years.

Bagram was built by the United States for its Afghan ally during the Cold War in the 1950s as a bulwark against the Soviet Union in the north.

Ironically, it became the staging point for the Soviet invasion of the country in 1979, and the Red Army expanded it significantly during their near decade-long occupation.

When Moscow pulled out, it became central to the raging civil war -- it was reported that at one point the Taliban controlled one end of the three-kilometre (two-mile) runway and the opposition Northern Alliance the other.

In recent months, Bagram has come under rocket attacks claimed by the militant Islamic State.

If the Taliban capture the base, it would be a significant step -- perhaps even the decisive one -- towards seizing control of Kabul itself.

Salam pays 1,000 afghanis ($12) a month to rent a modest fenced plot on the Bagram road, where he stores base scrap that he searches for nuggets to sell to specialised dealers.

The road to the base is lined with dozens of similar enterprises -- some ramshackle, but others featuring imposing warehouses with armed guards.

The big players have contracts to remove the scrapped equipment, which they cherry-pick for items that can be repaired.

Anything they don't use is left for smaller dealers such as Salam.

Cables are stripped for copper, circuit boards broken down for rare-earth metals, and aluminium collected to be smelted into ingots.

Nothing goes to waste, says Haji Noor Rahman, another scrap merchant.

"Anything re-usable, people buy it," he told AFP.

His warehouse is like a department store for scrap, with the floor covered by an astonishing array of items -- broken chairs, busted tv screens, rusting gym equipment, an electronic piano keyboard, artificial Christmas trees and other festive decorations.

First aid kits have been gutted, spilling bandages and IV bags.

Picking through the selection is Abdul Basir, who came from Kabul with a friend and snapped up six warped metal doors for around 8,000 afghanis.

Elsewhere, a young man unearthed a pair of branded shoes that still appeared to have a few miles left on them.

Another browser bought a teddy bear and a mini rugby ball.

It isn't just equipment that will be left behind when the Americans pull out -- Bagram is surrounded by satellite communities that rely on the base for employment.

"The withdrawal of American troops will have a bad impact on the economy of the country and that of Bagram," district governor Lalah Shrin Raoufi told AFP, adding he was pessimistic for the future.

"Their presence here has provided jobs for thousands and thousands of Afghans," he said, ranging from mechanics to bakers.

"I met the employees of a company that provided basic food... they are afraid of losing their jobs." Raoufi said everything is being done to take charge of the base and its security when the last US forces leave.

"We are working with the police, the army and the NDS (intelligence services)," he said.

"We have started to recruit soldiers... We will take those who meet the criteria." Meanwhile, the clear-out continues.

"They came to rebuild our country but now they are destroying it," says Bagram resident Mohammad Amin, looking over a pile of scrap.

"They could have given us all this."
Lisbon, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Jun, 2021 ) :Portugal fears a fourth wave of the coronavirus pandemic may take hold with the highly contagious Delta variant now accounting for more than 60 percent of new cases in the capital.

Lisbon is among a dozen places that did not move into the final phase of easing the lockdown that much of the country has enjoyed.

Travel between the capital region and the rest of Portugal was banned from last weekend to try to halt the spread of the infection.

First identified in India, the Delta variant has become the predominant strain in the greater Lisbon area, according to the national health institute INSA.

"We are trying to delay its arrival in other regions of the country so that people can protect themselves more through vaccination," Health Minister Marta Temido said Monday.

More restrictions may be necessary, she added, at a time when many European countries are easing such curbs for summer.

"We have to assess it as we go along and we are asking for everyone's support, to avoid as much as possible measures which carry heavy social and economic consequences." - "Exponential growth" - With the number of daily cases soaring 54 percent last week, Portugal found itself ahead of Britain with Europe's fastest growth rate for infections, according to an AFP tally of data from national authorities.

Over seven days, the daily average of new infections has topped 1,100 cases, compared with 300 six weeks ago.

"We have seen exponential growth since the month of May," Lisbon University epidemiology professor Manuel Carmo Gomes told AFP.

"It begins with a very slow phase of growth during which everything seems under control, then it explodes," he said.

With strict confinement measures imposed from mid-January to mid-March, "we have shown that it is possible to control the epidemic without keeping people at home", the professor said.

But the appearance of the Delta variant came as a "nasty surprise" with the gradual easing of safety measures well under way.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel criticised on Tuesday the European Union's lack of bloc-wide travel rules after Portugal reopened its borders to EU national and Britons in mid-May.

- "No going back?" - "The big question is, will the vaccinations still be delivered quickly enough to counter the spread of the infection," said Carmo Gomes.

In official figures published Tuesday 46 percent of the 10 million population have received one dose of a vaccine and 29 percent are fully vaccinated.

However the number of Covid cases in hospital has more than doubled in a month to 450 patients, including about 100 in intensive care.

President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said Monday that current hospitalisations were only a third of the red line figure representing an overload on the health system.

The nation is "very far" from the situation that required a health emergency to be declared in the six months leading to May, he said.

The conservative head of state, who has no executive power, had declared there would be no going back to a lockdown.

But socialist Prime Minister Antonio Costa took a cautious position. "No one can guarantee that we will not return to a lockdown," he said.
ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jun, 2021 ) :Minister for Information and Broadcasting Chaudhry Fawad Hussain has expressed deep grief and sorrow over the demise of the mother of senior tv anchor Javed Iqbal.

In a condolence message, he prayed to Allah Almighty to rest her soul in eternal peace and grant courage to the bereaved family to bear this loss with fortitude.
UK's Minister of State for South Asia and Commonwealth & Development Office, Lord Tariq Ahmad called on Minister for Interior Sheikh Rashid Ahmed on Wednesday and discussed matters related to promoting relations between the two countries

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jun, 2021 ) :UK's Minister of State for South Asia and Commonwealth & Development Office, Lord Tariq Ahmad called on Minister for Interior Sheikh Rashid Ahmed on Wednesday and discussed matters related to promoting relations between the two countries.

They also discussed matters of British Pakistanis, enhancing people to people contact and the cooperation in the field of security, trade and culture.

Earlier, Minister for Interior Sheikh Rashid Ahmad welcomed the UK's Minister of State in his office. Lord Ahmad thanked the minister for extending courtesies during his visit and appreciated Prime Minister Imran Khan's 10 billion Tsunami Tree Project to fight climate change in Pakistan.

The two sides agreed to strengthen coordination between the Ministry of Interior and the UK's Home Office to improve the ability of the law enforcement and criminal justice systems in both the countries to work together.

They stressed to work together and support each other in their joint efforts in tackling transnational crimes. Lord Ahmad presented a Letter of Intent from the UK government seeking further cooperation in various areas of mutual interest.

He said that UK was looking forward to the upcoming visit of Prime Minister Imran Khan to UK.

The ministers agreed to enhance coordination in realizing agreements of Pakistan-UK Returns Arrangements and the Extradition Treaty between the two countries. They expressed their satisfaction over the progress on the signing of Pakistan-UK Returns Arrangement (Agreement) as the draft was ready to be placed on the agenda of the Federal Cabinet for approval.

The interior minister told the UK's Minister of State that Pakistan enjoyed Extradition Treaties with a number of countries and was keen to get it signed with the UK too, at the earliest. Efforts should be geared up from both sides to get the Extradition Treaty finalised soon, the minister said, as this would improve the processes needed to extradite criminals from the UK to Pakistan.

Sheikh Rashid said that Pakistan and UK enjoyed historic relations to which Pakistan valued a great deal. He said that the presence of 1.6 million British Pakistanis in UK cemented this relationship further.

He said that Pakistan valued the services of these British Pakistanis living in the UK over their philanthropic work in various regions of Pakistan.

The minister also raised the issue of placing Pakistan on UK's list of countries barred from entering UK despite the fact that Pakistan had one of the lowest rates of COVID-19 infections.

Lord Ahmad further said that Pakistan and UK enjoyed deep-rooted relations, which were based on shared history and experiences, reinforced by strong people to people contacts. A strong partnership between Pakistan and UK remained important in promoting and sustaining peace, security and stability in the wider region, he added.

UK's High Commissioner to Pakistan, Christian Turner, Additional Secretaries of Interior Sher Alam and Iftikhar Shalvani also attended the meeting.
At least three people including two members of a family were killed while 21 others sustained injuries in a blast in BOR Society, Johar Town here on Wednesday

LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jun, 2021 ) :At least three people including two members of a family were killed while 21 others sustained injuries in a blast in BOR Society, Johar Town here on Wednesday.

Due to blast, some vehicles were damaged and windowpanes of nearby houses were shattered. According to police, the dead were identified as Abdul Khaliq (30), his son Abdul Haq (5) while the identity of third victim has yet to be established.

The injured include: Ambreen (27), Abdul Malik, Maham Azhar (23), Umme Rubab (19), Moqadus Shahid (20), Abdul Quyyum (5), Hassan Ali (8), Liaqat Ali (28), Nasar (12), M. Umer (8), Safia (28), Fariha (20), Zahida (28), M. Atif (26), Abdur Rehman (25), Rimsha Javed (18), Ureej Asif (20), Javed (32), Tahir (30), M. Intezar (23) and another.

Soon after the explosion, police and rescue-1122 teams rushed to the spot and shifted the injured to the Jinnah Hospital besides providing first aid to six minor injured on the spot.

CCPO Ghulam Mehmood Dogar, DC Muddasar Riaz Malik, CTO Muntazir Mehdi, administrative and Rangers officials reached the spot.

Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar strongly condemned the blast incident and sought a report from Inspector General of Police (IGP) Punjab Inam Ghani in this regard. He directed that criminals involved in the blast be arrested at the earliest.

The CM also expressed deep sense of sorrow over the loss of precious human lives. He extended sympathies to the bereaved families. He said the Punjab government fully shared the grief of victims, adding that it was an attempt to sabotage law and order situation in the province. Perpetrators of the crime could not escape from the law and a handful of terrorists could not weaken the strong commitment of the nation, he added.

The anti-state elements were trying to destabilize peace through nefarious activities, he said and announced that heirs of deceased persons would be provided financial assistance while damages to properties would also be compensated.

Later, Minister Health Dr Yasmin Rashid visited the hospital and reviewed the medical treatment being provided to the injured. She directed the medical officials to provide the best healthcare facilities to the injured.

Talking to the media after visiting the site of blast, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Punjab, Inam Ghani said that terrorists wanted to demoralize the forces and citizens by carrying out cowardly attacks on law enforcement agencies, but the police would leave no stone unturned for taking such anti-social elements to the most strict sentence and punishment.

The IGP said that anti-state elements did not want to see peace, development and stability in the country and they were resorting to terrorist activities to disturb law and order situation.

He said the Punjab police would continue chase them till the elimination of terrorists and their facilitators.

He said that Punjab police would bring the masterminds and facilitators of the blast to justice.

Inam Ghani said that Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) teams were looking into all aspects of the incident and it would be premature to say anything about the incident. He directed the police officers to refrain from commenting on the incident.

He said that whatever would come to light in the investigation would be made public without any delay with the help of media. The law enforcement agencies received hundreds of threats every year and Punjab Police in collaboration with intelligence agencies thwarted the threats even before the incident, he maintained.

Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Lahore, Additional IG Ghulam Mahmood Dogar also visited Jinnah Hospital and inquired after the injured including police personnel of blast at BOR Society.

The CCPO expressed his deep sense of sorrow and grief over the loss of precious lives in blast.

He inquired the doctors about the medical facilities being provided to the injured police personnel and citizens.

Earlier, he visited the site of blast soon after the incident occurred and inspected the place of incident. He got complete information about the incident from the police officers concerned and issued them necessary directions including cordon off the area so as to ensure safety of citizens and preserve the evidences by the forensic agencies, bomb disposal squad and other law enforcement agencies.

Later, talking to the media, the CCPO said that such cowardly activities by the anti peace elements could not down the morale of police and law enforcement agencies. Law enforcement agencies concerned along with CTD and police were investigating the incident and would decide the nature of blast after complete investigation on the basis of evidence, he added.

Meanwhile, DIG Operations Lahore Sajid Kiani directed the officials to further beef up the security in the provincial capital followed by the blast in Johar Town. All divisional SPs have been directed to review security arrangements in their respective divisions and set up pickets for a thorough checking of people.

He directed the officials to properly check all vehicles at entry and exit points of the city. The DIG said that police would conduct search operations on daily basis in every division to maintain law and order situation of the city.

However, a facilitation center on the directions of Commissioner Lahore has been established in JinnahHospital for the relatives of injured persons of Johar Town blast incident. Duty officers would be presentat facilitation center round the clock to provide food and other facilities to them.
European commissioners are set to outline their legal concerns over the Hungarian government's proposed new law that would ban the promotion of homosexuality to underage children in a letter to Budapest, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Wednesday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd June, 2021) European commissioners are set to outline their legal concerns over the Hungarian government's proposed new law that would ban the promotion of homosexuality to underage children in a letter to Budapest, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Wednesday.

"The Hungarian bill is a shame and I've instructed my responsible commissioners to write a letter to the Hungarian authorities expressing our legal concerns before the bill enters into force. This bill clearly discriminates against people on the basis of their sexual orientation, and it goes against all the values, the fundamental values, of the European Union," von der Leyen said in response to a journalist's question at a press conference in Brussels.

More than a dozen EU member states have voiced their disapproval of the proposed Hungarian law, which was approved by the country's parliament last week.

The tabled law proposes to outlaw the portrayal of homosexuality and gender reassignment in materials assigned in schools or specifically addressed to children under the age of 18.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has defended the law, saying that it falls under the jurisdiction of the Hungarian government and is part of broader efforts to combat pedophilia.
UNITED NATIONS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 24th June, 2021) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on Wednesday on the UN Security Council to reach an agreement to extend the cross-border humanitarian delivery mechanism in Syria for another year ahead of its mandate's expiration on July 10.

"I strongly appeal to the members of the Council to reach consensus on allowing cross border operations as a vital channel of support for another year," Guterres said.

Guterres also stated the United Nations is currently discussing with Turkey and groups in control of the area the launching of cross-line humanitarian assistance from within Syria.

"We are in dialogue with Turkey and groups in control of the area, and I have strong hopes that it will be possible to start cross-line operations soon," Guterres said.
MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th June, 2021) The presidential election in Iran, which saw Ebrahim Raisi becoming the next president, has brought big changes and reforms to the country, former Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in an interview with Sputnik.

"Big changes and reforms will take place in Iran, but it does not look like there will be big changes in foreign policy in the short term," Ahmadinejad said.

The Iranian presidential election took place on Friday. According to the preliminary official results, top judge Raisi is in the lead with over 62% of the vote or 17.8 million out of 28.6 million valid votes. All his competitors have already recognized Raisi's victory.
(@FahadShabbir)

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron want the European Union to consider inviting Russian President Vladimir Putin to a summit of European leaders, the Financial Times reported, citing diplomatic sources

LONDON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd June, 2021) German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron want the European Union to consider inviting Russian President Vladimir Putin to a summit of European leaders, the Financial Times reported, citing diplomatic sources.

According to diplomats, the initiative comes from Merkel, it was supported by Macron.

Sources familiar with the discussions said that the ambassadors of Berlin and Paris, at a meeting in Brussels on Wednesday, made an unexpected move for other participants, making new proposals for relations with the Kremlin.

Germany and France have called for the development of a new EU strategy for closer engagement with Russia to develop discussions with Moscow after the Russian-US summit in Geneva, the publication reported.

The first meeting between Presidents Vladimir Putin and Joe Biden took place on June 16 in Geneva, negotiations lasted four and a half hours, including a break.

As noted by the publication, Germany believes that the Geneva summit has become a model for the restoration of relations with Russia.
MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd June, 2021) The United States and the European Union on Tuesday reaffirmed during a meeting on justice and home affairs in Lisbon their commitment to further cooperate and promote transatlantic partnership.

The Portuguese presidency of the Council of the European Union hosted a high-level meeting to discuss a broad range of issues focusing on transatlantic partnership. The US was represented by Secretary for Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas. The EU was represented by Vice-President of the European Commission Margaritis Schinas among other senior officials.

"The meeting in Lisbon was an opportunity to reaffirm the commitment of the European Union and the United States to work together and renew the transatlantic partnership, at a time of major challenges for our societies. The two sides concurred that cooperation on Justice and Home Affairs remains crucial, as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic. They further underscored their mutual commitment to uphold democracy and respect for the rule of law," the joint statement read.

Concerning violent extremism, cybercrimes, and other illegal activities, both sides agreed to pursue and expand their information exchanges on violent extremists, particularly those with transnational connections.

The sides also "stressed the importance of Passenger Name Record (PNR) data exchange as a key instrument to prevent, detect, investigate and prosecute terrorism, combat serious crime, including child exploitation, and protect the safety of citizens."

The risks of using artificial intelligence technologies for law enforcement and the judiciary also featured in the discussion of the western allies as they settled on developing and using technologies in a trustworthy manner in conformity with human rights obligations.

Both sides committed to restart secure travel between the United States and EU member states as soon as possible, based on the principles of mutual cooperation, efficient operation of the international travel system, and scientific evidence.

Pledging their support to cooperate on common solutions in all these areas, the United States and the European Union agreed to meet again in the second half of 2021 in Washington.
KIEV (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd June, 2021) The foreign ministers of Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova will pay the first joint visit in the Associated Trio format to Brussels on June 24 to discuss the European integration and new areas of cooperation with the EU, the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Wednesday.

"Foreign ministers of Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova will pay a joint visit to Brussels in the format of the Associated Trio for the first time. The heads of Ukrainian, Georgian and Moldovan foreign ministries will present to the EU a common strategic vision for the further development of the trilateral format of the Associated Trio," the ministry said in a statement.

The agenda will include the European integration of the three nations, opportunities for further liberalization of trade relations, new promising areas of sectoral cooperation with the EU, in particular, in the context of the implementation of the bloc's so-called Green Deal and the digital transition, the ministry added.

The sides are also expected to coordinate positions on security threats in the region and exchange views on preparations for the Eastern Partnership summit in December.

Last month, Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova signed an agreement during a meeting in Kiev to establish the Associated Trio format aimed at coordinating their efforts on European integration.
WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 22nd June, 2021) Ottawa plans to progressively reopen the Canadian border to international travelers in a matter of weeks rather than months, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Tuesday.

"We are looking at continuing our plan for gradual and safe reopening, with hopefully more announcements in the coming weeks," Trudeau said. "We are talking about weeks not months, anymore."

On Monday, Health Minister Patty Hajdu announced that fully vaccinated individuals coming to Canada will no longer be subject to quarantine requirements as of July 5. However, the Canadian government is under increasing scrutiny, including from some US officials in border states, concerning the speed of the "gradual reopening" and its lack of provisions for fully vaccinated Americans.

Trudeau defended his government's cautious approach, saying that while fully vaccinated individuals are protected from COVID-19 but this protection does not extend others, thereby posing a risk to public health in areas where the population is either partially vaccinated or immunization rates are low.

Gradual reopening is the right and responsible path, Trudeau underscored.

Speaking to reporters, Canada's Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam suggested the border reopening is contingent on increased vaccination rates.

"It's much safer for Canadians if the borders reopened at a time when most Canadians have had two doses given the variants of concern," Tam said.

Canadian officials had previously tied relaxed restrictions at the border to having 75 percent of residents partially vaccinated and 20 percent fully vaccinated, however, this threshold has already been met, according to Trudeau and members of his cabinet.

International travelers, including Americans, have been barred from entering Canada since March 2020, and Ottawa recently extended the border restrictions that limit so-called non-essential travel to and from the United States through July 21.
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WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd June, 2021) The United States will carry out an investigation to identify boarding schools for Native Americans as well as to locate possible mass burial sites near those facilities following the discovery of a mass grave with 215 Indigenous children in Canada, Interior Department Secretary Deb Haaland announced on Tuesday.

"We must shed light on the unspoken traumas of the past, no matter how hard it will be. Today, I'm announcing that the Department will launch the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative," Haaland said via Twitter. "This investigation will identify past boarding school facilities and sites; the location of known and possible burial sites located at or near school facilities; and the identities and Tribal affiliations of children who were taken there."

The investigation will include three stages - identification of all boarding schools and their students, consultations with tribal organizations, and conducting sitework to protect cemeteries and burial sites - and will result in a final written report submitted no later than by April 1, 2022, Haaland said in a memorandum published on the same day.

The Indian boarding schools were established by the Indian Civilization Act of 1819 and existed through the 1960s to culturally assimilate Indigenous children of the United States by forcibly relocating them from their families and communities where their Native identities, languages, and beliefs were forcibly suppressed, Haaland explained.

The initiative comes amid the recent announcement made in Canada by the Tk'emlups te Secwepemc First Nation last month that a deep scan of the Kamloops Indian Residential School site with ground-penetrating radar confirmed the discovery of 215 children's remains, with some of the deceased being as young as three years old.
USM Partners with Mississippi Coding Academies and City of Biloxi on New Training Facility

Wed, 06/23/2021 - 14:04pm | By: Van Arnold

The School of Computing Sciences and Computer Engineering at The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) is partnering with the Mississippi Coding Academies and working with the City of Biloxi to offer a new training facility on the Gulf Coast.

The site, planned for downtown Biloxi, will provide access to software development and cybersecurity skills training for adults and will prepare them for entry-level cyber security industry certification. Instruction will be provided by industry experienced software development and cybersecurity practitioners.

We are excited to strengthen our presence and leadership in computing and cybersecurity education on the Coast through this partnership with the Mississippi Coding Academies. This is a great opportunity for adults re-entering the workforce, veterans, or recent high school graduates to upskill for jobs in software development and cybersecurity, said Dr. Sarah Lee, Director of the School of Computing Sciences and Computer Engineering at USM.

The facility will be officially designated as Biloxi Cyber Center, a Mississippi Coding Academies affiliate program. The instructional team will consist of Senior Instructor Andrew Stamps, a former IBM employee with five years as a coding instructor for the Mississippi Coding Academies, while USM staffer, Patrick Mame, will serve in a junior instructor role. USM will provide instruction for the cybersecurity modules that will prepare participants for the CompTIA Security + certification exam. Lee will serve as Director of the Mississippi Coding Academies coast operations that will include this site and future locations in the Gulf Coast region.

U.S. Rep. Steven Palazzo, who represents Mississippis 4th Congressional District, said that recent examples of cyber-hacking illustrate the importance of a facility like the one planned in Biloxi.

I am pleased to hear that the City of Biloxi will soon be home to a brand-new training facility that will offer computing, coding, and cyber security training for Mississippians, said Palazzo. This facility is a great opportunity for the servicemen and women of South Mississippi to learn a skillset that is valuable to employers as they transition into civilian life. By taking advantage of the courses that this partnership between the University of Southern Mississippi and Mississippi Coding Academies will offer, our veterans can continue protecting our nation by honing crucial digital security skills.

Lee points out that with an increase in cyber attacks throughout the world, cybersecurity professionals are in high demand. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the industry will experience job growth of 31 percent between 2019 and 2029, indicating a much faster rate than most other industries will see.

As the cyber threat vector grows, there will be increasing demand for computer programmers who possess knowledge, skills, and abilities in digital security, she said. There are more job opportunities than there are college graduates to fill them. More and more entry level tech jobs are requiring an industry certification as an alternative to a college degree.

U.S. Rep. Trent Kelly, who represents Mississippis 1st Congressional District, notes that the new facility will provide invaluable training for all members of the nations armed forces.

Our men and women in uniform have devoted themselves in service to our great nation. These skilled servicemembers possess an excellent work ethic that will enable them to contribute to the success of any employer when they transition into the civilian world, said Kelly. This partnership will serve our veterans well, ensuring new career opportunities with a competitive wage. I am proud of the important work that is being done by the University of Southern Mississippi, the Mississippi Coding Academies and the City of Biloxi to meet the rapidly growing demand for cybersecurity technicians.

Joe Donovan, director of the Mississippi Development Authoritys Office of Technology, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, emphasizes that the collaboration is part of the states overarching mission.

The goal at MDA is to build and nurture an entrepreneurial and innovative ecosystem in Mississippi with a focus on emerging technologies and attracting startup companies from outside the state, said Donovan. The Mississippi Coding Academies continue to be instrumental in developing a workforce that will meeting needs of technology intensive companies through preparing high school graduates who are not college bound for careers in the technology field and establish the state as a high-growth location in the fields of coding and emerging technologies. 

Mississippi Coding Academies offers an 11-month program, and the Biloxi site will provide a hybrid approach with some virtual content delivery. Mississippi Coding Academies is a nonprofit, and the program is offered tuition-free for students.

Eric Goforth, Director of Professional Services, GEO Jobe, sees the new Gulf Coast facility as a win-win venture for Mississippi and beyond.

As technology continues to advance and drive more of our daily lives, it's important for us to maintain a sense of community and connectedness, said Goforth. By both developing and employing technical talent locally, we affect positive change in our own environment. Mississippi is already a great place to live -- together, we can also make it a great place to have a career in tech.

Applications for the new center, scheduled to launch in early August, are currently being accepted at www.mscoding.org. Informational webinars will be held throughout the spring  watch facebook.com/MSCodingAcademies for details.
Valdosta, GA (31601)

Today

Scattered thunderstorms in the morning, then mainly cloudy during the afternoon with thunderstorms likely. High near 85F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms during the evening, then cloudy skies overnight. Low 72F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 50%.
After independence, in 1975, the country embraced a Marxist-Leninist philosophy. Some Catechists were jailed, others were tortured. Some left to pursue other trades.

Bernardo Suate and Paul Samasumo  Vatican City.

Manuel Kapattiwa, a Mozambican Catechist, recently narrated to Vatican News some of his views and experiences as a Catechist in Mozambique.

The Paul VI Catechetical Centre of Nampula

Trained at the Paul VI Catechetical Centre of Anchilo, in the Archdiocese of Nampula, Northern Mozambique, Manuel Kapattiwa was one of the first trainee catechists.

Established in 1969 by the then Archbishop of Nampula, Manuel Vieira Pinto, the Catechetical Centre, planned to benefit the Dioceses of Nampula, Lichinga and Pemba, was from the beginning intended for the formation of catechists and their families. The idea was for pastoral care incarnated among the local people and more directed towards greater active participation of the lay faithful in the Churchs life.

In an interview, Manuel Kapattiwa underwent the formation together with his wife. The catechetical course consisted of two years organised by the Centre. The programmes were tailor-made for those designated to be full-time Catechists in their respective dioceses or parishes.

The full-time Catechist

The work of a full-time Catechist has always been to watch over and protect the faith of the flock and prepare catechumens, usually in an outstation of the parish where you were assigned. This is because it was, in fact, the parish that sent you to the far-flung outstation attached to the parish, and you became the link with the bigger parish community, Manuel Kapattiwa explained.

During formation as Catechist, Kapattiwa recounted that his group comprised catechists from parishes of the Archdiocese of Nampula and those of neighbouring Dioceses of Pemba, Zambezia (Quelimane) and the Diocese of Lichinga. In all, there were 17 families of Catechists living and learning together. The bonds formed among the Catechists became life-long friendships.

According to Kapattiwa, during holidays from the Catechetical Centre, they returned to their parishes and dioceses as different teams. They would then be assigned around the dioceses to animate communities and fellow Catechists who had not yet undergone formation.

Catechists as translators of Biblical texts

So, we went all over the dioceses and parishes helping other Catechists, emphasised Kapattiwa. He added that, after the two-year course, he also worked in the Dioceses of Pemba, Quelimane and other dioceses, helping translate the Bible into the Macua language. One of the Anchilo Centres main activities was translating biblical texts and the preparation of Mozambiques First National Pastoral Assembly that eventually took place in Beira in 1977.

Mozambiques First National Pastoral Assembly

Catechist Kapattiwa recalls, with pride, the contributions of catechists at the First National Pastoral Assembly. It was really at that national assembly that the Mozambican Church resolutely started advocating for the formation of Small Christian Communities as a key pastoral option. To this day, various pastoral ministries put in place at that First National Pastoral Assembly of Beira, such as the ministry to the elderly, the sick, families, the youth and many others, continue to thrive in the Mozambican church.

Asked what the Church of Mozambique would look like without Catechists, Manuel Kapattiwa gave an unequivocal assessment, The importance of the Catechist in the evangelisation ministry (of Mozambique) is immense because it is he (the catechist) who helps sustain the growth of the faith and the church on a daily basis, he said.

And the Catechists role in the animation of various pastoral ministries?

One needs only look at the Diocese of Nampula, said Kappatiwa. It is not a mere coincidence that the Diocese has the most local priests and even religious, some of whom are the children of Catechists.

Difficulties and Challenges of the Catechist

When asked about the difficulties and challenges faced as a Catechist, Manuel Kapattiwa mentioned the difficult conditions under which catechists lived during the time of Frelimo 1, he said. This was when the ruling political party, Frelimo at independence, introduced in our land (Marxist-Leninist) notions of the non-existence of God, said Kappatiwa. It was a most trying time as some Catechists were thrown in jail for witnessing to the existence of God.

Jail was just but one threat. There was always the pervasive cloud of living under a climate of fear, threats, torture, and for some, even the possibility of martyrdom. Some of the Catechists trained at the Paul VI Catechetical Centre in Anchilo could not take it and left their work as Catechists to pursue other professions and trades. But thank God, says Kappatiwa, there were also courageous Catechists who, despite threats and much suffering, carried on with evangelisation regardless of the dangerous conditions. Now the situation has changed and improved remarkably because even those who did not accept Gods existence are now accepting it, Kapattiwa confirmed.

Renewed attention for the ministry of Catechist

However, Manuel Kapattiwa thinks that lately, there are fewer meetings of Catechists, at least not as many as during the time of Archbishop Manuel Vieira Pinto. And it is in the meetings where one learns more and gains the courage to face the problems of the Church, problems of society, political problems and so on, underlines Kapattiwa. He called on ecclesial authorities to always highlight the role of the Catechist in the Church.

The Paul VI Catechetical Centre of Anchilo in Mozambique recently celebrated 50 years since it started running courses in 1970.
The president of the Bishops' Conference of Austria, Archbishop Franz Lackner, has spoken out on behalf of the Austrian bishops, who are appealing to the legislature to take restrictive measures to prevent the legalization of assisted suicide.

By Vatican News staff reporter

During a press conference at the end of the summer plenary session of the Bishops' Conference, Archbishop Lackner stressed, once again, that the bishops cannot support the Constitutional Court's decision to lift a ban on assisted suicide.

The court argued in December that the countrys criminal code is unconstitutional because its ban on assisted suicide violates the right to self-determination.

In his address, the Archbishop stressed a number of fundamental points such as the safeguarding and expansion of suicide prevention: "Prevention must remain the State's declared objective in the field of health," he said. There is a risk of entering into a situation where a distinction is made between good and bad suicide.

The bishops underline that assisted suicide prevention includes the issue of palliative care and hospices, which must be widespread nationwide and affordable, just as psychosocial support in crisis situations must be available "for all those who need it", they say.

According to the bishops, interference by third parties must also be prevented by law; there is also a need for accurate and reliable diagnoses, the provision of mandatory counselling on the concrete possibilities of palliative care and hospices, as well as psychotherapy. In addition, the bishops call for assisted suicide not to be classified as a service of doctors or any other health or welfare profession, which are "at the service of life and not death".

Archbishop Lackner went on to say that the Constitutional Court had not yet lifted the "ban on killing on demand. "This ban should be secured by a constitutional majority in Parliament. "The beginning and the end of life are fundamental moments of life itself," he concluded, "the more man assumes to place the beginning and the end under an interest-driven feasibility, the more he also weakens the time of life that runs between these two moments.
The 45-year-old Estonian theologian was elected by the Federation Council on Saturday. She is the first woman and first representative from Eastern Europe to hold this position: " I pray for the guidance of Gods Spirit." She succeeds Rev. Dr Martin Junge who led the communion of 148 member churches for the past eleven years.

Vatican News staff writer

The Council of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) has elected Estonian pastor Anne Burghardt as general secretary of the global communion of Lutheran Churches. She will assume the position of new General Secretary in early November. She succeeds the Rev. Dr Martin Junge, who has led the communion of 148 churches for the past 11 years.

First woman to serve in this role



Rev. Burghardt, 45, married to Rev. Arnd Matthias Burghardt, also a pastor of the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church, and the mother of two children, is currently head of the development area of the Institute of Theology of the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church and the church's advisor for international and ecumenical relations. From 2013 to 2018, Rev. Burghardt served as secretary for ecumenical relations at the Geneva offices of the Lutheran Federation. She is also a member of the board of directors of the Conference of European Churches. She is the first woman and first representative from Central and Eastern Europe to hold this position.

Burghardt: "Humbled by this great honor"



After the election, the new secretary said she was " humbled by this great honor and deeply grateful for the confidence that the Council members" have shown in her. " In accepting this very special responsibility," she said, "I pray for the guidance of Gods Spirit," and "our communion so that it may be a blessing to the wider church and to the world.

The joy of the World Council of Churches



The World Council of Churches (WCC) commented on the news expressing "joy and encouragement." Rev. Ioan Sauca, acting secretary general of the WCC, reiterated his desire to "continuing the close collaboration" already present between the two bodies. Through the election of Rev. Burghardt, Sauca wrote in an open letter to the newly elected, "the LWF Council has recognized your proven skills as a pastor, an advocate for witness and service and a champion of lively partnerships in the quest for Christian unity and the building of human community despite borders and boundaries."
Forces patrol the region bordering Mali and Niger to prevent kidnappings and forestall attacks led by militant groups (AFP or licensors)

The Church in Mali offers prayers and expresses concern following the abduction of a priest and four lay people on Monday.

By Vatican News staff writer

Armed men have kidnapped five Catholics, including a priest serving in Malis Mopti Diocese, Church officials said on Tuesday, in the latest incident of kidnapping in the West-African country.

Reports say that the group of five, including the Parish Priest of Segue, Fr. Leon Douyon, was abducted about thirty kilometres North of Segue, in the vicinity of Ouo on Monday while traveling to the town of San for the funeral of a priest.

The other members of the group include the village chief of Segue, a deputy mayor and two other members of the community, said Fr. Alexis Dembele, confirming the kidnapping. He also noted that the abduction was a great concern for the Catholic community in Mali.

Concern of the Church in Mali

In an interview with Vatican News, Bishop of Kayes and president of the Episcopal Conference of Mali, Bishop Jonas Dembele expressed concern about the latest abduction.

He said that even though Mali has been going through difficult times, there have not been any incidents of kidnapping of priests, with the exception of Sr. Gloria Cecilia Narvaez Argoti, a Colombian nun working in Mali, who was seized by Islamist militants in February 2017.

Bishop Dembele added that he does not suspect the kidnapping to be directly linked to the fact that they are Christians since there have not been any targeted attacks against the Church.

He, however, assured that the Church in Mali is praying for the release of the group and will continue to engage in efforts directed at interreligious dialogue in order to promote peace in the country.

Malis challenges

Mali has experienced an increase in violence involving both civilians and the military in the past years. Kidnappings have increased in frequency with militants seeking for ransom or to exert political pressure.

Also, inter-communal violence, as well as insurgencies led by Islamist extremist groups linked to Al Qaeda and the so-called Islamic state have left several thousands dead and forced many to flee.

To boot, the nation saw two coups in the span of nine months after Colonel Assimi Goita first ousted the countrys elected president in August last year, and recently, the civilian leaders who were appointed to lead the countrys transitional government.

The move by the countrys military has drawn criticism from different quarters, including the Bishops who, in a collective statement issued in May, urged for constructive dialogue on the path toward peace following the resignation of the interim President and Prime Minister.
The Catholic Bishops of Poland express their support for criticism against the "Matic Report" on abortion.

By Lisa Zengarini

As European Parliament begins on Wednesday its discussion of the so-called Matic Report on womens sexual and reproductive health and rights in the EU, Polish bishops have expressed in strong terms their opposition to the document, saying it unfairly discriminates against unborn children.

The COMECE Position Paper

The resolution, named after Croatian MEP Predrag Fred Matic, refers to abortion as an essential health service and a human right and has spurred criticism from the European bishops. In a Position Paper released last week, the Commission of the Bishops Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) pointed out that the document is one-sided, denies the fundamental right to conscientious objection and violates the EU principle of subsidiarity. This view has been subsequently echoed by a number of European bishops.

Abortion is always a violation of the fundamental human right to life

The president of the Polish bishops Conference too has voiced strong criticism: Abortion is always a violation of the fundamental human right to life and is all the more repugnant as it affects the lives of the weakest and most vulnerable. It is therefore a manifestation of the most unjust discrimination, the Archbishop Stanisaw Gadecki Poznan says in a statement. He therefore urges all members of the European Parliament to vote against the proposal, emphasizing that on fundamental human rights and non-negotiable values there can be no compromise.

A violation of the principle of subsidiarity in EU

Echoing COMECEs arguments, Archbishop Gadecki further reminds MEPs that EU member States have an exclusive competence on healthcare and therefore Matic Resolution violates EU law.

Misinformation on the "right to abortion"

The president of the Polish bishops also calls attention to the misinformation underlying the draft document when it speaks of "reproductive and sexual rights", including abortion, as fundamental human rights binding States to implement them.

In fact, he says, "there is no international document on human rights, including the ones cited by the author of the resolution, that mentions the existence of the right to abortion. On the contrary, these international provisions guarantee the right to life against the right to kill. EU treaties confirm this principle of the inviolable dignity of every human being, his right to life, the prohibition of eugenic practices, as well as the commitment to protect the rights of minors, the prelate adds.

The right to conscientious objection

Furthermore, Archbishop Gadecki recalls that the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights explicitly mentions the right to conscientious objection, including that of healthcare professionals, which is also mentioned in many EU member States Constitutions. The resolution  he says - can be therefore considered as an attack against the Charter and these Constitutions.

Abortion cannot be considered as 'essential health service'

The president of the Polish bishops hence reiterates the Churchs concern and dismay over the possibility that abortion may become a human right: "The legalization of abortion alone is a distortion of social life and can still less be considered as an 'essential health service', he states.
The Bishops of the United States join their voices to that of Pope Francis in appealing for prayers and support for the people of Lebanon, as the Middle Eastern nation faces an ongoing economic and political crisis.

By Devin Watkins

Pope Francis will meet with the Christian community of Lebanon on 1 July for a special day of prayer and reflection in the Vatican.

The Pope says the encounter with Lebanons Christian leaders is meant to seek solutions for the worrying situation in the country and to pray together for the gift of peace and stability.

In the lead-up to next Thursdays event, US Bishops have expressed their support for the people of Lebanon and the Popes appeal.

Moment of grace, mercy, direction

Bishop David Malloy of Rockford, Chairman of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Committee on International Justice and Peace, released a statement on Monday to that effect.

The Bishop said Lebanon has long been an example to the region and the world and that the Lebanese people are facing a difficult time.

He called on everyone to pray that the meeting of Lebanons Christian leaders with Pope Francis on 1 July will be met with divine grace, mercy, and direction.

Bishop Malloy also asked US Catholics to support the work of Catholic aid agencies in Lebanon who are courageously providing relief and hope, including Catholic Near East Welfare Association, Caritas Lebanon, Catholic Relief Services, and Aid to the Church in Need.

Protecting rights and social fabric

The upcoming Vatican encounter comes on the heels of an appeal issued in April by the Catholic Patriarchs and Bishops of Lebanon.

The Church leaders called on the international community to help rebuild a country that is a message of freedom and a witness to harmonious existence.

They asked for assistance to maintain their individual, collective, and national rights; overcome the economic crisis, protect Lebanese societys social fabric, preserve Lebanons interreligious character, and support the Christian presence through Church institutions.

The Pope called the 1 July day of prayer in response to the ongoing crisis.

International assistance needed

US Bishops recognized Pope Francis care and concern, and recalled his Christmas 2020 letter to the people of Lebanon.

In that letter, the Pope said Lebanese can bring to the whole world the sweet fragrance of mutual respect, coexistence, and pluralism.

He also called on the international community to assist the nation in overcoming its political and economic crises and stand apart from conflicts and regional tensions.

Long-running crisis

Lebanons crisis is both economic and political, with politicians gridlocked over the formation of a new government.

On the economic front, the Lebanese pound has seen sharp devaluationowing to a financial meltdown and aggravated by pandemic lockdownslosing almost 90 percent of its value on the informal market over the past 18 months. The crisis has sparked several waves of protests.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet on June 21 presented a report on the rights situation in the troubled region of Ethiopia where there is also a threat of famine.

By Robin Gomes

The United Nations rights chief says she is deeply disturbed by reports of continued violations of international humanitarian law and human rights abuse against civilians in Ethiopias Tigray region, including executions and sexual abuse, more than six months since fighting began there.

Abuse continues

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet said on Monday her office has received reports of serious violations of international humanitarian law and gross human rights violations and abuses against civilians by all parties to the conflict. These include extrajudicial executions, arbitrary arrests and detentions, sexual violence against children as well as adults, and forced displacement.

Addressing the opening 47th Session of the UN Human Rights Council, June 21-July 13, in Geneva, Bachelet presented her annual report on the activities of her Office followed by a report on the central role of the state in responding to pandemics and other health emergencies, in the realization of all human rights.

She said that there were credible reports Eritrean soldiers were still there, despite a promise to leave. Ethiopia's government has said it will hold those who commit abuses to account and that more than 50 soldiers are on trial for either rape or killing civilians in Tigray. It has not released any details of those cases.

The Tigray conflict

The war in Tigray started in November as an attempt by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to disarm the regions rebellious Tigray Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF), a political party and nationalistic paramilitary group. On one side are guerrillas loyal to the ousted and now-fugitive leaders of Tigray. On the other are Ethiopian government troops, allied troops from neighboring Eritrea and militias from Ethiopias Amhara ethnic group who see themselves as rivals to the Tigrayan guerillas. More than 2 million of Tigrays 6 million people have already fled.

Famine

The United Nations and aid groups say some 350,000 people in Tigray, which borders Sudan as well as Eritrea, face famine. Some 2 million others are a step away from the worst famine since 2011 in Somalia. Farmers, aid workers and local officials say food has been turned into a weapon of war, with soldiers blocking or stealing food aid. In her report, Bachelet also mentioned that the humanitarian situation is dire, with reports of denial of humanitarian access in some localities, and looting of aid supplies by soldiers.

However, the Ethiopian prime minister said, "There is no hunger in Tigray." Speaking to BBC News on Monday, after voting in the country's general election, Abiy said, "There is a problem and the government is capable of fixing that."

Children

Earlier on June 14, the UNs Childrens Fund, UNICEF, raised an alarm that at least 33,000 children in inaccessible parts of Tigray were severely malnourished and would face imminent death without immediate help. UNICEF said in May alone, there has been a four-fold increase in weekly admissions of children for treatment for severe acute malnutrition. It projects that 56,000 children under five in Tigray will need treatment this year for sever

e acute malnutrition  almost six times higher than the average annual caseload for the region.

The Ethiopian authorities have said that they are distributing food aid and denied reports that they are restricting access to humanitarian agencies.

Pope Francis

The UN rights chiefs report on Tigray came a day after Pope Francis demanded that humanitarian aid reach hungry people in the region against the blockade. Speaking during his weekly midday Angelus prayer, the Pope called for an immediate end to the fighting in Tigray, the return of social harmony and for all food aid and health care assistance to be guaranteed. He said he was thinking of the people of Tigray who have been struck by a grave humanitarian crisis that has exposed the poorest to famine. Today there is famine! There is hunger! he exclaimed.

Ethiopias ethnic and communal violence

Bachelet said that since May 16 her Office has been conducting a joint investigation with the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission regarding human rights abuse in Tigray. A report is expected in August, following which the findings and recommendations will be made public.

Bachelet also noted that many other parts of Ethiopia, alarming incidents of deadly ethnic and inter-communal violence and displacement were linked to increasing polarization about longstanding grievances. Stressing that the use of military forces is not a durable solution, she urged comprehensive and multidimensional dialogue throughout the country to address the real grievances.
The United States faces a growing threat from domestic violent extremists, according to a strategy released this week by the Biden administration. The warning comes as U.S. lawmakers continue to investigate the January sixth storming of the U.S. Capitol by supporters of former President Donald Trump seeking to derail the Electoral College vote count confirming Joe Bidens presidential victory. VOAs Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson has more. VOA Khmer's Pochin Choeung narrates the story in Khmer.
The U.S. troop withdrawal from Afghanistan is more than halfway finished, yet the country is plagued with violence as the Taliban extend their reach. This, as the Afghan president meets with U.S. President Joe Biden later this week. VOA's Carolyn Presutti reports from the White House.
Kathryn Kathy Norum, age 80, of Alexandria, died on Saturday, June 26, 2021. A memorial service will be held at 11:00 AM on Friday, July 2, 2021, at Shalom Lutheran Church in Alexandria. Visitation will be held for one hour prior to the service at the church. This service will be live-str
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Callao Peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vibration and rolling / 5-10 s : I am seaman. Just now we are anchored at Callao anchorage area number 1. The vessel is 200 m long. The vessel starts shaking and vibrating. I felt it very well because our anchor is at the bottom of the sea. | 9 users found this interesting. Seiche effect. Por estar el agua del puerto parcialmente limitada. Funcionaria como una piscina o lago. No es tsunami, el sismo fue en tierra. Es tsunami en mar, de 7* para arriba y de poca profundidad. No es en caso de este sismo. Muy interesante el comentario, fascinante!!!

Wow I never knew this either! Who knew such an awkward predicament would lead to learning some fun trivia factoid :)

Fascinating... I had no idea that sea vessels can be sensitive to earthquake, besides a possible tzunami... / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vibration and rolling / 5-10 s

La Molina (66.6 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Strong shaking (MMI VI) Muy fuerte y prolongado | 10 users found this interesting. (reported through (reported through our app / Strong shaking (MMI VI)

Pueblo Libre, Peru (75.3 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 30-60 s Sharp and strong movement, paint pieces fell from ceiling and objects fell. | 7 users found this interesting. (reported through (reported through our app / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 30-60 s

Lima, San Miguel (77.7 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / complex rolling (tilting in multiple directions) / 5-10 s : The building was going sideways. Slightly at first, than there was one strong swing, during which I scared for my life. | 3 users found this interesting.

60.6 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / vibration and rolling / 20-30 s Fuerte vibracion. Movimientos laterales. Sacudidas moderadas.. de los mas fuerte que he sentido en la actualidad | 3 users found this interesting. (reported through (reported through our app / Light shaking (MMI IV) / vibration and rolling / 20-30 s

Lima Peru / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s : my cat started running around in fear | 5 users found this interesting.

La Molina, Lima Peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s : shit my pants !! | 5 users found this interesting.

65.9 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s : Probably the strongest one I've felt since arriving in 2018 | 4 users found this interesting.

65.3 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 15-20 s : IT WAS SOOO STRONG AND HORRIBLE 6 magnitude or more | 4 users found this interesting.

Miraflores / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating : it was my first earthquake i woke up didn't know what was going on everything was vibrating i heard the dishes vibrate and rattle. I was scared, I had never felt anything like this before | 3 users found this interesting. Hay muchos sismos en Peru. Vete acostumbrando e instruyete.En la casa, el lugar mas seguro es el pasillo. Te tiras acostado alli. No hay que tener objetos peligrosos altos, ni botellas o vidrios. Cortar gas y luz. / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating

Villa el Salvador, Lima. (57.5 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / single vertical bump / 15-20 s : 2 strong waves of Shaking and everything was shaking. I live on a 5th floor, an area with several buildings of 4 o 5 pisos, I noticed how the surrounding buildings were moving, the windows were shaking. | 2 users found this interesting.

Lima Lima Ate / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 20-30 s : i feel panic in the moment | 4 users found this interesting.

73.3 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 20-30 s : extremely scary, first ever intense earthquake ive had. | 3 users found this interesting.

1 minute (76.2 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 30-60 s : very scared, more for living in a 3-story house | 3 users found this interesting.

Chorrillos (61.8 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 10-15 s Se sintio fuerte | 3 users found this interesting. (reported through (reported through our app / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 10-15 s

Lima (68.2 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 30-60 s : Room shaking, windows rattling. Lasted about 30 seconds | 3 users found this interesting.

Brena, Lima (74.6 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s : Magnitud 5.8 | 3 users found this interesting.

Lima (69.2 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s Worried | 3 users found this interesting. (reported through (reported through our app / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s

San Miguel district, Lima. / Light shaking (MMI IV) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 20-30 s : The movement was laterall more than up and down. Most striking for me was the noise, a low rumble with the shaking and rattling of glass, etc. Sounded and felt like two, merged shakes, with two distinct sound patterns. No apparent damadge but one or two things dislodged. My daughter (9yo) said it would happen about an hour beforehand. | 2 users found this interesting.

62 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 15-20 s La gente salio a la calle no hubo dano estructural en las casas ni cortes de luz en mi zona distrito de surco | One user found this interesting. (reported through (reported through our app / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 15-20 s

Lima , distrito de lince . (73.8 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 20-30 s Senti las ventanas vibrar y Vi a un edificio rajado por la mitad de arriba hacia abajo (no de costado o gruesor del edificio) | One user found this interesting. (reported through (reported through our app / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 20-30 s

San Bartolo (28.6 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 1-2 minutes Forte ruido y dura mas de 1 minuto. Comienza suave y crece mas y mas y se calmo paso a paso por terminar suave y para dura como 1:30 o 2 minutos. | One user found this interesting. (reported through (reported through our app / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 1-2 minutes

Peru lima ancon (110.4 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) : It weas very hard but speed Fue duro pero rapido | 2 users found this interesting.

66.3 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 30-60 s : lasted about 60 seconds, moderate shaking waxing and waning | 2 users found this interesting.

Pucusana Peru / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / 30-60 s : Abrupt and violent, started with peak shaking with no warning, then tapered off. Some stuff fell, cracked a few brick and concrete walls, ground settling into subterranean voids. | One user found this interesting. I should add that it was shockingly loud and there have been a number of light aftershocks since and a moderate one as well. / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / 30-60 s

Callao / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / complex rolling (tilting in multiple directions) / 20-30 s : I haven't ever been through this since I been here in 2018 but wow. The shaking was so intense and the longer it went on the stronger it felt. There was no warning either (usually the rolling you can hear come towards you by the windows shaking) this time though everything just shook and the noise of it was even more terrifying and disorienting. We were on the second floor and the shaking felt like it was everywhere. We are all safe, just shaken up of course. My daughter slept through it! Lol! | One user found this interesting.

San martin de porres / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / complex motion difficult to describe : Segun el igp es de 6 grados de intensidad pero se sintio de 8 demasiado fuerte y largo todos los postes se movian. Las cosas se caian algunos sitios se rompieron vidrios.pero como se puede saber la duracion del sismo | One user found this interesting.

Lima, San Isidro / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 30-60 s : Strong shaking. few things fell down, intense noise of door, windows, etc. We felt the quake was long. | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s : I had just checked in at hotel El principe about five minutes from the airport in Lima as ar resident from the bay are in San Francisco I like to think we are better prepare to handle an earthquake situation, in coordination with the hotel staff we turned off the elevator and got most of the guest out expecting some small shakes to follow, but since everyone is back inside the building, having lived the Loma Prieta earthquake this one felt a bit stronger however I was in the fifth floor of a sm | One user found this interesting.

lima, miraflores / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s : I was in the park and the noise was very loud. You could hear the earth, the palm trees and even the sea. | One user found this interesting.

rimac, peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 30-60 s : was sitting on the table with family, i started yo feel the shaking and my cousin screamed (temblor) earthquake in spanish, and we all stand un and walk to the center columns on the apartment | One user found this interesting.

Lima, Los Olivos / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 1-2 minutes : I was on my bed. Usually, I stay in the place I am but this time I got up and walked to a safe place inside my home. | One user found this interesting.

Miraflores Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 5-10 s : Hotel room on 5th floor vibrating and heard sounds like a loud train coming to run right thru building | One user found this interesting.

Huaral / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 30-60 s : Senti como se sacudia el suelo, baje al primer piso y vi como se balanceaba mi casa de un lado a otro | One user found this interesting.

San Martin de porres / Light shaking (MMI IV) / vibration and rolling / 20-30 s : Fue un temblor muy raro de los que normalmente estamos a sentir los peruanos y duro mucho mas tambien, creo que fue 30 a 25 segundos. | One user found this interesting.

San Juan de Miraflores / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 10-15 s : Se movio el piso como unas 3 o 4 veces como olas. Cajones se dwslizaron. San Juan de Miraflores. Lima | One user found this interesting.

Lima, Peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s : A clear shaking of medium-high intensity, almost near the size of previous earthquake located near Ica, Peru. This one was more sudden while climbing towards its maximum force. | One user found this interesting.

Miraflores, lima, peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating : Felt walls shaking. Long duration. Pictures and some items began to fall off walls or fall over but no major furniture moved | One user found this interesting.

Carabayllo / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s : Senti un remeson y vibracion muy fuerte tipo cuando ocurrio el 15 de agosto de 2007 aunque me impresiono segun recuerdo creo que era 7.2 bueno con la informacion y lo que senti era parecido ,pero en si me asusto muy fuerte el sismo. | One user found this interesting.

oquendo callao / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / vibration and rolling / 5-10 s : My pet was very afraid for noise and vibration, a lot of movement and vibration doors sound due to strong movement it was strong | One user found this interesting.

Canete / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 30-60 s : It was an unusually "vivid" earthquake in that it was a clear wave, just read it was 10km deapth. | 2 users found this interesting.

San Isidro, Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / complex motion difficult to describe / 20-30 s : VERY STRONG | 2 users found this interesting.

Lima, Peru / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s : Very noisy | 2 users found this interesting.

lima (0.3 km WNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / single lateral shake / 5-10 s : Very Strong :( | One user found this interesting.

70.5 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 1-2 minutes : I felt that everything vibrated even outside the house. | One user found this interesting.

Bellavista (79.2 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 20-30 s : Started as any normal shake but got more intense as soon as seconds past. It lasted about 20s aprox. | One user found this interesting.

Cercado de Lima (74.2 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 20-30 s : Mag 6.0, the epicentre was in Canete | One user found this interesting.

Chorrillos (61.9 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 1-2 minutes : It was very strong and lasted about a minute | One user found this interesting.

Sol de la Molina, La Molina (65.1 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging : It started without a hint (usually stars with noise, them shake), straight to strong movement. | One user found this interesting.

Lima (81.6 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s : Jorge Chavez airport shook a little, for about 10 seconds. Nothing too scary. | One user found this interesting.

lima (68.8 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / rattling, vibrating / 1-2 minutes : Asustada y con miedo | One user found this interesting.

La Perla (78.2 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / single lateral shake / 10-15 s : All people is good | One user found this interesting.

LIMA (80.5 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vibration and rolling / several minutes : FUERTE, TODO SE MOVIA | One user found this interesting.

35.5 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s : Vivo en el piso 3, se movio todo, sonido fuerte, | One user found this interesting.

15491 Ate Lima (69.2 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / single lateral shake / 5-10 s : A little surprised | One user found this interesting.

En mi casa en la ciudad de Huaral (139.4 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 15-20 s : He sentido un movimiento del suelo que fue aumentando y se sentia en los pies | One user found this interesting.

La Molina (64.1 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s : Have not felt a earthquake in 30 years. | One user found this interesting.

Lima (81.6 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vibration and rolling / 20-30 s : Fue muy fuerte,parecia de 5 | One user found this interesting.

5 segundos (127.4 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 2-5 s : Morococha | One user found this interesting.

Ica (189.8 km SSE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating : 10 seconds of shaking | One user found this interesting.

Lima (72 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Strong shaking (MMI VI) : Heavy movenoment and shaking. Car alarms | One user found this interesting.

69.2 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 15-20 s Bety worry anout they city | One user found this interesting. (reported through (reported through our app / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 15-20 s

71.3 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s : Eh | One user found this interesting.

Chorrillos / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 1-2 minutes : There was no noise before the earthquake. It just started shacking and after 20 seconds it got worse for like 10 seconds. after that the shacking fade away very slowly. It was a really scary earthquake. You could hear people screaming in the streets. And we had a long night waiting for possible replicas. The next shaking was at 07:02 but thankfully it warned us whit rumbling sound before the shake and it was really short.

Lurin / Very strong shaking (MMI VII) / complex rolling (tilting in multiple directions) : My apartment has several cracked walls, small and medium items fell to the floor. Water from the toilet tanks fell. The strongest in 7 years

Lima Peru barranco / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 30-60 s : Felt the moving floor, building responding to the movement(shifting) , vibrations, even doorframe shifting

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 15-20 s : Moderate shaking | One user found this interesting.

Pueblo Libre, Lima / Strong shaking (MMI VI) : Scary! | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s : Was suden strong and increasing in power fast but it stoped faster than other ones. | One user found this interesting.

Chorillos, Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 5-10 s : Broken things. | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 15-20 s : Strong shaking, up and down | One user found this interesting.

San Borja, Lima Peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s : My bed started rattling and a loud noise was heard | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vibration and rolling / 20-30 s : Fue muy fuerte y de la nada | One user found this interesting.

san isidro / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 20-30 s : live in 21th floor, a little bit scared, obvious shaking.. | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging : It felt like an eartchuake | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 15-20 s : Moving of windows, some two items fell in my bathroom. | One user found this interesting.

lima LURIN / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / complex motion difficult to describe / 15-20 s : Senti que se movia de un lado a otro y sono fuerte como motor o rocas cayendo | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 15-20 s : Sismo largo. Asendente. | One user found this interesting.

Huancayo / Light shaking (MMI IV) / single lateral shake / very short : Small shake | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) : It was quite a roar and everyone ran out of there houses | One user found this interesting.

lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 20-30 s : Yup, it's true. | One user found this interesting.

Lima Peru / Weak shaking (MMI III) / complex rolling (tilting in multiple directions) / 20-30 s : everything moves an some glass broken | One user found this interesting.

Chorrillos lima peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 10-15 s : Strongest shaking in my experience. | One user found this interesting.

Barranco Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vertical swinging (up and down) : It seemed to have two phases First rattling then deeper shaking up and down | One user found this interesting.

En casa / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / single lateral shake / 5-10 s : Mucho miedo, fue demasiado fuerte respecto a los demas que hay aqui, y duro buen tiempo | One user found this interesting.

Sergio Bernales, Surquillo, Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s : Felt shaking..loud rumbleing...heard things falling | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s : I was in the 11th floor and I felt the earthquake start to shake me. | One user found this interesting.

La Molina / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / 5-10 s : Strongest Ive felt. Very scary but short, Thank God! | One user found this interesting.

Santiago de surco / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 30-60 s : Intense and long | One user found this interesting.

Miraflores peru / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 15-20 s : Was at a hotel in miraflores and felt the shake | One user found this interesting.

Brena Peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 15-20 s : Yes, reports to be 6.0 | One user found this interesting.

Lima peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s : The entire Ac Marriott building was shaking | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 20-30 s : Ok | One user found this interesting.

Peru Lima la molina / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / single vertical bump / 30-60 s : Couldn't walk down stairs the floor was moving to much | One user found this interesting.

BRENA, LIMA / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s : Una fuerte sacudida. De mas de 20 segundos. | One user found this interesting.

San isidro / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s : Walls and glass shaking | One user found this interesting.

Miraflories Peru / Light shaking (MMI IV) / vibration and rolling / 15-20 s : Strong shake | One user found this interesting.

Tingo Maria / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 5-10 s : senti el movimiento telurico no fue tan fuerte, pero se sintio el movimiento total de la casa | One user found this interesting.

San martin de porres lima / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s : It was horrible even when it was 5.6 I felt wors than that | One user found this interesting.

Lima Peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 20-30 s : Opened kitchen drawers and knocked a cereal box off the counter! | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 20-30 s : Fue muy fuerte temblo todo el edificio | One user found this interesting.

Lima chorrillos / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 5-10 s : fear :D | One user found this interesting.

la molina lima peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 30-60 s : ruido fuerte de vidrios ;parecio largo en duracion ; movimiento horizontal. | One user found this interesting.

lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 15-20 s : longer than the last ones | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 20-30 s : Lot of noise, windows shaking like it gona crash everything. People ran to outside | One user found this interesting.

Peru / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 10-15 s : Peru | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s : Strong and long | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 10-15 s : It felt long and intense. Growing of intensity ovet its duration | One user found this interesting.

Miraflores / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s : Furte en piso 10 | One user found this interesting.

magdalena / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 5-10 s : SHAKING AND MOVING THE WALLS AND LIGHTS | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 1-2 minutes : Very strong but very short | One user found this interesting.

Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / single lateral shake / 10-15 s : :s | One user found this interesting.

San Isidro, Lima, Peru (72 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 1-2 minutes (reported through our app / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 1-2 minutes

Miraflores, Lima (69 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 20-30 s

52 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / complex rolling (tilting in multiple directions) / 1-2 minutes

la punta (81.7 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 20-30 s

Lima (73.8 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 1-2 minutes

Lima, Comas (88.5 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / vibration and rolling / 20-30 s

El Alto (1009.6 km ESE of epicenter) [ Map ] / not felt (reported through our app / not felt

64.3 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s : Strong

Lima, Chorrillos (63.3 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V)

Lima, lima, santa anita. (105.8 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / vibration and rolling / 30-60 s : No se llego a cae nada pero aun asi con mucha intensidad.

Lima, San Isidro (70.8 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s (reported through our app / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s

San Miguel, Lima (74.2 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Very strong shaking (MMI VII) / both vertical and horizontal swinging : Very strong and long lasting.

63 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 1-2 minutes

74.2 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / complex motion difficult to describe / 30-60 s

San Miguel, Lima (74.2 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Very strong shaking (MMI VII) / both vertical and horizontal swinging : Very strong and long lasting.

68.3 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vibration and rolling / 20-30 s

Lima, Chorrillos (63.3 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V)

68.7 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V)

Yungay, Peru (399.3 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s

71.3 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s : Long and intense

lima (3.1 km SE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / single lateral shake / 1-2 minutes

69.5 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s

99.9 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 5-10 s

69.7 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 10-15 s

Distrito Los Olivos (88.5 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / single lateral shake / 30-60 s

88.4 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 30-60 s

Lima (69.4 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 1-2 minutes (reported through our app / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 1-2 minutes

78.1 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s

17 km SW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s

Lima villa maria del triunfo (57.8 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 30-60 s

64.6 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 10-15 s (reported through our app / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 10-15 s

Chaclacayo (61.3 km N of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging

Barranco (66.4 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s

Lima, Peru (68.2 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s

77.7 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 30-60 s (reported through our app / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 30-60 s

68.9 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 20-30 s

Miraflores (70.1 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 30-60 s

Manglaralto, Ecuador (1280.1 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / not felt (reported through our app / not felt

Lima, Lima, Santiago de Surco (61.4 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vibration and rolling / 10-15 s

Lima (68.1 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 30-60 s

67.5 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) (reported through our app / Moderate shaking (MMI V)

19 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s

84.5 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / not felt (reported through our app / not felt

Lince (72.8 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s

69.1 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s

79 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 1-2 minutes

Lima house (79.7 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V)

52.6 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Very strong shaking (MMI VII) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 1-2 minutes

Miraflores, lima (68.5 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s

85.7 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV)

Lima, pueblo libre (74.1 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / complex rolling (tilting in multiple directions) / several minutes

San Martin de Porres, Lima, Peru (86.6 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / rattling, vibrating

Calle 9 numero 222 (68.4 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 10-15 s

Lince, Lima (71.5 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / single lateral shake / 15-20 s

81.1 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / 15-20 s

75.7 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s

67.5 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 30-60 s

Lima, Peru (71.9 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 30-60 s

Lima (240.9 km NE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s

77.2 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / single lateral shake

Lima Peru villa maria de triumfo (61.6 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 15-20 s

San Juan de Lurigancho (80 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vibration and rolling / 30-60 s

huaraz (354.9 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / not felt

37.1 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging

San Borja, Lima (69.3 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 15-20 s

68.4 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging

Lima (76.5 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 15-20 s

85.5 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 15-20 s

79 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 1-2 minutes

Lima airport (82.5 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating

-11.960152,-77.062589 (85.5 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s

Santiago de Surco, Lima, Peru (64.8 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s (reported through our app / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s

San Borja (69.2 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 20-30 s (reported through our app / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 20-30 s

135 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / single lateral shake / 30-60 s

59.2 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 1-2 minutes

66.4 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) (reported through our app / Moderate shaking (MMI V)

Lima - Pueblo Libre (77 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vibration and rolling

Lima, Peru (64.8 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s

68.4 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s

65.4 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 2-5 s

Lima peru (70.4 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 1-2 minutes

El Refugio la Molina (67.4 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 1-2 minutes

3.1 km S of epicenter [ Map ] / Very strong shaking (MMI VII) / rattling, vibrating / 1-2 minutes

63.6 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s (reported through our app / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s

68.2 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s

Lima (70.1 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 10-15 s

386.5 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / 1-2 s

73.4 km N of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / single lateral shake / 20-30 s (reported through our app / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / single lateral shake / 20-30 s

Lima (82.7 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 1-2 minutes

69.8 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 20-30 s

Lima punta negra (33.4 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 15-20 s

Villa El Salvador / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 2-5 s

Lima / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 30-60 s

Sol de La Molina / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / complex motion difficult to describe / 1-2 minutes

Lizzie , It has arrive without any fisrt sound., j

Carabayllo / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 1-2 minutes : senti

Mala / Very strong shaking (MMI VII) / complex rolling (tilting in multiple directions) / 30-60 s

Lima Miraflores / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s

La Victoria / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 20-30 s

Lima surquillo Jose Manuel iturregui 876 / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 10-15 s

Chorrillos / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s

Miraflores / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 20-30 s

MY HOUSE / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / complex rolling (tilting in multiple directions) / 1-2 minutes

San Borja, Lima. / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 1-2 minutes : Rumbling, shaking, animals barking

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 15-20 s : Shaked a lot 6.0 grade richter

San Isidro / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s

Peru, lima, San Miguel / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 2-5 s : :v

Lima, Peru / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 1-2 minutes

El mercado nuevo progreso / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vibration and rolling / 5-10 s : Se movia mi tele se escuchaba todo un ruido de vidrio

Lima, cenete, mala / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 30-60 s

Herbay bajo / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 1-2 s

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 1-2 minutes : We got scared :c

RIMAC / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / 1-2 minutes

Callao / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 30-60 s : It was very strong

puerto libro / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s

San isidro lima peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 30-60 s

Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating

En mi casa / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / complex motion difficult to describe : Asustada pero luego pude ir guardando la calma y sacar a mis pequenas, mi esposa y mi madre.

Selina Miraflorea Lima / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s : Floor was da hiking a bit and I wasnt sure what it was until the security guy got us outside

EN MI CASA / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s

Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 5-10 s : Shaking for 5-10 sc

santiago de surco / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating

Paracas / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s

Jw Marriott Lima / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s

Lima / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / 10-15 s : Hard shaking of building

Lima / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 30-60 s

Lima, el agustino / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s

Lima,San Isidro / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s

San Miguel / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 2-5 s

Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 30-60 s

Chaclacayo / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / simple rolling (tilting sideways along one direction) / 30-60 s

/ Weak shaking (MMI III) / 20-30 s (reported through our app / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 20-30 s

Lima, San Isidro / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 30-60 s

Lima / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 30-60 s

Santiago de surco / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 30-60 s

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 15-20 s

La Molina / 30-60 s

Lima Peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s

Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 15-20 s

Lima pueblo libre / Light shaking (MMI IV) / single lateral shake / 30-60 s

Punta Negra / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s

Surco / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s

Lima Peru / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 5-10 s

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 30-60 s

callao,lima peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s

Lima airport / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 15-20 s

Whatching tv / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vibration and rolling / 30-60 s

Lima, La Molina / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 15-20 s

Surco, / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vibration and rolling / 30-60 s

San Miguel, Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 20-30 s

Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 10-15 s

Miraflores / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 20-30 s

La capullana, surco / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / vibration and rolling / 1-2 minutes

Lima,peru / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s

San Martin de Porres / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vibration and rolling

Santiago de surco / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 30-60 s

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s

La Victoria / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 15-20 s

Lima / Weak shaking (MMI III) / single lateral shake / very short

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 15-20 s

Lince / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 15-20 s

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 1-2 minutes

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 20-30 s

Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 1-2 minutes

Chorrillos / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / complex rolling (tilting in multiple directions) / 30-60 s

Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s

Peru, lima, villa maria del triunfo / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating

Surco / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s

surco / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 10-15 s

San isidro / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / rattling, vibrating

Carabayllo / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 10-15 s

Callao / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s

Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 10-15 s

callao / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / vibration and rolling / 30-60 s

Miraflores / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 15-20 s

Lima, Surco / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 10-15 s

Lima peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 30-60 s

San Isidro, Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s

Santiago de Surco / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating

Pueblo Libre, Lima, Peru / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s

Lima / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 30-60 s

Miraflores, Lima, Peru / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s

Miraflores, Lima City / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 30-60 s

Miraflores, Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 15-20 s

Lima/Lima/Santiago de surco / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s

Pueblo libre / Weak shaking (MMI III)

Asia / not felt / rattling, vibrating / very short

Ventanilla / Light shaking (MMI IV) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 15-20 s

callao / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 5-10 s

San Borja, lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 15-20 s

Lima / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 15-20 s

Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s

Lima / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s

Chaclacayo / Light shaking (MMI IV)

Ica Peru / Light shaking (MMI IV) / vibration and rolling / 20-30 s

Lima, villa maria del triunfo / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / complex motion difficult to describe / 1-2 minutes

Chincha, Pueblo nuevo / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s
Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos by Universal Pictures

Anyone whos seen even one of the ten (ten!) Fast & Furious movies can tell you that these supercharged blockbusters arent about cars going vroom. Theyre about family, as well as the Family, the latter referring to the sprawling cast of characters that orbits around Vin Diesels Dominic Toretto. Members drift in and out on the whim of actor availability (and, occasionally, story) but the upcoming Fast 9  which features the return of the presumed-dead fan favorite Han (Sung Kang)  is a reminder that Family is Forever.

That said, at this point the Family is so sprawling its easy to forget that famously memorable leading man Scott Eastwood is technically a member. Even the most fervent of Fast Fans could probably use a refresher now that were ten movies deep. Going into Fast 9, there are a handful of key characters whom fans should be up to date on (were going to leave Dom out because it feels reasonable to assume anyone buying a ticket to the ninth F&F movie knows who Vin Diesel is playing). Below, you can find some brief background on how they became a part of the Family, the role they play in it, and where they stand as the franchises ninth installment revs its engine.

Photo: Universal Pictures

Mia Toretto

Played by: Jordana Brewster

Relation to the Family: Biological  shes Doms younger sister. Shes also the wife of Brian OConnor, played by Paul Walker through the first seven films in the series.

Has she ever been presumed dead?: Nope, but shes sat a couple of installments out  we havent seen Mia since Furious 7, in which her role was relatively minor.

Wait, if shes in F9, whos with her kids?: I dunno  Brian, probably? With the trailer for F9 promising the emergence of a third (!!!) Toretto sibling played by John Cena (!!!!!), it feels safe to say she needed to get back in the drivers seat for this one.

Photo: Giles Keyte/Universal Pictures

Letty Ortiz

Played by: Michelle Rodriguez

Relation to the Family: Shes an OG member, first appearing in the original The Fast & the Furious as Doms ride-or-die. These days the two are married and she serves as a surrogate mother to his son, Brian, introduced in F8.

Has she ever been presumed dead?: Yup. Letty dies off-screen in F4, her murder eventually being revealed as the result of an undercover op she was pulling with Brian (in exchange for Doms legal record being purged). She returned in F6 with amnesia, serving as part of a lethal hijacking unit the Family found themselves pitted up against. Eventually her memory began to return and she rejoined the good guys.

Photo: Giles Keyte/Universal Pictures

Roman Pearce

Played By: Tyrese Gibson

Relation to the Family: Romans ties go way back  hes a childhood friend of Brians, first introduced in 2 Fast 2 Furious. Roman sat out for the increasingly-less-standalone Tokyo Drift (more on that later) and F4 but returned as a crucial member of the heist crew in F5. Hes stuck around  mostly talking a big game and then getting relentlessly clowned on by everyone else  ever since.

Has he ever been presumed dead?: Not yet.

Is he still the problematic friend you just barely put up with?: Yes.

Photo: Universal Pictures

Tej Parker

Played by: Ludacris

Relation to the Family: Like Roman, Tej is an old friend of Brians who first appeared in 2 Fast and later joined up for Fast Five. Hes a wiz mechanic who generally serves as the crews tech guy and has a great love-hate dynamic with Roman.

Has he ever been presumed dead?: Nope.

This is the guy who hacks into government databases in some of these movies, right?: Yeah.

I thought he was just a mechanic?: I mean, hes a mechanic.

Who hacks into government databases?: Yeah.

 Alright: Cool.

Does he finally smooch Roman in F9?: One can only hope.

Photo: Universal Pictures

Ramsey

Played by: Nathalie Emmanuel

Relation to the Family: The Fam crosses paths with Ramsey in F7. Shes the genius hacker who developed the MacGuffin of that film: the Gods Eye, a program that allows the user to hack into any camera in the world, effectively the key to creating a surveillance state.

Has she ever been presumed dead?: No.

Hows that love triangle with her, Tej, and Roman going?: Its the strongest argument in favor of polyamory you will ever see.

Photo: Universal Pictures

Han Seoul-Oh

Played by: Sung Kang

Relation to the Family: We first see Han as a member of the Family in F4, where hes a member of Doms crew in the Dominican Republic. Hes integrated into the larger Family in F5 during the Brazil job.

Has he ever been presumed dead?: *sigh* We doing this? Okay. Yes, Han is presumed dead in both Tokyo Drift (the first Fast film in which he appears) and F6, which technically depict the same event due to the seriess slightly wonky chronology. Long story short: Tokyo Drift was originally mostly standalone in the franchise, with the only ties to the larger F&F world being a Dom cameo at the end. Han was an instant fan favorite and something of a pet project for director Justin Lin, with a version of the character having appeared in the directors second film, Better Luck Tomorrow. Han dies in a car wreck in Tokyo Drift, hence the Dom cameo  hes in Tokyo to pay respects to an old friend. When Lin came back to direct F4 (and 5 and 6) he brought Han with him, immediately setting up a new chronology for the franchise. Its nowhere near as complicated as some make it out to be  it simply became clear that any F&F movie featuring Han from here on out took place before Tokyo Drift. The timelines finally converged at the end of F6, albeit with a slight retcon: new big bad Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) is revealed to be the driver of the car that killed Han, an act of revenge against the Family for their defeat of his younger brother, Owen Shaw (Luke Evans), in the film. F7 and everything that follows takes place postTokyo Drift (albeit with Doms trip to Tokyo being briefly depicted in the film).

Okay, gotcha: You sure?

Yeah, Im sure. But wait, hes back from the dead in F9?: Yeah, its a whole thing.

Sounds complicated: Very much so.

Can we do a new character now?: Yeah, calm down.

Photo: John Johnson/Universal Pictures

Sean Boswell

Played by: Lucas Black

Relation to the Family: Sean is the protagonist of Tokyo Drift. He briefly meets Dom at the end of that film, an encounter we see play out slightly more at length in F7, which is really funny because Lucas Black is ten entire years older in that scene despite it ostensibly taking place moments after Tokyo Drift.

Has he ever been presumed dead?: Nope.

If hes back in F9 does that mean his Tokyo Drift co-star Bow Wow is also back?: Yeah, both are entire grown-ass adults now, which only further muddles the chronology of these movies.

Photo: Universal Pictures

Queenie Shaw

Played by: Dame Helen Mirren

Dame Helen Mirren?!: DAME HELEN MIRREN

Relation to the Family: Its hard to say for sure if Queenie constitutes as a Family Member as shes yet to be invited to a cookout, but her now-consistent presence in these movies as an ally of Doms seems to qualify her. Queenie is the mother of Owen and Deckard Shaw, who have since made good on their villainous pasts and now serve as sometimes-reluctant allies to the Family (they have attended a cookout, which does empirically qualify them as Family). We first meet her in F8 and she returns (albeit behind bars) in Hobbs & Shaw.

Has she ever been presumed dead?: No, long live Queenie.

Do they finally let her drive in F9?: No spoilers.

Related
Kim Blalock has suffered from chronic back pain for years, and was using a prescribed opiate to manage the pain.

Eight months ago, Blalock gave birth to her sixth child at the North Alabama Medical Center.

However, a routine blood test on her newborn baby boy showed he tested positive for opiates.

"She started using her pain medication about six weeks before she gave birth," explains one of her attorneys, Dana Sussman.

For years Blalock has been prescribed pain medication to manage her chronic back pain. She stopped taking her prescription when she found out she was pregnant, but refilled it about six weeks before giving birth when the pain became unbearable.

However, when refilling that prescription, she failed to tell her doctor she was pregnant.

"For there to be a felony charge because she failed to disclose a pregnancy for which she was not asked about is remarkably drastic and punitive in this situation," says Sussman.

Blalock's attorney says the doctor didn't ask Blalock if she was pregnant, but Lauderdale County District Attorney Chris Connolly says it was her responsibility to let the doctor know.

The DA is charging Blalock with unlawful possession of a controlled substance by fraud for failing to tell her doctor she was pregnant when she refilled her prescription.

Sussman says, "If this case moves forward and she is convicted on this charge, any woman in Alabama, will be - could be charged or arrested with prescription fraud for failing to disclose a pregnancy when they are seeking medical care, even if they are not asked."

Connolly says they are not trying to send Blalock to jail, their goal is to address a chronic problem and help her get through it.

The DA offered Blalock a free trial diversion, also known as deferred prosecution, where Blalock would be monitored and required to have random drug tests for at least one year. Afterward, her charges would be dismissed.

But Blalock's attorney argues she doesn't have a drug problem.

"This supposes that our client has a drug problem, and what we know is that she does not. She has a valid prescription for pain medicine to treat a condition that she has," says Sussman.

Blalock's attorneys are currently reviewing the deferred prosecution offer, but reiterated that the charge assumes Blalock has a drug problem, and they argue she is just using the opiates that she was prescribed.
Health experts expect the Delta variant of coronavirus to become dominant in Alabama in the next few months.

Right now, the original COVID-19 strain remains dominant in Alabama despite all other variants that have been identified in the state. However, health experts believe that will soon change.

There are two main concerns health experts have about the Delta variant that was first found in India.

First, it's the most transmissible variant yet meaning more infections. Second, it's somewhat vaccine resistant. Health experts say the vaccines still work and the best way to fight these variants is to roll up your sleeve and get the shot.

"I think if you're vaccinated, you should be happy that these vaccines are still working. If you're not vaccinated, that's another story," Director of the Alabama Vaccine Research Clinic Dr. Paul Goepfert said.

He helped develop the Johnson and Johnson vaccine and says people should not hesitate.

"I know, I don't just think, that these vaccines are the best vaccines we have developed for adults ever," Goepfert said.

However, only around 30% of the population in Alabama is fully vaccinated. Health experts worry it could lead to more people getting sick because of the variants.

"So what you have now, is a virus that sees this immune system that it wants to get around," Goepfert explained. "It's going to learn to mutate to get around the vaccine induced response. I should caution to say that we have not seen that variant yet, and I hope we never do but the best way to never see that variant is to get everybody vaccinated."

Goepfert says the same applies to people who've been infected with COVID-19.

"There are data that people who got infected with the original strain despite them getting infected with that. They have no protection," he said.

Dr. Goepfert urges everyone to get the vaccine.

"Even if you yourself don't think you're at risk, you are protecting others and you are protecting the spread of this pandemic, and in my mind it's your patriotic duty to get vaccinated," Goepfert said.

At this time, there is no variant that is completely immune to the coronavirus vaccine. Studies show all vaccines are still up to 80% effective against all variants.
On Tuesday the Women's Economic Development Council (WEDC) Foundation announced the five women who will be honored at its 20th annual fundraiser.

Honorees include:

Christie Finley, Huntsville City Schools superintendent.

Dawn Stanley, deputy director of cross programs in the Exploration Systems Directorate at NASA.

Patty Sykstus, president and co-founder of Not One More Alabama (NOMA), an organization combating opioid addictions.

Peggy Lee Wright, president of THE COMPANY YOU KEEP, providing business development solutions and measurable impacts across government academia, non-profit and military enterprises.

Ginger Harper, s enior vice president, private banking, and retail market manager for IBERIABANK in Huntsville.

Harper said she believes in WEDC's mission and what they do to create self-sufficiency and economic independence for women.

"I have the honor of being a first-generation college graduate and I myself wouldn't have been able to accomplish that without programs like the WEDC Foundation," said Harper.

The achievements of these women will be recognized at the Women Honoring Women gala on Sept. 16 at the VBC.
The Huntsville Police Department is getting life-saving gear for all of its officers that will help protect them and citizens in Huntsville.

Law enforcement are often the first ones to arrive at a scene, and now with a donation from Hometown Lenders they will have all the proper equipment to provide life-saving medical attention.

Every Huntsville police officer will get a wound kit by the end of the year. Every Huntsville police officer will get a wound kit by the end of the year.

"The first thing is as officers arrive on scene we want them to have all the tools to help render aid immediately upon the scene. A lot of times the seconds between the time when they arrive and emergency medical personal arrive can be the difference between life and death," said John Taylor, President of Hometown Lenders.

Hometown Lenders is the company that's donating more than $30,000 worth of wound kits to the Huntsville Police Department.

Taylor said there's a lot of great tools in the kits, such as a tourniquet, that will help save lives

And that's something Huntsville Police Officer Larry Tomlin is familiar with.

"I've been doing this since the '90s and I've been to several officers' funerals and there's been civilians I've watched pass away," said Tomlin.

Tomlin understands the importance of officers having these kits because he bought his own and has used it to save two lives!

"The first one I went to was back last year in December. It was a gunshot victim and I used hyfin vented chest seal which is contained in these kits. We have two chest seals in these kits and you can use those for entrance wounds and exit wounds," said Tomlin.

Combined with a tourniquet, those tools put victims in the 90th percentile for survival

"So, having this gear and coming up on people that need trauma treatment, it's good to have," said Tomlin.

Tomlin said they're thankful that John and his company are donating the kits.

"By the end of the year we will have donated 500 units. The goal was to make sure that every Huntsville Police Department officer had one of these units in their squad car," said Taylor.

Tomlin said that it only takes about an hour or two to get an officer trained to use one of the kits.

Each kit costs about $79 to make.
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Boy went missing from family home on Monday night in the wilderness of the Appenines.

A search continued throughout the night in a desperate attempt to find a toddler who went missing from his parents' house in a remote mountainous area in the Mugello region of northern Tuscany.

The 21-month-old Nicola Tanturli disappeared on the night between 21 and 22 June from a farmhouse in the Apennines where he lives with his German parents and four-year-old brother.

Authorities are currently working on the theory that the child woke up in the middle of the night, left the house - possibly while sleepwalking - and never returned.

Yesterday divers searched a nearby artificial lake but found no trace of the toddler while last night a helicopter with state-of-the-art thermal scanning and infrared equipment was deployed by the army and alpine rescue experts.

The search extends over an inaccessible area of about 10 square kilometres, involving around 200 people including carabinieri, mountain rescue and civil protection volunteers, in addition to drones and specially-trained dogs attempting to track the boy's scent.

Nicola's house, where his family runs a bee-keeping business, is reachable only by a dirt track, and the boy is described as very active and independent in his movements in the vicinity.

On Monday evening his parents put their two sons to bed but discovered Nicola's cot empty on Tuesday morning. After searching the house and surrounding land they raised the alarm and the carabinieri became involved.

The family home is located two kilometres from the Campanara ecovillage, a community of Italians and foreigners that has been practicing organic farming for decades.

In 1984 a group of like-minded people returned from travels in India and moved into abandoned buildings in the remote area where they lead a simple, environmentally-friendly way of life.
Rome sculpture proves hard to stomach even for porchetta fans.

A public sculpture intended as a homage to porchetta, the roast pork Roman speciality, has earned the fury of animal rights activists and the scorn of Rome politicians.

Titled Dal panino si va in piazza, the controversial contemporary artwork in the Trastevere quarter depicts a dead pig, trussed, cooked and apparently ready to eat.

The sculpture by Andrea Longo, 25, is part of the Piazza Romane project by students from the Rome University of Fine Arts, and is to remain in the public eye until the end of September.

"It is a porchetta of almost two tons of travertine marble" - Longo explained to Corriere della citta, adding that it speaks of "irony in inviting Romans and tourists to eat a typical dish of Roman cuisine."

However many people do not share this ironic view and there were calls to have the artwork removed within hours of its installation yesterday in Piazza S. Giovanni della Malva.

LAV, one of Italy's foremost animal rights organisations, has labelled it a "monument to the holocaust of animals," describing the sculpture as an "absurd and senseless work, which for us is not art but an insult to the value of animal life and to all Romans."

Daniele Diaco, president of the city's environmental commission, blasted the sculpture as "revolting" and called it "the statue of a corpse in the middle of Trastevere."

Rome mayoral candidate Carlo Calenda took a more sarcastic approach on Twitter: "Seeing as we do not have enough animals of various kinds in Rome the administration has decided to embellish the city with this wonderful marble pig."

However Longo told newspaper La Repubblica that his controversial work has been misunderstood and claims it has been "exploited by politicians."

The outcry has led the president of Rome's central Municipio I, Sabrina Alfonsi, to appeal for dialogue in a public debate between the "various associations, artists, institutions and citizens who want to participate."

Every year in September the small town of Ariccia, in the Castelli Romani area, hosts its Sagra della Porchetta, in honour of the savoury, fatty and moist boneless roast pork that is traditional to the region. Photo Leggo
President Joe Biden said early on he didnt support making vaccinations mandatory, and in any case, the federal governments power to impose vaccine requirements is limited. However, states clearly have that authority, and theyve used it in other cases. Mandates dont mean forced vaccinations, but rather penalties or denial of services for those who dont get them. Indonesia, which in February required those eligible for Covid vaccination to take it, penalizes refusers by levying fines and denying government services and assistance. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte threatened to jail those who refuse Covid shots, but his justice secretary countered that no law compels citizens to get vaccinated. A New York state lawmaker proposed a bill in early December that would require Covid vaccines for all residents who can safely take them should public health officials determine that an insufficient percentage of people are getting immunized. It provides no penalty for noncompliance. But the bill has yet to move out of committee, while a competing measure would prohibit New York from mandating immunization, as would proposed laws in a few other states.
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That is the essence of what distinguished the digital gathering  with speeches by most of the luminaries trimmed to a muscular several minutes, and brief, well-produced segments with regular folks. (The program each evening was kept to an economical two hours, much tighter than what has been programmed in the past, though broadcast networks tended in recent cycles to limit their coverage of day and evening-long sessions to as little as an hour, and consigned the rest to cable or streaming.) Ideologically, of course, the DNC appeal was to the center and left on the political spectrum; agitprop is deeply rooted in the performing arts. The framing and the casting, though, elevated it to inordinately effective storytelling.
Among the U.S. sites that fascinate paranormal-activity enthusiasts, Nevadas Area 51 and New Mexicos Roswell are more famous, but Skinwalker Ranch boasts the most colorful name. The eastern Utah property, the subject of an online photo show organized by the University of Maryland Art Gallery, evokes the Navajo myth of a vengeful shaman who can assume the forms of other creatures. Thats great branding for a place that has long been associated with tales of UFOs and other unverified phenomena, and that has recently been the subject of a factually dubious History Channel series, The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch.
The NIH released a statement Wednesday saying that a researcher who originally published the genetic sequences asked for them to be removed from the NIH database so that they could be included in a different database. The agency said it is standard practice to remove data if requested to do so. The NIH statement did not identify the scientist who requested that the material be excised from the agencys sequence read archive, known as the SRA.
But the delta variant, which is much more transmissible and causes more severe illness than previous versions of the virus, is taking over in the United States with stunning speed, as it did in India, where it was first identified, and later in the United Kingdom. It has doubled as a percentage of new infections every two weeks, Fauci said, from 1.2 percent of new infections on May 8 to 20.6 percent this week. Officials expect it to soon become the dominant strain in the United States.
Acclimatization before leaving can be very helpful, he explains. You can do this by going into a sauna or steam room for up to 30 to 40 minutes gradually, over seven to 10 days. It allows your body to get used to the heat and to increase your ability to respond better with appropriate sweating.
Many of the speakers were there to express support or opposition for a draft school policy that would require teachers to address transgender students by their names and pronouns, as well as grant transgender students access to facilities and activities that match their gender identity. Loudoun is pursuing the policy in accordance with a recently passed state law requiring school systems to revise their treatment of transgender students. Board members were slated to discuss that draft policy at Tuesdays meeting.
In an interview Wednesday, Brabrand hailed the demographics of the Class of 2025 as proof that his admissions revisions worked, after many long years in which previous superintendents tried, and failed, to enact changes with the same goal. The school, which focuses on science, technology, engineering and mathematics, has enrolled disproportionately low percentages of Black and Hispanic students since its founding in 1985.
I just wanted to have someone to love me in my old age, and because I was desperate for that love I forgot who I was for a short period of time, Thompson said, asking for time to spend with her grandchildren before she dies.
This month, McCarthy announced that he is commissioning a $500,000 study to evaluate whether and how racial bias affects the operations of the states attorneys office, from deciding what cases to pursue to what kind of plea deals are offered. The results will be published in two years, he said.
An attorney generals office opinion and a circuit court judge concluded that his service as a federal prosecutor and deputy assistant attorney general for the Justice Department appeared to meet the requirement. But the Maryland Court of Appeals ultimately ruled that Perez, who graduated from Brown University, Harvard Law School and the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard, did meet the constitutional requirements for the job.
The first time I spoke to Alexander was in 2010, shortly after her sons arrest. I was a reporter on the local enterprise team and she called to tell me about him. I dont recall what she said, but I remember clearly how she said it: Through tears. She was desperate to have her sons story told. She wanted people to know that he was behind bars because he stood where two of societys fault lines met.
Just after 9 a.m. Wednesday, the first group of about 50 filed into the Anne Arundel County courtroom, where vaccinated people sat on the left and non-vaccinated people sat on the right. The judge permitted everyone who was vaccinated to move forward without a mask, while those without the inoculation had to wear masks. The potential jurors were all spaced six feet apart.
By the detectives own allegations in the case, though, the shooting grew out of a fight in which the victim had reached for Stones gun when it was fired. Stone may have a valid self-defense argument here, said Anagha Bharadwaj, an attorney who represented him in court in the shooting case recently. This is a case where there was an ongoing conflict, she added.
Young and Steele traveled to the Washington area, stayed overnight at a Hilton in Springfield, Va., and met up with the group that eventually made its way up the Capitol steps, according to the indictment. Once inside, on a walkie-talkie-type application, Ohio militia founder and bar owner Jessica Watkins, 38, allegedly stated on a recorded Stop the Steal J6 Zello channel: We are in the mezzanine. We are in the main dome right now. We are rocking it. They are throwing grenades, they are fricking shooting people with paint balls. But we are in here.
The truck, which was heavily damaged, is called a roll off truck and operates somewhat like a dump truck but with a flat, narrow bed for hauling containers. When the bed is lifted, part of it rises higher than the cab. Authorities said they were trying to determine whether the bed accidentally rose and struck the bridge while the truck was moving.
In recent months, there has been a tenuous cease-fire. The interim government that arose from the first Berlin meeting is having difficulty getting organized for December elections. And foreign forces remain, with Turkish troops backing the interim government in Tripoli, and strongman Khalifa Hifter still in control of Benghazi and other areas with the help of mercenaries of the Wagner group, allegedly sent, but not acknowledged, by Russia and paid for by the United Arab Emirates.
Iranian police seize 7,000 cryptocurrency computer miners: Iranian police seized 7,000 computer miners at an illegal cryptocurrency farm, their largest haul to date of the energy-guzzling machines that have exacerbated power outages in Iran, state media reported. In late May, Iran banned the mining of cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin for nearly four months as part of efforts to reduce the incidence of blackouts blamed on surging electricity demand during the searing summer. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are created through an energy-intensive process known as mining, in which powerful computers compete with one another to solve complex mathematical problems.
Delta is truly more aggressive. A preliminary study of samples from around the country, posted Monday by Alexandre Bolze and others, showed that the alpha variant, first identified in Britain and more transmissible than the original virus, peaked in the United States on April 25 with 71.1 percent of the cases. Since then, the delta variant, first found in India, and one other, gamma, first detected in Brazil, have been aggressively crowding out alpha. The delta variant is significantly more transmissible than alpha  and the study showed it is growing fastest in U.S. counties where vaccination rates are lowest. Steve Edwards, chief executive of CoxHealth in Springfield, Mo., told CNN the health-care system has experienced a sixfold increase in hospitalizations. I think it is the delta variant and there is a lot of kindling with low vaccination rates, so its spreading very rapidly, he said. Almost all of our cases are unvaccinated people that, in my opinion, have put themselves in harms way during this pandemic. Abroad, too, delta spells trouble. It caused a massive surge in India and has triggered outbreaks in Britain, Israel, Portugal, Singapore, Russia and Indonesia, among other places.
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Community activists whom Bidens team consulted applauded that aspect of his proposal. This is one of the most comprehensive steps that any president has taken, said Gregory Jackson Jr., the national advocacy director for the anti-gun violence group Community Justice Action Fund. Jackson said he recently met with Susan Rice, the director of Bidens Domestic Policy Council and a key architect of the plan. It is almost poetic how they are handling this, he said.
People celebrate the return of the rebel Tigray Defense Forces in Mekele, the capital of the Tigray region of Ethiopia, on June 29. (Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP/Getty Images)

U.N. and aid groups portray a campaign by government-aligned forces to cut off Tigray and destroy key infrastructure, complicating the delivery of relief.
In the meeting with the Texas legislators, Harris called Republican efforts in Texas and elsewhere an attempt to marginalize and take from people a right that has already been given. We are not asking for the bestowal. We are talking about the preservation of something that is the right of citizenship. Its that fundamental.
I understand that theres been no written policy that excludes Blacks or other people of color from being members in that club, Vincent told The Post on Tuesday. And I understand that there are members of color in that club. And theres not a written covenant saying No Blacks need apply. . . . Given the fact that the senator said its not accurate, all those things taken together, Im satisfied.
The trend is not limited to blue states, though they have led the charge. Indiana and Kentucky made several significant changes this year, including expanding the availability of ballot drop-off locations and establishing processes for voters to correct certain errors that would otherwise invalidate their mail ballots. At least four red states created systems for voters to track their ballots through the mail. Louisiana eliminated hurdles for people with past felony convictions as they register to vote. Montana made voting more accessible for people with disabilities, even as it ended same-day voter registration.
The letter came the same day lawmakers convened the first Senate hearing since 2014 to examine the possibility of making a large portion of the nations capital the 51st state. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser testified at the nearly three-hour hearing and later tweeted an image of herself being sworn in with the caption: Prayerfully, I will be the last DC mayor who needs to demand what is our birthright, and what is owed to us as taxpayersfull citizenship and full democracy.
He said he has faith in the people of the SBC, who he said love Jesus and want to love their neighbors. Just after he was elected, he said that outgoing President J.D. Greear, a North Carolina megachurch pastor, told him he would be blown away by how kind people would be to him, especially ordinary church members.
The neighboring Mexican bishops, whose country has borne the brunt of Central American migration for the past few years, said, that the best policy is following the example of the good Samaritan, when we take care of the weakest and most wounded in our societies, eliminating their dependencies and slavery, creating opportunities so that they can be more and more protagonists of their own destiny.
In accepting this very special responsibility in the communion, I pray for the guidance of Gods Spirit. I rejoice in having the possibility to work with the Council, with member churches, and with different partners, as the LWF continues to participate in Gods holistic mission. May God bless our communion so that it may be a blessing to the wider church and to the world.
The newspapers founder, 73-year-old media tycoon Jimmy Lai, has been a constant target of the Chinese Communist Party, which has branded him a riot leader, secessionist and traitor. Lai was among the first to be arrested under the security law and has also been charged for his role in other pro-democracy protests, including some that were peaceful. Lai, who has been detained since December, built his fortune in the garment industry before founding Apple Daily and Next Digital.
I understand that Brazil this year and next, for its international and national agenda, needs a very strong union of interests and efforts and, so that can be done as smoothly as possible, I tendered my resignation to the president, Salles told reporters at the presidential palace.
Moscow couldnt admit that a Royal Navy ship could sail past Crimea with impunity, he said. More broadly, the Russians are always more concerned about the British than any other Europeans because they see them as their most subtle enemy  but also because the U.K. is more active in challenging Moscow.
Many countries including the United States had argued for restoring the Al-Yaroubiya crossing point from Iraq in the northeast that was closed in January 2020. It had been a primary delivery point for health and medical supplies, especially needed during the COVID-19 pandemic. But Russia argued that aid should be delivered from within Syria across conflict lines, and threatened to veto more than one crossing point.
Charles L. Riney, 86, of Washington, went home to be with our Lord and Savior on Sunday, June 27, 2021, at 7:25 a.m. He was born in Washington on Nov. 3, 1934, to Thomas and Ann Marie (Smith) Riney. He loved gardening and spending time with his beloved dog. He is survived by one sister, Paul
Trusted local news has never been more important, but providing the information you need, information that can change sometimes minute-by-minute, requires a partnership with you, our readers. Please consider making a contribution today to support this vital resource that you and countless others depend on.
The planned restart of a mothballed uranium mine in here Australia is a fresh sign that developers are beginning to respond to an improving demand outlook and the support of the Biden administration for zero-emissions nuclear energy.

The Honeymoon mine in South Australia, which was shuttered in 2014 due to weak prices, could be re-started in 12 months, developer Boss Energy said in a feasibility study. The company was just waiting for a stronger price signal, according to Chief Executive Officer Duncan Craib, who said he was confident market dynamics were moving in the right direction.

There is significant uncovered demand in the coming decades -- and post-2023, primary supply to meet that demand is severely limited, Craib said in a phone interview. He was seeing most interest from potential buyers in the US, which accounted for over 20 per cent of global uranium demand, but was also in talks with utilities in Europe and Asia. Australia is the worlds third-largest uranium producer after Kazakhstan and Canada.

Nuclear power, considered clean energy by the Biden administration, is making a comeback. Credit:Glenn Campbell

Uranium prices have languished since the 2011 Fukushima disaster in Japan saw nuclear power fall out of favour with energy planners. Now nuclear is cautiously making a comeback -- with the White House arguing it should be one of the power sources eligible for a national clean energy mandate as part of President Joe Bidens ambitious climate goals.
When former Australian of the Year John Yu was just a toddler, he was smuggled out of Japanese-occupied wartime China in a basket, hidden under bedclothes.

I was only two at the time, he explains. So they had to prevent me crying.

Dr John Yu with a small part of the vast collection he has amassed over a lifetime. Credit:Edwina Pickles

It was an ignominious departure, but when the infant Yu arrived here in 1939 with his mother and sister it was in the relative luxury of a passenger ship from Hong Kong, celebrating his third birthday outside Sydney Heads.

I was carried ashore by my uncles friend, Earle Page [briefly, the 11th prime minister of Australia], while my mother and sister were being processed, Yu says.
November 25, 2020  SafeWA app is launched to help contact tracers get in touch with people who are possibly exposed to the COVID-19 virus when there are community outbreaks.

December 5, 2020  Checking in at businesses and venues using physical contact registers or SafeWA is made mandatory. WA Premier Mark McGowan says the app will only be used for contact tracing.

December 12, 2020  Rebels bikie Nick Martin shot dead at the Perth Motorplex in Kwinana.

December 14, 2020  WA Police served the Department of Health with an order to produce SafeWA data related to Martins death in terms of potential witnesses at the event.

December 23, 2020  WA Police receives data related to 1639 SafeWA check-ins from the Department of Health.

December 24, 2020  WA Police served the Department of Health with a second order to produce to access SafeWA data related to Martins death.

December 27, 2020  WA Police receives data related to 800 SafeWA check-ins from the Department of Health.

Early January  Contact tracing team notifies CHO that police have requested access to SafeWA data.

January 31, 2021  WA goes into a five-day lockdown.

February, 2021  A man is stabbed three times in Victoria Park.

February 25, 2021  Police make a request for SafeWA data from the Department of Health, in relation to an unknown case, but the information was older than 28 days and had already been destroyed.

Late February, 2021  A policy is put in place by WA Police where an officer has to go to an independent superintendent in order to try and gain access to SafeWA data. Health Director General David Russell-Weisz is informally notified of the issue.

March 2, 2021  Mr McGowan backtracks on comments he was in talks with Police Commissioner Chris Dawson to explore the legality of extending controlled border measures like the G2G entry pass system post-pandemic.

March 10, 2021  Police serve the Department of Health for the second time to access SafeWA data related to the stabbing offence and potential witnesses.

March 12, 2021  Department of Health Director General David Russell-Weisz writes a letter to Mr Dawson about the data requests.

March 13, 2021  The state election is held.

March 19, 2021  Mr Dawson replies to Dr Russell-Weiszs letter.

March 31, 2021  Health Minister Roger Cook is made aware requests for SafeWA data have been made by WA Police which is the same day the department provides information about the stabbing to police.

April 1, 2021  Police make a fifth request which was still pending as of Thursday.

April, 2021  Sometime in early April the Premier is made aware by a staff member in his office that police are accessing SafeWA data.

April 14, 2021  Mr McGowan meets with the Police Commissioner and asks they stop seeking the data.

April 23, 2021  WA goes into a three-day lockdown after a community outbreak of COVID-19.

May 7, 2021  A sixth request for SafeWA data is made by police.

May 20, 2021  The Parliamentary Counsels Office, which prepares bills for ministers, is told to draft a law to stop police from being able to access SafeWA data.

May 21, 2021  The first draft of a law to protect the data of SafeWA users is finished.

May 27  A seventh request for SafeWA data is made by police but was knocked back because of a technical deficiency.

June 15, 2021  The WA government announces it is introducing a new bill to stop police from being able to access SafeWA data.

June 17, 2021  The new law is passed in both houses of Parliament.
Scientists dont know for certain why some countries with relatively high inoculation rates are suffering new outbreaks. Variants, social controls that are eased too quickly and careless behaviour after only the first of a two-shot regimen are possibilities. But the breakthrough infections could have lasting consequences. Loading In the United States, about 45 per cent of the population is fully vaccinated, mostly with doses made by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. Cases have dropped 94 per cent over six months. Israel provided shots from Pfizer and has the second-highest vaccination rate in the world, after the Seychelles. The number of new daily confirmed COVID-19 cases in Israel is now around 4.95 per million. In the Seychelles, which relied mostly on Sinopharm, that number is more than 716 cases per million.

Disparities such as these could create a world in which three types of countries emerge from the pandemic  the wealthy nations that used their resources to secure Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna shots, the poorer countries that are far away from immunising a majority of citizens, and then those that are fully inoculated but only partially protected. China, as well as the more than 90 nations that have received the Chinese shots, may end up in the third group, contending with rolling lockdowns, testing and limits on day-to-day life for months or years to come. Economies could remain held back. And as more citizens question the efficacy of Chinese doses, convincing unvaccinated people to line up for shots may also become more difficult. Seychelles has seen higher numbers of cases of coronavirus following the use of China-made vaccines. Credit:AP One month after receiving his second dose of Sinopharm, Otgonjargal Baatar fell ill and tested positive for COVID-19. The 31-year-old miner spent nine days in a hospital in Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia. Otgonjargal said he was now questioning the usefulness of the shot. People were convinced that if we were vaccinated, the summer will be free of COVID, he said. Now it turns out that its not true.

Beijing saw its vaccine diplomacy as an opportunity to emerge from the pandemic as a more influential global power. President Xi Jinping, pledged to deliver a Chinese shot that could be easily stored and transported to millions of people around the world. He called it a global public good. Loading Mongolia was a beneficiary, jumping at the chance to score millions of Sinopharm shots. The small country quickly rolled out an inoculation program and eased restrictions. It has now vaccinated 52 per cent of its population. But on Sunday, it recorded 2400 new infections, a quadrupling from a month before. No vaccine fully prevents transmission and people can still fall ill after getting inoculated, but the relatively low efficacy rates of Chinese shots have been identified as a possible cause of the recent outbreaks. Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna have efficacy rates of more than 90 per cent. A variety of other vaccines  including AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson  have efficacy rates of around 70 per cent.

The Sinopharm vaccine developed with the Beijing Institute of Biological Products has an efficacy rate of 78.1 per cent; the Sinovac vaccine has an efficacy rate of 51 per cent. The Chinese companies have not released much clinical data to show how their vaccines work at preventing transmission. On Monday, Shao Yiming, a public health researcher with the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, said that China needed to fully vaccinate 80 per cent to 85 per cent of its population to achieve herd immunity, revising a previous official estimate of 70 per cent. Despite the spike in cases, officials in both the Seychelles and Mongolia have defended Sinopharm, saying it is effective in preventing severe cases of the disease. Batbayar Ochirbat, head researcher of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies at Mongolias Ministry of Health, said that Mongolia made the right decision to go with the Chinese-made shot, in part because it has helped keep low the mortality rate in the country. Data from Mongolia showed that the Sinopharm vaccine was actually more protective than the doses developed by AstraZeneca and Sputnik, a Russian vaccine, according to the health ministry. The reason for the surge in Mongolia, Batbayar said, is that the country reopened too quickly, and many people believed they were protected after only one dose.
Barcelona: Antivirus creator John McAfee was found dead in his prison cell in Barcelona after the Spanish high court had authorised his extradition to the US, the Catalan justice department said.

Hours earlier, a Spanish court issued a preliminary ruling in favour of his extradition to the United States to face tax-related criminal charges.

Anti-virus software founder and libertarian tycoon John McAfee in 2012. Credit:AP

Security personnel at the Brians 2 penitentiary near the northeastern Spanish city tried to revive McAfee, who was 75, but the jails medical team finally certified his death, a statement from the regional Catalan government said.

The statement didnt identify the US tycoon by name, but said he was a 75-year-old US citizen awaiting extradition to the country. A Catalan government source familiar with the event who was not authorised to be named in media reports confirmed to the AP that the dead man was McAfee.
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It was the first time since the Cold War that Moscow acknowledged using live ammunition to deter a NATO warship.


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Weber State Returns to Traditional Fall Schedule

June 22, 2021

OGDEN, Utah  Weber State University plans to offer students a more traditional higher education experience for fall semester 2021.

Students can take classes in the format that fits their needs and schedules including face-to-face, online, hybrid, or supervised offsite instruction, such as internships. The majority of classes, however, will be held face to face in the classroom. In fact, 75% of the classes taught in person in 2019, will be taught in person again in 2021.

Students want flexibility to choose the best option for their schedules. The interest in online learning has increased since the pandemic. A recent survey of Wildcats, however, found 43% of students prefer a traditional classroom setting, compared to 30% who want to take online or hybrid courses. Weber State will offer a schedule to support both preferences.

We'll be able to have a really vibrant, in-person fall semester that capitalizes on some of the virtual capabilities that we've built up over the last 14 months, said President Brad Mortensen. Well offer more hybrid classes, virtual enhancements to face-to-face instruction and improved online classes. Meeting students where they are and helping them academically is our priority.

During fall semester, the community will enjoy a return to in-person campus activities, which will kick off with Block Party the first Friday of the semester, Sept. 3 from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. on the Ogden campus. President Mortensen will join other administrators to serve purple pancakes to all Wildcats beginning at 8 a.m. Several thousand people attend the annual, day-long event, with displays and activities showcasing all the opportunities available to Wildcats.

Weber State has hosted Block Party for more than a decade, said Tara Peris, WSUSA advisor and event director, But this year might be the most important one ever as we reconnect students to the many opportunities and events easily available to them as Wildcats.

Peris also oversees Weber States 120-plus clubs and organizations as well as the student association. Student leaders are planning a myriad of activities that reflect their constituents interests and needs.

As student body president, Ben Ferney has an interesting perspective being elected twice, first during a school year held primarily online and now during a more traditional year.

I'm excited for fall semester because not only do we get to welcome students and the Weber State community in general back to campus with in-person activities, but also it's almost like you're invited back to life. Ferney said.

Wildcat athletes want to bring back fans during a full season of competition for all 16 NCAA Division 1 teams. Weber State students can attend the events for free with a Wildcard, and community members can get tickets at weberstatetickets.com. The entire community is invited to return to campus for Homecoming with a week of activities from Oct. 8-16. The celebrations will culminate with a game against long-time rival, Montana State, on Oct. 16.

Performing arts groups are organizing a season of 30 concerts and plays that are perennial favorites with audiences. The theater schedule will include productions of Somethings Afoot, The Importance of Being Earnest and Nunsense. Musical groups are planning performances with works from favorite classical composers to favorite movie scores. The campus community can also visit art exhibits at the Shaw Gallery in the Kimball Visual Arts Center and at the Dumke Art Plaza in downtown Ogden. A list of upcoming events is listed on their calendar, weber.edu/artscalendar.

The Counseling & Psychological Services Center will offer both virtual and in-person appointments. During this past year, about 30% of those who received services indicated a preference for virtual sessions over in-person sessions, so that option will continue in the fall semester. The Student Health Center, Student Wellness Program and Stromberg Complex will also provide students a myriad of easily accessible and affordable health and fitness options.

The Stewart Library in Ogden and at WSU Davis and the testing centers at all campus locations will return to the full schedules and formats that best accommodate student needs. Additionally, Stewart Library will continue to offer curbside delivery of library materials, an enhanced textbook lending library and 250 laptops and 150 hotspots for weeklong or semester checkout. Student Housing is also accepting applications for its 1,000 on-campus beds.

During times of economic vibrancy, people tend to put off education in favor of getting into the workforce. In the long run, people with degrees will earn more money over a lifetime, and they are less likely to lose their job during economic downturns.

There has never been more federal money flowing to support students to get a higher education than there is right now, Mortensen said. So if you've ever dreamed of getting a college degree, you should do it now."

For more information or to register for Weber State courses, visit weber.edu/admissions.

Visit weber.edu/wsutoday for more news about Weber State University.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP)  Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren, who ran for a third term while under indictment in a campaign finance case and under fire for her handling of a police killing, was defeated Tuesday in the Democratic primary by City Councilman Malik Evans.

Evans win all but guarantees hell become mayor of New Yorks third largest city. There is no Republican challenger on the November ballot.

The former Rochester School Board president entered the race in January, taking on the vulnerable Warren with a theme of restoring trust and government transparency.

Tonight is the true beginning of our journey together to put Rochester in the upper echelon of U.S. cities where it belongs," Evans said to supporters in his victory speech.

In a city that has been wracked by tension over policing, he said, We need to make sure that we keep our city safe, that we have a system where our police officers are guardians and not warriors."

In her concession speech, Warren pledged to support Evans and urged her supporters to do the same.

She said her running despite all the turmoil around her was about her daughter and all the little Black girls of this city. It was about letting them know that no matter what comes your way, you will never, ever give up.

Both Warren and Evans are Black.

Warren said, it is OK that the city has chosen to go in a different direction and this here isnt an ending. It is just a beginning.

Warren started to face calls for her resignation last summer amid protests over the death of Daniel Prude, a Black man who was pressed to the pavement by a group of police officers until he stopped breathing.

In October, she was indicted on charges that she schemed to evade campaign contribution limits. Then in May, her husband was charged with being part of a drug trafficking ring.

She had remained defiant as she denied wrongdoing through multiple storms.

Im not your ordinary mayor, Warren said during a debate shortly after police searched her home and arrested her husband. I dont have what some may say is a perfect life. I have a life that is like so many Rochesterians. At times, its imperfect. At this moment, I believe that is exactly what our city needs. A mayor who relates to your challenges and delivers results.

Warren said she and her husband, Timothy Granison, have been estranged for years and that she knew nothing about drugs or about guns allegedly found in her home. Granison has pleaded not guilty.

As for her own case, Warren has said she did not intentionally break any campaign finance rules.

The facts and the truth is on our side and I am looking forward to being found innocent because I did nothing wrong, she said.

A trial date has not been set.

Evans said the handling of Prudes death had torn the city apart and eroded trust in government.

Prudes March 2020 death received no scrutiny until his family obtained and released police body camera video nearly six months later.

Protesters accused Warren and other city officials of covering up the death to keep the video from coming out during violent protests sparked by George Floyds death at the hands of police in Minneapolis.

When you have someone say this can never see the light of day because we will all lose our jobs and the city will burn, well, it really left a stain on our community, said Evans, who was on the city council when the circumstances of Prudes death became public.

Warren claimed she had no idea the medical examiner ruled Prudes death a homicide until Aug. 4, when she saw the video. A report commissioned by the city council later concluded Warren was aware by April that several police officers were under investigation.

Evans was elected to the Rochester Board of Education in 2003 and served as its president from 2008-2013, overseeing an urban district that consistently posts some of the lowest achievement and graduation rates in the state. During his time on the board, the districts graduation rates improved to just over 50%, the Democrat and Chronicle reported.

While it was a challenge, there was definitely more work to do. But I did my very best during my time on that board. Im proud of my service, said Evans, who said he played a role in the state expansion of pre-K programs.
(RNS)  The Southern Baptist Convention has trouble with a capital T  and that stands for trust.

The lack of trust was palpable during the SBCs recent annual meeting in Nashville, Tennessee, where local church messengers often overruled Baptist leaders from the meeting floor.

As far as trust in leadership  that is one thing that came through loud and clear, James Pittman, pastor of New Hope Community Church in Palatine, Illinois, told Religion News Service in a phone interview after the annual meeting. Theres no trust.

The SBCs leadership has gotten pushback in recent months over a statement against critical race theory made by the presidents of six SBC seminaries, costing the support of prominent Black pastors, as well as over its slowness to get a handle on sexual abuse cataloged in a 2019 Houston Chronicle report.

These controversies have been exacerbated by two high-profile departures  that of influential Bible study teacher Beth Moore, who disagreed with the SBC leaders attachment to former President Donald Trump, and the denominations chief ethicist, Russell Moore. The latter, who is not related to Beth Moore, was a champion of sexual abuse survivors, and in a letter leaked just weeks before the annual meeting he criticized the leadership for silencing him.

All of these internal pressures are playing out against the larger backdrop of decline: The SBC has lost more than 2 million members since 2006.

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This content is written and produced by Religion News Service and distributed by The Associated Press. RNS and AP partner on some religion news content. RNS is solely responsible for this story.

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The person charged with helping lead the convention forward is a soft-spoken Mobile, Alabama, pastor, Ed Litton, best known for his work on racial reconciliation. Litton was elected SBC president in a hotly contested election, winning over Georgia pastor Mike Stone in a runoff.

Stone is a founder of the Conservative Baptist Network, which contends the convention has become liberal and woke. His share of the presidential vote shows that many in the rank and file share the CBNs concern.

Litton rejects those claims but has said he wants to work with all Southern Baptists to iron out our differences.

I want to be clear that my goal is to build bridges and not walls, he said during his first news conference.

Doing that will take a lot of work.

Litton was candid about the challenges facing the SBC during an interview two days after his selection. Dressed in jeans and a sport coat, he described himself as a local church pastor who deals mostly with the real-life issues of people, rather than as a denominational influencer.

There are some people who fly at a 40,000-foot level  they see everything, he said. Im a crop duster.

He said he has faith in the people of the SBC, who he said love Jesus and want to love their neighbors. Just after he was elected, he said that outgoing President J.D. Greear, a North Carolina megachurch pastor, told him he would be blown away by how kind people would be to him, especially ordinary church members.

Still, he said, he knows there will be troubles in trying to help Southern Baptists continue to work together. Its not an easy task.

Despite being the largest Protestant denomination in the U.S., with about 14 million members, the SBC is a remarkably flat organization: Southern Baptists often say that the headquarters of the denomination is the local church.

While they cooperate on missions, evangelism, disaster relief, education and other ministries  all that cooperation and is voluntary, and often up for debate.

RELATED: SBC resolutions reflect passion on issues of race, abortion

Nathan Finn, a Baptist historian who serves as provost of North Greenville University in South Carolina, said the recent annual meeting was an example of the SBCs long history of insider versus outsider battles. And for the most part the insiders lost in Nashville, he said.

Messengers from local churches overruled SBC leaders at several points, most notably over an investigation into how the denominations Executive Committee has treated sexual abuse survivors and handled allegations of abuse. The Executive Committee wanted to oversee the investigations. Messengers were having none of that.

I think the Southern Baptists have said loud and clear that our leaders are denominational servants and we intend to hold our denominational servants accountable, said Finn.

Despite Littons victory over Stone, Finn does not see the Conservative Baptist Network or other critics of current SBC leaders going away. There is this perennial tension over, why are we cooperating and who do we trust to navigate the ship, he said.

Pittman, the pastor at New Hope Church, left Nashville unsure of whether his congregation could remain in the SBC.

I dont see a path forward with the convention, he said, adding that he and other New Hope leaders would meet soon to decide what to do next.

New Hope, founded in the 1950s as the First Baptist Church of Palatine, has been part of the SBC for nearly seven decades. When Pittman arrived in 2014, the church had a handful of older members and was on the brink of closing.

We got down to almost nobody, he said. We stayed around and said, lets see what God will do with this.

New Hope has grown in recent years, transforming from a mostly white congregation to a diverse church. He said church members have been concerned about critical race theory and its effects on the SBC. Pittman, who is Black, is mistrustful of CRT too, calling it a different gospel that assigned guilt to people based on the color of their skin.

Pittman, a first-time attendee of the annual meeting, was disappointed that messengers did not specifically reject CRT. He felt that Southern Baptist leaders didnt always follow their own rules. His church, he said, cant partner with an organization whose leaders do that.

Evan Stewart, assistant professor of sociology at the University of Massachusetts Boston, said the SBC reflects a bigger trend of public distrust of religious institutions.

In recent decades, he said, confidence in organized religion has dropped, according to the General Social Survey. In the 1970s and 1980s, he said, about 30% of Americans had a great deal of confidence in organized religion. Today, thats dropped to about 20%, he said.

Its hard to tell if that decline is from folks who say I have no confidence in organized religion or if folks are saying I am just a little more tempered in my confidence, he said.

For his part, Litton said Southern Baptists have to decide whether they want to work together despite their differences.

I think Southern Baptists have to ask themselves, or Great Commission Baptists have to ask themselves, do we really want to glorify God, by cooperating? he said, using an alternate name for Southern Baptists.

To cooperate, he said, they will have to exercise what he called their compassion muscles by loving their neighbors. He said Southern Baptists are known for their theology but have neglected that part of the faith.

Litton told Religion News Service that he is ready for the challenge ahead. But he knows things could get ugly, and he worries that his church in North Mobile might not be ready for the criticism he will face. I feel the need to brace them for the social media, he said. I dont think they have a clue whats coming.

Southern Baptists, he said, have to be tender with those who are suffering and mercy, merciful for those who need the gospel.

Being tender, in Littons eyes, is not a sign of weakness. His approach to ministry, especially in recent years, has been shaped by personal tragedy. His first wife, Tammy, was killed in a car wreck after 25 years of marriage.

Her death shook him. Litton said God was with him as he grieved and the experience of grieving made him stronger and more empathetic to others. (In a twist of fate, Litton played a pastor who comforts a grieving father whose daughter was killed in a car crash in the 2011 Christian movie Courageous.)

That experience, he suggests, will give him what it takes to restore faith in the SBC.

Ive always been told as a pastor that I had empathy, he said. But the reality of pain means I have credibility.
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Connecticut WWII soldier who had been reported missing is officially accounted for
GLASTONBURY, CT (WFSB) -- A string of car thefts in Glastonbury have police and residents on high alert.

Police said the thefts are becoming more brazen and happening in broad daylight.

A Town Council meeting was held on Tuesday night to address the issue.

Leaders said they took action by sending a letter to Gov. Ned Lamont which addressed the car thefts.

Just last week, five people, two of them teens, were arrested in connection with car crashes and stolen vehicles from the area, according to police.

The most recent theft ended with a crash on Route 17. All of the five suspects arrested were under the age of 19 were arrested.

"Weve had multiple break ins into garages on my street in this town in the last three months," said Jenn Jennings of Glastonbury.

Glastonbury police identify suspects arrested in connection with weekend crashes, vehicle thefts Five people were arrested in connection with three car crashes that happened Sunday, one of which involved a stolen rideshare vehicle.

Glastonbury residents said the rash of car thefts and break-ins has become concerning.

During Tuesday's council meeting, several people spoke about run-ins with thieves, mostly during daylight hours.

"Whats next? Will they be trying to come into my house," said Kristen Verbeaux of Glastonbury.

"Im finding more that crime is occurring more during the daytime while residents are in their yard or in their kitchen or in my case ,walking in and out the house," said Jennifer Sanford of Glastonbury.

Glastonbury police said car thefts and break-ins have increased with 75 stolen cars and more than 200 thefts from cars in 2020.

"Theres no predictability by day, by hour, or by location," said Chief Marshal Porter, Glastonbury police.

Tuesday night, the council voted to send another letter to the statehouse about the issue.

Police said most of the people committing the crimes are younger than 20.

Council members asked the legislature to create laws that hold juvenile offenders accountable for thefts.

Several bills, including one that would require GPS monitoring for a child charged with car theft more than once, failed in the statehouse this session.

"I think the chances in the law sent a message to young people that there arent going to be many consequences," said council chairman Thomas Gullota.

There are a lack of consequences for young offenders, especially juveniles under the age of 18, so we see this behavior repeated over and over again, said Lt. Corey Davis, Glastonbury police.
NAUGATUCK, CT (WFSB) - A home invasion suspect had to be extradited from Georgia back to Connecticut to face charges.

Naugatuck police said they had an active arrest warrant for Leequaje Jackson, 23.

2 arrested, 2 on the loose after police track home invasion suspects from Naugatuck to Bridgeport Two men were arrested and another two remain on the run after police responded to a home invasion and robbery in Naugatuck.

They said the home invasion happened on May 25, 2020.

A report said three armed masked men entered a home and held three women at gunpoint while they stole $14,000 in cash and personal property. A fourth suspect was also involved.

No one was hurt.

The suspects fled in a vehicle.

Cell phone tracking traced the suspects to Bridgeport.

Bridgeport police were able to surveil them and said they spotted one suspect carrying stolen property.

Arrest made following gas station murder in West Haven A man was charged with murder for a shooting that happened at a gas station in West Haven earlier in the summer.

They tried to stop him; however, the suspect got back into a vehicle and the driver fled the area. The suspects drove a short distance before fleeing on foot.

Two of four people in that vehicle were apprehended. They were identified as Jacarri Pettway, 20, and 22-year-old Nasir Omari Blow, both of Bridgeport.

Evidence and a firearm were also recovered.

Pettway and Blow have since been arraigned in court for the incident.

Jackson was found in Georgia and brought back to Connecticut on June 22.

He was processed and held on a $50,000. He was given a court date of June 23 in Waterbury.

The remaining suspect, Kahlil Abdul-Hakeem, died as the result of a shooting in West Haven in Sept. 2020.
Speeding on area roads and across state continues to be growing issue
Radiotherapy Medical Physicist (P4), Vienna, Austria

Organization: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)

Country: Austria

City: Vienna, Austria

Office: IAEA Vienna, Austria

Closing date: Monday, 5 July 2021

Radiotherapy Medical Physicist (P4)

( 2020/0535 (004721) )

Organization: NAHU-Dosimetry and Medical Radiation Physics Section

Primary Location: Austria-Vienna-Vienna-IAEA Headquarters

Job Posting: 2021-06-21, 7:13:28 AM

Contract Type : Fixed Term

Regular

Probation Period : 1 Year

Organizational Setting

The Department of Nuclear Sciences and Applications implements the IAEAs Major Programme 2, "Nuclear Techniques for Development and Environmental Protection". This Major Programme comprises individual programmes on food and agriculture, human health, water resources, environment and radiation technologies. These programmes are supported by laboratories in Seibersdorf, Monaco and Vienna. The Major Programmes objective is to enhance the capacity of Member States to meet basic human needs and to assess and manage the marine and terrestrial environments through the use of nuclear and isotopic techniques in sustainable development programmes.

The Division of Human Health is organized into four Sections whose objectives are to enhance the capabilities of Member States to address needs related to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of health problems through the development and application of nuclear techniques within a framework of quality assurance.The Department of Nuclear Sciences and Applications implements the IAEAs Major Programme 2, "Nuclear Techniques for Development and Environmental Protection". This Major Programme comprises individual programmes on food and agriculture, human health, water resources, environment and radiation technologies. These programmes are supported by laboratories in Seibersdorf, Monaco and Vienna. The Major Programmes objective is to enhance the capacity of Member States to meet basic human needs and to assess and manage the marine and terrestrial environments through the use of nuclear and isotopic techniques in sustainable development programmes.

The Division of Human Health is organized into four Sections whose objectives are to enhance the capabilities of Member States to address needs related to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of health problems through the development and application of nuclear techniques within a framework of quality assurance.

The Dosimetry and Medical Radiation Physics Section (DMRP) is responsible for quality assurance and metrology in radiation medicine. The Section works closely with clinical colleagues of the Applied Radiation Biology and Radiotherapy Section and the Nuclear Medicine and Diagnostic Imaging Section. Specifically, DMRP provides technical support in medical physics to ensure the safe and effective applications of nuclear technology in radiotherapy, diagnostic radiology and nuclear medicine. It operates the Dosimetry Laboratory located at the Agencys Laboratories, Seibersdorf, and provides a dosimetry calibration service and a dosimetry auditing and verification service for Member States

Main Purpose

As a member of a team led by the Section Head, the Radiotherapy Medical Physicist enhances the capability of Member States to establish, develop and implement new techniques, methodologies and training materials in the physical and technical aspects of radiotherapy, particularly for programmes in quality assurance and dosimetry auditing.

Role

The Radiotherapy Medical Physicist is a team member for the project on developments in the physical and technical aspects of radiotherapy, a technical expert supporting a project on quality auditing in dosimetry, a trainer, and a knowledgeable adviser in medical physics for radiotherapy and the adaptation of new technologies of relevance to low and middle income countries.

Functions / Key Results Expected

Participate in the project on developments in medical physics for radiotherapy. This includes: designing substantive components of the programme; developing and implementing coordinated research projects; organizing and leading technical meetings, seminars and courses; delivering technical advice; supporting quality assurance activities in radiotherapy for novel radiotherapy treatment modalities; developing new dosimetry techniques and proposing the best approaches to their transfer to Member States; contributing to editorial activities for publications in medical radiation physics; developing training material and keeping up to date with developments in the field.

Support implementation of the project on quality auditing in dosimetry by analysing data from the participating hospitals and the network of secondary standards dosimetry laboratories (SSDLs), reporting results to the users and resolving discrepancies.

Support implementation of comprehensive audits in radiotherapy by development, review and update of auditing methodologies and review of expert mission reports.

Act as technical officer for the IAEAs technical cooperation projects in the field of medical physics in radiotherapy by planning, implementing and evaluating projects, including providing advice on the use of experts, the placing of fellows, the purchasing of equipment and the organization of meetings and training courses.

Competencies and Expertise

Core Competencies

Name Definition

Planning and Organizing

Plans and organizes his/her own work in support of achieving the team or Sections priorities. Takes into account potential changes and proposes contingency plans.

Communication

Communicates orally and in writing in a clear, concise and impartial manner. Takes time to listen to and understand the perspectives of others and proposes solutions.

Achieving Results

Takes initiative in defining realistic outputs and clarifying roles, responsibilities and expected results in the context of the Department/Divisions programme. Evaluates his/her results realistically, drawing conclusions from lessons learned.

Teamwork

Actively contributes to achieving team results. Supports team decisions.

Functional Competencies

Name Definition

Commitment to continuous process improvement

Plans and executes activities in the context of quality and risk management and identifies opportunities for process, system and structural improvement, as well as improving current practices. Analyses processes and procedures, and proposes improvements.

Partnership building

Identifies and builds partnerships. Develops and maintains long lasting partnerships to strengthen relationships. Delivers programmatic outputs and acquires resources in support of Agency goals.

Technical/scientific credibility

Ensures that work is in compliance with internationally accepted professional standards and scientific methods. Provides scientifically/technically accepted information that is credible and reliable.

Required Expertise

Function Name Expertise Description

Medical Physics

Brachytherapy Physics

Thorough knowledge of brachytherapy modalities; Ability to develop internationally harmonized guidance in brachytherapy physics.

Dosimetry

Dosimetry

Thorough knowledge of international dosimetry codes of practice; Ability to analyse the current dosimetry practice and propose topics which need standardization and guidance.

Medical Physics

Education and Training in Medical Radiation Physics

Thorough knowledge of external beam radiotherapy modalities; Ability to develop internationally harmonized guidance in external beam radiotherapy physics.

Medical Physics

Radiotherapy Physics

Ability to develop educational and clinical training material and propose ways to assess and follow-up on learning outcomes.

Qualifications, Experience and Language skills

Doctorate Degree

in medical radiation physics or radiation dosimetry

Tags civil servants editor environmental protection new technologies nuclear medicine nuclear science nuclear technology radiation dosimetry risk management sustainable development technical aspects technical cooperation water resources

Minimum of 7 years of clinical experience in radiotherapy physics.

Experience in education and training in medical physics.

Demonstrated experience in project design, monitoring and implementation.

Familiarity with and understanding of the specific needs and conditions of low and middle income countries in the field of radiotherapy physics.

Experience in radiotherapy beam calibration and clinical dosimetry.

Experience in clinical brachytherapy physics.

Experience and practical skills in the physical and technical aspects of quality assurance in radiotherapy.

Excellent oral and written command of English. Knowledge of other official IAEA languages (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish) is an asset.

Remuneration

The IAEA offers an attractive remuneration package including a tax-free annual net base salary starting at US $73516 (subject to mandatory deductions for pension contributions and health insurance), a variable post adjustment which currently amounts to US $ 37052*, dependency benefits, rental subsidy, education grant, relocation and repatriation expenses; 6 weeks annual vacation, home leave, pension plan and health insurance

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Applications from qualified women and candidates from developing countries are encouraged

Applicants should be aware that IAEA staff members are international civil servants and may not accept instructions from any other authority. The IAEA is committed to applying the highest ethical standards in carrying out its mandate. As part of the United Nations common system, the IAEA subscribes to the following core ethical standards (or values): Integrity, Professionalism and Respect for diversity. Staff members may be assigned to any location. The IAEA retains the discretion not to make any appointment to this vacancy, to make an appointment at a lower grade or with a different contract type, or to make an appointment with a modified job description or for shorter duration than indicated above. Testing may be part of the recruitment process

Link to the organizations job offer: https://unjobs.org/vacancies/1624295959421
Winchester, VA (22601)

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Sunshine and clouds mixed. Slight chance of a rain shower. High 78F. Winds NW at 10 to 15 mph..

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In 1963, when David Montana Wesley was 15, his family got a call from the department of Indian Affairs. He and his school-age siblings would be taken from their home outside Longlac, Ont., to be sent off to school; nobody from the government told them where that school would be.

In 1963, when David Montana Wesley was 15, his family got a call from the department of Indian Affairs. He and his school-age siblings would be taken from their home outside Longlac, Ont., to be sent off to school; nobody from the government told them where that school would be.

Online book launch Click to Expand Did You See Us?: Reunion, Remembrance, and Reclamation at an Urban Indian Residential School

 Wednesday, 7 p.m.

 Register for Zoom link at wfp.to/reunion

There was a high school 50 kilometres away, in Geraldton, where he expected to go, but the bus kept going. It stopped in Port Arthur, but the schools there were full. Then to Fort Frances, where the residential school also had no room. As the bus kept going, home became farther and farther away.

Then, the bus went to Sioux Narrows, where two of Wesleys younger siblings were taken off to go to the small school in town. The wheels kept rolling until the bus arrived in Winnipeg, where Wesley and his other siblings ended up at the Assiniboia Indian Residential School in River Heights.

"We had no idea that we were going to a residential school. We thought we were going to a regular high school," Wesley recounts in an interview published in the new book, Did You See Us?: Reunion, Remembrance, and Reclamation at an Urban Indian Residential School, which tells the story of the school primarily through the words of its survivors.

"They told my parents that their children were going to a high school, thinking that we were going 50 kilometres away, but 800 kilometres later we ended up at Assiniboia," he said. A world away from home. "Youre a stranger in town."

The book was published earlier this year by University of Manitoba Press, and has since become a local non-fiction bestseller. On Wednesday at 7 p.m., the Assiniboia Residential School Legacy Group is holding a virtual book launch in partnership with the UM Press, the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation, and McNally Robinson Booksellers. Event information is available at mcnallyrobinson.com/calendar.

Between 1958 and 1973, when the residential school operated, more than 700 Indigenous teenagers were sent to Assiniboia, the first residential high school in Manitoba and one of the only residential schools in Canada located in a large urban centre. It was a link in the federal residential school program, formalized by Parliament in 1920. "Canadas residential schools policy targeted children to ensure continuous destruction of our First Nations identity from one generation to the next," survivor Theodore (Ted) Fontaine, who died earlier this year, wrote in the books preface.

RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS FILES In 2015, Theodore Fontaine, whose story is included in Did You See Us, visited his former classroom at Assiniboia Indian Residential School.

Fontaine, who, with other survivors and University of Manitoba genocide scholar Andrew Woolford, spearheaded the legacy group, wrote that the schools story has long been "an enigma, a unique story left untold." To most residents of Winnipeg, the school and its students were invisible and unseen, whether through true unawareness or purposeful dissonance: "Did you see us?" Fontaine wonders.

Some did: on one of his first days at Assiniboia, groups of "young white people" roused the boys dormitory awake from Academy Road, "mimicking Indian war whoops" like those on TV or in westerns.

"Each little group of five or six was letting us know what they thought about us being there," Fontaine wrote. "I often wonder if I ever encounter any of these individuals in my life as a resident of Winnipeg."

For legacy group member Mabel Horton, who came from Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation in Nelson House and was sent to the school from 1962 through 1967, the books arrival comes at a pivotal moment of national awareness of the painful legacy of the residential school system.

JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Mabel Horton, a survivor of the Assiniboia Indian Residential School, says the book about the school comes at a particularly timely moment.

That awareness stems from the uncovering of the bodies of 215 Indigenous children in unmarked graves at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School last month; efforts to identify children who died at the former residential school in Brandon, which operated until 1972, are ongoing. Its also especially valuable, she says, as an educational tool for the youth and a way to preserve the resilient stories of survivors for future generations to learn from.

"I think its very timely," says Horton, who lives in Headingley. She became a nurse and later earned a masters degree in public administration while raising a family. "Its very important that people are aware."

In Hortons chapter, she writes that her time at Assiniboia was "mostly a good experience." At a reunion in 2017, many survivors shared that sentiment, especially when compared to the brutal abuse they suffered at other schools, such as the Fort Alexander school and St. Josephs in Cross Lake, the pain from which they carried with them, to Assiniboia and for the rest of their lives.

"At (St. Josephs), the priests, nuns and brothers basically tried to crucify me because of who I was. I experienced every kind of physical, emotional, mental, spiritual, verbal and sexual abuse in that institution," recalls survivor Betty Ross in her chapter, a disturbing and vital piece of pained writing.

SAINT-BONIFACE HISTORICAL SOCIETY More than 700 Indigenous teenagers were sent to Assiniboia Residential School that operated between 1958 and 1973.

"The nuns used either hot scalding water or ice-cold water, using hard bristled brushes to try to wash off my brown skin, to make it clean and white," she writes. She was forced to memorize Bible verses in Latin, struck twice for any mistake, and was made to take tiny orange pills that made her lose consciousness each time, only to wake up "naked, cold and scared to death." Once, for saying a Cree word, her head was slammed to the cement floor by a nun, who kicked her left ear with her Oxford shoes.

Ross arrived at Assiniboia from Cross Lake in 1962, confused and lonely, "a total shattered wreck." A lasting image of the cultural erasure and genocidal aims of the residential school system came with the removal upon arrival of Rosss moccasins, which were thrown away and replaced with black-and-white Oxfords.

"The abuse there was not too invasive, but was still there, only invisible," Ross writes.

Many survivors of Assiniboia recall the staff, including Sister Jean Ell, Father Omer Robidoux and Father Laurent Alarie, fondly; Sister Ell and Father Alarie, the last principal of the school, were embraced and welcomed by several survivors to a 2017 reunion at the remaining building of the former school, which now houses the Canadian Centre for Child Protection.

JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Shoes placed on the steps of the Assiniboia Indian Residential School in River Heights to commemorate the 215 Indigenous children found in unmarked graves in B.C. earlier this year.

This, says Andrew Woolford, makes Assiniboia especially complex in the context of the history of the residential school system.

"Engaging Assiniboia requires that we understand the variety of residential school experiences, while not using those that are on the surface positive to somehow absolve the system," writes Woolford, the former president of the International Association of Genocide Scholars.

The school in Winnipeg may have been a "respite from earlier violence" for some, but it was "nonetheless part of a system designed and enacted to destroy Indigenous identities, eliminate Indigenous nations, and ensure the unquestioned dispossession of Indigenous territories."

This is an element of genocide that often goes misunderstood, Woolford says, pointing to the work of Raphael Lemkin. Lemkin, a Polish-Jewish scholar who coined the term "genocide" in 1944, wrote that it "doesnt necessarily mean the immediate destruction of a nation, except when accomplished by mass killings of all members of a nation.

"It is intended rather to signify a co-ordinated plan of different actions aiming at the destruction of essential foundations of the life of national groups, with the aim of annihilating the groups themselves," he wrote in Axis Rule in Europe, in a section excerpted online by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

"It definitely was genocide," says Horton.

The pain lasts, she says. But its important to be resilient, to speak, to share traditions, languages and stories  pieces of culture the system sought to destroy.

"Were resilient, thats for sure," she says a week before the book launch. "As a people, and as nations. We keep carrying on for the generations to come."

ben.waldman@freepress.mb.ca
HALIFAX - Nova Scotia is reopening its provincial boundaries on Wednesday to travellers from the Atlantic provinces but with modified rules for those coming from New Brunswick.

Nova Scotia Premier Iain Rankin sits with his wife Mary Chisholm after receiving the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine at a COVID-19 vaccination clinic in Halifax on Monday, May 24, 2021. A court order against illegal gatherings during the recent COVID-19 lockdown in Nova Scotia has been lifted. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan

HALIFAX - Nova Scotia is reopening its provincial boundaries on Wednesday to travellers from the Atlantic provinces but with modified rules for those coming from New Brunswick.

During a briefing Tuesday, Premier Iain Rankin said while travellers from New Brunswick will be allowed to enter for any reason, they will also be subject to isolation requirements based on their vaccination status and test results.

That decision follows New Brunswick's announcement last week that it would reopen its boundaries to Canadian travellers without requiring them to self-isolate as long as they have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.

"Because New Brunswick opened up to the rest of the country, we are placing a modified restriction on anyone travelling in and out of that province," Rankin told reporters. "Today, were are also announcing effective June 30, Nova Scotia will be opened to the rest of Canada with a modified isolation."

Under the new border rules, New Brunswick travellers will have to complete the Nova Scotia Safe Check-in form and "be prepared" to show proof of vaccination to officials at the border, Rankin said. Proof of vaccination can also be uploaded to the check-in form.

People who have received their second dose of vaccine at least 14 days before their arrival in Nova Scotia will have to self-isolate until they receive a negative test, while those with one dose will have to isolate for at least seven days and will need two negative test results before they can leave quarantine.

Travellers with no vaccination will have to self-isolate for 14 days and be tested at the beginning and end of their quarantine period, and all tests must be standard PCR lab tests and can't be rapid tests.

The rule for New Brunswickers will apply to all Canadian travellers except for people from Prince Edward Island or Newfoundland and Labrador, who will no longer have to self-isolate or complete the Nova Scotia Safe Check-in form, regardless of vaccination status.

The announcement was slammed in a video posted to Facebook by Elizabeth Smith-McCrossin, the Tory member of the legislature for the Nova Scotia riding of Cumberland North, which neighbours New Brunswick. She accused Rankin of having a "vendetta or battle" with Higgs that would prevent families along the border from reuniting.

"It's not acceptable and we've had enough," she said. Smith-McCrossin threatened that the Trans-Canada Highway would be shut down in protest unless the premier changed his mind.

Late Tuesday, the RCMP said in a news release that the highway was closed in both directions at Exit 7 near Thomson Station "due to a protest of recent COVID-19 border restrictions." Police said traffic was being diverted onto Highway 4. "The RCMP is asking the public to avoid unnecessary travel and to use caution driving in the area," the release said.

Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia's chief medical officer of health, said earlier his province's measures should not have come as a surprise after he and the premier voiced their concerns last week about New Brunswick's reopening plan.

Strang said that with growing concerns about the emergence of the Delta variant across Canada, he's confident the border measures are the right move because as things stand, not enough people are fully vaccinated in Nova Scotia. "We are focused on having the right levels of protection for Nova Scotia," he said. "We have been talking about this for the last two weeks."

Strang said the restrictions for New Brunswick travellers would likely be reassessed next week. "We are going to watch the epidemiology of New Brunswick very carefully. We need to watch that for at least another week  then we'll see."

New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs offered a diplomatic tone on Tuesday about Nova Scotia's travel rules.

"It is up to other provinces to decide what steps they feel are necessary within their own borders," Higgs said in a statement. "We feel confident in the steps we have taken to open our province up to Atlantic Canada and the rest of the country, so they are able to come and explore New Brunswick and reunite with their families and friends."

Nova Scotia reported two new COVID-19-related deaths and two new infections on Tuesday. The province has 74 active reported cases of COVID-19 and two people in hospital with the disease.

In New Brunswick, health officials reported one new travel-related case of novel coronavirus and 49 active cases.

One new case was reported Tuesday in Newfoundland and Labrador. The province currently has 13 active reported cases.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 22, 2021.

 With files by Kevin Bissett in Fredericton
MADRID (AP)  John McAfee, the creator of McAfee antivirus software, was found dead in his jail cell near Barcelona in an apparent suicide Wednesday, hours after a Spanish court approved his extradition to the United States to face tax charges punishable by decades in prison, authorities said.

FILE - In this Tuesday, Aug. 16, 2016 file photo, founder of the first commercial anti-virus program that bore his name, John McAfee listens during the 4th China Internet Security Conference (ISC) in Beijing. Spain's National Court has approved the extradition of detained antivirus software entrepreneur John McAfee to the United States, where he is wanted on tax-related criminal charges that carry a prison sentence of up to 30 years. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan, File)

MADRID (AP)  John McAfee, the creator of McAfee antivirus software, was found dead in his jail cell near Barcelona in an apparent suicide Wednesday, hours after a Spanish court approved his extradition to the United States to face tax charges punishable by decades in prison, authorities said.

The eccentric cryptocurrency promoter and tax opponent whose history of legal troubles spanned from Tennessee to Central America to the Caribbean was discovered at the Brians 2 penitentiary in northeastern Spain. Security personnel tried to revive him, but the jails medical team finally certified his death, a statement from the regional Catalan government said.

"A judicial delegation has arrived to investigate the causes of death, it said, adding that everything points to death by suicide.

The statement didnt identify McAfee by name but said the dead man was a 75-year-old U.S. citizen awaiting extradition to his country. A Catalan government official familiar with the case who was not authorized to be named in media reports confirmed to The Associated Press that it was McAfee.

FILE - In this Dec 12, 2012 file photo, anti-virus software founder John McAfee talks on his mobile phone as he walks on Ocean Drive in the South Beach area of Miami Beach, Fla. John McAfee, the creator of the antivirus named after him, has been found dead in a cell of a jail near Barcelona, a government source told The Associated Press on Wednesday June 23, 2021 on the same day that a Spanish court issued a preliminary ruling in favor of his extradition to the United States to face tax-related criminal charges.(AP Photo/Alan Diaz, file)

Spains National Court on Monday ruled in favor of extraditing McAfee, 75, who had argued in a hearing earlier this month that the charges against him by prosecutors in Tennessee were politically motivated and that he would spend the rest of his life in prison if returned to the U.S.

The court's ruling was made public on Wednesday and was open for appeal, with any final extradition order also needing to get approval from the Spanish Cabinet.

McAfee was arrested last October at Barcelonas international airport and had been in jail since then awaiting the outcome of extradition proceedings. The arrest followed charges the same month in Tennessee for evading taxes after failing to report income from promoting cryptocurrencies while he did consulting work, made speaking engagements and sold the rights to his life story for a documentary. The criminal charges carried a prison sentence of up to 30 years.

Nishay Sanan, the Chicago-based attorney defending him on those cases, said by phone that McAfee will always be remembered as a fighter.

He tried to love this country but the U.S. government made his existence impossible, Sanan said. They tried to erase him, but they failed.

Entrance of Brians 2 penitentiary center in Sant Esteve Sesrovires, near Barcelona, northeast Spain, Wednesday, June 23, 2021. John McAfee, the creator of the McAfee antivirus software, has been found dead in his cell in a jail near Barcelona, a government official has told The Associated Press. Earlier Wednesday, a Spanish court issued a preliminary ruling in favor of his extradition to the United States to face tax-related criminal charges. Security personnel at the Brians 2 penitentiary near the northeastern Spanish city tried to revive McAfee, who was 75, but the jail's medical team finally certified his death, the regional Catalan government said. (AP Photo/Joan Mateu)

The lawyer said Spanish authorities have not given his legal team a cause of death, and he wants to know if there were video cameras in McAfees cell or in the prison.

The U.S. Attorneys Office in Memphis declined to comment.

Tennessee prosecutors had argued that McAfee owed the U.S. government $4,214,105 in taxes before fines or interests for undeclared income in the five fiscal years from 2014 to 2018, according to a Spanish court document seen by AP. But in this weeks ruling, the National Court judge agreed to extradite him only to face charges from 2016 to 2018.

Born in England's Gloucestershire in 1945 as John David McAfee, he started McAfee Associates in 1987 and led an eccentric life after selling his stake in the antivirus software company named after him in the early 1990s.

McAfee twice made long-shot runs for the U.S. presidency and was a participant in Libertarian Party presidential debates in 2016. He dabbled in yoga, ultralight aircraft and producing herbal medications.

Cell windows of Brians 2 penitentiary center in Sant Esteve Sesrovires, near Barcelona, northeast Spain, on Thursday, June 24, 2021. John McAfee, the creator of the McAfee antivirus software, has been found dead in his cell in the jail, a government official has told The Associated Press. Earlier Wednesday, a Spanish court issued a preliminary ruling in favor of his extradition to the U.S. to face tax-related criminal charges. Security personnel at the penitentiary near the northeastern Spanish city tried to revive McAfee, who was 75, but the jail's medical team finally certified his death, the regional Catalan government said. (AP Photo/Joan Mateu)

In 2012 he was wanted for questioning in connection with the death of Gregory Viant Faull, who was shot to death in early November 2012 on the Belize island where the men lived.

McAfee told AP at the time that he was being persecuted by the Belizean government. Belizean police denied that, saying they were simply investigating a crime about which McAfee may have had information. Then-Prime Minister Dean Barrow expressed doubts about McAfees mental state, saying, I dont want to be unkind to the gentleman, but I believe he is extremely paranoid, even bonkers.

A Florida court ordered McAfee in 2019 to pay $25 million to Faulls estate in a wrongful death claim.

In July of that year he was released from detention in the Dominican Republic after he and five others were suspected of traveling on a yacht carrying high-caliber weapons, ammunition and military-style gear.

McAfee told Wired Magazine in 2012 that his father, a heavy drinker and very unhappy man, shot himself when McAfee was 15. Every day I wake up with him, he told Wired.

FILE - In this Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2015, file photo, John McAfee announces his candidacy for president in Opelika, Ala. McAfee, the outlandish security software pioneer who tried to live life as a hedonistic outsider while running from a host of legal troubles, was found dead in his jail cell near Barcelona , Spain, on Wednesday, June 23, 2021. His death came just hours after a Spanish court announced that it had approved his extradition to the United States to face tax charges punishable by decades in prison, authorities said. (Todd J. Van Emst/Opelika-Auburn News via AP, File)

He lived for a time in Lexington, Tennessee, a rural town of about 7,800 some 100 miles (160 kilometers) east of Memphis. In a 2015 interview with WBBJ-TV, McAfee said he only felt comfortable when armed. The TV station reported that he chose to be interviewed with a loaded gun in each hand.

Very little gives me a feeling of being safe and more secure other than being armed in my bedroom with the door locked, McAfee told the station.

In one of his last known media interviews, with British newspaper The Independent last November, McAfee said his prison experience in Spain was a fascinating adventure and he planned never to return to the U.S.

I am constantly amused and sometimes moved," he was quoted as saying. "The graffiti alone could fill a thousand-page thriller.

He also told The Independent that prisoners and guards had recognized him and some asked for his autograph.

McAfee said his main point of contact outside the prison was his wife, Janice McAfee. The last post from his Twitter account was a retweet of a Fathers Day message from her.

These eight months John has spent in prison in Spain have been especially hard on his overall health both mentally and physically, as well as financially, but he is undeterred from continuing to speak truth to power, it said.

California chipmaker Intel, which bought McAfee's company in 2011 for $7.68 billion, for a time sought to dissociate the brand from its controversial founder by folding it into its larger cybersecurity division. But the rebranding was short-lived, and Intel in 2016 spun out the cybersecurity unit into a new company called McAfee.

Jaime Le, a McAfee company spokesperson, said in a statement: Although John McAfee founded the company, he has not been associated with our company in any capacity for over 25 years. That said, our thoughts go to his family and those close to him.

A spokesperson with the U.S. Embassy in Madrid said it was aware of the reports about McAfee's death but would not comment for privacy reasons.

Brito reported from Barcelona and Hatton reported from Lisbon, Portugal. Adrian Sainz in Memphis, Tenn., Barbara Ortutay in Oakland, Calif., David Hamilton in San Francisco and Matt OBrien in Providence, R.I., contributed.
LONDON (AP)  Five years ago Wednesday, Britons voted in a referendum that was meant to bring certainty to the U.K.s unsettled relationship with its European neighbors.

FILE - In this Friday, June 24, 2016 file photo, Vote Leave campaigner Boris Johnson arrives for a press conference at Vote Leave headquarters in London Five years ago, Britons voted in a referendum that was meant to bring certainty to the U.K.s fraught relationship with its European neigbors. Voters decision on June 23, 2016 was narrow but clear: By 52 percent to 48 percent, they chose to leave the European Union. It took over four years to actually make the break. The former partners are still bickering, like many divorced couples, over money and trust. (Mary Turner/Pool via AP, File)

LONDON (AP)  Five years ago Wednesday, Britons voted in a referendum that was meant to bring certainty to the U.K.s unsettled relationship with its European neighbors.

Fat chance.

Voters decision on June 23, 2016 was narrow but clear: By 52% to 48%, they chose to leave the European Union. It took over four years to actually make the break and the former partners are still bickering, like many divorced couples, over money and trust.

And five years after a fractious referendum campaign that sparked family arguments and neighborhood disputes, Britain is still as split over Europe as ever.

Britain is still significantly divided over the merits of Brexit, said polling expert John Curtice of the University of Strathclyde. He says voters are split almost exactly 50-50 between remain and leave supporters, and relatively few have changed their minds since 2016.

Over four in five people still say that they would vote exactly in the same way as they did five years ago, Curtice said.

The country is also split on whether Brexit has been a success. In 2016, Brexit campaigners claimed leaving the EU would not only restore British sovereignty, but save the country money. Notoriously, campaigners emblazoned a double-decker bus with the claim that Brexit would give the U.K. an extra 350 million pounds ($486 million) a week to spend on its beloved national health service. The U.K.s net contribution to the EU was actually about half that much.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Conservative government insists that Brexit is bringing new economic opportunities. Britain recently signed its first full post-Brexit trade deal, with Australia, and has applied to join a trade partnership of Pacific-rim countries.

But Britains trade with the EU, which before Brexit accounted for about half of all imports and exports, plummeted by 20% after the U.K. made a full economic break at the end of 2020, although the disruption from the coronavirus pandemic makes it hard to tell how much of that impact is from Brexit.

Jonathan Portes, professor of economics at Kings College London, said Brexit will be a significant but not catastrophic drag on U.K. economic growth for many years.

Not a blowout, but a slow puncture, he said.

The referendum ended the career of then-Prime Minister David Cameron, who had championed staying in the EU and quit soon after. His successor, Theresa May, tried and failed to strike a divorce deal that both the EU and Britains Parliament would accept and resigned in 2019.

The two most prominent Brexit champions have had mixed fortunes. Former U.K. Independence Party leader Nigel Farage arguably did more than anyone to make Brexit happen, but never won a seat in Parliament despite repeated attempts. He founded, and then left, the Brexit Party, and remained in the public eye as Britains most vocal supporter of Donald Trump. He is currently out of frontline politics.

Johnson, who led the official Vote Leave campaign, became prime minister in 2019 by promising to get Brexit done after years of wrangling. He succeeded in leading Britain out of the EU -- and straight into another crisis, the coronavirus pandemic.

He leads a nation divided over more than just Brexit. Far from bringing the U.K. together, Brexit has frayed the bonds between the different parts of the United Kingdom.

It has increased support for independence in Scotland, which voted in 2016 to remain in the EU but had to leave the bloc when the rest of the U.K did. It also has destabilized Northern Ireland, which borders EU member Ireland, by imposing new trade barriers between it and the rest of the U.K. that have angered Northern Ireland's pro-British unionist community.

As for the divorced couple itself, Britain and the EU are squabbling, with Britain urging the bloc to show flexibility and the EU threatening legal action unless the U.K. sticks to the Brexit agreement.

British Brexit minister David Frost, who led negotiations for the U.K. side, said Tuesday that many Brexit supporters like him were surprised at how rocky the relationship had become.

Its not something that we want, he said. The sooner we can move beyond the settling-down process the better.

Follow all AP stories on Brexit at https://apnews.com/hub/Brexit.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday will make her first visit to the U.S.-Mexico border, her office announced, after she has faced criticism from members of both parties for failing to go there despite her role leading the Biden administrations response to a steep increase in migration.

Vice President Kamala Harris speaks about voting rights, Wednesday, June 23, 2021, from the South Court Auditorium on the White House complex in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

WASHINGTON (AP)  Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday will make her first visit to the U.S.-Mexico border, her office announced, after she has faced criticism from members of both parties for failing to go there despite her role leading the Biden administrations response to a steep increase in migration.

Harris will visit the El Paso area, accompanied by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, according to a statement Wednesday from Harris senior adviser Symone Sanders.

The visit comes as Harris has faced months of attacks from Republicans, and even some frustration from those in her own party, for declining to visit the area. Harris has been tasked by President Joe Biden with taking on the root causes of migration from Central America to the United States.

So far she has focused her efforts on improving economic and living conditions in the region. Her aides have repeatedly insisted her focus is distinct from the security issues that plague U.S. officials trying to handle a spike in border crossings.

But Republicans have seized on failures by both Harris and Biden to paint the administration as absent on what theyve described as a crisis at the border. The issue overshadowed Harris first foreign trip earlier this month, to Guatemala and Mexico, where she met with both nations presidents and local officials and advocates to discuss economic and humanitarian solutions to the significant outmigration from both countries.

But Harris and White House aides in Washington were forced to parry repeated questions from the press about why she left a border visit off the trip.

Harris has noted that as a senator from California, she has visited the border in the past, and she has asserted that unless the root causes of migration are addressed the situation at the border will never be fixed.

On her visit to Guatemala and Mexico this month, she urged Central Americans not to try to reach the U.S. border. She tried to give people a sense of hope that would encourage them to stay home.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Senior Biden administration officials have discussed whether to remove the holdover director of the beleaguered federal Bureau of Prisons who has been at the center of the agencys myriad crises.

FILE - In this June 2, 2020, file photo, Michael Carvajal, director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, testifies during a Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington. Senior officials in the Biden administration have been discussing whether to remove the director of the beleaguered federal Bureau of Prisons, one of the few remaining officials from the Trump administration. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call/Pool via AP)

WASHINGTON (AP)  Senior Biden administration officials have discussed whether to remove the holdover director of the beleaguered federal Bureau of Prisons who has been at the center of the agencys myriad crises.

The discussions about whether to fire Michael Carvajal are in the preliminary stages and a final decision hasnt yet been made, two people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press. They were not authorized to publicly discuss the internal talks and spoke on condition of anonymity.

But theres an indication that the bureau is shaking up its senior ranks following growing criticism of chronic mismanagement, blistering reports from the Justice Departments inspector general and a bleak financial outlook.

Since the death of Jeffrey Epstein at a federal lockup in New York in August 2019, The Associated Press has exposed one crisis after another, including rampant spread of coronavirus inside prisons and a failed response to the pandemic, escapes, deaths and critically low staffing levels that have hampered responses to emergencies.

At least two regional directors, the officials in charge of federal lockups in the South Central and the Southeast regions  including a Texas prison where inmates routinely walked off the grounds to retrieve drugs and other contraband delivered to them in the woods  are also being replaced.

The Bureau of Prisons said the two regional directors  Juan Baltazar, Jr. and J.A. Keller  are retiring and had been planning to do so. But two other people familiar with the matter said that neither had planned to leave for months and were told other officials were being appointed to their jobs.

On Wednesday, the agency said it was appointing wardens William Lothrop and Heriberto Tellez to the regional posts. Tellez is currently in charge of the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where a 34-year-old inmate was found dead in his cell early Wednesday.

British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell is also being held at the jail. Last year, her lawyers sought to question Tellez about the constant surveillance she has been subjected her to since her arrest on sex trafficking charges, but a judge refused.

The Justice Department, which runs the bureau, did not directly address whether officials were considering removing Carvajal, one of the few remaining holdovers from the Trump administration. Instead it said it was working to put in place recommendations made by both the departments inspector general and the Government Accountability Office and is undertaking other changes.

Director Carvajal has formed a task force to help address the fundamental challenges facing BOP, the Justice Department said in a statement to the AP. That work is an important priority.

Implementing the changes will be critical to advancing BOPs mission  ensuring that inmates are housed safely and securely, and also providing critical programming and rehabilitation to help those inmates successfully reenter society after they have served their time, the statement said.

Carvajal took over as director in February 2020, just before the pandemic began raging in the bureau's facilities nationwide, leaving tens of thousands of inmates infected with the virus and resulting in 240 deaths. He also oversaw an unprecedented run of federal executions in the waning months of the Trump presidency that were so poorly managed they became virus superspreader events.

Nearly one-third of federal correctional officer jobs in the United States are vacant, forcing prisons to use cooks, teachers, nurses and other workers to guard inmates. The expanded use of that practice, known as augmentation, has been raising questions about whether the agency can carry out its required duties to ensure the safety of prisoners and staff members while also putting in place programs and classes required under the law.

Over the past 18 months, 30 prisoners have escaped from federal lockups across the U.S.  and nearly half still have not been caught. At some of the institutions, doors are left unlocked, security cameras are broken, and officials sometimes dont notice an inmate is missing for hours. Prisoners have broken out at lockups in nearly every region of the country.

The agencys staffing levels have reached a critical point under Carvajals tenure and officers at several facilities have held protests calling for him to be fired. The agency claims its hiring programs have been successful, though it has significantly slowed its hiring process, pausing most new hires until at least October.

The bureau said it expects to bring on 1,800 new employees, that the initiative has been a huge success and continues to focus on hiring and training staff.

The agency has also been plagued by such serious misconduct that then-Attorney General Bill Barr launched a special task force to address criminal wrongdoing by officers at several prisons after a loaded gun was found smuggled in the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City, the federal jail where Epstein killed himself in August 2019.

Sisak reported from New York. On Twitter, follow Michael Balsamo at twitter.com/mikebalsamo1 and Michael Sisak at twitter.com/mikesisak and send confidential tips by visiting https://www.ap.org/tips/
Bell MTS is launching its Wireless Home Internet service for 12 communities across Manitoba, with enhanced broadband access for nearly 40,000 rural and remote locations to come by the end of 2021.

Bell MTS is launching its Wireless Home Internet service for 12 communities across Manitoba, with enhanced broadband access for nearly 40,000 rural and remote locations to come by the end of 2021.

"Its an exciting chapter for us and for all of Manitoba," said Ryan Klassen, vice-chair of Bell MTS and Western Canada, in an interview Tuesday.

The new 5G-capable network will offer download speeds of up to 50 megabits per second and upload speeds of 10 Mbps, with no data overage fees on the 3500 MHz spectrum. Its part of a recent $1.7-billion investment from telecommunications giant Bell Canada, as it expands across the country from province to province over the next two years.

"COVID-19 certainly accelerated the need for something like this, because weve all been relying more than we ever have on strong and trustworthy internet service," Klassen told the Free Press. "But in many ways, it also predates that, because these are communities that havent had this kind of access before."

Areas that will now have access to the new services include: Dauphin, Gimli, Grand Beach, Lac du Bonnet, Libau, Peguis First Nation, Shilo, Sidney, Victoria Beach, Whitemouth, Winkler and Woodlands.

Pure fibre internet is already available in Churchill, Flin Flon, Morden and La Salle.

Addressing Elon Musks new SpaceX Starlink, which aims to offer easily accessible internet through a network of thousands of satellites by late 2021, including in many parts of Manitoba, Klassen said Bell MTS is "providing something that is quite a bit more reliable and consistent, with local technicians always on hand."

"This type of technology that were bringing to Manitoba right now is something that will only keep evolving, enhancing and expanding as we move forward," said Klassen. "And weve already seen just how popular its been in all the other provinces weve introduced this in."

Manitoba Chambers of Commerce president Chuck Davidson called the initiative "a critical infrastructure for our entrepreneurs, farmers and families" in rural areas.

"It couldnt come at a better time when were all trying to make sure we can keep bridging our connectivity gap," Davidson said. "And Im hopeful it will only extend the economic prosperity of our province, as we slowly recover from this massive public health crisis."

temur.durrani@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @temurdur
Chief executive John Chen speaks at the BlackBerry Ltd. annual meeting in Waterloo, Ont., on June 23, 2015. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn

WATERLOO, ONTARIO - BlackBerry Ltd. shareholders gave tepid support to the company's executive compensation proposal.

Nearly 59 per cent of shareholders supported the advisory vote on executive compensation while 41 per cent opposed.

Despite being approved, the Waterloo, Ont., company told shareholders at Wednesday's annual meeting that the support was "below our expectations" and that the board will review the results as part of its ongoing evaluation of its compensation program.

BlackBerry says it believes its compensation needs to be competitive in a challenging market for talent.

Two major proxy advisory firms, Glass Lewis & Co. and Institutional Shareholder Services Inc., recommended shareholders oppose the non-binding motion. CEO John Chen's substantial stock awards have garnered close attention, especially as the company's share price has at times surged as it has been promoted on social media as a so-called meme stock.

Meanwhile, Prem Watsa, the lead independent director who chairs the compensation committee, was re-elected despite recommendation from the advisory firms to withhold support. The CEO of Fairfax Financial and director Barbara Stymiest received just about 82 per cent support.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 23, 2021.

Companies in this story: (TSX:BB)
LONDON (AP)  Buckingham Palace has for the first time released figures on the ethnic makeup of its staff, following the Duke and Duchess of Sussexs allegations of racism in the royal family.

LONDON (AP)  Buckingham Palace has for the first time released figures on the ethnic makeup of its staff, following the Duke and Duchess of Sussexs allegations of racism in the royal family.

The Royal Household said Thursday that 8.5% of its staff come from ethnic minorities, compared with a target of 10% by next year. The latest census data shows that ethnic minorities account for about 13% of the U.K. population. The staffing figures were released as part of an annual report on royal finances.

A senior palace source said publishing the figures was an effort to ensure greater accountability because there would be no place to hide if diversity goals arent met. The source acknowledged that much more needed to be done.

We are not where we would like to be despite our efforts, the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity as is customary for royal officials. It is not that we have not been progressing diversity and inclusion initiatives during this period, it is that simply the results have not been what we would like.

Buckingham Palace struggled to quiet criticism after comments made by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, also known as Prince Harry and Meghan, during a March interview with Oprah Winfrey. The interview was the couples most significant since they stepped away from royal duties and moved to California.

Meghan, who is biracial, said an unidentified member of the royal family had raised concerns about the color of her babys skin before she gave birth to her first child. The couple also alleged that Meghan was the victim of callous treatment during her time as a working member of the royal family.

The palace responded at the time by saying the allegations about race were particularly concerning and would be addressed by the family privately. But critics called the 61-word statement made on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II too little, too late.

Prince William, Harrys older brother, was forced to respond after reporters shouted at him demanding comment during a visit to an East London school.

Were very much not a racist family, William said as his wife, Kate, walked by his side.

The figures on ethnic minorities were released along with data on employment at the palace. As of March 31, public money paid the salaries of 556 crown employees, down from 580 a year earlier. While the total staff was equally split along gender lines, men dominated the senior ranks. Of 34 senior employees, 25 were men.

The figures were part of the annual report and accounts for the Sovereign Grant, the public financing mechanism that funds the public activities of the queen and her family.

The report showed that Harry and Meghan paid 2.4 million pounds ($3.35 million) to reimburse the crown for refurbishment of their home near Windsor Palace, which was financed with public money when they were working members of the Royal Family. They were required to repay the money when they decided to step away from royal duties.

The Queens official expenditures rose 26% to 87.5 million pounds ($122 million) last year. That included 31.6 million pounds for the repair and remodeling of Buckingham Palace, almost double the previous years figure. Work on the 10-year, 369-million-pound ($515 million) project accelerated because most public events were canceled due to COVID-19.

The Sovereign Grant is public money that funds the royal familys official work. It is calculated as a percentage of the profit generated by the Crown Estate, lucrative real estate holdings that are owned by the queen by virtue of her role as monarch and must be passed on to her successor. In return for the grant, the Crown Estates profits are turned over to the national treasury.

Under current rules, the grant equals 25% of the estates profit two years previously, with three-fifths of the money funding basic expenditures and two-fifths financing the Buckingham Palace project.

The Sovereign Grant rose 4.2% to 85.9 million pounds last year. The crown also pulled 1.6 million pounds from reserves.
WASHINGTON (AP)  With one week to go before the nationwide ban on evictions expires, the White House is acknowledging that the emergency pandemic protection will have to end at some point. The trick is devising the right sort of off-ramp to make the transition without massive social upheaval.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki speaks during the daily briefing at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, June 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

WASHINGTON (AP)  With one week to go before the nationwide ban on evictions expires, the White House is acknowledging that the emergency pandemic protection will have to end at some point. The trick is devising the right sort of off-ramp to make the transition without massive social upheaval.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday that the separate bans on evictions for renters and mortgage holders were always intended to be temporary.

Both will expire on June 30 unless extended. But Psaki would not say whether the administration was planning another extension. That decision, she said, lies with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which imposed the bans on the rationale that allowing people to lose their housing during a pandemic was an unacceptable public health risk.

Psaki said the decision on the moratorium will be made by the CDC, based on public health conditions.

The White House, she said, "wouldnt get ahead of their assessment"

Psaki added that President Joe Biden remains focused on ensuring that Americans who are struggling, through no fault of their own, have an off-ramp once it ends.

But even as the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic gradually recedes, there remains pressure on Biden to maintain the eviction moratorium for nonmedical reasons.

This week, dozens of members of Congress wrote to Biden and CDC Director Rochelle Walensky calling for the moratorium to be not only extended but also strengthened in some ways.

The letter, spearheaded by Democratic Reps. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Jimmy Gomez of California and Cori Bush of Missouri, called for an unspecified extension in order to allow the nearly $47 billion in emergency rental assistance included in the American Rescue Plan to get into the hands of tenants.

Ending the assistance too abruptly, they said, would disproportionately hurt some of the same minority communities that were hit so hard by the virus itself. They also echoed many housing advocates by calling for the moratorium's protections to be made automatic, requiring no special steps from the tenant in order to gain its protections.

The impact of the federal moratorium cannot be understated, and the need to strengthen and extend it is an urgent matter of health, racial, and economic justice, the letter said.

Diane Yentel, president of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, called an extension of the eviction ban the right thing to do  morally, fiscally, politically, and as a continued public health measure.

But landlords, who have opposed the moratorium and challenged it in court, are against any extension. They have argued the focus should be on speeding up the distribution of rental assistance.

With each passing month, we are at risk of losing an ever-increasing amount of rental housing  jeopardizing the availability of safe, sustainable and affordable housing for all Americans, Bob Pinnegar, the president and CEO of the National Apartment Association, said in an email interview. "The mounting housing affordability crisis is quickly becoming a housing affordability disaster fueled by flawed eviction moratoriums, which leave renters with insurmountable debt and housing providers holding the bag."

Casey reported from Boston.
MILAN (AP)  The COVID-19 pandemic hit Italy especially hard, killing more than 127,000 people and sending the European Union's third-largest economy into a devastating tailspin.

A student stands in the courtyard of Milan's Statale University, northern Italy, Monday, June 21, 2021. Backed by 261 billion euros from the EU and Italian government, the countrys recovery plan calls for a top-to-bottom shakeup of a major industrial economy long hampered by red tape, a fear of change, and bureaucratic and educational inertia. Leading the charge is Premier Mario Draghi, the former head of the European Central Bank, who was tapped as head of a national unity government specifically for his economic expertise and institutional knowledge both in Italy and the EU. A key target is keeping more young Italians from taking their know-how abroad, a perennial issue in Italy, which has one of the lowest rates of university graduates in Europe and one of the largest brain drains. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

MILAN (AP)  The COVID-19 pandemic hit Italy especially hard, killing more than 127,000 people and sending the European Union's third-largest economy into a devastating tailspin.

Yet out of that tragedy may come solutions for decades-old problems that have held back growth and productivity  and with them, a new sense of stability for the euro, the currency shared by 19 of the European Union's 27 members.

Italian Institute of Technology, IIT researcher Velia Siciliano poses for a portrait in this Jan. 1, 2018 photo at the IIT in Genoa, Italy. Backed by 261 billion euros from the EU and Italian government, the countrys recovery plan calls for a top-to-bottom shakeup of a major industrial economy long hampered by red tape, a fear of change, and bureaucratic and educational inertia. Leading the charge is Premier Mario Draghi, the former head of the European Central Bank, who was tapped as head of a national unity government specifically for his economic expertise and institutional knowledge both in Italy and the EU.A key target is keeping more young Italians from taking their know-how abroad, a perennial issue in Italy, which has one of the lowest rates of university graduates in Europe and one of the largest brain drains. (Duilio Farina/IIT via AP)

Backed by 261 billion euros from the EU and Italian government, the country's plan for recovering from the pandemic calls for a top-to-bottom shakeup of a major industrial economy long hampered by red tape, political reluctance to change, and bureaucratic and educational inertia.

Leading the charge is Premier Mario Draghi, the former head of the European Central Bank, who was tapped as head of a national unity government specifically for his economic expertise and institutional knowledge both in Italy and the EU.

The challenge is formidable: Italy has failed to show robust growth in the more than two decades since it joined the euro currency union in 1999.

Execution of the recovery plan remains a risk given Italys often-fractious politics. But if they succeed with even half, it will have a big impact, said Guntram Wolff, director of the Bruegel think tank in Brussels.

A key target is keeping more young Italians from taking their know-how abroad, a perennial issue in Italy, which has one of the lowest rates of university graduates in Europe and one of the largest brain drains.

The plan aims to create eco-systems that would help scientific discoveries find their way into the market place, fueling startups and industry while creating career paths that would help retain educated Italians, many of whom leave home due to low pay and limited prospects.

Velia Siciliano, who heads a biomedicine lab in Naples for the Italian Institute of Technology, said the pandemic only underlined the necessity of strong domestic research centers.

She has spent large chunks of her scientific career abroad, building on her undergraduate and masters degrees in Italy with a Ph.D. from the U.K. and postdoctoral study at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She was named one of Italys top 10 women of the year for 2019.

Siciliano noted that Italy had already launched programs to stop brain drain with ad-hoc initiatives, but she said a key missing element has been public-private synergies that transfer research results into new inventions and innovations.

The truth is, if they dont nurture a system and if research doesnt also include technology transfers, it will be difficult to have a large number of Italian researchers returning to Italy, she said.

Universities failing to turn ideas into startups is just one of the chronic problems listed in the 270-page recovery plan. Others include too much red tape for businesses, lower levels of higher education than in many other developed countries, clogged courts, and low participation of women in the workforce.

The plan would fund efforts to tackle all of these: For instance, digitizing how people use public services to cut down on wasted time and paperwork. Using alternative dispute resolution such as arbitration to quickly resolve business disputes. Adding 228,000 day care and pre-school places to help get more women into the work force.

Of the 261 billion euros, the lion's share of 191.5 billion euros in grants and loans comes from the EU's recovery and resilience facility, part of the 27-country bloc's 806.9 billion euro pandemic recovery fund backed by common borrowing. Italy is the largest recipient because it suffered the most economic damage.

The recovery fund aims to promote long-term growth and recovery by funding economic reforms, efforts to fight climate change, and the spread of digital technologies.

The underlying problem: From 1999 to 2019, Italys economy grew only 7.9%, compared to 30.2% for Germany, 32.4% for France, and 43.6% in Spain. Slow growth has kept Italy's debt at a dangerously high level. The pandemic has pushed the debt ratio even higher, from 134.6% of GDP before the pandemic to 157.1%. More growth would mean a smaller debt burden compared to the size of the economy.

Right now, that's not a problem, since European Central Bank stimulus has driven borrowing costs to record lows. But rising borrowing costs threatened the country's finances in 2011. Italy is a concern for the entire 19-country eurozone since it is too big to be bailed out by the other eurozone governments, as smaller economies such as Greece and Ireland were during the 2010-2015 debt crisis.

Just an additional half-percentage point of growth would, over the longer term, make Italy's debt much more manageable, said Bruegel's Wolff.

It's the most important question of Europe's monetary union, Wolff said. The one critical issue has always been, if Italy doesn't grow, at what stage will Italian debt become a problem, not just for Italy but for the eurozone. 

Wolff said he was cautiously optimistic that the plan could bring about long-postponed change. The size of the support gives political leeway for the government to address deep underlying issues: "This is the first government in power in Italy that actually talks about the right reforms and has financial support from Europe to implement them, so I think there is reason to be optimistic here.

Francesco Di Stasio, a 37-year-old researcher at a top robotics center, has left Italy twice, but returned each time. He has degrees from Italian and British universities, has worked in both Italy and Britain, and has done advanced studies both at home and abroad in Spain.

Di Stasio says Italys problem is not that Italians go abroad  that is common in Europe and essential in the sciences. Now in a position to hire scientists for his lab developing light sources using nanomaterials, he says the real weakness in the system is the difficulty in attracting qualified applicants to Italy, be they Italians or foreigners. The question is more complex than salary.

While Italy has pockets of excellence  including relatively recent research institutes like Genoa-based Italian Institute of Technology, where Di Stasio works  what it is lacking are fuller ecosystems on par with more competitive economies like Germany, Britain or France, where researchers in scientific and technological fields can see places to jump every few years as they pursue a career path.

The doubt is more present. When I search for people, they worry about the future. They dont know how to access a career path in Italy, Di Stasio said. What plays against us is the perception we have of Italy.

McHugh reported from Frankfurt.
WARSAW, Poland (AP)  Polish energy officials say human error was to blame for a massive outage at Europes largest brown coal power plant of Belchatow last month and a separate fire there just days later, according to the state PAP news agency.

FILE - In this Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2018 file photo, clouds of smoke are pictured over Europe's largest lignite power plant in Belchatow, central Poland. Polish energy officials said Tuesday June 22, 2021, that human error was to blame for a massive outage at Europes largest brown coal power plant of Belchatow last month and a separate fire there just days later, according to the state PAP news agency. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski, file)

WARSAW, Poland (AP)  Polish energy officials say human error was to blame for a massive outage at Europes largest brown coal power plant of Belchatow last month and a separate fire there just days later, according to the state PAP news agency.

Poland needed snap energy imports May 17 when 10 of Belchatows 11 units suddenly went out, and the outage was felt across Europes grid. Some 3.6 gigawatts of energy were lost and only the newest, 858-megawatt unit was operating.

The problem was fixed that day and in the following days the units were gradually restarted.

Belchatow plant, fed by an adjacent open-pit lignite mine, supplies over 20% of Poland's energy, serving some 11 million households.

The head of Poland's energy grid PSE, Eryk Klossowski, told a special parliament commission late Tuesday that the outage was caused by an employee who was installing automatic equipment at a power switch. That led to a chain of events that automatically switched off Belchatow's units, Klossowski told the commission, according to PAP.

A week later, coal ignited on a conveyer belt going to the state-of-the-art 858 megawatt unit, forcing its full lockdown for many days.

Also in this case, a series of errors by employees who did not observe strict safety procedures caused the outage, Wioletta Czemiel-Grzybowska, the head of the state mining and conventional energy concern PGE GiEK that operates Belchatow, told the parliament commission, according to PAP.

The unit will be fully operational after Oct. 31, following the needed repairs, and four employees have been fired, she said.

Poland relies on black and brown coal for some 65% of its energy. The Belchatow lignite mine and power plant is Europe's largest single pollutant and under pressure to close, as the European Union strives to meet its ambitious climate goals. Belchatow's last unit is to close in 2036, and the mine in 2038 according to plans by the PGE GiEK and local authorities.

Poland is also in intensive talks with the neighboring Czech Republic over another Polish lignite plant and mine near the countries' border. Prague has taken Warsaw to the European Court of Justice over what it says are the harmful effects of the Turow complex on nearby Czech villages. The court has ordered the mine closed immediately, which Poland says is not possible.
TEHRAN, Iran (AP)  Iranian authorities have thwarted what they called a sabotage attack targeting a civilian nuclear facility near the country's capital, state TV reported Wednesday, as details about the incident remained scarce.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP)  Iranian authorities have thwarted what they called a sabotage attack targeting a civilian nuclear facility near the country's capital, state TV reported Wednesday, as details about the incident remained scarce.

The attempted attack against a building belonging to Iran's Atomic Energy Organization left no casualties or damages and was unable to disrupt the Iranian nuclear program, Iranian state television reported, adding that authorities were working to identify the perpetrators.

Iranian media offered no details on the kind of attack, saying only that the move targeted a sprawling nuclear center located in Karaj city, just some 40 kilometers (25 miles) northwest of Tehran.

When asked for comment, an Iranian official referred to the initial report by Nournews, believed to be close to Iran's Supreme National Security Council. The official spoke on condition of anonymity as they did not have authorization to discuss the matter with media.

The International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations body that monitors Tehrans atomic program, did not immediately respond to request for comment.

Iranian authorities did not specify which facility in Karaj had been targeted. There are two sites associated with Iran's nuclear program known to be in the area, including the Karaj Agricultural and Medical Research Center.

Irans Atomic Energy Organization describes the Karaj Agricultural and Medical Research Center as a facility founded in 1974 that uses nuclear technology to improve quality of soil, water, agricultural and livestock production.

The area is located near various industrial sites, including pharmaceutical production facilities where Iran has manufactured its domestic coronavirus vaccine.

Earlier on Wednesday, Iranian social media crackled with unconfirmed reports that authorities had prevented an unmanned aerial vehicle from targeting a COVID-19 vaccine production facility. But an anonymous official in the country's air defense units later ruled out that theory, telling Irans semi-official ISNA news agency that it was not a drone attack, but rather possible sabotage targeting security that doesn't fall within the authority of our air defense system. The official did not elaborate.

There are 18 nuclear facilities and nine other locations in Iran under IAEA safeguards. The agricultural nuclear research center is not listed as a safeguard facility with the IAEA, though a nearby nuclear waste facility around Karaj is. The IAEA visited the site in 2003.

The Karaj facility had been storing waste from the nuclear program and equipment dismantled from atomic vapor laser isotope separation experiments in the nearby Lashkar Abad, according to a policy paper by the Washington Institute for Near-East Policy written in March 2015.

The U.N. Security Council in 2007 sanctioned the Agricultural Center, identifying it along with other facilities it described as being involved in Irans nuclear and ballistic missile programs. The U.S. Treasury under then-President George W. Bush also sanctioned the facility.

The U.S. lifted those sanctions under the 2015 nuclear deal, although re-imposed them in 2018 with then-President Donald Trumps decision to unilaterally withdraw from the accord.

The foiled sabotage attack follows several suspected incidents targeting Irans nuclear program that have heightened regional tensions in recent months, as diplomatic efforts gain traction in Vienna to resurrect Tehran's tattered atomic deal with world powers.

In April, Irans underground Natanz nuclear facility experienced a mysterious blackout that damaged some of its centrifuges. Last July, unexplained fires struck the advanced centrifuge assembly plant at Natanz, which authorities later described as sabotage. Iran now is rebuilding that facility deep inside a nearby mountain.

Israel is widely believed to have carried out the sabotage, though it has not claimed it. Iran also blamed Israel for the November killing of a scientist who began the countrys military nuclear program decades earlier.

Trumps decision to withdraw from the nuclear deal has seen Iran, over time, abandon all limitations on uranium enrichment. The country is now enriching uranium to 60%, its highest ever levels, although still short of weapons grade. Iran has said that its nuclear ambitions are peaceful and that it will return to its commitments once the U.S. lifts its sanctions.

Last December, Irans hard-line parliament approved a bill that would suspend part of U.N. inspections of its nuclear facilities if European signatories didnt provide relief from oil and banking sanctions by February.

The IAEA then struck a temporary deal with Iran to have it salvage the surveillance images, with Tehran threatening to delete them afterward if sanctions remained in place. Iran will decide whether to extend that deal after its expiry on Thursday, presidential chief of staff Mahmoud Vaezi was quoted as saying by Iran's state TV.

Earlier this week, Iran's sole nuclear power plant at Bushehr underwent an unexplained temporary emergency shutdown. Authorities earlier this year had warned of the plant's possible closure because of American sanctions that allegedly prevented Iran from procuring equipment for repairs.

On Tuesday, the IAEA said it was informed of a technical program striking the Bushehr plant's electrical generator. The agency said the facility would go back online after being reconnected to the national electric grid.

Irans nuclear department said that engineers were working to repair the broken generator.

DeBre reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Associated Press writer Jon Gambrell in Dubai contributed to this report.
DALLAS (AP)  Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly will step down in February after a long run in which he steered the airline through periods of growth, recessions and now a pandemic.

FILE - In this Oct. 3, 2018 file photo, Gary Kelly, Chairman and CEO, Southwest Airlines Co., speaks in Detroit. Southwest said Wednesday, June 23, 2021, that Kelly will step down next February and be succeeded by Robert Jordan, the airline's executive vice president of corporate services.(AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)

DALLAS (AP)  Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly will step down in February after a long run in which he steered the airline through periods of growth, recessions and now a pandemic.

Kelly, who has been CEO since July 2004, will be succeeded by Robert Jordan, the airline's executive vice president of corporate services. Southwest said Wednesday that Kelly, 66, plans to remain executive chairman at least through 2026.

Change at the top comes as Southwest and other airlines are starting to recover from the pandemic. Southwest, which carries more domestic passengers than any other airline, is geared to vacationers flying within the U.S. or to nearby countries, and it has navigated the downturn better than most. Thanks to federal pandemic relief, it turned a small profit in the first quarter of this year, and it has added many new leisure-travel destinations.

Jordan said in an interview that his goals are to restore Southwests profitability to the levels we would like and expect, repair the balance sheet  Southwest took on debt to survive the pandemic  and visit employees every week. He gave a stay-the-course outlook  We've got a wonderful strategy  and declined to list any major changes on his agenda.

The new CEO will take over an airline with a history of technology outages that have aggravated customers. Two separate issues last week led to thousands of flight delays and hundreds of cancellations. Jordan said the technology problems were not because of a lack of investment, and that the airlines technology department works to prevent them.

Jordan, 60, was a programmer and financial analyst for computer maker Hewlett-Packard before joining Southwest in 1988. He held jobs in accounting and overseeing technology. However, he has taken on a larger strategic role at Southwest in recent years, including running AirTran Airways after Southwest bought the rival low-cost carrier in 2011 and overseeing overhauls of the airline's website and frequent-flyer program.

During the pandemic, when air travel dropped to levels not seen during the jet era, Jordan worked with Southwest's unions and shaped programs to encourage employees to take leaves of absence or buyouts to save money for the company.

Southwest has generally avoided the kind of labor-management conflict that has been common at other big U.S. airlines, although tension has grown in recent years  Southwest sued its mechanics union in 2019, accusing members of conducting an illegal work slowdown to gain leverage in contract negotiations.

The president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, Casey Murray, said he hopes Jordan can fix the airline's technology issues and cooperate with labor on efficiency measures.

I have always had a lot of respect for Bob, Murray said, adding that they worked together to combine pilot groups after Southwest bought AirTran. We as an organization have always been impressed with his people skills as well as his business acumen. I was always kind of hoping it would be Bob who would become the next CEO.

Lyn Montgomery, president of the union local that represents Southwest flight attendants, congratulated Jordan and said in a statement that she hopes he will improve the people-centric culture of our company.

Speculation about Kellys successor had at one time focused on Tom Nealon, who was named president in January 2017, and Mike Van de Ven, the chief operating officer. Both men have played more prominent roles in key events such as quarterly calls with Wall Street analysts. But insiders were not surprised by Jordan's selection.

The Dallas carrier has had only five CEOs in its 50-year history. It was led for many years by Herb Kelleher, a colorful, chain-smoking lawyer who helped create the airline against fierce opposition from existing carriers. Kelleher stepped down in March 2001, but his successor, Jim Parker, had a tense relationship with labor groups at the heavily unionized airline, and was replaced by Kelly in 2004.

Kelly said steering the airline through the pandemic was the biggest challenge he faced in the past 17 years.

Getting through that intact, as strong as we are, has to be the highest of highs, he said.

Kelly extended the airlines string of profitable years to 47, until it lost $3.1 billion last year amid the pandemic. Under Kelly, Southwest added destinations including international ones, and it bucked industry trends by refusing to assign seats or charge fees for checking a bag or changing a ticket. Kelly frequently mentions that Southwest has never laid off employees.

The lowest point of his tenure, Kelly said in an interview Wednesday, was an engine blow-up that killed a woman on a 2018 flight  the first Southwest passenger to be killed by an accident during flight. Any time you have a loss of life, that is definitely a low point," he said.

Kelly, who joined Southwest in 1986 and was chief financial officer before becoming CEO, said he wanted to have a succession plan in place by the end of this year. With travel picking up, and Southwest recently deciding on new planes from Boeing, he said the time was right.

Were encouraged by the recovery, Kelly said. If demand improves continually at the same kind of pace that it has, I think well be in really good shape next year.

Shares of Southwest Airlines Co. fell 1% Wednesday, with little change in other major U.S. airlines.

David Koenig can be reached at www.twitter.com/airlinewriter
HONG KONG (AP)  Hong Kongs sole remaining pro-democracy newspaper published its last edition Thursday after five editors and executives were arrested and millions of dollars in its assets were frozen as part of China's increasing crackdown on dissent in the semi-autonomous city.

FILE - In this July 6, 2020, file photo, Tong Ying-kit arrives at a court in a police van in Hong Kong. Tong, accused of driving a motorcycle into police officers while carrying a Hong Kong protest flag became on Wednesday, June 23, 2021 the first person to stand trial under the national security law implemented last year as China's central government tightened control over the city. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu, File)

HONG KONG (AP)  Hong Kongs sole remaining pro-democracy newspaper published its last edition Thursday after five editors and executives were arrested and millions of dollars in its assets were frozen as part of China's increasing crackdown on dissent in the semi-autonomous city.

The board of directors of Apple Daily parent company Next Media said in a statement Wednesday that the print and online editions would cease due to the current circumstances prevailing in Hong Kong.

The silencing of a prominent pro-democracy voice was the latest sign of China's determination to exert greater control over the city long known for its freedoms after huge anti-government protests there in 2019 shook the government. Since then, Beijing has imposed a strict national security law  used in the arrests of the newspaper employees  and revamped Hong Kong's election laws to keep opposition voices out of the legislature.

Apple Daily was founded by tycoon Jimmy Lai in 1995  just two years before Britain handed Hong Kong back to China  and initially was a tabloid known for celebrity gossip. But Lai also portrayed the paper as an advocate of democratic values and said it should shine a light on snakes, insects, mice and ants in the dark," according to the paper.

It grew into an outspoken voice for defending Hong Kongs freedoms not found in mainland China, and in recent years it often criticized the Chinese and Hong Kong governments for limiting those freedoms and reneging on a promise to protect them for 50 years after the handover. While pro-democracy media outlets still exist online, it was the only print newspaper of its kind left in the city.

FILE - In this June 17, 2021, file photo, a cordon line is set up outside Apple Daily headquarters in Hong Kong. Police on Wednesday, June 23, 2021 arrested a 55-year-old man on suspicion of foreign collusion to endanger national security. According to Apple Daily, which cited unnamed sources, the man writes editorials for the paper under the pseudonym Li Ping. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)

In a post on Instagram, the paper thanked its readers.

Even if the ending is not what we want, even if its difficult to let go, we need to continue living and keep the determination we have shared with Hong Kong people that has remained unchanged over 26 years, Apple Daily wrote.

The newspaper said it planned to print 1 million copies for the final edition, up from the usual 80,000, and people lined up to buy them.

FILE - In this Friday, June 18, 2021, file photo, copies of the Apple Daily newspaper are packed at the printing house in Hong Kong. Hong Kongs pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper will close by this weekend, its parent company said Wednesday, June 23, 2021, following last weeks arrest of five editors and executives and the freezing of $2.3 million in assets under the citys national security law. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

The paper's announcement coincided with the start of the city's first trial under the year-old national security law that is being closely watched as a barometer of how strictly the courts will interpret the legislation.

The widely expected move to close Apple Daily followed last weeks arrests and crucially the freezing of $2.3 million of the papers assets. Its board of directors wrote a few days ago to ask Hong Kongs security bureau to release some of the money so the company could pay wages, but its not clear if it got a response. The paper also said it made the decision to close out of concern for employees safety.

The editors and executives were detained on suspicion of colluding with foreigners to endanger national security. Police cited more than 30 articles published by the paper as evidence of a conspiracy to encourage foreign nations to impose sanctions on Hong Kong and China. It was the first time the national security law had been used against journalists for something they published.

FILE - In this Friday, June 18, 2021, file photo, people buy the Apple Daily news paper at a stand in downtown Hong Kong. Hong Kongs pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper will close by this weekend, its parent company said Wednesday, June 23, 2021, following last weeks arrest of five editors and executives and the freezing of $2.3 million in assets under the citys national security law. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu, File)

On Wednesday, police also arrested a 55-year-old man on suspicion of foreign collusion to endanger national security, according to Apple Daily, which cited unidentified sources. The paper said the man wrote editorials for it under the pseudonym Li Ping.

Lai, the newspaper's founder, faces charges under the national security law for foreign collusion and is currently serving a prison sentence for his involvement in the 2019 protests.

The move against Apple Daily drew criticism from the U.S., the EU and Britain.

FILE - In this Thursday, June 17, 2021, file photo, police officers escort Cheung Kim-hung, center, CEO and Executive Director of Next Digital Ltd at Apple Daily headquarters in Hong Kong. Hong Kong's pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper will close by this weekend after police arrested five editors and executives and froze $2.3 million in assets linked to the paper. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)

The forced closure by Hong Kong authorities is a chilling demonstration of their campaign to silence all opposition voices, British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said in a Twitter post. It is clearer than ever that the (national security law) is being used to curtail freedom and punish dissent.

German Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Adebahr called the closure a hard blow against press freedom in Hong Kong.

Amnesty International Asia-Pacific Regional Director Yamini Mishra said the police action against Apple Daily will send a shiver down the spine of all media outlets operating in Hong Kong.

Staff members wave flashlights to their supporters at the Apple Daily headquarters in Hong Kong, Wednesday, June 23, 2021. Hong Kong's pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper will stop publishing Thursday, following last week's arrest of five editors and executives and the freezing of $2.3 million in assets under the city's one-year-old national security law. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

The forced closure of Apple Daily is the blackest day for media freedom in Hong Kongs recent history," Mishra said. The paper has been effectively banned by the government for publishing articles that criticized it, and for reporting on international discussions about Hong Kong."

The law, imposed last year, criminalizes subversion, secession, terrorism and foreign collusion. Chinese and Hong Kong officials have said the media must abide by the law, and that press freedom cannot be used as a shield for illegal activities.

The first person to stand trial under the law, Tong Ying-kit, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges of terrorism and inciting secession by driving a motorcycle into police officers during a 2019 rally while carrying a flag with the slogan Liberate Hong Kong, the revolution of our times. Several officers were knocked over and three were injured.

Last issue of Apple Daily arrive at a newspaper booth in Hong Kong, early Thursday, June 24, 2021. Hong Kong's pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper will stop publishing Thursday, following last week's arrest of five editors and executives and the freezing of $2.3 million in assets under the city's year-old national security law. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu)

That slogan was often chanted during the 2019 demonstrations, which began as protests against a bill allowing Hong Kong residents to be extradited to China for trial but burgeoned into broader calls for greater democratic freedoms. China was shaken by the breadth of the protests and responded with tough measures, including the national security law, which makes calls for Hong Kong's independence illegal.

Tong's trial will set the tone for how Hong Kong handles national security offenses. So far, more than 100 people have been arrested under the law, with many others fleeing abroad. The result is that it has virtually silenced opposition voices in the city.

A court ruled last month that Tong will stand trial without a jury, a departure from Hong Kong's common law traditions. Under the national security law, a panel of three judges can replace jurors, and the citys leader has the power to designate judges to hear such cases.

The law carries a maximum penalty of life in prison for serious offenses. Tong is on trial at the High Court, where sentences are not capped.

Associated Press writer Frank Jordans in Berlin and news assistant Janice Lo contributed to this report.
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP)  After enjoying nearly four months without any community transmission of the coronavirus, New Zealanders were on edge Wednesday after health authorities said an infectious traveler from Australia had visited over the weekend.

People queue outside a COVID-19 testing station in central Wellington, New Zealand, Wednesday, June, 23, 2021. After enjoying nearly four months without any community transmission of the coronavirus, New Zealanders were on edge Wednesday after health authorities said an infectious traveler from Australia had visited over the weekend. (Jack Crossland/NZ Herald via AP)

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP)  After enjoying nearly four months without any community transmission of the coronavirus, New Zealanders were on edge Wednesday after health authorities said an infectious traveler from Australia had visited over the weekend.

New Zealand has taken a zero-tolerance approach to the pandemic and continues to pursue an elimination strategy.

The country's response has been among the most effective in the world and the isolated nation of 5 million people has recorded just 26 COVID-19 deaths. But its vaccination campaign has been far slower than in most developed countries, with just 13% of the population having gotten their first dose.

Although there were no immediate cases confirmed as a result of the traveler's visit from Sydney to New Zealand's capital Wellington, authorities were asking people at more than a dozen locations to self-isolate for two weeks and get tested.

A staff member stands outside a pharmacy that closed for two hours in central Wellington, New Zealand, Wednesday, June, 23, 2021. After enjoying nearly four months without any community transmission of the coronavirus, New Zealanders were on edge Wednesday after health authorities said an infectious traveler from Australia had visited over the weekend. (Mark Mitchell/NZ Herald via AP)

They also imposed physical distancing requirements in the Wellington region and restricted crowd sizes to 100 from Wednesday evening through Sunday.

Im confident that if we do all the things we have done in the past, if people do what is asked of them, we will reduce the risk, said Ashley Bloomfield, the director-general of health.

Bloomfield said the traveler was linked to a Sydney outbreak of the more contagious Delta variant that originated in India.

The outbreak in Australias largest city has grown to 31 cases and led to a tightening of restrictions

It began last week when a Sydney airport limousine driver tested positive. He was not vaccinated and is suspected to have been infected while transporting a foreign air crew.

Residents living in the worst-affected parts of Sydney have been told they can only travel outside the city for essential reasons. Authorities have also made masks compulsory outside homes and limited the number of household visitors to five.

New Zealand has stopped quarantine-free travel from the Australian state of New South Wales for at least three days.

New Zealand and Australia opened a quarantine-free travel bubble in April, although it has been temporarily halted several times as Australia has dealt with small community outbreaks.

Health authorities said the traveler had visited New Zealand's national museum Te Papa as well as a number of restaurants, stores and tourist spots. Te Papa announced it was closed and would provide updates as the situation unfolded.

Health authorities said the traveler visited Wellington from Saturday through Monday before returning to Australia and testing positive for COVID-19. They said four close contacts of the traveler were self-isolating and had all tested negative for the virus.

Associated Press writer Rod McGuirk in Canberra, Australia, contributed to this report.
HALIFAX - When word came last November that Nova Scotia's Liberal government had imposed rent control during the COVID-19 pandemic, Sarah DeWolfe was hopeful her worries over rising housing costs would be put on hold.

Geoff MacLellan, left, minister of trade for Nova Scotia, attends the Conference of New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers on August 13, 2018, in Stowe, Vt. Now the minister of housing, MacLellan acknowledges legislation protecting tenants needs to be "beefed up." THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Lisa Rathke

HALIFAX - When word came last November that Nova Scotia's Liberal government had imposed rent control during the COVID-19 pandemic, Sarah DeWolfe was hopeful her worries over rising housing costs would be put on hold.

It was a hope that didn't last long for the 27-year-old mother of two young children.

DeWolfe says in early December her landlord informed her that rent for her Antigonish, N.S., apartment would rise from $650 a month to $1,000 as of January. In May, she says, her rent rose again to $1,200, despite the temporary two per cent cap on rent hikes brought in by the housing minister under the Emergency Management Act.

She receives about $400 per month from the province for rent assistance, but the $800 she's been paying on her own now constitutes over half of her income as a cafeteria worker. "I suffer with mental illness. I have two kids. I didn't want the stress of going to (small claims) court. (The landlord) told me he has more power than me and he'd make sure I'd not win anything," DeWolfe said in a recent interview.

It's the kind of situation advocates say they've seen more of in the past year, as renters in the province fear pursuing complaints because they can't risk losing their housing in a tight market. And even when tenants decide to challenge treatment they consider illegal, landlords rarely face repercussions.

Mark Culligan, community legal worker at the Dalhousie Legal Aid Service in Halifax, says rent increases like DeWolfe's above the two per cent limit are not uncommon. "I think I've seen about a dozen of those cases since January," he said in a recent interview. Often, Culligan says, tenants fear reprisals in a system where the fines and penalties provided for in legislation are hardly ever applied.

DeWolfe said when she told her landlord she might pursue the matter before a residential tenancy officer and small claims court, he suggested that would likely lead to her eventual eviction.

Donald MacKay, the building's owner and landlord, said in a May 28telephone interview he needed to increase rent in order to pay for upgrades and repairs. He said when he inherited the property it was in poor condition, with the rent charged at an extremely low rate.

"(DeWolfe) wanted work done, and I said 'I'm going to go in and do the work and I'm going to increase the rent.' It's a three-bedroom flat of a house. If you want to go look in Antigonish, and see what rents go for for a three-bedroom flat, that's how it is." he said.

MacKay ended the interview by hanging up and did not respond to a followup question left on his voice mail asking if he had told DeWolfe she would eventually be evicted if she pressed her case.

Culligan says existing penalty provisions under the Residential Tenancies Act  along with fines of between $500 to $10,000 for individuals who breach temporary rent control provisions of the Emergency Management Act  aren't being enforced. Before the temporary rent controls came into effect, obtaining fines for disobeying legislation was equally unlikely, he said.

Research by Mady Gillespie, who worked with the legal aid centre in 2020 while completing her law degree, found that there's no record of fines being imposed under the Residential Tenancies Act over the past 15 years, even though the legislation provides for $1,000 fines for breaching the act.

She found the problem is that anyone seeking a fine must get the approval of the attorney general, and the act is unclear whether it's up to the tenancies officers or the tenant to push for a punishment. "Nowhere in the Nova Scotia Residential Tenancies Act does it say who is meant to be the one to begin the proceedings," she wrote.

Gillespie found a few examples that are more than 15 years old where small claims courts had imposed "exemplary and punitive damages," in one case for $2,000, but this is a lengthy and difficult process few tenants can pursue.

One of the Dalhousie clinic's clients, Ahmed El-Ghanam, a former Dalhousie University engineering student, was thrown out of his one-room apartment in 2019 after trying to serve notice to the landlord that he planned to leave.

"He (the landlord) flipped out and was shouting at me an inch away from my face ... and said 'Get out of my house,'" he recalled in a recent interview.

El-Ghanam said he felt unsafe. He went to his room, removed his belongings, left the house and later made a claim against his landlord for the return of his security deposit and for rent, for a total of $556. The landlord didn't appear before the residential tenancy hearing, and residential tenancy officer Dawn Miller said in her ruling she would award El-Ghanam the amount requested  but she didn't impose any penalty.

The student went to small claims court and won an order for repayment of his deposit, but over a year later, the sheriff has failed to collect the money, and El-Ghanam said he's no longer willing to continue risking the sheriff's fee to have the collection effort continue, fearing it's a waste of money.

"As a person who was the victim ... I went to the courts. I pursued the law and basically the law failed me. What's the point of having a law if it is not enforced?" asked El-Ghanam. The landlord could not be reached for comment.

Meanwhile, a recently published report of the Nova Scotia Affordable Housing Commission found the balance of power has shifted dramatically away from tenants in recent years due to shortages of low-rent housing, with more than 44,000 Nova Scotians in need of affordable housing.

Culligan says the lack of administrative penalties and an enforcement unit in the Nova Scotia system means there is little to prevent landlords from making threats, or refusing to carry out repairs."Tenants are in greater need of protection from the state as their bargaining power in the marketplace erodes," he said.

Geoff MacLellan, the province's housing minister, said last month he's aware the Residential Tenancies Act "has got to be beefed up," but he did not propose specifics.

Kevin Russell, the executive director of the Investment Property Owners Association of Nova Scotia, said in an interviewlast week that property owners are also at times mistreated by tenants, some of who simply don't pay rent and force them into lengthy processes to carry out an eviction and to be paid.

He said it's a small minority of landlords who commit improper actions, but the association is open to modernizing the act to find ways to improve adherence to its regulations by both tenants and landlords.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 23, 2021.
UNITED NATIONS (AP)  The United States voted against a U.N. resolution Wednesday that overwhelmingly condemned the American economic embargo of Cuba for the 29th year, maintaining the Trump administrations opposition and refusing to return to the Obama administrations 2016 abstention.

In this photo provided by the United Nations, Cuba's Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez, addresses the U.N. General Assembly at United Nations headquarters, Wednesday, June 23, 2021. (Eskinder Debebe/United Nations via AP)

UNITED NATIONS (AP)  The United States voted against a U.N. resolution Wednesday that overwhelmingly condemned the American economic embargo of Cuba for the 29th year, maintaining the Trump administrations opposition and refusing to return to the Obama administrations 2016 abstention.

The vote in the 193-member General Assembly was 184 countries supporting the condemnation, the United States and Israel opposing it, and Brazil, Colombia and Ukraine abstaining. Four countries did not vote -- Central African Republic, Myanmar, Moldova and Somalia.

Before the vote, the U.S. Missions political coordinator, Rodney Hunter, told the assembly that the Biden administration voted no because the United States believes sanctions are key to advancing democracy and human rights which remain at the core of our policy efforts toward Cuba.

Sanctions are a legitimate way to achieve foreign policy, national security, and other national and international objectives, Hunter said, and are one set of tools in our broader effort toward Cuba to advance democracy, promote respect for human rights, and help the Cuban people exercise the fundamental freedoms enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

We therefore oppose this resolution, he said.

Cuba's Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez, addresses the U.N. General Assembly at United Nations headquarters, Wednesday, June 23, 2021. (Eskinder Debebe/United Nations via AP)

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez accused the Biden administration of following Trump administration policies that tightened economic, commercial and financial sanctions and restricted travel by U.S. citizens in a blow to its tourism sector, which caused the country record losses estimated at around $5 billion.

All these measures remain in force today and are being fully implemented, he said. And paradoxically, they are shaping up the behavior of the current U.S. administration particularly during the months when Cuba has experienced the highest COVID-19 infection rate, the highest number of fatalities and a much worse economic impact.

Rodriguez said the restrictions remain despite the Democratic Party platform that promised voters to swiftly reverse the actions taken by the administration of Donald Trump, particularly the elimination of restrictions on travel to Cuba, financial remittances and the implementation of the bilateral migration accords, including the granting of visas.

He said a large majority of Americans support lifting the embargo, restoring freedom to travel and establishing normal relations.

There are some who put the blame of this pernicious inertia on the electoral ambitions associated to Florida or the balances, in no way transparent, of the political and legislative elites, Rodriguez said.

The General Assemblys last vote in November 2019, during its 74th session, was 187-3 with the U.S., Israel and Brazil voting no, and Colombia and Ukraine abstaining. The assemblys 75th session began in September 2020, but because of the COVID-19 pandemic the vote on the Cuba resolution was postponed from last fall to Wednesday.

General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding and are unenforceable, but they reflect world opinion and the vote has given Cuba an annual stage to demonstrate the isolation of the U.S. on the embargo.

It was imposed in 1960 following the revolution led by Fidel Castro and the nationalization of properties belonging to U.S. citizens and corporations. Two years later it was strengthened.

Former Cuban President Raul Castro and then-President Barack Obama officially restored relations in July 2016, and that year the U.S. abstained on the resolution calling for an end to the embargo for the first time. But Obamas successor, Donald Trump, sharply criticized Cubas human rights record, and in 2017 the U.S. again voted against the resolution.

Hunter, the U.S. diplomat, said the United States recognizes the challenges the Cuban people face.

That is why the United States is a significant supplier of humanitarian goods to Cuba and one of Cubans principal trading partners, he said. Every year we authorize billions of dollars worth of exports to Cuba, including food and other agricultural commodities, medicines, medical devices, telecommunications equipment, consumer goods, and other items to support the Cuban people.

Cubas Rodriguez sharply disagreed. He said the damage to Cubans from the embargo is incalculable and accused the United States of a massive, flagrant and systematic violation of their human rights, arguing that under the 1948 Geneva Convention this qualifies as an act of genocide.

In the health area, the foreign minister said, theres a lingering impossibility to access equipment, technologies, devices, therapies and the best-suited pharmaceuticals from U.S. companies. And the embargo, which Cubans call a blockade, has deprived the country's industries of funds and restricted food imports from the U.S. to specific volumes that create shortages, rising prices, and long lines day after day in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, he said.

Cuba demands to be left in peace, to live without a blockade, and calls for an end to the persecution of our commercial and financial relations with the rest of the world, Rodriguez said. We call for an end to manipulation, discrimination and the obstacles to relations between Cubans living in the United States and their relatives in Cuba and the country where they were born.
Business leaders and commerce stakeholders are calling Tuesdays government announcement about the Manitoba Bridge Grant incomplete and a mere tweak to supports for struggling firms.

Business leaders and commerce stakeholders are calling Tuesdays government announcement about the Manitoba Bridge Grant "incomplete" and a "mere tweak" to supports for struggling firms.

Finance Minister Scott Fielding said $5,000-a-pop will now be doled out towards new applicants of the emergency support program that werent previously eligible. This would help seasonal businesses impacted by COVID-19 restrictions in particular, Fielding told reporters at a news conference Tuesday afternoon.

But not only will those new applicants be unable to receive retroactive payments for earlier rounds of the Bridge Grant, other cash-strapped businesses that had qualified previously are not being offered any new financial support.

"Certainly, wed hoped for a lot more," Chuck Davidson, president of the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce, told the Free Press. "Its definitely just a tweak to allow anyone that might not have been getting help to get some help now from the province.

"Does this do anything for the many gyms and service industry companies that I talk to on a regular basis? I dont think so, its nothing for them  and theyve been at this, trudging along for 16 months or so now."

Fielding believes roughly 1,000 Manitoba businesses will be helped through this announcement, which is keeping aside about $5 million in total for funding. It includes storefronts and home-based companies that hadnt applied earlier, and will be based on 10 per cent of their most recent calendar-year revenues.

"Weve been offering very generous supports so far, but we didnt want seasonal businesses or a new business to miss out," said Fielding. "So, things like a chip stand or a gift shop in a resort town, that are impacted and still struggling, will now get this support."

Fielding would not answer why further aid isnt being offered to other businesses, only hinting at "some measures soon to come." He said financial support might start to wind down and "look different" as public-health restrictions are lifted.

Mikaela MacKenzie / The Canadian Press Manitoba Finance Minister Scott Fielding.

"You know, businesses would rather be allowed to open as quickly and safely as possible, so our focus is on that," said Fielding. "These bridge-type of programs are good when you do have a lockdown-type situation, but... I think its really important to have some kind of incentives in place for businesses to rehire and do it in a safe way when thats possible."

Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce president Loren Remillard wasnt exactly pleased. "Its like commenting on a budget that only produces the odd pages," he said Tuesday.

"I know this is welcome for businesses that slipped through the cracks before, so Im happy thats being addressed. But if the finance minister is alluding to other supports that could be coming, I think its best to reserve judgments until its all announced. Of course, it wouldve been nice to see it all come at the same time."

So far, the Bridge Grant has handed out just over $291 million to nearly 15,000 private enterprises, not-for-profit organizations and registered charities. Thats a combination of four rounds of grants, which qualified some businesses to get up to $20,000 in total since November of 2020.

Some hotels, bars and lounges which offer prepared food services might also automatically get a $2,000 top-up, apart from the $5,000 being offered. It was originally only meant for restaurants, said Fielding, "and now were trying to widen the reach of that."

Jonathan Alward, Manitoba director for the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, said hes happy the province finally announced what business advocates like him have been asking for weeks.

"Will this be enough for owners to pay their bills, though? For some, it could be a make-or-break amount to keep them going. For others, obviously not enough at all," he said. "Were all just hoping now for some good news with reopenings."

A provincial portal has been set up online for the Bridge Grant. Applications must be made by July 16.

temur.durrani@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @temurdur
MANITOBA Tory MPs were split on a vote to ban conversion therapy.

MANITOBA Tory MPs were split on a vote to ban conversion therapy.

MPs passed Bill C-6 in a 263-63 vote.

If passed by the Senate, the bill would ban anyone from helping a minor to attend classes or counselling to change their sexual orientation or gender identity, or compelling an adult to do so.

The Liberals introduced the measure in March 2020, and have widely publicized opposition from social-conservative MPs ahead of an anticipated election.

Three Manitoba Conservatives supported the bill: Raquel Dancho (Kildonan-St. Paul), Larry Maguire (Brandon-Souris) and Marty Morantz (Charleswood-St. James-Assiniboia-Headingley).

Four voted against the legislation: Candice Bergen (Portage-Lisgar), James Bezan (Selkirk-Interlake-Eastman), Ted Falk, (Provencher), and Dan Mazier (Dauphin-Swan River-Neepawa).

Sixty-two of the 119 Conservative MPs voted against the bill.

In a statement, the Tories noted the Liberals had refused an amendment that would have clarified that the bill targets coercive practices but not religious advice.

"Conservatives have been clear in our opposition to conversion therapy and attempts to forcibly change a persons sexual orientation," wrote Conservative justice critic Rob Moore.
A year after George Floyd was murdered by a police officer in Minneapolis  sparking thousands of people to gather at the Manitoba Legislature for a Black Lives Matter demonstration  many Winnipeggers say they have not only seen few improvements in race relations, but also little progress made by the Winnipeg Police Service in that area.

A year after George Floyd was murdered by a police officer in Minneapolis  sparking thousands of people to gather at the Manitoba Legislature for a Black Lives Matter demonstration  many Winnipeggers say they have not only seen few improvements in race relations, but also little progress made by the Winnipeg Police Service in that area.

The poll, conducted by Probe Research for the Winnipeg Free Press, found more than half of Winnipeggers  or 52 per cent  say race relations in Winnipeg have stayed the same in the last year.

The poll found 22 per cent of Winnipeggers, or about one in five, believe race relations have worsened, while 12 per cent of Winnipeggers believe race relations improved.

And, while 42 per cent of Winnipeggers believe Winnipeg police have made no changes in the wake of the BLM movement, 16 per cent say police have made changes for the better, while six per cent said the changes have been for the worse.

Mary Agnes Welch, a principal with Probe Research, said on Tuesday the main takeaway from the poll is: "We don't feel much has changed."

"For me, the upshot is that after all this debate, with people taking to the streets, and with a bit of a reckoning on how police treat BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, people of colour) folks, we aren't convinced things have changed," Welch said.

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Protesters gather at the side of the Manitoba Legislative Building for a rally in support of justice for black lives June 5, 2020. For many Winnipeggers, not much has changed in the way Winnipeg Police deal with BIPOC people.

"After all this emotion and all this debate, for Winnipeggers it hasn't amounted to much change yet."

The poll also found that neither age nor gender made much difference in the responses. Younger Winnipeggers are only slightly more likely to believe police haven't made any changes because of the BLM movement, while Winnipeggers aged 55 and older are slightly more likely to feel they have.

As for where race relations stand now, a Probe Research poll conducted for the Free Press last September found 26 per cent of people polled had personally experienced racism in some form during the previous year, more than eight in 10 Manitobans agreed the division between Indigenous and non-Indigenous citizens is a serious issue in the province, and seven in 10 agreed racism in general is a serious problem in the province.

"After all this emotion and all this debate, for Winnipeggers it hasn't amounted to much change yet."  Mary Agnes Welch

Winnipeg police Chief Danny Smyth was in scheduled meetings on Tuesday afternoon and unavailable for comment.

Coun. Markus Chambers, chairman of the Winnipeg Police Board, said from the board's point of view, restrictions owing to COVID-19 have hampered their efforts in meeting with the community on BLM issues.

"Issues like this demand a face-to-face kind of meeting as opposed to something virtual," said Chambers.

"There's a lot lost in virtual presentations or virtual meetings. We haven't had the opportunity, in this last year of COVID  of course, Black Lives Matter taking place last June  to have those in-person meetings that are so critical in terms of capturing the essence of what people are saying and how we can make that meaningful change.

"To have those in-person meetings, to sit down and discuss and network and have organic solutions come out of those discussions, it hasn't been easy."

But, Chambers said, even with COVID, the board has put forward a request to support body cameras for police officers  the motion to fund the program is being voted on by city council this week  while they have called on the service to hire more BIPOC officers.

"Hopefully we can do more of that this year because there have been more officers retiring," he said, noting that where normally about 40 officers retire annually, this year there are about 60. "We want to increase visibility of minorities among our rank.

"There is work being done. Change is gradual, it's slow, it doesn't work at breakneck speed the way some people want to see, but we are working towards making those changes and making sure the voices that have stated what the changes should be are being heard."

The poll, a random and representative sampling of 600 Winnipeg adults between June 2 and 11, is considered accurate within plus or minus 4.9 percentage points.

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca
The provincial government looks set to remove a key hurdle that prevents new homes from being built near Winnipegs airport  potentially overriding a city effort to update those rules.

The provincial government looks set to remove a key hurdle that prevents new homes from being built near Winnipegs airport  potentially overriding a city effort to update those rules.

The Manitoba government is proposing a new map for Winnipegs airport-vicinity protection area. Residential construction has been severely restricted within that zone since 1994, over concerns new residents would complain about airport noise, thereby threatening the airports 24-7 operations.

The draft airport vicinity protection area map.

The provincial regulation could be altered after a 45-day consultation period that started Monday. However, a provincial news release states Winnipeg "must" update its bylaws to reflect the change within six months of that regulation taking effect.

While Winnipeg bylaws are being updated, the province also expects the city to assess development proposals as though the changes are already in place.

Justin Zarnowski, general counsel for Shindico real estate agency, said the regulation would allow new home construction on thousands of additional acres where it is now banned due to noise concerns.

"It actually changes the dynamics for a ton of development," Zarnowski said.

For example, he believes noise concerns could no longer be used to rule out a long-debated, $1-billion Shindico/Cadillac Fairview development proposal. That mixed-used development would have restaurants, stores, office space and high-rise residential towers at an 80-acre site surrounding the Polo Park mall (which includes the former Canad Inns Stadium land).

"(That development) means an awful lot of property taxes that would be paid to the city," said Zarnowski.

The provincial maps set out two airport vicinity areas.

In area 1, the section closest to the airport, no new single-family or multi-family homes could be constructed, though existing ones could be replaced.

In area 2, new residential units could be constructed, as long as developers fulfil specific noise-mitigation requirements.

The Winnipeg Airports Authority argues, however, the provinces unilateral plan would put the airport at risk.

"The province has sort of stepped over top of (the city process)... I appreciate theres a series of disagreements between the city and the province, but we dont feel like its fair that the airport is getting caught up as collateral damage in that," said Tyler MacAfee, WAA vice-president.

MacAfee said he fears a provincial noise study used as the basis for the new map underestimates how busy and loud the airport actually is, raising the risk new residents would, in fact, file noise complaints.

"This unilateral approach where we cant even validate the assumptions that have gone into this report, thats putting us at risk," he said.

City council is scheduled for a Thursday vote on ordering a contractor to help update the airport vicinity protection area. Its not immediately clear if the provincial announcement will pre-empt that work.

Coun. Cindy Gilroy, property and development committee chairwoman, said shes concerned about a lack of provincial consultation on the decision.

"It is frustrating that theres no collaboration with the province on this matter Its our role as a city to make sure that were planning the city properly."

By contrast, Coun. Kevin Klein (Charleswood-Tuxedo-Westwood) welcomed the provinces decision to "take a leadership role" on the file.

"Development (has) been halted by the outdated airport plan (and) this will change all that. This is great for our economy," said Klein.

In an email, Mayor Brian Bowman said the provincial regulation is being reviewed by city lawyers and other staff.

In a written statement, a provincial spokesperson said Manitoba has the power to set development policies near the airport through Winnipegs charter. The statement stressed the proposal would better support development without compromising the airport.

"There are significant economic development opportunities in the city that are being unnecessarily restricted or delayed The new regulation will not compromise the seven-day a week, 24-hour operation of the airport," the statement said.

The spokesperson noted "all stakeholders" will be able to share thoughts on the regulation during the consultation period.

joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga
A family member of a 19-year-old woman charged with stabbing a 12-year-old boy to death on a North End street last week says theres more to the crime than meets the eye.

A family member of a 19-year-old woman charged with stabbing a 12-year-old boy to death on a North End street last week says theres more to the crime than meets the eye.

The Free Press has learned Shania Pirrie has been charged with manslaughter. She was released into the custody of her family after the fatal stabbing on Burrows Avenue near Main Street Friday night.

Police announced the arrest Tuesday, but refused to release the name of the accused.

A male who identified himself as a family member of Pirries told the Free Press outside the family home Tuesday that the incident "seemed to be" an act of self-defence, noting that Pirrie is a mother herself.

"She didnt want to (do it)," he said.

"If youd seen the way she was, like how Id seen her, the day it happened and the couple days after it happened, you would know."

SUPPLIED Sanchez Everette Boulanger was the second oldest of six siblings.

He said he hadnt heard much more about the incident, but called it "horrific."

A woman who did not identify herself emerged from the home and informed a reporter there were children inside and that the family had received death threats.

"We dont have anything to say," she said.

As the Free Press arrived at Pirries residence Tuesday afternoon, so did police, who met the family outside of the home.

The yard surrounding the home had a children's pool. On its windows was a tribute to the 215 Indigenous children who died at a Kamloops, B.C. residential school.

Spencer Bucci, who lives with his father on Burrows Avenue, described the stabbing to the Free Press Saturday.

He said on Friday night, he heard people shouting at each other through his open window, as he relaxed with his girlfriend. When he looked out, he saw two groups of people. One group consisted of three or four boys and a girl, he said. "The oldest one might have been 15; the youngest maybe 10."

JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS A memorial for Boulanger is set up beside a tree in the 200 block of Burrows Avenue.

The other group was a young woman and young man pushing a stroller with two children, who both looked under five, said Bucci.

"The woman was yelling, Get away from us! and Dont come close to us! and it looked like she had a knife in her hand," he said.

The knife looked long, maybe 15 centimetres, and had a dark blade, said Bucci.

Bucci said he then heard people yelling from down the street. He turned and saw people coming. When he looked back a moment later, he said, the boy had already been stabbed. Police said an off-duty nurse nearby helped officers treat the boy. He died in hospital that evening.

A spokeswoman for the Winnipeg Police Service said police would typically release the name of an accused, but decided against it in this case.

"This is a very sensitive case being the victim is 12 years old. In the spirit of due process and potential safety concerns, we will not be providing any details regarding this investigation at this time," Const. Dani McKinnon said in an email.

Pirrie appeared before a judicial justice of the peace shortly after 7 a.m. Tuesday and was released with the consent of the Crown, under the conditions she not move from the home of a Winnipeg family member without permission of the court, that she possess no weapons, and have no contact with four named witnesses.

DANIEL CRUMP / FREE PRESS FILES Blue chalk marks a spot where evidence was found during the initial police investigation.

Her next court date is Sept. 21.

The victim's mother, Joni Gabriel, said her son Sanchez Everette Boulanger was the second oldest of six siblings.

She stood outside a sparse grey home on a North End street, where kids played in the front yard and others sat in the back yard and had something to eat. She told a reporter she wasn't sure what to make of the arrest.

"I was happy," Gabriel said, but also confused.

"They said they made an arrest; it was manslaughter. I got mad at them and I was like, shouldn't it be murder?"

She said her son was a Grade 7 student who enjoyed going to school.

"He was polite. He had a soft heart," she said of Sanchez.

ERIK PINDERA / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS "They said they made an arrest; it was manslaughter. I got mad at them and I was like, shouldn't it be murder?" said Joni Gabriel, mother of Boulanger.

But he recently got caught up with the wrong crowd, which worried her.

"He stopped wanting to go (to school), he started talking back more to me, hanging around kids I didn't really like," Gabriel said.

"He was always hanging around with a bit older boys, going with them... I'd be telling them 'this can't happen'. He wouldn't listen to me."

Police have said little about the stabbing, but have called it "exceptionally troubling."

Police believe the confrontation was not gang-related, said Const. Jay Murray at a press conference Saturday. He said police believe the groups "may not have known each other" before the attack. "Numerous" community members called in to report the argument or the stabbing itself, he said.

 with files from Dean Pritchard and Cody Sellar

malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca

erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca

Erik Pindera

Multimedia producer Erik Pindera is a multimedia producer at the Winnipeg Free Press. Read full biography
Since leaving office in January, Donald Trump has been  by his standards  eerily quiet. Some commentators even speculated that absent the bully pulpit of the White House and silenced on social media, Trump might just fade away altogether. Such hopes have been subsequently dashed; the brief lull in Trumps presence seemingly just an interlude between his presidency and the post-presidency revenge tour to come.

Opinion

Since leaving office in January, Donald Trump has been  by his standards  eerily quiet. Some commentators even speculated that absent the bully pulpit of the White House and silenced on social media, Trump might just fade away altogether. Such hopes have been subsequently dashed; the brief lull in Trumps presence seemingly just an interlude between his presidency and the post-presidency revenge tour to come.

Responding to Facebooks June 4 decision to ban him on its platform for another two years, Trump released a cryptic statement teasing a potential run for office again in 2024, one year after his Facebook ban will be lifted. The next day, Trump spoke for 90 minutes to 1,200 GOP officials and hardline activists at a Republican convention in North Carolina, the first of many looming appearances planned across battleground states.

Pre-pandemic, Trumps freewheeling, evangelical-style, big-tent revival rallies drew crowds in the tens of thousands from across the country. Such mega-events may start up again rather soon. Despite how vaccination rates in the U.S. have plateaued  some states are now ordering only a fraction of their allotted doses due to a lack of demand  reopening plans are quite far along, with coronavirus restrictions lifted and economic activity largely back to normal in at least 41 of 50 states.

Audiences at Trumps future public appearances will steadily grow and Republican strategists will be eager to harness Trump to mobilize right-wing voters ahead of congressional midterm elections next November. At the same time, left-leaning news outlets that reaped record profits during Trumps time in office may be unable to resist covering and dissecting his re-emergence. CNN, for example, has lost half its prime-time viewership since President Joe Biden came to power.

Trumps agenda remains tethered to the alternate reality of "The Big Lie"  that the 2020 election was rigged against him, something polls suggest six in 10 Republican voters still believe, despite zero supporting evidence. He also remains hell-bent on punishing elitist, old-guard Republicans who are increasingly outnumbered and unnerved by how Trumps cult of personality has empowered the darker nativist and conspiracy-obsessed elements within the GOP which now dominate its base.

Wyoming Sen. Liz Cheney, daughter of former vice-president Dick Cheney, became the highest-profile casualty of this Republican civil war in May, when she was stripped of her leadership role for denouncing Trumps claims of election fraud and voting to impeach him for inciting the U.S. Capitol riots in January.

Cheney, at the time the third-highest ranking Republican in the House of Representatives, was dropped in favour of political neophyte Elise Stefanik, a 36-year-old New York congresswoman whose sole qualification appears to be her aggressive defence of Trump during his impeachment hearings.

Trump has garnered new ammunition for attacks, too.

There are credible arguments that actions taken by his administration expedited the creation of the very vaccines now ushering America back to quasi-normality. Trump was also an early backer of the Wuhan lab-leak theory that posits the coronavirus outbreak originated not from a wet market in the Chinese city, but by escaping from a nearby virology lab linked to Chinas military. Initially dismissed by the World Health Organization and most experts, the theory has been revived in light of a U.S. intelligence report last month that convinced Biden to order an urgent probe into the theorys likelihood.

Undocumented migrant flows across the southern U.S. border, a prime grievance of right-wing America, have also spiked in recent months after the Biden administration signalled a more compassionate stance on immigration. Some 180,000 people were arrested trying to illegally cross the border in May alone, the highest monthly total in 20 years.

State-level Republican officials, meanwhile, have been busy abetting Trumps cause by tabling a torrent of proposed voter suppression laws  389 bills in 48 states as of mid-May  and turning Mississippi courts into ground zero for a new generational challenge to U.S. abortion laws, a flashpoint in the U.S. culture wars from which Trumpism gets its oxygen and political currency.

Does this all point to a Trump presidency redux? Only time can tell. Another possible outcome is that Trump opts to play political godfather instead by endorsing a younger, more polished Republican candidate who toes the MAGA line.

Whether Trumps second act places him back in the White House in four years or ends up being a noisy piece of political theatre is ultimately up to Americans. Until then, the rest of us can only watch.

Kyle Hiebert is a Winnipeg-based researcher and analyst, and former deputy editor of the Africa Conflict Monitor
There were many joyful reunions in Manitoba personal-care homes this week, thanks to a small card that provides proof of immunization. The same card could be key to unlocking pandemic restrictions and opening Manitoba to wider economic and social freedoms.

There were many joyful reunions in Manitoba personal-care homes this week, thanks to a small card that provides proof of immunization. The same card could be key to unlocking pandemic restrictions and opening Manitoba to wider economic and social freedoms.

Possession of the COVID-19 immunization card permitted family members to resume full visits with loved ones in care homes beginning Monday. Available in digital and physical versions, the card is available two weeks after a second vaccine dose and provides the persons name and a scannable QR code.

MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister

Premier Brian Pallister has said the card will let Manitobans travel within Canada without having to self-isolate for two weeks after they return. He also said it may eventually permit access to major sporting events and other facilities, such as museums.

An advertising campaign for the Visa credit card once used the the slogan "Everywhere you want to be." Its tempting to borrow the advertising tag line as a fitting aspiration for the geographical and social opportunities that could someday soon be allowed to holders of the Manitoba immunization card.

After 16 months of pandemic restrictions, most Manitobans will welcome the return of the freedom to be "everywhere you want to be," as long as its safe. People will be more likely to to feel safer and resume social and economic activities if they know everyone in the group  whether in the cabin of a plane, or the dining room of a restaurant  has the card as proof of immunization. Doubly dosed, doubly sure of of safety.

The card is such a good idea, its surprising some Canadian jurisdictions are slow to catch on. Many provinces offer paper printouts recording vaccination doses, as Manitoba also does through its Shared Health website, but printouts without security measures are easily manipulated and not reliable evidence of full vaccination.

After 16 months of pandemic restrictions, most Manitobans will welcome the return of the freedom to be "everywhere you want to be," as long as its safe.

Alberta has said outright it wont introduce vaccine passports. Other provinces, including Ontario, have said theyre considering provincial immunization cards, but so far Ontarios efforts are stalled at talk and study. Saskatchewan offers electronic and paper copies of vaccination records, including a wallet card with a record of COVID-19 vaccination.

Federally, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada will join a growing list of countries issuing vaccination certificates and will open borders to fully vaccinated travellers, but he said that back in April and so far Canada doesnt have the promised certificate. While Canada is apparently still working on it, at least seven countries within the European Union have already launched their digital vaccine cards.

As far as travelling internationally, a public health agency spokesperson said on Monday federal officials are still determining whether the Manitoba cards will be sufficient to let returning Manitobans skip the mandatory two-week federal quarantine when re-entering Canada.

The risk of unfairly excluding people who cant access an immunization card has drawn concerns from the Manitoba Human Rights Commission, which cites possible discrimination against people who are unvaccinated because of disability, religion, political belief or poverty. Such concerns are legitimate and should be accommodated if possible, perhaps by studying alternative measures being used by other places that already have vaccine passports.

The Manitoba government obviously decided the greater good outweighs the denial of privileges to non-immunized people. Good for the Pallister government, which is a sentiment not frequently expressed these days. The immunization cards are a welcome win for a province that has the highest COVID-19 infection rate in Canada, and where an alarming 71 per cent of Manitobans say the mishandling of the crisis has decreased their faith in the provincial government, according to a poll conducted for the Winnipeg Free Press.

For Manitobans eager to begin recovering from the pandemic, the immunization card could be just the ticket.
An Indiana woman on Wednesday became the first defendant to be sentenced in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and avoided time behind bars, while a member of the Oath Keepers extremist group pleaded guilty in a conspiracy case and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in a major step forward for the massive investigation.

FILE - In this Jan. 6, 2021, file photo insurrectionists loyal to President Donald Trump breach the Capitol in Washington. Prosecutors secured the first guilty plea in the major case brought against members of the Oath Keepers extremist group in the attack on the U.S. Capitol, while an Indiana woman who became first person to be sentenced for the Jan. 6 riot avoided time behind bars. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

An Indiana woman on Wednesday became the first defendant to be sentenced in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and avoided time behind bars, while a member of the Oath Keepers extremist group pleaded guilty in a conspiracy case and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in a major step forward for the massive investigation.

The two developments signal that the cases against those charged in the deadly siege are slowly advancing, even as the U.S. Department of Justice and the courthouse in Washington, D.C., struggle under the weight of roughly 500 federal arrests across the U.S. And it comes as Republicans in Washington attempt to downplay the violence committed by members of the mob supporting former President Donald Trump.

Graydon Young, who was accused alongside 15 other members and associates of the Oath Keepers of conspiring to block the congressional certification of Joe Bidens presidential victory, pleaded guilty to two counts: conspiracy and obstruction of an official proceeding. It was the first guilty plea in the major conspiracy case brought against members of the group.

The second charge calls for up to 20 years in prison, but U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta said federal sentencing guidelines call for Young to serve between 5 1/4 years and 6 1/2 years behind bars. Prosecutors may seek even less time in exchange for his cooperation against other defendants.

Young, 55, of Englewood, Florida, was arrested in February and charged in the sweeping conspiracy case accusing members of the Oath Keepers of coming to Washington prepared to use violence and intent on stopping the certification of the vote. Authorities said in court documents that Young joined the Florida chapter of the Oath Keepers in December, writing that he was looking to get involved in helping ...

Later that month, Young reached out to a company that does firearms and combat training about a rifle class for four people, according to the indictment. Authorities say Young, wearing a helmet and tactical vest, was part of the military-style stack seen on camera marching through the crowd before entering the Capitol building.

Young's attorneys didn't immediately respond to emails sent Wednesday seeking comment.

Another Oath Keepers member, Jon Ryan Schaffer, has also pleaded guilty in the riot, but was not charged in the conspiracy case. Schaffer has agreed to cooperate with investigators and potentially testify against other defendants.

Anna Morgan Lloyd, 49, of Indiana, was ordered by a federal judge to serve three years of probation, perform 120 hours of community service and pay $500 in restitution after admitting to unlawfully entering the Capitol. She pleaded guilty to a single misdemeanor charge under a deal with prosecutors.

After the riot, Lloyd described Jan. 6 on Facebook as the best day ever."

On Wednesday, she apologized to the court, her family and the American people, saying she went to Washington that day to peacefully show her support for Trump.

Im ashamed that it became a savage display of violence that day. And I would have never been there if I had a clue it was going to turn out that way, Lloyd told the judge. It was never my intent to be a part of anything thats so disgraceful to our American people.

In seeking probation for Lloyd, prosecutors noted that she was not involved in any violence and destruction or preplanning and coordination of the Capitol breach. Lloyd was invited by her hairdresser to drive to Washington to hear Trump speak, her attorney wrote in court documents.

U.S. District Court Judge Royce Lamberth said he was giving her a break, but didnt want others to think that probation  and not a stiffer sentence  would be the norm.

Legally, I could give you the six months, but is that really what we want our judiciary to do? the judge asked.

Lamberth said he struggled with what would be an appropriate sentence for Lloyd because he views the riot as a serious crime. This wasnt a peaceful demonstration the way it turned out. It was not an accident, he said. It was intended to and brought a halt to the very functioning of our government.

He said he was especially troubled by some lawmakers who are seeking to rewrite the history of the Capitol riot.

I dont know what planet they were on, but there were millions of people in this country that saw what happened on Jan. 6 and that saw what you saw and what you just described: a disgrace to our country, the judge said.

In a letter to the judge asking for leniency, Lloyd wrote that she was a registered Democrat but that she and her husband began supporting Trump in 2016 because he was standing up for what we believe in.

After her arrest, Lloyds lawyer gave her a list of books and movies to help her see what life is like for others in our country, Lloyd wrote. Lloyd said she has sought to educate herself by watching movies such as Schindlers List and the History Channels Burning Tulsa and reading Bryan Stevensons Just Mercy.

Ive lived a sheltered life and truly havent experienced life the way many have, Lloyd wrote. Ive learned that even though we live in a wonderful country things still need to improve. People of all colors should feel as safe as I do to walk down the street.

Four other people  a Tennessee man, a Maryland man and a Virginia couple  have pleaded guilty to the same misdemeanor charge in the last two weeks.

Earlier Wednesday, another man, Robert Maurice Reeder of Maryland, admitted to entering the Capitol, but his lawyer said he didnt force his way inside and didnt damage any property or hurt anyone.

Before his arrest, an attorney for Reeder provided federal authorities with a compilation of photos and videos that he took with his cellphone at the Capitol. A video seemed to show Reeder chanting, Fight for Trump! and he recorded an assault on a Capitol police officer, according to the FBI.

You need to retreat! Reeder apparently told the officer, an FBI agent wrote in a court filing.

A prosecutor said Tennessee resident Brian Wayne Ivey, who pleaded guilty on Tuesday, entered the Capitol through a window that somebody else broke with a riot shield and spent roughly 30 minutes inside the building.

Joshua Bustle of Virginia, who pleaded guilty alongside his wife, will also be seeking probation, his lawyer said. Jessica Bustles attorney described them as good, decent, hardworking people, who were urged to come to Washington by very powerful people and groups.

They are not criminals or insurrectionists or rioters. They were not looking to break laws when they came to DC on the 6th. They violated minor laws on the 6th and they have accepted responsibility and accountability for doing so, Jessica Bustles attorney, Nabeel Kibria, wrote in an email.
MOSCOW (AP)  Russia said one of its warships in the Black Sea fired warning shots and a warplane dropped bombs Wednesday to force a British destroyer out of an area near Crimea that Moscow claims as its territorial waters, but Britain denied that account and insisted its ship wasn't fired upon.

FILE - This March 20, 2020 file photo shows HMS Defender in Portsmouth, England. The Russian military says its warship has fired warning shots and a warplane dropped bombs to force the British destroyer from Russia's waters near Crimea in the Black Sea. The incident on Wednesday June 23, 2021, marks the first time since the Cold War era when Moscow used live ammunition to deter a NATO warship, reflecting soaring Russia-West tensions. (Ben Mitchell/PA via AP, File)

MOSCOW (AP)  Russia said one of its warships in the Black Sea fired warning shots and a warplane dropped bombs Wednesday to force a British destroyer out of an area near Crimea that Moscow claims as its territorial waters, but Britain denied that account and insisted its ship wasn't fired upon.

It was the first time since the Cold War that Moscow acknowledged using live ammunition to deter a NATO warship, reflecting the growing risk of military incidents amid soaring tensions between Russia and the West.

The Russian Defense Ministry said a patrol ship fired warning shots after the HMS Defender had ignored a notice against intrusion and sailed 3 kilometers (1.6 nautical miles) into Russias territorial waters near Sevastopol, the main Russian naval base in Crimea. It said a Russian Su-24 bomber also dropped four bombs ahead of the vessel to persuade the Defender to change course. Minutes later, the Defender left Russian waters, the ministry said.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova denounced the "rude British provocation that defies international law," and said Londons ambassador was being summoned. The Defense Ministry said it also called in the U.K. military attache in Moscow to protest the destroyers "dangerous move" and urged British authorities to investigate the crews actions.

Britains Ministry of Defense denied the Defender had been fired on or was in Russian waters, but had been in Ukrainian waters.

"No warning shots have been fired at HMS Defender," it said in a statement. "The Royal Navy ship is conducting innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law."

Russia annexed Ukraines Crimean Peninsula in 2014, a move not recognized by most countries, gaining access to its long Black Sea coast. Russia has chafed at NATO warships visiting near Crimea as destabilizing. In April, it declared a broader area off Crimea closed to foreign naval ships.

FILE - In this Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2015 file photo and provided by the Russian Defense Ministry Press Service, a Russian Su-24 bomber lands at Hemeimeem air base in Syria. The Russian military says its warship has fired warning shots and a warplane dropped bombs to force a British destroyer from Russia's waters near Crimea in the Black Sea. The incident on Wednesday June 23, 2021, marks the first time since the Cold War era when Moscow used live ammunition to deter a NATO warship, reflecting soaring Russia-West tensions. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP, File)

"We believe the Russians were undertaking a gunnery exercise in the Black Sea and provided the maritime community with prior warning of their activity," the British Ministry of Defense said. "No shots were directed at HMS Defender and we do not recognize the claim that bombs were dropped in her path."

British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said the Defender "carried out a routine transit from Odessa towards Georgia across the Black Sea."

"As is normal for this route, she entered an internationally recognized traffic separation corridor," he tweeted, adding that HMS Defender exited the corridor safely at 9:45 a.m. BST (0845 GMT; 4:45 a.m. EDT).

"As is routine, Russian vessels shadowed her passage and she was made aware of training exercises in her wider vicinity," he added.

Speaking to Parliaments defense committee, Wallace again denied Russias version of events.

"These are the things that come and go with Russia," he said. "Disinformation, misinformation is something that we have seen regularly. Were not surprised by it; we plan for it."

Asked if Defender's crew had seen or heard anything, he said "initial reports say they did hear or observe training noises somewhere to the rear of her but beyond visual range."

"We saw the reports this morning," said Max Blain, a spokesman for Prime Minister Boris Johnson. "Its incorrect to say either that it was fired on or this ship was in Russian waters. HMS Defender was taking the most direct and internationally recognized route between Ukraine and Georgia."

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a cabinet meeting via video conference at the Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, June 23, 2021. (Alexei Nikolsky, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

He emphasized that Britain, and much of the international community, does not recognize Russias annexation of Crimea.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said it was "clear proof of Ukraines position: Russias aggressive and provocative actions in the Black and Azov seas, its occupation and militarization of Crimea pose a lasting threat to Ukraine and allies."

"We need a new quality of cooperation between Ukraine & NATO allies in the Black Sea," Kuleba tweeted.

In November 2018, Russian coast guard ships fired on three Ukrainian gunboats trying to pass from the Black Sea into the Azov Sea and captured them along with 24 crewmembers. It returned the crew and the boats the following year.

HMS Defender, a Type 45 destroyer, is part of the U.K. Carrier Strike Group heading to the Indo-Pacific region. It was announced earlier this month that it would be temporarily breaking away from the group to carry out its "own set of missions" in the Black Sea.

Just before Wednesday's incident, Defender stopped in the Ukrainian port of Odessa, where Ukrainian and British officials and industry representatives signed an agreement to collaborate on boosting Ukraines naval capabilities.

NATO members Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria border the Black Sea. Warships from the U.S., U.K. and other NATO allies also have made increasingly frequent visits in support of Ukraine.

Speaking before the incident, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, the chief of the General Staff of the Russian armed forces, sharply criticized the deployment of NATO warships near Russian waters.

"The moves by warships of the U.S. and its allies have been clearly provocative," Gerasimov said at an international security conference in Moscow organized by the Defense Ministry. "It creates preconditions for incidents and doesn't help ease tensions in the military sphere."

He charged that the British destroyer HMS Dragon intruded into Russian waters near Crimea in October, and the U.S. destroyer USS John S. McCain violated the Russian border in the Sea of Japan in November.

In April, Russia imposed restrictions on foreign naval movements near Crimea until November in a move that drew strong complaints from Ukraine and the West. Russia rejected the criticism and noted the restrictions wouldnt interfere with commercial shipping.

Earlier this year, Russia also bolstered its troops near the border with Ukraine and warned Kyiv against using force to reclaim control of the country's eastern industrial heartland, where a conflict with Russia-backed separatists has killed more than 14,000 people in seven years. Moscow withdrew some of its forces after maneuvers, but Ukrainian officials say many of them remain.

Speaking earlier Wednesday via video to participants of the security conference, President Vladimir Putin expressed concern about NATO forces near Russia.

"We arent striving for a decisive, unilateral military advantage to tip the balance of forces in our favor," Putin said. "But we will never allow anyone else to tip that balance."

Russias relations with the West have sunk to the lowest levels since the Cold War, following Moscow's annexation of Crimea, accusations of Russian interference with elections, hacking attacks and other tensions.

In a speech at the same conference before Wednesday's incident, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said "the situation in Europe is explosive," and accused NATO of stonewalling Russian proposals to enhance security by refraining from military exercises near the borders of Russia and alliance members.

He said "the world is rapidly sinking in a new confrontation, which is much more dangerous than during the Cold War times."

Lawless reported from London.
A Reedsburg woman was sentenced Thursday after being arrested in February for driving drunk with a child in her car.

Brittany Marie Reilly, 31, faced seven years in prison for charges of first-offense drunken driving with a passenger under 16, driving with a prohibited alcohol content greater than or equal to 0.15% and felony bail jumping.

After pleading no contest to the count of OWI with a minor passenger, the bail jumping charge was dismissed and the prohibited alcohol content charge was dismissed, but read in, meaning it was considered in sentencing.

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Sauk County Circuit Court Judge Michael Screnock sentenced Reilly to 20 days in jail with Huber work release to begin by Aug. 13. Reilly also had her drivers license revoked for 14 months and was ordered to set up an alcohol and other drug assessment treatment plan. She was also ordered to immediately install an ignition interlock device o her vehicle.

Screnock ordered Reilly to pay $1,618 in fines and $35 for a blood draw to the Reedsburg Ambulance Service.
I feel its necessary to be informed when we walk into this room to make decisions, said Guckenberger. Now I cant get the information when I want it or when I need it.

Supervisor Tom Nickel argued that committee chairs will be required to provide this information, and warned they will have to fear the consequences of not responding. He called it a liability and warned he would not serve as a chair given that responsibility.

If this would pass, I would resign from being the chair of any committee, he said. Per this you would be held liable if it is not done.

He warned about the cost-free proviso.

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Thats not only the copying, but its also staff time to do it, he said.

That was later countered that forwarding a document by email costs nothing and would be the preferred option for answering a request.

Lisa Derr indicated that the rule is not to be confused with the Wisconsin Open Records Law, which covers a vast array of information not the focus of Rule 36.
The report dismissed various allegations  that many dead people voted, that hundreds of thousands of unsolicited absentee ballots were mailed to Michigan voters, that absentee ballots were counted multiple times, that tens of thousands of fraudulent absentee ballots were dumped at Detroit's counting center after the polls closed. Those ballots had been submitted throughout Election Day in drop boxes, in the mail and at clerk's offices.

The panel's Republicans recommended that drop boxes not be used or be closed sooner than 8 p.m. on election night so that processing and tabulating the ballots they contain do not extend long into the night. Democrats have said the move would disenfranchise some voters.

The committees report goes into considerable detail ... and I hope the public is reassured by the security and protections already in place, motivated to support necessary reforms to make it better and grateful for our fellow citizens who do the hard work of conducting our elections, said Sen. Ed McBroom, a Vulcan Republican who chairs the panel. Other recommendations include uniform signature-verification standards, the authorization of counting to begin before Election Day and the prohibition of unsolicited mailings of absentee ballot applications by the secretary of state.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP)  Roman Catholic priests sexually abused minors across Iowa for decades while church leaders covered it up, but reforms implemented in the last two decades have largely ended the problem, a three-year review by Iowas attorney general concluded.

A report issued by Attorney General Tom Miller said the number of complaints, victims and the duration of the abuse was overwhelming and the cover-up was extensive, similar to what has been found elsewhere in the U.S.

The image and reputation of the church were put ahead of the enormous harm to young people, the 30-page report found.

The review found that only five Iowa priests have been the subject of allegations since 2002, and that bishops who participated in concealing past problems are no longer in charge in Iowa.
Wisconsin Dells is preparing to start the next phase of the Trout/Fitzgerald Road construction project, which involves building a multi-use path and infrastructure improvements.

The common council unanimously approved the low bid of $2.02 million to Top Tier Grading Company for infrastructure improvements in Tax Incremental District 2, which includes construction for a multi-use path along Fitzgerald Road from County Road H to US Highway 12. A-1 Excavating, Gerke Excavating and Parisi Construction Co. were also considered with bids submitted between $2.4 million and $2.7 million.

The item was also unanimously approved for recommendation by the finance committee, which was held prior to the council meeting June 21. The construction includes reconstruction of the road, utilities and installation of the multi-use path, said Chris Tollaksen, the citys public works director.

The multi-use path will be a 10-foot lane sidewalk next to the road, he said. The area closest to Highway H, which is the next part of the project, will need separate approval from the common council due to a storm water grant the city is expected to receive for the project. Tollaksen is expecting the item to go before the council in July and work is expected to begin in August.
Tribute to Prof. Mzilikazi Khumalo

A celebrated composer of choral and traditional music, Professor Mzilikazi Khumalo passed away on 22 June 2021 following a long illness.

Wits University extends its heartfelt condolences to the family, colleagues and friends of the late Professor Mzilikazi Khumalo, a colossal figure in South Africas academic, cultural and public landscape.

A celebrated composer of choral and traditional music, Khumalo passed away on 22 June 2021 following a long illness. To the world, Khumalo was a renowned musician. However, to Wits University he was first and foremost an academic who contributed immensely to the development and academic standing of the study of African languages.

Khumalo trained as a teacher graduating with a BA degree majoring in English and isiZulu, and a B.A. Honours from Unisa. He joined the Department of African Languages at Wits as a tutor in 1969 and proceeded to earn his PhD in 1987. Khumalo served a long stint as Professor of African Languages and Head of the Department before retiring in 1998. He also devoted time to music studies including theory and composition under various leading figures in music education and performance like Charles Norburn of Pretoria, Professor Khabi Mngoma of the University of Zululand and Zandi Casan of the University of the Witwatersrand.

An acknowledged authority in African Languages Literature, he continued to serve as an Emeritus Professor at Wits University post his retirement.

He has left a rich legacy for South Africans through his teachings and music compositions. The distinctive features of Professor Khumalos compositions are a deep and seamless weaving of a remarkable range of historical, cultural, literary and musical sources and interests.

1958 marked the completion of his first composition, Ma Ngificwa Ukufa which was followed by the composition of more than 50 epic choral works including the internationally acclaimed African opera, uShaka kaSenzangakhona: An Epic in music and poetry on Shaka, son of Senzangakhona. He has been credited for composing the first African opera and shining the spotlight on the work of Princess Magogo kaDinuzulu  a Zulu princess and composer and artist. He has set numerous poems to music, ranging from foundational writers such as B.W. Vilakazi to contemporary poets such as Professor Themba C. Msimang.

Dedicated to music, he, together with Richard Cock created the Nation Building Massed Choir Festival as a celebration of the singing abilities of the African people. The choral choirs he has been involved with have toured and performed internationally to acclaim.

Professor Khumalo had the honour of serving in the Anthem Committee, a monumental national project that developed the new national anthem of South Africa. His compositions won numerous awards in his lifetime and he was bestowed with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2007, M-Net Literary Awards, and had a piano concerto composed in his honour, Mzilikazi Emhlabeni, composed by Bongani Ndodana-Green.

Wits University awarded Khumalo an honorary Doctorate in 2015 and he was bestowed the same honour by the University of South Africa, the University of Zululand, the University of Fort Hare and Stellenbosch University.

Lala kahle Mtungwa  your work will continue to bring joy for generations to come.
MARCY, N.Y. -- On Tuesday, Assemblywoman Marianne Buttonschon, D-119, recognized dozens of first responders at Maynard Fire Department for saving the life of a 27-year-old woman threatening to jump off a bridge on State Route 291 above the Barge Canal this past May.

The nine emergency agencies that responded to the Oneida 911 call were Kunkel Ambulance, Oneida County Sheriff's Office, New York State Police, Maynard Fire Department, Whitesboro Fire Department, Whitesboro Police Department, Oriskany Fire Department, New York Mills Police Department, and Yorkville Police Department.

Maynard Fire Chief, Randy Caldwell, says that this effort was the epitome of collaboration and a want to save lives.

"This incident was another fine example of a multi-agency response as you can see standing up here today which was well coordinated and most importantly, ended with a very favorable outcome," said Caldwell.

This was a rescue that required all hands on deck. After arriving on scene, both an effort from emergency responders and community members helped in securing the woman to the bridge using a state-issued police rope under both her arms. While Oriskany Fire Department was in the canal preparing for a potential water rescue, New York Mills Police Officer, Michael Firley, was on an aerial truck ladder attempting to calm her down, and ultimately, safely removing her from the edge of the bridge.

Buttonschon says that this is an example of how important these agencies are, because they care about the area residents, and want to keep them safe, saying "It provides a comfort to us because in a time of need, they come together for us."
UTICA, N.Y.  The Stevens-Swan Humane Society has been renamed in honor of a Utica animal advocate whose donations helped keep the shelter afloat.

When the shelter was suffering financially, Anita Vitullo donated $2 million to start a fund for SSHA through The Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties. After the generous gift, the SSHA board of directors approved a resolution to rename the organization Anitas Stevens-Swan Humane Society.

Even though our name has changed, our mission remains. We are committed to the prevention of animal cruelty and neglect, and we exist to make our community a safe haven for them. With an annual operating budget of $1.3 million, we rely heavily on donations, said Vitullo. We need a community-wide partnership of financial support to ensure the future of Anitas SSHS.

The shelter has also launched a new website where people can go to donate, view services or look at pets available for adoption.
COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. (UPDATED)  The Otsego County teen accused of killing is father at his Worcester home in 2019 was found guilty of murder Wednesday.

Dylan Robinson was convicted of burglary and second-degree murder, after he and four others broke into Kenneth Robinsons home to steal money and drugs, shot the man and then set his home on fire. Dylan was not convicted on the arson charge.

Earl Davis // WKTV Earl Davis // WKTV

Dylan was 15 at the time of his arrest. He and four other minors, and adult Nicolas Meridy, were charged. Two of the teens, Alexander Borgreen and Anais Soto, were also charged with second-degree murder, burglary and attempted robbery. A fourth minor, Alexis Lottermann, was charged with burglary as well. The ages of the defendants, especially that of Robinson, who faces life in prison, weighed heavily upon the prosecutor.

"I hate prosecuting juveniles. I just hate prosecuting people that are not adults. Very difficult to do, such a huge impact on the rest of their life. But this really was a horrible crime," said Otsego County District Attorney, John Muehl.

Borgreen pleaded guilty to burglary in November of 2020. His testimony was part of his agreement, which brought him a 12-year prison sentence. Muehl says Borgreen refused to testify, so he might reopen his case. Soto's agreement was 10 years.

Meridy pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in August of 2020 and was sentenced to 23 years to life in prison.

Dylan's sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 23. He faces 25 years to life in prison.
LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI)  Ivy Tech is changing the way it charges tuition.

The new model is called Ivy+, and it was approved about three weeks ago.

Book fees will now be charged as part of tuition which could potentially save students hundreds of dollars each semester.

Full-time students will pay a flat fee of $2,243.25, and part-time students will pay a flat fee of $149.55 per credit hour.

Director of Admissions for Lafayette Ivy Tech Ivan Hernandez said including books in tuition could help students avoid loans.

"Students sometimes get enough financial aid to pay for tuition, but they may not have enough money to buy books and stuff like that," he said.

Hernandez said it could also help more than just students.

"It's something that should really help our students, the state, our community," Hernandez added. "There's a lot of need for technicians right now, and Ivy Tech is the number one leader in training those technicians for Indiana."

The new program applies to all Ivy Tech locations, but out of state tuition is more, but books are still included.

Ivy Tech is providing eBooks as part of the new program. However, students can opt out and pay for regular books.
LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI)United Way of Greater Lafayette is merging with its sister organization in Montgomery County. "Montgomery County United Fund" will now be called United Way of Montgomery County.

United Way of Greater Lafayette CEO, Michael Budd said the move will not impact where donations go.

"It's something that's been in the works for the last number of years," said Budd.

Budd said this merger will not water down donations.

"We will continue to have a campaign in Montgomery County and those funds will be completely for Montgomery County services and support of the organization that is there and Tippecanoe County will run a campaign and the same will be true," said Budd.

The merger will provide United Way of Montgomery County institutional expertise.

"United Way in Montgomery County will continue to have that local impact but have the support of a larger organization is what I think the board is most looking for," said Budd.

Heather Shirk is the President of the new Montgomery County United Way.

"I think it opens more doors for the people, the agencies that we already serve so I think they'll be able to maybe greater enhance some of the services they provide our community," said Shirk.

Shirk said the community should look at this merger as a win for the county.

"They should be excited and know, maybe feel a little bit more confident that there are even more ways to help take care of our community," said Shirk.

Budd said it'll take a few months for the merger to be complete.
TIPPECANOE COUNTY, Ind. (WLFI)Two of the three paid firefighters for Wabash Township are speaking out. This, after Trustee Jennifer Teising announced last week the termination of full-time positions within the townships fire department. This decision would leave responding to emergency situations up to volunteer firefighters who have other full-time responsibilities.

The board held an emergency meeting Tuesday night to determine what the future of the township will look like.

Current full-time firefighter and paramedic Drew Hampton wrote in a statement:

"Up to this point, I have intentionally held out on giving a public statement for fear of some type of retaliation or my own termination,"

"With my termination being seemingly inevitable, I am coming forth now to provide my sincerest apologies to the township residents for my not being given more of an opportunity to provide you the service on both fire and medical emergency that you all deserve,"

"As of June 29th 2021 you are all in my thoughts as I wish you all safety," Hampton said in a statement. He went on to say.

"I have full confidence that the remaining volunteer staff are competent, well experienced, and well trained to take care of the township but the keyword is VOLUNTEER. These dedicated men and women have full-time jobs themselves, some are college students with a heavy academic commitment, and some have new families to care for. With the growing population, these men and womens hands are tied and their time is already stretched to the limit responding to existing calls and meeting state/department training requirements. Without 24/7 coverage I fear for the lives and safety of all. I hope everyone can take the time to look at this closely and voice your concerns to the appropriate authority."

His co-worker Travis Merkel co-signs in a statement saying:

"I would like to apologize to all of our community members for not being able to provide you with the services you deserve. I was hired to do a job that for unknown reasons, I will no longer be allowed to do,"

"Setting all of the political games aside, myself and our WTFD family will keep conducting business as usual for as long as possible. If you need us, we will be there for you. Unfortunately for me, that will end on June 29th, 2021," said Merkel. He went on to say.

"I know we have a great group of committed and experienced volunteers that will respond, but again they are volunteers who are not at the firehouse and ready to go. It will take time for them to receive the call, get to the station, and be prepared to respond with the equipment needed. These extra minutes are typical and often expected in an all-volunteer department, but since adding paid staff in 2012, our community has grown accustomed to what they deserve (and pay for), a more rapid response. I have many friends and family living in Wabash Township and I worry for their safety not having paid staff on-duty around the clock and I ask you all to continue to make your voices heard about this situation as much as possible."

As News 18 Previously reported during a board meeting last week Teising secured a $400,000 emergency fire loan last year to offer benefits. Board member Angel Valentin said there's enough money budgeted in 2021 to keep the firefighters on the books this year.
The COVID-19 pandemic strained our health care system nearly to a breaking point and mounted additional challenges for many to see a doctor in person. Fortunately, over the course of this past year, telehealth has allowed many Arizonans to use technology to conduct virtual visits with their 
During the Woodward County Commissioners meeting Monday morning, Court Clerk 1st Deputy Angela Irvin shared thoughts about the employee monthly insurance benefit allowance for those who opt out of insurance due to being covered elsewhere. (Photo by Dawnita Fogleman)
87 year old, Woodward resident passed away December 28, 2020. A memorial service will be held Wednesday, July 7, 2021 in the Elmwood Cemetery at 10:00 a.m. Remembrances may be shared online at www.billingsfuneralhomewoodward.com
A view from Clwyd Souths Member of Parliament

Wrexham.com has invited Wrexham & Clwyd South constituency Members of Parliament and Members of the Senedd to write a monthly article with updates on their work in Parliament and the Senedd, and closer to home. (You can view an archive here).

Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes writes

This month has been a very positive one for the Covid-19 vaccination programme. 77% of adults across the UK have now received their first vaccine. And 53.6% of adults have had both doses. This is excellent news, not just for individual immunity, but also for our route out of the pandemic and the restrictions that come with it. The light at the end of the tunnel has never looked brighter. So, I want to take the opportunity to emphasise my respect and praise for the NHS staff, Armed Forces personnel and volunteers who are rolling out this lifesaving service. They deserve an enormous amount of thanks from us all.

I was very pleased to thank all the staff in person as part of my visit to see the teams at Ruabon Medical Centre and the Crane Medical Centre in Cefn Mawr on Friday 7th May, and to hear all about their work looking after the community, and in particular, their success in delivering the vaccination programme. During both visits, I thanked staff for their tireless work on behalf of residents and the local community, particularly getting in touch with all their patients directly about their vaccinations.

I also visited some new projects at Plas Newydd, Llangollen, on Friday 21st June, where we toured the grounds to view some engraved seating made from 200-year-old Elm trees that had to be felled. The commitment of the Heritage Lottery Fund, the AONB and the team at Plas Newydd is very impressive. It is a much-loved place with an amazing history which plays an important part in the community of Llangollen. Long may it flourish!

On Friday 14th May, I was very pleased to visit Magic Dragon Brewing at The Plassey near Eyton to meet the brewery team and praise them for their hard work and continuing production throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.

It was a similar pleasure to visit Craig Roberts Traditional Butchers in Cefn Mawr on Friday 30th April. They source most of their meat locally and help the community by donating meat for Ceiriog Valley Lockdown Lunches for the vulnerable.

On Tuesday 27th April, I was very pleased to welcome the Secretary of State for Transport, Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP, on a visit to Ruabon Station where we discussed the ongoing campaign to secure funding for step-free access at the station. The visit follows Mr Shapps recent announcement that Ruabon Station has progressed on to the next stage of the Access for All programme which will allow the Department for Transport to establish any risks and the anticipated final costs associated with delivering the project.

At Prime Ministers Questions on Wednesday 26th May, I highlighted the ambitious projects being proposed by Wrexham County Borough Council and Denbighshire County Council in their joint bid for the Levelling Up Fund in Clwyd South, including regeneration of the Trevor Basin, improvements for Chirk and Llangollen, and investment in Corwen Station and the surrounding area. I will do everything I can to bang the drum for Clwyd South to secure this funding and Im very excited about the potential for these projects to re-spark our local economy following the Covid-19 pandemic. I was delighted to receive such a positive response from the Prime Minister and Im very pleased that he shares my love and deep admiration for the Clwyd South constituency.

I continue to send out a monthly e-newsletter so constituents can read more about my activities in Clwyd South and Westminster. If youd like to start receiving this monthly MPs e-newsletter, you can sign up using the following link: www.simonbaynes.co.uk/sign-simons-e-newsletter.

As Clwyd Souths MP, I am always here to provide advice and support. If youre a Clwyd South constituent, you can contact me and my team at any time by email on simon.baynes.mp@parliament.uk. Please dont hesitate to get in touch if theres anything I can do to help you.



Wrexham.com has invited Wrexham & Clwyd South constituency Members of Parliament and Members of the Senedd to write a monthly article with updates on their work in Parliament and the Senedd, and closer to home. (You can view an archive here).
Almost half a million adults vaccinated with one dose across North Wales as health board urges 18-39 year olds to come forward

80,000 eligible people across North Wales who have yet to receive a first dose of a coronavirus vaccine are being urged to come forward.

Almost half a million residents across the region have been vaccinated with a first dose, while 338,018 have been fully vaccinated.

Take up is currently at least 80 per cent in all age groups above the age of 40, however Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board is particularly appealing to those aged between 18-39, which currently has the lowest vaccine rates across the region.

Although steady progress is being made providing first doses to those aged 30-39 (currently 62 per cent take up) and those aged 18-29 (currently 71 per cent take up) Ffion Johnstone, area director (west), said at least 75% take up in each group is needed in order to achieve a level of community protection which will help us eventually return to normal life.

To achieve this target an additional 10,173 people aged 30-39 and 8,609 people aged 18-29 need to be vaccinated.

There are also 80,000 eligible people across the region who have yet to come forward for vaccination, despite being invited.

Ms Johnstone said: In the coming week we will be writing to approximately 80,000 people who have not received a first dose. This will include those who have previously told us that they do not wish to be vaccinated.

We hope that some of these people have changed their mind, because of the new threat posed by the Delta variant.

We are also using adverts on social media, radio and the local press to encourage people to come forward.

According to latest data from Public Health England, a single dose of the COVID-19 vaccine reduces a persons chances of catching coronavirus and needing hospital treatment by about 75 per cent, even with Delta circulating in the UK.

And among people who had received the recommended two doses, the chances of catching and being hospitalised by coronavirus was reduced by more than 90 per cent.

In the coming weeks the health board is also running a series of mobile pop up vaccination clinics with large employers in Wrexham and Flintshire over the coming weeks.

Ms Johnstone said: Our online booking service has made it easier than ever to book a first or second dose appointment at a convenient date, time and location.

In the last week alone, more than 108,000 people have visited the service.

Vaccination clinics are being held in locations across North Wales and by the end of this week, we will have added appointments available until August.

In recent weeks we have significantly increased the speed at which we are administering second doses, in response to the threat posed by the Delta variant.

Please remember, if a minimum of eight weeks have passed since you had your first dose of either the Pfizer or AstraZeneca vaccine, you can book a second dose appointment for the same brand vaccine using our online booking service.

Already have a second dose appointment booked and wish to bring it forward using our online booking service? There is no need to contact us to cancel your original appointment  our records will automatically update.

If you cannot access the internet to book online, please phone our COVID-19 Vaccination Contact Centre on 03000 840004. The lines can be very busy, so please be patient.

You can book an appointment to be vaccinated on the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board website, here.
Wrexham headteacher hits out as reckless behaviour leads to large number of pupils self-isolating

A headteacher has hit out at reckless behaviour which has led to an increasing number of pupils having to self-isolate.

Chris Wilkinson, headteacher at St Josephs Catholic and Anglican High School in Wrexham, has spoken out after children have had to be sent home on several occasions this week.

He said there had been three incidents since Monday where pupils have attended school despite a family member having coronavirus symptoms.

It follows a sharp rise in the number of children absent from school for Covid-related reasons across the UK in the last few weeks amid concerns over the spread of the Delta variant of the virus.

Mr Wilkinson has now called on parents to act responsibly and follow the rules.

In a notice posted on the schools website, he said: We are currently experiencing a large number of people who are needing to isolate as a result of positive cases.

I am very grateful to parents and carers for the speedy way in which pupils were collected from school on Monday.

I am hoping to update you soon with exact times for a return to school for the affected year groups. For some, this may be sooner than envisaged.

However, we have experienced three incidents this week (only three days) where, pupils have attended school whilst parents or family members were or are symptomatic and awaiting the result of a Covid-19 PCR test.

In each case, pupils were collected from school because test results were positive. We now await test results for the pupils themselves.

He added: Please, please, keep to the rules  you should not send a child into school if someone in the household is symptomatic

Reckless behaviours pose a risk of greater transmission, and ultimately lead to more pupils being sent home. Im grateful in advance for your support in this very important matter.

In the last few days, two year groups at the Maelor School in Penley have also been forced to go into self-isolation in response to positive test results.

A total of 12 new coronavirus cases were reported in Wrexham today (Wednesday, June 23), with the rolling seven-day infection rate for the county borough standing at 47.1 per 100,000 of the population.

By Liam Randall  BBC Local Democracy Reporter
NASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) - Monday, News4 Nashville informed you about cancellations of some American Airlines flights this week.

The cancellations are due to several reasons, including unprecedented weather events and labor shortages.

News 4 Nashville called the customer service line at American Airlines. An automated message told us to leave a number and that we would receive a callback. They also told us the call can take more than four hours.

American Airlines cancels hundreds of flights partly due to shortages; customer callbacks are taking hours NASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) - With a sheet of paper in his hand, Aubrey Braithwaite is trying to get his flight problems straightened out.

News 4 left a number to hopefully hear a callback.

The next morning, we received a call from American Airlines at 5:15 am.

Travel Agents say instead of trying to reach airline carriers over the phone, try other alternatives that could speed up the process.

Trying to get through is almost virtually impossible to any of the airlines. You can leave your number and they can call you back...hopefully you wont miss that call back...cause if you do, youll go back into the queue and youll have to start all over again. So try to handle any situation you have online, Travel Agent Darlene Dupnack said.

Flights return to normal at BNA after Southwest network glitch NASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) - Flights at Nashville International Airport are slowly getting back to normal after a day of headaches for Southwest Air

News 4 reached out to American Airlines about the long wait times. In a statement, they replied:

Were currently experiencing some hold times that are longer than we would like as customers make plans to return to travel. Were excited to see demand come back, and are hiring hundreds of Reservations agents to support our customers. American is also the only major U.S. carrier to offer customers the option to request a call-back within a 7-day period at a time of day selected by the customer, so they can avoid a hold time and discuss their travel plans at a time most convenient for them.

The main drivers for long wait times are a mixture of weather events and increased length of calls.

The company is also making consistent technology updates to help customers find information on aa.com, in the mobile app, and via chat with their representatives.

If youve experienced long wait times from any airline recently, wed love to hear from you. Contact Caresse Jackman at caresse.jackman@wsmv.com
ROGERSVILLE, TN (WSMV) - The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has received 221 leads in the disappearance of 5-year-old Summer Wells from her Hawkins County home as the search enters the second week.

Wells was reported missing around 6:30 p.m. last Tuesday. Hawkins County investigators began searching for the 5-year-old and an Endangered Child Alert was issued. The disappearance was upgraded to an Amber Alert less than 12 hours later on Wednesday morning.

The TBI said on Tuesday that property owners in the Beech Creek area are urged to check barns, crawl spaces and other places a child could hide. The TBI said the Hawkins County Sheriff's Office will send an officer to assist residents who aren't physically able to search those spaces.

#TNAMBERAlert: Property owners in the Beech Creek area are urged to check barns, crawl spaces, and other places a child could hide. The @HawkinsCountySO will send an officer to assist residents who aren't physically able to search those spaces. Call 423-272-7121 for assistance.  Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (@TBInvestigation) June 22, 2021

Numerous local, state and federal agencies have searched more than 2,400 acres of land looking for Summer. In addition to air and land searches, ponds and creeks in the area are also being searched.

The TBI asked residents in the area of Ben Hill Road to check any trail cameras or surveillance cameras that may have videos or photos of Summer. The TBI also encouraged residents in that area to check out buildings, sheds or any other possible space where she could have sought shelter.

TBI issues Amber Alert for 5-year-old missing out of Hawkins County TBI has now issued an Amber Alert for a 5-year-old child missing from Hawkins County, TN.

While weve not ruled out an abduction, we simply do not have any evidence at this point to confirm thats what occurred, TBI spokesperson Leslie Earhart said during a briefing on Monday. For that reason, the ground search for Summer continues. It is possible that she wandered off, is lost and afraid.

Agencies from Tennessee and surrounding states, including National Park rangers and Tennessee Highway Patrol troopers, are now assisting in the search for Summer. Investigators said they have searched about 2,400 acres with the help of 70 agencies from six states, including Ohio, Virginia, Georgia, Alabama and North Carolina.

Father of missing Hawkins County girl speaks out As the search continues in Hawkins County for a missing five-year-old girl, her family is speaking to the media.

Summers father, Donald Wells, said it isnt like his daughter to wander off. He said Summer was last seen planting flowers with her mother and grandmother. Her mother saw Summer go into their house, and they havent seen her since.

When her mother comes in, she says, Wheres Summer? She went down in the basement. She didnt answer, so she went down there, and she was gone, Donald Wells said last week. She went out the basement door, which was unlocked, and we havent seen her since.

Its horrible, absolutely horrible. Im hoping that she comes home. Im hoping and praying shes not in pain or misery or being hurt.

Court documents show that Donald Wells was arrested on Oct. 14, 2020, on a charge of domestic assault, possession of a handgun while under the influence and unlawful possession of a weapon.

The arrest report stated that Wells pushed down his wife, Candus Bly, and caused damage to her left knee. Bly and witnesses there said Wells began punching himself in the face. The assault occurred after Wells arrived home drunk, according to Bly, and he had found a man at the home that he thought he wife was cheating on him. Wells had a gun in the glove box of the truck and told deputies he was a felon from charges in Utah.

Anyone with information about Summers whereabouts is being urged to call 1-800-TBI-FIND.
Last month, Airbus, the worlds largest airliner manufacturer, announced its intention to close one of its production facilities in southern Spain, the plant in Puerto Real. The closure is set to destroy nearly 2,000 direct and indirect jobs in an area already suffering 27 percent unemployment.

The larger trade union federations, Workers Commissions (CCOO) and General Workers Union (UGT), intervened claiming they would stop Airbus plans. In a matter of weeks, however, after a few token demonstrations and stoppages, they submitted an agreement drafted with the Socialist Party (PSOE)-Podemos government to Airbus proposing the merger of the two regional plants. The Puerto Real plant is now set to be closed by 2023.

Anger is widespread among workers and across the Bay of Cadiz where the plant is located.

Striking workers on a picket line near the Puerto Real Airbus factory (credit: @naterismos)

Juan Antonio, a factory worker, told La Sexta , We are not only fighting for our employment, but for the employment of an entire municipality. This [the plant closure] would be the death of the bay."

The wife of one of the workers who has her son doing an internship at the company said, If the plant closes my son will have no future at 20 years old. He will have to leave to go to work outside. And if they relocate my husband, they would force us all to leave. Another worker, Josemari, told El Salto that the major unions have sold us out.

Under these conditions the smaller General Confederation of Labor (CGT) is intervening to prevent opposition from becoming an open struggle against the trade union bureaucracy and the PSOE-Podemos government. It is being assisted by pseudo-left forces, particularly the Morenoite Workers Revolutionary Current (CRT). The CRT is increasingly recruiting CGT bureaucrats and its online publication, La Izquierda Diario, acts as the CGTs mouthpiece.

The CGTs origins lay in a split from the anarcho-syndicalist National Confederation of Labour (CNT) in 1979 in order to stand in trade union elections and receiving state subsidies. It acts always as a tool of the large trade union federations. When resistance mounts against their latest treachery, the CGT appears on the scene to corral hostile workers and promote illusions that the CCOO and UGT can be pushed to the left. Its liberal use of radical rhetoric and occasional militant actions never aim to challenge the CCOO and UGT or to confront the PSOE-Podemos government.

The CRT describes the CGTs role during the Airbus struggle as the only union that has organized and promoted actions with which the workforce is confronting the employers, the government and the union bureaucracy. This is a fraud.

In April, the CCOO and UGT called off all protests when Airbus did not officially announce the plants closure. Amid widespread disgust, the CGT set up tents outside the plant that have been manned by militant workers for the past two months. Rallies were held during lunch breaks, ensuring these actions did not affect the profitability of Airbus.

After the larger union federations and the PSOE-Podemos government agreed to the plant closure with Airbus, the CGT organised a protest in Madrid in front of the Ministry of Industry. Its aim was to promote illusions that the PSOE-Podemos government could be pressured into reversing course and maintaining the plant.

Last Friday, the CGT organised what it described as a general strike throughout the province of Cadiz.

The CRTs La Izquierda Diario described it as a success, writing, The demonstration that began on a rainy day completed its journey with more than 700 protesters, including delegations of Airbus workers from Seville and Getafe who showed solidarity with their fellow Cadiz residents. As for the work stoppage, the strike has stopped not only the Airbus Puerto Real centers and the Bahia de Cadiz Center, but has also spread to Navantia Puerto Real and Alestis with great follow-up.

In reality, the strike was a political fraud. If there was no major industrial activity in Puerto Real and in the large state-owned shipbuilding company Navantia, this was only because, as the CGT and CRT calculated, it was a local bank holiday. In neighboring Cadiz, it was business as usual at Navantias shipyard.

The CGT had weeks to mobilise its 85,000 members, 7,000 state-subsidised union delegates, and other sympathetic workers against plant closures in the Bay of Cadiz for the strike to be a success. Instead, it called a strike in all Airbus plants in Spain for June 11, and then called its general strike in the province of Cadiz on June 18.

The CGT union delegate at Airbus Puerto Real, Juan Antonio Guerrero, blamed the larger unions for the failure to close major industries in the region. He told Diario de Cadiz that the other unions were standing at the door [in Navantia Cadiz] to make a counter picket and coral workers inside. He complained that the larger unions said that they would join us and today was the day to demonstrate it, but unfortunately they didnt come.

The CGT first promoted illusions that the CCOO and UGT can be pushed to the left and then whined pathetically when this mirage failed to come about.

The same lie was advanced by the CRT. Before the strike, they claimed the CGTs protests were influencing the bureaucracy of the large trade unions. As the CGT explained in a recent statement, the delegates of CCOO and UGT are debating about whether to join the protests. This would mean a change from their current defense of the agreement [to close the plant].

After calling on workers to entrust their fate to the tender mercies of the CCOO and UGT, the CRT then promoted illusions in the PSOE-Podemos government. It wrote, It seems that the bloc supporting the agreement is breaking up, with the PSOE and Podemos supporting a resolution in the Senate in favour of maintaining the plant.

This was a lie. Once the cited parliamentary resolution was approved, the CRT was forced to admit, Although the text seeks to support workers demands regarding the maintenance of jobs and workload, as well as demand more jobs in the province, the Podemos-backed resolution defended the plant closure. They asked Podemos, How do you accept the shameful agreement of the government, unions and Airbus while claiming to want to defend employment in Puerto Real?

Workers should rather ask the CRT why they ever gave credence to the posturing of Podemos?

Workers must draw their own lessons. The trade unions, whatever their origin and size, have long ago abandoned any defense of the interests of the workers they claim to represent and function as co-conspirators of corporate management and the state. The plethora of pseudo-left organisations, articulating the social interests of the same privileged layers of the middle class, act as their cheerleaders and ideological apologists.

If workers are to stop the destruction of their jobs and living standards and prevent plant closures like Airbus is planning in Puerto Real, they must strike out on a new course:

Rank-and-file committees must be formed independent of the trade unions. The CCOO, UGT and CGT are not workers organisations, but arms of the ruling class to implement austerity, axe jobs and impose wage cuts. Workers at every plant and workplace should hold meetings to elect rank-and-file factory committees from among their most trusted colleagues.

Workers struggles must be united. Tens of thousands of workers are facing similar plant closures, redundancy schemes, and attacks. It is estimated that only in the first months of this year, 35,000 workers are threatened with redundancy. In the banking sector alone there are 18,000 layoffs being prepared. This is on top of the wage cuts, casualisation and layoffs that will escalate after furlough schemes affecting 900,000 workers end in late September. Rank-and-file committees should establish network alliances across industries and with all sections of workers coming into struggle to coordinate joint action.

Every fight by workers must be guided by an international strategy. The Airbus Puerto Real struggle is one component of the global upsurge of class struggle. Yet the unions have refused to coordinate the strike actions even with other plants throughout Europe, despite the fact that Airbus announced its intentions to cut 15,000 jobs globally last year. The only way to defeat such a massive transnational corporation is on the global arenauniting not only Airbus workers but all workers now in struggle.

The working class needs a socialist perspective and political party. In seeking to defend their interests, Spanish workers confront a bitter enemy in the PSOE-Podemos government, which has conspired to close the plant and then sent hundreds of police officers against protests and strikes. The PSOE-Podemos government, which is implementing ruthless austerity, attacks on democratic rights while showering corporations and banks with billions, is no less ruthless than its right-wing counterparts. The pseudo-left tendencies like the CRT have shown themselves to be appendages of the PSOE-Podemos government and the trade union bureaucracy. To secure their interests, workers must build their own party, a Spanish section of the International Committee of the Fourth International, to fight for socialism.

For more information visit Build rank-and-file safety committees!
A former senior Australian Secret Intelligence Service (ASIS) officer, known publicly only as Witness K, was sentenced to a suspended jail term last Friday. His crime was to blow the whistle on the Howard Liberal-National governments use of ASIS to plant a listening device in East Timors cabinet room in 2004 during crucial oil and gas negotiations.

While Witness K, now 70, was spared immediate imprisonment after pleading guilty to breaching his secrecy obligations as an intelligence official, the current Liberal-National government and the magistrate presiding over the case insisted that he had to be punished to send a message on national security.

Meanwhile, the real criminals remain freethose responsible for bugging the East Timorese government in order to help retain Australian corporate control over the multi-billion dollar energy resources beneath the Timor Sea between the two countries.

Moreover, the government is pushing ahead with the closed-door trial of Witness Ks lawyer Bernard Collaery, who has pleaded not guilty to conspiring with the intelligence officer and could face years of imprisonment if convicted.

Bernard Collaery, Witness K's lawyer, who also faces national security charges (Credit: AP Photo/Rod McGuirk, File)

The government, through former Attorney-General Christian Porter, personally signed off on the prosecutions, invoking section 39 of the Intelligence Services Act, which criminalises the communication of any information acquired by ASIS, punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment.

A wall of secrecy has been retained around the Timor bugging case for many years because it is so politically and ideologically damaging to the Australian ruling class and its intelligence apparatus. It lays bare the reality that behind the cloak of national security stands the plundering interests of Australian imperialism throughout the region, from the underwater riches of the Timor Sea to South East Asia and the Pacific and Indian Oceans.

The dirty operations of ASIS, the overseas surveillance service, and other Australian intelligence agencies must be hidden from public view all the more because they are always conducted in close collaboration with their US counterparts, reflecting Australian capitalisms dependence on Washington for military and intelligence protection.

The Australian spy services are an integral component of the US-led Five Eyes global network that conducts mass surveillance on the worlds population and monitors other governments whose interests could potentially conflict with those of Washington.

East Timor, a statelet on half an island in the sprawling Indonesian archipelago, is also a key strategic location in the intensifying US economic and military drive to combat the rise of China and reassert the hegemony over the region that Washington established via its victory in World War II.

To maintain absolute secrecy, the ex-ASIS officer Witness K stood behind a wall of black panels, invisible to the packed courtroom, as he was handed a three-month suspended term of imprisonment and a 12-month good behaviour order.

In return for his guilty plea, first entered two years ago, the government did not seek an immediate jail term. However, Richard Maidment, the Commonwealth director of public prosecutions, opposed Witness Ks application for a non-conviction order. Maidment said Witness Ks case should be used as a vehicle to deter others from engaging in similar acts.

Witness Ks lawyers had urged the court to show the former highly-decorated naval and intelligence officer judicial mercy, saying he suffered from numerous mental health afflictionspost-traumatic stress disorder, suicidal ideation, depression, anxiety and hyper mania.

Magistrate Glenn Theakston nevertheless agreed with the government. He declared that Witness K had violated strict and absolute proscriptions regarding ASIS. Even though Witness K had been motivated by considerations of justice and a rules-based order of international relations, he had compromised the agencys effectiveness, safety and security and jeopardised Australias relationships and reputations.

Theakston insisted the offence was not trivial. It was an express, deliberate breach of the defendants obligations to maintain the secrecy of the operations of ASIS. Nor was it any excuse that Witness K made no attempt to hide his actions from the Australian government.

Witness K made the illegal disclosures in two affidavits in 2013, which were intended to be used at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, where East Timor had accused Australia of failing to negotiate in good faith by spying on its impoverished supposed ally.

Witness Ks home was raided in 2013 and his passport seized to prevent him from going to The Hague to testify for East Timor in its bid to overturn the unfavourable oil and gas deal secured by Australia. Despite the raid, conducted by the internal spy agency, the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), no charges were brought until 2018, after the conclusion of a treaty with the East Timorese government.

Confident of the opposition Labor Partys support, Prime Minister Scott Morrison personally endorsed the trials of Witness K and Collaery in September 2018. Morrison told reporters justice will be served by the prosecutions. Labors shadow attorney-general, Mark Dreyfus, made clear his partys backing, telling the Guardian: The charges are serious and it is important to let the judicial process take its course.

Both the Coalition and Labor uphold the use of the National Security Information (Criminal and Civil Proceedings) Act, passed in 2004, supposedly to assist the war on terrorism, to conduct Collaerys trial behind locked doors.

The government is also demanding closed-door proceedings in the trial of an ex-military lawyer, David McBride, who exposed a cover-up of civilian killings and other war crimes conducted by Australian Special Forces units during the US-led invasion and occupation of Afghanistan.

These are not the only secret trials. In 2019, it was revealed that an ex-soldier and intelligence officer, known only as Witness J, had been convicted and imprisoned in Canberra for 15 months via a criminal trial that was completely hidden from public knowledge.

This assault on basic legal and democratic rights matches the brutal methods being used against Julian Assange, the WikiLeaks founder. With the backing of the Australian government, he remains incarcerated in a maximum-security UK prison, facing extradition to the US on espionage charges for exposing the war atrocities and anti-democratic conspiracies of the US government and its allies, including those in Canberra.

Collaery, a former Liberal Party attorney-general in the Australian Capital Territory, has described Witness K as a patriot who raised criticisms of the ASIS bugging mission through the proper channels.

Collaerys comments indicate that his concern is to repair the damage done to ASISs credibility. Among other things, the illegal bugging operation further exposed the fraud of Canberras claims to have intervened militarily in East Timor in 1999 for the benefit of the long-impoverished Timorese people.

Whatever the motivations of Witness K and his lawyer, however, there is no doubt that the working class must demand the dropping of all the charges. The people who should be on trial are members of the Howard government, such as its foreign minister, Alexander Downer, who was in charge of ASIS in 2004.

Alongside them should be members of the subsequent Labor government, which authorised the raids on Witness K and Collaery in 2013. Labor also refused to renegotiate the 2006 treaty with East Timor, which was secured with the help of ASISs spying and retained the lions share of the oil and gas revenues for Australian imperialism and the conglomerates it favoured, including Shell, Woodside and ConocoPhillips.
Last Saturdays massive demonstrations against fascistic President Bolsonaros handling of the COVID-19 pandemic have deepened the crisis of the Brazilian ruling class, which fears mass social opposition may turn against the entire capitalist order.

Twice in less than a month, hundreds of thousands of Brazilians have taken to the streets with hand-painted signs bearing the names of loved ones lost to COVID and calling Bolsonaro a mass murderer and genocidal. As last Saturdays last demonstration took place, the country surpassed the 500,000 mark for COVID-19 fatalitiesthe second worst death toll in the world, trailing only the United States, which has a 50 percent larger population. This toll has more than doubled in the first half of 2021 alone, and leading health experts now project that, following the same trend of doubling deaths every six months and amid a slow vaccine rollout that has so far immunized only 10 percent of Brazilians, the total number of dead could reach one million by 2022.

The demonstrations were a sharp, albeit only initial demonstration of the deep anger of workers already expressed in hundreds of strikes against the herd immunity policy of the Brazilian and international ruling classes, particularly among manufacturing, health, transportation and education workers all across the country.

Mass protest in Sao Paulo on June 19 (Credit: @midianinja)

While these strikes and struggles have been suppressed and isolated by the media, the corporatist unions and the congressional opposition led by the Workers Party (PT), the eruption of mass demonstrations has definitely placed Brazil on Latin Americas expanding map of massive social unrest now engulfing countries from Paraguay to Colombia. It has also blown to pieces the narrative promoted by Brazils petty-bourgeois leftthat the working class and impoverished sections of the middle class are dominated by social conservatism and passive subordination to the fascistic Bolsonaro.

This demoralized and false narrative has never been taken seriously by the government itself, with Bolsonaro consistently declaring that Brazil faces the specter of a mass social revolt like the one that shook Chile in 2019, and that such an eruption would force him to assume dictatorial powers to restore order. Bolsonaro has repeatedly warned his opponents not to push it (esticar a corda), that is, not to fundamentally oppose him, in order not to provoke a coup.

Such warnings have now been taken up by the head of the Supreme Military Court (STM), active-duty Gen. Luis Mattos, who claimed bluntly in an interview with the right-wing Veja magazine that all of those opposing the government were pushing it by attributing to the president everything that was wrong and not letting him rule. This situation, he warned, would lead to a breaking point. The government leader in the Brazilian House, Deputy Ricardo Barros, also declared on June 8 that we will reach a point where judicial decisions will not be followed, referring to the defeats suffered by the government in the courts, which Bolsonaro has accused of overstepping their authority.

Gen. Mattos made his threats during the same week in which the Army, Navy and Air force legal offices joined Bolsonaros Solicitor General (AGU) in defending, in the Brazilian Supreme Court, a statute declaring that civiliansincluding journalistswho slander the Armed Forces should be prosecuted in military courts. The law is part of a 1969 military criminal code enacted during the so-called lead years of barbaric political repression by the 1964-1985 US-backed military dictatorship.

Popular anger over the half-million avoidable COVID deaths, record levels of unemployment, mass impoverishment and skyrocketing social inequality is deepening divisions within the ruling class over how to deal with the explosive Brazilian social situation. This is highlighted by the increasingly open declarations by senior figures within the political and military establishment recognizing that Bolsonaro may not accept the 2022 presidential election results if he is not re-elected.

Within military circles, these warnings have been ever more vocally expressed by Bolsonaros former government secretary, retired Gen. Carlos Alberto dos Santos Cruz. Under the former PT governments, Santos Cruz had been a commander of UN peace-keeping troops in Haiti and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as well as former PT President Dilma Rousseffs strategic affairs secretary. He was interviewed by Veja magazine and, in unusually blunt terms, compared the Brazilian situation to that of so-called failed states where he had commanded UN troops. He charged the Bolsonaro government with sponsoring fanaticism, spectacle, populism. That is the process behind every authoritarian regime. Ultimately, he declared, in a divided society, this criminal fanaticism we are living under ends in violence.

Santos Cruz doesnt make his warning based on a principled opposition to social inequality or dictatorship, but out of fear that the Brazilian ruling elite, in continuing its support for Bolsonaro, will sleepwalk into a revolutionary situation, with the outpouring of social opposition getting out of the control of the so-called opposition led by the PT.

Under these conditions, the most pressing task of those factions within the ruling class opposed to Bolsonaro is to chloroform public opinion regarding the objective incompatibility of democratic forms of rule with pervasive explosive levels of social inequality. Those factions aim to single out Bolsonaro and his closest allies as fanatical aberrations, speaking for no one but themselves, and thereby directing social opposition behind traditional forces within the political establishment which are ostensibly opposed to Bolsonaros fanaticism.

This operation was accelerated after the unexpected mass outpouring in the protests of May 29. It has at its center the cobbling together of electoral alliances for the 2022 general elections, in which the presidency, the House, a third of the Senate and all state governments and legislatures are at stake.

The electoral maneuvers were kicked off in Rio de Janeiro, Bolsonaros political base, with the June 11 announcement by Rio Deputy Marcelo Freixo, a star of the pseudo-left Socialism and Liberty Party (PSOL), that he was leaving the party he helped found in 2005 as a PT dissident, and entering the Socialist Party (PSB), the ninth largest party in the Brazilian House. Freixo declared on the same day in a Veja interview that the next elections would not be about left versus right, but civilization against barbarism. He said his switching parties was necessary to attract right-wing figures unwilling to side with the PSOL, while adding that the PSOL would ultimately join a broad coalition with the anti-Bolsonaro right.

Questioned why he didnt rejoin the PT, he declared that joining the PSB was actually the PTs recommendation, due to the popular rejection of the party in Rio after its sponsoring of successive state governments in the state that were brought down by corruption. On the following day, the highlight of Freixos announcement of his campaign for governor was to name as his chief law enforcement advisor the former minister of Defense and Public Safety in President Michel Temers right-wing government, Raul Jungmann. Jungmann declared he would collaborate with Freixo in order to articulate a wide democratic front to free Rio from violence and corruption.

Jungmanns record leaves no doubt about the fraud of Freixos claim that his candidacy will represent civilization against barbarism. As Temers Public Safety minister, Jungmann was the senior civilian figure behind a year-long and unprecedented military intervention in the state of Rio de Janeiro, which saw the virtual overthrow of civilian authority and the installment of Gen. Walter Braga Netto at the head of Rios law enforcement. In the first months of the intervention, the PSOLs city councillor Marielle Franco, who was tasked by the city as a human rights ombudsman, was brutally murdered by a death squad. For three years, Freixo and the PSOL have charged that the murder was carried out by Rios vigilante-style police gangs known as militias, to which the Bolsonaro family has multiple financial and political ties.

The crime remains unsolved, and Freixo, who had politically sponsored Francos career, had railed against Jungmann for using her death to strengthen the military intervention. Gen Braga Netto went on to become Bolsonaros chief of staff, and then defense minister in May 2021, when the president fired the entire military high command in order to consolidate his grip over the armed forces.

As with other senior military officials who joined the barbaric Bolsonaro government, Braga Netto has been cast by the PT and PSOL as a modern and constitutionalist general, despite the explosion of human rights violations during the Armys rule over Rio de Janeiro. Jungmann went on to found and lead Brazils first integrated civilian-military think tank, CEDESEN, which promotes the illusion that the military is committed to constitutional rule.

The path promoted by the PT and its bourgeois and pseudo-left allies, of subordinating opposition to Bolsonaro to the divisions among the most reactionary architects of Brazils brutal repressive apparatus, can only lead to catastrophe. The violent swing to the right embodied in Marcelo Freixos turn to figures like Raul Jungmann expresses the immense objective pressures towards authoritarian rule that have inevitably accompanied the insoluble crisis of Brazilian and world capitalism. The role of such pseudo-left forces is to politically disarm workers and prepare the conditions for a dictatorship, conditions which significant sections of the bourgeoisie and its military command believe are not yet in place.

In order to fight social inequality and dictatorship, workers must break with all of the political forces tied to the capitalist state, including the PT and PSOL, and build a new political leadership, a Brazilian section of the International Committee of the Fourth International.
The six hundred workers at the Exceldor chicken processing plant in Saint-Anselme, a town fifty kilometers south of Quebec City, have been on strike since May 23. They have rejected two derisory employer offers, and are demanding improvements to their wages, and vacation and group insurance benefits.

Exceldor is an agri-food giant with revenues of more than one billion Canadian dollars a year and plants in four Canadian provinces.

Striking workers from Olymels Vallee-Jonction, Quebec pork processing plant join their class brothers and sisters from Exceldor on their picket line on June 2 (STOVJ Facebook page)

When in normal operation, nearly one million chickens are processed at the Saint-Anselme plant each week. Since Exceldor made no arrangements for what would happen to its chicken supply in the event of a strike, a portion of these chickens must now be euthanized because they cant be processed elsewhere.

From the start of the strike, Exceldor has raised the spectre of a massive loss of chickens to demand that Quebecs right-wing CAQ (Coalition Avenir Quebec) government intervene to criminalize the strike or declare the plant an essential service so as to force the employees back to work.

Last Wednesdays announcement that one million chickens have been euthanized since the strike began was the cue for Quebecs political establishment and corporate media to go into a frenzy. They are intent on exploiting this issue as the pretext for forcing an end to the strike.

Quebec Agriculture Minister Andre Lamontagne demanded the union that represents the Exceldor workers, the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), agree to the CAQs proposal that the contract dispute be sent to binding arbitration. Noting that management had immediately agreed to the governments arbitration request, Lamontagne claimed UFCW negotiators have a moral responsibility to put an end to the waste by immediately ending the strike. While not closing the door to ultimately agreeing to arbitration, the union said that it wanted to give the ongoing mediation process a chance. But no agreement was reached in talks with the company last Thursday and Friday.

Mandatory arbitration is a pro-employer mechanism in which a government-appointed arbitrator dictates workers collective agreement. During such a process, the parties involved must give up all pressure tactics, depriving workers of their legal right to strike or to mount any job action whatsoever.

Faced with the UFCWs initial refusal, Quebec Premier Francois Legault took to social media to publicly threaten the workers. Legault called the situation indecent and said that the strike should not be allowed to foolishly waste huge amounts of food. After a perfunctory reference to the workers right to strike (accompanied by a reference to the employers right to lock out for good measure), he demanded that the union submit the Exceldor contract dispute to arbitration.

The Quebec premiers anti-worker diatribe was soon echoed by the federal Liberal governments agriculture minister. Calling the situation intolerable, Marie-Claude Bibeau likewise demanded the union call off the strike and submit to arbitration.

Legaults and Lamontagnes comments are a frontal attack on the basic rights of Exceldor, and indeed all workers, to strike and bargain collectively. A multi-millionaire and former Air Transat CEO, Quebecs premier is well known for this type of public intervention against striking workers. During an 18-month lockout in 2018-2019, Legault viciously attacked striking workers at the ABI aluminum smelter in Becancour, Quebec. He denounced their high wages and openly sided with Rio Tinto and Alcoa, the two global mining giants that jointly own ABI. In March and April of this year, Legault and his government mounted a weeks-long campaign urging the federal government to criminalize an impending strike by the 1,150 dockers at the Port of Montreal, and applauded enthusiastically when Justin Trudeaus Liberal government adopted a back-to-work law as soon as the dockers launched an unlimited strike. In recent weeks, the CAQ government has also threatened to use strikebreaking legislation against Quebecs public sector and construction workers, whose collective agreements have expired.

Legaults intervention against the Exceldor workers prompted a flurry of articles and opinion pieces by leading media commentators, from Antoine Robitaille of the Journal de Montreal to Isabelle Hachey of La Presse. With hysterical evocations of millions of wasted meals and melodramatic pleas about the purported plight of chickens euthanized because they could not be slaughtered for human consumption, these articles all adopt, more or less explicitly, Exceldor's demand that the CAQ government force the workers back to work.

In an attempt to cover up their hostility to the working class, the big business columnists included hypocritical demands that workers rights be respected at the same time. But it is clear that these two demands are irreconcilable. As Hachey put it, He [Legault] must stop the bleeding and force the unionized workers back to work, while urging both sides to negotiate. Since a forced return-to-work would deprive workers of all leverage, the company would be able to virtually dictate its terms. All the more so, as it would be able to threaten the workers with a contract imposed by a government-appointed arbitrator if a negotiated settlement were not reached.

The most remarkable element of the cynical bourgeois morality campaign over the fate of Quebecs chickens is the total absence of any reference to the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on workers, particularly those in the food industry, who rank among those most affected by the coronavirus crisis.

The politicians, led by Legault, who are now in a tizzy over the fate of Exceldors chickens are the same ones who have put big-business profit before human lives, refused to take the science-based measures that could have halted the spread of the virus, and consequently are directly responsible for the deaths of over 11,000 Quebecers. The ruling class is so impervious to the concerns and needs of working people that its political representatives feel no shame in focusing exclusively on the fate of chickens bred for slaughter, without paying so much as lip service to the safety and lives of workers.

Similarly, none of the richly paid columnists who have devoted thousands of words to detailing the euthanasia of chickens and begging for mercy on their behalf have anything to say about the tragic fate of the 26,000 Canadians who have died from COVID-19, let alone the courage to point the finger of responsibility at the ruling elites.

Where were Robitailles pleas for mercy when Olymel, Cargill and Exceldor workers were being infected by the dozens in unsafe plants that were kept open simply to continue to pile up profits? What did Hachey demand of governments when workers at Exceldor in Manitoba, Cargill in Alberta and Olymel in Quebec died of the coronavirus?

Their denunciation of food waste is equally laughable. According to the United Nations, Canada is among the countries in the world with the highest per capita food wastemillions of tons each year. A 2019 study concluded that 55 percent of this waste occurs during production, distribution, packaging and processing.

This normal waste, however, is viewed as the cost of doing business by companies such as Exceldor, and it does not agitate anyone in ruling circles since it has no impact on profits. On the other hand, the euthanasia of the chickens destined for the Saint-Anselme plant provokes rage within the ruling class because it is unforeseen and therefore negatively affects profit margins.

The underlying cause of the hysterical reaction by the ruling class to the strike at Exceldor is the same as that which has led it to resort with ever-greater frequency to emergency laws criminalizing strikes and social opposition. It lives in constant fear of a broader working class counteroffensive against the big business assault on jobs, wages, and public services, and indifference to human life. Such a counter-offensive, which would meet with mass support among food processing workers and millions in other economic sectors across Canada and internationally, can only be led by the working class, organized independently on the basis of a socialist program to fight for its own class demands.

For the Exceldor workers, the first practical step in this struggle must be the creation of a rank-and-file strike committee to take control of their struggle out of the hands of the pro-employer UFCW, which has overseen one round of concessions after another in recent decades, and has been complicit in the ruling class savage disregard for workers lives during the pandemic.
A Board of Inquiry report into the methane gas explosion at Anglo Americans underground Grosvenor coal mine in central Queensland on May 6, 2020, which left five mineworkers with horrific injuries, has again pointed to the subordination of safety to profit.

The Queensland state Labor Party government convened the inquiry as a damage-control exercise to contain widespread outrage over the disaster, coming on top of previous multiple deaths in the states mines. The government sought to whitewash its own responsibility for the disaster, alongside that of the company.

Anglo Americans Grosvenor Mine (Photo: Australasian Mine Safety Journal)

However, even in the highly-orchestrated proceedings of a government inquiry it sometimes proves impossible to completely suppress evidence that points to the underlying cause of such disastersthe drive for production to maximise investment returns.

The inquirys final report, released last week, confirms that the company knowingly gambled with workers lives by enforcing a rate of production that continually produced methane gas levels exceeding the capacity of the mines gas drainage system. This created one of the essential components that produced the May 6 disaster.

Grosvenors gas drainage system, at best, could only handle gas levels generated from the mining of 10,000 tonnes of coal daily. However, production from the mines long wall 104 (LW104) was frequently in the range of 15,000 to 20,000 tonnes, and sometimes up to 28,000 tonnes a day.

Not only did Anglo refuse to cap production to a safe level. When it began mining LW104, it implemented a system known as bi-directional mining. This involves shearers cutting coal in both directions on the long wall to yield higher levels of production. That would have contributed to a further elevation of gas levels.

Moreover, Anglo abandoned a series of essential safeguards designed to manage gas levels that would have taken considerable time to implement and delayed the start-up of production on LW104.

These safeguards included the pre-gas drainage of the actual seam being worked and the development of an effective strategy to divert gas being generated from coal seams surrounding LW104 as cutting on the long wall proceeded.

Also, the company did not carry out the required specific spontaneous combustion risk assessment, either prior to starting production on LW104 or at any time during its operation.

Moreover, the company did not inform the states Inspectorate of Mines, which supposedly enforces safety, of its failure to carry out these measures. Even so, it is incomprehensible that the inspectorate, which admits its officials were in constant discussions with the company, had no inkling of these deadly decisions of management.

The inspectorate was fully aware of continuous dangerous gas exceedances and high potential incidents (HPIs), known in the industry as near misses, during work on the mines previous LW103 operation. Inspectorate officials also knew of unceasing problems with the companys gas management at the mine since 2016.

The inquiry found that almost every case of gas exceedance on LW103 was caused by the company pushing levels of production that went beyond the capacity of the gas drainage system.

Gas levels from LW104s operation were at least 65 percent higher than those at LW103. Why then did the inspectorate not carry out a thorough investigation before allowing work to commence on LW104?

The answer is to some degree implied in the extraordinary statement to the inquiry made on behalf of the inspectorate by its regional inspector, Stephen Smith. While admitting to knowing the history of continuous gas exceedances at the mine, Smith said information provided during interaction between the inspectorate and the mine indicated that the mines actions in managing these issues was generally effective.

In other words, the inspectorate relied on information fed to it by the company.

Ultimately, the inquiry found that Anglo had repeatedly subjected the Grosvenor workers to an unacceptable level of risk, including in the months leading up to the explosion. The report also conceded that the inspectorate did not give LW104 the attention it warranted.

The inquiry, however, still attempted to downplay the inspectorates culpability, only saying the agencys appraisal of Grosvenors capabilities with respect to methane management was inappropriate.

The inspectorates close working relationship with Anglo can be understood only as an outcome of the pro-business Labor governments own intimate association with the mining companies.

Relying heavily on mining royalties, the government has backed the companies drive to slash costs through jobs cuts and ever-greater casualisation. Reflecting the situation throughout the states coal mines, some 76 percent of Grosvenors workforce were contractors or labour hire workers.

Miners have persistently raised that insecure forms of employment act as a deterrent to workers raising safety concerns, out of fear of dismissal by the contract companies. Yet the inquiry said this was a mere perception among coal mine workers.

While saying there is scope to improve the mechanisms for safety issues to be raised by workers, nothing in the inquirys recommendations would in any way inhibit ever-greater casualisation.

Despite the revelations of Anglos culpability in undermining safety, the inquirys findings effectively leave safety in the hands of the company. For example, the report calls on the company to conduct reviews into the effectiveness of gas management, methane drainage, operational practices and management systems. Such recommendations are akin to putting a fox in charge of a hen house.

Construction Forestry Mining, Maritime and Energy Union (CFMMEU) Queensland president Stephen Smyth declared that the reports most shocking thing was the detailed account of Anglos failure to manage dangerous gases at Grosvenor or slow production following high potential incidents during the two previous months.

There can be no doubt, however, that workers would have informed the CFMMEU about the dangerous conditions that existed over an extended period, but the union did nothing to prevent the disaster waiting to happen.

Attempting to lend credence to the inquirys totally ineffective and empty recommendations, Smyth declared the union would work hard to make sure the inquirys findings lead to systemic improvements in the industryincluding employment practices.

The outcome of the inquiry demonstrates again that there will be no systemic improvements to end the fatalities and injuries until workers take matters into their own hands. The pressing need is for the building of a network of rank-and-file committees, completely independent of the union, to vigorously enforce safety and fight the assault on jobs and working conditions.

This struggle is bound up with the fight for socialist policies, including placing the mines, along with the banks and major corporations, under public ownership and democratic workers control.
Written and directed by Nicole Riegel

Every day, in towns and cities across the United States innumerable stories of sacrifice, burden, love, hope and hardship unfold in working class communities. One could drive across the US, take almost any exit into a residential neighborhood and come upon gripping and even heart-wrenching storiesany one of which would make for more fascinating filmmaking than most of what one finds streaming across the internet today.

Holler, written, directed and produced by Nicole Riegel, is a refreshing, newly released film, which seems to have been inspired by a feeling for such day-to-day drama. Set in Jackson, Ohio (Riegels hometown, population 6,200), in a region ravaged by decades of deindustrialization, Holler follows the story of a family and community as they struggle to make ends meet under harsh conditions.

Jessica Barden in Holler

The film opens with Ruth (Jessica Barden), a teenage girl, stealing bags of cans with her older brother Blaze (Gus Harper) to sell to a local scrap-metal dealer, Hark (Austin Amelio). Former President Donald Trumps voice is heard on the radio touting his unfulfilled promise of Jobs, jobs, jobs! as the two drive through a town riddled with abandoned plants and warehouses.

The two siblings, Ruth and Blaze, live on their own. Their mother fell into addiction after getting hurt on the job at the local food-processing plant. She now sits in the local jail, refusing rehab. The film never sheds light on the whereabouts of their father. Eviction notices are piling up on their door, and soon the water is turned off. To keep their heads above water, the two regularly visit the plant where their mother used to work. The workers are a close-knit group who are kind to Ruth and Blaze. Their mothers closest friend, Linda (Becky Ann Baker), makes them meals and generally looks after them.

Despite her difficult home life, Ruth is a bright young woman who thrives at school that is, when she is not getting into trouble for stealing books, talking back to administrators and missing class to make money to survive with her brother. She is quite endearing, though at times somewhat hardened, understandably. She found herself forced into adulthood at a young age.

The audience soon learns that Ruth has been accepted to college. She had filled out an application form, but, due to concerns that she could not afford the tuition, decided not to send it in. Blaze, determined to give his sister every opportunity in life, submitted the application without Ruths knowledge. To his great pleasure and her initial dismay, she was accepted.

The rest of the film follows the two siblings as they struggle to scrape together enough money for Ruth to attend school, despite the odds stacked against them. Their journey leads them to take jobs on the scrap metal crew, which entails breaking into abandoned factories and warehouses at night and stripping the walls, shelves and conduits of any metal. Their boss, Hark, sells the material they collect abroad.

Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the film is its social setting. The impact of deindustrialization is not just the films backdrop, but rather an essential part of the story. When the movie begins, there are rumors that the plant where most of the town works, including Linda, may close. Halfway through the movie, the rumor turns out to be true. The workers are suddenly locked out of the plant, without even being permitted to gather their personal belongings.

Holler

Meanwhile, the dangerous, largely illegal scrap metal business is booming. In one scene, Hark explains to Ruth and Blaze: You ever looked around this town? Manufacturing drying up left and right, leaving behind whole buildings that are just rotting away. We scrap the metal, and we sell to China, straight from the yard. Im talking modern-day gold mines.

These gold mines provide a living only to the handful of individuals who own the businesses. Those collecting the scrap face the possibility of arrest, the risks of working in rundown buildings in the dark with power tools and the threat of violence from rival crews.

It speaks volumes about the state of American capitalism that young workers in the region view tearing apart abandoned factories as their most promising and lucrative career opportunity. Ohio and the Midwest more generally once constituted a booming center of US manufacturing.

Jackson lies in the southeast corner of Ohio near West Virginia and is considered part of Appalachia. Jackson County was the second leading coal-producing county in the state during the coal mining era and was also home to industries such as General Mills. In the 1930s and 40s, the largest businesses in the town were the Star Furnace Company and the Globe Iron Company. Both firms used local coal and iron ore deposits to make iron products. Dayton (to the west) and Youngstown (to the North) were major hubs of manufacturing jobs. In fact, Dayton was once home to the largest concentration of General Motors employees outside of Michigan.

With the general decline of the economic position of US capitalism in the 1960s and 70s, companies like General Motors began to chase cheaper labor elsewhere and, in the process, created what is now known as the rust belt.

The Bulletin, 1977, reporting on the Youngstown steel jobs struggle

Locals often date the birth of the rust belt in Ohio specifically to September 19, 1977, when Youngstown Sheet and Tube laid off 5,000 workers at its Campbell works. The date is known as Black Monday. At the time, the shutting down of the plant made national news. Over the next decade, tens of thousands of workers in Ohio would lose their jobs, including thousands at United States Steel, which closed its Ohio Works, demolishing its four blast furnaces. The Jones and Laughlin mill that also sat alongside the Mahoning River was closed shortly afterward.

This trend continued for decades. By 2016, Ohio had lost half of its peak manufacturing jobs, and median household income trailed the nations by $5,300. In 2019, General Motors closed its Lordstown Assembly Plant, a 6.2 million-square-foot industrial complex, after more than a half century of operation and the production of more than 16 million vehicles.

The process of deindustrialization set off major struggles by workers defending their livelihoods, including by the Youngstown steel workers who waged a powerful struggle against the Campbell Works. Miners throughout Appalachia engaged in a wave of wildcat strikes from 1974 to 1979 in which nearly every miner east of the Mississippi took part. Ultimately, the workers were betrayed by the trade unions, and the latter collaborated with the political establishment, above all the Democratic Party, in overseeing the creation of the poverty-stricken towns across the region today.

Holler does not touch upon this history. One does not get a sense of the processes that went into the grim reality depicted on screen. Riegels film also lacks any indication of genuine social struggle. While the workers at Lindas plant are portrayed as resilient and admirable characters, they seem to more or less accept the plant closure without a fight.

More than anything, these limitations express objective problems. The history of struggle in this region is generally not taught in classrooms. Moreover, the reemergence of class struggle on an international scale, which is still only in its initial stages, has been blacked out in the mainstream media. And the artists have been oriented in a very different direction for decades.

In fact, right now, nearly 3,000 Volvo Trucks workers at the New River Valley plant in Dublin, Virginia (only 200 miles southeast of Jackson) are engaged in a fierce struggle against their union and the international Volvo corporation for a living wage, health care, benefits and safe working conditions.

There are important features of social life absent from Holler. However, such limitations do not take anything away from Riegels moving portrayal of working class life and conditions. The film is an immersive experience and an honest portrayal of the difficulties faced by wide layers of the population. More importantly, its characters leave the audience with a sense of hopefulness and resiliency.
An extreme heat wave has brought record high temperatures to the American Southwest over the past week. The fact that it is occurring before the official start of summer in the northern hemisphere has been a special cause of alarm and is an indication of the worsening effects of human-induced global warming.

The heat wave is coinciding with an end to the federal moratorium on evictions, currently set to last through June 30. On September 1, 2020, the Centers for Disease Control issued an order banning some evictions; the order has been extended several times. If the moratorium is not extended again, 10 million evictions could start as early as next week. In the context of the extreme weather and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the potential of such a large number of people being thrown out of their homes is a recipe for a major public health disaster.

Power lines in Houston, Texas, on February 16, 2021. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Approximately 40 million people have been living through heat well over 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsisus). Temperatures in Las Vegas, Nevada reached 117 degrees; Phoenix, Arizona hit 118 degrees; Denver saw three consecutive days of 100-degree weather, the earliest that such a streak has been recorded; and Death Valley, California recorded 129 degrees. Excessive heat warnings have been issued in California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah and Colorado. People have been cautioned not to walk on asphalt, sidewalks, and sand due to the danger of burns.

Heat waves are the deadliest type of weather phenomenon in the United States. According to the National Weather Service, between 1991 and 2020, an average of 138 people died each year due to heat. Fatalities by flood were the second leading cause, with an average of 85 deaths per year, while the average number of deaths by tornado was third, at 69.

High use of air conditioning has caused stress to electrical grids. Officials in Texas and California have urged people to set thermostats to 78 degrees, and to avoid using major appliances.

While a number of states have placed moratoriums on utility shutoffs for nonpayment, many of these are set to expire this summer. Californias ban runs through June 30. Even for people who are not evicted from their homes, losing utilities such as power and water could prove to be fatal.

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which oversaw the collapse of the states power grid in February during an extreme cold spell, has not appreciably upgraded the system to withstand increased demand during the heat wave and the stress of the high temperature on infrastructure. Nonetheless, Governor Greg Abbott has praised the power authority, even as a number of power plants went offline just as the demand for electricity was reaching record levels.

Lower water levels in reservoirs across the western US could potentially affect drinking water and hydroelectric power for tens of millions. Water levels on Lake Mead, the reservoir behind Hoover Dam on the Colorado River at the Nevada-Arizona border, have reached their lowest levels ever. The Colorado River supplies water to 40 million people, while Hoover Dam generates electricity for approximately 25 million people. Officials in California have announced that if water levels in Lake Oroville continue to drop, the reservoirs hydroelectric plant at the Oroville Dam will have to shut down for the first time ever.

The heat wave was caused by a heat dome, which occurs when masses of hot air expand vertically into the atmosphere. This in turn pushes warm air toward the ground, compressing the air and further heating it. The dome of high pressure then diverts weather systems around it.

The heat wave is reinforcing the effects of a drought that has also been occurring in the southwest. The drought, in turn, is exacerbating the effects of the heat wave, in a vicious circle. The drought has caused extremely low levels of moisture in the soil. The energy from the heat, instead of evaporating the water in the ground, is heating the atmosphere.

The extreme heat has also interacted with toxic air pollutants, causing poor air quality. Parts of Phoenix experienced their worst air quality since at least 1980. The South Coast Air Quality Management District, the air pollution control agency for Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside counties in California, issued an ozone advisory due to the heat wave.

The heat wave has also created the perfect conditions for wildfires to develop. According to the National Interagency Fire Center, as of June 18, 33 large fires have burned 372,241 acres in 10 states. While fires can be started by natural phenomena, such as lightning strikes, as well as by human carelessness, the hot, dry conditions provide the fuel for ever larger disasters. The past several years have seen major fires throughout the west, resulting in many deaths and destruction of vast areas, and this year could very well see more of this.

Some local communities have started to set up cooling stations for people to escape the heat. However, these are intended only as temporary measures, and could quickly become inundated with people should mass evictions start.

At the other end of the spectrum, the oceans are heating up, creating the conditions for tropical storms and hurricanes which bring heavy rains. Since the official start of hurricane season this month, there have already been three named storms in the Atlantic, Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico regions. This weekend, Tropical Storm Claudette came ashore in Louisiana and traveled through the southeastern part of the country. Flooding and tornadoes caused by the storm were reported in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and Georgia, resulting in at least 13 deaths. Forecasters said that Claudette could bring 5 to 10 inches of rain, with local totals of up to 15 inches.

Additionally, Tropical Storm Delores (part of the Pacific system of naming storms, which is separate from the Atlantic system) came ashore in western Mexico near the Michoacan-Colima border, where it was expected to bring 6 to 10 inches of rain.
Nurses picketed outside Childrens Hospitals in Minneapolis and St. Paul June 8 to raise the alarm about insufficient staffing as the health care company redesigns its two campuses, and as elective surgeries increase workloads.

The Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) revealed that the union has been meeting with management for several months to discuss the ramifications of downsizing its St. Paul hospital and the transfer of services to its Minneapolis campus. The MNA says that Childrens is experiencing a shortage of beds and a staffing shortage.

Children's Minnesota Hospital in Minneapolis on April 24, 2021 (Photo by Chad Davis)

Between May and August of 2020, during the second surge of the pandemic, Childrens laid off 17 percent of its nursing workforce, a total of 180 nurses. Then in October 2020, as it considered reorganization plans, Childrens laid off another 150 employees in various categories and canceled recruitment for 150 unfilled positions. At that time Childrens declared the decision was designed to permanently reduce staffing levels.

According to the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal, Childrens patient volumes fell by as much as 80 percent during the pandemics first peak earlier this year, and it lost $8.1 million in the second quarter of this year on revenue of $433.9 million. The hospital received CARES Act money totaling $16.8 million, which did little to reverse its predicament.

On May 12, the MNA picketed Minnesotas third-largest health care system, Fairview Health Services, at its Southdale facility to protest hospital managements proposal to cut staffing. The result, according to the MNA, would be to increase the nurse-to-patient ratio from the previous ratio of one nurse to four or five patients, to one nurse for every six patients.

Minnesotas health care systems axed 42,000 jobs between March 2020 and April 2020 as the pandemic gained momentum, and shut down its elective surgeries, resulting in losses in the billions of dollars. On May 4, 2021, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz issued an executive order that permitted the health care systems to restore elective surgeries. But corporate executives caution that health care systems will not automatically return services to pre-pandemic levels and profits.

Its not a magic wand thats going to return things to normal overnight, Parker Eberwein, senior medical director for surgical services at HealthPartners told the Business Journal. Timothy Sielaff, former chief medical officer at Allina Health said the return to elective services will help our finances. But  The financial challenges of our response to Covid-19 are really complex. There will remain challenges after this.

The irrationality of the capitalist profit system is exposed by the starving of funding for health care in the midst of the deadliest pandemic in a century. Only a socialist reorganization of health care under the control of the working class can put an end to the slashing of jobs, increased workloads and the danger this places on the safe delivery of health care to patients.

What stands in the way is the subordination of the working class to the Democratic Party and the profit system by the unions. While the MNA has given lip service to safe staffing ratios, the contract negotiations in 2010, 2016 and 2019 with the major health care systems have laid bare the unions role in sabotaging the struggles by nurses to establish safe workloads.

The drive by the corporations to reorganize health care at the expense of the working class is also revealed in the strike by 700 nurses at St. Vincent Hospital in Worcester, Massachusetts, now into its 15th week. The Massachusetts Nurses Association and the labor bureaucracy as a whole are isolating the strike and allowing management a free hand to bring in strikebreakers and starve out nurses on the picket line.

Nurses everywhere should follow the example of autoworkers, such as the Virginia Volvo workers and teachers in a number of states, to form rank-and-file committees in opposition to the alliance of the unions and corporate management. These committees must prepare the struggle to defend jobs, obtain safe staffing levels and take immediate action to provide aid to the embattled St. Vincent nurses and Volvo workers.
The Pennsylvania Educators Rank-and-File Safety Committee is comprised of educators in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Ohio and meets every Thursday at 7:30 p.m. We invite educators, students and parents throughout the region to sign up to join our committee and attend our next meeting.

Last Thursday, our committee discussed the tragic death of Indian Maruti Suzuki worker Jiyalal, who died under the watch of Indian police. We reviewed the history of the frame-up and imprisonment of the Maruti Suzuki workers for their struggle to organize resistance to the brutal conditions of exploitation. The following resolution was unanimously adopted.

Police escort the framed-up Maruti Suzuki workers

The Pennsylvania Educators Rank-and-File Safety Committee condemns and mourns the death of Indian Maruti Suzuki worker Jiyalal, under the watch of Indian police. We also mourn the death of Maruti Suzuki worker Pawan Dahiya, who died from electrocution at his farm, and pledge our support to the struggle to free the remaining 11 framed-up Maruti Suzuki workers.

Jiyalal, who was diagnosed with skeletal cancer, was denied medical treatment and left to die, for a crime he did not commit. He was just 35 years old. He and his family were hounded by the police during his final excruciating year at home, with threats of returning him to prison, which culminated in the tragic death of his father.

He was one of 13 Maruti Suzuki workers, who led a militant struggle to break free of the control of their company-run union and founded their own, leading a fight in 2012 to end the horrendous sweatshop conditions that he and thousands of his co-workers were forced to endure.

In response to this struggle, which was poised to spread to workplaces across the region, management framed the workers for a fire of unknown origin in the factory, which caused the death of a Human Resources representative.

Without any proof against the workers, the company, the courts, the unions, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the state Congress party vindictively colluded to convict the workers of murder and sentenced them to life in prison. The company provided lists of workers to the police for arrest, testimony by workers was excluded, and the burden of proof was placed on the workers in a violation of the most basic of democratic rights.

Jiyalal was savagely beaten during his first arrest and was held, along with the other Maruti Suzuki workers, in horrific conditions in prison.

His death is the second among the 13 Maruti Suzuki frame up-victims. In February 2021, 37-year-old Pawan Dahiya died on his farm after getting electrocuted from an apparently faulty submersible well pump. Pawan was home on parole from prison during the brief temporary release of Maruti Suzuki workers due to the rapid spread of COVID-19 in India. Ajmer Singh, who was a legal advisor of the Maruti Suzuki Workers Union (MSWU) prior to his incarceration, is battling cancer. All are victims of ruling class justice.

Now the state government in India is asking the prisoners to return to their cells, claiming that the pandemic is under control, when the daily new infections has consistently been over 25,000 this past week.

The conviction of the Maruti Suzuki 13 and the deaths of Jiyalal and Pawan are a warning to the working class across the globe. The capitalist class and the states it controls will take any action to protect their profit interests and oppose efforts by the working class to improve their living and working conditions.

Most significantly, it is a lesson on the necessity for the broadest organization and mobilization of the working class in a militant movement independent of the corrupt union bureaucracies.

It was the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), which the Maruti Suzuki workers were members of, that worked to shut down strike action by the workers and to prevent the mobilization of hundreds of thousands of workers in the region to defend the Maruti Suzuki workers.

At every turning point, when tens of thousands of workers were ready to take action in support of the Maruti Suzuki workers, the AITUC intervened to shut down labor action, promoting the lie that the state government would intervene on the behalf of the workers.

This isolation left the Maruti Suzuki workers to fight an international corporation, the police, and the state government all on their own, resulting in the defeat of the union, the layoff of all 2,400 workers and the police persecution of hundreds of strike participants.

This defeat must inform workers around the world, including here in Pennsylvania and around the United States, that the greatest ally and weapon the working class has is itself. It is only the mass mobilization of the working class in struggle and in solidarity which will bring about improvements in living and working conditions, as well as protect workers from persecution by the companies and the courts.

We strongly condemn the company, the courts, the BJP and state Congress party and the AITUC for their complicity in the death of Jiyalal and the persecution of his fellow workers, whose only crime was fighting to improve their livelihoods. We encourage all educators and workers around the world to join the movement to build the International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees (IWA-RFC), which will build the militant labor movement workers need in opposition to the corrupt trade unions that have abandoned us.
The uncontrolled spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil has had particularly catastrophic effects on the working class. While the capitalist class affirms, through the statements made by each company, that it follows the protocols and that workers get infected when they are off duty, the role of the workplaces as centers of transmission of the virusand, consequently, as strategic places to fight the pandemic and defend the lives of the populationhas become increasingly clear.

Similar to what has been seen in factories, transport and other workplaces, refineries and oil platforms have an infection rate above the national average. In the month in which Brazil surpassed the grim milestone of half a million COVID-19 deaths, the workers of the state-run energy giant Petrobras are seeing the deaths of their colleagues skyrocket.

According to monitoring by the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME), there was a 125 percent increase in Petrobras workers deaths in the last two months, from 20 deaths as of April 5 to 45 deaths by June 15. A 27 percent increase in total infections among these workers was registered over this same period. So far, of the 46,416 direct workers at Petrobras, 7,205 (15.5 percent) have been infected with the virus, a proportion above the national average (approximately 8 percent).

Striking workers at the Landulpho Alves refinery (RLAM) in Bahia, Brazil (Twitter)

This survey, however, does not even include outsourced workers, which in many Petrobras units correspond to half or even most of the workforce. The governments records also do not disclose information per production unit, which makes it difficult for workers to check and control this data. According to the accounting of the Unified Federation of Oil Workers (FUP), there are actually more than 80 workers who have died of COVID-19 at Petrobras since the beginning of the pandemic.

Even in the face of rising infection and death rates, the company is preparing a return to on-site work for the approximately 20,000 employees of its administrative sector, who have been working remotely. The return is planned to happen gradually starting in July, coinciding with the peak of a third wave of COVID-19 infections and deaths in Brazil, according to leading scientists projections.

In addition to the exposure of workers to infections and the lack of data on the real impact of the pandemic, Petrobras is being accused of promoting quack treatments for COVID-19, recommending drugs such as Ivermectin to its employees. The FUP says it has received reports from workers denouncing this practice and has lodged an official complaint through one of its local unions, the Sindipetro of Northern Rio de Janeiro, presenting as proof a prescription given to a worker.

The company denied having given this guidance, but in a press report it defended the autonomy of the doctors and did not condemn the prescription of the medicine, which, besides being ineffective for COVID-19, poses serious risks to those taking it. Doctors from COVID-19 treatment centers in Sao Paulo, such as the Clinicas and Emilio Ribas hospitals, warned about the side effects of drugs such as Ivermectin, which are jeopardizing the treatment of severely ill patients.

In March, the WHO had reiterated its recommendation not to use Ivermectin for patients with COVID-19, regardless of the level of severity, or duration of symptoms.

Despite all these warnings, Brazils President Jair Bolsonaro encourages the use of Ivermectin, as well as Azithromycin and Hydroxychloroquine, all of which are ineffective against the virus. With propaganda that these drugs offer an early treatment to COVID-19, Bolsonaro is leading doctors and companies across the country to adopt what he calls the COVID kit.

A BBC News Brazil report, published in March, reported that at least four companies have distributed the COVID kit to their employees in Sao Paulo, Parana and Santa Catarina. The case of Petrobras, a global and government-run company, is even more grotesque and alarming.

In line with the Brazilian ruling class as a whole, Petrobras has tried to absolve itself of responsibility for the increase in infections and deaths and has blamed the workers themselves for getting sick. Even with all the prevention protocols adopted in the units and recommendations for individual care regularly issued by the company, employees are subject to risks also during transportation, personal routines, time off or even in telecommuting, the company declared.

Besides the risk of death from COVID-19 in Petrobras units, the privatization process of the state-owned company is worsening the conditions of workers. According to Sindipetro of Sao Paulos Coast, since 2019, 37,610 jobs have been ended at Petrobras and its subsidiaries, which include the dismissal of 14,311 of its own workers and 23,299 outsourced workers. The workforce cuts have meant longer work shifts, increasing the exposure of workers to infections and the risk of accidents.

In March, workers at Petrobrass RLAM and Regap units went on strike in response to the sale of these refineries and the outbreaks of COVID-19 in the plants. In late May, workers at three Petrobras Biofuels (Pbio) units went on a two-week strike against the privatization.

Although these strikes developed in Petrobras units across the country, with stoppages and protests in several other units, they have been systematically divided and isolated by the trade unions, even as struggles against infections in the workplaces were developing in different sections of the working class, such as teachers and transport workers.

With the rise of an ominous third wave of the pandemic in Brazil, it is imperative that oil workers break this isolation. In opposition to the domination of the corporatist unions, they must form a network of rank-and-file committees at the Petrobras units and at each and every workplace, which will allow the coordination of the struggles across different sectors of the working class and internationally. Petrobras workers should join in the building of the International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees (IWA-RFC). It has been established to coordinate workers struggles across state borders and continents and to arm these struggles with a socialist internationalist program.
The first round of regional elections in France took place on Sunday. They were marked by a historic abstention rate, while the far-right National Rally (Rassemblement National-RN) of Marine Le Pen secured the most votes in the Provence-Alpes-Cote dAzur (PACA) region.

The elections took place amidst the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more than 110,000 people in the country, due to Macrons actions since the beginning of the crisis to permit the virus to spread. For the political establishment, the elections are used as an indicator in advance of the presidential elections next year.

Far-right leader Marine le Pen attends a press conference in Toulon, southern France, June 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Daniel Cole)

Early estimates put the national turnout at just 32.8 percent, with abstention at 67.2 percent, a record high for a two-round election under the Fifth Republic. In 2015, abstention in the regional elections was 49.9 percent; the highest abstention ever was in 2010, at 53 percent. In contrast, the abstention rate in the 1986 regional elections was 22.7 percent.

This points to the widespread disillusionment with and hostility to the established political parties, as well as a distrust of Macrons handling of the pandemic, which has been tacitly backed by parties such as Jean-Luc Melenchons La France insoumise (LFI).

The regional elections appoint 1,767 regional councillors for six years in Frances 12 metropolitan regions. In the first round, if a list obtains an absolute majority of the votes cast, it gets a quarter of the seats to be filled. The remaining seats are distributed by proportional representation among all the lists that obtained at least 5 percent of the votes cast.

The Republicans (LR) won in Hauts-de-France (43.1 percent), Grand Est (31.5 percent), Normandy (35.1 percent), Pays de la Loire (34.1 percent) and Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes (43.8 percent), and in Ile-de-France (34.2 percent of the vote). The PS came out on top in five regions: Centre-Val de Loire (25.6 percent), Nouvelle-Aquitaine (28.6 percent), Occitanie (39.6 percent), Bourgogne-Franche-Comte (26.2 percent) and Bretagne (20.8 percent).

Le Pens far-right National Rally leads with 34.8 percent in the PACA region.

In Corsica, the autonomist Inseme per a Corsica is leading with 28 percent of the vote.

With no party obtaining an absolute majority of the votes cast, a second round of elections will be necessary in all regions next Sunday. Parties that obtained at least 10 percent of the votes cast can stand in the second round, and possibly merge with lists with at least 5 percent of the votes.

At a national level, according to an Ipsos/Sopra Steria estimate, the results of the first round by political party are: LR and its allies, 27.2 percent; the RN, 19.3 percent; the PS and its allies, 17.6 percent; Europe Ecology-the Greens and allies, 12.5 percent; Macrons Republic on the Move (LREM) and its allies, 11.2 percent; Melenchons LFI and allies, 4.2 percent.

Several commentators have highlighted the widespread discrediting of the political class that the election reveals. In its weekend edition, Le Monde wrote, this desertion of voters is a sign of a sick democracy, of a political disillusionment, where the feeling that voting is useless is taking root.

Frederic Dabi, the director of Ifop Opinion, said on LCI this Friday that this abstention rate will be the major lesson of this election night and an earthquake that will have consequences, because an electoral balance of power is primarily the result of participation and a differential of mobilization between camps that vote and camps that do not vote. But when we reach such a level, for whom does the bell toll? It rings for all political parties, all segments of the population.

Macrons LREM is discredited and failed to win in Hauts-de-France, Auvergne Rhone Alpes and Occitanie.

The first round was a disappointment for Le Pens RN. Previously, polls and media outlets predicted that it would come first in six or seven regions, and win the Grand Est, the Centre-Val de Loire and PACA in the second round. In reality, the RN vote has declined compared to the 2015 regional elections, in which it won almost 28 percent of the vote in the first and second rounds, or 6.8 million votes. In 2015, the RN did not win any regions in the second round, but it did win 358 regional councillors, three times more than previously.

However, despite the drop in its vote in the first round, the RN remains a major established political force in France, largely thanks to the legitimisation of its policies by Macron and by the former Socialist Party government of President Francois Hollande before him.

For LFI and Melenchon, who received just under 20 percent of the vote in the 2017 presidential elections, the vote of 4.2 percent was a clear blow. In the midst of the greatest health catastrophe in over a century, LFI did not present any real alternative to the disastrous and politically criminal management by the government in the interests of the financial aristocracy.

In the second round, LFI is aligning itself with the other bourgeois parties, allegedly in order to block the Rassemblement National. Melenchon called for no region to be left to the RN, stating: We call for not adding one more blow to the misfortunes of our democracy. We will do what it takes to convince everyone that no region should be given to the National Rally.

Macron and the entire political establishment have largely contributed to the rise of RN by legitimising the politics of the far right in recent years. While he has led attacks on workers in collaboration with the unions, Macron has continued to promote the far right.

After his victory in 2017, Macron made the Republican salute to Marine Le Pen and her supporters. Forces within his Ministry of Culture attempted to have the works of Charles Maurras, the 20th-century anti-Semitic leader of Action Francaise, a pillar of the Vichy collaborationist regime who was convicted as a traitor after the Liberation, published. In 2018, as he sent riot police against the yellow vests, he hailed the collaborationist dictator Philippe Petain as a great soldier.

Since the start of the pandemic, the Macron government has provided billions of euros to banks and big business while pursuing a policy of herd immunity that has cost more than 110,000 lives in France and more than a million in Europe. During this period, the richest have increased their fortunes enormously, while the majority of the population have seen their standard of living fall.

In the wake of the pandemic, Macron has adopted much of the RNs agenda in an attempt to permanently undermine democratic rights. This includes the anti-Muslim anti-separatism law, which scuttles the 1905 law on secularism and the separation of church and state, and opens the way for the arbitrary dissolution of cultural and political organisations. He has also passed the global security law, which expands police powers against protesters and the population.

This underlines that the French political system is unresponsive to the rising social anger among workers, and in the hands of the financial aristocracy. Whatever the final outcome of the elections, they will not solve any of the fundamental problems facing workers. The decisive issue remains the mobilisation of the working class in France and internationally on the basis of socialist and internationalist opposition to capitalism and the reactionary policies of the ruling class.
This is the conclusion of a three-part series. Part one can be viewed here, and part two here.

Glossary

In the interests of clarity, since much of the following discussion includes scientific terminology, further obscured by the shorthand of Twitter threads and other online exchanges, a glossary of key terms and abbreviations may be helpful to the reader.

ACE2: Angiotensin-converting enzyme II, an enzyme on the surface of many human cells, targeted by the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2

FCS: Furin cleavage site, a point on the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 where the protein is easily cut by a protease called furin, helping it invade cells in the host human

nCoV2019: An early acronym referring to the virus now called SARS-CoV-2

RaTG-13: A bat virus found in caves in Yunnan province in China, genetically similar to SARS-CoV-2, but not a precursor, despite the claims of the conspiracy theorists

RBD: Receptor-binding domain, a portion of the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 which attaches to a human host cell

S1/S2 boundary: The point on the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 where the furin cleavage site is located in order to split the protein most efficiently

SARS-CoV-1: The virus that caused the SARS pandemic in 2002, which was largely contained

SARS-CoV-2: The virus that causes COVID-19

WIV: Wuhan Institute of Virology, the lab where Dr. Shi Zhengli conducted research on bat coronaviruses

Ralph Baric and Edward Holmes

There are three main centers for CoV studies globally, including the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), the University of North Carolina (UNC), led by Dr. Ralph Baric, and the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) Health Galveston, Texas.

The Wuhan Institute of Virology

The enormous and collaborative scientific discourse that existed between UNC and WIV, as Dr. Kristian Andersen mentioned (see part two), provides an understanding of what forms of viral experiments were feasible.

Dr. Shi and Dr. Baric published a 2015 report demonstrating the feasibility of attaching a SARS-like spike protein to the backbone of a SARS virus, creating a chimeric virus (so-called after the Chimera of Greek mythology, because it combines two separate microorganisms), that proved pathogenic in mouse models. The designed virus was created in Dr. Barics lab at UNC.) But, as previously stated, the RaTG13 genome found in Yunnan Province did not produce a live virus, nor was it sufficiently close in its genetic makeup to the SARS-CoV-2 virus to allow bioengineering to create the hitherto unknown SARS-CoV-2.

According to an account published in the New Yorker, Dr. Baric, who was one of the signatories calling for more investigation into the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, said, I really believe that the genetic sequence for sars-CoV-2 really points to a natural-origin event from wildlife. Perhaps the most renowned and leading expert on coronaviruses in the world, Dr. Baric carefully explained that the repository of viruses in nature is magnitudes higher than what would be found in the library of the Wuhan lab.

Dr. Baric also noted that the SARS-CoV-2 virus is so different than any other known virus, to engineer it from an ancestral strain would have been a truly unprecedented feat of molecular biology. And of course, you dont know what youre engineering, because SARS-CoV-2 would not have existed, Baric said.

Counterfactually, he stated he had seen no evidence that the virus had been collected from the wild, unknown to the lab, and somehow escaped the containment of the WIV. The New Yorker report concluded, All that is known for sure is that a pathogen that likely originated in bats had transferred species and caused a global pandemic in human beings, perhaps in a way that had only happened a few times in modern medical history or in a waythrough a labthat may never have happened before. Barics preference was for the theory that resembled previous outbreaks.

Edward Holmes

Placing Dr. Barics comment in context, a recent article accepted to the journal Cell by Edward Holmes and colleagues, Identification of novel bat coronaviruses, sheds light on the evolutionary origins of SARS-CoV-2 and related viruses. The discussion section includes the following passage:

In total, we assembled 24 novel coronavirus genomes from different bat species, including four SARS-CoV-2 like coronaviruses. Additional PCR-based tests revealed the presence of these four viruses in nine individual samples collected in Yunnan province between May and July 2020. Together with the SARS-CoV-2 related virus collected from Thailand in June 2020, these results clearly demonstrate that viruses closely related to SARS-CoV-2 continue to circulate in bat populations, and in some regions might occur at a relatively high frequency.

The authors state that the Rhinolophus pusillus virus RpYN06 was the closest relative of SARS-CoV-2 in most of the genome, although it possessed a more divergent spike gene. The other three related SARS-CoV-2 viruses had genetically distinct spike genes that were capable of binding to the human ACE2 receptor, though lacking a furin cleavage site. The study acknowledges that the direct progenitor of SARS-CoV-2 remains unclear. However, the study provides strong circumstantial evidence that implicates a natural origin for the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Holmes, an evolutionary biologist and virologist at the University of Sydney, Australia, calculates that the level of genome sequence divergence between SARS-CoV-2 and RaTG13 is equivalent to an average of 50 years (and at least 20 years) of evolutionary change.

Hence, SARS-CoV-2 was not derived from RaTG13, Holmes has written, adding that the abundance, diversity and evolution of coronaviruses in wildlife strongly suggests that this virus is of natural origin.

Benhur Lee and Stephen Goldstein

Dr. Benhur Lee is the Ward-Coleman Chair in microbiology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. His lab focuses on explaining how viruses co-opt basic cell biological processes to complete their life cycles and the numerous strategies used by viruses to propagate themselves.

Dr. Benhur Lee

In response to the claim by Nicholas Wade in his attack on Andersens proximal origin study that the Wuhan lab used an unpublished coronavirus DNA backbone derived from RaTG13 as the basis for engineering a new and deadly virus, the Benhur Lee Lab offers a pointed reply, arguing the inherent improbability of such a course of action:

To reiterate, most of SARS-CoV-2 comes from a bat coronavirus closely related to RaTG13. This virus is not known to cause disease in humans. If we were virus engineers (and this actually happens to be my job in the Benhur Lee lab), we would need to: Make a virus backbone from a never-before-seen virus that looks like, but isnt, RaTG13, without having any reason to believe it would be a better starting place than a previously characterized virus (like the original SARS-CoV). [Then] spend months to years building a system that is easy to engineer (reverse-genetics system) when there are other virus backbones readily available. [Afterwards], choose the RBD region from an unknown pangolin coronavirus even though all computer models show it should be suboptimal at binding ACE2, and show that it binds well in spite of the models. All of these steps sound like bad ideas from a scientists perspective. There were easier ways to engineer a coronavirus, and no one would have rationally chosen either the bat virus backbone or the pangolin portion of the spike protein. Therefore, SARS-CoV-2 is unlikely to be man-made from pieces of other viruses we have zero evidence that any person or lab has attempted even one part of this process.

In other words, no virus engineer would have proceeded in the fashion alleged by the promoters of the lab leak theory. The random variation of natural selection provides a far superior explanation of the actual course of development of the virus, and given that we are only 18 months into the pandemic, the gaps in this explanation simply reflect the actual development of scientific knowledge, not some nefarious conspiracy.

According to the labs hypothesis

The available data suggests a two-step process that may have given rise to SARS-CoV-2. 1) A bat coronavirus likely infected an intermediary animal (potentially a Malayan pangolin) where it recombined with a non-bat coronavirus. Then, 2) over time, either in the intermediary animal or while in humans, SARS-CoV-2 developed additional mutationsa polybasic cleavage site and a nearby O-linked glycan addition site. [More on this below]

The Benhur Lee Lab adds that SARS-CoV-2 either acquired these gains before spillover into humans or acquired them while developing in humans. These hypotheses are in agreement with Kristian Andersens conclusions.

As previously stated, the RaTG13 virus lacks the furin cleavage site. The Benhur Lee Lab noted

a hypothetical generation of SARS-CoV-2 by cell culture or animal passage would have required prior isolation of a progenitor virus with very high genetic similarity, which has not been described. The subsequent generation of a polybasic cleavage site would have then required repeated passage in cell culture or animals with ACE2 receptors like those of humans, but such work has also not previously been described.

In other words, the Wuhan lab has not reported any of the intermediate steps that would be required to facilitate the creation of SARS-CoV-2, steps that would have been routinely reported in previous publications, because no one, either at the Wuhan lab or in its international professional audience, would have recognized this as creating precursors of a deadly virus. The trajectory from RaTG13 to SARS-CoV-2 is so complicated and unlikely, involving, by Holmes estimate, nearly 1,200 separate edits to the genome, that not even natural selection, with billions upon billions of such edits, can account for it.

A similar assessment of the natural origins of SARS-CoV-2 appeared last week in Foreign Policy magazine, hardly a bastion of hostility to American imperialism or sympathy to the Chinese government. The article by contributor Justin Ling carries the headline, The Lab Leak Theory Doesnt Hold Up.

Ling points out that the apparent geographical path of SARS-CoV-2, from bat caves in southern Yunnan province to animals sold at a wet market in central China (Wuhan) to human beings, far from being improbable, as claimed by Nicholas Wade and other lab leak advocates, is nearly identical to that followed by the original SARS outbreak in 2002.

He cites the views of Stephen Goldstein, who studies evolutionary virology at the University of Utah, and denies that there is growing evidence to support the lab leak hypothesis.

Commenting on the findings of Edward Holmes, Goldstein regards the number of changes required to transform RaTG13 into SARS-CoV-2 as an insurmountable hurdle. Cramming 50 years of evolution into eight is impossible, Goldstein said. Forcing 1,000 nucleotide changesjust, no.

Goldstein also rejects the argument that the furin cleavage site on SARS-CoV2 demonstrates its artificial or engineered character, one of the main pseudo-scientific claims of Wade & Co. You cannot, in a normal cell culture, maintain the furin cleavage site, he told Ling. Instead of the furin cleavage site being particularly well adapted for humans, the opposite is true.

No virologist would use that cleavage site, he told Ling, adding that in the lab, the cleavage site has a tendency to delete itself, and to employ it would require doing things differently than everyone does them, and would actually slow down replication of the virus. Were not good enough, in virology, to make the perfect virus, Goldstein concludes.

Finally, it is worth briefly discussing the O-linked glycan modifications necessary for the function of SARS-CoV-2 virus, mentioned by the Benhur Lee Lab. In the Proximal origins paper, Dr. Andersens team had noted that the O-linked glycan sites on the SARS-CoV-2 virus aid it to evade the hosts immune system by masking the virus. Other functions include helping the virus to bind to the host cell and enter and leave the cell after replicating itself.

A July 2020 article published in Science, analyzing the spike protein of the SARS-CoV-2 virus for vaccine development, notes that these O-linked glycan sites develop under the pressure of natural selection. In order to acquire them the SARS-CoV-2 virus needed the selective pressure of being exposed to a living organism with an intact immune system. The generation of the O-linked glycans is unlikely to have occurred from cell-culture passage in a laboratory. The virus would have to be passed through animals to enhance these particular functions.

As Ling noted in the Foreign Policy article, paraphrasing Dr. Goldstein, if the scientists at Wuhan had attempted a serial animal passage experiment, meaning to have the virus replicate and mutate in animals until an efficient and suitable virus was created, The lab would need to run a veritable petting zoo of different animals to perfect this kind of zoonotic transmission. And it still doesnt account for the decades of necessary evolution. Prior to the outbreak in December 2019, nothing closely resembling the COVID-19 virus was reported in any lab. Since it has emerged, it has taken hundreds of millions of infections to net just a handful of serious mutations and variants.

Conclusion

In five years of extensive work at the Wuhan lab, Dr. Shi Zhengli explained that her team discovered only 11 full-length genomes of SARS-related CoV. This speaks to the complexity of such research. Only three live viruses have been collected in the nearly 20 years since the SARS-CoV-1 epidemic.

It also took more than 15 years after SARS-CoV-1 was discovered for the animal origin to be identified. There is nothing unusual in this. For instance, Ebola is thought to have a zoonotic origin (derived from nature), but its natural reservoir remains unknown 40 years later. The argument that the pool for SARS-CoV-2 has yet to be uncovered and, therefore, by Wades troubled logic, it must have been manufactured in a Chinese lab, is a false one generated for political purposes.

As to the three WIV workers who allegedly fell ill with respiratory illnesses in November, the WHO-convened global study of the origins of SARS-CoV-2 offers a critical glimpse into the months leading into the pandemic in Wuhan. Using surveillance data on influenza-like illnesses and severe respiratory illnesses, they showed that laboratory cases of influenza began to climb quickly in early November.

It was only in early to the middle of December when unusual respiratory illnesses began to rise in the city. Corroborating this was the finding that excess deaths (deaths compared to previous years averages) did not start to climb sharply until the second week in January of 2020, centered in the area around the Hunan seafood market before expanding into the wider region. Additionally, the report comments that several international conferences were held in Wuhan from September to December 2019 without confirmation that any superspreading events had occurred as a byproduct of these gatherings.

Map shows the distance from the Wuhan lab to the Hunan market where COVID-19 was first detected, a distance of eight miles

Aside from Dr. Shis claim that all employees at WIV had tested negative and there were no infections reported at the institute, given the asymptomatic nature of COVID-19 infections, if in November three WIV workers were infected with SARS-CoV-2, it would most likely have led to a cluster of outbreaks at the institute, necessitating the closure of the facility for infection control and monitoring, well before the epidemic in Wuhan. The foreign press would have immediately reported such an event. These facts would have also come to the attention of the US intelligence community, the World Health Organization, and leaked by dissidents.

This review of the science demonstrates that the hypothesis identified as most likely in March-April 2020a natural origin of SARS-CoV-2remains after more than a year the most plausible. No evidence has been brought forward to undermine it. The campaign in support of the lab leak theory has no significant scientific basis.

As the World Socialist Web Site has explained:

The promotion of the lab-origin theory is driven by political conditions and social interests, motivated by two interrelated purposes. First, it aims to divert attention from the actions of the US and other governments in implementing policies that led to deaths on a massive scale. As the public begins to recover from the overwhelming shock of the pandemic, there will be demands for explanations for why so many people died, along with accountability for those responsible. ... Second, the Wuhan lab lie seeks to drum up nationalist hatred to support the Biden administrations central strategic aim: the preparation for economic and potentially military conflict with China.

Efforts to assist the scientists in their collaboration to identify the source of the virus and prepare for future pandemic pathogens are of vital global interest. The bourgeois press campaign maligning the Chinese scientists and their colleagues in the United States and elsewhere sabotages such collaboration and undermines both science and public health all over the world for the most nefarious purposes.

As the WSWS stated early in this malignant campaign,

The structure and methods of the Wuhan lab conspiracy theory are highly similar to other conspiracy theories promoted for political purposes, with which the propagandists in Washington and other world capitals are very familiar. ... The Chinese government, for its part, cannot but interpret the promotion of this lie as preparation for war, responding in a way that will make escalation more likely, creating a deadly cycle of militarization. A military conflict between the United States and Chinathe largest economies and militaries in the worldwould have catastrophic consequences for all of humanity.

This warning is entirely vindicated by this review of the scientific literature on the origins of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
In line with the ongoing witch hunt against workers at Alton Estate near Maskeliya in the central tea plantation district, Sri Lankan police are attempting to set up a special base inside the plantation. The estate is managed by Horana Plantations and owned by Hayleys, one of Sri Lankas leading conglomerates.

Last week, an assistant police superintendent from Hatton visited the plantation, as part of plans to use the estates cultural hall for the outpost. Workers opposed the provocative move, pointing out that the hall is used for a range of social functions, including wedding ceremonies.

Drayton Estate workers protest (Photo credit: K. Kishanthan)

Informed by local union officials, Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC) leader Jeevan Thondaman visited the estate. He did not oppose the police plan but simply asked that a different location be found on the estate. Thondaman is President Gotabhaya Rajapakses state minister of estate housing & community infrastructure. The police are currently looking for another site and are in regular contact with management.

Alton Estate workers voiced their concerns to the World Socialist Web Site. One of them stated: Now they are trying to put the police post at the estates dispensary, but we will oppose that as well.

The establishment of a police post on the estate is a continuation of the joint management-police conspiracy, aided and abetted by the CWC, against the Alton Estate workers.

They walked out on February 2 demanding higher wages and then participated in a February 5 national strike called by the CWC for a 1,000-rupee ($US5) daily wage. The CWC called the limited national walkout to head-off growing demands for industrial action by plantation workers across the island.

Velioya Estate workers protest demand quarantine relief (Photo credit-K. Kishanthan)

Alton Estate management immediately began harassing the strikers. When workers protested outside the managers residence, the company used this to falsely claim that strikers had physically assaulted the manager and assistant manager.

The police arrested 24 workers and two youths. They face prosecution on bogus criminal charges. The Horana Plantation Company then summarily sacked 38 workers, including the 24 charged by police, without any investigation or right of appeal. The CWC backed all of these attacks, providing the police with the names of the workers to be arrested and allowing the company to dismiss them.

The CWCs support for a police post on Alton Estate marks a new stage in the anti-democratic attack on plantation workers. While the National Union of Workers (NUW) and the Up-country Peoples Front (UPF) have members at Alton Estate, those organisations have also not opposed the current state provocation or the previous frame ups and victimisations.

Alton Estate management and other plantation bosses used the strikers protest outside the managers residence to call on the Rajapakse government to step up repression on the estates. On March 3, around 500 planters demonstrated in Hatton demanding police patrols on the estates. They provocatively called for guns, and weapons training, to deal with estate violence.

Workers protest at Velioya Estate to demand quarantine relief (Photo credit: K. Kishanthan)

Public Security Minister Sarath Weerasekara responded by assuring the regional plantation companies that the government would ensure security was provided to estate management. He promised that this issue would be discussed in the National Security Council, chaired by President Gotabhaya Rajapakse.

Last April, President Rajapakse, in an attempt to defuse the rising anger of estate workers, ordered the plantation bosses to provide a 1,000-rupee daily wage, which included 900 rupees basic pay and a 100-rupee allowance. The plantation companies, however, have resisted this directive and are now demanding increased daily picking targets.

Alton Estate workers, for example, who fail to reach the companys new daily target of 18 kilograms of tea are only paid 500 rupees, or half the 1,000-rupee daily rate, even if they pluck 17 kilograms. And those who reach the set target are not paid extra for additional amounts plucked.

Line room accommodation at Alton Estate (WSWS Media)

According to one Alton Estate worker, management is also hiring retired workers on a low-wage casual basis, paying only 40 rupees for a kilogram of plucked tea leaves. To reach the 1,000-rupee daily rate, they have to pluck 25 kilograms, an impossible amount. These brutal demands, which have been endorsed by the CWC, the NUW and the UPF, and are being imposed on other estates, are sparking a wave of resistance by plantation workers.

* Last week, nearly 300 workers from the lower- and middle-divisions of Kotiyagala Estate at Bogawanthalawa walked out in protest against cuts to the number of working days.

Management is giving us just two days work a week and eight days a month, workers told the media. How can we live on this wage? Managers are forcing us to pluck 18 kilograms of tea leaves per day, but this target is very difficult to reach. The trade unions are doing nothing to stop this but on the contrary, the CWC has joined with the management to implement these demands.

* Maskeliya Lanka Estate workers demonstrated on June 16 near the tea-leaf weighing centre, carrying placards and chanting slogans declaring that the promised 1,000-rupee daily wage was a deception.

* Workers from five divisions of the Maskeliya Glentilt Estate walked out for three days last week, opposing management demands that they pluck 20 kilograms a day.

* On Monday, Drayton Estate DT division workers protested against managements demands that they had to pluck 20 kilograms of tea for three consecutive days.

These recent actions are part of a growing list of demonstrations and industrial action now erupting in the countrys plantation districts. UPF leader V. Radhakrishnan recently admitted to the media that workers were coming to his union office complaining about oppression by the estate management, following the wage increase.

Lanka estate workers demonstrate in Maskeliya (Photo credit: Malayaga Kuruvi, Facebook)

Sri Lankas low-paid plantation workers, who lack proper safety equipment and live in small dwellings where social distancing is impossible, are also being heavily impacted by COVID-19, which is rapidly spreading in the plantation areas.

By June 9, Nuwara Eliya, the countrys main plantation district, recorded 5,342 infections with 78 deaths and 3,915 families affected. While many of these victims could be estate workers, no details have been released.

Even though testing rates are very low, 46 cases were recently reported from five estates in Bogawanthalawa, including in Tientsin and Kilani. Workers from Welioya Estate, near Hatton, recently protested to demand payment of promised, but still outstanding, quarantine relief.

On June 11, 50,000 health workers held a national five-hour strike, the second island-wide protest this month, to demand special allowances and increased safety measures to protect them from the rising tide of coronavirus infections.

Nervous about this growing movement, on May 27 and June 2 President Rajapakse invoked draconian essential service orders to ban all state-sector strikes, punishable with heavy fines and jail terms. Last Friday, the government extended this to include the postal services. The trade unions have silently endorsed all these repressive measures.

The frame up and ongoing victimisation of Alton Estate workers, and the governments escalating anti-democratic attacks on the state sector employees, can only be defeated through a break with the unions and the development of an independent movement of the working class. This requires the building of action committees and other rank-and-file organisations based on the fight for a socialist and internationalist perspective.

The Alton Workers Action Committee and the Socialist Equality Party have launched a defence campaign demanding the unconditional release of the victimised Alton Estate workers, the dropping of all charges and the reinstatement of every sacked worker. We urge workers throughout Sri Lanka and internationally to support this campaign, including by passing workplace resolutions and sending statements of support to this address wswscmb@sltnet.lk.
A Taiwan Peace and Stability Act was tabled in the United States House of Representatives on June 17 in the latest bipartisan effort to intensify pressure on Beijing over the self-ruled island of Taiwan. The purpose is to further challenge the One China policy and deepen preparations for war against the mainland.

An F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet is seen on the deck of the U.S. Navy USS Ronald Reagan in the South China Sea, 2018 (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

The leading Democrat and Republican on the Asia subcommittee of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Ami Bera and Steve Chabot, respectively, introduced the legislation, which is of a piece with the anti-China bill that recently passed the Senate with bipartisan backing.

The latest bill states: In order to ensure the longevity of US policy and preserve the ability of the people of Taiwan to determine their future independently, it is necessary to reinforce Taiwans diplomatic, economic, and physical space. Behind this double-speak, Washington intends to strengthen Taiwan in order to maintain its separation from China.

Taiwan is considered a crucial aspect of Washingtons future war plans against the mainland. Earlier this year, the Pentagon called for the stationing of offensive missiles on Taiwan and other nearby islands.

The legislation accuses Beijing of coerc[ing] actors into adhering to its One-China Principle. It cites countries that have broken off relations with Taipei in favor of Beijing since 2016 as supposed evidence of this coercion.

Without openly rejecting it, the bill represents a challenge to the legitimacy of the One China policy, which has governed cross-strait relations since Washington formally cut ties with Taipei in 1979 and acknowledged Beijing as the government of all of China.

Last August, the Trump administration announced significant adjustments to Washingtons interpretation of the One China policy. Since taking office, President Joe Biden, backed by the Democratic and Republican Parties, has continued where the Trump White House left off, taking further steps that chip away at the One China policy.

Three sections of the bill call for the US to deepen its involvement with Taiwan. The first instructs the US State Department to develop strategies to advance Taiwans meaningful participation in a prioritized set of international organizations. In particular, it cites the World Health Organization (WHO) as a potential body for furthering Taiwans involvement on the international stage.

Both Washington and Taipei have used the lie that Taiwan warned of the dangers of COVID-19 in a December 31, 2019 email to the WHO, but was ignored, while Beijing attempted to cover up what was taking place. The mention of the WHO is also meant to further the spurious claims that China is responsible for the global pandemic.

The second section calls for developing economic relations with Taiwan, no doubt to take advantage of Taiwans semiconductor industry, a key element of Washingtons war plans. The US hopes to maintain control of the supply of semiconductors for its own military and economic ends. The push is also aimed at pressuring Taiwanese companies to cut ties with the Chinese mainland, an aspect of the economic warfare being carried out, first by Trump and now Biden.

The third section calls for deepening US military relations with Taiwan. It accuses Beijing of attempts to intimidate Taiwan, including through high rates of PRC [Peoples Republic of China] sorties into air space near Taiwan, and PRC amphibious assault exercises near Taiwan. It states that the government should evaluate the feasibility of expanding coordination with US allies and partners to enhance deterrence over a cross-Strait conflict.

This is a call for Washington to further develop war plans with allies in the region, such as Japan, which occupied Taiwan from 1895 to 1945. In addition, the section calls for increasing Taiwans ability to wage asymmetric warfare against Beijing.

Washingtons accusations against Beijing are entirely hypocritical. Since the Obama administrations 2011 announcement of its pivot to Asia, successive administrations in Washington have pursued military build-ups, regular naval drills in the South China Sea, and freedom of navigation operations to challenge Beijings territorial claims.

At the end of Trumps term, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo lifted all restrictions on meetings between US and Taiwanese officials, a policy that Biden has continued. The current administration has demonized China with phony claims of genocide in Xinjiang, accused Beijing of creating the COVID-19 virus in a Wuhan laboratory, and sent naval vessels through the narrow Taiwan Strait at a record rate.

Under Biden, the United States sent its Palau ambassador to Taiwan, the first time a sitting ambassador has visited the island since 1979. Most recently, three senators visited Taiwan aboard a US military aircraft to announce the donation of COVID-19 vaccines to the island after Taipei accused Beijing, without evidence, of blocking vaccine purchases.

Bidens nomination for assistant secretary of state for East Asia Daniel Kritenbrink suggested during a hearing on June 15 that Washington could consider abandoning the One China policy. He stated: I do think that maintenance of that status quo and of that security is a dynamic situation. As the threat from [China] grows, as Beijings aggressive and bullying behavior vis-a-vis Taiwan grows, I think that our response has to be calibrated as well.

This supposed bullying largely consists of Beijings regular sorties into Taiwans Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ). However, Admiral Lee Hsi-ming, the former chief of the general staff of Taiwans military, stated earlier this year that these flights were more about political messaging than about military operational significance. An ADIZ is declared unilaterally by governments, without basis in international law, and does not constitute territorial air space.

Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley stated during a Congressional hearing on June 17 that, despite recent claims China would soon invade Taiwan, theres little intent right now, or motivation, to do it militarily. He added: I think China has a ways to go to develop the actual, no-kidding capability to conduct military operations to seize through military means the entire island of Taiwan, if they wanted to do that.

Milleys comments are not a call for defusing tensions with China, but the very opposite. Believing it has the upper hand at the moment, US imperialism is provocatively ramping up tensions with Beijing, while intensifying efforts to hit China economically.
Over the last month, Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott and the Republican-controlled state legislature have enacted a series of reactionary laws attacking immigrants and robbing residents of their democratic rights.

Last Wednesday Abbott announced details of his plan for the state to build its own wall along the Texas-Mexico border, beginning with the hiring of a program manager and providing $250 million in state funds as a down payment.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, center, speaks as two bills he signed are displayed, Tuesday, June 8, 2021, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

The Biden administration has abandoned its responsibility to apply federal law to secure the border and to enforce the immigration laws, and Texans are suffering as a consequence of that neglect by the Biden administration, Abbott said. In the federal governments absence, Texas is stepping up to get the job done.

The governor did not specify how long the wall would be, where its construction would take place, or the estimated cost of the entire project, saying those factors would be determined by the program manager. The governor ordered the Texas Facilities Commission to hire a program manager to begin work on the project.

He acknowledged that construction of a wall would cost far more than $250 million but said he and lawmakers will follow through with their plan.

Its my commitment, as well as the commitment of the people in this room, as well as the people in this Capitol, to make sure that we see this project through, he said.

Abbotts initiative follows in the footsteps of the Trump administration, which built about 450 miles of walls and other barriers, mostly in Arizona. Although Trump faced numerous legal battles and resistance from landowners in Texas unwilling to allow construction on their lands, Abbott said that he expected citizens to both donate their own money and volunteer their land for the planned barrier.

My belief based upon conversations that Ive already had is that the combination of state land, as well as volunteer land will yield hundreds of miles to build a border wall in Texas, he said.

The exorbitant down payment will come from the states $250 billion budget, with funds being redirected from other departments. Lawmakers will allocate money from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice into a disaster account, which will then be moved to the Texas Facilities Commission for the border wall construction.

The average cost of the portions of the wall which the Trump administration has already built was $26 million, with the price going up to $41 million per mile in parts of Arizona and canyon areas.

Abbott has blamed the Biden administrations immigration policies for the increase of migrants attempting to cross the states southern border, claiming new federal policies have paved the way for dangerous gangs and cartels, human traffickers, and deadly drugs like fentanyl to pour into our communities. This is despite the fact that during her trip to Guatemala earlier this month, Vice President Kamala Harris brazenly told migrants do not come and declared that they would be turned away.

The Texas Tribune reported that the US Customs and Border Protection recorded 180,034 border apprehensions in May, compared to fewer than 25,000 in late 2020. During the Trump administration, the highest recorded number of monthly arrests was nearly 150,000.

Two weeks ago, Abbott announced a partnership with the state of Arizona to deploy law enforcement officials to help border states arrest migrants attempting to enter the country. Oklahoma, Arkansas, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa and Florida have sent law enforcement officers, and Georgia and South Carolina have sent National Guard members, Abbott said.

Earlier in the year, Abbott deployed Texas National Guard troops to the border and ordered the Texas Department of Public Safety to arrest immigrants and charge them for violating state laws such as trespassing, illegal entry, smuggling and human trafficking.

At the beginning of June, Texas lawmakers approved an initiative to promote patriotic education through the creation of the 1836 Project, named for the year Texas declared independence from Mexico. When Abbott signed the project into law, he declared that we must never forget why Texas became so exceptional in the first place.

The measure earned bipartisan support in the state legislature, passing the House by a vote of 124 to 19, and 22 to 9 in the Senate. The bill establishes a panel of nine political appointees tasked with educating about Texas history, whose work will mostly be found in informational pamphlets given to Texans receiving drivers licenses.

The bill specifies themes in Texas history that the panel will promote, including Native American and Black history; Spanish and Mexican heritage in Texas; the states War for Independence; the Juneteenth celebration when slaves learned they were free by law; and the U.S. annexation of Texas, wrote the Houston Chronicle. Because the panel members are appointed by the states reactionary leadership, it is doubtful that the project will be of an objective and honest character.

Rather, it was initiated as a chauvinistic response to the New York Times 1619 Project, which was published two years ago. Republicans across the country have seized on the projects racialist falsifications to posture as defenders of the United States revolutionary heritage while promoting their own fascistic interpretation of American history. The creation of the 1836 Project followed Texas explicitly banning the use of the 1619 Project in K-12 school curriculum.

The Texas Constitution of 1836 created the Republic of Texas, not yet part of the US, and was a document that protected the interests of slave owners. It included multiple provisions to preserve slavery and explicitly denied permanent residency to any free person of African descent, either in whole or in part. Additionally, Tejanos, Mexican nationals that lived in the new republic and helped fight for its independence, were disenfranchised. It is doubtful that these subjects, or other reactionary episodes in the states history will be seriously addressed.

More recently, Governor Abbott signed House Bill 1927, which eliminates the requirement for residents to obtain a license to carry a handgun. Beginning September 1, adult residents will be allowed to carry a handgun if they are not prohibited by state or federal law from possessing a firearm. Abbott also signed bills which remove criminal penalties for the use of gun silencers, allow for guns to be stored in hotel rooms and make Texas a Second Amendment Sanctuary State, aimed at blocking the enforcement of federal gun regulations.

Responding to the concerns of law enforcement officials, the state Senate eliminated a provision that would have barred officers from questioning people based only on their possession of a handgun. Additionally, an amendment was added enhancing the criminal penalties for felons and family violence offenders caught unlawfully carrying a gun.
In a key procedural vote Tuesday, all 50 Senate Republicans voted to block debate on a Democratic bill aimed at countering the nationwide drive by Republican-controlled state governments to suppress the votes of working class and minority voters.

All 50 Senate Democrats voted to open debate on the For the People Act, or S.1., knowing in advance that they would not only fail to obtain the 10 Republican votes needed to end a filibuster, but would likely be met with unanimous Republican opposition.

West Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin talks with reporters at the Capitol in Washington, June 22, 2021. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The vote reflected in a concentrated manner the dynamic within the capitalist political establishment in the aftermath of then-President Donald Trumps attempted coup on January 6. The Republican Party has continued to line up behind the would-be dictator and promote the baseless lie of massive voter fraud and a stolen election used to whip up the fascistic mob that overran the US Capitol. It has doubled down on Trumps attacks on voting rights and his fascistic denunciations of socialism and left-wing extremism.

The Democrats, in control of both houses of Congress and the White House, have demonstrated their fecklessness and duplicity. Once again, they have exposed the falsity of all claims that this party of Wall Street and the military can be pressured into defending democratic rights.

In the run-up to the vote, Biden and the entire Democratic leadership shamelessly courted West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, who stands on the far-right of the Democratic Senate caucus. Two weeks ago, Manchin announced that he would not support S.1. Invoking Bidens own insistence on the need for unity with Trumps Republican accomplices, he rejected any measure to defend the right to vote that could not win Republican support.

Last week, Manchin put forward a compromise voting overhaul proposal as a basis for lending support to the Democratic legislation. His plan included provisions in the leaderships bill to expand early voting, institute automatic voter registration and, in general, make it easier for traditional Democratic voters to cast ballots. It also incorporated, in a somewhat different form, a ban on partisan gerrymandering of congressional districts.

It included as well anti-democratic provisions in both S.1. and the Democratic House version passed earlier this year.

For example, both the leadership bill and Manchins version would require online platforms with at least 50 million users to create a database of all requests for political advertisements, including a copy of the ad and the purchaser.

The bill would also require political committees to notify the FBI of any connections with foreign political parties and require the FBI to submit an annual report to Congress on the connections between political committees and foreign contacts. This section could be used to justify federal surveillance of any political organization with foreign contacts, including socialist or anti-war groups that coordinate with co-thinkers internationally.

This is in line with the overwhelming concern of the Democratic Party, which is to shore up the capitalist two-party political monopoly and prevent left-wing and socialist parties independent of the two parties of Wall Street from gaining ballot access.

At the same time, Manchin incorporated voter suppression measures supported by the Republicans. He called for a national requirement for all voters to show voter ID. He included provisions allowing state and local election authorities to use federal records to purge voter rolls. He dropped a provision in the leadership bill ensuring voting rights for felons and proposed restrictions on absentee and mail-in voting.

He also proposed changes in the separate John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, whose main purpose is to restore the critical enforcement section of the 1965 Voting Rights Act that was struck down in the 2013 Supreme Court ruling, Shelby County v. Holder. The invalidated section required former Jim Crow states, many of which are today implementing draconian voter suppression laws, to pre-clear any changes in voting procedures with the federal government. In his compromise proposal, Manchin called for restrictions that would weaken the Justice Departments pre-clearance enforcement powers.

Other right-wing additions in Manchins plan include amending the Federal Election Campaign Act to require candidates to disclose foreign contracts, and prohibiting false information about elections to hinder or discourage voting, a provision so broadly drawn as to potentially apply to socialist critics of the capitalist two-party system and its anti-democratic ballot access laws.

Having issued his demands, Manchin refused to commit himself to voting with his party on Tuesday to open debate until he was satisfied his proposals would be accepted. The result was a flood of endorsements from the Biden White House on down for his anti-democratic olive branches to the Trumpite GOP.

Evidently, the Democrats were desperate to obtain a unanimous vote of their caucus in the deluded hope that this would increase pressure on a section of Republicans and/or convince Manchin and others on the partys right, including Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema and Montana Senator Jon Tester, to drop their opposition to weakening or eliminating the Senates filibuster rule.

Biden and company no doubt hoped as well that a unanimous vote of Democrats would somehow mask the emptiness of their democratic pretensions.

Georgias Stacey Abrams, hailed by the Democrats and much of the corporate media as the champion of voting rights, immediately declared her support for Manchins proposal. She told CNN last week the notion that progressives oppose voter ID is one of the fallacies of Republican talking points. She added, No one has ever objected to having to prove who you are to vote.

Raphael Warnock, one of two Georgia Democrats elected to the Senate in runoff contests in early January, giving the Democrats a narrow majority, said last Thursday that he had never been opposed to voter ID, and in fact, I dont know anybody who believes people shouldnt have to prove that they are who they say they are.

Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley, a chief author of S.1., told reporters, Ive been so impressed by the work that Senator Manchin has put into this the last couple of weeks. He is deeply engaged.

Biden met with the West Virginia reactionary in the White House on Monday, after which his press secretary, Jen Psaki, said the president was certainly is appreciative of Manchins efforts and saw his proposal as a step forward.

The Republican leadership responded contemptuously to the Democratic bluster. Missouri Senator Roy Blunt replied to Abrams endorsement of Manchins compromise by saying it made the proposal the Stacey Abrams substitute, not the Joe Manchin substitute.

Blunt, the ranking Republican on the Senate Rules Committee, has been lavishly praised by Democratic Chair Amy Klobuchar for signing onto a bipartisan report on the January 6 coup attempt issued by her committee. The report omitted any reference to Trumps role and refrained from describing the mob attack on Congress as an insurrection.

On Monday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell took to the Senate floor and denounced Manchins proposal, saying it retained the rotten core of the leadership bill. Saying his caucus would give the measure no quarter, he called it a radical proposal, designed to rig the rules of American elections permanently in Democrats favor.

He and other Republican senators have denounced the bill for violating the principle of state control of election procedures. This echoes the states rights justifications used by Southern Democrats during the Jim Crow era to defend the denial, enforced by KKK terror, of voting rights to African Americans.

In reality, there are no provisions in either the original S.1. or the Manchin substitute that address provisions in voter suppression bills that have been passed in Georgia, Iowa and Florida, and introduced in 45 other Republican-controlled states, which legalize steps Trump demanded of state and local election officials to throw out valid votes and overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

These include empowering state legislatures to purge local election boards in heavily working-class urban areas and overturn certified vote tallies.
WASHINGTON, Ind. (WTHI) - The 2020-2021 school year will go down in the record books in Washington, Indiana. As students left for the last day, teachers and administrators were glad to see the school year wrap up.

Superintendent Dan Roach says, "It's such a relief. Everyone has just been anxious to get to the point where we even have a quasi-normal existence I believe."

There was some good to come out of last school year. Washington Community Schools received more than six million dollars in CARES act funding. It's all to make schools safer.

Roach explains, "HVAC will be at all of the buildings in one form or another. Lena Dunn has boilers coming over the next few weeks. Roofing at veal and here at the central office."

Every upgrade has to improve the quality of student health. Roach says that's easy. He says many of the upgrades have been needed to be addressed for a decade or more.

Roach says, "In fact some of the flooring, no one really knows. It may be original. So in some cases thirty or forty years old."

The Indiana tax caps passed in 2007 limited the district's funding to fix the issues that have piled up. Now with fresh money from the federal government, students will have a fresh classroom when they come back.

Roach says, "what I am seeing now as this progresses we have what is essentially looking like brand new buildings. It's exciting to see. And we know that this ties to the quality of the health as well"
Update June 23, 3:06 p.m.

Law enforcement officers captured Demarquese Gibson at approximately 2:30 p.m. near Grace Christian School in Louisville, Deputy Sheriff Lester Holdiness confirmed.



Demarquese Gibson captured near Grace Christian School in Louisville on June 23, 2021. Source: Winston County Sheriff's Department Demarquese Gibson captured near Grace Christian School in Louisville on June 23, 2021. Source: Winston County Sheriff's Department

Original article below

LOUISVILLE, Miss. (WTVA) - A man managed to escape from a police car Tuesday night in Winston County.

Winston County Sheriff Jason Pugh said a Philadelphia police officer transported Demarquese Jalik Gibson to the Winston Choctaw Jail.

However, just outside the gates to the facility, he managed to escape from the police car and fled into a wooded area.

Authorities have no reason to believe Gibson is dangerous but are taking nothing for granted.

Anyone with information about his whereabouts is asked to call the Winston County Sheriff's Department at 662-773-5881 or 911.
CORINTH, Miss. (WTVA) - The Alcorn County sheriff said a deputy shot a Corinth man Wednesday morning after the man lunged at deputies with a knife.

The incident happened at approximately 5:00 at a home on County Road 742 where a deputy met Robert Blackburn, 39, whom the sheriff said was armed with a knife.

The deputy tried to get Blackburn to drop the knife and had to his Taser gun and pepper spray.

Blackburn fled into the woods, the sheriff said, and returned about 30 minutes later when deputies again tried to persuade Blackburn to drop the knife.

A second deputy used his Taser, the sheriff said, and Blackburn then raised his knife and lunged at the deputies.

A deputy shot Blackburn once. He later died at the hospital in Corinth.

The sheriff did not identify the deputy involved.

The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is overseeing the investigation.

Open this link to read the sheriff's report.
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Clarksburg, WV (26301)

Today

Intervals of clouds and sunshine. Slight chance of a rain shower. High 79F. Winds WNW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

A few clouds from time to time. Low 61F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph.
Police blotter is a list of recent arrests compiled from public records in Laramie County. All people listed here are innocent until proven guilty. Anyone listed who has a charge dismissed or is acquitted of the charge may bring or mail a court document proving such to the WTE editor, 702 W. Lincolnway, Cheyenne, WY 82001.
Republican governors are asking the U.S. Census Bureau share redistricting data as soon as possible. Governors like Mark Gordon of Wyoming say further delays would hurt efforts to redraw congressional and legislative districts.
Millions of people worldwide are in for a disastrous future of hunger, drought and disease, according to a draft report from the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which was leaked to the media this week.

"Climate change will fundamentally reshape life on Earth in the coming decades, even if humans can tame planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions," according to Agence France-Presse , which obtained the report draft.

The report warns of a series of thresholds beyond which recovery from climate breakdown may become impossible, The Guardian said. The report warns: Life on Earth can recover from a drastic climate shift by evolving into new species and creating new ecosystems humans cannot.

"The worst is yet to come, affecting our children's and grandchildren's lives much more than our own."

Species extinction, more widespread disease, unlivable heat, ecosystem collapse, cities menaced by rising seas  these and other devastating climate impacts are accelerating and are bound to become evident in the decades ahead, according to AFP.

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The IPCCs 4,000-page draft report, scheduled for official release next year, offers the most comprehensive rundown to date of the impacts of climate change on our planet and our species, AFP said.

Climate change, also known as global warming, is caused by the burning of fossil fuels such as oil, gas and coal, which release greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane into the Earth's atmosphere. Those greenhouse gases have caused our atmosphere to warm to levels that scientists say cannot be due to natural causes.

So far, since the Industrial Revolution of the 1800s, the Earth has warmed by 1.1 degrees Celsius (which is roughly 2 degrees Fahrenheit), according to NASA.

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Coal-fired power plants such as the Homer City Generating Station in Pennsylvania emit carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming.

The report warns of "progressively serious, centuries' long and, in some cases, irreversible consequences." The report also said that the millions of people who live along coastlines almost everywhere around the world could be battered by multiple climate calamities at once: drought, heatwaves, cyclones, wildfires and flooding.

Simon Lewis, a professor of global change science at University College London, told The Guardian that nothing in the IPCC report should be a surprise, as all the information comes from the scientific literature. But put together, the stark message from the IPCC is that increasingly severe heatwaves, fires, floods and droughts are coming our way with dire impacts for many countries.

"On top of this are some irreversible changes, often called tipping points, such as where high temperatures and droughts mean parts of the Amazon rainforest cant persist. These tipping points may then link, like toppling dominoes."

In a statement following the leak of the report, the IPCC said that it does not comment on the contents of draft reports while work is still ongoing. The official report, designed to influence critical policy decisions, is not scheduled for release until February, AFP said.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Climate change impact: UN report warns of 'irreversible consequences'
WASHINGTON - National Guard and reserve soldiers are having trouble feeding their families due to a year of record deployments.

Hunger among Guard members and reservists is more than double the national rate, according to U.S. Census Bureau data from mid-April through early June.

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They report more food insecurity than nearly any other group, regardless of household income, education, age or race. Nearly one in five Guard members report sometimes or often not having enough to eat. And a third of those with a spouse serving in the National Guard or reserves report not having enough to eat. The numbers are even more troubling for National Guard and reserve families with children.

In an ordinary year, when they're not activated or deployed, most reservists and Guard members spend one weekend a month running drills and two weeks a year, often during the summer, training. This schedule allows most of them to work civilian jobs or get an education as well. It's a similar work schedule for reservists, who work for different branches of the military.

Over the pandemic the National Guard has faced longer deployments and periods of activation. They've overseen coronavirus testing, distributed food at the nation's food banks, quelled civil unrest and more recently helped to administer vaccines, said John Goheen, spokesman for the National Guard Association of the United States, an advocacy group. This is in addition to responding to more natural disasters such as wildfires and flood.

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The National Guard has declared 2020 "the Year of the Guard." Last year, the National Guard was activated for 11 million "man days," the highest number since World War II, Goheen said. By comparison, in 2019 there were only 2 million man days.

Wayne Hall, a spokesman for the National Guard, said he is skeptical about the food insecurity census data. He said that between the Army and Air National Guard and the different branches of the reserves, there are 1.2 million service members but the census data only accounts for under 400,000 of them. He said he has not encountered service members who have complained of household hunger.

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"These figures are an underrepresentation of the full force," Hall said. "And almost a quarter surveyed didn't report."

Yet several military advocacy groups said they are seeing rising problems with food insecurity, and suggest such problems might be invisible to military leadership. Jennifer Davis, lobbyist for the National Military Family Association, said hungry Guard members and reservists are motivated to seem "fine" and are hesitant to seek help or reveal financial hardship.

"A service member has to consider promotability and clearances: You can't afford to struggle too badly; you have to keep your bills paid," she said. "You can lose your clearance if your finances are in a shambles, we're talking even a bounced check. If it comes between paying the bills and keeping food on the table, there's pressure to pay those bills. And there are concerns about sharing with your leadership that you're struggling to take care of your family, because you never want that to come back and haunt you when you're up for promotion."

One National Guard member in Georgia said he lost his job as a schoolteacher last spring, as the pandemic began, because of his stepped-up Guard schedule. He asked to speak anonymously, because his termination is under investigation.

"Why are we activating more National Guard troops than at the height of the war in Afghanistan?" the guard member said. "You're taking these people away from their families, and for what reason? There is no reason. This is becoming a problem for civilian employers."

Another National Guard officer who has spent seven months in uniform since the start of the pandemic, who also asked not to be identified for fear of losing his job, said a full 25% of the National Guard was on active duty last June, dealing with the pandemic and civil unrest.

"The shadow issue that affects Guard troops right now is the ludicrous tempo at which they've been activated over the past year. It's hard to find Guard members who have not been told to report in the past year, everyone has been pulled away from their regular lives," he said.

If called up to active duty, low-ranking Guard members and reservists make a base pay of around $3,000 per month. When not on active duty, Guard members get around $200 for a weekend of drills, which is why most have other civilian jobs.

The spike in days worked takes Guard members and reservists away from their jobs, with many soldiers not drawing that income if they're away on military duty.

Even in normal times, military spouses have higher levels of unemployment or underemployment than civilian populations, citing factors like job scarcity near military bases and frequent moves. Moving around can leave military families far from their extended families and increase a nonmilitary partner's child care burden. Before the pandemic, 22% of military spouses reported being unemployed, according to a large Pentagon survey.

Advocacy groups, including the National Military Family Association and Blue Star Families, said they are seeing larger numbers of unemployment among military spouses due to the pandemic.

In some cases military families don't taking advantage of food assistance programs. Even before the pandemic, perceived stigma deterred military families who qualified free or reduced-price school meals from taking advantage of such programs, said Josh Protas, vice president of public policy for MAZON, a Jewish hunger organization that works with military families. The past year exacerbated the problem, he said, with many low-income military families not availing themselves of, or even aware of, Pandemic EBT, a debit card system that replaced school meals when schools went remote.

Another problem involves housing costs, said Matt Pelak, a Guard member in New York City. Usually, a basic allowance for housing doesn't kick in until a deployment is more than 30 days. Many of these deployments are fewer than 30 days, so the military doesn't have to pay the housing allowance, putting an additional financial burden on low-wage soldiers. That means soldiers are paying for their rent or mortgage back home, plus wherever they are living while deployed.

Medical insurance often works the same way, adding to the financial squeeze, Goheen said. When guard members are mobilized or deployed at home, the only time they have medical coverage is if their order is 31 days or longer, he said. Guard members and reservists would then be eligible for the same medical coverage as active-duty troops. But those service members activated for less than a month have fewer options, and must pay find their own health care coverage.

Many Guard members and reservists' military pay is not commensurate with their civilian salary, according to Protas, and many civilian jobs are not required to pay Guard members their wages during absences or even to keep the civilian jobs open for their return.

For the teacher in Georgia, the protracted nature of deployments in 2020 took a toll on his standing at work. He said the current level of financial instability and food insecurity had "everything to do with civilian employers and underpaid Guard members."

He said things seemed to be going well at his school, but something changed. He said the administration began asking him to persuade his unit to change his drill dates and bombarding him with "questions that weren't appropriate." His teaching contract was not renewed.

The irony, according to Goheen, is that many of the covid missions for the Guard were working at American food banks, helping to feed the needy. And while the nation is increasingly vaccinated and signs point to economic recovery, Guard members and reservists continue to struggle.

Some of Guard members and reservists' financial precariousness is because employers are tired of giving them the time off. All those absences put extra pressure on other workers and bosses, said the Guard officer who spent seven months in uniform.

"Back in the spring of 2020, employers were saying, 'Yes, go, fight the pandemic. But as time goes on they're less enthusiastic," he said. "The cracks take time to show with these kinds of things."

- - -

The Washington Post's Heather Long and Andrew Van Dam contributed to this report.

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WASHINGTON  Four Saudis who participated in the 2018 killing of the Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi received paramilitary training in the United States the previous year under a contract approved by the State Department, according to documents and people familiar with the arrangement.

The instruction occurred as the secret unit responsible for Khashoggis killing was beginning an extensive campaign of kidnapping, detention and torture of Saudi citizens ordered by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabias de facto ruler, to crush dissent inside the kingdom.

The training was provided by the Arkansas-based security company Tier 1 Group, which is owned by the private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management. The company says the training  including safe marksmanship and countering an attack  was defensive in nature and devised to better protect Saudi leaders. One person familiar with the training said it also included work in surveillance and close-quarters battle.

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There is no evidence that the American officials who approved the training or Tier 1 Group executives knew that the Saudis were involved in the crackdown inside Saudi Arabia. But the fact that the government approved high-level military training for operatives who went on to carry out the grisly killing of a journalist shows how intensely intertwined the United States has become with an autocratic nation even as its agents carried out horrific human rights abuses.

It also underscores the perils of military partnerships with repressive governments and demonstrates how little oversight exists for those forces after they return home.

Such issues are likely to continue as U.S. private military contractors increasingly look to foreign clients to shore up their business as the United States scales back overseas deployments after two decades of war.

The State Department initially granted a license for the paramilitary training of the Saudi Royal Guard to Tier 1 Group starting in 2014, during the Obama administration. The training continued during at least the first year of former President Donald Trumps term.

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Louis Bremer, a senior executive of Cerberus, Tier 1 Groups parent company, confirmed his companys role in the training last year in written answers to questions from lawmakers as part of his nomination for a top Pentagon job during the Trump administration.

The administration does not appear to have sent the document to Congress before withdrawing Bremers nomination; lawmakers never received answers to their questions.

In the document, which Bremer provided to The New York Times, he said that four members of the Khashoggi kill team had received Tier 1 Group training in 2017, and two of them had participated in a previous iteration of the training, which went from October 2014 until January 2015.

The training provided was unrelated to their subsequent heinous acts, Bremer said in his responses.

He said that a March 2019 review by Tier 1 Group uncovered no wrongdoing by the company and confirmed that the established curriculum training was unrelated to the murder of Jamal Khashoggi.

Bremer said that the State Department, in collaboration with other U.S. departments and agencies, is responsible for vetting the foreign forces trained on U.S. soil. All foreign personnel trained by T1G are cleared by the U.S. government for entry into the United States before commencement of training.

In a statement, Bremer said that the training was protective in nature and that the company conducted no further training of Saudis after December 2017.

T1G management, the board and I stand firmly with the U.S. government, the American people and the international community in condemning the horrific murder of Jamal Khashoggi, he said.

A 2019 column by David Ignatius of The Washington Post first reported that members of the Khashoggi kill team had received training in the United States. He wrote that the CIA had cautioned other government agencies that some special-operations training may have been conducted by Tier 1 Group under a State Department license.

The issue was central to Bremers contentious confirmation hearing and the written questions from senators, asking him what role, if any, Tier 1 Group had in training Saudis who had participated in the Khashoggi operation.

A State Department spokesman declined to confirm whether it awarded licenses to Tier 1 Group for the Saudi training.

This administration insists on responsible use of U.S. origin defense equipment and training by our allies and partners, and considers appropriate responses if violations occur, said the spokesman, Ned Price. Saudi Arabia faces significant threats to its territory, and we are committed to working together to help Riyadh strengthen its defenses.

A spokesman for the Saudi Embassy in Washington did not comment.

Trump weighed installing the head of Cerberus, Stephen A. Feinberg, in a top intelligence post last year, but the appointment was never made. While the Trump administration had appointed Feinberg to lead the Presidents Intelligence Advisory Board in 2018, questions emerged about potential conflicts of interest. Cerberus formerly owned the military contractor DynCorp, which among other things provides intelligence advice to the United States and other clients.

It is unclear which members of the Khashoggi kill team participated in the Tier 1 Group training. Seven members of the team belonged to an elite unit charged with protecting Crown Prince Mohammed, according to a U.S. intelligence report about the assassination declassified in February.

The role of operatives from the so-called Rapid Intervention Force in the Khashoggi killing helped bolster the U.S. intelligence case that the crown prince approved the operation.

Members of the RIF would not have participated in the killing without his consent, according to the report. The group exists to defend the crown prince and answers only to him, the document said.

Members of the team that killed Khashoggi were involved in at least a dozen operations starting in 2017, according to officials who have read classified intelligence reports about the campaign.

Khashoggi, a columnist for The Post, was killed inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul in October 2018, his body dismembered using a bone saw. The assassination brought widespread condemnation on Crown Prince Mohammed, who has publicly denied any knowledge of the operation.

Eight defendants were sentenced to up to two decades in prison last year, but human rights advocates criticized the punishments as aimed at lower-level agents while sparing their leaders.

The CIA concluded that the prince directed the operation, but Trump said that the evidence was inconclusive and that Americas diplomatic and economic relationship with the kingdom took priority. After President Joe Biden took office and debated the issue with his advisers before the release of the declassified intelligence report, his administration announced sanctions on Saudis involved in the killing, including members of the elite unit who protect Mohammed bin Salman, but chose not to directly punish the crown prince.

The earlier iteration of the training, which took place during the Obama administration, occurred before Crown Prince Mohammed consolidated power in the kingdom. His predecessor as crown prince, Mohammed bin Nayef, was a close ally of the United States and in particular John Brennan, who served as CIA director under President Barack Obama.

Prince bin Nayef was the Saudi counterterrorism chief and worked closely with Obama administration officials in working to dismantle al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, the terrorist groups affiliate based in Yemen.

In 2017, Mohammed bin Salman pushed Mohammed bin Nayef from power and executed a broader campaign to wrest power from his rivals  including a notorious episode of imprisoning Saudi royals and businessmen at the Ritz-Carlton in Riyadh.

The Trump administration considered him a valuable partner in the Middle East  especially for the administrations strategy to isolate Iran  and Crown Prince Mohammed developed a close relationship with Jared Kushner, the presidents son-in-law who served as a senior adviser to Trump.

Mohammed bin Salman, the son of King Salman, is the next in line to the Saudi throne. Mohammed bin Nayef remains under house arrest in the kingdom.

The Tier 1 Group website lists numerous U.S. special operations and intelligence units as clients, along with specialty units that do not require recognition. It said it also trains OGA special operator teams  one pseudonym for CIA paramilitary units  as well as international allied forces.

Under federal rules that restrict foreign sales of U.S. arms and military expertise, Tier 1 Group was required to apply for licenses to train the foreign operatives. Those license applications were examined by State Department officials  who were processing tens of thousands of licenses per year  and approved.

The approval would have allowed members of the Saudi Royal Guard to enter the United States on visas processed by the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh. The path is similar to the one followed by 2nd Lt. Mohammed Alshamrani, a Royal Saudi Air Force officer who opened fire in 2019 at a naval air station in Pensacola, Florida, where he was receiving military flight training. The attack killed three people and wounded eight.

Tier 1 Group was founded to train U.S. military personnel, taking advantage of an expanded Pentagon budget for military personnel training in basic counterinsurgency skills, according to former American officials familiar with its operations.

One of the companys founders, Steve Reichert, a former Marine, was working as an instructor for the security contractor then known as Blackwater when he met Feinberg. With Feinbergs backing, Reichert set up Tier 1 Group, according to Reicherts 2020 account of the companys founding and former intelligence officials familiar with the efforts.

But as U.S. military training budgets began to shrink, the company, like other private security firms, began searching for new clients. By 2014, it was beginning to train foreign military units, including Saudis.

Decisions about granting licenses to U.S. firms to train foreign nationals are usually made after getting input from numerous government agencies, said R. Clarke Cooper, the assistant secretary of state for political-military affairs during the Trump administration. The Pentagon and intelligence agencies often play a role, he said.

These things dont just come out of the ether, he said.

Cooper said he could not recall any discussion about the Tier 1 Group training of Saudis, even after Khashoggis killing. He said there were intense deliberations inside the Trump administration about how to respond to the killing after the government concluded that Crown Prince Mohammed most likely approved it.

In the end, he said, administration officials did not want to squander Americas relationship with the kingdom  and the strategy of isolating Iran  by taking a heavy-handed approach after Khashoggis death.

No government is going to flush a significant bilateral relationship over this murder, no matter how horrific it was, he said.

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The best place to find a helping hand is at the end of your arm.

Growing up, whenever we were faced with a challenge, my father used to repeat that old idiom, reminding us that we were perfectly capable of helping ourselves, and those around us.

We might have brushed off those words then, but they proved to be remarkably pertinent later in my life as a combat medic for the U.S. Army Special Forces. Through deployments to 30 countries, and four tours of Iraq and Afghanistan, I came to realize that a helping hand was a well-trained one  and having it at the end of your arm was the single best way to ensure lives werent needlessly lost to traumatic injury on the battlefield.

Today, back at home as a civilian, I still see the world through the eyes of a combat medic. And  with vehicle accidents, severe weather events, unexpected acts of violence and more  the unfortunate reality in America today is that more and more people are bystanders to traumatic injuries.

The clock is ticking

There are more than 16,000 deaths every single day due to traumatic injury, which require immediate medical attention, around the world. In the United States, unintentional injury is the third leading cause of death, and the No. 1 cause of death for Americans under the age of 45, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Corey Russ in the spring of 2004 in Musa Qula, Afghanistan, while working with Afghan Security Forces.

We live in a world where initial responders" arrive long before trained first responders can make the difference between lives saved and lives lost  and just how quickly lives can be lost once the injury occurs is startling. All it takes is five minutes of hemorrhaging after a traumatic injury and a person can bleed to death. When seconds can separate life from death, initial responders dont have time to wait on someone elses helping hand.

Its particularly frustrating for me  and any EMT or combat medic in the country  to witness lives needlessly lost, knowing how relatively simple it is to perform basic lifesaving tasks like CPR or applying pressure to the site of a bleeding. Ordinary people can act and make a real difference when emergency strikes.

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The United States has a shortage of both professionally trained hands and volunteer emergency services, and as a consequence, far too many preventable deaths. Despite the outsize need for both pre-hospital care training and equipment in the United States  something were sadly reminded of in the wake of every mass shooting  the country is falling behind our friends overseas.

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In Germany, regulations require drivers to store a first-aid kit in their car. More than that, they are required to undergo a first-aid kit inspection when they bring their cars in for an emissions tuneup.

In the United Kingdom, where knife attacks are increasingly common, bleed-stop kits are strategically placed around the country, including in bars and late-night spots.

Many young men and women in Israel, where military service is compulsory, are so highly trained in trauma care that officials can toss a first-aid kit into a crowd in the event of a traumatic injury and trust that any number of helping hands will catch it.

In these places, civilians arent necessarily more highly educated in formal medicine, nor are they armed with more complex equipment. They just recognize the vital importance of basic lifesaving knowledge and easy-to-use treatments in the hands of many. The solution is to have more prepared locations and a more prepared population trained with the basic fundamentals of saving lives.

Are we prepared?

Here in the United States, the publics state of preparedness lags woefully behind.

A majority of people in a recent American College of Emergency Physicians poll said they are not confident in their ability to offer assistance in the event of a mass shooting (68%); a single gunshot victim (62%); someone nearby stops breathing (52%); or someone is severely bleeding (50%).

People are held back by a lack of basic knowledge or a fear of doing more harm. The only cure for this  and the resulting epidemic of traumatic injuries leading to preventable deaths in America  is widening the availability of simplified emergency medical products and increasing the number of individuals with an elementary level understanding of basic emergency medical skills.

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After I reentered civilian life, I co-founded an emergency medical products and training company to make saving lives easier. The public needs simplified first-aid kits that have reasonable capabilities for serious injuries. These kits should have color-coded treatments, with corresponding easy-to-follow instructions. This helps the initial responders, ordinary people, focus on first steps of lifesaving. These kits should be commonplace in public buildings, workplaces, schools, and commercial and passenger vehicles across the country.

Corey Russ in Raleigh, North Carolina, in June 2021.

Perhaps most important, we need to instill ordinary citizens of every age with the confidence that they can act when an emergency strikes.

America must transform bystanders into by-doers." With real, forward-looking policies in place, enough Americans will finally be able to look at the end of their own arm and find a hand they know can save a life.

Corey Russ is president of Safeguard Medical, an emergency medical training and technologies company, and a former combat medic for the U.S. Army Special Forces.

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: Accidental injuries are deadly. Are you able to help in emergencies?
More than a year after George Floyd took his last breath, the ex-cop who murdered him will face a Minnesota judge Friday and receive a sentence of up to 30 years in prison.

Derek Chauvin, a former Minneapolis police officer, has sat in a maximum-security prison cell since a jury found him guilty of second- and third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter April 20. Chauvin, who has never expressed remorse for Floyd's death, will have the opportunity to speak for the first time at the hearing.

Though hes a first-time offender, Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill found that Chauvin should face a higher sentence because his crimes involved abusing his position of trust and authority and killing Floyd in the presence of children, among other aggravating factors.

Chauvin's defense attorney Eric Nelson asked for probation or far less prison time. The prosecution argued that Chauvin deserves the maximum penalty for actions that "traumatized Mr. Floyds family, the bystanders who watched Mr. Floyd die and the community. And his conduct shocked the nations conscience."

Legal observers expect Chauvin will receive prison time near or at the 30-year maximum, but Cahill has "pretty wide latitude in determining what sentence to impose" and both parties will try to convince the judge to "exercise his discretion in their favor," said Ted Sampsell-Jones, a professor at Mitchell Hamline School of Law.

Meet Peter Cahill: The judge in the Chauvin case is orchestrating one of the nations most widely watched murder trials

Whatever the sentence, per Minnesota law, Chauvin will serve two-thirds of it behind bars and the remainder under a type of supervised release that's similar to parole. Chauvin, 45, will get credit for time served in prison while awaiting sentencing.

Floyd, 46, was killed in May 2020 after officers responded to a report that he had used a counterfeit $20 bill. Floyd was handcuffed face-down on the street and repeatedly yelled, "I can't breathe" as Chauvin pressed a knee to his neck for more than nine minutes.

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Even after Floyd had no pulse, Chauvin remained in position until a paramedic waved him away so he could load Floyd onto a gurney. Floyd was never revived.

His death spurred a year of sometimes violent protests and a national reckoning around systemic racism and police brutality.

Three other officers involved in the incident face charges of aiding and abetting Floyd's murder; crimes that carry the same penalties. They are scheduled to be tried next year in Minnesota.

All four officers have been charged in federal court with violating Floyd's civil rights during the arrest. Chauvin made his first court appearance in that case this month. The jury trial date is to be determined, according to court records.

Chauvin faces a separate federal indictment for allegedly violating the rights of a 14-year-old boy by detaining him without justification in 2017 and placing his knee on the boy's neck for 17 minutes, causing the teen to pass out. The Justice Department is investigating the Minneapolis Police Department for alleged systemic violations of people's civil rights.

This month, the Minnesota Department of Human Rights filed a civil rights charge against the police department, launching a first-of-its-kind investigation to determine whether the department "engaged in systemic discriminatory practices" toward people of color over the past 10 years.

In a sentencing memo, Nelson said Chauvin was unaware that he was committing a crime and, in his mind, he was performing his lawful duty in assisting other officers in Floyd's arrest.

Nelson said Chauvin is in solitary confinement because he is likely to be targeted by other prisoners. He argued that Chauvin was the product of a "broken system" and that "behind the politics, Mr. Chauvin is still a human being."

Sampsell-Jones said that asking the judge to give Chauvin probation "is sort of absurd; everyone knows that's not going to happen" and that Chauvin's attorney risks losing credibility in negotiating less time for him.

"This is not his first serious offense against a civilian," said Nekima Levy Armstrong, a civil rights attorney and former president of the Minneapolis chapter of the NAACP. "He clearly abused his authority and was in the process of teaching rookies how to abuse their authority as well."

She said Chauvin deserves the maximum sentence for what she called a "modern-day lynching" caught on bystander video.

People celebrate the guilty verdict against former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin at the Cup Foods where George Floyd died under Chauvin's knee in Minneapolis.

Friday, the court is to hear from Floyd's family and loved ones, who will provide victim impact statements to the judge. By law, they are not allowed to speak directly to Chauvin, said Mary Moriarty, the former chief public defender for Hennepin County.

Chauvin will have the opportunity to make a statement to the court. Legal observers do not expect him to speak because he wants to preserve any appeal. Chauvin remained stoic throughout the trial  even when he was found guilty.

"It's a difficult position because when people are convicted, they often want to maintain their innocence and prove their right to appeal," Moriarty said. "But one of the things a judge is looking for in considering a sentence is whether the person convicted takes responsibility for their actions and expressed remorse."

More: Derek Chauvin makes court appearance on federal charges

She said the defense missed a chance to show that Chauvin had "some insight and empathy for George Floyd."

Cahill could address Chauvin and his crimes directly  explaining why he believes whatever sentence is appropriate  for the first time in the case. Most legal observers said Cahill has probably already made up his mind about sentencing.

One Minnesota precedent the judge could compare to Chauvin's situation is the case of Mohamed Noor, a police officer who shot and killed Justine Ruszcyk. She reported an assault, then startled Noor when she approached his squad car in the dark. Noor shot and killed Ruszcyk. He was sentenced in June 2019 to 12 years in prison after being found guilty of third-degree murder and manslaughter.

The first police officer convicted of killing someone in Minnesota is a Black man who had a white victim, noted Sarah Davis, executive director of the Legal Rights Center in Minneapolis. Chauvin is the second officer convicted of murder.

Nelson maintained throughout the trial that intense public interest tainted the jury pool and that the judge should have sequestered jurors or changed the venue. In a court filing, Nelson argued that those factors denied Chauvin a fair trial and asked that a new one be held elsewhere. The effort is unlikely to succeed, legal observers said.

Tami Abdollah is a USA TODAY national correspondent covering inequities in the criminal justice system, send tips via direct message @latams or email tami(at)usatoday.com

From April: Chauvin likely to appeal guilty verdict, but the odds aren't good

A couple pay their respects to George Floyd at the intersection of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue on May 25 in Minneapolis. Around the USA, groups honored George Floyd, who was murdered by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin on May 25, 2020.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Chauvin sentencing: Cop in George Floyd murder faces up to 30 years
Jun. 23The aftermath from Medina Jasarevic's words at Fort Vancouver High School's graduation ceremony last week has the recent high school graduate, well, speechless.

"My emotions are all over the place," the 18-year-old said. "I never expected this."

Her 4-minute, 50-second graduation speech presented to the Class of 2021 and guests at the Clark County Event Center at the Fairgrounds on June 14 has gone viral on social media, and been picked up by multiple media outlets halfway around the world. She also is a trending search on Google.

Jasarevic is a proud first-generation Bosnian American whose family migrated to the United States in 2001. Her family's refugee story was the central focus of her graduation speech  and a surprise to the family, nonetheless  that she spent several months writing and rewriting. The recorded speech got posted to social media, and now has been viewed more than 300,000 times. She hoped the speech would not only resonate with Fort's diverse student population, but also the local Bosnian community.

She got all that  and a lot more. Messages have poured in from around the world, expressing their gratitude and outpouring of support as "the pride of Bosnia." Bosnian media also picked up her story. Connecting with those who have faced discrimination and reaching other immigrant families became her main motivations for the speech.

"Not just mine and not just Bosnians," she said. "Every other immigrant can pull something out of my speech and they could connect on a deeper level."

And that begins with her family's migration story. This year marks 20 years since Jasarevic's family arrived in the United States from Bosnia and Herzegovina, carrying pain and nostalgia as the result of a war. Years earlier, her father, Mahir, was imprisoned for nearly three years at a concentration camp during the Bosnian War. He was one of the few to survive out of thousands, Jasarevic said.

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And a stranger's good act in the family's first U.S. encounter is never forgotten. It came at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport when Jasarevic's uncle, Almin, went to purchase food at an airport bakery with just a handful of quarters and three words of English. An employee handed a bag of dinner rolls to a hungry family seeking a better life in a new country.

That positivity and kindness her family experienced 20 years ago is what Jasarevic also echoed to her fellow Fort graduates. Jasarevic plans to study dentistry at Washington State University Vancouver in the fall.

"We can be the change the world desperately needs right now," she told The Columbian. "Our generation has the opportunity to continue enforcing equality and the spread of kindness. ... If we want to see change we have to choose to be on the good side of that spectrum."

Vancouver Public Schools allowed for just one student speaker at this year's in-person outdoor graduation ceremonies. Each year, students are selected by a committee made up of staff and administrators at their school to give the speech.

Ben Jatos, a longtime English teacher at Fort, is on that committee. In 20 years of listening to graduation speeches, the powerful words spoken by Jasarevic last week is Jatos' favorite.

"There was a magic to it," he said. "Hers spoke to so many kids. It was perfect."
The education secretary is telling the nations schoolchildren to sing the words Strong Britain, great nation (POOL/AFP/Getty Images)

Every so often, a news story comes along that is so shocking that it ceases to be shocking at all because it is simply impossible to believe it can be true. And every so often, two come along at once. The Post Office scandal is one such story. Actual postmasters, running little rural post offices, not unlike the one in Postman Pat, were prosecuted and went to jail for fraud because the Post Office preferred that outcome to accepting their IT system didnt work.

That, it must be said, is at least faintly plausible, alongside more recent news, that education secretary Gavin Williamson (thats another word quartet that has sadly lost its power to shock) is telling all the nations schoolchildren to come together on 25 June to sing a song containing the following words: Strong Britain, great nation. Strong Britain, great nation. Strong Britain, great nation. Strong Britain, great nation.

We are already 36 hours into some of the most relentless public ridicule of the internet age. We have never seen anything quite like it before. It has already been pointed out that, well, this is the sort of mad nonsense they get made to do in North Korea or communist East Germany or Turkmenistan. But there is a slight difference. For the most part, the people in countries where this kind of lunatic behaviour is normal can be divided into those who are stupid enough to have become genuine believers and those who are too frightened to stand up to it. But the forces that take a country to this point are highly sophisticated. It does take a large amount of nous and an even larger amount of ruthlessness to build a personality cult.

So how has it ended up that we, over here, are having it done to us by Williamson? Things, generally speaking, have improved for the world since Donald Trump was sent on his way, even if it has pushed the UK up to first place on the formerly-great-nation-turned-international-laughing-stock leaderboard. But people are still prone to ask, you know, how far down this rabbit hole are we going to go? Will we all just become inured to it, as people and countries have done for many years, but mercifully not this one.

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We are, almost certainly, already inured to the simple and outrageous fact that Williamson, a man who you would only send to the shops for a pint of milk if a more reliable eight-year-old could not be found, really is in charge of the education of the nations children, at a time when that whole, huge area of government policy has never faced more serious challenges.

We have, more or less, come to accept that a whole generation of young people having their lives and prospects hopelessly banjaxed is just how it has to be, because the alternative would be for the prime minister actually to confront the problem, and so face some of the blame himself.

At the very worst possible time, we have arrived at government by actual, demonstrable idiocy. It has never really happened before. At least, for the time being, when they ask us to gather up our children to sing a self-parodical patriotic jingle, were still capable of taking the screaming p**s out of them, and it. But for how much longer? It was often said of Donald Trump that his innate ridiculousness was part of the strategy. That the absurdity of fascism, with its flags and rallies and balconies and all the rest of it, is assisted and consolidated by the ridicule it receives.

Gavin Williamson isnt a fascist. Hes just an idiot. But eventually, we might find we can no longer be bothered even to laugh at him. And what happens then?

Read More

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I was speaking to the Russian ambassador when warning shots were fired in the Black Sea
Australia's top medical officer on Monday urged countrymen who have received an AstraZeneca COVID shot to "not delay" getting the second dose  even though the vaccine has been linked to more deaths than COVID in Australia this year.

Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly, after a National Cabinet meeting, reiterated the benefits of vaccination and encouraged Australians to stay vigilant for symptoms of COVID-19. He told Australia's ABC network that the benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine in combating COVID-19 "far outweighed" the risks of developing a very rare blood clotting syndrome.

Two women in Australia have died from the blood clots. The only COVID fatality this year was an 80-year-old traveler who died in April after being infected overseas and diagnosed in hotel quarantine. Last week authorities recommended that the AstraZeneca vaccine be given only to people 60 or over; people 50-59 were encouraged to get the Pfizer vaccine instead.

Since the start of the pandemic, Australia, a country of 25 million people, has recorded just over 30,000 infections and 910 deaths.

Also in the news:

The Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts, is hosting a free vaccine clinic Tuesday. Anyone who gets a first shot will get a free ticket to the Hall of Fame that can be used when they return for their second dose on July 13.

Gov. Ralph Northam announced that Virginia has become the 16th state to vaccinate 70% of adults with at least one shot.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo tweeted Monday that New York had 10 new deaths. At the height of the outbreak, nearly 800 New Yorkers a day were dying.

Fully vaccinated Canadian citizens who test negative for COVID-19 will be exempt from two weeks of quarantine when returning to the country as of July 5, officials said Monday.

 Today's numbers: The U.S. has more than 33.5 million confirmed coronavirus cases and at least 601,800 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. The global totals: More than 178.5 million cases and more than 3.86 million deaths. More than 149.6 million Americans have been fully vaccinated  nearly 45.1% of the population, according to the CDC.

Story continues

 What we're reading: Companies such as Moderna and Pfizer's partner BioNTech, whose names are familiar from COVID-19 vaccines, are using mRNA to spur cancer patients' bodies to make vaccines that will  they hope  prevent recurrences and treatments designed to fight off advanced tumors. Read the full story.

Keep refreshing this page for the latest updates. Want more? Sign up for our Coronavirus Watch newsletter for updates to your inbox and join our Facebook group.

Study shows mRNA vaccines do not decrease sperm count

Seeking to dispel fears, researchers at the University of Miami conducted a study to assess mens fertility after COVID-19 vaccination and found no negative effects on their sperm.

From Dec. 17, 2020, to Jan. 12, 2021, they recruited 45 healthy volunteers ages 18 to 50 who were scheduled to get the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, according to the study published in JAMA Network.

The participants were prescreened to ensure they had no previous or underlying fertility issues. Semen samples were taken before the first vaccine dose and approximately 70 days after the second, which is about how long sperm takes to regenerate.

Scientists analyzed semen volume, sperm concentration, sperm motility and total sperm count and found no significant decrease in any of these parameters compared with the samples taken before the COVID-19 shots.

It was an unknown area that was making guys nervous to get the vaccine, said study co-author Jesse Ory, urology fellow in infertility/andrology at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

 Adrianna Rodriguez

US deaths dip below 300 per day as pandemic's grip eases

COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. have dipped below 300 a day for the first time since the early days of the disaster in March 2020. The drive to put shots in arms also approached an encouraging milestone Monday: 150 million Americans fully vaccinated. The coronavirus was the third leading cause of death in the U.S. in 2020, behind heart disease and cancer, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But CDC data suggests that more Americans now are dying every day from accidents, chronic lower respiratory diseases, strokes or Alzheimers disease than from COVID-19.

Biden administration unveils details for sending 55M vaccines overseas

The Biden administration announced plans Monday to send 55 million COVID-19 vaccine doses overseas, part of its pledge to donate 80 million shots to other countries by the end of June. The U.S. will distribute about 41 million  about 75%  through the U.N.-backed global sharing COVAX initiative, which includes sending 14 million doses to Latin America and the Caribbean, about 16 million to Asia and about 10 million to Africa to be shared in coordination with the African Union, according to a fact sheet provided by the White House.

The rest of the 55 million doses will be sent directly to specific countries struggling with a pandemic surge, including Colombia, Argentina, Haiti, other Caribbean community countries, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Indonesia, South Africa, Nigeria, Egypt, Iraq, Yemen, Tunisia, West Bank and Gaza and Ukraine.

The U.S. has already begun shipping 25 million doses of the 80 million President Joe Biden vowed to send abroad by the end of the month. The president joined G-7 leaders last week to announce a pledge to provide more than 1 billion additional COVID-19 vaccines globally, 500 million of which will come from the U.S.

 Courtney Subramanian

Blood shortage postpones surgeries at some New England hospitals

Some New England hospitals are rescheduling surgeries, citing a shortage of blood fueled by the pandemic. Periodic, localized blood shortages are not uncommon, but this shortage is unprecedented in its scope, said Dr. Claudia Cohn, chief medical officer for the American Association of Blood Banks. Officials point toward a number of factors including the typical summer drop in blood donations at a time when surgeries are increasing because of procedures that were postponed during the pandemic.

We havent seen anything like this in about 30 or 40 years at least, Dr. Vishesh Chhibber, director of transfusion medicine at UMass Memorial Health, told the Boston Globe.

Borders with Mexico, Canada to remain closed through July

U.S. borders with Mexico and Canada will remain closed "to reduce the spread" of COVID-19 through the end of July, the Department of Homeland Security announced on Twitter on Sunday. The agency, in conjunction with its Canadian and Mexican counterparts, originally closed the United States' northern and southern borders to leisure travelers in March 2020 at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The restrictions have been extended on a monthly basis ever since, and were previously extended to July 21.

"Access for essential trade & travel" is still allowed, according to the DHS.

Delta variant could fuel autumn surge across US

About 45% of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and cases are declining in a majority of states. But the spread of the highly contagious delta variant among the unvaccinated could pose a new threat, public health officials warn. The delta variant, first identified in India, now accounts up to 10% of cases in the United States.

The delta variant could trigger a surge in the fall if only 75% of the country's population is vaccinated, former Food and Drug Administration chief Dr. Scott Gottlieb said Sunday on CBSs Face the Nation."

Afghanistan battling deadly third surge

Afghanistan is racing to ramp up supplies of oxygen as a deadly third surge of COVID-19 worsens, a senior health official told The Associated Press. The government is installing oxygen supply plants in 10 provinces where up to 65% of those tested in some areas are positive, health ministry spokesman Ghulam Dastigir Nazari said. By World Health Organization recommendations, anything higher than 5% shows officials arent testing widely enough, allowing the virus to spread unchecked. Afghanistan carries out barely 4,000 tests a day and often much less.

Afghanistans 24-hour infection count has also continued its upward climb from 1,500 at the end of May when the health ministry was already calling the surge a crisis, to more than 2,300 this week.

A Barbados resort offers guests and locals onsite COVID-19 testing

A resort in Barbados created a first-ever COVID-19 lab within a hotel in the Caribbean. Paul Doyle, the owner of The Crane Resort, worked with Barbados Public Health Laboratory and the World Health Organization to receive guidance and acquire the equipment for onsite testing.

For some guests traveling internationally, returning home requires a negative COVID-19 test. There are some hotels and properties that offer testing at the location but rely on offsite lab processes, resulting in a longer wait to receive results. The resort's lab conducts tests onsite so tests can come back within hours.

The hotel currently has both PCR COVID testing and rapid antigen testing, which provides results within 15 minutes. Depending on what test is required, the lab can provide guests with fast and convenient COVID-19 testing required for traveling. The lab is also open to locals, ex-pats, and guests from other hotels.

We know that visitors who have been in lockdown and have waited a long time for their vacations will appreciate a hassle-free airport experience and speedy test results, Doyle told Forbes.

 Steven Vargas

Contributing: The Associated Press.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Vaccine clots more deadly than COVID in Australia this year
Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast/Alamy

Ever look at a bottle of Wild Turkey 101 and wonder why 101? Why not 102?

Youre asking about the so-called proof, the number that tells you how much of the whiskey is alcohol (ethanol, to be precise). Almost all of the rest is water, except for a tiny but extremely significant bit of flavor and aroma compounds that accumulate during mashing, fermentation, distillation and barrel aging.

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In a small number of bottlings, those labeled cask-strength or barrel proof, the proof of the whiskey is exactly what comes out of the barrel. The distiller measures that with a government-approved instrument and puts the reading on the label. Whiskies of this type, like Bookers Bourbon or Aberlour Abunadh Single Malt Scotch, will vary in proof from batch to batch, but have the same general taste profile.

In other whiskies, the proof is set by adding carefully measured amounts of water to the spirit to dilute it to bottling strength. That bottling strength is determined by science, by flavor, by tradition and yes, sometimes the marketing department and sometimes the accountants. The science and sensory part of it are fascinating, and Ive got a whole piece coming on that because learning about it was such an eye-opener.

But the traditional and the marketing influences are interesting, too. Chances are youve never really thought about why those numbers are what they are and its a good story.

By the Numbers

American proof numbers are simply the percentage by volume of alcohol in a spirit, doubled. So a bottled-in-bond bourbon, at 100 proof, would be 50 percent alcohol by volume (ABV); an 80 proof Canadian whisky would be 40 percent ABV. We dont usually talk about the proof of beers or wines; theyre almost always expressed directly in percent ABV.

The reason for that is that spirits used to be subject to much more scrutiny than beer or wine. The difference between a 45 percent ABV spirit and a 55 percent ABV one is not as quickly evident as a watered-down beer or wine. The market, and human nature being what it is, a rough-and-ready method was devised.

Story continues

The story goes (and if you read my recent radler beer story, those words should definitely get your nonsense radar tingling) that the Royal Navy needed a way to prove that the rum (and occasionally brandy or arrack, depending on supply) served to sailors as part of their daily rations was full strength, not watered down. The rum ration was one of the few bright spots a sailor could count on in a low-paying job that was long on toil, discipline and monotony tempered with frequent lethal danger. Fiddling with the so-called daily tot to save money could bring a crew to mutiny, so any rumor of watered rum had to be nipped in the bud ASAP.

The navy did this, as needed, by showing the sailors that the rum, mixed with a pellet of gunpowder, would readily ignite and burn steadily. This was considered proof and rum that met the test was deemed proof spirit. And despite my the story goes misgivings, the gunpowder test is almost surely true, though it may have come from the UKs taxation protocols rather than the Royal Navy. A quibble, and Im not going to let the (possible) truth get in the way of a good story.

True or not, lighting liquor and gunpowder on fire is a limited and inconsistent measure, not even considering the safety aspects, so a more scientific one evolved as chemistry advanced. Again, it was the British, with their double obsession with booze and taxes, who came up with the tools and rules to get it done. In 1816, a proof spirit was determined to be liquor that weighed 12/13 as much as an equal volume of water (at 51 F), which made 100 proof in this system the equivalent of 57.06 percent alcohol by volume. Easy peasy.

Im, of course, joking. It is ridiculously complicated, but the Brits stuck with it for more than 150 years, and while most of the common proof points are connected to the simpler American system, there are little bits of the British one sticking around today. Lets go to the numbers to find them.

Proof Clusters

Today, youll see a lot of unique proofs on whiskey labels. My fellow whiskey writer Chuck Cowdery suspects that is often for marketing purposes, theyre being different for the sake of being different.

But I lean toward what Tim Heuisler, the Old Overholt Rye Whiskey brand ambassador told me when he was explaining the 92.6 proof number on last years one-off release of Old Overholt 11 year old. We just sat around tasting different proofings until we loved it, he said, and Id love to think every odd proof came from that same reason. Me too, Tim.

But the majority of proofs tend to be one of the following numbers. Heres my explanation (or best guess) as to why each exists:

80 proof/40 percent ABV has been the legal minimum in the major whiskey producing nationsthe U.K., Ireland, Canada and the U.S.for decades. But not everywhere: I have a bottle of Sam Cougar bourbon, produced for the Australian market by MGP, which is bottled at 78 proof. The taxes in Australia are incredibly high and the shipping costs are great, so this allows the brands to lower their prices a bit. Theres also the allowance of 40 proof diluted whiskey in Ohio (thanks again to Chuck Cowdery for telling me about that oddness).

86 proof/43 percent ABV was the legal minimum in the UK between 1879 and 1916, when it was lowered to 40 percent as part of wartime food rationing (and Prime Minister David Lloyd Georges teetotaler ambitions). But 86 proof had become a tradition, and you still see it on a number of whiskies, American and Scottish.

90 proof/45 percent ABV was a very common proof for American whiskey in the mid-20th century. Those of us whove been at this a long time remember that Jack Daniels Old No. 7 was 90 proof until 1987 when it was dropped to 86 and then it went to 80 in 2004. (Cynical drinkers suspected it had to do with increasing production and profits, since lowering the proof just meant adding more water to the whiskey.) Its interesting to note that Jack Daniels got away with it, but Makers Mark had to take back their 2013 decision to lower their proof to 84 after a huge outcry on the newly powerful channels of social media. People do notice.

92 proof/46 percent ABV is a result of a bottling issue. At this proof and higher, whiskies dont have to be chill-filtered to keep them from going hazy when some proteins in the whiskey will precipitate out of solution in cold temperatures.

100 proof/50 percent ABV is a simple break point. Its half, after all. Its also the proof for bonded whiskey in America, probably for that reason.

101 proof/50.5 percent ABV actually used to be a much more popular proof point! Besides Wild Turkey, there were 101-proof bottlings of Eagle Rare, Ezra Brooks, Old Taylor and Old Fitzgerald up into the 1980s. This was almost certainly based on competition with Wild Turkey, which was usually the headliner in liquor store ads that mentioned the other brands.

107 proof/53.5 percent ABV is a mystery. This one really bothers me, because its the proof for two of my favorite bourbons: Bakers and Weller Antique. Whiskey historian John Lipman notes that back in the 50s and 60s, there were quite a few whiskies at this proof, including Stitzel-Weller, Ancient Age and Heaven Hill, and some of them were labeled original barrel. This leads Lipman to believe that this was the undiluted dump proof from barrels with a 110-entry proof. Maybe, and it sure is a good drinking proof.

114 proof/57 percent ABV is an oddball number, but Im pretty sure this is because its 100 British proof in the old reckoning. There arent many of these; Old Grand-Dad is the survivor and theres a new Old Overholt bottling at this proof.

Whats in The Name

Of course, some whiskies are known by their proof, its the first thing you learn about them, because the proof is in the name, including Wild Turkey 101, Glenfarclas 105 and Highwood 90. Theres a reason for each of these.

If you dont know the Highwood 90 (bottled as a 5-year-old and a 20-year-old), have patience. This Alberta distillery was about to start selling in the U.S. in 2013, but a bad flood cost it a lot of money and a lot of whisky. The company is only now starting to consider American distribution again. I hope it happens. I do like their 90 proof 20-year-old.

But why 90 proof? We knew we wanted to do something that was over-proof, said general manager Michael Nychyk. We were capturing more of that rawness that comes out of the barrel. The distillery tasting group was trying the new whisky at a range of proofs and had it narrowed down to the 44-46 percent range.

Im not sure who threw it out there, but someone said, well, how about 90 proof? Nychyk recalls. We felt that at 90, the profile was best. Its really subjective, of course, but for that group, thats where it came across. A little sales and marketing came into itit sounded cool. The proof statement sounded good for a U.S. market and then the flood came.

The story behind Glenfarclas 105 is both simpler and more complicated. This powerful single malt that doesnt have an age statement isnt actually 105 proof; at least, not as Americans are used to it. The 105 Glenfarclas uses references the old British proof system, as explained above.

The Glenfarclas 105 was originally bottled as a cask strength single malt whisky that came out of the barrel at 105 British proof, which calculates out to 60 percent ABV/120 American proof. It was well-receivedand its a damned good dramand the Grant family, who own the independent distillery, decided to keep making it at a standard 105 (or 120, if you prefer).

So what about Wild Turkeys famous 101? Long-time master distiller Jimmy Russell has told me that he just thinks the bourbon tastes best at that proof. I asked his son, co-master distiller Eddie Russell, whos been working at the distillery for 40 years himself, what he knew about the magic number.

Eddie said it has always been 101, because thats how it came out of the barrel the first time. If that seems odd, given the powerful barrel proofs of bourbons like Bookers and George T. Stagg. Well, Eddie has got some history for you about entry proof, the strength at which the new-make spirit is put in the barrel to age.

You couldnt even enter at more than 110 proof until the 1960s, that was the law, he explained. Seagrams lobbied the government to enter up to 125 in the early 1960s. Most of it coming out of the barrel in those days was 100 to 110 proof. There wasnt much water being added. According to Jimmy, when they first tasted it, it was an 8-year-old, right out of the barrel, at 101.

Eddie laughed. When I first tasted Bookers with Booker Noe, Id never tasted whiskey that proof, and it lit me up! I was used to tasting barrel whiskey at maybe 110.

Now, the wide-eyed whiskey lover in me, the guy who likes Tim Heuislers Old Overholt hopefulness, thinks thats a great story. But the skeptical writer in me wonders if it wasnt more like a combination of the Glenfarclas and Highwood stories. Maybe the whiskey came out pretty close to 101, it tasted very good and they decided that 101 proof was maybe a good number to have on your label beside all the 100 proof bottled-in-bond whiskies on the shelf back then.

Its just a theory. But I still like the story. I just dont have any proof.

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WASHINGTON (AP)  Attorney General Merrick Garland said Tuesday that private industry needs better safeguards to avoid calamitous consequences in the event of cyberattacks like the ones that have targeted American infrastructure and corporations.

You have to have a secondary method if your first method is shut down. You have to have depth, and we need to work with them on that," Garland said, a week after a meeting between President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin that included discussion of a spate of Russia-linked ransomware attacks in the last year.

In a wide-ranging question-and-answer session with reporters, his first since being confirmed in March as the countrys chief law enforcement officer, Garland also reiterated his concerns about the death penalty, defended the Justice Departments position in a defamation case against former President Donald Trump and insisted that the government would work to protect both journalists personal safety and their ability to conceal their confidential sources.

The conversation occurred as Garland has faced demands from Democrats to swiftly undo or reverse positions taken by the Justice Department during the Trump administration, including aggressive leak investigations in which law enforcement obtained phone records of journalists and congressional officials. The Justice Department inspector general is now investigating, and Garland met last week with executives from news media organizations.

Garland, who has made several major announcements during his tenure but taken no questions before Tuesday, did not reveal any new details about how those subpoenas were authorized and did not answer when asked when he had learned about the issue. But he said it was clear that the balance the department had sought for decades to strike between journalists' First Amendment rights and safeguarding the disclosure of classified information is not sufficient for your protection.

He said he believed journalists need sources to expose wrongdoing and bad decision-making and "I'm going to do everything I can to help protect you from being forced to reveal those contacts.

Garland also defended the Justice Department's decision to maintain its position, first argued last year, that Trump cannot be held personally liable for crude and disrespectful remarks he made about a woman who accused him of rape because he made the comments while he was president.

Democrats had looked to that case as one place where Garland's Justice Department might make a dramatic shift, but Garland said the case law that government lawyers had reviewed tilted in favor of the argument that defamatory statements made to the news media by a public official are protected by law.

The question for us, though, is really a question of law, unrelated to how we feel about Trump's statements, Garland said. We don't have one rule for Republicans and one rule for Democrats, one rule for a former president, one rule for the current president.

He was noncommittal on Democratic calls for an investigation into the potential politicization of decisions made in the Trump Justice Department, saying he did not want career officials to feel unnecessarily second-guessed by political appointees.

Garland also said he has deep reservations about the death penalty, in part because of the disparate impact the punishment has had on minority communities, and would make a more extensive statement soon. The Trump administration revived the death penalty last year after a 17-year hiatus in federal executions.

Though activists widely expected Biden to take swift action against the death penalty as the first sitting president to oppose capital punishment, the White House has been mostly silent.



Follow Eric Tucker on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/etuckerAP
UNITED NATIONS (AP)  Russias foreign minister says Moscow disagrees that there is no alternative to deliver humanitarian aid to Syrias rebel-held northwest except from Turkey as the U.N. and many Western nations maintain, insisting deliveries are possible across conflict lines within the country.

He hinted that Russia will block U.N. renewal of the one remaining border crossing whose mandate expires July 10.

Sergey Lavrov said that since April 2020 Russia has seen continuous attempts to block joint humanitarian convoys by the United Nations, International Committee of the Red Cross and Syrian Arab Red Crescent to northwest Idlib from Syrias capital Damascus by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the strongest militant group there, with the connivance of Ankara.

It obstructs sustainable deliveries from inside the country, Lavrov said in a recent oral statement conveyed to U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press.

Unfortunately, the information on Turkish sides positive steps does not enjoy real-life proof," he said.

In January 2020, Russia scored a victory for its close ally Syria, using its veto threat to force the Security Council to adopt a resolution reducing the number of border crossing points for aid deliveries from four to two  from Turkey to the northwest. It also cut in half the year-long mandate that had been in place since cross-border deliveries began in 2014 to six months.

Last July, Russia scored another victory for Syria by forcing the Security Council to limit humanitarian aid deliveries to just one crossing point, from Turkey to northwest Idlib at Bab al-Hawa.

Many countries including the United States had argued for restoring the Al-Yaroubiya crossing point from Iraq in the northeast that was closed in January 2020. It had been a primary delivery point for health and medical supplies, especially needed during the COVID-19 pandemic. But Russia argued that aid should be delivered from within Syria across conflict lines, and threatened to veto more than one crossing point.

With the mandate for the Bab al-Hawa crossing nearing an end, secretary-general Guterres and many countries have been speaking out and stressing the critical importance of keeping it open.

The Security Council is scheduled to discuss the humanitarian situation in Syria, including cross-border aid deliveries, on Wednesday.

Lavrov accused Western donors, who are the major providers of humanitarian aid to Syria, of blackmailing, by threatening to cut humanitarian financing for Syria if the mandate for Bab al-Hawa is not extended.

We consider it is important to resist such approaches, he said.

We believe that further concessions to the Americans and Europeans under the pressure of financial threats will undermine the credibility of the United Nations, its Charter and the Security Councils resolutions, which stipulate to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria, non-interference into (a) countrys internal affairs and compliance with international humanitarian law, he said.

In early June, U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield went to the Bab al-Hawa crossing in Turkey and stressed that there is no viable alternative to deliver aid and meet the vast needs of vulnerable people in northern Syria. She also said there is an urgent need for additional crossings.

Former U.N. humanitarian chief Mark Lowcock, who just stepped down, told the council last month that delivering aid across conflict lines cannot replace cross-border deliveries and called the cross-border operation at Bab al-Hawa a lifeline.

If it isnt reauthorized, he warned, food deliveries for 1.4 million people every month, millions of medical treatments, nutrition for tens of thousands of children and mothers and education supplies for tens of thousands of students will stop.

But Lavrov disagreed, saying Russia has received information that U.N. agencies providing humanitarian assistance to northwest Syria are currently actively working on alternative routes of humanitarian deliveries in the event the cross-border point `Bab al-Hawa is closed.

He said representatives of the U.N. World Food Program, which supplies 80% of cross-border deliveries, have already agreed with Damascus and keep seeking the agreement by Ankara to fill WFPs warehouse in the town of Sarmada in the (Idlib) de-escalation zone via cross-line delivery.

Lavrov said the U.N. World Health Organization is inclined towards the similar option for delivering medical supplies including COVID-19 vaccines.

He said WFP and WHO have well-organized cooperation with the Syrian authorities" who provide timely authorization for their humanitarian missions.

Lavrov also cited improvements in deliveries to the northeast after the closure of Al-Yaroubiya, saying coverage there has increased 35-45% and could increase to 60% if funds are available.

The situation where Turkey in reality fully controls the provision of humanitarian assistance to Syria is also unacceptable, he said.
Jim Longworth is the host of Triad Today, airing on Saturdays at 7:30 a.m. on ABC45 (cable channel 7) and Sundays at 11 a.m. on WMYV (cable channel 15).
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Birds of a feather, lizards of a scale

Dr. Bauer assisted an international research team, who have described a new species of Oculudentavis, from 99-million-year-old amber demonstrating that this genus, first identified as a hummingbird-sized dinosaur, was actually a lizard. The new fossil exhibits a diversity of features that identify it as a lizard, including scaled skin, and particular types of tooth attachment, eye structure and skull and shoulder bones. The new species, named Oculudentavis naga in honor of the Naga people of Myanmar and Northeast India, is represented by a partial skeleton that includes a complete skull, exquisitely preserved in amber with visible scales and soft tissue.



The team of lizard specialists, paleontologists and imaging specialists was assembled by Juan Daza, Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences at Sam Houston State University, and a former post-doc in the Bauer lab at Villanova. Other participants included former Villanova masters student and now director of the Florida Museum of Natural Historys Digital Discovery and Dissemination Laboratory, Edward Stanley and Dr. Bauer.

To learn more about Oculudentavis naga, visit the Florida Museum of Natural History's website.
YORK  A traffic stop in York County led to the discovery of cocaine by sheriffs deputies and an Illinois man is now facing seven felony charges in York County District Court.

Jacob R. McNulty, 23, has been formally charged with two counts of delivery of a controlled substance, both Class 2A felonies; one count of possession of more than one pound of marijuana, a Class 4 felony; two counts of possession of a controlled substance, both Class 4 felonies; and two counts of having no drug tax stamp, both Class 4 felonies.

According to court documents, a deputy with the York County Sheriffs Department was on regular patrol on Interstate 870 when he saw a McNulty drive onto the shoulder while exiting into York.

A traffic stop was initiated.

In the affidavit filed with the court, the deputy says he could smell burned marijuana coming from the vehicle when he spoke with McNulty, who was the sole occupant of the vehicle.

The deputy says in the affidavit that when he spoke to McNulty about doing a search of the vehicle, he became very upset and confrontational. He did not want me to search and the vehicle and made it very clear to me that he did not want me to. I advised McNulty that I had probable cause to search.
Im hoping if we win this at a federal level then theyre going to create laws to protect employees from having to go through this anywhere else in the country, said Bridges, who said she does not have confidence in the vaccine's safety.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said that while a small number of health problems have been reported, COVID-19 vaccines are safe and highly effective.

Other hospital systems around the country, including in Washington, D.C., Indiana, Maryland, Pennsylvania and most recently New York, have followed Houston Methodist and have also gotten pushback.

Legal experts say such vaccine requirements, particularly in a public health crisis, will probably continue be upheld in court as long as employers provide reasonable exemptions, including for medical conditions or religious objections.

Harris Methodist has said some employees got medical or religious exemptions, and some were deferred for pregnancy or other reasons.

But Houston Methodists president and CEO, Marc Boom, has said nearly 25,000 of the systems more than 26,000 workers have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

You did the right thing. You protected our patients, your colleagues, your families and our community. The science proves that the vaccines are not only safe but necessary if we are going to turn the corner against COVID-19, Boom said in a statement to employees.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Of course, we couldnt feature them all due to time and space constraints, but I wanted to look at the structures that have existed for many decades  some of them have had varying denominations and doctrines over the years, some of them were always the same. But these buildings are and were truly built on faith.

Fortunately, I was blessed with talent around me, to help in this endeavor.

Two are young women who are just starting out on their careers. And then theres me (armed with local history books) and our longtime creative design/copy editor/lay-out extraordinaire. I knew the four of us could create a special historic look at what people have built here on faith.

Saylor Newman is a 2020 graduate of Levander High School in Texas. She was in photojournalism and yearbook in that very large, urban high school. She recently moved to Henderson, staying with her grandparents, Joe and Em Pankratz. Her immediate family recently joined her in York County. I knew of her talent and aspirations in the area of photography. I knew she had the inspirational eye to capture what these beautiful buildings mean and hold. Ive been in many of these churches before  yet Id never really seem them in the way Saylor captured them.
New Delhi: Vidya Balan, who is currently basking in praise after the release of her action-thriller movie Sherni, says she thinks every woman is a lioness in real life, much like the character she played in the film.

"Every woman is a Sherni. A few of them are bold and badass; while others are introverted just like Vidya Vincent, but does that make them inferior? I think they have the ability to do the right tasks in the right ways--- even if that makes her liable for punishment", says Vidya in a conversation with ANI.

The actor essays the character of Vidya Vincent- an upright forest officer, who powers through the brutal beasts of social barriers set by the patriarchal society and the lackadaisical attitudes within her department.

"Vincent gets a transfer in the movie but she continues to work with honesty! So, I think every woman is a Sherni," says Vidya on the fictional story which is about the journey of a forest officer who strives for balance in a world of man-animal conflict.

The actor also shared that she was excited to sign the Amit V. Masurkar directed film because of the concept that the movie will be shot in a jungle.

"Amit didnt have the script when he came to me, he just narrated to me the plot and the concept of the film and I was so impressed by the very fact that it will be shot in a real jungle," says the 42-year-old actor.

The movie showcases Vidyas incredible journey, set in a world full of quirky yet relatable characters, as she navigates through her marriage with her rather unusual job, all this while trying to resolve the man-animal conflict.

The movie also has an eclectic mix of actors like Sharad Saxena, Mukul Chaddha, Vijay Raaz, Ila Arun, Brijendra Kala and Neeraj Kabi in key roles.

On a related note, Vidya also shared her excitement on the trailer launch of the movie earlier, and said, "The film deals with a sensitive topic that touches upon respect, mutual understanding, and co-existence, not just between man-animal, but between humans as well. It gives me immense joy to bring this unique character and story to the global audience through Amazon Prime Video and hope to engage them in unexpected ways."

Directed by Amit Masurkar of Newton fame, the film will premiere on Amazon Prime Video. Produced by Bhushan Kumar, Krishan Kumar, Vikram Malhotra and Amit Masukar, the film was released on Amazon Prime Video on June 18, across the globe in 240 plus countries.
New Delhi: In todays trading session, gold started with a slight gain after closing above the Rs 47,000 mark on Tuesday (June 22). On the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), gold and silver have been trading with huge volatility in the past few days.

On Wednesday (June 23), gold opened above Rs 47,000 per 10 grams and took the lead forward by a tad. However, the prices are still hovering around Rs 47,000 right now.

"Spot gold prices for 24 carats in Delhi were up by Rs 110 in-line with recovery in COMEX gold prices," HDFC Securities, Senior Analyst (Commodities), Tapan Patel told PTI.

Gold was trading with slight gains at $1,783 per ounce in the international market. Meanwhile, the poor mans gold, Silver, was trading relatively flat at $25.94 per ounce on international bourses. Also Read: Is Battlegrounds Mobile India sharing data with China? Check what Krafton has to say

Gold moves this week (June 21-25)

Day Gold (MCX August Futures)

Monday 47074/10 grams

Tuesday 47011/10 grams

Wednesday 47075/10 grams (Trading going on)

Gold rate last week (June 14-18)

Day Gold (MCX August Futures)

Monday 48523/10 grams

Tuesday 48424/10 grams

Wednesday 48506/10 grams

Thursday 46958/10 grams

Friday 46728/10 grams

Gold cheaper by about Rs 9000 from the highest level

Last year, due to the COVID-19 crisis, investors had put their money in gold after the market crashed. In August 2020, the price of 10 grams of gold on MCX hit the highest level of Rs 56191.

In comparison, golds August futures on MCX are currently trading at around Rs 47075 per 10 grams, which means that the yellow is still getting cheaper by about Rs 9000. Also Read: Vi launches Rs 447 plan offering no daily cap, high-speed data, check validity, other details

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New Delhi: In what could be termed as a major win for the investigative agencies, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has transferred attached assets worth Rs 8441.5 crore to consortium of Public Sector Banks who had lent money to fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya, diamantaire Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi.

Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi have defrauded the Indian PSBs to the tune of Rs. 22,585.83 crore.

Till date, the ED has attach/seizeed assets worth Rs. 18,170.02 crore which included assets worth of Rs. 969 crore located in foreign countries. The quantum of the attached and seized assets represents 80.45% of total bank loss of Rs. 22,585.83 crore. ED investigation has further found that substantial part of these assets were held in the names of dummy entities/ trusts/ third persons/ relatives of these accused and these entities were proxy of these accused to hold these assets. As on date, out of total attached/ seized assets of Rs. 18,170.02 crore under provisions of PMLA, assets worth of Rs 329.67 crore has been confiscated and assets worth Rs 9041.5 Crore, representing 40% of total loss to the bank have been handed over to the Public Sector banks.

Recently, the ED has transferred shares attached by it (worth of Rs. 6,600 crore approx.) to SBI led consortium as per order of PMLA Special Court, Mumbai. The debts recovery tribunal (DRT) has sold shares worth over Rs 5,800 crore of United Breweries Limited (UBL) that were earlier attached under the anti-money laundering law as part of an alleged bank fraud probe against fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya, the Enforcement Directorate said on Wednesday.

Further realisation of Rs 800 crore by sale of shares is expected by June 25, the central probe agency said in a statement. Recently, it said, the agency had transferred shares attached by it (worth about Rs 6,600 crore) to the SBI-led consortium as per order of the special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) Mumbai.

Mallya, 65, has lost the case against his extradition to India and he has "been denied permission to file appeal in the UK Supreme Court."

In May, Prime Minister Narendra Modi discussed extradition of Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi with United Kindom. The issue of extradition of Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi figured in a virtual summit between India and the UK, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserting that economic offenders should be sent back to the country at the earliest for trial. India has been pressing the United Kingdom to extradite Mallya and Modi to face trial in India for their alleged involvement in cases relating to financial fraud.

Meanwhile, Mehul Choksi, had mysteriously gone missing on May 23 from Antigua and Barbuda where he has been staying since 2018 as a citizen. The diamantaire was later detained in neighbouring island country of Dominica for illegal entry after a possible romantic escapade with his rumoured girlfriend.

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New Delhi: Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) is all set to host its 44th Annual General Meeting (AGM) on June 24 (Thursday), creating a buzz among Jio customers, company shareholders and investors.

RILs chief Mukesh Ambani is expected to come with a slew of announcements showing how the oil-to-telecom conglomerate is doubling down on its efforts to become a tech-first brand. Also Read: Twitter India MD Manish Maheshwari to appear before Ghaziabad Police on June 24

Here are the top 5 expectations:

1. Jios 5G smartphone

Its no secret that Google and Reliance Jio are working on an affordable 5G smartphone which might get officially revealed at the annual meeting tomorrow. Jio is likely to brief investors and shareholders with the upcoming smartphones potential pricing and timeline.

The Android-based smartphone is expected to help Reliance Jio bring over 200 million 2G feature phone users to 5G technology. The device is expected to be launched at a price point of around Rs 4000.

2. JioBook announcement

Reliance Jio is rumoured to be working on a low-cost laptop which could be named JioBook. The upcoming device is expected to run on Android OS. Qualcomm's 11-nm Snapdragon 665 chipset could power the laptop which could be launched with a 4G connectivity feature.

3. JioPhone 3 launch?

Reliance Jio is expected to launch an upgraded version of its popular JioPhone.The affordable feature phone with 4G connectivity didnt receive an update last year. Therefore its likely that 2021 could see a possible upgrade.

4. More clarity on JioMart-WhatsApp Integration

Besides Google, Facebook is also among the marquee investors who have put in billions of dollars in Jio Platforms, the digital arm of RIL. Taking the partnership forward, Ambani is expected to announce how JioMarts integration of WhatsApp is faring out for both companies.

5. Update on Saudi Aramco investment

One of the most important announcements that investors and shareholders are patiently to hear is the Saudi Aramco investment in Reliances oil to chemicals (O2C) business. The deal was first announced by Ambani in August 2019, but it was delayed due to the pandemic. Also Read: Apple iPhone 13 launch date out? Check expected price and everything we know so far!

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It's a new day, a new beginning. It's all about starting life afresh. So as you begin a new journey, find out what the stars have in store for you today. There are twelve zodiac signs and each has its distinct features. Be it, Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces  each of the signs has something unique to tell.

Aries

You may have to say goodbye to dinners out every night and hello to cost-effective home-cooked meals for a while. On the plus side, lucrative work opportunities will flow your way for the next four weeks. Polish up your professional profiles and materials so you can greet them enthusiastically!

Taurus

Desire, want, outrage, envy: What ISN'T beating inside you? In case you're seeing someone, some preventive harm control by talking this through with somebody who can help. Single? It's not the greatest night to meet new individuals since you'll be wearing your rawest feelings on your sleeve.

Gemini

Divert yourself with a vivid work venture or home-cleaning mission. In the event that you need an awkward discussion with somebody, don't rationally practice it endlessly; simply give your opinion and be finished with it. Odds are, the expectation is the most exceedingly awful part!

Cancer

In spite of the fact that many invested individuals will be attracted to you during this appealing trip, you'll additionally need time to appreciate your very own conversation. Focus on your appearance today, and you will attract a lover.

Leo

Pause for a moment to restore your brain, body and soul before giving everything a chance to go out. Reestablish with a profound contemplation session or scribble down your fantasies in a journal when you stir. This self-care respite will possibly make your splendid arrangements that greatly improve when you return to them tomorrow.

Virgo

Put resources into preparing that will enable you to jump into another class. As of now have a few achievements to boast about? An epic birthday gathering could be the ideal event to commend the "enhanced you." If you're feeling somewhat depleted by all the late spring's serious travels, dedicate the following a month to individual rebuilding. In the wake of pruning some dangerous individuals from your newsfeed, spoil yourself proudly.

Libra

Regardless of your affection for agreement and reasonable play, you may bolt horns with a portion of your preferred individuals under the present restless square. It's likewise conceivable that you could get captured in others' crossfire. Watch where you walk since somebody could be attempting to control you into favoring one side. At any rate, for now, retreat to a nonpartisan corner and let them duke it out without including you.

Scorpio

Is it love...or only a dream? You may experience issues recognizing dreams from the real world. In case you're recently dating, jump under the surface (and past the thirst trap depictions) to REALLY become more acquainted with who that right-swiper is.

Sagittarius

Quit turning in circles. The moon in your extraordinary eighth house may leave you fixating to the point of uneasiness. Keep in mind: You can't control what befalls you, simply your response. Quit ruminating and begin doing. On the off chance that you feel troubled, connect. You have such a large number of brilliant, imaginative personalities around you who can add to your undertaking and genuinely make it sparkle.

Capricorn

Open your brain to a match who falls outside your typical "type." And with regards to your very own profile, feature your tenseness. Coupled? Wandering out of your usual range of familiarity could carry some restless investigation to your relationship. Simply make certain to pick a sheltered word!

Aquarius

Just you have the stuff to control a strained gathering discussion with style and effortlessness. In any case, don't expect miracles.Quell any vicious inclinations, snap decisions or an affinity to barrel ahead without anyone else. You'll have a chaotic cleanup in front of you in the event that you do exclude others in SOME piece of the procedure. It may be important to postpone the talk for several days, or seven days, and teach everybody to return with well-examined measurements to back up their POV.

Pisces

With your exact gauges, not every person can (or should) make the cut! Innovation gets a supercharged lift under this travel. In case you're looking for work, catching up on your advanced aptitudes could place you in line for progressively worthwhile chances. Perhaps it's a great opportunity to revive your site and online life profiles to draw in new customers and offers.

The astrological predictions are by Dr Sundeep Kochar.
New Delhi: After administering a record 88.09 lakh vaccine doses on Monday (June 21), the inoculation drive witnessed a fall to over 53.4 lakh vaccine doses on Tuesday, as per Union Health Ministry data at 7 pm.

As per the official data, more than 32,81,562 vaccine doses were administered as first dose and 71,655 jabs given as second dose in the age group 18-44 years on Tuesday. Despite a significant drop in the vaccination figures as compared to Monday, India's cumulative COVID-19 vaccination coverage crossed the 29-crore mark, the ministry said in a statement.

Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal have administered the first dose of COVID vaccine to more than 10 lakh beneficiaries of the age group 18-44 years, quoted the health ministrys statement as saying.

Slamming the central government for dip in the vaccination figures on Tuesday, Congress said that inoculation drive is not a "one-day fixture" and alleged that the single-day record spike was a "pre-planned image-booster".

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram said, "Hoard on Sunday, vaccinate on Monday, and go back to limping on Tuesday. That is the secret behind the world 'record' of vaccinations on a 'single day'."

"I am sure the 'feat' will find a place in the Guinness book of records! Who knows, there may be a Nobel Prize for Medicine awarded to the Modi government. 'Modi Hai, Mumkin Hai' must now read 'Modi Hai, Miracle Hai'," the former Union minister added.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh also took a jab at the Centre and tweeted, "Vaccination cannot be seen like a one-day fixture. Clearly, yesterday was a pre-planned, image-booster. Today we have not sustained that level. We simply have to sustain at least 80 lakhs a day for the next four-five months.

On June 21, Madhya Pradesh administered 16,73,858 COVID-19 vaccine doses, the highest ever among states in the country in a single day so far. There have been allegations that the state "hoarded" its vaccine supply for days to achieve the feat on Monday.

(With agency inputs)

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New Delhi: India's External affairs minister Dr S Jaishankar said that Chinese deployment continues, calling Beijing to live up to its "written commitments" when it comes to the presence of forces in a large number at the border. The comments come even as India and China are preparing for the next round of Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) diplomatic talks.

Speaking at an event, Jaishankar said, "Close-up deployments still continue, especially in Ladakh. The issue there is whether China will live up to the written commitments which are made about both countries not deploying a large armed force at the border."

June marked one year since the Galwan incident in which 20 Indian soldiers died due to aggressive actions by the Chinese forces. This was the first incident of bloodshed at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in many decades and plummeted ties between the two Asian neighbours to a historic low.

Calling the India-China border issue "a challenge, a problem", Jaishankar said, "the larger issue really (is) whether we can build this relationship on the basis of mutual sensitivity, mutual respect and mutual interest".

February saw the announcement of a pact under which disengagement happened at the Pangong lake area, but disengagement in other areas like Gogra, Hot Springs still remain. The 21st meeting of the WMCC happened on 12 March and as the case is, it was followed by the 11th round of India-China Corps Commander Level which happened on April 9. India during these meetings have been calling for complete disengagement but the Chinese side has not shown any change in stance.

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Janata Dal(United) [JD(U)] MLA Gopal Mandal believes that Nitish Kumar is 'PM material' and his 'real chair' is not that of the Bihar Chief Minister but in Delhi.

"We believe that the RJD and Congress in Bihar will split in near future. In this case, the rebel leaders will join the JD-U and not the BJP. It gives more strength to our party and we will challenge the BJP. Our leader Nitish Kumar will then claim the post of Prime Minister," MLA Gopal Mandal said.

The remarks of Mandal, who is known for his controversial statements, came as Nitish Kumar began a three day visit to national capital, which was described as "private" but stirred up speculation of the Union Cabinet's expansion with the JD(U) joining the government.

Mandal represents Bhagalpur's Gopalpur seat in the Legislative Assembly.

Mandal also attacked Chirag Paswan amid the current LJP crisis, and demanded authorities initiate an inquiry into his wealth. "We are completely sure about irregularities being found in his wealth once the financial inquiries start against him," he claimed.

Meanwhile, as soon as the Bihar CM reached the national capital on Tuesday, speculation started doing rounds about possible expansion of the Narendra Modi cabinet and his party joining the government.

There was also speculation that the Bihar Chief Minister is likely to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP chief J.P. Nadda, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and others.

However, Nitish Kumar and his party termed the visit as a private one for medical issues and denied any political meetings were scheduled. "Came here for personal work to get my eye tested and treated. There is no other work," Nitish Kumar said.

On possible cabinet expansion, he said, "Cabinet expansion is the prerogative of the Prime Minister. There is no talk about it."

According to sources, today (June 23) Nitish Kumar will be visiting the AIIMS for an eye check up and he has no other appointment for the day. Sources also said on medical advice, Nitish Kumar may go for minor eye procedure at AIIMS, so no meeting has been fixed.

"Right now as per the schedule, Nitish Kumarji has only one appointment... that with doctors at AIIMS. He is not meeting anyone for right now. Till now, neither time has been fixed nor has been sought for meeting the Prime Minister, BJP President or Home Minister. It is his personal visit," a senior JD(U) leader had said earlier.

Amid the buzz of a possible cabinet expansion at the month end, Nitish Kumar's visit fuelled the speculation of his JD(U) joining the Modi government and number of ministerial berths it get. Despite being part of the NDA, the JD(U) did not join the Modi government in 2019.

(With inputs from IANS)

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New Delhi: Yoga teacher and businessman Baba Ramdev has moved the Supreme Court seeking a stay of the multiple FIRs filed against him over his offensive remarks against allopathy.

He also sought the transfer of the FIRs lodged by the Patna and Raipur branches of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) to Delhi.

Last week, the Chhattisgarh Police has registered an FIR against Ramdev for allegedly spreading "false" information about the medicines being used by the medical fraternity for the treatment of COVID-19.

The case was filed on Wednesday night against Baba Ramdev based on a complaint filed by the Chhattisgarh's unit of the Indian Medical Association (IMA), Raipur's Senior Superintendent of Police Ajay Yadav said.

"Ramdev has been booked under sections 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) and others of the IPC and provisions of Disaster Management Act, 2005," he said.

Ramdev called allopathy a stupid science" following which the IMA had filed a Rs 10 crore defamation suit against him.

The IMA has demanded that the Centre should take strict action against Ramdev for allegedly misleading people by making "unlearned" comments and describing modern medicine as "stupid science.

The Resident Doctors' Associations of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and Safdarjung Hospital too condemned Ramdev's statement and demanded that "strictest steps" be taken against him.

Reacting to the controversy, Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust issued a statement, denying the comments, and said, "It is clarified that the truncated version of the video is totally out of context of what is sought to be conveyed by Swami jee."

Asserting that Ramdev has "utmost regards" for doctors and support staff who have been working day and night during such a challenging time of the pandemic, the statement signed by Trust General Secretary Acharya Balakrishna said, "Swami jee has no ill-will against the modern science and good practitioners of modern medicine. What is being attributed against him is false and nugatory."

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New Delhi: The Border Security Force on Wednesday (June 23) handed over a Bangladeshi girl, who was pushed into prostitution, to Border Guard Bangladesh as a humanitarian gesture.

On June 22, the BSF forces received inputs that some people were at Border Out Post area, Jeetpur of 99 Battalion BSF were illegally crossing the border. Based on the tip-off, the troops of Border Out Post, Jeetpur was alerted by Company Commander troops accordingly. In the afternoon, the troops noticed some suspicious movement of two-three persons in the jute field when they launched a cordon operation and apprehended two women, including a 17-year-old girl.

The two women, a mother-daughter duo, were apprehended from the jute filed brought to Border Out Post Jeetpur for investigation. During preliminary questioning, Alima (fictitious name of daughter) revealed that she had fled from her home after she got to know that her parents had fixed her marriage against her will. She came in contact with two people from her village, Kalu and Suhag, who promised her a good job at a beauty parlour in India. She ran away from her house to avoid marriage and came to India with Kalu where the latter sold her to an Indian tout named Mohammed Ali for Rs 1.5 lakhs. She was then brought to Panjipara (Uttar Dinajpur) where she was forced into prostitution. She further revealed that a boy - Mithun heard her ordeal who then decided to help her out. He then dialled Alima's mother in Bangladesh and narrated her the entire incident.

Alima's mother said that her daughter went missing on January 16, 2021, after which she registered a FIR at Pallavi Mirpur Police Station, near Dhaka. A few days ago, she received a phone call from a boy named Mithun from India, who told her about Alima's condition. She told the troops that after the phone call, she decided to immediately leave for India and rescue and bring her daughter back home. In this connection, she came to India illegally and went to Panjipada, where she rescued her daughter from the clutches of touts with the help of the village Headman.

She added that on Tuesday when they were illegally crossing the border, they were apprehended by the Border Security Force.

In view of the seriousness of the crime against the victim, BSF handed over the mother-daughter duo to Border Guard Bangladesh on humanitarian grounds.



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New Delhi: Covaxin, Indias first indigenous COVID-19 vaccine, is expected to be available for children by September, Delhi AIIMS chief Dr. Randeep Guleria told a news channel.

In an interview with India Today TV, Guleria said, Covaxin's data for children after completion of the Phase 2/3 trials will be available by September and the approval is expected the same month.

In addition, he stated that if Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine receives approval in India then that can also be one of the options for children.

On June 7, Delhi AIIMS started vaccine clinical trials on kids between the age of 2 to 17.

In May, the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) had granted permission to Bharat Biotech to commence phase 2-3 trials of Covaxin on children as young as two.

Meanwhile, Guleria had earlier warned that third wave of COVID-19 can strike India in the next six to eight weeks if crowds are not prevented and if rules are broken.

"If Covid-appropriate behaviour is not followed, the third wave can happen in six to eight weeks. We need to work aggressively to prevent another large wave till vaccination kicks in," he told PTI.

On Tuesday (June 22), the Subject Expert Committee (SEC) accepted and approved the phase 3 trial data of Covaxin which showed 77.8 per cent efficacy, ANI reported. This data will now be sent to the DCGI for review.

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Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday (June 23) said bypolls, due in six assembly seats of the state, can be held within seven days since the COVID-19 situation is 'under control'. She went on to allege that the Election Commission of India is waiting for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's nod to hold the bye-elections.

"If it is so, then I will ask the PM to give the go- ahead. Now the situation is okay, but if the third wave of the pandemic comes, then you cannot do anything," Banerjee told reporters at the secretariat.

The chief minister had lost to BJPs Suvendu Adhikari from the Nandigram seat in the assembly polls and the deadline for her re-election ends on November 5.

"We are waiting to see (what decision the ECI takes). The bypolls should be held as early as possible because the COVID-19 situation is totally controlled now. So, I think within seven days they can hold the elections. There is no need to give so much time to the candidates. Even our bye- elections are pending," she said.

On reports that the central government is allegedly trying to delay the bye-elections in West Bengal, Banerjee referred to the constitutional stipulation of holding the elections within six months.

"They held the Bengal assembly elections in eight phases when the COVID-19 positivity rate went up to 33 per cent and now when it is down to 3 per cent they cannot organise the bypolls," she said.

Elections were deferred in two assembly constituencies of Shamsergunj and Jangipur following the deaths of two candidates.

Bypolls will have to be held in Bhabanipur following the resignation of state minister Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay as an MLA to make way for Banerjee to contest from her old constituency.

Chattopadhyay is likely to contest from Khardah where party leader Kajal Sinha had succumbed to Covid-19 before the results were announced.

Byelections are also due in Shantipur and Dinhata where two BJP MPs contested and won but have resigned to retain their Lok Sabha seats.

The ECI had deferred bye-elections in three parliamentary constituencies in Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli because of the pandemic.

It also deferred bye-elections in nine assembly constituencies in Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, and Meghalaya.

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New Delhi: Amid reports of the third wave of COVID-19 to hit India in the coming weeks, the NITI Aayog on Tuesday (June 22, 2021) commented on the four elements that lead to the formation of new pandemic waves.

During a Union Health Ministry's media briefing on COVID-19, Dr VK Paul, Member (Health), NITI Aayog, explained the reasons behind the emergence of new pandemic waves and how they can be controlled or avoided.

Why do new waves happen?

The NITI Aayog Member listed four elements that lead to the formation of a new wave namely - Behaviour of the virus, Susceptible host, Transmissibility and Opportunity.

Behaviour of the virus: The virus has the capacity and ability to spread.

Susceptible host: The virus keeps looking for susceptible hosts for it to survive. So, if people are not protected either via vaccination or by the previous infection, then they are a susceptible host.

Transmissibility: The virus can become smart enough where it mutates and becomes more transmissible. The same virus which used to infect three hosts becomes capable of infecting 13. This factor is unpredictable and no one can pre-plan to fight such mutations. The change of the very nature of the virus and its transmissibility is an X factor and no one can predict when and where it may happen.

Opportunity: Opportunities which people give to the virus to infect. If people sit and eat together, crowd, sit in closed areas without masks, then the virus gets more opportunities to spread.

Dr Paul said that out of the above four, two elements  'Susceptibility and Opportunities' for infection are totally under our control, whereas, the other two - 'Behaviour of the virus and Transmissibility', cannot be predicted or controlled.

"So, if we are protected and ensure we are not susceptible, then the virus will not be able to survive. We can control the susceptibility by wearing a mask or getting vaccinated. Hence if we decrease opportunities by following COVID Appropriate behaviour and decrease susceptibility to infection, then a third wave will not occur," he said.

The NITI Aayog Member stated that there are countries where even the second wave of COVID-19 has not occurred.

"If we do what is required and do not indulge in irresponsible behaviour, then outbreak should not occur. This is a simple epidemiological principle," Dr Paul said.

When should schools reopen?

Dr Paul also commented on easing restrictions and reopening of schools and said that the decision has to be taken cautiously. He stated that we should take risks only when we are protected.

He said, "School is a crowd, a medium or large gathering, which gives an opportunity for the virus to infect. So, we should take that risk only when we are rather better protected, the virus is suppressed and we are able to sit at a distance. But it is not easy to take this decision to open schools when an unpredictable situation is prevalent."

ALSO READ | Fast COVID-19 vaccination key to go back to normal, says NITI Aayog's Dr VK Paul



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NEW DELHI: Congress councillor Usha Sharma on Wednesday took membership of the Aam Aadmi Party in presence of Cabinet Minister and AAP Delhi convenor Shri Gopal Rai. He said that hundreds of Congress workers are joining the Aam Aadmi Party.

Rai said that this joining is sending only one message across Delhi, if any party or leader can work in Delhi, it is Aam Aadmi Party and Arvind Kejriwal. He said that today, due to BJP, the situation has become such that it has to sell the property of MCD.

Rai said that people are joining the Aam Aadmi Party after being impressed by Arvind Kejriwal's development mode of Delhi which is based on works in education, health, electricity and water.

Cabinet Minister Gopal Rai said,  Inspired by the work done by the Arvind Kejriwal government in Delhi, today with us we have the Municipal Councilor from the Congress party who is the current councillor of the ward no 81 -N of Kishan Ganj, Usha Sharma, she is joining the Aam Aadmi Party. She is welcome to the family of the Aam Aadmi Party. "

He said, Usha Sharmas husband Sanjay Sharma who also is socially very active there, is also joining the Party today. I want to tell you that the ward that Usha Sharma Ji is a councillor of, before this for continuously 3 times that is from 2002 -2007, from 2007-2012 and 2012-2017, Satbir Sharma was a councillor there, who is her father in law. Last time he was a candidate for the legislative assembly from the Congress party who fought against our candidate Som Dutt. He is ill right now but his blessings are with them .

He added, Along with this, a lot of members from their Mahila Samarthan Yuva Sangathan are joining the Party today. This is giving out a message to entire Delhi that the only party that can work in Delhi, and the only leader to work in Delhi is the Aam Aadmi Party and Arvind Kejriwal. The Delhi government has shown this with its performance. In the MCD the way the BJP ruled it for 15 years and the way the limits of corruption stooped so low, I feel this is the first municipal corporation in India where the situation is such that it has become bankrupt and is forced to sell its assets .

Environment Minister Gopal Rai said, It is being heard that the old buildings, the old assets of the MCD are being sold because the people of BJP have understood that unlike the last time, where they cheated the people by saying that they have changed all the candidates for the MCD for everything will happen for the better, but the situation is so bad that the MCD has had to sell its assets to survive. This message has been given out to the people of Delhi; the last by-elections also gave this signal. And therefore, those who want to work in the MCD in Delhi, are becoming a part of the Aam Aadmi Party .

He said,  I will request the other people of Delhi too that the Congress cannot remove the BJP. There is only one way to remove the BJP, that all those who won't work to happen in Delhi, want cleanliness, and want to end Corruption should collectively work with the Aam Aadmi Party. The way the people of Delhi gave the opportunity of working in the Delhi Legislative assembly, and how the Aam Aadmi Party has performed, even in the MCD, we will work hard and to corruption in the MCD and fasten the process of development .

AAP MLA from Sadar Bazar Som Dutt said "It is a matter of great pleasure that after being impressed by the Delhi development model of Arvind Kejriwal Ji, and the education, health, electricity, water and all the facilities in Delhi, we have amongst us from Kishanganj ward 81 of my assembly Sadar Bazar our regional Congress corporation councillor Usha Sharma and her husband Sanjay Sharma who are social workers, and a big team of Congress from this ward are joining the Aam Aadmi Party family today. I wish you all the best and welcome everyone to the party. I pray to God that you work with full potential and carry forward the development model of Arvind Kejriwal. "

Taking the membership of the Aam Aadmi Party, Usha Sharma, a corporation councillor from Congress, said, "Respected Gopal Rai, brother Som Dutt Ji from my assembly and my colleague Vikas Goyal present here, my younger sister Babita, my warm greetings to all. I am joining Aadmi Party today after being impressed by the work of popular Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. The condition of Delhi Municipal Corporation is not hidden from you. In the corporation, we are given assurance in the name of budget. Employees are not getting the salary. Those who have retired are not getting their money. The condition of education and health is getting worse day by day. I am not able to get development work done in my area, so I want to develop my area with my elder brother Som Dutt and want to develop my area under the leadership of Honorable Arvind Kejriwal. I want to assure you that we will increase the prestige of the Aam Aadmi Party and will take the party forward very strongly. At the same time, I am sure that there will be no loss in our respect."

Amongst the prominent people who joined the Aam Aadmi Party, the following people took the membership of the party

1) Manju Makhija, Congress Block President, Kishanganj Committee

2) Rakesh Tiwari, Pradesh Sangathan Seva Dal, Congress

3) Ramkumar, President, Chandni Chowk Purvanchal Congress Committee

4) Arvind Yadav, Speaker, Sadar Bazar Assembly, Purvanchal

5) Sanjay Goyal, President, Padam Nagar

6) Avneesh Khurana, President, Padam Nagar

7) Manish Sharma, General Secretary, Yuva Kisan Ganj Ward

8) Pradeep Bari, Youth Vice President, Sadar Bazar Legislative Assembly

9) Narvesh Dhaka, Vice President, Kishanganj Congress Block Committee

10) Akash Saini, Vice President, Youth Congress

11) Hemlata Sharma, Vice President, Congress Block Committee

Along with these prominent people, hundreds of other Congress workers joined the Aam Aadmi Party.
New Delhi: As the investigation by the UP police into the religious conversion racket is getting deeper, several disturbing pieces of information are coming up. The racket which was operating from Delhi's Jamia Nagar, under which the Hindus were converted to Muslims by brainwashing or luring them, has connections to many states across the country.

Zee News Editor-in-Chief Sudhir Chaudhary on Wednesday (June 23) presented the third edition of the ongoing series on Jihad for religious conversion in which he decoded 32 conversion certificates of people from various states.

Out of the 32 certificates, surprisingly most of them were of Hindu girls who were converted to Muslims.

The 32 such certificates show that in states like Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and Maharashtra, people belonging to Hindu religion were converted to Islam.

Yesterday we brought the story of 22-year-old Mannu Yadav, who can neither speak nor hear, was made Abdul Mannan. Today we have 32 more stories like that.

Out of these, 26 certificates are such that the date of conversion, date of issue or both are not mentioned. Apart from this, there are two certificates in which only the name and mobile number of the person are written and there is no other information.

Apart from this, there are four such certificates in which the date of issue of the certificate was overwritten which indicates that there was an attempt to tamper with the dates.

The Islamic Dawah Center in Delhis Jamia Nagar has issued all these certificates and converted Hindus on a large scale.

The certificates contain statements such as There is No God But Allah and Mohmmad is The Messenger of Allah.

The name of Qazi Mufti Jahangir Alam is written on all the certificates. He has been arrested by the Uttar Pradesh police.

We have also got the information that this Islamic organization of Jamia Nagar was getting funding from other countries for converting Hindus. We have come to know that Islamic Dawah Center was funded by some NGOs from Islamic countries UAE, Qatar and Kuwait. And this money did not come directly to the Islamic Dawah Center, rather this money reached the bank accounts of NGOs in different states of India.

In the investigation by the UP police, it has also come to the fore that this institution was also funded by the All India United Democratic Front, the political party of Assam which is headed by Badruddin Ajmal.

Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips, who is the head of the Islamic online university in Qatar, is also said to have a connection to the Islamic Dawah Center.

Bilal Phillips is the same cleric who is believed to be an aide of Zakir Naik, who fled India after being accused of having links with terrorist activities.

Today we want to make it clear that we respect all religions but we oppose the systematic conversion done through means of coercion or greed.

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The UK high court has refused fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi's application to appeal against his extradition to India. Modi, whose extradition to India was ordered last month by UK Home Secretary Priti Patel, had lodged an appeal last month.

This has left the 50-year-old jeweller with a chance to make his case at a brief oral hearing in the High Court with a renewed 'leave to appeal' application for a judge to determine if it can proceed to a full appeal hearing. Under the legal guidelines, Nirav Modi as an appellant, has five business days to apply for such an oral consideration, giving him time until next week. If a renewal application is made, it will be listed before a High Court judge for a hearing. It is understood that Nirav Modi plans to make such an application, reports PTI.

Modi is being investigated in the $2 billion Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case. He was charged by the Indian government for criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust, cheating, corruption, money laundering, fraud, embezzlement and breach of contract in August 2018 in the PNB scam case.

Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has transferred attached assets worth Rs 8441.5 crore to consortium of Public Sector Banks who had lent money to fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya, diamantaire Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi. Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi have defrauded the Indian PSBs to the tune of Rs. 22,585.83 crore.

In May, Prime Minister Narendra Modi discussed extradition of Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi with United Kindom. The issue of extradition of Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi figured in a virtual summit between India and the UK, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserting that economic offenders should be sent back to the country at the earliest for trial. India has been pressing the United Kingdom to extradite Mallya and Modi to face trial in India for their alleged involvement in cases relating to financial fraud.

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New Delhi: In the Mehul Choksi abduction case, Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne has said that he was not aware of "any conclusive evidence" but there is information in the public domain that the diamantaire was abducted and law enforcement agencies may be having some "persons of interest" after their research.

Gaston Browne made this disclosure while responding to questions of opposition MP in the Antiguan Parliament, according to an ANI report. Browne was reportedly asked if the Scotland Yard or any other investigative body found any evidence that Mehul Choksi was taken to Dominica by "involuntary means".

According to a clip of Parliamentary proceedings shared by media outlet Antigua News Room, Gaston Browne is quoted as saying, "Mr Speaker, I am not aware of evidence but this information is in the public domain that Mehul Choksi was abducted. And, I am aware that law enforcement here would have done some research and perhaps may have some individuals of interest but as far as evidence is concerned I am not aware that there is any such conclusive evidence."

Browne also replied in the negative when asked if the Scotland Yard or any other agency has contacted his government about the alleged abduction of Choksi.

Mehul Choksi, wanted in Rs 13,500 crore Punjab National Bank fraud case in India, had mysteriously gone missing on May 23 from Antigua and Barbuda where he has been staying since 2018 as a citizen.

The diamantaire was detained in neighbouring island country of Dominica for illegal entry after a possible romantic escapade with his rumoured girlfriend.

Choksi's lawyers alleged that he was abducted from Jolly Harbour in Antigua on May 23 by policemen looking like Antiguan and Indian and brought to Dominica on a boat.

The legal team of fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi in London had approached the Metropolitan Police under the "universal jurisdiction" provision to investigate his alleged kidnapping from Antigua and Barbuda to neighbouring Dominica.

His lawyer Michael Polak had reportedly stated that Choksi was removed from Antigua and Barbuda to Dominica where these rights are not available to him.

In Antigua and Barbuda, Choksi as a citizen enjoys the rights to approach the British Privy Council as last resort in cases on his citizenship and extradition.

(With Agency Inputs)

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New Delhi: The medical services in the Maharashtra government hospitals are likely to be hit as nurses on Wednesday (June 23, 2021) have gone on a 48-hour long strike.

The nurses are protesting over various pending demands including promotion and COVID-19 allowance.

"Nurses from 24 districts including 1,300 nurses of Mumbai's JJ Hospital are participating. If our demands aren't met, then we'll go for an indefinite strike," President, Maharashtra Nurses Association told ANI.

Maharashtra Govt hospital nurses on 48-hr strike over various pending demands incl promotion & COVID allowance Nurses from 24 dists incl 1300 nurses of Mumbai's JJ Hospital participating.If our demands aren't met,then, we'll go for indefinite strike:Pres,Maharashtra Nurses Assoc pic.twitter.com/SXr3BuvluB  ANI (@ANI) June 23, 2021

This comes almost a week after a group of protesting healthcare workers had tried to stop the convoy of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar to present him their demands including permanent employment.

The protesters, notably, were hired on a contractual basis at government hospitals due to the COVID-19 outbreak and some of them had also lost their jobs after the contract expired.

Pawar, along with District Guardian Minister Dhananjay Munde, State Health Minister Rajesh Tope and local MLAs were attending a review meeting on the COVID-19 situation at a Beed Collector's office.

The strike also comes amid state reporting 21 cases of the Delta Plus variant, which has been labelled as the 'Variant of Concern' by the Union Health Ministry on Tuesday.

It is considered highly infectious and has been so far found in the following Maharashtra districts -- nine in Ratnagiri, seven in Jalgaon, two in Mumbai, and one case each in Palghar, Thane and Sindhudurg districts.

This is to be noted that Maharashtra is the worst coronavirus-hit state in India with over 59,87,521 confirmed cases and 1,18,795 deaths. The state recorded 8,470 new infections on Tuesday besides 188 fatalities. Maharashtra currently has 1,23,340 active COVID-19 cases.

(With inputs from agencies)



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New Delhi: West Bengal BJP President Dilip Ghosh once again trained his guns on Trinamool Congress MP and popular actor Nusrat Jahan in view of ongoing controversy surrounding her marriage with Nikhil Jain and her pregnancy rumours. The BJP leader said that Nusrat has shamed the Indian culture by applying sindoor and later claiming that she was 'never married'.

"Nusrat Jahan is a woman MP. She has shamed the Indian culture by applying sindoor, addressing a man as her husband and inviting the CM to her 'boubhat' (reception) and now she says she is not married," said Dilip Ghosh.

On June 22, West Bengal TMC General Secretary Kunal Ghosh alleged that the BJP has been trying to politicise the issue of actor-turned-politician Nusrat Jahan's marriage. "BJP is trying to politicise the personal matter of Nusrat Jahan. This is her personal family matter. If we start looking into the personal lives of others, it can be problematic for many people belonging to many parties," Ghosh told mediapersons here. "Nusrat Jahan officially informed the Lok Sabha Secretariat and other departments concerned two weeks back that her marriage annulment proceedings are in court," sources close to the TMC MP told ANI on Tuesday.

Popular Tollywood heroine and Trinamool Congress MP Nusrat Jahan had earlier this month claimed in Kolkata that her marriage with businessman Nikhil Jain was not a legal one but a live-in relationship as their wedding in Turkey did not have recognition in Indian law.

Jahan, who is reportedly dating actor-assembly poll candidate Yash Dasgupta, said in a statement that as her marriage ceremony with Jain had taken place in accordance with the Turkish Marriage Regulation, the marriage is invalid here.

The Basirhat MP went on to say that her visit to any place, for business or for the purpose of leisure, should not concern anyone from whom she has separated. "All her expenses have always been borne by me contrary to claims by someone", she had stated.
Mumbai: A patient admitted in a civic-run hospital in Mumbai was bitten by a rat near his eye, a relative alleged on Tuesday, prompting the city Mayor to order a probe.

Officials at BMC-run Rajawadi Hospital in suburban Ghatkopar confirmed the shocking incident, but said injuries were "superficial" and the patient's eye has not been affected. The patient had undergone an eye surgery at the hospital, where he suffered rat bites, his relative told the media while revealing about the incident.

Dr Vidya Thakur, dean, Rajawadi Hospital, said, Such an incident should not have happened. The injuries of the patient are superficial, still it could have been avoided. There is no threat to the eye, but injuries are being treated at our hospital.

The ward (where the incident took place) is on the ground floor. Some people dump garbage in hospital premises despite being told not to do so. It could have attracted rodents there, she said.

Dr Thakur said the hospital management will take utmost care to avoid such incidents. "We have taken some rodent repellent measures. We will take extra care to avoid such incidents, she said.

Mumbai mayor Kishori Pednekar ordered a probe into the incident after meeting the patient and termed the issue as serious. "The intensive care unit should be on the ground floor for convenience. Though proper precautions were taken, the incident of a rat biting a patient is a serious issue," Pednekar said.

The Mayor, a Shiv Sena leader, said the moment a nurse noticed the injuries, she immediately called doctors and the patient was treated. Meanwhile, BJP Member of Parliament from Mumbai North East Manoj Kotak hit out at the Shiv Sena-ruled BMC over the rat bite incident. "The BMC is said to be Asia's largest civic corporation but it does not have enough measures to protect patients from mice. The family at the receiving end is in shock, he said.

We are not surprised over this incident because similar complaints have been made against a Kandivali-based BMC hospital as well. The corporation should issue a statement over it, the MP said. Kotak's Lok Sabha constituency covers Ghatkopar, where Rajawadi Hospital is located.

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New Delhi: As the Centre is set to hold talks with political leaders of Jammu and Kashmir, the parties in Ladakh, including BJP have expressed concerns over constitutional safeguards for their people.

A group of political and social leaders including BJP's Ladakh MP Jamyang Tsering Namgyal and veteran leader Thupstan Chhewang on Wednesday (June 23) demanded a legislature in the union territory of Ladakh and sought protection in land ownership, job reservation etc. which they enjoyed under Article 370 and Article 35A.

Chhewang said that the aspirations of the Ladakhi people have remained unfulfilled and that the people are apprehensive about their future without the protections guaranteed under Article 370 and Article 35A.

After Ladakh was carved out from Jammu and Kashmir and given the status of union territory without legislature on August 5, 2019, the people are apprehensive about their future without the protections guaranteed under Article 370 and Article 35A, Chhewang was quoted as saying by PTI.

Just as the Prime Minister has invited Kashmiri leaders, Chhewang said the issues of Ladakhi people should also be addressed.

The Prime Minister has invited Kashmiri leaders for talks and some important decision with regard to J&K is expected. Watching the development, we want the pending issues of Ladakh are also addressed as well to dispel the apprehensions of the people of Ladakh in respect of land ownership, job reservation and environmental protection, cultural preservation and other common interests, he said.

Chhewang, who was flanked by prominent leaders from several parties including Congress, said the grouping was formed last year to press for safeguards under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution to the union territory and has held two meetings with Union Home Minister Amit Shah in the past.

After the formation of the UT, the work of the local administration was not up to the mark and after deliberations at the meeting of the apex body, we felt the need that we should have our own legislature to have the right to make laws, the former MP said.

He said despite the fulfilment of the long-pending demand of the UT status, there is also a need for safeguards like the Sixth Scheduled of the Constitution in the interest of the people of Ladakh, 95 per cent of whom belong to various scheduled tribes.

Chhewang said the Home Ministry has already started negotiations with the group but it has yet to reach the final stage as the Centre is yet to nominate members to the committee headed by Minister of State for Home G K Reddy.

He said the group decided to reach out to the socio-religious and political groups in Kargil and take them on board before finalising its panel under the leadership of Ladakh MP to hold dialogue with the Home Minister in Delhi next month.

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New Delhi: Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's June 24 meeting with the mainstream political parties of Jammu and Kashmir, the question lies on whether it will give momentum to the political process in the Union Territory.

The all-party meet will be the first political engagement since the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019 when the Centre had revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and the state was bifurcated into two union territories.

As per sources, key issues like delimitation and assembly elections are likely to be discussed that may pave way for the political processes in Jammu and Kashmir.

This is pertinent to note that the Delimitation Commission is believed to complete its exercise in the next four or five months.

The speculations are also rife about statehood being discussed on the table. Union Home Minister Amit Shah had said in February this year that statehood will be restored to J-K at an appropriate time.

Congress' GA Mir, one of the 14 leaders who have been invited, also said on Tuesday (June 22) that the party will keep 'restoration of full statehood' on priority number one irrespective of the agenda of the meeting.

"We will try to convince him (PM Narendra Modi) to restore full statehood.... All parties who are taking part in the meeting are facing huge public pressure for restoration of statehood," Mir said.

On the other hand, the People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD), also known as the Gupkar Alliance, are deliberating upon the possibilities of the restoration of Article 370 and 35-A. While announcing that they have accepted the invite, they said that peace in the region cannot be restored without undoing the 'illegal' and 'unconstitutional' act of revocation of the special status.

PDP president Mehbooba Mufti, part of the Gupkar Alliance, said, "The agenda of the alliance, for which this alliance has been formed, what has been snatched away from us, we will talk on that, that it was a mistake and it was illegal and unconstitutional, without restoring which the issue of J-K (cannot be resolved) and the situation in J-K (cannot improve) and peace in the whole region cannot be restored."

This is to be noted that the meeting comes over six months after Jammu and Kashmir witnessed the District Development Council (DDC) elections, the first major polls held in the Union territory since the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 received the assent of the President.

Amit Shah along with National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj Sinha and other top officials are also expected to attend the meeting.

(With inputs from agencies)



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Chennai: A 47-year-old farmer died on Wednesday (June 23) after being beaten with a lathi by a special Sub Inspector in the Salem district.

The incident was caught on camera and the video has gone viral on social media.

In the video, the policeman named Periyasamy can be seen beating a man, Murugesan, despite cries and pleas from the victims friends. The incident took place at the Pappinaickaenpatti check-post under the Yethapur station limited in the Salem district.

The victim had reportedly gone with his friends to the nearby Kallakurichi district to purchase liquor. When stopped by the cops, the farmer who was in an inebriated state was said to have argued with the cops.

In the clip of the brutal attack, Murugesan and his friends are seen pleading with the policeman, who continued to thrash the man indiscriminately, while other cops in the vicinity looked on. Apparently, the policeman stopped raining blows with the cane only after the victim fell unconscious.

According to the police, Periyasamy has been arrested. The issue was also raised in the Assembly by Leader of Opposition Edappadi K Palaniswami, to which Chief Minister Stalin assured action and said an investigation was underway.

Owing to the pandemic, 11 districts of Tamil Nadu including Salem are still under restrictions, which means that liquor shops are shut there. Owing to such restrictions, people from such districts tend to go to some adjoining districts where the state-run liquor shops are open, despite the guidelines preventing them from doing so.

The incident of police brutality is reminiscent of the Jayaraj-Bennix custodial death case that took place in Tuticorin in June 2020.

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New Delhi: Security forces killed a terrorist during an encounter in the Shopian district of south Kashmir on Wednesday (June 23). According to reports, the encounter took place in the Shirmal area of Shopian today. The identity of the slain terrorist is yet to be ascertained by forces.

The Kashmir Zone Police confirmed the report and tweeted, "One militant has been killed in the ongoing gunfight, saying that the operation is going on."

Earlier, J&K police had tweeted that a gunfight had broken out in the Shirmal area of Shopian. "#Encounter has started at Shirmal area of #Shopian. Police and security forces are on the job. Further details shall follow," Kashmir Zone Police tweeted.

On June 21, unidentified terrorists opened fire at a Naka party of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in the Zainapora area of Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir. No injuries or casualties were reported, informed CRPF in a statement.

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New Delhi: Unidentified suspected terrorists on Wednesday (June 23) shot at a youth and injured him critically in Habba Kadal locality of Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir. The victim was immediately rushed to the Shri Maharaja Hari Singh Hospital where he was declared dead by a doctor. The victim had received gunshot injuries to the chest.

The 25-year-old youth was identified as Umar Ahmad. He was a mobile shop owner by profession. A police officer confirmed the incident and said that investigations have been started.

Meanwhile, Pakistani terror group Lashkar Front TRF claimed responsibility of the attack on Twitter and said the shopkeeper was an alleged police informer. It is to be noted that this is the third assasination in Srinagar in last five days.

A police official told PTI that the security forces cordoned the area off immediately after the attack and a hunt was launched to nab the attackers.
New Delhi: Twitter India Managing Director Manish Maheshwari has been summoned by Uttar Pradesh Police for questioning on Thursday (June 23) over tweets on the assault of an elderly Muslim man in Ghaziabad. Maheshwari will appear before the Ghaziabad Police at 10:30 on Thursday.

In a second notice sent to Twitter India MD Maneesh Maheshwari, Ghaziabad Senior Superintendent of Police Amit Pathak warned him that his failure may result in his prosecution for hindering the probe. The new notice to the Twitter India MD was sent on June 21 evening after Maheshwari offered to join the investigation through video conference, a senior police officer said.

Twitter has drawn flak for failure to fully comply with the new IT rules, which mandates among other requirements, the appointment of three key personnel - chief compliance officer, nodal officer and grievance officer by social media platforms with over 50 lakh users. All the three personnel have to be resident in India.

While the rules came into effect on May 26, Twitter is yet to adhere to the social media guidelines, despite repeated reminders from the government. The government, last week, had slammed Twitter for deliberate defiance and failure to comply with the IT rules, which has led to the US giant losing its intermediary status in India and becoming liable for users posting any unlawful content.

Twitter and the government have been at loggerheads over multiple instances in the past months, including during the farmers' protest and later when the microblogging platform tagged political posts of several leaders of the ruling party BJP as "manipulated media", triggering a sharp rebuke from the Centre.

Twitter has an estimated 1.75 crore users in India, as per data cited by the government recently.

Earlier this month, Twitter had blocked accounts of Punjabi rapper JazzyB, Sydney-based hip-hop artist L-Fresh the Lion and two others following demands by the Indian government.

Earlier this year, more than 500 accounts were suspended and access to hundreds of others in India blocked after the government ordered the microblogging platform to restrain the spread of misinformation and inflammatory content related to farmers' protests.
New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday (June 23) said that the extradition of Vijay Mallya has become final as he has exhausted all his options.

The extradition of Vijay Mallya has been ordered by the Westminster Magistrates Court and confirmed by the UK High Court.

Since Vijay Mallya has been denied permission to file an appeal in the UK Supreme Court, his extradition to India has become final, said ED in a statement.

Meanwhile, wanted diamond merchant Nirav Modi, whose extradition to India was ordered in April by UK Home Secretary Priti Patel in the Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam case, lost the first stage of his extradition appeal in the High Court in London.

The Westminster Magistrates Court had earlier ordered the extradition of Nirav Modi to India. Modi has been in London Jail for the last two years and three months.

The ED transferred attached assets worth Rs 8441.5 crore to a consortium of Public Sector Banks who had lent money to Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi.

Mallya, Modi and Choksi have defrauded the Indian PSBs to the tune of Rs. 22,585.83 crore.

Till date, the ED has seized assets worth Rs. 18,170.02 crore which included assets worth Rs. 969 crore located in foreign countries.

As of date, out of total seized assets of Rs. 18,170.02 crore under provisions of PMLA, assets worth Rs 329.67 crore have been confiscated, and assets worth Rs 9041.5 Crore, representing 40% of total loss to the bank have been handed over to the Public Sector banks.

The ED said that prosecution complaints have been filed against all three accused after the completion of PMLA investigation. Extradition requests have been sent for these persons to UK and Antigua and Barbuda.

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Kolkata: West Bengal Assembly Speaker Biman Banerjee has complained to his Lok Sabha counterpart Om Birla about the "excessive interference" of Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar in matters related to parliamentary democracy and functioning of the House.

Banerjee complained to Birla about Dhankhar during the virtual All India Speakers' Conference on Tuesday.

"I told the Lok Sabha speaker about the excessive interference of Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar in parliamentary democracy and the functioning of the Assembly.

"Despite being passed by the Assembly, several bills are lying with the governor as he has not signed them. This is unprecedented in the history of West Bengal's parliamentary democracy. Such a thing has never happened before," Banerjee told PTI.

Dhankhar, who shares a strained relationship with the TMC government, is yet to react to the development.

"We have been saying this for a long time that the present governor is acting as the mouthpiece of a specific political party. He is not only interfering in the functioning of the state of affairs but is also maligning the West Bengal government," senior TMC leader and MLA Tapas Roy said.

However, the West Bengal unit of the BJP came out in support of the governor and claimed that he has exposed the truth.

"The TMC is angry with the governor as he has exposed the lawless situation in the state. There have been complaints against him earlier, but all of them were baseless," BJP state chief Dilip Ghosh said.

The TMC government and Dhankhar have been sharing an acrimonious relation since he assumed office in July 2019.

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Bengaluru: All students in degree colleges in Karnataka will be vaccinated against COVID-19 in the first or second week of July, after which the institutions would reopen for classes, Deputy Chief Minister Dr C N Ashwath Narayan said here on Wednesday.

"A committee headed by Dr. Devi Prasad Shetty has submitted a report covering all aspects, including the third wave. It has recommended opening degree colleges first. Students will be vaccinated in July, after which the classes will begin," Narayan, who heads the COVID-19 Task Force, told reporters on the sidelines of a function.

In a bid to make students come back to their colleges, the government has coined the slogan 'Marali College Ge' (Back to colleges), he said.

The DCM said the government is awaiting the central government guidelines on reopening colleges. He said vaccination for all those aged over 18 in the state is already underway on a priority basis.

To a question on the Delta Plus variant, classified as a Variant of Concern (VOC), Narayan said no mutant of the virus can cause harm to those people who have been vaccinated.

He said vaccines are the only way forward and everyone should get inoculated.

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MUMBAI: Underworld don and fugitive Mumbai serial blasts case mastermind Dawood Ibrahims brother Iqbal Kaskar has been detained by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in Mumbai.

According to news agency ANI, NCB has confirmed taking Dawood Ibrahim's brother Iqbal Kaskar into its custody in drugs case.

Dawood Ibrahim's brother Iqbal Kaskar has been taken into custody by NCB in a drugs case: NCB pic.twitter.com/CJ4QCoFLui  ANI (@ANI) June 23, 2021

Iqbal Kaskar is being grilled by the NCB sleuths at the moment. He was earlier questioned after international links emerged in the wake of series of investigations over the past year during which the NCB busted several narcotics networks in Mumbai.

According to unconfirmed media reports, the NCB officials also seized at least twenty-five kg of charas, which was being brought from Jammu and Kashmir to Punjab and it was to be distributed in Mumbai from there.

Earlier, Kaskar was involved in a money laundering case and the Enforcement Directorate and Mumbai Police had registered a case against him in connection with the alleged extortion of a leading builder in Maharashtra.

The charge sheet filed by Mumbai Police also named another fugitive mafia operative Chhota Shakeel and other known or unknown gangsters, besides other co-accused Israr Jamil Sayyed, Mumtaz Ejaz Shaikh and Pankaj Gangar in the extortion case.

All accused were charged under Indian Penal Code Section 384, 386, 387, 34 and 120(B), and Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act Section 3(1)(ii), 3(2), 3(4) and 3(5), registered by the Kasarvadavali Police Station.

Sometimes back, the anti-extortion cell had arrested Iqbal Kaskar's son Rizwan while he was trying to flee the country.

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New Delhi: Bollywood actress Yami Gautam who recently tied the knot with Uri director Aditya Dhar has been treating her fans with endearing pictures of her intimate wedding ceremony.

The actress took to her Instagram handle and shared her latest photos from the photoshoot.

The actress wrote,Simply happy

#RituKumar #WomanOfRK #RituKumarSS21 #ad @ritukumarhq..

In the pictures, the Kaabil actress can be seen flaunting her maxi dress, crafted by the designer brand Ritu Kumar Label.

In both the pictures, Yami seemed extremely happy and posed for the cameras. The beautiful duo got married in a small ceremony with only family and close friends in attendance on June 4. Yami announced the news on her social media regarding the same.

On the work front, Yami recently began shooting for the social comedy film 'Dasvi' produced by Dinesh Vijan's Maddock Films. She will also be seen in Behzad Khambata's thriller 'A Thursday' playing the role of a school teacher who takes 16 children as hostages.
Mumbai: Actor Shahid Kapoors wife Mira Rajput is an avid social media user. The star wife has now even become a social media influencer.

Mira took to her Instagram on Tuesday (June 22) to share with us her dream team which comprises none other than her husband Shahid Kapoor and brother-in-law and actor Ishaan Khatter.

In the photo shared by Mira, the three of them are seen sporting workout clothes.

"Dream team," Mira captioned the post.

The 26 years old post received a lot of love from fans. "So cool. It would be fun watching you guys working out together," one user commented, "Posers. I wish to be a part of your dream team as well," another one wrote.

Earlier, Mira had shared a post on International Yoga Day, urging people to practice yoga. In the small reel post that she shared, she also revealed that she deepen her yoga practice after the birth of her two kids.

Mira, often shares parenting tips, styling tips, videos talking about her favourite Ayurvedic products, funny reels among others on her Instagram page which has 2.6 million followers currently.

Shahid Kapoor tied the knot with Mira Rajput in July 2015 in a private Gurudwara ceremony in Delhi, after meeting her in an arranged setup a few months ago.

The couple welcomed their first baby, daughter Misha Kapoor in August 2016 and son Zain Kapoor in September 2018.
New Delhi: Bollywood action star Vidyut Jammwal has signed up with the reputed Hollywood talent management agency Wonder Street, known to represent international action heroes such as Tony Jaa, Michael Jaa White and Dolph Lundgren.

Vidyut will be represented by Christine and Mark Holder.

"I'm excited to be associated with some of the hardest working people of Hollywood," Vidyut said, of his new association.

Vidyut has been interacting with several global action heroes over the past year, courtesy his chat segment "X-Rayed By Vidyut". The actor has also been promoting the Indian martial art form of Kalaripayattu.

The actor has made his mark in Bollywood as an action star with his roles in the "Commando" series, "Khuda Haafiz", "Junglee" and "Force". His upcoming films are "Sanak" and "Khuda Haafiz Chapter II".
NEW DELHI: A three-member panel formed by the Congress high command to resolve all issues and end factionalism in its Punjab unit will soon call senior leader Navjot Singh Sidhu, who is reportedly not on good terms with his senior party colleague and Chief Minister Capt. Amarinder Singh.

"My answer is yes", Congress general secretary in charge of Punjab affairs, Harish Rawat said on Wednesday on being asked 'will Congress MLA Navjot Singh Sidhu be called by the panel?'

"My answer is yes", says Congress general secretary in-charge of Punjab affairs, Harish Rawat on being asked 'will Congress MLA Navjot Singh Sidhu be called by the panel?' pic.twitter.com/KDD4Ps4plJ  ANI (@ANI) June 23, 2021

Rawat added that a report has been submitted and hopefully will get a reply by July 8-10. I've now asked to collect his (Navjot Singh Sidhu's) statements (on Punjab govt).

Earlier, Punjab Congress president Sunil Jhakhar, Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal and Rajya Sabha MP Pratap Singh Bajwa met Rahul Gandhi to apprise him of the situation after infighting escalated in the state.

"Hope that the current situation will be resolved and some wrong people are advising the chief minister over the decision on jobs to kin of MLAs," Sunil Jakhar told reporters after the meeting.

He said the issue of Navjot Singh Sidhu is under discussion by the party leadership.

"It's part of the consultation now", says Punjab Congress president Sunil Jakhar on the ongoing clash between Congress MLA Navjot Singh Sidhu and Chief Minister Amarinder Singh pic.twitter.com/ANSFCyHDDa  ANI (@ANI) June 23, 2021

While another bete noire of Punjab CM, Pratap Singh Bajwa also met Rahul Gandhi and said that he discussed the ground reality and current political situation in the state.

He asserted, "the party high-command will take a decision over the chief ministerial candidate for next assembly elections." Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi has stepped in to defuse the tension in the state unit as he met several leaders including Pargat Singh.

Some MLAs who met Rahul Gandhi said that they have raised issues regarding the state. Pargat Singh, who is among those MLAs, critical of the chief minister, said, "If CM is ready to address the issues raised by me, then the matter is resolved."

Meanwhile, CM Amarinder Singh expressed his displeasure during the meeting on Tuesday with the party panel for being targeted and said that undue pressure is being created by a few individuals, sources said.

However, senior party leader Mallikarjun Kharge, who heads the three-member panel, which has got a larger mandate for poll preparation apart from resolving factionalism in the state party unit, said, "Everybody has said that they will fight the polls together and the party is united under the leadership of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi."

Sources say that the panel discussed the political situation in the state and also issues related to Navjot Singh Sidhu and a possible way out to resolve the issue. While Sidhu is not relenting in his attack on the chief minister, he has insisted on an early resolution of issues. State in-charge Harish Rawat has said that the matter is with Sonia Gandhi and refused to comment on statements made by Sidhu.

(With Agency inputs)

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CHENNAI: Renewing his partys old demand, a DMK legislator has demanded the Central government to bestow the Bharat Ratna  the countrys highest civilian honour  on former Tamil Nadu chief minister and DMK founder M Karunanidhi posthumously.

DMK MLA Dr Inigo Irudayaraj made this demand while speaking during his first speech in Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly. The DML MLA also called for making Trichy the second capital of Tamil Nadu.

I demand Bharat Ratna for former CM M Karunanidhi and also demand Trichy to be made the second capital of Tamil Nadu, DMK MLA Dr Inigo Irudayaraj said in Tamil Nadu Assembly.

I demand Bharat Ratna for former CM M. Karunanidhi and also demand Trichy to be made the second capital of Tamil Nadu: DMK MLA Dr. Inigo Irudayaraj during his first speech in Tamil Nadu Assembly  ANI (@ANI) June 23, 2021

It is not the first time that the ruling DMK has demanded 'Bharat Ratna' for Karunanidhi. The DMK had also raised this issue in the state assembly sometime back, saying Karunanidhi was a Dravidian stalwart and the tallest leader and deserved the highest honour.

Raising the issue during Zero Hour in the Rajya Sabha, DMKs Tiruchi Shiva dubbed Karunanidhi the tallest leader of the country and a Dravidian stalwart.

DMK chief M Karunanidhi died on August 7 after a brief illness. The DMK stalwart had served as the chief minister of Tamil Nadu five times but was never a member of Parliament.

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New Delhi: Telecom operator Vodafone Idea (VIL) has announced that it is offering voice and data benefits for low-income group users to reconnect back, as they resume work amid lockdown relaxation.

VIL is offering Rs 75 worth of voice and data benefits to its low-income group users who are getting back to work after the lockdown. To reconnect these low-income group customers, VIL is giving 50 Vi to Vi (within the network) calling minutes along with 50 MB of data. This benefit comes with a validity of 15 days, post which customers can recharge with their preferred value recharge packs.

During the lockdown, a segment of prepaid telecom users was unable to recharge due to several reasons, VIL said. Vodafone Idea is the third-largest mobile operator after market leader Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel in the world's second-largest telecom market.

In the month of may Vodafone Idea (Vi) had announced a one-time Rs 49 plan around 6 crore low-income customers to help them stay connected during this pandemic time. The plan was offered to the customers for free. Additionally, Vodafone Idea customers in the target group were given almost double benefit on recharging their mobile service account with plan value of Rs 79. The scheme, covering 6 crore customers with Rs 49 recharge plan, was worth Rs 294 crore. The pack offered talktime of Rs 38 and 100 MB data with a validity of 28 days.
Mumbai: Horizons vanish, boundaries melt and time stops when love goes beyond. How far are you willing to go for love? This Pride month, &PriveHD, the premium destination of nuanced cinema celebrates love in all its hues and shades with the Prive Premiere of Ammonite starring Academy Award winner Kate Winslet and Golden Globe winner Saoirse Ronan.

Come watch this gorgeous wind-swept tale of forbidden love this Saturday, 26 June at 1 PM and 9 PM only on &PriveHD. A romance for the ages that will truly make you believe in the power of love, this romantic drama is a tale of two women who put everything on the line to make their love work and last in a world that considers it taboo.

In 1840s England, acclaimed but overlooked fossil hunter Mary Anning works alone selling common fossils to tourists to support her ailing mother. A chance meet with a young woman changes her life forever when they start to develop an intense relationship, altering both of their lives forever. The movie revolves around a closed-door romantic relationship between Anning (Kate Winslet) and Charlotte Murchison (Saoirse Ronan) at a time such sort of intimacy was misunderstood.

Having featured compelling premieres such as Frankie, Ode To Joy and The Intruder that enable you to feel the other side of the story, &PriveHD returns with yet another Prive Premiere that prides itself in being a must-watch romantic drama.

Love knows no boundaries this month. Watch the Prive Premiere of Ammonite this Saturday, 26 June at 1 PM and 9 PM on &PriveHD
New Delhi: Fans of actors Karan Mehra and Nisha Rawal were in for a shock when on June 1 the latter complained against her husband and Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai actor of domestic violence.

Later, the two have separately spoken about their broken marriage to the media - each with a different version.

Nisha, who seems to be living separately from her estranged husband Karan, took to her social media account to share a latest picture of herself with her four years old son Kavish. The actress called normalcy a challenge in her caption.

Check out her post:

Normalcy seems like a challengetaken, the actress captioned her post.

Earlier, she also shared photos from her sons space theme birthday party recently. Karan Mehra from the celebration. He however, posted a long and loving post for his son on his Instagram account.

Nisha has accused Karan of repeated physical violence and having a secret affair. She also showed her wounds to the media. Fashion designer Rohit Verma and actress Kashmira Shah claimed that the actress is speaking the truth.

Karan on the other hand accuses his wife of self-inflicting injuries on herself to frame him. He completely denies the charges of having an affair.

The matter is currently sub judice.

Karan and Nisha got married on November 24, 2012 in a lavish Hindu wedding ceremony in Noida, after 5 years of dating.The two also participated in reality couple dance show Nach Baliye season 5 in 2013.
JAIPUR: Putting an end to all speculations, the BJP has confirmed that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will be the face of assembly elections to be held in Uttar Pradesh early next year.

The announcement was made by BJP general secretary and party's Rajasthan in-charge Arun Singh, who confirmed that the party fully backs Yogi Adityanaths candidature for the top post in UP.

Singh also said that the central leadership of the party will decide who will be its CM face in Rajasthan later. Speaking to the media during his visit to Jaipur, Singh said that Yogi Adityanath is doing a good job, so why should he be removed from CM`s position.

Also, speaking on Rajasthan CM face amid the ongoing tussle between state organisation and former CM Vasundhara Raje group, Singh said, "The parliamentary board will decide the CM face for the assembly polls to be held in 2023."

He also warned those commenting on state organisation's working (Raje followers). "Those issuing their statements should first evaluate whether their comment will benefit or bring in loss to the party." Arun Singh said.

"If party suffers due to any statement of any leader, then disciplinary action shall be taken against the person concerned," he added. "I have asked the state leadership that enough is enough," he said.

"Make a list of all those leaders who are issuing unnecessary statements. We will make those leaders understand and if they don`t understand, action will be taken against them," he added.

It may be noted that CM Yogi had recently met PM Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP chief JP Nadda and other top leaders amid intense speculations about a leadership change in UP. However, the party brushed aside all such speculations and backed CM Yogi for the top post.

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Lucknow: Vaccination is likely to be mandatory for all the Uttar Pradesh MLAs, who intend to attend the monsoon session of the state legislature, likely to be convened in August.

During the Budget Session, held in February this year, RT-PCR tests were made mandatory for the legislators attending the session. The Budget Session was adjourned sine die on March 4. The monsoon session is likely to be convened in the first week of August.

State Assembly Speaker Hriday Narayan Dixit said, "The monsoon session of the UP Assembly will be held as per COVID protocol and all the measures, which were implemented during the last session, will be in place. The decision making the vaccination compulsory for all MLAs/MLCs will be announced after the schedule of the session is decided by the state government."

He said, "As per the established practice an all-party meeting will be organised and the issue of vaccination of MLAs will be discussed in that meeting."

Dixit further said, "The Assembly Secretariat will compile the data about the corona jab taken by the MLAs and as per my information most of them have taken at least one jab. During the Budget Session, special camps were set up by the Assembly secretariat for conducting RT-PCR test of legislators."

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New Delhi: It is not always easy to address the elephant in the room, sometimes literally. A Thai woman recently had a surprising visitor in her kitchen, when Boonchuay, a male elephant, decided to search for snacks in her house.

As per The Guardian report, Ratchadawan Puengprasoppon, who lives in Hua Hin districts Chalermkiatpattana village, woke up in the wee hours of June 20, when she heard loud crashing and banging noise. To her absolute astonishment, she found Boonchuay knocking pans and other utensils on the floor looking for food.

Soon after, the pictures of an elephant poking his head through a kitchen window went viral.

Meet Boonchuay:

This was not the first time that the elephant wandered around and reached someone's house. As per the report, Boonchuay, a resident of Thailands Kaeng Krachan national park, has done this before.

They come to visit quite often. They always come when there is the local market because they can smell food, Itthipon Thaimonkol, the parks superintendent told The Guardian.

Dr Joshua Plotnik, an assistant professor of psychology at Hunter College, City University of New York, expressed concern about elephants leaving their natural habitat and searching for food elsewhere.

This is not that uncommon in Thailand (I've been in a house while this was happening, it's scary as hell), unfortunately. This is why we're studying the relationship between elephant and human behavior there, and why the conflict is such a major concern. photo: R. Phungprasopporn pic.twitter.com/9Wgj3plP5x  Josh Plotnik (@CCCAnimals) June 20, 2021

These incidences are increasing in Asia, and it is likely due to a decrease in available resources and an increase in human disturbances in the elephants habitat, he told the leading website.

Plotnik added, If you dont fulfil the elephants need for food, water and other resources in their natural habitat (or ensure they have them somewhere else), they will find ways around deterrents and access villages or cropfields in search of these resources.
New Delhi: Warren Buffett on Wednesday resigned as a trustee from the Gates Foundation and announced that donated an $4.1 billion by giving all of his Berkshire Hathaway Inc. shares to charity.

My goals are 100% in sync with those of the foundation," Buffett, 90, said in a statement.

Buffett has contributed more than $27 billion of his own money to the charity over the past 15 years. He has donated $41 billion worth of Berkshire stock to five foundations. On Wednesday he announced that he has donated an additional $4.1 billion.

For years I have been a trustee  an inactive trustee at that  of only one recipient of my funds, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMG). I am now resigning from that post, just as I have done at all corporate boards other than Berkshires, he was quoted as saying in a statement by The New York Times.



The Bill and Melinda Gates foundation has been going through a tumultous patch as the power couple filed for divorce. He is one of the Gates Foundations three board members, alongside Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates.

The couple had announced last month that they were splitting after 27 years of marriage.
Kolkata: The Kolkata Police on Wednesday claimed to have arrested a man allegedly posing as an IAS officer and organising a fake COVID-19 vaccination camp in the city's Kasba area.

Actor and Trinamool Congress MP Mimi Chakraborty had got the first dose of the Covishield vaccine at the camp among several others. However, she did not receive the customary SMS that is sent to people after they are administered a dose, and this aroused suspicion in her mind.

"I had got an invite to the camp, where I was told members of the third gender will also be inoculated. When I did not receive the message after my vaccination, I immediately stopped the entire process at the camp and informed the police," Chakraborty said.

The TMC MP said that she was invited to encourage people from the transgender community and physically handicapped. The vaccination camp was organised in the name of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) at its office in South Kolkata on Tuesday.

The man arrested by the police has been identified as Debanjan Deb. He had set up the free inoculation camp projecting himself as a joint municipal commissioner of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, a senior officer of Kolkata Police said.

"Several people were administered COVID vaccines at the camp for which he had no permission from the KMC," he said. "We have sent the vaccine samples for forensic tests. If these turn out to be fake, we will have to ask all those who have been inoculated there to take the jab again," the officer added.

Outgoing Mayor and Chairman of the KMC Board of Administrators Firhad Hakim said if any official of the municipal corporation is found to be involved in the matter, the person will face strict action.

Police have recovered a "fake identity card" and impounded a four-wheeler from the possession of the accused.

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NEW DELHI: Trinamool Congress supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday hit out at the Narendra Modi government at the Centre accusing it of trying to put pressure on Alapan Bandyopadhyay, the former chief secretary of the state.

The Chief Minister described Aalapan as an honest officer and a competent person who was being victimised by the Centre government.

Alapan Bandyopadhyay is an honest officer and competent person. He is totally authorised to take action as per his convenience and our govt will support him. Central Govt is victimising an officer, West Bengal CM said while referring to DoPT's notice to the states former chief secretary.

Bengals ruling party TMC also claimed that petulance has become part of state policy of the Narendra Modi government and the action against Bandyopadhyay, now working as an advisor to the chief minister, amounted to the opening of a provocative chapter in federal conflicts.

"The BJP has resorted to disturb the functional affairs of the government of West Bengal to further its political agenda its humiliating defeat in the election.

"It is the prime minister who sits at the helm of the DoPT, and there's no point in guessing that this is nothing but personal rage, which is desperately finding a venting point to roar," senior TMC MP and party spokesperson Sougata Ray said.

The comments by the TMC came a day after the Centre initiated "major penalty proceedings" against Bandyopadhyay, amid a tug-of-war between the Union government and the Mamata Banerjee dispensation over him, which may deprive him of post-retirement benefits, partially or fully.

The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) has sent Bandyopadhyay, who retired on May 31 and is now the chief advisor to the CM, a "memorandum" mentioning the charges giving him 30 days to reply.

Referring to the death of Bandyopadhyay's mother a few days back, Ray claimed that the Central government is also heartless.

"They (the Centre) simply want to deprive Alapan of the benefits that he was entitled to post-retirement. After losing (the poll in) Bengal, the BJP is trying to create an unnecessary tussle in the functioning of the state government. By making petulance part of state policy, Modi has opened a provocative chapter in federal conflicts," he said.

The action initiated against Bandyopadhyay is inhuman, Ray claimed. "The TMC condemns it. People of West Bengal also are seeing how the central government is harassing an honest officer. People of Bengal will not tolerate such humiliation," he said.

The West Bengal BJP denied the charges and claimed that it is the state's ruling party that has politicised bureaucracy.

"We have nothing personal against Alapan Bandyopadhyay or anyone else. He was an all-India cadre officer, and the matter is between him and the union government. It is the TMC which has politicised the police and bureaucracy and have been using them to serve its political interests," state BJP spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya said.

Bandopadhyay was set to retire on May 31, but the state had recently sought and received permission for the extension of his tenure by three months as he played a crucial role in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

He was, however, handed over a transfer directive by the DoPT, shortly after a row broke out over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's post-cyclone review meeting, which the CM and the state chief secretary did not attend.

The bureaucrat, instead of reporting to Delhi, chose to retire amid the Centre-state tussle. He was subsequently appointed as the CM's chief adviser. The DoPT had sent him a reminder after he failed to report in response to its May 28 order.

The Union Home Ministry has also slapped a show-cause notice on Bandyopadhyay under a stringent provision of the Disaster Management Act that entails imprisonment for up to two years for abstaining from the meeting presided over by the PM.

The notice said Bandyopadhyay "acted in a manner tantamount to refusing to comply with lawful directions of the central government". Bandyopadhyay had responded to the Home Ministry's notice.

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New Delhi: The Delta variant of the novel coronavirus that was first found in India is the greatest threat to the United States` effort to eradicate COVID-19 in its borders, said US infectious disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci during a Tuesday press call.

"The transmissibility is unquestionably greater" in the Delta variant than the original variant of COVID-19, Fauci said, adding that "it is associated with an increased disease severity."

The Delta variant is becoming the globally dominant version of the disease, the World Health Organization`s chief scientist said on Friday.

Fauci said that the vaccines authorized in the United States, including the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, are effective against the new variant of COVID-19.

"We have the tools, so let`s use them and crush the outbreak," Fauci said.

The United States is falling short of its goal of vaccinating 70% of adults by July 4 and will likely need a few additional weeks to hit that target, White House COVID-19 senior adviser Jeffrey Zients said during the press call.

Zients added that he expects 70% of adults over 27 years old will have had at least one shot by July 4.

More than 150 million people in the United States, or more than 45% of the population, have been fully vaccinated, according to federal data last updated on Monday.

The Delta variant contributed to a severe outbreak of COVID-19 in India during April and May that overwhelmed health services in the country and killed hundreds of thousands.
New Delhi: Mumbai terror attack mastermind and banned Jamat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed's son Hafiz Talha was on Wednesday seen arriving at a hospital in Paistan hours after a powerful bomb explosion took place outside his father's house in Lahore. According to reports, Talha met a JuD worker at the hospital who was reportedly injured in the blast.

A powerful car bomb exploded outside the house of the 2008 Mumbai terror attack mastermind and banned Jamat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed in Pakistan's Lahore on June 23 afternoon, killing at least three people and injuring 21 others. The blast took place at a police picket outside Saeed's residence at the BOR Society in Jauhar Town, resulting in serious injuries to some police officers guarding his house. The windows and walls of Saeed's house were damaged from the impact of the blast, Pakistani media reported.

PTI quoted Inspector General of Police (Punjab) Inam Ghani saying that there could have been a major loss had there been no police picket outside the house of the high-profile personality, referring to Saeed. "Explosive material was installed in the car. There was a police picket outside the high-value target's house. The car could not cross the police picket," Ghani said, describing it as "a terror" act.

The blast sparked rumours that Hafiz Saeed was present at his Lahore house. Ghani said at least three people were killed in the car bomb blast while 21 others were injured.

Till now, no group has claimed responsibility for the blast.

According to an initial report prepared by investigative agencies, more than 30 kgs of explosives were used in the blast, Geo TV reported. The initial report also said that 'foreign-made materials' were used in the blast. It said the material had been planted onto a car and the device was detonated remotely, the channel reported, citing sources.

A roof of a house caved in because of the impact of the blast, says Rescue 1122. Several cars parked close to the buildings were also damaged. The injured people have been shifted to the Jinnah Hospital where the condition of six of them is said to be critical.

Hafiz Saeed, a UN designated terrorist whom the US has placed a USD 10 million bounty on, has been convicted for 36 years imprisonment in five terror financing cases. His punishment is running concurrently. Saeed-led JuD is the front organisation for the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) which is responsible for carrying out the 2008 Mumbai attack that killed 166 people, including six Americans.

The 71-year-old radical cleric has been serving a jail sentence at the high-security Kot Lakhpat Jail in Lahore for his conviction in terror financing cases.

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New Delhi: A skilled worker is any worker that possesses skills, training, knowledge as well as ability in their line of work.

For a skilled worker to immigrate to Australia, they must be qualified for working or training in an eligible skilled occupation in Australia. All other visa-specific requirements will also have to be successfully met.

There are 4 different categories available under permanent work visas for Australia. These are  [1] Regional visas, [2] Skilled migration visas, [3] Business investment visas, and [4] Distinguished talent visas. Now, there are 4 visas that come under Australian immigration skilled migration visas. Of these, 2 require a sponsorship.

An individual with a skilled migration visa for Australia can work and live anywhere throughout the Land Down Under.

Australian skilled migration visas

Employer Nomination Scheme visa [subclass 186]

Allows skilled workers that are nominated by their employers to work and live in Australia permanently

Streams available 

 Employer Nomination Scheme visa [subclass 186] Direct Entry stream

 Employer Nomination Scheme [subclass 186] Labour agreement stream

 Employer Nomination Scheme [subclass 186] Temporary Residence Transition stream

Skilled Independent visa [subclass 189]

For workers  invited through SkillSelect  and New Zealand citizens that possess the skills required by Australia, allowing them to work and live permanently anywhere in Australia.

Streams available 

 Skilled Independent visa [subclass 189] Points-tested stream

 Skilled Independent visa [subclass 189] New Zealand stream

No sponsor or nominator required.

90% of applications processed within 13 months

Skilled Nominated visa [subclass 190]

Allows skilled workers that have been nominated  by an Australian state or territory government agency  to come to work and live in Australia as permanent residents.

90% of applications processed within 14 months

Skilled Regional visa [subclass 887]

For skilled workers that have already lived and worked in certain areas of regional Australia on a previous, eligible Australia visa.

90% of applications processed within 19 months

Currently, applications submitted before September 2020 are being processed.

As of now, there are about 674 different occupations available under the combined skilled immigration list of the government of Australia.

Australia's skilled occupation list also has a role to play in various other permanent visas for Australia, such as  Temporary Skill Shortage [TSS] visa [subclass 482], Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional [provisional] visa [subclass 494] etc.

Another common term when we speak of work overseas in Australia is that of GSM visas.

So, what exactly is meant by GSM visas? Here, GSM stands for General Skilled Migration.

Australias General Skilled Migration visas

Skilled Independent visa [subclass 189]  Points tested stream

90% of applications processed within 13 months

Skilled Nominated visa [subclass 190]

90% of applications processed within 14 months

Skilled Regional [provisional] visa [subclass 489]  Invited Pathway

90% of applications processed within 23 months

Skilled Work Regional [provisional] visa [subclass 491]

90% of applications processed within 10 months

Australias Department of Home Affairs [DoHA] provides monthly updates on the global visa processing times, offering an indicative timeframe for the processing of applications.

A number of factors  such as seasonal peaks and application volumes  impact the processing times for visas.

The processing times given include that for applications lodged online as well as paper-based applications.

The DoHA recommends submitting applications online, wherever possible, in order to streamline the processing.

As applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis, actual processing times might differ from application to application, even for the same visa category.

Certain circumstances do impact and affect visa processing times. Probably the most important factor of them all is that of whether or not a complete application has been submitted by the applicant.

Submitting a Decision Ready Application that has all the required documentation should be the aim for anyone either contemplating or going through Australian visa and immigration.

Similarly, the promptness demonstrated in responding to requests, if any, for additional documentation is also taken into consideration.

For permanent migration visa applications for Australia, the total number of places available in the migration program for that financial year will be another factor.

All parent and Other Family visas for Australia are capped as well as queued.

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Moscow: A Russian military ship fired warning shots at a British Royal Navy destroyer after it entered Russian waters in the Black Sea, and a Russian jet dropped bombs in its path as a warning, Interfax cited Russias defence ministry as saying on Wednesday (June 23).

The British Ministry of Defence did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The HMS Defender left Russian waters soon after the incident, having ventured as much as 3 kilometres (2 miles) inside, the Russian ministry said, adding that the confrontation took place near Cape Fiolent, a landmark on the coast of Crimea.

Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine in 2014 in a move condemned by the West which still considers it Ukrainian territory.

"The destroyer had been warned that weapons would be used if it trespasses the border of the Russian Federation. It did not react to the warning," it said.

A Russian bomber dropped four high explosive fragmentation bombs as a warning in the British destroyer`s path, according to the Russian ministry.

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Washington: President Joe Biden plans to lay out new steps to stem a rising national tide of violent crime, with a particular focus on gun violence, as administration officials brace for what they fear could be an especially turbulent summer.

The worry over crime is real: It has created economic hardship, displacement and anxiety. But there are also tricky politics at play. The spike in crime has become a Republican talking point and has been a frequent topic of conversation on conservative media.

White House aides believe that Biden, with his long legislative record on crime as a former senator, is not easy to paint as soft on the issue, and the president has been clear that he is opposed to the defunding the police movement, which has been effectively used against other Democrats to paint them as anti-law enforcement.

But Biden also is trying to boost progressives' efforts to reform policing. And while combating crime and reforming the police don't have to be at odds with each other, the two efforts are increasingly billed that way.

In a speech on Wednesday (June 23), Biden is to unveil a series of executive orders aimed at reducing violence, and he will renew his calls for Congress to pass gun legislation, aides said. Ahead of the speech, the Justice Department announced new strike forces aimed at tackling gun trafficking in five cities.

The White House also planned to convene a meeting Wednesday (June 23) of a bipartisan group of mayors, members of the law enforcement community, experts and community activists. White House staff members have also been in touch with legislators and congressional staff.

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"Yes, there need to be reforms of police systems across the country. The president is a firm believer in that," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday (June 22). "But there are also steps he can take as president of the United States to help address and hopefully reduce that crime. A big part of that, in his view, is putting in place gun safety measures ... Using the bully pulpit but also using levers at his disposal as president."

In April, Biden announced a half-dozen executive actions on gun control, including cracking down on ghost guns, homemade firearms that lack serial numbers used to trace them and that are often purchased without a background check.

There is also new federal funding from the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package directed toward municipal governments, allowing them to keep more police officers on the street. Aides said Biden would also urge a swift confirmation of his choice to head the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

But Biden is limited in his power to act alone. The House passed two bills requiring background checks on all firearms sales and transfers and allowing an expanded 10-day review for gun purchases. But that legislation faces strong headwinds in the Senate, where some Republican support would be needed for passage.

Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said Tuesday (June 22) that she has seen double-digit increases in murder and violent crime nationwide. It is staggering. It is sobering, she said at a violent-crime forum held by the Washington-based Police Executive Research Forum.

And it's something that DOJ is committed to do all we can to reverse what are profoundly troubling trends. Monaco said the Justice Department would launch strike forces in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., to help reduce violent crime by addressing illegal gun trafficking, building on an initiative begun last month.

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If the federal effort sounds familiar, it is. Federal operations have often been launched to help cities facing spiking crime. President Donald Trump announced something similar last year when he and then-Attorney General William Barr launched Operation Legend, named after a boy who was shot to death in Kansas City, Missouri.

In that effort, hundreds of investigators were deployed to nine cities with rising crime, prioritizing the arrest of violent criminals. Trump, though, laid the blame for the spike in crime on protesters who demonstrated against police brutality following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

He claimed that Democrats were allowing crime to run amok in their cities. But despite pockets of violence in both Democratic- and Republican-run cities, the protests were mostly peaceful. A Harvard Radcliffe Institute study found there were no injuries reported in 97% of the events. Still, Republican leaders continue to echo Trump's claims.

And while crime is rising homicides and shootings are up from the same period last year in Chicago; Los Angeles; Minneapolis; Portland, Oregon; Baltimore; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; and Houston violent crime overall remains lower than it was a decade ago or even five years ago. And most violent crimes plummeted during the first six months of the pandemic, as people stayed indoors and away from others.

Crime started creeping up last summer, a trend criminologists say is hard to define and is likely due to a variety of factors such as historic unemployment, fear over the virus and mass anger over stay-at-home orders. Public mass shootings have also made an alarming return.

Many of us if not most of us are seeing a rise in crime, while at the same time, we're hearing calls for reform, Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison said of cities in remarks at the police forum. And some of those calls are to the extreme of dismantling and defund ... While all of the same time we're sworn to protect the people.

Interest in guns, too, is on the rise. The number of people stopped from buying guns through the U.S. Background check system hit an all-time high of more than 300,000 last year amid a surge of firearm sales. And several states have passed laws barring federal gun control laws from taking effect.

Louisville Metro Police Chief Erika Shields said lax gun laws and the presence of illegal guns on the streets are compounding the violence.

When everyone can have a gun, they tend to,? she said. ?And it just leads to more illegal guns on the street.

The Justice Department recently announced a sweeping investigation into the Louisville police over the March 2020 death of Breonna Taylor, who was shot to death by police during a raid at her home. A similar investigation was launched into the Minneapolis police force.

The rise in violence comes against the backdrop of a national debate on policing and as a police reform bill is being crafted in Congress. Psaki on Tuesday dismissed suggestions that a presidential event focused on cracking down on crime would undermine that legislative effort.

As a senator, Biden wrote several major anti-crime packages, including a 1994 bill that contained provisions now viewed by some as an overreaction to the crime spikes in the 1980s and 1990s. Critics say those bills helped lead to the mass incarceration of Black Americans, and Biden's involvement became a flashpoint in his 2020 campaign.

Biden has expressed second thoughts about some aspects of the legislation, and he has acknowledged its harmful impact on many Black Americans. But he and his allies still hold out the law's provisions to address domestic violence, ban assault weapons and finance community policing.

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